How does the devil deceive you today?

"Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil." Ephesians 6:10,11

Most of us are very much worried about the defeats in our spiritual life. If we dig deep down our hearts, we will acknowledge that there is a tough conflict between choosing to follow the worldly life or Godly ways. The higher danger is when we think that some of the worldly ways are Godly and hence we are trapped in utter deception.
 

We may think that our indulgence in social media to read spiritual messages is a wise thing to do, but what we fail to recognize is that it steals our time in having real fellowship with God. How great would be our spiritual pursuits if we can reduce our social media time and give it to God by meditating on His word and praying.
 

Entertainment, gossips, too much planning about tomorrow, over indulgence in your hobbies, passions or job, be it whatever....if any of these prevent you from having quality time with God, it needs to be addressed immediately.
 

We need to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power if we have to overcome the world. We wrongly thing that we can do it ourselves by our own efforts, self discipline and resistance. But the word of God is very clear and it says that we have to put on God's armour to stand against the strategies of the devil.
 

Social media, entertainment, keeping you too busy on your passions, making you worry about your future are some of the strategies of the devil to rob you off the fellowship with God. We need to be very wise and nip these things at the bud or else these will eat us up and we will go wayward.

Friend, today, let us return back to God with our whole heart, that love which we had for Him when we entered into a relationship with Him, that early love...It is true that God has blessed us in many ways and let us never allow those blessings and comforts to stand as a wall between us and God. If a tree is not watered for a long time, in a similar way, if we don't draw our spiritual food everyday from God, we will be frustrated, desperate, anxious, egoistic and filled with all the vices of this world. Let us turn back to God today! God bless you!

The importance of Cross

Draw me nearer, nearer blessed Lord
To the cross where thou hast died
Draw me nearer, nearer blessed Lord
To thy precious bleeding side

Let these beautiful words of Fanny Crossby resonate through our heart, mind and soul this morning as we look upon the face of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Unless our spiritual eyes are opened to take a glimpse at the bleeding Savior on the cross of Calvary, we cannot have an overcoming Christian life. The Cross is the origin of everything that God has prepared for those who love Him and are chosen according to His own purpose.

It is at that rugged cross that the Almighty God chose to put an end to the wretched bondage of sin over us. This is the reason in our Christian lives, we should always have our minds set on the sacrificial love offered by Jesus at the cross. The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1: 23 that "We preach Christ crucified which is a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the gentiles".

While the Jews demanded signs and wonders, the Greeks sought after human wisdom for relating with God. We should understand that God chose a cruel thing like cross to bring salvation to us and it is beyond the reach of human wisdom. Many of those in Jesus's days could not accept the fact that He should die on a cross to redeem mankind. It seemed like utter foolishness to them whose mind was full of theology and doctrines, the so called learned people of Christ's time.

We can see the same happening today all around us in Christendom. Preachers thrive well with their wizardry of words, calming people with mesmerising music and blindfolding them with the so called manifestation of power and miracles. If you discern carefully, this is what Apostle Paul calls as human wisdom and he was strongly opposing it.

It is wise to preach the gospel in its plain and simple form rather than packing it up in a nice and wonderful way for everyone to accept. Christ never pleased anyone and in fact he made more enemies when He preached the unadulterated gospel in all its power and so did the disciples and apostles.

Unless, we see the power of the sacrifice of Christ in the cross, it is very difficult to understand anything else in Christianity as everything right from the beginning were pointing to that moment in that cruel cross which Jesus had to endure according to the soverign plan of God. It is the ultimate manifestation of the love of God to save crooks and sinners like you and me. Realizing our filth in the context of God's love is what can cleanse our wounded soul and reignite it to live for God.

If you haven't experienced the love of Calvary in its fullest form so far, I request you to soak in it today by welcoming Christ to come back into your hearts and rule your all. God bless you.

I am back O Lord

There are so many things that flash through my mind O Lord
My thoughts race to try everything by all means
I try and try...sigh and sigh...but nothing progresses
I am troubled, confused and disappointed

The world is tempting with all its offerings
Like the apple that tempted Eve
There are so many attractions that fascinate me
Only to be enticed and trapped

Till I am stripped naked in the open
As in the garden of Eden
I try to cover my shame with my intellect
only to be bared all over again and again

Then I remembered you O Lord
The gentle voice and the loving cry
That piercing look and merciful countenance
Is enough for me to turn back

Here am I O Lord
again at your feet
ashamed and weak
Lift me up through thy grace

I may stumble and waver
sometimes may go far away
I know you hold my hand all the time
and will draw me back from afar

You are my Lord
The gentle Shephered
The loving Savior
My all powerful Creator

I worship thee with my all
I surrender my being
unto thy feet I bring
my soul and my all