Author: David L'Herroux

Husband, father, grandfather. Chief Executive of United Christian Broadcasters.
Christianity, Devotional, Faith, Fatherhood

You are loved more than you will ever know.

Posted on by David L'Herroux

It was Fathers’ Day recently, and I was reflecting on the story of the Prodigal Son.

In Luke 15, it says the son, although living in a wealthy home, decided to break free from the family he had been raised with. He wanted his inheritance early so he could explore the world for himself.

He went to his father and asked for what was owed to him, not realising that by exploring the world on his own, he was removing himself from his foundation, from the source of everything that was good in his life.

Over time, the son ran out of money and found himself eating pig food to survive. However, despite making a terrible mess of his life, he was still the son of a very wealthy man. He had walked away and made very bad choices, but his father still loved him.

The son decided to go home and ask if he could be a servant in his father’s home to repay his debt. However, God’s Word tells us that when the father saw his son, he ran to him and embraced him. You see, no matter what the son had done, he was still a son. No matter what he did, he would always be the son of a very influential man.

We can take many thoughts from this story, but I started to think about the nature of fatherhood and how we can rely on our Heavenly Father, no matter what we go through in life.

I am a father and a grandfather, and as a dad, I am part of the foundation of my family. It is my job to bear the burdens and responsibilities of my family as well as enjoy the many blessings. Some years ago, I wrote an acrostic of the word ‘Father’, which has helped to remind me of what a Father looks like and what our Heavenly Father longs to do for us.

Father

Our Father is…

Faithful: ‘It is because of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.’ (Lamentations 3:23)

Although grown up with families of their own, my kids expect me to be faithful. I am committed to being faithful to them and our family, and in the same way, we can trust God to be faithful to us. Just like the story of the prodigal son, He is faithful to us, even when we are not faithful to Him.

Able: ‘Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us’. (Ephesians 3:20)

When my children were younger, I was aware that they hung on to every word I said. It is the same with our Heavenly Father; we can hang on to every word He says because He is able to do more than we can ever imagine or think.

Trustworthy: ‘No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said.’ (Psalms 89:34)

In the same way that my children expected me to be faithful, they knew also that I was trustworthy. Although I did not always get things right, they could always trust me. It is the same with God – we CAN trust Him.

Hope in Hopelessness: ‘Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles.’  (Isaiah 40:31)

Even after the death of our son, Jamie, we discovered that God gave us hope in the middle of a hopeless situation. We don’t always get the good outcome that we hope for, but even in a very broken world, there is still hope. This is the hope our Father gives us – He came to die for us to give us the gift of hope.

Everlasting: ‘…I have loved thee with an everlasting love; therefore, with loving kindness have I drawn thee.’ (Jeremiah 31:3)

God is also everlasting, and His presence is with us wherever we go and whatever we do. As an earthly father, I love my kids with every cell of my being, and over the years, I have worked hard to provide for them. As I have grown older, I have realised that the most precious gift I could give them was my presence – not any fancy gadget. God’s love for us is everlasting, and He wants us to be and live in His presence.

Reliable/Relevant: ‘…for He has said, I will never leave you, nor forsake you.’ (Heb 13:5); ‘The LORD watches over you — the LORD is your shade at your right hand.’ (Psalms 121:5)

As a dad, when my children were younger, I would often get up in the night to check on them. If they were uncovered, I would pull the blankets up and make sure they were sleeping peacefully. The Word says that God watches over us, but (unlike a human father), He never slumbers or sleeps. He is reliable and relevant in every situation.

That is what a picture of our Heavenly Father looks like, and it is a great picture to cling to.

But what if you did not have a good father? I am blessed because my father was a wonderful dad and a Godly man, but for those who did not have that experience, this is where you can learn to love your heavenly Father.

He is the Father to the fatherless! Humans and earthly dads can let us down, but the Creator of the universe calls himself ‘Abba’ meaning ‘Daddy’. We can go to Him at any time; He is our sustainer and He can lift our heads high with hope. He knows when we feel alone or unloved, and even in death, He remains the resurrection and the life.

Even if your experience of fatherhood has been flawed, there is a great, heavenly Father who will always care for us, no matter what we go through.

He is the perfect example of Fatherhood, and He is available to us all.

David-Blog18

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Christian Media, Christian Radio, Christianity, Evangelism, Faith

How should you vote on Thursday?

Posted on by David L'Herroux

We have received some letters and questions from UCB supporters recently, asking for advice on how vote in Thursday’s EU Referendum.

As I am a French citizen, I am not able to vote, so I do not have to personally make a decision. However, I wanted to briefly explain some thoughts on our responsibilities as believers.

We are surrounded by many voices and opinions, and it can be very confusing. There are strong opinions on both sides of the EU Referendum from Christians, and it is true that we really need God’s wisdom. Some may even be thinking that it is ‘just one vote’ and it won’t count, but I believe every vote counts, and it is important that Christians use their voice in political decisions.

But how should you vote? Well, simply, some choices cannot be delegated. We can seek counsel from friends, but I believe it is our individual responsibility to research the facts with an open mind, to pray, and to allow the Spirit of God to guide our decision-making.

As Christians, we should look to have a Kingdom perspective. We should look to the outcome and ask which outcome will give us the most opportunity to reach people with the Gospel.

I don’t think one person can tell another person how to vote, but if we keep a Kingdom perspective in mind and ask God to give us His wisdom, He will guide us to a good choice. God’s Word reminds us in James 1:5: ‘If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.’

Decisions are sometimes quick and easy and other times very hard. As you head to the polling stations on Thursday, my prayer is that you will be well-informed and ready to vote with prayerful discernment.

Whatever the result, the UK will be different, and let’s believe for a great outcome that will facilitate the extension of God’s Kingdom in many lives.

Let’s continue to pray for our nation and for God’s Will to be done.

David-Blog17

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Christianity

Getting a Heavenly perspective.

Posted on by David L'Herroux

We are so blessed to have our wonderful friends, Bob and Debby Gass, visiting us at UCB this week from their home in the US. As you might know, Bob and his team write UCB’s Word for Today and have been friends of UCB from the earliest days.

Bob has been in ministry for more than 50 years, and he and I enjoy our times and conversations together. We are both preachers at heart! Bob has been sharing some wonderful thoughts this week with the UCB team, and I wanted to share some of this with you too.

Bob, what is on your heart this week? 

It’s been a few years since I visited UCB, and it’s always good to reconnect and strengthen our friendship. I always say that you can visit many families, but you can only be a part of one. We feel that we are a part of the UCB family, and we love being here. Friendships and family are so important – it’s important to find where your heart is and get connected.

We heard this weekend about the terrible attack in Orlando, Florida.  The increase in attacks like these can make many people feel afraid. What are your thoughts? 

I always say, as believers, we should live in Psalm 91: He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. As Christians, we have to trust God and be sure that we know where we are headed. As we were boarding the plane to come here, the attacks in Paris were on my mind. There is no doubt that we live in an age of terror, but it also has to be an age of trust. These attacks force us to live closer to Him and push us to lean on Him more and more.

When we’re surrounded by bad news reports, is there a way we should pray?

I always try to pray: ‘Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done’. The happenings around us don’t alter the agenda of prayer. We should always pray that God will position us to fulfil our kingdom destiny, even more so in these dark times.

We all have a kingdom destiny. We are each called by God to be priests, and as a believer, you have the same anointing as any priest. The same Holy Spirit– the same presence of God – rests on each of us, and we need to get the message of the Gospel to this culture. We live in a world where people are searching for happiness and looking for it in drugs, multiple relationships, and money. People think that if they get just one more thing or make some more money, they will be happy. But that is not the answer. We have the answer, and His name is Jesus Christ. I was raised in a church which said we must not engage with the world – that we must stay away from it or we would get dirty. Thank goodness that the message of grace has come back to the church, and we have to get that message of grace to our culture.

Last week, we told the story of Marcus Mosey, who lost his sister in the Lockerbie disaster in 1988. How can we support people who are grieving?

I always say that when you lose what you love, there is only one place to go, and that is to the Word of God. Jesus said, ‘I AM the resurrection and the life’, and in Revelation 1:18, ‘I am He who is living and was dead’. Jesus has been there, and now, He’s got the keys.

I also think there’s not enough preaching about Heaven. If you want to know what Heaven is like, look at the story of Jesus and the transfiguration. The Scriptures say: ‘His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. Psalm 17 says: ‘As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness’.

We are given 70, maybe 80 or more years here, and Heaven may seem remote now, but it won’t when we wake up one day in His presence and behold His likeness. Heaven is a place of beauty. It’s a place of innocence: no devil, no sickness, no crying. I always say that a place made by Jesus has to be the perfect home.

When we get a glimpse of Heaven, our 70 or 80 years will seem as nothing to the thousands ahead of us. You get a Heavenly perspective when you get older. Not that any of us want to go to Heaven just yet, but having a Heavenly perspective regulates your conduct, your priorities, and your goals. It also gives us hope for the present.

It’s been wonderful to connect with Bob this week. If you’d like to receive UCB’s Word for Today (it’s free), you can sign up on the UCB website. 

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Christian Media, Christian Radio, Christianity, Devotional, Faith, Forgiveness, Hope

Forgiveness in the face of evil

Posted on by David L'Herroux

Last week I wrote about learning to forgive myself (by God’s grace) after our son passed away in 1988. Forgiveness can be a very powerful tool in restoring relationships (and our lives). This week, I am very pleased to hand the blog over to our family friend, Marcus Mosey, who, through a family tragedy, has also learned about the incredible power of forgiveness.

Marcus writes:

On 21st December 1988, something happened that would change our family and my life forever.

I was 16. My 19 year-old sister, Helga, had been home for just a week before Christmas and was heading back that afternoon from our home in Birmingham to the USA. We had fought like cat and dog (her being the aggressive cat!). For the first time in years, that week I had experienced a loving, caring sister. On the departure day, I didn’t want her to go back to her gap-year au pairing job in New Jersey. But I needed to do some Christmas shopping, so I headed into the city, and promised I would be home in time to say goodbye.

Later that afternoon, I returned home, having totally forgotten that my sister was due to leave for the airport at 2pm. She had gone.

Afternoon turned into evening, and I sat upstairs watching something on the old TV set. Suddenly the programme that I was watching was interrupted with a news flash. A plane had come down over a town in the Scottish Borders. I experienced a fleeting, sympathetic grief that anyone with half a heart would have in such circumstances – a deep sadness for the unknown families of those affected. I remember thinking: ‘Some people are going to have a miserable Christmas and New Year…’

Over the next hour, we found out that it was my sister’s plane, Pan Am 103, which had come down over the sleepy market town of Lockerbie. Our lives would never be the same.

In the coming days and weeks, many facts were established. Bodies strewn over the beautiful Scottish countryside were recovered, along with parts of the plane and people’s luggage. Memorial services were attended by politicians and dignitaries, private funerals and wakes took place in the US, UK, and other countries. For weeks, months, years, this event occupied front covers, columns of newspapers, and the media. Even to this day. But for me, I had to deal with the grief of losing my sister and also the fact that I didn’t keep my promise to get back from shopping before she left. I never said goodbye. I wished I had told her that I loved her and that I forgave her for the years of pain she put me through. But I didn’t. Somehow, I had to forgive myself, and also the perpetrators of this deed. So I prayed. I asked God to help me forgive.

God came.

He came. And all sense of hatred, revenge, and unforgiveness towards the perpetrators (whoever they were) just dissipated within this amazing force shield. He had us. He had me.

But I still struggled to forgive myself for not keeping my promise. Strangely, it was easier to receive God’s help to forgive others than it was to forgive myself! It was like I had this self-disappointment attached to me on a leash. It would just be there, wherever I went, even though I didn’t want it. Then, one morning a few months later, I woke up, and it was gone. I was no longer feeling that sense of shame and regret. It was just gone! I was free.

As a family, we have seen amazing things happen around the world as a result of the Lockerbie air disaster; so many great things that God has brought out of such a dark event. Many children’s lives in Asia have been transformed because of my sister’s death.

But for me, the greatest act of God is that I have not been overcome with unforgiveness and anger. Instead, I have been able to walk on from that evening before Christmas in 1988, free from bitterness, able to forgive. Most importantly, to forgive myself – because God already had.

Marcus Mosey, June 2016

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Christianity, Devotional, Faith, Forgiveness, Healing, Hope, Miracles

Learning to forgive yourself 

Posted on by David L'Herroux

I shared last week about the loss of our son Jamie and the way our lives as a family were changed forever. In the weeks and months after Jamie died, our pastor John Mosey was a wonderful friend. He helped us with the many practical arrangements, and he led Jamie’s funeral service, providing a great deal of comfort and support in a terrible time.

On Dec 21, 1988, in the same year that Jamie died, a Pan Am plane exploded over Lockerbie, killing everyone on board. John’s 19-year-old daughter Helga was one of the victims. I remember the day we received the news and I drove to John’s house. John and his family knew Helga had been on the plane, but John was on the phone in the hallway, trying to confirm some more details. ‘I am so glad you are here,’ he said. ‘You know what it feels like to lose a child.’

The circumstances were very different. Jamie had died from an unknown illness and Helga had been killed in a suspected terrorist attack. But now, in the same year, both families were facing the indescribable grief of losing a child.

News of the Lockerbie disaster was in every newspaper, and John became known at the time for saying he would forgive the people who had taken his daughter from them. Our family did not have anyone to forgive in the same way, but as the years went by and I continued to carry a great weight of grief, I wondered if I did need to forgive someone.

In April 2016, RT Kendall came to visit UCB. I spoke about his visit in another blog post, but I did not share at the time how much this visit impacted me. RT was filming a TV programme for UCB TV, but we asked if he would share something for UCB’s team leaders also.

RT spoke for a little while about forgiveness and encouraged our team to forgive those who had hurt them. He then said he wanted to pray for those who needed to forgive themselves. This was a very important moment for me personally, for although many years had passed since we had lost Jamie, I had carried a silent burden of guilt, wondering if I could have done more? Could I have spent more time with him? Could I have done things differently?

RT’s time with us and his powerful prayer was a moment of breakthrough in my life. Over the next few days, I began to realise that I felt totally free. By the power of God’s grace, I was finally released from a burden which I was never meant to carry. God had shown me that I needed to forgive myself.

I believe that God wants all of us to be totally free – to not carry guilt and shame from the past into our present lives. I thank God for sending Godly people into the ministry of UCB who can show us more about God’s wonderful healing power.

Jesus came to set the prisoners free. If we choose to accept it, we too can live in total freedom.

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Christian Media, Christian Radio, Christianity, Devotional, Faith, Hope

Living in the Green Zone

Posted on by David L'Herroux

This might sound like an unusual title for a blog post, but I will explain what the ‘Green Zone’ is in my life and why I believe it is important for every Christian to have one.

In my previous retail career, I used to travel frequently, often covering more than 70,000 miles in the car each year. Those were busy days, and I learned how to spend quality time with God ‘on the move’ while I was driving. We talk at UCB about having a daily ‘Coffee with God‘, but I learned how to do ‘Driving with God’! I would often listen to the Bible on those long journeys, or I would play worship music, but my focus was on spending time in God’s presence, which was very important in helping me get ready for the day.

These days I do not drive as many miles each year, but my diary is often full. However, in my calendar is what I call the Green Zone. These are blocks each day (usually mornings) which are blanked out in the colour green, and it is time that I purposefully make sure is not booked for anything else. The time is used differently every day: it is sometimes spent reading God’s Word or praying with the team, but the aim is always to welcome the real Boss into the working day! We are nothing without Him.

Many of us have busy lives with demands from work, family, and church, and it can be easy to let the small discipline of spending daily time with God slip. In my younger years, I would sometimes look at time spent with God as part of my Christian ‘duty’.  But although I now have the ‘green zone’, it is not a duty or a ritual in any way, it is just spending time with my Father and getting His wisdom for the day ahead. After all, if I didn’t see or speak to my wife for a few days, I would miss hearing her voice or having her presence in my life. I feel it is the same with our Heavenly Father; we need to hear His voice and experience His presence in our lives every single day. It has to become a lifestyle choice.

In Genesis, we see the first separation between man and God. Man was created to walk in unity with God, but when sin entered the world, their relationship was damaged. I believe the enemy knows that when we are in God’s presence, we flourish. It is where we get wisdom and strength and where we truly grow. If the enemy can stop or distract us from that time, he knows we will never truly grow. That is why this time each day is an essential, non-negotiable part of my day.

Can I encourage you to find your own ‘Green Zone’ each day? I believe that time spent with God will change your life. It will give you strength and faith for the day ahead and help you to understand God’s purpose for your life.

DL'H - Green Zone

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Christian Media, Christian Radio, Christianity, Evangelism, Faith, Forgiveness, Hope, Miracles

God is the God of the impossible

Posted on by David L'Herroux

Early one Friday morning over five years ago, our Company Secretary came to see me. ‘David, we have a problem,’ he said.  ‘Our cashflow is bad. We need half a million pounds.’

When you are responsible for a large organisation, this is never good news to hear. Coming from a commercial background, I knew it was quite common to operate a business out of an overdraft, but I did not feel this was the answer for UCB. I did not know what the solution was, but firstly,  I knew that we needed to pray.

When facing unexpected news, it is easy to get caught up in meetings and discussions, but at that moment, I wanted to be alone so that I could ask God for His answer. I took out my Bible and felt God prompt me to read Jeremiah 17. My eyes fell initially to Jeremiah 17:7-8.

‘But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.’

As I read this, I felt encouraged especially that we were to ‘have no worries in a year of drought’, but in my heart, I still didn’t feel fully peaceful. I felt God prompt me to read Jeremiah 17 again, but this time I needed to read the whole chapter. I have to admit that verses  4 to 6 shocked me – they were curses about goods being plundered and lives being destroyed!

I remember praying: ‘God, ‘I do not understand. First you gave us a promise and a blessing and now I am reading about a curse? What are you saying to us?’

However, as I read it again, Jeremiah 17, verse 6 suddenly came alive to me;

This is what the Lord says: ‘Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord.’

I felt this was our answer! I knew I had a decision to make. Where should we take our strength from? Should we rely on an overdraft which came from ‘mere flesh’, or could we find the courage to trust God, believe His promise, and see what He would do?

I gathered all the UCB staff together for a time of prayer. I remember we stood in a circle in our Hanchurch building, all holding hands, and we prayed and asked God for a miracle. I told the team that I believed God wanted us to trust Him. I later wrote to our Board of Trustees and asked if they would support us in this decision, and they all agreed. Those were difficult months, but we believed God had given us a clear promise from His Word – His divine instruction manual.

That was at Easter time, and we had to wait until nearly October before we began to see the financial breakthrough in our circumstances. However, we did not ever need to use that overdraft, and we give God all the glory for seeing UCB through a very difficult time.

There have been many other challenging times since then, but prayer remains an essential everyday part of what we do. I do not believe we can function properly as a ministry unless we purposefully choose to spend time in God’s presence. It’s in His presence that (combined with His Word) we can find answers to the problems that we all face.   In God’s presence, we are able to talk openly and honestly with our Father. We can tell Him our problems, our fears and frustrations. It’s in that place that we can truly find our peace.

We continue to believe that God is the God of the impossible and He will never let us down.

David-Blog10

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Christian Media, Christian Radio, Christianity, Faith, Forgiveness, Healing, Hope, Miracles, Spiritual healing

When trouble comes, will you stay the course?

Posted on by David L'Herroux

I am very pleased to hand the blog over to my friend Bruno Kondabéka this week. Bruno and his wife Joanne are great friends of our family and are also the pastors of Chichester Family Church.

Some years ago, their son (who was then 7 years old) was struck by a terrible illness, but God did something remarkable.

It’s an incredible story of God’s power at work. Bruno will share what happened next.

Bruno writes…

My wife Joanne and I have three boys, and as pastors of a church in Chichester, our lives are often busy. About two years ago, I was preaching a sermon series on the issue of suffering. I remember asking our church, ‘When trouble comes, will you stay the course?’ We didn’t know then that soon ‘trouble’ would visit our home and put our family to the test.

It began without any warning, when one day our youngest son Samuel started to feel unwell. He had a slight fever but didn’t seem too ill, so we gave him Calpol, and he stayed home from school for a few days to recover.

Five days later, Samuel started to get visibly worse: his temperature went up, and he was complaining that his head and neck were hurting, so we rang NHS Direct who advised we take him to the emergency doctor. On Sunday, the hospital checked him over, but they felt satisfied that it was probably a virus and in time it would pass. However, by the middle of the week, Samuel was still not any better, so we took him to our GP, and that’s when things became very worrying. Samuel was very agitated that day, which was not like his usual cooperative self, and he seemed to be in pain and was very confused. The GP rang the paediatric unit at the hospital, and the consultant suggested we take him straight there.

We were greeted at the hospital by the consultant and his team, and we started to realise that this was maybe very serious indeed. Again Samuel was very agitated and confused. He had become light sensitive, so he was sedated in order to calm him down so that he could be examined and given a CT scan.

After the scan, our son’s condition deteriorated rapidly. He was finding it hard to wake up, his heart beat was erratic, and he was not responsive to anything we said to him. The results of his CT scan were passed onto the specialists in Southampton Hospital, and because they were concerned with what they saw, they arranged for Samuel to be transferred by ambulance to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit in Southampton. To stabilise him, he was put in a drug induced coma, and he was quickly taken to Intensive Care.

Samuel

After further tests, we were told Samuel had Meningoencephalitis – a very rare and potentially deadly infection on the brain, caused by mycoplasma (a cross between a virus and bacteria) which causes the brain to swell. As parents, our hearts were broken, and the tears flowed as we watched what was happening to our little boy, but we did what we could to hold on to God and to trust Him to take us through this.

I remembered that just a short time previously, I had asked our church family if they were able to ‘stay the course’ when suffering came, and now we were facing that exact situation ourselves. We felt all the emotions you could expect – we wept and we worried, but we were also encouraged by remembering words spoken over Samuel’s life when he was dedicated as a baby by our friend, Pastor Brian Downward, from Bournemouth. The words at that time were that God had a purpose for his life, and it was a good purpose. He was to be a man of God.

I was also aware that our friends in Angers, France, were holding a week of mission at their church. I lived in France for some years, and the church there had helped to sponsor me in my theology studies in South Africa. I had a phone call from David L’Herroux, who told us that the church wanted to pray for Samuel. David felt it was important that the church prayed together during one of their services, and so that night at 8.30pm at the hospital in Southampton, we connected by phone with the church in France (as David paused in the middle of his preach). We laid hands on Samuel as David prayed, and then because we were in the ICU and couldn’t make too much noise, I went outside the ward and continued to pray (with my arm outstretched toward my son’s bed), while the church prayed that God would heal Samuel. That day had been particularly hard as we watched the nurses struggling to get Samuel to wake up out of the coma – they were not succeeding. So, we were encouraged by this prayer and support, and it gave us courage to believe for a miracle.

I walked back to the ward and we continued to sit beside Samuel’s bed, and literally just 30 minutes later, we had the biggest surprise of our lives when Samuel just opened his eyes. He had been unconscious for 3 days. The nurses rushed to see him and confirmed he was conscious – they removed his breathing tube, and from that moment, he started to make a full recovery.

Samuel2

The next day, he was moved from the ICU, and 14 days later, he was discharged from the hospital. The neurosurgeon who had worked with Samuel took us to one side and said that although she was amazed at his recovery, we should also expect the worst, as there could be long term damage.

But just over two weeks later, Samuel was back at school part-time, and the following week, he went back to school full time. He will soon be celebrating his tenth birthday and has suffered no ill effects whatsoever.

Samuel3

We thank God every day for the amazing miracle he gave us for our son.

Family

David concludes…

Bruno’s story is a wonderful reminder to us that God is very much at work in the world around us. At UCB, I encourage the team to keep being expectant and believing for the impossible. We live in a world which is bound by fear, but I believe God wants to set us free in every area of our lives.  I trust Bruno’s story has encouraged you to believe for more. We serve a mighty God!

 

David-Blog9

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Christian Media, Christian Radio, Christianity, Faith, Miracles

If God has given you a dream, don’t give up on it

Posted on by David L'Herroux

I have recently been asked how I came to UCB. Where did this journey begin?

I want to share with you a few thoughts about the power of having a God-given dream. If God has given you a dream, do not give up on it.

I first came to the UK in 1973. I was a rebellious young man, running from the Christian upbringing I had been given. I wanted to strike out on my own, but it didn’t take long before I realised that I missed the precious atmosphere of God’s presence in my life. I went to visit my brother who was attending the Assemblies of God conference in Minehead. I had not planned to go to the actual conference – just to meet up with my brother – but I stayed for the meetings, and I had a powerful encounter with the Holy Spirit which changed my life.

After that experience, I put myself before God and asked Him, ‘What do you want to do with me? What do you want to do with my life?’ I felt God encourage me to believe for the impossible, and He put a dream in my heart of going all the way to the Boardroom. At that time I was a janitor, so I did not see how this was possible, but I began to seek God’s Word.

I believe God gave me insight into the verse in Genesis 1:28, where God said to Adam: ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.’ For years, we have read this as a command to have children and populate the earth, but I believe this is also a command to be creative and fruitful in whatever we turn our hands to. By reading God’s Word, I began to develop business principles to live by, and over time, God allowed me to become very fruitful.

I started out as a janitor working for a national retail chain, and before too long, I became a warehouse manager, moving to store manager, until eventually (after 23 years), I became the Head of their national discount chain. God had truly fulfilled His promise to me to take me to the Boardroom. It wasn’t because I wanted the ‘position’ or the power. It was because I believed that God wanted me to be fruitful in what I did. However, I had to learn some painful lessons along the way.

In 1988, the business was going very well, and my wife and I had a good life, when very suddenly, we lost our 13-month-old son, Jamie. Our lives were devastated, and we cried out to God for answers, trying to understand what God’s purpose was. However, in years to come, God gave me a very powerful burden for the children and youth of the world. I had seen my own son die, and I couldn’t bear to see the young generation spiritually dead and eventually leaving this world not knowing Jesus as their personal saviour and friend.

Over time, God brought me into contact with the wonderful organisation OneHope, and eventually He led me out of the retail industry to work full time as a missionary with OneHope. Those were challenging times, but God was so faithful to our family.

I served in that capacity for five years, and then through a mutual friend, I was invited to a meeting at UCB. During my time in retail, the Welsh singer Bryn Yemm had sung in many of our stores. He was also a friend of UCB and had said to members of the leadership team at UCB, ‘You need to meet this French guy’. I was initially invited to share my testimony on air, and I had the opportunity to have coffee with Ian Mackie, the founder and at the time Chief Executive of UCB. Over a long period of many prayerful conversations with Ian Mackie, I eventually joined UCB, initially as a Trustee and then as Ministry Director. We were later able to merge OneHope UK into UCB.

And then in 2010, after many faithful years serving as the Chief Executive, Ian Mackie took on additional responsibilities with UCB International. This eventually led me to take on the role of Chief Executive.

There have been difficult times in our ministry journey, but God has been faithful to the dream He gave me in 1973. If God has given you a dream, be faithful to His Word and don’t give up.

 

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Christian Media, Christian Radio, Christianity, Evangelism, Faith, Forgiveness, Healing, Hope, Miracles, Spiritual healing

Faith is like a muscle – it has to be exercised

Posted on by David L'Herroux

Last week, I shared some stories of the incredible miracles which have been happening at my brother’s church in France. We felt that God started to move in the church about two years ago during our first missions week. A lady came asking for prayer for pain in her hips, which was caused by deformed bones. She was completely healed, and this opened up a door for God to do more.

Over the last two years, we have heard many more incredible testimonies: a man healed of complete deafness, a woman healed of paralysis in her leg, another lady who had severe pain and even discharged herself from hospital for an hour to come to the service. She was completely set free and later declared free of disease. Others have been restored from tumours, depression, restless leg syndrome, chronic insomnia, and addictions. There are so many stories I could share, and in the future, I hope that some of these people will write guest blogs and tell you their stories themselves. There is so much to thank God for!

I have been asked a question which is close to many people’s hearts – why are some people healed and others not? I do not have all the answers, but I can share from my own experience what I believe is true. I wrote last week about the need for expectancy and how we should approach God believing that He will do something.

Here is an illustration: if one of us was sick, we would go to the doctor for a check-up. Often, we will not know the doctor, but we will take their advice, and when they give us a prescription for medication, we will then take that to a chemist. At every stage, we usually trust the doctor we do not know, we trust the chemist we do not know, and we trust the pills, even when we do not understand how they work. But when it comes to trusting God, we often struggle, and we question if He is capable of giving us what we ask. We have no trouble believing that He could die for us, save us, and give us eternal life, but we do struggle to believe that He could do the miraculous.

I believe that faith is a muscle, and just like any other muscle in our bodies, if we do not use it, it will eventually become weak and useless. As believers, we are children of God’s kingdom, and just like being a citizen of the United Kingdom, we have certain citizenship rights. If something was wrong in our country, we would have the right to take a petition to 10 Downing Street, and in the same way, we can take our petitions to God.

As citizens of God’s kingdom, we have a constitution (God’s Word), and we can stand on that and petition God to do what no one else can do. Just as with politics, we don’t always see answers right away, but we should keep standing on God’s Word, believing His promises, and asking Him to bring about a miracle. God’s Word is the instruction manual for life. If you or I bought a new mobile phone, we would go home and start reading the instructions to make sure that we got the best use from the phone. If we pay that much care and attention to our phones, how much more attention should we give to our lives? God’s Word is the instruction manual – without understanding it, our lives do not work properly.

Now it is true to say that not every one gets healed, but I believe that God is sovereign, and we are not here to dictate to Him how He should do things, but to be obedient to His Word. However, I have also seen great things happen when a person didn’t get healed.

Last year, a lady came to a meeting during the mission in France. That very day, she gave her life to Christ and asked us to pray that she would be healed from terminal cancer. We prayed for her, but sadly just five days later, she died.   When the church went to visit her family (they were not Christians), her husband said that in the days before she passed away, he had never seen his wife so happy and peaceful since he had known her.

He said: she spent her final days praising her Jesus, and she left this world in total peace, knowing that she would soon see Him face to face. So although she did not see physical healing in this life, she was healed when she stood before Jesus and was given a new body, free of disease. There is no sickness or ill-health or cancer in Heaven. Praise God!

If you are trusting God to heal or set you free, can I encourage you to persevere? Stand on His word, trust Him, and practice exercising your faith muscle. Whatever happens, you can be sure of one thing: your life will be changed for the better. I have never met a person who wasn’t changed by spending time with God. Follow God’s instructions and wait to see what He can do in your life.

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