The Life of Fölscher

Rejoice or Shut It

2012-01-29T22:30:00.000-08:00

Progress or at least the effort to progress and move forward will always encounter opposition. Usually from those leading mediocre lives not being able to see the bigger picture. When someone does something well people tend to vocalize criticism especially if it contrasts with their mediocrity. I am one of those people that struggle to take joy in other people's successes especially when it contrasts with my half-heartedness. It's a human thing I guess but I believe we should shut up if we can not encourage. It is difficult to encourage though when you see someone taking up the baton which you have dropped and start running the race passionately and excellently. Instead we want to pull people down to size, because we do not want to be out done.

It is difficult to be inspired by someone who takes over from you when you have grown tired of what you do and a lot of times you have been wanting to let go and do something that you're "more passionate" about a long time ago, but you haven't left it strong. Rather you have given it shoddy effort and only maintained it because there's no-one else. Then when God comes and takes the talent away (remember Jesus' parrable) and gives it to the one who multiplies what God gives him and it contrasts with our tired effort we can't handle it.

Instead we should see what is being accomplished in God's Kingdom, repent and get busy helping. It's painful I know, but God's Kingdom is the focus, not who does what best. I have been really bad in this area a couple of times in my life and because I dream strong and usually do things which I don't believe nessecarily tie in to my passion (which is the way life is) I reach out so hard to that destiny I see that my other hand starts losing grip on what God has put in it to do for now. And when someone else start doing that which God gave me to do well, my human nature kicks in. Just remember that God will give you sufficient grace to do what He places in your hand.

Bottomline, when we see God's Kingdom growing and progressing regardless of who did what well let us rejoice or keep quiet.

When Others Are "Better"

2012-01-26T22:18:00.000-08:00

There are so many pressures in this life that makes you put yourself in a place where you compare yourself against the strong, the decent, the happy those that have it all together. We all do it, regardless of what cliches we throw at one another about how unique we are and how we should not compare ourselves with others. It is ingrained in our being.

God knows who we are, what we struggle with and what we desire. He encourages in the Psalms by telling us not to worry when others prosper, but to delight in Him and He will give you the desires of your heart.

Still we find ourselves comparing our reality with those of others. Sometimes we do it with thankfulness when we see our privileged situation against the less privileged, but mostly we compare "up". With those who have more and get it right more than you, according to you. An we become discontent and ask questions that make us even more discontent.

Or we listen to the prosperity piesangs who proclaim you can be as "blessed" as they are if you only follow these steps. And when you never reach that mountain of blessedness you resign to the thinking that you do not have enough faith.

Where you are at in life is where you need to be. You can only learn what you need to learn where you are at. God will move you on and grow you. He promises that you will grow and have an abundant life for the sake of His Kingdom. But be patient and content while at the same time dreaming and pushing forward. Keep on planning and scheming, but more important keep on spending time with God and your human effort will be multiplied beyond possibiliy, for God's Kingdom. Never stop dreaming but have faith in God and His timing and purposes not in the evidence of your dream becoming reality.

Forget about the progress of others. Its about your reality and how that influences, helps and brings Jesus' hope to others.

Change

2012-01-26T07:12:00.000-08:00

Change is good and it is scary. Even if you have been wanting it for a long time, leaving the familiar, that which is known, is without securities or assurance of success. The proof will be seen only a year or two down the line if you have made the right choice. And then it's too late.

Even when you have all the assurance in the world in your heart that this is right, that it is from God, you are still taking a chance. All you have is faith in God that He will never forsake you even when you are wrong.

Change need to be accompanied with time, prayer and humility. I think to put God at the centre of everything you do in life is more important than trying to find the perfect will of God although I think the first will lead to the latter.

Ai Weiwei (artist) on Chinese government

2012-01-24T22:30:00.000-08:00

Ai Weiwei is a Chinese artist who lived in New York for 12 years but returned to China. He is the son of a revolutionary poet who's text is admired by the Chinese government, but he himself have become more outspoken against the Chinese government. He was detained and interrogated by the government last year with no public knowledge of where he was, but international and local pressure saw him released and served with a $2.4 million bill for taxes and penalties. Chinese citizens spontaneously started giving him money and he ended up with $1.3 million toward this. This is a quote from the Time Magazine about the Chinese government:

We need clear rules to play the game. We need to have respect for the law. If you play a chess game but after two or three moves you can change the rules, how can people play with you? Of course you will win, but after 60 years you will still be a bad player because you never meet anyone who can challenge you.

In My Dark Office

2012-01-24T11:33:00.000-08:00

I am sitting in a dark office (light bulb's gone) editing videos and graphic designs at 9:30pm. Funny thing is, although I am definitely a bit over worked I love what I am doing. Getting creative in communicating the heart of our church and also the heart of God for us His children and for the world.

We have a big weekend in January every year which ends with Vision Sunday when we communicate our purpose as a church and how we as Jesus' followers can tell about His fame. If you haven't settled into a church yet here in the Somerset West basin come join us this Sunday, 29 Jan. Hope to see you there!

Indian Grace

2011-11-08T11:10:00.000-08:00

This has been a pretty crazy year with everything that was going on in my life and although we filmed for only 12 days it took us 8 months to make the A Call To India doccie. I had other plans for this year but God exploded this in my heart and added the amazing expertize of Empty Canvas and we all knew this film had to be made.

We had many struggles before and after making it, but through it all God's grace was on tap. I remember in the middle of my research for the film thinking that I had no idea how a small group like ours were going to pull this off, but Frank had then just preached on God's grace and I grabbed on to it, realizing that only God could help us do this. Those late nights reading up on the history of India, it's many religions, Christianity in this context and all the emailing and organizing the whole thing logistically became a daily walk of faith and trusting that God will make this work for His purpose.

Now I look back on this year and it chokes me up sometimes seeing the road traveled. What a privilege. God's grace is truly sufficient.

Get Bothered

2011-11-06T22:38:00.000-08:00

Our mistake today (as Christians) is that some who believe the Gospel look upon it merely as a means of private salvation, for going to heaven. They (we) do not seem to realize that the Gospel is the God-given "public truth" - the means of organizing a decent society. Therefore, their (our) faith becomes privately engaging but publicly irrelevant.
Vishal Mangalwadi

Jesus is the Light of the World - not just the One who lights the way to heaven. We are called to influence and change our culture, our politics and our country through the Gospel, not accept defeat that we can't accomplish change against our culture's evils. We live out our faith through working hard to change this world not just survive in it and we start doing this by living for those around us. You start in your sphere of influence.

Let us stop asking - why bother? Let's get bothered.

Where is your focus?

2011-10-09T23:15:00.000-07:00

I have always wondered abouth the two ways we perceive and live the words of the Bible. Many read it and get led into believing it is about doing good and not bad. When we die our good and evil works get added up and hopefully good wins. The rules and principles of the Bible become the focus and not the Giver of those guidelines. God is given focus as one who expects something from you and when you fall short of these expectations you do not deserve His presence and goodness in your life.

The other approach is realizing how much you really fall short of the glory of God, but getting the revelation that we are given hope as the undeserving creations we are through Jesus. What this makes me do is seek out Jesus even more, because He is ok with me being the sinner I am. Not ok as in stay as you are, but in my struggle to be better He still loves me anywhere and everywhere on my journey. I can have peace even when my bad still out weighs my good; and He can still use me in His kingdom. I still work at being and doing good, but faith in Him and good works get combined in a potent combination. When we follow the rules of the Book and that is our main focus it is all we have. We are judged by ourselves and others and will in essence always fall short of God's glory.

When Jesus left earth to join His Father, God sent us a Helper, the Holy Spirit who convicts. Without the Holy Spirit we try in our own futile effort. With the Holy Spirit we are convicted on those little things even the Bible is silent about and at the same time we are continuously loved even when convicted and peace resides in our hearts. You do not have to figure it out. You just have to listen with a humble heart. In Numbers God said that He speaks to others in dreams and visions, but He spoke with Moses face to face, because of His unparralled humility.

Living in faith with the Holy Spirit as your guide is more difficuly and much easier I think, because you get convicted on even the smallest things, but when you fall short you get picked up and loved by God through the person of the Holy Spirit. Let us never manage our sin, but seek the presence of God continuously.

2011-08-03T23:06:00.000-07:00

I was part of a discussion last week where a christian musician was asked if he plays in church. His answer was a bit muddled, but ended with the statement that he is not into performance worship.

What?! These words don't even go together! You either worship God or you don't in whatever you do. To be fair I think I understand what he was getting at, but also his statement gives a hint that he might not understand the concept of worship that much. If you identify something as performance worship you are talking about worship as a musical expression, obviously with selfish motives. Would true worship then also be a musical expression to this muso, but more unselfish and focused on God? Romans 12 tells us that all of our lives should worship to God; every part of it.

Ok, so this guy has been gifted by God to play an instrument, then my question is how can the fact that when he and some other musicians make music on a Sunday and the church joins in and sing songs of adoration to God be wrong. If one of the musicians playing have selfish motives of maybe wanting to be noticed, it still does not make it all wrong. This muso is on a journey with God like all of us and at least he is in church among other followers of Jesus. No church is perfect, no musician, no leader, no Christian. We all have our junk that God is willing to walk and deal with.

We are meant to get together as a church and sing songs of worship, learn from God's word and be edified as the church. A strong and built up church will be effective in reaching out and loving the world around it and Ephesians tells us that the church is the hope of this broken world. If our worship is limited to a Sunday it is pretty much fake, because all of life should be worship. We shouldn't come to church to worship, but bring our worship to church. It's not one or the other, but all of it. The rest of our week can not be out weighed by what we do on a Sunday morning.

It should be noted that I am not writing about the industry of the worship music genre, but the musical expression of worship to God in the context of church. To be honest I think that someone who makes a statement like this musician did rather has a problem with church as a whole than just the music part.

God has gifted us so that we should pour our lives into His purposes. If we do not use these gifts for building His kingdom our priorities are muddled. The church and it's people might be imperfect, but so are me and you. Do not stop to use what God has given you to build the church of Christ and the kingdom of God.

Stay and Go

2011-07-21T23:02:00.001-07:00

I am a man of much sin and repent continuously. I go on with life though, in boldness and freedom, because of God's grace. I am passionate about God's Kingdom growing and knowing it grows as His church grows. And I am growing in this passion as my realization grows that my dreams and talents are only in my hand for His purposes.

I want to move on from where I am at, because my dreams still make me look ahead and see great things. But great things for who? God's Kingdom or for myself? For both I think, because I abide in Him and and He abides in me and when I build His Kingdom, He blesses me and as I delight in God, He gives me the desires of my heart. When I build my own dreams / kingdom I build only that, but when I build God's Kingdom I am blessed also through His grace. It is not difficult to see the logic in this if you believe what the Bible says. It is also something that amazes me.

Regularly I want to up and go, change my reality, but for now God says stay; and go! Go into my "neighbourhood" and shout His fame. And so for now and always I will stay and go.

Stay and Go

2011-07-20T23:26:00.000-07:00

Blog for the India Mission

2011-03-29T07:21:00.001-07:00

We are just over a week away from the mission to India and getting pretty excited mixed with a decent dose of nerves. Elize and I have been there before, but this documentary mission is quite different from the previous trip when we just gawked at everything. I probably won’t post on my own blog while in India, but we’ll have daily updates on the following blog.

http://enswindiamission.blogspot.com/

India

2011-02-18T02:04:00.001-08:00

Well it’s an eventful year already and things are gearing up by the week. I will be leading the next India Mission trip in April for Every Nation Somerset West and there is something exciting lined up. This trip will be a two part mission of which the first part will see 4 of us (including Jorrie and Alret Van Der Walt – Empty Canvas Productions), travel North India for 10 days. I will have my guitar on my back, notebook in my hand and a laptop to update on what’s happening while presenting a planned 45 min documentary. I am pretty excited about seeing this amazing country again and not having to worry about filming it myself, but being able to take it in and present as best I can, the rawness of this place. The second part of the mission will be training the leaders of North India in Chandigarh.

There are so many mind blowing things about India like it’s complex history and cultural make-up and it’s influence on the rest of the world. Hinduism, Buddhism originated here… as did chess. We think South Africa is complex with 11 official languages while India’s constitution recognizes 28 “scheduled languages”, but more than 400 spoken languages exist. The Dalit or Untouchables are the bottom of the barrel in India’s caste system and are often discriminated against and persecuted; those with nothing. In fact they are not even in the caste system, but effectively outcastes and they number 170 million! Three times the population of South Africa live on the streets in India! And then India also have the largest film industry in the world, Bollywood, based in Mumbai.

The contrasts that exist in India is something un-known in my country and have a similarly contrasting effect on my emotions. You skip from horror to joy to sadness to fascination to horror to joy sometimes while walking down one street. It as a very spiritual place and although I don’t always sense spiritual things very quick the outworking of darkness is very evident on the every day life here, especially in a place like Varanasi (India’s most holy city), where I ended up in the hospital for 2 days. All I remember of those 2 days of fever and pain is the general sense that I wanted to get out and film and see and that I was missing out big time. But while I was fighting a bacterial infection in my hospital bed, Elize and Pierre went through very intense spiritual experiences at night sleeping on the bed next to me.

Still I want to go back and April feels too far away. But there is a lot of preparation and research to be done before we can go. I am researching India every chance I get and with the help of Gouttam Datta, the pastor of the Chandigarh church will be working on the planned route and what to film. We want to capture India in it’s broader sense, Indian culture and religion (only some of it) and the church in this context. We will possibly travel as far as the border of the Nepal at the foot of the Himalayas and definitely to Varanasi.

The plan is to make a 45 min documentary for the purpose of putting it in the shops to generate income for our India missions and to bless the church in North India. We will also make a shorter informative documentary for use within our church and also other Every Nation churches. One other new aspect to this mission is the filming budget which definitely pushes up the cost considerably, but then again what God wants He will make happen.

That’s a basic summary of this trip from 8 – 22 April. If any of you want to know more let me know.

White Christmas

2010-12-23T18:15:00.001-08:00

It’s 2 days before Christmas and Elize and I are privileged to spend it with my parents and brother in St Paul, Minnesota, USA. Tomorrow we start with prepping food for Christmas Day and some final shopping. Christmas trees are up and the house is surrounded by a lot of snow; we’re ready for a white Christmas.

And in this dreamy Christmas vibe, I keep thinking of all my friends and family back home spending this time braaing and swimming in the ocean…hmmmm.

But in the mean time we’re getting ready for some fun in the cold. Some tubing, possible skiing and if Elize can have her way…snow angels. Oh and my brother is the best cook I know.

Anyway, until after Christmas. Out.

Eternal Life

2010-11-01T03:14:00.001-07:00

There is this compelling and famous story in Mark 10 which I read again this morning where a man asked Jesus what he had to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus told him that he knows the commandments; do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not defraud, honour your father and mother.

To this the man answered and said he had done this since his youth, but Jesus, feeling a love for him, said he lacks one thing. Jesus told him to go sell all his possessions and give it to the poor and he’ll have enough treasure in heaven. Then Jesus finished this statement by saying: And come follow Me.

It’s interesting to see that this rich man was able to keep the law of Moses, but when it came to the last step of throwing all he had into God’s purpose and kingdom he could not. Another thing to note is that keeping the law and giving to the poor isn’t enough. Together with all this we are to follow Christ and in fact all of this is only possible when we start following Jesus.

In verse 27 Jesus said that with people it is impossible to enter the kingdom of God, but not with God. With God all things are possible. So this is where we start. God is the beginning and the end. The most important commandment in the Bible is to love God and to love people.

So true intimacy with God will always lead to compassion for your neighbour. When we don’t care for the well being of those around us we are probably only using Jesus to escape hell. The kingdom of God is meant to be established on earth in our daily lives. It will cost us our everything. Heart, soul, mind and strength. Following Jesus isn’t a safe little journey until we get to heaven. It WILL cost.

Wholeheartedly marketing

2010-10-29T03:17:00.001-07:00

Just done a whole bunch of email marketing and website updating for Wholehearted and just thinking how amazing God has been in this whole project. It is ultimately for His purpose and we just want to go where He leads. Pierre and I have had some exciting meetings this past week and things are already becoming busy for next year! As things develop I’ll put some on this blog but mostly just check www.wholehearted.co.za for more updated news.

Short Fuse

2010-10-26T23:05:00.001-07:00

I am a person with a short fuse and after years of working at it and humbly (sometimes reluctantly) accepting my wife’s input regarding this, it still seem to be the default in my reactions. It is better and out of every 10 opportunities to react these days I will burst out about 4 times out of ten, depending on what kind of day I’m having.

Anyway, my point is that through my relationship with God and at times sheer will I’ll stop myself in time more than ever before, but if I let any of these go then I tend to default to over reacting. Paul said we’ll never reach perfection although we need to become more like Jesus. He talks about knowing what He needs to be and needs to do, but again finds himself not being this man. He finds himself sinning again and not being the man God intends him to be.

Now I had an ordeal on the N2 yesterday morning where the other guy was clearly at fault, but my reaction made me even more so. One thing you have to know about me is that I burst out, but conviction hits me almost just as quick and if I can find the other person I will always say sorry, unconditionally. This is something I have done from an early age in the light of my struggle with my temper. And my point I want to make is that I was torn apart by my reaction toward this guy and finding myself wishing I could find him to say sorry and buy him a beer.

But it is done and the other aspect that bothers me so much is that no witness of Jesus was involved in that incident. I messed it up and it takes days sometimes for me to get over it, although I know God’s grace is sufficient. So how can I live in God’s purpose while this imperfection (and there’s more) rages through my personality? And how do I keep getting rid of it?

Here’s the thing; this was one incident. There are hundreds more where love is what comes from my life and I am able to be selfless. Just because my life is speckled with sin (at times more than being “good”), it does not mean I’m not living in God’s purpose. It means I’m human fighting my flesh and progressing and growing on this journey of life. When I mess up I desperately trust God still for the other guy’s life. God is God and I am man.

All we need to do is desire intimacy with God rather then desiring perfection. If my desire to be “better” is my focus in my Christian life instead of wanting to know Jesus more, then I am entertaining religion.

Our Larger Desires

2010-08-23T23:14:00.001-07:00

“Or have you only comfort, and the lust for comfort, that
stealthy thing that enters the house a guest, and then becomes
a host, and then a master?
Aye, and it becomes a tamer, and with hook and scourge
makes puppets of your larger desires.”

”Verily the lust for comfort murders the passion of the soul,
and then walks grinning in the funeral.”

- Khalil Gibran (The Prophet)

Sometimes wisdom can be found in none Christian books as with this one by Khalil Gibran, a writer who died in the nineteen thirties.

We are not meant to be tamed. We are created to act on and build toward the desires of our heart, with the understanding that God put them there. To strive for security and comfort is to sell your soul into selfishness and set yourself up for regret.

Although our every day life, even the mundane, is where we build toward our dreams and desires it is also where comfort tempts us the most. We become despondent when our dreams do not become reality and we give up and settle for second best.

Settle in the present, but do not settle for it.

Wholehearted

2010-08-18T08:15:00.001-07:00

whole•heart•ed
adj. - marked by unconditional commitment, unstinting devotion, and unreserved enthusiasm

Wholehearted worship is what our God deserves, and nothing less. It is worship that reaches beyond our voices, beyond our Sunday church attendance and beyond us. The suffering of Christ at the cross of Calvary demands a response of gratitude and thanksgiving to His gift of grace. It is a conviction of the price He has paid to ransom us and save us from death. It is a revelation that Jesus wholeheartedly poured Himself out in this world so that man can be free.

Committed, devoted and unreserved we will shout His praises. Joyfully we will be His hands and feet in the streets, in the prisons, to the broken hearted and the poor. Unashamedly we will proclaim the good news for it is salvation to everyone who believes.

Honour God. Advance His Kingdom. Live out Loud. Be part of a generation of worshippers that live the songs they sing.

For You Jesus, For Your Kingdom.

Check out the Wholehearted video

Desert Road

2010-08-11T23:14:00.001-07:00

The past 1.5 years have been a desert experience dotted with a few highs which did not last, but gave hope fleetingly. It was in the dry, confused and frustrated periods that I had to dig deep to keep faith.

Faith in God so far in my life has been something that I haven’t struggled with. The believe that my heart’s desires are actually from Him and not selfish fantasy have been more difficult. In these times when I felt alone in this desert I just plodded on in the same direction, faith fading and sometimes springing back, but it has mostly been disheartening, especially the last 8 months or so.

God is faithful though, sprinkling your path with moments of hope and joy making you realize He is at the steering wheel of everything.

Security vs Calling

2010-05-25T23:29:00.001-07:00

This old earth might seem a mess and our personal lives might shout to us that God is not good at times, but He is. And nothing happens without Him knowing and allowing it. When this involves suffering on our account it’s difficult to believe this and we end up asking the question, “How can a God of love allow this to happen to me?”.

The truth is that we can never truly understand the ways of God as His creation, and when we endure suffering it is very difficult to reconcile with the possibility that God is in control or might even have a hand in the circumstances that cause us pain.

Romans 5:3
”…also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”

Also we as the children of God have to realize that following Jesus isn’t a route to a safe place. We will endure suffering like all people on earth do. We’re on earth not in heaven yet. It is who we are in the midst of our suffering and the good times that count.

We are called to bring Hope to a hopeless world and that will take us out of our comfort and security and bring us to a place where we are living on the edge and our faith is exercised daily. We are not called to serve ourselves, we truly become who we have been created to be when we lay down our lives for others.

The Truth

2010-04-19T22:42:00.000-07:00

When it comes to the situation in our country and whatever direction we might be heading in the truth does not matter. Just bear with me here, I'll explain. The truth will set me / us free if we choose to believe that truth and if you don't you're stuck, not free.

In South Africa its not the truth that determines where we're headed, but the perception of the truth by the masses. And with masses I mean South African's. My white friends will probably think I mean the black people when I talk about the masses...

And why have the masses, black and white, got the "wrong" truth. A "truth" that cultivates fear and gets everyone in a frenzy to leave the country or arm themselves. Because we as a church need to wake up and start fulfilling our God given purpose and calling. We should not wait for government to try and rectify the racism situation, because on their own, with their initiatives alone it will never come about. We as the church need to get up shake our fear and subtle racism and love people.

Our country need to see love for one another across all classes and races in the church and by that they'll see we are children of God. We are to be Jesus with skin on. Loving on everyone, friend or enemy, meeting the needs of a dying world.

The church need to speak up and act up! Get of our butts and getting our hands dirty. To my white friends I want to ask. How many black people do you know?! Or are you still cooped up in your safe circle of friends cultivating an attitude of us and them? What the heck?! Are we followers of Jesus or followers of comfort and safety.

You don't need to go out and change the world now man or woman alone. Just make a difference in your circle of influence. Whoever God puts in the sphere of your life. Where you go shopping, at work, at school, with family - your whole life.

As I said above. Let us be Jesus with skin on.

Ramblings of men

2010-04-17T06:54:00.000-07:00

It does frustrate me how the people in my country (including myself) can get in a "poep spin" about some un-disciplined, selfish, unwise comments made by a few people who obviously need some kind of healing in their lives.

We need more of what God's holy spirit awakens in our lives and can only get more if we read God's word more talk to Him more and desire Him more. God is great and people can be pretty crazy.

We need to start listening to the voice of God and not the troubling egotistical ramblings of men.

Journey

2010-01-07T10:30:00.000-08:00

So here I am in Nashville for the third time. At one stage in my live doing something like this was more an impossibility. I've always dreamed about certain things and aimed for it not knowing if I would and could actually hit something. Its not like I have hit the jackpot or something, but I have learned that you just steadily idle on, dreaming building and aiming. All the while living in and for the purpose of God and not get all unhappy when my idea of my destiny seem so far away.

I haven't tasted reality on my idea of my destiny, but I am in places and seeing people I have at one time only dreamed of. Just do the journey and do what God has put in your hand diligently, willingly, passionately and with conviction - like it is your own dream. God will bring you to a time and place where what is in your hand is what is in your heart. I'm still not where I want to be, but I am trying to use what God has put in my hand for His purpose.

First seek the kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you.

Devotion

2009-12-11T06:35:00.000-08:00

There is nothing absolutely nothing that can replace time devoted to speaking to God and studying His Word. The less you make time for this the more unsteady life or rather your joy and peace in it becomes.

My Itinerary

2009-12-02T12:30:00.001-08:00

So this is my trip for those really dying to know...

Arrive 26 December in St Paul, MN
Spend time with the folks and my brother
1 January - drive down to Dallas, TX Speak and lead worship at Trinity Church Dallas' youth service. Do acoustic gig at the Urban Dog Cafe. Meet people regarding Surrender Band and School of Hope. HANG WITH MY FRIENDS!

7 January - Drive to Nashville, TN Surrender Band, School of Hope, Music Row, Grande Ole Opry, FRIENDS.

12 January - Drive to Augusta, GA
Say hi to Jill Mcafee in Atlanta on my way through. Teach at youth camp for InFocus and lead worship. Lead worship with the guys at InFocus church.

18 January - Drive to St Paul, MN

21 January - My dad's 60th

26 January - Fly back home with a 12 hour layover in Doha! There you have it. A lot of organizing still ahead!

2009

2009-11-30T21:51:00.000-08:00

What a crap year! Frustrating, troubling, tiring, ugly. But we got through it with most limbs still attached and even made progress. The thing is if we look to the future and look within ourselves in that future then I believe we'll find that to the extend that 2009 was the most difficult year ever, to that extend beauty was being formed in our lives.

Romans 5 states that we should rejoice in our sufferings, because it produces perseverance and perseverance character and character hope. And hope will not disappoint us because God poured out His love into our hearts through Jesus.

The following example might be an overused analogy, but it does reflect truth. Dung helps to produce awesome plants in a garden. In the same way when we persevere through hard times beauty will be formed in our lives.

Neither Jew nor Greek

2009-11-25T20:27:00.001-08:00

So someone told me the other day that in order for our country to be blessed by God we need to bless Israel. I thought that for our country to be blessed the Kingdom of God needed to be established and for that people need to repent and live lifes of loving God and reaching out to those around us. Saved and unsaved.

I was told about the scriptures in the Old Testament supporting this and when reading it wasn't convinced about this particular affiliation with Israel. Is it not rather more true that if our country blesses any country God will in return bless our land. It sounded like 'blessing' Israel should be the default and then other countries follow. I'm sorry, but the need is far greater in countries like India.

They need God as does Israel and that's my point. God and His provision for salvation and poverty is needed everywhere and He sends people to different nations. I was told that China is so blessed and developed, because they have supported Israel so much. That's nice and all, but they're killing babies by the millions, oppressing their people and generally permanently screwing up the environmental health of their country in their processes of development. But they support/ed Israel apparently.

What about scriptures like Galatians 3:7 which says that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. It also says that those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham. Not those who bless Israel. It also says that there is neither Jew nor Greek for all in Christ Jesus.

God's focus even before time was not Israel as His people but everyone. Everyone who chooses to believe.

Israel needs God like every other nation on earth. Lets listen to Him calling you to a country.

Money money money

2009-11-18T22:17:00.000-08:00

Yip, I'm pretty gatvol when it comes to money. Why does so many things have to revolve around this! The lack of it brings stress and it seems too much of it also messes up things. But hey, I'm on the side at the moment where there is never really enough.

I think the Psalms have a prayer saying that God should never give me too much that I will forget Him, but also to give me enough so that I will not get to a point where I don't believe in His promises anymore.

I want to keep my integrity intact, not just for my sake, but also the kingdom of God, but then month after month you have expenses that definitely does not constitute luxuries; just things that need to be paid. AND YOU NEVER HAVE ENOUGH! Then you move around money and delay payment to some debtors.

I guess this is life and I surely am not unique regarding this, BUT IT SUCKS!

Then I have to be honest and say that this kind of struggle is true to all countries, but in this blessed country you struggle in this way because of normal have to do expenses like food, transport, bills and if you're lucky, clothes. In places like the UK or USA you have a choice to not over extend yourself and still have more than enough money for food, transport, bills and clothes.

I'm not going to blame my beautiful South Africa, but it is a whole lot harder here to make ends meet. As I say, I am just pretty flippen gatvol. I haven't lost faith in God or anything, I just have a bad month/s and honest about it.

In closing I say this; God is true to His promises. I have never gone hungry in my life and have always had a roof over my head. And where God says in the Bible that I will have more than enough and I don't at the moment; by faith I still believe Him. He is in control of my life and knows what He is doing.

Consistency

2009-11-09T06:27:00.001-08:00

Ok, so lets give this blogging thing a try. My life, my frustrations, my views displayed on a web page. Maybe so I can feel better? I'm not sure but I'm sure about one thing. It irritates me when people have the inspiration to start these things but run out of fizz a week later. Then you get to a page and the last entry was 6 months earlier.

The problem is that I will probably irritate myself very soon. So hopefully I don't frustrate anyone soon that might be strange enough to want to read my ramblings.

That said, I hope you find use from this blog or at least find it mildly interesting.