Here I stand

Our  strength  is  seen  in  the  things  we  stand  for,
our  weakness  is  seen  in  the   things  we  fall  for.

Theodore  Epp

Invisible People

I  am  a  single  person  and  I  have  many  friends, but  at  my   age  most  of   them  are  married  and  busy at  work or  home. The  only   single  people  I  know  are  either  older  than  me  or  younger. My  married  frinds  and their  families  are  very  good but  still  sometimes  I  feel invisible  in  a  crowd - noone   to  kinda  hang  out   with.

My  new  pastor 's  wife ,who  teaches   mathematics  in  a College is  very  gracious and  I  feel  free  to  be in  her  company  in  a large  crowd. Ladies   whose husbands  are  busy   leading  or organizing  a service  or  event sorta   come  together , so  we  can  chat  and  socialize  together  and   meet  friends.

People  think  single  people  have  a  lot  of  freedom and  no  responsibilities. But  that ' s not   altogether  true. I  am  a  care giver  at  heart. After   my   mom  passed  away I  find  it  hard  to  just   take  care  of  myself   only . I  like  cooking for  others,  but  cooking  for  myself  alone  does 't appeal  to  me  very  much. 

Indian  society  is  basically family  oriented.  Single  woemn are   pressurized, patronized   or  pitied. Very few are there to  stand  by  us. On  top  of   that its  a  male  dominated  society  too,  so  its   double  whammy  for  us.

I read  a post  by  Karen Power  on  Her  Blog which  I  found  speaks  for   singes.

Would you pray for your single friends?



 by karenpower

I was made aware of this need this morning at church. Special prayer was given for married couples and the needs of their families. That’s great! Much needed! Yet, I can’t recall one time that there has been prayer for the single adults.

If you’re a single adult, do you sometimes feel invisible?

Seems that others think single adults live the life of luxury. They don’t realize that single adults make up 43% of Americans who are 18 and older (2009). They may not also realize that single’s shoulder ALL the weight and responsibility, if they live alone, of the finances, running daily activities of keeping house, all the details of their lives (groceries, laundry, maintenance, health, other issues) without the benefit of a spouse to help to some degree. They may not realize that if a single adult is sick, no one is there to care for them. Or, if they are stressed, no one is there to for them to lean on or cheer them up … often they may not even have family living close by.

As I sat in the congregation this morning, listening to the prayers for marriages, I wondered just how many in the audience were single. Or how many would love to have someone pray for their specific issues that single adults face daily?

So I’m asking … if you are not single, if you are a pastor or on a church’s staff, would you stop for just a few minutes and think about the single adults in your life and/or church? Would you say a prayer for them?

Easter Celebration Rally

Easter  is   the  time  share  the  glorious 

resurrection  of Christ with  the  world.

This  is  what   makes  Jesus  unique.

The  founders  of   every  other  religion 

have  graves except  Jesus,  his  tomb

is  empty. In India  religious   processions

are  very  common and  attract  great  attention.

Our  Easter  procession ended   in  my  church. Here  are   some scenes  from  the  evening.

On April  22nd we  are having  an open air

Christian  music  concert featuring 

Vijay Benedict in our   church.

Pray  that  this  may  touch   the  hearts  of  many  people.

An  Easter rally was taken out in the city on Saturday  (April 7th) as a part of Easter celebrations. The procession started at Naini and after passing through areas culminated at Union Church in Civil Lines.

The procession started with word of prayer by Bishop Rajendra B Lal. He appealed to the people to learn from the life of Jesus Christ who  forgave even his enemies. Director  of  administration Dr  Vinod B Lal and Registrar of SHIATS Prof  Dr AKA Lawrence gave their contribution in route arrangement of the procession while SHIATS pro-V-C Prof SB Lal  convened  the procession.

Several tableaus formed the part of the procession. The first tableau showed Jesus in a garden with his disciples, the second tableau showed Jesus carrying the cross while the third was based on crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The fourth tableau exhibited the grave of Jesus Christ guarded  by four Roman soldiers while the fifth depicted the victory over death by resurrection of Jesus Christ for which Easter is celebrated. The Sixth tableau depicted the appearance of Jesus after his resurrection.

The last tableau carried the Bhajan mandli (  choir)  who after witnessing the glory of Jesus and gave the good news of Jesus Christ by singing different devotional songs. The procession was attended by thousands  of devotees. Media incharge Arun Yadav said Easter Sunday will be celebrated at Yeshu Darbar at 10am which would be addressed by Bishop Rajendra B Lal while state PWD minister Shivpal Singh Yadav will be the chief guest.
 
(source  Times   Of  India - my  edited  version)

Automatic Spell Checker

A Little Poem Regarding Computer Spell Checkers...



Eye halve a spelling chequer
It came with my pea sea
It plainly marques four my revue
Miss steaks eye kin knot sea.


Eye strike a key and type a word
And weight four it two say
Weather eye am wrong oar write
It shows me strait a weigh.

As soon as a mist ache is maid
It nose bee fore two long
And eye can put the error rite
Its rare lea ever wrong.

Eye have run this poem threw it
I am shore your pleased two no
Its letter perfect awl the weigh
My chequer tolled me sew.

author unknown

Sunday Blessings -On Display

But   we  have  this  treasure  in  earthen vessels  that  the  excellence  of  the  power be  of  God   and  not  of  us.  2Cor 4:7 (BIBLE)

 A treasure  is  something valuable enough that  it  is put  in  a  special  place so  all  can  observe it,or  hidden  away  so  none  can  enjoy it. Wealthy people  put  their  jewelry and  and other  treasures  in locked boxes so no one will  steal them. They live  in fear of possible loss. How nice  it  is when national or personal treasures are put on display so all  can  appreciate their beauty and  value.
The glory of God is  divine treasure that has been on display on many occasions throughout history..Abraham saw it when God confirmed  His covenant with him. Jacob saw  it  from  his  stone  pillow. Moses  and  Israel followed  it from Egypt to  Canaan.. Peter,James and  John saw it on  the  Mount of  Transfiguration.
The resurrection and glorification of the  Lord  Jesus  Christ Made it  possible for  every  believer to partake of this divine  treasure while still  in  their   earthly  bodies.When we  first  believed  in Christ we were  given "the light of  the  knowledge of God in the  face  of Jesus  Christ."This  permanent personal  possession is the glory of God imparted to us  by   the  Holy Spirit. He reveals  the  excellence  of  the  knowledge of  Christ. What  an amazing  treasure to hold in our  earthly  bodies!

adapted  from the  writing  of  Fredrick L. Kosin

He Chose The Nails

Jesus' Last Words on the Cross


The hill is quiet now. Not still but quiet. For the first time all day there is no noise. The clamor began to subside when the darkness—that puzzling midday darkness—fell. Like water douses a fire, the shadows doused the ridicule. No more taunts. No more jokes. No more jesting. And, in time, no more mockers. One by one the onlookers turned and began the descent.

That is, all the onlookers except you and me. We did not leave. We came to learn. And so we lingered in the semidarkness and listened. We listened to the soldiers cursing, the passersby questioning, and the women weeping. But most of all, we listened to the trio of dying men groaning. Hoarse, guttural, thirsty groans. They groaned with each rolling of the head and each pivot of the legs.

But as the minutes became hours, these groans diminished. The three seemed dead. Were it not for the belabored breathing, you would have thought they were.

Then he screamed. As if someone had yanked his hair, the back of his head slammed against the sign that bore his name, and he screamed. Like a dagger cuts the curtain, his scream cut the dark. Standing as straight as the nails would permit, he cried as one calling for a lost friend, “Eloi!”

His voice was raspy, scratchy. Reflections of the torch flame danced in his wide eyes. “My God!”

Ignoring the volcano of erupting pain, he pushed upward until his shoulders were higher than his nailed hands. “Why have you forsaken me?”

The soldiers stared. The weeping of the women ceased. One of the Pharisees sneered sarcastically, “He’s calling Elijah.”

No one laughed.

He’d shouted a question to the heavens, and you half expected heaven to shout one in return.

And apparently it did. For the face of Jesus softened, and an afternoon dawn broke as he spoke a final time. “It is finished. Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”

As he gave his final breath, the earth gave a sudden stir. A rock rolled, and a soldier stumbled. Then, as suddenly as the silence was broken, the silence returned.

And now all is quiet. The mocking has ceased. There is no one to mock.

The soldiers are busy with the business of cleaning up the dead. Two men have come. Dressed well and meaning well, they are given the body of Jesus.

Max  Lucado

Passover Thursday

In remembrance  of  what  Christ  did  for  us  on the  cross let  us  partake  of  His  table  today with  fellow   believers.

Listen  to   this  Indian  worship  song  which  calls  all  creation  to  worship  the  Lord.
Sing---sing  heaven  and  earth.


 Let  every  sound  praise the  Lord

Symphony
 Devotional

- Written by Andrea Lucado

Think about all of the sounds. All of the countless sounds our earth makes: twigs cracking beneath your tennis shoes, waves rhythmically hitting the sand and receding again, wind rushing through a corridor, cicadas singing on a summer night. So many sounds that don’t include human voices or movements. Nature itself is enough to create a mighty chorus that reaches heaven.

Psalm 148 calls all of creation to praise God, from the heavens to us on earth. The psalm begins in the broad expanse we know very little about: the universe. “Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights above” (Ps. 148:1). Then the angels are called on to worship, then the sun, moon, stars, earth, sea creatures, lightning, wind, mountains, animals and, finally, kings, princes, women, men and children. It takes 11 verses for us to be mentioned. Do you ever think about all of the beings and things besides us that are praising God? Could it be that all of those sounds—waves, whales, cracking twigs—combined create a giant chorus all for God’s glory?
It is all for his glory, after all. As verse 13 of the psalm says, “Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted.” And the symphony is much more than our alto, tenor and soprano voices; it is all of creation, even the stars. Scientists have listened to the sounds giant stars make as they spin. Why else would these balls of light that are light years away make a sound if not for God to hear?
Considering our small voices in comparison with the sound of a super nova spinning in space, it makes you wonder why we are included in nature’s symphony at all. Surely God is receiving enough praise and not missing our squeaky songs. However, the Bible is very clear that we are set apart from the rest of creation. Genesis 5:1 explains, “When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God.” We, unlike everything else, look like God. We are his children and our bodies are made for worshipping him (Rom. 12:1). That is enough reason to spend the rest of our lives in constant praise and gratitude for being included in the chorus. Yet, many of us turn our worship to other things. We so quickly forget the one who actually deserves it.

The prophet Isaiah warned that God’s people were becoming worshippers of false gods: “Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made” (Is. 2: 8). So if we are not lifting our hands in worship to our Savior, we are lifting them in worship to something else. Imagine a baseball game, a Coldplay concert, good news about a promotion. The natural reaction to these events is to raise your hands in celebration. How much more should we raise our hands to the one that created the entire universe? A universe too vast for comprehension in which stars succumb to his glory.

We raise our hands in celebration and in awe of God, but we also raise them when crying out in pain. Consider what David wrote in Psalm 63: “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.”

Our body reaches for him in our pain, when we thirst for his goodness but do not see it in the world around us. Then we lift our hands in desperate hope. We lift them for help to get out of the pit in which we find ourselves.

No matter the motive for lifting our hands toward God, we are worshipping him. We worship through pain as we would through celebration. Psalm 77:6 says, “I remembered my songs in the night.” This is a critical perspective we as Christians are asked to have. Night is dark. You cannot see what’s ahead of you. Another mountain to climb? Deliverance? More stillness and quiet and waiting on the Lord? But think again about all of the sounds. The singing does not stop when the sun sets: crickets are just waking up, mist settles on the grass, rain falls on the pavement. There is just as much praise at night from creation as there is at dawn—it’s just a different type.

As nature does, we also can sing through the night. We can lift our hands through the darkness and above the pain. We join all of creation in singing no matter the hour or circumstance, and we let faith arise in our midst. For as we know from experience and as we’ve been promised in scripture, joy comes with the morning (Ps. 30:5).

Watch  this  amazing  video  of  the  music  of  the  stars

Scientists can record the sound of Stars The technique, called "stellar seismology", is becoming increasingly popular among astronomers because the sounds give an indication of what is going on in the stars' interior.
Amazing  isn 't  it. We  can  connect   with  the  universe  through these  sounds.
And  the Bible  recorded  this   centuries  before  telescopes  and radio scopes  were invented or  even  thought  of.

Job 38:6-8
New King James Version (NKJV)

6 To what were its foundations fastened?
Or who laid its cornerstone,
7 When the morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors,
When it burst forth and issued from the womb;

The stars do indeed sing and the Sun being a star, is one of them

Sheeba and Rocky

Sheeba  loves  to  play  with Rocky,  but  he 's  a  pup  and gets  overwhelmed  after  a  while. I  am so  glad  she  found  a friend  after  we   lost our  Jimmy  in  2007.

Its  getting   hotter now , today  I  started  my  small water  cooler, it  gives  some respite. Soon  I  will  get  my  window  water  cooler  fixed.
Preparations for  Passion week  services  are  on. We  have  a Passover evening  communion service, then a 3  hour Good  Friday  afternoon  service from  12pm to 3 pm in  which  the  7  last  words  of Jesus  are  expounded  upon. Its  rather  a  long  service  to  attend  in  the  heat. But  if  the  speakers  and  music is  good then time passes  quickly. The  Good  Friday   fast  is broken  with hot  cross  buns. The   British passed  on this  tradition to  us.

On Saturday  evening there  will  be  an Easter Procession with  floats depicting the  trial,  crucifixtion  and Resurrection  of Christ.It  will  pass  through  various  areas   of  our  city  and  culminate  on  our church  grounds. A  fellowship dinner  is being organised  across  the  river and  transport  will  be  provided  for  all  who  need  it.

We  have   Easter morning worship  at 9  am followed  by  a community  lunch, again across  the  river.
So  we have  an  exciting  week  ahead. Pray  that  the  Resurrection  Message  may  reach  as  many  people as  possible.