I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 19th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start off in the Book of Proverbs 27:20:

“Hell and Destruction are never full; So the eyes of man are never satisfied.” 

Wow! Powerful words. Then we go to the Book of Ecclesiastes 5:10:

“He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; Nor he who loves abundance, with increase. This also is vanity.”

Chasing the wind, folks, chasing the wind, and then lastly we go to the Book of Hosea 12:1:

“Ephraim feeds on the wind, And pursues the east wind; …”

Now we as farmers know there is nothing good that comes out of the East wind. There’s no rain that comes from the East wind, not to speak of. We need to be careful what we are chasing today. People who are chasing money. I want to tell you about a man by the name of Howard Hughes. He was worth, by today’s standards, $55 Billion US dollars. He died as a recluse and he was just an absolute shell of a man. What about fame? Marilyn Monroe was probably the most famous woman when it came to modelling and acting in the world. She died at 36 years old from an overdose. What about power? Wall Street collapse, men jumping out of windows and committing suicide? Chasing the wind. 

Young people, don’t wait and wait and wait before you get married. I’ve spoken to many couples.“ No, as soon as we pay for our house we’ll get married.” Don’t do that. It’s easier for two people to live than for one person to live on their own and you might lose your first love if you wait too long. That young successful farmer, he’s doing very well but he’s getting greedy, he wants to buy the farm next door. That farm could sink you completely. Don’t do it. The young evangelist just keeps on getting sought after, can’t say no and eventually he’s never at home. He’s all over the place. He says he’s doing the Lord’s work but he’s fooling himself because it’s for his own ego and what happens? He loses his family in the end.

Solomon said in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14:

“Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether  good or evil.”

Let us rather obey 1 Timothy 6:6:

“Now godliness with contentment is great gain.”

Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 18th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start in 2 Corinthians 5:20:

”Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us:…”

Isn’t that a beautiful scripture, the Lord speaking to the lost through you and I? Then we go straight to the Book of Revelation 1:11, and Jesus says to John:

“What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches… “

You and I have been called to be representatives of Jesus Christ. We have been called to be ambassadors for the Lord. Now, I’ve just spoken to you about two great ambassadors. One was Paul, the Apostle, and the other was John, the blessed disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. Both of these men wrote the word of God under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. You and I have a responsibility to tell the world about the soon-coming King. Now I can hear someone saying, ”Ja, well I haven’t got much education, I can’t write a book,” or somebody saying, ”I’m in an old age home. I can’t do much anymore.” Or someone is maybe in a hospital and cannot move around. What can I do?” 

The most important thing to do, of course, is to pray, pray and pray! That is the most important thing for any believer to do, but I want to tell you about John Bunyan. Now John Bunyan wrote a book called The Pilgrims Progress, probably the most powerful and well-known book next to the Bible itself. Where did he write it? He wrote it in jail! He was in jail for 12 years off and on. He was a tinker by trade and yet that book, to this day, has impacted lives all over the world. What about C S Lewis, C S Lewis who wrote the book, Chronicles of Narnia? He wrote the Screw Tape Letters. He wrote many books.

Folks, what I’m trying to say to you is, we don’t need to travel around the world in order to get the Gospel out. Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing, you might be a farmer; you might be a businessman; you might be a teacher or a nurse; you might be a professional sportsman. You can be an ambassador for Jesus Christ. Today let’s start standing up and start shouting out from the rooftops that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He loves sinners, that He’s coming soon to take us home to be with Him in heaven forever!

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Friday morning, the 17th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start off in the Book of Hosea 11:7, a very sad verse:

“My people are bent on backsliding from Me.” 

Then we go to Matthew 21:29:

“He answered and said, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he regretted it and went.”

Remember, the Lord told the story of the farmer who had two sons. He told the one son to go and do a certain job. The son said, “I will not,” but later on, he regretted saying that, and he went. The other son said he will go but he never went. Which one will the father prefer? The Lord said the first one. I looked up the Oxford Dictionary to find out the literal meaning of the word, “backslider” - a return to bad behaviour after an attempt to improve. It is plain selfishness, folks. That is all it is, and it is a dangerous place to be. Having known the truth and then turned your back on it and gone back, like the pig goes back to it’s own muck. 

I read an article once of a man who walked out of the divorce courts. He had just divorced his sixth wife, and when they spoke to him he said, “She tried so hard to please me.” That is the ultimate in selfishness. He had six wives, but he never could see the log in his own eye. He was always busy taking the speck out of everybody else’s eye but never looking at himself. You know, it is better for us never to have known our beloved Lord Jesus, than to have known Him and to walk away from Him. 

The ultimate example, of course, is Judas Iscariot.  For three years, he walked with the Lord, saw Him walk on water, saw Him multiply food, He saw miracles, signs and wonders, and still he denied the Lord and betrayed Him. You and I need to understand we cannot live like that today. I want to pray today. Maybe you have a loved one, a son, a daughter, or a father, a mother, who purposely will not walk with the Lord. We need to pray for them because it will be a perilous thing for them to stand in front of the Lord one day, knowing the truth, no excuses and still turning their back on God. 

Father,

I pray today for that backslider. Whatever it takes Lord, bring him home, whatever it is, let it happen so that he can repent and come home. 

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

God bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 16th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We go to the Gospel of John 8:36:

”Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed”.

What a beautiful scripture verse! 

Just the other day I had the privilege of attending a funeral service. I walked in and I could feel the presence of the Lord in that place, a beautiful church. The pastor was waiting, the coffin was positioned in front of the altar. It was a very plain and simple pine box, not even varnished. The handles consisted of sisal rope handles, but some of the most beautiful flowers I have ever seen at any funeral. The dear sister who had passed on had organised her own funeral before she died. She kindly asked me to bring the message of salvation and to give the people an opportunity to accept Christ. The music was glorious and triumphant, the tributes from the family were warm, loving and even humorous at times, and most of all, the freedom and the love of Christ, our Lord Jesus, was tangible. At the altar call there was not one person who did not respond. Indeed, the whole congregation prayed the sinner’s prayer together.

Now, the order of service was beautifully printed with lovely photos, but this beautiful poem I want to read you was written on the fly-leaf. I want to say, well done my dearest sister in Christ, go and rest in peace, all your desires have been fulfilled. And this is how the poem goes. It is titled, “I Am Free”:

Don’t grieve for me for now I’m free,

I’m following the path God laid for me

I took his hand when I heard him call,

I turned my back and left it all

I could not stay another day,

To laugh, to love, to work or play

Tasks left undone must stay that way,

I’ve found that peace at the close of the day

If my parting has left a void,

Then fill it with remembered joy

A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss,

Ah yes, these things I too will miss

Be not burdened with times of sorrow,

I wish for you the sunshine of tomorrow

My life’s been full, I’ve savoured much,

Good friends, good times, a loved one’s touch

If my time seemed all too brief,

Don’t lengthen it now with undue grief

Lift up your heart and share with me,

God wanted me now and He has set me free.

Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 15th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start off in the Book of Micah 6:8:

“…But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?” 

This year we are going to keep short lists. Yes, I am talking about New Year’s resolutions. They never work, do they? Maybe some of us have already broken resolutions we made on the 1st of this month. We need to keep them short and we need to execute them. Short lists - don’t just talk about it, but do them. Do justly, starting in your own home with your own wife and your own husband and your own children. Do justly to those people who you work with and that you work for. Honour them. Do justly as if you were doing it unto the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself. 

Be merciful, love mercy. Folks, people are suffering. We get letters every single day of the week, hundreds of them. People are suffering. They are sick physically, spiritually and mentally, and they need mercy, they need love. People make mistakes, all of us. Be merciful to them because it is only by the grace of God that you are standing today. And then, walk humbly with your God. Oh, He is a beautiful friend who sticks closer than a brother. We are saved by grace and grace alone. We are not saved by any good works, by any effort. It is just because He loves us. Let us not become arrogant. Arrogance, I think is one of the things that keep people away from the Lord because they see the way we strut around and they say, “Well, if that is how a Christian is going to behave, I don’t want to be a Christian.” Let’s be humble, let’s prefer one another, let’s get to the back of the queue. If somebody wants to push in, take a step back. Let him go through, let her go through. 

If somebody overtakes you on the highway and pushes in, one gets so angry sometimes but you don’t know why that person is in such a rush. Maybe they have a sick child in the car, you never know. Just put your hand up and bless them rather than shake your fist at them. Let’s walk the talk. This year, let’s be Jesus to a dying world. 

Have a wonderful day,
God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 14th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Book of Hosea 8:2:

“Israel will cry to me, “My God, we know you!”

But the children of Israel did not know God at that time. They thought they did but they were playing the harlot. They were building things they said were for God but it wasn’t for God, it was for them. 

Then we go straight to the Book of Titus 1:16:

“They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him,…”

You know, the Westminster Confession was a group of men of God who many, many years ago got together and they wanted to seek the main purpose for God’s creation for man on earth and this is the conclusion that they came to: “The main purpose of man is to glorify God (number one) and to enjoy Him forever.” That’s it. You see, God doesn’t need us. He really doesn’t need you and I. He wants us, He created us so that we could have fellowship with Him. He wants us but He doesn’t need us. He said one word and everything you and I can see came into being immediately. A few years back, quite a few years back now actually, I virtually heard God speak to me audibly. Now, He has never spoken to me audibly but He spoke to me in my heart so clearly one day. It is laughable but it is actually very serious and this is basically what He said, “Angus, your busyness is making Me tired.” Oh folks! It was a rebuke - “Your busyness is even making Me tired!” You see, it is not what we can do for God, its fellowship that He is wanting, folks.

Now, moms and dads, it is like your children. Please hear what I am saying, I have walked this road. Your children want you. They don’t want what you can do for them. What does it say in the Book of Mark 8:36:

“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?”

Well you can change that a little bit to, “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his family?” Remember, a good idea is not always a God-idea. We don’t need to help God, we need to obey God. Now, if it is not working for you today, stop it. I really mean that. Stop it. Stop chasing around, wearing yourself out and wearing everybody else out, building things that you say are for God, but they are not. They are idols. Lay them down, spend time with God, spend time with your children, and your life will be much more successful.

Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Monday morning, the 13th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We go to the Gospel of Luke 19:40, Jesus said:

“I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.”

Oh folks. The Pharisees said to the Lord, ”Listen to these people; they’re worshipping you. Tell them to keep quiet.” And the Lord said the very stones would praise Him if the people didn’t. You know, we go to an early morning men's prayer group, and we gather together when it is still dark. We have been doing it for years, and these men are working men but they come out to pray and to worship the Lord, and we pray before the sun rises, just ordinary men, we pray for our families, we pray for the countries of the world, we pray for the lost, we pray for revival but before that, we sing! No, no, no, we are not opera singers. No, no, we are not famous singers, we are not on the hit list, but you know something? We praise the Lord.

Folks, I want to tell you that when we go into that little chapel on the farm, men come in there with all kinds of burdens, but when you praise the Lord you can feel the burdens literally lifting and there is an openness that comes and a joy, and laughter, and faith and expectancy. I want to sing a little song. You all know it, and I want you to sing it with me. It goes like this:

And He is Lord, He is Lord,
He has risen from the dead 
And He is Lord.

Every knee shall bow,
Every tongue confess,
That Jesus Christ is Lord.

Come on, you in your pick-up, you are driving, you are getting the kids ready for school, I don’t know where you are - come on, sing it with me!

And He is Lord, He is Lord,
He has risen from the dead 
And He is Lord,

Every knee shall bow,
Every tongue confess,
That Jesus Christ is Lord.

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye. 

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 12th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Book of Habakkuk 2:2-3: 

“Then the Lord answered me and said:

“Write the vision
And make it plain on tablets,
That he may run who reads it.
For the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it;
Because it will surely come,
It will not tarry.”

I want to ask you today, have you written down any areas of your life that you want to clean up, that you want to do better for the year 2025? We are right into it already. We are almost halfway through January. Can you believe it? But you know, if you don’t write it down, you have got nothing to aim for. What do they say? If you aim at nothing you are sure to hit it. You have got to get that journal. Write down your vision and make it plain, so that others can run with it as well. I have been looking at a devotional and this is what it said, “Think it over.” Now, I wrote in this devotional, you won’t believe it, in the year 2003, 22 years ago! This is what I wrote: “I intend to read my Bible more, to pray more, to have more Christian fellowship, to become a better husband, to become a better dad, to become a better grandad and to work harder for the Kingdom of God.” That is what I wrote in the year 2003, and I stumbled upon that reading this very morning. 

I want to say to you, write down the thing that you are aiming for. 22 years ago that is what I was aiming for and I can tell you from my heart that that is still my vision even today. I am not saying that I achieved it by any means, but that is what I am aiming for. And I want to say to you as well, take a notebook, take a diary and write it down, what you are wanting to do and accomplish and then work towards it, and then the Lord says that we must wait for it, He says because it will speak in due course.

Have a wonderful day.
Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 11th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. 

We start in the Gospel of Matthew 15:11. Jesus says:

”Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”

You and I have to clean our act up. Yes, we need to check our hearts today because it is more than outward appearances. You see, Jesus and His disciples were eating some food. They hadn’t washed their hands. They had probably been on the road. The pious Pharisees and scribes started pointing fingers. They said, “Look at these men! They don’t even wash their hands before they eat.” But the Pharisees and scribes went through all their rituals, their traditions, and had a special way of washing their hands, of washing their utensils, but inside they were rotten and Jesus saw it. 

We must not be hypocrites. As believers, we have got to be an example to the world. Jesus is more interested in the inside of a man or woman than the outside appearance of a man or a woman. Matthew 23:27:

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.”

You see, it is hypocrisy that keeps a lot of people from turning to Jesus Christ. Mahatma Gandhi said he would have no problem following this Man, Jesus, but he could not reconcile himself to the followers of Jesus. We’ve really got to start to clean the inside first. I looked up the Oxford Dictionary of the word hypocrisy, and it is really quite scary. It said, “Behaviour in which a person pretends to have a higher standard than what they really have.”

One of the saddest things that happened to me as a new Christian, many years ago - I heard a true story about a pastor. He was a very fine looking man, always well-dressed, well-spoken and he preached a great message. He went away for a couple of weeks and left the key of his postbox with his secretary and his secretary would go and take the post out every week. She went this one week and took the post out and there she found a pornographic magazine that this pastor was subscribing to.  You see, he had forgotten that the magazine was coming to his postbox and that destroyed his ministry. After that, he left town. I want to say to you, let us be very careful that we walk the talk.

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Friday morning, the 10th of January, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start in Psalm 90:17: 

“And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,
And establish the work of our hands for us;
Yes, establish the work of our hands.”

Make us successful in everything we do, please Lord Jesus, establishing the work of our hands. You know, some say Moses was the greatest leader who has ever lived, apart from Jesus obviously. He took a whole nation for forty years through the desert. Folks, we are talking about temperatures of over 45 degrees, 50 degrees sometimes during the day, and freezing at night. He fed those people, a whole nation, not for one year but for forty years. Moses was a great man of God, but you see his prayer was, “Make us successful, Lord, for Your glory.”

I want to ask you a question. Are you praying every morning before you start work with your staff? Are you praying and committing the day’s work into the Lord’s hands before you start? Whether you be a farmer, school teacher, businessman, or construction man, are you standing with your staff and praying every morning and reading a scripture verse before you start work? Do you know that the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself, every single morning, early in the morning, spent time getting instruction from His Heavenly Father as to what He had to do? If you read Mark 6:46, He departed to the mountain to pray, to be alone with the Lord. I want to encourage you to pray in the mornings before you start. That is what makes you a successful man or woman, by committing everything into God’s hands before you do anything else. I want to pray for you at the start of this year that you will do it, that you will discipline yourself and do it every single day. It just makes the day go so much smoother and there is such a bonding with your people when you start the day in prayer. 

Father God,

I pray for my friends today, before they start work every morning, that like the man of God, Moses, they will pray, “Lord establish the work of our hands please”, in Jesus' precious name, 

Amen.

God bless you and goodbye.