Daily Picture

Today I saw mushy overcooked spaghetti! This made me reflect on over-thinking. The antidote to that is to cast all our cares on the Lord, asking Him first to help us with the situation on which we are overthinking. A step further would be to thank the Lord in faith before He has even provided, as exemplified by Jesus who lifted up 5 loaves of bread, thanked God and then broke it. Then Jesus miracu...

Today I saw a picture of a dark footprint very close to me facing towards me, with the impression that it was someone deterring me from doing God's Will. What is important is to know how to deal with our enemy. The enemy could very much be our attitude towards that person deterring us as well as the actual person. Matthew 5:44-45a records Jesus as telling us, "But I tell you, love your enemies and...

Today, as I was reciting the Lord's Prayer I was contemplating on how easy it is to let the mechanics of muscle memory take over and I could complete the prayer without considering the words at all. There is some benefit in muscle memory in actions and words because it can eradicate the stress of learning and the words can flood back to us just when we need them in, say, a time of crisis. However,...

Today I saw an earthworm. I reflected on the fact that worms do not seem to cause a phobia in people as they slowly move along and are usually underground anyway. They are vital to life because they break down dead and decaying matter into rich humus soil, thereby supporting plant growth. In other words, it takes what is dead and uses it for supporting new life. In very timely fashion, this mornin...

Today I saw an hour glass which is a timing device with 2 connected bulbs, from which sand is transferred from one bulb to another in one hour. They can actually be of varying units of time such as 10 minutes or as little as 30 seconds. I think the point here is that we do not know the exact length of the remainder of our lives. As such, we should take precious care of all this unknown time. Trust...

Today I saw a white triangle which was a sail making up part of a simplified yacht image. I think on the Trinity - Father God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit - appearing together at Jesus's baptism in the river Jordan. "As soon as Jesus was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him. And a voice from...

Today I saw a wooden skewer with a selection of soft fruits, crispy vegetables and cubes of raw meat, ready for barbecuing. This has made me think of the uniqueness and differences of all us in God's refiner's fire. There are many verses in the bible that refer to the proverbial fire that tests our faith, teaches us to grow in our faith and strengthens us to change into His image. In the natural,...

Today, I woke up to the word "Superlative" - of the highest quality or degree. This, I feel, is linked to yesterday's message of Abel's offering to God of His first born sheep, indicative of wanting to give his best. Conversely, his brother Cain wasn't happy to even listen to God. Jude says of the Israelites who were saved from bondage in Egypt by God and who turned instead to Balaam, "Woe to them...

I think on the one verse in The Lord's Prayer in which we declare that God does indeed "Lead us not into temptation but delivers us from evil" (Matthew 6:13). James 1:13 informs us that God never tempts us. 1 Peter 1:16 also tells us that God is leading us to be Holy like Him. In Genesis 4 we learn that Adam and Eve's first 2 sons were Cain and Abel. Abel worked the soil and gave God some grown pr...

Today I am thinking of all the detail in the bible which we can so easily overlook, unless the Holy Spirit reveals it to us. I am looking in particular at Jesus's Parable of the Sower. To those of us already familiar with the Parable of the Sower, we are aware that the seed represents God's Word and is depicted as falling on different grounds, representing different hearts - some are hard and will...

I saw a small, funny, furry, green, toylike creature running and rolling down a ski slope. He was having such fun! It has caused me to think on how children find it much easier to find reason and opportunity for laughter. I can't provide any credence for the statistic I have heard of children, under normal circumstances, being more likely to laugh 400 times a day as opposed to adults who might lau...

Today, in my mind's eye, I saw a snapshot of a meadow teeming with life, with purple heather, a sprightly rabbit and a fluttering butterfly. Life. Over 700 years before Jesus came to earth, God told us through His prophet Isaiah that He would transform death to life, such as deserts and the wilderness bursting into bloom with great joy, the blind, deaf and lame being restored and a highway called...

Today I was reminded of the Portuguese word caro" meaning expensive. The gospels of Luke (7:37ff) and John 12 (1ff) give us an account of a sinful woman washing Jesus's feet with her tears and her long hair; then she lavishes expensive perfume on His feet. It was the custom in those days to wash a guest's sandy sandalled feet. This woman recognised Jesus as her saviour and showed her love for Him...

Today I saw doors opening into light, one from a dark corridor into a bright room and the other one from a dark room out to a beautiful setting. With God in us, wherever we go, He sheds His light. "I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted a...

Today I have been contemplating the evolution of word in communication. Apostle John refers to Jesus as The Word Who was there at the beginning, as God and Creator. (John 1:1-3). Both Jews and the gentiles would have had some conception of word being personified as the agent between creator and created. We are reminded even now that positive thought can be transferred into positive words and into...

Today whilst praying I thought about the privilege and importance of prayer. Positive thinking can cause positive actions but it is not as powerful as praying to our mighty and awesome God. The Bible gives us many reminders to pray to our God for others; He listens and loves all of us. "I urge then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people" (1 Tim...

Today I was reminded of my now 36 year old eldest son playing with little cars when he was a preschooler; he loved it when I cut out little gingerbread shaped men to place in the driver's seat. I loved playing with all 5 of my children. I was 30 years old when my eldest was born and he was the same age when his wife gave birth to their first son. He now loves to play with his 3 little ones too. Wh...

Today I was reminded of my biology lesson with a seed and cotyledon, the first embryonic leaf. This further brings to mind the spiritual life which is also available to us and can develop in us, in addition to our earthly body. Jesus came back for 40 days after His death on the cross, with convincing proofs that He was alive, speaking about the Kingdom of God. (see Acts 1:4). He had a physical bod...

Today I saw, in my mind's eye, a pair of half finger knitted gloves. This drew me to thinking on God's completely open hand towards us. His is often referred to in the Bible as the hand that created us, and as such He wants to fully protect us and provide for us. Prophet Isaiah (64:8) declares, "But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and You are our potter; we are all the work of Yo...

Today I have been reflecting on the times we choose to close our eyes to God's spiritual truths. For instance we are told to "Rejoice in the Lord always .."(Philippians 4:4) but we can completely and actively turn away from that truth and retort that what we are going through wholly justifies our complaining. I can sometimes recognise blindness in others but do I realise that I choose to be blind...

Today I have been reminded of a song which used to irritate me when I heard it sung by an adult years ago. I searched for it just now and heard the original version which was sweetly sung by two young children in the early 50s, long before I was born. This has caused me to reflect on how our attitudes can change based on our experiences and context etc. Grace is a wonderful gift extended to anothe...

Today I saw, in my mind's eye, Jesus breaking bread. Each time He did, He gave thanks before He broke the bread - when He fed the 5000 with 5 loaves of bread, at the Last Supper and when he had supper 3 days after his death, with 2 men on the way to Emmaus who only recognised Him when they saw Him breaking bread (Luke 24). Bread is significant as is the breaking of it, with it being shared with ma...

Today I saw a picture of a cornerstone of a building which is often, as its name suggests, at the base of the corner where two walls meet. Wherever it is ceremonially placed, it visibly indicates the significance and importance of the building and the occasion. Ephesians 2:19-23 tells us, "Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God's people and also memb...

Today I am doing the same as I did yesterday, and linking a picture to a bible verse rather than vice versa. I was drawn to Genesis 2:12 which describes the gold and onyx on the earth after God had created the heavens and the earth. In the natural it takes billions of years for gold and onyx to be formed. Fast forwarding to Jesus's first miracle on earth - it takes more than a few minutes for wine...

Today's devotional is more a series of thoughts than a picture. I think on Jesus at the Last Supper, before He was crucified, telling his disciples that they must eat His flesh and drink His blood as represented by the bread and wine He offered them. (See Matthew 26:26-28). This is not cannabalism but of spiritual significance. As we looked at last Saturday, Mary conceived of Jesus through the pow...