I am a widow

I am a widow and I am going to do the best I can to be the best me I can be. My husband contracted Covid19. He got sick on Christmas day of 2020 and early on the morning of 8 January 2021 he passed away. He was 63 years old but he wasn’t sickly, in fact he had never had a life threatening disease in his entire life. He ran a business full time and still found the time to play golf twice a week. He was not a candidate for death. Or was he? Do we have any say in the matter of our own death? I’m speaking from a Christian point of view. Does God determine when we are to leave this earth or do circumstances? One day I will know all the answers, but for now I know what I believe.

God made the earth and everything on it was perfect. Then Adam and Eve disobeyed Him and everything changed. People had to start toiling for their daily bread and they would have to face death. But then Jesus came and changed everything when He was crucified and rose from the dead. He said if we believe in Him we would receive eternal life.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 ESV

Therefore death isn’t the end, but the beginning of a glorious new life that we cannot even start to imagine. The Bible gives us glimpses into this life but doesn’t tell all.

Revelation 21:4 ESV

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

John 14:2 ESV

In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?

1 Corinthians 2:9 ESV  

But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”

Revelation 22:1-5 ESV

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

This last verse is enough to make me believe that I have absolutely no idea how wonderful Heaven is going to be. I don’t know where Heaven is or is going to be, and frankly, it doesn’t matter to me. All I know is that it is going to be so much better than anything here on earth.

I believe emphatically that my husband is in Heaven experiencing the glory of God. I miss him and my heart aches, but I wouldn’t want to deny him the peace that he now has. I have read articles about the process of grieving and come to the conclusion that there are no hard and fast rules. I have found that there are well-meaning people who expect me to fall apart and think there is something wrong, or that I am not being honest when I say that I am fine. Obviously I am not as fine as I was before my other half was torn from me but I am coping. I have to guard my heart constantly against good people who say insensitive things. They don’t realize what they are saying hurts and at this point I have no desire to get into any discussions about it. I have to guard my thoughts against the doubts and fears which invariably sneak in. I have to literally take every thought captive and decide whether I can entertain it or not. I have days when the air is so thick I struggle to breath and moments when a memory is triggered and I cry buckets, but I get up, dress up and show up. Every day. I am not suffering from depression and I still engage in the hobbies and interests I did before his death. Yet, everything has changed. Every single thing I do is new and I have to reinvent the way I do things. At work I have to be the boss. I don’t particularly like being the boss, but for now I have to do it. At home I cook for one. I sleep alone on a big bed. I have to make all the decisions alone. I don’t have the luxury of bouncing it off someone as close to me as I am to myself. On a lighter side I can’t go back to a bad decision and say, “That was your decision!”

Because of the lockdown things are not normal and we are only having a service on Sunday. Not a memorial or mourning service but a celebration of life. Of his life, of the lives each one of us has, of life after death.

This is how I feel today. I am a widow and I am going to do my best to be the best me I can be.

Corona

In Daniel Chapter 3 Daniel’s friends are in peril of dying as they had been sentenced to be thrown into the fiery furnace for not bowing down to the golden statue.

Daniel 3:16-18, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”

 

This made me think about the Corona Virus. I’m sure I don’t have to go into any explanations about it. The world has done a pretty good job of sowing fear.  Now, obviously we aren’t going to find the term “Corona Virus” in the Bible. I have seen some very involved discussions about meanings of the words and Biblical references. This is what I believe.

 

Daniel’s friends could have succumbed to fear when their death sentence was proclaimed. They could have decided to go and bow to the stupid statue. They could have renounced their faith. They could have been a blubbering heap of terror and begged the king for mercy. But they didn’t. They decided to trust their God. They put all their faith in Him and never wavered. They were not afraid. Now just imagine that. There was this huge fire and they were about to be thrown into it. Not walking over hot coals or something mild like that. They were on the brink of being cremated alive!! They don’t flinch. They tell the king that God will save them. And even if He doesn’t save them from the furnace, He will save them from the king. In other words, if they die the king won’t be able to persecute them anymore, and they will be in heaven.
Just so it ought to be with us. God will deliver believers from the Corona Virus. And if He doesn’t and we get infected He will heal us, but even if He doesn’t and we die, we will go to Heaven.  Therefore there is no reason whatsoever to fear. Are you afraid of going to Heaven? I know that I’m not. I am not going to allow a virus to keep me in fear and bondage and hold me hostage when I have a God who is stronger than all the viruses put together. Just like those Jewish boys said they will not serve the foreign Gods, I have no intentions whatsoever of serving fear.  I am going to carry on as  normal and I will praise God regardless.

A stranger in Heaven

I saw an old friend yesterday and it was such a surprise. You know the feeling where you suddenly see a face you recognise but you didn’t expect to see that person. It’s really a special feeling. I wonder what it’s going to feel like when we get to heaven and meet Jesus face to face. Are we going to be surprised at His appearance or are we going to know His face. Is it going to feel like we’re meeting someone we know intimately or are we going to feel like we’re meeting a stranger for the first time? Have you ever thought about it? Let’s look at some character traits of Jesus and see if they are familiar? Some of these verses are out of the Old Testament and were spoken prophetically while other are from the New Testament either being the words of Jesus himself, the witness of His disciples or  words spoken by people to whom Jesus revealed His character. Jesus still reveals His character today to his followers so that we can get to know Him.

Matthew 9:36, But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.

Luke 19:41, Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it,

Luke 23:34, Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.

John 15:13, Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

Isaiah 11:5, Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist.

John 1:14, And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 7:18, He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.

Zechariah 9:9, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your King is coming to you;

He is just and having salvation,

Lowly and riding on a donkey,

A colt, the foal of a donkey.

Isaiah 40:11, He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm,

And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young.

2 Corintians 5:21,  For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Hebrews 7:26-27, For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

Isaiah 53:7, He was oppressed and He was afflicted,

Yet He opened not His mouth;

He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,

And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,

So He opened not His mouth.

Isaiah 53:9, And they made His grave with the wicked—

But with the rich at His death,

Because He had done no violence,

Nor was any deceit in His mouth.

1 Peter 2:22, Who committed no sin,

Nor was deceit found in His mouth

1 Timothy 1:16, However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.

Philippians 2:8-11, And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Would we recognise Jesus from these verses? There are many, many more such references and we could be busy for days just finding them. We need to spend time in the Word to get to know our Saviour so well that we won’t be meeting a stranger in Heaven.

The devil’s birthday party

The following passage has been recurring for the last 3 weeks. I sit up and take notice when this happens because I believe God is trying to draw my attention to something.

Luke 15:4-7, “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.

Then, I had this dream: An acquaintance told me that she was going to arrange a birthday party for me. She would arrange everything and invite the guests. She created an expectation. In the dream I was excited that someone would care enough to do something like that. When the day of my birthday came along I arrived at the venue with great excitement. People were arriving and my acquaintance asked me to help carry the platters of food into the dining room. I gladly helped especially because of all the trouble she had gone to. I was mingling with the other guests and I started to feel uncomfortable because nobody was congratulating me on my birthday. Nobody even acknowledged that they knew it was my birthday and there weren’t any gifts. Someone mentioned that this was a very nice pre-Christmas party (whatever that may be). I suddenly realized that although this party was supposed to have been my birthday party, it wasn’t about me at all. My acquaintance had deceived me into believing that it was. I felt totally humiliated and couldn’t do anything about it without making myself look pathetic.

When I woke up I remembered the dream in detail and I asked God what it was all about. He showed me that the verse about the 99 sheep and the dream were connected.

Jesus, who is the Good Shepherd, is genuinely concerned about my well-being. And the well-being of every other person on earth. He died for all, regardless of who you are. If we accept Him as our saviour, we will be saved. He cares so much, that if I were to stray away from Him, He will leave everything to come and find me and bring me back into the fold. He loves me and cares for me and, as the verse says, there will be joy in heaven about one sinner that is saved. On the other hand, the devil will trick and deceive me at every chance he has.

2 Corinthians 11:14, And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.

1 Peter 5:8, Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

The devil is going to make things look good. He is going to tell you that the drugs of alcohol you are being offered are going to make you feel so good and you are going to forget all your problems. He will tell you that if you get into a relationship with someone who is married isn’t going to be a problem because it’s true love. He is going to tell you that it’s okay to cheat on your taxes because the government is actually busy cheating you. He is going to tell you that gossip is really just showing compassion. The list is endless and the outcome is always the same. The things you do have consequences and you are going to have to face the consequences. When the consequences come, the devil who incited you to doing the deeds is going to be laughing at you. The party he promises you is not for you. It is for him to humiliate you and show you that he is boss. Don’t fall for his tricks, and if you have please turn away immediately and all the Good Shepherd to retrieve you from the mud that you have become stuck in. He is going to throw the biggest, most sincere party for you and all of heaven will be rejoicing.

Heavenly Character

How often don’t we speculate about how things are going to be in Heaven. What is it going to look like? Will there be animals? Will we still have relationships with the people we were close to? People write books about their near death experiences where they were given glimpses of Heaven. We ask these and many more questions all the time, but do we ever wonder what we are going to be like in Heaven? Obviously we are going to have a new body after we have been resurrected from death. There are many references to our glorified bodies in scripture.
1 Corinthians 15:44, It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. It there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
Having established that, does the Bible say that we are going to receive wonderful, pure characters once we reach Heaven? Does is say that our prejudice and bad habits will be supernaturally washed away after we die? No, it doesn’t. We have to work on our character now while we are on earth because I think this is the only chance we are going to get. I think so because there are so many references to Godly character in scripture. If we didn’t need to be as much like Jesus as we could possibly be, why would good characteristics be emphasised so much? Why would there be fruit of the Spirit if they weren’t absolutely necessary?
Galatians 5:22-23, But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control;…
We have to admit that the person who constantly manifests these traits is pretty near to being perfect. Very close to what Jesus was. But how many of us can claim that we walk our daily walk clothed in these?
Then in Romans 5 there is talk of rejoicing in our sufferings. This is hard and our natural reaction to suffering is that it is not fair, and if God loved us He wouldn’t allow us to go through all this hard stuff. But look what it says:
Romans 5:3-5, Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
James 1:2-4, Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1:12, Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love Him.
If we look at suffering and hardship as something that is going to make much better people of us then we are able to endure it with a good attitude. We shouldn’t see hard times as being unfair or as a personal attack.
2 Timothy 3:10,You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness…
Paul is emphasising these characteristics for a reason. If they weren’t important to have he wouldn’t have mentioned them. We don’t just need these good attributes so that God can pat us on the head and say we’ve passed a test and now we can go to Heaven one day and sit around worshipping Him all the time. I truly believe that we are going to need these qualities to be able to function after we leave earth. There are hints throughout the Bible of the time to come.
1 Corinthians 6:2-3, Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases? Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life?
We are being prepared for something much higher and holier than what we are experiencing on earth at the moment, and we need to put our full weight behind our efforts to live a life that reflects Jesus.

Ascension Day

Today is the celebration of the ascension of Jesus to Heaven about 1986 years ago. As we know Jesus died because of crucifixion, was laid in a tomb, rose from death on the third day, spent 40 days walking of earth talking and teaching his disciples of what was coming. Then He ascended to Heaven. The bible says in Acts 1:9 – 11 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”

So Jesus was standing there and He started to rise up off the ground. How incredible is that! I can just imagine all the gaping mouths. I would certainly have been shocked if I was there. I think they couldn’t believe what they were seeing. The disciples knew from what Jesus had told them that He would be going to heaven and they hoped that He would be restoring Israel as a country. At that time Rome was governing Israel and the Jews had believed that the Messiah would come as a military hero to restore Israel which obviously didn’t happen. Now the disciples still held onto the hope that He would be making this happen.

Acts 1: 6 – 8  Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Jesus was telling them that it was more important for them to listen to Him and follow His instructions than to be worrying about when Israel would be restored. There are times that have been ordained for everything to take place and those times are not for us to know, or to get anxious about. We need to be following what Jesus said and not be following our own agendas.

The promise He did make that the Holy Spirit would be poured out on the believers and that we would receive power. The other promise that the angel made when Jesus had gone to heaven was that He would return in the same what that He left.

We have so many promises that we can hold onto. We have the whole Bible which is full of promises but we often forget all about it and complain bitterly about how unfair life is and how disadvantaged we are and how difficult everything is. We put personal feelings and culture and all our other idols before the word of God and then we complain that we aren’t being blessed. I just wonder how God must feel when His heart is so full of love for each one of us, that He made uniquely and with purpose, when we forget all about Him and clutch at all kinds of straws when we are in trouble. If we put ourselves in God’s place and if our children were to treat us like we treat God, how would we react? But God says in Hebrews 13:5-6 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we may boldly say:

“The Lord is my helper;

I will not fear.

What can man do to me?”

We forget that God is so big and people are so small. Let us remember this day that Jesus went to Heaven and left for us power and promises and let us rejoice about it. But we shouldn’t just do it once a year, we should remember it every single day.

Revelation 7:12 “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom,

Thanksgiving and honor and power and might,

Be to our God forever and ever.

Amen.”

Creativity

I love to write. I don’t think that’s a secret I try to keep. I also like to think that I’m quite creative. If I look back over the years I think the most creative part of me is my imagination. I even had an imaginary friend when I was a little girl. I always loved writing essays when I was at school and ever since I could read I wanted to write a book. I am very happy all on my own with a book to read, no, let me rather say it’s a great joy for me to be left all alone with a book to read. Every person should be encouraged to find their passion in life. When you know what makes your heart beat faster and puts a smile on your face, everything else becomes much easier to handle. Once you know what it is you can use that passion to bring honor to God.

God is the ultimate creator. He made the whole world with a word. He sculpted Adam from clay and then He made Eve out of Adam’s rib. Just think about this, everything was created by God speaking, except animals and humans. God took the time to make us perfectly with His own hands and then He breathed His own breath into us. Genesis 2:7, ‘And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” Adam was also a very creative person. He gave names to all the animals. Genesis 2:19, “Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name.” God recognized and respected the authority He had given to Adam. He didn’t overrule him and say he was giving them stupid names.

In Genesis 4:21 – 22 we find some more creative people, “His brother’s name was Jubal. He was the father of all those who play the harp and flute. And as for Zillah, she also bore Tubal-Cain, an instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron.” Then of course there was Noah, who crafted the first floating hotel. Genesis 9:13, “I set my rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.” God was so creative making the rainbow, even today people rejoice in it’s beauty. Jacob made a beautiful coat of many colours for his favourite son, Joseph. Moses and Miriam both led the Israelites in singing and dancing in the desert. Aaron sculpted a calf out of gold, and Moses made a golden serpent. In Exodus from chapter 27 to chapter 30, God tells Moses in great detail how to build the tabernacle and what its furnishings must look like. Exodus 31:1- 11 Then the Lord said to Moses, ² “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, ³ and I have filled him with the Goeiemôre Chantel. Ek het nog nie my huur gekry nie. Is daar n probleem? of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— ⁴ to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, ⁵ to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts. ⁶ Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan, to help him. Also I have given ability to all the skilled workers to make everything I have commanded you: ⁷ the tent of meeting, the ark of the covenant law with the atonement cover on it, and all the other furnishings of the tent— ⁸ the table and its articles, the pure gold lampstand and all its accessories, the altar of incense, ⁹ the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, the basin with its stand—¹⁰ and also the woven garments, both the sacred garments for Aaron the priest and the garments for his sons when they serve as priests, ¹¹ and the anointing oil and fragrant incense for the Holy Place. They are to make them just as I commanded you.”

Because the Egyptians had given the Israelites all kinds of treasures before they left Egypt they had all kinds of gold and silver jewellery, cloth and precious items. These are what were used to build and furnish the tabernacle in the desert. Then in Numbers 10:1 – 2, “And the Lord spoke to Moses saying: ‘Make two silver trumpets for yourself; you shall make them of hammered work; you shall use them for calling the congregation and for directing movement of the camps. All over the Old Testament there are references to idolatry, carved images, likenesses of anything on the earth or under the sea etc. There were obviously a lot of very creative people using their talents for evil.

Before the walls of Jericho fell, Rahab is very creative in first hiding the spies and then letting them out of her house by a rope. The whole action of circling the city of Jericho once a day and then seven times on the seventh day, blowing trumpets and shouting as they circled it the seventh time, isn’t the instruction of a god with no imagination. Rahab’s house was marked by a scarlet chord that she hung out of the window so that she and her family could be saved. She married Salmon and her son was Boaz, who married Ruth. Both of them are mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus. Only a creative God could organize that.

David was a very creative soul. He wrote so many songs – most of the Psalms, and he played the harp. H e was skilful enough to calm King Saul when the evil spirit came on him. Then there’s the Proverbs 31 woman. Here’s a selection of verses from Proverbs 31:19 – 31 “She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hands hold the spindle. She makes tapestry for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple. She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies sashes for the merchants. Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, But a woman who fears the Lord shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands and let her own works praise her in the gates.”

The book of Isaiah is probably the most prophetic and poetic book in the Bible. Chapter 40 is a wonderful poem written in beautiful language and full of imagery. Verse 12, “Who has measured the water in the hollow of his hand? Measured heaven with a span and calculated the dust of the earth in a measure? Weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?” Verse 21, “Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it bot been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?” Isn’t that just so beautiful? Isaiah 55:12, “For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”

In Jeremiah 18, God instructs Jeremiah to go to a potter who was busy making pots using a wheel. Verse 6, “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.” Then in chapter 19 God uses a broken pottery flask as a sign that He will break the city and its people. In the Old Testament a lot of imagery is used in prophecy. Then in the New Testament Jesus uses stories, called parables, to teach people lessons that they will be able to identify with. Story telling is an art that Jesus was very, very good at. Then His first miracle of turning water into wine is extremely creative. Not something you see every day. In Revelation the Throne Room of Heaven is described and it’s beauty is beyond the skills of any interior decorator. Revelation 4:3,6 “And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne we four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back.” Then the new Jerusalem is described in chapter 21. From verse 18: The construction of its walls was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundations of the walls were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

I believe we have received every creative talent and gifting from the Father, our Creator extraordinary and we should be using the gifts we have to his honour and glory.

For all have sinned

Do you remember when you were a child and the teacher left the classroom with the instruction: “Be quiet while I’m out!”? And you try your best. You really do. You try to concentrate on the work in front of you and not on your friend next to you. You try to ignore the whispers around you and the paper jet that just landed on top of your Math book. You even try not to acknowledge the boy who is poking his pen into your back or the one who is pulling your braid. You try. You try so hard but before you know it you are caught up in all the activity around you when the teacher returns your name is on her detention list and you just can’t understand why. If we try to be good people, if the try to follow the laws and ruled in the Bible we are going to get caught up in all the worldly activity around us and become so involved in it that by the time we have to stand before the Judgement Seat we are not going to receive the ultimate prize of living in Heaven for eternity. That is, if we TRY.

Romans 3:11-18 tells how there isn’t even one righteous person who is under the law. Verse 19: ‘Now we know that whatever the law says, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deed of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.’ We can’t be good on our own. We can try as hard as we want, but in our own strength we cannot keep the law. We can for a while, or sometimes, or with certain things, but not all the time with everything. All that’s going to happen is that we will wear ourselves out trying and then find ourselves mixed up in everything that’s against the law.
So, what do we do to avoid this?
Make the decision that you want to be a child of God. Ask Him to forgive your sins and ask Jesus to come and live in your heart.
Make a decision that you want a relationship with Jesus Christ and allow Him to be master of your life and stop TRYING. All His grace to rule within you. Give the Holy Spirit the reigns and let Him lead you.
Are you now going to be perfect? NO!! But you are going to be justified. Romans 3:23-24 – ‘for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.’ In verse 25 – 26 Paul goes on to say that because Jesus died for us, God has forgiven our sins. This grace that we are given because we are children of God is enough to keep us from going to Hell. It is not an excuse to just carry on doing what we want to do without regard for anything, but it covers the things we do that we shouldn’t be doing and it gives us the strength to resist the temptations that come before us daily. We can’t DO anything to win God’s favour. The only way we get His favour is to hold onto His Son and give our lives to Him. Paul also says in 1 Corinthians 15:31 “…I die daily.”
Just like Paul we should ‘die daily’ to the old things, to the worldly things that drag us down and be alive and aware daily of God’s redeeming grace.

Because He Lives

I haven’t been writing about my garden because there’s really not much to say. There has been so little rain and so much wind and heat that most of my garden has died. There are a few herbs left that I’m keeping alive. About five minutes ago it started to rain. Thunder, lightning, the whole package. I can hear the rain beating down on the tin roof. What an awesome sound.

 

Last week I spoke to a local farmer who is in his 80’s and he’s farmed in this district for all his life. He told me that he’s never seen a drought like this. He doesn’t want to check on his cattle anymore because he can’t bear to see them starve. My husband spoke to a young farmer who was in tears when he told him how hard it is for him to know that there isn’t enough food for his animals.

 

This is real life. This is where the tyre strikes the tar. Grown men don’t shed tears easily. When a man cries (especially a farmer) you know that his heart is hurting. Does God care? Does He send a drought to force us to get on our knees and become humble again or does He test our faith with harsh circumstances? I don’t know. I really, honestly don’t know. I do know that if things always go well with us we won’t need God and we won’t need miracles. We probably won’t even be thankful for what we have because we’ll take it for granted. I don’t think that God brings bad things over our paths to make us better people or that He tests us with things like disease. I do know that we as humans have free choice. I also know that God is love and that He would never do something bad to us. Romans 8:28 says that God lets all things work together for the good of those that love Him. So, if bad things happen to us and we keep holding onto God and His promises He will make it good for us in the end.

 

A beautiful rainbow representing one of God’s spectacular promises

 

There’s a song that says “Because He lives I can face tomorrow.” I believe that no matter what happens here on earth there is a bright future for us and if it’s not so bright here on earth it will certainly be very bright in Heaven where the streets are paved with gold.

 

If it only rains enough to wet the top layer of soil so be it. If it rains so much that everything is washed away and I have to start all over again that’s OK too. Because Jesus lives I will face tomorrow with a smile.