Author: Sue Wilson

Sue’s Views

Today is our last day in Suva ….. and time to say our goodbyes to everyone here. It seems that life is filled with ‘hellos’ and ‘goodbyes’! One thing I do know ….. is that one day ….. there will be no more ‘goodbyes’! Jesus is going to break through those clouds and take us to be with Him forever! What a reunion that will be!

“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17)

Sue’s Views

One of the things I love about Fiji is the fresh, abundant and delicious fruits! The pawpaws ….. bananas ….. fresh from the tree and onto the table! I was looking at the third picture and wondering what kind of fruit is this? Then one of the ‘fruits’ flew away! Then I realized they were fruit bats ….. relaxing after a busy night’s work! Today is a public holiday ….. commemorating Ratu Sukuna who was known as the national father of the modern Fiji. There will be much festivity today as the previous government called a halt to it in 2010. It has now been reinstated!

Sue’s Views

I had a moment of déjà vu yesterday! Two of our nephews came walking up the drive after playing B ball with the neighbours’ kids. They are the new generation of the Le Hunte St Gang! Our boys were the originals ….. and played with the dad’s of the neighbours’ kids! One of the nephews gave me a tour of the house we used to live in. His room is where Jase & Tim used to sleep!  So many memories!

Sue’s Views

We are now back in Suva and blessed to be able to stay in our old house. This place has an amazing story! We bought the house at the back with the help of Frank’s sister Siteri in 1990. It was just a small 3 bedroom house on a large section. We added on another bedroom to accommodate many guests over the years. Frank had a vision to build another property in front consisting of a three bedroom house upstairs and an office downstairs. The same sister bought the property from us when we returned to NZ in 2005. Since then she and her family have developed it further. They turned the bottom area into an Air B’n’B ….. and that’s where we are staying now! As you can see ….. we are very cosy here!

Sue’s Views

Yesterday was a bit of a roller coaster! After an emotional farewell with our family in the North ….. we had a pleasant enough journey back to Suva by bus and boat. Only to discover our bag was no longer with us! That sinking feeling when you realise all you have lost! It’s not only the clothes ….. it’s things like medication ….. and items that will be of no value to others but mean a lot to you. We realised God is our only hope after an unfruitful call to the transport company who don’t want any responsibility. The first thing we did was to pray and release everything to Him (including whoever took our bag). We then discovered so many blessings. We’d left a few clothes behind ….. we’d packed a few more in our carry on bag last minute ….. there were 2 doctors upstairs who graciously wrote out a prescription for the missing meds. Sometimes God’s ways are very different to what we’d like ….. but they help us know Him in a much deeper way! We are ok! We can now laugh about the whole thing. We only hope whoever has it will be blessed! I’ll finish with a beautiful memory of our trip to SavuSavu.

Sue’s Views

Yesterday we celebrated Mother’s Day ….. and I hope all the Mums got the message of how much they are appreciated. But the truth is ….. much of what you do will not be! Your advice will not always be heeded ….. your expectations will not always be met ….. your sacrifice will often go unnoticed. But ….. you will wake up tomorrow and do it all again ….. because you are Mum! God has wired you that way ….. and He sees everything you do.

Sue’s Views

Our past experiences make a pathway for our future. They can take us up to new heights of expectation ….. or down to old feelings of failure or shame. Why is it that some who have had an abysmal past become world changers ….. while others repeat the cycle? They make a decision whilst at the crossroads. They see clearly the two choices laid out before them and they choose the higher road. They see their God given potential and don’t want to waste it. They realise that ….. with His help ….. nothing is impossible!

Sue’s Views

Just as a wall starts with one brick ….. a stronghold in our mind starts with one thought. When we come into agreement with that thought ….. we add another brick. Wrong thinking usually starts when we are young. If not checked ….. the lies become so familiar we believe they are the truth. But there’s a way to destroy a stronghold ….. and that’s by shining God’s Word on it. Is the thought in agreement with what God says? If not ….. grab it ….. and throw it away ….. before it can do any damage! One of the names of Jesus is ‘Chief Cornerstone’. Build your thought life around Him and you will have a healthy mind!

Sue’s Views

The Bible is not a book of fairy tales. It’s a book of true stories about real people who experienced everyday life. It’s about sibling rivalry ….. rebellious kids ….. unfair employers ….. poverty ….. incest ….. adultery.  You name it ….. it’s in there! Somehow ….. many have the idea that God is some kind of magician with a magic wand who is there to make all the bad stuff go away …..and give us what we want. The Bible is full of miracles ….. some of which are instant such as the healing of the blind, deaf and lame. But many miracles are only realised in hindsight. Once we are on the other side of the Red Sea ….. after we step out of the fiery furnace ….. once we reach the other side of the lake during a storm. The actual journey is not that much fun! God doesn’t promise to take us out of the situation ….. but He does promise to walk through it with us. Note in the following scripture He says ‘when’ not ‘if’. Your fiery trial which seems so unbearable right now ….. will one day be your personal testimony to a miracle working God!

“When you pass through the waters,

    I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,

    they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

    you will not be burned;

    the flames will not set you ablaze.

For I am the Lord your God,

    the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;” Isaiah 43:2

Sue’s Views

We can learn so much from those who have gone before us. Their successes help us know what to do and how to live well. Their failures warn us what not to do to avoid living badly. We so often see the same cycles being repeated in families. If you recognise patterns of addiction ….. illness ….. violence ….. divorce ….. in your family lines ….. you can break the cycle. By acknowledging it ….. asking forgiveness ….. and making a u turn ….. with God’s help you can begin a new legacy of blessing that will affect the next thousand generations. Now that’s a life well lived!