When You Don't Know What to Do

When You Don't Know What to Do
Melanie Chitwood 

"We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you."

2 Chronicles 20:12b (NIV)         

Devotion:
5 a.m. Wide awake. Thoughts racing and whirling. Chest tight with anxiety.

My mom recently suffered a stroke, and my concern about her weighs heavily, causing my thoughts to spin. How long will Mom need to be in a rehab facility? How's my Dad holding up? Who will watch the boys when my husband's traveling for work and I need to be away to help my parents? We are in a situation we've never been in before, and we're finding that there are so many questions we can't answer.

There's a good chance you, too, are familiar with those middle of the night anxious thoughts and unanswered questions racing through your mind. Maybe your worry is about finances, a job or lack of one, a wayward child, a health challenge, marriage problems, or extended family problems. Or maybe your worries are not about big situations, but the accumulation of smaller challenges burdens your mind and heart. Your thoughts whirl as you wonder about the solution to your problems.

As I lay in bed that early morning, I remembered a familiar and favorite Bible verse: "We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you." I got up from bed, went downstairs, and opened my Bible to today's key verse which perfectly captured what I was feeling and thinking.

By reading the context of 2 Chronicles 20 we learn some key principles to follow in anxious situations. When King Jehoshaphat is told that "a great multitude" is coming to wage war against him, we see how just like us, the king is afraid (2 Chronicles 20:2, 3, NAS).

Instead of sinking in the quicksand of his own fearful thoughts or the inscrutability of the situation, King Jehoshaphat purposefully chooses to focus on the sovereignty of God. The king "turned his attention to seek the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah" (v. 3).

Through prayer and fasting, the king and the people of Judah acknowledge what God has done in the past, and they voice their faith in what he will do in their future. They acknowledge they are powerless, but God is completely powerful.

In the same way through my mom's situation, I have seen how quickly my thoughts could turn to the problems I don't know how to solve. What will we do if she doesn't recover her ability to walk? What if she needs a nurse full-time?

I am learning, however, to turn from these thoughts by thanking my sovereign God for all the ways He has been faithful in the past and all the ways I see His faithfulness in the present circumstances. I am learning to ask Him for wisdom for every little detail. And I am setting my eyes on Him as I wait for His answers.

What problems in your life seem unsolvable or unanswerable? Follow King Jehoshaphat's example. Turn from your own anxious thoughts, acknowledge you don't have the answers, and set your eyes on the One who does.

Dear Lord, I praise You for being a sovereign God. You are in control. I don't have to be. When I don't know what to do, Lord, thank You that I can ask You for wisdom and guidance. You are my Wonderful Counselor (Isaiah 9:6). I put in Your hands each of the concerns weighing on my heart and mind. Thank You that I can entrust them into Your loving care. I set my eyes on You, confident You will come to my rescue. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Kipindi cha Majilio ni mwaliko wa kuruhusu neema ya Mungu, maisha ya sala na toba na matendo ya huruma kumwilishwa katika maisha ya kawaida!

Jumapili ya kwanza ya kipindi cha Majilio inaufungua rasmi Mwaka Mpya wa Kanisa, hija ya maisha ya imani, inayowakumbusha waamini, Fumbo la Umwilisho na Siku ya ile ya mwisho, Yesu atakapokuja kuwahukumu wazima na wafu, kama waamini wanavyosali katika Kanuni ya Imani. Majilio linakuwa ni tukio la aina yake, kwani hapo mwili na roho vinaunganika kwa pamoja.

Hayo yamesemwa na Baba Mtakatifu Benedikto wa kumi na sita, wakati wa sala ya Malaika wa Bwana, kwenye Uwanja wa Kanisa kuu la Mtakatifu Petro, mjini Vatican, siku ya jumapili, tarehe 28 Novemba, 2010. Tukio la kungoja, linamshirikisha mwamini mmoja mmoja, familia na jamii kwa ujumla, katika hali na maisha ya kawaida kabisa. Maisha ya mwanadamu yanafumbatwa kimsingi katika fadhila ya matumaini, inayokuwa ni kipimo cha kimaadili na kiroho kwa kile anachotarajia na kutegemea katika maisha.

Baba Mtakatifu anawaalika waamini kila mmoja kujiuliza swali la msingi, katika kipindi hii cha Majilio, ni jambo gani analolitarajia katika maisha yake kama mtu binafasi, familia na taifa kwa ujumla. Kwa Waisraeli wakati wa Agano la Kale, walikuwa na tumaini kubwa la ujio wa Kristo, Masiha na Mteule wa Mungu, ambaye angekuja kuwakomboa watu kutoka katika utumwa wa kimaadili na kisiasa na hatimaye, kuanzisha Ufalme wa Mungu kati ya watu.

Hakuna mtu aliyefikiria kwamba, Masiha wa Bwana angeweza kuzaliwa na msichana kama Bikira Maria, mchumba wake Yosefu, mwenye haki. Hata ndani ya moyo wa Bikira Maria anasema Baba Mtakatifu, hakuwahi kufikiri hata kidogo, matumaini ya Ujio wa Masiha moyoni mwake, yalikuwa makubwa kutokana na imani na matumaini yake, hali iliyomfanya kustahilishwa kuwa ni Mama wa Mkombozi.

Mambo mengine anasema Baba Mtakatifu, Mwenyezi Mungu mwenyewe alikuwa ameyaandaa tangu kuumbwa kwa ulimwengu, ndiyo maana Bikira Maria alikuwa amejaa neema, mkweli na muwazi mintarafu mpango wa Mungu katika maisha yake, changamoto kwa waamini kumjifunza Bikira Maria katika maisha yao.

Bikira Maria ni mwanamke wa Kipindi cha Majilio, aliyejitahidi kulimwilisha tukio hili katika hali mbali mbali za maisha yake, kwa ari na mwelekeo mpya wa maisha, akiwa na kiu kubwa ya matumaini, inayozimwa na ujio wa Mungu katika maisha ya mwanadamu.

Baba Mtakatifu anawakumbusha waamini kwamba, Kipindi cha Majilio kiwasaidie kujiandaa kwa makini, kwa ajili ya adhimisho la Fumbo la Umwilisho. Ni changamoto ya kuruhusu neema ya Mungu, maisha ya sala na toba, pamoja na matendo ya huruma, katika kipindi hiki cha Majilio, waamini wanapongojea kuzaliwa kwa Masiha. Ni mwaliko wa kusimama kidete kulinda na kutunza zawadi ya maisha, kama alivyofanya Bikira Maria.

Source: Radio Vatican

Mheshimiwa Sana Padre Nkwande Renatus, ateuliwa kuwa Askofu wa Jimbo Jipya la Bunda, Tanzania

Baba Mtakatifu Benedikto wa kumi na sita, ameunda jimbo Jipya la Bunda, kwa kumega baadhi ya maeneo ya Jimbo kuu la Mwanza na Jimbo la Musoma. Kwa heshima na tahadhima amemteua Mheshimiwa sana Padre Renatus Leonard Nkwande, aliyekuwa msimamizi wa Jimbo kuu la Mwanza, kuwa Askofu Mpya wa Jimbo la Bunda, Mara, Tanzania

Jimbo la Bunda, linaundwa na Wilaya ya Bunda, Mkoani Mara na Wilaya ya Ukerewe inayovijumuisha visiwa vya Ukara, toka Mkoa wa Mwanza. Parokia ya Saragana na Mabui zinaunda sasa Jimbo Jipya la Bunda. Mpaka kati ya Jimbo la Musoma na Jimbo Jipya la Bunda ni Mto Suguti. Kanisa la Parokia ya Mtakatifu Paulo, litakuwa ni Kanisa kuu la Jimbo Jipya la Bunda.

Askofu mteule Renatus Leonard Nkwande, alizaliwa kunako tarehe 12 Novemba, 1965, Parokia ya Sumve, Jimbo kuu la Mwanza. Alipata masomo yake ya sekondari, Seminari ya Makoko, Musoma na Nyegezi, Jimbo kuu la Mwanza.

Kunako Mwaka 1987 alijiunga na Seminari Kuu ya Kibosho, Moshi, kwa ajili ya masomo ya Falsafa na baadaye mwaka 1989 aliendelea na masomo ya Taalimungu Seminari kuu ya Segerea, iliyoko Jimbo kuu la Dar es Salaam. Alipadrishwa kunako tarehe 2 Julai 1995 akawa ni Padre wa Jimbo kuu la Mwanza.

Tangu alipopadrishwa amefanya shughuli mbali mbali za kichungaji kama Paroko msaidizi, Gombera wa Seminari ndogo ya Nyegezi, Jimbo kuu la Mwanza na baadaye kunako mwaka 2002 hadi 2005 alikwenda Roma kwa masomo ya Sheria za Kanisa, kwenye Chuo Kikuu cha Kipapa cha Urbaniana.

Tangu mwaka 2008 hadi 2009 alikuwa ni Makamu wa Askofu, Jimbo kuu la Mwanza. Na baadaye mwaka 2009 aliteuliwa kuwa msimamizi wa Jimbo kuu la Mwanza kufuatia kifo cha Askofu mkuu Anthony Mayala.

Source: Radio Vatican

Rick Warren Interview

You will enjoy the new insights that Rick Warren has, with his wife now having cancer and him having 'wealth' from the book sales. This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren,
 
'Purpose Driven Life ' author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California  
 
In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:

People ask me, What is the purpose of life?
 
And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven.
 

One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body-- but not the end of me.
 
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act - the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.
 
We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
 
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one.
 
The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.

We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness..
  
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.

I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore.
 
Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.
 
No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on.
 
And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for..

You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems:

If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centredness, which is my problem, my issues, my pain.' But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.
 
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her- It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people.
 

You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life.

Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy.
 
It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
 
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do, II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.
 
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit.. We made no major purchases.
 
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church.

Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation..
 
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.

We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity?

Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
 
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better. God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do.
 
That's why we're called human beings, not human doings.

Happy moments, PRAISE GOD.

Difficult moments, SEEK GOD.

Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.
 
Painful moments, TRUST GOD.

Every moment, THANK GOD.
 
Contributed by Hubert Matau (SPS Alumnus)

Before.............

Today before you say an unkind word - Think of someone who can't speak.

Before you complain about the taste of your food - Think of someone who has nothing to eat.

Before you complain about your husband or wife - Think of someone who's crying out to GOD for a companion.

Today before you complain about life - Think of someone who went too early to heaven.

Before you complain about your children -Think of someone who desires children but they're barren.

Before you argue about your dirty house someone didn't clean or sweep - Think of the people who are living in the streets.

Before whining about the distance you drive Think of someone who walks the same distance with their feet.

And when you are tired and complain about your job -
Think of the unemployed, the disabled, and those who wish they had your job.

But before you think of pointing the finger or condemning another - Remember that not one of us is without sin and we all answer to one MAKER.

And when depressing thoughts seem to get you down - Put a smile on your face and thank GOD you're alive and still around.

And before you think of signing out, Please think of sending this to at least ten people.

God Bless You.

Contributed by Fr Benno Kikudo - The Alumni Vice Chairman

Pope Benedict says that the Church must use its creative intelligence to meet the challenges of the digital age.

If the Church is to fulfil its mission to proclaim the truth of Christ to all peoples, it must use its “creative intelligence” to meet the challenges of the digital age.
Pope Benedict said this when he met with the participants of the plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council for Culture, held last week. The theme of the gathering was “the Culture of Communication and New Languages”.
With the new forms of communication, the Pope said, a cultural transformation is under way and the Church cannot remain indifferent.
She wants to dialogue with everyone in the pursuit of truth, he added, and in order to do that she must be on the same frequency, in friendly and sincere environments.
He offered the Gospel as the guide to reaching the digital age and noted that the Church can draw on “her extraordinary patrimony of symbols, images and gestures”. The Christian tradition has always been closely linked to the liturgy and to the language of art, he added, the beauty of which has its special communicative power.

Source: Radio Vatican

RAHA YA MILELE UWAPE Ee BWANA...... NA MWANGA WA MILELE UWAANGAZIE. WAPUMZIKE KWA AMANI. AMINA

Picha ya Marehemu Margaret F. Mbuya

Marehemu Mtoto Reginald F. Mbuya

na wapendwa shemeji na mumewe. RIP.

Picha kwa hisani ya Castor Mayolera