When your hopes result to continuous disappointments

How do you translate your trust in God? especially after trusting for a considerable amount of time you end up with fatal disappointment. You gather up all your shattered pieces of your dreams and start hoping again to find out it was a hopeless (and you are hit much harder this time) exercise all along. It was just another calm before the next devastating storm. Nothing was better nor becoming better. In fact, you realize life has become harder than ever. You convince yourself not to hope again and brace yourself for another hit, may be even harder the next time.  This reminds us of the situation of Israelites when they hoped in the words of Moses that God is going to deliver them from the bondage only to find that their work has become more strenuous and painful (Exodus 5:6-8) to an extent that all their hope just shattered.

It stirs up a range of emotions and doubts in a situation like this whether all this is happening because of your past sin that has  brought you to the current stage of brokenness or Satan has determined to bring you to your knees or  if God is testing you to find your consistency in trusting God. My friend, if this best describes you I just want to encourage you that you are not alone in a battle like this, there are so many children of God out there who go through the same struggle trying hard to find an answer. 

We live in times where it's hard to find people who would even spare a minute of theirs to lend a listening ear. They all claim to love God and be disciples of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, the best encouragement we get is through depersonalized forwarded messages in the WhatsApp or a false assurance of prayers most of the time. I have heard people who go through struggles say they are totally disconnected from people who love God because they act as strangers fearing they will be asked for help. Most of the time we see even Christian leaders who are in prominent positions portray great image of the love of God but turn a blind eye to the brokenness of the people in the pews or who come to them, in whatever setting. How do we comprehend all of this? where is the early church model who shared, who cared and who gave out of their scarcity?

I strongly feel that there are two major reasons for the pain, suffering and disappointments. Firstly, I personally need to understand that God is shaping me as an individual and making me to understand that there is a greater purpose to the pain and suffering. Each of my disappointments has been necessary. If they were not, God would not have brought them. Finding God in the midst of the challenges should be our greatest goal. From the life of Joseph, we learn to trust every time we suffer loss, God is preparing us for something greater. Therefore, as the pain grows more intense, we need to realize that we need to find God in the present and not wait for the circumstances to improve. I like the quote of Vaneetha Rendall, a writer, who puts it this way, “God wanted me to find him sufficient in the midst of trouble rather than just demanding that he deliver me from it.”. The second major reason for the existence of pain and suffering is (and I am personally convinced) to give continuous opportunity for Churches and the people who claim to be His disciples to exemplify the Love of Christ through their interventions to the poor and needy who live among them and make its mission complete. Whatever the case be let us strongly remain convinced that He is in control and watches over us because every individual is created in the image of God and for a greater purpose.

I think it is also important to understand God’s Sovereignty in such context. The sovereignty of God refers to the fact that God is in complete control of the universe. A belief in God’s sovereignty is distinct from fatalism. What do I mean by fatalism? “It is a philosophical doctrine holding that all events are predetermined in advance for all time and human beings are powerless to change them”. It is important to understand that God does not allow everything to happen, yet he does allow all that happens to happen. Ultimately God’s will is going to be accomplished. We can rest in the fact that our God is actually able to work all things for our good (Romans 8:28), even when we cannot readily see how that may happen. I want to conclude by putting down what Maxwell quotes, which is so clear and precise:

• Not everything that happens conforms to God’s will and wishes.
• Nothing that happens gets overlooked by God.
• Everything that happens will ultimately be addressed with justice.
• Nothing that happens should distract us from continuing to respond faithfully.

 May God help you and meet you at the point of your need.

Blessings,

David Raj

Go away! Come back later

 “Don’t say to your neighbor, go away! Come back later. I’ll give it tomorrow” Proverbs 3:28.

We live in a time where non-commitment is order of the day. Be it secular or in Christendom. Words have become senseless. We attach meaning to words based on our convenience. No wonder Jesus knowing our human heart had to emphasize and instruct us by letting our Yes mean Yes and No mean No (Mathew 5:37). The commitments of our ancient forefathers in the Bible were based on words. It was a period of oral tradition where there were no scripts, but we notice they never went back on their words. We do not mean what we say and we also wish others will not take our words seriously. Everyone would have an experience in their life to relate to where people have given their word, made a promise, given assurance but failed to uphold it and never felt an inkling of guilt. David in his attempt to describe the Godly put it in this way in Psalms 15:5 “…who keeps his word whatever the cost”. By us giving a word whether we mean it or not makes a profound impression on the person who is receiving it. This is a reality whether we agree with it or not. Unfortunately, the people in leadership position are not excluded too. We cannot afford giving a false hope, or in another extreme tell them to go in peace, stay warm and be well-fed but we don’t do anything about it. (James 2:15-17)

When do we really dodge, postpone or procrastinate? It is not when someone comes with a deal and it is going to benefit us in some way, it is when someone approaches us with a dire need in some form and we evade the situation by giving a false hope, promises or use some cliched words to send the person away. The emphasis on the poor in the Bible is of high importance, which instructs us to integrate them in our gospel. The poverty data is in every source available - what is our response to it? The world talks about the poor and poverty in its various kind. Now the study calls it as Multidimensional poverty, which means it is made up of several factors that constitute poor people’s experience of deprivation- such as poor health, lack of education, inadequate living standard, lack of income (as one of several factors considered), disempowerment, poor quality of work and threat from violence.

I give you a glimpse on the existence of poverty. About 20% of the world’s population, 1.2 billion people, live on less than a dollar a day. They go to bed hungry every night. Every four seconds, poverty takes a child’s life. Today, and every day until we act, 22,000 children die of avoidable diseases or because they live in poverty. 5.9 million children under the age of five die every year. Over two-thirds of these early child deaths are due to conditions that could be prevented or treated with access to simple, affordable interventions. It is estimated that human trafficking enslaves around 30 million people around the globe, half of them under the age of eighteen. How are we addressing these challenges as individuals and Church? We cannot afford to send people away (or ignore the statistics). In one incident recorded in (Mathew 14:15) the disciples approached Jesus to request Him to send the crowds away after listening to Him. They were honest, as they did not have any food to give to the large crowd, but Jesus immediately responded in Mathew 14:16 “They don’t need to go away” and we know what happened eventually. Most often you and I may not be in a condition of abundance to help others but Jesus set an example by looking unto His father. Similarly, we are supposed to look unto Jesus to make us a blessing to the poor and needy. Then we do not have to be non-committal in our behavior towards them.

Blessing

David Raj

"I DON'T KNOW YOU"- FATAL IGNORANCE

Its wonderful to connect with you all once again. I hope you had a rejuvenating time meditating on the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am sure that the revelations and promises this Easter season would bring you joy and hope. I want to highlight two passages from the book of Mathew in the Bible that poignantly reiterates Holism. Seldom this is spoken about or the importance of the matter is emphasized. However, Jesus does the same during his three-and-a-half-year ministry on the earth.  I am referring to the parables of “The Sheep and the Goats” in Mathew 25:35-46. A word of caution, this is not meant for any one particular category of groups or people.  This is imperative for every so-called follower of Christ and for the Church.

 Allow me to highlight few verses from this passage and classify them under major need groups  (25:42-43) :

“I was hungry (physical need), and you gave me nothing to eat;

I was thirsty (Physical need), and you gave me nothing to drink,

I was a stranger (need of security) and you did not invite me in;

naked (need of restoring dignity), you did not clothe me;

sick, (Physiological need) and in prison (various bonded condition), and you did not visit me.”.

And then His pronouncement of judgment we find in verse 46;

“And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

We notice we cannot escape or evade from this crucial responsibility. We are to definitely make all efforts as individuals to reach out in all possible way to the needy and more so the Church  to cater to the needs of the people in the church and in our community, in a structural way.  Jesus in the same passage (25:40) quotes “…whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine you did for me.”.  Most of the time it is seen, we choose to do activities that are convenient for us and not those that tests our limits. Our freedom to choose whom and when we can help, can sometimes distort our priority towards the poor. Reading Matthew 25 gives us a whole different perspective on the holistic mandate. Therefore let us make all effort to extend our holy service to the least who live among us. They make up a significant majority. Let us be aware that there is so much in the Bible about issues of poverty and justice. In fact words ‘poverty and justice’  are highlighted in the Bible in over two thousand verses. This is a wake up call to all of us to address these issues.  

Ravi Jayakaran, an Indian expert in the use of the Participatory Learning and Action (PLA) describes poverty as a lack of the freedom to grow. Echoing Luke 2:52, the poor are wrapped in a series of restrictions and limitations in four areas of life: physical, mental, social, and spiritual.

 

Can we take some time to retrospect on all our current interventions as individuals and Church? It is so important that we definitely quantify and revamp all our social programs, if needed. If our activities are sporadic it is necessary to make our intervention consistent. What is important is to have a strong desire, the will and the work will definitely follow (Philippians 2:13).   

The second passage that catches my attention is from same book of Mathew is the time when we all have to stand before His judgement seat. The scene here is  a group of prime people and high spiritual elite, who argue their case with God, eventually God fails to recognize them. They ask; (Mathew 7:22-23 ) “…Didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your name?’ and the shocking response from Him is, “I never knew you; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.” NASB. It is possible in focusing on high level spiritual maturity and can still miss to obey the greatest second commandment “Love your neighbor as yourself”.  We definitely wouldn’t want this embarrassment, do we?.  I  recommend that you hear to the famous song by Keith Green “The sheep and the Goats”(YouTube). it is inspiring.  

Both the passages are a mandate of Holism (Fellowship of believers, Biblical mandate & ministering to the needy). The Church, the organizations and every individual have to make a conscious effort to reach out to the under-privileged and towards the marginal section of our society. Jesus story about Good Samaritan is unfortunately confined to children in Sunday school most of the time. The purpose of the parable is far beyond a Sunday school story. Jesus concludes by asking who proved to be a neighbor to the wounded man and the response in verse (Luke 10:37) referred to the man who showed mercy. Jesus responds as conclusion by saying “Go and do the same”.  It’s not a mere strong recommendation but a strong mandate towards Holism. Kindly understand that its not a marketing strategy at its best but my prayer is that its importance is not muddled up with less priorities or chosen priorities that devalues the word of God. I want to leave you with the Benediction of St. Francis:

May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger at Injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.

May God bless us with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, and war, so that we may reach out our hand to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless us with enough foolishness to believe that we can make a difference in this world, so that we can do what others claim cannot be done.

Blessings,

David Raj