heartprints

dag 1 tot 4

Ons het saam besluit dat ons eers sal wag. Vir niemand sal sê dat die paneel die aand van 20 Oktober oor ons lot sal beslis nie.

Dis eers later dat ek besef hoe betekenisvol die datum is… 20-10-2020

Woensdag-oggend een minuut oor agt sê die suster vir my ons oorplanting is geskeduleer vir Vrydag 6 November.

Ek sal jok as ek sê dat ek al die detail ingeneem het.

Ek vat en los aan die nuus en ek wag dat dit in my hart verdwyn, soos reën water op dorre grond.

Donderdag-aand net na nege bel sy my uit Malta. Ek kan hoor dat sy opgewonde is. Die Here het vir jou ‘n brief gestuur, sê sy – hoe gaan dit?

Bang, sê ek en begin huil. Ek is bang! Ons plant oor twee weke oor en ek is bang…en…en…en gaan ek aan.

Nee man, sê sy. Alles gaan okay wees – en toe trek sy los…

Iewers in September het daar ‘n koevert in haar posbus beland. Sy kon sien dis van Amerika en Joyce Meyer – maar soos dit maar gaan skuif sy die brief van tafel tot tafel en vergeet daarvan. Op Donderdag 23 Oktober besluit sy om uiteindelik die brief oop te skeur en daar sê die Here vir haar dat hierdie my brief is. Deur my trane lees sy die brief aan my voor en stelselmatig voel ek hoe die bang uit my hart verdwyn.

Kan jy glo dat die Here soveel moeite doen, sê sy. Hy stuur ‘n brief van Joyce Meyer na Malta, na my posbus sodat jy die boodskap kan kry. Uit al die huise in Malta, sê sy… wie skryf nog briewe, vra sy?

Om alles te kroon is daar ‘n herrie in Malta omdat iemand hierdie selfde aanhaling van die brief op ‘n muur grafitti het. Kyk! sê sy… Hy weet jy hou van graffiti!

Na ons geselsie dink ek aan die Here. Hoe Hy te midde van alles wat op hierdie oomblik in die wêreld aan die gang is, te midde van duisende versoeke daagliks, tyd gemaak het om my hart stil te maak.

Hier is my brief…

Liza… vir jou, van die Here af!

“Dear Friend,

There is a saying I once heard that goes like this: “Speak the truth even if your voice shakes.”

I really like that statement because it’s about doing what you know is right, regardless of the fear you may be feeling. But there is something I’ve noticed about fear (you’ve probably noticed it too) – fear can do more than just make your voice shake.

So, I like to take this a step further and say: Speak the truth even if your voice shakes, your knees knock, your heart pounds, your palms sweat, your mind questions… And no matter how afraid you may feel, when God calls you to do something do it afraid!

The truth is, it doesn’t matter what the circumstances look like, and it doesn’t matter what your feelings are telling you. With God’s help, you can press through any fear, and you can overcome feelings of anxiety and intimidation. You can live a bold, overcoming life when you learn to “do it afraid.” The Word of God in Deuteronomy 31:6 says: Be strong and courageous, for the Lord your God goes with you…

That verse is a tremendous encouragement because it shows us that we can be strong and courageous in the middle of fearful situations. God is with you. He will deliver you from every fear! But even though God delivers us from fear, if we are going to live the life that Jesus died to give us, there is a truth we need to understand. And that is – we are all going to feel afraid at certain times in our lives – it’s just human nature. You’ll never completely eliminate feelings of nervousness, hesitation and fear from your life. There will still be times you will feel afraid.

But you don’t have to give in to that fear. Just like everything else in life, God has given you a choice. You can be paralyzed by the fear or you can press through the fear… But you can’t do both. God wants us to live courageously, knowing we can do whatever we need to do through Christ who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13).

I can’t promise you that when you confront fear it will go away in a few minutes, because fear always has to be dealt with. But my experience has shown me that when I face it, fear has to bow its knee to the power of God working through me in my life.

Remember: Being free from fear doesn’t mean you’ll never experience that feeling again. But it does mean that you refuse to let fear rule your life and control your decisions.

… And at this point in my life, I am excited to seize every opportunity God puts in front of me because I know for certain that if God calls me to do something, He will also equip me to do it…

You can feel the fear – and do it anyway! It’s what I’ve learned to do, and it is always so much better to press through than to give up. The truth is, fear is NO FUN! And I know this firsthand. That’s why I’m writing to you at this special moment.

Trust God, choose to live in faith and press through. God will be with you every step of the way.”

Intussen het daar reeds weer baie gebeur en ons oorplanting is gekanselleer vir 6 November – maar dis ‘n post vir ‘n ander dag.

Nagedagte

Ek kan net een dag op ‘n slag leef. God gee krag net vir vandag. Op een of ander manier het Hy ons ontwerp om net elke dag se uitdagings te hanteer. Dit help nie om te bekommer oor môre nie.

Deuteronomium 33:25 (NLV) – Mag die slotte van jou poorte van yster en brons wees, mag jou krag soveel wees soos jou dae!