Daily Picture

Today I had a "picture" of a stately, alert male deer with beautiful antlers. Deer used to be prevalent in Israel and are often mentioned in the bible to signify firm grounding in the Lord. We can stand regal because of our Father God king but there is also a reminder of the need to always remain humble in our reliance on God to be able to scale mountains, representing challenges, and thus to stan...

Today I saw a giant cup and saucer as used in a fairground. They whirl round and round at a fast pace, clockwise and anti clockwise. They are not my "cup of tea"! However, some people love them. There are many opinions in this world such as with the origin of the actual word "tea". Some people think its etymology is based on a Portuguese queen in the 17th century introducing tea to England as part...

I saw a picture of Joss sticks, a form of incense sticks, which some Chinese burn to honour their ancestors. Apparently, records of incense can be dated as far back as 3600 bc India and then on to China, Greece and elsewhere. It is used for many reasons such as for religious, spiritual and meditative purposes. The Buddhists also have a practical purpose, reminiscent of the days when running water...

Today my image is of someone struggling to climb up the slanted side of a roof to get to a cross at the top. That reminds me that when Jesus was on earth for 33 years he struggled with the same issues we have, for example of hunger (Matthew 21:18), tiredness (John 4:6) and stress (Luke 22:44) etc. He also needed help ( Mark 15:21) to carry his huge heavy wooden cross up the hill to Golgotha upon w...

I saw a picture of an axe head in my mind's eye. This has reminded me of the bible account in 2 Kings 6:1-7 describing an axe head which one of the prophet Elisha's followers inadvertently dropped into the River Jordan. He was particularly concerned as he had borrowed the axe which had sunk out of sight. Elisha patiently, lovingly and supernaturally caused the axe head to rise and be retrieved. Th...

I saw a picture of a cup and saucer. They are words that often go together in English as do say Bucket and Spade, Fish and Chips. God and You (say your name) go together too. John 4:16 tells us that God is Love and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in Him". To abide is to dwell, to live. It is not just a word; it is an action. Jesus equates Himself with God in his love for us to...

The disciple John refers to himself as the disciple Jesus loved - for instance he says in his gospel account of The Last Supper that "Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved". (John 13:23). Other incidences are in: John 19:26; 20:2; 21:7&20. John was not implying that Jesus didn't love the other disciples. It was more that He knew for himself that Jesus loved h...

A man was desperately looking for his missing 5 year old son in a a very busy park. He came across a pond and his first thought was that his son had drowned. He entreated God to protect his son, for whom he would sacrifice anything and everything. His son was found safe and sound but it made the man think on how much Jesus loves us and gave the supreme sacrifice of his life for us.

I saw a picture of the hood on a stroller/pram. This brings to mind the Daily Picture devotional on Saturday 3rd last week in reference to 1 Corinthians 13 about Love. Verse 7 says love always protects and some translations says love bears all; the original Greek implies to "roof over, keep silent". Sometimes a hood on a baby pram has to be folded back. With the focus on the hood, and not on a bab...

Jesus always responds to us immediately, though we need to trust Him in what He gives us and in the timing of us receiving it. He knows what is best for us. Many of us know the bible account of Peter walking on water towards Jesus and starting to sink when he looked away from Jesus and instead to the high waves. However, as soon as Peter cried out for help, " *immediately* Jesus reached out his ha...

Yesterday, someone said to me, "To plant seeds is to believe in the future". I loved that and it made me think of verses in the bible that encourage us to sow positively and then we reap multifold. Galatians 6:8b tells us, "whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life". We need love and patience to apply that but it seems so worth it. Proverbs11:24-25, amongst other bi...

I was wondering why Swedish meatballs are considered to be so delicious and I subsequently gathered that the two main ingredients are a combination of minced meats, usually beef and pork, which then creates a tender, juicy mixture. They are often served with a creamy gravy, enhancing the overall flavour and adding a comforting element to the dish. How am I connecting these details to the Bible?! W...

The Feeding of the 5000 is apparently the only miracle recorded in all 4 gospels (John 6:1-14; Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:31-44; Luke 9:12-17) apart from the Resurrection. What is also worth noting is that so much teamwork was involved starting from the awareness of the need to feed so many people, then discovering a boy had 5 small barley loaves and 2 small fish which were taken to Jesus who miracu...

I had been hoping to record this message before boarding a very early flight this morning but I was on the move at the airport the whole time until reaching the boarding gate. Then the Premium passengers were called first. Thankfully, I was in the second batch of passengers to go through the gate so I had the time to record this message after all. It reminded me that what is considered Premium in...

Today I had a picture of a black crow. I am not aware of any bible verses about crows, but rather about ravens. I remember a crow not responding to any shooing at a picnic I was enjoying, as opposed to other birds which immediately flew off. The crow was determined to get some food. Similarly, I think there are people who really want to pick at us until we buckle under the pressure. Be careful of...

Let's be reminded that the Bible tells us many times that God/Jesus created us. For instance, Colossians 1:16 says, "For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible ...". As such, He knows everything about our inner workings - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Perhaps we don't believe any of that. If you want to believe it, ask Jesus to hel...

Who are "they" and "them"? Don't we sometimes worry about others' opinions about us and, very likely, they are not even thinking about us? The Theys and the Thems are usually in our imagination but if we have negative thoughts they can send us in a downward spiral. "The fear of human opinion disables; trusting in God protects you from that". (Proverbs 29:25)

I saw an image of a tam o'shanter today, an old fashioned Scottish flat cap with a bobble in the centre, immortalised by legendary Scottish poet Robert Burns. He wrote a narrative poem about continually drunk Tam O'Shanter who was chased by witches and the devil on one of his drunken escapades. He only just managed to escape them. I sense that this is a reminder that we enter into risk and danger...

I saw an image of a belt today which I have linked to bible verses relating to the "girding of loins". To gird is to wear the equivalent of a belt around your waist and in biblical times loins were girded when the loose flowing parts of long robes were literally tucked into a belt to promote greater freedom of leg movement. The expression 'Girding ones loins' is now used figuratively for being pre...

Today I saw a very mundane item - a stapler! I am reminded that it needs to be pressed down hard to be effective as otherwise the staples just sit in the paper dysfunctionally. Similarly, let us work with excellence so that we are effective in others' lives too. "...work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need" (Ephesians 4:28). That v...

In general, education of the young supports child-led learning. A child who can explore and try for himself, within safe boundaries, at least until he gets to the point of near frustration and awareness of the need for help, develops more ingrained learning. By the same token, we are God's children, created by Him to learn for ourselves, at our own pace, of Him. He is there as our safety net at al...

God told Moses to tell His people that He is "I am who I am". (Exodus 3:14) That is because He is eternal. He is not "I was" or "I will be". Jesus said the same when He said to the Pharisees "Truly, truly I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am". (John 8:58). Abraham was born about 1,800 years before Jesus came as a human baby to earth. God, Jesus and their Holy Spirit are eternal. God's Word...

Today we are reminded of the account of Mary Magdalene, a sinful woman by her own admission, who was so grateful to Jesus for saving her from her life of sin that she poured expensive perfumed oil on to His feet to show her gratitude, love and devotion. Jesus explained to those around who were indignant and aghast at what they perceived as wastage of the extremely valuable oil, that the more we un...

Some people are drawn to crystals for healing. It is described as benevolent or white magic which sounds good and there is power in it. However, God wants us to wholly turn to Him for His comfort and strength when you need healing. Through His prophet Ezekiel He warns of entrapment when you rely on pagan magic (Ezekiel 13:17-21). Moses and his brother Aaron proved God's power as being stronger tha...

Today I was drawn to the colour purple which has different connotations for different people. It draws me to one account in the bible, of a lady called Lydia who was a dealer in purple cloth. This would have been a lucrative business in those days as it was very difficult to get hold of purple dye. It was extracted from the mucous of particular sea snails. With this scarcity, it was related to peo...