Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Samuel – Be careful with Your Motives!

1Samuel 8v5 “Now appoint a king to lead us such as all the other nations have.”

We don’t know exactly why, but like Eli’s sons before him, Samuel’s sons didn’t follow the Lord. Instead of walking in God’s ways and serving him faithfully, they chased after money and worldly things.

The people of Israel saw this and asked Samuel to appoint a king to lead them — “just like all the other nations have.” There’s some irony here.

1. They were not accepting Samuel’s sons because of their worldliness, but they themselves were looking to the world for inspiration rather than God.
2. God planned for Israel to have a king one day — King David, whose descendant would be King Jesus. But the people’s motivation was wrong. They weren’t asking because they wanted to follow God’s plan — they just wanted to copy the world around them.

Samuel was upset about their request, but God told him three important things:

1. They weren’t rejecting Samuel as much as they were rejecting God as their King.
2. Samuel should let them have a king.
3. Samuel must also warn the people about what would happen as a result and give an opportunity for them to change their mind.

Even after Samuel warned them, the people refused to listen. They wanted what they wanted. So God told Samuel, “Listen to them and give them a king.”

Because they were working with the wrong motives, they worked at the wrong time, and they would end up with the wrong person. Their religious worship looked good on the outside, but in their hearts, they weren’t letting God truly be their Lord and King. As a result it would all become messy — but later in Samuel, God’s plan would still succeed.

Let’s learn from this. Let’s check our motivations. Let’s make sure our hearts and timing are in line with God’s will — not just our own desires.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Samuel – Returning to God!

1Samuel 7v2 “If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts …”

Do you want to return to the Lord? Are you crying out to Him in complete dependence?

Last week we saw that Israel had faced disaster at the hands of the Philistines. It took 20 years before Samuel gathered the people for a revival meeting. He saw that their hearts were beginning to turn back to God and said, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts…”

It’s possible to turn to God for the wrong reasons — because it seems like the best option, because others are doing it, or just to play it safe. But God calls us to return to Him with all our hearts — with deep desire, passion, and determination. The one thing to do, is to turn fully to the Lord.

Samuel told the people to prove their sincerity by removing the idols in their hearts and homes. They had been giving their time and attention to false gods. The sign of a true heart for God is to clear out the things that compete with Him in our lives. Samuel said, “Commit yourselves to the Lord and serve Him only, and He will deliver you.”

This is echoed in Jesus’ words: “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)

We need that same return to the Lord today — in our lives, in our church and in our nation.
Am I willing to be among the first to return to Him with all my heart?

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Samuel – When Disaster strikes!

1Samuel 4v3 “Why did the LORD bring defeat on us today?”

Do you ever feel like everything around you is falling apart?

Samuel was probably in his twenties when it seemed like his whole world was collapsing. His nation, Israel, lost a major battle against the Philistines. So for the next battle, they decided to take the ark of the covenant with them, thinking it would bring them good luck. The ark represented God’s presence and was usually kept at the center of worship.

But things got even worse. The Philistines captured the ark and killed Eli the priest’s two sons. When Eli heard the news, he fell over and died too. The people cried out, “The glory has departed from Israel.”

Then something unexpected happened — the presence of the ark brought trouble to the Philistines, and they eventually sent it back to Israel. Through all of this, the people began to respect God again and said, “Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God?”

The Israelites had forgotten about God’s holiness. Their faith had become just a ritual. So God allowed disaster to get their attention and refocus their hearts on Him. A new generation grew up with a renewed awe and respect for God’s presence.

We need that same reverence today. God isn’t someone we should turn to only in times of crisis — He deserves our worship every day.Lord, give us a deeper reverence for You and Your holiness today. Help us to honour You not just in crisis, but in every moment of life.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Samuel – God’s Call!

1Samuel 3v4 “Then the Lord called Samuel.”

When did you last hear the Lord speaking to you?

This is the lovely story of young Samuel asleep at night. He is woken 3 times by the Lord calling his name, but he thinks it is Eli calling him. The fourth time, he answers the call, “Speak for your servant is listening.” (v10).

Our spiritual ears can learn to recognise God speaking to us. At first, Samuel did not realise it was God and needed the encouragement of Eli that it was God speaking. But once, Samuel knew, then we read, “The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.” (v21)

Sometimes God speaks to us for our personal benefit. Sometimes God speaks for us to pass on to others. Samuel was being developed by God as a prophet – one who listened to what God said and then passed it on to others. What is God revealing to you? Is he expecting you to pass the word on to someone else? Sometimes it is only once we speak that we can realise the significance.

The first prophetic words Samuel received from God were not a pleasant message and so he needed Eli’s encouragement to share it. Let’s listen to the Lord and let’s encourage one another in sharing the word of the Lord.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Samuel – Standing out!

1Samuel 2v12,26 “Eli’s sons … had no regard for the LORD … Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favour with the LORD and with men.”

Samuel’s life reminds us of the power of choosing God’s way, even when others don’t. While Eli’s sons lived for themselves—chasing greed and ignoring God—Samuel set his heart on obedience. He didn’t follow the crowd. Instead, he chose to listen to God and serve Him with a willing heart.

That choice was not always easy. Obedience often meant laying aside his own interests. Yet God honoured Samuel for it. Scripture says he “continued to grow in favour with the LORD and with men.” His faithfulness became the foundation of his calling—he would one day anoint David as king, setting in motion the line that would lead to Jesus.

In the same way, our daily choices to obey God matter more than we may ever realise. Sometimes obedience feels costly or inconvenient, but it is never wasted. God sees, God honours, and God works through it.

May we, like Samuel, be willing to stand firm in God’s ways—even when it goes against the flow. Who knows what blessings and purposes God may bring through your obedience today?

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

How to Grow Spiritually – (1) Go to God in Prayer

Matthew 6v6 “When you pray … pray to your Father.”

Happy New Year!! On Sunday mornings a year ago, we looked at the importance of growing spiritually. Being born again is like crossing a border or going through a gate: having crossed the border, it is only sensible to move into all there is in the Kingdom of God. When we journey physically we need all of (say) a car, fuel and directions to enable us to continue moving, so in our spiritual journey we need to use all of the resources we have been given. The first resource is Prayer.

God made you to have conversation with you. Why? Because conversation is key to a relationship. Jesus came to restore conversation between God and you. He has restored the relationship to one of Father and child. Your Heavenly Father wants to share his love and purpose with you. He wants you to know his care for you day by day. And he also wants you to share the details of your life with Him. God calls us into an intimate relationship with Him. It takes time.

Traditionally the visit of the “Magi” is celebrated this coming Saturday. How much time and energy did they invest in travelling to bring some gifts to Jesus? It may have been a couple of years from when they first saw the star to when they arrived in Bethlehem. They left their families, their homes, their normal business and activities and trekked across the Middle East to see Jesus. For all that time and investment, they didn’t see Jesus do anything for them – they just were present with Him and worshipped Him. What am I prepared to put into the pursuit of Jesus this year? What other things come in front of my time with God?

Two years ago we used “The Prayer Course” to give us tools to use in our prayer life. These are available on this link if you would like to use them. https://prayercourse.org/sessions/

May God lead you in spiritual growth and maturity this year,

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Joy to the World

Luke 2v10 “I bring you good news of great JOY that will be for all the people.”

What is the difference between happiness and joy? Some have suggested that happiness is about sensory pleasure while joy is derived from soul satisfying, emotional well-being. While happiness comes from outside things, joy is about the inner self.

In which case, it  would seem that Jesus didn’t come to make us happy because he promised, “In this world you will have trouble.” (John 16v33). But he did come to give that deep inner joy that bubbles up from within even in difficult circumstances. How is this possible?

Our joy is grounded in Jesus who is our Saviour and Lord. He is the one who has loved us and continues to love us. He is the one who brings us to our Father God and through whom we are now children of God. And we know that in Him is ultimate victory. Indeed, Jesus continues, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world,” (John 16v33). As we allow our souls to connect with God and these truths, He satisfies our soul, and our inner being is filled with joy.

I wish you a Happy Christmas, but even more, I wish you a JOYFUL Christmas.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Mary’s shock

Luke 1v29 “Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.”

Mary seems a remarkable young lady.

• First she has the shock of an angel appearing to her. The words of the angel are positive, “Greetings you who are highly favoured! The Lord is with you.” But these positive words do not stop her being surprised and even troubled. It is outside the realm of her experience and she really does not know what the outcome is to be.
• Her second shock is to be told, “You will be with child … and you are to give him the name Jesus.” Afterall, she is only engaged, not married and she has had no sexual activity. There was of course a clue as to how in the description given of her child, “He will be called the Son of the Most High.” Today we look back and can see that this was prophesied in Isaiah 7v11 “The virgin will be with child, she will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means “God is with us”)”, but I doubt this was in the front of Mary’s mind. You can imagine her perplexity as she asks the question, “How will this be since I am a virgin?”
• It may not be so much of a shock, but the angel’s answer must have raised some questions in her mind too, “the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” I think I would still be in question mode. The angel continues to graciously tell her that her elderly relative Elizabeth is pregnant. Maybe this is meant as a sign for Mary that she is able to test by going to visit Elizabeth.

In all this, the angel’s conclusion, “For nothing is impossible with God”, is met by Mary with “I am the Lord’s servant, May it be to me as you have said.”

Let us give thanks to the Lord for Mary’s submissive heart. It also raises the question, “What is the Lord saying to me?” It is good to share our questions and concerns with the Lord, but it is also vital that we submit to his answers.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Jesus Promised

Matthew 1v22 “All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet.”

Do you get those moments of questioning “What if I have got this wrong?”. I love to ponder over the prophecies in the Old Testament and be amazed. What other explanation could there be of such accurate long-range foretelling except that the Bible is truly God speaking to us? That applies to both the prophetic words and prophetic actions of the Old Testament.

Just consider amongst many others:

• Abraham was told by God around 2000BC “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Gen 12v3): look at the global spread of God’s blessing now.
• Abraham was prepared to offer up his-only-promised-son, Isaac, as a sacrifice and spoke the words, “God himself will provide the lamb” (Gen 22v8): look at Jesus, the provision of “The Lamb of God”.
• David wrote Psalm 22 around 1000BC and included many pertinent lines such as, “They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing”: look at the direct correspondence with Christ’s crucifixion.
• Micah wrote about 700BC “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah … out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” (Micah 5v2): look at the birth of Jesus, the eternal Son, in Bethlehem.
• Isaiah also wrote about 700BC, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and you will call him Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7v14): look at Jesus who was born to the virgin Mary.

God’s Word is faithful and true. His promises are always sure.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Jesus Is Coming

Revelation 22v20 “Yes, I am coming soon.”

It is difficult to deny the historic Jesus of the 1st century. And the gospels which record what he did also point to the future. Jesus is going to come back. There’s a lot of uncertainty in our world today. But as a follower of Jesus, this I know, Jesus is Coming Back and he will set things straight!! We therefore do not need to fear.

As Advent begins, let’s look forward to the second coming. There is a lot of speculation about specific elements, but the following are the key things Jesus tells us to keep in mind:

•      He is definitely coming (Rev 22v20) – so be ready
•      We do not know the time, it will be a surprise (Matt 24v36-51) – so be ready
•      It will a definitive moment after which it will be too late to switch to Jesus (Matt 25v1-15) – so be ready
•      He will reward people for how they have used what he has given (Matt 25v14-30) – so be ready
•      He will bringing in a new era, where those who belong to Jesus will rise to be with him and those who are not will be cast out (Matt 25v31-46) – so be ready

The first big question of Advent is not “Am I ready for Christmas?”, but “Am I ready for Christ to come?”  In the parables referred to above, “being ready” means: watch in expectation, pray, be careful to follow Christ, keep being filled with the Holy Spirit, use all God has given you for Him, and serve others.

In God’s grace, may each of us be ready for his coming.

With love and blessing,

Roland