author unknown

I believe in the Sun,
even when it is not shining.
I believe in Love,
even when I do not feel it.
I believe in God,
even when he is silent.

by faith and not by sight

my interpretation of habakkuk 3:17

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines,
(no evidence of provision for coming season)
though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food,
(human attempt for a solution is not working out)
though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,
(have run out of options)
yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
(rejoice ANYWAY as a sign of trust in His unfailing provision)"
~ habakkuk 3:17

Even though there is no evidence of a solution for provision in a coming season and my human attempt at coming up with an answer has produced no results with no other options available, I will choose to rejoice in the Lord anyway as a sign of my faith & trust in His unfailing reliability - for what He has said, He WILL do (isaiah 46:11).

innercity church with a ♥ for cape town

there's an unmistakable sense of supernatural power at work when gathering together for church in a building with this kind of history: originally a theatre open to all races; in 1829 slaves and free blacks no longer allowed to attend; then later it's ironically used as a mission church for freed slaves. Today, with the Common Ground innercity church meeting in the St Stephens church building on Riebeeck Square Cape Town, it is being used to bring hope and freedom to people of all ages and races.

I attended their 2nd evening service last night and was moved by their heart for the people of the City of Cape Town (most probably because this is part of my personal vision from the Lord that has come through a seriously challenging time of seeking God's purpose in creating our lives). But anyway, the story of the building gets more interesting: beneath the church is a cellar which in the past was hired out to local merchants, one of them a wine merchant. Because of this, the following was "graffiti'd" onto the walls of the church:

There's a spirit above and a spirit below,
The spirit above is the spirit of love,
The spirit below is the spirit of woe,
The spirit above is the spirit divine,
The spirit below is the spirit of wine.


So not just a venue but a building with a story. And as it goes, History is His story. So i'm guessing another beautiful story lies ahead in the partnership with Common Ground innercity church.

(Image by Mervyn Hector on Flickr)

Liberty to worship

This morning the Lord dropped this phrase into my heart. "Liberty to worship doesn't come from an external environment but from internal revelation."

Totally unrelated

This weekend I finished reading 'The Furious Longong of God' by Brennan Manning, and bought some amazing sneakers. First though, about the book:

Nothing I've ever read has put into words the "wordless thoughts" (if that makes any sense..) of my heart like this book has. If you are serious about knowing the reality of the love that God has for you and the passion & purpose with which He longs for you to live in this life, I uuuuuurrrrrrrge you - get this book! It's not long (works well for me, not much of a long-book reader)... Here's an excerpt that just about had me jumping around screaming for joy that I wasn't the only one who felt this way:

"How is it that we’ve come to imagine that Christianity consists primarily in what we do for God? How has this come to be the good news of Jesus? Is the kingdom that he proclaimed to be nothing more than a community of men and women who go to church on Sunday, take an annual spiritual retreat, read their Bibles every now and then, vigorously oppose abortion, don’t watch x-rated movies, never use vulgar language, smile a lot, hold doors open for people, root for their favorite team, and get along with everybody? Is that why Jesus went through the bleak and bloody horror of Calvary? Is that why He emerged in shattering glory from the tomb? Is that why He poured out His Holy Spirit on the church? To make nicer men and women with better morals?

The gospel is absurd and the life of Jesus is meaningless unless we believe that He lived, died, and rose again with but one purpose in mind: to make brand-new creations. Not to make people with better morals, but to create a community of prophets and professional lovers, men and women who would surrender to the mystery of the fire of the Spirit that burns within, who would live in ever greater fidelity to the omnipresent Word of God, who would enter into the center of it all, the very heart and mystery of Christ, into the center of the flame that consumes, purifies, and sets everything aglow with peace, joy, boldness, and extravagant, furious love."

See what I'm saying?? So buy the print or order the e-book or download it on your kindle if you're that way inclined, or read it standing in the aisle at Exclusive Books. Do what you gotta do..

And on the sneaker note - got my brother a pair of these adidas kicks - coz they didn't have my size and I absolutely had to buy them! :) What do you think?? Not too far off from the asics I was drooling over last week eh!