Honoring our Mothers.

Hi all,I am sure  you have noticed the new pink background change.This is in honor of  all mums and Mother's day which is just around the corner ,specifically on  Sunday,30th March , 2014.There is not a single person who got here without a mum.Maybe you have not yet bought a present yet or you are just wondering of a special way to honor your mum or the mother of your children.

This year , you can do so in words letting her know how much you learnt from her and we will also be featuring it on this blog starting from March 23rd .So this is the time to write, it is better she sees these things while she is alive and a link will also be available so you can share with all your friends and family to honor your mum with you.The essay is "Lessons I learnt from my Mum/Mother".This should be done in no more than 350 words.You can also upload a picture of her .
Remember it does not have to be your biological mother.

Entries can be sent directly to justflourish@gmail.com  or using the contact form below.You will receive an acknowledgement and be told the date it will be featured.

Happy Mother's day in advance.
Grace Tom-Lawyer

Faithfulness&church

“You should not stay away from the church meetings, as some are doing….” Hebrews 10:25a NCV

We are encouraged as believers by the Bible to be involved in a local church. Watching online services should not replace regular attendance in local meetings.

I believe first of all, we should prayerfully choose a church and be committed to her progress and if we do change church, it is faithfulness not to run down our previous congregation knowing that since churches are made up of imperfect people, our new church will also have her issues! If we change church continuously, it could be a sign that we do not want to be held accountable or are having problems with forgiveness.

 We should be faithful in praying for our pastors as they serve as a covering and be concerned also about their welfare.

 Faithfulness also means being financially committed to the church. Paying our tithes at a different church from where we worship regularly is best illustrated by Joyce Meyer’s statement of “eating in McDonalds and paying at KFC”! (two different eateries).Sometimes this is done due to ignorance or just an egoistical need for acknowledgement by someone. There is no justification for wanting to pay the tithe where we think it will be felt. It is also not wrong to support other ministries with gifts.

It also means being faithful to serve in an activity group. It is not faithfulness to attend meetings only when we are doing a function or be absent or late without the courtesy of informing the leaders. Many activity group leaders know the frustration of working with volunteers who cannot be counted on. It would also help if we do not over commit to things, having to say no at times in order to be effective. And if you are a leader of a group, lead by all means as your followers will not be more passionate than what they see you do and sometimes after prayerful consideration, it may be part of faithfulness to resign rather than just holding a title. What if you are not in a group? Find one, create one. It could be picking up the litter on the days you eventually get to church. The benefits of everyone being involved is so that the few committed people are not overwhelmed.

Let us be faithful as we serve in our churches being committed to her values and vision.

Grace Tom-Lawyer

Faithful at work

“And since our first duty is to be faithful to the one we work for”. - 1 Corinthians 4:2 CEV

“Now the most important thing about a servant is that he does just what his master tells him to do”. – 1 Corinthians 4:2 TLB

“The requirements of a guide are reliability and accurate knowledge”.-1 Corinthians 4:2 MSG

We should also be faithful at work. An unnecessary  line of distinction is usually  drawn between our secular jobs and work done at church with the erroneous notion that the latter is more important but all our work is unto  God who is  present at all times  and expects faithfulness. We are not doing it to be seen by people nor doing it for a pay cheque rather our work ethics should reflect the excellence of the God we so claim to serve. Our integrity at work should be unquestionable and our dependability unwavering. Our bosses should be sorry to see us leave and our colleagues should always have a sense of joy working with us. If we handover at the end of our shifts, it should not be with a myriad of duties which should have been covered under our shift. This is not to say that we will always be appreciated because sometimes we will even be criticized because we are doing things well. This work ethics includes coming to work on time .This work could even mean   staying at home, taking care of kids, washing the dishes or doing the laundry but God expects we do it with excellence. It may be menial, not the kind of job we think we should be doing however one of the true test of greatness is doing the little things well, even when we are not applauded.

 Also the TLB translation says that the servant should do just what his master tells him to do .If you have ever supervised at any level, you may have felt the frustration of people not doing what they have been asked to do.

I like also the Message translation that says one should have reliability and accurate knowledge. We need to do to take the time to acquire accurate and up to date information about our areas of expertise in our jobs as this will not only keep us relevant and indispensable but enable the delivery of better service which ultimately is faithfulness.

Yours Faithfully,

Grace Tom-Lawyer

Faithful as friends

“Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful”. Proverbs 27:6 KJV Kings James Version

“Friends mean well, even when they hurt you. But when an enemy puts his arm around your shoulder, watch out”. Proverbs 27:6 GNT Good News Translation 

God has placed friends along my path in life   for which I remain eternally grateful as they have also helped to shape the course of my life. Unlike our family members, we get to choose our friends although several circumstances may have enhanced these. Friendships are built overtime and require effort.

Being faithful as a friend means being a person of our words. It simply means being dependable. It means we can be counted on to be there at all seasons. A faithful friend will always make the other person better, calling out the gifts of God in their lives while being able to see them as they could be. It means to love them enough to listen and believe in them, be their cheer leader helping to drown discouraging voices. Faithfulness also means rejoicing genuinely with their successes and sharing their pain. It is difficult to have a friend without being one.

It also involves being able to tell our friends, with sensitivity the truth although this may sometimes cause strain in the relationship.

It also demands we faithfully keep confidences. Secrets shared with a friend are not to be repeated, no matter how we sometimes craftily do so under the guise of a prayer request! It is a weakness of character to share the secrets of our friends but truth be told, this we sometimes do to put ourselves in a better light. It takes faithfulness to also exercise discretion although not being genuinely concerned about our friends is a recipe for gossip.

Faithfulness means taking the time to know their needs as the relationship evolves and giving them what they need and not what they used to need or what we think they need. How to know? Just ask.

And since they are human and would err from time to time, we must be faithful to forgive them and respect the relationship even when it undergoes a transition by saying as little and as positive about it to others.

 As a child , I  used to cherish cards and my earliest memories was a card given by a  in primary school which erroneously read "God could not be everywhere so he made friends". I cherished it then but looking back today, I would rather it read "God is everywhere and as a reminder, he made friends" as my friends usually remind me of God.

Celebrating friendship

Grace Tom-Lawyer

Are we faithful?

As children of God, it is imperative that this character of his faithfulness is seen in our lives which generally starts in the family. Although families comes in different shapes, we have all been uniquely placed by divine orchestration. God in his wisdom did not allow us choose our families but demands our faithfulness to them. How can we be faithful to our families?

It means that as children we should obey our parents early in life and as the dynamics change, honour them .It also means consistent enquiry of their welfare. This may not always be monetary based but may be as simple as a phone call .It will be right to say that  our children are also watching the way we treat our parents and may treat us just the same. It means that as parents we take the time to know our children, observe them for their uniqueness and try our best to guide them in the way that enables efficient use of their gifts and talents rather than comparing them with others. It is faithfulness to discipline them as the need arises. It is also being faithful to your primary role as a father to provide and protect your family and as a mother to nurturing and being a helpmeet. I get weary of meeting strangers who on their first conversation with me feel the need to let me know how bad their spouses are!

So what of our siblings? As the demands of life pull us further away from each other, it is going to take more than mere wishing to keep in touch with them. The fact that they are siblings does not necessarily translate to friendship and so apart from praying for them, let us take the time to know them,communicating always with a non-judgmental attitude.

 We sometimes fall guilty of treating outsiders better than we treat our family members. Would it shock our family members if they watch a replay of us at work or at church? Are we more generous with our money, our comments outside than at home when it matters the most? It is amazing how people can be greeters in church and never smile at home!

Not everyone will like to admit it but the truth is that we may not like all our family members we love, but faithfulness means sticking together through the thick and thin.

Faithfully,

Grace Tom-Lawyer

God is Faithful 2

 "He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is"  Deuteronomy 32:4 NLT New Living Translation

The word “faithful” immediately brings to mind   “reliable” and “trust worthy” which are not too far from the dictionary meaning. The backbone of any vibrant healthy relationship is trust. Even the best of relationships will quickly go into a comatose state if trust is lacking, our relationship with God notwithstanding.

What does the phrase God is faithful GIF mean?

Firstly it means GIF to himself and his character as a result of which He does not change according to Malachi 3:6. God is so true to himself and his word which sustains the universe. Hebrews 1:3, Colossians 1:17. His word can be counted   upon, in spite of the facts. Unlike man, his ability to keep his word is unlimited. It is God’s faithfulness that keeps his promises. This faithfulness is also seen in his judgement over sin and making a way of atonement and fellowship through Jesus.

 Secondly, His faithfulness to us ensures his committal love for us as His children which is independent of our efforts or performance. Even when we shock ourselves with some actions and behaviours, He still faithfully corrects us and will not give up on us. This faithfulness also protects us like a shield and a buckler. In short, his faithfulness guards jealously the circumstances and the events in our lives. GIF enough to check every tiny bit of drama that comes into our lives before it does. Yes, I agree some things may be from the Enemy but nothing happens without God’s approval as the Book of Job lets us know. According to 1 Corinthians 10:13, his faithfulness ensures that we will   not be tested more than necessary.  Thankfully, his faithfulness guarantees that ultimately, there will be victory!

Recognizing the faithfulness of God frees us to be able to pray with confidence in His love and be truly thankful at all times knowing that He can be trusted even when we do not understand.

Celebrating God’s faithfulness.

Grace

God is Faithful

“O Lord God Almighty! Where is there anyone as mighty as you Lord? Faithfulness is your very character” Psalms 89 v 8 NLT New Living Translation .

As 2013 came to a close, one of my resolutions was to begin to blog again but with this came the dilemma of what to begin with. It was then this phrase God is faithful GIF silently but surprisingly whispered from my heart. Like every year, 2013 ended with different levels of met and unmet expectations.

For some 2013 was a year where previous hurts became erased(rather eased) and long awaited dreams came true; a miracle baby, new relationships, new homes , the dream job while for others 2013 ushered feelings of disappointment and rejection as they tackled being made jobless, orphaned, divorced, widowed or homeless. I admit that I fell into the latter category with bouts of insomnia. But whatever 2013 may have brought, the testimony is that we made it to this year as result of God’s faithfulness while being served a fresh challenge of facing this New Year .

 Quite frankly, there have been times I did not want to hear this phrase GIF as I felt it was an overused cliché employed in a lame attempt to comfort me and wished the speaker could just be quiet and other times felt it was another way of receiving yet another goodbye speech while being enjoined to paddle my own canoe .But through it all ,lessons have been learnt and countless number of times, God has proved faithful showing He is more concerned about my character than my comfort.

 As I read the scriptures today , I was struck by another verse on God’s faithfulness and looked it up in more than twenty translations but still love best the way NLT puts Psalms 25 v 10 "The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and his decrees" Notice that one of the two things God uses to lead us is his faithfulness. We can count on it as we go into the New Year not knowing what it holds but knowing that He will lead us through the year with faithfulness. To lead definitely means He will go before us and it is great to think that his faithfulness will lead the way with unfailing love .We are also charged with the responsibility of keeping his covenant and decrees. God can be counted on to see us through. This brought great joy to me and causes me to say with excitement Happy New Year!

 Continue to Flourish,
 Grace