There is so much to be discouraged about . . . COVID, poverty, unemployment, crime, corruption, failed relationships, and I am sure you could add a few of your own to the list. We all face discouragement, but how we deal with it is different from one person to another.
Author: Alan

Choices
2022 is here. What a tough year we have been through! Now more than ever, our future will depend on the choices we make today. For many of us, our lives are essentially an accumulation of the hundreds of choices we make every week.
Bad choices sometimes have devastating consequences. I know some people who paid with their lives because they refused to wear a mask or get vaccinated . . . bad choices

Love
Love – it’s what makes the world go round. We have all experienced it in various forms. There are thousands of songs and poems about it. It is everywhere and our lives are empty without it.
There are four different Greek words used to describe love:
STORGE (affection – as between a parent and a child)
PHILEO (friendship – as between people who share a common interest)
EROS (erotic – as between two lovers)
AGAPE (God’s love – as between God and a person)

Attitude
Don’t you just hate it when someone has a really bad attitude? Our relationships are significantly affected by our own attitudes and of those we interact with.
We are not always able to control circumstances (what happens to us and around us), but we can usually control how we respond to the circumstances we find ourselves in.
We are responsible for our attitudes.

Diversity
South Africa is such a diverse nation. Different cultures, religions, races, languages. A melting pot of diversity. A potjiekos – delicious because of the different ingredients. And so, just like the potjiekos, our lives are richer and tastier because of diversity.
Diversity should be embraced both in the church and in our society.

Courage
Discouragement. It is real and it is so prevalent in our world today. We have been through so much as a global community and sometimes it is difficult to remain courageous, but we have to – surrender is not an option.
Throughout history, people have suffered and faced almost insurmountable problems. Even in the time of Moses, God had to remind him to be strong and courageous.