50 Good Years

Today I am thinking of my parents, Robert and Yvonne Pole who have been married 50 years today. A remarkable milestone in the era in which we live. Few people make it for one or another reason. Very often because they just cannot get along. My parents are still each other's best friends and such a wonderful example of what a great marriage should be. Always speaking good about and to each other. Always prayerful. Always hopeful. Never criticising. One piece of advice from my Dad I will always remember is "Never criticise, condemn or complain". He said he got this from a Dale Carnegie Course he once did. My mother's advice to me: "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all". Wow.

My father still spends hours in his home gym (he has always loved to exercise). He says that is when he talks to God. My mother spends hours tending her garden. And they both love to watch the birds, dozens of them come to feed at the bird feeder in their garden daily, and quite often I get a text message from Mom to tell me the woolly headed herons are once again in their garden. Sweet.

I know that Mom bombards heaven with her prayers every morning for a couple of hours. She once showed me a creased and torn prayer list which she'd prayed over for the previous 10 years. She pointed out 57 names on there that she was praying for, for financial release.She said that of those names, only 5 were still waiting for answers. There were other names there for other needs. Many of those prayers have been answered yet she continues to remember their names before heaven. Some of these people will never know that my Mom prayed for them, daily, for decades They are friends of friends of mine who live in other countries.

What a heritage I have. I feel so moved today just thinking about it. Joy and happiness to you, Mom and Dad! May the Goodness of God continue to be your portion. And many more years of happiness here and in heaven one day.

Thoughts Create Things

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. Wisdom rests silently in the mind and heart of him who has understanding, but that which is in the inward part of self-confident fools is made known. He who has no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down and without walls. (Proverbs 23:7 Proverbs 16:32 Proverbs 14:33 Proverbs 25:28) 

The direction of our lives can be determined depending on our thoughts. If you are in turmoil, and your mind is agitated, confused or distracted, you cannot control your circumstances. You cannot do it if you don’t control your heart and mind. Whatever you think in your mind, it will happen in heaven, so it could well be a matter of life or death for us to control our mind, taking every thought captive. The power of life and death are in the tongue (Proverbs 18:21) and what we focus on and spend time dwelling on in our thoughts will eventually manifest in our words and and in the circumstances of our lives.. If we create a positive atmosphere around us, with positive thoughts, mind and heart, we will attract beauty into our lives, and good and beautiful things will start to happen.

Amazing Provision

I lived in Cape Town for a season. During this time I shared a house with a friend, Belinda. Every week, on a Friday, she would invite people from the local community to a stunning meal which she would prepare with grace and imagination. Belinda is an amazing cook, and she always managed to turn each meal into a festive celebration of life. But this particular week, the money had run out. Literally. I said to her, ok, let’s trust God. I know that when you pray, you need to be very specific in your requests. So we prayed according to Mark 11:23 ..whatever you ask for in prayer, believe – trust and be confident – that it is granted to you, and you will get it. We asked for provision for a stunning roast chicken and vegetables home cooked meal. In faith, we actually invited all the guests and told them to be there at 6pm on Friday for dinner.

It had been raining heavily for at least 3 days, but on the Thursday, I walked out to the postbox at the gate, and found a thick sodden envelope posted to me by my sister in England. Inside the envelope were six soggy R100 notes (about $100 at the time)! Enough to create the most spectacular meal for our Friday night celebration meal. The envelope must have been sitting in the post box for 3 days, it was so wet. My sister had said she didn’t get to change her currency at the airport so posted it to me. Well, frankly, it was a miracle the envelope wasn’t stolen on the way (which happens 99% of the time). But it reminded me of the verse “Before you called, I answered” because the answer to our prayer was already on its way at the time we prayed. This is that verse in the New Living Translation: I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers! Isaiah 65:24. 

Amazing.

What is the Glory of God?

The best definition I have heard was by Dr. Michael Eaton, who has been called by many people “the world’s greatest living theologian”. I feel privileged to have been able to listen to him in person. I was working at Carmel Christian Holiday Resort when he was the keynote speaker at one of the Conferences there. You can download an 8 part teaching series by him on the subject of “Glory” here. What the Glory of God is the outshining of God’s character. The radiation of His character: His goodness, grace, favour, mercy, His Name, loving-kindness, His Will, His sovereignty.

The time is coming when the earth fills up with awareness of God's glory as the waters cover the sea. (Habbakuk 2:14)

There are two ways of obtaining Glory. You can glorify yourself. Or you can let God do it. The Glory of God will not stick around where there is too much sin. And yet sin is burned up in the Glory! When Isaiah was faced with the Glory of God, he said, I'm as good as dead!

Every word I've ever spoken is tainted—
   blasphemous even!
And the people I live with talk the same way,
   using words that corrupt and desecrate.
And here I've looked God in the face!
   The King! God-of-the-Angel-Armies!"
Then one of the angel-seraphs flew to me. He held a live coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with the coal and said,

   "Look. This coal has touched your lips.
   Gone your guilt,
   your sins wiped out." (Isaiah 6:5-6)

One of my favourite songs at the moment on the Glory is by Jaeson Ma. I love the lyrics, especially the bridge:

I’ve been waiting my whole life

for this one special moment

i got just to be with you

For me the song really points to purpose. We were designed to glorify God and love Him forever.