Being God's Hands and Feet

Do you know that people are God's hands and feet? I have heard this message preached at various churches, on a few occasions. God, I am sure, does not want to see anyone who is lonely or hungry or in need of shelter and He will make sure to send people who can help when He is called upon to do so. But, was I perhaps the one He first sent to someone when I may have walked on by? This is a sobering thought. It is sobering because I may have been able to help someone who I let down and I may have let God down in the process and because perhaps I failed a test God gave me. How much sooner could change happen if we all take the first opportunity to help others? When we walk past hurting people or people in need, we miss opportunity to do God's work.

As with any subject, there is more than one way to view this topic, of course. Each one of us has finite resources to call upon, whether this be money or emotional resources or safety, and sometimes helping other people may place the helper in harm's way. We cannot help everyone we see in need or we would be a wreck ourselves.

Appearance versus Judging Appearance

Should you be mindful of your appearance for others or should others accept your appearance?

I heard a brief comment from the pulpit in a church recently that you must be aware of the way you dress and the haircut that you have and the way you present yourself in general, as all of this has an effect on the way other people react towards you, and essentially to be mindful of yourself out of respect and caring for others. 

The Art of Debate

Is truth absolute? Is truth a point of view? Is truth a factor of perception?

I recently observed someone's quest for truth about a subject in the Bible. He researched the subject extensively and watched many videos by different people posing individual points of view. What struck me is how the same subject could be approached from different angles by these different people, yet using the same Bible verses to back up what they were saying. How astounding that one person could say a verse meant one thing in support of the viewpoint and another person would take the same verse and use it to show it meant a totally opposing viewpoint. It seemed to me that, in some cases, subtle word play was used to twist meaning. I wondered if I may do the same thing unconsciously in writing this blog. I write about many subjects and write from my point of view as I understand things, and someone else may totally disagree with what I write and might phrase the same topic very differently, approaching the subject from a very different angle. Who is correct and is there such a thing as correct? Are these different viewpoints what is known as individual ethics?  Might this be viewed as subtle manipulation by an author to influence an audience's point of view? Is this the art of debate, to pose a compelling viewpoint of a subject from a particular angle?

Why IS Miss South Africa 2012 White? Actually, Why Not?

I read an article today called: "Why is Miss South Africa White?". Even though I am a White South African, I found I was also surprised to read that Miss South Africa is White. Oh no, I thought, how many White contestants were there, and I hope there were many Black contestants too?! You will see the comments of the article state the same surprise as an outcry against a White person winning a beauty contest to represent an African country.

Then I wondered the following about this beauty contest, which is purely hypothetical, as I don't know who entered Miss South Africa: if Miss South Africa has 7 Black contestants, 1 Indian contestant, 1 Coloured contestant, 1 Chinese contestant, and 1 White contestant, and all are South African citizens, must one of the Black contestants win? Why should I think this should be so? And what if the Indian person or the Coloured person or the Chinese person had won instead of a Black person or a White person? (though for BEE purposes (1), these people are classed as Black) Would there still be an outcry? Why are we dividing contestants in a beauty competition into race groups? If a Black person should win, then are the other contestants token entries only who are wasting their time trying? Why must the winner of any beauty contest be chosen on the basis of her colour?

Silence Means Consent!...Does It Really?

I have been told by many people that silence means consent. Consider the following example: Imagine you are listening to a complex conversation. The person rattles off facts and figures, and you vaguely listen as you think about what you are going to cook for dinner than evening. The next day the person posts on Facebook that she is so happy she has finally found someone who agrees with her, and she names you. Huh! You don't even remember any of the conversation! Or, should you have been paying closer attention to make sure you disagree when you do, and was the onus on you to make sure to correct any incorrect facts too?

Faith is an Individual Journey (Romans 14 World English Bible)

I have many lessons of my own to learn, and I know I can sometimes be too opinionated, yet, at the same time, I am searching for my own answers and truth. I love Romans 14 and the way this chapter sums up this oft struggle, showing how the main aim should be to walk by faith, and be led by the Spirit, and allow each person his or her own journey in Christ.

This version of Romans 14 is taken verbatim from The World English Bible:

A Friend of the World, or of God?

"Where do wars and fightings among you come from? Don't they come from your pleasures that war in your members? You lust, and don't have. You kill, covet, and can't obtain. You fight and make war. You don't have, because you don't ask. You ask, and don't receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it for your pleasures. You adulterers and adulteresses, don't you know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, "The Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously"? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Be subject therefore to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament, mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you.

Don't speak against one another, brothers. He who speaks against a brother and judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge. Only one is the lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge another?

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow let's go into this city, and spend a year there, trade, and make a profit." Whereas you don't know what your life will be like tomorrow. For what is your life? For you are a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away. For you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will both live, and do this or that." But now you glory in your boasting. All such boasting is evil. To him therefore who knows to do good, and doesn't do it, to him it is sin." (James 4 WEB)

Sing, Sing a Song

When I was about eleven or twelve years old, I remember hearing a song playing on the radio, and I was captivated by the voice I heard, which seemed to me somehow perfect. I hurried through to my parent's bedroom and lay on the bed and listened, spell bound. I found out that I was listening to the Carpenters and how I loved Karen Carpenter's voice. The Carpenter's songs gave me comfort over some tough times and I would later listen to their music for hours, over and over. I was saddened when I found out Karen Carpenter had died, which must have been only a short while before I discovered her singing. I became a collector of most of their CDs and records and knew most songs by heart.

One of the songs I enjoyed listening to was “Sing, Sing a Song”. The song, “Sing”, says to sing even if what you may sing is not good enough for anyone else to hear. How often do we listen to the opinions or advice of other people who tell us, for example, that we can't sing, or that we will never be good at something? Or we may tell ourselves this, not believing in our own abilities. Imagine if Karen Carpenter had decided not to sing because she was told she would never be successful or that she could not sing well enough? I am sure there may have been some detractors telling her this. Yet, the Carpenters were a very successful group. They might not have been liked by some people, but there were plenty of other people who did like them, millions in fact, including me, a teenager who loved their music when others my age were listening to a range of what would have been considered more suitable music for teenagers. Would Karen Carpenter have been a singer even if she thought she would never become world renowned? I am sure she would have carried on singing still, perhaps in a church or in smoke filled bars or at home alone.

Not everyone who sets out to be a singer may achieve any measure of success or become world famous, but the key is to follow your heart and do what you love to do and to do so in spite of opposition. We cannot know the path that lies ahead, we can only carry on walking down the road hoping we are aiming in the right direction. Use your God-given gifts with abandon and do what you love to do: Sing with joy. Paint with passion. Dance with merriment. Maybe you will be successful. Maybe you won't. You will certainly be happier when there is alignment between who you are and what you do and when you find and live your purpose. Be yourself.

The Veracity of Eye Witness Testimony

If you know there is an eye witness to a crime, would you believe the person's testimony? After all, the person saw what happened, right? What if that person was you?