I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 28th of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start in the Book of Genesis 4:6:

”So the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?”

Then we go to a very special verse in the Bible for me, 1 Timothy 6:6:

“Now godliness with contentment is great gain.” 

Remember the prodigal son? The prodigal son came to his father and said, “I want my inheritance.” His dad gave him all the money that was due to him. He went and spent it foolishly on women, wine and song, and he came back as an absolute tramp. He lost everything. His father was so relieved to see him come back. He had a big party organised. He loved him, but the older son who had been working in the field all day, became jealous. 

Jealousy is a killer. He forgot that his father was going to leave the farm to him (he was the oldest son) and everything that he had, and because his brother was fussed over, he said, “My brother did nothing. He squandered everything we had, and my dad goes and slaughtered the fat ox and has a party, where he won’t even give me a goat that I can have a party with my friends." Jealousy - it is ugly, it’s distasteful. That is what happened with Cain and Abel. Cain became jealous of Abel, and as we know in the story, eventually, he actually killed his brother. Folks, we need to be so careful. The countenance is what he lost. His father could see it because Cain became resentful, he became distrustful, envious and he became suspicious. 

Young lady, if you allow that jealousy to get into you, it will destroy you. You will start thinking things that are not even true. Look what happened with Saul, the first king of Israel. He was a handsome man, head and shoulders above any other man in Israel, and when he saw the young shepherd boy, David, succeed, instead of encouraging him, he actually lost his countenance and became a bitter and resentful man. 

It is like rust in a motorcar. When rust gets into a vehicle, you take it to a panel beater. He doesn’t put body filler over the top and cover it over and paint it. No, he takes his cutting torch out and cuts out that piece of rust and he puts new plates in, welds it up and then he paints it over and it’s fine. Today, deal with that jealousy in your life. How do we deal with it? By looking to Jesus Christ and He will give you peace.

Count your blessings. Look what you have, and the person you are jealous of, love them and pray for them. God will heal you and set you free.

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 27th of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for the day.

We go straight to the Gospel of John 15:7:

“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

Wow! Now that’s powerful. Think about that. I looked up the Oxford Dictionary to find out the literal meaning of the word, “abide”. It means to accept or obey a rule or decision. So if you obey the word of God, if you as a believer do what God has called you to do, and when you go out and about, His word remains in your heart during the day, during the night, when you are about to write an examination, when you are going to start a new job, when you are endeavouring to do something you have never done before, if you keep the word of God in your heart, He says what you desire shall be done for you. Now, that is massive.

As I walked into my prayer room early this morning, there was a message for me, and the message came all the way from Northern Ireland, from one of my spiritual sons, and he said, “Dad, Angus, I have just watched the movie, Faith Like Potatoes, and I want to encourage you and thank you for it because of what it means to me.” 

Now, as a young boy, my desire was to get the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the furthest points of Planet Earth, and I want to sit here and tell you in my little prayer room, that that desire of my heart is actually coming to pass in front of my very eyes and I have nothing to do with it. I just asked the Lord, many, many years ago, “Lord, I want you to use me to send the word to the furthest points of the planet Earth, and He is doing it.

Today, if you keep the word of God close to your heart and you stay close to Him, then you are going to ask correctly, and He is going to answer you. 

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Monday morning, the 26th of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We go straight to the word of God, to the Book of Isaiah 53:3:

“He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.”

I want to speak to you this morning about rejection. What is rejection? Well, according to the Oxford Dictionary it is to be shunned, to be cast off, to be turned down, to be snubbed, to become unpopular. Jesus knows exactly how you feel today, my dear friend. If you have been rejected, I know what it means, and I know what it feels like, but Jesus really knows. Not only does He know but He cares. He cares for you and most of all, He understands what you are going through.

The great revivalist, George Whitefield, who lived in the 1770’s said, “If you are going to walk with Jesus Christ, you are going to be opposed. In our days, to be a true Christian is really to become a scandal.” Now that is heavy going. Who is going to make you a scandal? It will probably be nominal christians, christians who say, “Lets live and let live and if that guy wants to live that lifestyle, leave him, and if that woman wants to do that, lets just have peace.” That’s not what God called us to do. He called us to be salty, He called us to be different, He called us to stand up for truth and righteousness and give us a passion for lost people, hurting people, sick people and rejected people! 

DL Moody, another great evangelist said, tongue in cheek, but it is true, ‘If everybody has got something good to say about you, be sure, Jesus has got nothing good to say about you.” It’s true, isn’t it? Because if everybody has got something good to say about you, you are luke-warm, you are like salt that has lost it’s flavour and is only good to be cast out in the street and trampled over. 

So be encouraged today if you are rejected because you are standing up for truth and righteousness, and know that the Lord is very proud of you and when He comes back to take us home with Him, He will recognise you.

God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 25th of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start in the Book of Romans 3:23:

“…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, …”

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16

Why did God send His only Son down to earth to die for your sins and my sins? Do you know why? Because God knew we could never make it to Heaven on our own because there is not one person on this earth, apart from Jesus Christ, who is without sin. It is impossible for a man to work his way to Heaven. Did you hear that? Impossible. Now, I love George Whitefield, the great English evangelist who died in his mid-fifties, but he said something I have never forgotten. I am laughing because I want you to think about this. He said, “It is easier to go to the moon with a rope made of sand than it is to work your way to Heaven.” In other words, it is impossible.

I remember many, many years ago, I had the privilege of ministering at a funeral. The gentleman that had died was a very good friend, and he had a very checkered background, he had made some mistakes in his life. He had done some things that he regretted, but one thing I did know about him is that he loved Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Saviour, and he was born again. I said at the funeral, ‘I know this man is with Jesus, not because he was a good man but because he was a believer.” And at the end of the service, a neighbour came up to me and he was furious. He said, “How can you say that good people don’t go to Heaven?” I said, “Good people cannot go to Heaven, only believers can go to Heaven.” He was not very happy, but you know, before that man died, his son had led him to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Today, do not fool people and try and tell them that because they are good people they are going to Heaven. That is not the truth. It is only believers in Jesus Christ that will go to Heaven.

Have a wonderful day,
God bless you and goodbye. 

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 24th of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We go to the Book of Matthew 7:17. Jesus says,

“Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.”

Then if we go onto verse 20, the Lord says:

“Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”

Then we go to James 2:18:

”…and I will show you my faith by my works.”  

Folks, remember that our words must match our lifestyle. You can get a fancy qualification through bribery, cheating and corruption. That’s maybe the easy part, but then when you get into the world to get a job and the employer employs you and tells you to get into the workshop and fix that tractor, fix that motorcar, and you can’t do it, straight away you are in big trouble and you will not last there very long at all. Your words must match up to your lifestyle. What you say, you must be able to deliver. 

I remember hearing a story of a man that was having a party with all his friends and the conversation got onto a certain sport. This man said, “Yes, I played for that team. I was in the first team at university and I got my full colours for my sporting abilities,” and another man standing next to him said, “What team did you play for?”  And he told him, “The first team.”  “What university did you go to?” He told him the name of the university.” And what year did you play?” He told him the year and he said, “That is very strange because I played for the same team, at the same year and I played in the first team and I don’t remember you at all!” Do you know how embarrassing that can be? Don’t do that. 

I want to say to the young lady who is listening to this message, be sure that that young man you are going out with can deliver what he says. Words are very cheap and they are easy to say, but I want to tell you, there must be fruit. If he is continually late when he fetches you for an invitation that he has invited you to, there is a note there. If he is always spending time with other girls but tells you that he loves you, there is another problem coming that side. You know, when somebody falls in love with you, he will be there on time, in fact even earlier, because the fruit of what he is producing is love, and he loves you and respects you. Check the fruit and you will see that a fig does not come from a thorn tree.

Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Friday morning, the 23rd of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We go to the Gospel of Luke 6:42:

”…how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye.”

I am laughing because that applies to every single one of us, especially you, sir! You know folks, I love Jesus so much and His teachings are so simple and yet so profound. Remember, people who live in glass houses don’t throw stones. Do not criticise, sort your own situation out before you start to criticise and become a hypocrite. Now, I looked up the Oxford Dictionary to find out the literal meaning of the word, “hypocrite”. It means “a person who pretends to have higher standards than they really have,” and that is you and I, isn’t it? Let’s be honest. 

I have one of my sons who is a very accomplished rugby coach. He has his full colours for Kwazulu-Natal for teaching schoolboys how to play rugby, and often he comes up and visits us on the farm (he is living down in Durban), and we have a little chuckle together. He says to me, “Dad, the main problem I have coaching rugby is not the little boys I have to teach. No, it’s their mothers.” That’s what he told me! 

He didn’t say so much about the dads. Mom, you must listen up today. He said they stand on the sidelines, and they are telling their little boy that they must kick the ball, or pass the ball or that he must tackle, or that he is messing up the game plan. He said it gets so bad that he has told the little boys - by the way, it is not their fault - ”If you listen to your mother shouting from the sideline, I am going to substitute you for somebody else." That is harsh, hey? But that is what he has to do because otherwise the kids are listening to their parents who have never played rugby, and this young son of mine has got his full colours as a rugby coach! And of course, the little boys listen to the rugby coach and that is why he is so successful.

Today, please let us, all of us, take the plank out of our own eyes before we start to tell other people how to live. Let’s start doing what Jesus says and not what we think. 

Have a wonderful day,
God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Thursday morning, 22nd May 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for the day.

We start in the first book of the Bible, Genesis 3:9:

“Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” He could not find Adam.

Then we go to Proverbs 18:24:

“…there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” But if you want to have a friend, you have to be friendly!

I want to say to you today that the reason why God created us, man and woman, is not because He needed us. God doesn’t need anybody nor anything because He is God. Go outside today and look around at the clouds in the sky, the moon at night, the sun during the day, the stars - He made them all by saying one word. In the beginning was the Word, so He doesn’t need us, but He created us because He wants to have you as His personal friend. 

Now, to me, it is one of the saddest scripture verses in the Bible. “Adam, Adam, where are you? I am looking for you.” What was Adam doing? Adam and Eve were hiding. Why were they hiding? Because they had been disobedient and had eaten of the forbidden fruit. God knew that, of course, because He knows everything, and He was so heartsore because His friends had actually disobeyed Him. Let’s not do that today.

You see, God didn’t run away from Adam and Eve, they ran away from Him. Jesus never ran away from the disciples or blamed any of them. The disciples ran away from the only Man on earth who could help them, Jesus Christ. It is so precious to have a dear friend and another mistake that we make so often - “I want to go and see my old friend but I just don’t have the time”. Then eventually you get to it. You pick up the phone or you go and visit him and they say, “He died last week. He has gone home to Heaven.” What a tragedy, and you didn’t even have a chance to say goodbye.

Today, do not hide from God and be obedient to what the Lord tells you. Go and visit your friend because if you are lonely, the best way to overcome loneliness is to go and be a friend to someone else. 

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 21st of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We go straight to the Gospel of Luke 6:38. Jesus says:

”Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”  

We are talking about giving, and I want to clarify something here this morning. We are not just talking about money, although money is also a factor. What you give is what you get. If you give nothing, you get nothing. It’s very simple, and this is what the Lord is saying but, you cannot out bless God. I love Him so much. I want you to know that. The more you give Him the more He gives you back. You see, because He is a giver by nature. He’s not a taker. He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ to you and me so that we might have eternal life.

We started a little children’s home many years ago on the farm. I think you may be aware of that. I'll never forget, at one stage we had 18 cots, little cots in our children’s home with babies in it that were all a couple of months old. We didn’t do it for any return. We did it because Jesus said that we must take care of them. These children were abandoned and they were found in different places -  abandoned in hospitals, abandoned walking down the road, and we took them in. Twenty-seven of them, plus a number that went to be with the Lord because they died in our little children’s home, but they were loved up until the day they died, but I want to tell you, you can’t out bless the Lord. The Lord says: ”For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

Just yesterday, I went into town to watch one of my little grandsons playing rugby. There was another school playing against the school my grandson goes to, and I looked up and I saw one of the coaches that was coaching the opposition team, and I looked and I saw that it was one of my sons that had grown up in our children’s home. He has grown into a fine, handsome young man. I shouted across the field to him and he shouted back, ”Hello Dad, how are you?” I was so proud. I didn’t have to tell anybody else, and I have many, many sons and daughters. Some are professional rugby coaches, others are international singers, others are farm managers, others are cordon bleu chefs. We have many that have done so well and we give all the praise, honour and glory to Jesus Christ.

Today, start sowing intentionally and you will reap.
God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 20th of May, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We start in 2 Corinthians 11:3:

“But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ Jesus.”  

We have got to keep it simple, very simple. When the devil tempted Eve in the garden, he didn’t say, “God said this…” No, he asked her the question in Genesis 3:1:

“Has God  (really, has He) indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”

You see, that is how the devil works, he doesn’t attack you straight on. He plays with your mind. He says, “It’s not that bad, is it?” We need to keep the Gospel simple. There is nothing difficult about the Gospel.

I looked up the Oxford Dictionary to find out the literal meaning of the word, “simplicity” and one of the meanings is “clean lines”. Keep it clean, don’t let it get congested. Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith you cannot please God, and he who believes must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. God said it, we believe it, that settles it. We must be careful that we are not too clever for our own good because the devil will help you along.

A lot of people in South Africa are starting to write exams, whether it be for your final year in school or university, and I want to tell you about something called cheating. Cheating is a sin. You cannot cheat. “Aah”, you say, “but Uncle Angus, it is not going to hurt anybody else. It is just going to help me along.” No, what it is going to do, it is going to open the door for the devil to come in and play havoc with your life. Remember, there is nothing new under the sun - the wisest man who ever lived said that. “Did God really say...?” That is how the devil works. “Is it really going to hurt anybody? No - well, then do it!” 

I want to say to you today, you need to watch out for the slyness of the devil. I was taught when I was a new Christian, “Look out for the 3 “P’s”. What are the 3 “P’s”? It is not a joke. The first P is power. When you get power, you want more power because people listen to you and you start thinking that you are something when you are not. That is the first “P”. 

The second one is petticoats. I am talking to the men. Look out for the temptation of the devil. You shouldn’t go anywhere with a woman who is not your wife by yourself, because of the temptation of the devil. “Aah, but it is just a one-night stand. No-one will find out.” Do you know how many letters I get from men who are broken because they let their wives down? It has destroyed their marriage. 

Then the pennies, chasing the money. Chasing the money, you don’t pay your income tax. You think you are clever? I want to tell you something now, you will be caught out. That is exactly what happened to Eve in the Garden of Eden.

Today, let’s sharpen up our act and let’s not give the devil a chance to move in. 

God bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye.

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

Genesis 2:18, yes, the first book in the Bible, says:

“And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” 

He didn’t want the men to be lonely. Then we go straight to Matthew 19:5:

‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’.

Women are so different to men. I can hear all the men saying, “Hallelujah”! Do you remember that movie? Many of you don’t, but I am sure you have all heard of it, it was made in 1964, called My Fair Lady? The punchline from the movie is, “I said I’d make a woman and indeed I did. I knew that I could do it! I knew it! I knew it! I said I would make a woman and succeed, and I did.” Remember, the actor when he and his friend were in the street in London? They saw this illiterate young girl selling flowers on the street, and he said to his friend, “I will bet you that I can change that street urchin”, as it were, “into a refined lady”, and they took a bet. That was the theme of the movie. A common woman, uneducated, selling flowers on the street to try and make some money and he educated her into a beautiful, sophisticated young woman, and that is exactly what God did for you and me.

My best friend is my wife. There is no doubt about it. I don’t have to go out with ten other people to enjoy myself. I can spend time with Jill, on my own, as long as I need to and hopefully she will say the same about me. Why? Because God has made and created you and I for each other. I read you the scripture just now. For this reason, a man will leave his mom and dad, and I love my mother and father, be joined to his wife and the two will become one flesh. Such a beautiful union, made in Heaven!

Look after your wives today, gentlemen. Treat them gently. They are not rough like us. They are gentle and refined, they are beautiful, and they are very strong, and they are also made in the image of God. 

Have a wonderful day!
Jesus bless you and goodbye.