Throwing Stones

The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. - Numbers 14:18

First a little bit about me - I follow rules,I mean I don't jump lanes while driving, I don't overtake from the left etc. etc.So,when other people do not follow the rules and I have to suffer because of that, I get majorly pissed-off.

So,here I was last Saturday for my confession.I was the third person in the queue of penitents.The first person had just finished his confession and second person was about to take his place.I was busy recalling my transgressions and asking Lord for mercy and then suddenly it happened. A guy just barged into the queue just in front of me and as expected I went hysterical (but silently ).As it was a house of prayer I could not shout or push the guy out of the line.I got really angry and for some reason all I wanted to do was throw a stone at him.As a true engineer, I began to mentally calculate the correct force,the correct trajectory,the correct spin so that my projectile found its intended target - his head  .As I was soaking up to the rage inside me,suddenly this thought hit me - What if Christ was like me ? I mean what if every time we did something wrong(which is most of the times) He throws a stone at us ? Can u imagine such a situation ? Boy,it would be raining stones left,right and center.We would be surrounded by stones and funny looking people with bumps on their head.

Dearly beloved,isn't it awesome that Christ is not like me ? Isn't it great that He is merciful and slow to anger.Week after week I commit the same sins and crucify Him again & again....but still every week when I show up for my confessions I know that in His goodness and mercy He shall wipe my slate clean.I do not know what kinda personal sins you are struggling with today,but know this - He is still in the business of forgiving and restoring. After-all,He was pierced for our transgressions and wounded for our iniquities.

Fall in love with JC today !!!

Testimony from South Africa

This is a sharing by one of my friend,sis called Abigail from South Africa.She sent this over to me .She was in Bangalore few years back for studies.She was born in an Islamic family but now is standing for Jesus Christ,more than any of us. Let us read her testimony below!

Praise the lord my dear friends! i would like to share with you the most amazing hell of a ride,with what happened to me,and how God helped me,get through this...He helped me,and he will help you too....just have faith in him and he shall calm the storms that you going through in your life, all things are possible with God....!!! in him you shall seek refuge,in his arms he will protect and shield you.
Anyways,heres what happened on Tuesday night 5 august 2008 .......i was been falsely accused and blamed for,all the students living with me in the house turned against me at that time (i recall,when people put false accusation on our Lord Jesus and yet he forgave them and his love for them remained the same),,i accepted the blame inorder to avoid arguments even though they were lying, some of the stuff they were saying wasnt true...and some were, of which i accepted...dirty and nasty things were said and i was sweared at like i quote them as sayin "u r the worst person on this earth" and deep down i said thanks coz maybe i am...some i wont mention as twas really bad...but i thank God that i was strong enough to bear the pain at that time,and now i realized that God had given me the strength and wisdom ,and that he was holdin my hand and sitting next to me whispering his precious words,"You will be fine", "forgive and love them for i will forgive you and i love you", "i will!
never put you into trials that u cannot bear",trials come to make you strong,"i will never leave you"...all this wonderful words of his touched me and healed me, his gentle hands holding me....why dint i realize it at that time,that he was there???one thing i knew that he had answerd my prayers coz i asked him to give me inner strength and wisdom...when this people were nagging and falsely accusing me,i could smell and feel a bad aroma in that surrounding,i couldn't understand what it was,i couldn't see them anymore i could just see something wierd in them...i cant explain what it was...it was just too harsh and very cruel surrounding...but i was happy and not scared coz Jesus was holding my hand...i know he will neva put me down...well i asked them for forgiveness and dint get their response,i learnt that wen i was told, i am the worst human being on this earth,that very moment God told me "not to take it to heart" and that "i shouldnt think that i am worst,coz i created !
everyone perfect", "it doesnt matter what people say, for i am your wi
tness",what matters is what God thinks of me..he is my witness and my judge.Well i do accept that what i did after everything was said to me was wrong,coz i was just tooo hurt ,after that i guess God allowed me to cry alone in my room though he was there...and when i planned to commit a suicide by overdosing 6 tabs, couldnt eat more coz water was finished ,i think Jesus said twas enough and besides he never liked what i did,he tried to stop me but i guess i was too stubborn to listen to him, so Jesus found a way, and that was, there was no more water left in the glass or the bottle and i was feeling very low or lazy i should say to get another glass of water and so i ended up not eating the rest of the tablets.,it wasnt my time to die and besides why would i hurt myself for what people do or say to me???i should be hurt if i do something that is unpleasing to God!!!for he is my lord ,my saviour,my friend,my master,my king whom i serve!!!.
But now i have this sudden joy and happiness in me that i cant describe,,sometimes am just tooo confused that i shud be crying over what happened, but instead i am happy...alot of good things are happening after Tuesday(the day of hell) and am glad that it is Jesus' way of makin me happy...he knew i love animals and the next day,in the mornin i saw a cute dog and i smiled praising the lord...my friend got me a chocolate,he knew i was sad,and Jesus told him i guess to get me one (i love chocolates,lol),my other friend took me out for lunch and after fifteen minutes got a call from my other frend who took me for a coffee lol i guess i was pretty spoiled hmmm.. (non of these friends knew the hard times i went through)......well in all this people, i knew i had lunch with Jesus and a chocolate from him..lol...He is amazing!!!God works in miraculous ways in our lives,it was a hell of a ride but it was exciting and amazing and fun to be with Jesus all this tym Hallelujah!!!!
My dear beloved,wonderful children of God,
Never give up on Jesus!!!,when times are tough and the roads are rough and there is nowhere to run try Jesus,in a lightening of a second he will get you out of it without you knowing it,all you need to do is have faith in him and trust him with all your heart.He knows your problems,your weaknesses,he cries wen you cry,his hurt when you hurt,he understands the pain you going through...he loves you more than your own earthly parents,his love for you and me is unconditional,and he proved it on the cross so that we the sinners might be saved!!!!
He hold me tightly in his arms,i felt safe,he hugs you and me everyday,but we just dont have the time to realize it.He talks to us but we dont have time to listen to him,every second of everyday he says he loves us,when we are asleep he watches over us with a smile on his face,even if we dint have time for him,his love for us never change....Let us have time for our precious lord Jesus christ,and see how our lives can be changed...let us give ourselves to him...and keep him the first in our lives...
Jesus is my everything!!! and so he shall be yours...
God be with you always...He loves you,you are precious in his eyes....and i love you too...
your sis in christ
Abigail

A story of love

I and my kids have a game that we play when we take drives together. They join me during weekends on errands that have to be done and we play this game. We call it the game of imagination. In this game we take on imaginary roles and tell our tales. Usually we are rain drops, dew drops, little pebbles, rainbows, rivers etc. And we always enjoy each others tales. Last week end we decided to play the game a little differently. We decided to play a character from the bible and tell our tales. So here is the tale I told them, it was told a bit differently to them considering their ages.

I intended it to be short but it grew as I started off, bear with me ..

Caution: Don't look for correctness in terms of adhering exactly to bible passages, bible chronology etc. Enjoy it as a simple tale of love ...


The story starts in a little village near Jerusalem. I little Mary was born in that village. My village was a small but beautiful place and at the edge of that village stood my house. It was not a big house, it was small house, a hut almost, but neat and beautiful. In it lived me, my mother and my father. I have only very faint memories of that time, almost like a wonderful dream. How happy it was, it feels almost like a little reflection of heaven to me. But it was so long ago and so much has happened in my life since then that the memories are faded and distant.

Then it happened, the events that changed the course of my life. I remember my father and mother talking about some dreaded disease that was sweeping through the land. Daily I heard of people going away, some times it was a neighbor, and at other times it was a relative. I never understood it clearly at that point in time. In the dark of the night, people were carried away all covered up and they never returned. One day it happened in my house too. First it was my father, he became very sick. I and my mother took care of him very lovingly. I could see the sadness and fear in my mother’s eyes. One morning I woke up, hearing my mother crying softly. Some of our neighbors came and took away my father. He never came back. Few days passed and then my mother too became more and more ill. I took care of her and a few of our neighbors helped. But one day she also went away. That day, love also slowly and silently slipped away from my life.

From that day onwards my life became dependent on the mercy of other people. For a little while I was taken care of by a few neighbors. But they slowly turned me away. I can’t blame them, we were in a poor neighborhood. One more person to feed was a great burden to them. Then on my memories are of life on the streets. I tried begging for food, but I had to go hungry to bed most of times. On the streets begging for food, I got looks of hatred, curses and slaps thrown my way rather than coins or food. I saw only eyes filled with loathing and aversion around me. During those days when night fell and I tried to sleep, hunger and tears were my companions. But along the way my heart hardened and I learned the tricks of survival. I learned how to steal, I learned how to lie like a professional and I learned how to fight for my survival. I became adept at living on the streets. As I grew up, I fell more and more into the vices of the streets.

Finally I found a way to escape from the life on the streets, sell my body. I realized that under the grime of the streets I was beautiful and I could make a living out of that. I was very much sought after and slowly those days of hunger became distant memories. I had all I wanted materially. I wore the finest of the dresses, put on the most expensive perfumes and lived a life of luxury. But love stayed away from my life.

One day one of the nightmares in the life of a woman like me came true. I was caught in the act of adultery. I was dragged through the streets to the jury of the temple priests and was condemned to be stoned to death. I looked at the faces around me and I saw only the familiar looks of hatred and loathing. Those emotions had followed me through my life and here I stood surrounded by the same emotions who had been my companions through my life. I expected nothing else from this cruel world. I was taken through the city to the outskirts. I didn't feel anything. It was a fitting end to my life. Once wretched in its hunger and lack of material possessions and now wretched in its lack of a meaning. As I was taken through the city, the crowd grew in number. They spat at me, slapped me and kicked me. I didn't feel any sadness. This was what the world had given me all these years and at the end of my life I expected nothing more.

We reached the city gates and there was the young rabbi who every one was speaking about. I too had heard him talking a few times. He talked about gods love, forgiveness, etc. Although he talked with authority and love that I have never seen in any one, I never dared to go near him fearing the crowd that was always around him. What ever he had to say, it would never apply to a prostitute like me. If he is as holy as people say, then he would never even have any thing to do with me. So I kept away from him and his crowd of followers.

The leaders in the crowd started whispering among themselves. I could not hear what it was and cared less about it. What ever they schemed, they could do nothing worse than killing me. Then they started pushing and shoving me towards the gates. Finally they threw me at the feet of the Rabbi. I didn't dare to look at his face. I didn't want any more of those despising looks from any one. The crowd started accusing me of my wrong doings. They asked Jesus what they should do with me. I heard quite a few shout Kill Her !!! They were shouting at Jesus to condemn me. I expected the condemnation at any moment. Laws of Moses dictated killing of women like me by stoning it seems. A rabbi like him would now pronounce the same what else can I expect. I looked down on to my bruised hands. My body was in pain from the kicks and blows that has been inflicted. I needed nothing, but a quick end to this suffering.

Suddenly I realized, the young Rabbi was kneeling on the sand beside me. I was waiting for those words of hatred to come from him. But he seemed to be silent. I looked at his face which was level with mine and he seemed to be looking at me. I was taken back by that look. In those eyes where I expected to find hatred I found some thing so beautiful, that it seared my heart with pain. That look was filled with something that I had forgotten for a long time. Love. The look from him was so filled with love that it almost crushed my heart. I could not bear that look. I cast my eyes down quickly and looked at the hot sand seared by the sun. No, I didn't want love to walk back into my life at this wretched end when it had stayed out of my grasp for so long. I can go to my end with out Love if I had lived all my life with out it.

The crowd slowly became very restive, they started shouting at Jesus and he was silent. Then I realized he was silently writing some thing in the sand. I looked at what he had written but could not make it out clearly. He continued to write beside me, I didn't know much of writing, but I knew within my heart, it was all about love. I again looked at his face. It still held that deep look of love in his eyes. There was the smile, which I am sure I had seen on my mother's face in that distant memory. Suddenly I felt deep with in my soul that longing to live. I wanted to live for at least a little while to cherish that love I saw in those eyes. A little while and then even if I died it would not matter.

Suddenly I was brought back to reality. The crowd was shouting more loudly for the rabbi to condemn me. I quenched those longings as quickly as they formed. What could this poor rabbi do even if he wanted to do some thing against a huge crowd which wanted my blood and nothing else ? I f they were asking this rabbi for his opinion it was just a ruse, a justification for their actions. They would stone me whether this Rabbi said yes or no. Suddenly i heard that voice. I had heard that voice only from a distance, speaking of love, forgiveness and other lofty things. It was a shock to hear that voice so near me. It contained an authority that I have never experienced before. As soon as he started speaking a hush fell over the crowd. I was astonished to hear what he said. He said "He who is without sin among you, let him throw the first stone at her". These words penetrated my heart like no other word ever spoken has done in my life. They seemed to have an authority of their own. It brought to my mind all the sins of my life. I cringed before them. I truly felt worthy to be stoned to death. I felt all the sorrow pent up within me all these years welling through me at that moment. It tore at the depths of my heart. And I awaited the pain of the first stone with all the repentance and sorrow in my heart. I wanted to atone for all that I had done with the pain of those stones. At the end of my life I had nothing left to offer as atonement. Nothing else, no possessions, no money, nothing, except my life. I laid it down as my atonement for my sins.

Suddenly I realized that, no stone has been cast at me till then. I raised my eyes and looked around. And what I saw astonished me. The crowd was dispersing slowly. Around me lay scattered the stones that were brought to stone me to death. At last the only ones that were left were me, the Rabbi and his followers. The Rabbi still knelt on the ground beside me. I greedily looked into those eyes. I still saw that deep love I had seen there first. He asked me lovingly. "Woman, where are your accusers? Did no one condemn you?". I wept at the immense love that flowed from him. I fell at his feet and told "No one, Lord". He looked deeply into my eyes and told me, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way. From now on, sin no more". At that moment love came back into my life. I was left stunned on the sand there. I could not contain all the love that came rushing back into my soul. I just sat prone in the sand and wept my bitterness out. I didn't know how long I sat there. When I returned back to my senses I was alone. All that were left were those writings in the sand and the set of foot prints leading away from those writings and me. Those foot steps seemed to be leading me towards a new life. I got up from the ground with a new hope and determination to find the meaning of the new love that I had found and follow those foot steps where ever they led ....

Love and Prayers Jose

My Daddy strongest !!

There used to be a commercial for a cooking oil, where the kids would talk about their Dad, and how strong their Dad was.. I absolutely loved the tagline - " My Daddy Strongest!"

I've been very close to my Dad( earthly dad), he's been more of a friend to me.
Dad had his own business, and from a very young age, on every school holiday, I'd set off with him.Of all of us sons, I'm quite sure I probably spent the most time with him.

Imagine my surprise that even with a father like him, I still longed a Fathers love.
This realisation dawned only when I came to the Lord, and came to experience Our Heavenly Fathers love.Words are too few to describe those tender moments, and the assurance of knowing that you are safe in the arms of your Father.

Here's a video that I found really inspiring. Especially in those innumerable moments of weakness and falls.




Truly, "My Daddy Strongest!!!" ... rather " Our Daddy Strongest!!"

In the Fathers love

Aju

An unusual experience!

Yesterday I went to attend Dony’s sister’s engagement in Begur. After the reception, Sanjay and I were standing in front of the church and saw poor child, about 3 years, crying bitterly. He seemed as though he was crying for help. We went to him and inquired why he was crying. Another child from the neighborhood showed up and told us that he passed motion in his pants and his mother was not around. His pants were dirty from top to bottom. He seemed to have loose motion. The stench was strong.

Sanjay and I looked at each other and we knew we are going to clean him. We motioned him (His Name was Ravi) to come along and he held on to Sanjays hand. We then took him to the toilet behind the church. This toilet was locked some ten minutes back when we wanted to use it. And to our surprise now its was open. We went inside with the child and there was hardly any water in the tap. But soon water started coming in drops. I removed his pants and could not stand the smell but I was strengthened by the thought that it was Jesus whom I'm attending to and I used my hand to clean him thoroughly.

His face lit up and it was so heartening to see him very comfortable and contented. Then next task was to the clean his pants. Sanjay took up that part and I poured water for him. We rinsed the pant that was really dirty. We then took him near his house and put the pant for drying. Our hands smelled really bad and the toilet did not have sufficient water to wash. It was an experience of a life time and I thank Jesus for this exceptional one.