Answers to Prayers

1 John 5:14-15: "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him" (NIV).

Parenting tests this passage like few other experiences. Because we love our children, we assume we know what is best for them. We pray for God to honor our plans and are shocked when God sometimes leads us down a more difficult path, with testing and pain.

For me, the turning point came when I realized I was looking at God as a "cosmic vending machine". When I prayed, I somehow felt He was obligated to comply. Then, a colleague gave me a simple guide that changed my perspective on prayer. He said, "Prayer is asking God to align you with His will, rather than asking Him to be aligned with yours."

God knows what you and your children really need. When we pray, He is at work answering those prayers, but in a way that suits Him and His Kingdom. Faith trusts the wisdom of His answer, even when His answer is different than what we expect.

Pray for God's will to be done and your prayers will be answered.



COURTESY: DAILY PARENTING DEVOTIONAL

Grace not shared is grace despaired

In the OT, believers of Yehovah were subject to the Law- we were bound by strict rules- dietary rules, spiritual rules etc etc. We were then broken free from these rules when Jesus died for us.
Jesus became the only way, the only truth and the only gate. It is because of God’s mercy, His favor, His kindness, His blessing and His compassion that He has provided mankind with a salvation plan! We are saved by God’s mercy. We do not deserve the blessings God has given us.

Ephesians 2:4-9
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast.

Notice this passage says:

Ø God made us alive in Christ when we were dead—and this is God’s grace.
Ø God raised us up with Christ
Ø God expresses His grace to mankind by giving us Christ Jesus
Ø God’s grace is through faith.

God’s grace involves a bigger picture than we sometimes realize. At one point in our history, there was a rebellion in heaven in which some of the angels chose to follow Lucifer and abandoned their positions in heaven in rebellion against God. For these, God has provided no salvation plan. There is no hope for them, no chance of salvation. They will be eternally damned to hell when the Day of Judgment arrives. God has not provided a way for them to attain redemption. But for mankind, on the other hand, God in His mercy and grace has given us His Son and a way to be redeemed. He has given us a salvation plan! And this is by His grace. God did not give Jesus to the rebellious angels. He only gave Jesus to mankind. God had this salvation plan in mind from the very beginning.

You, who have been partakers of this grace, have been given the Great Commission.
And when we had sinned and were dead, and had received only what we deserved, God in His mercy and grace provided a way for us to be saved—He provided His Son, Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy 1:8-11 So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life--not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.

Is it wrong for a Christian to want to be rich?

A lot of people I know criticize new generation churches for proclaiming the prosperity gospel. But, in actuality, what's the prosperity gospel all about? Jesus has promised each of us peace and prosperity. As the children of the King of Kings, are we not prince and princess who can lay claim to their Heavenly Fathers ' bountiful riches? We are! So can we actively pursue money generating works? But isn't money the root of all evil?

Let's take it from 1 Timothy6:6-10.

6But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment.
7For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.
8If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content.
9But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction.
10For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Our MAIN AIM is to pursue Godliness. The way to that is CONTENTMENT or gratefulness. If you are grateful , truly grateful for what you have, then it's hard to want anything more. Once we are thus able to control our wants, we are no longer vulnerable to the trickery of our desires. Those who "want to get rich" precariously perch themselves at the edge of a BIG fall. By focusing on what money can buy us, we are taking our eyes off what is really important.

So, is it wrong to be rich? Well, the world in general considers you rich by the number of material blessings you possess. Our desire to meet this standard is what makes it so wrong. By wanting what we don't have, we express a lack of contentment.We are in fact proclaiming,"God hasn't done this right!"

The Scripture commands us on this accord to flee from our lusts for things and to seek the kingdom of God. Pursue godliness. Don't put your hope and security on a fickle master like money.Our Ever Dependable God is more than capable of richly supplying us with things to enjoy!

Discernment can be developed

We live in a fast-paced world that demands instant results. For many people, waiting has become a lost art. God’s way of maturing us in our faith is quite different. The character qualities that He values take time to develop.

Discernment is a trait that does not come instantaneously. Rather, it is cultivated by saturating the heart and mind with Scripture. The transcendent Lord of the universe wants to share His thinking with us through His Word. What could be more important or valuable in life than having the capacity to know the mind of God?

Our lives are filled with situations that require discernment. Sometimes we can be so busy trying to find the will of God and direction for our next step that we fail to hear His voice. He is calling us to come to Him and spend some quiet, unhurried time absorbing the truth of His Word. After listening to the Lord, we can begin applying what we have learned. Only as we put His Word into practice in our lives will we have our “senses trained to discern good and evil” (v. 14).

The Scriptures open our eyes to see all of our experiences from God’s perspective so that we can make wise choices.

Our challenge for today and every day is to make it a priority to spend time with the Lord in His Word. We may have to reorganize our schedule or wake up earlier. But it’s worth the effort—discernment and wisdom await us if we put into practice the truths we absorb each day.

You are not a believer!

A disciple or believer is one who receives instruction from another and is persuaded of the truth or reality of some doctrine, person, or thing. Do you think that in all the years Jesus ministered He had only 12 disciples?

Jesus asked his disciples to do four things that churches and other training institutions rarely do. He asked them to abandon everything, to immerse themselves into a life of constant ministry, to depend on God and no one else for their resources, and to live in community.
In John 6:66, by their reactions to this radical command we can reduce Jesus’ followers into four categories:
1) The Curious
Curious disciples followed Jesus in fascination. They were intrigued by what He said. But when Jesus said to them, "Unless you are willing to affirm My total lordship in your life you cannot be My disciple or enter My Kingdom." Not willing to make a full commitment to Christ, "...many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with Him" (Jn. 6:66).
2) The Committed
In contrast, the Twelve showed that they were more than just followers: When Jesus asked them, "Will ye also go away?" Peter replied, "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Jn. 6:67-69). In other words, Peter said, "We're not the kind of disciples who are just curious; we're the kind who are committed. We know that You speak the truth."
3) The Convinced
These were the disciples who were intellectually convinced. Nicodemus is a classic illustration: Having listened to what Jesus said, and having seen what He did, Nicodemus came to Him by night and said, "You must be from God." He was intellectually convinced, but he didn't believe in Christ in the fullest sense then because he didn't forsake all to follow Him.
4) The Clandestine
There were some disciples like Joseph of Arimathea, who kept their belief a secret.
Which category would you classify yourself in? Why? There is a progression in the stages of discipleship. Which do you think occurs first? According to the parable of the sower, why do you think one cannot remain an intellectually convinced or a clandestine believer for very long? What will a committed believer give evidence of in his life? (Mt. 5:3-12; 13:23; Jn. 8:31) If you are not yet a committed believer, what is preventing you from being one? Find out if you don't know and make the necessary changes. If you are one, help someone you know who is in one of the other three categories to become more spiritually mature.

Stormy Nights

There are two ways God could go about clearing the storm currently raging in your life:
Sometimes the Lord calms the storm.
Othertimes, He lets the storm rage and calms His child.

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank Him for all He has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace,which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His Peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (No, I didn't come up with something so profound..that wud be Philippians 4:6-7)
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirirt. Rom15:13

Don't Despair!

If the situation seems beyond repair and you are convinced by the world that prayer isn't going to get you anywhere...not even fasting and prayer, then this post is intended for you...

The purpose of prayer is not to change God,but to allow God to change us.It is to discover and do God's will,not to obligate Him to do ours. The purpose of prayer is that God's splendour will be displayed on Earth as it is in Heaven.

The Power of God

In the world’s eyes, power and strength usually brings to mind Rambo or the six or eight packs so favorite of today’s action heroes. In the Bible however, we most often see that tasks requiring strength and might are not accomplished through the force of an army or the muscular power and physical stamina of workmen but through the empowering Spirit of God.

It’s indeed very encouraging to note that the supremacy of God’s power is most often seen in the ways he accomplishes His purposes through mere jars of clay like you and me. We are made mighty because he has infused us with His Power (Exusia and Dunamis).

If you are about to succumb to discouragement, remember your God has the ability to grace and empower your human soul. His might and power is seen through all that he has accomplished thru the weak and insignificant. Examples abound. The Babe in the manger, the motley crew of twelve, a timid Gideon, Shamgar, a melancholy Jeremiah.

All they had in common was a childlike faith and trust and faith in Him. You will accomplish all He has called you to do.

The Power of God

In the world’s eyes, power and strength usually brings to mind Rambo or the six or eight packs so favorite of today’s action heroes. In the Bible however, we most often see that tasks requiring strength and might are not accomplished through the force of an army or the muscular power and physical stamina of workmen but through the empowering Spirit of God.

It’s indeed very encouraging to note that the supremacy of God’s power is most often seen in the ways he accomplishes His purposes through mere jars of clay like you and me. We are made mighty because he has infused us with His Power (Exusia and Dunamis).

If you are about to succumb to discouragement, remember your God has the ability to grace and empower your human soul. His might and power is seen through all that he has accomplished thru the weak and insignificant. Examples abound. The Babe in the manger, the motley crew of twelve, a timid Gideon, Shamgar, a melancholy Jeremiah.

All they had in common was a childlike faith and trust and faith in Him. You will accomplish all He has called you to do.

Why me,Lord?

Ok, all hands up those of you who have asked this at least once! I have news for you people - even Jesus did this! He knew He has sent to earth fwith a single purpose.Yet hours before the ultimate act of obedience, He asked His Father," Why me? Do I really have to do this? ( Matt 26:39)

Consider the scenario of guy yappin' away on his mobile while navigating heavy traffic. A lady jaywalks. He loses control of his vehicle and rams into a crowd of pedestrians. She made a poor choice. He made the wrong choice of time to be on his phone. Either way, people hurt all over. The ripple effect...
Bad stuff can also happen coz we live in a world that isn't perfect.

So are you telling me that either way I'm a goner??

Not by a long way! There's Someone who has promised to stick with you thru thick and thin. Read it all over again in Matt:28:20.You can count on Him anytime. Bad things are bound to happen on earth.That's the way of the world.

But keep in mind, there are no tears or sadness in Heaven. He will wipe away your tears. Don't we,loving parents, go out of our way to comfort and console a crying child? Do we not wrap them in our arms until the pain subsides? Are we above and better than our creator at Godly parenting? (Read Psalm 56:8, Rev 21:14,Matt 5:4)

For those of you still singing the chorus at the pity party-Two wrongs do not make a right. Learn to ask for His decision before consulting self. Even Jesus did this. The world is most often wrong.

On Stormy Seas

If you are wondering why God let's bad things happen to us, remember
1) Satan—despite his incredibly cunning intelligence, cleverness, and power—is still only a puppet in God's hand to bring about His purpose. We see this clearly in the Book of Job. God is far more powerful than Satan. Though Satan boasts about His power on us (and that too because we let him!), God's power and might is far greater over Satan.

2) You don't have to keep paying for your mistakes all the time. Making a mistake is bad, but not repenting or confessing the same is WORSE! Confess your sins, rest assured Jesus has forgiven you. He has paid up all your debts in full, past present and future. But remember you got to confess( Don't confess wholesale... -if you don't know EXACTLY what you need to be forgiven for,you probably don't deserve to be forgiven. Once you are forgiven doesnt mean you DON'T have to live with eth consequences. You Do! But remain calm, God's going to take your burden and change it into a blessing! Not just for you, but for many others.

Falling prey…..

In Revelations 12:10 we see, satan stands before God “accusing our brethren day and night” so that they too like him will not have access to redemptive grace and mercy.

We have to take care that he doesn’t use us as his agents on earth. To the degree of access he has to us, he will use us as his agents to sow discord among brothers. Ever since there were two brothers on earth, he has used this, his most effective and deadly tactic.

This especially true when it comes to judging our brothers and sisters in Christ. In Philippians 2, Paul writes, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves." We are implored to esteem others as better than ourselves, not as worse!

Have you stopped to wonder why we are so quick to believe the worst about someone? Why Else? Because it makes us feel better about ourselves. That goes against what God wants for us- unity.

Unity does not just increase our spiritual authority. It multiplies it!

We are so much stronger when we are together; the enemy knows this. That's why he likes to plant the seeds of doubt and dissension and watch us flounder as we try to see just how many fingers we can point at everyone but ourselves. All because we let one negative thought creep in. Have I completely learned my lesson? No. And I probably never will... after all, I'm not perfect.

But God has been teaching me four things over and over these past few days:
1. It doesn't matter in the light of eternity,
2. He's got it all under control anyway,
3. It's not my job to fix everyone's problems, and
4. Let it go!

The Favor of Men

Galatians 1:10
"Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ."

Take a moment here and ask yourself, "Who am I trying to please?"

Many of us strive for man's approval without even realizing it. There's nothing wrong with doing your best, but it's the motivations behind your actions that counts. A Christian cliché goes "What's popular is not always right, and what's right is not always popular." And it is true..

Let's face it: we all know what we're doing wrong in our lives. And we're the only ones who can change that. Before you do anything, "Who am I doing this for?"

If you are fooling yourself and the rest of church with “Mock Psychology” know that people around us may see a "do-gooder", but God looks at the heart (1 Sam. 16:7).

Enlisted In His Service!

Yup! I did it! I have now officially enlisted as one of the Air Force in God’s Army. :)

One of my main reasons for that would be that there is possibly nothing that can so radically change the church, and the lives of individual believers, than having our criticisms changed into intercession.

If you read Isaiah 58:8,9, you see that this addiction to criticism could be the church’s biggest malady. “That church doesn’t share our convictions, This church has a different agenda from ours”…the list goes on….

While its true many churches today have other agendas besides the Lord Jesus, remember that all you are required to do as a believer is to

1) Matt 6:33-Seek First the Kingdom
2) John 3:5 - Be Born again of Water and Spirit
3) Matt 28:20-The Great Commission

Ignore criticism. Turn it into intercession.

Afterword on jealousy

Did you know jealousy rots your bones (Proverbs 14:30)? No amount of calcium is gonna save you there!!?

When you are jealous, you end up tearing down all your earlier efforts to love and encourage others....He has been really talking to me....and can you believe it thru 'one of my daughters storybooks on good behaviour? :D

Three verses stand out:
Romans 12:2- Do not be shaped by this world;instead be changed within by a new way of thinking..
2 Corinthians 10:5-Proud thoughts raise themselves against the knowledge of Christ..capture these and make it give up and submit to Christ.
Philippians 2:2-4- Get happy by thinking about Christ' love and share in his spirit...don't let pride be your guide..instead be humble and give more honor to others..don't give more importance to yourself than others

God really did some simple talking straight to me there!
Forget about the rest of the world, they are not important. Be Humble. Get happy.( put all those wicked thoughts under Christ' lock and key!)

You know what else? The more I hear his voice and realize my purpose here, the less prone am I to envy and jealousy. Towards the end of today, I was like,"Huh? So who's jealous here?"

Are You busy as a bee?

A friend of mine as a fridge magnet that reads: " DON'T BE B.U.S.Y." alongwith a graphic of a woman who has a briefcase in one hand, a nursing baby tucked in the crook of the same arm, a vaccum cleaner in the other hand as well as sauce pan bubbling away on the stove nearby -a very familiar scenario to me..all that was missing was my laptop!!

And what does B.U.S.Y mean? Being Under Satan's Yoke.

We've really underestimated that little imp Satan. He's gotten us so highly focussed on being an achiever that we forget he has ulterior motives. We are so busy making our plans and our own goals and then pray and ask God help us achieve them. Have I actually stopped and asked God whether this little diversion of mine was what he had actually had in mind for me?

Life on this earth without God's Plan is hollow. Satan has many cunning deceptions - fame, fortune, power, sexual desires, busy cares of the world, hobbies, leisure activities and many more.

God has another plan for the you. It is a Plan of meaning, a Plan of purpose. A Plan of life forever in an abundance of peace. We need to get reconnected to God mercy and love.We as sinners are separated from God's Kingdom, by our own lifestyles and choice, not God's.

The best part is it's FREE! No membership fees, no advance payments, no EMIs, no cacophony,... just a free invitation to an abundance of peace and purpose in God's Kingdom. All you need to do is stop a while from the business you call life and ask yourself whether whatever it is that occupies your time now is gonna get you credit points to Eternity. (don't misunderstand me here...it's not good deeds that get you to heaven!)

Do you think you are making the best use of your time and are you really a good steward of your time and life?

This is what God has to tell you today," Without Me, you can do nothing." John 15:5
But With Him, we can mount up with wings like eagles Isaiah 40:31

Letters to my sister

My youngest sister is highly accomplished- she’s barely 21 and she’s got a hotshot job in Google and climbing the corporate ladder with aplomb! In all that she sets out to do, be it singing, drama, writing, whining (ok, she does that one only to her elder sis’)- you name it, there’s none like her!

Rebecca’s determined that before she has to settle down in life she’s been there, done that. That way she has no regrets in the staid (or so she thinks) married life that’s to follow. Miria and I are extremely proud of her- I don’t remember being this focused or level headed when I was her age. (Any reader who wants to comment on me at that particular age, please refrain! :D, yea yea, I know it’s hard!)She knows all the pressures and troubles she could face and she stays steer clear of them.

But then, it’s hardly a surprise...I remember the seven year old Rebecca whose solution to everything was prayer. The best part of it was hers used to work better and quicker! It was like she had a direct hotline with God! And oh her voice-all the Sunday school songs that I’m trying hard to remember, I seem to recollect in her voice alone!

Yes, indeedy, God’s been faithful. He’s blesses her abundantly for one so young. She’s studying (and passing her tests with the highest marks!), working (and ranked among the highest performers), acclaimed drama artiste (you haven’t sent me the paper clipping yet, Becky!) and one of the Most requested singers in the Goggle TWIF!! And oh, did I mention she got her license recently??

I can’t wait to see what God has in plan for her. He’s given her the opportunities to be molded into someone who can be really powerful for Him. Our lives were created by God to glorify His name. Others may look at us and see the abundance of blessings that come from Him. He knows His purposes for us and how he wants us to live them out. Our very life belongs to Him. Rebecca, my desire for you is to walk in wisdom and make the most of your time and life (Read Colossians 4:5 and Ephesians 5:15). We maybe living one day at a time, but for each of them we are accountable for eternity!

God Bless you, my Love!Remember you are an arrow for Christ!

....God's Army and the Farmer

The prayer warrior’s work is not finished with the moving in of the ground assault. Once Ground assault starts then air force (intercessors, prayer warriors) become subject to them. Prayers are directed as missiles to the areas that Ground Assault draws our attention to.

We need to ensure that not only are principalities cast out, but that they are displaced as well. We must send out teachers and leaders to hold the ground that has been won. To build temples that Our Lord can inhabit where earlier Powers of darkness ruled. If we leave it empty then another principality will come to roost and we would be launching never ending attacks.

Let’s get rid of the war analogy and take it down to the farming analogy our Lord was so fond of using:
The ground is prepared and plowed (intercessors, prayer warriors) and awaiting the sower (field workers, evangelists, church planters.) After the seed is planted, then comes the care and fertilization(pastors, teachers.) The harvest is ahead of us. Our Lord's coming soon!

God's Army!

I am sure all of us know the song about never being able to march in infantry, ride in the cavalry, shoot with the artillery…but Oh Yes Sir! I am in the Lord's Army.

1990-1991
Ajman, UAE.
I was 11 during the First Gulf War. The TV constantly updated us on the status and the various sophisticated weapons that were to be deployed. Our school issued warnings. We were urged to silicon seal our windows to prevent gas attacks. Many panic stricken aunties preferred to stock up on even salt among other essential commodities rather than fly back home and face a life of drudgery in Kerala.

My dad never let us panic among all the other negative influences around us. But with his enthusiasm, he made sure we know what was going on and what to be doing at any situation. In fact we kids were more fascinated and humored than scared. (It was only later in college when I became fast friends with a girl who traveled the deserts of Saudi Arabia on her own, got separated from her family and then reunited after 9 months back in Kerala that I realized the Provident hand of protection over me and mine.)

Anyways in the Gulf War, the first things to happen were the air strikes and then the ground assault. Apply that in the context of our ministry. If you want to testify or share the Good News with someone, first launch air warfare. Pray that the contraries are bound in heaven before we move on Earth. Unless the enemy is bound in Heaven, he can't be bound on Earth. And what is loosed in Heaven is released on Earth.

Our cavalry (Field workers, church planters, evangelists) can accomplish more if we move in with our Stealth Bombers first (prayer warriors). Once the cavalry has taken ground then it is upto us to hold that ground down as ours. We need to put our claim on that land. This is where our artillery comes in ( pastors, care cell leaders.)

What am I doing in the Body of Christ?

Last week in Church our pastor mentioned the conducting of classes on intercession in the coming month. To me, it seems as if he was talking to me specifically. It was just the day before that I was lamenting on my mechanical, drab joy-less prayer life. Oh sure, it’s done with great thankfulness. But something is lacking. I know not what. I'm hoping to find out what could be corrected in the coming classes.

I can not honestly call myself an effective Christian and it's this knowledge that's urging me forward. Yes, I have taken the first step. But salvation doesn’t make me unaccountable for my inaction. Salvation is just the beginning, we have the more important task ahead- The Great Commission. It's not enough that we take a decision but that we add to it through our actions. Every useless thing is discarded-so it is in nature.

Even the smallest part of our body works in conjunction with others to produce an effort. A uselss thing ends up a problem maker (ask your appendix if you don't believe me!)

All of us have a role to play . We just need to ask Him to show us where and what we must be doing in the Body of Christ.