God’s Will For Us!

God’s Will For Us!

Samuel spoke to the people and reminded them of how the Lord had saved them and brought them safely out of Egypt. Now he spoke to the people who had gathered for Saul’s coronation thus, “I have given you a king, just as you asked.  You asked for a king, and you chose one. Now he stands here where all of you can see him. But it was really the LORD who made him your king. If you and your king want to be followers of the LORD, you must worship him and do what he says. Don't be stubborn! If you're stubborn and refuse to obey the LORD, he will turn against you and your king. Just stand here and watch the LORD show his mighty power. Isn't this the dry season? I'm going to ask the LORD to send a thunderstorm. When you see it, you will realize how wrong you were to ask for a king. Samuel prayed, and that same day the LORD sent a thunderstorm. Everyone was afraid of the LORD and of Samuel. They told Samuel, "Please, pray to the LORD your God for us! We don't want to die. We have sinned many times in the past, and we were very wrong to ask for a king." Samuel answered: Even though what you did was wrong, you don't need to be afraid. But you must always follow the LORD and worship him with all your heart. Don't worship idols! They don't have any power, and they can't help you or save you when you're in trouble. But the LORD has chosen you to be his own people. He will always take care of you so that everyone will know how great He is. I would be disobeying the LORD if I stopped praying for you! I will always teach you how to live right. You also must obey the LORD--you must worship Him with all your heart and remember the great things He has done for you. But if you and your king do evil, the LORD will wipe you out.”

Lesson to be Learnt:

Yesterday we saw about the choices we make. There are two things that can happen, If you submit to God’s will you will have God’s choice being done. But if are stubborn asking for what you want to happen to you, then the Lord does answer your prayers but you have to face the consequences of that wish. Israel was stubborn in wanting a King while the Lord was still their King. Later they faced many troubles under the Kings who ruled Israel. But the Lord indeed warned them about what a King can do to them. But they dint listen.

So to everyone of us in this world, there are 2 choices

1.       Submit to the will of God and follow Him with all your heart to wherever He leads you

2.       Praying for your personal will and trying to pursue your own purposes.         

        Now a personal decision can be of two types one good and the other bad.

Even if your decision is good, it cannot even be compared to God’s least that He has got for you. So think about the best He has got for you.

Now if your decision is bad,sinful,evil like how the Israelites decided, then you will also have to rear the consequences of the decision.

So it is always the Best option to rely on God completely for your life.

1Co 2:9

(CEV)  But it is just as the Scriptures say, "What God has planned for people who love him is more than eyes have seen or ears have heard. It has never even entered our minds!"

(Hindi) परन्‍तु जैसा लिखा है, कि जो आंख ने नहीं देखी, और कान ने नहीं सुना, और जो बातें मनुष्य के चित्त में नहीं चढ़ी वे ही हैं, जो परमेश्वर ने अपके प्रेम रखनेवालोंके लिथे तैयार की हैं।

(Kan) ಆದರೆ ಬರೆದಿರುವ ಪ್ರಕಾರ--ದೇವರು ತನ್ನನ್ನು ಪ್ರೀತಿಸು ವವರಿಗಾಗಿ ಸಿದ್ಧಮಾಡಿರುವಂಥವುಗಳನ್ನು ಕಣ್ಣು ಕಾಣಲಿಲ್ಲ, ಕಿವಿ ಕೇಳಲಿಲ್ಲ, ಇಲ್ಲವೆ ಅವು ಮನುಷ್ಯನ ಹೃದಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಸೇರಲಿಲ್ಲ.

(Mal) “ദൈവം തന്നെ സ്നേഹിക്കുന്നവര്‍ക്കും ഒരുക്കീട്ടുള്ളതു കണ്ണു കണ്ടിട്ടില്ല ചെവി കേട്ടിട്ടില്ല, ഒരു മനുഷ്യന്റെയും ഹൃദയത്തില്‍ തോന്നീട്ടുമില്ല.” എന്നു എഴുതിയിരിക്കുന്നതുപോലെ തന്നേ.

(Tamil OV)  எழுதியிருக்கிறபடி: தேவன் தம்மில் அன்புகூருகிறவர்களுக்கு ஆயத்தம்பண்ணினவைகளைக் கண் காணவுமில்லை, காது கேட்கவுமில்லை, அவைகள் மனுஷனுடைய இருதயத்தில் தோன்றவுமில்லை;

(Telugu)  ఇందునుగూర్చిదేవుడు తన్ను ప్రేమించువారకొరకు ఏవి సిద్ధపరచెనో అవి కంటికి కనబడలేదు, చెవికివినబడలేదు, మనుష్య హృదయమునకు గోచరము కాలేదుఅని వ్రాయబడియున్నది.

                

Israel's First King!

Israel's First King!

Samuel had judged Israel for many years. He was good and followed God. But Samuel’s sons were evil. Samuel was getting old and people did not want his son to be their leaders. So the people thought that they can have a King like all other nations. They told Samuel about it.But it upset Samuel as the people rejected his leadership. Samuel prayed to the Lord and the Lord told Samuel not to feel bad as the people had not rejected him but rejected the Lord to be their leader.  Still, the Lord told Samuel that he would let the people have their way. Samuel warned the people about how a King would be. They would have to pay taxes and some of them would have to be servants. But the people still wanted to have a King. Now,there was a young man named Saul.  He was from the tribe of Benjamin and the clan of Matri.  His father’s name was Kish and Kish owned a lot of donkeys.  Saul was looking after them but the donkeys were lost.  Saul and his father’s servant looked all over the hill country for the donkeys but they could not find them anywhere. Finally, Saul told the servant that they had better go back home.“I heard that Samuel, the man of God, is in the next town.  Maybe he can pray to God and ask him where the donkeys are.”So Saul and the servant went to the next town to find Samuel’s house.  When Saul saw a man walking along the road he asked where Samuel was ,the man said, “ Saul, I am Samuel.  Stop worrying about the donkeys.  They have been found.  You are going to come to my house today and eat a special meal. Tomorrow morning I will tell you everything that is in your heart.” God had already spoken regarding Saul to Samuel. Saul went inside Samuel’s house and ate a special meal with him.  The next morning they walked outside and Samuel gave Saul a special message from God.“Saul, the Lord has chosen you to be the king over all of Israel.”Then Samuel did a special thing to show that Saul had been chosen by God.  He poured oil on Saul’s head.  Pouring oil on a person’s head to show a special purpose is called anointing. Samuel wanted Saul to understand that God was choosing him to do something very special.  If Saul could see God’s power then he would know it was true.  So Samuel told Saul exactly what would happen for the rest of the day as Saul was travelling. And it happened exactly like how Samuel told him. So Saul went to Gilgal to wait for Samuel. All the people were waiting for Samuel in Gilgal too because they wanted Samuel to tell them who the new king would be. When he arrived Samuel showed that the Lord had chosen a man from the tribe of Benjamin, the clan of a man named Matri. From the clan of Matri,the family of Kish, Kish’s son, Saul.But Saul became afraid and hid himself. Samuel prayed to the Lord again and the Lord told Samuel where Saul was hiding .” He was taller and handsome than all of the other men.  The people were finally happy.  They could have a king of their own. Saul was the first king of Israel.  

Lesson to be Learnt:

                God is a Provider. Provider means, He fulfills the needs of His children. When Israel needed a King He gave them one. Now look at the description of Saul in the Bible. He was taller and handsome than any other man in Israel. There is a difference between how we choose things for ourselves and how God chooses things for us. For example, When you are in school and you need to take college, you might think you will do best if you are a doctor/ Engineer or something. But I bet if you let the Lord make that choice for you, you will have the best of God’s Provisions. For you sought and gave Him honor by letting Him choose for you. Likewise young men/women who are wanting to marry, Pray to God, let your marriage happen according to His will, you will surely see His best waiting for you. You would have never imagined a life like that. So stop wasting time dreaming about Prince/Princess charming of your life and use your time to pray to the Lord for His best to come to you.

1Co 2:9

(CEV)  But it is just as the Scriptures say, "What God has planned for people who love him is more than eyes have seen or ears have heard. It has never even entered our minds!"

(Hindi) परन्‍तु जैसा लिखा है, कि जो आंख ने नहीं देखी, और कान ने नहीं सुना, और जो बातें मनुष्य के चित्त में नहीं चढ़ी वे ही हैं, जो परमेश्वर ने अपके प्रेम रखनेवालोंके लिथे तैयार की हैं।

(Kan) ಆದರೆ ಬರೆದಿರುವ ಪ್ರಕಾರ--ದೇವರು ತನ್ನನ್ನು ಪ್ರೀತಿಸು ವವರಿಗಾಗಿ ಸಿದ್ಧಮಾಡಿರುವಂಥವುಗಳನ್ನು ಕಣ್ಣು ಕಾಣಲಿಲ್ಲ, ಕಿವಿ ಕೇಳಲಿಲ್ಲ, ಇಲ್ಲವೆ ಅವು ಮನುಷ್ಯನ ಹೃದಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಸೇರಲಿಲ್ಲ.

 (Mal) “ദൈവം തന്നെ സ്നേഹിക്കുന്നവര്‍ക്കും ഒരുക്കീട്ടുള്ളതു കണ്ണു കണ്ടിട്ടില്ല ചെവി കേട്ടിട്ടില്ല, ഒരു മനുഷ്യന്റെയും ഹൃദയത്തില്‍ തോന്നീട്ടുമില്ല.” എന്നു എഴുതിയിരിക്കുന്നതുപോലെ തന്നേ.

 (Tamil OV)  எழுதியிருக்கிறபடி: தேவன் தம்மில் அன்புகூருகிறவர்களுக்கு ஆயத்தம்பண்ணினவைகளைக் கண் காணவுமில்லை, காது கேட்கவுமில்லை, அவைகள் மனுஷனுடைய இருதயத்தில் தோன்றவுமில்லை;

(Telugu)  ఇందునుగూర్చిదేవుడు తన్ను ప్రేమించువారకొరకు ఏవి సిద్ధపరచెనో అవి కంటికి కనబడలేదు, చెవికివినబడలేదు, మనుష్య హృదయమునకు గోచరము కాలేదుఅని వ్రాయబడియున్నది. ³

From the Editor's Desk!

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus. We believe you are having great time reading the word of God and building a strong relationship with God. So why this mail? Recently we had an opportunity to view a short video on the end of days created by a Christian organization. It was very truthful and all the things prophesied in the Bible are getting fulfilled one by one. Let’s just take a moment and look around us. There is so many who suffer pain, sickness, and bondage to sin. Daily newspaper shows people cheating each other, murder ,suicide and adultery. Where are we heading to?. When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He was so compassionate to the sick, the needy and the sinners. He never made them guilty but showed most compassion that saved a lot of people from their sinful life. We worship that compassionate Lord today. What do we do for the needy around us?

There are many who are willing to sing/give money/ play music and use much more talents for the Lord. But there are very very few who are willing to spend time praying for the dying souls all around us. There are many people around us who don’t have a chance to know the Lord Jesus atleast once. So my dear brother/sister, Shall we kneel in the presence of the Lord and pray with compassion for the dying souls around us. Take time to visit the sick at a hospital. Pray for them. Take time to speak about Jesus to a neighbor who is having a tough time. But do it all with lots of prayer. May God bless your effort! We would like to hear about your little efforts too!

Mat 25:31  - 46

When the Son of Man comes in his glory with all of his angels, he will sit on his royal throne.

The people of all nations will be brought before him, and he will separate them, as shepherds separate their sheep from their goats.

He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

Then the king will say to those on his right, "My father has blessed you! Come and receive the kingdom that was prepared for you before the world was created.

When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat, and when I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me,

and when I was naked, you gave me clothes to wear. When I was sick, you took care of me, and when I was in jail, you visited me."

Then the ones who pleased the Lord will ask, "When did we give you something to eat or drink?

When did we welcome you as a stranger or give you clothes to wear

or visit you while you were sick or in jail?"

The king will answer, "Whenever you did it for any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you did it for me."

Then the king will say to those on his left, "Get away from me! You are under God's curse. Go into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels!

I was hungry, but you did not give me anything to eat, and I was thirsty, but you did not give me anything to drink.

I was a stranger, but you did not welcome me, and I was naked, but you did not give me any clothes to wear. I was sick and in jail, but you did not take care of me."

Then the people will ask, "Lord, when did we fail to help you when you were hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in jail?"

The king will say to them, "Whenever you failed to help any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you failed to do it for me."

Then Jesus said, "Those people will be punished forever. But the ones who pleased God will have eternal life."

Regards

Letter From God Team!

Blood of Jesus!

Blood of Jesus!

The people of Kiriath-Jearim got the chest and took it to Abinadab's house, which was on a hill in their town. They chose his son Eleazar to take care of it, and it stayed there for twenty years. During this time everyone in Israel was very sad and begged the LORD for help. One day, Samuel told all the people of Israel, "If you really want to turn back to the LORD, then prove it. Get rid of your foreign idols, including the ones of the goddess Astarte. Turn to the LORD with all your heart and worship only Him. Then He will rescue you from the Philistines." The people got rid of their idols and began worshiping only the LORD. Then Samuel said, "Tell everyone in Israel to meet together at Mizpah, and I will pray to the LORD for you." The Israelites did so. They drew water from the well and poured it out as an offering to the LORD. On that same day they fasted  to show their sorrow, and they confessed they had been unfaithful to the LORD. When the Philistine rulers found out about the meeting at Mizpah, they sent an army there to attack the people of Israel. The Israelites were afraid when they heard that the Philistines were coming. "Don't stop praying!" they told Samuel. "Ask the LORD our God to rescue us." Samuel begged the LORD to rescue Israel, then he sacrificed a young lamb to the LORD. Samuel had not even finished offering the sacrifice when the Philistines started to attack. But the LORD answered his prayer and made thunder crash all around them. The Philistines panicked and ran away. The men of Israel left Mizpah and went after them as far as the hillside below Beth-Car, killing every enemy soldier they caught. The Philistines were so badly beaten that it was quite a while before they attacked Israel again. After the battle, Samuel set up a monument between Mizpah and the rocky cliffs. He named it "Ebenezer" to remind Israel how much the LORD had helped them. For as long as Samuel lived, the LORD helped Israel fight the Philistines.  The Israelites were even able to recapture their towns and territory between Ekron and Gath. Israel was also at peace with the Amorites.  Samuel was a leader in Israel all his life.

Lesson to be Learnt:

                In our mail on Monday(Seek First His Presence!) we saw that the Israelites brought the ark of the covenant to the battle ground and was very confident that they were going to win. But it was the contrary they lost it, because they were disobedient that time. But this time they had left all their unlawful ways and poured out their hearts before the Lord in total surrender and this time the Lord fought from heaven using thunder and saved them. That’s why the bible say the Lord hates the proud but answers the humble obedient people. The Lord knows we are humans and we are tempted to sin again n again. So how to be freed from it . Jesus died on the cross for us and shed His blood for us. When we acknowledge that fact and accept Jesus as our personal savior, we are washed in His blood and the blood of Jesus justifies us and frees us from the urge to sin. There are many who are addicted to drugs/smoking/drinking/ and other problems, they know it is wrong and they even try to get back, but they couldn’t, you can be like Samuel and pray for them and get them relived from their sinful life. Any sinner can be saved by the Lord and once washed in His blood, old things have passed away and all things are new and God never says u were a sinner , u did that terrible mistake, u did this horrible error. No!! Never!! Once you are saved you are free from bondage and guilt. So are you washed in the blood of the Lord Jesus?

1John 1:7

(CEV)  But if we live in the light, as God does, we share in life with each other. And the blood of His Son Jesus washes all our sins away.

(Hindi) पर यदि जैसा वह ज्योति में है, वैसे ही हम भी ज्योति में चलें, तो एक दूसरे से सहभागिता रखते हैं? और उसके पुत्र यीशु मसीह का लोहू हमें सब पापोंसे शुद्ध करता है।

 (Kan) ಆತನು ಬೆಳಕಿನಲ್ಲಿರು ವಂತೆಯೇ ನಾವೂ ಬೆಳಕಿನಲ್ಲಿ ನಡೆದರೆ ನಾವು ಒಬ್ಬರ ಸಂಗಡಲೊಬ್ಬರು ಅನ್ಯೋನ್ಯತೆಯಲ್ಲಿದ್ದೇವೆ; ಆತನ ಮಗನಾದ ಯೇಸುಕ್ರಿಸ್ತನ ರಕ್ತವು ನಮ್ಮನ್ನು ಸಕಲ ಪಾಪದಿಂದ ಶುದ್ಧಿಮಾಡುತ್ತದೆ.

(Mal) അവന്‍ വെളിച്ചത്തില്‍ ഇരിക്കുന്നതു പോലെ നാം വെളിച്ചത്തില്‍ നടക്കുന്നുവെങ്കില്‍ നമുക്കു തമ്മില്‍ കൂട്ടായ്മ ഉണ്ടു; അവന്റെ പുത്രനായ യേശുവിന്റെ രക്തം സകല പാപവും പോക്കി നമ്മെ ശുദ്ധീകരിക്കുന്നു.

 (Tamil OV)  அவர் ஒளியிலிருக்கிறதுபோல நாமும் ஒளியிலே நடந்தால் ஒருவரோடொருவர் ஐக்கியப்பட்டிருப்போம்; அவருடைய குமாரனாகிய இயேசு கிறிஸ்துவின் இரத்தம் சகல பாவங்களையும் நீக்கி, நம்மைச் சுத்திகரிக்கும்.

(Telugu)  అయితే ఆయన వెలుగులోనున్న ప్రకారము మనమును వెలుగులో నడిచినయెడల మనము అన్యోన్యసహవాసము గలవారమై యుందుము; అప్పుడు ఆయన కుమారుడైన యేసు రక్తము ప్రతి పాపమునుండి మనలను పవిత్రులనుగా చేయును.

My Time!

My Time!

After the sacred chest had been in Philistia for 7 months, the Philistines called in their priests and asked, What should be done with the sacred chest and how to send it back "Don't send it back without a gift," the priests and fortunetellers answered. "Send along something to Israel's God to make up for taking the chest in the first place. Then you will be healed, and you will find out why the LORD was causing you so much trouble." "What should we send?" the Philistines asked. The priests and fortunetellers answered: There are five Philistine rulers, and they all have the same disease that you have. So make five gold models of the sores and five gold models of the rats that are wiping out your crops. If you honor the God of Israel with this gift, maybe he will stop causing trouble for you and your gods and your crops. Don't be like the Egyptians and their king. They were stubborn, but when Israel's God was finished with them, they had to let Israel go. Get a new cart and two cows that have young calves and that have never pulled a cart. Hitch the cows to the cart, but take the calves back to their barn. Then put the chest on the cart. Put the gold rats and sores into a bag and put it on the cart next to the chest. Then send it on its way. Watch to see if the chest goes on up the road to the Israelite town of Beth-Shemesh. If it goes back to its own country, you will know that it was the LORD who made us suffer so badly. But if the chest doesn't go back to its own country, then the LORD had nothing to do with the disease that hit us--it was simply bad luck. The Philistines followed their advice. They hitched up the two cows to the cart, but they kept their calves in a barn. Then they put the chest on the cart, along with the bag that had the gold rats and sores in it. The cows went straight up the road toward Beth-Shemesh, mooing as they went. The Philistine rulers followed them until they got close to Beth-Shemesh. The people of Beth-Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley. When they looked up and saw the chest, they were so happy that they stopped working and started celebrating. The cows left the road and pulled the cart into a field that belonged to Joshua from Beth-Shemesh, and they stopped beside a huge rock. Some men from the tribe of Levi were there. So they took the chest off the cart and placed it on the rock, and then they did the same thing with the bag of gold rats and sores. A few other people chopped up the cart and made a fire. They killed the cows and burned them as sacrifices to the LORD. After that, they offered more sacrifices. When the five rulers of the Philistines saw what had happened, they went back to Ekron that same day.

Lesson to be Learnt:

                The reason behind sending two cows who have calves were that, when we set them they tend to return back to their calves, due to their motherly character. So the Philistines wanted to test and see if their trouble was just a coincidence or that really God of Israel had punished them for taking the Ark. But the cows went right into the land of the Israelites. So they came to understand that it was the hand of the Lord that was against them. Sometimes we think that certain problems/disease/trouble is due to bad luck or ill time. But it isn’t true. God has a purpose for everything that is happening in our lives. Some people call a day good /bad or even say that their time is good/bad. But the Bible says that everyday is made by the Lord and we have to rejoice in it and that our time is in Gods hand. We can’t predict our birth/death. It is in God’s hand to give us life. So let us pray daily and thank Him for the day He has given us and do our best to fulfill God’s purpose in our life.

Psalm 31:15

 (Hindi) मेरे दिन तेरे हाथ में है? तू मुझे मेरे शत्रुओं और मेरे सतानेवालोंके हाथ से छुड़ा।

(Kan) ನನ್ನ ಆಯ ಷ್ಕಾಲವು ನಿನ್ನ ಕೈಯಲ್ಲಿದೆ; ಶತ್ರುಗಳ ಕೈಯಿಂದಲೂ ಹಿಂಸೆಪಡಿಸುವವರಿಂದಲೂ ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಬಿಡಿಸು.

(Mal) എന്റെ കാലഗതികള്‍ നിന്റെ കയ്യില്‍ ഇരിക്കുന്നു; എന്റെ ശത്രുക്കളുടെയും എന്നെ പീഡിപ്പിക്കുന്നവരുടെയും കയ്യില്‍നിന്നു എന്നെ വിടുവിക്കേണമേ.

(MKJV)  My times are in Your hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies, and from those who persecute me.

(Tamil OV)  என் காலங்கள் உமது கரத்திலிருக்கிறது; என் சத்துருக்களின் கைக்கும் என்னைத் துன்பப்படுத்துகிறவர்களின் கைக்கும் என்னைத் தப்புவியும்.

(Telugu)  నా కాలగతులు నీ వశములో నున్నవి. నా శత్రువుల చేతిలోనుండి నన్ను రక్షింపుము నన్ను తరుమువారినుండి నన్ను రక్షింపుము.