Thought for the Day - Friday 23 October

Thought for the Day – Friday 23rd October A dad was approached by his small son, who told him proudly, ‘I know what the Bible means!’ His dad smiled at him and replied, ‘What do you mean, you ‘know’ what the Bible means?’ The little boy replied, ‘I do know!’ ‘Okay’, said his dad. ‘So what does the Bible mean?’ ‘That’s easy, daddy. It stands for “Basic Information Before Leaving Earth”.’ Well, that child was certainly convinced! Makes sense though doesn’t it? After all we do constantly look to God’s word to discern how we should be living our life here on earth – and the Bible does provide all the basic information we need, all the guidance we should be following to live out our lives as fruitful Christians here on earth, if we take it seriously. Sometimes though, when we are seeking God’s guidance from his word and seeking his will for our lives, it can mean taking a bit of a risk. You see, we run the risk of being disappointed by God’s answer to us or his lack of an answer at all or it may be that the answer he gives to us may lead to more than we bargained for in the first place. Sometimes for no reason at all we can seem to get no clear guidance while at other times the answer God gives is very different to the one we hoped for and so is perhaps challenging us in ways we would rather not hear! So, yes, it can be risky but then what we need to ask ourselves is this - are we truly willing to listen to God when we seek his guidance or are we just going to close our ears and pretend we did not hear him and keep going on our own merry way! Perhaps we need to remind ourselves of these words from Hebrews and take care to listen to God when he speaks to us: ‘Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.’ (Hebrews 4: 12) Prayer Who is this Word that cuts through our clutter, sees when we sit and when we stand, reads our moods and motives and uncovers every secret in our hearts? Lord, it seems that you know us better than we know ourselves. Please mend what needs mending, guide what needs guiding and fill our hearts with your love and light. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Friday Fives: Okay, here are your fives for today! Name: 1. Five ‘favourite’ books of the Bible. 2. Five wise sayings you live by. 3. Five people who you generally go to for advice. 4. Five best bits of advice you were ever given. 5. Five hymns whose words inspire you.