Author: newlifenarrabri

God Is Always With You

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Back in August, I had the opportunity of going for a holiday in Tasmania, somewhere I have never visited before. We had a wonderful 11 day self-drive tour of the island with our accommodation and car rental organised and pre-paid through a travel agent.

One of the highlights of the holiday was a cruise along the Gordon River, which is a truly amazing place. The cruise included a stop at Sarah Island where a guide led us through the ruins of what had been one of the most severe convict settlements in the colony.

There were very few escapes from Sarah Island, because if you got across the water to the mainland, where would you go? One convict did escape, and walked through the rugged highlands all the way to Hobart. This was a marvel of bushcraft, when you consider there were no tracks, signposts or maps. He was captured on the edge of the town and assigned to a survey team that was tasked with exploring the very country he had just passed through.

For a while, Sarah Island became a centre of boat building because of the natural properties of the Huon Pine. After this enterprise wound down, a group of convicts stole the last boat and sailed it as far as Chile. Eventually the British caught up with them and returned them to Tasmania. Again, this episode represented amazing skills for these men to navigate a small vessel that far.

Although these men were in very isolated places, they were never alone. In Psalm 139 we read:

Where can I go from your Spirit?

    Where can I flee from your presence?

If I go up to the heavens, you are there;

    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

If I rise on the wings of the dawn,

    if I settle on the far side of the sea,

 even there your hand will guide me,

    your right hand will hold me fast.

Whenever you feel isolated or alone, know that God is always with you. Even in the loneliest places, He is there with you. He will never leave you.

Quote for the Day

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In 2021, more babies in England and Wales were born outside marriage than to wedded couples. Official statistics show that 48.7 percent of babies that year were born to a legal couple, falling below the 50 percent threshold for the first time since records began in 1845. Melanie Phillips

Reflection on Daniel 11:1-45

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Scripture

“He will have no respect for the gods of his ancestors, or for the gods loved by women, or for any other god, for he will boast that he is greater than them all. Instead of these, he will worship the god of fortresses – a god, his ancestors never knew.”

Observation

This chapter lists a series of battles and skirmishes between kings in Daniel’s future, often referred to as the Ptolemies and the Seleucids. These are dynasties of kingly families struggling for domination in the region. The most despicable of these was Antiochus Epiphanes IV, who desecrated the Temple by offering unclean sacrifices to Zeus there.

A king is mentioned, who even deserts the gods of his ancestors to worship a new god, the god of fortresses.

Application

It has always been a temptation for kings and other political leaders to put their trust in military might. In some cases, this can be benign, for example when leaders simply want to ensure that they can maintain peace by deterring potential enemies from attacking them. At other times, it can result in deliberate provocation and hostility towards neighbours and rivals, leading to all out war.

This king worshipped a god of fortresses. He obviously believed that his army was his salvation. This is folly, as salvation – whether individual forgiveness or national deliverance – comes only from the Lord. When people, ordinary workers or leaders of nations, commit to trusting, the Lord and walking in his ways, many miracles are released

Prayer

Thank you, Lord, for your victory over sin. May the people of my nation enter into the blessings of your grace. Amen.