Rapture Blog

On the 5th August 1991 my dad migrated to America to work. It meant that we his family had no idea when or if we would ever see him again. That morning was one of the most painful moments of my life, saying goodbye to my dad was much harder than I thought it would be. Sadness was etched on my two sisters faces, my brother was crying and my six year old son watched my father go to the plane until he disappeared from sight, tears streaming down his face.

My father’s leaving was very painful but vital because it was difficult for him to find work at his age. My father had a lot of friends but their were his ‘rum buddies’ who spent a lot of time in the village rum shop, drinking. I could never get him to attend church, no matter what I said or did, he always had an excuse. If he had a funeral to attend he would go to the grave yard and await the hearse. If it was a wedding he would go to the place where the reception was being kept.

God opened doors not only for work but he placed good people in his life. Eventually my dad accepted Jesus and now you can’t keep him out of church. I know that if my dad had remained he would never have given up the village rum shop. God took him out, away from his drinking buddies’ influences.

I’ve had quite a few goodbyes in my life since that morning, friends and relatives, some who would have migrated to different countries, others to Heaven.

Goodbyes are never easy but some goodbyes are necessary along life’s pathway. That morning as I watched my father leave, I wondered if Jesus’ disciples felt the same way when he left them to return to his father. It couldn’t have been easy for them, this was their friend, their mentor, their Lord. They walked with him, shared light moments together and they learnt many valuable lessons from him. They even lost him to death and just when it looked hopeless he arose from the dead and their joy returned. *Now here they were at the ‘Mount Of Olives’ Airport, he was leaving them and they had no idea how long he was leaving for. *As he left they watched him go until he disappeared from their sight. *Jesus’ leaving was probably painful for the disciples but it was very necessary and vital for them that he did so that the Holy Spirit could come. Jesus was leaving but better days were coming as a result Because of that goodbye we have a mediator in Heaven, someone who is both God and man that can relay our needs to His father, and we also have the Holy Spirit to comfort, convict, lead and guide us into all truth.

Perhaps God is asking you to say goodbye to something or someone that you wish to hold on to, consider this…goodbyes can bring transformation, reformation and new purpose.

*Acts 1:9 ; 10

*John 14 : 16 – 17
Written By Linda Herbert

Whenever I create something, like a website or a piece of craft, I like to just sit and observe the work done. I get great satisfaction from seeing that the work was done well. Sometimes people around me have questioned this habit, believing it to be pride, and I had to check myself carefully. For a while I actually believed that it was pride, but then God showed me something interesting.

When God created the Earth, after every day of creation, He stopped, looked over it, and acknowledged that it was good before moving on to the next task. Then, after He had created everything, He took time to look over all of it and acknowledge that it was all good. This shows us that God places great emphasis on work being well done.

But what about us as mere men? Should we adopt this attitude as well? When Cain and Abel brought their offerings to the Lord, Abel’s offering was accepted and Cain’s wasn’t. This angered Cain, but God simply asked, “If you had done well, would it not have been accepted?”. God expects us to function in excellence. If we produce things that are not our best, God will not be pleased with us.

We should strive for excellence in everything we do. If we strive to be more like Jesus, we have to strive toward excellence. God said about Jesus, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”. This shows us that just like Abel, Jesus gave His best when on earth. We have to survey our work and make sure it is well done. If we do well, God will be pleased and He will bless it, and furthermore, as children of God, it is in our spiritual genes to strive for excellence.

When Christ comes back for us, let’s make sure He can be pleased with the work we’ve done.

Written by Mario Herbert

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Today I’m thinking about a little girl I knew a few years ago. I will call her Reann. She was the daughter of a school friend of mine who I hadn’t seen in many years. I met Reann, along with her younger siblings when my husband and I taught Sunday School in a district within the Bridgetown area.

Over the next few years Reann would’ve experienced a few pregnancies and a few abortions. By age fourteen, she found herself in a doctor’s office having yet another abortion, tragically, the doctor was unable to stop the bleeding and Reann died on the doctor’s table.

I couldn’t help but think that if she had someone to constantly tell her and show her that Jesus loved her, things could have turned out differently. Yes, Reann was having sex, but she was still a child and she was still innocent to a lot of things.

On thinking about Reann, I am also reminded of another little girl. Kelly was seven years old and she was a victim of cancer, but oh, what faith she had ! her story touched my soul. Her parents were christians and Kelly knew the love of Jesus. During her illness, she kept a diary and she talked with Jesus and wrote her feelings down. What really touched me was a little while before she died she dreamt that she was having dinner with Jesus. She said she didn’t remember seeing any food on the table but Jesus was there at that table with her, she died a few weeks later.

Kelly knew Jesus because of her parent’s nurturing, Reann knew about Jesus because she would have heard about him in Sunday School, but what a difference in the two lives….

Its sad and tragic when children have no one to steer them in the right direction or pray with them and for them….or to tell them that Jesus loves and cares about them. Sadly, Reann’s mother was not a believer and her life was somewhat similiar to Reann’s as she got pregnant with Reann when she herself was a teenager.

Written By Linda Herbert