Yet Again

So there I was, feeling sorry for myself, yet again. Thinking I deserve much better, yet again. Unwilling to intercede even as I found myself on my knees, yet again. So I opened my Bible yet again, and once more, hoped that God would not rebuke me for my wicked stance, yet again. He reminded me, yet again, that I was His bride eternally. And as He did, it dawned on me, that He, has called me to find my life, strength, sense of worth, contentment in Him, that He lives to intercede for me all the time despite my penchant for murky waters, that He loves me perennially, defends me with all He is and has against all who perpetually accuse me, and that He, not I, not by a long shot, deserves better. And once again, I find myself where I truly am made by Him, made ready by Him, made more than I deserve by Grace in Him.

“For your Maker is your husband,
The Lord of hosts is His name;
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel;
He is called the God of the whole earth.
For the Lord has called you
Like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Like a youthful wife when you were refused,”
Says your God.
“For a mere moment I have forsaken you,
But with great mercies I will gather you…“O you afflicted one,
Tossed with tempest, and not comforted,
Behold, I will lay your stones with colorful gems,
And lay your foundations with sapphires.

…All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
And great shall be the peace of your children.
In righteousness you shall be established;
You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
And from terror, for it shall not come near you.
Indeed they shall surely assemble, but not because of Me.
Whoever assembles against you shall fall for your sake.
“Behold, I have created the blacksmith
Who blows the coals in the fire,
Who brings forth an instrument for his work;
And I have created the spoiler to destroy.

No weapon formed against you shall prosper,
And every tongue which rises against you in judgment
You shall condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
And their righteousness is from Me,”
Says the Lord.” Isaiah 54:5 NKJV

vipslit@yahoo.ca

 

Water to be Bought

Notes to Self a.k.a. Therapeutic Venting:

Somehow, there was always water to be bought, but in the five years I have been here, and four houses that I have lived in here, none from the taps. I have loved this beautiful wilderness in which God has planted me – mainly because He did not dump me here and take off, but He stayed. He has gently guided me, from the humblest of new beginnings, to a spacious place while retaining some thorns in my flesh, probably to keep me from thinking I did and have it all together. That’s Merciful – because am not leaving this place to go to hell for having a big head – not for any reason.

One thing that has been common in all the places He has allowed me to stay, is that I have had to buy water. At 20/ per 20 liter Jerrican(Mitungi or container). And its water for everything – washing, flushing, cooking. Now that there is a baby in the house, lets just say…that we have been blessed with the challenge of not being able to plan our usage as we did when it was just us, adults. Gory tales are rife in these parts about why there is no water…I have been asking my landlord to look into this for the past 16 months. Recently he asked me to check if my neighbors have water before calling him again…it is well. I love my house. I hate moving, for one, it is too expensive.

 

Now there is a new hurdle. There seems to be no fresh water. My neighbor told me yesterday, that somehow the sewage got mixed up with the fresh water, where the vendors get it. Another story is that there will be no fresh water in Tassia for the next two weeks, just borehole water, which is salty… Hmmm, imagine salty tea, salty ugali…especially for me who is fighting a health situation that is hostile to salt. I asked the ladies during today’s lunch hour Bible-Study if they had any ideas…there is a place, but I would need a truck, lots of muscle, fuel, containers, the time, not to mention the money to buy it. Then I called Nairobi Water…they require an account number, which we do not have. With that I can go to Kayole, and get them to send me a tanker full of what I need, but I would need a huge tank or two with taps to store this precious commodity, or help sealing and disinfecting the ones that come with my house due to a leakage issue that…well…that happened. Besides…whenever I look at those tanks…they ‘smell’ costly even without the water we need. Somehow, there is always water to be bought.

 

Aaahhh…so my name is Vip Ogola, and I love living in Tassia where God in His Wisdom and Love, and fore-thought (this is not an accident…five years is a looong time for an accident to just be happppenningggggg) placed me to learn more about Him, and allow Him to deal with the things about me that are unlike Him. Which leads me to why I even have words to vent…I thank God for the internet…and for Dr. Google. I blogged “no water, verse’ and came to find a treasury of beautiful verses that on the most part humbled me with the information that am not the first person to be in this situation, ever, and that God does answer prayers like mine, and has :). Somehow that comforts me.

 

Thanks for reading through, now you know a little bit more about my lovely Tassia – beautiful homes…where God answers prayers, by the second. Am waiting for mine before The Rock of my salvation.

 

http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/God-Providing-Water

vipslit@yahoo.ca

Humbled to Pray

May MARCH be truly Special for you in The Lord:

I started March, as a continuation of February. A dear friend of mine had really upset me, really, really upset me, and one of the last things I did was ‘decree and declare’ – “It’s over and never again!”. So feeling justified, and still really really really upset, I went on my knees seeking God’s Grace for me, while resolutely pouring cold water on the soft call to pray for the one who had offended me. (Remember, I am that friend of God that really, really, realllllly annoys Him a lot of the time). He did not pound me with “unless I forgive I would not be forgiven, not this time at least, which is Truth by the way…He took me to 2 Chronicles 7..’If My People, Called by My Name, would HUMBLE themselves and pray…” Hey…God was not playing ball with me!

I had never really thought about that word ‘HUMBLE’ right in there…but this time, my Delightful, Almighty, Loving and Gracious…and Disciplinarian Father made sure I could not go past that word. I ‘heard’ “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. …and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.”

It takes humility to pray for someone who has hurt you…am not talking about getting on our knees and telling on them to God, or calling all Elijah’s fires down on their heads…but seeking God for their well being…that they may be blessed, grounded in God, provided for and encouraged to live His purpose in them and unhindered…that He would remove any stumbling blocks on their way. It feels like …what I imagine swallowing hot granite would feel like…God opposes the proud, and am at a time in my life, where I need Him on my side in a way that never ends. So I prayed, and journalled, and the dawn banished the night and viola…I love my friend again. I have decreed and declared that God will enable me to bring to Him from His gift of this friendship, more fruit than we could count…fruit that God Himself would delight in.

Oh, and I almost forgot, He let two ladies drop in, who needed to hear what I had learnt…so I would not forget…and they would be watching to make sure I don’t.

Go ahead…swallow the hot granite…its good medicine. Have an Awesome March 2016.

vipslit@yahoo.ca