Power Verses…… “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28 NKJV version.)

I'm sorry the weekly Power Surge had to be suspended in March, and I apologise to those who let me know how much they benefited from the weekly message. However, a number of events conspired to cause the suspension, and  looking at things retrospectively, the devil has certainly been working overtime in an attempt to nullify my Christian witness!

It started in mid-March. A massive thunderstorm directly above our house blew the power supply, resulting in damage to my broadband, total destruction of my printer and causing my computer to be virtually rebuilt over a period of three weeks. It was a frightening bang.   In the middle of all  this we were in the process of selling our house and planning a move back to the U.K. A big decision after over twenty years in Spain, so we were in the midst of packing boxes, de-cluttering, getting paperwork in order and visiting the U.K. to view property. All extremely time consuming, stressful and challenging, in the searing temperatures of the Spanish summer!. The stress level hit a peak in late July, when not only did the house sale, (which we were led to believe was all but guaranteed) fall through, but it was discovered that I had a small growth on my bladder, which when removed and analysis, proving to be cancerous. Fortunately it was a superficial cancer, not life threatening, currently being treated with chemotherapy.   Remember me in your prayers, along with every member of the Big C Club.

As you read of our five months of stress, you might be thinking, "What a dark and challenging time that was in our lives," and at the time it was, but the darkness has turned to light and I can now see more clearly the working of the hand of God in all this, working to strengthen our faith, and our reliance on Him. I can now understand more clearly why, at the moment, we need to stay where we are.

For example, had we sold our house and returned to the U.K. my cancer scare would have had to have been treated in the U.K. without private health insurance, using a system I have been unfamiliar with for over 20 years.

My wife's mother of 88, recently widowed and living in Spain, would have been left living on her own, without the comfort of knowing that her daughter was 'just around the corner'.

During this stressful season I was introduced to a book, that was simply God-sent at a confusing and testing time in my life. The book, "The Promise" by Robert J. Morgan, uses as it's subject matter the one Bible verse:

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28 NKJV version.)

I found the book to be profound and simple, loving and inspiring, hopeful and helpful. It was the right book at the right time, and written in the way that spoke volumes to me in my current situation. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Allow me to conclude with a story from this book.

Dr. Handley Moule was a brilliant British Bible teacher and author who died in 1920. On one occasion, he was called to the scene of a terrible accident at a British coal mine. Many friends and relatives of the victims of the cave-in gathered, and it was Dr. Moule's responsibility to address them.

"It is very difficult," he  said, "for us to understand why God should let an awful disaster to happen, but we know Him and trust Him and all will be right. I have an old bookmarker given me by my mother. It is worked in silk, and when I examine the reverse side of it I see nothing but a tangle of threads. It looks like a big mistake. At first sight one would think that someone had done it who did not know what she was doing. But when I turned it over and looked at the right side, I see there, beautifully embroidered in glorious colour, the letters, 'God is Love!' Today we are looking at these sad circumstances from the wrong side. Some day we shall see it from another standpoint and we shall understand."

Sometimes in the face of tragedy and disappointment we can only hide ourselves in the promises of God until the storm passes by. We have to reassure our hearts with the promises of Scripture, when we cannot calculate the sums of life. We have to remind ourselves of the truth, regardless of appearances to the contrary, that: "

NOT SOME THINGS, BUT ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD TO THOSE WHO LOVE GOD......."