Daily Picture

We see butterflies settle with their two wings upright and together but also, apparently, they can pull them down vertically along their back as a form of camouflage (interestingly as an aside, in contrast to many moths which keep their wings horizontal). I liken these images of butterflies to God's promises to us - sometime, like wings outstretched, we can see the promises; other times we are awa...

Big waves can represent life's challenges which can sometimes be ridden but often require the help of God to dissipate them into white caps on the sea. The Psalmist sings of God's creative power over everything. "You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them" (Psalm 89:9). That same Psalmist prophesies that King David's throne will endure forever (v.28-29, 35-36). This ful...

Adam and Eve were banished from The Garden of Eden, having picked from the one tree God had warned them not to eat from, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Humanity was thus propelled into the threat of an existence of good and evil forever. Ironically, Adam and Eve's banishment from the Garden of Eden was God's first step in restoring mankind to His original plan of an eternal relationsh...

After I saw a picture of an elastic band ball in my mind's eye I looked at a YouTube video on how to create one. The presenter was so detailed and enthusiastic that it crossed my mind as to why an elastic band ball could generate such passion in a young man. It then struck me as to how easy it is to judge others when they are different to us and/or we don't understand them. Jesus in the Bible give...

Our seconds in life do not stop, as with a fire burning along a wire. Let us use our seconds productively which means to be wise, developing our joy and trust in the Lord. It does not mean rushing around being productive in our actions. Yesterday's message reminds us of that and here is another verse. "Be very carefu, then, how you live -not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportun...

In the gospel of Matthew 3:16-17 we are told that the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus in the form of a dove and God indicated His great pleasure in his son Jesus and yet, Jesus hadn't started his ministry and miracles at that time. God's pleasure was in Jesus's willingness to obey Him. Along those lines, in answer to His disciples' qestion, Jesus told them that the way to do God's Work is to believ...

The picture today reminded me that in the classic story of Peter Pan, he had been whisked away out of his pram when he was only 7 days old. He was taken to Never Never Land by the fairies, a place where he never had to grow up. This has brought to mind the encouragement in the biblical book of Hebrews to mature in our walk with the Lord. " Anyone who has to drink milk is still a baby, without expe...

The little white Edelweiss flowers, that survive in the freezing conditions on the highest altitudes of the Alps, represent love, strength and toughness. Similarly, God's love and mercy abounds towards us despite our sometimes stubborn cold hearts. Also, another slant in today's picture is that we can look at our tough circumstances and look out for the little love notes, as I call them, that God...

The long tail of a mouse and the long legs of a spider etc all expand our interpretation of the size of these creatures. Similarly, with our imagination we can create length, depth and height of fear and misgivings to a situation. "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love" (1 John 4:18). That m...

As well as a pause symbol, with the two short vertical lines, I saw a faded chain link in the foreground reminding us that it may seem that God is taking a break in our lives, but in fact everything that happens to us is connected. God's love for us is never on pause. "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning. Great is your faithfuln...

The white ribbon image today has made me think of a wedding cake and other wedding decorations. In the Old Testament, God is described through His Prophets as delighting over His people in the same way a groom delights over His bride. "And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you" (Isaiah 62:5b). In the New Testament the church is described as the Bride of Chri...

Apparently, though Bougainvillea flourish on Lindos, Rhodes, they temporarily stop in the really hot summer months. My son and daughter in law's wedding in Lindos this past week was just in time to still take advantage of the blooms. They hadn't been aware of the significant timing when they chose their wedding date. The flowers were a stunning addition to the ambience of the venue and to the wedd...

Today's picture of a black window blind, with a light shining on to it rather than having it opened to allow light in, reminds us that we cannot see into our future.  However, we have the Word of God shed into our lives to give us assurance that our future is good when we allow God to lead us.  "Now listen you who say today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on...

I am in Lindos, on the beautiful island of Rhodes, Greece, for the wedding of one of my sons. The afternoon on the day before the wedding, contrary to the weather forecast, the skies turned fully grey and the rain poured down. The following day the wedding was blessed with beautiful clear blue skies. With the contrast with the rain I was reminded not to take our blessings for granted. Also, I was...

The picture today of a pair of mocassins immediately brings to mind an old native American proverb telling us never to judge another until we have walked a mile in their moccasins. That then leads me on to what most of us know - not to judge others as we never know the full facts and, in any case, are we perfect enough to judge? Jesus warns us to "first take the plank out of your eye, and then you...

Fire is depicted in various contexts in the bible such as as a metaphorical testing crucible for our actions, is sometimes representative of God's wrath, John the Baptist told everybody that Jesus baptised with the Holy Spirit and fire, the Holy Spirit first descended on the waiting disciples in the form of tongues of fire and we are warned by Jesus's brother James that the words uttered by our to...

Seductive eyes from us or directed to us suggest a promise of immediate pleasure. Proverbs, the book of Wisdom, says "Do not lust in your heart after her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes" (Proverbs 6:25). As suggested yesterday, why don't we practise a life of looking out for others instead? In so doing, God looks out for us. If we believe that, we can believe that He will do an excel...

Many of us know that positive thoughts in us attract positive energy towards us, sometimes referred to as The Law of Attraction. God's Word instructs us to think on Himself and what is positive in us and in our lives. One verse, amongst many, is "You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you" (Isaiah 26:3). An old Cherokee fable likens the positive and ne...

I saw a picture of a 4 legged table with one leg working its way loose, ready to tip the table over. I believe that this is a reminder that whilst some bible verses may be clear, such as "Trust in the Lord with all your heart", others may be more complicated, contradictory or may even seem wrong to us. Jesus said he has given us His Holy Spirit to help us in our understanding (John 14:26), but thi...

"For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day". (John 6:40). I believe those words of Jesus but I forget that in the preceding verse he also said, "And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day". As we have been given...

I had a reminder of the 1980s Japanese video game Pac-Man which has made me further think on the advances in video games which attempt to emulate reality with amazing and sophisticated technology. We also have supposed reality shows which pick and choose what they want us to see. Social Media often shows us only the good and fun aspects of others' lives. Many of us are searching for Truth and Real...

When we are looking for the right person in our life and eventually find them, there is a sense of knowing that we have come home and are meeting our destiny. Finding our person does not diminish others. Similarly, when we meet Jesus there is a sense of fulfillment which again, does not diminish other life teachers and Christian leaders. God has created them all. However, there is a difference in...

I have never seen an imperfect looking swan. This makes me reflect on the fact that God looks at us humans as already the perfect finished creations He intended us to be when in fact, in this world, none of us are. I am so relieved that God has that hope in me and indeed in all of us to restore us, living in harmony with Him in eternity. The Bible tells us that we have this one life when we can ch...

It is difficult to rest in God as this means trusting God and being at peace. This state of mind and heart manifests itself through us when we are praising Him, forgiving others (because no one is perfect no one is going to behave perfectly towards us) and praying for others. Do we follow that instruction to "Be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10)?

I have been reminded that when my children were little, one morning one of them scribbled permanent gold marker over my beautiful Indonesian coffee table and I couldn't clean it off. In the afternoon another proceeded to play with playdough on the same table, forgetting to put a plastic sheet underneath. Whilst picking up the playdough by dabbing it into one ball, I discovered the properties of th...