Watchman

“But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand. So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.”

- Ezekiel 33:6-9 To say I have been worried about not writing is an understatement. I feel guilty for not writing for so long. I’m sorry. The above verses are very close to me as that’s what has compelled me to evangelise. Maybe compel is not the word. They are the reason I spread the word as I believe that there is a reason why I know what I know and it’s not just for my own good. Yes, the issue about where one will go after judgment may be a personal thing, but that is the more reason we should be sharing the Good News. We are told to love one another and when you love your neighbor as yourself, there is no reason you would keep secret that you see them wandering off the path of light. The thing about loving your neighbor comes up even in business. I remember that there is a code of ethics that instructs one to consider the welfare of his neighbor. The question comes” who then is my neighbor?” the answer is the next person. Even without a qualification of who your neighbor is, your conscience tells you that you cannot turn a blind eye to someone who is heading for trouble. So if you do say you love God, why not demonstrate that by loving THAT person whom you see. THEY are your neighbor and what they do is your concern as far as telling them what they ought to do or not do and your job’s done. BUT it’s not just sounding a trumpet without telling them that you’re a watchman and that you live in the same village and that their welfare is your concern to a certain extent. I say that as some just go about shouting and say they wash their hands yet those who heard the noises don’t even know what they were and what for. So take time to explain why you care and why that person also needs to care about what you treasure. Love thy neighbor.

Worry not for he is near

How often has someone told you not to worry? Quite a number of times right?
We all at some time get to worry about one thing or another. I guess you could say “it’s natural”
Well, I’ve got news for you
Though it may be natural, it does not mean that it is right.
It is not right to worry.
Ever heard of sinful nature? Agreed.
We shouldn’t worry as it does nothing for us. If anything all it does is that it steals from today the joys we should have seen and enjoyed.
We need to accept God’s word when He says He knows our needs. All we need to do is wait upon Him and He will do as He said. God is not a man that he should lie. There is a scripture in which God asks, “have I said and not done?”
But there is one thing which underpins all our provision. We should first seek god’s face. When we seek his face we are looking for a closer relationship to Him. He says if we draw him closer, he will draw us closer to himself. We need to be content with such things as we have as he has said he will never leave us nor forsake us. He is there for us and what we need to do is cast our burdens on Him and wait on him to show us the wonderful and marvelous things He has in store for us. His plans are for our good and if we could only wait on his promises and all the grey hairs we claim to be caused by worry would be hairs we accept in gratitude for the gift of long life.

"Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. " Matthew 6v25-34.

Patience & birth

I had been struggling with impatience and waiting for change
I was crying why me Lord?
I cried when Lord?
This is too difficult and I don’t think it’s fair
Does it have to be this difficult Lord?
I just could not accept that I had to wait for longer
Then this verse came to mind

Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God. –Isaiah 66:9

Blessings will indeed come from the struggle. That birth will not be the end. No, there will be more to come. Though the travail may seem to not end, it will end and there will be rejoicing. Yes, you will rejoice with me.

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.

 

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.  Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.

 

Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexations to the spirit.

 

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

 

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble, it's a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

 

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery.  But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.

 

Be yourself.  Especially do not feign affection.  Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.

 

Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

 

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.  But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.  Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

 

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.

 

And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

 

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive him to be.  And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

 

Be cheerful.

 

Strive to be happy.

Written in 1927 by Max Ehrmann

Not Forsaken

 Many a time we feel the Lord has left us in the lurch

We feel like Job

Then we look at ourselves and we say ‘no this is not the kind of thing that happened to Job. I was never in fullness to THAT extent. I'm just meant to suffer as I've chosen to be a Christian. Maybe I'm not good enough so God does not even consider my life’

In fact we always come up lower than the next unbelieving person

Our fortunes seem to be growing worse by the year and not better

When we started off on this journey, things were actually much better

There also comes a time when we wish for the past life

We become like the Israelites when they were out in the desert

Wishing for the past trails as we cannot yet see the light at the end of the tunnel

All around us seems to be much worse than where we're coming from

In fact, we are at a stage where we are saying  better the devil I know than the devil I don’t

STOP!

Do you with al your heart of hearts believe God has forsaken you?

He has promised to never leave you

And His promises He keeps

Be patient and know this more on top of His promise never to leave you

 

I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. Psalms 37:25

 

So let us stay on His path no matter how low the station in life we seem to be at. We will rise once again and we will never be that low.

The Revelation

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.

And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me,

It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.”

 

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

Ecclesiaates 12

"Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;
While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:
In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,
And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low;
Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:
Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.

And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs.
The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth.

The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.

And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:

Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil."