Yesterday I had a phone call from my parents in Zimbabwe, its always a joy to hear from them and to know that they are well! This time they told me some news which tugged at my heart strings and made me hurt so much for the people I love who are still in a country which is run and controlled by greed, hate, hunger, poverty and racism. Sometimes it feels so surreal to be away from that, safe from the intimidation, violence and safe from the fear that it all places in the hearts of those it surrounds! So a family member was attacked and robbed by six men who beat him up quite severely at a lay by on a journey..he ended up in hospital - and I am praising God so much that he is ok, and I am thinking of what a heart wrenching experience this must have been for his wife and kids when they heard what had happened to him. But earlier on the same day that I had received this news, I also heard in church that someone had become a Christian. The joy of that news,about someone I barely knew very much overshadowed the horrible news of the crime and pain caused against a family member, whom I grew up knowing. And although I am hurting for the people affected, I am also buzzing with excitement about the new member of our christian family! Thats because as a christian I think there is nothing more comforting than knowing that we do not belong on this earth, this is not our final destination! We will one day be in glory, and I want as many people as possible to know that comfort, that security, that joy!! It reminded me of this passage:
Phil 3:17-21 - Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.I long for the day when we are all spared this kind of pain, when everything will be new and there will be no more suffering, no more hunger and sadness! I long for heaven, the perfect kingdom we are promised! BUT the more I long for it, the more I appreciate these days of pain and suffering...because the longer I spend on this earth, amidst the hatred, greed and pain - the more opportunity it gives me to tell people the truth, and by Gods grace, that would mean that more and more people will become citizens of heaven! So I find myself not wishing the pain and suffering of life would end, but that God would give me, and other christians, the strength to go on, the will to keep shining and the words needed in every situation, in order that we can clearly communicate the gospel and Gods love in a time when people are becoming more and more aware of their need for 'something more'! What an awesome opportunity God has given us, He has given us the incredibly precious gift of time...and we should choose not to see it as a burden, but rather as a blessing. Every day we come into contact with people who need to know the love of God and be encouraged.
So while I am hurting, and others are hurting, and while the world is an awful wicked place... I am praising God for putting me here, and praising him for the gift of time, time to share his truth with as many people as possible before its too late! I just pray that He would give me the drive, strength and perseverance to do so even when my flesh wants to give up and give in!
I pray to for you all - that when you experience pain and suffering in your life, it would make you all the more eager to tell others of Him and what He has done for you!
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