SPRING FORTH NOW

And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there. And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country. And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country. And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were: And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them. But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof. And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.

And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath. Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token: And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.

Joshua 2:1-14

The present times seem to point to a period of unprecedented crises; major issues/challenges/things are happening all around us and to us at what appears to be abnormal rates and degrees, seemingly making real God’s admonition about the end times. However, I wish to suggest as a person of hope, a believer in the life and life more abundantly promised to us eternally, that what may look like the end is not the end but instead a new beginning. If it is that what we are experiencing is a new beginning the crises must be a wake-up call, an alert to live and live in the fullness of our potential, implying that where we are, we are not where we can and should be and the pressures of life, within and without, personally and communally, are signs bidding us to come up higher. It is possible that the chaos and hell of your life is a trumpet sounding, bidding you to come higher, to the rooftop of your life and experiences to see and seize New Opportunities. Life is ever-changing and with the transformation, if we are to live at our full potential, we too must transform for the good, not conforming to things as they were or are instead transformed by the renewing of our minds to prove that which is the good, perfect, and acceptable will of God, which demands our getting to the rooftop of our lives and experiences. On the rooftop we have a panoramic view of life, not just in our pressure cooker but one that encompasses our past, present, and most importantly our future as promised by God, producing hope. In our hope we have a safe space to make sense of what is in order to ensure that we can become what can and should be for our lives; see and seize New Opportunities and as a result reimagine outcomes causing us to Breathe: New Life!