Survivors by His Grace

It was exactly two years yesterday we survived a fire incidence at our residence.  Casting my mind back to that day, I cannot but give God the glory.  It started about 5pm, not long after the children returned home from school.  Of course mummy and daddy were not back home from work at this time. 

The fire had started from the adjacent apartment and was not noticed until it had hit the roof.  The children were totally oblivious of the impending danger, engrossed in their various activities.  Whilst the youngest was glued to TV, the oldest was studying and my other daughter peacefully having siesta up in her room – whilst the roof had caught fire!  Neighbours banged the gate vigorously, shouting to alert whoever was home that the house was on fire. Thank God the children came out unhurt, it just did not matter what was left in the fire, the children survived to the glory of God!

I can remember I was really happy that day, closing from work rather early, about 5.30pm, only to get near home and meet everywhere in chaos.  People were out on the street in their hundreds and the road was impassable.  Not immediately aware that an incidence at my residence was the reason for the chaos, I jumped out of the car about to wade through the crowd to find out what exactly was wrong.  Only then did I remember by mobile phone which incidentally had been on silent mode with countless missed calls recorded.  My heart skipped a bit as I received my Husband’s call – Where are you?  Come home now, the house is on fire. I can recall muttering softly, the children? And he said, they are safe and with me.  That was all I needed to hear.  My heart soared in gratitude I couldn’t express. I rushed to where they were and embraced them.  We wasted no further time but left the venue just as we were to a safe place we could find to rest our heads.  Then I opened my Bible and was comforted in His words ...

Isa 43:1-2

But now, thus says the LORD, who created you, O Jacob,

And He who formed you, O Israel:

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by your name;

You are Mine.

2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.

When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,

Nor shall the flame scorch you.

Prayer Point:  Bless the Lord O my soul, bless the Lord forever more.  Bless the name of the Lord most High, the fourth man in the fire, who appears to safe His chosen ones from all dangers.  Many have passed this route, but their stories are different.  I bless the Lord who has saved us by His Grace.

Psalm 116 v 8 'For you o Lord have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears and my feet from stumbling'

How can I thank you Lord?

God give us Christian homes!

1. God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the Bible is loved and taught,
Homes where the Master's will is sought,
Homes crowned with beauty Your love has wrought;
God, give us Christian homes;
God, give us Christian homes!

2. God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the father is true and strong,
Homes that are free from the blight of wrong,
Homes that are joyous with love and song;
God, give us Christian homes,
God, give us Christian homes!

3. God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the mother, in caring quest,
Strives to show others Your way is best,
Homes where the Lord is an honored guest;
God, give us Christian homes,
God, give us Christian homes!

4. God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the children are led to know
Christ in His beauty who loves them so,
Homes where the altar fires burn and glow;
God, give us Christian homes,
God, give us Christian homes!

Author: Baylus Benjamin McKinney

As for me and my household . . .

It is good to declare your stand like a Joshua ‘ .....as for me and my household, we shall serve the Lord.  Joshua 24:15b.  It however takes the grace of God and perhaps a lot of discipline and determination from you to sustain it.  In our busy schedules today, we may find that this might be a bit of struggle if care is not taken, as we hurry to get out early to go to work, and we stay extended hours at work and traffic; often getting home late and tired.  But why is it so important to carry your household along in the worship of God?

In Gen 18:19, God reasoned concerning Abraham ‘’For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and justice, that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him."   God surely expects that we should ‘command’ our households after Him.  Remember in 1^st Samuel 2&3, Eli paid dearly for not succeeding in commanding his children after God.  God must really consider this very important.

Remember your household consist of not just your children, but everyone staying with you in your home, including your maids. 

In Gen 35:2 Jacob commanded his household ‘’And Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments’’

We need to command our households after God in obedience to God’s expectations and also to avoid the wrath of God, but importantly that we also may have peace in our homes!

How can we serve the Lord with our households?

-          Ensuring steady, regular family devotion

-          Ensuring the entire family is committed to a local Bible preaching Church where you fellowship regularly

-          Living daily by the dictates of God in His Word

Is your salvation really complete if the rest of your household still wallow in darkness?

Prayer Point: O Lord help me not to fail you in respect of my household.  Help me to take charge and command my household after you daily in Jesus name.

The 'haven' called family

I seem to have an unquenchable passion for a good family life that keeps me examining the topic ‘family’ like I have been assigned a project in school.  The word ‘family’ denotes closeness, affinity, kindred, blood tie, just the very next to self; the primary unit that forms the bedrock of the society.  If you cannot find peace, comfort and joy at home with family, then where else?

It is quite easy to take family jolly union for granted, like it is the very least you should expect from every home, after all, these are a bunch of people closely connected to each other by blood.  But unfortunately, not every family experience that bliss, that warmth, that joy that one should ordinarily enjoy from an ideal family life.  This really is the crux of the matter.  Why do we have troubled homes? Why are families in disarray?  Why do parents find it difficult communicating with their children?  Why do children ignore their parents and choose to live their lives as they please?  There are so many questions I ponder about as I see these anomalies all around. 

Whilst money is good to have and may provide some necessities and comfort for the family, it may be surprising that money is not the most critical factor to a happy family life.  Even the poor and trodden can enjoy family love, whilst many ‘rich’ homes wallow in pain and distrust for one another.  Then what are those essential ingredients for a happy family life?

Psalm 127:1 says ‘Unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain that builds it; unless the Lord guards the City, the watchmen stays awake in vain’

Perhaps there are many ‘ingredients’ to a happy and successful home, but I have found that the very first requirement is inviting Jesus to help build our homes.  Learning and following His dictates every day.  It is important to ensure that the children are introduced to the word of God early and are carried along in the daily worship, establishing a family altar where the family prays together and where the children develop in the fear of the Lord.  Remember, a family that prays together, stay together.   

A family where JESUS is the architect and the builder is a safe haven.

Prayer point:  O Lord, we invite you into our home today.  Take your place Lord.  Be Lord over our home, over our children, over our lives.  Help us o Lord to build a happy and successful home in Jesus name.

Thank you JESUS

Today marks my 16th year wedding anniversary and I just want to bless the name of the Lord for His abundant love that we have enjoyed through the years.  It has been most rewarding committing this life time journey unto His able hands, having His assurance in the first place to move on, and looking unto Him day by day for direction and grace.  Thank you JESUS for the journey so far and thank you for the greater joy you have in store for the future.  I love you LORD.

Mummy-Daddy alignment

I have found out that children can be really ‘smart’ sometimes.  They are able to watch mummy and daddy’s personalities and know what they can get away with, either with mummy or daddy.  They would have had their chance to test the limits and they certainly have a good idea what daddy will be disposed to and what he will definitely frown at (and vice versa).

I have observed one or two of my children will usually go to daddy to ask for permission for those ‘extras’ knowing mummy will say NO, should they ask mummy directly.  Once I begin to make enquiries, they are quick to say oh, I asked daddy, he said I could have it.  For instance my daughter once asked me ‘mummy, can I go to my friend’s place today?’   I said NO, I think you should stay at home today; you were at your friend’s place only a few days back.  Then once I left the house, she simply asked daddy the same question.  Daddy not knowing mummy said NO earlier, simply said YES you can and hurray, off she went feeling quite satisfied that she could always say she had daddy’s permission, should mummy ask.   Also, if she knew daddy was a spend thrift; she will rather go shopping with daddy alone when mummy is not in sight to ring the caution bells and cut off ‘excesses’.

To ensure this doesn’t continue, we simply decided to spell out the rules!  We made the children understand that once either mummy or daddy say NO to any request, then it is wrong (infact manipulative) to seek a second opinion without checking a second time with the first.  Also as parents, we decided to check more with ourselves, unify our stand before consenting to some of these requests and largely, these have helped.

We also realize that the child tends to have a special liking to a parent they consider very flexible and draws back a bit from the parent they see as ‘strict’.  But this balance is particularly good for the child, because either of the extremes will probably drive the child the wrong way.  As the child matures anyway, he will realize that the stricter parent is not necessarily wicked, but takes those ‘strict’ measures in love only to ensure the right balance.

In all, I have found that proper mummy-daddy alignment will provide the needed balance for the child and stir the child to the right direction.

Prayer point: O Lord, help us as parents to be able to speak to our children with one voice and stir them towards the right direction in life, amen in Jesus name.

Proverbs 30:17 ‘The eye that mocks a father, that scorns obedience to a mother, will be pecked out by the ravens of a valley, will be eaten by the vultures’

Seed of discord

It is interesting to note that no two individuals are quite the same in entirety, even children born from the same womb.  One child might have a more endearing character than the other, or be much smarter than the other.  A child may just be more useful around the house than another. There just might be that tendency for a parent to be very much impressed by a particular child for whatever reason(s) and perhaps unconsciously develop a special liking towards this particular child.

Even in the Bible days, we saw this happen in the case of Esau and Jacob (Genesis 25 from verse 24), where the father loved Esau and the mother loved Jacob. Whilst the father craved to specially bless his favourite child, the blessing was usurped by the other child. A seed of discord was sown between the two brothers.

Also in Genesis 37, we saw that Jacob loved Joseph more than all his other sons and always treated him as special.  He often stayed at home whilst his brothers were out working and he had his father’s keen attention and got all the special gifts, including his favourite multicolour coat.  This brewed a lot of envy from his brothers and eventually landed him a slave job in a strange land!

Once a parent develops a special liking towards a particular child more than the others, other children can decipher that more easily than we think.  You probably give yourself away by little acts you may take for granted.  Sometimes, we are quick to make a comparison; your brother will never have done that, if only you could be as smart as your sister.... All of these honestly do not go very well with children.  What you are doing unconsciously is sewing a seed of discord, setting up the stage for envy.  Also, you might be killing the other child’s self esteem.  He might just be feeling unloved or feeling like a no good.  We need to watch it!

The better thing to do is to recognise that no two children will be exactly the same and every child has something good to offer, if only we would pay attention to identify that ‘good’.  We need to commend our children for the good virtues they have and try to help them work on their weaknesses.  These will help the child bring out his best and create a better atmosphere for unity.

I think we should make conscious attempt not to display favouritism, should such exist and try our very best to carry our children along equally.

Prayer point: O Lord, help me to love my children equally and not sew a seed of discord amongst them by way of my actions or inactions.  Help my children to grow in unity, loving and supporting one another in Jesus name.  Amen.