Who is our King?

“Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before His God, as was his custom since early days.”

Daniel 6: 10 (New King James version)

Who is our King ? A little background to the context of this verse. Daniel was appointed as one of the governors by Darius. We read in Daniel 6:3 , “Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm.” Of course everyone else was envious and wanted to bring him down but they just could not find any fault in him. So they got the king to sign a decree that for 30 days the people would only petition before a statue of the king and should not serve any other god. And if they were found doing so they would be cast into the lions den.

So here is an order that comes from king Darius , Daniel’s boss . Daniel didn’t think , “Hmmm ok Lord , you gave me this job , so hmmm its only 30 days right , I will talk to you quietly with no one seeing , you know everything right Lord. I need to do what my boss says else I will lose my job , well in this case worse , I will be cast into the den.”

I really wonder what lame excuses I might have given if I was in Daniel’s position. But this is what Daniel did. He knew that he belonged to one person and one person alone – The Holy God Almighty. He knew his first and foremost obedience was to his God. He knew there would be no compromise on his communion with God . He knew who was his boss , his King !!

Do we understand that we are not citizens of earth but are citizens of heaven ? Do we truly realize that above everyone and everything in this world our heart our mind our everything is to do be in obedience and love to Him ?

How much have we compromised ? How much have we allowed the world to be our king and ruler ?

We are in the world but not of the world . May nothing nothing nothing ever draw us away from our relationship with Him.

Daniel could have said , “oh Lord you know my heart , you know I love you , so that’s all that counts , don’t mind for these 30 days…” No no no ! He would always pray and give thanks to God in such a manner and nothing could ever make him compromise even a tiny bit of his walk with God.

You know because of Daniel’s decision what was the outcome ? Darius wrote a decree in verse 26 , “I make a decree that in every dominion of my kingdom men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. For He is the living God, And steadfast forever; His kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed, And His dominion shall endure to the end.”

Wow ! If we would not compromise on our walk with God can you imagine the outcome ?

God Bless

Deal with it at the roots

“But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.” Luke 13: 8 (New King James version) Its been quite a few weeks that I haven’t been able to get the Verse for the Day mails out on a regular day – to – day basis. Its amazing how patient and loving our Father is :-) His love is so indescribable. Its been an interesting couple of weeks for me where I have learnt so much. And here is what the Lord has placed on my heart for this morning and I pray that it will speak to all who read this . Deal with it at the roots ! Here was a tree that wasn’t bearing fruit. And when the keeper pleads for not having the tree cut down, ,he says that he will dig around it and fertilize it . Another version mentions the verse like this , “And he answered him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure.” He was going to the roots. ·

• Dig all around it – preparation


• Put the manure – enrichment

Not spending time in His presence ? Not reading His word ? Struggling with bondages of sin ? Deal with it at the roots ! If our problem is not spending time in His presence (remember we are talking about the King of kings and the Lord of lords, angels cry out Holy Holy Holy ), if we are allowing things of the world get in our way of spending time with Him, we need to dig at the roots ! Where is our heart truly ? Have we made God our Wish list granter ? Have we forgotten truly who He is ? Have we forgotten who we are in Him ? May we dig around and prepare our hearts and allow Him to enrich us with His word and Spirit.

If our problem is struggling with bondages of sin , deal with it at its roots. Hooked to pornography ? Cut off your net connection , throw away your computer , disconnect your cable . Dig all around ! Let Him enrich your life ! Spend time in His presence and with friends whose mind is set on things above.

Worried about financial situations at home ? Anxious about your future ? Deal with it at the roots . Do we truly trust God or not ? Have we been walking in His ways or not ? Are there things in our lives that need correction ? Have we been careless in what God has given us ? Dig all around ! He will enrich our lives with wisdom and He will direct our paths.

If we look on the inside of ourselves and all we see if discontent , bitterness , worldly desires and cares then how can we expect an outwardly fruit of the Spirit to be borne ? How will that ever show ?

However , if we have been feeding on His word , spending time in His presence; when we look on the inside and see things of Him , then for sure what’s on the inside will automatically spring forth fruits to be shown on the outside for His glory.

God Bless

The simplest call to answer : COME

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 (New King James version) Ever noticed that when things get busy , or when a lot of things need to be done what do we do ? we keep doing more things ! :-) We think we can handle it , we know so many things need to get done . If you were planning a party or some event and were knee deep into it and someone walked up to you and said ‘Why don’t you just sleep and I will take care of everything ‘ we would probably say , “Are you crazy ? I have all this information in my head, Only I know what has to be done….” Lord, bless us with a willingness to give it all to You ! When I read this verse the picture I get in my head is this . Christ standing there with open arms saying “Come, let me take care it all for you” and then we standing right across Him saying “ Really Lord ? I don’t think you would understand though… “ And this is exactly what we are saying every time we decide not to lift it all to Him and try to work on our own strength and our own council. We read in verse 29 , “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” Christ is telling us to drop it all down ! Whatever burdens we have been carrying on our own till now put it all down… you don’t have to carry it. All those hurts , anxieties of the past , present and future, all the bitterness, unforgiveness, anger, disappointments, fears… Let it go. It was never our burden to carry. We just decided to lift it all ! When we cast it all upon the Lord , He causes us to rest. And the yoke that He lays upon us is easy ! And you know what the best part is ? The word of God says ‘Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me.” All we need to do is be willing to listen and learn from the great I AM ! It doesn’t get easier than that !! :-) Troubled ? Worried ? Anxious ? Overwhelmed ? Confused ? Your soul will find rest when you come to Him ! Its an open invitation ! COME :-) Psalm 18 : 32,” It is God who arms me with strength, And makes my way perfect.” God Bless

Have we become Tax Collector Christians ?

“And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.” Acts 4: 31 (New King James version) “Its very easy to teach a kid stories and all . Try telling them about the gospel .. that is what makes the difference and its not easy” – This is a statement that someone told me 7 years ago that still rings so strongly in my mind. It does make me to carefully reexamine what I do . I love the corporate social responsibility groups that I have been blessed to work with in the companies I have worked over the past 7 years. However though my initial years were spent in just making a social difference, over the years God is pruning me to understand that it doesn’t stop there. They need to know the Lord ! I can be the most friendly person on the team. However if my life has not been testimonial of the God whom I serve I have failed. Sometimes we like to keep a ‘generic’ attitude at work. The “God, Faith’ topic is becoming a taboo word in work circles. If someone asks ‘do you go to church every Sunday??’ we might even say a timid ‘yes’ and then change the topic. When someone says ‘Hey I got some receipts that we can use for our taxes ‘ we would actually take them and quietly decide not to use them so that we are still ‘cool’ like our colleagues and yet we have not done anything wrong. When our boss says ‘Hey I am adding this line and that line to your resume so pretend that you know it’ , we go ‘oookkkk’ and then pray ‘Lord forgive us’. When we see people around us heading towards paths of destruction , we tend to think ‘ok I am not walking down that path so that’s enough, let me just be quiet and let them do what they want’. This is not what we have been called to do. God has appointed us as watchmen. We are the ambassadors of Christ, ransomed by the blood of the Lamb, sealed by the Holy Spirit , in the service of the great I AM !! We are not placed in our work place just to be a silent spectator. But everything about us should speak out of the God whom we serve. We read in the second half of Titus 2: 10 ,”…that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.” Our phone conversations, our behavior in meetings, our conversations over lunch, they way we handle our work , the way we regard our colleagues …. Every thing … in ALL things we ought to adorn the word of God ! When we read Acts 4 , we see Peter and John had been brought into custody and severely threatened . They were being forbidden from speaking at all or teaching in the name of Jesus. Wow ! Not a very conducive environment right ? But yet we read the moment they were released they gathered together and prayed. We read in Acts 4 : 29 , “Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants with all boldness they may speak Your word,” There will always be struggles, there will always be challenges , but HE causes us to rise above them all in the boldness and peace that comes from Him and Him alone. I pray we may not be “silent Christians” (only talk about God when in a Christian environment, else shy away completely in every aspect) , I pray that we may not be “Tax collector Christians” (good to only those who are good to us , patient only to those who are patient with us…). I pray that the Lord will rise us up and mould and shape us to be truly hearers and doers of His word , walking according to the purposes of Him that He has laid out for us even before the foundations of the earth God Bless

Words of our mouth

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD my strength and my Redeemer.”

Psalm 19:14 (New King James version)

“‘I saw a buffalo travel so fast that at one point it even overtook my car on the highway !! “ . A buffalo overtaking a car ? On the highway ? Impossible ! Nope… Its true… Scroll down to the end of theis post to see the proof :-)

I think all of us have a lawyer kind of thinking pattern within us. We are so convicted that lying is wrong. We are so convicted that cheating on taxes is wrong , we are so convicted on so many things that we try to find loop holes to make what we are doing seem right (or at least we try to convince ourselves of it :-) )

Did I see the buffalo travel faster than the car at one point ? Yes . The points I chose to omit , the buffalo was in a carrier and I had slowed down to take this picture. Play on words. We try to play on our words and get away with a lot of things… Here is the point we often forget … HE KNOWS ALL !! He knows the meditation of our heart.

We may say the most wonderful things, but if it comes from a heart that is filled with bitterness , or anger or unforgiveness then it doesn’t matter what is said. He looks deep within ! Now the converse of this is not true – saying negative things but having a good heart is ok ! We read in Matthew 12: 35-36 , “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.” We read in Ephesians 5: 4 that foolish talk, coarse jesting should not even be remotely associated to us.

When we get together as friends in the office , in college how are our words governed ? When we pray and know that every word spoken is heard by the Holy of holies, the great I AM , we know that the angels are around , we know that by the authority given in Christ Jesus to us , demons will tremble … when we know all that in prayer , why do we think at other times of the day that our words do not make a difference ?

‘Lord we pray Father that You will govern our every word and our every thought . Teach us Father to be able to truly surrender every aspect our lives to You. In Jesus Name , Amen’

God Bless

You are here for such a time as this , are you ready ?

“For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14 (New King James version) ‘For such a time as this’ – These are the words that have been ringing in my head over the past few weeks. We look at the life of Esther and we see how wonderfully God orchestrated every aspect of her life. And then the time came for her to rise up for her people. We read in Esther 4:14 that Mordecai says that if Esther does not rise up , then surely deliverance will come from another place. God will have His plans fulfilled. The question here is ‘Do you want to be a part of it ?’ When we flip through channels on our TV sets, flip through the newspaper , look at the way the world is going …. Do we see what God sees? Do we His lost sheep for whom He paid the price for on the cross ? Do we see our brothers and sisters who have the future of eternal death facing them ? God loves the people around us as much as He loves us J That neighbor who keeps annoying you ? Yes God loves him as much as He loves you …. That teammate of yours who tends to get on your nerves , yes Jesus shed His blood for her . The people who switch lanes within inches of your car ? They have been created in the image of God ! God has placed each of us in different positions , in different circles , in different locations , skilled differently , gifted differently but in the oneness of His body. We are where we are for such a time as this ! Will we rise up ? When see people around us who might perish , will we put aside every fear , put aside every bit of self … will we rise up and intercede for them ? Will we go the distance for them ? Will we remain completely silent or will we share the love of Christ to them ? Esther fasted and prayed with her people and she rose . And we read and see what the Lord did ! We have been pruned, refined , grown and strengthened by Him for such a time as this … what will you do ? God Bless

Worried about getting married? Dont be !

“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) For those single and waiting for the Lord to lead , keep waiting , keep holding on . His works are marvelous !! :-) Continue to seek Him. He knows what we need of and when . He will provide. We have woken up this morning by His grace and for His glory. Awaken in good health , our families doing good. We have been fearfully and wonderfully made. Wow praise the Lord. While so many things keep happening in the world His protective hedge is around us and His mighty hand upon us. Verses 5-6, “You have hedged me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it.” The literal meaning for the word hedged is enclosed. Wow . Just try picturing that ! Don’t you just want to give God a great big hug ? :-) True there will be pressure all around , true there might be people who start talking unwanted or negative things… true true true… But you want to know the greater truth ? His word ! He is faithful . Psalm 34: 4-5 ,”I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed.” I honestly do know what its like . Every time I call up my parents they have this one thought always running in their hearts ‘When will I see my daughter married.’ People asking my parents or asking me ‘So when are you getting married’ and I have one response ‘When God ordains it’. Do not try to decide something on your own strength or wisdom. Lean on Him and His understanding. He will lead, He will guide. Hey we are the apple of His eye ! He shed His blood for us ! He loves us with an everlasting love. Do not lose faith when it comes to things of marriage. It doesn’t matter what your need is this day … it could be marriage related , it could be financial , it could be a job ... .Trust in Him , hold on to Him , lean on Him and His understanding. I had gone out for lunch with my brother and family around six months ago when my second nephew who was 2 and a half years old then said he wanted juice . And then he pointed to a bottle of aquafina (mineral water). My brother patiently explained to him ,’No baby that is water its not juice’ and he wanted to give him juice which was in another bottle. But my nephew refused . He was quite adamant that the aquafina did contain juice. Well after a couple of minutes my brother handed him the aquafina (mineral water) bottle and my nephew took one sip and said ‘water’ . Ha ha ha. Wait upon the Lord ! He knows what we need of and He knows what to give us. Don’t hold on to something just because you think it’s right for you. Seek Him and find out what He has decided what’s right for you. Psalm 34: 8-10 ,” Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him. The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.” God Bless

Whats the goal on our heart ?

“”Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6: 19-21 (New King James version) Last evening I found myself stuck in traffic. And in the city where I am at , vehicles come within centimeters of hitting your car and cut across and try to squeeze ahead. I kept pondering ‘Lord how am I ever going to be a Christian driver?’ . This is what the Lord laid in my heart “What’s your goal?” Have you ever heard of a ‘slow cycle’ race ? The objective is all cyclists have to pedal as slowly as possible. The person who reaches the finish line last wins ! Now if that was my goal , I would gladly let people cut across me, I would consistently hit my brake and let people overtake me (the people trying to squeeze in between the two inch gap between my car and the next ! ;-) ) And you know what ? I would be happy. Depending on our goal our entire perspective changes ! And this is for something as simple as driving down a road. Every day , every moment … what is the goal that we are looking to ? Philippians 3: 14 , “I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Its so easy to get distracted and tied down by the cares of the world. Have we gotten sidelined in focusing on treasures of this earth ? Do we understand the goal ? Do we understand we are citizens of heaven ? God Bless