Jun 8, 2021 | Wens Pen
Hello Everyone
The world spins on the finger of God. I’ve been to several basketball games where the Sydney Kings team have danced up and down the court entertaining us with clever play and triumphant slam dunks. One of the talents of these professional basketballers is their ability to spin the ball on one finger. It fascinates me. I’ve tried it and failed miserably. It got me thinking about another King, God and the magnitude of who He is. Look at Him; look at His magnificence. The world spins on the finger of God and it just so happens that He is also our personal King. Forget the Sydney Kings, as talented as they are! Our God is the ultimate King and the mere fact that the world spins perfectly on His finger with ultimate precision, means we have immediate and confident hope that no matter what comes our way, He is in control. That thought really matters for us as we live our lives in the confines of time, space, and our fragmented world.
But imagine if God had limitations. What would it look like if He just happened to drop the ball? Life would be catastrophically impacted and creation as we know it would be no more. The fact that He is limitless and omnipotent has a direct bearing on all of life. So, let’s join the dots together. The same finger that spins the world also has His finger on the pulse of our lives. In other words, the immeasurable greatness of who He is as sovereign King gives us an irrefutable reason to trust Him with every thread of life. He is also unfalteringly dedicated to us and holds us tightly with all our frailties. There is no circumstance of life, good or difficult, that is not within the realm of His control and His ability to impact it. He is continuously weaving the intricate and delicate threads of our lives together to be worked out for our good. How can this be that a King so immense, with unfathomable power is also capable of being so tender and intimate? Our minds can scarcely take it in. God is utterly transcendent and so majestic as He exercises control, ruling creation, but also immanent as He comes in close and picks us up, puts His cheek against ours and loves us; every inch of us. It is breathtaking and reassuring all at once. We are utterly dependent on Him. Utterly!
The world spins on the finger of God is beautifully unpacked in Isaiah 40:1-30. The rhythm of God’s immensity and His intimacy is reflected in the passage (read it). God stretches out the heavens with His hands and calls for the starry hosts. Then He speaks tenderly to His people, raising them up to soar like eagles, sowing love and assurance into their hearts, enabling them to journey in life on the pathways of His unbreakable promises. The world spins on the finger of God spins me out because it truly is beyond my capacity to fully comprehend it. Yet, aren’t we grateful He holds all things in His mighty hands?
So, friends, get your “God finger” on today.
Best days to come.
Wen
Jun 1, 2021 | Wens Pen
Hello Everyone
“Today” has been gift-wrapped by God. Psalm 118:24. Each of us has a journey to be lived out. We have a past, and we have a future. Yet, we also have today. Living in the shadows of the past or basking in the light of the future will rob us of life today. The gift of life today does not mean we don’t value the past which has helped shape the moments we are currently inhabiting. Nor does it mean we can’t anticipate all God has for us in the future. The problem arises when we linger too long in the past or constantly dream of the future at the risk of not treasuring the miracle of each moment that makes up the offering of life today.
Think for a moment about the heart of the giver, God and all His intentions in giving us the gift of life. “Today” has been gift-wrapped by God as an extraordinary, extravagant gift, tied with a red Calvary ribbon. There is a gift tag tied to the gift of “today” and it has your name on it. It has been hand-picked, with love, just for you. Are you excited to receive God’s gift of “today” and eager to treasure what is in the gift box? How will you unwrap this precious gift of “today”? Will you tear it open like a wide-eyed, excited child, revelling in the excitement of this offering and make the most of it? Or will you unwrap it like a spoiled child who looks at a gift, puts it aside and moves on to the next present, missing the miracle of the moment?
“Today” has been gift-wrapped by God with 86,400 precious seconds that make up the gift. Assuming we sleep 8 hours, that still leaves us 57,600 seconds to be fully present in the present, using and enjoying our gift to full capacity. When we measure this gift of “today” on God’s eternal timeline and realise the brevity of our time on earth, it should motivate us to unwrap God’s gift of “today” with great thankfulness, enthusiasm and a desire to steward it wisely. Yet we are so often caught in the rhythm of everyday routines that we become acclimatised to the miraculous nature of every moment. Today has been gift-wrapped by God, yet our “todays” are at risk of dripping away so quickly, and moment by moment poured out into a river of time where the currents in that river carry away the gift of “today” and it’s gone forever. The value of “today” is the miracle of life and the time we are granted to live it out. It can only be experienced second by second. Will we waste it or embrace it? “Today” has been gift-wrapped by God and it’s a big ticket, valuable present, full of unique possibilities and it’s yours for the opening.
So, friends, get your “today” on today.
Best days to come.
Wen
May 25, 2021 | Wens Pen
Hello Everyone
If you were God, what would you be like? It’s a challenging question. I was driving home the other night and I was aware of the various, foolish drivers around me. One was ducking and weaving in the traffic, others were driving at snail pace, some were speeding, then there were the lane drifters, the road rager abusing everyone in their way, and of course there was the one that ran the red light. As I sat behind the wheel, I could hear my automatic thoughts declaring “if I was a police officer, I’d book that person, I’d put that driver in jail, I’d make sure that driver lost all their points as well as their license.” My judgments went on and on with no mercy. I just kept hammering the guilty gavel. Clearly, I was the only perfect driver on the road with my “super-sized cop” attitude, being judge and jury all at once. I had everyone being booked and thrown into jail with no reprieve. Afterall, shouldn’t they pay for all this irresponsible behaviour that put others at risk? Suddenly I began to think if I was God what would I be like?
God is holy, loving, kind, merciful, forgiving, gracious, wise, and perfect in character. He is the rightful judge of everything, and He is the only one worthy to hold that position. James 4:12. God is watching on as humanity drives through life cutting corners, lane drifting across God’s moral framework, living outside God’s road rules for life, speeding past His truth, running the red lights of God’s authority and road raging others causing relationship breakdown and abuse. Shouldn’t we be fined for the behaviour we exhibit to God on the roadways of life? If you were God, what would you be like? Unlike me, God is gracious. He is a just but merciful judge. If we run the red light of life and rebel against God, we are guilty. Yet when God drops His heavenly gavel, He declares us as righteous and we get a clean slate. Whilst He doesn’t give us a free pass to live however we want, when we offend Him, He has changed the way the penalty is paid. God’s judgment is still active, but our guilty verdict is transferred to Jesus. This is a daily gift to us. The One who is not guilty pays the penalty on our behalf and we are shown grace and mercy. Additionally, in God’s world we continuously retain our demerit points. Jesus not only pays the fine we owe, but He also deposits the demerit points straight back into our faith-account. We can never lose our license to be a child of God because God has stamped our licenses with a red cross that marks us as approved and forever His. It’s a hefty price that Jesus paid on our behalf, but it shows exactly the type of God our God is. So, if you were God, what would you be like?
Let’s all pull over to the side of the road for a moment and ask ourselves the question, answering honestly, “if you were God, what would you be like?” When you get behind the steering wheel of life today, will you be gracious, slow to anger, fair and wise in judgement, forgiving, encouraging, loving, merciful, and kind? I am so grateful for God’s perfection over my imperfect life. I also confess, I’m so glad for the world that I’m not God. Just a thought 😊.
So, friends, get your “God character” on today.
Best days to come.
Wen
May 18, 2021 | Wens Pen
Hello Everyone
Only God sees around corners. I like to knit. I know, right? It’s funny, particularly for those who know me, but I find it therapeutic. I am probably one of the worst knitters on the planet. I have to watch YouTube clips to guide me, I get knots in the wool, drop stiches, and have no idea how to fix it and consequently have a few holes in the end product. Whilst I only knit squares, my enjoyment comes from using beautiful wool with diverse colours and textures. As I knit away (slowly), I am aware that the thread of the wool is continuously unravelling as I knit one stitch at a time and it forms a knitted square. I follow the pattern of “knit and purl” as the wool unravels, but I have no capacity to see what the square of knitting will look like until the strands of wool are on the knitting needle and the square of knitting is forming. It is like that with life. As the strands of life unfold, and I follow God’s pattern, I am not capable of knowing what life will bring because only God sees around corners.
We must remember that God is the master knitter. He was the first to knit anything. He knit me together in my mother’s womb and has been creating me as His special masterpiece from conception. Psalm139:13. Because only God sees around corners, it is a comforting thought that He knows every stich in my journey that will form the story of my life and He is managing all the threads to make a unique design. He takes the varying colours and textures that life offers up, and He knits them together to make me uniquely me. Becauseonly God sees around corners and I don’t, He is able to sovereignly guide every stich that is knitted into place. He sees every row or year of my days. He also knows every stitch that will be dropped. He sees every hole in my lifework. He fixes up my mistakes after I’ve done bodgy repair job. He knows what the end product will look like. He can take my train wrecks and knit me back together and recreate a different but exquisite life that is more reflective of Him. Psalm 147:3. The fact that only God sees around corners gives me implicit hope that when I turn a corner, He has already seen it, He is already there, and He lovingly waits for me to make the turn.
I’ve become more aware of how precious life is and how it can change in an instant. Because we cannot see around corners, we are often shocked with the changes that result from adversity. We’ve followed God’s patterns, but it does not guarantee a perfectly knitted “square” of life. One moment we are basking in the beauty of things and the next a hole appears because we have dropped some stitches. At times we must undo some stitching in order to start over. But this is done in the Master’s hands. God promises to take every knotted thread, every hole, every single strand and knit us back together. Only God sees around corners and that makes Him the master knitter; the One who sees what’s coming and the One who can do the mending job as required. Our lives in His hands are shaped by the promise that in all things He works for the good of those who love Him. Romans 8:28.
So, friends, get your “God stitch” on today.
Best days to come.
Wen
May 11, 2021 | Wens Pen
Hello Everyone
Kingdom keys. When I turned 21 (just a few years back – ha), I was given a set of keys. This set of keys gave me rightful entry and access to all that was in the realm of our home and domain. When God gives us our Kingdom keys, he moves us out of the squalors of our spiritually desolate homes and into His glorious palace, our Kingdom keys permit us entry to His heavenly home where we have rightful access to His domain and all His resources. Shifting out of the rental property that belonged to the dark landlord of this world and handing him back the keys mean we are no longer required to pay his hefty rent and live by his harsh tenancy rules where he short-changes every occupant. The keys that access his realm rob us of all we were entitled to and if we don’t pay the rent, he hits us hard and shows no mercy. Eventually those keys cost us everything.
When God, the heavenly landlord adopts us as His sons and daughters He moves us into our new, royal home, in a brand-new suburb with an eternal address. We are granted Kingdom keys that enable us not only to move in but to access all the King intended to be rightfully ours. There is no rent due in our new home because the King Himself has paid the cost on our behalf. Even if we screw up, He never evicts us or changes the locks so we can’t get back in. The Kingdom keys He gives us always fit the lock and open the door. It’s a pretty unique deal we get when we are given our Kingdom keys.
So, what do our Kingdom keys open? The first door the keys open is access to the King himself so we are no longer disconnected from Him (Romans 10:9). Another unlocks our true status and identity as God’s children and heirs (Romans 8:16-17). We get a makeover and are progressively changed into the likeness of our Maker (2 Corinthians 3:18). OurKingdom keys give us access to His throne room where we can drop in for a light-hearted chat, enjoy His presence or crawl into His lap when our hearts are hurt and torn. We don’t even need to knock on His door–we just walk on in (Hebrews 4:16). One of the Kingdom keys we will use over and over gives us access to God’s power and authority which we can use to disarm the dark landlord when he threatens our security or wages war against us (Philippians 3:10, Ephesians 6:10-17). We are given a key to our inheritance (Ephesians 1:14). Our Kingdom keys open the storehouse of God’s provision (Luke 122:22-31). When we take the Kingdom key that unlocks His protection, we are shielded from the evil one as we bunker down behind the Shield of Faith (2 Thessalonians 3:3). Then there is the Kingdom key that opens the door to the family of God where we enjoy the relationships of our brothers and sisters; we worship, serve, and encourage each other for the betterment of God’s Kingdom. Sometimes there’s a scuff in the family, but then there are keys that unlock the restoration of our unity. Whilst there are numerous Kingdom keys God gives us, there is one last key we all want and that key unlocks our eternal destiny, starting here on earth and continuing forever. See what a great deal we have by having the Kingdom keys in our possession?
So, friends, get your “Kingdom keys” on today.
Best days to come.
Wen
May 3, 2021 | Wens Pen
Hello Everyone
My cup overflows. Psalm 23:5. Curiosity begs the question! Why does my cup overflow and keep overflowing in all seasons? The answer to that question is that the One who holds the water jug of living water, Jesus, is both the source and the pourer of every blessing that fills the cups of our lives. He pours out His blessing from the heavenly streams that never run dry. There is no measuring cup with a capped limit of His love and nor does He drip feed us. We, the patron saints of His Kingdom simply hold our royal cups and Jesus pours out His love and blessings, moment by moment and our cups are unable to contain the continuous flow. My cup overflows because Jesus is the source of every spiritual blessing that is bestowed on us as His children. Ephesians 1:3.
Although my cup overflows continuously with God’s blessings, there are times we are tempted to think it is our responsibility to make sure our cups are full with the things we place value on. We shift our gaze from Jesus, the Pourer of our blessings, and set our eyes on what’s in, or not in the cup. We assume the role of the Pourer, thinking we might just do a better job. We are often guilty of picking up our own earthly water jugs, trying to pour out our own blessings in addition to what Jesus pours. We pour from the pools of our own palaces, filling up our cups with the pleasures of this world and wonder why what we are pouring never tips the top of our chalices. When we assume the role of the Pourer, we become thirsty because the things we perceive will fulfil our cups, don’t. Our own attempts to make sure our cups overflow will always pour short of the brim. Every time we try to prize the hands of Jesus off His royal pouring jug, thinking that somehow we are more capable of making sure our cups overflow, we simply interrupt the flow of what will truly ensure our cups are filled and overflowing. What we seek to pour and what Jesus pours are entirely different things. Additionally, we are not qualified to hold the pouring jug of living water. It belongs to Jesus. The focus therefore, must not be what is in our cups but on the Custodian of the royal water jug; the rightful Cup-bearer, Jesus, who will faithfully guarantee that my cup overflows with the abundant blessings He continuously bestows. Let’s leave the pouring to Jesus, the one and only person qualified to ensure our cups are full and bursting past the edges of our lives, saturating every moment and every season we encounter.
So, friends, get your “overflowing cup” on today.
Best days to come.
Wen
