Malankara World Journal - Christian Spirituality from a Jacobite and Orthodox Perspective
Malankara World Journal
Theme: Discipleship
Volume 8 No. 456 January 12, 2018
 

IV. General Weekly Features

Thanksgiving Song

by Dr Mercy Abraham

When I see the marvelous things that You Lord do
my mind fills with thanksgiving and peace
like a river flows into the lake of your Love, O Lord
Your hand works are so beautiful Lord
That I have no words to describe them
the trees, mountains and lakes of Swiss Alps
fills me with grandiose awesome beauty.
The little children smiles and happiness

fills me with gladness never to describe.
You Lord, You are The Almighty
The Sovereign Lord ,who do things impossible
making me speechless before You Lord God Almighty,
the wonderful things that little children see and hear
when you pour Your Spirit on them
is what the prophets of the old regime prophesied written down
as the Living Word, which man can not comprehend
Your ways are curtailed before us for trusting You
for Your guidance down the ages, one step at a time
which is ever so wonderful You are the Alpha and Omega
what is man before You Lord for You to think about us
dust ,just a breath but you think about us who doesn't forget
the worthless sparrow which is sold 5 for 2 cents.

I am glad that You know the paths that I should traverse
I feel glad that You have stored blessings numerous
for generations to come in your mercy for us
who are so puny as the dust.
you have transformed my cries to dance
You removed my rags of sorrow and has clad me
with robes of gladness and restored happiness
because You want me to sing Your Praises
Oh my God ,I will always praise You
as David did in all his lifetime
as we read in the Living Word

Note:

written by Dr Mercy Abraham while on an European tour with Betsy and Abraham K Mathew on 20th Aug 2016. All copyrights preserved by Dr Mercy Abraham

Poem: Who will go and work for Me today?

by George Bennard

Hear the Lord of harvest sweetly calling,

"Who will go and work for Me today?
Who will bring to Me the lost and dying?
Who will point them to the narrow way?"

Speak, my Lord, speak, my Lord,
Speak, and I'll be quick to answer Thee;
Speak, my Lord, speak, my Lord,
Speak, and I will answer, "Lord, send me."

Soon the time for reaping will be over;
Soon we'll gather for the harvest home;
May the Lord of harvest smile upon us,
May we hear His blessèd, "Child, well done."

Yes, You Can-Know God

by Melissa L. Morgan

Why would such a powerful, just God care enough about you and I to take the form of a man-Jesus, called Christ-come to earth and die on a cross to pay for our sins?

I asked this question, before I knew God. I have heard physicians say that dying on a cross is the most painful death imaginable. Even after many years as a Christian, I still can’t totally grasp God’s love, except to say that He has proved His love to me. Jesus is the only one who ever died to save me. He proved His love for each person--me, you, and everybody.

That's my basic understanding of what God says in the Bible. Of course, there is much more, and I don't know everything. Don't worry if you don't understand it all yet—we may not know everything about how a television works, but we can still watch it. So you don't need to understand everything about God all at once, either, to know Him.

Here's my own personal experience, that I share in the hope that it will help you. Although I believed in Christ at the age of sixteen, I also struggled with doubts and questions. Yet, when I believed in Him, I also asked Him to open my eyes (spiritually), and let me know Him. Decades later, I am still learning to know Him more intimately. After all, He is infinite.

In the late 1970s, my husband and I visited Cherokee Village, in North Carolina. We were visiting to learn more about Cherokee ancestors. While there, we had the privilege of listening to a native Cherokee lecturer.

He related a story that you are not likely to hear anywhere else. When the European missionaries first told the Cherokee people about Jesus, they were met with several surprises. For one, the missionaries were greeted with open arms, and the Cherokee people immediately converted to Christianity, almost every one of them. The startled missionaries had to know why the tribe experienced such sudden conversions.

The reason? The Cherokee had a story about a visitor, who when described, sounded remarkably like Christ. Proof of this story, to me, is the native Cherokee word which is almost identical to the Hebrew word for God. So God can do what He wants, but He proved His love on the cross. You can't do any more for anyone than die for them.

Over the years of getting to know God, through His son Jesus Christ, I am learning that the Bible is a spiritual book, which God directed His people to write. God did not physically write it, but it is His Word, as if His people were taking dictation.

I wondered, if we are like ants to God, how can we possibly understand Him? We can't by ourselves. That's why people say all the time, "I can't understand the Bible." But we can understand some of it--the most important parts, and what we need to know now--if we ask Him to help us, through His Spirit. I am also learning that the Bible is a spiritual book--the Holy Spirit is how God talks to people.

I want you to know that God is calling you, just like He called me, and just like He visited (according to ancient Cherokee legend) the Cherokee. He loves you so much, that He was willing to die for you. You may not believe this yet—God understands. However, if you want to know God, you need to be willing to listen to Him.

Would you pray a prayer every day? Just talk to God, in Jesus name, the way you would talk to a person. Every day, just ask God "God, help me to know Jesus." Will you do that, because Jesus loves you? Do this, and be WILLING to believe (I didn't say you have to have blind faith--I said you need to be willing to listen), when God helps you to understand. Simple, I know. Please let me know that you will do this, and write me when you can.

In Christ’s Love, Melissa Morgan

"For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?
(Mark 8:36)

Source: Homeschool Blogger--Eaglesnest

Have You Encountered God Today?

By Dr. Tim Clinton

Apollo 15 Astronaut James Irwin had an encounter of the God kind . . . on the Moon.

That's right, on the Moon. Standing on the surface of the "blue planet", as he called it, gazing at the spectacular beauty of the Earth some 238,000 miles away, Irwin experienced the nearness of Jesus Christ in a profound way, unlike anything he'd ever felt before on Earth.

Jesus' presence was so tangible, Irwin said, "[that] at one point I turned around and looked over my shoulder as if He was standing there." Then, right there on the Moon, Jesus spoke to Irwin and gave him a new assignment.

Now you may be reading this and thinking, "Who wouldn't have an emotional experience in that incredible setting?" The euphoria had to have been out of this world! However, this was much more than an emotional experience. This encounter with the living Christ changed James Irwin's life forever. God encounters tend to do that.

Before his mission to the Moon, Irwin considered himself a "nominal" Christian, at best. He was disengaged from the fight. As a result of his lunar encounter with God, however, Irwin experienced a new courage and boldness to witness for Jesus Christ. He was also given a new assignment and got back in the fight! Within a year of his return from space, Irwin resigned from NASA and formed High Flight Foundation, a missionary organization with the purpose of reaching the world as "goodwill ambassadors of the Prince of Peace."

As men fully engaged in this fight, you are going to need encounters with the living God that impart courage and power for you to carry out your assignment. Here's the good news; you don't have to be on the Moon for Jesus to show up. He'll meet you wherever you are, in any circumstance. Once, Jesus met Peter in the middle of the night during a raging storm.

The disciple's boat was being pounded and in jeopardy of sinking. When they saw Jesus coming to them walking on the water, they thought he was a ghost and cried out in fear.

"But Jesus immediately said to them: 'Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.'
'Lord, if it's you,' Peter replied, 'tell me to come to you on the water.'
'Come,' he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus" (Matthew 14:27-29 NIV).

In the midst of the brutal gale, Jesus told Peter and the rest of the disciples, "Take courage! It is I." Just like with James Irwin, one of the things imparted to us when we have encounters with the living God, is courage. Then, He gives us a new assignment. Jesus told Peter to "Come." As a result, Peter stepped out of his boat of security and as long as his eyes were fixed on Jesus, he walked on the water.

Jesus is still showing up today, often in the midst of our most difficult storms. Sometimes it's even on the Moon! As we encounter Him in a personal way, Jesus is calling us to take courage, to step out of our boats of security and trust Him. When we do, we will experience supernatural power to do those things He's calling us to do. As we are walking on the water with our eyes firmly focused on Jesus, we'll know the power is from Him and not ourselves. Most importantly, people will take note that we are ordinary men who've had an encounter with the living Jesus.

"When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus" (Acts 4:13 NIV).

About The Author:

Tim Clinton, Ed. D., LPC, LMFT is President of American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC), the largest and most diverse Christian counseling association in the world. He is Professor of Counseling and Pastoral Care, and Executive Director of the Center for Counseling and Family Studies at Liberty University. Tim now spends a majority of his time working with Christian leaders and professional athletes. He is recognized as a world leader in faith and mental health issues and has authored over 20 books including Breakthrough: When to Give In, When to Push Back.

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