Proverbs 15:1

This verse  has made a big difference to me and how I respond to people. I notice that in our modern day society it seems that people are unable to take responsibility for their own actions and are quick to go on the defensive. If only everyone kept to this verse then our society would be a much more pleasant and calm one, where matters were dealt with and addressed in a responsible way.

I have had periods of my life where I have been quick to go on the defensive and not take responsibility, getting worked up when someone has highlighted an issue and then this response causes them to get annoyed. A few years ago our small fellowship started reading through Proverbs each Lord's day and we came across this verse. This was a stand out verse to all of us and is something that we attempt to keep to.

How strange that it seems it is easier to react in an abrupt or selfish manner than to take a moment to consider the impact of our response. The majority of arguments that I have been involved in can be put down to not thinking about how I answer. How so many arguments could have been avoided just by simply remembering Proverbs 15:1.  

I now often find myself saying this verse over and over in my head when I want to react defensively and I have noticed that Lance to has made every effort here as well.

The Lord is so amazing to us that even just by responding in a soft and loving way can actually deflect confrontation and help us to be wise in our response, rather than reactive. The Lord reminds us later through the book of James he supports this view of taking care on what we say. This shows how consistent the bible is throughout and how we should behave. The Old testament works beautifully with the New.

Writing this article actually reminds me of what an important verse this is and how a few wise words from Solomon & James given to them by the Lord can make all the difference to our quality of life and harmony with others.  Proverbs 15:1 does not mean you have to be a "door mat" or stand up for what is right but to be more considerate about the words that come out of your mouth.  

I am thankful to the Lord that  he has guided me through this verse and it has helped me to try and be a less defensive and more considered in my responses in my biblical walk. Through God's strength he has helped me and when I fall down he picks me up. 

Talk of the Month - Early Years.

Ephesians 1:4 - Chosen before the foundation of the world - how incredible is that!

I am aiming for this talk section to be a once a month post. So this is the one for March. I have realised it is exactly a month ago  this week since my first post so thought it an appropriate time to issue another talk one.

Last time I gave a brief introduction to my Christian background and will continue to use this post as a reflection on my growth in faith over this time and hope this will help me to see how God has really worked in my life.

I was born in  North Wales at the start of the 1970s. My father worked for the local council but was also heavily involved in the Methodist Church. When I was around 5 we moved to Kent due to my father's job. We then started attending a local Methodist Church and my dad was a lay preacher. After a couple of years of living in Kent my Father collapsed suddenly at a local Church meeting and was rushed to hospital. Sadly he died and my mum was a widow at the age of 36 with 2 young daughters (my older sister Susan and me).

Susan on the right me (the cute one) on the left.😊

 My mum ensured that we continued to attend Church and Sunday School and found it to be a supportive and comforting network in her time of grief. My parents had also lost their first child (Wendy) when she was only 3 months old and my dad's mum within a year of that.  As I was quite young at the time of my dad's death I did not realise how difficult it must have been for my mum.


Throughout my childhood and teens I continued to attend the Methodist Church and was heavily involved in the youth group and Sunday evening youth fellowship which was called "Chatterbox". Chatterbox was run by a really lovely couple who were in their early 30s called David and Helen Piper. They opened their home to the youth of the church every Sunday evening to discuss Christian issues and issues that affected us. This fellowship had a big impact on me at the time and was the start of me really understanding that there was a God and he sent his "Son" Jesus Christ. I grew up with this in mind anyway but this group helped affirm it for me. I counted myself to be a Christian at this age, but did not understand the importance of it until much later.

The other key person who had a big impact on my childhood was an elderly lady called Nora Goy. I always called her Aunty Nora even though she was not my relative. She was a very gentle  and kind woman who had a real love for the Lord. I treated her like a Grandma as my real Grandma lived in Wales and was in a care home so I did not see her much. Aunty Nora was a strong spiritual guide in my life and I saw her every week. We often went around there for tea and she taught me how to make greeting cards. I think I got my interest in crafts from her as she always seemed to have something on the go. Sadly, she died when I was 18 but I hope that I will see her again in "Glory".

My mum was keen that we had a holiday once a year so it became the norm. for us to go on a Methodist Guild Hall holiday annually. This was how my parents actually met so my mum had a keen interest in them. I have many happy memories of these and they were good as they were quite focussed on the bible and we got to meet Christians/Church goers from all over the country. I don't think these holiday's exist anymore but they were good.    

When I was 14 my mum met Brian who became her second husband. We continued to attend the Methodist Church for  a while after they got married but as Brian was not a Christian they stopped attending. I still continued and had involvement with the youth groups etc. until the Pipers moved away and then I met Lance.

When I look back on that time now I can see how God looked after me even  from a young age and how he has guided me throughout my life in both the good and bad times. I realise now that the Methodist Church doctrines are quite far removed from the Christianity that I understand today but it certainly gave me the building blocks to recognise Christ as my Lord and Saviour from a young age.            

Psalm 150:6

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. What a wonderful positive verse this is to end the book of Psalms. Whenever I read or hear this I always think of our pets as I do believe that all of God's creatures have an awareness of him and the animal world accept this.

It may sound sentimental or not even biblically supported but I do truly believe that the Lord made all creatures to be aware of him but he made us in his own image. Why would the Psalmist say let everything that has breath if it was only referring to humans.

This verse was our go to verse when we buried our pets, it give hope that they have knowledge of the Lord and is supported with talk of the new earth in Revelation.

As I have grown in faith and understanding of the bible I have come to see the Psalms as an amazing book that covers every aspect of life and all the emotions and trials that go with it. I often find comfort in the various psalms and  see something new in them  whenever I sing or read from them.  The Psalms are just as relevant today as they were when they were first written and really show true human nature and both the struggles and joy. I never really appreciated the Psalms in my early Christian walk  but have come to find them to be a great source of encouragement in recent years.

Psalm 150 is such a joyous Psalm as a whole and gives us an insight to what it must have been like to live in the days of the temple when they did use instruments to praise the Lord. 

I have chosen this as verse of the week as it is easy to overlook specific verses in Psalms as there are so many of them but this verse is a special one for Lance and I.    

A-Z of Animals - British Blue Butterfly

2 Corinthians 5:17

 Since a young age I have  had an interest in butterflies; one of my earliest memories of this is from the mid 1970s when my dad used to collect them. Sadly, back in those days it was quite common for people to collect butterflies and pin them on to boards and frame them. My dad had one of these and I remember thinking what beautiful creatures they were and how amazing it was that they came from a caterpillar. I also enjoyed collecting caterpillars when I was younger, not really appreciating at the time that they were living creatures who should be left in their own environment. This type of attitude along with the increase in housing projects on green space (don't get me started!) led to a big decline in the british butterfly population.  

Caterpillars and butterflies are so varied in their colours and shapes that I find them quite fascinating. Throughout my life I have always found the butterfly to be one of my go to creatures for cross stitch and card making as to me they depict new life.

Butterflies make for a good spiritual comparison in the way that they start off in one form as an egg, then a caterpillar, cocoon then end up as a beautiful creature who has been freed. This is much like the Christian life where we are born in to sin and go through different stages of life until God opens our eyes and makes us a new creation.

British Blue Butterfly

The "British Blue Butterfly" (BBB) first came to my attention a number of years ago at college when they were the subject of a Level 2 Conservation assignment. I found their story to be quite incredible when I learned of their symbiotic relationship with the mermica sabulita ant. This particular species of butterfly could be found in meadows throughout Britain until its apparent disappearance in the 1970s, however due to a reintroduction project during the 1980s it has made a reappearance in the UK and now doing very well. This species does not appear to survive without a specific species of ant and shows how much they need them. This reminds me of how much we rely on God to become a new creation.

The BBB lays her eggs on a plant in the meadow and the caterpillar hatches and eventually falls to the ground. This caterpillar has a pheromone that smells like a mermica ant, so the ant collects the caterpillar thinking it to be one of their own and takes it back to their nest. The caterpillar continues to mimic the young ant smell, despite looking quite different so they take care of it and feed it and nurture it until it becomes a butterfly. Whilst the caterpillar is a parasite it needs the ant for survival but never does harm to the ants, they appreciate all that the ant does for them. However they are still conning the ant and it is fooled in to thinking it is one of their own.

Whilst the BBB caterpillar is just using the ants resources in a positive way there is also the ichneumon wasp whose motives are more sinister and aggressive. This is actually quite creepy but clever on the wasps part; the wasp emits a pheromone and dupes the ant in to thinking it is one of their young so they take it back to their nest, once the ants realise it is not one of them they attack the wasp who then emits more pheromones turning the ants against each other and then injects each ant with one of their own eggs. The wasp then leaves, calm seems to come back to the nest and before you know it young wasps take over the ant and burst forth out of them and the ant nest is pretty much destroyed. I warned you it was creepy👀. The link below goes in to a bit more detail, but there are plenty of sites about this subject and a creepy video somewhere!.

Mermica Sabuleti Ant - The Goodie

Ichneumon Wasp - The Baddie

Research gate link re. BBB and Ants.




The story of the butterfly, ant & wasp could be considered an allegory to our spiritual life as a Christian. We change from our old ways to a new one with the support and strength of our Lord, but sin and temptation will often try to infiltrate this new life. Satan tries to extinguish what we have become and tries to wipe out this new creation. However, as the Lord is "Sovereign" he will not allow this to happen and has the ultimate victory. The story of the wasp reminds me of a number of biblical passages around apostates and false prophets who infiltrate churches and turn congregations against each other, causing division, discord and often destruction of what was once a stable fellowship. The butterfly larvae lives in harmony with the ant acting as one of its own without causing harm but the wasps motives are quite different. This reminds me that as Christians we need to be on guard for those who want destroy our fellowship with other Christians and the Lord.

  

I think the story of this butterfly and ant is a wonderful example of how God works in the whole of creation and has symbiotic relationships that can be used as examples to our own spiritual walk.    

      

Thoughts - Life without God is meaningless.

This post may be a difficult read for some  but it is a subject that was addressed many times in  the bible and one that if more people considered then I believe there would be many more Christians in the world; the subject of life after death. My thoughts this week  have been drawn to people who die without knowing the Lord as their Saviour. This is quite a terrifying thought to think of eternity separate from God and to be cast in to the lake of fire.

Many people go through life not considering what will happen to them after they die. Filling their days with worldly pursuits to keep their mind occupied, but as Ecclesiastes says everything is meaningless without God, a chasing after the wind. It is because of God that we are even here in the first place. So often today you see people set their sites on what to achieve in the here and now rather than considering the state of their soul. This attitude and pressure to achieve, have more and better, puts a strain on people and relationships and can result in considerable stress.

In my last post I mentioned about people being driven to suicide as this seems to be the only way out for them; if we believe the bible to be true then actually we are merely passing through this life for an eternal life and will be held accountable in the next one. Suicide and assisted suicide is a way for man to even control his own death and decide when he wants to die. However, this is not our choice and God is sovereign and in control of all things. God promises to love those who love him and gives purpose to our lives.

Whilst to some Ecclesiastes may come across as fairly negative, it has the underlying promise and assurance that only God can give us. Reading the book of Ecclesiastes has helped me understand human nature more and how a life without God truly is meaningless, regardless on how much we achieve in it.        

         

Have you trusted in the Lord? Have you cast all your burdens on him? If more people did this then they would not feel the need to bottle everything up and then take their own lives. How great our Lord is that he suffered and died for us and still we can cast all our burdens on him; spending eternity without sorrow or crying.The alternative is to deny God and spend eternity in suffering, which as mentinoned earlier is quite a terrifying thought. Thankfully the Lord has been gracious to me and opened my eyes to this and I hope and pray others have these thoughts to. This is a positive message and one that can bring comfort to those in trouble of mind and soul.

Revelation 21:4

I have chosen Revelation 21:4 as this week's verse, as it is such a comforting verse and speaks of God's promise. It also happens to be one of Lance's favourite verses due to its reassuirng nature of the life to come.

It does not matter what we face in this life as long as we put our trust in God and repent of our sins. We have something so much greater waiting for us and all the sin of this world will be wiped away. 

Over the last month or so I have noticed both in the news and people I have been acquintated with have been dying at a similar age to both Lance and I. Some of these due to suicide because they see no way out from the desperate situations that they are in; nothing or no-one in a worldly sense can help them. Many people try to fill what I would call a "spiritual vacuum" with wordly things and this is why so many people suffer and get depressed because they do not address their spiritual side. I will address this issue more in my next "thoughts" post.

Sin is overlooked and quite often embraced in this secular world and all the while it continues more people will suffer and feel depressed. 

Trusting in God and Christ as our saviour does give us hope and a way out of this sinful life. The verse of the week gives us that hope and an indication on how wonderful our eternity as saved sinners it will be.

Revelation 21:4 continues to be a verse we regularly turn to, espescially when our pets died. It helped us understand more about God's promise and I thank the Lord every day for his words. 

      

This verse emphasises our total relience on the Lord and this not something we can earn or work for ourselves.  

AMAZING AXOLOTLS

I thought this was quite an appropriate verse for my animal of the week as it seems a rather strange verse but explains to me why we have such unusual creatures like the Axolotl. The Axolotl is not a freak of nature as evolution scientists would have you believe, but that God intended for this creature to exist, which to me the verse above confirms. Below I have explained why I think this is.

The Axolotl is actually a Tiger Salamander that has not undergone metamorphosis. The Axolotl suffers with a thyroid problem that prevents metamorphosis, due to a lack of iodine.This is something known as "Neotony" (retention of juvenile features as an adult and or ability to reproduce in larval stage)this can happen in a number of species.

There is now only one place known where Axolotls are found in the wild, Lake Xochimilco in Mexico and they are now on the critically endangered list and under CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora). Their population has reduced greatly due to water pollution and introduction of fish that kill the Axolotl. They are now really only found in captivity. 

I  first became aware of Axolotls when I started working in Animal Care at the college. I had never seen one before and was fascinated to hear about their background. Over the years I have researched in some detail the Axolotl and marvel at the diverse creatures the Lord has blessed us with.At the college we have an albino one (pictured below), but when I first started we had a brown one with gold speckles. They can also be pink with black eyes and grey. Our college Axolotl does not have a name and is around 9-10 years old. They are known to live up to 15 years. 

AXOLOTL - FROM MEXICO

In Genesis 1 it confirms that marine creatures were created on day 5 but creeping creatures on the land were created on day 6. Salamanders are amphibians and as they are vertebrates (backbone), then they would have been created on day 6. As it was kinds created on day 6 and the Axolotl is a salmander then they did not exist as a separate species or kind.

The link below discusses how Adam named the various creatures, but they have concluded that this did not include amphibians or marine creatures. This is something that I want to research more closely so I can understand how amphibians and marine creatures got their names.

https://creation.com/how-could-adam-have-named-all-the-animals-in-a-single-day

I do believe that God works in wonderous and mysterious ways and although it may appear the Axolotl is a genetic mistake due to a thyroid issue, God intended it to be this way. This to help aid the survival of the salamander in waters that lack iodine and neotony has its uses. Axolotls have been specifically used in tests around limb regeneration and have helped to further sciencitific investigation in this area. It has also been shown that some Axolotls injected with iodine do actually then undergo the metamorphic cycle to and become a fully formed salamander.

Axolotls reproduce in larval form, which is quite unusual but this does help for their continuation. As  John 1:3 says "was not anything made, that was made".

I could spend a very long time going in to lots of detail about them as they are a creature that not many people are aware of but then it would be a very long article😵. If you would like to know more you can go to the following links.

Tiger Salamander

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axolotl 

 http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2008/osuldsen_brit/reproduction.html

Next week - Butterflies.