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Good morning. There is so much to learn from my friend Paul, an ordinary person like you and I. Reading through Paul's letters, a few points stand out. • He didn't live to please man: "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." (Galatians 1:10 NIV) • He was humble: "I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified." (1 Corinthians 9:27 NLT) • He was selfless: "For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race" (Romans 9:3 NIV) • He was focused on God's calling in his life: "I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:20‭-‬21 NIV) • He lived with eternity in mind: "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:14 NIV) I dare say, if you are anything like me, we have a some work to do in doing what Paul said: "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." (1 Corinthians 11:1 NIV) Have a good day. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. How good it was to worship God together yesterday. We were stirred by hearing the Word being brought to us by Colette Meyer. It was also good to witness folk exercising their Spiritual gift by encouraging the body of Christ, both onsite and online. Can these bones live? "Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’ ” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army." (Ezekiel 37:9‭-‬10) Ezekiel was obedient to God's instruction. Perhaps you are feeling like the people of Israel at the time of Ezekiel, hopeless. "They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’" (Ezekiel 37:11) Do not despair. God's word for you is "I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord .’ ” (Ezekiel 37:14) ‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ (Jeremiah 33:3) Have a good week. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. We trust that you are ready to worship the Lord today. Getting ready for our church meeting this morning, I (Mike) was reminded of the account of Peter and John going to the temple at the time of prayer. (Acts 3:1) No doubt that after spending the last 3 years with Jesus they were accustomed to going to the temple at set times. So that day was not out of the ordinary. Little did the 2 of them know what was about to go down. Could it be, that going to join with fellow followers of Christ, whether out of habit or intentionally, you could be about to witness God doing a miracle. What if God were to use you in a miraculous way at church today? Whether He does or doesn't, David puts it like this; "Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked." (Psalms 84:10) We are looking forward to joining with fellow believers today to worship our amazing God. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. What more can we say about the love of God? "O love of God, how rich and pure! How measureless and strong!" We have seen recently how well Paul puts it in 1 Corinthians 13. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:4-‬8‭, ‬13) Having told us about love in the passage above, Paul takes it a step further and tells us how we should behave towards each other. "Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." (Colossians 3:12‭-‬14) Our behaviour should be wrapped in the love Paul has laid out for us in 1 Corinthians 13. Certainly our Christian witness would be more readily accepted when our lives reflect this love. Have a great weekend. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. As we get to know God in our daily walk with Him, we recognise God's amazing love and goodness toward us. So when we are feeling down, or are in need of a touch from Him, we can with assurance call out to God as the psalmist did. "But I pray to you, Lord , in the time of your favor; in your great love, O God, answer me with your sure salvation. Answer me, Lord , out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me." (Psalms 69:13‭, ‬16) Or, as the prophet Jeremiah tells us. "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." (Jeremiah 33:3) So, whatever we may be facing, we, as followers of Christ, are so blessed to have the assurance that God is with us at all times as Deuteronomy 4:7 reminds us. "What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?" Have a blessed day. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. It has been cold the past few mornings. The good news is that God's love for us is warm and refreshing.The Scriptures are full of reminders of God's love and goodness toward us. "Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you." (Psalms 63:3) "For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations." (Psalms 100:5) "The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love." (Psalms 103:8) "I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (Ephesians 3:16‭-‬17‭, ‬19) As we revel in God's love and as He reveals himself to us more and more, may we, like the disciples, say, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32) Have a great day being warmed by His love and goodness. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning to you. It is so easy to get caught up in the love of God which is so rich and free, that we forget that,despite it being free, there are conditions attached to the contued receiving of this great love. Firstly, we come to the difficult word, obedience. If you love me, keep my commands." (John 14:15) "And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love." (2 John 1:6) Secondly, it's been said that love is an action. God's love requires action on our part. "Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth." (1 John 3:18) God's love, thirdly, should elicit a response of praise, worship and honouring Him. "Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you." (Psalms 63:3) So as we go about our lives today, walk in His love and give it away to all you come in contact with. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning on this rather chilly morning. "We love because he first loved us." (1 John 4:19) "This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." (1 John 4:9-10) Aren't you pleased that before we knew Him, He loved us. When we grasp this, Romans 8:1-2 fills us with eternal gratitude. "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death." Knowing this, we are lost for words when we read what Paul has to say about God's love. "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38‭-‬39) The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. Since the love of God is key to the effective outworking of the gifts of the Spirit, I (Mike) thought it would be good to look at this overehming, never ending love of God. Thinking about God's love, one of the verses of the hymn by Frederick Martin Lehman, puts it like this. "Could we with ink the ocean fill And were the skies of parchment made Were every stalk on earth a quill And every man a scribe by trade To write the love of God above Would drain the ocean dry Nor could the scroll contain the whole Though stretched from sky to sky" "O love of God, how rich and pure! How measureless and strong! It shall forevermore endure The saints' and angels' song" Or as the song by Jesus Culture says, "Higher than the mountains that I face Stronger than the power of the grave Constant through the trial and the change One thing remains, yes, one thing remains" "Your love never fails It never gives up It never runs out on me" "Because on and on, and on, and on it goes Before it overwhelms and satisfies my soul And I never, ever, have to be afraid One thing remains, yes, one thing remains" "Your love never fails It never gives up It never runs out on me" This is the love of our Father for us. His love is like the waves in the sea which keep rolling in. It is never ending. Have a good day reveling in God's love. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. It becomes apparent when reading through 1 Corinthians 12 and 13, that love is a key for the gifts of the Spirit to be effective in the life of a follower of Christ. Paul tells us that • Without love, speaking in tongues is effectively loud noise • Being able to prophesy, discern, have the gift of knowledge, all without love - we are nothing • Faith, enough to move mountains, without love, is tantamount to wishful thinking What we learn from this is that we have a lot of work to do in the area of love. Have a super Sunday. Walk in His love and give it away to all you come in contact with. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. Have you ever experienced a time where you were aware of the Spirit’s work in your life and it surprised you — for example, a time when you may have normally been angry but responded in love, or a time when you said something you hadn’t planned to say and it blessed someone else? Thank God that the Holy Spirit is at work in your life. Paul has this to say in Titus 3:4-6 - "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior" A Holy Spirit empowered life helps us to put Romans 12:2 into practice. "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." A Holy Spirit empowered life constantly stretches us. Sometimes the process is uncomfortable, even painful. But take heart. What God wants to make us into is well worth the process. Join us in being transformed by the renewing of our minds by being renewed and empowered by Holy Spirit. Blessings. Mike and Daphne

Good morning. One of the challenges we face daily is letting Holy Spirit's fruit be on display through us. While thinking about the fruit of the Spirit this morning, I (Mike) was reminded of an illustration I have used in the past. Recently I peeled a naartjie, only to find that some of the "skyfies" (segments) were not so lekker. One or two skyfies had started drying out while another was distinctly off! I was so looking forward to enjoying the juicy fruit. Paul tells us in Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." As I thought about this I realised that as in the naartjie I had, it is conceivable that one or more of the skyfies in the fruit of the Spirit in my life is not what it should be. Perchance it is spoiled by drying out or underdevelopment or being plain rotten. On examining the fruit of the Spirit in my life, I realized that I had neglected some of the skyfies. What is the quality of the fruit of the Spirit like in your life? I suspect that we all have some fruit inspecting to do. Have a good day. Blessings. Mike and Daphne