The right meds

Much to my frustration, some kind of bug has bitten again.  I thought it was just a cold but the cold medicine I bought weren’t working.  So I added some allergy medicine, still no luck.  On my way home I popped into a pharmacy to get another box of something and oh dear only minor relief so far.  So right now I don’t know if it’s a cold, bad allergy or hay fever.  Sigh!  It seems symptoms alone aren’t enough to figure out a treatment and until I get the right medicine, I’m not going to have much luck getting better. 

In our spiritual journey we can face a similar challenge.  We may have circumstances that are difficult to deal with and finding the right solution, behaviour or action can be extremely difficult.  In all these we can give thanks to God for His Word, for from it flows the life giving power of God, His wisdom and His grace.  These combined form the perfect medicine to meet our every need. 

So how do these aspects work together?  The life giving power of God gives us strength when we are weak.  With this strength we are able to stand strong in any situation.  His wisdom gives us the guidance to know in which direction our decisions must go.  God’s grace and unmerited favour allows us to find forgiveness not only for ourselves but our fellow man also.  When we have strength, direction and compassion we can tackle life’s challenges and know that we can get to the other side a stronger and kinder person. 

This is the end

There are times in life when we reach a dead end.  We thought we were on the right path, we’d prayed about it and thought God had lead us but without any clear reason the end of the road appears and we are left wondering why.  At times like these we pray for redemption but it appears as if God has turned a deaf ear as no clear solution appears.  We feel lost and wonder how God could have let things happen the way they did. 

If we are strong, we hand the situation over to God, make peace with the situation and let things go.  We move on with life and accept that whatever we were working on just wasn’t meant to be.  Well I believe that our redeemer lives and that He never forgets our dreams and He never forgets the desires of our heart!!!  I believe that He who began a good work in you, WILL complete to the day of Christ!

What we learn in life is that with God time doesn’t really matter, what seems like an eternity to us is but a mere moment to Him because as time passes by I believe God does provide a new door, a new path to us reaching the desires and dreams of our heart.  Our job is to be ready to move the moment that door appears.  Don’t wait!  Move!  Take the opportunity that presents itself before you and believe once more that your destination in God is clear. 

God in a purr

The other night I hadn’t had any time to get to writing due to some urgent issues that needed my attention but later that evening as I browsed through FB I came across photo’s of a dear friends funeral service.  I was surprised that anyone had photographed such an intimate family moment but it did allow those of us who could not be there to share in the moment.

As I grieved I started crying.  By now my little Ginger boy was on my lap and as I cried he gently pawed at me over and over, which made me cry even more.  Here was my little kitty trying to console and comfort his human mommy in the only way he could.  I could not have felt closer to God than at that time as this precious little being was doing the work of the Holy Spirit and comforting me. 

We look for God in the strangest places yet all we have to do is turn to His creation and we will not only see Him everywhere but we truly will feel Him too.  If your heart is broken and you are searching for love and comfort look to God in His creation and you are sure to find your comforter there!

Here we go again!

So round about now I don't know whether I should be blaming my network service provider or Microsoft but my darn data has disappeared again and I don't know how much I'm going to get done by using my phone's wifi......  :-(  Needless to say I'll have to keep it short. 

Thinking back to last nights discussion and thinking about repeating things, this is the way the Holy Spirit chooses to teach us the important lessons of life that help us to grow in the fruit of the Spirit.  He will allow us to go through challenge after challenge until we learn to master that skill. 

One of my bible school lecturers used to say that our purpose on earth is to learn to worship God and there is no time that we worship Him more than when we are faced with our humanity and our limitations and compare that to the splendid wonder of His universe creating power. 

Act of kindness

Friends, apologies for the silence.  I had not intended stopping writing until advising that I would be on leave but I had unforseen problems with my network service provider and by the time that was resolved I really needed the break.  I am back now and really looking forward to getting stuck in. 

I am very surprised by a recent incident in which I tried to resolve a problem that did affect me but entailed other parties as well.  Being the type of person that I am, always wanting to be of assistance, I tried to get the ball rolling with getting the problem resolved, but one of the other parties took offense at my interference. 

That makes me think....has our world become so twisted and agressive that people can no longer identify an act of kindness?  As Christians we should know that kindness is part of the fruit of the Spirit so that behaviour should be an integral part of our lives.  I am now beginning to think that for some of us, we may be failing at this calling.  I don't say this by means of judgement or condemnation but by means of a gentle nudge to ask ourselves the question of whether or not we are walking in the fruit of the Spirit of God. 

Take some time to ponder that thought and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in identifying in which areas of your spiritual walk with God you need assistance in growing in the fruit of the Spirit.  By means of a heads up, should you be so bold expect the Holy Spirit to teach you this by means of putting you into situations where you will need to use it. 

The week before

My goodness the week before going on leave is always the most stressful part of my year, especially when it is my annual two week break.  I always have such high hopes of achieving great things and being the hero but it just never quite works out that way.  This week so far one our national banks has been the bane of our existence and set me back by hours.

The one thing I do know is what I'm in for when I do eventually get back...about 6 weeks of hell.  Catch up is never fun but it has to be done.  It is all still very doable though and I have been through worse so I know I'll survive. 

The most important thing is to know what your strengths are and to work directly with those, forget about your weaknesses and if people think you're a drag, shrug it off...surviving a time like this is crucial. 

Spiritually speaking in life we need to learn to do the same thing.  When obstacles come our way, don't be thrown by minor defects in your spiritual life, know what your spiritual strengths are and make sure that you hone in on those. 

And always remember........I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!!

Cars in the park

On Sunday a good friend and I decided to attend the Cars in the Park exhibition at Zwartkops raceway, but not before stopping at Wimpy for breakfast.  Seeing all the cars was really amazing but of particular interest to me was the condition of the various vehicles. 

Some had been restored to absolute pristine condition while others had been left in a slightly shabby state.  That made me wonder if the owners had done so to retain the authenticity of the vehicle, or whether they were still in the process of being restored or whether they just didn't really care to much to put an effort in. 

When people look at our lives what do they see?  Do they see a Christian that has a solid relationship with God and cares for the world?  Do they see a Christian who has lost themselves in the past to the point where they are not prepared to move forward and put their best effort forth?  Do they see a Christian who has lost all hope of ever seeing God renew their lives? 

Sure I know that restoring the soul is just as much hard work as restoring and old car, but when the job is done, we will be spectacular to all who will peep through our windows, stare at our dashboard and wonder what it must be like to be behind the wheel of this beauty.