A friend's Wifi

Signs of close friendship are plenty...you know you are close friends when you share memories of trips, when you know his/her favorite dish, what sets him off, what music reaches her heart, her preferred moment of the day, his type of milk, likes sugar in coffee or not (and even how many spoons..or may be sweetener)...When you walk in their home, you know where to find the coffee mugs and even make yourself one! Nowadays, I have noticed another sign of close friendship...Wifi! Yup, didn't you notice that once you enter all your close friends homes, your phone is just connected to their supercomplex-password-protected Wifi network. I always get this smile on my face when I see the wifi waves appearing on my screen...because i know I have been here so many times...it s like home to me where getting connected just happens. I don't think you just get connected in any house you go to!

Isn't great to have this same close friendship with the Almighty! I just feel that "connected" with God is also a sign of "close friendship" where you are not just a visitor passing by but rather a relationship seeker, someone seeking to get that close to THE best friend you can have throughout your days on earth! God is close and you can feel His presence..you WILL feel His Presence:

قريبٌ هو الرَّبُّ مِنَ المُنكَسِري القُلوبِ، ويُخَلِّصُ المُنسَحِقي الرّوحِ. (المَزاميرُ 34:18 )

The Lord is close to those who are of a broken heart and saves such as are crushed with sorrow for sin and are humbly and thoroughly penitent. (Psalm 34:18 AMP)
Come with all your broken heart..sit with Him..talk..listen..build this friendship with time, passion, and sincere love...Your close Friendship with Him is granting you access to His "Wifi"..you will always be Connected to the network of Grace!

Get connected my friends! 

Clear the Way!

In our house, we just prefer a total darkness when it comes to bed time..no we don't usually use a "nawassa". So for waking up at night, and avoiding to bump your little toe in bed (ouch!) or your knee in the table corner, it requires a high infra-red dark-radar-sight photographic memory skill!

After few months in our new house in Madrid, we started knowing by heart the dimensions of the rooms and I could walk blind folded even to reach anywhere i want..funny enough, the kids were better and faster learning it specially the way from their room to ours. Until one night, sleeping in peace i woke up at the sound of a BOOM..Loud noise..then my daughter crying out. I put on the light to find her on our room floor..she tripped over something..yup..it was there, i knew why..i have left my 47 sized shoes in the middle of the way..it was a trap (quite a big one) waiting for somebody to stumble upon and fall..fall and cry! Since then Aline and I took a commitment to discipline ourselves in keeping all the paths of our house "clear" from any traps and obstacles..all should be back in place right where they belong!

This story reminded me of a verse I have close to my heart:

لذلكَ أنا أيضًا أُدَرِّبُ نَفسي ليكونَ لي دائمًا ضَميرٌ بلا عَثرَةٍ مِنْ نَحوِ اللهِ والناسِ. (أعمالُ الرُّسُلِ 24:16 AVDDV)

Therefore I always exercise and discipline myself to have a clear (unshaken, blameless) conscience, void of offense toward God and toward men. (Acts 24:16 AMP)

Yes, I realized that I need in prayer to ask our Heavenly Father for strength in keeping my life and my conscience CLEAR AND VOID of offense not only towards Him but towards my fellow human beings..I need to keep clear any traps of lies, cheating, anger, lust..i need to train my thoughts and seek the Holy spirit liberating my conscience from traps on the way as it has the power to pull me down..and trip others along! I pray for that in Jesus name, Amen.

Commit to keep your conscious clear my friends!

Live the circus!

The Circus has always been fascinating to the young and old equally! Yesterday, we went with the kids to watch this amazing manifestation of human's ability and mind blowing capabilities, breaking limits of what we think our physical bodies can do! Not only the acrobats, but the set up, music, decorations..the whole "circus" fulfilling experience. So, after the show, in the car driving back, I asked the girls about the most dramatic part "ya Banat, tell me, what is your most Wow part of today?" And with pure Simplicity, Leila answered me "Pa, amazing how a man can, blind folded, jump on the shoulder of his friend and his friend take care of him, hold him strong and lift up high..they must be really good close friends!" BOOM...and my answer was...Speechless!

Despite all the show, colours, balloons, clowns and "pop corn", all what captured her attention was how trust and care could make them lift each other up and present such dangerous crazy moves! If we only know how much we can lift each other up, if we only see beyond our differences "specially the political ones with an important day tomorrow in our country". We were created social human beings and we need each other to walk through the path of life, not only in good times, but most certainly in tough times when our faith is weak and powers are low!

Reminds me of a verse i keep close to my heart:

لذلكَ عَزّوا بَعضُكُمْ بَعضًا وابنوا أحَدُكُمُ الآخَرَ، كما تفعَلونَ أيضًا. (تسالونيكي الأولَى 5:11 AVDDV)

So encourage each other and help each other grow stronger in faith, just as you are already doing. (1 Thessalonians 5:11 ERV)

Dear Lord, i thank you for the Love you have been surrounding me with..i thank you for the people you bring in my life cheering me up and bringing me closer to the source of infinite love day after day..i thank you for the hearts that i find when I need someone to lift me up...I pray that you bless them and pour your Holy spirit onto them to keep shining and caring along the way! In Jesus Name, Amen.

Live the Circus.. Lift your Friends..The show is On..every minute!

The Night Runner

Running..Who's in? I am happily amazed by the trend of Running that is taking over the world and even happier to see it happening back home, on the busy streets of Cairo, with groups like Cairo Runners having 147,000 followers on their facebook page and "actually" thousands running..not just following on FB. For me, I am the Night-time runner type..I just like the silent streets, the glowing light bulbs and the release it brings you after a stressed day at work. To my surprise, I found out that Night running is becoming THE trend with its runners tripling around the globe in the last couple of years!

One can not hide the risk of running on dark streets where visibility can put your safety at risk! That's why clever and adaptive companies like Nike and Asics created a whole line of sports wear for city night running...they have added to the shorts, t-shirts and shoes a strip of Retro-reflective (this silver strip) material that bounces the light back to its source making you visible to the cars on the dark asphalt jungle you are running through. Brilliant "shiny" idea!

Made me think about you and I when Jesus called us to be Light of the World! Wow!

“You are the light that shines for the world to see. You are like a city built on a hill that cannot be hidden. In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:14, 16 ERV)
أنتُمْ نورُ العالَمِ. لا يُمكِنُ أنْ تُخفَى مدينةٌ مَوْضوعَةٌ علَى جَبَلٍ، فليُضِئْ نورُكُمْ هكذا قُدّامَ الناسِ، لكَيْ يَرَوْا أعمالكُمُ الحَسَنَةَ، ويُمَجِّدوا أباكُمُ الّذي في السماواتِ. (مَتَّى 5:14, 16 AVDDV)

Midst the darkness surrounding you, YOU are called to be the Light..in fact, just as the retro-reflective clothing shines in the dark..we are called to shine back the Light of our Lord, the source of all Light..the One who said with full authority I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD (John 8:12). If we stick to Him, seek His Holy Spirit, we shall be the Light, reflecting back the image of our Heavenly Father!

Put on your Running shoes of Faith and Shine back His Light my friends!