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10 lepers healed. Only one turned around to say thanks.

Luke 17 relays a story that has lots to teach us about gratitude.

What strikes me is how these lepers, be they men or women, chased after Jesus. They pursued their healing, believing and reaching out to God for an answer.

True to His merciful nature, the miracle occurred. The group were healed and I’m sure were delighted. The strange thing is only one of them then sought out Jesus a second time to offer thanks for His healing.

I know I am guilty of being one of the no-thanks nine so often.

I set my heart on something, and once I have obtained it, all by the grace of God because nothing else can explain the generosity I have enjoyed, I move on to the next thing. My default seems to more naturally lean to familiarity and entitlement than gratitude.

Larna and I have always been active people, chasing some dream or other. But in the pursuit of the next mountain to conquer, way too often we’ve failed to turn back and count the blessings that have accumulated and the gifts that have already been bestowed.

Above all else, my wife is the greatest and most precious gift the Lord has ever given me. There have been times I have taken her love and devotion for granted, much to my own hurt.

My children are a blessing beyond price or description, but there are many times I’ve felt the burden rather than giving thanks for the blessing.

Swinging round to celebrate, to recognise and rejoice in all the goodnesses of God, is a choice we make. Yes, we can go on our merry way, healed of leprosy and ready to rock, but we miss the opportunity to draw the richest juice from life if we fail to swing round in thankful recognition. Appreciate God. Appreciate others. Appreciate your self.

Time to reflect

Turning back to thank God, and to lay to rest the disappointments and roll the care back on the Lord, furnishes us to move forward.

Following are some steps to take time for reflection, and to glean what we can from this past year.

1. List all the good things that have come your way this past year. Take time to brainstorm and write down all the good things you’ve experienced this past year. Include things you were fully or partially responsible for as well as things that just happened to you serendipitously or through the thoughtfulness of others. Celebrate these blessings!
2. Think of all those who helped you and invested in you this past year. No one ever accomplishes anything of significance without the help and input of others. Who are those people in your life? Make a list. Call them or write them a thank you note. Be specific in your gratitude and tell them how much they mean to you. If appropriate give a gift to express your gratitude and appreciation.
3. What goals have you achieved this past year? This is an important part of reflection. We often live such hectic lives! No sooner do we complete one project and we’re on to the next without any thought for celebration or reflection. What specific accomplishments can you celebrate from this past year? List them all and humbly give thanks for them.
4. What regrets or disappointments did you experience this past year? List these and learn from them. Where appropriate, take time to grieve over them, but give them a proper burial so you can move on. Consider what you can learn from this past year. Determine the source of your disappointment. Is it possible that you need to adjust your expectations? What else can you glean from any regrets or disappointments you have from this past year? What safeguards can you put in place to avoid or minimize the chances of any of these negative experiences happening again?
5. Share your reflections with a trusted friend. Once you have completed the four steps above, ask someone you trust and respect if you can share your reflections with them confidentially. After you’ve shared, ask them for their honest feedback. Thank them for their time and take their suggestions and responses to heart and consider what to do with them.

With our fast-paced lives, we seldom take time for reflection.

Reflecting on the past year can also help us avoid the same mistakes and establish new habits and processes to increase our success in business. And of course, all those things play into our physical and spiritual health as well.

Don’t wait! Swing round and put a date on your calendar today for taking time to reflect, thanking God, and squeezing the juice out of your journey.

The choice we have…

A life of hearing, or one of hustling.

The Scriptures urge:

“My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.” (Proverbs 4:20–22 KJV)

Being attentive is more than nodding at the right moments. Believe me, Larna knows if I am being attentive or just politely pretending to listen. I have to admit, if my mind is involved in some project I am often guilty of a lack of attendance. My body is present, but I am not there. Often I have to go to her and humbly ask her to repeat what I was just nodding like a dog to.

So too with the Holy Ghost.

The word incline in these verses means “to bend away”. It means turning the ears to give attention to what is being said, with a commitment to really hear, and closing them to the noise around you.

It means moving your attention from what has captured you, and giving wholehearted focus to the one who is speaking.

The Holy Spirit wants to speak to each one of us intimately and clearly. His voice is alive with healing, health, strength and prosperity beyond our wildest dreams. A prosperous life is more than money, but does come fully furnished with everything that pertains to life (in the natural) and godliness (in the spiritual).

Nothing is left out. God has not left us wanting.

The great thing about hearing is that God’s words are pregnant with something powerful.

Faith!

“Faith comes by hearing” (Romans 10:17).

Moreover,

“Faith gives substance to the things we hope for”. (Hebrews 11:1)

It’s way too tempting to try, to fight, to push our way to a successful outcome. But I believe there is an easier way. One where the yoke does not chafe. Where the burden is not heavy or loathsome.

It is the way of hearing God speak and direct your steps. It is the way of peace, where your confidence in action is based on the word you have heard.

Faith sees and receives what is promised before those things are held in the hand, but they are just, if not more, real than the thing itself.

Your future lays before you, invisible to the natural eye, but planned in detail by the trinity. Their blueprints are not locked away in some vault somewhere, they are open on the table, and they are eager to bring you into conference.

Consider these words:

“That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.” (1 John 1:3–4 KJV)

Fellowship: association, community, communion, joint participation, contact, social intercourse

Then accept the invitation.

There was a time when I was caught in the trap of forever tinkering. A tweak here here, a tweak there, smooth the edges and polish the words. But a work was never refined enough to please my perfectionist sensibilities.

My own desire to deliver the best was the very thing that prevented me from delivering it. You know why? Yesterday’s best is today’s ordinary. We are improving all the time, and even if you hit perfection today, you’d be surprised how the perspective of time mars a work.

There are numerous books I have written and shipped that I thought were the bee’s knees that now make me cringe.

But I’m so glad I shipped them. So pleased I made them public.

I’m a journeyman. My aim is not to brag about my arrival, it’s to share the road with friends on my way there (and if I’m honest I cannot even tell you where or what “there” really is). I grow more and more convinced that the journey itself is the destination. Be here now, and share what you know.

Is this not what a teacher does? Is not the whole realm of education and edification one where we take one hand ahead of us and allow ourselves to be taught, and then reach back the other hand to pull someone else upward?

I believe that the best ways to do that are books, online courses and platforms like blogs and websites.

You could also add some social channels, but be careful to build your business and platform on your own ground and terms, and not be caught in the predicament of building on someone else’s platform and having the rug pulled out from under you because of some rogue algorithm or terms of service change.

It’s a satisfying feeling to create, ship, and show.

Bringing a project to market makes it real. No longer hiding behind an idea, you discover if it has legs. That intel is priceless, because it gives you leverage to pivot and move and shape and shift in whatever way you need to, and to further refine your message.

You also begin to build a portfolio of work and creative assets that can be used at later dates. Even if something does not hit the target today you’ll be surprised how it could come into it’s own off the back of a later product, book or publication of some kind.

No creative work is wasted.

I cannot guarantee what you put out to the world will succeed. I cannot even guarantee that even for my own products. But I do hope I can act as an an example and an inspiration. Someone who practices what he preaches, and continues to take risks, push the boundaries, and seeks to stretch beyond his own bounds.

I believe 100% that God wants to prosper His people. I also believe that the pathway there is paved with opportunities to learn, some of which look like failures and disappointments. Dude, I have got a whole wardrobe of T-shirts that prove that point!

Been there, seen it, done it….

The difference between success and failure however is whether you are willing to get up, dust down, and do it again.

I got the T-shirt. Many failed products if I judge them by sales.

I got the boots. Many spectacular un-best-selling books.

I have the pants. Numerous blogs that bragged almost zero traffic.

Yep, the waistcoat too. E-commerce stores of several varieties that are now closed!

Even got the socks. A thriving foray into forex that by God’s grace mercifully broke even.

Suffice to say, I’m suited and booted for success, clothed in the many lessons I have learned.

The greatest lesson all?

No risk. No return.

And I’m not even talking money.

I write these words not because I think they’ll translate into dollars and pounds. I write them because I think they might just resonate with enough people to help them take the next step.

And I truly believe that Jesus, you know Him, the guy who never lies, was right when He said:

“But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.”

2 Corinthians 9:6 KJV

Solomon too spoke wisely when he counselled:

“Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.”

Ecclesiastes 11:1 KJV

In the past I’ve often heard these verses cited in offering sermonettes, but their scope reaches far beyond dropping some bills in the basket at church.

Don’t be afraid to share it. Don’t wait until its perfectly formed before you put some fire in the barrel and pull the trigger.

Friend, after many days, and sometimes a great deal sooner, it will come floating back bountifully multiplied.

You are a creator by nature, if not you would not be reading this.

I’m cheering you on every step of the way.

The creative Christian life demands one thing. Authenticity.

An authentic article is one that is not a copy, it’s the real thing. Not a cheap knock-off shaped to sell low. If an object is authentic it bears the marks of its maker, not the shavings of a machine.

I want to remind you today that your Maker created you the way that you are for a reason. He has purpose in His craftsmanship and when He molded the masterpiece that bears your name, He did so from a one-off, never-to-be-repeated plan in His infinite heart, not on the cookie-cutter floor room pumping out humans to pointlessly populate the planet.

Dawkins and Darwin might try to convince you otherwise, but Romans 1:19-23 perfectly sums up the Creator’s opinion of their accolades. Look it up and see if you agree.

Professors may profess all they like, but their professions leave them dangling in their own high-sounding foolishness.

You are not an accident.

Your value is more than the dusty sum of your carbon and gas.

Dear creative, awe-inspired, inspirational friend, wake up to who you are!

God Almighty knew you before he founded the world. He formed you fearfully in your mother’s womb. He brought you forth in this generation because you are equipped to bring your part of the puzzle to the table and place it firmly where it belongs.

Wholly embracing who you are is an expedition that lasts a lifetime. It takes courage to climb over the rocks of fear and opinion that scatter the path. Sometimes it requires crawling through dark tunnels, facing the heat of misunderstanding. It means losing your footing at times, scrambling to keep your grip when peer-pressure wants to pull the rope and keep you in the lowlands.

Authenticity means that you have to become good at using hard to swallow words like, “Sorry”, and “no”.

Embracing who you are also means you need to grow comfortable with being unapologetic when the situation demands it. Not saying sorry for things you cannot change. Not second-guessing and justifying your every move.

I often say that I’m in the business of being myself. All the other jobs were taken.

Being you is the best way you can turn up for others.

Here at the crown of the year let’s be aware that a new year looms, looking to be inhabited. Step into the new year ready to fill it.

Fill it with your genuine self. Fill it with a new and fresh commitment to take risks and put yourself out there.

Life is so short, and this past year has taught us all that only a few thing are certain, uncertainty and change.

No one is guaranteed tomorrow. Make today count. Don’t play small.

Above all, let Jesus live large in your every day.

Walk into 2021 knowing that grace has equipped you for victory!

You are not alone in your believing.

Yes, you “believe on”. In fact, that’s your vocation…

“…This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” (John 6:29 KJV)

Of course you “believe in”.

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.” (John 14:1 KJV)

The word “in” denotes movement. Not just a passive acceptance or agreement, and active motion into – “believe into Me”.

When you believed “on” and “into” Jesus you became one Spirit with Him.

“He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.” (1 Corinthians 6:17 NKJV)

Now the game has changed!

You believed on, and in. They were powerful, life-changing even.

How much more now that you are believing “with” Jesus.

At one time we were strangers. Now we are family.

Once you were against God, scattering and engaged only in your own feeble interests.

“He who is not with Me [siding and believing with Me] is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me [engage in My interest], scatters.” (Luke 11:23 AMP)

Now believe with Jesus. Not just faith in but faith of!

You side with Jesus.

You believe with Jesus.

You are not alone, reaching out to a distant God, searching or straining for an answer.

You are not trying to believe.

Your place in God is more certain than that. Your connection more vital and alive.

Jesus is believing with you.

He is believing for your healing.

He is believing for your prosperity.

He is believing for your well-being in every area of life.

Your ministry to the planet is not exercised from your own resources.

Infinite wisdom resides in your spirit. Endless and unbreakable faith flows from your inner man.

Believing Beyond…

Many accept and embrace the cross. Some even step beyond that pivotal moment into the resurrection; through baptism they are buried and raised to new life.

I guess a few even make into the upper room, possibly even stand on the hill watching their Lord ascend. Now waiting, looking heavenward, eager for His return.

But how many step into their privilege, rise with Him, and recognise our Savior in His present day ministry?

Scripture urges you to consider not just the carpenter of Galilee. You are invited to partake of something far less dusty.

“Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession (confession), Christ Jesus” (Hebrews 3:1 KJV)

You are partners in a heavenly calling. Your profession is a heavenly one, worked out here on earth for the benefit and building of others.

Jesus stands in the heavens on your behalf, working tirelessly to fulfil His purposes in and through your life.

Yes, it’s true.

God has a purpose and a plan for your life.

It sounds so trite because we have heard it way too many time before. Familiarity with the idea that God has a perfect plan for our lives, and the endless sermonising, has squeezed the juice out of the beating-heart reality of it!

Too often it has been used as the worm on the hook of self-interest, enticing people to a half-hearted commitment to churchianity.

There has to be a painful parting if we choose reality over religion.

Before partaking of the heavenly calling, you have to pass through the cross. So much needs to fall away.

Forsaking self to discover who you really are seems a strange proposition.

Dying to live contradicts every self-preserving bone in our body.

But wow, what wonder awaits on the other side. What joy!

And now, in heavenly partnership a whole new way of thinking and working unfolds.

Jesus is the apostle of your profession. The One sent to work and walk with you through His Spirit.

He is the High Priest of your confession.

This is why we are told,

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.” (Hebrews 4:14 NKJV)

Confession means “to say the same thing as”. Homologia – “Homo” (same), “logos” (word).

Believing with. Saying the same thing.

His word. Your word.

Your faith. His faith.

Connected.

Jesus is believing with you.

When you say, “I am healed” on earth, He is your “amen” in heaven, saying the same thing. In truth, all that is good and worthy of repetition, He spoke before we even thought it.

Freedom.

Peace.

Joy.

Grace.

Power.

Victory.

Influence.

Impact.

Wisdom.

Wellness.

The list goes on, summed up in one God sized truth. Our place of abiding.

Love.

Loved and loving.

Your existence encapsulated in this one word. Love is the purpose of all that you do.

Entrepreneur. Your business is to love.

Minister. Your service is to love.

Father or mother. Your privilege is to love.

Writer. Your message is to love.

Singer. Your song to sing is love.

Teacher. Your lesson is love.

Person. You are here to love.

And you are not alone.

It is who you are.

A natural.

Do you think for a moment Jesus wavers? Does He have days wracked with anxiety? Is He troubled at night that things don’t look the way that He hoped they would?

Is He shaking in His boots when the waves and wind squall up and devils shriek their lies.

No.

He is faithful.

“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)” (Hebrews 10:23 KJV)

Jesus will carry you across.

He will fill you with fresh strength for the battle.

Is there any end to the wonder that believing brings us into?

I think not.