BLESSED BROKENNESS!!

Blessed Brokenness!

Verse for Today: Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Hebrews 11:21 – By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, worshipped as he leaned on the top of his staff.

We reach stages in life when all that we depend on become redundant. When we surrender ourselves to God, He tests our commitment and surrender by making all our strongholds null and void. God wants us to prove to Him that we are willing to trust Him alone in our walk with Him. Jacob was an accomplished runner especially when he wanted to get out of trouble. He had strong and fast legs which carried him long distance and proved that he could depend on it. But when he started a new chapter in life by depending on God alone, he had to surrender himself including his legs which were his foundation. At the height of his moment of commitment, God allowed a blessed brokenness in his life and made him lean on to God alone for all his needs. He had to limp the rest of his life but it was limping by faith. His staff was illustrative of the way he leaned on to the Lord till the end of his life. Jacob’s brokenness was the declaration of his total submission to the Lord with all his faculties and capabilities. He went as a successful man into God’s presence at Peniel, but came back limping and seeking the hand of God to hold on to as he walked. The world would have thought of it as a defeat or failure in the life of Jacob, but he was specially empowered by the Lord. So it was victory for him as he marched forward towards the greater purposes of God in his life. Jacob’s life is a challenge for us today to surrender all that we have and are to the Lord. We will then receive blessed brokenness by His hands to empower and enable us to depend on Him to lead us forward to accomplish greater things for God.

Dear friend, are you depending on your human faculties and expertise in your walk with the Lord? Unless you experience brokenness of your self with all its capabilities and skillfulness, the Lord would not be able to make use of you. He doesn’t want you to lean on to your education, linkages with higher-ups, fortunes, positions and prestige. If you allow the Lord to break you on the basis of your unreserved surrender, He will then become your staff to lean on. You might be looked down upon by others as a weakling, but you will experience and enjoy the power of God. When you are broken by the hand of God, you will become an instrument in His hands to bless all whom you touch. You might not experience material prosperity, but will enjoy great spiritual progress and maturity. God’s power will help you to weather away the storms in life as Jacob did. Jacob enjoyed the prophetic ministry that the Lord gave him towards the end of his life as he blessed all his children and spoke vividly about the plan God had for all of them for generations to come. You see, Jacob’s brokenness was the result of his being alone with God. He was willing to exercise his faith in God’s presence to become the recipient of God’s blessings. If you are running away to escape problems and difficulties in life, it is time you get back to be alone with God to sort things out. He has something special to tell you. He wants to make something special out of your life. Today seek a blessed brokenness from the Lord and share it with those whose lives He makes you touch for His glory.

Genesis 32:26 – But Jacob replied: “I will not let You go unless You bless me.”

Thought for Today

The pain of blessed brokenness in the hands of God will result in making us a blessing in the lives of all whom we touch.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me today to seek blessed brokenness from You and make me a blessing to all whom I meet. Amen!

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DAILY CONTENTMENT!!

Daily contentment!

Verse for Today: Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Proverbs 30:8 – “Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread”.

There is so much falsehood in every sincere person. They say sublime things which they are unable to practice in life. They sing meaningful songs about their aspirations, but live contrary to it. They talk about faith, but live by sight. They claim to depend on the daily bread, but have their pockets full to overflowing and still craving for more. But we often do not realize the great price that we pay in order to live such double life. The wisdom of God which came to Solomon at the latter years of his life portrays the struggles of all of us between our desires and our words. Jesus has taught us to ask God for our daily bread. But our deceitful hearts desire more and more. The more we have the grater we crave for possessions, positions, prominence, prestige and privileges which never satisfy. They are a driving force to get more and more which is the way of the world. Man is stressed out all day long with pegged up expectations and desires which ends up in securing a lot more than he needs but finding no time to enjoy it. The more wealth he has the less time he finds for God. The less he has, the greater is his passion to make more as he keeps cursing his fate of deprivation. Both these situations push man into frustrations. Solomon was once the wealthiest man on earth, but his cravings made him dissatisfied with what God gave him and became engulfed in the lusts of the flesh, lust of the eyes and the pride of life. He became a miserable man whose heart was taken away from God. But later he learned that all his achievements were vanity. He changed his prayer to ask that his daily needs might be met so as to neither go away from God nor curse God through abundance or depravity. Today we are challenged in life to depend on God to meet our daily needs.

Dear friend, are you in abundance and still craving for more and in the process do not have time for God? Are you in depravity and frustrated that God has not given you plenty of riches when others have lot more? Are you wasting your energy to make more and more and thus deprive yourself of time to enjoy the little that God has given you? Are you thus a frustrated person at the top or bottom of the ladder of prosperity? If so, you must be enduring life rather than enjoying what God has given you. He is pleased to meet your daily needs and has asked you to pray for daily bread. He wants to teach you how to enjoy the little that you have and use it to live for His glory. You are entrusted with great riches of talents, time and training which you can use for God. The challenge of this world is for you to make more and more and reach a stage of never being satisfied with what you have. This is the deception of earthly life. But God doesn’t want you to fall into it to destroy yourself. If your earthly expectations are too high, you will always run around for its achievements rather than look for real satisfaction in the daily bread from God. Let us today get out of the traps of materialism, possessions and positions and be satisfied with the daily bread and use its strength for God. Let us not desire riches, but be satisfied with the daily bread that God gives us.

Psalms 37:16 – Better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked.

Thought for Today

Satisfaction with daily bread is the greatest richness that we enjoy in life.  

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Teach me true contentment in life today with all that You have given me and help me to use it for Your glory. Amen!

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CHEERFUL EXPRESSIONS!!

Cheerful expressions!

Verse for Today: Monday, November 18, 2013

Proverbs 17:22 – A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

We experience physical and emotional ailments as we respond negatively to our situations. When ailments get out of control, we depend on external help in the form of treatment including medicines. But we are also aware of the inadequacy and incompetency of medical science to heal us completely and make us whole. Often when one ailment is suppressed through medicines and therapy, another appears to weaken us. Some ailments disappear to only reappear after some time. Man thus becomes a perennial prey to infirmities. It has been observed that emotional ailments impact our minds, behavior and bodies to cause deep physical ailments which the medicines of the world cannot easily cure. Thus when we allow our spirits to be crushed in the hands of our situations, it affects different organs and parts of our bodies. The panacea for it all is a cheerful heart which only God can give through His Spirit and Word. When we allow the Spirit of God to control us through the infilling, He brings our every thoughts, cares, anxieties and frustrations under His control. Thus we will be able to respond positively to our situations. When we allow our hearts to enjoy His peace and patience in all circumstances and situations, we will have a cheerful heart in spite of circumstances. The confidence and courage we enjoy through the Spirit of God and His promises in His Word, we will experience cheerful emotions and will thus guard our bodies from susceptibility to illnesses. It will help our endocrinological system to work effectively to guard other systems in our bodies to work together to support each other. This is how a cheerful heart becomes the best medicine for our bodies and emotions.

Dear friend, are you suffering from definable and indefinable ailments of various types and are you getting treatment for it all? Are you under the bondage of various medicines and dietary restrictions to keep good health? But these are temporary and unwholesome approaches to healthy living. You and I need a cheerful heart which only God can bring about when we submit ourselves and our circumstances to Him and allow Him to deal in it. When we become God’s children, His Spirit comes to dwell in our hearts to control and manage our intellectual, emotional and volitional realms of life. When we are thus at peace with God and with ourselves, it will permeate our physical systems and will work as best medicine to negate ill-effects of situations. There will still be consequences of sin in our environment in the form of sicknesses of various kinds, but a cheerful heart governed by the joy of the Lord will be our strength to fight physical and emotional battles against all infirmities. When God wants to give us a cheerful heart, it is our responsibility to learn to be under the control of His Spirit to experience it. God also gives us a cheerful heart as we believe on all His promises in His Word. But it is our responsibility to believe on and affirm these promises to our hearts and claim it by faith. When we are at peace with God, we will have very little scope for conflicts in our soul and will develop positive, pragmatic and proactive responses to our situations through the wisdom and patience given to us by God. This is the cheerful heart and life that we have received as part of the heavenly blessings through Jesus Christ. A cheerful heart is available to us today if we claim it by faith and enjoy it. It is our blessed privilege today to express such joyful heart to relate to others and our situations and live cheerfully.

Proverbs 15:13 – A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit.

Thought for Today

The coolness of the shadow of the cross makes our hearts cheerful and heals our heartaches.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Heal my broken heart today through Your Spirit and take full control of my life to make all my expressions delightful. Amen!

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SNARE-BREAKERS!!

Snare-breakers!

Verse for Today: Sunday, November 17, 2013

Proverbs 3:26 – The Lord will be your confidence and He will keep your foot from being snared.

We are often pulled back from going forward because of the fear of snares that might be planted on our way. Thoughts of snares and their consequences send shock-waves to us. Snares are great mental blocks which kill our confidence. Many hide their talents in the soil of snares and grieve the Spirit of God. Snares are planted on our way by the enemy of our souls to prevent us from accomplishing God’s plans for our lives. Snares kept the Israelites from entering the Promised Land for forty years. But Nehemiah knew how to challenge snares and put his confidence in God to complete the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem in record time. Paul’s life was full of snares, but he was relentless and never retreated. Joseph was able to weather away the snares the enemy planted on his way and he accomplished God’s plan for his life by faith. These great witnesses show us the way to go forward without fear of snares. But our God gives us confidence to go forward, trusting Him to accomplish His plans in our lives. He wants us to look at Him and not at the snares. We are not led by the snares, but by the power of God. Our confidence is in God and not in our own might to push open the way in the midst of snares. Our God goes before us to keep our feet from getting caught in the snares planted by the enemy. Today He gives us more opportunities to trust Him and draw confidence from His Spirit to attempt great things for Him rather than get frightened with the snares which threaten us.

Dear friend, are you developing phobia because of the snares which the enemy plants on your way today? Are you contemplating to pull back from God’s pathway because of some of the defeatist weapons of the enemy on your way? Is your confidence in the victorious Lord and His power to take you forward by overcoming the snares of the enemy?  Today the Lord comes to strengthen your sagging enthusiasm and pours His confidence in your soul to keep going. The snares will always be there, but they need not deter you from going forward. The Spirit of God is your guiding force. Your confidence comes from the Powerhouse of God. Your confidence is fired up by the power of faith in your Lord. He wants you to attempt great things from Him. When you pray and claim victory over the snares, sometimes the Lord comes to remove the snares. At other times He takes you through the snares of wind and waves in the sea of life. He gives you great catch of fish even when the fish eludes you all night. The snare of the ‘mere’ five loaves and two fish is no deterrent for Him to feed your multitudes. The ‘delayed’ arrival of the Lord is not a snare, but to fortify your faith to keep trusting Him. The snare of the old age was not a deterrent for Abraham to still believe and receive a child. The broken thigh was not a snare, but an extra strength to walk forward by faith for years to come for Jacob. So dear friend, there is no need for you to be afraid of the snares planted on your pathway by the enemy. Just put all your confidence in the Lord and His mighty power to accomplish all that He wants out of your life. It is our opportunity to walk the mile with Jesus in an adventure of faith without fear or anxiety.

Hebrews 10:35 – So do no throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

Thought for Today

Confidence and trust in the Lord is the rock which crushes any snare of the enemy on our way.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me to put all my confidence in Your power to lead me in spite of the snares that might be on my way. Amen!

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PEACEFUL SLEEP!!

Peaceful sleep!

Verse for Today: Saturday, November 16, 2013

Proverbs 3:24 – When you life down, you will not be afraid; when you life down, your sleep will be sweet.

We are least defensive when we life down. But if we are not confident, we will be utterly fearful and apprehensive on our beds. A confident person will be able to sleep fast and enjoy every bit of it. But our environment is often not so supportive for us to slip into slumber. Sometimes we are bothered with guilt about our past sins of commissions and omissions. We often wonder when our past will catch up with us and it fills our minds with the fear of its consequences. In such situations, even when we are on bed, the minds will not be at rest and thus we will find it difficult to relax and sleep. Even if we sleep it will not be sound and but restless. But we don’t need to be restless if we live with the wisdom to pursue righteous living. Such wisdom is available to us from God in writing.  The Word of God instructs us to live practically by trusting God to take care of us as we live according to His commandments and admonitions. Thus when we follow the pathway of righteousness as given in the Word, we would do what God wants us to do. The warnings in the Word will make us not forsake our duties and responsibilities. Thus we will be able to live a righteous life on a daily basis. Wherever there are lapses, the Word instructs us to confess and repent of it and thus get our consciences clear before God. When we go to sleep with clear conscience, we will not be afraid that our past sins will catch up with us and will soon slip into Slumberland to enjoy sound sleep. God wants us to live such lives over and above our circumstances as we follow His commandments and ordinances in His Word to live without fear or anxiety.

Dear friend, are you enjoying your time of relaxation and sleep every day? Are your sins of omission and commission chasing you on your bed and filling your heart with fear and anxiety? Do you experience sleeplessness or interrupted sleep pattern? If there are no physical reasons for erratic sleep patterns, you may examine your heart to see if there are reasons in your conscience and life style which bother you when you go to sleep. If there are violations of the truths embodied in the Word of God, you must confess it to God and get forgiveness and restitution if necessary. Sometimes you won’t be able to sleep because of fear of the unknown future. But if you commit your ways to God and believe that He will look after your future, the peace of God which passes all understanding will rule your heart, thoughts and imaginations. If you have threat from enemies, trust God to keep you safe while you take necessary precautions and leave the rest with God. When you are thus right with God, He will keep you safe in His arms and give you confidence and trust to lie down to relax and sleep sound. David had such experiences when fear loomed large above his head, but He trusted God and was able to sleep. We have the example of our Lord Jesus sleeping in a boat during turbulence. We also find a destitute Jacob sleeping sound at Bethel and received a wonderful revelation of God’s promises for his future. We sleep well when our hearts are right with God. His wisdom comes from His Word to our hearts to instruct and warn us to live righteously by faith and confidence in Him.  

Psalms 121:5 – The Lord watches over you – the Lord is your shade at your right hand.

Thought for Today

It is not the circumstance which helps us to relax and sleep well, but the state of our hearts which are right with God.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me today to commit my ways to You to relax, rest and sleep peacefully.

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UTMOST LOVE!!

Utmost love!

Verse for Today: Friday, November 15, 2013

Jeremiah 31:3 – “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving kindness”.

It is well nigh impossible to find unadulterated love and kindness in this world. There are covert and overt motives behind almost all expressions of love and kindness. Everyone expects something in return for the way they care for us. Hospitals provide care for a fee and orphanages show love and kindness for a donation from someone. Organizations ask us to work for them so that they can show us some kindness in paying salary and benefits. Almost all human relationships are bound by some expectations and hidden motives. When we keep paying back for the care, concern and affection that we get from almost any source, we tend to lose our trust in such sources of love. Nothing is free in this world and genuine love is hard to find. The less return they obtain from us, the less they care for us and that makes us lose our faith in institutions, relationships and persons. But that is not the case with God. He loves us unconditionally and shows abundance of kindness to us without expecting anything in return. He shows concern and compassion to us not because we deserve it, but because it is God’s essential character to love us humans. He loves us without a cause and without any selfish motives whatsoever. He shows mercy to us because without His mercy, we would be totally lost. He shows love and concern to us by providing us with the basic needs of air, water, atmosphere, food, basic health and other living conditions. God has also given us a sound mind to think about Him and to develop a desire to become His children. Even when we disobey God, He comes to us to show concern and love. He desires that we get our life problems settled with Him and live as His children. He wants us to enjoy His everlasting love which doesn’t diminish in its intensity. His love never gets exhausted and will not dry up.

Dear friend, are you seeking true, unconditional love that doesn’t expect anything in return? Have you been grossly disappointed in not being able to find such love? Well, it can be found only in God because God is love. He loved you and sent His Son to die for you so that you can be saved. His love comes to you when you experience hatred, rejection, resentment, isolation, deceit and discrimination. His love fills your heart and removes the vacuum in your life. He accepts you unconditionally. His love receives you into His family where He is your loving Father and you are a beloved child. He gives you the warmth and fellowship of the heavenly family and makes you feel wanted and important. He gives you great privileges in your new heavenly family along with responsibilities. When the whole world thinks that you are unlovable and unlikable, God’s love makes you a partaker of the grace that God makes available to you. Remember, when God loved you, He loved His enemy so that you may be adopted as His beloved child. Today you are accepted in and through the Lord Jesus Christ and all the blessings of the heavenly places are bestowed upon you. His love satisfies your every longing and fulfills your every desire for acceptance and belongingness. God has appointed His holy angles to encompass around you and protect you from all evil. His Spirit dwells in your heart and leads you each day in this world to fulfill His purposes in you. His goodness and kindness are your escorts on your sides as you walk through this wilderness towards your heavenly destination.

Song of Songs 2:4 – He has taken me to the banquet hall, and his banner over me is love.

Thought for Today

The love of God desires to own me completely as His precious child with all my inadequacies.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me to respond to Your love by surrendering myself completely to You today as a living sacrifice. Amen!

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RAVEN'S SCHOOL!!

Raven’s school!

Verse for Today: Thursday, November 14, 2013

Job 38:41 – Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food?

It is unfathomable to realize the extent of care God takes for His creation. We might think that a raven and its young are not important. But God takes care of the needs of even the raven. This truth stands out to be fascinating in that if God takes such great care for the ravens, how much would He take care of us! If the cries of the young ravens reach the ears of God, how much more would our cries reach out to His ears! If He answers the ravens, how much would He answer our heart-cries! If He knows all the ravens so intimately to understand and interpret their cries and needs, how much does He know each of His children to know their cries, groaning and gasps! Today the ravens are a great reprimand to us to cry unto our God for our needs to be met. If we are reluctant to cry unto Him, it might be because we have lost our intimacy with Him. Isaac, Rachel and Hannah cried unto the Lord in prayer for blessings in their family life and got their needs met. When Israelites cried for water, they got rivers of water from the most unlikely place of a rock. When they cried for meat, their camp was flooded with birds. When Nehemiah cried out to the Lord, the walls of Jerusalem became a reality within the record time of a mere fifty-two days. When Elijah prayed and challenged the evil forces of this world, God sent fire from heaven to burn the altar. There were answers to prayer for David when he was rejected, persecuted and ridiculed by his enemies. Today our God awaits us to pray and ask so that He can give to meet our needs according to His dignity, capacity, power and the richness of His resources center. He gives according to His measure and schedule to meet genuine needs at the most appropriate time.

Hello dear friend, are you exasperated as you wait for answers to your prayers? Are there times when you get frustrated and think whether God hears your heart-cry? The God of Job is alive and because He lives, we can face our uncertain future with confidence and courage. God had to teach these precious lessons through the experiences that He allowed in Job’s life. God asked Job if the ravens could trust Him, what prevented His servant from trusting Him in his hopeless situation. God taught Job that He was sufficient to meet the needs of all His creation. God has resources to meet all needs of His creation and He has established it in the right measure for different times and occasions. If Job had to be taught these mundane lessons, how much more do we all need to learn it from God! God allowed bitter experiences in Job’s life to make him teachable, and He allows us to pass through tough experiences for us to learn about His benevolent provisions for us! God reassures us today through the experiences of Job that He will never forsake us nor leave us empty handed. He knows our needs long before we feel the need and start to pray. He knows us deeply and feels our emotions. He enhances our capacity to wait for answers through faith. Today the God of ravens and Job is with us. The God of our tomorrows is holding our hands with His answers in His hands. We are in His School of Patience to learn to cry unto Him and wait patiently for His time to come.

Psalms 147:9 – He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call.   

Thought for Today

Our faith is challenged by God by the way He feeds ravens and young lions.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Build up my faith to trust You to hear my cry and meet my needs so that I can leave my petitions with You and find that it is settled. Amen! 

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FESTIVE GOWN!!

Festive gown!

Verse for Today: Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Zechariah 3:4 – Then He said to Joshua (the high priest): “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you”.

We get stains in our inner person which is illustrated as the dress of the soul. It personifies our iniquities, failures, weaknesses and a defeatist lifestyle. The sins of the heart are visible through our external expressions like speech, looks, behavior and demeanor. Such external expressions stem from our mind, heart and attitude. This is how the people of the world are. Their external expressions catch up well with their life style, goals, aspirations and plans. But God doesn’t want man to live with the sin-stained conscience and resultant behavior. He wants man to get washed clean in the blood of the Lamb who was God’s sacrifice for man’s salvation. When God renews our lives, our conscience, outlook and attitudes change. We tend to look at everything through the eyes of God and His Spirit. Our external expressions will stem from the renewed and transformed person that we are. This new person will be seen through the spiritual expressions which will then be illustrated as the new dress that we wear. It is the rich dress of God’s righteousness. It is the dress of the bride of the Heavenly Bridegroom. We will be always celebrating the renewed experience and expressions which will be our festive costume of joy, love, patience and goodness that we inherit from our Lord. Our expressions become heavenly as we are seated in the heavenly places through the renewed life that we receive as a gift from God. We no longer live a grumbling, grouchy and irritating life because of our situations, but will overtake all that which tries to pull us down. Today we are called upon to bear witness to the renewed life that we have received from our Lord through heavenly expressions.

Dear friend, are you claiming to be a person with a renewed mind, yet living with the cloth full of stains from the past? Are your expressions that of the new person that you are? Is your old life still trying to subdue your new life because you have not been transformed in your conscience, thinking, attitudes, desires, priorities, likes and dislikes? But you don’t need to live in the past, but must come out into the new light that has been shed abroad in your conscience. When the realities of life with its rough patches challenge you to behave with earthen virtues, it is likely that you fall into the ditch of the old self which makes you express yourself as someone who wears the dress of the world full of stains of sin. But your Lord has washed you of the stains of your conscience. So you must come out of its clutches and renew your mind and be transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ with His attitude and expressions. Your Lord has already prepared a festive costume for you to wear and celebrate your heavenly life here on earth. You will have to seek the help of the Spirit of God to be transformed in your mindset so that your expressions will be heavenly which will show forth the colorfulness of your renewed costume. You will then behave in heavenly ways and react in a proactive way to your situations, circumstances and the people who try to make your life miserable. It is a life of faith that the Lord has given you and you must live by faith in all that you feel, think, do and say. It will exemplify the life of Christ in you as though you are wearing the heavenly costume of celebration of the joy of the Lord.

Psalms 45:13 – All glorious is the princess within her chamber; her gown is interwoven with gold.  

Thought for Today

Our behavior is like a golden gown of divine expressions which stem from our renewed attitudes and clear conscience.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me to depend on Your Spirit to be transformed so as to portray expressions which are the result of a renewed mind. Amen!

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WHOLENESS!!

Wholeness!

Verse for Today: Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Isaiah 61:1 – He has sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.

Our world is full of suffering people. They suffer due to wrongs committed by them as well as the atrocities and selfishness of others. There is always competition, rebellion, fight, conflicts, encroachment, cheating, manipulation, deception and distortion as people take advantage of each other. Those who are subdued and defeated in this rat race become brokenhearted. They feel that they are made captives by their situations and by others. They suffer from the evil that prevails around them. Their frustrations become despair which leads them to despondency as they are tossed between the poles and the pillars. They do not have the freedom to make independent decisions due to fear, anxiety and apprehensions. They are prisoners in darkness in alleys and caves of circumstances. The religions and philosophies of the world are helpless as they do not have any cure for these broken hearted people. The world itself is under the bondage of sin, curse and Satan and do not offer any answer to the hurtful and wounded people in our neighborhoods. Pilgrimages and charitable work do not heal their wounds. Worldly pleasures, substance abuse, riches and comforts are only temporary solace which leaves people hollow and empty. It is in the backdrop of such a miserable situation that God sent His Only Begotten Son to search after those who are sick and agonizing in their souls and wallowing in their emotional hurts. He has come from heaven to bind the wounds and apply the Balm of Gilead to heal the wounds of the broken hearted. He came to this world to release man from the captivity of circumstances and emotional entanglements. Jesus came to make man free from all that binds him to conflicts and hatred. He came to open the eyes of the blind and to pull them out of the dungeons of this world and its systems. Today we have the privilege to be healed, released and pulled out of our dungeons if only we approach Jesus and ask Him to take over our situations.

Dear friend, is your life one of heartaches, frustrations and despair? Are you suffering from the atrocities the world has committed against you? Are you broken-hearted because of the selfish acts of those around you? Are you made blind by the Vanity Fair with its possessions, positions, prestige and prominence that it offers? Are you a prisoner of your circumstances, your wrong commitments and priorities in life? Have you reached a stage of hopelessness in life? But there is cure for all your hurts and ways for a release from your bondage. If your circumstances engulfed you in a straight from which you find it impossible to get out, go to Jesus who is the greatest Liberator the world has ever seen. He comes to you and offers cure for all your emotional, spiritual and social ills. His death on the cross of Calvary has opened the panacea for all your ills. He will make you free from all bondage and all that besets you. He will rebuild your broken life to give you purposefulness. He will remove despair and put hope and strength in you to make you accomplish all that He wants with your life. He will then give you spiritual freedom to touch the lives of the broken hearted people around you. So there is no need for you to panic or wallow over your broken heart. Meet Jesus today and get matters settled with Him so that you will be able to enjoy the new life of heaven on earth. Today Jesus offers wholeness and healing of your broken heart and shattered emotions.

Psalms 34:18 – The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Thought for Today

The touch of the Great Physician is sufficient to heal us of all our emotional and spiritual hurts.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me to surrender my broken heart to You for Your touch of healing and wholeness. Amen!

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REBUILDING HOPE!!

Rebuilding hope!

Verse for Today: Monday, November 11, 2013

Isaiah 54:11 – “O afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted, I will build you with stones of turquoise, your foundations with sapphires.”

Anything that is broken, lashed out and ruined has no value in man’s estimation. So man takes insurance for large sums and depend on a payoff when all hope is gone. Broken materials are thrown in the junkyards of the world as heaps of hopelessness. But God rewrites the story of such ruined lives and rebuilds the afflicted and the abandoned because He is the Master Re-builder. He restores the broken and shattered bones perfectly and no radiologist would ever find a scar in the bone. He mends the net that is torn apart and makes it flawless. He reestablishes the hopeless lives of people and makes them stand on His foundation of hope, grace and mercy. God himself will be the foundation of such lives as they are built on the Rock of Ages. God knows the depth of affliction, pain, misery and ruins caused by sin. He comes to take us in His hands and remolds us like a Master Potter who restores the broken pots. His smart fingers smoothen it and gives it a look that beats every precious stone in this world. The parched ligaments and the dry bones will re-live with hope as the water of life flows through its reeds. God thus rebuilds lost and hopeless cities, families and individuals with eternal foundations of priceless stones. Today He is primarily committed to rebuild individual and family lives who are submitted to Him for restoration. Only those who admit themselves hopelessly ruined will He take over and put His hope in them. Only those who declare themselves poor in spirit will He put His riches in. Today God waits for all hopeless lives to go to Him so that He can take over and restore them for His use.

Dear friend, are you afflicted and living in anguish and misery because of the utter hopelessness that is seen across your lifeline?  Are you parched and scorched by the hot winds of life battering against you? Are you weak and heavy laden because of the battles that you have been fighting against difficult situations and negative forces in life? Do your circumstances discourage you by whispering in your ears that there is no hope for you? But all the while, God is standing next to you and asking you to turn to Him for restoration, healing, strength, rebuilding and hope. He comes with all the resources of Heaven to remold you. As the Master Builder, He has a great plan for your life. He wants to reshape you and put His strength into you to keep going even when everything seems to be against you. He watches over you and is actively involved in your situation so that you will be spared of harm and annihilation. But you must surrender yourself to Him, and then He will put His hope in you. If you hand over your life into His hands, your future will be safe and secure in Him. He will lead you every step of the way and will hold your hands lest you falter. His Word will be a light unto your path and a lamb unto your feet. As He rebuilds you, He will speak to you to reassure and cheer you up. His promises will come true in your life daily and His Spirit will reassure you of His great plan for you. Listen keenly to Him as He comes to renew His promises to you. You are reminded today to take your hands off your affairs and leave it with God to work on it and to rebuild you for His glory.

Jeremiah 18:6 – “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.”

Thought for Today

The touch of God brings hope and victory in the most hopeless situations in the lives of His children.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Touch and restore me today and remove all hopelessness from my life for which I give myself to You. Amen!

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HONORED THOUGH HUMILIATED!!

Honored though humiliated!

Verse for Today: Thursday, November 07, 2013

Isaiah 54:4 – “Do not be afraid; you will not suffer shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated”.

When we face disgrace, shame and humiliation in this world, the world adds ridicule and mockery to deepen our wounds. We will be judged as weaklings without capacity to face our situations with boldness. When those who are dear and near to us misjudge us, we tend to waver and our hope becomes dim. We might even give up our battles for the truth and plunge into distress. But even at such times, our God doesn’t forsake us. He comes to strengthen and encourage us. He turns our shame and disgrace into jubilation and hope. Our detractors will be dismayed at the way we enjoy hope and peace that passes all understanding. Our God builds our lives up and will remove all our shame and embarrassment. He will establish the truth about us and will proclaim our testimony. Our God will never disown us nor will He forsake us. Even with all our failures, our Lord will not find us less lovable.  His love covers all our faults and weaknesses. He comes to us when we are in dire straits to rescue us. He desires us more than anything else in this universe. He sometimes chastens us, but it is always done in full and undiminished love. But He will take away the shame, disgrace and humiliation we face in this world and fill us with His honor and status as we are His precious people bought with His life and blood. So we do not need to be afraid of any of our failures, losses, weaknesses and defeats which only our God will turn around into honor.

Dear friend, are you experiencing shame, disgrace and humiliation that this life heaps on you? Are you afraid that you will be dishonored and your life made miserable and tasteless? Is your name dragged through misjudgment and false indictment? Today the Lord of this universe comes to tell you that you are the apple of His eyes and that your life is precious to Him because He purchased you with His very life. He will stand by your reputation and status in His grace. If you put your genuine trust on Him, your Lord will look after your honor. He did the same for Joseph when the world forgot him in a dungeon in Egypt. The world and its emperor tried to end the life of Daniel in a lion’s den and his brothers in a flame of fire in Babylon. His precious daughter Ruth was a hopeless outcast and an unwanted widow, but He made her the great grandmother of King David and included her in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. He took the shame and humiliation of Hannah and gave her six children when she only asked for one. He reestablished the lost glory of Job and honored him for his faith to the utter dismay of his friends. So dear friend, you don’t need to be afraid or embarrassed when the world humiliates you because your Lord is concerned about your status and decorum. He will help you to go forward without fear or anxiety about what the world thinks about you. He will protect your testimony and honor in His presence. He wants you to know that real honor is what the Lord gives you and not what the world offers. Today He comes to you to comfort you and take away your fear and anxiety about world’s dishonor. He will strengthen you with His Spirit to stand boldly for His name. He will see you through the rough patches of humiliation that you are faced with and brings you out victorious.

Deuteronomy 33:27 – The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.

Thought for Today

God imputes His status, dignity and honor to us when the world rejects and ridicules us.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me to enjoy your love, grace and compassion in the midst of the shame and humiliation that the world heaps on me. Amen!

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ESCAPING TRAPS!!

Escaping traps!

Verse for Today: Wednesday, November 06, 2013

Psalms 31:4 – Free me from the trap that is set before me, for You are my refuge.

People trap others in faults and blunders for various reasons. Some people trap others to take advantage from it for their gain for promotions and filthy lucre. Some others trap people to simply defame them and pull down others from their social recognition and status. Their innocent mistakes, mistaken identities and even morphing are used to trap people. Satan is always trying to trap God’s people and he uses world and flesh, his close allies as powerful tools to achieving his end. Thus the public image and testimony of God’s people are tarnished and they are pulled down from their ministries and Christian testimony. Many God’s servants are put behind the bars through such traps and manufactured evidences by even bribing. David experienced such traps on his ways planted by the enemy by using people who were dear and near to him. He was almost caught unaware in the caves and other hiding places through these traps. There were times when he was almost caught, but he escaped because God answered his prayer for release from the traps. There were traps planted in the lives of Joseph, Daniel and even Paul. The Jewish religious leaders tried their best to trap Jesus Christ, with the assistance of Satan. Sadly some have fallen into traps as in the case of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Saul, David and Solomon, but they came out of it all with deep scars in their character except Saul who met with destruction. Today our enemy is roaming around to see how he can trap us to fall into trouble. But the Lord is our refuge and we can lean on to and hide in Him in order to escape Satan’s treacherous and mischievous traps. Let us thank Him for His releases in the past and trust Him to keep us safe as we live carefully.

Dear friend, are you frustrated because of the sadistic traps that looms large over your head? Are you astonished that there are traps planted by the enemy to destroy you financially, professionally and even in your Christian testimony? Have you been deeply wounded and hurt because of these traps which often come from those who are dear to you? Sometimes, the traps come from those who were helped and supported by you. Nehemiah, God’s builder, was bold as he dealt with traps through fine discernment and great trust in God. Mordecai escaped traps only because God interfered even to stop the king from sleeping. God helped Mordecai to save Israel from extinction as he acted on time to speak to Queen Esther. Jacob trapped his brother Esau and he was in turn trapped by his father-in-law, but God turned it all into blessings by His grace. Apostle Paul suffered from traps set before him by the religious leaders and people like Alexander and Hymenaeus. But God gave him the strength to withstand all such pressures. Today when we face traps knowingly or unknowingly, our God comes to our rescue. Even if the enemy celebrates our fall, we know for sure that our God will work it all out for our good and for His glory. So let us be careful the way we live and let us not run into traps set before us. But let us be confident that if we are trapped by the enemy, our Lord will protect us from all its evil effects because He is our refuge and strength in times of trouble. Let us go to our Lord and ask Him to hide us behind the Rock of Ages. Let’s praise Him for His release and deliverance.

Psalms 91:3 – Surely He will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.       

Thought for Today

When the enemy puts up snares and plots against us, our Lord sends His angels to build a  fence around us.

Prayer for Today

Dear Lord Jesus: Help me to lean on to You when the enemy tries to swallow me up through cunning and crafty traps. Amen! 

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Write for prayer support and counseling without cost or obligation to todayintheword@gmail.com 

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