We had a blessed trip to India. On one of the nights in my first week there, I listened to a powerful message on Psalm 91. As I was greatly worried about a situation that day, I felt like God was pressing me to listen to that message that day. I had seen that message several times in the past few weeks but did not listen to it till then. The message gave me tremendous amounts of strength and I prayed claiming the protection of Psalm 91. The next day as I was cooking, I had to wait and didn’t want to step away from the kitchen because if I stepped away, I often forgot that the stove was on. So I sat on the outside kitchen steps. Within minutes, a coconut fell off the tree just a few feet away from me. I just stayed put because I felt that God had protected me and I remembered the Psalm 91 message that I heard the previous day and the prayers that I did following that. I was so grateful that it did not hurt me or fall on anyone else’s head. The lady who cleans our house sweeps the backyard every day and I felt so grateful that it did not fall while she was doing her work. And the previous day, another person was working in our entire yard. I felt so grateful that this coconut did not fall on any of our heads. I have seen the battle being so real. ‘The Battle belongs to the Lord’ has been my theme for this trip and God took care of my battles.
In 20 years of flying we had quite an experience this time as we traveled to India. Our destination airport is Trivandrum and as the pilot tried to land in midst of heavy rain and a passing storm, he couldn’t land it. He circled around for 45 minutes and then headed to Cochin airport. The scariest part was that we experienced the flight dropping, wasn’t like turbulence but like rollercoaster drops – 4 times. He did that to bring it down around 8000 feet altitude it seems, ofcourse we poor passengers wouldn’t know that. It was scary and people started to scream because it felt like airplane was going to fall. I screamed “Yesuve(Jesus)” the first two times . That’s a very valuable lesson Amma had taught me as I used to scream “amma” in sudden frights. But Amma would always scream “Yesuve(Jesus)”. She told me not to call her as she can’t do anything even if I called her but told me to call Jesus as Only He can help me no matter the situation. After screaming Yesuve twice, I held my family’s hands and I started to pray in my heart. I said Lord I am still waiting on things You have said and this cannot be our end. The plane landed fine in Cochin but the fear of landing came into me and others too. After about an hour they took us back to Trivandrum as weather was better with light rain. And from around 7000 feet the pilot again started to take it upwards and imagine our thoughts! I started to sing “in heavenly armor we’ll enter the land, the battle belongs to the Lord”. This song has been my deliverance song in multiple situations. And truly, I started to feel such peace and deliverance happening and the flight landed safely. This time the pilot had to take it up because of not getting signal to land but ofcourse, we poor passengers didn’t know that. Truly reminded me of the hundreds of times we take the flights and the take offs and the landing experiences for granted. I remember the times I had been sleeping peacefully during take offs and landings. Thanking God for His unfailing protection. See the runway picture from the screen in front of me as we were landing. I was truly amazed. I have never seen the runway lit up like a cross. The battle belongs to the LORD. Amen!
Pondering on the transformation of Peter from John chapter 21 to Acts chapter 2. One profound insight that I received in my discipleship class is to read the Bible with fresh eyes as if I am reading it for the first time. We who grew up in churches hear the story first and then read it in the Bible and that robs us of the attention to the details. To me, it feels like the fruit has been waiting to ripen all this time and now suddenly it did.
“What if?” – these 2 words could entirely change our faith and our lives. Jesus was with the disciples for more than three years. Provisions met. Food needs met. Attention in the eyes of the public as decorated servants. They did not need to think of their old professions for a livelihood. That could be why, when Jesus talked about His awaited suffering and death, Peter rebuked Jesus saying that it should not happen to Him. Though Jesus had been foretelling them repeatedly about His crucifixion and death, as their time of understanding and revelation had not come yet, they were blinded and deaf. Before they could process what was happening, Jesus was crucified and buried in the tomb. Imagine the devastation that the disciples must have felt! Their lives changed upside down when their good shepherd was slaughtered. What now? Forget being the royal servants, now the tables have turned and they were afraid to even go out of their houses.
Peter thought that there was no point in wasting any more time. It is best to become practical and go dust up the fishing nets and go back to the fishing profession. In a way that would put some security on his life as the chief priests and others would not consider the disciples as a threat anymore. As in Zechariah 13:7, the shepherd was struck and the sheep fled for their lives.
John chapter 21 – When the calling was to catch men for Jesus, the attempt to catch fish was futile. Jesus gave them a repeat of their first “Follow Me” call. This time He awaited them with a prepared meal. I truly have no words about the heart of Jesus in this place. After the meal, Jesus restores Peter by asking the question, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” indicating that if You are not aligned with My calling, you are a simple Simon, and not Peter. Jesus asks Peter to feed His lamb and sheep. Could it be because Jesus being the good shepherd, passed on the rod and the staff to take care of the lamb and the sheep? Jesus did not forget the littlest lamb either. Isaiah 40:11 He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young. As Peter and the disciples experienced how it felt to be like scattered sheep, Jesus gave them the responsibility of taking care of His other sheep and lamb so they are not scattered by the wolves.
Jesus predicted to Peter about the kind of life he would live for the cost of the gospel and the kind of death by which He will glorify God. Then Acts chapter 2 happens and Peter stood up with the disciples, raised his voice, and addressed the crowd.
See, if Peter had not quoted these verses from the Old Testament and connected them with what had happened, about the death and resurrection of Jesus, and the betrayal that Judas did, and also the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, would we have understood just by reading those verses in the Old Testament?
Joel 2:28-38 In the last days. God says, I will pour out My Spirit on all people.
Psalm 16:10 You will not abandon Me to the realm of the dead, You will not let Your holy one see decay.
Moses stated that a prophet will rise from among you and you must listen to everything that He says.
In my little wisdom, I wouldn’t have made any of these connections if Peter had not spoken in Acts chapter 2. And how did Peter suddenly make all these connections from the Old Testament? Luke 12:12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say. It was the work of the Holy Spirit whom they explicitly received just then.
Now, back to my “what if?” question. If Jesus had not resurrected from the dead and had not appeared to these disciples for 40 days and showed them signs and miracles throughout that time thus proving Himself as resurrected, what would have happened? The disciples would have gone back to their fishing and whatever professions and there would not have been anything called the Christian faith. If this Jesus had not made Himself so real to them after He was crucified by resurrecting back to life, why would these disciples, instead of going back to their safe profession, take a U-turn and go about spreading the gospel of Christ and up to the point of being martyred for the sake of their faith in Christ. Just as Jesus predicted to Peter in John chapter 21, Peter gave himself to be crucified upside down as he did not consider himself worthy to be crucified in the same manner as Christ. If something profound had not happened, like the resurrection of Christ, would anyone in their right mind choose a path like this?
What makes me still ponder on the restoration of Peter? Because I can relate to Peter a lot. My common statement is, “Lord, You are worth my everything, my breath, and my life”. I understand that Peter also said the same in the strength of his flesh, which could not sustain him. But the outpouring of the Holy Spirit accomplished everything that Jesus had purposed with Peter’s life. So I commit my desire unto the nail-pierced hands of Jesus. May He equip me to accomplish whatever He has purposed through me, by pouring out His anointing upon me. Amen!
In January of 2019, I started to take piano lessons. I never thought that I could take piano lessons in my 40s. I was talking to my son’s piano teacher about how even though my mom wanted me to take piano lessons when I was young, I did not get to take lessons. She immediately replied that she had adult students and if I was interested in taking lessons. By God’s grace, I said yes. By September 2019, I had started to learn my first worship song – ‘10000 reasons’. I was going through some tough times at work. It took a couple of months for me to finish that song. I loved to play this song which gave me unexplainable peace in my job situation.
One day when I went for my piano lessons, my teacher took me to the traditional piano in the recital room and asked me to play ‘10000 Reasons’ on it. I loved the sound of that piano as I had never played a traditional piano before that. I immediately had a desire to buy a used traditional piano. I came across used pianos in the Facebook marketplace with so many of them given away for free. In my mind, I did not want to go to someone’s home and take this piano for ‘free’. I was willing to pay a very small amount for it. I reached out to so many people who had listed their pianos and they all replied that someone else was taking it. I left it to God saying, “Jesus, You lead me towards that piano which You have in store for me”. By then my biggest need was a job and piano had become ‘nice to have’.
One day casually I was checking the Facebook marketplace for pianos and I saw a seller who had 4 friends in common with me, listed the piano for $50. And I realized that all 4 of them go to our church. I asked the seller two questions – “Is the Piano still available? Do you go to Calvary church?”. He replied, “Yes to both questions”. He also added that he was the principal of Calvary Christian School. In my mind, I thought that I could convince him to hold the piano for me as we went to the same church after all. At the same time, I heard these words spoken in my mind, “This piano is yours”. I know this voice that speaks because whatever I “hear” in this manner, it always comes true. But, the seller added, “Someone else is coming to see the piano. If they don’t take it, you can come and check it out”. My mind voice replied, “They won’t take it. This piano is MINE”. Before I heard back from him, we got the shocking news that my mother-in-law passed away and so my husband immediately traveled to India. I was so shaken by this unexpected situation of losing my mother-in-law and watching the funeral online. In the meantime, the seller contacted me saying that the other party had found a means to take the piano so he had to be fair and give the piano to them. The funeral was on Thursday. On Saturday evening, as I was folding the laundry, I was asking God, “God, was it You who told me about the piano or not? Because I heard in the same manner about a job too! And if ‘that voice’ was not Yours, I am doomed for the job thing too”.
The next day after attending the English church service, I was sitting at our Indian church and I got a message from the seller saying that the other party could not take the piano and asked if I still wanted it. I replied, “Praise the LORD! I knew this piano is mine!”
I took some guys from the Indian church and brought the piano home. I had prepared a spot for the piano. My husband was in doubt that the piano would be too big to fit in that spot. But guess what? The piano fit in that spot so perfectly that I believe with all my heart that God prepared that spot for my piano, though this house was built around 10 years before we even bought it.
My God sent me a gift for my birthday which is still the most valuable birthday gift that I have received thus far. And I am still taking piano lessons, doing worship every day even with all my inadequacies in skills and understanding. I have done 5 recitals so far – all of them with worship songs, twice on grand piano. The first time I ever got to play on a grand piano, I played “You raise me up” which was the song that inspired me to learn a musical instrument in the first place. Isn’t God so faithful and keen on the details?
Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD, And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Proverbs 31:28 Her children arise and call her blessed.
Today is Amma’s third anniversary. For the past few days, the above verse repeatedly came to my mind. Amma was no Proverbs 31 woman. For a long time, she was one person I did not want to end up like. In the world’s eyes, she was a failure, who lived a life of misery. But now, when I look back, I see her as a blessed woman because she finished her race with the words, “Naan Yesappava paaaka poren (I am going to see Jesus)”. Life can be a failure or it can even be a success in the world’s eyes but unless one finishes the race in Christ, it is a failure for sure.
But now when I look back, God has been so faithful towards her. All through her life, without wavering for one bit, Amma held on to God. Though her life did not seem to get any better, she held on to God. Though probably she did not realize it, I now understand very well that she truly was a blessed woman because I can see now that God has answered ALL her prayers. She always prayed that she would not suffer from sickness. Though she was diagnosed with cancer at its terminal stage, she suffered no pain from it. Amma would always quote the entire of Psalm 91 and Psalm 128 every time she prayed. And even through the times of the pandemic, God protected her from the virus. Though she was a very shy person, she had even gone to some neighbors and shared the gospel with them. I went through a bunch of her journals in which she had prayed for so many people whose situations I had shared with her. Every time she would ask me to spell their name and the place they live, and I read in her journals that she prayed for them. She did all these things with no bells and whistles.
In her last two weeks, as she was in the hospital, every time I went out in an autorickshaw, I always sang this song, “En Koodave Irum, O Yesuve (Be always with me, Jesus)”. As this was in 2021 in the middle of the pandemic, I would wear the mask so no one could see or hear me sing, but every time I sang just the chorus of the song because that’s all the lyrics I knew in this song. But on that day, a Wednesday, early morning, I saw this song being posted in one of the church groups which was sung by my friend’s family. That is when I heard the stanzas and my mind immediately registered the second stanza for some reason. I kept singing this song’s second stanza in Amma’s room that day. The second stanza talks about how God will be my father and mother in my tears and sorrows. That was the last time she heard me sing. How faithful God is to tell me of what was coming!
I believe another thing God honored was her desire for me to learn to play the piano. I am just glad that I could play these chords and sing this song. God redeemed us and restored our relationships!
So many people helped my parents with everything and I pray for God’s blessings over each one of them! May God richly reward then for their kindness!
One fine day, Saul’s father’s donkeys went missing. His father asked Saul to take a servant with him to find the donkeys. It was like the donkeys went invisible or disappeared from the face of the earth. Saul searched through the hill country of Ephraim, the area around Shalisha, the district of Shaalim, the territory of Benjamin, and then reached the district of Zuph. By then, Saul had lost hope that they would find the donkeys and wanted to return home.
Just then, his servant suggested to go to the prophet in that town who was Samuel. Though Samuel was known throughout the nation of Israel, Saul wasn’t aware of him. Saul didn’t seem to have much to do with the man of God. As a prophet, Samuel would have had a certain way of dressing which would distinguish him as a prophet, and yet Saul could not recognize Samuel.
But Samuel had received a word from God the previous day, “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over My people Israel;” When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the LORD said to him, “This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern My people”. Samuel asked Saul and his servant to join the feast and gave Saul the special meat which was prepared for him.
The next day morning, Samuel took the flask of olive oil, poured it on Saul’s head, and anointed him as the ruler over Israel. He also told him about a few signs that would happen on Saul’s way home, which happened exactly as Samuel had prophesied. And the donkeys were also found. All through the Bible, the donkeys have been so obedient and useful part in God’s plan. Being an obedient donkey is better than being disobedient people!
Isaiah 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.
At times, when God leads us through troubled waters, our frequent question is, “Why is this happening? I don’t understand this!” If we are following God in the path that He leads, some of these troubled paths might even be for others to see that Yahweh alone is God. If not for the Red Sea on the Isralites’ route which God Himself told them to take, the Egyptians who taunted them and even all the other nations would not have known the might and power of our Almighty God. If not for Daniel being thrown into the lion’s den, King Darius and all of his kingdoms wouldn’t have known that Daniel’s God was able to keep him safe even in the midst of the hungry lions – which was meant to be a punishment strategy of that nation. If not for the fiery furnace that was raised seven times more than usual, for Daniel’s friends to be thrown in, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon would not have known the God who truly holds the thrones of the nations. If not for the waters of Jordan being parted, the people of the surrounding nations’ hearts wouldn’t have melted in fear in regard to the Israelites.
So, keep heart, some of the situations that we go through might be just for our God to reveal Himself as sovereign. Rather than being tossed and turned by the waves, may we learn to rest in Him and keep His ways and He will come through mightily as a warrior. Amen!
Psalm 91:1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Who knew today happens to be National Best Friend Day?!
Do you have friends who would open the roofs of heaven to bring down a deliverance for you, like the friends of the paralytic man in Luke chapter 5? Well, you are blessed.
The house where Jesus was preaching was overflowing with people. So the friends of a paralytic man tore down the roof of the house and brought down the paralyzed man and laid him before Jesus. Luke 5:20 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to him, “I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house”. Immediately he rose up before them, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.
Sadly, not everyone is blessed with such friends, like the man at the pool of Bethesda (John chapter 5). A great multitude of people with various kinds of diseases stayed by the pool of Bethesda, because it was considered a miracle pool. At an unknown time, an angel would go into the pool and stir up the water. When the water got stirred, whoever got into the pool first was healed from whatever disease he had. As expected, a multitude of sick people stayed beside the pool, with their eyes on the water so that they could get into the pool when the water got stirred by the angel.
Beside this pool, a man who had an infirmity waited for 38 years to receive his healing. Not a year or two, but 38 very long years!
Unimaginable, as for most of us, that would make the most part of our life till now. He had no friends or family who longed for him to receive a healing so he was there all by himself at the mercy of others to carry him to the pool when the water got stirred. His 38 years of wait says that there was no one there to help him out because everyone needed their own healing first. And once healed, they just left.
Into the hopelessness of his situation, the hope of all hopes walked in – JESUS! No one told Jesus about this man. The Son of God knew that this man was stuck in his situation for a very long time. And yet Jesus asked him, “Do you want to be made well?”. The man replied, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool”. Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. 38 years of being stuck became history the moment Jesus walked into his situation.
Just as the man who had loving, caring friends, the man who had nobody also was healed by Jesus.
Luke 10:41-42 Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled by many things, but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen that good part which will not be taken away from her.
Like Martha, the world pressures us into doing this and that to keep up with the rat race, while God expects just one thing from us – to sit still in His presence – To be still and know that He is God. Psalm 46:10. It isn’t easy to be still when we see others run around like ‘chickens with no head’ to accomplish “something”. It takes an enormous amount of faith to “sit still” when the world runs around crazily and makes us question ourselves if we are missing out on something if we sit still.
A lot of times, we finally come to the point of “sitting still in God’s presence” after being exhausted by unsuccessful running around. And we learn then that He was right about being still, as always. He asks us to leave our battles to Him and that He will fight them and most importantly, “win” them – unlike us who love to fight our battles, and then only to lose those battles. He says that He can fill the ditches with water even if we don’t see the wind or rain. He is Sovereign. He can do anything that He pleases. He has no limitations.
King David was also doing so many things. And then he had a very honorable desire to build a temple for Yahweh(2 Samuel chapter 7). But God said, “Not you, my child”. Yet God was pleased with David’s desire and God promised David with blessings of eternal kingdom. And what did David do when he heard that? He went and sat before God’s presence and humbled himself saying, “Who am I, LORD, and what is my family, to deserve such a blessing?“. And what did God do? 2 Samuel chapter 8 says repeatedly, “The LORD gave David victory wherever he went”.
1 Peter 5:6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7. casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
Every now and then, life seats us on the dreaded bench- the bench that is broken, hard, uncomfortable, and with sharp edges. There is no one who is spared from it. Everyone gets their turn to sit on it. You are either someone who got off the dreaded bench just now, still sitting on it, or is about to sit on one. It is often a lonely place. No one would desire to accompany us on such a bench. No One, but Jesus! My Jesus! My Savior! My dearest friend! He is my everything! The One who took me out of the slimy pits and washed me off and made me clean and fragrant!
Isaiah 46:4 Even to your old age, I am He, and even to gray hairs, I will carry you! I have made, and I will bear; Even I will carry and will deliver you.
Regardless of the kind of bench that we are seated on, God promised to be with us till we are old and gray, till our last breath! And He is more than enough!
When God puts us on a wait, He has a purpose. So many clouds of witnesses in the Bible who have gone before us can testify to that. Waiting can be painful and dreadful because of the uncertainty of its timeline and the outcome remains unknown.
Isaiah 40:31 But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk, and not faint.
Abraham and Sara have sat on this bench for a long period of time in their old age, waiting for the son whom God had promised to them. Just as God promised, they received Isaac even when Abraham had to wait till he was hundred years old.
Joseph saw two dreams when he was seventeen. He had to sit on this bench through slave time and prison time till he became thirty before his dreams got fulfilled.
God told Noah to build an ark and to warn the people about the upcoming judgment thru the flood. He had to sit on this bench for a hundred and twenty years enduring the mocking of people. The flood came just as God warned and Noah’s family was kept safe in the ark which he had built obediently and diligently.
Rachel had to wait on this dreaded bench for a child while her sister Leah was blessed with many children. God blessed Rachel with Joseph and Benjamin – Joseph became the reason all of Leah’s children were fed and protected, while out of Benjamin came the first King of Israel.
Hannah had to sit on this bench just like Rachel. Her misery was so great that she offered the child back to God if He would bless her with a son. And God blessed her with Samuel who became the prophet who anointed the first two Kings of Israel.
The list goes on. All those who waited on God in faith and perseverance witnessed the promise-keeping hand of God Almighty!
1 Peter 5:6,7 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
Has God put you on this dreaded bench? His eyes are on you, just as the refiner’s eye is on the metal being refined in the fire. You are in the process of being made as precious in His eyes.
