“Every man dies. Not every man lives.”

I see that that is a quote by William Wallace.

I belong to those people who live.

It has not always been like that. There was a time when I did not live. Until I was about 18 years of age I did not live, although I thought I did. I was almost 19 years old when I began to live and when the second part of my life started.

The first part was outside the Lord Jesus Christ, the second part is inside the Lord Jesus Christ.

Main Street in Ban Tak (Thailand), where we preached the Gospel

Picture / Rachel Flintoff

The second part began by going to a church that was alive, attending a Bible school, applying to a missionary society in Germany, working as a missionary in THAILAND, doing more studies at the Bible College of New Zealand (as it was called at that time), and working as a missionary in New Zealand (United Maori Mission) until retirement.

I don’t only belong to the people who live, but I belong also to the people who live though they die, to those people who will never die.

I cannot help mentioning again the book below. It is such a blessing to read it. Can I encourage you to get a copy and read it as well?

“God’s way of Reconciliation”

I am now on page 170 and here are two quotes from the book:

“To me one of the major tragedies of the hour, and especially in the realm of the church, is that most of the time seems to be taken up by the leaders in preaching about unity instead of preaching the gospel that alone can produce unity.”

“No man will ever rejoice in Christ as he should unless he realises what his position was before he became a Christian.”

“Gutes Werkzeug, halbe Arbeit,” is a saying in German. Let me translate it into English for you as good as I can. It means something like this: If you have good tools, half the work is done.

“The Parenting Place”

Why did that saying come to me?

Yesterday at The Warehouse here in Kaitaia, I was introduced to “The Parenting Place”.

Customers are invited to “buy a pen” and “help a family”.

Customers who buy a pen are “Giving parents the tools to raise great kids and build strong families.” Is it not the desire of all of us to raise great kids and build strong families?

Today I bought one of those pens for $2 at The Warehouse and was surprised that the pen is also a highlighter.

Although I am not familiar with the tools of “The Parenting Place” “to raise great kids and build strong families”, I know the greatest tool to do that and that is the BIBLE!

The Bible says in Proverbs 22:6:

“TRAIN A CHILD THE WAY HE SHOULD GO, AND WHEN HE IS OLD HE WILL NOT TURN FROM IT.”

Read more about Parental Duty in the Bible.

The Bible

When I read “Burgled Again” lately under the heading IN BRIEF in our local paper, a Christian hymn entered my mind.

Within one year one of our restaurants here in Kaitaia was burgled four times.

Thieves entering the premises by smashing windows and taking what they want.

Have you ever said to yourself: ‘I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO!”

Have you ever said to yourself: “WHERE COULD I GO?”

The hymn that entered my mind is called: “Where Could I Go But To The Lord.”

Psalm 127:1 says:

“Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.”

THE CROSS

“He [Felix] sent for Paul and listened to him as he spoke about faith in Christ Jesus.

Acts 24:25,25

Intr.:

As Paul discoursed on

1.  righteousness,

2.  self-control and

3.  judgment to come,

End:

Felix was afraid and said, ‘That is enough for now!'”

At the beach

“‘Life over everything,'” is the motto of a youth group here in Kaitaia. I am reading that in the article called “Group aims to help our youth cope”. (Northern News, April 8, 2015)

Young people have problems. Youth find it difficult to cope. I can understand that, because I have been young myself many years ago. The aim of the youth group, called The Far North Raiders, is to help young people.

“Bullying” is highlighted and other things that can damage lives are mentioned as well.

Nineteen people committed suicide in 2012 in our area and they were under the age of 25.

This is the closing paragraph of the article, “‘The bullying policies aren’t working for the kids at the moment. We’re going to sit together and nut out the best anti-bullying policy.'”

The world’s most read book tells us that the Lord Jesus Christ is the “LIFE”.

The Bible is the world’s most read book and you find that the Lord Jesus Christ says in the Bible that he is the “LIFE” in John 11:25 and in John 14:6.

That is the gospel of John.