Psalmist reminds us with a note of God’s unbeatable promise and assurance that when my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up (Psalms 27:10). In every smile and every tear, good parenting holds children close, a steadfast presence through laughter’s noise and sorrow’s silence. Like gentle raindrops that quench the thirsty earth, good parenting nurtures children’s spirits, guiding their footsteps with whispers of encouragement, dispelling the shadows of fear.
It weaves an enduring bond, an everlasting connection that transcends time and circumstance. Some time ago, I received a letter from a client during my counselling therapy. I have taken all necessary precautions to protect the client’s confidentiality as I reveal it to you.
Dear doctor, I’m writing to you today to share something I wrote a while back particularly when I was in a lot of pain. I believe it might provide you with some insight into my thought process during that period. The constant criticism I receive from my parents makes it seem impossible for me to heal emotionally. Every minor remark feels like a personal attack, leaving me feeling worthless and hopeless and I want to die.
Is it truly so difficult for them to comprehend my perspective? To set aside their own preconceptions, expectations, and judgments of me? To simply see me as a human being?
My own parents, the very people who brought me into this world, seem indifferent to my struggles. My own parents, the individuals who brought me into this world, fail to make any attempt to understand me. [About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud [agonized] voice, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” (Matt. 27 Verses 45 to 53)] Sometimes I imagine myself screaming and shouting at them until they finally listen to me. All I want to do is run away from them, to escape their suffocating presence and find a place where I can breathe freely for a long time.
I’m tired of always being the one who needs to understand their problems, their emotions, their perspective. I’ve tried my best, time and time again, to empathize with them, and I do understand them.
But shouldn’t they be the ones making an effort to understand their own daughter, to see me as a human being, not just a reflection of their own desires and expectations? I often wish I had never been born. I love life, but living with them is making me question whether it’s worth living at all. They make me hate myself. They make me feel worthless. They make me want to disappear, to run away and never come back.
I feel an urge to inflict emotional pain upon them, so that they feel the pain they’ve inflicted on me. I wish I was never born. In my teens, I could never understand the depth of this verse. “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget, I will not forget you! (Isaiah 49:15) Today, I see the different dimensions of this verse, particularly how clear and great the awesome profoundness of God’s relatedness and completeness in relation to our innermost being of daily routines of our life.
Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.” I was cupbearer to the king.
Nehemiah 1:11
It starts with passion. What are you passionate about? What burden has God placed on your heart? Have you ever wondered why?
Nehemiah had a burden for his people, for the broken city of Jerusalem. He wept. He cared with a passion. He had a vision of what could be and his first step was important. He didn’t race to Jerusalem and try to go at it alone. He didn’t start mapping out a plan to find the solution. He didn’t take the burden to people. He knew where the burden came from and he took the burden to the only one who knew it fully and had power to see it through. Nehemiah went to the Lord and prayed.
Nehemiah 1:4-11
4 When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
5 Then I said: “Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments,
6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you.
7 We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.
8 “Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations,
9 but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.
’10 “They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand.
11 Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.” I was cupbearer to the king.
Nehemiah knew this was preliminary before his prayer is heard; then only did he put his requests before God. The LORD cannot hear or answer when there is a sin that separates us and Him
Psalm 66:18 says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear.”
But to those who are convicted of their sin, when we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1John 1:9).
A believer can learn from the life of Nehemiah how he was pained about the condition of his land and his people. He first took his concerns to the Lord with deep anguish of heart and then he determined in his mind to do something about it. At the end of his prayer he says,
“Please grant me success today by making the king favorable to me. Put it into his heart to be kind to me.” (Neh 1:11) His prayer looked forward to an action on his part.
To those who have veered off God’s path, if you return to Him, He is ever willing to forgive and restore! “For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favour lasts a lifetime” (Ps.30:5).
How privileged we are when we think about our relationship with God through Jesus Christ, who speaks to the Father in our defence! His blood made us partners of the new covenant. Jesus Christ is our advocate before the Father. He is the great High Priest ever interceding for us. Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with confidence.
Nehemiah’s prayer represents how we should pray, how Jesus taught us to pray.
Reverence – Nehemiah gave God the glory God deserves. He acknowledged God’s sovereignty and power, his might and his greatness. When we realize how big God is, we are able to have the right perspective. Nothing is greater than him. No burden is too great for him to bear. No opposition is too big to stop his plan. No person is crafty enough to outsmart him. Our trials, burdens, oppositions, and tasks become small compared to God.
Repentance – Nehemiah confessed the sins of his people, AND didn’t exclude himself. He came in humility before God and recognized the power lies in God alone. He made sure he was right with God and his heart was in the right place before he moved forward.
Promises – Nehemiah prayed God’s promises. We can’t pray God’s promises if we don’t know them. And we can’t know them unless we’re reading them in his Word. God knows his promises, but praying them back to God was Nehemiah’s way of remembering those promises and building strength and confidence on them.
Petition – Nehemiah took what was on his heart to God and asked for his provisions in carrying out God’s call.
Nehemiah knew his power was in prayer. He guarded the promises God gave him. He nurtured and fed the vision God gave him out of his burden.
Think about what you are passionate about and how God is burdening your heart in a way that needs you and your passion to take action. Our burden for the humanity, community, sharing the love of Christ in practical ways, building relationships, and serving together as one. My Jerusalem has been built out of that burden and the vision God has given us. Be in prayer over the leaders, the volunteers, the homeowners, and the relationships as we Serve Together. Your prayers are powerful and part of the mission. Let’s REBUILD!
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
Yes dear Soldiers of Christ, we are certainly living in the last days, things are changing very fast. We are almost in the perilous times. Do you see what I see? Yes, it says
For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
The above signs are before us, heady, high minded, lovers of evil more than lovers of good. It says further
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
Having a form of godliness- looks like godly people but they deny the power thereof. Absolutely disgusting, hearing horrific news, no mercy even little ones are not spared.
Further it says, For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, These are not the lovers of truth but haters believing every form of ungodliness. Yes, the very adamic nature is being revealed through them who do not want to know the truth.
See further, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these aloo resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.
As the saying goes by What a man sows, shall he reap. We cannot keep on deceiving all for our folly shall be made known to all in due time.
So, since we are living in the perilous times, what manner of life we should live is to be pondered upon and take heed to live a godly life.
Yes, as the scripture says in 2 Timothy 3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. That’s the truth. If we live godly then we are bound to suffer hardships, persecution from ungodly men. It’s no surprise and therefore nothing to complain about, we must live a godly life. What does the bible say about this? In Revelation 22:11
He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
So our calling is if we are righteous, Yes we are the righteousness of God, we must be righteous still, Holy then be Holy still.
Let's humble ourselves and seek God in everything we do for the day of the Lord is drawing nearer and nearer. God is our helper helping us through His Spirit, warning us, instructing us, correcting us, so that we live a godly life well pleasing Him. Amen.
“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free”.John 8:32
Jesus spoke this to the people who had faith in Him and who trusted Him.Believing in Jesus,who is the truth will make you free from slavery to sin and will give you eternal life. Romans 8:2 says”For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death”.
John3:16 says”For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whomsoever. believe th in Him Should not perish but have everlasting life”.
Jesus give this. promise ( John 8:32) to His believers, His children.As a believer in Christ,we have to abide in the word and persevere in studying,learning and applying God’s word.By abiding in His word we will come to know the truth.(proverbs2:1-7)Jesus is the truth. John 14:6 says”I am the way,the truth and the life”.John 17:17 says”…….thy word is truth”.
When we know Him truly,we are set free from the bondages of sin and from the penalty of sin.By knowing Jesus we are able to overcome the sin. Jesus points out to the Jews that they can be either the children of God by believing and abiding in Him or be children of the evil one. Children of evil one could not recognise or accept Jesus.
They wanted to murder Him and disregard His word.Children of God recognise that Jesus is the son of God,sent by the Father, to redeem mankind. Jesus Himself make us free through His teachings,His sacrificial death on the cross and His resurrection,proclaiming victory over sin and death.
He set us free from the fear of death and eternal judgement. We rejoice in the freedom we have in Christ,the power over sin and death, curses and diseases.It makes a shift in our thinking,speaking,actions,reactions according to the will of God.
The children of God are taught by the Holy Spirit and great is their peace.It empowers us to bless others.when our words and actions align with truth others will trust us.True freedom and peace is experienced by those who follow Jesus. We are more than conquerors as they are not afraid of death and defeat. Jesus will set us free completely from the lust of the eye, lust of the flesh and pride of life.He will make us free from our insecurities and anxieties. We should not be like the Israelites who turned to their captivity.
Galatians 5:1 says “standfast therefore in the liberty wherewithal Christ has made us free,and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage”.We should enjoy the new freedom we have in Christ.
Heavenly Father,we thank you for making us free from the yoke of sin,anxieties,insecurities and all other bondages and making us conquerors. I pray in Jesus name, Amen.
Psalm 37:11 “But the meek shall inherit the earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”
Meekness is strong,not weak.It is gracious, not brash.A meek person is not easily provoked cause his humble genes denotes the dependence upon God and His constant need for His guidance and support.
A characteristic of meekness is a particular spiritual respect to learn from The Holy Spirit and from the people who are low in their capability,experience or education.
Meekness is the prime attitude that can protect one from their blind pride that arises from power,wealth and position. Scripture says,in Mathew 5:5,Blessed are those that are humble for they shall receive what God has promised.
We should notice the characteristic of Our Lord Jesus who describes himself in the following scriptures.Mathew 11:28” Take my yoke upon you and learn from me;for I am meek and lowly in heart.This Christ like quality of meekness is misunderstood in our contemporary world.
Meekness is developed through Godly desire,the righteous exercise in their morale and strive to retain the remission of sins.A spiritual gift to seek after. We should remember however the purposes for which such a blessing is given, even to benefit and serve the children of God.As we submit to this attitude and prepare to follow Our Saviour eventually we tend to become more like Him.We are enriched in ourselves to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to be more disciplined,controlled,composed and calm.
Moses was the most learned and wise one in the whole of Egypt in his words and deeds,yet he was meek amongst them all .Humans become proud in their abundance of knowledge and wealth. We should learn from Our Spiritual Father,Jesus and also the gift of meekness that was evident in Moses that were instrumental to accomplish God’s purpose.
The Saviour’s meekness is eternally an essential experience for each of us to magnify the wisdom of God above our one’s own wisdom.
“Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?” (Luke 17:17)
Jesus said these words, when only one leper came back to thank him after being healed. In Luke 17:11-19, we see that Jesus was going towards Jerusalem. He passed through a village amidst of Samaria. Far away there stood some lepers, crying together “Jesus! Master! Take pity on us.” He looked at them with compassion and said “Go and show your selves to the priest”. On the way they were all healed. Nine of them went back to mind their own work and forgot to thank Jesus. A Samaritan, who was one among them, when saw that he was healed, did two things (Luke 17.5)
1. Turned back and with a loud voice glorified God.
2. He fell down on his face at Jesus’ feet giving him thanks.
With over whelming joy and happiness he glorified the omnipotent God who gave a miraculous deliverance to him. Bible says,
“ Make a joyful noise unto the Lord…. ….serve the Lord with gladness; come before his presence with singing (psalm 100:1-2).
Psalm 34:1 says “ I Will bless in the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth’’.
God has given good health and many worldly blessings to us. It is mandatory that we should always praise his Holy name. Luke 2:20, says ‘’ The shepherds returned glorifying and praising God for all things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.(about Jesus) . Secondly, he fell down on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks (Luke 17:16). Similarly the three kings saw the young child with Mary his mother and fell down, and worshipped him. They had opened their treasures and presented gold….. (Math 2:11). We should always humble ourselves and surrender at his feet. It also means , offering our valuables to God. (Spending our time, money, energy and material goods to spread the gospel).
Testimony : A class mate of mine in Bible college had two daughters. One got married and she gave birth to a boy child. He said that even after six months after the child`s birth, he said that he was thanking and glorifying God every day for his grandson.
Prayer :
Lord fill us with the spirit which gives thanks and praise to you always. Amen !!!!
But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first. (Matthew 19:30)
The Parables Of Jesus – The Laborers In The Vineyard (Mt 20:1-16)
(a) In this parable which Jesus taught, the ‘landowner’ is God, the vineyard is the world, and the laborers whom were sent out into the vineyard are God’s people whom He has called to salvation. From this parable, we see that all whom the Lord has called to salvation are called to come and to labor in His Kingdom. Each of us is given tasks and responsibilities and expected to be faithful to the tasks that the landowner has given us to accomplish. In Jesus’ day it was typical that a laborer might go and wait each day in the market place for someone to come and to hire him, and one laborer might potentially work for one person for part of a day and then work for someone else for another part of the day. According to the Law of Moses, a laborer was to be paid at the end of each day of work, and thus we see that portrayed here in these verses.
“At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee.” (Deuteronomy 24:15).
We see here that the landowner chose to hand out pay to the ones who were hired based upon the opposite order of the time of their having gone out into his vineyard to labor. We need to learn from this that the Lord is going to reward people the way in which He wishes to reward them, and what we may think in our own minds and understanding is best, may not be what the Lord with His infinite wisdom, knowledge, and understanding decides is the best. Since we are living under the rule of grace as Christians we ought to be grateful for any and all blessings which the Lord chooses to give us, regardless of what others may receive or be blessed by the Lord with.
The time of payment.
The wages are paid at the end of the same day (verse. 8), in accordance with Lev 19:13b, “Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight”. The rationale is given in Deut 24:14-15, “Do not take advantage of a hired man who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother Israelite or an alien living in one of your towns. Pay him his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and is counting on it.”
The amount of payment.
Every worker receives the same wage, a denarius. Responding to the protestations of the first group, the landowner explains that he has paid them according to his fairness and justice (verse. 13), and the last group according to His goodness and generosity (verse. 15).
So be ready for surprises from Lord and never complain about the fairness of His rewards. Never boast about the duration of your salvation because the one who gave it and sustained it is He only. Do the responsibilities, specially the ones you are supposed to do in the Army of Jesus faithfully and receive the wages as per His riches.God bless you
Joshua 1:8 In our life we desire many things to prosper. We make lots of efforts and oaths with our own strength and mind to make proper decision. But many times, nothing will prosper, we never think about God’s plan in our life. God will prosper our life when it is good to us. As it is said in Joshua 1:8 there are three ways to follow in order to make our life prosperous.
The book of law shall not depart from our mouth.
We should meditate therein day and night.
We may observe to do according to all that was written therein. Deuteronomy 28:1 We should be very cautious in law which God has given us. If we diligently listen the voice of the Lord, then the Lord shall set us on high above all nations of the earth.
Psalms 1:2 If we delight is in the law of the LORD; and meditate day and night. We shall be a blessing. As it is mention in Genesis 24 Isaac was blessed to have a wise woman as his wife without knowing each other because Isaac was a man who meditate God’s word. Psalms 1:3 A person who loves God’s word are like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
When Christ’s disciples live according to the leading and guidance of the Spirit of God, there will be encounters with those who operate under a different spirit with attitudes in opposition to God. In verses Matt:11-12, Jesus spoke about the persecution that will come to believers when they live out the beautiful attitudes in their lives, but how are we to respond to such persecution? Should we withdraw and hide from the world system,and never confront the darkness again? No, as believers, we are the conscience of the world in which we live.Regarding our response to persecution, Jesus gave us two metaphors as to how we respond to those who persecute us.
1) You are the Salt of the Earth 2) You are the Light of the World
Matthew 5:13: “You are the salt of the Earth.”
So today, let us unravel the wonderful truths about the meaning of salt in the Bible, its significance, and how we can truly become genuine salt of the earth.
When Jesus walked on earth, salt was a valuable commodity. In the time of Caesar, Rome paid their soldiers in salt, and in ancient China, salt was second to gold in value. Even today, we talk of people being “worth their weight in salt.” Why was salt so valuable? There are Seven things that Jesus could have been alluding to in His metaphor of believers being like salt
1) Salt as a Covenant
Salt is known as a covenant. and the scriptures mentioned “covenant of salt” three times. (Leviticus:2:13, Numbers 18:19)
2 Chronicles 13:5 “Ought ye not to know that the LORD God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David forever, even to him and to his sons by a covenant of salt?”
Salt is used as a preservative, which means it is instrumental for making things last longer. So when we say, “covenant of salt”, it simply means that the covenant is perpetual and not to be broken, just as how salt preserves.
2) Salt is purified before use, God has purified us also with the blood of Jesus.
1John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
Jesus’ sacrifice for us, however, cleans us thoroughly, providing such a deep-down cleaning that we receive new life. As Hebrews:9:14explains, the blood of Christ, shed for our sake, cleanses “our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” For all who trust in Christ, we are washed in his blood, fully cleansed from sin so that we may serve him!
3)Salt lends flavor to food
So we also have to bring taste in people’s lives. .(Col. 4:6, Pro:16:24)
. Salt lends flavor to food. Some foods are so bland that food can be made more palatable with added salt. Before I gave my life to Christ, life felt meaningless to me. I found it hard to bear the day-by-day living, but when Christ came into my life, I suddenly began to see life as purposeful, meaningful, and even exciting. I found a purpose and worth by giving my life to the furtherance of the Gospel of Christ. The Lord adds flavor and meaning to life. No longer was I living for the things of this world, but I began to live for what is beyond this life. The Lord adds flavor to our lives!
4) Salt keeps things from rotting
So we also have to save people from rot just like Lord Jesus saved us. (Psalms16:10, 2Peter 1:4) Salt was the ancient equivalent of refrigeration. If you wanted to stop meat or fish from decaying, you could rub in salt and make it edible for longer. This was the main reason salt was so valuable.
In this sense, the disciples of Jesus (We are disciples of Lord Jesus Christ) have been sent into the world to protect it from decay, to preserve its goodness and to prevent it from being corrupted or ruined.
Salt does not just savor. It saves.
Just as God has saved us from the mire, we too are to save others who are mired in the mire of sin through the Lord Jesus Christ. They also have to be kept safe.
5) Salt removes bitterness
Similarly, we also have to remove bitterness from each other’s hearts. (Hebrew: 12:15 , Ephesians:4 : 31-32) People will have to come out of the bitterness and unforgiveness that they have towards each other, to get rid of it we have to help them, just as salt drives away bitterness, in the same way Lord Jesus has called us salt, we have to help people to drive away bitterness from their lives. So that they can forgive each other and grow in the Lord
6) Salt has the ability to heal
Lord Jesus has also given us the authority that if we lay hands on the sick, they will be healed. (2 King20 – 23,Mark :16:18 Luke : 9:1, Matthew: 10:1 ) Salt is painful to an open wound, and of course, no one likes pain. The pain is not often received well, but the salt and other minerals in the Dead Sea water can heal the skin. One feels cleansed and invigorated after bathing in the water. As the cleansing of the salty water is to the body, our salty values bring an antiseptic cleansing power to the world. The light and salt we carry can bring healing to a decaying society
7) Salt creates thirst.
Similarly, seeing our lifestyle, thirst should arise within people, they should be curious to see the changes in our lives. Salt makes us thirsty. We are called to make the world thirsty for God.” You and I are called to live in such a way that we make others around us thirst for God. When we do this people will become thirsty and Lord Jesus will quench their thirst because Lord Jesus says if anyone is thirsty come to me and I will give you living water. (John : 7:37-38)
8)Salt is white ,White colour represents purity
So we too have to remain holy as our God is holy. ( Numbers:18:19,1Peter:1: 15) Salt spoke of purity. The Romans believed that salt was one of the purest things on earth because it comes from the whitest and purest properties, the sea and the sun. Jesus could have been saying that the believer was to be an example of purity to those around him, i.e., purity of speech and purity of life.
Lord Jesus has called us the salt of the earth. Jesus wants us to be the salt of the earth who preserves, maintains, and brings out “taste” or goodness in ourselves and others. We are protectors of life. We have to be a flavor enhancer for people who can be difficult to deal with. Our mission is to help them see how God works in our lives, share the good news and direct them to the Sustainer of life.
Be the salt in the world that spreads kindness to others through words, thoughts, and actions that embody God’s goodness. In a unique, loving way, you can allow others to experience the Lord’s presence in their lives by being a good friend, child, parent, spouse, colleague, church member!
Let’s Pray
Father, thank You for the identity You have entrusted to us — to be salt. Please forgive us for not always being faithful to the call. Prompt our hearts and teach us how to bring You into every aspect of our lives. Thank You for empowering and entrusting us to do Your work here on earth. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
