It's The Lord's Battle

An enemy unto thine enemies. - Exodus 23:22

It is a most helpful thought that the angel of the covenant in whom is God's name, always precedes us. In our march through the wilderness we perceive His form, which is viewless to others, and realize that His strong hand prepares our path. Let us be very careful not to grieve or disobey Him, lest we lose His mighty championship. Strict obedience to His slightest whisper secures the certainty of His vindication of us from the wrongs we suffer at the hands of our foes. A little further on the same voice promises to send a hornet before the chosen host (Exodus 23:28). He who is an angel to the saint is a hornet to his foes. A swarm of hornets is the most relentless and irresistible foe that man can face.

Have you enemies?Be sure that they hate you only for the truth's sake, and because darkness must always be in antagonism to light. "Who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled." But see to it that you cherish no spirit of hatred or retaliation toward them. Think of the misery of their heart, which is full of jealousy, envy, and bitterness. Pity and pray for them.

When we are right with God we shall have many new enemies. All who hate Him will hate us. But this is rather to our credit than otherwise. Those who have defamed the master of the household will be hostile to his servants. But when our cause is one with God's, and His foes ours, our foes are His, and He deals with them; He stands between us and their hate. He will not leave us in their hands; He will give us vindication and deliverance

Taken  from  Daily  Homily by  F B  Meyer

Promise
For  He  rescues  you  from every trap and  protects  you  from  the  fatal  plague. He  will  shield  you  with  His   wings. They  will  shelter  you. His  faithful  promises  are your  armour.  Psalm 91;3,4 (The  Living  Bible)

Prayer
Though I  am  surrounded  by troubles,you will  bring  me safely through  them. You  will  clench  your  fist   against  my  angry  enemies.Your  power  will  save  me.
Psalm 138:7 (The  Living  Bible)

Pray  for   us.

Pictorial Update

A  lot  of  new   things  are  taking place  on our  campus since   the   formation of  our  new church  management. I  have been  busy  with  that. We  are  experiencing  the  peaceful  blessings  of  God the  giver  of  all  good  gifts.

Sonia  and Abner  paid  me  a surprise  visit  during  Abner 's  school  break . They  also  wanted  to   attend  our  church  services.  I  enjoyed  having  them  with  me  for  a  few days.

Days  are  becoming  warmer  now but  not  too  uncomfortable.The  days  of  the  cool  breeze   are  over. But  still  the  intense  heat (110*) is a few  weeks off I   suppose.
I  have  taken  some photos to  share  with  you.

Backdrop  for the  Sunday

evening Gospel meetings

 Our  church  helper got this  little  puppy  free .Isn' t  he  cute? I  think he  is  a  Lab. Barely  a  month  old.

 We  have  named  him  Rocky.He  is  going  to  guard  our church campus.

 Heralding   the  hope  of  Easter

Sunflowers are  my  favourite  flowers.  They  always  face the  sun , no  matter  how  strong  it  is.
I  read  a  book by  Gael Lindfield called  Assert  Yourself, How  to reprogramme  your  mind  for Positive  Action. Here is  an outline from the  book.

Compromise - only if it is reasonable to do so.
Open - and be honest
Negotiate - firmly and wisely
Fair - to you as well as  others
Innovate - don't wait for others  or fate
Direct - and clear in your speech
Expressive - show  your feeling when appropriate
Non-verbal - use your body
                    and beware of hidden messages
Chance - take risks
Empower - everyone

A Mustard Seed Planted

Revelation 21:5  (New  Testament)

And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.
God  is  doing  a  new  thing  in  my  church.We  are  moving  forward  in  ministry  with Yeshu  Darbar which  is  committed  to  the  spread  of  the Gospel message  and  growth  and  equipment   of  believers, community  service and  education.
On  Sunday, March 18, we  had  our  first  Yeshu  Darbar ( the  throne room of  Jesus)  service  in  my  church. It  was  a  momentous  occasion  and I missed  my parents and  family.

Jesus likened  the  kingdom of  heaven  to  a  mustard   seed  which   grows  into  a   huge  tree and  the birds  of  the  air  take  refuge  in  it.  Matthew  13: 31,32 (New  Testament)
We  have  planted  that mustard  seed  and  are  envisioning  growth  and  advancement in time to  come.Let  me  share  some photos   with  you.

      Indoor  service

Out door  service

        Roadside  book stall

 

Listen to Ryan Pitman

Ryan Pittman's Touching Testimony from ourprecioussavior on GodTube.

For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; 27 but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, 28 and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, 29 so that no man may boast before God. 30 But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, 31 so that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.”
1 Corinthians 1 (New  Testament)

True Humility
read›

Philippians 2:1-4
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of
others as better than yourselves (v.3).

The story is told of a man who was so humble
that his city council decided to honor him with
medallion for his humility. A week after the award
ceremony, the award had to be withdrawn. Much to
the embarrassment of the council, the man had brashly
worn the medallion everywhere he went. This humorous
story reminds me of what mystery writer Helen Nielsen
once wrote: “Humility is like underwear, essential, but
indecent if it shows.” According to Bible teacher John
Stott, humility is “the rarest and fairest of all Christian
virtues.” It’s also the chief Christian virtue because it’s the
exact opposite of the worst of sins—pride.

So, is true humility possible? What does it look like?
In Philippians 2, Paul gives us a portrait of the humble
person. He presents four attitudes that help us understand
true humility—two negatives to avoid and two positives
to follow. Humble people . . .

• are not selfish (v.3). They do “nothing out of selfish
ambition” (v.3 NIV). They aren’t self-centered.

• do not “try to impress others” (v.3). They do “nothing
out of vain conceit” (v.3 NIV). They don’t seek glory for
themselves.

• are always “thinking of others as better than
[themselves]” (v.3). They see the great value in others.

• don’t “look out only for [their] own interests, but take
an interest in others, too” (v.4). They balance the needs
of others with their own needs.

To be humble, we need to move away from “self” to “others”—pursuing
lowliness (v.3) and helpfulness (v.4). Bible commentator Warren Wiersbe
succinctly summed it up: “The humble person is not one who thinks meanly of
himself; he simply does not think of himself at all!”

—K.T. Sim

more›
How did Jesus demonstrate His humility as revealed in Philippians
2:5-8?
next›
How would you grade yourself on how well you’re avoiding selfish
ambition and vainglory, while also thinking of others positively and
putting their needs before your own? What needs to change?

Source http://www.godtube.com/

Ephesians 4:32

            (Google  image)


Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. ~ Ephesians 4:32

There was an older farmer who had puppies for sale so he put a sign on his fence. A boy about eight years old from across the road came over and said he wanted to buy a puppy. He then pulled out a pocketful of change and said, "I've got thirty-nine cents; is that enough?"

The farmer laughed. "I don't know," he said. "Let me count it." He counted coin by coin. " That's exactly the right amount," he told the boy. He called to his farmhand and told him to let out the puppies. Four of the cutest little fur balls you could imagine came scurrying toward the little boy. He reached down and played with them, trying to figure out which one he wanted to buy.

The he looked up and saw that smaller pup was just coming down the ramp from the puppy cage in the barn. There was something wrong with this puppy's back legs. It tried to run, but the best it could do was hobble along. The little boy was immediately drawn to it. Without hesitation he said to the farmer, "That's the puppy I want". The farmer was puzzled. He said, "No, son. You don't want this puppy. It will never be able to run and play like the rest of the litter. There is something wrong with its back legs."

The little boy reached down and rolled up the legs of his jeans to reveal steel braces on his legs. For the first time, the farmer noticed he wore specially made shoes. He said to the farmer, " You see, I don't run well either. This puppy needs someone who understands it."

Sunday Blessings - The Greatest Risk Taker

On Feb 22nd there was a retreat  in our  church. University students, working people and young   families  came  together  to  have  a  time  of  worship, learning and fellowship

These   little sisters  share  the  same  birthday a  year  or  so  apart!

You  can   see  me in  the  middle top.
Here  is  an excerpt from a book  I  am reading.

Wherever you  look  in  the Bible you  are faced  with risk  takers.Humanly speaking Jesus was the greatest  risk taker. If you were calling  people to follow you would you have picked the disciples? Tax collectors, fishermen, radicals and the traditional all  made  up Jesus ' inner circle. There were  people  who were ambitious,longing to see a new order come. Others just seem to have been plain confused.  Some spoke up and others just  talked  among  themselves.

  Imagine leaving that  group to develop the  Church and take the gospel into the  world.  If you or I were planning a world-wide strategy to share the most  important message in the history  of language,I think we would have been a bit more choosy. The charismatic personality, or the leading academic would have swayed us. Experience would be vital, and  we would have  wanted three references. Applicants would have  needed  to take a personality test to check their mental  stability.

  For us style and substance would have to knit together in the proposed candidate. If the person we wanted  was of influence, so much the better. I don 't think that any of the people that Jesus called would have made our short  list. What a great comfort that is. God did not call just  the  perfect, the beautiful or the  obviously gifted. God continues to delight us in taking risks  with people. God calls and  encourages  the weak, ordinary and in the world 's eyes the totally unremarkable. God takes   risks on people like you and I. However, are we  willing to take risks in our walk with God?

(Taken from Fred Drummond' s book "I Spy The Rainbow")

Down, Lower Down

 ( winter  blossoms )
Here is the path to the higher life: down, lower down! Just as water always seeks and fills the lowest place, so the moment God finds men abased and empty, His glory and power flow in to exalt and to bless.”

― Andrew Murray, Humility

A  signpost  from  the Word  of God

15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

1John 2 (New  Testament)

I Have Kept The Faith

Today  my father  completed  8  years  in   heaven.
"The course that I was set I have finished, and I have kept the faith. The future for me holds the crown of righteousness which God, the true judge, will give to those who have loved what they have seen of him. "
2 Timothy 4;7,8 (J B Phillips New  Testament)

Here  are  some  old  b/w and  coloured  memories

1950

My  father  loved  the  outdoors.

He  was  a  hunter and 

enjoyed  sports.

Mom & Dad  with  daughters

Amrita  and Anjali

All  5  of  us.

(I am   the  middle  daughter)

Grandpa  enjoying our grapefruit with Mahima

The  family enjoying  the  warm

winter  sun.

(L-R)

 Mahima, Uncle Kenneth, Aunt  Virginia

Amrita, Ashish,Mama, Papa,

Aunt Sybil and  Anjali

My Dad  stood by what  he  believed.

Here  is  a  poem by Patience Strong,

sharing  the  same  sentiments.

If you believe-

Stand boldly by the  things that you profess.

Let  your No be definite,

and let  your yes be yes.

Do not swing between two points.

Be firm in word and deed-

Faith is futile if it does not

work in time of  need...

So give your witness without shame-

and let your life your faith proclaim.

At the Feet of Jesus

My  BIL  Prem  was  invited  to  preach  at Yeshu  Darbar twice and  also  lead  Staff Bible  studies  in  the  office  of  the  University President.
Here  are some  photos  from  the evening  meetings..

During  the  season  of  lent

I  am  focusing  on the 

humility of Christ

and  reading

Andrew Murray' s book "Humility".

Here  is  a  quote  from  his  book.

Humility is perfect quietness of heart. It is to expect nothing, to wonder at nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest when nobody praises me, and when I am blamed or despised. It is to have a blessed home in the Lord, where I can go in and shut the door, and kneel to my Father in secret, and am at peace as in a deep sea of calmness, when all around and above is trouble.”

― Andrew Murray

If

If by Rudyard Kipling


If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,

Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream and not make dreams your master,
If you can think and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,\
And stoop and build them up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: Hold on!

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that is in it,
And which is more you’ll be a Man, my son!

- Rudyard Kipling