My dear friends
My ventilator, the Breas PV 403, is an excellent machine
from Sweden but like any piece of equipment it needs to be seen to from time to time.
Unfortunately Sweden is not quite our neighbouring town and the South African agency is,
sorry to say, letting us down.
Someone suggested that our problem with the agency is that
we are too far out from the big cities. So, does that make us automatic candidates for bad
service? Whatever the reason is, the agents do not seem to appreciate the fact that should
the ventilator cease, I shall cease too.
Recently, I listened with interest as my doctor described
our predicament to the Breas headquarters in Sweden. Sweden is justifiably perplexed about
the situation; bad service does them no good.
When Dr van Eeden put the phone down I wrote on my computer
"Bad service on a life and death matter."
Soon thereafter I was deeply challenged by my very words. As
a Christian and a servant of God, entrusted to represent heaven here on earth, what is the
quality of the service that I am rendering? And God's business is a matter of eternal life
and death.
What moved me most was the thought about the perfect quality
of the product that we represent as Christians - the blessed Good News of full salvation
through our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. My heart overflowed with praise and wonder
when I considered that throughout the ages heaven has more than enough supplies for each
and every individual on earth.
What do we do with such a treasure that we have been given
the commission to spread, from where we are to the uttermost parts of the earth - free of
charge?
In my mind I flipped through a few examples of behaviour by
Christians where heaven was definitely ill served.
A minister that was known to frequent pubs was challenged
one day by his drinking pals if his conduct was in keeping with his calling. His response
was, "Kimina ubufundisi umsebenzi engawufundela. Angivukwanga uMoya mina." (For
me being a minister is a profession; I studied for it. I wasn't suddenly inspired by the
Spirit).
Will people that are seeking salvation for their souls get
direction from such a man?
Someone told me about a Christian young man whose immoral
behaviour made him the subject of gossip in his community. Instead of repenting from his
waywardness he still had the cheek to give people an Anatomy lesson about which parts of
his body were saved, or not.
Does this young man think that heaven has time to
manufacture sub-standard products of selective quality?
You might have heard about the Christian lady who could not
part from her cigarettes. For her bondage she had conveniently adopted a verse that seemed
to support her,
"A bruised reed shall he not break, and
smoking flax shall he not quench" (Matthew 12:20)
The smoking flax lady is not alone in using Scripture as a
smokescreen.
Years ago, I met a young preacher who testified that he had
been converted from gangsterism. He told us that he had a special ministry amongst
gangsters. As a way of gaining their confidence he would join them in preparing their
dagga (marijuana) joints and even taking some puffs before sharing the gospel. In his mind
he thought he was following in Paul's footsteps - being a Roman to the Romans.
Need we to wonder then why some people think that Christians
are clowns?
One of the unforgettable encounters I had in the late '90s
was with an academic who is an ordained minister of a mainline church and a leading
proponent of the African Traditional Religion (ATR).
The minister told the audience that his people, the Tswanas,
originally came from a hole in the Zeerust area, in the present Northwest province. He
also stated that when his people die they go back to that hole. When I asked him that if
his people upon death returned to their hole what happened to everyone else his response
was that others had to find that out for themselves.
Another pressing question I had for him was as a minister
what did he tell people about hell. "There is no hell in ATR," he replied.
Seriously, when a minister proclaims a religion that denies
the reality of hell and discovers a 'heaven' for his people in a Zeerust hole we cannot
but lament the fact that God's purposes are not served.
Amongst shining examples of what an agent of the Gospel
should be like I was reminded of that saint from the First Church, Stephen. Some might
think that he was over-qualified for the simple task of serving at the tables to ensure
that food was distributed equitably. The man was full of the Holy Spirit, wisdom and
faith.
It warms the heart to see the grace and power of God that
were manifested in and through Stephen. Miraculous deeds were performed by the Lord
through him.
As he faced his jealous, angry and murderous kinsmen
Stephen's star shone the brightest. Like Daniel's adversaries his also could not compete
with the Spirit that was in him. Even they saw that his face was like the face of an
angel. His profound understanding and exposition of the Scriptures is a goal worth
striving towards.
Even as death approached he "looked up to heaven and
saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God." What more could
we wish for?
In life and at death Stephen was a true agent of heaven,
rendering excellent service on behalf of his Lord and Master.
Dear Lord, grant that I may be a Stephen!
"All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin
looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an
angel." (Acts 7:15)fa
"But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit,
looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of
God." (Acts 7:55)
Have a blessed weekend.
Pressing on!
In His love
Fano Sibisi
