Moenie Omkyk Nie ~~ Gebed vir 'n nuwe begin ~~

Here, ek bid dat U my vry sal maak van my verlede. Waar ek ook al die verlede my "tuiste" gemaak het, bid ek dat U my sal red, my sal genees en my sal verlos. Ek kies om my tuiste by U te maak. Help my om enigeiets uit my verlede waaraan ek vasklou en wat my keer om alles wat U vir my het te ontvang, te laat los. Stel my in staat om op te hou lewe soos ek vroeër gelewe het. Maak my gees en gedagtes nuut (vlg. Ef. 4:22-24). Gee aan my die denke van Christus sodat ek sal kan verstaan wanneer ek beheer word deur herhinnerings aan wat in die verlede gebeur het.

Ek wil my nie vasbind aan die verlede deur enigeiemand of 'n gebeurtenis wat daarmee verband hou nie te vergewe nie. Help my om te vergewe wat vergewe moet word. Ek bid spesifiek dat U my sal red van die effek van (noem enige pynlike of slegte herinnring wat jy het). Ek gee my verlede aan U oor en ook enigeen wat ek daarmee assosieer, sodat U kan herwin wat verlore is. Alles wat aan my gedoen is of wat ek gedoen het wat vir my pyn bring, gee ek aan U oor. Mag dit my nie meer teister nie. Mag dit nie meer beïnvloed wat ek vandag doen nie. Maak my bly soveel dae as dié waarin ek verdruk is en gee my blydskap vir soveel jare as dié waarin ek gely het (vgl. Ps. 90:15). Dankie dat U alles nuut maak en dat U my nuut maak op elke denkbare manier (vgl. Op. 21:5).

Help my om reg voor my uit te bly fokus en nie op te kyk na die dae van die verlede en na ou maniere van dinge doen nie. U wil vandag iets nuuts in my lewe doen. Help my om te konsentreer op waarheen ek nou gaan en nie op waar ek was nie. Maak my vry van die verlede sodat ek daaruit kan beweeg tot in die toekoms wat U vir my het.

~~ Uittreksel uit: Die krag van 'n vrou wat bid. Geskryf deur Stormie Omartian ~~

Liefde het Vensters

~ Salvador Dali (1904 - 1989) ~

"Gelukkige liefde het vensters

waardeur jy uitkyk

na die wêreld

buite jou veilige hawe."

~~ Milanie Vosloo ~~

"Liefde is 'n pragtige blom

waaraan ek nie mag raak nie,

maar sy geur maak die tuin

nogtans 'n wonderlike plek."

~~ Helen Keller ~~

Ware Liefde

"Jesus het nie net liefde kom verduidelik nie, Hy het dit kom demonstreer. Hy het God se ewigdurende liefdesjaar kom inlui by Kopbeenplek en die leë graf sodat ons sy liefde sigbaar moet gaan maak in 'n deurmekaar wêreld. Jesus vra nie van ons die onmoontlike nie, maar net dit wat Hy moontlik gemaak het: om waarlik lief te hê!"

~~ Jan du Rand ~~

Blue Ribbon

A teacher in New York decided to honor each of her seniors in high school by telling them the difference they each made. She called each student to the front of the class, one at a time. First she told each of them how they had made a difference to her and the class. Then she presented each of them with a blue ribbon imprinted with gold letters which read, “Who I Am Makes a Difference.”

Afterwards the teacher decided to do a class project to see what kind of impact recognition would have on a community. She gave each of the students three more ribbons and instructed them to go out and spread this acknowledgment ceremony. Then they were to follow up on the results, see who honored whom and report back to the class in about a week.

One of the boys in the class went to a junior executive in a nearby company and honored him for helping him with his career planning. He gave him a blue ribbon and put it on his shirt. Then he gave him two extra ribbons and said, “We’re doing a class project on recognition, and we’d like you to go out, find somebody to honor, give them a blue ribbon, then give them the extra blue ribbon so they can acknowledge a third person to keep this acknowledgment ceremony going. Then please report back to me and tell me what happened.”

Later that day the junior executive went in to see his boss, who had been noted, by the way, as being kind of a grouchy fellow. He sat his boss down and he told him that he deeply admired him for being a creative genius. The boss seemed very surprised. The junior executive asked him if he would accept the gift of the blue ribbon and would he give him permission to put it on him. His surprised boss said, “Well, sure.” The junior executive took the blue ribbon and placed it right on his boss’s jacket above his heart. As he gave him the last extra ribbon, he said, “Would you do me a favor? Would you take this extra ribbon and pass it on by honoring somebody else? The young boy who first gave me the ribbons is doing a project in school and we want to keep this recognition ceremony going and find out how it affects people.”

That night the boss came home to his 14-year-old son and sat him down. He said, “The most incredible thing happened to me today. I was in my office and one of the junior executives came in and told me he admired me and gave me a blue ribbon for being a creative genius. Imagine. He thinks I’m a creative genius. Then he put this blue ribbon that says ‘Who I Am Makes A Difference’” on my jacket above my heart. He gave me an extra ribbon and asked me to find somebody else to honor. As I was driving home tonight, I started thinking about whom I would honor with this ribbon and I thought about you. I want to honor you. My days are really hectic and when I come home I don’t pay a lot of attention to you. Sometimes I scream at you for not getting good enough grades in school and for your bedroom being a mess, but somehow tonight, I just wanted to sit here and, well, just let you know that you do make a difference to me. Besides your mother, you are the most important person in my life. You’re a great kid and I love you!”

The startled boy started to sob and sob, and he couldn’t stop crying. His whole body shook. He looked up at his father and said through his tears, “Dad, earlier tonight I sat in my room and wrote a letter to you and Mom explaining why I had killed myself and asking you to forgive me. I was going to commit suicide tonight after you were asleep. I just didn’t think that you cared at all. The letter is upstairs. I don’t think I need it after all.” His father walked upstairs, and found a heartfelt letter full of anguish and pain.

The envelope was addressed, “Mom and Dad”. The boss went back to work a changed man. He was no longer a grouch but made sure to let all his employees know that they made a difference. The junior executive helped several other young people with career planning and never forgot to let them know that they made a difference in his life ... one being the boss’s son. And the young boy and his classmates learned a valuable lesson. Who you are DOES make difference.

You are under no obligation to send this on to anyone ... not to one people or to one hundred. As far as I am concerned, you can move on to another page. But if you have anyone who means a lot to you, I encourage you to send him or her this message and let them know that they make a difference in your life. You never know what kind of difference a little encouragement can make to a person. I give you this blue ribbon. Who you are makes a difference.

~~ Mary Alexis Rose Bactad ~~