The Boy at the Gate - Grass roots honour-shame renewing of the mind.

Our study and research is all about an end-goal of practical teaching that transforms lives as we seek to help others around us learn God's ways of how honour-shame dynamics should function. Sometimes that practical application is in situations we have thought about and worked through deeply before confronting. Many other times it turns up in unexpected impromptu daily-life ways. Today's story was not only a reminder that sin is not just about disobedience but about disrespect, but was another situation of the unexpected….

It was a sunny afternoon in the village, and about the time the local children were walking home after school. 

Without any warning God landed me another situation to help others out of cultural mis-placed honour-shame dynamics and to begin to see and experience honour-shame dynamics as God desires. This time it was a group of village children.

Suddenly I had heard our gate bell ring (its a cow-bell tied to the inside of our gate that you don't even know is there unless you have been inside our yard, or seen someone else ring it.)

I was brought a message that some girls from my Saturday village girls' bible study were at the gate.  

However when I got to the gate, I discovered only one of the girls there, but she was with 2 other boys I had actually not seen before. They were all on their way home from school. The girl immediately pointed with a stick she was playing with, to the older boy, indicating it was him who had rung the bell.

But when I asked what they wanted, there was silence. 

No-one wanted to say why they were there. 

After a few more questions and the older boy particularly continuing to be sheepishly silent, I figured out that they were pulling  a prank... but for some reason they didn't actually run away when I had come to the gate….maybe because the girl knew it would be disrespectful to do that and she would be 'shamed' next bible study time if what she did was exposed.

I asked a few more times, in various ways, just to be sure if there really was a real reason for ringing the bell. Each time I asked, I just got silence, and then a hint of a smirk from the older boy. When I tried to ask the other young boy and the girl about it, they also just kept silent and pointed to the older boy.

But rather than just reprimand them for wasting my time, and then telling them to go, I thought momentarily about using it as an opportunity. I had never specifically told them previously to not ring the bell for no reason, so it wasn't a situation of saying 'why are you ringing the bell for no reason when we have told you not to do that?'

So, I firstly responded to the boy using honour-shame language, saying that if he is ringing the bell for no reason, he is being 'disrespectful'.

Well that immediately got a different response. His head dropped and he wouldn't look at me. 

When, culturally, the one major sin to avoid is 'disrespect' or 'dishonour' or 'shame', then without linking the wrong act to the wrong attitude of disrespect/dishonour, there is no conscience prod. But when sin is brought back to the dynamic of honour/respect, then the conscience starts to kick-in. And often here, especially with kids, the English honour word used is most often is 'respect/disrespect'. So the cultural context of sin that envelops the word 'disrespect' sunk in to his heart.

I talked a bit longer to the boy and the two others about how his 'playing' just for 'fun' also means I am less likely to believe him to have a genuine need next time he rings the bell, because this time was not an honest need. So ringing the bell for a joke is like not telling the truth and is making him to be seen as less trustworthy. I asked him if he wanted to be known as someone who was trustworthy? He nodded, 'yes'.

So that was progress…at least he was responding even if not verbally yet!

So then I asked again if he had a reason for ringing the bell. And, with head down again, I suddenly heard a quiet 'no' emerge from his lips. 

I thanked him for being honest, and explained that it is always honourable and never shameful in God's eyes to speak the truth.

But before they went, I said that what he needed to then do was say 'sorry Mma …. for ringing the gate without a reason...'

Well that was just too much, and he went quiet again. So I repeated myself. 

Quiet.

His head was down with eyes looking at the dirt.

The problem is that confession is self-shaming, and if culturally, shame is the big something to be avoided at all costs, he was in a difficult situation.  To respect me, he has to shame himself. He may want to restore respect but he doesn't want to self-shame (in front of me or his friends). To speak the truth meant he self-shamed. To complicate it even further, a child learns that often culturally to speak the truth is also seen as shameful if it might dishonour an elder. So a child learns that culturally it is not always acceptable to others and can be a 'wrongdoing' to speak the truth, let alone it also destroying personal honour.

So I then explained that if he said sorry, there was the offer of forgiveness, and instead of going away shamed, he could go away with the shame removed and back in a position of respect and honour.

I then further explained that God says, that to say the truth and admit (confess) wrongdoing is always respectful and honourable in His eyes, and thus also it's the same for me in this situation.

Wow! Then I heard him break his silence again with, 'I'm sorry' …and he then continued to say fully what he was sorry for.

So then I said 'I forgive you'. 

He looked sincerely a mixture of relief and confusion and puzzlement and wonder. He had probably not ever had such an interaction or experience of forgiveness and shame-removal in that way before.

I then explained again that his disrespectful bell-ringing shamed him, but now his truth-telling and admitting/confessing his sin was honourable and respectful again…so now with my forgiveness he could leave and continue on his way with respect (honour) in the relationship again instead of shame. I re-iterated that is how it is with God…telling the truth and admitting and confessing sin is never shameful in God's eyes, it restores honour in the relationship.

As he left, and walked with his friends toward home, he still seemed a bit bewildered by the whole event…but his head wasn't down, and although as he left I heard some interaction indicating that he seemed to want to brush over the embarrassment of the incident with his friends, I pray God would etch that experience and conversation into his memory, and even if I never see him again, that he will one day remember that God's way of honour is different from his culture's way, and God's way is the only way that truly sets us free from the bondage and shame of our sin.

Resting in God and His Word

Cats,…. the purry, furry companions of so many….including myself, have a habit of demonstrating their friendship by coming to sit on a piece of paper that is the page of the book or newspaper that we happen to be reading right at that very moment!

My cat is no exception.

However, today she didn't quite sit right on top of the page I was reading (as I was at the time reading on my laptop), but she did choose to sit right on top of my bible, laying open beside me at the page I was regularly referring to.

But as she covered up the very section of Scripture I was periodically looking back at, and then relaxed back even further and began to have a 'bath', I had an object lesson from God right there! (and yes, I took some quick pics!).

As she rested right on top, and then cleaned, and then went to sleep, it was a good metaphorical reminder that we too should be quick to go to the pages of Scripture and rest in the truth of all that God shows us in those pages that he truly is.  

It should be the rock, the resting place, the source and security of all our lives, whether sitting, working (cleaning) or sleeping!

As we look at the mess of our world this is a good reminder…especially considering my time in God's Word is currently in Paul's letters to Timothy. Paul tells Timothy toward the end of his second letter that in the last days sin will abound (chapter 3). We shouldn't be then surprised when we look at the world…

But I am reminded that we should also take note of Paul's other directives to Timothy after this…that he is to remember God's inspired Word and keep on preaching and teaching it (Chapter 4). Though some might not like it or welcome it, as we keep eternity and Jesus' return in mind, the response to the sinful mess of the world is not to be shocked about it, or just ignore it, or try to escape to some quiet corner of this earth where we think it might be less, or spend all our energies fighting it, but to continue to evangelise, to preach the Word, live the Word, teach the Word, and not neglect the gifts that God has given us for his Kingdom work, so that souls might be saved.

It was a short lesson with significant reminders, but those are sometimes the best!

Flowers might be weeds - garden lessons for life!

Scripture uses quite a number of 'garden' and nature contexts for teaching us truth - from the parable of the soils, to going to the ants, and the wheat and the tares, to the vine and the branches.

And so I guess it is not a big surprise that I continue to find our garden is full of lessons for life, and this week it taught me some more as I strolled through it. 

Having SO much rain interspersed with sunny days has meant everything is growing profusely in our garden….including the weeds.

Weeds are popping up from soil we had brought in from other sources, from areas that seemed barren when we moved in but where seeds are sprouting and pushing through, and from seeds in the sludge (filled with goat and cow poo from the village 'road') that has washed in via the flooding through our front gate onto the driveway.  So there has been lots of 'weedpulling' lately. We have had thorny weeds, spikey ones, sharp ones, super-spreader ones, short rooted ones, long rooted ones, short ones and some have managed to get quite tall because they were hidden behind other garden plants or were well camoflauged... (can you spot the long stemmed large 'weed' in the middle of the photo below?)

But there have been a couple of other kinds of weeds too - even more subtle but no less problematic - from which I realised important lessons can be learned.

The first is 'grass' and the second is 'flowers'!

Learning from the 'grass' weeds:

When we arrived to a plot without a stitch of visible grass, we were concerned that our cat would have no grass when she needed it. So when the first little bits of 'grass' type 'weeds' emerged we thought we would leave some of one particular type growing in one area and pull out the rest.

Well something interesting happened. Our minds had in them that 'some grass was allowed'. But after a few months and lots of rain, we realised we had lots of grass coming up everywhere and too much to pull (especially as we were both lower in normal energy in recovering from COVID). And day by day the situation was not getting better as the grass continued to grow…and started to also seed!  Additionally our gardener had been on Christmas/New Year leave and then had some business to attend to which meant he was not able to come for a few weeks.

Thankfully though he came this past week and with relief, the grass overgrowth is gone (well as far as we can see at this point!)…I don't think it will be long and some more will appear so our cat won't be forever without grass (and there is probably already some hiding in the plants that she will find)…but we are going to have to make sure to stay more vigilant with our grass-pulling and less tolerant of 'just leaving a bit here and there'.

This reminds me of those more subtle forms of sin. The grass was not thorny or spikey nor did it first appear super-spreader. It didn't feel dangerous or risky to have some. We left only one type so it was easy to spot and it was the one that was easy to pull out and seemed to be the cat's favourite. 

But in thinking the sin and weeds analogy though further...

what are weeds really?

….as they are not necessarily inherently 'bad' plants. 

Some of our weeds were tiny thorn trees growing from a seed that maybe a bird dropped. Some were grasses that in another location in the village would provide a good ground cover. From our years living right in the bush I realised that what I might have once termed weeds in my garden are actually wild-flowers or other native plants with many useful qualities. 

So I had to ask myself what really makes a plant a weed?…

Really its because it is growing somewhere that the garden owner and designer does not want. The place it is growing it is not appropriate or desired. It's presence and/or activity does not please the gardener.

This is so much like sin…sin—ie falling short of God's standard of living. Because when we sin, fundamentally we are doing things with life that were never meant to be done in the way that the designer and creator of life and thus the owner of life purposed for them to be done. 

Weeds are plants that are not serving the purpose of the garden (life) designed and desired by the gardener. I remember spending hours and hours as a kid helping my parents dig out dandelion plants from their front lawn because they were 'weeds'….but dandelions are actually good plants. Yet in the middle of my parent's lawn they were mis-placed and thus unacceptable.

That's like our sin. Every type of sin is a mis-placing of something - not accidentally losing it, but a 'mis-placing' in the sense of wrongly placing it. 

• Worship is not wrong but when it is mis-placed and not according to God's standard and toward him, it is wrong and needs to be 'pulled out of our lives'. So worship of another 'god' instead of the one true God is mis-placed worship. 

• Sex is not wrong, but mis-placed sex so that it becomes adultery or any other form of 'illicit' sex makes such sexual sins 'bad'. 

• Seeing the gifts or blessings God gives to others and rejoicing with them or seeing their lives as an example and longing for God's good purposes to be experienced in our lives is good, but seeing the blessings of others and coveting them for our own greedy self-seeking and self-honour desires is bad. 

• Bearing witness that defends our neighbours and endorses the truth is a good thing, but bearing witness that is false and favours evil is no longer a right kind of witness. 

• Even speaking truth can be 'bad'  or 'mis-placed' when it is not said with love, and in love, or if it is said in a time or way that serves only self-promoting purposes.

My 'grass' weeds, have also reminded me that 'leaving a little bit of something' in my life that isn't a good thing—in the hope that I will be able to control it—is risky and dangerous. And from this came three lessons for me:

1. attitudes and actions that should be got rid of all together cannot still 'have a little bit on the side' with the hope I will just keep it in control. 

2. If it is something that God doesn't want in my life it is better that it goes completely. …and if help from others is needed to keep accountability or assistance to enable and support such decisions it is worth getting it. 

3.If there is something that is in my life that is not sin in itself but I don't want it to dominate, I will have to put extra measures in place to keep it in control. Some good things can become bad things when they become dominating things. Any good gift of God can become an idol if we don't keep it in its proper place.

And that leads me to the 'flower' lesson.

Learning from the 'flower' weeds:

The second issue of flowers is even more subtle than the grass. Flowers are beautiful and they provide food for bees and butterflies. In our yard that started so 'barren' to have the colour of many flowers around fills the heart with joy, improves the mood and benefits God's little flying critters. And our Madagascar Periwinkles fulfill all these criteria. Additionally they don't take any maintenance to produce an almost continual show of colour. Yes we know they can multiply and shoot their seeds all over, but they don't reproduce as fast as grass, and they are more beautiful than plain grass.  They are kind of part of the plan/design of our garden. We actually want them in the garden as part of the 'good' garden. 

However, they are prone to go beyond where we want them. 

They can also easily 'fly under the radar' when they are small and so we don't realise how prolific they have become until they are more well established. Though their flowers stand out clearly, as small green plants they blend in easily and are not always so easily spotted, especially when its green leaves are against a backdrop of other green plants. 

Not only that but our garden helper has no idea (at this stage) that we don't want them so he doesn't point them out or pull them out.

Again this has so much to teach me….Even the most beautiful and wholesome things cannot just be left unchecked and unmonitored. 

We can't think that its only the 'bad' things or the 'risky' things or the things that we know we need to monitor (like the grass) that needs our attention in regard to holiness in our life. We need to also be watchful on the 'good' things to make sure they are rightly placed in our lives. Good things can become bad things when they are out of sync with holy priorities, or begin to dominate areas of our lives that should be stewarded differently. 

These are really subtle areas which are much harder to discern….like helping others is a good thing, but if that starts to dominate my life so that my kids or husband don't get the time God wants me to share with them and have good communication with them, then helping others in the way I am doing it has become 'sin'. I am falling short of God's full and ultimate design and that 'helping' no longer pleases him.  These are areas which others are less likely to point out to us as sin, or are less likely to be mentioned as an example of sin in a Sunday sermon, so are even more 'subtle' in their ability to overgrow our lives and smother out our Creator and Redeemer's design and purpose for us, without us realising.

Even more subtle is that these flowers are the only flowers in some local yards, so for our gardener such flowers are not only 'allowed' but they are desired and in his home garden such flowers may fulfil his garden design. In our lives, we have to remember that the priorities in some areas of our lives which may be fine for one person, may not be God's plan for the next person. So these issues are subtle.

What about you?….what are the weeds in your life?….but also what are the grasses and flowers in your life that need closer watching if you are to truly be and become all that God desires for you?

Quiet Surprises

God has a way of surprising us quietly - in ways we least expect. Sometimes those surprises are profound and others are just quiet reminders of the Creator’s blessings and presence.

There have been several occasions since moving to this house where I have spotted things in God’s creation which I did not necessarily expect to see now that we were no longer living in the bush and were now in the village context where trees are fewer and yards are swept to the dirt.

But not only have there been some times to still spot things I thought I would not see, but there have been new critters and bugs to see. Here are some of those for you to enjoy, and with me, once again praise the Creator!

A few weeks back I was reclining on the bed looking out the window, from where I can see the top of the wall of the neighbour’s yard across the lane-way…and I saw a movement. Something was scurrying across the top of the wall. I looked more closely and….

I had only ever seen the male lizard (the more colourful one with the brighter blue head and yellow tail) while living in the bush house, but here were a Mr and Mrs….with Mrs playing hard to get!  Periodically they would both pause their running up and down along the top of the wall - guess they both just needed to rest and catch their breath! They were really fun to watch.

Then of course there have been still some butterflies - no not as many as the bush house but still more than I expected to see and have visit this garden. Here’s one from a couple of days back.

Then today there was another surprise - a huge colourful spider I had not ever seen before up under the edge of the carport roof - relaxing in the middle of his HUGE web. From tip of front leg to tip of back leg it was about the size of a saucer!

I had to ‘look him up on google’….only to discover ‘he’ is probably a ‘she’ - as unlike the lizard and much of the animal kingdom, the female is the large colourful one and apparently the male is smaller and not as colourful! 

So she is a Banded-legged golden orb-web spider or scientifically  a 'Nephila senegalensis’. She too was fun to watch - and wow could she move fast when she spotted a bug of some kind about 30cm from her centre-web lookout position. And after grabbing it and reversing as similar quick speed back to her centre spot, she enjoyed her afternoon tiny snack - holding it with her little orange ‘hands’, and then went back to her relaxed position awaiting the next unsuspecting bug!

And I once again was caused to stand in awe of our amazing God and Creator!

A Few Reminders From Mr and Mrs Sparrow

Sometimes the ordinary things in life can give us quick little lessons or encouragements, and that was the case in the yard a couple of days ago when I watched two little Cape Sparrows on our boundary wall.

We had had some rain storms and many birds were out and about happily preening themselves, and among them were these... who I will call 'Mr and Mrs Sparrow'.

As they moved around the wall, and I snapped a few pics, it was interesting to see how they stayed ‘together’ side by side. 

Reminded me of marriage and weathering storms together and coming out the other side still ‘together’, and that if God cares for sparrows, how much more he cares for us (Matt 10:29)

Even when one turned around and faced the other direction they still stayed ‘together’ - 

Reminded me that in marriage we can be taking different perspectives on things or focusing on different issues, but still be together, supporting each other.

One of them (the male) was more busy preening himself after the rain and the female just sat quietly and waited as he stretched out his wings or fluffed his feathers to rid himself of excess water.

Reminded me that in marriage as one is busy or needy the other one can sometimes best help just by ‘being there’ and patiently waiting. 

Sometimes they weren’t up as close to each other as other times, but they were still obviously very much ‘together’

Reminded me that there are always times in marriage where we have to give each other ‘space’, but yet we are still very much together in heart and our loyalty and love is still for our mate rather then flying off with the crowd.

This pic below was actually of the male still preening but with both their heads down it... 

Reminded me that the key to a good marriage is…heads bowed in prayer toward God. Dependance on God and keeping him front and centre is more important than anything else.

Whatever one of them was doing, these two little birds just seemed so content and happy to just be together, side by side facing the world, with their Creator’s eye watching their every move.

Reminded me that, not least in pandemic years, we need not fear, because if our Creator cares for sparrows, 

how much more does our Heavenly Father care and watch over us and our marriage, and our lives in general.

Life Lessons from ... African Vervet Monkeys

Last blog post I talked about how despite the trials of of living in the African bush…there are joys…but today I want to highlight one of the trials, but how even the trials are tools in God's hands for teaching me!!

One of the trials is…monkeys!

When people come to visit us and see the monkeys, they get all excited about seeing monkeys in the wild.

But we don't get so excited when a troop of monkeys visit.

You see, their visits are like a noisy tornado coming through. They thunder across the roof and swing through the trees and jump all over the porch furniture, pull off the cushions, and continue on their demolishing exercises across the pot plants and garden.

Yes it is that bad. We get used to the thundering across the roof, but we have never got used to the destruction they bring. We were glad to learn that they hate water so if we are home, the quickest way to get rid of them is to squirt water at them or quickly turn on a hose.

This brings me to the first lesson from monkeys about the way 'not' to live life! …but I will express it in the positive…

DO teach your kids!

Verses like Deuteronomy  11:9 remind us to be sure to teach our children diligently the things of the Lord.

You see in monkey-land, parents don't seem to teach their kids anything.  They raise them to weaning stage and then all the 'kids' born in that season in that area are pushed out to live life on their own.  So when the babies are born the mothers are kind of together raising their babies, but then its like the nursery gets abandoned and the kids form a new 'gang' of 'teenage' monkeys to find their own way in life.

So each generation 'teen-gang' comes through with no parents anywhere to be seen, and they test all kinds of leaves and plants, fruits and flowers, breaking them off or pulling up bulbs, biting into them and usually deciding they don't like their choice and subsequently throw it on the ground.  Eventually they decide after various attempts over time, what they do and don't like. But then that group have their babies and teach the 'kids' nothing of what they learnt. The kids just are 'free' to work it out themselves when the time comes…and thus wreck a whole heap of further havoc before they work out what they do and don't like. 

Here's an example:

These plants look lovely in the little red wagon on our porch, but take a closer look and you find…..

The chives have been 'hacked'

and just left lying around on the ground after these monkeys all have a taste and decide they don't like it afterall!

Not teaching our kids, or thinking that letting them be 'free' to discover what works or not in life, all on their own, is not only unloving (as it puts them through unecessary  pain and heartache which also cheats them of time that could have been used for more constructive development), it is socially and environmentally damaging.  It affects more and hinders more and damages more than just themselves.

God sees everything, we can't hide from him

So often when we go out to 'squirt' the monkeys, even before we have done anything, they will tuck their heads behind a tree or wall or edge of the roof, (while the rest of their body is sticking out), thinking we can't see them. (I wish I had a photo of it, but I'm usually too busy trying to chase them away!) Like it is so often with children, when they can't see you, they think you can't see them!

But when we live hoping to just hide our wicked ways for now, until we think no-one is watching, we show ourselves to be the fools in the long run.  Either our sin will find us out, or we will discover in this day and age that someone was recording or filming on a smart phone, or even if none of this occurs, one day God will reveal all that has been done in private.

And those who think that ignoring God and blocking him out of their vision, somehow ceases to make him exist, are just showing the reality of the Scripture that says 'The fool has said in his heart "There is no God"' (Psalm 14:1) .

There is a Latin Phrase 'Coram Deo', which simply means 'before the face of God' that is worth remembering - we should live every moment in a way that acknowledges God, and that he sees us and everything we do and even think. We are to live so honouring him that we have no fear to be fully exposed and open before him, not hiding like Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. While fear of his displeasure/disapproval should never be far from our minds, his presence should be a comfort to us and a reminder of his love. 

Let's not be like monkeys!

Hope for this September Day at the Edge of the Kalahari

Well today is the day when we have equal time of exactly day and night here on the edge of the Kalahari Desert - sunrise is 6.10am and sunset is 6.10 pm!

But it is also about the middle of September which, in Australia I was taught was the month that marked the beginning of Spring!  It is the season emerging from the cold of winter when all the plants start flowering and fresh green growth is sprouting everywhere!

It is supposed to be like an opposite of Autumn - known as 'Fall' in the USA, that comes before winter.

However, this year for us the weather seems a bit confused. 

We had a mild winter with unusual days of rain. And no days, as we usually would do, below zero degrees, and we only had one day that was almost zero degrees C.

So it wasn't until after the end of 'winter', and some warmer days were followed by a short but later 'colder snap' a couple weeks back at the beginning of September, that the leaves of the trees started to turn red and fall, carpeting the dirt and rocks beside our house in a carpet of beautiful colour.  

And it is only now that the tree outside our window and most other trees in the bush around us, have become basically leafless!

Spring is almost not a season at all here. We just skip it altogether!…especially this year it seems!

Instead, we go from 'winter' into 'windy', and 'windy' is 'hot windy'!  It is dust storms and super low humidity  (as you can see from the first photo above saying humidity as only 6% and since I took that screen capture on my phone it later dropped to 4%), and high temperatures! It's when you wash your hair and it is air-dry in just minutes and to get croutons you just leave bread on the counter for an hour!

Like today…

Maximum temperature 37 or 38 degrees C with single figures humidity in the afternoon. - same as yesterday - and predicted to continue for a few more days yet, before the Max temp. might drop a couple of degrees later in the week. Friends further north are already experiencing temperatures over the 41 degree celcius mark!  And even just the other side of the city from us registered 41 degrees!

And this is just the 'warm up' to summer itself!  October is usually the hottest month of the year! I think we are in for a scorcher!

But its good to be reminded that despite what we feel is topsy-turvy confusion with the seasons, and the world's fears of 'climate change', our hope and trust is not in what 'looks confusing', but we can press on in peace with our hope and trust in the Creator. We don't have to fret and worry about 'what will become of us'?  We can go into the day, the week, the year, the future, with confidence knowing that our times and the seasons are in His hand. Our hope is secured in eternity in Christ.

Whether the day is hot, cold, cold, windy, dry, wet, or whether leaves are falling at the expected time or not, we can trust in the Lord.

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD;

 I will take joy in the God of my salvation. 

Habakkuk 3:17-18

A Thai cave rescue plan & a Whole World eternal sin rescue plan

photo credit: screenshot Evening Standard

The world is watching and waiting with baited breath along with the parents and families of 12 boys of a Thai soccer team and their coach, who went on a hike down some caves in a remote area of northern Thailand on the 23rd June, unaware that heavy rain was going to suddenly cause flash flooding and trap them inside the cave. 

For 10 days they were missing. Experts rallied from around the world to try to search for the boys. Two highly experienced volunteer British cave divers were the first to reach the boys and discover they were all still alive and in relatively good shape. 

A British television presenter made the following comment:

The world at the moment seems dominated at the moment by cruel and confusing and loud cycles of news. These stories speak to a hope that out of gloom, a quiet unassuming stranger will emerge, someone who actually knows what they are doing, someone who will rescue us from the darkness.

Now there is the issue of getting these young boys out. But those boys were so thankful for those two divers who made the first contact and brought them news, food and encouragement and hope.

We don't know what the end of this story for all the boys will be (although just as I am about to post this, it has been confirmed that four of the boys are now out!), but we do know that on a far greater level, another unassuming stranger emerged from the gloom of our world over 2000 years ago, who knew what he was doing, in order to rescue us from a much greater spiritual darkness.  

Just like these boys, humanity is in a hopeless and helpless situation unable to save ourselves. We need to totally rely on the direction and ability of another. These boys not only have no diving experience, some of them can't even swim. They have to totally put themselves in the hands of another if there is any chance of them getting out and being rescued.

As the rescue process began cave diving expert Dr Rogers spoke to ABC News 24 and gave some thoughts on the rescue process:

He said he doesn't think the boys will be expected to do anything during the operation — the expert divers will take care of everything.

"I don't believe the kids will be doing anything. They won't be swimming. They may not even have fins on. The expert diver [will] have a minimum of two independent air supplies on them, I suspect they will be carrying another bottle as well, but they will know the distances of all the sumps [underwater flooded sections] and there's spare bottles they can pick up."

Dr Rogers said the boys will hold on to the back of the expert diver and will be wearing masks. 

People in our world are looking for who can rescue them from the mess they can see, but the mess is far greater than that. They need Jesus Christ who can rescue them from the mess of our hearts not just the mess of our circumstances, and not just on a temporary scale, but on an eternal scale! We can do nothing to save ourselves, We need Jesus. Once we understand our dire predicament and have had the only answer explained to us,... we have to be willing, and trust his ability and plan, and give ourselves to him, by faith, despite our uncertainties and inability to comprehend it all,... but he does it all.

When the boys were initially found it was thought they might be able to wait out the wet season and walk out on their own. But while their own walking steps got them trapped, their own walking steps were not going to get them out. Time was limited. Waiting in hope was a false hope. An urgent rescue plan had to be completed.

Just like those boys, the rescuer has come, but if we want to be rescued we have to entrust and enjoin ourselves to the rescuer to bring us fully to the completion of the rescue. While the successful rescue of each boy is not something this human rescue operation can guarantee, our eternal rescue is guaranteed if we are willing to entrust ourselves to the eternal rescuer.

Maybe you can use this situation that has the eyes of the world, as an opportunity to draw a parallel and lift the eyes of friends and neighbours to their need for a much greater rescue!

Pray that hearts will come to see their true need and that Jesus is their true rescuer not just from the darkness of a cave, or the darkness of our world's news, but the darkness of our own hearts and the deepest darkness and horror of an eternity without the 'light of the world'...

….and then pray and go into this dark world, bringing light to people's darkness.

note added 20 July 2018 - all the boys and coach were safely rescued from the cave - you might like to watch this Australian Four Corners program about it broadcast last Monday the 16th, including interviews with some of the rescue divers and this YouTube video of the press conference with the boys the day they left hospital, and an extra interview with the boy who served as the translater for the group in the cave when the British Divers arrived - because he had been taught English by the Pastor of the church that has been his home for the past 10 years as a Myanmar refugee!

A Leopard, and Zebras in our garden along with the Garden Inspector and a Policeman!....

No, not four footed or two footed varieties, but Butterflies!

Yes, more butterflies in God's amazing creative collection!

Some of them have rather interesting names!

Here is what is called the African Leopard since its markings remind you of the 'pussy-cat' of the same name!

and then, 

recently there have been many, which are called the 'Zebra White'

Here are some, with a Southern Sapphire (with closed wings) to the left.

And here's that rather regal looking  large 'Garden Inspector'!

and the Two-Pip Policeman

A couple of other 'new' large ones have been seen lately too, including this Bushveld Emporer,

and this Pearl Spotted Emporer

so named for its pearl spots on the underside of the wing

It is all beginning to sound monotonous, but it is true that I continue to be more and more amazed at God's creation, and thus in awe more and more of the Creator!

It's so easy to see a quick blurr in the sky and either ignore it or just momentarily think 'a butterfly' and go no further than that, but that blurr is a huge variety of magnificiently decorated signposts to the Creator - signposts that we usually miss.

What other signposts does God have around me to increase my awe of Him, my joy in Him and thus my worship of Him, signposts that I am missing?

What signposts are you missing?

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas - it just came one month early!

When we first came to Botswana, we were told that sometimes it gets so cold that it can even snow!  We thought that was amazing but a little surprising.

After being here for some time we came to understand that statement a little more.

No, it doesn't really snow here.  But sometimes it can hail so much that it looks like snow……and we discovered the locals call it 'snow'.

….And yesterday was one of those days!

Once again our bush turned white and on the 25th November exactly one month before Christmas, as I looked out across our garden and the wider hillside, and the first thought that came to mind was 'I'm dreaming of a white Christmas'!

And even after several hours and the sun coming out, the hail was so deep that the bush had its blanket of white for many hours!

In fact it took almost 24 hours for all the ice to melt as in many places it was 5-10cm thick or more.

As the rain cleared and the snow began to melt, another colour change occured - this time the trees reduced in their intensity of green and the ground gained the colour green!

Many leaves had been stripped from trees, or like the frangipani, ripped to pieces, and were now all over the ground!

We even gained a temporary slightly 'green lawn' instead of dirt!

While a white Christmas of real snow is not going to be a wish granted while living in Botswana, we have enjoyed the Botswana version of 'snow'!

Honouring God with our Senses - Part 2

Enjoyment of a good thing can become a bad thing when desire for it overtakes desire for God, or our desire for it turns into a demand. We can be easily persuaded that the 'best' thing to do, is to avoid it all-together.  But while that might appear to be the 'easiest' way to handle the risk of over-indulgence or wrong indulgence of our senses , it may not be the biblical or the 'best' way….. 

Now, I'm not advocating the deliberate courting of temptation, but I am concerned that I can easily employ my own 'system' of resisting temptation by an extreme 'pendulum swing' rather than relying on Christ to enable me to resist extremes.  

The 'best' thing is to work at keeping balance, at exercising self-control, at taking every thought captive and testing/discerning all of life.  But its also the hardest thing to do.

Another way of looking at this is that we very rarely put equal 'weight' on both ends of an issue - we tend to emphasise one over the other in the process of our 'over-reactionary pendulum swing'.  

We have to work hard to give equal 'weight' to each side - a bit like a perfectly matched tug of war that doesn't succeed in being pulled in either direction. The position is not idle or passive but equally active and strong on each end.  Shall we say: 'anti-sin' on one side, but equally 'pro-righteousness' on the other side. In life we find that very hard to do. 

Though it might be hard, it is the required reality for the great part of our Christian walk and I know it will also be the road to experiencing the most joy in what God wants us to experience, and if it is the right way, it is the choice for which we will have the strength of the Holy Spirit......so.....

Though our five senses may be avenues of temptation, before there was sin in this world, God graciously and lovingly gave us our senses as gifts  - and I want to ponder on each, one by one and take the time to enjoy the gifts God has given in our senses. Part of honouring God is worshipping Him with our thankfulness.   

Join with me in focusing on the blessing of our senses and rejoicing in God's wonderful love toward us - saying THANKYOU with me....for….

Sight

What a wonderful gift we have to be able to see.  Just ask someone who is blind.  We can see where to walk, we can see to make sure we choose clothes that match, we can see to operate machines, we can see to enjoy the beauty of flowers, animals, ocean views, electrical storms, brilliant sunrises, a baby's smile and a beautiful bride.  

It is so easy to take for granted the things we can see on a daily basis and the way God has lavishly and over abundantly coloured our world - He could have made it all grey!  Think how 'down' we get after a few days of 'grey weather', but imagine if in our whole life we only ever saw all of life in our world like a B&W photo. 

Scripture likens our salvation to the wonder that it would be to be blind and then to see!

Thank you Lord for SIGHT

Hearing

What a wonderful gift we have to be able to hear.  Just ask someone who is deaf.  We can hear a child's first words, we can hear the songs of birds or a beautiful choir or the rich sounds of a cello or bold sounds of a trumpet or the delicate sounds of an African thumb piano.  We can hear singing, clapping, running streams and pounding waves at the beach or the wind rustling through the leaves on the tree.  As I type I recall the 'thunder' of the sound of the water flowing over the mighty Victoria Falls.  

Hearing is so crucial to our ability to learn and communicate.  

God tells us that if we have ears to hear, we need to be taking time to 'hear' Him.  Scripture also tells us that it is through 'hearing' the gospel that we can be saved.

What can you add to the list....?

Thank you Lord for HEARING

Smell

But what a wonderful gift of smell we have been given. Maybe you don't know anyone who has lost their sense of smell - but it can happen.  It's hard to imagine a world in which there was no pleasant aroma - the smell of a rose, of a roast dinner cooking, of a freshly washed and powdered baby, of the freshness of sun-dried cotton bed sheets, of the wind blowing through the leaves of a lemon scented gum tree or a port wine magnolia bush or our jasmine, or as the leaf of a lavender bush is crushed, or the rind of a lemon is grated.  

I remember the time my husband had an inhalation burn when some gas exploded in a kitchen he was cooking in a few years ago and it damaged (thankfully only temporarily) his nasal passages and caused a loss of sense of smell - not good for a 'chef'! Aromas can make us feel physically sick/nauseous or make us feel relaxed or happy.  Aromatherapy is used in homes and hospitals, in shops and offices. 

God even tells us that our lives are an aroma - we can be a sweet smelling aroma to Him.  We can also be the aroma of life or death to those around us.

What can you add to the list...?

Thank you Lord for SMELL

Taste

How often when we give thanks for a meal do we thank God for the ability to taste it and thus enjoy it!  I remember hearing of someone who no longer had a sense of taste and how much of a horrible chore it was to eat!  God has given us tastebuds so we can actually enjoy the process of eating!  We can enjoy flavours and blends of flavours and have it spur us on to cook all the wonderful food God has given us on this earth, in endlessly creative ways.  Let's praise Him for the ability to taste a sweet cheesecake or a fresh apple or juicy mango or BBQ chicken or grilled steak or the rich sauce of Beef Strogonoff or the spice of an Indian curry or the  blend of flavours on a pizza or the tang of a grapefruit or the bitter delight of dark chocolate or the creaminess of ice-cream or the saltiness of hot chips.  

God uses this understanding of ours about taste to tells us to 'taste and see that the Lord is good'.

What can you add to the list...?

Thank you Lord for TASTE

Touch

What a wonderful gift we have been given with the sense of touch - just ask someone who has leprosy or has been in solitary confinement.  We can touch a starfish at a marine park or pat a dog or stroke a kitten or knead dough,  or feel the warmth of a bath, the holding of a hand or the pat on the back from a friend.  We can feel the softness of a newborn baby's skin or the prickles of a pineapple or wet sand between our toes at the beach or the rough bark of a tree. Touch is also an interesting sense in that is seems to have an extra dimension to it - an emotional and physical well-being dimension. 

Something like massage can actually have physically positive effects on our health and it has been shown that a person's physical well-being is better when they are touched - such that it is ensured that even prematurely born babies now are given as much touch as possible and people in old age homes, cancer and dementia patients have been known to do much better when they can enjoy touch, whether its a hug or patting a dog. I have even found personally with my POTS issues that a gentle stroking touch can lower my heart rate.  

Touch is also the only sense which is enjoyed over the entire body - all the other senses have their 'receptor' on the head/face.

The sense of touch can definitely also be a very real means of protection as it is through touch that we know if something is so hot that it will burn us or too sharp that it will cut us. Linked to the sense of touch is also the sense of pain. (Doctor to leprosy patients Dr Paul Brand once wrote a book   'The Gift of Pain', because we can suffer major damage when we can't feel pain)  

But also linked to the sense of touch is the sense of pleasure.  Touch as a hug or cuddle or squeeze or grasp of the hand or arm around the shoulder can communicate volumes of love to another person, and be received as strong communication from another person. God made us to enjoy, give and receive touch from each other, although of course in appropriate ways that will differ from whether its from a spouse or a parent to a friend or an acquaintance or a stranger.  But none-the-less touch is not something to avoid but to embrace (no pun intended!) 

Jesus' ministry was full of 'touch' and leaves us with an example to follow - especially touching those who the world considered 'untouchable' and blessing them with love and compassion, and the honour of acceptance and love.  

What can you add to the list....?

Thank you Lord for TOUCH.

What an amazing God we have who has blessed us so wonderfully by giving us these five senses to enjoy the world He has given, and give us even greater cause to praise and honour Him!!