August 2011 – Christian Helps

Teacher Teaches the Point

The teacher ‘s eye roamed the class looking for the brightest, “Ah ! Watson” “Sir”“Tell me, What Is A Line ?”, The boy gave an answer, but it did not satisfy the teacher, he went to the next boy, and then the next, until he had covered the class.

“I will give you a definition you should never forget” , the teacher called. Picking up a piece of chalk he drew on the blackboard a lovely bird.

“A Line Is The Path of A Point” “Whatever you use, chalk, pen, pencil, finger. You start with a point. In whatever direction you go, up, down, east, west, Circle or straight. You have a Line. “A line is the path of a point”

Ministers are regularly required to lead people to God’s throne of Grace in worship, and the whole act of worship is centred on the sermon. This all has to come by the leading of The Holy Spirit, so after much prayer and thinking it through the guidance comes. One day I was sitting in my study, and I had been given a bible text, but that was as far as I could get. The text was “What is your life”, I had thought of “Like a vapour” coming, then going, but ‘No’ that was not it.

Then I remembered the teacher “What is a line ?” Alter one letter and you have “What is a life” What Is Your Life ?

You may think of your past life. But we made so many mistakes, and it is all gone anyway. You can never go back, what’s done is done. No that is not my life. The Future, that’s the thing. Is it ? I don’t know what my future is, I may not even have a future. “No” that is not my life.

Your Life Is This Starting Point. Now is the time, Now is the day of salvation. Not what you were, not what you might be, but in this starting point. Now. Like the chalk point on the blackboard you can make something beautiful, like a bird from this point, now.

But you might say to me it was the skill of the teacher that made a beautiful bird. And you are right. It depends on who holds you as to where you go from this moment. Countless people have placed their life into the hand of God, and their lives are just beautiful, and will be forever.

What is your life ? Your life is this starting point ! Now !

Oh what you might be if your friend Jesus was holding you all the time.

Christian love to you, from Gerald Gossage

To Change or Not to Change?

I had not been long as a Minister in Bristol when I visited one of my members who was now retired. I asked him what work he had retired from, and in reply he took me to a shed at the bottom of the garden. “This is where I worked” he said “I was a shoe maker”.

Every Friday he had walked to the local shoe factory down the road with a sack of newly made shoes, and get paid for his work and return home with a sack of pre-cut pieces of leather to make more shoes . From eight in the morning to six in the evening he had sat on that stool working away making shoes out of the parts supplied. Every shoe had to be perfect or he would lose money.

Once a man reached sixty-five he had to stop work, without a pension (except the government one) So life had not been “a bowl of roses” as he put it.

Back in the sitting room with his wife I learned that there used to be five other shoe factories in the district and he could have given up working in his shed to work in them. But each time he had the opportunity, they had prayed about it, and God had said “Stay as you are”. So he did. “Now those factories are all closed” his wife said, “So God knows what’s best for us”. The husband smiled at me “We have a rule in this house. We never change anything without asking Our Lord first”. “He never fails to guide us aright”.

As I sat and enjoyed these simple saints of God I became aware that their simple faith in Jesus was just what their Lord had been teaching all through the Gospels.

If you believed that God would lead you, and just left it to Him, the best would come about for you. If you asked what to do, God would surely show you.

For weeks I was blessed with this man’s simple way, “God had said stay as you are, so he did”.

I feel sure that for many people, when they pray, they don’t expect to see God’s answer. And in the end they fail to believe in prayer. In their heart they don’t expect, so they don’t receive. We must have a solid trust that God is with us, loves us and

“All things work together for good to those who love God”.

“You will hear a voice behind you saying This Is The Way, walk in it”

“Ask and it will be given unto you, seek and you shall find, knock and the door will open for you”.

It is the way I try to walk myself, and it has never failed for me.

Gerald Gossage.

Where is Boasting? Romans 3:27

I was only a young boy, when an aunt and uncle came to visit us, and I was sent out to play in the garden while the grown-ups did their talking. I cannot remember what I was doing, but it was important enough to me that I wanted everyone to come to the window to watch me. “Look at ME” I shouted, “Look at Me”. But they were all too busy talking, so I had to attract their attention. I picked up a stone and threw it to hit the window, too my horror the window smashed with a great crash of glass and a scream from someone inside the room.

I ran straight indoors, up the stairs, and locked myself in the bathroom. I was terrified !

I heard my father running up the stairs, and saw his efforts rattling the door handle.“Open this door” he commanded over and over again with various threats as to what he would do. My aunt had given me half-a-crown on her arrival and this I now pushed under the door. Then I heard my mother mounting the stairs. She spoke softly to dad, and all I heard was “He’s frightened, leave it to me”.

Soon my mother’s voice came through the door like a soothing calm. “Just be quiet and listen to me”. I shouted back “I’m Sorry, Sorry, I didn’t mean to break the window”. “We know you didn’t mean to, and your dad has gone down stairs to help clean up the broken glass. No one has been hurt, and we are not cross with you, so just open the door and give me a big cuddle”. After the kisses and mother’s love she said “Oh look, someone has left a half-a-crown here, you better have that”.

It is one thing for a child to learn something new and want everyone to know , with a “Look at ME !”. But it’s about time we grew up and knew that when God planned our coming into this world, He also planned what gifts and talents we would have. Also we are not born with these gifts but they are given to us at different times in our life, like birthday presents. One Christmas my wife gave me a box of oil painting equipment. I had never painted before in my life, but was determined not to waste this nice gift. Yes, the first efforts were thrown away, then I took a day off from work and really got down to doing my best. And I was very pleased with the result which still hangs on our wall, and over the years has been admired by a few visitors. It is a God given talent which has never brought anyone nearer to God, but it has relaxed me and given me a few heavenly thoughts which helps in the development of other parts of my life. “All things work together for good”.

A God-given gift I am using at present is writing helpful articles. But they would not be helpful if it were Me writing them. I pray first to ask what God wants to convey. How to illustrate, How to express what He would say to help someone who will read the message. I don’t do any thing, The Holy Spirit does it all. So how could I boast !

You will not boast if you recognise that your gifts and talents come from God, not you. You will not boast if you give all that you are, and have, into God’s hands.

As Luke 17 v10 says “When you have done everything you were told to do, say I am a servant, I have only done my duty”. If we serve Our Lord Jesus Christ don’t boast of what you have done. What do we have that was not loaned to us ?

Christian love from Gerald Gossage