Me in the News Paper!

Witbank News, Friday 15 June 2012, Berta and Yvette

I must tell you I have moved to Witbank and am living here about two years and this is a tight knit community.  You don’t just make friends with the people around here.  Nevertheless I made a friend one evening while I was attending a Karate Grading for the children.  My new friend Berta van der Spuy was outside in the cold just like me waiting for her grandson.  We started to chat as I invited her to take a seat next to me on the bench before one of the large windows looking into the Dojo.  Well we talked about all kinds of events and the things the kids got up to.  She invited me to go and visit her at her Clinic.  I decided to pop around her place one morning and then she said to me would you like to join us for a ‘Pyjama Party’.  I said sure I can make a plan with the kids and come along.  

So it was arranged my husband works most weekends and would not be home on the Friday evening and I left the two kids at home and went in my pyjamas to this party.  We had a great time, a lot of laughter and fund.  It was a party to raise some funds for the needy and to get the community involved.  I pledged my time to bake a lovely cake and do some typing.  One of the doctors bought my pledge and said she would call on me when she needed to have something typed up for her.

Nice ladies, all very professional and very wealthy, one of the ladies that stood out for me was of course my friend Berta.  She is very down to earth and very sweet, always laughing and she seems so happy with her own life.  I have decided to write a review on her life and how she managed to become so successful.  I am compiling some information about her and then will write an article about her life’s success.  

The other ladies I thought were also most gracious and very kind are Wilma Erasmus, she is the chairperson of the SACBW in Emalahleni (The South African Council for Businesswomen).  She is open and kind and has a lovely way about her.  Once I get to know her a little better I will try and get some of her time and write a review on her too.

See you soon!!

I am not sure what my purpose is?

Jack my teddy

Helen Keller wrote:  ‘When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long ant the closed door that we do not see the one which God has opened for us.’ 

Warning about worry

²² Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Therefore, I say to you, don’t worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. ²³ There is more to life than food and more to the body than clothing.” 

I am at a stage in my life that I am unsure of where I am heading, I don’t know what tomorrow brings for me and I am not sure what my purpose in life is right now.  Thinking about what Helen Keller wrote I wonder if I am not looking at the closed door and cannot see the door which God has opened for me.  I also remind myself of what Jesus said to the disciples that they should not worry about anything.

Why do we let ourselves worry when we have someone so great to stand on?  I can only ask the Lord Jesus in humble prayer to show me the way forward and show me the purpose to which He has called me.  If you have good ideas and want to share them with me and help me find out what my purpose is let me know.

God bless you as you read this message today.

A tribute to my Dad – Paul J. Britz

With “Father’s Day” fast approaching I think of my Dad a man I thought the world of.  My Dad as far as I can remember is someone dependable and someone I could trust.  I loved listening to him when he used to call me every Sunday morning at 07h30.  Well as you know life has a strange way of dealing with all of us.  My Dad passed away 31 March 2008 at 12h00.  My sister was the first to hear of his passing and then she called me and told me.  We all drove down for the funeral which was in Port Elizabeth.  It is an 11 hour drive from Johannesburg to Port Elizabeth and my mom and her husband also came along with us.  My daughter and her husband and my two sons drove down to support us in our time of grief.

As for remembering my Dad, I think that my Dad was a hardworking man; his hobby was his birds and his gardens.  I know he loved to read “Readers Digest” and bought that magazine religiously.  I also know my Dad kept a diary and wrote in it all the time.  He also sold puppy for a friend of his that lived on a Farm in the Eastern Cape.

My brother left South Africa and immigrated to Canada and just before my Dad passed away he relocated to Australia.  We tried to phone him and could not get hold of him; he was having family problems at the time.  Something happened there I do not wish to talk about but the fact remained that people stop us from getting hold of him on time to let him know.  The sad part is that he finally got the news from the same people who kept it from him the day we had the memorial service for my Dad.  I also felt hurt that he thought we would be so mean as not to try and get hold of him but it was a sad time and I suppose he felt let down by us.  So sadly we lost our brother too because I think he blames us for not letting him know the sad truth.  Well, to cap it off we don’t talk much to him as he has isolated himself from us and doesn’t want anything to do with us because of this matter.

Life sure can come and knock the wind out of you.  I also was disappointed in the eulogy for my father.  It seemed as though no one wanted to say something nice about him.  Looking at the little pamphlet that was made for my Dad, just an old and ugly photo with only a date of birth and death.  How sad, nothing telling about what he did and how he lived. 

Here is my tribute to a man that raised me, my sister Zelda and my brother Paul.  Dad if we could ever say thank you for the time you did spend with us we would.  Our DAD? Dad you where someone that thought about us all the time, you understood us and you had time for us, you were kind and we could always call on you.  You never seemed to mind when we came all the way from Jo’burg to come and visit and eat up all your food and enjoy ice-cream on the beach with you and Willemien.  You would listen to the things we talked about, give sound advice and praise when needed, ready and always willing to give us a helping hand.  We really love and miss you and may the Lord keep you safe till we meet you again.

Samson and Delilah:: Judges 16

Samson:  Judges 16: 30

Thinking about this story in the Bible and reading it again it makes me think how men react to beautiful woman.  The Bible tells us that Samson fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek and her name was Delilah.  When I think of a beautiful woman I see someone that is well-built, beautiful long flowing black hair, blue eyes and fair skinned.  Her beauty would also be part of the favour she enjoyed with all men as they would have admired and loved her.  When I see Samson I feel that he would most probably be very handsome, strong and with flowing dark brown hair.  He probably had brown eyes and wherever he walked the woman would flock to be at his side.  He must have had a majestic stance and look about him.  

With a lot of nagging Samson gave into Delilah who was motivated by money to get the rewards the Philistine ruler’s would hand her.  It seems the Council of the Philistine rulers were giving her in return for the successful captured of Samson eleven hundred shekels of silver.  How many men were serving on the Council, it doesn’t state but the amount of money offered was enormous and most probably enough for her to live off without worrying about working again.

Delilah was relentless in finding out what was the source of Samson’s great strength.  She would keep nagging him the Bible tells us that it tired him to death and of course he broke down and told her his secret.  Delilah sent a report to the Philistine rulers that she knew the secret and that they should come back once again.  Delilah let Samson lay in her lap where he fell asleep and while he was sleeping she called for the barber to come and shave off his seven braids of hair.  Samson’s strength left him and he was as a normal man.  The saddest part in this story is the fact that the Philistine captured Samson and they gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza.  Samson then had been put to work in the prison grinding and they didn’t notice that Samson’s hair was growing back again.  

The ending is sad but sweet.  Samson asked that he be placed next to the pillars which supported the temple and he then prayed to God and destroyed the entire temple.  He killed more Philistine that day then in his live time.  In the New Testament Samson is mentioned with other great people.  Hebrews 11: 32 - 35

Prayer

 

Revelation 8 (Complete Jewish Bible (CJB))

1 When the Lamb broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for what seemed like half an hour. ² Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven shofars. ³ Another angel came and stood at the altar with a gold incense-bowl, and he was given a large quantity of incense to add to the prayers of all God’s people ⁴ on the gold altar in front of the throne. The smoke of the incense went up with the prayers of God’s people from the hand of the angel before God.

The people of God pray and God receives our prayers in heave.  Reading Revelations 8 : 1 – 4 I have come to the realisation that God is waiting for our prayers.  Look the Lamb broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for what seemed like half an hour.  Was that the time God used to listen to your prayer?  Does it seem you are praying and nothing is coming out of your prayers?  Sometimes I pray and I wonder does God hear me.  Today I have come to realise God hears my prayers, God hears your prayers.  I believe Jesus and the angels bring our prayers before the Lord all the time.  We have so much going for us as Christian; we are the righteousness of God in Christ.  Let us not forget what the Lord Jesus has done for us.

May the Lord speak to you today in my blog and may you enjoy God’s presence in your life though your prayers.