“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.”
Galatians 6: 7 (New King James Version)
By God’s grace we have come to the last day of this year. We all know how each of us started the year and how we stand today . Have we grown in the Lord stronger or do we find ourselves still struggling in sin ?
The word of God says ‘Do not be deceived. God is not mocked’. Some of us might be fooling ourselves by thinking we can keep on walking in a path of sin and still have the Spirit of God upon us forever. Some of us think we are clever and by certain technicalities we can fool God and say ‘I have done everything right…’
We read in verse 8, “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” What have we been sowing ?? Have all our efforts been in sowing for the flesh ? Have our priorities and desires been all about the flesh ? None of us can plant a coconut sapling and expect grapes to spring forth as fruit. As bizarre as that is, so is to expect that we can continue living in the desires of the flesh and reap everlasting life ! Only those who sow to the Spirit will reap everlasting life.
Lets turn our Bibles to Revelation 21 : 7-8 , “”He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
He who ? Overcomes ! All of us are faced with temptations . But some of us overcome the flesh by the grace of God while some of us yield to the ways of the flesh. The word of God is very clear about what those who overcome will reap and what those who yield will reap.
You know what ? Its not yet too late ! If you are alive this moment, you know that it is only His grace that has allowed you to be here and that is for a purpose. I pray that we will set our lives right before our God and Savior and start sowing to the Spirit.
“Father , thank You Lord for Your grace which is our sufficiency. Lord please forgive us for what we have done in word, thought and action. Lord this body is meant to be offered to You as a holy sacrifice. Forgive us for making our lives into something that is not of You. Lord we pray that we will overcome ! Lord we pray that we will sow to the Spirit and will reap everlasting life. Lord we pray that we will never grow weary of doing good for in due season we shall reap…Lord may we never lose heart. We surrender our lives completely into Your Holy hands. Lord have Your way in our lives. May You increase and we decrease. In the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ we ask, we believe and we receive. Amen”
God Bless
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Lord open our eyes that we may see .
“So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
II Kings 6 : 16 (New King James Version)
The king of Syria had come to know of Elisha the prophet who kept warning the king of Israel of the plans of the king of Syria. So the king of Syria sent horses and chariots and a great army and they came by night and surrounded the city in an attempt to get Elisha.
Now the servant of Elisha arose early and went out. And there was an army surrounding the city. And Elisha’s servant said to Elisha, ‘Alas, my master ! What shall we do?”
How many of us have this battle against sin ? Some habit or addiction that we keep fighting against ? For some of us it might be sexually immoral habits and addictions , for some smoking , for some anger , bitterness, for some unforgiveness , for some us a struggle to be submissive to God , for some of us a struggle against laziness …
So many times we think we are fighting this battle alone… we fight we fight and when we yield to the sin we feel so miserable… satan starts playing this whole guilt trip on us. The devil is cunning and he knows how to play people down.
And when temptation just surrounds us we go ‘Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!’ …
When Elisha’s servant saw the army, he got the shock of his life. Elisha however knew that he was not alone. God fights for us. In every situation He is our refuge !! We read in verse 16 “So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
Verse 17 “And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”
Wow ! Do you that that is true of us also ? We are never alone !! Never ever ever ever. As His children HE is always with us !!
When an ugly situation raises its head , when temptation surrounds us … when fear , uncertainity seem to be the only thing we see , I pray that our hearts will be lifted to Him and that our eyes may be opened to see how amazing our God is. He is our fortress !!!! Why do we tend to forget that ???
Here is the best part. Elisha never prayed Lord open his eyes that he may see what you are doing right now only . No no no . It was simple . Open his eyes that he may see.
As His children it is a basic necessity that our eyes be opened and we walk and see beyond what the children of the world see. When children of the world see an army, we as His children see HIS army.
My brothers and sisters in Christ let us pray that our eyes be opened. That we will no longer walk in blindness to the ways of God. But that we will walk in His understanding and His power as His children.
God Bless
II Kings 6 : 16 (New King James Version)
The king of Syria had come to know of Elisha the prophet who kept warning the king of Israel of the plans of the king of Syria. So the king of Syria sent horses and chariots and a great army and they came by night and surrounded the city in an attempt to get Elisha.
Now the servant of Elisha arose early and went out. And there was an army surrounding the city. And Elisha’s servant said to Elisha, ‘Alas, my master ! What shall we do?”
How many of us have this battle against sin ? Some habit or addiction that we keep fighting against ? For some of us it might be sexually immoral habits and addictions , for some smoking , for some anger , bitterness, for some unforgiveness , for some us a struggle to be submissive to God , for some of us a struggle against laziness …
So many times we think we are fighting this battle alone… we fight we fight and when we yield to the sin we feel so miserable… satan starts playing this whole guilt trip on us. The devil is cunning and he knows how to play people down.
And when temptation just surrounds us we go ‘Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!’ …
When Elisha’s servant saw the army, he got the shock of his life. Elisha however knew that he was not alone. God fights for us. In every situation He is our refuge !! We read in verse 16 “So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
Verse 17 “And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”
Wow ! Do you that that is true of us also ? We are never alone !! Never ever ever ever. As His children HE is always with us !!
When an ugly situation raises its head , when temptation surrounds us … when fear , uncertainity seem to be the only thing we see , I pray that our hearts will be lifted to Him and that our eyes may be opened to see how amazing our God is. He is our fortress !!!! Why do we tend to forget that ???
Here is the best part. Elisha never prayed Lord open his eyes that he may see what you are doing right now only . No no no . It was simple . Open his eyes that he may see.
As His children it is a basic necessity that our eyes be opened and we walk and see beyond what the children of the world see. When children of the world see an army, we as His children see HIS army.
My brothers and sisters in Christ let us pray that our eyes be opened. That we will no longer walk in blindness to the ways of God. But that we will walk in His understanding and His power as His children.
God Bless
Wait & Listen
“His mother said to the servants “Whatever He says to you, do it””
John 2 : 5 (New King James Version)
There was a wedding in Cana of Galilee and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him that they had no wine. Then we read in verses 4-5 , “Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
Whose problem was it ? The servants who were in charge of getting the needful done for the bridegroom’s wedding.
What did Christ say in response ? “…My hour has not yet come.”
What did His mother tell the servants ? “Whatever He says to you, do it”
A lot of times we are faced with a problem and we start to panic … we wonder how are we ever going to handle things… we start telling everyone our problem and ask them to pray hoping that they will be able to nudge God for us J . Now don’t get me wrong.. It is good to share with believers and pray together in oneness of spirit. But here is the key… Mary left the servants with a very wise word. She said ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.” . In other words she told them , His time has not yet come… until then wait… wait on Him and listen …and when He says something be obedient and do it !!
It is one thing to ask our friends to intercede and pray for us. It is another thing when along with that we also sit in His presence and wait for a word from Him with a heart of obedience to do as He says.
Verses 7-8, “Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
What did Christ ask them to do ? Fill six stone waterpots with water
What did they do ? They obeyed ! They filled them up to the brim !
As you wait on the Lord and listen to His instructions and listen to His word , He might ask you to do something which in our limited thinking might seem totally irrelevant… but if we would just obey .. we will see His glory revealed.
We read in verses 8-10, “And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
The six waterpots that were there were meant for purification of the Jews. It was customary for them to wash their hands and then eat . Else those who didn’t do so were considered to be defiled. Christ took that water and turned it into wine. A servant of God well said “The picture God is painting for us here is that the people believed this water would "purify the Jews," but God uses this to demonstrate that the Jews will only be cleansed or purified by the miraculous creative work of the shed blood of Christ”
As we read in verse 11 this was just the beginning of much more to come.
God Bless
John 2 : 5 (New King James Version)
There was a wedding in Cana of Galilee and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him that they had no wine. Then we read in verses 4-5 , “Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
Whose problem was it ? The servants who were in charge of getting the needful done for the bridegroom’s wedding.
What did Christ say in response ? “…My hour has not yet come.”
What did His mother tell the servants ? “Whatever He says to you, do it”
A lot of times we are faced with a problem and we start to panic … we wonder how are we ever going to handle things… we start telling everyone our problem and ask them to pray hoping that they will be able to nudge God for us J . Now don’t get me wrong.. It is good to share with believers and pray together in oneness of spirit. But here is the key… Mary left the servants with a very wise word. She said ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.” . In other words she told them , His time has not yet come… until then wait… wait on Him and listen …and when He says something be obedient and do it !!
It is one thing to ask our friends to intercede and pray for us. It is another thing when along with that we also sit in His presence and wait for a word from Him with a heart of obedience to do as He says.
Verses 7-8, “Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
What did Christ ask them to do ? Fill six stone waterpots with water
What did they do ? They obeyed ! They filled them up to the brim !
As you wait on the Lord and listen to His instructions and listen to His word , He might ask you to do something which in our limited thinking might seem totally irrelevant… but if we would just obey .. we will see His glory revealed.
We read in verses 8-10, “And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
The six waterpots that were there were meant for purification of the Jews. It was customary for them to wash their hands and then eat . Else those who didn’t do so were considered to be defiled. Christ took that water and turned it into wine. A servant of God well said “The picture God is painting for us here is that the people believed this water would "purify the Jews," but God uses this to demonstrate that the Jews will only be cleansed or purified by the miraculous creative work of the shed blood of Christ”
As we read in verse 11 this was just the beginning of much more to come.
God Bless
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
"Lord prepare me to be a sanctuary pure and holy..."
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
Romans 12: 1-2 (New King James Version)
Our last few discussions have taken us a lot through the book of Daniel. How did Daniel consecrate his life for God ? Well for one we know that he never let circumstances dictate his faith or his standing with the Lord ! He stood for God no matter what.
We read in Daniel 1 that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And when the king appointed daily provisions for the men who were picked to be trained, Daniel didn’t just say ‘Praise the Lord I get to train for a good position … ‘ It didn’t matter what his job or training was. He still stood for God . It did not matter if it was a common thing that everyone was eating and drinking the king’s delicacies… It did not matter if he was in a foreign land. He still stood for God ! He presented himself as a living sacrifice..holy and acceptable to God.
Are we doing that ? Or do we get carried away with what the world terms as ‘Its ok’ . As culture keeps changing over time do we find ourselves swaying with where we are or which year we are in ? Or are we firmly rooted in the word and have our principles based on the word of God ?
As we keep reading the book of Daniel we see that no matter what, he always consecrated himself for God. It didn’t matter if he sat in the gate of the king. He knew His Lord was King of all and Him only will he serve. His decisions to stand for God might have landed him in the lions den but it did not matter to him. All that mattered was that he lived a life acceptable in the sight of God. Not for men , not for his colleagues or his friends or his boss … no .. He lived his life for God. And God honored him such that king Darius himself writes to all a decree that everyone should tremble and fear before the God of Daniel !
When people see us what do they see ? Do they see a life that’s living for the great I AM ? Do they know who our God is ? Or do they see someone just carried away by the ways and pressures of the world ?
Daniel prayed, he fasted , he interceded for the people and God revealed His word to him. Wow ! can you imagine that ? Not just revelations regarding dreams of other people but visions of what is to come… things which we read in the book of revelations. Wow !!! Angels coming to him and interpreting the dreams…the devil being so threatened that there was a battle raging for 21 days and Michael had to come and help.
How wonderful and powerful is a life that is consecrated for the Lord !
Are our lives consecrated for Him or are we conformed to the world ? Do we let the world dictate our life and then try and fit God into it ? Or do we let God be all in all of our life and then walk in the world as God would have us walk ?
God Bless
Romans 12: 1-2 (New King James Version)
Our last few discussions have taken us a lot through the book of Daniel. How did Daniel consecrate his life for God ? Well for one we know that he never let circumstances dictate his faith or his standing with the Lord ! He stood for God no matter what.
We read in Daniel 1 that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And when the king appointed daily provisions for the men who were picked to be trained, Daniel didn’t just say ‘Praise the Lord I get to train for a good position … ‘ It didn’t matter what his job or training was. He still stood for God . It did not matter if it was a common thing that everyone was eating and drinking the king’s delicacies… It did not matter if he was in a foreign land. He still stood for God ! He presented himself as a living sacrifice..holy and acceptable to God.
Are we doing that ? Or do we get carried away with what the world terms as ‘Its ok’ . As culture keeps changing over time do we find ourselves swaying with where we are or which year we are in ? Or are we firmly rooted in the word and have our principles based on the word of God ?
As we keep reading the book of Daniel we see that no matter what, he always consecrated himself for God. It didn’t matter if he sat in the gate of the king. He knew His Lord was King of all and Him only will he serve. His decisions to stand for God might have landed him in the lions den but it did not matter to him. All that mattered was that he lived a life acceptable in the sight of God. Not for men , not for his colleagues or his friends or his boss … no .. He lived his life for God. And God honored him such that king Darius himself writes to all a decree that everyone should tremble and fear before the God of Daniel !
When people see us what do they see ? Do they see a life that’s living for the great I AM ? Do they know who our God is ? Or do they see someone just carried away by the ways and pressures of the world ?
Daniel prayed, he fasted , he interceded for the people and God revealed His word to him. Wow ! can you imagine that ? Not just revelations regarding dreams of other people but visions of what is to come… things which we read in the book of revelations. Wow !!! Angels coming to him and interpreting the dreams…the devil being so threatened that there was a battle raging for 21 days and Michael had to come and help.
How wonderful and powerful is a life that is consecrated for the Lord !
Are our lives consecrated for Him or are we conformed to the world ? Do we let the world dictate our life and then try and fit God into it ? Or do we let God be all in all of our life and then walk in the world as God would have us walk ?
God Bless
Sunday, December 6, 2009
"Trust and Obey for there's no other way..."
“By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called,””
Hebrews 11: 17-18 (New King James Version)
Lets take a quick look at a few happenings in the book of Genesis. We read in Genesis 15 : 4 , “And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir”. And then we read in the next verse that the Lord tells Abraham (at that point still called Abram) that as innumerable as the stars are so shall his descendants be.
Genesis 17 : 5-6 , “”No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.”I will make you exceedingly fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.”
Genesis 17 : 15-16, “Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.”And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.”
Genesis 18 : 1-2 , “Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them , he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground,” Verses 9-11, “Then they said to him, “where is Sarah your wife?” So he said, “here, in your tent.” And He said,” I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.” (Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.) Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing.”
Genesis 21 : 2, “For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.”
Wow ! Isn’t that so amazing ! Can you imagine the joy of Abraham and Sarah ? I mean just see the promises of God and how it came to pass.
Now here is something interesting
Genesis 22: 2, “Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
What ?????
Just look at that verse …
--> Take your son
--> Your Only Son
--> Whom you love
--> Offer him there as a burnt offering
Abraham never said ‘But Lord didn’t you promise ?’..
Abraham never said ‘But Lord how could you?’
Abraham never said ‘But Lord its not fair !’
Can you just imagine the obedience of Abraham. He never contemplated … He never tried to attempt to comprehend why would God ask Him to do such a thing. He just obeyed.
We read in the very next verse , “So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.”
We all know what happened after that .
Do we have a heart that truly trusts on His understanding alone? Do we obey His word whole heartedly without trying to contemplate and reason out when God gives us a command to obey ? Let this be our prayer today that the Lord will transform our lives as lives that are obedient to Him and are sensitive to His leading.
Here are few lines from a song …
“I am not skilled to understand
What God has willed, what God has planned
I only know at His right hand,
Stands One who is my Saviour”
God Bless
Hebrews 11: 17-18 (New King James Version)
Lets take a quick look at a few happenings in the book of Genesis. We read in Genesis 15 : 4 , “And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir”. And then we read in the next verse that the Lord tells Abraham (at that point still called Abram) that as innumerable as the stars are so shall his descendants be.
Genesis 17 : 5-6 , “”No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.”I will make you exceedingly fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.”
Genesis 17 : 15-16, “Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.”And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.”
Genesis 18 : 1-2 , “Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them , he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground,” Verses 9-11, “Then they said to him, “where is Sarah your wife?” So he said, “here, in your tent.” And He said,” I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.” (Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.) Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing.”
Genesis 21 : 2, “For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.”
Wow ! Isn’t that so amazing ! Can you imagine the joy of Abraham and Sarah ? I mean just see the promises of God and how it came to pass.
Now here is something interesting
Genesis 22: 2, “Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
What ?????
Just look at that verse …
--> Take your son
--> Your Only Son
--> Whom you love
--> Offer him there as a burnt offering
Abraham never said ‘But Lord didn’t you promise ?’..
Abraham never said ‘But Lord how could you?’
Abraham never said ‘But Lord its not fair !’
Can you just imagine the obedience of Abraham. He never contemplated … He never tried to attempt to comprehend why would God ask Him to do such a thing. He just obeyed.
We read in the very next verse , “So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.”
We all know what happened after that .
Do we have a heart that truly trusts on His understanding alone? Do we obey His word whole heartedly without trying to contemplate and reason out when God gives us a command to obey ? Let this be our prayer today that the Lord will transform our lives as lives that are obedient to Him and are sensitive to His leading.
Here are few lines from a song …
“I am not skilled to understand
What God has willed, what God has planned
I only know at His right hand,
Stands One who is my Saviour”
God Bless
Monday, November 30, 2009
Do we know where we are ?
“He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. He has put a new song in my mouth— Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the Lord.”
Psalm 40: 2-3 (New King James Version)
Aren’t you happy today that you are no longer stuck in the mire. But Christ has taken you and set your feet on a rock ! Wow ! Praise the Lord ! Just imagine walking through mire…swampy marsh.. we would have no idea where our feet would trod … we would have no idea how deep we are or what pit lies ahead…
Praise the Lord that He has set our feet on a rock and has established our steps !! In other words He has made our steps secure.
Every time we open the newspaper we read of so much of uncertainty… recession , rich and established countries going through financial crisis , job losses , accidents , …The world is filled with so much of uncertainty. We are however citizens of heaven. How grateful do we need to be to our God who has established our steps ! For those of us who are still stuck in the marsh…just call upon Him… For God does not desire sacrifice and offering … but a heart that delights to do His will ! Christ is searching today for those who will yield themselves completely to His will . A heart that will humble before the presence of the King of kings.
He has put a new song in our mouths ! A new song ! No more old whining … no more old complaining … no more old bitterness … no more unforgiveness….. no more…
He has given us songs of deliverance ! And this is to be a testimony to all those around us. A new song not just for ourselves… but for others to see and trust in the Lord !
We read in verse 4 , “Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust, And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies”. A lot of us sometimes think we are extra smart :-) we try and manipulate situations such that we don’t actually lie with our lips but do things in hiding behind the backs of our loved ones … we hide and do things without the knowledge of our family in spite of knowing very well what they expect of us.. Manipulating a situation that causes us not to actually speak a lie is still sin… Because God looks at the heart. Let us be careful not to turn aside to lies. Anything that is even remotely associated to a lie lets not even turn towards that direction.
Our God has set us upon a rock and established our steps. Lets not find ourselves wallowing back in the miry clay. He has put a new song in our mouth let us be a testimony to Him . Let not idle talk and unwanted vocabulary ever come out from the same mouth.
Psalm 40: 2-3 (New King James Version)
Aren’t you happy today that you are no longer stuck in the mire. But Christ has taken you and set your feet on a rock ! Wow ! Praise the Lord ! Just imagine walking through mire…swampy marsh.. we would have no idea where our feet would trod … we would have no idea how deep we are or what pit lies ahead…
Praise the Lord that He has set our feet on a rock and has established our steps !! In other words He has made our steps secure.
Every time we open the newspaper we read of so much of uncertainty… recession , rich and established countries going through financial crisis , job losses , accidents , …The world is filled with so much of uncertainty. We are however citizens of heaven. How grateful do we need to be to our God who has established our steps ! For those of us who are still stuck in the marsh…just call upon Him… For God does not desire sacrifice and offering … but a heart that delights to do His will ! Christ is searching today for those who will yield themselves completely to His will . A heart that will humble before the presence of the King of kings.
He has put a new song in our mouths ! A new song ! No more old whining … no more old complaining … no more old bitterness … no more unforgiveness….. no more…
He has given us songs of deliverance ! And this is to be a testimony to all those around us. A new song not just for ourselves… but for others to see and trust in the Lord !
We read in verse 4 , “Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust, And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies”. A lot of us sometimes think we are extra smart :-) we try and manipulate situations such that we don’t actually lie with our lips but do things in hiding behind the backs of our loved ones … we hide and do things without the knowledge of our family in spite of knowing very well what they expect of us.. Manipulating a situation that causes us not to actually speak a lie is still sin… Because God looks at the heart. Let us be careful not to turn aside to lies. Anything that is even remotely associated to a lie lets not even turn towards that direction.
Our God has set us upon a rock and established our steps. Lets not find ourselves wallowing back in the miry clay. He has put a new song in our mouth let us be a testimony to Him . Let not idle talk and unwanted vocabulary ever come out from the same mouth.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
"Whatever He says to you, do it"
“His mother said to the servants “Whatever He says to you, do it””
John 2 : 5(New King James Version)
There was a wedding in Cana of Galilee and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him that they had no wine. Then we read in verses 4-5 , “Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
Whose problem was it ? The servants who were in charge of getting the needful done for the bridegroom’s wedding.
What did Christ say in response ? “…My hour has not yet come.”
What did His mother tell the servants ? “Whatever He says to you, do it”
A lot of times we are faced with a problem and we start to panic … we wonder how are we ever going to handle things… we start telling everyone our problem and ask them to pray hoping that they will be able to nudge God for us :-) . Now don’t get me wrong.. It is good to share with believers and pray together in oneness of spirit. But here is the key… Mary left the servants with a very wise word. She said ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.” . In other words she told them , His time has not yet come… until then wait… wait on Him and listen …and when He says something be obedient and do it !!
It is one thing to ask our friends to intercede and pray for us. It is another thing when along with that we also sit in His presence and wait for a word from Him with a heart of obedience to do as He says.
Verses 7-8, “Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
What did Christ ask them to do ? Fill six stone waterpots with water
What did they do ? They obeyed ! They filled them up to the brim !
As you wait on the Lord and listen to His instructions and listen to His word , He might ask you to do something which in our limited thinking might seem totally irrelevant… but if we would just obey .. we will see His glory revealed.
We read in verses 8-10, “And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
The six waterpots that were there were meant for purification of the Jews. It was customary for them to wash their hands and then eat . Else those who didn’t do so were considered to be defiled. Christ took that water and turned it into wine. A servant of God well said “The picture God is painting for us here is that the people believed this water would "purify the Jews," but God uses this to demonstrate that the Jews will only be cleansed or purified by the miraculous creative work of the shed blood of Christ”
As we read in verse 11 this was just the beginning of much more to come.
God Bless
John 2 : 5(New King James Version)
There was a wedding in Cana of Galilee and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him that they had no wine. Then we read in verses 4-5 , “Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
Whose problem was it ? The servants who were in charge of getting the needful done for the bridegroom’s wedding.
What did Christ say in response ? “…My hour has not yet come.”
What did His mother tell the servants ? “Whatever He says to you, do it”
A lot of times we are faced with a problem and we start to panic … we wonder how are we ever going to handle things… we start telling everyone our problem and ask them to pray hoping that they will be able to nudge God for us :-) . Now don’t get me wrong.. It is good to share with believers and pray together in oneness of spirit. But here is the key… Mary left the servants with a very wise word. She said ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.” . In other words she told them , His time has not yet come… until then wait… wait on Him and listen …and when He says something be obedient and do it !!
It is one thing to ask our friends to intercede and pray for us. It is another thing when along with that we also sit in His presence and wait for a word from Him with a heart of obedience to do as He says.
Verses 7-8, “Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim”
What was the problem ? They had run out of wine
What did Christ ask them to do ? Fill six stone waterpots with water
What did they do ? They obeyed ! They filled them up to the brim !
As you wait on the Lord and listen to His instructions and listen to His word , He might ask you to do something which in our limited thinking might seem totally irrelevant… but if we would just obey .. we will see His glory revealed.
We read in verses 8-10, “And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
The six waterpots that were there were meant for purification of the Jews. It was customary for them to wash their hands and then eat . Else those who didn’t do so were considered to be defiled. Christ took that water and turned it into wine. A servant of God well said “The picture God is painting for us here is that the people believed this water would "purify the Jews," but God uses this to demonstrate that the Jews will only be cleansed or purified by the miraculous creative work of the shed blood of Christ”
As we read in verse 11 this was just the beginning of much more to come.
God Bless
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Worship & Serve
“”Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.” And Jesus answered and said to him, ‘ Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’””
Luke 4 : 7-8 (New King James Version)
We read in verses 5-6 , “Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I will give it to whomever I wish.”
Sounds familiar ? How many times has the devil flashed something before our eyes and enticed us saying ‘take it…’
I know listening to other peoples conversations is wrong :-) but the other day I just couldn’t help but listen to a conversation that two girls in the bus were having. One girl said to the other “No its different … its praying to a negative energy and that is dangerous. You see when you pray to God you ask what you want and He wants nothing in return. That is God. But when you ask something from this negative energy then later he will ask for something in return and you must give it.”
Interesting isn’t it ? Not a Christian but a nice understanding of how God works . The devil is going to come and flash things of the world in front of our eyes and say ‘take it…’ and in return we become slaves to sin. And the wages of sin is death !
Sometimes a lot of us worship our work ! We give it all our best .. the best of our mind the best of our body and in the process we forget time with God and hence deprive our soul. I’m not saying work is bad.. But if that takes our priority over spending time with our Lord then we really need to get things in place.
What did Jesus say ? He knew the word of God from Deuteronomy and said ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only you shall serve’
And Him only we shall serve !! Wow ! Worship and Serve ! Are we doing that ? Not just on a Sunday morning ! Every cell in our body needs to long to be in His presence … to give God our very best ! Not our last .. not our so called free time… No no no.
The devil is going to come and tell us ‘here focus on this of the world…focus on that of the world… worship me ! and see what I can give you’
I pray that we will rebuke the devil and tell him “No ! I will worship and serve only my Lord my God my Savior Jesus Christ ! He gets my best. He gets my everything . “
God Bless
Luke 4 : 7-8 (New King James Version)
We read in verses 5-6 , “Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I will give it to whomever I wish.”
Sounds familiar ? How many times has the devil flashed something before our eyes and enticed us saying ‘take it…’
I know listening to other peoples conversations is wrong :-) but the other day I just couldn’t help but listen to a conversation that two girls in the bus were having. One girl said to the other “No its different … its praying to a negative energy and that is dangerous. You see when you pray to God you ask what you want and He wants nothing in return. That is God. But when you ask something from this negative energy then later he will ask for something in return and you must give it.”
Interesting isn’t it ? Not a Christian but a nice understanding of how God works . The devil is going to come and flash things of the world in front of our eyes and say ‘take it…’ and in return we become slaves to sin. And the wages of sin is death !
Sometimes a lot of us worship our work ! We give it all our best .. the best of our mind the best of our body and in the process we forget time with God and hence deprive our soul. I’m not saying work is bad.. But if that takes our priority over spending time with our Lord then we really need to get things in place.
What did Jesus say ? He knew the word of God from Deuteronomy and said ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only you shall serve’
And Him only we shall serve !! Wow ! Worship and Serve ! Are we doing that ? Not just on a Sunday morning ! Every cell in our body needs to long to be in His presence … to give God our very best ! Not our last .. not our so called free time… No no no.
The devil is going to come and tell us ‘here focus on this of the world…focus on that of the world… worship me ! and see what I can give you’
I pray that we will rebuke the devil and tell him “No ! I will worship and serve only my Lord my God my Savior Jesus Christ ! He gets my best. He gets my everything . “
God Bless
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Seek Him
“Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they may might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon”
Daniel 2 : 17-18 (New King James Version)
A little background to what has taken place in chapter 1 . Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had besieged Jerusalem. The king then instructed Ashpenaz to bring some of the children of Israel who were gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge,… so that they might teach the language and literature of the Chaldeans. Now from among those of the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah , Mishael and Azariah. And to them the chief of eunuchs had given names. Daniel was called Belteshazzar , Hananiah was called Shadrach , Mishael was called Meshach and Azariah was called Abednego. The king had appointed a daily provision of the king’s delicacies and of the wine which he drank. Now Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies. So he requested the chief of the eunuchs regarding it. Now the chief was scared if something would happen to Daniel and his friends if they did not eat properly. Because the chief was answerable to the king. But then Daniel told the chief to test them for ten days and to give them just vegetables and water. And at the end of ten days the chief saw that their features were better and they appeared fatter in flesh than all the young men who ate the portion of the king’s delicacies. And you know what ? God gave them knowledge and skill and wisdom. And when the king interviewed them at the end of the tenure of their training we read that among all the young men there was none like them ! And they served before the king. And when compared to all the magicians and astrologers in all the king’s realm he found them ten times better in all matters of wisdom and understanding. Wow ! Isn’t that an amazing testimony.
Now with this in mind lets come to chapter 2…Now Nebuchadnezzar had dreams and his spirit was so troubled that his sleep left him. Then the king commanded all his magicians and astrologers and sorcerers and the Chaldeans to tell him his dream . Now this was something new. They told the king if he would tell them his dream then they would give the interpretation for it. But how could they tell him the dream itself ? Now the king got really angry and furious and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions to kill them
Whoa !! What a sudden turn of events. Just imagine being in Daniel’s shoes. You take a stand for God and God blesses you and makes you find favor in the eyes of your superior and you are so happy and so blessed and now all of a sudden there are people out to kill you !!! What would you do ?
A lot of us probably would have said “Lord … have you forgotten me ? I stand for you and now what is happening ? People are out to kill me for absolutely no reason of mine.. I didn’t do anything wrong..”
How many of us find ourselves in situations we just don’t understand ? You know what Daniel did ? Daniel asked the king to give him time to tell the interpretation and then he went to his house and updated his companions about it. For what ? “that they may might seek mercies from the God of heaven”.
Find yourself in an unexplainable situation…? Its so that you may seek mercies from the God of heaven ! When God allows something to happen its so that we may seek Him and that His name be glorified.
They did not complain regarding the situation or the sudden turn of events . They did not get all anxious and flustered . They did not try justifying themselves before God as to why all this should not happen to them … no no no. They knew they had to do just one thing . Seek His mercy.
And you know what ? the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision . And Daniel blessed God.
Guess what happened after Daniel spoke to the king regarding the dream . We read in Daniel 2 :47 , “The king answered Daniel, and said, “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.”
Wow ! It doesn’t matter what happens around us.. whether things seem logical , justifiable , or not. We are to do just one thing. Seek His mercy. Spend time in His presence. And He will grant us wisdom. And He will use us as an instrument for His glory in ways we just cant begin to imagine.
God Bless
Daniel 2 : 17-18 (New King James Version)
A little background to what has taken place in chapter 1 . Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had besieged Jerusalem. The king then instructed Ashpenaz to bring some of the children of Israel who were gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge,… so that they might teach the language and literature of the Chaldeans. Now from among those of the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah , Mishael and Azariah. And to them the chief of eunuchs had given names. Daniel was called Belteshazzar , Hananiah was called Shadrach , Mishael was called Meshach and Azariah was called Abednego. The king had appointed a daily provision of the king’s delicacies and of the wine which he drank. Now Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies. So he requested the chief of the eunuchs regarding it. Now the chief was scared if something would happen to Daniel and his friends if they did not eat properly. Because the chief was answerable to the king. But then Daniel told the chief to test them for ten days and to give them just vegetables and water. And at the end of ten days the chief saw that their features were better and they appeared fatter in flesh than all the young men who ate the portion of the king’s delicacies. And you know what ? God gave them knowledge and skill and wisdom. And when the king interviewed them at the end of the tenure of their training we read that among all the young men there was none like them ! And they served before the king. And when compared to all the magicians and astrologers in all the king’s realm he found them ten times better in all matters of wisdom and understanding. Wow ! Isn’t that an amazing testimony.
Now with this in mind lets come to chapter 2…Now Nebuchadnezzar had dreams and his spirit was so troubled that his sleep left him. Then the king commanded all his magicians and astrologers and sorcerers and the Chaldeans to tell him his dream . Now this was something new. They told the king if he would tell them his dream then they would give the interpretation for it. But how could they tell him the dream itself ? Now the king got really angry and furious and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions to kill them
Whoa !! What a sudden turn of events. Just imagine being in Daniel’s shoes. You take a stand for God and God blesses you and makes you find favor in the eyes of your superior and you are so happy and so blessed and now all of a sudden there are people out to kill you !!! What would you do ?
A lot of us probably would have said “Lord … have you forgotten me ? I stand for you and now what is happening ? People are out to kill me for absolutely no reason of mine.. I didn’t do anything wrong..”
How many of us find ourselves in situations we just don’t understand ? You know what Daniel did ? Daniel asked the king to give him time to tell the interpretation and then he went to his house and updated his companions about it. For what ? “that they may might seek mercies from the God of heaven”.
Find yourself in an unexplainable situation…? Its so that you may seek mercies from the God of heaven ! When God allows something to happen its so that we may seek Him and that His name be glorified.
They did not complain regarding the situation or the sudden turn of events . They did not get all anxious and flustered . They did not try justifying themselves before God as to why all this should not happen to them … no no no. They knew they had to do just one thing . Seek His mercy.
And you know what ? the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision . And Daniel blessed God.
Guess what happened after Daniel spoke to the king regarding the dream . We read in Daniel 2 :47 , “The king answered Daniel, and said, “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.”
Wow ! It doesn’t matter what happens around us.. whether things seem logical , justifiable , or not. We are to do just one thing. Seek His mercy. Spend time in His presence. And He will grant us wisdom. And He will use us as an instrument for His glory in ways we just cant begin to imagine.
God Bless
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
GO ! SPEAK TO WARN !
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. “
Matthew 28: 19-20 (New King James Version)
A lot of us sometimes find ourselves stuck in a comfort zone. We have reached this good life and a good church life. We attend the Bible studies , we attend the care cells , we attend every meeting that is there at church. But yet there is something very important missing. What about those who don’t know Christ as their personal Lord and Savior ? What will happen to them ?
If you see a blind man standing in the middle of the road and you see a car or a van that’s heading straight for him what would you do ? We would in the very least scream ‘Look out !’ . We would yank him aside into safety .Why is it so easy for us to perceive physical death but we let eternal death slip our minds ? Every unsaved soul that we see around us is a person blinded by the devil . And the devil sets them up to be run over into eternal death.
Here is the key word of today’s meditation. The Lord said ‘Go’. He never told the disciples ‘ok stay where you are – don’t move ! and I will cause people to come to you right where you are and you can tell them about Me’. The Lord said ‘GO’ ! And this is the commission given to us as well.
The Lord is saying ‘GO’ ! Its time we get out of our comfort zones and go ! Sharing the good news of our Lord .. sharing the message of the Cross.
A lot of us when we talk about our unsaved relatives or friends have this answer always ready ‘Yes I am praying for them daily.. I remember them in my prayers’ . Prayer is definitely a very vital part of what we are supposed to do. But that is not the only thing.
Lets turn our Bibles to Ezekiel 33 : 8 “When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand.”
The Bible is very clear about those who will spend eternity in hell .
Now, if we do not what ? SPEAK TO WARN the wicked from his way , what will happen ? Not only will the wicked man die in his iniquity but his blood the Lord will hold us accountable for.
Speak to warn people what is going to be the results if they keep going about in the path which they have chosen. Then need to come to Christ. Because Jesus Christ is the only way. He is the truth . He is life !
The Lord has told us ‘GO’
What are we doing ?
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. “
God Bless
Matthew 28: 19-20 (New King James Version)
A lot of us sometimes find ourselves stuck in a comfort zone. We have reached this good life and a good church life. We attend the Bible studies , we attend the care cells , we attend every meeting that is there at church. But yet there is something very important missing. What about those who don’t know Christ as their personal Lord and Savior ? What will happen to them ?
If you see a blind man standing in the middle of the road and you see a car or a van that’s heading straight for him what would you do ? We would in the very least scream ‘Look out !’ . We would yank him aside into safety .Why is it so easy for us to perceive physical death but we let eternal death slip our minds ? Every unsaved soul that we see around us is a person blinded by the devil . And the devil sets them up to be run over into eternal death.
Here is the key word of today’s meditation. The Lord said ‘Go’. He never told the disciples ‘ok stay where you are – don’t move ! and I will cause people to come to you right where you are and you can tell them about Me’. The Lord said ‘GO’ ! And this is the commission given to us as well.
The Lord is saying ‘GO’ ! Its time we get out of our comfort zones and go ! Sharing the good news of our Lord .. sharing the message of the Cross.
A lot of us when we talk about our unsaved relatives or friends have this answer always ready ‘Yes I am praying for them daily.. I remember them in my prayers’ . Prayer is definitely a very vital part of what we are supposed to do. But that is not the only thing.
Lets turn our Bibles to Ezekiel 33 : 8 “When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand.”
The Bible is very clear about those who will spend eternity in hell .
Now, if we do not what ? SPEAK TO WARN the wicked from his way , what will happen ? Not only will the wicked man die in his iniquity but his blood the Lord will hold us accountable for.
Speak to warn people what is going to be the results if they keep going about in the path which they have chosen. Then need to come to Christ. Because Jesus Christ is the only way. He is the truth . He is life !
The Lord has told us ‘GO’
What are we doing ?
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. “
God Bless
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Are we obedient in waiting on Him ?
“Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!”
Psalm 27: 14 (New King James Version)
Wait ! How many of us like waiting ? How many of us can wait patiently ? How many of us can wait in faith and be of good courage ? J Waiting on the Lord is an important act of obedience. Lets turn our Bibles to the book of Exodus. We are going to quickly look at couple of events that took place from Chapters 7 to 17. I strongly encourage you to read these chapters in detail some time today.
The main issue with the Israelites ? They just couldn’t wait. In Exodus 7 to 11 we read about the ten plagues. Now the plagues never effected the house of Israel. And this was a sign to all to show the difference between His people and the rest. You notice here that the Israelites never complained at this point . Because they saw instant miracles ! They saw plagues affect the houses of the Egyptians. But nothing touched the Israelites who dwelled in the land of Goshen . Even the livestock of Israel was not affected by the plague. Wow ! Just imagine that.
The Israelites who saw these take place had no problem obeying the things that had to be done for the Passover . They had seen wonders take place before their eyes in an instant . Obedience came easily even though they had a lot to do. We read in chapter 12 that they had to take a lamb on the tenth of the month according to the house of his father and if the household was too small for the lamb then they had to join with his neighbor and take it according to the number of persons. And the lamb was to be without blemish and a male of the first year. Now it was to be kept until the fourteenth day of the month and then the entire assembly of the congregation of Israel were to kill it at twilight. And then they were to take some of the blood in a basin and with a bunch of hyssop they were to dip it in the blood and strike the lintel and the two doorposts. And not just that. They were to eat the flesh of the lamb on that night roasted in fire. Not raw not boiled but roasted completely. And anything that remained in the morning was to be burnt with fire. And from the fourteenth day of the month till the twenty-first day they were to eat unleavened bread.
Interesting isn’t it that the people of Israel never complained . No waiting involved. They had seen wonders in an instant and they were given something to do … They were obedient.
With this in mind lets go to chapters 13 and 14. The Bible says in Exodus 13: 21-22, “ And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and night. He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.” As over six thousand men on foot besides children went there was no complains …
Now get this.. the first sign of trouble comes… We read in Exodus 14 : 10 ,”And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid and cried out to the LORD.” They even said to Moses that ‘Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness?’ . At the very first sign of trouble they could not wait on the Lord .
Now we all know what ensued. The Lord divided the red sea and people of Israel walked through the midst of it. Interesting enough again when they say the wonder when they saw that miracle there were no complains but total obedience.
Honestly I would have been a little scared – in fact a lot because hey I’m walking through the midst of the sea.. what if it suddenly closes up ?
But you the Israelites had faith that that would not happen. Because God worked a wonder and He is faithful. They walked through it and were safe. Unlike the Egyptians army who were covered up by the sea.
Now the Israelites rejoiced. In chapter 15 we see they started becoming thirsty. Next sign of trouble . But no they could not wait ! When they saw instant wonders and miracles their obedience was remarkable. But when it came to waiting on the Lord they failed. They started complaining.
In Chapter 17 we see another instance where they became thirsty… oh but they could not wait on the Lord. They just could not. They started contending with Moses.
The Israelites just couldn’t wait. When they saw the glory of God on Mount Sinai they obeyed. But when they had to wait on the Lord they just could not. By the time Moses came down from the mountain they had made for themselves a golden calf and started worshipping it.
A lot of us are like the Israelites… We see instant miracles we see instant results oh we are so obedient !!! When God says be still, we just cant wait . We cant just sit in His presence and say ‘ok Lord I will wait on you.’
Waiting is an act of obedience. Waiting in faith . Though you see nothing happening around you … though people start saying all kinds of things… you ought to wait on the Lord. When God has asked us to wait let us not wait and complain. Let us not say we are waiting on the Lord and then start doing things based on our own strength and our own wisdom. We ought to wait on the Lord in faith and be of good courage and He will strengthen our hearts.
Isaiah 40 : 31 , “But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.”
God Bless
Psalm 27: 14 (New King James Version)
Wait ! How many of us like waiting ? How many of us can wait patiently ? How many of us can wait in faith and be of good courage ? J Waiting on the Lord is an important act of obedience. Lets turn our Bibles to the book of Exodus. We are going to quickly look at couple of events that took place from Chapters 7 to 17. I strongly encourage you to read these chapters in detail some time today.
The main issue with the Israelites ? They just couldn’t wait. In Exodus 7 to 11 we read about the ten plagues. Now the plagues never effected the house of Israel. And this was a sign to all to show the difference between His people and the rest. You notice here that the Israelites never complained at this point . Because they saw instant miracles ! They saw plagues affect the houses of the Egyptians. But nothing touched the Israelites who dwelled in the land of Goshen . Even the livestock of Israel was not affected by the plague. Wow ! Just imagine that.
The Israelites who saw these take place had no problem obeying the things that had to be done for the Passover . They had seen wonders take place before their eyes in an instant . Obedience came easily even though they had a lot to do. We read in chapter 12 that they had to take a lamb on the tenth of the month according to the house of his father and if the household was too small for the lamb then they had to join with his neighbor and take it according to the number of persons. And the lamb was to be without blemish and a male of the first year. Now it was to be kept until the fourteenth day of the month and then the entire assembly of the congregation of Israel were to kill it at twilight. And then they were to take some of the blood in a basin and with a bunch of hyssop they were to dip it in the blood and strike the lintel and the two doorposts. And not just that. They were to eat the flesh of the lamb on that night roasted in fire. Not raw not boiled but roasted completely. And anything that remained in the morning was to be burnt with fire. And from the fourteenth day of the month till the twenty-first day they were to eat unleavened bread.
Interesting isn’t it that the people of Israel never complained . No waiting involved. They had seen wonders in an instant and they were given something to do … They were obedient.
With this in mind lets go to chapters 13 and 14. The Bible says in Exodus 13: 21-22, “ And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and night. He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.” As over six thousand men on foot besides children went there was no complains …
Now get this.. the first sign of trouble comes… We read in Exodus 14 : 10 ,”And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid and cried out to the LORD.” They even said to Moses that ‘Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness?’ . At the very first sign of trouble they could not wait on the Lord .
Now we all know what ensued. The Lord divided the red sea and people of Israel walked through the midst of it. Interesting enough again when they say the wonder when they saw that miracle there were no complains but total obedience.
Honestly I would have been a little scared – in fact a lot because hey I’m walking through the midst of the sea.. what if it suddenly closes up ?
But you the Israelites had faith that that would not happen. Because God worked a wonder and He is faithful. They walked through it and were safe. Unlike the Egyptians army who were covered up by the sea.
Now the Israelites rejoiced. In chapter 15 we see they started becoming thirsty. Next sign of trouble . But no they could not wait ! When they saw instant wonders and miracles their obedience was remarkable. But when it came to waiting on the Lord they failed. They started complaining.
In Chapter 17 we see another instance where they became thirsty… oh but they could not wait on the Lord. They just could not. They started contending with Moses.
The Israelites just couldn’t wait. When they saw the glory of God on Mount Sinai they obeyed. But when they had to wait on the Lord they just could not. By the time Moses came down from the mountain they had made for themselves a golden calf and started worshipping it.
A lot of us are like the Israelites… We see instant miracles we see instant results oh we are so obedient !!! When God says be still, we just cant wait . We cant just sit in His presence and say ‘ok Lord I will wait on you.’
Waiting is an act of obedience. Waiting in faith . Though you see nothing happening around you … though people start saying all kinds of things… you ought to wait on the Lord. When God has asked us to wait let us not wait and complain. Let us not say we are waiting on the Lord and then start doing things based on our own strength and our own wisdom. We ought to wait on the Lord in faith and be of good courage and He will strengthen our hearts.
Isaiah 40 : 31 , “But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.”
God Bless
Monday, November 16, 2009
"Oh be careful little eyes..."
“For this is the will of God, your sanctification : that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness.”
I Thessalonians 4 : 3-7 (New King James Version)
Wow ! For this is the will of God… Our Sanctification ! We - our bodies ought to be controlled in a way that is holy and honorable and not be treated and used in a way that the heathen do. We are to be vessels of honor to be used by the King ! How careful do we need to be .
Every word that comes out from our mouth , every message , every thought ….
I remember learning as a kid in Sunday school this song “Oh be careful little eyes what you see … there is a Father up above who is looking down with love” and it goes on to say ‘Oh be careful little ears what you hear… oh be careful little legs where you go…”
What have our eyes been seeing ? What have our ears been hearing ? What have our lips been speaking ? Where have our legs been going ? What have our hands been doing ?
We serve such a Holy God . And we read that ‘For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness”.
God hates sin !! We dealt regarding this a month ago I guess. Jesus Christ is Life !! And Sin is Death !!! They are two opposites ! Where are we standing today ?
Let us get right with God today ! Right now ! This very moment. We need to stop giving excuses for our lies , our sinful acts ,..if we are not right with God now then we will be held accountable !
Do you want the Lord to use you for His every good work ?
We read in II Timothy 2: 20-21 “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold or silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel of honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.”
Sometimes a lot of us think we can keep doing what we like and also have God in our lives… No ! Its time to be set apart for God… only a vessel of honor sanctified is useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.
Its time… Throw away that addiction. Today ! Right now ! If there is any sexual addictions in our lives then lets cry out to the Lord right now and ask Him to forgive us and let us surrender our lives completely to Him. If you say that you are a Christian but you still drink or smoke get rid of that habit right now today . For it is better to live one day on this earth being right with God than a hundred years in sin. For this world is just a temporary stop my dear brothers and sisters in Christ. Our focus is on eternity - Eternal life.
If we are so prone to gossip, lying ,… oh let us cry out that the Lord will guard our tongues. We need to pray for forgiveness in all humility. Our Father is so so Holy . We cant even to begin to imagine the glory of our God !! Throw away that internet connection if it causes you to sin… throw away your television if it causes you to watch all filth .. cut away that relationship that causes you to sin , to lie and that destroys family….
Let us surrender ourselves completely to His Holy will : to be sanctified … to be set apart for His glory .
God Bless
I Thessalonians 4 : 3-7 (New King James Version)
Wow ! For this is the will of God… Our Sanctification ! We - our bodies ought to be controlled in a way that is holy and honorable and not be treated and used in a way that the heathen do. We are to be vessels of honor to be used by the King ! How careful do we need to be .
Every word that comes out from our mouth , every message , every thought ….
I remember learning as a kid in Sunday school this song “Oh be careful little eyes what you see … there is a Father up above who is looking down with love” and it goes on to say ‘Oh be careful little ears what you hear… oh be careful little legs where you go…”
What have our eyes been seeing ? What have our ears been hearing ? What have our lips been speaking ? Where have our legs been going ? What have our hands been doing ?
We serve such a Holy God . And we read that ‘For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness”.
God hates sin !! We dealt regarding this a month ago I guess. Jesus Christ is Life !! And Sin is Death !!! They are two opposites ! Where are we standing today ?
Let us get right with God today ! Right now ! This very moment. We need to stop giving excuses for our lies , our sinful acts ,..if we are not right with God now then we will be held accountable !
Do you want the Lord to use you for His every good work ?
We read in II Timothy 2: 20-21 “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold or silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel of honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.”
Sometimes a lot of us think we can keep doing what we like and also have God in our lives… No ! Its time to be set apart for God… only a vessel of honor sanctified is useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.
Its time… Throw away that addiction. Today ! Right now ! If there is any sexual addictions in our lives then lets cry out to the Lord right now and ask Him to forgive us and let us surrender our lives completely to Him. If you say that you are a Christian but you still drink or smoke get rid of that habit right now today . For it is better to live one day on this earth being right with God than a hundred years in sin. For this world is just a temporary stop my dear brothers and sisters in Christ. Our focus is on eternity - Eternal life.
If we are so prone to gossip, lying ,… oh let us cry out that the Lord will guard our tongues. We need to pray for forgiveness in all humility. Our Father is so so Holy . We cant even to begin to imagine the glory of our God !! Throw away that internet connection if it causes you to sin… throw away your television if it causes you to watch all filth .. cut away that relationship that causes you to sin , to lie and that destroys family….
Let us surrender ourselves completely to His Holy will : to be sanctified … to be set apart for His glory .
God Bless
Sunday, November 15, 2009
What are we looking at ?
“Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.”
Jeremiah 32 : 17 (New King James Version)
I would like to share something which I heard from a wonderful sermon last evening . We all are familiar with the story of David and Goliath. Now David had no fear when he saw Goliath . Do you know why ? Because he had faith in God. He trusted entirely on God and not on his own strength . When he saw Goliath he did not compare himself and Goliath and say “Whoa ! This dude is so much bigger and stronger than me…” … no no no … He looked at Goliath and knew he was nothing in comparison with the Lord God Almighty !
A lot of times we find ourselves in a similar situation… Tough problems come up and a lot of times we compare what we can do in our strength with regards to the problem. And then we go ‘Oh this problem is too much for me…. How will I deal with it ?”. That was mistake 1. We shouldn’t be thinking of handling things on our own strength and our own understanding . We ought to be saying ‘Nothing is too hard for my God !” and walk in faith . And this comes only with a personal relationship with our God.
We can attend all the services at church , we can read all the gospel books and sing all the gospel songs but if we don’t have a personal relationship with the Lord then we are missing something major !
The Lord who made the heavens and earth is our Father ! Wow ! Our hearts ought to long to spend time in His presence.
A preacher once asked the congregation “How many of you skipped all 3 meals and did not eat anything because you were so busy with work at the office or house hold work or studies…” No one from the congregation lifted their hands up. Then the preacher asked the congregation “How many of you did not spend time in God’s presence and with His word because you were too busy”… 70% of the congregation lifted up their hands. A lot of us are in the same boat. No matter how busy or tied up we are we always find time to grab a bite to eat. Why is our spiritual food taking a back seat ??
God Bless
Jeremiah 32 : 17 (New King James Version)
I would like to share something which I heard from a wonderful sermon last evening . We all are familiar with the story of David and Goliath. Now David had no fear when he saw Goliath . Do you know why ? Because he had faith in God. He trusted entirely on God and not on his own strength . When he saw Goliath he did not compare himself and Goliath and say “Whoa ! This dude is so much bigger and stronger than me…” … no no no … He looked at Goliath and knew he was nothing in comparison with the Lord God Almighty !
A lot of times we find ourselves in a similar situation… Tough problems come up and a lot of times we compare what we can do in our strength with regards to the problem. And then we go ‘Oh this problem is too much for me…. How will I deal with it ?”. That was mistake 1. We shouldn’t be thinking of handling things on our own strength and our own understanding . We ought to be saying ‘Nothing is too hard for my God !” and walk in faith . And this comes only with a personal relationship with our God.
We can attend all the services at church , we can read all the gospel books and sing all the gospel songs but if we don’t have a personal relationship with the Lord then we are missing something major !
The Lord who made the heavens and earth is our Father ! Wow ! Our hearts ought to long to spend time in His presence.
A preacher once asked the congregation “How many of you skipped all 3 meals and did not eat anything because you were so busy with work at the office or house hold work or studies…” No one from the congregation lifted their hands up. Then the preacher asked the congregation “How many of you did not spend time in God’s presence and with His word because you were too busy”… 70% of the congregation lifted up their hands. A lot of us are in the same boat. No matter how busy or tied up we are we always find time to grab a bite to eat. Why is our spiritual food taking a back seat ??
God Bless
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
To All People
“Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds”
Luke 2 :17-18 (New King James Version)
We read in verses 15 and 16 that after the angels had gone away that the shepherds said to one another ‘Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.’ And they came in haste and found Mary and Joseph and the Babe lying in a manger. Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told to them concerning Christ. And all those who heard it marveled..some versions use the word ‘wondered’.
You and I have a bigger testimony to share to all those around us… It’s the message of the cross ! Not only do we rejoice that Christ came to earth … but we rejoice that He paid the price for our sins and rose from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father. And He calls us His own !! We have been ransomed by the blood of Jesus Christ .
Yesterday we read what the angel spoke to the shepherds… Luke 2 : 10 “Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” The good news of great joy is for all people. And the shepherds rightfully went about telling as many people as they could.
We who have tasted the Lord have a great commission . We read in Matthew 28 : 19-20 , “”Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen”
Are we leading testimonial lives ? Are we sharing the good news of having Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives ?
We read in Matthew 5: 15, “”Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.”
The Lord is our light and our salvation !And we are now the light of the world. And we who now have Christ in us are meant to shine forth for His glory. Who lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket ? No one… why ? because it defeats the purpose of the lamp. But a lamp is to be put on a lampstand for what ? So that it gives light to all who are in the house. Wherever we are and wherever we go, the light should shine forth from within us that people around us will see and give God the glory.
Matthew 5: 16 “”Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
God Bless
Luke 2 :17-18 (New King James Version)
We read in verses 15 and 16 that after the angels had gone away that the shepherds said to one another ‘Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.’ And they came in haste and found Mary and Joseph and the Babe lying in a manger. Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told to them concerning Christ. And all those who heard it marveled..some versions use the word ‘wondered’.
You and I have a bigger testimony to share to all those around us… It’s the message of the cross ! Not only do we rejoice that Christ came to earth … but we rejoice that He paid the price for our sins and rose from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father. And He calls us His own !! We have been ransomed by the blood of Jesus Christ .
Yesterday we read what the angel spoke to the shepherds… Luke 2 : 10 “Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” The good news of great joy is for all people. And the shepherds rightfully went about telling as many people as they could.
We who have tasted the Lord have a great commission . We read in Matthew 28 : 19-20 , “”Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen”
Are we leading testimonial lives ? Are we sharing the good news of having Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives ?
We read in Matthew 5: 15, “”Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.”
The Lord is our light and our salvation !And we are now the light of the world. And we who now have Christ in us are meant to shine forth for His glory. Who lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket ? No one… why ? because it defeats the purpose of the lamp. But a lamp is to be put on a lampstand for what ? So that it gives light to all who are in the house. Wherever we are and wherever we go, the light should shine forth from within us that people around us will see and give God the glory.
Matthew 5: 16 “”Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
God Bless
Monday, November 9, 2009
Born in a Manger
“And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger”
Luke 2: 12 (New King James Version)
We read in the prior verses that the shepherds were in the fields keeping watch over their flock by night and an angel of the Lord stood before them and the glory of the Lord shone around them. It is no surprise that they were afraid. But listen carefully to what the angel said.
We read in verse 10, “Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” The angel tells the shepherds that he has good news for them… and that news is not just regular news… its good news of great joy. And wait there is more … its not just for the shepherds but its for all people ! Verse 11 , “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Wow ! Christ the Lord is born ! He has come as it had been prophesied .
And do you know what was THE sign given to the shepherds to find who was Christ ? We read in verse 12 that the shepherds would find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying where ? In a manger !!
What is a manger ? Its a trough or box of carved stone or wood construction used to hold food for animals in a stable. Immediately I was reminded of the verse in John 6: 58, “This is the bread which came down from heaven – not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.” Christ came to world to save us from our sins… and He took our place on the cross and died for our sins that we who believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. He did not come to the earth being born in a royal palace. No no no . He lay in a manger signifying His purpose !
Its no wonder that we read in Luke 2:13-14 , “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying : Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
God Bless
Luke 2: 12 (New King James Version)
We read in the prior verses that the shepherds were in the fields keeping watch over their flock by night and an angel of the Lord stood before them and the glory of the Lord shone around them. It is no surprise that they were afraid. But listen carefully to what the angel said.
We read in verse 10, “Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” The angel tells the shepherds that he has good news for them… and that news is not just regular news… its good news of great joy. And wait there is more … its not just for the shepherds but its for all people ! Verse 11 , “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Wow ! Christ the Lord is born ! He has come as it had been prophesied .
And do you know what was THE sign given to the shepherds to find who was Christ ? We read in verse 12 that the shepherds would find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying where ? In a manger !!
What is a manger ? Its a trough or box of carved stone or wood construction used to hold food for animals in a stable. Immediately I was reminded of the verse in John 6: 58, “This is the bread which came down from heaven – not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.” Christ came to world to save us from our sins… and He took our place on the cross and died for our sins that we who believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. He did not come to the earth being born in a royal palace. No no no . He lay in a manger signifying His purpose !
Its no wonder that we read in Luke 2:13-14 , “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying : Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
God Bless
ALL things
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”
Philippians 4:13 (New King James Version)
I remember always claiming this verse when I had hectic project work and a very crucial deliverable J I rested upon Him knowing that it is only by His grace that I can do anything. And by His strength , by relying upon Him totally I will come out victorious.
The Lord opened my eyes to see the entirety of this verse… I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Meaning even when times are tough and I am supposed to go through that tough time I can get through it through Christ who strengthens me.
When I have been praying for the salvation of loved ones and I don’t see anything happening I wont give up hope – How ? Through Christ who strengthens me ! Do we realize that ? I know I didn’t .
Sometimes when we don’t see answers for our prayers over a period of time we begin to weaken… and that’s when we need to remember ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’. We need to say ‘Lord even in this period of waiting I will wait patiently because You are my strength and even though waiting is tough but I can do all things through You”
We read in verse 12 , “ I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.”. Wow ! ALL things :-)
We are not of the world . We are citizens of heaven ! Did you know that ? We read in Philippians 3:20 ‘For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ,”
We are foreigners in this world. We are not native of it J Our Father is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
And we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Be it waiting patiently on Him , be it facing persecution for His name’s sake , be it going through tough times… we can do all things..
Not by our might , nor by our power…but by His Spirit !
Next time when you go through a tough situation , or when things are just beyond comprehension …remember… you can get through it through Christ who strengthens you. You may not always have an answer to the question why … but when you are walking in accordance to God’s Holy will , you know you are being shaped right !
Struggling with addiction ? It doesn’t matter what it is .. be it bad vocab , lying , smoking ,… sexual immorality … You can overcome it and be set free. How ? Through Christ who strengthens you .
“I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”
God Bless
Philippians 4:13 (New King James Version)
I remember always claiming this verse when I had hectic project work and a very crucial deliverable J I rested upon Him knowing that it is only by His grace that I can do anything. And by His strength , by relying upon Him totally I will come out victorious.
The Lord opened my eyes to see the entirety of this verse… I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Meaning even when times are tough and I am supposed to go through that tough time I can get through it through Christ who strengthens me.
When I have been praying for the salvation of loved ones and I don’t see anything happening I wont give up hope – How ? Through Christ who strengthens me ! Do we realize that ? I know I didn’t .
Sometimes when we don’t see answers for our prayers over a period of time we begin to weaken… and that’s when we need to remember ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’. We need to say ‘Lord even in this period of waiting I will wait patiently because You are my strength and even though waiting is tough but I can do all things through You”
We read in verse 12 , “ I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.”. Wow ! ALL things :-)
We are not of the world . We are citizens of heaven ! Did you know that ? We read in Philippians 3:20 ‘For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ,”
We are foreigners in this world. We are not native of it J Our Father is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
And we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Be it waiting patiently on Him , be it facing persecution for His name’s sake , be it going through tough times… we can do all things..
Not by our might , nor by our power…but by His Spirit !
Next time when you go through a tough situation , or when things are just beyond comprehension …remember… you can get through it through Christ who strengthens you. You may not always have an answer to the question why … but when you are walking in accordance to God’s Holy will , you know you are being shaped right !
Struggling with addiction ? It doesn’t matter what it is .. be it bad vocab , lying , smoking ,… sexual immorality … You can overcome it and be set free. How ? Through Christ who strengthens you .
“I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”
God Bless
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Proclaim praises of Him
“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.”
I Peter 2 : 9-10 (New King James Version)
Wow ! We who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour , we who obey His word – We are a chosen generation ! We are a royal priesthood ! We are a holy nation ! We are His own special people .
Isn’t that amazing ! We are His own special people ! The King of kings and the Lord of lords has us as His own special people !!
Do you know what we are to do as His special people ?
Proclaim praises of Him ! Telling the world how awesome it is to have Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives. That we were once in darkness but He called us into His marvelous light.
Are we doing that ?
Proclaim praises of Him ! Telling the world how once we were not a people but now we are the people of God , telling people we who had not obtained mercy now have obtained mercy .
Oh how good it is to serve such a wonderful loving God … He is our Lord , our Father , our best friend ! What a joy it is to just be able to praise Him !
Are we proclaiming praises of Him ?
Some of us take a neutral approach and we just say yes God is good. Do we tell people yes Jesus Christ is amazing ? To so many of us God has opened doors to share what the Lord has done. But we don’t use it . Instead we say ‘Oh… I will pray for them in my house….’
If we would just submit ourselves and pray ‘Lord use me’ you wont believe how God will work ! God has used a sticker on my bike , a verse on my desk … my job ,.. to open doors to share His word ! Our God is so amazing . He doesn’t need us… but yet by His grace and mercy He has chosen us to do His will. With what reverence should we be sharing the joy of the Lord !
Couple of years ago when I was in New York , I took a bus as always to get to work . And as the bus stopped at some stop , this lady with worn out clothes who was sitting somewhere at the back of the bus, walked by me and thrust a paper into my hand and got off the bus. And I opened my hand to find this old , a little crushed gospel tract and I wondered “Lord what is this all about ? Why would this lady give this to me … “ The tract was about the gift of salvation and I remembered the lady did not have anything else with her … It was not like she was passing out tracts or anything… this was the only one she had and from the looks of it , it seemed like it was her personal one. As I reached office I continued to pray and then the Lord opened my eyes to see what I was to do with that tract. The Lord led me to order copies of the tract and send it to my church in India. And I did that. I have no idea to whom the tracts were distributed and what was the result of it. But I do know the Lord had a purpose and I know it was fulfilled.
Isn’t our Lord just so amazing ! He will use us in ways we cannot even begin to imagine. What our Lord desires is obedience . And He will lead us and show us what is to be done.
Are we willing to proclaim praises of Him ? God might ask you to talk to a stranger , to share a book , to send out a mail , to pray ,…. His ways are beyond our comprehension. The important question is this … Are you willing to come out of your comfort zone for Him ?
God Bless
I Peter 2 : 9-10 (New King James Version)
Wow ! We who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour , we who obey His word – We are a chosen generation ! We are a royal priesthood ! We are a holy nation ! We are His own special people .
Isn’t that amazing ! We are His own special people ! The King of kings and the Lord of lords has us as His own special people !!
Do you know what we are to do as His special people ?
Proclaim praises of Him ! Telling the world how awesome it is to have Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives. That we were once in darkness but He called us into His marvelous light.
Are we doing that ?
Proclaim praises of Him ! Telling the world how once we were not a people but now we are the people of God , telling people we who had not obtained mercy now have obtained mercy .
Oh how good it is to serve such a wonderful loving God … He is our Lord , our Father , our best friend ! What a joy it is to just be able to praise Him !
Are we proclaiming praises of Him ?
Some of us take a neutral approach and we just say yes God is good. Do we tell people yes Jesus Christ is amazing ? To so many of us God has opened doors to share what the Lord has done. But we don’t use it . Instead we say ‘Oh… I will pray for them in my house….’
If we would just submit ourselves and pray ‘Lord use me’ you wont believe how God will work ! God has used a sticker on my bike , a verse on my desk … my job ,.. to open doors to share His word ! Our God is so amazing . He doesn’t need us… but yet by His grace and mercy He has chosen us to do His will. With what reverence should we be sharing the joy of the Lord !
Couple of years ago when I was in New York , I took a bus as always to get to work . And as the bus stopped at some stop , this lady with worn out clothes who was sitting somewhere at the back of the bus, walked by me and thrust a paper into my hand and got off the bus. And I opened my hand to find this old , a little crushed gospel tract and I wondered “Lord what is this all about ? Why would this lady give this to me … “ The tract was about the gift of salvation and I remembered the lady did not have anything else with her … It was not like she was passing out tracts or anything… this was the only one she had and from the looks of it , it seemed like it was her personal one. As I reached office I continued to pray and then the Lord opened my eyes to see what I was to do with that tract. The Lord led me to order copies of the tract and send it to my church in India. And I did that. I have no idea to whom the tracts were distributed and what was the result of it. But I do know the Lord had a purpose and I know it was fulfilled.
Isn’t our Lord just so amazing ! He will use us in ways we cannot even begin to imagine. What our Lord desires is obedience . And He will lead us and show us what is to be done.
Are we willing to proclaim praises of Him ? God might ask you to talk to a stranger , to share a book , to send out a mail , to pray ,…. His ways are beyond our comprehension. The important question is this … Are you willing to come out of your comfort zone for Him ?
God Bless
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Touching Heaven Changing Earth
Praise the Lord !
Please click on this link to view the first post on "Touching Heaven Changing Earth "
http://sparksablaze-prayers.blogspot.com/
God Bless
Please click on this link to view the first post on "Touching Heaven Changing Earth "
http://sparksablaze-prayers.blogspot.com/
God Bless
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
End of the world
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”
Mark 13: 32 (New King James Version)
Last week a friend of mine had sent out a mail which had very well captured photos for the movie called end of the world 2012 . However that particular forward had mentioned in it that the Bible also states that the world would end in 2012 which is of course not correct. My friend then sent out the following mail which well put everything in its proper place . And here is that mail
“"The End of the world."
the name captures the mind...this too going to be another block buster.
Have you ever wondered how, when and how the end of the world would be?
It is ironic that at some point in time, many of us(if not all),have turned ourselves to a prophet, fortuneteller or palmist to spell our destinies for us. All because we are uncertain about tomorrow. What if the world would really end one day? What if there is really a day of judgment? Would we be able to stand before God and incur the reward of the deeds we have done-good or bad?
By way the interesting thing about the movie is, they say the world is coming to an end in 2012. Sounds far-fetched…
But if you are a Christian, you know that Bible never says the year or date.(contrary to the previous mail)
Of course it mentions the end time signs like, re-formation of Israel(1948), world wars, strengthening of south Asian countries(like china, India), earth quakes(last 7 days alone recorded 57 above 5.5), Tsunamis, famines etc. Now that calls for wisdom, to sit back and countdown..
End? don't know when, but the bigger question is, are you prepared to face it??”
The Bible is very clear that only the Father knows when …. But as she well said here is the bigger question… Are we prepared to face it ? We are 2000 years closer to the end :-)
We read in Mark 13: 32-37 " “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. "Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is. "It is like a man going to a far country, who left his house and gave authority to his servants, and to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch."Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming—in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning— "lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. "And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!”"
Verse 34 says the man gave authority to his servants and to each his work ! We being ransomed by the blood of Jesus Christ now have authority and to each has been given his/her work.
What is the work that God has called you to do ? When the Lord comes will we be found faithful in completing our work or will we be found sleeping ?
God Bless
Mark 13: 32 (New King James Version)
Last week a friend of mine had sent out a mail which had very well captured photos for the movie called end of the world 2012 . However that particular forward had mentioned in it that the Bible also states that the world would end in 2012 which is of course not correct. My friend then sent out the following mail which well put everything in its proper place . And here is that mail
“"The End of the world."
the name captures the mind...this too going to be another block buster.
Have you ever wondered how, when and how the end of the world would be?
It is ironic that at some point in time, many of us(if not all),have turned ourselves to a prophet, fortuneteller or palmist to spell our destinies for us. All because we are uncertain about tomorrow. What if the world would really end one day? What if there is really a day of judgment? Would we be able to stand before God and incur the reward of the deeds we have done-good or bad?
By way the interesting thing about the movie is, they say the world is coming to an end in 2012. Sounds far-fetched…
But if you are a Christian, you know that Bible never says the year or date.(contrary to the previous mail)
Of course it mentions the end time signs like, re-formation of Israel(1948), world wars, strengthening of south Asian countries(like china, India), earth quakes(last 7 days alone recorded 57 above 5.5), Tsunamis, famines etc. Now that calls for wisdom, to sit back and countdown..
End? don't know when, but the bigger question is, are you prepared to face it??”
The Bible is very clear that only the Father knows when …. But as she well said here is the bigger question… Are we prepared to face it ? We are 2000 years closer to the end :-)
We read in Mark 13: 32-37 " “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. "Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is. "It is like a man going to a far country, who left his house and gave authority to his servants, and to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch."Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming—in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning— "lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. "And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!”"
Verse 34 says the man gave authority to his servants and to each his work ! We being ransomed by the blood of Jesus Christ now have authority and to each has been given his/her work.
What is the work that God has called you to do ? When the Lord comes will we be found faithful in completing our work or will we be found sleeping ?
God Bless
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Incomprehensible !
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners , Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8 (New King James Version)
As a kid when I wanted something extra special from my mom then I would be on my best behavior that entire day. From that itself my mom would figure out that something is up and she would go like “Ok what is it that you want ? You want to spend an extra hour playing ? “ :-) I’m sure all of us have done that as kids . My nephew comes up with a big hug and an even bigger smile and then says “can I watch cartoon now?” :-) As we grow we realize all we need to do is just ask our parents… no strings attached. And that’s the beauty of family.
We always have this notion that if we do something good, then we deserve to be rewarded. And that’s pretty much how the world works right now. You work like crazy and then get your recognition at office. You do this and then you get that ! Always expected to prove our worth .
That’s where our God stands apart ! His love is unconditional… His love is everlasting ! Verse 7 says “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die” . It makes sense to die for a good or a righteous man… but then too doing so would be so scarce. But our God is so indescribable and His love is so incomprehensible that while we were still sinners , Christ died for us ! Wow ! If Satan ever tries to play a guilt trip and tell you that God doesn’t love you just shout back at him and say “Jesus Christ died for me while I was a sinner and He loves me for my Bible tells me so ! devil u r a liar “
Couple of years ago a man of God shared with us a discussion that he and his wife had during the initial months after their marriage. She asked him “If someone held a gun to your head and said ‘deny Jesus else we will kill you’ what will you do ?” So he said ‘Of course I wont deny’ . Then she asked him a second question “if someone held a gun to my head and said ‘deny Jesus else we will kill her’ what will you do ? “ Can you see the difference ?
John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
Who can fathom the depths of His love !
Here is the music pick for the day. Its called ‘Amazing Love’
“I’m forgiven because You were forsaken
I’m accepted, You were condemned
I’m alive and well , Your Spirit is within me
Because You died and rose again
Amazing love
how can it be ?
That You my King would die for me
Amazing love
I know its true
It’s my joy to honor You
In all I do I honor You
You are my King
Jesus You are my King”
God Bless
Romans 5:8 (New King James Version)
As a kid when I wanted something extra special from my mom then I would be on my best behavior that entire day. From that itself my mom would figure out that something is up and she would go like “Ok what is it that you want ? You want to spend an extra hour playing ? “ :-) I’m sure all of us have done that as kids . My nephew comes up with a big hug and an even bigger smile and then says “can I watch cartoon now?” :-) As we grow we realize all we need to do is just ask our parents… no strings attached. And that’s the beauty of family.
We always have this notion that if we do something good, then we deserve to be rewarded. And that’s pretty much how the world works right now. You work like crazy and then get your recognition at office. You do this and then you get that ! Always expected to prove our worth .
That’s where our God stands apart ! His love is unconditional… His love is everlasting ! Verse 7 says “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die” . It makes sense to die for a good or a righteous man… but then too doing so would be so scarce. But our God is so indescribable and His love is so incomprehensible that while we were still sinners , Christ died for us ! Wow ! If Satan ever tries to play a guilt trip and tell you that God doesn’t love you just shout back at him and say “Jesus Christ died for me while I was a sinner and He loves me for my Bible tells me so ! devil u r a liar “
Couple of years ago a man of God shared with us a discussion that he and his wife had during the initial months after their marriage. She asked him “If someone held a gun to your head and said ‘deny Jesus else we will kill you’ what will you do ?” So he said ‘Of course I wont deny’ . Then she asked him a second question “if someone held a gun to my head and said ‘deny Jesus else we will kill her’ what will you do ? “ Can you see the difference ?
John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
Who can fathom the depths of His love !
Here is the music pick for the day. Its called ‘Amazing Love’
“I’m forgiven because You were forsaken
I’m accepted, You were condemned
I’m alive and well , Your Spirit is within me
Because You died and rose again
Amazing love
how can it be ?
That You my King would die for me
Amazing love
I know its true
It’s my joy to honor You
In all I do I honor You
You are my King
Jesus You are my King”
God Bless
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Spiritual Maturity
Praise the Lord ! Today instead of the usual verse for the day, would like to share a little more in detail of what the Lord has taught me over the weekend. Lets start with a prayer “Father thank you Lord that you have blessed us to see this day … Thank you Father that you have blessed us with technology that can be used for Your glory… Thank You Father for choosing us to be vessels for Your glory. We are nothing Father. But when You carry us in Your hands then are we transformed by Your grace. Father open our eyes Lord to understand Your wondrous law… Touch our hearts Lord and continue to grow us in You . We submit this time into Your hands Father…We lift it to You Lord, Bless it for Your glory . In the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ we ask, we believe and we receive . Amen”
We have all heard this phrase being used , ‘Spiritual Maturity’. What does that mean ? Does it mean that we have become so strong that now we are better than others ? NO. It just means this “We have become more sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit”. Its as simple as that. See the more sensitive we are to the Holy Spirit the more we yield ourselves in obedience to our Lord and we let Him have His way in us ,rather than being stubborn and egoistic and try doing things on our own strength and then fail and then eventually turn to God. As we grow more and more in the Lord , ‘self’ decreases and ‘He’ increases. As we grow more and more in the Lord we become familiar to the things of God. We learn to discern between the things of Him and the things not of Him. As we grow more and more in Him we realize its not our life… Life by Biblical definition is Jesus Christ. So then there is no question of what I want to do with my life. Its become 100% Lord use me for Your glory for Your purposes as per Your Holy will. We learn to obey and desire for things of Him. In short we learn to abide completely in Him. We learn not to lean on our own understanding but lean totally and completely on Him and Him only.
Lets turn our Bibles to Matthew 20 : 1-16. For those who don’t have their Bibles with you , you can access this site http://www.biblegateway.com/ . This passage talks about the parable of the workers in the vineyard. In fact lets read it together , ““For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. "Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. "And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, "and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. "Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. "And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day?’ "They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive.’“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’ "And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. "And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner, "saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’ "But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 'Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 'Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’ "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”” How are we walking ? Are we walking based on comparisons with others ? Or are we working hard for one reason and one reason alone – Because the Master called us !
Sometimes a sense of spiritual pride creeps up within and we say ‘who is this person to tell me what I should do’ or we might say ‘I have been doing this for so many years and now this person who is a new believer comes along …God You need to bless me more than him !!!” What has become our definition of Spiritual growth ? Spiritual Maturity ? God does not need us… we need Him !! Its an honor to be used of God. We are not doing God any favors. But by His grace and His mercy He has chosen us and called us His own !! WOW ! It doesn’t matter at which point you are right now in your spiritual life – the point remains – Its by His grace and His grace only that we exist . And its by His grace that we can do anything at all. If God were to remove His hand of favour from us, none of us would survive even for a fraction of a second. It does not matter how many years we are a believer or how much we have been graciously used for God’s glory. This should be engraved in our hearts “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit’ Says the LORD of hosts”.
We are alive - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
We worship Him - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
We are used for His glory - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
Everything that we are - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
Everything that we will be - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
His grace His grace His grace……….My brothers and sisters in Christ we are enveloped by His grace… We cant even kneel down and pray but not for His grace. The Lord is calling us to completely surrender ourselves… not by our might or by our power… no no no .. but to yield ourselves knowing that that comes only by His Spirit.
Psalm 23 is a Psalm which most of us have learnt as kids… let it be our prayer this morning .Lets say the words Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit prayerfully. Because there is nothing nothing nothing absolutely nothing that we can do on our own.
The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
God Bless
We have all heard this phrase being used , ‘Spiritual Maturity’. What does that mean ? Does it mean that we have become so strong that now we are better than others ? NO. It just means this “We have become more sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit”. Its as simple as that. See the more sensitive we are to the Holy Spirit the more we yield ourselves in obedience to our Lord and we let Him have His way in us ,rather than being stubborn and egoistic and try doing things on our own strength and then fail and then eventually turn to God. As we grow more and more in the Lord , ‘self’ decreases and ‘He’ increases. As we grow more and more in the Lord we become familiar to the things of God. We learn to discern between the things of Him and the things not of Him. As we grow more and more in Him we realize its not our life… Life by Biblical definition is Jesus Christ. So then there is no question of what I want to do with my life. Its become 100% Lord use me for Your glory for Your purposes as per Your Holy will. We learn to obey and desire for things of Him. In short we learn to abide completely in Him. We learn not to lean on our own understanding but lean totally and completely on Him and Him only.
Lets turn our Bibles to Matthew 20 : 1-16. For those who don’t have their Bibles with you , you can access this site http://www.biblegateway.com/ . This passage talks about the parable of the workers in the vineyard. In fact lets read it together , ““For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. "Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. "And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, "and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. "Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. "And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day?’ "They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive.’“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’ "And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. "And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner, "saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’ "But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 'Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 'Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’ "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”” How are we walking ? Are we walking based on comparisons with others ? Or are we working hard for one reason and one reason alone – Because the Master called us !
Sometimes a sense of spiritual pride creeps up within and we say ‘who is this person to tell me what I should do’ or we might say ‘I have been doing this for so many years and now this person who is a new believer comes along …God You need to bless me more than him !!!” What has become our definition of Spiritual growth ? Spiritual Maturity ? God does not need us… we need Him !! Its an honor to be used of God. We are not doing God any favors. But by His grace and His mercy He has chosen us and called us His own !! WOW ! It doesn’t matter at which point you are right now in your spiritual life – the point remains – Its by His grace and His grace only that we exist . And its by His grace that we can do anything at all. If God were to remove His hand of favour from us, none of us would survive even for a fraction of a second. It does not matter how many years we are a believer or how much we have been graciously used for God’s glory. This should be engraved in our hearts “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit’ Says the LORD of hosts”.
We are alive - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
We worship Him - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
We are used for His glory - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
Everything that we are - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
Everything that we will be - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
His grace His grace His grace……….My brothers and sisters in Christ we are enveloped by His grace… We cant even kneel down and pray but not for His grace. The Lord is calling us to completely surrender ourselves… not by our might or by our power… no no no .. but to yield ourselves knowing that that comes only by His Spirit.
Psalm 23 is a Psalm which most of us have learnt as kids… let it be our prayer this morning .Lets say the words Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit prayerfully. Because there is nothing nothing nothing absolutely nothing that we can do on our own.
The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.
Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit
God Bless
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Know and Realize
“”And he said to him ,’Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.”
Luke 15 : 31 (New King James Version)
The passage from Luke 15: 11-32 is about the parable of the Lost Son. There was a certain man who had two sons. And the younger of them asked his father to divide their inheritance and give him his due portion . Soon after that was done, the youngest soon gathered all his goods and journeyed to a far country and there he wasted all his possessions with prodigal (wasteful) living. Soon there arose a famine in that land and he began to be in want . Then he went and joined himself to a citizen in that country and used to feed the swine in the fields. He was so hungry that he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that were being fed to the swine.
We read in verses 17-18 he says , “”But when he came to himself, he said, ’How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I will perish with hunger! ‘ I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father I have sinned against heaven and before you, “and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’” If we walk away from the Lord, true enough the devil will pounce and blind us ! This son was so blinded that he did not realize the error of his ways until he had been reduced to a state of desiring to eat the pods given to swine because of hunger. If any of us have strayed away from God and are blinded by the devil I pray that our eyes will be opened to see the error of our ways. The youngest son knew he had sinned, he repented and he knew one thing … he could go to back to his father and humble himself in the presence of his father. We read that when the father saw his youngest son from afar he ran to him . The father ran to his son with compassion and open arms, because he knew that his son had come back a changed man… his son had a heart that repented. That’s exactly how our Lord is… He is so merciful and compassionate that He will carry us in His arms and will protect us and take care of us.. all He is looking for is a heart that has repented and is now open to His ways.
The father also had another son. Now when he came towards the house he heard all the excitement and the music and the dancing and was wondering what was happening. Then a servant told him that his younger brother had returned and his father had killed the fatted calf in celebration. Now this really made the older son angry and he refused to step in. So the father comes out and pleads with him. Now the older son says that he has been loyal all these years to him yet his father never gave him a goat .
This is so wonderful… the father says “‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours” . How many of us are like the older son ? We don’t even realize that all what the father has is ours ! We have been living our lives in comparison with others and have not set our focus on Him . We are a royal priesthood ! We are ambassadors of Christ ! Does our life reflect that ? Does our attitude reflect that? Does every word that comes forth from our mouth reflect that ? Does our every heart’s desire reflect that ?
God Bless
Luke 15 : 31 (New King James Version)
The passage from Luke 15: 11-32 is about the parable of the Lost Son. There was a certain man who had two sons. And the younger of them asked his father to divide their inheritance and give him his due portion . Soon after that was done, the youngest soon gathered all his goods and journeyed to a far country and there he wasted all his possessions with prodigal (wasteful) living. Soon there arose a famine in that land and he began to be in want . Then he went and joined himself to a citizen in that country and used to feed the swine in the fields. He was so hungry that he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that were being fed to the swine.
We read in verses 17-18 he says , “”But when he came to himself, he said, ’How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I will perish with hunger! ‘ I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father I have sinned against heaven and before you, “and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’” If we walk away from the Lord, true enough the devil will pounce and blind us ! This son was so blinded that he did not realize the error of his ways until he had been reduced to a state of desiring to eat the pods given to swine because of hunger. If any of us have strayed away from God and are blinded by the devil I pray that our eyes will be opened to see the error of our ways. The youngest son knew he had sinned, he repented and he knew one thing … he could go to back to his father and humble himself in the presence of his father. We read that when the father saw his youngest son from afar he ran to him . The father ran to his son with compassion and open arms, because he knew that his son had come back a changed man… his son had a heart that repented. That’s exactly how our Lord is… He is so merciful and compassionate that He will carry us in His arms and will protect us and take care of us.. all He is looking for is a heart that has repented and is now open to His ways.
The father also had another son. Now when he came towards the house he heard all the excitement and the music and the dancing and was wondering what was happening. Then a servant told him that his younger brother had returned and his father had killed the fatted calf in celebration. Now this really made the older son angry and he refused to step in. So the father comes out and pleads with him. Now the older son says that he has been loyal all these years to him yet his father never gave him a goat .
This is so wonderful… the father says “‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours” . How many of us are like the older son ? We don’t even realize that all what the father has is ours ! We have been living our lives in comparison with others and have not set our focus on Him . We are a royal priesthood ! We are ambassadors of Christ ! Does our life reflect that ? Does our attitude reflect that? Does every word that comes forth from our mouth reflect that ? Does our every heart’s desire reflect that ?
God Bless
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Are we witnesses to Him ?
“You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world”
1 John 4:4 (New King James Version)
This is a very familiar verse… How many of us knew the reference of this verse (which book, which chapter which verse)? How many of us know who won the Nobel peace prize this year ? We need to get our priorities in place
We are of God ! Wow ! Can you imagine anything that can be better than just knowing this ? Because we are washed by His blood , because we are sealed by His Holy Spirit ..He resides within us. WOW !
I love this line I read in a couple of books… The greatest miracle is the miracle of Salvation ! You and I are saved because Christ died for us and we believe He is Lord and Saviour of our lives and we walk what we believe by His grace.
Praise the Lord ! Sin and death have lost ! We have crushed Satan under our feet ! We walk knowing greater is He who is in us than he who is of the world.
But… what is pulling us down this moment ? Are we fretting regarding the things of the world ? ‘o my work has me so busy I have no time for His ministry’ , ‘o Im struggling with this financial situation’…. ‘ o that girl wont talk to me’…
Come on… We are not of this world. Then why do we let the things of the world hold so much of precedence in our life that we find ourselves having no time for God ??
We read in Acts 1 : 7-8 , “And He said to them, “it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.“
We are to walk in the anointing of God and be what ? Witnesses ! Witnesses of what ? ‘Witnesses to Me’ – Witnesses to Christ .
Are we doing that ? Or are we striving hard to be the best Consultant , the best developer, the best Business Analyst …. And have we put God on a back seat ?
Things of the world are not our priority or concern. We are to walk with the Holy Spirit upon us and be witnesses to Him .
God Bless
1 John 4:4 (New King James Version)
This is a very familiar verse… How many of us knew the reference of this verse (which book, which chapter which verse)? How many of us know who won the Nobel peace prize this year ? We need to get our priorities in place
We are of God ! Wow ! Can you imagine anything that can be better than just knowing this ? Because we are washed by His blood , because we are sealed by His Holy Spirit ..He resides within us. WOW !
I love this line I read in a couple of books… The greatest miracle is the miracle of Salvation ! You and I are saved because Christ died for us and we believe He is Lord and Saviour of our lives and we walk what we believe by His grace.
Praise the Lord ! Sin and death have lost ! We have crushed Satan under our feet ! We walk knowing greater is He who is in us than he who is of the world.
But… what is pulling us down this moment ? Are we fretting regarding the things of the world ? ‘o my work has me so busy I have no time for His ministry’ , ‘o Im struggling with this financial situation’…. ‘ o that girl wont talk to me’…
Come on… We are not of this world. Then why do we let the things of the world hold so much of precedence in our life that we find ourselves having no time for God ??
We read in Acts 1 : 7-8 , “And He said to them, “it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.“
We are to walk in the anointing of God and be what ? Witnesses ! Witnesses of what ? ‘Witnesses to Me’ – Witnesses to Christ .
Are we doing that ? Or are we striving hard to be the best Consultant , the best developer, the best Business Analyst …. And have we put God on a back seat ?
Things of the world are not our priority or concern. We are to walk with the Holy Spirit upon us and be witnesses to Him .
God Bless
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
What are we doing ?
“Then David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine”
I Samuel 17: 32 (New King James Version)
Heard a wonderful sermon this morning by God’s grace and would like to share a little from that. We read in I Samuel 16 of how David was anointed king. Samuel went up to Jesse and as he saw each of Jesse’s son the Lord clearly told Samuel that none of the sons who passed before him was His chosen. And then David was called for and we read that the Lord said “Arise, anoint him; for this is the one!”. And we read in I Samuel 16 : 13 “Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah”
Now lets turn our Bibles back to today’s verse. I’m sure most of us are familiar with the story of David and Goliath. Here is the crux of today’s message. When we are anointed of the Lord it is to say ‘I will go and fight’ when a Goliath comes ahead. It is to kill the lion and the bear that will harm the sheep of your heavenly Father’s flock. That’s why we are chosen of the Lord . That’s why God has anointed us.
It is not to take a back seat when Goliath comes.. No No no ! Its so that we will rise up and go in His name and defeat Goliath . It is so that we will say just as David did in I Samuel 17: 45 “The David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel. Whom you have defied”
What are we doing ? Are we rising up ? Or have we taken a back seat ?
God Bless
I Samuel 17: 32 (New King James Version)
Heard a wonderful sermon this morning by God’s grace and would like to share a little from that. We read in I Samuel 16 of how David was anointed king. Samuel went up to Jesse and as he saw each of Jesse’s son the Lord clearly told Samuel that none of the sons who passed before him was His chosen. And then David was called for and we read that the Lord said “Arise, anoint him; for this is the one!”. And we read in I Samuel 16 : 13 “Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah”
Now lets turn our Bibles back to today’s verse. I’m sure most of us are familiar with the story of David and Goliath. Here is the crux of today’s message. When we are anointed of the Lord it is to say ‘I will go and fight’ when a Goliath comes ahead. It is to kill the lion and the bear that will harm the sheep of your heavenly Father’s flock. That’s why we are chosen of the Lord . That’s why God has anointed us.
It is not to take a back seat when Goliath comes.. No No no ! Its so that we will rise up and go in His name and defeat Goliath . It is so that we will say just as David did in I Samuel 17: 45 “The David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel. Whom you have defied”
What are we doing ? Are we rising up ? Or have we taken a back seat ?
God Bless
Monday, October 19, 2009
Prepare the way of the LORD
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
”Prepare the way of the LORD;
Make straight in the desert
A highway for our God.
Every valley shall be exalted
And every mountain and hill be brought low;
The crooked places shall be made straight
And the rough places smooth;”
Isaiah 40:3-4 (New King James Version)
Picture this … three glasses and a jug of water are set before you and someone asks you for a glass of water. Glass 1 – Nice and clean . Glass 2 – Moderately dirty. Glass 3 – Absolutely filthy. Into which glass would you pour the water ? Straight forward answer – Glass 1 . Why ? The other two are not usable. Its as simple as that. Now we need to understand that even if the glass was just moderately filthy …bottom line : Its not usable the way you would want it. The filth needs to come out !
It’s the very same thing in our lives … its as simple as that … Are we holding on to the filth ? Or are we preparing the way of the Lord ? The verse says "‘Prepare the way of the LORD; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God”. When we allow God to work in us … wow ! What was a desert will now become a what ? A highway for our God !! Every valley will be filled. And it doesn’t stop with that … but also every mountain and hill will be brought low ! That’s correction. A lot of us like the first half of the valley being filled but not of the mountains being brought low . Correction , humility , submission…. Nothing of self…But 100% Him ! He will straighten out all the crooked places of our lives and every rough place will be made smooth ! Wow ! How awesome it is to be completely shaped and molded in His hands.
Do you know what happens when we surrender to Him and allow Him to work in our lives completely ? We read in the very next verse , verse 5 “The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
Prepare the way of the LORD !
God Bless
”Prepare the way of the LORD;
Make straight in the desert
A highway for our God.
Every valley shall be exalted
And every mountain and hill be brought low;
The crooked places shall be made straight
And the rough places smooth;”
Isaiah 40:3-4 (New King James Version)
Picture this … three glasses and a jug of water are set before you and someone asks you for a glass of water. Glass 1 – Nice and clean . Glass 2 – Moderately dirty. Glass 3 – Absolutely filthy. Into which glass would you pour the water ? Straight forward answer – Glass 1 . Why ? The other two are not usable. Its as simple as that. Now we need to understand that even if the glass was just moderately filthy …bottom line : Its not usable the way you would want it. The filth needs to come out !
It’s the very same thing in our lives … its as simple as that … Are we holding on to the filth ? Or are we preparing the way of the Lord ? The verse says "‘Prepare the way of the LORD; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God”. When we allow God to work in us … wow ! What was a desert will now become a what ? A highway for our God !! Every valley will be filled. And it doesn’t stop with that … but also every mountain and hill will be brought low ! That’s correction. A lot of us like the first half of the valley being filled but not of the mountains being brought low . Correction , humility , submission…. Nothing of self…But 100% Him ! He will straighten out all the crooked places of our lives and every rough place will be made smooth ! Wow ! How awesome it is to be completely shaped and molded in His hands.
Do you know what happens when we surrender to Him and allow Him to work in our lives completely ? We read in the very next verse , verse 5 “The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
Prepare the way of the LORD !
God Bless
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Shepherd's voice
"I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and my sheep know me. They know me just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I give my life for the sheep."
John 10:14-15
The parable is about Jesus, our shepherd and we his sheep. I love this passage and it comes alive as I read it. I can see a flock of white sheep on a hillside in a small pen. The shepherd walks through the gate and calls to them. The sheep seem to stir in excitement and gather close to the shepherd as he walks on ahead of them and leads them to the pastures.
"The sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought all of his own sheep out, he goes on ahead of them. His sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger. In fact, they will run away from him. They don't recognize a stranger's voice." John 10:3-5
Have you ever tried to call a friend and tried to speak in a voice that you hope they won't recognize? I have tried that trick with all my close friends and invariably fail every time. My close friends "Know" my voice. Infact if it was not me but a stranger they would probably just hang up!
We live in a time and age when hundred's of voices constantly bombard us. Voices of our friends, voices in the media, voices of our neighbours, voices of our culture, voices of our near and dear, voices of our desires and dreams, voices of the evil one... The passage says His sheep know His voice and that the sheep will never follow a stranger because they don't recognize his voice. In fact they will run from strangers!
Do you know the voice of your Shepherd? Do you wait calmly to hear his call and follow where he leads? Does his voice sound familiar to you? Do you run away from the voices of strangers?
This verse has been echoing in my heart repeatedly over the past few weeks reminding me of the need to "Know" my Shepherds voice and hear him above the voices of this world and the voices within me.
Shall we pray? Father, Shepherd of my soul, Help me to recognize your voice as a lover knows the voice of his loved one and may my soul listen and follow your voice alone.
God Bless
John 10:14-15
The parable is about Jesus, our shepherd and we his sheep. I love this passage and it comes alive as I read it. I can see a flock of white sheep on a hillside in a small pen. The shepherd walks through the gate and calls to them. The sheep seem to stir in excitement and gather close to the shepherd as he walks on ahead of them and leads them to the pastures.
"The sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought all of his own sheep out, he goes on ahead of them. His sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger. In fact, they will run away from him. They don't recognize a stranger's voice." John 10:3-5
Have you ever tried to call a friend and tried to speak in a voice that you hope they won't recognize? I have tried that trick with all my close friends and invariably fail every time. My close friends "Know" my voice. Infact if it was not me but a stranger they would probably just hang up!
We live in a time and age when hundred's of voices constantly bombard us. Voices of our friends, voices in the media, voices of our neighbours, voices of our culture, voices of our near and dear, voices of our desires and dreams, voices of the evil one... The passage says His sheep know His voice and that the sheep will never follow a stranger because they don't recognize his voice. In fact they will run from strangers!
Do you know the voice of your Shepherd? Do you wait calmly to hear his call and follow where he leads? Does his voice sound familiar to you? Do you run away from the voices of strangers?
This verse has been echoing in my heart repeatedly over the past few weeks reminding me of the need to "Know" my Shepherds voice and hear him above the voices of this world and the voices within me.
Shall we pray? Father, Shepherd of my soul, Help me to recognize your voice as a lover knows the voice of his loved one and may my soul listen and follow your voice alone.
God Bless
**Shared by Ms.Shelton
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Marvelous !
“I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well”
Psalm 139 : 14 (New King James Version)
This morning as I looked all sleepy at the mirror and brushed my teeth, the Lord led me to take a closer look at my teeth. And I went wow ! Just look at all the time and planning that has gone into designing our teeth. I mean just think about it for one second …the molars , the premolars, the canine… Teeth in front that look good.. teeth in the back that are great for grinding our food… Wow ! Just look at the time that has gone into that . And the beauty is each one of us is made so uniquely. My front two teeth are nice and big so was nicknamed bugs bunny as a kid… But hey I’m perfect in God’s sight ! :-) Praise the Lord !
Everything about us is just so uniquely made… our hair , our height , our fingers…. Wow !! Praise the Lord for everything . The last part of the verse says “And that my soul knows very well” . Do you know that ?
Do we praise and thank God for everything that we are ?
Verse 17-18 say “How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake I am still with You”
Wow ! Our Holy Father… He loves us beyond what we could ever comprehend and His thoughts of us are more than our mind could ever understand and are innumerable. Wow !
Do we realize how special we are in God’s eyes ?
Some of us are so caught up proving who we are to the world in terms of worldly standards that we have forgotten who we are in God’s eyes and what His plans are for us.
Marvelous are His works. I pray that we will give Him all the glory and walk in accordance with His will and that we will praise Him for we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
God Bless
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well”
Psalm 139 : 14 (New King James Version)
This morning as I looked all sleepy at the mirror and brushed my teeth, the Lord led me to take a closer look at my teeth. And I went wow ! Just look at all the time and planning that has gone into designing our teeth. I mean just think about it for one second …the molars , the premolars, the canine… Teeth in front that look good.. teeth in the back that are great for grinding our food… Wow ! Just look at the time that has gone into that . And the beauty is each one of us is made so uniquely. My front two teeth are nice and big so was nicknamed bugs bunny as a kid… But hey I’m perfect in God’s sight ! :-) Praise the Lord !
Everything about us is just so uniquely made… our hair , our height , our fingers…. Wow !! Praise the Lord for everything . The last part of the verse says “And that my soul knows very well” . Do you know that ?
Do we praise and thank God for everything that we are ?
Verse 17-18 say “How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake I am still with You”
Wow ! Our Holy Father… He loves us beyond what we could ever comprehend and His thoughts of us are more than our mind could ever understand and are innumerable. Wow !
Do we realize how special we are in God’s eyes ?
Some of us are so caught up proving who we are to the world in terms of worldly standards that we have forgotten who we are in God’s eyes and what His plans are for us.
Marvelous are His works. I pray that we will give Him all the glory and walk in accordance with His will and that we will praise Him for we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
God Bless
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Do we see the big picture ?
“Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him”
Matthew 4:11 (New King James Version)
Jesus is fasting and Satan tempts Him. Does this confuse you ? Wouldn’t you think when you are spending so much time in prayer that the devil would be more scared ? Satan knew what was coming up… See the bigger a threat you become to Satan the more the attacks, temptation from Him.
However let me be clear on one thing… we need to know where we are in God . If we are walking in accordance to His will then yes we know that every attack is from the evil one. However , if we are not walking in accordance to His will , then don’t give Satan all the credit. We are to blame for our choices of sin which results in turmoil around us.
The Bible says in I Corinthians 10: 13 “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it”.
We read in Matthew 4:10 “Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you Satan ! For it is written , You shall worship the LORD your God and Him only you shall serve.””
With that one final word the devil left Him. The devil tried everything he could… he even quoted the scriptures out of context… But Christ overcame all. And you know what happened ? Angels came and ministered to Him ! Wow ! Just try and picture that sight . Its better than any reward, gold medal ,… anything that the world could ever give. Are we overcoming temptation knowing that our God is our greatest reward ?
We are to crush satan under our feet . Are we doing that ? Or are we giving him access into our lives by giving in to the temptation ? are allowing the scriptures to be twisted to suit our worldly desires ?
We are to overcome temptation. We are to remember His name. We read in Psalm 20:2 that He will send us help from the sanctuary…
Satan sees the big picture and he is scared… he knows his end is near. Do you and I see God’s plan for us in our lives ?
God Bless
Matthew 4:11 (New King James Version)
Jesus is fasting and Satan tempts Him. Does this confuse you ? Wouldn’t you think when you are spending so much time in prayer that the devil would be more scared ? Satan knew what was coming up… See the bigger a threat you become to Satan the more the attacks, temptation from Him.
However let me be clear on one thing… we need to know where we are in God . If we are walking in accordance to His will then yes we know that every attack is from the evil one. However , if we are not walking in accordance to His will , then don’t give Satan all the credit. We are to blame for our choices of sin which results in turmoil around us.
The Bible says in I Corinthians 10: 13 “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it”.
We read in Matthew 4:10 “Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you Satan ! For it is written , You shall worship the LORD your God and Him only you shall serve.””
With that one final word the devil left Him. The devil tried everything he could… he even quoted the scriptures out of context… But Christ overcame all. And you know what happened ? Angels came and ministered to Him ! Wow ! Just try and picture that sight . Its better than any reward, gold medal ,… anything that the world could ever give. Are we overcoming temptation knowing that our God is our greatest reward ?
We are to crush satan under our feet . Are we doing that ? Or are we giving him access into our lives by giving in to the temptation ? are allowing the scriptures to be twisted to suit our worldly desires ?
We are to overcome temptation. We are to remember His name. We read in Psalm 20:2 that He will send us help from the sanctuary…
Satan sees the big picture and he is scared… he knows his end is near. Do you and I see God’s plan for us in our lives ?
God Bless
Monday, October 12, 2009
Immersed or Floating ?
“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.”
Psalm 20 : 7 (New King James Version)
“All to Jesus, I surrender; All to Him I freely give; I will ever love and trust Him, In His presence daily live”… I’m sure this a favourite hymn to many…
We read in today’s verse that some put their trust in chariots and some in horses , but we will remember the name of the Lord. Now here is a question … When do we remember the name of the Lord ?
When trouble arises and we have tried everything else and now we decide to remember Him ? When there is an issue at work do we first get so worked up/upset and wish we could yell at everyone and then after all that do we remember the name of the Lord ? Even if we don’t actually yell out our thoughts it still falls into the Master’s ear ! J He knows it all ! When promotions don’t come do we get so stressed out regarding it and then a week later remember the Lord ?
I love the line in the hymn which says “In His presence daily live”…. Picture this… There is a jug full of water and into the water I drop an egg . Now the egg is totally immersed into the water. It is surrounded by the water completely. Its just totally 100% submersed in the water. That’s the way we ought to be. Just so totally submersed in His presence. Totally 100% in Him.
This is funny… I just called up my mom to make sure my illustration was right – that an egg does go down when placed in water and not float. And this is what my mom said “If the egg is a bad egg then it will float in water and if its good then it gets immersed in the water. That’s how you check if an egg is good or bad”. Praise the Lord ! The Lord leads us to perfect illustrations J Are we fully immersed in Him or are we floating ?
Do we remember the Lord in the green pastures, besides the still waters , in the valley of shadow of death , in the presence of our enemies… do we remember the Lord 24*7 ? Is our trust in Him 100%. ?
“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.”
God Bless
But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.”
Psalm 20 : 7 (New King James Version)
“All to Jesus, I surrender; All to Him I freely give; I will ever love and trust Him, In His presence daily live”… I’m sure this a favourite hymn to many…
We read in today’s verse that some put their trust in chariots and some in horses , but we will remember the name of the Lord. Now here is a question … When do we remember the name of the Lord ?
When trouble arises and we have tried everything else and now we decide to remember Him ? When there is an issue at work do we first get so worked up/upset and wish we could yell at everyone and then after all that do we remember the name of the Lord ? Even if we don’t actually yell out our thoughts it still falls into the Master’s ear ! J He knows it all ! When promotions don’t come do we get so stressed out regarding it and then a week later remember the Lord ?
I love the line in the hymn which says “In His presence daily live”…. Picture this… There is a jug full of water and into the water I drop an egg . Now the egg is totally immersed into the water. It is surrounded by the water completely. Its just totally 100% submersed in the water. That’s the way we ought to be. Just so totally submersed in His presence. Totally 100% in Him.
This is funny… I just called up my mom to make sure my illustration was right – that an egg does go down when placed in water and not float. And this is what my mom said “If the egg is a bad egg then it will float in water and if its good then it gets immersed in the water. That’s how you check if an egg is good or bad”. Praise the Lord ! The Lord leads us to perfect illustrations J Are we fully immersed in Him or are we floating ?
Do we remember the Lord in the green pastures, besides the still waters , in the valley of shadow of death , in the presence of our enemies… do we remember the Lord 24*7 ? Is our trust in Him 100%. ?
“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.”
God Bless
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Spirit or Flesh
“But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”
Romans 8:11 (New King James Version)
We read in verse 8 “So then , those who are in the flesh cannot please God”… what does that mean ? Aren’t we all right now living physically as human beings in flesh ? Here its not about being physically in the flesh , but living according to the flesh. Well lets meditate together on this There are two roads right now in front of us. Lets look at both these roads.
Road ‘Flesh’ : Where we walk according to Flesh. In this road as we stroll along we give in to the desires of the flesh… things of the world… lust, greed, pride, anger, lies , filthy language…
Road ‘Spirit’ : Where we walk according to Spirit. In this road we walk in accordance to His will… we walk according to the desires and will of God… Our minds are not set on things of this world… but our minds are set on things above
Verse 5 : “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit”
Verse 6 : “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace”
Verse 7-8 : “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
We see that there is absolutely no connection between these two roads. They are disjoint. Quick check : Which road are we walking on now ?
We read in verses 10-11 , “And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”
Now anything that is of the flesh is put to death. This flesh which acts in conflict to the Spirit is put to death. Why ? because now Christ lives in us. Life and death are opposites… Jesus Christ and Sin are opposites. When we look into our lives what do we see ? Do we see Christ in us ? Or do we see sin ?
When we walk in the Spirit , Christ gives life to our mortal bodies through His Spirit . Because of His Spirit this mortal body now has true life and is to be used for His glory. Everything about us … our body , our thoughts , our desire is to walk in subjection to the will of God .
I’m sure a lot of us must be familiar with the quote “ Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country” . How many of us wake up in the morning and say “Lord , how may I be used for Your glory today “ instead of having a big list of asking God to do things. Don’t get me wrong . I’m not saying don’t ask God for things … but have we gotten so lost in our needs that we have not even taken the time to seek Him and His will. How many of us have a heart which says “Lord Here I am !”. How many of us are walking according to the Spirit ?
God Bless
Romans 8:11 (New King James Version)
We read in verse 8 “So then , those who are in the flesh cannot please God”… what does that mean ? Aren’t we all right now living physically as human beings in flesh ? Here its not about being physically in the flesh , but living according to the flesh. Well lets meditate together on this There are two roads right now in front of us. Lets look at both these roads.
Road ‘Flesh’ : Where we walk according to Flesh. In this road as we stroll along we give in to the desires of the flesh… things of the world… lust, greed, pride, anger, lies , filthy language…
Road ‘Spirit’ : Where we walk according to Spirit. In this road we walk in accordance to His will… we walk according to the desires and will of God… Our minds are not set on things of this world… but our minds are set on things above
Verse 5 : “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit”
Verse 6 : “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace”
Verse 7-8 : “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
We see that there is absolutely no connection between these two roads. They are disjoint. Quick check : Which road are we walking on now ?
We read in verses 10-11 , “And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”
Now anything that is of the flesh is put to death. This flesh which acts in conflict to the Spirit is put to death. Why ? because now Christ lives in us. Life and death are opposites… Jesus Christ and Sin are opposites. When we look into our lives what do we see ? Do we see Christ in us ? Or do we see sin ?
When we walk in the Spirit , Christ gives life to our mortal bodies through His Spirit . Because of His Spirit this mortal body now has true life and is to be used for His glory. Everything about us … our body , our thoughts , our desire is to walk in subjection to the will of God .
I’m sure a lot of us must be familiar with the quote “ Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country” . How many of us wake up in the morning and say “Lord , how may I be used for Your glory today “ instead of having a big list of asking God to do things. Don’t get me wrong . I’m not saying don’t ask God for things … but have we gotten so lost in our needs that we have not even taken the time to seek Him and His will. How many of us have a heart which says “Lord Here I am !”. How many of us are walking according to the Spirit ?
God Bless
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Dont Labor in Vain
“Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it ; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.”
Psalm 127 : 1 (New King James Version)
Picture this… There is a major storm that’s started and all you see ahead of you is this tiny place of shelter made from dry leaves. Having no other choice, you run and take shelter there. How safe would you feel ?
After a couple of minutes you look up and see the hand of God holding it up for you . Now how safe would you feel ?
When something is in the hands of God it takes a whole different meaning altogether . A lot of us are familiar with the passage from John 6 , ‘Feeding the Five Thousand’. We read in John 6 : 9 , “”There is a lad here who has five barely loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”” They were right… In their hands what was it among so many ? But when given to the Lord what happened ? We read in John 6:11 , “And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise the fish, as much as they wanted.”
The loaves and the fish were still distributed by the disciples to the people. What was the difference ? It passed through the hand of God first. That makes all the difference !
We read in today’s verse that unless the Lord builds the house , those who build it are laboring in vain. Unless the Lord guards the city there is no point in the watchman staying awake .
Have we lifted up everything and surrendered everything into His hands ? Are we letting God have His way in our lives or are we laboring in vain ? The job that we work at becomes meaningless unless we lift it up to the Lord and we say , Lord have your way in my workplace. The car that you drive … what difference does it make ? Surrender that into the hands of the Lord and see how He uses that as an instrument for His glory. That half an hour that you get a break in the afternoon … are you thinking ‘what is half an hour among such a busy schedule ? ‘…. Surrender it to our Lord and you will be amazed at what He will do with it.
Many at times we are living our lives in vain… why ? Because we have shut the Lord out . We rely on our own strength and wisdom to see us through. If God is not a part of it, anything we do will be in vain .
God Bless
Psalm 127 : 1 (New King James Version)
Picture this… There is a major storm that’s started and all you see ahead of you is this tiny place of shelter made from dry leaves. Having no other choice, you run and take shelter there. How safe would you feel ?
After a couple of minutes you look up and see the hand of God holding it up for you . Now how safe would you feel ?
When something is in the hands of God it takes a whole different meaning altogether . A lot of us are familiar with the passage from John 6 , ‘Feeding the Five Thousand’. We read in John 6 : 9 , “”There is a lad here who has five barely loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”” They were right… In their hands what was it among so many ? But when given to the Lord what happened ? We read in John 6:11 , “And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise the fish, as much as they wanted.”
The loaves and the fish were still distributed by the disciples to the people. What was the difference ? It passed through the hand of God first. That makes all the difference !
We read in today’s verse that unless the Lord builds the house , those who build it are laboring in vain. Unless the Lord guards the city there is no point in the watchman staying awake .
Have we lifted up everything and surrendered everything into His hands ? Are we letting God have His way in our lives or are we laboring in vain ? The job that we work at becomes meaningless unless we lift it up to the Lord and we say , Lord have your way in my workplace. The car that you drive … what difference does it make ? Surrender that into the hands of the Lord and see how He uses that as an instrument for His glory. That half an hour that you get a break in the afternoon … are you thinking ‘what is half an hour among such a busy schedule ? ‘…. Surrender it to our Lord and you will be amazed at what He will do with it.
Many at times we are living our lives in vain… why ? Because we have shut the Lord out . We rely on our own strength and wisdom to see us through. If God is not a part of it, anything we do will be in vain .
God Bless
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Blessing to Abomination
“I brought you into a bountiful country, To eat its fruit and its goodness. But when you entered, you defiled My land And made My heritage an abomination.”
Jeremiah 2 : 7 (New King James Version)
The Lord led Israel through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and pits , through a land of drought and the shadow of death, through a land that no one crossed. The Lord brought Israel into a bountiful country. God brought them there as a blessing. The country was a blessing to the people of Israel. But what did Israel do ? They defiled it !
They transformed a blessing into an abomination !
How many of us find ourselves in that very same situation today ? What God ordained as a blessing we have turned it into an abomination ! That relationship which was supposed to be for the glory of God has now become sinful in nature, that job which is to be a blessing has now become an idol , the house which God blessed you with which was supposed to be a house of prayer now has alcohol and sin residing in it … What have we done !!
We read in verse 11 “Has a nation changed its gods, Which are not gods? But My people have changed their Glory For what does not profit” . The Israelites traded their Glory for what does not profit. What are we doing today ? See how the Lord says “My people”… We who are His people… have done what ? Changed our Glory…the glory of God that is to reside upon us, within us , to shine through us… what have we done ? We have traded it for what does not profit.
We read in verse 13 “For my people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn themselves cisterns – broken cisterns that can hold no water.” They have forsaken God who is the fountain of living waters ! Just imagine that … walking away from the fountain of living waters. And hewn what ? Broken cisterns that can hold no water . My dear brothers and sisters in Christ , are we in the same state ourselves ? Have we turned God’s blessing into an abomination ? Have we traded in Glory for something of no profit? Have we forsaken God, the fountain of living waters and now find ourselves with broken cisterns ?
What happens if we do not repent and do not seek His forgiveness but continue in this sinful path ? We read in verse 19 “Your own wickedness will correct you, And your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing That you have forsaken the LORD your God, And the fear of Me is not in you.” Says the Lord God is hosts.”
God Bless
Jeremiah 2 : 7 (New King James Version)
The Lord led Israel through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and pits , through a land of drought and the shadow of death, through a land that no one crossed. The Lord brought Israel into a bountiful country. God brought them there as a blessing. The country was a blessing to the people of Israel. But what did Israel do ? They defiled it !
They transformed a blessing into an abomination !
How many of us find ourselves in that very same situation today ? What God ordained as a blessing we have turned it into an abomination ! That relationship which was supposed to be for the glory of God has now become sinful in nature, that job which is to be a blessing has now become an idol , the house which God blessed you with which was supposed to be a house of prayer now has alcohol and sin residing in it … What have we done !!
We read in verse 11 “Has a nation changed its gods, Which are not gods? But My people have changed their Glory For what does not profit” . The Israelites traded their Glory for what does not profit. What are we doing today ? See how the Lord says “My people”… We who are His people… have done what ? Changed our Glory…the glory of God that is to reside upon us, within us , to shine through us… what have we done ? We have traded it for what does not profit.
We read in verse 13 “For my people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn themselves cisterns – broken cisterns that can hold no water.” They have forsaken God who is the fountain of living waters ! Just imagine that … walking away from the fountain of living waters. And hewn what ? Broken cisterns that can hold no water . My dear brothers and sisters in Christ , are we in the same state ourselves ? Have we turned God’s blessing into an abomination ? Have we traded in Glory for something of no profit? Have we forsaken God, the fountain of living waters and now find ourselves with broken cisterns ?
What happens if we do not repent and do not seek His forgiveness but continue in this sinful path ? We read in verse 19 “Your own wickedness will correct you, And your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing That you have forsaken the LORD your God, And the fear of Me is not in you.” Says the Lord God is hosts.”
God Bless
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