Dear Friends,

Here's hoping you're having a good day. However, even if you're not, you can be encouraged by the many blessings that we have because we are followers of Jesus. Don't be negative because in reality, with Jesus, everything is looking up. Anyway, we've been talking about the condition of our hearts before God and I want to focus on another aspect of this today.

It was in school at the age of 10 that I first heard the saying, "No man is an island." My late teacher Mr Graeme Barnett, a very devoted Christian man was explaining to us how none of us are able to survive on our own, we all need other people. We all agree that this is true but we often don't stop to consider what this means spiritually. Its true that we need other human beings for emotional well being, for our physical support, and for their many skills and wisdom, but spiritually this is true also. The danger we often face in our hearts though is that we want to do things all by ourselves.

What very often happens is that someone in a church may hurt us by doing something incosiderate, or they simply forget about us. Most of the time they don't mean to hurt us, it is unintentional, but we then tend to react by going into "spiritual isolation." We may leave church, or stop associating with that person who hurt us, or maybe even start critisizing them.........but none of these are godly ways to act.

When we react by being offended, or by critisizing, or by getting angry...............these reactions are a signal to us letting us know that there is something wrong with our heart. As the saying goes.................where there is smoke, there must be a fire. So if you see these kind of attitudes in your life, it means that there is an area for you to work on.

Instead of cutting yourslef of when these things happen and going into "spiritual isolation" you need to instead face the issues, forgive the people who have hurt you and make a determination to continue to do what is right. The Bible says in Ephesians 4:26,"In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry," In other words, we need to sort out our hurts straight away otherwise they will affect us and may have a permanent negative result.

It might even be your pastor that hurts you...............or your very best friend..............or even a family member. But you need these people and they need you too, so don't forget to forgive them and give them a second chance. By doing this that bible says you will called the children of God.

So don't be worried or upset or beat up on yourself................just remember, that next time something doesnt' work out or you are hurt by someone...................this is a great opportunity to show the other person that you are learning God's ways and to bless them back.

Take care
Cheers
Brother David