Father glorified

John 12:27-28

“Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say?

‘Father, save Me from this hour’?

But for this purpose I came to this hour.

“ Father, glorify Your name.”

Then a voice came from heaven, saying,

“I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.”

This was said by Jesus when He was to be crucified.

Did Jesus shout out to the Heaven and say ‘ SAVE ME FATHER!’ ?

NO.

He knew that it was for this VERY PURPOSE (to save mankind) 

that He came to that point of life.

He knew that what He was going through, the pain, the rejection

was part of God’s plan to bring Glory to His name.

He fully understood that the suffering He was about to experience

was meant for the purpose of Glorifying His Father in heaven!

So Chrsit accepted his situation, he obeyed His Father 

and cried out from the depths of His heart:
‘ Father, Glorify Your name!’

In our lives when we face the raging seas,

we should be reminded of this verse and what Christ did.

Instead of complaing or begging God to save us out from the situation,

Stop for a moment and accept our situation as a chance to glorify

our Father in Heaven!

God never puts us into temptations, 

neither does He ever bring sufferings to mankind.

Very often the inflictions that come upon us are the result of our own sins
and the works of the Devil. 

However most of the time, God doesn’t and wouldn’t 
 just save us right out of our trouble.

 He prefers to walk us through the storm

so that His name shall be glorified after we overcome them

and we shall be refined and purified like Gold!

Isaiah 55:9

"As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

We could never fully comprehend the things that happen in our lives,

neither could we see the full picture of God's painting,

maybe just a small part of it.

But let us all soar in our faith and believe that above all things,

our God is in control.

He is the God that will never leave us nor forsake us!

Amen!

---Carissa’s Pendown Thoughts---

Work in Progress

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine,

or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors

through Him who loved us.

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life,

nor angels nor principalities nor powers,

nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth,

nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us

from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:35-39

Our God is a God who loves us so dearly.

There is nothing that you could do

that would make Him love you more, and

nothing you could do would make Him love you less!

Nothing, not circumstances, or failures, or poverty,

 or tough times could rob us from the

undying love of our Father!

BECAUSE OF WHAT HE HAS DONE,

WE ARE PERFECTED IN CHRIST.

Ever thought of being perfect? Ever tried? I did.

And the more I tried, the more I go deeper into misery,

the more I see myself as imperfect and incomplete.

 Then you think, didn’t God said in

Philippians 1:6

‘being confident of this very thing,

that He who has begun a good work in you

will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.’?

Well, by completetion it must have meant

 ‘Perfect’,’ Whole’, ‘Lack of nothing’...

this is the total opposite of our state at the moment!

Just wait a sec*

He who has begun a good work in you

will complete it……WHEN?

Until the day of Christ! Until the DAY OF CHRIST!

Let’s take a look at the New Living Translation-

And I am certain that God, who began the good work

within you, will continue his work until it is

finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

In a whole, this means that the work that God has begun in us, 

He shall complete and perfect it when He comes back again!

So its either we die first or He comes back first

that we will be complete!

OUR BOAT WILL NOT SINK

Sometimes we feel really tired and stressed out in our ministry,

When no one seems to support you,

no one seems to catch the same vision you have...

Those are tough times where you come to God and say

‘God where are you???’

Let’s take into account a famous passage from the Bible

and look at it with a whole new perspective.

Matthew 8:23-26

Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him.

(PAUSE)

Who got into the boat first? Jesus.

And the disciples followed Him. Sounds familiar?

Just like us, Jesus was the one that led us into our ministries,

our family life, our studies etc.

Okay, then all goes well when SUDDENLY…

 a great tempest arose on the sea,

so that the boat was covered with the waves.

ooo...Tribilation’s here!

But He was asleep.

Wait. Jesus asleep?

Do you think that he doesn’t know what’s happening?

He surely is aware of the current situation,

but he rests in peace for He knows with Him on the boat,

THE BOAT WILL NOT SINK!

It is destined to reach the other side!

Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him,

saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!”

But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?”

Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea,

and there was a great calm.

Many times in the things we do, we rely too much on ourselves 

and depend too much on others. And when times get tough,

we had forgotten that Jesus is on the same boat with us!

He will not allow our boat to sink. Tough times have its season.

But when the King of creation is on board,

be rest assured that we WILL reach our destiny!

For once again,

Philippians 1:6-

being confident of this very thing,

that He who has begun a good work in you

will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

Whatever God has begun in your life, He will complete it!

Now let’s take a look at another sailing voyage:

Mark 6:45-50

Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat

and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida,

 while He sent the multitude away. And when He had sent them away,

He departed to the mountain to pray.

This time around Jesus sent them first.

Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea;

and He was alone on the land. Then He saw them straining at rowing,

for the wind was against them.

Hmm... straining…far too familiar to our lives again? 

We human beings always find ourselves in situations

where we strain and try so hard to get to the other side.

Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them,

 walking on the sea, and would have passed them by. 

Well, most probably Jesus saw them 

trying so hard by themselves the didn't need Him,
so he would just pass by them unnoticed. 

And when they saw Him walking on the sea,

they supposed it was a ghost, and cried out;

for they all saw Him and were troubled.

You know many times in life, when we are trying so hard

 by our own means to achieve something,

even when God comes by to help us,

we couldn’t even recognize him!

You might blame the waves, the wind, and the raging waters

(circumstances) that are against you, but the truth is

our minds and our will are the only thing keeping us from going forward,

keeping God from completing His work in us.

But even so, Our Lord Jesus is more than gracious, more than loving,

For immediately He talked with them and said to them,

“Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

Isn’t He wonderful? After being mistaken for a ghost by 

His closest disciples he still says to them, don’t be afraid, it is I?

THERE IS ALWAYS ONE MORE OPPORTUNITY

What if we screwed it up? What if we already threw in the towel?

What if we think we already let God down?

Well, the good news is,

 Our God is a God if second chances.

Even Paul the great Apostle says in Philippians 3:12-14

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected;

But I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus

 has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself

to have apprehended; but one thing I do,

forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward

 to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal

for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Amen! We are all not perfect, at least NOT YET,

 So when time are tough and people point fingers at you,

just smile and say

‘I am WORK IN PROGRESS!’ =)

Source: Ps. Clarine's Message

Jeremiah17

Those who trust in the Lord will flourish

 like trees planted by water. *Psalms 1

In times of trouble, those who trust in human beings

will be impoverished and spiritually weak,

so they will have no strength to draw on.

But those who trust in the Lord

will have abundant strength,

not only for their own needs,

but even for the needs of others.

Are we satisfied with being unfruitful?

or are we like a well-watered tree,

having strength for the time of crisis

and even some to share as we bear fruit for the Lord?

---Life Application Study  Bible--- 

LJ Memory Verse 1

Psalms 103:12

As far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Lamentations 3: 22- 23

Because of the LORD’s great love, we are not consumed,

for His compassions never fails.

They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness!

John 8:32

Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.

James 1:27

Religion that God accepts as pure and faultless is this:

to look after widows and orphans in their distress.

Proverbs 25:6-7

Do not exalt yourself in the King’s presence,

and do not claim a place among great men.

It is better for them to say to you, ‘Come up here,’

than for him to humiliate you before a noble man.

Hebrews 11:6

And without faith it is impossible to please God,

because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exist

and that He will reward those who earnestly seeks Him.

1 Thessalonians 3:10

If a man will not work,He shall not eat.

1 Timothy 2:9-10

I also want women to dress modestly,

with decency and propriety,

not with braided hair, or gold, or pearl, or expensive clothes,

but with good deeds, appropriate for women

who profess to worship God.

1 Timothy 4:12

Don’t let anyone look down on you

because you are young, but set an example for the believers

in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.

2 Timothy 2:22

Flle the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness,

faith, love and peace, along with those who

call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

1 Peter 3:3-4

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment,

such as braided hair, or the wearing of

gold jewelry and fine clothes.

Instead, it should be that of your inner self.

The unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit,

which is of great worth in God’s sight.

Jude 1:22-23

Be merciful to those who doubt;

snatch others from the fire to save them;

To others show mercy, mixed with fear-

hating even the clothings stained by corrupted flesh.

Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.

~Proverbs 7:3~

Life Guide

 EXODUS 20 TEN COMMANDMENTS

1. I am the Lord your God ... thou shalt have no other gods before Me.

2. Thou shalt not make for thee any graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water uner the earth; thou shalt not bow down to them, nor serve them.

3. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

4. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days thou shalt labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God.

5. Honor thy father and thy mother, that it may be well with thee, and that thy days may   be long upon the earth.

6. Thou shalt not kill.

7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.

8. Thou shalt not steal.

9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife; thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, nor his field ... nor anything that is thy neighbor's.

For God's commandments to do us any good,

it is necessary to make them ours; that is,

we should try to have them not only as a guide for our actions,

but they should also become our viewpoint,

permeating our subconscious, or, according to the

picturesque expression of the prophet, they should be

written upon the tablets of our hearts.

Then, by personal experience we will be

convinced of their regenerating power,

about which the righteous King David wrote,

''Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of 

the ungodly, nor stands in the oath of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight

is in the law of the Lord, and in His law

he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree

planted by the rivers of water that brings forth

its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither;

and whatever he does shall prosper"

Psalm 1:1-3

-Bishop Alexander (Mileant)-

Christian Suffering

Why does God allow Christians to suffer?

Isn’t it unfair?

Can’t Christ come in to rescue us in times of trouble?

We hear complains again and again,

‘ Why is it that after serving God for all these years,

my child is born without limbs?

Why is it that the even the wicked people get perfect children?’

Yea, yea. yea, we all know it’s a form of test 
and we should be tough,

but WHY me God???we can’t help but ask.

What am I suppose to tell the unbelievers 
who come to me and say,

‘HA! Look at how your God takes care of you!’

I was pondering upon this issue last night and the

Holy Spirit brought me to remembrance of a passage 
I read before a long time ago. 
I searched it through and here’s what it says:

Matthew 5:45

… for He causes His sun to rise 
on the evil and the good,

 and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

*ding dong*

Isn't that the answer we've been looking for? 

God is a fair and just God, bad things happen to

both good and bad people! so does good things of course.

‘Then what difference is there to be a Christian?

We ALL have to suffer.’

I tell you what’s the difference…

Everyone has to go through a period of suffering.Yes its true.

 but as for Christians we go through it with

love, joy, patience and hope!

Throught the valleys we know that He’s leading us to the mountain top,

through the dark moments we know light is near,

through immense pain we know of greater comfort.

‘Why doesn’t God just take us out from the trouble?

How could God bear to see us agonize?’

I knew of a song that once sang:

I was sure by now,God, that You would have reached down

and wiped our tears away,

stepped in and saved the day.

But once again, I say Amen

and it's still raining

as the thunder rolls

I barely hear You whisper through the rain,

"I'm with you"

and as Your mercy falls

I raise my hands and praise

the God who gives and takes away.’

---Casting Crowns---

Amen to the beautifully written lyrics!

God doesn’t just lay back and look at us suffer,

instead he holds our hands and 
goes through it together with us

 so that when we come out from the testing,

we will be stronger in faith and in person,

 refined like silver and purified like gold.

Zechariah 13:9

I will bring that group through the fire 
and make them pure.

I will refine them like silver 
and purify them like gold.

They will call on my name, 
and I will answer them.

I will say, 'These are my people,'

and they will say, 'The LORD is our God.'"

This brings me to the story of the footprints on the beach.

When the storm comes and all you see 
is a pair of footprints left, you start crying out and complaining 
that God had forgotten you. 

Then out of nowhere you hear a still small voice saying,

‘ Dear, Those footprints you’re looking at aren’t yours but Mine.’

You’re now safe in my arms, I’m giving you a piggy-back ride! ’

How great is our God!

In the midst of adversities, He  would never fail to show you

love and support, he even carries you through it all!

Awesome God! Amazing Lord!

If God were to help us and pull us out

each time we face sufferings, we would never grow up.

We would always remain a baby in faith.

Bad times draws us closer to our Creator,

Problems opens our eyes to the One in control of the universe,

Adversities brings us to our knees and humbles our haughty hearts.

John Piper once said in his book ‘ The sweet and botter providence’-

Life is not a straight line leading from one blessing

to the next and then finally to heaven.

Life is a winding and troubled road. Switchback after switchback.

And the point of biblical stories like Joseph and Job and Esther and Ruth

is to help us feel in our bones (not just know in our heads)

that God is for us in all these strange turns.

God is not just showing up after the trouble and cleaning it up.

He is plotting the course and managing the troubles

with far-reaching purposes for our good

and for the glory of Jesus Christ!

Amen and Amen!
---Carissa's Pendown Thoughts--- 

暗中明处

“我在暗中告诉你们的，你们要在明处说出来。”

马太福音十章27节　　

我们的主常带我们到黑暗中去，为着要和我们说话。

有时他带我们进入孤单的黑暗，有时他带我们进入忧伤的黑暗，

有时他带我们进入失望的黑暗，有时他带我们进入疾病的黑暗。

然后他告诉我们他伟大的，神奇的，永远的，无限的奥秘；

他开启我们迷糊的眼睛，叫我们看见属天的荣耀；

他开通我们聋惯的耳朵，叫我们听见他的声音。

在黑暗里我们能学到以前从来没有学到的功课。

可是我们得到了启示以后，就有一个责任——

 “你们要在明处说出来——要在屋顶上宣扬出来。”

我们，并不会一直沉在黑暗中的；不久我们就要出来的；

那时候我们就当把我们所学到的说出来，宣扬出来。

这样看来，我们受苦，并非是毫无意义，毫无目的的。

许多时候，我们在受苦的时候会悲叹说：“我还有什么用处呢？

我对于人类有什么益处呢？我宝贵的一生就这样浪费了么？”

我告诉你：神是有目的的。神要我们和他有最高的交通，

神要我们能面对面听他说话，将信息带给在山脚下的人们。

信心圣洁与得胜生活的必要条件，别无捷径可循，

所以基督徒必须有单独默想，与神交通的时间。

我们的灵，需要与至高者交通，

也需要在岩石的阴影和夜晚的星光之下，静静安息。

当黑暗遮蔽了尘世的喧嚣，也就展开了永恒与不朽的景象，

这对于灵魂的需要，好象肉体之需要粮食毫无两样。

这样，我们才会时时觉得神的同在，能和大卫一同说：

“耶和华啊，你与我相近。”

诗篇119篇151节

——梅而（F.B.Meyer）

Evangelism

 Scripture

‘ Be merciful to those who doubt;

snatch others from the fire and save them;

to others show mercy, mixed with fear-

hating even the clothings stained by corrupted flesh.’

Jude 1:22-23

Observation

Effective witnessing saves people from God’s judgement.

We witness to some through compassion and kindness;

to some we witness as if we are snatching them from the eternal fire.

To’ hate the clothings stained by corrupted flesh’ means to

hate the sin but witness to and love the sinner.

In order to find common ground with those whom we witness,

we must be careful not to fall into the quicksand of compromise.

When reaching out to others, we must make sure that our own footings is safe and secure. Be careful not to become so much like them

that no one can tell who you are and what you believe!

Influencethem for Christ. Don’t allow them to influence you for sin!
~LASBible~ 

Application

I believe that so many people out there are lost and in need of salvation.

I can start by witnessing with people God has placed around me.

When God opens the door for the Gospel to be delivered,

I will not take it lightly, but am determined that I will

gain the strength and confidence through Christ to witness!

And I will always be careful to not let myself fall into the pit of sin.

Now is the time for me build strong foundations for myw alk with Christ

so that nothing could pull me down when I witness to the unbelievers.

Prayer

God,Today is Easter. I thank you for the most painful yet

 beautiful sacrifice you made for me 2010 years ago.

I could not feel more loved by anyone else but You God.

For throughout history you’ve proven to be the faithful and living God!

Lord, open more doors of opportunity for me to witness about you!

My heart is ready, give me boldness and courage God!

I pray in My Jesus most precious and holy name,

Amen!

Love you love you love you!

PS: Thank you Father for the opportunity to share with Qi Woon.

I pray that you will touch her heart through the email and that she’ll have an opportunity to accept Christ into her life. Give me wisdom and courage to lead her further in your kingdom !