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Met spesiale dank en waardering aan my ‘Blomtuin’ en in
besonder aan Dr Liana Lamprecht.
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What’s up? – Wat pla?
A bundle of thoughts – ‘n Bondel gedagtes
Amanda Bester
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Voorwoord - Preface
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VOORWOORD
Ek was bevoorreg om vir ‘n geruime tyd al Amanda se
“Wat pla?/ What’s up?”- brokkies oor die internet te
ontvang en het dit nog altyd met opgewonde afwagting
oopgemaak, met genot gelees, dit dikwels uitgedruk om te
bewaar [vir later se wéér lees], en dan vir lank nog
daaroor nagedink. Dit was daarom vir my soos om ‘n
bederf-geskenk te ontvang toe sy my gevra het om die
taalversorging van hierdie manuskrip te doen. Ek was
daarvan oortuig dat ek, ten spyte van ‘n baie vol program,
betrokke gaan wees by ‘n projek wat verrykend sal wees
en wat ‘n verposing gaan bied in spanningsvolle dae. Min
het ek kon raai dat hierdie onderneming my ook midde-in
‘n geestelike oorlog sou plaas: skielik was my dae oorvol
en was dit ‘n probleem om genoeg tyd te vind om met
onverdeelde aandag en sonder om deur moegheid oorval
te word, die manuskrip te lees. Vandag weet ek dat die
vyand hard probeer het om die publikasie van hierdie
kosbare stuk werk te vertraag of selfs in die wiele te ry,
maar bo alles weet ek dat dit God se wil is dat “Wat pla?/
What’s up?” deur baie gelees moet word. Daarom glo ek
ook, soos Amanda self getuig, dat hierdie woorde en
gedagtes wat uit haar vingers gevloei het, van God af
kom.
Daar is min dinge wat my so diep raak en my tegelyk met
‘n gevoel van ontsag en van nederige ootmoed vervul, as
wanneer iemand bereid is om, vir watter rede ookal, sy of
haar diepste binne-mens te deel. Dit bly ‘n risiko, omdat ‘n
mens in so ‘n geval jouself kan blootstel aan kritiek,
bespotting, verkleinering, veroordeling, verwerping,
bejammering, of, as jy gelukkig is, aan waardering en
ondersteuning. Dit wat hier met jou, die leser, gedeel
word, is vir die skrywer heilig en oneindig kosbaar.
Daarom vra ek namens haar dat jy saggies sal trap
wanneer jy deur die bladsye van hierdie boek loop, want
dis ‘n stukkie van haar hart.
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Mag hierdie boek ook jou lewe verryk en nuwe perspektief
bring op die netelige kwessies waarmee ons daagliks
gekonfronteer word. Mag elkeen van ons ook die moed
van oortuiging hê om op te staan vir dit waarin ons glo, en
mag ons onverskrokke getuies wees vir die lewende God,
Skepper van hemel en aarde, vir Jesus Christus ons
Verlosser en die Heilige Gees, ons Leidsman.
Soli Deo Gloria.
Liana Lamprecht
Pretoria, 2007.
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Jer 9:23, 24: "Die wyse man moet nie in sy wysheid
roem nie, die soldaat nie in sy krag nie, die ryk man nie
in sy rykdom nie. Laat hom wat wil roem, daarin roem
dat hy insig het en My ken. Ek is die Here. Ek bewys
liefde, reg en geregtigheid op die aarde, want dit is
wat Ek wil hê, sê die Here."
Eks 34:6,7: "Terwyl Hy by Moses verbygaan, roep die
Here: 'Ek, die Here, is die barmhartige en genadige
God, lankmoedig, vol liefde en trou. Ek betoon my
liefde aan geslagte en geslagte. Ek vergewe
ongeregtigheid, oortreding en sonde, maar Ek spreek
niemand sonder meer vry nie. Ek reken kinders en
kleinkinders die sondes van vaders toe selfs tot in die
derde en vierde geslag.' "
Rom 8:38, 39: "Hiervan is ek oortuig: geen dood of
lewe of engele of magte of teenswoordige of
toekomstige dinge of kragte of hoogte of diepte of
enigiets anders in die skepping kan ons van die liefde
van God skei nie, die liefde wat daar is in Christus
Jesus ons Here."
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Inleiding - Introduction
INLEIDING - INTRODUCTION
Ek het ontdek dat daar baie dinge in die lewe is waaroor
ons dieselfde voel maar dikwels te bang is om oor te
praat. Om 'n gespreksforum oor diesulke dinge te begin,
is nie 'n sommerso ding nie, want 'n mens kan so maklik
in die strik beland om jou eie filosofie te verkondig in plaas
daarvan om die waarheid oor te dra soos wat dit in God
se Woord opgeteken is. Dit is vir my daarom baie
belangrik dat jy sal weet waar ek staan en wat ek glo.
Ek glo in die Drie-enige God, Vader, Seun en Heilige
Gees en in die Verlosser Jesus Christus van Nasaret wat
al ons sondes op Hom geneem het sodat ons die ewige
lewe kan hê. Ek glo dat die Bybel die enigste waarheid is
en dat ons alles wat ons doen daaraan moet meet. Ek glo
dat ons as Christene mekaar moet ondersteun, onderrig
en lei om op die regte pad te bly.
Omdat ek nie 'n geleerde is nie, is dit my doel om met jou
te deel oor sake wat ons lewens raak suiwer vanuit my
oogpunt as gelowige. Dit is egter vir my van uiterste
belang dat ek nie een of ander dwaalleer begin verkondig
nie, en daarom is dit jou plig om dit wat ek aanbied op te
weeg en net die waarheid te glo. Ek bid ook dat die
Heilige Gees enige dwaalleer vir jou sal uitwys.
Die titel van die boek “Wat pla?”, met ‘n Engelse What’s
up? wat daarby aansluit is gebore uit e-pos kontak met
vriende, maar op ‘n dag het die inspirasie my gepak om
dit alles in hierdie bondel gedagtes bymekaar te gooi .
At first I made the commitment to stick to one or two
submissions a week, but at a point it seemed that
somewhere a floodgate was opened. I had to contain
myself to not submit a “Wat pla?” every day, or sometimes
even twice a day. I started making a list of possible
topics, things that bothered me and subjects of interest
which I thought are left behind in the ruins of our past life.
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Finally I had to force myself to prepare them and limit
submissions to no more than two a week, which
undertaking I have to admit, I hardly ever stuck to! I
thought of creating a web site, but you can’t really carry it
with you if you don’t have a laptop. It took a lot of courage
to really get the ball rolling. I knew I’d have to let go of my
ideas, thoughts and feelings at a point. One of my
weaknesses in faith is that I believe I still have to take
matters into my own hands and check on the growth of
the potatoes every now and then.
This book is meant to just lie around somewhere,
everywhere. This is the book that you should grab if you
realise that you have neglected your daily devotions and
feel that you need to be reassured that you do not have to
feel guilty about it! It is not really meant to be read all at
once, but if you have to, I trust that it will take you on a
journey you will always remember. It doesn’t have dates,
so you’re allowed to just open it anywhere and I believe
with all my heart that you will always find exactly what you
were looking for at that particular moment!
Die boodskap wat ek graag wil oordra, is dat ons almal
feilbare mense is. Ten spyte daarvan dat ons die teologie
bestudeer en meer en meer kennis opdoen, is en bly daar
sekere dinge wat ons eenvoudig nie bevredigend kan
verklaar nie. Ek hoop om ‘n paar van hierdie aspekte aan
te spreek sonder om die indruk te skep dat ek alwetend is
of noodwendig die oplossing het. Al wat ek het is my
geloof in God, my vryspraak in Jesus Christus, die Heilige
Gees as Trooster en Wysheer en die Bybel as riglyn. Ek
maak baie foute en daar is beslis diegene wat my ken wat
sal opmerk dat ek die laaste persoon is wat vir ander
behoort te preek. Maar dis hopelik juis dit wat die
boodskappe waardevol sal maak. Die Here het juis Sy
Seun gestuur, omdat ons vol sonde en swakhede is en
altyd maar sal sukkel om op die regte pad te bly. Daarom
is dit gerusstellend om te weet dat almal wat in Hom glo,
nie altyd al die antwoorde het nie!
Verder glo ek dat ons almal unieke gawes ontvang het.
Dis nie ‘n sonde om nie ‘n skrifverwysing te kan onthou
nie. Ek sukkel regtig, maar dit wil nie sê ek ken nie my
Bybel of weet nie hoe om dit te gebruik nie. Ek glo dat 'n
mens nie nodig het om elke item van die wet by name te
kan noem om die wet te gehoorsaam nie. Net so glo ek
dat 'n mens nie noodwendig nodig het om te weet waar
die waarheid in die Bybel staan nie, solank jy weet dat dit
daar is en dat daar mense rondom jou is wat jou op jou
dwaling kan wys indien nodig. Die basis van my
boodskappe sal egter altyd die Woord bly en ek sal poog
om soveel skrifverwysings as moontlik te gee, al moet
ek dit eers gaan opsoek!
Die ou boekie is tweetalig. Jy gaan nie noodwendig uitmis
as jy nie tweetalig is nie, maar dit gaan beslis ‘n aanwins
wees, want sien, die Here het beslis ‘n sin vir humor en
verder verskeie maniere waarop Hy met ons praat. Ek en
Hy stap al ‘n laaaaaaaang pad met die Afrikaans en
Engels saam, en my vertwyfeling van ‘is dit Hy of is dit ek’
en ‘wie of wat moet ek nou glo?’ Daarom kan dit nie
anders as dat die woorde moet vloei soos my verhouding
met Hom groei nie.
There was a time in my walk of faith when I only believed
that it was God when He spoke to me in English. Really!
It was during the time when I was still desperately trying to
establish for myself how He 'speaks' to us. This was a
very precious time in my life. And so are my
English friends, well selected, perfectly appointed and
placed in my life for very very specific reasons.
Unfortunately when we allow influences of the real world
to affect us, as I did with depression, we tend to lose
some special abilities God gave us, for a while! Yes, just
for a while. Because - God does not take these away, we
lose them! And after a huge battle, much frustration and a
waste of time, you usually find your car
keys exactly where you left them! So, I have gone
through a period when I have felt extremely inadequate – I
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still do sometimes - but I do believe in a strange way that
God used my writing over many years to bring me back to
that precious place where I mostly have no doubt that I'm
hearing His voice in me.
So, the English parts are the really special ones to me.
These are the times that I believe God really picks me up
onto His lap and the two of us have long chats.
Dit maak nie saak wie jy is nie, geloof is ‘n groeiproses.
Net sodra jy dink jy het al die antwoorde – veral as jy op
Hom ingeskakel bly – dan maak die Heilige Gees jou
bewus van iets wat jy nooit raakgesien het nie. Ek kan nie
eers spog dat ek die volle kringloop al voltooi het nie, want
as die een belewenis klaar is, begin die volgende een en
elkeen is uniek. Met party baklei jy jou pad deur, terwyl
ander smooth sailing is. Maar as jy kan terugkyk en
verstaan waarom jy op sekere tye moes suffer, weet jy dat
jy ‘n doelwit bereik het.
Glo my, God se drome is vreesaanjaend groter as ons s’n
en dit kos baie moed om sover te kom om Sy drome te
realiseer. Die sukses daarvan word ook nie altyd in
menslike terme gesien nie. Ek het egter geleer dat as een
enkele mens die Here beter leer ken het deur ons
vreesbevange pogings, maak dit nie saak of dit in
menslike terme blyk dat ons gefaal het nie. Solank Hy
gelukkig is, is ek gelukkig!
Die gedagte dat die skryf van die Bybel deur die Heilige
Gees geïnspireer is, was vir my nog altyd groot! Iemand
het nie eendag al daardie woorde uit hul duim gesuig nie.
Dis bomenslike vermoë! Die lyn wat deur die Bybel loop
en die omvangryke manier waarop alles inmekaar vloei, is
net verstommend. Met die skryf van hierdie boodskappe
het ek oor en oor ontdek dat God ons op ons swakste en
in ons diepste nood in die palm van Sy hand hou. Ek kan
nooit so verwaand wees om myself op dieselfde vlak as
Paulus, Dawid, oom Salomo of enige van die Bybelse
greats te plaas nie, maar glo my, ek weet dat dit nie binne
my eie menslike vermoë was om hierdie gedagtes te
formuleer nie. Wanneer ek vorige werk en insette lees, is
ek dikwels verstom en as ek nie geweet het dat dit uit my
eie vingers gevloei het nie, sou ek dit nooit geglo het nie.
Met geen skaamte hoegenaamd nie gee ek alle eer aan
die Here vir dit wat jy hier lees en nog verder gaan lees en
ervaar. Hy is groter as enigiets wat jy kan dink om te
beleef. Selfs die kere wat jy dink dat Hy nie omgee nie of
nie in beheer is nie, ís Hy, en moet jy net dankbaar wees,
want sonder Hom kon dit baie erger gewees het.
Hy is altyd net sover van jou af as wat jy bereid is om jou
hand uit te steek en Sy Naam te roep en Hy wil jou hê net
soos jy op hierdie oomblik is: gebroke, verwaand, trots,
selfsugtig, hardvogtig en geensins perfek nie. Moenie
éérs verander nie, want dalk is dit dan te laat!
Ek hoop jy geniet my belewenisse, … ek het!
.
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Ek myself! Hy ook!
I myself! So does He!
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THOUGHTS BEFORE
Something old - Sommige van die insette is reeds tien
jaar of ouer. Ek het baie min verander daaraan, omdat dit
die belewenis daarvan op daardie tydstip in my lewe sou
verander.
Something new – Selfs die vriende wat deur die e-pos van
my boodskappe ontvang het, sal nuwe gedagtes hier
ontdek.
Something borrowed - Omdat ek self nie al die antwoorde
het nie, is ek nie bang om te hoor of ander weet wat werk
nie. Mits dit aan my maatstaf vir die waarheid, naamlik
God se Woord, voldoen, sal ek dit leen en erkenning gee
aan die eienaar. As ek iewers ‘opslip’ vergewe my – alle
eer aan die outeur!
Something blue – Dit sal waarskynlik by geleentheid jou
gemoedstemming wees. Moenie veg daarteen nie. Trane
is medisyne vir die siel. Soos dit oor jou wange rol, val dit
van jou gemoed af en word jou las veel ligter.
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Die meeste van my vriende weet dat ek in denial was en
na 'n aantal incognito jare besluit het om die bul by die
horings te pak en te admit dat ek 'n depressie lyer is. Ja,
iewers is daar 'n gene wat my konstant laat worry en moet
ek altyd op my hoede wees om nie in my gedagtes met 'n
ding weg te hardloop nie. Vandat ek my probleem erken
het en dit by name takel, het ek nogal baie oorwinnings
behaal. Omdat ek myself nog altyd as 'n brandende kind
van God gesien het, het juis my Christenskap vir my 'n
groot struikelblok veroorsaak. Ek deel baie gedagtes
vanuit hierdie oogpunt en die feit dat ek daagliks leer dat
my stryd om dinge te verstaan, nie altyd 'n alleenstryd is
nie, maar dat baie van ons daarmee sukkel en bang is om
daaroor te praat. Ek moet dikwels self my vrees baie
moedig in my sak steek as ek 'n paar gedagtes oor myself
met julle deel.
Een van die grootste struikelblokke in die depressie
herstelproses is jou selfbeeld. Omdat jy nie heeltemal
happy met jouself is nie, leer jy baie negatiewe coping
mechanisms aan, bv. òf jy eet te veel, en tel gewig op, òf
jy eet te min, en word so maer soos 'n kraai.
Laasgenoemde was my nog nie beskore nie. DESSERTS
omgekeer spel STRESSED, en ja, as ek in die DESERT
of WORRY is, dan éét ek. Ek het al begin vrede maak
met my ronde lyf, en het geleer dat my gewig konstant bly
as ek nie te veel daaroor worry nie. Ek moet shopping
liefs vermy of beperk tot die nodigste, want ek werk myself
in ‘n depro in oor die pryse en/of die feit dat niks pas nie
en dat winkel-spieëls elke dimple magnify! Die gevolg is
dat ek alte maklik opeindig by Mug 'n Bean met 'n stuk
sjokolade koek!
Wantroue is nog 'n karnallie. Omdat jy self nie glo dat jy
OK is nie, is daar nie 'n manier wat jy ander sommer net
glo as hul so sê nie, en as hulle stilbly, wonder jy ook.
Standaarde en eise wat jy aan jouself stel is ook geweldig
hoog en jy is in 'n constant battle teen jouself gewikkel op
alle vlakke: gees, siel en liggaam.
Toe ek eendag uit ‘n mistige waas geskryf het oor my
sombere gemoedstemming, het 'n dierbare vriendin vir my
'n e-pos geforward wat verwys het na 'n video-reeks van
Bruce Wilkinson met die titel "7 Stages of Spiritual
Growth". Die verwysing het spesifiek betrekking op
selfbeeld en sommige van die wanopvattings wat
Christene oor God het. Ek was geskok om te sien
hoeveel daarvan op my van toepassing is.
Bruce sê:
“Communion never develops unless you believe the truth about
God.”
Uit eie ervaring het hy geleer dat Christene diksels die
volgende glo:
1. Christians know that God loves them;
2. Christians do not believe that God likes them;
3. Christians believe God is always judging them;
4. Christians believe that God is never satisfied with
them;
5. Christians believe God is always too busy for them;
6. Christians believe that God is only thinking about their
sins; en
7. Christians believe that God is disinterested in them.
Ek het nie die reeks bestudeer nie, maar hierdie stellings
het my hart geruk, want feitlik elkeen is op een of ander
stadium in my dag ‘n realiteit! Ek hoop om stap vir stap
my eie begrip van hierdie wanopvattings te deel en
sodoende by die waarheid omtrent God uit te kom. Die
Woord sê per slot van rekening: met jou hart glo jy (en
daaroor is daar geen twyfel nie), en met jou mond bely jy
(om jouself en ander oortuig te hou) dat die Here, God is,
Koning is en altyd vir jou lief is.
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*****************
God kan soms op die eenvoudigste maniere vir ons wys
dat Hy persoonlik met ons bemoeienis maak. Ek hoop Hy
wys dit vandag vir jou! Enjoy the little things, one day you
may look back and realise they were the big things!
**************
Christians know that God loves them – Maar ons wonder
soms!
En is dit nie waar nie! Daar is by my geen twyfel omtrent
die feit nie, maar tog is juis hierdie stelling die een wat my
soms die meeste laat skaam kry, omdat ek tog soms
daaroor wonder, al is dit vir 'n breukdeel van 'n sekonde.
Ons soek almal na aanvaarding en wanneer ander vir ons
omgee beleef ons hierdie aanvaarding.
Maar omgee maak soms seer, want nie twee van ons is
dieselfde nie. Vir sommige van ons is dit OK as iemand
vir wie jy lief is, soms nodig het om die waarheid met jou
te praat. Die waarheid maak seer, maar dit is nodig dat
ons dit hoor sodat ons beter mense kan wees, kan groei
en sodoende meer kan beteken vir die mense rondom
ons. Maar, nie almal van ons hanteer kritiek altyd baie
positief nie. Wanneer 'n ou sukkel met jou selfbeeld en
konstant in 'n stryd gewikkel is om jouself te oortuig dat jy
OK is, is jou eerste reaksie op kritiek: 'Is jy dan nie meer
lief vir my nie? Kan dit veroorsaak dat jy nie meer omgee
nie?'
Dis nie logies nie, ek weet, maar dit is nou maar so! Dit
neem letterlik jare en die volgehoue insette van getroue
vriende en familie om jou te oortuig dat mense vir jou bly
omgee, ten spyte van al jou foute.
Daarom is dit nie so maklik om oortuig te bly dat God jou
liefhet nie. Die Satan se grootste oogmerk is om ons te
oortuig dat God nie vir ons omgee nie, dat Hy slegte dinge
in ons lewe toelaat omdat Hy ons verlaat het of ons straf.
As ons dus geneig is om in ons eiewaarde te twyfel, trap
ons sommer maklik niks in hierdie strik – die moontlikheid
dat God ons nie liefhet nie!
Ek moes myself leer om telkens wanneer hierdie
negatiewe gedagte wil posvat, dit onmiddellik te stop en te
vervang met die positiewe waarheid – “Hoe?“ vra jy. Dis
heel eenvoudig: God said it, I must believe it and that
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settles it! Maar glo my, dis nie 'n kitsoplossing nie. Dis
amper soos 'n reminder wat jy op jou selfoon sal sit -
wanneer jy dit die nodigste het, moet dit outomaties in jou
mondering ingebou wees. Om te twyfel dat Hy jou liefhet,
is nie net 'n leuen nie, dit het tot gevolg dat jy nog minder
van jouself dink, wanneer jy enigsins, na alles wat Hy vir
jou doen, steeds kan twyfel.
Dis OK! Ek leer nog steeds dat Hy my juis daar waar ek
die meeste oor Sy liefde vir my twyfel, saggies sal kom
optel en in die warmte van Sy omhelsing sal verseker dat
dit waar is. Dit is egter so dat 'n mens net soos 'n kind is,
en nie altyd in Sy omhelsing wil wees nie. Ons rebelleer
beslis. Maar Hy sal jou nie laat gaan voordat jy dit
uitbaklei het nie en oortuig is dat Hy vir jou lief is, en dat
Hy inderdaad vir elkeen van jou swakhede Sy Seun
geoffer het nie.
As jy nog sukkel om jouself te oortuig - die volgende ou
Hallelujalied bring my altyd tot die werklikheid terug.
'As die lewensstorme woedend om jou slaan, en jy gans
ontmoedig vrees om te vergaan. Tel jou seëninge, tel hul
een vir een. En jy sal verbaas wees oor wat God jou
skenk!' Wanneer jy dus twyfel, moet jy jouself herinner
aan al die wonderlike voorregte wat jy het, veral die klein
dingetjies, soos om te kan asemhaal, te praat, te hoor, te
sien, te loop en soveel meer. Al hierdie dinge ontvang jy
ten spyte van wie jy is en wat jy doen en ja beslis,
OMDAT HY JOU LIEFHET!
Ek deel graag iets persoonlik. Ek sou al meer as 25 jaar
getroud gewees het. Selfs uit die wanhoop van ‘n eerste
mislukte huwelik, kan ek hope genade haal. God se liefde
vir my kan gemeet word aan die hoeveelheid genade wat
ek ontvang, ten spyte van al my swakhede. Die grootste
genade wat spruit uit my egskeiding, is die feit dat God
juis hierdie diefstal van die vyand gebruik het om my
daagliks te oortuig dat Hy my oneindig liefhet. Ek is weer
getroud en het 'n man wat vir my baie lief is en wat as
gevolg van my gebrokenheid baie meer opvreet as wat
enigiemand anders sal. Ek het kinders en kleinkinders,
baie vriende, 'n goeie lewe en hope voorregte. Genade is
die feit dat ek nie soos in my ma se geval, elke jaar
wêreldwyd herinner word aan haar mislukte huwelik nie.
Hulle is op Valentynsdag getroud en na 34 jaar geskei.
Ja, werklik, God het my lief!
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Christians do not believe that God likes them - Hy like jou
sommer stukke!
Is dit nie ons eerste reaksie as dinge nie volgens ons plan
verloop nie? 'Nobody loves me!' Een van die
spreekwoorde wat ek so graag soos 'n warm winterjas om
my wil vastrek, is 'Soos water van 'n eend se rug af!' Kan
dit tog nie lekker wees as ander se woorde en optrede so
maklik van 'n mens se gemoed afgly nie?
Ek ken 'n paar mense wat hulle nie in die minste steur aan
wat ander van hulle of hul doen en late dink nie. Ek beny
hulle, want ek dink hulle slaap baie lekkerder as ek.
Seermaakwoorde maal snags oor en oor in my kop en ek
moet verbete daarteen veg om nie vir die sprekers
daarvan sò kwaad te word dat ek nooit weer met hulle
hoef te praat nie! Dis 'n ingeboude reaksie by my dat as
iemand van my verskil, hulle nie van my hou nie! Baie
dom, ek weet! En dit terwyl dieselfde persoon die hoogste
lof vir my vermoë en talente het. Dit maak eenvoudig nie
sin nie, maar dis hoe dit is! Ek moes baie hard daarteen
baklei en moet myself nog steeds bly oortuig dat ons
elkeen uniek en anders is en dat dit OK is vir iemand
anders om nie soos ek te dink nie.
Stands to reason soos die Engelse sê, dat ek dieselfde
probleem in my geloofslewe gaan hê. As die Here nie uit
Sy pad uit gaan om vir my te wys dat Hy nog van my weet
nie, dan begin ek wonder ... en dis nie asof ek dit met 'n
grootheidswaan doen of dink dat ek die enigste mens op
Sy prioriteitslys is nie. Nee, die basis daarvan is
eenvoudig dat ek begin wonder of ek nie goed genoeg is
nie! Dis regtig moeilik, totaal onlogies en frustrerend.
Julle moet 'n spesiale bietjie deernis spaar vir julle vriende
wat aan depressie en ‘n swak selfbeeld ly. Ons het
aanhoudend die gerusstelling nodig dat ons waardeer
word, al glo ons dit nie. Die Here moet konstant vir my
wys dat Hy nog van my hou! Ek het geleer om Sy
goedkeuring in die kleinste dinge waar te neem. Ek
organiseer graag - onthale, feeste, sommer net dinge wat
my man se bankbalans soms onnodig laat krimp, maar
hieruit groei ek. Ek het hierdie dinge nodig want daar uit
kan ek sien dat die Here nog baie van my hou, omdat
hierdie dinge nie sonder Hom kan slaag nie. Wat vir
ander na 'n average resultaat lyk, het vir my versteekte
detail wat tot in die kleinste besonderheid uitwerk, soms
oënskynlik sonder veel insette van my kant af. Hierdie
geleenthede is my skaapvelletjie wat telkens die volgende
oggend deurdrenk van die dou is.
Ek kan nog lank en baie passievol hieroor uitbrei, maar
gaan dit vir eers hier laat. Die Here kan nie ophou om jou
te like nie. Hy hou nie net van jou nie, maar is eenvoudig
mal oor jou! Kry vir jouself maniere waarop jy daagliks
oor en oor herinner kan word dat Jesus - maak nie saak
wie en wat jy is of hoe hard jy probeer en telkens faal nie -
sy lewe vir jou spesifiek neergelê het en dat Hy uit Sy pad
uitgaan om te verseker dat jy dit weet!
******************
Ek kan nie anders as om net so tussendeur uit te roep dat
die Here se omgee werklik in die klein dingetjies lê,
miskien omdat ons nederig moet word om dit raak te sien!
Om God se stem te hoor, is vir ons almal 'n issue.
Wanneer is dit ek, wanneer is dit Hy, is dit hoorbaar ...
hoe toets 'n mens dit? Ek wil dit net weer vir julle en vir
myself onderstreep - dis in gehoorsaamheid! Daardie
minder likeable persoon vir wie jy voel jy moet môre sê,
die ou by die robot wat lyk of hy 'n glimlag nodig het, die
vriend wat 'n 'sommer net' drukkie hier in jou binneste
wakker maak, die persoon vir wie jy voel jy moet herinner
dat die Here hom/haar liefhet. Dis die Here! En die
beloning is groot! Dis nie altyd die maklikste taak nie,
maar dis wanneer Hy die naaste aan jou is: dis in
werklikheid Hý wat jou net gebruik om Sy hart oor te dra.
Moet dit nie ignoreer nie!
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Christians believe God is always judging them – Dis ons wat
onsself aankla …. en natuurlik die vyand!
En is Eksodus 34:6 dan nie 'n sprekende voorbeeld van
die teendeel van hierdie stelling nie? Hy is barmhartig,
genadig, lankmoedig, vol liefde en getrou. Hy vergewe
ongeregtigheid, oortreding en sonde, maar ... en ek dink
dis waar ons soms vashaak. Sien, die woordjie, maar!
As ons nie saamstem nie, gebruik ons dit; as ons 'n
waarskuwing wil uitwys, is dit daar; as ons 'n alternatief wil
uitlig, gryp ons daarna - en as ons twyfel? God is nie
altyd besig om ons te oordeel nie, maar as ... Iemand het
eendag vir my verduidelik dat hy dit so insien: Om te
aanvaar dat die Here jou liefhet, is nie logies nie. Jy moet
dus sekere ankers in plek sit om dit te onthou. Een
daarvan is dat wanneer jy enigsins twyfel, dit is asof jy
Jesus weer en weer aan die kruis hang! Dis 'n shocker!
Dit ruk my daagliks nog tot die werklikheid terug. As ek
dus oortuig is dat Jesus ten volle vir my sonde aan die
kruis betaal het, kan ek nie anders nie as om te besef dat
daar nie 'n manier is dat Hy my die hele tyd bly veroordeel
nie. Dit sou die offer van Sy lewe totaal ongedaan maak!
Miskien moet ons die woord judging vervang met
nudging! En dit is inderdaad waar. Ons voel God oordeel
ons die hele tyd - omdat ons nie altyd wil of in staat voel
om gehoorsaam te wees nie! Maar inderdaad is dit nie
oordeel nie, maar 'n liefdevolle nudge (uit die Tweetalige
Woordeboek in Afrikaans : por) in jou binneste wat jou net
herinner dat jy die ou sondige lewe moet agterlaat en
moet bly streef om heilig te leef.
Waaraan moet ons dus onsself herinner, elke oomblik van
die dag, omdat ons altyd 'n geneigdheid tot sonde sal hê?
Die openbaring van wat verkeerd is in my lewe, is nie
God se oordeel nie. Dit is Sy liefdevolle manier om my
aan te por om die sondige lewe agter te laat en om - baie
belangrik - te bly streef daarna om heilig te leef. Ons is
nog nie heilig nie en sal dit nooit in ons menslike gedaante
wees nie. Ons kan net voortdurend daarna streef om
heilig te leef. Danie Botha sing: 'As jy val, moet jy gou
weer opstaan, uithou, aanhou, altyd voortgaan' ... en dan
voeg hy tog by, 'wie kan dit verstaan?'
Dit is nou maar eenmaal nie logies nie. Jou kind jaag
soveel keer in sy/haar lewe aan - vir die van julle wie se
kinders nog nie daar is nie, wag maar tot hulle jong
volwassenes is! Glo my, daar is dae wanneer jy wonder
hoe dit moontlik is dat iemand soos jy - wat daarna streef
om heilig te wees - in staat is om iets voort te bring wat so
verbysterend anders kan optree as jy. Maar as daardie
selfde kind hom nerf-af loop teen die harde werklikheid
van die lewe, is jy maar al te gou by om die stukkies
bymekaar te skraap en te bid vir die heelwordproses! So
ook die Here! Ek dink Hy huil saam oor die nerf-af
emosies as ons ongehoorsaam is! Dis Sy trane wat ons
telkens weer na die regte pad terugbring, en Hy is sonder
ophou verheug om ons weer in Sy omhelsing terug te
bring. 'n Ander mooi prentjie : ons glo en vra dikwels dat
God ons in die palm van Sy hand hou. Sien jouself op
God se hand. As daar gevaar, seerkry of probleme is,
vou Hy gently Sy vingers om jou toe! Die meeste van die
tyd is Sy hand egter oop en het ons die vryheid om oral
daarop rond te beweeg. Die oomblik wanneer ons buite
Sy wil vir ons lewe beweeg, kan ons van Sy hand af val!
Hy kan dit nie altyd keer nie, want ons het ‘n eie wil, maar
Hy is en bly altyd in beheer - gereed om ons by die
geringste uitroep te hulp te snel. Sy liefdevolle
herinnering dat ons moet onthou dat ons in/op Sy hand
altyd veilig is, is beslis nie oordeel nie!
Laat die oordeel hier op aarde dus vir die vyand en weet
dat die Here nooit ophou om vir jou lief te wees nie. Hy
wil graag dat jy ontdek dat sondeloosheid jou sterker en
skerper maak, maar Hy verstaan dat dit 'n proses is en sal
jou weer en weer en weer daar gaan haal waar jy dink Hy
jou net oordeel! Ons kan net soos Piet Smit vra, ‘elke
keer het U my iewers kom haal, maak dit Here, die laaste
maal.’
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Christians believe that God is never satisfied with them – Ons
is nie met onsself tevrede nie!
Party van hierdie stellings tref my soos 'n hamerslag. As
'n mens vir 'n oomblik daarby stilstaan en die volle impak
van die wanopvatting inneem, is dit amper onmoontlik om
te dink dat ons daaroor kan wonder. Is God tevrede met
my? Maar hoeveel keer wonder ons nie daaroor nie, ten
spyte van die feit dat ons wéét - HY IS! Hy het ons
gemaak! Ps 139 sê dat Hy ons in die geheim in ons
moederskoot gevorm het. Hy het dus geweet van my
bestaan voordat my ouers daarvan gedroom het.
Elke ding, goed of sleg, gebeur omdat God dit in Sy almag
toelaat. Sy wil vir ons is om net die beste te hê, gelukkig
te wees, veilig te voel en tevrede met onsself te wees.
Maar omdat ons onsself gedurig aankla en omdat die
vyand omstandighede skep wat God se wil vir ons in die
wiele ry, begin ons wonder. Ons gaan selfs so ver om te
dink dat God slegte dinge met ons laat gebeur om vir ons
Sy ontevredenheid met ons te wys. Dit is die grootste
leuen van die vyand! God laat die slegte dinge toe, nie
om ons 'n les te leer of te straf nie. Hy laat die dinge toe
omdat Hy die groter prentjie sien wat ons nie kan nie. 'n
Liedjie van David Meece verduidelik hierdie vir my so
mooi. Ek sal daarmee afsluit!
Omdat Hy ons liefhet, het Hy vir ons 'n vrye wil gegee.
Elke asemteug is 'n keuse! As ons elke asemteug aan
Hom onderwerp, word dit makliker om asem te haal,
amper effortless. Maar ons kompliseer hierdie keuses
onnodiglik. Dis hoekom Hy wil hê ons moet soos kinders
word. In plaas daarvan om te dink dat God ons straf as
omstandighede dreig om ons te versmoor, moet ons
eenvoudig net weet dat dit in daardie tye is wat Hy, soos
vir Adam, Sy asem in ons inblaas, sodat ons kan oorwin.
Maar dis 'n keuse! Ons wil self in ons eie krag die lewe
aanpak. Veral as ons die verval van die wêreld rondom
ons sien - oorlog, vloede, siekte, dood en so meer - dink
ons ons ou 'eenvoudige' probleempies is te nietig om God
se tyd in beslag te neem, en ons veg in ons eie krag.
Soms werk dit, want Hy het ons after all ook 'n gesonde
verstand gegee saam met die keuses. Maar hierdie klein
probleempies wat ons in ons eie krag probeer beveg, put
ons geestelik meer uit as wat ons besef en as die pawpaw
die fan slaan en ons moet deel met die groteres,
word ons platgeslaan en dan wonder ons of God eintlik vir
ons wil wys dat Hy nie met ons tevrede is nie!
Hy het jou gemaak, Hy is lief vir jou. Hy ken jou naam!
As jy dink Hy is nie tevrede met jou nie - sê jy eintlik God
doen halwe werk! Dit maak nie saak hoe hierdie liggaam
van jou lyk nie, dis net die tent wat jy gekry het om in te
woon. Jy is nie die huis waarin jy woon nie! Jy is wat
jy kies om te wees en met daardie huis te maak, in
afhanklikheid van God.
Elke woord wat ek skryf is eintlik vir myself bedoel en ek
deel dit net terloops, omdat ek voel dat ons nodig het om
vir mekaar te wys dat ons nie superhuman is nie. Meer as
vir enigiemand anders, spreek hierdie gedeelte tot my,
want ek moet leer om met myself tevrede te wees. Slegs
dan sal ek nooit twyfel of wonder of die Here met my
tevrede is nie!
27

28
Thank You for the times You said ‘No’ – David Meece
Had a lot of dreams that never came true
Things I could have done,
But never got the chance to do
When I couldn't see the path of the storm
Your wisdom wouldn't let me go that way
And it broke my heart, but now my heart can say
Thank You for the times You said, 'No.'
Thank You for the doors that You closed
All the ways You never let me go
And the things You never gave me
So many times I didn't understand
And wouldn't let You take my hand
But now I want to fall at Your feet
And thank You for the things
You never gave to me.
When I wanted less than what You had in mind
When I wanted more than I could handle at the time
When I needed You but turned You away
You wouldn't let me slip out of Your hand
I just didn't know, but now I understand
Looking back across the years
I can see beyond the tears
And thank You
Christians believe God is always too busy for them – Miskien
is dit ons wat te besig is vir Hom!
Is dit nie so waar nie? Ons sal hewiglik ontken dat dit so
is, want ek dink nie ons doen dit altyd omdat ons
afgeskeep voel nie, maar daar is soveel maniere waarop
ons dit te kenne gee, dat die stelling nie anders as waar
kan wees nie.
• Ons sê dit as ons dinge wat ons lewe raak nie met
Hom deel nie, bloot omdat ons voel dat ander
belangriker dinge Sy aandag verg. Ons dink dus
dat Hy nie tyd het vir ons onbenullige kwellinge nie.
Dit sluit aan by die vorige aflewering. Ons het besluit
dat God te besig is met al die groot krisisse in die
wêreld en dat ons maar tevrede moet wees met die
excess tyd. Ons glo 'n leuen!
• Ons sê dit as ons in die loop van ons lewe op
enige stadium wonder of Hy ons nog raaksien of
onthou. Hoe baie doen ons dit nie, want ons is maar
net mens - ons wil weet dat ons behoort, die moeite
werd is en 'n verskil maak. As ons wonder of Hy ons
raaksien, dink ons tog maar Hy het nie tyd tussen al
die ander krisisse deur om track te hou van my ou
lewetjie nie!
• Ons sê dit as ons Hom blameer vir die dinge wat
in ons lewe verkeerd loop - 'Miskien wou die Here
dit nie so gehad het nie!' - klink dit bekend? Die
woorde van die liedjie in die vorige gedeelte - Thank
You for the times You said 'No'. Eers as ons
terugdink aan die krisis waardeur ons is, besef ons
dat God in Sy almag die hele tyd Sy hand op die
situasie gehad het. Midde in die stryd vergeet ons dat
ons Hom nie noodwendig geraadpleeg het nie, Hom
dus te besig geag het om tyd aan ons te spandeer en
dan gewonder het waar is Hy toe die mis op ons
neersak!
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So kan ons aangaan en diep ondersoek instel na die
ingesteldheid wat ons oor onsself bring wat dan
aanleiding gee daartoe dat ons die indruk kry dat God nie
tyd het vir ons nie.
Dit het seker al met die meeste van ons gebeur dat 'n
blaar op ons kop val, of dat ons een in die wind grond toe
sien sweef. ‘n Wyse ou gryse het eendag vir my daarop
gewys dat God in Sy almag presies bepaal het wanneer
daardie blaar van die boom sal loskom en aarde toe
sweef! Ons weet die hare op ons kop is getel, die sproete
op my gesig en soveel ander dinge, ons aanvaar dit as
vanselfsprekend - God tel dit seker tog nie elke dag nie?
Maar as ons daaraan dink dat Hy presies bepaal het
wanneer 'n blaar gaan val, onderskat ons nie Sy almag
geweldig nie? Beslis, en is dit nie wanneer ons Sy almag
onderskat dat ons impliseer dat Hy nie vir ons tyd het nie.
Wat sê Ps 8: Wie is ek nietige mens, dat U aan my dink?
Hy weet verseker op enige tydstip hoeveel hare daar op
jou kop is - en as Hy tyd het om dít te weet, hoe in die
lewe kan Hy te besig wees om aan jou aandag te skenk?
Ps 8 sê verder in vers 6 - U het hom (dis nou ek en jy) net
'n bietjie minder as 'n hemelse wese gemaak en hom met
aansien en eer gekroon, vers 7 U laat hom heers oor die
werke van u hande, U het alles aan hom onderwerp …
Maak die gedeelte jou eie deur die 'hom' met 'my' te
vervang.
Dink jy Hy het nie tyd vir die bewaarders van Sy skepping
nie?
Christians believe that God is only thinking about their sins –
Ons bly klou aan ons skuldgevoelens – vergewe jouself
en move on!
Hier val ek weer pens en pootjies in die slaggat.
Ek het twee dinge in my lewe beleef wat vir 'n mens
dieselfde gewaarwording gee as om skielik te besef jy
glo hierdie leuen. In die noorde van ons land hou
vlakvarke in die pad snags groot gevaar vir motoriste in.
Alhoewel die motor se ligte die pad helder verlig, sien 'n
mens die vlakvark omtrent eers as jy by hom is. Dis ook
asof die ligte hom nie net verblind nie, maar heeltemal laat
verstar. Hy staan doodstil in die middel van die pad en
kyk vir die monster wat op hom afpyl. Jy weet nie watter
kant toe hy gaan besluit om te hardloop nie en moet
drasties spoed verminder om enige beweging te
antisipeer.
Hierdie leuen van die vyand verblind ons net soos die ligte
van die aankomende motor die vlakvark verblind. Ons is
verlam. Ons kan nie 'n ding uitrig wat die Here vir ons
beplan het nie, want ons is vasgevang in 'n eienaardige
trekkrag wat ons nader en nader aan chaos lok. Dit is juis
God se liefde en die feit dat Hy nie die hele tyd aan ons
sonde dink nie, wat ons letterlik op die laaste nippertjie tot
die werklikheid terugruk en dan besef ons met bonsende
hart hoe naby ons aan 'n diep afgrond gekom het. God
dink in Sy genade NIE aan ons sonde nie!
Die tweede is geskenke - beslis díe wat toegedraai is.
Dis seker waarom ek so mal is daaroor om geskenke te
koop. Dis die verwagting wat ‘n geskenk by my skep!
Daar lê dit, jy moet dit net oopmaak! Soms het jy 'n idee
wat daarin is, ander kere nie. Selfs as jy byna seker is dat
jy weet, is daar nog steeds 'n verrassingselement in die
oopmaak van die pakkie. Die enigste tyd wat jy
teleurgesteld is, is wanneer jy die liefde waarmee dit
gegee is, in twyfel trek! As ons maar net ons sonde
doelbewus in 'n geskenkpakkie kon opmaak en dit vir die
31

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Here gee, nee, juis nie 'n afskeepgeskenkpakkie nie. Die
mooiste pakkie wat jy kan bedink! Ek dink Hy gebruik dit
om die hemel te versier, want daar is dit elke dag iemand
se verjaardag of Kersfees! Dis daar om te bewonder,
want dis toegedraai met berou - helder kleure papier om
ons trane van vreugde te wys, vasgeplak met liefde,
gestrik met dankbaarheid. Hy wil al die lelikste, walglikste
goed wat ons ooit gedoen, of selfs gedink het om te doen,
in die pakkie hê. Die enigste verskil is: Hy kyk met
dieselfde verwagting daarna as ons, maar het geen
begeerte om dit oop te maak nie! En dit maak nie saak
watter kleur jou lint is nie, wanneer jy dit styf trek is dit wit,
want Hy het jou skoongewas.
Maar ons kan nie aanvaar dat Hy nie meer gepla is oor
die inhoud nie. Die vyand herinner ons ook gereeld
daaraan dat al ons ongeregtighede nog daarin is. En net
soos ons soms, veral toe ons kleiner was, skelmpies loer
wat daarbinne is, dring ons ook gedurig daarop aan dat
die Here dit oopmaak en ons verseker dat alles nog
daarin is. Maar, as jy geloer het, is al die pret daaruit - die
lekker is weg! Jy voel skuldig en moet jok as jy maak asof
dit 'n verrassing is! As jy die Here sover kry om jou
geskenkie met baie geredekawel oop te maak, is jy skaam
om te sien dit is leeg, inteendeel daar is van jou favourites
in - potpourri, affodille, rose ... soos die Sound of Music
liedjie - Cream coloured ponies, crisp applestrudel,
doorbells and sleighbells, die reuk van braaivleis en die
klank van die see. Want dis waar die inhoud lê, iewers in
die diep blou see.
So moenie 'n vlakvark wees en toelaat dat die ligte jou
verlam nie. In plaas daarvan om in die ligte te kyk of jou
fokus op die pakkie te plaas, kyk na die Meester wat die
ligte en die pakkie in Sy hand hou. Weet dat jou
geskenkpakkie veilig in God se hande is en dat Hy dit net
bêre omdat Hy weet dat jy sukkel om daarvan te vergeet!
Christians believe that God is disinterested in them – Ons
verloor belangstelling omdat liefde nie ‘n gevoel is nie,
maar ‘n vaste besluit!
Hierdie is natuurlik die grootste leuen/wanindruk van
almal. Verbeel jou, om eers te dink die Here stel nie in my
belang nie! Deur my sien die wêreld wie Hy is. Hoeveel
beter kan 'n produk bemark word, as dat dit gratis is.
Lewenslange waarborg, no come backs, indestructable,
always reliable ens ens ens. As die Meester Bemarker
nie belangstel in sy markgroep nie, sal die hemel eendag
maar baie leeg wees - net nutcases, want sorry, ek is te
human om belang te stel in enigiets wat nie vir my
voordele ook inhou nie! Dit klink baie verwaand, maar dis
ongelukkig waar. As Jesus Christus nie deel van Sy
bemarkingstrategie was nie, sou ons nog belang gestel
het? Die Israeliete het nie. Daar moes eers vir hulle 'n
Lam geslag word voordat hulle wakker geskrik het. Moet
die Here dan weer vir my die Lam slag om my te oortuig
dat Hy wel in my belangstel?
Dit gaan oor my geestelike oë en ore, oor my persepsies
van myself. My selfbeeld. My sonde en ongeregtigheid.
Ek hou boek daarvan en kan dit nou maar net nie laat los
nie. Dit herinner my daaraan dat ek nie Sy liefde werd is
nie, dat dit net onmoontlik is dat Hy hierdie patetiese
bondel menswees sal kies om iets vir Hom te beteken.
Maar Hy het. Hy het my volgens Jesaja op my naam
geroep en gesê ek behoort aan Hom! Hy het my in my
ma se maag gevorm soos wat Hy wou hê ek moet wees.
Elke oomblik in my lewe wat ek gedink het ek is alleen,
selfs toe ek Hom nog nie geken het nie, was Hy by my, in
my, deel van my bestaan. Hy het saam met my gehuil.
Hy het my van die dood gered toe ek wou moed opgee en
alles te veel geword het. Hy stel belang in my - in wie ek
vir Hom kan wees, want Hy weet wat my potensiaal is.
Die vyand fluister allerhande leuens in my oor en ek glo
dit want dit klink so onmoontlik dat die Here vir my Sy
Seun gestuur het, maar Hy het - ek moet dit net aanvaar!
He said it, I must believe it, and that settles it!
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34
Ek skryf - dis my manier om te onthou dat die Here in my
belangstel. As dit nie so was nie, sou ek nie self dikwels
verstom kon wees oor die impak van die woorde wat uit
my vingers vloei nie. Dis Sy manier om vir my te sê dat
Hy genoeg in my belangstel om my vingers te gebruik om
woorde vir ander mooi te maak! Ek twyfel dikwels in my
eie vermoë. Soos ek hierdie woorde tik, wonder ek watter
impak dit werklik het, of dit enigsins vir iemand iets
beteken. Maar ek moet nie wonder nie! Hy gebruik dit op
sy tyd en Sy manier en dis vir ander soveel meer werd as
ek glo dat Hy dit doen omdat Hy werklik in my belangstel!
As Hy in my belangstel, hoekom nie in jou nie. Tussen
biljoene ander het jy hierdie boek opgetel om te lees! Die
stuk is in die eerste persoon geskryf sodat jy dit vir jouself
kan lees, want Hy stel in jou ook belang. Hy wil hê dat jy
ook moet ontdek dat daar dinge is wat jy vir Hom kan
doen wat jou sal verstom, wat uniek is aan jou en ander
se harte kan raak. Die dinge waarop Hy Sy stempel plaas
is net soveel meer awesome. Kyk nou maar net die
eenvoud van die woorde waarmee ek afsluit! Dis Hy wat
genoeg in my belangstel om die woorde in my hand te
plaas:
Learn to laugh - it makes the sun shine
Learn to sing - it makes life a song
Learn to cry - it heals the soul
Learn to pray - it brings God near
Learn to love yourself - it helps you cope
Forgive often and without hesitation
Don't bear grudges - it causes ill health
Be content with all you have,
Others are, and they don't always have a lot
In all you do be truthful
And never forget the most faithful Friend –
and His God-given friends –you've got
Nie geleen nie, elke woord my eie! Sulke woorde binne
oomblikke uit my hand, dit kan nie anders nie - die Here
stel werklik in elkeen van ons belang.
***********************
DOES GOD EXIST? See if this answers your question!!!
One day a 6 year old girl was sitting in a classroom. The teacher was going to explain
evolution to the children. The teacher asked a little boy:
TEACHER : Tommy, do you see the tree outside?
TOMMY : Yes.
TEACHER : Tommy, do you see the grass outside?
TOMMY : Yes.
TEACHER : Go outside and look up and see if you can see the sky.
TOMMY: Okay.
(He returned a few minutes later) Yes, I saw the sky.
TEACHER : Did you see the Almighty??
TOMMY : No.
TEACHER : That's my point. We can't see God because he isn't there. He doesn't exist.
A little girl spoke up and wanted to ask the boy some questions. The teacher agreed and
the little girl asked the boy :
LITTLE GIRL : Tommy, do you see the tree outside?
TOMMY : Yes.
LITTLE GIRL : Tommy, do you see the grass outside?
TOMMY : Yesssssssss (getting tired of the questions by this time).
LITTLE GIRL : Did you see the sky?
TOMMY : Yessssssssss.
LITTLE GIRL : Tommy, do you see the teacher?
TOMMY : Yes.
LITTLE GIRL : Do you see her brain?
TOMMY : No.
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LITTLE GIRL : Then according to what we were taught today in school, she does not have
one!!!
"FOR WE WALK BY FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT"
Author Unknown
Wat pla? – What’s up?
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WAT PLA? / WHAT’S UP?
My beste wapen in my stryd met my sondige lewe en die
feit dat dit my as mens soms minderwaardig laat voel, was
nog altyd om te identifiseer met die helde van die Bybel,
manne en vroue wat God ‘uitverkies’ het om ‘n verskil te
maak, maar wat nog steeds net mens was! Dawid wat nie
vir Batseba kon uitlos nie, selfs moord gepleeg het.
Moses wat met sy staf geslaan het as God gesê het dat
hy dit net moet uitsteek. Gideon wat nie met die eerste
teken van die dou tevrede was nie, en vir nog een gevra
het. En dan my persoonlike gunsteling, Elia wat in ‘n grot
gaan wegkruip het – depressie in die hoogste graad!
Hoeveel keer voel ek nie dat ek iewers ver van alles af in
‘n onbereikbare grot wil gaan wegkruip nie. Ek kan nie
eers met myself saamleef nie, hoe op aarde moet die
mense rondom my dit doen? En dan is dit juis die mense
rondom my, die verpligtinge van my lewe, die
noodsaaklikheid van my bestaan, wat my telkens laat
besef dat dit nie die oplossing is nie. Ja, weghardloop lyk
oënskynlik maklik, maar dis soos ‘n verslawing – as jy
jouself in ‘n koma in gesuip het of sover gegaan het om
jou siel aan dwelms te verkoop, kan jy maar weet – die
oomblik as jy weer nugter is en weer ‘normaal’
funksioneer, is alles maar net dieselfde, soms selfs erger.
Jy het net óm die probleem geloop en geen oplossing
daarvoor gevind nie!
My depressie maak dit baie moeilik vir die mense rondom
my om met my oor die weg te kom. Ek kan in ‘n oogwink
omskakel van iemand wat wegskram van konfrontasie, na
‘n regte skoorsoeker – iets krap my om ... ek weet nie
mooi wat nie … en kort voor lank sal iets opduik waaroor
ek kan stoom afblaas. Die geringste teleurstelling,
programskommeling of onskuldige opmerking! Kaboem!!!!!
En dan kom die grot-weghardloop-fase net na
die uitbarsting, want jy besef dit was onnodig, onregverdig
en heeltemal onverdiend. En nou moet jy dit regmaak!
Die kosbare van ‘n ontsnapping uit my grot-fase is dat ek
by my terugkeer na die werklikheid van vergifnis, meer
inspirasie het as vantevore. Veral vandat ek die hele
depressie ding head-on begin face het. Omdat ek besef
het dat weghardloop nie werk nie, kan ek nou vasbyt en
terugkyk en positiewe dinge uit die oënskynlik negatiewe
situasie haal. Die grootste probleem is dat die gedagtes
dan nie ophou hardloop nie, en dat ek alles wil neerskryf!
Die meeste hiervan gebeur natuurlik lank voor die son
opkom en dis nie altyd moontlik om dit dan neer te skryf
nie. Ek het egter gevind dat die dringende boodskappe
bly vassteek en dat ek dit enige tyd weer maklik kan
oproep.
Dan maak die omvang van God se genade jou baie
nederig. Want ten spyte van die monster in jou wat na
vore getree het, het Hy gesorg dat die mense wat Hy so
versigtig rondom jou geplaas het, onverklaarbare begrip
het. Ek weet dat dit net genade is dat ek enigsins mense
het wat vir my bly omgee, mense wat uit hul pad uit gaan
om wanneer ek grot se kant toe mik, ‘n woord van
waardering te spreek, raad te vra, sms’e stuur of bloot
reageer op ‘n e-pos. Te midde van baie dinge oor God
wat ek nog nie altyd verstaan nie, is hierdie een van my
ankerplekke – my reality checks – familie en vriende wat
omgee, talente wat onontgin binne my lê, voorregte,
gesondheid – lewe!
Die Here bepaal die struktuur van hierdie boek deur en
deur. Hy is die Alfa en die Omega en daarom is “Wat
pla?” van A tot Z gesorteer.
I found the fact that “What’s up?” was in the end arranged
alphabetically, both rewarding and interesting. The
messages seem to follow in a sequence that is divinely
appropriate – a sort of growth process – yet each
individual message still speaks for itself. As time passed
– as it happens with exercise – I think I became a little
more skilled in my approach to the topics, but what made
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it even more valuable, was the fact that the later efforts
are thrown in between the earlier, sometimes shaky
approaches. This, to me, is what life is about. Sometimes
we are completely certain of ourselves and at other times
we are a bit more wavering and tread very carefully.
There is no build-up to a point of saturation where you
know what’s best, all of the time.
I guess I am aware that not everyone will agree with me
on some of my thoughts, especially the learned people.
My intention is not to start some church revolution or a
sect of my own. God gave us a mind to reason about
everything in life – that’s how we make choices. I pointed
out that I am not an academic or intellectual wonder (that
is if you’ve read the Introduction), just a very normal
person with the gift to put thoughts into hopefully simple
words. The only unwavering thing that I have in my life is
the fact that God loves me, no matter what. And this is
what I hope you will find in “What’s up?”, that you’re
human and frail, yet wondrously made and loved by God.
This is my perception, uninfluenced by intellectual study,
written opinion and ongoing scientific research. This is
what I think believing in the Living God is all about. I hope
you will share some of my feelings and thoughts and pray
for me where I’m way off the straight and narrow.
ABORTION
I was very happy with the fact that the second topic,
AFFIRMATION was first on my list. It just seemed right, because
as much as we fight against it, we all need affirmation and
the lack of it is most of the time the cause of our hang-ups
about ourselves, God and our faith. Then just as I was
getting to the last of the long list of topics that God
dropped into the hat when I first saddled this horse, He
came and very gently lay ABORTION before me.
Despite the fact that I feel very passionate about the
subject, I objected. It would have to come first and what
would it be like to start with such a somber subject? But, I
have learnt not to fight too long and hard against what
God wants, because He always knows best. And here I
am with growing excitement in my heart, writing about this
rather painful issue.
Our lives start the moment conception takes place. It is
believed that the mood during which a baby is conceived
has an influence on it after it is born. Two extreme
circumstances can explain this logically, for example a
planned conception, borne in love between parents
seeking to expand their relationship or a conception that
takes place during rape. It is not entirely far-fetched to
believe that in the latter this influence is real.
The life that starts within a mother’s womb is just a clump
of cells, multiplying to at some stage form something that
reasonably represents a human being. To me, a
heartbeat represents life. When I was 8 weeks pregnant
with our youngest, I went for my first check-up. There
were various indications that a new life was on its way – I
skipped my period, the docter did a urine test and if this
was no definite indication, a blood test would be a certain
‘yes’ or ‘no’. When it was established that I was indeed
expecting, it was time to bring out the real technology -
the sonar. However, at 8 weeks hardly anything but the
grey clump of growing cells was visible on the screen.
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There, in this grey mass was a pinprick flashing. ‘That’s
the heartbeat!’ was the verbal realisation of my son’s life
starting inside of me.
Abortion is wrong, because it ends a life that God had a
divine purpose with. As Forest Gump said about the
Vietnam war, ‘That’s all I can say about this’.
God also had a purpose with this topic. Only because at
first I couldn’t see its divinity, I thought of it as something
that needed to be aborted because it didn’t fit in. I started
writing passionately about what I conceived it to be, and
as I concluded almost four pages, God’s intention for it
came to life.
There is indeed cause to allow abortion in our lives:
emotional and spiritual abortion. This, I realised, is why
Abortion is the first topic. The emotional scars that we get
from adversity and the traumas we experience in our lives
are very much like unwanted pregnancies – expected or
unexpected, enlightening yet sad, devastating or
conquering. We allow trauma and turmoil to conceive
inside us, we let it grow like an unborn fetus, feeding it
with unforgiveness, revenge, regret, hate and other
destructive emotions. Sometimes we fight against its
development, at other times we actually gain inspiration
from it, utilising our inherent nature to overcome and to
motivate us to try and conquer it. Alas, when at some
stage we have to give birth, we are struck down by the
damaging consequences of these unwanted emotional
and spiritual pregnancies.
There are so many traumatic experiences in life that can
have a very real and lasting negative influence on us.
Abuse – physical and emotional – as children, the early
death of a parent, watching your mother being beaten by
your father or stepfather, growing up under a fairy tale like
wicked step mom or step dad, growing up with no parents
or very poor. Emotional scars can run very deep and if
you don’t deal with them in a positive and effective
manner, they are prone to destroy your emotional well
being and possibly your life.
This is the only time a resounding ‘Yes’ for abortion
should be heard. End it! Do not allow these unwanted
emotional and spiritual pregnancies to be a part of your
life. End them while they are still grey clumps of
undefined consequences with only a flickering of a
heartbeat that indicates the start of unnecessary suffering,
depression, distrust and a life full of blaming God for what
you are stuck with.
The enemy is the one who guides the conception of these
pregnancies. Only he can provide the food for it to grow
into a festering cesspool that will have adverse effects on
your life if you allow it to go full term. End it while it is still
manageable and you are able to deal with its side effects.
I trust that many parts of this book will be of great value to
you, but it will be even more effective if you can get rid of
these grey clumps of disaster growing ominously in your
soul.
I reiterate, abortion is wrong and God cannot condone it,
however aborting emotional and spiritual experiences that
in the end draw you away from God can be highly
beneficial to your emotional state of mind.
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AFFIRMATION
While it is true that I write about things that trouble me, it
is also true that sometimes the Lord pushes my rebellious
butt into dealing with something that I don't necessarily
have a problem with at that specific moment. This was
such a day, and I just had to settle with the knowledge
that it is not always about me and my feelings.
Sometimes others may be struggling with whatever issue I
seem to think I have under control.
Yes, think I have under control! Because as much as I
sometimes turn away the things that God wants for me,
claiming that I don't need it, these are the things that I am
most uncomfortable dealing with or receiving.
For me, words and deeds of affirmation are definitely one
of these. I think it is very much like a drought that we
inexplicably cause in our own lives. And then when God
wants to send His rain on the parched and dry area of our
life, we are not prepared for the consequences. We
haven't planted the seeds of healing, haven't pruned away
the old branches to ensure stronger growth and we
haven't put out basins and bowls to catch up whatever
excess may otherwise be lost. Only cacti survive in the
desert. Rejecting affirmation, we become like cacti and
develop nasty thorns that scare away anyone who is still
willing to give us the affirmation that we need so much.
We learn to survive in the drought, and forget that the rain
is good for us. We are just not prepared to receive what
He wants to give us, and reject the things that we
probably need the most.
Someone once told me that the one thing that you least
want to do and feel least equipped for, that is what God
wants you to do, because then He knows you will rely on
His divine intervention, and not your own strength and
insight!
Okay, I'll get to the point! I crave affirmation! There I said
it, and I trust that quite a number of you will have as much
difficulty in admitting this as I did. We all long for
affirmation. Something or someone letting us know in
some way that our existence is not worthless. Some of us
seem to need it more than others, and we need it
presented in different ways. Bottom line is we cannot
exist without affirmation at some stages of our lives.
We need affirmation so much, that we establish one of
two mechanisms to deal with its absence. On the one
hand, because we perform better with affirmation, we can
become reliant on receiving it and end up not achieving
anything worthwhile, because no-one seems to think our
efforts mean anything. Been there? If you tend to lie to
yourself like I do, you've definitely been there, and it's
okay! On the other hand, we can build a wall around us
pretending that we don’t need it at all and in so doing
create the farce that we are unapproachable.
So we need to establish a balance between accepting
affirmation, positively building it into our lives and
acquiring the skill to also show it without hesitation to
others.
It is good for us to receive positive affirmation in any way
that it may come. Sometimes it is a ray of sunshine falling
on you through a rainy cloud, sometimes it is a physical
pat on the shoulder or a thank you card. Affirmation
makes us feel good and makes us feel needed. But as
much as we need and long for affirmation, we also reject
it, because we don't know what to do with it! We think
others need it more - you know, so pass it on! It makes us
feel awkward and uncomfortable, invades our
personal space. We're afraid our heads will swell if we
believe it. However, you cannot face the person looking
back at you in the mirror with total acceptance if you don't
receive affirmation, accept it and acquire the ability to
express it.
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A good way of gracefully accepting affirmation is to pass
the compliment on to God in a silent prayer. After all He
created you and deserves some credit for your successes.
Adopting a positive attitude to receiving affirmation, allows
you to grow as an emotional being and enables you to
develop the need to show affirmation to others in the way
that they need to receive it. The circle continues: if you
allow yourself to receive it, you grow strong enough to
share it. Even though this may not necessarily be your
strong suit, being able to show affirmation to others is the
ultimate joy. People transform before your eyes. Even
the hardest of hearts, cries out for affirmation.
There are five main love languages: Physical Touch,
Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Gifts and Acts of
Service. Sadly, if we haven't learnt to accept any of these,
we cannot give them either.
So a kind touch, an appreciating word, the lingering
minute, an unexpected gift or just a simple favour may be
what you need today to feel loved. If it comes your way,
don't reject it because it doesn't fit into your schedule or
makes you feel awkward, or worst of all because you think
you don’t deserve it - open your heart and receive it, build
it into your armor to withstand the bad times you may face
next week. Affirmation makes you stronger and is a very
rare and precious gift to receive and to share.
Dear Lord, please give me and all who read this a new
and abundant sense of self worth!
BACK TO THE HEART OF WORSHIP
“And this is that testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life
is in His Son. He who possesses the Son has that life; he who
does not possess the Son of God does not have that life.”
1 Joh 5:11, 12
‘I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and its all about
You, Jesus. I’m sorry Lord for the thing I’ve made it, it’s
all about You.’ Words from a song off the album Worship
by Michael W. Smith. And indeed what do we make of
worship? What do we worship?
Let’s first look at the human side. Although we should not
worship human beings or physical things, the meaning of
worship also includes the things that we should really be
thankful for. We should practice admiration for what we
have within a Godly balance, great humility and gratitude.
It can in fact bring us much closer to God.
Wow, the Lord has really grabbed my whole being on this
thought. What about pride, idolatry, not worshipping other
gods?
Let’s take it step by step. The term worship is described
in more than one way:
1. a title of respect for a mayor, magistrate, or any
similar dignitary
2. to treat somebody or something as deity (divine being)
3. to love somebody deeply
4. religious adoration, rites
5. great devotion
From a human point of view, if we refer to a dignitary as
Your Worship, this does not mean that we are placing the
person on the same level as God. We show a healthy
respect for the person’s position in life, a position that
mostly has been attained with hard work, lots of sacrifice
and naturally stature. To treat a person in a position of
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leadership as a deity, can and should be done within a
healthy balance of respect and high regard without placing
the position or the person above God.
We can therefore safely say that we can treat someone or
something as deity. The keyword being ‘as’! We should
hold everyone we love in the same regard as a dignitary.
I should worship my husband and my children, my family
and my dearest friends – because they are gifts from God.
Inasmuch as I should adore the many blessings I have:
good health, money, possessions etc. But none of these
should be worshipped to a point where they are more
important than God.
Paul said that a husband should treat his wife as Jesus
would the church, His bride. Jesus has adoration for the
church. It is His adoration for us, His church that drove
Him to the greatest sacrifice of all. To worship someone,
means to love them deeply. What deeper love is there
than to sacrifice human life for someone? The only
difference is that we should at all times worship God
above all else.
It is therefore safe to say that we should treat all people as
deity, because they are creations of the ultimate Deity, the
Living God! We should also have a well balanced
adoration for what we possess, realising that in an instant
it can all be taken away. A man received an offer to sell
his mansion against a hill. Not being satisfied with the
price, he declined as he wanted at least two million more.
A few weeks later storms devastated the area and after
the floodwater subsided, his house was hovering on two
meters of very unstable ground. He was unable to even
retrieve his worldly possessions. He could just wait to see
when the inadequate foundation would give way and his
once majestic home, would plunge down a cliff.
We should have religious adoration for the institutions that
offer us comfort and spiritual growth. These however
should never take God’s place in our lives. As with the
rich man’s house, if your church and your part in it in the
form of worship, activity, participation etc. were to tumble
down a cliff tomorrow, would you still have a sound
foundation to live on?
All things and people should be treated with great love
and admiration. All that we have are gifts from God and
only belong to us for a short time. In this short time we
should treat all things and people with respect.
Ultimately and above all we should get back to the heart
of worshipping God above all else. What is the heart of
worshipping God? Just me, nothing else. Without all He
has made me, I cannot worship Him, anyone, or anything
else in a lasting and well balanced way. The heart of
worship is therefore in me. Finding within myself the
ability to love myself enough to believe God loved me so
deeply that He sacrificed His Son for all that I am and
especially don’t want to be! Restoring and healing every
part of me so that my love for Him grows enough to
include all those around me, even with their inability to be
perfect.
It is in discovering true worship within your heart, that the
truth about worshipping God can finally speak to you. You
then find that true worship doesn’t depend on which
church you attend, how many hungry people you have
fed, how many poor you have offered finances to, what
riches you have acquired or how handsome you are. The
heart of worship is when you discover that knowing Jesus
intimately, loving Him deeply with adoration, devotion and
respect, enables you to dine with your enemies, forgive
without prejudice and love unconditionally. True worship
is found in that place where you have an absolute
adoration and dependency on God, yet have found the
balance, that the same God that loves you
unconditionally, also has the ability to smite down His
enemies with a single breath and is not to be toyed with.
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BACKUPS
Bad things always happen when you least expect it, don’t
they? I was arguing with the Lord about which topic to
tackle next and then strategic intervention from whichever
source you want to assign it to stepped in. The hard disc
of my computer crashed for the first time since I got my
first computer about 15 years ago! I think it was old
Lagfoot (that’s Satan) who had nothing better for his
stooges to lay their hands on.
Fortunately I had made backups of the most important
stuff. Whatever I didn't have, I know for a fact God had
other plans with or that He will restore it to even better
standards! Just think of it: I lost all my e-mail addresses,
and within 24 hours of being back on track, I could e-mail
to almost as many people as I am old??? That is a
miracle for those who know my age!
What is the secret? Backups! Thinking ahead (which I
don't often do!), I made some vital ones when my PC went
in for a general checkup about 4 weeks before the crash.
Those were hardcopies, physical backups! Then I called
in my friendship backups and three e-mails later had 80%
of my e-mail addresses back despite the fact that at a
stage I started using the 'undisclosed recipients' function!
Even my “What’s up?” submissions that I missed were
restored. And the result of my very first outcry for God to
take control when all this happened, was that they
managed to restore the data on the most vital of my hard
drives with no less than 2.5gB's irreplaceable photos on
it!
I prefer the ‘lah dee dah’ Afrikaans version of the word
backup, namely rugsteun, directly translated – back
support. This to me means something that you really
cannot live without. Backup sounds like something you
can fall back on when disaster strikes. Support means
that it should always be there. We should focus on
keeping it up to date, nurturing its integrity and building on
its strength.
Have you ever thought how vitally important support is in
your life? If your world would crash around you when you
least expect it, how much backup do you have? Are there
people who would pick you up? More importantly: do you
know that God is there to reach out to you?
We must know that backups are only valuable if you keep
them up to date. That is your responsibility. Nobody is
going to do it for you. If your backups are not in place, it’s
your loss alone!
So start today with your Rugsteun!
• Find and make certain that you have physical
support around you that you can rely on - 1 God's
Word in whatever truthful form you prefer it, 2 His
creation, a constant reminder of His grace and
mercy in your life, things you can see and touch
that no one can take away from you.
• Make sure that you have the support of friends
and family - nurture these relationships, for when
you least expect it, you need them the most!
Most important of all. Don't let God just be your backup
when disaster strikes. Let Him be your support all the
time, have an ongoing intimate relationship with Him.
When disaster then does strike, I'm certain you won't have
to ask 'Why me?' It won't matter, because the integrity of
your best Backup will prove to be sufficient!
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BAD HABITS/WEAKNESSES
I do believe all of us have bad habits or weaknesses. As
things go, when you’re at your lowest your weaknesses
seem to consume your life more than at other times. It is
amazing though how God will actually use your
weaknesses to teach you some lesson that can also be
valuable to others. We must just learn to keep our
spiritual eyes and ears open, otherwise you just wallow in
the weakness and never get around to learning something
from it.
A serious lack of concentration and drive is a very black
symptom of depression. Life in general can just become
such an exhausting effort! One of the reasons why we fall
into the pit of depression is stress, and the very high,
sometimes unattainable, standards and goals we set for
ourselves. So one of the first things that you have to learn
recovering from depression is to turn away! Turn away
from pressing responsibilities, demands from others and
in general things that tap what’s left of your emotions even
more. You realise that you don’t seem to be as effective
as you used to be. Your brain just clutches out!
So a weakness is either not doing anything at all, or
keeping yourself busy with things that have no real value
or meaning. One of my weaknesses is playing Spider
Solitaire! I can’t seem to quit! It could be that I am too
much of a winner to just quit when I keep on losing,
despite the sheer waste of time! But then, the basis of
determining a weakness or bad habit is the need to
prioritise your responsibilities, and if your life is being put
on hold because of this weakness, you seriously need
help.
So, what have I learnt from this weakness?
Yes, Spider Solitaire or for that matter depression and
its accompanying laxness, can cause my downfall, but
if kept under control it can in fact also assist me in my
recovery, as much as my love for fishing does. It is
much the same as staying in bed if you have the flu.
You must admit to yourself if you are emotionally run
down, that you are not well. You need rest, so that
you can once again function effectively.
It is amazing how unsuccessful you can be at what
you do, if you really are emotionally drained, lack
initiative and cannot seem to focus as well as you are
used to. These are the times that things like Spider
Solitaire and fishing can do something for you. Just
for a while, it takes your mind off the stress and
demands of what you are busy with, relaxes your
mind – strangely enough – and brings you right back
on track, ready and willing to conquer the world.
Unfortunately in the midst of your emotional struggle
you are not always able to push yourself to carry on.
We must learn this all over again in tiny little steps, as
seemingly insignificant as winning a game of Solitaire.
The more you try the more success you achieve.
Don’t reset the statistics of your progress every time
you feel you are getting somewhere. Use these to
encourage you to do better every time you try.
Don’t stick to the easy level when you start winning,
move on! Remember you should learn that progress
can be fun.
Set easier challenges for yourself and if you don’t
achieve them, try again.
Remember, the only way that you can win, is to try
and try again. I’ve just recently moved up to the
difficult level. My statistics are pretty poor. Out of 207
attempts I have only been successful 4 times. This is
a 1% win rate. If I can in fact carry on trying to better
this, I can really fight my way through some really bad
odds in life!
You can establish some sort of plan of action, but you
never know what surprises the next round will hold.
Sometimes it will look as if you are on a winning
streak, only to find out that you missed an opportunity
and you fail. Trust me; life will deal you another game
if you just click on the ‘Play again’ button.
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Don’t force yourself to get back into action too soon.
Only time can heal emotional wounds. If you have
always been an achiever and had real drive, chances
are slim that you would become a bum or so
consumed in your escape that you will never get back
on track again.
Be truthful to yourself and those around you. Don’t
hide your weakness, deal with it!
Keep trying – Rome wasn’t built in a day. Ignore the
guilt trips. Learn phrases like ‘I am not myself, but
eventually I will be again some time’.
Unfortunately you can’t place time limits on emotional
recovery. Sometimes it will be astoundingly quick,
although I have found that my brain is stronger than
the endurance of my emotions. Don’t rush things and
please if you’re dealing with someone in this position,
it is disastrous to place time constraints on recovery.
It just adds to the stress and the feelings of
inadequacy. Try getting involved in the process; it
won’t hurt you a bit to take a break yourself instead of
bitching and moaning about the lack of progress.
I hope this makes as much sense to you as it did to me.
In essence it means, take a break from reality every now
and then. If your weakness is chocolates or eating, from
experience I can strongly advise to use in EXTREME
MODERATION, rather play Spider Solitaire! Even so,
treating yourself to a tasty snack can mean the world to
your emotional well being. I do believe that as long as we
practice all these things under God’s watchful presence,
they cannot become addictive, because you and I can do
all things through Christ Who strengthens us.
There’s More to it!!
Sorry, I just can't always cut off the trail of thoughts - one
leads to the other and in between there's the friendly voice
of God pointing out where I could have been following my
own mind instead of discovering what He intends.
In the context where it was used, I was not even thinking
about things that are clearly against everything that we
believe in as Christians. I believe anything that
continuously works on your guilt conscience and that rules
your life or being in a negative way, is a sin. In essence
this would mean that if you had to choose between
continuing your bad habit/weakness, or letting go of it
because you believe that it is pulling you away from God,
you would let it go! If you can't, it rules your life and it
becomes a higher priority than God - this I believe - is sin.
However the definition of sin is a very arguable point and I
will leave it at that.
I will try to be a little more clear about my definition of BAD
HABITS/WEAKNESSES! These bad habits and
weaknesses I refer to are potentionally 'harmless'
weaknesses we have, such as a sweet tooth, shopping,
watching a good movie, reading a romance, fishing etc. I
think even to a certain extent, exercising. Things that
have the potential to control our lives if we don't heed
against it, but nevertheless things that would not be
harmful to our reputation as Christians. It is clear then
that: pornography is out, smoking is highly debatable and
getting stoned or drunk a NO-NO 'time out'!!!
We should always endeavour to live holy lives of which
only God is the center. We just very often tend to be so
hard on ourselves in our quests to do so, that we forget to
sometimes take a break and remember that we're only
human!
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BEING TESTED?
For me, this may be one of the most difficult topics that I
approach, but definitely one that I feel very passionate
about. This time I will really dig into my concordance!
1 Cor 13:12 says, ‘For now we are looking in a mirror that
gives only a dim reflection [of reality as in a riddle or
enigma], but then [when perfection comes] we shall see in
reality and face to face and we will know the truth!
I strongly believe God does not test us. None of what we
experience in life that puts us on a path of trials and
tribulation, exhausting our energy, draining our emotions
and distorting our physical being is from God. God sees
the bigger picture and in His divine authority over all
things may be forced to allow certain things to happen in
our lives for a greater good, but He does not test us.
Why should He want to? He made us, perfect for the
purpose each of us are intended. Testing us willfully by
sending disappointments, grief and destruction on our
path, inherently means that he would be testing the quality
of His own creations. In Genesis it is written that God
created heaven and earth, saw that it was good and
APPROVED it! Adam and Eve came, just like the rest of
creation, only this time God made them in His image!
They too had His seal of approval. Anything that bears a
seal of approval has already been subjected to testing
according to specific requirements. Why would the first
Manufacturer of all things want to test His approved
products over and over again, to see if they last?
When the Day of Judgment comes, according to 1 Cor
3:13, all our works will be shown for what it is. Fire will
test and critically appraise the character and worth of the
work each person has done. (Interesting that 1 Cor 13:3,
which we all know so well, points out that no matter what I
do, if it is not done in love, it will have no meaning!) God
will indeed look at all we were and all that we have done
on earth, however He will take into consideration whether
we accepted His sacrifice of the life of His Son, Jesus
Christ as payment for all our failures. For if we truly
accepted this sacrifice, it would be clear that we were
better equipped to face all adversities that come our way.
According to Paul in 1 Thes 2:4, we have been approved
by God to be entrusted with the glad tidings [the Gospel],
but God tests our hearts, to ensure that we constantly
endeavour to show His nature to those around us, verse
7: like a devoted mother nursing and cherishing her own
children.
God tests our faith in Him. So that the genuineness of
your faith may be tested, your faith which is infinitely more
precious than the perishable gold which is tested and
purified by fire. By simply believing in Him while you can’t
see Him, you have already complied. I believe He does
not need to cause suffering to do this, because is it not in
good times that we forget Him, leave Him waiting in secret
places until adversity strikes? We pray while we are poor
or hungry, ill or suffering – how fervently do we pray when
things go well?
Jesus was tested and tried by humans and Satan to the
point of death and knows what it is like (See Matt 4:1,
19:3, 22:18, John 8:6). He paid the ultimate price, took all
testing for enduring hardship, illness, suffering and other
horrors upon Him on the cross. He has gone through all
the tests we can humanly think of, so that we may live.
We have been approved through Him!
We test God’s patience! We expect Him to live up to all
kinds of unwritten requirements, molding and shaping Him
into something that doesn’t bother our conscience too
much, He is patient and understanding when we decide to
do and say things that we know are wrong. We expect
undeserved favours from Him because we argue that
anything is possible when we believe and we don’t
necessarily have to earn it.
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Paul assures us that we won’t be tested/tried beyond what
we are capable of. Think carefully: he doesn’t say God
won’t send you suffering that you can’t handle, he merely
says that we will always be strong enough to handle what
comes our way. What comes our way? Grace and mercy
from God, and hardship and suffering from the enemy
which draws us away from God.
God will not allow these hardships and suffering to be
beyond your power to handle, with His help. To me it
really just sounds warped if you think that God would give
you hardship and suffering to cope with, only to prove to
you that in His power you are able to get through it. Is it
not like hitting your children with a brick just to show them
that by dressing their wounds and comforting them you
really love them?
This is what I believe, but from the many interpretations of
specific verses in the Bible, many people will derive that
God does in fact test us by giving us hardships to handle.
So, maybe there is some doubt (Satan’s doing) whether
I’m wrong about this. Especially if we think how Abraham
was tested to the last second when he was instructed to
sacrifice Isaac – or is this again more a test of his FAITH
in God and not as much who he is? Also remember this
was the Old Testament and God sent Jesus Christ so that
we may have grace and mercy. Jesus was our timeous
ram in the bush.
And then the following verse popped caught my eye – for
me this was the assurance of what I believed, but was
unseen. Hebrews 2:18 reads: For because He Himself [in
His humanity] has suffered in being tempted (tested/tried),
He is able [immediately] to run to the cry of those who are
being tempted and tested and tried [and who therefore are
being exposed to suffering].
Who better to believe than James, who was believed to be
a brother of Jesus? They grew up together, had sibling
arguments, shared secrets and, I’m certain, saw their way
through many hardships. More than anyone else, Jesus
would have taught His family who God was. James wrote
in James 1:13, Let no one say when he is tempted, I am
tempted from God; for God is incapable of being tested by
[what is] evil and He Himself tempts no one. And then he
adds in verses 14 and 15, just in case we wanted to add a
‘but’ to this statement, But every person is tempted when
he is drawn away, enticed and baited by his own evil
desire (lust, passions). Then the evil desire, when it has
conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully
matured, brings forth death.
If I look back on my life, the times that I thought God was
testing me, were really times that I had pushed Him away
and was trying to live my life according to mý gospel and
not His. I believe that I cannot blame God for a car hitting
me while crossing the road if I didn’t ask Him specifically if
it was safe to do so in the first place. There is a
contemporary song (I can’t remember the singer) that
goes: every breath you take, every move you make, every
vow you break, I’ll be watching you. Worldly it may be,
but this is what God will do for us, if we ask Him to and
trust Him that He will all the time. Without fail! The only
way you know what your children really need, is if they
ask you. Until then it is a guessing game, which you win
most of the time, just because you love them. Can they
blame you for the times you guessed wrong and they
ended up in a fix?
I believe neither can we blame our Father. If we did not
pertinently ask Him not to lead us into every specific
adversity that we land ourselves in, we cannot accuse
Him of testing us. We can just be thankful that He is
always willing to help us in all circumstances.
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CANCER OF THE SOUL
I have cancer, the most severe kind. Medically speaking
there is nothing they can do about it. The cure for it lies
within you. Although not always life threatening, if you’re
blind to it, it can destroy you bit by bit until there is very
little of the real you left.
As with any destructive disease, half the battle is won,
once you are able to admit that you suffer from it. Only
then can you decide to do something about it – should you
live with it or conquer it! Either way you realise, it is never
really going to disappear, just what you do with it is going
to change.
But let me tell you about my cancer. It’s called “Can’t
Avoid Nasty Comments Everyone Raises about me”. I’m
certain you have it too. We all do. We just deal with it
differently.
Just like we are all born with a potentially lethal cancer
cell, we are all born with the inherit notion to believe what
others say about us. If it is a compliment, well that is
wonderful. We grab it and bury it deep under our skins to
make us feel better. The truth, but not necessarily a
compliment, makes us a little weary and we most of the
time we brush it off as a lie. A downright lie makes our
insides convulse and our tempers flare. But we very often
don’t do anything about it! How often do we
subconsciously allow a lie to stick to who we are like a big
ugly label?
To discover this we have to analyse the EVERYONE
referred to in our cancer acronym. Who is EVERYONE?
Sure, everyone is probably all people that you will
encounter in your entire lifetime. But does it not include
me? If we agree that we allow lies to stick to us, who is
the biggest culprit? Me! I’m way too fat to wear a
costume, my nose isn’t straight, I shouldn’t laugh, its
enough to haunt people. Don’t be so loud, your lips are
too thin and make you look so stern! Sound familiar?
If it doesn’t, you’re just one of the lucky few who are
completely happy with who you are, or you just cannot get
yourself to admit that it is no use lying to your own face!
Honestly, if you were in any possible way able to ask God
if you always thought that you are wonderful, what would
He say? The truth is I don’t think anyone is exempt from
feeling inferior at some point in time. Some of us can
handle it better; some of us have learnt to hide it with a
brilliant smile or some sharp humour. Even if you say you
are really not bothered about what others say, have you
never been annoyed at yourself over some mishap and
found it unacceptable and impossible to believe that you
are capable of making such a mistake? Then you have
put a label on yourself, only you can’t see it, because you
can’t admit it is there!
Somewhere deep inside all of us, this cancer cell grows
and we can choose to nurture it and feed it by believing all
the lies that get stuck on us, or we can admit to ourselves
that we are prone to allow it and end it by saying – that’s
enough!
Declare this: I will in future tell myself out loud that even if
I don’t think so, God created me the way I am for a
specific reason. He thinks I am good enough to always
belong to Him, so I won’t be rude any longer and throw it
back in His face every time I think I see a flaw!
What He wants you to be is entirely possible, practically
reachable and far more than you would allow yourself to
be. What you want yourself to be is way above anybody’s
reachable standards, highly improbable, and you may
very well die or end up in hospital trying.
There is a sweet little tale written by Max Lucado called
‘You are special’. If you haven’t got it yet, make an effort
of looking for it – you really have to buy it for your kids, the
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very small ones, then if you read it to them, nobody will
ever know that you bought it for yourself. It’s also on
DVD, so you can hide behind the newspaper and watch
so no one will notice! Anyway, the story is about a
wooden puppet, called Punchinello, who can’t do anything
right, looks quite worn out and second hand and begins to
develop a problem with his self-esteem. The puppets in
the town where he stays, Wemmicksville, don’t do much
to help solve his problem, as they have the habit of putting
stickers on each other. Stars if you are beautiful, clever
and agile and can do tricks. Punchinello is none of these
so he keeps getting the other kind – grey dots! Then he
meets Lucia, a really beautiful puppet girl and he is
amazed to find that every sticker someone tries to put on
her, just falls right off. Finally she answers his question as
to why this is so, by sending him to the puppet maker, Eli.
Eli tells Punchinello that he made him and he is very
special and it shouldn’t matter what the other Wemmicks
think of him. He sends Punchinello off with the instruction
to visit him regularly and start believing that he is special.
As soon as Punchinello starts believing what Eli said, the
ugly grey dots start to fall off one by one.
God is our Maker, He thinks we are special and doesn’t
want any labels on us, especially not those we have put
on ourselves, because those are probably the worst lies of
all. Ask Him to remove all the grey dots that you and
others have put on you, to make you see yourself through
His eyes and see what a difference it makes to your selfconfidence.
If anyone tells you you’re a prince or a
princess it is kind of what you want to believe but then you
nevertheless convince yourself that the person is a
nutcase for doing so. Would a true prince or princess
really care if they are not as beautiful as they could be,
didn’t achieve the highest score on the test or isn’t a
nightingale? A son and daughter of the only King that we
could rightfully bow to shouldn’t. They should care for the
aged, look after the poor, smile at a sad face and help a
crippled across the street, always believing that they are
more special than they could ever realise.
The King’s sons and daughters shouldn’t believe or even
listen to the lies that others tell about them, because their
Father taught them that jealousy could be a very ugly
monster which consumes the carrier and also that envy
only makes you bitter and causes you to lose valuable
time with people you care about. While we’re on
children’s tales, look at Shrek’s Fiona – I prefer her to be
an ogre, then the mask is off and you can see her true
nature and know why Shrek fell for her in the first place.
Girlfriends, that doesn’t mean that you have to start eating
insects and burping like her – it’s a metaphor! It is not the
outside that makes the person, but the inside!
So kill the cancer of your soul! If God thinks you’re perfect
the way you are and that you can be valuable to others
(more than you will know or care to admit), that settles it,
you are!
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CHAIN LETTERS
There are a few things in life that I can get very
passionate about. The problem is, when I do, I tend to
lose control of all reason and leave the people around me
running in all directions, because I want everything to
change right here, right now!
One of these things are chain letters or notices with a
threatening undertone or even a false promise which have
become quite popular amongst Christians, especially on
the Internet e.g. If you don’t pass this on, then …., or if
you send this on you will experience a miracle … Don’t
worry, you have the advantage that my writing can be
edited, so hopefully you won’t have to slap the book
closed and run!
Jesus Test
It's your choice. If you aren't ashamed to do this, please follow
the directions. Jesus said, "If you are ashamed of me, I will be
ashamed of you before my Father."
Not ashamed Pass this on . . . only if you mean it. Yes, I do love
God. He is my source of existence and Saviour. He keeps me
functioning each and every day. Without Him, I will be nothing.
Without Him, I am nothing but with Him I can do all things
through Christ that strengthens me. Phil 4:13
This is the simplest test . . . If you love God, and are not
ashamed of all the marvelous things He has done for you.
Send this to your friends!
This is just a short version and example of many of the
chain letters that are circulated on e-mail. Let’s break it
down.
Jesus Test. There is only one test to determine whether you
are a child of God or not, that is, do you believe that Jesus
Christ is your Saviour and that He died on the cross for
your sins and that through accepting this fact you now
have eternal life. Nothing more. Jesus made this the
qualification when He said ‘I am the Way and the Truth
and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through
Me.’ (Joh 14:6). No e-mail/sms or other message sent on
or deleted can ever change this!
It's your choice. It most certainly is your choice! Not even
God can force you to make it, because that will mean that
He is not a loving God. But remember, the choice is to
follow Him or not – nothing more, nothing less!
If you aren't ashamed to do this, please follow the directions.
Jesus said, "If you are ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of you
before my Father." Despite the fact that we can receive
awesome comfort from single verses in the Bible, I am a
firm believer of context. Here Jesus was confirming that
we have a choice to follow Him and the only way that we
can be ashamed of Him is if we choose not to do so. The
exact quotation of His words in Mark 8:38 is: Whosoever
shall be ashamed of Me and of My words in this
adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son
of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his
Father with the holy angels. This in essence means that
we should speak out against sin and choose not to remain
part of this sinful world. Sending on the message to
others has no other significance than merely spreading its
gospel and there are so many ways in which we are able
to do that. No one can place this type of restriction on
spreading God’s message of freedom.
Not ashamed Pass this on . . . only if you mean it. My
goodness, there is even a threat if you do send it on! I
must be missing the point entirely, because there is no
way that I can send messages like these on to my friends,
let alone non-believers, without feeling in the least bit
driven by the threatening challenge that I don’t love God
or do not believe in Him if I choose not to. It’s a no win
situation.
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Yes, I do love God. He is my source of existence and Saviour.
He keeps me functioning each and everyday. Without Him, I will
be nothing. Without Him, I am nothing but with Him I can do
all things through Christ that strengthens me. Phil 4:13
According to the Truth I know and believe in, this is about
the only true and just thing of the whole message.
However, if you believe this, you should live it out, say it,
show it in your everyday life and spread the message in
such a way that people would be drawn to it and not
threatened by it.
This is the simplest test . . . If you love God, and are not
ashamed of all the marvelous things He has done for you.
Send this to your friends! Again there is no test for who you
are as a Christian other than the fact that you believe that
Jesus Christ is your Saviour. Nothing about believing in
Him should ever ever make you feel inferior or guilty.
That is why He died, to take away your shame. If you
truly feel then that you want to send a message to
someone out there proclaiming God’s kindness, love,
grace and mercy, don’t hesitate doing so! But, remember,
He came to set the captives free, so no one should ever
be held captive by any message that we send out.
Finally, if choosing not to send these messages out into
the world means that I am denying Christ, what about
Peter? I believe Jesus warned him that he would deny
knowing Him, because He knew that we are only human
and when we feel threatened will have to pluck up a lot of
courage to stand firm on our faith. Peter was one of
Jesus’ closest friends. Will we not meet him in heaven
one day?
Denying Jesus or being ashamed of Him does not depend
on whether we adhere to threatening instructions such as
this; it depends on whether we are constantly trying to
become holy as He was. It is in feeding the hungry, aiding
the poor, healing the sick and spreading the gospel. This
is an endless plight because we live in a world of sin.
Only God can judge us in the end and I refuse to believe
that He would hold it against me that I chose not to send
these messages out into the world.
He will judge solely on whether I accepted the sacrifice of
His life for my sins and inadequacies, loved Him with my
whole heart, all of my soul and my entire mind. That I
trusted Him in all things and did not put my faith for a
miracle into whether I send on an e-mail/sms or not. And
that I ultimately tried every minute of every day to
separate myself from my sinful nature.
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CHANGING CHOICES
Jammer, dis nou ‘n Engelse titel met ‘n Afrikaanse
boodskap. Ek stry nie meer nie! As dit nou maar so
uitkom dan is dit nou maar so. Hopelik kom ons nooit by
‘n totale broutaal uit nie, alhoewel ek somtyds goed daarin
slaag om die grondslag te lê.
Hierdie is een van die eerste titels wat ek neergeskryf het.
Ek wou al verskeie kere daarmee begin, maar elke keer
het die Here my, soms heeltemal teen my sin, in ‘n ander
rigting gestuur. Hierdie ervaring van my sluit aan by die
titel, Changing Choices, want die Here het in die geval
telkemaal my keuses verander om ‘n beter uiteinde te
bepaal.
Die vraag was al op baie van ons se lippe of in ons
gedagtes. ‘Wat sou gebeur het, of waar sou ek vandag
gewees het as ek op bepaalde plekke en tye in my lewe
ander keuses gemaak het?’ (Ek is baie bly dat ek dié in
Afrikaans kan doen, want dit gaan moeilik genoeg wees
om wat in my kop maal verstaanbaar te maak!)
Hierdie keuses kan in twee kategorieë verdeel word:
• Oomblikke waar daar een berekende keuse voor ons
gelê word, wat die res van ons lewe kan raak, maar
nie noodwendig binne ons verwysingsraamwerk van
daardie spesifieke oomblik oënskynlik ‘n verskil sou
gemaak het nie. Bv. Gaan ek nou swem of eers later.
Nou swem beteken die weer is ideaal, die water koel
en verfrissend. Later kan moontlik beteken dat daar
nie tyd sal wees nie, dat my aandag deur die dag se
verantwoordelikhede geabsorbeer word en die
geleentheid dalk verlore gaan. Die keuse gebeur
egter so sonder oorweging dat ons letterlik honderde
soortgelykes op ‘n dag maak, en baie daarvan nie
eers in herinnering kan roep nie. Eet ek eers my
pampoen of die rys, gaan ek bad of stort, ensovoorts.
• En dan groter keuses wat ons in een of ander
bepaalde rigting sou stuur. Hierdie keuses verg ‘n
bietjie meer dinkwerk en beplanning. Bv. Gaan ek
swot of nie, en indien wel, medies of ingenieurswese?
Ons neem langer om so ‘n besluit te neem en skenk
wel oorweging aan die resultate.
Ja, en hier het die Here my weer mooi saggies aan my
hand gevat en sondermeer uitgewys dat ek in
eersgenoemde geval sommer twee voorbeelde in my
persoonlike lewe aan die hand kan doen. Ek stry altyd as
dit gebeur! Ek weet die gedagte aan die boodskappe is
dat ek uit eie ervaring met julle sal deel, maar genuine,
partykeer wil ek ook nie dieper in my binneste gaan krap
as wat gemaklik voel nie. Maar nou ja, soos ek gesê het,
ek stry nie meer nie. As ek baie wonder, laat val ek die
gedagte vir God se verteenwoordiger in my lewe, wat wel
antwoorde kan verbaliseer, naamlik my man! En as ek
sommer nog halfpad met my verduideliking is en hy dink
al dis ‘n goeie idee, dan weet ek, daar is nie uitkomkans
nie.
Ek rammel alweer aan en kom nie by die punt uit nie. In
eersgenoemde geval het ek twee keuses in my kinderjare
gemaak wat op die oomblik toe dit opgekom het, vir my
kindergemoed so voor die hand liggend soos asemhaal
was. Ek deel slegs een van die keuses met julle. Rondom
die ander een dink ek, het die stof na baie jare nog steeds
nie gaan lê nie, en sal dit (hopelik nie net in my menslike
opinie nie) meer skade as goed doen as ek daaroor deel.
Ek kon twee blokke (omtrent 1km) van ons huis af
lekkergoed by die openbare swembad se kafeetjie gaan
koop. As dit toe was, moes ek huis toe gaan. Dit was nie
oop nie, maar daar was ‘n alternatief - ek het geweet
presies waar die groot kafee omtrent 5km verder dorp se
kant toe was. Dit sou beslis oop wees! Hierdie keuse
was op daardie oomblik bloot kinderlike inisiatief en het
omtrent net basiese ongehoorsaamheid as resultaat
gehad. Dit het egter vir altyd my kinderonskuld beëindig,
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want hierdie keuse het gelei tot die volgende een, om
saam met die vreemde man in sy motor te klim en hom te
gaan wys waar die swembad is, omdat hy nie my
aanwysings kon verstaan nie en dit my vinniger tuis sou
bring.
Inderdaad nie! Soveel dinge in my lewe sou dalk anders
gewees het as ek daardie dag nie die keuse gemaak het
om buite my ma se beskerming te beweeg en verder na
my favourite sweets te gaan soek nie. Maar die keuse is
gemaak en ek moes daarmee en met die resultate
daarvan saamleef.
Die tweede tipe keuse, wat ‘n bietjie meer stilstaan verg
en nadenke oor wat die uiteinde daarvan sou wees, kan
ons egter later van tyd, as dinge nie so voor die wind gaan
as wat ons gehoop het nie, laat wonder of dit die regte
besluit was. Dit laat nie noodwendig dieselfde wonde as
wat ander soms onskuldige of ‘maklike’ keuses kan laat
nie, maar ons wonder nietemin of die alternatief nie dalk
meer hanteerbaar sou wees nie.
Die hele impak van Changing Choices is met ‘n simpele
sepie vir my duidelik uitgespel. Byna eenvoudige keuse –
die heldin moes op ‘n stadium kies tussen twee ouens,
een vir wie sy lief is, en een wat liewer vir haar is as wat
sy voel. Maande later toe die een wat sy gekies het, haar
teleurstel, het haar onderbewuste in ‘n droom die
alternatiewe keuse aan haar voorgehou, en sy het letterlik
beleef wat die uiteinde daarvan MOONTLIK kon wees.
Dit is natuurlik die sleutelwoord. Ons kan net oor die
moontlikhede van die implikasies van die verandering in
keuse praat. Nooit sal ons vir seker kan weet of die ander
keuse werklik makliker, minder gekompliseerd en sonder
enige probleme sou wees nie. Die heldin het gevind dat
die verandering inderdaad nie net haarself en die twee
manne geraak het nie. Dit het ‘n rimpel effek. Ander
betrokkenes, vriende, familie en selfs omstandighede
word daardeur geraak. Uiteindelik het sy besef dat die
eerste keuse tog maar die beste een was en daarby
berus.
As ons God se wil opsoek in die uitvoer van ‘n keuse, wil
ek dink dat ons nooit werklik by ‘n punt sal kom waar ons
hoef te wonder of dit die regte besluit was of nie. Niks in
die lewe gebeur ooit sonder een of ander haakplek nie,
maar die haakplekke van keuses waarby die Here
betrokke is, is soveel kleiner en makliker om uit te sorteer
as dié waar ons ons eie koppe gevolg het. Keuses
waarby die Here betrokke is, is duidelik herkenbaar. Dit
vereer Hom, verg integriteit en eerlikheid, gehoorsaamheid
en erkenning aan jouself. Die vrug of resultate
daarvan is ook besonder aanvaarbaar, bou karakter en
wek ‘n gevoel van trots.
Maar ons kan nie daarvan wegkom dat ons soms ons ore
vir die vyand uitleen en keuses maak wat ons op die ou
end duur te staan kom nie. Die genade hiervan is dat ons
‘n liefdevolle en vergewensgesinde Vader het, wat maar
altyd help om die kastaiings uit die vuur uit te krap as ons
klaar ons vingers lelik verbrand het. So kan Hy vir ons
volkome genesing bring vir die wonde wat ons keuses
veroorsaak het, ons omstandighede in so ‘n mate herstel
dat ons kan terugkyk en selfs dankbaar kan wees oor die
leerskool en die ervaring deel van ons mondering maak
om uiteindelik vir Hom soveel meer werd te wees.
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CHRISTMAS
‘…all things are possible to him who believes!’ Mark 9:23
Boney M sings: A long time ago, in Bethlehem, so the
Holy Bible says, Mary’s boy child, Jesus Christ was born
on Christmas Day. Hark now, hear the angels sing, a
King was born today, and man will live forever more
because of Christmas Day.
From a contemporary song, the true meaning of
Christmas. Indeed a long time ago, more than two
thousand years, and still no one can take away one ounce
of truth in the message. A Saviour, Jesus Christ, was
born and man will indeed live forever more not because of
Christmas Day, but because God sent His son Jesus
Christ to become human like us, to bear all the suffering
that we do, so that we have someone to relate to.
Someone who bumped His toe and it bled, a Carpenter
who (I am sure) hit His fingers more than once with a
hammer, and it hurt! A Man who had a kind and loving
heart and saw the pain and injustices in the world and
new that He would one day die for this, pay the full price
for those who choose to accept His sacrifice and as
reward for this choice receive eternal life.
Indeed, as human as He was, He still was a King and we
should endeavour during Christmas to place Him on the
throne for all to see the only King who is able to save the
world from its misery, destruction, poverty, injustice and
every horrid sin that you and I can think of.
Yet, we take Christ out of Christmas in the simplest ways.
Are there still nativity scenes in shop windows? What
happened to Christ in Xmas? All of the festive season
and its joy is becoming a measure of convenience, self
indulgence, self gratification and materialism. Yes, we
spend a whole lot of money, but where have we sown the
seeds? Christmas carolers become an irritation and a
hindrance, should we not join in their song instead? I am
as guilty as can be. I will try to share the true meaning of
the celebration with those around me. Let us all try.
Let’s pay tribute to the KING:
K – He is kind; He knows every desire of your heart. No
kid has to ever write him a letter to tell Him want they want
for Christmas. He knows more than their material wants
and needs – He knows their heart’s desire! Being kind,
means that He is compassionate and has a warm and
generous nature. He is not harsh, unpleasant or likely to
have destructive effects. He is caring and shows courtesy
to all people. He is full of love and one of a kind!
I – He is immortal, indestructible and irreplaceable. He
was also innocent and unjustly accused of our iniquities
(great injustice, extreme and grossly immoral acts). He’s
immovable and identical, today, tomorrow and for all
eternity. He is
• ideal – perfect, completely suitable, a person
regarded as perfect
• immaculate – perfectly clean, spotless, without
fault or blemish
• immense – exceedingly great, huge
• imponderable – not able to be estimated
• incomparable – without an equal, unsurpassed
and these are just an iota of the words starting with an ‘i’
that can describe His irrefutable existence, let alone those
that describe what He is not; impatient, insincere and so
many other things that we deserve to get, but don’t,
because His love for us is immeasurable and His mercy is
infinite.
N – His love makes you noble (impressive in quality and
appearance, belonging or relating to an aristocratic class),
yet leaves no room for pride and gives you a reputation of
having an excellent moral character. There is no sin too
great for Him to pardon or number to measure the
vastness of His total forgiveness.
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G – He is giving. He lets His blessings rain on us, and
never waits or longs for a thank you. He grants us
privileges that we don’t deserve and will ourselves not
even give to those in need. He is glorious and yet He
cares about you and me. God’s grief did not stand in the
way of His sacrifice when He sent His Son, whose death
would always be our gift of salvation.
Let us try therefore during Christmas to be kind to one
another, especially to those who seem to least deserve it.
Show that we are one of a chosen kind of people living out
God’s love.
Let us see every person as being innocent before God,
because Jesus Christ sacrificed His life for the
transgressions of all mankind. If we show acceptance and
mercy to those who are least likely to deserve it, they may
just receive His payment for their verdict of innocence.
Let us be noble without pride. Treat those around you as
heirs to the throne of the only King who is worthy to be
worshipped. We are all princes and princesses; don’t just
sit on the throne, be a prince amongst the poor, a princess
to the sick and lonely.
Give. Of yourself - your time, your love, your willingness,
your creativity. Each of us has talents and characteristics
that are gifts to others without the need for money to be
exchanged. There is an enriching and unmerited freedom
in giving and sharing.
May you always have a blessed and joyful Christ festival.
May your loved ones envelope you with their love and
may the kindness of friends be your companion wherever
you may go. May God keep you and those you love in the
palm of His hand and give you peace. May the rush come
to an end and may you have time to gather your strength
and revive your spirit.
COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS, AGAIN!
In Part 1 I referred to a song we learnt as kids about
counting your blessings. This song encouraged us to
count our blessings every day to remind us how much we
have to thank God for in our lives. This is another verse
from the song:
As jy ooit gebuk gaan onder smart en pyn
As jou kruis te swaar word en jou krag te klein
Tel jou seëninge, tel hul een vir een
En jy sal verbaas wees oor wat God jou skenk
And yes, isn’t it mostly the cure for affliction! Counting
your blessings. I have learnt to see even the smallest
things as pure blessings. And if I start with these, the
snowball effect always comes into play. The blessings
just grow and grow up to a point where I always feel
ashamed because I even felt remotely sad, let down or
rejected.
I have had my share of disappointments and
circumstances within which others have admired my
courage, but still, there are so many people out there,
friends on my e-mail distribution list whom I admire and
respect for the way in which they handle the affliction in
their lives. Friends who: have stared cancer in the face
and have overcome, lost children to an early and untimely
death, have disabilities that have made them outcasts
from life and even family, suffered physical loss through
whatever circumstances, are dealing with all the trials of
being single parents, survived serious marital conflicts,
who have children with serious disabilities which require a
life time of care. They are all a blessing to me. Each of
these people are reminders in my life to be thankful for the
fact that my kids are healthy and headstrong. The fact
that I can fall into bed in the evening and despite a slight
backache don’t have to take a series of medication to just
get me through the night of physical pain that lies ahead.
To wake up in the morning and not have to adjust my
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hearing aid to hear the birds (even for me the irritating
Indian Minah) sing outside.
The mere fact that I am able to put my thoughts into words
and that there is the smallest possibility that just one
person may find value in it and be consoled or inspired, is
a huge blessing.
But we tend to kill blessings. With our thoughts, our
actions/reactions and by rejecting them. And now my
mind is starting to reel, actually just as if there’s a big fish
on the line! How am I going to land it? I’m no pro – so
let’s just trust the line doesn’t break!
• There is no such thing as a blessing in disguise!
Maybe you were unable to see the blessing
coming at the time, but God doesn’t disguise them
intentionally! Why should He? Blessings are
meant to be visible, shared and talked about.
However small they may be, they shouldn’t be
swept under a carpet to collect dust and rot away.
• No blessing is ever just matter of fact. They are
all real, perfectly intended, meant to be enjoyed
and undeserved.
• Blessings shouldn’t be ignored. If you ignore a
blessing by trying to argue coincidence, fate,
being lucky or just part of life, the memories of
them tend to fade and disappear and leave you
resentful, ungrateful, jealous/envious of others
and often very bitter!
• Blessings come in different packages and all are
equally precious. Don’t ignore the small ones
thinking they are meaningless and have no value.
The smallest gift can sometimes hold the biggest
reward!
• Don’t underestimate the value of sharing your
blessings and their effect with others. What
seems insignificant to you may be a source of
inspiration to someone else, making the
difference between trusting God for a miracle or
not.
• Sharing about blessings is not boasting or
bragging. When you share about blessings, you
shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that they are
undeserved, granted to you by God because He
loves you and intended to let people see His
goodness to His children. As long as you hold
this in your heart when sharing, it will never be
perceived as bragging, boasting or pride.
• Don’t waste too much time wondering what
people think about your blessings. When we do
this, we tend to lower their value because we
think they would make people jealous or that
people would think less of us. Share, and let it
be! You are sowing seeds of faith and won’t
necessarily see them grow.
• Don’t let people’s reactions about your blessing
deter you from sharing about it or treasuring the
memory! Most of us are unable to cherish the
good things in our lives and bathe in them,
because we don’t want to seem proud!
• Never ever think that you don’t deserve to be
blessed or say that others deserve it more. There
is always one very important reason why you
should be blessed and continue to receive many
blessings - blessings are God’s gifts to us for
accepting the sacrifice of His Son’s life. Each
appreciated blessing means that He didn’t die in
vain!
• Don’t let people around you discourage you to
believe that God has many blessings in store for
you. If you trust Him for good weather, inspite of
thunderstorms looming, the more you say it, the
less you will doubt that it can and will happen –
this is both in reality and as a metaphor. And
when it does, the blessing is no longer in disguise,
it is out there for everyone to experience and
enjoy.
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So, count your blessings again! And don’t forget to share
them with others.
CRYING
Our own Barbara Ray recorded a song that made an
extreme impression on my once very young and
vulnerable heart. As it goes in life, I also had my turn to
be hurt and wounded, and today I realise what an impact
this song really had on my life.
It started with these words: I’ll never let you see, the way
my broken heart is hurting me, I’ve got my pride and I
know how to hide all my sorrow and pain – I’ll do my
crying in the rain.
As many country songs tend to be, this one is very
sorrowful and if you take her personal strategy to heart the
result is a recipe for certain depression. To internalise
disappointment and hurt for whatever reason is
devastating, especially if you are an introvert by nature.
You clam up and the pain eats you from the inside,
because while hiding the tears, you also hide other
feelings which you may rightfully feel and which you
should express.
It is not wrong to cry. Not even for a man. The age-old
saying that cowboys don’t cry, is a lie. Somewhere,
someone thought that it was strange to see a man cry,
and decided the only way to deal with it, was to
discourage it totally. The harder a man’s heart, the
tougher his nature. I totally disagree. The harder a man’s
heart, the more prone he will be to stress, heart problems
and most importantly to denial of the feelings of loved
ones around him. Solomon said that he would rather
have a sad face but a joyful heart. He was wise enough
to know that when the heart is sad, the man cannot
function adequately. For if a man cannot cry, how can he
even think of understanding the sorrow of those around
him and find it in him to console them?
I don’t think that anyone can truly relate to the pain and
agony that Jesus suffered, not just on the cross, but
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during His whole life on earth, if he/she cannot cry.
Seeing and hearing the heart of His Father deformed by
the Pharisees and scribes of the time, knowing that there
would always be those who will not follow Him, whose
path would lead straight to damnation, He could only look
on.
Max Lucado personifies tears as he describes them as
Miniature Messengers in the book No Wonder They Call
Him Saviour. He calls them tiny drops of humanity, round,
wet balls of fluid that tumble from our eyes, creep down
our cheeks, and splash on the floor of our hearts. They
are on call 24 hours of the day. Finally he concludes: the
principle is simple; when words are most empty, tears are
most apt.
When we have no words to say how we feel, we still have
the ability to express our feelings. To laugh is easy, we
are never taught that it is inappropriate or shouldn’t be
done – society accepts it in all circumstances. We are
even advised that laughter should wash away our tears.
To cry is a different story altogether.
Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry
alone! I’m sure we all know that one. The reality of it is, if
you laugh to hide your sorrow, you may end up crying all
the time! Holding back on tears is very much like a
balloon filling with water. Released at the right time, it can
be a refreshing water bomb in the midst of playful cheer at
a party. However, if you try to fill it to capacity it bursts
when you least expect it to. As much as you try to keep it
unscathed, it will eventually break open and flood
something valuable – even if just a small amount – with
destructive water. And if you’re on the receiving end of an
unexpected water bomb at a very inappropriate time?
Let’s just say there are very different reactions to this!
The tears that we hold back can only be contained for so
long – something has to snap. If you’re lucky, the dam will
just overflow and bring welcome relief to the built-up
pressure. The problem is that we think we are
indestructible, that there is no way that we will give way.
We wait for stormy weather, to do our crying in the rain.
But, it doesn’t always rain soon enough.
Built-up sorrow can have the same devastating effect as
built-up anger when it is released. Because we have
decided that we will not cry and show our weakness, the
release comes in destructive words, actions and
behaviour, more often than not towards the people we
love most, because subconsciously we hope that they will
understand our erratic behaviour.
So, in reality, you are not doing yourself or your loved
ones a favour if you hold back on your tears.
Some day when my crying stops, I’m gonna wear a smile
and walk in the sun, I may be a fool, but till then I know
you’ll never see me complain.
This could be possible, but how certain can we be that the
sun will shine before the devastation of our repressed
tears is irreversible?
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DAILY PRAYER
This is something that has bothered me for as long as I
have been a Christian. I am not a routine person. I have
tried so many times to stick to some sort of schedule, with
very little success. I do get things done and achieve a lot,
but I'm just much more comfortable without a set
routine. This admission does not necessarily exempt me
from feeling guilty and even sometimes inferior when I see
the ease with which some people can very placidly fall into
a routine, day after day, without fail.
Daily prayers seem to be routine orientated. And I
struggle with this concept. I have no problem with the
idea of being on my knees before God, showing my
devotion to Him, reviewing my life and seeking His
wisdom in what I do. But, if a day is like a thousand years
to God, even an hour of my focussed prayer is like a
fleeting moment. So, we should really spend all our time
in prayer and devotion, and this is not possible if we see
prayer as a physical effort. Please, don't get me wrong! I
have no doubt that focussed, kneeling prayer is pleasing
to God, but He made us all different. So, while some of us
are comfortable with living in a routine with our daily
prayers, there may be others who are not and should not
feel inferior before God because they can't seem to get
into the habit. This feeling of inferiority will just keep you
from praying at times that you are not on your knees and
prayer is your only means of survival!
The habit, should be prayer, not routine! The Bible
clearly instructs us more than once, to 'Pray without
ceasing' to 'Pray fervently'. To me this means that prayer
is of the utmost importance and that virtually all our time
should be spent praying, and this changes the concept of
prayer. What is prayer? Even the disciples struggled with
this when they asked Jesus how they should pray. Prayer
is a conversation with God, who should be your best
Friend, your Comforter, your Protector, your Banner and
so much more. In these conversations we should show
our devotion, our humility, our dependence and our
submission to Him. We should come to Him in spirit,
down on our knees, realising that every breath we take is
a gift. Paul taught that we should be able to pray in the
spirit while physically being occupied with other
responsiblities. This sounds weird, but God indeed gave
us the Holy Spirit to enable us to do this. With exercise it
is absolutely possible!
To God, no prayer goes unnoticed! Whether it be
physically on your knees at a scheduled time in your
routine, or ongoing through the day wherever you are and
whatever you are busy with. God honours prayer,
because that is how we communicate with Him! In Isaiah
65:24, God assures us that before we call He will answer,
and while we are speaking He will hear. Is this not the
essence of prayer? Our thoughts calling out to God and
our lips forming sounds that are only meant for His ears!
Matthew teaches further on prayer in chapter 6, giving
guidelines on how we should pray, what the content
should be and what we should not conform to. He says to
pray in your [most] private room (Amplified v 6), which
could only be your heart and soul and mind, for any other
physical place cannot be most private. So anywhere you
are is good enough for prayer, provided your spirit is
humble before Him.
These guidelines are on HOW to pray, and not really
when? and where?. When? and where? should be all the
time and in any place, because you take your most private
room with you everywhere. Matthew confirms what God
said in Isaiah chapter 6 verse 8 when he concludes the
example of those we should not follow by saying; Do not
be like them, for your Father knows what you need before
you ask Him.
He knows you, because He made you. No thought of
yours is a secret to Him, and He loves you no matter
when or where you pray as long as it honours Him and
you do it constantly!
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DEPRESSION
I truly am so blessed. While struggling through the grips
of depression, I often tried to write down my feelings in an
attempt to come to a better understanding of what I was
going through. Even though I am certain that I am not
really quite myself yet, and cannot say for sure that I ever
will be, it is when I read some of these past attempts after
a time that I realise I must have been on a different planet
at the time. So, although I can relate to most of the
feelings, I find it hard to believe myself that I could have
been this confused and that reading my own words now,
can make very little sense.
This does not take away any of the awesome awareness
that, if it were not for the ability that God gave me to
verbalise my thoughts, I would not have been able to look
back at these times and know that He saved me. I am
most certainly on a road to recovery and it is my privilege
to share this experience with others who are
• struggling to understand why they are feeling the
way they do,
• aware of the fact that they may be showing signs
of depression
• wondering and trying to understand why a loved
one is acting so weird
• very much aware that it seems too much effort to
just lift your arms and drink your coffee
Yes, I’ve been there. In the darkest, loneliest grip of
depression where nothing makes sense. Where you find
your soul crying out whether there is any meaning to life
and whether fairness died with your favourite pet. Where
you ask yourself if there could be anyone other than you
who can see the devastation the world is coming to?
Right there where the muddled thoughts in your mind flare
up an indefinable anger towards anything that comes to
mind. At the same time you just want to break down and
never stop crying, yet the tears will not come. When you
start thinking with some hidden sense of reason trying to
figure out what you’re really angry at or sad about and you
realise that something will happen soon enough to justify
your state of mind.
Then it dawns on you, that you really have nothing to be
angry or sad about. This is when you reach the ‘but why’
stage. But why would I want to feel this way for no reason
at all?! But why does it always come back to me?! But
why should I always be the one expected to understand
everyone else? But why would God allow me to fall into
this mess?
Life, they say, is not about the journey, but about the
destination. So you really have to be creative on the
journey, make the best of the good parts and focus on the
finish line when the troubled times come. It is very much
like whitewater rafting. When you experience this for the
first time, the most important rules to remember are:
When you fall out of your croc (that’s an inflatable canoe,
not the eating kind!), relax, don’t try to swim, depend on
your life jacket to keep you afloat, turn your feet towards
the direction of stream so that you can see the dangers
ahead, relax, lean back and you will ride it out to safety.
Depression happens when you fall out and forget all the
rules. You find yourself fighting against your life jacket
and the force of the brown flowing water that threatens to
overcome you. The harder you fight, the more you are
drawn into the water, struggling to breathe. The moment,
however, when you relax, let your life jacket bring you to
the surface, turn your feet in the direction of the stream,
and lean back, you will find you can breathe again, view
your predicament in a different light and actually start
making plans how to get out of it.
Our croc represents the things that God provides for us to
make the journey worthwhile. It’s a bonus! You’re going
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to fall out in some rapid along the way. Don’t rely on the
possessions you have gathered in your croc for comfort,
to carry you through. Those that stay attached to ropes
and in dry bins are vitally important and can be retrieved;
the luxuries were just to get you by anyhow. God is your
life jacket; however He can only keep you afloat as long
as you rely on Him.
Yes indeed, everything always leads back to me and then
to God. Once you realise that it starts with you, it stands
to reason that you blame God. After all He created you.
He should know better than anyone what you can or
cannot handle. So, ‘Hey, God, did you check the manual
when you gave me my life?’. You start convincing
yourself that He definitely made a mistake and you’re
paying for it. Wow, blaming God makes it much easier to
survive in the mud. ‘I’ll show Him, I can stand up amidst
all this!’ But, somehow you have been drained of all
energy. You can’t even cry! Then you realise your
audacity. And you think, ‘maybe I should apologise.’ This
is coming close to where He wants you. Once you
apologise and ask for His forgiveness, you hear Him say,
‘That’s OK! I know exactly what you can handle, but I
need you to trust Me and believe that I know best. Stop
fighting the situation, lean into the wind and just take one
step at a time…
But is it possible to feel good about life. No-one seems to
care. Everyone is just so self-centred. All of us are so
caught up in trying to fight for a place in this world that we
lose track of why we really are here.
For those of you who haven’t been there and cannot
understand how anyone can allow him-/herself to get to
this state of mind, try to get some insight! And for those of
you who can relate – be strong, have faith, there is a way
out, just don’t give up!
Love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your whole
mind, your whole body and all your strength and your
neighbour as you love yourself. Cut yourself some slack,
focus on living by this requirement alone, forgive yourself
and admit that you’re not perfect. Half the battle is won if
you are content with not being who you can be under
normal circumstances. Things will get better, even if they
seem to be getting worse at times! Make sure your Life
Jacket is fastened securely, relax, turn your feet in the
direction of the stream, lean back and try to enjoy the ride!
(If you suffer from depression or just feel you can relate,
amongst the dedications in Part 3, there is a special poem
for you!)
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DETOX
‘Laat wat jy doen aan die Here oor, dan sal jou voornemens geluk.’
Spreuke 16:3
Detox is deesdae ‘n fun woord, word dikwels gebruik, is
‘in’ en volgens baie ‘n vereiste. Vitamines en al die
gesonde dinge wat ons ma’s en pa’s en ouma’s en oupa’s
gebruik het, werk nie meer alleen nie. ‘n Mens het nou
allerhande dinge en maniere wat jou sou help om jou
liggaam te detoksifiseer sodat dit meer effektief kan
funksioneer.
Alles is daarop gemik dat ons meer kan doen, beter kan
presteer, langer kan uithou en vinniger bo kan uitkom.
Hierdie detox kan met massering, baddens, roompies,
pille, apparate en die regte dieet gedoen word. Maar wat
van jou wese – die masjiene wat jou aan die gang hou –
jou hart en jou siel?
Ons is nou maar eenmaal gees, siel en liggaam. Dis hoe
ons gemaak is – lyf, hart en verstand. Die kure vir die lyf
kom nie kort nie, die budget wel soms. Oplossings vir die
verstand is ook besig om oral kop uit te steek. Dit word al
hoe moeiliker om te weet wanneer iets vir jou goed is en
wanneer jy oningelig eintlik vir jouself ‘n dieper gat grawe
as die een waarin jy jou reeds bevind.
Sien, al die nuwe kure, plesiere en idees is gewoonlik baie
lekker en aanloklik, maar is natuurlik nie altyd goed vir jou
verstand nie, en kan jou hart beslis baie ver van die Here
af ‘n draai laat maak! Jou verstand begin vir jou stories
vertel dat jy eintlik nie sonder die goete kan klaarkom nie
en jou hart begin wonder of jy God regtig nodig het as al
die goed dan so wonderlik werk!
Ons het dus nodig om gereeld ons verstand en ons harte
te detox. Daar is net Een wat dit kan doen, en Hy is:
Vader
Daar is geen kuur, apparaat, foefie, program vir optimale
brein toepassing, massering of pilletjie wat die liefde van
die Vader kan vervang nie. Geeneen van die dinge kan
jou ooit oortuig dat die Here jou liefhet net soos jy is nie.
Net Hy kan! Daar is nie ‘n spa ervaring wat jou in Psalm
23 kan ontmoet nie. Dit is miskien vir daardie uur of twee
‘n soortgelyke ervaring of wat jy as Ps 23 beleef, maar
aan die einde van die sessie moet jy maar weer die ratrace,
kosmaak, die kinders en jou nie-altyd-so-liefdevolle
eggenoot face. Die pilletjies en ander kure kos ook geld,
en raak meestal klaar voordat die maand om is.
Die Vader is altyd daar, altyd sonder afspraak beskikbaar.
Hy verstaan jou en jou behoeftes beter as wat enige
iemand in hulle leeftyd kan probeer doen. Sy beloftes
staan vas, maak nie saak hoe moeg jy is nie en hoe ver jy
van Hom af weggedwaal het nie. Hy gee jou alles wat jy
nodig het, want Hy bring jou by die beste weiding en by
water waar jy kan rus, Hy gee jou nuwe krag, Hy sorg dat
jy nie bang word nie en beskerm en lei jou. Hy ‘treat’ jou
voor jou vyande, want jy is Sy eregas, en sorg dat jou glas
altyd oorloop. Jy sal Sy goedheid en liefde altyd beleef tot
in ewigheid. So sê Ps 23!
Seun
Jesus het ook moeg geword. Dan het Hy in ‘n bootjie
geklim en eenkant toe gevaar of Homself afgesonder om
net weer te regroup. Daar bestaan geen twyfel dat dinge
vir Hom ook te veel geword het nie. Maar met die hulp
van die Vader kon Hy ook die moeilike tye hanteer. Dit
was die verskriklikste deel van Sy lewensoffer wat Hy aan
ons gebring het – toe die Vader Hom verlaat het en Hy –
as mens, net soos ons – alleen Sy oordeel moes face. Dit
was die enigste tyd wat Hy gevoel het Hy kan nie meer
nie – die tyd sonder Sy Vader.
Maar Hy het dit gedoen, vir ons! Vir al die dae wat ek en
jy voel ons kan nie meer nie, dat dinge vir ons te veel
geword het. Hy het die enigste detox program ontwerp
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wat werk, Hy het Sy lewe daarvoor gegee, en dis boonop
gratis! Hy het gekom sodat ons lewe (‘n detoksifisering)
kan hê, en dit in oorvloed. Daar is genoeg tot die einde
van elke maand, jaar en leeftyd!
Heilige Gees
Jesus het geweet ons sal nooit ‘n geskenk van Hom
sommer aanvaar en aanhou koester nie. Ek dink Hy het,
toe Hy mens was, ons so goed leer ken! Hy het geweet
ons sal kan sien dat Hy ons liefhet as Hy Sy lewe vir ons
opoffer. Maar Hy het geweet dat as Hy nie vir ons ‘n
reminder stuur nie, sal ons baie gou vergeet wat Hy vir
ons gedoen het en in allerhande rigtings wegdwaal. Toe
vra Hy vir die Here om vir ons ‘n Trooster, ‘n Beskermer,
‘n altyd teenwoordige Vriend, ‘n Wysheer en Raadgewer –
‘n Reminder with tone – te stuur, sodat ons nooit hoef te
vergeet dat die detox program vooruitbetaal is. ‘n Detox
Konsultant wat die beste program ken, Wie se kure geen
newe-effekte het nie, aansienlik meer smaakvol as baie
ander is en Wie se voorraad nooit opraak nie, maar
inteendeel meer en meer word hoe meer ons daarvan
gebruik maak.
Amplified – increase, make louder, add detail, increase
signal. Die Amplified Bible sê: And I (Jesus) will ask the
Father, and He will give you another Comforter
(Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener,
and Standby), that He may remain with you forever!
Jy kan hierdie detox program net benut as jy Jesus ken en
die Heilige Gees gevra het om Hom vir altyd by jou te
verteenwoordig. Geniet die spa behandelinge en al die
ander planne wat jy kan bekostig. Maar moenie die
enigste detox program wat blywend is, misloop nie en ook
nie in die vergetelheid dompel nie.
DISASTER
There is no-one anywhere in the world that can claim that
disaster has never or won’t ever strike at some point in
their lives. It can happen to anyone, anywhere.
I believe with all that I am that God can protect us from
any disaster if we:
ask Him to,
believe that He is able to do it,
trust Him that He will do anything that is possible to
prevent it from happening to us
and most of all use the sound mind that He has given
us to make choices.
I’ve pointed out in ‘Being Tested’ that our children cannot
blame us for disastrous results to choices made, if our
advice was not asked for or taken. If we expect God to
protect us as a father would his children, the same
applies. He can only prevent disaster from affecting us if
we ask Him to. This by repetition. If you stop breathing,
you will die. If you stop asking God for His protection and
foresight, disaster will strike at some point, and it will
affect you. Yes, He knows what we need before we even
ask; but we need to know what His intentions for us are.
For example: I was brought up with the warning that it
really isn’t advisable or safe for a woman to galavant
alone after dark. However, sometimes it is necessary and
God knows this. Now it is up to me to ask His advice – is
it really necessary, can it be done any other time? If there
really is no way out – the conversation continues. Which
would be the safest route to follow, what precautions
should be taken and most importantly, ‘Lord, will you go
with me, send your angels to protect me!’
If disaster should strike after this, I will be prepared,
protected and/or able to survive the consequences. When
you hear something in the middle of the night, and without
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thinking rush out of the safety of your room or home to
see what it is, you can hardly blame God if disaster
strikes. You never really remembered to ask Him to be
with you! You took your life and safety into your own
hands, you alone are to blame.
God is righteous and just. He does have ways to warn us
of any onset of disaster, even of natural causes. But,
most often we don’t listen or ignore the warning signs.
And when disaster strikes, most of the time we ask ‘Why
me Lord? Where were You when I needed You? How
can You allow something like this to happen?’
We should be in constant conversation with God. He is
our best and closest friend, protector, guide and
counselor; and He is available at all times. If we keep in
contact with Him, we fill ourselves with His love which
feeds a natural spring of peace, wisdom and creative
reasoning. This spring enables us to see that even in the
midst of the worst disaster we can imagine God is always
there, He is always in charge and certainly knows best.
The water from this spring is always sweet and quenches
any thirst.
But, if we neglect feeding this spring, by just assuming
that with very little effort on our part, God is always there
for us, we react to disaster in very negative ways. One of
the best explanations for a negative reaction to disaster
that I have heard of was: when the going gets tough
and/or the pressure is on, does the water from your spring
stay sweet or does it become bitter and undrinkable?
‘When the going gets tough, the tough get going,’ they
say. The way we react to disaster shows our true
character. If you have a close relationship with God, in
the midst of disaster you realise that without Him you
would not have survived – despite the severity of the
effects the disaster may have on you personally. If your
relationship with Him is not sound, you become angry,
bitter, unforgiving and before you know it you blame Him
for everything that has gone wrong.
Please, this doesn’t mean that the consequences of any
disaster shouldn’t affect you! We are human! God gave
us tears so that we can cry. He gave us feelings and we
are supposed to recognise them. You’re allowed to be
angry, feel disappointed and helpless. But, our feelings
shouldn’t become our weapon for overcoming disaster
and the results of disaster. They should be a positive
release.
The water from Elijah’s spring near Jericho, to this day
remains sweet - without any human interference. I was
privileged to drink from it. Yet, there was a time when it
caused barrenness, miscarriages and death. God
touched it when Elijah added salt to it and said: ‘Thus
says the Lord; I [not the salt] have healed these waters;
there shall not be any more death, miscarriage or
barrenness because of it.’
God alone can make the water in our spring sweet. If He
is not present, the water is bad and of no use to anyone.
Sometimes He needs a little salt (controlled disaster) to
make it sweet again and once He has healed it, 2 Kings
2:20 confirms ‘So the waters were healed to this day!’
If you have allowed God to heal the water of the spring
within you and you don’t rebel against the occasional salt
added to it at times, nothing can deter your positive
reaction to disaster and your ability to overcome its
consequences.
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DRAKE EN GEDROGTE – 22 Augustus
Dis my ma se verjaardag - in absentia! Ek het altyd
gewonder of ek haar gaan mis as sy nie meer daar is nie,
want een van die drake wat my lewe moeilik gemaak het,
was wat sommige mense die generation gap noem (ek
was 'n LAATlammetjie). Ander noem dit 'n clash of
personalities, sommige selfs disrespek.
Ek en my ma het by mekaar verby geleef. Teen die tyd
dat sy my vriendin moes wees, was sy moeg, verbitterd
en eensaam. Moeg – vyf kinders is nie ‘n grap nie, eintlik
ses as jy my pa ook tel. Verbitterd – want na 34 jaar en
vyf relatief gebalanseerde kinders, was sy nie meer goed
genoeg nie. Eensaam – vriende en selfs liefdevolle
kinders kan nie die plek van ‘n afwesige lewensmaat
inneem, een wat jy weet saans, daar waar jul saam ‘n
lewe en vriendskappe gebou het, snoesig agter iemand
anders se rug inkruip nie.
Hierdie draak (dis nou die situasie, nie my ma nie!) het my
baie lank geteister. Dis moeilik om te seën en te vergewe
as jy jou elke dag vasstaar in ‘n ou mens se gemis. Hoe
sy daagliks meer en meer afgetakel raak. Min gesprekke
kan plaasvind sonder dat die verlede opgediep word. Ten
spyte van die feit dat ek dink dat dit onregverdig is dat sy
die prys moet betaal vir my pa se geluk, bly dit my pa, en
bitter moeilik om hom en sy swakheid te verdedig. En dan
moet ek nog werk daaraan om mooi herinneringe van my
ma te hê!
Nee wag, dit ontaard in ‘n pity party! My bedoeling is om
net te wys dat ons almal drake en gedrogte in ons lewe
het wat ons gedurig sonder ophou teister.
As hierdie drake dreig om my te oorweldig, bevind ek
myself op dieselfde plek as Jesaja as hy vra: Is dit nie U
wat die see, die groot diep waters laat opdroog het nie, U
wat op die seebodem 'n pad gemaak het sodat dié wat
verlos is, kon deurgaan nie? (Jes. 51:10). Want terwyl
Jesaja vir homself bevestig dat dit binne die Here se
vermoë is om die draak te verslaan - is daar nie tog 'n
tikkie wanhoop in sy uitroep nie? Amper soos 'n beleefde
'Just remind me again, Lord, are you in control, can you
do this?' Ons weet Hy kan die drake in ons lewens
verslaan, maar as jy, soos Jakob met die engel, in hierdie
stoeigeveg met die draak betrokke is, soek jy daardie
bemoediging, daardie versekering wat net van die Here
kan kom. Maar Hy kan nie met ons praat nie, of vir jou 'n
gerusstellende pat op die skouer gee en sê – ‘Moenie
worry nie, watch net!’
Maar wat ookal jy die draak wil label – ongehoorsame
kinders, ‘n liefdelose huwelik, armoede, onreg - die dief
het gesteel! Die Here kan jou oë oopmaak vir hierdie
diefstal in jou lewe, sodat jy eendag kan terugkyk en weet
dat hierdie dinge nodig was om van jou ‘n beter mens te
maak en meer as enigiets, dat jy oorwinning oor hierdie
drake en gedrogte kan hê in Jesus Christus!
Jy moet altyd jou bril ophê of jou gehoorapparaatjie op
Hom ingestel hou. Oorwinning lê in die onverwagse
bemoediging van vriende, in e-pos boodskappe wat oor
en oor geforward word en net op die regte tyd in jou
hande land. Dit lê in die onskuldige opmerking van
kinders wat die son sien skyn nadat die dag koud en
bewolk begin het en hulle daarin sien dat God met ons
saamstem. Dit lê in deursettingsvermoë - onthou julle
Danie Botha se 'as jy val moet jy gou weer opstaan...'?
En so moet ons onsself die hele tyd motiveer om nooit
moed te verloor nie, altyd te bly hoop op dit wat God in Sy
skatkis vir ons bewaar.
Niemand het gesê dis eenvoudig of maklik nie - jy moet
net besluit of jy gaan opstaan as jy val en weer probeer en
of jy in die modder gaan bly lê! Soms, op 'n koue dag, is
die modder lekker warm gebak in die son, maar glo my dit
bly nie so nie, en jy moet maar bly uitkyk vir 'n vastrap
plekkie wat ons net moet glo die Here op die regte tyd sal
voorsien en daarmee saam sommer 'n warm stortreën om
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al die modder af te was! En al die tyd het jy gedink die
reën is die laaste ding wat jy in die modder nodig het!
Ds Hentie Kruger het ‘n wonderlike internet bediening wat
jy gerus kan besoek by http://www.midweek.co.za. Sy
aflewering: Drake en gedrogte is in Christus oorwin
Jesaja 51:9, 10 & Romeine 5:3, 4 – was my inspirasie vir
hierdie gedeelte. Alle aflewerings word op die webwerf
gelys, gaan lees dit gerus daar. Sy forum hou goed tred
met die dinge wat ons in die lewe vandag beleef. Ek voel
soms dat dit voorkom of die leraars al die antwoorde het,
maar geen idee het wat in die REAL WORLD aangaan
nie. Maar dan, as ons onsself en ander bemoedig met die
dinge van die Woord wat ons weet die waarheid is, klink
ons nie maar ook soos 'n regte know it all nie?
**********
A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man
was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to
him that he was dead. He remembered dying, and that
the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He
wondered where the road was leading them. After a
while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one
side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a
long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the
sunlight. When he was standing before it he saw a
magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother-ofpearl,
and the street that led to the gate looked like pure
gold. He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he
got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side. When he
was close enough, he called out, "Excuse me, where are
we?"
"This is Heaven, sir," the man answered.
"Wow! Would you happen to have some water?" the man
asked.
“Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water
brought right up."
The man gestured, and the gate began to open.
"Can my friend," gesturing toward his dog, "come in,
too?" the traveller asked.
"I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets."
The man thought a moment and then turned back toward
the road and continued the way he had been going with
his dog. After another long walk, and at the top of another
long hill, he came to a dirt road leading through a farm
gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was
no fence. As he approached the gate, he saw a man
inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book.
"Excuse me!" he called to the man. "Do you have any
water?"
"Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there, come on in."
"How about my friend here?" the traveller gestured to the
dog.
"There should be a bowl by the pump."
They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was
an old-fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The
traveller filled the water bowl and took a long drink
himself, and then he gave some to the dog. When they
were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man
who was standing by the tree.
"What do you call this place?" the traveller asked.
"This is Heaven," he answered.
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"Well, that's confusing," the traveller said. "The man down
the road said that was Heaven, too."
"Oh, you mean the place with the gold streets and pearly
gates?” “Nope. That's hell."
"Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like
that?"
"No, we're just happy that they screen out the folks who
would leave their best friends behind."
Author Unknown
**********
EK STAAK!
Ons sien dikwels dinge voor ons oë afspeel waaroor ons
‘n definitiewe opinie kan formuleer, maar tog, as ons die
menslike faktor ondersoek, wonder ons wat ons in
dieselfde omstandighede sou gedoen het.
Kom ons vat iets wat ‘n meer en meer algemene
verskynsel word. Padwoede. Wie van ons het dit nog nie
beleef nie? ‘n Taxi wat sonder waarskuwing voor jou
insny, ‘n motoris wat ‘n lang ry in spitsverkeer ignoreer en
voor gaan indruk! Ons kan baie maklik te velde trek teen
mense wat tot die allerverskriklikste optrede oorgaan en
wetteloos reg in eie hande neem, maar ons kan nie
heeltemal onsself verontskuldig nie, want ons word ook
kwaad.
Jesus het ook kwaad geword. In heilige woede het Hy
tafels in die tempel omgegooi, omdat die mense dit wat
heilig was ontheilig het. Ons is dus heeltemal geregtig
daarop om op ‘n punt te kom waar ons kan sê: ‘Dis nou
genoeg!’, maar wat jy met jou woede en radeloosheid
doen is waar die probleem inkom.
Jy mag nie met jou woede of misnoeë sondig of ‘n ander
tot sonde lei nie. Moenie vergeet dat Christus ons ook
geleer het om die minste te wees nie. Om te bid sonder
ophou. Om vrede na te jaag. Om ons voorbeeld teenoor
ander, veral die jonger geslag, altyd positief te probeer
hou.
Dit bring my by die titel en ‘n ander tendens wat ook baie
algemeen word, om te staak, want ons het mos regte. Ek
het genoeg gehad, dinge om my raak net vir my te veel,
niemand waardeer wat ek doen nie, dit voel asof ek die
enigste een is wat my kant bring - as ek nie daar is nie,
gaan alles in duie stort!
Is ons geregtig daarop om ‘n punt te bereik waar ons kan
sê: ‘Ons staak!’, vir watter rede ookal?
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‘n Karige salaris – moet ons nie dankbaar bly dat daar ‘n
salaris is nie?
Slegte werksomstandighede – wat van die ou wat die
varkhokke skoonmaak en ander wat in nog slegter
omstandighede werk?
Daar is voor e-pos forwarding al ‘n skryfstuk wat die
rondte gedoen het met die titel ‘What if God should go on
strike?’ Die inhoud daarvan hoef nie gedeel te word nie,
die blote vraag moet ons aan die dink sit! Wat word van
ons as die Here eendag sou besluit Hy staak!
Vergeet maar van jou gebed vir gesondheid en veiligheid
wat verhoor moet word. Vergeet van onverdiende gunste
en gawes wat jy hoop om te ontvang. Vergeet om te dink
dat jou gesprek met die buurman oor sy hond wat snags
aanhoudend blaf vreedsaam sal verloop, onthou – God
staak en kan dus nie die vrede bewaar nie!
Wat doen ons kinders as hulle nie hul sin kry nie? Hulle
gooi ‘n tantrum! Is dit soveel anders as om te toi-toi of my
gereedskap neer te gooi en te weier om verder te werk?
Dis ons verantwoordelikheid om ons kinders op te voed,
vir hulle ‘n voorbeeld te wees. So as ons staak om ons
stem hoorbaar te maak, kan ons nie heeltemal beswaar
aanteken as een van ons spruite môre of oormôre besluit
om nie te eet nie, want brokkoli is sleg of weier om hul
kamer skoon te maak, want die betaling is nie voldoende
nie!
Waar gaan dit eindig? Het ons alle moontlike rasionele
rigtings en denkwyses al probeer? Hoe lank het ons al
ernstig oor die saak gebid? Hoeveel mense het ons
probeer bymekaar maak om saam met ons oor die
benarde situasie te bid en te vertrou dat die Een Persoon
wat genadiglik nooit sal staak nie, die saak vir ons kom
beredder? Ons vertrou op Hom, maar gee ons Hom ooit
die geleentheid om te wys wat Hy kan doen? Hy baklei
teen ‘n muur uit, maar ter wille van ons staak Hy nie!
Die menslike standpunt is waarskynlik dat ons teen ‘n
muur uitbid, dat niks ooit die huidige regering of owerheid
of bestuurspan se ingesteldheid kan verander nie. Maar
ons sal nie weet en vrede kan hê as ons nie weet dat ons
probeer het nie. Dat ons poging om ‘n vreedsame
oplossing te vind soos ‘n paal bo die stormwater van ons
ontevredenheid uitstaan nie.
Christus het kwaad geword en die tafels omgegooi. Maar
die omvang van Sy pogings om ‘n vreedsame en
blywende oplossing te bewerkstelling laat hierdie een
menslike optrede van Hom soos mis voor die son
verdwyn.
Maar ek is midde-in ‘n dilemma! As ek nog nie die karige
salaris en slegte omstandighede ervaar het nie, wie is ek
om enigsins ‘n opinie te huldig? Ek het nie baie van
geskiedenis op skool gehou nie – ek kan nie die datums
onthou nie! Maar een ding weet ek, ek het geleer dat ‘n
kommunistiese bestel - waarin daar geen plek vir God is
nie - wanorde, disrespek teenoor gesag en uiteindelik
anargie voorhou. Wat is die resultaat as elkeen 'n tantrum
gooi omdat hy nie sy sin kry nie - wanorde, disrespek
teenoor gesag en anargie.
Ontevredenheid kweek onvergewensgesindheid, aggressie,
jaloesie, haat en soveel ander vernietigende emosies.
En eintlik moet elkeen van ons maar net weer om ons kyk
en dankbaar wees vir al die honderde voorregte wat ons
het. Lewe, gesondheid, die vermoë om ander te dien,
soos Christus ons dien. Al is die salaris nie wat dit moet
wees nie, al verg die omstandighede dat ek saans
emosioneel gedreineer is.
Die Here het nog nooit met my moed opgegee nie, is
enige rede ooit vir my voldoende?
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EK WENS EK WAS!
Ons het dit almal al gesê, al was dit toe jy as kind
gedroom het om ‘n brandweerman, ‘n dokter, verpleegster
of met ‘n prins getroud te wees. Almal van ons het op een
of ander stadium van ons lewens gewens, soms selfs
gebid dat dinge anders was!
Terwyl dit sekerlik ‘n negatiewe ingesteldheid kan hê – ek
wens ek het sulke mooi hare, lyf of kar – is en bly dit ook
die grondslag van drome en dreams are reality in the
making as long as you don’t lose touch with reality! Die
feit dat jy altyddeur gedryf word om jou beste te doen, is
maar ‘n beheerde ‘Ek wens ek was!’ Wie jy op die
oomblik is, is vir jou aanvaarbaar, maar met effort en
deursettingsvermoë, kan jy beter wees!
En soms as ek myself toelaat dan wens ek, ek was …
Ryk genoeg! Nie so ryk dat ek te veel het en vergeet
dat geld nie alles is nie of dat ek begin dink geld kan
alles regmaak wat verkeerd is nie. Net ryk genoeg
sodat ek altyd in al die mense om my se behoeftes
kan voorsien. Dat ek vir my enkelouer vriendin met
haar ruim hart vir ander ‘n huis kan koop, sodat sy nie
hare verloor nie. Dat ek, as ‘n ander se behoefte
opreg en genoodsaak is, sonder om twee keer te dink
my bankbalans kan debiteer omdat dit vir my moontlik
is – geen ander rede nie.
Slim genoeg! Om te weet watter dele van die onsin
wat soms aan ons voorgelê word werklik so is, en
watter dele daarvan blote versinsels van die drome en
begeertes van die skrywers of ‘ontdekkers’ is.
Wys genoeg! Om altyd te weet wat om te doen en te
sê, nie sodat ek beter as ander kan lyk nie, bloot net
omdat dit sal beteken dat ek ander se gevoelens in ag
neem en hul belange op die hart dra. Om te weet of
dit wat in my hart is, ook in God se hart is!
Meer heilig, maar sonder om vroom te wees!
Minder krities op myself! En as gevolg hiervan,
minder krities op die mense om my wat ek liefhet.
‘n Persoon in ‘n magsposisie, nie sodat ek dit kan
misbruik nie, maar sodat ek al die onreg, wandade,
misdade en morele agteruitgang kan regstel of
uitskakel, omdat dit nie is wat God wil hê nie.
Net deel van God se volk en nie verbind aan ‘n
spesifieke uiterlike beeld wat my etiketteer en aan
ander ‘n vooroordeel gee oor wie ek werklik is en
waaraan ek glo nie.
Die lewe lyk soms asof dit soveel makliker sou kon wees
as ons net ‘n paar van ons ‘Ek wens ek was’ versugtinge
kon laat realiseer, maar sou dit werklik? ‘Ek wens ek was’
is om te begeer – al behoort dit wat jy wil hê of wees nie
noodwendig aan ‘n ander nie. Ons moet tevrede wees
met wie ons is en wat die Here aan ons toevertrou het,
omdat dit op enige bepaalde tyd presies is wat Hy weet
ons kan hanteer.
Maar daar bly altyd plek vir drome en as jy by hierdie punt
uitkom, laat die basis van jou drome gemeet word aan die
volgende woorde van ‘n lied van Pam Thum (Album: Pam
Thum)
IF I WERE
If I were a wall, I’d fall down around you
And build you a home where you
Could be safe and warm
I’d keep out the cold, yes, I’d be your shelter
If I were a wall, if I were
If I were a storm, I’d gently pass over
And send down my rain, sweet rain
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To cover your tears
I’d fade till the sun, could shine down upon you
If I were a storm, if I were
If I were a kiss, I’d seal every promise
And follow the softest words
To fall from your lips
And I would live on forever, in only a moment
If I were a kiss, if I were
Abba Vader,
If I were a prayer, I’d rise without ceasing
Lifting you higher with
Each breath that I’d take
I’d cover your soul, with only a whisper
If I were a prayer, if I were
Ek wens ek was meer getrou in my toewyding aan U,
meer ingestel op die klank van U stem. Ek wens ek was
meer sensitief as dit van my verwag word. Meer
onbaatsugtig, vrygewig, vergewensgesind en liefdevol.
Ek wens ek was nie altyd gepla oor wat mense dink nie,
maar net gefokus op U opinie.
Ek wens ek was altyd op U skoot omdat ek daar wil wees
en nie omdat U my telkemale weer moet optel nie.
Ek wens ek was tevrede met myself, wat ek het en wie ek
is, soos wat U wens vir my is!
Amen
Mag elkeen van ons ‘Ek wens ek was’ oomblikke ‘n gebed
tot God word en Hy in Sy groot genade vir ons elkeen op
‘n unieke manier daarin voorsien.
EK WONDER SOMS
Ek wonder soms - of eintlik meeste van die tyd - oor hoe
anders dinge sou wees as ons die Here erkenning gee
soos dit hoort.
Daar is soveel dinge in die lewe om ons wat verander
het. Waar Godsdiensonderrig op skool 'n uitgemaakte
saak was, word dit nou glad nie toegepas nie, of met
handskoene aan gehanteer. Dit was nie eienaardig om
bykans enige geleentheid met Skriflesing en gebed te
open nie. Vandag word dit bloot geopen met 'Welkom
dames en here' en so as 'n afterthought word die hoofde
in stil gebed gebuig, om eer te gee aan watter god ookal
jou keuse is. Die gebruik om die eregas met 'n 'lofsanger'
te begroet word ook meer en meer algemeen, maar kan
iemand vir my tolk asseblief? Wie weet wat raak hy kwyt!
Asseblief, dis nie die begin van 'n propagandaskrif nie, ek
wonder nog, gee kans!
Hoeveel ouers stuur hul kinders die daaglikse lewe in,
toegevou in gebed, in God se genade sodat hulle
beskerm sal word? Hoeveel maatskappy-direkteure vra
die Here se leiding in die daaglikse besluite wat geneem
word, om sodoende die sukses van hul besigheid te
verseker?
Ons kan baie maklik - ek is self soms skuldig, al is dit net
vir 'n breukdeel van 'n sekonde - wonder waarom die Here
misdaad, onskuldige jongmense se vroeë dood, siekte en
allerhande ander vernietigende dinge toelaat. Maar hoe
dikwels dink ons daaraan dat baie van hierdie dinge dalk
verhoed kon gewees het as ons ingesteldheid was om
vooraf Sy beskerming te vra. Daarmee wil ek nie sê dat
slegte dinge gaan ophou om met goeie mense te gebeur
as hulle bid nie. Nee, maar ek is 100% oortuig daarvan
dat ons persepsie oor die slegte dinge heeltemal sal
verander as ons weet dat God se hand te midde daarvan
oor ons was. Ek dink aan die gewapende roof wat my
man-hulle beleef het. Omdat ek weet dat God se hand
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van bewaring oor hulle was (want Hy is 'n vennoot in die
besigheid), weet ek dat dit nie die onreg wegneem van die
terreurdaad nie, maar dat daar oorwinning is in die feit dat
almal ongedeerd daarvan afgekom het. Hoeveel keer
was ons reaksie na 'n terreuraanval of tragedie nie - 'Dit
kon baie erger gewees het'. Baie dinge in vandag se lewe
kon baie erger gewees het as ons nie die vermoë gehad
het om God se hulp te vra nie.
Maar nou wonder ek … Hoeveel van die korrupsie,
misdaad, geldvermorsing, ens. ens. sal ons in ons land
beleef het, as ons nog aan God die eer gegee het, soos
ons sonder skaamte in die verlede gedoen het
nie? Wanneer die Springbokke vir die soveelste keer ‘n
skaamtelose loesing kry, wonder ek wat die uitslag sou
gewees het as die hele span hul afhanklikheid van God
verklaar het. Was dit nie die mooiste deel van die
wedstryd toe ons wêreld-kampioene in 1995 saam met
Francois Pienaar soos een man op hul knieë gesak het en
aan God die eer gebring het nie? En dit in 'n nuwe
demokrasie - Madiba het die no 7-trui gedra as ek reg
onthou. En Bakkies Botha wat in 2007 weer die span in
gebed gelei het – die resultaat, sukses! Dit het 'n
ongekende volheid in my gemoed gebring en ek glo ook
vir baie ander. Wat van die Proteas, Bafana Bafana?
Enkelinge presteer, soos Ryk Neethling, Roland
Schoeman en soveel ander en verklaar hul afhanklikheid
van God. Sou ons land nie ook presteer as die mense hul
afhanklikheid van God verklaar nie? Dit is waar, daar is
baie suksesverhale van mense wat God openlik
misken, maar daar is net soveel van hierdie verhale wat in
totale mislukking opeindig, of 'n leegheid oplewer wat net
deur die Here gevul kan word.
Ek wonder waarom dit vir ons 'n skande of ‘n verleentheid
moet wees om die Skepper van die heelal te ken in dit wat
ons doen? Dawid het uitgeroep: Die ganse aarde
behoort aan die Here, en die volheid daarvan'. Hy het ons
aangestel om daaroor te heers. As ons dit sonder Sy hulp
wil doen, kan ons nie die mislukking van ons pogings aan
Sy voete lê nie. As ons nie daarin slaag om die volheid
van die skepping te ervaar nie, moet ons miskien die
Skepper daarvan vra om dit vir ons te wys.
En dan wonder ek, wat as ek verkeerd is, en al die ander
mense reg, wat sê ek ruk geloof uit verband uit en maak 'n
te groot issue van my afhanklikheid van God. Wel, as ek
verkeerd is, is dit my tyd wat ek mors, my energie en my
hoop en wag daar sekerlik vir my 'n baie afgewaterde
uitkoms aan die einde van my lewe. Maar as ek reg is, en
soveel ander saam met my, en die geskenk vir my
afhanklikheid van die Here is 'n beter lewe, meer
voorspoed en die bonus van 'n ewige lewe in die hemel -
hoe ookal ek dit wil imagine. As ek reg is dat die hel wat
rondom ons tot stand kom, juis erger is as ons nie ons
afhanklikheid van God kan erken nie en inderdaad nog
veel erger gaan word, dan is daar 'n hele paar mense wat
baie spyt gaan wees dat hulle nie maar hul afhanklikheid
verklaar het nie!
In that case, I'll rather 'waste' my time and play it safe!
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FAITH
‘The eternal God is your refuge and dwelling place, and
underneath are the everlasting arms;’ Deut 33:27a
I have admitted previously that I am not a fervent reader
and also, regrettably, don’t have a historic mind so that I
can remember Scripture references. I greatly admire
those who can, and have wished that it were possible for
me to do the same, more than wished, begged in prayer.
But we’re all different and the fact that I can’t remember
Scripture references does not mean that God loves me
less than those who can. I believe Jesus didn’t tell Satan
that it says in the Bible in Deut 6:13 that you shall worship
the Lord your God, and Him alone shall you serve.
Although He would definitely have known the Scriptures
that well, God is the Word and the Word is Truth, and it
was sufficient to have just reminded Satan of that.
Yes, I agree, you probably have a more wilfull stand when
you can quote the exact Scripture reference, but the most
important thing is that you know that God’s Word holds
many promises, instructions and blessings and what they
are, because believe me Satan knows as well as God
does what the Word says and where – that is why he uses
it to torment us! Remember, he tested Jesus further by
saying, Scripture says that God will send His angels to
assist Him!
I’m steering way beyond what I think the subject requires,
but if God feels it is important for you to know that I am not
a lesser child of His because I have to look in a
Concordance where exactly it says that faith is the
substance of things hoped for, I suppose I have to first
point that out to you before I tell you what my perception
of faith is.
So, Heb 11:1 reads (from the Amplified Bible – amplified!)
Now, faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title
deed) of things we hope for, being the proof of things we
do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith,
perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].
Wow, what a mouthful! The title deed! Nothing or no-one
can take away the title deed of a property unless you sell
it! How do we sell out our faith? By what we think and
say. If God promised us that He will keep us safe from
harm if we call on Him to do so, why do we still live in
fear? Yes, He has given you a sound mind not to sleep
outside in the open amongst roaring lions – leaving your
car unlocked and doors ajar in a crime ridden world – but,
if you have done all that is reasonably possible to
safeguard yourself, let go of the fear and rely on your title
deed for faith.
More than that, faith is the confirmation of things we hope
for. So, really when there is a drought, we shouldn’t
wonder if it will ever rain again. In our minds eye we
should see the rain falling, forming streams, filling rivers
and eventually dam levels rising. We should proclaim
what we hope and trust as if it has already happened.
Speak it into being.
The proof of things we do not see. My budget is not what
it should be – I wonder if I will make it through the month?
No!! My budget will meet all the needs of my
responsibilities and still leave room for whatever joy of life
I deserve to have.
The Bible is filled with examples of people having faith in
God. Noah, I mean he was crazy, building an enormous
boat at a time when people didn’t even know what rain
was. Abraham, packing up his whole life and moving into
the unknown to a place only God knew existed. What
about his wife, Sarah, there was no such thing as invitro
fertilisation – yet she became pregnant way beyond an
age where it was humanly possible. Paul and Silas had
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faith while in prison and it broke the chains that bound
them and opened the prison doors.
Yeah right, that is the Bible, it’s history, it doesn’t apply to
these troubled times we live in. It does, only we look past
it, because we look for glitzy and glamorous proof to keep
up with the constant progress of civilization. And in doing
so, we miss the Angus Buchan stories – growing potatoes
during a drought, trusting God for a good crop – the
realisation of things that are unseen. My gosh I would
have checked those potatoes every day, sometimes twice
a day! He takes it even further, trusting God for rain in the
off season, to kill a runaway fire. These stories of faith are
everywhere among us, but we spend more time looking
for the things that can and do go wrong, and very little
time looking for inspiration to keep believing in the things
we cannot see and only hope for!
The mere existence of God and our belief in Him is in
itself a huge step in faith and we constantly receive
miraculous rewards for just that. Believing in God with
virtually no proof that He is real, is the essence of faith. If
we can believe of our own free will that God exists and
that He loves us and wants us to trust in Him, we can and
should be able to move mountains with our faith in all
aspects of life.
No doubt, this is scary stuff. Only because in our minds,
our upbringing and society in general, we are conditioned
to limit God’s power. Having faith sets you free of any
limitation to your ability.
Paul concludes in 1 Cor 13 (see I do remember the good
parts) that three things remain – faith, hope and love. My
conclusion is that without faith there isn’t the slightest
possibility of hope and without faith and hope, love just
can’t exist! And Paul is quite right that love is the greatest
of them all, because without it life has no meaning, and
we can’t exist without a reason for living.
FORGIVEN
‘And therefore the Lord earnestly waits, longing to be gracious to
you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy
on you and show loving-kindness to you.’ Isa 30:18
Being a child of God comes with many requirements that
are met within our inner being. Requirements that don’t
necessarily always come easy, but which hold enriching
long term benefits if you would just be obedient, have
courage and push through.
One of these requirements that most of us struggle with is
to forgive. Is it possible? What difference does it make?
Won’t I just be hurt again? These are just some of the
dilemmas we find ourselves in when we face a situation
where forgiveness is required.
Despite what the world proclaims and many of us think,
love is not a feeling, but an act of your will. Forgiveness is
the same, an act of your will. To forgive is a requirement
set by God. The feeling attached to it and our reluctance
to do it is because we are human, feel hurt, experience
anger, frustration and disappointment. Our feelings are
often stronger than our will and this is when we find it
difficult to grasp the possibility of forgiveness.
In Matthew 6 when Jesus instructs the disciples how to
pray, He has much to say about forgiveness. As part of
the basis of prayer He indicates: forgive us our debts as
we forgive our debtors.
We quickly run by the ‘forgive us our debts’ part,
remember that we have to forgive our debtors, but most of
the time we miss the most essential requirement for both
– ‘as we forgive’! The whole idea of forgiveness therefore
starts with me. Forgive me my debts, as I forgive my
debtors. Oops! This means if I want to be forgiven, I
have to do some forgiving myself. If I forgive with
prejudice, my debts will be forgiven with prejudice. Here
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comes the long term benefit that the requirement holds.
Problem, you can only reap the benefit if you meet with
the requirement and to do that, you have to put your
feelings aside.
But Jesus doesn’t leave forgiveness there. When He
concludes the instruction how to pray, He elaborates on
forgiveness and provides an even bigger motivation to
speak forgiveness. The Amplified Bible reads: For if you
forgive people their reckless and willful sins; your
heavenly Father will also forgive you. It is a pre-requisite!
To receive forgiveness yourself, you have to provide it!
God expects you to forgive. To find it in you to do it, you
have to put your feelings and emotions aside. The only
way that you are able to do this, is if you make a definite
decision to do so. It is an act of your will, more than
anything else.
But forgiveness comes much closer to home than just
forgiving others. The most difficult person to forgive is
yourself. Most of the time we cannot find it in us to forgive
others readily, because we haven’t made peace with our
own transgressions. And we can cut even deeper;
forgiving yourself is not possible if you haven’t forgiven
God.
This is a concept that most of us have trouble getting our
minds around. God is almighty, He doesn’t make
mistakes, who am I to even think that I have to forgive
Him? Quite right, He doesn’t make mistakes and we
should never have to forgive Him for anything, however
we do blame Him for many things: being born blind or
deaf or with a disability, loved ones suffering cancer or
untimely deaths, being paralysed after an accident – the
list is endless – we blame God and if we do (whether it
was His fault or not) we have to forgive Him. As long as
we deny the existence of this unforgiveness, we keep the
lid on whatever forgiveness God is always willing to place
in our hearts.
Again this has very little to do with feeling. It is a process
that is brought into action by your will alone. Once you
have made peace with God about all the things you think
He should have been looking out for, you can move on to
forgiving yourself for blaming Him; as if He didn’t know
better?! Now the road is mapped out to making peace
with yourself and those around you.
You will find that if you can just realise that it is really as
simple as saying ‘I forgive you’ even if you don’t want to,
the release of the burden that unforgiveness places on
you is often immediate and quite tangible; especially if you
had adverse feelings about it.
In the end the most important consideration that we have
to give to forgiveness is the mere fact that Jesus already
paid the price and the same rules apply to me as does to
others. ‘Forgiven, no matter what we’ve done. Forgiven,
and sheltered by His love. We’re given, a chance to go on
living. We’re given, a life we’ve never had before.’ Very
true words from a song by David Meece which applies to
each and every one of us equally.
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GEE & ONTVANG
‘So ver as die ooste van die weste af is, so ver verwyder Hy ons
oortredinge van ons af.’ Psalm 103:12
Salomo het groot wysheid getoon toe hy gesê het,
‘beproef alle dinge, maar behou die goeie’. Een waarheid
wat die Here my egter meer en meer duidelik uitwys, is
dat daar in alles wat goed is, ‘n gesonde balans moet
wees. Die oomblik as iets wat goed is, oordoen word, of
jou lewe begin oorheers, begin dit ‘n negatiewe uitwerking
of vorm aanneem en besef ‘n mens op ‘n stadium dat dit
nie meer jou karakter opbou nie, maar in werklikheid
afbreek.
Om te gee en te ontvang is twee ewe goeie eienskappe
wat baie maklik oordoen kan word, afgeskeep kan word,
of heeltemal uit verband uit geruk kan word.
Soos met alles in die lewe, is God se Woord ons riglyn oor
gee en ontvang en die manier waarop dit gedoen word.
Dit sal ‘n lywige skrywe wees om elke beginsel wat die
Woord ons leer, hier weer te gee, daarom gaan ek nie my
konkordansie gryp en alles wat ek kan opsoek rondom
gee en ontvang bespreek nie. Die regte beginsels word
dikwels in ons harte vasgelê, en al wil ons soms daarteen
stry, bly dit tog waar en as ons dit toepas sal daar ‘n
gesonde balans ten opsigte van die twee eienskappe in
ons lewe wees.
Die Woord, het ek geleer, vra dat ons in liefde sal gee.
Die oomblik as jy daarop ingestel is om in liefde te gee,
besef jy dat dit maklik is. Jy kan inderdaad by die gedagte
uitkom om as ‘iemand jou bo-kleed vra, vir hom jou onderkleed
ook aanbied’. Om in liefde te gee bring ‘n warmte
om jou hart. Jy voel geen sweempie van verlies nie, al is
dit wat jy gee ook vir jou van waarde en laat by jou ‘n
leemte. Die leemte wat dit laat word gevul met die gevoel
van nederige genoegdoening wat jy ervaar omdat dit wat
jy gee vir die ontvanger soveel meer kan doen as vir jou.
As ons nie in liefde gee nie, kan ons onsself nie losmaak
van die geskenk nie. Ons vra onsself vrae soos, ‘Word dit
waardeer?’, ‘Was dit die regte ding om te doen?’, ‘Het ek
nie vir myself ‘n nood geskep nie?’, ‘Op watter manier
gaan die leemte vir my gevul word?’. Op die ou end word
die geskenk ‘n voorbehoud in die toekoms van die
verhouding en ons raak geneig om alles wat die
ontvanger vir ons doen, te meet aan ons offer van die
geskenk. Jy weet, ‘na wat ek gegee en gedoen het, sou
mens darem meer dankbaarheid wou sien!’ Klink dit
bekend?
Salomo het hierdie menslikheid ook ervaar. Hy het geleer
‘’n geskenk maak die weg vir die gewer oop’. Hierdie
waarheid kan ‘n negatiewe en positiewe uitwerking hê.
Ons kan vir die ontvanger die weg baan om negatiewe
persepsies te verander, soos dat mense nie omgee nie of
dat mense kan gee sonder om iets in ruil te vra. Maar ons
kan ook uitbou op die negatiewe en soms onwillekeurig
verwag dat die ontvanger meer geneë behoort te wees
om weer vir ons ‘n klip uit die pad uit te rol. Die
gesindheid waarmee jy gegee het kom weer ter sprake.
As jy in liefde gegee het, kan die ontvanger in liefde
reageer en sal ‘n eenvoudige ‘dankie’ voldoende wees,
maar as jy egter met voorbehoud gee, is dit glad nie die
geval nie.
As mens die vermoë het, is en bly gee baie lekker. Veral
as die reaksie merkbaar een van dankbaarheid is en ‘n
mens die resultaat van jou geskenk kan waardeer. Die
Woord sê ook dat as ons gee, ons regterhand nie moet
weet wat die linkerhand doen nie. Dit beteken dat daar
dikwels geleenthede gaan wees waar niemand gaan weet
dat jy die gewer is nie. Dit verander die storie ‘n bietjie.
Hierdie geskenk is ‘n bietjie moeiliker om van jou lyf af te
skud, aangesien ons maar almal daarvan hou om
waardering te ontvang of ‘n klop op die skouer te kry vir ‘n
goeie daad.
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Die Woord leer ons egter ook die beginsel dat ons nie net
moet gee as ons voldoende het nie. Ons moet ook kan
gee as ons self in nood verkeer, met die geloof dat God
vir ons sal voorsien. Dis ‘n moeilike een dié. Want as jy
self ‘n behoefte het of bloot net groter waarde heg aan dit
wat jy het, omdat jy dit moeilik bekom het, kry die blote
gedagte om te gee heeltemal ‘n ander kleur.
Maar wat van ontvang? Kan jy so maklik ontvang as wat
jy gee? Ons moet in dankbaarheid ontvang. Om te
ontvang beteken dikwels dat God ons gebed en smekinge
gehoor het en in ons behoeftes voorsien het. Die pad wat
die gewer na ons toe oopmaak moet met net soveel
versigtigheid gehanteer word. Om te ontvang beteken nie
dat ons gekoop is nie. Om te ontvang beteken nie dat ‘n
skuld-rekening geopen is en dat ons solank as wat ons
leef daaraan moet terugbetaal nie. Maar om te ontvang
beteken ook nie dat dit die gewer se plig was en dat dit ‘n
nuwe fontein laat opborrel wat nie mag opdroog nie. Die
Woord leer ons, ‘as jy nie werk nie, mag jy nie eet nie’ en
ons het dus ‘n verantwoordelikheid om sorg te dra dat die
gewer wel in ‘n behoefte voorsien en dat ons nie ‘n
plaasvervanger vir eerlike arbeid kweek nie.
Om te ontvang is moeiliker as om te gee. Ons word in ‘n
posisie geplaas waar ons blootgestel word. Veral as jy
niks in ruil kan bied nie. Al wat jy het is jou dankbaarheid,
en as die geskenk in liefde gegee is, sal dit voldoende
wees en jy hoef nie in jou agterkop planne te beraam hoe
om die gewer te beloon nie. As ons iets in ruil vir ‘n
geskenk moet gee, is dit dan nog ‘n geskenk?
Ons kan ook met ons reaksie die vreugde van die gewer
om te kan gee steel. ‘Nee, dit was nou nie nodig nie!’, ‘Ek
kan nie dit aanvaar nie’. Jy kan! Dit was nie jou keuse
om te gee nie, jy het nie werklik insae in die hart van die
gewer en die motief daaragter nie. As die Here vir
hom/haar voorsien het om vir jou te kan gee, vir wie sê jy
dan eintlik ‘nee dankie’? Ons ontneem ook die gewer die
seën wat hulle ontvang deur te kan gee!
Trots is ook ‘n groot vyand. Ons kan voel dis ‘n
vernedering om te ontvang, so asof ons nie vir onsself kan
sorg nie. Soos ons dikwels ongemaklik voel as ons
gekomplimenteer word, kan ons ook voel as ons moet
ontvang. ‘Wat nou?’ Miskien is ons nie geleer om bloot
net te ontvang nie. ‘n Wyse ou tante het op ‘n dag vir my
die oplossing gegee - As Jesus in jou is, is die
kompliment of geskenk wat jy ontvang eintlik vir Hom ook
bedoel en kan jy dit namens Hom ontvang. Dit verwyder
onmiddellik die ongemak en gee jou as bonus so ‘n bietjie
meer waardering daarvoor, want jy moet dit vir Hom
oppas!
Die basis van gee en ontvang is liefde. Paulus het op ‘n
dag ‘n geskenk wat hom moes help met sy dissipelskap,
aan die gewer teruggestuur, omdat dit nie in liefde gegee
is nie. Dus is die vereiste dieselfde, soos jy in liefde gee,
moet jy in liefde kan ontvang, asof die Here die gewer is.
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GOD HAS A PROBLEM
‘The Lord your God is in the midst of you, a Mighty One, a Savior!
He will rest in silent satisfaction and in His love He will be silent
and make no mention of past sins, or even recall them; He will
exult over you with singing.’ Zeph 3:17
Me! I am my own greatest enemy! And don’t lie to
yourself, so are you!
Because we are born into sin and live in it or with it until
we accept the sacrifice of Jesus’ life for it, we are destined
to fight ourselves. Our worst personality traits become so
much a part of us that we struggle to break free from
them. When we finally do accept Christ as our Saviour,
we start a battle against our bad nature that cannot be
won overnight, and depending on our attitude, can
become time consuming, very exhausting and if we stay in
denial or resist, never-ending.
What ends a war? Peace. And this is the solution.
We are very quick to list other’s shortcomings. What
about making a list of your own? If you are a selfabsorbed
egomaniac, this is very difficult and you can’t
even see that this would be your first entry on the list: ‘I’m
God’s gift to all the idiots around me!’ However, most of
us shouldn’t have a problem listing our flaws. In reality,
some of us should guard against getting lost in the
endlessness of the list – the result of a low self-esteem –
whilst others have a more balanced outlook and don’t find
it too hard to stare their bad sides in the eye – a sign of a
more healthy self-esteem. And you are just bluffing
yourself if you think that an egomaniac falls in the latter
category – this is just a safety mechanism, most of them
hide behind this façade, because deep inside is a very
insecure, selfless person who is too afraid to face the
cruel reality of the world.
Can you start to see why God has a problem with me? I
fall in the low self-esteem category. My life is an endless
struggle convincing myself that I am not beyond repair
and extremely valuable. What about you?
As much as I can preach to others that they are unique,
valuable and worth to be loved, I most of the time can not
understand where my mother got the idea that my name
should be Amanda, which means ‘worth to be loved’! To
make it even worse, in Latin the instruction is must be
loved! What possessed the woman? It seems that I
spend most of my life fighting myself, an endless battle
convincing myself that my flaws are not unforgiveable and
that I have very good qualities and that people really value
who I am.
Do you feel sorry for me? Thanks, but I have realised I
am not alone. Yes, some of you may not be able to
comprehend or grasp the concept that a person can be
engulfed in a battle believing that they are good enough.
However, I am definitely not alone. Life deals so many
blows to so many of us. There are numbers of people
around you who are struggling with this. Some of them
have built up walls around them and live in unnoticed
seclusion, until the thought of never being accepted
overwhelms them. This situation plants the seeds for
depression, addiction, eating disorders, self-hate and
even suicide.
This is why God has a problem. What makes it worse is
the fact that He knows who I am. He knows my potential
and that using it can help me to believe that I am valuable,
but I even fight Him on this. I have had endless
arguments with Him urging me to do something that would
require me to put myself out there and trust Him that the
reward will be great. Countless times I have flat-out
refused or stood back because I anticipated a reaction
from someone whom I find invaluable and cannot imagine
losing.
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But I am realising more and more that these times that I
am the most afraid to step up and just do what He wants
me to, are the times that I grow stronger. This is when I
build my self-esteem and start to believe that I do have a
purpose in life and that He has bigger and better plans for
me than the meager dreams that I can think up for my life.
And when I see the effect of my bravery and the rewards
for it, I build up the courage to face the reaction of those
around me and believe that who I am shouldn’t affect the
amount of their love. If it does, God accepts me the way I
am. They should love me with the same kind of love. If
they can’t, it is their flaw or problem and I shouldn’t make
it mine and exhaust my strength trying to live with it.
And my goodness, God’s problem doesn’t end there.
Because the next phase is trying to convince myself that I
have no chance of becoming a self-absorbed egomaniac
when I start to believe in my own God-given abilities and
talents!
Can you see why God has a problem, and that it is not
only with me, but maybe with you too? What did
Zephania say? God rests – after He created me and you
– in silent satisfaction! The only time that you can rest in
silent satisfaction is if you are entirely happy with your
effort that you put into creating something virtually perfect.
And that’s me again, adding the ‘virtually’! God’s silent
satisfaction is because He is convinced that what He
created is absolutely perfect for the purpose it is intended.
You have to find the instruction manual – His will and plan
– and you will see how marvelous this intention is! He
doesn’t need to convince you, He needs you to trust Him
that it is already there. That you are a great big bundle of
potentiality!
So, end the war! Make peace with the fact that life is no
bed of roses, that you have been steered away from what
God intended you to be, but it’s okay! Zephania says, ‘in
His love He will be silent and make no mention of past
sins, or even recall them; He will exult over you with
singing.’ There is still time, He can still restore the
qualities that were supposed to shine and stand out, if
only you will trust Him.
Why don’t you help God with this problem, make it your
own, because you alone can do something about it! You
are great! God exults over you, singing! Open your ears
and listen!
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GOD SE SEKURITEITSTELSEL
Ps 91:2 – Dan kan jy vir die Here sê: ‘U is my skuilplek en my
vesting, U is my God, en ek vertrou op U.’ (Lewende Bybel)
Nie een van ons kan deesdae deur ‘n dag kom sonder dat
daar ‘n gesprek oor of verwysing na misdaad plaasvind
nie. Dis deel van ons elke dag se bestaan, die koerant is
vol daarvan, die nuus berig met sensasie daaroor. Dis ‘n
realiteit.
Ek en jy is vasgevang in ‘n situasie waar ons aanpassings
moet maak, soms kompromieë oor ons leefwyse moet
aangaan, ‘n konstante bewustheid moet hê van ons eie
veiligheid en dié van ons geliefdes. Ons maak opmerkings
soos, “ ‘n Mens kan nie meer waag om saans alleen
iewers heen te ry nie!”. Die eerste vraag wat ons onsself
wil afvra as ons ons huise verlaat is, “Is dit veilig?”
Hierdie ingesteldheid is die teelaarde vir vrees. En vrees
kom nie van die Here af nie.
Die Here vra van ons om verantwoordelik te wees en nie
onverskillig op te tree nie. ‘Wees waaksaam’ is ‘n
waarskuwing wat ons telkemale vir verskillende
omstandighede in die Woord kry. Paulus praat verskeie
kere daarvan om ‘n ingesteldheid te hê om gevaar raak te
sien. In 1 Kor 16:13 sê hy: Hou julle oë oop vir die
geestelike gevare. Hou aan die Here vas in die geloof.
Gedra julle soos manne en wees sterk.
Maar die Here sê ook dat Hy gekom het sodat ons lewe in
oorvloed kan hê (Joh 10:10). As ons die hele tyd oor ons
skouer moet loer en wonder watter gevaar ons kan tref,
kan dit mos nie God se bedoeling van ‘n oorvloedige lewe
wees nie. Maar hoe nou gemaak? As die Woord ons
maan tot waaksaamheid en ons bevind ons in ‘n tyd waar
omtrent elke asemteug een van waaksaamheid moet
wees, kan ons nie eers dink daaraan om die oorvloed wat
God vir ons bedoel, te probeer geniet nie!
In Ef 6 sê Paulus dat ons stryd nie teen vlees en bloed is
nie. Maar waarvoor is ons op die uitkyk as ons daagliks
die stryd voer om te midde van die misdaad en onheil te
bly leef? Kyk ons met mense-oë na die wêreld rondom
ons, of is ons oë soos Paulus waarsku, op die uitkyk vir
geestelike gevare? Weet ons wat die omvang van
geestelike gevare is? Is geestelike gevare die sigbare
tekens van misdaad wat ons om ons kan sien, of is dit die
strategie van die Bose wat ver verwyder is van die sigbare
misdaad in werking?
Dit is inderdaad ingelê in die strategie van Satan. Dit wat
dus hier voor ons as ‘n misdaadgeval aangeteken kan
word, is die resultaat van Satan se strategiese
beplanning. Ons moet dus verder terugbeweeg met ons
waaksaamheid as om bloot net die wêreld hier om ons te
ondersoek en dop te hou vir wat ookal agter ‘n boom of
gebou mag uitspring.
Ons moet nie net omsien na ons fisiese sekuriteitstelsels
nie, maar baie meer aandag gee aan ons geestelike
sekuriteitstelsel. Hiervan is Ps 91 sekerlik die mees
omskrywende voorbeeld. Kom ons lees verder in vers 3:
Hy sal jou self beskerm teen mense se onderduimse
planne en teen ander gevare wat jou mag tref! Dis in die
toekomende tyd geskryf, met ander woorde dit verseker
jou veiligheid vooruit. Vers 4: Hy sal jou veilig hou en sy
getrouheid sal jou beskerm! Deel B van vers 4 in die
Amplified lees: His truth and His faithfulness are a shield
and a buckler! Wat is God se sekuriteitstelsel? Sy
waarheid en getrouheid, wat soos ‘n skild met ‘n stewige
gespe aan ons vasgemaak word.
Maar hoe werk ‘n alarmstelsel? Dit moet alomvattend
wees. Elke aspek van ‘n mens se veiligheid moet daarby
ingesluit wees. As dit egter in plek is, is dit niks werd as
dit nie geaktiveer word nie. Net so moet God se
alarmstelsel ook geaktiveer word en net ek en jy kan dit
doen. As ek in my motor klim en nie die Here vra om Sy
sekuriteitstelsel aan te skakel nie, kan ek nie verwag dat
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Hy my sal beskerm soos wat Ps 91 beloof nie. Dan word
vers 5 ‘n realiteit as dit beloof dat ek nie bang hoef te
wees vir enige gevaar in die nag of dat ek in die dag
aangeval sal word nie.
Enige sekuriteitstelsel het beperkinge. Wat dan van die
Here s’n? Die Here se beskerming het geen beperkinge
van Sy kant af nie. Dit is meer alomvattend as wat ons
menslike verstand kan begryp. God se sekuriteitstelsel
bring jou by ‘n punt waar jy vir jouself kan sê: ‘Dis ‘n bietjie
te ver gevat of te dik vir ‘n daalder!’ God se
sekuriteitspersoneel het ‘n twee derde meerderheid oor
dié van die vyand en wat meer is, omdat die vyand se
strategie altyd op die verdediging ingestel is, kan hy nie
pro-aktief optree nie, maar die Here kan. Die Here kan Sy
engele voor jou uitstuur sodat die rampe jou nie tref nie.
Ons plaas egter self die beperkinge op God se
sekuriteitstelsel – wanneer ons Hom nie vertrou nie!
Dit klink onverskillig en onverantwoordelik om dit te sê,
maar onthou God het geen beperkinge op die sekuriteit
wat Hy beloof nie – ons kan dus glo dat Hy ons sal
beskerm teen alle gevaar, al is ons nie gewapen nie, al
begeef ons ons teen alle waarskuwings in in situasies
waar ons aanspraak kan maak op God se oorvloed, ten
spyte van gevaar. Die Woord sê: al kom daar duisende
om waar jy is of selfs tienduisende in jou omgewing, sal
dit nie met jou gebeur nie. Wat doen ons? Ons sê, ‘Don’t
be ridiculous! There are limits to everything!’ Ja daar is,
enigiets wat die mens se verstand kan bedink. As ons die
Here vertrou vir ons veiligheid, bestaan daar geen
beperkinge nie.
Hier begin ons nou ‘n punt bereik wat die menslike
verstand te bowe gaan. Wat God betref, hoef ek dan nie
te vrees om verkrag, geroof of geskiet te word nie! Hy
beloof dit sal nie met my gebeur nie – mits ek Sy
sekuriteitstelsel geaktiveer het. Dit is soos ‘n sambreel
wat jy oor jou kop oopmaak as dit reën. Solank jy onder
die sambreel bly, kan jy nie nat word nie, maar as jy
vergeet om dit oop te maak, of dit by die huis los as die
weer dreig, gaan jy sopnat wees.
As ons maar kyk na ‘n paar gevalle van bomenslike
vertroue op die Here, is dit maar altyd dieselfde name wat
genoem word. Kom ons begin sommer by die skrywer
van Ps 91 – Dawid. Hy het as jong seun reeds bewys dat
God se sekuriteitstelsel voldoende is – as skaapwagter
wat wilde diere moes afweer, teen die reusagtige Goliat
met vyf klippies en ‘n slingervel, teen Saul met net ‘n harp
in sy hand. Noag. Ek glo nie eers die mense het
aanvanklik besef hy bou ‘n boot nie, omdat die omvang
daarvan sodanig was dat hulle eers toe dit byna klaar was
sou sien dat dit is. As ek Noag was, sou ek beslis nie ‘n
advertensie opgesit het wat vir almal verduidelik wat ek
besig is om te doen nie. Die wat wel sy planne kon insien
het verseker gedink hy is stapelgek! Was Noag bang?
Het iets in sy binneste geknaag en het hy nie gewonder of
dit die mees absurde ding is wat hy mee besig is nie? Dit
wat hy aangepak het was bo die menslike begrip – maar
hy het vertrou dat die Here in beheer is.
Daniël en sy vriende bly staan toe almal rondom hulle
neerbuig voor Baäl! Was hulle harte sonder angstigheid?
Het hulle glad nie gewonder wat met hulle gaan gebeur
nie? Beslis nie, maar hulle het die Here vertrou om hulle
te beskerm – ‘n NO LIMITATIONS sekuriteitstelsel wat die
kake van die leeus gesluit het en die vlamme van hulle
weggehou het. As God onder die wet in die Ou
Testament hierdie mate van beskerming kon bied,
hoeveel meer kan Hy nie doen omdat Sy Seun reeds die
prys betaal het nie? Abraham het die onbekende
ingetrek. Hoe het hy staande gebly? Vertroue op God
was sy beskerming.
Sendelinge besoek Afrika en vertrou net die Here dat
hulle nie malaria sal opdoen nie. Die Here het die muskiet
geskape, die Here het belang by hul teenwoordigheid
tussen ongelowiges, hoe kan ons twyfel dat die Here hulle
teen malaria sal beskerm? Óns beperk God se
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sekuriteitstelsel. Ons vra nie hulp nie, omdat ons voel dat
daar ander is wat God se aandag vereis. Óns beperk
God se sekuriteitstelsel. Ons val holderstebolder die
toekoms in en beland in noodsituasies en wil dan eers
weet waar is die Here. Óns beperk God se
sekuriteitstelsel. Ons verwar arrogansie met moed en
durf en beland in die moeilikheid omdat ons gedink het dit
was onnodig om God se sekuriteitstelsel te aktiveer. Óns
beperk God se sekuriteitstelsel. Dis ridiculous om te dink
die Here gaan jou motor beskerm as jy dit doelbewus oop
los in Hillbrow, maar dis glad nie onmoonlik om te glo dat
Sy geaktiveerde sekuriteitstelsel voldoende sal wees as jy
noodgedwonge deur gevaarlike gebiede moet ry of selfs
stilhou nie. He may not have given you a spirit of fear, but
definitely with love comes a sound mind!!
Die aktivering van God se sekuriteitstelsel moet soos was,
klere aantrek en asemhaal deel van ons mondering wees.
Altyd geaktiveer! As ons in veiligheid inbeweeg het, moet
dit weer geheraktiveer word. As die Here ons met die
sagte stem van die Heilige Gees op gevaar wys, hoef ons
nie om te draai en ‘n ander pad te stap nie – ons moet net
die sekuriteitstelsel opskerp en die Here vertrou. Het die
Israeliete nie veertig jaar in die woestyn rondgeswerf
omdat hulle nie vertroue in God se sekuriteitstelsel gehad
het nie? Joshua en Kaleb het geweet dit sal werk. Maar
hulle moes die prys betaal vir die ander se ongeloof. So
is daar baie vir wie God se sekuriteitstelsel oënskynlik in
die steek gelaat het. Martelaars vir die evangelie,
Stefanus, Paulus, Silas, Johannes die Doper en meer
onlangs die sendelinge in Turkye. Was dit God se
sekuriteitstelsel wat gefaal het of die mense se ongeloof
wat dit vernietig het?
Ek het vroeër verwys na Dawid wat teen Goliat opgestaan
het. Is die misdaad en onheil rondom ons nie maar ons
Goliat nie? As ons onsself in ons huise toesluit, nie meer
vriende besoek nie omdat dit dalk gevaarlik kan wees. In
kort aanpassings maak wat ons lewensvreugde steel en
die gawes wat die Here aan ons wil gee beperk. In watter
kategorie val ons dan, is ons soos Saul en sy soldate wat
in vrees in hul tente rondom hul warm kampvure bly sit, of
staan ons soos Dawid op met vyf belaglike klein klippies
en ‘n slingervel en verklaar ‘U is my toevlug en
bergvesting, my God op wie ek vertrou!’
Ons lees Ps 91:1 uit die Amplified Bible, ‘He who dwells
in the secret place of the Most High, shall remain stable
and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power
no foe can withstand]. Die wêreld wat om ons in duie stort
gaan net erger word. Dit moet so wees, want die vyand
berei homself net soos ons voor op die koms van
Christus. Ons hoop op veiligheid lê nie in
sekuriteitsmaatskappye, vuurwapens, stun guns en
dergelike dinge nie. Ons hoop op veiligheid lê in God se
sekuriteitstelsel alleen. Die aktivering van God se
sekuriteitstelsel lê op ons tong. As die belofte van Ps 91
oor jou tong rol en op jou lippe gaan lê, plak dit met ‘n
soen op jou kind se voorkop voor hy skool toe gaan, streel
dit met jou hand oor jou motor voordat jy inklim en ry.
Ons moet wandel in die geloof en nie volgens dit wat ons
sien nie, soos Dawid.
Hou dus te alle tye God se sekuriteitstelsel geaktiveer oor
alles wat vir jou waardevol is, want die Here is getrou en
sy getrouheid sal jou beskerm. God sê; ‘Iemand wat My
liefhet, sal Ek verlos, Ek sal hom beskerm omdat hy My
ken en vereer. As hy na my roep, sal Ek antwoord gee,
Ek sal by hom wees as hy in die nood beland en hom red
en hom eer. Ek sal hom lank laat lewe en hom die
verlossing laat sien wat Ek gaan gee.’ NO LIMITATIONS
sekuriteit!
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GREATNESS
‘Surely there is not a righteous man upon earth who does good
and never sins.’ Eccl 7:20
If we think of greatness in spiritual terms, without a doubt
the greatness of God is the ultimate example. There is no
thing, entity or person that can measure up to the
greatness of God. God is infinitely great in all things one
can think of.
But then, we also speak of and look for greatness in the
human sense. Einstein was known for scientific
greatness, Mozart in music and Shakespeare in literature.
Every field of humanity has its example of greatness.
But what is the essence of greatness? Interestingly
enough, the dictionary does not describe ‘greatness’
individually, just as a noun formed from great. ‘Great’
means to be exceptionally talented or having made
remarkable achievements; important; powerful; very good;
impressively large; large in number; being a good
example of something, good at something; bigger than
others; and even pregnant!
Basically then if you qualify for the term ‘greatness’ to be
used with reference to who you are, one should be able to
see it and experience it. It should be visible for all around
you. Yet, to be extremely great, you shouldn’t wear it in a
visible fashion. Furthermore if you would consider
yourself great, it should be ongoing and never ending.
This shortens the list of greatness in terms of humanity
tremendously, narrows it down to just a specific field of
expertise for most of the qualifiers. How many people are
there really in this world who can deservedly claim the
term great or greatness for themselves?
Money does not qualify you for greatness. Mother
Theresa had no financial security, yet her greatness was
known to the whole world. This however, does not
necessarily put her in first position for infinite greatness,
because as saintly as she was, the words of Solomon are
clear in this aspect ‘there is not a righteous man who does
good and never sins’. In the same light no achievement,
invention, experience or performance can really qualify
you for greatness, for if the achievement is taken away,
how great is the mark or impression that you as a person
will leave?
Einstein was not great on cleanliness, Mozart was
incredibly moody, possibly a manic depressive, and well,
much is said about Shakespeare that cannot be discussed
in decency.
Greatness then lies within all of us equally, ready to be
utilised and polished, but at the same time should be
cared for with extreme caution, for the realisation of one’s
greatness can make you proud, self-absorbed and greedy
for power. Greatness is measured by humility,
determination, love, sacrifice – a disregard of self for the
good of others. One’s greatness should be experienced
by all around you, yet never stand out enough to be
acknowledged publicly. It should fill great gaps with
warmth and love, without leaving huge cavities for
calamity when you are no longer there. Our greatness
should not necessarily be in being a provider for people,
but should rather teach people to provide for themselves.
Our greatness must be talked about much more after we
have gone, than while we are still around. This turns
greatness into a legacy from which many can learn and
benefit. Greatness that is made public is often criticised
beyond repair and leaves very few positive building blocks
for others to build on.
Earlier in chapter 7 of Ecclesiastes, Solomon advises us
to be joyful in the day of prosperity, but in the day of
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adversity consider that God made both side by side so
that we may not find out everything that could happen in
the future (v 14). So too, our greatness should at all times
be on equal par with our frailty. ‘For God made man
upright, but men and women have sought out many
devices for evil.’ (v 29)
HE HAS CALLED YOU BY YOUR NAME
‘For this reason I am telling you, whatever you ask for in prayer,
believe that it is granted to you, and you will get it.’ Mark 11:24
In Psalm 139, David sings about the fact that He knew
you when you were in your mother’s womb, saw you
being secretly and intricately formed. I’m sure if David
knew the science of life as we do, he would have
mentioned that God probably handpicked the sperm from
the millions and the egg that would join to become you.
If He knew you when you were still a secret to your
parents, He must have been responsible for placing the
thought for your name in your mother’s heart, allowing
your father to ponder its meaning. Even if they were not
obedient to Him, He would have known, because He knew
the purpose of your life and when you would be born.
Therefore He can and will call you by your name, all the
time, with immeasurable patience until one day you will
hear His voice and answer. It may even happen that you
hear Him call several times and don’t respond. I have
heard the phenomenal testimony of a man, which clearly
shows God’s hand in his life, yet he relates how God
called him audibly as a young boy to work for Him, but in
fact it was only much later in his life that he answered to
that call.
Sometimes God will call and we will answer, however it
may not be a real commitment and we may find ourselves
only surrendering to Him much later in our lives. No
matter how it may happen, one fact is clear – He knows
your name and He uses it because that is who you are.
The mere fact that God will call you by your name, makes
the choice of your name so significant. Parents who have
committed their lives to God would normally give more
earnest thought to the name of an unborn child. Tradition
plays a great part and may cause incredible hurt to some
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if the name chosen for them is associated with someone
who does not have a positive character or if the meaning
of the name is in fact very shameful. In many walks of life
it is traditional that a child should bear the name of
ancestors. It very often happens that a child should be
named after a mother, and a expected girl turns out to be
a boy and the poor child ends up with a female name.
Just think of the country song ‘A boy named ‘Sue’’. It may
seem to be an unbelievable tale, but many a young man
had to suffer through life bearing his grandmother’s name.
Similarly there are women who have been named after
grandfathers and great-grandfathers.
Your name is part of what makes you unique. There may
very well be many other Amanda’s in the world, but there
is only one that has experienced the wonder of finding
words in her fingers as I have or lived through the
experiences that I have. Maybe only one called, Amanda
Joy?
In Isaiah 43:1b God gives this promise: ‘Fear not, for I
have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you
are Mine.’
Jabez was one of the unfortunate people with regard to
his name. It meant ‘sorrow maker’, because his mother
said she bore him in pain. If you substitute the meaning,
with his name, it literally meant that every time his name
was called he was referred to as a maker of sorrow.
But what did Jabez do? He cried to God to bless him and
enlarge his border, that God’s hand be with him and that
God will protect him against evil. And God granted his
request. Jabez knew God and he knew that God’s favour
could be with him, despite the curse of his name. He did
not ask God to change his name, only to bless him in spite
of it.
If you know the meaning of your name, think of people
calling you by that meaning all the time! This is awesome
in most cases. I have struggled for most of my life to
accept mine. Because I have always struggled with the
thought of it being possible that I was worthy to be loved, I
struggled even more to bear the burden of my name really
meaning ‘must be loved’, because to me it seems to be a
lie. But even though I find it difficult to believe, God does!
And ironically He even adds ‘Joy’ when He calls me.
Back to the boy named ‘Sue’ from the country song. No
matter how underhanded and maybe cruel the intention,
what was the lesson that the father wanted him to learn?
The chorus line goes: Promise me son not to do the things
I’ve done, walk away from trouble if you can. It won’t
mean you’re weak if you turn the other cheek, son I really
hope you understand; you don’t have to fight to be a man.
Being named Sue, would mean that he would constantly
be facing confrontations, by dealing with it the way he
promised his father, built his character, and made him
strong enough to handle the more important adversities in
life. So, even if you are convinced that not even God
would have wanted you to have the name you do,
remember, despite the meaning or connotation, God
knows your name. He knows how you may suffer when it
is called and if you have struggled to live with it for most of
your life. Yet, He knows that you have a purpose, a
destiny and He calls you by your name because of it. He
can bless you, just like He blessed Jabez.
Listen for His voice, He is calling you by your name, to
fulfill your purpose and destiny, because He loves you.
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HERKEN DIT EN LAAT STAAN DIT!
‘Wie in My bly en Ek in hom, dra baie vrugte.’ Joh 15:5
Die hele definisie van sonde is en bly ‘n onderwerp op
sigself. Die begrip van wat sonde is, glo ek, is ‘n
persoonlike gewaarwording wat niemand behalwe die
Heilige Gees kan openbaar nie. Daar is algemene riglyne
vir wat sonde is, maar dan is daar grys areas wat ek glo
op elkeen persoonlik van toepassing is.
‘n Nuwe wêreld oor wat dan nou presies sonde is, het met
die volgende stukkie wysheid vir my oopgegaan:
Herken dit, erken dit, bely dit en laat staan dit!
Maak nie saak wie en wat jy is en waarmee jy jouself
besig hou nie, as jy geloof in God ontdek het, val die skille
van jou oë af en sien jy die lewe as geheel sommer in ‘n
heeltemal ander lig. Dinge wat jy voorheen sommer so in
die verbygaan gedoen of opgemerk het, ruk jou skielik tot
stilstand en jy begin wonder oor die waarde daarvan, of dit
reg of verkeerd is en of die Here dit sou toelaat. Dit is die
Heilige Gees wat in jou werk, jou oortuig dat alles wat
nog altyd in jou lewe was, nie noodwendig goed is nie.
Dis waar herkenning ontstaan. Ons sien dinge raak wat
nie volgens God se Woord waar en reg is nie. Wat nou?
As die Heilige Gees jou oortuig het dat dit onaanvaarbaar
is, en nie meer deel van jou lewe behoort te wees nie :
erken dit! Ek het vir jare met my depressie saamgeleef,
maar het nooit gedink dat dit erg genoeg is nie, omdat ek
nie kon sien dat ek daarmee sondig en dit my lewe
verwoes nie. Toe ek uiteindelik die verwoesting herken,
kon ek erken dat ek op ‘n afgrond afstuur wat ek moontlik
kan vermy.
Erken aan jouself en aan die Here dat die probleem – wat
eintlik maar as sonde gedefinieer kan word – jou baas
geword het en dat jy kan insien dat dit nie deel van jou
lewe behoort te wees nie.
Die stryd is half gewonne maar die volgende tree kan
nogal baie moed en oortuiging vra. Bely dit! Die eerste
stap is aan jouself. Dis heeltemal iets anders om iets te
erken as om dit te bely. Ek kan erken dat God my liefhet,
maar om voor die spieël te staan en hardop vir jouself te
sê: ‘God het jou lief!’ is heeltemal ‘n ander storie. Gaan
probeer dit gerus. As jy hierdie uitdaging oorkombaar
vind, gaan gerus ‘n stappie verder. Ons grootste stryd in
die lewe is om met onsself saam te leef. As jy gelukkig is,
het jy van kleintyd af geleer om van jouself te hou. Maar
die lewe laat soms baie letsels en ons sukkel om te erken
dat ons van onsself hou, gaan kyk gerus die ou in die
spieël in die oë en sê dit hardop en met oortuiging –
alleen is dit nog moontlik, maar doen dit voor iemand
anders!
Bely dit! Hoe meer, hoe beter, want elke keer as jy bely
dat jy jou sonde ontdek het, breek jy ‘n stukkie van die
pad na herstel oop, word die berg wat jy skielik ontdek het
dreig om jou te oorval, ‘n bietjie kleiner en meer
oorkombaar.
As jy eers die bevryding van hierdie drie stappe beleef,
kan jy ervaar dat jy die moed en oortuiging het om jou
oortreding te laat staan en dit te vermy.
Die hele proses kan geweldig in intensiteit verskil, want dit
hang af wat die aard van die sonde is en hoe ver jy op jou
pad as kind van die Here is. Aan die begin, waar ons nog
so oorbewus is van ons sondige lewe, kan hierdie dinge
maar moeilik wees om te bely, want so gretig as wat die
Here is om jou te oortuig dat geen sonde te groot is om te
vergewe nie, net so hard werk die vyand om jou te oortuig
dat jy dit nie werd is om kind van God genoem te word
nie. Ek kan egter uit persoonlike ervaring en met
sekerheid sê hoe meer gewillig ons raak om te erken en
bely, hoe eenvoudiger word dit.
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Maar die Woord sê ook dat dit ‘n proses van vernuwing is.
Vir jare was dit deel van jou en nou skielik moet jy dit
aanspreek, met jou versugting deel en dit laat staan. Give
yourself a break!
God weet dat jy dit herken het, erken het en bely het. Hy
weet dat dit dalk nie iets is wat jy sommer met die klap
van jou vinger kan laat staan nie. Maar Hy wil hê dat jy
moet weet dat jy nie alleen is nie, dat Hy met verwagting
daarna uitsien dat jy finaal van die sonde sal afstand
doen, maar Hy weet dat jy mens is en dat die vyand wag
om jou te bespring as jy faal. Dit is dan wat jy mooi na die
stem binne jou, wat soms net ‘n fluistering is, moet luister
as Hy sê: Ek weet jy probeer, en Ek weet dis nie altyd
maklik nie, maar dis okay! Ons probeer weer!
IF I HAD TO MEASURE GOD’S LOVE
‘The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in
love’ 2 Peter 3 v 9
The emphasis here lies in ‘I’. If it were up to you and I to
measure God’s love for us.
It is all good and well for the Bible to say that it is infinite,
cannot be measured, patient, kind, etc, etc. But most of
the time we struggle to believe how it can be possible for
God to love such seemingly imperfect creations. So, what
do we measure God’s love by in our terms?
If we have enjoyed growing up with a loving father figure,
kind, compassionate, generous, strict when necessary,
consequent and most of all loving and not afraid to show
it, we find it much easier to take away the human
boundaries we create for God’s love for us.
Yet if (as is the case with most of us) we grew up with a
father who did the best he could from the awful example
that was probably given by his father or a really bad and
unloving father – God’s love for us becomes very
complex.
We create all kinds of boundaries to God’s love. We
should know that we are fallible, yet we believe, even if
just momentarily, that God loves us less if we do wrong.
We believe God is disappointed in us and wonder if it is at
all possible for Him to ever forgive us our wrongdoing.
We believe we are right back where we started and the
righteous path that we walked so diligently was all in vain.
If I had to measure God’s love by this margin, it won’t
measure up to very much, would it?
We measure God’s love for us by our perception of His
presence in our lives. If everything goes wrong, stress
piles up, the kids are either sick or just working on the
nerves, we wonder: ‘God have You forgotten me?’ In
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reality we are wondering: ‘Does He still love me?’ and we
go off wondering what we did wrong that made Him desert
us. We shóúld ask ourselves ‘When last did I put in a call
to Him, just to let Him know I still appreciate His presence
in my life’. It is often in the midst of these upside down
situations that God’s love is most visible. Imagine if He
didn’t love you, what would it look like then?!
The list goes on and on and is based on the way we
create the boundaries of our love for those around us. If
you scold your child, you make up for it with a gift just in
case the poor kid may think that you don’t love him
anymore. Because our love for others and equally that of
others for us is often subject to returns or reaction, we
tend to think of God’s love in the same way. Subject to
approval – if I can see you love me, then ...
What if I were to measure God’s love by all the smallest
blessings I receive? All those little things that go by
unnoticed because they are so part of our daily life that we
only realise they exist when some day for no apparent
reason they don’t appear. Come on, make a list! The
touch of a child’s hand in yours, the smile of a friend, your
favourite rose blooming in the garden, kids laughing and
playing, the sunshine, the smell after the rain (no matter
how wet you got!), parking at your own home with a yard
around it, having more than one decent meal a day, etc,
etc,. Even recalling these not even comes close to truly
measuring God’s love for us. Remember, we’re trying to
measure in human terms, not biblical truths!
What is there within the ability of man that can even come
close to measuring God’s love? The wall of China – great
effort, but not nearly long enough. The deepest dive – by
man or machine – in the ocean, there are still
undiscovered depths which cannot be reached. Trips to
outer space, we haven’t even discovered a tenth of what
is just known to man. These are all exceptional
achievements made possible by many thousands of
hands and the efforts of years of research and
development of technology. We cannot come close. No
human effort whatsoever can ever provide the margin to
measure God’s love for us – yet we keep doing it.
As far as the east is from the west. He knew not to say
the north from the south, because we would one day know
the distance from the northpole to the southpole and limit
His love. True, you can start walking from a point in a
direction east or west, and eventually get back to the
same point, but when you get there you still haven’t
reached the farthest point east or west! Into the deepest
ocean. We have only been able to calculate the depth of
parts of the ocean, there still remain parts where no one
has ever been and no possible record of the depth is
known. This is just how far He removes our
transgressions from us, not the measure of His love.
We can only try, but will never be able to really figure out
any margin by which to measure God’s love for us,
because it simply is unimaginable. The closest
description of the magnitude of God’s love that I have
come across, is the following Afrikaans quote: ‘Miskien sal
ons die omvang van God se liefde vir ons vaagweg
verstaan, as ons dit vergelyk met die Amasonerivier wat
een madeliefie wil natlei’ – FB Meyer.
Yes indeed, the mighty Amason river focussing on one
daisy – it only vaguely describes His love for you and me.
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INFERIORITY VS SUPERIORITY
‘In the day when I called, You answered me; and You
strengthened me with strength (might and inflexibility to
temptation) in my inner self.’ Ps 138:3
I find it amazing that all of us form parts of circles of
friends that are somehow linked only by our individual
presence in them. You know, I know Sally, Sally knows
Harry, but Harry and I haven’t met and possibly never will
because we are just in different circles of her friends. In
these different circles of friends, we will most often find
similar personalities and you will further find a balance
within and between the circles as well. In each you will
find an introvert, a philosopher, a marketer etc. The more
intimate these circles become the fuller the quota of
personalities, because we all seek a balance in life. This
in itself is an interesting subject with endless possibilities
to explore.
Based on the above phenomenon, you will always find an
extrovert in all your circles of friends. Life needs
extroverts to maintain our level of sanity. Extroverts do
the things we feel awkward or shy doing ourselves.
Extroverts bring new friends to the party. Extroverts start
up a new conversation when a deadly silence falls on the
visitors. Extroverts cause controversy and keep us on our
toes, mentally. If extroverts from two different circles meet
up they usually don’t like each other, because normally
there is only enough space in a group of people for one
extrovert to function without confrontation.
I know, because I’m known as an extrovert and only the
wisdom of age and experience has taught me to stand
back when another extrovert enters the room and frankly
mostly because at my age I am just tired of taking centre
stage all the time! You see, extroverts like to kick up dirt,
but they don’t like to dig deep! Digging deep can be a
very painful experience for most extroverts. Deep inside
usually lie many uncertainties that take time to deal with,
and extroverts have very little time on their hands,
because they are usually occupied saving the party – or
so they think.
By now most of the extroverts reading this will be ready to
object and that’s okay! Just for them I will point out that
my derivation applies to most extroverts, as with
everything in life there are exceptions!
Uncertainties which are not dealt with in a positive way,
cause feelings of inferiority. The way that we all deal with
feelings of inferiority is to focus on our stronger attributes.
And low and behold, if you discover this is your ability to
be the life of the party, you become the extrovert that
everybody needs, to steer the attention away from them
and the expectancy that they should keep things going.
So really what this experienced extrovert – me - is saying,
is that when you dig a little deeper, you will find a timid
and shy little child, who is scared to bits that someone will
discover that he/she doesn’t want to be the life of the party
and doesn’t want to enter a room knowing that everyone
heaves a sigh of relief because the conversation starter
has arrived. In fact when extroverts leave, they have to
deal with feelings of remorse that too much was said that
could have remained silent and that some people may
have been offended by all the attention drawn away from
their existence and needs. Extroverts wonder if
everything they said was valid and intellectual enough to
satisfy all present. Mostly, driving home after an
exhausting effort to keep everyone going, they wonder if
anybody noticed the empty feeling inside them and if it
wouldn’t have been better if they weren’t there at all or
what would have happened if they had just stuck quietly to
their personal space, politely joining into conversations
when required only!
Heed this warning before you judge: the very obvious but
apparent picture of superiority that you may find quite
irritating in some of those around you, is more often than
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not an exhausting battle against deep feelings of inferiority
and insecurity which only time, patience and God can
heal.
But, until they start digging deeper, the next time a
gathering comes around, you can keep relying on the
extroverts to keep the party going. Love them for who
they are and invite them for a quiet dinner every now and
then with the reassurance that no performance is
required, essential or in any way necessary! This way,
with time they may realise that its okay to be afraid of who
you might be if everything goes quiet around you and that
they are able to face it, because that part of them isn’t as
scary after all.
I WANT CONTROL!
And don’t we all! Each of us in some way long for control
over something, most of the time everything. We don’t
always see it as the want for control, but if you take a step
back and look at the bigger picture, there is no mistake,
we want control.
We want control over the weather, the outcome of a
meeting, the feelings of people, the available time in our
day, what’s in our day, our financial well-being, our health,
our safety and that of our children … the list is endless.
Our need to control all these things and more is what
exhausts our energy and keeps us from living life to the
full.
What am I saying? Adopt a ‘don’t care what happens’
atttitude? No, not at all! Take a look again at Who holds
the remote for Control in His hand and ask yourself why
do you always want control!
We want control, mostly because it gives us a sense of
being in charge, having all things manageable. We need
control because it gives us a greater sense of
achievement. We long for more control, because we think
that life would be better if we have it.
But are you really in charge if you have control? Maybe
for a moment, but there is no way that you can proactively
contend with everything that is possible or
probable, because you don’t and never will be able to
control the future, other people and circumstances. We
know this, because despite the fact that we should realise
that God has control over everything, we just love to
blame Murphy’s Law when we seem to lose control or
things don’t seem to go our way.
The most basic rule of Murphy’s Law seems so innocent
and really is a bit true, namely ‘If anything can go wrong, it
will!’ If however, as a matter of interest we would search
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for the rules and origin of Murphy’s Law, we will indeed
find that as a whole it is an extremely fatalistic and
negative approach towards life, leaving no room for hope
or abundance of life. We believe in God and in Him there
always is hope and abundance of life and therefore we
have no business even showing an interest in fate. The
only true thing I found in this search, is ‘no matter how
perfect things are made to appear, Murphy’s Law will take
effect and mess it up’, which makes the essence of
Murphy’s Law destruction, and I only know one deliberate
destroyer – Satan!
So if even this fatalistic law proves that we don’t have
control over what is going to happen, why do we exhaust
ourselves running after something that will never be ours?
God wanted us to be able to reason and think for
ourselves. He wanted us to choose to trust and follow
Him. Because we are very true to our nature, we are
forever assessing things, weighing the odds, possibilities
and outcome. We sort things into two different categories
– manageable and unmanageable. This way we take
control over the things that we think are too feeble to
bother God with, or would be a waste of His precious time.
But we don’t always know what’s best and very often
confuse the issues and end up trying to control most of
the things that we knew from the start are unmanageable.
It’s just who we are!
The other reason is not of our own doing. Who was the
first to try and take the remote for Control from God?
Satan. He was not satisfied with the way God was
orchestrating the world, he thought he could do better.
What was the result of this? He lost whatever control was
given to him, his privilege to be known as one of God’s
angels, the most beautiful, in charge of heaven’s
orchestra. He, and a third of the angels who followed him,
are still trying to take control away from God, by
convincing us that we have and should take control over
more than we can handle. When we believe this, we
indeed assist Satan in taking control away from God and
willfully give it to the ultimate Destroyer. This is when
Murphy’s Law comes into play, because if nothing can go
wrong, Satan is the only one who will let something
destructive happen so that it can be proven that God is
not in control.
If we then, took the remote for Control from Him, we have
only ourselves to blame for the mess that came about.
Even in the smallest, seemingly insignificant things. All
things in our lives are integrated, form little stitches in a
majesticly colourful tapestry designed and created by
God. When we insist on having control, this tapestry is
often torn to pieces by the Destroyer and God is left with
the remains. The only way He can restore it to its original
state of exquisite beauty, is for us to once again hand over
the remote for Control to Him and keep trusting Him to be
in charge.
We say, ‘everything is in His hands’. We sing, ‘He has the
whole world in His hand’ and to ‘put your hand in the hand
of the Man who calms the sea’. We pray that He would
take control – yet time and time again we insist on taking
the remote away from Him and end up channel hopping,
sometimes with disastrous consequences.
It’s the choices we make that detemines the outcome of
our lives. If we choose to want control, we must always
be prepared for any possible adversity. However if we
choose to leave God in control of even the smallest detail,
we can sit back and know that He will do anything in His
power to let things go the way we want them to, provided
that what we want holds the greatest benefit to our lives.
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JOY!
One thing that I have learnt, sometimes the hard way, is
that with God no such thing as chance exists!
God has a purpose for everything in life, even the bad
things that happen to us. He is a Creator, an Inventor and
has His store room packed with possibilities and
opportunities to help us become who He intended us to be
before we realised that He had a plan with us all along.
He gives me the titles to write about and then nudges me
to write about something else. Sometimes months later I
would look at the title again and wonder ‘Now what was
this all about again?’, and in an instant God will give me
the purpose and a vast number of things would just fall
into place.
My second name is Joy, after a life long and true friend of
my mother’s. Apart from it being her name, until I started
writing this piece, the true purpose of it never dawned on
me. God knew that I would not experience an abundance
of joy in my life, and so He purposefully stuck the whole
experience on me with this name, so that I can never get
away from the possibility of having it!
And I knew! This is how we should handle joy! Stick it on
you - so that no one can take it away. It is always there to
tap into when things are not going according to plan, when
friends and loved ones are far away or don’t understand.
When the day seems cloudy and the chances of any
sunshine seem slim – unveil your sticker of joy!
The word says, The joy of the Lord is your strength! This
would mean that there are different types of joy. And
indeed there are. There is the joy of good news. There is
the joy of realising that you are in good health. The joy of
a answered prayer. The joy of a child’s laughter is always
an inspiration to most. The joy you experience when you
discover a breakthrough.
Joy fills your whole being and has to break free. It is often
possible to keep great sadness, trials and tribulations to
yourself, but joy longs to be shared. It lights up your eyes,
plays with the corners of your mouth and often bursts out
into uncontrollable laughter.
Joy is necessary. We cannot keep a positive outlook on
life if we don’t continue to find the joy in all experiences.
Some people show joy more than others. These people
are like fountains in the desert. They provide others with
a reason to be joyful and lend them the opportunity to see
the advantages of being joyful, because these fountains of
joy do not age very quickly and have many friends and
aquaintances.
Laugh and the world laughs with you. However, joy also
has a bad side. Job talks about the joy of the godless
people being momentary. We should be mindful of being
lighthearted and making a mockery of others. You can
acquire a superficial joy to hide your pain or guilt. So
even with the gift of joy we need to seek guidance.
That is why the joy of the Lord should be our strength. In
Prov 17:22 the wise old Solomon says: A happy heart is
good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing. But
only God can instill in our hearts a lasting and real joy that
can carry us through a lifetime of adversities.
As much as joy is a gift from God, it is only of value if you
take it and stick it to youself with superglue! Don’t let joy
run away from you like water after a storm. Contain it for
the times when life seems to have taken more than you
are able to give. Because joy makes us stronger and
helps us to endure, the enemy will try and hide it from us
and we very often have to look very hard to find joy in the
midst of trials and tribulation. But it is always there, in the
freedom God bought for us with the life of His Son, for in
God’s presence, there is fullness of joy.
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KILL THE SPIDER!
I am certain we have all seen what happens when you
simply dust away the cobweb sitting in the corner of the
room, without killing or removing the spider. Yes,
tomorrow it’s back again, sometimes even more intricately
woven than the previous, as if the spider realised that the
structure should be made sounder. What is more, you will
find it in the exact same spot every time.
Most of us exhaust all our emotional strength by
constantly dusting away many cobwebs in our lives,
without dealing with the spider causing them and getting
rid of it once and for all. The cobwebs are, irritability,
impatience, rudeness, cold-heartedness and all the other
things you are, but really don’t want to admit to. But
where do the spiders come from?
Just as you get many species of spiders in reality, there
are many kinds of spiders that seem to invade our lives
through various unpleasant life experiences. How we
choose to deal with these spiders, pretty much determines
our outlook on life and the way we approach relationships
and life in general. Some spiders are just part of life and
we often live with them for many years without really
knowing or realising they exist. The dangerous ones
though, are the ones that we breed in captivity.
Like fear, regret, hurt, hate, disrespect, unforgiveness etc.
etc.! We feed these spiders, sometimes unknowingly, but
very often deliberately because we just cannot seem to let
go. They grow into tarantulas and bird spiders, able to eat
away chunks of our quality of life. One day we will
actually notice their cobwebs and start dusting them away,
however the spider itself can be so scary that we find it
difficult to face it and end up dusting the cobweb away
around it, just to come face to face with it again the next
time and the next and the next.
It helps to get rid of the cobwebs. It leaves the illusion
that life is under control and everything seems to look neat
and clean. But the spider still sits there, and the problem
presents itself only when we get so used to living with the
cobwebs that we don’t bother dusting them away
anymore. All of a sudden one day we realise that the
cobwebs have consumed us, that we are tightly wound
into the sticky threads just like the real spider’s prey, and
we start suffocating. This is when the spider begins to
feed on us and we can clearly see our quality of life being
eaten away beyond our control. Often by this time we are
ready to give up, because the more we struggle, the more
entangled we become and the magnitude of all the
cobwebs seem inpenetrable.
Fortunately just as God created all natural spiders, He is
able to deal with each of the spiders we collect along our
path of life. The problem is, we have to give God the
duster and the repellent and most of the time the spider
and the cobwebs have become such a familiar sight that
we struggle to let go of it.
Satan loves the fact that we ignore the spiders and the
cobwebs. It gives him the opportunity to get closer to us
than we would normally allow him to be and he can strike
when we are at our most vulnerable and least expect it.
Our first reaction to an attack quite regularly is aimed at
God : ‘How can He allow this? Didn’t He see it coming?
Why didn’t He warn me?’ And the answers would be ….
He didn’t allow it, you did, by not taking care of
housekeeping as you should have. Stomping out the fear
when you were mugged or raped. Dealing with the regret
of never telling someone you loved them when they were
still alive. Nurturing the hurt and betrayal when you lost
someone who you thought loved you to another.
Certainly, He saw it coming, but you insisted on holding
the duster and made sure that the repellent was hidden
away in the closet. Would you have or did you listen
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when He warned you about it through a caring friend or a
concerned loved one?
You see, strangely we seem to like the spiders and we
think that the cobwebs bring some creativity and flair to
our lives. We hold admiration for the loads of work that is
put into their structure and we let them be, despite the fact
that they are dangerous, unsightly and grow stronger each
moment that we don’t deal with them.
So, open your eyes. See the cobwebs for what they are
and the potential of the danger they hold. Quit dusting
them away every day – face the spider, stomp it out or put
it in a jar and release it in its natural habitat which is in the
dark and wicked corners of despair that Satan reserves
for them in his pit of destruction.
LET’S TALK ABOUT SEX!
‘Let this same attitude and purpose and humble mind be in you
which was in Christ Jesus: [Let Him be your example in humility]’
Phil 2:5
No, don’t worry! You can stop blushing and the kids don’t
have to leave the room or never touch this book.
This is just one of the many issues we all have in common
and at some point everyone in any relationship struggles
with it. I actually started writing a book about it a number
of years ago, but gave it up, because the battle is ongoing
and most of us seem to know the answers, but it is the
application we have a problem with – we’re only human!
So, I have a bit of a dilemma – I’d love to talk about it, but
there is so much to say about the subject that I’m afraid it
might take up the rest of the book!
Let’s start with naughty, but very very true humour from a
sms I received from an equally naughty friend.
Sex is like a payslip, you shouldn’t discuss it with
anyone or you may let them know exactly how
little you get!
From my history of mild sexual abuse, I can tell you that I
am very sensitive to this issue and have walked a very
painful path to get to the point where I can send a sms
joke like this on to just one of my best friends, because it
is funny. However, I think mostly we joke about it and try
to find humour in a situation that is almost unbearable at
times. Much like a clown putting up a happy face despite
a broken heart. Sex, or the lack or inadequacy of it is the
cause of most broken relationships.
Before I go on, I must point out that when I talk about sex
in a relationship, it will be a given fact that the relationship
is a marriage; otherwise it will have to be a book on its
own. To me sex issues within a marriage are the only
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ones which have the potential of ever becoming
reasonably uncomplicated!
Why is sex such an issue? Most importantly probably
because it is a gift from God and Satan wants to destroy
its sacred value. I am not even going to try and elaborate
on some of the ways he does it; hopefully mentioning a
few will set your mind thinking and make you realise
where the enemy is stealing from you:
• Sex is made cheap by media exposure and
marketing requirements. What essentially has to
be a sacred experience between a man and a
woman alone, cherished and adored, has become
a public spectacle with elaborate rules,
regulations and requirements that have to be met.
Sex or anything related to it, shouldn’t make a
man or a woman feel inferior, guilty or worthless
in any way.
• Sex is not a tool to punish misbehaviour or
disrespect, in other words, “As long as you carry
on like this you won’t get any from me”, whether
you verbalise it or not!
• Sex is not a means of showing who’s boss
• Sex was not intended for meaningless pleasure,
like a night on the town or clubbing
• Good sex may relieve stress and frustration, but it
should not be an intended release for it, that is
called ‘rape’.
• Sex alone is not a foundation for a lasting
relationship, you’re fighting a losing battle if you
believe this
• Sex is not the punishment that Adam and Eve
brought upon us
Let’s take a step back. God created a man and a woman
so that they could have sex. It was even His thinking that
it should be enjoyed. What was His intention with it?
Sex has a purpose. It is the means of natural
reproduction fulfilling God’s instruction that we should
multiply and fill the earth. But God also intended sex to be
the ultimate seal of the love between a man and a woman.
The essence of sex is therefore love. If there is love there
would be mutual consent, clearly distinguishing it from
abuse and rape. Love in a relationship grows from
friendship, respect and trust, which leads to an intimate
bond.
Let’s go methaphorical! A relationship is like your
favourite treat, whether it is ice cream, chocolate, cheese
cake, savoury tart, whatever gets your tastebuds flowing.
There are different methods and recipes for making your
treat. Different people making it will result in different
tastes and although it remains your favourite, it may not
always taste the way you would like it to. So too, a marital
relationship in essence is not always the same because
different ingredients are added all the time and the
experience is not always as acceptable. It should
however remain your favourite, because it was your
preference – you still have to pay even though the chef
made a mess of it!
The recipe for the ultimate best taste of your treat is set.
There is a standard by which you measure its result.
Variations may be interesting. Ice cream can be more
creamy or fruity, but it’s still good. But, your treat cannot
be what you want without specific ingredients that make it
what it is. Chocolate cake cannot be chocolate cake
without chocolate!
So, if you choose to add quick solve ingredients like fake
cream instead of the real thing, you’ll just have to settle for
an inadequate taste. If you cannot make the treat
because some of the ingredients are not available. You
have a choice to wait and savor the ultimate, breathtaking
taste of excellence or dig in and settle for disappointment
in the creation of a subject for comedy when you try and
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hide your hurt and awkwardness about the mess you
made.
My husband would say I’ve lost him by now.
Relationships are just like the recipes for our favourite
treats. We add different essential ingredients to it to make
it as close to what we can possibly want. Sex is the seal
of approval, the cherry on top, the icing, the ‘hard to find’
mustard! It’s just not enough to have the cherry sitting on
dry flour, icing with no cake or curry instead of mustard.
In your relationship, your partner is your favourite treat!
Some of the ingredients you use are love, friendship, trust,
respect, admiration, patience, understanding and many
more. Talking about favourite treats, if yours is not
available on the menu, you look for something else. Just
remember, where sex is concerned, life offers a set menu.
Only your partner appears on the menu – the preparation
or recipe is up to you. So stick to biscuits and cheese if
Créme Bruleé is not A la Carte!!
If you think about it, sex is very much like food. Our
bodies need food for sustenance. We cannot do without
it. A marriage relationship needs sex to sustain it. But, as
in everything, I believe God intended that there should be
a very fine balance. As we are body, soul and mind, there
is a definite balance to be found in body, soul and mind
with food and sex alike.
Our bodies can adapt to the lack of food. It will rebel with
irritability, nausea, stomach cramps or a headache. We
are very adaptable creatures and if and when hunger sets
in, it helps to be creative. We either do without it for a
while, or we find alternatives – junk food for example!
Junk food is not good for you! You will find that this is as
true with sex. Your body does benefit from it, but the
consequences are not worth it. Whether it is because you
try desperately to shove it into limited time spans, making
it something that has to happen come hell or highwater, or
whether you choose someone off the menu. Having junk
as an alternative to the balanced sex God intended is just
not worth it. With hunger, we learn that our bodies do not
control our lives, our minds do.
And our minds understand the lack of food and that there
mostly is a reason for it. Our minds will determine how we
adapt to the lack of food. We either realise that there is
none for the moment and do our best to live without it, not
allowing our personalities to be affected by its absence, or
we find creative ways to utilise alternatives. There are
alternatives for sex in a marriage, we just have to get our
minds around the idea. A relationship should have many
other facets that can be as rewarding as sex if you would
just care to discover it. But our minds can tend to run
away with us if we allow it. Sex can become the ultimate
goal! We must have it at all cost or replace the lack of it.
As with food, this can result in a number of disorders. Sex
starts to rule our lives and relationship!
That is why God brought our soul into the balance that is
required. Our souls do not need food, just as our souls do
not need to be sustained by sex. Our souls survive by the
things that are unchangeable, rock solid and invaluable. It
is in our souls that we realise that food or sex or clothes or
worldly possessions are not what we need to survive. Our
soul creates its own food, sex and many other aspects of
life that we need to function normally. God sustains our
souls through our faith in Him. Through our faith in Him
we learn that there is more to our relationships than the
physical. We learn that a long stroll along the beach with
your partner can be as rewarding if not more. Sitting
close together on the patio enjoying the last rays of the
winter sun, can reassure you that you do have someone
to walk with you through hard times. And most of all, your
faith in God can assure you that it is not worth it or right to
choose off another menu just because your favourite treat
is not on the one you hold before you. Your faith alone is
what carries you through the lack of food or sex or any
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other ingredient that is needed to sustain you in your
relationship, till death do you part.
Although, like food, we need sex to sustain us, ultimately it
is not what holds our relationship together. What holds a
relationship together is the amount of care and attention
you put into the preparation and following the best recipe
determines whether the product will quench your thirst or
satisfy your hunger. You can guarantee the seal of
approval on your favourite treat – intimate, unforgettable,
never to be talked about in public, sex!
LIFE ISN’T FAIR! BUT GOD IS GOOD!
Yip English title … Afrikaans story! You’ll understand at
the end of it!
Op ‘n dag lees ek Elzette Maarschalk se woorde: “Die
wete dat niks wat enigiemand aan my doen of sê God se
seën van my kan weghou nie, is ‘n fantastiese bevryding!”
Inderdaad, maar dieselfde moet dan tog waar wees van
die onreg in die lewe. Hoe is dit dat sekere mense dit
oënskynlik kan regkry om hulself los te maak van alles
wat rondom hulle verkeerd gaan en uitstyg tussen al die
getjommel van die lewe? Of is dit die sleutelwoord –
oënskynlik!
Dawid het gehuil toe Absalom nog geleef het, en fees
gevier toe hy dood is en van die juk van sy slawerny van
slegte dade verlos is. Dan is dit mos goed om te wys dat
jy swaarkry en voel of jy aanhoudend teen ‘n rots geslaan
word, net om eendag van vreugde te dans wanneer die
las verlig word. Tog smag ons almal daarna om ‘n lewe
van vreugde en sorgeloosheid te leef en streef almal om
vir die wêreld te wys dat ons Christene te midde van
swaarkry, laste en emosionele teistering ons ken in die lug
kan hou en ‘come what may’ kop eerste kan stormloop.
Habakkuk het gesê: ‘Met my God loop ek ‘n bende storm
en spring ek oor ‘n muur’, maar sou dit met ‘n glimlag
wees, of met baie trane, groot baklei en ‘n hele paar
letsels!
Ja, ek kan ook sê, ‘Sonder God in my lewe en aan my sy,
was ek lankal loerland toe.’ Maar gaan die ellendes ooit
ophou of sal daar ‘n tyd aanbreek wat ek kan lag daaroor
en nie ten hemele uitskreeu: “Waarom ek, Here?” nie.
As ek lees van ander se pyn en lyding, kan ek my
dankbaarheid teenoor ons Vader met oortuiging uitsing,
want ja, dit kon sekerlik baie erger gewees het, maar dit
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verduidelik nog steeds nie waarom dit nie ophou nie! “Het
die Satan niks beter om te doen nie? Daar is sekerlik
ander wat hy ook kan pla!” Hierdie baklei het ek ook al
probeer, en ook nie antwoorde gekry nie.
Daar is ‘n kostelike verhaaltjie van ‘n man wat by die Here
gekla het oor die kruis wat hy moes dra. Die Here het in
Sy groot genade vir die man gesê om dan maar vir hom ‘n
ander kruis te kom uitsoek, wat makliker sal wees om te
dra. In die stoorkamer met kruise was daar alle soorte.
Mooies, selfs met edelgesteentes versier, swaar
houtkruise met spykers en splinters wat oral uitsteek – te
veel om van te kies. Maar helaas almal baie swaarder en
groter as wat die man voor kans gesien het. Uiteindelik
net voor die uitgang het daar ‘n klein wit kruis gestaan,
skaars hoër as die man se knie, skoon verlate tussen die
ander groot kruise. ‘Kan ek daardie een kry?’ het hy vir
die Here gevra. En met ‘n liefdevolle stem het die Here
geantwoord, ‘Dis die een wat jy ingebring het om te ruil!’
Die sogenaamde onregverdige laste wat ons in die lewe
dra, is soos klippe wat ons aan die kruis op ons rug dra.
Ons kan die las verlig deur die klippe in die diepsee van
vergifnis te gooi. Soms is daar egter van die klippe wat
nie sink nie. Voordat ons ons rug daarop kan keer, ‘pop’
hulle weer op die water se oppervlak uit, spoel na die
oewer en lê voor ons voete.
Net soos God ons ken en verstaan, net so ken die vyand
ons en weet wat ons van God verwyder. Moedeloosheid
is maar net een van sy vele valstrikke. Is ‘Superhuman’
die enigste manier waarop jy dit aanhoudend kan hanteer
of is dit deel van die oorwinning om te besef ‘Ek is nie
supermens nie!’?
Maar wat gemaak? Here help! Jare se ervaring van
tussen laste deur strompel, verseker jou dat Hy nie verder
as die reikwydte van jou arm is nie. Ja, tussen trane deur
kan ons met ons laaste asem, midde-in die warboel van
onvermoë om te verstaan steeds uitroep, ‘DIE LEWE IS
NIE REGVERDIG NIE!’ Maar terselfdertyd weet, GOD IS
GOED, want niks wat met jou gebeur of wat enigiemand
aan jou doen of van jou sê kan God se seën van jou
weghou nie. Die bevryding kom, as jy dit onvoorwaardelik
glo!
‘Don’t give up, don’t give in, He’s there to guide you on
your journey home. And He knows, life is hard, the world
is cold, we’re barely young and then we’re old. Every
falling tear isn’t always understood. Life is hard, but God
is good!’ (Pam Thum – Feel the healing)
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LISTEN TO ME!
‘And this is the confidence which we have in Him: that if we ask
anything according to His will (in agreement with His own plan),
He listens to and hears us.’ 1 Joh 5:14
Through the ages the subject of constructive
communication has been looked at by many and from as
many angles. In the end, apart from certain basic
requirements, there always remains one overall
conclusion – communication is not just the ability to make
conversation in any language, displaying the ability to
listen to what is said is of the utmost importance and can
make or break positive lines of communication.
From childhood we are confronted with the longing to not
only be heard, but to be listened to. A child trying to get a
parent’s attention, does not say, ‘please hear me’. They
pat you on the leg or grab your hand and say, ‘Listen
hear, Mommy!’ ‘Daddy, listen quickly!’.
The difference between being heard and being listened to,
really is very simple. To hear does not mean you have
necessarily taken anything in, whereas listening means
that you have and can act on what was said if it is
required. Most often people are happy if you just hear
them, it is however when a subject touches your heart and
you share it, when you really want them to listen. This is
where we lose it!
So, what is required when someone needs to be heard
and you have to listen?
Most importantly we must realise that most of us struggle
to share our deepest emotion with just anyone. When
someone gets to the point of actually verbalising what is
bothering them, this is already a very brave gesture which
probably required great contemplation.
Make sure I know that I am worth listening to
We want to know immediately that we are respected
and that who we are, our views and opinions are
important enough to listen to. This is shown by giving
undivided attention. If you cannot do this right away,
say so! Don’t however just brush it off, make sure the
person knows that you really want to give your full
attention to what is about to be said and that another
time may be more suitable. Make sure that you
mention how long you are unavailable to listen. Don’t
leave them dangling in mid air wondering why you
couldn’t do it right away. It is just possible that the
problem has left them feeling inferior and your
unmotivated rejection makes it worse.
The matter must be as important to you as it is to
me
This doesn’t mean that you have to agree or feel as
strongly about it as they do, but it must be evident that
you regard it as important because it is important
enough for them to discuss it with you.
Don’t interrupt while I’m talking or complete my
sentences
We are all different, therefore our communication
skills differ. Some of us talk in short phrases, relying
on other people to make their own assumptions. A
valuable lesson to learn, is if you could break
‘assume’ into syllables you would probably get ‘ass-ume’.
So don’t make an ass of yourself or the other
person by interrupting unnecessarily. We also lose
track of what we wanted to say if we are interrupted.
This prolongs the agony of trying to express yourself
clearly. If someone else comes along, let them know
that you are having an important conversation. Do not
push it aside as if it didn’t matter and transfer your
attention.
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Don’t deny me my feelings about the subject
This is very important, especially if you don’t agree
that a problem exists. We all interpret things
differently. One person may be hurt or offended by
something whereas another won’t even notice it. You
cannot decide for someone else how to feel about a
specific subject.
I’m talking to you, not the TV!
How often do you hush someone speaking to you to
hear what is happening on the TV or radio or even to
watch the rugby match? We forget how important
loved ones are until they are no longer there. No TV
programme is more important than any child’s request
to be heard! Record it! Unless it is the news and it
affects your immediate way of life, it can wait. The TV
will still be there later, but the person you are talking
to may not!
Make sure you understand what I’m saying
You can do this by relating what was said back to the
person and asking if you understood correctly. We
mostly misunderstand because we don’t listen
carefully. We don’t listen carefully because we
become disinterested in what is being said or
something else demands our attention. Remember
once you have assured them of your undivided
attention, this is what you have to give.
Look at me while I’m talking to you
If you look at someone while they are talking, it is
evident that you are interested and listening
attentively. This way you are certain that you will hear
everything that they want to say, because you are
focussing your attention on them.
Don’t try and solve my problem unless I ask you
to
Very often we want to get the conversation over and
done with and this is exactly what we do. We deny
the person the opportunity to possibly just vent some
frustration or hurt and jump right in and tell them what
to do. Because we don’t always feel the same way
about the subject, this is when we will deny them their
feelings about it. ‘Don’t worry about it, its not worth
wasting your energy over!’, will not make them feel
better!
These are just a few important guidelines. People write
books about listening skills. We must learn to listen and
constantly work on doing it well. It is a vital aspect of the
success of any relationship.
The way we listen to people, especially our children, could
determine their perception of how God listens to us! If any
human does not think my opinion is of sufficient value to
be heard, how can I convince myself that God does? God
uses people to show us that He cares; therefore we
should be attentive to show people that we do care
enough to listen!
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LOVE THY NEIGHBOR
‘If anyone intends to come after Me, let him deny himself and
lose sight of himself and his own interests and take up his cross,
and follow with Me.’ Mark 8:34
Self-sacrifice is an essential part of being a child of God.
The idea of self-sacrifice however, is not possible if you do
not hold yourself in high regard.
Let’s look at the instruction Jesus gave us with regard to
loving our neighbor, which too often would require selfsacrifice!
When asked what the greatest commandment
was, Jesus replied ‘You shall love the Lord your God with
all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This, He stated was the most important and first
commandment. Then He put another equal to that and
said, ‘You shall love your neighbor as you do yourself.’
‘As you do yourself’!! This is not just an instruction to love
others. This instruction begins with what you think and
feel about yourself. ‘You shall love your neighbor as …’
suggests some kind of measure of love. You love your
son as much as you love your daughter. You love coffee
as much as you love tea. You can only love others as
much as you love yourself.
This would mean that if you dislike another, there really is
a part of yourself that you do not like all that much, that is
reflected in that person. You can only love as much as
you love yourself.
We should therefore first come to terms with who we are,
who God created us to be, before we can even start to
follow the instruction to love others. If we love ourselves
conditionally, we will only love others conditionally.
Only when we have learnt to love ourselves, can we begin
to love others with a self-sacrificing love. This makes the
instruction a bit more difficult than we have always thought
it to be. Look in the mirror now! Come on! Look that
person you are facing straight in the eye and say, ‘I love
you, because you are a wondrous creation!’ Can you do
it?
If you could, you are much closer to being able to love
others like you love yourself than I am or many others that
I know. Your ability to forgive would be greater than mine,
so too your ability to give and enrich the lives of others.
You may be able to have an argument with someone and
forget about it almost immediately.
Have you had the experience of meeting someone for the
very first time and disliking them in an instant for no
apparent reason? It is said that the reason for this is
because we recognise negative or unlikeable traits of
ourselves in others and that this makes us dislike them.
This just proves the fact that we cannot love others
unconditionally if we cannot love ourselves unconditionally
first!
In order to love yourself, you should know yourself. Most
of us will not achieve knowing ourselves in our lifetime,
because we neglect to discover many parts of ourselves
that we are ashamed of or reluctant to show. Life
happens. We experience a lot of things that we learn to
live with by burying it deep inside of us and in so doing,
deny ourselves to become what God created us to be.
Very often we know what God created us to be and we
dislike these attributes especially. Why? Because
somewhere someone said something negative about it,
and we decided it hurts too much to be that person. Who
said being the person God wants you to be would be a
breeze? But this I can promise you, there is no speck of
emptiness in your feeling of selfworth once you make
peace with that person and be that person regardless of
what others say. Just remember there are very specific
characteristics that God builds into each and everyone of
us. Don’t make yourself even more unliked by you and
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others by reasoning that your bad temper was a gift from
God to protect your gentle spirit! No, no! You developed
a bad temper because it seemed that you could deal with
the intensity of feeling hurt and abused better. But, if you
had to, can you live with someone like you?
The instruction is very clear. Love others, like you love
yourself! Love yourself as God loves you, unconditionally.
I don’t know about you, but I fall desperately short in
loving myself the way God loves me, but I guess it’s never
too late to try.
We are wondrously made, created in the image of God.
He has numbered the hair on your head. He counts every
breath that you take and provides oxygen to fill your lungs
to capacity so that you may enjoy the life that He gave
you. He knows your name and loves every part of who
you are so much that He offered the life of His Son to
prove it. Believe it, you can love yourself completely and
in so doing extend His love to your neighbor.
METAMORPHOSIS
‘For the wages which sin pays is death, but the bountiful free gift
of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’ Rom 6:23
If we would only allow Him to, God is able to give us the
most incredible metaphors to enhance how wondrously
He has made us. When He spoils me with these, I often
wish that I was able to put what is in my mind on canvas
or video so that people can truly appreciate the splendour.
Our life in Christ can be compared with the life cycle of a
butterfly. A complete metamorphosis. A purposeful life
cycle of which the one period is dependant on the other,
no matter how tedious or difficult it may seem.
Now I know there’s an ongoing debate about which was
first, the chicken or the egg, but for the sake of simplicity I
will assume that in the life cycle of the butterfly it all begins
with the egg.
Just as every one of the hundreds of kinds of butterflies in
the world chooses a very unique breeding ground to lay its
eggs, pro-actively providing for the larvae to have a
sufficient food source when it hatches, so too God
provides for us. He carefully selects where and when you
will stick your head out, even without your realising it.
In the safety of the egg shell the larvae grows. Intricately
formed to produce a caterpillar that is one of a kind.
Although all caterpillars of a specific type seem to look the
same, entomologists have proven over and over again
that they are not. Each has some unique marking that
makes it a perfect individual. So are we. Not even
identical twins are completely identical.
We grow in our mother’s womb, protected from the world
around us. Our incubation period may be longer, but is
just as intricate as that of the larvae. Inside the egg, the
larvae can move around. While there is still room, they
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wiggle and squirm, moving around in order to keep
circulation and life flowing. Then as the space becomes
less and movement is restricted, comes the time to rest
and prepare for the exhausting and strenuous trip to the
outside world. Life outside the protection of the eggshell
must happen, or else it will no longer exist.
Like the larvae, when we are ready to make our way into
the world, we face the same harsh unknown world with its
dangers and threats that the caterpillar does. We are
provided with a marvelous food source, which even offers
protection and care. If God has gone to so much trouble
to exact the timing of the larvae breaking free from the
eggshell, surely He would have planned it that each of us
will make it into the world with exact timing.
Although God is in control, even at this early stage of our
lives, the enemy is ready to steal from us. Babies are
born prematurely because of a never-ending list of
complications. Our emotional wellbeing upsets the
process. A vehicle or other accident and traumatic event
can induce early labour. Not always things that God
chooses for us to have. I do believe that God gave man
the ability to learn about science and use it to his benefit
and that medical achievements are necessary to enhance
our lives, but there is only one natural birth. We should
therefore consider that despite the fact that it may save a
life, unnatural labour is possibly not the way that God
ordained it and should be looked at as one of the things
that are not in His perfect plan for our lives, just like being
raped, divorce and all the other tribulations that affect who
we are.
As parents we should realise this, pray over these
circumstances and ask God to take control of it and not
allow anything that is outside of His perfect will to affect
our children negatively. Many people have learnt that
traumas that their mothers experienced during pregnancy
could have an adverse effect on their being.
Once the caterpillar is free, its sole purpose in life is to
eat! And so is ours – not just food, but information. It is
suggested that we proportionately take in more
information in the first five years of our lives, than we will
for the remainder of it. We feed ourselves with all kinds of
things. Some good, some bad. Eventually one day we
become aware of the fact that we are starting to shrivel
up, not physically, but in our spirit. We wonder if there
isn’t more to living than just stuffing yourself with things
that seem to have no real meaning. We are moving into
another period of growth, preparing ourselves for a
second birth.
Our movement is once again restricted. We often become
more unsightly than we were in our previous life stage.
We once again struggle and squirm inside the apparently
unfriendly shell that surrounds us. Finally we enter a
period of rest and prepare for what is our most beautiful
and purposeful life stage: the butterfly.
Our re-birth is not without its difficulties. Although we face
the same world as we did before, we have an entirely
different perspective on it. The first moments are
strenuous and possibly painful as we wait for New Life to
spread through us.
Then as the magnificence of our fluttering wings are
unveiled to the world we discover who God intended us to
be. We take to the winds and fly above the mires and
misery of our life as we experienced it. When there is no
wind we have time to make discoveries, free ourselves
from all that has held us captive for so long.
There always is an enemy. He is out to destroy the
beauty that draws others to us. He tarnishes the symbolic
butterfly stage of our lives as he distorts the beauty of the
real butterfly by giving it negative symbolism. The
butterfly was symbolic to free love during the Hippie era, is
widely used for advertising alcohol and other products
where the use of it suggests the lightness and freedom of
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the butterfly. It is regarded by Serbians as the soul of a
witch. This is part of the deceit and lies that we
experience throughout our lives.
When the wind comes up, we learn that there is very little
damage if we allow it to take us to different heights and
experiences that allow us to grow and last a lifetime.
There will be storms. We may survive some, others not.
Still we know that there is a purpose to it all and that the
end will be sweet.
Finally we settle down and come to the real reason why
we are here – to procreate. To leave behind spiritual eggs
that will one day become the magnificently beautiful, free
gliding butterflies that we become in Christ, offering the
world breathtaking beauty and pleasure that is sometimes
very rare and in its masses colourfully abundant.
MORELE WAARDES
Ek voel dikwels soos ‘n stem in die woestyn oor die stand
van morele waardes regoor die wêreld. Soveel dinge wat
eintlik onaanvaarbaar behoort te wees, raak meer en
meer alledaags. Waar ons as kinders byna nooit aan
naaktheid blootgestel is nie – daar was wel die Scope en
ander onwettige pornografie – sou ek nie kon droom om
die dinge te sien waaraan vandag se jongmense
blootgestel is nie. Die gevolg is dat die seksuele wat
eintlik heilig is, die bron van sensasie, bemarking en
goedkoop humor word. Lekker kuier saam met vriende is
nie meer ‘n jol as jy nie papdronk word nie. ‘n Meisie is
nie lief vir jou as sy nie wil saam slaap nie – eintlik is dit
saam wakker bly! En so kan ek aangaan. Dis ‘n bose
kringloop. Geweld op TV lei tot verhoogde misdaad. In
hoe ‘n groot mate hou verkragtingssyfers verband met
vroue se kleredrag en naaktheid in die media?
En dan is dit vir my altyd bemoedigend as ek vanuit 'n
onverwagte oord verneem dat ek dalk in die minderheid
is, maar allermins net een stem in die woestyn. Ek dink
ons moet net aanhoudend en harder begin roep dan gaan
ons by mekaar uitkom en as ons saamstaan kan ons dalk
'n verskil maak.
Amie van Wyk het in Godsdiens-aktueel in Beeld die
volgende gesê: "Verklaar misdaad tot noodtoestand -
Ons land het dringend 'n morele gedragskode nodig."
Ek stem nie in alle opsigte met sy aanslag saam nie, maar
ek glo dat die basis daarvan meer grond dra as die blote
oproep vir reaksie van die regering oor die misdaad en
geweld in ons land. Soos Amie tereg opmerk
“ 'n Samelewing sonder morele waardes (en norme) is
'n samelewing sonder toekoms. In hierdie verband
kan die kerk en die Christelike etiek, selfs in 'n plurale
samelewing, 'n belangrike bydrae lewer."
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Voordat ons die vuis bal teen misdaad in ons land, moet
ons ons hand oopmaak en kyk wat hou dit vas. Waar
morele waardes aangaan is ons hande leeg! Anything
goes sê die Engelse gesegde. Alles wat goed en reg is
word oorboord gegooi ter wille van goeie bemarking,
snaakser humor, groter aansien, meer geld! Die Bybel sê
nie verniet ons kan nie God en Mammon dien nie. God is
moraliteit en vooruitgang, Mammon is onsedelikheid,
misdaad en verval.
Voorbladnuus oor die aanranding van 'n skoolseun is nie
buitengewoon nie! Dit is egter onaanvaarbaar, in soveel
opsigte! Dis onaanvaarbaar dat hy homself vir watter
rede ookal die reg toegeëien het om 'n medeskolier so erg
te vloek dat hy gevoel het dis nodig om verskoning te vra.
Dis onaanvaarbaar dat die medeskolier nie sy verskoning
aanvaar het nie. Dis onaanvaarbaar dat hy ander betrek
het om sy vervolgingswaansin te voed. Dis
onaanvaarbaar dat dit vrees in mense gelaat het. Dis
onaanvaarbaar dat sommige omstanders gelag en gedink
het dis snaaks. Dis egter nie vreemd nie, want as ons
morele waardes intakt is, sal sulke dinge nie ons lewens
oorheers nie.
Geweld, misdaad en sonde sal daar altyd wees. Net soos
ons in ons land sogenaamde vryheid van spraak het, gee
die Here ons ook 'n keuse. Die een ding wat Amie van
Wyk persoonlik glo, maar weens die kompromie wat
Christene vir menseregte in ons land maak waarskynlik
nie uitdruklik in sy persoonlike gedragskode kan sê nie, is
dat gebed en geloof in die een ware God die basis van
ons elkeen se persoonlike gedragskode behoort te wees.
Terwyl ons geloof en waardes 'n kardinale rol in ons
politiek speel, moet ons politiek inderdaad nie ons
geloof regeer en dikteer nie. Ons moet ons leiers, ten
spyte van hul optrede en wie hul is, respekteer soos die
Here dit van ons verwag. Maar ons leef reeds asof ons
ons geloof in die donker moet beoefen en ons hoef nie!
Dis nie net vryheid om te kies nie, dis ook vryheid van
spraak en dis tyd dat ons sonder om aanstoot te gee
minder skaam en skugter moet wees vir die morele
waardes wat ons huidiglik staande hou en waarsonder
ons in die toekoms nie sal kan bekostig om klaar te kom
nie. Ek dink aan 'n Kinderkrans liedjie wat ek kleintyd
gesing het:
Laat ons skyn vir Jesus met 'n helder glans
Skitter soos die sterre aan die hemeltrans
In 'n donker wêreld, skyn dan skyn
Jy in jou klein hoekie en ek in myn'.
Ek dink ons moet uit ons hoekies uitkom en ons liggies
saam laat brand. Lig verdryf duisternis.
Sjoe, en dis nou 'n vet preek wat ek vir myself ook moet
gee!
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MORE LIES AND DECEIT
‘Let everyone come who is thirsty [painfully conscious of his need
of those things by which the soul is refreshed], and whoever
desires to do it, let him come and drink the water of Life without
cost' Rev 22:17
I mention it elsewhere and want to reiterate that although I
can get quite passionate about certain issues, I stop short
of being an activist because I believe that God wants a
balance to all things. The moment we start focusing on
only one issue, we tend to take things to the extreme and
in so doing lose sight of other matters which are just as, or
sometimes even more important. For instance, crime
remains a problem in our times, however so does poverty,
which results in higher crime rates. Creating a world in
disarray is Satan’s strategy and he attacks from many
angles, but the moment he notices that we are up in arms
about one specific issue, he focuses his onslaught on that,
in order to secretly progress in other areas and catch us
unawares.
God gave us our own free will and with it He gave us
intelligence, because He wanted us to have a choice.
Unfortunately, these two things can become our greatest
adversaries in making choices. We start arguing about
things that should be accepted with childlike innocence.
We are most impressionable when we are young, so God
can work in us if we allow Him, like children, to mould and
shape us into what He wants us to be.
Don’t think for one moment that Satan isn’t aware of the
fact that he can aim his strategies at the innocent minds of
young children. Of course he does. The grown-ups are
so busy fighting the battle against stress, tight budgets,
crime, rising interest rates, divorce, etc. etc. that mostly
the children are forgotten, and actually seem to be quite
content with all the modern replacements for parents,
such as Cartoon Network, Playstation and others. Satan
has caught on to our opinion that ‘Children should be seen
and not heard’. He has in fact ‘created’ a world where
children can vanish in front of our eyes into a world of their
own, and we approve because its one less thing to worry
about.
I truly am a very level headed person. I cannot stand it if
people rant and rave about a specific issue and become
so obsessed with it that they miss the bigger picture. We
are forever getting rid of the cobwebs and should start
looking for the spider that keeps creating them. So, I have
it on about many things, like Halloween for instance. God
give us all insight in certain fields, an awareness that
others may not always see as we do. If we do not share
these revelations with each other, we set each other up to
fall into traps that cause all the scars and distress that
makes life even more difficult than it already is.
And the biggest spider of them all, is Satan. He can
create the most beautiful cobwebs, intricately woven with
carefully thought through detail and when we get caught in
them, we are often so deceived that we don’t even realise
that we are trapped until we start suffocating and by then
the damage is already almost irreparable.
So, the father of lies, the great illusionist is constantly
creating new and better ways to deceive us. We are even
starting to believe that he is not as bad as we’ve always
made him to be, if we ignore his existence and not bother
him, life will be a bed of roses. The strategies of Satan
has a snowball effect. Because God gives us an
awareness and insight for Satan’s plans, he struggles to
get the ball rolling, but once it is in motion a great effort is
required to stop it.
No doubt you may have caught on by now that I have a
very diplomatic nature. I tend to always take a
roundabout way to get to the point. Its just that most of
the time God reveals things to me, which often rock my
boat and I must first get settled myself before I can share.
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This latest revelation almost knocked me off my chair.
And as is my nature, not to just accept what God reveals
right away (aren’t most of us like that), I tested it on my 11
year old son. His reaction: Wow, that’s scary!
What other word does SATAN spell, by moving only one
letter to the center of the word? SANTA
Settle down now, don’t crucify me yet! The guy at the mall
in the Santa suit, is not Satan. But let’s step back a little
and look at the bigger picture.
The following excerpt is part of a conclusion from a
website on the internet about the origin of Santa Clause
www.stnicholascentre.org :
It's been a long journey from the Fourth
Century Bishop of St. Nicholas, who showed his
devotion to God in extraordinary kindness and
generosity, to America's jolly Santa Claus.
However, if you peel back the accretions he is
still Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, whose caring
surprises continue to model true giving and
faithfulness.
What is the reality at the moment? I would be interested
to know what the average youngster today would see in
their mind if you should ask them to close their eyes and
imagine Christmas – I have no doubt – Santa Claus.
Maybe it was true for us when we were kids as well, but I
do believe there was a balance at a time. Yes we loved
Santa, with his white beard and chuckle. It was so
exciting to try and guess who was behind the mask. But,
the truth is, we knew for certain what Christmas was about
and the message rang clear. Above all the cheer and gifts
it stood firm that we celebrated the birth of a Saviour,
Jesus Christ.
The fact that Santa also spells Satan, should make us
think and reassess what Christmas has become. Santa
has become the center of Christmas, often above Jesus
Christ – SANTA vs SATAN then makes a lot of sense!
Christmas is so commercialised, that apart from the carols
that are still heard, the true meaning of it has become
somewhat tarnished. If you think about it, the majority of
the carols that are heard convey a general message of
Christmas cheer such as, Jingle Bells, and very few of
them touch on the true meaning of the holiday! Do you
see the possible lie and deceit and the effect that it has?
J Rosenthal & C Myers says the following:
Everybody loves Santa Claus. He embodies holiday
cheer, happiness, fun, and gifts — warm happy aspects
of the Christmas season. How do Santa Claus and St.
Nicholas differ?
Santa Claus belongs to childhood;
St. Nicholas models for all of life.
Santa Claus, as we know him, developed to boost
Christmas sales—the commercial Christmas message;
St. Nicholas told the story of Christ and peace,
goodwill toward all—the hope-filled Christmas message.
Santa Claus encourages consumption;
St. Nicholas encourages compassion.
Santa Claus appears each year to be seen and heard
for a short time;
St. Nicholas is part of the communion of believers,
surrounding us always with prayer and example.
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Santa Claus flies through the air—from the North
Pole;
St. Nicholas walked the earth—caring for those in
need.
Santa Claus, for some, replaces the Babe of
Bethlehem;
St. Nicholas, for all, points to the Babe of Bethlehem.
Santa Claus isn't bad;
St. Nicholas is just better.
I conclude with the last paragraph from the website:
There is growing interest in reclaiming the original saint in
the United States to help restore the spiritual dimension of
this festive time. For indeed, St. Nicholas, lover of the
poor and patron saint of children, is a model of how
Christians are meant to live. A bishop, Nicholas put Jesus
Christ at the center of his life, his ministry, his entire
existence. Families, churches, and schools are
embracing true St Nicholas traditions as one way to claim
the true center of Christmas—the birth of Jesus. Such a
focus helps restore balance to the increasingly
materialistic and stress-filled Christmas seasons.
The Germans call Santa ‘Kris Kringle’ derived from ‘Christ
Kind’ or Christ Child. Let’s all work together to restore
Christmas back to its true meaning – a joyous time of
loving and giving, quality family time and the knowledge
that thousands of years ago in a manger, a Saviour was
born and He was called Wonderful, Counsellor, Master,
Redeemer and King!
MUSIC OF THE WORLD
‘For whoever would come near to God must believe that God
exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and
diligently seek Him.’ Hebr 11:6b
There is no doubt in my mind that God had a wonderful
intention with the creation of music. Music speaks to your
soul. There are so many different types or genres, that
each and every one of us can be touched by it. What is
more, words aren’t always necessary, the sound of it
alone can change a very sad, miserable, seemingly
desperate moment to one overflowing with hope and trust
in the unknown future.
Some people think in straight lines, exact definitions and
others in facts. I think in music and pictures and if God
can speak to me in these languages, I am at my most
contented. My husband can’t understand that I wake up
in the morning with a song. Sometimes it is in my heart -
these are the contented moments and the song usually
matches my mood. Very often it is in my mind and I
struggle to get rid of it because of its negative impact on
my inner soul or simply because it is stupid or irritating.
But Satan was apparently in command of the music while
he was still in heaven. It therefore stands to reason that
he would use music as instrument for our downfall; he will
know what the effect of it can be on us. So, music is also
subject to the balance that God wants in all things. All
music is not always good, but a lot of the music from the
world can be meaningful.
Through the ages we have been warned and informed of
the dangers of music and its influence on the
subconscious mind. We choose to heed these warnings,
or disregard them as nonsense. We can however not
escape the fact that it is a reality; whether good or bad,
music does speak to your soul.
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Music is made with instruments, your voice or musical
instruments which, with technology today can create the
most awesome types of sound. All music can have an
effect on you. Although in the case of instrumental music
it may have a lesser influence, it still has, for the sound of
tribal drums can drive you on to great heights of
aggression or passion. However, music with lyrics,
expressed vocally has a double impact. Not only will the
music move you, the words can also direct you.
As I would much rather talk about the positive value music
of the world can have for God’s children, for the purpose
of this topic I will only refer to one very famous pop song,
known by most, admired greatly by all and even referred
to as having the same technical quality as the music of
Mozart and Beethoven. Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen is
probably one of the greatest pop songs ever recognised.
However, very few people have actually listened to the
words before. As magnificent as the music may be, the
words are certainly not a positive influence. Apart from
the fact that there is an admission of cold blooded murder,
the message is clearly one without hope. Just killed a
man, put my gun against his head, pulled the trigger now
he’s dead. Didn’t mean to make you cry, if I’m not back
again this time tomorrow, carry on as if nothing really
matters.
Not really strange if you realise that the only gods referred
to in the song, are Satan and Allah! Bismillah! A cry to
Allah to let him go after his murderous behaviour and then
his realisation that Beelsebub has a devil put aside for
him. No wonder that at the end of the song his
deliberation is to get out, just gotta get right outta here and
that nothing really matters. God’s intention for us is to
believe that He created us for good. He wants us to
believe in ourselves; trust that He does and never wants
to think of us as Scaramouche (boastful and cowardly
person).
We have to be set on listening closely to lyrics, and as
with everything in life seek out what is pleasing to God;
underlining the truth that He wants us to know and believe
in. I believe that in every love song one can find a
definition of the love that we should have for God and
similarly the love that He has for us.
The Police with lead singer Sting is hardly a reference
point that would likely be used to describe the all
encompassing love of God. Their song, Every breath you
take in fact does this. More than we can sing the words
from this song about any human, we can sing it about
God, because indeed He watches every move we make,
every step we take, every smile we fake, every bond we
break and every breath we take. How often does He have
to ask us the question ‘can’t you see, you belong to me’
and we can have no doubt that His heart aches with the
steps that we often take. As Jesus explained in the
parable, He will leave all His sheep and go off looking for
the one that is lost. No doubt that when we’re gone, He
will feel lost and see our face and know that there is no
one that can replace us. The same is true of Him in my
life.
Our own Nianell’s songs are ever so close to being
devotional songs to God. Oh, how beautiful love can be.
It erases the fear in me. It gives hope where there is
none… Despite the fact that we envision finding these
things in the love that we hold for our partners, we can
only find them in the founder of love – Father God.
The experience is never ending. Music of the world can
contribute greatly to providing us with inspiration, gratitude
and many other building blocks to make us stronger as
Christians. An old country songs tells about a soldier
being caught in a war without a Bible and when
confronted about a deck of cards he holds in a church
service, he explains how the cards reminded him of the
truths that he learnt about the gospel and was in fact the
solace that he found without the real thing.
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We can make God a part of every single facet of our
existence, if only we will allow ourselves to bring Him into
the reality of our world like its music.
NAAM VAN DIE HERE
‘Ken Hom in al jou weë, dan sal Hy jou paaie gelyk maak.’ Spr 3 :6
Dis vir my baie interessant dat ons van kleins af geleer
word om aan die Tien Gebooie gehoor te gee en dat die
een nie meer of minder belangrik as die ander is nie. Tog
is daar van hulle wat ons beslis nie sal oortree nie en
ander wat, so lyk dit my, makliker is om te verontagsaam.
Dit verskil ook van mens tot mens, maar die wit leuentjie
ontglip weinig van ons en bly ‘n oortreding maak nie saak
hoe onskuldig dit is nie.
So is die derde gebod vir my nog altyd een wat ek glo, ek
nog nooit sondermeer oortree het nie. ‘Julle mag nie die
Naam van die Here julle God onverskillig gebruik nie,
want as iemand dit doen, sal Ek hom verseker straf.’ Ek
kan nie eers onthou of my ma dit meer benadruk het as
die ander nie, en of dit net inherent nog nooit by my
aanklank gevind het om dit te verontagsaam nie. Miskien
is dit omdat dit een van die gebooie is wat duidelike
gevolge uitspel. Die Here gaan jou straf! Not a chance I
would even consider taking!
Net soos dit glad nie in my verwysingsraamwerk is om dit
te doen nie, kan dit my grief as die Naam van die Here in
die wêreld rondom my soos gebruiksgoedere hanteer
word. Om nie soos ‘n dweper te klink en op te tree nie,
het ek op ‘n stadium mense se ydele gebruik van die Here
se Naam, gekoppel aan ‘n geestelike liedjie wat ‘n
waarheid uit die Woord aanhaal. ‘Anyone who calls on
the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ Ek was selfs ‘n keer
of wat al braaf genoeg om ‘n persoon daarop te wys dat
hy herhaaldelik die Naam van die Here aanroep en dus
beslis gered kan word. In my teenwoordigheid het hy dit
nie weer gedoen nie! As ons na die derde gebod kyk, is
die teendeel egter waar en die waarskuwing wat na die
misbruikers moet uitgaan is dat die straf van die Here
hulle voorland is.
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Rondom ons in die hedendaagse wêreld word dit
toenemend meer aanvaarbaar en dis veral op die Engelse
tong meer so, dat die Naam van die Here as skelwoord,
uiting van verbasing, oproep om hulp en sommer net
doelloos in die algemene gebruiktaal voorkom. Mense
kom skaars agter dat hulle dit doen.
Ons sit deur flieks of in gesprekke waar God se Naam
openlik belaster word. Binne in ons krimp dit ineen en
voel ons dat dit onaanvaarbaar is, maar is dit ‘n verloëning
van Jesus Christus as ons nie opstaan en uitloop nie of
onsself daarteen uitspreek nie? Rom 2:24 sê: Inderdaad,
soos daar geskrywe staan, ‘as gevolg van julle optrede
word die Naam van God deur die heidennasies belaster.’
Hierdie misbruik van die Here se Naam is deel van die
vyand se strategie. As die Naam van die Here nie meer
gerespekteer word nie, waarom sal mense God dan nog
vrees of hul vertroue in Hom plaas? Soveel as wat die
Tien Gebooie vir ons voorskryf dat God ons sal straf vir
die misbruik van Sy Naam, soveel en nog meer word daar
in die Woord benadruk dat die Naam van die Here vir ons
‘n uitkoms kan wees.
Die Woord sê onder andere:
1. Die Naam van die Here is ‘n sterk vesting, die
regverdige vind daarin skuiling. Spr 18:10
Alhoewel die meer moderne vertalings van die Woord
dit nie pertinent so stel dat die ‘Naam’ van die Here
skuiling bied nie, stel die Lewende Bybel dit
byvoorbeeld nog steeds baie duidelik dat die
beskerming in God is. Die Here is ‘n sterk vesting.
Daarom kan die wat aan Hom gehoorsaam is by Hom
gaan skuil en veilig wees.
2. Ps 106:8 sê: Maar Hy het hulle gered ter wille van die
eer van Sy Naam en om Sy mag bekend te maak. Só
tree Hy op ten spyte van Sy volk se opstand teen
Hom en die feit dat hulle nie ag geslaan het op sy
kragtige dade en versekering van Sy trou aan hulle
nie. God tree dus vir ons in ten spyte van ons
swakhede, sodat Sy Naam verheerlik en nie geminag
word nie.
3. In Johannes 15 sê Jesus dat Hy die wingerdstok en
ons die lote is en dat die Here bepaal dat die lote wat
vrug dra, versorg sal word. Jesus bring ons in Sy
vriendskapskring in as ons doen wat Hy ons beveel
en gee dan die belofte in vers 16b: Dan sal die Vader
vir julle gee wat julle ook al bid as julle in My Naam
bid.
4. In die Naam van Jesus Christus verkry ons volgens
Johannes 20:31 die lewe – Maar hierdie
wondertekens is beskrywe sodat julle kan glo dat
Jesus die Christus is, die Seun van God, en sodat
julle deur te glo, in sy Naam die lewe kan hê.
5. As ons aanvaar dat die tien gebooie in die Ou
Testament vir die mense voorgehou is as riglyn vir ‘n
goeie lewe, kan ons aanvaar dat die profetiese
beloftes van daardie tyd direk daarop van toepassing
is. Dan sê Jesaja van die Koning wat sal kom – Hy
dra die gesag om te regeer en Hy sal genoem word
Wonderlike Raadgewer,
6. Magtige God, voorwaar, daar is geen ander God bo
Hom nie;
7. Ewige Vader en – deur al die eeue heen altyd daar,
altyd getrou en gewillig om te red en vertroos ;
8. Koning wat vrede bring. In elke hart wat gewillig is om
Sy Naam te eer.
9. Die Naam van die Here is my banier. Dit kan
weggesteek in my laai lê, of ek kan dit daagliks soos
die banier van my geliefde sportspan dra, sonder
skaamte, met trots en ‘n uitgesproke lojaliteit.
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Sodoende kan dit vir die vyand ‘n waarskuwing wees
dat ek aan God behoort.
10. Die Naam van die Here is my voorsiening. Hiervan
getuig Dawid in Psalm 23; Die Here is my herder,
niks sal my ontbreek nie.
Daar is vir ons maar net tien eenvoudige redes om die
Naam van die Here in ere te hou, nie net omdat daar ‘n
waarskuwing van oordeel in die misbruik daarvan lê nie,
maar omdat daar vele beloftes van God se liefde en trou
daarin vasgeanker is.
Wanneer Christus sy dissipels leer bid, word die Here
aangeroep op liefdevolle wyse – Ons Vader wat in die
hemel is en dan as die belangrikste aspek van enige
gebed – Laat U Naam geheilig word! Want as die Naam
van die Here nie geheilig word nie, is die res van die
gebed nutteloos, kan Sy koninkryk nie vir ons op aarde
kom nie, ons nie vergifnis vir onsself en ons vyande vind
nie en ultimately God se wil nie in ons lewe geskied nie.
God se wil vir ons is dat goedheid en guns ons sal volg al
die dae van ons lewe en dat ons tot in lengte van dae in
Hom sal bly, net deur sy Naam te eer!
NIE NET EEN GEBED!
‘Ek wil jou onderrig en jou die pad leer wat jy moet volg. Ek wil
jou raad gee en my oog oor jou hou.’ Ps 32:8
Regdeur die Bybel, in die Ou- en Nuwe Testament is daar
voorbeelde van gebed, die waarde van gebed en die
opdrag om dit voortdurend te doen. Soms is die
voorbeelde van gebed egter nie so voor die hand liggend
soos toe die dissipels vir Jesus gevra het hoe hulle moet
bid en Hy vir hulle die Onse Vader voorgehou het nie.
Die Onse Vader was vir die dissipels ‘n riglyn. Jesus het
bloot gesê, ‘So moet julle dan bid ….’ en nie ‘altyd bid’
nie. Elke Psalm van Dawid lees soos ‘n gebed. Selfs dié
van Asaf en die Koragiete. Dis wel lofliedere, maar bevat
al die elemente van gebed soos deur Jesus voorgeskryf.
As ‘n gebed dus soos ‘n loflied is - ons sing om uiting te
gee aan ons liefde teenoor die Here - kan ons netsowel
gebed as kommunikasie sien – natuurlik met God. Ons
praat met die Here deur ons gebed.
Maar dit verander die hele konsep van gebed. Is gebed
werklik net iets wat jy in jou binnekamer of in God se huis
kan doen? Of is die opdrag om te bid sonder ophou,
voortdurend te bid, juis ‘n aanduiding van God dat Hy ten
alle tye met ons in gesprek wil wees!
Ons het ‘n sondige natuur. Met ‘n vernuwing van ons
gedagtes poog ons ons hele lewe lank op aarde om van
ons sondige natuur ontslae te raak. Nie een van ons sal
heilig wees terwyl ons nog leef nie, want ten spyte van die
feit dat ons gedurig daarna streef, is en sal daar strikke
van die vyand wees en dis onvermydelik dat ons soms in
hulle gaan vasval. Al wat ons uitred, is juis gebed of dan
ons gesprekke met God.
God is ons Vader. ‘n Mens kan met jou pa praat – dis nou
as jou aardse pa nie die pa-beeld opgevoeter het nie!
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Maar as jy ‘n liefdevolle, regverdige en vergewensgesinde
pa-figuur geken het, weet jy dat die enigste vereiste vir ‘n
gesprek met hom is dat jy hom sal respekteer. So is dit
ook met ons Hemelse Vader. Deur ons kennis van Hom
weet ons dat ons Hom kan respekteer. As ons dit in ons
gebed tot Hom onthou en Sy Naam eer, kan ons met Hom
praat – heeldag lank! Selfs as jou beeld van ‘n pa
afgryslik is, kan die Here dit herstel en vir jou die Pa wees
wat jy nog altyd gemis het.
Daar is gevolglik wat my aanbetref nie net een
vasgestelde gebed nie, maar letterlik duisende gesprekke
wat ons met die Here kan hê, en die enigste vereiste vir
die gesprekke is respek. Jy moet die Here goed genoeg
ken om te weet dat daar ‘n perfekte balans is tussen die
feit dat Hy vir jou oneindig lief is en letterlik enigiets sal
doen om jou geluk te verseker en aan die ander kant van
die skaal dat Hy nie ongehoorsaamheid ongestraf kan laat
nie en dat Hy net soos ‘n goeie aardse pa genoodsaak is
om ons van tyd tot tyd te dissiplineer.
Maar ja, daar is ruimte vir tradisionele, formele gebed
waar ons onsself totaal aan God wy, buite invloede
probeer vermy en in privaatheid onsself voor Hom
verootmoedig. As ons Vader, wil die Here ons egter op
Sy skoot kan tel, styf teen Sy bors kan vasdruk en ons
met ‘n sagte stem kan oortuig dat ons in Sy omhelsing
altyd veilig is. Dit kan Hy net doen as Hy weet dat ons oor
enigiets met Hom kan praat, onsself aan Hom blootstel
soos net Hy weet wie ons is. Praat met Hom!
Pappa,
Leer my om my gebed tot U uit te brei tot intieme gesprekke wat elke oomblik van die dag deel van my lewe kan
wees. Lei my op ‘n pad waar ek sal ontdek dat U nie net een of twee afsprake vir die dag met my wil hê nie, maar
voortdurend wil hê dat ek aan U sy stap, U wil en beskerming soek en U sal leer ken as ‘n liefdevolle Vader wat
Sy kind ten alle koste sal beskerm. Laat my egter nooit vergeet dat U die heelal in U hand hou, dat U asem ‘n
storm kan aanblaas of laat bedaar en dat U soms vir my moet ‘Nee’ sê, omdat U verder as ek kan sien en weet wat
op die pad vorentoe vir my wag.
Pappa, hou my styf teen U bors vas, sodat ek kan vergeet van my vyande se planne teen my, in U omhelsing
vergifnis vir hulle kan vind en kan toelaat dat U elke aanklag wat die vyand op my lewe plak vernietig en my
wonde kan versorg en heel.
Pappa, leer my om met U te praat!
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NIE PERDE KOOP NIE!
Die geykte ou spreekwoord wat sê ‘Trou is nie perde koop
nie’ bly een van die grootste waarhede van alle tye. En
perde koop is nie maklik nie, hoeveel te meer nie trou nie!
Perde koop verg insig, kennis, monetêre vermoë en
toewyding. Jy gaan nie sommer enige ou donkie koop net
om ‘n perd te hê nie! Soms is dit nie moontlik om die
beste een te koop nie, hulle is nogal duur, maar dan gaan
jy die een uitkies wat jou die beste pas – gewoonlik een
waarmee jy connect..
Die connection is nogal belangrik en kan saam met jou
ingesteldheid en motivering toe jy aanvanklik net gedink
het om die perd te koop, ‘n bepalende faktor wees van die
sukses van die transaksie. As jy nie besef het watter
toewyding dit sal neem om van die perd ‘n wenperd te
maak nie, moes jy nie eers gaan shop het nie. As jy nie
bereid sou wees om nagte wakker te bly om die perd deur
siektes te versorg of ‘n merrie te help vul nie, het jy jou tyd
en jou geld gemors. As jy gedink het jy kan met jou
normale bestaan voortgaan en die perd gaan net daar in
die veld staan en mooi lyk en ‘n goeie bate bly, was jy
duidelik oningelig of deur status aangetas! En nou begin
trou vir my al hoe meer soos perde koop klink.
Ons bereik ook een of ander tyd ‘n ingesteldheid en begin
motivering soek om te trou. Ons reageer selfs op ‘n
advertensie. Jy gaan nie sommer in die bondel gryp en
sê, ‘Kom hier, jy’s die een!’ nie. Ons gaan selfs vendusie
toe en sit dapper ons bod in as ons glo dis die beste
keuse. Daar moet beslis ‘n mate van belangstelling wees
en dit hang weer eens van jou ingesteldheid af. As jy nie
die regte onderrig en leiding gehad het nie, gaan jy dalk
blindelings jou keuse maak en later agterkom dat dit nie
heeltemal was wat jy gedink het dit sou wees nie. Al het
jy die regte leiding gehad, gaan daar dae wees wat jy in
elk geval wonder wat jou besiel het en hoe jy sekere
swakhede misgekyk het.
As jy die perd gekoop het, is dit jou keuse wat jy daarvan
gaan maak. As jy nie die regte kos gee nie, moet jy
tevrede wees met ‘n gevrekte dier wat halstarrig sy hoewe
aan die grond vasplak en weier om te hardloop. Jy kan
hom slaan net soos jy wil, jy gaan dalk sy gees inbreek,
maar opeindig met ‘n dier wat met vrees en onderdrukking
reageer op jou bevele – geen karakter, geen ekstra
dryfkrag, geen vuur. Die res van jul lewe saam is ook vol
keuses. As die perd te wild is, het jy ‘n keuse om dit mak
te maak of nie. Jy het ‘n keuse of jy hom gaan ry tot die
salpeter op hom uitslaan en hy gehoorsaam is en of jy dit
met geduld en toewyding gaan doen en probeer om die
karakter van die perd te ontdek en aan te raak. As die
perd sou seerkry, het jy ‘n keuse om hom van kant te
maak om sy lyding (of dalk joune) te verlig of bietjie
toewyding en deursettingsvermoë aan die dag te lê deur
die perd weer na volkome herstel terug te lei. Selfs ‘n
perd wat dit nie op die renbaan gaan maak en vir jou groot
geld inbring nie, kan vir teel-doeleindes gebruik word, of
jou kleinkinders vermaak as hulle kom kuier. Dit het alles
met die diepte en waarde van die aanvanklike connection
te doen!
As daar ‘n waardevolle connection was, maak dit sekere
keuses makliker as ander. Die moeiliker keuses het egter
‘n gesonde basis – as jy al die voor- en nadele opgeweeg
het, berus jou keuse op die ou end maar by die kwaliteit
van die connection wat jy gemaak het. Die connection is
die gom wat jul verhouding aanmekaar hou. Dis die
bepalende faktor wat jou weer laat opklim as die perd jou
afgegooi het of jou hand gebyt het in plaas van die appel
te vat, of amper jou kakebeen afgeskop het. Jou
ingesteldheid en toewyding bepaal hoe sterk hierdie gom
is.
Dieselfde gom wat bepaal of jy nog bietjie langer met die
perd gaan uithou, is die gom wat huwelike aanmekaar hou
en is op die ou end die gom wat die wêreld om ons
aanmekaar hou. En hier is trou vir my nogal baie soos
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perde koop. Die perd wat jy koop mag ‘n pragdier wees
met ‘n bloedlyn wat skrik vir niks en hope potensiaal – but
all is not always visible to the naked eye! Beslis is daar
aspekte van jou maat wat jy gaan ontdek, nie naastenby
in die aanvanklike prentjie verweef was nie. Net so is
daar karaktertrekke van jou wat dalk misgekyk is. Die
punt is, daar was wedersydse belangstelling, ‘n
connection, want ons is nie heeltemal soos diere nie.
Daar was ‘n ingesteldheid van toewyding en
deursettingsvermoë. Daar was ‘n bewustheid dat alles nie
altyd maanskyn en rose sal wees nie. En net soos die
finale koopkontrak, was daar ook doelgerigte toetrede tot
die ooreenkoms. Jy het jou perd gekoop, dis jou keuse
wat jy daarvan maak. Gaan jy die stof van jou lyf af vee
en opklim en weer ry, of was jou ingesteldheid van die
begin af verkeerd en gaan jy die stryd gewonne gee?
Maar trou is werklik nie soos perde koop of inkopies doen
nie. Want dit maak nie saak wat ons gekoop het nie, as jy
nie tevrede is nie, kan jy dit net so maklik weer
herverkoop of terugneem. Veral as daar ‘n waarborg op
is. Miskien moet jy teen ‘n verlies herverkoop, hopelik
teen ‘n wins! Trou is nie so nie!
Die enigste terugneem- of herverkoopwaarborg wat jy op
jou huwelik het, is ingebou in jou aanvanklike
ingesteldheid, jou toewyding en deursettingsvermoë en
die kwaliteit van die connection wat jy gemaak het.
Tevredenheid is nie noodwendig gewaarborg nie, maar as
die Here die samestelling van die gom bepaal het, is en
kan daar geen terugdraai wees nie! Hy het nie gesê die
lewe gaan maklik wees nie. Hy het nie gesê daar gaan
net smooth sailing wees nie. Hy het nooit veronderstel
dat die vyand dit nie vir jou nog moeiliker gaan maak nie.
Hy het net gesê jy gaan nooit alleen wees nie.
Die kontrak bepaal : deur dik en dun, vrede en onvrede,
goed en sleg, tevredenheid en ontevredenheid, die beste
en die slegste. Met wie het ons die kontrak aangegaan?
Met ons huweliksmaats? Nee! Ons beloof wel trou aan
mekaar, maar dit word voor die Here gedoen en is dus in
totaliteit ‘n belofte wat ons net aan Hom maak. Dat ons
ten spyte van enige teenstand, verskille, onontdekte
gevare en swakhede, baie pyn en hope teleurstellings die
connection wat gemaak is, sal eer. Mekaar die krediet sal
bly gee dat daar altyd meer voor- as nadele is en dat die
nadele wat moeilik is om mee saam te leef met die Here
se superglue aanmekaar gehou word. Onthou, die wêreld
om ons is ook afhanklik van die gom wat ons huwelik
aanmekaar hou, al lyk dit nie midde in die stryd so nie. As
ons gom meegee net omdat ons nie tevrede is met die
fringe benefits nie, gaan die wêreld om ons ook uitmekaar
val.
Die vyand kan jou in baie dinge inpraat. Ook ‘n
herverkoop of inruiling. Daar is net ‘n definitiewe menslike
streep wat ‘n mens trek. Met God is daar altyd ruimte vir
vergifnis. Die Ou Testament bepaal jy mag nie skei nie.
Die motiverings vir egskeiding is daar, maar Moses het dit
daargestel op die mense se aandrang, dis nie deel van
God se plan nie. Wat ookal die aanvaarde motivering is,
die bepaling is duidelik – as die ongelowige dan wil skei…
Die Nuwe Testament bepaal, Manne julle moet julle vroue
liefhê soos Christus die kerk liefgehad het en Sy lewe vir
haar neergelê het! Ons as die kerk was deur die eeue
heen sekerlik die mees ondankbare, ontoegeeflikste,
hardkoppigste en eenvoudig die mees halstarrige
huweliksmaat wat jy jou kan voorstel – steeds bly Hy
getrou en stel nie eers belang om van ons ontslae te raak
nie. Hierdie is die hoof-bestanddeel van die gom wat ons
aanmekaar plak, en ons kan dit net soveel op die vrou van
toepassing maak. ‘n Verhouding kan net werk as daar
wedersydse toewyding is.
Op die ou end moet ons die ding by die naam noem.
EGSKEIDING VERSKEUR EN IS NIE DIE ENIGSTE
OPLOSSING NIE. Ek weet, want ek was daar! Maar soos
baie dinge in die lewe, kan ons onsself dikwels oortuig dat
die verkeerde ding geregverdig is, en as jy nou eenmaal
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jouself oortuig het dat daar nie ander uitkomkans is nie,
dan is daar min wat vir jou die teendeel sal bewys.
Dit is egter, soos baie ander probleme, nie die einde van
die wêreld nie, en beslis nie ‘n onvergeeflike sonde nie.
Dis ‘n wilsbesluit soos baie ander oortredinge in die lewe,
iets waarvoor net jy alleen verantwoordelikheid kan
aanvaar. Paulus en selfs Moses dui verder ook aan dat
daar wel aanvaarbare gronde vir egskeiding is, soos
owerspel - maar dan moet die slagoffer bereid wees om
nooit weer te trou nie! En dit is die enigste moontlike
manier waarop egskeiding met die minste komplikasies
hanteer kan word.
Om te dink dat jy ‘n nuwe lewe met nuwe geluk en geen
probleme tegemoetloop ná jou egskeiding, is die grootste
illusie wat die duiwel nog ooit vir die mensdom geskilder
het. En hy het die prentjie so mooi opgedollie dat min
mense die waarheid daaragter kan raaksien. Die
waarheid is, dat jy NOOIT daarvan wegkom nie. Jy leef
saam met ‘n wandelende lyk. Dis nie óf hy/sy ‘n
verskyning gaan maak nie, maar wanneer. Met die Here
se genade en as jy hard probeer kan jy hierdie
verskynings in ‘n groot mate beheer en makliker hanteer,
maar glo my – jy kom nie van hulle weg nie!
Egskeidingslagoffers sonder kinders beleef wel ook die
trauma dat jy ‘n bal en ketting vir die res van jou lewe
saamsleep, maar hul genade is dat weer begin - net van
jouself afhang, no attachments. So, eintlik praat ek
hoofsaaklik met die ouens wat hul kinders saam met hulle
deur die gemors sleep, as ek sê:
Vir die res van jou, jou eks en jou kinders se bestaan
sal daar altyd meer komplikasies wees as in enige
ander verhouding.
Jou kinders word altyd geraak deur die verskillende
maniere waarop ma en pa hul nuwe lewens aanpak.
Adapt or die!
Stiefma of stiefpa is in ‘n konstante stryd gewikkel om,
maak nie saak hoe goed hulle is of nie is nie, te
bewys dat hulle wel vir hul nuwe kroos omgee.
Daar is altyd die ouer wat hart en mond belowe om na
die egskeiding nog steeds betrokke te wees en altyd
daar te wees vir die kinders en baie gou die belofte
vergeet.
Omdat dikwels net een ouer sy/haar deel bydra om
die stukke van die verbrokkelde verhouding weer
bymekaar te maak, slaag die ander ouer daarin om
basiese verantwoordelikhede te ontduik en net die
kinders se pêl te wees. Naweke en vakansie saam
met die naweek/vakansie ouer is sorgvry, sonder te
veel reëls en baie lekkerder as tuis waar daar
dissipline en verantwoordelikhede is.
Daar bestaan nie iets soos ‘n vriendelike skikking na
egskeiding nie. Een of altwee van julle kan besluit om
daadwerklik daaraan te werk, veral as beide partye
die Here ken. Maar, ‘n mens kan eenvoudig nie
wegkom van die feit dat daar konstant konfrontasies
sal wees wat jou emosies soos water deur ‘n sif
dreineer nie, en jou weer en weer verbysterd,
platgeslaan en met ‘n gevoel van leweloosheid laat.
Dis veral waar as daar kinders betrokke is.
As jy nie aan die baklei is om ‘n stiefkind in liefde te
probeer dissiplineer en nie terselfdertyd soos ‘n feeks
lyk of voel nie, of jou regverdigheid teenoor ‘myne en
joune’ tot breekpunt beproef word nie, dan erf jy maar
saam met jou eggenoot al die eks se foute en moet
male sonder tal die gevolge van hul tekortkominge
stukkie vir stukkie bymekaarskraap en weer op ‘n
manier vasgom om na iets te lyk. Altyd met vreugde,
sonder om te kla of te mor.
Ek kan vir jou ‘n boek skryf oor die komplikasies, maar ek
weet dat as jy jou voorgeneem het dat dit die oplossing is,
sien of hoor jy niks anders raak nie. As jy dit op hierdie
oomblik dus oorweeg, glo my, dink ‘n duisend keer
daaroor na. Praat met en LUISTER vir iemand wat reeds
daar was en altyd is, oor al die komplikasies. Dis ‘n
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wilsbesluit! Negatiewe optrede het nog nooit positiewe
resultate opgelewer nie. Die teendeel is egter ook waar.
Doelgerigte pogings om op die positiewe voort te bou ten
spyte van alles wat verkeerd loop, is die enigste middel tot
ware sukses.
God maak in Sy groot genade voorsiening vir ons
verkeerde oordeel en daar is wonderlike tweede kanse as
ons die eerste verbrou het. Maar dis nie ‘n maklike pad
om te stap nie, en kan net gelukkig en suksesvol wees as
Hy in beheer is.
NO LONGER THERE
I must say, my Dad - our God - is an awesome God. I
think of the song that was so rightfully also translated into
English. 'My Dad is the King of the whole universe' and
this is so true!
The title of this piece should be, 'ONE DAY WHEN I'M NO
LONGER THERE'. Now, now, before you think I'm
planning on going somewhere or giving up, I have no such
intentions! God's Word promises us a long and fruitful life
and mine will not end even a split second before He
intends it to. The piece merely illustrates that we are
constantly working on our legacy that we build into life and
will one day leave behind and that we should always be
working towards making it one that will hold fast even
when we are not there. When it was added to my list of
future topics, I thought 'Great, now I can say something to
all the recipients who never let me know if my stuff is
garbage, inspirational, boring or so true!’ Because isn't
this so often what we do when we feel we're not
appreciated and need some reassurance - we think to
ourselves - 'Just wait and see, one day when I'm no
longer there, then they will miss me!’
And as always, the King - my Dad - stepped in! And this
is what He thinks!
So one day when I'm no longer there:
I want you: To miss ME!
He wants you: To know that it’s much more important
that He is always there!
I want you: To think of all the times you neglected to
tell me that you care, but you don't have to because
He wants you: To realise now that such a time may
come and you must remember, because He cared, He
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gave me the inspiration to write these messages, which
are indirectly from Him
I want you: To let me know somehow that you liked
the book, just so I know that I did not waste my time,
but I didn’t because
He wants you: To know that nothing about you is ever
a waste of time, that no matter how long it took me
and how much I want to know if you really care - just
assuring you that He cares about you, should be all
that’s important to me.
I want you: To appreciate me and my efforts
He wants you: To realise that no effort of mine could
ever be enough to convince you how much He loves you,
if you don't believe it!
I want you: After all that He has taught me, to know
that I am only human. I am not perfect, I don't have
all the answers, I don't always do the right thing and I
really know that your pat on my shoulder does not
matter half as much as He does and that His
appreciation in the end is all that counts.
He wants you: To believe that He really did die for
you too, no matter who you are, where you're from,
where you plan on going or what you'll try to achieve
alone today. The price for your success is already
paid! Just take it!
So please, I will try to believe with all my heart that you did
appreciate my messages, but more importantly, I will
trust that I was able to teach you, with God's helping hand,
to stand on your own.
ONGEHOORSAAM EN ONVERSKILLIG
‘Aan My behoort die silwer en die goud, spreek die Here van die
leërskare.’ Haggai 2:8
Wanneer kan ons God blameer vir die dinge wat in ons
lewe verkeerd gaan? Ek sê: ‘Nooit nie!’ Ons kan nie
terselfdertyd glo en verkondig dat God regverdig, goed en
so lief vir ons is dat Hy Sy Seun vir ons geoffer het; en dat
Hy ons straf of vir geen verklaarbare rede slegte dinge
met ons laat gebeur nie.
Ek is jammer ek vind dit moeilik om albei te glo. Dit is wel
so dat die vyand (Paulus praat van die brullende leeu wat
soek wie hy kan verslind) gedurig sy strategie vir die
vernietiging van ons lewens hersien en aanhoudend
probeer om die lewenskwaliteit wat God belowe (Julle sal
lewe in oorvloed hê! Joh 10:10) te steel. God hunker na
ons vertroue in Hom, ons toetrede tot die geestelike stryd
teen die bose en ons verantwoordelike optrede, om te
verseker dat ons net voorspoed beleef. Maar Satan is in
beheer van hierdie wêreld en as al ons
verdedigingsstrategieë nie in plek is nie, is die Here soms
genoodsaak om slegte dinge in ons lewe TOE TE LAAT
as deel van ‘n groter strategie om nog meer vernietigende
omstandighede van ons weg te hou.
‘The will of God cannot take you, where the grace of God
cannot protect you!’ Dit beteken solank as wat ons in die
wil van God werk en wandel ons veilig is en voorspoed
kan geniet. Sodra ons egter uit God se wil uit beweeg
deur ongehoorsaam te wees, kom ons direk te staan teen
die bose planne wat Satan vir ons lewens reserveer.
Wanneer is ons ongehoorsaam? Toe Jesus aan die
regterhand van God gaan sit het, om vir ons ‘n voorspraak
by die Vader te wees, het die Here die Heilige Gees
gestuur om altyd met ons te wees. Die Heilige Gees lei
ons om God se wil vir ons lewens te doen. Maar soos
stout kinders luister ons nie altyd nie.
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Hoekom nie? Omdat ons dink dat ons beter weet. Omdat
ons dink dat ons die Here moeite kan spaar. Omdat ons
teen ons oogvelle vaskyk en nie die gevare rondom ons
besluite raaksien nie. Omdat ons vergeet om die Here se
raad en leiding te vra. Bloot omdat ons mens is en nie
werk aan ons ingesteldheid om altyd op die Here ingestel
te wees nie.
As ons onsself so begin isoleer van die wil van God, raak
ons onverskillig. Veral as dit goed gaan! Dan verval ons
sommer maklik in die gewoonte om nie eers die Here se
wil te soek nie. Alles gaan dan so voor die wind. Die son
skyn, die voëls sing, ons dag verloop sonder enige
noemenswaardige probleme; ons word selfs herinner aan
hoe bevoorreg ons is as ons die hartseer en lyding van
mense rondom ons moet aanskou. Ons onverskilligheid
maak ons blind en kortsigtig en as ons weer bewus raak
van die pad wat God wil hê ons moet stap, kyk ons op en
sien die donderwolke wat dreig en weet dat ons so pas ‘n
hele bondel wasgoed op die draad gehang het en niks het
om aan te trek na die bevorderingsete saam met die baas
nie! En dan vra ons: ‘Here hoe kan U dit nou laat reën?’
Om op die Here ingestel te wees is letterlik soos ‘n
kragprop wat aan elektrisiteit gekoppel is. Ons bly nog
steeds ingeprop al is ons ongehoorsaam, maar ons sit die
skakelaar af. Die Here kan nie Sy noodsaaklike
kragbronne by ons besorg totdat ons weer die kragpunt
aangeskakel het nie. Om dit te doen, moet ons tot die
besef kom dat ons ongehoorsaam was, ons
onverskilligheid in oënskou neem, by Vader vergifnis vra
en van Hom afhanklik raak om die gemors weer reg te
stel. Maar selfs hierin bly ons ongehoorsaam. Ons kan
nie ontslae raak van ons skuldgevoel omdat ons
ongehoorsaam was nie, en probeer om op ons eentjie die
gemors skoon te maak met lappe en hande wat vol
modder is – die resultaat is net nog ‘n groter gemors.
Ons moet weer gehoorsaam raak. Konstant op soek
wees na wat die Here wil hê ons moet doen. Ons moet
ons onverskilligheid laat staan en nooit sonder die Heilige
Gees se leiding beweeg nie. Sodoende kan ons die guns
en oorvloed van God bly geniet, die silwer en goud wat
aan Hom behoort vir onsself toe-eien en ingesteld wees
op die wolke wat ver op die horison begin saampak en
weet dat God in beheer is en dat ons enige storm wat
mag ontstaan met Sy hulp en leiding kan afweer.
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PAY IT FORWARD, PLEASE!
‘But God – so rich is He in His mercy! Because of and in order to
satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He
loved us – made us alive together in fellowship and in union with
Christ’ Eph 2:4,5
There are many who may not have seen the movie Pay It
Forward, about young Alex and his courageous effort to
change the world. Pay it forward is a very basic principle
with far reaching results – if you do a favour for three
people, instead of the recipients returning the favour, they
pay it forward to the next three people, and those people
again to the next. If the principle is continued, it creates
an immeasurable ripple effect that can virtually cover the
world.
During our lifetime, hopefully, we will not just extend a
favour to three people, but indeed to many more. So if
every person you do a favour for, would pay it forward to
another person, imagine what changes will take effect in
the world!
The only thing about this principle is that it tests your faith,
not just in people, but also in God. Your faith in people is
tried, because unless your favour goes full circle and you
hear from someone what the effect of your initial favour
was, you will never know where your goodwill has ended,
or even whether it has. It teaches you to just trust in the
fact that inherently (we should believe) all people have
kindness in them. Some people, I agree, will take ages to
discover this as part of their nature.
It also not only tests your faith in God, but also
strengthens it for the same reason. You can only leave
the favour you paid in God’s control and trust Him to let it
grow into a miracle for someone, somewhere.
Sometimes I find the reality of certain instructions in the
Bible, mind-boggling. God really does know the human
nature that He created. He definitely knows me! The
Bible says, when you give, your right hand shouldn’t know
what your left hand is doing. You should give gladly,
bearing no burden about your offering. You should not
expect anything in return or to be acknowledged for your
effort. The result of such action is that you would then
already have received your reward. So in other words –
you must give and never ever think about it again! And
then it will come back to you and you will be blessed
abundantly.
This is so true! And we are so human! It’s not as if we
want everyone to bow down before us and go on their
knees to thank us for whatever we have given or done,
but we are set on receiving some kind of
acknowledgement. We are taught by our mothers to say
thank you and show appreciation for the things that
people do for us, especially without obligation. In general
we are taught to be thankful for all things. We have, it
seems, turned this instruction around. Yes, you should be
thankful and show it, but you should sometimes stop
being a parent where your giving is concerned and not
expect anything in return for a favour! The contrary is also
true. We need praise and affirmation from our parents. If
we didn’t get much of it, we very easily fall into the trap of
expecting to be rewarded and refusing to extend a favour
if this requirement is not met.
Wow. This is huge! I’d have to dig deep to live up to this
principle. We receive rewards in so many aspects of our
lives that it stands to reason that we will grow to expect it
to keep coming. If you work, you receive a salary – a
reward for doing what is expected of you – and you expect
to be paid regularly! If you help someone complete a
task, you expect some kind of reward or for them to be
available when you need help at least.
The coin however has a flip side. You must be able to
receive with the same principle in mind. Be thankful, for it
is a gift not an obligation, but don’t reject the gift or favour
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by fending it off as unnecessary. Your welldoer may have
gone to great length to get to the point of giving without
receiving, longing for a blessing in return. The blessing
being, the ability to give! And you’re taking it away from
them. Again God knows us so well! It’s much easier to
give, than to receive.
Here again, the ultimate example is God’s favour to us –
Jesus Christ. There was no obligation, no expectancy of
anything in return, definitely no reward, yet He did it. He
gives us a choice to accept the favour/gift and our
acceptance of it is His reward. His heart warms when we
readily accept His love and forgiveness in our lives.
Giving to others, doing favours should have the same
effect on us. It should set us free, not enslave us to the
possible disappointment of being left empty handed. Give
to experience the warm feeling that fills your heart when
you realise that you have been blessed to the extent
where you are able to give and forget.
Allow me to continue my process of growth where this is
concerned. If you have found that “What’s up?” is a gift or
a favour – Pay it forward, please!
PERCEPTIONS
‘Because, greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the
world!’ 1 John 4:4
I grew up in a small town, and the circus making its
regular visit, called for great excitement. It was an
awesome sight to see their huge tent appear overnight in
the centre of town. If you were as lucky as I was to see
one of their shows, you would be dumbfounded –
sometimes even a little frightened – of the magnitude of it
all. The heights that the trapeze artists achieved when
they did their well exercised moves, flying through the air,
were astounding.
It stands to reason that experiences such as this would be
the ones that one day you would like your children to see,
and then, when you enter the same Big Top tent as a
grown-up, you tend to wonder when did it become so
small? The antics of the artists are still entertaining, but
not nearly as overwhelming as they were to your childmind
when you were younger. You almost become weary
that your kids may be disappointed in a way.
Perceptions are formed in many ways during our lives, for
example by what we experience, what we hear, what we
see, what we are taught. These perceptions can be both
positive and negative and also influence our lives in
positive or negative ways.
Another straightforward example is being afraid of the
dark. This fear can only arise from a negative experience
of the dark. Darkness brings uncertainty because we
cannot see clearly, but really things are no different in the
dark than they are in the light. Nothing changes when you
switch on a light accept the fact that you can see
everything around you. Yet, when the light is switched off
again, the fear is back.
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It is true that this fear is fed by bad things that more often
happen in the dark. Much more suspense is created
when an attacker moves around in darkness, pursuing a
victim in a dramatic movie scene. This causes small
children to perceive that darkness brings fear and when
you want to show that same child the brilliance of the stars
in the sky, the experience is not always very appealing.
Because we develop these perceptions about things, they
tend to change our approach to life. When someone
describes the character of a person you are about to
meet, or circumstances you are about to experience, you
base your approach to the person or the situation on what
was said. Before you are even in the situation, a
perception has already been formed. Whereas the
introducer may have perceived your new acquaintance as
nasty, abrupt or unbearable, your approach to this person
may very well find them in a better mood, other
circumstances or generally just more positive because of
their perception of the introducer. Because you have a
predetermined perception of the person, you may miss the
opportunity to develop a very valuable and lasting
friendship. All because a wrong perception was made
and then conveyed to you.
So, if you are taught – as is true – that you must control
your attitude, because it controls your life, you should
really step back a little and check the perceptions that you
may have of what you are about to experience or
approach. If you have a negative perception, even before
you start, you may very well be going at it with the wrong
attitude.
How often have I gone head-on into a situation, based on
information given to me, ready to break down doors and
barriers and make it clear that I will not allow an injustice?
Only to find peaceful surroundings, people with pleasant
and approachable attitudes and a general atmosphere of
positive reasoning. Much time, emotion and energy is
often wasted on preparing oneself for a situation based on
the wrong or a negative perception.
We create perceptions with our actions and people follow
our percepted actions because they trust us, and react to
these perceptions. Our perceptions can be very
deceiving, because we very often allow ourselves to be
influenced by the wrong information. Most of us tend not
to give anything new a fair chance.
Only the enemy is out to deceive us. Deceit causes
distrust and destroys peace and harmony. If a perception
deceives you, change it!
We can and should trust God to help us test the
perceptions we have formed from second hand
information and even bad experiences. If we should
change our predetermined perceptions of many things in
our lives, we will be more able to control our attitudes
positively and we will be much better equipped to control
most of our lives.
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QUESTIONS?
What would life be without questions? Can we exist
without questioning something at some time? Will we
ever reach a point of saturation where it is no longer
required to ask another question? Are there answers to
all questions?
I have two thoughts about this subject;
• Are questions just a dominant part of a
depression sufferer,s mind?
Or
• Are questions what makes us intelligent human
beings?
And my goodness, yes, both these thoughts are
questions!
I would never know the answer to the first question. It
often feels like I am the only one questioning the things
around me. I wouldn’t know if others question the same
things I do. I can never know how many people lie awake
at three in the morning and have all these questions about
everything that you can think of running amok in their
brain. I just know they are there, and if everyone
experiences this in the same intensity as I do, we no
doubt have a questioning nature.
Maybe the answer lies somewhere in between, that
because we are intelligent and God gave us a reasoning
nature, we do question.
From the time that we are children, we question. Even
before we can speak. Babies can look very puzzled about
some things they experience for the first time. No doubt
the question: What’s this?, comes up in their mind in what
ever language or method of communication their brain is
capable of. This is how we learn, by asking questions. All
children go through a phase in life where ‘Why?’ is an
integral part of their life. It is possible to contain all the
‘Why?’ questions to a certain extent with constantly
providing information that is not always requested, like,
‘Look at that big truck carrying all the cold drinks from the
factory to the shops!’
Providing this type of information on a regular basis, you
can live through the ‘Why’ phase and hardly notice it. But
life happens most of the time and we don’t have time, our
emotional tanks are running on empty most of the time
and we are more often confronted with a ‘Why’ even after
a lot of trivial information. Our responses are more likely
to end in ‘Just because’ or ‘that’s just the way it is’,
because we in fact have limited knowledge ourselves and
it is less embarassing to not admit that you don’t really
know why!
But questions remain with us for the most part of our lives.
Does the guy like me? What will I wear today? Is it going
to rain? Will the boss notice? Can I get away with it? Am
I going to live through this? Does God have anything to
do with this mess? Can I go on living this way?
Questions just vary in intensity, relevance, urgency and
whether there are answers for them or not. Yes,
questions can run away with your mind if you allow them
to. It has been a part of my therapy for depression to get
up at three in the morning and occupy my mind with the
first question that arised when I woke up. At a point I
learnt to make a mental note of it and very often I am able
to go back to sleep. But sometimes my mind keeps
running in circles and I realise that the only way that I will
be able to have some peace of mind is to just start
answering some of the questions, making notes of others
and actively deciding to ignore trivial ones or the ones I
have no answers for or control over.
I have no doubt however, that we are all tormented by
questions at times. There cannot be a person who hasn’t
wondered at some stage, ‘Why me?’ It is a natural
reaction to any type of disaster or unexpected
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consequence. This question is even asked if it is a good
thing that happened to us; it’s just re-phrased, ‘Can I be
so lucky?’, ‘Do I deserve this?’ It still is ‘Why me?’.
We learn to categorise the questions we are faced with.
In so doing we actually get things done. This is where the
difference between normal and abnormal comes in. If we
are able to function normally, ‘What am I going to wear
today?’ can be a fleeting question and almost be
answered in an instant with an immediate action. But,
indeed in the case of severe depression, it can mean that
I am in pyjamas for most of the day! Some questions are
more important than others and require priority attention.
Some questions should be ignored because of their
negative influence!
In the end, I have learnt that once you have systematically
searched through all the questions, and you are left with
those that seem to leave you in desperation, there are five
W’s and a H that remains that can answer most of the
questions we do have.
1. What does God have to say about this?
2. Where does He want me to go?
3. When did I lose sight of His plan for me?
4. Why did I start questioning His love and devotion?
5. Who am I in Him?
6. How am I going get back to trusting Him?
You can formulate your own five W’s and a H, the
answers will be simple and will always summarise the full
extent of your questions.
1. Even though He can’t verbalise an answer, He
does answer in many ways. We are just so
caught up in the devastation of some of the
questions we have, that we miss the answer right
in front of us. Also we are dealing with an
adversary who would like us to think that God
doesn’t have anything to say about it or is
disinterested in us.
2. He always has a plan. We are guided by His
Word and by what we know is right or wrong
because we know the Truth and the Truth shall
set us free. Again we don’t always want to know
the truth, because the truth can hurt very much.
Remember, God said it, I should believe it and
that should settle it!
3. I probably lost sight of His plan when I allowed the
enemy to take hold of my questions and turn them
into fear, anxiety, rage, self-indulgence and doubt.
4. We start questioning His love and devotion,
because everything always points to God. If we
are blessed, we thank God (I hope!) and when
things go wrong, we want an answer from Him as
if He is to blame. Communion never develops unless
you believe the truth about God. The truth is He
never stopped loving you, you stopped believing
it.
5. In Him your are wondrously made, perfect in His
sight, nothing can take you away from Him, He
laid down His life for you. You are His child, and
He loves you!
6. We get back to trusting Him by making things
simple. If you remember that He holds the whole
world in His hand, there is nothing that you cannot
share with Him. Your anger (even towards Him),
your sadness, your unforgiveness, your sin. We
are too proud or sometimes too fearful to come to
God with our true feelings. ‘What would He think
of me?’ What we tend to forget is that He made
you, and even before you wondered what His
opinion would be, He knew what you were
thinking. So basically you should just direct your
thoughts towards Him and Voila! you’ve made
contact!
A wonderful simile that I once heard, is that we are all
arrows in God’s quiver. He shoots us out when we are
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born, pointing us directly at the target He has set for us.
As long as we seek His will and plan for our lives, we
pretty much travel straight towards the target. When we
start questioning - wondering why this, why that, is there
any sense in everything – we start losing sight of the
target and we steer off course. These are the times in our
lives that questions take over and threaten to become a
way of life instead of simply a part of it.
RING OF ICE
‘Fear not, for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and
be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you
to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes I will hold you up and
retain you with My right hand of rightness and justice.’ Isa 41:10
Yes, the title comes from the all to familiar song by Laura
Brannagan, and the words so rightly speak of countless
people wearing a ring of ice around their hearts.
Life happens to all of us, and life is not always simple. We
all develop mechanisms of protecting ourselves against a
follow-up on a previous hurt or disappointment. No matter
what mechanism you have chosen, the effect of them all
is the same – a ring of ice around your heart.
Some of us choose to become dictators, demanding
control and order in our lives and even from those around
us. We are comfortable being thought of as ruthless,
without feeling or any regard for the feelings of others.
Some of us crawl into a corner and observe in silence,
withdrawing even further when we pick up the signals of
previous disastrous situations. But, what happens if we
look inside?
God created us in His image. He is love and has no fear
of it. We can just look at the number of times in our own
lives that we may think we have let Him down, or
disappointed Him with our actions. Yet, He is never afraid
of loving us again and again. In fact, I am convinced that
He only loves us more, because admitting failure means
that we realise that we are not perfect.
And this is where it lies. We freeze our hearts, thinking
that we are protecting ourselves against another
disappointment or more hurt. What we are really
expecting is for life and the people around us to be
perfect! This is not possible, because we are all human
and we will make mistakes.
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When we form a ring of ice around our hearts, we don’t
just lose a tremendous amount of valuable input from
others in our lives, we also distance ourselves from God
and prevent Him from coming close enough to help us live
through all the blows that life deals us at times. It is not
possible to effectively love selectively. What am I
saying?? I don’t love everyone I know! Maybe not, but
hate is a very strong alternative. If you cannot love
someone, you must hate them – and love and hate don’t
go together.
Maybe the ring of ice is there for those you don’t love! It is
the most difficult thing to do, to show love and respect to
someone you cannot stand. Why is it that some people
just seem to be more difficult to love than others? Have
they disappointed you many times before? Have they
offended or wronged somebody you do love? What has
turned on the switch to freeze any feelings of simple
human kindness you should have towards them?
Play back the video of your life and pause at the places
where you could possibly have chosen to harden your
heart towards them. No matter what the offense, if you
are not exempt from God’s pardon, neither are they. It is
difficult to live with, I know. But the reality is that as long
as we harden our hearts towards them, God is unable to
change them. The moment we let go and allow ourselves
to show kindness, the ice around our hearts starts to melt,
we hear God much clearer and you will be surprised to
know that He will not necessarily make your offenders part
of your life again - just to remind you of the hurt they
caused. You may find that you sleep better, find
situations that do include them less stressful and are able
to see that all people are not prone to act the same way.
Don’t think for one moment that I am not guilty. It is
because I have this major ring of ice, that I am able to see
the effect that it has on my life. And don’t think that I have
the amazing ability to realise that it is there, and allow it to
be melted down in an instant. No way!
As I write these words I can see many reasons in my life
for having a ring of ice around my heart. God expecting
me to let go of it, is just like Him asking Peter to walk on
water. I may be able to swim, but in this case, the coast is
just a little too far!
Nevertheless, I know that God will not push me or you
beyond what we are capable of. Sometimes the progress
is astounding and is even noticeable to those around us.
More often than not it is a process that requires a lot of
patience and understanding and forgiving ourselves over
and over again because we just can’t seem to find the
courage to break down the wall of ice that has possibly
been there so long that we have started carving works of
art into it, to make it look approachable.
No matter how beautiful you make the ring of ice look from
the outside, you are the only one able to melt it down and
allow people to reach beyond it and see the real you
hidden inside of it. At least take the first step and admit
that it is there and that you have to deal with it, because
you’re only half of who you can be while it still exists!
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SATAN IS DEAD
But sadly, his work is a reality!
Devil, Lucifer (which means Angel of Light), Fallen Angel,
Father of Lies, Master of Deceit, Thief of all Thieves,
Prince of Darkness, Beelzebub, Evil One, snake,
murderer (Joh 8:44), god of this world (2 Cor 4:4), ruler
[evil genius, prince] of this world (Joh 12:31), the prince of
the powers of the air (Ef 2:2). These are just a few of the
names that have been given our enemy, and no, this is
not a character sketch of him or even close to a
dedication. This is an attempt to point out the reality of his
existence and works of destruction.
Even though I would like to think that he is dead, this is
not true. He is very much alive and is still – in
accordance with God’s Word – walking around like a lion
roaring, seeking someone to attack and devour (1 Pet
5:8). What is also true is that I find it extremely difficult to
spend my time writing about him, because I know that he
will try to twist my intention with this piece to make him
look like a hero. But, he is anything but that, and
unfortunately the Bible also requires us to know him, so
that we are able to identify his work.
He is the Father of the Lie. Which means that he
developed it, deceit is his first language, no word from his
mouth can even remotely be judged as truth, even though
sometimes he will use the truth to lure us into his lair. He
is the one who lies to us about God bringing destruction to
our world, when he is the murderer and destroyer and
God in His great wisdom has to sorrowfully allow some of
his destruction to, in the end, bring us closer to Him.
He is Beelzebub. MsWord translates this as the Devil or
one of the Chief devils in hell. My Webster’s Dictionary
doesn’t even list it! And literally it means ‘Lord of the
Dunghill’!
He is Lucifer – the Angel of Light. He was undoubtedly
the most beautiful of the angels in heaven and this
certainly was part of the reason why he would not bow to
God, and thought himself to be more superior. Today still
he can make even your faith look like the ultimate truth,
meanwhile distorting it beyond recognition and leading
you to believe that you are doing what God wants, while
he misleads you with human misinterpretations of God’s
Word.
He is god/ruler of this world. As unreal as this may
sound, this is true. The destruction, illness, crime and
other unfair evils of this world is really all his doing. As I
said, God sorrowfully allows it, because He can destroy
Satan with a whisper. But, God is a God of willful choice
and He gives us the choice to stand with Him or against
Him. Yes, bad things happen to good people, but I
believe this is part of the master of deceit’s evil plan to
harden our hearts towards God. See, if we blame God,
he gets away scot-free, and we end up in unbelief far from
God.
He is the ruler of the power of the air. And, o boy!
Have we got a lot to learn about this fight beyond what we
can see with our eyes! It is ongoing as we speak, rising
and falling in intensity depending on our prayers and
stand in faith.
So what am I to do? Really don’t waste time on him.
Don’t give him credit for any more power than he has
been allowed to have. Remember only a third of the
angels followed him, so there still is a two third majority,
ready to intervene the moment we ask God to send in His
forces, which we often only become aware of or
remember to do after the destroyer has attacked. Don’t
taunt him; believe me you do not willfully want to entice
interaction. Just know him for what he is and stay clear of
the things that feed his revenge on God for sending us His
Son so that we may win the war when the final judgement
comes.
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SHOULD WE SUFFER?
The following words from an unknown author have been
with me for as long as I can remember being a Christ
dependant.
Grace: Is God making sure that we get what we
don’t deserve
Mercy: Is God making sure that we don’t get what
we do deserve
So, what happened to God’s grace when we go through
hard times? Where is His mercy when people suffer?
I have expressed my opinion elsewhere about God not
wanting us to suffer, but allowing bad things to happen in
our lives for a greater purpose. These bad things very
often happen because we don’t always put Him in charge
of every breath we take. We rely on our own strength,
because our parents taught us not to bother Him
unnecessarily as He is a busy man! Hogwash! We’ve
learnt that only the enemy wants us to believe that God is
too busy for us.
But sometimes bad things happen even if we trust Him for
every breath that we take. To understand this we must
first understand that the Bible very clearly states that our
battle is not against flesh and blood, but against evil spirits
and powers and the rulers of darkness (Ef 6:12).
Darkness being the world of Satan, which is destruction,
terror, horror, sickness and anything that he has stolen
power over from God to draw us away from God and His
grace and mercy. I therefore thoroughly believe that
Satan steals our quality of life – God’s grace – God’s gifts
to us. It is only by God’s mercy that we are able to endure
life without the abundance of His favour as He intends us
to have.
His heart breaks as much as ours do when He sees the
suffering that the enemy has created for us. In these
times where most of us have been faced with the reality of
being robbed in some or other way, we all know that you
can only lose what you know you have or what you really
need. If someone should steal a ring that you got from
your grandma, which she wore when she was a little girl
and you had put right in the bottom of your jewellery box,
you may only realise it when one day you want to give it to
your grandchild. You wouldn’t even be able to guess how
long it had been gone!
So it is with Satan stealing from us. Sometimes it is
easier to notice the loss because it is so real, but often we
only realise after a long period of stress and depression
what we lost, where we lost it and when! And then the
Insurer can pay out the benefits! God ensures us so
many times in His Word that He will bless us abundantly!
Abundantly means, not being able to measure the extent
of the blessing. God promises that when the thief has
stolen and is caught, he should pay back in perfect
measure, that’s seven fold, what was lost. This we can
only receive if we claim it, and is over and above the
blessing that God has for us! So if the enemy has stolen
your quality of life, ask God to reveal to you how he
constructed the crime and claim your repayment over and
above God’s blessing.
This brings me to the remaining part of the quotation I
started with:
Peace: Is what we receive when in faith we
accept His grace and His mercy.
The moment we stop blaming God for everything that is
going wrong in our lives and not cry out to Him ‘Why this,
Lord?’ as if He’s to blame, we will realise that instead, we
should ask Him to reveal where the suffering fits into His
greater plan for us. Then we will have peace and we will
see that His hand indeed is on our lives when we suffer,
He does care, He does want things to be different for us –
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only it isn’t always possible to bring about the change
when we want it to!
1 Peter 2 v 19-21. In hard times these verses have been
a great inspiration to me! From the Amplified Bible: For
one is regarded favourably and thankworthy if, as in the
sight of God, he endures the pain of unjust suffering.
After all what kind of glory is there in it if, when you do
wrong and are punished for it, you take it patiently? But if
you bear patiently with suffering when you do right and
that is undeserved, it is acceptable and pleasing to God.
For even to this were you called. For Christ also suffered
for you, leaving you His personal example, so that you
should follow in His footsteps.
**********
Twee muise het in 'n bak melk geval toe hulle daarvan
wou drink. Die rand van die bakkie was glad en net te
hoog om uit te klim en hulle het elke keer bly teruggly in
die melk. In die rondte het hulle geswem en was
naderhand heeltemal uitgeput. Die een muis het
uitgeroep na die ander een en gesê: 'My vriend, ek gaan
jou nou maar groet, want ons gaan tog nooit uit die bak uit
kom nie. Ek kan nou nie meer nie. Die grootste guns wat
ek myself kan bewys is om net moed op te gee, te
ontspan, onder die melk te verdwyn en my lot te aanvaar.”
Die ander muis het teruggeroep dat sy vriend nie moet
moed opgee nie, dat daar altyd hoop is. Maar, terwyl hy
nog vir hom moed inpraat, verdwyn sy maat in die melk en
verdrink.
Skielik het die muis agtergekom dat hy minder moeg word
as hy net op een plek bly en probeer om sy kop bo die
melk te hou. En so het hy sy voetjies bly beweeg en
gehoop dat hy op een of ander manier sal kan uitkom. Na
'n baie lang ruk het hy besef dat hy elke nou en dan iets
digter as die melk tussen sy voete voel. Wanneer hy met
sy voetjies aan die kant van die bak geraak het, het die
digter stukke daaraan begin vassit en 'n wal begin vorm.
Die muis het bly konsentreer om net aan te hou trap in die
melk.
Uiteindelik het hy besef dat die wal teen die bakkie se
rand breed genoeg is vir hom om op te klim, toe hy met sy
agtervoete teen die walletjie uitklim kon hy die rand van
die bakkie vasgryp en homself na veiligheid trek.
Wat die muis nie geweet het nie, is dat die hitte van sy
lyfie die melk rondom hom begin suur maak het en met
die beweging van sy voete in die suur melk het die melk
botter begin vorm wat hy met sy voetjies teen die kant van
die bakkie afgesmeer het. Die botter-lagie het dikker en
dikker geword, totdat dit dik genoeg was vir hom om teen
die rand van die bakkie uit te klim.
Moral of the story? Never, ever give up! Ons land in die
moeilikheid as ons deur die aanloklike dinge ons fokus
verloor, maar daar is altyd 'n uitweg!
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SLEGTE DAE
Sommige dae lyk van die eerste oomblik af wat ek my oë
oopmaak sommer net na doom & gloom. Ek is sommer in
'n skoorsoek bui, wag net vir die eerste beste geleentheid
om te ontplof. Nou het ek geleer om vir Hannes – my
man - te waarsku, met Sascha (dis my Yorkie kind) te
speel en die Here te vertrou om die bui vir my om te
draai. Hierdie is my “take it easy” dae. Ek probeer om nie
te veel probleme uit te sorteer nie en is baie selektief met
wat ek doen. Maar weet julle wat, die Here is so getrou,
dis op hierdie dae dat ek besef, maak nie saak hoe ver
ons van Hom af voel nie, Hy angstig sit en wag om ons te
vertroos.
Dis baie moeilik om konstruktief te funksioneer, omdat ek
irritasies moet vermy en dinge moet soek wat my 'n
positiewe ingesteldheid sal gee. Die een ding wat meeste
van die tyd vir my werk, is om musiek te luister. Hierdie is
egter die dae wat ek van te prekerige gospel moet
wegbly. 'n Subtiele balans tussen gospel en my
gunstelinge werk goed, maar is nie altyd beskikbaar nie.
My ander bondgenoot is tegnologie - woordverwerking, epos
kontak, spider solitaire ensovoorts.
Op een so ‘n slegte dag, het die Here vir my die twee
gemeng en ek deel graag met julle die uiteinde daarvan.
Dit maak eintlik geen sin sonder Nianell se Life's Gift en
David Meece se There I go Again (by Christelike
musiekwinkels) nie. Nianell op die kontemporêre mark
(Easy Listening sê my rekenaar), praat eintlik oor
verhoudings en die liefde, maar as jy werklik 'n diep
verhouding met God ontdek, vind jy dat jy baie van Sy
liefde vir ons in die woorde van feitlik elke liefdeslied
versteek kan vind!
Ek het toe nou 'n Auto Playlist funksie op my Real Player
ontdek. Uit 'n Music Library van honderde liedjies van
alle soorte en geure, besluit my blikbrein hy sien net
hierdie twee albums raak. Nou-ja, David Meece is die
potensiële prekerige gospel wat ek liefs op hierdie dae wil
vermy, Nianell praat met my hart, maar lig my nie
noodwendig uit die gat uit nie, omdat dit baie versugtinge
oor verhoudinge kan skep. So ek click toe nou baie
kieskeurig op my auto playlist. Eers is daar te veel van
elk na mekaar, toe hou ek nie van die eerste liedjie nie, te
veroordelend. Maar, geduldig soos ons Hemelse Pa maar
is, laat Hy my begaan tot op 'n punt, toe sê Sy sag stem
hier binne my, "Dis so maklik soos 1 2 3! Click nog 3
keer en berus by die mix! En hier is die titels (geonderstreep)
met hier en daar 'n reël (in kursief gedruk)
van die lys in my eie Mixed Journey!
Your Soul's Lullaby is to Touch the fragile heart, and
Gently guide the troubled soul. And we tend to feel that
God has left us, because It’s the little things you forget to
do, that makes me feel unloved by you, you say you love
me a thousand times make me feel it once in a while,
Show Me You Do. We shouldn’t be afraid to ask God to
show us that He loves us. But I should remember to
Raise These Arms, because often In the ease of
unconcern, I rested lazily. I then I cry out, please Lord,
Help Me Stand, When adversity's on every hand,
When I've done all that I can not to Fall Apart, Catch
me before I fall apart. I just want to be with You, Only
You can turn this night to day, only You can love this
hurt away, Only You can put together what's undone. I
Will Find Love (and He will find you, where ever you are!).
The world can be cold, and the world can be cruel, Then
there was you and Nothing else matters, when I look at
You.
Ken jy die probleme van die lewe? Ons is net mens, met 'n
wens om te verstaan, waar kom ons vandaan? I often
find myself Dancing with the enemy, but He always leads
me By the waters, For I'm tired and weakened from
the battles that scar the deepest part of me, and
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indeed there is No other hope, No one else to cry to,
and nothing left for us to do, but turn to You!
As jou wêreld donker raak en alles rondom jou verdwyn,
as jou more nie wil kom nie en jou son nie meer wil skyn,
sal jy onthou ek is hier om jou vas te hou. And instead of
asking 'Why?' for the Things You never gave me, I say
Thank You for the times You said 'No', all the ways
You wouldn't let me go. Sometimes I don't understand,
but He does and He sees more than I can. And then I find
that Life's Gift to me is just to be! and that We are the
reason That He gave His life, that He suffered and
died. So guard against misery and Don't let them take the
smile off your face, you know who you are, and that is all
you need. If we do all these things we can say I'm Crazy
about my life! en ons hoef nie te wonder Kom alles dan
tot niks. We realise How beautiful love can be it erases
the fear in me, it gives hope where there is none! And I
find I can Run through the mouth of death to the Risen
One. And even though there are times when I don't
believe anymore and got onto the wrong track and asked
myself Who do you think you are? There I go again
stumbling into the same old sin, instead of clinging to
You, I do what I know NOT to do! You always give me
the assurance Lord “I'll be reaching My arms out to you,
I'll be waiting for you “
En so het ek saam met die auto playlist (raar maar waar)
by die einde van “Wat pla?” op ‘n slegte dag gekom en
Nianell se Magaliesburgse Aandlied is die laaste bietjie
motivering wat ek nodig het om die dag in die oë te kyk.
Maak jou oë toe en gaan op reis, na 'n plek waar Ek vir
jou liefde sal wys, vrygemaak van die nag se klou, wieg
met 'n glimlag in 'n wolk se vou.
Maak vir my sin, ek hoop dit doen vir jou!
SONDE?
‘Julle het julle sonde laat afwas, julle is geheilig, julle is
vrygespreek in die Naam van die Here Jesus Christus en deur die
Gees van ons God.’ 1 Kor 6:11
Wat sonde dan nou presies is, is en bly maar vir elkeen
van ons ‘n vraagstuk. Die Bybel gee wel spesifieke
riglyne oor wat reg en verkeerd is en waarsku dat ons ons
sondige natuur moet afsterf, maar daar is nêrens ‘n
toepaslike lys van wat sonde is of as sondig gereken kan
word en wat nie. Ek het dit in elk geval nog nie teëgekom
nie.
Kom ons kyk na wat menslik gesproke die ergste scenario
is. Moord! As ‘n indringer jou geliefdes se lewe bedreig
en jy skiet hom, is jy ‘n moordenaar. Of jy dit uit vrees, jou
ingebore drang om te beskerm of per ongeluk gedoen het,
jy is ‘n moordenaar. Maar daar is versagtende
omstandighede en vergifnis. Dit was ‘n indringer, jou
geliefdes se lewe was in gevaar, onder normale
omstandighede sou jy nie dink om dieselfde te doen nie;
om ‘n ander se lewe in jou hande te neem nie. Die vraag
ontstaan – sou ek in daardie omstandighede anders
opgetree het? Kan ek oordeel?
Dit is ‘n buitengewone situasie en baie erger as wat enige
een van ons sou kies om te beleef. Maar wat gemaak as
dit ‘n meer eenvoudige situasie is wat ‘n voor die hand
liggende keuse tussen reg en verkeerd bied?
Dit wil dan tog voorkom of daar sekere dinge is wat beslis
nie met die leefwyse van ‘n kind van God geassosieer kan
word nie, maar dat daar wel optredes is wat nie
noodwendig as sonde gedefinieer kan word nie en
uiteindelik ‘n saak tussen jou en God is.
Die belangrikste is dat ons nie van sonde kan wegkom
nie, in elk geval nie tydens ons lewe hier op aarde nie.
Ons sal altyd daarmee gekonfronteer word en
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aanhoudend in ‘n stryd gewikkel wees om daarvan weg te
bly – hoe ons ookal kies om dit vir onsself te definieer.
Sonde is ‘n oortreding van basiese riglyne wat ons uit die
Woord van God kan haal, iets wat jy in jou gemoed weet
verkeerd is en waaroor jy skuldig voel. Hierdie
skuldgevoel is wat ons algemeen na verwys as jou
gewete, maar in der waarheid is dit die stem van die
Heilige Gees wat ons oortuig van sonde. Sonde ontstaan
die meeste van die tyd as ons buite die wil van God vir
ons lewens beweeg.
Wat maak sonde ‘n persoonlike saak tussen jou en God?
As ek ‘n gerehabiliteerde alkoholis is, en ek oortuig myself
dat ‘n whiskey elke aand my nie gaan affekteer nie, weet
ek ek speel met vuur en is die wilsbesluit wat ek dan
neem eenvoudig gesien, sonde! Daar is nie ‘n manier wat
ek op God se ondersteuning kan staatmaak sou ek en
whiskey nog vriende bly nie. As ek egter nie ‘n probleem
met alkohol het nie, kan ‘n glasie goeie wyn saam met ‘n
smaaklike ete sonde wees?
Rook is ‘n onderwerp wat ek liewer wil vermy. Ek is nie
self ‘n roker nie en voel dat dit ‘n baie slegte gewoonte is
en beslis wat my aanbetref ressorteer onder sonde. Ek
kan dus nie glo dat ek die volgende stelling gaan maak
nie: as drank en dwelmverslaafdes gerehabiliteer word, is
een van die aanbevelings dat hulle nie onmiddellik van die
rookgewoonte afsien nie, omdat dit ‘n te groot skok op die
sisteem is. Waar die gerehabiliteerde dan sy/haar lewe
aan Christus wy, die verslawing oorwin, maar nog worstel
met die rookgewoonte - is dit ‘n groter sonde as die feit
dat ek met tye afhanklik is van my anti-depressante? Dit
is wel waar dat my medikasie bydra tot my lewenskwaliteit
en nie ander mense affekteer nie, maar is ‘n afhanklikheid
altyd sonde?
Ekself het nog altyd sonde gedefinieer as ‘die dinge wat
jou lewe regeer en waarvan jy moeilik afstand doen of wat
jou tot buitengewone uiterstes neem’. My ma het altyd
gesê: alles wat ‘n ‘te’ aan het is verkeerd – en alles wat
verkeerd is moet sonde wees. Hierdie siening maak rook
‘n sonde as jy nie kan ophou nie, maar so ook drank,
dwelms, eet, koop, ‘n unieke versameling wat ten alle
koste moet aangevul word en baie ander klein afgodjies
waarmee ons onsself troos.
Ons liggame is tempels van God. Dit op sigself moet vir
ons ‘n aanduiding kan gee van wat sonde is of nie. As
ons met enige gewoonte, wat nie noodwendig as sonde
geëtiketteer kan word nie, ons liggame verniel, is dit tog
sonde. So kan ooreet, ongesonde liggaamsbou met
steroïde en buitengewone modegiere soos tatoeëring ook
sonde wees. Dit skend die tempel van God.
Soms is daar dinge wat ons onsself toelaat omdat dit
oënskynlik ‘n geringe sonde is wat soms ‘genoodsaak’ is,
soos ‘n wit leuentjie of die weerhou van die waarheid.
Daar is jare lank al ‘n debat oor Liewe Heksie en ander
sprokiesfigure en die potensieel negatiewe invloed wat dit
op kinders het. As ons kan aanvaar dat ‘n heks nou maar
eenmaal ‘n heks is en haarself met toordery ophou wat
boos is, kan daar iets soos ‘n liewe heks bestaan? Liewe
Heksie is nie noodwendig boos nie, maar die basiese
beginsel van ‘aanvaarbare’ toordery word vasgestel.
Solank Liewe Heksie deel van ‘n kind se
verwysingsraamwerk mag wees, wat dan van Harry Potter
– die moderne Liewe Heksie? Alles wat van God
verwyder is sonde, hoe gering ookal.
Die mense het vir Paulus gekonfronteer omdat hy saam
met die onheiliges hulle tempels besoek en van hulle
vleis/offerandes geëet het. Paulus se antwoord hierop
was dat dit geen effek op hom het nie en hom nie minder
heilig maak nie. Hy het egter tot die gevolgtrekking
gekom dat dit wat hy doen wel ander in die versoeking
kan bring en daarom besluit om nie daaraan deel te hê
nie. Die Woord is dan ook duidelik daaroor dat die
oordeel van enige optrede van ons wat iemand anders in
die versoeking lei, op ons gewete rus en nie dié van die
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oortreder nie. Ons swak voorbeeld kan dus ook sonde
wees.
‘n Verdere redenasie is dat die Tien Gebooie bloot ‘n
riglyn vir die mense in die Ou Testament was. Met die
koms van Jesus is genade op ons uitgestort en val die
nuwe wet slegs onder twee voorskrifte: Jy moet die Here
jou God liefhê met jou hele hart, jou hele siel, jou hele
verstand en al jou kragte, en jou naaste soos jouself.
Hoeveel keer op ‘n dag verontagsaam ons hierdie twee
instellings?
Kan ons ooit wegkom van sonde? Nee! Elkeen van ons
sondig daagliks en om te dink dat iemand anders meer
geneig is tot sonde as onsself kan met alle reg ook ‘n
sonde wees – die sonde van geestelike hoogmoed. Die
oordeel kom ons nie toe nie, maar die Here. Op die ou
end is sonde beslis ‘n saak tussen jou en die Here. Die
riglyne is onveranderlik in die Woord van God, die
oortuiging staan vas in die Heilige Gees. Die keuse is
joune alleen.
Maak nie saak hoe ons sonde definieer nie, dis deel van
ons lewe en die skuldgevoel wat ons daaromtrent kan
opbou kan meer vernietigend wees as die sonde self.
God is en bly lief vir jou en my, maar dit wat ons doen dra
nie altyd Sy goedkeuring weg nie. Daar is niks wat ons
van God se liefde kan skei nie. Niks! Slegs onbelyde
sonde kan God se oordeel oor ons bring. God het met die
dood van Jesus belowe dat ons van alle sonde en
ongeregtigheid gereinig kan word. Sondebelydenis is dus
‘n vereiste.
Laat die Heilige Gees jou maatstaf wees. Sonder om
daaraan te dink sal die Heilige Gees ons oortuig van wat
reg of verkeerd is. Ons moet net gehoorsaam wees en
teen ons sondige natuur optree.
SY HART BRAND
Dit was aan die begin van die 90's (net voor of dalk net ná
die groot verkiesing), wat 'n groep met die naam
ELEISON - vier boeties - op eg Suid Afrikaanse wyse en
sommer in Zoeloe ook, die hart van die Here oor ons mooi
land uitgesing het. Een spesifieke lied van hulle maal in
die laaste tyd aanhoudend in my kop rond, waarskynlik
omdat dit nou nog meer van toepassing is en nog 'n groter
noodkreet geword het.
Toe ek in die koerant lees van 'n tiener rock groep wat op
7/7/07 'n 777-konsert hou om hulself teen geloof uit te
spreek, het die refrein van die lied weer spontaan in my
binneste opgeborrel. Die feit dat een van hulle se ma in
die eerste paragraaf sê hoe trots sy op hulle is omdat
hulle op die wyse bereid is om hul siening uit te dra, het
my laat wonder of die woorde van die Eleison-lied nie 'n
bietjie aangepas moet word nie. Moenie my verkeerd
verstaan nie, 'n ma moet trots op haar kind se prestasies
wees, maar dat die wêreld so agteruitgegaan het dat 'n
ma moet trots wees op 'n kind wat homself teen geloof -
die enigste onveranderlike fondasie van ons lewe - gaan
uitspreek, is genoeg om enige perd sommer dwars in die
bek te ruk! Maar kan ons die jong mense blameer?
Eleison sing: 'Sy hart brand vir die land om na Hom terug
te keer, kan 'n mens vrede ken sonder Hom in beheer?'
En dis sommer die woord 'brand' wat ek wil vervang. Die
woord beskryf lankal nie meer die toestand van die Here
se hart nie. Ek weet nie of ek in my beperkte woordeskat
'n woord het wat die versugting in die Here se hart vir ons
terugkeer na Hom, voldoende beskryf nie! Die Engelse
woord “yearn” kom by my op. Dis 'n emosionele
noodkreet, ek wil waag om dit te vergelyk met Jesus se
noodroep aan die kruis toe Hy gesê het, 'My God, My
God, waarom het U My verlaat?'
Morele waardes is besig om vir ‘n loop te gaan. Die kritiek
op kerkinstellings is nie altyd ongegrond nie. Die kerk is
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onder dieselfde druk as ons om polities korrek op te tree,
winsgewend te funksioneer en ‘n sosiaal aanvaarbare
entiteit te skep. As ons dus van onsself praat as
Christene, kan ons die kerk in die algemeen en kerkleiers
daarby insluit. Ons kinders word in die aangesig van
wreedheid, moord, misdaad, korrupsie en etlike ander
onregte groot. Die vraag is nie meer of saambly
aanvaarbaar is nie, maar hoe enigiemand nog kan dink dit
is nie! Die wonder van tegnologie help hierdie wandade
om groter te word as wat hul bestaan werd is. Asof die
nagevolge van misdaad nie erg genoeg is nie, word dit
sensasioneel aangeblaas, met die gevolg dat vrees by
meeste van ons ingeboesem word. As mense nie vrees
nie of selfs as gevolg daarvan, word hulle aggressief en
besluit hulle die enigste oplossing is om reg in eie hande
te neem. Wanorde en anargie is die eindresultaat.
Ons ouers kon ons nog waarsku om van slegte invloede
weg te bly. Slegte invloede was vir hulle definieerbaar!
Nou is dit deel van die wêreld rondom ons. Dis al so deel
daarvan dat ons dikwels nie eers agterkom hoe dit ons
raak en beïnvloed nie. Om teen hierdie blootstelling te
baklei, is so goed as om te sê ons onttrek ons van die
fenomenale ontwikkeling van tegnologie. Dis onmoontlik!
Tegnologie gaan voortgaan om hoogtes te bereik wat ons
meer en meer sal verbyster. Meer en meer van die
verbysterende ontwikkeling gaan vir onreg gebruik word,
in plaas van vir dit wat God voorstaan. Ons kan nie
probeer om in ‘n kokon te leef nie.
Maar dit maak die reikwydte van ons kompromieë met die
wêreld net al hoe groter en ons afhanklikheid van die Here
al hoe kleiner. Daarom moet ons vasklou aan die dinge
waaroor ons beheer het en waarop ons nog die reg kan
toeëien. Die realiteit dat ons en vir seker die wêreld om
ons allerhande beperkinge plaas op ons openbare
getuienis is maar net deel daarvan. Ten spyte van die
feit dat ek die Sharks ondersteun (ja, werklik!) dink ek nie
daar was in die blou en swart/wit see van vlae in die
ABSA Stadion met die geskiedkundige Super 14 finaal in
2007 vir my 'n meer bemoedigende gesig as Jaco van der
Westhuyzen se spierwit T-hemp wat sonder skaamte
verkondig het 'Jesus is King', 'Bulls 4 Jesus' nie. Dit mag
een man wees wat die hemp gedra het en al die kritiek
oor die ‘opdringerigheid van sy persoonlike opinie’ moet
verduur, maar die span as geheel skroom nie om te erken
dat dit die waarheid vir elkeen van hulle is nie. Hul geloof
bring hulle bymekaar, maak hulle ‘n mag om mee
rekening te hou. Het ons werklik 'n punt bereik waar ons
as Christene van mekaar verwag om ons geloof toegevou
in ons binneste rond te dra? Hoe gaan ons weet wie is
saam met ons in die geestelike stryd teen die wanorde
rondom ons?
Die sanger Steve Hofmeyr vergelyk Jaco se T-hemp met
abba-bemarking - wanneer jy die geleentheid om gesien
te word, gebruik om jou siening te adverteer. Maar die
woorde van een van sy liedjies is vir my 'n treffende
vergelyking van die desperaatheid van die Here om ons
nader na Hom toe te trek. Steve sing: 'Kyk hoe ek deur
jou vingers val ...' Ons het die Here aan ons kant, maar in
plaas daarvan om in totale afhanklikheid aan Hom vas te
klou, deur voortdurend Sy hulp te soek vir die
gebrokenheid en wanorde van die wêreld, laat ons Sy
almag deur ons vingers val, wanneer ons toegee dat
iemand die reg het om homself teen geloof uit te spreek,
wanneer ons die fliek klaar kyk ten spyte van die feit dat
ons held herhaaldelik Jesus Christ uitroep, as dit nie in die
minste sy bedoeling is om God se hulp in te roep nie.
Ons doen dit wanneer ons die regering of enige vorm van
leierskap wat oor ons aangestel is kritiseer, want God
verwag van ons om vir hulle te bid - juis omdat hulle hom
dalk nie ken nie! Ons doen dit wanneer ons alles en almal
rondom ons wantrou, veroordeel en beskinder, bloot
omdat hulle ons soms uit ons comfort zone uitruk.
Moenie vir een oomblik dink ek verontskuldig myself hierin
nie! Soekie van die Radikids, is 'n skraal vrou en het altyd
iemand groter as sy op die verhoog op 'n stoel laat klim en
dan maklik afgetrek na haar vlak toe, om vir die kinders te
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illustreer dat dit baie makliker is om iemand af te trek tot
waar jy in die modder rond ploeter, as wat dit is om
iemand wat in die modder vasgevang is uit te trek.
Daar is net een manier hoe ons uit die modder van die
emosionele, morele en geestelike verval van die wêreld
rondom ons kan opstaan en uitklim. Deur God se hand te
gryp! Maar as ek dit gedoen het, kan ek nie waag om my
ander hand vir 'n vriend in nood uit te steek sonder dat my
hand ferm in God se greep bly nie.
Eleison sing verder: Sal niemand dit kan stop nie, sal
niemand dit kan keer, dit gebeur net weer en weer.
Koerantopskrifte treur. En hoeveel moet nog sterwe, kan
iemand 'n antwoord gee? Elke mens verdink, 'n
oorlogskreet weerklink. Maar ek weet daar's net een
antwoord, ek weet ook hoe dit hoort te wees, dat ons op
ons knieë geboë in die stof moet wees, biddend in die stof
van vrees. Sy hart brand vir die land en die kerk om na
Hom terug te keer, kan 'n mens vrede ken sonder die
Prins van vrede wat regeer!
Ja, ek dink Sy hart skreeu al uit dat ons die skille van ons
oë moet afhaal en ons rug, wat ons in soveel opsigte op
Hom gedraai het, sal terugdraai na die enigste Redder en
Uitkoms wat daar vir ons is. Die antwoord lê nie in
opstand, petisies, stigtings en allerlei bewegings of groepe
nie! Die antwoord lê in elkeen van ons se daadwerklike,
onversetlike terugkeer tot God.
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA!
‘If you really love Me, you will obey My commands.’ John 14:15
Make no mistake, he does! And he is always dressed to
kill too.
There are two ways of looking at this statement. First of
all Prada or any other designer label looks good – it’s the
ultimate in fashion – and if used correctly can make
anyone look like a picture. There is a designer label for
every occasion, for every mood, for any impression you
want to make. Designer labels seem to make you
someone, envied by many – people follow those who
wear designer labels - blindly!
But, designer labels come at a price!
We should know that Satan is the angel of light and being
known as such can make even the most horrid things look
beautiful. So it stands to reason that he will dress up in
designer clothes. He wants to be envied. He wants us to
think what he has is much better than the plain and simple
image the average person reveals. The more we want the
glitz and glamour he has to offer, the easier it is to lure us
into his trap and away from God.
He knows that we all want to look good, be accepted and
acknowledged by the world; to fit in! I seem to be getting
closer and closer to the age where I look back on the
good old times. But, it does seem like yesterday when we
were not as bothered at all about designer labels as
today. Whereas at a stage you really were put on a
pedestal if you wore designer labels, nowadays, you’re
almost an outcast if you don’t. This is just what Satan
wants. At a very tender age kids are learning that image
is everything: if you don’t have the goods – fancy home,
clothes, cellphone etc. etc. you’re nothing. If nobody else
thinks you’re worthwhile, in time your self-worth devalues
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and before you know it you wonder how God could have
created such a pathetic human being.
It is all about image. Just not the image that you have to
buy, acquire or cover your body with. It is about the
image of the One who created you, Who is in you. No
designer label can compare to that.
What do designer labels cost? Let’s not even get into the
monetary value. Designer labels cost a fortune; your
choice is between having enough to eat or wearing
designer labels. If you want enough to eat, designer
labels go onto the secondary list. If staying alive and
having a full and happy life doesn’t bother you, you are
already caught in Satan’s image trap. His image trap
leads you to believe that your picture book image is
everything and manipulates you into leaving so many
good things behind in your chase after the glitz and
glamour. Despite the fact that designer labels are for
everyone, who looks the best in designer labels? Sleek,
tall and beautiful model figures and men with well-toned
muscles. If you don’t fit into these two categories, there
goes your image out the window. You can wear the most
expensive Armani outfit and nobody will notice you. So
young girls and boys starve themselves to look better in
designer labels and suffer the tragic consequences.
To dress up in Satan’s designer labels comes at a very
high price. He will take you on a most enjoyable ride.
Friends will be aplenty. Life will just seem so easygoing
and effortless. Until one day, when your designer image
is at the top of the list. You can only look down on those
things and people you have left behind who don’t fit into
your world – a world stitched and made up of everything
that is needed to make you look good.
Because you have moved up in the world, God no longer
sits on the throne of your life. Yóú do, or your image for
that matter. You realise that your life is empty. People
whom you thought were friends seem to lose interest
when you start thinking about the purpose of life. Life with
purpose has a more indestructable and everlasting image.
It doesn’t change with the seasons, it creates an
environment where friendship is tested beyond who you
are, what you’re wearing and where you’re from.
Friendship is tested by Who and what you believe in.
If you remove the designer labels you have acquired in
your life, what are you left standing with? Is your image
sufficient to carry you through times when friends are few
and far between? Can you sustain your attitude towards
life without the image you have built up around you? Are
you who God wants you to be or are you just another
designer label, worn by many today and forgotten by most
tomorrow?
Clear out your closet, do an image makeover! Find the
only designer label that is free, unchanging, always
available and makes you look like and be you – Jesus
Christ.
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TIME
‘Nevertheless, do not let this one fact escape you, beloved, that
with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years
as one day!’ 2 Peter 3:8 also Ps 90:4
All of us would agree that time is of the essence. Without
sufficient time, nothing can be, will be or ever could be
done. Still I find it difficult to fully comprehend the fact that
God’s concept of time and ours could be so vastly
different.
I mean, imagine the 24 hours that we often struggle
through every day, being a thousand years that just
passed! Kind of makes you feel really old, worn out, even
more depressed, doesn’t it? We do have good times and
periods where we feel that time is running away from us.
Before we know it hours turn into days, weeks and months
and soon another year comes to an end and we find
ourselves once again reflecting on time gone by and time
ahead.
Time is wasted, time is spent, time is utilised, time is
money, time (if you have it available) can provide comfort
for a friend, time is lost if you don’t use it and time passes
in the wink of an eye – before you know it, it has run out,
sometimes even without warning.
It does seem that the fuller your program, the faster time
goes. A holiday with a lot of idle time can be quite
sufficient. On the other hand an exciting holiday, with
every moment filled to capacity with things to do, places to
go, visits with friends and all the other things you never
find time for, even as long as three weeks, can fly past
almost too quickly.
What was God’s intention with time, I wonder? He made
the sun and called it day and He made the moon and
stars and called it night. Let’s not even wonder about the
times that the moon appears in the daytime! These were
the only means to measure time. When the sun came up,
you arose and started your daily labour – because that is
what Adam and Eve bestowed on us. I think it safe to say
that they also took a break in the heat of the day. But, the
rest of the day was no rush at all! Time was sufficient and
there was time for everything, building family ties, tending
to the crops or farm animals, mending clothes, cleaning,
even washing – if they did that back then! When the sun
set, it was too dark anyway for anything else but rest. I
think daily labour was a very fulfilling thing. The essential
things were work and rest in almost equal measures!
Then came modernisation. Man decided that time must
be measured more precisely. The sun dial made its
appearance. Apart from the days that it rained –
remember Noah and the ark happened, so the sun didn’t
always shine – daily labour was now allocated to specific
time frames. Still there was the night, to rest and restore
body and soul for the next day’s labour. But, God gave
man a brain that developed extremely well and man was
not contented with the sun dial and time evolved over
many centuries to become the rush against the clock that
we experience today. Today every second counts.
Today there is no time to waste, very little time to rest,
restricted time for building family ties – quality not
quantity, they say! Even well-deserved holidays tend to
become a rush for time. Cost of living has also risen with
time restrictions. Sometimes you are forced to cram two
to three weeks into 10 days for an annual holiday, which
very often is filled with completing laborious
responsibilities you never have time for during the rest of
the year!
Whereas God intended time to be our friend when He
created it, it seems to me that time has become much
closer to being our enemy! If you haven’t acquired the
ability to manage your time adequately, you are gathering
stress like the farmers gather good crops!
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The most important part of our lives we need time for, is
reflection. We barely have time to settle down, gather our
thoughts, rethink end goals and dreams and create new
strategies, just to survive! We should make time for
reflection to restore our body, soul and mind to such an
extent that we can conquer our goals and realise our
dreams. Mostly we are only able to restore enough
energy to just get through the next day. Sometimes one
day does seem like a thousand years! We should have
time to encourage one another with messages of hope – I
hope like this one – yet we glance quickly at them, and if it
looks like it will take longer than three minutes to read,
there’s just no time. Leave it till tomorrow … tomorrow
never comes! My biggest frustration is that I don’t have
the time to put all my thoughts into words! Time is lost for
other responsibilities if I devote too much time to sharing
what I believe to be important issues with others. What
takes three minutes to read, could take hours to put
together!
Are we missing something? Shouldn’t we be LIVING life
instead of driving ourselves to a point where we ourselves
or our most valuable relationships break apart in our
efforts to just keep up? ‘Look at the birds of the fields’
God said. Yes, and Solomon did say we should learn
from the ant, who labours all day. The important fact
being, ants rest at night!
Let’s re-evaluate time. Time should be working for us, not
the other way around. I am convinced if we make time for
the things God regard as important, we will find that we
have much more time on our hands for all the man-made
‘important stuff’. At the end of the day, only the things
God regards as important are everlasting anyway. How
much of what we spend our time on in fact contributes to
truly enriching real living the way God intended? We
cannot live without structured time, yet time can become
an even greater enemy if we are unable to live and enjoy
life, value good health, friends and family.
Is time a burden, filled with a senseless race to gather
riches, acquire status, fill empty moments with
meaningless experiences – or is time a gift, a valuable
treasure that should be enjoyed and filled with
unforgettable memories of happy times, love-filled
moments and efforts that build character?
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TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT
The feeling ‘too close for comfort’ is often very one-sided.
If someone steps into your personal space or says
something that you find unsettling or regard as none of
their business, you may feel that it is too close for comfort,
but whoever is dishing it out does not necessarily feel the
same. To them it may be the most natural situation with
no ill intent, part of who they are.
Because our parents, society, circumstances and even we
ourselves have inhibited us to a great extent, we have in
certain aspects grown away from who God wants us to
be. For example, if you are an extrovert and you were
raised in a subdued environment where you had to
contain your personality so as not to offend people. Or to
the contrary, you may be an introvert and grew up with a
loud and outgoing family with whom you had no other
option but to bury your inhibition and be flamboyant.
God however, created each of us in a specific way to
reach a goal that He envisioned for us, way back, when
we were conceived. When it happens that we realise that
our purpose in life is to reach the target that He has set for
us, very often changing our lifestyle, can feel a bit too
close for comfort.
Yes, we become comfortable in a zone which falls outside
the true comfort zone that God intended for us.
Let me try to make more sense of it!
I have been on a road of discovery that, much against my
and many other people’s willingness to accept, God made
me an outgoing, fun loving, spontaneous, often loud and
overbearing person for a specific reason. My parents
were very conservative and my mom very set on etiquette
and acting in the correct and acceptable way. Trust me, I
am very thankful for her education, because I am able to
converse comforably with beggar and king alike! But still,
unknowingly they were inhibiting the true nature of my
existence and who I am or God intended me to be.
Having a trusting nature was scarred, when I chose to get
into a stranger’s car when I was six. Being told I was cold
and disinterested, made me build an impenetrable wall
around my heart for many years. And through all this,
there’s God’s purpose for my life! No wonder I’m messed
up!
But fortunately God is the Master of order not chaos and
once we submit our lives to Him, He starts restoring all the
dents and crash damage and brings us back to what He
intended and where He knows we will be happy. Just one
problem, no matter how clear this wisdom plays out in
front of you – this is not an easy road to travel. There will
always be different personalities, circumstances and in
short, LIFE – Let Individuals Freely Exist. We can’t all be
the same and who you are will most certainly not always
be acceptable to others, sometimes even your loved ones.
So, get used to it, the phrase ‘too close for comfort’ is here
to stay and you have to learn to take the positive out of
the unbearable situations and grow into a better person.
Being a Christ-follower and trying to constantly live by His
example and according to His will, is and always will be
my choice of doing. However, there are countless times
that I have found myself in ‘too close for comfort’
situations! Sometimes I think God has no regard for what
we go through in His expectations of us, but when I look
back at all of these uncomfortable situations, they stand
out like floodlights in the darkness of what I sometimes
called ‘my life’. He knows me better than I know myself,
and the uncomfortable feeling that settles inside me when
I am being what He wants me to be, is just the difficulty of
breaking free from an uncomfortable comfort zone which
He never intended for me to be in and I was forced to be
satisfied with.
So, all this to make you realise that I am feeling somewhat
like a butterfly trying to squeeze free from what once was
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a very comfortable place of transition for the pupa and
become an exquisite butterfly. I am nudged way out of my
comfort zone asking you:
Do you really know that you are a child of God and that
you will spend eternity with Him? Don’t worry, too close
for comfort for me too – so bear with me. God loves you
so much and it is so vitally important to Him that you may
one day sit on His lap with me, that He will gently push me
right out of my man-made comfort zone, to ask you to
consider this important fact.
Have you accepted the fact that He sent His Son Jesus
Christ to die for your sins? Every drop of blood that He
shed when He was crucified was for each of your and my
transgressions. For every single wrong that anyone has
ever even thought of doing to you. He wants to rid you
and me of all fear, all anguish, all feelings of inferiority and
bring back to life those parts of us, which died in all the
uninvited blows that have been dealt to us at times when
we thought we needed them the least.
In these troubled times we often want to cry out to Him –
Yes, God, kick me while I’m bleeding here! But He wants
you to know that you were in the palm of His hand at
those times and that He was bleeding with you, unable to
reach out and stop the hurt, because you wouldn’t let Him.
It is never too late, tell Him now that your life is an empty
mess and that you need His forgiveness, His love and the
precious gift of the sacrifice of the life of His Son, Jesus
Christ for your sins.
Allow Him to come closer than you are really comfortable
with. Ask Him to break down all the barriers you built up
between Him and you and make you whole as He
intended. Break now from tradition and the notion that
because you have walked with Him all your life, you are
His. You can walk with many people through life and
never really allow them to touch your life. Ask Him to
touch your life, to make Himself so real to you that you
have to start walking in His footsteps and not just
alongside them.
Ask Him to become your Saviour, your Deliverer, Master
of your destiny, your Friend and Comforter – accept Him
as your Father, for Him to take you as His child and to
give you the Holy Spirit as Comforter and Friend. I pray
this with you in the name of Jesus Christ the only Son of
God.
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UNDER THE RADAR
‘for God Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give
you up nor leave you without support.’ Heb 13:5b
When we think seriously about our position in the spiritual
realm, we become fully aware of the war that is ongoing
around us. Paul warns us to always be prepared, to take
up our spiritual armour so that we may be safe against the
battles going on around us. We remain however, much
more aware of what is visibly happening around us and
we more frequently react to these adversities.
Because it is more logical and often easier to act on
visible danger, we tend to forget that long before the
danger becomes visible, in spiritual terms a battle is
already being fought. Daniel prayed for God to give him
an interpretation of a dream. He only received it days
later and when he questioned God about it, already in the
Old Testament God pointed out to him that the angel that
He sent to Daniel immediately was caught up in a spiritual
battle.
In times of war when airplanes fly over the enemy’s
territory, they do so under the radar, trusting not to be
detected until the last moment so that they can catch the
enemy unawares in an attack.
We inherently react on what ever goes wrong in the world
around us. When a friend, colleague or acquaintance
offends or hurts us, we almost always become
immediately defensive. Whether we try to settle the
argument peacefully or a little more aggressive, we don’t
even consider the spiritual battle that took place behind it.
We should start flying under the radar. Because we
always want to be good and do the right thing so as to
please God, we fly in red airplanes against a clear blue
sky and the enemy can very easily keep us in his firing
line. However, if we should decide to go under the radar,
the outcome could be quite different.
It is much the same as planning a strategic move that
almost assures you of a win in a game, and then blurting it
out to the opposition. And then you wonder why you lost?
How do we go under the radar in our spiritual battle? By
using the one weapon that the enemy is set on destroying
because it can at the same time be our weakest attribute
or our strongest ally – our mind. Yes, our mind is a
wonderfully protected radarshield against any strategy of
the enemy. He cannot read it and therefore cannot know
what we’re thinking until we verbalise it.
Inasmuch as Satan cannot read our minds, he is perfectly
capable of giving it unwanted input. What makes our
mind our weakest attribute, is the fact that we have to
conform our sinful nature with our minds to be subjected
to God’s will. In a world full of sin, that often looks very
appealing, this is a difficult task.
However, if we become aware of the fact that only God
knows what our thoughts are, and start exercising this
power to defeat our enemy with, we can make our minds
our strongest weapon. Paul enhances this weapon even
further when he says in his first letter to the Corinthians
that it is possible to pray in the spirit while also praying
understandably with your mind. So if we can train our
minds to be focussed on God, when we are caught up in
our daily physical battle, our spirit can take over and
continue the spiritual battle that surrounds us. It very
simply is called silent prayer. Talking to God all the time –
under the radar of the enemy.
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VOORSKRIFTE
‘Wie sy lewe bo My liefhet, verloor dit en wie sy lewe in hierdie
wêreld nie bo My liefhet nie, sal dit vir die ewige lewe behou.’
Joh 12:25
As daar nie reëls, regulasies en voorskrifte was nie, sou
ons in ‘n baie chaotiese, waarskynlik anargistiese
samelewing moes woon en werk. Wette en voorskrifte is
noodsaaklik om orde en dissipline te handhaaf, sodat daar
uiteindelik rus en vrede kan wees.
Maar soos baie ander dinge kan ons met veral voorskrifte
op hol raak en voordat ons besef, is daar soveel vereistes
wat gestel word dat die oorspronklike gedagte, óf totaal
aan bande gelê word, óf so misvormd is dat dit eintlik ‘n
steen des aanstoots word.
Ons as Christene trap veral maklik in hierdie strik. Ons is
so gesteld daarop om te doen wat reg is en wat die Here
aanneemlik sal vind dat ons boeke dikker as die Bybel self
skryf wat die vereistes vir die korrekte optrede uitspel. Die
gevolg is nie net dat ons dit vir die normale sondige mens
byna onmoontlik maak om te kwalifiseer nie, maar dat ons
dit vir onsself baie gekompliseerd en selfs onaangenaam
kan maak.
Louis Malherbe het altyd gesê, ‘Ons raak so besig met die
dinge van die Here, dat ons die Here van die dinge
vergeet.’ Dit is baie waar wat voorskrifte betref. Ons is so
besig om voorskrifte en voorwaardes op te stel waaraan
almal moet voldoen, byvoorbeeld om lid te wees van die
kerk, in te pas by daardie gemeente en oor geroskam
moet word, dat ons uiteindelik vergeet waaroor dit eintlik
gaan: geloof in God.
Wat is die voorskrifte dan?
Ek het grootgeword in een van die tradisionele
susterskerke en het daar belydenis van geloof afgelê.
Ten spyte van die feit dat ek Christus nie naastenby as
Verlosser geken en ervaar het voor of tydens die groot
dag nie, is die geloofsbelydenis tog in my hart vasgelê en
kan ek vandag getuig dat die basis daarvan nog steeds
oortuigend is.
‘Ek glo in God, die Almagtige Vader, Skepper van die
hemel en die aarde. In Jesus Christus, Sy eniggebore
Seun, ons Here. Wat ontvang is van die Heilige Gees,
gebore is uit die maagd Maria, gely het onder Pontius
Pilatus, gekruisig is, begrawe is en ter helle neergedaal
het. Wat op die derde dag weer opgestaan het uit die
dode, opgevaar het na die hemel en sit aan die
regterhand van God, die Vader, van waar Hy sal kom om
te oordeel die wat nog lewe en die wat reeds gesterf het.
Ek glo in die Heilige Gees, ek glo aan ‘n heilige, algemene
Christelike kerk, die gemeenskap van die heiliges, die
vergewing van sonde, die wederopstanding van die vlees
en ‘n ewige lewe. Amen.’
Daar, in een paragraaf vasgevang, is waaroor dit gaan.
Die belangrikste voorskrifte vir geloof in God is almal daar.
Ons kan bloot daarop uitbrei deur die belangrikheid te
onderstreep dat ons dit moet glo, dat ons ons sondes
moet bely en die offer van Christus se lewe moet aanvaar
om die ewige lewe te kan hê. Verder is die vereiste wat
Christus in genade aan ons stel, dat ons die Here ons
God moet liefhê met ons hele hart, ons hele siel, ons hele
verstand en al ons kragte – gees, siel en liggaam aan
Hom gewy – en ons naaste soos onsself.
Ons boodskap aan die wêreld is dat Jesus Christus
volkome vry maak, maar terselfdertyd klamp ons ‘n bal en
ketting van voorskrifte aan mede-Christene se voete vas
en stamp hulle dikwels nog sommer in die verbygaan in
die diep water in, salig onbewus van die feit dat die las hul
geestelike dood kan veroorsaak.
Ons moet terugkeer na die eenvoud van geloof, soos dié
van ‘n kind. Die beperkinge en voorskrifte wat aan
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kinders se geloof gekoppel word, word deur ons as
volwassenes opgelê. ‘n Kind se geloof is onskuldig en
sonder enige voorwaardes of voorskrifte: ‘Jesus het my
lief’ is heeltemal voldoende. Vir ons moet dit ook so
wees.
VREES
Iemand het eenkeer gesê: Remember, the little word 'but'
if used, almost always erases everything that was said
before it! En is dit nie waar nie. As iemand vir jou sê jy
lyk goed, antwoord ons dikwels met 'n ‘maar’ en lig dan
die teenoorgestelde van die stelling uit. As iemand iets
positief in 'n situasie uitwys, is daar altyd iewers 'n ‘maar’
om jou aandag op die negatiewe te vestig. Ek was in die
verlede baie uitgesproke oor die feit dat ek soos Habakuk
sê, met my God oor 'n muur kan spring en 'n bende kan
stormloop. Mense om my het male sonder tal al vir my
gesê ek waag te veel en is vreesloos. Soveel kere as wat
ek hul besware met 'n 'maar ek het God aan my kant' wou
uitwis, is die uiteinde van sulke insidente altyd, 'maar daar
is perke, jy moet versigtig wees'. Ek dink al die ‘maar's’
het my in so 'n mate geraak dat ek al begin stilbly het en
soms gewonder het of ek nie naïef is om te dink dat ek
altyd in enige omstandigheid op die Here se beskerming
kan staatmaak nie.
Soos met ons onuitgesproke geloof in God, was dit egter
in my gemoed tog altyd so dat ek vertrou het dat as ek my
in 'n gevaar-situasie bevind ek sou onthou dat my geloof
in Jesus Christus en die twee derde meerderheid engele
wat vir ons veg, genoeg sal wees om my te beskerm. Ek
het opgehou om dit uit te spreek, omdat mense nie my
onverskrokkenheid gedeel het nie, en hoe minder 'n mens
'n ding sê, hoe minder glo jy dat dit waar is!
'n Sprekende voorbeeld van fisiese onverskrokkenheid is
sekerlik Australië se Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin.
Dikwels as hy so vreesloos die slange, spinnekoppe en
ander gevaarlike goed vang, het ek by myself gewonder
of hy die God wat die Skepper daarvan is, ken. Ons
aanvaar dit dikwels as vanselfsprekend dat
natuurliefhebbers die Here ken, want hoe dan anders - 'n
mens kan nie na die natuur kyk en nog wonder nie! Maar,
dis nie 'n gegewe dat dit so is nie. Omdat ons hom nie
persoonlik geken het nie, kan ons dus nie sê dat die Here
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gefaal het om hom te beskerm nie, want ons weet nie of
hy daardie dag in die water geklim het saam met die
pylsterte en gevra het, 'Here beskerm my', en of hy staat
gemaak het op sy eie krag en insig om homself teen die
gevaar te beskerm nie. Hy het altyd vertel dat die enigste
diere wat hom nog ooit laat bloei het, die byt van
papegaaie was. Hy was vreesloos, maar sy hart is op 44
deur 'n pylstert deurboor. Kan ons sê die Here het 'n
hand in sy dood, of het Steve se menslike vreesloosheid,
onnodige onverskilligheid en gebrek aan God se
opgeëisde beskerming te vroeg 'n einde aan sy lewe
gemaak?
Maar dit klink vir my te veel of ek na 'n mening toe
beweeg dat daar dalk tog maar 'n perk aan God se
beskerming is. 2 Tim 1:7 sê: God het ons nie 'n gees van
vrees gegee nie, maar van krag, liefde en selfbeheersing.
Die Engels stel dit soveel beter as dit sê 'love, power and
a sound mind'. Die Amplified Bible brei nog meer uit: For
God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of
craven and cringing and fawning fear), but of power and of
love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline
and self-control. Hierdie is wel 'n riglyn vir die vreeslose
verkondiging van die evangelie. Dit is egter die basis van
dapperheid en vreesloosheid saam met die
alomteenwoordige, almagtige God.
God wil nie hê dat ons in vrees lewe nie - daarom gee Hy
vir ons Sy beskerming! Hy wil egter hê dat ons
gebalanseerd lewe met 'n 'calm and well-balanced mind' -
dus mag ons nie paranoïes raak en die duiwel agter elke
bos uitskop nie; 'and discipline' - moet nie sonder Hom
enige situasie betree nie en dink jy is in jou eie krag
onstuitbaar nie - as jy egter saam met Hom in enige
situasie is, kan dit nie anders as gedissiplineerd en
georden wees nie, want dis wie Hy is. 'And self-control' -
ek glo ook nie dat 'n mens doelbewus in 'n put vol giftige
slange moet klim om Sy beskerming oor ons te bewys nie,
maar as jy jou in die put vol giftige slange bevind, is daar
by my geen twyfel dat Hy jou kan beskerm as jy dit vra
nie! Hy het vir Daniël en sy vriende beskerm, so ook vir
Josef, die Israeliete in Egipte, Paulus, David Wilkerson in
die bende-oorloë in die agterstrate van New York, en
soveel ander wie se getuienis ons nog nie eers gehoor het
nie. Ook vir Elsa Kruger van Nigel - wie se getuienis
hieronder volg. Daar is geen maar aan God se
beskerming nie, mits ons dit gebalanseerd toepas!
Heb 4:16 - Let us then fearlessly and confidently and
boldly draw near to the throne of grace (the throne of
God's unmerited favour to us sinners), that we may
receive mercy [for our failures] and find grace to help in
good time (Sy tyd, nie ons s'n nie) for every need
[appropriate help and well-timed help, coming just when
we need it].
KAPINGSDRAMA - 28/8/2006
Ek wil julle asseblief vra om saam met my vir Jesus
Christus ons enigste Verlosser en God te dank, en alle
eer en lofprysing aan Hom bring. Dit is so wonderlik om
te weet Groter is Hy wat in ons is, as hy wat in die wêreld
is.
Ek het vanoggend om 06:15 ervaar hoe dit voel om
gekaap te word.
Ons is in 'n ryklub en dit is my beurt om vanaf Nigel te ry
na Boksburg hierdie week. Om 6:15 het ek stilgehou by
die eerste dame, Marita, wat ek moet optel en toe ek haar
sien aankom, die deure van my motor ontsluit. Die
volgende oomblik gewaar ek iemand by my venster en die
eerste gedagte wat by my opkom is: "Wat soek hierdie
man"? Eers toe ek die vuurwapen sien het ek besef dit is
nou my beurt en gewaar toe dat daar twee van hulle is
met vuurwapens. Sy het begin gil en teruggehardloop in
haar huis, gelukkig was haar hek nog nie oop nie. Hulle
het die Polisie gebel.
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Die volgende oomblik het hy my deur oopgeruk en vir my
beveel om stil te bly - Die enigste woorde wat ek kon
uitkry was "In the Name of Jesus Christ GO!”, hy het toe
vir my gesê "I'm going to shoot you” en die wapen op my
gerig, weer het ek vir hom gesê: "In the Name of Jesus
Christ Go!”
Hy het my toe uit die motor probeer ruk en die sleutels by
my probeer afneem, ek het hom toe geskop en hy het my
deur my gesig geklap en al wat ek vir hom bly sê is: "In
the Name of Jesus Christ Go!". Na 'n verdere worsteling
en seker omtrent ses of sewe keer wat ek hom in die
Naam van Jesus Christus beveel het om te gaan, het hy
die geveg gewonne gegee en in 'n wit Golf wat agter my
gestaan het, geklim en vertrek met vier van hulle in die
motor.
Dit is die ergste maar tog, wonderlikste ervaring wat ek
nog in my lewe gehad het, want ek het eerstehands
ervaar hoe Groot onse God - Jesus Christus is. Ons moet
net altyd besef dat ons stryd nie teen vlees en bloed is nie
maar teen die bose geeste en as Kinders van God, ons in
die Naam van Jesus Christus wie se Naam hoër is as
enige ander Naam en deur die Bloed van Jesus Christus,
ons geestelike wapens tot ons beskikking het. Ons moet
dit net gebruik tot Sy Eer.
Prys die Here! al wat hulle geneem het, is my selfoon en
ek is reeds "due" vir 'n opgradering maar het nog nie
gegaan om 'n nuwe foon te kry nie.
Halleluja Prys die Here, Sy Goedertierenheid is tot in alle
Ewigheid.
Liefde in Jesus,
Elsa Kruger
WAAROM KERK TOE?
My dierbare vriendin wat, vind ek eers later uit, al vergeet
het dat ons op die oomblik kerkloos, of liewer tussen
kerke is, stuur toe mos vir my die stukkie. Ek het nie
aanklagte in die verband nodig nie, en baie teësinnig lees
ek dit toe maar.
Waarom kerk toe?
'n Persoon skryf 'n brief aan 'n tydskrif
en kla dat dit vir hom geen meer sin maak
om kerk toe te gaan nie.
Hy skryf. "Ek gaan al vir meer as 30 jaar
kerk toe, ek het gedurende hierdie tydperk
na ongeveer 3000 preke geluister, maar ek
kan nie een onthou nie. So ek dink ek mors
my tyd en die predikante mors hulle tyd
deur al hierdie preke voor te berei en
Sondag vir Sondag te preek".
Die artikel is in die tydskrif gepubliseer
en 'n paar weke het verbygegaan voordat
iemand soos volg op die artikel geantwoord
het.
"Ek is reeds 30 jaar getroud. Gedurende my
getroude lewe het my vrou ongeveer 32,000
etes voorberei. Maar, net soos jy, kan ek
nie een van die spyskaarte onthou nie. Maar
dit weet ek, al daardie etes het my gevoed
en versterk, as dit nie vir daardie etes
was nie, dan sou ek vandag dood gewees het.
Dieselfde geld ook vir die kerk. As ek nie
gegaan het om geestelik gevoed te word nie
sou ek vandag geestelik dood gewees het."
Wanneer jy af is, is God besig met iets!
Geloof sien die onsigbare, glo die
ongelooflike en ontvang die onmoontlike!
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Dank God vir ons Fisiese en Geestelike
voeding.
Seënwense.
Soos baie ander issues in ons lewe nie uniek is nie,
onthou ek van nog iemand wat onlangs vir my gesê het
dat hulle vir baie spesifieke redes ook tans sonder kerk is.
Twee dinge kom by my op:
1 ’n Oulike boekie wat ek het met die titel – Lokaas
van Satan - nee dis nie oor Satanisme nie! Die
skrywer, John Bevere, lug die opinie dat byna alle
sonde en oortreding vanuit twee reaksies
ontstaan - liggeraaktheid en aanstoot neem.
Hierdie is 'n onderwerp op sy eie en ek gaan dus
nie te veel daaroor uitbrei nie.
2 As ek nie kerk toe gaan nie, gaan ek hel toe?
Indien nie, waarom kerk toe?
Ek sal nooit ooit vir enigiemand sê om van die kerk af weg
te bly en/of 'n direkte aanbeveling maak dat jy van kerk
verander nie. Die Here gebruik ons waar Hy kan en waar
ons nodig is. Maar, sê die Woord uitdruklik, ons moet
kerk toe gaan, of word die woord ’kerk’ wat in werklikheid
die Liggaam van Christus is, nie hier uit verband geruk
nie? Kerk is 'n versamelnaam vir al die navolgers van
Christus - dié wat glo dat Hy vir ons as sondeoffer aan
die kruis gehang het.
Na aanleiding van punt 1 - as jy kerkloos is omdat iets of
iemand by die kerk jou omgekrap het, geld die volgende:
• Doen selfondersoek of jyself nie liggeraak was en
onnodig aanstoot geneem het nie.
• Het jy dit teen die betrokke struktuur se
leerstellinge of teen 'n spesifieke persoon? Indien
dit die struktuur is, en hulle tree bepaald teen die
beginsels van die Woord op, is daar moontlik
gronde vir jou skuif na 'n ander gemeente/groep.
Indien teen 'n persoon moet jy dalk die boekie
gaan soek en bietjie bestudeer – dis baie
konfronterend, maar geweldig verrykend.
• Vra vir die Here of Hy jou daar geplaas het om 'n
verskil te maak ten opsigte van hierdie dinge - jy
mag dalk nie van Sy antwoord hou nie, maar
onthou op die ou end werk jy vir Hom en nie vir
die gemeente nie.
Punt 2 het betrekking op die situasie waar jy jou bevind
tussen kerke.
• Nee, jy sal nie hel toe gaan omdat jy nie kerk toe
gaan nie! Die kerk gee nie vir jou die ewige lewe
nie, die verlossing in Jesus Christus wel.
• Jou verantwoordelikheid is om op geestelike vlak
onder 'n outoriteit te staan. Jy moet aan iemand
kan verantwoording doen vir jou optrede, jou
lewenswandel ensovoorts. Die gemeente is NIE
jou polisieman nie, maar ons het checkpoints in
ons lewe nodig.
• Jy moet geestelike kos kry, daarsonder gaan jy
beslis hard val. Al gaan jy nie kerk toe nie, maak
seker dat jy EERLIKE en REGUIT mentors in jou
lewe het wat jou op die regte pad kan hou.
• Gebruik die tyd van afsondering om jou
ingesteldheid ten opsigte van jou geloof op te
bou, nie af te breek nie!
• Moenie toelaat dat 'n skuldgevoel jou terugdwing
kerk toe nie - laat dit 'n honger na geestelike
verryking wees. Onthou net, daar is iets soos 'n
gemaksone ook - moet dus nie jou skuldgevoel 'n
gemaksone maak nie. As dit bloot vir gerief is dat
jy nie kerk toe gaan nie, think again about your
commitment!
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• Ek dink tog ons moet waak daarteen om nie van
kerk toe gaan 'n afgod te maak nie. Enige
belaglike verskoning is nie altyd aanvaarbaar nie,
maar as dit vir jou gesin belangrik is om kwaliteit-
tyd saam deur te bring of dis 'n spesiale dag vir
iemand, of wanneer vriende vir wie jy weet jy
geestelike ondersteuning kan bied, wil oorkom vir
middagete en so meer, is ek seker die Here sal
nie wil hê dat ons buierig is of aanstoot gee omdat
ons nie kan kerk toe gaan nie. As afwesigheid uit
die kerk jou 'n persoonliksheidsverandering laat
ondergaan, moet jy jouself afvra hoekom gaan jy
kerk toe - is dit om jou gewete te sus, omdat jy
gesien wil word of omdat dit so deel van jou
roetine geword het dat dit jou omkrap as jy dit nie
doen nie. Dan het kerk toe gaan vir my nie die
besondere betekenis wat dit behoort te hê nie en
doen ek voorraadopname van my behoeftes
voordat ek weer gaan.
Op die ou end het ons nodig om 'n gemeente te besoek.
Dit stig ons om 'n boodskap te hoor, om met ander
geestelikes te verkeer en om tyd saam met die Here te
spandeer. Maar net soos die Here nie net op 'n Sondag
vir jou beskikbaar is nie, moet daar ook by ons 'n balans
wees. Hy moet altyd deel van jou lewe wees, elke dag is
'n erediens of Bybelstudie as jy dit reg aanwend. Dit bly
egter 'n persoonlike saak en net jy en die Here kan die
saak uitmaak!
WAT BLAF JY?
Dankie tog vir Sascha se klein Yorkielyfie wat haarself so
onder my kan inwurm. Sy vra niks meer as net 'n warm
lêplekkie nie. Sy laat my altyd dink aan 'n gediggie wat 'n
ou hondeliefhebber eendag vir my gegee het.
God built in a lesser body a fragment of love divine
To give the poorest beggar a love that makes him a king
And kiss the hand that is empty when fortune and friend
take wing
As a name for this rare being, reflecting the love of God
Man spelt his Creator backwards
And called his small likeness - Dog
En weerspieël die karakter van 'n getroue hond nie so
duidelik God se liefde in ons lewe nie! Hy wil net ons
liefde hê, niks meer nie. Ons kan Hom so maklik soos 'n
hond buite ons lewens laat, in die reën en koue met net
die noodsaaklikste - kos en water, dikwels nie eers nie!
Tog bly Hy altyd getrou, is Hy altyd daar. Daar is mense
wat sommer maklik 'n skop na hul hond sal mik as die
ding nie gehoorsaam is, op die regte tyd blaf of sommer
net nie lê waar dit hoort nie. En tog as hul roep, kom die
dier gretig en vol liefde aangehardloop. So kan ons ook
maar met die Here maak - Hom die skuld gee vir dinge
wat verkeerd loop in ons lewe, Hom eenkant toe stoot as
die gejaag van die lewe nie tyd toelaat om in Sy
teenwoordigheid te wees nie. En as ons Hom nodig het,
is Hy selfs voordat ons nog roep reeds met ons. Is dit nie
iets om aan te dink dat ons Hom dalk net soos 'n hond
behandel nie?
Hy wil ons ook oorweldig met Sy liefde, ons ook soos 'n
skaduwee volg. Hy is getrou tot die dood toe, sal ons
altyd beskerm sover ons dit toelaat. Hy wil ons waarsku
oor gevaar wat broei en ongewenste mense wat ons lewe
wil betree. Hy wil ons voete was as ons moeg is van die
dag se gewoel. Hy is altyd daar en gereed as ons roep,
reg om te dien, om liefde te gee, te troos en sommer net
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die lewe te geniet. As Sascha nie welkom is nie, moet ek
haar by die huis los. Hoeveel keer het ek die Here al
weggesteek as Hy nie welkom is nie, maar tog verwag dat
Hy my sal beskerm as dit nodig is? As 'n hond
verwaarloos word, word dit maer en uitgeteer en raak al
hoe minder paraat. So kan ons Hom ook verwaarloos en
afskeep en toelaat dat Sy insette in ons lewe wegkwyn en
uiteindelik feitlik heeltemal onopsigtelik is.
En is Hy tog ook nie net so aanpasbaar by ons soos al die
hondespesies nie? Daar is 'n hond vir elke eienaar. 'n
Karakter wat by elke mens pas: aggressief, liefdevol,
wollerig, lang hare, kort hare, sodat elkeen wat 'n getroue
vriend wil hê een kan kry wat by hom/haar pas. So kan
Hy ook by elkeen van ons aanpas soos Hy ons gemaak
het. Hy wil nie hê ek moet in 'n aanhoudende magstryd
met 'n Rottweiler wees nie, daarvoor is my krag te klein.
But make no mistake ... hierdie waghondjie van my mag
klein wees, maar sy het 'n hart wat menige Rottweilereienaar
sal beny!! En so is Hy vir my. Maak nie saak hoe
klein die treetjies is wat ons vorentoe gee nie, saam met
Hom is ek besig om 'n pad oop te baklei teen die aanslae
van die lewe.
Dis so maklik om te dink dat ek geen respek vir Sy
grootheid het nie, maar dis nie my bedoeling nie. Daar is
niks op aarde of in die heelal wat Sy grootheid en almag
kan beskryf nie, maar ons moet in ons swakheid as
mense probeer verstaan wat die basis van Sy liefde vir
ons is. Ons moet soos kinders word, en dan kan Hy selfs
my teddiebeer wees wat al soveel trane opgeslurp het,
soveel geheime ken en selfs my kopkussing wees.
En as ek na my klein Sascha kyk en weet hoe lief sy my
het en nog plek het vir al die mense om my, en besef dat
Sy liefde vir my soveel meer lojaal is, soveel meer
beskerming insluit en soveel meer kan bied, laat dit my
klein en nederig voel voor Hom en wil ek pleit dat Hy my
tog sal toelaat om Sy skoothondjie te wees!
WE STEAL FROM GOD!
Yes, we do! And in so many different ways, half of which
we do not even realise.
In the ‘small’ seemingly unnoticeable things: filling our
daily schedules with so many things that don’t require us
to keep contact with Him; living life without any regard to
His input in it; missing out on quiet conversations with Him
by filling every moment intended for rest, reflection and
meditation with things to keep us occupied, efficient,
productive and more valuable to the world around us;
never realising that we are at our most valuable filled with
His guidance, love and understanding, which can only be
acquired if we spend time in His presence.
Although we are able to involve Him in every action of our
everyday lives, we don’t! We strive to be self-sufficient
and tend to exclude God from so many areas of our lives
that we claim to have ‘under control’, that we really steal
opportunities from Him to show us how much He really
cares in the smallest detail.
We steal from God when we forget that He controls the
weather. He alone brings rays of sunlight into our lives so
that dreary mornings may become bright, and He gives us
sparkling opportunities to make dreams and ambitions
come true.
We steal from God when we know that He needs
something to be done, has even given us the potential to
fulfil the action, and we don’t get around to it because we
are afraid, or convinced that He has it wrong or that we
may just look ridiculous or crazy.
But mostly we steal from God when we neglect to give
Him credit for all that He has done for us!
He has given life to you and me. Just the mere thought of
the privilege, should bring a tear to your eye or a warm
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feeling in your heart that makes all your problems look
less overwhelming. To be able to draw fresh air deep into
your lungs, filling them to capacity with the most basic
need for survival – oxygen, which we also steal from Him
by not caring for our environment as He appointed us to
do. Being alive and able to breathe freely is a gift some
people are not privileged to have.
If you can see, you should thank Him every time you open
your eyes. If you can walk, give thanks that you are able
to do meaningful things. To hear, to feel, to touch, to hold,
to hug, to love, to cry, to learn – these are not
requirements for having a life – these and many others
are privileges and when we take them for granted, we
steal from God the honour of receiving our gratitude.
Yes, He is pleased by our gratitude. He is pleased to see
that we enjoy what abundance He has given us to the
smallest detail. But, we complain. About the weather,
insignificant irritations, being disadvantaged in some way
while others are suffering much more than we are. In
doing so, are we not stealing God’s joy to see us take
pleasure in His creation and all the benefits it holds for
us?
So many times in our lives miracles happen and they go
unnoticed because we try to ascribe them to science, fate,
luck, circumstance, hard work and other logical reasons
for good things happening in our lives. How often do we
stand up amidst the crowds around us and proclaim that
indeed God has been good to us?
This is stealing credit which is due only to Him, because
He loves and cares for us. God doesn’t expect us to be
thankful; although I’m sure He is overjoyed by our
gratitude and when we acknowledge His intricate care of
our lives. The Gardener smiles when His garden is
blooming and abundant. By not honouring Him for His
care, we steal from Him the Water of Life that is essential
for our existence.
Our lives become dry and barren. Joy falls from it like
sand through an hourglass. We cannot understand why
we feel so alone and worthless. And we blame God!
We blame Him for taking what was a gift in the first place!
We blame Him for not caring, for not being understanding!
We blame Him for making mistakes!
We blame Him for not being in control!
Not showing any gratitude for a gift, is this not like
stealing? Taking constant care and understanding in
good times for granted, and throwing a tantrum when it is
amiss, takes away dignity, favour and respect – taking
without permission is stealing.
We steal from God, and in the end we steal the joy of life
and its abundance from ourselves and we blame God!
The thought is extremely difficult to bring across and
highly illogical.
The answer is simple – Give back the glory you’ve stolen
from God!
• For who you are, no matter how inadequate you
may think that is. He sees more potential in you
than you can imagine;
• For all you have, health, wealth, family, love –
LIFE;
• For giving the sacrifice of His Son’s life, so that
you may know that there is an overflowing source
of His grace waiting to be given to you …
abundantly!
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WHAT’S THAT NOISE?
Under most circumstances I can live with a noise around
me or the hustle and bustle of a crowd. However, when I
become focussed on something or someone in particular,
noise can become quite irritating and unbearable. Noise
weakens your senses, makes you vulnerable and edgy
and in some of us can cause extreme personality
disorders!!
The best word I have found to describe an unsettling
noise around you with, is cacophony. When I saw the
word the first time, I thought it was a misprint – the word
just couldn’t exist. Then when I learnt its meaning, I
realised that the word’s structure represents its very
meaning - an unpleasant combination of loud, often jarring
sounds. If you don’t know how to pronounce it, you can
experience the unpleasant combination of sounds!!
We don’t always have control over the noise around us,
but we do have control over our inner being. We learn to
adapt to noise that we cannot do away with. Physically,
noise can actually make you deaf or hard of hearing.
Tradesmen, who work in areas where irritating sounds
prevail, are advised to wear protective gear over their ears
to prevent permanent damage.
If we do have control over the noise, we can deal with it by
eliminating it or moving away from it. But if the noise gets
out of hand and starts to affect our existence, we devise
definite strategies to get rid of it.
Those of us who suffer from stress and depression have
added noise which doesn’t even have to be turned on
around us. We do it ourselves. We are born worrypots.
All the things that bother us run through our minds like
runaway trains. Sometimes it is hard to relate to someone
the number of thoughts that went through your head in
just a few seconds. It is mind-boggling – it makes me
amazed time and again that I am able to focus my
thoughts sufficiently to give structure to them. For us the
thoughts in our minds become a cacophony that threatens
to overcome our being if we don’t deal with it right away.
Usually you would go about getting rid of any noise
irritation in the following way:
Determine which sound is the loudest and most
irritating and get rid of that first;
If possible turn down the volume;
Close your eyes and cover your ears;
Move away from the irritation.
In our plight to get closer to God, we are often confronted
by a cacophony created by our sinful nature, bad habits,
vanity, denying our dependency on God, negative
influences and many other hindrances that we encounter
in our everyday lives. These become a barrier which
leaves us unable to hear God’s voice or lift a prayer to
Him.
We need to become quiet. And the only way to get there
is to follow the steps above.
Determine what is the predominant thing that is drawing
you away from a time of peace and quiet, which will bring
you closer to God. If it is your work – you need to rethink
your attitude towards it. There is a definite sense of
responsibility God expects from us as His followers when
executing our daily labour. But the execution of it cannot
become all consuming and makes us less of an
instrument for Him. This hindrance can become the
cacophony that drowns God’s voice in your life. Your
work however, is a mere example – there can be many
other things in your life that is causing a cacophony.
Turn down the volume! It is not always necessary to
eliminate the cacophony entirely – neither is it always
possible. But you can close the door on it! Closing the
door on it makes it more manageable and allows you to
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be more effective when dealing with it. We close the door
by choice, and by being assertive. Rome wasn’t built in a
day! So stand up, close the door and first focus your
attention on what is most important and forget about the
rest for a moment. You will get more done!
Close your eyes and cover your ears! People actually
stop talking to you if you do this. They do think you’re
crazy or even rude, but they go quiet. The strange thing
about it, so do your thoughts – mine do anyway, for a
moment there is nothing. A void of silence, and you have
the choice to fill it with whatever requires your attention
first, and focus on that only.
Finally if you have tried everything and the cacophony still
threatens to overwhelm you – move away! Take note, I
said MOVE away, not RUN away. The noise is not going
to disappear, you have to deal with it sometime, but there
is nothing wrong with calling a TIME-OUT! A time-out
gives you the chance to re-group, re-evaluate, restore
mind, body and soul and come back stronger, more
focussed and more sound of mind.
You do have the ability to control the noise around you –
use it and you will find God isn’t so far away after all!
WHERE HE WANTS YOU?
How many times have I asked myself if I am what God
wants me to be? Wondered if He is satisfied with who I
am, what I’m doing and how I’m living my life?
These are inherent feelings that most of us have. We
shouldn’t, because these are feelings of inferiority that
only the enemy can plant in our minds. Nevertheless, we
are only human and very, very few of us can honestly say
that it doesn’t bother us.
God wrote the book of your life. He predetermined who
you will be, what you will look like, your personality, your
hair on your head – everything about you. According to
Acts 17:26, God has even determined our time on earth
and the boundaries of our land (the place where we live)!
But, because He is a righteous, fair and forgiving God, He
allowed us to have our own will. And this is why we get
ourselves into situations where we wonder what God
thinks. We make choices without involving Him and after
all is said and done – when it usually is too late, we
wonder if He would agree.
I believe that we are exactly where God wants us all of the
time!
It is true that we make the wrong choices and end up in
circumstances or places where God would have preferred
us not to be, but that doesn’t mean we are not where He
wants us on our journey of life. He may not approve or
planned it that way, but He knew right from the very
beginning that there would be moments when we would
make mistakes – our having a mind and will of our own is
part of His plan and purpose. He never intended for us to
be robots and obey every single input command.
This means that any moment when you have to ask
yourself the question whether you are where God wants
you to be, ask yourself this – did I check with Him? Did I
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in fact ask for His wisdom and insight in making my
decision? If so, it is almost a certainty that you are exactly
where He wants you to be. If not, you may very well be
heading in the wrong direction, but because He said
nothing can separate you from His love, you are exactly
where He wants you, you just need to turn around and
head in the right direction again.
I read these wise words at a construction site. ‘The will of
God cannot take you, where the grace of God will not
protect you!’ The important part is – the will of God. Do
we seek it enough?
If we look back on our lives there are always times that we
feel we could have made different turns which probably
would have changed our lives altogether. God knew at
each of these wrong turns that we’re making a mistake.
He let us be!
Let me bring the whole idea a bit closer to home. As
parents we don’t always want to say ‘no’ to our children.
They need to experience life in some way, because it is
not simple and we have to learn to make our own sound,
decisions. If your young adult wants to go to a club which
you know holds no benefit to his/her well-being, you have
two choices. First, say no! If you want to you can give an
explanation why, but because you’re the parent you are
allowed to just let ‘no’ be ‘no’. Alternatively, you can rely
on the positive input you had in their lives and trust that
your example will convince them that this is not where
they want to be. Either way, they will end up in the club
sometime. However, it is your choice whether they are
where you want them to be (although you don’t agree) or
not if they disobey and go anyway.
God gives us much the same choice. If we seek His
wisdom, He will show us the right or more beneficial
direction. If we choose not to go that way, we are where
He wants us to be, although He might not agree.
This is why I say, no matter where you are or what you
are doing, when you entrust your life to God by accepting
the sacrifice of the life of His Son for your mistakes, you
are and always should be exactly where He wants you on
your path of life.
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WHO I AM IS WHO AM I?
‘When I said my foot is slipping, Your mercy and loving-kindness,
O Lord, held me up. In the multitude of my anxious thoughts
within me, Your comforts cheer and delight my soul!’ Ps 94:18,19
The title sounds confusing, doesn’t it! But it is so true,
because we indeed are who we think we are, or perceive
ourselves to be. So, if you are wondering who you really
are, take a good look at yourself and what you portray and
stand for, and you will know exactly who you are.
I have wondered before what the world around me would
look like if all the things that I say were to, like magic,
become reality. Most of my offenders would look like
monkeys or pigs, have pumpkin heads or worse. I really
am ashamed to say it (because sharing by admission is
much more real than just reacting to an impulse), like
assholes – because this is what I would in the heat of the
moment call them. Thankfully I haven’t stooped lower …
yet! How many people have I sent walking on a road to
damnation with the words ‘Go to hell’? And then even
adding the humor – ‘Do not pass go and definitely don’t
collect R200.00, go straight to hell!’ These are just the
people around me.
What about the world around me, and myself? I would
most certainly look like a nut at times, although I haven’t
really put much thought into what kind of nut, or whether it
is a metaphor for loosing my mind. Would I then be this
mindless thing floating through life not making any
difference at all? Would I at least taste good if someone
cracked my shell, or would I only be the dried-out remains
of a life lost in the search for meaning? How often have I,
in response to the question ‘How are you?’, replied that
things are crazy, or the Afrikaans ones are even greater,
‘Doller as kop-af’, ‘rof’ or ‘chaoties’?
These are just the things I say and thoughts that I actually
verbalise. What about those that just stay thoughts, partly
because I am still able to pull in the reigns and refrain
from allowing them to cross my lips, and partly because in
the rush of thoughts in my mind it was consumed by other
matters that occupy my brain! God’s word says, if you
have anticipated it in your mind, you have done it! That is
why we should constantly be in a process of cleansing!
Do not for one second think that I want us all to fall into a
deep state of depression because we are so low and
sinful! No, it is merely a thought and can be a quite
comical picture if you think of it! But the reality is, if you
think of and refer to your co-workers as being a bunch of
idiots – your day really starts with a backlog and you
should go home before you have even started! Maybe
they aren’t all as wonderful and intelligent as you are, or
maybe they are just on a different level of intelligence and
some of the things that bother you are trivial to them.
Maybe they think of you in the same way.
If we should say things like the Afrikaans expression
‘Doller as kop-af’, it literally means you are in such a
frantic state that you are beyond losing your head, not just
your mind. How will you cope without your head? Do you
have to even try? How can anything be worse than losing
your head? ‘Things are rough, chaotic!’ Even if they are,
we make it even worse proclaiming it to the world. If only,
once in this state, we would exclaim: “Lord, please help,
things are in chaos around me and I fear I’m losing
control.” Instead of telling everyone that we come across
or talk to that we are in this chaotic state, we may find that
the chaos indeed is, like God’s Word promises, nothing
more than what we are capable of achieving. After all, He
will not try you beyond your capabilities!
Oh boy, I am so preaching to myself in this piece! All the
positive things that I try to build myself up with, drift away
in the wind.
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We are who we think we are! And so are others. If I keep
thinking of myself as inadequate, a fool, not strong
enough, crazy, depressed, ad infinitum (see, I know big
words as well), I will be just that! In the same notion, if I
keep thinking that I work with fools, I will lose sight of the
fact that each one of them are unique and have qualities
that can enhance my personality and ability to achieve
even greater things, if I could only take the time to
discover them.
What you put in, is what you get out. Just like a PC - if
you keep feeding it garbage, garbage is what it will
produce. If you don’t believe in back-ups you will lose
valuable information. If you don’t protect it against
viruses, it will get infected. And so will you!
So look after yourself. Don’t call yourself names, belittle
or ridicule yourself or those around you. Half the battle is
either won or lost before you attempt anything. See the
reasons why you can’t succeed, merely as obstacles that,
once they are removed, would make the result so much
greater. Try getting rid of all the odds against your
success, by not verbalising them. Believe in yourself and
those around you. If you really trust God to care for you,
you should know that He placed all the people around you
there for a reason. Irrespective of whether that may be for
a moment, a season or a lifetime. They do have a
purpose … maybe you have yet to discover it.
Fill the void in your life with:
G – Goodness, grace, giving,
O – Opportunity,
D – Deeds, days, decades
WIPE AWAY THE TEARS
The wise old Solomon said, there is a time for everything,
a time to laugh, a time to cry …. (by the way if he received
wisdom as a gift, he may have been very young when he
said it).
It is very healing to cry. To just lose yourself in the
desperation of not understanding life’s unfairness, dealing
with hurt and disappointment and express your true
feelings in many other aspects of life as it happens. But,
there does come a time when it is time to wipe away the
tears.
My mother used to allow us to cry to a certain point. Then
she would pull you close to her, assure you that
everything will be fine and send you off to the bathroom to
go and wash your face.
Even washing away my tears as a grown-up (and believe
me, there have been many) has always been a releasing
experience. Your mood may not change immediately, but
with the water more than just the salty taste of your tears
is washed away.
In the same way, God gets to a point where He also
draws us into His embrace, reassures us that He has
everything under control and sends us off to go and wash
away the tears. Only we don’t always want to.
Our sorrow becomes a way of life. Without realising, we
make it a reason to get up in the morning. Even though
the day seems like a mountain before you, you believe
that sorrow builds character and makes you stronger and
therefore you just have to learn to live with it. Your burden
to carry, the thorn in your side.
Because we think this way, most of the times we are not
even aware of the fact that God is pulling us closer to Him
or worse, we resist it. We stop short of saying: ‘It’s okay,
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Lord, I can handle this on my own!’ But, in doing so, we
never seem to stop crying. Life loses all possibility of fun
or positive living.
At least when we cry, someone at some stage might see
and give us some sympathy or tell us to get up and wipe
away the tears. However, very often we hide our tears
from the world, behind brilliant smiles, hard work,
obsessions about food, cleanliness, health, wealth and
many other whims and woes. This is called denial and it is
mostly during this type of action that we lose touch with
God – it is inevitable, because being in denial about
sorrow, hardens your heart, which causes bitterness and
many other self-destructive emotions. God cannot reach
us because we have chosen to push Him away.
The moment you face your sorrow and decide to let go of
it – even if it means that the dam wall breaks – you realise
that God has always been there, waiting to dry the tears,
hold your shaking shoulders and comfort you with
reassurance as only He can. The point will come where
you will accept Him nudging you towards the bathroom to
wash your face and wipe away the tears. Everything may
not be hunky-dory right away, but the sun will break
through the clouds and life in general will seem a little
more appealing than before.
So, nestle yourself into God’s chest, have a good cry and
when you’re good and ready – wipe away the tears.
WONDER NOG STEEDS
Ek begin nou maar vrede maak daarmee dat ek een van
die verkrampte minderheid is, een van die tannies wat oor
alles en nog wat kla. Ek het al moes hoor ek gaan 'n ‘very
grumpy old lady’ word. Hopelik verloor ek nie my sin vir
humor en passie vir die mooi en goeie dinge in die lewe
nie! Ongelukkig lê daar baie scars op my lewe en sal ek
nooit seker so verlig kan wees dat humor rondom die
seksuele vir my in alle opsigte snaaks kan wees nie, en
seksuele suggestie in die media en advertensie wêreld vir
my aanvaarbaar kan word nie.
Die scars: molestering, ongevraagde seksuele teistering
(en glo my ek was nog nooit en sal ook nie 'n sexy model
wees nie), 10 jaar interaksie met 'n leefwyse waar die
sukses van familiebyeenkomste gemeet is aan wie die
grappie met die snaaksste seksuele ondertoon kon vertel.
Waarvan praat ek!? 'n Onskuldige gesprek waar die
woord 'wortel' almal in histeriese lagbuie gedompel het, en
waar ‘spyker’ nie noodwendig die ding is wat jy met ‘n
hamer moker nie! Die samelewing vra van slagoffers van
seksuele wandade om verby die verval in ons morele
standaarde te leef, maar min mense besef waardeur
hierdie slagoffers moet werk om net min of meer 'n
sinvolle seksuele lewe te lei.
Maar ek dwaal van die punt af. Ek wonder dikwels hoe
ver die Here die verval moet laat gaan, voordat ons sal
besef dat dit katastrofies begin word. So dikwels wonder
ongelowiges waarom mense as hulle in dire straits is,
sover kom om Christus aan te neem en hul totale
afhanklikheid te erken. Gelowiges word dikwels as
swakkelinge gesien omdat hulle die laagtepunte in hul
lewens nie sonder die 'kruk' van geloof kon deursien nie.
Dis nie waar nie! Dit is net so dat ons te hardkoppig is om
eenvoudig net te glo dat God ons liefhet en dat ons dit
eers raaksien as daar geen ander uitweg meer is nie.
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Daarom wonder ek oor ons wêreld vandag, en oor Sodom
en Gomorra.
Die verval in die twee 'stede' het so ver gegaan dat die
Here uit elk net een regverdige man en sy gesin kon red.
Op hierdie stadium was elke sonde wat jy aan kan dink
aanvaarbaar. Die mense het in totale afsondering van
God geleef. Die 'stede' is tot op die grond afgebrand,
vernietig. Selfs Lot se vrou het in 'n soutpilaar
verander omdat sy nie van sekere dinge kon afstand doen
nie, en daarom teen die Here se waarskuwing in
teruggekyk het. Sommige is van mening dat dit bloot agv
haar ongehoorsaamheid was. As ek my in haar posisie
moes indink, is dit 'n byna bomenslike versoek om nie
terug te kyk na die plek waar jy 'n lewe gebou het nie.
Ons doen dit sonder ophou! What if!
Alles rondom morele verval is weggevee. En die mense
daarmee saam? Die implikasie vir die mense het tot nou
toe by my verbygegaan. Ek het nog altyd net die 'stede'
gesien en die mense wat gered is. Gen 19:25 beskryf die
uiteinde van swael en vuur uit die hemel : En God het die
stede en die hele vlakte verwoes en al hulle inwoners om
die lewe gebring; selfs die plante in die omgewing is
uitgeroei. Die wat nie hul goddeloosheid wou laat vaar
nie, het in vlamme opgegaan, selfs Lot se aanstaande
skoonseuns wat gedink het hy maak 'n grap.
Ek doen dit dikwels ook nie, want die lewe is so gejaagd,
maar lees gerus in 2 Pet 2:6-10 wat Petrus sê oor Sodom
en Gomorra. Ten spyte van die vernietiging, hou elke
vers 'n belofte van redding in vir dié wat op God vertrou.
Ek wonder hoekom dit vir die Here nodig moet wees om
tot sulke ekstreme optrede oor te gaan, om die
eenvoudigste konsep tuis te bring. Hy het my en jou lief
en wil ons uit die kloue van die vernietiging en doodsheid
van hierdie morele verval red. Gaan dinge eers begin
regkom as ons 'n absolute laagtepunt bereik het? Dan
moet ons dalk ons fokus van gebed verskuif en ons
veiligheidsgordels aansit, because here comes an
extremely rough ride! As hierdie die rigting is waarin ons
beweeg, is al wat vir ons oorbly om te bid vir mense se
inkeer, dat oë sal oopgaan, vir ons en ons geliefdes se
beskerming teen wat vir ons voorlê en dat God ons sal
bewaar omdat ons op Hom vertrou, dat ons soos
Abraham en Lot uit hierdie dinge sal kan wegstap, 'n nuwe
lewe tegemoet? In 2 Pet 2:8, sê Petrus die volgende oor
Lot: Terwyl hy tussen hulle (die sedelose mense) gewoon
het, moes hierdie eerbare man dag vir dag soveel van
hulle gruweldade aanskou en sulke dinge aanhoor dat dit
'n foltering was vir sy opregte gemoed.
Die morele verval van die wêreld is soos die Engelse sê,
‘inevitable’. Satan is in beheer van die wêreld. Ons kan
slegs bid dat dit ons en ons gesinne nie sal raak nie, dat
ons kinders en geliefdes betyds die kanker sal identifiseer
en na God sal draai vir hulp en leiding. Ons moet slegs in
vertroue leef dat God ons soos in die geval van Abraham
en Lot die aanskoue van ‘n totale verval sal spaar.
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‘X’
Die uitdrukking “‘x’ marks the spot”, is vir ons almal
bekend, en dui gewoonlik ‘n skat of fortuin aan wat almal
altyd ontwyk. Lang verhale word geskryf oor seerowers
en matrose wat ewe ywerig na sulke X’e soek. Soms in
ons alledaagse lewe sal die X net ‘n punt wees waaroor
daar normaalweg eenstemmigheid is as ‘n beginpunt of
eindpunt of die presiese plasing van ‘n item.
X kan ook ‘n onbekende of onbepaalde faktor wees, ‘n
veranderlike of ‘n punt vanwaar gemeet gaan word. X kan
bloot ‘n letter van die alfabet wees. En X kan soentjies
aan die einde van ‘n brief vir ‘n geliefde of van ‘n verliefde
wees. X word Christus in die Engelse afkorting van
Kersfees. X kan ook ‘n lelike rooi kruis op ‘n toets of
vraestel wees om ‘n fout aan te dui.
Ek onthou ‘n stoute grappie wat ek jare terug gehoor het
van Jannie wat ‘n sinnetjie met ‘ramp’ moes gemaak het.
Hy sê toe, ‘Juffrou, daar is elke maand ‘n rooi ‘x’ op my
sussie se kalender, hierdie maand is daar nie een nie, en
my ma sê dis ‘n ramp!’ So X kan ‘n ramp ook wees.
In die alfabet het X maar ‘n minderwaardige posisie,
omdat daar so min woorde is wat met ‘n X gespel word.
Dit kan egter nie weggelaat word nie, want dit is dikwels
die enigste letter wat ‘n bepaalde taalkundige of
wiskundige funksie kan vervul. Dit maak dus nie saak hoe
‘n mens daarna kyk nie, X’e is en sal altyd deel van ons
lewe bly.
Ek wil graag hê dat ‘Wat pla ?’ vir jou ‘n X moet wees:
‘n Punt op ‘n kaart wat ‘n skatkis of fortuin aandui. ‘n
Skatkis vol genesing, hoop, liefde, vrede, vreugde en
vergifnis. ‘n Skatkis waarin jy altyd kan gaan soek na
antwoorde en waaruit wysheid jou van die een
lewenswaarheid na die volgende een lei.
‘n Definitiewe beginpunt, waar jy sal begin om nuwe
lewe te ontdek, nuwe ervarings te beleef en ‘n nuwe
uitkyk op die lewe in die algemeen te kry.
Ook ‘n eindpunt. Daar waar jy ‘n merk kan maak en
sê dis die einde van daardie hartseer, die einde van
moedeloosheid en die einde van wanhoop omdat jy
nie altyd glo dat alles die moeite werd is nie.
‘n Kompas wat vir jou rigting sal aandui sonder dat dit
jou in ‘n rigting dwing.
Die onthulling van die onbekende en sigbare
ontluiking van alles waaroor jy vrae het.
Laat dit vir jou wees soos rye en rye soentjies onder
aan ‘n kind se brief aan jou. Een baie spesiale
soentjie op ‘n nota op die yskas van jou geliefde om te
sê hy/sy is nog lief vir jou. Bloot ‘n herinnering dat
iemand iewers vir jou omgee en dat jy nooit ooit alleen
is nie.
Ek wil nooit hê dat dit vir jou
Christus uit Kersfees of enige ander faset van jou
lewe uithaal nie.
Die rooi kruise agter die foute in jou lewe wees nie.
Sien dit liewer as kanse om weer en weer te probeer
sonder dat dit jou waardigheid as mens enigsins
affekteer.
Die rampe in jou lewe uitlig nie. Mag dit tot rooi letter
dae lei, wat oorloop van vreugde en mooi
herinneringe.
‘n Minderwaardige deel van jou lewe wees nie. Mag
dit ‘n saadjie wees wat die wysheid van die Here tot ‘n
massiewe groot kremetartboom in jou lewe sal laat
groei.
Mag “Wat pla?” vir jou ‘n groot X in die dagboek van jou
lewe word om jou altyd te herinner dat alhoewel ons
elkeen uniek is, dit die onveranderlike waarheid is dat die
Here vir ons almal ewe lief is en niks ons uit Sy hand kan
ruk nie.
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YOU WIN AND YOU LOSE
‘For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of
flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the
overthrow and destruction of strongholds, ‘ 2 Cor 10:4
There isn’t a more rewarding feeling than winning. No
matter who you are, where you’re from and what your field
of expertise is. Whether you merely win while trying to
succeed at a difficult task or achieve a major win noticed
by all, it’s nice to win.
We all deal with it in different ways. To some, winning
seems to come naturally – they excell at everything –
winning almost becomes a habit and part of life. These
people feel a losing streak much closer to the heart than
those who have to really work hard at achieving success
and only experience it on the odd occasion.
I really don’t care if you excell at everything or try your
darndest to win and fail time and time again. The fact of
the matter is, there will be times that you’ll win and there
will be times that you’ll lose - throughout your life, on an
ongoing basis. But there must be some recipe for both.
I’ve heard it said, that winning isn’t everything, it’s the only
thing. This attitude in life can make it very hard, almost
impossible, to accept losing. Life just doesn’t work that
way. It may very well be a very positive attitude to have,
showing great determination. But if you believe that
winning is the only option, you are bound to fall flat on
your nose and will struggle very hard to regain composure
to try again.
We have to look at winning as an ongoing process. Just
like we win small battles in an ongoing war until ultimately
the war ends, we declare a truce or come through it
victoriously, life is an ongoing effort to achieve success at
reaching the goal that God has set for you when He
created you and brought you into this world. Each of us
has a goal or target that He intends for us to reach. We
won’t necessarily die trying to get there, but we will meet
with both triumph and disaster on the way.
Winning indeed isn’t everything. How you lose is as big
an indication of your true character! On the whole I think
losing demands much more from you emotionally, than
any high from winning can achieve. Winning just makes
you stronger and stronger, whereas losing can break your
spirit, change your life into a series of unfortunate events
and even distance friends and loved ones from you.
Winning is a celebration – losing can be devastation.
Despite the fact that I do not have a feel for philosophy
and what it stands for, the words of Rudyard Kipling in this
regard are very true. ‘If you can meet with triumph and
disaster and treat those two imposters just the same,
yours is the world and all that’s in it, and which is more,
you’ll be a man my son!’
Two imposters, winning and losing. Both hold the same
emptiness if there is no-one to share it with. Winning is a
blessing, a favour from God which we hardly ever
deserve, because we tend not to give Him credit for our
abilities and effort. We think of losing as a curse, but very
often we will find great blessings hidden in life’s so-called
disasters.
What is important then? Doing your best! Applying
yourself as God made you, to the best of your ability.
Being satisfied with your achievements, however great or
small they may be. To always be humbled by the success
you are capable of. What is important is to realise that
when you fail, you are not a failure – you have just not
achieved success at that moment – and life goes on!
Most important of all, is that only God’s approval counts –
especially not yours, because most of us are too hard on
ourselves.
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Finally to end winning and losing, the words from a song
by Vineyard Music: ‘I’ll be content to serve an audience of
One, only His approval counts when all is said and done.
This is my prayer, ‘till the race is finally won – I want to
hear ‘Well Done’ from the audience of One.’ And the fact
that Jesus died for all your weaknesses, means that in
Him there really is no true effort on our part, that God will
not approve of.
**********
Thomas Edison said: I never failed; I only found 10,000
ways that do not work!
**********
ZERO
‘For with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God
shall be without power or impossible of fulfillment.’ Luke 1:37
How do you define ‘zero’? My Oxford Dictionary
describes it as ‘the figure nought (0), nothing, the point
marked 0 on a thermometer’, etc. The ‘Look up’ list in
MSWord is a little longer and quite interesting – some
meanings actually leaving room for a lengthy discussion in
itself, like the abstract realization of a morpheme!!
Zero temperature is not really important, whether it will go
below zero or rise above it is of consequence. If one’s
spirits are at the lowest possible point or degree, they are
at zero, although we don’t really talk that way. Somebody
can also be regarded as a complete failure or zero,
Afrikaans: ‘n nul op ‘n kontrak.
Where do you go from zero? This, in my opinion is the
important thing about the concept of nothing. If you
actually get to the point where you have nothing, realise
that you really are nothing, nothing seems to have any
significant value or you just have nothing to believe in or
live for, where do you go?
This is the point where your true nature is determined.
The point where it will be established whether you have
programmed yourself with the will to go on or through
negative thoughts and input, harbouring hate, bitterness
and unforgiveness, brought yourself to a point where you
see no other option but to give up.
Unless you have been at zero, you cannot really say how
you will react to it. Zero is also different for all of us. For
some, zero is financial downfall, for some it is when
cancer or some other devastating disease is diagnosed.
For some people zero can even be losing a loved one.
Each person will perceive their zero as the worst there
can be. It is at our zero points that another zero comes
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into play. We say, ‘Nothing can be worse than this!’
‘Nothing’ has no value, so what we are really saying is
that the zero that we are at, is the worst that anything in
our life could ever be! Life cannot be darker or more
complicated.
But, there is always something else that can, and it will;
only you won’t know until you experience it. So, does
zero really exist, or is it just a point to measure from?
When I was at zero, I picked myself up. When I was at
zero, I looked around me and saw others with greater
needs at points way below my zero. When I was at zero I
realised that I built my world around insignificant things
and fallible people.
Is zero not really an opportunity? A chance to start all
over? A chance to do better? A zero on a contract can
have great significance – the difference between a million
and mere thousands!
I believe that with God there is no zero point. In His sight
no one can ever be a zero, every person has built-in
potential, a God given purpose and is given the choice to
use it. There isn’t a place on earth that can ever hold
nothing. Okay, maybe a vacuum, but even inside a
vacuum are microscopic organisms we have yet to
discover. To believe that with God nothing is impossible,
in essence means that to Him anything and everything is
possible. Yet if we think of ‘nothing’ being zero and a
definable noun, it can also mean that with God the
concept of zero/nothing does not exist.
Zero isn’t anything, completely without something or
failure at all, zero is a starting point, and only you can
determine whether you will fall below zero or rise above it.
Dankie! – Thank you!
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This part of “What’s up?” was created over some 15 plus
years of my life. It represents different stages of my life,
deals with people, feelings and experiences. Although
poetically it should not be necessary to explain what a
work of art is about, this is what you will find. Before each
poem, a little more insight into when it was written, why
and also to whom. This is my dedication part of the book.
Living through these memories, knowing the people and
being able to write about it, helped me grow and made me
who I am today.
Sonder hierdie ervaringe en mense in my lewe sou ek
baie armer gewees het. Ek sou graag oor elkeen wat deel
van my lewe is ‘n gedig wou skryf, maar digkuns is nou
maar eenmaal iets baie spesiaal en nie iets wat ‘n mens
sommer net aan- en afskakel nie. So, as hier nou nie een
spesiaal vir jou is nie, moet jy jouself maar gerusstel met
die wete dat woorde my ontbreek vir jou bydrae in my
lewe. Maar wie weet, dalk is woorde nie jou ding nie en
kan ek of het ek al vir jou ‘n ander geskenk kon gee.
Ek hoop jy geniet dit saam met my.
Vir Hannes
When I decided to get married for the second time, my
sister shoved a book into my hand called ‘Die Tweede
Kans’. I don’t think that I ever finished reading it, but the
title made me realise once and for all that divorce may be
one of the most destructive forces man can willfully
bestow on himself, but it is not an unforgiveable sin. God
specialises in second chances and I am not capable of
writing words of gratitude to Him for the wonderful second
chance man that He gave me.
Hierdie boek is vir Hannes, volgens my die geduldigste en
mees vergewensgesinde man in my wêreld. Dankie, ek is
lief vir jou.
A Special man
At best my life, and all in me
should be a song of praise to Thee.
You’ve carried me through hardest times,
protected me, as a father would his child.
But still, I stand amazed to find
Your love is such a special kind
Your love, I knew, would always bring
a greater happiness to me
but never did I realise
how great You wanted it to be.
On my request, You’ve brought to me
a very special man.
One, who would, when You’re not free,
on Your behalf, take care of me.
Therefore, with my whole life, Lord
I want to praise Your Name,
for bringing to my life, Your love
and giving it his human frame.
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For my fellow depression sufferers
WHERE AM I?
I’m once more lost, lost …
ever to be found amongst the turmoil called, my mind?
Can one lose oneself, ‘t seems within a wink
yet know that you are there? Somewhere …I think.
If I walk along this weary path,
without a thought or sound
would the path then lead me back again?
Is there a road that one can take, which
slowly, skilfully meanders onto higher ground?
Where would it be, where could it be?
The road that leads me from this mess!
Should I be trying harder or must I just relax?
Will Someone, meant to save me
drop a rope right in my lap?
Then must I struggle, lonely
to once more get back to the top
to lie then, waiting, ‘Someone see my fall!’
Will Someone hear me, and pull the rope that’s slack
and save me from my waiting, finding His way back.
Dear God, are You to answer?
Are You the voice I’m waiting for?
********
Were they always here, these steps?
Just waiting for my feet to touch their ground.
Were they somehow hidden,
in the turmoil in my mind?
How much time will I be losing,
in my self-created blindness?
Will I see the answer has been lying,
just a simple step away to find!
Life it seems, is hard, yet simple
from the turmoil of your mind.
The Truth, the Life, the Way,
is never very hard to find!
Learn to switch off! Listen only for the voice inside that
encourages you, that tells you everything will be okay, that
the world will not come to an end because you are not
yourself. Believe me, a time will come that you will look
back and have to concentrate on not dumping yourself
into another depression because you were so hard on
yourself! You really are special, you are more than okay,
you’re not insane, you do meet the requirements of being
a decent person and the contrary of all the other lies you
believe – really in the midst of that pit of mud, YOU ARE
HIS BELOVED!
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For a friend
For a long time I did not have many true friends in my life.
Until I asked the Lord to change this - and He did
drastically - strangely, those I cherished most, have been
much older than I am. This is in memory of one of the
best of these “older” friends that I had, even if for the
shortest time.
Neville Burns
7 February 1931 – 15 September 1997
I was awake many a morning in the past few months in
the early hours thinking of Mr Burns, as I so fondly knew
him, and also praying for him. This morning of his funeral
was no exception. I was extremely fortunate to have been
a small part in this man’s life. God has brought many
people over my path for many reasons, but there are very
few that I have had the privelege of seeing spiritual growth
in them unfold before me. From a man who, within the
first few weeks of making his acquaintance, warned me
not to be too much of an evangelist, Mr Burns was
transformed to one who would on a daily basis consult me
about faith, all through the power of prayer.
I first came to know him in February 1992, as a man with
a very sturdy wall that he built up around his heart. I was
privileged in the last 18 months of his life to be allowed to
see the incredibly kind and often lonely heart behind that
wall. In these months, even prior to his cancer being
diagnosed, I witnessed an amazing spiritual growth and
was very often bombarded with religious questions,
especially one which I’m sure many of you have asked:
‘how do Christians justify their Christ-likeness if their lives
are full of sin and so obviously shows the contrary?’ I was
most thankful to the Lord for giving me Scriptures and an
ability to reason, with which I could always answer. The
one answer that he appreciated most and received with
one of his well-known chuckles, was my reference to a
bumper sticker that read: “Christians aren’t perfect, they’re
just forgiven”. It was an incredible honour to know this
man.
FAREWELL TO A FRIEND
I said farewell to my friend today – he died
What an honour it was to know him!
What a joy to be his friend.
To oft be able to console him
and at times, for him to do the same
At heart, we were much the same
between us many secrets lie
he knew me as I know myself
still, in life we’re worlds apart.
To those around us we’re both warriors
no task too big, or wall too high
but, in the honest trust of friendship
we both found rest for worriers.
I thank you Lord for taking him
while he was still so dignified.
For shortening his suffering
and sustaining to the end, his pride.
I trust that one day we will meet again
to say the things we left unsaid
and Lord that You will always let him know
I was and always will be
his friend until the end.
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290
Vir bruide en bruidegomme
Daar is ‘n paar voorregte in die lewe, veral dié wat ek
vanweë my talente al geniet het. Daar is oomblikke wat
ek altyd sal onthou omdat dit onontginde rigtings in my
lewe aandui, wat beslis nie meer moontlik is nie. Een
daarvan was om op hul troudag vir ‘n paar bruidspare te
kon sing. Die Here het op ‘n wonderlike manier vir my
woorde gegee wat ek in van die gewildste musiek vir
troues kon inpas om die lied vir die paartjie persoonlik te
maak. Dit sou beslis nie regverdig teenoor die
oorspronklike liriekskrywers wees om daardie woorde hier
weer te gee nie. Daar was egter van die paartjies met wie
ek ‘n spesiale band gehad het, wat daarmee saam ook ‘n
gedig gekry het.
Jaco en Cani
Vir wie het die liefde eerst’ gevind,
al dartelend, draaiend in die wind?
Haar lag weerklink soos klokkies wat lui –
die wind dra sy stem tot aan haar sy.
God het jul elkeen reeds geken.
Hy het jul lewens na mekaar gelei.
Toe Sy Vaderhart dit raaksien
het Hy self die wind beveel,
om hierdie liefde met jul te deel.
Hy, wat die son, maan en sterre laat skyn
het die donker in jul lewe laat verdwyn.
Hy het jul liefde ‘n ligbron gemaak,
‘n wolk van vuur wat Sy drome dra.
Sing vir die wind, dans in die reën,
want Sy Liefde dra jul
oor berge van seën!
27 Oktober 2001
Johan en Theresa
Voordat jul van mekaar bewus was,
Was jul al vir mekaar bedoel.
Onbewus, dat jul saam ‘n pad sal stap
wat voor jul bestaan uitgestippel was.
Jul lewens het verstrengel in mekaar geraak
harmonie – emosie en lewe – het ontstaan.
‘n Lied – met jul eerste omhelsing het dit begin!
Die lied – triomfantelik soos ‘n simfonie.
Elke fase van groei word daarin vasgevang – verewig.
Toegevou in die majesteit van klanke en musiek
lê – veilig bewaar – die vreugde en die pyn.
Die onverstaanbare wonder: Jul lewe saam!
Die simfonie duur voort – dit groei en groei,
jul vriende word saam daarin geweef,
hul deel die vreugde, deel die pyn
En ook die onvermoë om alles te verklaar.
Vasgeanker in die klanke lê die tema van die lied.
Daarsonder – geen eenheid.
Net klanke – geen harmonie.
Die tema – die Liefde wat net die Heer ons bied!
Vir jul sal Hy die klanke onbeskryflik inmekaar weef,
Sy simfonie sal jul in elke storm kan dra,
die reën sal op jul Sy seën wees.
In die klanke sal die sonskyn altyd leef.
Rig jul oë nou na die toekoms, gevestig op Hom,
laat die verlede lê in die klanke wat vervaag.
Begin met ywer saam skryf – ‘n nuwe simfonie!
Twee heel mense is van vandag af een.
Aan die einde van jul lewe sal ons saam dit hoor.
‘n Simfonie – onmoontlik in mensvermoë!
Maar solank as jul toelaat dat die Heer dit skryf,
sal min mense ooit die wonder daarvan glo.
291

292
I will however share with you adapted words to ‘Theme
from Love Story’ that I sang to my groom on the day of our
wedding. (If you know the song, it means so much more!)
A ‘Different’ Theme from Love Story
How can I begin, to tell the wonder of my
Saviour’s love for me and show the glory
of the mercy that He gave an answer to my prayer
and brought your love to me.
Our God is good
Through your loving heart,
He gave a meaning to this empty world of mine
He reigns within our hearts
His grace is so divine
With God’s eternal love I know we will be fine
He fills our heart, He fills our mind
With very special things, with angel songs
With hope and with His dreams
He fills our souls with so much love
That anywhere we go we’re never lonely,
With Him around, who could be lonely
The touch of His love is always there
My love I vow will be
a clear reflection of the Lord’s love that’s in me
He’ll be my anchor
And He’ll place the strength in me
To give to you just as He’ll always give to me
A loving heart
God’s eternal love
Cannot be measured by the hours in a day
We’ll always need the Lord
And this is what I pray
For Him to bind our love
Through each and every day
And He’ll be there
Vir my kinders
Daar is ‘n gedig in julle elkeen, nee, ‘n lied. Vir sommige
van julle kom die woorde maklik, vir ander is dit ‘n
groeiproses, en glo ek sal die eindresultaat voortreflik
wees. Jy sal weet as dit joune is.
My Seun
Is daar in hierdie lewe, ‘n groter geskenk
as die vermoë om ‘n kind te kan baar?
Om sy lewe onder jou hart te voel groei
en weet hy sal altyd jou bloed in hom dra!
Wanneer jy waarlik jou God ontdek,
besef jy eers die grootsheid van ‘n kind!
Weet jy, dat selfs al is hy ver van jou
is jul in God, vir altyd saamgebind.
Jy kan bid, “Here, kyk na hom”!
Laat U seëninge oor hom reën,
laat U wil met hom geskied.
Laat U Koninkryk ook vir hom kom!
Dan kan jy rus met hierdie wete,
dat niemand beter na jou kind kan kyk
as die Een wat Sy eie Seun gegee het,
om vir ons kinders lewe te bied.
My seun, wanneer jy weg van my is
en voel dat jy my hand in joune soek.
Kyk op na die hemel en roep,
en ons Pa sal jou troos kan bied.
Want as ek jou baie mis,
en jou beeld hier voor my sien.
Brand in my hart die hoop dat jy,
soos ek, in Hom die antwoord sien.
(3 Januarie 1997)
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294
THE WIND IS A GIRL, I’M SURE!
There are those who would say,
‘The wind is a boy,’
as it tucks on the skirt of a well-formed girl!
But me, yes, I’m sure, the wind is a girl!
Look at her playfully darting across the fields,
dancing on the tips of the seeds of grass.
Darting here and leaping there …
like a ballerina in the air.
In the heat of summer she would touch your face,
gently stroke her arms around your frame
and wrap you in her cool embrace.
‘Midst the icy cold of winter’s snow,
she howls around the corners of your home –
warning you that the weather’s foul.
Feel how she, in spring, joyfully grabs your hair
shaping a style only a mother can bear,
yet lovingly runs her fingers
through every wondrous strand.
The storm wind can so well express
a mother’s wrath when her child’s been scorned.
And when around you lies her sheer destruction,
she’ll gently lift you far above, on a fragrant breeze.
No doubt, I say, the wind must definitely be a girl …
perhaps a mother!
4 February 2003
HERE, WAT VAN MY KIND!?
Here, ek weet nie wat om met my kind te maak!
Hoe kon hy tog so onverskillig raak,
waar het sy kop met hom ‘n draai gaan maak,
gaan die Liefde in sy hart dit dra?
Waar is die kind wat eens van onskuld spreek,
wat lewenswaardes vir sy maats wou leer,
op sy beginsels vas wou staan,
en bokant sy probleme uit wou gaan!
Skielik het sy lewe stil gaan staan,
maar tog het hy nog voortbestaan.
Nou neem sy waardes snel die wyk,
en wil hy na die vreemdste dinge kyk!
Sy oë wil alles inneem – sonder krag!
Die wreedste dinge, glo hy, het mag.
Waar wil U pad met hom gaan draai,
gaan hy die oes van hierdie dinge maai?
Waar moet ek met hom heengaan, Heer?
Hoe moet ek hom U liefde leer?
U hart wat van hom vra,
om skoon en onbesmet te bly!
Om nie U Gees wat in hom bly,
opsy te stoot en te vermy,
Die dinge is vir hom te veel, O Heer!
Uit ondervinding moet hy seker leer,
maar elke keer gee hy net groter kans,
vir die vyand om sy dans te dans!
Leer hom tog U wil, o Heer!
Laat U werke triomfeer!
Lei my in U wysheid keer op keer,
om uit my voorbeeld hom te leer.
8 April 2001
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296
Vir iemand spesiaal
Die Here bring baie jong mense oor my pad vir baie
spesifieke redes. Soms gooi Hy ‘n spanner in die works
en stuur iemand wat ek nie weet hoe, wat en waar nie.
Maar telkens is Hy so getrou met die antwoorde. Hierdie
vir ‘n spesiale mensie en sommer vir al die bulimie en
anoreksie-lyers.
Wie is ek?
In die spieël … is dit ‘n raaisel?
‘n Onbekende beeld wat voor My staan?
Aan wie behoort die oë – die mond,
die liggaam, sag gerond?
As Ek na die wese staar, is daar twee gedagtes binne My
Die glimlag, sprankelend, is … ja, volmaak!
Die blonde hare - selfs gekrul,
omraam die vensters van haar siel.
Die oë spreek van sterk persoonlikheid,
van iemand wat na hoë hoogtes reik
Klere, net die beste smaak, dek die lyf,
voortreflik vir haar skeppingsdoel gemaak.
Die prentjie, met selfvertroue by,
sal sowaar op wieke van My liefde ry!
Maar wat is dit? Wie het dit daar gesit?
‘n Hartseer trek wat Ek in die oë gewaar,
van nog iemand wat na die prentjie staar.
Vir hierdie oë is die prentjie onvolmaak,
getuig die klere en die hare net van slegte smaak.
Sy sien net al die foute raak
en luister na ‘n vreemde stem wat praat.
‘n Stem wat aan haar leuens vertel,
van oorgewig en slegte vel.
‘n Stem wat in haar oor wil fluister
dat aanvaarding haar gaan lei na duister.
Waar het die fout dan ingesluip?
Waarom sien sy nie soos Ek dan kyk?
Dit is die stem, wat haar verraai!
Wat dorings in haar pad wil saai!
Hy wil dat sy in hartseer leef
en altyd na ‘n donker droom bly streef.
My droom vir haar is mooi,
vol liefde en met vreugde opgetooi.
Dit is reeds ingeplant in haar,
weerspreek die leuens, want Ek is waar!
Jy is so kosbaar in My oë,
jou sonlig, glans en droomvermoë.
Die sprankel van ‘n druppel dou
het Ek in jou wese ingebou.
‘n Stukkie van My hart in jou,
laat groei die liefde van ‘n tere vrou!
Kyk in die spieël, en wat sien jy?
Dieselfde prentjie as wat Ek daar kry?
10 Januarie 2002
297

298
Helde en heldinne
Ons almal het ons eie helde en heldinne. Mense na wie
ons opkyk omdat hulle ‘n deel van ons aanraak wat ander
nie bykom nie. My heldin sal dus nie noodwendig joune
wees nie, want my heldin moet met my hart praat en daar
is net een wat dit kan doen.
My sing heldin
(Laurika Rauch – 29/10/06)
‘K wens ek kon ‘n liedjie skryf
vir my sing heldin
dat sy met die note weg kan dryf
soos ek in die woorde wat sy sing.
Sy tel my hart uit donker dieptes op,
as ek weer kyk, draai die wêreld bo my kop,
dan wys die son sy glans vir my
en kan ek op wieke van vier winde ry.
Waar het Hy tog haar stem gekry?
Het Hy dit net bedoel vir my?
Kan ander ook die taal verstaan?
Of is ons harte in dieselfde baan?
Sing sonder ophou, my sing heldin.
So sing-sing word jy my hart se vriendin.
En as almal ver is, en my krag te min
luister ek swygend, na my sing heldin.
Ek het net woorde om neer te skryf
geen akkoorde vir my sing vriendin.
‘n Warm kombersie van woorde,
om in die winter te vou om haar lyf.
On special request
Ten spyte van die feit dat ek en my ma mekaar nie altyd
kon vind nie, bestaan daar geen twyfel dat sy in my en
elkeen van haar kinders se talente en vermoëns geglo het
nie. Hierdie gedig op haar versoek aan my neef en sy
vrou wat hul dogter té vroeg aan die dood afgestaan het.
Tribute to Anne -10 February 1998
(Ps 8)
I look up to the heavens Lord
to find You looking down at me,
your eyes are like a gentle touch
your smile embraces me.
I hear the sound of angel song
and know You’re here with me,
it won’t be very long from now
when I’ll be sitting on Your knee.
Your plans I do not know,
my mind just cannot see,
the vastness of my life in You -
the life you gave to me.
I frolic in the morning sun,
I dance my feet into the rain,
my heart sings out a song to You,
You came to take away my pain.
You washed my sorrows in Your blood
and asked the wind to plant their seed,
to grow for all who care for me
and shield them in their need.
Bring us once more to our knees, Lord,
draw us closer to Your side
that we may feel Your love around us
and in Your Spirit strength abide.
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300
‘n Kersfeeswens aan my vriendinne
Ons het vriende nodig. Genoeg om, soos die man in die
Bybel wie se vriende sy draagbaar deur die dak na Jesus
laat sak het sodat hy genees kan word, ons draagbaar na
Jesus te bring. Daar was ‘n tyd in my lewe wat ek bitter
min vriende gehad het. ‘n Tyd waar ek geleer is dat
vriende net moeilikheid is. Toe het die Here daardie leuen
vir my uitgewis en my met die wonderlikste vriende en
vriendinne omring wat enige tyd van die dag of nag, my
draagbaar na Jesus toe sal dra. Hierdie is vir my Jesus
vriendinne.
Christusfees groete
Geen groter geskenk
kan ek hierdie Christusfees vra,
as dat Jesus se liefde
jou deur alles sal dra.
Dat jy Sy vrede in alles ervaar
en Hy jou met oorvloed sal seën ..
en bewaar.
Jy, wat my hart so warm laat klop.
Jy, wat my help kruip uit my dop.
Jy, wat my troos as die trane biggel.
Jy, wat saam met my soos tieners kan giggel.
Jy, my Jesus vriendin
Jy neem my hand as my man nie verstaan!
Leen my jou oor as die gier van ‘n kind my plat slaan.
Met jou laaste greintjie van krag,
trek jy my uit die put van die nag.
As almal ver is, is jy hier naby
en ek weet dat jy daar is vir my,
in die middel van die nag,
of op ‘n helder sonskyn dag!
Jy, my Jesus vriendin
Want digby Sy hart het Hy jou gehou
veilig gekoester, tot nou.
Met Sy woorde het Hy jou gelei.
Die goud van Sy vriendskap in jou ingebou.
Totdat Hy eendag - toe Hy sien dat ek ly -
deur jou, my hand neem en sê,
Sy’s My beste vriendin, spesiaal net vir jou!
Want sy ken My hart,
haar hart praat My taal.
En wanneer jy voel
dat My handdruk te ver is,
sal hare jou troos wees,
want Ek is in haar.
4 Desember 2006
301

302
Aan die Moeder van Jesus
KAN EK OOIT JOU SMART BEGRYP
Maria, kan ek ooit jou smart begryp
toe jy na die liggaam van jou Seun moes staar,
‘n lyk …..?
Het jy in jou hart, soos Hy, begrip gehad
vir die mens se onbesonne daad?
Het jy gedwee, toe Hy dit sê,
Johannes as jou seun aanvaar
of het jou hart geskreeu vir wraak?
Het jy die mense daar gevra,
of hulle weet Wie aan die kruishout hang?
Het ‘n smartkreet dalk laat blyk,
dat jou hart in duisend stukke breek!
Maria, kan ek ooit jou pyn begryp!
By die leë graf toe jy Hom eer betoon,
het jy gevra - ‘Wie steel ‘n lyk?’
Het jy die doeke opgevou,
jou vreugde nie laat blyk?
Het jy geweet Hy’t opgestaan,
Hy het die dood ontwyk?
Maria, het jy dit geweet?
Het Hy jou daarop voorberei
dat die mensdom Hom, so fel sou slaan
dat die lewe van Hom wyk?
Het Hy vir jou die pyn gespaar
van in die laaste uur dit openbaar?
Of het jy, soos sy vriende daar,
in wanbegrip na die terreur gestaar?
Maria, al was jy daarop voorbereid,
wie sou jou weemoed kon begryp
dat jy moes kyk hoedat jou Seun,
met liefde uit jou hart gevoed.
Vir die wrede skare, Sy laaste lewensdag,
in nederigheid moes stort …..
Sy bloed!
En aan my Meester, met diepe dankbaarheid
Ode to Him
I come into your presence Lord,
to bask in your eternal Light!
Lord, I need your mercy!
Let it once more fall upon me,
soaked up by my inner man, like
raindrops on a parched and barren land.
Your glory fills the air around me
to be my shelter from the storms,
a blanket of your love surrounds me
Your anointing oil restores my soul.
You alone can see right through me –
Lord, blow your love into my heart!
Oh Spirit lift me higher, into a better land
where one day I may see your Glory
and gently touch your loving Hand.
Oh, to come into your presence Lord
to bask in your Eternal Love!
To find that in the midst of suffering
stands firmly by my side, the King.
I come into Your presence Lord,
as humbly as I can
and lay before Your feet My Lord,
my life, my love, my plans.
May this day, oh, Lord
for You be such a special one.
May You see Yourself in me all day
and all around me see Your Light.
May all around me know my precious King
through everything I do and say.
303

304
Song of praise to the Lord
Oh Lord, My God, You are my only Saviour!
You deliver me dear Lord from the hands of my enemy.
You strengthen me in my weaknesses,
give me comfort in my pain.
Lord, I will love you forever,
worship Your Name until the end of time,
my Lord will always carry me,
I’ll always have His Hand in mine.
In His presence I always will find peace
His touch will calm the storms.
Thank you Lord you have delivered me!
I bathe in the presence of your Spirit Lord,
I praise You for the Glory of your Son
How I love you, dear God
O Heer, hoor my gebed
Ek roep na U in nederigheid,
en vra dat slegs U wil geskied.
O Heer, gee dat U Gees in my
die wysheid van ‘n antwoord bied.
U genade is so groot O Heer
U luister na ons lied.
U juig met ons in vreugdetyd
en huil as ons ons trane bied.
O Heer deur heel my lewe
wil ek slegs wandel op U weg,
en altyd daarna strewe
om U wil te laat geskied.
Lei my nou, O Heer,
dat ek sonder twyfel
op die weg wat U my wys
met vreugde in my hart sal gaan.
U is die alfa en omega,
ook deur my swartste nag!
Gee dat ek Heer U liefde
in my hele lewe openbaar.
305

REFERENCES - BIBLIOGRAFIE
The Amplified Bible
ISBN 0-310-95168-2
(Yes, I favoured this translation, because I love to hear
God’s word amplified!)
New Testament / Nuwe Testament
English/Afrikaans
ISBN 0-7982-0124-X
Die Lewende Bybel
ISBN 0-86984-234-X
Die Bybel
ISBN 0-564-00212-7
Die Bybel in Praktyk (Nuwe Vertaling)
ISBN1-86829-139-1
Die Nuwe Vertaling Bybel Konkordansie
David V. Cinamon
ISBN 0-620-07848-0
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