Happy Dance

Tarore... A story of reconciliation

In the 1830s a Maori girl called Tarore lived in the Waikato. She was about 12 years old. Her father, Nga kuku, was a ranga tira - a Maori chief.

Life was uncertain. People traded for guns. There were tensions. War parties could strike at any time. If people were killed revenge [utu] was expected.

Some missionaries arrived with God's written Word, the Bible. These missionaries, Rev and Mrs Brown, wanted to teach people to read, so that they could read the Bible and learn about God's love.

Tarore had heard about their school, so she asked her father, "Please, can I go? I'd like to learn from the book". Nga kuku agreed. At school Tarore learned about Jesus. Jesus was different.  He had great mana. [means Authority or Power/strength of mind.]  But Jesus didn't fight back, even when his enemies were going to kill him.

Instead, Tarore learned, Jesus loved people. From the Bible, Tarore learned that Jesus, helped people love each other and taught them to love God. She learnt that Jesus was the Son of God, and that he died on a cross and rose again. She learned that, by his death and rising to life again, Jesus defeated all the dark powers of the world and put us right with God.

Tarore decided to follow Jesus.

At this time, the first parts of the Maori Bible were being printed. One of the first was Te Rongopai a Ruka - the Gospel of Luke. The Browns gave a copy to Tarore. As Tarore read from her book to her people, Nga kuku her father stood nearby and listened to his daughter.

The message about love and peace was new, but it had impact as Tarore's people thought about the hate and pain of war. Fighting was never far away.

Nga kuku decided to take his young people over the Kaimai mountains to Tauranga. They stopped to spend the night by the Wairere Falls. The group gathered around the campfire. Perhaps Tarore brought out her Gospel and read to the group. Then, putting her book under her head, she slept.

But up the valley, warriors watched smoke from Tarore's camp rising above the trees and made their way quietly towards the sleepers.

Crack! A branch broke. Ngakuku was instantly awake. "What was that!?"

Crack! There it was again.

"Quick!" shouted Nga kuku, "Into the bush and hide!" Nga kuku grabbed his little son and led the way. But where was Tarore? When it was safe Nga kuku went back, afraid about what he would find.

By a tree where she had slept, Tarore lay dead. - Nga kuku wept.

" UTU... Revenge!" cried others in the group. "No!" said Nga kuku, "There's been enough killing!"

"Where is Tarore's book?" someone asked. But it had been taken.

U ita had taken the Gospel. Thinking it must be a great treasure, he took it back to Rotorua. But no one could understand the strange marks. No one, that is, until Ripa hau arrived. Ripa hau was a slave from Otaki who had been taken to the Bay of Islands. He had been taught to read by the missionaries there. His master had died and now he was returning home.

"I will read it." said Ripa hau. Others gathered around to hear. As he listened U ita found the words were a special message for him. "Love my enemies? But I killed the wahine [girl] who had this book ... I want the peace Jesus brings." So U ita sent a message and asked forgiveness from Nga kuku. And there was peace, not through force, but through the power of God's Word.

Ripa hau left and went on to Otaki. There he taught Tami hana, son of the great Otaki rangatira Te Rau par aha and his cousin Te Whi-whi. He taught them to read from Tarore's Gospel. But Te Rau par aha himself was a fierce man of war. People feared him.

One day Te Rau par aha's son, Tami hana said, "I do not want war! I want to follow the way of peace." He taught his people from Tarore's book.

Te Whi-whi went to Pai hia to bring a missionary to teach them more about Jesus. Even Te Rau par aha began to change his ways. Tami hana looked across at the South Island. People lived there in fear of wars and revenge.

He said, "I will take them the message of peace."

So he set off in a canoe to the very places where the name of his father was enough to make people grab their weapons. There he told the people the things he had learned from Tarore's book - how Jesus had taught that the way of peace was better than the way of hatred and war.

Six years later Bishop Selwyn took his missionary journey through New Zealand. No European missionary had been to the South Island, but Selwyn found the people living in peace and following Jesus. Many people had learned to read and write. The only textbook they had known was Tarore's Gospel of Luke and two pages from the Maori Prayer Book.

What about Nga kuku and U ita? Rev Brown records in his journal that, in 1842, Nga kuku and Uita met:

"In the evening, they were engaged together in worshipping God at their prayer meeting and were apparently on the most friendly terms. -

Who but the Christian loves their enemies?" wrote Brown.

It has been a long time since I have attended a church regularly, for various reasons. I did go to a local church a few weeks ago, in response to an invite given to me by a friend to share in fellowship and worship with other brothers and sisters.

I belong to a home group and there are about 10 of us that meet every Wednesday evening for study, prayer, and fellowship.. We also share communion each week.

So I do have good Christian fellowship and sharing ... But I also love worshipping with other brothers and sisters in Christ as well, and that is the part I really miss about not going to a church.

I was thinking on this today...

Why do we go to church?
Is it out of a need to somehow be connected with other believers?  If it is, then I guess that is ok, but, if we are not careful, that can sometimes lead to being ‘us’ centred instead of ‘Him’ centred.  And that is not how our worship is intended to be.

I guess it means,  who is this all about?   Is it about Me and what I want or can get out of going,  or is it about HIM and what I want to give to Him?   It should be always HIM first.

Before I came to Christ, life was all about me and my life and my family etc, and my wants. Now that I am a believer in Messiah, if I don’t dethrone my self, then I will end up using God in the same way, to provide and fulfil my wants, whether it be praising, or praying or giving or anything else at all.

Ever heard anyone talk about going to church to ‘get something’ or coming out of church and saying I did not get anything there today?

I am reminded in Scripture of what God asked of Abraham. (Gen 15:10 One day God appeared to Abraham and said, “I am your shield, your very great reward “

And this is how Abraham responded to God; (Gen 15:2) “what can you give me?” Abraham missed the whole point, much like we all do at times, much like I do at times!

God was saying to Abraham “When you have me, you have everything you need.”

When God tested Abraham a second time (Gen 22:2) He said “Take now, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and offer him for a burnt offering... this time Abraham passed with flying colours, Why? Because now, Abraham understood something really important, that if we do not value something, and we then offer it to God, we will then find out that God is not interested, He just does not want that which has no value to us.

If what we offer to God does not mean anything to us, then it wont mean anything to Him either. Whether that be our time, our love, our selves, our families no matter what, we need to give to God those things or feelings that are precious and highly valued to us.

Does that mean we do not get anything out of worship?
No, we benefit the most from our worship to Him, but HE must always be the object and reason of it...

(Rev 5:13) Blessing and honour and glory and power be unto HIM

When I can take all those things that are precious to me and pass them on to Him, then I am learning to become a real worshipper, no matter where I am.

Worship is all about God, it is about Him and to Him, He is worthy and I can do that 24/7, whether I am in church or wherever I may be.

I have a dear friend, who lives on the other side of the world.

Not that distances matters that much because he always seems to appear at times when I need someone to talk to.

The Holy Spirit knows the right time to send him to me.

Or I can just send a message to him and make a date for a chat, today was one of those days.

Sometimes just talking with someone, who understands, helps to clear the fog in ones brain, and I think that today for me the fog is lifting...

Now the wonderful thing is that my friend doesn’t tell me what to do, he has the gift of gently guiding me around those obstacles in my life and allowing me the joy of hearing the answers myself from my God.

It was an amazing thing for me to suddenly see through the fog and see what God wants me to do, to be able put closure to this today.

I am ready today to move on.

That is all I can do with the past regardless of what happened and who was to blame for the mistakes made.

I am ready today to move on.

To move on, does not mean that one loses awareness of what happened, it means I release the pain and resentment from my memory, it means I acknowledge that I did all I could to make things right at the time. It means that the self doubts and questioning stop here, now.

I am ready today to move on.

It also means I will not allow the precious memories that were made during those weeks to be destroyed or tarnished by feelings and self-doubts that are not of God.

How do I put closure to these feelings in my life now? Ahh that is one of the special gifts my friend taught me...

I forgive those things that I cannot forget, and I keep on forgiving until they have no power to hold me to the pain.

It does not mean I do not remember any longer, it means I can remember without the pain and doubts.

I am ready today to move on.

I will have the closure and the peace, because unforgivness and doubts have been exchanged for forgiveness and trust... I have made an exchange in my life, the world’s way of dealing with painful things, anger and unforgiveness for Gods way of forgiveness, trust and peace.

I do not doubt those old memories will try to negotiate another deal with me and test how committed I am to moving on, but I am ready and able to cope with that now.

I am ready today to move on.

There is something that I need to do in the practical sense as well to help with this closure, and the first chance I get to do this I will be doing it, I will be fulfilling a promise I made to my mom...

I am ready today to move on.

The pain can go. The things I will remember now are the joy and blessings and the precious last weeks.

Thank you my friend for reminding me in those difficult times to make memories.

I got a bit lost back then in all the turmoil and pain. Now I have those times to remember, to smile, to hold onto, for they are filled with love and are so special, they are a gift that will help me close the door on this now. So thank you for reminding me back then to make those times, they are something that I will have forever.

I am ready today to move on.

Phil 4:7 ‘And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus‘.

We often hear people talking about and striving for peace and happiness in this world, but the reality is that we nowadays live in times of unprecedented problems and disasters, we can think back to the twin towers bombings, and Bali and what is happening in Afghanistan and the Middle East, the list could go on and on.

Daily we hear of what the world calls natural disasters, earthquakes. Floods and weather patterns like those that we have never really known before.

Ever hear these comments? “What on earth is the world coming to?” “How can we even begin to know what the future will bring? Politicians, Church leaders, motivational speakers, atheists etc etc, all seem to have their theories or ideas about what the future will bring, but do they really believe what they are trying to convince others of?

Many people try to convince themselves and others that there is no God, I believe that we have the doctrine of evolution to thank for that, the sad thing is that when they totally buy the doctrine of evolution they stifle the seeking within themselves to know and trust in God. So then, for them and those they convince, anything goes and there is no fear of what comes after death because sadly they believe that once one is dead then that is it... Nothing after that.

If they were to admit the reality of the living God who created all things and to whom everyone is responsible as the Bible teaches, then that would mean they would then have to face their own sin and the consequence of it.

Yet God, who is righteous and cannot overlook sin, is also love. He showed the world His love when He gave Jesus His one and only Son to die for us, and reconcile us back to Himself.

[John 3:16] ‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ‘

God speaks to us in many different ways, sometimes through sickness, sometimes through death and often through what the world would call natural disasters. And very often in the beauty of His creation.  I used to wonder why, if people were so called intelligent and smart, that they never heard God or saw what He is often trying to tell us in these lessons.

I am not saying that God is always the one that sends these trials in life, but He does at times send them. 

He is the only one that can bring a positive from a negative situation or experience. These lessons in life remind us of the fragile hold that we all have on life, and the certainty we all have of death. However, He also reminds us of the glory of eternity with Him.

Hebrew 9:27 ’For it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement’.

Many people depend on baptism, church attendance, taking communion, tithing, and many other things to make them fit for Heaven, none of these things will get anyone into Heaven, the only way anyone of us is fit for Heaven is because of the cleansing and saving power in the blood of Jesus. All we need to do is to repent and accept Him as our Lord and Saviour. The work that Jesus did upon the cross is enough. It is finished! He said.

Isaiah 53:5 ‘He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities’

We need to share the truth and light of Christ to a hungry and dark world, we need to show hope to a world that is lost. We need to be the feet on earth of Jesus.

The world needs Christ, we need Christ.

Amen

I found a small scrap of paper in my  dad's wallet after his death, they were words that obviously meant a lot to dad, the paper was old and folded and in a fragile state,  but still very readable.  I know for them to have been written down and carried around for years in his wallet they must have meant something to him. 

So this post is dedicated to my dad whom I loved very much.

Ideas are not the responsibility of the people who believe in them...


Herein is the evil of ignorance,  that he who is neither good nor wise is nevertheless
Satisfied with himself; he has no desire for that of which he feels no want...


Most of us have no real loves,
No real hatreds,
Blessed is love,  less blessed is hatred, but thrice accursed is that indifference which
Is neither one nor the other.

For Valour

This is a token of appreciation and affectionate regard to my wife, Patricia Elizabeth Piper.                                                Mother of my children.
For her unflinching courage, unselfish service, loyalty, and devotion.

Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing.

[Proverbs 18 v 22]

Well, I have sat at my keyboard day after day and struggled to find something within me to write
Something that was not just of me but something that would lift up and glorify my Lord.

Yet here I am again and my page is blank yet again. There are words within me that churn around within my head and in my heart, but for some reason I cannot seem to get them out and onto the page to make sense of them.

I guess I am tired, but I know within myself that I yearn to be able to feel that freedom and blessing from the words that God gives me at times to write. It does not have to make sense to anyone else, but only to me and to my God, because it is to Him I want to give glory and praise.

This year has been hard and it has had some stress with it, but the Holy Spirit has also taught me much through all the trials and grief attached to the year.

A few years ago, a dear friend counselled me and taught me about how to experience freedom and healing from past hurts and how to deal with future hurts. He told me that if I learnt the lessons then, and accepted the healing and freedom that came from those lessons, that when future storms and battles arose in my life I would deal with them in the new way I had learned.

In my past, it had been usual for me to deal with pain by stuffing it deep within me and pretending it did not exist, that only helped the pain to fester and to bind me up spiritually and physically.

This time I have exposed it to the light of Christ and to the guidance and healing of the Holy Spirit.

My friend told me I would not be able to go back to my old ways that it would not happen like that again, because I had exchanged an old part of my fleshly ways for a new way in the Spirit.

Lampwicke my friend, you were so right, as hard as my flesh battled to send me back to those darker years, my spirit would not allow it because it had become something dead.
Yes, I still did feel the temptations to become again as if I was back again during those darker years. I think the word for it is Ostrich syndrome, you know the one, where one puts ones head in the sand and pretends something did not happen, just so one can cope without feeling the pain at the time?

I did for a short while; want to allow anger and hurt give me an excuse to hold onto unforgiveness, at least for a little while longer. My spirit would not allow that anymore though, because that part of me is dead, and I am thankful to God that it is and that I remain alive and free in the spirit.

I learned the lesson, I faced and am still facing the situation and I am allowing the healing of the Holy Spirit in each and every situation He brings to my memory and importantly now I am also letting go and forgiving those involved, each act of forgiveness rewards me with more and more of God’s peace and freedom.

I started off saying I had a blank page and I didn’t know what to write or even how to start, and that was true, but now I have come to the end of this and seen there has appeared a page of writing.
I have no idea why or how I wrote all that because I did not have anything to start with, I just allowed my heart to empty onto this page.

As I said in the beginning it does not matter if it makes sense to anyone or even to me, it only matters that I obey Him and that is what I did.


So Lord, I am thanking You for Your healing, for Your peace, for Your strength, for Your guidance, for Your presence, for all my brothers and sisters You send to me at the right time, when You know I have a need to speak and share with someone.



1 Chron 16:8-13

Oh give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples.
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;
Speak of all His wonders.
Glory in His holy name;
Let the heart of those who seek the LORD be glad.
Seek the LORD and His strength;
Seek His face continually.
Remember His wonderful deeds which He has done,
His marvels and the judgments from His mouth,
O seed of Israel His servant,
Sons of Jacob, His chosen ones!

I had cause a couple of weeks ago to be so disappointed with myself and how I behaved, I had all the seemingly right excuses for my behaviour, but God taught me a lesson and showed me something I needed to see.

I have known a lady for a few years now, not as a personal friend, but a friend just the same. I have been less than a friend to her though as I have allowed my busy life and my lack of patience at times to treat her less than she really deserved as a sister in Christ.

She is well known around town as a very friendly soul, she has an intellectual handicap, but she does still manage to live on her own with her sister living in an apartment in front of hers. She talks loud, she loves to get close to people, like at times almost in ones face, she loves to hug people, loves to kiss one on the cheek and tell them God Bless you. Many people, me included have at times avoided her by ducking into a shop or even quickly leaving a shop if she is in there, because in spite of her being friendly etc, she does take patience and she does take time… She is also not shy in asking for a ride home or to somewhere else she maybe going.

A couple of weeks ago, on a Saturday at lunchtime, my husband and I went into a coffee lounge for a coffee and something to eat… I walked in there, took a tray and plates, and then heard a voice call out to me. I turned around and there she was with a beaming smile on her face, she was so happy to see us there. I turned to my husband and said “sorry” all I wanted to do was to have a quiet lunch with him. I was tired and my patience was wearing thin that morning. She got up from her table, rushed over, and gave my husband and me a hug and a kiss… then because it was busy, she went back to her table.

We got our food and paid for it and made our way to a table, as we moved away from the counter, she waved to us and called out “I have made some room at my table for you”

We went and sat with her at her table and she chatted and was so happy… She was telling us that she walks a couple of miles into town each day, leaving home at about 9am each day… Why each day? Because she would rather sit in a coffee bar, eat lunch, and walk around town where people were all around her, even if they were not talking to her, than sit at home alone every day.

I looked at her face and God gave me a good look at the loneliness and pain on her face and in her eyes, she so wanted to belong, to be accepted, to have some contact, to be hugged, she gave so often and yet she received back so little. I felt so ashamed of those times I had been too busy, too intolerant, too important, and too blind to see… God really touched me at that moment and showed me that each time I hug this sister, each time I give her a ride somewhere, each time I make the time to stop and say hi to her, everything I do to her or for her I am doing to HIM. I looked at her dear sweet face with the huge eyes smiling back and I saw Jesus.

How she loves Jesus.

I came home very changed that day in my attitudes and I know that scales dropped from my eyes that day as God dealt with my selfishness.

I saw her again at the weekend and I asked her if she would allow me to take her out for lunch today. She was very excited, said yes! So I picked her up today, and I took her to a nice restaurant. I choose a table right near the door so she could see who came in; she wanted people to see her.

We ordered our food and when it arrived, she would not touch it until I had prayed a blessing over the food…so right in front of the door we prayed a blessing over our food as others looked on. I wanted so much to bless her today, but I was the one that received the biggest blessing of all.

Thank You Lord for showing me the gift and blessing of loving through this dear dear sister…

In His Love

Les

I know this is my blog, my place where I can write down honestly as I feel…but the truth is that I have always been reluctant to really express my feelings and the struggles that are going on within me. I have a tendency to just cover up and allow the outside to show something different from what is really going on inside of me.

Maybe this is an experiment to see if I actually can be honest with myself, to be transparent at least in the privacy of my own web log.

I have been struggling spiritually, not with my faith in God, because that is stronger and growing, but I have been struggling with accepting teachings within the church I was going to. I have tried to find answers to my questions and I know that for me I have received the answers, I just can’t accept them and so this lead me to the big question… what to do about it?

Am I better to be in fellowship and struggle continually with the doctrines and teachings or am I better to be honest with myself and if necessary go it alone, just God and me?

I follow God and He alone, my desire is to be obedient to Him, to be free to hear and obey Him.

My God is the one who directs my paths,

who leads me by His Spirit,

who speaks to my heart,

who picks me up when I fall,

who listens to me,

who loves me unconditionally,

who is the potter and is molding me, the clay, into a vessel He can use to His glory.

My God is the one who sent His only Son to suffer and to die so that I may live.

So I have been resigning from all those commitments that I have had within the church I have been going to, disentangling myself from all areas that I am involved with there.

It is hard because this also involves personal friendships that have been built. It also involves a lot of hurts and others not understanding why and confusion from them.

I have to do this to be honest to myself and to be honest to others, but more than anything, I have to do this to be honest to my God and to be obedient to Him.

I should be at peace, I have made my decision and I am at peace in that… but I am also hurting a lot as well, I feel like I am floating around belonging no where now.

I hate the loneliness of not being part of a church family, of not going and worshipping together on a Sunday. Where I live I cannot see a fellowship that I can go to go at this time.

I guess for me it is a grieving, a loss of what I thought I knew was right, a recognition of what I needed to do…a time of having to let go and let God.

I do not think this post is sounding rational at all, but for once, I do not care, its how I am feeling today. I feel hurt, I feel lonely, and I feel redundant…

We can choose that which we do, and I did that, I choose that path for myself albeit I truly believed that was what God wanted, least I convinced myself He did.

What we do not get to choose is the consequences of our choices, what I am feeling now are the consequences of my choices.

Lord, help me to hear Your voice, help me to follow You and to be obedient to You alone.

In His Love

Les

Have you ever felt like you asked so many questions about something that was important to you and that when the answers came, they made perfect sense?

And when you accepted the answers, you felt right about moving on in the answers you had accepted, even though deep in your heart there was still a battle going on trying to convince yourself of something you were not very sure about.

Have you ever told yourself you have a peace about things and on the surface, you really do, but deep within the battle to understand and accept still goes on?

And you then begin to try putting those things you learned into your life?
For a time there are ways to move all around those issues that are confusing and that do not sit right within your spirit. I have a too hard basket and I toss things in there and tell myself I will get back to them when I have grown up a bit and the time is right for me to understand. The thing is that often the things in the too hard basket are never resolved for me.

And then all of a sudden you see other things that were maybe not there, or not there visibly there at the time of the questions, or maybe they were but they were just placed in that too hard basket for a while?

Now, the answers for me don’t come so fast anymore, now the questions are harder, or is it maybe that the searching is deeper than before? I realise that it is a constant battle to understand and try to accept some things.

Whatever the reason is, whatever excuse I give myself for continuing to battle these questions, it has the ability to steal ones peace, and to take my joy away.

Did I really feel that peace, or did I just convince myself that I wanted more than anything else at the time to accept and understand, even if I did not totally understand it all? I really do not know....

All I do know for sure is that at this time I somehow allowed myself to become more confused than I ever was before the questioning started. I am trying so hard to make sense of this turmoil within me.

I have to stop this battling and I have to start listening to what God is saying to my spirit. All I desire is to be closer to my God and to worship Him with all my being, totally.

I know that I will have frustrated people and maybe disappointed some, and that upsets me. I know more than anything I am disappointed in myself.

Dear Lord forgive me, I am so tired of this turmoil inside me... Help me to see clearly the things that You want me to see. Let this battle within me cease and let me feel Your peace.

I love You Lord and I want to worship and serve You always…

Les

"Understanding our identity in Christ is absolutely essential to our success at living the victorious Christian life."

I am accepted...

John 1:12 I am God's child.
John 15:15 As a disciple, I am a friend of Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:1 I have been justified.
1 Corinthians 6:17 I am united with the Lord, and I am one with Him in spirit.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 I have been bought with a price and I belong to God.
1 Corinthians 12:27 I am a member of Christ's body.
Ephesians 1:3-8 I have been chosen by God and adopted as His child.
Colossians 1:13-14 I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins.
Colossians 2:9-10 I am complete in Christ.
Hebrews 4:14-16 I have direct access to the throne of grace through Jesus Christ.

I am secure...

Romans 8:1-2 I am free from condemnation.
Romans 8:28 I am assured that God works for my good in all circumstances.
Romans 8:31-39 I am free from any condemnation brought against me and I cannot be separated from the love of God.
2 Corinthians 1:21-22 I have been established, anointed and sealed by God.
Colossians 3:1-4 I am hidden with Christ in God.
Philippians 1:6 I am confident that God will complete the good work He started in me.
Philippians 3:20 I am a citizen of heaven.
2 Timothy 1:7 I have not been given a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind.
1 John 5:18 I am born of God and the evil one cannot touch me.

I am significant...

John 15:5 I am a branch of Jesus Christ, the true vine, and a channel of His life.
John 15:16 I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit.
1 Corinthians 3:16 I am God's temple.
2 Corinthians 5:17-21 I am a minister of reconciliation for God.
Ephesians 2:6 I am seated with Jesus Christ in the heavenly realm.
Ephesians 2:10 I am God's workmanship.
Ephesians 3:12 I may approach God with freedom and confidence.
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.

"The more we reaffirm who we are in Christ, the more our behavior will begin to reflect our true identity!"

 If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has gone.  The new has come!

2 Cor 5:17

In His love

Les