15 October 2010

“Grace is everything for those who deserve nothing” Anon

The words of the great hymn Amazing Grace ring as true today as they were when they were penned. We sure deserved nothing except the absolute wrath of God, but through His mercy and grace we may be called children of God. Let us never forget that we actually deserved absolutely nothing from God!

This week we had a wonderful week of teaching. We had a Bible School this week and continued to teach on Stewardship, ie being good stewards of all that we have because it actually all belongs to God.

One of the students actually cycled 160Km on his bicycle to come and be with us. What dedication! It is such an honour to teach folks who are eager to learn. We also had a few drops of rain and this has caused all those plants that have laid dormant for most of the year to suddenly flower. The bush is so terribly burnt from the fires and in between this decimation you see these beautiful little flowers. They will only be with us a short time and then will die off until next year. It is such a picture of what God can do in the life of a person. A life that is completely ruined can begin to blossom when he places his trust in Christ and allows the power of God to transform him. What a lesson!

We are also in the silly month as we call it, where it gets rather hot before we get the long awaited rains. Here Charley feels the heat as she practises her violin. I think it is a time where we would all like to walk around with very little clothing on.

God bless.

9 October 2010

“Forgetting what is behind and straining for what is ahead, I press on…” Philippians 1:13

Very often, if not always our baggage from the past seems to have a huge effect on our today and our tomorrows. Many times we are enslaved to our past in so many ways and this causes us to be enslaved to our present and future. But Paul writing to the Church at Philippi says we need to put the past behind us and strain for a different future with different goals, heavenward goals.

Sadly, most of our energy and goals are spent on the temporary, which is so effected by our past, but Paul says that God can change that. He speaks with experience as his life and life’s direction was changed on that road to Damascus many years ago. God can get us out of the rut that our past has cut for us.   Allow God to redirect your life for a greater purpose!

Just returned from a wonderful session teaching at a women’s conference being held here in Mbala. These ladies travel vast distances, up to 70Km to come and be mutually encouraged in the things of God. Unlike the men they have to bring nursing babies and all!

This up coming week we will beholding another Bible School here on the College Land. We pray that lives will be changed for His Kingdom.

We are also in the process of building a guest wing for our house. Up here it is a bit of a challenge. We have to make and burn our bricks. The concrete stone is broken up by hammer and hand. No ready  mix cement! Mixing the concrete by hand is no easy task for the guys, especially during the hottest month of the year.

3 October 2010

“There are no unimportant people in the Body of Christ.”Anon.

As I was reading this quote during my devotions this morning I was again reminded that every single Believer has a part to play in the extension of God’s Kingdom upon this earth. No person in the family of God has nothing to offer or do in the service of the King.

So often life in this world paints a different picture where we are only of any use if we have the right qualifications for the task, i.e. academic or practical experience. This makes a lot of folks seem useless as they may not have access to the academic facilities or have ever worked, thereby having no experience. But being in the service of the King is different. He is constantly teaching and leading us. Academic training is being done in hand with practical living. The only criteria that the King desires is that we are available and willing.

I get so encouraged when a group of folks arrange a few days of teaching and desire to learn more so that their lives and those of their congregations can grow in the things of God. This last month I was given the privilege of being able to spend three days teaching some church leaders on Godly Leadership. It is always a challenge to put feet to the theological principle where leadership in their culture is not servant leadership. But we trust that the time spent together will bear fruit in years to come.

It was also a very great honour for me to preach at one of the sub chiefs funerals and have some senior chiefs present. These burials are very traditional and do not happen very often. The last sub chief in this area passed away 20 years ago and so a big part of the people had never witnessed a chief’s burial. To be honest I had really very little idea of what was happening. The only thing I can say is that they bury the chief sitting up in a cave dug in the ground and not traditionally lying down in a mat or casket. Unfortunately no photos were allowed to be taken. But what a learning curve for me!

This upcoming week will be a rest and repair week. Its weeks like this that I need to repair vehicles and rest a bit from ministry. Although the evening classes will continue they are test weeks so I will not be teaching. Thank you for your prayers and God bless you.