Byron van der Merwe's Blog

Just Keep Swimming

Do any of you remember the movie “Finding Nemo”? I am often reminded of the little fish called “Dory”. Her motto in life was “just keep Swimming”.

To be honest that is actually good advice. No matter where you are at in your life, there is wisdom in that statement. Just keep swimming- just keep going – don’t ever give up.

This is especially true when things aren’t going the way you planned it to go.

In the last 3 and a half years I have had to remind myself of this many times. Although, things have improved a lot for me health wise, life has been far from normal physically and everyday life is hard. I still have difficulty doing what I used to do. At times, this has been very frustrating and I have questioned why God hasn’t restored me completely or healed me fully, like I know that scripture has promised?

It’s in moments like these that I have to just remind myself to “Keep swimming”. Just like Paul said in Galatians 6:9 NIV, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up”. I’ve had to plod on and do the best I can, make the best of a bad situation and try and keep my eyes focused on God, on His plan, and on His prize. Knowing that eventually I will reap a harvest of God’s goodness if I just refuse to give in to the temptation to give up.

When you really think about it, that’s all we can do. We don’t have complete control over everything that happens in our lives, but we do have control in how we respond to things. We can choose to give up and pack it all in because life hasn’t gone the way we wanted, or we can choose joy and search out the good in the situation and just keep swimming. We can keep looking for the best in a situation and learn to keep going in joy and peace.

That’s what I have chosen to do. How about you? Is there any area in your life where you need to just keep swimming?

Breaking the spirit of unbelief

This book can help you in breaking the spirit of unbelief. Testimonies of a good God book.

Testimonies of a Good God is a book that will help in breaking the spirit of unbelief. Through trials and challenges, Byron shows you that God can be trusted.

Trust God in Hard Times

Trust God in hard times.

As a Christian it’s so easy to say that we trust God.But what about trusting God in hard times? What happens when life doesn’t go the way we would like or the way we expected? Maybe you have had a bad medical report, a relationship fall apart or lost a business. Is God still trustworthy and is He still good when something doesn’t go the way we wanted? It’s easy to trust God in the good seasons of life, but is that really trust? Are we really trusting God through trials?  Knowing exactly the way a situation is going to turn out is not trust.

Trust in God is not us knowing everything, it’s us trusting that He knows everything.
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In life there are times when some things just don’t make sense. I’ve found that if I based God’s goodness and faithfulness on a snap shot of certain moments of my life, it would be very difficult to trust Him and believe that He is still good. There have been days when things didn’t go the way I expected or trusted God for. But as I look back on my life, I can see the goodness and faithfulness of God in it.

I’m learning that trusting God and faith in God is not about a moment, it’s about a lifetime. It’s about a track record of seeing God come through in the past. Seeing God honour His word in my life, even through the days of disappointment, gives me faith that He can do it again. For me my trust in God is based on His word and His faithfulness to perform His word. Jeremiah 1:12 tells us that God watches over His word and is faithful to perform it.

Time and time again, I have seen God come through for me in impossible looking situations and the Bible tells me that He doesn’t change (Hebrews 13:8). So just because there have been moments of bad reports or negative situations, it doesn’t change the nature of God or His ability to redeem any situation in my life. So in tough times I need to remind myself that if God healed, delivered or redeemed me in the past, then He is well able to do it again.

 

 

 

UCB2 This is my Story interviews Testimonies of a Good God by Byron van der Merwe

Hey all

I hope it’s been a great start to 2019 and you have already set some goals and plans in place for the year ahead.

This week, Tammie and I were given the opportunity to be interviewed on the Ruth O’Reilly Smith show on UCB2 radio.

What a great privilege and opportunity it was to share our story of God’s goodness with her and her listeners.

If you want to take a listen to the interview, here is the link.

Blessings

Byron and Tammie

 

Testimonies of a Good God by Byron van der Merwe UCB2 This is my Story interview

Hey all

I hope it’s been a great start to 2019 and you have already set some goals and plans in place for the year ahead.

This week, Tammie and I were given the opportunity to be interviewed on the Ruth O’Reilly Smith show on UCB2 radio.

What a great privilege and opportunity it was to share our story of God’s goodness with her and her listeners.

If you want to take a listen to the interview, here is the link.

Blessings

Byron and Tammie

 

Have you ever had any Psalm 23 Bible study questions?

Psalm 23 Bible study questions and bible study, part 1 of 3

 

Psalm 23 Bible study video by Byron van der Merwe

Psalm 23 is one of the most well-known Psalms in the Bible. Being only 6 verses you would think there isn’t to much to study in Psalm 23. Yet this psalm is filled with a wealth of wisdom and knowledge. In this Psalm 23 Bible study questions, Byron breaks down verse by verse and gives insight into how this scripture practically applies in today’s world. So, get out your notebook and Bible and come and spend the next 15 minutes in the word of God.

 

In this video, Byron looks at verses 1 and 2 of Psalm 23. God is our Sheppard and when we follow Him we will never be in lack. Biblical shepherds are different to the way we view Sheppard today. They were there to guide, feed and protect the sheep. God is our shepherd and he will guide, feed and protect us. He will lead us into places where there are green pastures and still waters. He refreshes our mind, will and emotions. God is a good shepherd and Psalm 23 is just a reminder of just how loving He really is.

 

More videos from Byron

 

Psalm 23 study

Psalm 23 study, part 1 of 3

 

Psalm 23 study video by Byron van der Merwe

Psalm 23 is one of the most well-known Psalms in the Bible. Being only 6 verses you would think there isn’t to much to study in Psalm 23. Yet this psalm is filled with a wealth of wisdom and knowledge. In this Psalm 23 study, Byron breaks down verse by verse and gives insight into how this scripture practically applies in today’s world. So, get out your notebook and Bible and come and spend the next 15 minutes in the word of God.

 

In this video, Byron looks at verses 1 and 2 of Psalm 23. God is our Sheppard and when we follow Him we will never be in lack. Biblical shepherds are different to the way we view Sheppard today. They were there to guide, feed and protect the sheep. God is our shepherd and he will guide, feed and protect us. He will lead us into places where there are green pastures and still waters. He refreshes our mind, will and emotions. God is a good shepherd and Psalm 23 is just a reminder of just how loving He really is.

 

More videos from Byron

 

So it’s been a year

14 December 2016

So today it’s been a year since the start of the most intense physical battle for my health I have ever been in.

A year in the greater scheme of life may not seem like a lot, but when you have to live with something for 365 days night and day, a year can feel like a really long time.

What started out as a swimming injury that should have taken a few weeks to heal has turned into a whole year of immense pain, mystery and at times doubt as to whether I have what it takes to walk through this.

Looking back over this year I’ve been admitted to hospital twice including spending a night in the intensive care unit. There have also been three separate visits to the emergency room. I’ve had two brief stays in the resuscitation ward, wondering if they were to be the days I would meet Jesus face to face. I’ve attended many appointments with my G P, had countless blood tests, scans, Neurosurgeon’s appointments, 3 months of Physiotherapy, a pain clinic consultation and had endless days wandering what on earth could be wrong with me. During this time there have been a few promising leads but as of yet, no conclusive diagnosis as to what has been going on with me physically. Some days I have felt fine and wondered what all the fuss has been about and yet there have been other days where I haven’t been able to move, dress or even bath myself.

So needless to say it’s been a tough year. After 365 days of what has felt like the most intense battle, I find myself tired, humbled and at times disappointed. Yet at the same time, I find myself grateful, thankful and optimistic. I’m grateful to God, grateful to my wife, family and friends who have stood so close to me and supported me during the last year. Whilst we haven’t seen the fullness of what we have been trusting God for we have seen some amazing things and God has been so faithful.

I don’t have all the answers, but I have learnt a few things.

I’m learning to see what God is doing and to not focus on what I think He is not doing.

Towards the end of last year, I had some of the worst months my business had ever seen. This left us in an uncomfortable financial position as we needed to spend savings just to keep us afloat. Then with what seemed like the perfect storm, I found myself sick, injured, unable to work and without any money. Our son was also just 3 months old when I became ill, so my wife was not able to go out and get work either. Not, being able to work the whole year would normally be incredibly stressful. But God has been so kind to us and provision has always come through and on time. Through the kindness, selflessness and generosity of friends and family, we have not been without the entire time. The faithfulness and the provision of the Lord have been so comforting, we have had enough going on in our lives, and God taking care of all our needs has made life so much better. We recognise and acknowledge the goodness of the Lord in this area. I may not have yet seen the fullness of my healing that I have been trusting God for but I’m so thankful for His provision. Just thinking how much tougher this year could have been had God not provided makes me so thankful for what God is doing. Thank you, Jesus.

Don’t take snapshots of life.

We can’t take a snapshot of our lives as the litmus test to determine the goodness of God. Nowhere in the Bible do I see that we are called to live by what we feel or see at the time. Rather we see in Scripture that we are called to live by faith (see Romans 1:17, Galatians 3;11, Hebrews 10:38). Faith according to Hebrews 11:1 is being sure of the things we hope for and certain of the things that we don’t see. So not everything we are believing God for will be instantly seen. We may need to stand for a while until we see the thing that we are standing in faith and hope for. Perhaps we are going to need to be a little like faithful Abraham, who continued to hope against all hope until he saw the promises of God fulfilled in His life (see Romans 4:18). For Abraham, it took a total of 25 years to see the fulfilment of what God promised him to come to pass. So us struggling for a year or two is nothing in comparison to what some men and woman of the Bible had to go through. Now I’m not belittling any kind of a struggle because walking through struggles is hard but we need to keep stuff in perspective.

Hope is vital

Hope is so important, because if we don’t have hope then we can’t be standing in faith. Faith is the evidence of things hoped for. So what we put our hope in is what we have faith for. I’ve seen it first hand that having hope is critical for walking through the fires of life.

Look at proverbs 13:12 ESV “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life”.

We are also told in Proverbs 4:23 NIV “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” In other words, we need to keep our hopes up and guard our hearts. When the Bible is talking about our hearts it is not talking about the physical organ of the heart but rather our souls and spirits. Keeping our hopes up nourishes our souls and spirits and produces life in our lives.

So we need to keep our hopes up at all costs and always expect the best (which believe me is not that easy to do, but it’s important). I don’t think Bible hope is just a hope that everything will be okay though, it is so much deeper than that. Biblical hope is about being confident that God will do what He said in His word. If “By the Stripes of Jesus I have been Healed” ( see Isaiah 53:5, 1 Peter 2:24), then I can set my hope that He will honour His word in my life. I can have an expectation that God’s word will produce a harvest in my life and that He watches over His word and is faithful to perform it (see Jeremiah 1:12). Just like the 3 Hebrew lads in the fiery furnace (see Daniel 3), we can be confident that the Lord can step into the fires of our lives and keep us from all harm. Biblical hope is being like the apostle Paul, being so focussed on what the Lord had called us to do, that no beating, shipwreck or even a bite from a poisonous snake could keep us from our destiny.

We were born for a purpose

I believe that you and I were born for a purpose and have a destiny. We may not understand everything, we may not even like everything but we have got to make up our minds that we trust God and that He is able to perform what He said in His word ( Jeremiah 1:12).

As I write this blog post, in two days I go for the results of a recent bone scan I had. I’m a little nervous, a little apprehensive and even a little scared. This is real life and more than that it is my life. But I’m also increasingly hopeful. Hopeful that the one who started a good work in me is able to complete it (see Philippians 1:6). Confident that no matter what the outcome of any tests, my God is good and His is able.

I don’t know exactly what my future holds but one thing I do know. I know the One who holds my future knows what He is doing.
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My future is always bright. Jesus has my future. He has my back and He has my life. I’m still sold out to the King of Kings and I believe that He is a good God and a good Father. Yes, there is mystery to God, but there is also assurance. There is a surety that if I build my life on the rock that is Jesus then nothing in this physical realm can hold me back. I can make a choice to live life by faith and not by fear of the unknown. No matter what happens here on earth I get to spend eternity with Jesus and that should be the goal of every person here on earth. Our time on earth will be the shortest time we will ever get to spend. It’s eternity that is important and so if you are not right with Jesus then I suggest you make things right and do it now.

Personally, I believe that my time here on earth is nowhere near finished and I am trusting God for His miraculous intervention and deliverance from all forms of sickness. I’m believing God for long life until I’m satisfied (see Psalm 91:16).

The one thing this year has taught me

One thing that this last year has taught me is this. We only get one shot at this life here on earth. It is not a practice run and we better make sure we are building towards the right thing. For me, that means fulfilling what God has put me on this earth to do. I’m tired of living a boring mediocre existence. I want all that God has for me. I WANT IT ALL! I want all of His goodness, I want to see the captives set free, the blind receive their sight and the dead raised (see Matthew 11:5). I want to see the power and Glory of the Lord in my life, not just in the past, not just in the present but for many years into the future.

We were all made for the Glory of God and God has prepared good works in advance for us to do (see Ephesians 2:10). Let’s not be so distracted and preoccupied with our own plans that we never get to fulfil God’s plans and purposes. Eventually, for each and every one of us, our time will be up and we will have to give an account to the Lord for what we have done (see 2 Corinthians 2:10). For me and I’m sure for you, I would like to hear those words “Well done good and faithful servant” for the way I stewarded my life here on this earth.

I encourage you to make your life count. Do what you feel the Lord has called you to do. Love people passionately. Live generously and don’t take life or people for granted.

Also just to let you know that as a Christmas gift you can buy my book for just 99p on Amazon (Kindle version). Buy it here  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Testimonies-Good-God-ORDINARY-EXTRAORDINARY-ebook/dp/B01CEE9C2Q/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481737865&sr=8-1&keywords=testimonies+of+a+good+god

You can also get the paperback version if you live in the UK here. As a Christmas special, it will just be £4.99 plus postage of £2

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The teaching by Byron van der Merwe is about seeing purpose while going through trials.

Christian encouragement. Sometimes we just need to be real.

Christian encouragement

Is social media a reflection of real life?

Now don’t get me wrong I like social media as much as the next person. It’s a great place to catch up with people you would otherwise have lost contact with and is also a good central platform to communicate with those you would normally catch up with on a regular basis.

But with all the plus sides to social media , I think there can also be a few negatives. In general, people only ever post the “high light reel” of their lives. The best, filtered pictures, in the perfect location with the perfect lighting. Some people even become obsessed with portraying the image that they are living the perfect life. The trophy wife, the best behaved kids, the new bigger better house and the exotic holidays. While it is awesome to celebrate the high milestones and good things in life (and believe me I think we should celebrate them). Sometimes life just isn’t all that it’s perceived to be. What about the times in life when stuff isn’t all that good? What about when you fight with your  spouse, or when the kids misbehave for days on end, or when you have been stuck at home for years unable to travel and holiday due to financial limitations? Posts like that are rarely seen on social media. But isn’t real life just that, real? Social media is awesome but I’m not sure it is always a true representation of real life. Believe me, no matter how amazing our lives are, if we look a little deeper, everyone has issues. At times life can be amazing, and adversely at times life can really suck.

Part of building authentic relationships is sharing in the good times and sharing in the bad times of life (See Romans 12:15).
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We need to build one on one, face to face relationships with people and not just live a virtual existence. But saying that, I think we can also be more real on social media too. Now, I don’t think that social media is necessarily the platform to share all of our life struggles. After all, you wouldn’t offload your most difficult moments with someone you haven’t seen for 10 years in normal life. However, saying that, it will probably be quite helpful to post some stuff occasionally about life when it didn’t go the way we wanted or the times when real unedited, unfiltered life just happened. This way we will begin to break down the fake masks that our lives are so amazing all the time. Because life is never so awesome all the time, for anyone.

Take yesterday for example. My wife went out for a coffee date with a friend and I had agreed to pick up our daughter from nursery school. I had been feeling okay most of the day but as I started walking to the school I experienced major pain in my back and my chest (now this is nothing new as the last year has been like this a lot, there have been over 6 months in bed due to extreme pain). By the time I reached the school I was in tears. I picked up my daughter and proceeded to walk home. Although, once we left the building I realised I would not be able to walk back home. I called my wife to come and collect us in the car. In the meantime, my daughter and I slowly made our way back to the school and waited inside until my wife came. The rest of the day was spent in bed with many tears due to extreme pain.

Now there is nothing glamorous about a father crying in front of his child’s school teachers. With this not being one of my best moments, I felt such a reservation about posting anything on social media. Perhaps some of it was just wisdom, not letting everyone know the intimate details of my life. But some of it I think was just fear, fear that people may judge me, after all I have written a book about the goodness of God and His wonderful breakthroughs in my life, and yet in this moment God didn’t feel very good nor did I feel particularly victorious. Perhaps I didn’t post anything because I felt it may break the perfect image that we feel the pressure to portray.

But this morning I woke up and felt like I should say something about it. I think we all need to just be real with ourselves and others. Living in victory in Christ is not about just being this faith powerhouse that never has any problems. Living in victory doesn’t mean we never face difficulties, nor does it mean that we will never feel defeated or question God. But I do believe it is about being thankful in every situation but not necessarily for every situation (see 1 Thessalonians 5:18). Living in true victory is not about hiding the difficulties so that no one else can see them. It’s about being real and praising God through the difficulties and rejoicing in each day that the Lord has made. Sometimes living in victory is about posting something on social media or writing a blog about the struggles of life to help other people be free. I believe showing people that we all have struggles helps sets them free to just be themselves and breaks this unhelpful perception that other people always live such perfect lives.

So I wanted to encourage you to not look too deeply into the lives of people on social media and wish that your life was that good. Also don’t feel the pressure to put on this image of a perfect life all the time, its okay to just be average or even that life just sucked today. Obviously, don’t share everything on social media, but be free to just be you, no makeup, no edits, no filters, just real life in all of its glory and all of its challenges. Also, make sure you have a few friends that you can trust and meet one on one with them to help you through the tough times. We were built for community and we were made for relationship. God in His wisdom designed us to not walk through this life alone.

Blessings Byron

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