You are not welcome

Water is a precious commodity in any desert. If you have water, you have life and, in some ways, you have power. You can leverage the water to your advantage. 

And so, in a similar way, you can also use the access to water as a power tool. You can invite people to share the water, or you can deny them the opportunity to drink from the Well. Take a read of this story of Isaac and see how he encountered this situation.

Genesis 26:14-22 - "He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him. 15 So all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth.

16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.”

17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar, where he settled. 18 Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.

19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herders of Gerar quarreled with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek,  because they disputed with him. 21 Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah. 22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth, saying, “Now the Lord has given us room and we will flourish in the land.”

Thought: If we picture the Church as a "well" of sorts, (offering the life-giving water of Jesus), is our message to people: 'you are not welcome at our well?' OR are we willing to share the Gift that God has given to us?

Living in Grace

D3LM3 

Have you never heard about this?

"Have you never heard? Have you never understood?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint." - Isaiah 40:28-31

Isaiah's words came to me this week, at just the right time. I was grateful that they lifted my spirits and encouraged me. I pray that they may also offer you an oasis in the midst of your dryness.

God has not forgotten you. 

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Fully satisfied

 

"I will praise you as long as I live,
    and in your name I will lift up my hands.
5 I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
    with singing lips my mouth will praise you." - Psalm 63:4-5

David's pledge to God is that he will worship him for as long as he has breath. The act of lifting holy hands is a sign of surrender and an offering to the Lord. The word 'praise' in the New International Version can also read "honour", which is a nice way of committing our allegiance to the Lord. We will live to honour God and to bring praise to his name. 

The 5th verse of Psalm 63 has nothing to do with eating food, but rather with the comparison of knowing God. David would have known the joy of eating delightful foods and being hosted at great banquets, however he is arguing that none of those feasts could satisfy him like knowing God has.

The idea of being fully satisfied or have a full stomach implies that you don't want to eat anymore. Because you are full, you will not go looking for more food. The connection is the same with God - if we are feeling satisfied through the Holy Spirit, then we will have no need for other sources of spiritual food.

Are you 'satisfied' in your relationship with God at the moment? Why or why not?

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Salt water anyone?

Have you ever drunk salt water? Either intentionally or by accident when you have been swimming in the sea? It doesn't taste nice hey? In fact, drinking Salt Water actually makes you more thirsty. The more you drink - the more you need to quench your thirst.

This is what Jesus is getting at when he speaks to his followers in this parable from Luke 12:15-16.
"Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest."

In reality, we think that 'things' will satisfy the thirst we have for life. We argue that if I have the latest phone, or car, or gadget or whatever, that then I will be really satisfied. However, we all know that this is not true is it? Remember that toy you just had to have when you were a kid - where is that toy now? We thought that this would be the answer to the longing in our hearts, but it wasn't .

Reflection: There is only one person who can meet all of our desires and hopes. His name is Jesus.

Living in Grace
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Strength

The unbearable heat we have been having in Pietermaritzburg lately, has certainly sapped our strength. There seems no escape from it, yet we have to hang in there, until we feel strong enough to carry on with other things. 

When we feel that our strength has been sapped from our spiritual lives, where do we begin to restore this energy and strength? I believe we have to start by drinking from the well that Jesus spoke about in John 4 - there we will find water to quench our thirst and help us on our journey.


"I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection." - Leonardo Da Vinci

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies. " - Mother Teresa

Living in Grace
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