Nathan Haddock's Blog, page 4

Our Saviour

There is nothing we can add to the work of salvation that Jesus undertook upon the cross. We can only put our faith in Him as our saviour.

React

Whatever life throws at us God has given us the wonderful gift of how we choose to react. We always have the choice to react well, to learn and to grow. It is an amazing gift that we need to treasure and use well.

Follow God

Never be afraid to follow God, even if it means turning your back on something you’ve invested a lot into. He will always honour your obedience and the trust you place in Him.

Life in all its fullness

We will always rise from the ashes as God will give lift to our wings We will soar to new heights

We will glide to new and better experiences

We will not just survive, we will flourish and we will grow

God will revive us and revive our fortunes

God will draw us to Himself and bring us home

God will be our greatest supporter and our closest friend

God will not let us flounder but will give us life and life in all its fullness.

Closer to Him

When I was a young Christian God was close

He held my hand and we walked together

When I stumbled He picked me up

When I was hungry He spoon-fed me

When I was tired He led me to still water and gave me rest

And then, over the years, I grew up

God had taught me how to live and how to follow Him

He had taught me how to pick myself back up

He had taught me how to feed myself

He has never stopped caring for me or loving me

But I can walk alone now

I know how to make good decisions

I know the consequences of bad decisions

He has taken off the stabilisers and I’m riding solo

I don’t need Him in order to keep my balance

I don’t need Him to stop me from continually crashing

But I do still need Him

The ball is in my court though

When I need Him I need to seek Him out

I need to stop and listen and make time for Him

I won’t always feel Him right next to me

Why? Because He’s allowing me to stand on my own two feet

He’s allowing me to ride without limits

He’s giving me the space to make my own mistakes

He’s letting me get my teeth stuck into prime meat and not just pureed veg

He is still there for me

I just need to seek Him out

And not only when I need Him

But just because I want to

To thank Him

To praise Him

To worship Him

To be with Him

He may not feel as close as all those years ago

But I am closer to Him.

Trust

You can trust God with your future because He’s the only person that you know for certain will be there. God knows your future already, He knows the end from the beginning and already knows the plans He has for you.

Gap narrowing

I’m trying hard at gap narrowing. I’m wanting to make narrow the gaps in my life. I’m wanting to narrow the gap between seeing a need and fulfilling that need, between hearing of a need and praying about it. I want to narrow the gap between acting/reacting wrongly and acting in the right way. I want to narrow the gap between reading God’s word and putting it into action in my life. I want to narrow the gap between facing a problem and seeking God’s way forward for that problem. Most of all I want to narrow the gap in my life between me and the people around me and between me and God.

He knows

He knows every grain of sand

The lines on each person’s hand

The hairs on every head

Each word before it’s even said

He knows the length of all our days

Our good and right and wicked ways

The desires of each human heart

Our lives in every single part

The wrong we do again and again He sees,

but loves us just the same

Our lack of trust, our lack of faith

He knows and covers with His grace

Holy

The Lord is holy, set apart, but not distant.

The Lord is full of grace and mercy but not to be fooled

The Lord is slow to anger but not to be tested

The Lord is full of love but also justice

The Lord is caring and compassionate but is to be feared

The Lord is a mighty King and yet a closest friend

The Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever and yet full of surprises.

Made in the image of God

You are made in the image of God. You came into being because God wanted you to be. More than that… even knowing what you would be like with all your failings, faults, sins and flaws, God still wanted to create you. No matter what people may say to you and how they make you feel, no matter how you feel about yourself, God wanted you and still wants you no matter what. God, the creator and King of the whole universe created you, not by mistake or by chance or in the hope you might be better than you are, but because He wanted you to exist. You are wanted, loved and valued by the King of all Kings, the God of heaven and earth, the creator and sustainer of all things. Now tell me that doesn’t make your day?!?!