Reflections

  God our Helper and Redeemer Luke 12:22-34 v34 - Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life.. " During the 1800's missionary George Muller cared for thousands of orphan children in Bristol, England. One morning, even though there was nothing to eat in the house, the children sat around the table and gave thanks for the food, as they did always. As they finished praying, a Baker knocked on the door with sufficient bread to feed everyone, as the LORD kept him awake through the previous night and prompted him to do so.Soon after, the milkman knocked at the door to give plenty of fresh milk to the children because his cart broke down in front of the orphanage. The above incident is a perfect example of how God cares for His children who look unto Him and call upon Him for help in times of need. In today's portion for meditation Luke 12:22-34, Jesus tells us that we are very valuable in God's sight. The God who provides for t

  Joyful expectation of Christ coming 2 Samuel 18: 24-33   Vs 33 -  The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!”   The advent of Jesus Christ has given hope and peace to the world. The coming of Jesus Christ had been foretold by the prophets (Acts  3:18 ,  10:13 ; Lk: 24: 44, 46, 47; Jn.  5:33 ). The birth of Christ, His ministry, His resurrection, his Second Coming - all these have been already prophesied by the Old Testament prophets. In 2 Samuel,  18:33 , we see King David lamenting the death of his son Absalom. We know King David was one of the greatest Kings of Israel and his life was a paragon of all the virtues of leadership. Yet, it was this same David who yielded to the passions of the flesh, who committed adultery and who amassed deceit upon deceit to try to cover up his treachery. Thus, it is not difficult to understand why t

  CHRISTIAN EDUCATION FORUM Word for the Day " Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path".  Psalm 119:105 Discipleship: Call to Witness  1 Thessalonians  4:13-18   v17-18 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.                I remember the utter excitement there was when my cousins had their first kids. My cousins were like my siblings, so to see them wait and cradle this bundle of joy had us all bursting at the seams. I am sure that 9-month journey for them was so much more than the young baby lying healthy before me- the aches and kicks, the nervous excitement of doctor visits, the morning sickness, the concerns of family health history, and a crazy delivery. Yet the journey and wait is worth it knowing what comes at the end of that time period. The story had its apexes and nadirs,

  Joyful Expectation of Christ’s Coming Acts 1:6-11 v11 “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”  We have once again celebrated what we refer to as the Advent season culminating in the celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Many observed lent during this period to prepare their hearts for the arrival of the Christ. It is indeed an important feast for us to celebrate the manifestation of the Eternal Son in the flesh. (He emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself… (Phil2:7-8)) We should be very grateful for God who was willing to stoop down and limit Himself to the constraints of time and space. He ultimately allowed himself to be subject to the unjust rulers of this earth to “redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who ar

  Joyful expectations of Christ coming. The day of The Lord Malachi 3 :13-18,4:1-2   4:1 For Behold, the day cometh, it burneth as a furnace and all the proud and all that work wickedness shall be stubble and the day that cometh shall burn them up saith Jehovah of hosts that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. While they were there the time came for the baby to be born and she gave birth to her first born a son and Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. (Luke 2: 6-7).  Christmas tells   the story of God’s greatest gift to humankind, a precious indescribable gift. This marks the first coming of Jesus to the world to save the sinful. God wanted to communicate with his creation and so he took flesh as a normal person. Even though he was sinless He volunteered to go to cross, suffered and died, rose from the grave and ascended to heaven leaving the Holy spirit as the comforter. Our hope as His children who are born again and accepted Him as our savior and

  Joyful expectation of Christ's coming Mark 13:28-37 V33 Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.   This passage refers to the second coming of Jesus Christ. The thrust of the whole chapter of 13 are the signs and symptoms of his arrival to the world. All these are the signs of the warnings to the church. The second coming is the hope of the church and Jesus Christ gives assurance about his second coming, but not of the time of it. 1. Be alert with discerning the world. In Mark  13: 21-23 , Jesus warns against them about false prophets. Jesus told them that many would come to give the wrong direction in the world. They will tempt you with false promises. They will show signs and wonders to prove their claims. A true believer should be able to discern false teachings, especially those concerned with second coming of Jesus Christ. 2. Be alert with signs and symptoms of Jesus's coming. Jesus gives some signs and symptoms about his second coming. According

  Christmas Day   Luke 2:1-14 v10-11 “Do not be afraid; for see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people; to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord”.   The angelic voice to the shepherds, announcing the birth of Jesus at Bethlehem was good news given in the night while the shepherds kept watch over their flock. The fear and wonder the shepherds experienced at the time of the angelic presence had a terrifying nature. The words ‘fear not’ or ‘do not be afraid’ were the soothing words that helped them to listen carefully to the message about the child in the manger. Listening of the divine proclamation inspired them to go to Bethlehem and see the child, the Savior. The praising that followed by the heavenly hosts, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors” empowered them to journey to Bethlehem saying, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place”. They hastened a

  Our Lord is coming: God's love 1 John 4:7-21   v16 “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.”    The concept of God’s love has a particularly profound meaning during the season of Advent because it is a time of renewal and restoration. The season concludes with the birth of Christ, the one sent by the Father to redeem His creation. Therefore, Christmas is a day where our memories of the past connect with our hopes for the future. And so, during Advent, it is important to reflect upon our relationship with God and the way in which we live our lives. In John 3:16, it says that God loved the world so much that He sent his one and only Son. As a result, it is important to understand what John means when he states that God is love.   The love that John is referring to, the one which  is  God, is agape love. The Greek word  agape  refers to the reciprocal love shared between God and humans. However, to understand the true nature of this love, it is important to

  OUR LORD IS COMING: Living by Faith Romans 1:8-17 v11-12 “I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong – that is , that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith." The passage for our meditation is a part of the introduction to the church in Rome by the apostle Paul. He mentions the Good News about Jesus as the very reason for his service to the people in Rome.  We, as individuals and as a community, are called to proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth. And one of the ways we do this is by forming meaningful partnerships with our spiritual leaders, and, also by engaging in activities that uplift the faith of our people. Just like Paul who forms a partnership with the Roman church in this text, may we, also, be thankful for the partnerships that God has given us. May we always be generous in our support, and faithful in our intercession, so that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.  It’s vitally import

  OUR LORD IS COMING Nehemiah 12:27-43 v27 At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, harps, and lyres.” The passage concerning our meditation depicts the finishing and the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem. It further describes who all were in attendance and how the celebrated such an accomplishment with the guidance of the Lord CELEBRATION:  As we are swiftly approaching Christmas day and the celebration of the arrival of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is no wonder why get into a joyful mood. Celebration is a unique aspect of the Christian community, a distinguishing mark of the church. We are the people that rejoice in God and Gods people are to watch specific occasions and events with the one purpose of promoting joy! Festivals, like the dedication of the Jerusalem wall in our reading, were of high importance be

  Our Lord is Coming John 14:1-7 v1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.” We live in a world with lots of problems, always worried about something or the other. As Jesus said the above verse, He himself was going through a big crisis in his life. He very well knew that He was going to be crucified. But in the midst of all that he was comforting his disciples who were looking up to him. He was consoling and assuring them that he would always be with them. We have a hope and healing promised to us this advent season through Jesus. In this passage we can see Jesus being portrayed in 3 ways to his disciples and also to us: Jesus as a Comforter (John 14:1) Jesus was a comfort to those who looked up to him. We see him speaking consoling his disciples whose hearts would be troubled when Jesus spoke about his imminent suffering and death. Jesus never drove away anyone who came to him. Likewise, in our lives we too must be a comfort for others. Jesus as a

  Our Lord is Coming Micah 4:1-7   v1 In the last days, the mountain of the LORD's temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and peoples will stream to it.   We are now in the Advent season, one of the holiest times in Christian faith, commemorating the birth of Jesus, the Savior of the world, in a manger in Bethlehem. (Micah prophesied that a ruler born in Bethlehem would set up a kingdom that will last forever. Micah 5:2) The Advent Season is also a time to reflect on the triumphant return of Jesus in the second coming as the judge of the world. John 3:16 -19 says "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the n

  OUR LORD IS COMING  St John 1:1-14   v4 “All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being”    The Gospel of John remains as very unique one in the Christian reading, which affirms to the pre-existence of Christ as in the beginning of creation. All that was created by God was through the very word that came out of the Divine; it had life and all that is created by God has life because the word was sent into them for life. Christ is God Incarnate:  We wait for the Lord’s coming on this earth. When we recite the Lord’s prayer we pray, "Your kingdom come on Earth as it is in heaven". God created the whole of the universe in the abundant and ever-flowing love of God. But human disobedience had created a chasm between God and Humanity. Christ comes and bridges that chasm. Christ is the Word that instilled life in the creation and nothing came into existence without the Word and to this day this Word is in action in our life.  Maranatha : This

  The call of Gideon: God is looking for ordinary people to do extraordinary  work  Judges 6:11-16 V.12“The angel of the lord appeared to him and said: The lord is with you, you mighty warrior’’             The angel of the Lord calls and commissions Gideon. With the arrival of the angel it became clear that the Lord intended to save Israel once again, and that his chosen instrument on this occasion was Gideon, whose call followed the same pattern as that of Moses in Exodus:3.  Like Moses, he received his call while he was in hiding from the enemy, doing menial work to keep his family alive. Like Moses, he was told that the Lord was sending him on a mission. He protested, as Moses did, that he was inadequate for the task. He received the same promise as Moses, “I will be with you”, and, like Moses he received a sign to confirm his call. Finally, miraculous fire signalled God’s presence, as it did in the call of Moses. So, the message is clear: Gideon was to be used by God to save

  Annunciation to Joseph Psalm 43:1-5 v5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.    We are approaching another Christmas and this one in the midst of a pandemic will look quite different from our usual celebrations. Every year when I watch a Christmas play, I feel quite sorry for Joseph who is the forgotten, almost insignificant character. Mary, shepherds, angels, king Herod and the donkey have more of a prominence in most plays than Joseph does. There are songs sung about baby Jesus, Mary, angels, wise men and even the little donkey but not too many on Joseph; on how he embraced the news or what he felt. Joseph had to deal with the painful reality that his soon to be wife was pregnant; but not with his child. Psalm 43 could act as a reflection of how alone Joseph felt and how alone some of us may feel going through the valleys of our life.    In this Psalm, there is a feeling of disorientation.

  Annunciation to Joseph Isaiah 35:1-10  V4-6 “Say to those with fearful hearts, be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution, he will come to save you. Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.”   Annunciation is the act of announcing or proclaiming. Annunciation to the Virgin Mary by the angel Gabriel was the announcement that she would be the mother of Jesus Christ, the son of God. The meaning of the name Joseph is, “God will give the increase.” Just as the Old Testament Joseph was a dreamer, the New Testament Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus, was given instructions in his dreams on three separate occasions. When Joseph discovered that Mary, the girl who was betrothed to him was pregnant before they came together, he was deeply distressed, but as he wa