HE MAKETH ME TO LIE DOWN IN GREEN PASTURES

Today’s Text: He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. (Psalm 23:2)

Today’s Thoughts: Today we’re going to focus on the first part of this text. A Shepherd never takes his sheep to dry grass, or rocky mountain to graze, he always looks for the best pastures. In those lush, green pastures the sheep can eat to their hearts content, and then lie down to sleep on that soft grass, knowing that they can rest peacefully because their shepherd is watching over them. Our Shepherd cares for us far more than any earthly shepherd could ever care for his sheep. Some of us may be experiencing turmoil in our lives, but God has lush, green pastures that He wants to take us to. In His presence we can find peace and safety no matter what we are going through. In His Word we can also find messages to give us peace and hope. If we follow our Shepherd to the green pastures to which He wants to lead us we will be able to rest in peace and safety.

Today’s Testimony: One year while attending a church camp-meeting, where hundreds of people meet to spend time together and listen to uplifting messages, I started feeling very down-and-out. There was no main reason, it was just a few small things that really started getting me discouraged with myself.
Why was I feeling so down-and-out at a camp-meeting of all places?! I had prayed about it and had tried singing, but nothing seemed to help. The Lord tried to calm me down, but I would not relax. He tried to tell me that He loved me and that that was all that mattered, but even that didn’t help.
I was sitting in one of the meetings feeling that I could just burst into tears. The speaker started off by speaking about Solomon who had everything that money could buy, but had no peace. The rest of the message was basically that we do not need to run after the world’s good, and shouldn’t. Our greatest need is to follow the Lord with all our hearts. If we live in the Lord, He will provide us with everything that we need.
The Speaker then started sharing testimonies of how the Lord had provided for Him on so many occasions. It was then that the Lord took my mind back to my testimony about His providence for me and Praise Corner. He had provided for me in so many ways. He cared about me. I then couldn’t hold back the tears, but these were tears of joy and gratitude. And you know what the Lord ended off by saying? “I told you I love you.”
The Lord had “green pastures” of peace that He wanted to lead me to, but I was too busy straying on the rocky mountains to follow His leading. Finally He carried me to those pastures of peace, and I found peace.
Then later that day I bumped into someone who asked me what I was doing with myself. I told her that I was studying from home through UNISA. She then told me that I should have been studying at our church’s university. I had considered that at one stage and had gotten the forms to register, but then plans had changed and I ended up studying something else from home. I then started heading back to the “rocky mountains”. “Should I have been studying there?” “Was I in the wrong place?” I started feeling down-and-out again, wondering if maybe I had not followed the Lord’s will for my life.
The Lord then sat me down and said, “Lindy, no one knows you and your life better than I do. I have you where I want you.” That settled it for me. I was back in the peaceful pastures chosen by the Lord, and I was staying there.
The Lord often has to bring me back to His pastures of peace when I lose that sense of peace, but He always does. I’m always so much happier in His lush green pastures. I invite you to follow the Lord there too.

Today’s Task: God wants us to experience His peace. Follow Him to green pastures and rest in His peace. You might also find yourself straying to dry grass and rocky mountains, but when He comes to lead you back to lush green pastures I encourage you to follow. Accept God’s peace in your life today.

Today’s Thanks: O Lord I praise You for Your peace. I thank You that You do not leave us in dry pastures or rocky mountains when we stray from Your peace, You come and tenderly lead us back to Your peace. Lord help us to follow You. Help us to accept Your peace. Lord I thank You that You care about us so much. Amen.

I SHALL NOT WANT

Today’s Text: But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.(Philippians 4:19)

Today’s Thoughts: Today we’re going to take a look at the second part of Psalm 23:1: “I shall not want”. The meaning of the word “want” in this text means “lack”. As our Shepherd, God will supply all our needs and we will not lack anything. He owns everything, and out of that abundance He will provide. Our greatest need is Salvation, and that God will provide if we are willing to accept it. We will probably not receive everything that we desire, but God will bless us with everything that we need. He is our Shepherd and He cares about His sheep.

Today’s Testimony: One year while visiting my dad in Cape Town I was looking for a new pair of shoes for church. The ones that I had at the time had definitely seen better days and were desperately needing to be replaced.
I’d looked at almost every shop where I usually buy shoes and found nothing that I liked. There was one shop that I wanted to look at, but every time I went to that shopping mall I forgot to look there. I finally found a pair at another shop where I don’t usually buy my shoes, but they didn’t have my size, so I had to find another branch. And then I kept forgetting to look in that shop because it wasn’t one that we usually shopped at.
I don’t usually forget things like that so much, but I believe God wanted me to see His hand once again and be blessed.
It was finally time to fly home. I had looked at other branches for the shoes, but every one that I remembered to look in either didn’t have the shoes or didn’t have the right size. But I wasn’t too worried. I figured that, back in Durban, I could simply ask my mom to take me to the nearest shopping mall with that shop, and pray that I find the shoes there.
My mom was coming to meet us at the airport in her car, and my step-dad was coming from work in his car. But when we arrived, our mom wasn’t there. Her car had broken down on the way to fetch us. My step-dad left us at the airport and went to find my mom. He towed her to the airport, they fetched us, and then he towed her back home and all was well… except for the fact that now she couldn’t take me to the mall.
I was really hoping to have my new shoes by the following weekend. My old ones were totally finished now. The Lord new that I needed new shoes, so He intervened.
Toni, my older sister, who will use any excuse to get to the mall, asked my mom to ask if my step-dad would come and fetch the two of us before he went to do the shopping that my mom couldn’t get to the shops to do. He said that he would, and I therefore got to go to the mall.
I went to look for my shoes, but that shop didn’t have them. I only had one more hope. I went to look in the shop that I kept forgetting to look in while in Cape Town. There was only one pair of shoes that I would wear, but I didn’t think they were all that grand. They didn’t look all that bad, it was just that they didn’t seem to “have my name written all over them”. But I had no other choice, and bought the shoes. It didn’t take me long to get used to their appearance and actually like them, and those shoes were the most comfortable church shoes I have ever had. God knows how to provide – He even knows how to choose shoes.
God knows what we want, but more than that He knows what we need. No matter what obstacles may seem to be getting in the way, there are no obstacles to God, He can provide no matter what. He can and will supply all our needs – we shall not want.

Today’s Task: Ask the Lord to provide for all your needs no matter what they are. They do not even have to be material needs, God can provide in so many other areas of our lives. Trust the Lord to supply all your needs. And don’t ever forget to thank Him for His providence.

Today’s Thanks: Lord I thank You that You have promised to supply all our needs. I thank You that we will never lack any need if You are our Shepherd. Lord help us to accept You as our Shepherd if we haven’t already. I thank You that You care about us and our needs so much. I love You Lord. Amen.

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD

Today’s Text: The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.(Psalm 23:1)

Today’s Thoughts: I’d like us to take a trip through this much-loved and well-known Psalm. Today we’re going to focus on the first part of this text: The Lord is my Shepherd. As our Shepherd the Lord has committed to protecting us, providing for us, and caring for us. He loves each one of His sheep. I want to be a sheep in the fold of the Good Shepherd – Do you?

Today’s Testimony: A while ago the Lord inspired me with a song about the one lost sheep. You can read about it in Luke chapter 15. I’d like to share the words with you. This song sums up just what it truly means to have the Lord as our Shepherd. I hope it will speak to your heart so that if Christ is not already your Shepherd, you will choose Him as your Shepherd today.

The Shepherd’s Heart

The Shepherd had a hundred sheep
He counted one by one, before they all lay down to sleep
Ninety-seven, ninety-eight, ninety-nine
There’s one lost little sheep of mine
So he left the ninety-nine, safely in the fold
And went out in the darkness, braving the cold
He stumbled on the way, getting many a scratch and bruise
But no matter what the cost, that sheep he could not bear to lose
Finally he heard a faint, bleating sound
He looked over the cliff, and his little sheep was found
He struggled hard to reach it, but soon held it in his arms
And said, “My little sheep, you are now safe from harm”
When they got back home, he nursed His wounded sheep
Then held it close and rocked it, till it calmly fell asleep
A tear rolled down his cheek, and he began to weep
To think that very night, he could have lost one of his sheep
For every single one, was dear to his heart
He could not bear the thought, of forever being apart
But his heart was filled with joy, for he’d found the sheep he’d lost
He smiled and looked upon it, knowing that sheep was worth the cost

We too have a Shepherd, who loves each of His sheep
He gave His life on Calvary, so His sheep He could keep
If the whole world was sinless, and only you were not
Christ still would have died, for you’re the only you He’s got
You’re precious in His eyes, He’ll seek you if you’re lost
He already came to save you, at great risk and cost
For if our sinless Saviour, had fallen into sin
Although He is God, there would have been no hope for Him
Call out to the Shepherd, He longs to hear your cry
His heart will be broken forever, if you rather choose to die
He loves you individually, as though you’re all He’s got
Though the rest of His sheep may be there, He will weep if you are not

He’s holding out His hand, He’s holding out His hand
Return to Jesus, return to Jesus, return to Jesus
His little lamb

Return to Jesus, His little Lamb

Today’s Task: The Lord wants to be your Shepherd. Please accept Him as your Shepherd. Please return to Jesus. Don’t break God’s heart, He has done everything He can in order to save you, the rest is up to you. He loves you more than you will ever be able to know or understand. Please accept Him as your Saviour.

Today’s Thanks: Lord You are our Shepherd, and we praise You. Lord I thank You that You care for Your sheep. I thank You for the great length that You went to in order to save each and every one of us. Please help us to choose You as our Saviour. Please Lord, I pray that we will not allow your sacrifice for each of us individually to be in vain. I pray that You will one day be able to smile and say, “I’ve found all My lost sheep.” Lord, the sheep that are not saved once You’ve sought and found them are the ones that chose to rather run away. Help us to run to You, not from You. O Lord help us. We need You. Amen.

HEAR, O MY PEOPLE

Today’s Text: Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee: O Israel, if thou wilt hearken unto me. (Psalm 81:8)

Today’s Thoughts: God speaks in so many different ways, but sometimes He waits for us to hear and listen to what He has already instructed us before He will give us any further instruction. He speaks, but we must listen. He longs for us to hear Him. He wants us to listen to Him. Everything that He instructs us is for our own good. He cares about us. Be sure to listen to His voice.

Today’s Testimony: Today I’d like to share the story behind the name Revealing Christ Ministries.
When I started e-mailing Today’s T’s I was sending them from my personal e-mail address. My mom was a bit concerned with me giving out my personal address to so many people and a lot of total strangers, so I decided to get a separate e-mail account for ministry.
The Lord has given me three ministries so far and I thought I’d have one e-mail address for all three ministries instead of a separate one for each. So I had to decide on a “blanket” for my ministries.
I thought of one, and then went to create a g-mail account. I typed in the name as the e-mail address and it said that it was unavailable. I then tried something else and it was also unavailable. At some stage the Lord started impressing me, “Revealing Christ Ministries.” But I said, “I can’t put that. No one can reveal Christ. That’ll sound too forward. We can give others a better glimpse of Christ, but reveal Him?! I can’t put that”. So I kept trying. And the Lord kept impressing, “Revealing Christ Ministries.” Eventually I decided to take a break , and pray and think about it.
I was outside hanging washing during my break and I was still trying to get a good name, and the Lord was still trying to get me to realize that it definitely was Him speaking and that Revealing Christ Ministries was the name He’d chosen. Finally I said, “Ok, I’ll go back and put in revealingchristministries and if it’s available then that’s what it is, but if it’s not, then that’s obviously end of story and it’ll have to be something else.
I went back and typed it in and it was available. I stopped arguing and Revealing Christ Ministries became the blanket for the three ministries that I already have and any others that the Lord may give me.
Once I’d settled with that the Lord starting telling me what He wanted for the logo. I’ve been drawing and using a heart on the cross to represent Christ and His gift of Salvation for years, and the Lord told me that that was what He wanted. I’d already started designing a cross on “Paint” and I’d done the outline of a heart as one of the activities for Vacation Bible School. So I finished the cross, coloured and added the heart and then designed and added the title.
No one can reveal Christ, but God can use His ministries to reveal Himself to the world. He can speak through each and every one of us. It will not be us revealing Christ, but Him revealing Himself through us. So many people have a distorted view of our loving God, we need to reveal the real God to the world.

Today’s Task: Spend time with the Lord so that when He speaks you know His voice without a doubt. And if you know it is Him, don’t argue. God wants what’s best for you. Ask the Lord to help you to hear, and then to obey. Then keep listening for further instruction.

Today’s Thanks: Lord I thank You that You speak to us in so many ways. You can speak through Your Word, nature, other people, and also directly to us, either audibly or silently. Help us to hear Your voice and know that it’s You. Help us to obey Your instruction the first time. I thank You that You care about us so much, and want us to live happier, more fulfilled lives. I thank You for Your love. Amen.

THE LORD IS GOOD

Today’s Text: The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.(Psalm 145:9)

Today’s Thoughts: God is good – always good, and only good! He is good to everyone. He blesses us with our needs, but He also sometimes blesses us with things that are not necessities. In every blessing there is a message written that says, “I love you!” So many people wonder how God can be good if there is so much pain and heartache all around us. I’ve discussed this topic before, but let me remind you that Satan is still very real and wants to destroy us. God hates to see us suffering, but when we sinned we chose Satan as the prince of this world, and therefore, even though God does intervene on so many occasions, He cannot protect us from all heartache because Satan would accuse Him of protecting his subjects, as he accused Him in Job’s story. But God knows how much we can handle and He is still so good. And in every trial, He will not forsake us, He is right there.

Today’s Testimony: About two weeks ago when we arrived home both of our dogs met us at the gate. The Golden Labrador cross Golden Retriever, Rolo, almost always meets us when we get home, but the Basset Hound, George, is too lazy to come all the way to the gate. On this occasion George had been sitting near the gate and he therefore joined Rolo in welcoming us home. We drove forward slowly, waiting for them to move out of the way of the car. It’s not easy to see where each dog is because of the angle that we come in. George, who’s only clever when he wants to be, obviously thought he could take his time to cross the driveway in front of the car and that we’d never run him over. We couldn’t see where he was and accidentally drove over at least one of his hind-legs. We heard his cry of pain and I jumped out the car and saw him hobbling onto the grass. I then stood with him and stroked him encouraging him not to move. He was in terrible pain and shock.
We were going to leave early the next morning to travel up to Johannesburg and would only get back late the night after that. So we had a huge problem. I prayed.
He is a very old dog, and my mom said that he might not be able to survive the vet sorting his leg out. We considered having him put down. He is my dog, and although I knew that it would probably be best for him, I still cried. I took the problem to the Lord.
He had been making use of three legs and had managed to walk around the house. In order to get him to the vet we had to muzzle him because otherwise, being in pain, he would have bitten my step-dad. But my step-dad wasn’t able to muzzle him. We watched him for a while to decide what we were going to do.
He seemed to be managing alright so we left him to see if he would be fine. The lady who was coming over to feed the dogs while we were away kept an eye on him. When we arrived home just two days later he seemed perfectly fine. My twin sister, Julie, even saw him scratch himself with both of his hind legs. God is so good!!!
I didn’t need my dog to be healed, but God healed him anyway. God is good – always good, and only good!

Today’s Task: Trust the Lord. He loves you. His Word says that He is good, and He is. Take your troubles to the Lord, He cares. If you do not get the results you hope for, know that Satan was in control of that. Yes, many say, “but how could God allow that?” but please remember that He does care, and He cries with you when you cry; but Satan won’t allow Him to protect us fully without accusing Him of being unfair, and God therefore knows when to intervene because He knows what is best for us. Some trials, although hard to bear, can even be a blessing in our lives if we place our faith and trust in our loving heavenly Father. Trust God’s wisdom and His love. He is good!

Today’s Thanks: Lord I thank You that You are good. I thank You that you love us so much. I thank You that You haven’t left us to be destroyed by the Devil. Please use every trial to draw us closer to You. Help us to remember that You do care about us, no matter what we go through. You are good Lord – always good, and only good! And I praise You! Amen.

WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE

Today’s Text: And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.(Mark 10:27)

Today’s Thoughts: This is one of my favourite texts. There are so many things that we think are impossible, but nothing is impossible for God. We so often underestimate the power of God. Our God can do things we would never even dream of, and He can do the things we thought could never happen. He is an almighty God. With our God – all things are possible!

Today’s Testimony: First I’d decided that I was going to make sure that I didn’t get into any further debt and trust God to provide. Then I decided that I was going to make every effort to pay my debt the following December. And finally I decided that I was going to start paying back my debt as soon as possible with as much money as I could.
The reason I’d decided to plan to only pay it back in December was because, to my knowledge, there weren’t any large sums of money going to come in. I thought that, also considering that it was already almost the end of the year, when I was in Cape Town would be the perfect opportunity. After all these steps, the Lord intervened. I was determined to make things right as soon as possible, and that is when the Lord stepped in. I believe His thoughts went something like this, “So you think there’s no money coming in? Where’s your faith Lindy? You’re underestimating Me. Watch this….”
About three weeks after I’d taken that final step, I got a phone call. It was a lady from my church asking me if I could come and work for her for a few days. She had been given an extra task to do but was already extremely busy, so she wondered if maybe I would help. She said it should only take three days. She told me what hours I would be working, and how much I would be getting paid. Three days’ worth of working wouldn’t be able to sort out my debt, but I thought that it was at least a start.
The task turned out to be a little bit more complicated than we thought and I ended up working for a total of fourteen days. I received enough money to pay my tithe and offering, to pay my debt, and I still had a bit of money left over. We truly do serve an amazing God!!!

Today’s Task: Never ever underestimate God. He can do what we think is absolutely impossible – believe it. Trust God to intervene no matter what you are going through. He cares about you. Ask Him if there is anything He’d like you to do – He might be waiting for you to take the first step or two. Always remember that God loves and cares about you so much, no matter what Satan tries to tell you. God said that He loves you with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3), and He meant it. If you are facing anything “impossible” take it to God – He is a miracle-working God. Simply place your faith in Him.

Today’s Thanks: Lord today I want to thank You that You do the “impossible” for us. I praise You that there is nothing that is impossible for You. Please intervene in whatever problems we face, no matter how huge they may seem to us. Lord we know that there is nothing that is too big for You to handle. We thank You that You care about us so much. We thank You for Your everlasting love. We praise You and thank You in Christ’s name, Amen.

GOD’S WORKS ARE GREAT

Today’s Text: O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.(Psalm 92:5)

Today’s Thoughts: Ever heard people say that God works in mysterious ways? His thoughts are so much deeper than ours and He knows all things. He knows just what to do in every situation. All His works are great. Everything He does is what is best. And yes, He does sometimes work in mysterious ways to accomplish His purposes. Our great God does great things.

Today’s Testimony: Between the time I booked to do my learner’s test and when I did the test, we had nominating time at my church. That is when we choose all the people that will hold the different positions at church. First a special committee is chosen and those people then choose the nominating committee who will choose the different people for the different offices.
I was chosen to be on the special committee. And I was then chosen to be on the nominating committee. One requirement for those on both committees is that they have to be faithful church members. The easiest way for that to be detected is by whether or not the individual pays a regular tithe and offering, but being a faithful church member also refers to living a totally faithful life in all other areas of life.
After sitting on the special committee and hearing the requirements, although I was already aware of them, I started wondering if maybe my debt counted as making me an unfaithful church member. That would mean that I couldn’t sit on the nominating committee and shouldn’t have even sat on the special committee. I prayed about it, and then sat and wrote a letter to my pastor telling him of my concern.
I gave him the letter on the Saturday and waited for his reply. I waited the whole of Sunday, then Monday….. At some stage while waiting I started thinking about the whole situation again. “I pay my tithe faithfully to the Lord, but what would I do if I were in a situation where I couldn’t afford to pay both my tithe and my necessary payment?” I was thinking of those who have house rental to pay, a car to pay off and then still the needed groceries to buy. “Would I trust the Lord to provide and continue to faithfully pay my tithe?” I then decided that I was going to pay back my debt at all costs the next month, giving the money that was left over after paying my usual tithe and offering. God could intervene and provide and I had seen that time and time again.
On the Tuesday I did my learner’s test and the Lord intervened, as I shared yesterday. Then finally on the Thursday my pastor phoned. He said that I’d repented and it therefore wasn’t a problem. I believe that the Lord made me wait so long for the answer so that I could rethink the whole situation and decide to start paying my debt back at all costs as soon as possible. It is an important issue to make everything right as soon as possible. Prior to that I simply thought that I’d pay it back with the money I would get when I went to visit my family that year in Cape Town and pay it all back at once. God wanted me to be able to trust in Him more fully. Once I’d made the decision to start paying back as soon as possible I got my answer. God truly works in mysterious ways. God is so good!

Today’s Task: Keep your eyes, ears, and heart open to the Lord – He works in mysterious ways. You don’t want to miss His working. God does great things – ask Him to help you to notice. He can work miracles in your life – ask Him to intervene if you need one. God loves and cares about you so much. But please don’t forget to praise Him for His blessings – He truly deserves our praise.

Today’s Thanks: O Lord I praise You that Your thoughts are so much higher and deeper than ours. I thank You that You do such great works. Please do a great work in each of our hearts and lives. Lord I praise You that You care about us. I praise You that You love us. I thank You for Your intervention in our lives. Amen.