WUK

17/05/2026

O V E R C O M I N G O F F E N S E

I remember times when I’d feel very awkward if someone offended me, particularly if that someone was a Christian person. I didn’t know how to deal with the offense or with the person. And it happened that none of the Christians around me knew how to deal with offense either. It was easier to sweep matters under the rug, and pretend that there had been no offense done. Because we had a superficial knowledge on God’s kind of love, we didn’t love enough to rebuke those who offended us. And because they were not corrected they were likely to have gone on to offend others.

Jesus said to His disciples: “it is impossible that no offenses should come..” Luke 17:1

Offense will come our way, even daily. How we deal with that offense is what’s important. But first let’s unpack what offense is.

Offense can be as insignificant as a colleague forgetting your name and remembering everyone else’s at a team’s meeting, to as great as a spouse spending the family’s savings to fund his gambling. In between are countless other offenses. Jesus referred to offenses as stumbling blocks. Stumbling blocks do not themselves cause us to stumble. Think of a few blocks laying on a path one after the other. Unless they’re jumping up and down as you try to walk over them, they won’t harm you. If you look down the path as you walk, and slow down once you see them, you’ll easily be able to step over them and keep walking. But many Christians aren’t paying attention. They either stop altogether and can’t see how to go around the stumbling blocks or they crush into them.

Offense becomes stumbling blocks to us when our minds are not set on God. At a time when David was forced to live aa a fugitive because king Saul sought to kill him, he declared “my heart is set [fixed], O Lord, my heart is set!” (Psalm 57:7). He had set his mind to praise God and not to harm God’s anointed, even when opportunity came and he could easily have wiped out king Saul. Paul said in Colossians 3:2 “set your minds on things above, not on earthly things”. The things above are those things that God has prepared for us - beyond our present sufferings. Hebrews 12 says that Jesus overcame the cross because He placed His focus on the joy that was set before Him.

We always have a choice what to do when offended. Do we forgive, get bitter or fall into sin?

It is a grievous thing for the person that causes others to stumble- Jesus said “it would be better for him if a milestone was hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than he should offend one of these little ones.” Luke 17:2. Anyone that causes others to fall into sin, or deliberately stands in the way of others knowing the Truth of God commits a great sin.

At the same time, Jesus said we too, that encounter an offense, have a responsibility in this matter.

First He says “take heed to yourself” Luke 17:3. To take heed is to pay careful attention “to ourselves”. Instead of walking with our eyes roaming up the skies, be watchful of the path on which you walk. This means to pay attention to our thoughts, to what we see and what we listen to, and the company we keep. To be mindful of our spiritual and moral condition.

Secondly Jesus adds that if our brother sins against us we should rebuke him; and if he repents, we should forgive him. We have a duty toward those who wrong us- to rebuke them. Then He tells us how frequently we need to forgive those who offend us: as often as he comes and repents. Even if it would be seven times a day (verse 4).

When the apostles heard this, they couldn’t understand it. In reality a person in their right mind wouldn’t continue doing wrong that many times, unless their heart was hardened. In that case they wouldn’t return to you to ask for forgiveness. But, if they were in their right mind and they did mess up that much yet returned to apologise to you, would you have the grace to forgive them?

The apostles searched within themselves, and how they’d customarily dealt with offenders. They felt that they didn’t have it in themselves to forgive that many times. So they said to the Lord, “increase our faith.”

As I studied these scriptures, I realised that many times we rely on how things are done “customarily” around our circles. We may forgive a few times, but because by the second or third time we’ve informed our inner circle of friends and they’re all expressing their opinions, we lean more on pleasing them than forgiving the spouse/colleague/neighbour.

How did your family deal with offense, as you grew up? Some of us heard our elders talking about offensive relatives who’d caused such grief that left unhealing wounds on other relatives. They’d done a damage so big that forgiveness wasn’t even an option. How are you dealing with offenses that occur frequently from your family members?

Jesus said to the disciples, “if you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you..” verse 6.

The faith you have is enough for you to forgive your spouse/child/neighbour as often as they do you wrong.

Your faith has immense potential to change circumstances. Think of a mulberry tree or an apple tree that you come across and suddenly feel a holy inkling to command to be uprooted and planted in the nearby sea. And it is done. What would that do to you? You might throw your hands up in the air with your mouth open, look around you fiercely to grab the attention of every passerby and shout ‘did you see that?!’ And as they run towards you, you take ownership of that hole from where the tree was uprooted, guiding all their eyes to that mulberry tree that’s now planted in the sea.

But more importantly, inside of you you’d build a memorial stone right there - and maybe physically too - and from that day on you will never EVER forget what God did when you put your faith in Him.

Living by faith is the life God want you to experience!

God takes forgiving seriously, and He knows that in the natural it is impossible to forgive those who offend and hurt us frequently. But the faith He gave us is not natural - we are capable of forgiving everyone that offends us, and as many times as they offend us.

In you is faith that can move mountains; Faith that can believe for a broken relationship to mend and that can bring healing to all those that have been hurt by that broken relationship.

I would have liked to end this post right here, because the point has gone across, but it wouldn’t be complete without going through the rest of Jesus’ teaching in that section of Luke 17.

Having told the apostles what their faith, even as small as a mustard seed, had potential to achieve, Jesus continued: ‘And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ”(Luke 17:7-10)

It is our duty as children of God, to forgive those who offend us. The Bible says in Psalms 119:165 “great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” We overcome offense by forgiving the offender. It is what we must do as believers in Jesus Christ.

I know there are offenses that are heavier and deeper than others. There are those that take years to heal. God knows that. He’s bottled every one of your tears over those hurts (Psalms 56:8). He knows the only way forward for you is to forgive whoever offended you, and allow God to avenge you.

In the beginning of the following chapter (Luke 18), Jesus begins by saying that we must always pray and not lose heart. Then He goes on to tell a parable about a widow who kept going to the judge for justice against an adversary. Jesus says that although the judge did not fear God nor regard men, he said to himself that he would avenge the widow lest she wear him out by her continual ask for justice. He completes this by saying ‘Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:6-8).

If all you have is a tiny amount of faith, trust God and act on it. God will avenge you. My prayer for you is that you would learn to fully trust God’s ability to act on your behalf and His willingness to help you. I pray that when Christ comes back He will find you and I living out our unshakable faith in God.

12/05/2026

B L E S S I N G I N Y O U R F A M I N E

Are you going through a challenging time, and there seems to be no way out? God has a Word for you that will lead you out of famine and into victory.

You know, it's interesting how the Bible says that there is nothing new under the sun - ours is not a ‘special drought’ or challenge or difficulty (Ecclesiastes 1:9-10). Whatever we go through has taken place somewhere, in someone else’s life. It’s comforting to know that our problems aren’t unique. Yet one of modern day’s tragedies is how many of us have made the internet our point of reference, instead of the Bible. We’re curious to know how others dealt with their sickness/loss/indecision. While there’s nothing wrong with that, the power lies only in the Word of God.

God sent His Word in order to provide a point of reference for all those who would believe in His Son Jesus Christ. What does the Bible say about your current situation?

This is what you can count on: All things will work together for your good because you trust in God (Romans 8:28). The devil may try EVERYTHING to bring you down - flu, pains, loss, lack, discouragement - but Psalm 91 says that even though ‘a thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousands at your right hand,’ they shall not come near you!

Have you ever been out camping, and sat around a log-fire in the evening? You wouldn’t need to sit too close to feel the heat. Likewise the devil knows he cannot come near you, so he will do everything possible to make your senses aware of his forces surrounding you - and unfortunately many christians panic at the onset of that ‘heat’. If we panic long enough we begin the process of giving up. If we do not rise up in defiance, in faith, we end up thinking the battle is lost. The battle is not lost.

The Psalmist continued and said that with our eyes we’ll look and see the reward of the wicked (verse 8). If we remain patient, endure just a bit longer, put our entire faith in God, we will see the enemy defeated.

Wouldn’t you want to see the defeat of that disease, pain, unemployment, loneliness, and everything else that has stolen your joy and your life?

The enemy comes in many different forms - but God has promised that we will see the enemy’s defeat, no matter the form he shows up in. You will see that loss redeemed, that famine turn into surplus, loneliness into companionship and whatever else your need is - you will receive your reward.

Your famine could turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to you!

Naturally we look at how people have dealt with similar issues in life - whether personal lives, ministry or businesses - and we attempt to apply the same principles in order to succeed. There is nothing sinful about this; in fact there is a lot of wisdom in learning from those around us that have gone through similar things in life. But God wants us to know Him personally, and learn how to hear Him. We can only obey God if we trust Him. And the level of trust it requires demands an intimate relationship with Him.

God has a unique way of dealing with your non-unique problem. All He requires is your obedience. Think of Joshua and his leadership over Israel (Joshua 6:1-21). When he received the instructions from God of going round the walls of Jericho - which were as thick as the roof of house - someone out of the thousands of men who heard him repeat those instructions might have thought ‘that can’t be God - those walls are impossible to bring down.’ But obedience brought them one of the greatest victories they had ever seen since they left Egypt. Yet, what if Joshua had tried to apply this same strategy when he fought against Ai or against the coalition of the Amorite kings or the northern kings (Joshua 8-11)? Just because God gave directions once does not necessarily mean that those directions apply for the second or third crossroad you come to. Isaiah 30:21 says that ‘whether we turn to the right or left, we shall hear a voice behind us saying, ‘this is the way; walk in it.’’ God desires to instruct us and teach us in the way we should go, so that we can bring glory and honour to Him through our success, our well-being, and our prosperity.

What God is doing in your neighbour’s life/business/ministry is their business with God. Stop trying to copy their strategy. There is something custom-designed for YOU by God. He wants to address your particular areas of concern with you as a co-worker with Him. That way, you will never forget where you have been and how you get to where God is taking you.

The Bible says God doesn’t sleep (Psalm 121:4) - He is awake round the clock, thinking up wonderful things about you and your life - and He has a masterplan on how to get you out of trouble/sickness/debt and set you on a course that He has prepared just for you! If God’s intention was a one-size-fits-all plan that worked for everyone, He might as well go to sleep (this is not literal -God is not a man and does not require sleep- but I hope you get my point). His thoughts concerning you are many, and they’re ALL GOOD. If you miss one turn, He’ll easily navigate you to another. You & I will only find out in heaven how many missed turnpoints we had, because God’s navigation is swift and aligns perfectly even into our worst messes in life. Once we allow Him to navigate, He leaves zero clue of how badly we’d missed.

Finally, I’ll write briefly about Isaac, concerning whom we have covered an article (found on scrolling down to older articles). In a time of drought, Isaac chose to listen to the instructions of God. There had been famines before and particularly in the time of his father Abraham, and Isaac might have been tempted to make plans to go down to Egypt, as his father had done. He might have thought, ‘it worked for dad back in his day, it will work for me.’ But God spoke to him and said to not go down to Egypt, but to remain in Gerar. Isaac stayed in Gerar, and sowed in that land during a time of famine because he trusted God’s provision. And the Lord blessed him and he reaped a hundredfold in that same year. The Bible says that ‘he began to prosper and continued prospering until he became very prosperous’ (Genesis 26:12-13). One act of obedience yielded an abundance of blessings in Isaac’s life so that he became so great that the Philistines envied him, and Abimelech, the king said to Isaac, ‘move away from us, for you have become too powerful for us.’

That famine you are going through right now, it could be the greatest thing that ever happened to you. Not because God caused it - He didn’t. But He takes those things the devil means for harm and uses them for your good. Do whatever God is telling you to do next.

10/05/2026

T H E V I R T O U S W O M A N

Happy Mother’s Day! 🌹

There was once a man whose mother taught him the principles of life with great wisdom. His name was Lemuel, and he was a king. It is not known the nation he ruled, but very likely one on the Arabian peninsula during the times of king Solomon; some believe king Lemuel was Solomon himself. Nonetheless, king Lemuel’s mother was a woman of wisdom and she instructed her son without restraint. She laid foundations for the life of a young man and a king, and her sayings are written in Proverbs 31; the famous virtuous woman is part of her teachings.

Proverbs 31✨

“The words of King Lemuel,
the utterance which his mother taught him: What, my son?
And what, son of my womb?
And what, son of my vows?
Do not give your strength to women,
Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
It is not for kings to drink wine,
Nor for princes intoxicating drink;
Lest they drink and forget the law,
And pervert the justice of all the afflicted.
Give strong drink to him who is perishing,
And wine to those who are bitter of heart.
Let him drink and forget his poverty, And remember his misery no more.

Open your mouth for the speechless,
In the cause of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously,
And plead the cause of the poor and needy.

Who can find a virtuous wife?
For her worth is far above rubies.
The heart of her husband safely trusts her;
So he will have no lack of gain.
She does him good not evil all the days of her life.

She seeks wool and flax,
And willingly works with her hands.
She is like the merchant ships,
She brings her food from afar.

She also rises while it is yet night,
And provides food for her household,
And a portion for her maidservants.
She considers a field and buys it;
From her profits she plants a vineyard.
She girds herself with strength,
And strengthens her arms.
She perceives that her merchandise is good,
And her lamp does not go out by night.

She stretches out her hands to the distaff,
And her hand holds the spindle.
She extends her hand to the poor,
Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.
She is not afraid of snow for her household,
For all her household is clothed with scarlet.
She makes tapestry for herself;
Her clothing is fine linen and purple.
Her husband is known in the gates,
When he sits among the elders of the land.

She makes linen garments and sells them,
And supplies sashes for the merchants.
Strength and honor are her clothing;
She shall rejoice in time to come.

She opens her mouth with wisdom,
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
She watches over the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.
Her children rise up and call her blessed;
Her husband also, and he praises her:
“Many daughters have done well,
But you excel them all.”

Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
But a woman who fears the Lord,
she shall be praised.
Give her of the fruit of her hands, And let her own works praise her in the gates.”

03/05/2026

A DOOR IS OPEN BEFORE YOU

“For a great and effective door is opened for me, and there are many adversaries.” 1 Corinthians 16:9

The concept of spiritual warfare has left many Christians confused and worn out from years of fighting endless battles. We’ve understood wrongly what we’re equipped for and who we are fighting against. We do not fight against flesh and blood- and our fight is not a physical war. When Jesus said “the kingdom of God suffers violence and the violent take it by force”, He meant what apostle John later wrote in 1 John 5:4 “…this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.”

Faith is not passive. Faith is a powerful shield with which we quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one (Ephesians 6:16). [And yes, faith is also a substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen- we can cover this angle another time and you can also find previous articles on faith by scrolling down]. What’s most interesting is what that shield actually is, that Paul writes about when he speaks about the whole armour of God. God said to Abram “I AM your shield..” (Genesis 15:1); in the new testament we who belong to Christ are considered Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise, and the blessing of Abraham now comes to the gentiles through Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:14& 29). To be in faith is to take God at His Word and to place our entire victory on Him.

Going back on that effective and open door. Paul’s words to the church in Corinth is contrary to what many of us would expect to be true if we are in God’s perfect will. Many would expect that when a door has been opened by God, the journey is smooth sailing. Surely anything trying to hinder us from going through that door persistently would indicate that perhaps it is not the will of God. But Paul had been given a great opportunity to preach the gospel in Ephesus, by God, and yet there was hindrance. Paul had learned to place his entire victory on God - he took God by His Word, no matter the adversities and consequences.

To know for certain that God is leading us a certain way we must be in tune with the Word of God and know the voice of Holy Spirit, who is our guide.

In the previous post I wrote about Hannah’s prayer, her blessing of a son and her sacrifice in giving the boy for God’s service. There was something else unique about the situation and Hannah’s heart.

The Bible says that in those days “the Word of the Lord was rare and there was no widespread revelation.” 1 Samuel 3:1.

Hannah lived in times of spiritual decline. If the Word of the Lord was rare even among the priests, then it must have taken faith for Hannah to believe that God would hear AND answer her prayer. For Hannah, it didn’t matter that even the priests were in a spiritual desert. She had put her faith in God based on previous revelation of His Word [which we can accurately assume that the trips to Shiloh consisted of learning about the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - their forefathers; and also on learning everything He had done through Moses and those who came after him]. That knowledge must have been sufficient for Hannah to have faith in God.

In a sense, Hannah faced a door that was opened - based on Exodus 23:26-28, that none shall be barren among God’s people- but she had to get up and walk through that door. Little did she know that her son would hear the voice of God and grow up to become Israel’s last judge and one of Israel’s greatest prophets. She couldn’t have known this but Samuel was God’s plan to replace the crooked sons of Eli, and the one who anointed Israel’s first king, and thereafter Israel’s well loved king, David, who became the bloodline of Jesus Christ.

What Hannah did by faith must have had tremendous effect on her life and her family. Those neighbours and relatives that had thought she was strange for giving up her son to God’s work, after many barren years, they now must have sought her fellowship. They must have seen the faith that moves mountains, in a time of spiritual apathy. They must all have waited in anticipation for the pilgrimage to Shiloh, to hear and see what the Lord had done through Samuel, year after year.

There is an effective door that God has set before you. Are you willing to go through it despite the adversity?

27/04/2026

T H E S A C R I F I C E O F H A N N A H

You probably have a spot you like to sit at when you’re reflecting on things or wanting to be alone with God. There’s a special place a few kilometres from home where I like to sit- a large rock by the sea. The half hour that it takes me to walk to this rock is an important time for me; it’s the time I prepare my heart to hear God - by praying in the spirit. By the time I’m approaching the rock I’m expecting to hear God.

I was at this rock at the beginning of spring, praying, when God brought Hannah, one of the wives of Elkanah, into my mind (1 Samuel 1). She had waited year after year to have a child, and yet had remained barren. One annual trip to the Tabernacle in Shiloh changed everything.

She weeped before God in anguish and prayed, making a vow to God that if He would answer her prayer and give her a male child, she would offer him to the Lord. God answered her prayer and by the next year’s pilgrimage to Shiloh she had her son Samuel.

I sat there on that rock, meditating on Hannah’s life as a barren wife, and what it must have been like to see her husband’s other wife surrounded by her children. And the great sorrow within her as she made her way to the sanctuary, where she prayed silently in her heart.

You may think- It’s one thing when the thing you’ve asked for is a baby, and within weeks you find out that you’re pregnant. It can’t be difficult to wait for your baby when you can feel him turn within your womb and witness your waistline disappear. You know that baby exists. It’s another thing when the thing you’ve asked for will only give a clue of its existence once it’s here.
But Jesus said to Thomas, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29

If all you have is a Word from God, you have all you need. That Word has power to fulfil itself, and all it needs is for you to believe it.

I walked to that rock yesterday, mostly just to get some fresh air as I fellowshipped with God. All I wanted was to enjoy the company of my Lord. I hadn’t thought I’d sit down at the rock, because of the extreme wind. But by the time I arrived there was a great calm and the heat of the sun drew me to sit.

As soon as I sat down I remembered the state of mind I’d been in the previous few times I’d visited the rock, and I began to thank God because He is just so good! Suddenly the presence of God filled that place all around me as Hannah returned to my mind.

This time the Lord showed me her sacrifice. Tears began to roll down my face. This once-barren woman who’d cried year after year, longing for a child, had promised the Lord that if He gave her a male child, she’d dedicate him to Him. When that little boy was weaned, Hannah packed his things in a bag, as we do when we get our kids ready for a sleepover. Except this wasn’t a one-day visit. She dressed him in his finest clothes and carried him to the House of God. For the rest of his life. I tried to imagine the scenario. A first-time mom, attached to the baby she carried nine months and weaned (anywhere between 1-5yrs in those days). She had longed to hold that child, laugh with him, watch him play and grow.. and here she was, handing her little boy into the service of God.

How many parents would make a promise as the one Hannah made, and go through with it?

You know, no matter what it is you are going through, the Bible says that we haven’t suffered to the point of bloodshed (Hebrews 12:4). God will never let us be overcome by difficulties or tribulations. He has promised that He will make a way out for us. If you’ve met a Christian who claims to be completely overcome and abandoned by God in their suffering, do not be tempted to sit down and indulge in that discussion- as Job’s friends did. Remember, they meant well. They were there to comfort their friend, but they were not aligned to God’s thoughts. Paul wrote that we aren’t ignorant of the cunning devices of satan (2 Corinthians 2:11). We are capable of patiently waiting; of trusting God; of walking by faith and not by sight. If we fail to do this perfectly that is not failure; we can still get up and continue the walk of faith and trust in God.

Keep your eyes looking to Jesus. Hebrews 12:2 tells us that He is the author and finisher of our faith! And He knows what suffering feels like, because He suffered to the point of bloodshed FOR OUR SAKE.

Endure any persecution that comes against you, looking at Jesus, Who will bring you victoriously out of it. Be vigilant against every oppression because oppression is not persecution and Christ overcame that for you. The devil will try to confuse as many Christians as possible with these two things. Jesus said that if they persecuted Him they will also persecute us (John 15:20, Mathew 5:11), and Paul addresses this saying that all who desire to live godly in Christ will suffer persecution (1 Timothy 3:12). Of course, we are not to look for persecution, and in fact even though we are to endure it, Jesus also said to wisely escape it: ‘When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next.’ Matthew 10:23
But concerning the devil stealing from God’s children and oppressing them, Jesus said ‘from the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force.’ We are to take the Kingdom by force.

If Jesus healed the sick, raised the dead, fed the hungry, delivered the oppressed, loved the unloved and went that extra mile to reach people that were deemed outsiders or insignificant- then YOU AND I do not have to live under any oppression of the enemy.

(Pic from unsplash by Anna Hecker )

20/04/2026

18/04/2026

LETTING GO..

I’ve been thinking of Noah lately and I referenced him in my previous post. If we all stop a moment to think on the relevance of his life to ours, we’d find that we’ve a lot in common, although none of us has been called to build an ark.

It’s estimated that it took Noah 100 years to build the ark. Bible scholars base this on scriptures such as Genesis 6:3, Genesis 7:6 and Genesis 5:32.

In order to fully obey God, Noah had to let go of preconceived notions and even fears of people and of the unknown future. Letting go of fear is a huge step towards trusting God.

Imagine yourself building the ark for 100 years in a world that has never seen rain. Think what your relatives and neighbours would say to you - the ridicule at family gatherings, the rejection in the market square. After a few decades of building, everyone must be laughing at you. Tourists may be coming into town for the sightseeing of this massive boat you’re constructing.

But day after day, your mind is set on the building footprint given to you by God. As you lay in your tent at night, all you see in your imagination before you slumber off is the work you’ve accomplished today, and what you need to do tomorrow. You talk about this every single day with your spouse and your children. You’ve drawn the footprint and it lays in the heart of your tent - the kitchen table - plus hundreds of sticky notes with God’s daily messages scribbled on them, so that everyday you all look at these and think of nothing else. Although none of you has seen rain ever, you now see it in your imagination. In the nights you dream about the things God has revealed to you, day after day. Until the day the flood begins.

Just before it begins however, you watch in wonder as all the animals of the world come into the ark, two by two - male and female. And none comes more than just one male and one female - except those that God set aside for Noah to sacrifice at the end of the flood (Genesis 7).

For 1 year you live in the ark with your family. As you listen to the outpouring rain outside, you walk the contours of the ark- feeding the animals or just keeping shape. By the end of the 1 year, you know every inch of that ark backwards and forwards. Its become the society, part of your daily rhythm of life.

When the flood ends, the land dried and all the animals come out and walk away without looking back, that ark stands there at the mountains of Ararat, looking back at you.

This was the work of your hands. There’s not a beam in the ark that you’re not familiar with. You know the exact dimensions of every space, all the features and the materials you used.

As I think of this, I imagine it was not too easy for Noah to go too far away from this thing that had been everything to his family. Fine, I also remember myself approaching Helsinki from Stockholm, and the great desire to get out and breath some fresh air. So yes, Noah may have been desperate to touch the ground, pluck a fruit, run and just live elsewhere than in a large boat. But I can promise you, that ark remained in his heart and there is a reason why God had Moses know that He specifically told Noah:

“Go out of the ark” (Genesis 8:15-17)

There would have been a tendency to not let go.

We need to consider one more thing. While we’ve done multiple things in our lives, Noah spent a considerable amount of his life building the ark. He did not have other plans set aside incase this didn’t go through. He trusted in God with all his heart and didn’t lean on his own plans (Proverbs 3:5-6).

What if God told you He has something better for you, and now it is time to let go of the past?

What if He is telling you to let go of the one thing you’ve been building the last few years, and step into something new?

Whatever God is telling you to do, trust Him and do it. God has gone before you into the unknown and has prepared something wonderful, beyond what you can achieve without His help. Also, if you can trust God, He has equipped you for everything that’s ahead.