Decisions are hard!

If you're a part of Burlington Fellowship congregation and you read the bulletin this morning (during collection, if you're like me...) then some of this will be a repeat for you. But I might just throw in something new, so don't leave! There'll probably be a witty remark or two, so you'd me missing out, really.

If you didn't read last week's post, you should probably do that first, or else this won't make all that much sense... Now, onto the blog.

Everyone seemed to have known my decision before I had the chance to make it. If bets were made, no one would have made any money because no one was betting the other way.

First off, I'd like to thank everyone for keeping me in your thoughts and prayers. It's very hard to live feeling your heart being pulled in two directions. But through a lot of Bible reading and studying, prayer and spending time with God, Julia and I have agreed that we feel God is calling me to return in December to Canada and pick up a role God has set for me to fill. Some people may grin or shrug and say 'figured that, no surprise!' but it truly was a hard and long decision to make. While I'm sad to leave the country I've come to love, filled with so many of God's people, I'm excited to transfer what I've learned from them to North America. I told a Nigerian friend and colleague how a part of me wished I could continue the work longer, he told me "it's not the length of time you serve, but the foundation you've laid through your work and relationships which allows others to build on and grow." This has been a comforting thought as I begin to realize I won't be returning to Africa - in the near future, anyway. ;) I've been blessed to be given the opportunity to build on many a relationship foundation.

I hope and pray that the work I've done and continue to do will be built upon for His glory.

A passage we read at church this morning also gave me some comfort. In Matthew 4 there is the well known passage of Christ's temptation by Satan (I prefer the translation of 'test'). In verse one, a verse I've read several times, I finally took note of a significance I never did before.

"Then Jesus was lead by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil."

Christ was led by the Spirit to be tested. Satan didn't drag Him to the desert. It was God who brought Jesus to the desolate and hard terrain of the desert (after 40 days of fasting, no less!) to be tempted by the enemy. The Spirit doesn't always lead us to where we think it would, and it won't necessarily be a walk in the park either! But, if we follow where the Spirit leads, endure the tests put before us and keep God in our hearts... then we will be blessed, and God will be glorified. "Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended Him."

Several of Jesus' rebukes to Satan come from Deuteronomy 8, where Moses is giving a parallel explanation to Israel. Explaining how the hardships they endured, the suffering they were under... was not just punishment.

"The LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you... to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you... but remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth"

Similarly in Judges 2 and 3, God is explained to have caused nations to rise up against the Israelites. "I will use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the LORD and walk in it as their forefathers did." God also brought up enemies to teach Israel how to defend themselves: "the nations the LORD left to test all those Israelites who had not experiences any of the wars in Canan (He did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience)."

I think we can all find this fits today as well, not just for me in my particular situation. When you see that God arranges for tests as a way to teach; that difficult times are means for God to instill trust in Him alone, then we can truly thank God for hardship. We can't always tell while we are in a time of suffering why we are in this particular suffering. It is possibly that we may never know the exact reason, but we don't NEED to. I don't know for what EXACT reason God is calling me to Canada at a time when I feel much at home here. I know SOME of the reasons, but I can't tell you all of them. I do know it's for my benefit and His glory. And I can't think of any better reasons! (Especially the second one). Maybe you've suffered something so that you can further spread God's love. For example, who better to counsel and help someone who's been abused than someone who'd been abused in the past? We need to use what God has taught us in our school of suffering to display His ever-present hand in our lives.

Praise God for hardships.

Praise God for suffering.

Praise God that He uses us to spread His kingdom.

Praise God that He cares enough about us to test, train and teach us.

I wonder...

In all my searching to fill a hole for God...

have I left one in Canada that's the perfect fit?

Also, check out more Obudu pictures here and in the list on the right.

Two in a row??

Hello again! I know I JUST wrote a blog. You're probably tired of my constant updates. I know this is very unusual. Two blogs in the same month is fairly uncommon, let alone two blogs DAYS in a row! So, if you didn't happen to read my last blog, go ahead and scroll down first, there's a couple updates in there you DON'T want to miss! When you're done that, onto the new blog!


I'm pretty sure Psalm 37 is my favourite Psalm of the Bible. It not only gives the promise of God's blessing, but reminds us quite clearly that God's mercy, while given and undeserved, should invoke in us desire to live a life for Him.

I wrote a blog about verse 4 last year sometime, specifically about how we often read verses like that one backwards.

It says: "Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give the desires of your heart."
We read: "You'll get that stuff you want if you do some things for God first."

This isn't a conscious 'translation' of the passage. It is one often heard being yelled by prosperity preachers everywhere yet somehow happens to stick... Rather than the desires of our heart changing to match those of God's, you expect earthly blessings for 'doing your part'.

Related to this is taking texts out of context. This verse would look great on a fridge magnet, church sign or bookmark, but I almost guarantee that people who read it as a stand-alone verse will be thinking of earthly blessings as the reward. The only thing that comes close to earthly rewards in Psalm 37 is how the faithful are promised that "He will exalt you to inherit the land." (Land doesn't work itself. Sounds like more work than pure blessing to me...) Hardly the big-screen TV I was expecting. The reward that IS stated after verse for is that "He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun." I'd take that over a TV.

Protection is something else that is continually promised. Protection and inheritance of the land. In fact, the old man (v 25) who wrote the Psalm tends to speak how less is better. "Better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked".

The less you have
The more blessed you become.

Ever meal is transformed into a blessing. Every new day is something to praise God for. Each drop of water is a constant reminder of God's protection of those who take refuge in him.

Another apparent theme in this chapter (this one was what really hit home for me) is when the author talks of TIME.

Old man David reminds us repeatedly that God's actions might not be happening at this exact moment. But they will.

The Lord's actions against the wicked: "Like the grass the will soon wither", "A little while and the wicked will be no more", "they will vanish", "all sinners will be destroyed", and

"The LORD laughs at the wicked for He knows their day is coming."

Might not be happening just yet. But it's coming.

David also gives explicit commands. He tells us to be active in our faith, but also to be patient. Patient because the blessings God's promised

might not be happening just yet. But it's coming.

Patience in Psalm 37:

"Do not fret";
"Trust in the LORD and do good";
"Commit your way to the LORD";
"Trust in Him";
"Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him";
"Do not fret";
"Refrain from anger and turn from wrath";
"Do not fret";
"Turn from evil and do good";
"Wait for the LORD and keep His way."

Be still. Be patient. Wait. Wait patiently. Wait for the LORD. Do not fret, fret, fret!

I think we're supposed to wait. And patiently...

What are you waiting for? I've been hoping for an answer or two myself. Some direction perhaps. I have some meetings coming up about my work here, then Julia and I will evaluate whether or not I will continue here in Nigeria for another year as I'd originally agreed to in July last year (about 4 months before Julia and I started dating...) There's a lot more factors in the equation than just that of our relationship, so Julia and I are praying that we will be able to weigh them out and that whatever conclusion is reached, it will be done in a God-pleasing manner.

This is something I've been slow to learn; that God doesn't necessarily have a solid, black-and-white, written-in-stone plan for me. There can be variations, I think. If I'm following the path I'm on in a God-pleasing way... then I'm on the right path.

"If the LORD delights in a man's way, He makes his steps firm;
though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with His hand."

This is a verse that has brought much comfort to someone assuming there was going to be a burning-bush moment where every detail of my future path was be laid out.

God's plan for Julia and I may not become obvious, but I'm comforted knowing that if the path we follow is followed in order to please God and not ourselves, then hopefully it will be a delight to God and He'll be holding our hands the entire way.

It is a great comfort. It promises me that whichever path is chosen - as long as it is done in delight of the LORD - God will make our steps firm.

No path will be easy. Two obvious scenarios are that I leave a country I've grown to love which is in desperate need of help, or I continue to be away from all my loved ones and miss all the opportunities I know are waiting for me in Canada.

During the next week or two, Julia and I will be spending a lot of time in prayer over this. I'm also asking for your prayers for us as well. I'm praying that we can come to a conclusion that will be pleasing to God, as well as the strength to carry on along the path. There will be moments of stumbling, I know, but God will be there.

This chapter of the Bible has been a great help to me in the last couple years, and I hope my ramblings on it have been thought provoking for others too.

Cheers!

Tired of checking up every couple weeks or so only to realize I still haven't written a blog? Just put your email address in that nifty box over there on the right and you'll get an email when I FINALLY post a new one! Nifty! (Cheers to Dustin for showing me how to do that).

Speaking of cheers...

I recently listened to a cover of TV theme song. I always enjoyed the song, but this artist, who's name I've forgotten, said the reason he always loved the song, is because he felt it should make you think of church. I agree with him. Imagine this being sung by a guy in a cool accent with an acoustic guitar... Then also think how you can better make your church into this place. Don't leave it up to anyone else, k? I've found I've done that a lot in the past, hope to change that (when I'm a regular member of a church again...)

Making your way in the world today
Takes everything you've got;
Taking a break from all your worries
Sure would help a lot.
Wouldn't you like to get away?

All those night when you've got no lights,
The check is in the mail;
And your little angel
Hung the cat up by it's tail;
And your third fiance didn't show;

Sometimes you want to go
Where everybody knows your name,
And they're always glad you came;
You want to be where you can see,
Our troubles are all the same;
You want to be where everybody knows your name.

Roll out of bed, Mr. Coffee's dead;
The morning's looking bright;
And your shrink ran off to Europe,
And didn't even write;
And your husband wants to be a girl;

Be glad there's one place in the world
Where everybody knows your name,
And they're always glad you came;
You want to go where people know,
People are all the same;
You want to go where everybody knows your name.

Where everybody knows your name,
And they're always glad you came;
Where everybody knows your name,
And they're always glad you came...

Also, I found this terribly funny.