A powerful testimony…

Posted on April 8, 2016 by Noelene

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This week I attended a ROTOP (Round Table of Prayer) meeting.  It is usually for men only but seeing as they had a woman speaker they graciously opened it up to ladies!

ROTOP’s mission statement states that all men must strive

to learn to function ‘as a unit’ in ‘watching over’ and ‘looking after one another’ demonstrating the reality of faith in the true, living God; proving how practical the principles of the Word of God are; and how invaluable to everyday living.

That should, in fact, be the mission statement of all Believers!

The speaker, Claudine Ukwishaka, has God’s fullest anointing resting upon her life.  The room was totally silent as she gave her testimony – we were all riveted as we listened to her story about God’s immense grace and love towards each one of us.

All children of God have a testimony to tell.  We need to learn how to share our stories with each other.

Claudine’s story is a powerful witness of just how much God cares about us.  She has faced great hardships – fleeing her country of birth, being imprisoned, living through the death of her first born – and yet her message is one of God’s great love for us.

As I sat and listened to her story unfold, I marveled at God’s grace at work in her life:

“Overcoming insurmountable odds and facing tremendous trial, she found herself fleeing the Rwandan Civil War in 1997 when her baby daughter was shot and killed on her back, physically saving this woman’s life and bringing her to  spiritual rebirth.”

God has given Claudine the grace to  forgive the people who killed her child and a testimony that brings one to tears, and yet, is so encouraging, full of hope for the future and absolute trust in our God.

Her book The Tears of a Broken Mother tells her story and her book The Torchbearer is about “carrying the light of God into the kingdom of the blind”.

If you would like to obtain copies of her book, click here.

The LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? “Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say.” (Exodus 4:11,12)

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Love letters to the world…

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Noelene

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The Bible states that children are a gift from the Lord, they are a blessing.   This means that each one of us is a gift, we are a blessing to the world.  Mother Theresa once said “I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world”.

We are God’s love letters to the world!  We need to reflect God’s compassion, His humility, His mercy and grace, His love to all those that we meet.

The night before He died, Jesus prayed the following prayer.  It was a prayer He prayed for each one of us:

“I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one…Sanctify them in the truth;  your word is truth.  As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world…I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word…The glory that you have given me I have given to them…so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me…I made known to them your name and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’ (John 17)

The prayer that Jesus prayed so many years ago, the prayer that He offered up to His Father in heaven is still relevant today.

He prayed that God would keep us from the evil one.  This does not mean that no harm will ever befall us or our loved ones but it does mean that Satan does not have a hold on us.  That no matter what happens we belong to God.  So through illness, misfortune and death we can continue to know that we will one day be with God for eternity.

He prayed that we would be sanctified in the truth, God’s word is truth.  It is vital for us to immerse ourselves in the Bible because it is through the reading of God’s word and in the believing of God’s word that we will be sanctified – made holy.

And then the call to be disciples – that not only may we believe, but also those who will believe in Him through our words. We are called to be witnesses of God’s love to all those around us.

And then this most amazing reflection “the glory that you have given me I have given them”.  We can reflect God’s glory to those around us, we are called to reflect God’s glory to those around because Jesus has given us His glory.  If we would but only grasp the truth of Jesus’s words and His prayers for us our faces would be radiant and shining and we would be reflecting His glory to all those around us.

We need to start living in the knowledge that Jesus Himself prays for us and that our hearts beat a song of love because He cares for us.

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HE WILL SEE US THROUGH…

Posted on April 5, 2016 by Noelene

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Whatever you may be going through at the moment, hold onto this promise from God:
“…He will deliver us. On Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us…”

He will deliver us from our circumstances in His time.
“With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.”

If it feels like He is taking His time and you just cannot continue:

  • living in the circumstances you are living in
  • staying in the relationship you are in
  • struggling with an addiction
  • crying because of the wrong choices and harmful behaviour of your children
  • mourning a loved one

Remember then these words:

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them – your circumstances – for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

2 Cor 1:10, 2 Peter 3:8, Deut 31:6

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OPEN DOORS

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Noelene

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The following blog from March 2013 popped up in my Facebook ‘memories’ today.

It was a wonderful reminder of God’s prophetic words at work in my life!  Since this blog was written I have addressed large and small groups, preached in church a few times and have published another book.  If we are prepared to take God at His word and allow Him to work through us the most awesome things happen!

A couple of weeks ago I received a phone call from a lady whose husband had read God’s Promise for Families.  She asked me whether I would be willing to come and give my testimony to a group of 8 or 10 ladies one morning.  She was having a birthday tea and wanted to do something that would include God so thought she would invite me to share my testimony.  I immediately responded ‘of course I will’ and as I put the phone down I thought ‘God help!’

I had never been asked to give my testimony before.  When I speak before an audience I refer to parts of my testimony but only as it pertains to a certain subject e.g. unanswered prayer, prophetic words God speaks into our lives etc.
I always stood behind a lectern separated from the audience and now I was being asked to address a small group of strangers in a very personal way!

Our hostess embodied the verse “Share with God’s people who are in need.  Practise hospitality.”1  We are all in need of hearing more about God and here was this amazing woman setting aside a morning so we could all hear more about God and I marveled at her kindness and genuiness as she invited each guest into her home and made them feel totally at ease.

I gave my testimony and in parts I stuttered and stumbled and yet each woman there was graceful and attentive.

At the end of my talk one of the ladies asked me if she could anoint my head with oil. As she anointed my head with oil she said that God was closing the door to my past – that door had to remain shut and He was opening other doors that I needed to start walking through.  She then anointed my lips with oil and said that God would be the One who released in me the ability to speak and bear witness of the power of His love and healing in our lives.  As she was anointing my lips with oil the following verses went through my mind “Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.  With it he touched my mouth and said, ‘See, this has touched your lips;  your guilt is taken away and sin atoned for”.  Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?  And who will go for us?”  And I said, “Here am I.  Send me!”2

There is a section in God’s promise for Families where I refer to exactly that.

“God asks, “Now, who is willing to consecrate himself today to the Lord?”3 My heart leaped in response to the question posed and I exclaimed, “I am ready!””4

If we are serious about serving God we need to spend some time thinking about what our answers will be to the questions God asks us:  “Whom shall I send?”  “Who will go for us?”  “Who is willing to consecrate himself to the Lord”.

If we are willing to volunteer we need to realize that once we have dealt with the past God will shut that door and will open new doors for us to walk through.
That very afternoon a friend wrote “I know God is opening doors for me.  I just need to find a new way of walking through them”.  That resonated with me. I too, need to find a new way of walking through the doors God is opening – a new attitude, a new faith, a new hope and a new trust in our Lord Jesus.

1 Romans 12:13, NIV Bible
2 Isaiah 6:6-8, NIV Bible
3 1 Chronicles 29:5, NIV Bible
4 God’s Promise for Families, page 16

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PREPARE FOR THE EMPTY NEST

Posted on March 30, 2016 by Noelene

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A few years ago I went out for supper with some of my woman friends. There were nine of us in total – we were a mixed bunch. We came from different walks of life, different countries, different cultures and had different belief systems. There were, however, two main things that we all had in common – we were all married and we all had children. In fact we had all met and gotten to know each other through our children when they started school.

As the evening progressed the topic of conversation turned to our children and our husbands as the conversation inevitably does when married women get together!

One woman said “I would die if anything happened to one of my children. I wouldn’t want to live.” All the women concurred with that remark except for me! I commented “I would find it so much harder to lose Steven (my husband) than one of my children.”

There was a shocked silence and one of the ladies present got extremely upset with me. I tried to explain to her why I had said that, but she would not listen. None of the other moms agreed with me either.

I love my children with all my heart. I would die in their place if I was ever called on to do so. If anything happened to one of them I would be distraught and totally heartbroken and I know I would never fully recover from that loss, BUT the reason why I said what I did is because my marriage is based on what God said in His Word.

For this reason a man (and woman) will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.  —Genesis 2:24

Mark 10:8 repeats this:

“and the two will become one flesh.  So they are no longer two, but one flesh”.

In Psalm 129 God says “Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.” The quiver is the container that holds the arrows and the point of having an arrow is to be able to release it. Our children are with us for only a short time. We teach them about God and relay His instructions to them about living a joyous and full life in Him, we love them, we educate them, feed them and care for them, BUT then they leave, find work for themselves, get married and have children of their own.

Your marriage is the quiver that holds your children for a while before it is time for them to be ‘shot’ out of the marriage, like an arrow, to live their own lives.

If you have neglected your spouse during these years you are going to be extremely lonely and lost when your children leave home!

Do not neglect your spouse when you have children.

You need to continue to grow in your own friendship, in your sexual relationship, in your spiritual development together with your spouse. You need to have a partnership, and together, the two of you need to raise your children and then when the time is right, release them to grow and to discover for themselves what a wonderful world God has created for us.

The mom, who was so vehement towards what I had said, phoned me a few days later and apologized. She said that on reflection she knows that in her marriage her husband should come first but she just did not feel that way, BUT wished that she could. Her husband and her subsequently got a divorce and her children have moved out of the home and she is now on her own.

We need to love and grow our relationships with our spouses throughout our marriages.

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Dance in the storm…

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Noelene

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I can dance in the storm because I am a child of God.
I can sing in the rain because He holds me in the palm of His hand.
I can weep with joy and with sorrow because He has forgiven my past, He is with me in my present and my future is safe in His hands.
The times when I have been unfaithful to Him are covered by the absolute knowledge and reassurance that

“He remains faithful, for he cannot disown Himself”.

I am loved, I am worthy, I am a child of God
You are loved, you are worthy because you are a child of God.
Celebrate and rejoice and strive to grow into the person He created you to be – confess your sins, hand the guilt and shame to God and

“have confidence of this very thing, that he who has begun in you a good work will complete it unto Jesus Christ’s day”

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I’D RATHER NOT…

Posted on March 20, 2016 by Noelene

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“Giving expression to our faith informs God of our loyalty and love, and gives us an opportunity to name what really matters in our lives.

Christ said, “Follow Me”.
And of course, I’d rather not,
I’d rather pretend that doesn’t include me.
I’d rather sit by the fire and make my excuses.
I’d rather look the other way,
Not answer the phone,
And be much too busy to read the newspaper,
But I said YES and
That means risk-
It means here I am ready or not!”

Extract from Spirituality with Style by Pat M. Baxter

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SHARE YOUR TESTIMONY!

Posted on March 11, 2016 by Noelene

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I really love God and I love the way that He speaks to me through His word, through people, through songs, through nature…the list is endless!  Daily I am reminded of how intimately He is involved in my life and how interested He is in everything that I do.

This morning I spoke at Capstone – the Wynberg Girls High School Scripture Union.

I was going to speak on goals and friendships but felt led to give my testimony instead.

I did ask Emma Jane if she was okay with me sharing my testimony as I would be speaking to her peers.  Her response:

“That’s great Mom.  Your testimony is cool!”

The morning started off with a voice note from one of Emma Jane’s friends saying how excited she was that I would be speaking to them and that she knew God was going to use what I had to say to help them to grow in Him.  My heart wept when I listened to this precious message from a thirteen year old.

In my daily reading Oscar Chambers had this to say:

Allow God to have complete liberty in your life when you speak.  Before God’s message can liberate other people, His liberation must first be real in you.  Gather your material carefully, and then allow God to “set your words on fire” for His glory.

The Scripture verse I was given straight afterwards was:

But you are a shield round me, O Lord;
you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.

A strong reminder that it is God who bestows His glory on our lives through His grace and that we don’t do things on our own.

We recently attended Passion and Louis Giglio said something that has remained with me.  He said that he often meets Christians who tell him that they have no testimony, no story to tell…his response to them is that they need to meet Jesus!

If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Saviour  we have the most amazing testimony.  We are children of the most high God, the creator of the universe.  What an awesome testimony!

We need to tell others what God has done for us!

By the way, Emma Jane said I did good!

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PARENTS!! Get up and dance…

Posted on March 7, 2016 by Noelene

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These past few weeks we seem to have faced one crises after another as a family.
One storm after another storm.

As parents we are learning to dance during the storms and as children of God we are learning to dance through the storms.

A mom phoned me the other day to share with me something that her child had done – she needed prayer and just to be able to talk to someone who would not judge her or her child and believe me I am the right person for that!  I used to be extremely judgmental of others and then God gave me children – every time I criticised a parent for their child’s behaviour, one of my children would do something far worse.  As parents we make many mistakes but one of the most important things we need to learn about parenting is how to forgive ourselves for the mistakes we have made and, if we have raised them correctly, not to feel responsible for the way our children behave. There comes a time when they have to face the consequences of their own actions/choices. We cannot be effective parents if we are constantly living under a sense of condemnation because of the mistakes we have made or if we are blaming ourselves for their actions. We need to confess those mistakes to God, to someone we trust and then we need to move on.

The mom who phoned said the following “I am totally gobsmacked that my child would behave in such a destructive manner. I am struggling to understand…”

I thought the word ‘gobsmacked’ summed up how I often feel about parenting. I am sometimes gobsmacked at their negative behaviour but I am more often than not  gobsmacked at how amazing they are despite having me as a parent!

I know that nothing surprises God (“Known to God are all his works from the beginning of the world” Acts 15:18) but I am sure He still sometimes just shakes His head at my negative behaviour and ungratefulness.  As I have reflected on the past few weeks I have been reminded about the negative ways I sometimes behave towards God and an overwhelming sense of gratitude fills my being that God does not react to me the way I sometimes react to my children.

I am the type of person who tends to overreact to my children’s unpleasant behaviour. I tend to get really upset, shout and go on and on and on and on and on and on.  I am still working hard on the “take a deep breath and respond instead of reacting!” advice I was once given.

As the years go past I am also very aware that our children go through various ‘stages’ and that, as long as we are vigilant, these stages will pass.  I have found myself repeating this phrase a lot lately “this too shall pass!”

The other thing that we need to remember as parents is that our children’s negative behaviour/habits do not define who they are and we should not allow those traits to cancel out the overwhelming good in our children.

Our children are far more than their present behaviour.

As I recognise my own bad behaviour towards God and as I start to forgive myself I find it so much easier to forgive my children and to move on.  I find that even in the midst of the storm, once my reaction is over, I am able to dance to the music of the thunder and in the light of the lightning and that when I firmly place my hand in God’s hands I am able to dance through the storms in the sure knowledge that “in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose”

I can dance in the storm because I know that ultimately none of this will matter when my children and I are safely  home with Him one day!

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tetelestai – it is finished

Posted on February 19, 2016 by Noelene

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On Saturday evening I attended the Passion show and I witnessed 30 000 people getting down on their knees (me included) to pray to God for the nation, for the world and for ourselves.

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Louie Giglio was the speaker and his words had a major impact on me and all those that I have spoken too who attended the show.  He said that Jesus put an end to all sin, all shame, all guilt with just one word.  It was the last word that He spoke before dying on the cross

tetelestai

which translated means “it is finished” in Greek.

As human beings we define ourselves with one word
failure
alcoholic
divorced
addict
worrier
etc, etc, etc

Jesus, in His last breath cancelled out all these definitions by declaring tetelestai – it is finished.

Sin is finished and no longer has a hold on us.  We may still need the ice pack for the bruises that sin has left in our lives but the hold of sin has been broken. Louis used the analogy of the honey bee sting to sin.

“When a honey bee stings a person, it cannot pull the barbed stinger back out. It leaves behind not only the stinger, but also part of its abdomen and digestive tract, plus muscles and nerves. This massive abdominal rupture kills the honey bee.”

It is the same with sin – sin does not have a hold over us.  We may sin and suffer the consequences but Jesus conquered the power that sin has in our lives with that one word tetelestai.  “The Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil“.  By His death on the cross and His resurrection he rendered Satan powerless – tetelestai, Satan’s power in a Believer’s life is null and void. We now fall under a covenant of Grace!

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8)

My two favourite biblical definitions of grace are “the attitude of God toward men” and “the liberty that God gives men.”

Liberty is the “state of being free.” God’s grace causes us to be free from the chains that had us bound—alcoholism, addiction to pornography or drugs, worry, jealousy, anger, self-pity, pride, eating disorders, poor self-image. The list is endless. Graciousness is defined as being “courteous, kind, and pleasant.” In Isaiah 30:18 we are advised that “the Lord longs to be gracious to you.” What an amazing thought: God longs to be kind, generous, and courteous to us.  (from God’s Promise for Families)

If you are struggling with guilt or shame or worry or fear or an addiction or unforgiveness or hurts – repeat to yourself tetelestai, tetetestai – it is finished.  The guilt is gone, the shame is gone, you are no longer under condemnation.  Pray that God will give you the courage to seek help for an addiction so that one day you will be able to say about that addiction tetelestai, it is finished – I am free.

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