Maturity

I have to come to realize that to us humans, we believe that worrying/thinking of what to eat, where to work, buildings, cars and properties is a sign of maturity and growth. But to a transformed (born again), these things have been supplied by our Father already. What should occupy our minds must be Him. That is, His word, prayer and consistent meditation. This childlike faith of totally relying on our Father is what Jesus kept on emphasizing. Maturity in the eyes of man is independence. Maturity in the spirit, is dependance on the Holy Spirit.

22 September 2012

Today death visited our home
The place of laughter, parents and grand parents chasing their little ones
The place where a raucous surrounding becomes suddenly peaceful
The place where I have meditated and prayed
The place where all memories of family begins
The place now, filled with tears.

Struggling to see the ink through mine
I pen what I feel:
You visited us death,
today your temporary address was 5119 Accra-North.
I rebuked you in my prayer yesterday
But today my Father gave you permission to take my father.
Remember this, it is a temporary address, and my Father willed it so.
If you think this will derail us from our Father,
Then think twice. In fact, you make we "bore sef"
We will serve Him "gidigidi" like our father did!!

I save the last verse for you, Da
I knew this day will come, but not so soon.
I was praying you will see the day I walked her down the aisle
The day when you will hold and cuddle my "lings"
But that day was not meant to be
Right now I feel you are chilling out in heaven, our destination
Waiting for all of us to meet again.
I cry not because I am afraid,
I cry because I already miss you.
But you are with our Father, your Father
So fare thee well my father,
Today you are the victim yet you are the victor.

Compassionate

God is compassionate about you. Everything concerning you, He is equally concerned about. David recognised this quality of God when He wrote Psalm 23; The Lord is my shepherd. God is concerned about your welfare and wishes that you succeed for His name sake. He will not watch and allow you to be a failure. This same compassion, Jesus showed, when He fed the thousands of people with two loaves and five fish. His compassion-filled heart could not contain the thought of all those people leaving hungry.

It is even possible that some of the people He fed had not come to believe in His message yet, He loved and was compassionate towards them. Today, let us face the day knowing that our God is concerned about our affairs. May the sights and happenings around us not dissuade us but may we be steadfast in our belief in Him.

Cloak off !

When Jesus called Bartimaeus, it is interesting to note that the gospel according to Mark included the 'trivial' detail of Bartimaeus throwing off his cloak, as he ran to meet the Lord. So what is the significance of this detail. I believe it stands for:

a. Comfort: The cloak kept him warm amd comfortable in that climate. We should be ready to sacrifice our comforts to heed the call of Jesus, be it to be in His presence, to be about His business, to study His word etc.

b. Identity: I conjecture that being a poor beggar, Bartimaeus had just a single cloak, which the community had come to identify Him with. Regardless of the tag the society has placed on us, be it posotive or negative, we must not allow it to prevent us from experiencing the Lord, for He is much greater than these tags.

We need Jesus. Let's not allow anything or anyone from hindering us from experiencing Him more.

Psalm 139

Hi, I read this today and wanted to share with you:

Imagine that it’s your birthday, and God prepares a magnificent dinner party in your honor. All your family and friends are in atten­dance, and everyone is enjoying themselves immensely. Just before the food comes out, God steps up to the microphone and asks every­one to settle down. Then, clearing his throat, he looks right at you and says:

“Do you know that the very thought of you fills me with joy? From the moment of your concep­tion, I put a lot of thought into who you were going to be: the shape of your eyes, the tone of your voice, your personality, your talents, and your dreams. I could never keep my eyes off of you, even when you couldn’t see me. I wept when you wept, and I took great pride in every one of your successes and triumphs. All these years, I have loved you and treasured you. 

“That’s right. I’ve been with you all along. I know every inti­mate detail about you. Not a single moment of your life passed with­out my seeing it and feeling it in the depth of my heart. None of your thoughts, fears, or desires has escaped me—the good, the noble, and the selfless as well as the bad, the selfish, and the prideful. And I have loved you through all of them. I was near to you when you were confused and brokenhearted. It was I who offered you the counsel and comfort of your friends and fam­ily. It was I who looked out at you through the eyes of everyone who has ever loved you. 

“I see goodness and beauty within you, even when you don’t see it within yourself. In fact, I look at you with the same wonder and awe that you have when you look up at the stars in the sky at night. I may have created you, but I mar­vel at the way you are using all the gifts I have given you. I marvel even more at the future I have in store for you. I can’t wait for the day when you are able to join me in my heav­enly home.

“Happy birthday, my child. May this be a year when you and I grow even closer together!” 

Taken from: wau.org

He has made a way

I try to imagine the fear and confusion the disciples experienced as Jesus was taken and crucified. It would have been unbearable. And Mary, His mother, after receiving a visit from an angel and having discussions about Jesus, the awaited messiah being born through her, she stood at the foot of the cross watching the promise bleeding, suffering, dying- All was lost! But no! In three days, God glorified His name and glorified Mary together with all those who remained in Him. This even extended to all those who betrayed and forsook Him. 

God will not allow you to be disgraced. He will not let your face be abashed, so far we rely and trust in Him. He has made a way.

What do you say?

The Lord asked Peter for permission to use his boat as a platform from where He can teach the people. The emphasis here, is that He "asked". The relationship between Jesus and Peter started with one polite request. It brings to mind the verse in Revelation, where Jesus is standing at the door of our hearts and asking us to let Him in. The Lord, the perfect gentleman, does not impose His will on us but gently and calmly asks us to allow Him in. Today He is asking you to allow Him into your life to be your Lord and personal savior. If He is already there, He is asking you to allow Him to completely take over.

What is the Lord asking you to do? To trust, remain... in Him? Its interesting to note that after Peter had allowed Jesus to have His way, he received his miracle of a huge haul of fish! The Lord is asking, gently and tenderly. What do you say?