I can recommend the following books from my personal library :
TITLE: AUTHOR
Tuesdays with Morrie Mitch Albom
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen
The Secret Scripture Sebastian Barry
Die Indringer Dricky Beukes
Eiland van Toevlug Terri Blackstock
Royal Pardon William Bosch
Tabernakel Annelie Botes
Branded by Grace Chippy Brand
Living without Liesl Douwleen Bredenhann
Die Hemel verander alles Todd & Sonja Burpo
Die Belofte Kim & Krickitt Carpenter
Man of Two worlds William Cibane
Spore op die Bergpad Ben Conradie
the one year devotions with Jesus Joshua Cooley
Run, baby run Nicky Cruz
Little Dorritt Charles Dickens
The old Curiosity Shop Charles Dickens
Diepsinnig maar tog so eenvoudig David du Plessis
Swing lo, swing hi SJ du Toit
Whale Capital Chronicles 1 SJ du Toit
The Left-out Ones Lorna Eglin
Hedendaagse Wonderwerke Frank Foglio
Hey God Frank Foglio
Cranford Mrs. Gaskell
Ons Grootste Taak Norval Geldenhuys
How to be born again Billy Graham
A Painted house John Grisham
The Rainmaker John Grisham
Good Morning Holy Spirit Benny Hinn
Where Yesterday Lives Karen Kingsbury
Pippie Anice Kruger
Die Heilige Gees in Aksie vandag PD le Roux
Studies in die Bevryding van die Gees PD Le Roux
Granate bloei in Jerusalem Marzanne Leroux-Van der Boon
Eugene Aram Sir Edward Bulwer Lytton
Not without my Daughter Betty Mahmoody
A Man called Peter Catherine Marshall
To live again Catherine Marshall
Fanie word Grootwildjagter PJ Schoeman
Treasure Island RL Stevenson
Shooting the Moon Callie & Monique Strydom
Genoveva Chr. v Schmid
Meet Mrs. Smith Anna Smith
The Amplified Bible Various authors
Moed vir elke more Milanie Vosloo
Die Natuurwonder van Suider-Afrika Alf Wannenburgh
My eie Droomreis Bruce Wilkinson
Tuesday, 12 January 2016
THE REWARD
Recently, on our way back from Pretoria, we decided to visit Kimberley, to see the historical big hole.
This is the well-known site of a former diamond excavating mine and a tourist attraction. I had not visited the site since I was a child and looked forward to seeing it with adult eyes.
We found a "victorian" guest house opposite the site from the big hole. What a lovely, quaint venue to relax and have a good night's rest. The large room boasted not one, but two comfortable double beds, with lovely finishes and provision for breakfast, should we so desire.
We crossed the busy street and entered the premises of the big hole. What a surprise!! I do not at all recall the first time I visited the site with my family as a child, but now found a complete mining village had been erected alongside the big hole. The old tram tracks were still in place and in use; shops lined the streets and although it was after hours, we admired the antique settings, equipment, and merchandise displayed in the windows. There is a jewellers shop, boarding house, library, saloon, church, and many more historical buildings to admire.
We went along to the restaurant and enjoyed a lovely buffet supper. Unfortunately, it was too late to visit the big hole itself, so we returned the next morning.
Walking along the narrow streets and peering into the library, I was chaffed to find that I owned copies of some of the very old books on display. "Pride and Prejudice", "Barnaby Rudge", and a few others.
I love antiques, and things of old, and walking into the one of the typical authentic mining houses of the era, filled me with nostalgia. It was almost like walking through my late grandmother's house in Prince Albert.
And when you enter the saloon, a audio recording takes you back to the time when the place was in fact in use and you heard the singing, shouting, and laughter that spilled onto the street at night.
Inside the small corrugated church, there was a quiet, sacred atmosphere whilst you listened to the recording of organ music softly floating through the building.
It was a wonderful experience to walk and browse through the village.
Then we moved on to the big hole itself.
What an awe inspiring site! To think that it was man-made. To think of all the hard work and hours of labour and the number of people who worked the site and formed part of the mine and its surrounding community with all of the hardships experienced; the tragedies that took place there; the joys; the sorrows; the relationships that were forged there; the cameraderie, the love, the hate, the jealousy, the greed, the trading, the magic of finding the world's largest ever diamond there - a diamond which still glistens in the crown of the Queen of England - all contributing to the site which has now become world renowned and visited by tourists from all over the world.
Of course, there are tourist gift shops now, right at the entrance to the big hole. Coffee shops and restaurants as well. You can buy souvenirs that will remind you that you had visited the site. "Been there, done that"!
But the souvenirs and the coffees and muffins, are all small things compared to the reality of standing in awe of the big hole.
You don't travel all the way there to obtain a T-shirt or a cooldrink. The prize, or reward, is to stand in awe of and see the big hole.
Fil. 3: 7 -10:
"But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.
Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of he knowledge
of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things,
and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him,
not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is
through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith that
I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowhip of
His sufferings, being conformed to His death."
Christ is the reward, the prize of being a Christian!
When you fall in love with another person, and stand in a relationship with that person, you get to know one another on a very personal level. You spend a lot of time together, talk, touch, do things together, visit places together, you cannot wait to do or say something that will be pleasant and pleasing to the other person.
As you get to know the other party, you become aware of their good as well as bad attributes, characteristics, shortcomings as well as their star qualities.
Sometimes, after getting to know a person, you may be very disappointed in what you learn about their personalities and traits. Sometimes you learn that the person really is not who you thought him or her to be. Who they set out to make you believe they are.
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, can and will never disappoint you.
I dare you to read all the prophesies about Him and to explore for yourself whether He has not fulfilled each and every one of those prophesies. I likewise dare you to read and understand all of His promises in the Word of God, and promise that you will not be disappointed.
He has already proved that He is true and obedient unto death and He has promised, if you believe in Him, He will be with you until the end.
Matt. 28:20:
".....and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
It's not about the benefits of Christianity; it's not about our needs being fulfilled; it's not about the visits to church, the singing, the choir, the preaching - it is ALL about obtaining the reward: getting to know and having a personal relationship with the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. He never changes, but with His Spirit abiding in us, our lives can and will be changed until the full stature of Christ is reflected in us and in our lifestyle.
Thank You, Lord, that we may strive to reflect your love and that You, who have started the work in us, will not abandon the work of Your hands, but You will be with us until the end of the age.
Sunday, 10 January 2016
HAPPY TO BE BACK
Not being able to add to my blog for such a long time, was a great disappointment and inconvenience.
However, now I am once more able and very happy to do so.
It is 8.00a.m. on this Sunday morning in Cape Town and already the temperature is 24 degrees C. outside. I have just fed the birds and approximately 30 turtle doves, a number of sparrows and two finches are enjoying a hearty breakfast outside on the patio.
My husband is about to be woken up with breakfast in bed, whilst the rest of the security village in which we reside is quiet and at peace. Would that the whole world were at peace at this moment.
I am reminded of a verse in the Scriptures which says:
"Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not
as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your
heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27
and another verse:
" These things I have spoken to you that, in Me,
you may have peace. In the world you will have
tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have
overcome the world." John 16:33
Thank you, Lord, that we have the assurance that You are greater than anything and all things in the world; that You have conquered the world. This makes us more than conquerors through You who gives us the power to overcome.
you may have peace. In the world you will have
tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have
overcome the world." John 16:33
Thank you, Lord, that we have the assurance that You are greater than anything and all things in the world; that You have conquered the world. This makes us more than conquerors through You who gives us the power to overcome.
Thursday, 28 March 2013
LAWS GOVERNING KINGDOMS
Every Kingdom or realm has its own laws governing it's citizens.
My husband is very quick to admonish me if I drive without fastening my seatbelt that I am contravening a law of the country, and therefore committing a sin. I prefer to call that an unrighteousness, of course... as it is a manmade law that may also be harmful to me as I have experienced before.
If therefore I have committed a crime, I am guilty of trespassing the law governing our country; not just part of the law, but the complete law as that forms an integral part of the whole.
Just so, there are spiritual laws governing the Kingdom of God and therefore the citizens of the Kingdom of God.
One of these read and I quote :
Rom. 6: 23: “The wages of sin are death....”
It is a fixed spiritual law with the death penalty as punishment.
We are all guilty of sinning; therefor we are all sentenced to death by this spiritual law.
Sometimes however, prisoners on death row receive a pardon from the President of the country.
Thus it is that we also, have received a special pardon from the Most High, King of the Kingdom of God – God Himself through Jesus Christ His only begotten Son.
We find another spiritual law in the Word of God in John 3: 16:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whoever believes on Him shall not perish, but shall have eternal
life.”
What a wonderful pardon we received and at what a price!! God Himself becoming man and taking our death penalty upon Himself dying in our stead that we may be pardoned.
Why would He do such a thing? John explains that it was because of His love and compassion.
We read in Ezekiel 3 :15 how he, the prophet, Ezekiel, went to his own people when they were prisoners and slaves in another country :
and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven
days.”
Just so, Jesus, the Son of God came to earth and “sat amongst us” listening to our groans and moans, experiencing our challenges and problems; seeing our sicknesses and diseases for 33 years and because of His tremendous love for us, He created the new law contained in Rom. 8: 1 and 2:
“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,
the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the
law of sin and death.
We are no longer convicted. We have been pardoned, IF we are in Christ. And how can we be in Christ? If we believe on Him, as the Son of God, who died for us. It almost seems to easy to be true, but we must never underestimate the cost of the price that He paid for us :
Phil 2: 8 says that He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross which was the most shameful way to die in the time of Christ; naked, in public.
We have been pardoned by the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus, the Christ.
True. But sometimes we fail to read or understand the last part of Rom. 8: 1 which says “to those who live not according to the flesh, but after the spirit...” What does that mean? It means that just as the Lord Jesus was obedient unto death, so we also must not live to satisfy ourselves and the desires of our flesh, but we must live according to the spirit and our relation to and in Christ.
Would Christ wilfully sin? No, definitely not. Are we therefore free to choose to live any way we like? Also not. We are to “be in Christ” – in effect to think with the mind of and act as from the mind of Christ...
These promises contained in Rom. 8: 1-2 are spiritual laws.
Should we choose to wilfully “move out of Christ”and live our old lives, we forfeit the freedom in Christ which He has so dearly earned on our behalf. Nothing can snatch us from the hand of God, except our own wilful disobedience and our turning our backs on Him and His precious love.
Thank You, Lord, that You chose to be obedient to death in order to create new spiritual laws to supercede and free us of the penalties and wages of sin. Please help us to live inChrist and move and remain in and through Him.
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
REBUILDING WALLS
“…The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been
burned with fire” Neh. 1:3
Yesterday South Africans were confronted with the shocking news that one of our most famous athletes, Oscar Pistorius, the blade runner, was arrested and will appear in Court this morning on a charge of murder. Of course he is and will remain innocent until proven guilty.
The trauma experienced by the families surrounding this tragedy is unimaginable.
What happened? Could it be that a human being so highly regarded by all and revered by some for his ability to overcome his physical handicaps, could be so totally unable to overcome his psychological disabilities/torments to the extent as to cause the death of the one person supposed to be the closest to him?
It would seem that the moral and ethical walls surrounding our society has deteriorated to such an extent that we have no moral or ethical standards at all. Or if we do have, they are in such a ruinous state, that they are stepped over and ignored without any effort or conscious thought whatsoever. Why do we no longer value life? In yesterday’s speech to the nation, Pres. Zuma stated that violent crimes such as the rape and very cruel murder of Annene Booysen a couple of days ago will no longer be tolerated. But: What can the Government, in fact, do to control or stop these heinous crimes? I believe it is impossible for the Government to do what is necessary without a very, very serious review of present court sentences and applicable laws.
Although I am not a supporter of the death penalty per se, it would seem that in our beautiful country, South Africa, it is the only known deterrent that will have any effect at all.
During recent strikes by workers, numerous buildings, and even vehicles were burnt down by them. The very structures that are necessary to help assure employment, development and growth, are the structures, including schools, that are vandalised. Illogical….. destructive. Definitively not a positive contribution.
Poverty, hunger and unemployment are often given as factors boosting the crime rate… actions such as the above will definitely not help any individual to combat these factors. Quite the opposite. We need to think and act in a positive pro-active manner.
What then is the answer? How do we go about rebuilding our society?
I believe Nehemia started the process the right way :
“Then I said: “O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God,
who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his
commands, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the
prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your
servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, inclu-
ding myself and my father’s house, have committed against you. We
have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the com-
mands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.” Nem. 1: 5
First, acknowledge God; who He is.
Pray for our people. From the President of the country to the humblest, homeless person on the street.
Confess our iniquities – those of the nation, our Government and ourselves and our families.
Get to know what God expects from us according to the Scriptures.
Teach our children these laws and standards, the greatest of which is LOVE ONE ANOTHER, from an early age.
“Adjoining this, Jedaiah son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his
house, and Hartush son of Hashabneiah made repairs next to him.”
Neh. 3:10
“Above the Horse Gate, the priests made repairs, each in front of his
own house.” Next to them, Zadok son of Immer made repairs opposite
his house. Next to him, Shemaiah son ofShecaniah, the guard at the
East Gate, made repairs…. “ Neh. 3:28-29
And if we read the whole chapter we find that everyone made repairs to his own home, opposite his own home, and next to his own home.
We must each start with and in his own home. If necessary, we need to teach our parents and grandparents as well. The time is now, and we are the now generation. The responsibility rests on every individual alive to save our human race from self-destructing.
Rebuild the wall of our nation by living example in each and every home. Honesty, cleanliness, integrity, friendliness, compassion, helpfulness – these are the things that will build a nation who cares about life and the living.
This is a very difficult task and one that cannot be attained and completed without help from above. Nehemiah also realised this. He prayed :
“…but I prayed : ”Now strengthen my hands”. Neh. 6:10
Parents, fathers, mothers, are needed who live and teach children according to the Word of God, being living Word, so that our children will grow up having high moral and social standards and respecting themselves and other people. They cannot respect themselves if they are made to believe that they are nothing, have nothing, can be nothing; if we look and talk down at them. We must do our utmost for our children from the day that they are born. We must respect them as human beings and treat them accordingly. We must teach them to respect themselves, each other and all other living creatures. We must teach and expect from all adults to respect children and their rights. We need to do so with all our hearts.
“So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people
worked with all their heart.” Neh. 4:6
“So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.
When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were
afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realised that this
work had been done with the help of our God.” Neh. 6:15-16
work had been done with the help of our God.” Neh. 6:15-16
Thank You, Lord, that there is never a moment when it is totally too late. Thank You that we may start rebuilding our homes and walls right now; that we may start teaching others to do the same now. This is the moment! We are the instruments! You are our Helper! You will strengthen our hands and arms to fulfil this momentous task. Help us to make a firm decision and to commit to this task for life.
Thursday, 10 January 2013
MIRROR YOURSELF...
" As in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man."
Prov. 27:19
When I read this verse this morning, I marvelled yet again at Solomon's wisdom.... I looked into my mind, at my thoughts, and saw a clear, vivid reflection of who I am.
I read it in the Afrikaans, 1983, version, which if translated directly says : " As in water you see your own face, so you will see yourself reflected in what you think...."
What a wonderful way of assessing who we are ... let's exercise our thoughts to be pure and kind.
Lord God, thank you that our faces may reflect You if we keep our minds stayed on the One who is good and pure and kind and loving, gracious and forgiving. Help us to exercise our minds to this end.
Thursday, 3 January 2013
LIKE A TREE PLANTED BY THE WATERS...
We spent the past few days at Beaufort West, visiting my new husband's son and his family.
Beaufort West, of course, is situate in the Karoo, which forms the northern part of the Western Cape. The Karoo derives its name from the Khoi word Caro which means dry land. This normally is a very apt description of this area, as it is semi-desert and I have not been there for about 10 years, but I cannot recall ever seeing the Karoo as green and beautiful as this time round.
The dam just outside Beaufort West is full to overflowing and even along the way there are small natural dams of accumulated rain water! What a lovely sight! Wild flowers blooming - white, yellow, orange, blue...really lovely. Eagles being carried by the wind in blinding sunlight...
We thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent with the family and I, in particular, was spoilt, as Estè, Leon's wife, has her own small beauty salon, adjacent to the flatlet on their premises, and I was given a manicure, medicure, facial treatment, the works... One could get used to being this spoilt...
When we first arrived it was very hot. The second day the temperature outside was approximately 40 deg. C! We slept in the flatlet adjacent to the salon at night, and because of the heat, we only closed the security gate to the flatlet and left the door wide open.
I woke up to the sound of the birds chirping in the early morning and lay there watching as the day dawned. I could see a number of different types of trees. In the distance was a very tall, straight tree, and a bird settled right at the very top to announce the arrival of the new day.
It suddenly dawned on me that even though that particular tree was planted very firmly in one spot, and had been standing there for probably twenty years or more, it fulfilled God's purpose for its existence 100%. It offered shade to humans, shelter to lots and lots of different birds at the same time, without discriminating against any particular kind of bird, or lizard, beetle, worm, primate, or chameleon, that may be looking for a shelter.
It sent it roots deep into the earth to find moisture to feed itself. It shed it leaves when due, and produced new growth, and fruit, nuts, seeds, or berries in season, providing food also for its inhabitants. It flowered on time, allowing butterflies and bees to also feed from and be productive using its nectar.
All of this without the ability to move if and when its own resources became depleted or having any protection from the elements. No defense if being attacked at all. And even when wounded by branches being cut or torn off, it proceeded to grow ever taller, fulfilling its function, inhaling carbon dioxide and exhaling oxygen so necessary to humans to survive....
I was reminded of the Scripture :
"He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." Ps. 1:3
and
"He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the
stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." Jer.
17:8
and
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