THE LITTLE GIRL GROWING UNDER THE TABLE DESTINED FOR GOD’S PURPOSE

Baby Ncediwe

When I was born, I spent one month with my mother before she had to go away for school. This resulted in my grandmother becoming my primary care giver, and I loved my granny with the initial thought that she was my biological mother. My granny gave me the name Ncediwe which simply means Help/Being of Help/ Being Helped. Granny might not have been aware that the name Ncediwe is actually prophetic in terms of what God had predestined for my life, but she was a God fearing woman who ingrained and instilled Godly principles and values in her granddaughter.

It all started when I was baby. My granny was self-employed and was a hawker. A hawker is a person who travels and sells goods, and granny sold oranges, potatoes, etc. As the then hawker, she would take me to work with her, but when I started crawling granny realized that the crawling baby Ncediwe may pose danger in her life. She became fearful that I would crawl in traffic and get hit by a car whilst she was busy attending to customers, so she decided to tie my leg against the pillar of the table utilized to sell her goods. Luckily, I was an easy, happy baby. When I would wake from sleep under the table, I would gaze upon my granny working and as soon as we made eye contact, I would simply give her a big smile. It was as if I was affirming. “I’m okay Granny, I got this! I am alright over here!”. I realized that I was tied up against the pillar of the table, but I was patient and understanding, knowing that Granny knew what was best for me, and accepting her plan for our day.

This act of raising a child seems unlikely to those whose babies are raised within their comfortable, warm homes, but I believe that for me this was done out of love. It was not meant to harm, but to protect me so that I could grow and live my life freely in accordance with God’s purpose. I was a free baby, created for a greater purpose hence; the smile of confirmation I’d project towards my granny when I looked up. Although physically tied, I was not spiritually tied. My granny was determined to provide for us, just as God provides all of our needs. Even when we’re tied under the table, all we have to do is look up and embrace our freedom in Christ.

So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law. Galatians 5:1

Living up to my name Ncediwe

I believe that I am called in accordance with what the Lord has ordained me to do, and from childhood to adulthood, living up to my name has been one of my great missions. As Ncediwe, I am a helper as God is a helper in my life and to all people. I am a world changer as a follower of Christ, whom had already changed the world through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ; our Lord and Savior. Not only am I free, but We are free. We have been set free; purified and justified through the blood of Jesus Christ who died for us on Calvary. We have been enabled and given the ability to say No to Sin through repentance, turning away from our own understanding and coming to know and follow the Lord.

In order to live up to my name, I demonstrate the fruits of the spirit to everyone I encounter and interact with. Baby Ncediwe demonstrated patience/ forbearance, while today’s Ncediwe demonstrates kindness, gentleness and love through helping people. Freedom in Christ for me means freedom in life, and when I reflect on my name and my story, I am reminded of the story of Moses.

Moses was born at a time when King Pharaoh had made his decision for all Hebrew born babies (boy babies) to be killed.

 

Exodus 1:22 “Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: “Throw every new born Hebrew boy into the Nile River. But you may let the girls live.”

The beautiful, miraculous and mysterious thing is how God came through when Moses was born. Ordered to be killed in the Nile, Moses’ birth mother placed him in a basket in the water for protection. After drifting down the Nile, Moses ended up in Pharaoh’s household after Pharaoh’s daughter found him in his basket in the water. She noticed that he was a Hebrew baby and felt sorry for him, so she unintentionally gave him back to his mother for nursing, since she could not nurse a Hebrew baby. This simply shows God’s power and his manifestation in our lives, because the very order meant to kill Moses was the order that saved his life. At infancy, Moses was returned to Pharaoh’s daughter and adopted where he was given his name in reference to being rescued from the Nile.  

Later, when the boy was older, his mother brought him back to Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopted him as her own son. The princess named him Moses, (Moses sounds like a Hebrew term that means “to lift out.”) for she explained, “I lifted him out of the water.”(Exodus 2:10).

Little did she know how prophetic that name of “Moses” was as it comes from the Hebrew verb, meaning “to pull out/draw out” [of water]. This makes the declaration of the name more prophetic toward his future role, as someone who will “draw the people of Israel out of Egypt through the waters of the Red Sea. Moses’ name was a clear indication that he was going to free Israelites from the Egyptian bondage of slavery and he succeeded in freeing his people because that was precisely what Moses was predestined to do. It is clear that he lived up to his name and held God’s mandate and purpose.

Therefore, there is power in the names that we are given. Like Moses, I am predestined to live up to my name. I was born to help and reach out because the Lord has helped us in this world. In fact God continues to help me everyday (Ncediwe; being helped). The book of Psalms 121 shows that the Lord is our helper and that he watches over us all day long and does NOT even sleep at night. This is evidence to me that I am indeed free in Christ Jesus. He occupies his days and nights watching over me, so what better way to occupy my days than using my freedom to serve Him and help others.

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.