The Greater Secret

The Secret by Rhonda Byne makes an interesting read about the power of a focussed mind to obtain whatever you want in life, be it a new car, house, promotion at work etc. It seems that a number of people of different religions have embraced this idealogy as it was my Hindu friend who enthusiastically introduced me to the series video. He talked about creating a vision board with photos of whatever he wanted to achieve or obtain. The points about focus are valid, however, for the Christian believer, this teaching leans toward the New Age movement as it points to the universe and not God our Creator as our source in life.

The Apostle Paul knew of a greater "Secret".

Our Happiness is:
not based on what we have or do not have,
not based on what we achieved or failed to achieve. 

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. (Philippians 4:12 NIV)

I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. (Philippians 4:12, 13 MSG)

Our happiness is in the Lord and not stuff and achievements.

For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— though I myself have reasons for such confidence.
If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, (Philippians 3:3-8, 13, 14, 18-20 NIV)

Paul was an acomplished scholar, a "Hebrew of Hebrews", a professor of the Law in his days - a major accomplishment which took years of hard work and study. He had a high status among Hebrew society and was among the elite in society.

But whatever were gains/achievements to him, he considered as garbage.

Our happiness is not based on what we achieved or obtained.

I'm writing this entry to encourage believers who have feel discouraged for not "achieving" or "attaining" a certain level of success as other believers.

Many times, we like to compare ourselves with others to gauge how "well" we are doing

"If my neighbour's car, house or even ministry is bigger and better than mine, then something must be wrong..."

Growing up in church and school, I used to be upset when just about everybody I know has surpassed me. Even those who joined my church later than me were promoted as youth leaders and have gone onto work full time in church.
Even my former classmates have surpassed me - they have high paying jobs, live in fancy apartments and drive nice cars.

And me- I take the bus, live with my parents until my budget apartment is completed in 2 years. To top it off, I'm fighting off 2 cancers and my new business just lost 2/3 of my clients. This is among a host of other challenges I face. For the longest time I felt that my life has been stuck in 1st gear. (or in reverse at times)

I can go through all things through Christ who stengthens me!
My happiness in in Him

So what if your ministry has only 20 people and you have been laboring for the past 20 years and your contemporary built a mega church in half that time.

As long as you have been faithfully doing what God told you to do, you are ok. God is only interested in obedience, not the "success" one attains through their own strength and sacrifice. A good idea does not automatically make it a God idea.

For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings. (Hosea 6:6 NIV)

My wife used to work in Canada in a ministry that focussed on the elderly/physically and mentally handicapped. What touched me the most was the faithfulness and obedience to the call of God. It is not easy to operate a ministry like that as it takes dedication. Will it ever become a mega church? Well, the ministry tends to be the last port of call before eternity...

Be happy where you are in life. Don't compare yourself with others or use achievement as a gauge for your walk with God.

10 laws of Love

In my previous blog, I mentioned that the 10 commandments are about love and not legalism.

While in meditation of Exodus 20, I realize that the word "10 commandments" is actually a "theological construct" - something the church came with to label this passage of scripture. To me, it is actually a guide on Love. Loving God and loving others.

Loving God:

"I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. "You shall have no other gods before me. "You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. "You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. (Exodus 20:2-11 NIV)

For if we love God, we:

1 & 2) Would not want to put anything before Him or idolize things - Like our career, ambitions, our most precious - not even our own family!

3) Would not use the Name of God in vain. Understand that the Name of Jesus is higher than our problems and situations. Treasure the Name of Jesus

4) Keep the Sabbath. Take time off from our busy lives and worship Him, not just on weekends, but on a daily basis in private devotion.

Loving people:

"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. "You shall not murder. "You shall not commit adultery. "You shall not steal. "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. "You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor." (Exodus 20:12-17 NIV)

For if we love people, we:

5) Love our Parents:
"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. (Exodus 20:12 NIV)

Listen to your father, who gave you life,
and do not despise your mother when she is old. (Proverbs 23:22 NIV)

Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. (Colossians 3:20 NIV)

6) would not murder and bear unforgiveness

Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. (1 John 3:15 NIV)

7) would love our spouses and not commit adultery

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:28 NIV)

8) would not steal

"For I, the Lord, love justice;
I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
In my faithfulness I will reward my people
and make an everlasting covenant with them. (Isaiah 61:8 NIV)

9) would not bear false testimony, or cover our rear ends at work and make a fellow worker a scapegoat.

There are six things the Lord hates,
seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes,
feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies
and a person who stirs up conflict in the community. (Proverbs 6:16-19 NIV)

10) would not be covet what is our neighbours. We would not be consumed by keeping up with the Joneses, the Rat Race

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. (1 John 2:15, 16 NIV)

Jesus summed up what this "love list" is all about:

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:34, 35 NIV)

So let us live our lives, loving God more fervently, loving others more whole-heartedly!

You shall love the Lord Your God :)

Matthew 22:37-40

37 Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.

Whoever says that the 10 commandments are no longer applicable to the New Testament obviously did not see Jesus' reference to the 10 Commandments.

While the grace messages have quite a few valid points, some fail to realize that the Law still applies and that the Law is actually about Love and not bondage.

The Law (10 commandments) can be summed up as:

1) Loving God

2) Loving others

Too often, the emphasis is about God loving us. Kinda self-centred.

Is it not time we start loving Him and others inspite of the circumstances and how others treat us?

I can go through anything through Christ who strengthens me

Philippians 4:13 (NKJV)

13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

A famous verse with preachers about faith. I was meditating on this verse the other night and came across a personal revelation of this verse of scripture.

I like how the NIV version puts the words of Apostle Paul:

Philippians 4:13 

11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

The problem with that the faith message and the "health and wealth" gospel, that it is not often handled in a balanced way. Sure I believe that God wants us to prosper and be in good health. We often forget that we live in seasons

Genesis 8:22 says

22 "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat,
summer and winter, day and night will never cease."

Before seed time and harvest, there must be Fall and Winter.

To expect seed time and harvest perpetually all year round or all your life is setting up yourself for your faith to be destroyed. Many an uninformed person has given up on his faith when things turned sour.

1 Timothy 6:6 says

6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.

Paul learnt the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether in need or in plenty.

I'm writing this to set people free from guilt for "not having enough faith".

You lost your job, your health, have prayers unanswered... its ok. God does not look at you differently.

Often we accuse people who don't get a miracle or get healed in a prayer line of lacking faith or commited a sin against God.

Someone losing a job, something bad happened etc, has nothing to do with faith.

Faith is the the ability to go though 

Often when we go through trails, realize that God is not upset with us

It is a fallacy to associate personal success/achievement/failure with faith or the lack of it! 

God allows circumstances to change us, to bring us closer to Him

God is more interested in changing us than our circumstances.

We can go through all things through Christ who strengthens us!

And as the cycle goes, winter will turn into seed time and harvest again if we do not lose heart

Gal 6:9 sums it up by saying

9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:6-10
6 Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say,7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.10 That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

It has been some time since I last blogged. I went through a period of depression and doubt. Its ok, I believe tha God allows us a period to reflect and even be angry at Him. "He can handle that!"

His grace is sufficient for me and I am being perfected in my weakness.

Latest update on my life. I got married to a beautiful Godsent woman in March last year. God sent me a help mate! We're still facing an uphill climb in life, but His grace is more than enough for us.