From Daily Devotions of Solly Ozrovech

Filled With The Holy Spirit

Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them
(Jn 13:17)

The Holy Spirit transforms our faith into something that is practical and natural. Many people have a theory about the Christian faith, but relatively few put the doctrines of Christ into practise. Some people believe that Jesus was an idealist and that his doctrine is impractical. Others tried to live according to his principles, but later gave up in despair.

Jesus was a realist. He called ordinary people to become his apostles and disciples. He gave them his blessing and especially, his Holy Spirit when they were sent as ambassadors into a hostile world. They had to announce that the kingdom of God is hidden in the hearts of people and manifests in a dedicated life.

We, as modern disciples, have the enormous advantage of knowing that what the life of the Master has called us to is not experienced in our own strength and power, but in his power. Through the Holy Spirit, God enters our thoughts and spirits with a new standard of values and he proves that he can overcome our bitterness and hatred with the power of divine love. Those who claim that this is too idealistic attribute more power to hatred than love. Through the Spirit of God, love and faith can achieve anything.

A realistic and practical faith is not something you can achieve on your own. It is the Holy Spirit who reveals God in your life, and when he is in control of your life your witnessing becomes realistic and practical.

We should live as if we were going to live forever, yet at the back of our minds remember that our time is short. (Gerald Brenan)

I only wanted you - Author Unknown

They say memories are golden
well maybe that is true.
I never wanted memories,
I only wanted you.

A million times I needed you,
a million times I cried.
If love alone could have saved you
you never would have died.

In life I loved you dearly,
In death I love you still.
In my heart you hold a place
no one could ever fill.

If tears could build a stairway
and heartache make a lane,
I'd walk the path to heaven
and bring you back again.

Our family chain is broken,
and nothing seems the same.
But as God calls us one by one,
the chain will link again.

DUST IF YOU MUST - UNKNOWN AUTHOR

Dust if you must, but wouldn't it be better
To paint a picture, or write a letter,
Bake a cake, or plant a seed;
Ponder the difference between want and need?

Dust if you must, but there's not much time,
With rivers to swim, and mountains to climb;
Music to hear, and books to read;
Friends to cherish, and life to lead.

Dust if you must, but the world's out there
With the sun in your eyes, and the wind in your hair;
A flutter of snow, a shower of rain,
This day will not come around again.

Dust if you must, but bear in mind,
Old age will come and it's not kind.
And when you go (and go you must)
You, yourself, will make more dust.

Remember, a house becomes a home when you can write
"I love you" on the furniture.....

Drop a pebble in the water, just a splash, and itÂ’s gone;
But there's half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on,

Spreading, spreading from the center, flowing on out to sea.
And there is no way of telling where the end is going to be.

Drop a pebble in the water; in a minute you will forget,
But there's little waves a-flowing and there's ripples circling yet,

And those little waves a-flowing to a great big wave have grown;
You've disturbed a mighty river just by dropping in a stone.

Drop an unkind or careless word: in a minute it is gone;
But there's half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on,

They keep spreading, spreading, spreading from the center as they go,
And there is no way to stop them, once you've started the flow.

Drop an unkind or careless word: in a minute you forget;
But there's little waves a-flowing, and there's ripples circling yet.

And perhaps in some sad heart a mighty wave of tears you've stirred,
And disturbed a life that was happy where you dropped that unkind word.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness: just a flash and it is gone;
But there is half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on,

Bearing hope and joy and comfort on each splashing, dashing wave,
Till you wouldn't believe the volume of the one kind word you gave.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness: in a minute you will forget;
But there's gladness still a-swelling, and there's joy circling yet.

And you've rolled a wave of comfort whose sweet music can be heard,
Over miles and miles of water just by dropping one kind word.

When the storms of life beset us and we feel weÂ’re drifting down
Beneath the stormy waters of the problems that abound,
We should not be discouraged; we need only look above,
God has promised to be with us and enfold us in His love.

Our Lord does not intend for us to face these storms alone,
HeÂ’s here to offer comfort even while weÂ’re tossed and blown.
As winds of despair are blowing and waves of strife rise higher,
Remember He can still these storms with His glorious mighty power.

Our Lord will not desert us; HeÂ’ll be with us through it all.
We need to feel His presence even if we stumble and fall.
He is always here beside us and HeÂ’ll extend a helping hand,
We only need to grasp it and HeÂ’ll place us back on land.

God sometimes sends these storms of life to help us to discover
That even though they beat us down, HeÂ’ll help us to recover.
Our faith is sometimes tested with the storms of life we face,
It sometimes takes a little time, but His plan falls into place.

We grow in faith and character when we overcome these storms,
Learning discipline and humility with each prick of every thorn.
We learn to trust more fully and to never lose sight of hope,
For when we face the storms of life, God will toss the saving rope.

Sometimes I think when I'm alone how life can change so fast,
We realize so many times that nothing ever lasts.
When we are young it seems as if the world will never change,
The world just keeps on spinning and our lives don't rearrange.

When I was just a teenager my whole life was ahead,
Having fun and living life with nothing yet to dread.
Yes, I had some problems but I never dwelt on sorrow,
I knew then that everything would work out by tomorrow.

Then I reached my twenties and I felt that I was grown,
I could handle anything in my direction thrown.
I had my life ahead of me and nothing in my way,
I was so enjoying life in work and also play.

Then I reached my thirties and my outlook changed again,
Now the world was not so carefree as it once had been.
New responsibilities became a part of life,
Caring for a family now my children and my wife.

Then a new horizon loomed as I reached middle age,
I then paid more attention to the headlines on the page.
I was so much more aware of worldly news events,
Middle age awakened me to such a broader sense.

The carefree life I knew was gone of being worry free,
Suddenly it seems that all events affected me.
Worry of a world gone mad and worries of myself,
Worries of a stable life and worries of my health.

Worries of the future and just what it all will be,
Worries of the ones I love that mean so much to me.
Worry will not help a thing it only hinders health,
But it seems as I get older I can't help myself.

So as I sit and watch the world that has raced by so fast,
I crave to have that carefree youth that I had in my past.
As the years pile up on me they stop me in my tracks,
Making me just realize what this old world still lacks.

It lacks the love of life we had when we were young and free,
It lacks the human kindness that we once knew it to be.
So in this world of chaos as we struggle to maintain,
With so many worries it could drive us all insane.

Stop to smell the flowers and don't dwell on negative,
Take each day as it comes by and don't forget to live.
For if we live in fear and worry thinking of the sorrow,
We will miss the day we have by thinking of tomorrow.

I'm going to fire the Zookeeper :curse:

Nog net ses slapies voor ons Kaap toe vlieg :hooray: Ek kan behoorlik nie meer wag nie!!

THE GUY WITH THE DONKEY -----
by Max Lucado

When we all get home I know what I want to do. There's someone I want
to get to know. I want to meet the guy with the donkey.

I don't know his name or what he looks like. I only know one thing:
what he gave. He gave a donkey to Jesus on the Sunday he entered
Jerusalem.

“Go to the town you can see there. When you enter it, you will quickly
find a donkey tied there with its colt. Untie them and bring them to
me. If anyone asks you why you are taking the donkeys, say that the
Master needs them, and he will send them at once.” (Matthew 21:3)

When we all get to heaven I want to visit this fellow. I have several
questions for him.

Did you know? Did you have any idea that your generosity would be used
for such a noble purpose? Did it ever occur to you that God was going
to ride your donkey? Were you aware that all four gospel writers would
tell your story? Did it ever cross your mind that a couple of
millenniums later, a curious preacher in South Texas would be pondering
your plight late at night?

Maybe you have those questions, too. All of us have a donkey. You and I
each have something in our lives, which, if given back to God, could,
like the donkey, move Jesus and his story further down the road.

He restores my soul. Psalm 23:3

"What a beautiful reception," I thought as I flipped through the recently developed stack of photographs.

There was my newly married niece, her face flushed with happiness. There was her new husband, beaming and proud. There were the children, dressed up and excited, and the older ladies beaming with satisfaction at another wedding in the family.

And there I was in my white Battenburg lace dress - looking pretty good, if I did say so myself.

I should have looked good. I had poured a lot of effort into pulling myself together perfectly for the occasion, paying special attention to my hair, my hose, my shoes, my bag. Trying so hard to get everything just exactly right so that my elderly auntie, for once, would have nothing to criticize.

Well, I finally did it, I thought as I flipped another picture. There was my aunt sitting at ther table with a big smile on her face. My smile was big, too, as I remembered it. For the first time in my memory, she hadn't said a single critical word about how I was dressed or how my makeup looked or anything else. I talked to her on the phone several times since then, and she still hadn't made a negative comment.

I glanced at the clock. I really needed to call her again. She was very independent, even in her eighties, but I still tired to check on her every day or two.

Auntie was in a wonderful mood when she answered the phone. She had gotten her pictures, too. So we reminisced about the ceremony, speculated on how the new couple would get along, and replayed the events of the reception.

"And, oh, Emilie," she enthused, "you looked just beautiful."

By now I was actually grinning. This almost too good to be true.

And then she added in a thoughtful voice, "Emilie... you really need to consider getting a padded bra."

Zing. I could feel my grin slipping down to the flour, that old familiar knot thightening my stomach.

I should have seen it coming, of course. It was only the hundred-millionth time she had doen that to me. (I was beginning to realize that she did it with everyone she loved.) But that didn't keep the words from stining - as they always stung. With one little remark, my auntie had managed once more to fill my cup with criticism.

Do you know somebody like that, who seems to delight in pouring closes of criticism? If you don't, just wait a little bit, and one will almost certainly come knocking at your door. Someone who excels in bowling over your confidence with just a word or a look.

It may be direct, overt, controlling:
"You shouldn't pick up the baby when he cries."
"I'm afraid blue just isn't your colour."
"Thank you, but it's just not our style. I know you won't mind if I return it."

No matter how the criticism is poured, the message is clear. You did it wrong. Your efforts just don't measure up. You just aren't good enough... smart enough.... pretty enough.

It's hard to live freely and creatively and lovingly with that kind of criticism. it's hard to risk flying high when you're always afraid of being shot down. I know, because my critical auntie had peen pouring out caustic cupfuls for me ever since I could remember...


And how did I respond?
For years, I just tried harder.
I spent so much of my life in a constant struggle to live up to my aunt's impossible standards.

I would visit the hairdress and have my nails done before a visit. She would give me the number of her hairdress and manicurist.

I would choose my words and my grammar with care, tyring so hard not to say antying wrong. She would still find something to criticize.

And then it finally hit me.
All my life I had been holding out my cup to my auntie, waiting for her to fill it with encouragement and praise. And she couldn't do it! Her own cup was too full of a critical spirit to pour anything different into mine. Holding up a bigger or better or more beautiful cup wasn't going to make any difference. And Satan was still using her poured-out criticism to make me feel inadequate and insecure and thus damage my ability to share Christ's love.

.... cont.