The family was getting dressed when we noticed my little sister, about four years old, was struggling to put on her shoes. We decided to help her along but she burst into tears and started trying to pull her foot away. We thought she was being stubborn so we began forcing her foot into the shoe. She cried even more. Why was she being so stubborn? She knew she had to put the shoe on in order to go out. And she herself said she wanted to go out. We then picked up the shoe to loosen its ties (even more) before trying again. This is when we noticed there had been a centipede in her shoe, biting her!
Before He left, Jesus told us to, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation” (Mark 16:15). What a privilege it is for us as Christians to be a witness for God, and to do our part to help bring souls to Christ. However, sometimes we come across people that we view as stubborn. When we meet resistance, sometimes we try to force the gospel on them all the more. We cannot understand why they won’t accept the truth, after all, they themselves said they were open to the truth.
But have we taken the time to understand the persons we are talking to? Could there be a centipede that is stopping them from putting on the shoe? For example, how could Mary accept what you are saying as truth, when she is not seeing a hint of love – only a need for you to be right? Or, how could Bob accept the truth of the gospel, when all he could think about is the fact that he is hungry and have no way of feeding himself or his children? James 2:15, 16 says, “Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?”
As Christ did, when we minister to others, let us do so sweetly… being aware not only of the individual’s spiritual needs, but their mental and physical needs as well. Let’s make sure when we are sharing the gospel, it is a Christ-centered gospel, full of love and compassion.
Let’s Pray Dear heavenly father, I really want to spread the good news of your love and grace. Please help me to do this in a warm and loving manner, remembering Jesus as my example. In Jesus’s name, amen.
Let’s Be Doers of the Word Is there someone you are currently witnessing to, who could use a more holistic approach? Ask God to give you the wisdom to see beyond the outside.
Can You Stop The Rain
Dear friends,
We were down to the last hour of our drive when all of a sudden, completely out of the clear blue skies above us, a torrent of rain came crashing down. The rain beat down so hard that the car, holding its four passengers, started to sway a bit. All cars on the highway automatically slowed down. The torrent blinded me, the driver, and I slowed down even more and put on my hazard lights. My fellow drivers did the same. It was a terrifying moment as the windshield wipers, even at its fastest speed, could not sweep the rain away fast enough. Then, above the sharp staccato sounds of the rain pounding the glass, I heard my mom’s voice ring out in prayer. It was a short prayer. She simply asked God to make the rain stop. A few minutes later, the rain disappeared. Short of the water on our vehicle, we could not tell that it had ever rained. The road ahead was completely dry.
Life can be quite interesting sometimes. One minute you are happily going along and the next, you can find yourself experiencing problems one right after the other… as though there were no end. The expression when it rains, it pours seems to perfectly capture this sentiment. Sometimes things get so bad that you cannot see your way forward. And of course we turn on our windshield wipers to try to get through the issues. That is, we turn to friends and family, we try to fix things ourselves and sometimes, nothing helps. But when we turn to God… the Author and Finisher or our faith (Hebrews 12:2), suddenly, there is a peace. This peace may be in the form of an umbrella. Sometimes the issues are still going on, but God holds an umbrella over our heads so that we are not soaked. Then at other times, God just stops the rain completely.
Jesus says, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Through the intensity of the rains and storms, we must take heart and solace in the fact that Jesus Himself has overcome the world and He is our Father. This means that nothing placed before us, He cannot overcome. Take heart, dear friends.
Let’s Pray
Dear God, sometimes life can be so overwhelming! Issues seem to be appear out of nowhere. But, today, I am trusting You to overcome these issues. In the meantime, I humbly ask that You send me an umbrella of peace and help me to take heart. In Jesus’s name, amen.
Let’s Be Doers of the Word Find a quiet time today to talk to God about everything that is weighing on your heart. Ask Him to give you peace.
Does It Look Good?
Psst.......... You! Are You Going To Compromise?
It is prudent to note that Steven's dad had come home early, noticed he was not at home, and began to look for him. Steven, meanwhile, was quickly running out of space to flee and found himself on the edge of a cliff! Heart in throat, not sure if to jump from the precipice or wait to be charged, Steven froze, paralyzed by fear. And in that bone-chilling moment, he heard a deafening shot go off. The donkeys immediately dispersed in different directions. It was his father. He had shown up just in time to save him!
How many times have we found ourselves in a similar position? We have learnt the Word of God from our parents, from church and from our personal reading. Yet, we still decide to venture from home and disobey God because we are bored or because we think something else out there might be more exciting. So we indulge: we party, drink, engage in deceit. But little do we know, there is danger out there ready to charge at us! God loves us so much that He tells us to "stay home". This is for our own good. In John 8:12 Jesus tells us, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me, will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life." The wonderful thing is, even when we leave home, Jesus immediately begins searching and He doesn't give up until He finds us. Often times, it is right in the nick of time! Praise God.
Let's Pray
Dear God, thank You for reminding me why You tell me to stay home. Sometimes the things in the world do look more exciting, Lord. I pray that You help me to find satisfaction and happiness in what You have given me at home. I know it's for my own good. In Jesus's name, amen.
Let's Be Doers of the Word
Are you currently doing something worldly that seems exciting? Carefully pray about it, asking God to open your eyes.
Great news! We now have a website where you can easily share this blog with others on Facebook and Twitter. Here is the link: http://goo.gl/Isp8OT
Love in Christ,
Jan Sonovia G.
Young Doers of the Word
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. James 1:22
She did not want to miss her brother's graduation. So Autoria decided to take the chartered flight from Nassau to Crooked Island. The flight was 100 minutes. Now at the airport and about to return to Nassau, she noticed that the plane her family of 5 (including a baby) would be travelling on was smaller than the inside of her compact car. Her cousin, the pilot, assured her it was the safest plane in the airport. So no worries!
It was a smooth plane ride and she could see on the small plane's dashboard that there was only 11 minutes remaining until they arrived to Nassau. It was at this time that the plane's single engine chose to sputter before it suddenly died mid-air. Autoria heard the pilot exclaim an expletive before saying, almost to himself, "we won't make it". To make matters worse, there were no life vests on the plane for its passengers! A young woman of God, Autoria sat silent, her mind blank as the plane started to gently glide to the ocean beneath them. Miraculously, it was a slow descent, almost as though they were landing. Autoria clutched the baby as someone grabbed the folded life raft; the pilot then told them to brace for impact. The windows were opened and the plane hit the water with a hard thud, slightly nose diving as it did. The water was coming into the plane quickly. Somehow Autoria managed to wiggle out of her seat belt, and grab a quick breath before the waters covered her head. Incredibly everyone on the plane, including the baby, made it safely into the life raft.
At some point, whilst on the life raft, the last remnants of daylight turned into night. And although two planes had immediately flown over them in response to their mayday call, giving them comfort that they were seen and would be rescued shortly, it seemed they could not be found in the darkness. They could hear the US coastguard helicopter above them, searching the murky waters below for their life raft, but again, they could not be seen. Almost four hours later, completely shrouded in darkness, they were still waiting in the life raft to be rescued. A tiny life vest, too small even for the 8-month-old baby, had been discovered but the light on the vest would not come on. At around 10:30pm the light on the life vest started to work! They placed it in the water. Five minutes later, the helicopter was headed towards them. "It had to be the light," Autoria said. When the helicopter's light shone down on them, they were all flooded with an immediate sense of relief. Praise God for their rescue!
I agree with Autoria! The Light was certainly the reason for their rescue. Jesus says, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life" (John 8:12). Even as the light on the life vest drew the search team to their rescue, and the light from the helicopter gave them relief, let us draw closer to the light of Christ and allow it to give us sweet comfort and relief.
Let's Pray
Dear God, You are so amazing! We know You allow certain things to happen so Your glory may be revealed. We praise You for this amazing tale of survival. Thank You for calling us out of darkness into Your marvelous light. In Jesus's name, amen.
Let's Be Doers of the Word
Are you allowing Christ to be your Light in your darkened hours?
More details on this tale of survival can be found here: http://www.thenassauguardian.com/news/56737
Love in Christ,
Jan Sonovia G.
Young Doers of the Word
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. James 1:22
Admittedly, I was upset. We were praying for a good ticket for a long while. Finally we had the money, the graduation was only days away, and the card was expired?? And how long would it even take to get a new card? The next day my mom went to her bank and discovered a new bank card was already waiting for her (in fact, it had been there for a few weeks!). Friends, later that day when I went to purchase the ticket online, the price had significantly decreased! Amen.
When God says all things work together for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28), does He mean it? And when He says do not worry about tomorrow for it will take care of itself
(Matthew 6:34), does He mean it? And finally, when He tells us not to be afraid but trust Him (Joshua 1:9), does He mean it? Well, 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, "For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "YES" in Christ". So absolutely! God means everything He says. Today is something going on that you expected to go another way? You were prayerful...but things did not end as you wanted it to end? I challenge you to allow God to be God in your life. Trust Him. He knows what He's doing.
Let's Pray
Dear God, I do not understand everything you are doing right now. I just know that things are not going as I had expected. Please, Lord, help me to trust You. For I know you are working out everything for my good. In Jesus's name, amen.
Let's Be Doers of the Word
Here's the issue: we ask God to help us but we tell Him HOW we want Him to help us and WHEN we want Him to help us. It's time for us to stop limiting God. If you currently have an issue that you have not given over to God fully, hand it over right away.
Love in Christ,
Jan Sonovia G.
Young Doers of the Word
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. James 1:22
What Are You Thinking About?
We lived First Street, The Grove. Our house could best be described as "clapboard". Made out of wood, we often had three buckets catching rain water in our house when it rained too much. Each hurricane season, we were scared that it would be the year when our house finally blew away! There were three rooms: a bedroom, kitchen and living room. There was no bathroom inside. We had an outhouse which we could not use at night because my mother was afraid we would get molested. Therefore, at night we used a bucket. There was only my mom with 5 children. We all shared one bed. The bed was given to us by the previous tenant and almost every morning at least one of us would wake up with a scratch from the metal springs in the mattress. We "toted" water in jugs from across the street so we could bathe in our silver tin tub. We used the same tin tub to wash our clothes on the weekend with a scrub board. Rent for this house was $35 per week. My mother made $85 per week.
A situation I encountered this weekend made me want to share my background with you in greater detail. I am not ashamed of my origins. In fact, I am rather proud of them. I believe my life is a testament that you are not where you live, you are not your past. The ghetto was my physical environment but it was not my mental environment. By God's grace, I did not let the ghetto define my speech, character, dress or attitude. Neither should you. Proverbs 23:7 says as a man thinks in his heart, so is he. This is a powerful verse, friends! If you think of yourself as ghetto, poor, weak, dirty, stupid, ugly, or good-for-nothing then, sadly, this is what you are. I am sorry that this sounds harsh, but according to the Bible, if this is what you are thinking in your heart, this is what you are.
