The Anniversary Trip We Couldn't Plan - A Dose of Encouragement

In August 1997 Fred and I celebrated our 20th Wedding Anniversary by taking a trip to Hawaii.

A week there Island Hopping in fantastic weather was a real enjoyment for us.

Five years later we headed to the Bahamas for 2 weeks for our Silver Anniversary.


Then in 2007 we took 3 weeks and went to the East Coast of Australia with a layover of a few days in Singapore on the way home.


So August 2012 should have seen us heading off on another big trip but it just didn't happen.


Although we talked about how it would be our 35th anniversary often, we still never could decide where to go or when to go.

Then near the end of the year, our daughter Linda told us she was going to apply to go to South Korea to teach English for a year.

Months later all the applications, online courses, visas etc. had been sorted and she headed off in February 2013 (I wrote about The Day We had to Say Goodbye)


Okay then no prizes for guessing where we did go for our 35th Anniversary trip even if it was almost a year late.

South Korea

We just had to make sure we didn't go when it is too cold, too hot, or too wet in South Korea, because it can truly be too cold, too hot or too wet - we experienced the "too hot".

Oh and shortly after she left she face-timed to tell us she had been allocated to a school on the Coast so wasn't that a bonus too!

We had a fantastic holiday together and when I say together it actually included all five of us.
Fred and I flew over and spent a weekend in Seoul with Linda and met up with an old friend, then this old married couple flew over to Hong Kong for 4 days on our own, and finally back to South Korea to meet our two sons as they arrived to spend the rest of the time with Linda and us in Seoul and also in Gangneung.

The boys wanted to come to visit Linda obviously but also knew that it would be the last time that this family of five would be together on a holiday as a family of five because later that year we had another special event when Daniel & Suzie got married.

At times during 2012 I had got frustrated because we just could not make a decision about where that anniversary trip should take us o when Fred would get off work to be able to go and sometimes when we can't make up our minds we just let the thing drift on and on.

But this time that indecisiveness was meant to be.

I am a firm believer in the fact that God sometimes holds us back 

from doing certain things at certain times 

because He has other plans for us

and of course

His plans are always BETTER because they are the RIGHT plans for us.

I'm also thankful to God for the way He provided everything for Linda and was clearly guiding her.

On other occasions I have wondered why I seem to procrastinate about something but in the end I realise that it wasn't just procrastination or laziness it was actually God keeping me from feeling ready to proceed with my original plan or thought; even in a small thing.

Yes God cares about the small things too.

The more we acknowledge the importance of God's guidance and look for it in all aspects of our lives the more we will come to recognise the times we are meant to hold back and the times He wants us to proceed.

We will learn to know His direction day by day, bit by bit as we become content to be in His Hands and trust that He is the only one who knows what's best for us.

We only think we know what's best.

He really does know what's best.

If you want to read more about our trip to South Korea you can start here 

STUFF, STUFF and more STUFF! - A Dose of Encouragement

Isn't it lovely to receive presents?

In the weeks leading up to our son's wedding our house just filled up with wedding presents appearing day after day and week after week in the post.  (All this online shopping is fantastic now even for Wedding Lists.)

We have a room in our house we call the games room because there is a snooker table in the centre of it, but truthfully it should be called the

 "Where our 3 children, who have all left home, 
still store their STUFF"   room

because all around the room and under the snooker table are boxes & bags of all sizes and descriptions holding all the STUFF our kids wanted to keep but did not have room for in the small places they had been living in so far.


So my husband Fred piled the presents on and around the snooker table and this room became the

  "Wedding Present" Room

up until Daniel & Suzie returned from their honeymoon and came to take these gifts to their new home.

And then the snooker table was cleared again.

However!
There was still a corner of the room which we called Daniel's Corner where all his boxes of STUFF were.

The STUFF did not go when the presents went.
 (There was no room left in the car and the presents would have to be found a home in the house first)


His wife Suzie looked at us with suspicion every time we said

 "Daniel's STUFF" 

because she had never yet had a glimpse inside these boxes and was wondering just what would be unearthed when they were finally opened and what would she have to find a home for.

The problem was they had both been renting accommodation with friends since before they met and she thought that Daniel had brought enough "stuff" from there.

So

 Later "Daniel's STUFF" was to be taken and sorted and a home found for all the things from his previous years as a child, teenager and university student.


All of our family hold onto STUFF 

Even though we have moved house several times, having lived in different countries, and have done large clearances each time, we still have STUFF that has stayed with us.  My husband is always saying that we should just go through the kids STUFF and sort it out but I say it is not ours to decide on as some things we might feel have no value will actually be the things that have special meaning or memories for the kids.

I had said that I needed to do a clear out once again as we had been here in this house for 3 years then and there was definitely STUFF we did not need anymore.  So hopefully I can get myself round to doing this very soon.

I said that I needed to do a clear out once again as we have been here in this house for 3 years now and there is definitely STUFF we do not need anymore and hopefully I could get myself round to doing that soon.

I have also assured Fred that I can help him to sort through all his STUFF 

but he goes very quiet then.

Well the time did come later when Daniel and Suzie came to sort through Daniel's "stuff".


Some of the STUFF was thrown out as Daniel decided he didn't need it anymore, and some more of the STUFF was given to the car boot sale because it could be of use to others but there was still some of the STUFF that stayed with him because of the usefulness of the object or of the memories it holds.


But what about my STUFF?

Well I have been doing a Facebook Decluttering Challenge this year called

365 Items in 365 Days

and this has been a good encouragement to get rid of more of the STUFF in our house.


Of course life would be more simple for all of us if we got rid of a lot of the stuff we still have in our houses but more importantly our lives would be simplified and of a better standard if we got rid of all that STUFF that stays in our mind and hinders us from growing each day as God would want us to grow.

• All the things we remember that people have said or done that have hurt us.

• All the foolish things that we remember we did in the past.

• All the times when we spoke too soon,  or too late,  or when we shouldn't have spoken at all,  or when we should have spoken but failed to stand up for what we knew to be right.

• All the things that we listened to from others which have led us in the wrong way instead of testing it by God's Word

• All the things that we wished we had done but didn't.

Have you sorted through all the STUFF in your life?

All this STUFF needs to be thrown out.


           All the good STUFF needs to be kept.


                       All the other STUFF that truly helped us previously needs to be shared                                                                                          to help others now.



What are you doing with your STUFF?

The Day Autumn Arrived - A Dose of Encouragement

I know I wrote a post previously about

The Spider in the Hall 

but it seems that in September each year (the start of Autumn I suppose) we really do notice all the spiders coming out of their hiding places.

So we get quite used to the fact that they are there for a while.



However just this morning I really was reminded of the spiders in a very different way.


Just look at those webs.

I know they were obviously not made overnight but I hadn't noticed them the previous few days.

Today however there had been a bad fog overnight which lasted until quite late in the morning and as it cleared this was my view in the patio.


The webs stretched all around the gate and the fencing (even some over the bushes)

and they were linked to the patio table and chairs as well.

They made a beautiful pattern between each fence post and also between the patio table & chairs.

I stood in amazement wondering how I had not noticed these webs before, so many of them, and then I realized that they would normally have been difficult to see from inside the house (and I had been inside for a week ill with flu).


Today however was different.

They were so noticeable because the icy fog had left a kind of glistening effect on them.

But

A short while later they were no longer noticeable from the kitchen window.


They had needed this special effect to make them stand out clearly and attract my attention.


We also need a special effect to make us stand out as followers of Christ.

We need a special effect to make us stand out

God has given us His Holy Spirit to produce good fruit in our lives and catch the attention of others, not to be directed to us, 

but to Jesus.

In today's world more than ever we need to allow the Holy Spirit to work through us and draw the attention of the rest of the world to our loving Saviour because that is the job of the Holy spirit and our job too.

So let's think of the arrival of this autumn frost as a sign to remember that God will use His Holy Spirit to make our lives beautiful and attractive to others so that they will say they hadn't noticed that before and want to find out more  -  about Jesus.

The Day I Spoke like an American - A Dose of Encouragement

We lived in America in the lovely State of Delaware for 3 years, 1992 - 95, while our three children were young. 

Wherever I went I was conscious that if I spoke like an American then I would not have strangers come up to me and ask me to "Say Something" just because they just wanted to hear my accent.

Often we heard the differences in our accent and pronunciation compared to the way Americans speak.

Coming from Northern Ireland, UK, we were  I was determined to say the words the proper British way like garage and not ga-raase, tomato and not tomaayto, aluminium and not alummmminum etc.   


I was pretty good about this! 


Truthfully

           I was pretty stubborn about this.


However, you cannot live among Americans for long before you pick up the accent. 

 When we returned to Northern Ireland our daughter aged 8 was referred to as the "American Girl" by her classmates at school for quite some time as she took longer than the rest of us to drop the accent. 

The Kids & I at the Grand Canyon

On the way home from America we had a layover in London for a few days and while there we headed into a McDonalds for lunch one day.  I'm not a very picky eater but I do not like all the sauces and pickles you get on the burgers & they never get it right in America when you say you don't want certain things in it so I had spent my time there perfecting the way to say the word "plaaain" like I was a real American so that the servers in places like McDonalds would know what I was saying.  

This time in London I reckon they can get my order right as they will understand everything I say so I don't have to think so hard about it.  

So I'm trying to order a bacon cheeseburger with only lettuce and tomato & guess what happens when I get to the tomato bit? 

I say tomayto instead of tomato.

3 years of saying it properly in America and as soon as I get back to the UK out comes the American pronunciation. 


What was wrong with me?

Needless to say, I have told this story numerous times because I can laugh at myself.

     
Then one day in 2012, 17 years since we had returned from living in America I had to revive my American accent.  


Why was this?  

I wasn't speaking to American visitors or even to other foreigners who have learnt their English by listening to American films, TV programmes and pop songs. 
(we met many people like this while we lived in Belgium)

No, I was sitting at home trying out my new iPad.  

I was doing a test on the voice thing to see if it really would write down what I said.

This was the result: 

          I said   

             "So from now on I want to take all my notes by voice"

         It wrote  -  So Canion I want to take all my notes bivoice

          I tried the same phrase again
                         So from now on I want to take all my notes By Voice

          It wrote  -  Abigail.            seriously???????????????
          
Once again .....

       and it worked!

                    So from now on I want to take all my notes by voice

It worked that time because I used an American accent

          
           Conclusion:

                     The iPad works best if I use my American accent"

For a machine to understand me I needed to talk the way it expected me to talk, 

the way it was programmed to understand.

It worked that time because I used an American accent  

All of this made me think about how we speak to people.  

Sometimes we just speak out not thinking of how we phrase something or the tone of our voice because we are talking to our family or someone we are very close to.

Other times we are conscious of our voices and words when we are talking to someone new or people we feel we need to be careful with so that they understand exactly what we mean.

We got very good at speaking more clearly and slowly when we lived in America and in Belgium because people from Northern Ireland tend to speak very quickly.

During the past year I took a short course in teaching English as a second language and I am now even more conscious of my pronunciation.

Then there are the times we talk to God.


I am so glad that God hears us 

• whether we whisper or shout, 
• whether we can find the right words or not, 
• whether we even speak something out 

and that God knows 

• what we are really sorry about, 
• what we are worried about, 
• what we are care about 

We can be thankful that our language does not have to be perfect for God to hear and understand and undertake for us. 

He knows, no matter how we try to express ourselves.

However God does wants us to to be truthful from our hearts.


In Psalm 51:6 the Psalmist says 

"Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts:"

How can we have this truth?

The Psalmist goes on to show he knows the answer in the following verses and then acts on this knowledge he has by praying specifically to God. 

     

Oh that we will be like the Psalmist 

and 

know the answer 

but 

also act on it.

The Day the Wave was Too Big for Me! - A Dose of Encouragement

You have probably often seen me write that I am from Northern Ireland and if you don't know too much about our lovely "wee" country then here is one great fact:

Northern Ireland has some really great sandy beaches

it's just unfortunate that we do not have the really great sunny weather to go with them.

However when you are very young you don't think so much about the weather you just get excited when you are going to the beach.

I have various memories about playing in the sand but one of my strongest memories was when I was quite young.


Dad was watching me,
         but I didn't know he was watching me.

I wasn't looking to see if he was watching me.

I wasn't even thinking about him at all.

That was when it happened.

Other times I had filled my bucket with no problem at all.
Running up and down the beach from mum and dad to the water's edge trying to get enough water to fill up a hole or a moat that dad and I had dug round a little sandcastle.

But this time it just caught me off guard.

The wave was probably not much bigger than the one before but it seemed so much bigger to me as it knocked me over and water filled my eyes and mouth.  I was terrified and so shocked I couldn't even try to get up and I think I screamed but I'm not sure.

I have never liked water over my face and still don't let a shower pour over my face or put my face in the water when I swim.  Maybe it is a result of that day or maybe I was always like that but certainly that day the water covering my face scared me.

It was not long before my dad grabbed me and lifted me out of the water and carried me up the beach to my mum, although to me it seemed like ages. 

Approximately a year before the wave

I don't remember much more about that day except for the time when I kept pulling away from my mum as she tried to brush my hair after I had been bathed and I didn't want her to do it because of all the tats in my hair.

Having since had a daughter with long hair I know the times when it was a joy to brush it and other times when it was an ordeal to brush it so I can understand that it was not pleasant for me or my mum that evening going through the entanglement of my hair.

The solution my mother decided was to whisk me off to the hairdresser the next day and get it cut

Some months after the wave

That day at the beach I had no cares just the determination of wanting to get enough water in my bucket each time I ran to the sea.  So engrossed in my plan I didn't think about the wave let alone notice it coming towards me.

But my dad did.

My dad saw me run down to the sea.

My dad saw the wave.

My dad saw me get knocked over and came running straight away to rescue me.

My dad was watching out for me, keeping an eye on all that I was doing and where I was going.
He knew exactly what was happening around me while I played happily on the beach, oblivious to everything else.

Probably I didn't even realise that my dad was always doing his job of protecting me, that my parents were always thinking of my well-being; because as a child we just take for granted that we are the centre of the world.

I am thankful that God is my Father and He is even better at watching over me than my dad could ever be.

He sees the waves that come at me.

God sees me wherever I go, whether happily or unhappily.

God sees the waves that come at me before I feel them hit me.

God sees how they affect me and He is immediately there to take care of me.

God is watching out for me, keeping His eye on all that I do and everywhere I go whether physically or in my thoughts or spiritually.

God knows everything that is going on around me when I do not see any of it at all.

And

God sees you wherever you go whether happily or unhappily.

God sees the waves that come at you before you feel them hit you.

God sees how they affect you and He is immediately there to take care of you.

God is watching out for you, keeping His eye on all that you do and everywhere you go whether physically or in your thoughts or spiritually.

     God does all this
          even when you are not thinking about Him
               even when you are not talking to Him about the situation
                    even when you are not aware of what is going on around you.

God knows everything that is going on around you when you do not see any of it at all.

We do have to play our part but it is a simple part to play

All we have to do is trust Him

All we have to do is trust Him.

When my dad grabbed me out of the wave - I trusted him because he was my dad.

So let God be your Father and trust Him

The Day my Best Friend Bit Me! - A Dose of Encouragement

When I was young and at primary school I was a "Tom-Boy", wanting to be active, out and about as much as possible and looking for company to play with.


My only sibling is my sister who is 10 years older than me so I didn't have her to play with and sometimes there were not too many other kids around.


I really loved the opportunity to play with the boy who would come to visit his grandparents across the street and the girls from the surrounding streets and stay out as long as possible.

But there were often times when there was no-one around to play with so I found a friend next door.

This friend was often around at the front of the house and he was very easy to chat to so I could go see him a few times a day.

His name was Tim and he was a black, scotty dog.

I used to go and sit on the front step of the house next door and pet him and cuddle him and chat.

He was so familiar with our family that there was never any barking at us just the tail wagging and little jumps of excitement when he thought any of us were going to have time to play with him.

photo credit - Pixabay

My parents were fine with me playing with Tim and knew that I was often on that front step.

I liked dogs and had wanted our family to have a dog as a pet but my sister did not like dogs so I had to be content with Tim next door.

Of course I took Tim for granted and thought he would always be there just when I would feel like going in through the front gate to play with him.

I was sure that he would always be happy to see me, ready to play 

and I would never be "not welcome".

Then there was that one day when I went through that gate and took the two or three steps to the front door to find Tim was lying there quietly not jumping up or wagging his tail at me.  I sat down beside him and put my arm around him but instead of getting the usual happy welcome I felt the pain shoot up my arm as his teeth clamped onto it.

I screamed, jumped up and ran out through that next door gate with Tim hanging from my arm but he let go before I got to our own gate.

I was sore, bleeding (although not too bad because he was an older dog and his teeth apparently weren't too sharp) and so confused that Tim had bitten me.

If I was looking for sympathy I had come to the wrong place because immediately I was questioned by my mother on what had I done to antagonise the poor dog - see how everyone loved him!

Well my arm was bathed and bandaged and I can't remember if I was told to stay inside for a while but I do remember that before long I was back sitting playing with Tim.

The neighbours talked with my parents and were concerned about what had happened and what my parents wanted them to do about Tim.  The result was that none of us wanted anything to happen to him because we all knew the situation had been my own fault.  Who would be so silly as to cuddle a dog that was asleep and wake him suddenly and frighten him especially when in the past few months some teenagers had often been teasing and at times kicking at him through the gate as they walked down our street.

I had not known that Tim, my usually happy friend, had become afraid of these teenagers and hence probably startled by me and reacted out of sudden fear.

Yes it wasn't long before I was back playing with Tim, he was still my friend and I forgave him for biting me but I think there was always just not exactly the same trust there as before.

He was still my friend and I forgave him.

Over the years I have seen friendships ruined over a hasty word, a sudden grumpiness, a searing hurt, a teasing jibe, when people just got so friendly and comfortable that they stopped thinking of situations from the other person's point of view.  Times when people got so careless and thought they could do or say anything just because they thought they were with friends.
Even if the friendships are not ruined they are marred in some way by lack of trust thereafter.

Sometimes we have been the ones to do the hurting and sometimes we are the ones who have been hurt but either way we need to try to consider how the other person felt, what may have been happening to them recently that we did not know about, who had been unkind to them, what had they heard recently, because something had caused a difference on that occasion.

There are two people in a friendship and also two feelings in that friendship and we need to remember to be considerate and kind, honouring the friendship and extending grace to each other in all circumstances.

It may not always come easy but oh it would be great if I could forgive others today as quickly as I forgave Tim.

It is not impossible to do.

As children of God we have the capability of forgiving because we have been forgiven and we have the greatest example of perfect forgiveness in Jesus.

Forgiveness. It is not impossible to do.

What about a letter, a phone call, a little chat?

The practical step needs to be taken to apologise and forgive.

And we can do it!

The Day We Had to Say Goodbye - A Dose of Encouragement

Well our life here in Banbridge has changed once again.


For two weeks this year our daughter was home from South Korea and for the first of those two weeks our son was over from Leeds, England.  That meant we had a week in which the whole family (including our other son and daughter-in-law in Belfast) could do some things together, and we did have some nice meals and outings.

With visits there are all the hellos and hugs and lots of chat and catch up but there are also the goodbyes.  So it came that we first had to say goodbye to Jonathan and then last Friday it was goodbye to Linda.  Fortunately this time we have hopes of seeing her at Christmas for a quick visit back here because she really wants to be able to meet her nephew/niece who is due at the end of October.


This all brought back memories of another goodbye.

One which took place in February 2013.........

Our daughter Linda came back from university to live with us in September 2012 and all along we knew it was probably only for about 5/6 months while she decided what she wanted to do after completing her Masters Degree in Creative Writing.

Then on a Tuesday in February 2013 we drove her to Dublin Airport to fly to Dubai and then on to South Korea, where she was going to teach English in a school there for at least a year with the EPIK organisation.

Having had her with us for those months (after having seen her toddle off from our home in Belgium to university in Norwich in 2006 and then stay on there for a couple of years working and then another year at the university) our way of life did change somewhat from living as a couple who are very easy going with regards to when we do things, to three people in the equation of when we are going out, when we are eating, what we are eating, more detailed conversations and a lot more listening from us.

Now that extra dimension in the household had gone again.

Those last few weeks of her time with us had been very busy getting her visa organized, tickets, vaccinations, hospital appointments, dental appointments, shopping, going to certain types of  restaurants she may not have the chance to get to for a long time, visiting friends and family, saying goodbye to people at church, deciding what to pack and trying to sort out all her other stuff that will have to stay here (2 cases with a total of 30kg does not allow for much of her belongings to make the trip with her).

Then I was left with an empty bedroom to Spring Clean and find a space for all the bags and boxes she filled and left there.

If Fred did not work from home I think this would have been a very lonely time but as it was we just had to revert back to the way we were before she arrived, the way we had grown into since we came to Banbridge.

People may have said we should have taken the opportunity to make other changes then instead of going back to our old way.

Were we just going backward or should we have been determined to be different?

I think a lot of time could have been wasted in trying to

         decide what is best 
and analyzing it all about what we may have learned 
from the situation 
and how to use that insight to develop further 

when really we should just be living the way God wants us to live and doing each day what He prompts us to do.  I actually think the analysing and learning and insight bit sounds more like a business situation.

This doesn't have to be a mind changing event or life altering event, it is just something that happened on one day of our lives and was a sad occasion.

Today we are living another day in our lives in our walk with God

The following day, all the days in between and today we are living another day in our lives in our walk with God. There is no point in reading a lot into a situation just to have something to talk endlessly about but in the end do nothing anyway.

Everyone will view a situation differently depending on the type of person they are and how they see their relationship with God.  We cannot expect everyone to be the same as us or the same as others we have known.

We can only look at our own relationship with God and be prepared to make the small or bigger changes He wants us to make when it is right in His plan.


While Linda was back again this year she acknowledged that her move to South Korea had been the right move at the right time and spoke of how God had been helping her to grow in her faith even in a country where she does not understand a lot of the language.

We are thankful that she is happy there and we know that God has given her good friends and a good church family.

Even so it was hard again last week when we had to say those goodbyes again.

Some things change but some things don't - goodbyes are always hard.

But again I am reminded of the plaque we were given in 2004 when we were leaving Northern Ireland to go to live in Belgium

Yes the Lord is with us wherever we go, or wherever we stay 

and he is with you wherever you go or stay 

when you are a child of God, living each day for Him.

The important thing is that wherever we go 
we are living each day for Him.

Our Stories & His Stories - A Dose of Encouragement

Fred has often talked to me about life on the farm when he was young and of course we have passed those stories on to our kids too.

I have talked about when I was young but I don't think I have as many stories as Fred does.

The first date Fred & I had was a really long walk and on that walk we talked and talked. Even though we had known each other for 2 years before this we still had so much to find out.

Now when we go for a walk quite often something will remind us of something that happened years ago or a story we have already shared with each other and we will mention it or just think about it as we walk along. Those are the things that help us to get to know each other, to see the joyful expressions, sad expressions and proud expressions we have over previous years.

Those are the things that have in a way defined how we are today so we need to understand many of these things about each other.

When Fred talks about the things that happened on the farm long before I met him I can picture them and learn so much about him.


This is what happens when we walk and talk with someone.

Just as it is what happens when we walk and talk with God.

I hear Fred's stories of the farm.
I read God's stories in the Bible.

Fred & I share our feelings with each other.
I share my feelings with God in prayer and hopefully I am gracious enough to listen and grasp some of God's feelings on my situations as well.

Fred & I talk about what happens daily.
We need to talk with God daily and thank Him for having His hand upon all that happens each day.

It's Good to share our Stories

Fred & I are looking forward to our first grandchild in October so you can imagine how much talk and preparation there is for that event.
All of this needs to go to God in prayer as well.
Prayer for the baby's birth, prayer for the health of our daughter-in-law, prayer for this grandchild to grow up to love God, prayer for our son & daughter-in-law that they will have wisdom as new parents, prayer for us to be wise grandparents.

When Fred travels for his work we facetime and tell each other what has been happening that day.
We like to see each other's smile and hear each other's voice.
God loves to hear our voice each day and our smiles must make Him happy too; something we need to remember.

Even though we are celebrating 38 years of marriage this week Fred & I still talk and talk and talk and also walk together.
It is important that we each, after all these years of being saved, still talk and talk and talk and also walk with God.

Just the other day Fred was talking about something 

which I had never heard of before from his youth, 

I was surprised that here was a new story but perhaps there will always be new stories.

With God there will always be new stories 

of what He has done 

and 

what He is doing.

With God there will always be new Stories

I want to hear of these, 

I want to be part of these,

and thank Him for them.

I hope you do too.

I don't need you! - A Dose of Encouragement

I looked at something the other day and had to say to myself

"No, I can't do that.  I need Fred to be here for that."

Another day I found myself saying  

  "I need Fred to fix that."



Windows 10 was here but I was saying to myself

"I can't accept that update because I need Fred to check it out first."


Or on the phone with the kids I'm saying

"I need your father to be home to be able to do that."

"I need dad to be here long enough to be able to have a holiday."


When we were putting up the new garden shed there was one day when it was just Fred & I because our son had to work so I was continually asking Fred

"Do you need me for that bit of the shed?"


Then there are the times when I can be more independant and say

"I don't need you for that."

Often when we don't ask for help from someone it is because we don't need it.

But sometimes when we don't ask for help we do need it, we just think we don't need it.


This all got me to thinking about how dependent or independent I am and I figured out that it all depends on the situation but also depends on how I feel at times.

Sometimes I will feel like I almost want help, not just need it.
Other times I really do feel like I want to be able to do it myself and not need help from anyone.

Of course there can be a great sense of satisfaction when I can say I don't need anyone to help me, I can do it myself.

It can be hurtful too, to hear those words said to you

How many times do we hurt God when we speak and act 

as if we don't need Him?

We do need God all the time.


Yes there are times when we don't even realise we need Him because we think we can do things by ourselves but if we are truthful we know deep down that we do need Him.

We need Him for the wisdom to get through all situations.

We need Him for His hand of protection wherever we go.

We need Him for the way He loves us unconditionally.

We need Him because He is the only one that really knows and understands us.

We need Him because we are not complete without Him.


Is He always there when we need Him?

Yes!

God is always there when we need Him.

But do you know something else about God?

Do you know that He does not need us?

That's true

God does not need us!

Does it seem hurtful to us to think about that?

Well God is completely self-sufficient so He does not need us - it is a simple fact about the character of God.

However there is somethings far more joyful to dwell on instead because even though God does not need us,

He Wants Us!

Selah - Stop & Think on it!

God wants You!

God doesn't NEED us, He WANTS us!