Living in London is truly fabulous.
We've had people coming to see us almost every night since we got here.
Friends came round last night. Julie and Paul, Julie is a vicar at a London Church, Paul is a headmaster.
We haven't seen them for eight years.
It was amazing to see them and catch up with them.
They were an integral part of the work we did at Liverpool Boiler room. Paul has an incredible creative mind and can produce breathtaking art and designed and created all twelve prayer rooms at Liverpool Boiler Room.
I had shared with them about how difficult it has been to heal up after a pretty tough year last year.
I won't go into that now.
But.
Julie, being the great minister that she is, reached immediately into her handbag and scooped out her phone. She pressed open the bible app and searched for a scripture.
After she had read the scripture to me, everything seemed to click into place. Order returned to my mind. Everything I went through seemed to slot into a purpose.
They prayed for healing for me.
This morning I have a ferocious resolve.
And.
God directed me unswervingly to share this scripture with you guys. There maybe someone out there, reading this, who is entrenched in the battles of life. You maybe can't see a reason for it, or like I was, you may be trapped down in the "why me" pit. You may even feel you are to blame. I was beginning to believe the lie that people just don't like me. Which of course isn't true (I hope not anyway!) you maybe locked in a difficult situation right now. One that seemingly has no end or know exit door. Your tired, stressed, weary from battling, and you want to give up, but even doing that is a tall order?
Your Christian journey is just littered with miserable people, difficult situations and stress like you wouldn't believe? So much so that you actually don't know what is joyful anymore?
Yeah?
Is that you?
Well here's the scripture from the message bible that Julie gave me last night.
And I understood.
I pray you will too.
"You're blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God's kingdom. "Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don't like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble. (Matthew 5:10-12 MSG)
I pray for you today that you will be truly blessed. And that this word would help make sense of where you are right now. I pray strength over your commitment to God that you would be able to hold fast when everything seems all but over. I pray light and life over you, and i pray healing over you. I pray that you have the strength of the Spirit to rise up today and say enough is enough, and walk into a clarity of the living God and his purpose for your life.
Amen
