I know He watches me

Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil...
Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me

It was raining a year ago and it is raining tonight... That is how great stories start. There is nothing great about this, nothing spectacular or wonderful, it is just what it is, a story. It is said what makes a great story is not the storyline, but in the way it is told. It is such a wonder that even though the lessons (not stories) of the bible are told in such bland and simple terms, they have the power to hold a person, a multitude spellbound for hours on end, not because of the story or the storyteller but because of the power behind it, because of the lessons behind each and every line. That is for another day, another time, another story.

Have you missed someone, a part of your life, missed something you used to do. Have you ever missed the person you used to be, the laughter, the joy of just living. Woken up reached for someone that just isn’t there, opened the door to a room empty now, because its occupants are all gone. If you have ever picked up your phone, to dial a contact that just isn’t there anymore, felt the heartache of a lost one, a brother, sister, mother, father or child. A best friend, a sweetheart, up all night plagued by memories of times long gone only to wake up with the realisation the so cold realisation that truly and really, those times are long gone. Three years ago, you had the world at your finger tips. Today, you are just another person, a person nobody really cares about. Three years ago you had the world at your beck and call. Today many heartbreaks, heartaches and losses after, you are just a shell of the shadow of who you were. It is a hard bitter pill to swallow, ask Job if you can, ask Jacob if you will. Hardly anyone remembers that David lost the closest and dearest to him, a friend that was closer to him than a brother, no one wonders what he did with his heartache. No one asked Jacob how he felt after he lost Rebekkah. I don’t think to ask God how he feels after I break His heart each and every time I go astray. Have you ever waited for a text or message to come? Checked your phone every couple of minutes, waiting for that message to just come in? Ever been expectant for a miracle? Think of the father waiting for his prodigal son to come home, looking in the direction his son left, every single day, till his son came home. I am a father, I know where my son is, but there are times when I get a phone call and I absolutely freak out, thinking maybe something has happened that shouldn’t have. But then even this is another story.

I have heard my pastor say a number of times that if you jump off into unknown/unsure territory, God will either catch you before you fall, or teach you how to fly. Now what if you stumble? Because I am sure all the times he has mentioned it, there have been one or more people right at the bottom. Is that the end? No He is able and just to forgive your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness Am not just saying it because I feel like, i am saying this as a sure fact, saying this because I have seen the bottom and touched it, and God still brought me out. He is always standing at the door knocking, He is ever willing to leave the 99 locked up securely to come out and look for you, whether it is sunny, rainy or snowy. Whether you are in the middle of so much trouble that you don’t know where to turn, where to run or who to run to, He is there. I am not going to mention Joseph or Daniel, Paul, Silas or Peter, they cried out in right standing with God. I will however mention Jonah, who ran away from God, at the cost of the lives of thousands in a city. Have you ever by your action or inaction done anything that could jeopardise the lives of thousands? God heard Jonah from the belly of the fish. Surely He can hear you from the bottom of the mountain. He can send His angels to guide you so you don’t dash your feet against the stony bottom.

Have you missed someone, a part of your life, missed something you used to do. Have you ever missed the person you used to be, the laughter, the joy of just living? It’s been a while since I laughed sincerely from my heart, been a while since I sat down comfortably with someone and had a decent conversation, it has been a while since I slept at night knowing that I would wake up and just chill (aaah the joys of work). I do look back sometimes and wish that things could be different, but even then I dare not look back for long, because I have done that in the past and missed out entirely on the present. I have realised this however. I have realised that it’s not about living without a care in the world but living, knowing each and every care and burden you have is taken care of. That is living free, living without a care for where to place your head. Living knowing that even though you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is your comforter and your guide, that is living knowing that without a doubt the one whose eyes are on the sparrow are always, ever watching you.

Live strong....