Tuesday 29 November 2016

The Biblical Stress-reliever

Philippians 4:6,7
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Nothing can get better than this promise! Reason? There’s a lot of fake promises and empty guarantees out there in the world that claims to provide us joy and peace – but in the end, it’s all absolute vanity and makes us crave for a peace that’s true and lasting.

Philippians 4:6 -  is the ultimate stress-reliever for every believer!

It’s an undeniable fact that we are constantly bombarded with anxious and fear inducing thoughts that are bound to stress us which eventually steals our joy and inner peace. But, we as the children of God have a way out of this – simply by “casting ALL our cares on our Caretaker”, thanking Him for His mercies that are new every morning and presenting our requests to the God who answers prayers. And the outcome? (Philippians 4:7) It’s the divine peace that can never be understood; it sure is insane to be happy and peaceful in the midst of a storm! – That’s the kind of peace that this world could never offer.


God bless!

Tuesday 22 November 2016

The Divine Counsel

Psalm 32:8 (New King James Version)
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will guide you with My eye.

There may be a lot of instances in our lives, when we find ourselves meeting the crossroads – wondering “which way do I choose now?”. Be it in taking up a course to study, choosing a career, selecting a life partner or any other major milestones that define our lives and impact our future. While the world offers numerous options, we know that it only further complicates our decision making process. But, the Bible clearly states that as a man/woman who trusts in God, we have access to divine counsel from our loving God, the Creator who has infinite wisdom and the One who holds our future. What a comfort that is! The only question that now remains is – whom are we running to for directions? Whom do we consult to help us take major life decisions? The divine counsel is guaranteed to only those who completely yield their lives to God and who choose to trust Him in every circumstance.

Proverbs 3:5 -6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall direct your paths.

Tuesday 15 November 2016

The Real Faith

A Hymn of Faith – Habakkuk 3: 17-19

17 Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls—
18 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.
19 The Lord God is my strength;
He will make my feet like deer’s feet,
And He will make me walk on my high hills.

The power of “Faith” is in declaring our trust in God, when the circumstances look discouraging or even impossible. It’s in the furnace of these difficult times that the genuineness of our “Faith” is tested and proved valuable. Let us declare our trust in God just as Job put it, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.” This kind of radical Faith does one thing – elevates God above anything and everything that we have/possess in our lives. It often corrects our perspective, purifies our motives and keeps our focus only on God and the things that are eternal.

As the hymn goes,
My goal is God Himself, not joy, nor peace,
Nor even blessing, but Himself, my God;
’Tis His to lead me there—not mine, but His—
At any cost, dear Lord, by any road.
-          Frances Brook


Monday 7 November 2016

"Brokenness" is the starting point for God's chosen vessel

Psalm 51

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,
A broken and a contrite heart—
These, O God, You will not despise.

Just a reminder that God does not expect that we should stay positive and all-smiling all the time.
God can handle a broken and weak spirit if we choose to lay our broken and (seemingly) meaningless lives down at His precious feet as He graciously accepts it as a ‘living’ sacrifice.

Whatever we may be going through right now – however impossible our circumstances might look – let’s just take time to pour our hearts and cry out to our God of salvation! He knows how it feels (for He’s gone through the worst possible suffering in every aspect Himself) and He has endured till death on the cross. God comforts us in our deepest sorrow, and strengthens us in our genuine brokenness, for “through the burning crucible of desert, where holy men and prophets are cleansed and purged for God's great purpose, until at last, at the end of human strength, beaten into the dust from which he came, the metal is ready for the Maker’s hand”. (Quoted from the “Ten Commandments” script)

A broken spirit and a contrite heart
You will not despise, You will not despise
You desire truth in the inward parts
A broken spirit and a contrite heart

Lord, my heart is prone to wander
Prone to leave the God I love
Here’s my heart, Lord, take and seal it
Seal it for Your courts of love



God bless!