Thoughts...

A Good Friday Meditation (By Grace Ragappa)

2011-05-16T02:30:00.000-07:00

In my journey back in my home country, its been very enriching to meet people from different backgrounds and age groups yet like minded. I was very blessed this good friday by a meditation by a friend of mine and pray it will bless you too..

1. A precious Life was snuffed out at Golgotha;
Too heinous for human expression, unmatched in history;
Nature and true hearts plunged into depths of sorrow;
Heaven alone, with all its hosts,gazed down in jubilance.

2.Hades hung its head in shame that Friday
Over the Christ writhing in agony on the Cross,
The Lion of Judah,so say the prophets of Him,
Momentarily donning the garb of a lamb.

3. The Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.
In the fiercest of battles,against the most diabolical foe,
Jesus let His crimson blood be drawn out
So man's robe may be washed as white as snow.

4 For the life of the flesh is in the blood;
His untainted blood flowed till all man's scourges
Could be blotted out from the Book of the Living;
Forever reversing the destiny of mankind.

5. That blood-blotched Friday turned to be Heaven's delight,
For the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world
Was an action plan of the mighty Maker by design,
So that Evil may be changed to Good in Divine Exchange.

By Grace Rajappa.

Its time for a "compartment" move

2011-03-24T04:37:00.000-07:00

Back into the comfort of the 4 walls of my home
A little quiet, a little silence
Ah!! the beauty of "Rest"!

No never ending phone calls
No deadlines to chase
No immediate pressing needs to address
Ah!! the beauty of "Rest"!

An ol' friend called me and said, "Are you truly resting!!"
Sleep you probably have
Activities you probably cut off
But Is your soul at rest!!

I smiled knowing my soul wasn't quiet yet..

Oh the lover of my soul, Lord Jesus
Come and quieten my soul, I cried!

I found my mind play back
The burdens of my soul one after the other.
Burdens related to need found shelter in the faithfulness of God
Burdens related to identity found shelter in the identity of Christ
Burdens related to hurts searched and searched for shelter,
They were looking for a place to rest.

I cried! Hurt! O hurt! you have no place in me to rest
I choose to host God alone and not you.
Quiet I said Quiet!
But it sought justice vehemantly

Soul My Soul! Silence your demands
Look at beauty of forgiveness at the cross
My counsel it turned down
In my strength, it was a loosing battle.

Off I sought the Lord in haste
Make hurry O Lord Make hurry
Lest I get transformed into the likeness of the world I cried.
Make Hurry and Help me
So I may continue to be transformed into your likeness.

His word says, He answers us when we call
True to His word He came in His tender loving kindness.
I cried, Lord ! I don't want to host hurt ,
I tried but the pain wont go away
Even if I ask it to leave.

The Lord opened my eyes of discernment of His Spirit
Greater insight on the intentions of the human heart came
O !! the venom of many a human heart
I wonder! did discerning the hurt help or hinder..
The reasons for justice amplified
I knew the true intentions and not just the actions..

I cried out again!! Lord!! What do you want me to see through this?

He came silently stepped into my heart
I heard Him reshuffle few things there.
I asked Him what He was doing

He said,

"your experiences are there to stay,
what you have gone through will remain,
But I have moved the hurts from
the compartment of offense to the compartment of "traning"
"Learning to develop the fruits of the spirit in my likeness"

Suddenly, I am no longer a victim but a student of the most wise and just king.
An honour to be under His wise care! Finally it is well with my soul :)

Simply surrender and let Him choose the compartment of your heart that
needs to be reshuffled. O Soul!! You will find rest in Him.

When the Lord and the heaven are silent !!

2009-08-30T19:32:00.000-07:00

I find myself walk through a season where I find a strange silence.....

A silence that causes me want to stop where I am,
stop whatever I am doing
and
search frantically for the presence of my God.

I know without doubts that He would never leave me nor forsake me.
I know without doubts that He desires communion with me more than I could ever dream of.
If that's so, Why is it that all I hear is silence !!

I cry out saying,

Lord Jesus, Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, forgive me and lead me in the way everlasting.

I hear no answer.

I say, Is there something that I failed to do Lord, please forgive me, reveal it to me and help me. I always want to be right with you.

I hear no answer.

It's strange how my heart and mind know that He is present, yet the silence is strong.

Ah the pain of the silence of God. I sat down reading few articles online and this sentence encourages me during this season, it reads,

When heaven seems silent, mercy and grace never is.

I walk on with this knowledge instilled deeper into my spirit that , "Faith in the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ is the key to making a silent heaven speak into your situation."

Even if my God doesn't, I know by now that, He alone deserves all the glory and He is the king of the universe and I will still bow down to Him and Him alone and continue to seek His ways.

I pray that my Lord Jesus Christ will increase my faith and enable me to be steadfast in it for His glory.

Withdraw in prayer or Stay in grace

2009-02-16T23:17:00.000-08:00

When faced with a situation where you know you cant go on but you are right amidst a crowd, what do you do? Do you withdraw or do you stay beyond yourself?

I Wonder what you would choose to do.

I often find myself there. A situation where I find myself,

short of grace to tolerate even the slightest mistake,
short of anymore that I can give,
short of any more strength to carry on,
short of joy to rejoice anymore,
short of mercy because of hurts,
short of compassion of another persons hurts,
and many many more...

At the same time, I also see the need of the dear ones around intense and essential.

Torn between the two, I ask myself, what would the Lord do if He were in my shoes.
Praise God, He did not just sit in HIS throne and give us commandments to keep. He stepped down
and walked every bit of a human life and lived the same and left us with the step by step
way back home.

I have learnt that,The habit of seclusion is with drawing, momentarily or for an extended
period of time, from every day noise and demands, to spend some time with God for the
purpose of connecting with God and allowing your spiritual and emotional batteries to be
recharged.

When Jesus withdrew, he often prefered 2 places: around the water and the mountains.
Water speaks of life, even the storms of life. Mountains speak of strength beyond.

U withdraw gracefully
* to hear God the Father more clearly (Math 26:36-46)
* to re-charge spiritually and emotionally(mark 1:34-35)
* to eat ( mark 6:31-32)
* to gain the right perspective (john 6:15)
* to learn to do spiritual battle (Mathew 4:1-11)
* to listen to God

Jesus also withdrew when the people tried to make him King by force.John 6:14-15 and Mark 1:35

This is a place which we should exhibit caution too. The Lord deserves all the glory and if you
are in a situation where it is going to be directed to you rather than Him, we should choose to
correct and withdraw rather than take His glory.

In any other situation, I have learnt that we must choose to stay back in grace.

Look In the Mirror Of Life

2009-01-20T22:07:00.000-08:00

A truthful look in the mirror I took
I had two options
I could look at what I see in its totality
I could look at what I wanted to see

I chose the former option
Ah!!! the pain that struck me.
I have heard "truth is seldom sweet"
And I tasted it for myself

I didnt think I was what I saw.
I fell short of many standards that I had set.
I was hiding in the glories of the good

The world knew me to be a fighter
Someone who sprang up from a fall
Someone who strived to over come
Someone who didnt let the past hold me down

The mirror of life showed me otherwise
Pointer to aspects where it wasn't true
Revelations of self-defined boundaries of success
Ignorance to everything else and attributing it as vain.

How can one like that be helped,
unless a light that exposes the darkness shone
The Lord found me and has been faithfully working on me
He shone His precious light on my life

Lo !! I could see a lot more in the mirror of life
Things I couldnt see earlier
Things I refused to see
Things I was blinded to

In this new insight of self
Down came the disappointments and frustrations
In seclusion I found myself go
And in the comfort of the closed space of just God and me
Began a slow acceptance of the same

I thought that was the end of the lesson, But I was wrong
The Lord taught me one of the most profound lessons of life,
And it is that,

"Denial of a problem does not remove its presence or diminish
its existence.

Acceptance of a problem does not conquer or overcome it either.

It is acceptance with accountability & a relentless spirit to
persevere to conquer in the Lords Spirit that not only overcomes
but also helps others overcome."

Tough yet rewarding is the walk of acceptance with accountability
Painful yet fruitful is the walk of obedience and perseverance
Tiring yet victorious is the walk of aligning to Gods will.
And In His spirit we can do all things.

May all of you experience the same too.

Scars !! Ones of pain and Ones of love

2008-11-06T16:37:00.000-08:00

Some years ago, on a hot summer day in south Florida, a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole that was behind his house. In a hurry to dive into the cool water, he ran out the back door, leaving behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went.

He flew into the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle of the lake, an alligator was swimming toward the shore.

In the house, his mother was looking out the window. She saw the two as they got closer and closer together. In utter fear, she ran toward the water, yelling to her son as loudly as she could.

Hearing her voice, the little boy became alarmed, and made a U-turn to swim to his mother. It was too late. Just as he reached her, the alligator reached him. From the dock, the mother grabbed her little boy by the arms, just as the alligator snatched his legs. That began a very incredible tug-of-war between the two.

The alligator was much stronger than the mother, but the mother was much too passionate to let go.

A farmer happened to drive by, heard her screams, raced from his truck, took aim, and shot the alligator. Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived. His legs were extremely scarred by the vicious attack of the animal. On his arms, there were deep scratches where his mother's fingernails dug into his flesh; in her effort to hang on to the son she loved.

The newspaper reporter, who interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked the boy if he would show him his scars.

The boy lifted his pant legs. Then, with obvious pride, he said to the reporter, 'But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have them because my Mom wouldn't let go.'

You and I can identify with that little boy.

We have scars, too. No, not from an alligator, but the scars of a painful past. Some of those scars are unsightly, and have caused us deep regret. But, some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to let go. In the midst of your struggle, He's been right there, holding on to you.

The Scripture teaches that God loves you.

You are a child of God. He wants to protect you, and provide for you in every way. But, sometimes, we foolishly wade into dangerous situations, not knowing what lies ahead. The swimming pool of life is filled with peril ~ and we forget that the enemy is waiting to attack. That is when the tug-of-war begins.

If you have the scars of His love on your arms, be very, very grateful. He will not ever let you go.

His word says, I will never leave you nor forsake you. May the scars of the love of God override and extinguish the scars of hurts in your life.

Words of your mouth - Whom does it edify?

2008-06-02T21:35:00.000-07:00

There is not one day that passes by us where we haven't been a recipient of our own words or words from people around us.The word of God says " Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.(Ephesians 4:29)"

What is an unwholesome talk?

Many automatically think of vulgar or crass language. That I must say is fit but over the days of learning I have understood that "those" are only the most obvious.It also includes things like gossip, cruel words, anger words, slanderous words, lying and deceitful words, harsh and complaining words, self-pity words,words that demand constant attention to satisfy needs of self.

Why is such a talk not good?

First, it breaks down the unity of the body of Christ.
If you know someone to be a gossiper, are you excited to talk to them? Do go to them and ask prayer for you when you have problems? No, you avoid them like the plague!
If when you went to church, all you heard was criticism and put-downs would you want to get going?
If the people there were snippy and told lies about one another, would you then listen to those same people when they led a Bible study? Of course not.
If you find someone who constantly needs words of affirmation and wonders if the good you want to do for them is for real because according to them they don't deserve it, would you feel like doing it for them or for someone who knows to just receive in love.

Second, it destroys our witness to the world. Even when the world thinks we are completely nuts, the one thing that makes us attractive to them is our distinctiveness – the fact that we live differently than they do. If lost people are used to a freely flowing stream of unwholesome talk from our mouths, how will they react when we then try to offer them the water of life? Unwholesome talk does not encourage the body of Christ. It does not build up the church, or make it attractive in any way. That is why Paul says we should not let it fall from our lips.

We should not use unwhole words, but rather encourage one another with words that build up.

Thus, every time you go to speak, you have to do so with the intent of building up the other person.

You see, it is not enough to simply clean up our act. It is not enough to simply stop swearing, or stop gossiping, or stop lying. No, that’s not sufficient. As children of God, we are to be proactive with our words. Like our time and money and talent, we see our speech as a gift from God and we seek to use it for his glory and the good of his people.

Paul says, it’s important to get this because God desires us – specifically, our words – to be a means of grace in the lives of others. Thus Paul says there is no place for idle words, vain words without purpose or intent.   Every word you use, every sentence you speak should have behind it the aim, the goal of building up another person.

Now notice, though, that God’s grace should come at the appropriate time. Paul says, your words should be ‘good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.’   In other words, when you are seeking to build up another person, it is important to know what they need at the moment. Our attempt at encouraging them with word must be appropriate to the occasion and appropriate to the person.

What do they need? Do they need to be counseled? To be exhorted? To be corrected? To be warned? To be comforted?

And always remember "do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."

The Holy Spirit of God who dwells with his people is not some force, but is a divine person. And he can be grieved – offended – by our sins.

Imagine living with someone who constantly irritates you by their words. They speak crassly, use vulgarity. But more than that, they attack your values. They undermine your very existence and refuse to listen to you when you ask them to stop.   So, day after day, week after week, year after year, they have to endure this constant disrespect, constant lack of love for you. That is something of what it means to grieve God’s Spirit.

Let us work at bring God’s grace to eachother’s lives, encouraging one another with words that build up.

Why Forgive ?

2008-05-30T18:15:00.000-07:00

Forgive !

- So that others have an opportunity to be shown grace, recover and be restored.

- So you are free of being burnt and re-burnt in the same hurt and pain.

- The one who has wronged you, lest you hold onto bitterness and open their lives to areas that the enemy can further attack.

- So you are not hiding behind the excuse of someone elses wrong doing.

- So you don't carry a baggage and can move around with relationships restored.

- So it is peaceful within and around you.

- because you have been freely forgiven by the Father in heaven.

What do we put off and put on And How!!

2008-05-30T12:33:00.000-07:00

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put offyour old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be madenew in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to belike God in true righteousness and holiness.

These words talk to those who are waiting andeager to be taught how to live, no longer like the Gentiles in the futility oftheir minds but like new creatures whose lives are full of meaning and hope andjoy.

Putting Off the Old Person

What is the old person and what is the newperson?

What does the old person comprise off? Paulsays, "Therefore putting off falsehood, speak truth." So it seemslike one example of putting off the old person is to put off bad practices thatbelong to the old way of life—like lying. Another good clue to the meaning of"the old person" is in Colossians 3:8–9. But now put them all away:anger, wrath, malice, slander, and foul talk from your mouth. Do not lie to oneanother, seeing that you have put off the old person with its practices. Soputting off the old person is more than putting off old practices, becauseColossians 3:9 says we put it off WITH its practices. And Colossians 3:8mentions things that lie beneath and behind practices—like anger and wrath.

So the old person is the old bundle ofattitudes and emotions and practices that I used to be. That's who I was beforeI was called out of darkness by the voice of the Lord.

Putting On the New Person

Colossians 3:12 gives the same kind of clueabout the meaning of the new person that we are supposed to put on. Paul says,"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and loved, compassion, kindness,lowliness, meekness, and patience."

So the new person is the new bundle ofattitudes and emotions and practices that Jesus has called us to become in hisschool. We must take off the old person and put on the new person. The oldperson is corrupted by desires that are fueled and fired by deceit, by lies, bythe absence of truth. When your mind is deceived, you can even love to drinkpoison. But then notice in verse 24 that the new person is created inrighteousness and holiness that is fueled and fired by truth. Right attitudesand emotions and actions are born from true views of spiritual reality.

And what is the bridge that leads frombetween the corrupting deceit to the sanctifying truth? It is the renewing ofthe spirit of the mind. This is the key: "Be renewed in the spirit of yourmind." If your attitudes and emotions and practices come from the spiritof a renewed mind, they will be yours in one sense, but in a deeper sense theywill be the creation of God in righteousness and holiness.

When your mind is filled with the love ofChrist and with all the fullness of God, then the spirit of your mind isrenewed and freed from the deceit of the world. And out of that renewed mindcome new attitudes and emotions and practices, and they clothe you withrighteousness and holiness. And this new person that you become is indeed thecreation of God himself, and to him belongs all the glory forever and ever.

Silence In Prayer - Indeed An unbeatable weapon !!

2008-04-11T15:25:00.000-07:00

Not every situations demands you to wear an Armour and battle your stand. I have fallen completely in love with the power of silence in prayer.

Years before when I read the word "Be still and know that I am God"- Psalm 41:10

I understood those words in the context of not fretting over the situation but trusting God and knowing that He is well capable of leading you out victorious. I still hold onto that understanding.

But what I additionally know today, is the knowledge of the power that, the act of stillness and silence releases when it is done in trust and prayer.

Does the whole world seem like its going to run over you?
Does the world around seem to make progress and not you?
Does your own mind ask you questions about your faith?
Do your own wonder if you are out of your mind and irrational?

Be silent in prayer, trust in your creator and obey His voice.
He trusts in you and His plans are to prosper you and never harm you.
All the days of your life have already been ordained by HIM
Obedience will release it into fulfillment.

Does no one seem to understand how tough it is for you to handle all that you have?
Do no one have the time to sit down and really understand?
Does it seem like you have no where to turn and rest?
Does it seem like the days are growing with their exponential demands?

Be silent in prayer, trust in your creator and obey His voice.
His grace is sufficient for you.
He beckons you to cast your burdens onto him in exchange for His rest.

Silent as the lamb He stood,
Accusing priests, the condemning mob,
the roman soldiers and Pontius Pilate were his jury.
Not one person to defend his case or fight his battle found.
Yet He stayed His ground in peaceful silence.

Crucify him they cried,
What wrong did He do !
Helping the needy reach their full potential
Healing the sick
Delivering the oppressed
Showing the way to salvation
Which one of these is a sin which commands death.

The authority of the heaven in His hand
The entire army of angels to His disposal
Blameless and Sinless was He
Yet every condemnation He received in quiet submission.

A submission in prayer
A submission in love
A submission in fulfilling the plan of salvation
A submission in defying earthly laws of power and victory.

He was crucified, the world thought they won
But the paradox of the heavens struck
He rose again and He won the world for Himself
Through His silence at the courts and the cross.

The same law of silence can operate in our lives
When we recognize what the Lord Jesus did for us at the cross
The silence in prayer means victory for those who believe in Him
It could mean the same for you, if you would just believe.

Competence !! What and Why

2008-04-11T15:05:00.000-07:00

Not that we arecompetent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competencecomes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant – notof the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit giveslife. - II Corinthians 3:5-6

The desire to be competent and a winner is present in every living being. The world defines a winner to be one who achieves different feats through their own skill and strengths. Man being fallen and tuned to the ways of world therefore finds himself participate in this air of competition.

Thereare different kinds of battles that every human goes through in differentareas. There are few areas that they find themselves highly competitive and infew other areas that they find themselves lacking. Hence, they find themselvesperform extra-ordinarily well in few and suffer with low self-esteem in theother.

Asa child of God who has been reconciled with HIM through His redemptive bloodthat is constantly transforming us into HIS likeness, is being competent wrongor is lacking competence wrong? Neither. The word of God says, “The Lord willmake you the head and not the tail”- (Deuteronomy 28:13). This very clearlysays that the Lord wants you to be on the top and a winner in all walks of yourlife.

Wecan ask questions like, how can this be true when I don’t have the skill? Ican’t do it; I haven’t been trained for it?

Mosessaid to the LORD, "O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neitherin the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech andtongue.' So the Lord said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Or whomakes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord? Nowtherefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach youwhat you shall say."

Whenwe understand what Moses understood, that is in our weakness His strength ismade perfect and that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us,we will recognize that we are winners not because of our own strength or skillbut because of the one whom we serve - the Lord. It is in His strength that wegain victory.

Thereare many people who are on the other side of the spectrum too. They refuse tobe used by God because they think of themselves as “not ready.” We will neverbe competent enough. If we were, the sufficiency would be in ourselves, notfrom God.

Takethe case of a race, you have a set of rules to abide by, spectators who witnessyour run and a committee who stamps you as a winner. So is the case with life,to be accepted and acknowledged as a winner, you need someone in authority toestablish you there. Lets look back at Deuteronomy 28:13. It says, “TheLord” will make you the head. That means, that you are accepted andacknowledged as the winner, because the Lord makes you one.

Nowwhy does the Lord want His children to be competent? Is it because He wants toshow to the children of the world His power and might? Is it because He wantsto distinguish His children from the world? Or Is it because we may participatein the divine plan of redemption of souls into His kingdom?

Theanswer to why the Lord equips us with His competence to make us the head can befound in 2 Corinthians 3:6. He madeus competent to give us life and did it notthrough the ‘letter’ but the ‘Spirit’. The letter is the law in its outwardsense, written on tablets of stone. The letter of the law was introduced in theOld Covenant. It told us what to do and what not to do. The letter cantherefore kill because the law exposes our sin and thereby qualifies us to be“killed” in the Lords presence. It thoroughly and completely establishes ourguilt. But the Lord did not impart competence to us to wade through this lawand be established as righteous. We would never be able to do so. He gave usHis robe of righteousness so that the law cannot bind us down so that we couldserve Him in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

Itdoesn’t mean that the Holy Spirit replaces the written law, but that Hecompletes and fulfills the work of the written law in our hearts. The Spiritgives us life, and with this spiritual life we can live the law and purpose ofGod. When we taste this in our lives, the Spirit enables us to become a part ofHis divine plan - “Not one should perish but that all should come torepentance” and enables us to look beyond ourselves and reach out to the othersand reveal the Lord to them.

Lord,Please forgive us for those times when we think that it is through our strengththat we accomplish the different things and for times when we refuse to step upbecause we think we are incompetent. Help us Lord to recognize that oursufficiency is in you. Help us to look beyond yourselves and allow you to workin and through our lives for the purposes in your heart. In Jesus name I pray.Amen

The Mark of Acceptance From the Heavens - That Man May Speak No More

2008-03-17T16:18:00.000-07:00

Mark 5:25-34

There was a lady in the Bible who suffered from the issue of blood for 12 long years.
Shewas condemned by society and pushed aside to the outskirts of hervillage. Few didn't care, few felt she was a burden, few probablydidn't know of her existence, few could do nothing about her situation,none of those helped her. She was all alone, helpless weak, beaten downand desperate. She heard about this man named Jesus, whom few called asthe Messiah.
She was weak, yet determined to try her last way out tobeing delivered and healed. She crawled and waded through themultitudes and crowds. People probably stepped over her hands as shecrawled. How many times she had to stop on the sides, to restfor a while and continue till she saw the Messiah. How many times peoplewould have pushed her aside because she wasn't upto their speed and wasblocking their way. Yet she desired in the depth of her heart, "if onlyi could touch the tip of the masters robe, I will be healed." And therecame the master walking by her and gathering all the strength her feeble body had, she took those last few steps and reached out andtouched the hem of His robe..
Lo n Behold, her faith was rewarded, herbody grew strong and she knew she was healed. He joy leapt no bounds.But this is not to be discussed or shared in public. With joy bursting and singing through every cell but with a forced silence. She decided to leavequietly and blessed.

And then the Master spoke aloud - "Who touched me?"

Everyone found this question puzzling, as the place was crowded and themaster was touched by everyone around him. Yet He repeated the questionand she came forward confessing that she did.

With His eyes filled in compassion the master said "Daughter,your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering".

She was already healed when she touched the hem of HIS robe.Have you ever wondered why the Lord didn't let her go silently. Some may say, it was for his glory. It is indeed that He may be glorified, but He is not a God who pulls you out in public and embarrasses you and takes glory. So apparently the Lord meant more than just for His glory.

The Lord pulled her out in the public, so that the people around may know and acknowledge that she has been healed and that no man in that town would ever treat her the way they did when she was sick. HE marked her with the stamp of the heavens and proclaimed aloud that she was healed and that she was free.
Gods word defines the universe and the laws of the same. So when He mentioned she was free, it was not only from sickness but also from the condemnations from the tongues of the world.
Now,The world had to receive her justly, treat her right and never ever shun her from her right of living free from suffering. If anyone had a difference in opinion from what He said, they would have to take it up with her defender, the God of the universe..

Is any one of you going through times where you feel outnumbered, cornered, helpless, lost, shattered, weak, lonely, condemned. What ever it may be, with faith in you heart, touch the hem of HIS garment. He will call you out into the open, it may seem like you are being shamed more. But when the Lord calls for you in the open, it is to mark you with the seal of acceptance of the heavens that man may speak no more.

Your Defender At His Best

2008-03-17T15:31:00.000-07:00

When you wish you were younger so you could fix your life
When you wish you didn't do all that you did and messed your life
When you wish you would have paid more attention to what well wishers said
When you wish you would have a second chance and did what you always wanted to.

When the whole world points fingers at you and you wish you could disappear
When friends and family give up on you and write you off as "a loser"
When society thinks you are nothing but a social taboo
When you stand out cos you are different from the others and left out.

You are looking around for that one silver lining in your dark cloud
You are looking for that one soul who would understand and love
You are looking for a place of peace where you could rest your fears for a while
You are looking for a second chance and you cry out aloud...

The God of the universe stops and turns to you,
He calls your name out aloud in front of the universe.
You don't understand why he would make you an object of public display
Yet my friend, Simply obey and respond to his call
Cos when you do so, He will wash you and give you His blameless name
He will stamp you with the mark of the heavens,
No man or authority in the universe can condemn
Or hold you accountable for any past sins
If there arises a time when someone dares to raise a finger at you.
Relax, you have the worlds best lawyer at your defense - The Law Giver - Christ.
One who never sleeps or slumbers at His best.

Simply Call on His name,
His name is Christ.
He would respond with your name on His lips
Respond my friend to His call and see
How your defender sets you free.

Success

2008-03-10T18:00:00.000-07:00

The road to success is not straight.
There is a curve called Failure,
a loop called Confusion,
speed bumps called Friends,
red lights called Enemies,
caution lights called Family.
You will have flats called Jobs.

But, if you have a spare called Determination,
an engine called Perseverance,
insurance called Faith,
a driver called Jesus,
you will make it to a place
called Success.
-Anonymous

Grace

2008-03-10T17:58:00.000-07:00

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials he multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

- Anonymous

Salvation By Grace Through Faith

2008-02-27T22:14:00.000-08:00

Ephesians 2:8-9 - For it is by grace you have been savedthrough faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not byworks, so that no one can boast.

At some point oftime in life, we find every man looking for ways to be good and to be known asgood. Among the many reasons for doing so like the feel-good factor, the desireto be known and many more, we often find that one of the strongest reason is a desire tobe forgiven for ones sins.

The world offersmuch solution to these seekers. Every one of them are incomplete because it cannever address the justification of the sinner being set free without paying aequivalent price for the sin. This is a paradoxical situation where we talkabout setting free and yet being punished. The good news is that there is onetrue answer to this question and it is found in the cross.

“The death of the sinless Lord JesusChrist on the cross in the place of the sinner justifies the sinner and hisresurrection, liberates him from the wages of sin.”

Having understoodthe way to salvation, we also need to understand that salvationcomes from or belongs to the LORD (Jonah 2:9)

The word also says“God so loved the world that He gave HIS only begotten son that whosoeverbelieveth in Him shall have everlasting life (John 3:16) “

If that is thecase, we cannot avail salvation unless He gives it to us and we receive it inturn. So, when we receive it freely we are automatically weaved into the planof salvation where Christ takes our place on the cross and we are liberatedfrom sin. Anything received freely that does you good is a gift and thereforesalvation is a gift of God.

There is yetanother phrase that I often hear thrown around. “Earn your friendship, Earnyour love, Earn your worth, Earn your salvation.” There is nothing in thisuniverse that the sinful human can do to earn his or her salvation. No goodworks, no good deeds, no sacrifice, no re-birth theologies, no oaths andpromises, No nothings.

The first key to receiving salvation is by thegrace of God. Grace by its very definition means, "Unmerited favor." Salvationis an unearned, undeserved blessing, offered freely to all mankind. In short,there is no way that man, the sinner, could earn or merit salvation, so Godprovided it for him as a gift.

The second key is faith, which is man's response to God'sfree gift. Salvation is by grace - on God's side; and by faith - on man's side.

Now it becomes very important for us to understand whatfaith means. Exactly what is meant by faith? Many people define faith as amental acceptance of certain facts. But, “Faithis the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”.(Hebrews 11:1) So even though man cannot see the salvation that is destined inhis future it is HIS faith in conjunction with Gods grace that works out hissalvation.

Grace makes salvation possible; obedient faithmakes salvation actual. When man responds in Biblical faith to God's offer ofsalvation, he is neither earning nor deserving the gift, but only accepting iton the condition on which the Lord has promised to give it.Hence no man can boast of the salvation that he hasreceived. This should keep every saved man completely compassionate andunderstanding of the others and intercede for them to be saved likewise. Every Christian life will radically change when we rightly view God's grace andactively engage in distributing His grace.

I wonder

2008-02-27T15:16:00.000-08:00

I wondered so hard today and everything that I am spoke aloud !

I wonder if the love that I show people is true
I wonder if I am hidden behind the mask of being God's child
I wonder if I am truly co-operating with the Lord in HIS infinite loving lessons
I wonder if I would ever really walk the talk when it truly matters and reveal Christ
I wonder if I am just letting the days go past me and not through me
I wonder if I am living everyday seeking to satisfy my hearts desires

I suddenly find myself shallow
The feeling is intense and heartbreaking
How much I realize how sinful and fallen I am
The closer I walk towards God
The greater I find myself fall short.

When the Lord walks in the cool of the day and asks me,
" My Child !! How has the day been?"
How can I ever explain what it feels to show the Lord,
repeated failures to live up to his teachings!!
How can I ever explain that in exchange for HIS love,
all I have is a petition pleading for more of HIS blood.

Makes me feel like a blood thirsty animal
The price the Lord paid ,so I could be saved
Ah ! What kind of love is that,
indeed beyond my understanding.

When a sense of uncleanness grips my heart
I cry, Lord, Let the coal cleanse my heart
For here I am,Help me I pray
That I may receive your grace fully
May every new day that comes by me,
be lived the way you want it to be.

For here I am, Help me I pray

WHEN GOD WANTS A MAN (Anonymous)

2008-02-22T16:59:00.000-08:00

When God wants to drill a man and thrill a man and skill a man...
When God wants to mould a man to play the noblest part;
When He yearns with all His heart to create so great and bold a man that all the world shall praise...
Watch His methods; watch His ways!

How He ruthlessly perfects whom He royally elects...
How He hammers him and hurts him,
and with mighty blows converts him into
frail shapes of clay that only God understands.

How His tortured heart is crying and he lifts beseeching hands...
How He bends but never breaks when His good He undertakes.
How He uses whom He chooses...
with every purpose fuses him;
by every art induces him to try His splendor out...
God knows what He's about!

When God wants to take a man and shake a man and wake a man...
When God wants to make a man to do the Future's will;
He tries with all His skill...
When He yearns with all His soul to create him large and whole...
with what cunning He prepares him...
how He goads and never spares him!

How He whets him and He frets him and in poverty begets him...
How often He disappoints whom He sacredly anoints!
With what wisdom He will hide him;
never minding what betide him...
Though His genius sob with slighting and His pride may not forget;
Bids him struggle harder yet!

Makes him lonely so that only God's high messages shall reach him...
So that He may surely teach him what the hierarchy planned;
And though he may not understand...
gives him passions to command.
How remorselessly He spurs him...
with terrific ardor stirs him
When He poignantly prefers him.

When God wants to name a man and fame a man and tame a man...
When God wants to shame a man to do His Heavenly best;
When He tries the highest test that His reckoning may bring...
When He wants a God or king;
How He reins him and restrains him so His body scarce contains him...
While He fires him and inspires him…
Keeps him yearning, every burning for that tantalizing goal.

Lures and lacerates His soul...
sets a challenge for His spirit;
Draws it highest then he's near it!
Makes a jungle that he clear it;
makes a desert that he fear it...
and subdue it, if he can --
so doth God make a man!

Then -- to test His spirit's wrath --
throw a mountain in His path;
puts a bitter choice before him and relentlessly stands o'er him...
Climb or perish, so He says...
but watch His purpose, watch His ways.

God's plan is wondrous kind -- could we understand His mind ?
Fools are they who call His blind!
When His feet are torn and bleeding;
yet His spirit mounts unheeding...
blazing newer paths and finds;
When the Force that is Divine leaps to challenge every failure,
and His ardor still is sweet --
and love and hope are burning in the presence of defeat!
Lo the crisis, Lo the shouts that would call the leader out...
When the people need salvation doth he rise to lead the nation;
Then doth God show His plan...
and the world has found a man!

God if you are so good,why are there so many mean people around?

2007-09-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

One of the most frequently asked questions that I have come across is,

"God if you are so good,why are there so many mean peoplearound?"

This is the simplest illustration I have come across that helped me answer this question when I had the same one, years before...

There was once a man who beleived in God and his presence in his life who went to a Barber for ahaircut. During the hair cut, the barber struck a conversation with him. He wascomplaining to this man about how bad the world was,the dreadful things that heartless men were doing andhow it finally proves that God truly didnt exist or didnt careas much as we beleive.

This man who was being given ahair cut knew the love of God and was wondering how hecould explain the same to the barber. As soon as thehair cut was over, as the customer was ready to walk out, heturned around and told the barber "Looks like thereare no barbers in town !!"

At this remark, the barberexclaimed "How dare you say that when you just came tome and received a haircut?"
To this the customer asked "Why then are there so many people out on the streets whohave unkept hair?" At this the barber made a verystraightforward reply "They did not come to me".

The same is the casewith our God Jesus, we need to go to him for our own sakesor for the sake of the ones who haven't known him andare lost in the ways of the world. He came from heaven to earth to show us the way, from the earth to the cross to pay our debts, from the cross to the grave with our sins and from the grave back to the heavens winning us complete victory for our trust in HIM.

Sometimes thesituations, the meaness of the world and the badthings of life keep coming back at youmaking you wonder WHY GOD? WHEN WILL YOU DELIVERME?

I just want to encourage you and tell you, eventhough the people in the streets were having unkepthair, this particular customer had a very well keptone, because he approached the barber and he patientlysat through the haircutting process. If he chose toleave in between, he would have looked worse thanbefore and worse than anyone.

So whenever you cry out to the Lord, he firstly wantsto take you aside into his home and disconnect youfrom the people of the world. Then he wants you topatiently wait till he has finished giving you thatspecial GOD HAIR-CUT. During that process if somethingpains you, just continue to sit in his presence andcry out to HIM, he will fill you with his love andstrength and carry you in his arms that nothing canstop you from becoming what he wants youto becomeandnothing can stop you from receiving all the greatthings he has in store for you.

So take one day at a time and remember you are seated in thesaloon of the Lord and he is personally standingbeside you and looking at you from all sides andgiving you the best hair-cut.. when you walk out whenhe is done, the World will recognize who you are andwho HE is.

The next time you hear anyone telling you about how mean the world is, you know what to do, lead them lovingly to The Lord, they need a Special God Hair Cut.

Hurt, Is your Cross heavy? Press On

2007-08-22T02:42:00.000-07:00

A sore day indeed !! With loads of ammunition from friends and colleagues tongues directed with great precision onto you !! Outcome - Hurt..

Are people talking things about you that hurt you? You wonder, what did I do wrong? One of my mentors and friend back down at home send me the following, it blessed me, I pray that every hurting soul would be blessed by the power of the truth that lives in it too.

When you are forgotten, or neglected, or purposely set at naught, and you don't sting and hurt with the insult or the oversight, but your heart is happy, being counted worthy to suffer for Christ.

THAT IS DYING TO SELF

When your good is evil spoken of, when your wishes are crossed, your advice disregarded, your opinions ridiculed, and you refuse to let anger rise in your heart, or even defend yourself, but take in all in patient, loving silence.

THAT IS DYING TO SELF

When you lovingly and patiently bear any disorder, any irregularity, any impunctuality, or any annoyance; when you stand face-to- face with waste, folly, extravagance, spiritual insensibility-and endure it as Jesus endured.

THAT IS DYING TO SELF

When you are content with any food, any offering, any climate, any society, any raiment, any interruption by the will of God.

THAT IS DYING TO SELF

When you never care to refer to yourself in conversation, or to record your own good works, or itch after commendations, when you can truly love to be unknown.

THAT IS DYING TO SELF

When you can see your brother prosper and have his needs met and can honestly rejoice with him in spirit and feel no envy, nor question God, while your own needs are far greater and in desperate circumstances.

THAT IS DYING TO SELF

When you can receive correction and reproof from one of less stature than yourself and can humbly submit inwardly as well as outwardly, finding no rebellion or resentment rising up within your heart.

THAT IS DYING TO SELF

Are you dead yet? In these last days, the Spirit would bring us to the cross.

"That I may know Him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death." Phil.3:10

OTHERS MAY YOU CANNOT !

If God hascalled you to be really like Jesus, He will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility, and put upon you such demands of obedience, that you will not be able to follow other people, or measure yourself by other Christians, and in many ways He will seem to let other people do things which He will not let you do.

Other Christians and ministers who seem very religious and useful, may push themselves, pull wires, and work schemes to carry out their plans, but you cannot do it, and if you attempt it, you will meet with such failure and rebuke from the Lord as to make you sorely penitent.

Others may boast of themselves, of their work, of their successes, of their writings, but the Holy Spirit will not allow you to do any such thing, and if you begin it, He will lead you into some deep mortification that will make you despise yourself and all your good works.

Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, or may have a legacy left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor, because He wants you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence upon Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by day out of an unseen treasury.

The lord may let others be honored and put forward, and keep you hidden in obscurity, because He wants to produce some choice, fragrant fruit for His coming glory, which can only be produced in the shade. He may let others be great, but keep you small. He may let others do a work for Him and get the credit for it, but He will make you work and toil on without knowing how much you are doing; and then to make your work still more precious, He may let others get credit for the work which you have done, and thus make your reward ten times greater when Jesus comes.

The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you, with a jealous love, and will rebuke you for little words and feelings or for wasting your time, which other Christians never feel distressed over. So make up your mind that God is an infinite Sovereign and has a right to do as He pleases with His own. He may not explain to you a thousand things which puzzle your reason in His dealings with you, but if you absolutely sell yourself to be his love slave, He will wrap you up in a jealous love, and bestow upon you many blessings which come only to those who are in the inner circle.

Settle it forever, then, that you are to deal directly with the Holy Spirit, and that He must havethe right to tie your tongue, or chain your hand, or close your eyes, in ways that He does not seem to use with others. Now, when you are so possessed with the living God that you are, in your secret heart, pleased and delighted over this peculiar, personal, private, jealous guardianship and management of the Holy Spirit over your life, you will have found the vestibule of Heaven.

Folded Linen

2007-08-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

I read about this some where and I realized how significant each word in the Bible means. Read On..

Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His Resurrection?
The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin,which was placed over
the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes. The
Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded,
and was placed at the head of that stony coffin.

Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the
tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.
She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple,the one whom Jesus
loved. She said, "They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I
don't know where they have put him!" Peter and the other disciple ran to
the tomb to see. The other disciple outran Peter and got there first.
He stooped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but he
didn't go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed
the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus'
head was folded up and lying to the side.

Is that important? Absolutely! Is it really significant? Yes!
In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to
understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded
napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew
this tradition. When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he
made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. The table was
furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out of sight,
until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch
that table, until the master was finished.
Now if the master was done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his
fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and
toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table.
For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, "I'm done". But if the master
got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his
plate, the servant would not dare touch the table,because the servant
knew that the folded napkin meant, "I'm not finished yet." The folded
napkin meant, "I'm coming back!"

He is Coming Back

Transparency - Why is it poorly received and poorly practised

2007-06-19T04:08:00.000-07:00

Transparency, as used in the humanities, implies openness, communication, and accountability. It is a metaphorical extension of the meaning used in the physical sciences: a "transparent" object is one that can be seen through.

Within the family this attribute is exercised liberally and is a fundamental expectation. Anytime, anyone in the family fail to express or exhibit the same, one can almost always predict problems at bay. I dont think there is anything to explain here any further. But expanding the horizons to beyond family and stepping into the community which is where every individual spends major portion of their time, one can agree that transparency cannot exist as a purely one-way communication though.

If the media and the public knows everything that happens in all authorities and country administrations there will be a lot of questions, protests and suggestions coming from media and the public. People who are interested in a certain issue will try to influence the decisions. Transparency creates an everyday participation in the political processes by media and the public. But you and I know that transparency in this context has to be taken with a pinch of salt, or should I say a container of salt !!! :))

Anyways lets leave political arena and matters of country and step into our regular work environment, which is a smaller representation of a certain segment of people. Even here, the observation is that "Transparency is poorly received and poorly practised by almost all individuals".

Superiors fail to communicate to the sub-ordinates public matters that would influence or involve an individual. Sub-ordinates fail to communicate to the superiors matters that affect them and try and work out solutions. What is wrong? Lack of trust, lack of faith in each others common growth objective !!!

There are many instances where the subordinates have no idea about what happens in the big picture of the company plans and goals and what role they play in those changed plans. So one fine day, when there is a major announcement made, it shakes the fundamental comfort zone of the employee as they have no idea that the short term plan they have made goes out of context. There are many instances where I have seen employees having no choice but to move across divisions and departments. Sometimes it is favourable and sometimes not. Wouldnt it be good if the big time goals of the company would traverse through the organization chain and reach everyone ears in the context of the well being. Everyone would be in synch with the changes and appreciate and accomodate the same. Well, i know its easier said than done, and for this to be acheived in its full flavour we need everyones co-operation.

Now take the other case, if the superior shares the actions being taken as a result of some changes happening in an subordinates environment or feedback on career growth track, the juniour fails to appreciate the same as a step of faith taken by the superior. The superior has to fill in the gap beacause of the juniours enviorment change keeping in mind a far future and thereby be fair to the organization and as well as be faithful to the juniour and try and make their career growths match with the organization...

Why the gap? Can we brush it aside as immaturity in the receiver -the juniour here or a general accepted norm that one cannot trust any other individual other than very close family and friends in the context of their well being??

No man is an island. And if that is true, its better if we would work towards building a healthy and trust filled environment. Share what concerns are in the mind in the context of your future and short term or long term plans, be ready to receive the actions taken in that context and express concerns if it bothers you, involve those who depend on you in your decisions so they know what their role is.

Like I said earlier, Transparency cannot exist as a purely one-way communication.

Why Does the Busiest Person Always Get All The Best Opportunities and Rewards?

2007-05-15T01:54:00.000-07:00

Have you sometimes noticed that the busiest person around is always getting a lot busier? Work and opportunities always seem to knock at their door. I am not talking about the workaholics. I am talking about the few people whom you find active at work, active at home, active with friends, active in community, active having handful of activities and yet the time to listen to you and offer help.

I have always wondered how and why do they always get the best opportunities and how they find time to take more. I recollect a real story that my father shared with me when I was kid. It made a profound impact in my childhood and I have always strived to be someone like that.

The story is about a poor farmer in a village in North India. It so happens that once he fell terribly sick and was in a dire need of medicines. These medicines were not available in his village and hence he needed some one to get it for him from the town. He approached everyone who was going to the town from the village with the money and the name of the medicine. Everyone who was going to the town promised him to get the same but returned empty handed because of their commitments in the town or because they forgot.

One day, the prime minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru was visiting the same village and when he asked the village men if he could do anything for them, this farmer stood up and presented his request. The prime minister promised him that he would get the same for him. The prime minister as we all know is a very busy man with no time for any one person, but he proved to be different. The farmer indeed got his medicines the very next day.

So the busiest man was the one who had the time for the need of someone in a remote village.

Now we can make many arguments saying that the prime ministerhad people who did the tasks on his behalf and so on, but we cant fail to acknowledge that he remembered the request and did something about it.

Given below is a text in the Bible that talks abouthow a master is thrilled about the faithfulness of the servant in doing the tasks he was instructed to do and rewards him with more.

'Well done, good and faithful servant. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master." (Matthew 25:21)

This is exactly the principle that operates when you become the person mentioned in the passages above.

So be faithful in everything that is given into your hands and more, you will be rewarded with more. Along with that responsibility come privileges that you can enjoy

Become a faithful and privileged steward of things in your hand.

The Power Of Your Words..

2007-05-10T02:45:00.000-07:00

I have often wondered why is it that when some people spoke few words, they had authority over the listeners, a unique ministering ability, a healing virtue and most of all a transmiting ability over the listeners to duplicate.

On looking intently and studying them, I found out that it was not their oratory skills or magnetic skills with people or their panache with words that made that aura.

You often find that the speakers have practised very deeply what they preached and when that edifies humanity and is constructive by nature, the words carry a powerful influence that impacts the hearers. No wonder, it is said to practice what you preach. Cos if you are not doing so, your words will just fall to ground and on deaf ears.

Enjoy your journey of translating words into reality in your own lives and you dont have to do much to make it a reality in others lives, as the words you speak and the life you have lived will do the needful :)

IS YOUR PROBLEM CONSUMING AND OVERBEARING?

2007-05-09T23:43:00.000-07:00

The message in taken from the scene in the Garden of Gethsamane. (Mathew 26:37-38,42,44,Luke 22:51)

The message in crisp that our Precious God wants to tell us is that, you may be walking through the most sorrowful, most drowning situation and you may be running to Gods presence every time, you are overwhelmed by it to the point of death, yet you don’t feel or hear God moving you out of that Situation.

Jesus finds himself in a similar situation in the Garden of Gethsemane, he is sorrowful to the point of death (is what the scripture says;) yet he doesn’t hear from God concerning his sorrow. In the narration of the same situation in the gospel of Luke 22:43, we see that the angel of the Lord appears and strengthens him; Jesus had to walk the walk himself. Imagine how painful it would have been when he knew that His Father in heaven could change the course in a fraction of second and chose not to do it. Imagine how He couldn’t feel the JUST God anywhere beside Him.

But following this scene we immediately see that, when Peter one of his disciples struck the ear of the solider Malachus, Jesus laid his laid on him and Malachus was healed. There was a MIRACLE!! Done by a man who was going through an overbearing problem, who felt God wasn’t beside him. And all of us know miracles are from God and that meant God was undoubtedly beside Jesus.

Many times we may find ourselves in situations like that. It could be overwhelming to the point of death, but God wants you to look beyond that and around yourself and see, you will find Him.. You will find him in what i can the peripherals... His Peripheral Presence... proves that he is actually walking beside you in the toughest situation watching over you and performing wonders around you in the environment that you have been placed in, the work that you do, the people whom you help, the words that you speak... LOOK AROUND, you will FIND HIM right beside you.

Now, this sure does not happen to everyone.. There are a couple of things that Jesus did to experience this... Here are what they are..

- Whenever trouble hits you, Cultivate the habit of going to the feet of the Lord, only then can God strengthen you to go through the ordeal and encourage everyone whom God has asked you to shepherd. (Inspite of his pain, Jesus came back three times and asked his disciples to pray, he was not thinking of himself alone. This is a quality of God and Gods children should possess this quality too.. For God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten son (himself) Mathew 26:39

- Learn to surrender and re-surrender your will to God. Jesus prayed this prayer of surrending his will to God not once but three times... The secret is bcos, when you do that, God seals all routes that the enemy may plant on your way to steal Gods will from your life. And even if you find yourself locked you are safe , cos you are locked with God and in God is everything. Mathew 26:39b,42b,44 In the book of Genesis we find that only after Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil did their knowledge of Gods will in their life become corrupt. They got disconnected to God and hence the evil one has all the opportunities to provide false wills over our lives and deceive us. When we accept the Lord this connection is restored and when we prayer the communication happens, so at moments where we have more than one thought abt a situation, prayer brings abt a clarity when we surrender our will to God, cos God steps in and when he does anythin of the evil one flees.

- Look beyond your problem and try and become the solution to someone else’s problem , Jesus was the only solution to Malachus.

When you do these three things,

- restored your communication with God,

- surrendered your will and

- laid yourself as a willing sacrifice by doing good even when the worst is happening to you,

Be assured that God is in you, with you and around you.

May the Holy Spirit enable you to walk this walk in your lives. God Bless you.Amen

Our Future is guaranteed :)

2007-05-09T06:12:00.000-07:00

Scripture:2 Corinthians 1: 21-22Now it is God who makes both of us and youstand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us and outhis Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

Who is a guarantor? A dictionary meaning of Guarantor is “One, such as a person or corporation, thatmakes or gives a promise, assurance, or pledge typically relating to quality,durability, or performance.”In simple words a guarantor is someone of global authority who adds his ownqualifications to you when you fall short of some in any area.

The scripture above clearlystates that God makes us stand firm by depositing into us a Guarantor, who isnone other than the Holy Spirit himself, who is an authority above allauthorities, a source of endless provision, a source of divine wisdom andcounsel, a source of infinite grace, completely dependable and never gives upon us. WHAT A PROMISE? If we would just realize this, we will have no doubtsthat our future is well guaranteed and safe in the hands of our Guarantor – OurLord Jesus.

Prayer:

AlmightyFather, I realize how much you love and care for me. Thank you for the promiseof the security and success of my future that I find in you. Thank you thatyouhave already deposited the guarantor in advance to take care of the needs ofthe future as it comes. Please help me to stop being anxious about my futureand lean onto this understanding. I praise and glorify your name for your waysO lord. In Jesus Name. Amen

Only Few Experience Exponential Growths!!

2007-05-09T05:51:00.000-07:00

As I grew up the career ladder, I observed few people growing exponentially and few others proportional to their efforts. There definitely is a significant reason for the difference in growth output apart from skill, intellect and effort. I never understood what it was till I attended a seminar and found out what the composition of man is. The seminar had a diagram like something below, where the speaker spoke about Man being a composition of Body, Soul and Spirit. Body is the external physical appearance of the person. The soul comprises of the mind, will and emotions. The spirit is the one we all know least about and is that aspect which links us to the supernatural world. It also carries the uniqueness we possess.

What we don’t realize is that the order in which life is lived is different for different people. Most let the needs of the body drive the soul and spirit, few others let the needs of the soul drive the spirit and soul and only a handful let the needs of the spirit drive the soul and the body. What do I mean by the above?

Those who are living their life very normally are driven by the needs of the body. It ranges from basic needs like food, clothing, shelter, good career and so on. When the needs of the body are met, the body instructs the mind/will/emotions to be satisfied and thereby never discover the uniqueness in them, which lives in their spirit.

There are few others who strive to be the best in what they participate in. They will be constantly seen as ones who never accept defeat, bounce back at life and never allow the needs of the body to choke their dreams and ambitions. You find people in this quadrant grow to become entrepreneurs. They are so busy in striving hard to be successful in what they do that the self-will/mind/emotions rules every thought. The uniqueness and gifting is sometimes completely supressed and overlooked.

But there are very few of them who leave their mark in the world. They are the ones who have been successful in identifying what their uniqueness is. What their gifting is, building on that, letting that seep into their soul and see the manifestation of that in body. Just to name a few are Mother Theresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Joyce Meyer, Adolph Hitler and many more. Definitely, the question remains as to whether they are using the gifting to build or destroy the world. That’s a totally new discussion, which I shall cover sometime later.

So the best thing you can do is to identify which category you belong to and try and move yourself to the last category. Get yourselves to be driven by your spirit, then your soul and then your body. This needs the help of someone who knows exactly how Man operates.And that one person is none other than your creator. Any layman can tell you that there is no one better than a creator who knows how to operate or fix his creations. We are no different. We are far superior creation because we have a free will to choose what we want to influence our lives. I pray that the Lord Jesus Christ will reveal himself and his plans in your life and bring about divine alignment of your spirit with his Holy Spirit and propel you into the purpose of your creation.

Freedom Or Security

2007-05-09T03:59:00.000-07:00

On one night when work was tight, project deadlines severe, the clock ticking by as if it were running a race, like every other software engineer, I felt choked and wanted a break. The options were few. Stroll down to the coffee vending machine and gulp down some hot coffee. Look around the office and check if there was any soul who stayed back that night whom you could talk to. Go to the entertainment room and play some video games or TT. Call someone up and have a chat. Neither of them was an option for me at that night, cos that night I was working from home. The last thing I wanted to do was disturb anyone at home and reap loads of advice on how I should balance my work and not work late.

So I had no options than look for company online. Thanks to the various chat messengers, you find but many folks online. Not wanting to waste the little time in hand, I was glad to see a friend of mine online at that hour. Thank God people at different geographic locations have different time zones and even though this was a very insane hour for my friend, he was having the time to chat.

After the usual greetings and enquiry on how each of us were faring, my friend asked me one question that refreshed my mind for productive work and that is what I want to share with all of you. He asked me “If I gave you a choice to choose between Freedom and Security, what would you choose?” Well the question looked simple and answer very straightforward. I told him I couldn’t choose one. I would want freedom with security as I realized, what would the use of freedom be if I were not safe and had to live with that fear.

I wonder what each of you would choose if I were to ask you this question.

Nevertheless, I was restless because I wanted a clear answer to that question and my quest for the answer began ……

Considering the current state of matters around the world, undoubtedly no human could answer this and counter argue their point. I got my answer and it is Freedom. So was my friend’s answer. Where do you think I found my answer and counter argument? Indeed the BIBLE. J I know some of you must be just put off and may be thinking this is some religious fanatic. That’s what I would have thought few years before. But one thing I have learned is that is never hurts to listen someone out.

One of the most dynamic scenes ever captured on film is the execution of William Wallace in the movie Braveheart. Wallace is being tortured for his crimes of treason against the crown of Britain.

This brutal act is an attempt to give Wallace a final opportunity to renounce his deeds and realign his allegiance to the King. When Wallace is given a respite in which to speak, through the pain of disembowelment, he cries out, "Freedom!"

People speak and know of freedom, but they have difficulty making it a practical reality in their own lives. Why? Many don’t realize that they experience freedom from something in their lives by leaning onto someone or something else. There are many instances where we find people who are stormed by lack of peace in their homes and take refuge in addiction to alcoholism and drugs. We find few others who are haunted by some form of abuse that they went through in some time in their life and take refuge in an irrational self-defense mechanism leading to vengeful actions over anyone around them who they think is similar to the abuser. We find many others experiencing freedom of speech by bullying the way through others conversations and subduing them by their authority and taking refuge in that false inflated power. We find few others who manipulate the situations around them silently and take refuge in others weakness to exercise their inner voice. The examples can be many. The crux of the whole illustration is that we all experience one such freedom-refuge combination and exercise them in different areas in our life.

We fail to recognize, that what we are taking refuge in, is what is going to destroy us slowly but steadily. Eventually it becomes our character when we fail to recognize it as a problem. We find many people who manipulate (M) their ways to get things done, we find few others who dominate (D) their way to get things done, we find few others who intimidate (I) others to get few things done. DIM, domination, manipulation and intimidation thereby becomes the underlying weapon of every human to win areas of their life where normal conversations don’t help them achieve their goal. What we experience now is a bondage that's disguised as a pseudo-freedom.

Freedom according to me can be defined as an ability to do anything constructive without destroying another man or his belongings.

Now the question is what’s constructive and how can we learn how to do things without destroying someone or something else. The only way to do the same is by learning from our Creator how to go about things in our lives and what he expects us to do. We can trust our creator with our lives because he is the one who gave it to us in the first place. Why would he want to take it away or mess with it?

Our Creator, God, desires that we trust him completely. It becomes a freeing experience to give God complete control to have his way in our lives and be obedient to his leading, that is were our success lies. Some may argue that surrendering to God is not freedom but becoming a puppet. But this is because they draw analogies of surrendering to God like surrendering to anyone or anything else in this world. The huge difference between the two is that God who is our creator is the one has defined the purpose of our existence. So every human achieves this inner satisfaction only when we discover and fulfill this purpose. So when we co-operate with him, he will do everything in the world to ensure we accomplish the same. This is when we feel completely successful, fulfilled and FREE.

“Freedom in Christ” is what I call complete Freedom, because you experience your freedom in your refuge of Christ. (Galations 5:1) Christ will never fail you, because HE is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow. He came down to take upon himself the fears, hurts, the shame and strongholds in our lives onto himself. With his crucification, all of these have been crucified and with his resurrection a new life has been restored to those who believe in HIS name.

I encourage all of you to choose to have Freedom as your choice;Freedom in Christ is the only way to achieve thesame.