Category: Relationships

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What makes a good neighbour?

What makes a good neighbor?

What makes a good neighbour? It depends on your definition of neighbour. If you mean some who lives in your street, then some who is kind, considerate and quiet at night time.

But if you use the biblical definition, a neighbour is someone we share close proximity too. In my case it would be people in my small country town or people who pass through. If I am travelling it would be people on the road.

In Luke 10:30 NLT Jesus tells the parable of the good Samaritan…

Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road.

Jesus goes on to say that a number of people walked by. Some even crossed the road to walk around the man in need. Then comes along a good Samaritan…

[34] Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. [35] The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’

The context of this story is found in Luke 10:25-29. A religious scholar asked Jesus a question about eternal life and then asks Jesus who is his neighbour. Jesus responded with this story.

From this we can see our neighbours are both those near us and those we come in to contact with. The Bible has a broader definition of neighbour than general society has and even calls us to love our neighbour as ourself (Mark 12:30-31).

So what is a good neighbour? Someone who looks out for those around them!

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My passions?

What are you passionate about?

This is an easy one to answer. The things I am passionate about are always not far from the surface and easy to see. I have many passions, but one stands above it all.

My faith in Jesus is my number one passion. Since I came to Jesus in July of 1989, my life has never been the same. He changed everything for the better. My heart is to walk with Him all the days of my life.

Walking closely with the Lord drives everything else I do in my life. He is the reason I get up early to pray and read my Bible. He is why I want to be the best husband and father I can be. He is why I am a Chaplain. He is why I have my PASSION websites to reach out with His love.

If it was not for Jesus I do not know where I would be. Jesus has given my life meaning, purpose, strength, hope and a future. He loved me and died on the cross for me. My response is to give my life back to Him each day and to take up my cross as it says in Matthew 16:24.

What am I passionate about? Jesus!

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The oldest thing

What’s the oldest things you’re wearing today?

The oldest thing I am wearing today is my wedding ring. 28 years old and counting 😀

My wife and I met 29 years ago and we knew within two weeks we would marry. People told us that is too soon to know.

Twenty eight years later I think we were right!

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Inviting Jesus in

As I was doing my morning devotions today I was thinking about the phrase “Inviting Jesus in”. As I dwelt on this I realised how important it is to invite Jesus in to the various areas of our lives.

1. Our life – this is the first and most important area. We need to invite Jesus in to our lives. He needs to be let in as our Lord and Saviour. This is when true life happens and He lives with us.

2. Our relationships – relationships can be hard at times with all the stresses of life. We need to invite Jesus in to them all. Our marriage, with our children, our friends, our workmates – He needs to be in them all.

3. Our work – inviting Jesus into our workplace to help us do well and serve Him. Whatever job role we have we ultimately do it for the Lord. Colossians 3:23 tells us who we really serve as we work. We are all gifted by God and we need His help to serve.

4. Our finances – many of us struggle with our finances. Inviting Jesus in to this area helps us to understand that He loves and cares for us and He is our provider. One of the names God is known by is Jehovah-Jireh which means “The Lord will provide”.

5. Our health – a lot of people I talk to have health issues that they battle with, myself included. Our battles can be very debilitating. Inviting Jesus into our health issues allows Him to provide comfort, strength and healing. Another name God is known as is Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord who heals.

6. Our future – there are times in our lives where we can really worry about the future and what will happen to our families or ourselves. One thing God has been reminding me of lately is He holds our future. We may not know the future, but we can be confident God holds our future. Each of us are in the palm of His mighty hands.

Today I would encourage you to invite Jesus in to the different areas of your life. If you have never done this before, you can prayer this prayer below.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, I invite you to come into my life. I want You to be my Lord and Saviour. Please come in and cleanse me from my sin. Help me to follow You with all of my heart. Lord, I also invite you into all of my relationships, my work, my finances and my health. Come in and help me in all these areas. Bring healing, provision and peace to them all. I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen

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Forgiveness and unforgiveness

Matthew 6:14-15 NLT – “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. [15] But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Forgiveness is a lost art in some areas of society. People hold on to grudges and won’t let go. Sometimes for many years, sadly.

This is especially true in the online world. Small things get blown out of proportion. A simple slip of the tongue can lead to a hate campaign and people being deeply deeply offended.

One thing I have purposed in my heart to do is let forgiveness flow. As Martin Luther King, Jr said, “Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude”.

As hard as it is sometimes, I have to remember people are imperfect humans who make mistakes. Jesus is the only One who walked the earth that is perfect. Everyone else is not.

Sometimes we have to admit to ourselves that yes we have been hurt or offended, but unforgiveness is not part of who we want to be as Jesus followers.

In the above passage, which comes right after the Lord’s prayer, we see that our forgiveness has implications for our own faith journey. Jesus said that if we want God to forgive our sins, we have to forgive others.

What? I have to forgive others to be forgiven. This is hard Christianity. This is where the rubber hits the road. But it is what Jesus wants for us. He wants us to let go of our pain and release forgiveness to others.

It is not an easy thing to do. In some cases it is impossible without God’s help. We have to be like David in the Psalms and be really honest with God. And then ask Him to help us to forgive and let go.

I know in my own life I have asked God to help me let go of long held unforgiveness and when I did, it was like a huge weight was lifted off me. I felt light for the first time in years.

How about you? Have you things you are holding on to? Is it time to ask God to help you let them go and forgive?

Prayer

Dear God, I do not want to hold unforgiveness in my heart. Please help me today to let things go. Help me to forgive those who have hurt me. I pray I can release forgiveness today. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Health and well-being?

What strategies do you use to maintain your health and well-being?

This is an interesting question as the WordPress prompt today. I have a health and well-being routine that I have followed for many years.

1. Devotions – I start my days, or at least in the first hour, with prayer, Bible reading and a devotional like Our Daily Bread. This keeps me in tune with God.

2. Exercise – I exercise six days a week in a combination of weights and cycling. This helps me to keep trim and fit and also gives me a lot of enjoyment and relaxation.

3. Work – I make sure I work less days than I have days off. I work three days a week now and have four days off. I find as I get older this helps me to feel well and more rested.

4. Family – I find spending time at home with my family helps me to relax and wind down. My wife and I talk a lot and I really enjoy time with our kids and their partners too.

5. Alone – As someone who is quite introverted I need my alone time too. I talk and listen a lot as a part of my job, so I get full easily and time alone helps me to order my thoughts and chill out.

These are my current things that help my health and well-being. They have remained fairly constant over the years with some slight changes. I guess for me it is a case of if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

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Most productive?

When do you feel most productive?

I feel most productive when I am one on one with people. When I can sit and talk, or walk and talk with others, I feel I am in my sweet spot. When I can listen, ask questions and encourage them I feel God can use me to bless them. It is this one on one time that is a big reason that God put me here on earth. Often I go away feeling blessed and like I have used my God given gifts to help others.

God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 1 Peter 4:10 NLT