Hope For Today

If you would like to listen to this devotional, please click  here Dear Friends, Last year I joined the Facebook group 'COME Together' (Christians Overcoming ME Together) and I have joined their team of writers for their quarterly newsletter. Today's devotional is from my first article in that newsletter. Easter - The Greatest Act of Love The greatest act of love the world has ever known was at Easter. God sent his Son because he loved you and me so much. It was his purpose that Jesus would give his life for us that we might have and know a loving relationship with God.  "God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins." 1 John 4:9-10 (NLT)  Jesus' love for us was so great that he willingly submitted to his Father's will, taking upon himse...

Dear Friends, As I write this, Valentine's Day is fast approaching.  I'm sure that with that day comes all kinds of mixed emotions for many people.  Some will be eagerly anticipating it, especially if they are in the throes of new love (such as a certain young man I know!), for some it will be a reminder of their singleness when it seems as though everyone else is celebrating, for some there will be sad memories of love lost, others perhaps will be feeling that their relationships fall short of what they had hoped for etc. But today I want us to put aside these things to re-focus on God and his love for each one of us.  So, make yourself a cup of tea or coffee, get yourself comfy in your favourite chair, find somewhere you can be alone from others and let's quieten are hearts and minds so we can draw near to God and contemplate on his love for us.  Take your time as you read, stop and meditate over each verse. When thinking about what is real love and wh...

Dear Friends, I have been reading about Giant Redwoods this week.  I learnt that these incredible trees can grow to 247 feet high, with a diameter of around 20 feet.  They can live for a few thousand years.  They are continually growing, even when they are hundreds of feet tall; their trunk grows wider and their upper branches grow stronger.  It has been found that the older they get the more their rate of growth increases. They need abundant water and have shallow root systems which intertwine with the roots of other Redwoods. I found this information fascinating and even more so as I considered what these trees can teach us about our Christian life.  Let me take these next few moments to share some things with you: 1. Our God is an amazing Creator God.  He created all things.  He did so with such creativity and imagination.  " In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth... Then God said, “Let the land sprout with...