Weekly Devotion

This Easter I was reminded once again that Jesus is our King. The King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is the one and only Potentate:

"He is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power." 1 Timothy 6:15, 16

Now what may you ask is a Potentate? Synonyms are monarch, ruler, sovereign, but it is so much more than that. Potentate in this context means all powerful, ruler over all. And Paul specifically says He is the only Potentate, no earthly ruler can even come close to Him. And this was evident once again over all of Easter.

Jesus gave His life willingly. We see in John 18:5,6 that the whole detachment of Roman troops fell backward to the ground when He stated His Holy Name 'I AM' to them. Jesus was so powerful that the mere mention of His Name sent them flying to the ground. No other ruler can do that.

Jesus dismissed His Spirit on the cross when His work of releasing us from our sins were done. No other ruler could decide when to die, but Jesus could. And the Centurion next to the cross was converted on the spot, he had never seen someone on a cross deciding when he wanted to die. Criminals hanged for days, begging people to kill them and get them out of their misery. Not Jesus, He decided when it was finished.

Jesus rose from the grave and defeated death. No other leader could hope to do it. All the mighty leaders of the past are still in their graves. Not Jesus. When His work in the realm of the dead was done, He rose and appeared to His followers.

He is mighty and nothing and no one is a match for Him, Hallelujah!! It was such a wonderful revelation to me once again, that our King is mighty, powerful and in charge. We are part of His Kingdom, now already and when we make His Kingdom our primary concern, everything else will be added unto us. This made me rejoice this Easter. What a wonderful prospect, to be part of His Kingdom now already, with the Holy King as our King, looking after us and reigning with goodness and grace. Protecting us and guiding us towards the best pathway for our lives. Hallelujah!

We glorify You as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. You are the one and only Potentate and we declare that You are in charge of our lives. Thank you that we can be part of Your Kingdom now already, what a wonderful privilege. We love and honor You! Amen.

This is the beginning of a new year, 2024 and what a privilege it is to be able to experience it. What a privilege to experience life! God has wonderful things planned for us for this year and we can all wait in anticipation of it! God wants to lead us all into the special plan He has for our lives. We simply need to make the time with Him to hear and understand what it is. Then we need to be obedient and follow His plan, and if we do, we will experience fulfillment like never before. He knows your weaknesses and your strengths and He knows what will work best for you. Take His Hand and follow His leading, you will not be disappointed. This can be your best year yet, but give control over to Him. Let Him lead your way, He knows best.

God showed me that 2+0+2+4 = 8. And 8 is the number of new beginnings. When God unveiled this in my spirit I was very excited. I do not know what you have been dreaming about or what you have been believing God for, but this is the year for new beginnings. Even if it is just a new beginning in the way you think, in the way you conduct yourself or in the way you choose to view the world, it will make all the difference. We all have a choice in life how we are going to view things. We have a choice as to the thoughts we allow in, as our thoughts turn into words, our words into actions and actions determine the course of our lives. And it all started with a thought. We need to align our thoughts to what the Lord determined for our lives according to His Word. We needn't listen to negative news and predictions for our lives, our country, the economy etc. We are masters of our own destiny, when we follow His Word, think according to it and believe what He says to be true.

"I am the First and the Last; there is no other God. Who else can tell you what is going to happen in the days ahead? Let them tell you if they can (and they can't), and thus prove their power." Isaiah 44:6,7 "I carry out the predictions of My prophets!" Isaiah 44:26

Friends, trust God with your future and nothing and no one else. He is waiting for you to come to Him and He will direct your every step. You simply need to look up to Him, focus your thoughts on what is true of you because of Him, then stand back and watch what new things He can bring about in your life. I received the following verse from the Lord for you for this year. May God bless you abundantly and may you look back to 2024 as a year when your walk with the Lord deepened and a year in which you found inner peace, knowing that you are on God's track for your life.

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." Isaiah 43:19

Thank you God that You love us. Thank you for the wonderful things that You are planning for us. We look forward to 2024, knowing that You are already there, guiding us on the best pathway for our lives. In Jesus Name. Amen

Christmas, what a wonderful time of the year to celebrate the coming of our Savior, the One who came to reconcile us with God the Father. He came so that light can return to the earth and so that we can be overcomers alongside Him. The epistle of John tells us clearly that we are overcomers, not because we have done something to deserve it, but simply because we believe in Jesus, the Son of God:

"For whoever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world - our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" 1 John 5:4, 5

We are overcomers, because Jesus came to save us. He brought the victory on our behalf and now we can live our lives from that victory. In Revelation Jesus promises many things for us who are overcomers and that is my message for you for Christmas 2023. Go and spend time with God and ask Him to reveal to you what each of these gifts entail and what it means to you today. These gifts as powerful and have the ability to change your life and your outlook on it. Allow me to share these gifts with you:

-          To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. Revelation 2:7

-          He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death. Revelation 2:11

-          To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it. Revelation 2:17

-          And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations and I will give him the morning star (who is Jesus Himself - Revelation 22:16). Revelation 2:26, 28

-          He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. Revelation 3:5

-          He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on Him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of Heaven from My God. And I will write on Him My new Name. Revelation 3:12

-          To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, and I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. Revelation 3:21

Aren't these promises just amazing? These gifts are for us NOW already, not just someday. We can claim it now. God promises that we can eat of the tree of life, we won't be hurt by the second death, we will have hidden manna to eat as well as receive a new name. We will receive power over the nations and will have Jesus by our side. Our names are in the Book of Life and we are pillars in His Temple with His Name written on us. And ultimately, we can sit with Jesus on His throne. How wonderful is that? Meditate on these seven promises this Christmas. Ask God to reveal more to you and to unveil to you what your new name is. His revelations will be the best Christmas gift, don't you think?

Father, thank you so much for gifting us with all these promises even though we did nothing to deserve it. We love You and praise You and lift Your Name up high. Please reveal more to us and help us to understand fully what You have blessed us with. Thank you for sending Jesus to open up the way for us. We are eternally grateful. Amen.

2023. Wow, time has flown. I actually cannot believe that I am writing a message concerning 2023. It feels like yesterday that I wrote about 2022. And this just reminded me that we must make most of our time. We shouldn't take time for granted, but use every opportunity that we have to further the Kingdom of God. It doesn't matter what our occupation is, right there where we are we can make a difference.

I then had a look at what the number '23' means in the 'Numbers Dictionary - A prophetic understanding of numbers' book that I have and I found the following:

"It symbolizes a call to preach the Gospel It is a calling to church planting and breaking new ground for the Church of Christ and the Kingdom of God where you will receive supernatural power for that purpose. It is also a call to preach repentance and to perform miracles in Jesus' Name. Number 23 shows that you will receive your reward if you live in harmony with God (abiding in Him). This abiding presence of the Lord will urge you to go forth and preach the Gospel to those that you are sent to."

The only way that our country and in fact the world around us will ever be a better place to live for all of us is if the Gospel is preached and spread. When people truly repent and follow God, then everything will turn around. Corruption will disappear, crime will dissipate and racial hatred will subside. It is therefore imperative that we all commit to the spreading of His Word and His Kingdom. Whether it is physically going and spreading the Word, or praying for the spreading and the church leaders, or providing finances for the Word to be spread, or volunteering in between your occupation, or being an evangelist right there where you find yourself on a day to day basis. The time has come that we all need to jump in and break new ground for Him.

I also believe that in addition to breaking new ground, we need to help cultivate ground that has already received the Gospel. We need to watch what we say, how we talk about our country, our leaders, how we fuel racial fire, how we raise our children, what we watch on any media and so forth. We need to look after the garden of our soul and live in harmony with God, abiding with Him. And we can only abide in Him when we keep our side clean through the examples mentioned above. Because when we are filled with filth, we will still go to Heaven if we truly gave our hearts to Christ, but we won't be able to walk close with God and we will miss our reward. May that not be the case for us in 2023.

The end times are here. Jesus told us that we will be able to recognize the signs of the end and it is definitely here. The 'end times' can last a millennia still, or the rapture can be tomorrow. The point is our main responsibility is to spread His Gospel and to keep our own garden clean and without weeds.

It is actually exciting times and I for one look forward to 2023. I truly believe that God wants each of us to walk in the mandate that He has fashioned for us even before we were born. He wants His Kingdom to expand and He wants His children to live as examples to the world of His goodness and grace. He wants us to focus our thoughts on what is good and pure (Philippians 4:8) and leave the rest to Him. He wants us to trust Him. He wants us to look away from the scary things in the world and the doom and gloom predictions and up to Him! He is our Light, He is our way, He is our truth, and He is our Life. He is the One who will open the Red Sea for us. Nothing is impossible for Him. Go into this year with this mindset. Do not fear the future, but embrace a sound mind and all that He has to offer us. Hallelujah! All glory to Him!

Father thank you for the blessing of a new year. Thank you for the reassurance that we can trust You. We want to abide with You and live in harmony with You. For then we can know that all things will work together for our good. We dedicate this year to You. Help us to walk the narrow path and to follow You in all our ways and to spread Your Gospel everywhere we go. We love You. Amen

Twice in the Bible we read that Holy Spirit hovered over water. The first time was right at the beginning of the Bible before Creation:

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." Genesis 1:1, 2

The second time was with Jesus' baptism:

"When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him." Matthew 3:16

The Spirit descending upon waters yet again was a symbol that a second creation was starting. Jesus' coming was to give us access into the Second Creation. I have written a whole book about it called The Second Creation. But today I would just like to highlight that this is what Jesus came to do. He came to bring an end to the old and to start the new of which we can all be part of. All that we need to do is to repent of our sin and accept Him into our lives as our Lord and Savior. It is as simple as that. Then we are part of the second creation, and we can start living for the fullness of His Kingdom now already.

This Christmas we need to remind ourselves yet again that His coming gave us access into the new. We are born again, no matter what has happened to us in the past, no matter what we have done, the old is gone and we are part of the new:

"For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things that He planned for us long ago." Ephesians 2:10

"What this means is that those who become Christians, become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun! All this newness of life is from God, who brought us back to Himself through what Christ did." 2 Corinthians 5:17,18

"For if by one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ." Romans 5:17

We are new, because Jesus came. We are His masterpiece, we can do the good things that He has planned for us, a new life has begun, and we can reign in life through Jesus Christ! That is why the angels told the shepherds the night Jesus was born:

"I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:10, 11

Good tidings of great joy! And indeed it was and still is, great joy. The night Jesus was born was the most joyous night ever. The old was about to end and the new was about to come! I shudder to think where we would be today if Jesus never came. Let's not rather go there. Let's focus this Christmas on the great joy that it brought into our lives!

Good things that He planned for us lies ahead.

We can walk tall as His masterpiece.

A new life filled with zoe life lies ahead of us.

We can reign in life, in every aspect of our lives.

We can walk this journey close to God as the way to Him has been opened.

Hallelujah! Let us rejoice this Christmas in all the blessings that He has brought us! The Bible is full of it. Open your Bible today and rejoice in all the goodness Jesus came to give us!

Thank you Jesus for coming to rescue us from an old creation on its way to destruction. Thank you for giving us access into the glorious second creation of which we are part of. All glory to You in the Highest for making this possible for us! We love You and honor You and praise You. Amen

This Easter I would like to share something out of my book "The Four Horses". When I prayed over this year's Easter message this is what came up for me:

God ordained that Israel camp in a specific formation in the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land. The Tabernacle of God was in the middle of the camp. To the east of the Tabernacle camped Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun-in total they were 186,400 (Numbers 2:9). To the south camped Reuben, Simeon, and Gad-in total they were 151,450 (Numbers 2:16). To the west camped Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin-in total they were 108,100 (Numbers 2:24). To the north camped Dan, Asher, and Naphtali-in total they were 157,600 (Numbers 2:31). Now, what is very interesting to note is that if we were to draw these numbers according to scale, the way they camped formed a cross! Isn't it amazing! To the east were many more people than to the west, and the north and the south were almost equal, actually forming a cross with the longest ax towards the east. And when they camped all the people looked inward towards the Tabernacle, which is a picture of Jesus and what He came to do for us at the cross.

So, Israel was in fact already living in the reality of Jesus being sacrificed for them, and therefore they were protected. And not only that, Jesus's heart of love for them was in the center in the form of the Tabernacle. He was encamped with them, and therefore no evil could befall them! Did you know that Israel was never attacked and beaten while they camped this way in the wilderness? It is certainly something to ponder and to learn from. While God was in the center of them as a nation, they were unbeatable.

Also, it is worthy to note that the long bar of the cross (or where Jesus's feet would be) faced east. Why? Well, the Lord wanted them to focus on where the sun was rising; symbolizing that He is the Light of the world. He was the One who would bring light in their darkness. He wanted them to renew their commitment to Him every day as the sun rose to bring in a new day. For in His light, they could see light (Psalm 36:9); in other words, they could see the path laid out for them, the way to go. It was also prophetic of what was to come. The Temple of God, later built by Solomon, also faced eastward (Ezekiel 11:1), and when God later departed from the Temple due to the nation's disobedience, He departed from the threshold, thus in an easterly direction (Ezekiel 10:18). The glory of the Lord therefore left the city on the east side (Ezekiel 11:23). But when Jesus comes back again, His feet will land on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east (Zechariah 14:4). Thus, He will come back again from the east! This is also stated in Ezekiel 43:1-5. So, Jesus's feet at the cross symbolically faced east, and when He comes back again, His feet will touch on the east side of Jerusalem. Isn't God's Word just accurate? Also interesting to note, Judah was camped at the east side, and Jesus came from the tribe of Judah.

Okay, so now we know that they camped in the form of a cross, three tribes on each side of the cross. Now, of each group of tribes there was a "leader" tribe of the three. On the east it was Judah, on the south it was Reuben, on the west it was Ephraim, and on the north it was Dan. Each tribe also had their own banner/symbol presented on their flag.

The flag of Judah had the symbol of a lion. The lion was given to them because Jacob compared Judah to a "lion's whelp" when he prophesied over him before he died (Genesis 49:9).

The flag of Reuben had the symbol of a man's face. The man's face was associated with Reuben because he was the firstborn, the head of the family.

The flag of Ephraim had the symbol of an ox. The ox was used because it was through the vision of the calves/oxen that Joseph predicted the famine and provided for them all in Egypt through God's grace. Also, when Moses prophesied over Joseph (in effect his sons, Ephraim and Manasseh), he said:

"His glory is like a firstborn bull, and his horns like the horns of the wild ox" (Deuteronomy 33:17).

Therefore, an ox was used as the symbol.

The flag of Dan had the symbol of an eagle. The eagle was used because when Jacob prophesied about Dan he said:

"Dan shall be a serpent by the way, a viper by the path" (Genesis 49:17).

Jacob compared Dan to a serpent. But according to rabbinical tradition, Dan didn't want a snake as his symbol, so they substituted the snake with an eagle, the destroyer of serpents.

Now for Easter 2022, I would like us to see Jesus through these four symbols and experience Him through it. These four symbols truly depict Jesus' character. I do not have time to explain it here, it is in my book, but in short.

First of all, Jesus is the Lion of Judah. He is the conqueror, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. We should see Him as that in our lives. We should not be afraid or worried about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication give all our wants over to Him. He is mighty and will be able to handle all situations for us. He is the One we can truly trust and give over to.  (Jesus is depicted as King in the Gospel of Matthew.)

Secondly He is a man. He came to earth as a man just like us, flesh and blood. He felt and experienced all the heartache and pain that we do. In fact He experienced a lot more with His gruesome death. So He truly understands our trials and tribulations. He understands what we are going through and we can therefore come to Him with reassurance that He will give us the best advice and that He will comfort and care for us. (Jesus is depicted as the Son of man in the Gospel of Luke.)

Thirdly He is an ox. Hard-working, always serving everyone, always having time for everyone. He is tender and soft, and yet tough like an ox, no pushover as the Pharisees realized. We can therefore be rest-assured that He is our Advocate at the right hand of God, always working on our behalf and looking out for us. He never sleeps and slumbers and we can always call out to Him for help. We must also follow His example and be a servant for Him here on earth. (Jesus is depicted as a hard-working Servant in the Gospel of Mark)

And fourthly He is an eagle. He is the Son of God, flying high above it all, with a bird's eye view of everything that is going on in our lives. He is Divine and He knows best. We can therefore trust His guidance and help and ask Him for it on a regular basis. He can see far ahead and we can therefore follow His Voice and know that it will be the best pathway for our lives. (Jesus is depicted as the Son of God in the Gospel of John.)

Ponder these four 'faces' of Jesus, I am sure Holy Spirit will show you even more this Easter. May you rest in His love and be at peace knowing that the King of kings, the Servant of all, the Divine Son of God, the man who understands is with you every step of the way.

Thank you Father for Your amazing grace and mercy. We love the wonderful nuggets of truth that You reveal in Your Word for us to enjoy. Thank you for teaching us about Jesus and unveiling more and more of Him to us. Therein lies all the secrets of this life. We love You and we rejoice in all that Jesus has done for us. We would have been lost without Him. Thank you Jesus, we glorify You Father and we walk this life with You Holy Spirit. Amen

When I typed this heading the one thing that stood out for me was all the '2's in this coming year. Three '2's. This made me wonder what the number two could mean. I went to the Numbers Dictionary book that I have of Martin van der Merwe and searched the Biblical meaning of two. Now there were a lot of meanings, but God singled out two for me:

The first one is unity in agreement, partnership. Therefore the number two can indicate a union/partnership that will be of benefit (strength) to both parties.

The second one is spiritual promotion. It is a promise that there will be added to what you have. It can refer to assistance and fellowship as well. It can point to promotion to a different level.

Then this number two is in the year three times. The number three refers to perfect unity according to Martin's book:

"For Christians the greatest significance of three can be found in the Triune God, reflecting the perfect unity of the Godhead. Completeness. Three can therefore be directly related to the perfect Trinity, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It can therefore indicate that the person has been formed in the likeness of Christ. Harmony, grace and agreement."

Based on all of this I felt the Holy Spirit leading me to what His heart is for 2022. He wants us to enter into a partnership with Him. He wants to strengthen us and help us. Now a partnership means that we are in agreement on everything, literally everything. A partnership means that we do not do anything on our own, we first consult with our Partner before we act. We spend our money when our Partner agrees, we plan ahead with our Partner, we treat others with respect as it will reflect badly on our Partner if we don't, we conduct all our affairs with the sole purpose of exalting and promoting our Partnership. God wants us all in this year. Not with one foot in and one out. He wants us to walk every single aspect of our lives in partnership with Him.

And when we do, spiritual promotion will be the result. In this perfect unity with Him, we will experience harmony, grace (unearned favor) and agreement in all we do. Isn't that what we all want? When we walk in harmony with Him, He promises that there will be added to what we have and we will receive assistance from Him. All glory on High!

God wants us seated with Him in Heavenly places. Jesus has paved the way and the time has come for us to sit down in agreement with Him. That means rooted in Him in every aspect of our lives, deeply grounded in who we are in Him, royalty, priests, citizens of Heaven, sons of God. We need to stand up as warriors and be counted for who we truly are. Only then can victory come, only then can we take on 2022 as soldiers clothed with the armor of God. Fiery darts might come, but we will be ready for them. Our Partner is mighty, glorious, awesome, all-powerful, magnificent!!!! We simply need to stay by His side. Is that too much to ask?

"But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." Ephesians 2:4-7

Father, we want to partner with You this year. Thank you for the privilege that we will be able to. You are amazing and we love You so much. We look forward to our Partnership and achieving new heights for Your Kingdom and Your glory. Amen

This has once again been an extraordinary year, a strange year in so many ways. This year all of us have lost something, whether it is finances, our health, loved one, our freedom, holidays, time with our families, our right to practice sports or even our right to watch sports. We all lost something. This made me think again how fragile this life is and how we should live life to the fullest and appreciate all the little things in life. I have truly learned that small things can bring as much joy and maybe even more than the big things in the long run. I have also learned to live in the present, in the moment, as we do not know what the future holds. I am a planner by nature, but this year truly taught me that yes, I can plan, but my hope shouldn't be in my plans, but in Him who holds the future and all that it entails. In the present moment is the greatest gift and we shouldn't miss that.

This Christmas we should take this gift of the present and unravel it. We should learn to slow down and breathe. We should appreciate the smile on our children's faces, the friendly gesture of a stranger, the flowers blooming, the lunch that we are able to have with family and friends, the days that we get off to recuperate, the ability that we have to exercise etcetera. We should look at our lives with new eyes and see how really blessed we still are.

Also this Christmas we need to look at what Jesus truly came to do for us. He came to take us into Heaven with Him. He came to give us zoe life, true life pulsating within our veins. He came to set us free from the burdens here on earth. He opened up the way for us to a better life. That is why He came. He wants us close to Him, with Him in Heaven. After He rose again He is seated in Heavenly places at the right hand of God the Father and we are seated there with Him, now already. Therefore we need to focus our attention on what is above and not on what is going down here on earth (Colossians 3:1).

This world is always going to be full of surprises, some of them good, but some of them bad, like COVID was and still is to most of us. Curve balls are going to be thrown at us, but when we are focused on who we are in Heaven, then we will not stumble and fall. Jesus opened up the way for us so that we can be citizens of Heaven, priests, royalty, His beloved children, His bride. He came to set us free from the bondage of sin rampant in this world and to open up the way for us into His Kingdom. He came to give us a better life, now already. We just need to step into who we are in Him and set our minds on His Kingdom and believe the truth about us. He did everything for us, it is now pulsating on the inside of us, we simply need to take it as our own.

Focus this Christmas on the gifts that Jesus came to give you. Focus on the glorious Savior who gave up everything to give you a future and a hope. Glory in that, rejoice in that and move into 2022 knowing that He is already there, providing for you.

Father thank you so much for sending Jesus for us, a little baby in a crib, rescuing the whole world from the destructive power of sin. We glorify and praise You! Thank you so much for presenting us with this new life. We love You. Amen

I listened to a teaching by Joyce Meyer the other day and she spoke about the fact that we are never alone. God is always with us, in every circumstance and in all situations. He is our best friend and we can share anything with Him. He is always by our side and He will never leave us nor forsake us. We can rest assured that we are always cared for. She then mentioned something in passing that made me think and dig deeper. She said that God didn't take the Israelites on the shortest journey from Egypt to the Promised Land; He took them the long route. The shortest route from Egypt to the Promised Land was an eleven day journey. But God didn't take them that way, He took them the long route that would have taken them two years (in the end it took them forty years, but it was due to their own disobedience). Why did God take them the long route instead of the shorter one? Because He knew that once they arrived in the Promised Land they would need to fight the inhabitants of the land and they weren't ready for it. Also they didn't really know Him and His ways, so He needed to teach them that and strengthen them in Him, before they met all the other 'gods' of the inhabitants of Canaan.

The same is true of us today. God often takes us on the longer route in our lives. We want things to be instant, we want things to happen quickly, but more often than not it doesn't. This can truly be frustrating. I have had many promises from God take years and years to materialize and some haven't even yet. It is easy to lose hope then and to get demotivated, to doubt and to wonder whether you heard correctly from God. But the thing is God is preparing us for what lies ahead and He cannot set the plans in motion for our lives if we are not ready for it.

I want to discuss two aspects to this, first of all in the real life events of the Israelites God prepare them for battle against their enemies. Now God could have sent a plague and killed off the enemy forces in one swoop. He could have stepped in and do all the 'fighting' on their behalf. But He didn't. He wanted them to show their obedience to Him and He wanted them to grow stronger through it all. Of course He helped them as we see with the walls of Jericho, but they still had to do their part. The walls didn't just fall down. They had to walk around it and not just once, but every day for seven days and on the seventh day seven times!! And then they had to shout and only then did the wall collapse. And after the wall collapsed, they still had to enter in themselves and fight. God didn't just let all the occupants die after the fall of the wall. No, God wanted them to fight and to learn to trust Him in the process. The same is true of us. Yes God can sort out all of our problems with no effort on His side, but He wants us to do our part, He wants us to trust in Him, to walk with Him and to exercise our spiritual muscles so that we can be warriors in His Kingdom. God doesn't want us to stay babies in the faith, He wants our muscles to grow and become stronger, so that He can use us mightily for His Kingdom!

Secondly, God sent the Israelites on the longer route so that they can get to know Him better. And today He wants us to get to know Him better as well. He cannot and will not release us into our ultimate purpose if we do not know Him and His ways. For if we don't then we will do more damage than good. He wants us to read our Bible, to spend time in reflection and prayer, to learn more from Biblical teachers so that we can be grounded in our faith in Him. So that when He releases us into His ultimate purpose for our lives, we will be ready to shine and to make a huge difference in the world around us.

Please don't make the mistake that the Israelites made. God's longer route for them was two years instead of eleven days. That was His plan and it would have worked out perfectly. BUT they didn't listen and they didn't trust Him. And because they didn't, their longer route of two years became a much longer route of forty years. Plus only two adults who left Egypt, entered into the Promised Land, the rest died in the Wilderness. Do not allow that to happen to you. It is possible to totally miss your calling in life if you do not spend time with God to grow spiritually, if you simply want to take the easy way out each time and are not prepared to stand and fight. You can also singlehandedly postpone your calling with years and years if you do not take your spiritual growth with God seriously. I beg you to rather stay close to Him and allow Him to take the lead. Then yes, it might still take time and it might still be a longer route, but then you can know that it is the best for you and that you will arrive at your destination not a moment too soon or too late, but just in time. God's timing is perfect, trust in it!

Father I know we do not always appreciate the longer routes that we need to take in our lives, but we realize that the longer routes helps us to grow and to develop our spiritual muscle. Help us to be patient during those times and to trust You with all of our hearts and minds. We know that You know best. Help us with the growing process and keep us close to You. We pray it in Jesus' Name. Amen

As I mentioned last week, God told me to go out every morning and to spend some time amongst the trees in our garden. At first I was skeptical, but it turned out to be the best time ever. I experienced God in such a profound way, simply by standing under the trees. Every morning it feels as if I am surrounded by Him and that He is telling me that He has everything in my life under control. I needn't worry, if I am rooted in Him and if I receive water and nutrition from the River of living water, then I would flourish and be blessed in all aspects of my life.

But I must be honest; it didn't feel that way to me. I really felt as if things weren't going my way, plus during this pandemic time I felt as if I was being tested in every single front of my life. God's Word and His promises that we read last week didn't feel real to me, as if it was meant for someone else. Then one morning God showed me something. He told me to have a closer look at the trees in our garden. And once I did, I saw something. Every place where the trunk split into branches there was a mark. Sort of like a stretch mark. I walked from tree to tree and lo and behold, all of them had it. And I realized that every time that the tree grew, it was a painful process and it left a mark. But growth for the trees were necessary, they cannot thrive and flourish without growth. To be honest if a small tree didn't grow after being years in our garden, we would have taken it out by now, as we want shade, privacy and the cheer joy of big trees. We want trees to grow and bless us in the process.

And I realized that it is true of us too. God wants us to grow. We cannot stay immature toddlers in the faith. What a toddler can get away with, a grown man certainly can't. If a grown man were to throw himself on the ground and kick and scream if he doesn't get his way, he will be placed in a mental home, whilst a toddler will merely be disciplined as he doesn't know any better. The same is true spiritually. We cannot stay toddlers in the faith, we simply cannot. It is embarrassing to God and it does His Kingdom a whole lot of damage. He wants us to grow and become the spiritual leaders that He destined us to become. That is His dream for each one of us. And once we are, it is not only very beneficial to us, but to the furtherance of His Kingdom as well.

But to grow is painful, it is not always pleasant and it can be truly uncomfortable at best. It may leave scars and it may challenge us. But the process is necessary. For you see the higher you grow, the more influence you have, and the more influence you have, the more responsibilities are given to you. And God wants to make sure that He can entrust you with it. So small tests come around so that God can see with how much He can entrust to you. And these tests and trials can stretch you to your limits, but know that the ultimate outcome is good. God promises that He will make ALL things work out for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28). ALL things. Good things and bad things, trials and tribulations, all of them. But then we must love God and follow Him with all our heart. We must be grounded in Him and His Word and all He has to offer us. Then the growing process will be a learning curve, leading to more and more of Him and His goodness and grace, Hallelujah!

Be grounded in God, knowing that He knows best! Grow by reading His Word, doing His Word, spending time in His presence, drinking in His pure living water and talking to Him throughout the day. Then stand still and watch Him at work in your life. It is truly amazing, a humbling experience. God really knows best, so even if things do not work out as you had planned, rest assured that it will work out for the best.

Father, thank you that You never leave us nor forsake us. Thank you that You are always there for us and that You help us through the growing process. We thank you and are humbled that You are always by our side. Amen