The solution to smelly armpits.

November has been quite an interesting month for me. A lot has happened and I have spent a whole lot of time reflecting on so many things. One of the thoughts I'd like to share was inspired by these and other perfume bottles:

It's so interesting to see how much value is placed on fragrances. My best friend had a fragrance themed birthday party a few years ago and needed various fragrances for décor. Some of his closest friends simply refused to even bring theirs along to the party because they were simply not prepared to take the risk of the bottles falling and breaking, or too many people being keen to "test" their fragrance and that resulting in wasting their expensive fragrances. Others were not prepared to share their best kept secrets by revealing the fragrance they use to create that scent that has become their trademark.

I've been thinking of how much a perfume, or fragrance can be quite symbolic of our lives.

Think about how valuable we are as people. How expensive we are. How much was paid for our salvation. How much time was spent in the process of forming us, and what creativity and skill had to be employed to make each of us unique. Our looks, our characteristics, special talents and abilities all culminate to make us who we are and results in us having a special fragrance to bring to the world.

And of course, like most fragrances, we wont appeal to everyone. To some we will be a cheap daily fragrance, while to others we will be that unique fragrance that is saved for special occasions. Some of us might be a more easily accessible fragrance while others might be that rare fragrance that needs to be sought out and discovered after tons of others have been tested prior to us.
And the sad truth is that to some, we might really end up being that fragrance that causes an uncomfortable rash on the skin. hahaha...

Most interesting to me about fragrances is that almost all fragrances have something in common. Every fragrance goes through almost the same process in order to be most effective and produce their specific smell.

Irrespective of the bottle - the outer presentation, or the value of the fragrance. The actual fragrance is only released when some pressure is applied to the nozzle. And before this can happen, sometimes the bottle needs to be stripped of its lid". Depending on the design of the bottle, and the desired amount of fragrance you would like to release, more or less pressure may required. This reminds me of a scripture - "To whom much is given, Much is required".

What is the fragrance inside of you? Have you realised your worth? Do you realise the people you need to serve. Have you identified the people around you who need you and see you as irreplaceable? Has it dawned on you that there are certain spheres where you add a unique fragrance?

Or have you become too focussed on the "pressure"?

Your story, your experiences, all you've been through and all you've learnt has happened for a reason. it is so that what is inside of you can come out and be effective in your world. Your fragrance is needed. Inside of you is the solution to the "Smelly Armpits" around you.

You are valuable, you are precious and you are needed. Allow the pressure to release your fragrance.

Be encouraged,
D

The Stage - "a story about my journey"

I can feel that this one is going to probably speak to me more than anyone else but I'm sure someone out there needs it too... so here it goes.

Let me start by introducing the inspiration: Ladies and gentleman - please meet 'THE STAGE'.

This is not a familiar stage to anyone in my circle of friends and I haven't even been on this particular stage myself but while I was waiting for my class to start the other day, I just sat looking at this stage and had a few thoughts I thought I'd put down.

I've spent approximately 25 years of my life on a stage. Various stages actually. When I stood on a chair (on stage) to sing a Christmas carol at the age of 4, I never dreamed that I would grow up and spend a lifetime on stage and even lead worship on a huge stage in front of the Union Buildings with and orchestra and a crowd of thousands. Over the years, the stage has become a familiar place to me. For some reason I just don't manage to escape it.

I was blessed to learn quite early that most of the stages I would find myself on would not be just "A Stage" but rather "An Alter". A place of sacrifice where I would present God with the very gifts that He has given me. His Gifts - Not mine.

I have done my best to always walk worthy of the privilege of being on a stage. I have had to learn the hard lessons of not letting the stage define me. And although the stage can give a totally different impression of who I really am, I have had to learn how to find the balance to ensure that I am the same person both on and off stage.

It has been an incredible journey and before I knew it, I was like a fish in water on a stage. It soon became one of the few public places where I felt safest, most effective and full of purpose. It was a place where an amazing exchange would take place between God & I. As I would give all of me in service to Him, He would fill me, refresh me, comfort me, use me and empower me. I even "spotted" my wife from a stage.

And then one day

... I no longer had access to a particular stage which I had become so accustomed to.
The lights had died down, the music had faded and the crowd had disappeared and I felt a bit lost and out place. I felt like I was in an empty auditorium...

I felt like an actor who had just exited a stage in a play or show after his final performance. The difference though, was that I wasn't leaving with a standing ovation, or exhilarating exit music. No applause or pyrotechnics. No credits rolling and no time to pose for pictures with an Emmy award.
It was just OVER. My time had come to an end.

And so in what felt like a split second, my familiar place became a place I resented most. Hurt, pain and a whirlwind of emotions justified my desire to "NEVER want to get back up on a stage ever again". Not that specific stage, or any other. Every Stage in my life felt the effects. In my mind, a stage would never see me again.
I disappeared, I walked away and I hid. But I hid in an amazing place. A secret place. A place where I knew God was too. It was the other place He and I would always encounter each other besides "on stage". And in this place, some amazing things happened.

A look at some old phones reminded me of something mind blowing.

I remembered THE CALL. A higher calling. A call to worship, a call to reach others for Jesus, a call to live a life sold out for Him.

It's been approximately 9 months since the last time I was on an actual stage. But during that time I have still been on THE STAGE OF LIFE. I have still had eyes on me, I have still had opportunities to be effective, I have still had to live worthy of being CALLED and CHOSEN by God. I had to be the same Darren - But without the stage. Nine months is approximately the same amount of time a baby spends developing in the womb - so perhaps I have just been on "maternity leave", getting ready to give birth to something NEW.

I am ready to be obedient. I am ready to pay the price and I am ready for the role MY DIRECTOR has cast me in.

And I am determined to be my best - on a field, on a road, in a room or on a stage.

ALL I WANT TO DO IS WORSHIP YOU...

Be encouraged
D

The Sunburn Of Life

This post has sort of been brewing for a couple of days already but I believe the timing will be perfect anyway and it will be read when it is supposed to be.

I have been delaying purposefully because I wanted to get good pictures of this entire experience but I feel like I have enough now to share the lesson.

 Arlene and I have been dealing with “sunburn” since a recent outdoor fun day we attended at church. I spent the day before the event setting up and because I didn’t think that I would be out in the sun for a long time on the day, I didn’t apply any sunscreen and although I wore a hat and loads of sunscreen on the day of the event, it was already too late because I had “already been burnt”.

 

Arlene's forehead... mine looked similar

 

my arm - during the process of shedding skin

The next few days (nearly two weeks now) really got me thinking though, and as I watched the effects of the sunburn on my skin, I started noticing some similarities to life. Who would have thought that burning, then flaky, then peeling skin could teach one some very interesting lessons about life?

 

How many of us have been “BURNT” during our lifetime? Perhaps by people, or maybe by situations, or even decisions.

Sometimes we get burnt because we don’t do our research before we enter a situation. We don’t get a “weather forecast” so that we can plan adequately for what lies ahead.

 

At other times, we assume that we are “immune to getting burnt”. We don’t think certain things could happen to us. And so we just go in trusting that everything will work out all rosy.

Then there are times when we take for granted that someone else will provide some “protection”, so we don’t bother to take our own.

 The reality of life is that there will be times that we do get burnt. We will fail, we will make mistakes, we will make some wrong decisions and we will knock our heads. People will hurt or betray us and offences will come.

 It is important for us recover from these burns and to ensure that we go through the process of getting restored.

It really doesn’t matter how intense the burn is. The mere fact that we are still alive means that it is not the end of us yet.

After being sunburnt, my complexion changed quite a bit. I was a couple of shades darker than what I usually am. I had distinct tan lines on my arms. I didn’t feel very attractive, and preferred to stay out of company until I looked better. My forehead started peeling first and I was a bit embarrassed and thought people would think I’m dirty or have severe dandruff. But after a few days all the peeling had stopped and after a light scrub, there was no longer any signs of sunburn on my face.

 I can relate to that in life situations as well. A lot of times, after getting hurt or going through something “sore”, I’ve felt like hiding. My coping mechanism was – staying away or running. Often the wounds would show on my countenance. My joy would be low, my eyes wouldn’t  sparkle, and my smile would be a bit faded and fake.

 But just like after a short period of sunburn, eventually there is a change. All the old skin – the burnt skin- falls off and new skin starts to appear. This skin is always beautiful and feels so new; and for me it always has a lovely complexion too. It boosts my confidence again and before I know it, I am out there again and ready to take on the world. One of the most amazing feelings is realising that it isn't sore anymore whereas initially I could not even touch my skin because of the pain of the burns. Very similar to the initial pain we feel when our hearts have been hurt.

 

What has burnt you? What has tried to make you feel ugly, unworthy or even worthless?

Don’t allow it to keep you in a place of defeat. Face the sunburn, learn the lesson of applying sunscreen by guarding your heart. And perhaps use a good after sun treatment like forgiveness or a good chat to talk things through.

 You’ll see, the wounds will heal. The old, burnt skin will be gone soon and a new you will surface. Embrace the moments and be determined to not get burnt by the same situations again. Guard your heart and let go of resentment and bitterness and then get your joy back.

 Life burns, but God has provided the ultimate sunscreen. His Word, His Love, His Grace and His Mercy are all the ingredients available for us to protect ourselves, and to help heal us.

 Be encouraged.

 D