Your existence is a miracle!

  

A fact worth reminding ourselves often is that a total of 108 billion people have lived on this planet earth throughout history of which 93% of them are dead. We are the 7% still alive. Does this statistics excite us? It should because it affirms we are God’s unique creation and we have made it irrespective of all odds. Scientists estimate the probability of a person being born is one in 400 trillion. This tells us that we were created intentionally by God. We are a miracle. But are we living up to these facts?

Let me explain this with a simple figure called the line of infinity, meaning life goes on. In the never-ending line of infinity, each of us appear somewhere. For example, red and blue vertical lines pop up at a particular timeframe and then cease to exist within a short framework of time. But is this what life is all about?

  

│-----------I---I---------I--------I--------------------

                Line of infinity Figure 1

 

To further emphasize the point, being a unique creation of God there is definitely a purpose to our living. The Bible is the only book that details the creation of the universe with all specifications and without any irregularities. We can find this in the first book of the Bible called Genesis, which provides detailed information about the entire creation, including human beings. Unfortunately, religion in most cases has been reduced to hereditary and geographical, meaning being the part of a nation. Truth becomes irrelevant and we condemn any information refuting our faith. Today people choose religion and God to live a life with zero accountability. We just have to perform our rites and religious demands and it doesn’t require us to change our behavior.

Universe was never meant to be with such brokenness. The first man violated the freedom God gave to him. He thought probably he can make a better choice than God and invited the punishment on entire human beings. Life is impacted and impeded as it is now and we have become a limited edition on this earth but definitely not in the life to come, i.e. eternal life. Life is fulfilling and meant to be eternal with God. Let us trust in a God who is real and not a mythological character, accepting Him as our Savior and live our life with hope and blessing. The bold and proven statement of Jesus in the Bible is I live therefore you will live also live. It is also a statement of hope.  We live in this life and in the life to come, i.e. eternity.

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Happy Father's Day!

At the outset, wishing you all a happy Father’s Day!

Fatherhood does not define just masculinity but a sacred responsibility to shape and impact a generation. Fathers often are not too explicit in their actions like mothers, but quite profound in their influence over their children. They are their children's role model. It doesn’t matter if the fathers are vibrant or dormant, nevertheless they are active in their influences.

Fathers primary focus is to provide for their children’s need and ensure that they do not lack anything. In the Bible it says so aptly, “A good man leaves an inheritance to his grandchildren…”. However, the question here is how do we define ‘A good man’? Secondly, what ‘an inheritance’ exactly should mean for our children? A good man or in other words, ‘a good father’ is not just relative and customized according to culture and status as we understand. A good father is one who not only provides for his children but also leaves a good example and a legacy to follow. For a good human being, to know the earthly father and the Eternal Father is very crucial.

When a father in today's culture fails to provide for his children, he is called abusive and uncaring. In many countries the courts often force such rogue fathers to pay child support, attaching their wages to assure that their children's needs are properly met. In the court of public opinion the father's actions would be branded as blatant child abuse.

The renowned prayer Jesus taught us to pray starts as, “Our father who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name....deliver us from all evil.". A sincere prayer to recognize the Father in heaven and a request to keep us from any forms of evil. I believe every child would want their father to be there for them and extend their protection from any evil. But what if the fathers are abusive in nature? That is where the problem begins. But thank God there are mothers to pitch in and try to do their best to provide safety and protection. Many have lost their father and their mother becomes everything to them. Be assured, we all have a Heavenly Father to guide us and provide for us. This is not a religiously made philosophical statement but a fact.

Jesus in the Bible talks about the father where He says, “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish will give him a snake instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?” He further asserts His fatherly character by saying, "If you then who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father know what the need is and provide for them." Best of all, the Lord Jesus Himself asserts by declaring this, His unselfish purpose for coming to planet earth, ". . I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." A good life is a gift from our generous father. It is both abundant life now on earth and eternal life throughout the endless ages. It is important to thank our earthly fathers here and acknowledge our eternal Father in heaven.

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The Power of Gratitude!

 

 In recent times, there is a culture shift where people have no time to be bothered by what is happening around them. The overwhelming pressure, personal challenges and daily commitments keep them on their heels. Added to it, smart phones have become a key player in sucking all our attention to an extent that life has become unimaginable without it. So much so that it has become a one stop solution for all our problems. We are slowly moving towards self-sufficiency, contended with technologies, satisfied with possessions, yet feeling utterly empty deep inside.

Over the ages, sensitivity towards one another and the environment has decreased drastically. A decade ago, few deaths and minor disasters would shake our very existence, but with passing time only large disasters with numerous casualties draw our attention and stir our feelings of sympathy. Somehow, we became the center of attention with life revolving only around us.

Today, this pandemic has intruded and brought life to the edge. Every day to breathe and to be able to see a new day are miracles in themselves. We are not sure if we would still meet the person we last spoke to. Are we really thankful to God for adding a new day in our lives? Are we grateful to many good hearts who extend their love and care to us? We the human race are forgetting to be thankful and express gratitude to God who has created us and to so many people who are showering us with love and care. Basic etiquettes and ethics have eroded from our human race as selfishness is seeping in. With the pandemic and various other crisis setting in, we are not sure what to appreciate and be thankful for and what to overlook.

There is a verse in the Bible which says, “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift”. God is not pleased by our mere religious rituals and a visit to the religious places. This is done purely for our satisfaction. Thanking God for the life, thanking people around us and showing gratitude to the ones who stand with us silently, are the need of the hour. Let us find opportunity to thank all those who have contributed something in our lives. Take this into consideration that God is drawing the attention of all the people of the entire human race towards Him in this crisis. Christ's death and resurrection are the demonstration of His Love. Let us be thankful for His sacrifice and turn to God for help. If you are alive, it just means that God is not done with you yet. Trust the Savior, find abundant life and express gratitude to God and to people.

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Skeptical?

 

As human beings we continuously struggle with dual opinions when it comes to believing things, our actions and even in deliberations. Our mind is constantly in the process of validating things. We tend to accept and reject matters based on our rights and personal preferences most of the time. One of the reasons for the doubts to surface is because the counterfeit looks so original that people are misled to believe the counterfeits; so the wrong becomes right and the right is carefully hidden. Being deceived they live with constant doubts and are skeptical of things. Overtime they refuse to accept the full truth.  Michael P.V. Barrett in his article emphasis this dichotomy and says, "Everything seems upside down. Evil is considered good; good is considered evil. Truth has fallen in the streets and is trampled by academic processions, political machinery, and populous parades.".

The Bible says, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways”. It all starts with the mind as it keeps oscillating and doubting between facts and myths because they believe in their version of truth alone. How do we validate the point of reference?

This is a powerful excerpt from G.K Chesterton, “But the new rebel is a skeptic, and will not entirely trust anything. He has no loyalty; therefore, he can never be really a revolutionist. And the fact that he doubts everything really gets in his way when he wants to denounce anything. For all denunciation implies a moral doctrine of some kind; and the modern revolutionist doubts not only the institution he denounces, but the doctrine by which he denounces it. . . . As a politician, he will cry out that war is a waste of life, and then, as a philosopher, that all life is waste of time. A Russian pessimist will denounce a policeman for killing a peasant, and then prove by the highest philosophical principles that the peasant ought to have killed himself. . . . The man of this school goes first to a political meeting, where he complains that savages are treated as if they were beasts; then he takes his hat and umbrella and goes on to a scientific meeting, where he proves that they practically are beasts. In short, the modern revolutionist, being an infinite skeptic, is always engaged in undermining his own mines. In his book on politics, he attacks men for trampling on morality; in his book on ethics, he attacks morality for trampling on men. Therefore, the modern man in revolt has become practically useless for all purposes of revolt. By rebelling against everything he has lost his right to rebel against anything.”

Do you notice the contradictions? When the soul is obscured with sin and self-developed moral values, people seem to live in constant contradictions. It is written in the Bible therefore, “it is not good for a soul to be without knowledge.”. Soul connects with a true God not by itself but by people who honestly are open to finding a true living God. Jesus is a resurrected God, which gives the ultimate credibility to know Him and trust Him. He requires no structure nor a place for abode, but promised to live in human hearts provided he/she has kept the place holy and clean. He not only forgives our sins and transforms us but sanctifies our perspective and helps us to lead a non-contradictory life.

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