Women of Reverence welcomes Rochel Nkosi as a guest blogger.
I am privileged to be a wife to Carl and mother to Kairo and Kadimah. I was a high school English educator before becoming a stay-at-home-mom and momtrepreneur of a small business.
I serve on the eldership team of Front Line People Church in Brakpan, alongside my husband. I am also involved in leading worship and kids' ministry. I am passionate about multiculturalism, languages and baking. My hope is Jesus - to know Him and make Him known.
A few weeks ago, I was spending some time outside with my son, not paying attention to much, except the task of cleaning up the back yard. I was a focused mom-on-a-mission. He happened to run towards some of the fruit trees, so I followed him, but was distracted by the job at hand. When I reached the spot where he was playing, I looked up… the most magnificent, pink blossoms hung delicately on the peach trees. I was absolutely awestruck in that moment and couldn’t believe I hadn’t noticed them before!
I realised I was so used to seeing the brown, dull scenes of Winter (I’m not a Winter girl) that the scene unfolding before me was almost unreal. I can’t describe the utter happiness that exploded in my heart and the anticipation. Having been asked to write about Spring, I realised this: that feeling that you are going to burst with happiness, that utter contentment, that hope and excitement you feel when seeing that first promise of Spring, is the same feeling you get when you have been with Jesus. Spring is wherever Jesus is. SPRING IS JESUS.
Yes, we go through difficult seasons and struggles, and the hard times we may face are real. The Bible tells us we will go through these difficult times: “In this world you will have trouble” (Jn 16:33; NIV). But I think I have become so used to the idea of a Winter season that I have forgotten Jesus is WITH me. I have forgotten just how sweet His Presence is. The second part of that verse says, “But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
TAKE HEART. HAVE COURAGE. He is the eternal hope of my soul, the Springs blossoms in my heart. We should always be able to say, “It is well with me,” not because everything is going right, or we have everything we want, or our kids don’t throw tantrums. Our circumstances may change but Jesus is our constant, our joy.
He is forever good, forever faithful. His character doesn’t change. He is hope, peace, beauty, life. I love Song of Songs’ description of the intimate relationship we have with our Saviour – it describes it as “verdant” (Song of Songs 1:16; NIV). This means green, full of life, growth – FLOURISHING. Even when we don’t feel it. Even when we can’t see it. We need to drink deep of His living water.
One of my favourite passages is a reminder of this: “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither – whatever they do prospers” (Ps 1:1-3; NIV).
That garden of hope blooms when we soak it with the water of His Presence. Isaiah 61:3 (NIV)– “They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendour.”
Let’s stay in the Presence of the One who gives life. When others observe the garden of our hearts, let them see the blossoms and drink in the fragrance of the Saviour, who has walked its paths.
Love
Ro