The rest of God is a very essential element that everyone needs. I would show you why. When God in his wrath made this resolution or decree, the people it was said about never entered the promise land. They struggled for the rest of their lives, wandering the desert for 40 years (Psalm 95:10) until each and every one of them died then God’s chosen families, Joshua and Caleb and the others that held on to God’s word entered the Promised Land, Canaan. You can read Numbers 13 and 14 to see the whole account for yourself.

Have you asked yourself why sometimes people run around doing things but never succeed at anything? They never build lasting success. Others struggle so much and nothing materialises. Maybe you may be in this type of situation yourself. You strive and strive and strive with your all but there is no fruitfulness. Many times we talk about God’s grace given to us but here is the shocker, the grace of God is different from the glory of God. The grace is what keeps us alive. We go to bed and wake up every morning because of God’s grace. Our sins and petty misdeeds are pardoned by God because of His grace. Evil does not befall us; no accidents and even when they happen, delivers and preserves our life It is what keeps us going all the time. However the glory of God which is the same as the rest of God is the very presence of God surrounding a person. It is this (God’s) presence that causes or brings about unexplained or undeserved favour. His presence or His rest is what takes away the pressure, the stress and burden of every day life. It is this very presence that makes life seem smooth for us and even when we face problems, this same rest of God gives us strength to overcome. It causes us to smile, laugh, find joy always even in the darkest of tunnels. When the glory of God is lifted off a person then it means that the presence of God is no longer with that person and that is when we see that the person struggles and struggles to make succeed in education, family, marriage, business, networks, but achieves nothing. Sometimes the person would even go back to using the same principles that worked for them before but this time, it won’t work.

This is what happened to the Israelites who doubted and disobeyed God in Numbers 13 and 14; the glory of God was no longer with them. This is why when God said that He will not let them enter His rest, the people began to struggle, nothing was successful, they struggled with all their might but without that presence of God, they could do nothing worthwhile.

You see, you can have the grace of God and not be in God’s rest. You would have your life preserved. You will be pardoned and forgiven for your sins but without God’s rest or glory, life will seem like such as drag, a burden and impossible. Everything will seem like hard work that yields no fruit.

In Matthew 11: 28, Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.] AMP.

This is the same rest that Jesus talks about in the New Testament. When you are in the rest, glory or presence of God, burdens are taken away, and you receive new strength for everyday.

Sometimes we go chasing after education, money, fame, business, commerce, contacts, family, friends, sex, love and all the material and worldly things from Monday to Sunday and we don’t even give God a day to acknowledge Him. Even on Sundays we still chase after these worldly things and don’t even go to church to worship this same God who makes all things possible and then we go out there and struggle and struggle and struggle and the little we gain or save ends up leaving our hands and accounts quicker than we gathered them.

We assume that struggling is normal or mandatory with this life. It is not!

Jesus said that when we come to him, He will relieve us of our burdens. When we enter into God’s rest we find things going smooth and when we face difficulties, we receive strength to overcome them.

Paul does not actually mention what his weakness was, but he called it a thorn in his flesh. This was something he asked the word so many times to take away from him but this is what the Lord rather told him,

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 cor. 12:9).

Paul starts the chapter saying that he will not boast himself and he does not know what others may have heard of him, but he emphasizes that he will rather boast in his infirmities, his weakness, so that the power of God may rest upon him. (vrs 9b) Paul says that his infirmities or weakness are thorns that do not allow him to exalt himself above measure with all that he had accomplished.

When we think of Paul in the Bible, we all think of his great achievements for the gospel and all he went through. Sometimes we even may boast about his works but for Paul, he says he did not want to be exalted above measure because any time he felt it was by his own strength and that he could do it all by himself, that weakness he had, came to further show him that he could not do it all and that weakness made him draw far more closer to God for strength.

Today I do not know what you are going through that makes it seem like God is around or that He is intentionally punishing you. Maybe you have lost someone whom to you, may have been your all and you feel you can’t go on any longer. Believe me when I say that when God becomes you sole source of strength, you can move through those weaknesses, or trying times and gain strength. I am not saying it will be easy but there is God who can help you if you let Him.

Have you realised that many times when people go through a difficult time that is when they begin to call upon God more? Many times I have had this experience and still do, where my relationship with God is going very steady, you are praying, you are studying His word, you are winning souls, you are paying your tithe, you are daily communicating with God, etc and then the relationship starts breaking and you are moving further from God and you unconsciously think you are doing fine on your own but then you face a trying or difficult time, a challenge, a problem, a mountain, that you can’t go through, and that when you realise that you can’t do it on you own so you go back to God so that he helps you. What happened? The weakness I faced just like Paul made me rely solely on God’s grace that gave me strength in weakness. On the lighter side you can call it, a supernatural defence mechanism.

Maybe for you that weakness may be lying, stealing, treating others badly, the urge for sexual immorality –fornication, lust, pornography, adultery, smoking, drinking, an accident that you may or may not have gotten injured. It is anything that may want to ensnare you or actually does.

Sometimes our weaknesses could come in different forms and not just one. I am not saying that because our weakness or infirmities make us draw closer to God, you would commit adultery or fornicate for example and say that it will get you closer to God. No! I am saying that these weaknesses come when you don’t expect and the urge to do them may be too strong for and you may actually do them. But when you do, you feel this emptiness inside of you and that is what gets you closer to God because then you feel so disappointed, ashamed and empty that only God can help you to back on track. BUT be warned, if these weakness come and you don’t go to God to strengthen you, you will fall so fast and so quickly within a short time that you will feel you don’t need God anymore. GET BACK TO GOD.

Today, the message from Paul is that through you weaknesses, addictions, infirmities, sins, God’s gives you strength to go through them so that when they occur again, with God’s strength you will not succumb.

When I saw this as I meditated on God’s word, I realised that a man living up to 70 or 80 years in sickness or weakness is not the original plan of God.

Many times this scripture has been taken out of context. God was angry at the Israelites for their sins and had departed from them. Because of this, their life was full of vanity, living seemed meaningless, their labour was also in vain and full of sorrow. We see the same thing in Genesis 6:3, where God Himself said that because of the sins in Noah’s days, He could not strive with man any longer and that man’s life will now be 120 years. Years of life was shortened due to man’s sins.

“The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those who are planted in the house of the Lord God shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing.” Psalm 92:12-14 (NKJV)

When we abide in God, we live a full life rejoicing always in health and fulfilment of the life God has given us. It is not the will of God for a man to live and die at 70 or 80 years in sickness, or frailty but that even at that age man should remain yet strong and healthy, looking back on God’s goodness. This isn’t a superstition, or my own words. It is God’s own word. See it for yourself.

The choice is yours, you now know the way to long life, happiness and health or shortened life, weakness and frailty.

General Background Information

The book was written by Mariano Azuela. He writes this fictional about the events that happened in the Mexican Revolution. Although fiction, he brings out the gory details of the war in this piece while making the reader aware of the situation during Mexico at the time. Mariano Azuela is said to have been disillusioned after the war progress and this is the main theme he brings about in the plot together with the effects of what the revolution did to Mexico. He portrays these themes through Demetrio Macias and his band of revolutionaries who go about fighting opposing forces as well as federal forces but they did not understand the ideals of the revolution or in better language, what the revolution sought to do. He and his men become involved in the war due to individual reasons and they go on destroying property and killing people at will. Towards the end of the book when they start to question why they are fighting, they did fighting for their lives in an ambush. Mariano Azuela sought to capture to reality on the ground in his book. The revolution had started out claiming to make things better for Mexico, but the battle between opposing forces who all wanted to rule made things rather worse for Mexico. What the people fought long for was not what they were getting. Disillusioned, many of them asked the question, “Why are we fighting?” the same question posed by Demetrio’s wife to which Demetrio has no answer.

ANALYSIS

THEMES OF ‘LOS DE ABAJO’

THE ABSURDITY OF THE REVOLUTION

The pioneers of the revolution claimed that they were going to make thing better but it rather gets worse. The revolution becomes a power-struggling conflict between personalities like ‘Pancho’ Villa, Venustiano Carranza, Victoriano Huerta and many others, as well as among their followers.
Everybody killing his fellow for the pleasure of it because there is no order and most importantly it is so absurd that the followers and soldiers themselves at the frontline didn’t understand what the war was about. When Demetrio is questioned by General Natera on which side he was on in the war. He stratched his head saying,

“Mire, a mi no me haga preguntas, que no soy escuelante… La gitanilla que traigo en el sombrero uste me la dio… Bueno, pos ya sabe que no mas me dice: Demetrio, haces esto y esto… ¡y se acabo el cuento!”

He even goes further to say that Villa? Carranza? Obregon? What is the difference? We see for a fact that the whole leader of the band of men who were going about killing people because of this revolution did not understand what it was about.

HYPOCRISY

In the book, we discover that almost everyone had a reason for being part of the war. Everyone was seeking their own selfish gain in the war underneath the blanket term of fighting to make things better. Some joined Demetrio’s army because they wanted to survive and being part of the army meant that your stomach was always full. It also meant that you had a share of the booty that was looted from individuals and houses. In book we come across a commander of an army who sits back and does nothing whiles his soldiers fights and later writes to his superiors about his ‘exploits in the war’ in order to get a promotion. Most people had their selfish reasons for joining the revolution. We see this hypocrisy so much in the character of Luis Cervantes, who is the only literate person among Demetrio. He is the one who gives them a little education about the war. He is initially seen as the only sane person in the group but only till we get to the last part of the book that we see that he had gathered enough booty and money, left Mexico while the war was on-going and went to school. After he completes and is out of money he writes to Venancio, another of Demetrio’s men to bring money so that they start a business and because he brought the idea, they would divide the profits equally. In the end we come to the conclusion that he was no interest in the war.

THE EFFECTS OF THE WAR

The effects of the war are seen throughout the book as Demetrio and his men takes the reader on their journey of the plundering towns, killing people and destroying property.

1. Death
2. Broken homes/ Marriages
3. Poverty & Economic instability
4. Loss of conscience/ Animalistic tendencies
5. Senseless destruction of lives and property

DISILLUSIONMENT

STYLES & TECHNIQUES USED BY AZUELA IN ‘LOS DE ABAJO’

Realism – it talks about real events that happened in Mexico as well as mentioning actual places that exist.

Division of the plot into three main parts and each of these parts are furthered divided into several chapters. In the 1^st part we see the ignorance of Demetrio and his men and why each of them were involved in the revolution. We see their excitement about the whole revolution. In the 2^nd part, we see the effects of the revolution as Demetrio and his men journey through the country. In the 3^rd and final part, these men begin questioning themselves as to why they joined the war at all. We see how disillusioned they have become and how they die as a result of this.

This plot is a tragedy

Flashback technique –this is more emphasized in the 3^rd part where they begin reflecting on why they joined the war at all and how people no longer welcomed them when they entered a town like they used to. This is also seen in the letter Luis Cervantes writes this letter. The story takes us a little back to what happened to some of Demetrio’s men in the war.

Sordid humour

Similes & Metaphors –eg. when Demetrio in the end of the 2^nd part likens the revolution to a volcano.

Symbolism – the hurricane and volcano used to symbolise the revolution.

Diction – he uses a lot of words about violence.

Then we may end up saying, we would not go back to our old ways. Sometimes we can stop for as long as one month and then we are back to eat our own vomit, putting it a bit harshly but it is true. For some people, a month may be even too much. It could be a day, three days, a week, 30 minutes, but we still go back. Then we say we are sorry again. Sometimes we even ask God for help but we find ourselves going back to the same bad habit.

It happens to me and many of us around us, even you. I don’t know what that habit could be as huge or little as, prostituting, smoking, drinking, porn addiction, masturbation, fighting, blackmailing, cheating people, bribery, lying, fornication, adultery, distancing yourself away from God, idolatry, not praying etc… it may not be the seven deadly sins but those habits are gradually killing you on the inside and you know it.

With me for instance, I’d always asked God for help but I’d realise that I take personal action to try to stop but I couldn’t. The God factor and other people helping me element were missing. You need people to help and more importantly you need God to help you. You cannot do it on your own. Don’t just say He should, allow Him to. Sometimes right in the act, He speaks to us, but we refuse to listen and choose to seek our own pleasure and then we head downhill with difficulties later. Some, maybe even you, have ignored God’s promptings you every time that your conscience is dead to what is right.

I know that sometimes it becomes difficult to stop especially if the habits we have formed have becomes addictions. We know they are not helping us. And we see that it may be gradually destroying our relationship with our friends and family. Yet knowing this does not help us stop it. Let me ask you a question that I want to think of hard and long. How do you want to be remembered by your family, friends or anyone who asks about your life? Do you want to be remembered at all? People tend to easily forget people whose lives are nothing to write home about. Maybe your deadly sin is hidden from everyone but note this principle in the bible: whatever it is that is done is secret will become public. Don’t get scared. Maybe what you have done or are doing in secret is forbidden but forged a new habit with God. Remember He’s the one person in the equation that cannot be removed on the way to recovery.

Most of us want to live a problem-free philosophy. We want a life where they have no problems, nothing bothering us and that it is why we do what we do all time. We don’t want to get stuck somewhere or have some trouble somewhere. We hurry up to meet deadlines, always rushing through life. We always want to get things done so that we have time, free-time. We don’t like to have to conflicts. Of course, who does? We don’t want to have tension between ourselves and people around us, whether at the office, at the job site, at school, at home, at church. It is like we are looking for a perfection which we can’t find but we keep on trying to.

But here’s the truth which we already know. We can’t runaway from conflicts or setbacks. They are a part of our lives. Yes you heard me! They are a part of our everyday lives. We can only work through each one that comes our way. There’s no place we can run to, to escape from it all. No! There’s no escaping anything. We have to face it. It is funny, the characters that sang the song themselves found themselves in constant troubles all the time and what did they have to do? Work through it!

I have a philosophy too. You might not like it, but it is the truth. In life you would face difficulties, setbacks, challenges, trials, call them any name you want but they are not problems. These setbacks only become problems when you worry over them and have them overcome you so that you don’t go over them and progress. So in our lives there are setbacks, we only have problems when you want to. Don’t worry when you face challenges, setbacks, challenges, opposition, trials, temptations, blockades, conflicts, whatever it is that is hindering you from moving forward, it is to be expected nevertheless don’t let them become problems. Problems override but you have to ride the situation before it does that. So what do you do if you have already allowed the problem in? First off, stop complaining and worrying about it and face the situation head-on. What most of us do including myself is to try to not get to the point where there is a conflict but surprisingly there always is. So instead trying to prevent the conflict which is inevitable because it will come in different forms (financial, marital, political, job-related, relationship wise, social, religious, communal, etc.) we deal with them when they arise with confidence. At least this time you would have one weapon in your bag, the element of no surprise because you know it will come.

I’m saying you should go round looking for challenges. No, far from it! They will find you way before you set out. I’m saying you shouldn’t let situations sallow you in. Take control while being calm. It is better to face ‘problems’ being calm rather than being tensed or afraid. Often the best way to tackle a situation is to think things through to the end while looking at the best possible outcome BOTH WAYS.

So them we come again to the song sang by Timon and Pumbaa, ‘The Lion King’ characters and we realise that it makes so much sense. It is no worry for the rest of your days. It is a problem-free philosophy.

HAKUNA MATATA!!! (Did I get the spelling right? lol )

“He who gains a victory over other men is strong; but he who gains a victory over himself is all powerful.”

– Lao Tzu

“Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow.”

–Ralph Waldo Emerson

“If you are not content with what you have, you’ll never be content with what you want.”

– Author Unknown

“Every decision you make – every decision – is not a decision about what to do. It’s a decision about Who You Are.  When you see this, when you understand it, everything changes. You begin to see life in a new way.  All events, occurrences, and situations turn into opportunities to do what you came here to do.”

– Neale Donald Walsch

“They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.”

– Carl. W. Buechner

“Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.”

– Art Linkletter

“I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.”

– Michael Jordan

“More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.”

– Alfred Lord Tennyson

“Those people who are down-to-earth are usually well grounded.”

– Gary Kallio

Take for instance the four seasons. Autumn, Spring, Summer and Fall. Sometimes we overlook what really happens during these seasons we experiences. In some trees lose their green colour and become brown and fall off. In some it is like everything else becomes new, tree produce new leaves, the weather doesn’t feel too hot or too cold. It feels just right. In some the sun shines so brightly and it is so warm. At other times it gets so cold that is may snow in some areas or rain in others. My question is how come everything happens the same way, the same order year after year? Why should summer occur between June and August? Why is the weather so warm and so bright during that time? The sun could be warm around December so summer could occur there but it is not. It is always the same. When I look as the way and the order in which the seasons occur and its regularity, I can only think there is a master creator behind such perfection. Maybe science has reasons for why the seasons happen the way they do. Of course that is what scientists do; they find a reason for everything. But I only see a God behind all this.

Sometimes I wonder why people try so hard to disprove the existence of God when He manifest all around us in things we see everyday. Have you studied the amazing way babies are born? The whole process is amazing. It couldn’t just have happened out of the bloom, that a man and a woman could have intercourse and a very small microscopic sperm out of millions would fertilise an egg to start the development of the baby. The process is so delicate. The way every organ is formed. How are they even formed? Not how but, for instance why aren’t the ears just like a whole. Why are they the way they are for everyone? And who said, our ears should be on the side on our ears? Why are eyes where they are? Why not on our forehead?

Honestly we really would have looked strange and queer. But on the contrary where every organ is, is perfect. The process of respiration, digestion, blood circulation, couldn’t have been by chance. Someone made it that way. I can only think there is a God in creation.

Okay. Maybe am being too far fetched. Take the sun and moon for instance. Why is there a sun to give us light in the day? And why is the moon that reflects the sun’s light by night? Why wasn’t the moon made as big as the sun and why does it have to reflect the sun’s light even? I guess the one behind all of this knew that light couldn’t shine all day; otherwise they will be no break from anything. You and I will continue what we do till late but sleep had to come in. Imagine there was nothing like sleep. Gosh! We would have been machines rather than humans. Night was created for us to reflect on the day and take time off to rest (sleep) and feel refreshed for the next day. I guess the earth being round couldn’t have been by chance. Imagine the earth was as straight as the people thought earlier, then I guess they wouldn’t have been any day-night cycle because then the sun would shine on the whole earth at the same time and funny enough people could actually walk to the end of the earth. But it isn’t so because then the level of perfection would be inconsistent with what we experience every day in creation. That is why God made the earth round so that at a given time, the part facing the sun would have light and the part no facing the sun would have the moon and stars. Such perfection, such detail.

It is impossible to believe that the world came by chance. Such perfection couldn’t even have been achieved by man except God. Look at the world with a different eye from now. It is only evident that the details tell us that there is a God in creation.

Paraphrasing from the singing band ’33 Miles’ and their track ‘There’s a God’: it is evident that every morning when we wake up, all the earth around us and everything that goes on, tell us that there is a God and this is the truth.