Daily Picture

Today I had a picture of dried spaghetti. There are so many other varieties of pasta such as penne, fusilli, lasagne, ravioli, gnocchi, linguine, macaroni etc. Many Italians read the packaging well as, in fact, it is important to check that the wheat quality, milling, processing and drying methods are of the highest standard. How am I going to relate that to today's message? Christians are part of...

Today I had a picture of a cinnamon stick. Cinnamon was a rare spice in ancient times and was one of the ingredients God had listed, amongst other spices and aromatic reeds, to be mixed into olive oil to create the sacred anointing oil for His tabernacle. (Exodus 30:22-25). Anointing with oil is a centuries old biblical practice used to symbolise God's power, presence, healing, consecration and ho...

Today I saw an undressed unisex rag doll, representing all of us. The understanding is that though we are all God's beautiful creation (Psalm 139:14-16; Genesis 1:31) we all put on dirty clothing when we do wrong. Jesus has cleansed us of this dirty clothing so we can be in right standing with God but also His Holy Spirit can, as with a naked rag doll, clothe us with kingly robes and all that repr...

Today I had a picture of a laundry basket full of dirty clothing, inside a black bubble. Then I saw the same clothes washed and folded, smelling of the beautiful aroma of fabric softener. I believe that this is a reminder of our naturally imperfect nature having been cleansed by Jesus's perfection whilst He was here on earth as a man, having sacrificed Himself on the cross for us. "And you know th...

Today I had a picture of internal scaffolding, like a skeleton upon which something can be constructed rather than external scaffolding. This makes me think of how careful we need to be with our words, particularly for 2 reasons. Firstly, let's ensure our words are not empty promises etc and secondly, that our words are not mean, nasty and accusatory etc. Those words could cause damage to the reci...

Today I saw a picture of a deep silver kitchen container with a handle on either side and a very small amount of essential oils swirling at the base of it. The container was so deep that the beautiful smell was confined to it. In the bible, prayers are sometimes likened to incense (Psalm 141:2; Revelations 5:8, 8:3-4) rising up to God. Let's not confine our prayers to a possibility swirling within...

Today I saw a whale spouting out what I thought was water from its blow hole though in fact, as the name suggests, it is air that the whale is expelling with great force, creating a misty spray. Being mammals, whales and dolphins have to do this on a regular basis. In the bible we read of the breath of the Holy Spirit. Soon after Jesus had died He came back and visited his disciples who had been h...

Today I saw a person having reached the pinnacle of a tall icy mountain. Then I saw the ice melt away, leaving a beautiful green mountain, laden with beautiful flowers. I believe that God is telling us that though we will have mountainous challenges in our lives, He will help us scale them and we will gain from those circumstances. Romans 8:28 tells us, " And we know that in all things God works f...

Today I saw a pick axe being used to try and smash through hard slabs of ice. It was a tough job. Then a heater was used which easily melted the solid ice. This is a good reminder that it is not our responsibility and our efforts which will change a person who needs changing, but prayer. We can ask the Holy Spirit to intercede on our behalf and to actually give us the desire to pray for particular...

Today I saw a food heating pad for the table. What a good reminder that after receiving His Holy Spirit, Jesus wants us to keep our passion towards Him and His Spirit, hot. He doesn't want us to be lukewarm, which is how he described many of his followers in the church in ancient Laodicea (Turkey). He went on to say, "You say, 'I am rich, I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing'. But you ar...

Today I saw a picture of a lit dynamite fuse, reminding me that the word dynamite comes from the ancient Greek word 'dunamis' meaning power, potential or ability. This same word was used in Acts 1:8 to describe the power of the Holy Spirit - "But you will receive power when the power of the Holy Spirit comes on you;...". Jesus had given an instruction to all His followers to wait and receive the H...

A friend of mine's 4 year old family cat had to be put down and they loved her so much and knew her unconditional love for them. 1 John 3:16 tells us of Jesus that "We know love by this, that He lay down His life for us - and we ought to lay down our lives for one another". Our hearts tells us that this signifies Jesus's unconditional love towards us. It has also made me think on the fact that as...

Today's picture is of the stone that had been moved from in front of the tomb where Jesus's dead body had been placed. In Luke 24:1-6 we are told that " two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning ...said to them, 'Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, He has risen!' " Matthew 28:2-4 specifically tells us that an angel of the Lord had rolled back the stone and sat on it...

I saw an insignificant looking mouse in the distance which brought to mind a testimony I recently heard at a bilingual worship event. A rat was mentioned but in translation it was called a mouse. I wanted to point out the error but, thankfully, managed to keep quiet which was a good thing as the whole message was to bring glory to God, not to pick holes in points of lesser importance. Sometimes Go...

Today I had a picture of a grizzly bear (ursus arctos 'horribilus'). I am reminded of how a 'horrible' image was transformed into the ongoing popularity of teddy bears since their creation over a hundred years ago. I further reflect that Love can transform horrible situations. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, as often read at weddings, describes perfect love as being patient, kind, not envying, not boasting,...

Today I saw a four pronged garden fork, good for loosening and aerating soil without damaging roots. Let us ask God's Holy Spirit to loosen our hearts to receive His word and to apply what is good in our lives to bear much fruit. Old Testament Prophet Hosea (10:12) tells us 'Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now...

Today I saw a picture of a wide gaping mouth such as of a wild animal or volcano. The bible book of Lamentations 2:16 refers to the enemy's mouth in reference to Babylon who had overthrown Jerusalem in about 600 BC. King David also refers to the enemy's gaping mouth in Psalm 22:13 when he was in anguish over them. The recent messages have been reminders to be ready for Jesus's return and today's m...

Today I saw a simple comb which brings to mind the expression in English "to comb through..." which suggests to sift through, to investigate, to search thoroughly. I believe the Holy Spirit is encouraging us to reflect and carefully consider what and who we are prioritising in our lives. We don't want to miss out on the bridegroom's (Jesus's) arrival, as did the foolish virgins as mentioned in yes...

Are we an Option or a Choice? A wise friend recently framed that question regarding relationships. Let us be wise and accept that those who only see us as an option in their life have that right to do so and to stop giving them priority in our life. Whilst we are busy holding on to misplaced priorities we could then miss the one who will treat us as priority. What about Jesus? He died for you so y...

The book of Revelation, the last book in the bible, is Jesus Christ unveiling Himself to the Apostle John, revealing the antichrist, God's judgement and calamity on earth and restoration of mankind to God. "Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it because the time is near." (Revelations 1:3). "Near" in t...

I saw an old fashioned bath which reminds me of the fanciful story of the king who wanted to have a bath made for his Queen. He measured the required size by counting his handspans, using his outstretched hand and measuring from the tip of his little finger to the tip of his thumb. Unfortunately the carpenter's handspan was much smaller than that of the king's so the bath he made was too small. Th...

Today I saw a honey bee and they are the species of bee which dies once they have injected a person with venom through their stinger. This also reminds me of something I read recently that someone had answered to the question 'What is anger?' with the words, "It is a punishment we give to ourselves, for somebody else's mistake". What a good way of reminding ourselves that internal anger, or the ou...

Today I saw the image of the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus at His baptism as described in the Gospel of Matthew 3:16-17. This was prophesied by Isaiah 600-700 years before Jesus was even born (Isaiah 11:1-2). It has been God's plan from the beginning for mankind to be reunited with Him in His Kingdom, with our spirit connected to His Holy Spirit. Apostle Paul, in his 2nd letter to the Corinthian...

I saw the sun behind the clouds, giving them a golden tinge on their outer edges, reminiscent of the old adage that every cloud has a silver lining, denoting an optimistic and bright outcome despite seemingly dire circumstances. I have just discovered that this expression originates from 17th century English poet John Milton. Coincidentally, with our recent theme of the restoration of mankind's di...

Today I saw a paper fan and the words "Simplicity of Life". A paper fan can be described in intricate detail or in simple terms but, either way, it is a simple item. Similarly, however complicated the term "Born Again" can be described as, it is a simple term for our connection with God as our spiritual Father.