DISAPPOINTMENTS

In God, as well as in life, there are disappointments. Things don't turn out how we expect or hope they would.

While life is a lot like that, my normal experience in God is that initial disappointments turn out to be for the long term good - both for me and for God.

For our human expectations are limited by the 'sin curse' of 'time', while God looks at things from an eternal perspective. He sees what we in our humaness can't! And His good is for our good! Even though we may not understand it at the time!

So when we face disappointments in God, it serves us well to just wait and see what his plan for us is. It is bound to be a lot better than ours - eventually! Even if we don't think so at the time!

Blessings from the land of the Holy Spirit - Nigeria!

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FROM THE WORD

THE NATURE OF GOD (2 OF 3)
Contrary to much popular belief today, God is both a loving and a judgmental (but just) God. God loved and judged early man, loved and judged Israel, loved mankind enough to send His Son Jesus to die on the cross for us. He will finally judge ALL mankind on Judgement Day. Living as we do in the Age of Grace, it is easy to forget this.

OLD TESTAMENT
"Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25)

"Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king, to maintain justice and righteousness.” (1 Kings 10:9)

NEW TESTAMENT
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son." (John 3:16-18)

"For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man. “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned. By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me." (John 5:26-30)

DAVID'S DOODLINGS

HEAVENLY TRUTHS GOD HAS SHOWN ME (9 of 12)

Unexpectedly given one afternoon when I wasn't feeling very well. How often God works like that! Kept my human input to a minimum.

God has shown me that...

... I can't hide anything from Him - even though I try.

... while we currently live in the Age of Grace, one day it will
come to an end.

... His grace can only be activated through our repentance.

... our part is to present the Truth. Other's responsibility is to
accept or reject it.

... unity comes from the Spirit, not the soul.

... happiness and joyfulness are not the same.

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A MESSAGE FROM ROY

Although this PGIM! e-letter is sent free, some readers have decided to support this Ministry one or more times a year by sponsoring a week's PGIM! @ USD $50.00. Can I ask you to consider sponsoring a specified week/s? You will get an acknowledgement on your particular week/s of sponsorship (unless you do not want it). If you are interested to help this very informative & helpful newsletter, please email me, Roy McGreevy, as it is God who authored this idea through me in the USA. roy@kscbtv.com. I look forward to hearing from you... thanks. Roy

FROM YOU - TO ME - TO YOU

Dear Bro.Tait,
I thank you for lifting up Jesus because if he is lifted up he will draw all men to himself.

So keep proclaiming Jesus and he will do his work in any life that will let him.
May many souls come to Christ as a result of your newsletter.
Maranatha

David
I haven't written before, but there was a serious error in the definition you were sent about the Darwin Awards. The Darwin Awards are given every year to those who have done something so incredibly stupid that they have removed themselves from the gene pool. Generally the individuals have died (like the security guard who, to prove his gun was unloaded, aimed it at his head and pulled the trigger; turned out the gun did have a bullet in the chamber). A few managed to live through their experiences, but with serious damage (like the fellow who decided to take a swim with the polar bears at the zoo). There are a couple of books out listing past award winners. My son thinks the books are very funny, but my husband and I find them depressing--after all, these people paid for their mistakes with their lives!

While I'm writing, I want to mention our church's Great Start program for couples about to marry. We have a fabulous traditional church sanctuary that couples love to use for weddings. With so many folks coming here to get married, we decided we had an obligation to help them stay married. You can find the program on the web at www.greatstart.org.
May God continue to bless you in your ministry!

Rev. Cynthia Heller, Kansas City, MO, USA

Dear David,

You asked:
But then, why do we so often fall back into the clutches of the law? Where our church rules and doctrine take precedence over God's love. And so soon,our faces come to look like those I saw on the TV that night. Severe! Cross! Striving!

IMHO, the basic problem is that God calls us to be in a loving, totally submitted relationship with Himself. In our sinful condition, we don't want to submit to anyone. We want to be "boss." Therefore, we keep trying to turn relationship with God into a religion -- a set of rituals and rules which, if we follow them to some acceptable level, gains us all the perceived benefits of relationship but leaves us free to do what we want.

We want to control God. In a relationship with God, we are not in control. In a religion, we can fool ourselves into thinking that we are in control.

The problem is that, in a religion, we can never be sure that we're doing enough. There's always the nagging doubt that we're missing the bus to heaven. Thus, the joy, peace, and love that God wants us to experience from our relationship with Him get crowded out by striving, fear, and anger.

I think it all boils down to that. In this life, we never get away from our sin.

You, your family, and your ministry are in our daily prayers. We are really
blessed by your newsletters.

Blessings,

Dal & Denise

Dear David,

One of the reasons the divorce rate in Europe is so low is because peple are nto getting married any more. An example, when the crown prince of Norway (or it may have been Sweden) got married his bride was an unmarried mother. No-one thought anything of it! My experience with hispanics reflects similar statistics. It is very sinful to get divorced, so hold off on marriage till you are too old to sin.

Thanks for the info on Ethiopia and other places in Africa, India, etc. In the past I have receved newslettres from the Church of North India and the (Anglican) Church of Papua New Guinea. Both were truly inspiring.

Shalom B'Yeshua HaMoshiach

Michael Joe Thannisch

LAUGHING AT OURSELVES

***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused***

*** "Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others." ***

267. ASHES TO ASHES, DUST TO DUST
After church, Johnny tells his parents he has to go and talk to the minister right away. They agree and the pastor greets the family.

"Pastor," Johnny says, "I heard you say today that our bodies came from the dust."

"That's right, Johnny, I did."

"And I heard you say that when we die, our bodies go back to dust."

"Yes, I'm glad you were listening. Why do you ask?"

"Well you better come over to our house right away and look under my bed 'cause there's someone either comin' or goin'!"

266. LOCH NESS MONSTER AND THE ATHIEST
An atheist was spending a quiet day fishing when suddenly his boat was attacked by the Loch Ness Monster. In one easy flip, the beast tossed him and his boat at least a hundred feet into the air. It then opened it's mouth waiting below to swallow them both.
As the man sailed head over heels and started to fall towards the open jaws of the ferocious beast he cried out, "Oh, my God! Help me!"

Suddenly, the scene froze in place and as the atheist hung in midair a booming voice came out of the clouds and said, "I thought you didn't believe in Me!"

"God, come on, give me a break!" the man pleaded, "Just seconds ago I didn't believe in the Loch Ness Monster either!"

"Well," said God, "now that you are a believer, you must understand that I won't work miracles to snatch you from certain death in the jaws of the monster, but I can change hearts. What would you have me do?"

The atheist thinks for a minute then says, "God, please have the Loch Ness Monster believe in You also.

"God replies, "So be it."

The scene starts in motion again with the atheist falling towards the ravenous jaws of the monster. The Loch Ness Monster folds his claws together and says, "Lord, bless this food You have so graciously provided . . ."

Now one of the most comprehensive sources of Christian Humour on the Net with 670 sermon fillers for your entertainment and use at ...

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A GHANIAN EXPERIENCE

Cars here have lots of Christian signs on them - along with churches on every corner!

Like the rest of Africa and Asia, driving is an interesting experience! So the notice on one of the taxi vans appealed to my sense of humour when it accurately stated, "LET US PRAY"!

Another car, more accurately spiritually, said,"HEAVENS GATE - NO BRIBES". Neither in Africa where corruption, sadly, is the norm, nor of course in the West, where we have the bribery of 'good works'! For there is only one way to heaven - that is Jesus!

A thoughtful African experience.

FACTS FOR FUN

LAST WEEKS QUESTION: How high were women's hairdos in the eighteenth century?

ANSWER: Women's elaborate powdered pompadour hairdos, fashionable in the 1770s, could rise to three feet (1m) high! Men wore big hair too, but naturally, not quite so big as the women. The towering hairdos were piled high on wire frames, being held in place with grease. They were often decorated with flowers, ribbons, and sometimes toys to make miniature scenes, such as sailing ships.

THIS WEEK'S QUESTION: How does scratching relieve an itch?

Answer Next Week.

SOME FUN FACTS
798. WHEREFORE COMEST THOU FROM?
Hamburgers have no ham so why are they named so? The name comes from the German town of ‘Hamburg’, where the custom of serving ground meat originated. (Where’s the ham, burgher?)

799. PAN v EPI
A ‘pandemic’ is an ‘epidemic’ of a disease that spreads worldwide. (What is an ‘academic’ then?)

800. SPELUNKING
'Spelunking’ is the sport of exploring caves as a pastime. (‘kerplunk’ is the noise you make when you lose your footing, fall and hit the cave floor!)

A WORD PUZZLE FOR YOU
Make another word from this word using all the letters.
RHINE

Answer at the end of A David Musing

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A LIBERIAN EXPERIENCE IN GHANA

Visited the Liberian Refugee Camp, just outside Accra. It is the largest in Africa with 67,000 people having lived there for up to 12 years, since the unrest started in that war torn country. So most of the children have been born there!

In terms of refugee camps, it is most successful, now being self sustaining, without further input from the UNHCR. However it is still a refugee camp, and the conditions, while bearable, are not good. There are 80 odd churches in the camp which has helped improve life dramatically.

Ministering to the pastors was interesting - and all in English. For Liberia has a huge American influence, and their excellent English comes with an American twang. Just like being in Liberia! And the well received message is going straight back there too.

Reaching two countries in one! Africa always surprises!

BE INSPIRED WITH A MESSAGE FROM INSPIRATIONAL TAPES

This amazing New Zealand resource has over 4,000 messages ranging from old classics to the latest revelation and teaching. A number of free MP3 downloads are available or you can order tapes and CD’s from the site for worldwide delivery at a most reasonable cost. Our free weekly MP3 download selections will be available again from mid-June.

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DO YOU KNOW THESE?

1. Father of 88 Children
-- 2 Chronicles 11:21
2. Jesus used barber on enemies
-- Isaiah 7:20
3. Seven women want same man
-- Isaiah 4:1
4. God had a wash pot
-- Psalms 60:6-8
5. Ancient Milk Bottle
-- Judges 4:19
6. First left handed man
-- Judges 3:15
7. Who can be Saved
-- John 3:16, Acts 2:37-39

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ANOTHER GHANIAN EXPERIENCE

In Kumasi, I was taken to see their big stadium, of which they are justifiably proud.

Has the inevitable soccer field in the middle, with a cinder, 400m athletic track round the outside.

My companion Nii, (just over half my age) challenged me to a race of a lap of the track. This was in 32 degrees, 95% humidity, and in long trousers and sandals!

The race was run - and lost in the last few metres! Not surprising really, I guess! However, as I went back to the car, a very fit looking man strode purposely towards me and introduced himsely as a coach of the Ghanian National Athletic Team. "Would I please come and train with the team", I was asked! Any feelings of disappointment at my race loss, quickly disapated! Unfortunately, I had to turn down the invitation as I was leaving the next day!

Africa always throws up surprises!

HUMOROUS WISDOM

There is something wrong if you're always right.

After all is said and done, more is said than done.

People are like tea bags - You never know their strength until they get into hot water.

The easiest crops to grow are weeds and pests.

If you do nothing, nothing will happen. If you do something, something will happen but not necessarily what you intended.

All's war in love and fairness.

Before having a midlife crisis, it's good to have a life.

Life is like snow: you don't know when it will come or how long it will last or how much you will get.

For every reason there is for doing something, there are three for not doing it.

A public telephone is never being used until you have an emergency.

Integrity is like oxygen. The higher you go the less there is.

There's more to life than increasing its speed.

Life is a do-it-yourself project.

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A FURTHER GHANIAN EXPERIENCE

Went to a church in Kumasi. Unfortunately the pastor, my interpretor, was unable to come. His substitute was not too well versed in my 'Kiwi' English! It could have been a disaster! But fortunately, the Holy Spirit turned up and did the ministering for me! Well looked after once again!

Africa never ceases to surprise!

REVELATION’S REVELATION

REVELATION’S REVELATION
"To him who overcomes” An exciting illumination of the promise made to those who are prepared to give their “all” to Christ.

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FAMOUS WORDS AND PHRASES FROM THE BIBLE

ALL THINGS TO ALL MEN

Now regarded as a derogative statement, but originally it was used by Paul to describe how he would endeavour to get alongside people, by relating to their experience.

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A DAVID MUSING

After 8 weeks away from my wife Kathy, I am really looking forward to meeting up with her again in Lagos, Nigeria, or maybe in Benin, on Thursday or Friday. Absence does make the heart grow fonder!

Her trip has been delayed for a week, but I can wait. I have no alternative though, do I! Thanks to all those who have been praying for our family. We really appreciate it - and still need it!

His servant and yours

David Tait

Word Puzzle Answer: HENRI

REPRODUCTION OF NEWSLETTER CONTENT

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ABOUT US

WALKING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES is a non-profit, non-denominational, Bible based ministry located in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand. A ministry dedicated to developing discipleship, fostering unity amongst God’s people to achieve the Great Commission, and in doing so, preparing for Christ’s return. It is securely based upon the foundational principles of the Apostles Creed while recognising the wide and rich diversity of beliefs amongst Christians in other areas. In accordance with the Lord’s direction, materials produced by the ministry are available, free of charge, to genuine enquirers upon request. The ministry is solely funded by donations, as the Lord provides. A list of materials available (plus some fun!) is obtainable and freely downloadable from our website
wwj.org.nz or by contacting us as follows.

Walking With Jesus Ministries
3 Hetley Crescent
Taradale
Napier 4001
New Zealand

Phone: (06) 8449-377 International (+64) 8449-377
Email: enquiries@wwj.org.nz
Web: wwj.org.nz

Our role is to bless and encourage those in ministry while promoting co-operation and unity of direction amongst the body of Christ, as emphasised 3 times by Jesus in His longest prayer, immediately prior to His arrest and crucifixion. "… so that they may be one as we are one." (John 17:12, 21, 23-4) Our website is currently being developed to encourage your participation one with another, to share resources, and to enable you to promote events and items of interest to the body as a whole – and have a smile while doing it!

For comments upon and contributions to this service, please contact
david@wwj.org.nz