Health for the Body of Christ

God's plan for humanity is not a conglomeration of various unrelated events with a hodgepodge of results. It is as orderly and detailed as the planets in orbit around the sun.

God arranged the planets to all sit at just the right angle and spacing, especially the earth. Our world tilts at the exact slant it needs to support life. Its composition consists of the perfect combination of chemical elements and matter to ensure our existence.

King Jesus is also establishing His Kingdom on the earth in order to physically abide with everyone who is humble enough to accept His call on their life. He incorporates us into His Body of Believers throughout generations and nations from the beginning of time.

God designed His Body so that when one member suffers, we all suffer; and when one member rejoices, we all rejoice (1 Corinthians 12:26). Unfortunately, Satan makes sure that his character attributes of jealousy, covetousness and pride steal these ideal circumstances from us.

This causes God's Body to operate dysfunctionally, to think more of our self than anyone else, to keep our own priorities as our focus and to lack any concern for those around us who, by their own choices (John 3:18), are lost and destined to spend eternity in hell. 

Many people spend more time on vacations than in service to God's Body; more money on their toys, collections, hobbies and gadgets than on the ministries of the church which promote God's Kingdom. They focus more on their own agenda and endeavors than on the will of God.

They often reject one church Body for another, divorcing their former church family without one regret. They disfigure God's Body - like an eye rolling down the path of life, leaving one church with only one eye and their next church with more than the two eyes it needs (1 Corinthians 12:14-22).

Sometimes, disgruntled people refuse to attend any church at all, despising a part of the Bride of Christ that Jesus gave His life to redeem (2 Corinthians 11:2). They cut themselves off from the fellowship and blessings of their church family.

At times, certain people in our church Body may exasperate us or are irritating and hard to live with, but Christ is patient with us (Romans 5:8), and we can allow the fruit of God's Spirit to help us to be patient with His Body as well (Galatians 5:22-23).

Prayer:

Father God, remind us that when we determine to put our self first, to divorce Your Bride, or to stir up trouble with gossip and dissention, this says more about our character than the short-comings within Your Body. Help us to attain spiritual maturity through Christ in us, so that we can love Your Bride unconditionally and to serve with tireless devotion in the church where You plant us (Luke 6:32).

Your grace enables us to love others as Christ loves us, sacrificially, patiently and selflessly. You do not require us to "like" anyone else, but You do expect us to love them with the love of Christ within us. Help us to be part of the solution, rather than part of the problem, by stepping up and faithfully and tirelessly serving Your Bride where we see areas of need.

Thought for the Day:

Our Great Physician is a skilled surgeon who continually operates on the heart of each of us, to give us new life in Him in order to resolve life's most complex issues, to bring peace in the more tumultuous circumstances, and to draw us to the truth of His Word as we all continually abide in His presence.

The Son's Light

 

Have you ever sat in the sun, soaking up the balmy rays and receiving the vitamins, nutrients and minerals, which God provides for us through this giant orb of fire? We feel the heat warming us through our skin. This same sun penetrates through the ocean too, for miles below the surface, giving the plants the light they need to grow.

Jesus is the Son of God and He provides for us spiritually just as the sun functions physically. He dwells within us, penetrates every area of our life and gives us the nutrients we need to live spiritually healthy lives in this morally deficient environment. If we, by faith, are willing to trust in Him with our whole heart as He directs our steps, He responds through us in each situation, which we face (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Everything in life requires faith. Even something as simple as subconsciously sitting down in a chair, requires that we have the faith that it will hold us up. Therefore, it is easy to put that same faith in God, who does all things wondrously in His time (Ecclesiastes 3:11). The proof that God lives in our life is the activity of His Holy Spirit in our body, soul and spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23).

We experience His presence in our life each moment of the day, as we converse with Him about His love and guidance for us. People see Christ in us through His love in our eyes and our Godly actions toward them (Matthew 5:16; Colossians 1:27). God places His fruit in our soul and we live in contentment with all that He provides for us each day (Galatians 5:22-23; Matthew 6:11-13; Philippians 4:11-13).

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for delivering us from Satan's objectives for us, as well as from our bondage to this world. We are so blessed to live as Your slaves instead. Thank You that sin and death have no more control over us, since Jesus overcame them for us by His resurrection (Romans 6:9; 2 Timothy 1:10). This is how we are able to live fruitful and fulfilled lives for Your honor and glory (Romans 6:22). Keep us as the apple of Your eye and lead us by Your Spirit to do the works You created us to do (Zechariah 2:8; Ephesians 2:10).

Thought for the Day:

We know that God is alive, because we live, move and have our being in Him. - Acts 17:28

God of the Universe

 

We often take God for granted. We are too busy to look up into the sky and notice the clouds, the stars, or the sunrise or sunset. We see them every day and they lose their fascination for us. However, when we look at nature from God’s perspective, we gain a whole new appreciation for it. God calls out the stars every night like a militia. He inscribes each one with its own name. He decides their quantity and holds them all in the heavens by His great authority and power. Not even one of them is ever misplaced (Isaiah 40:26; Psalm 147:4). Even when they burn out, they burst into a supernova, or form a neutron star, a white dwarf or a black hole (Psalm 33:6).

God also made two other enormous lights, the larger to oversee the morning and the other to guard the evening (Genesis 1:16). When we see telescope photos of the heavens, with the earth included (2 Peter 3:5), we see how small and really insignificant we actually are. One day, the heavens will vanish like smoke and the earth will wear out like an item of clothing. When this happens, all the inhabitants of the earth will “die like flies”. The only people who will exist when this occurs are those who accept God’s eternal salvation (John 2:16-18). His Word and His righteousness will never fade away (Isaiah 51:6; Matthew 24:35).

God’s guidance and timing work along with His purpose to bring about His will in all of our lives. We rarely know ahead of time where we will be, whom we will live with and what we will do. It is a big adventure that requires trust and patience on our part. When it comes to pass, however, we always see clearly from hindsight that God’s ways are perfect (Psalm 18:30). Bible characters give us a clear example of God’s faithfulness to His people, as well as of His variety of means and methods to provide us with what we need. In eternity, we will know the answers to explain much of what we only wonder about now.

As we surrender our entire being to God, He personally dwells by His Spirit in every Believer around the face of the globe. He possesses each part of our life that we submit to His Lordship. We are joined with Him in a Divine union, which transforms our life and transcends the earthly realm (2 Peter 1:4). We wait on the Lord and He tells us what to do throughout the day. He also leads us from one place to another according to His will. Each day, with greater certainty, we live in the truth that we are already dead and our life is hidden with Christ in God (Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:3; Hebrews 4:1; 2 Corinthians 3:18).

Prayer:

Father God, help us to stop living a self-centered life where we take You for granted. Instead, lead us to live a Christ-centered life (Colossians 3:3-4). We are one with Christ in You (John 17:21-22). Remind us to listen to Your Spirit’s direction each moment of the day. Help us to share a smile, a listening ear, a helping hand or a meal with every stranger we meet; knowing all along that this is a divine appointment for us to let Christ live in, through and instead of us.

Thought for the Day:

All things were made through Christ and nothing was made without Him.
- John 1:3





A big thanks to NASA for this photo from the universe.

Defying Science

I can just see God chuckling as He created some of the most peculiar animals and matter in the universe, at the same time that He put the laws of science and nature into motion. He knew He would be messing with the human mind! For instance, there is actually a planet that defies these laws. It is ten times larger than Jupiter. Scientists agree that under the laws of physics, it should spiral into the surface of its molten sun and disintegrate.

 

WASP-18b, as it is called, resides a thousand light years from Earth. Scientists say that the tidal interactions between the massive planet and it’s enormous sun should be pulling them together; however, the planet routinely orbits its own star in under 24 hours. Its temperatures exceed 2,100C and this creates clouds of silica-based gems. This means that if we visited this planet, we might see a sky full of sapphires and diamonds!

We all know about the many animals, which defy scientific laws. The most common is the bumblebee, which breaks the laws of aerodynamics because of its massive weight compared to its wingspan. Scientists also say that dolphin are simply too heavy and large to swim as fast, jump as high or do as many tricks as they are able to do. Another example is the 5” long Anna’s Hummingbird. While attempting to impress the fairer sex, the tiny male bird can dive through the air at around 50 mph. This causes the hummingbird to whirl its wings at more than a thousand beats per minute and to burn body fuel about four hundred times faster than a human being.

At Yosemite National Park, scientists discovered a huge variety of microbes, called thermophiles, which survive at 100C. To get a gist of the enormity of this feat, realize that God created all living creatures, including thermophiles, largely of protein. Protein cooks at not much above 40C. Some marathon runners are known to damage their kidneys as their body overheats. Yet, thermophiles live in this intense heat and flourish.

At ocean depths of 700m, the pressure is up to twenty times the normal atmospheric condition. In the deepest of oceans, it is more than a thousand atmospheres. This is enough to crush a human body. Yet some species of deep sea fish have no internal body cavities to collapse, so they survive and thrive here, because of God’s design. 

A sperm whale can dive to nearly two miles deep, where pressure reaches hundreds of atmospheres, and yet its lungs survive. God gave the sperm whale ribs that flatten when the lungs collapse. Also oxygen is stored in their blood, which allows the sperm whale to dive for up to ninety minutes before needing another breath. With human divers, a quick rise to the surface causes bubbles in the bloodstream, which can cause death. God protected the whale, however, and this does not happen when they rise suddenly.

At the other end of the earth’s terrain, in the Himalayan mountains, the migrating bar-headed geese fly in air that is so thin that human mountain climbers need oxygen. These geese actually enjoy these heights and the cold weather, because the thin air offers less resistance as they fly, and the intense cold prevents them from over-heating under their God-given goose down.

The Male Emperor Penguin survives the Antarctic winter, where temperatures often dip below -50C. God gave them the wisdom to huddle together to share their internal warmth. The outermost birds continually shuffle to the inside of the group and each one takes turns braving the extremely cold and cutting winds. God even gave the males a pocket to protect the eggs and baby penguin. In the same vacinity, God gave Polar fish their own natural anti-freeze to stop them from freezing in the icy depths of the sea.

Bats are blind, but they use God-inspired echo-location to create a ‘mental picture’ with so much detail that they  can find the tiniest of insects flying nearby; and also to detect other bats, in order to prevent collisions as they streak through the air. God created another phenomenon, which occurs every autumn. About ten billion birds take off from Northern Europe, Asia and North America and head for the tropics and beyond. In many species, the newest born birds follow their parents. However, young swallows set out on their own journey. No one really knows how they know where to go and how to return, but God does.

Pigeons and other species of birds seem to read the Earth’s magnetic signals. God gave them compounds of iron at the base of their beak to detect the magnetic currents in the earth. Other birds use sight. Some use smell to detect the scent of ammonia that emanates from their bird colonies. God gave other birds the ability to navigate by the sun. The night-flyers avoid overheating by using the moon and stars to navigate. Some birds, like the Indigo Bunting, evidently spend their early weeks in the nest learning the layout of the night sky. Scientist say they just need to identify the pole star, because all the other stars apparently revolve around it. These are all astonishing feats that God created birds to do.

Well, in spite of all these extraordinary examples, there is a one familiar creation that is the most astonishing of all…you.

The simplest of mundane tasks undertaken by any one of us requires truly astonishing physical skills and mental computing power. Consider the talents we all have to create beautiful music, art, inventions, and scientific and medical breakthroughs. We are all miracles of God. We are more sophisticated, intelligent and marvellous than any man-made invention or any of God’s other creations. God created each of us for a specific plan and purpose with all the gifts and talents we need to succeed in this area.

 

Yet, many of us take for granted all of our God given talents and the abilities He teaches us throughout our lifetime. As I consider these exceptions to the rules that God created, it makes me even more determined to live up to the potential He gave me, so that I can make my mark on society in His name and leave a spiritual legacy behind for future generations.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, each human being is fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). You knew us before You ever formed us in our mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5). We are Your most esteemed creation and You made us to fellowship with You (Genesis 1:26). You care about us so much that You collect all of our tears in Your bottle and You record in Your journal each one and why we shed it (Psalm 56:8). You will bring vengence upon those who bring sorrow to Your beloved saints (Romans 12:19). You alone stretched out the heavens and spread out the earth by Your mighty power (Isaiah 44:24), and Your love endures forever (Psalm 136:6).

Thought for the Day:

Whatever pleased the Lord, He created in heaven, in the earth, in the seas and in all the deep places. - Psalms 135:6

 

 

Read more:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1192225/Mother-Natures-humdingers-The-awesome-animals-turn-laws-science-upside-down.html#ixzz22SVTxVGc

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/planet-found-that-defies-the-laws-of-physics-1777738.html