When he saw the crowds, he felt sorry for them because they were hurting and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Mat 9:36

I can't understand it. I honestly cannot. Why did Jesus ? Oh, I know, I know. I have heard the official answers. "To gratify the old law." "To fulfill prophecy." And these answers are right. They are. But there is something more here. Something very compassionate. Something yearning. Something personal.

What is it?

Could it be that his heart was broken for all the people who cast despairing eyes toward the dark heavens and cry the same "Why?" Could it be that his heart was broken for the hurting? …

I imagine him, bending close to those who hurt. I imagine him listening. I picture his eyes misting and a pierced hand brushing away a tear… He who also was once alone, understands.

No Wonder They Call Him the Savior (Max Lucado)

Elke ouer moet hom of haarself afvra:

Wil ek graag hê en of verwag ek, dat my kind my gehoorsaam moet wees aan die geskrewe en mondelinge reels van ons huishouding ?

OF

Sê ek vir my kind, al die reels vir 'n wonderlike gelukkige lewe is daar, maar jy hoef dit nie na te kom nie, want dis te moeilik, of jy sal dit in elk geval breek. Kies maar waarvan jy hou om na te kom, los die res.

Elke kind kan in sy groep besluit waarvan hul hou en dit doen. 'n Ander groep of kind kies weer hul eie reels,en volg dit.

Verder moet jy maar staatmaak op my genade of ek jou sal straf, onterf, vergewe of maar net sal oorslaan elke keer as jy dit breek.

Ek as ouer sal elke week my reels vir jou lees, maar soos gesê jy is eintlik vry daarvan, maak net staat op my genade.

Kom luister net gereeld daarna waar ek dit voorlees, of lees dit gereeld self in die boek wat ek vir jou gegee het, maar steur jou nie daaraan nie ...

Klink so 'n huishouding normaal en sulke ouers reg in hul opvoeding ? Hul wat die kinders gemaak het en outoriteit het oor hulle ? Sal jy as ouer gelukkig wees met so `n opstandige kind ?

Nou is daar nog 'n groep kinders wat uit dankbaarheid en oneindige liefde, alles wat die vader vir hul opgeskryf het, graag wil nakom.

Hul doen hul bes om tenspyte van hul swakheid en gereelde oortredings, wetend of onwetend, sy reels na te kom en hom in vreugde wil gehoorsaam. Dink maar aan jou eie kinderdae hoe jy uit respek jou ouers gehoorsaam het en soms maar geluister het, al het jy nie verstaan nie.

Dis vir hul 'n vreugde, en plesier, om hul vader se riglyne te bestudeer, te leer en te wil gehoorsaam.

Word die gehoorsame groep kinders skielik oornag sonder foute, sonder sonde, volmaak ? Kyk bietjie na jou eie kinders. Toe hul gehoorsaam was aan jou, het hul skielik "engeltjies" geword ? Of het jy hul so lief omdat hul jou ag en respekteer en in hul gebroke vermoeë in alles so getrou en gehoorsaam is ?

OF

Omdat hul as mens struikel, moet hul liewers ophou na jou luister ? Ophou gehoorsaam wees aan jou voorskrifte ? Liewers hul eie reels opstel. Wat glad nie in die handleiding staan of deels, wat hul dink makliker sal wees om na te kom ? Al lei dit hul in die afgrond in ?

Kan 'n kind vir `n ouer voorskryf ? Het hy die lewenservaring ? Waarvoor het hy 'n ouer dan nodig ?

Hoekom is die eerste groep kinders altyd so krities op die gehoorsame groep ? Hoekom altyd hul probeer oortuig hul dwaal ?

Hoekom dink hul, dat die gehoorsame groep kinders, wat hul ouers onvoorwaardelik glo en vertrou, nou volmaak moet wees ?

Hul moet liewers ongehoorsaam wees en eie, min, buigbare en maklike reels opstel.

Die gehoorsame groep durf ook nie die ander groep reghelp nie, dan is dit oordeel en groot gevegtery ontstaan.

Laastens, die hele lewe bestaan uit instruksies, reels en wette, die skepping is gebou op instruksies, reels en wette ... the wet van gravitasie, energie, ens. Kyk maar as ‘n leeu welpie nie naby sy ma bly nie en afdwaal, is dit noodlottig. Die reels of wette van natuur bepaal dat daai welpie deur ander diere verskeur sal word. Net so het ons ook instruksies, reels en wette om volgens te lewe, as ons dit nie onderhou nie sal ons verskeur word deur die vyand.

Mense moet die konteks van ons Vader se genade verstaan, dit word totaal buite konteks geruk. Ons kan nie maak soos ons wil nie en verwag dat Vader ons net oor en oor sal vergewe nie. Ons moet ook ons oneindige dankbaarheid vir YAHuashua se dood betoon deur gehoorsaam te “probeer” wees. Dis nie altyd moontlik nie, maar ons moet regtig probeer. Ons kan nie maak soos ons wil en verwag Vader moet genadig wees nie, ons moet ten minste probeer.

Laastens, ek gaan nie skrif gebruik om hierdie basiese lewensfilosofie te beklemtoon nie, en ek gaan ook nie in ‘n skrifgeveg betrokke raak nie. My gebed is dat die sluier van elkeen se oë en hart gelig sal word.

Mag Vader se Ruach tot elkeen spreek wat hier lees.

Tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. —Romans 5:3-4 
When my husband built a covered porch on the front of our house, he anticipated that someday a bird might try to build a nest there. So he built the top of the corner post on a slant. Later we laughed smugly when we saw robins trying their best to claim squatting rights to a new home. Piles of grass on the porch revealed their wasted efforts. But after 2 days of steady rain, we saw that a nest had indeed appeared in the very spot we thought was impossible. Because of the rain, Mrs. Robin was able to mix up a batch of mud mortar. Weaving it with twigs and grass, our determined feathered friend had built herself a new nest. She had persevered.

Perseverance is inspiring! Trying to live a Christ-honouring life while experiencing hardship can leave us frustrated and discouraged. But when we depend on God to help us through our difficulties, we are empowered to keep going even when we can’t always see the resolution of our problems. Galatians 6:9 reminds us not to grow “weary while doing good” and encourages us not to give up.

Is our loving God using a seemingly insurmountable challenge in your life to produce perseverance? Let Him produce in you character, and through character, hope (Rom. 5:3-4).

I dreamt I stood at Calvary And saw three crosses there;
On left and right were nailed two thieves,
The cross between was bare.

A soldier took his sword in hand,
Then pointing it at me;
He said, "You there, prepare to die.
That cross is meant for thee."

I quickly fell upon my knees,
For mercy did I cry;
As strong hands grabbed my hands and feet,
I shouted, "why, oh, why?

And then a voice both soft and sweet
Was heard above the din;
"Let this one go, take me instead.
I'll pay his debt of sin."

With His body torn and bleeding,
And thorn marks around His head;
With face bruised where they beat Him,
He stepped into my stead.

Then Jesus laid upon the cross,
His life to freely give;
That all my sins be washed away,
And through His death I'd live.

He stretched His arms out open wide,
No struggle did He make;
As they prepared to nail Him there,
His life to gladly take.

They drove the spikes in His hands and feet
And slammed the cross in place;
His bones were shaken out of joint,
And blood flowed from His face.

"Forgive them, Father" was His cry,
"They know not what they've done.
They don't realize that
You Have sent Your only Son."

Deep darkness filled the noonday sky
And trembling shook the ground;
As God, the Father, turned away,
While God, the Son, gazed around.

"It is finished now," the Savior said.
"The door stands open wide;
Into Thy hands My Spirit comes."
Then they pierced His side.

The graves were bursting open,
And dead men walked around;
The temple veil was rent in twain,
And I fell to the ground.

When I awoke, the night had passed
And sunshine flooded in; I cried,
"Dear Lord,
Forgive me please, and cleanse me from my sin.

For You sent down Your only Son,
A ransom for the lost
And I see You included me,
When counting out the cost.

Take over the reins that guide my life,
Remove my willful pride;
Sweep clean my heart and enter in,
Forever there abide."

Yes, I dreamt I stood at Calvary
And saw those crosses three;
Yet no longer do I look with fear
Where Jesus died for me.

A little girl walked daily to and from school.  Though the weather that morning was questionable and clouds were forming she made her daily trip to school.  As the afternoon progressed, the winds whipped up, along with thunder and lightning. The mother of the little girl felt concerned that her daughter would be frightened as she walked home from school and she herself feared that the electrical storm might harm her child. Following the roar of thunder, lightning, like a flaming sword would cut through the sky. Full of concern, the mother quickly got in her car and drove along the route to her child's school.  As she did so, she saw her little girl walking along, but at each flash of lightning, the child would stop, look up and smile. Another and another were to follow quickly, each with the little girl stopping, looking up and smiling. Finally, the mother called over to her child and asked, "What are you doing?" The child answered, smiling, "God just keeps taking pictures of me."


PRAYER:
May today there be peace within you.
May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.
May you be content knowing that you are a child of God. Let His Presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, and to bask in the sun. It is there for each and every one of you.     

  Luke 19:45-48 “Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those
  who bought and sold in it, saying to them, ‘It is written, [My house is a
  house of prayer], but you have made it a den of thieves.’ And He was
  teaching daily in the temple. But the chief priests, the scribes, and
  the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do
  anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.”

  There have been a few times in my life when I was so dirty I looked like a
  dust ball. This was after spending hours on a mower or plow. It was a
  sheer delight to step into a shower and wash away the accumulated dirt and
  grime.

  In the week of His crucifixion, Jesus exposed the sin of the leaders. He
  saw that they had violated the sanctity of the temple by allowing
  commercial enterprises to exist in a place they should have kept holy.
  The religious hierarchy had departed far from God’s demand for holiness.
  They compromised in order to profit financially. They may have justified
  their actions by claiming that allowing peddlers in the temple was just to
  make it easy for the pilgrims to be able to sacrifice. Jesus was not
  deceived!
  
As I read today’s Scripture I am struck with the reality that anytime
 Jesus comes into our life, He wants to cleanse us. He will not tolerate
 our feeble excuses for allowing sin to contaminate us. He is the only One
 who can clean us completely.
 We might ask ourselves the question: “How does Jesus go about cleansing
 the sin in our life?” John makes it very plain in First John 1:9: “If we
 confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to
 cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Is there sin in your life that needs
 to be cleansed? Read this verse and obey it!!
  
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be
a blessing!

Om jou droom te vervul, behoort jy te weet hoe om dit ook met ander te deel. En om dit na behore te doen, moet jy op vier maniere met hulle te kan skakel. Eerstens moet jy logiesgewys met hulle skakel. Dit wat mense nie glo nie, aanvaar hulle nie. So, jou eerste stap is om geloofwaardig te wees. Doen jy dit nie, sal jy beswaarlik kan voortgaan. Hoe doen mens dit? Deur 'n realistiese verstandhouding van die situasie soos dit vandag is te kommunikeer. Elke keer as jy jou visie deel, is een van die eerste dinge wat mense sal vra: 'Maar wat van...?' Al sou hulle dit nie hardop sê, sal hul dit vir hulself vra. En hulle sal aanhou vra totdat jy al hul kwessies aangespreek het. Dit verg dat jy baie deeglik is met die oordra van jou droom en nie net klem lê op die positiewe voordele ten uitsluiting van die uitdagings nie. Tweedens, jy moet 'n deeglike strategie voorhou waarin hulle kan glo. As 'n droom te groot en onbereikbaar lyk, gaan mense moedeloos raak en gou belangstelling verloor. Sodra groot drome in kleiner dele opgebreek word en die verskillende dele aan talentvolle individue gegee word, lyk die taak meer bereikbaar en elke mens wat betrokke is kry 'n groeiende gevoel van persoonlike eienaarskap en betrokkenheid. Dis 'n ware kuns om dit alles doeltreffend te kommunikeer sonder om in detail verstrengel te raak en mense te verveel. Jy moet genoeg inligting oordra om die meeste mense tevrede te stel, maar nie soveel dat jy hulle verloor nie. Dit alles verg vaardigheid, oefening en God se hulp. Maar om jou droom te deel, moet jy leer om dit te doen.

Sielskos: Jer 22-24; Markus 2:1-12