Soul Thieves II

You are getting ready for the biggest and most important day of your
life. You've shared with all your friends those pictures of that amazing
rock that he bought for you. You even described his imaginative
proposal. So the day is finally here. There is a mixture of
emotions...you want the day to come and go so that you can move on. 

A friend hands you a copy of an old tale about a princes and her evil
aunt. You rush through it transfixed at the prospect of your own prince
charming. Your cultural upbringing means that you have to make one
crucial visit to grandma and the folks up in the village to present some
gifts and to receive the blessing. 

So you shuffle your way into the bus and make that long trip. 
The long trip is full of promise and thoughts. The scenery fills your
mind with hope. You finally arrive...some relatives gather. All except
for your drunken uncle. He is not pleased to see you. He cautions you
not to enter the hut with grandma. He is quickly dismissed and baptized
with a torrent of insults. As some of the cameras come alive with bright
flashes you are ushered into a a lonely space where you must receive a
secret potion and grandma's blessing. Its all rather innocent and so you
oblige. 

In a small space, grandma smiles and hands you the potion. Her old frame
is so frail but you are captivated by the life that seems to spring from
her eyes. For a brief moment she tells you a few secrets which you
become aware have been rehearsed and presented to many more young
brides. 

You hesitate as you take a sip from the sweet liquid. Then you turn your
back for a moment. Something catches your eye and you begin to wonder
why she shifts hurriedly behind you. In a strange and frightening shift
of events, she manages to move right into your body while pushing you
right into hers. 

You watch her walking out of the hat. Young and fresh and alive and on
her way to get married to your husband. 
She shuts the door on you. In that moment you look around and begin to
touch yourself. You are too shocked to take in what has happened. Your
movements are now restricted. You have the same sharp mind but you are
stuck in her older body. 

The nightmare has only just began.      

Spoiler Alert

The name and the promise

Some suggestions about the possibilities of the future and the local
church in Uganda. 
So a few weeks ago i attended a local church called Mavuno. 
Now most Swahili enthusiasts will tell you that the term means harvest.
I have not met the founders but i did get a taste of what they were
planning when the set up the church. 
There have been on and off visits to this place which has had 
its services in several places in the city. 
So for some reason, i was drawn to a New testament Dictionary to find
out a little more about Feasts in the bible (Published by Interversity
Press). So it turns out that i was attending the church at around the
time when the Feast of Harvest is celebrated (Sivan May-June) it comes
right after First Fruits (which kind of makes sense). In the search for
biblical principles, we find that of Sowing and Reaping right in place
with that of seasons. In short whether you are a faith person or not,
there are seasons assigned to the earth that will ensure that everyone
who sows in the right season will reap. This is a double edged sword
which means that those who sow good stuff are assured that in the right
time, they will reap good stuff and vice versa. So we find interesting
application of this where People who have done bad stuff start praying
for negative harvests! Now the experts say that Feast were times of Joy
and that sometimes older feasts were celebrations of ancient dieties(C H
Gordon's Ugartic Literature and T Gaster's Thepis). 

The suggestion. When you have to chose a church, please pay attention to
the name of the church. It will give you a rough idea what to expect and
will put you in the right place to get what you need for that season.

The link with Scripture

The book of Judges is important because it illustrates what it is like
when Kings cease to express their power. "In those days there was no
King and everyone did as he saw fit" Book Of Judges.  

Judges 6:1-6

A summary of the verse shows a group of People that were surrounded and
under siege to the extent that they were unable to harvest heir own
produce. It also shows a protagonist who finds himself too afraid to
carry out the right activity in the right place. He needed to be
affirmed and reminded that he was in the right place. 

Now a few days later i was drawn to the story of Gideon which was
brought to us by yet another preacher in the same place. He was teaching
about a time of crisis where the enemies of the People of God would show
up right at harvest time to jack from Gods People what they had planted.
So the champion rises in a time of distress to deal with an urgent
problem. I do not know how this works, but there are time when i have
thoughts and right before i process them, someone flies past and begins
to implement things that i have simply just thought about. Now this is
rather extreme but it does illustrate the point. Please note that While
David was waiting for his throne, he often used to move around with his
band of followers protecting the crops or harvest of the People or
groups he was meeting. 

1 Sam. 25:15-17 

He made himself useful to the citizens and those that were dwelling in
the land.
The chances are that on a practical level, farmers are going to need to
be protected from those who do not sow but are often very quick to
reap. 
Maybe that sounds like an endorsement for Big Hat and his drive to push
the army into the villages. Your guess us as good as mine!