Kingdom Of Heaven

Praise the Lord .

Grace and peace to all of you in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and savior. Jesus is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords . 

He is worthy of the adoration and glory. We are so blessed to have been redeemed and to be saved by our Lord Jesus. Its is by grace we are saved through faith. God's greatest gift for us is redemption . Thank you Lord for saving us and pulling us out of the miry clay . 

Today I want to write about a known parable from the bible .These parables have deep meaning in them . They were not just stories .Every parable reveals God's heart for mankind. Jesus wants us to understand his burden. Why did Jesus always talk in parables ? Jesus clearly answers that question in the below verse in Matthew chapter 13:13.

13 This is the reason I speak to the crowds in parables: because while [having the power of] seeing they do not see, and while [having the power of] hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand and grasp [spiritual things].

Even though the people heard and saw the manifestation of the word of God right in front  of their eyes ans ears from Jesus himself their spiritual eyes were blind and they were spiritually deaf. What a pity . He spoke in parables as the people were still hard in their hearts and not receptive to the truth.

31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 

32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”

Let us talk about the parable of the mustard seed .Mustard seed is a small seed which teaches us great lessons . It has a capacity of fast germination within 3-10 days .It is a fast growing and quick spreading seed.When a mustard seed grows into a bigger plant it has various benefits . The leaves are used for salads. Mustard oil has high medicinal values. It is prepared and used as condiment for sandwiches . 

From a small seed emerges a tree with huge branches to serve has a home for birds. 

When the kingdom of heaven is within a man, His life becomes a blessing . His ordinary life becomes fruitful and he starts to build God's kingdom by every possible ways . That's how our lives should be . We need to do something for the Lord. 

33 He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.

In the same way a small amount of yeast is very powerful . When a pinch of it is put into the flour it has a long way to go. A small amount of yeast leavens the whole batch of dough.There is a point behind Jesus's thought behind this parable . It is that the leaven starts out small but the end result is huge . In the same way when one person starts doing things for the Lord .The thirst and burden in him spreads to the next person . It is a chain reaction . That is revival .It is the act of the Holy Spirit. This leavening doesn't stop until there is no more flour left . 

Jesus is coming soon. We need to work diligently and cheerfully to build god's kingdom.We cannot go empty handed to meet our King and creator Jesus Christ. Start praying about sharing the Gospel with your friend today . God will open doors and means for you when you take that first step of faith. Let God equip you with His strength and give you the needed words 

Shalom Blessings 

Servant for the Lord

 Hello Folks ! 

Grace and Peace to you in the precious name of Jesus Christ . 

Hope everyone is doing great . I pray that the lock down situation gets better and the whole world is healed and restored from the unseen enemy in Jesus name . Amen.

Today I want to share my thoughts  from a passage in Mathew chapter 20. There is a caring mother of Zebedee's sons. She asks Jesus for a favor . What was that favor? 

20 Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. 

21 “What is it you want?” he asked. She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”

She asks Jesus if each of her sons will be granted to sit in the right and left hand of the Lord in the Heavenly kingdom . That is a huge thing to ask right ! That was Mrs. Zebedee's throne request for James and John. The point here is that their minds were thinking about a literal kingdom where Jesus would be the boss and that the other disciples would be the big shots. In addition to all this , the other 10 disciples were aggravated and annoyed because of these two brothers. Wow! So this shows that they were becoming jealous and afraid of these two if they will take up the prime spots in heaven. Just being with the Lord wasn't enough for them . They wanted designations and positions .

In the same way this world everyone wants to run the show . They want to take up the center stage .Everyone is applying for the best positions to take up . They want to be the bossy boots and want their names on the top of the list. We want to be appreciated , praised and talked about . Think about it .Is this what Jesus expects of us .? 

What was Jesus reply for this request of Mrs.Zebedee. Did he do her the favor ?

26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 

27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 

28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

 

I am sure that must have sounded hard to her ears . She must not have expected that from Jesus.

Dear beloved friends in Christ our Lord Jesus wants us to serve. He himself stepped down from glory to die on the cross bearing our sin and shame . He left his heavenly abode where he was the darling of His Father .He came to serve mankind . He did not come to this earth as a lofty king but a humble child born in a manger . If God humbles himself for us how much more gratitude should we have for him. We need to be a serve others rather than waiting to be served . Our ultimate aim must be to build god's kingdom . We are all laborers in His kingdom . We serve the Lord . 

How do you serve the Lord being on this earth ? Serve the people . If there is a job which is neglected and rejected by everyone in the church , take up that particular work and do it . Don't wait for people to reward your work and talk about it . The heavenly father who see your work will reward you in glory . One more thing never be envious about your friend in Christ about their raise . Don't complain about how well you would have done your friend's job if it was given to you. Don't grumble .Always feel happy about other's blessings . Thank God for His blessings upon you . God knows your name .He is not a partial God. Each of us are special and unique. Our works for Christ will never go away unrewarded and forgotten .

So today surrender ans ask God to forgive you if at any time you were having pride or felt envious about your neighbor. Ask God for that pure selfless humble heart . Lets have a heart of humility and work for the Lord with a cheerful heart . Jesus wants us to serve like He served. 

Shalom Blessings 

Forgiveness

Beloved Friends in Christ.
Greetings in the glorious name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I hope you are all doing fantastic during the lock down time . We don't  have to regret or feed bad as the Joy of the Lord is our strength .Our God will protect us and fulfill all our needs and desires . He is the river of life . He will flood your hearts with grace and peace. Glory be to God . What a mighty God we serve . 

I have been reading the book of Mathew and its very eye opening to me personally. The word of God never fails to talk to me . Praise God for that . Today I want to write to you about something I was struggling in my life. Forgiving someone is huge . It has to happen from the bottom of the heart. It is never easy to forgive someone wholeheartedly.It was extremely hard to let go off my bitterness against a few people in my lives . Whenever someone said anything bad about me or did something that broke my heart.I would feel terrible in my heart. I know ,I don't  have the guts to talk back or start a fight .I start avoiding them completely .That's my nature. I don't  want to face them but to stay away from them . My bitterness kept bottling up in my heart . I was sinking in all my outrage. I knew that as a Christian this is not the way I should behave . I knew it all. Its just that I couldn't get rid of these feelings . The Lord had convicted me many a times to get my heart right with him. I ignored the Lord's call to forgive and let go of my annoyance and vexation . I was adamant. I really was. 

At one point this bitterness caused me to lose my peace . That grudge in my heart made me a monster in my heart. I had behavioral changes in me . My happiness and serenity was gone. I understood that I had to let go of this weight that was pulling me down . I hit the rock bottom .I wasn't the same person anymore . I decided to forgive and obey God . I prayed about it and told Him "Lord, I am willing to forgive and forget but I don't have the strength to do it and I don't know how.Oh! God please help me ". Lord God created ways for me to reconcile in person with people. I let God to pull out those weeds in my heart . I yielded myself to the Holy Spirit. He did the miracle and helped me to set right all my relationships .Oh what a joy I felt and that heavenly peace filled my heart . 

Now lets take a look at the Verses from the Book of Mathew chapter 18 .The verses 21 to 35 talk about the parable of the unmerciful servant. The main theme behind these verses is forgiving others. Jesus says that we must forgive others 77 times . Wow! 

Mathew 18:21,22

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” 

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 

It is kind of hard right ! Forgiving someone just one time is tough, but look what is Jesus saying here. I am not going into the depth of the incident here. We all know the parable .May be you can read it in again . I want to bring out the essence here. Forgiveness.

We were sinners and so unworthy and still Jesus Christ chose to take up the cross and give his life for us.He shed his precious blood for a wretch like us . He forgave us of all our transgressions and trespasses. He choose us even before we knew Him. That is love . That is the father's heart . 

Now, think about it . What if Jesus had refused to bleed on that cross for you and me . He did not have to do this . Why did he do it ? He loves you . He cares for you . No other Gods of this world gave their lives for our salvation . Only Jesus did. Love ran red for you and me . 

How much should you and I forgive ? If you are like me unwilling or even limping about to forgive someone today the Holy Spirit wants to help you . Yield to Him .He will do the magic. Its very simple . Kneel down and surrender at Jesus's feet and express your desire to forgive that's all. He will open doors for the forgiving process . He will help you get over it and forget about it Jesus will fill your heart with his pure agape love. That peace which surpasses all understanding will engulf your lives . You will see your lives becoming happier and joyful right in front of your eyes. 

So are you willing to forgive today ? Don't be hard hardhearted . Take a decision today.God is ready to help you out when you are willing to take that step.

Forgive, Forget  and Feel Fabulous today.

Shalom Blessings .

Super Duper Faith

Hi Friends in Christ .Greetings in the matchless name of our Lord Jesus .

Writing these blogs have helped my spiritual life a lot. In fact whatever I write has been encouraging to me personally. I thank the Lord for helping me grow everyday. Glory be to God .He has been my rescue every time my boat was swaying in the hardest winds of trials and temptations .Jesus has always been there for me . Day by day I see an increase in faith when I read the Holy Bible .

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God -Romans 10:17 

How relevant and true is the word of God ! Amen to His word.

I want to write about the faith of the Canaanite women in Mathew chapter 15 . We have all heard of the incident and know it by heart . This lady she came from the nearby cities of Tyre and Sidon to Jesus. She cried for God's mercy .

 

22 A woman from Canaan lived near Tyre and Sidon. She came to him and cried out, "Lord! Son of David! Have mercy on me! A demon controls my daughter. She is suffering terribly."

She didn't just say in a normal tone . She was in fact wailing out loudly to the Lord . Its surprising to me now .

What did Jesus do ? He just kept quiet. Wow. He didn't say a word and this woman kept on disturbing the religious atmosphere. Look at the disciples. They were terribly disturbed by this woman. The disciples of the Lord were actually begging Jesus to send her away . 

Jesus begins to try her out by saying certain things that would cause the woman to worry or doubt in the middle of her requirement. 

24 Jesus answered, "I was sent only to the people of Israel. They are like lost sheep." 

25 Then the woman fell to her knees in front of him. "Lord! Help me!" she said. 

26 He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to their dogs." 

27 "Yes, Lord," she said. "But even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their owners' table." 

What a conversation of persistence ! Jesus keeps throwing those words of controversies but still this lady refused to give in .Sometimes we need to to be persistent enough to keep on praying and never letting go. Frustration and worldly confusions often cause us to lose focus on what our prayer request is sometimes . This lady is a perfect epitome of persistent faith .

28 Then Jesus answered, "Woman, you have great faith! You will be given what you are asking for." And her daughter was healed at that very moment.

The woman is a achiever  and  an over comer as she has finally succeeded in making Jesus say the word of healing and assurance . Her daughter was healed at that very moment. She received faith appreciation from Jesus himself . What a blessing . I want to have that steadfast, stubborn faith.

 If the Canaanite woman expected the reward at the beginning, she should have not continued anymore.So greater rewards are always at the end of the journey and not the beginning. So never lose hope upon something you are praying for today . 

One of the reasons people feel frustrated and worn out is that they can’t handle the trials and difficulties associated with treading the path to victory.However, this must not be the case for us. We must keep moving on holding on to His promises.Never try to figure out the process of your miracle .Have child like faith . Hold on to Jesus like Jacob and never let him go until he blesses your life . I pray that your faith will increase every day .Keep reading the word of God on a daily basis in that way God will work in your life to help your faith grow and multiply everyday.

Whatever you are praying for these days ,I want to reassure you that Jesus has already heard your prayer need. He wants to know how badly you need . He sees your heart . Don't worry your reward is awaiting your inheritance . His perfect will will be done in your life regarding your needs. He loves you my dear friend. Your prayers and tears are going to be wiped away soon .

Shalom Blessings . 

Bear Fruit

Good Day Folks ! Grace and Peace to all of you . 

I have been reading the book of Mathew from the new testament . Every time I read the Gospel books I feel like God is teaching new enlightening views for me to personally meditate upon them. Today I want to write about a few verses from Mathew chapter 7 that brought me to my senses . 

The passage is from Mathew chapter 7 verses 20-23

20 You can tell each tree by its fruit. 

21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven. Only those who do what my Father in heaven wants will enter. 

22 "Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord! Lord! Didn't we prophesy in your name? Didn't we drive out demons in your name? Didn't we do many miracles in your name?' 

23 Then I will tell them clearly, 'I never knew you. Get away from me, you who do evil!'

Many a times we are often carried away trying to serve the Lord . I usually tell my son that if he does his Reading , Math, Writing or any academic work I would give him his allowance which is TV time or he can play his favorite video game . I am kind of a strict mom actually . He only gets his benefits after he is done with his homework. He still tries to bribe me sometimes . He says "Mom I finished my food can I have TV?" "Mom , I helped you clean up , can I have my video game ?" Still it is a big NO from me as these are not the necessary tasks to be done for him to have his TV time . Academics work is the one and only way to earn his way to watch TV. He understands it but sometimes he tries me out by giving me various options . 

He is a sweet little boy :)

In the same way we do so  many things to please God . We can talk about God 24/7 . We can write for the Lord . We can preach the Gospel . We can sing for the Lord, We can say prophesies in His name . We can even drive out demons in Jesus's name . What if the Lord says " I do not know you " Pity on us . We have failed completely if the Lord is going to say that to us . We have done all the extras to please him but We did not do the basics to please God. 

What does the Lord really want of us ?

A testimony filled life . A life radiating Christ like character .A fruit bearing life. Are we bearing fruit in our daily lives ? Do we live  for the Lord ? Do we follow his commandants every day ? Do we have compassion for our neighbor ? Do our hearts burden out on seeing a soul who doesn't know the Lord ? Are we ashamed of the Gospel ? Can we love everyone unconditionally like Jesus? Do we still carry bitterness in our hearts ? Do we have self pride ? Are we jealous about others? Are we cursing others?Do we have anger issues  ? I could keep on writing more .

If yes , We are not even close to bearing any fruit in our lives . I am writing this as a warning for even myself. Check your lives . Where are you failing today ? Ask the Holy Spirit for his help.He is always ready to help out in time of our need. I pray that all our lives reflect Christ like character . Let us show Jesus everyday to everyone through our lives . 

Behold , Jesus is coming back soon . 

Are we ready to meet our Lord ? 

Grace and Blessings to everyone .

Lord, Reign over Me

Hello Again. His mercies are new every morning . 

God is good all the time and all the time God is good. 

This morning as I was praying God kept reminding me and filling me with that inner peace. I was reminded about whatever the Lord had done in my life for the past few years. My heart is filled with gratitude and reverence for the King of kings .None of us can say that God didn't do anything good in our lives . He is ever faithful and loves us unconditionally . I listened to the song "Forever Reign" by Hillsong Worship where the song goes like this 

Oh, I'm running to Your arms

I'm running to Your arms

The riches of Your love

Will always be enough

Nothing compares to Your embrace

Light of the world forever reign

Many a times we are actually running around our problems rather than running to our Father God. I was a person like that . I had severe depression, fear and anxiety issues .Negative and hopeless , that was me a few years ago. It was on of the darkest times in my life. I had tons of sleepless nights where I even I was going to die . There was nothing wrong in me but I had started to believe the lies of the devil .I was feeling lonely and felt like I couldn't see the ray of hope anymore. Now don't judge me . We all have our such kind of moments . I had mine .

One early morning a few years back , I had not sleep the whole night . I didn't know what to do so I knelt down to pray. All I had was tears and I uttered the name of Jesus again and again . I said to the Lord " Lord I don't know whats wrong with me but I feel this fear deep in my heart .Lord fill me with your heavenly peace .I don't even like myself .I know you are the Great I am. Lord Have your way in me . " I had nothing else to say to the Lord . I said Amen and opened up my bible to read . My daily bible portion was from Luke chapter 12 where verses 4-7 assures us that Jesus cares for us . He says why do you fear when I am right next to you ready to your rescue ?"

4 “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. 

5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. 

6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. 

7 Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

When I started reading it , I felt God's tangible presence in that very room on that morning. I felt the Holy Spirit ministering to me . My fear , anxiety immediately vanished and I started feeling light as a feather . My heart wasn't burdened anymore . The joy of the Lord embraced my life.I felt like my life wasn't the same anymore . I had my encounter that day . My sensed a transfiguration in my spiritual life. I began to taste and see the Lord's goodness in my life in a new way . Ever since then , the Lord taught me to look at his face everyday than to look at His hands .I understood one thing , We got to rest in His goodness  and His mercies . He will wonderfully help you pick up your broken and missing pieces and turn your life into a masterpiece of His faithfulness. 

Why am I saying this today ? This morning I read a similar verse in my daily devotion from Mathew chapter 6 verses 33- 34

34 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 

34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

These were the verses which actually strengthened me a few years back . God hearkened back memories this morning. I am grateful for God's presence and His power packed scriptures .Let Jesus reign over your darkest moments . I let him to ! He is still doing amazing things . 

Today I encourage each one of you to let Jesus take the wheel and let Him lead on . Enough of trying to make things perfect on your own . Just follow Him wherever He leads you . He knows your name. You are precious in His sight . 

God Bless You . Glory be to God Alone . 

In the Shadow of the Most High

Greetings in the matchless name of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. 

I have not penned down any of my thoughts ever since my little girl was born a year ago .I was and am completely occupied with her as of now. Many new revelations kept popping up in my heart which were truly helpful for me to grow in the Lord. 

This morning I felt this strong urge to start writing this blog after my morning devotion time.I love listening to gospel music . My cousin gifted me a google home smart display which is my own personal gadget assistant nowadays . The songs  that are played  bring in God's presence and strengthening in my life personally. I have actually the Holy Spirit encouraging me through songs . This morning I was listening to random songs that were being played by Google Home. This song called "Bulletproof"

by Citizen Way started to give way into new unveiling of God's goodness . 

The song's lyrics go like this 

"Your love made a way, now I'm not afraid

No matter what the world may say or what they do

I am bulletproof because of You, because of You"

My morning devotion had a passage from Mathew chapter 2 where we read about the Magi visit the messiah ,the newborn king Jesus . The Magi came from faraway land learning about Jesus the King . The saw the star and wanted to shower the newborn king with their gifts and bow down in adoration .Here comes the wicked king Herod who desperately wanted to get rid of Jesus the everlasting king . He secretly inquires about the time of the appearance of the star so device plans to visit this child and actually kill it. He slyly asks the Magi to report back to him with the details for carrying out the execution . Miraculously Father God protects His son by warning the magi to go back to their land through a different route.

Even when Herod killed all the baby boys aged below two , Father God alerted Daddy Joseph through a dream and carefully safeguarded his son .Such is the father's love for His son . The devil tried to break the divine plan of salvation for mankind but the heavenly Father Lord got rid of every barrier to fulfill His redemption plan . Nothing could stop the saviors's master plan .He was  and is indeed victorious . We are made bulletproof to the strategies and schemes of the devil through the Blood of Jesus Christ. No one can lay hands on you . You are His beloved . 

God is faithful and an everlasting father . He is able to accomplish what concerns you today . Amidst the chaos and hopeless in this world , you are protected and safe in the Savior's arms . Cheer up !  You are held in His palms . You are the apple of His eye. 

Shalom Blessings