CORDS OF LOVE

Love in Africa

Life in parts of Africa had little value in the late 1800s especially if one was a woman or a slave.  Human sacrifices and cannibalism were common.  If a family had too many children, the unwanted child would be left in the bushes to die. If twins were born, they and their mother would be murdered.

Mary Slessor

Mary Slessor (1848-1915) was a Scottish missionary to Nigeria. She ventured into areas where no white person had been before.  Her determined work and strong personality earned her acceptance by the locals and she became trusted as “The White Queen” in the Calabar area of Nigeria.

People were moved to tears as, on furlough, she told of a chief’s death when, according to their custom, 25 of his household were beheaded to be with him as he departed life.  At the death of another chief, 60 people were killed and eaten. Mary managed to stop this practice on many occasions.

Mary with four of her children

Mary was accompanied by four of the children she had saved and told how she had rescued hundreds of baby twins and other babies who had been thrown in the forest to die of hunger or to be eaten by ants or leopards.
Mary fought bouts of tropical diseases but worked very long hours, settling disputes among different groups, often standing firmly in between them, defying them.

At times, with sometimes dozens of babies at a time,
she found it difficult to get adequate sleep,
having to rise several times through the night
to comfort sick and distressed babies.

Then she remembered that naturalist S L Bastian had told of a spider that builds its web/nest in the branch of a tree or bush and hatches its babies in that delicate enclosure. If the nest is disturbed, the babies rush out in fright. At once, the mother is alerted to their potential danger because each has a silken strand attached to it and the threads are joined to the body of the mother. When the babies scurry off, the mother feels the line tug and within a split second they are pulled back to the nest.

 

Mary’s babies didn’t flee, like the baby spiders,
but she tied a cord to each of the babies’ little hammocks
and from her bed, she could pull the cords to rock the hammocks
as each baby needed soothing.
The babies were comforted
and Mary was able to get greatly needed sleep and rest.

The prophet Hosea tells us that
WE are linked to GOD with cords of love
– cords that cannot be broken.

When we stray He pulls us back to Himself.
When we fear, He gently rocks us and gives us peace.

He has given to us the gift of everlasting life.
He has guaranteed us His everlasting presence.
He loves us with an everlasting love [Jeremiah 31:3]
He holds us in His everlasting arms [Deut 33:27]
He shows us His everlasting kindness [Isaiah 54:8]
He is to us an everlasting Light [Isaiah 6019]

HE BINDS US TO HIMSELF WITH CORDS OF LOVE

Should not we who have received so much from Him
show His love to the unlovely,
as Mary Slessor did to the murderous people of Calabar?

Should not we who have received so much from Him
bind ourselves together with cords of love?

IS THERE ANY EXCUSE FOR AN UNLOVING SPIRIT?

John 13:35
By this all will know that you are My disciples,
if you have love for one another.