OUR FIFTH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

Numbers 6:24 ‘THE LORD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU: The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; The Lord turn His face towards you and give you PEACE.

Five years ago, on 7th December 2004 I left my birth country, Kenya and headed to Poland. In the plane, I got myself comfortable and got out my newly bought marriage book titled INTIMATE ALLIES by Dan B. Allender and Tremper Longman III. Before I began to flip the first page, I noticed something familiar: MY MOTHER’S IMMACULATE HANDWRITING. My heart skipped with joy while unshed tears hang loosely in my eyes. With simplicity, she had written these words as her silent farewell to me, her daughter.

THE SAMARITAN WOMAN

John 4:16-18 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.” “I have no husband,” she replied. Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is QUITE TRUE.

Very strange. Just imagine yourself having a conversation with a perfect stranger who suddenly asks you to go and call your husband. What would be your reaction? Yes, I am addressing this to you as a single person. Would you, like the Samaritan woman quickly respond or perhaps feel awkward that some stranger is intruding into your private affairs? Single people too have their own issues. Not long ago, I was also single. I went through it all; the heartache of a painful breakup, the cruelty and frustration of lacking reassurance while in a relationship. Once, someone told me after three years of friendship that I had imagined up our relationship. So more or less, if Jesus would have come at my well, my story would have as well replicated that of the Samaritan woman.

THE FORERUNNER

John 1:23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling out in the desert, ‘MAKE STRAIGHT THE WAY FOR THE LORD’ “

According to my Collins dictionary, a forerunner is defined as;
– A person or thing that precedes another
– A person or thing coming in advance to herald the arrival of someone or something.

Until recently, I was still struggling with this question. God, why me? Why can’t I just have a normal quiet and private life…like most people? And for the longest time, the Lord had been quiet. In fact…its been 5 long years of waiting. Then, His answer came…just a few days ago. YOU ARE A FORERUNNER. And that’s why your life can’t be as normal as you would like it to be.

PREPARING FOR A NEW YEAR

Job 22:21-22 SUBMIT to God and be at PEACE with Him; in this way prosperity will come to you. Accept instruction from His mouth and lay up His words in your heart.

I don’t know about you, but speaking for myself…I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO YEAR 2010 WITH HIGH ANTICIPATION. You may asked me why. You see, as the above scripture say, ‘SUBMIT’.…that is putting yourself under the authority of another with the full trust that they will lead you into the right course. I have submitted myself to God. After three years of marriage to my Polish husband, by law I am qualified to apply for the Polish citizenship. But with one disadvantage…I have to annul my Kenyan citizenship. So after three years of my marriage had passed, I began the process of applying for the Polish one. However, I couldn’t quite bring myself to see the process through. There were so many doubts, fears and concerns. I kept pushing the matter ahead…until just a few weeks ago.

AT THE CITY OF DAVID

Isaiah 9:6-7 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, MIGHTY GOD, EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE. Of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end. He will reign on DAVID’S THRONE and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. THE ZEAL OF THE LORD ALMIGHTY WILL ACCOMPLISH THIS.

A KING IS BORN...go on and pay him HOMAGE!

Are you looking for peace? Go to the city of David
Are you seeking for righteousness? Go to the little town of Bethlehem
Are you lacking wisdom? Wonderful counsel awaits you at the manger
Are you longing for a father’s embrace? An Eternal father who knows you by name has His arms wide open.
Are you indignant at the injustice around you? Stand in as an advocate of righteousness before the ONE who governs with JUSTICE AND RIGHTEOUSNESS, both in time and in eternity.

Go on…LET THE PRINCE OF PEACE reign, govern, rule, justify, counsel both now and forever, in our hearts, homes, workplaces, churches, communities and nations. AT THE CITY OF DAVID, THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD IS BORN. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL MY READERS, BLOGGING FRIENDS AND EVERYONE WHO KNOWS HIM BY NAME. God bless you.

THE LORD IS MY HELPER

Psalm 121:1-2 I lift up my eyes to the hills- where does my HELP come from? My HELP comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

Do you need help? Or are you looking for help? What help are you talking about? you may ask. My answer goes, ANY HELP. Its without question that we all need help from time to time, right? No, we need help all the time. Let’s start with yourself: You see by the help of your eyes, you hear by the help of your ears, you walk by the help of your legs…and so on and so forth. You can’t drive with the help of a car and road signs. You can’t eat without the help of a farmer who put the seed to the ground to produce food. Therefore, in every sense of that word…HELP is something we co-exist with.

THE PAIN OF REJECTION

Matthew 1:18-19 THIS IS HOW THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST CAME ABOUT: his mother Mary was pledged to be married to Jesus, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and he did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind TO DIVORCE HER QUIETLY.

This is the true account of the CHRISTMAS STORY: Two lovers…Joseph and Mary, after going through courtship, Joseph finally makes up his mind. Mary, a simple and humble young woman has won his heart. The engagement takes place and a wedding is in sight. But before their D-day….something happens. The angel of the Lord appears to Mary with some frightening NEWS; You will be with child…no, not with Joseph but through the HOLY SPIRIT. Mary, though frightened at first, takes in the news with humility and submits herself to God. But not so with Joseph.

A BIT OF HUMOR FOR MY SISTERS OUT THERE

Proverbs 18:22 He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.

10. God was worried that Adam would frequently
become lost in the garden because he would not
ask for directions.

9. God knew that one day Adam would require
someone to locate and hand him the remote control.

8. God knew Adam would never go out and buy
himself a new fig leaf when his wore out and
would therefore need Eve to buy one for him.

7. God knew Adam would never be able to make
a doctor’s, or dentist appointment
for himself.

6. God knew Adam would never remember which
night to put the garbage on the bin.

5. God knew if the world was to be populated,
men would never be able to handle the pain
and discomfort of childbearing.

4. As the Keeper of the Garden, Adam would
never remember where he left his tools.

3. Apparently, Adam needed someone to blame
his troubles on when God caught him hiding
in the garden.

2. As the Bible says, it is not good for man to be alone.
And the Number 1 reason why God created Eve…

1. When God finished the creation of Adam,
He stepped back, scratched his head, and said,
“I can do better than that!”

Does anyone out there relate? If so…give me a shout…and post a humorous comment!

YET I WILL…

Habakkuk 3:17-18 Though the fig-tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, YET I WILL rejoice in the Lord, I WILL be joyful in God my Saviour.

What a bold declaration! YET I WILL…are words we prefer to avoid when we are going tough times. Let’s face it: Here is Prophet Habakkuk. In his mouth is lament. He is asking God that million dollar question…LORD, WHEN? It seems things prophesied are taking too long to come to pass. As a prophet…the mandate of prophecy has been passed down to him. Just like other prophets…HE IS WAITING TO SEE THE RESTORATION OF JUSTICE AND PEACE. But instead, he sees violence and conflicts and injustice prevailing.

But while in the state of complaint, God comes to his rescue. No…not in the way he expected. As always, God’s ways are not our ways. “Habakkuk,’ God says to him…’take a journal and start taking notes…because in TIME, I will show up and mark my words. I WILL NOT BE A MOMENT LATER THAN EXPECTED!’ So, Habakkuk takes the task to heart and a pen and paper…or whatever and begins noting down the events of his day.

THE WILDERNESS AND YOU

Exodus 13:17-18 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was SHORTER. For God said, “if they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by the desert road towards the Red Sea. The Israelites went out of Egypt ARMED FOR BATTLE.

When I read the above scripture, it struck me with a strange code. The children of Israel had been enslaved for over 400 years. And now God had come to their rescue. They had seen HIS MIRACLES…and the fact they were leaving Egypt not only as freed men and women, but also heavy laden with silver and gold was in itself...THE GREATEST OF MIRACLES. But something else seemed to preoccupy their minds more than the fact that they were now a freed people: WAR…as strange as it may have seemed…the Israelites left Egypt armed for battle.