Daily Picture

Today I saw an outline of the country of Italy, fine tuning to Rome, then the Vatican and finally where St Peter was martyred and buried. This has directed me to the letters that Peter wrote at the end of his life. He had known Jesus personally and was convinced he had seen the resurrected Jesus and that every word Jesus had spoken was true, which included the Baptism of the Holy Spirit He had pro...

Yesterday's message was very deep and subject to misinterpretation so I hesitated to share it widely. I was reflecting on the Portuguese word "maneira" meaning the way, the method, from the Latin root 'manus' = hand. In John 4:6 Jesus is recorded as declaring "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life". He is not stating that He is the route, the destination to eternal life in heaven. Rather, the whole...

Today I notice that it is my 666th Daily Picture uploaded on to Spotify. 666 is associated with the Mark of the Beast and the antichrist in the final book of the bible, Revelation, representing a system opposed to God. The trebling of the 6 emphasises its adamant attack on Jesus. Meanwhile, may I point out the significance of 7, representing God and perfection. In Matthew 18:21 Peter asked Jesus,...

Today I saw a carpentry shed, reminding me that Jesus had grown up learning some woodwork skills from his carpenter fatherJoseph (Matthew 13:55) and Jesus had indeed been referred to as a carpenter (Mark 6:3). Jesus forsook his carpentry, continuing to obey God's will: "Now Jesus himself was about 30 years old when he began his ministry..." (Luke 3:23) as did the disciples who forsook their jobs a...

Today I saw a nest with a mother bird returning to her babies in the nest but I sensed something was wrong. I heard the word, "cuckoo" and am reminded of the deceptive ways of the mother cuckoo who lays an egg in another bird's nest to hatch and be raised by another mother bird. There are a lot of deceptive tactics involved in this subterfuge, which further makes me ponder on how comfortable and c...

Today I saw a derelict, desolate, dilapidated building, in need of a lot of restoration. That could represent mankind as a whole, which was originally fully connected to God through Adam and Eve's bloodline, then separated from God through them, and which now needs to be reinstated. The building could also represent our individual lives, parts of which need restoration such as of ill health, emoti...

Today, I saw an electric sandwich maker which has brought to mind the heat of God in our lives. He sometimes intentionally puts us through fiery trials or at least, uncomfortable times. If we try to avoid them and/or complain about these times we are actually losing out on a gift! The gift is likened to a refiner's fire which purifies silver or gold, burning off their impurities. When the liquid s...

Today I saw a picture of a Catherine Wheel, a dramatically spinning firework shooting out hundreds of brightly coloured sparks. This seems like a sequel to us being a ray of light extending from Jesus. We can be dramatic for Jesus as one united body, not vying for individual attention and merit. Not long before He was crucified Jesus said, "Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in Me will do the...

Today I saw a previously barren twig displaying little green leaves with a chorus of birds tweeting in the background. It is Spring! What a wonderful reminder of expectations. We are told that God's promises are always fulfilled (2 Corinthians 1:20). The more we experience the perfect timing of God's fulfillment, after having waited, the stronger our faith and expectation becomes in the future. We...

Today I saw a picture of a lit candle on a tall candlestand on the ground. Jesus is the Light and when He ignites us we are one of His rays of light, reflecting His love, grace and truth so dispelling darkness and sharing the hope that Jesus provides. The Gospel of Matthew 5:14-16 recounts Jesus as saying "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people l...

I saw an olympic diving board, with me bouncing gently on the highest board until I swooped down into a dive. What freedom there is in doing that but to get that point of decision to dive, there is a need to walk up the steps and choose to go higher, then testing for bounce and movement. This could be likened to our walk towards Jesus - a decision to learn more about Him, test Him a little and the...

Today I sensed the words, "Beautiful cross". How can it be considered beautiful when it was an appallingly cruel instrument of torture used by the Romans over two thousand years ago? However, Jesus's excruciating suffering during the lead up to the Cross and on the cross, was the outpouring of His perfect love for mankind. His love is pure beauty. Jesus looked down on those who so cruelly crucifie...

Today I thought I would be concentrating on why it was not the sin of anger that Jesus had displayed in all 4 gospels when He had overturned the merchants' tables in the Temple courts. (As indicated in the Gospel of Mark 11:11,15, Jesus had already seen all the tables the night before and the following day He justifiably, and not in an angry reactionary way, had turfed the buyers and sellers out o...

Today I feel a continuation of yesterday's message on gluttony. As well as various verses directing us from gluttony it is listed amongst the 7 deadly sins, as identified by the early Church, which are all indicated in Scripture: pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath and sloth. We all know that these dispositions can lead to sinful actions but what is the root cause of them all? It is the lack...

Today I saw a picture of a large white, very sugary, round chocolate. That doesn't appeal to me as too much sugar makes me feel faint with a rapid drop in my blood sugar level. It is not a question of me honouring God by not eating it. However, for another person it could be a question of honouring God by not eating it as they know they have no will power in stopping and thus moving into gluttony....

Today is a continuation of yesterday's message, reminding us that God is our provider and how wonderful to give back to him in a spirit of excellence and gratitude. We cannot outgive Him and He will always look after us. 1 Corinthians 9:6: "Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly and whoever sows generously will also reap generously". Some people view those who rely on God as weak and in n...

I have experienced God's excellence in provision and blessings, having had a seamless trip back to the UK for a long weekend, with a wonderful time meeting up with family and friends. God gives excellently. Do we give excellently to Him? I have been reminded of Adam and Eve's two sons, Cain and Abel as described in Genesis 4. Abel gave to God the best of his flock without hesitation. In contrast,...

Today I saw the simplicity of a young child's flower with the central yellow circle, a halo of petals surrounding it and a straight green stem with 2 leaves. A young child's ignorance (in the sense of lack of knowledge) of the intracacies and vastness of botany does not belittle the child; at least s/he recognises the existence of flowers. Similarly, think of the cross standing tall in the ground...

I feel that this is a sequel to yesterday's message of a white feather often being associated to God and His angels. Today I saw an image of the lead dancer in Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake, dancing with beauty and grace. Indeed, there are things we see and hear which cause us to think on God and His goodness even though they are not specifically mentioned in the bible as being associated to Him....

Today I saw a small white feather which I know many people see as a good sign from God that His angels are at work. I don't think there is a bible verse which specifically tells us that, let alone tell us that angels have white wings. In whatever way we may tangibly see God at work in our lives, even if fanciful, the truth is that God is indeed wanting to guide and protect us constantly. Whether w...

Today I saw a paddle board causing me to reflect on the necessity of experience and strength in negotiating choppy waters and high winds. We can maybe look at the weather ahead with a degree of accuracy and prepare accordingly. However, we cannot do that with our lives, which can take sudden and unexpected turns. We need to be humble enough to recognise that we can't guarantee what our future hold...

Today I saw a picture of a compound enclosed by barbed wire and I also saw a door monitored by a security code, both representing a protection from outsiders. I believe that this represents us when we purposefully exclude Jesus from our life and, even as Christians, exclude Him from aspects of our life. Hebrews 3:7-8 "So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your h...

I had taken an Uber taxi yesterday and when he stopped to let me out, the driver behind displayed anger with the honking of his car horn and a tirade of angry words. I went over to him to say that I had had no say in where I had been dropped off. His response was that he was not shouting at me but at the Uber driver. As I pointed out to him, my Uber driver had already driven off! So the driver's r...

Today I have felt to focus on God's provision for us, stemming from the Latin 'pro' (forward) and 'videre' (to see). So, initially, to provide meant to have foresight and preparation in advance, though now it is not necessarily in the context of knowing in advance but more the act of supplying towards needs. We also have the related word of providence which refers to God's direction, guidance and...

Today I felt the caution that every time we judge another we put pressure on ourselves. Jesus made this very clear to His disciples, as recorded in Matthew 7. Many of us are familiar with the verses 3-4 telling us to first take the plank out of our eye before judging another for the speck of sawdust in their eye. However, let us not forget the preceding verses 1 and 2: "Do not judge, or you too wi...