Don't wait for Thanks Giving: pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

Don't wait for thanksgiving. Thank God each day. each Hour. Each moment.

Think of all those little things people did for you. Call them and thank them. Bless God for sending them into your life. Like David, build up the crescendo to thank God. There is something to thank God for every day, we just have to look for it. Be aware that every good thing comes from God, our Father and our creator.  Psalm 34 puts it perfectly - let it be part of our prayer every day. 

1 I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.
2 I will glory in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
3 Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together.

4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.
6 This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

Forget Me Not: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

Psalms 138:3  "In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul".

Humans have a tendency to forget over time. When God works in our lives we rejoice and praise at that moment but it slowly fades away.

Gods work in our lives also gives us a sense of confidence in ourselves. And sometimes it becomes over confidence. But like David, we must remember it is not our strength but the Lords.

A good way to remember maybe is to maintain a personal daily diary of what God has done for us that day. Doing that helps us to meditate on the day and identify everything God has done, small or big, so that it does not get swept away in the business of life with its  daily temptations, problems and wins and losses.

Meditating on Gods work in our daily life during our quiet times also helps us to listen to God when He speaks to us through the Holy Spirit and His word.

Just as the Psalms are a record of Gods work in David's life, try maintaining a record of daily encounters with God, because everyone does have them whether we are aware of it or not.

As God said in Jeremiah chapter  33:3
"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’” (NIV)

Note the word unsearchable. 

Walk on water : Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

In the world of computers, it is the input which determines the quality of the output. Similarly in humans, when Gods word is input into our lives, it produces tranquility, peace, faith, hope, love, honor, and so much more.

When we are faced with doubts and fears, it is Gods word which can give us positive hope, not man. When the ups and downs of life surround us, Gods word is the anchor who will keep us steady  in the midst of storms and Jesus is the one who will help us walk on the waters of troubles without drowning.. He is the one who is able to keep us steadfast and unmovable in spite of the tides of life. Hebrews 6:19 declares: “Hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast…

Remember Peter in Matthew 14 verse 29 -
"And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus".

But then he lost faith and was overcome with fear. As he started drowning Jesus reached out and saved him. So is it with us. One day we are up and high and down and out the next. But Jesus is always there to reach out and catch us and His word is ever present to give us hope and solace.

Today or when ever we face a challenge, or a major change and uncertainty let us remember that our Lord is at the other end and asking us to come. Without fear and with complete faith that He will walk with us over the water, holding our hand. And for our faith He has given us His word, which we can draw upon daily to meet our needs. 

Agape: The face of Christianity: Our Daily Reflection

It is said that it is  always darkest under the lamp.

I have seen many Holy men. Many pastors, many speakers, many so called healers etc. I have also seen the original people of God who brought Jesus into my country. Truly, I have never forgotten them. They were gentle in speech, gentle in behavior and very gentle and true in their overall dealing within and outside of their sphere of influence. They were also very hard in their beliefs. So in my small mind, I saw them as a true reflection of Christ. And I guess that is what attracted the scores of people who joined their churches and became a following. 

Today, are we exhibiting attitudes and characteristics of Christ? Are we exhibiting the love Christ taught us ? Are we true followers of agape? 

I know we all will answer in the positive. But let's check ourselves against the checklist Paul gave us in 1 Corinthians Chapter 13 verses 4-7 :

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."

This love is to be practiced not only for people in general but for within families, societies and elsewhere. This love is what Jesus meant when He said - "love thy neighbor as thyself". 

When I measure myself on this as a checklist of the outcomes of love, I know I am not a 100 percent in any and probably not even 50 percent in most.

So the question is this: my actions, character and demeanor is what the light of my lamp is. If I don't burn bright, how will anyone looking at me respect Christ? Because they expect to see Christ through me and what they see in me is what they believe Christianity is.

Agape is what God's love for us is and our love for God. We need to get as close to this ideal as we can. Let us not let darkness prevail under the lamp but burn so brightly that we illuminate every nook and corner. 

Knowledge@Work : Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflection

There is a difference between knowing something and putting that knowledge to work. Lots of people know their Bible. Some can even repeat memorized verses. Others can quote references at the drop of a hat.

But according Matthew 22 14, "Many are called but few are chosen".

This is paradoxical. God calls but does not choose all those He has called. Why?

In this context one wonders who will be chosen, how will they be chosen and on what basis?

The Bible is quite clear on this actually. God, calls, people hear, but not all listen and do what they have been told. The process is quite simple. Hear- listen- do.

Thus, the people who hear the word, fill their hearts with the word and practice his word in letter and spirit are the few who may enter the gates. Sounds easy but probably one of the most difficult to apply. 

Gods word is is a double edged sword. Bitter in its condemnation and sweet in its saving grace. And saving grace only happens when we are imbibing it and then applying and doing it. We need to do as Jeremiah did: eat the word of God. Like John did as mentioned in Revelations.

There are 3 states that emerge
A. We can hear it and disregard it
B. We can hear it and memorize it
C. We can hear it, memorize it, apply it and do it.

It is  the third state that the elect are from. It's the third state that separates the hypocrite from the  truly righteous. 

Ephesians 4:24

"....and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth."

Dig your trench! Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

Dig your trench, a.k.a - The Leap of faith. 

(Note: Todays reflection is based on the KJV Daily Devotional). 

Background 

2 Kings 3 16 17

9 So the king of Israel set out with the king of Judah and the king of Edom. After a roundabout march of seven days, the army had no more water for themselves or for the animals with them.

10 “What!” exclaimed the king of Israel. “Has the Lord called us three kings together only to deliver us into the hands of Moab?”

Today's reading - 2 Kings 3 16-17

While the harpist was playing, the hand of the Lord came on Elisha 16 and he said, “This is what the Lord says: I will fill this valley with pools of water. 17 For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink. 18 This is an easy thing in the eyes of the Lord; he will also deliver Moab into your hands.

Experimentally, people know where their help is to be found. In the reading, the Kings wanted victory in war but without the critical availability of water they started at a defeat. In such a situation  they were to dig the trenches in which the precious liquid would be held. How? They did not know. Yet the promise was that God would provide not only the necessary water but also the victory they were looking for. 

We have here a few lessons we need to learn and follow: First, there has to be  to be a readiness for the blessing from our side as well as God's. This must be done in faith, in the full assurance that the blessing is about to descend, in accordance with His will. 

Secondly, the provision will be made in Gods way not ours. We can stand on our head and tell Him various means for the provision but it will happen in His way.

Lastly, prepare for abundance because our Lord provides to beyond bursting point. Whether it is a victory or provision or saving grace. 

Think about this today. What blessings have we asked for?  What trenches am I digging? have we taken that leap of faith? 

Trust: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflection

Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

The dictionary meaning of trust is "believe in the reliability, truth, or ability of something or someone"

As far as God goes my definition of trust is "Implicit and all consuming faith in being led by God".

This means that trust in God, leads to non dependence on anything else. Dependence on friends, relatives, money, house and just about anything other than God is completely and totally annihilated from our minds and lives. Our mind totally and truly stay on God and God alone. With this background let us ask ourselves - do we really trust God?

For if we don't trust God but ourselves and our abilities or friends, then we don't believe. And if we don't believe, then reading His word, His promises and His prayer really have no meaning.

Now can we honestly apply the above verse to ourselves and say - 

"You will keep me in perfect peace, because my mind is stayed on you and because I trust in you"

Your work is important to God: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

There is a fine line between our  religion and our work life and many of us do not know the difference. We tend to either completely  separate the two or let one completely dominate the other, relegating it to the background. Two dimensions, independent of each other - the spiritual and the physical. 

To get a Biblical insight into this lets read 2 Samuel 5:12 - 

" And David perceived that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel's sake".

This verse caught my eye today, because of the word "perceived" which means to become aware or conscious of (something) or come to realize or understand something. David understood very well that his kingship was from God, not his own achievement. 

David also realized that God was merciful because of the Israelites, who were His people. So David was placed by God, as King, with the objective of leading, protecting and serving God's people. 

So  two things emerge very clearly: 

A. What ever we are, wherever we are, we are placed there by the Lord and 

B. To fulfil His objective or purpose for us in that placement. 

As we progress in life, do we realize that wherever we are placed, we are placed by the Lord. And therefore we are placed there to do some work for Him. We need to achieve the purpose He has placed on us as well, in both work and personal circumstances. 

And therefore our duty is to give our 100% to our work and also, live our personal and work life according to God's word, fulfilling His purpose for our life.  

Two verses come to mind when we think about this - 

Colossians 3:23 
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, and 

Proverbs 16:3
Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.

David did not exclude God from his kingship and relegate Him to his personal life. He invited God to manage both. And he did both with zeal and excelled to become a great King as well as a man after God's own heart. 

How to Possess Possessions: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

 "...what do you have that you did not receive? ...." 1 Corinthians 4:7

How do you possess your possessions? By opening our hands. Sounds funny am sure, but think about this: when we are to receive we open our hands, but as soon as we have received, we close them.

This does not mean we are not grateful to God. We definitely are. But in my opinion, gratitude for blessings received for God is more than mere lip service. I like this four step approach. 

A. Thank God - praise him and glorify Him publicly and privately, which means we acknowledge that God is the provider of that blessing. In continuation of the opening verse, The apostle Paul asked the rhetorical question,

 "...Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?" the implications being that we think we have achieved out of our own efforts and not from God.

And that is exactly what we have to stop.

B. Share - we need to keep that hand open and look forward opportunities to Glorify God by sharing. By this I don't mean just tithes. Peoples needs, peoples hunger, death, poverty, we have enough opportunities to demonstrate Gods love for man. To demonstrate this, I will point to the Sikh religion. As soon as they know that something is wrong somewhere, they are out looking for ways to serve people. During the pandemic they were feeding people. They landed up in Ukraine to help people suffering from the war. They did not wait to be asked. 

When we share we should not allow the receiver to thank us and think we have given from our own bounty, but let it be clear it is from the Bounty of God. It is not we who should be thanked but God.

C. His to Him- seek out ways in which we can use His blessings to glorify Him. Be proactive, not wait for opportunities to come to us. Above all be passionate. Because to be proactive, one has to be passionate. 

D. Do not misuse. Sadly this is one of the biggest problems with us all. We do not remember that as receivers of blessings we are only care takers. We need to use those blessings as responsible Christians, for His glory and our needs.

I will end with this Bible verse from 2 Corinthians 9:6-8

"Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work".

Passion over Pain: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

Passion over pain : A Mothers Legacy.

Have you ever thought what is passion? Although not the generally accepted context, I think Psalm 39:3 describes passions so vividly -

"I felt a fire burning inside,
and the more I thought,
the more it burned,
until at last I said:
4 “Please, Lord,
show me my future"

As we can see, the passion to do Gods will is of prime importance in whatever we have been chosen to do by God.

Today, think of the passion of a mother. She performs the role of a caretaker, chef, housekeeper, guard, adviser, saver, driver, nurse, governess, primary health care giver, discipline creator, relationship advisor, Bible teacher, moral guide, and on and on and on.

If we had to hire someone for all these roles, think of what it would cost; think if someone had to do all of this or even part of this, how tired that person will be. But more than that think of one single human being doing all these things- driven on by passion and fulfilment of a God given purpose.

We definitely need to thank God and our respective mums for all we have received - "honor her for all that her hands have done" (Proverbs 31:31) but of equal importance is to  continue the legacy that she has provided of doing the work God has given us with a passion equaling hers.

Like her, be passionate about what God has called us to do for our jobs, for His purpose and for our families, balancing our act so that not one of these becomes our idol but do justice to each of these.

Happy Mother's Day to all.