This Week With Jesus

Read Luke 14: 15-24 Those of us who have said "yes" to the invitation, must continue to say that "yes" with the quality of our lives. It's not always the believers who say yes to Jesus' invitation to the banquet. But those who do accept, must ready themselves (as one would if one was invited to the King's table). One would pick the best clothes we have, make sure they were clean, learn table manners fit for the kings table and practice good behavior. How do we ready ourselves for Jesus' banquet? By the quality of our lives that we lead. And that quality is mentioned again and again in the Bible. Here is a quick recap : First off is the Fear of the Lord. Possibly the most difficult as well. It's not about being afraid but embracing and respecting His authority by putting Him first. What comes in the way of this is our own pride, selfishness, materialism and love of the world. These are our idols, and when added together, you have the perfect formu

“Esther again pleaded with the king, falling at his feet and weeping. She begged him to put an end to the evil plan of Haman the Agagite, which he had devised against the Jews.” (Esther 8:3) Shock. Horrified. Anger. Weeping.  These words are not light nor meant lightly. We are reeling at the sights and stories flooding our screens and phones from Israel. The attacks on Israel over the weekend by Hamas is the most serious threat to the security of that nation in 50 years. It is no coincidence that the attacks were orchestrated while Israelis enjoyed a public day to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. As families gathered and IDF members relaxed at home, thousands of rockets were fired into Israel and 100s of armed militants crashed through border fences and began killing and kidnapping. Sneaky, treacherous, intent on cruelty and slaughter - as terrorists are want to do. Their cruelty and horrid torture does not spare man women or child. Even foreigners who have nothing to do with the en

                                     Read  1 Kings 19:11-13 Suppose you had a problem which was so, so, huge only the President or Prime Minster or king or the head of your country could resolve it. So, you approach his office and send a mail and weeks later you get a reply that you have been granted an audience and he will meet you for 15 mins six months later.  Now you wait eagerly for that date, preparing your application, file, arguments and case details. You hope you will get a favorable decision. This is a real-world scenario! Now think about the heavenly world. We face a problem today, and right now we get to escalate it to the Heavenly king through a personal hotline and even if His answer may take time, He provides interim relief. How great is that! And He does it day by day, minute by minute, looking after the lives of 8 billion people! 24X7! We may not meet God in wind, earthquake or fire, but for sure He is with us today and every day in the simple ordinary events of life.

                                                           Psalm 101:7 "No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes." According to Science Daily, whenever someone tells lies, the temperature around their nose and in the orbital muscle in the inner corner of their eye will increase. Lying is as a second nature to us as is hunger and thirst. We probably inherited it from our ancestors in the Garden of Eden. But humor aside, lies in itself is not as non-serious as it is made out to be these days. In the Garden of Eden, the serpent, the embodiment of deceit, spun the first falsehood, causing a rift in the relationship between humanity and the Creator. The effect was immediate and devastating then, as it is today. Throughout the Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation, the importance of truth and the destructiveness of lies are continually emphasized. In modern culture, we grade lies, small, big, serious etc. But a lie i

What Is Your Storm? Adapted from Steve Browns in the God Life devotional. "What is your storm? Maybe it’s a struggle with cancer, a broken marriage or a painful loss. In Matthew 14, Jesus’ disciples were in a tough storm of their own--scared and unsure. Before we go on, I want you to notice the reason the disciples were in a storm in the first place. They did what Jesus told them to do. Frankly, that doesn’t seem right to me. We’ve been taught that when we’re faithful, things will go well. That is a lie. Sometimes when you’re faithful, things go wrong. Your storm is not an accident. God is in control of it. He has a reason for your storm and even though you may not know the reason right now, when it is finished, it will be finished. Whatever your storm, there is a God-given script. Your storm has a beginning and an end. It is under the total control of God and you really can trust Him. If you’re facing a real storm right now and if you’re like me, you may believe that you did som

                             It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.  Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV "What a marvelous truth that each day is a God-given chance to start anew! The Lord’s mercies are new every morning! What happened yesterday and the days before are forgotten by Him Who gives us new hope and chances to live according to His will! As we begin the month today, let's make the most out of it to put our best foot forward and forget about the past! The Apostle Paul says that in order to attain our goals for the future, we must learn to let go of the past and continue to move forward, full of hope in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14)! As we move forward to experience God, different people will encounter the living God differently, depending on each person’s needs and the purpose of God. Some people feel His great love encompassing their empty souls; some are comforted

                * Picture credits: The Chosen Read John Chapter 3  John 3 is a very familiar chapter to most Christians which talks about a very senior Pharisee named Nicodemus. While John 3 has many teachings for us, one question that does come up is who was Nicodemus? Was he a follower, believer, enemy or what? Being a very senior Pharisee, one does wonder about his interest in Jesus. Nicodemus did believe in Jesus, but his beliefs were safely hidden away in the night. It was only after Jesus' death that he came into a public demonstration of his faith and belief. Sometimes one wonders, are we like Nicodemus? Do we practice our faith in safe privacy in the dead of the night? Do we get too carried away with our professional duties, professional friends and other worldly demands and Jesus takes a back seat while our other priorities take the driver's seat? Sadly, I think it does happen that Jesus becomes a guest in our life, relegated to the night, when no other priorities take