MISSED THE FORECAST?

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour. Matthew 25:13

I missed the weather forecast yesterday. Hence, I did my washing today only to be confronted by a heavy downpour. I mean….CATS & DOGS! To begin with, I hate tracking the weather forecast. My husband on the other hand is a vivid tracker… which is understandable. Having grown up in Africa myself where the weather is almost always predictable and without the disadvantage of the four seasons in a year, I didn’t quite appreciate the importance of the weatherman till I came to Europe.

Hang on, what I am trying to say here? As a child of God… I have another different kind of weatherman. Is he accurate in his prediction? Is he reliable to the letter? Long before Jesus walked on the face of this earth, God had spoken of him through the ages. His forecast of the coming of His ONE AND ONLY BELOVED SON came true 2000 years ago.

While my heart looks forward to the forecast of his soon return, sometimes I miss out on the signs written all over when my heart becomes preoccupied with my today. Like the 5 foolish virgins, I have enough supply for today, and I lack the wisdom to stock up for the long haul. I constantly miss the forecast.

May the Lord help you and I to keep watch…. because the BRIDEGROOM is surely coming and at an hour we expect him not!

 

 

THE GUILT OF INNOCENCE

“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get. But the tax collect stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven but beat his breast and said, ‘God have mercy on me, a sinner.’ Luke 18:10-13

We are all guilty of it. An assumed sense of INNOCENCE…even before God who in actual fact knows more than we are willing to give or acknowledge. It all started in the Garden of Eden. Adam was so over the moon when God brought him the most beautiful thing he had ever seen – Eve, his wife. For the first time in his existence, he had found someone who truly resembled and complimented him in many ways. His appreciation of her is fully seen in his words:

“This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman’ for she was taken out of man.” Genenis 2:23

But its not long after those words are declared do we see a sudden change of heart. Eve is not all she seems to be, Adam tries his best to convince God. Of course, she is quilty and he can only be GUILTY OF INNOCENCE …. “This woman you put here with me – she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Gen 3:12

Just like Adam, it is so easy to full into that trap of the guilt of innocence. We look at ourselves with a less critical eye but we are quick to judge others and pass on a deadly sentence. We are the first to pick the stone of condemnation … yet in reality we are guilt of a greater sin than the guilt one. As Jesus reminds us in the above parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, it is always safe to stand before God as the GUILTY ONE and find mercy than play safe with the GUILT OF INNOCENCE and find only condemnation.

The choice is always yours!

BECOMING A MASTER OF GOOD

Romans 16:19-20 Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I am full of joy over you; but I want you to WISE ABOUT WHAT IS GOOD, and innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will SOON crush Satan under your feet.

Yesterday, as I walked the short distance to pick my daughter from kindergarten, the words of Romans 16:19-20 started flowing out of my mouth in form of a song we used to sing many years ago in my home church back in Kenya. Yes, God has been teaching me a great truth of late. Oh….and this is after what has been a tough season of going through the FLOODWATERS and THE FIRE.

Psalm 66:10-12 For you, O God tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through FIRE and WATER, but you brought us to A PLACE OF ABUNDANCE.

And yes, while we were going through the battle, we couldn’t understand why things were happening as they were. No, not until things had cleared up….and now, as I stand at the other side, God is saying to me.

WARNING: SHE COMES WITH FAVOR

Proverbs 18:22 He who finds a wife finds a GOOD THING and receives FAVOR FROM THE LORD.

I guess every country has its own traditions when it comes to the wedding cards. But back at home, in Kenya, my native country, we have this expectation that on the wedding card there is always a scripture verse chosen by the couple to-be, as their wedding motto. Of the many wedding cards I have come across, I did notice that many couples chose the above scripture for their new marriage covenant. And for many reasons than not, I DO LOVE THIS SCRIPTURE VERSE. For one, it is a scripture more husband-directed than wife. Secondly, its a scripture that comes with two sure declarations from the Lord: A GOOD THING AND FAVOR.

A wife is a GOOD THING….because she is a gift from God to man.

Genesis 2:18 The Lord God said, “It is NOT GOOD for man to be alone. I will make a HELPER suitable for him.”

A wife is GOOD THING….because she came from man.

Genesis 2:22 Then the Lord God made woman from the rib he had taken OUT OF THE MAN, and he brought her to the man.

A LOVE CAPTIVE

Proverbs 5:15-19 Drink water from your own cistern, running water from your own well. Should your springs overflow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares? Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers. May your fountain be blessed, and may your rejoice with THE WIFE OF YOUR YOUTH. A LOVING DOE, A GRACEFUL DEER – may her breasts satisfy you always, and may you ever BE CAPTIVATED BY HER LOVE.

Captive is defined as; a person or animal that is confined or restrained; a person whose behaviour is dominated by some emotion:a captive of love; held as prisoner, under restriction or control.

Captivated is defined as; to hold the attention of by fascinating or enchant.

Yesterday, I watched with my husband a movie series based on the novel, WAR AND PEACE by LEO TOLSTOY. It reminded me of the courtship period

THE GROUNDED ROMANCE

Deuteronomy 24:5 If a man has recently married, he must not be sent to war or have any other duty laid on him. FOR ONE YEAR he is to be free to stay at home and BRING HAPPINESS to the wife he has married.

Happiness…everyone, no matter their convictions desires one thing in marriage. Yes, that right. HAPPINESS. My greatest desire for my love story is, “AND THEY LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER. Strangely though, a couple of times I have come across someone writing that God didn’t call you to have a happy marriage.

THE BREAD BREAKER

Luke 14:22 While they were eating, Jesus took BREAD, gave thanks and BROKE it and gave it to his disciples. saying, “Take it; this is my body.”

The voyage has come to an end, and the shore is now clearly visible. Yes, Its your WEDDING DAY…You are officially A HUSBAND. The pursuit is OVER. You are the CONQUEROR and she is the CONQUERED. The dust finally settles down and its life as usual until the first warning signs begin to show up. Suddenly, you realize just because you are on shore doesn’t mean you are safe. In any case, most sudden storms appear on a clear-skied day and cause untold havoc.

You see, what qualified you as a HUSBAND in the first place is the qualities she saw in you. And these two were the most important….that YOU will be a BREADWINNER and a BREAD BREAKER. During your time of courtship, you put everything on line to prove that to her. She knew that with you by her side, her future would be secured. And that hasn’t changed except in one aspect…you have neglected the other part…the breaking of bread.

As the above Scripture says, Jesus broke the bread and gave the disciples saying; THIS IS MY BODY. As husbands, we get caught up with being providers and by the time we get back home we are too tired to be partakers. But Jesus taught you and I this secret: When you break the bread that you provide, you are actually multiplying yourself and that means constant supply.

Husband, when is the last time you offered your wife that word of encouragement or a selfless hug or kiss? When did she last hear from you that she is beautiful? When Jesus told his disciples, ‘THIS IS MY BODY’ he was in other words saying, I am offering of myself freely, wholesomely and unhindered…and that amounts to INTIMACY. Be careful and be warned…she wants you all, or nothing at all.

LOVE IN COLOUR 7!

Genesis 9:12-13 And GOD said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come. I have set the RAINBOW in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.

Have you ever imagined how life would look like without colour? Just visualize yourself going for shopping at a fruits and vegetables stall fully stocked with different varieties of foods except for one thing…they are all in one colour. Again think how life could be if we all had the same ideas, thoughts or convictions? But before I start your imagination working, I would call you to think through this with me. What if God didn’t give mankind the sign of the RAINBOW in the cloud. Thankfully, even though God knew every inclination of man’s heart is evil from childhood…He still gave MAN four wonderfully and colourful seasons: White snowflakes during Winter, blooming flowers in Spring, Revitalizing sun in Summer and The Rain in Autumn to refresh and replenish the earth. And to crown it all…THE RAINBOW COLOURS OF LOVE NEVER CHANGES. God still loves mankind and that includes YOU!!!!