“So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household ate for many days. The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah” 1 Kings 17:15-16
God is looking for obedient and faithful children in these turbulent times that we are living in.
"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these other things will be added unto you." Mathew 6:33
You see the widow only had enough food for one more meal, then she and her little son would die of starvation. She had a choice to make - Was she going to obey the word of the Lord or was she going to make a plan. She decided to obey the word of the Lord. And what happened, she and Elijah had enough food for many, many days.
Today, you and I have to make that same decision. Are we going to obey the word of the Lord in our lives or are we going to try and do it in our own strength? We need to be obedient, but you say: "But I don’t have enough." No, you don’t but He does - He has more than enough and we need to obey Him.
You know I remember so clearly like it was yesterday, in 2008 when we had the Mighty Men Conference here on the Shalom farm. We hired the biggest tent in the world, we had hardly any money. I remember we had R500 in our savings account and it cost millions to hire that tent. Well, we stretched our faith and eventually, the mighty tent arrived. I think seventeen pantechnicons (30-ton rigs) brought it onto the farm.
When they erected it and we put the chairs inside we had 30 000 chairs inside, I know because my son-in-law cable-tied each chair. Then my son came to me, another son, and said: "Dad, we need more money." I said we don’t have any more budget. He said: "Dad, we need more speakers." I said: "But you’ve got hundreds of speakers."
He said, "The sound team engineers have said there’s only enough sound to go to a certain row of chairs, after that there is no more sound."
I said we can’t.
He said, "Dad if you don’t those men will hear nothing."
I had a choice to make, just like you have a choice to make today and like the widow had to make.
I said,” Ok, let’s continue to trust God - Go for it.”
He ordered more banks of speakers, right to the end of the tent on both sides. But you know what was happening at the very same moment, a farmer was woken up by the Lord, a sheep farmer, and God told him to sell a flock of his sheep and to put the money in the campaign account. Which he duly did. You know something, it was the exact amount that we needed to cover the cost of the speakers!
I want to say to you today, just do what the Lord tells you to do, He will undertake for you as He did for that widow and her little boy.
God bless you and have a wonderful week.
14/06/2021
Faith-filled Obedience
June 14, 2021 • Angus Buchan
23/04/2024
April 23, 2024 • Angus Buchan • Revelation 3:16, Matthew 26:75, Mark 16:7
I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 23rd of April, 2024, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Revelation 3:16: “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” Wow! Very strong words from the Lord Jesus Christ. It is better to have tried and failed than to have never tried at all. We need to call sin by it’s name. We need to stand up and be counted. In order for sin to triumph, all that good people need to do, is nothing. To turn your back on the enemy is the most dangerous thing to ever do. Ask any boxer and he will tell you. When he turns away from his opponent, he is as good as dead. We have got to face our enemies and face them head on. A very famous statesman once said, “A man is not defeated by his opponents, but by himself.” Peter, the big fisherman, would have understood exactly what that saying meant, when he denied the Lord Jesus Christ three times, after having told Him that he would die for Him. We can find that in Matthew 26:75. He went out and he wept bitterly. But praise God that our Lord Jesus is the God of the second chance. Yes, Peter got a second chance. You will find that in Mark 16:7. The angel told them: “But go, tell His disciples—and Peter (isn’t that beautiful?)— that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.” And Peter - thats why I love the Lord so much. He knew that Peter would never go because he had denied his Master, so the angel said, “Tell the disciples—and Peter.” That is so precious. If we look at the word of God, all the patriarchs, the men that God chose, men like Moses who was a murderer, remember he killed the slave-driver, but he got a second chance at the burning bush; King David, he did a terrible thing. Nathan, the prophet came and told him, but he got a second chance; Saul of Tarsus was persecuting Christians but he got a second chance, and became Paul the Apostle. Today, ask Him and He will give you a second chance. Jesus bless you and goodbye.
22/04/2024
April 22, 2024 • Angus Buchan • Revelation 3:10, Galatians 6:9
I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Monday morning, the 22nd of April, 2024, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go straight to the Book of Revelation 3:10: “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.” We have to remain steadfast. We have to be immovable, just like the Rock of Gibraltar. We must not give up. We cannot afford to blow hot and then blow cold. Galatians 6:9 - if we do not grow weary in doing good. That rebellious child, that exam that you are struggling with, that relationship - do not quit. That is the one thing that farming has taught me, is never to give up. Keep persevering with that crop of corn which is giving you so much trouble, that sick animal, keep on persevering. It will come through, because Jesus will see us through. I want to ask you a question. Have you ever watched that little dung beetle? They call it a “scarab beetle”. Have you ever sat and watched it? He is a most incredible little creature. They say that he is the most powerful insect in the world. The ancient Egyptians revered that little dung beetle so much, they even carved him on the stones in the pyramids. He is a representative of eternal life to them. Now, listen to this - it can move one thousand, one hundred and forty one times it’s own body weight! It’s the equivalent of a human dragging six double-decker buses along the road. Oh, my dear friend, we must not quit. We must persevere like that little dung beetle. Have you noticed that he is going one way and not giving up for anybody? Respect him and let him teach you something about perseverance. Jesus Christ created that dung beetle, and by the way, He created you and me, and He created us not to give up but to get to our destination. The Lord will help us! Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day, Goodbye.
21/04/2024
April 21, 2024 • Angus Buchan • Isaiah 59:19, Exodus 14:13–14
I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 21st of April, 2024, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Isaiah 59:19: “When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him”. Then we go to the Book of Exodus 14:13-14: “And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.” Today, maybe you are up against a real fight. Maybe it’s at school, maybe it’s at university, maybe it’s in the workplace, maybe it’s a physical ailment, maybe it’s a family dispute, and you don’t know what to do. The Lord says, “Stand still. Stand still, the battle belongs to the Lord alone.” He will fight for you and I. I love the African bush, being an African myself. The one thing I love to see is a pride of lions. A lot of females and young cubs, and then you will find one big, black-maned male lion just lying quietly by himself underneath the tree. You might think all he has to do is eat the meat, and the females have to go and catch the game, and look after the cubs. That is quite true actually, but he has a specific role to play. When the enemy comes in, like a group of hyenas, or maybe lions from a different pride, and they come to trouble the pride, what happens? Oh yes - the big boy stands up and he starts to growl, and he moves in and the enemy moves out! Today remember, you have got the Lion of Judah. He is standing by and He is watching the situation. All you have got to do is call unto Him and He will answer you. Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day, Goodbye.