Ben...

PSALM 73

 23 Yet I am always with you;

   you hold me by my right hand.

24 You guide me with your counsel,

   and afterward you will take me into glory.

25 Whom have I in heaven but you?

   And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

26 My flesh and my heart may fail,

   but God is the strength of my heart

   and my portion forever.

As Ben prepares to go off on his placement year I think this says where God will be for him!

The light within

See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. (Luke 11:35 TNIV) I think, too often, I allow darkness within to dominate my thoughts. Feeling nervous and unconfident about the new job. Here's a radical thought; why don't I just choose to be confident? I can do this with God's help. Just enjoy it!!!

A picture

God showed me a beach with grey clouds and rain rolling away to be replaced by bright sunshine bursting through the clouds bringing light and warmth and joy - a new way of living is coming, the clouds will go and the sun will shine!

New job... New year

Isaiah 61: 1 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me,
for the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted
and to proclaim that captives will be released
and prisoners will be freed.
2 He has sent me to tell those who mourn
that the time of the Lord 's favor has come,s
and with it, the day of God's anger against their enemies.
3 To all who mourn in Israel,s
he will give a crown of beauty for ashes,
a joyous blessing instead of mourning,
festive praise instead of despair.
In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks
that the Lord has planted for his own glory.

4 They will rebuild the ancient ruin
repairing cities destroyed long ago.
They will revive them,
though they have been deserted for many generations.
5 Foreigners will be your servants.
They will feed your flocks
and plow your fields
and tend your vineyards.
6 You will be called priests of the Lord ,
ministers of our God.
You will feed on the treasures of the nations
and boast in their riches.
7 Instead of shame and dishonor,
you will enjoy a double share of honor.
You will possess a double portion of prosperity in your land,
and everlasting joy will be yours.

8 ""For I, the Lord , love justice.
I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
I will faithfully reward my people for their suffering
and make an everlasting covenant with them.
9 Their descendants will be recognized
and honored among the nations.
Everyone will realize that they are a people
the Lord has blessed.""

10 I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord my God!
For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation
and draped me in a robe of righteousness.
I am like a bridegroom in his wedding suit
or a bride with her jewels.
11 The Sovereign Lord will show his justice to the nations of the world.
Everyone will praise him!
His righteousness will be like a garden in early spring,
with plants springing up everywhere.

Have faith

Jesus calmed the storm. Feeling panicky about new job. I am focussing on the detail and failing to see the big picture: God is in charge and I just need to put my faith in Him. Who am I trusting in - me or Him. He is more than able!

Promised land

Numbers 14: Their voices rose in a great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. ""If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness!"" they complained.3 ""Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us die in battle? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn't it be better for us to return to Egypt?

The Isrealites moaned about entering the promised land - they were fearful and not trusting God. They thought they would be better off going back to slavery in Egypt! Last weekend I was in a real panic about the new job (I had an information overload day in school on the Friday and thought I was not up to the standard they wanted for the job). I was ready to give up and go back to the slavery of optometry! Pauline helped me through that and I now have some proper training and induction in place for the next few Fridays. I nearly turned my back on the promised land!

Interview

So, the letter came this week offering me an interview this Friday. I had thrown down a fleece to God asking that if I got an interview it would be on my day off - perfect!
My daily readings this week were about Paul's conversion - he changed what he WAS doing and did something completely different and also in NLT yearly program it was about Jesus calling his disciples - again, they completely changed their careers at the behest of God. I saw this as confirming what God was about to do...
I got the job!