Connect

I can still look back on my life and cringe at the

I can still look back on my life and cringe at the person I once was. Not that, at the time, I thought anything needed to change, but the Holy Spirit walked with me to show who God had called me to be, and that naturally (over time) changed my perspective, my thoughts, my hopes and dreams, but most of all, it changed my actions.

Once upon a time, I was crass. I didn't care what I said about others, and pretty much every second word was vulgar. Yet, I don't know when my life began to change. There are some things that I could consciously say that I was more aware of (once I gave my life to Christ) - for instance, the swearing. It was as if my vocabulary had been highlighted internally and my words suddenly had meaning and emphasis, so any swear words, it was almost like a pause in time, where the Holy Spirit would be showing me how much I would let my tongue speak death to others.

I have realised that this is proof of God working in my life, in that my thoughts, words, and actions have changed, and I am no longer a slave to what I once was. Through the Holy Spirit, I now have the power to choose to make a different decision, and although I don't always get it right, I am no longer a slave to sin.

Over the next few days, I want to go through the fruits of the Spirit to show precisely what the Spirit does within our lives. Yet, more importantly, I hope that we will realise that we no longer need instant gratification from the world because we value the long-term good instead.

Self-control is knowing that we are free from Satan’s clasp, and therefore, we live in the fullness that God shows us and love as Jesus does, every day!

“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” Titus 2:11-12

#rebeccalbrand #fruitsofthespirit #selfcontrol

I have enjoyed going through some of the mountains

I have enjoyed going through some of the mountains named within the Bible and reminding myself about the stories that build faith with God

Yet, God reminded me that it’s not about the mountain top experiences with Him that truly matter, but more, the journey to get there

I know, for myself, I have dreamt about encountering God the way that Moses did on Mount Sinai, but the reality was that Moses was only with God for a short time, and His real-life changes occurred through obedience and faith to trust what God was saying to begin with

Sometimes, we may find the “climb” of life hard, especially if it is where God has asked us to go, but the climb allows Him to walk with us to build resilience and strength to continue until breakthrough. After all, we can all look back on our journeys with God, and see that the climb is generally where our lives have actually changed

I want to encourage us all this morning that things never (usually) make sense at the time, but God blesses us when we put our hope and confidence in Him because it ensures that no matter what metaphor we face - whether it is a hill, or the largest mountain - when we take that first step and don’t take our eyes off Him, it means we are walking by faith, and not by the circumstances we see in front of us

“But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.” Jeremiah 17:7
.
.
.
.
.
#rebeccalbrand #jeremiah17 #mountaintopexperience #faithingod

Today, we are looking at the highest mountain ment

Today, we are looking at the highest mountain mentioned in the Bible, and the place where the controversy still lies - Mount Ararat.

This mountain is a dormant volcano located in eastern Turkey and stands at 16,875 ft high. This particular mountain is called Greater Ararat, and then you have Little Ararat, which stands at 12,887 ft. Mount Ararat, you will know, as the mountain where Noah’s Ark came to rest, as a result of the whole world flooding, in Genesis 8.

Let's face it; we will all know the children’s well-loved story of Noah's Ark in the Bible. Children are taught about the animals going in two-by-two into the ark, and even my daughter had a playset, as a toddler, with cute little animals that she adored. Yet, the stark reality was that the ark represented so much more. The ark was only made from the obedience of one man who had never witnessed rain but was faithful in what God said He was about to do. The depravity of humanity exasperated God and He decided to wipe everything out and start anew with the lineage of Noah and his family. The promise God made to Noah, comes from the rainbow, which to this day, is a visual reminder that God will never again flood the earth.

I often wonder that if God had never made that promise to Noah, would the world ever have been flooded again - since the flood we read about in Genesis? Has the world become less depraved since Noah’s time? Or is it more that we have a God who remains faithful in His promises, even after such time has passed?

As mentioned above, Mount Ararat brings controversy because there has never been anything of the ark found to bring “truth” to the story by explorers. Yet, the Bible states that the boat came to rest on the MOUNTAINS of Ararat. So, whilst many look towards the Greater Ararat, honestly, only God knows the actual location, plus the ark is only supposed to be a third of the size of Titanic, so after such a long time, I doubt much evidence would still be there! Therefore, as Christian’s, sometimes we need to let go of having to know everything and trust in the God who does

“the boat came to rest on the mountains of Ararat.” Genesis 8:3-4

Today, our focus will be on Mount Sinai, which sta

Today, our focus will be on Mount Sinai, which stands at 7497 ft and is the second-largest Mountain that we will read about. Mount Sinai is located in Egypt.

I remember being in Egypt on holiday and looking over at Mount Sinai from afar. Kieren and I had planned a trip to the Mountain, but it never happened, and the tour that we were supposed to go with, was actually ambushed.

Something to note: most scholars believe that Mount Sinai and Mount Horeb are the same mountain, but within Scripture, it is also referred to as “The Mountain of God.” (Exodus 3:1; 4:27; 18:5) Therefore, for today, I will just refer to this mountain as Mount Sinai.

We can read in Scripture that Mount Sinai is where Moses had the “burning bush” experience and was called by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt (Exodus 3:1-12)

This is also where the Israelites entered into a covenant with God after they escaped captivity from Egypt (Deuteronomy 5:2). Still, also, Mount Sinai is well known as the place where Moses received the Ten Commandments for God's people (Deuteronomy 5:6-21). It must have been on the one hand, an incredible sight to see the mountain covered in thick cloud with thunder and lightning from God's presence. Still, on the other hand, utterly terrifying because they were commanded not even to touch the mountain whilst God resided there, else the punishment was death. Although I never realised that Moses walked up that mountain eight times!!

We can also read that Elijah fled to Mount Sinai to get away from Jezebel in 1 Kings 19:1-8, but that, in a cave he encountered God through a gentle whisper, which is one of my favourite passages in Scripture to read (1 Kings 19:1-18)

Mount Sinai has to be my favourite mountain in the Bible because of the events listed above, and the Godly truths that we can read about within Scripture from this location. Some places change your life forever, and Mount Sinai, to me, seems to be one of those places

“You came down on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven and gave them right rules and true laws, good statutes and commandments”
Nehemiah 9:13

#rebeccalbrand

Follow Me