When the World forces you to make a judgement, prayer gives you the benefit of the doubt

There is this guy, that comes to the door everyday. Not a beggar and not homeless,  just someone trying to...make ends meet, for lack of a better phrase.  Day by day my mom makes him a sandwich,  and on the odd occasion succumbs to the  request of any loose change.

The reality is that our neighborhood, and avenue in particular, is thoroughfare for often less savoury pedestrian traffic.  There are a few regulars at the door, but this one in particular bothers me. Perhaps it's the way he is getting too comfortable with our dog, or the persistence of his 'visits', but with the already intimidating field across the road we are not to keen on visitors with 'regular' hours. 

It's not his jail tattoos, I come from the rough side of the tracks and melted zombie drawings don't scare me easily,  if anything I'm suprised that I don't have sympathy for the this mature ex-con who may have outgrown his ways but not his connections.

But day by day this man comes, and day by day he leaves with something.  

I yearn for electrical fencing and a gate with no intercom but that would be turning blessings away at the gate. Each time a stranger walks through those posts with more than what he or she came with, this home receives another blessing,  the type that comes with giving because you want to, and for no other reason. 

For every stranger that knocks on the door or rings the bell, a judgement must be made. Honour the request, honour the request within limits (ie a peanut butter sandwich versus a Polony sandwich), deny the request with hopes of no return. The weighing process in South Africa is complex, be nice and maybe they won't break in? Be mean and maybe they will get the picture and never come back. Or maybe they'll get angry and get even.

I've heard that I think too much - this might be true. 

But I have a solution to my turmoil; alas, answers can always be found in God's word. In Matthew 10:40-42, we learn that we will be rewarded for accepting those whom the Lord has sent. The only problem is, that we have no way of knowing who sent who. The Bible teaches us to be alert but the Lord himself tells us that I when I come be ready for me.

We don't know who God will send and we won't know when he will manifest flesh and knock on our door or ring our bell. All we know is that he has taught us to love everyone,  he has given us a spirit of giving,  he has taught us share what we have, and promised to be beside us every step of the way.

When we need to make a 'judgement' we can be sure of the following,  either God has sent you my way, or he will lead you out.  When in doubt pray, and God will lead the way.

http://youtu.be/YhfN0LHVUV4

When the wind blows

It's Sunday night, well, Monday morning 00:12 and I am where I usually am at this hour. Tonight is a little bit worse because the wind is blowing.

Sleep has been coming hard to me lately,  and on nights like these I incorporate the new world with the old, to help me find some peace and sleep. 

Our country is crime ridden and it disturbs me and I fear for the night that I wake up to a stranger in my house. But on these nights I log onto pinterest and search for key words and the little phrases I find do not only help me into the night, they often help me into the next day. 

I will start with the first and most practical scenario:

The method:

...and the rationale:

 

In our lives scripture can remind us about important things. Like that fact that worrying won't make anything better or make anything go away. Faith is our only option as Christ is our saviour if only we'd let it be.

The reality is that things will happen. But we need to remember that God loves us in ways that we cannot fathom and he has plans for every one of us.

At night we must sleep to give tomorrow our very best, as the day thereafter,  and the day after that.  

And then like clockwork the next morning we rise...

I am grateful to God for the gift of my life.
I will praise him, worship him, and give him thanks.

As I close my eyes tonight I will...

Goodnight World <3