Life in Death

Once a group of people came to meet Jesus. Jesus told them  

"I tell you the solemn truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains by itself alone. But if it dies, it produces much grain".

I know how many Dandelion seeds are in this picture, but no one can tell the number of Dandelion plants that are in this seed. In a few days from now, probably during yesterday's heavy rain, it will fall on to the ground, die, and burst forth with life, giving birth to generations of plants.

As Christians, whom are we 'birthing'? How many of our future generations will be blessed because I - yes I - took a stand to live my life for Jesus today?

Feeling Lazy?

I observed this ant on this bush at the SABC campus, day light had quite faded off, yet this chap was working, collecting his food. It reminded me of what King Solomon wrote in the Bible (Proverbs):

 

Go to the ant, you sluggard;

observe its ways and be wise!

It has no commander,

overseer, or ruler,

yet it prepares its food in the summer;

it gathers at the harvest what it will eat.

How long, you sluggard, will you lie there?

When will you rise from your sleep?

A little sleep, a little slumber,

a little folding of the hands to relax,

and your poverty will come like a robber,

and your need like an armed man.

^{and again in the Book of Proverbs, the writer tells us that} 

Ants are creatures with little strength,

but they prepare their food in the summer;

Keep Working!

Our Anchor

Hi Folks,

In case you are wondering what this is, it is a macro photo of my E string on the guitar – the first string from the thicker side- wrapped around its peg. Taken with a 28mm reversed lens on my Nikon. 

Some thoughts:

All of us need an anchor. That picture is of the E string wrapped around the tuning peg. From a Christian point of view, Jesus is out anchor. We are locked in into him. When we drift away, we lose our moorings.  That’s what happens when the string breaks – it loses its anchor with the peg.

All of us need to be stretched. A beautiful string inside its cover makes no sound.  But stretch it  out and you get that beautiful warm 83Hz coming out of the guitar. Stretch it below par, it is off tune. Stretch it too much, it breaks. That’s why we need to take a ‘break’ when we are too stretched out.

And most importantly, we need to be played on! No point keeping a Yamaha in its cover. In the hands of a guitarist, it makes such wonderful music.

Care to add your observations?

Same balcony, same bed tea time, yet God plays with different colors, 

reminding me that: 

"Morning has broken, like the first morning
Blackbird has spoken, like the first bird
Praise for the singing, praise for the morning
Praise for the springing fresh from the word

Sweet the rain's new fall, sunlit from heaven
Like the first dewfall, on the first grass
Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden
Sprung in completeness where his feet pass

Mine is the sunlight, mine is the morning
Born of the one light, Eden saw play
Praise with elation, praise every morning
God's recreation of the new day". (Cat Stevens)

Where is your focus?

The picture shows two photographs side by side, shot with the same cam, lens, settings and location but with different focal points. One focuses on the bougainvillea branch, the other on the castor plants four floors below. Where you focus will change your perspective on life. Often, its difficult to focus. We need to see with the 'other person's eyes' to get a different perspective. Sometimes, with God's.
Have a good day!

 Was having my morning tea on my balcony and this reminded me of an old corporate saying - everyone needs a horse to ride. You can't go far if you don't have a mentor who will support you during your growing stages. And i hope, you'll never stop growing! :)  On the flip side, do not be a tendril all your life, clinging on to someone or something - learn to have a spine and to therefore stand straight!

A veiled view!

When I stood on my balcony and peered down through my Nikon's viewfinder in the dying light at my neighbor's car parked below, I was reminded of what the Apostle Paul wrote about in the Bible. Many times, we do not understand what's happening in the world around us. In our ignorance, we feign to be knowledgeable. This is what the Bible says: "For now we see in a mirror indirectly, but then we will see (God) face to face".The writer was writing this to the readers in the city of ancient Corinth. Corinth was well known in the ancient world for producing some of the finest bronze mirrors. What the writer - Paul - means is that our current understanding and relationship with God is  “indirect”  compared to the relationship we will enjoy with him in the future when we see him “face to face”. Have a great day!