The PASSION Blog

Since I became a Christian back in 1989 I have learnt a few things about sharing my faith. Some of them the easy way, some of them the hard way! Here is a few of them…

Prayer is Vital

I believe prayer is the key that unlocks the hearts of those around us and opens them up to the Lord. I have found that no matter how hard some people are or how closed they are to the Gospel, if I commit to pray for them regularly, in God’s time they start to soften. Before long some actually come to me and ask about my faith!

The Holy Spirit does the real work

As Christians it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking it is our job to save our family and friends. The Bible says in Hebrews 9:27, that the Holy Spirit comes to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgement. This verse says very plainly to me that I can preach until the cows come home, but if the Holy Spirit doesn’t move, no-one is going to get saved. Remembering this can take the pressure off us all!

I am just called to sow

I have had many times when I have tried to share my faith and the words just didn’t come out right. I have walked away shaking my head wishing I should have said this or that. One day as I was dwelling on this a bit too much, God layed on my heart is that as a Christian I am just called to sow His word into peoples lives. If I do my part faithfully, He will take care of the rest. As I said before, knowing this takes the pressure off.

I hope this helps if you are active in sharing your faith

I was sitting down and reflecting this morning about how my life has changed since I have come to know Jesus. I got a pen and a piece of paper and wrote down a few things I came up with in a couple of minutes. They are in no particular order, this is just how they came out.

I am not alone anymore

For most of my life I felt alone. Even in a large crowd or with my friends and family around me I felt empty and alone. Since knowing Jesus this feeling has subsided and slowly gone away.

My bad attitudes have changed

I had so many bad attitudes about myself, about those around me and about life in general. Since coming to know Jesus and reading the Bible my attitudes have changed and are being changed daily. Slowly but surely God’s attitude are replacing my own.

Eternal destiny is sorted out

Most of us think we will go to heaven if we do more good than bad in this life, but we are not really sure. The Bible tells me that because I know Jesus personally I will live for eternity with Him. Knowing rather than hoping gives me peace.

Life is not just about me

For much of my life it has been about me, me, me. Since knowing Jesus and learning from His teachings, I have found this life it not just about me…it is about us. Living outwardly is the key to being happy and contented in this life.

Forgiven and set free

I had done some pretty “average” things in my life to say the least. When I took all of my sin to God for the first time I felt a huge sense of relief and a huge weight lifted off me. Knowing that the Creator of the universe loves you, accepts you and has forgiven you gives you a great sense of freedom.

How about you? How has your life changed since you came to know Jesus? What the benefits you have found?

If you haven’t taken the step of meeting Jesus and asking Him into your life, please click visit my “Peace with God” page and begin your journey with Jesus today.

Like I did, in the years to come I am sure that you will find it is the best thing you have ever done!

Last night at our prayer meeting at church one of the guys mentioned that he had been reading about the old time preachers. He talked about Wigglesworth, Wesley, Finney and Spurgeon and spoke about how bold they were in reaching people for Christ.

This prompted me to dig out one of my old books I read years ago titled, “Wigglesworth: A man who walked with God” by George Stormont. I remember as I read through it that Wigglesworth inspired me with his efforts. His love and passion for Jesus really spoke to me.

I thought I would have a quick read through the book again. I opened it and on the first page the writer related a story of Wigglesworth which he said summed the man up perfectly…

When Wigglesworth stayed in our home once, he came down early one morning and told me, “God spoke to me on your bed”.

“What did he say?”, I asked.

“He said, Wigglesworth, I am going to burn you all up, until there is no more Wigglesworth, only Jesus”.

Standing at the foot of our stairs, he raised his hands to heaven, and with tears running down his cheeks, he cried, “O God, come and do it! I don’t want them to see me anymore - only Jesus!”

I don’t know about you, but my prayer for today is the same as Wigglesworth’s all those years ago. “O God, come and do it! I don’t want them to see me anymore - only Jesus!”

It’s 3.37am and I am awake! That is not uncommon for me as I am one of those strange people that only needs about five or so hours of sleep per night. When I tell people that they are usually horrified and they tell me that unless they get their eight hours every night they are a mess!

Sleep is a funny thing. We all seem to have our natural patterns of sleep. Some need more and some need less. My wife and kids are good sleepers. They are more towards the eight to nine hours per night. If they don’t get that they seem to be tired for a few days.

For me, I have to make sure I don’t go to bed too early otherwise I will be awake in the middle of the night. Hmmm like now! In years gone by I would stare at the roof and get frustrated about not being able to get back to sleep. I would roll over and over and toss and turn. Now I actually enjoy it!

It is a good chance for me to get up and spend some quiet time alone. I can pray, read or just spend some time thinking about life and my faith. It is a good chance to get things sorted in my mind. After an hour or two or three, I usually start to get tired again and head off to bed and drift off. Sometimes that last hour or two of sleep is so deep that I feel like I have been asleep all night.

So how about you - what are your sleep patterns? Do you need 8-10 hours a night? Or are you one of those strange zombie people like me? I would be interested to know…

My wife just read from Proverbs chapter 30 out loud to us. It talked about a man named Agur. The Bible doesn’t mention much about him, but it seems he was an elderly man and an oracle to some of the people.

In the early parts of the passage he expresses his complete lack of wisdom and understanding about life and the things of God. In verses 2 & 3 he says, “I am the most ignorant of men; I do not have a man’s understanding. I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One”.

At first you might think that he is being overly critical of himself, but then he goes on to put it in context. He then changes his focus to God and His Word.

In verses 4 & 5 he declares some great things about God, “Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered up the wind in the hollow of his hands? Who has wrapped up the waters in his cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and the name of his son? Tell me if you know! “Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him”.

After reading Agur’s words, I find that I really relate to him. I find the more I learn about God and the Bible, the more I realise the less I really know. The more I seem to unlock some of the mysteries of the Bible and God’s Kingdom, the more I realise how lacking I am and how awesome and majestic God really is.

It is great to know that even if I spend every moment of the rest of my life studying God’s Word and learning about Him…I will only ever really scratch the surface. He really IS an awesome God