HAPPY FATHER’S DAY…all year round!!!!

You are called a FATHER because you have a CHILD or CHILDREN. They might be your natural seed, adopted or spiritual children. But whatever the case, ONCE A FATHER, ALWAYS A FATHER. Fathers have their God-given role to raise up children into responsible adults. But the GODLY FATHER has a defined task to raise up children into a GODLY OFFSPRING… which in turn makes up a GODLY GENERATION. Throughout the history of the children of Israel, when the FATHERS failed in their role to raise up GODLY OFFSPRING, the next generation became godless and began worshiping foreign god.

Today, you as a GODLY FATHER… as you celebrate your first or more years of being a father…remember, your role has not changed. God desires for you to continue in the following:

BUILD YOUR HOUSE LAST

Proverbs 24:27 Finish your outdoor work and get your fields ready; AFTER THAT, BUILD YOUR HOUSE.

I remember reading the above Proverb sometime last month…and it left me pondering for days. I had even considered posting from it…but nothing concrete seemed to come to me. No revelation whatsoever was forthcoming! Then this morning, I woke up feeling as if I have suddenly lost foot. Our plans as a family almost seems threatened. After some thought, the words of Proverbs 24:27 came rushing back. It was as if God wanted to reassure me about MY HOUSE! Yes…OUR HOUSE.

Before I explain where I am heading with this, let me first remind you what a HOUSE represents for each one of us:

SECURITY: That means a roof over your head gives you a sense of being protected from danger or harm.
STABILITY: That means you have somewhere to go back to every time and all the time. It gives you a sense of continuity.
SETTLEMENT: That means you are now rested and your roots are put down. It gives you a sense of permanency.

With these three points in mind, it may seem more practical and normal for each one of us to desire to have or BUILD OUR HOUSE FIRST…and not as the Proverbs puts it…AFTER doing all the other things. But then again, when I read Proverbs 24;27 I realised I was reading my own life story. In fact, MY GOD STORY.

While I have desired for so long to reach that place of SETTLEMENT, the Lord had other plans for my life. He is the One who gave me…and you, I suppose the outdoor assignment. You and I have been busy preparing the fields for the harvest of the nations. And in the same way, after we have done our bit, He will bring us to the place of BUILDING OUR HOUSE. Just because your house will be BUILD LAST doesn’t mean you will loss out on the best. In fact, since your HOUSE WILL BE BUILD LAST…you will be surprised at what God has in store for you. Remember, He is still the God who SAVES THE BEST WINE FOR THE LAST John 2:10

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD!

Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

Last week was a trying one for my family…because our daughter was down with a bad cough…and ear infection. She is still here with me today…missing another week of preschool. And because of that…I feel she needs my attention more at the moment. For this whole week, I am therefore going on a sabbatical and hopefully will resume my normal post on 31st May, 2010. Meanwhile I leave you with a vision of where I will be as I HANG OUT with MY SHEPHERD!

THE DEBT OF LOVE

Romans 13:8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing DEBT TO LOVE one another, for he who loves his fellow-man has fulfilled the law.

By nature right from birth, the human baby has the desire to love and to be loved! The family home, i.e mother and father…and in other cases, siblings are the first contact where the baby begins to understand and function in love. In receiving and giving love, the child develops an emotional bond with the family which gives the child a sense of security and being needed!

Well, as a child, I never had that complete sense of security…because my parents divorced when I was hardly 3 years old. My mother remarried soon after that…and my stepfather substituted the place of my biological father. Over the years, even though I didn’t know it…I held back my love. THE LOVE THAT WAS DUE TO MY NATURAL FATHER. My relationship with my stepfather was more of a formal kind with no particular emotional bond, while I was too much emotionally attached to my mother. But something else was also missing. As a teenage and in my early adulthood, I didn’t care much about men. And even when I got into a relationship…I never came close to surrendering my heart to any man. There was always a safe emotional distance between us.

MUM: “HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!”

Proverbs 31:28-29 Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and her praises her: ‘Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.”

MUM,

Today…is Mother’s day! I have the privilege and honour of being one of your wonderful eight children, whom you birthed and raised to be responsible, loving and caring sons and daughters. On their behalf, I want to say thank you for your constant love, encouragement and faith in each one of us, as individuals and as part of the family. You deserve more than we can possibly offer you in return in this life…and my greatest prayer and desire is that God…will reward your labor of motherly love on that day which you truly deserved.

Meanwhile, I pray that your days will be filled with laughter, joy and peace as your remain in Him and as your bask in the glow of an ever enlarging family…which includes…a new SON-IN-LAW just yesterday, husband to your youngest daughter.

A JOY OF SORTS!!!

Today, I just picked up my Polish ID which now identifies me as a rightful and lawful citizen of this country, Poland. It is strange, but when I got the identity card, I felt a JOY OF SORTS. But why do I say that? Because a couple of years back, after I had qualified to become a citizen of this country under the Polish marriage act, I resisted the idea. On one hand, I wasn’t yet ready to disconnect from my roots, while on the other, there was need for me to be a part of where God had placed me, that is, at my husband’s side. Then something happened in early November, last year that made my decision…either way inevitable. A decision had to be made…and made quickly. When I finally made the decision to give up my country’s citizenship…which is the requirement before you become a Polish citizen, I felt a strange relief and peace.
After what has been a four month process…today…I get the TANGIBLE EVIDENCE that I am part of this society.

FIGHT FOR THE LOVE YOU CAN KEEP

Psalm 46:4-5 There is a river whose streams MAKES GLAD the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day.

Two years ago, the bathroom in our rented house went under a major renovation. Of course, while the renovation was underway, our lives for one month were also turned upside down. But…at last, after waiting albeit impatiently, the revolution in our bathroom was more than our expectation. In exchange for black wall tiles and a PVC floor, now we had white stained wall and floor tiles and yes, in place of the shower, we got a bathtub. YES, A BEAUTIFUL BATHTUB. To crown it all, my husband bought us sweet scented candles and bathtub herbs to go with the newness of our bathroom!

Then the day came for me to test our new bathtub. With the tub filled almost to the brim, I jumped into the water and covered myself under the foams as my eyes closed into a relaxed manner. The dim lighting from the candles with its sweet smell fragrance made everything look even more perfect. As I lay there, without a care in the world, I heard these words as clear as noonday. ‘YOU WILL NEVER BE HAPPIER THAN YOU ARE RIGHT NOW.’ Suddenly, my eyes popped opened, a little stranded at what I heard because I knew why the Lord had put those words in my heart.

…BUT THOSE WHO KNEW JESUS…

Luke 23:48-49 When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and WENT AWAY. But all those who KNEW him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, STOOD at a distance, watching these things.

It was on Good Friday that I first came across the above scripture. And it been the day of remembrance of Our Lord Jesus’ death, I had even thought about writing my thoughts from this scripture verses…but somewhat, I found another topic to write about. However, I told myself that sometime in the coming week, I would write from the above verses. Little did I know that it was the Lord who had restrained me until the proper time.

You see, the first thing that I notice which made me cry when I read the above scripture, was that even though many people who had gathered at Calvary had witnessed the events that surrounded Jesus until his death, many of them never STOPPED nor PAUSED to reflect on what had happened. For them, it was something unusual…but not strong or captivating enough to hold them back from the NEXT adventure in their lives.

MY PORTION OF GRACE

Genesis 43:33 The men had been seated before him in the order of their ages, from the firstborn to the youngest; and they looked at each other in astonishment. When the portions were served to them from Joseph’s table, BENJAMIN’S PORTION was FIVE TIMES as much as anyone else’s. So they feasted and drink freely with him.

We all know the story of Joseph’s reunion with his brothers in Egypt. And while the story is incredible in itself, a perfect example of forgiveness for us to follow, in those few lines above I saw something I had never seen before. BENJAMIN’S PORTION.

But before I expound on this one, let me give you a little background about BENJAMIN.

Benjamin was the second and last son of JACOB AND RACHEL.
Benjamin was given the name Ben-Oni by his mother Rachel but his father changed it to Benjamin.
Benjamin’s birth was difficult and his mother Rachel died immediately after he was born.
Benjamin was born on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem) and his mother was buried there.
But the most important of all these facts is that, BENJAMIN was the only son borne to Jacob after God had changed his name to ISRAEL. In other words, BENJAMIN WAS THE FIRST AND ONLY SON OF ISRAEL.

So here is the truth about Benjamin.

HONORING MARY FOR ALL THE RIGHT REASONS

Luke 1:46-48 And Mary said: ‘My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me BLESSED,

First of all, what does it mean to HONOR someone? HONOR can be defined as: personal integrity; allegiance to moral principles; GREAT RESPECT, ESTEEM; a woman’s chastity; out of respect; to hold in respect: TO CONFER A DISTINCTION UPON etc.

Hence…that said. Is it right for the believer to hold Mary, the mother of Jesus in esteem? If yes. Why do you think we should? If not. Why do you disagree? I would love to hear your thoughts on this one! As for me, I personally hold Mary in great esteem and these are my reasons: