Reflections

                The Happy Home of the Faithful                               Psalm 128                   Alex Thomas & Dr. Susan Alex                              Jackson, TN 1 Happy is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways. 2 You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be happy, and it shall go well with you. A life of blessing starts with the fear of the Lord. God’s blueprint for a happy home begins with a God-fearing man, supplemented by a fruitful, faithful woman, and eventually fruitful children. A man who fears God will be content, his joy is in the Lord, he will walk in His ways, he will use his time wisely and he will lead his family by example. The problems we encounter in our nation can be traced back to the problems in our homes, as the family is the building block of the nation. The proper fear of the Lord stems from knowing His holiness and power and it results in obedience to Him.  A happy home has a godly woman who will be fruitful and

             The promise of the Holy Spirit                              Acts 1:1-8                        Mathew Jojin Thomas                       Bethany MTC, NY “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.V4  In the fast paced world we live in today, we need every thing at our finger tips. At the click of a mouse or the push of a button we get instant movies , hot coffee or chocolate. Yes, we are living in an instant world where we want to do and have things instantly, because we are not a fan of the waiting game. Even in our prayers, we want them instantly answered and to receive whatever we asked for, but just like the song " In His Time", we need to understand that waiting time is not a no-action time, it’s a preparation time. He is a shepherd who will make you lay down in green pastures so that He can restore our soul and guide us along the right paths for His name’s sake. While He makes you lie down in the gr

            The Promise of the Holy Spirit                          Joel 2:28-32               Dr. Jomi K. Oommen                 St. John’s MTC, NY “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.” - Joel 2:28  This passage from the Old Testament provides a foresight to the world of the coming of the Messiah. He will abundantly give the gift of His Holy Spirit. Previously, the promise of God was reserved for a select privileged few, such as Jewish priests and prophets. It was only these individuals that were able to “prophesy,” “dream dreams,” and “see visions.” However, upon the coming of the Messiah, all people regardless of their background, socioeconomic class, gender, or age will be invited to share in the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. From this enlightenment through the Spirit, any follower of the Messiah will be able to speak about the Spirit and share it with others. Verses 30-

           The Promise of the Holy Spirit                          John 14:15-21                      Rev. Shibi Abraham                 Youth Chaplain, NE Region “If you love me, keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever-"                One of the functions of the advocate is to comfort the disciples. To comfort someone means more than consoling or soothing. The word comfort is from two Latin words that means “with strength.” So the Holy Spirit is the Comforter, who is going to give us the strength to face the difficulties and challenges of life the way a Christian should. The Spirit will enable us to face hardships with faith and provide us with the Grace to go forward. We need to understand that what Jesus is saying is that His disciples will not have an easy life. He tells His disciples that “in this world you will have trouble,” but they don’t need to fear because Christ “has overcome this

              Call to Worship and Obedience                              Psalm: 95            Philip Manuel and Laila Anie Philip                    Carmel MTC, Boston MA V2.Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. The basics of worship is expressed in Psalm 95. The “What “of worship is seen in verses one and two. We give a verbal expression to God’s greatness “shout joyfully, shout triumphantly”. The Psalmist expresses His greatness by addressing Him as the rock of our salvation. The “Why” of worship is expressed in the words “a great God, a great King above all gods.”V3. The “How” of worship is we are to worship by bowing down (submission)and kneeling(surrender) before the Lord, the Maker of the dry land and the seas. Vs.5-6. The “Challenge “of worship is seen in the words "do not harden your hearts.” Vs.8. Worshiping God with admiration and deep appreciation can come only from a heart of great gratitude on recognizing the unmerited mercy He

                      Compassionate Healing                               Mark 10:46-52                    Alex Thomas, Jackson, TN. ...he cried out even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 Jesus stood still and said, “Call him here.” Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, sat on the wayside begging for his daily sustenance. He had heard about Jesus before he actually got an opportunity to meet Him. Bartimaeus recognized who Jesus was and realized that Jesus could heal him. He had the insight to know that his handicap would not hinder his ability to cry out for help. He focused more on his ability than his disability. When he realized that Jesus was passing by, he shouted, “Jesus! Son of David! Have mercy on me!” By doing so, he gave Jesus the highest honor that could be given and it was in accordance with the Prophecy in Isaiah 11:1. His insight made him believe that Jesus was a merciful Messiah. He cried out for mercy, which was a request to grant him something that he did not de

                  Mission as Sharing Christ                          Galatians 4:1-7                           Sherly Thomas                       St. Thomas MTC, NY Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father”. So you are no longer a slave, but a son and since you are a son God has made you also an heir. Gal 4: 6, 7  Today’s passage reflects on the believer’s adoption into God’s family which is the result of a marvelous spiritual intimacy with God. Our Triune God is involved in the work of salvation: God the Father sent His Son, Jesus, who came to accomplish our redemption. He also sent the Spirit. The Spirit moves the believer to pray to God, addressing Him as Abba, Father. The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. (Rom. 8:15-16) ‘Abba’ is the Aramaic word for ‘Father’. Christ, Himself called Abba, Father in Mark 14: 36 which indicates intimacy and trust with the Father.  These verse

                 Mission as sharing Christ                                Psalm 85                           Monish K. John,                     Chicago MTC, Illinois “Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other.” (V: 10) In Psalms 85, we can see FACTS (faith, adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication) of prayer elegantly blended. This song by the Sons of Korah exhorts a meaningful corporate worship, and beseeches divine forgiveness, blessings, and grace for the land. When we study the Korah’s in scripture, their revolt against Moses, and Aaron, the subsequent wrath of God upon them, the magnanimous Divinity, and God’s redemptive plan for them will add contextual meaning on our understanding of this Psalm. A clan that could have been extinct in God’s displeasure was spared from complete elimination. During our Holy Communion, we witness the celebrant interceding for the entire people. Here we see the psalmist interceding for the entire land,

                    Mission as Sharing Christ                              Genesis 33:1-11                            Mrs. Lisha Thomas                         W/O Rev. Thomas Kurian                                 Oklahoma MTC Gen 33:11-“Please accept the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have all I need”. According to Proverbs 18:16 “A gift opens the way and ushers the giver into the presence of the great”. Your gift may get you in the room, but your wisdom and strategy are what will keep you in it. The “gift” becomes “my blessing”. Esau also accepts the gift because of the language of blessing that Jacob now uses for the first time. In Genesis 33 we witness the mission of Jacob’s reconciliation with his brother Esau. God blessed Jacob abundantly and Jacob wished to share the blessings with Esau. Jacob here offers the present at first as a mode of appeasement instead of a sacrifice for the wrongs he had done to Esau. But as soon as Jacob perceiv

           MISSION AS SHARING CHRIST                        Philippians 4:4-9                             Dr. Julie Vinod                           Salem MTC, NY “6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7) This passage from the book of Philippians is filled with exhortations by apostle Paul to the saints at Philippi about having a good attitude. He gives some specific advice on how to maintain an attitude well pleasing to God. Paul says that we need to have an attitude of prayer. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (v. 6). God’s word in this Scripture portion advises us to invest in the habit of prayer and thankfulness knowing that the return on this investment will be th

Mission as Sharing Christ 1 John 5:1-12 Annie Varghese Chicago MTC “ Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. “ I John 5: 12 Have we wondered what our purpose is, why do we exist and where are we going in life? The purpose of our life is far greater than our happiness, our life and our personal fulfillment. Our relationship with Christ is far more important than our successes, wealth or knowledge. We are chosen by God for a purpose as God’s instrument to proclaim the good news. We are put on earth to make a contribution. God designed us to make a difference with our life. One of the best ways to share our faith is to live a godly life. Non-believers often look at Christians as hypocritical because we don’t practice what we preach. Sometimes we are afraid to share our faith because we don’t know what to say, but God doesn’t always call the equipped but He equips the called. As Christians, we are called to share what God

6. Jesus answered, “ I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” I am the way and the truth and the life is one of the seven “I’AM” statements of Jesus. On the last night before His betrayal and crucifixion, Jesus was preparing His disciples for the days ahead. They had placed their hope in Him as the Messiah, the promised Deliverer, yet they still did not understand how He was going to accomplish this mission. Our Lord takes the opportunity of this discourse about the place He was going to, and the way unto it, more fully to instruct His disciples concerning Himself, saying, “I am the way.” Christ is not merely the way, but He is the way of salvation itself by His obedience and sacrifice on the cross. In Psalm 86:11, “way” and “truth” occur in parallelism: “Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth.” The notions of way, truth and life are combined: "You have made known to me the path of life (16:11).” Jesus is

             Eternal Peace in Jesus Christ                               Micah 4:1-7                          Roshan Abraham Thomas                            St. Thomas MTC, NY “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” Today’s portion talks about the everlasting peace that will prevail during the millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ. Many nations are trying relentlessly to ensure world peace, but it is a fact that ultimate peace can only be established at the second coming of Jesus Christ when He will come to destroy Satan and reign over the whole world. So how do we attain true peace in our personal life? We all have inner void and restlessness which we try to quench by running after human desires of this world and we hope that it will ultimately provide us peace. However, our efforts are in vain and we are striving in the wrong direction. First, we need to understand the real cau

          Jesus Christ the Way, Truth and Life                                 1 John 1-10                                  Beena John                            St. James MTC, NY  "This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true" John chooses this word 'light' because it promises the truth of God as a truth full of joy and hope. It means that if we draw near to God, we will not find a dark and forbidding truth. We find freedom, hope and Joy. We can see this if we reflect for a moment on the value of light. In other words, God is light means the God is the source and measure of all that is true. He is the source of all that is true and whatever is true is true because it conforms to Him. The main value of light is it helps us reach our destination. Darkness is full of threat and i

          Jesus Christ the Way, Truth, and Life                            Psalm 116:1-11                          Mrs. Bindu L. Abraham                              St. James MTC, NY Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; our God is merciful. The Lord protects the simple; In our everyday life, we go through many turmoils. Some of them we usually can handle but there are others where it seems life is impossible. Those times we lose our hope, our trust and sometimes our faith. One night a man had a dream. He was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed the scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonged to him, and the other to the Lord. When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life. This really bothered him

              Jesus Christ the way, truth and life                              Psalm 116:12-19                                                        Shiny Thomas                              St. James MTC, NY What shall I return to the Lord for all his bounty to me? vs.12 Have we ever asked ourselves the question which day holds more significance, Christmas or Easter? Indeed Christmas is undeniably the more celebrated one with all of the decorations, lights and music we notice the moment we step outside of the house. Above all, it is the day our Savior was born. But, have we ever felt that Easter is more significant because if we truly understand the importance and meaning of crucifixion and resurrection, we will realize how great our living God is. And as we lead our daily lives we cannot help but ask ourselves how can we repay our Lord when we have done nothing as great to deserve this life saving grace.   We should try to set good examples by living our lives with kindness, lov

          Jesus Christ the Way, Truth and Life                         Proverbs 4:10-19                                 Merry Jacob                            St. James MTC, NY 13 Keep hold of instruction; do not let go; guard her, for she is your life. The Book of Proverbs are the words of wisdom spoken by the wisest King ever to live, King Solomon. It is said that God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. He spoke 3000 proverbs and from all nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, sent by all the kings of the world, who had heard of his wisdom. (1 Kings 4:30-34) How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver! (Prov 16:16) Why do we need these words of wisdom? We need these words for acquiring prudence, understanding and a disciplined life. It helps us to recognize right from wrong, gives us knowledge and discretion and adds to the learnings of the wise. It helps us t

         Jesus Christ: The Way, Truth & Life                          Acts 16:19-34                        Namita Joshua                    St. James MTC, NY About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. (Acts 16:25-26) Paul and Silas were brought before the Roman officials, accused of teaching customs that were against the Roman Law. As the crowd joined to attack them, they were whipped, beaten and then thrown into jail. The jailer was instructed to lock them up tight so that they could not escape. He fastened their feet between heavy blocks of wood so that they could not move. But Paul and Silas continued to sing and pray to God in prison. Then the whole earth shook violently to set these men free. Even when they were chained down and unable to w

Jesus, the way, the truth and the life Exodus 14:10-20 Mrs. Susamma Yohannan Wife of Rev. Dr. Philip Yohannan Christ Church Danbury ,Connecticut  US " The Lord shall fight for you "    Ex  14 :10-20 The children of Israel, facing many challenges and trials had left Egypt but now  started complaining to God on their journey to the promised land. Life is not fair. Have you heard this statement? I know that you all have  heard it many times when you turn on the news . We hear so many sad stories about young and old people  in  many difficult life situations looking for help and miracles from God. We may pray about a situation and God doesn't seem to answer us and we question what is going on !. Where are you God? Are you even there? In Exodus 14: 11  And they said to Moses, "is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you treated us this way and brought us out of Egypt?" Moses t

          Communion with Risen Lord in Daily Life                                    Psalm 23                                    Monsy Mathew                    MTC of New Jersey, Randolph, NJ. Surely goodness and mercy[f] shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.   Psalm 23 is often read at the time of sorrow, fear, disappointments and hopelessness. Most of us know this Psalm by heart, but the psalmist David knows the LORD as his Good Shepherd. “David was a shepherd, and he has the Testimony, that it was the LORD who helped David to protect his sheep. He chased the bear and the lion, and snatched his sheep from their mouths. David's Testimony of faith allowed King Saul to believe that a shepherd boy can fight with Goliath” (1 Samuel 17:34-37). If God is with us, who can stand against us ? The Bible says, without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews‬ ‭11:6‬). Faith and obedience to the Word of God is a “must”

          Communion with Risen Lord in Daily Life                             Daniel 3:7-28                              Stefan Philip                          Long Island MTC, NY 17 If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, O king, let him deliver us. 18 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statue that you have set up.” King Nebuchadnezzar built an image of gold in Babylon, and issued a decree stating that whenever one hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, they must worship the golden image. If one disobeys this decree, they would be thrown into a burning furnace. Certain astrologers who opposed the Jews reported to King Nebuchadnezzar that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were not worshipping the idol. The King first reprimanded the three, then threatened to throw them into a blazing furnace. They replied, “Ki

          Communion with Risen Lord in Daily Life                            2 Timothy 2:1-13                              Kristine Samuel                        Long Island MTC, NY "..if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us; 13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself." In our daily lives we witness God’s greatness through our eyes. Not just by the goodness of the living creatures that walk on this very earth God has created for us but also by the Word that we read everyday to understand His story and witness our faith. Every Sunday we praise our Father God and confess our sins to Him and learn more about His wisdom. During this time we partake communion which is a Holy Sacrament. In Luke 22:19 it says, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” He does this again with the cup of wine as a symbol of His blood. By partaking in this we are reminding ourselves what Jesus did in the past, as

Communion with the Risen Lord in Our Daily Lives Philippians 3:8-16 Saira Philip Long Island MTC, NY ...Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (V.13-14) In Philippians 3:8-16 we read about Paul who’s describing his path to righteousness and using that as an example for how we should live our lives. As an apostle for Christ, Paul traveled thousands of miles to spread the Good Word and his teaching emphasizes one of the fundamental ideas of Christianity: Communion. During his travels, Paul was able to learn more about Christ and learned what was really important. He knew that to move forward in his faith, he would have to let go of all the things that held him back. Paul casts out the possessions and ideas that steered him away from Christ as shown in verse 8: “...surpassing worth of knowledge knowing Christ my Lord, for those whose sake I h

             Behold, He is coming with the Cloud                            Exodus 40:34-38                              Abraham Mammen                           Long Island MTC, NY 38 For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, Israel became the wonder of the ancient world because God dwelt in their midst. They were the people of God to have God dwelling in their midst. For the same reason no enemy in all the earth could stand before them. No nation was strong enough or rich enough to withstand the nation of Israel as long as they were obedient to God.     It was God’s desire that Moses should build a tent and God dwelt in their midst. Then in the days of Solomon, it was in the temple, In the days of Jesus it was in His body that the glory of God dwelt. Israelites were tent–dwellers until the time when they would settle in the promised land of Canaan. This travelling tabernacle would remind the people that the Lord would be with them. G

          Communion with Risen Lord in Daily Life                             Luke 24:13-33                                           Rev. Manoj Idiculla                            Carmel MTC, Boston “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” Vs. 28 Disappointment is a reality of life. On our journey of life, things don’t often happen as we expect. In this post-resurrection appearance in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus confronted two of His disciples who were ignorant, filled with doubt, and confused. It was not that they did not believe the Scripture; but that their understanding of it was deficient—and a deficient knowledge of Scripture is insufficient and dangerous. Therefore Jesus opened the Old Testament Scripture to them and dispelled their darkness and confusion about Him with the light of truth. The story of this encounter, like our own journey of faith, may be viewed from three perspectives: Understanding, Receiving, and Reminding Understanding the Presence o

                        Seven Steps For Healing.                                 Luke 17:11-19                           Alex Thomas, Jackson, TN.                                   Atlanta MTC "Rise and go; your faith has made you well", Luke 17: 9 While Jesus was travelling to Jerusalem along the border between Samaria and Galilee, ten men who had leprosy stood at a distance and shouted, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" Jesus responded, "Go show yourselves to the priests". As they went, they were cleansed. One of them, a Samaritan, when he realized that he was healed, he came back, threw himself down at Jesus' feet and praised God in a loud voice. Jesus asked, "were not all ten cleansed, where are the other nine"? Jesus then told the Samaritan, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well". Leprosy is a dreadful disease, which attacks the body, leaving sores, missing fingers, toes, damaged limbs etc. Lepers were not allowed to be w

Imitation to Christ’s Hospitality Philippians 2:3-8   Mathew T Mathew Epiphany MTC, NY “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3) Apostle Paul is giving this powerful exhortation to the Philippian Church from his prison cell about the need to follow the example of Jesus Christ. Jesus was fully God & fully man. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God" (John 1:1-2). However, Jesus’ humility is evident in His coming down as a human being, leaving His heavenly comfort. He lived like any other human being – He faced and overcame temptations. He washed the feet of His disciples (John 13:4-5). Finally, in order to save humanity from sin, “he made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death

Imitation to Christ’s Hospitality Psalm 15 Mathew Lukose Epiphany MTC, NY Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart” Vs 1-2 The Webster’s dictionary defines hospitality as the quality or disposition of receiving and treating guests and strangers in a warm, friendly and generous way. Jesus taught us, His children, to be hospitable. Hospitality is a part and parcel of Christian life. It is profoundly important as a service to God and fellow humans. Hospitality can refresh people, establish good and lasting relationships, provide shelter, feed the hungry, and serve others; just like Jesus did when He turned water into wine (John 2: 1-11) or when He washed the feet of His disciples. (John 13:3-11)   How can we imitate Christ’s hospitality? The psalm starts with the question what kind of a person can hang out with Jesus. In other words what kind of a person Jesus c