I’m 26 weeks pregnant with my third child as I write this. Unlike my other two pregnancies, this one wasn’t planned, and honestly, I was very emotional when I found out. My daughter was only nine months old at the time, and I had been suffering with chronic pain, sleep deprivation and anxiety. Another baby certainly wasn’t what I was hoping for so soon, or at all.

However, I knew that God doesn’t make mistakes. Scripture teaches that human life is neither accidental nor meaningless. God is intimately involved in His creation from its earliest moments.

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made… Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” - Psalm 139:13–16

Once the initial shock wore off, I quickly began to feel overjoyed that God had blessed us once again in such a way. Miraculously, the pain and anxiety had shifted within those early weeks and even sleep had drastically improved, praise be to God!

As a parent, you cannot fathom a life without your children. They become our entire world - and what a more richer, more fulfilling, and more rewarding life it is with them in it!

“Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.” – Psalm 127:3

“It’s just a clump of cells”

The average human adult body is made up of up to 37 trillion cells. Those cells make up 99% of the human body, and each cell has a specific function and identity.

At the very earliest stage of fertilization, when the sperm meets the egg, a single cell called a zygote forms. The zygote instantly has a unique DNA sequence and begins self-directed development. It’s not just a part of the mother’s body – it’s a distinct, developing organism that rapidly divides into a self-organising, goal-directed, biological system. (Langman’s Medical Embryology)

“At the moment the sperm cell of the human male meets the ovum of the female and the union results in a fertilized ovum (zygote), a new life has begun.” - Considine, Douglas (ed.). Van Nostrand’s Scientific Encyclopedia.

A zygote is the very beginning of a new human being. Not just a single cell, which divides into a cluster of cells, but an organised, developing human life.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.” - Jeremiah 1:5

The Spark of Life

One of the most fascinating discoveries in modern embryology came in 2016, when researchers observed what they called a “zinc spark.” When a sperm successfully fuses with an egg, billions of zinc atoms are released immediately following fertilisation. Under a specialised fluorescence microscope, this appears as a brilliant flash or “spark” around the egg.

This image is a remarkable visual reminder that profound biological changes begin at the very earliest moments of human development.

“Before I was born the Lord called me; from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.” - Isaiah 49:1

Where biology and scripture meet

Science enables us to observe, measure and understand the natural world with extraordinary precision. However, science is limited in that it cannot answer every moral question, nor can it tell us what a human life is worth. It cannot determine whether one human being deserves more value than another.

What science can tell us is when a new human organism begins. Modern embryology describes fertilisation as the moment when a unique, living human organism comes into existence and begins its continuous journey of growth and development.

One question that science cannot answer, but the Bible can, is why does that human life matter?

The Bible tells us that every human being possesses inherent and equal dignity because every human being is created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Our value is not earned through intelligence, independence, productivity or age. It is bestowed by our Creator.

Every person is equal in worth at every stage of life, regardless of what they can do. This includes newborns, young children, the handicapped, and the elderly with dementia.

An embryo therefore is not valuable because of its abilities or level of development, it’s valuable because of what it is - a human life, created by God, bearing His image from the moment of conception.

The value of life

The way we treat the smallest and most vulnerable among us reveals what we truly believe about humanity itself.

If the value of human life depends upon size, intelligence, independence, location or stage of development, then the foundation of universal human rights would completely dismantle, leading to severe legal, ethical and societal consequences.

However, if every human being is created in the image of God, then every stage of human life possesses inherent dignity, and is worthy of compassion, justice and protection.

An unborn child is not a problem to be solved or a mistake to be managed. An unborn child is a human life in its earliest stage of development - exactly as every one of us once was.

We all began as a single cell, and we all grew through the same extraordinary process of development. Every heartbeat, every hand, every face and every mind traces its story back to that first moment of fertilization - the very beginning of human life.

Science allows us to witness the astonishing precision of the moment life begins, and scripture reveals the One who designed it.

Atheists often argue that because the world is full of pain, suffering, cruelty and evil, there surely cannot be a good and loving Creator. I once too, had those beliefs.

Just five years ago, before Jesus Christ revealed Himself to me, I would have been the first person to blame God for the evils of the world. I felt justified to question God’s existence, often repeating the classic “If God is so good, why does evil exist?” or “If God is real, why does He allow suffering?” This way of thinking can seem reasonable when you do not know Jesus, and when you have never seriously read the Bible.

However, we cannot know the truth about evil if we reject Jesus, who is the truth. Jesus said to His believers, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” - John 8:32. Jesus did not simply claim to teach truth, as He also said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” - John 14:6.

So if we want to understand evil, suffering, sin, justice and the condition of the world, we have to begin with God’s Word. Not human emotion, not cultural opinion, and not the accusation that God must somehow be guilty for the evil choices of mankind.

No human being on earth is exempt from suffering as a result of other human behaviour. Humans alone are responsible for lying, stealing, abusing, murdering, raping, betraying, destroying, exploiting… the list could go on.

Yet, when evil is committed, many people turn around and blame God. They say, “Why didn’t God intervene?” Not understanding that free will doesn’t work that way. In order to understand free will, sin and evil, we have to go back to the very beginning.

Free Will and the Fall

God created a good and perfect world in Genesis 1 and 2. Genesis tells us repeatedly that what God made was good. Creation was not evil, and the world was not broken. Death, disease, corruption, rebellion, disorder, shame and suffering were not part of God’s original design.

But things take a turn in Genesis 3, when Satan appears in the garden and does what he still does today: he questions, twists and distorts God’s Word.

God had clearly warned Adam that eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil would bring death: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” - Genesis 2:16–17.

But Satan distorts the truth by telling Eve, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” - Genesis 3:4–5.

This is the first recorded temptation in Scripture, and it reveals the pattern of sin: Satan questions God’s Word, then he attacks God’s character by suggesting that God is withholding something good. Satan then tells Eve that obedience is restriction and presents rebellion as freedom. In other words, Satan says: “Do not trust God. Trust yourself.” This is the lie beneath every sin.

When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they were essentially saying: “It may be Your garden, but we will choose our own rules. We will decide what is good and evil for ourselves.” This sounds a lot like most people in the world today.

Sin isn’t just “doing bad things.” Sin is rebellion against God. It’s the lie that mankind can replace God as the ultimate authority on truth, morality, identity and purpose. Culture encourages us to “follow your heart,” and “live your truth.” That is not freedom, its deception, coming from the same ancient lie Satan told Eve in the garden.

Shifting the Blame

Sin results in shame, which is why Adam and Eve hid from God after disobeying Him, and when confronted by God, neither of them took responsibility.

Adam sinned, but he blamed Eve: “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” - Genesis 3:12.

Eve sinned, but she blamed the serpent: “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” - Genesis 3:13.

Humans have been shifting blame ever since. When a person commits evil, people are quick to blame upbringing or society. Human beings rebel against God, and then blame God for the consequences, because sin refuses to accept responsibility.

We like to believe that humans are innately good, and yet the Bible reveals the true nature of our hearts: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” - Jeremiah 17:9.

Evil exists because created beings rebelled against God. It started with Satan, then with Adam and Eve, and now every generation since has continued in that rebellion. The world is not broken because God is absent. The world is broken because humanity has rejected Him.

“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.” - James 1:13.

Why does God allow Free Will?

It can be difficult to understand why God would create humans with the ability to choose evil. But the simple truth is that without free will, love is not love.

If we were made only to obey, then our obedience would not be love, it would be programming, and love requires the ability to choose. If we couldn’t choose, we would be like machines, and machines cannot love, trust or worship.

God created us with the ability to love Him, trust Him and obey Him. But that also means we have the ability to reject Him. Free will is not evil, but it can be used for evil. However, just because God gave us free will, it doesn’t make Him responsible for our evil choices.

“God will repay each person according to what they have done.” – Romans 2:6.

Jesus Christ is the Cure

When people discuss matters of evil, it’s common to hear, “Why doesn’t God intervene?” Well the answer is, He did – through Jesus Christ.

Jesus, the righteous, perfect Son of God who entered the world and lived without sin. Yet, at the cross, He willingly took upon Himself the full weight of our sin. He confronted evil to the point that He freely gave His life as a ransom for ours – the unrighteous, the guilty, the sinners.

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God.” - 1 Peter 3:18.

The answer to evil is found in Jesus. He does not deny, excuse or ignore evil. He judges it, and yet He also provides a way for sinners to be forgiven and made new.

Although we don’t see God’s judgement of every evil act immediately, we know through His Word that patience should not be mistaken for approval. God allows time for repentance because He is merciful, but there will be a final judgement for unrepentant sinners.

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” – 2 Corinthians 5:10.

The world may be fallen, but it has not been abandoned. Jesus already defeated sin and death, and He will return to judge the living and the dead. He is our rescue from evil.

“Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.” – Romans 12:19.

The Shroud of Turin is one of the world’s most intensely studied artefacts in human history. It’s been examined across chemistry, physics, forensics, history and theology for over a century.

I’m going to explore five facts about the Shroud of Turin that may just prove it to be the physical witness for both the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

In the Gospel of John, details are shared about the burial cloths of Jesus:

“Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

“So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed.” – John 20:1-8.

Considering the emphasis put on the burial cloths in these verses, its fascinating to note that the Shroud of Turin bears a detailed and anatomically precise image of a crucified man.

1. A photographic negative

The Shroud of Turin is in photographic negative state, which means light and dark are reversed. To the naked eye, it seems faint and unclear, but when it was first photographed in May 28, 1898 by Secondo Pia the photographic negative revealed a positive image, suddenly revealing a lifelike face. No known artistic method from that period of time in ancient history (sceptics claim the Shroud was made in the Middle Ages), could have created such a perfect negative image, centuries before the invention of photography itself.

“The Shroud image behaves like a photographic negative, where light and dark are reversed.” - Giulio Fanti, The Shroud of Turin: First Century after Christ

2. Blood stains

Analysis of the blood stains reveals a high proportion of water mixed with blood, consistent with fluid from lung edema — a condition caused by severe scourging and trauma.

“The stains consist of one part blood and six parts fluid from a pleural oedema.” – Further Ruminations on the Shroud of Turin (analysis summary). This aligns with the Gospel description “One of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.” – John 19:34.

When the body shifted from a vertical position on the cross to being laid horizontally, this fluid would have flowed from the nose and mouth, saturating the beard. This detail connects directly with the Sudarium of Oviedo, a separate cloth believed to have covered the face, which when unfolded bears a double image of a man’s face that matches the blood patterns on the Shroud.

STURP researchers found that the blood does not fluoresce under ultraviolet light, unlike the surrounding image, indicating that the bloodstains were on the cloth before the image was formed.

“The bloodstains give a positive test or heme derivatives… The blood areas do not fluoresce under ultraviolet light.” – Alan. D Adler & John H. Heller

Forensic blood analysis shows serum separation patterns when placed under UV light which is consistent with real clotting blood. It’s extremely difficult to reproduce this detail artificially.

“The bloodstains give a positive test for serum albumin, with margins consistent with serum separation.” - Alan D. Adler, STURP chemist.

The locations of blood stains on the Shroud image correspond to the Roman practice of crucifixion:

“The wounds of the wrists are consistent with crucifixion. The blood flows correspond to gravity and body position.” – Dr. Pierre Barbet, A Doctor at Calvery

3. Three-dimensional coding

Although the Shroud is just a flat piece of cloth, the light and dark areas seem to match how close the fabric would have been to a human body. A photograph of the Shroud produces a 3D image when viewed via a VP-8 Image Analysing computer, indicating that distance-imaging information was encoded when the image was formed. The photograph of the Shroud is the only known two-dimensional image that displays this amazing property. Some have suggested this effect could come from a sculptural relief, but most agree that true 3D information being encoded into an image would have been completely beyond the knowledge or technology of the Middle Ages (the era in which sceptics claim the Shroud was made). This video discuses what NASA technology discovered.

“The Shroud image contains unique three-dimensional information not found in normal photographs.” – John Jackson, 3D image analysis.

4. Ultraviolet radiation

The image itself appears to have been formed by a burst of radiation that aligns precisely with the bloodstains. This doesn’t just confirm the crucifixion wounds, it remarkably points to the evidence of a resurrection. Radiation emerging from a dead body is something science cannot explain, yet the details correspond exceptionally with the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ death.

One leading theory is that the image was created by an intense pulse of vacuum ultraviolet radiation. To replicate it, scientists estimate it would take 6 to 8 billion watts of energy, which is the equivalent of half a million searchlights, all released in just forty-billionths of a second. That would demand technology beyond even the world’s most advanced ultraviolet lasers. No known human body, whether dead or alive, can emit that kind of radiation.

“The total power required is beyond the capability of today’s lasers.” – ENEA Research

5. Image formation

Microscopic analysis from STURP (1978) reveals that the image is found only on the very surface layer of the linen fibres and does not penetrate the cloth. Unlike paint, dye or liquid staining, the colouration does not soak into the fibres. There is no evidence of brush strokes, pigments, or binding agents.

“The image resides on the topmost fibrils. It is extremely superficial.” – Raymond Rogers (STURP chemist).

“We found no pigments, paints, dye or stains. The image is the not the product of an artist.” – STURP Final Report (1981)

Another inexplainable fact, is that the image appears in areas where the cloth was not in direct contact with the body. Usually when cloth is pressed onto a body we see distortion, smearing and strong contact areas, but the image shows no significant distortion when laid flat. It actually appears proportionately consistent, suggesting it was not created by simple physical contact.

“The image is not a simple contact imprint. It does not show the distortions expected from cloth wrapped around a body.” – John P. Jackson & Eric Jumper (VP-8 analysis)

A Summary of STURP’s Conclusions:

“There are no chemical or physical methods known which can account for the totality of the image, nor can any combination of physical, chemical, biological or medical circumstances explain the image adequately. Thus, the answer to the question of how the image was produced or what produced the image remains, now, as it has in the past, a mystery. We can conclude for now that the Shroud image is that of a real human form of a scourged, crucified man. It is not the product of an artist. The blood stains are composed of hemoglobin and also give a positive test for serum albumin. The image is an ongoing mystery and until further chemical studies are made, perhaps by this group of scientists, or perhaps by some scientists in the future, the problem remains unsolved.”

Jesus is the ONLY way to our Heavenly Father

Considering the facts presented (there are many more), and the consistencies with Gospel accounts, it’s reasonable to conclude that the Shroud bears the supernaturally imprinted image of the One who:

Healed the sick.

Made the lame walk.

Gave sight to the blind.

Opened deaf ears.

Fed the multitudes.

Walked on water.

Calmed the storm.

Raised the dead.

Cast out demons.

Fulfilled the scriptures.

Restored the broken.

Welcomed the outcasts.

Revealed the Kingdom of God.

Conquered sin.

Defeated death.

Jesus is the one true living God, and He is coming back for His bride. “My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” – John 14:2-3.

When He appears, we shall become like Him. “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as He is.” - 1 John 3:2.

The same incomprehensible burst of light that emitted from His beaten and bloodied corpse to generate the image on the Shroud will radiate from those who know Him as Lord:

“In a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” – 1 Corinthians 15:52.

To know Jesus, simply call on His name and invite Him to into your life. He will reveal Himself as the Son of God who died for your sins and was raised from the dead.

“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” - Romans 10:9.

Like many, I am deeply fascinated by the Shroud of Turin. The more I look into it, the more overwhelmed I become by each tiny detail, and how it corroborates so strongly with the Gospels account of Jesus’ death.

By looking into the forensic evidence of the Shroud, we discover that the torture Jesus endured was so much worse than we could ever imagine. He didn’t just die for us, He suffered extreme, agonizing pain, long before reaching the cross.

To understand what Jesus endured is not so we can dwell on His suffering, but to illustrate the depth of His love for us, bringing clarity to the meaning of the cross.

The Crown of Thorns

One piece of evidence that stood out to me, is that the crown of thorns was not in the shape of a wreath as usually depicted, but more like a helmet, covering the entire scalp.

Forensic interpretation of blood patterns and wound distribution visible on the Shroud image identifies significant bleeding and pooling from approximately 50 puncture wounds across the skull and nape of the neck.

It appears that blood flow streams from the forehead, the top and the back of the scalp, suggesting the area of injury was not consistent with a ring of thorns, but more like a helmet shaped structure.

The thorns were known to come from the plant Gundelia Tournefortii - native to the Middle East. These thorns can grow 1.5 – 2 inches long and when dried they become rigid and sharp enough to penetrate scalp tissue.

The bloodstains suggest there are multiple kinds of injuries, both arterial (where blood spurts) and venous flows (where blood drips). The Shroud shows notable staining at the back of the head, which forensic evidence interprets as blood pooling.

The multiple bleeding points across the head are consistent with a distributed puncture pattern, that would occur from a helmet-like structure that encloses the scalp.

“The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head.” - John 19:2. This verse corroborates with Matthew 27:29 and Mark 15:17.

The image shows a concentration of blood patterns and marks around the scalp and face. Forensics interpret these as scalp puncture wounds and associated blood flows.

This image (using digital enhancement) shows visible staining at the back of the head and neck region, which appears heavier and more pooled than forehead streaks.

The multiple puncture streaks around the rear of the scalp suggest that the wounds are distributed around the whole head, and not consistent with a forehead band.

The Scourging Torture Device

The Roman Flagrum was a whip made up of several leather straps, each embedded with a metal ball and sharp bone or metal hooks at the ends. It was designed to tear flesh open, expose tissue, cause massive blood loss and extreme pain.

Forensic evidence links the wounds on the Shroud to a flagrum because the marks are “dumbbell-shaped” with two weighted tips being identified where each strike left two or more wound points.

Pierre Barbet identified 120 scourge marks in his medical analysis of the Shroud, which corresponds to Roman flagellation. Each strike produced multiple wounds, which can be seen as overlapping injuries on the Shroud. Medical examiner Frederick Zugibe and forensic researchers from STURP 1978 project, also support Barbet’s findings.

This diagram (using visual enhancement and annotation) shows the forensic mapping of scourge wounds on the Shroud of Turin. The red marks are identified scourge wounds on the front of the body (left panel), and the back of the body (right panel). The numbers underneath reflect the wounds identified. 159 wounds are visible on the front, and 213 wounds are visible on the back, which totals 372 visible wounds.

Jesus Christ wasn’t just beaten. His back was torn open. His flesh ripped apart. Every strike carried unbearable pain. Every wound spoke love. He endured all this before reaching the cross. Not because he had to. But because He chose to. For us.

The Gospels record this moment.

“Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged.” – John 19:1. This verse corroborates with Matthew 27:26 and Mark 15:15. No counts of lashes or punctures are given in the Gospels, but the Shroud’s extensive scourge pattern is consistent with Roman pre-crucifixion punishment.

The Crucifixion

The word “excruciating” literally means “out of the cross,” derived from the Latin excruciatus, which describes the extreme pain of crucifixion. Iron nails with large square-edged spikes, as long as 9 inches were driven into Jesus’ wrists and feet.

The tendons in the wrists would tear and break, causing the body to hang in such a way that breathing becomes incredibly difficult. To take a breath, Jesus would have had to push Himself up using his nailed limbs and back muscles, causing intense pain each time. This leads to exhaustion, suffocation and death. Jesus endured this for three hours.

John 20:25 references nail marks in Jesus’ hands, and Luke 24:39 references wound marks in both the hands and feet. In the context of the Gospels, “hands” can reasonably include the wrist area, as the original word in Greek – ‘cheir’ – can refer to the entire hand and lower arm region. In ancient language, there wasn’t a strict anatomical distinction like we use today.

Medical findings show that nails placed in the palms would cause the hands to completely tear under pressure, whereas nails placed in the wrists could support body weight.

“But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.” - John 19:34.

Medical experts confirm that severe trauma and shock can cause pleural effusion – a build up of fluid around the lungs, and pericardial effusion – a build up of fluid around the heart, which explains when Jesus’ side was pierced, this fluid (water) came out first, followed by blood.

It’s remarkable that the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ death align with the medical science that explains what crucifixion does to a body. The Shroud of Turin shows physical evidence that corroborates with both the Gospels and the forensic evidence.

It was already foretold - “But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” – Isaiah 53:5.

Final thoughts: what this means for us

Understanding the reality of Jesus’ crucifixion grounds our faith in history.

I gave my life to Christ after I encountered Him through reading the New Testament, and for a while, my faith was purely emotional. I knew spiritually that the Bible was true, but I couldn’t understand how. I had faith because I believed, but that faith strengthened with each historical detail. The events presented in the Gospels become physical realities through the medical and scientific studies of artefacts like the Shroud of Turin.

When faced with hardship, His suffering becomes a model for believers. God first suffered for us intentionally, and the cross reminds me that we aren’t alone in our battle against evil.

The brutality of the crucifixion reveals the true cost of sin, which being perfectly sinless, Jesus took upon Himself, so that through faith, we could be forgiven.

“But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps.” – 1 Peter 2: 20-21.

Jesus’ death is evident on the Shroud through the injuries sustained. The idea that He could have survived all of that immense physical suffering is ludicrous, which therefore validates the resurrection. If Jesus didn’t die, then our faith crumbles, as the resurrection is the foundation of Christianity. He deliberately left the Shroud of Turin for us, as evidence of His death and resurrection.

Understanding the historical credibility of the crucifixion can help us to answer questions more precisely when it comes to apologetics. When witnessing to others, I am able to make claims with intellectual honesty, and knowing the facts strengthens my arguments and therefore gets a more positive response from sceptics.

Most importantly, the cross highlights the depth of love Christ has for us. Understanding that His suffering was voluntary and purposeful for our eternal salvation, deepens our humility, gratitude and worship. His love is evident in the harrowing torture and death He endured to free us from the bondage of sin. Through faith and repentance, we receive new and everlasting life with Him.

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” – 1 Peter 2:24.

Beyond anything else, I long to make Him known to those around me who don’t believe. But when I try, the words don’t seem to flow. I stutter, get flustered when asked difficult questions, and feel like I make a mess of the whole conversation.

And it all boils down to fear.

We live in a world that openly mocks Jesus and persecutes Christians. As human beings, we naturally want to be accepted by others, not ridiculed and rejected.

Having spoken with other believers, its fair to say I’m not alone in the struggle to evangelize. Yet there’s so many of us now feeling the call to make His Kingdom known.

I recently began to shift my focus from sharing the gospels (which was my main area of discomfort) to simply talking about how Jesus has changed me. Giving a personal account of what He has done in my life, I’ve witnessed hearts soften and curiosity for others to know Jesus for themselves.

“If we had to preach to thousands year after year, and never rescued but one soul, that one soul would be a full reward for all our labour, for a soul is a countless price.” - Charles H. Spurgeon.

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This moment in history is different. A revival is taking place across the world. People are waking up, and they are spiritually hungry for truth. They are desperate for something real, something eternal. In that hunger lies our opportunity: to boldly testify about Jesus Christ.

Charlie Kirk’s death has fuelled this urgency. His life was marked by courage, conviction, and an unashamed stand for truth in a world governed by satanic leaders who silence truth and feed us lies in a bid to eradicate their biggest threat - Jesus Christ.

We can no longer stay silent. Not when revival is breaking out across nations, churches, and communities. This is our turning point.

Jesus commanded us to go into all the world and preach the gospel (Mark 16:15). The Holy Spirit empowers us to do it, even when our flesh trembles. As the collective body of Christ, we must rise and play our part in making Him known.

We do this simply by showing up.

A prayer for courage, to speak the truth with gentleness, and offer our stories when the moment comes. We don’t have to shout from rooftops to make a difference — the Kingdom advances in quiet, faithful acts.

So, start where you are. One prayer at a time, one conversation at a time - and let God to the rest.

In the book of Genesis, we learn that the world wasn’t made to be broken, and we weren’t made to fall short. Evil was never a part of God’s plan, but He knew it was an option when He gave us free will. Then when evil multiplied across the earth, he sent us the cure.

“The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” — 1 John 3:8

Satan’s been feeding the world with lies ever since he first tempted Adam and Eve into disobeying God, which brought the curse of sin to mankind. We’re distracted with fear and confusion and then lured into wicked temptations that lead us to sin and keep us from Christ.

Have you ever wondered why it’s acceptable for people worldwide to publicly mock Jesus, but not other religions? It’s because Satan only attacks the One he is threatened by. He knows full well that Jesus is the only savior of the human race.

Societal agendas

Society has rapidly declined since God has been removed from the media, television, and schools (to name a few.) In place of Christianity, evil agendas are being pushed on us as world leaders enforce harmful policies that glorify Satan, with the intent to pull us further from God.

There is no such thing as ‘your truth’ and ‘my truth’ because truth is absolute, yet current trends tell us that truth is relative. The consequences lead many to dissatisfaction and delusion that perpetuates the loop of sin and self-destruction.

As a result, we’re forced to affirm other people’s sins because being honest is seen as ‘hate’ so we must accept because that’s what ‘love’ is. Wrong.

Love is telling someone to turn around and walk away from the edge of the cliff they are about to (unknowingly) fall off.

Love is telling someone stuck in a cycle of addiction that Jesus came to set them free.

Love is letting someone know that they’re headed for an eternity of separation from God if they don’t acknowledge Jesus as Lord and repent.

The Cure

To know Jesus, and have a relationship with Him is the ultimate freedom. Instead of being dead to sin, we can be saved and live only through Christ.

“On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who needs a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” — Mark 2:17

The world is broken because without Jesus we are sick. He is the answer to all of the evils and problems we face. So we must persevere in our mission to bring light to the darkness and never cease praying for the lost, because the truth will always prevail.

Yet we do not need to ‘preach’ at loved ones or express anger because they don’t believe. We can win souls for the Kingdom through our works, not just our words. We can demonstrate loving kindness through our actions, and become living testimonies of what it looks like to follow Jesus.

We may be living in a spiritual battlefield but God is the ultimate victor, and one day every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. (Philippians 2:10–11)

“Indeed the safest road to hell is the gradual one - the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.” - C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters.

My relationship with Jesus is the most important one I have, as it should be for every Christian. However, my actions haven’t always reflected that. At times I’ve been easily distracted by the world and I’m guilty of prioritizing things I want to accomplish, or people I want to impress over my relationship with the Lord.

I understand how tempting it can be for a Christian to slowly fall away from faith, become ‘lukewarm’, and then eventually live a worldly life fit for an unbeliever. This happens when we take the importance away from Christ, and place it on someone or something else. Over time, it becomes easy to neglect our Bible, our church, and our prayer life, and that’s exactly what the devil wants.

Jesus answered: I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me — John 14:6

How much money we earn, where we go on holiday, or how many followers we have on social media mean nothing. Knowing God is what matters. Either we’ll spend eternity with Him in Heaven, or we’ll be separated from Him in hell. Our faith in Jesus, our behavior, and how we treat others is more important than anything we’ll ever gain from the world. Our lives aren’t about what we do or what we receive; it’s about what we give. And we give because that’s what Jesus did.

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many — Mark 10:45

If you’ve found yourself drifting away from God amidst the distractions of life, here are some ways you can rebuild and strengthen your relationship with Him:

Pray

Communication is essential in strengthening relationships, and it’s no different with God. Take your fears, doubts, and concerns to him through prayer and talk to him as a child would with their parent. Praying connects us with God, and He’s there for us when we know we need Him, and even when we think we don’t.

Read your Bible

God speaks to us through scripture. The stories lived and told by the writers of the Bible relate to the circumstances we face today. Learning about those who have had their faith and patience tested can give us the courage to persevere through our times of suffering. Understanding scripture helps us to recognize God’s voice and align our will with His.

Obey Him

None of us are perfect, but obeying God’s commandments should be a priority. We will inevitably fall short as that’s our nature, but faith in Jesus leads us to repentance as we follow His example.

Be grateful

Giving thanks for all of your blessings before you ask for more, will strengthen your awareness of God’s presence in your life. There’s always something to appreciate, even in times of trouble. Being humble and showing sincere love and respect for God can bring even the most deadened relationship with Him back to life. He is the greatest ally and guardian we will ever have.

Very truly I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life — John 5:24

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If God has made a promise for your life that you haven’t seen come to fruition yet, I pray this will encourage you to keep trusting in Him.

For two years, I pleaded with God to pull me out of my wilderness season, declaring that I was ready to receive His promises. I wasn’t prepared until those two years were up, but when the time was right, He made it happen, just like he promised. My prayers were answered in ways I could never have imagined, with some unfolding before me as I write this.

Learning to trust Him

I recently looked back at old journal entries from a year ago, which described the signs, visions, dreams, and words the Holy Spirit gave me in response to my prayers. He promised they would come to pass, but for a long time, I didn’t believe it was possible. I was impatient and weak in faith.

Slowly, as my relationship with God deepened and I leaned into Him daily through prayer, my trust in Him grew and I began to hear His voice.

With unwavering faith, I wrote in my prayer journal three months ago thanking God for blessing me with something I longed for, and it was the first time I thanked Him in advance before receiving my answered prayer. I was specific down to the minutest details. God did not disappoint.

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you — Matthew 7:7 (NKJV)

I believed it would happen, but I didn’t expect my prayer to be answered on the same day. It was a big ask, and it seemed impossible, but I now understand that all things are possible through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13 –NIV)

I spent 10 years as an ex-new-ager believing I could ‘manifest’ or ‘attract’ what I wanted. Not only did I never get what I wanted, but I was left feeling empty, miserable, and hopeless. Accepting that I’m not God, nor can I be like God, was liberating and joyful. I didn’t need to do the hard work of making things happen when my Maker can do it for me in ways greater than I ever could. All I need to do is ask, believe, and receive, in Jesus’ name.

God truly does want the best for every one of us. Whether the answer is yes, no, or not yet, it will be for our ultimate good. I look back with absolute gratitude at the things God said no to, and when he made me wait, He was only preparing me and the other people involved.

Believe what God has promised for your life

When God promised Abraham that his wife Sarah would be “a mother of nations” (Genesis 17:16) and that she would conceive and bear a son, she didn’t believe it because she was aging, so she persuaded Abraham to lie with her maidservant, Hagar, who bore Ishmael.

Sarah’s lack of belief caused her pain and anguish during the years she had to live alongside Hagar and Ishmael. God delivered His promise when Abraham and Sarah were in old age. When their son Isaac was born, Sarah demanded Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael into the wilderness, separating Abraham from his firstborn son.

When God delivered His people from Egyptian bondage, they were told to take possession of the land God had promised their forefathers, a land “flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8). They believed that they couldn’t overthrow the current inhabitants of the land, even though God told them they could.

Their lack of faith in God’s word and promises resulted in the Israelites wandering the wilderness for 40 years when the journey should have taken just 11 days. The unbelieving generation died off before God’s people finally entered the Promised Land.

These stories teach us to put our faith in God, not ourselves. Disbelief can lead to unnecessary delays and suffering.

The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all He does — Psalm 145:13 (NIV)

“Jesus Christ” and “Oh My God” are commonly used expressions in the English language to curse or express disgust. We first hear these words uttered by our loved ones from a tender age, and you’ll struggle to find a source of ‘entertainment’ that doesn’t curse. As children, we grow up adopting the same language that our parents and caregivers spoke, and to non-Christians, it’s completely normal. Only after my conversion, I started to understand just how wrong it is to use God’s name in vain.

God’s name is Holy and must be used with respect.

The Third Commandment given to Moses from God is “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.” — Exodus 20:7

In the past, I used Jesus’ name to curse whenever something surprising or unpleasant occurred. I also remember always feeling a sense of guilt after every time I uttered His holy name in such a manner, and I wasn’t even a believer then. It wasn’t something I did deliberately, it was just ‘normal’ and something I was often unconscious of.

“The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
the righteous man runs into it and is safe.” — Proverbs 18:10

As a society, we don’t even despise Adolf Hitler’s name enough to curse it, and have you ever wondered why we don’t say “For Allah’s sake” or “Oh my Buddha?” Only Jesus’ name is tarnished because He is “the way, the truth, and the life.” — John 14:6, and the world hates Jesus, because the world hates the truth. “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.” — John 15:18

Jesus gave his instructions on how we should pray in Matthew 6:9, when He said, “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.” According to the Cambridge Dictionary, Hallowed means very respected and praised because of great importance or great age. In John 10:30, Jesus said, “I and My Father are one.” Therefore we should refer to His name in this same respect.

Next time you hear someone use Jesus’ name in disgust, gently remind them of the third commandment. Even if they aren’t Christian, they will most likely agree that the other commandments forbidding murder, theft, and adultery are reasonable, so why then assume this commandment is any less important?

Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord;
Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
to my cry for mercy.

Regardless of good days, bad days, or boring in-between days, we can always cry out to God and trust that He will hear us. We are his beloved children, and He wants us to run to Him with our worries and fears, and to trust that He will take care of us.

If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

Throughout the Old Testament, it was God’s unfailing love and mercy that repeatedly redeemed the people of Israel from their sins. We see a continuous theme of rescue, restoration, and hope as God offers the only solution to save His people — through His complete forgiveness. Our role in response to God’s grace is to live a life that would bring Him praise and glory, by keeping His commandments.

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
I wait for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.

Who else can we put our hope or trust in? Certainly not in a world that is ever-changing and full of sin, and certainly not in other people, who like us are finite and fallible.

To wait on God with our whole being is to have a fixed, firm, and steady attitude that our future is in His hands. It’s an active and expectant wait for God to intercede on our behalf. We wait with unshakeable faith in His plan for our lives.

Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
for with the Lord is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
He himself will redeem Israel
from all their sins.

In the New Testament, the rescue continues as God takes human form in the person of Jesus who made the ultimate sacrifice by dying for our sins. Our role in response to Jesus’s sacrifice, and victory over death, is to pick up our cross in daily repentance and to follow Him.

In times of trouble, our pride makes us demand answers from God, but hope tells us to push through the problems that we might not get answers to. God’s agenda is bigger than anything we can comprehend, and putting our trust in Him means giving up control, and letting God put all of the broken pieces of our lives together, for His glory.

Leaving the new age for Jesus was the best thing I did. I was rescued, free, and forgiven. I assumed that as a new Christian, my life would change for the better, but in fact, it completely fell apart.

While I was liberated spiritually, my worldly life shattered. Everything that could have gone wrong, did. Becoming a Christian resulted in heartbreak, grief, and a lot of confusion. Although pain and fear consumed me, it became apparent that I had one thing I could be certain would remain in my life when others left, and that was Jesus.

Amid the emotional turmoil, I was blind to what God was doing behind the scenes. Only in retrospect, I can look back with a heart full of gratitude because what I thought was going wrong, He was actually putting right.

My prayer life consisted of “Why did you let this happen? I left my old life for you, so why are you doing this to me?” It felt like punishment, and it took over a year for me to appreciate the beauty behind the despair that I suffered in those moments.

Jesus carried me through the most painful trials in my life, namely various losses of many kinds and long periods of spiritual warfare, which He used to shape and mold me into who I am today. Ultimately, those losses turned into my most significant gains.

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved — Romans 10:9

To live with Jesus, we have to die for Him first. We have to die to the desires of our flesh before we can live with Him spiritually, as a new creation. I only understood this as I was going through it. I had to live out this next verse before I could appreciate the gift of dying to myself:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me– Galatians 2:20

Looking back, all those ‘terrible’ events that happened, served a greater purpose. I couldn’t move forward in my walk with the Lord whilst carrying a load of dead weight. There were people and situations that I simply couldn’t take with me but if I had my way, I definitely would have tried. God knew better and I’m grateful every day for who and what He removed because He replaced it all with more than I could ever imagine.

If you are currently going through trials and tribulations in your own life, I want to encourage you to keep trusting in Him. God has a plan for each of our lives that is greater than anything we could ever comprehend. We just need to let Him pull out the weeds before He can plant new seeds.

And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you — 1 Peter 5:10

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Prayer enters us into a relationship with God. We can’t grow closer to Him without it.

He knows our hopes and dreams, our fears and failures before we even speak a word, but prayer allows us to feel His grace and it brings Him glory.

When we pray, God’s presence becomes more tangible. He’s no longer just a higher being that we worship. He becomes a friend or a loving father to whom we can reveal our deepest secrets without shame.

It connects us to Him on a more personal level, and it’s also our greatest weapon against the enemy.

Satan hates it when we pray and will do anything he can to intercept this powerful time we have with God by throwing distractions our way, which is why we need discipline in our prayer life and when it comes to reading the Word.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” - Philippians 4:6

Be consistent

Life happens and sometimes we get slack in the things that should be a priority. I don’t know about you, but prayer gives me a sense of peace that nothing on this earth can match. The day I pray before leaving the house is always a better day than those when I forget.

The same applies when it comes to reading God’s Word. To build up consistency, I adopted a “read before I feed” policy. This means I don’t eat breakfast until I have first read a passage (or more) of scripture which is either led or followed by prayer.

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” - Mark 11:24

Praying for others

If you’ve been praying over someone for a while but haven't seen the results, don’t lose hope. I became a Christian because an ex-colleague prayed for me. He was concerned about my involvement in the New Age and prayed for my salvation.

It didn’t happen overnight, but my colleague’s prayers were answered because two years after I first argued with him about how Christianity was a hoax, Jesus revealed himself to me.

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” - James 5:16

Jesus

The Gospels record that Jesus had a very active prayer life. He prayed for others, He prayed with others and He also prayed alone. If Jesus, the perfectly sinless Son of God, felt the need to pray as often as He did, then how much more do we mortal sinners need prayer in our daily lives?

Jesus prayed as an example to his followers. He tells us to “watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” - Matthew 26:41.

What does prayer do?

Prayer provides answers, it comforts us and it helps us to find direction in our life. It aligns us with God’s Will and allows us to experience peace, healing, and forgiveness for sins.

Prayer invites miracles. It saved Daniel’s life when he was thrown into the lion’s den (Daniel 6:21) and it welcomes the Holy Spirit into our lives (Jude 1:20.) Prayer helps us to be more like Jesus, who set the perfect example of prayer (Matthew 6:9–13.)

“Prayerlessness is an insult to God,” Ben Jennings argues. “Every prayer-less day is a statement by a helpless individual, ‘I do not need God today.’ Failing to pray reflects idolatry — a trust in substitutes for God.”

When we try to take charge of our lives rather than trusting God, we end up relying on our money instead of His provision or resting on our flawed thinking rather than on His perfect wisdom. Prayer strengthens our faith in the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18

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Discerning between our thoughts and God’s guidance is no easy task, especially when Satan’s lies are thrown into the mix. When I hear God tell me to do something opposite to what I think I should do, or what I believe He wants for me, I panic and assume I’m under spiritual attack.

When God speaks to us, it can appear frustratingly subtle, to the point we ignore what we hear and make the wrong decision. From those misunderstandings and mistakes, I became finely tuned to hearing the Holy Spirit with clarity.

I regularly practise the art of listening with the act of obedience. If I’m unsure it’s from God, I take it to Him in prayer. He leads me to meditate on His Word, and fast when making a major decision. Devotional time with God gives me clarity and understanding, which strengthens my faith and propels me into a deeper level of trust.

How God speaks to us

If I want to be sure what I’m hearing is from God, I check if it aligns with scripture for consistency, and if it does then I know it’s from God. If the Word doesn’t match up, then I know it’s from the enemy, in which case I put on the full armour of God and affirm His Word over my life.

God’s voice is heard through experience, circumstances, and gut feelings. It’s important to pay attention to how we feel and how our body (primarily the gut) responds to certain people in our lives, circumstances, and major life-changing decisions.

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” — John 10:27

We shouldn’t trust our feelings over God’s Word, but we can use how we feel as a guide to help with our discernment. I certainly regret not trusting my gut instinct more than I did. I could have avoided many painful mistakes if only I listened to my body when it gave me anxiety around a particular person or situation. However, misunderstanding my gut instinct (or ignoring it) on many occasions served a purpose, because I learned that it was God warning me about something or someone.

Reflecting on past events allowed me to see how God spoke to me and how I acted in response to that — whether in obedience or disobedience, even with the most mundane, trivial things. When I trusted God and obeyed Him, a situation was resolved, doors were opened, and I experienced a greater sense of inner peace and contentment.

However, when I acted against God, trusting in my own judgement, I faced difficulty, trials and setbacks. In time, I learnt that God’s voice calms and comforts, whereas the enemy’s voice worries and makes us fearful and anxious.

“Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right hand, or whenever you turn to the left.” — Isaiah 30:21

What stops us from hearing God

1. Fear — for many people who can’t hear God’s voice, it’s often because they don’t want to. If they know deep down that they aren’t living in a God-honouring way, rather than moving close to God, they end up running further from Him. They’re afraid that if God speaks, His voice will condemn and add further shame and guilt to how they may already be feeling. This is a lie from Satan.

2. Competing voices — God could be speaking to you very clearly, but if everyone else is screaming, you won’t hear Him. To hear God’s voice you need to turn down the world’s volume and focus on Him, not what or who is physically around us.

3. Not making time for the Lord — if we want to get to know someone, we need to make time for them. If you get lost in a crowd and your mother shouts your name, you would know that it’s her voice. Why? Because you’ve spent enough time with her to know what she sounds like. It’s the same with God. The more we spend time with Him, the more we recognize His voice when He speaks.

“For God may speak in one way, or in another, yet man does not perceive it.” — Job 33:14

The existence of suffering, particularly concerning the loss of innocent lives, presents one of the most profound challenges to faith. This question has been a struggle for many, including theologians and philosophers throughout history.

From a biblical perspective, the story of Adam and Eve explains how suffering entered the world through human sin. (In Hebrew, sin means ‘to miss the mark’ or ‘to go astray.’) The narrative suggests that while God created a perfect world, the gift of free will enabled humanity to make choices that result in pain and suffering. In this framework, God does not actively cause suffering but allows it as a consequence of free will. This truth underscores that it is the choices individuals make that result in suffering - not God.

Initially, I viewed the story of Adam and Eve as mere folklore until I grasped its deeper significance. Contrary to popular belief, this narrative is not solely about the first man and woman from whom all humanity ‘apparently’ descends; it conveys a more profound message. The story illustrates God’s gift of free will, not only enables the choice to be loving, caring, honest, and trustworthy but can also make us impressionable and susceptible to manipulation.

Adam and Eve were deceived by the serpent (Genesis 3:1-7) and failed to heed the divine law intended to maintain the paradise of Eden. This narrative suggests that the absence of a harmonious existence on earth stems from our free will. It implies that while the world was once perfect, humanity's actions have gradually marred it. Recognizing this fact allows us to understand that perfection is not inherent to our nature; even a single misplaced comment can create ripples that disrupt a once-perfect world. Ultimately, the suffering in our world is a result of human decisions

The story of Adam and Eve confirms an undeniable truth - that human beings, are the architects of the world's problems, not God. We are all responsible in some way, shape, or form for contributing to the world's issues. Therefore, if God were to intervene, it would require Him to erase every single individual from existence.

However, with His immense love for us, God has provided a path to redemption without disrupting our free will. This redemptive opportunity is prophesied throughout the Old Testament and culminates in the person of Jesus Christ. All we need to do is choose to follow Him.

The necessity of Jesus lies in understanding that the wages of sin —essentially a rejection of God —lead to death and destruction, as illustrated in the Adam and Eve narrative. Because we are incapable of achieving sinlessness, God took it upon Himself to pay that debt through the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ, promising His resurrection as the pathway to our salvation. Through Jesus, God offers forgiveness and we can once again experience the paradise of Eden, but this time is God’s heavenly Kingdom.

The dialogue surrounding God, suffering, and free will invites us to reflect on the consequences of our actions. While the presence of suffering is a reality we must confront, by taking personal responsibility, we recognize that God can co-exist in a world alongside suffering. The story of Adam and Eve explains that our suffering is a by-product of man's inability to follow God's law - not evidence that God doesn't exist. Our finite and fallible human nature determines our potential to create suffering. The world we live in today validates this truth, which is illustrated throughout the Bible.

“There will be no mourning, crying, or pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no longer be any death; and there will no longer any mourning, crying or pain.” - Revelation 21:4

As the year draws to a close, I reflect with gratitude for God's blessings. In 2023 He made promises for my future, and in 2024 He delivered.

For over a year, my faith wavered and I often doubted God’s ability to provide the things I wanted, because they seemed so unrealistic. I eventually learned to surrender my desires, making it a daily practice and faithfully praying, “I want what you want for my life, Lord.”

One evening in prayer, when the life I dreamed of felt so far away, I heard this scripture come into my mind, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” – Matthew 21:22. This was followed by a vision of my future.

From that moment on I began to write in my prayer journal with thanksgiving for specific things my heart longed for. Namely, for marriage. Without going into detail here, as I’ll be writing a separate testimony soon, the moment I began to believe what I wanted would happen – that my desires were placed in my heart by God Himself, is the moment that mountains were moved and seas were parted.

Needless to say, He remained faithful, and the visions He gave me are unfolding right before my eyes.

I dedicated 2024 to living in a way that would bring praise and glory to God. I gave everything I had to Him, and He blessed me with everything I could ever want.

There were moments of uncertainty and fear, but with those came His comfort and peace. There were countless times I’d hear “O ye of little faith.” (Matthew 8:26) snap me back into the truth that God is faithful, and my trust would renew instantly.

Following several years of God ‘taking’ from me, I can gratefully say that I wouldn’t be where I am, or have what I have now if it wasn’t for Him removing everything that needed to go. He answered my prayers in ways I could never have imagined and sometimes immediately.

I write this to reassure you, that regardless of the season you may be in right now, God has a plan for your life that is far beyond anything you can imagine. Remain patient, trust Him always, give thanks every day, and believe your prayers are answered before you even ask.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” – Matthew 7:7-8.

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Wishing you a very happy and healthy New Year!

Christmas is the season of celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. We praise His arrival to the earth and have a joyful expectation for the day He will return.

The Gospel of Matthew from chapter 2:1-12 sets the scene for Jesus’ birth, where the three Wise Men follow the Star of Bethlehem and offer up gifts in worship of Him. It conjures up a cheerful image of the Nativity scene, likened to one we would find on the front of a Christmas card.

This account, however, is part of a deeply radical commentary written by one of the disciples of Jesus, with the Jews in mind, to persuade and prove to them that Jesus, who they had encountered and who most rejected, was the fulfillment of all the messianic prophecies and hopes of a coming deliverer.

This story is about the Kingdom of Heaven, versus the earthly empire. One of the many reasons the Jews had not accepted Jesus as the Messiah, is because He did not fit their expectations. They expected a king who would build human empires, but Jesus came to build the Kingdom of Heaven.

The Jewish people had been anticipating the advent of their Messiah for centuries. Although this description of the arrival of Jesus is packed with the fulfillment of prophecy that confirms He is the promised Messiah, He did not meet the Jewish expectations.

Two Kings: Two Kingdoms

Matthew 2:1 gives us an immediate account of who, what where, and when. “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod.” The who - two kings – Jesus and Herod. The where - Bethlehem in Judea. The when - during the time of King Herod. The what - is the fulfilment of prophecy from Mica 5:2 which was written around 700 years prior.

Throughout Matthew 2:1-12, we can see the comparison between two kings and two kingdoms – Jesus and Herod. Herod was known at the time as the King of the Jews. He was a man of earthly power, strategy, and strength. He was appointed by the Caesar of Rome over the territory of Judah, and his job was to prevent invasion and internal rebellion. To have power over the inhabitants of Judah, he married into the Jewish royalty. To ensure the Jewish people paid allegiance to him, he initiated vast expensive building projects, which included a shiny new temple. He had the whole weight of the Roman military behind him and had no problem with killing 50% of an entire generation because of a threat to his dynasty which was fuelled by fear.

Roman historian Suetonius documented the fear that had arisen among the leaders during that time. He wrote:

“Throughout the whole of the East there had spread an old and persistent belief: destiny had decreed that a man coming forth from Judea would seize power and rule the world.”

Matthew has painted for us the picture of earthly power and empire through his description of Herod. He then gives an account of the Magi, who were known for their knowledge, astronomy, and astrology. They would look to the stars to discern major events on earth and their most significant role at the time was to select kings. They were the kingmakers of the East.

They went into the territory of Herod, King of the Jews and they asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw His star when it rose and have come to worship Him.” – Matthew 2:2. Herod’s response is not surprising. “When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” – Matthew 2:3.

In verse 4, Herod gathers the religious leaders around him who confirm the Messianic prophecy of a new King. He is unsettled by the potential disruption of his earthly empire and his reaction, along with those of the Jewish people, is a sign of their spiritual condition.

Jesus: The King of Kings

The birth of Jesus was a challenging event for Herod and the people of Jerusalem, but His coming into the world is something we all struggle with today.

As we behold Jesus, the King of the Kingdom of Heaven - He demands our full allegiance. This isn’t easy, because the reality for all of us is that in our fallen state, our natural desire is to seek an earthly empire and the comfort of what the world offers. The desires of our flesh pull us away from Christ, not toward Him.

“Christ the God-Man is simultaneously the most attractive and the most repugnant person in history. He is repugnant to many people because his divinity makes an absolute claim on us, that is why his enemies such as the Jewish religious elite and the Roman imperial powers, joined forces to crucify him. For the humble his attraction was overwhelming, but for the powerful, his claims were too demanding.” - Krish Kandiah.

Herod and the Jewish people were terrified and disturbed by the coming of Jesus. Yet, in complete contrast, the Magi – gentile strangers from the East, were overjoyed and their response at the sight of Jesus was to bow down low and worship Him.

This scene from the beginning of Matthew points us toward the end of the Gospel, when Jesus ascends to Heaven, the last thing he says in chapter 28, verse 19 is, “Go and make disciples of all nations.”

Jesus’ Kingdom is not an empire with fortresses, for it has no border. This kingdom is universal in its invitation. Jesus came to build an eternal Kingdom that would reach the ends of the earth.

The Magi are significant in the account of Jesus’ birth, for in the book of Numbers, the king of Moab appoints a Magi from the East to curse the people of Israel after they had entered his land. The Magi, called Balaam tries to curse the people but three times, he blesses them. He bows down, his eyes are opened and he sees an image from the future. “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel.” – Numbers 24:17.

Going back to Matthew’s gospel, the three Magi’s from the East announce the birth of a new king, they bow down before Him and open up their gifts to Him. Gold- the most expensive of materials, the symbol of kingship. Frankincense – a sweet-smelling aroma used for worship, and when it emitted smoke it was pure white. It’s the fragrance of holiness. Myrrh is used for the anointing of kings.

Fast forward to Revelation 22:16, Jesus says of Himself, “I am the root and the Offspring of David, and the Bright and Morning star.” The Morning Star is the star that becomes visible to announce the morning. It’s the first star that is seen in the sky before the sun. It’s the sign of the dawning of a new day and Jesus at His birth, at the start of Matthew’s gospel, announces the dawn of a new kingdom. A kingdom that is to be the goal and the endpoint of the whole of creation. Jesus is telling us that He is the King of a new Kingdom.

The Challenge to Follow Jesus

It’s easy to behold Jesus, to acknowledge that He is good, and to even admit that He is God. However, it’s not so easy to follow Him, to recognise that because of the waters we swim in, our faith demands that we choose to live in a way that is radically different and counter-cultural.

Napoleon Bonaparte, an empire-building general who plunged Europe into war for 20 years admired Jesus for His unworldly power, yet could not give up his own worldly power to follow Him. He said this about Jesus:

“I know men, and I tell you that Jesus Christ was no mere man. Between Him and every other person in the world, there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love, and at this hour millions of people would die for Him. Everything in Christ astonishes me. His Spirit overawes me, and His will confounds me. Between Him and whoever else in the world, there is no possible term of comparison.”

The power and the authority of the Kingdom of Jesus is not like any other worldly empire or power, because the Kingdom is founded upon love. Not upon fear, corruption, or greed, but upon giving Himself away. Upon sacrifice, upon the other.

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

At the heart of the earthly empire is the self. At the heart of the Kingdom of Heaven is the cross. Fear feeds the empire; love builds the Kingdom. To become more like Christ is to make a daily decision to transform our inner nature. To love one another, as He loved us.

Before his death, the Apostle Peter wrote a second letter to the churches calling on them to “become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” – 2 Peter 1:4.

He ends his letter with this, “You will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.” – 2 Peter 1:19. In other words, until we see Jesus face to face - until the advent of His coming again. This is our ultimate aim, to follow Him, to show our allegiance to Him, to become more like Him. At Christmas, we remember that God drew near to us through the person of Jesus with the promise of eternal life.

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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The expression ‘Surrender to God’ is commonly used by church leaders and Christian influencers, and I was aware that it meant (in a nutshell) that I needed to give both my problems and desires to God and trust that He would bring me to my promised land.

I just didn’t know how to do that.

“The Lord will perfect that which concerns me.” — Psalm 138:8

The experience of trying to force a situation was extremely familiar to me. In my past as a devout new-ager, I believed that I was my own god and that I could manipulate or ‘manifest’ whatever I wanted — a popular belief that just so happens to be the major area of deception in new age spirituality.

Despite all of the incredible ways Jesus has transformed me and my life, the process of surrendering has probably been the most challenging aspect of my walk with Christ.

For a long time, I carried the past with me — all the pain, rejection, grudges, and regrets — but that wasn’t all I held on to. It took a long time to realise I was also carrying the future; all my hopes, dreams, fears, and expectations. I didn’t know how to trust God with any of it, and I was unintentionally still trying to control my life.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”— Isaiah 55:8–9

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The biggest area of struggle for me concerned relationships. For nearly two years, I tried desperately to force my ex-husband to be more present in our son’s life. As time went by, he withdrew more and more away from his son, but despite how angry and bitter it made me feel, in the end, I had no choice but to accept the situation, to put aside my negative feelings and give it to God.

I simultaneously battled with the pain of rejection, the struggle of being a single parent and the fear that I’d never remarry. It was too much to handle on my own, and after months of praying for specific outcomes, which just led to more disappointments, I began to pray differently, and I learnt exactly what it means to surrender to God.

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me to still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” — Psalm 23:1–3

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I didn’t want to be in control of my life — it was too much responsibility. I didn’t want to obsess over the past or worry about what would happen in the future — I wanted God to take care of it so that I didn’t have to. I had to abandon what I thought was right, and trust that God knows what is right.

I prayed that God’s will would be done in my life, that I would want what He wants for me and that He would take away the desires of my flesh and give me only what I need. This isn’t a one-off prayer — it’s a daily, for the rest of my life prayer, because surrendering is a lifelong process, not a one-time event.

Surrender is a daily act of submitting to the will of God and trusting completely that He has a plan for our lives far greater than anything we can comprehend, if only we allow him to lead the way.

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” — Matthew 6:33

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I thought that giving up control would make me feel vulnerable but being able to walk in freedom from fear as I humble myself to God, is a very powerful feeling.

Being between where I was and where I’m going has been extremely difficult, but in my journey of surrender, God reminded me that I’m not Lot’s wife; that I needed to keep going and not look back.

I also learnt to stop overthinking the future, because if it’s God’s will then nothing can stop it, but if it’s not His will, then I have peace knowing something better is on its way.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” — Philippians 4:6–7

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To a Christian, the wilderness is symbolic of the difficult periods in life where circumstances are particularly painful and confusing. We’re faced with hardships and temptation, we feel vulnerable, afraid and our faith is tested. We’re stuck in limbo for what seems like an age as we try our best to wait patiently on God’s promises for our life. The wilderness is rough and it’s not easy to navigate our way through, but it is easier going through it with God rather than on our own. The wilderness is a place of refining and preparation, of taking off the ‘old’ and putting on the ‘new.’

A big challenge during this season of life is maintaining our faith over trying to take matters into our own hands, especially when things take longer to materialise than we anticipated. We can still use this time to get things done, but we cannot force an outcome, because when we try to control a situation things will usually go wrong and there will be even further delays, causing us to regret not giving it to God in the first place.

We need to turn our pain into purpose by deepening our trust in God and looking to Him through every agonising moment that we experience. God is bigger than anything we could possibly endure but it’s easy to get lost in the struggle when dealing with grief, loss, heartbreak, etc.

Believe what God has promised for your life

When God delivered His people from Egyptian bondage as described in Exodus chapters 1–12, they were told to take possession of the land God had promised their forefathers, a land “flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8.) Prior to entry, they were convinced that they couldn’t overthrow the current inhabitants of the land, even though God told them they could.

Their lack of belief in God’s word and promises resulted in the Israelites wandering the wilderness for 40 years when the journey should have taken just 11 days. The unbelieving generation died off before God’s people finally entered the Promised Land. When God has made a promise over your life, believe Him. Doubt results in delays and causes unnecessary suffering.

Why the wilderness is important

The wilderness season defines our purpose, tests our faith, and transforms us into the person God calls us to be. It often feels worse than where we left as we experience heightened trials and temptations, however, it’s all essential for our growth. Even Jesus was faced with temptation in the wilderness. “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.” — Luke 4:1–2. This wilderness experience prepared Jesus for his powerful ministry, just as it will prepare you for the plan that God has for your life.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” - Isaiah 43:19

The strength of your faith determines your position in the wilderness and its outcome. Faith in God is fundamental in navigating the wilderness season. It means trusting in God even during moments of extreme pain. The Apostle Paul said he was given a thorn in his flesh to torment him and he begged the Lord to take it away, but God said “My grace is all you need.” — 2 Corinthians 12:9. In the heart of the wilderness, all hope seems to be lost especially when uncertain of the way out, but when we believe in Jesus when he says “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” — John 16:33. Our peace and our hope is in Jesus Christ, who put his own faith and hope in God during his trials in the wilderness, and the outcome was victory in fulfilling His purpose on earth.

God’s Grace is sufficient to help us overcome any hurdle or hardship. If we learn to praise Him in spite of the pain, thank Him during the trials, trust Him when we’re tempted to lose hope, and love Him when He seems so distant and far away — then we too will have victory.

At my lowest, God is my hope. At my darkest, God is my light. At my weakest, God is my strength. At my saddest, God is my comforter. “Suffering may last for a moment, but joy comes in the morning.” — Psalm 30:5.

Typically, Halloween is an exciting time for parents and children alike, thanks to all the ‘fun’ activities it provides, like pumpkin picking and trick-or-treating. It’s traditionally considered an innocent celebration, and many Christian parents participate in Halloween for fear that their children would otherwise ‘miss out.’

The Christian origins of Halloween
According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, ‘Halloween’ is two words mushed together. “Hallow” — or holy person — refers to the Saints celebrated on All Saints’ Day. The “een” part of the word is a contraction of “eve” — or evening before. So basically, Halloween is just an old-fashioned way of saying “the night before All Saints’ Day” — also called Hallowmas or All Hallows’ Day.

This comes from the fact November 1st is All Saints’ Day, a Christian feast dedicated to celebrating the faithful departed, including all the martyred Saints. In Christian tradition, people start celebrating major feasts the night before they take place, such as Christmas Eve.

As believers, we must exercise caution when approaching Halloween and whether or not we should celebrate it. Before making a judgement we need to first look at how Halloween originated.

The dark side of Halloween
Halloween is rooted in the pagan festival of Samhain, which celebrates the end of summer. According to Celtic tradition, during Samhain the veil between our world and the “otherworld” is broken, allowing spirits from the dead to come back and visit the living. As part of Samhain, the Celts offered food, animals, and even people to the spirit world through sacrifice.

The Celts also believed that witches, goblins, fairies, and demons would be roaming the earth and could visit the living. The Druids believed that to pacify the demons, witches, fairies, and goblins, you had to leave them sweets or you had to impersonate them (by wearing a costume) to avoid being detected as a human being.

To the Celtic Druids, Samhain was considered the most important holiday of the year, and they would build huge bonfires as part of the celebrations they held in honor of the dead. Present-day Wiccans still honor the pagan tradition in the same way.

Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan, once said “I am glad that Christian parents let their children worship the devil at least one night out of the year. Welcome to Halloween.”

The Jack-O-Lantern and Trick-or-Treating
There is a Christian-themed legend associated with the Jack-O-Lantern — Stingy Jack, who tricked the devil and escaped hell, but whose dealings with the devil kept him from entering heaven, and his soul was forced to roam the earth for eternity. The devil gave Jack a burning lump of coal in a carved-out turnip to light his way, and locals eventually began carving scary faces into their turnips to frighten away evil spirits.

Trick-or-treating possibly evolved from Scottish guising — a secular version of the medieval Christian practice of Souling. When ‘souling,’ children and the poor went door to door asking for “soul cakes” in exchange for prayers for the dead on All Souls’ Day, the day after All Saints’ Day.

What The Bible says
Regarding scripture, God’s message is clear: only He alone is worthy of our honor and worship. We should avoid doing wrong, even with the right intentions; Satan is evil and he does not deserve our celebration.

You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons — 1 Corinthians 10:21

Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God — 3 John 1:11

Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them — Ephesians 5:11

Give no opportunity to the devil — Ephesians 4:27

Do not let your people practice fortune-telling, or use sorcery, or interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord — Deuteronomy 18:10–13

Someone may say to you, “Let’s ask the mediums and those who consult the spirits of the dead. With their whisperings and mutterings, they will tell us what to do.” But shouldn’t people ask God for guidance? Should the living seek guidance from the dead? — Isaiah 8:19

What can Christian parents do instead?
Every year I take my son to our church’s ‘Light Party,’ where the children are welcome to dress up in non-scary outfits and participate in games, crafts, and other fun activities to celebrate the light of Jesus.

If you cannot find a church that offers this, you could host your own Light Party at home or a venue of your choice, or have a small celebration with your family where you play games, pray, light candles, and sing along to worship music. There are many Christian alternatives to Halloween, so your children don’t need to feel ‘left out’ by not going trick-or-treating.

Remember that as Christians, our attention should be on All Saints’ Day - the focal point for our celebrations, and not on Halloween.

Spiritual warfare is a consequence of a person’s faith in Christ. As an ex-new-ager who unconsciously served Satan for over a decade, it’s something I have dealt with many times over the three years I’ve been a Christian. One thing I learned quickly is that Satan isn’t bothered about the people who don’t follow Jesus, because they’re already where he wants them to be.

The devil's primary attack method against the church (a collective body of Christians) is to twist the truth, which is scripture. It all began in Genesis 3:1 – “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” By undermining and twisting what God says, he seduces us into compromise and induces us into error.

I was tempted to turn away from Jesus after my baptism. I could hear Satan’s whispers, “Did Jesus really say that he was the only way, the only truth and the only life?” The spiritual battle was real, and I found myself in conflict for several weeks as the devil had planted doubt in my mind.

The Armour of God
Paul demonstrates in Ephesians chapter 6, that there is a spiritual undercurrent to our physical life and that until Christ returns we are in constant spiritual warfare. Paul encourages us to find our strength in God and act upon His Word, and by doing so, we can win the individual battles we face and collectively defend the church against the devil’s schemes.

This is our call to defence - “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” - Ephesians 6:10-11.

Our greatest armour is the word of God. In Matthew 4:1-11, Jesus was faced with temptation, and He responded to the devil each time with “It is written.” The Word of God gives us the strength to overcome the battles we face, and when we apply the Word to our lives, we see the Holy Spirit in action.

“Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” - Ephesians 6:13.

Satan wants to separate us from God, and he will attack weak points in our lives, usually through addictions or particular struggles that held us captive before coming to Christ.

Paul reminds us to be alert and to keep praying for each other. “Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” - Ephesians 6:18.

I’m blessed to have received prayer from fellow Christians when faced with spiritual warfare. Each prayer strengthened my faith and drew me closer to Christ, defeating the devil’s plans against me.

God is sovereign and in control of all things - His plans cannot fail. So if our salvation isn’t under threat, what is our incentive to defend ourselves and the church against spiritual warfare? As God’s children, we want to see peace, love, and harmony maintained in the church (the individual bodies of Christ.)

Our defence shouldn’t come from a place of fear, as our focus is on who God is and what He’s given us through Jesus. Our incentive is to glorify Him, which we cannot do if we allow Satan to tempt us. There must be no end to our work in the defence of God’s society and to the spiritual integrity of the church.

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in faith, because you know the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” – 1 Peter 5:8-9.