Ads

Monday 17 February 2014

Pray For Abdul Samad

Abdul Samad is recovering from an operation. He is middle-aged and economically deprived. He needs God's healing and help.


Be Well (For Acyber Guy)

When we are weak then we are strong.

Pray For Diana

Diana desperately needs God to intervene in her life. Please pray with me for her.

Between A and B - Episode 1

A said to B, "I'm filled with so much love for you that I want to lovingly change you into someone like me."

B thought for a moment and replied, "Thank you, but if that's love I'd rather be unloved."




A said with the sweetest smile, "B, you are a deviant, but you are also a child of God. So we love you with the love of God, and we will let you stay with us. But you will have to change into something like us eventually in order to continue to stay with us."

B considered A's smiling invitation and said, "I may be a deviant in your eyes. But in my eyes I am what I am. I'm not ashamed of being who I am. I'm not going to be a part of a community that is not comfortable with who I am."




A said to B, "You've got to be 1, 2, 3 and 4 to be a worthy child of the Most High. God loves you so much. But he is also displeased with your rebellious ways."

B said to A, "You see, I don't think I have to be anything other than myself to be a child of God. God who loves me also approves of me and all that I am, no matter how rebellious that may seem to you. God can accept me just as I am though you can't."




B said to A, "Will you scratch my back today even if I don't scratch yours?"

A smiled and replied, "Yes, today I will. But tomorrow you will have to scratch mine."

B said, "What if I never scratch yours?"

A said, "If that's your attitude then I will have to find someone who will reciprocate my scratching. Scratching somebody's back is tough enough. But if it's unrewarded it's even worse."




"Why do you follow God?" said B to A.

"Oh that's simple. I want to go to heaven" replied A.

"So, is that why you love God, so that you may get something from him?" B asked, then added, "If there was no heaven, would you still love God? If there was no reward, would you still seek God?"

A thought for a moment and said, "I don't know. I don't think so. This God-centred life is oriented towards achieving a certain goal. And if that goal cannot be achieved, there is no point in living this kind of life."




"You must run away from temptation. Whenever temptation comes knocking on your door just run out of that place" said A to B.

"Do you want me to be terrified of what tempts me? Do you want me to admit defeat by running away from it?", said B

"No, no. That's not what I'm saying. You have no chance against the temptation. The lusts of youth are way too strong. So you must run", said A.

B shook his head. "But what sort of overcoming is that? Should you not face the temptation until you overcome it? Should you not fall into it and discover the emptiness of it? Isn't it only then that you will be able to turn away from it?"

But A was defiant. "No, no, no! You must run away from it. That's the only way to escape from it."




A was dejected. He said, "God has not answered my prayer. He has not sent me financial aid. I now find it hard to trust in God's faithfulness."

"So what are you going to do? Will you stop believing in God?" asked B.

A shook his head. "No, no. I can't do that. If I stop believing in God, what else can I believe in? Besides God does answer some of my prayers."

"Why is that? Why can't God answer all your prayers? Is he not able to?" asked B.

A quickly replied, "Oh, that's a mystery. No one can figure that out. God answers prayers in three ways, viz, 'yes', 'wait', and 'no'. But the only kind of answer I want is 'yes' and when that doesn't come, it's hard going."




B said to A, "What sort of a God is a God who doesn't provide you what you need when you need it? What sort of a God is a God who does not respond to an urgent prayer? Should such a God be even called God?"

A smiled and said, "God doesn't always meet our expectations. Sometimes he doesn't work the way we would like him to work. But we must still trust in him. He's the only one that can be trusted."

B retorted. "But does he always live up to your trust? Does he always deliver what he promises?"

A shrugged. "We can't evaluate God like that. We need to trust in his unfailing judgement. If something we want doesn't happen, then we must give God the benefit of the doubt. He knows best."



- Samuel Godfrey George       

Wednesday 12 February 2014

Intolerance In Christianity - Sayings of Samuel Godfrey George

Doctrinal correctness is an illusion. The Bible lacks unity in certain places. There are internal disparities and contradictions that cannot be humanly resolved. So anyone excercising an air of doctrinal correctness or superiority is misguided by an incomplete image of the divine revelation and also misinforms others. Such an attitude leads to arrogance, which later leads to conflict and polarization.

There is no question of giving up on Christ. Jesus Christ and the forms of Christianity that I have seen don't share much in common. Where they radically differ at times is in the exercise of tolerance and love.

If Christianity results in pride and unseemly confidence it is better not to be a Christian.

This is not the first time and it won't be the last. All that I will do now is pray that I don't give in to the temptation of knowing a little better than my neighbour, for that will result in pride, which when challenged will turn into conflict, which will lead to detachment. Those who believe in Christ should show much more tolerance than I have seen in a few Christians.

God came down to earth to show us love. Jesus Christ showed us what true love is. True love is accepting and tolerant of all those who seem wayward and deviant. Jesus showed us love so that we may desire it and show it to others who are as undeserving as we are. But we humans have always struggled to show love and tolerance to such people. This is lamentable particularly in those who claim to know God, but are not able to tolerate those who are different from them.

It is not intolerance but ignorance that is the real problem. Intolerance arises from ignorance. People are intolerant of one another because of their mistaken belief in their own correctness. So unshakeable is their faith in their own understanding that they decry and denounce others when they depart from the way according to them. No one understands life and grasps all its truths. No one knows God and has seen him in his entirety. So anyone who is confident of his own knowledge regarding these matters is an ignorant person.

God has revealed only a part of himself. If we humans act decisively on this partial revelation and discriminate against one another based on one-dimensional, purportedly divine pronouncements, then we fail to understand the heart of God. God is love. And love bears all things. Love accepts all humans just as they are. And none of us are pure and deserving of God's love, so to discriminate against people based on their deviance from purity and godliness is to be hypocritical and ungodly.

"Love God and do whatever you want" said Saint Augustine. It is the love for God that is primary. God looks at the heart of Man and searches for love. The love for God is more important than any doctrine or prayer that may be said to God in a certain way. Quotations from the scriptures and declarations of faith are secondary. Even a keeping of God's commands is secondary to the love a human feels for God. This alone is God's primary requirement. And the love of God is expressed in the love for human beings. Any God lover must also love humans the way they are without trying to change them according to how he or she would like them to be.

The Sayings of Samuel Godfrey George - December 2013


This is the last day of 2013. And this is what I am happy about: I have laid everything before God. On Him I have cast all my cares. I have thrown in my lot with those who trust in God. And I believe that He will not disappoint us.

Let me not act in fear. Let me act in faith. Let me believe that there is a God whose grace is sufficient for me every day. Let me believe that there is a Christ whose suffering on the cross erases all my sins and whose blood shed for me washes all my guilt away. Let me rejoice in being justified in God's sight by the work of Jesus Christ. And let me give thanks.

Many of us fail to tell others about Jesus Christ. And someday it is too late for some of them. It is too late for us to tell some people about Christ because they pass away without hearing about Him. But we must endeavour to tell people as tactfully as possible about the Lord Jesus Christ and the importance of committing to Him entirely and believing in Him entirely. We are saved. And that's not enough. We must think about other people's salvation as well. There are others out there who need to hear about Christ.

It feels good to be approved and loved by people. But when such approval and love do not come hearts can be broken and aims can appear defeated. It is especially then that we should consider this fact: we are here because God loves us and approves of us. God's love and approval should outrank every other thing. And when we have this love and approval, we don't need anything else. It is best to be aware of this fact always.

Whatever you do, do not do it in a hurry. Relish what you do. Consider what you do and be grateful to God that you can do it.

God may not view time as we do. The Roman Calendar is in our consciousness. We are aware that a year is about to end and another year is about to begin. We ask ourselves questions: "What have we done this year? What have we not done? What should we do in the coming year?" Our consciousness of the passage of time is good. It makes us think about our lives and it ultimately leads us to reflect on who we really are. This is what we really are: the creations of God made to be in union with God. In this life we encounter trouble and we suffer with weakness. But these are also what lead us to God and make us cling to Him.

I have served even in my foolishness. I have served even in my weakness. I have served because of God in me, who works well despite my foolishness and weakness.

To be purified you must be first made aware of your utter littleness and thus your total need of God.

All the troubles in my life have greatly humbled me. Today I realize this terrible truth: I am nothing without God. If anyone is anything in this world it is only because of God. God blesses whomever He wants to bless. God chooses the foolish things of the world to shame the wise and the self-secure. And He shames them to make them realize that He alone is in control. Today, after many years of wandering in the desert of pride and conceit, I seek to be among the foolish things of the world. Let me be a fool and a weakling and let me seek God so that He may notice me and bless me with His strength.

Thank you Lord. Thank you for what I know that you have done. Thank you for what I do not know that you have done.

I learned to despise from people. I learned to appreciate from God.

If God has put something in your heart, do it today, do it now.

Identify your longings. Know what your heart craves. And ask God to fulfil your longings in his way.

The first duty to God is to enjoy the life he has given. Enjoy life, thoroughly enjoy life - this is your ultimate worship of God.

For every problem the solution is prayer. Pray to God now. Do not even think about solving a problem on your own.

"Thank you Lord" is the best thing to say when you are happy. "I believe that you are in charge of my life. I thank you for the good times" is the best thing to say when you are sad.

I started as a child of a Hindu. I started as a God-hater who made fun of God (the God of the Bible), who mocked God and who mocked everyone who believed in God, and now I have turned into someone who loves God and speaks for Him.

What we do not understand we try to explain. We should not try to explain what we do not understand. We should admit that we do not understand something and just leave it at that until further realization dawns.

God, you bless others through me. I'm glad that I'm an instrument in your hands. May I yield more to your will.

Along with the list of "What I Shouldn't Have Done" compile the list of "I'm Glad That I Did These Things".

The people whom I'd like to meet are those who search for me.

If you are a child of God will you not be protected by God? Will a cat that crosses your path have more power than God? When you are afraid on account of superstition are you not also showing a lack of faith in God? Above all we have a God who is capable of protecting us. The Bible says, "Greater is he who is in us than he who is in the world." So why should we believe the one who is in the world? Let us abandon superstition and let us adhere to our belief in the God of the Bible.

Let every house of every believer in Jesus Christ be decorated not with mere ornaments but with God's light and love during this Christmas season.

Let me not strive today. Let me rest. And let me wait.

All that we have today as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ is the grace of our God. And that is enough. Let us believe that. Let us declare that. And let us continue to declare that despite how we feel.

Our lives are not perfect. There is something missing. There is something that troubles us. There is something that refuses to go away no matter how much we pray about it, and how much we believe in God. There is a certain suffering that refuses to go away.

Those who want miracles must be willing to wait.

To feel like God you must be comfortable with being ignored most of the time.

Maybe our great trouble is a great blessing. Maybe God is about to do something great in our lives. Let's hang on to this thought.

Cling to God alone in your pain. Cry out to God alone for your relief. Hope in God alone for your health and salvation. Pray to God alone and believe that you have already received what you are desperately praying for. And God will not reject your pleas.

God does seem to disappoint sometimes. God does seem to fail sometimes. But this is only what seems to us. We must believe that God will never disappoint and never fail us, even if it appears that our prayer has been rejected and our hope has been dashed to pieces. We must believe in the goodness of God and His faithfulness to us. He makes all things beautiful in His time. And He works for the good of all those who put their trust in Him. We need to be reminded of this all the time.

It is the privilege of all Christians to love those who hate them. Christians, don't fail to exercise this privilege today.

You have been tested much. But hang on to God. That's the only way we overcome evil. The going gets tough. And it seems like God is not doing something to improve the situation when we need Him to. But this is only how it seems. God does help. I know this well. Even recently I faced a major trial in my life. And a huge mountain of difficulty presented itself. I was troubled but I held on to hope. And God didn't disappoint me. He sent me a great help, which revitalized my hope in Him.

I will not let this Christmas slip away without my enjoying it to the full. Despite distractions and problems I will drink deep of Christmas this time.

The God in me recognizes the horror in human life. Without God I will not be able to recognize evil.

If we love Christ we must love what He stood for, and what He still stands for. And what He stands for is the people of this world. We must stand for all people, especially the worst of them. We must love others despite their faults and regardless of their reactions to us.

Troubles make me pray. And prayers bring me close to God. So troubles are good for me.

I know that God is with all His children and is especially close to those who are suffering terribly. My prayer is that God alleviates or removes the suffering of His people as soon as possible. Yet God's ways are different from Man's ways, and God's thinking different from Man's thinking. It is in accepting this difference and being reconciled to it that we learn the hardest lesson in faith. I hope we learn that lesson.

Celebrate what you have and don't think about what you do not have. Rejoice in what you have even if what you have is only little.

O Lord, do not forget your needy children today. They are waiting on you and hoping in you. Attend to them soon.

Refrain from anything that bolsters your ego. Welcome anything that humbles you in your own eyes. It is good for a man to know his own littleness.

God is the only constant in life. Every human being fails. Wise is the human who not only recognizes this but also depends on God every moment in life.

Thank you Lord for what I have received. And I have received much.

When you consider how you lost your temper, remember especially the moment when you finally controlled it.

The drama of life is greater than we can even guess. Our joys are ultimately little flimsy things. Our sorrows too are nothing compared to the great tragedy that has befallen the world, which is fundamentally flawed and doomed to destruction.

I think it is impossible to be utterly selfless. But it is desirable that one is as unselfish as possible. It is desirable that one seeks God's goals instead of one's own goals. This is the realization that God has brought me to after much self-involved wandering.

There was a time in my life when I thrived on complexity. Complex sentences, long circuitous expressions and strange words captured me. Now all that I seek is the very minimum of expression, in the most direct manner with the most familiar vocabulary. I now desire simplicity.

Face it. Don't be scared. God is with you.

It is when you focus on the positives in life that thanksgiving is possible.

Someday we will know the truth and then we will know what God has done.

Be willing to take another look in another way.

This is the season for me to be thankful. So I consciously discard every negative thought and worry today and focus on the good that still remains in my life

In weakness I cry out to God: "Let not weak desires rule me today. Let your strength empower me to do your things, to speak your words, to think your thoughts." Sometimes I despair of being weak always. But I also know that along with my weakness there is a powerful desire to meet and know God. Is this weakness therefore what keeps me unceasingly seeking God? I don't know that. But I know this. When I am weak, it is then that I am strong.

Even Christians are vulnerable, particularly Christians are vulnerable to evil and immoral ways.Therefore there is this need for every Christian to be watchful and to pray so that he may not fall into temptation. But if a Christian should fall into temptation, let him take strength from the fact that there is a mediator in heaven called Jesus Christ who speaks on behalf of every sinner who has cast himself on God.

Our lights may be fading, but we still have life in us to tell someone else what and Who makes us purposefully alive. As those who have been given a purpose in life let us desire that others may also live so purposefully.

If I find rest in anything it is not in statistics. It is not in any asset that I may possess. I find rest only in God and in what I can do through Him. Without Him there is no me.

A new day brings a new blessing. But before it does that it will certainly present a new challenge. But great is the faithfulness of God who walks along with every one who is dependent on Him.

I can wait for every blessing because I know it is coming.

2000 years ago Jesus did the most inconvenient thing for us. He died a terrible death to save us from eternal destruction. Can we who have much to thank Him for not tolerate a troublesome person or two during this season of Christmas?

Who can guide us home except the one who calls us home? In our search for Him, in our attempt to go home, we get lost and distracted and confused. It is at that time we need to believe in Him. We need to pray that He would guide us home.

Walls and doors do not protect me. God protects me.

My Lord will provide. I know that.

To hurt people is easy. To love people is difficult.

I will ask God and He will help me. I shall not attempt to do this in any other way.

Show love especially to those who do not know love.

We are grateful to God for sending Jesus to us. In Jesus lies our salvation, our peace and our joy. In Jesus lies everything that we need to live this life victoriously.

Christ is not our secret, a privilege reserved for ourselves. We are told to share Jesus Christ with every one who does not know Him.

Trouble never comes at a convenient time.

Do not talk about it. Pray about it. Pray first. Pray soon.

It is in a desperate condition that a man knows his God.

There's only one thing that matters. There's only one thing that we should desire. We should continually seek God and desire His grace for without Him we are nothing. And this we should do knowing that we are nothing and acknowledging to be so.

What are the things we hang on to? What are the things we prize? What are we disappointed about? If we consider these questions we will know ourselves better.

If I had nothing to be terrified of, would I need God?

If God is in this it will happen. If God is in not in this it will not happen and I will not be bothered by this.

I plan things one way. But God wills it another way. I trust in God and His purposes for me. So I will not be disappointed by the way things have turned out. I still love God and I still desire His will. This is most important to me.

Do something good today even if it seems out of the ordinary and irrational.

The point of life is to feel gratitude for what we have received and to find that Person to whom we should grateful.

Desire God's will. Accept whatever happens later.

People are not easy to love. If we were called by God to love only those people who are easy to love, then such a task is not worthy. But the Lord Jesus Christ, when He called us to love one another as He loved us, knew well that He was asking us to do something difficult and even impossible in human strength. Yet He desired that, for we ourselves are loved by God when we have nothing to merit that love. We must love others as God loves us.

Be grateful even for a little thing. Just be grateful always.

God has His own way of answering prayers. This I have learned through much confusion and disappointment.

If you have desires that draw you away from God and His way, then choose those other desires that keep you firmly in God and His way. The choice is neither easy nor swift. But it does become easier in time as one draws closer to God. Consciously seek God. Desire His presence and knowledge. Above all desire His ways or as He Himself put it, His Kingdom and His righteousness. And He will lead you in the paths that will bring you closer to Him. So do not be disappointed in yourself today.

If you want something be willing to wait for it as long as it takes.

It may not be possible to do great things. But there are small acts of love waiting to be done. We can offer a smile to someone who is lonely. We can offer the love of God to someone who is emotionally damaged. We can take care of an injured animal. We can water a plant. Let us not be so intent on doing something great that we miss out on what is simple and maybe more urgent.

When people reveal their ugliness will I still be able to love them? This is the test to know if Christ is in me.

Monday 3 February 2014

And The Glory Of The Lord Shall Be Revealed

I was asked to leave my house last year. And I cried out to God. He heard my prayer. And the glory of the Lord was revealed in my life. And I'm still living in the same place.


Fix Your Eyes On God

Just like King Jehoshaphat in the Bible, let us fix our eyes on God even as several enemies come against us.


Believe in God. Don't Be Afraid

"What's the use of worrying? Can you add a hair to your head by worrying?" This is what Jesus Christ said to those who worry. Jesus told his disciples not to worry. He commanded his disciples not to worry. "Don't be afraid. Just believe", he said on one occasion. A statement so simple yet so powerful, it is one that I need to remember today. It's a statement that many people will need to remember today, as they wait for the Lord Jesus Christ to do something in their lives, as they wait on God to solve their problems. Let us not be afraid today. Let us believe. Let us believe that our God is good, that he will save us just as he promised us, that he will be there for us, that he will not forsake us.


How do we worship God?

Many people go to church to worship God. Denominational differences in Christianity may involve different styles of worship. But what ...