A letter to my 20 year old self

Birthdays are always a very reflective time for me and since this year marks my 30^th birthday, I have been reflecting on my past 10 years. A lot can happen in a decade and I wanted to mark this occasion on my blog by sharing a letter that I wrote to my 20 year old self. Obviously, my 20 year old self is now a 30 year old and these lessons have been learnt, but I wanted to write this letter to reflect on the things that God has brought me through during my 20s. I wanted to remind myself of the journey He has taken me on and to share with those who are standing 10 years behind me the lessons and experiences that they may go through before they reach 30.

“Dear Daisy,

You have made it to your 20s and I am certain that you think you know it all and you have figured out life. You have so much to learn and so much to experience. Let me tell you:

You will grow in your faith!

This is the time that you will learn the most yet about God and what it means to be a Christian. You will see the true power of the word of God and you will persevere in prayer. You will pick up unconventional ways of thinking, and even at times, your friends and family won’t understand your stance. Don’t be afraid to be peculiar and stand apart from this world. It will be hard sometimes but God will honour you and you will grow in Him.

You will make wrong choices

I am so sad to write this, but you will make decisions that will change the course of your 20s. Decisions that will take time to overcome, but God is faithful. Through much prayer, study and persevering effort, God will help you to stand again and will override events to make bitter trials a blessing and you will be a better you. Just guard your choices and your associations going forward.

You will move!

Yes, you will leave London with no job and no plans except a burning desire to follow God’s leading. Your new home will be in Wales and you will learn lessons in patience, diligence, perseverance, trust and waiting on the Lord.

You will have your heart broken

…but the Lord “healeth the broken in heart and bindeth up their wounds.” Psalm 147:3. You will trust God to heal from past hurts and you will grow to love Him more deeply. He will show you that “true love is a high and holy principle, altogether different in character from that love that is awakened by impulse, and which dies when severely tested.” Adventist Home pg. 50. He will show you his standards and He will keep and guard your heart.

You will see miracles

God will come through for you at the 11^th hour! Things that you thought were impossible, He will make happen for you…even when you are tempted to disbelieve. Have more faith and remember “…all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose” Romans 8:28 and “No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly” Psalm 84:11.

You will lose loved ones

Three times round…but God will give you strength. He will turn every teardrop into glittering stones and diamonds rare. He will leave you with precious memories to keep in frames of gold and silver, and the blessed hope of the resurrection.

You will travel

Yes, from America, to the Netherlands, to Spain, to Norway, to Paris, Berlin and many other places. God will give you new experiences as you experience different cultures, meet new people and He will give you precious memories to carry home with you.

You will be misunderstood, talked about and hated

I must tell you this…often this can be the reality. Everybody likes to be liked…but that is not what is promised. Remember, Jesus was misunderstood, talked about and hated. He knows the pains of these things yet He encourages you to keep moving forward and to trust in Him. No matter how hard you try Daisy, people may be bent on misunderstanding you, people may have so many things to say about you, people may even hate you…but it’s ok, just make sure nothing makes you bitter and that you rise above all slights. Make sure that your heart doesn’t harbour any hatred for  anyone. God will give you strength to draw warmth from coldness.

You will be betrayed

But it will teach you about wisdom and discernment. Remember the lord is a “man of war” (Exodus 15:3) He will fight for you. Just be content in knowing that all things are recorded in the books of heaven, and God will take care of things. Rest.

You will feel alone

…but you won’t be alone. Remember, being alone and being lonely are two different things. One is a state of being and one is a state of mind. Remember if Christ is all you have…you have everything. You will be alone, but not lonely.

You will have the best year of your life

The year 2014 will be the best year of your life!!! The gospel will do so much for you and you will experience true joy and peace. You will feel alive and will praise God for mountains climbed. However, sadly tough times will come upon you in the next few years but the experiences of this year and the grace of God will carry you through.

You will be greatly loved

By your heavenly father and by all of those faithful ones He will put along your path. You will rejoice in the blessedness of fellowship and you in turn will love. Make sure you cherish those blessed ones, never take them for granted and always pray for them by name.

You will learn that some friendships are just for a season.

Remember when you thought all your secondary school friends would be your friends now?

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven…” Ecclesiastes 3:1

And this is also the case for friends, even in your 20s you will experience more “growing apart. God has a purpose and a plan for you – remember where God is taking you, sadly not all can go with you…even if you want them to. This may also be the case for them – maybe where they are going, you cannot go.  It will be painful and sometimes baffling, but you’ve just got to trust God’s wisdom and trust the process. Just like the autumn season, trees have to let go of leaves in order to grow and enter into the next season. Thank God for the season and thank God for growth.

You will start a blog

And what an experience that will be. You will blog about faith, love, marriage, sheep (lol), moving, loss, relationships, contentment, friendships and much more.  God will give you the courage to be bold about your faith and the grace to be candid and share intimate details of your life. Remember even if one person is blessed by your blog, your mission has been accomplished.

You will learn that what will be will be

Learn to accept things and move on. Allow God to order and direct your steps and He will bring it to pass. Always remember that the best place to ever be is in the centre of God’s will.

You will experience trials

…and you will learn patience. You will learn to be still and trust God…even when you don’t understand. Our trials are weighed and measured in heaven before being given to us so always remember “God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13.  He will never give you more than you can bear.

“Our sorrows do not spring out of the ground. God “doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.” Lamentations 3:33. When He permits trials and afflictions, it is “for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness.” Hebrews 12:10. If received in faith, the trial that seems so bitter and hard to bear will prove a blessing. The cruel blow that blights the joys of earth will be the means of turning our eyes to heaven. How many there are who would never have known Jesus had not sorrow led them to seek comfort in Him! The trials of life are God’s workmen, to remove the impurities and roughness from our character. Their hewing, squaring, and chiseling, their burnishing and polishing, is a painful process; it is hard to be pressed down to the grinding wheel. But the stone is brought forth prepared to fill its place in the heavenly temple. Upon no useless material does the Master bestow such careful, thorough work. Only His precious stones are polished after the similitude of a palace.” Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing pg. 10

You will rejoice at the end of days!

Life may not have worked out as you expected it to but you will rejoice at his unfailing faithfulness and loving kindness. As you enter your 30s your anthem and song will be “Great is thy faithfulness” (Lamentation 3:23) and you will sing Daisy…and not be silent.

“Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.”

Psalm 30: 11-12

With overflowing love, 

♥ Miss Daisy ♥ (Your 30 year old self)

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30 things I've learnt in 30 years

So 30 days before my 30th Birthday, I shared a video each day on multiple social media platforms describing one thing I have learnt in 30 years.


These videos can be found on my Facebook page – www.facebook.com/missdaisyspetals


For those who want a quick summary, here they are below.

1. A word is enough for the wise

2. Only by pride cometh contention – Proverbs 13:10

3. Those who gossip with you gossip about you.

4. Input = Output

5. Be careful who you fall in love with. Some people are looking for love and some people are looking for help.

6. For children: Don’t wear clothes with your name displayed on it, as strangers can approach you acting like they know you.

7. What you compromise to get, you must compromise to keep.

8. Your enemy today could be your helper tomorrow.

9. A continual dropping in a rainy day and a contention woman are alike –                Proverbs 27:15

10. “I’m sorry you…” is NOT an apology.

11. Go by facts and not by feelings (principle over emotions)

12. Do not get involved in work/office politics and dramas – you will get burnt.

13. None of us are above influence.

14. One can lie by omission so probe FULLY

15. Our thoughts follow our words.

16. “…the curse causeless shall not come” – Proverbs 26:2 – Nothing ever happens for no reason.

17. Your friends are NOT your customers.

18. “Church hurt” is REAL…but you’ve got to rise above it.

19. Look after the pennies and the pounds will looks after themselves

20. Be wary of people try to tell you about how other people are like. (Form your own first       impressions)

21. Take mixed signals as a no.

22. It’s important to understand love languages.

23. A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity – Proverbs 17:17

24. Approach is key!

25. What Susie says about Sally says more about Susie than Sally

26. Sometimes no closure is closure.

27. When yuh 'an inna di lion mout tek time draw it out (When your hand is in a Lion's mouth remove it carefully/slowly)

28. Thinking about getting married? You need to have a list. 

29. Sometimes you have to lose to win. 

30. SMILE! You don't own all the world's problems. 

I am thankful for all the lessons that life brings and for the many ways God teaching us to navigate through them. If you were following the videos each day I pray that
you were blessed by them and look forward to the many future experience that God has in store for us, to teach us and strengthen us.

I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.

 Psalm 32:8

Love, your girl forever,

♥ Miss Daisy ♥  


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A thoughtful hour: 5 tips for spending time with God

So last month I wrote about my commitment to having a “thoughtful hour” each day – which for me was all about my desire to find small intervals throughout the day to spend time with God while still juggling a busy schedule. In this blog post I wanted to get practical and share some tips and ideas of ways we can find time in the day to have our thoughts drawn to Jesus. Some of these tips I already implement and some I am hoping to try out.

So, getting straight into it – Here are my 5 tips:

1.       Bible Audio

I love Bible audio!! Bible audio is handy when you are on the go or when you want a few thoughtful minutes. I sometimes use bible audio when I do things that require me to walk around, for example: - walking around the building at work, walking into town, taking a stroll by the sea front on my lunch break etc. I find listening to Bible audio generally keeps my mind in a focused and reflective place. I use the Bible audio app – Bible.is - this app has the Bible in many different languages and has a variety of different Bible audios to suit different preferences. As a side point, I make use of Bible audio almost every night - I leave it to play quietly and it is so great to go to sleep and wake up to the word of God!

2.       Scripture on paper

The title may make this tip sound a little bit sophisticated, but with this I literally write down scriptures on a small piece of paper (about the size of my hand). This allows me to read and mediate on the word of God in situations where I am not able to have my bible open in my hands. This is handy for me as most of you know I work in ICT Support, and there are times when I have to wait for things to install/load, so I am pretty much sitting around and waiting. However, I am technically still working so I can’t just crack open a book and do my own thing. However, having that small piece of paper in my hand allows me in that period of waiting to lift my thoughts heavenward and meditate on scripture.

3.       Scripture memorisation

This is an area I definitely need to improve on, but when I have been consistent, it has been such a blessing. Scripture memorisation is a powerful tool for keeping the word hidden in your heart, and you can recall to your mind scripture at any time when you need them. I try to memorise scripture that I can use when I am confronted with specific situations throughout the day.

For example, when I am in situation where:

·       I am feeling overwhelmed and have so much on my mind:

“In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul.” Psalm 49:19

·       I need to plan something important:

“Prepare thy work without, and make it fit for thyself in the field; and afterwards build thine house.” Proverbs 24:27

“Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.” Psalm 37:5

·       I encounter possible conflict:

“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:” James 1:19

Some people find scripture memorisation too hard or boring, but the key is in finding a method of memorisation that suits you. Some people memorise through repeating the scripture aloud repeatedly, some have to write the scripture down over and over again, some use scripture songs to memories and some make use of memorisation apps/websites. My best friend recommended this website as being very useful for scripture memorisation - https://learnscripture.net/

4.       Sermons and Audio books

Sermons and audio books are great for when you have longer periods where you may be sitting down working on something, on a long journey or doing something that doesn’t require much mental focus.  Sermons and audio books work for me specifically because I often drive long distances and have very little time to sit down and read leisurely. Using this method has helped me get through   many sermons and even whole books, which would have taken me longer (if at all) to complete if I tried to do it leisurely in my spare time.  Sermon and audio books are also great if you want to focus on specific topic - one of my favourite audio books is The Desire of Ages by Ellen G White.

5.       Scripture songs

Most of us know that when something is put to a tune, it is easy to remember. Music is a great learning tool and there are some songs that I haven't heard since childhood, but granted if I heard the tune, it is likely I would be able to remember the words too. If you want to memorise scripture fast and keep it in your mind for longer, then scripture songs are a very effective method. There are so many scripture songs out there that you can learn, and if you want to be creative you can make your own scripture songs. Creating your own scripture songs can also give you time to really think and meditate on the words as you put it to a tune.

6.       Journaling

This blog post is meant to give only five tips, but I will throw in a somewhat related bonus. Journaling is so special to me!!!! I find journaling extremely useful as it gives me the opportunity to really pour out myself and express myself to God. It is such a blessing (sometimes hard) to be completely candid and vulnerable before your maker. I write a daily journal, and it is so powerful  to look back at my past journal entries and view times that I have rejoiced, cried, surrendered. It is such a blessing to review what God has done and to also track your growth in Him. Even if you don’t consider yourself a writer try adding journaling into your time with God, and you won’t be sorry! J

I hope these tips have been helpful, if you have any more tips please share them with us in the comments section below.

Love, your girl forever,

♥ Miss Daisy ♥  


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The Hidden Work

Ok, this could just be me, but sometimes when I see people preaching, teaching, singing or just generally sharing the word of God, I gain a wonderful blessing from it but at the same time I start to feel extremely discouraged. I often think to myself “Daisy, what exactly are YOU doing for the Lord?” “People are out there and you’re just…there.”

I had one of those moments this month and God had to remind me of The Hidden Work.

I think it was towards the end of 2011 when I watched a YouTube video of some young people that I knew who were preaching across the “mean” streets of London. I remember calling a friend and describing what I had seen and how guilty I felt because it seemed like I wasn’t doing anything. At the time I was one of the main teachers within a medium sized bible study group. We met every Friday night and Sunday afternoon to study bible history, prophecy and a variety of topics concerning the life and character of Jesus Christ. To me, the work I was doing with the bible study group couldn’t compare to what I was seeing on YouTube.

My friend listened very carefully to what I was saying and replied “You may look at that and think wow and then feel really bad and useless, but you do know that there is a great work that goes on that isn’t captured on camera?”

Hmmm, that comment made me think – maybe my understanding of the gospel work was all wrong. Should I really be looking at God’s work in that way?

Let us consider this - God does have a great work for us to do, that’s a fact. However, it might not be for you (at the moment) to be seen of men and to be out there and visible to hundreds or thousands via media or through foreign missions. Maybe your great work is to be committed to your weekly bible studies teaching 2 people for the next 3 years. Let us remember that the work of the gospel is more than our finite minds can fathom and often God works contrary to our own human ideals and imagination. You may look at the above scenario and think it is of little value as its only 2 people not knowing that under your influence, guidance and mentorship those 2 people will impact so many others, people perhaps that you could never reach. Did you do a great work? Yes. Were you seen? No.

For some of us that work may be for us to be still before the Lord doing nothing but sitting at His feet daily, studying His word and allowing Him to break the stony part of our hearts. Being visibly active may look all glamorous but even those who are out there will tell you that it isn’t always easy and they often have to face much discouragement and disappointment. You want to be active and out there but are you ready for the tests and trial that come with it?

Another thing to consider is Matthew 20:1 – 10. It doesn’t fit the situation we are talking about like for like but it brings out a very good lesson. In this parable some labour in the vineyard from the morning, others come in the afternoon and some come at the 11^th hour but at the end of the day all receive the same wage. This is an illustration of the gospel work, naturally some will do “more” than others but ultimately all will receive the same reward. So there is no reason for us to feel like we need to compete with or compare ourselves to others.

Let’s not be discouraged people, if we avail ourselves God will do a great work in us but let us not think doing a great work automatically means we will be out there for all to see. It isn’t about us so let’s allow God to lead us to do His work, while we continue to study the bible and make good use of the opportunities he has already put before us.

I often forget the lessons that God has shown me in the past…so thankful for gentle reminders.

Be encouraged!

Love, your girl forever,

♥ Miss Daisy ♥

 

The voice of the Bridegroom and of the Bride: Mr and Mrs Anyanwu

A few weeks ago, I posted the courtship story of my friends Chiawuotu and Kimberley (click here to read); well they wedded on the 15^th of August in a beautiful ceremony in Cattrerick, North Yorkshire. Like most eventful days months or even years of planning is required however  the day itself with all its fun, happiness and excitement seems to just come and swiftly go. This event on the other hand was different; something about this day left an impression on the mind as it provided a glimpse of a much greater and more anticipated future event – the marriage supper of the lamb.

The Bride and Groom

The theme of the wedding was the parable of the 10 virgins found in Matthew 25: 1-13. A very fitting theme for a wedding as marriage in the bible is more than just the union of man and woman before God but it is a symbol or illustration of Christ’s relationship with the church.

Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself…This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Ephesians 5:22-28,32

Happy are all who fear the Lord

The same illustration of the marriage relation is seen in the Old Testament where God is likened to the husband/bridegroom and His people/church are likened to the bride.

For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. Isaiah 62:5 

For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. Isaiah 54:5

The Wait 

Chiawuotu was waiting patiently at the front of the church for his bride to arrive. The groomsmen entered followed by the flower girls and the bridesmaids, but where was his bride? All guests were seated and finally the church doors opened and there Kimberley was dressed in pure white ready to meet her groom. Chiawuotu declared his love for Kimberley and called her forth with a song that they had written together, the opening line of the song was “Happy are all who fear the Lord, they shall live by his will”. Hand in hand with her father Kimberley joined him in song as she gracefully made her way forward to meet Chiawuotu. They ended the song with the words “It’s the cry of midnight” which brought to mind the theme of the wedding and the words of the parable found in Matthew 25.

The bridegroom waiteth

The bride comes forth 

Chiawuotu and Kimberley made use of the symbols found in the parable of the ten virgins with a white and midnight blue colour scheme (blue representing God’s commandments – Numbers 15:38-40), the groomsmen were carrying white bibles and the bridesmaids were carrying small lanterns. Even the wedding date was symbolical of the parable (I’ll let you Adventist historians figure that one out J)

The Bridal Party

The parable reads - Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom…And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him…the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut…Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. Matthew 25: 1, 6, 10,13

It would be good to read through the whole parable when you get a chance as there is a lot more to this parable than what is being discussed here, but this parable basically tells a story of waiting virgins /brides who are preparing to meet the bridegroom so that they may enter into the marriage supper with him. A call goes out at midnight to signify the coming of the bridegroom and the brides who were faithfully waiting and who had prepared for him were ready to enter with him into the wedding. Likewise with us we are waiting for the second coming of Jesus Christ, and as a bride prepares for her wedding day by making herself ready to meet the groom and keeping her dress white. We too are to wait patiently for the coming of our Lord, keeping our garments white (Revelation 19:8) and being ready to meet Jesus when he comes.

As we wait for Christ he is also waiting for us – James 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 

The Wedding Ceremony 

Before Kimberley was given away, her father gave a touching speech about Kimberley’s family life, her personality, her foreign mission service and her love for God and Chiawuotu. The two came together at the marriage altar and stood as an emblem of purity and fidelity. Their lives and their conduct during their season of courtship served as a witness of God’s faithfulness and a demonstration that God’s ways are truly perfect , and His ideals are higher than what the human mind or the world can tell.

They shared their own personal vows such as: “I promise to stay close to Christ through daily communion, the study of God’s word and daily surrender that the love that I give may come from God and that we may work together intelligently for the salvation of souls.”, “I promise to be pure in thought, action and feelings ever being faithful to the seventh commandment.”, I promise to forgive always and not to coldly draw away when mistakes are made but to instead draw closer to each other during those times.” And “I promise to become intelligent in regards to disease, it’s prevention and its treatment that I may do all in my power to restore and preserve our health, and that we may work together to make our home and our marriage a ministry of healing for others.” These precious promises were sealed with a kiss (their very first kiss J).

Entering into a precious covenant 

This day was extra special to me because even though it was Chiawuotu and Kimberley’s wedding they moved the focus from themselves and pointed us to Christ, the real bridegroom who first loved us and emptied himself completely that he may gain us - His bride. More precious than the covenant and commitment they made to each other before God, was the deep impressions of the spirt of God on the hearts of all guests and witnesses that awakened a deeper desire to walk faithfully before God and to receive him – the bridegroom - as our great reward. 

Mr and Mrs Anyanwu

Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready… Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.

 Revelation 19: 7, 9

My picture with the newly weds

Congratulations Chiawuotu and Kimberley Anyanwu, may your married life have an influence for time and for eternity. 

With overflowing love,

 ♥ Miss Daisy  ♥

p.s The wedding ceremony was recorded via live stream to watch this special event please click here.

Choosing to love always: A small brush with racism

I want to share an experience I had a few weeks ago and to tell you how God turned things around in order to teach me an enduring life lesson. What I share is not intended to be an attack on any individual or group of individuals (as I love you all J) but I believe that if you have ever experienced hateful/abusive words, looks, actions etc you can definitely relate to this post and I hope we can agree on the conclusion of the matter.

So here’s how the story goes….

It was Sabbath (Saturday) and after church some friends and I planned to attend another church to help out with their afternoon health program. I wasn’t too sure where the church was so I decided to follow behind my friend’s car; my friend is known for being a fast driver so I wanted to stay as close as possible to their car. We stopped at a roundabout and my friend was able to go straight through but I had to stop. While I was waiting to go through a young couple with a baby decided to cross the road, the woman ran across with her pram and then the man began to walk across very slowly (remember this isn’t a pedestrian crossing so I had right of way). I started to creep forward not to imply “hurry up I’m going to run you over” but to try and catch up with my friend as my mind was so focused on not being left behind. He finally got to the other side and I prepared to race off when I heard in my left ear all sorts of profanity and the sentence “Can’t you wait you stupid black *blank*!” as I sped away.

I felt like it all happened in a split second and within that time I managed to catch a glimpse of his face and he looked extremely angry! My initial reaction was “Wow! How come I didn’t react or retaliate??”  I wondered if the man even questioned whether I heard him.  It definitely was God’s grace that came to my aid because I know my natural response would have been to turn the car around (somehow) and confront him or call the police – basically make an extremely big deal out of the situation. So I was very encouraged and thankful to God for helping me deal with the situation in the best way. However as I continued driving hurt and sadness began to sink in, I began to remember a conversation that I had with a friend that very week. He was telling me that he has experienced a lot of racism while living in Wales and I was telling him that I find the people here, from young to old, to be very friendly and loving and that I have never experienced racism or any form of abuse since moving here. In fact I realised that I have never directly experienced any form of racism.

Ok…I know some may look at this situation and think "He just called you a black “something” it's hardly racial abuse" but what that man wanted to do was to curse me and show his displeasure and anger and my race was a platform for that and that is what I found hurtful. I was reasoning in my mind if I did do something stupid it would be because I am a stupid person not because of the colour of my skin. However hate doesn't reason like that, it merely seeks to hit you where it hurts. I know I am not completely blameless in this story as I know that creeping forward was what set him off.

The next day was very challenging for me as I kept on hearing his sentence over and over again in my mind and imagining his angry face. I experienced many emotions that day as I went from upset to OK to angry and almost hateful. I began reasoning in my mind that maybe I shouldn’t go into work as I felt my colleagues just tolerated me but deep down didn’t really like me or want me there.

*Note – Be careful with evil thoughts, they are not your thoughts and if you ponder on them they will become your own thoughts and you will begin to believe things that are wholly untrue and irrational.

Providentially I watched an online news special that day which was showing an African American lady being extremely hateful towards a white American who went into her barber shop to meet her African American boyfriend. It wasn’t a nice thing to witness and towards the end of the report I thought to myself “Right, that’s enough!  Everybody has a choice and this is mine – I will not, in fact I refuse to participate in someone else’s hate when the option to love is there, so I choose to love.” All hate does is breed more hate for example the man at the roundabout showed hatred towards me, then I take that and go on to pass that onto my colleagues at work and then they go on to pass it to many others. I honestly can’t be a participant in that; it takes too much time and energy and strips you of your peace.

 

 

Yes hateful words and actions do hurt and cause pain but so do hateful responses. We may think “Yes I’ve got that person back, and showed them what I am made of!” but has responding in the same way provided any consolation?  Are we any happier now?

God took this lesson beyond race and my experience that Sabbath and challenged my thinking even further with this scripture –

For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same. And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Luke 6:32-37  

 

True love is distinctive and goes beyond that which is reciprocated. Anyone, and I mean anyone, can “love” those who love them back and treat them well but the love that conquers all can love irrespective of cold and callous treatment. This is a hard concept to come to grips with and challenging but nevertheless it is very true and attainable and I believe that Christ can make this kind of love a reality in our lives...if we choose.

As hurtful as my experience was I believe God allowed it to happen to show me what it really means to love and to challenge me with these questions (join me and ask yourselves these questions too) -  Do I choose to love always? Do I combat hateful behaviour with love? Do I draw warmth from the coldness of others? Is my response to sinful or hateful behaviour telling of the Christian faith I profess?

There is so much hate in this world and much more to come. There’s not much we can do about that but we do have a choice! So let’s choose to love…always.

 

But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.

Luke 6:27-28

 

Love, your girl forever,

♥ Miss Daisy ♥