The more I see of life, the more I realise how important
people like you are (Yes you). You have a very great
influence on the world around you. When you have said something loving and kind
you have made someone’s day. When you smile a sincere smile you will create an
aura of friendship enveloping the person receiving the smile and that is lovely,
and is the way God wants it.
In this first photo an
individual Bougainvillea blossom could easily feel that it isn’t important and
feel insignificant when the vine is in full flower. You too can feel
insignificant in a crowd at a sports meeting or such, or even in church, but neither
the flower nor you are insignificant. Without each individual flower being
present there wouldn’t be a display on the vine, likewise crowds are made up of
individuals like you. Without the individuals like you there would be no crowd to
encourage the participants and those present. We all need encouraging no matter
what we do. This flower, on its own, looks lovely, but that isn’t how God (the
designer) wants you and I to be. He wants us to share our
Joy, our caring and
our love with others and thus encourage each other. Modern day business
managers talk about “Team work” which means pulling together and sharing the
work load. However the only way that will ever be a real success is if we all
obey Jesus second Commandment to “Love
our neighbour as we love ourselves”. When we do that, team work becomes automatic
because we want to help those we care about and relieve their work load. Jesus spoke to crowds of people but he was
really appealing to each individual in the crowd. Whenever he was approached by
someone in need he was quick to listen, and keen to help. However, He didn’t
leave it there but was also quick to point out that we “Must be born again” because we have all sinned; To make that
“re-birth” possible He allowed Himself to be crucified to cancel our debt and
if we then “believe on him” and “Repent” we not only have everlasting
life in Heaven, but also have the help of the Holy Spirit to love others in a
special compassionate way here and now. Unfortunately,
those who don’t follow Christ’s ways have just the opposite attitude being
motivated not by love, but by selfishness. For example, C.E.O’s often try to
increase the work load to make more profit. A lack of Christian love like that emanates
from selfishness and leads to resentment and an unhappy workplace and in its
worst extreme it leads to ill health, nervous break-downs and such like. The
same lack of “loving your neighbour” is now becoming increasingly evident in
the public school system with bullying. A child that is taught the lie, that
everyone evolved from a monkey, has a different attitude to other children that
are taught that we were “created” by a loving God to be His children. The more of us that follow this teaching, the
happier we will all be, just as the more flowers that open on that Bougainvillea
vine, the more attractive it will be and bring joy to those who see it. So if
there is anyone you are having trouble with, do what Jesus said to do: “Love them” and “Pray for them” and tell them the “Good news” of His saving grace, (if
they don’t know it already). Jesus told us to do that. Prayer is God’s ultra-modern
form of “texting” so we can both receive help, and request help for others. When I was at school, a boy I knew, who was a student boarder
at St Joseph’s College in Sydney, sent a telegram (the old type of text
message) to his father which said: “No
mon, no fun, your son”. And his dad replied: “Too bad, how sad, your dad”. Well our God isn’t like that; He has requested that we pray to him, so naturally He will answer our request. Although not always in the way we would
expect. But certainly in the way that he knows is in our best interest. Have fun doing that. I am excited that the God
of the universe wants you and me to call him “Father” and “text” him
continually. Now that is pretty special, don’t you think? Don’t forget though
that a loving parent doesn’t just want to be contacted when their child is in
need, but likes to hear from them very frequently, thus sharing their joys as
well as their difficulties. Regards, Tom.
In this first photo an
individual Bougainvillea blossom could easily feel that it isn’t important and
feel insignificant when the vine is in full flower. You too can feel
insignificant in a crowd at a sports meeting or such, or even in church, but neither
the flower nor you are insignificant. Without each individual flower being
present there wouldn’t be a display on the vine, likewise crowds are made up of
individuals like you. Without the individuals like you there would be no crowd to
encourage the participants and those present. We all need encouraging no matter
what we do. This flower, on its own, looks lovely, but that isn’t how God (the
designer) wants you and I to be. He wants us to share our 
Joy, our caring and
our love with others and thus encourage each other. Modern day business
managers talk about “Team work” which means pulling together and sharing the
work load. However the only way that will ever be a real success is if we all
obey Jesus second Commandment to “Love
our neighbour as we love ourselves”. When we do that, team work becomes automatic
because we want to help those we care about and relieve their work load. Jesus spoke to crowds of people but he was
really appealing to each individual in the crowd. Whenever he was approached by
someone in need he was quick to listen, and keen to help. However, He didn’t
leave it there but was also quick to point out that we “Must be born again” because we have all sinned; To make that
“re-birth” possible He allowed Himself to be crucified to cancel our debt and
if we then “believe on him” and “Repent” we not only have everlasting
life in Heaven, but also have the help of the Holy Spirit to love others in a
special compassionate way here and now. Unfortunately,
those who don’t follow Christ’s ways have just the opposite attitude being
motivated not by love, but by selfishness. For example, C.E.O’s often try to
increase the work load to make more profit. A lack of Christian love like that emanates
from selfishness and leads to resentment and an unhappy workplace and in its
worst extreme it leads to ill health, nervous break-downs and such like. The
same lack of “loving your neighbour” is now becoming increasingly evident in
the public school system with bullying. A child that is taught the lie, that
everyone evolved from a monkey, has a different attitude to other children that
are taught that we were “created” by a loving God to be His children. The more of us that follow this teaching, the
happier we will all be, just as the more flowers that open on that Bougainvillea
vine, the more attractive it will be and bring joy to those who see it. So if
there is anyone you are having trouble with, do what Jesus said to do: “Love them” and “Pray for them” and tell them the “Good news” of His saving grace, (if
they don’t know it already). Jesus told us to do that. Prayer is God’s ultra-modern
form of “texting” so we can both receive help, and request help for others. When I was at school, a boy I knew, who was a student boarder
at St Joseph’s College in Sydney, sent a telegram (the old type of text
message) to his father which said: “No
mon, no fun, your son”. And his dad replied: “Too bad, how sad, your dad”. Well our God isn’t like that; He has requested that we pray to him, so naturally He will answer our request. Although not always in the way we would
expect. But certainly in the way that he knows is in our best interest. Have fun doing that. I am excited that the God
of the universe wants you and me to call him “Father” and “text” him
continually. Now that is pretty special, don’t you think? Don’t forget though
that a loving parent doesn’t just want to be contacted when their child is in
need, but likes to hear from them very frequently, thus sharing their joys as
well as their difficulties. Regards, Tom. 
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