Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.”
Testimony
I was trying for years to quit smoking. I would give up for few days and would get back into the habit. But ever since I walked out of the retreat I haven't smoked and I truly feel redeemed..... Read More...
Preparation is Key … But Boring!
by Lindsey Hanekom
Genesis 45:4-5, NIV
Faced with a weekend with no plans and neither child needing to be anywhere (somewhat of a miracle in our home), I decided it was the perfect time to redecorate our bathroom. I love redecorating. I love the instant transformation that paint makes and the clean and fresh feel it gives to the room. Except, it really isn’t that instant! Putting the paint on is the only part of the instant transformation. The preparation to get to that point takes forever! And that’s when the persistent, through gritted teeth, pushing beyond myself work began.
Emptying the bathroom completely, digging out all the equipment, dust sheets down, cleaning the walls, tiles and ceiling, scraping off flaky paint, sanding of woodwork, more sanding, and more sanding, and then another wash down … this was not a part of my earlier eagerness of the instant transformation I had envisaged.
The day dragged on, and there was so much temptation to cut corners, miss bits, just move on to the painting bit. But experience has taught me that cutting corners when redecorating your house leads to issues not too far down the line. The preparation is absolute key, but it is so boring and not fun!
As I worked, I could see how it can be like that in our own lives. We have ideas, hopes, dreams, visions of what we want to do, where we want to be, even what we think God has for us. We can be eager, excited, and envisioned, but then we realise that there are some things that need to happen before we can get there. And they are anything but exciting, fun, or enjoyable, and they can take a long time.
These can be times when God is dealing with us in deep ways, refining our character, or challenging some of our beliefs and behaviours. It could be times when we are having to do work that we do not see as what ‘God has for me’ but are vital to His future plans. The temptation is to cut these corners, to rush into the ‘enjoyable’ bit, and hope that the lack of preparation won’t show. But it always will! Maybe not immediately, but eventually.
So, be encouraged, just as Joseph went through trials and tribulations to prepare him to fulfil the dreams God had given him, so we can embrace these times, rather than see them as a waste of time, a nuisance, or even label them as ungodly, or not His best for us. His best for us doesn’t always look or feel the way we want it to!
Lindsey Hanekom Lindsey has worked at all of our UK centres over the years and has settled at Ellel Scotland with her husband, Johann and their two young children, Kyle and Zoe. As part of the Leadership Team at Ellel Scotland, Lindsey has a heart for the deeply broken as she oversees the prayer ministry and is an established and passionate teacher with Ellel. In her spare time, Lindsey enjoys the natural world, particularly the ocean, and is trained as a specialist medic to assist stranded and injured marine mammals.
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