of Dancing in the rain when the storm hits

There's a saying that goes " 'Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...It's about learning to dance in the rain" Every afternoon when I drive home from work, there is man on a certain street corner with is guitar, dancing and singing, I guess, to the passing traffic, as this is quite a busy street corner in the afternoon. It is only him and his guitar, there is no box, for example, for someone to throw money into, to praise him for his performance. Come rain and sunshine, he is there with his guitar.

Traffic moves quite quickly pass him, so there is no time for someone to actually say something to him or give him some spare change. It also seems that he is not looking for anything in return. Is this not a good example of the following:

When you go through difficult times, it sometimes feel that you are alone, everyone asks you how you are, but they do not take the time to actually stop and really listen to what you have to say. Like the cars that drive past this man, if they do not actually stop their car, get out and walk to him, they would not know his story, why is he there, where is he from, does he need money for something, or, is he just blessing the passing cars with his song? Everyone looks at him but then just drives past.

Also, this man was on this street corner on one occasion and it almost started to rain. He just kept on singing and dancing. Should we as Christians not also be like this, when it is not going well with us, we should still praise and thank Him. Psalm 34: 1 and 2 says "I will praise the Lord at all times.
I will constantly speak his praises. I  will boast only in the Lord; let all who are helpless take heart" Actually, the whole of Psalm 34 sums up this beautifully for me. When you are alone and you feel helpless, you should seek refuge in the Lord. As Psalm 46:1 states: God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble." (NLT)

Even if we feel alone and it feels like God is far away, we should keep in mind that He is always with us, and we should keep on praising and trusting Him. Come rain or shine, He is always with us. The Lord knows who we are, where we are from, our history (and our future...) He knows what our needs are and He wants to bless us in every way possible.

of being thankful

On Tuesday, after work, I stopped at a local store to buy ingredients for dinner. On weekdays I finish work at 16H30 in the afternoon, then one day in the week I finish at 18H00. When I got to the till, the lady behind the counter did not look very eager to help me, one of the other cashiers actually had to get her attention in order for her to notice me. I was in a good mood, so it did not really bother me

She started to pack my groceries and finally said "Thank goodness its almost 18H00, then I get to go home" "Oh really" I said. She then explained to me that she works in shifts, something like a week she works non stop, then she has three days off. She also mentioned that she stays far away, so when she ends shift at 18H00, she will only arrive home at 20H30, due to the distance and public transport. (which is sometimes not very reliable) Then she had to prepare supper, feed her small child ect. Then on her off days she has to get the laundry done among other things.

It made me think, how many of us have the privilege to have a job close to our homes, and work regular hours. I am thankful that I have a job where I work a 8.30 hour shift and only work one weekend in about two months. Also, I am grateful that I have my own car and I get to be home before 17H00 on most days. Then I can kick off my shoes and rest for like 10 minutes before I start dinner. There are so many people out there who do not have the same privileges as you. I am grateful that I get a monthly salary, that the company I work for is doing very well and I don't have to worry that I might not get a salary at the end of the month... for He is my Provider

Does it not make you think, what you have to be thankful for?

of stars and dreams

Last night I had the following dream..

I dreamt that I was looking at the sky, it was late in the afternoon, early evening. Staring at the dark blue sky, I noticed 3 stars falling towards earth. At first they slowly fell from the sky, then, as they entered the atmosphere, they started to go faster and faster, falling towards earth. Once the first 3 fell on earth, a dozen more started to fall from the sky.

They fell on earth, crashing through trees and buildings. Panic and confusion filled the air. People were frantic and scared. Suddenly there were troops of soldiers gathering people in groups, dividing them into two groups. At that stage I was with my mother, and the soldiers seperated us from each other. The soldier said that I was the green group and my mother the blue group. (whatever that meant?!) I started to cry, because I knew what was happening.  I looked at her and said the following: " at least we know that we would not be seperated forever, and that we would meet again, not in this world but in the next" After we were separated I spent the rest of the dream running away from these soldiers. At one stage, there was a elderly man that helped me (and a friend) hide in his house, sending the soldiers on a different path and protecting us.

This dream reminded me of the following striptures, which discribes the end times, of His second coming:

Mark 13:25 (NLT)

the stars will fall from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

and also Revelation 6:13 (NLT)

Then the stars of the sky fell to the earth like green figs falling from a tree shaken by a strong wind.

Matthew 24:29 states the following: (NLT)

Immediately after the anguish of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will give no light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken

of Sunsets and scripture

The last week or so we had a couple of beautiful sunsets here in Cape Town. Even on social media a number of people have posted photos about this. The below picture is one I took from my house, table mountain can be seen in the left hand corner.

Everytime I looked up and saw this, I could not help but to think about the following scripture:

Revelation 1:7 ( New Living Translation)

"Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. And everyone will see him - even those who pierced him. And all the nations of the world will mourn for him. Yes! Amen!"

I wonder what the sky will look like on the day of His return. I imagine that it would look something like this, even more beautiful.

Start of a blogging journey...

Well, this is my first post! I created this blog about a year ago but I have not had time to figure out how this blogging thing actually works :-) So here goes.. for my first post, I decided to explain the heading of my blog.

The title of my blog is ... about Vines, salt and light. The following verses basically sums it up:

Matthew 5:13-16 ( New International Version (NIV)

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

and also:

John 15 (New International Version (NIV)

15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes  so that it will be even more fruitful. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

I will probably discuss this in more detail in another post, so for now this is just the start. I hope that you will enjoy my blog, be blessed and inspired.