Noble - Fearless Life, Reckless Love

Coming May 8th

for more info visit Noble The Movie

 

reflected cross

it was a perfect morning

to walk and wander

the nature reserve

heat from the sun 

drifting in a subtle breeze

resting in a bird blind

we savoured songs

sensing nearness

even as they remained hidden

I watched, still 

silent, to see

not wings, but a cross

reflected from random twigs

when eyes are wide

and spirits open

the cross is everywhere

For the story and message of the cross is sheer absurdity and folly

 to those who are perishing and on their way to perdition, 

but to us who are being saved it is the [manifestation of] the power of God. 

I Corinthians 1:18 Amplified

 

seasons upside down

I am chilly here

mornings, evenings

wrapped in fleece

as night floats in

flowers blaze

courage displayed

even as Autumn grabs hold

this still unsettles me

living upside down

when all within me insists

April means Spring

It is still warmer here in Pretoria 

than the normal temperatures in Manitoba

but having adjusted to the hot, hot, hotter of Africa 

the cool seems to drive in deep

we will soon depart to sunrises 

and the coldest months yet under Zambian skies

July will find me clad in sweats instead of drenched in sweat

as I wait for the blooming jacaranda trees 

to signal winter's end

 

a quiet walk

While the sun was high

we went for a short walk

to the nearby game reserve

stepping softly we wandered

to visit with, but not disturb

residents both hiding

and boldly close and exposed

rejoicing as we breathed

the same air

.

foerver changed

He is alive

and the world

is forever changed

 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said

Matthew 28:6a NIV

 

almost Sunday

be still

and know

that Sunday's coming

silent and waiting with Sandy

 

breathing again

The heavens declare the glory of God;

    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Psalm 19:1 NIV

I've always been one to appreciate the beauty of God’s handiwork displayed as the sun begins it’s ascent in the morning sky.

Yet the darkness seemed to be settling in deep, driving me inwards, even as the light dawned.  

God’s glory hovering over Malawi was a call we never doubted. Wide eyed, innocent and willing to be obedient, we hungrily stepped into our first full time mission assignment. In a very short time the things we expected, the life we thought we would be living and the work we had felt called to do was crumbling in our hands.  I didn't know what to do with the disappointment. 

Like Christ’s disciples on the day following His crucifixion how could I imagine life would continue? I completed whatever tasks were given to me, never certain if my work was sufficient. Frightened of failure, I couldn't reconcile with the idea of giving up but did not know how to move forward.
Stuck and shaken, weeks passed living in the lonely space between Good Friday and Easter morning; between what was and what isn't yet.  I could only see what I was losing, budding relationships with Malawian people who had crawled straight into my heart.

I stopped talking to my Lord, certain he would see me as I saw myself, faulty and not up to the assignment He had set before me. I stepped off the only Rock that could sustain me and the world spun with a fierceness that stripped my breath.

Have you been there, convinced that somehow God stopped paying attention, didn't care, leaving you desolate and shaking?

Jesus, how could you leave us?  What about the Kingdom You promised? Now what are we to do? We can only assume what those who had followed Christ were thinking during those long hours of in-between.

There is a day after Saturday; for them, for you and for me.  When I was so weary I couldn’t reach for Him, He reached down and lifted me. When my words ran dry, His were fresh, true and life sustaining.

You are looking for Me in the ashes.  I Am not there, I have risen. The same power that lifted Me from the tomb resides in you. This is not the end of the road, far, far from it. Rise then, to new plans and purposes, designed by My hand. 

I am breathing again, gulping life. This is not an end to the road, just a redirection. We will not work in Malawi, but we will serve where He chooses. I know He will use me, broken and frail. Hopes once crushed have been resurrected, bold and bright as Sunday morning.

Linking up at The High Calling as we ponder Resurrection