Weekly Devotion

The timing of certain things in our lives is important. I have mentioned previously that we need to be in sync, otherwise things can turn out differently as it should have been. Just look at a child anxiously waiting for his birthday. You can turn all the clocks and calendars in the house to his birthday, but if it is not his birthday, he won't receive any phone calls or any presents, because he is out of sync with the rest of the world. It is therefore important to wait out the time. I am sure you have heard people say something to the effect of:

"The timing was perfect, if I had children earlier I wouldn't have had the finances to look after them." OR

"If I received the promotion earlier, I wouldn't have been able to handle the conflicts as well as I now can after gaining some more experience." Or

"If I met my husband earlier, we wouldn't have clicked, as I still needed to sort out so many things in my live."

I can go on and on. We need to start trusting in God's timing, it always works out better than what we would have thought.

Another reassuring fact is that God is working through us while we are waiting. If we look at David again, we can see the Lord teaching him many things while he was waiting to be king. David had the chance to be in King Saul's throne room quite often as he had to play the harp for him and there he must have learned a lot about the duties of a king. While on the run, he learned how to fight and conquer his enemies, something a king had to know. He also gained a following of rugged men while he was hiding from Saul and through leading these men, he definitely learned how to lead, how to deal with conflict and how to gain respect, something a king would need. He was a 'king in training', and I am positive that he was a much better king than what he would have been if he simply stayed with his father and immediately became king.

Another person that had to wait was Paul. After his conversion, he started preaching boldly in Damascus. The Jewish leaders didn't like it and wanted to kill him. He then fled to Jerusalem, but the new believers were afraid of him, thinking that he was only pretending to be a believer. After some convincing by Barnabas they believed him, but sent him away to his hometown, Tarsus, when they heard of another plot to kill him. And there he stayed for a number of years before Barnabas came to fetch him and his whole ministry started. Now we do not know much of the years he spent in Tarsus, but I was just thinking about it. He could have been frustrated, not knowing what his future holds. He could have felt that he had this wonderful 'education', and special conversion and here he was doing nothing. Or he could have embraced this time and learned from the Lord. He knew the Word very well as he was a Pharisee, trained by Gamaliel, the finest available, but I think that the Lord used this time to teach him the Word through His Holy Spirit. I think the Lord wanted to teach Him who Jesus truly was and to prepare him for the rough road ahead. Paul didn't know then that he was going to become one of the most famous people of all time, but I am convinced that that waiting period prepared him for it.

Are you ready to learn from the Lord while you are waiting? Are you ready to be prepared for your future that awaits? Be encouraged and know that while you are waiting, God is doing something wonderful within you. Believe it! It is going to be worthwhile.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew the right spirit within me. Help me to wait with confidence of a bright future that awaits. Teach me O Lord, I am prepared to listen. Amen

Welcome back. As we discussed in the previous blog, it is very difficult for us to wait. We don't like waiting and we would rather jump in and start than wait for the 'gun' to go off. No wonder we often get false starts at the Olympic games. Everyone wants to be the quickest out of the starting blocks and gain an advantage on all the others.

I am also impulsive sometimes and start something just in order for me to feel that I am gaining ground and at least doing something. I hate doing nothing. But sometimes the Lord wants us to wait, and do nothing but spend time with Him. And through spending time with Him He wants to teach us things that will help us along the way and in actual fact save us time in the long run. But very few of us are prepared to give that time away, as we are afraid that we will lose out in our materialistic race.

An excellent example from the Bible of someone who had to wait for years for promises regarding his life to come to pass, is David. He was anointed as king over Israel when he was still a young boy and only became king of Judah when he was 30 years old and king of the whole Israel when he was 37 years old. He had to wait for a very long time before he was crowned king and during all those years, the possibility of becoming king appeared very slim. Saul wanted to kill him because he was jealous of David, and chased him all over the country. David had to go and hide away from Saul in caves and in Israel's enemy's territory. The chances of him ever going back home and promoted to the throne seemed remote. David could have been down in the dumps, his heart could have been heavy and down cast. But he wasn't, listen to this one psalm he wrote while he was being persecuted by Saul:

Psalm 17:9, 15 "Protect me from wicked people who attack me, from murderous enemies who surround me. But because I have done what is right, I will see You. When I awake, I will be fully satisfied, for I will see You face to face."

David held on to the Lord. He didn't resent the Lord that he needed to wait, but he spent time with the Lord. He looked up to the Lord to protect him and to guide him. If you read David's story you will notice that he always asked God's guidance when he was on the run and didn't know what to do. He kept the Lord close to his heart and he trusted in Him.

I heard a woman speaking on Impact radio the other day about waiting. And one thing that she said stuck with me. She said that the way we wait express our trust in God. And that is so true. If we look at David, we can see that he trusted the Lord with his life. From the moment that he took on Goliath until the day that he died. Yes, David did make mistakes in between, but he asked forgiveness and the Lord called him a man after His own Heart.

We need to wait with faith. If you are in a season of waiting, try to strengthen your relationship with the Lord during this time. Whether you are waiting for a soul mate, or a baby to come, or a promotion at work, or for guidance on a new career path you would like to take, whatever it is, spend time with the Lord. The time is now. It will ease the period of waiting, as His Peace will enter your soul, plus He will prepare you for your task that lays ahead if you trust in Him.

Take care, wait with confidence!

Lord, help us to wait with an expectant heart. Thank you that we can know that you are waiting with us and preparing the way forward. Amen

What do you think is one of the most common things that aggravate people? Yes, unfair treatment, yes, corruption and crime, yes, if you are being lied to, but one thing I can know for certain that everyone has experienced some or other time in their lives is to wait. We as humans cannot wait very well. Have you seen how people get when they need to wait in heavily congested traffic, or when they need to stand in a long queue? Some of them's whole personality change. They become aggressive and try to take chances by driving in the yellow lane or they simply jump the queue and mumble some or other excuse why they need to be helped first. Or other people do wait in the queue, but when they get to the front they almost bite the head off of the person helping them as if it is their fault that they had to wait so long. 

Why is it that people cannot wait? Well the answer is easy really; it is because we have so much to do. We have too many things outstanding and when we get delayed by waiting, all those things heap up and up and before we know it we need to work late, because everything needs to get done. And when we work late our fuse gets shorter and in the end we are not the nicest person to get along with.

Another reason why we battle with waiting is because everything around us is getting faster and faster and we don't really need to wait that long for basic things anymore. Computers gets quicker, we go to a fast food chain and our burgers are ready within minutes, we pop food in the microwave and quickly heat it up, we put on the television and search with our PVR the story that we want to see, we don't even need to wait anymore. People like Investors can almost never go to sleep or on holiday as the world never sleeps, it simply goes on and on. Things happen by the second. We live in a fast paced world. And every now and again when we have to wait for something we cannot handle it. We are being programmed by the world to simply move faster and faster.

And then suddenly one day the Lord stops you in your tracks and tells you to wait. To be quiet and still and to wait on Him, before you continue.

And what do we as humans do? We totally freak out!

"Wait? Lord, You cannot be serious? This is the 21^st century, we do not wait on anything. With all respect, I am going to lose out if I do not react right now. I have to, otherwise someone else will clinch the deal I am supposed to get."

In my spiritual eye I can see the Lord smiling at us.

"My dear child, I created time. Don't you think I know what century this is? A day is like a thousand years to Me and a thousand years like a day. I know what the future holds, in fact I am the only One who knows. Trust Me, if you rush your timing you will be out of sync and things will not turn out the way I plan it for you."

I can see each of our shoulders drooping and our faces falling.

"But Lord…"

"No buts My Child, listen to Me. I know what is best."

Are you ready to listen? Are you ready to wait? I am going to talk about this topic over the next few weeks. Come and join me and discover what the Lord wants to tell us.

Lord, please help us to listen to You. Please help us to follow Your guidance and please help us to be obedient to Your Voice. Amen

We get so used to the ordinary that we seldom expect anything more. We go through the motions and do not expect something amazing to happen to us. And it is the same when we try and seek God. If and I mean to stress, if, we make the time to seek the Lord we also seek Him in the ordinary. We do not really expect to see Him in supernatural ways. But that is exactly where we make the mistake. We need to believe and anticipate that His Presence in our lives will be supernatural.

After all scripture tells us:

Luke 1:45 "You are blessed, because you believed that the Lord would do what He said."

Matthew 17:20 "I assure you, even if you had faith as small as a mustard seed you could say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it would move. Nothing would be impossible."

We need to start believing, it unleashes the power that the Lord makes available to us.

Let's look at the different way that the Lord spoke to a couple of biblical characters. The Lord appeared to Moses in a burning bush. Of all things, a burning bush. He could have talked to him in a dream or with a vision, but He chose to speak to Moses through a bush.

To the Israelites the Lord appeared in a protective cloud during the day and a pillar of fire during the night.

To Balaam the Lord spoke to him through his own donkey! Imagine your dog or cat suddenly starts talking to you. I will have the fright of my life, I can tell you that.

An angel appeared to both Joseph and Mary proclaiming the coming of our Lord Jesus.

I think you get the point. The list can go on and on. The point that I would like to make is that we should believe that the Lord can work in wonderful different ways in our lives. It makes life truly exciting. As I mentioned before the Lord once wrote a message to me using clouds. It was an awesome experience and something that I would always treasure.

Look around you today and see the Lord all over. Expect to find Him:

Deuteronomy 4: 29 "And if you search for Him with all your heart and soul, you will find Him."

He is excited to spend time with you and He wants to show you a wonderful side to Him. You only need to make the time and believe that He will bless you with insight because of it. It will make life more thrilling and interesting, but most of all it will deepen your relationship with Him, which is what this life is all about.

Lord Jesus, we look forward to this day. Please speak to us in unexpected ways, we believe that You will. We love You more than life itself. Amen

A new year comes like a thief in the night. Before you know it you are on the verge of a new year with new challenges and new opportunities. If you have a good sense of what the year will hold for you, you might feel more relaxed, if you are quite certain of deals going through you might be excited, but more often than not, a new year feels like the dark unknown. I sometimes feel like that. I don't know where the Lord wants to lead me and I don't know what the future holds. I don't know whether His Promises will realize within this year or the next or the next and I don't know where it will leave me.

My stomach turns into a knot and I get nervous. I don't know if you feel the same way? Will you get your long awaited promotion this year? Will you finally fall pregnant and have your first child? Will you finally meet the right person to share your live with? Will your business expand and grow or will it wither away along with the recession? Will you be able to afford a house this year? Will you find a better job? The list is endless, I can go on all day, but I am sure you get the drift. I think most of us feel a bit nervous at the start of a new year. But I have good news for you, the Lord is by your side.

When I asked the Lord about the new year He said He knows how we feel. He knows that we feel like the Israelites about to face the 'giants' of Canaan. We feel inadequate and we feel uncertain. Will the Lord really be with us? Can He truly be trusted? Because we know we are not strong enough to handle this on our own. Will He really come to our rescue? Or will we be the laughing stock and the slaves yet again?

Now I have a message for you. The Lord wants you to trust Him. He wants you to look at the giants in your life and know that He is in charge. He has a wonderful promised land waiting to be discovered by you, He has gifts He wants you to explore, but He wants you to trust Him like Joshua and Caleb did. Out of plus minus 2 million that left Egypt they were the only two adults that entered the promised land. And you could too.

Trust Him to lead you where you need to go, trust Him for wisdom and discernment, trust Him that He would provide you peace and trust Him that He would handle your personal life. He wants to be part of every aspect, let Him. He knows best.

John 14:1 "Don't be troubled. You trust in God, now trust in me (Jesus)."

Thank you Lord that we can relax about the new year. Thank you that we can give our lives into Your Hands, You know best. Give us the courage to go out and face the giants. Amen

What a wonderful time of year! How wonderful to be with your family, be together and celebrate the birth of our Savior. The Lord is so amazing and it is such a great time to simply experience His love and goodness. Whether the timing of our Savior's birth is in December or not, it doesn't really matter, the essence of the matter is that the Lord came to be with us and join us to bring us the Light. It is a time to be with your family and friends and rekindle the love  with one another and with the Lord.

But last week I went to my hairdresser and while they were washing may hair I overheard a conversation between the hairdresser and some of the ladies in the shop. They were discussing the fact that they hate Christmas and this time of year. Some of them even said that if they could sleep through Christmas it would suit them very well. They were not Christians and this whole festive time reminded them of all the sad times in their life. They were either lonely or they hated their family. It was so sad to hear.

And I realized that there were probably millions around the world that hated Christmas too, because they were either lonely, sick, hated their family, felt misunderstood, was too poor to buy gifts for their children, had to work or whatever the case may be. It is actually a very sad time. A sad time because they look at Christmas from a human point of view. They look at Christmas as only a human can, they look at Christmas and see only the failure around them. Failure of the human race.

Christmas is not about the gifts, Christmas is not about how popular you are and how many sms's you receive, it is not about receiving. It is about Jesus. Think about it for a moment, sit still and truly focus in on Him. Christmas is a time to experience His intense love for us. Even if you are alone, Christ is there with you and the greatest gift of all is to experience Him.

Breathe in deeply….breathe out….breathe in….breathe out. He is in the breath, He is in every moment. Close your eyes and imagine Him unfolding His arms around you and giving you a tight hug, because I promise you that is what He wants to do. He wants to be close to you. He wants to be with you. Invite Him in, He would love to have Christmas dinner with you.

We love You Lord, You are our everything. Thank you for the gift of Christmas, thank you for being there and for loving us. You are amazing. Amen

The other day I was driving to the shopping mall. Now I wouldn't say that I drive excessively fast, but sometimes when the road is open I tend to drive faster than the speeding limit. For example in a 60 km/h zone I would drive 80 km/h easily or sometimes even 90km/h. That day I drove about 80 km/h in a 60 km/h zone. But the next moment I noticed that a police vehicle was driving right behind me. I had such a fright and slammed on the brakes to get to 60km/h. Now I know that they were not following me, they were by chance right behind me, but their mere presence made me nervous and all of a sudden I wanted to obey the speeding limit. They didn't do anything, but I felt guilty, because I know I was in the wrong. This incident made me think, why is it that people only obey when they know that they are being watched?

Another example is a classic one at work. Have you noticed how everyone works faster and more efficient when the boss is around? And the moment he leaves, almost everyone tends to slack off. I would never forget that at my previous employer, one of my colleagues would always work in the time when he knows the boss is on holiday, and take leave when the boss is back. And during the time that the boss is not there, he would leave early from work, take extended lunch breaks and surf the internet most of the day. Isn't it ironic that a lot of people are that way? They only look out for their own advancement, and when the one that can promote them is not there, they don't care about the rest.

The Lord pointed out this concept to me the other day. We shouldn't just act and work in the right manner when we are being watched, because in actual fact we are always being watched. The Lord is always, everywhere, watching our every move. Now I am not saying He is like a policeman, but He is our loving Father looking out for us. He wants us to act in a manner that would reflect Him. After all He says in Romans 12:11:

"Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically."

Proverbs 16:3 "Commit your work to the Lord, then your plans will succeed."

We have a big responsibility as Christians to reflect that we are indeed children of God. If we say that we are His children, we need to act that way and reflect Him to the world. And if we are not responsible in our work and our everyday tasks, it can hinder other people in their faith. For example it makes me very angry if people drive with 'Jesus stickers' on the bumpers of their cars, and then they drive like maniacs, pushing in in front of other motorists, skipping red lights etc. Because then I think to myself, if I didn't know the Lord personally, this will put me off from Christianity. If Christians behave this way, I don't want to be one. So if you do have a bumper sticker, that is great, but please remember to drive like a Christian ought to.

Also at work, do your work to the best of your ability, whether anyone is watching or not. The Lord sees you and He knows your heart. He sees what you are doing and He will bless you because of it. Even if you don't get a raise and the one misleading the boss does, it doesn't matter, the Lord's approval is more important than anything else in the world. And you can be sure of blessings falling on you, whether it is good health, clever children, a discount at the shops or treasures in heaven. Don't fall into the trap of our materialistic world, but make the Lord your main Boss. At the end of the day, you are only accountable to Him and no one else.

Lord Jesus, please help us to be better Christians in everything we do. Please help us to look up to You and to follow Your holy example. You are the only One we want to please. We want You to say to us: "Well done you good and faithful servant. I am proud of you." Amen

The Lord wants us to spend time with Him. He wants us to get to know Him better and better in order for each of us to be able to grow spiritually and to live our lives the way He intended. And most importantly, He wants us to spend time with Him simply because He loves us and wants to be with us. It is like any other relationship, if you want the relationship to deepen and to grow, you need to dedicate time to it.

The other day I was sitting in the garden during my quiet time with the Lord. I looked up to the two thorn trees we have in the garden. It was spring, but it hasn't started raining as yet, but we use irrigation to water our other plants during this time. Some of the irrigation reached the one thorn tree, but not the other one. I noticed then that the leaves of the thorn tree that got extra water started to come out, but not the leaves of the one who didn't. The one tree looked green and fresh, while the other one still resembled winter. At the end of the day, the leaves of both the trees will eventually come out, one would just be quicker than the other one. And then I realized that it is the same with us. Our spiritual life will grow faster if we water ourselves spiritually. At the end of the day all Christians will go to heaven, but if you want to grow spiritually, look green and fresh, lead a life of abundance and be the first to hear from God, then you need to make time.

It is like Paul says:

"Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I may have Christ and become one with Him." Philippians 3:8,9

And how did Paul get to know Jesus better and become one with Him? He spent time with Him. A lot of it.

A while ago I had to find the answer to a certain aspect in my life. I needed to find the answer from the Lord. I asked three Christians close to me to pray about it and tell me what they hear from the Lord concerning this issue of mine. Each of them came back with either a dream, text verse or a feeling that they had. None of it was straight forward. It was like a riddle I had to solve. I wrote everything down and tried to make sense of it all. I looked up to the Lord and presented it to Him and asked Him why He made it so difficult. Why couldn't He just plainly tell me what to do, why all these riddles? And do you know what He said? In the first place He said He will only reveal as much as we need to know/can handle at a certain stage, but most importantly He said that He speaks in riddles in order for us to make time to spend with Him. If we make the time, He will make the riddle clearer and present us with our solution. If He gave us the answer on a straight forward basis, we will not have the need to spend the time with Him, but we will rush on with the task ahead.

Don't fall into the trap of simply rushing to the Lord whenever you need Him. Rush to Him every day, because whether you realize it or not, you actually cannot cope without His love and His guidance. You need Him to be able to function properly and to make the right choices.

Lord, we love You and ask forgiveness that we do not make enough time for You. Other things always seem more important, while it is not even close as important as spending time with You. We look forward to feeling Your warm embrace and greeting You every morning. Amen

In the previous blog I spoke about heaven and how we can all go there 'simply' by accepting Jesus into our lives and making Him King over everything we do. One day we can go there and be part of the exquisite home that is being prepared for us.

But in the meantime we are here on earth, which is a far cry from the splendor that awaits us. We are here because we have a purpose to complete as I have discussed at length under the heading: 'Purpose in life'. But while we are busy serving the Lord here on earth, we can have moments when we long to go and be with Him, moments where we get tired of the wicked and the evil all around us. We can have moments that we simply want to go to heaven and don't want to wait anymore. There is some good news for you. You can have a piece of heaven here on earth already.

Whenever I have those moments and feel that yearning inside of me to connect with God, I leave everything and go and spend time with the Lord. I sit down and be still. I try to be as quiet as possible and focus all my attention on the Lord. And do you know what happens? My spirit connects with His and in that split moment I experience a piece of heaven here on earth. The void inside of me is filled and I don't feel empty inside anymore. I feel at peace.

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him. We know these things because God has revealed them to us by His Spirit, and His Spirit searches out everything and shows us even God's deep secrets." 1 Corinthians 2:9, 10.

I long for the Lord to speak to me clearly and show me His deep secrets. I often go to my Christian mentor and discuss these things with her. She is very close to the Lord and can hear His Voice even better than she can hear me. And when I ask her how it is possible, she simply smiles and says: "Spend time with Him. The more time you spend, the clearer His Voice will become." And that is so true. I follow her advice and I am not nearly where I should be, not by a long shot, but I am definitely not where I used to be. Every day the Lord's Voice becomes a little clearer.

We must also follow Paul's advice:

"Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent." Ephesians 6:18.

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6,7

So whenever you feel that the Lord is calling you for some quiet time/or you feel the aching of your heart, don't delay, but go to Him. It doesn't need to be long, just go. Even if you need to go and sit in the restroom at work, or you need to go and sit in your car. Go and do it. Heaven will come knocking on your heart and it will be the best moment of your day. Nothing comes close to being with the Lord. He will fill your void and He will start talking to you, you just need to listen.

Lord Jesus, thank you that we can experience a piece of heaven here on earth. Thank you that You are always there for us. We apologize that we are not always there for You. Please talk to us, we would love to listen. Amen

I spoke the last time that heaven is a place we can long for. It is a place where all our sorrows will be a thing of the past. It is a place where your spirit can be who you truly are and who you were created to be. And better yet, it is a place that we can know exist. It is not fiction and it is not fake. It is more real than this blog that I am writing now. It is more real than the food you eat today and it is a place where we can go to with ease.

The Lord promises us easy access if we accept Jesus into our lives, accept what He did for us on the cross and give Him reign over our lives. It is as simple as that. I read this morning in Revelations a very good description of what Jesus looks like:

"When I turned, I saw seven gold lampstands. And in the middle of the lampstands was the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash across His chest. His head and His hair were white as wool, as white as snow. And His eyes were bright like flames of fire. His feet were as bright as bronze refined in a furnace, and His Voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. He held seven stars in His right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came from His mouth. And His face was as bright as the sun in all its brilliance." Revelations 1:12-16.

Wow, isn't it an amazing description? He is even more awesome than any of us can imagine. He most probably looks even more remarkable if you were to see Him face to face. I personally don't think our frail human bodies can fully take in what His appearance is truly like.

Now who else in the world can you truly trust with your life than Him? He is the most spectacular Being of all time. Surely it can't be too difficult to give our lives over to Him. Surely He knows what is best for us? And yet it is so sad to see how people turn away from Him and rather ask advice of their frail buddy next to them. How people don't want to follow Him, because it is not popular in our material world. It is so sad to see how people mock Him by using His precious Name as a swear word.  What a sad world we live in.

But as I said there is hope. If you give your live over to Him to take charge of it, you will be amazed by the gap He can fill in your life. I am sure all of you at one point in time have experienced that sad feeling that sometimes comes over one. A longing and an aching of the heart that you cannot explain and that one tries to fill with the pleasures of this world. But in actual fact it is the longing in your heart to be with Jesus. The longing in your heart to go to heaven, the place where your spirit belongs. If you haven't given your heart and life to Jesus please pray the prayer below. Please say it out loud and mean every word you say. And know that after you prayed that prayer that you will be part of the Lord's family and that you are on your way to heaven. Go out and buy a Bible and start reading it and join your closest church that will help nurture you in your walk with God.

So if you want to pray a repentance prayer, please do it with me now:

Lord Jesus, I am a sinner, and I am sorry that I keep on hurting you with my wrongful actions. Please forgive me and lead me in your rightful ways. I believe that you died for me, and I believe that only through you, will I be saved. I thank you for dying for my sins on the cross. I accept the working of the Holy Spirit in my life, and I believe that the Father sent you to save me. Thank you for accepting me as your bride. I look forward to being with you.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

If you have just prayed this prayer, you can be certain that you will be part of the Lord's family. You can be certain that you will share in the wedding feast of all time, and that you will be with the Lord forever and ever. Welcome to the Lord's family! It is exciting!

Know that all of the angels, and in particular Jesus, are rejoicing about you right now. You are now part of the homecoming of the exquisite bride, which is God's people. Live today in anticipation of that day. Look forward to it and live everyday to the full. You are part of the Most High's Royal Family!