Friendship

Last night I had to look back at the past year, and just see all the blessings the Lord has placed on our lives, and this is only by looking at the friendships He blessed us with.

A year ago, me and my wife had no real friends. People that we knew we could call upon in hard times, and people that knew they could do the same.

We had friends, but it felt like it was all conditional friendships. You had to be willing to do certain things to really be accepted into the group of friends.

When we joined our current church, we really prayed to God to give us real friendships. The type of friendships you usually only read about in books.

One thing I can say it the God really came through in a BIG way on our prayers, and all we can do is say thanks and really try and give as much as possible back to God for all these blessings.

To all our friends, you all know who you are, I love every minute I can spend with you guys, just being myself, and also being able to cry and laugh together. May we all sit around in the old age homes one day, and talk about these days we had together, and may God bless each and every one of you beyond your wildest dreams.

Doubt

This morning I was sitting and thinking about the question of faith. Intrinsically linked to faith however, is doubt. Many people would put forward that the only reason we as Christians or in fact any religions exists would be as a result of the doubt that exists in the world around us.

Doubt is that feeling that chases you when things do not make sense anymore, when uncertainty or disbelief takes a hold of you. We humans are created with a deep need for certainty – its part of our survival instinct. When you wake up one morning in the middle of an earth quake, or when your boss holds a company meeting to discuss the tough economic times – our certainty leaves us very quickly.

I do not deny that doubt exists within us all and that by trusting God we are somehow exempt from feeling uncertain. But God does provide us with an amazing gift when he deposited faith within us. When God created us, he blessed with an remarkable ability to trust; sometimes without logic or reason. This ability to choose to trust, that decision, is immensely powerful.

“Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservations.”

- Elton Trueblood

When we decide to place our trust in God, without reservation or hesitation; that is when faith becomes a practical reality in our lives. That is when doubt is replaced…

To the next time when the earth shakes due to an earth quake we proclaim that God is in control no matter the outcome; and that His grace will provide as it has thus far.

Faith and trust is core to our exploration of God. Even when we have no visible proof to show us things will be ok, faith provides God the opportunity to step into our situations and convert them into testimonies. Or indeed transform ourselves into something more.

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

- Hebrews 11:1

“And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”

- Romans 5: 2-4

Faith in God is amazing since it makes us less and exalts God. It brings us to our knees so He can stand up in you lives. It cultivates humbleness and gratitude.

It is the practice of the preaching in our daily lives. There is immense freedom in faith while doubt is in most cases a jailor.

I bless you today with a faith to sustain you in this week to come. With a trust in God that knows no bounds and the ability to believe in your beliefs and to doubt your doubts.

Invisible

What is invisible? / What can we really see? I was confronted by this thought provoking idea this week. If we start to focus on the world around us it seems apparent that the more we dive into discovery – the more things disappear.

When we look at each other we can only see the skin of things. We can see our faces and the matter that forms our bodies – but we cannot see “what is the matter” with the person next to us.

When we look into space we find 100 billion galaxies and yet with all our technology we are limited to exploring only as few as 5…… (five)…. out of billions.

Perhaps the most staggering thing that is invisible to us is what we don’t know. We don’t even know we don’t know or how little we don’t know (because it’s unknown). Ironically, the things that we cannot see we also cannot understand. When Isaac Newton tried to describe gravity he concluded that:

Gravity explains the motions of the planets, but it cannot explain who set the planets in motion. God governs all things and knows all that is or can be done.

This most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent Being. […] This Being governs all things, not as the soul of the world, but as Lord over all; and on account of his dominion he is wont to be called "Lord God" or "Universal Ruler". […] The Supreme God is a Being eternal, infinite, [and] absolutely perfect.

When being confronted with the knowledge of how little we know we are left with two philosophical questions:

- “Why are we here?” and “What do we do with this existence while we are here?”

(“ Who we are? ” is a question for another time.)

These questions is something each of us has to define for ourselves. They define the purpose, passion and meaning of our existence and faith. Too often in my life I lose focus of why I am here and I thank God for the time spend in worship when I feel that my ultimate purpose is being expressed the best of my ability. By screaming [or even expressing a silent whisper] the glory and praises of God for the grace and blessing He provides me in this existence – I get lost in my identity in who He is and I let go of the questions and lack of knowledge of who I am. In Him I am found and I have purpose.

With the overwhelming reality of how little I know [in the physical existence] I am confronted with faith. Brooke Frazer says it so perfectly in her song “Soon”…

Though I have not seen him, my heart knows him well…

I pray today that you embrace the reality that you know little and control less – and at the same time you plunge into the faith that God has placed in us all – to depend on Him alone.

Don’t hit back

This morning during Bible study I was working my way through Romans 12, and these verses jumped out at me.

Romans 12:17-19

Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take care of it.”

These verses hit me particularly hard after the last couple of days, of really to put it simply, judging people.

Acting in such a way as to justify my actions to myself, and trying to make me feel better about it.

The biggest one for me was going to our previous church yesterday morning for a Christening, and walking out of there judging the whole thing, and saying thanks for not having to be there any more, etc.

Who the heck am I to judge a corporate worship service like that? Yes, it may not be the place for me in the current season of my life, or for that matter ever again, but that was the place that I had the priviledge of  meeting my wife, or rather to realise that the two of us will spend eternity together, and where I discovered my calling to worship through music.

Yes I have moved on since we left there, and I have grown immensely in faith, which caused me yesterday to look down at everything going on in that place.

I thank God today for opening my eyes to my wicked ways in judging people and places that does not do things exactly the way I want them to be done, and I praise Him for His grace in forgiving me for these stupid things that I do sometimes.

I am sorry

Last night in home church, I found myself not focussing.

This all due to the fact that I had some expectations, and due to the mix of people that was present, and the level and topic of conversation, was not in line with what I had in mind.

Afterwards I was miffed about the fact that I didn’t get what I wanted, and I packed it off on my wife. Only for her to say, but if you get everything you want, and everybody is on the same level of spirituality, how are you going to teach the people that is young in their faith, what you have learned already?

At that point I dismissed it, and said,  but this is what I want – SELFISH!!!!

This morning, on my way to work, these word of my wife came back to me, and I just realised how true they were.

So, to all I didn’t pay attention to last night, I am sorry, and I will, through the grace of God, try and serve next time I am in the same situation.

The power of Prayer

James 5:13-20 (NIV)

13Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.

14Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.

15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.

16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

17Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.

18Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.

19My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back,

20remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

Hi there…

hi all…

after a couple of days of pondering and wondering about what to call the blog, and about the intended content, I found the following challenge…

We need to strive to be unsafe in our faith. If we are safe in our faith, we might be missing out on a lot of growth for our faith, as the task at hand is, to go out to all the nations, and make then disciples of Christ!

Now, the challenge for ‘unsafe challenge’, is for us to challenge each other with prayer requests, and anything else that we might find, and consider this your first challenge…