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Awakening to God part I

This week, a verse from the story of Jacob and Esau caught my attention. To give context, Jacob and his mother had just connived to steal Esau’s firstborn blessing by dressing Jacob up in sheep skin so that he felt like and smelled like Esau. So Isaac his father thinking it was Esau asks how come he has returned from hunting so quickly and this was Jacob’s response:

Isaac asked his son, “How did you find it so quickly, my son?” “The Lord your God gave me success,” he replied. Gen 27: 20 NIV

Note that Jacob responds by saying, “The lord your God…” now fast forward a few days after. Jacob is running away for his life because his twin brother Esau has figured out that he has stolen his firstborn blessing. As he is journeying it gets dark and so he settles down to sleep and God visits him in a dream. In the dream God introduces himself as such: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac…” Gen 28:13.

Jacob has a personal encounter with God and that changes his view of God. When he wakes up he says: “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord  will be my God…” God was no longer just your God to Jacob but was now taking on a new identity as my God. What a difference a personal encounter with God made!

Dear readers, there is so much value in a personal relationship with God and in knowing him for yourself. It is such a blessed experience that no one can take away from you. This week my sister posted something which I leave with you as a parting thought:

A philosopher once said “Christianity started out in Palestine as a fellowship-a relationship..Moved to Greece and became a philosophy-a way of thinking…Moved to Rome and became an institution-a place to go…Moved to Europe and became a culture-a way of life…Moved to the rest of the world and became an enterprise-a business…Now it’s just “what we do.” What if we went back to what Christianity really is- a relationship with Jesus, the High and Lifted One who yearns for our friendship?  S.T. 

Have  you had a personal encounter with God or are your experiences of God based on the stories of others? Is he your God or the God of your pastor or some other great man of God?  We know that Jacob indeed made God his God because going forward God has been known as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Is he your God too? Think about it.

Yours Truly.

 

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Purpose fatigue

So these past weeks I have invested myself in praying for something in particular and when I say invested I mean prayer, fasting, the whole works. Sometime last week I thought God had answered my prayers and I was relieved and ecstatic that now I could finally rest easy until I realized the answer had still not come. And boy was I deflated. The thought of praying for the same thing for even just another day when  I  thought that battle was over just sank my spirit. Have you ever been in a situation where you thought something was over: you thought the healing was going to happen that day, or you were so sure that you were going to get a particular job, or you were convinced in your spirit that this was your month to get pregnant… and it simply did not happen?

This week I read the parable of Jesus turning water into wine and something caught my attention. To give context, Jesus is at a wedding with his mum and the wine runs out. Mary, his mother, tells Jesus of the situation and advises the servants to do whatever Jesus tells them to do.

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. John 2:6-7 NIV

What caught my attention was the fact that the jars of water held 20-30 gallons of water and the servants filled each of them to the brim with a total of 120-180 gallons of water! What tiring work that must have been!  It must have looked like a futile job considering that with each gallon, they did not see any change to the water in the jars, it was still water. But they persevered and filled them all to the brim in obedience.

Have you ever gotten fatigued doing something you know God wants you to do or is right for you to do because results/ rewards are not immediately apparent? Have you wanted to throw in the towel, just stop hoping or waiting and say God just do your thing whenever you are ready? Well, there is a lesson to be learned in a sunday school song:

Don’t stop praying the Lord is nigh; don’t stop praying He hears your cry. God has promised and He will do; Don’t stop praying He’ll answer you!

Be encouraged! Keep filling the jars with water (keep praying, keep hoping, keep trusting, keep serving, keep applying for jobs) and when you have filled them all to the brim, wait for God’s move. It will surely come.

Yours truly.

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Let’s talk about Jesus for a minute

So this week I read something in the book of Judges that caught me off guard:

After a while the people of Joshua’s generation died, and the next generation did not know the LORD or any of the things he had done for Israel. Judges 2:10 CEV

How is it possible that a whole generation did not know anything about God or what he had done? Up until that point in the lives of the Israelites it had been one miracle after another. The most  incredible stories in the bible are seen in the redemption of Israel from slavery and settling them in the promised land. From angelic visitations, burning bushes, golden snakes, the ten plaques,  pillars of fire, light and darkness happening simultaneously in the sky, seas parting so people could walk on dry land, walls falling at the sound of trumpets, to mention a few…. I mean how could these stories get lost and a whole generation did not know about them?

As I reflected on this, I had the opportunity to examine my life. I realized that I almost never talk to my kids about the awesome things that God is doing in our lives. My husband and I share these wonderful stories between us and spend time thanking God  for his many benefits but we never include our young kids in these discussions or offer them the opportunity to join us to thank God. I know they are very young and probably would not understand any of it and perhaps that is what the Israelite parents thought too and before long a whole generation did not know God! This week I have come to see why it is important to include them so early in their formative years so it becomes a part of them. This scripture still holds true:

And you shall teach them diligently to your children and speak of them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:7-9 BSB

This week I challenge you to talk to your kids about the things you are appreciating God for and encourage them to join you in thanking God. If you don’t have kids, I encourage you to include a total stranger in your praise break. Together lets be intentional in raising a generation that knows God or at the very least has heard of His awesomeness!

Yours Truly.

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Seeking recognition for a job well done

This week I read an interesting passage of scripture that got me thinking about an incident that happened towards the close of last year. See, I give a lot to my work. I put in 110% everyday and an opportunity presented itself where I would get recognition for my hard work but I did not and boy was I livid. I was angry and upset for days. Although the moment passed, I learnt many lessons from that incident; the most prominent being to be humble because it is God who exalts. I sincerely thought I was done with the lessons until this passage:

“Suppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Won’t he rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’ ” Luke 17:7-10 NIV

Wow! speak of a dose of humility. Jesus was telling his disciples not to actively seek praises, thanks, or recognition for doing their assigned duties! As I begin a new year, I am encouraged that the work I do be it career wise, household chores, taking care of the home and kids, serving in church, whatever it may be, I do for God. And instead of looking for recognition and getting upset because XYZ did not say thank you or acknowledge my hard work, my response this year will be, “God, I am your unworthy servant and I have only done my duty.”

Yours Truly.

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What does 2020 have in store?

Dear readers,

2019 was a very interesting year in my walk with God. I learned so many things about my life and my relationship with God by blogging about my daily experiences and thoughts. I grew closer to God and a big part of that growth process was because of you. Knowing that I was putting my life out there helped me accountable and honest about the things I wrote.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. Hebrews 12:1 NLT

You became my “cloud of witnesses” who held me accountable. I walked the talk as much as possible (still struggling with the love bit) and lived in truth of the word of God I shared. So thank you. Many of you were silent readers and so I do not know if this blog was helpful or not but I trust that you were encouraged and strengthened in your walk too.

This year, I hope to make the experience better. Here are some of the things to look forward to:

  1. I will be more consistent with my posts- this means I will dedicate time to meditating on God’s word which is always the inspiration for my post
  2. I will upgrade the site- this means that there will be no ads to interrupt your reads, the domain name may change and I will upgrade the look of the page.
  3. I will occasionally invite guest writers to write pieces so my blog is enriched with more of the good stuff you enjoyed in 2019.
  4.  I will try and make the posts interactive to give you the opportunity to ask questions, respond to the posts and share your thoughts. I believe in the collective sharing of experiences, knowledge, and revelation to encourage growth. So in 2020 don’t be silent readers. Comment. Share your experiences. Together let’s be part of each other’s “cloud of witnesses” and let’s grow together in our intentional Christian living.

May your 2020 be blessed and may you lay hold of all that Jesus Christ has laid hold of for you. You are deeply loved by God. I look forward to an amazing year!

Yours Truly.