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Showing posts with the label blessings

God is there

Ezekiel 48:35 The city will measure about 31,500 feet all the way around. From then on the city’s name will be: The Lord Is There.   Thought for the day – Where God is Today we finish the book of Ezekiel. And I can’t help but think what a wonderful ending Ezekiel presents us with. The land is reallocated to the tribes and in the centre of it all, not in Jerusalem, is the city of God. The holiest place that is separate from the worldly power of the Prince of Israel. The city of God called ‘The Lord is there’.   I don’t know about you but that’s a place I would want to be in. A place that in Revelation is described as having no tears, or sickness, or death. A place of complete peace and love, because God is love and where God is will be a place so beyond our wildest imaginations, we’ll spend the rest of eternity simply in awe and wonder of where we find ourselves.   I’m not going to apologise if I come across all gushing and silly. And I’m not going to apolo...

We are a royal priesthood

Ezekiel 44:23 They must teach my people the difference between what is holy and what is unholy. They must show the people how to tell the difference between what is clean and what is unclean.    Thought for the day – We are a royal priesthood Today’s chapter in Ezekiel is striking in that it is very specific to the priests that would lead worship in the new Temple. There are strict conditions for what they wear, how they look, and what they do. and one the ones that stand out to me is how they were to demonstrate the holiness of God. Something I believe we as the people of God, who are now his royal priesthood, should be doing as well.   You may well think ‘Wait Ray, I’m not a priest!’ Well, we are. Peter reminds us that we are a "chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession," called to proclaim God’s excellencies. (1 Peter 2:9); we all serve as representatives of God. Priesthood in its widest sense is a representative ministry. We represent ...

Better boots

Proverbs 10:15 Wealth protects the rich;  poverty destroys the poor.   Thought for the day The author Terry Pratchett once wrote that the difference between rich and poor people was their boots. Rich people can afford to buy boots that last a lifetime, poor people end up spending what little they have, on constantly replacing the cheap boots they have to buy because they can’t afford better boots. And it’s an interesting take on today’s verse about wealth and poverty. But the question of wealth and poverty is a difficult one for Christians. Growing up in Southern Africa I was very aware of vast differences in wealth distribution. Even here in the UK, the differences between the wealthy and the poor are everywhere if you know where to look. In the Scriptures wealth is a blessing but it is a blessing that can and will for many people become an idol. Go read the account of the rich young man (Matthew 19:16-30). But like many of God’s gifts they are given out as he chooses. There ...