Where have I been and where am I going?

It is quite a long time since I have posted on this blog, for which there are a number of reasons. First, illness in the family and other family circumstances have made it difficult to find time, as well as other new opportunities for ministry in local churches and community services. In response to the question I have posed as the title to this blog post, I think I know, more or less, where I have been over the first six months of this year, but I don't know specifically where I am going, because I don't know where God is going to lead me next. it is all very well to talk about having a "Purpose Driven Life," about which I have read in years gone by, but like many other Christians I have spoken to who have read the well-known book by Rick Warren, I don't really buy into the brand. This may be owing to a fundamental cultural difference between the UK, where I live, and the US, or it may be a different perception of the way I have been taught to interpret the Bible and the events we see playing out on the world stage in our times! Who would have believed, a few years ago, that we would see 59 million people displaced, becoming refugees, not welcome anywhere, in 2014 alone? Or that we would see Egyptian Coptic Christians being beheaded on a beach, by IS Jihadists, who covered their own faces, so that they would not be recognized, but left the victims' faces uncovered, so that relatives and friends could recognize these martyrs and testify to their faithfulness in following Jesus even unto death? We live in a tragic, broken world, where so many need to experience the love and grace of Jesus for themselves, and to be set free from sin by accepting Him as their Saviour. I only want to be involved in spreading the Good News of salvation in Christ alone (John 14:6). Anything else pales into insignificance beside this; ethnic, cultural and denominational differences, political viewpoints, differences in the ways in which God speaks to us individually and our various tastes in music, fashion, films and hobbies! All these things are rather like rearranging the deckchairs on the "Titanic" just hours before it hit that huge iceberg. May I challenge you (and myself) to try and focus our attention on following Jesus more closely every day. May it be our aim to see Him more clearly, love Him more dearly and to follow Him more nearly, day by day, to His glory and the blessing and salvation of many others in these challenging times!

A Personal Update

You may have been following my blog for a while and have questions to ask about some of the things I have written. If so, please feel free to contact me through my own email address at erikretallick@yahoo.co.uk or erik@worldprayr.org. It is my intention to include some further thoughts and observations on this personal website, in addition to the official World Prayr blogs which I publish, so that you may see that I am an ordinary person like the next man or woman, wrestling with the same issues in our very sad and troubled world from October 2014 onwards. Like most people, I often feel bewildered, angry, frustrated and helpless in my encounters with the news, beauracracy and the huge corporations and political forces which seem to work against our best interests day by day. I always try and remind myself that God is ultimately in control of all that happens, and that everything is ultimately guided and directed by Him! One thing we need to remind ourselves, is that God's grace and love is still extended to everyone, regardless of their race,gender, their past life and seeming insignificance or lack of status in the world in which they live. My prayer in these days is that many may find the source of all peace and comfort in their lives, through accepting Jesus Christ as their Saviour, believing that He died on the cross about 2000 years ago, and that He rose from the dead to give us salvation through faith in Him, plus the sure hope of Eternal life, as He was raised from the dead. As many older Christians who know these things deep in my heart, there are times when I experience doubt, anger and frustration as I look at the world around me. Nevertheless, God in His grace brings me back to His word, the Bible, and I realize that my eternal hope of forgiveness for all the wrongs that I have done as well the great hope of eternal life, serving and worshipping Him in heaven, are only the result of His saving power and grace (undeserved kindness) in my life. Like most of you, I have good days and bad days, but deep down in my heart I know that God loves and cares for me, even though I am nothing special and can only offer back to Him the gifts which He has given me. It is the same for you, you may feel worthless, beyond help and have experienced many difficulties in your life. Nevertheless I want to bring you the only good news that there is today. It is not about becoming rich and famous, but putting your faith and trust in the only person who can lead you to God, Jesus Christ (John 14:6). He loves you so much and cares for you more than anyone else can (John 3:16-17). I would love to hear from you if you have any questions about my blogs or this one, so that I can guide and help you and lead you to the true source of hope and deliverance from sin (wrong-doing), God's one and only Son, Jesus Christ.

Do your mornings need Reforming?

Do your mornings need Reforming? [Translate] ​Do your mornings need Reforming? By Erik Retallick “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” ~ Lamentations 3:22-23Open in Logos Bible Software (if available) I don’t know what you are like when you wake up, first thing in the morning? Except for a short spell at school when I used to do a newspaper delivery job and got up at 5.45am, mornings have never been the time of day when I am at my peak performance (to say the least!). Even at the age of 13-14 I think I must have done it on automatic pilot. There is a tea mug available to buy here in the UK which has a picture on it and some writing with it which says “I hate people who sing in the mornings!” I think I may buy one at some time, just to drop a hint. Our old Pastor who has now moved to another Church used to really emphasise how it is so important to get each day off to a great start with Prayer and Bible reading, and for me this is still a constant struggle. No matter how early I go to bed the night before, this formula doesn’t work for me. However, looking at and reading Psalm 139 tells me that we are individually made, and I think that after God made me, He must have thrown away the mould, thinking, “there isn’t room in the world for two people like that!” There is a verse I love in Proverbs which says, ”If a man loudly blesses his neighbor early in the morning, it will be taken as a curse.” I think you know from what I have already revealed which of the two people I would be in this illustration! It is because of my weak point, that is, when I awake in the morning, that I take great comfort from the verses in Lamentations quoted at the beginning of this article. These thoughts and words stand out like light from a lighthouse at sea, in this tiny book, squeezed between Jeremiah and Ezekiel in the Old Testament. The book, written by Jeremiah most probably, because of its similarity in literary style to the book of Jeremiah, shares his overwhelming sense of loss that accompanied the destruction of Jerusalem, its temple and temple worship, to which Jeremiah was an eye-witness in 586 BC. This date was the earliest it could have been written, the latest date being 516 BC, when the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem was dedicated, after the Jews’ return from captivity. To suddenly see Jeremiah’s affirmation, written as he was led by the Holy Spirit in chapter 3 verses 22-23, gives the sign in the midst of darkness and hopelessness there is hope and future prospects of change in the circumstances of ruin and captivity of Judah by the Babylonians in 586 BC. I see a parallel sign of hope in my personal situation, my attitude in relation to the beginning of each new day. After all, our faith is based on facts not feelings. The great fact stated in these verses, which I cling on to for dear life, is that God’s love, mercy, grace and compassion are renewed every morning. It is because of His love, grace and compassion that I have even woken up to see a new day in the first instance. Everything else is a bonus and a great blessing to me, knowing that I am saved by Jesus’s death on the cross, have new life as a result and am blessed by God’s great grace and love! I pray that I am also enabled by His Holy Spirit dwelling within me to be a blessing to others I meet and contact during the day. Yes, I know that my life needs reforming in the morning, (I like things with rhymes, they are useful sometimes!) but I know that God loves me now, just the way I am. Maybe one day I will walk out on the street early in the morning and greet my neighbours in a loud and hearty voice, but knowing what it feels like to be on the receiving end of such friendly gestures from others, maybe I will turn the volume and heartiness down a little and save it for later in the day! Eugene Peterson expresses Proverbs 27:14Open in Logos Bible Software (if available) in this way. “If you wake your friend in the early morning by shouting “Rise and Shine!” it will sound to him more like a curse than a blessing (The Message). Photo credit: Jean-Francois Phillips / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND Erik Retallick serves as Sr Pastor and President of World Prayr Ministries. He lives in Eastbourne, East Sussex, UK with his wife Hazel. He has two grown children, daughter in law and two grandchildren. A Speaker, Teacher and Musician. Leads an extremely varied life with many challenges and blessings, full of tears, laughter and great fulfillment!

Living by Faith? "Living by Faith?" By Erik Retallick There are many references in the Bible to faith. Did you know that we exercise faith every day, even if we are are not Christian believers? We expect the sun to rise in the East and set in the west, we have faith when sitting down, ... Check This Out “Living by Faith?” [Translate] “Living by Faith?” By Erik Retallick There are many references in the Bible to faith. Did you know that we exercise faith every day, even if we are are not Christian believers? We expect the sun to rise in the East and set in the west, we have faith when sitting down, that the chair will hold our weight and we have faith that when we go to the mall, there will be items for sale. Whether or not we can afford what we want is a separate issue. In Romans 4, reading from verse 3b, we come across the following words. “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to Him as righteousness. Now when a man works, His wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness. David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin The Lord will never count against him.” (Romans 4:3b-8Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)). Later, in Romans 5:1 weOpen in Logos Bible Software (if available) read, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” I am in the process of learning (albeit slowly!) that there is far more to life than earning and spending money. Many people at my age (59) are retired and receiving a comfortable pension on which they can afford to live. I don’t see retirement as ever being an option, first, because I hate the idea of doing nothing and second, because I would like to carry on in paid self-employment. In addition to that my pension would not be sufficient to live on. That gives an example of what things are like here in the UK following the greatest economic depression we have seen for more than 60 years. Like the US, we are probably not through the end of it, as God screams into our situation, “When are you going to learn that there is more to life than what you eat, drink, what you wear and what you drive?” (Car, motorbike, bicycle, skateboard!) In Matthew 6: 25-34Open in Logos Bible Software (if available), Jesus makes a clear distinction between investing in earthly goods, which will never satisfy, or laying up treasure in heaven. Please take time to read this before continuing with reading this article. If we choose to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, as the disciples did, leaving their fishing businesses, tax offices or other occupations, such as farming and being involved in revolutionary groups trying to overthrow the Romans, we are leaving what most people would regard as security and status in this world. That really is what George Verwer, founder of Operation Mobilisation, would call radical discipleship. How many of us see that as a viable option in today’s world of consumerism and rising prices? Yet if we are called by Jesus saying “Follow me!” that is something He may be wanting us to do, in order to share His Gospel of Grace with a needy and broken world, where so many are in need of rescue from sin, which is manifested in greed, cheating, addictions, and so many other “dangers, toils and snares.” I always find it significant that in Israel it was common for individuals to choose which Rabbi (teacher) they wanted to follow. They were not usually called out by a Rabbi, and hand-picked like Jesus chose His disciples. In the same way today, we can choose which idols or great people we want to follow, until we meet Jesus and respond to His call on our lives. During their three or so years with Jesus physically present with them, the disciples were going on a great adventure, being taught by parables, (earthly stories with a heavenly meaning), learning how to teach, heal and often being puzzled by what Jesus was saying and where He was leading them next. Since I heard God calling me and responding to Him by accepting Him as my Savior and Lord, realising that He died to take away my sins, (over 50 years ago), it has been a long and winding road through life, with times of great joy and deep sorrow, but I know that God is still leading me by His grace and that when my work is done, He will take me to His home in heaven, where there will be no pain, tears sorrow or mourning. No need of lighting either, because God will provide all the light we need, as He does now, here on earth. “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” (Psalm 119: 105Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)) Do you have faith in God and have you accepted that the death of Jesus on the cross in your place, as a sacrifice pleasing to God is sufficient to take away your sins, to remove them as far as the East is from the West? If so, then you can live in Grace and freedom, following God’s guidance each day. If you would like to know more, please write to me and I will pleased to discuss anything with you in further detail. Photo credit: Art4TheGlryOfGod / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-ND 2.0) Erik Retallick serves as Sr Pastor and President of World Prayr Ministries. He lives in Eastbourne, East Sussex, UK with his wife Hazel. He has two grown children, daughter in law and two grandchildren. A Speaker, Teacher and Musician. Leads an extremely varied life with many challenges and blessings, full of tears, laughter and great fulfillment! Facebook Twitter Google+

Meet Tabinda Ayub!

The previous post has been written by Tabinda Ayub, who I have only got to know in the last few months, but feel I have known for ever! You will understand that Tabinda has lived through some very difficult experiences in her life, together with her family, but they are a wonderful example of what a Christian family should be like. I am hoping that Tabinda will be writing a lot more blog posts on this site, and that they will be a great blessing to all who read them. Knowing Tabinda has been a great inspiration to my own faith in our own easy come - easy go Western culture, where being a Christian is OK as long as you don't take it too seriously or talk about it to anyone. Believe me, where Tabinda lives there are no half-measures, you are either a fervent 100% Christian or not one at all. Since I have got to know Tabinda, I have been challenged to think and live differently, to see that being a Christian means being sold out for Christ, not just someone who attends Church on a Sunday and does what they like the rest of the time. Welcome to this blog site Tabinda, and may we all be inspired your thoughts and insight into the things which are really important in life, the grace of God and serving our fellow

Happy Independence day to all my friends in the US!

You may have wondered why I haven't written on this blog for quite a while. There are a number of reasons, not least that I have been writing in other places such as https://worldprayr.blog.org . Another reason is that I have two very active Grandchildren who seem to spend more than half their lives in our house, although that is probably really an exaggeration. If you want to know how I am doing, my answer is that I am fine, thanks to the work of Grace of God at work in my life. I seem to be becoming more active in ministry work as well as spending time with my family, and hopefully with God Himself in prayer and devotion. I guess, at the age of 59, I am beginning to discover a new freedom from needing to work all the time, and to find a bit more time for relaxation. However, I still find that I feel guilty when I am not witnessing or writing on behalf of God! As if He needs me to save the world!? The great thing which we need to remember when we reach our late 50's and early 60's, is what we can do to impart encouragement, excitement and motivation to those who we can identify and see as potential Church and ministry leaders to the next Generation. I carried out one of those amusing surveys on Facebook recently, which indicated that I have the mind of a 20 year old. I certainly don't feel that way physically as the high blood pressure and fight against falling asleep during the day reveal that I'm not really like a 20 year old! On this American Independence day, 2014, let me wish all my friends in the US a very happy Independence Day. Think yourselves very blessed when you think of all the mess we are experiencing with our EU relationship, here in the UK. I pray that we will fight to the end for our wish to be free from the shackles that Europe has placed on our once proud and independent nation, with a very real Christian heritage, going back to the Reformation (early 1500's). To be honest, I would like to see us having a closer and more special relationship with the US, where our forefathers went to obtain freedom from oppression, where even The Netherlands (Holland) could not guarantee freedom from oppression and persecution from their Government and people. Maybe that may be the way forward, if, as I hope, we re-negotionate our relations with Europe and hopefully withdraw from the EU completely. A 51st. state of the US is how I would rather see our UK position, where we are truly free and can shake off the shackles of Europe once and for all. The majority will of our people is to see laws made in Britain, rather than Brussels, and many of us see this as the way forward, to help poorer nations across the world and greater justice to mankind as a whole. Please feel free to comment on my thoughts and to add your own opinions, for or against. I value all the feedback I get to my blog posts and invite friends who want to know me better and know more about my personal Christian beliefs. We know that we will never all see things the same way, because we are all individuals, who see things from our own viewpoint, based on our own background and experiences.

Beaten But Not Down by Tabinda Ayub

Beaten But Not Down

[Translate]

 

 by Tabinda Saher Ayub

 

 

Dear friends, I have a real story of my life and I want to share it with you. I hope after reading it you will really be made to think.

 

One day we were not at home, we went to my cousin’s wedding and then some people called us and told us that ”your house is burning!” So we went a short distance, and soon arrived back at our home. When we got there we saw our house had been totally burned to the ground.

 

The fire’s flames were very high, we could not look at our house’s destruction and we cried loudly. Our area’s people gathered and called the fire brigade team.  They came to control the fire, but our house was fully destroyed. Everything was destroyed, our house fell down. Our furniture, electronics, clothes, crockery, our books (full bags), school uniforms, etc., everything was burned.

 

We cried because we had worked very hard for everything we owned and we worried, ”How will we buy all these things again and how we will rebuild our house”? But God consoled us. We are strong Christians and believe only on the Lord Jesus Christ and we knew that one day God will provide us with everything needed.

 

We trust and obey God.  We tried to forget that incident and we started a new life in God’s name. Then Jesus Christ helped us in so many ways.  Our relatives collected some money for our help, even though they are also not very rich but they helped us.  With their help, we rebuilt our house with that money and brought new books, copies and school uniforms and then my younger brother and sisters were able to go to school.

 

Our relatives gave us some household goods and after 2 or 3 months we were able to buy our own things with our salaries and were able to return our relatives things. Slowly, slowly we bought more items to replace those lost, as God provided us.  We still don’t have all of our home needs, things like sofa, beds and other things but we hope God will must provide us with everything needed. Praise the Lord!

 

God is a great helper, we believe when we have a problem, God must open the way for help to us. We will follow Job’s hard life.

 

In the Holy Bible we read; ”Then Job arose,and rent his mantle,and shaved his head and fell down upon the ground and worshiped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither ; The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord”. (Job 1, 20:21)

 

My father’s name is Job (Ayub) so people said “you are really Job, your patience shows you are really like Job who obeyed the Lord.”

 

Then we were made as an example for our area’s people.  The people gave our example of patience to other people in these words, ”This family are very strong Christians, they are the great followers of Lord Jesus Christ, they obey God and only believe on God.  Therefore, God provides for them, when they need help.”

 

Now we are hopeful that one day God will help us stand again, and give us all those things we lost. ”I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause; which doeth great things and unsearchable; marvelous things without number; Who giveth rain upon the earth, and sendeth waters upon the field; To set up on high those that be low; that those which mourn may be exatted to safety.” (Job 5, 8:11) AMEN!

 

In this story the lesson and moral is that, when we are in trouble, and we face many difficulties, we should believe on God and obey Him in very situation and pray regularly, then God surely will hear our prayer and help us and provide for us.

 

God bless you.

 

Tabinda lives in Pakistan, is the founder and director of  Wpc Pakistan. She enjoys teaching Sunday School and loves to share her gift of writing.

 

As part of the World Prayr family, she serves with the Daily Devotional Blog team and Facebook team.

 

Meet Tabinda on Facebook>>>