Don't Give me what I deserve: Short Story

A man used to give a beggar $1000 every month. The man continued in this state for a period of time. One day, he gave the beggar only $750. The beggar was surprised by that, but he said to himself, $750 is better than nothing. He left. After a month, he gave the beggar only $500. The beggar was surprised! He said to the man, “You used to give me $1000, then it decreased and became $750. Now, $500, why?” May I know the reason? The man replied, “In the past, all my children were young and I was well-off, so I would give you $1000. Then my daughter grew up and entered university, and the university expenses were high, so I started giving you $750. Now, my second son entered university, and the expenses increased, so I gave you $500.” The beggar asked him, “How many children do you have?” The man replied, “Four.” The beggar asked, “And will you educate them all at my expense?!”

Like the beggar in the story, Sometimes, we consider kindness and goodness of God as our right and not as unearned blessings. We can never ever earn any, but it is His love and grace that we enjoy them.

Take, for example, a promotion in a job or a new car etc. While we do seek the Lord's blessings, deep in our hearts many of us feel we "earned it".

Ephesians 2:8 says: "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God".

I sure am glad God doesn't give me what I deserve.

Don't Crowd Out Jesus!

Would you like to live in a crowded house, with people you may not like, who are Loud, abusive and arrogant and maybe bullies? No?

Well, neither does Jesus.

Philippians 4:8 tells us how to clean out the temple of God - our minds and our bodies. 

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things".

The verse is a powerful reminder to keep our faith clear and focused, avoiding the distractions and negativities that can cloud our spiritual journey. Just as we wouldn't want to live in a chaotic and unhealthy environment, we should ensure that our minds and hearts remain pure and centered on Christ. This means intentionally choosing what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, and praiseworthy, as Philippians 4:8 advises. By doing so, we create a welcoming space for Jesus within us, allowing His presence to shine brightly in our lives and guiding us with His love and wisdom. Let's not let the noise and turmoil of the world crowd out our connection with Him; instead, let's nurture our relationship with Christ, keeping Him at the forefront of our thoughts and actions.

Sunday Quotes: God Calling

Todays' quotes are taken from a book called "God Calling", authored by two ladies called "the listeners" and edited by A.J. Russel. The two ladies seek no praise and choose to remain anonymous. But their claim that their messages came from the living Christ Himself! Whether one chooses to believe or not, what we cannot but realize is that their messages are deep in spiritualty and wisdom and (as A.J. Russel says) spirit led, because the Holy Spirit is not a silent spirit. We also know that if we do take the trouble to quieten our minds and hearts and God will speak to us as well, as He does to many. Not as in an event, but as a day to day conversation - guiding, sharing His peace and encouraging every day.  While we would have liked to tell you more about these ladies, today we will only quote from their book - God Calling - 

"Each word or thought of yours can be like a pearl that you drop into the secret place of another heart, and in some hour of need, lo! the recipient finds the treasure and realizes for the first time it's value."

"Life with me is not an immunity from difficulties, but peace in difficulties". 

"Joy is the result of faithful trusting acceptance of my will, when it seems not joyous."

"Hope with certainty". 

"You cannot escape discipline". 

Saturday Vespers

As we stand at the threshold of a new year, we pause to reflect on the blessings and lessons of the past. We thank You for Your grace, mercy, and the countless ways You have sustained us.

Lord, we ask for Your guidance and wisdom as we embark on the journey ahead. May Your light shine upon our path, illuminating our way and helping us navigate the challenges and opportunities that lie before us. Grant us the courage to pursue our dreams and the strength to overcome any obstacles.

Fill our hearts with love, kindness, and compassion, so that we may extend these gifts to those around us. Help us to be instruments of Your peace, spreading hope and joy in a world that often needs it.

We pray for Your protection over our loved ones and ourselves, keeping us safe and healthy throughout the year. May Your presence be a constant source of comfort and encouragement. We ask for Your mercy and guidance for those in need:

For the sick and suffering, may Your healing hand rest upon them, bringing comfort and restoration. For those burdened with worries and anxieties, grant them peace and the assurance of Your presence. For the lonely and isolated, surround them with Your love and bring kind companions into their lives. For families facing challenges, may Your wisdom and strength uphold them, fostering unity and understanding. For our leaders and those in positions of authority, guide them with Your wisdom to make decisions that promote justice and compassion. As we rest this evening, we ask for Your protection over us. May our hearts and minds be filled with Your peace, and may we awaken refreshed and ready to serve You anew.

Today we also ask for your miracles, our Miracle Maker. We ask for a miracle for the Pastor's wife who is suffering from 4th stage of cancer. We have been praying for her for some time and today, as this new year begins we bring her to you for you healing hand.

We want to ask once again, for healing and pain relief for a senior lady in the Delhi area of India, as she is suffering too, from back pain. In the extreme cold we ask for your healing touch and protection. we also pray for another senior lady in the same area who has slipped and fallen and hurt her head and is currently in hospital. May your healing touch rest on them both.

Please pray for residents, law enforcement, firefighters, and government officials in the midst of the disaster in southern California and Los Angeles area. Ask God to protect those who are in harm’s way, comfort those who are mourning, and strengthen families who have lost everything.

Lyne requests you to pray for her sister Dee, who has a heart catherization procedure today that nothing goes wrong and that she can go home after the procedure.

AR asks for prayers for his daughter as he has been having some negative dreams about her safety. Please ask for God's hedge of protection around her.

Thank You, Lord, for the promise of new beginnings. We trust in Your plan for our lives and look forward to the blessings that await us.

Thy Will be Done

 

Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. I am sure we repeat this line daily if not more. We repeat it without meaning though. Honestly, do we really do anything, or even want to do anything, to bring about Gods will on Earth? Or the prayer is just words we have memorized and recite. Do we even know Gods will?

Rev Francis Taylor has this to say -

"When we pray the Lord's Prayer, we say "thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." In the Psalm 40:6-9, we pray that we delight to do God's will. I wonder if we really mean what we pray, or if we just say the words. First, we need to think about what God's will really is. When we read the Scriptures we see certain themes – justice, peace, and especially, love. These themes run through the Old Testament as well as the New. We are told to take care of the poor, the most vulnerable in our society. We are asked to remember that we were once strangers in the lands we now occupy. We are told to treat others the way we want to be treated, to forgive. These are not easy tasks and sometimes we do not "delight" in doing them. We want justice but not if it interferes with our comfort. We want peace, but our speech is often loaded with violence. We say we want to be forgiven but find it hard to forgive. We don't always welcome the stranger, and we sometimes suspect the poor of being responsible for their situation. When we continue to read this psalm, we read a confession of sorts admitting that we often fail in doing the will of God. We also hear the author asking for God's mercy and faithfulness. We need to look at ourselves with honesty and see how we can work better to bring about God's will on earth as it is in heaven."

Pastor Rajiv's New Year Message

 

Delimiting God

Is it possible for mere, fragile, and mortal men to limit the Almighty, Omnipotent, and Supreme God of the universe? Sounds like a foolish question, but the answer is YES! 

We limit God by our lack of faith, disbelief, and by trying to confine his power and abilities to our own understanding and experiences, essentially putting boundaries on a limitless being: this can manifest through fear, pride, self-reliance, and not fully trusting in his promises or guidance.

When we doubt God's ability to act or fulfill his promises, we effectively limit his power in our lives. This doubt may not be explicit, maybe unstated, but there all the same. 

Let us Consider Psalm 78: 

17 BUT THEY SINNED EVEN MORE AGAINST HIM

By rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness.

18 And they tested God in their heart

By asking for the food of their fancy....

This is especially tragic if you read it after you read verses 12 to 16!

Why is there doubt & unbelief? Firstly, because in our small minds, we compare Him to Humans, unconsciously.

Trying to understand God's actions through our own limited perspective can lead to restricting his capabilities.

Second, fear takes control of our minds and hearts when we are in extreme situations. Letting fear control our thoughts and actions can prevent us from fully trusting in God's plan.

Pride and self-reliance is another cause. Believing we can handle situations without God's intervention limits our reliance on his power.

Why does all this happen? Simply because of the Ignorance of scripture and our own inexperience of God in our life because we never recognize His hand and His work in our own life nor know about His work in the lives of all the Biblical characters.

Not studying the Bible and understanding God's true nature can lead to misconceptions about his power and character.

Without recognition of God and His ways and what He wants from us, we start prioritizing worldly pursuits over God's will which can restrict our access to his blessings.

The disconnect with God and His word, causes a difference of views as well. We expect Him to fulfil our needs, yet we do not realize that His understanding and knowledge of our needs is very different to ours: we tend to blur the line between our needs, wants and desires. Our unfulfilled desires add fuel to the fire.

Finally, our own nature and mental makeup of testing everything, leads us to test God as well. Throughout the Bible we see that the Israelites testing God. They want to see if God will truly fulfill His promises. They asked for food and God indeed gave them food. They asked for water and God indeed gave them water. In spite of all these, the Israelites were ingrates. It seemed that nothing could convince them of God’s power, faithfulness, and love. Just like us.

Moving on in the Psalm-

40 How often they provoked Him in the wilderness,

And grieved Him in the desert!

41 Yes, again and again they tempted God,

And limited the Holy One of Israel.

In Verse 42 the Psalm tells us, “They remembered NOT His hand, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.”

There, you see? Whenever we forget about God’s might and powerful ability to help us in our troubles, we limit Him. When we doubt God’s love and mercy toward us, we limit Him. Instead of believing that He can provide all our needs, we tend to solve our problems by our own effort. We forget about the many miracles in the past that God had already done for us, because we do not recognize them.

AND THAT IS THE KEY! 

The day we start recognizing God's hand in our life we will start believing and unlimiting Him in our lives. And to do that we need to know Him (through His word) talk about Him, read about experiences others have had of Him and talk and walk with Him. So today, let us review our whole life till date - whether of 20 years or of 80 years or 100 years. Review each momentous occasion, good or bad, and Gods hand at work each time.