Sharing in each others suffering(part 2)

Dear friends,



Greetings. I am not sure how far I am going with this e-mail. My daughter is having some fun trying to distract me. She does not seem to like my devotion to typing….Quite a bit of wrestling going on!

Forgive me if this doesn’t make a lot of sense. I have attached a message that I hope is a blessing. Years ago, it must have been in 1987. A retired medical doctor, whose achievements are still world renowned gave me a copy of ‘Self Love’ a book by Robert Schuller. Because he said I could keep it I must have brought it with me to the UK in 1989.



The remarkable thing, I could not understand at the time was my Doctor friend’s motivation. He had suffered a stroke, lost some of his sight and required bedrest most of the day. I do not recall him upright in bed during any of my visits in 1987. However, he spent all the time of my visit talking about me and inspiring me. He did not refer to his ‘problems’ in a negative way. Friends, he appeared optimistic everytime….Each time I came away from visiting him I felt more positive and more inspired. He was older than my dad, had achieved significant things in medicine, research, in sculptor and yet did not seem to lament the loss of his health and opportunity to be ambivalent. I needed to add that among the significant things he achieved was the fact that someone from my family had married someone from his family (laugh)!So that is how we became acquainted. But we did not dwell on kinship ties in our conversation. It was kind of philosophical and theological. It was about self esteem and centred on the belief that Jesus Christ was real in the daily affairs of men.



Friend, how can one be optimistic when surrounded by temporal setbacks? That is a valid question we are constantly faced with. SETBACKS ARE TEMPORAL. The Bibile refers to ‘our light affliction’….Sapphire is falling asleep so I am going write a bit more.



Don’t quit just because of what you face today. Nothing is worth that kind of short-circuited response. But what about if GOD DOES NOT APPEAR TO CARE? Well, don’t quit even if this is how you feel. I admit that

Sometime it appears there is ‘overwhelming’ evidence to suggest that ‘GOD DOES NOT CARE’. I have faced situations again and again when I have literally cried screamed yelled fidgeted and begged even tried bribing God without apparent results. So what can we do when we are at the end of our EFFORTS and we have not had a RECOGNISABLE RESPONSE FROM GOD? Well T-R-U-S-T Him.

The contrast between trusting God and trying to get Him to do things is that, TRUST is Honest and real whereas many of the above are often insincere. What am I suggesting? I am suggesting that WE MAKE IT CLEAR TO GOD THAT AS MUCH AS WE WANT AND NEED HIM TO ANSWER OUR PRAYER, EVEN IF IT DOES NOT HAPPEN BEFORE A PARTICULAR DEADLINE WE ARE WILLING TO TRUST HIM.



When we are in a trusting relationship with God, we do not BEAR GRUDGES AGAINST GOD BECAUSE HE DID NOT COME THROUGH WITH AN ANSWER! If we are not bearing grudges against God, we do not

let the issue of unanswered prayer determine our attitude towards God. In other words there is more to our relationship with God than the gifts or presents He gives us. God is not our voluntary consultant. He is not our philanthropist. He is our creator and as creator He deserves to be worshipped.

Friends, this why a lot of Christian TV preaching I have watched recently concerns me. Invitation is given to give to God mainly because of something God will do. Now what happens to the other

Aspect which is the relationship aspect? I believe a lot of our TV preachers need to work closely with their editorial teams and work on the image being presented about God. God gives to us because His nature is kind loving and He loves giving. He gives to us to reward obedience to His principles. But all these need to be emphasized equally. It isn’t everyone that is going to get blessed by God because of what they offer. Usually God wants more than our ‘dime’. He often wants our will as well.



In conclusion dear friend, if you are not sure what your answer would be at Heaven’s gate, to the question ‘Give one reason why you should be admitted into heaven’? If you have never fully surrendered your heart to Jesus Christ; if you do not have a thriving or functional personal relationship with Him, then please join me in a prayer. Let THIS BE THE ESSENCE OF WHAT YOU TELL GOD RIGHT NOW:

Dear Jesus, son of the living God, I recognize that I am a sinner. I repent from my sin and surrender my life to you. Please

Forgive me of my wrongdoing, impure motives and cleanse me with your precious blood. I invite you into my heart to live in me and be

My savior and Lord. Thank you for saving me. Amen.



Thank you for praying and if you have received this e-mail because it was forwarded to you by a friend or family do let me

know by e-mailing me at john@vocation4lifefoundation.org. Meanwhile, if you are praying this prayer sincerely for the first time

find a Bible or contact me to send you one. In addition ask God to lead you to a church that believes and teaches the truth

of God's word, especially that Jesus Christ is the only name given among men whereby men and women can be saved(Acts 4:12).



God Bless you



John