The Stone of Departure

A group of us are preparing to walk part of the Camino de Santiago in late May and we have been busy preparing here in Northern Ireland with some wonderful walks and building relationships with each other.

Yesterday we walked up the side of Slieve Croob, County Down as a circular route, the weather patchy but probably nothing compared to the Pyrenees!

The views on a clear day are breath taking, (but not today). You can normally see Scotland, The Isle of Man, Lough Neagh etc etc. It’s an area I have personally come to love over many years and with Jude we used to have picnics at the top & fall asleep under the summer sun.

I have written about the Stone of Departure in the past but I can’t seem to find my original notes. I felt yesterday for a few moments to take the lads to a rather large granite stone just slightly over from the summit and share a few words.

Earlier in the week I had been reminded of the Stone of Ezel in 1 Samuel 20:19. David was waiting to hear from Jonathan about whether or not it was safe for David to return to King Saul. King Saul was very jealous of David & he was plagued by an evil spirit sent by God. He was on the war path to eliminate David, who was destined to become Israel’s next king.

David was hiding by the Stone Ezel to await the outcome. Jonathan on his return from his father would get a young boy to collect some arrows he had shot in the direction of the stone. The boy didn’t know David was there but the landing of the arrows gave David the sign whether he was welcome back or not. The arrows went ahead of the stone which meant Saul was looking to have David’s head if he caught him. David had to depart, leave the area and go on the run.

Nothing is wasted in the scriptures. The Stone Ezel means Departure or Showing the Way, and for a few moments I shared some practical aspects of this word and how we can find ourselves sometimes in a tight spot looking for Direction. These times can come while under severe pressure but because of the Providence of God we can trust Him in guiding our footsteps if we simply acknowledge Him in all our ways. Prov 3:5-6

It takes courage to step out even if it seems we are on the run like David……BUT what a Destiny awaits !!

Tender Mercies

“Heavenly Father, thankyou that whatever this life may throw at us your right beside us, and some of the circumstances we encounter are the finger prints of God. Give us eyes to see you LORD in the good and the bad and remember to give you thanks in everything. Amen”

This is the prayer Jude ended with when she gave a talk on the first five verses of Psalm 103 just a few months before being diagnosed with Leukemia.

The Church at St Johns, Hillsborough like so many others were in the midst of the Covid outbreak so Pastor Raj asked Jude to do a few recordings to benefit the congregation during a difficult time.

Some of her opening words on this incredible Psalm written by King David were as follows;

“There are times when we need a good dose of Psalm 103 to wash out that complaining spirit & replace it with a heart of gratitude to The LORD”

Regarding the benefits outlined in the Psalm Jude quotes Spurgeon;

“God selects a few of the choicest pearls, from a casket of divine love, threads them on a string of memory, and hangs them about the neck of gratitude”

Just for a moment, I want to focus on the latter part of verse 3, “….and heals all your diseases”, Jude said:

“Healing is another one of God’s great benefits to our bodies, He brings healing to us in this life through natural & miraculous ways, He promises ultimate healing for all His people in the age to come”

Jude had already said that she had received a miraculous healing, (from the menopause). Read the account by Clicking Here.

Also, and prophetically she would later fulfil ultimate healing. Read the story by Clicking Here.

I came across Jude’s notes recently on this talk and was blessed to be able to watch a short video which is still ministering to saints today.

If you would like to watch Jude give this talk it will encourage & challenge you.

Tender Mercies: A talk by Jude Gray based on the first five verses of Psalm 105.

Click Here

May The LORD bless you with His benefits.

Mizpah !!

Bangor Harbour, Northern Ireland is such a beautiful spot when the sun is shining !!.

I couldn’t help notice the boat in the centre, its name Mizpah which reminded me of the encounter Jacob had with Laban in Genesis 31.

After 20 years of serving Jacob, The LORD finally told him to return to the land of his fathers and God promised He would be with him. (vs3). The LORD had also warned Laban to be careful when catching up with Jacob. (vs24). On paper it looked like there was going to be a showdown but, in the end, the two parties made a covenant sealed with a heap of stones as they went their separate ways saying, “May The LORD keep watch between you & me when we are away from each other”. The word Mizpah literally means ‘Watchtower’. I suggest if you’re not familiar with the whole context to read Genesis Ch 31.

Certainly, in Victorian times, there was an interest in Mizpah jewellery and the language turned more emotional to describe the bond between two people who were separated either by distance or death. This is a far cry from the original context as Laban and Jacob were not really in love with each other !!. But it spoke to my broken heart that day I saw the boat and ministered to me in a way that only God knows-thankyou LORD.

I write this on what would have been Jude’s 61^st birthday and I miss her incredibly more than words can say, but I am so glad I know where she is, “absent from the body but present with The LORD”, and birthday free !!.

As a token, I visited the ‘closet’ today and placed a stone, a very special one with the inscription ‘Mizpah’.

The Trump Of God !

Some years ago, I remember seeing some beautiful flowers, resembling trumpets when delivering mail to a particular property. I knew the customers and after commenting on the flowers, I was blessed some weeks later with a gift of bulbs. They are called Nerine Bowdenii of South African origin.

The story goes that the flowers drifted on the seas from South Africa, eventually washing up on the shores of the island of Guernsey. It was this ocean voyage that earned the flower its name: ‘Nerine’, in a reference to the 50 beautiful daughters of the sea-god Nereus. The flower is also known as the Guernsey Lily in the UK.

Some say that the Nerine Bowdenii expresses what is often left unsaid, thus bridging the gap between heart and mind. “I care about you”.

As the flowers have just blossomed in the garden it reminded me especially in the area of grief, things that were left unsaid. Like so many others who experience deep grief you cannot help thinking whether you did enough and it takes time & prayer to bring healing to our emotions. You don’t always see things at the time but friends remind me I gave my best to Jude especially in the closing days.

Somethings are left unsaid, but love goes beyond words when it is deep & secure in a healthy marriage. I close with a “Life verse”, that encourages me daily regarding my re-union with Jude if I’m still living at the blast of a Trumpet !!!.

Be encouraged Christian if loved ones in Christ have been sent ahead…..

“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so, shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Thess 4:13-18

The Heart Of The Lily Is Love….

“Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” Luke 12:27

Yesterday I noticed the lilies about to open, they were a gift to Jude from one of her customers and every year I have the joy of not only seeing them open but being able to enjoy their dazzling display. No wonder Jesus said the lily was better clothed than King Solomon in all His finery and for us not to worry about what we shall wear ourselves !!.

Symbolically, lilies are associated with love, and sympathy for the departed.

I think the heart shaped STIGMA is amazing. The stigma is part of the female reproductive system of a flower. It is found in the center of a flower and helps to collect pollen. The stigma is on top of the style and is the apex of the reproductive system. It is waxy or sticky to collect the dry pollen which is blown by the wind or transferred by insects.

The heart shaped stigma is just like real love because it serves a purpose and just as the the stigma attracts pollen so our life in Christ should be attractive to those who we come in contact with.

I must admit when I saw the lilies open this morning, the sight of the stigma made me rejoice and praise The LORD not just for His amazing creation but for His love for me. May you be blessed also.

An extra blessing to you today….

Praise My Soul The King Of Heaven

“Biddy watched the officers gently carry her husband’s casket into the peaceful quiet of the cemetery. Throughout the long days and nights beside him in the hospital, she had been so sure that Oswald would make it. The word from the Bible to her own heart during that time had seemed so clear, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God.” (Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God page 9)

I remember like Biddy when faced with a sudden change in my own circumstances the questions & concerns about the future started to come. It was later in the chapter that I drew alongside her, the similarities were striking. At our wedding we sang, “Praise my soul the King of Heaven”, and I felt it should be included in Jude’s celebration of her life. Listen to what happened to Biddy next:

“Biddy closed her eyes, pulled Kathleen (their young daughter), close to her, and softly began to sing the hymn that welled up in her heart: “Praise my soul the King of Heaven, to His feet Thy Tribute Bring.” “It would not be the last time she sang those words when all seemed lost and her only hope lay in the grace of Almighty God”.

I have been so blessed reading the autobiography of Oswald Chambers. The famous devotional “My utmost for His highest”, came out of his writings.

New Years eve 1916 while stationed as a Chaplain in Egypt he wrote on a large blackboard:

“The Irreparable Past-Sleep on now. The Irresistible Future-Arise let us be going (Matthew 26:45-46)

It has been the grace of God that keeps me going forward with an irresistible future. I would like to write more on this subject about going forward and will do in June dv.