Monday, October 7, 2019

Sabbatical Next Year

I thought I was going to enjoy my sabbatical this year and do much less travelling. But travelling I will do some more towards the end of the month up north again, crossing the seas and zig zag across the island where we have planted several churches. Today I managed to edit just some 5 pages of my book before meeting a former student who called me last week and we had more than 4 hours of fellowship. It is good to mentor young pastors and it was mutual encouragement to hear him remembering my times as Acting Principal and how in those short 5 months made a difference to many students. And I now have the opportunity to go to New Zealand for a writers’ scholarship for a month next year and per chance 2020 will be a sabbatical for me.
I am determined, God willing, not to take up preaching in 2020 but will focus solely on writing. The Israelites too in every 50 years, they enjoy two years of rest, being the ordinary sabbatical year, 49th year and then followed by Jubilee, the 50th year. God promised to bless them in the 48th year threefold so that they have plenty to live on for a full three years before they harvest at the end of the 51st year. Obviously, Israel lacked faith because Jeremiah castigated them for not keeping the sabbath years holy and hence, they were exiled for 70 years to allow the land to rest the requisite years before they returned to the promised land. How many of us today will trust God for a full two years without income and that a third year will bring much blessings and renewal of life and spirit as God desires it.

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