Uncategorized – Jasmijn's Outlet
‘n KYKIE DEUR DIE BRIL VAN ONS VADER
Posted on October 31, 2017 October 31, 2017 by Leeuin
Vandag wil ek graag ‘n paar gedagtes deel waaraan ek veral gister baie gedink het na aanleiding van ‘n WhatsApp boodskap wat reeds Saterdag gestuur is, maar wat ek eers gister gelees het. Die persoon wat dit oorspronklik gestuur het, het lesers gemaan om asseblief nie gehoor te gee aan die beroep wat op Suid-Afrikaners gedoen was om op Maandag, 30 Oktober swart te dra ter gedagtenis aan die boere wat sedert 1994 vermoor is nie. Dit sou volgens daardie persoon perfek in die duiwel se plan val omdat hierdie tydperk op ‘n okkultiese feestyd val.
Hierdie is nie ‘n produk van ‘n reeds-gevormde opinie wat ek gehad het direk nadat ek die boodskap gelees het nie, maar het ontstaan uit dinge wat ek persoonlike ervarings wat aanleiding gegee het tot die gedagtes wat by my opgekom het. Op hulle beurt het die gedage my aan sekere Skrifgedeetes my herinner wat ek dan ook gaan naslaan het om seker te maak van my feite voordat ek sommer net blindelings gevolgtrekkings maak.
Ek dink dat ons Hemelse Vader in ‘n sekere sin mense sien soos wat fisies gestremde (of blinde) mense na hulle kyk. Op universiteit het ek geleer dat ‘n mens nooit ‘n stelling moet maak as jy dit nie kan bewys nie, so kom ek vertel jou hoe ek daarby uitgekom het deur vir jou die vraag te vra wat uiteindelik gemaak het dat ek hierdie artikel skryf: wat was die heel eerste gedagte wat by jou opgekom het toe jy gitter iemand gesien het met swart klere aan? Wat dink jy as jy vandag op 31 Oktober iemand in swart geklee sien? Watter indruk skep dit by jou? Vertel dit vir jou iets omtrent die persoon se geloofsoortuigings of gebrek aan kennis, of selfs hul politieke oortuigings? Het jy gister ‘n gevoel van patriotisme beleef omdat daardie persoon daardeur sy/haar meegevoel, protes of hartseer oor die slagoffers van die miljuisende plaasmoorde sedert 1994 betoon? Het dit jou laat glo dat daardie persoon “‘n regsgesinde, wit Afrikaner” is of net heeltemal onkundig oor geestelike dinge is? Dalk was jy eerder teleurgesteld, hartseer, of self bekommerd omdat jy daarvan oortuig is dat diegene wat wel gister swart aangetrek het vir daardie rede, onwetend in die duiwel se plan ingeloop het omdat dit op ‘n okkultiese feesdag val?
My eerlike antwoord? Ek het nie gister of vandag iemand gesien wat swart aangehad het nie, alhoewel ek weet van een persoon wat dit gister gedoen het om uitdrukking te gee aan sy gevoelens oor die slagoffers van plaasmoorde. Ek het niemand met swart gesien nie, want ek kan nie … My hele lewe lank was my fisiese sig nie wat dit moet wees nie.
Daarom weet ek eerstehands dat blindes nie mense oordeel op grond van dit wat sigbaar is vir die blote oog nie, soos byvoorbeeld die kleur van die klere wat hulle aanhet of die styl waarvolgens hulle aangetrek is. Die rede hiervoor is vanselfsprekend: hulle fisiese gebrek aan sig laat dit nie toe nie. Al wat hulle kan waarneem, is mense se stemtoon wanneer hulle praat, woorde en dade, maar hulle kan nie sien hoe mense fisies lyk nie.
Mense met sig kan die dade sien en die woorde hoor wat uitgevoer of geuiter word, maar in werklikheid kan die mens nie, slegs met behulp daarvan, tot ‘n korrekte beslissing kom oor die goedheid of boosheid daarvan nie omdat hulle ten dele ken.
Daar is dus dade wat goed lyk vir mense omdat hulle slegs dit kan waarneem wat hulle fisies kan sien, terwyl Abba Vader sommige van daardie “goeie” dade skerp veroordeel en verag omdat hy, anders as die mensdom, ten volle ken en Alwetend is.
Anders as blindes sien ons Vader alles raak. Die Bybel leer ons keer op keer dat Hy elkeen se hart en gedagtes deurgrond en ken. Hy is heeltemal vertroud met jou fisiese en emosionele behoeftes, voorkoms, en kondisie. Hy weet van alle aktiwiteite, aanwinste, en verliese. Hy het elke haar wat jy in jou hele lewe verloor of bygekry het, gesien uitkom of uitval.
Jou denke, doen en late, en die motiewe agter elke klein of groot woordjie of daad, is vir Hom geen geheim nie. Ons kan mense bluf, maar ons sal ver tweede kom as ons Hom probeer bluf!
Vat nou maar die storie oor die offerandes van die arm weduwee en die Fariseers as voorbeeld. Die weduwee het net twee muntstukkies as offerande gebring terwyl die Skrifgeleerdes baie geld gebring het.
Op die oog af het dit gelyk asof die Skrifgeleerdes hulle deel doen en die weduwee nie haar kant bring nie. Jesus se dissipels en ander wat teenwoordig was het die waarde van die offerandes van die arm weduwee en die Fariseers gemeet en beoordeel volgens dit wat hulle met die blote oog kon sien en tot die verkeerde gevolgtrekkings gekom: Die Skrifgeleerdes en Fariseers beroof God nie omdat hulle hul tiendes getrou betaal. Hulle is die tipiese blymoedige gewers wanneer dit by offerandes kom. Dit is waarom dit so goed met hulle gaan en GGod hulle so ryklik seen.
Aan die ander kant gee die weduwee net twee muntstukkies. Sy betaal nie haar tiendes nie en is ook nie ‘n blymoedige gewer nie. Dit moet die rede vir haar armoede wees! Sy het haar armoede oor haarself gebring.
Jesus het egter ALLE ooglopende en nie-ooglopende faktore in ag geneem voordat Hy Sy behoorlik ingeligte inset oor die ware stand van sake gelewer het. Hy het geweet dat die weduwee arm was en in haar armoede alles gegee het wat sy gehad het terwyl die Skrifgeleerdes maar net ‘n bietjie van die baie gegee het wat hulle gehad het.
So ook het Jesus op ‘n keer, toe Hy besig was om met Sy dissippels en die skare te praat oor die dinge wat die Fariseers gedoen het wat Hom dwars in die krop gesteek het (Matt. 23), beklemtoon dat dit nie die goud van die tempel of die offergawes op die altaar is wat die grootste is nie, maar wel die tempel en die altaar wat daardie dinge heilig. Hy het die Fariseers as “blinde gidse” uitgemaak omdat hulle die Here se volk anders geleer het (Matt. 23:16-22). Nadat Hy Sy punt daaroor gemaak het, leer Hy ons dat die een wat by die hemel sweer, by God se troon sweer en by die Een wat daarop sit (vers 23).
Ek is daarvan oortuig dat die beginsel wat Paulus vir ons in Romeine 14 neerle, te doen het met die feit dat uiterlike voorkoms nie altyd dit wat in die hart aangaan reflekteer nie. Die indruk wat die mens kry deur na goeie dade, mooi woorde, en die manier waarop mense aantrek te kyk om vir hom/haarself te bewluit of daardie persoon ‘n goeie of slegte ding doen of ‘n kind van die Here is of nie, is dus nie altyd reg en waar nie.
‘n Kind van God mag nou wel mense BINNE die liggaam van Christus beoordeel op grond van seksuele of ander sondige gedrag waarvan jy weet omdat ‘n bietjie suurdeeg die hele ongesuurde brood sal bederf (sien 1 Kor. 5:1-8), maar Paulus vermaan die kerk in Romeine hoofstuk 14 om nie op mekaar neer te sien of te veroordeel op grond van onbenullighede soos dit wat ons eet of drink, die heiliging van dae en tye, of enige ander kwessie wat niks te doen het met God se koningkryk nie.
Die klem van die handel en wandel van iemand wat deur die Heilige Gees gelei word, is nie veronderstel om te val op uiterlike voorkoms opsigself nie, maar moet val op ‘n lewensstyl wat nie iemand anders wat in Christus is, laat struikel en God se werk sal vernietig ter wille van onder andere voedsel of die gedenk/heiliging van dae en weiering om dit te doen nie. God is Gees; dus val die klem van die aanbidding van en in die geestelike op geestelike dinge soos gerigtigheid, vrede, en vreugde in die Heilige gees. Ons moet dus daardie dinge najaag wat lei tot vrede en dit wat mekaar sal opbou.
As enige iemand wat in Christus is, iemand anders wat ook in Christus is, laat struikel net om ‘n punt te bewys deur dit wat ons eet of drink, of die dae wat ons heilig of nie heilig nie, wandel ons nie in liefde nie. Die wat ‘n dag gedenk of heilig, doen dit vir God en nie vir ander nie. Diegene wat weier om ‘n sekere dag te gedenk of heilig, doen dit ook vir God se onthalwe en nie vir die mens nie.
Ons lewe en sterwe tot Hom. Daarom sal elkeen van ons aan Hom verantwoording doen.
Hierdie beginsel is vir ons slegte en goeie nuus. Die slegte nuus is dat, as ‘n mens iemand op grond van sulke dinge beoordeel, jy jouself in ‘n plek of posisie stel wat jou nie toekom nie en met dinge bemoei wat nie jou besigheid is nie. Die goeie nuus, wat opmaak vir die slegte nuus, is dat, as ons aan Hom behoort, bly ons Syne, Ongeag mense se opinies en gevolgtrekkings of watter dae mense heilig of nie heilig nie, of wat hulle eet of drink of weier om te eet of drink.
As ons hierdie beginsel op die praktyk toepas, beteken dit dat, as iemand wat swart klere aantrek iemand anders wat weier om dit te doen, veroordeel, speel daardie persoon God. As iemand wat weier om swart klere aan te trek ander mense oordeel omdat hulle dit wel doen, speel so ‘n persoon ook God.
As die Heilige Gees in jou woon, behoort jy aan Hom, ongeag watter datum dit gister was, vandag is, of die volgende dag sal wees. Jy bly Sy kind, al het jy gister of vandag swart, wit, rooi, grys, bont, of watter kleur klere aangetrek op ‘n okkultiese feesdag.
As iemand dus werklik die hulp van die lewende God soek en om daardie rede gister of vandag swart aangetrek het, heilig hy/sy mos nie die dag aan Satan nie. God weet wat waar is. Jesus is die waarheid. Die Gees van Waarheid, wat groter is as hy wat in die wereld is, woon in die wat in Hom is en Hom aangeneem het, en dus die mag het om Sy kinders genoem te word.
Dit bring my terug na my stelling dat die Here en blindes tot ‘n mindere mate iets met mekaar in gemeen het as dit kom by die beoordeling en evaluering van mense. Vir blindes het die indruk wat hulle van mense het, absolutt niks te make met hul fisiese voorkoms nie. Vir ons Hemelse Vader het jou verhouding met Hom en die manier waarop Hy oor jou dink en na jou kyk, ook hoegenaamd niks te doen met jou uiterlike voorkoms nie.
Alhoewel daar ‘n aansienlike groot verskil is tussen die rede waarom Gode en blindes onderskeidelik nie op die uiterlike ingestel is nie, is die rede daarvoor steeds gekoppel aan hul onderskeie kondisies. Dit is die blindheid van blindes wat hulle in staat stel om nie op die sigbare staat te maak wanneer hulle mense beoordeel of evalueer nie. Dit is juis God se geestelike aard wat Hom in staat stel om VERBY dit wat sigbaar is, te kyk.
Omdat ek blind is maak dit nie vir my saak watter kleur mense op watter dag dra nie. Dit is die rede daarvoor wat tel en uiteindelik van geestelike waarde is.
Gesien vanuit hierdie perspektief (of deur hierdie bril), dink ek regtig dat die kleur en kondisie van jou geestelike klere baie meer vir God saakmaak as jou fisiese klere. Solank jou geestelike klere nie swart is nie, is dit nie vir Hom ‘n probleem as jy gedurende ‘n okkultiese feesgety in swart geklee is nie.
Posted in Afrikaanse Plasings, UncategorizedTagged blindheid, Christenskap, feesdae, God, okkult, perspektief, veroordelingLeave a comment
What It Really Means to Love and Care
Posted on October 24, 2017 by Leeuin
Yesterday, I have seen once again how true it is that actions speak louder than words. A Facebook account which I have deactivated in May 2016 has been hacked.
I won’t deny that it was a nuisance to me to sort things out. For starters, I couldn’t log into that account. Facebook didn’t even prompt that I used the wrong username or password to log in. I was just given the option to create a new account!
Reporting that profile by myself was another issue on its own. For some reason, after tapping the report button, Facebook wouldn’t give me any instructions to follow to have the matter reported. I was simply shown the profile again.
But the beauty of it all was that there were people who didn’t unfriend me on that old, supposedly deactivated, account, and who have done absolutely everything in their power to bring to my attention that they suspect that my old account has been hacked. Some of them posted on the timeline of the profle I’ve been using ever since I deactivated the other account up until now. Some sent me a message on WhatsApp. Some called me to make sure I know about this.
Not only was this proof that there are people who know what I would and would not post; it also proved to me that there are people who care about me!
People can tell you that they love and care about you, but statements mean nothing if not substantiated by proof. The proof of people’s love and care for one another is to be found in their actions toward one another.
Many will tell you that they love and care about you, but as soon as you press on their button, they’re too busy and they’d often react by shouting at you or criticising you for not having done this or that to solve the problem with which you’re asking their help. They would only assist if they can gain something from it, including financial benefits or a better social status.
On the other hand, those who truly love and care rarely tell it to you verbally. I don’t recall any time when one of these people who helped me with this problem yesterday actually told or tried to assure me that they love and care about me. Instead, you find out how much they love and care by what they do. They come to help you without you having to tell them that you need their help, because they seem to just know when their help is needed. They don’t help you because you’re a charity case to them, or because they’ll get something out of it, such as a higher opinion of people about them. They do it because you realy matter to them and they want to help you.
They are the ones who are never too busy to hear you out. They are the ones who don’t judge plainly from what they can see on the outside.
Such are They are those who really love and care about you as a person, and if you haven’t managed to find a friend like that, keep looking. There may only be a few of them, yes, but they are there …
Thank you Lord for bringing such sincere, loving, caring, and helpful people into my life. Please help me to be a friend like that to others? Help me to influence, by means of the life I lead, those who only help for personal gain to change their ways and repent of their lack of compassion?
Posted in Personal, UncategorizedTagged care, hacking, help, love, sincerityLeave a comment
Posted on July 28, 2017 by Leeuin
Posted on June 23, 2017 June 24, 2017 by Leeuin
Today is the last day of the second school term in South Africa. Usually, when the schools close for the school holidays, we go to my mother’s on the last day of the week to fetch our daughter, but this won’t be happening this weekend due to my husband’s obligations and duties at work. He will be working this weekend, including tomorrow, so there goes our plans to have her with us for the entire school holiday! L
Seeing that I have no work to do for any clients from home, entertaining her and spending some quality time with her during the day while my husband is working and her little brother is attending preschool wouldn’t have been a problem for me at all! I was really looking forward to doing exactly that for the entire school holiday, and it’s really not as if we don’t need some mother-daughter time together!
Not only do I feel disappointed; I’m also impatient to see her, because I really miss her! This only builds upon my impatience.
On top of that, my little brother is turning eighteen tomorrow, so we won’t be able to celebrate his special day with him. True, at that age, teens want their friends around, but it would’ve been so nice to see him face to face and wish him a happy birthday where he is able to physically see me and return my hugs.
I guess I just have to get over it, hey? Because it won’t help me to complain about it. I think you can understand my frustration, disappointment, and motherly impatience though …
Posted in UncategorizedTagged disappointment, holidays, kids, love, relationshipsLeave a comment
Posted on June 22, 2017 by Leeuin
RESTRICTIONS ON THE FREEDOM TO HUG
Posted on September 1, 2016 by Leeuin
This article first appeared here: http://jasmijn31.thoughts.com/posts/the-freedom-to-hug and was amended.
Ok! Ok! I admit without any sense of shame, remorse or guilt that I AM A HUGGER! I love handing out hugs, and on days like today, I wish the people I want to give a hug were large and soft teddies, because teddies have no hang-ups receiving a hug from anyone, and because it feels so good to hold one! They always feel so soft, and yes, I also admit that holding one does make me feel like I’m being comforted. It’s not that I would actually look for a teddy in my daughter’s room to hug it for the sake of finding comfort when she’s not there or when I’m alone at home. However, I found myself feeling that way when I do hold a large teddy in my arms, although I realize that a teddy really is supposed to be just a thing – a toy meant for kids or a decoration in a child’s room, and not a pacifier for an adult. It’d be interesting to hear the opinion of an expert in psychology about this, but anyway, the point I’m trying to get across is that the freedom to hug anyone whenever and wherever I wanted to would’ve made it so much easier for me to express myself.
So what is it that stops huggers like myself from just going to someone and giving him/her a hug whenever we feel like it? Actually, there is more than just one restriction on this freedom, and I will list some of them below:
I’ve heard from many people that they don’t like to be hugged. Various reasons may exist for this refusal, for example, some people have a phobia for germs, so they don’t like being hugged by somebody for fear that they’d accumulate a cold, flu, pneumonia, or some other disease, because they don’t know with whom the person associated themselves earlier that day.
There are people who just don’t like physical contact at all, so they don’t give out hugs, neither do they like to receive them.
I also know a minister who wouldn’t let any female member of his congregation hug him, and the reason he’s given will be discussed later in this article. However, although I think this is a bit far-fetched, I respect his view, and so should anyone who is a hugger, because you simply can and should not make another person feel forced or obliged to receive your hug when there’s a possibility that the person doesn’t like to be hugged! The reason is that you’re actually invading the private and personal space of someone else, and if you know he/she doesn’t like to be hugged but you embrace him/her just to prove a point, it proves that you have no respect or regard for another person’s feelings, views or personal preferences. Shame on you!
Hugs Can Solicit Actions Harmful to Existing Relationships
Hugs can give rise to feelings such as physical attraction and may even solicit sexual thoughts and desires, which is not a bad thing in itself if the two persons engaging in the hug are both free or in a serious relationship with each other, but which is indeed a bad thing if it happens between two persons who are in a committed relationship with someone else.
Now, we all know how many ministers have fallen just by engaging in extra-marital affairs, and this was also the reason given by the minister to which I referred in the previous paragraph for his policy not to hug any female member of his congregation.
My opinion on the matter is that not all hugs between two people ALWAYS solicit sexual thoughts and/or desires. Many times, a hug stems from a person’s spontaneous reaction which does not necessarily have something to do with physical attraction. It can, for example, not be said that someone who is glad to see a friend or a minister whom she hasn’t seen in quite a while feels sexually attracted to him or that he’ll feel sexually attracted to her if she literally leaps towards him with her arms wide open and embraces him. She may do it simply because she’s glad to see him. In my humble opinion, which I don’t intend to force down anyone else’s throat, it’s quite an absurd and gross generalisation to say that all hugs by members of the opposite sex will or does solicit sexual desires! However, by saying this, I’m not denying the fact that it has happened in the past that a hug led to other things which had a drastic and harmful effect on people’s personal lives and/or careers due to the violation and even the termination of marriages and other relationships.
We all know that this world is filled with sick people who can appear to give an innocent hug to someone else, but who have hidden agendas because of the depravity of their minds. I classify child rapists and -molesters in this category!
Due to these incidents, schools often implement a no-touching policy between teachers and children. It’s actually sad that children’s need to be touched (hugged) have to make room for no-touching policies due to the existence of sick people! Isn’t it? However, I understand the ratio behind it.
Many people who like to hug others often don’t do so because they fear being rejected by a prospective recipient. Very often, this fear of rejection is the end result of instances of rejection in the past.
Many times, people don’t want to hug other people as an expression of love or comfort simply because it’s too hot.
I’m sure that everyone who smells like sweat during a very hot summer day or after long hours of work in the sun can feel very self-conscious about the way he/she feels and smells, so he/she frankly tells you, “I’m not going to hug you because I’m sweaty and dirty.” To me, it’s not nice hugging a person who’s all sticky because of sweat anyway, so I appreciate it if another hugger tells me this.
In conclusion, I have to add that, due to following these restrictions, I found myself feeling stupid on more than one occasion, because I don’t know exactly how to handle it when I find myself in a situation where I know that someone needs to be comforted and/or consoled, but I cannot express my empathy or love with a hug! Nevertheless, I remain with the person to let him/her know that I’m there, because sometimes just being there for someone can mean so much more than the speaking of many words.
I have drawn the conclusion that a hug is a comforting tool which should always be used with absolute caution and wisdom.