Sunday Blessings - Moonlight

 Brother  Mike  preached  about what   should  be  our  motivation for  worshipping  God .Worship God  for  who  He  is and because  He  alone  is  worthy to  be   worshipped and  not because  we  want  our  prayers  answered or  feel  good  and  holy.
After service everyone was  served  hot, sweet  milky  chai (tea)  with  sweet  biscuits and  samosas ( fried snack). We  stayed on  meeting  people,  having  fellowship. Even Sheeba  joined in  playing   the  children. Returned  home  just   before  3 PM.  God  is   good.

The  moon  looks   so  beautiful tonight.

The  moon  like  a  flower
In heaven 's high bower,
With silent delight
Sits and  smiles  on  the  night.
-WILLIAM BLAKE
 

Sunday Blessings- O Come Little Children

These   neighbourhood  children  like  our Sunday School songs,  stories  and activities.  Their  leader, an  older  boy  told me   they  missed their  'gift ' last  Sunday. I promised  to  give  them  a  Christmas  Day  treat. (smile)

Sunday Blessings - 41st Wedding Anniversary

Last  Sunday  I  was  invited  to  a  celebration  of  Rev  and  Mrs  Ghosh '  41st  wedding  anniversary. They are  age  old  family friends  and our  spiritual  teachers so  I  was  glad  to   attend. Rev Ghosh  is  Pastor  of  Holy  Trinity  Church, which  is  an  Anglican  Church,  more  than  150  years  old,  built  by  the  British.Its  architecture,  furnishings,  liturgical  service  and  Anglican  music all speak  of its   ancient  past. The  services  are  conducted  in  English. I  took  some  photos   for  you  to  enjoy and  get  the  feel of  the High  Church  of  England  in  India.

Beautiful brass  Bible  reading  stand.

Rev  Ghosh  preaching  on  his  anniversary. He is  a very  learned   man  and  is  a professor  at   a  Seminary .

My  sister-in-law who is  also a  professor in  the  Allahabad  University  leading  the  litany  of  prayers.. Her husband  who  is an eye  surgeon (cousin) plays  the  organ  and  other  instruments  in  this   church.At  one  time  this  church had  a  pipe  organ  but  it fell  into disrepair  and  no  one  could  fix  it,  so  they  removed  it.

The  happy  couple

Tea  and   snacks  served  on the  porch.

Some  Japanese  visitors. One  of then  brought  Momo (stuffed  steamed  dumplings)  to  be  served with  tea.

The  Ghosh  family. Rev and  Mrs  Ghosh , daughter  Ruth,  Esther ( works  as  a  project  Manager  in  a  Christian  organisation), son  Issac who  is  a professor of English   in  Agra.

Esther  made  these cakes   for  her  parents.

Japanese friends  with  Ruth in  the  front. They  gave me  a  lift  back in  their  jeep.  The  girl  on  the extreme left  is  married  to  an  Indian  man  and  speaks  very  good English  and  Hindi. She  is  the  one  who  brought momos  for  the  tea. The girl  on the  extreme  right is  from   Nepal. They  are all  involved  in  training  farmers  in  a non-formal farmer  's training  school. We  have  many  friends  there.

Sunday Blessings- Angelina

Little   Angelina  sang  a  worship  song  in  this  morning 's  service.

She  has   a  very  sweet  voice  and  reads  Bible  passages  with

great  confidence. Praise  God  we  have  15  children  in  our  newly  constituted  Sunday  School.

I  help  lead  in   the   worship  time  in  the  morning

and  evening  services.We  have  some  great  musicians  and  singers

participate  and  lift  up  our  hearts  towards  heaven.

On   August  1st  we  started  our  mid-week  Bible  teaching  programme.

More  than  35  people  of  all  ages  are  attending 

eager  to  study  the  Scriptures.

Some  of  them travel  long  distances  on  uncomfortable

public transport  to  get  to  the  city  centre.

God  is  working  among  us.

Sunday Blessings - Come Together

Every  Sunday  evening  we  have  our  church  outdoor  meeting.

It  is   amazing  to  see  people  coming  in   the  oppressive and  humid  heat.

People are   desirous  to hear  the  Gospel  message  and take 

part  in  worshipping  the King of  Glory.

Nowadays  because of   the  rains  we   are  having 

indoor  meetings  which  are  well  attended  too.

Yesterday ,  August  1st 

we  had  our  first  mid-week  Bible  study.

I  was only   expecting  10 or  12  people  to   show  up,  but 

more  than  20   came,  some  from 

far off  places , taking   inconvenient  public transport,

travelling  on  rough, rain  damaged  roads and  braving

traffic  jams.

Shows  how  much  they  covet  fellowship

and  teaching  of  the Word. The  faith   and enthusiasm  of  new  believers 

is a   lesson  to  us.

Angel  baby ,  cynosure  of  our   eyes.

                                  Her  smiling parents and  brother

People  lining up  for  prayer

Grandma  praising  the  Lord

Mother  and daughter  together

A   newly  married  couple

_________________________

I  read this  instructive   story which  I want

to  share here.

There's a story about a ceramics teacher who divided his class into two groups. One group would be graded on the quantity of their work. They were to make as many pots as possible. The other group would be graded on the quality of their work. They were to make as perfect a pot as possible. When the day came to grade the students, the professor was amazed to discover that the group being graded for quantity also had the best quality. The group churning out the most vessels made the finest pieces. The reason? They were learning from their mistakes, so their work was constantly improving. The "quality" group spent all their time working on a single pot, but without the benefit of failures, mistakes, or experience.

Don't be afraid to fail. Proverbs 24:16 (NLT) says, "The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again." If you've made a mistake or encountered a failure, don't stay down. Failure is often the back door to success.


Success is simple. Do what's right, the right way, at the right time.

Arnold Glasow

Sunday Blessings -Evening Meeting

I  want  to  share  some  pictures  from  our  evening  Gospel  meeting.

Today  we  started  using our  new JBL  sound  system. This  professional  system  is  very  expensive  and  was  ordered  from Delhi. It  rocks.

People  coming  forward  for   prayer.

Rev. Prof. Dr. Herbert praying for  healing  and  deliverance.

Assistant  Pastor Brijesh.

A  mom with  her  6  month  old  son.

Jesus is  the  reason  they  found  happiness.

Today  after  morning  service  my  sister Sonia

(visiting  from  Lucknow) served  lunch  to  60  people.

Everyone  enjoyed  rice , egg  curry and  paneer curry (paneer  is  similar  to  ricotta cheese) and  rotis (flat  bread).

It  was  a great  labour  of love  cooking  in the  115*  heat.  Sonia  had  5 people help her.

Sonia  has  a  serving  heart. She    served Christ   through  feeding   people. Everyone  blessed  her  in  return.

A  newly  married   couple  served soda  pop  and  sweets after  church.

It  was  a  great day.

"We  love  because  H e loved  us   first. "

1 John 4;9 (BIBLE)

Sunday Blessings -On Display

But   we  have  this  treasure  in  earthen vessels  that  the  excellence  of  the  power be  of  God   and  not  of  us.  2Cor 4:7 (BIBLE)

 A treasure  is  something valuable enough that  it  is put  in  a  special  place so  all  can  observe it,or  hidden  away  so  none  can  enjoy it. Wealthy people  put  their  jewelry and  and other  treasures  in locked boxes so no one will  steal them. They live  in fear of possible loss. How nice  it  is when national or personal treasures are put on display so all  can  appreciate their beauty and  value.
The glory of God is  divine treasure that has been on display on many occasions throughout history..Abraham saw it when God confirmed  His covenant with him. Jacob saw  it  from  his  stone  pillow. Moses  and  Israel followed  it from Egypt to  Canaan.. Peter,James and  John saw it on  the  Mount of  Transfiguration.
The resurrection and glorification of the  Lord  Jesus  Christ Made it  possible for  every  believer to partake of this divine  treasure while still  in  their   earthly  bodies.When we  first  believed  in Christ we were  given "the light of  the  knowledge of God in the  face  of Jesus  Christ."This  permanent personal  possession is the glory of God imparted to us  by   the  Holy Spirit. He reveals  the  excellence  of  the  knowledge of  Christ. What  an amazing  treasure to hold in our  earthly  bodies!

adapted  from the  writing  of  Fredrick L. Kosin

Sunday Blessings - Moved

(Guava on our  tree)

I am not  moved by what  I  see.
I am not  moved  by  what  I  feel.
I am moved only by what I  believe.
- Smith  Wigglesworth

Sunday Blessings -A Mini Christmas Story

Inspired  by   my  friend  John  Cowart  who  made  a video called Christmas  in  a Tin Box ,  I  made  this  video which  could  be  called Christmas  in  a Cardboard  Box with  the  help of  a creche  sent  to   me  by   my  Texan friend Holly.

Jesus  was  born  among the poor, the  hungry, the  disadvantaged  and the  unloved. He came to an ordinary family among  ordinary people. He came as a Saviour- on a rescue  mission to redeem and to liberate.
Prayer
 God,which makes  us  glad  with  the  yearly  remembrance of  the  birth of thy  only Son Jesus  Christ; grant  that as we  gratefully receive  for our  Redeemer, so we  may   with sure  confidence behold  Him  when  He  shall  come to be our  judge,  who liveth  and  reigneth forever.
( Collect  from the  1549  Prayer Book)

Sunday Blessings -Christmas for the poor

                  Worshippers  at  the Grace  Festival

Oscar  Romero who  fought for  the  rights  of  the  poor  in  South  America and  who  was  killed  in  the  midst   of  his  prophetic  ministry recognised  that   we don 't  only  need to  stand   with  the  poor...but  to  recognise our  own  poverty of  spirit.

No  on can  celebrate  Christmas without  being  spiritually  poor.
The  self  sufficient  , the proud,  those   who, because  they have  everything  look  down  on  others.
Those  who  have  even  no  need  of  God - for  them  there  will  be  no  Christmas.
Only  the  poor, the  hungry, those  who  need  someone to  come  on  their  behalf will  have  that  someone.
That  someone is  God, Emmanuel, God  with  us.
Without  poverty  of  spirit there  can  be  no  abundance  of God.

Lord  forgive  me that  I  am so  self sufficient
                                              so easily satisfied
                                              so full of self
Create in me  an empathy  with  the  poor that  I  may  be  truly  understand
Create  in me a poverty of  spirit which reaches  out  to  you  for  more...

(Rob Frost)

Sunday Blessings - The Lonely Christian

Lately  I  've   been  going  through  some  trials and  this  quote sent  by  a  friend blessed  me. When  Jesus  stepped  onto  the  earth  as Emmanuel,  God  with  us,  He  also  choose  loneliness.


The Loneliness of the Christian

“The loneliness of the Christian results from his walk with God in an ungodly world, a walk that must often take him away from the fellowship of good Christians as well as from that of the unregenerate world. His God-given instincts cry out for companionship with others of his kind, others who can understand his longings, his aspirations, his absorption in the love of Christ; and because within his circle of friends there are so few who share his inner experiences he is forced to walk alone. The unsatisfied longings of the prophets for human understanding caused them to cry out in their complaint, and even our Lord Himself suffered in the same way.

“The man who has passed on into the divine Presence in actual inner experience will not find many who understand him. He finds few who care to talk about that which is the supreme object of his interest, so he is often silent and preoccupied in the midst of noisy religious shoptalk. For this he earns the reputation of being dull and over-serious, so he is avoided and the gulf between him and society widens. He searches for friends upon whose garments he can detect the smell of myrrh and aloes and cassia out of the ivory palaces, and finding few or none he, like Mary of old, keeps these things in his heart.

“It is this very loneliness that throws him back upon God. His inability to find human companionship drives him to seek in God what he can find nowhere else.”

AW Tozer
 
My  blog  friend  John  Cowart  is  an  author of  repute he inspired  me  to  start  blogging . He  made a great Christmas video   called  CHRISTMAS  IN  A  TIN  BOX
Please  visit  his  blog  and  watch  him  tell  the  Christmas  story in  his  own   way.

Sunday Blessings - Jesus You Have Come to Save Us

May   the  words   and  music  of  this  holy  song  lift  our  hearts close  to  heaven  in  worship  and  praise thanking  God  for  sending  Jesus to  save  us  from  the  incurable  disease  of  sin.
Jesus  said,"I  have  come that  they   may  have  life,and  that  they  may  have  it  more  abundantly." John 10;10
(BIBLE)

Sunday Blessings -Come Thou Long Expected Jesus

Hymn  for  the  first  Sunday  of  Advent

Sunday  events
1. Worship  service
2. Overseeing   some  maintenance work  on   the   campus -  workmen  were  only  available  today.
3. Attending  a funeral in   the  afternoon.
4. Vising  old    aunts who  live  in the  neighbourhood.
5. Telephone  conversations with  sisters  in  Lucknow
and  Meghalaya.
6. A  pleasant  surprise visit  from   very   dear  friends
Majorie , Sudhakar and Thomas.

My  day  started  with   this  glorious meditation  from Experiencing  God  Day  by  Day  by  Richard   and  Henry  Blackaby.

God Is with You


Daily Devotional for Sunday, November 27th, 2011

Thus says the LORD of hosts: "In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, 'Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'" Zechariah 8:23

God’s desire is to fill His people with His Spirit so that others recognize His powerful presence in them. The presence of the Lord in a believer’s life ought to be obvious. When the Spirit of almighty God fills a believer, the believer cannot go on living as before. Others will see God.
God told His people through the prophet Zechariah that His presence ought to make a difference in their lives. If God’s people walked closely with Him, people from every language and every part of the world would hear that they were a people who knew God. People would come from every nation on earth to find the true God among His people. If the people saw a child of God, they would long to be with him or her because in so doing they would be with God. God gave the vivid picture of ten people clinging to one believer, hoping to find God.

Christ’s presence ought to be so evident in your life that the people around you are drawn to you. They should want their children to be with your children because your children are being raised with a godly influence. Employers ought to want you in their workplace; people should seek you for their leader because they know you as someone of integrity before God. Your life and your home ought to be a magnet for people as they sense God’s presence with you and your family. The more you allow Christ to make His presence evident in your life, the more people will draw near you and find Him

Sunday Blessings- Mud Atound the Gold

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer
grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith-of greater worth
than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire-may be proved genuine and
may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. --I Peter 1:6-7 (BIBLE)

"Soon after a wartime marriage, Margie Hamilton's husband was killed. Then a little
later her baby was born with a cruel deformity. After about 40 operations, poverty
followed. Reacting  to  all  her  misfortunes she  said, "Its all
mud around the gold.'"
 
Like  Margie I   have  plenty  of  mud around  the gold. And  sometimes  its hard  to  see   the  gold. But  what  Margie  said  helps  me  to  focus  on  the  gold.
 
And  the Bible  says  we   have  this  treasure  in  earthen vessels so  the  the  glory   may  belong   to  God  and  not ourselves.
 
Are  you  rejoicing  with  me?

(adapted  from  Joni  Ereckson Tada)

Sunday Blessings - My White Peugeot

On  the wings  of  a  snow  white  dove
God  sends  His  pure  sweet  love
A  gift  from  above
On   the wings  of  a  dove.

Today  we  discovered  a white  pigeon  in  our  garden/ Our  church  helper told   us  he 's  been  here since  a week  and  roosts  on  top  of  his mosquito net. We  adopted  him  and  I  named  him Peugeot.

Mama  holding  him

 Looking  for  a nesting  place.  Peugeot  is  very  comfortable  among  humans.

 Tried  to create  a natural  habitat  for  him

 He  disappeared  and  we   found  him  pecking  at  Sheeba 's  food  . He  splashed  about  in  her   water  bowl  and  spilled  water.

 Having  dinner

Sheeba  is  very  gentle. But   she  wants  to  know  what 's   the  fuss  about.

Please  pray  for  me tomorrow Nov. 14th  may  bring  a  new beginning  for  my  life. I  need  grace  and  confidence  from  the  Lord.

Sunday Blessings - Walking With The Desert Fathers

Anthony of Egypt: First of the Desert Monks


Verse:

Matthew 19:21
 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Quote: "The mind of the soul is strong when the pleasures of the body are weak." (Anthony's motto)

"If you want to be perfect, go and sell everything you have and give the money to the poor." These are the words that stopped the rich kid dead in his tracks. His parents had died, and now all their wealth belongs to him. The much-heralded city of Alexandria offers infinite opportunities for luxurious living. His whole life is ahead of him. He can travel in comfort and see the wonders of the world if he so desires. But he hears the call of God in that very pointed gospel passage. His only travel will be to the desert. His journey of the soul begins by giving his wealth to the poor and leaving his childhood home. His goal is to become a true lover of God - to give himself entirely to

Christ, ever vigilant in resisting the devil. His motto: "The mind of the soul is strong when the pleasures of the body are weak." He nourishes himself on bread and water, fasting altogether every other day and denying himself sleep, preferring to pray through the night.

Anthony (251 - 356), whose life story is told by Athanasius, lives among the tombs, where he is assaulted by wild animals and demons. This is God's way of training him to fight and win spiritual battles like an athlete prevailing in the arena. After a time he leaves the tombs, seeking an even more secluded area, where he remains for twenty years, becoming a celebrity - a superstar among desert saints. Disciples seek him out, and their encounters with him inspire generations of ascetics.

In one instance when a would-be follower tells him that he has given all his wealth away but for a small amount for necessities, the response is vintage Anthony: "If you want to be a monk, go into the village, buy some meat, cover your naked body with it and come here like that." When the man returns, his body is bloody and torn by wild dogs and vultures. The moral of the story: "Those who renounce the world but want to keep something for themselves are torn in this way by the demons who make war on them."

Anthony's activities intersect with the lives of other well-known figures of the era. During the brutal persecution under Emperor Diocletian in 303, he travels to Rome to minister to the suffering. He is also enmeshed in the theological controversies of the day. Athanasius persuades him to come to Alexandria from his desert hideaway to speak out against Arius, whose views are catching fire. Though he is no theologian, Anthony epitomizes sainthood. His life of self-denial is the support Athanasius most desires. Saint Augustine will later be put to shame by reading Athanasius's story of Anthony.

After his trip to Alexandria, Anthony returns to the desert with two companions who care for him in his final years. Despite all the privations he endures he lives to age one hundred and five, according to Athanasius, having secured the promise that his body will be buried in an unmarked grave. His concerns are not for dogs or vultures. He does not want his bones and remnants of clothing fought over and revered as relics. For him spirituality is self-denial and sacrifice, not saint-worship.

If you enjoyed the above article, please take a minute to read about the book that it was adapted from:

http://click.lists.biblegateway.com/?qs=afb08da19b36db8eae156598f21ba42154b68c8465c14b45740ca9af87e0a73b

Parade of Faith: A Biographical History of the Christian Church
by Ruth A. Tucker

The story of Christianity centers on people whose lives have been transformed by the resurrected Lord. Tucker puts this front and center in a lively overview peppered with sidebars; historical "what if?" questions; sections on everyday life; drawings and illustrations; bibliographies for further reading.

( Indian  countryside from  a train

photo  by  Megan  and  Ashish)

The  Muslim  festival  of  Eid  known   as

Bakrid in  India is   being  celebrated.

Thousand  of goats will  be  sacrificed

in  remembrance  of  the  sacrifice  of  Abraham.

God  asked  him  to  sacrifice  his  son  Issac,  the  Muslims  replace  him   with  Hazrat  Ishmael.

God  provided  a ram which  Abraham  sacrificed 

after  his  faith   and  obedience  was  tested.

Jesus   is   the  perfect Lamb  of  God

who  was  sacrificed for   the  forgiveness

of  our  sins.

¹¹ But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; ¹² and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. ¹³ For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, ¹⁴ how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Hebrews 9

(New  Testament  Bible)