My Hope is Found

The other week I wrote a post about finding joy in the hard times, recognising that oftentimes it can be hard in amongst the trials and tribulations that one faces. Especially if you’ve been saddled with things not of your own making.

I shared that due to my faith, I can find joy in the hard times! As my faith has enabled me to hold on to the Hope that comes in believing that better days are ahead of me, regardless of what I am facing today.

You see, my faith has helped me more than I’d care to imagine! It has helped me get through some pretty tough trials and tribulations that I’ve faced throughout my life. And it continues to do so, as I work through the challenges that my health condition Scleroderma brings, which you can read about here.

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus. My faith comes from knowing that in Him alone, my hope is found. He is my solid ground, my cornerstone and when things go awry – I can trust in His love for me. Like the writers of the well-known contemporary Christian hymn, “In Christ Alone” I know that this to be true for me and can be for anybody 🙂

Written in 2002, “In Christ Alone” was a collaborative effort between Stuart Townend and Keith Getty. “The song came about in an unusual way,” Townend explains.

“Keith and I met in the autumn of 2000 at a worship event, and we resolved to try to work together on some songs. A few weeks later Keith sent some melody ideas, and the first one on the CD was a magnificent, haunting melody that I loved, and immediately started writing down some lyrical ideas on what I felt should be a timeless theme commensurate with the melody.

So the theme of the life, death, resurrection of Christ, and the implications of that for us just began to tumble out, and when we got together later on to fine tune it, we felt we had encapsulated what we wanted to say.”

Townend writes; “The lyric [of this song] excites me because it places our hope, our assurance, our eternal destiny in the right place—on the solid foundation of Christ. I know in my own life I need reminding continually not to live by my feelings or my circumstances, but by the unchanging truth of the gospel.” *

In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.

What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
Here in the love of Christ I stand.

I too need to be constantly reminded that despite all the stuff that I’m facing in life, all the changes that I’m dealing with, that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

I can’t rely on my feelings or certain circumstances that surround me I need to grasp a hold of the truth that in Him there is life! Christopher Reeve is attributed as saying that “once you choose hope anything is possible”.

Another song that resonates with me is Tuhia which was written by Aaron Hardy from Te Rautini, formerly known as Link. It has become an influential worship song throughout the church in Aotearoa (New Zealand) over the past few years and I just love the bridge (refrain);

Your love has freed us
We’re free indeed
Spoken to our pain,
revealing hope again

The thing is, Jesus not only frees us from the bondage, penalty and guilt of sin – He also increases our capacity to love, to experience peace in amongst the trials and tribulations of life that we face, to have joy, to find rest, to have hope, and to enjoy life.

In John 10:10 Jesus says “… I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (New International Version)

We can have hope because of who God is and what He wants for each and every one of us.

Lamentations 3:22-26 says that “It is because of the Lord’s loving kindnesses that we are not consumed, because His [tender] compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great and beyond measure is His faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion and my inheritance,” says my soul;

“Therefore I have hope in Him and wait expectantly for Him.” The Lord is good to those who wait [confidently] for Him, To those who seek Him [on the authority of God’s word]. It is good that one waits quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” (Amplified Bible)

I’d like to leave you with a piece of music that has been written by Roger Trigg for, and premiered by Enfield Citadel Band (Bandmaster Jonathan Corry) on 11th October, 2013.

According to the World of Brass site the work formed part of the band’s annual pre-contest festival on the eve of the National Brass Band Championships which are held in the august surroundings of the Royal Albert Hall, London each year. 

The words ‘my hope’ appear in both hymns that are referenced in the music. The notes ‘E’, ‘C’, ‘B’ also feature throughout the work as homage to Enfield Citadel Band.

The verse of ‘My hope is built on nothing less’ (S.A.S.B. 662), to the tune ‘Solid Rock’ (T.B. 446), is then introduced and forms the basis of the end of the first section – set in the minor, unlike the usual setting of the melody. The more sedate middle section that follows features an original theme, again using the notes ‘E’, ‘C’, ‘B’ as a melodic stimulus.

The tune ‘Michael’ (Herbert Howells), to which the text ‘All my hope on God is founded’ (S.A.S.B. 530) is sung, provided the original impetus for this work. The song features as a new addition to The Salvation Army’s 2015 iteration of its song book. It is a noble tune and there are big majestic, organ-like sounds utilised in its final treatment which brings the work to a climactic end.

I hope you enjoy it and contemplate what has been written about where I have found my hope and where you too can find yours.

May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace, may you find rest for your soul and may He give you strength for today, and hope for tomorrow.

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

* As featured in an article entitled ‘Song Story: “In Christ Alone”‘ written by Debra Akins for Crosswalk.com

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Intentional Discipleship

Over the past few months I’ve been thinking alot about the importance of discipleship – Not the kind of discipleship that we have become accustomed to in the Western Church.

Which sees the vast majority of Christ followers today as “church-members, pew fillers, hymn-singers, sermon tasters, Bible readers, even born again believers or Spirit-filled charismatics – but not true disciples of Jesus.”

The above assertion of a Christ follower comes from David Watson’s book ‘Discipleship’ and in many ways is more indicative of what Kyle Idleman would constitute as a fan in his book ‘Not a Fan: What does it mean to really follow Jesus?‘

You see, Kyle goes on to unpack the truth that “Jesus wants more from His believers than church attendance, occasional prayer, and the ability to recite Scripture.”

He asserts that Jesus is actually looking for people who are willing to sacrifice, in order to follow Him. People who are prepared to accept the call of discipleship as a way of life, not just a significant decision point in time and leave it at that.

Kyle then goes on to explain that there is a big difference between making a decision to believe in Jesus and making a commitment to follow Him. Tragically many churches have become fan factories, as “they have separated the message of ‘believe’ from the message of ‘follow’.”

In our approach to discipleship “we spend much of our time and effort bringing people to a point of belief without clearly calling them to follow. We have taken ‘believe’ and we have written that in capital letters with bold print: BELIEVE. But everything that has to do with following has been put in small print: follow.”

Now this is something that Jesus identified during His time doing ministry on earth (refer to John 6). Not long after feeding the five thousand and walking on water, Jesus starts getting to the nitty gritty of what it means to believe in Him wholeheartedly, and how they (His followers) can attain true spiritual life, referring to Himself as the ‘Bread of Life‘.

Now for many of the disciples that were following Him, this teaching was way too hard to understand and offended them, and “after this, many of his disciples left. They no longer wanted to be associated with him.” John 6:66 (The Message)

The disciples quit! They abandoned Him, turning their backs they deserted Him, walking away from His teaching and going back to their previous lives.

To me I get the sense that when the going got tough these guys bailed. Sounds more like a bunch of casual fans to me than true followers.

Jesus then asks a pertinent question of the ‘Twelve’ disciples “Do you also want to leave?” to which Peter responds by acknowledging that Jesus “[alone] has the words of eternal life [He is their only hope]. We have believed and confidently trusted, and [even more] we have come to know [by personal observation and experience] that Jesus is the Holy One of God [the Christ, the Son of the living God].” John 6:68-69 (Amplified Bible)

They had come to know by not only believing, but also by following. They had connected “the message of ‘believe’ with the message of ‘follow’.” They had connected the dots. Not only did they believe in Jesus as the Christ, they made a commitment to continue following Him. Their intention was to be more than just fans, they were committed followers, true disciples.

The challenge that we have today as Dave Mann writes is that “Discipleship is a topic that is often talked about but rarely practiced.

Most assume that believers are discipled through their involvement in the local Church.

They think discipleship is ‘incidental’ as opposed to ‘intentional’.

To a certain extent believers are discipled through sermons and other such programs, however those who desire to disciple people effectively, and who then allow themselves to observe and assess the effectiveness of their discipleship in peoples lives in the years that follow, will soon realise that this is not the case.

Discipleship needs to be INTENTIONAL if it is to be truly effective.

Discipleship can utilise programs (we need platforms for meeting), but it cannot be merely ‘structured’. It must always have an ‘organic’ element to it – being relational, flexible, and Spirit-led.”

He goes on to write that “We can’t just ‘program’ discipleship – it takes real effort“.

If we’re truly honest with ourselves this is where we seem to have got it wrong – we have programatised discipleship (among other things like; evangelism, mission, service, bible study and prayer etc.)

Unfortunately, across many denominations the world over we seem to have minimalized discipleship to a course or programme to complete.

People then get the warped idea or sense that once they have completed said course or programme then they’ve arrived, they’ve become a disciple.

In our search to seek a better understanding of our faith and what it means to be a disciple we have compartmentalised everything so much so that we have lost sight of how they are all interconnected and integral to one another.

For too many of us, our faith in Jesus Christ is more akin to being an occasional football fan, where we sometimes watch the game (weekly service) in-person or even on a screen, and perhaps we may even buy a shirt or some other paraphernalia to show our allegiance but that’s as far as our discipleship goes.

To be a disciple is so much more than what we have made it.

It should be our life’s purpose and our motivation to be transformed into His likeness, as it is tantamount to our identity in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour.

But if someone was to look at us would they see a disciple of Christ, or something else entirely?

If we don’t go to the next level and start working on our character ‘intentionally‘ to bring about change we miss the point. Transformation has to start becoming evident in our lives for Christ to be seen in us.

Dallas Willard in his book ‘Renovation of the Heart’, offers another helpful definition for discipleship; “It is a consciously chosen and sustained relationship of interaction between the Lord and his apprentice, in which the apprentice is able to do, and routinely does, what he or she knows to be right before God.” Oh that we would become more like Jesus!

You see, discipleship occurs when we answer Jesus’ command in John 13:15 to live and do what He has done; “I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.” (New Living Translation)

Therefore, we need to live out our discipleship more intensely and more intentionally.

It is not enough just to believe in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, we have to continually live our lives doing what He would have us do so that we can become more and more like Him.

We need to constantly assess and work on our individual character flaws so that we become an example of a true disciple, and proper follower, not just a fan.

Living as a faithful disciple helps us to strengthen the bonds of our union with the Lord, our unity with one another and involves continually growing in our faith.

This allows His light to shine in and through us and then in turn people will be able to clearly see Him in the way that we live our lives.

So what resources and tools do you use to enable you to focus on your Character Development?

Do you know your spiritual gifts? Have you explored your Spirituality Style, the way that you are wired so that you can connect with God more effectively? Have you unpacked the expressions of the Fruit of the Spirit that are evident in your life and what you could work on so that you can be more loving?

This is where Natural Character Development & Spiramentum Ministries can help, as it can assist you in setting a better course for your life, and enable you to experience life in all its fullness.

FYI – Last year I wrote a series of posts about the Importance of Discipleship which you can review starting here.

You can also check out these other two posts The Importance of Discipleship in Everyday Life and “Is your Discipleship Strategy Effective?”

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

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Health Update #10

Yet again, I find myself in familiar surroundings at Hutt Hospital’s Medical Day Stay Department hooked up for another infusion.

In my last health update I mentioned that since my 1st course of Rituximab (back at the beginning of June) I’d started to see some improvements to my Sp02 levels and that overall my weekly average had improved to consistently be over 95. 

Unfortunately, those levels didn’t last as long as I and my Respiratory Specialist would have liked. As I weaned off of Prednisone my SpO2 levels started to drop off and my general health and well-being started to be affected. The crackling in my lungs started to return and the breathlessness returned when walking short distances, as well as when I was walking and talking, which can be extremely frustrating.  

It had been envisaged that the effect of Rituximab in my system would have lasted a good six months, or possibly even lasting as long as 12 months. However, it seems that this is not the case and I am now required to have regular four monthly infusions.

One of the things that my specialist has found quite beneficial is my diligent recording of my SpO2 and heart rate readings, which I do morning and night to gauge how I am going and I also note how I’m feeling.

These initially showed an improvement, which was great and I was feeling a lot better. 

But as I stepped down a milligram of Prednisone, every three weeks initially (then monthly) each drop in medications saw a corresponding increase in breathlessness and subsequent decrease in my SpO2 readings.

Both the Respiratory and Rheumatology Specialists obviously don’t want me on Prednisone long-term as it can have a detrimental effect on a person: They can experience an increased risk of infections, especially with common bacterial, viral and fungal microorganisms; thinning of the bones (osteoporosis) and fractures; and severe fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea and muscle weakness.

The other concern in these days is the increasing amount of Covid in the community and other viruses and respiratory illnesses that are circulating. Therefore, over the next couple of months I’ll need to continue being extremely vigilant and careful about being out and about in the community, in effect isolating and working from home until the beginning of February.  

In March we’ll start the whole process of organising the next round of Rituximab for April as we continue trying to come to grips with what my body needs and strike the right balance of medications so that I can carry on. 

This obviously comes with many challenges; as we juggle doctors and specialist appointments, as well as any further tests that are required from time to time, and ensuring that prescriptions and medications are ordered and arrive on time for my hospital appointments.

Also add into the mix the need to ensure that we have the funds to cover these expenses and work out if we are entitled to any supports along the way. Also, balancing expectations around work. All of which can be quite taxing and from time to time leave one feeling frustrated and wondering how we are going to get through at all.

But these are not insurmountable and things are being put in place to enable me to continue doing what I can, when I can 🙂

I have recently been approved for the mobility parking scheme, we are in the process of working out what supports I can get through Work and Income, and we have been encouraged to seek palliative care.

Palliative Care

Now on one hand this can seem daunting and quite worrying, sometimes this is due to not knowing much about what palliative care actually is, and the misconceptions that many people have.

You see, palliative care is about improving overall wellness, including physical, emotional, spiritual, and social well-being.

Annette & I have been told that they (the health professionals) want to ensure that we have all the information and support that we need, as we work through these challenging days.

The thing is, the goal of palliative care is to improve the quality of life of people with serious or life altering illnesses, and is available from the moment of diagnosis. In other words, it doesn’t depend on the stage of your illness or whether you’re still receiving curative or life-prolonging treatments.

Obviously, this may come at a cost – but that is yet another thing to work out. As for me I reckon it’s something that I can’t afford to live without – Afterall, who wouldn’t want all the help that one can get. 

Faith = Trust

Now, one thing that has kept me sane thus far is my quiet optimism (positive attitude), and the faith and hope that I have in God.

According to Kennedy Lane’s devotional looking at 4 Reasons to Trust in God; Having faith is having trust.

You have to trust with your entire being that God has your back that he will help you and take care of you.

He knows what is best, but to truly embrace what he has planned for you, you have to fully trust. Our trust is not foolish, for our God is both faithful and good.

In certain situations, that is easier said than done – When faced with a disability of any kind, let alone an invisible one, it can certainly rock one’s world and faith, and certainly make you question why!

On our better days, we know we can trust in God’s love and His goodness. However, we don’t need to feel guilty when we have days when we just aren’t feeling it – But it’s equally true that staying in a space of guilt, shame, and frustration is not good for our well-being. There is nothing wrong with having bad days, but we need to learn how to bounce back, and live life to the full. 

We are told in John 10:10 that “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. [But Jesus’] purpose is to give [us] a rich and satisfying life.” (New Living Translation)

I have found that you can enjoy life in all its fullness, by living a life ‘Sold Out for Jesus‘, and serving others. And that this kind of life is found through trusting in God in the good times as well as the not so good ones.

If we live for God and for others it can change us forever as we live upwards, outwards, and inwards. We get to experience life in all its fullness!   

So, I want to be an encouragement and an inspiration to others that are faced with challenges such as rare disorders and diseases like Scleroderma, that can wreak havoc on one’s life and show that you can soldier on and maintain as much normalcy in life as possible. 

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

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Jesus wants us to experience joy

Today Annette concludes her devotions looking at the theme of nourishment, which have been a key part of Officer’s Fellowship for the Central Division.

In past few years I have recognised the need for me to spend time in retreat from the everyday things so that I can nourish my soul and find the refreshment that I need to keep up with the demands of ministry.

While I recognise the need for times of retreat, the reality is that I am not very good at making this a priority, often putting it off for another time, that more often than not, it does not eventuate. Often leaving the time of retreat until my heart and soul is parched, and the need for nourishment is urgent.

I am pretty sure that all of us realise the importance – in theory – of making sure we participate in the things that nourish our lives and souls.

Yesterday we discovered from the scripture for fellowship that the Father’s love is what we need to nourish the fullness of our body, soul and spirit.

To fully rediscover this nourishing love there are moments when we need to take time to retreat from the everyday – as you have hopefully been able to in the past few days.

In these moments I pray that you have been reminded of the love that never lets us go and to refresh our relationship with Jesus. To be refreshed in the love that nourishes us deep down in our hearts.

When our hearts have been nourished the result – we are reminded in scripture – is that we are empowered by God.

Even more than that, Jesus tells us that he wants us to know about this love for us because He wants us to experience a joy that will fill our hearts to overflowing.

You see, Jesus wants us to experience a joy that is beyond our current reality because we carry the love of God wherever we go.

We can only experience that joy through letting Jesus’ love, nourish and restore our hearts, letting that love nourish and restore our very lives.

So, let the scripture from John 15:1-17 remind you in the coming days, weeks and months ahead to spend time regularly in retreat from the everyday so that you can nourish and care for yourself, your relationships, your heart, your soul and your spirit. Spend time restoring the nourishment that the world takes from you before you become parched and dry.

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

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The Love That Nourishes Jesus

Today Annette continues the third instalment of her devotions looking at the theme of nourishment.

Can I encourage you to meditate on the fact that the love that nourishes Jesus is available to each and every one of us.

Imagine for a moment the love that a parent can have for a child.

The kind of love that would see the parent do anything they could to see their child happy, healthy and fulfilled. Sometimes these things will look like – doing the things that help them learn, it is the discipline that corrects a bad attitude or behaviour, it is doing those things that bring joy to them and above all it is loving them no matter what and without limit. Earthly parents are not perfect but even in our imperfections the one thing that costs us nothing is to love our children.

Take that same love and imagine this love coming from our infinitely perfect Father – our heavenly Father.

A love that outshines the brightest star and that is the kind of love that God has and expresses for Jesus throughout the Bible.

It is the kind of love that nourishes Jesus at every point of His life.

When he is celebrating his baptism, when He is turning water into wine, when he is healing the multitudes, when He is weary, when He is sweating droplets of blood in the garden of Gethsemane, and when He is calling out “My God, My God why have you abandoned me”.

In all of these instances it is the love of the Father for the Son that nourishes Jesus in order for Him to be obedient to the Father.

As we explore this concept of nourish it is our body, mind and spirit that need to be nourished and there is not a one size fits all way, in our earthly lives, that we can employ to nourish every part of our being.

But in our scripture for this week there is one thing that comes from Jesus to us that can and will nourish our hearts and that is the love of the Father for Jesus.

Jesus tells His disciples in our scripture that it is the same love from the Father that He in turn loves us with. That same love that nourishes Jesus “for I continually live nourished and empowered by his love” John 15:10b (The Passion Translation) is also intended to nourish and then empower us in all we do when we keep His commands. 

Spend time today being reminded once more that Jesus loves you. Be reminded that this love is for each of us, it never dims, it never waivers, it is never based on what you do or do not do.

It is not like the flawed love of earth, it is sure, steadfast, abundant and lavished upon us (refer to 1 John 3:1).

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

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Our Hearts Need To Be Nourished

Yesterday Annette shared the first in a series of four devotions looking at the Father’s love, encouraging us to consider John 15:9 from The Passion Translation and start looking for those dry and parched places in your life that need to be ‘Nourished’.

You see, our hearts need to be nourished, we need to spend dedicated and focussed time nourishing our souls, our relationship with God and our friendships with others.

She writes;

If I was to ask the question “What Nourishes you” to a group of people, I would probably get as many different answers as there are people in the room.

The answers would also swing wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other. Some might say that getting together with a group of friends is what nourishes them, and another might say being by themselves is much more nourishing. One might say going for a long hike in nature and another would say blobbing in front of TV. For each of us this concept of being nourished is different and even could change depending on the stage of life.

The type of nourishing that we need will also depend on what it is that we have been doing to make us feel in need of nourishing. It might be that we have spent ages outside in the sun, or we might have spent days on end with people, or days stuck at home unwell.

In each case there will be a different thing that will nourish us. 

When it comes to the theme nourish there will be times in our lives when we sit in a place of feeling like we are depleted to the point of withering away and becoming less than we should be. This is the time when we need to know the kinds of things that will fill us and help us to feel more like ourselves.

I know that for me there are times when I keep going and going like an energiser battery and I have to be reminded that the pace I have set cannot be maintained long term and I have to stop and renew my energy. 

Our scripture for this week kind of gives us the permission we might need and perhaps we could see it as a divine reminder that our hearts need to be nourished.

Jesus is talking to the disciples and is teaching them about how they can bear good fruit for the Kingdom, how they can been seen as mature disciples and right in the middle of that teaching he tells them that their hearts need to be nourished. Even Jesus recognised the need for His people to be uplifted, cared for and nourished. 

So, in these few days how are you going to nourish yourself? What things are you going to do or not do in an effort to take the necessary time you need to nourish your heart and soul?

Blessings ’til next time 🙂

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