God is entitled to our worship and our praise. We should give Him glory not because just because we want to, because He asks for it, but because it is due Him. His name is such that He deserves our worship.

It is wrong for us to to think that we deserve anything, because all that we have has been given to us by God. But, for God, worship is something that belongs to Him.

Though there is very little that we can offer to God that He does not already have, one thing we can give to Him that He greatly desires in our worship and our honour. May God help us to glorify Him today and to worship Him with our whole heart.

The love David has for the Lord is far beyond what most people experience.  He does not just trust in the Lord for eternal salvation; he revels in the relationship and fellowship he has with God.  Notice the way that he describes God…

• The Lord is my light, so I don’t have to be in darkness.
• The Lord is my salvation, so I don’t have to be afraid.
• The Lord is the strength of my life, so that I can’t live every day despite the enemies who are all around me.

Farther on in the psalm David says that He main desire, in the midst of all his enemies, is that he could just dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of his life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.  This is something that he says he “desired of the Lord” and was “seeking after.”

I wonder if we long for the Lord as much as David did?  I wonder if He is our light, our salvation, and the strength of our life?  Do we greatly desire just to spend time with God and see God in all His beauty?

Dear Praying Brethren,

Thank you all very much for our coveted prayers. Praise God for His hand upon Missy. The results of the biopsy is that Missy had Hodgkins Lymphoma, probably second stage. The Consultant says it has 80% success in treatment. Now that they have the results, her entire body has to be checked. This morning she was taken to a private hospital clinic for a PET scan. Praise God that this was carried out so quickly ,as usually people have to wait weeks for this. Thursday we will have the results. Yet again we ‘wait’… Today Missy began the first chemotherapy treatment.The Consultant appears to be a kind considerate man, and explained ‘all’ the effects of this treatment is going to have on her.Everything is happening so quickly to her it is difficult to absorb it all. For the present Missy will remain in Dublin hospital but hopefully it will be arranged where treatments can be alternated with a hospital in Cork. This would be such a blessing .

Please do continue prayer for Bernadette as she makes this journey.
Thank you all again for upholding Missy and our family in prayer.

Much of the commercial world is built on the instinctive desire of man to want things.  Even if we don’t need things, advertisers appeal to our wants.

The writer of Psalm 23 has gotten to a place that most people want to get to – a place where he does not want.  He contentment comes not from his having everything the world has to offer but from being satisfied with One who really meets all our legitimate needs.

He says, “I shall not want” right after saying “The Lord is my shepherd.”  When the Lord God is your shepherd, you do not want because what more could you want than the great God of Heaven looking after you.

Think about all that God does for us when we are a part of His flock and are willing to following Him…

• Rest: He makes us lie down in green pastures (23:2).
• Refreshment: He leads us beside the still waters (23:2).
• Renewal: He restoreth our soul (23:3).
• Righteousness: He leads us in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake (23:3).

• Protection: He keeps from being afraid even in the valley of the shadow of death (24:4).
• Presence: He is with us even in the valley of the shadow of death (24:4).
• Comfort: He comforts us with His rod (for direction) and staff (for support) (24:4).

• Provision: He prepares a table before us in the presence of our enemies (24:5).
• Blessing: He anoints our head with oil and our cup runs over with His goodness (24:5).
• Goodness and Mercy: His goodness and mercy follows us all the days of our life (24:6).
• Peace and Contentment: His house is our to dwell in forever (24:6).

The author of this psalm contrasts His own desires with the desires of his enemies.  His enemies…

• Oppressed him and compassed him
• Speak proudly
• Are greedy of prey like a lion

He seeks for deliverance from the evil men who are seeking his soul.  The wicked pursue after evil and selfish things, but he is seeking  for something else.

He desire to behold the face of God in righteousness.  He will be satisfied when he is changed into the likeness of God following the death of the body.

I won’t what we are seeking for.  Are we going after all that this world offers?  Or, are we seeking to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ?  Are we desirous of the likeness of God?  Are we longing for Him to do whatever necessary to be make like unto Him? What will it take to satisfy us?

Dear Praying Friends,

Just a short update on Missy and our family.  I do not have much access to the internet and have not seen my emails so if you emailed I will not see it for a couple of weeks.

The biopsy went fine but took a lot longer than expected. Missy went in at 4 on Friday the 11th of May and came out at just before 9. So the actual operation took about 4 hrs. It took so long because of the location (on the lung and heart) and  the body has grown new viens because tumor has completely blocked off the blood from the main vein that brings blood to the upper part of the body.

Missy was in icu until Sunday afternoon and then she was transfred to the onocology ward. She is resting comfortably. She is on a morphine pump so is not in much pain.

Bernadette drove up on Sat. and saw Missy. She is planning on coming up this morning and bringing Josh and Sam. This will be a real blessing to Missy as she really misses everyone.

At the moment the upper part of the her body is retaining fluids. The doctor said it is because of the way her body is transporting blood. Not as effective as if the main vein was working.

At the moment we do not know if the tumor has invaded the lung or not. The doctors do not believe that it has invaded the heart. Also, they do not know if it has invaded the main vein or if it is just compressing it.

This week, probably tomorrow, we will know what the treatment will be.

Here are some prayer requests:

• Please pray the God will show compassion on us and heal Missy completely.
• Pray for strength and healing for Missy
• Pray for physcial, emotional, and spiritual strength for our whole family through this.
• Pray that God’s name will be glorified.
• Pray for our church through this time.

Thank you for upholding Missy and our family in prayer.

God Bless,

Bro. Lionel

One of the missionaries that our church supports, Layton Kelly, is looking for a man to help him in his ministry.  Layton runs an addictions recovery ministry and men’s home in Dublin, Ireland, and need someone to help him with the ministry.  Below are the details about the opportunity:

Requirements

• A single man who is saved, baptized, and faithful church member.
• A strong Christian with good character and a heart for discipling men overcoming addictions.
• An organised person who can be a real help to the addictions ministry with leading and discipling the men.
• A good, working knowledge of computers, web design, and administration.
• Able to do some basic Bible teaching and training.
• Able to following the leadership standards of the ministry and keep the other men accountable.

Finances

• As far as the financial costs, room and board will be provided.
• A salary of about €100 a week and the use of a vehicle.

Opportunities of the job

• Be able to be involved in discipling and teaching others and seeing God change lives.
• Be able to help out with outreach for Reformers Unanimous ministry.
• Gain experience in hands-on ministry and contribute to the ministry.

Layton is in urgent need of someone who meets the above requirements to help him.  The position would be a minimum commitment of one year, with the opportunity to stay on after that.  If you have any questions or are interested, contact Layton at layton.kelly@btinternet.com.

David is talking about an age-old problem – the lack of godly and faithful men.  He is praying for God’s help because there are so few godly men and so few faithful men.  He looks around and sees that everyone seems to be speaking vanity, using flattering lips, and having a double heart.

He says further on that the Lord wil cut off those who flatter and lie.  Even though men fill the earth with their lies, God’s Word is pure and perfect.  It will be preserved and it will endure.

It is easy to look around and criticize others, but I wonder are we Godly and faithful ourselves?  Do we have a genuine heart and honest words.  God is looking for men like that.  God will use men like that.  Will you be one of those men?

Dear Praying Friends,

Priscilla’s biopsy surgery took over four hours because of its complicated nature. She went straight to intensive care and will remain there until the swelling in her throat subsides. The breathing tube remains in place as she is unable to breathe unassisted. The surgeons have confirmed that the mass is indeed a tumor. We will know what the next step is Tuesday. Please continue to pray.

Psalm 1:1-2 “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.”

I don’t know about you, but I want to be blessed by God.  I want to be a blessed man.  Psalm 1 tells that blessing comes down to the influences in our lives…

• Beware of the wrong influences (v.1).  Don’t walk in the counsel of the ungodly, stand in the way of sinners, or sit in the seat of the scornful.
• Get the right influences (v.2).  Delight in the law of the Lord and meditate in it day and night.

It is amazing how simple this is, yet how profound and how difficult following this advice can be.  This means that the way of blessing is found in the Word of God.

The world offers a way that seems right to them, but we must resist the teaching of the ungodly, and we must be careful how must we allow them to influence us.  The influence of the world is very subtle and can quickly turning from walking, to standing, and then sitting.

We must guard our heart and let the Word of God be our guide.  We need to fall in love with the Bible and think about it all the time.  When we do this…

• We will be like a fruitful tree (v.3).
• We will not be driven away with the wicked (v.4).
• We will stand in the congregation of the righteous (v.5).
• We will be known by the Lord and will not perish with the ungodly (v.6).