When the Lord of the universe is on our side, we should not be afraid (CREDIT: Nick Webb via Flickr)

One of my favourite all-time church songs is ‘Be Strong and Courageous’ by Colin Buchanan.

It’s one of those rare songs that is able to mix simplicity with depth of meaning, and it brings people of all ages together in a powerful anthem that leads us to grow our trust in the Lord.

The context of the song is the famous verse that was said by the Lord to Joshua in the time before he was to boldly lead God’s people to the Promised Land.

We know now that the story ends in victory, but for the people at the time you would have expected that there was genuine fear in the hearts of all.

To make matters worse, their trusted leader Moses had passed away, and the new leader Joshua needed to stand up and lead through a challenging time.

With all this in mind, God graciously speaks directly to Joshua, saying these words:

Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. […] This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:6-9)

When it seems hard to obey God’s good word to us, we can take these comforting words to heart: “be strong and courageous… do not be afraid or discouraged”.

When the true Lord of the universe is on our side, we should not be afraid to follow his loving rule over our lives, even if to do so seems scary.

We should be strong and very courageous, for the Lord is with us.

JODIE McNEILL

True forgiveness brings deep joy (CREDIT: Martin Talbot via Flickr)

Depression and anxiety are at plague proportions in our modern, affluent land, and no matter how hard we try, we can’t seem to get the joy we need.

Even though we have greater wealth, improved health, longer life-expectancy, and the opportunities to connect with countries across the globe, we seem to be sadder than ever.

I was reminded that a great antidote to many mental ailments is becoming drawn into a partnership with something much bigger than the individual.

On the one level, this means that joining an outwardly-focused club or community organisation will mean we are led to focus less on ourselves and more on others.

But on a greater level, this means that when you come to be a follower of the maker of the heavens and the earth—God, who holds the universe in his hands—you then have an invitation to see your own concerns deeply met as you lift up your head to worship the one who loves you deeply and gave his son to die for you.

Yet, even those who are followers of Jesus will find themselves in times of depression, when joy seems hard to find.

Psalm 51 tells us that in times of sin, we can be overwhelmed with guilt and sadness… and that as we humbly ask God to forgive our sin, we need to then seek something more: joy.

As David prayed,

“Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me—now let me rejoice.” (Psalm 51:7-8).

As the burden of sin is lifted from our shoulders, we can know afresh the deep, deep love of Jesus, and can experience true, deep joy in the forgiveness of sin and the hope of eternal life in Christ Jesus.

JODIE McNEILL

Since I arrived here from Canada three weeks ago it has been interesting to experience a federal election in another country.

The premise of the election is the same, although there are some minor differences such as compulsory voting.

While some Canadians ask the question, “should I vote as a Christian?”, we all should ask the question, “how should I vote as a Christian?”

The first thing we must always remember is that God is in control (Romans 13:1).

God is the true leader and creator of this world and everything goes through Him.

As followers of God it is our duty to choose a leader who speaks and acts out Christian principles.

In order to do this we must be informed on what each party represents and use our judgment to make godly decisions.

Sounds easy enough right? Well, as we all know, parties can promise many different things, some of which follow earthly principles and not biblical principles.

So in order to receive the proper guidance, we must study God’s word, the Bible.

To know what principles God wants our leaders to possess, we need to be in constant study of Scripture. 

For we read, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realise what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right” (2 Timothy 3:16)

And we must pray, asking thatour decision will be according to God’s will, and that the leaders will make wise decisions. 

For we are reminded that, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking” (James 1:5).

And we must never forget to “pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity” (1 Timothy 2:2-3)

DAN DEKONING

This week we have seen the sudden end to a number of budding political careers as the inappropriate online history of candidates was made public.

Comments were made on social media and blogs that included rude jokes and statements that have caused offence.

On Friday, Mr Creasey, a former candidate for the upcoming federal election, said that he had wrongly made “awful comments many years ago”, but that whilst he now distances himself from those comments, he said that his actions were “an important for young people that your social media footprint will follow you.”

Apart from the obvious wisdom of taking care when posting, commenting, liking, or interacting with social media, it is a timely reminder to us that every thing we say, do and think is known to our heavenly Father.

Even if our thoughts don’t leave our minds, our wrongful thoughts and attitudes are still known in full to God.

That is why we are all unable to stand before God and claim to be blameless in his sight, no matter how many good things we have done.

As we read in the New Testament, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.” (Hebrews 4:13)

This is why everyone is in desperate need of a saviour who will take upon himself the judgement we deserve, so that God will look at us as pure and blameless.

This is why the Bible tells us that “Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God.” (1Pet. 3:18)

So, no matter what you’ve said or done, whether it’s public or private, you can be sure that God will forgive you for those sins if you trust in Jesus as Lord and saviour.

JODIE McNEILL

As news broke of the fire at Notre Dame, the world united in shock and sadness.

This Parisien icon had towered over the landscape for 850 years, and yet it now had succumbed to the power of fire.

Some might say it’s only a building, but there is a good reason why the citizens of Paris wept over its destruction.

For many, it was a place where they came to meet with God, and for others, it was a symbol of European Christianity.

For me, I was reminded of another, impressive place of worship that also suffered enormous destruction.

The Second Temple of Jerusalem was deliberately destroyed by Romans in 70AD, yet decades before, that Temple had become redundant as a place of worship.

For, at the very moment that Jesus died, the Bible records that the giant curtain of that temple was torn in two.

No longer was that stone building in Jerusalem to be the place to meet God, for now they would meet him in Jesus Christ.

For Jesus once said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” […] But when Jesus said, “this temple,” he meant his own body. (John 20:19,21)

It is natural for us to feel sentimental about our buildings, and it was right to be sad when Notre Dame and the Temple of Jerusalem were damaged or destroyed.

Yet, the greatest destruction was on the first Good Friday, when the Son of God was executed as an innocent man on behalf of those who trust in him.

However as promised, Jesus was raised from the dead on Easter Sunday, and with his resurrection comes a certain hope that can never perish, spoil or fade.

This Easter, as you reflect upon the fragility of life and the certainty of our own passing, it is a great time to trust in Jesus and enjoy the forgiveness he offers and the hope he promises.  

JODIE McNEILL