Rebecca Brand
"God is within her, she will not fail." Psalm 46:5
Walking with Jesus
This morning, I was thinking about the song from Mercy Me, again, and how I will react when I am actually in God’s presence
I can only Imagine…
Surrounded by You glory
What will my heart feel
Will I dance for you Jesus
Or in awe of You be still
Will I stand in your presence
Or to my knees will I fall
Will I sing hallelujah
Will I be able to speak at all…
I can only imagine
Have you thought about what will happen?
When we are surrounded by His love that we cannot actually fathom here on Earth
To see God’s true glory – His light – shining all around us, in us, and through us
That brilliance of white, which we can never see with our human eye, because it’s brighter than the sun, and yet, we will be able to walk with God…by His side
Have you imagined that moment?
I love this Psalm because it puts into context what happens when we find Jesus, in this lifetime…
When we know Him, we realise that there is actually no darkness in this world, because circumstances, situations, and people, simply have the absence of light.
The light that Jesus gives, makes us realise how much we need Him, every day, and ultimately, how much the world needs, His life-giving light
My prayer is for the day when we have all found Jesus, and are walking in His glorious light
Standing out from the Crowd
The Vatican is one of my most favourite places in the world, I could stand in its corridors for hours, and look at the Masterpieces’ all over the walls, and the ceilings.
I remember walking down this corridor and my breath was literally taken away.
The intricacies and the detail in every millimetre of this painting were stunning. It’s crafted by hand, one stroke at a time, it is so complex and unique that I have never seen anything like it before and I doubt again, that I ever will.
Then I look at myself in the mirror and pick apart everything that I see. Every fibre handcrafted by God, to be beautifully unique – a masterpiece – in His creation.
If only my soul would realise that I was born to stand out from the crowd. That I am fearfully and wonderfully made. No wrinkle is a mistake, no grey hair, no varicose vein, no freckle, no extra pound of flesh, a mistake.
I am one of a kind…
…but, if I can realise this in a painting, from a person created by God, how much more does God think that, of myself, or of you?
The Year of Trusting
This year has been one for the books…
I have been asked, by God, to do things out of my comfort zone, but to also step out and trust Him in the journey He wanted me to go on
He has been my hope, and anchor, in times of need
He has given me a joy that has overflowed into different areas of life, and people have noticed this
But ultimately, in the year of craziness, I have had a peace like never before, and I honestly believe it’s because we trusted, as a family, in God’s goodness and faithfulness to provide, to come through in our circumstances, and any situation we were faced with
Friends said to us recently, that they are believing for more in their lives, after watching our journey unfold, because if God did it for us, He’ll do it again
Never underestimate the power of your testimony
What are you trusting God for?
We Thank You, God
Life is BUSY and everywhere I go, or no matter whom I speak with, I hear the same thing…
I’m busy… Life is just busy…
We are all busy!
I was thinking this morning that I really dislike the word “busy”.
Not because the word or meaning is a bad thing, as such, but because our circumstances mean, that, in life, we have a lot going on, especially in this Festive Season.
Yet, the action of busyness brings distractions, which more than likely, means we forget to spend time with God.
We need to be reminded that the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy.
Don’t forget to thank God for the people in your life. Or the good day that you have had. The fresh air you breathe. Or even that you get to speak to Him because you found your Saviour!
It need only take a minute…
But, in that minute, thanking God that He is with you brings more thankfulness in our hearts, that the minute may turn into five, or ten, or more
My favourite thing is to speak to God about anything but especially thankfulness and gratitude, but then watch my Spirit take over, as I run out of words…
And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words (Romans 8:26)
If you don’t know what to pray for, the Spirit does
Are We a ”Know it All”?
I love this verse – it literally makes me laugh out loud
There was a time in my life, that I was proud (and not in a good way) but I would want to be the “big fish in the little pond,” so to speak. That meant that I wanted to be seen to be the best, no matter what.
It wasn’t the best time in my life because I was harsh in the way I conducted myself, and I definitely didn’t put others feelings or needs in front of my own! Looking back, striving had become a default, because I was looking for approval of those around me and I now realise that I didn’t understand my true identity.
God will put many different people in our lives and each one has the ability to shape us more into the person we were created to be.
These people might push us to our limits with patience or frustration, but on the other hand, we may enjoy every second as they enrich our lives.
Yet, whatever other people can give us – good or bad – they were created by God for a purpose, and therefore, the verses in Romans 12 summarise the core of Christian living.
We don’t know it all – no matter what we initially think…we cannot see another person’s journey, choices, or circumstances and therefore, my prayer for today, is that regardless of whether we are in a room with the influential, rich, and famous; or a homeless person, criminal, or maybe even a bully – we recognise them as a person loved by God. That we remember that He died for them, just as He did for us, at Calvary, and therefore, we show everyone the love, grace, and forgiveness – just as God freely shows us
Why Jesus doesn’t need Rebranding
There are some of us who love new shiny products. We look forward to changing gadgets, clothes, or even our lives. Ultimately, it’s about changing with the times, for these people.
Then there are some of us who love to “up-cycle”. Someone’s rubbish is another’s treasure, after all. So they love to reuse, repurpose, and reclaim the items that others have disregard over time.
We live in an ever-changing world and there are pro’s and con’s to any amount of change, yet, when I think about our journey with God, this has evolved since I came to Christ, only a decade ago.
Once upon a time, it was all about reading the Word from our Bible in the Western World, but this has now been replaced with apps, podcasts and social media in order to keep up with the times.
No longer do we seem to have time to sit and read our Bibles but convenience has meant that our Bible’s are now on our phones or iPads – which brings an easy distraction in itself. For instance – when we meant to read that Bible verse that God just nudged us to read, it turned into reading a new text message from a loved one or looking at a new insta-story from someone we admire.
Our focus shifted
Jesus came to change the world once and for all. To save us all from death and whilst some mock, disregard, or simply don’t care – His message has remained the same, yesterday, today, and will be, forever.
We need to be careful when we hear about a new way to follow Jesus. A new teaching. A new viewpoint. Everything we do needs to come from the Word of God. Humans have a lot to offer, but we must ultimately keep our eyes on Christ because Jesus doesn’t change with the times and that means we can trust Him.
We don’t need to up-cycle or reinvent what was spoken about thousands of years ago, because Jesus’ way is still perfect – just the way it is
When Christianity gets Boring
I have been told that Christianity is boring…it’s just lots of rules and regulations…it’s not fun…or people don’t want to give up their lifestyle…and, many more similar statements.
But, what is it that people are really saying?
Personally, I feel, it’s because they don’t actually know Who Jesus is!
I thought I was living the dream before I found Christ, but now I know how wrong I was – I have more than I could ever have imagined…
I have self-worth, a true identity, an unwavering faith, an overwhelming sense of purpose, a never-ending amount of love and compassion, a God-loving Husband, and a Daughter that medicine told me was “impossible” to have.
My life is rich beyond measure, I laugh every day, I have a joy that I cannot contain, I do not fear, or have any questions that cannot be answered…I have peace.
Why?
Because I have a relationship with Jesus.
So, I truly believe that the only reason Christianity is worthless and boring, is when you haven’t truly found the most precious thing of all
Why I Need Jesus
I was thinking this morning of perfection and how unattainable that goal is within our lifetime.
I had started to rattle things off in my mind that I knew I had done yesterday, that ultimately, went against God…
Partaking in gossip…Realising I was still living under the “law” in an area of my life…Allowing frustration to build in another area…Thinking of lack in another area of my life…
Oh my goodness!!! But, at least you get the point.
There are days when I feel like I could conquer the world, and days, when I definitely feel a fraud – people assume that I have it all together, but in truth, I’m just as bad as the next person!
I realised a long time ago that when I take my focus off God – it’s easy to lose sight of what’s really important.
So the main thing, is that I’m trying to live how God wants me to, on a daily basis, and then the next day, I pick myself up, dust myself off, and start again – by admitting that I was wrong and not living in fear, because I know my true identity, as a Child of God.
I’m not perfect, but I don’t try to be. I know that I need Jesus…desperately…every day, and so, like this morning, I admit that I have wronged Him, and then I run back to His loving embrace.
Hope is not Passive
In my Christian journey, there have been times when I felt like all I wanted to do, was curl up and wait for the rapture!
When we are in a season of waiting, it’s not about sitting down and doing nothing, or thinking that you need to wait out the storm, (as I sit here listening to thunder and lightning outside my window) for our circumstances to change.
Hope should be in the Lord – His Word. Therefore, cling onto the very words that God has spoken into our lives, to prepare for what is to come, because we trust in what He has promised.
If life looks far from a bed of roses, I want to encourage you to keep pushing forward…don’t stop.
Character is built more in the valley, than on the mountaintops – so just remember, that no one has ever seen the top without the pursuit to get there
WOW moments
In Acts 2:43, people were in awe of God, AND THEN, miracles, signs and wonders were seen, as they watched God moved.
The birth of a child, a reconciliation of family members, people coming to Christ, and baptisms are just a few amazing things that we can lose sight of, regarding God’s goodness, yet this was the first time they witnessed God’s goodness in the first century church.
Honestly, I feel complacency is killing the church because these things have just become normal now.
We go about our day as soon as we have celebrated during the service. Yet, Scripture tells us to continue to praise before the breakthrough, because, if we go to God in reverence of whom He is, then, the chains break, the blind see, the deaf hear and the dead rise.
The WOW moments are when we see what God is doing before our very eyes – in the small details – that we are filled with the Glory of God, to worship Him in our entirety.
Imagine a church so filled with awe because someone gave their life to Christ, that we then see the manifestation of God’s love poured out by signs and wonders?
This is revival…
When the realisation of who God is, hits our hearts.
Fill ‘er Up!
My heart breaks when I think about the parable of the Ten Virgins, in the Gospel of Matthew.
It’s sad to think that some Christian’s believe they have enough “oil” to see them through until Jesus returns, but in reality, some of us rarely spend time with God, whether that’s reading the Bible, praying, or both.
It’s great that we can surround ourselves with other believers, but there’s a vast difference in piggybacking off someone else’s faith, then it is to grow together by both people seeking God, daily.
The five virgins realised that their oil was running out when it was too late, and therefore, they ran off to get “filled up” but when they returned, Jesus (the Bridegroom) told them that He didn’t know them!
Can you imagine getting to the end of life, as we know it, and Jesus turning us away?
All because we thought that we just had to be a “nice person” to get into heaven. Or, that we spoke the prayer once to accept Jesus into our lives, and then carried on the way we wanted.
This parable is the stark reality of what is to come.
The sleeping church needs to wake up before it’s too late…
Jesus is calling us, individually, into an intimate relationship with the Father.
To know Him and to be fully known by God. To surrender our desires to God’s will and to trust that God has a better plan for our lives – far greater than we could ever imagine.
We can’t be complacent in our faith and we think that we are just like everyone else. Because, there will come a day, like no other, and my prayer is that all of us are “overflowing” with the Holy Spirit – just like the Virgins who Jesus came back for
Don’t Trust your Feelings
This verse is a beautiful reminder that no matter what we think or feel…
God is always with us
Our soul (which is our mind, our will, and emotions) will always try to be negative in thought because the enemy wants to steal, kill, and destroy our faith in God.
So many times I have felt like God wasn’t there, in my circumstances, but then I remember that the things we are most familiar with, are the ones that we don’t necessarily feel day-by-day
The mountains cannot be moved, and nor can God’s protection for us!
Push your feelings aside, and today, stand firm in His promises
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