God's Word tells us that nothing stays hidden forever. I can immediately see three contexts for this truth. If we have hidden sins in us (some that we are not even aware that we have , so we can ask Jesus to reveal them to us), choose to admit them to Jesus, who has already taken our punishment on the cross, which then releases us from those sins. It helps to speak them out to a trusted person. "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed".(James 5:16). Also, if lies from other people are negatively impacting your life. "do not be afraid of them. For there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, and nothing hidden that will not be made known'" (Matthew 10:26). A third aspect to consider is that God wants to reveal His Kingdom truths to us. It is up to us to seek them in earnest and they will be revealed to us. If we stop looking, Jesus warns that we will forget the limited amount of Kingdom Truths we had previously learnt. (See Mark 4:23-25).

One of William Shakespeare's characters in his play Twelfth Night, who is madly in love, says, "If music be the food of love, play on"! This has caused me to reflect on how many contrasting genres of music we have, such as classical, reggae, Gregorian chant, rapping, gospel, heavy metal etc. God has not only created us to be unique, as mentioned in yesterday's devotional, but diverse. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). Much sincere love is expressed through the vast array of different genres of music. Whether we enjoy or approve of all music, I wonder how surprised we would be if we knew Jesus's views on it all.

Today I saw puffed wheat, with each piece looking very similar, as with popcorn. In contrast, though we can have many similarities, God has created all humans to be unique, which can be attested to with our unique fingerprints. Also, look at nature around us. Incredibly, no two snowflakes have ever been identical. Each snowflake's intricate pattern is determined by what happens as it travels through different layers of air, with diverse combinations of temperature, humidity and air current. Water vapour molecules attach to the growing crystal, creating varying patterns and shapes. Our creator God has created us even more wondrously and we have our different experiences impacting us. God knows how many hairs are on our head at any one time (see Luke 12:7; Matthew 10:30) and this is with us shedding hairs every day. God knows everything about each and every one of us. That is good news if we believe that and knows He loves us and wants to give the best.

Today I saw a picture of someone kneeling on the ground scrubbing away. This has caused me to reflect on what Jesus has done for us so we don't need to kneel and beg God for forgiveness of our filthy sins. Do we realise that Jesus died on the cross as mankind's punishment and sacrifice? Our action is to receive. We are not ordered to worship Jesus but when we truly understand what He has done for us, we will want to fall on our knees to thank, worship and praise Him. "He erased the certificate of debt with its obligations, that was against us and opposed to us, and has taken it away by nailing it to the cross." (Colossians 2:14.)

Today I saw a picture of a bow such as created when a shoe lace has been tied. We know that pulling either of the loose ends will release the bow and, conversely, pulling either of the loops will tighten the bow. Are we tightening our hold on routine actions and procedures that are no longer relevant or necessary? Let's follow God's directives in our lives even though they may unsettle our predictable status quo and comfort zones. Maybe it is time to loosen our control on what we want to do and let God lead? Remember, we are cautioned in Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding".

Today I saw a picture of the weave of a basket, bringing to mind Moses being laid in a basket at the age of 3 months by his mother and sent to float down the River Nile to escape certain death or slavery. The Pharaoh of Egypt was oppressing the people of God as they were flourishing and he was fearful that they could overthrow him. So, it is amazing that the Pharaoh's daughter wanted to keep a Hebrew baby. Moses's older sister who had been watching from a distance her baby brother being found, said she knew a lady available to help nurse and bring up the baby. The suggestion was accepted. The lady she suggested was Moses's mother! (Exodus 2). Moses then lived to 120 years old! (Deuteronomy 34:7). He suffered times of great testing but God used him mightily to save His people from the Egyptian slavery and oppression. On the face of it, needing to let go of one's 3 month old baby, oppression, threat of death etc were dire conditions and yet in God's hand all the situations were transformed into good.

Today I saw a sprouting cauliflower, reminding me of the patterned detail I mentioned over a year ago that Italian mathematician Fibonacci observed consistently and abundantly in nature. There is precision in all that God does and He wants to bless us in the orchestration of events throughout our lives. Ecclesiastes 3:11 declares "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end".

Today I saw some overlapping roof tiles which have reminded me of the group of persistent friends, as recounted in the gospels of Luke (5:19) and Mark (2:4) who lowered their paralytic friend down through a roof, to place him in front of Jesus because they couldn't get through the throng of people surrounding Him. Jesus healed the man and said that his sins were forgiven. In earthly terms Jesus died after this account but all time pivots around His torturous and sacrificial death, whereby all can choose to receive the offering of the forgiveness of sin and healing. We may have to dismantle part of a metaphorical roof, tile by tile, but let us persevere in reaching Jesus with a trust and desire to receive His forgiveness and healing. He so wants to help us reach that point.

Today, when praying for this devotional, I sensed Jesus reminding me that whilst He died on the Cross to take our sins and sicknesses, He did not die to ensure we have lots of money though that does not mean it won't be in His will for us. As a man on earth, many times Jesus warned of the dangers of focussing on money rather than on God, such as: "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money." (Matthew 6:24). The dangers of the love of money are mentioned thousands of times in the Bible. Apostle Paul said, "I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:12-13). So, we are told that we can be assured that our sins are forgiven and that our sicknesses will go. Also, that whatever our personal circumstances with regard to material wealth, we are to trust God that we are in the centre of His Will. How difficult it is to believe all of that. It requires faith to address our questions of Can we see our sins forgiven? Why are we still waiting for our healing? Why are we and/or others in a position of material poverty? Focus on Jesus whilst asking these questions. He will show you.

Today I "saw" level ground having little "blips" causing me to reflect on the fact that though Jesus is our home and security, sometimes we feel unsettled and have little wobbles. I woke up with a wobble related to being unsure of my commitment to a new rental contract with the need to buy furniture in a foreign land whilst, meanwhile, my adult children and grandchildren are elsewhere. Actually, the commitment we should be focussing on is our commitment to God. When we do that, we will learn that He leads us well and carefully into commitments in this world so we need not fear. I need not have a wobble about a new rental contract. God reminds His people, as recorded in Deuteronomy chapter 8, to not forget that our achievements are what He has bestowed on us. In recognising that, we can then go forward confidently in our commitment to God and not worry about other commitments.