Thought For Today

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 29th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. John 15:26, and I am reading it to you from the Amplified Version: “But when the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of Truth who comes from the Father, He will testify and bear witness about Me.” Jesus is saying He is going to send us the Parakletos, and He has. That's a beautiful word. I love to say that word. It is the only Greek word I know, the Helper, and He will tell you the truth because He is the Spirit of Truth!We are talking about the Holy Spirit here today. It's so very important in these days to be able to identify the truth from the fake. There are so many fake things on the go at the moment. With this AI sweeping all over the world, you don't know who is who. How are we going to know what is genuine? There are even people who can impersonate me, they can impersonate my voice and that can be quite scary. How are we, as believers, going to be able to discern the truth from the fake?If we look at the word of God in John 17:17, He says,“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” That is how the believer will be able to identify the truth from the fake. When they made the movie, “Faith like Potatoes”, the lady who took the part of my wife Jill, a beautiful young lady, was on the set one day, and her sister had come to visit her. Now, they are identical twins. I can't tell them apart, both lovely young ladies. Just for a bit of fun, they decided to swop their clothes and Jeanne's sister came onto the set and they were going to start filming, but straight away the Director, a very wonderful man of God, Regardt van den Berg, spotted her straight away. He said, “You are not Jeanne.” None of us knew. Now, how did he manage to do that? I am telling you why. He knew because he knew Jeanne so well. He was spending time with her every day, shooting the movie. When you spend time in the Word of God, you will identify the truth from the fake.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 28th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to John 15:16. Jesus says:”You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.” Wow! What an incredible privilege to be chosen by God for a work to perform on this earth! It is a huge responsibility. With it goes the requirement of bearing good fruit. We have to make a difference in this world - people need to meet the Lord! Remember whatever we ask Father, in Jesus name by the power of His Holy Spirit, Father will give to you and to me.I remember watching a clip, I can't look it up but I remember it as clear as day. I think it was in the time of the Civil War in America, and there was a wounded soldier from the war. He was standing looking through the fence to the White House and he was trying to get in. He asked the sentry at the gate, ”I need to see President Abraham Lincoln.” And the soldier at the gate said, ”Sorry, you can't go in unless you have an introduction, a letter of pass.” And he was standing there looking very forlorn. All of a sudden, a little boy walked up and asked the soldier what his name was and what had happened to him. He was wounded in the war and wanted to meet the President because he had something to ask him. So the little boy said, ”Follow me.” And the wounded soldier walked behind this little boy. He got to the sentry, he said. ”Please let me in.” And the sentry stood back. This little boy, maybe eight, ten years old, carried on walking up the road. When they got to the front door of the White House there were soldiers there as well and he greeted them warmly. They all knew him. He said, ”This soldier needs to see the President of the United States of America.” They all stood back, and in this little boy walked. The wounded soldier was walking behind him. He climbed the steps and came to the door of the Oval Office. He knocked on the door and then walked in with the wounded soldier and there sitting behind this massive desk was the President of America and he said, ”Good morning Father. This soldier would like to meet you.” With that, he got the introduction. He knew his father.Now Jesus knows His Father. Ask Him today!Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 27th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Zechariah 4:6: "Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the Lord of hosts.” Then we go to John 15:7. Jesus says: “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” What a beautiful promise from the Lord! But it is very clear, if we stay in Him and He stays in us, then we can ask whatever we want and He will give it to us. Why? Because we will ask correctly, not in a selfish way but in a godly way. Folks, I want to say to you today, we really need to start to live God's way, for our sakes, and for the sakes of our family, our loved ones and the people we live and work with. Do you remember that very famous American actor and singer, Frank Sinatra? They called him, “Old Blue Eyes”, I am sure he was a very fine man. I know he did have a serious drinking problem but you know, one of the saddest songs, his words, “I did it my way”. Do you know, there is no other way but God's way, and I know, I am speaking from experience myself. My way never, ever works. I looked up the lyrics of that song, and this is what they say. Listen to the words:And now, the end is nearAnd so I face the final curtainMy friend, I'll say it clearI'll state my case, of which I'm certainI've lived a life that's fullI travelled each and every highwayAnd more, much more than this, I did it my wayIt didn't help him. You know the last words he said before he died were, “I am losing it, I am losing it.” What about you today? Are you losing it? I want to pray that will stop today, and that you will start doing it God's way and doing what Jesus said. Let us pray:Heavenly Father,I want to thank You for my friend, listening to this early morning message, my friend, who has being trying to do it genuinely in their own way and it is failing badly. Today Lord, we want to ask You to please live in us, and we want to live in You so that You will take care of every one of our needs, and give us hope for the future, so that when we die we can say, “I am doing it Jesus' way!” I ask this in Your precious name, amen.God bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Monday morning, the 26th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5:”For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (fleshly), but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,” It's a spiritual war that we're in and we need to fight it with spiritual weapons. I'm talking about the sword of the Spirit. We go to Ephesians 6:17:”…the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; You and I need to keep our swords sharpened. Abraham Lincoln, that great American president who basically abolished the slave trade in America. He was a country boy from Kentucky. He had very little education, I think less than three years. They asked him a question, ”If you had to cut down a large tree and they gave you six hours to drop that tree, how would you go about it?” That wise country boy said, ”I would take four hours to sharpen the axe.” You and I need to keep our swords sharpened. I'm talking about the Bible, the Word of God.We need to memorise scripture. We need to apply the Word of God into everything we do, every plan we make, and every thought we think. The Word of God is final. When you truly believe what Jesus says and you take the Word of God literally, then you apply it. There's no more discussing after that. What does the word say? Does the Word hate divorce? Yes, so work through your marriage. What does the Bible say about honesty? If you owe a man something, pay him. ”No, but we'll wait until 120 days until they're going to take us to court, and then we'll pay, but we'll use his money in the meantime.” No, No, No, No. You pay that money that you owe as soon as you get it. We're talking here about a sharpened sword and that is what will give you the victory. Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 25th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. ”Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”John 15:2 Pruning is a painful operation, but we need to get rid of the deadwood so that we can grow strong, straight and healthy. That deadwood must be disposed of.We live in a most beautiful area here in KwaZulu-Natal. At Shalom, we are surrounded by beautiful forests of eucalyptus trees, of pine trees, and when the forester plants those seedlings, they are the size of my little finger, and they look so beautiful when they grow up to waist height, but as they grow older they start to crowd into each other. Then the forester comes and starts to take out the trees that are too cluttered so that the ones that remain can grow strong. If he leaves them, he will have a forest which will be entangled and starved of nutrients. It will be wasted. The same thing applies with a fruit tree. I remember I had a beautiful plum tree. It was the smallest tree in our orchard. It had been pruned naturally when it was small and yet eventually when it grew up, it produced the sweetest plums that I've ever eaten.Now, we need to prune our children, and it's called discipline. If you see a young man or a young woman who is disciplined, they are a pleasure to be around. They are very well-mannered, totally selfless, they care about other people, not themselves, and they are very popular because people want to be near them. But the person who has never been disciplined is self-centred, they are not interested in the things of God, only themselves, because they have never been pruned. Now the one who does the pruning is Jesus Christ, and it is very painful sometimes, but let it happen so that the end result will be profitable, and the produce will be acceptable to God.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 24th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Exodus 16:15:”So when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “This is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat.” Then we go straight to John 6:35:”And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life.” Oh, folks, what a gracious God we serve! I mean those people were starving, over a million of them, and God fed them from heaven. Just enough, never too much and never too little. They got manna from heaven. This is very important, many of us are worrying about things that will never happen. Many of us are trying to make provision for things that we'll never have to use. We need just enough. People are getting stomach ulcers, they are having nervous breakdowns because they are worrying about things that they will never have to account for. We really need to put our trust in the One who said, ”I am the bread.” I am the manna of your life. That's what I'm delivering to you, hot out of the oven. The bread which will sustain you for today, not for yesterday, not for tomorrow, just for today. You see, when they tried to gather more than they needed, what happened? It went rotten, it started to smell. The maggots started to eat it, just enough for today is all we need and then the Lord said, ”And then the day before the Sabbath, you are allowed to take up twice as much because you'll need it because you are not going work on the Sabbath.” Jesus will take care of every one of your needs, not your wants, but your needs. Big difference! Do not work yourself to death to make money that you will never need to use, and by so doing, shorten your life and become a pain to everybody around you because you are constantly worried about things which will never take place.Start to thank God for manna every morning and live your life for Him. Let Him be your sustenance, let Him be everything you need.Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Friday morning, the 23rd of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. John 14:27 - this is Jesus speaking: ”Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” Oh my dear friend, how this world of ours is desperate to find peace. All we hear about is peace, peace, everywhere but there's no peace, is there? They have conferences on peace. Nations get together at the United Nations, but no one can find peace. There are some homes that you'll go into, there's anything there but peace. There are arguments, there's jealousy, there's even hatred but no peace. Why? Because peace cannot be found, peace cannot be bought, peace cannot be earned at university. You can't get a degree in peace. If you could, the university would be full of students studying the subject of peace! So how do you get peace? Peace comes from a person whose name is the Prince of Peace. Oh yes, I'm talking about my beloved Jesus Christ. I hope He is yours too. That's where you'll find peace!You know, I have shared with you previously about Brother Lawrence, the French monk who lived in a monastery 300 years ago. He had the lowliest job of all. He was the one who had to wash the pots and the pans and cook the food. He also sewed sandals for his brothers, although he himself walked barefoot, but continually there were monks around him when he was trying to cook and wash the dishes and the pots and pans, and mend their sandals. Why were they always around him? Because he pervaded, he gave off like a fragrance of peace because he had found the Prince of Peace!You know, I want to tell you something very personal, there is somebody in my home, I'm not going to say anymore - and she always gives off that beautiful fragrance of peace. I can have a hard day, a tough day, as they say, at the office. When I come home to my little house, she is there waiting for me and she just gives the fragrance of peace. You know why? Because she spends lots of time with Him. You see, when you spend lots of time with a person, you become like that person.Now today, ask Jesus to give you a revelation of Himself, that you too go around this troubled world, and people will be drawn to Jesus Christ.God bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 22nd of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in Isaiah 42:3:”A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench;…” We're talking about the gentleness of our beloved Lord Jesus. And that same scripture is confirmed in Matthew 12:20:”A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench,…” Just the other day, I heard a beautiful saying, ”We are strongest when we are tender.” You know, if you look at Proverbs 15:1, the Lord talks about a gentle answer turns away anger and wrath. Jesus is so gentle.I want to tell you something now, He is the most tender person who has ever walked on the face of this earth. He will not hurt you. We need to be the same.I love watching a bushman when he wants to start a fire. Unlike many of us, he doesn't go with a fire-lighter, put half a ton of wood on the fire and cause an explosion to make the fire so that he can have his braai or his barbecue! No, he comes and he takes a little bit of grass and he takes that stick and he spins that stick on a log and he blows gently on it and what happens? It just bursts into flame. So beautiful to watch.On our farm here, you know by now, we love horses. Snowy is my horse, he's twenty years old now. I want to tell you something now, there's a man by the name of Monty Roberts, he's in his late eighties, and he is the one they call ”The Horse Whisperer.” He started off getting a horse under saddle by being gentle with it. You see, in the old days, his father was one of them, actually; they would tie that poor horse up so that he couldn't walk, he had to hobble. They would beat him till they broke his spirit. That's where the saying goes, ”I'm going to break in a horse.” No, we don't do that on this farm. We gentle a horse, tenderly, and that horse will take the bridle, take the saddle. He'll be spirited, he'll have lots of personality. He won't be broken and crushed. We must do the same with each other.Mom, don't break your daughter down, be tender with her and she will make you so proud. Dad, don't be hard on your son, be gentle with him. This is a tough world that we live in. Be tender with him and he'll be tender with others.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 21st of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in Leviticus 25:23:”The land shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine, you are strangers and sojourners with Me…” Wow, there's a statement! You say, ”But I've got the title deeds.” Well, let's wait and see what Jesus says. If we look at Mark 8:36, the Lord says very clearly:”For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? “Now, I have been a landowner. The first farm I owned was in Zambia. I sold it for a mere pittance, packed up everything I had, came down to South Africa with a truck and trailer. I then started from square one. The only thing I wanted was to own my own piece of land. Well, in the process it nearly killed me, but I got it, and I got the title deeds, and then I bought the farm across the road, the same thing again, then the farm on the other side of the road, but I want to tell you, it didn't bring me any peace, any joy. Yes, I had the title deeds, but oh, my dear friend, the land does not belong to us. The land belongs to God! He has given you and I the privilege to enjoy it, the privilege of working it, developing it, making a place for others to live as well, but the land does not belong to us.You see when we die, this land will remain right here. The land was here before we were born, the land will be here after we die. The land belongs to the Lord and the Lord reminded us today that we are sojourners passing by. We are travellers, our home is in heaven. That is our permanent abode. That's why the Lord says, ”What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?”Let us put our priorities in order. Let us seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then all these things shall be added to us. When you are stressing about that piece of land and the piece of paper you've got to prove that it's yours, in the process, you can end up with stomach ulcers, nervous breakdowns, divorce in your family because you are busy working yourself to death. For what? At the end of the day, it's His anyway. Let's enjoy it, and let us focus on heavenly things. Let us focus on spending time with our loved ones, telling others about Jesus Christ, and enjoying the privilege He has given us. God bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 20th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to John 15:8:”My Father is glorified and honoured by this, when you bear much fruit, and prove yourselves to be My [true] disciples.” Now I happened to read a beautiful little quotation from a book written by a man named Mr Jennings. He lived many years ago. He said, ”What a possibility, what an inspiration that we can enhance the glory of our Father.” Think about that. ”Our hearts leap at the thought. How can this be done? By bearing leaves, a profession of love for Him, no, by bearing some fruit, no, that you bear much fruit is what the Lord Jesus is asking. In the abundance of the yield is the joy, the glory of the husband man. That's the farmer. We should therefore aim to be extraordinary. One hundredfold Christians. Satisfied with none but the largest yield. Our lives should be packed with good deeds, then at harvest time we will be able to say, 'Father, I have glorified You on the earth.'”Oh, my dear friend, I know, as a farmer when we have a good harvest, it is a beautiful time and we give Jesus all the glory. We even have harvest festivals and bring tokens of our love to the Lord. I remember bringing cabbages and pockets of potatoes, yes, and what an incredible time it is! We are to bear a hundredfold of fruit for the Lord because it makes Him happy. I'm talking about souls. I'm talking about people, I'm talking about uplifting folks and encouraging them, praying with them, laughing with them, singing to them if need be, but we need to bear much fruit and herein we will glorify our Heavenly Father.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful harvest today.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Monday morning, the 19th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to John 14:14: Jesus says: “If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” Wow! Now that is a promise. Remember, Jesus does not tell lies, but there is a condition and it is found in verse 15: “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” You see, if you keep God's commandments, then you will ask correctly and the Lord will answer that prayer. I have experienced it in my own life.Now, I want to ask, are you looking at a mountain in your life, and you are saying, “I am never going to get through this!” Or are you looking at a little molehill, through Jesus' eyes, who says, “There is nothing which is too hard for me”? You know, Madam, our Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, said to an old woman, who was close to 100 years old, “You are going to have a baby. You are going to have a son.” The Bible tells us in Genesis 18:14, when she went behind the tent, she started to laugh. She said, “Can an old woman like me bear a son?” What was the response? This is God talking to Sarah, Abraham's wife. He said, “Is there anything too hard for the Lord?”I want to say to you today, ask correctly, and I want to tell you right now that our beloved Jesus will diminish that mountain and make it a mere molehill that you can walk through, but you have got to do it conditionally. You cannot say to the Lord, “Do this and do that,” but you are not serving Him. You know the thing in your life that is holding you back, and I am going to pray for you this morning. That habit, that addiction, that anger, that unforgiveness, is holding the Lord back from giving you the desires of your heart. Please pray this prayer after me:Heavenly Father, In the name of Jesus Christ, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, I ask you to give me the strength today to obey Your commandments. Please forgive me from holding Your blessing back in my life, because of unconfessed sin and that thing Lord, I confess it today. I put it away and I trust that that mountain will be removed.In Jesus' name, Amen.God bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 18th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in 1 Kings 17:16:”The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.” It did not run out. There was enough for the widow and for her little boy. How is it with you today? Do you feel that you don't even have food for tomorrow, what is this year 2026 going to do for me? I don't know how I am going to make it. Am I talking to you, my dear friend? I don't know whether I'm going to be made redundant. I don't know whether my work will not be available when I go back. Well, let's go now to Matthew 6:25: “Therefore I say to you (Jesus said), do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?” Don't worry about what you will eat or what you will wear. Be more concerned about your spiritual well-being. Ask yourself a question this morning, I'm going to ask myself the very same question. Has He ever let us down? Have we ever gone truly hungry? No, that's why we are still alive. As a farmer, I have been through some terrible droughts. I've been through some terrible floods. I've been through some terrible economic recessions, political unrest, but I've always been able to put food on the table for my wife and my children. No, it might not be fancy food but we've never gone to bed hungry.I want to encourage you to start to praise God because He's a good Father. He sent Elijah to that old lady. She was preparing her last meal, but the prophet tested her, ”Give me something to eat.” She said, ”I only have one meal.” “Give me something to eat.” She did and the flour never ran out and the oil never ran out until the drought was over. It's happened on this very farm Shalom. Many a year I've thought, Lord, I've driven around in my bakkie early in the morning and there's just nothing there, just drought looking me in the eye. Oh, but supernaturally we reap the crop. We paid our debt and we got through one more year.This year look to the Lord of the harvest, and He will take care of every one of your needs.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful year.Goodbye

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 17th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.We start in Exodus 21:24: “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” Then we go to Matthew 5:38-39: “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.”Oh, it's a tough one this morning folks, it really is, but I am just delivering the word that God has given to me. We need to forgive unconditionally. Why? You ask. It's not fair. No, its not fair but we need to do it because Jesus said so. Jesus said, when He was dying on the cross: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” (Luke 23:34)Jesus had done no wrong to any person on earth, and He was dying the most savage death that any man can die with. Why did He do it? Because His Father in Heaven told Him. You see, when you forgive it diffuses a potential explosion. I just think of a hand grenade. When you pull that pin out of the hand grenade, then you have got a few seconds to throw it before it explodes. Don't do it! Forgive. When you forgive, it can save a relationship that can be lost forever. Just turn the other cheek. It's not easy to be a Christian. It takes unbelievable courage from that young girl, that old man, who has done nothing wrong but has been persecuted. Leave the justice to God. Let Him do what He needs to do. I can tell you one thing right now. You might say, “But Angus, they are getting away with it.” No, they are not. There will be a day of judgement. I can tell you that now, and everything will be put straight, but in the meantime, just do what Jesus did. Let us forgive. Let us turn the other cheek and let us say, “Lord, I am committing that situation into Your hands, and walk away and I want to tell you, there will be a burden lifted off your shoulders, like you cannot believe.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Friday morning, the 16th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go straight to Proverbs 18:24: “But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Then we go straight to John 14:18. And Jesus says: ”I will not leave you orphans. I will come to you.”When Jesus left the earth, after His resurrection, He said to the disciples, “I will not leave you as orphans. I will send you a Comforter, a Parakletos (which is the Greek word for comforter, a friend, a helper). One who will not leave you, who is with you 24 hours a day. Now that is a friend! One, who will be with you through thick and thin, when everybody else leaves you, He will still be there. There are no orphans in the Kingdom of God because we have the Holy Spirit. Now, the Holy Spirit, you need to understand, is part of the Holy Trinity. We as Christians, believers, followers of The Way, believe that there is a Father, a Son and a Holy Spirit. Now, the Holy Spirit is equal to the Father and to the Son. Oh yes! No, He is not second-class, He is equal. He is extremely powerful and He is Someone who will comfort you when you are feeling lonely. Are you lonely today, my dear friend? I am talking to a lady here, maybe she has just lost her husband of 40 or 50 years. Her children are overseas and she is lonely. There is a friend who is waiting to talk to you, waiting to wipe away those tears. He is extremely intimate and powerful. He is with you 24/7. He is your sounding board. He is your hand-brake when you want to do something irrational. He is your go-between. When you are talking to your Heavenly Father and to Jesus, the Holy Spirit is the One conveying all those thoughts and messages to the Father. I love Him so much, but I think I am speaking here to someone who doesn't understand the Holy Spirit.You see, the disciples were powerless in the upper room. They were cowering in the corner. They were dead scared, and then the Holy Spirit came upon them. Flames of fire settled on each one of their heads and they were filled with the power of God. Peter went out, and in the first sermon he preached, 3,000 people came to Christ!Now, I want to introduce you to my Best Friend, the Holy Spirit. I want you to pray after me:Dear Lord Jesus,Thank You for promising me today, that I will never be lonely again in this life because you have sent me Your Spirit, Your Holy Spirit. He will guide me, He will direct me, He will love me and He will protect me.In Jesus' name, Amen.God bless you and have a lovely day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 15th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Gospel of John 14:6. Jesus says “I am the way…” You know that that was the earliest title of the Christians. Before the name “Christian” was even conceived, these early followers of Christ called themselves, "The Children of the Way.” - because Jesus says, ”I am the way…” He is the way. He is the truth, and he is the life, and He says Himself, ”No one comes to the Father except through Me.” When I preach this scripture verse as a text for my message when I'm preaching overseas, some people do not like it at all, and in some countries, I would be prosecuted because they would even call it “hate speech”. It's not hate speech at all. It is the truth! Jesus is the way. There is no other way. He says it Himself, so how can you say to a man, ”Aah it's alright, all roads lead to heaven.” All roads do not lead to heaven. I cannot find that scripture because it's not in the Bible.I've got some very good Muslim friends, I've got some very good Hindu friends, but they know me, I will not compromise on my faith. I will tell them in love, there is no other way. Jesus Christ alone is the only one who died for our sins. He's the only one who has been raised from the dead and He's the only one that is coming back. So if you love somebody you have to tell them the truth, and it could cost you dearly. In the early church, they had a secret sign. They had to be very careful what they said in public because the Romans persecuted them. They were arrested, they were fed to the lions, they were tortured for their faith. But folks, people are getting persecuted even today as I am sharing this message with you. Oh yes! In Iran, they say that the Christian church is exploding. They say that the mosques are closing down and they are not public churches, they are house churches where groups of people are getting together. So when you're walking down the street and you see your friend, you make the sign of a fish in the sand, and the other person will look at that sign and then he will smile. He will know that he is your brother or sister in Christ. The beautiful cross which I have depicted in this message was actually found in the catacombs of Rome. Now that's where the Christians were hiding from the Romans. So folks, this is only a replica, but the original one, I think is found in Rome. We must be outspoken, we must be sensitive, we must be loving, but we must not compromise on God's word if we want to find the peace and the joy of the Lord in our hearts.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful dayGoodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 14th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the first book of the Bible, Genesis 3:9: ”Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” Then we go to the Gospel of John 21:15. Jesus said to him, “Feed My lambs.” Both of these men sinned. Adam was hiding from God when the Lord wanted to speak to him in the cool of the evening, like He always did. He used to walk with Adam and Eve but they sinned, they ate of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden and were hiding from God. Then we go to Peter, the big fisherman, who also denied the Lord three times, remember? He went back fishing. He said, ”I'm going fishing, I'm packing up, I've done my bit.” And then the Lord said to him, ”Peter, feed my lambs.”The Lord has not given up on you and me, so why are we giving up? No! Say sorry, repent, and get back into the fight. You know they both had sin but of course, both of them repented. God continued to use Adam and He also continued to use Peter. Peter became the head of the church, actually. I'll always remember, maybe I've shared this before, but as a brand spanking new Christian, still got the wrapping paper around me, I had the wonderful opportunity of preaching in our church where I got saved in Greytown and I was so nervous. My first ever sermon, in that church! We were in the vestry at the back of the church, the people were coming into the church and all the elders were standing around me. I was a young man, I was 32 years old and they laid their hands on me and they started to pray that God would give me strength, give me wisdom, give me peace, and one old man, I will never forget it as long as I live, he said to me, ”Well son, get in there and give it all you've got. I have done my bit.” Well, you know, even as a brand-new Christian, I had only known the Lord a few months. I felt like saying, ”No sir, you have never ever lost any blood for Jesus. You have never been crucified! How can you say you've done your bit?” So he actually spurred me on more than the others because I got in there and I got stuck in.I want to say to you today, the Lord has not given up on you or me. He still needs us. Like Isaiah, who said, ”Lord here I am, send me.” Today, put your hand up, and He'll use you again. Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 13th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Gospel of John 13:34-35: ”A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (The second most powerful commandment in the Bible, after loving the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and this is Jesus speaking).I want to tell you a little story because I know there are some of you that are unable to get to visit other people, unable to go out and preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth, but there is something you can do! Now listen to this story: I got a beautiful email early this morning from a lady who said her mom lived in New Zealand. Her eyesight and her hearing were failing but she heard about the…wait for it, the thought for today! This lady, writing the story and telling me about her mom, has a sister who lives in Alberta, Canada. So what has happened is, this thought for the day, every morning, has connected them together - Mom in New Zealand, this lady who wrote me the letter in Ontario, Canada, and her sister who lives in Alberta, Canada. The three of them are now totally connected daily. They share the message and the scripture with each other, and she was just thanking us for doing the thought for today. Jesus says we must love one another. Those three ladies love each other! Do you remember that beautiful old song, A New Commandment? As we start the new year, maybe you'd like to sing this one with me, if you know the words, and it goes something like this:A new commandment I give unto youThat you love one another as I have loved youThat you love one another as I have loved youBy this shall all men know That you are My disciplesIf you have love, one for anotherBy this shall all men know That you are My disciplesIf you have love, one for anotherJesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Monday morning, the 12th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to that very well-known scripture in the Book of Isaiah 40:31:”But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” Now, I saw a commentary by that wonderful old Scottish preacher, who was blind. His name was George Matheson. You know they loved that man so much that when he died, they filled his grave with red roses. They really loved him, a true man of God. He said, and I want to try and paraphrase this for you, ”Flight, running, belongs to the young soul. It is the romance of Christianity. To run without weariness belongs to the lofty, the strong and healthy one. It is the beauty of serving the Lord, but to walk and not to faint - oh, that belongs to the perfect soul.' He says, ”It is the power of Christianity.' He says, ”Can you walk…” he's asking you and me,” …can you walk in white through the stained thoroughfares of men? Can you touch the vile and polluted ones of the earth and still retain garments pure and white? Can you meet in contact with the sinful and be yourself undefiled? If you can then you have surpassed the flight of the eagle.”Isn't that so true? We need to walk in holiness. We need to mix with the poorest of the poor, the vilest of the vile but yet not let our garments become stained. We cannot try to help people nd secretly we are living a life of sin. We cannot be involved with things like pornography and adultery, and still stand up on Sunday and tell people about Jesus Christ. You can't do that. We cannot be hypocrites. We are in the world, but we are not part of the world.So we don't seclude ourselves, not at all. We roll up our sleeves and we get stuck in. We help the helpless and we love the poor and the homeless, and we spend time with those who people have rejected, but we do not change our standpoint and we do not change our lifestyle.Jesus bless you today as you walk through the stained thoroughfares of mankind.Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 11th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Gospel of John 13:15-16: ”For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master”. Folks, that word, ”minister” actually means, “One who cares for others, one who looks after.” A minister is not a title to sit up in the front and to have people running after you. No, the minister is the one who serves the congregation. The same thing applies for any child of God. We are a band of feet-washers. Jesus says no servant is greater than his master. Now, if Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, then how much more do we have to do the same. We are called to be a band of feet-washers.Now I want to tell you a story about a servant. A few years back, I was in America. I had the privilege of going to the state of Arkansas. They set up a meeting for me, a campaign, in a rodeo arena. That's right - where they ride bulls and horses. It is a most beautiful place and there is no other place that I desire to preach in, than a rodeo centre because those men, those bull riders, I have the highest respect for them. You know the bull weighs about a ton and you've got to stay on his back for eight seconds. That eight seconds must seem like eight hours to that bull rider and that bull is angry and he wants to hurt you.I went down to the arena, they were building a wooden platform for me in the middle of the arena, and I was asking the guys, ”Do you know any rodeo, any successful bull riders?” They looked up and they said, ”You see the old man standing over there.” I think he was sweeping with a broom. I said, ”Ja, I can see him, the old man with the glasses on.” They said, ”Yes, that's the one. He is a former world champion bull rider.” This man was just carrying on with his business. He had been impaled by the horn of a bull when he was still going to the top. He ran out of the ring, holding his stomach to keep everything inside. He just happened to meet a doctor coming up the ramp and the doctor sewed him up standing right there. Three weeks later, that man won the Championship of the World.Oh folks, I had to go and shake his hand and then I noticed he was wearing a beautiful belt buckle. It just happened to say, 'The Champion of the World' but what a servant! What a humble man!Today, let us serve,Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 10th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the New Testament, to 1 Timothy 1:15-16: “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.“ And then he goes on in verse 16 to say: ”…for this reason I obtained mercy,…” Saul of Tarsus was the chief of all sinners. Remember, his objective was to kill Christians. He was an enemy of Jesus Christ and Jesus' people, but God had mercy on him on the road to Damascus. Remember? He knocked him off his horse and said to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” “Who are You, Lord?” “I am Jesus”. Paul himself says, “I am the chief of all sinners.” We need to understand one thing. None of us can earn our way to Heaven, none of us can try and live good lives. We are sinners saved by grace and grace alone. We have to understand that it is by mercy and mercy alone that we have eternal life. Now, I looked up the Oxford Dictionary to define the word, “mercy” and this is what it says. It says, “it is kindness, or forgiveness shown towards someone who is in your power.” Now, when you are given mercy, it's at the expense of someone else. They decide to forgive you and to give you another chance, and to be lenient with you, and not to prosecute you, but to act in charity and sympathy and kindness and tolerance. Now we have to do the same. You know the story of John Newton. I have told you many times. John Newton was a captain of a slave ship. I cannot think of a worse occupation in the world and yet he was forgiven and shown mercy by God, and he wrote that beautiful hymn called Amazing Grace. Now his favourite quote was, and I am going to read it to you. He says: “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God, I am what I am. Although my memory is fading,” he says, “I remember two things: First, I am a great sinner, and secondly, Christ is a great Saviour”. Now, He saved you and me through mercy alone. Go and show mercy to others!Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Friday morning, the 9th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in that well-known Psalm, Psalm 23:2: He leads me beside the still waters.” Jesus leads us. Then we go to John 14:6. ”Jesus said to him, “I am the way…” Jesus is the way. He is the one who is leading us. Now, as we look at the new year, 2026, maybe you are walking on a new road. The Lord says to you today, ”Keep on walking.” “Lord, I don't know where to go.” Don't sit down, keep on walking. You know the story of the big sailing ship. As long as it is in the harbour, it cannot go anywhere, but when it is put out into the big seas, the wind will take it to it's destination. Even if the wind is blowing the wrong way, a good mariner will know how to tack against the wind and still get the ship to it's destination. Do not sit in that harbour.I want to ask you a question. Have you ever been lost in the bush? Now, where I come from, there are tropical forests, and you know, you can walk and walk and walk for miles, and the bush looks exactly the same. You can climb up a tree and when you look out from the top of that huge tree all you see is a green cover of tree tops. So you've got no idea where you are going and then you start to panic, and that's the worst thing you can ever do, and you start walking faster and faster and the worst thing is, after you've been walking for a few miles, you find that you are back at the same place. Desperation kicks in.Are you desperate today? Are you my friend, not sure of what you're going to do this coming year? Where you are going to work? Where the food is coming from? Where are you going to stay? You're in a panic mode. The Lord says, ”Do not panic.” He says, ”I am sending someone to help you.”Now you know, when you've been walking in that bush for a few hours and all of a sudden a local tribesman happens to walk up and you greet him and say, ”I am lost.” And he says, ”No problem, I'll show you the way.” And he takes you straight to the main road. It is an incredible feeling of relief! Maybe you're there today. Well, the Holy Spirit knows the way, oh yes! And Jesus says in Hebrews 13:5: “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” We need to slow down today. We mustn't panic. We must keep walking forward and the Lord will open and close doors for us and don't force the issue. He has got you in the palm of His hand.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 8th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Gospel of Matthew 12:30: ”He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.” Very strong words spoken by the Master Himself, our Lord Jesus Christ. Then we go straight to James 4:4, out of the Message translation: ”You're cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and his way.” Very strong scripture. Folks, we cannot serve two masters. Either we are for Him, or we are against Him. We cannot be undecided.The Lord says in Revelation 3:16, ”I'd rather you were ice cold than lukewarm, but if you are lukewarm, I will spew you out of my mouth.” I really believe that we need to stand up and be counted. We cannot be undecided. Do you know why? Because if we are hunting with the hounds one day, and running with the hares another day, then we'll be nowhere at all!I read a little illustration by a man of God, which I thought was very special. What he is saying is like the ivy creeper and the oak tree. “The ivy may give the oak a grand and beautiful appearance but all the while it is feeding on the vitals of the oak tree.” He says, ”Are we compromising with the enemies of God? Are we being embraced by the world, it's honours, it's pleasures, it's applause? And in the meantime, this may add to us in the world's estimation, but our strength becomes lost.” We have to make up our mind, are we going to be for God or not? You see, if everybody is your friend, then you don't have any friends. We've got to be salty. We've got to call sin by it's name and we've got to walk according to the word of God if we are going to be effective for Him and not swallowed up eventually by the system of the world.Today, the Lord wants to encourage you and I to stand tall so that people know who we are.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, 7th January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Leviticus 19:32: “You shall rise before the gray headed and honour the presence of an old man, and fear your God: I am the Lord.” Then we go to the Book of Proverbs 20:29:”The glory of young men is their strength, and the splendour of old men is their gray head.” Then the last scripture is in 1 Timothy 5:1:”Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father…” I want to speak about respecting older people. Do you know it's the first commandment in the Bible with a promise added to it? “Honour your father and your mother so that your days may be long in the land…” and I want to say to young parents, please teach your children to respect senior citizens, not for the sake of the senior citizens but so that their children will have an easier passage through life. There is nothing worse than to see a badly mannered young child who refuses to stand up when an old person walks into the room, who refuses to greet an old person with respect, who refuses to take their hat off when an old person comes into the room. Why? Because when they go out into the world, they will suffer because they have no respect for age. So for the sake of your children, please teach them.Just before Christmas, we went to the old age home in Greytown and I had a tremendous honour of meeting an old couple. The gentleman is 103 years old and his dear old wife is in her mid nineties. They have been married for 74 years. Amazing! I said, “You make me feel like a teenager.” Aah folks, but to honour them was not hard for me. I greeted him with the greatest of respect, and his dear wife, because they have walked the road. Now, I am only quoting scripture this morning. This is what the Lord has laid on my heart. Please, I know that somebody is saying, ”Ja, but you don't know what this old mother or father of mine are like.” Yes, they might be grumpy, but they also might be in pain, having suffered a lot of things in their lives, physically and even mentally and spiritually, but honour them because Jesus said so. Have a wonderful day.God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 6th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in Romans 1:17:“The just (or righteous) shall live by faith.” Then we go to the Book of Habakuk 2:4:”But the just shall live by his faith.” Then we go to Galatians 3:11, says the same thing. I think the Lord is trying to tell us something today.Now, as we start the new year, I want to encourage you to ask the Lord to give you a scripture that you can hang onto for the whole year. The Lord has given me this very scripture for this year. Yes, and the righteous shall live by faith. You see, my dear friends, we cannot live without it. In fact, we cannot exist without faith in God, not faith in faith but faith in God. So as we start the new year, we're into our sixth day, I want to encourage you to discipline yourself and start to live by faith and not by chance or by hoping for the best.Us farmers have a saying. In the Afrikaans language, it is, ”Die Boer maak 'n plan.' (The farmer makes a plan). Well, I tried for many, many years to make my own plans when I was farming and they never worked. When I started to trust in the Lord, then my plans began to fall into place, but I can hear one young farmer asking me a question, ”How do you get that faith?” The answer is found in the Book of Romans 10:17: ”So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” So if you want more faith, you need to spend more time reading your Bible and that will encourage you to walk by faith.I want to tell you a little story. In 1993, I came back from Scotland. I had been preaching over there and on my way back I felt the Lord tell me, by faith, to write my story. Now I have a limited education. I had never had any experience in writing before, and we wrote a little book called ”Faith like potatoes.” Folks, that book is now in 17 languages. A movie has been made of that book, which is still being shown all over the world. It is a miracle. It is not possible for me to do something like that, but by faith, I stepped out the boat and I trusted the Lord.This year together, let us start to walk by faith and expect great things from the Lord. Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Monday morning, the 5th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in 1 Samuel 1:10: “And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish.”I am talking about desperate prayer here. Hannah was desperate to have a baby. Then we go straight to the New Testament, Luke 22:42, Jesus speaking: “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”The Lord has laid on our hearts today - He wants genuine prayer from you and me. He wants us to talk to Him. He wants real connection with us. Desperate prayer, He can hear it. C H Spurgeon, the great English preacher said, “Homemade prayers from the heart are the ones that God wants to hear,” He says, “ones that the Holy Spirit helps you and me to pray. Broken words, sentences that are disconnected, God doesn't mind. Even sometimes, the words are so heavy, you can hardly speak them out. That's okay too, you can pray in the depths of your heart, but Jesus wants to hear them. You might say to me, “I am not very good at prayer. I can't pray aloud.” I remember like yesterday, in the little church where I gave my life to Christ, the minister said, “We are going to have a meeting on Wednesday, after that Sunday morning (which I will never forget), and we are going to come together in the evening, and we are going to form little groups and we are going to pray together.” So we went along that Wednesday evening, very nervous, Jill and I and the children, and we were put in a group of about ten, and the leader of the group said, “Now, we are going to pray openly." I had never really done that before. I was extremely nervous, and that man said, “Just pray what's on your heart,” so off we went. Halfway around the circle, there was an old man. I think his name was John. I could see by his face, John had been a serious drinker of alcohol. He had those war maps all over his face and he had been in all kinds of skirmishes but he had given his life to Christ, like Jill and I had, and all he prayed was, “Oh God, please help me!” A prayer of desperation. I will never forget that prayer and I believe God did help him.Today, speak to the Lord. It doesn't matter what it sounds like. He knows your heart.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 4th of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. Just one small verse with powerful impact - I am talking about the Gospel of Mark 6:41, and this is what it says: “…He looked up to heaven,…” Jesus looked up to heaven. Why did He look up to heaven? He was about to feed thousands of people but first He looked up to His Father. Before we do anything this year, we really need to look up, every single morning in our quiet time, look up, spend time with the Lord and hear what He has got to say. Why? Because these good ideas don't always work, do they? No, I have done many of them, make no mistake. No more good ideas, only God ideas. Now, how do you get a God idea? By spending time in the presence of the Lord. That doesn't just mean spending time in your quiet time room. No, it means spending time in the presence of God, all day long, everything that you do!We have got to stop buying fish to feed the poor. We have got to start teaching the poor how to fish for themselves. We have got to stop giving farm produce to the hungry and teaching the hungry how to grow food for themselves. Now I want to use an example for you. I am talking about the Bible App. By the way, we ourselves are now on the Bible App. That Bible App was the idea, the God idea, it was realised when a group of these very precious folks, the founders of the Bible App, were standing in a security line in an airport, and the idea came to them. Then Bobby Gruenewald, I hope I am pronouncing his name correctly, started it in 2008. He had 83 thousand downloads which is pretty good, but I want to tell you, just a couple of weeks ago, they went over 1 Billion downloads, installs - 1 Billion! That's a 7th of the world's population, Now you see, that wasn't just a good idea, that was definitely a God idea and it is growing at an alarming rate. Today, please spend time in the presence of God. He will tell you what to do and what not to do, because we don't have time to keep reinventing the wheel. Listen to the Holy Spirit and then go out and be obedient and you will feed more than five thousand people. Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 3rd of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Gospel of John 12:24, one of the most challenging scriptures in the Bible, for me personally, as a farmer. The Lord says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.” If you want to live, you have to die. That doesn't make sense, does it? But that is the truth of the matter, probably the greatest of all paradoxes. Living needs dying. It is time this year for you and me to step out of the boat and to start walking on the water. You say, “But I might sink!” Yes, indeed, you might, but there will be One there to pick you up, out of the water, just like Peter. He was the only one that got out of the boat, remember? The other eleven stayed in the boat, but I want to say something to you, my dear friend, and I say this in love - the boat is sinking! It is full of wood-borer and rot. The safest place to be is walking on the water, with Jesus, by faith, and that means you have to put yourself down and start living for God and for your fellowman. As a farmer, if you leave that seed in the storeroom, it is safe there. Nothing will happen. It is safe from any destruction but nothing will happen. It will not grow. It will stay there forever, but when you put that seed, that good seed that cost you a lot of money, into the ground, that seed will die in order to germinate and produce a great crop, sometimes sixty, eighty, a hundred-fold more than when you kept it in the shed. You say, “But it might get eaten by worms, destroyed by hail and drought or floods.” Yes, of course, but it might also produce an abundant crop of a hundred-fold.Jesus says, if we are going to serve Him, we have to die to self. Your biggest enemy, and my biggest enemy, is not the devil, it is yourself, it is myself. We have to put the flesh down so that Christ can live in us, and when that happens…aah, we are looking at an abundant life. Jesus says in John 10:10, “The thief comes to steal, to kill and to destroy but I came that you might have life, abundantly.”Now today, go out and live an abundant life for the Lord.God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Friday morning, the 2nd of January, 2026, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Leviticus 19:18: “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbour as yourself: I am the Lord.” When the Lord says, “I am the Lord”, it is a serious commandment. Then we go straight to the Book of Mark 12:31: ”And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these.”The second greatest commandment in the Bible, after loving God, is to love your neighbour, to love him as you love yourself. That is quite a commandment. If you look in the Book of Leviticus, it talks about having no grudge against your neighbour. I looked up the Oxford Dictionary to find out the literal meaning of the word, “grudge” and grudge means, “persistent feeling of ill-will or resentment, resulting from a past injury or insult.” Now, as we go into a brand spanking new year, let us let go of any issue that we have with our neighbour, because it is baggage, it is heavy and it just weighs us down. Just let it go. “Ja, but Angus, I can't. You know my father and mother have preferred my brother or my sister more than me.” Well, that is what you think, but you don't really know, do you? Maybe what you didn't understand was, you had tremendous giftings and your brother or your sister didn't have that, so mom and dad tried to compensate to help your brother or your sister. They love you just the same. Remember the prodigal son when he came back and he had wasted all his money. His father was so happy to see him come back, remember? But the older brother was very upset. He said, “You didn't even give us a little goat that we could sacrifice, and you killed the fattest calf for my brother, who has been out, wasting his life. Remember what the father said, “Aah but, I have got you and all my inheritance is yours! I am just trying to help your brother.”Today, let it go and let us start to live a brand-new year without any resentment or ill-feeling towards anyone else for any past issue. Leave it at the foot of the Cross and press on.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 1st of January, 2026. Happy New Year! This is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Zechariah 4:6:‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the Lord of hosts.”Then we go to John 12:21: “Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” I really believe 2026 is going to be a year of great harvest and it's not going to be done by theologians. No, it's going to be done by ordinary people, like you and me, blue-collar workers, as they say! Yes, the mother, the young student, the miner, the farmer - we have to bring in the harvest. It is too big for us to rely on the pastors and the leaders of churches, and we respect them and love them dearly, but we cannot expect them to bring in this mighty harvest. You see, Jesus is not coming soon, He is on His way. I have told you that for years, and this is our opportunity now, to tell the world about the soon-coming King.I have a very dear man who is very close to my hear. He is one of my spiritual sons. He has just returned with a band of young men. I don't think there is one of them that is older than thirty years old, and they are not theologians. They are students, school leavers, and they have gone to the other side of the world to preach the Gospel to the people of Nepal. Yes, they have been walking up and down those foothills of the mighty Himalayas, and they have been doing it for over ten days. They have been preaching, they have been binding the strongman and releasing the Holy Spirit to do a mighty work, and what a harvest! We are not talking about tens of thousands of people. We are talking about an old lady who lives by herself in a little hut on top of a foothill, where they had to walk 20 kilometres to reach her and bring her to Christ. We are talking about the sick and the poor. We are talking about strengthening the young church that is growing at a rate on the foothills of the mighty Himalayas. Somebody got healed, somebody came to Christ, somebody was born again, and now they have returned to their home in South Africa. Today, remember the Lord is available to whoever calls upon His name. Those Greeks that came to Israel were asking Philip, “Please sir, we want to see Jesus.” Let's show the world this year who Jesus is! God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, yes, the last day of 2025, can you believe it? Tomorrow will be a brand new year. I really want to say to you, well done, good and faithful servant. You have almost completed another year! I have a beautiful scripture for you today and it's found in Hebrews 7:25, and today I want to read it to you out of the Amplified translation: “Therefore He is able also to save forever (completely, perfectly, for eternity) those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede and intervene on their behalf [with God].” Jesus will never leave you, Jesus will never forsake you, Jesus never changes, He lives forever! Isn't that good news because you don't know what the year's going to hold for you, do you? You've heard all kinds of threats of what's going to happen in the world - governments rising; government falling; different moral standards. You don't know what's happening but He lives faithfully forever. Now I found this beautiful little reading in an old devotional that I'm reading at the moment and this is written by Alexander Maclaren:”This is our hope for ourselves and for His truth and for mankind. Men come and go; leaders, teachers, thinkers, all speak and work for a season, and then they fall silent and impotent. He abides. (He doesn't change) They die but He lives. They are lights kindled, (like a little candle light) and, therefore, sooner or later are quenched; but He is the true light from which we can draw all their brightness, and He shines forevermore.” So today, our confidence is not in any leader, in any government, in any situation, in any monetary system, or moral situation. No, our trust for 2026 is in Christ alone because He lives forever. Enjoy the last day of 2025, and let us look forward with confidence to what 2026 has in store for us, because He ever liveth!Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day. Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 30th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go straight to the Gospel of John 12:43: “for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” When I read that Scripture I just think of one thing, the fear of man, and I want to say to each one of us as we are facing the new year of 2026, let us stop chasing the approval of man and start doing things for God's glory alone. It will change our lives dramatically. I looked up the translation of this Bible verse in The Message Translation, and it is quite interesting. It says, “They were afraid of getting kicked out of the meeting place. When push came to shove they cared more for human approval than for God's glory.” How true is that? Let us change our complete outlook this coming year. Let us start asking ourselves that question, “What would God do?” - before we do it.I have spoken to men who got trapped in alcoholism, alcoholics, and I asked them, “Why did you do it?” And they have told me, “No, we didn't do it because we wanted to. We did it because we wanted to stay in favour with the crowd”, and of course when you become an alcoholic, you are immediately chucked out of the crowd and you are on your own. I have spoken to drug addicts, and I said, “Why did you get into this hellish thing?” And they said, “We were just trying to keep in with the crowd, to be popular, and so we thought we would dabble in these drugs.” And now, they have been caught up in that horrible thing called addiction. The young girl, a virgin who loved the Lord, why did you sleep with that man? “No, not really, but I was just wanting to be popular with the crowd because all my friends were doing it.” And because you did it thinking it would be safe, you ended up getting pregnant and marrying the man you did not love.Let us not go down that road this coming year. Let us start doing what the Lord Jesus Christ wants us to do for our own sake and for His glory. Let us start to walk in holiness and then we will have a life that is full of joy and purpose and victory!Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Monday morning, the 29th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go straight to Hebrews 12:14: “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord…” I remember years ago hearing this little saying: “Holiness is the end product of obedience.” So when you and I are obedient to the things of God, we automatically become holy people. The Lord is very clear as well that without holiness no man will see God. I really want to encourage you as we are facing the end of the year, 2025, to really have a good, deep, hard look at yourself as I am, and ask yourself the question - where are we standing at the moment? A young person told me that they are so frustrated. They never, ever seem to make money to have possessions, no matter what they do. What we need to do is to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, then all these things will be added to us. (Matthew 6:33). J.C. Ryle was a Bishop in the Church of England in the 1800's, a very godly man. He made a quote which I want to read to you, that really startled me and challenged me, and I hope it is going to do the same for you as you get ready to face a new year and everything that it holds. He said, “Beware of manufacturing a God of your own:…” What does that mean? Well, it means we have to do things according to the Bible, not according to what suits us in the Bible. We have to take the Bible literally and walk according to its statutes, its laws. This same Bishop said, “… a God who is all mercy, but not just; a God who is all love, but not holy; a God who has a heaven for everybody, but a hell for none; a God who can allow good and bad to be side by side in time, but will make no distinction between good and broad in eternity.” There is no such god, my dear friend, and you and I need to understand that, and if things are not going well with us we need to ask the Lord today to please show us those areas in our lives where we are not walking according to His desires for us, so that we can have a life of peace and joy and prosperity in Jesus Christ.Have a wonderful day today!Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 28th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go straight to the Book of Proverbs 18:24:”But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Then we go to the Gospel of John 15:14, Jesus says: ”You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.” Are you lonely today? Christmas is over. Some of your loved ones, your children, maybe your parents, have been to see you. Now they have to go back, back to work. Some have got to go back overseas, and you say you don't know when you will see them again, and you are feeling lonely. Well, I want to share something with you today. What you sow is what you reap. If you sow no seed, you will reap no crop, so in order to have friends, you need to be friendly. (Proverbs 18:24).I want to tell you a story about a rich woman. She was a godly woman but she was very wrapped up with herself, but there was a maid who worked and stayed in a little room in the back of the house. She was a friend of Jesus, and Jesus was her friend, and she spent lots of time with the Lord, praying and reading scripture. When she got old, she died. She went to Heaven and God gave her a beautiful home in Heaven because He was so fond of her. Then the rich old lady died and she went to Heaven and when she arrived in Heaven St. Peter took her down a street of gold and said, “I am going to show you your home.” She walked passed this beautiful palatial home, and Peter said to the rich old lady, “See that house? That belongs to your maid. That is where she stays.” The old lady was so excited, “Well, if my maid stays in a house like that, obviously I am going to stay in a palace.” But the golden road ran out, and then it was a silver road, and then it was a tarmac road, and then it was a dirt road, and then it was a path. No more houses, just little shacks with a few sheets of corrugated iron and some poles. And then eventually Peter said, “There is your home.” And the lady was shattered. She said, “How can you do this?” He said, ”You sent no material up for us to build your home.”Folks, it's just a story but I want to tell you, if you want to have friends and if you want to know Jesus Christ as your personal Friend, the secret is, you have got to spend time with Him, every single morning. 1 Timothy 6:6 says, “Now godliness with contentment is great gain.” Spend more time with Jesus and you won't be so lonely!God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 27th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Gospel of Mark 2:3: ”Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men.” Remember what happened? They brought a paralysed man to Jesus. There were so many people in the house, they couldn't get into the house. There were so many people outside, they couldn't get near to the Lord. They took the paralysed man; they loved him so much. These four men carried him onto the roof of the house, started taking the tiles away, let him down from the roof with ropes, on his bed, and put him right in front of the Saviour. That's commitment, isn't it, hey? But think of the scripture. If that man had not been paralysed, he probably would never have had an opportunity of meeting Jesus Christ, face to face.Paul says in the Book of Romans 5:3-4:”And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” That's why we can say we rejoice in our tribulation. Maybe today you are going through a tough time, and you think Lord, why is this happening to me? Why am I not being healed instantly? Why has this got to be my lot in life?I want to tell a story. There was a very famous hymn writer. Her name was Fanny Crosby. Fanny Crosby was blind. She became a hymn writer. She wrote over 8,000 hymns, and you know that over 100 million copies of her hymns were printed. Most of the famous hymns that we sing today were written by her. They asked her, when she was very old, would she not have preferred to have been born with normal eyes like everybody else? And she said, “No,” because if she had, she probably would never have had the ability, the time, or the imagination to write such beautiful hymns for Jesus. And then what she said, which touched me very deeply, she said, ”When I get to heaven and my eyesight is completely restored, the first face that I will see will be the face of my beloved Jesus.”Today folks, let us finish strong for the Lord.God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Friday morning, the 26th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of John 12:3:”Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard (thats perfume) anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.” We're talking about Mary, who was the sister of Lazarus and Martha.Today is Boxing Day. Some people call it the Day of Goodwill. It is that day of being grateful for the birth of our beloved Saviour and friend, the Lord Jesus Christ. It's the day that we go the extra mile for Jesus. Mary took a very precious investment that she had. According to my Bible, the equivalent in value of a pound of this expensive perfume equals a full year's wages for a worker. Think about how much money you bring home every month, times it by twelve and that is how much it was worth. She poured the whole container over Jesus feet and then she wiped His feet with her hair. That is love. Undiluted love, holding back nothing!Now, I can hear somebody saying, ”But I would love to do that for Jesus as well but He's not here now.” Well, if we go to Matthew 25:40, Jesus said: “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.” So yes, we can do it. We can find someone that we love dearly, we can find someone who has nothing, someone who is lonely, and we can give them something which is very precious to us, and that is the equivalent of doing it for the Lord.So this day let us go out and let us find somebody who is very lonely, somebody who is very poor in spirit, not necessarily financially, and give them something which will touch their hearts deeply, and Jesus will be very happy with us. Today is the Day of Goodwill, let us share the goodwill of Christ wherever we go!God bless you and have a wonderful day. Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 25th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, wishing you a very, very happy Christmas. Yes, we made it again - what a wonderful day, a very blessed Christmas! I want to thank you on behalf of our whole team whom I never mention. I'm talking about my producer, Gary, I'm talking about my editor, Candice, I'm talking about my beloved wife Gill and all our family at Shalom, and the Shalom fellowship. I want to wish you a very blessed Christmas Day!It's a time of mixed emotions, isn't it? Some of our loved ones have already gone home to be with Jesus and they won't be sharing Christmas Day with you, but I want to tell you something, by the Grace of God, they are waiting for you in Heaven and that's something to look forward to. So there is only one scripture verse today which in my humble opinion is appropriate for Christmas Day, which sums up the whole Bible, which consists of no less than 66 books, and I'm going to read it to you out of the Amplified Version. Yes, I am talking about John 3:16. “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son…” Dads, how would you like to give your only son to die for the sins of others, even while they are still sinners? It's hard enough to give your son up for fellow believers, but to give him up for other sinners. That's what our Heavenly Father did. I cannot even comprehend the pain that must have taken place when they said farewell to each other and Jesus came down from Heaven to Earth in the form of a little baby. We carry on:”… so that whoever (now whoever means whoever) believes and trusts in Him (in God) [as Savior] shall not perish (shall not die) but have eternal life.” That's what Christmas Day is all about! We are remembering the tremendous price that was paid for you and me so that we could have eternal life.Today, let us do that to one another: ”Greater love has no one than this,” the Bible says ”than to lay down one's life for his friends.” John 15:13, and that's exactly what took place 2000 years ago in a little town called Bethlehem. Jesus bless you today as you have a peaceful and a happy Christmas. Merry Christmas! God bless you and goodbye

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 24th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. Yes indeed, it is Christmas Eve, a very special birthday. It's the birthday of the greatest human being that has ever lived, but I've got a very interesting thought for today for you. God put it on my heart early this morning. Psalm 19:14:”Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.” Now, those of you who know me well know that I will not start preaching until I have prayed that prayer and preferably on my knees. “Why?” You say because it is a wonderful but great responsibility to bring God's word to people. This tongue of ours over this Christmas period must be harnessed correctly and that's not a joke. I belong to a very big family myself and I want to tell you there are people that are coming from very far. You've got members of your family coming from overseas, they have been waiting for this time. Be careful what you say. If you go to the Book of James 3:6, this is what it says: ”And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.” Wow!How many world wars have started because of something that has been said? How many families are in divorce because of words spoken that you wish you'd never said them? How many disasters have taken place, bad business deals, broken relationships because of a word said in anger? Don't do it. Today, count to ten before you say it and then you probably won't say it. You can't bring words back once they are out. They are like that pillow full of feathers. You take it out into the wind, you open up that pillow, the feathers go all over the place. You will never put those feathers back in that pillowcase.We need to speak Jesus. He is all that counts and if you speak Jesus today, you cannot make a mistake. Let's be gentle, let's be loving with each other. Let us not be part of an unruly fire that can destroy a relationship. Today, let us be as gentle and as kind as we can to each other.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful Christmas Eve, Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 23rd of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.We start off in the Book of Isaiah 9:6:“For unto us a Child is born,Unto us a Son is given;And the government will be upon His shoulder.And His name will be calledWonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”Then we go straight to the Gospel of Matthew 1:21:“And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”Yes, we are talking about the Prince of Peace, we are talking about the Darling of Heaven. As we approach Christmas Day, the Lord has laid this beautiful song on my heart that I want to read to you. It was written by Mark Lowry, a Gospel singer from America. I am sure you have heard it but I want you to listen very carefully to the words that he has written, because they always bring me to tears every time. This is how it starts:Mary, did you know that your baby boy will one day walk on water?Mary, did you know that your baby boy will save our sons and daughters?Did you know that your baby boy has come to make you new?This child that you've delivered will soon deliver youMary, did you know that your baby boy will give sight to a blind man?Mary, did you know that your baby boy will calm a storm with His hand?Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?When you kissed your little baby you've kissed the face of GodThe blind will see, the deaf will hear and the dead will live againThe lame will leap, the dumb will speak the praises of the LambMary, did you know that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?Mary, did you know that your baby boy will one day rule the nations?Did you know that your baby boy is Heaven's perfect Lamb?This sleeping child you're holding is the great 'I Am'Maybe you have listened to this and your heart is touched, and you say, “But Angus, I am really struggling sometimes to believe that that baby is God made flesh, Immanuel.” Well, I want to pray for you.Father,I pray for my dear friend. Maybe she is lonely, maybe he is missing his wife, maybe they are in hospital and they are struggling to believe. Please increase their faith today and let them know about the Babe who was born in Bethlehem, who is soon coming again to take us to be with Him, in glory forever, Amen.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Monday morning, the 22nd of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Isaiah 44:24:“Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer,And He who formed you from the womb:“I am the Lord, who makes all things,Who stretches out the heavens all alone,Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself;…”Then we go to the Gospel of John 1:1: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” I am so excited to share this with you this morning. Very, very early, as the sun was coming up, I took my mountain bike out for a ride, and as I went up the road to the end of the farm, I looked into a paddock, and there was a flock of huge storks, beautiful, majestic storks. Now the wind was blowing so hard, I thought it was going to blow me off my bicycle and I was struggling to stay on the road. Oh but my friends, I got quite emotional because these storks decided to take off and hovered above me and my bicycle, and the wind was blowing and they just hung there like they were standing still with their wings fully expanded, and then all of a sudden they would take a dive and enjoy the wind thermals, go right up into the air, come down again and then literally park all around me. And again, I thought, “Oh Lord, what a Creator!”We have an airstrip very close to us and there is a Big C company. They own quite a few aeroplanes, they even have a Lear Jet in their hangar, but with all due respect, not one of them look anything like these storks when they take to the wind and they start to soar - unbelievable! Then I carried on down the road. I rode about another 2 to 3 kilometres, I went around a sharp corner and there is a big forest, and just in front of the forest is a fence and I saw a family of vervet monkeys, all sitting on the wire fence, and all their little white faces, were facing the sun. They were catching the first heat waves of the day and again I said, “Lord, what a Creator You are.” Then I carried on a bit further, and I saw a flock of swallows, and they were catching the insects, flying back and forth, but not flapping their wings, using the wind thermals. And I thought, “Lord, You sent those swallows all the way, 6000 miles from the Northern Hemisphere, to come to our beloved South Africa and catch the summer! Jesus bless you today and open your eyes and you will see the Creator in action!God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 21st of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Gospel of John 1:11: “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.” Then we go to the Book of Isaiah 53:3: “He is despised and rejected by men,…”Are you feeling unpopular at this time of the year? It is the festive season, it's the time that people say, “Let's let our hair down and let's have a party!” Now, there is nothing wrong with having a party. I am talking about the office party, the end-of-year party, and let's go for it. And you say, “No, I don't sleep around. No, I am not a drunkard. No, I am not part of those filthy pornographic jokes.” And all of a sudden, you are not so popular, are you? And somebody said, I don't know if it was DL Moody or one of the great evangelists, he said, “If everybody has got something good to say about you, be sure Jesus has got nothing good to say about you!” It's funny, but it's not funny, is it?I am thinking particularly of the younger people today. When you become a senior man or a woman, people know who you are, whether you like it or not, you have been branded, but when you are a young person, you want to be in with the crowd, but you don't want to drop the ball, then you start getting tempted by the devil and he uses people. Matthew 12:30 says, “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.” Basically, you can't serve two masters. Either you are serving the Lord Jesus Christ or you are serving the world. You don't have to try and become unpopular. All you have to do is stand up with a Bible and what it stands for, and you will automatically become extremely unpopular and criticised for lots of things that you have never even said. Tell me about it!Oh, but my dear friend, it is worth it all because that great day when the Lord comes again, it's not too far away, it will be wonderful when He can identify you from the crowd, when He says, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Come, come and enter into your rest.”Have a wonderful Christmas time without compromising your faith.Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 20th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go straight to the Gospel of John 11:35: ”Jesus wept.” Jesus cried. Compassion is what the world needs. Do you know, He was about to raise Lazarus from the dead? He knew that. So why was He weeping? Because He had compassion on the people when He saw how they were mourning because of the death of His friend, Lazarus. This world needs compassion. Compassion is another word for understanding, it's another word for being concerned, for kindness, for being sensitive.William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, sent his soldiers out all over the world to tell people about the love of Christ. He sent some to far-off countries. He got a letter back from one group of these salvationists. They said, “We have tried everything here. We have tried preaching the Gospel from Genesis to Revelation, but we are hitting a brick wall. We are not getting through. What must we do?” He wrote a letter back and there were two words on that letter, “Try tears.” Not so long ago, I had the privilege of being the speaker at a campaign in one of the most dangerous places on the Continent of Africa. I'm talking about the Cape Flats in Cape Town, where there are gang wars and the men are killing each other, up to twenty men getting shot dead in a weekend. Some people told me not to go there, “You'll get killed.” I said, ”No, Jesus has opened a way for us and we are going.” I will never forget the love that I experienced in that place, the love, the desperation, the tears. I haven't seen tears like that at an event for a long time. I walked off the platform and I walked up to the barrier just to hug these men. They were kissing me on the neck. They were telling me they loved me and as we were trying to get out of the stadium, we had people around us to try and make a way for us. There was one young man who would not take no for an answer and he was so desperate to speak to me that one of the organisers said, ”This young man wants to speak to you.” So we stopped. I said, ”Bring him,” and I said. ”What can I do for you son?” He looked at me, tears running down his face. He said, ”I just want a hug from you, Uncle Angus.” That was all. I took him in my arms and I hugged him and I loved him and he loved me and the love of Christ, I believe, was all he needed and that is what he received. Today, go and love somebody and be quick to cry and don't be too quick to point fingers.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day. Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Friday morning, the 19th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Psalms 105:2: ”Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him;Talk of all His wondrous works!” Then we go straight to 1 Thessalonians 5:18: ”In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God…” I read a beautiful little reading this morning by the famous hymn writer, Francis Ridley Havergal, and this is what she says. She says, ”We talk about the telescope of faith but I think we want even more the microscope of watchful and grateful love.” She says, ”Apply this to the little bits of our daily lives, in the light of the Spirit and how wonderfully they will come out.” Yes, we want to look through the telescope of faith and see all the big things in life, but she says maybe we need to get that microscope out and thank God for all the little things He has done for us.You say, ”What little things?” Well, maybe you passed your exams. “Yes, but I didn't get a hundred percent, Angus!” No, but you passed your exams and surely that's worth praising God for, and that farmer, ”No, I didn't really get a bumper crop this year.” But maybe you are able to pay your costs and that's worth thanking God for. Counting your blessings and naming them one by one, and then all of a sudden, things won't look so hopeless, will they?Do you remember that little song, it's a hymn, that goes something like this;Count your blessings, name them one by oneCount your blessings, see what God has doneCount your blessings, name them one by oneCount your many blessings, see what God has doneIsn't that wonderful? Today, count those blessings! Thank the Lord that you woke up this morning and you can see a brand new day, and who knows? This may be the day that the Lord will come and take us home to be with Him in paradise forever, but until then, count your blessings!Jesus bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 18th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Gospel of John 11:25-26:”Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” There's a question for you and me this morning. Do we believe that if we are in Christ Jesus, we will never die?I remember a beautiful story written, I think it was by the great evangelist, Dwight Lyman Moody. He went on an expedition to Great Britain and in about two or three years, led something like two million people to Christ. He was a former shoe salesman, not very educated, not very well spoken, but he knew Jesus Christ.Now the scripture I've just read to you was Jesus reassuring Martha, the sister of Mary and their brother Lazarus, when he had been delivered out of the tomb where he had been dead for four days. Jesus said, ”I am the resurrection and if you believe in Me you will never die.”Well, DL Moody said, ”One day you will read in the newspapers that D L Moody has died. Do not believe a word of it.” He said, ”I will not have died. I will simply have changed my address.” Isn't that beautiful? Maybe today you are mourning the loss of a loved one that has died. If they know Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, they are not dead. They have just gone ahead of you to Heaven and they will be waiting there for you to come. Their prayer for you today would be, “Please, do not mourn. Do not cry over me. Make sure that you are a Christian, and then I will see you in Heaven.”One of the most beautiful little scripture verses I really love, especially at a time when we are mourning the loss of a loved one and maybe we are a little bit confused, is found in Psalm 116:15. It says:”Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” If your loved one knows Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, just like D L Moody, they have not died, they have simply changed their address. They are waiting for you in Heaven, and they are saying to you today, ”Please believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and you will be with me also in Heaven.” Have a wonderful day,God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 17th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Psalms 27:4, and David said: “One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.” Then we go to the New Testament, to the Gospel of Luke 10:41-42: And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”We need to slow down. We need to listen to the Word of God. Jesus said to Martha, “Your sister Mary is sitting at my feet and listening to what I am saying and you are running to and fro, all over the place and wearing yourself out. I want to say to you today, as we are approaching Christmas time, and things are getting busier, I am speaking not only to young mothers but to young men as well, this is not a time to run to and fro. This is a time to settle down and be with your loved ones. You say, “No, I can't afford to.” You cannot afford not to, sir!Do you remember the story, I don't know whether it is true or not, but it is a good story that took place in England when the famous sea captain, Sir Francis Drake, was playing a game of bowls. He must have been on the white cliffs of Dover somewhere, and he could look out and see, and some of his men ran to him and said to him, “The Spanish Armada, hundreds of sea-going warships, are approaching Britain to declare war!” And Sir Francis Drake calmly said he would finish his game of bowls and then have time to beat the Spanish Armada.I want to say to you today, take time to be with your loved ones. Remember, Mary, according to Jesus, chose a better way. She sat at the feet of the Lord, and David, the apple of the Lord's eye, said he wanted to sit at the feet of God. Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Tuesday morning, the 16th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Gospel of Luke 20:38: “For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, …” Then we go to John 11:23: “Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” I want to speak to you today about the God of the living. Lazarus had been dead for four days in the tomb. In the Middle East, they have to bury the dead the same day because the body starts to break down with the heat, but Jesus told His best friend's sister, ”Your brother will rise again.” Martha did not understand what He meant. She thought He was talking about the resurrection. No, Lazarus was about to be resurrected out of the tomb. As a farmer, I can see my living God every day of my life. When I see a crop coming out of the ground - you plant the seed and then one morning, early, you wake up and there it is coming up beautifully with life, living. A newly born calf, a newly born lamb - new life! Jesus is the God of the living! He is not the God of the dead. So I want to say to you today that He is the One who will forgive you, as He has forgiven me. He will heal you, as He has healed me. He will restore you as He has restored me. He is the God of the second chance. How many people have been cast aside by the world, as failures? They call out to Jesus, the God of the living, and He literally resurrects them. The Bible is full of those people, right from Adam, right through to the New Testament. Today, He wants to remind you. He is not dead, He is not in the tomb. He is alive and He is the God of the living and He wants to restore you and renew you completely. Let Him do it!Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Monday morning, the 15th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. If we go to the Gospel of Matthew 8:3: “Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.” Jesus healed the leper! Jesus was always found with the sick, the poor, and the rejected of society. As I read this account this morning, my mind went back to my dear wife, Jill's, mother and father, who came out from England after the Second World War to Nigeria and then to Northern Zambia, and what they did was nurse the lepers. They ran leprosy colonies. How many people know about that? Not many, but I want to tell you one thing, the lepers know about it and so does Jesus.Today, maybe you are thinking, “What is it that I have done which is of any worth?” Oh my dear friend, that cup of water, that piece of bread, that visit, that smile - they all count. An old lady came to Shalom Ministries, but before she came, she stood up in front of her family, on her 70th birthday and said, “I am going full-time for Jesus!” Then she came, and she said, “I am coming to join you, Angus”, and she came to stay with us until Jesus took her home. Jimmy and Moira arrived in their little car on the farm one day. I will never forget it. I was clearing some land, and they informed me that they had been sent by God to come and help us on this farm. What a lovely couple! They stayed with us until Jesus took them home.Today, just give the Lord what you have got. The Lord built this ministry on this farm, not by the famous, not by the rich, not by the influential. No, but by the whosoever's, the widows, the people who are old, the people that maybe no one knows their name, but I want to tell you, I know their names, and more importantly, Jesus knows their names. Today, I want to encourage you again to use what you have for the Lord and do it with all of your heart, and that is all that He requires of you, and He will do the rest. Have a wonderful Christmas Season and Jesus bless you,Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus precious name. It is Sunday morning, the 14th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go straight to the Gospel of Mark 8:36:”For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? “ Where are we putting all our effort? What are we doing in this life? What are we trying to build up? What legacy are we leaving for our families? I looked up the dictionary to find out the literal meaning of the word “legacy.” It means “an amount of money or property left to someone in a will.” Casting Crowns is a very, very popular Christian band, and they have made many hit songs. They are one of my favourite groups and there is one song that they sing, it is called, “Only Jesus - take everything else I have just leave me Jesus.” There's a little video goes with that song and I watched it and the lead singer, Mark Hall, is driving an old pick-up to the rubbish dump, to the pit, and he stops in the middle of the pit and of course his whole band is playing in the background. He opens the back of the jeep and brings out a box full of trophies that have been won in sporting and different disciplines in life, and he throws them into the rubbish bin. “Take the world but give me Jesus!” I want to say to you today that we need to have a good look at what our priorities are in life.I met a gentleman a while back, a very good friend of mine, he's a very senior gentleman at the moment, and we were sitting talking. I was just encouraging him on the great job that he has done with his family, with his children. They are all serving the Lord - but he got a bit tearful and he said to me, ”But I haven't left anything for them in terms of a legacy. I haven't left them any money, any possessions because I don't have any.” And I said to him, ”You have left them the best thing you could have ever left them. You have left them Jesus Christ. They know Him as their Lord and Saviour, and they are serving Him.”There are many others who leave vast fortunes to their children but their children have never met the Man from Galilee. Today, let's throw all this worldly stuff aside and let us concentrate on leaving a legacy for our families that will last forever.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Saturday morning, the 13th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Gospel of John 11:17:”So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days.” We are talking here about Jesus' friend, Lazarus. He had already been buried for four days. In the Middle East, in the early days, when somebody died, they had to bury him the very same day, because of the heat in the Middle East, the body starts to decay. Lazarus had already been buried for four days. Remember Mary and Martha? ”Oh Lord, if only you had been here on time you could have healed him.” Of course we know what happened. Yes, Jesus prayed and Lazarus came out of the tomb. I have been to Israel, I have been to the place where the tomb is, and I've actually climbed down into that very tomb where Lazarus lay and the Lord called him out and he was instantly resurrected. Folks, death has lost it's sting. I'm talking to somebody today who's afraid to die, if you know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviour, you have nothing to fear. If we look at 1 Corinthians 15:55, the Bible says: “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” There is no victory for the devil. I want to say to you that if you are walking with the Lord as your Personal Saviour and your Best Friend and you are having communion with Him every day, then you've got nothing to fear. Paul said in Philippians 1:21: ”For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” In other words, what we always say here, tongue in cheek, you cannot frighten a Christian with heaven, can you? No, no! If we live, we live for Christ, if we die we go home to heaven, and I want to reassure somebody that is very afraid of death. You don't have to be afraid of death. It's a continuation of the life that you are living. It's only going to be so much sweeter and so much more full of love and peace. So if you are living in the Spirit, if your everyday affairs concern the Lord, whether you're driving a vehicle, whether you're building something, whatever you might be doing, if the Lord is constantly with you, when you die, that's just going to continue. There is no big jump, no big movement, no, a continuation of a simplistic life lived in the Spirit of God.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus precious name! It is Friday morning, the 12th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Book of Leviticus 12:8:”So the priest shall make atonement for her, and she will be clean.' ” What does that mean? “Make atonement” - I looked up the Oxford Dictionary and the literal meaning of the word “atonement” is “reconciliation of God and man.” Father God did it once and for all, for you and for me. He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, down to earth from heaven as a sacrifice, an ultimate sacrifice for all of our sins.Now that, my dear friend, is real love - Jesus, the ultimate sacrifice for our sin! If you read in Leviticus, you will see that the Israelites had to keep going up to the Temple to offer sacrifices for their sins. They took bulls, they took rams, they took goats, they took turtledoves to pay for their continual sins but eventually it wasn't enough, so Father God sent His own Son to be the ultimate sacrifice for your sin and for my sin. John 15:13 says: ”Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.” That is what Jesus did for us. Do you remember that novel written by Charles Dickens, the famous writer? It was called “The Tale of Two Cities, and basically, it is the story of a friend dying for his friend. These were two identical men, and the one went to the guillotine in France in place of his friend, and the famous line in that whole story, that novel, goes like this, ”It is a far, far better thing that I do than I have ever done. It is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”I want to say to you today, we too must be prepared to die to self so that Jesus can live through us.Have a wonderful day, God bless you and goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious Name! It is Thursday morning, the 11th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Gospel of Matthew 16:16: Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Then we go to Mark 8:29: “Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.” We go to Matthew 1:23“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” It's all in the Name. It is the most powerful Name in the universe! The only time the people wanted to stone Jesus wasn't because he was healing the sick, raising the dead, opening blind eyes, restoring the cripples, delivering people from leprosy and all kinds of diseases. No, no! They were happy with that, but when He said, ”I am who I am.” When He said, ”I am God made flesh.” Then they wanted to stone Him and nothing has changed. Even as I am recording this message early in the morning, there are people in the world who are being martyred, not for stealing, not for murdering, not for raping, not for plundering, but because we say Jesus is God. It's using that Name!People are being put in jail, as I'm talking to you now, because they have been found in possession of a Bible on them. Why? Because the devil hates God and the devil hates God's people, but the good news is, when you and I use that Name, and I've done it all my life, there is power in the Name. I have seen the Lord with my own eyes, and I have many witnesses of the weather changing because we pray in that Name. I have seen sick people healed because we have said, ”In the Name of Jesus Christ, be healed!” Today, do not be ashamed of the Gospel of Christ because that is where the power is. We are not in any way to apologise for our faith to anybody. When you use the Name God, no one is offended because God is who you presume Him to be. Maybe you worship the trees, maybe you worship some idol, some foreign god, but when you use the Name which is above every other Name, then all the demons in hell hate to hear that Name, but that is where the power is!Today and this Christmas season, let us worship Immanuel, God with us. That little baby, in that manger in Bethlehem, came down from heaven to earth to save you and me.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Wednesday morning, the 10th of December, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We go to the Gospel of John 10:9. Jesus says: ”I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” Jesus is the door. What is a door? It's a movable barrier to the entrance of a room. Now, in the old days, the shepherd would take his flock at night, as the sun was going down, and he would take them home to a little enclosure close to his home, but there was no door in that enclosure. The shepherd himself would sleep across the doorway. If any wolf or any wild animal wanted to come in during the night and take one of the sheep, that animal had to go across the shepherd who was lying at the door. I want to say to you today that there is no other entrance into the Kingdom of God but by the way of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one who allows us to go in. He is the one who protects us and He is the one who directs our paths. He is the only way. There are no short cuts over the wall, no, only way through the door. John 14:6 tells us very clearly: 'Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Today, I feel it on my heart to pray for you. There are many people who are trying to make a way and they are failing. A young person came to me not so long ago and said, ”Why have I never got enough money? I'm always short of money.” Maybe you are not doing it the right way. Maybe, you are not going through the door. You are always trying to make a plan which is not working. Today, I want to urge you to do it God's way. I want to pray a little prayer for you and I would like you to follow me on this prayer.Dear Lord Jesus, We acknowledge you as the Good Shepherd. You have been sent by Your Father to look after Your sheep. Please help us to obey You and to go through the right entrance in order to find eternal life. We ask this in Your precious name, amen.Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.