Here she was all ready to go to court, only to find out that the proceedings had been put off until the next court appearance, which was due sometime in the future. How frustrating!
Poor Gabrielle had been accused of harassing and being a Miss Nosy Neighbour to a guy who had lived next door to her and her family for many years. Gabrielle couldn't understand what had truly happened.
She had been a neighbour of Herbert's for as long as she could remember. She had lived in that home with her parents since birth, and she and her siblings had thoroughly enjoyed their time there together.
She and her brothers and sisters had grown up, gone to school, achieved and earned part-time jobs, finished their education, some attending university, all achieving what they desired in life, and all gone on their way, except Gabe, who had still lived in the same home with their parents.
Working so well at Uni, she achieved high qualifications in Investment Banking and Financial Management. Achieving a great job in banking, she became hugely successful and worked pretty hard to achieve what she really liked out of life.
So something like this with a neighbour, completely out of the blue, really knocked her around. Herbert accused her of all sorts of things, amazing things like peering over the fence and trying to break into his home, stealing washing off the line, and scaring his dog.
She was amazed, hurt, and bewildered. He had called the police and taken legal action, and now the court proceedings had begun and were supposed to begin. What was she going to do?
In Psalm 35:20, the Bible says that often there are false accusations against those who are usually quiet in the land, and they devise words of deceit. This can be a pretty true description of what happens in our world today. Lies are told of innocent people just to stir up trouble.
Jesus Himself said in Matthew 5, "Blessed are you when people falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me, rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in Heaven." That is so straightforward.
Making false accusations will become accountable to whoever says it when it comes under God's final judgment, as mentioned in Psalm 5. Pretty scary if you ask me! No matter what other people may say about us, which so often is all lies, we can really rely on His word that is the Bible.
Jesus Himself had to face extreme false accusations from the top brass of the Pharisees and their followers in those days. No one was ever brave enough to stand up against them. Jesus told them the truth, which went over like a bomb.
Both sides put their arguments to the judge, who could see pretty much straight away what Herbert's solicitors' main points were in the session, and after all the arguments were put to her, the judge left the courtroom and adjourned the hearing for another week.
What a week it was for poor Gabrielle. She cried a lot (not that it helped much) and really threw herself into her work mode.
Nervous Gabrielle and her solicitor's team headed for the court and had to wait well over two hours while Herbert and his team sat nearby. Gabby tried smiling at Herbert, only to be ignored, which really upset Gabby, knowing how much she had been such a friend with Herbert from such an early age.
The court resumed, and lots were said for and against poor Gabby. The final judgement came down.
Herbert was found to be lying about Gabby, much to his solicitor's disgust and shock. He was told he had to meet the court costs and to make some arrangements with his solicitor to stay well away from Gabrielle and her home.
The relief on Gabby's face was incredible. Her parents, brothers, and sisters threw their arms around her and shook hands with her solicitor. All was over, or was it?
She had decided to move out of her home. Two of her sisters agreed it was for the best, and between them all, they had already found a unit at least thirty minutes away from where she used to live with her parents, who, by the way, had also decided to move.
Isn't it amazing how our lives can be altered depending on the circumstances under which we find ourselves?
Jesus found His life well and truly under the death penalty, and for what? All because He told us the truth that whoever believes and accepts Him as Lord of their life will be saved from the judgment of God.
Nothing really has changed. We are all in that situation. If we completely IGNORE what God says that we have to come to Him and ask Him to take over our lives and for us to live for Him, then we are all destined for hell, which is just as real as heaven.
Why don't you come to Jesus right now? Ask Him to take charge of your life and to lead you in the way that He wants you to go. Does that mean that your life will always be rosy and lovely? Absolutely not, unfortunately. But it does mean eternity with God, which is absolute and so rewarding, no matter what this life throws at you and me.
God bless you this week, hope to see you next time.
