Our triune God, God Father, Son
and Holy Spirit, be in our
midst.
We are very conscious that without you nothing
will succeed.
Without you nothing will go well and succeed
and prosper.
And if you're not the first in our
lives, then it's all in vain.
Be the first and stay the first in
our lives every day.
And wherever you
have
placed us, wherever we are, be it at
work or wherever, there are ways to put
you first in our lives.
We realize that everything depends upon your blessing.
And so we commit this day into your
hands.
And we want to
bow before you and before your word, your
living word, that
we can, in this day, knowing that you
have blessed us, be
with us, Lord Jesus.
Bless the reading of your word and all
that is said.
And may this service be acceptable to you.
Amen.
Let's continue.
I spoke to the bridegrooms and asked them,
what do you have to say?
Our similar German and Zulu is in the
pronunciation.
I said, Arthur, is there a particular text
that you would like me to speak about?
I said, Arthur, do you have a text
on your heart?
He said, yes, there is, but you may
speak about anyone, any text.
He said, yes, there is, but you may
speak about anyone, any text.
So he said, Proverbs 3, verse 5.
Where it says, trust in the Lord with
all your heart and lean not on your
own understanding.
Where it says, trust in the Lord with
all your heart and lean not on your
own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him and he
shall direct your paths.
In all your ways acknowledge him and he
shall direct your paths.
Then I asked Paul if he had a
text on his heart.
He said, indeed, Hosea chapter 14, verse 8
and 9.
Ephraim shall
say,
what have I to do any more with
idols?
I have heard and observed him.
I am like a green cypress tree.
Your fruit is found in me.
I have heard and observed him.
Who is wise?
Let him understand these things.
Who is prudent?
Let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right.
The righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble
in them.
Who is wise?
Let him understand these things.
Who is prudent?
Let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right.
The righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble
in them.
Who is wise?
Let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right.
The righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble
in them.
Who is prudent?
Let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right.
Who is prudent?
For the ways of the Lord are right.
The righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble
in them.
Who is prudent?
The righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble
in them.
For the ways of the Lord are right.
The righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble
in them.
Who is prudent?
The people of Midian are of German origin.
They don't understand Zulu and English.
not 10 kilometers, some were 5.
Now where Arthur comes from, where he lives
in Germany is just a stone throw away
from where our forefathers originally came from as
the crow flies perhaps just 5 to 10
kilometers.
Arthur was only about 10 kilometers from the
place where our forefathers came from.
The young
men
have said
that they feel it is God's will to
get married to my two daughters and I
am wondered, is it really?
Are they sure that it is the will
of God?
The young men said that they feel that
it is God's will that they marry their
daughters.
And how can you be sure that this
is from God?
So my daughters were informed about this and
were given the full liberty to go and
pray about it themselves.
If the Lord says no, then they should
say no.
If he says yes, then let it be
a yes.
I said, I don't know these young men.
Now I was then informed that actually I
should know them a bit better.
But after all, Arthur has been here on
a number of occasions and for extended periods.
And the same with Paul, he's been here
for a whole year.
And I said, well, what have I had
to do with them anyway?
It just shows that I haven't tried to
intervene on behalf of my daughters.
I didn't know them.
When I said, I don't know them at
all.
They said, yes, but they have been here
for a long time.
Both of them have been here on the
mission station for a long time and stayed.
I said, yes, I don't pay attention to
the young men.
I'm not interested in finding men for my
daughters.
I asked my older brother, now who is
this young man after all?
He said, no, I know him and he's
good.
I asked my brother, do you know these
men?
He said, yes, I know them, they are
good men.
And I heard that he was working with
Herbert.
So I went to Herbert and I said,
well, what do you say about him?
And he said, well, we had a wonderful
relationship together.
And so when he got engaged, Herbert said,
oh, so you've come for that reason.
And Herbert
said,
oh, so that's why you were asking me
when you realized that he came to get
engaged.
I said to my daughters, to Dorothea and
to Esther, you seek God's will for yourselves,
only God's will.
To seek the will of the Lord is
of far greater importance than anything else.
And finally, when we stand before him, the
question will be asked, did we do his
will?
Not everybody who says Lord, Lord will enter
in, but those who did his will.
We had a minister's conference in Switzerland.
There was a reverend Mazabane, I don't know
if he might be here.
He told us a story.
He said in his church, a certain boy
came, or young man.
And he was smiling from ear to ear.
And he asked him, young man, what is
it?
And he said, the Lord has shown me
whom I'm going to get married to.
How did the Lord show you?
Now, with some Africans, when they get converted
and they marry and have children, they give
their children biblical names, and I did that
as well.
Many blacks, when they get converted, they give
their children biblical names, and I did that
as well.
A
certain
man had nine children, and he gave them
the nine names of the Lord.
Now, back to the story, the preacher then
asked the young man, and who has the
Lord showed you, you'll get married to?
And he said, joy.
And in that congregation, there was a joy.
The preacher asked now, young man, how did
God show you this thing?
Now, you interpreters say it quickly.
It's cold, we want to finish quickly.
I
said,
you will go with joy.
And he said, Lord, who's my rib?
And he prayed, and he said, he opened
the Bible, flipped it open, and his finger
struck upon the word which said, you will
go with joy.
The young man said, I prayed, and he
said, Lord, who's my rib?
And he prayed, and he said, Lord, who's
my
rib?
So, the preacher went to the girl, to
joy, and said, this is what the young
man says, what do you feel?
And she instantly denied it, and you do
get that, that a girl feels that it's
a no, and she said no.
The preacher said, young man, it's a mistake,
the girl says no, go and pray again.
The preacher went to the young man, young
man, that didn't sound good, pray again.
He prayed and said, Lord, show me your
will.
So he flipped his Bible.
He said, Lord, show me, show me who
it is.
Why is there food?
Grace and mercy will be with you forever.
The preacher said, what, you come with two
at a time, you can't have been praying
seriously.
So the preacher said, look, I'm going to
pray this time, bring my Bible.
He opened it.
He said, Lord, show me on behalf of
this troubled young man.
And he said, boy, read, I don't want
to read it myself.
My grace is sufficient.
A certain young lady prayed earnestly to get
married.
Some are so troubled by it, and once
they get married, then they find themselves that
marriage is troublesome.
Some are so troubled by it, and once
they get married, then they find themselves that
marriage is troublesome.
She saw the years flying by without her
getting a husband.
And she went outside underneath a huge oak
tree.
She went outside underneath a huge oak tree.
That was at night she began to pray
and prayed so earnestly that her prayers became
louder and louder until an owl, which was
seated up there in the branches, got a
fright, woke up and said, who?
And she answered, Lord, anybody.