Do you have prayerful thoughts?

I was reading in Numbers 13 this morning about the spies sent in to the Promised Land by Moses - 12 of them went in and 10 came back afraid - because they looked too long at the difficulty and the danger instead of keeping their eyes on God and His power.

It made me think of Colossians 3:1-4 where believers in Christ Jesus are told to keep our eyes on things above, to keep seeking those things. I realised that as we keep our eyes on God, on His His Word, on His purpose and plan; that as we keep our minds filled with His promises and our hearts set on His will and His way - then we will not be afraid.

I was reminded that He is God Most High, Creator, Sustainer and Possessor of all things. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end - He is omnipotent, omniscient, immutable God and He tells us in Isaiah 41:10 Do not be afraid, for I am with you, do not anxiously look about you for I am your God.

I thought that this must be the foundation for the way we view our world and all the problems we face in it. realised that it must be the way we handle our anxiety and how we try to make sense of the war and the strife, the wickedness and the evil that we see around us.

It must be the lens through which we view the world, its history and its future. We are told over and over again to look with the eyes of faith and then as we look we will see Jesus - high and lifted up - the eternal, unshakeable, all-conquering, victorious Lord and Saviour - the One who came and lived and died to make us free - who came to make a way for redemption, for salvation, for LIFE and who stands even now offering that life to each man, woman and child.

I was reminded again of the reason why we are here - to proclaim His excellence, to speak out His Gospel of Grace, to walk with Him through all the trials and the pain and the suffering.

I was reminded of His promise that His joy would be our strength enabling us to walk with Him to glory and to draw many to walk with us.

And at the end I prayed for wisdom - for the knowledge of His will, for the understanding of His purpose and for the ability to live every day to make Him known.

This world is terrifying in all its evil and corruption - it is a dark and desperate place and every human being who lives in it will at some point understand their desperate need of a Saviour. We are the voices left here to speak of Him - we are the ones left here to pray, interecede and to do all that we can to 'hasten His appearing' 2 Peter 3:12.

It is so much easier to do that together and so my prayer ended this morning for a growth in the fellowship of believers, who love the Lord their God, who love their Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ and who live by the Spirit of that God moment by moment, day by day - for His glory.

Be blessed this day as you look up and see the Lord.

Ann Absolom