Spread the gospel

I had quite a wonderful time sharing the gospel wt a colleague. It's not often that one gets 2 talk about Christ at work.

Waiting

It's never easy to wait. It's actually more difficult when everything around you is moving but someone tells u that u still have 2 wait. It's not yet ur turn. You lose hope coz logic says u've been left behind. Emotion cries out why me? But still u wait. What's the harm when u've got nothing better 2 do. So wait u do.

Victory

Indeed, if God be for us, who can succeed against us?
I remember the last month as being one of trials and tribulation for me
I was hard pressed on all fronts- physical, spiritual, emotional and social
Alone I wouldn’t have made it
With God I made it
I remember the other day thinking that it was my own effort that pulled me through then I saw that I was deceiving myself
Events that took place and which resulted in me coming out on top, would not have happened if everything had gone according to what I deem normal.
Normally many of the things that happened would not have taken place given the timeline results were needed.
Even a graphical extrapolation of previous events would not have come anywhaere near what resulted
I will give God all the glory as without him I would have been shamed
I would have failed
The enemy would have rejoiced in my sorrow
But glory be to God!
He gave me the tools to make it
He gave me the presence of mind to just pray
Yes, prayer conquers much
I believe prayer conquers all
I would not be rejoicing had it not been that the Master of the universe was there all the way to make sure that I made it
I let God do the rest
I will not trust in man as he forgets
God always remembers-He forgives
Man will be overwhelmed
God is all encompassing. He is all able
Man will pass judgment based on what they know
God knows the plan He has for me and so everything works for good
Man will look at the outward appearance
God can see all through to my soul. My spirit is safe in His hands
Man knows from what he has learnt
God has all the knowledge

Thanks

I’m taking a moment to give thanks
I’ll shout Hosanna Almighty!
He is so wonderful
My Guide never leaves me
I’m thankful for His patience with me
I’m thankful for His Love
I don’t deserve all the joys I have but He still showers blessing upon blessing
I never thought I’d get to a stag when I’d ask “who am I and what is my house?”
But today I am there
I never did anything to deserve it
He just loves me and shows it everyday
I will praise Him forever more
Thank you Lord for loving me regardless of all my errors
Thank you Lord for reminding me I am always in your eye
Thank you for teaching me to remember
Thank you for remembering me even if I’ve never deserved it
Thank you
I will shout Your praises forever more
Thank You.

Jealous or what!

So now this is a day after the mid-week game
There’s a girl in one of the local papers proudly waving a poster written “Kaka I love you” in the crowd that attended our infamous match of Zimbabwe vs. Brazil
The guys in our office had quite a ball over the photo
Apparently it’s just not ok waving a poster saying you love a football player when there’s another guy who dotes on you and at one time you said you loved them
Actually it’s a nono to wave posters saying you love some famous person
Not even the Brazilian Kaka whom the whole stadium made noise for and cheered when he entered the stadium
If one of my workmates were dating the said girl with the poster, well there wouldn’t be a relationship to speak about after such a display of affection
The females obviously were not of the same mind
It’s improbable that Kaka would even give a second look at the poster (if he noticed it at all!)
And the proclamation doesn’t mean the girl loves her supposed boyfriend any less coz she’s a fan of Kaka
It’s just what fans do
You seriously cannot part ways with your beloved coz they’ve got a poster saying they love some football star
But I guess men will be men
And yes, men will be men, I guess
Just a few days after the poster feature in the paper guess what the follow up?
I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it, especially f it had been one of the guys from the office saying it
There was a cartoon of ‘that girl’ (no doubt coz the cartoon was waving a poster saying something about Kaka 7 the girl was wearing a beret)
Would you guess what was on the poster?
“Kaka how was your journey back? When will you be coming to take me?”
See?
Men will be men
Insecurities, insecurities.

I was there

It was just one of those days where you just do things of a whim coz you just feel like it.
It was one of those days where you say to yourself , “why not?”
I asked one of my workmates if he was going to watch the Brazil vs. Zimbabwe Zimbabwe vs. Brazil match in the afternoon.
Yes, he was going.
Actually he had two tickets
He was selling the other for $20
I told him I wanted it and the response he’d sell it for it’s face value of $10
I asked him to keep it for me as I still hadn’t asked my boss for time off
Imagine this
A world cup team coming to play a friendly game with you local national team mid-week with the kick off at 3:30pm
Yeah, I just wanted to go
This was going to be most likely one of those once in a lifetime events especially for me
And such chances don’t come that easy
He let’s me know that he’s also put on Facebook that he’s got a ticket for sale
I just silently hope he’ll still have it
Next time I come across this guy he asks if I really want the ticket as I hadn’t got back to him
Yes, I sort of still want the ticket coz my boss has gone for the game before I had a chance to ask him for permission to go watch soccer instead of working
So he looks for someone to flog the ticket for whatever price they feel he just wants 10 bucks back
That’s what he tells me when I ask for ‘my’ ticket after successfully bargaining for the afternoon off
This isn’t typical of me, but I’m no typical person as well
So I finally have my ticket but logistics will be tricky
I know the place will be packed and I cannot risk going with my car and hope to be home before 9pm even if home is only 10minutes away from the stadium.
I get a lift from a workmate who’s going and I leave my car at work
One hassle off my plate
Now for the hope that we’ll be able to get in before the match starts
I give little credit to my fellow Man
We’re seated an hour before the game begins
And what do I have to say to myself?
I WAS THERE!!!
It’s not everyday that you watch a two time footballer of the year play a game in your local stadium and you’re down here in Africa and your local team ain’t even trying for a glimpse of the coveted cup
I saw Kaka
Much more later about the favourite of the team

My easter story

I’m not someone who could be called religious
Why I say so is because I’m not legalistic about holidays even if they have a Christian backing
I have my reasons
So anyway here I was this Easter, not having gone for camp with everyone else at church
The guys who stayed behind knew we still had to stand in prayer together as ‘left behind’s
So we had morning prayers early each morning in one of any chosen homes
This we did till Sunday when we knew the campers were coming back and Christ had risen
Then as we’re used to a church service on Sunday, the question came up almost automatically where we’d attend service
I volunteered the United Methodist Church as that’s where I always go if for any reason I cannot fellowship at my church
Service begins at 10:30am
So we went as a group and when we get there we notice the place is so quiet and not lively
Unlike a church on Sunday
Nevertheless we approach and as we near we see the resident Pastor having his breakfast outside the house
We approach and introductions are done
He chides us for not coming all the other days as apparently our fellow brethren from the locality were coming and they were known to be ‘left behind’s from MCZ
No excuses and we have to find a place to attend service
Opposite is the Zimbabwe Assemblies of god church (ZAOGA) but it’s not first choice as we’re not that close
We ask each other, what about the churches we fraternise with?
The nearest and first to come to mind is The Dutch Reformed Church in Zimbabwe
So we able to the church and service is just beginning
We introduce ourselves when the part of visitors comes up and we feel welcome
Now into the service
As we sind we’re clapping probably the loudest and swaying to the music
When prayer comes, it’s one person who prays as the rest bow their heads and at the end when the person says ‘amen’, we affirm’ amen’ in unison
It just could be noticed the loud ‘amen’s came from our bench
It cannot be helped and all the other prayers we ‘amen’ed a bit softly
Now comes Holy communion
Of course it’s going to be different from how we do it
1 Corinthians 11 was read from verse 23 to the end
Then instead of people going to receive bread and wine, ushers came with it
Of course not having prepared ourselves for communion and having listened to first Corinthians, there was no doubt that we would not partake communion at this point in time
Let alone the fact that we did not know what their ‘rules’ for communion are
As the bread passed we just looked at each other and passed it across
Then came the ……….wine
Altar wine
I don’t know why but we don’t do wine at my church
All parishes that I know don’t do wine
We do raspberry syrup!
That was a great change
Great change number two
Soon after communion we left as the service wasn’t just auguring well with all of us
Now, I’ll not be judgemental
The whole point is just to appreciate how things are done differently in our churches, what brings us together, what sets us apart and what makes us stay with our churches
The two great changes are that at my church we go and receive communion
It doesn’t come to us
No matter how large the congregation when communion has to be had, we go and receive it
In cases where we’re in our thousands like at a stadium for whatever celebration or event we’ll be having, we queue for it and that’s the only time we won’t kneel to receive communion, but we bow or courtesy as we receive it
When we go back to our seats, we individually pray in silence
Number two is the raspberry
This is my take- I guess somewhere along the lines wine was just taken off due to the alcoholic factor and abuse
Our members are not supposed to take alcohol
So what if we were to give it to them each month in a small cup?
Would not some of them just want to taste it a bit more and buy a bottle and see what happens?
Totally my take and I’m good with that
Why this bothered me in this instance is that children were taking it
I guess someone gets my point and issue somewhere along the lines.

I encourage you to just visit other parishes or churches when you have the opportunity
That way you’ll see how others get to communicate with god and what makes them different from you
You’ll also have a reason to stay where you are or even change when you understand what true worship and communion with God is really about.

Treasured youth

I’ve been busy and I can feel I’m burnt out
Yesterday I went back home from work to sleep
Yes, so that I could sleep as that’s what my body needed
I took quite a big responsibility unawares and it’s a bit too late to retract
I realised it as I stood up to introduce myself
(I couldn't relish the thought of being referred to as that one in a blue top when news got round that I'd quit)
I’ll have to carry the burden for as long as I can
Knowing me,
That could be for at least half of this year
Anyways, that’s my burden for the gospel this year
Sunday we had to feed circa 200 youths at church as we had a get together
Now the events that transpired prior to the Sunday had made me almost bet I’d resign my post
But as the day went by, I calmed down and I accepted the burden for this year
I pray it won’t be harder than it has been
I pray it won’t be as personal as it has been
I pray it won’t be as frustrating as it has been
I pray it won’t be as intimidating as it has been
I pray the road will be there as I’ve seen
I asked myself, if not me then who?
And why not me?
What have I done for the gospel lately?
And so I trudge on as treasurer for both the local parish and the local circuit
It’s quite an experience working with all age groups you can put into that category
The upside cap is 35 years
You can imagine all you want.
I will remember and treasure the days of my youth.

I will not be mocked.

My thesaurus couldn’t get another word for alcohol.
For beer, there were some words; I chose ‘alcoholic drink’.
For wine, there are.....adjectives... for colour .
I’m sorry I never said anything to the person who walked out of this office about wine with some colleagues. They say their church allows wine drinking and does not allow beer drinking.
Now, when I go to Wikipedia I find that there are three general classes that alcoholic beverages are put into; beer, wine and spirits.
I wasn’t talking to this person but I heard their conversation. The persons they talked to didn’t sound any alarm at what they said. I wonder why
Maybe they also believe wine is ok and beer is not ok
My contention is- do these people know the basic facts about wine and beer?
Beer generally has a lower alcoholic content than wine, hence people drink less of the latter.
There’s this article I quite liked when it comes to explaining about Jesus and wine
Now, my simple understanding is that if something is good, you’ll like it
If something is bad, you should hate it
Simple, no borderline
When I read that wine is a mocker, automatically it signals to me that this is something to be avoided at all costs
Society has through the ages openly stated to all that wine is a lesser evil than beer, yet the two are in the same class, the latter more potent but very subtle
And some Christians have been caught up in this deception
Read with me Proverbs 23:29-35

“Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things. Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again. ”

The truth is openly there. The short and long term effects of the alcohol called wine.
When people talk alcohol abuse, they talk of beer. Rarely does wine feature
And so, silently, it erodes our morals and values and goes by unnoticed
Many people profess to not drinking beer but take wine
I leave the decision to yourselves and enlightenment from the Bible
By any other name alcohol is alcohol no matter how nicely dressed and presented.

My fast so far

So I started fasting after the rest of the people did. There was no way I could start on the 1^st with me being the cook at home. When I started I prayed that I be able to fast even just one day. I had lost the will power to not think about food when I’m fasting. I’d always find excuses on why I couldn’t and when you look for an excuse, you get a bagful of them. I sorry to say I kept that bag through 2009 and all I managed were half day fasts. So here I am in 2010 and I said this is a personal fast and it’ll take as long as necessary. There’s no definite stopping point. Why? I’ve been selfish in the past and all I’d think of was me. This time I’m doing this for others first then me. Now that’s going to take some time coz I love people. I truly do and when I’m burdened to pray for something for someone, I cannot heap on my requests there. It’s a love task I need to do before I look at my own issues. So here I am and I haven’t started on myself as yet. I’m not too demanding - just “not yet there” me :)

 

Day one

My resolution on keeping fitter- I go for a morning jog. I feel great. I’m asking myself if I’ll be able to get through this one. This is practically the first full fats in a year. I sail through

Day two

It’s raining so I won’t jog. I decide I’ll do three days a week, so I sleep on. Spanners start flying into the works. I ignore them and manage the day.

Day three

It’s raining again. Again, there’s this one spanner which just wants attention. I explore and dig a bit deep. I see the origin and pray that it’ll just disappear. I almost confronted the issue head on but I get a grip of reality on time and I let it pass. It was a most difficult day. Even the evening was not that calm.

Day four

Do I really need to jog seeing that I’m fasting? I feel drained a bit and wonder if I’ll carry on.

Day five

Still no jog. I’ve shelved it for later. After the fast. I smile when I see that I can fit into my black jeans without asking if they’re not tighter than when I first wore them.

Day six

This is two days after day five. (I just could not do it as I had to prepare food over the weekend. I’ll have to say I didn’t dine and fill up as I thought I would. I just enjoyed some of the things I don’t normally take for dinner.) The big question in the morning- will I last since I’ve been off for two full days? A week that started with a spanner dampens one’s spirit in some sort of way but I pulled through. I lasted and am on day seven.

Many more days to go

Just my take right now

This is going to be a quick post of a quick reflection

It’s 2010 and I’m still looking forward to a great year

I started fasting on Monday coz I couldn’t start on the 1^st due to the simple fact that I was up till the wee hours of dawn on the 1^st and I had to cook for visitors

Bottom line, when I cook I struggle with keeping a fast

I also started jogging on Monday

It’s something I hadn’t done in the past two years

Last year was worse coz I had no sort to even talk about

So I’m basically back on track as far as life is concerned

I’m looking at doing more this year compared to the last two years

Last year was the worst coz it somehow just passed by me and I awoke and here’s 2010

So, why the post?

It’s the quick reflection that’s spurred this post

On fasting, yesterday someone close just gave in coz of a mango and some issues on their plate

On my side I’ve just had the biggest attack mentally on record since like three years ago

It’s just one of those things that when you close your eyes you just about give up on the female gender

Yeah, yeah, I’m one of them but hey, sometimes we’re just the worst species on earth

We tend to hate more than anything that I know

For real

What we get up to when we’re angry or when we just want to spite someone

So I’ve been on the receiving side

Believe you me, at some point I almost gave in but THANK GOD!

My senses are back in full swing and I’ll take it as just one of the things the devil throws my way when I clean myself up spiritually

Indeed, this war that I fight daily is not carnal, it’s spiritual

To those in the flesh,

Watch out!

Time

Time has no divisions to mark its passage, there is never a thunder-storm or blare of trumpets to announce the beginning of a new month or year. Even when a new century begins it is only we mortals who ring bells and fire off pistols.

-- Thomas Mann