This Week With Jesus

 

Read Mark 10:21  Many a Sunday morning we stand up and sing the song - "All to Jesus I surrender". But do we truly mean that? Do we truly surrender all?  In the quoted passage we have a near perfect young man, who did everything God expected but could not surrender. Today let us think, have we truly surrendered? - what does surrender look like? First and foremost, surrender needs us to let go of the control we want over our lives . Realize that that fantastic job, that promotion or a great business are not because of our abilities but because of Gods blessings. Therefore, they are not our priority even though they may give us economic power. It involves recognizing that one is not self-sufficient, and that divine grace is essential. And divine grace comes from divine wisdom. It means letting go of the desire to dictate the course of one's life and trusting that God's plan is superior. It involves a profound act of yielding one's will and control to divine authori...

Today we share a short diary of a Covid survivor – a senior lady in Delhi, India, who calls her experience “a nightmare turned miracle”. We share with you the Covid Diary of Ms. S. Massey, a retired School Principal, mother and grandmother. She credits ONLY God’s grace and mercy that she is able to share her story today – in her own words: “9th May, 2021: 10 PM : Tested positive for Covid, asymptomatic. Being 70 years of age and an asthma patient, I was advised hospitalization. In spite of non availability of beds and oxygen, it was with God’s grace I was able to get an admission to a well known hospital. Tests showed about a 20% infection and treatment was started. 10th May, 2021 : Slight improvement, but still asymptomatic. 11th May, 2021 : Stable and ready to be discharged and to quarantine at home! Discharge procedure starts. My happiness knew no bounds and all friends, family, church people who had been praying for me heaved a sigh of relief and thanked God. But, during the day...

  Salvation is not a singular event, so we shouldn't treat it as such. It is an ongoing process that began at the cross and continues throughout our earthly lives, involving faith, repentance, and transformation. Lent plays an important role along the way. Phil Ashey, pastor of South Riding Church in Virginia, observed, "Our culture is so focused on an event rather than a process. Even as evangelicals, I think we've been trapped by the idea that salvation is a one-time event, like a sale that we've got to close. But often, it's a process in which people ask questions again and again and approach God repeatedly to consider faith. I see Lent as a door—an entryway—for people to connect or reconnect with Jesus." Engaging in this process means approaching God, understanding His will and power, and reflecting on our faith in Him. Lent offers a unique opportunity to dedicate time toward this reflection. Over these 40 days, we examine our lives, confront our baggage a...

                                                                   Since we are talking about Covid days this week, and you think Covid turned our lives upside down, well, think of this scenario: A strange person appears before you, someone whom you have never seen before, stands before you in your room, and starts talking to you about your future - pretty freaky!! isn’t it? Today I want us to wind back 2025 years and look at the life of a 16 year old Jewish teenager in Israel. This teenager had her life turned completely upside down by the visit of a stranger, in circumstances similar to what we mentioned. We are first introduced to her by name in Matthew’s gospel but we are told of her by Isaiah in his prophecy ‘ Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and s...

The COVID times were extraordinary. Today it is five years, or half a decade, that it was declared a Pandemic.  As of April 2024, the virus had infected over 704 million people worldwide, and the  number of deaths  had reached almost 7.5 million. During the peak, o ne saw relatives, friends & neighbors drop like flies. Tragedy was all around us.  My family and I had been stuck in two different countries, 6000 miles apart, away from our home and each other. Yet were brought together, under His shadow against mighty odds and impossibilities. While thousands, nay millions, fell at the sides, we were kept safe in a safe country, in the safe home of a Pastor and his family. COVID was all around us, yet did not come near us. Our daughter in India too remained safe as we tried to come back and she tried to get back to us.  Over those three years, as our savings disappeared, business dwindled and stopped, we never went hungry or in want. Everything was provided fo...

                           "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. " - John 15:13 In a small village in Japan, there was an old house that had been abandoned for many years. One day, a man decided to renovate the house. As he started to remove the wooden wall panels, he noticed something unusual. A small lizard was nailed to the wall by one of its feet. The man felt sad for the lizard, which must have been trapped there for a long time. However, as he examined the lizard more closely, he noticed something even more surprising. Another lizard was bringing food to the trapped lizard, ensuring that it didn't starve. Despite the hardship of being nailed to the wall, the trapped lizard had been sustained by the unwavering care of its companion. The free lizard had dedicated itself to feeding the trapped one, showing an incredible level of devotion and compassion. This story serves as a...

A wise judge once said, "it is not only necessary for justice to be done, but as importantly, it needs to be seen to be done." Drawing from these wise words, as Christians, it is not only important to follow Christ in letter and spirit, but also to be seen as followers of Christ, in our behavior and our attitudes to fellow men. We ourselves are the biggest witnesses to Christ and we are also our own enemy. We may preach the best of sermons, be most devout in our day-to-day devotions or know the Bible verbatim, but if our language, behavior and attitude does not reflect Christ, it is all in vain. Christ Himself spoke at length about the way we are to behave toward others; friends and enemies. More than that, however, the life He lived, accentuated by His love and compassion for the lost, provides the consummate example of what Christian behavior should look like, enabled by the Holy Spirit. The best barometer is how one reacts or behaves when facing extreme pressure of a threa...