Dr Margaret's Treasure Chest

Sweetness - what feelings and images does that word evoke? For me, it brings to mind something pleasant, something pure and innocent, something true and reliable, something with round edges rather than sharp ones. Last week I had much occasion to dwell on this word. You see, I met two ladies at our new church who symbolise the word 'sweet'. I have only spoken with them a couple of times so far, but each time they left me with a fragrance of sweetness. And no, it wasn't their perfume; it was their gentleness, their sincerity, their kindness yet directness, and their general behaviour toward others. Then, when I encountered some very frustrating difficulties during this past week, my mind kept drifting to Jill and Emily. I kept asking God, "Please make me sweet!" My intellect can easily exert itself and go into battle, but I realised that I needed to reflect Christ's Spirit - I needed to be 'sweet'. The result, of course, was very positive. Th...

This post could be a little controversial (to say the least), but please be assured that I do not wish to offend any of you!!! Instead, I wish you all every possible blessing for the coming year! I hadn’t intended to write about this topic at all, but when we arrived home tonight after a day of church and fellowship – and much talk about Christmas carols and other celebrations – I felt compelled to write a few words. Initially, I just wanted to wish you all the very best for the upcoming season, but then my fingers took matters into their own hands. Hence the controversial bit... Let me tell you a true story: There once was a young couple who had found forgiveness in Jesus Christ and were determined to serve Him in spirit and truth. The following Christmas, they apologised to their young children for having told them lies about Santa; he simply had to go. No more milk on the porch for his reindeer, and no more Christmas carols that talked about him. Christmas that year was w...

Hi everyone, I know it's been a while, but this gem of a poem was definitely worth waiting for: * Each morning when I wake, I say,   "I place my hand in God's today."   With faith and trust that by my side   He'll walk with me my steps to guide. He leads me on with tender care,   When paths are dark and I despair.   No need for me to understand   I f I hold fast to His great hand. My hand in His - no surer way     To walk in safety through each day.     By His great bounty I am fed,   Warmed by His love and comforted. When at day's end I seek my rest,     And realise how much I'm blest,   My thanks pour out to Him - and then     I place my hand in God's again. Anon - regrettably

Imagine for a moment that you are going about your daily business and then, all of a sudden, you are gone. People no longer see you, but you have not died. You have simply vanished to enter another realm. Am I talking about science fiction or alien abduction? The answer is ‘No’. I am thinking of actual historic events, of encounters experienced by Enoch and Elijah. What’s more, I am thinking of something that is yet to happen, something that may affect you and me. Looking forward in time, the Bible predicts a third occurrence of transformations. First, let us take a look at Enoch’s experience. This man was born into the seventh generation from Adam and had a son called Methuselah. Paradoxically, Methuselah became the longest-living man on earth – 969 years, to be exact – while Enoch had the shortest life experience among his contemporaries. He was only 365 years old when he left this world, merely one third of the average ante-diluvian age. Why am I emphasising this fact? Becaus...

Have you ever felt depressed? Was it just a passing bout of the blues or was it more severe? Let's talk about this topic and discuss some natural remedies that can be effective for less severe cases. Christians often think that depression has no place in a person yielded to God, but this is not so! Many faithful servants have suffered from depression and have even considered suicide! I once spoke at a Christian health day where I met two extraordinary Christian women who told of their experiences with depression and bipolar disorder, and how the Lord carried and sustained them through it all. Please do not think that clinical depression is brought about by the person suffering from it. It has many origins, and in this fallen world even Christians suffer from hormonal and other biochemical imbalances that often have no causal explanation. There is therefore no reason to feel ashamed! If you think that you, or someone you know, is suffering from depression, there is a reall...

Photo by Ken Treloar on Unsplash How we see theology can make all the difference to our understanding of certain concepts. That brings me to my question: Have you ever wondered why theologians DISagree? Most of us tend to look up to and believe educated people, and especially those who are well known and/or have written books. And this is a good thing because we may learn much from them. It is also true that we are to submit to the leadership of our Elders. However, even learned men (and women) are fallible, and it is a fact that theologians disagree with one another. Not on who Jesus is, of course, and not on the fact that God shows Himself in three different ways: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit; but they can disagree on many not quite so important issues. In the light of having a Bible that claims to be the inspired Word of God, this puzzled me, and so I made it my business to find out. After extensive studies of human behaviour (in the light of God's Wo...

I should be doing something else right now, but my procrastination (and consequently this post) may give you something to think about... My husband and I attended a youth service last night and felt totally disconnected. Was it our age? Maybe, but there were quite a few other oldies who seemed to be enjoying themselves. Was it the loud, lively music to songs we didn't know? Maybe, but no one else seemed to be singing them either with confidence and gusto. Was it the lyrics? Well, they did seem rather focused on self and the little word "I". What about the prayers? I don't think so. Prayers are good, although these seemed a little repetitive, and I noticed that people were yawning and fidgeting. Then it must have been the message? Maybe it was supposed to instil awe at God's awesomeness, but somehow it didn't seem to succeed. I am tempted to ask... Where can I find churches that have great hearts instead of big budgets; who render service instead o...

What picture does the word desert evoke in your mind? I see a wide expanse of barrenness, and if I were lost in it without food and water, I would surely perish. But if I lived among green pastures, there would be plenty of food and water to sustain me. Have you ever wondered how God sees this world? When I asked this question in Scripture classes, the children usually answered, ‘He sees good people and bad people.’ While the words good and bad might need some defining, God indeed sees what people do. But more importantly, He sees what they are and to whom they belong. God also sees two types of people, but what He sees may surprise you: God sees those who are born physically but are dead spiritually and reside in Satan’s domain, and those who are born again spiritually by the Spirit of God and are alive and in God’s kingdom forevermore. Let’s imagine we are watching a world divided into two kingdoms: Satan’s kingdom to the left – a huge expanse of desert – and God’s k...

Throughout history, the involvement of conscience in the affairs of mankind has been enormous. Many men and women suffered for what they considered to be right rather than taking the easy way out. They fought for justice and sought to help the oppressed. They spoke out against what they considered to be wrong and influenced the laws of their land. Some even gave their lives. And then there is each one of us. Don’t we expect our brothers and sisters in Christ to have a conscience when dealing with one another? After all, we are supposed to have the mind of Christ. Just imagine what the world would be like if people did not have a conscience! But then, what exactly is that conscience? Do all people have it, or only some? Is it a part of us from birth (nature), or is it acquired through our upbringing (nurture)? Why do some people have extremely sensitive consciences while others seem to have no conscience at all? These are interesting questions. Allport, for example, wrote of...

Hi there, I was just thinking about the importance of witnessing to those who (as yet) don't know our wonderful Saviour. When I was a new Christian, I went for it sledgehammer and all. I read about Charles Spurgeon who is supposed to have said, "Down the road, there's a fine old preacher. He is so sensitive that he tickles his people with a feather. But as for me, the Lord has given me the hammer." I preferred the hammer (and loved Charles Spurgeon - his 'Soul Saving Sermons' are truly brilliant), but soon I realised that the hammer didn't work so well for me. Instead, I learnt how to give the gospel in a softer way by sharing my testimony in a conversational manner without preaching. A few of us started a group and worked through a New Tribes course of how to give one's testimony with a purpose. We even put down on paper what we would say, honed our speaches, helped one another to make it interesting, cut all non-essentials, included relevant verses f...

  I will start this blog by telling you how I became a Christian. I was born on a cold winter's night in the country of Germany, and soon after my arrival my parents had me christened into the Lutheran faith. They took me to church every Christmas and Easter, and as a teenager I attended Bible classes and was confirmed. In my teens, however, religious morals didn't suit me. After all, I had been taught about an evolutionary process that leaves all things to chance; so who was the church to make rules about right or wrong? I was convinced that science opposes the existence of absolute standards and decided to determine my own way. At age nineteen I met a young man from a far-away country and fell in love. We were married after two short months, and after another two years we left for his home in Australia. The Lutheran church and its ways had been completely discarded. Ten years passed and life was good. At age thirty-one I had two small children, my husband had started a succe...

      I am a non-pentecostal evangelical Christian who aims to promote THE LORD JESUS CHRIST instead of denominational distinctives. I believe that the Bible is the only inspired, authoritative Word of God, and that it is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness. It teaches that God is the Creator of all things; that He exists eternally as Father, Son and Holy Spirit; and that Jesus Christ is God come to earth in fleshly form - truly God and truly man - born of a virgin to become the Son of God.    Why did God come to earth? He came to rescue the people He loved - you and me - because we are all sinners and fall short of His perfect standard. The wages of sin is death and a certain future in hell, BUT... God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son to die for the sins of the world, so that whoever believes in Jesus should not perish but have everlasting life.    This means that Jesus alone is our ticket...