One thing is certain: disciples will always carry questions about their faith. Like children discovering a world with its ever- expanding horizons, so in our pursuit of God we will need to seek answers to our many questions. As children besiege their parents with endless enquiries, so we may cross examine God.

The only way we can rest in God through each season of life is by retaining our confidence in His promise. The fact that we’re chosen by God, reveals that we are known; from before time right through to the end of time. This is no random choice, but the expression of an immeasurable love expressed in the person of Jesus; humanity and divinity mystically mixed and expressed in human form.

We all know the phrase, ‘The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.’ The concept is found in the poetry of Ovid (43 BC – 17 AD), who wrote ‘Fertilior seges est alenis semper in agris’ (‘the harvest is always more fruitful in another man’s fields’).

Whilst the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Prov. 9:10), this isn’t fearfulness. It’s an awe inspired through our inability to access God combined with His grace in making Himself known. Just as the sun remains inaccessible, we still enjoy the warmth of its rays, and so whilst God lies beyond our comprehension, we feel His presence and marvel at His kindness.

Our friendship with God is sustained and developed through a continuous conversation (1 Thess. 5:17). Jesus reminds us that it is the ‘pure in heart’ who ‘will see God’ (Matt. 5:8). Such purity, a condition where no malice abides and full attention is given to God, is itself a product of our own consideration of how we perceive our relationship with God. David, ruthlessly pursued by Saul and in fear of his life, makes his appeal to God on the basis of his purity of heart.

There are demands the Christian life places upon us. In seeking to obey and serve God through our lives we are requested to pay close attention to every area and note our motivations, attitudes and activities. Indeed, one reason we may find it a challenge to make time for God is because we accumulate so many other interests and so lose sight of Jesus, who is constantly on the move (John 3:8).

Now accepted by God, Paul provides a list of characteristics that we can nurture by His grace. Love lies at the centre of God’s activity throughout the world (John 3:16). Once we discover that we are loved unconditionally, we’re invited to respond to that

Leave something organic in the wrong place and it decomposes. Initially unseen, once rot sets in then items are difficult to restore to pristine condition. This fully represents the reality of our mortal life. We engage in a battle between ‘deformation’ and ‘reformation’. Jesus describes how our eye is drawn instinctively to those things

Our sources of learning all shape our understanding and create our bank of knowledge. This then drives the choices we make and the lives we choose to lead, including our view and treatment of others. Adam and Eve revealed that the first sign of human corruption is self-preservation when seeking to hide from God (Gen. 3:8). 

Experience is knowledge gained from repeated trials. In our Christian life, whilst such knowledge doesn’t come easily, we can find encouragement when observing God’s fingerprints on our life experience. It’s easy to lose confidence in God when life is difficult