Sayings of Samuel Godfrey George , April 2017

Don't let anything or anyone disturb you when you are in the zone. Let inspiration alone be your companion.

 

It is better not to try shortcuts. You just might meet with an accident if you do.

 

To be able to love someone even when that person does not return the love is the kind of freedom that should be particularly desired.

 

To be able to love anyone without expecting anything in return is an enviable freedom.

 

Not to care about results is a great freedom, which may even improve one's performance.

 

True freedom is to be able to do something without expecting any response from anyone.

 

Don't wait for someone to do the dirty work. Do it yourself if you care about the mess.

 

God does not always speak. Nor is he always silent. That is why it is hard to turn away from him.

 

Sometimes you just have to keep quiet. The undesirable will leave on its own.

 

Moderate desire will not get you to the top. If you want to climb an impossible peak, you need to be madly passionate about getting there.

 

Prayer is not a matter of uncertainty, but certainty. Almost certain is not certain. Total certainty is total abandonment.

 

You cannot be a sensible person of faith. You can only be a crazy person of faith. In this world, the true people of faith are perceived by the faithless as lunatics.

 

If you do something because you have to do it, it is better for you not to do it. It is good for you to do something only when you want to do it.

 

Life may seem hopelessly complicated. Some may even find it meaningless. The world is an evil place, some think. Yet God loved the world so much. What did he see in this world that captured his heart? He saw his own children without a sense of identity. He saw human beings misled by the devil, who usurped the role of father. God saw people behave like their satanic father. And he had to do something to redeem his children from the clutches of this murderer. If he had done nothing, that would have shown us that he did not love us. But he actually did something, which changed the course of history. He sent his only Son. Jesus Christ came into this world. He came to take us all back to God. And his sacrificial death for us on the cross, establishes beyond doubt the love that God has for us. That God is love is an eternal truth. That God loves human beings is the specific truth that Jesus Christ demonstrated to us. Whether we believe in the truth of God's love is up to each and every one of us. We may not be convinced of any truth regarding God. But if we would only believe, despite our doubts, that will do. And God will be pleased.

 

God is love. We are his children made in his image. Yet, we are so full of hate, you say. And God does nothing to stop this hatred from spreading like wildfire. What about wars and genocides? What about evil tyrants who gas their own countrymen? Why does God not intervene, when innocent children are abused and killed? Didn't God himself order genocides, you ask. Didn't God himself order the killing of all Canaanites, children included, in the Bible? If he is like that, how could he be described as a lover of humanity? This is my response: let Jesus Christ be a mirror to God. Whatever Jesus is, God is. Whatever Jesus is not, God is not. Did Jesus order genocides? Did Jesus advocate cruelty of any kind? Did Jesus not lay down his life for all human beings? Does that not show his love for us? Did he sacrifice himself so that we may perish on earth, and even go to hell? No, he did that, so that we may live with him in heaven. Only God loved us so much that he did not want us to perish. Also, consider how patient God is with the world. The first century Christians expected Jesus to return in their own lifetime. Twenty centuries later, we are still waiting for the end of all things. Why is God taking his time? I believe he is waiting on account of his love. He loves us so much, that he does not want to put an end to everything, without giving everyone a chance. This may not still convince you of God's love, But God does not want to convince anyone of his love. He wants us to believe in his love, even when we think we see the opposite of it.

 

God is all-powerful. Yet he seems to do nothing, when we want him so desperately to help us. He even seems not to care about us. Did he not walk away from his disciples, when they were tossing about in that wild sea? Why does God behave like this? God wants to build our trust, you say. God wants us to enlarge our faith. Did he not reprove his disciples for the little faith they showed? Yes, that could very well be the case. In difficult times, God seems distant and uncaring. It is at that time, we must hang on to the eternal truth that God does not abandon his children. No one who trusted in him was ever disappointed. But, there are many cases of disappointments with God, you say. That however, is the short-term picture. But in the long-term, from an eternal point of view we ought to believe that if we place our trust in God, he will not disappoint us, no matter what happens while we undertake the journey from earth to heaven.

 

God is good. But his goodness is not easy to understand or appreciate. He is good in a way human beings​ cannot conceive. His goodness may come across to us as its very antithesis. But let us remember that we see very little right now. And much of our understanding is coloured by our selfishness. If God did not do what we wanted, he is just not good, we think childishly. But if we want to know God's goodness, we have to give up our childish way of thinking. We need to believe in more than what we can see. We need to believe in the eternal truths of God.

 

Trust in God even though the pain is great and inexplicable. How can a good God allow such turmoil and disorder? How can he remain indifferent to pain? Could God be not as powerful or good as we thought? Such questions may linger in your mind. But relegate them to the periphery. Let faith alone be your greatest impulse, and let the eternal truths about God occupy the centre. And let our hope in the eternal virtues of God rage like an inextinguishable fire.

 

Should I be happy that I am popular? Should I be happy about my influence on others? I derive happiness from whatever popularity and influence that I have in this world. However, let my chief happiness not consist in statistical achievements, but in God-ordained and meaningful​ connections that help save lives.

 

Marriage makes little sense if you have a child while you are still engaged. It​ is unfair to the child that will be born. And it completely overrides God's design of the holy union, which marriage ought to be. People should be willing to wait for great blessings, and should consider them very sacred, that they don't trivialise it by doing it their own way.

 

You cannot understand God all the time. There will be times when you will totally misunderstand him. There will be times when God will seem insensitive and cruel. But remember this in your darkest hour. God is on your side, and always good, as long as you keep trusting in him. All things, even terrible things, will work together for your good in the end, if you will only hold on to your faith.

 

Don't focus on your disability. But focus on your ability and be happy that you can still do something useful today.

 

Be happy about what you can do. Don't be sad about what you can't do. This is how you get the most out of your life right now.

 

The world is not your own. Even the piece of land that you may own right now will have to be relinquished on the day of your death. So, live your life knowing that you own nothing. And be aware that you are owned by God. Your soul belongs to him. So, you belong to him. Live knowing that you are owned by God, and if you have anything now, it is God who has given you temporary control over it.

 

The best way to live is to be grateful for every day as if it were our last.

 

A very hard part of life is dying. And when you have die to early and suddenly and painfully, it has the power to destroy you utterly. But it can also be a golden opportunity to overcome fear and hopelessness and embrace the life that is everlasting with greater passion and tenacity than would be the case when a person dies in ripe old age.

 

Paul never intended his letters to be a part of the Bible. They were included in the Bible many years later. We need to read them carefully because there are many personal opinions in these letters, along with God-given instruction. We should ask the help of the Holy Spirit to make a distinction between personal opinions and divine instructions.

 

The biblical writers do not always speak for God. Sometimes they speak their opinion. We need to make a distinction between God's words and human opinion And we cannot do this without​God's help.

 

Only God knows what is right for you. Let him decide it in his own time in his own way. But if you are in a rush, you may do it your way. But you will have to live with the consequences.

 

The purposes of God are beyond human understanding. Suffice it to say, if it is meant to happen, it will. But if it doesn't, accept God's no with grace. And even that grace must come from him.

 

I didn't know who I was until ten years ago. And it has been a steady unravelling of God's plan in my life. I discovered myself, as I was actually doing what the Holy Spirit inspired in me. It started with a casual video recording of the Lord's Prayer with my limited smartphone camera. Now it has emerged into compulsive video-making, churning out message after message, generated by some invisible mechanism that works even in total darkness. My tools and output have evolved in time. I talk and write at a pace that I cannot fully understand. It looks like I have more energy and direction than I expected from myself.

 

Let the Holy Spirit guide you. He is your Master, and he is at work in you. When he empowers you and directs you, you will know that somehow. Your work will display a quality, which you never had before. It will benefit others in ways in which you had never imagined before. Do not train yourself to do this. But let the Spirit train you up in God's ways. And he is a most unconventional teacher. He may guide you in total darkness, but he will eventually bring you out into everlasting light.

 

When you are a child, you will be a child. You are a growing child with growing awareness of who you are and what you should do. You are by no means grown up until God completes his work in you. You will discover yourself more and more, as the Spirit's inner work makes outward manifestations.

 

We are all rebels. We all rebel against God daily. We fail him daily. We deny him daily. But he will forgive us daily, if only we would admit our failings and return to him seeking his grace.

 

Don't worry about failing God. Every disciple of Jesus Christ failed. The greatest among the disciples denied him three times, to save his own skin. But Jesus Christ restored him to his position, when he received three tearful assurances of love from that person. When Jesus Christ could welcome betrayers back again, you need not worry about your own betrayal of God.

 

The greatest discovery we can make about ourselves is that we belong to God. He paid a high price for us, to secure our souls, so that we may live forever. When we realize this, our old perception of us will cease to matter, degree by degree, until our old way of life will make way for the new way.

 

You are a child of God. There is nothing more to find out about yourself.

 

It is not enough if you pray for peace. You should also work for peace.

 

Not everyone knows the language of the heart. Some know only the language of the wallet. It takes time to develop the heart, and those who know the language of the heart should teach it to those who do not know it. And they should do so patiently, allowing time for learning.

 

Let us thank God for his precious Son, Jesus Christ. May Good Friday be a day when Man and God will connect meaningfully. Let the Calvary scene inspire lost sons and daughters to return to their Father.

 

Knowing that Jesus Christ died for us is not enough. We need to experience why He had to die for us. We need to experience sin, and why it is impossible for us to make atonement for our own sins. When we recognize that, we will be able to appreciate what Jesus Christ did on the cross. And we will be able to respond desirably to His Father, who sent him to us. May Good Friday be a day of such responses. God bless you all.

 

Till then let me not give up this struggle. I will not cease to do what God tells me to do in my heart. I have walked far and abandoned much. If I wanted to turn back, it will be too late. But I do not want to turn back. I want to go where this path leads me. And though there are horrible disturbances and impediments before me, I will overcome them all with the strength of God. For when I am weak, then he is strong in me. Let the people of God continue to trod in troubled paths. For God himself goes with us, and he is near us, when the journey becomes unbearable.

 

The disciples of Jesus quarrelled among themselves. There were rivalries and jealousies among them. I notice the same spirit of strife in my home. People are constantly warring and competing. There is no time or desire for giving and serving. If service is rendered, it is often done grudgingly and complainingly. In such an environment, God has allowed his desert flower to grow within me. Not only have I bloomed in hostile ground, others have also seen me and been delighted by me. This is my great consolation as I toss around on a sleepless night, which threatens to go on without end.

 

I have spoken of strength despite a terrible weakness in me. I have spoken of light despite a great darkness within me. I have spoken of peace, even as war raged in me and out of me. I have spoken of godliness, even as ungodly anger and discord surrounded me nearly uninterruptedly in my life. I feel I must speak of what I have not experienced, because even if it is not true in my life, it is true according to God and precious in his sight, and what matters to him matters to me.

 

I go through the Jesus experience every day. When I pray, the people around me are often sleepy and weary. But I continue to pray. I continue to hope in a new day, when the ugliness will be dispelled, and the suffering will cease.

 

I will not let the attitudes of people shape my worship of God. I will worship God as I am led by his Spirit. Even if people around me are sleeping, or not paying attention, and even if people are fighting and quarrelling bitterly, I will continue to read the Bible, and say prayers for the well-being of all. This is my labour. This is my cross. But it is a pretty small cross compared to another I bear silently.

 

Even an excellent depiction of Jesus Christ does not automatically lead to salvation of souls. People may receive the message and fail to respond to it with their hearts. The act of conveying a message is twofold: one, the ability of the communicator and two, the receptivity of the receiver. The success of communication lies equally with the receiver, whose mental and spiritual states are vital to his receiving the message. So ultimately success in the process of conveying Christ to others does not lie in the hands of the communicator, but in the hands of God who alone facilitates both the communication and its reception.

 

If miracles happen every day, they may not qualify as miracles. Still, it is not a bad idea to think that miracles happen every day. It helps us develop gratitude for small blessings.

 

A madness is overwhelmed only by another. You cannot sweep it away by rational arguments.

 

You cannot rationalize a mania. Even if you try, you cannot lessen its severity.

 

Jesus had to fall from a place of adoration to a place of disgrace for the sake of human beings. It is because of that fall we get to rise to the level where God is. Somebody had to fall to get us to rise. Somebody had to be punished for us to be exonerated.

 

The sudden fall of Jesus took place because God had ordained it. Spiritual forces obedient to God’s will were at work in the life of Jesus, particularly in those final days of his life. They orchestrated the catastrophic events that culminated in the Calvary moment. Even though the Roman governor, Pilate, tried to save Jesus from his deadly fate, he could not prevail over the clamorous mob who unequivocally demanded that Jesus Christ be crucified. The Good Friday moment was above all spiritually induced. It was not brought about by the argumentative skills of Caiaphas and his priestly cohorts or the mob they so successfully incited against Jesus Christ. They might have had a small role to play in the way the events played out. But powerful spiritual forces were the ones that dictated the course of events in an unalterable way. These unseen forces are ultimately responsible for the Messiah falling into disgrace, and being sentenced to a form of death reserved for the worst criminals in the Roman empire. For such was the will of God, that his only Son should suffer the worst death as the worst criminal ever on earth. Let human beings who observe this terrible fall of the greatest man who ever lived remember that this ignominious fate was thrusted upon him for our sakes. Jesus suffered and died in the worst possible manner to save us from sin and death. And let us not forget that he fell from a great height to a great depth, so that we may rise from a great depth to a great height, by God’s grace.

 

The fall of Jesus Christ is the rise of Man.

 

As you wave your palms exuberantly today, don't get lost in the ritual, but try to remember the truth that Christ must be king in your life. Or you will only be an onlooker and not an inhabitant in his kingdom.

 

Reaching people should not be the goal. Helping people should be the goal.

 

You can pray a most fervent prayer and still receive a negative answer. Jesus Christ discovered that the day before his death. Answers are ultimately in God's hands, and not always in the quality of our prayers.

 

You cannot discard your past, because the present is all that matters. Learn from the past, and avoid past mistakes in the present. If you do this, your future will be better.

 

When you wait for something and it finally happens, it may give you some joy. But when you are tired of waiting for something, and it finally happens, it may fail to give you any joy.

 

When something doesn't happen when you want it to happen, it does not make a great impact when it finally happens.

 

I'm from a place of trouble, so I believe I can understand those who are in trouble. Trouble varies from person to person, but the reaction to trouble should be the same. You should face it bravely and calmly. And you should hope that your life will get better. If you are a believer in God, you should rely on God to solve your problem. No matter how terrible your situation is, believe that God will help you find a way out of it eventually. Stand firm then, and stop complaining and feeling sorry for yourself. Otherwise, you will be in worse trouble than you are in right now.''

 

You need to weather your storm. And if you believe in God, trust in him, and cast your cares on him. Your worry will only make you feel worse.

 

You are small only if you want to be. Think of yourself as big and capable of handling the troubles in your life.

 

Many in this world have problems. And some have many problems. But it is not to your advantage when you buckle under the weight of your problems. You need to face them, and do even better. You need to overcome them. That is what true living is all about.

 

Does love your neighbour mean only love a fellow believer? If you love only believers, what is the great achievement in that? Jesus Christ told us to love our enemies. But how do we love our enemies? We pray for them. We ask God to be gracious to them. We pray that God would show mercy to them. But should we live with them as best friends? I don't think so. We should try to get along with all kinds of people. But we cannot live with people who hate God, unless we are forced by circumstances. Sometimes, in a marriage, people find themselves unequally yoked in the spiritual sense. That is when people need to stay faithful to their marriage vows despite spiritual differences. In all other cases, it is best to maintain a distance between the believer and the unbeliever. But distance in this sense does not mean frostiness or hatred. It just means a physical and mental space brought about by spiritual incompatibility. And this may be necessary for most spiritual humans, who are vulnerable to the evil of others.

 

God is doing something new in your life every day. So be ready to see the new. He asks you to do something new today, something you have never done before. Be willing to be used in a new way.

 

In this life with God, be prepared to see your weakness thoroughly exposed. It is when you know your utter inadequateness, you will discover God’s overwhelming adequateness.

 

God rarely asks you to do what is easy. Many times he asks you to do something, which you find very challenging. But you should be willing to do what God asks of you, for he will provide you with the resources to do his task. But to be enabled by God, you need to trust in him more than in your own intelligence.

 

Seldom do people stay and prove through their actions what they passionately said.

 

We don't like to be called servant. We'd rather be called worker or something even less disparaging. But God has called us to be servants. God himself became a servant, and he served us by doing for us what we could not do for ourselves. So let us not be dismayed by the label servant. It is mightier to serve in heaven than to reign on earth.

 

A poor talker who is a great doer, is better than a great talker who is a poor doer. Actions always matter more than words.

 

You serve God by serving his creations. You honour God by respecting the works of his hands. You worship God by sharing his love with those who have never known him. You live for God by dying for all that you desire selfishly for yourself. You work for God by doing what many others are unwilling to do, for such work is beneath their self-image, and offers no gain that they value.

 

We need to walk dry roads to reach wet places. We need to travel with parched mouths for a long time to reach a place where our thirst will be permanently satisfied. We need to experience lasting pain to receive a joy that cannot be taken away from us. This is heaven's design for earth. And the sooner we realize it, the better for us.

 

Don't spend your time seeing what you have seen before. But devote your time to seeing what you have never seen before. When you have seen the old, turn to what is new, and always be in search of the new.

 

Don't criticize your servant. Be willing to serve like her, and do what she is not able to do. Show your servant by example how to serve.

 

Talk less and do more. The greatest doers are the least among talkers. Action is what matters in the end. Your words will amount to nothing, if they are not superseded by action.

 

Instead of complaining about what someone has not done, do the work that is incomplete or unattempted, and don't even complain about it. This is what will make you a great worker.

 

We should learn to be happy with what we have accomplished in less-than-ideal circumstances. Instead of berating the flawed process, we should be grateful for the end result.

 

The best way to worship God is by giving thanks for the life he gave you. The best way to give thanks to God for life is by enjoying the life he gave you. The best way to enjoy life is by expressing the gifts that God gave you. The best way to express the gifts you have is by sharing them with with others. It is by making others happy that you are happy. And you cannot worship God without being happy in this life.

 

Take care that you don't spurn your brother on your way to worship God today. Make things right with your brother so that everything is right between you and God.

 

You cannot love God without​ loving people. You cannot worship God without honouring people. You cannot have a good relationship with God without having a good relationship with the people around you.

 

Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter and Christmas are man-made holidays. We need to think about God every day. We need to celebrate Jesus Christ every day. We need to think of the birth of Jesus Christ every day. We need to remember the death of Jesus Christ every day.

 

We worship God by honouring one another. We celebrate God by celebrating one another. If we fail in interpersonal relationships, we will also fail in our relationship with God.

 

God is with us. No matter what is against us, it cannot succeed. So, let us not be afraid. Let us trust in God today.

 

Being in Christ means believing that we have a Saviour called Jesus Christ, who saved us from our sins, and who conquered death for us, and made us right before God, and gave us his Spirit, who lives within us, revealing to us the mind of God, and enabling our mind to agree with God's mind, as we submit to him degree by degree.

 

The commandments of God will never cease to be important. Only perfect obedience to them will not be by us, but by Jesus Christ, who has already done it for us.

 

The commandments of God cannot be obeyed perfectly by anyone. Only Jesus Christ could obey. And if we are in him, we have also obeyed perfectly.

 

It is the law that gives sin its power. It is the Spirit that frees you from the power of sin.

 

You should consider yourselves dead to the law of Moses. You died to it when you were born of the Spirit. If you still live under the law, you are under its curse. For no human except Jesus Christ was justified by keeping the law. You now live in the Spirit by the grace of God. But if it is the law that you prefer, you will find out that it will arouse every desire that it forbids.

 

When we are born again, it means that we have died already. When we are born of the spirit we have already died to the flesh.

 

God is good. In difficult times, he has helped me once more. He turned my wailing into dancing once more.

 

The advise that I give is first for myself and then for others.

 

I minister to myself, thus I minister to others.

 

The more you look at something, the less remarkable it becomes.

 

If you are happy about what you received today, even though it is little, you surely have a big heart.

 

Sin is dead. God is alive. This is the truth that overrules every worldly reality, if you are born of the Spirit.

 

You don't always have to do good. You don't always have to enthuse others. Sometimes you should just sit down and take care of yourself. If you cannot take care of yourself, you cannot take care of others.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sayings of Samuel Godfrey George, March 2017

To trust in God is equal to saying, "I don't like this. But I will let God do this anyway, for I trust him to be good eventually."

 

We say, "Thy will be done" and secretly hope that it is our will that will be done. The essence of trusting God lies in accepting what we do not like, and letting it shape us into the people that God wants us to be,

 

Don't be anxious about anything. But pray about everything that frightens you. Thank God for being near you. He won't let you be harmed by anyone or anything. He is the guardian and the protector of your soul. Believe in the one to whom you have entrusted your precious life. Trust in God today. Believe that he will guide you to a safe place. And boldly affirm your confidence in this manner, "If God is for me, who can be against me? Who can prevail over me? The Lord will not permit his child to suffer more than he or she can bear. The devil may hassle me for a while, but God will save me in the end. I belong to God, and that fact will never change."

 

Find out why you are scared, and what you are scared of. And place it before God. But know God in advance. Be still and know that he is God. There is no force in this world or out of it that can stand against God. If you believe like this, nothing can shake you. But you will be tested severely and many attempts will be made to shake you. You may even stumble and fall, but with God you will rise again. And in the end, you will remain standing, provided you wear the armour of God.

 

God is with you. Learn to speak the words of God. Learn Psalm 91 by heart and speak it to yourself. It is what I did when I came under an anxiety attack in 2010. It saved me. That's why I am still here. So put your trust in God. Say like King David, "A thousand may fall at my side, ten thousand at my right hand, but it will not come near me." God will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge. His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Believe and speak the words of God over your life.

 

Know that God is with you, and he is beside you even now. Whatever fear is troubling you, know that God is greater than anything that threatens you. Greater is God in you than the devil in this world. Believe that and say that. And you will find a new strength enter your mind and body, when you confidently affirm the greatness of God. Keep saying to yourself, "God is great. He will never leave me or forsake me. I am his. No one can pluck me out of his hand." Ask God to give you a faith from above. Desire God desperately. And he will not fail to respond to you.

 

To say nothing, to spare the venom, and to let the offender go - these are the lessons that I have learned in my years with God.

 

Thankfulness does not just satisfy God. It also satisfies human beings, who have much to endure in this life. Gratitude is what keeps us sensible in difficult times. And it is what keeps us going, when we would have otherwise given up and admitted defeat.

 

Thanklessness and ungratefulness may be more natural to human beings than thankfulness and gratefulness. But God clearly prefers the thankful and the grateful. In fact, the Creator expects human beings to be thankful in all circumstances. What that means is that humans are required to be thankful even in dire situations. In hard times humans should find something to be thankful about. They have to do something extraordinarily out of character to satisfy their God.

 

Even as you suffer in life, be thankful for the joy that still remains with you. Always be thankful regardless of the circumstances. Find something to be grateful for. Consciously attempt at being grateful always. Even when you are tempted to complain about the bad in your life, speak glowingly of the good that you still observe around you.

 

To enjoy life, we need to laugh more at ourselves, at how petty and ridiculous we are. We need to see the lighter side of our terrible lives, and feel grateful for what we cannot endure.

 

Following your heart is the best use of your time. But beware, your heart can utterly deceive you.

 

I don't think much about the end of the world. End time prophecy is riddled with embarrassing mistakes, and I want to stay out of that area. But I do think about the end of life, which will happen to all of us. I think sometimes about my death, but I don't dwell on it. I think about life right now, about the good I can do, and how to make the best use of my time.

 

Life is rarely what we want. It is mostly what we do not want. If we could like what we do not want, we would be masters at living well.

 

Be happy where you are, even if you don't like it. Some things in life are hard to appreciate. But we should accept them with gratitude.This attitude will preserve us till the end.

 

If our ultimate aim is not pleasing God, we will find out that pleasing ourselves will not satisfy us in the end.

 

If you could worship God without speaking the truth, your worship would amount to nothing. But if you could speak the truth without worshipping God, your truth will still stand.

 

If only people would love who they are, they would also love who others are.

 

To make this world a better place, the people in this world need to be happy with themselves.

 

It is not wrong to love ourselves. In fact, it is a must. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot love others.

 

If I could love myself as a narcissist would, my life would be a lot easier. Rather, I am often my worst critic.

 

What I celebrate is not me, but God in me.

 

Even as I nurse my long-lasting, wounds, and contest in this dogfight against my own terrible nature, I am able to attend to the sufferings of others, and offer words of consolation to them. This is nothing short of a miracle.

 

I try to know myself. There is probably more darkness in me than I suspect. But I'd like to focus on the light, and what God does in me. I try to see the better side of me, though it is not easy.

 

I am not selfless. But I am not as selfish as I used to be.

 

Don't ask me what my religion is. Ask me what my motivation is. My motivation is to give something in return. I have received many good things from God. And I want to share these good things with my fellow human beings.

 

Where I come from is really not important. What I am and what I want to do for you, these are pertinent questions. I am your friend, and I want to accompany you on this journey called life. If I can help you, I will help you. If you can help me, I would gladly receive your help. This is all that we need to think about.

 

Someone told me not to question God. But I question him often. I tell him plainly what I think. I quarrel with him sometimes, and disagree with him. But he quickly draws me back to him. And I walk with him again with renewed strength.

 

Mistakes are painful but necessary. Don't feel ashamed of them. We cannot progress without them.

 

Even my own father may not have accepted me, but I know that God accepts me just as I am. People may judge me and reject me, but with God I do not fear judgement and rejection, for I know that I have been made right before him by Jesus Christ.

 

What love does, discipline cannot know.

 

Jesus was both liberal and conservative. He was more liberal than the liberals of his day, and more conservative than the conservatives of his day.

 

Going to church will not not save you. But going to God will.

 

Doctrines will not lead us to God. A simple heart, aware of its emptiness and desperately in need of God is all that is required.

 

To have everyone come to God, we should be willing to discard every doctrine that divides us.

 

Some of us know God, but do not live with him. Others do not know God, but live with him without being aware of it.

 

On a day when blessings​ seem scarce count the earlier ones.

 

You can't solve a problem by worrying about it. But you can feel better by trusting in God for its solution.

 

Some people are better human beings without religion than those with it.

 

A crisis may be the best gift from God for a person who is struggling in faith.

 

We will go through crises but when we go through them with God, we come out happier.

 

Love is the ability to embrace all without reservation.

 

If you could love the one you're with and not look in longing at the one you're not with, your happiness might just last.

 

A liberal mind is broader than a conservative mind.

 

The best way to get appreciation is by appreciating others.

 

If you love something, you will always find time for it.

 

If you want a good life, then start to appreciate the life that you have now.

 

Do you want to love? Love yourself first. Love what you are, and who you are. Love God who created you for a certain purpose. And the purpose is to know the love of God who loved you enough to put you on this planet. He loved you enough to let you see the wonder of life. Now see that wonder, and appreciate your life. Do what you are able to do, and do it well, and do it happily.

 

Love the people you have in your life today. And love them well. This is the one task that you must fail to do. For if you do so you will also love God.

 

Luck has something to do with every human life. Luck is a combination of events that can go one way or the other. A believer in God, who does not believe in luck, may find himself knocked down by a vehicle on the road, which suddenly lost control and rammed into him. Or he may perish in some other unfortunate way. There are a few miracle stories of supernatural rescue, but these are offset by many tragic stories of bad things happening to good people. It is my belief that such sad events are not predetermined by God, but they happen by chance. Unfortunate and unlucky these events seem to be.

 

Could God have stopped an accident from happening? Could God have prevented a tragedy from happening? Could God have stopped a human from carrying out his evil intention? God could have done all this. But in my understanding, I do not see him doing anything like this. God allowed human beings free-will. So, he lets humans do what they want, even if human actions have criminal intent. He lets humans make mistakes, and sometimes these mistakes have serious consequences.

 

Accidents happen not because of God but because of humans. Human imperfection gives rise to human error. Human error is often the cause of accidents. And when accidents happen, God has nothing to do with them.

 

Let it be between God and you, and not between God and someone and you. You can approach God directly. You can speak to him now. You can ask him yourself. And he will answer you.

 

Everything is ordained by God. Every accident is in God's plan. Every train derails, and every plane crashes, and every ship sinks because God planned it. Every ant that is smashed under human feet today is also predetermined. This line of reasoning is ridiculous.

 

If it's not in the Bible, it's not in life. That's a severe limitation in thinking.

 

You wonder why the good live short lives while the evil live up to a ripe old age. This is what I think. None of us are good. It may seem that some of us are better than others. As Jesus put it, "Only God is good." Life is difficult, and unpredictable. Accidents happen: Inexplicable events take place. The people who seem good meet with untimely deaths. The people who seem bad go on living for an inordinately long time. This may not exactly happen the way it appears to us. One can be confident that bad luck affects all of us. But it does appear to some of us that the good suffer more than the bad. The Bible states that many are the afflictions of the righteous. Jesus Christ warned that in this world there will be many troubles for those who put their trust in God. I believe that there are troubles for all of us in this world. That is the way it is. We need to accept the unpredictability and unfairness of life and make the most of our time, whatever may be the length of our lives.

 

Why should the people of Christ show kindness to those who don't deserve it? We were told by Jesus Christ to be a light in this dark world. We should let our light shine so that people may know Jesus Christ who shines through us. We love others, not because they are loveable or lovely. We love them despite who they are. We are told to love the most unlovable people. We are told to show kindness to the cruellest people. We are told to do the impossible thing. We are told to forgive the unforgivable. But why we should we do these things, when people don't deserve our kindness and our love and our forgiveness? We do this because we belong to Jesus Christ. And he loves and forgives and shows kindness to the most wretched people in the world. He showed kindness and love and forgiveness to us, when we deserved nothing but his condemnation. If he lives in us, we should show him to others by living like him.

 

God loves the world so much. It is this love that led him to send his Son to this world to lay down his life for the sins of humanity. Let all human beings know this love and accept it without reservation. Let this love guide them closer to God. Let those who have received this love also share it with everyone they meet.

 

Let hell not be the reason why you go to God today. There may be a hell where unbelievers and rebellious spirits go ultimately. But let not the fear of going to hell be the reason for your going to God today. God is your Maker, and without him you are incomplete. Let your search for completeness lead you to God today.

 

Let fear not be your motivation to believe in God. It is better to be a fearless unbeliever than a cowardly believer.

 

Don't hold on to the past. Let it go, even if it was wonderful. God is doing something new in your life. Focus on this, and accept the new opportunities and challenges that you are about to face. Whether it is good or bad, easy or difficult, accept the new and live it with the grace God will certainly give you.

 

My child, all of us go through troubles. The children of God suffer the most. They are chosen to suffer, because suffering is probably the greatest teacher in life. Nothing moulds us and transforms us into the image of God like suffering. And we suffer most, when we think that God is not with us. But this is the truth. God never leaves or forsakes his children. It simply cannot be, though it looks very much like that. If we would only believe in God more than we do in what we think or feel, we would make considerable progress in this spiritual journey.

 

You may not be able to relive the past, even if you have the same people in your life. Time has passed, people have changed, and you need to move on to something else in your life.

 

God will not give us everything that we want. But he will give us everything that he wants for us, if we want it too. There is much that we want in life, that God does not want for us. And there is much we do not care for in this life, that God wants for us.

 

How do you know that God is speaking to you? Is he saying to you, "Don't be troubled. I'm here for you. I care for you. And I will take care of you. I will supply all your needs. You can count on me"? If you are hearing this, no matter who you are and what you have done, you can be sure that God is speaking to you. For this is what he has been saying to all of us since the day Jesus Christ ascended into heaven to sit beside his Father. And this is what he will continue to say to his children in the years to come, as long as he wants to. I see no reason to doubt this fact.

 

Don't try to worship God. Just speak to him, believing that he is near you. Believe that he is near you, as you believe that the air you breathe will keep you alive. And know this. Nothing on earth or in heaven can separate you from God.

 

Don't hear the condemnation of people. Hear the approval of God. If you are trying to know God and worship him, he will welcome you into his arms, regardless of the path that you take to reach him. The people of God do not travel the same path to God. But God knows who we are, and where we are, and he will reach out to us, when we get lost.

 

If you are concerned about God and the things of God, it is likely that you have God in you.

 

When God looks at us, he does not see us as Protestants or Catholics or anything else. He sees us as his own children, bought by the blood of his Son Jesus Christ. And this is how we should see ourselves.

 

The best kind of meeting is arranged by God. When I am with God, I don't try to meet people. People come to me, and I meet them.

 

Church is where believers in God are. If only two of us are joined together in our faith in God, we are a church most pleasing to God.

 

Being Catholic or Protestant is not important. Being a child of God is important. This is what you need to be every day.

 

The question that we need to ask today is: "Do we know whom we worship? What does he want from us? Are we doing what he wants us to do?" Let us not be stuck in man-made theories of God, But let us look at Jesus Christ, and experience the love of God that he so unforgettably conveyed to us. Then we will be transformed by that love into the people God wants us to be.

 

Thanks to Wi-Fi, I can place my laptop on my bed and type my messages. There is always something to thank God for. The need of every day is to find that reason, and act on it.

 

Does someone have to write an entire book to say that God takes his time to transform human beings? It takes time to grow physically. It takes even more time to grow spiritually. None of us is transformed instantly. Some changes appear sudden. But nothing is full grown in an instant. Change is a long, drawn out process. Some of us who are undergoing spiritual growth feel that not much has happened over the years. We are still prone to the same evil tendencies. We still remain addicted to worldly lusts. But in truth, we are moving on, even if we cannot feel it. We are moving like the earth, which moves beyond superficial detection. We are moving forward, even if we cannot see any progress. God is an efficient worker. He made the universe. He can make us be like him, if we would only believe in the miracle of time, his time. He makes all things beautiful in his time. In this we should lay to rest all our doubts and start believing in what seems impossible to our human minds.

 

You worship God in your heart. You worship God in your mind. You worship God in you. You worship God in the people you meet. You worship God in every created thing. When you worship God like that you don't need to go to a church to worship him.

 

When you learn to be grateful for every little drop that trickles your way, you have attained a spirit of gratitude.

 

God does not only love us. He hurts us by making us aware of our unworthiness. It is when we see how irredeemable we are that we respond to his gracious love, the only thing that can save us. God cannot embrace us before he hurts us. And we should not recoil from the hurt, hating God even more for showing us our hopelessness. We should return to him, trusting in his love, and desiring it, for there is no other way out of the hell we are destined for.

 

Love changes everything. Love is the greatest motivator for change. It is undeniable. But love without hurt may not amount to anything. When love changes us, it is aided by hurt. We are hurt by the fact that we don't measure up. We are hurt by the knowledge that we don't deserve the love. It is that hurt which ultimately makes us embrace the love and be transformed by it, for nothing else can save us so well.

 

Sometimes we hurt people to get them to think radically. A big change issues out of a big impact. And one of the biggest impacts on the human soul is a hurt.

 

I am what I am today because of the hurts that I suffered in my life. People hurt me inadvertently. I absorbed those hurts and made them my greatest motivators to reach a certain destination.

 

If you always sugar-coat your words, you may fail to make an impact on others. Euphemistic language serves a purpose only up to a certain point. Beyond that point, you should a call a spade a spade.

 

Great change can issue from great hurt. Offence can transform a person like nothing else.

 

The idea of using offensive words is to offend. If you are not offended by them, they have failed in their purpose.

 

What did Jesus Christ mean when he said that he came so that we might live a full, abundant life? Was he primarily referring to material well-being, or spiritual well-being? If we examine the context of the statement, Jesus was talking about the devil, and drawing a contrast between the murderous Satan and the life-giving Christ. So the focus of Jesus' abundant life cannot be material prosperity, but a certain inner, spiritual well-being. God does add the material things to us, but only when we seek his kingdom and his righteousness above every other thing. The Christ kind of abundance therefore is a richness in God, and not a richness in the things of this world.

 

People who want religion may go for Christianity. I go for Christ, without the trappings of religion.

 

What is my religion? I am asked this question often. I follow Jesus Christ. I even work for him. What does that make me? It is anyone's guess.

 

To the one who said that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob would not call his children idiots, I say that he called them worse names. He has called his chosen people a prostitute who pays others for sex. Jesus Christ, his Son used labels such as vipers and dogs. The Bible contains many difficult words, and often refers to humanity in unflattering terms. God and his people come across as particularly impolite and scathing in their interaction with people.

 

There is wisdom in calling a spade a spade. Anything more or less is a distortion of truth. Jesus Christ labelled the world an adulterous generation. He referred to non-Jews as dogs. On other occasions he addressed the learned men of his community as vipers. St. Paul addressed a church as "foolish Galatians". Sometimes hard words are required to bring out the truth. When such words are used by Jesus Christ and those who serve him, it is for the purpose of highlighting truths, which cannot be effectively expressed using less severe words.

 

A good teacher may have bad students. When you call a student an idiot, it may not reflect on the wisdom of his teacher.

 

We only know what has been revealed to us. Even that we do not well. But the one who thinks he knows everything, when he only imperfectly knows what has been partially revealed is a pitiable idiot.

 

Every sanctimonious person is an idiot. Anyone who thinks he knows God well is a bigger idiot.

 

When you want to point out someone's folly, think about how someone else did not point out that you are an idiot.

 

We should love ourselves. And we should love others as we love ourselves. This is the fitting way we glorify God who made all of us so well.

 

Loving yourself is not a bad thing at all. Just don't forget to love others in the same way.

 

A loud, bragging faith is less appealing than a calm, self-deprecating, seeking of God.

 

Let the godly man look at his own despicable heart before he throws light on the lostness of a brother.

 

A balanced, sensible faith in God will attract more people to God than strident fanaticism.

 

Religious fanaticism will probably come across as lunacy to many onlookers. It is best to temper religious fervour with secular balance, so that faith may not appear ridiculous to the faithless.

 

Ultimately we should attract the faithless through our faith, and not repel them. Balance is what is required. Fanaticism should be avoided at all costs.

 

Faith should be a balanced, beautiful experience and not an idiotic fantasy, which will repel onlookers.

 

Some believers denigrate their god more through their shameless fanaticism than do the most disparaging atheists.

 

We are all slaves to one thing or the other. Some of us are slaves to the bottle, while some others are slaves to the syringe. Some are slaves to sexual desire, while some others are slaves to currency. Some of us are slaves to God, while some others are slaves to religion. Ultimately, no one is truly free, and everyone should decide for himself who his master should be. And we should aim to make the most of our slavery without regret.

 

A holier-than-thou believer is more obnoxious than a mocking atheist.

 

We are all slaves to one thing or the other. Some of us are slaves to the bottle, while some others are slaves to the syringe. Some are slaves to sexual desire, while some others are slaves to currency. Some of us are slaves to God, while some others are slaves to religion. Ultimately, no one is truly free, and everyone should decide for himself who his master should be. And we should aim to make the most of our slavery without regret.

 

In life there are restrictions. There may even be a bondage or two. A life which attempts to achieve despite suffering and to work within restrictions is the kind of freedom that is available on earth. Such a way of living may not always meet with success, but it is always consistent in finding a way to do something good, without offending and restricting others.

 

A free act is done with love, without expecting any reward for it, except the joy of doing it.

 

Freedom of speech is needed. But it cannot mean that we can speak anything, anytime in any way we want. We need to speak properly, considerately and politely. We should also know when not to speak.

 

I am free to admire flowers today. But I am not free to pluck them. I am free to appreciate the world today. But I am not free to impose my will on it.

 

There is no such thing as unlimited freedom. All freedom is limited. The freedom of one should be curtailed for the sake of accommodating others.

 

A free human being is one who is not bound by the thinking of others. Agreement with others in his case is not a must, but it comes only when minds genuinely meet.

 

To be free is to be able to be what one is, without the fear of offending others.

 

Freedom is to do what one likes without hurting others or restricting their freedom.

 

We have waited 2000 years. But God doesn't wait. He is out of time, and he knows the end from the beginning without travelling through time, for he sees them both even now lying side by side. But we who cannot see the timelessness wonder why he is delaying his return. We come up with reasons for his delay. However, it is better not to guess the mind of God. He is giving us time to repent, you say. Time is a double-edged sword. Along with the time to repent, comes the time to do even greater evil. More people are born. More evil proliferates. No, it is better not to guess the divine mind. God is now reconciled to the world through the blood of his Son. And humans are no longer in enmity with God. This is the vital fact that every God-aware human should bear in mind. God's return happens every day as we recognize his great love for us. Every day God returns to the recognizing heart.

 

Let's remember the good that we have received from God. That's how we go on. The troubles in our life have increased, and we are praying to God more urgently to help us overcome our great problems. Even as we continue to struggle in life, let us not forget that God has been good to us. He has answered our prayers, and granted us relief many times. May God grant us help again. May we receive grace in our time of need. May God strengthen and prosper us in every way. Let's not give up doing this today.

 

Is Jesus in a statue? Is Jesus in a massively proportioned statue on top of a mountain? Can Jesus be found as an infant in the hands of his mother, sculpted by a human being? Can Jesus be touched by placing our hands on sculpted wood and rock? Are we not guilty of worshipping God today as we did thousands of years ago? Are we not guilty of worshipping idols when we bow before the statues of Jesus and his mother, not to mention the plethora of his saints? Can Christ not be found anywhere else?

 

Do you need to see clouds in the shapes of horses and lions to visualise the second coming of Jesus Christ? Do you need to hear the massive blow of a trumpet to get prepared for Jesus who is coming to take you away with him to heaven? Do you need to see a grand cosmic event in the sky to ratify the biblical prophecies concerning the return of Jesus Christ? Are you nor ready to accept Jesus now without pomp and fanfare? Are you not ready to welcome the wretched, beggarly Jesus standing in front of you, waiting for your help?

 

How does it feel to fail again and again? How does it feel to have your weaknesses exposed again and again? How does it feel to know the truth and be powerless to enact it in your life? How does it feel to see the light and not be able to step out of your darkness? How does it feel to take a few steps forward and then take many backward?

 

I choose not to be critical of other faiths, for I have not experienced them personally. I choose to look at my own faith sympathetically, for little good may come from being critical of it. Today, I need to rejoice in life, and in God who has revealed himself to me through the Bible. And I should share this joy with others, so that they too may know God as I do. And I should do this respectfully and sensitively without offending anyone's deeply held beliefs.

 

You shouldn't force yourself to believe in God. From the beginning to the end, belief in God is a work of God. God will help you believe in him, as he helped me to believe in him. I had no belief in God once. I now believe in God, but my belief is not without its moments of doubt. All believers go through those moments. But God will help you rise above those doubts every time. You should trust him to do that. Don't panic if you don't have belief now. Just ask God to help you believe in him.

 

Does it matter whether a page grows or not? I cared about such things once, and maybe even now I fall into that error. Does it really matter what following a page has on Facebook? All that matters is that the thoughts and words and works that God inspires in a worker reaches others, who are desperate for answers that will save lives. I hope I have not let down God in that respect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Messenger of Love - Samuel Godfrey George

Sayings of Samuel Godfrey George - February 2017

One will not be tired of doing good if one enjoys doing good. But one will be tired of doing good if one is intimidated into doing good. One will also be tired of doing good if one expects a reward for doing good. The last two types of doing good are what many Christians tend to do. When we do good, we make the best use of the time God has given us. The joy we bring to others and to ourselves when we do good is the reward for our actions. If we expect a further reward we may be disappointed. Sadly this is the kind of good that Christians from the very beginning of faith have done.

 

The greatest story in the Bible is the story of the lost son. This is the best illustration of the relationship between God and Man. No further revelation of God's love is required, for the story captures the heart of God. Love and forgiveness are the most powerful characteristics of God. Jesus Christ came into the world to show us the loving, forgiving God. But the human authors of the Bible could not present this great message of love and forgiveness without torturing readers with more than a smattering of threats. Maybe, threatening a person into good action is the way of all human flesh. Maybe all human goodness has resulted from threats like these. But this is an unsatisfactory motivation for goodness. We should do good not because we are scared of what God might do to us if we fail to do so, but because we love God, who loves doing good. Doing good is the best action anyone can do. And those who do good should do so joyfully without fear. This is the kind of message that the Bible fails to convey satisfactorily.

 

The Bible speaks both judgemental words and uplifting words. Where the Bible works least is when it speaks judgementally. Where it works most is when it speaks upliftingly. There is a holier-than-thou tone applied by every writer in the Bible, and this is the least attractive feature about the content that we encounter in the Bible. Where the Bible does best is in the candid admission of sin and helplessness, which we sometimes find in the Psalms and in St. Paul's letters. But for every such admission, there are many passages rendered in a self-righteous tone. So, the Bible should be read carefully in the knowledge that everyone has sinned and come short of the glory of God, especially the human authors of this divinely inspired book.

 

Judgemental words are least attractive. Uplifting words are most attractive. To attract people to God, you should speak uplifting words.

 

The people who leave are not something to be factored at all. They were never meant to be here.

 

For the people of the world to come together, an immediate requirement is a polite, constructive and sensitive dialogue. And this cannot happen without people realizing their own limitations in understanding and knowledge. People who offer their opinions, should always do so humbly, always bearing in mind that they could be wrong, for no one knows everything, and has considered every possibility regarding the subject he is speaking about.

 

When you express a disagreement with someone, be polite and sensitive. Do not say anything that would hurt the person, and inflict an injury that will have a lasting impact on that person. Try to express your point of view, bearing in mind your own limitations in understanding, and point out the truth as you see it, without disparaging the opinions and beliefs of others.

 

It is good to express your mind. But it is not good to hurt others, and their beliefs and ideas.

 

God is still working with me. I am far from complete. But I'm still something to behold.

 

What today we know in part, one day we shall know in full. Until then let us be content with incomplete knowledge.

 

Let me not rejoice in being noticed by humans. Let me rejoice in being noticed by God.

 

Be who you are without fear. It is the greatest act of love you can show yourself. And you must love yourself before you can love others.

 

Let us seek God not just for the money we need. Let us seek him because there is nothing better to seek. Let us love him so much that we cannot be without him. Let us draw near him, for without him there is no life worth living. God is everything and gives everything to the one who is in love with him. Seek money, and you will never know him, as he really is.

 

I often read, "Get ready for a financial blessing. If you need a financial breakthrough say 'Amen'" I say, "What kind of a God keeps you waiting for a financial blessing? He who knows how to bless you with life every day, how is it that he needs to be reminded of the financial blessing that you desperately seek? Is God only the giver of money? Do you seek him only for the currency that he provides? God is more than a money giver. God is the giver of all good things. He is the giver of life. He is our Father. He knows our needs even before we ask him. And he will give us what we need even without our asking."

 

God's blessings are here and now. Your very breath testifies to his blessing. You don't have to wait for a financial gift to know that you are blessed. Everyone needs money. But above all, everyone needs life. And God gives life every day even without our asking for it. He keeps the heart ticking and the brain working. He keeps all our natural processes happening in a wonderfully organised way. Let us acknowledge the blessing of life as long as we continue to breathe.

 

We are freed from sin not by our obedience to God's law, but by our belief in Jesus Christ.

 

The curse that Jesus Christ took from us is physical and spiritual death and slavery to sin. The blessing that we received in exchange is everlasting life with God.

 

Jesus Christ took our curse from us on Calvary two thousand years ago. And we took his blessing from him. Let's hold on to that blessing. Let us not lose it in trying to make spiritual progress by our own efforts.

 

None of us is obedient to God's law. And even if we try to obey it, we will fail. So, it is best to believe in God, and be saved by his grace through our faith.

 

Don't try to keep God's law. It is not possible for any human to do that. If a human should try to obey the law, he will come under its curse. For cursed is the one who cannot follow the rules in God's law. Instead, believe in God and his Son, and your faith will be counted by God as righteousness.

 

Abraham was considered righteous not because of his obedience, but because of his faith in God. It is faith that God is moved by.

 

Faith has a blessing attached to it. Abraham was considered righteous when he believed in God. And so you too will be considered righteous when you believe in God.

 

To have the Bible speak to you, you may have to wait for a call from God. In my life it took thirty years or more for the Bible to make sense. God himself was not real in my life for a very long time. I only saw a distorted image of God. My own preconceived notions of what was right and wrong blinded me to God. It was only when I saw myself through the Bible that I also saw God. The Bible showed me who I was, and when I discovered myself, I also discovered God in a way that I had never thought of him before.

 

When I read the Bible, some parts of it seemed to be about me. The struggle that St. Paul went through, as recorded in Romans 7, seemed to be my struggle. When I read about the disbelieving people of Israel wandering in the desert, I could see a connection between them and me. The book appeared very relevant to me and the life that I observed all around me. However, the Bible did not always make this impact on me. In the first thirty years of my life, the Bible made no impact on me at all.

 

Don't despise what God called you to do. The task may offer few rewards and may not compensate your time and energy. But there is a reward waiting for you, which no human or demonic agent can undermine or destroy. God will not fail to reward your seemingly unprofitable efforts to speak for him. And he shall start doing so in this life itself. So keep on keeping on.

 

If anyone is in trouble he or she should pray. That's what the Bible says. If you have allowed your feelings to dictate the way you live, you should accept the consequences of the actions that your heart dictated. But there is hope for you if you would turn to God. If you are willing to turn away from heeding the impulses of your heart, God can still act in you and transform you from within.

 

To be free from bad politicians, people should think carefully before casting their vote. They should honestly assess the candidate, and carefully consider his or her policies and views. They should also consider the candidate's personal life and check whether there is stability in it. People should investigate into the track record of this person as a public servant, and find out if he or she has ever been found to be dishonest or corrupt. Only when they are satisfied by the appropriateness of the candidate should they cast their ballot for this person.

 

People are greedy and power hungry by nature. Political life offers plenty of opportunities to exercise these unhealthy urges. Many politicians fall into temptation, and pursue unlawful gain, at the risk of destroying themselves and the people whom they govern. Some corrupt politicians sully not only their reputation, but also tarnish the image of their party. People who voted for them feel cheated and are not willing to trust politicians again. This contributes to the overall degradation of society.

 

The love of money is the root of all evil. To gain money people are willing to risk quite a lot in their lives. Some people even resort to illegal actions to obtain money. When they succeed in hoarding money, they attempt to control others with money. This kind of control happens a lot in political life. Votes are bought with money. People are bought with money. Power itself is bought with money.

 

A corrupt leader does not arrive on the scene automatically. The emergence of a corrupt leader is dependent on people who allow themselves to be taken advantage of. An electorate, not adequately concerned about matters relating to probity in political life, and susceptible to outward charm and charisma of an insidious political figure, will often elect a person, who is most likely to deceive people, and to engage in corrupt practices. Thus, the responsibility for the existence of corrupt leaders is with the people who elect them. When the privileges of democracy are not appropriately used by the people who are at the heart of it, the result will be poor governance and overall failure.  

 

What determines the election of a responsible government is a responsible electorate, which is able to perceive the difference between positive change-makers and divisive reformers who aim at bringing about change at the risk of fragmenting people, The questions that the electorate should ask are: how far are people willing to go to make change? Is the cost of change affordable? Is change that is targeted at benefiting a specific group defensible, even though the group may be a majority?

 

Today if you are in a desert expect to see streams of water in it.

 

Faith in God is to be sure of God and certain of what you expect from him.

 

When there is no one but God, you are ready to meet God.

 

The greatest moment in faith is when you are left all alone with God.

 

A confident attitude will not always guarantee desired results. Reality has its own mechanism, and it does not always correlate with human confidence.

 

Repentance is from God. So don't try to produce it. Long for it. Ask for it. Wait for it.

 

Why would a God who gave once fail to give now? Keep hoping, for God is faithful, even if you are faithless.

 

The road to wisdom is nearly disastrous. I almost ruined myself in my search for clarity. I had to detach myself from nearly everything that could have distracted me. I had to lose nearly everything to keep me going in this seemingly self-destructive path. But this is the irony. It is when you pay a supreme prize that you gain a supreme gift. Wisdom is more precious than silver or gold. To buy it you need to lose everything. At least, you should be ready to do so.

 

If you want to be right always, you will find yourself wrong many times. But if you are willing to learn from mistakes, which you will certainly make, you will more often be right.

 

Find out what life is all about. Don't restrict yourself to what you want life to be all about. Life is more than you can understand or conceive. To understand life, you should learn to accept what you do not know without judging or dismissing difference or discordance.  

The writers of the Bible were not mere manuscript copiers who wrote down word for word what the Holy Spirit spoke to their spirit, but they were essentially reflectors of divine wisdom passed through their experience and understanding. So, the theology that finally emerged in their writing was mingled with their own thought patterns and socio-cultural, political and economic situations. Thus, the Old Testament is a Jewish book conveying a Jewish conception of a national God. And the New Testament is partly Jewish and partly Gentile, for it does take the God of the Jews out of his country, and share him with the world around them. The national God was made an international one.

 

I was reading the last chapter of Saint Paul's second letter to Timothy. I noticed the deeply personal tone of the letter. In the letter was a reminder to Timothy to fetch a coat that Paul had left with Carpus at Troas. It is likely that Paul may not have considered the possibility that his letter to Timothy would enter the corpus of sacred literature, at the time he penned it. When we read the Bible today, we should take care to realize that some of these words may not have been entirely the work of the Holy Spirit, for the example that I cited is more personal than anything else.

 

If we won't trust God, whom will we trust? Is there another person, human or divine that we can place our trust in? I don't think so. God is the only safe risk that we can take.

 

We should wait on God even if the waiting is intolerable. God is good even if he appears insensitive to our pleas.

 

Jesus Christ showed us what matters most. The lost people of the world matter to him more than the ones who think that they are already saved. He searched for the most morally bankrupt people. He spent time with them and showed them by example what God's love was. He did not lecture about morality, but he let his love transform them through its incomparable power. Only love conquers all. Every other form of discipling the body will fail. Nothing lasts permanently as the result of love's working in the human soul. And we, who were found by Jesus Christ, should seek the lost and transform them with the love of God in our hearts

 

When Jesus came to the world, religion was a matter of strict rule following with little love in it. People were more concerned about cleansing their bodies than their consciences. People were exercising their minds more than their hearts. Jesus showed us by example that the heart matters more than the mind. His disciple Paul showed us that love is greater than even faith and hope. His disciple John showed us that God is essentially love . When people see God as righteous judgement rather than gracious love, they get a lesser God, a human dilution of God. If we in the age of the Holy Spirit, still reduce religion to rules and regulations, we will have a smaller God to worship, We need to see God beyond rules and restrictions, and embrace the presence of God everywhere. God is where we would not even want to go. God is in unlikely places. God is among unlikely people. If we see God like that, we will go beyond our comfort zone, and search for him in uncomfortable places. And that's where we will know who he really is.

 

A great country does not put itself first before other countries. A great country sees others countries in the same way as it sees itself.

 

A great country requires a great leader, who is large-hearted and willing to embrace those who are different.

 

In selflessness is greatness. In selfishness is littleness.

 

A great country does not only protect its own interests. It reaches out to other countries and tries to solve their problems.

 

A good leader unifies his people. A bad leader tears them apart..

 

In unity is greatness. In division is littleness.

 

An aggressive country laying down conditions inflexibly may be perceived as a bully, but never as great.

 

When fear operates, greatness cannot emerge.

 

Tolerance is the mark of greatness. Intolerance is the mark of littleness.

 

A leader who often causes division can never unite a people.

 

No country can ever be great if it aims at benefiting only itself.

 

For a country to be great, it should be perceived as a leader by other countries.

 

When people differ, they should express their differences sensitively, without hurting one another.

 

Harmony in the way people think is desirable. But allowance should be made for disharmony too.

 

Though people may think alike many times, they may also often think differently.

 

People are different, and they see things differently. But there are certain points of harmony in collective perception.

 

We cannot all see God in the same way, just as we cannot see anything else in the same way.

 

Don't put a human being in the place where God alone can be. God alone is an ever-present help in times of trouble.

 

Humans too are good friends. But they cannot be counted on at all times. God alone helps always.

 

God alone is the constant friend who responds to our need. God's help is the only one that be counted on at all times.

 

When I am in need of encouragement, I encourage others. This is the work of God in me.

 

You are a beautiful child of God. For nothing that God dwells in can be called anything but beautiful. Celebrate God. Celebrate yourself, for you are a work of God.

 

You are God's child no matter what you do. You belong to him. And he lives in you, transforming you from within into the image of his Son. He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it. And he will do it, even if you slip and fall. He will lift you up when you fall. He understands your weaknesses better than you think. His great love for you bears with all your faults. Don't be hard on yourself today. God knows everything about you, and is not angry with you. In fact, he is pleased with you, for you want to be like him. That is why you are sad when you fail.

 

The blessings of God are not always attached to obedience. God blesses all his children, just like a good human father blesses his children, regardless of how they behave. God is better than a human father. He loves his human children, though they are intrinsically flawed. He showers his richest blessings on them, even if they do not worship him. Some great blessings are given freely to all. Sunlight, air and rain are free to all. Some natural blessings are packaged and sold by human beings. But God first gave everything freely to us without any rule attached. The rules came later when God realised the depth of human sin. However, even those rules could not be obeyed, and Jesus Christ had to intervene and lay down his own life as a sacrifice for all human sins. After that, no payment for sins is required by God anymore. Even today, God is waiting to shower his blessings on you. You cannot merit them through good conduct. Some will come to you naturally no matter how you behave and what you believe. Others will come only when you accept the Son of God, Jesus Christ. As you stand in Christ, his righteousness will become yours, and his rewards will come to you.

 

Have your broken a promise to God? Are you terribly distressed by it? There are many who have broken their promises to God. Some of us break our promises to God not because we want to break them. We just cannot live up to our word, for our flesh is weak. But don't worry if you have broken your promise to God. He knows that you made the promise to please him, and he understands how you are struggling with your wayward desires. He will strengthen you and make you beautiful in his time. Until then don't lose heart. Keep trusting in God to complete his work in you. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

Sayings of Samuel Godfrey George - January 2017

The God who saved you many times will save you again. Be still. Just believe.

If you are feeling lost today, know that God is looking for you. Searching for the lost is his highest priority. 

God will help you now, though you think you don't deserve his help. No one can ever deserve God's help.

It is best to be weak and in need of God. Strength can mislead and distract a person away from God.

 

Holiness can be a road to arrogance. Weakness can be a road to humility. And humility is what pleases God.

 

If you worry today, you will have no time to praise God. You need to praise God even when it hurts. This is God's will for you.

 

Be grateful for a little. And you will have more.

 

Obedience is from God. Don't try to produce it on your own. God understands your weakness, and will strengthen you in time.

 

Don't try to manipulate God into blessing you. Don't try to act good. Act normal. And trust in God. He will bless you.

 

Wait on God. Don't try to solve your problem. Remember that God's solution is way better.

 

As you are waiting for God's answer, remember every good thing God has done in your life. He will be there for you again.

 

Are you feeling helpless? Remember that God is the help of helpless. Just ask him to help you. And he will not let you down.

 

You don't know what to do? Just praise God. Remember his kindness. Keep on doing this, and he will come to your rescue again.

 

To be confident in God is admirable and desirable. But even holy confidence can be misleading, and also unappealing to the neutral observer.

 

A man's confidence no matter how well-founded is only human. And all things human are fallible.

 

None of us know who we really are. We can only make guesses. And some guesses are close to the truth.

 

No matter how hard and unfair life is, believe that there is a God who cares for you. And he wants to do his best for you. Just believe this and reach out to him and wait patiently.

 

Dying is not a solution, if you are struggling in life. If God has given you another day to live, then live. Don't think of dying as long as you are living. When death comes naturally, I hope you would have lived life fully, enjoying the enjoyable parts, and enduring the difficult ones. Don't give up before that. Don't say, "I can't take this." We all have to take this with the strength of God.

 

To make the unremarkable remarkable, to make the unreal real, to focus on the fragment and not on the whole -- this is the devil's work, and it is usually irresistible.

 

There is an endless struggle between right and wrong in the soul. Often wrong triumphs over right. At least this is the case until the good matures in you. And the good comes from God, and it will grow only when God becomes bigger in you. And God becomes bigger only when you let him speak to you and transform you with his words burning within you.

 

Let's not engage in divisive dialogue, but let's speak of those things that unite us. Let's endeavour to see one another as God sees us. And in God's eyes, we are all his children. Some of us know that because we have returned to him, and have received his love and forgiveness. Others do not know this, and those who know should tell them about our Heavenly Father, without being divisively and exclusivistically arrogant.

 

If you are looking for a God-fearing Christian, you might have to look for a long time. There are not many who know God. And those who know him may not fear him. And there are fewer who follow Jesus Christ. Christ made godliness more difficult than ever before.

 

Expecting a reward in heaven is not as satisfying as relishing a reward on earth. Let us savour life right here. Let us do good enjoying the fruits of it even as we labour. For there is nothing better for a human being to do.

 

We should do good more for our sake than for God's sake. There is nothing better to do.

 

There are more valuable things in life than the size of your triceps. It is not your muscles that must enlarge. It is your heart.

 

I've had my share of human praise. And it does get addictive. But these days I am happy to be in a quiet place, where very few notice me. It is best to work without being aware of others noticing you. It is best to work quietly even without reward. For that alone is evidently the work inspired by God. When God powers you, you go on, even if no man welcomes you.

 

Seek the presence of God. Be where God is. Don't aspire to live in the limelight, basking in human praise. Get up and walk where no one notices you. Plod and serve like the lowest servant. Work without reward. And after you finish your work, just lie down in peace, knowing that God wants nothing more from you.

 

We are children of God, adopted into his family. We are co-heirs with Christ. But Christ is God's servant before he is God's Son. He came to earth to serve humanity. And he showed human beings how to serve. So let your desire today be to serve. Serve like Christ. Serve everyone. Be the lowly servant of all. Have a low opinion of yourself. Don't use any lofty labels before your name. Be content to be known as a servant, a mere servant of God.

 

Don't try to get someone to do the work, when you can do it. Even if a servant is around, don't fail to serve. Serve along with the servants. Think of yourself as a lowly servant, and serve God, who is always above all. You will never be anything more than a servant in his eyes, though he may call you a friend, out of the sheer generosity of his heart.

 

Don't be eager to receive from the world. The world and its joys are temporary. Much of what passes for joy in this world is sheer misery. Be content to lag behind the achievement-oriented. Live every day gratefully, even if you have to sit somewhere and do nothing worthwhile.  

Know that you are strong. And declare it even when you feel weak. God is your strength. And he is in you. And he will not leave you ever.

 

If you have submitted your addiction to God, don't lose heart if it still has power over you. Let God handle your addiction in his own way and in his own time. Be aware of your need of God, and depend on him whenever you are weak. Remember that it is when you are weak and painfully aware of your weakness that God strengthens you most. Some habits don't disappear overnight. Some addictions die very slowly. But if God is working in you, and if you let him grow in strength, you will find your heart and mind being recast gradually by the working of his Spirit. All your worldly addictions will one day bow down to the mastery of God in you. Let God be your king, and your addictions will finally bend their knees when his power gradually overwhelms them. It may not happen quickly. But it will happen eventually. You cannot lose sight of that ever.

 

Observe the world with an admiring eye and an eager ear. Listen to its best speakers. Read its best writers. Surround yourself with good language. And you will come out of this highly influenced by all that surrounded you.

 

Wild sexual desires are best managed by God. If an oversexed person lets God into his life, in time, his sexual attractions will be tamed by God, if he would only let God do that. We should let God do what he wants when he wants to do it. But if we hold on to our desires, and long to experience them, God will just let us do it until we get tired of them.

 

God is not in the same league as the devil, when it comes to attractiveness. The attractions of God are imperceptible to many. On the contrary, the attractions of the devil are clearly perceptible and desirable to many. This is why one is more likely to be attracted to evil than good in a world like this. Mere words won't do. Action is required. The required action is to reveal God's attractiveness. And God is best revealed by his people. Let the people of God show what an attractive life they lead because of God, and then maybe the porn addicts will pay attention.

 

If Christ is in you, let him live through you. With Christ, all things are possible. With him you can love what you hate.

 

See the bad guys as children of God. And love them as such. Then they too will see God in you.

Time flies. So let's make it count before it slips away. Let's do some good. Let's make someone smile today.

 

God is good to us all, though sometimes we cannot understand or even accept his goodness. A few times he seems anything but good. But we need to go on. Blessed are the ones who don't have an earthly father, for God himself will be their father, and guide them in the homeward way.

 

Jeremiah was a mere boy when God called him. Samuel was also a child when God first spoke to him. Age is no barrier to being a servant of God.

 

Remember this. Your doubts about you are less important than God's confidence in you. And God says you can.

 

You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. If God gives you an opportunity to glorify him, just do it believing that he will be there right behind you.

 

Be led by God. And he will help you lead others. Don't be hampered by what you think you are. But be encouraged by what God knows you are.

 

It is traditional and maybe even superficial thinking to conclude that all who refuse to bow to God will eventually be destroyed. Does God work like that? Does he have a heart that desires destruction? Does not the Bible say that God does not want anyone to perish? Yet the same book enjoins us to believe in the love of God, which saves us graciously from the destruction that our self-imposed rebellion brings upon us. In all this formulaic drama that the Bible presents, there is a possibility of great surprise. Those who bowed down to God in this lifetime may find themselves the enemies of God in another lifetime. There is the possibility of Jesus saying, "Go away. I don't know you" to many who claim to know him now. Conversely, those who consider themselves unknown to Jesus now, may find themselves in his embrace in a later time. It is best not to reduce divine happenings to simple, child-like formulae.

 

You are free in Jesus Christ. The freedom that Christ offers you is an internal one. And it exists despite external noise.

 

Reaching the goals that I have set for myself are less important than reaching the goals that God has set for me. In order to reach godly goals, I need to stir from my sleep today, and make myself available to God's workings in me.

 

When we are children we believe that there is a right answer to every question. But as we grow older, we realize that there is no right answer to any question. We realize our inadequacy of knowledge, and even consider the possibility of many right answers to a question. This leads us to tolerate differing opinions and ideologies. And the more we tolerate the better we are able to live with one another.

 

Don't run away from your desire. Face it and know the emptiness of it. Then you will walk away without turning back.

 

"He who has seen me has seen the Father" is the most conclusive statement of Jesus regarding his divinity. Isaiah called him the Everlasting Father and the Mighty God centuries before he appeared. St. Paul said that the fullness of God resides in Jesus. For those who need biblical support for the deification of Jesus Christ, these citations should serve the purpose. For me, I know that Jesus is God, simply by the statement of Thomas, the most prominent doubter among the characters of the Bible, who required visual confirmation, which was granted by Jesus himself. When Thomas uttered, "My Lord and my God" he ended the debate about who Jesus Christ really is. Those who wish to enquire into the matter further, must travel another route, which may not lead them anywhere. It is better to believe in Christ, than to disbelieve in him, and search for another Christ. In the middle of life, I have decided to cling to my old rugged cross, for nothing else in this world truly keeps me secure.

 

God's love is not based on your performance. He loves you no matter you do. He will love you today, even if you sin. Know his love, receive it, and be transformed by it. His love will bring you to a perfect harmony with him.

 

Let us go where the star leads us. The star led three men to Bethlehem, to the house where Jesus Christ was. They honoured him as the King of Israel. Today, let the star lead us to Jesus, the King of our hearts and minds. And he is even more than that. He is the King of the whole universe. He is God.

 

We Christians know that Jesus Christ is more than the son of Joseph and Mary. He is the Son of God. He is the King of the entire universe. Did those three wise men know that? They may not have known how great a King he was. But they certainly knew that he was a king. And they respected and honoured him as they would respect and honour a king. Those three wise men honoured Jesus Christ as the King of Israel. But we know better. Let us honour him as the King of the universe. Let us also honour him as our King, the King of our hearts and minds. Shall we do that today? Shall we bear our gifts to the Lord Jesus Christ today? 

 

Jesus surely was the King. But was he just the King of the Israelites? Was he not the King of the universe? This is something that became clear only later. Only after Jesus Christ laid down his life for the whole world, only after he rose from the dead, only after he ascended into heaven was it clear that Jesus Christ was not just the King of Israel, but was really God, the King of the entire universe. Let us remember this moment when three extraordinary men were guided by a wonderful star to the place of the birth of Jesus Christ. And these men knew that Jesus was not an ordinary baby. He was not merely the son of a carpenter. They realized that he was much more than that. 

 

Three men were guided by a star many years ago. And they were guided to a place called Bethlehem. They were on a search for a remarkable person. They believed that the star signalled to them that a very important person was going to be born. Were they right? They went to Bethlehem and found a little baby. Was this little baby the King that they thought he was? Was he the King of Israel? Then, how could the King of Israel be born to a carpenter? Was the King a poor man’s son? They certainly thought so. They gave him very precious gifts. They honoured him. This is a special moment in the life of Jesus Christ. Three men from the east — three men who were not Jews came to pay him honour. Three non-Israelites honoured him. Three outsiders knew who he was. Many insiders didn’t know, though some insiders were told about Jesus Christ. But I think these wise men knew a little bit more. They knew that Jesus was a very special King.