Royal Garments

All  glorious within is the princess within her chamber; her gown is interwoven with gold. Psalm 45:13

The kings' daughters were given beautiful garments to wear signifying their purity and virginity- this practice is noted not only in the Psalms but in a searing tale of family misfortune and dysfunction: this is the tale of Tamar.

Unhappily named after the daughter-in-law of Judah, who had to stoop to unscrupulous means to become with child, Tamar, may have known from the beginning that her life would be full of challenges but she probably did not know the cautionary tale of her ancestor would point the finger at a family member- her own brother.

Amnon, the scriptures said, loved his sister. I am sure in his depraved and maddened state, and he believed he did: he became so obsessed with his sister Tamar that he made himself ill. She was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her.

But after conspiring to rape her, the scriptures say that he hated her more than he had loved her. After he had raped her, Tamar, tore her garments, for she was no longer pure, and had been disgraced. Though she begged her half-brother to ask for her hand in marriage, he refused thus doubling her shame: “No, my brother!” she said to him. “Don’t force me! Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don’t do this wicked thing.  What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you.” But he refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her" (2 Samuel 13: 12-14).

Yet, the story does not end on the sad note that the Tamar ended her life a desolate woman in the home of her brother Absalom. No, because David did not deal with his family’s issues Absalom’s rage at his sister’s rape burned within he, and he conspired to kill his brother, which he eventually did. This act then led him to flee from David and eventually to try and usurp the kingdom from his father’s hands. Untold heartache fell on David: Tamar’s rape and desolation, Amnon’s murder, and eventually rebellion that led to Absalom’s death as well.

Too many times, we don’t take rape and incest seriously. We don’t see how they tear at the fabric of the nation, destroying families, society, and the nation as a whole, but David’s saga clearly indicates how one family's destruction leads to chaos and death for an entire nation. As in Tamar’s case, there were accomplices; those who aided and abetted Amnon’s frightful conduct. God forbid that I should be one of these- who by cooperation or by silence inflict pain on God’s precious daughters.

Tamar's tale has three parts: first the gift  of the robe. Like Joseph who was given a robe of many colors, (Genesis 37:4; 21-23) Tamar received a robe which signified favor, status, and esteem. Similarly, Jesus received His special robe (John 9:23-25)- one that was a singularly woven piece- one over which the Roman guards would cast lots.

All three suffered disgrace as the robe was torn from their bodies. First, Joseph; then Tamar, and finally Jesus.  Joseph lost his garment to the jealousy of his brothers; Jesus lost his beautiful garment to the ravenous soldiers, and Tamar lost her rich garment as it was ripped form her body. God also clothed Israel in a garment when He found her in the field and put shoes on her feet and made her beautiful.

Hear God's plaintive cry for Israel, whom God characterizes as a woman:
And as for your nativity, in the day you were born your navel was not cut, neither were you washed in water to supple you; you were not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. None  pitied you, to do any of these to you, to have compassion on you; but you were cast out in the open field, to the loathing of your person, in the day that you were born. 6And when I passed by you, and saw you polluted in your own blood, I said to you when you were in your blood, Live; yes, I said to you when you were in your blood, Live. … (Ezekiel 16:4-7).

Ultimately, such stories can end positively with restoration, Joseph was restored. Jesus is coming back wearing a  new robe: Revelations 19:12 and Rev 3:4-5. Let God restore you. I hear Him say that when He found Anene Booysen,  the young colored South African girl, in that field, mutilated and abused, He picked her up and wrapped her in His robe, and took her straight to the judgment seat. She is at His side now;  it’s is enough.

 So will you let him find you in any field and put his robe of righteousness, mercy, grace on you?

A Fitly-Robed Princess of the Most High,
MJ

My Life in South Africa

South Africa is like no other place on earth that I have lived or visited. Since that amounts to over thirty countries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Caribbean, North and South America, I would say that my experiences are quite significant. In any country where I have lived, I have managed to know the people, making long-term connections, and bond with the culture. I did this by walking the streets, knocking on doors, and greeting people.  Not so in South Africa, there are gates. You must ring the gate to announce who you are. You see, South Africa, at least where I live, in the Western Cape, is a prison state. Everyone lives behind bars, usually with dogs, and security.

To enter most shops, you must buzz to be allowed entry. Every day, there are reports have people held up and robbed in their businesses, so I understand their carefulness. Worcester is known as the Tik, or crack, capital of South Africa and has the leading number of gangs. This seemingly small insignificant town boasts such cold-blood killings that they have made national and international headlines.

So, I walk down the street with mace in my hand because it is common for someone to merely stroll up with a knife and demand your cellphone or anything of value you have. One of my friends was attacked while walking with her son. She had to plead for both of their lives. A typical day in Worcester.

You see, within the the colored community in particular,  most young men are still angry and embittered about the legacy of apartheid. They  are now involved in gangsterism and feel that they are owed something, so they have no qualms about taking it. Just this week, in the supermarket where I shop, a man hid in a lady’s car trunk with the intent of entering her safe zone. You see, once she opened the gate to her house by her remote, locked it, entered her garage and closed it as well by remote, he, with his knife at the ready, would come out, force her into the house, maybe even kill her, and take everything.  But luckily, someone saw him enter the car’s trunk. However, this scenario actually happens every day in South Africa.

This is the world I inhabit. A place where a young girl is subject to attempted rape by a boy of eleven. A place where young men rape, murder, and then pull out the girl’s womb, where a man  sets his girlfriend on fire and she dies from her wounds, where schoolmates kill  a girl and then drink her blood. A place of violence directed every day towards girl children and women, and my friends, it has all but wearied my soul.

The young girl who was almost raped was one of my students.  She is only eleven years, and as she waited to be picked up for dance rehearsal with me, she was lured behind a building and attacked.  It was premeditated. One classmate lured her behind the house, while a second boy waited for her. So, these male children have already mastered the art of finding and hurting females at the tender age of ten and eleven.

I have not even begun to talk about the rampant corruption, greed, and dishonesty in this place. The corruption would make Al Capone blush. But what hurts my heart the most is the constant barrage of abuse and pain leveled at girls and women in this country. It is unconscionable. Nearly every day, some horrific act of violence is broadcasted on the news, and people seemingly are unfazed by it. They continue drinking Rooibos tea and eating biltong.

I feel I am only one person fighting an uphill battle. Yes, there are decent, caring people in South Africa, but I have yet to meet any who are willing in this city to really fight for girls. Plenty talk. I have met none who walk. The kind of suffering that is happening here will take an army of committed people to fight, not one lone American woman. The South African decent men, women, and children must become infuriated at this base behavior, and rise up against it. - A Wounded Warrior,
MJ

 

Attention, Please

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. (Matt. 18:1-5)

Attention: kids seem to crave it  and will do almost anything to get it: ham it up; throw a tantrum; whine, plead, or beg. Even with such theatrics,children are sometimes not listened to; they are not seen. They can easily get lost and forgotten, but sometimes, even worse than being forgotten, they fall prey to misuse and abuse, becoming the target of some one's rage or addiction.

 
Sadly, sometimes, the kind of attention children receive is unwanted and unwarranted as in the case of abuse. When God offers us the option to become a child, He offers us a different kind of attention: loving attention that meets our needs in the best way.  He knows how to stop the tears and sulking. He knows how to hold us so that He can dry those tears. Isn’t it amazing that of all the promises of heaven, the best one, is that God himself will wipe all the tears from our eyes.

 
Still God knows that He wants to spoil us as his children for His delight is in us. Even when others do not esteem us, He does. He knows the reason for every tear, so when He wipes our eyes, He knows exactly what has made us sad or happy. He knows us inside out. Sometimes, that is scary- to be known, but not for a child. A child wants you to see everything- every picture she has drawn, what she learned at school, which one is her best friend,  and she is inquisitive. Thanks goodness because the kingdom belongs to those who have inquiring minds. Jesus, said ask and keep on asking, seek and keeping on seeking. As a child I was quite curious and asked questions, sometimes, at the most inappropriate time. But a question is never ill-timed for Jesus, and He is ready with answers. We have a lot to learn from children.

Children are  not afraid of being known, of being seen, at least until they are taught otherwise. May we grow more childlike every day.

Always willing to be a child,
MJ