Key Element of Friendship #2

Witnessing

When I say that a key element of a friendship is witnessing I imagine most people will think of being there for someone on their journey to knowing God. But I think the Bible calls us to more than that.

In Matthew 28 it doesn't ask us to convert all nations, it asks us to make disciples of all nations. I believe there is a huge difference between someone who says they are a Christian, they believe in God and somebody is a Follower of Jesus. To sum it up, some call themselves Christians and others are called Christians by others (the Disciples were named Christians by outsiders).

One of the biggest blessings I have had is people in my life who have been there for me in hard times, shared verses with me and asked after me. There have been people in my life who have seen me grown in faith and as a person. I have a close friend who has gone through a massive change in her life recently and it has been a joy to be in touch with her and see God at work in her life.

In the Bible Jesus did it with the disciples, Elijah with Elisha, Paul with countless Churches and so on.

I think we are called to do that with others, to see where they are in live, to encourage them, to watch them grow.

What is Heaven like?

Today I saw an article with an opinion I seem to hear quite often these days. Star of Biutiful and husband of Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem, said this:-

"Heaven must be nice, but is it too boring? Maybe you can get an apartment there and then go to hell for the weekends."

It is a shame how little the vast majority of the world know about Christianity in this age.

Revelation 21:4 - ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

There will be no sadness in Heaven! The worst thing about this world, which has a lot of beautiful and wonderful things, is the sadness that seems to be all around us. Every day on the News I see people dying too young, people without basic needs, countries at war and injustice. Heaven will have NONE of that.

Revelation 22 goes on to describe Heaven as like a wedding, where Jesus is the groom and the Church as His bride. I think the happiest event you could go to is a wedding. All your friends are there, there is food and there is dancing & partying. I can see Heaven being like that!

Hell is described as a place of pain and mourning, the worst bit must be knowing it was so easy to go to Heaven and you missed out. A lack of God in people's lifes causes the sadness on earth today so I can't imagine how bad it is there.

Jesus described Heaven as paradise:-

Luke 23:43
Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
The very word paradise must come from there and to me it means a place of perfection and awe inspiring wonder. I am excited for Heaven!

Of course, that verse is Jesus answer to the thief who was being crucified by His side when the thief put his trust in Jesus and asked if He would remember him in His Kingdom. If you trust in Jesus and ask if He will remember you, you will get the same answer TONIGHT.

Birds In A Bush

'A bird in the hand is worth two birds in a bush'

I never knew what this statement meant...until today!
In my third lecture at University, Financial Management, the tutor explained it in the sense of business dividends. Some businessmen feel it is better to have a cash inflow every year in the form of dividends rather than wait on the company growing and getting a better price for their shares when they sell them.

The idea is it is better to have money in your hand than to wait on something happening that will make your investment even more worthwhile in the future.

You are probably losing interest now but I will try and win you back with a thought I had.

Heaven is a bird in the hand. God GUARANTEES Salvation for all of those who confess Christ and believe in what He has done, asking for forgiveness of sins. (Christianity is the only faith to know they are going to Heaven)

Acts 10:43
All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

Romans 10:9

That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

I think there are lots people counting on the birds in the bush, maybe thinking that if they wait something better will happen than what will happen if they do it the Jesus way.

Jesus dispels this by saying that HE is the only way to the Father in John 14:6:-

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

I encourage everyone to stop waiting  for something else to happen and do something about it now. God Loves you no matter what you have done or where you are at and He is delighted to receive all who come to Him.

Ironically, in this case, the bird in the hand can't actually be bettered. I can testify to it. If you have any questions or want to talk about this, don't hesitate to facebook me, formspring me (the link is below) or comment on here, you can be anonymous if you want.