“You are a pain. You are useless. You are nothing.” Harsh words that could damage us for life. So, imagine if when you are born, your mother names you “Pain”. It’s not a positive start to life. It’s likely to become a self-fulfilling prophecy. So too, for many people, circumstances outside of our control can… Continue reading 1Ch 4:10 – Audacious prayer
Do you know that Israel is only the size of the Kruger National Park? The population is only approx. nine million – about the same as the population of London. Yet Israel has a disproportionate impact on world politics. For example, a search of Google shows Israel, which is 114x smaller than Algeria, appears four… Continue reading Eze 5:5 – Centre of the world!
“Only three more sleeps before my birthday.” Can you remember the excitement as a child of your birthday? Counting down the days to your special day. Waiting in anticipation for the day to arrive. Mounting excitement in expectation of the gifts or the special party that was planned. Only three more sleeps. So close. In… Continue reading Mic 7:7 – Excited anticipation
I’m flying in a small plane and all is well until suddenly the clouds close in. The pilot needs to rely totally on his satellite navigation system. Asking a nearby plane wouldn’t help as they too would have no idea where they were. Asking the air traffic won’t help unless the plane is really close.… Continue reading Psa 25:9 – Flying in clouds
Why did this happen? Who is to blame? These are the most asked and unanswered questions. Whether it be a small thing like a dented car or a major event like loss or illness, we want to know why it happened and who is to blame. While getting an answer won’t change anything, we still… Continue reading Joh 9:3 – The wrong questions
A new king! However, he is so young. A huge burden lies on his shoulders as enemies threaten the kingdom. And so when God asks Solomon this question, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” ( 1 Kings 3:5), he has many possible answers. Should he ask for money to finance an army?… Continue reading 1Ki 3:9 – A new king!
“Follow me. I will show you”, the boy says to us. We are on the Mount of Olives looking for the Church of the Ascension. He leads us through an increasingly dodgy maze of roads. When we express our concern, he replies, “No. just follow me.” It’s then that we hear him whistle, and answering… Continue reading Rut 1:16 – Where you go
There is a proverb attributed to Benjamin Franklin – “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”. This is so true in life. We need to have goals and plans to reach our goals. However, there is another proverb written by Solomon thousands of years earlier. “In their hearts, humans plan their course,… Continue reading Pro 16:9 – Walking God’s way
Marilyn Monroe committed suicide at age 36. Michael Jackson died of a drug overdose at age 50. Whitney Houston drowned in a bathtub while intoxicated at age 48. These were world-famous movie and pop stars who had all the wealth and fame one could ever desire, yet they were so unhappy that they sadly took… Continue reading Pro 22:4-6 – Illusive Happiness
“Do you have any spicy, peri-peri sauce?” That’s my standard question when we eat anywhere. I love peri sauce. Once you have tasted it, food without spicy peri sauce will never again be acceptable. And so I couldn’t miss noticing in my favourite Bible verse, the unrelated, but similar sounding Greek word, “perissos”. It means… Continue reading Joh 10:10 – The peri sauce life