Miracles Are Not Magic

Exodus 7 -12 

Miracles are not magic. They are acts of God. So, let's not wonder as we do when we see a magic trick, but understand that God who created everything, manages it all and can use His creation and all the laws that accompany it, to accomplish anything He desires.

For years scientists, current and old, have researched the ways of God. Numerous research has gone into the Great Flood of Noah's time. Some try to prove it happened, some try to disprove it. No one tries to research why it happened, to achieve what, they only research the how.

The wondrous thing is the creation itself and how it becomes a tool to achieve Gods wishes. Take the miracles that God did to release the Jews from Egypt. The plagues, the angel of death, the parting of the Red sea etc. The wonderous thing is not how it was done but why... why God did it, which was to fulfil His purpose. The purpose was the objective and not the Miracle itself.

As to how God uses His creation to do miracles, here is a link to the scientific explanation of how the miracles in Egypt were done, ensuring the Jews were allowed to go.

A Prodigal Child

Luke 15:11-32

Apart from being Gods word, The Bible is a book of wisdom. It is a book of knowledge and teaches us a way, in our professional and personal lives. It teaches us human behavior, human fallibility and Gods reaction to us and what we do.

One such scenario is Rebellion. Rebellion is part of human nature, from the time of Adam and Eve. We too rebelled in our youth and our children will also do the same as will their children. As parents or elders, we sometimes take a tough stance and a high road, not remembering our own time.

This parable, of the prodigal son, not only teaches us about Gods love for each one of us, but it also teaches us how we should react when we face Rebellion or disappointment from our own children.

Like the father in the parable, we have to show patience, resilience, true love and understanding, tethered with God's word, to our children, guiding them and leading them. When they are unfaithful, we need to remain faithful. When they are unloving, we need to remain loving. 

After all, true love is all about being there for someone, no matter the toughest and direst of conditions. We need to restore broken relationships, not break them further in our ego. The servant cannot be bigger than the master and we cannot be bigger than our God. 

For Us: Pastor Rajiv's Mid-Week Message

 b 

                                                       

God's Rival: You & Me!

"Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name". 

— Psalm 29:2

Are we Gods' rivals? Do we compete with Him?

Unfortunately, throughout the ages man has competed with God by glorifying ourselves in our ego and our belief that we are responsible for all the good in our life. We proudly claim to be "self-made".

Sounds familiar?

Lucifer too had similar thoughts. He too rivalled God. He led Eve to believe she could be God too! (“You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”). 

It seems to be inherent in man to try and rival God, even as we read and believe His word and even as we are strongly advised to humble ourselves. 

A small example: do we donate to the needy or do we pass it on? Think about it.

When God commanded "thou shall have no other Gods before me" - it included us!

How do you weather the Storm?

 

Based on the KJV devotional and Pastor Chuck Swindoll's Insight for Living. 

All things are possible to him that believeth. — Mark 9:23

"Many professed Christians are always doubting and fearing, and they forlornly think that this is the necessary state of believers. This is a mistake, for “all things are possible to him that believeth”

But I believe, that believing is not enough! Remember Moses? 

God works best when we give up. When we lose that last sense of independence, of control and the smallest iota of self dependence. 

Let me draw on Pastor Chuck Swindoll now, and see what he has to say about such times - 

"Moses felt as low as a slug's belly. Way down there. He still hadn't rid himself of the idea that he was supposed to be the deliverer, and that he was somehow failing. How many times had God explained it to him? Yet, like many of us, he had trouble keeping a grip on the Lord's assurances". Are we not like Moses? 

What was Moses to do now? ......(he may have thought)  I'm at the end of my rope. How in the world are You going to pull this off?"

Moses didn't know it at the moment, but he'd put before the Lord the best proposition yet. I'm at the end of my rope. How are you going to do it?" (don't we ask the same question?)

"Before we go any further, I'd like to underline a major truth in this world of ours that I don't pretend to understand. Here it is: the best framework for the Lord God to do His most ideal work is when things are absolutely impossible and we feel totally unqualified to handle it. That's His favorite circumstance. Those are His ideal working conditions".

"Time after time, He brings us to our absolute end and then proves Himself faithful. That, my friend, is not only the story of my life, it's the story of the Bible in a nutshell."

And that is how you weather the Storm! 

Shameless Audacity

                                    

 

*Image: Addicted to success

One key element of success in all aspects of life is persistence and or perseverance.

Perseverance separates the winners from the losers. Those who persevere understand that luck is something you dent depend on. 

Success in life depends on your willingness to never give up, even when the reward is delayed. Persistence is a force multiplier.

Let's look at what the Word Says about persistence in Luke 11 Ver 5-10

5 Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.

9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Mostly everyone is familiar with the quoted verses where Jesus talks about asking and receiving. But we might be missing a very critical element of success - persistence. 

Persistence in efforts. Persistence in prayer. even when the answer is delayed. The gospel states that nothing can be impossible if someone is persistent enough to achieve it. The message is as simple as keep trying, persisting, and praying until you get the desirable result you ask for. We should keep on praying to God, because He never gets tired of hearing our thanksgiving and requests.

But persistence and perseverance is only possible when one has faith in two things-

A. That my desire is for achieving something is for my good and does not contradict any biblical instruction.

2. That God will consider my request in line with His will.

Such should be our faith in ourselves and God that we actually ask and pray with shameless audacity!

When Life Becomes Unbearable

There are very many people in this world who may have or may be going through situations which create extreme hopelessness and helplessness, and life becomes unbearable. It may be a burden of debt, or personal circumstances, death of a loved one, joblessness, poverty, injustice, sickness and so on. Such burdens can become overwhelming, and Many have taken their own lives, many have thought of it, many have attempted it. Sleep, if it comes becomes the only rest. Some turn to drugs. Some to alcohol. Some to God.

This is nothing new. Fear made the prophet Elijah request God that he might die (1 Kings 19:3-4). Jonah’s anger and dissatisfaction brought him to ask God to take his life (Jonah 4:3). Job was so tormented that he loathed his life and was bitter to the point that he wished he had never been born at all (Job 10:1, 18-22).

In one's lifetime, there is a high probability that one will face such a phase. We are not going to question why God allowed it. The question rather is: what will you do?

Most people may search the internet, least likely to get the answer. This post itself will not, cannot, provide the answer. But one can come to some positive self thoughts which may help. We can ask ourselves - 

1. Is my situation self resolving? The human heart and mind themselves are self-resolving. As each day passes the pain becomes lesser. But only because we get the strength to bear it, and that strength comes from God.

2. Will God make it go away? No. God will not suddenly foreclose your loan. He will not magically make a sickness disappear. Will He suddenly send us a man with a job offer? No. God never promised a rose garden. But God will provide hope, direction and strength.

3. How have I survived life till now? What is my history? When all is lost, that is a good time to think about the blessings of the past. Specially, blessings which were inexplicable. Not only do those memories bring a smile, but they also refurbish our faith as we realize that they all came from God. And if God has been there all along, blessing us, guiding us, nudging, we once again believe He is there still, no matter what we may be going through. Think about that old Sunday school song - Count your blessings. There is truth and wisdom in that song.

Finally, we all have a question in such times: why me? That is best answered by Christ Himself -

“As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him: "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? ““Neither this man nor his parents sinned," Jesus answered. "This came about so that God's works might be displayed in him.” (John 9:1-3 CSB)

Basically, what He is saying is that our affliction is an opportunity to showcase God in our life. The grace of a widowed person, the attitude of a ruined person, in every situation our reactions can be either worldly or Godly. We have free choice, so it's upto us what we want to show the world.

The Story of Gilbert

                                                                           Image: Scout Life Magazine

Prayer is a pillar or actually the cornerstone of Christian life.  A typical prayer may include giving thanks, intercession, blessings, praise etc. And we may ask for help with the problems and challenges we face.

Tom Clark from Life, Home and Truth has this to say - 

..."do we always pray for the right things? Let me illustrate this with a paraphrase of a story by Peggy Porter on usscouts.org that I read many years ago.

Eight-year-old Gilbert had only been in Cub Scouts a short while when the scoutmaster handed everyone a block of wood, four tires and a sheet of instructions, and told them to go home and “give it all to Dad.” Unfortunately, the dad part was not an option for Gilbert, so the block of wood sat untouched for days as a befuddled Gilbert struggled to figure out what to do.

Finally, without a better option, Gilbert’s mom sat down with Gilbert one evening to guide him in his quest to build a pinewood derby car. Having no carpentry skills, she decided to just read the directions and let Gilbert do the work.

Doing their best to adhere to the rules and measurements, little by little a car began to emerge from the block. The final product was lovingly painted blue, and though a little lopsided, it was a work of pride for both Gilbert and his mom, as they waited for the big day.

The night of the race, Gilbert and his mother showed up ready to go. Gilbert’s smile promptly fell when he saw all the other cars—sleek and stylish, with fancy paint jobs, flames and designs that came from the father and son duos (probably with more work done by the fathers than the sons). Some of the other boys giggled when they saw Gilbert’s unattractive and somewhat wobbly car. This couldn’t turn out well . . .

The race was done in elimination fashion, meaning you kept racing until you lost. To everyone’s shock, the final race came down between Gilbert’s lopsided creation and one of the sleekest and fastest-looking cars there. Just as the race was to begin, Gilbert quietly asked if he could stop to pray. With a nod of the head from the scoutmaster, he took his little car and prayed. After some awkward moments he handed his car back and said he was ready.

Seemingly in defiance of all the laws of physics, Gilbert’s uneven block of wood wobbled down the track to cross the line a fraction of a second before the other car. The scoutmaster bent over to Gilbert and asked, “So you prayed to win, right Gilbert?”

The 8-year-old quickly responded, “Oh, no sir. It wouldn’t be fair to ask God to help me beat someone else. I just asked Him to make it so I wouldn’t cry if I lose.”

This story illustrates a powerful point.

When faced with a challenging situation, the young boy didn’t pray and ask God to fix the outcome for him. He asked God to help him accept the results. He simply prayed for strength.

Is it possible that in our own prayers as we face challenges, we spend too much time telling God the outcome we want, asking for victory or perhaps asking that He remove a trial and take away the pain? When what we should be doing is asking Him for the strength and dignity we need to get through the struggle with faith intact?

There is nothing wrong with beseeching our Father with our requests, but it is also important that we ask for the strength to endure what He knows is ultimately best for us".

The Truth About Ruth

Ruth 1:16 “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.”

Reading the story of Ruth has always been an inspiration. Naomi is devastated, Ruth's decision to tie herself into the hopeless situation of Naomi and her life changing decision to jump from the frying pan into the fire is incomprehensible by today's standard. She faced complete devastation yet became an inspiration for us when we face hard and terrible tragedy or circumstances.

Joy Burgess puts it so well when she says -

"When life brings devastation, it’s not easy to hope. It’s hard to have faith. But when things are the most difficult, that’s when we need faith and hope the most. In the moments where life feels like it’s crushing you, start with a little faith. Hebrews 11:1 reminds us that “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” And looking at the book of Ruth, we can see that even when we can’t see beyond our pain to his plan, we can have hope that our story isn’t over – better days are coming.

It was a sacrifice for Ruth to refuse to return to her family. Her commitment to journey on with Naomi was a beautiful, selfless act, and a stunning example of the love of Christ – the same Christ who would be of her bloodline years later.

No matter your past, you still have a purpose. Your past is not your final destination when you make a choice in faith, when we put our trust in God. While our confidence may be wavering, God’s promises are not."

                                                      Joy Burgess in 7 Powerful Lessons we can Learn from Ruth.

Unlike today's influencers Ruth was not setting a trend. Ruth had no idea that millions of people would read her story and it would motivate many men and women across the world.

Fruitfully Growing in Faith : Pastor Rajiv's Mid Week Message