Can man succeed without God?

Genesis 11 
The Tower of Babel 
1)At one time all the people of the world spoke the same language and used the same words. 2)As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia* and settled there. 3)They began saying to each other, “Let’s make bricks and harden them with fire.”(In this region bricks were used instead of stone, and tar was used for mortar.) 4)Then they said, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.”5)But the LORD came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building. 6)“Look!”he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them! 7)Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.”

Notice verse 6. God says that because the people are united and speak the same language, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them.

Yes, people can succeed when they are united, when they have the self-will and determination to succeed and when they believe in their abilities and work positively towards their goals, towards what they want to achieve in their lives. By being united in their thinking and actions, men have invented useful things and also weapons of destruction. By being united with a common goal in mind, men have been successful in helping humanity to progress and have also been successful in mass murder. So it is definitely possible to succeed, both in helpful and harmful ways, when people are united.

From time immemorial,  motivational speakers have immortalized the advantages of  success, without mentioning God. We have seen many self-made men and women reach the pinnacles. Many such people have received noble prizes for their efforts. Many have been laurelled as men and women of the year. Yes, we have seen many achieve fame in their lives. Some with God and some on their own, without seeking God.

But what we did not see, what we could not see, of those who seemed to be successful without God in their lives, was the state of their souls and where they are now after their death. We did not and could not see their emotional state and the mental and physical anguish they went through without God.

Many lived and died without knowing God. Many lived and died rejecting God. Many died depressed or committed suicide because even a successful life could not satisfy their weary, sin struck souls. Externally they seemed to know it all, have it all and seemed to be successful. But internally they were simply wrecked without God. 

Without surrendering our lives and our plans to our Creator God, we will not have any clue about which way to go and what to do. We may think that achieving a certain goal will be beneficial to us but it may turn out to be detrimental. When we let God take over and guide us we will be led in the right path. Although we don't succeed in the way we want, we will succeed in another because, that will be what God has planned for us. God's plan for us will always be the best.

"When you eat of this fruit, you will become like God, knowing good and evil," said Satan to Eve, in the garden of Eden. Thus Adam and Eve disobeyed God just because they wanted to be 'like God'! Ever since, Satan has been telling that to every man and woman. "You can do it! Just believe in yourself! You have the power within you! You don't need God! You are a god in yourself! You need to be happy, so do what satisfies you! You can make a name for yourself and become powerful !" This is what Satan whispers in the minds of everyone. He did the same to Nimrod who built the tower of Babel and he continues doing it to you and me today.

God confused their language then and scattered them throughout the world. Centuries later man has learnt to speak many languages. English and some other common languages have united the people who were once scattered, into one again. Computer programming languages are now uniting the brains all around the world. So what can keep man from succeeding?

Don't get me wrong. Success is not bad. Success without God is.
God loves us and wants us to succeed. Do you want to succeed  God's way? If you do, then remember the following 3 points:-
1) Acknowlege that your very breath, strength, abilities, the talents and given opportunities, all come from God. Thank Him. Surrender them totally to God. This will truly help you succeed in the way God wants you to. 
2) Align your desires and plans with God's. You will truly succeed. 
3) Obey God's commands. Obedience to God's 'will' in your life will attract success and make success run after you.

Jesus has promised to give you His peace, the peace which you can never receive from this world. He calls you to come to Him and has promised to give you peace and rest, not as the world gives. 

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
(John 14:27)

Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light."
(Matthew 11:28-30)

When you turn to Jesus, He will never leave you nor forsake you.

For I hold you by your right hand- I, the LORD your God. And I say to you, 'Don't be afraid. I am here to help you. (Isaiah 41:13)

So will you trust in Jesus and give Him your burdens and your plans today, to be successful in this life, (In the way God measures success and not as the world does.)and to enjoy God for all eternity?

Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall. (Psalm 55:22)

Many have tried to write their success stories with their sweat and blood and failed miserably. 

Come to Jesus because He has written our success stories with His blood on the cross and has risen victoriously. 

It is up to you to decide now. Do you want to succeed without God? The consequences will be, temporal worldly joy and temporal worldly peace and temporal satisfaction, but permanent and eternal separation from God, in this life and the next.

It is entirely up to you. You decide! 👉

Mary Augustine

09/09/18

The Sad Case of Poh Ver Tee!

Once upon a time there lived a young farmer. His name was Poh Ver Tee. He was so poor that all his clothes were worn out. They were in fact torn and tattered. There were holes everywhere on every piece of clothing he owned. He longed for something new and without holes.

So one day Poh Ver Tee set out to town. He took some vegetables from his farm. He wanted to give them in exchange for some nice warm clothes.

After a long walk through the forest Poh Ver Tee reached the town. There he saw many young men and women wearing torn and ripped jeans. He saw young ladies wearing blouses which had large holes on their shoulders and back. He even saw ladies wearing such short pants that their pockets were hanging out.

Poh Ver Tee was shocked. He thought to himself, " I am in a better off position than them. These town folks seem to be poorer than me. I am not going to waste my precious vegetables in exchange for their torn clothes." Feeling richer than them, Poh Ver Tee returned to his village with glee. 

Sadly, Poh Ver Tee lived and died without knowing how it feels to wear clothes without holes. He died in utter poverty.

Friends, in the above story, Poh Ver Tee represents all the unbelievers out there. The people of the town represent us believers in Christ Jesus. Sadly they are dying daily in spiritual poverty, without knowing Christ Jesus. Why? It is because of us and the way we live.

We have what they do not have. We have the Holy Spirit residing in us. We have Jesus. How are we going to give them what they do not have, how are we going to lead them to Christ Jesus if our lives are no different from theirs?

How are we to be different? We must be different in the way we speak, in our relationships with one another, in our attire, in our actions etc. 

The Holy Spirit, through the apostle Peter, tells us in   1 Peter 2:1 NASB:-

Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander,...

In Romans 13:13 NIV, the Holy Spirit tells us through Paul the apostle,

Because we belong to the day (to Christ Jesus), we must live decent lives for all to see. Don't participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy.

He also tells us in 1 Peter 2:12 NASB:-

Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.

We have the most powerful Helper given to us by Father God through the intercession of Jesus Himself. He is the The Holy Spirit. He enables us to live the way Jesus wants us to live. Instead of asking the Holy Spirit to help us live as ambassadors of Christ Jesus, we are living compromised lives. We are living just like or even worse than the unbelievers.

Sadly many souls are being lost because they don't know Jesus; because we Christians are not living as how God's Word says we must live.

Oh, if only each one of us would die to ourselves daily and be the light of Christ and be the salt that we are called to be, how many million souls we would save from eternal hell fire!

Our lives speak a million words. Therefore friends, let us come out of our comfort zones and die to ourselves daily. Let us make up our minds today to seek the help of the Holy Spirit to live spirit filled lives. Let us consciously be different from all unbelievers. Let us never compromise with the world but by being Christlike, lead the lost to Christ Jesus. 

The world is watching us Christians. Therefore let us put on Christ and show them Who Christ Jesus is.

Mary Augustine
28/08/2018

Suffering😢😭😧

What is suffering? Why do we suffer? Do we suffer to do reparations for our sins and the sins of others? Do we have to suffer in order to get through life, do we suffer just because we are born into this world, or do we suffer because of the consequences of our sins and the sins of others?

I was born into a Catholic family which practiced the Catholic rituals and traditions meticulously.

We were read stories of saints who endured their sufferings for the sake of mankind, uniting their suffering with that of Christ on the cross.  We heard stories of saints who purposely induced suffering upon themselves in order to crucify their flesh and to  bear the sins of the world.

They call it the 'Mortification of the flesh'. Here is an article from Wikipedia:-

A discipline (of mortification) is a small scourge (whip) used by members of some Christian denominations (including Anglicans,[1]Lutherans,[2] and Roman Catholics,[3]among others)[4] in the spiritual discipline known as mortification of the flesh. Many disciplines contain seven cords, symbolizing the seven deadly sins and seven virtues. They also often contain three knots on each cord, representing the number of days Jesus Christ remained in the tomb after bearing the sins of humanity. Those who use the discipline often do so during the penitential season of Lent, but others use it on other occasions,[5] and some have used it every day.[6]
See attached photo below.

After accepting Christ willingly, on my own, the Holy Spirit revealed many insights from God's Word, to me.

One of it was, Jesus suffered once and for all for every sinner of the world, from Adam to the last man till the end of time on earth. He has paid the price. We just have to believe in His redemptive work and accept Him as our Lord and Saviour.

Thus, we do not need to induce suffering upon ourselves. Though we must mortify our flesh daily.

Mortification of the flesh is not by beating our bodies but by controlling our desires and passions and bringing them in subjection to God. We do it, by not following our whims and fancies. We do it, by focusing on God's Word and His will for our lives. We do it with the help of the Holy Spirit. 

As I grew in the Lord, I learned that sin has consequences. It need not be a big one like murder. Just a flicker of thought which we entertain in our minds, a hurtful or accusing word which we utter or indudging in excess food, drinks or material goods can cause harm to ourselves and those around us. If we repent, we will be forgiven. But the consequences of those actions, thoughts and words, which have come to pass, we may have to suffer them...unless God delivers us from such suffering by His grace.

I have seen, families broken because of just one spoken word (which went unrepented), which snowballed into a boulder and crushed and tore each member of the family apart.

I have seen secret evil thoughts of anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, shame and lust that were entertained for years giving birth to undesirable, loatheful and shocking behavior, eventually ruining the peace and unity in families and marriages.

I have seen actions unrepented of, causing division in families, in communities and in churches.

People mostly suffer because of one's sinful behaviour.

Someone carelessly sneezes in a crowed train without covering his/her mouth and someone else catches the virus and ends up very sick. This is but a teeny weeny example of how grevious the effects of our sins can be. The eternal consequence of sin is spiritual death and a forever separation from God.

I am not saying that an innocent sneeze will lead to that, but unchecked and unrepented, careless, selfish, self-centred thoughts, words and actions will lead to suffering and an eternal separation from God in the long run.

Jesus said in John16:33 KJVS that,  "in this world you will have tribulation..."

In the dictionary the meaning of tribulation is given as :- trouble, worry, anxiety, 
burden, cross to bear, affliction, ordeal, trial, adiversity, hardship, 
tragedy, trauma, reverse, setback, blow, difficulty, problem, issue, misfortune, bad luck, stroke of bad luck, illfortune, mishap, 
misadventure; suffering,distress, misery,wretchedness,unhappiness, sadness,heartache, woe, grief, 
pain,anguish, agony;

But Jesus concluded by saying, "John 16:33 KJVS
but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

That is the good news for us. When we sin, we suffer the consequences. When we repent we are forgiven and given grace not to sin again. Although we suffer temporarily on earth, we are given assurance of an eternal, sin free, pain free, peace filled life with God.

Many blame God for their suffering, as if God enjoys seeing us suffer. No, God does not want us to suffer. That is why He gave His only begotten Son to suffer and die for us.   

I do not understand many things. Why does a new born innocent baby suffer and die? Why does a faithful and God fearing young mother give birth to a baby with birth defects which threaten the baby's life? Why does a father who faithfully gives his tithe to church and who helps the poor, suddenly lose his job? Why does a cheerful, caring and pious person get cancer? Why does the only hardworking and loving breadwinner of a family die of a sudden heart attack? Why does a caring and faithful wife and mother of seven young children fall sick and die suddenly? Why does the only humble and modest daughter of an elderly couple get raped by a gang? Why? I don't have the answer, but I know that my God is bigger than all the suffering and problems of this world.

I am not saying that all those terrible things happened to the people I mentioned earlier because they did something wrong or sinned, no. Many times innocent people suffer because of the carelessness or sins of others. Some times we don't know why some things happen? But we can be sure that when we entrust ourselves into God's Fatherly hands, He will see us through. 

He will give me His Spirit and endow me with His Wisdom to teach me and counsel me how to lead my life in order to avoid sin and suffering. He will teach me how to obey God and avoid sin and suffering. He will teach me how to follow rules so that I don't suffer as a consequence of breaking rules. When I fail and fall, all I have to do is tell Him sorry and allow Him to lift me up and hold me and lead me again. When suffering comes inadvertently, He will help me through it, holding me in His arms.

Now that I am in the all loving and all caring arms of my Saviour, I will never look at suffering the same way ever again.

I will boldly proclaim, " My God is Bigger than all the suffering or problems I face. He will see me through!" With His help I can consciously put off the old man and put on the new man daily! Praise God!

Mary Augustine

17/06/2018

*Below is a picture of the materials the olden day Catholics, Anglicans and Lutherans used to mortify their flesh. 

Prayers for the entire family.

Dear parents, before you pray the following prayer, I would suggest that you read my footnote(a long one😉) below.

Prayer for your entire family.

Father God,
I plead the blood of Christ on my husband and children (mention names of children), my children's spouses  and our grandchildren and descendants, till the very last one on earth and myself. I surrender us into Your hands Father.

Father God, I thank You for placing Your hedge of protection around each 
one of us.

Thank You Holy Spirit for hovering over us 24/7 and living within us and birthing the New Life of Christ Jesus in us.

Thank You for giving us no rest  till we desire Jesus more than the air we breathe.

Thank You for not allowing our consciousness, regarding Spiritual matters and sin, go dead.

Thank You Father for searing and breaking our hearts for what sears and breaks Yours. 

Thank You Holy Spirit for setting our hearts on fire for Jesus and to know love and serve our God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Thank You Father that the fire of Your Holy Spirit is continually burning in our hearts and has removed everything that stands between us and You, God.

Thank You that the fire of Your Holy Spirit has burnt up the uncleanness, ego, manipulation, complacency, traditionalism, legalism, spiritual compromise, spiritual laziness, the fear of man, fear of what is to come, the mental, physical & spiritual lethargy and energised us to glorify You Father, to trust in You and has brought us to a face to face encounter with You.

Thank You Father that wherever we go, we are humble and lead all whom we encounter to Jesus Christ and to You Father.

Thank You for permeating us and saturating us with Your Spirit and making us sold out for Jesus.

Thank You for giving us the Spirit of Wisdom & Revelation that we now know You Father, and 
Jesus and the Holy Spirit 
intimately.

Thank You for 
enlightening the eyes of our hearts so that we will know the hope to which You have called us for and act upon it.

Thank You that Your 
Spirit breathes His breath of life into us and raises up our inner man to be faithful to Jesus till our very last breath.

Thank You for opening the ears of our hearts to hear Your still small voice saying, "This is the way, walk in it!"

Thank You for making us the head 
and not the tail.

Thank You for putting 
Your favour on 
us so that we have Your 
favour with all 
people and all authorities.

Thank You for blessing
the works of our hands.

Thank You that we are 
physically, mentally, 
emotionally and 
spiritually healthy and 
strong.

Thank You that our 
finances and resources never deplete but keep increasing for the 
expansion of Your 
kingdom on earth.

Thank You that Your Spirit has transformed us into the likeness of Your Son Christ Jesus.

Thank You that our zeal for Christ Jesus is so powerful that we lead many to Him through our thoughts, speech and actions. 

Thank You that we are deeply rooted in Christ Jesus and that our faith in Him is unshakable ever.   

Thank You Father that Your Presence in us and surrounding us does not allow anyone to manipulate us in any way ever.

Thank You Father that we are living in Your peace, harmony and unity with one another. 

Thank You Father that 
none of us are lost, but 
will rejoice with each other and Jesus in the 
company of the angels 
and saints, praising You  Father forevermore, for 
all eternity in heaven.

With the authority given to me as my husband's wife and my children's mother, I forbid Satan from having any hold over their lives and mine, ever. 

I bind in Jesus name, every spirit of accusation & misunderstanding, every spirit of manipulation, every spirit hindering our walk with God, every spirit trying to confuse us and  every spirit attempting to lure us away from Jesus and  to rob us of our days, our health, our finances, our peace, our unity, our joy,  unconditional love, our destinies, Eternal Life with Jesus and Father God and all that Father God has given us, and I cast these spirits out in Jesus mighty name.

In Jesus name, I command these spirits never to return to us or near us ever again.
I close and seal all the evil gates which have been opened, by ourselves or anyone else,  by our negative  thoughts, words and actions, ill-feelings and emotions,
over ourselves, our lives, over our territories, families, homes, marriages, relationships, the body of believers, our jobs, our destinies, over everywhere we go, work and rest, ...I reiterate, I shut tight all the evil gates and doors over all areas I mentioned, in the powerful and mighty name of Jesus Christ the Son of the Living God.

I plead You Father for the shed blood of Christ Jesus and Your holy angels to be positioned around us, our house and wherever we work, travel and rest, so that the enemy will not be allowed to come in to manipulate, devour, distract, divert, rob or to destroy us, of our  relationship with You & with one another, our unity, our time, peace, joy, our lives, our destinies and all that You Father have given us.

I now open heaven's floodgates and the gates of heaven's storehouses over us, our lives and over our territories, our families, our homes, our marriages, our relationships, the body of believers, our jobs, our destinies, our transports and wherever we go, work and rest and I decree and declare a continuous and an unending flow of God's blessings, promises, restorations and breakthroughs into our lives in Jesus precious name and in Jesus name Father cover each one of us by the precious, powerful blood of Christ Jesus.

With the authority given to me as a child of God and as a believer in Christ Jesus, with the authority given to me as my husband's wife and my children's mother and clothed with the righteousness of Christ Jesus,  I now release God's wisdom, knowledge, understanding, fear of God, a passion for abiding in Christ Jesus always and for spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ, protection, clarity of mind, health, peace, love, unity and joy into each one of our lives forevermore and always in Jesus mighty name.

I release God's destiny for us, into each one of our lives.
I decree and declare this over my husband,my sons, our children's (future) spouses our (future) grandchildren and all our future descendants, 
till the very last one on 
earth and over myself, in Jesus mighty name. Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21 NASB
Now to You Father Who are able to do far more abundantly, beyond all that we hope, ask or think, according to the power that works within us, (and according to the power Who raised Jesus up)(*I know and believe that You Father are able to and will answer every prayer I make and every prayer not mentioned and every need of ours that we know not of, every desire of our hearts which is in accordance with Your holy will,  in abundant and supernatural ways)[21] to You be the glory in the Ekklesia(church) and in Christ Jesus, to all generations forever and ever. Amen.

Jude 1:24-25  NASB
Now to You Father, Who are able to keep us from stumbling, and to make us stand in the presence of Your glory blameless with great joy, [25] to You the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

    *************************

Footnote:-

Dear parents, the above prayer is something from my heart. It is only a sample for you to use if you want to pray in like manner. I want you to know that our Father hears the cries of your hearts and sees every tear that drops from your eyes. You can pray in your own way from your heart using scripture verses. 

The enemies we are fighting with, are not the people we see but are unseen. They are the enemies of our souls, the principalities and powers of the air. Jesus has given us authority over these spirits. As long as we are abiding in Christ Jesus we have the same authority that Jesus has, to fight these unseen enemies.

Pray for and bless the people who cause problems in your lives but pray against the enemies of your souls. Father God will strengthen you. Jesus has asked the Father to send you the Holy Spirit. 

The Word of God says in Romans 8:26-27 NLT

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. [27] And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will.

So when your heart is overwhelmed with great sorrow that you can't find words to pray, God's Spirit, the Holy Spirit is there for you. You just need to tell Him that you need His help. He will pray for you.

Remember to use scripture verses and pray them aloud. God's Word is a double edged sword. 

I want you to read the following bible verses and be strengthened in Christ Jesus.  

Philippians 1:28 NLT

Don't be intimidated in any way by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself.

Hebrews 4:12-16 NLT

For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. [13] Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable. [14] So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. [15] This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. [16] So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

Luke 10:19-20 NLT

Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions( the enemies of our souls which are Satan and the demons) and crush them. Nothing will injure you. [20] But don't rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven."

John 13:34-35 NLT

So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. [35] Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples."

Sisters and Brothers in Christ, I pray that you will be encouraged to read the Word of God daily and to seek Him in prayer.

Remember to bear the fruit of the Spirit in your daily life. The fruit of the Spirit is:-

Love, Joy, Peace, Longsuffering, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. 

Among all these the greatest is LOVE ... unconditional love.

Jesus said that others will know we are Christians by our love!

Yes, and Jesus will know us by the fruit we bear in our character daily. So please do your best, to live pleasing lives to God. When you fail or fall, do not despair. Just repent and get up with the help of the Holy Spirit and walk with Jesus again. 

May God bless you in your endeavors and transform the world for the  establishment of His Kingdom here on earth, through you. I pray this for you, in Jesus name. Amen.

Mary Augustine.

Guilty OR Forgiven?

I was reading Luke 18:9-14 the other day and I asked myself this question,   "How do I see myself and how do I see others?"

Luke 18:9-14 (NASB) says this:-
And He (Jesus) also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: [10] "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. [11] The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: 'God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. [12] I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.' [13] But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, the sinner!' [14] I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Here we see a Pharisee, who is a faithful practitioner of the 'Laws', standing before God in prayer. We see him attesting to God that he did not rob anyone; did not do any evil in God's sight; did not commit adultery (that means he was faithful to his spouse and to God, which was a great thing in those days, because most men were known to have many adulterous relationships), did not even collect taxes like the tax collector who was then in front of him.

This Pharisee seems like, truly a good man doesn't he? After all, over and above living a good, worthy life in accordance to the 'Laws', he started his prayer by thanking God first. Doesn't the entire Old Testament speak about the 'Sacrifice of Thanksgiving'? Here is just a sample from
Psalm 116:17 (NASB)
To You I shall offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving, And call upon the name of the LORD.

Giving thanks to God was and is still, first and foremost the best sacrificial offering to God and this Pharisee did just that, or did he?

Jesus said that he was not justified before God as the tax collector was. Why? What did the Pharisee miss out?

A Sacrifice of Thanksgiving means, being able to thank God in the midst of chaotic and stormy situations. Being able to thank God, trusting that God  will make all situations calm and quieten down. It is not just to thank God during good times only. We must thank God both in good and in bad times.

Here, the Pharisee did thank God but was actually boasting of his accomplishments, was boasting about his ability to follow the laws.

Look at the tax collector, he beat his chest and cried for mercy before God, admitting that he was a sinner.

What was the difference between them both?

The Pharisee knew he adhered to all the laws of God. He compared himself with others who broke the laws. He felt good, high and mighty above them all. This made him look down on the rest of the 'sinnners'! His prayer became a thankful  boasting of his own merits instead of a humble acknowledgement of God's power working in and through him.

The tax collector on the other hand admitted that he was a sinner before God. He could not even look up because of his guilt. Yet he bravely came and stood before God pleading for mercy in humility, instead of hiding away, in guilt induced depression.

Psalm 51:17 says "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise."

God looks at our hearts; the motives of each one of our hearts are examined by Him. He hates a boastful heart and spirit.

Proverbs 6:16-19 (NASB) says that,
"There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: [17] Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, [18] A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil, [19] A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers."

The first in the list which God hates is haughty(proud) eyes.

Proverbs 16:5 (NASB) says,
"Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD; Assuredly, he will not be unpunished."

Here from the above verses from God's Word, we see that God truly hates the proud.

No matter how good and pious one is, we will never meet God's 'Gold' standard. The very moment we think we are good, holy, pious etc we are immediately and automatically raised on a pedestal in our own eyes (not in the eyes of others). We immediately begin to look at others from our perspective, which is, below us.

By measuring ourselves against others, we are proclaiming that we are better than them, holier than them. In short, we are saying that we are saints and they are sinners!

Our biggest enemy is 'Self'! We want to look good and feel good at all times, even when we stand before God in prayer. So the first thing that comes to our mind is,  "I am not so sinful as that person! There are people worse off than me! I am better than them all!"

Of course there are people better in virtue or worse off in virtue than us. But when we stand praying before God, instead of measuring ourselves against human standards, we must look at the holy and righteous God and acknowledge our unworthiness before Him.

The observation we did in this parable was before the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus has paid the penalty  for all of our sins. Therefore now, we need only confess our sins and acknowledge our unworthiness before the Father and believe in the saving power of the death and resurrection of Jesus and we will be justified by our faith in Christ through God's grace. Then God will hear the prayer of a 'righteous' man. We are made righteous by the blood of Christ Jesus.

Let me now go back to tell you what happened when I read the verse in Luke. God brought back to my mind the vision He showed me 6 years ago. It came back to mind crystal clear as if I was just seeing it now.

This is the vision:-
A group of five or six people, all clothed in white, flowing garments were kneeling with both their hands raised up and their heads raised high. They were praising God harmoniously. I noticed that one of them was not in a white garment. In fact that person was totally black, charcoal black, looked like an alien without facial features and was not clothed. The body was in the shape of a human but without form. Just total black. Charred, I would say. Covered in total darkness. Even that figure was praising God from a kneeling position, with hands raised up and head lifted high. I was curious. I asked the Lord, who or what that was. His answer not only shocked me but it shook me up! He said, "That is you!" 

"Me!" I gasped!  

"Yes, it is you before you made Me your Saviour. You were then not clothed with my righteousness. Without the cloak of My righteousness, everyone  looks the same to Me. The garments you see covering everyone here is My righteousness. Without My righteous covering all will look like that, charred and deformed, covered in darkness," said He. That's when I remembered this verse in Romans 3:23 'for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God'. Yes only the blood covering of Christ Jesus makes us white as snow.

After bringing this vision back to my mind, Father God asked me, "So all have sinned and fall short of My glory. When they seek My forgiveness and My mercy, how do I see them?"

"Covered by the blood of Christ Jesus," I said.

"Yes, but how do I see them?" He asked me again.

Then it dawned upon me! "Forgiven! You see them as 'Forgiven'. Totally clean and sinless and spotless," I said. 

"Then why do you see him as the same person he was, before he was washed by the blood of my Son? Why do you look down on him?" Asked Father God gently.

That question pierced my heart! I realised I was seeing my brother as someone who might never change. That is why, when he called me that evening, I spoke to him coldly and curtly and ended my conversation with him quickly.

I had been praying for my brother to change his habits but he never seemed to. He was trying, he said. He went to church weekly but was unable to give up some of the habits which were causing him to fall sick. He was struggling with his physical ailments which were partly brought about by his habits. I was sad and angry with him, but at the same time had been praying for his complete transformation. 

Getting in and out of the hospital every other week has been so normal to him. The hospital has become his second home. I wanted him to be healed and healthy and wanted him to be a role model for his children. All my advice seemed to fall on deaf ears. So I began to view him as incorrigible, although I kept praying daily for him. I began to form a disgust for his way of living and I realised that my heart had become calloused. That's why I ended the call quickly.

Once the Lord convicted me of the callousness of my heart, I repented immediately and called my brother, spoke to him lovingly and told him I am praying for his transformation.

I realised that by looking at my brother as 'Guilty':-
1. I allowed pride to enter my heart.
2. I placed myself on a pedestal.
3. I looked down on him.
4. I was judging my brother, not knowing his inner struggles and his conversation with God.
5. I undermined God's ability to change him.
6. I undermined God's ability to forgive him and that God saw him as forgiven and spotless.
7. I undermined the power of the blood of Christ.

When God forgives someone a million times and sees him as 'Forgiven' & 'Spotless', who am I to see him as guilty. That means I become ten or more times worse than him because of the pride in my heart. There is no difference between me and the Pharisee in the parable.

By my behavior towards my brother I had proved to be exactly like the Pharisee, haughty and proud. I had a high and mighty opinion about myself. I was like the 'some people' Jesus told the parable to. I was like them who trusted in themselves and thought that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt.

Pride is an abomination in God's eyes. I who am a sinner need more of God's mercy and grace, to help me look at others with His eyes. To constantly look at others as 'Forgiven'!

Prayer :-
Father give me a heart
That loves as You do!
Give me eyes,
To see everyone,
Just as You see them,
Clothed with Your righteousness!
To see everyone,
Free from sin and shame!
To see  everyone,
Constantly as 'Forgiven'!

Forgive me Father, cause
I am the 'Guilty' one
Who crucified Your Son
By being Haughty!
Wash me clean
With the blood of Your Son.
Never let my heart grow
calloused or cold.
Let my faults ever be
Before my eyes!
I truly am sorry
For hurting You Daddy!
Rend my heart
For what rends Yours!
Help me become more like Jesus
In thought, word & deed.
Help me be
Sincerely Humble
Tenderly Compassionate &
Love everyone unconditionally.

This I ask in Jesus name. Amen.

Mary Augustine
28/04/18

Prayers for our Children

Many a times I have prayed various prayers for my children. My prayers used to stem out of anxiety and fear and a desire to see them prosper in this life and the next, according to the Word of God . I wanted them to study well, have good friends, get good jobs, earn well, be well respected in society, be morally good, be God fearing, get God fearing Christian spouses and raise their children rooted in Christ Jesus. This is what all Christian parents would want, won't they?

I began praying for them even before each one of them was born. I dedicated each child to Father God, placing them in His hands, trusting Him to raise them up as God fearing children and good citizens, even as He formed them intricately in my womb.

As my children grew and got caught in the web of deceit and deception of this world, I began praying verses from the scriptures, praying binding and loosing prayers for the safety and protection of their body, soul and spirit. Where I could not go 24/7, I sent the Holy Spirit, Who did a pretty good job.

Now my children are all grown and one is married and the other two are just embarking on their life's journey.

How long more can I pray or need to pray for them? As long as there is breath in my lungs. Yes, as their mother, I will neither rest nor slumber till I breathe my last.

Now through years of experience, I don't pray with fear any longer. I pray with a quiet confidence in the Lord Jesus. When I pray for them there is a peace which settles in my heart. I know my God will see them through, no matter what. I place my children, their spouses, my grandchildren and all my future descendants into the hands of my Big God. Whatever may come, my Big God is way Bigger than anything that may come their way.

If I were to begin as a young mother all over again would I do anything differently? Yes, I will. I will still use scripture verses to pray over them cause the Word of God is a double edged sword. I will still do the binding and losing prayers, because all the powers of the enemy are under our feet because we are seated in Christ with God the Father in the heavenly realms. But now, I will pray confidently without fear or anxiety, because fear and worry open up the gates of our hearts and mind to demonic activities in our lives and our children's lives. This robs us of peace, joy and health. Our fear and anxiety get projected into the natural world and pave a way for our children to do what we don't want them to do, and be what we don't want them to be. What we fear begins to happen and we begin to fear more. We will save ourselves a lot of trouble and heartaches if we just have unshakable faith in Jesus and pray a prayer of thanksgiving for our children instead.

Remember the prayer of the Canaanite woman with a demon-possessed daughter, who longed for her child to be set free. One day she heard that Jesus was nearby, and although she was a Gentile, she went to Him and pleaded for His mercy and help. (Matthew15:22) but in spite of what Jesus told her the woman continued to plead with Him until she received His gracious commendation, “Woman, you have great faith!”(verse 28). In fact, she not only received His commendation, but also the answer to her prayers.

I did learn a lot from this woman of great faith, how to plead with unshakable faith till I receive mercy and grace and the answers to my every prayer, from Father God. This Canaanite woman pleaded with unshakable faith and I am adding thanksgiving with it in my prayer. Jesus in Luke 17:17-18 asks the leper who came to thank Him for his healing, "Where are the others?" I not only want to have unshakable faith in Christ Jesus but also want to be the one who thanks Him for all that He has done for me and all that He is going to do for me.  

Now, my prayer for my children and their spouses and my grandchildren and all our descendants is as follows:- ( You may adapt it and place your children's names in the brackets)

Father God, I plead the blood of Christ on my children (     ), their spouses and children and our grandchildren and all our descendants till the very last one on this earth. I surrender them into Your hands Father.

Father God, I thank You for placing Your hedge of protection around each one of them.

Thank You Father for setting their hearts on fire for Christ Jesus. 

Thank You for permeating them and saturating them with Your Spirit and making them sold out for Jesus.

Thank You for giving them no rest  till they desire Jesus more than their breath.

Thank You for giving them the Spirit of Wisdom & Revelation that they may know You and Jesus and the Holy Spirit intimately.

Thank You Father for enlightening
the eyes of their hearts so that they will know the hope to which You have called them for.

Thank You Father that Your Spirit breathes His breath of life into them and raises up their inner man to be faithful to You and Jesus till their very last breath.

Thank You for opening the ears of their hearts to hear Your still small voice saying, "This is the way, walk in it!"

Thank You for making
them the head and not 
the tail.

Thank You for putting 
Your favour on them so 
that they have Your 
favour with all people and all authorities.

Thank You for blessing 
the work of their hands.

Thank You that they are  healthy and strong  physically, mentally,    emotionally and    spiritually.

Thank You that their 
finances and resources never deplete but keep increasing for the 
expansion of Your 
kingdom on earth.

Thank You that Your Holy Spirit has transformed them into the likeness of Christ Jesus.

Thank You that their zeal for Christ Jesus is so powerful that they lead many to Him through their thoughts, speech and actions and their holy zeal. 

Thank You that they are deeply rooted in Christ Jesus that their faith in Him is unshakable ever.    

Thank You Father that they are living in harmony and unity with one another.  

Thank You Father that my children know their position in Christ Jesus. They know that they are seated in Him with You in the heavenly realms and that all the powers, authorities and dominions of the air and of the earth and under the earth are under the feet of Christ and under their feet in submission to Christ and them. I thank you that they are abiding  in Christ Jesus always and are using their positional authority in Christ Jesus for Your greater honour and glory.

Thank You Father that my children are never walking away and will never walk away from under Your umbrella of protection.

Thank You Father that 
none of them are lost, 
but will rejoice with me, 
my husband and Jesus in  the company of the 
angels and saints, 
praising You forevermore, for all eternity in heaven.

With the authority given to me as their mother, I forbid Satan from having any hold over their lives, ever. 

I bind every spirit hindering their walk with God and every spirit trying to rob them of their days, their health, their finances, their  peace  and joy, and all that Father God has  given them, and I cast these spirits out in Jesus mighty name. 

In Jesus name, I command these spirits never to return to them or near them ever again.                 

I release God's protection, health peace, love and joy into their lives forevermore and always in Jesus mighty name.                        

I decree and declare this for my sons, their spouses, grandchildren and descendants, till the very last one on earth, in Jesus mighty name. Amen!

Ephesians 3:20-21 NASB
Now to You Father Who are able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, (*I know and believe that You Father are able to and will answer every prayer I make and every prayer not mentioned and every need of ours that we know not of, every desire of our hearts which is in accordance with Your holy will,  in abundant and supernatural ways)[21] to You be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus, to all generations forever and ever. Amen.

Jude 1:24-25  NASB
Now to You Father, Who are able to keep us from stumbling, and to make us stand in the presence of Your glory blameless with great joy, [25] to You the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

Mary Augustine
10/04/18

Is there re-birth?

To the question, "Is there re-birth?" The answer is "No!"

What is re-birth? Let us look at what Wikipedia says

Rebirth can refer to a number of different concepts within spirituality, depending on the school of thought. Hinduism and Buddhism, which both share roots with yogic philosophy, teach about rebirth.

In Hinduism, rebirth, or reincarnation, is a central tenet of the religious teachings. It refers to the idea that the spirit can begin a new life after the death of its physical body, in another body. This may be a human or an animal body.

In Buddhism, rebirth is the idea that when a being dies, this event is the catalyst for the creation of a new aggregation of consciousness. The new being is neither identical nor completely dissimilar to the previous life, but rather they form a continuous stream of consciousness.

The rebirth doctrine in Buddhism, sometimes referred to as reincarnation or metempsychosis, asserts that rebirth does not necessarily take place as another human being, but as an existence in one of the six Gati (realms) called Bhavachakra.[4] The six realms of rebirth include Deva (heavenly), Asura (demigod), Manusya (human), Tiryak (animals), Preta (ghosts), and Naraka (resident of hell)

(The above was retrieved from Wikipedia)

Now let us look at what the Son of God, Jesus says in Mark 12:26-27 NASB
"But regarding the fact that the dead rise again, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB'? [27] He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken."

Here Jesus was talking to some Sadducees who came to ask Him a question.

From what Jesus said, we know clearly that a person who dies will not be born again as a god, nor another human with another name(whether same identity and consciousness or not) nor as an animal, nor as a demon nor as a ghost or a resident of hell (believing in all this might lead them to hell). He or she will remain as the same person, with their souls and identities intact; Abraham as Abraham, Isaac as Isaac, Jacob as Jacob, Moses as Moses, You as You and Me as Me!

The body perishes but the soul lives on in eternity. Depending on how we live now on earth and on Whom we place our faith on(the object of our faith), we will live forever either in heaven or in hell. There is no rebirth at all.

You might ask, "Why does Jesus talk about being born again in the Bible?" The classic passage from the Bible that answers this question is John 3:1-21. The Lord Jesus Christ is talking to Nicodemus, a prominent Pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin (the ruling body of the Jews). Nicodemus had come to Jesus at night with some questions.

As Jesus talked with Nicodemus, He said, “‘I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’ ‘How can a man be born when he is old?’ Nicodemus asked. ‘Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, “You must be born again”’” (John 3:3-7).

The phrase "born again" literally means "born from above." Nicodemus had a real need. He needed a change of his heart—a spiritual transformation. New birth, being born again, is an act of God whereby eternal life is imparted to the person who believes (2 Corinthians 5:17; Titus 3:5; 1 Peter 1:3; 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1-4,18). 
John 1:12, 13  indicates that being "born again" also carries the idea of "becoming children of God" through trust in the name of Jesus Christ.

The question logically comes, "Why does a person need to be born again?" The apostle Paul in Ephesians 2:1 says, "And He made alive, you, who were dead in trespasses and sins" (NKJV). To the Romans he wrote, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). All of us are sinners even at birth. We carry the original sin of Adam and Eve. Sinners are spiritually “dead” people. We have no access to, an all righteous, God unless our sins are completely wiped off. Only the blood of Christ can wash away our sins.  When we sinners receive spiritual life through faith in Christ, the Bible likens it to a rebirth. Only those who are born again have their sins forgiven and have a relationship with God.

How does that come to be? We receive grace from God. ( Grace is a chance to accept the price Jesus paid for us on the cross in exchange for our sins. Grace is a chance to repent and live a changed life again when we fall into sin.) Ephesians 2:8-9 states, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast."

When one accepts Christ Jesus and the price He paid for us on the cross, he is saved, then he/she is born again, spiritually cleansed and is now a child of God by right of new birth.

Trusting in Jesus Christ, the One who paid the penalty of sin when He died on the cross, is the means to be "born again." "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: the old has gone, the new has come!" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Every person who accepts Christ Jesus is given the Holy Spirit of God. That means God Himself comes to live inside of us. The Holy Spirit will guide us to live a life pleasing to God. He will prompt us to seek forgiveness when we do something wrong and help us to live changed lives. He will help us to discipline our free will and surrender it to God. 

In short if we do not accept Christ Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, we cannot have God's Spirit living in us. We then, will only have the law that guides us but not God's grace.

The Holy Spirit is poured upon all flesh (Joel 2:28/ Acts 2:17). He prompts us to seek the truth and accept Christ. But He will only live in you when you accept Jesus.

If you have never trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, will you consider the prompting of the Holy Spirit as He speaks to your heart? You need to be born again. Will you pray the prayer of repentance and become a new creation in Christ today?  When you do you will rightfully become a child of Father God. "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God" (John 1:12-13).

If you want to accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and be born again, here is a sample prayer.

Please remember, just saying this prayer or any other prayer will not save you. It is only when you really believe that Christ Jesus died on your behalf to save you from sin, you will be saved. This prayer is simply a way to express to God your faith in Him and thank Him for providing for your salvation through Christ Jesus.

Pray the following prayer when you are ready.

Prayer of Acceptance of God's Gift:-
"God, I know that I have sinned against You and am deserving of punishment. But Jesus Christ took the punishment that I deserve so that through faith in Him I could be forgiven. I place my trust in You for salvation. I accept Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. Thank You for Your wonderful grace and forgiveness—the 'Gift of Eternal Life' through Jesus Christ! Amen!"

For all who are still unsure, please listen carefully.

All other religions do not promise a good life after death. The life after death, for those in other religions, depends upon the good works done by each individual, and it is known as 'Karma'. Only in Christianity can you accept Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior and be saved without any hassle. Salvation does not depend on our good works but on our faith in Christ Jesus.

No other religion teaches you to forgive your enemy and do good to those who hate you, only Christianity does. 

No one else claimed to BE the Way, Truth and Life. Only Jesus did.

No one in all the other religions died for the sins of humanity to save us from God's righteous anger. Only Jesus did.

No religious leader has died and resurrected and lives even now. Only Jesus does.

Jesus says in John 14:6 NASB
Jesus said to Thomas, "I AM The Way, and The Truth, and The Life; No one comes to the Father BUT through Me."

What does He mean by that? Do you know that every religion teaches to offer sacrifices to God for their sins? What do they do? In ancient days they used to sacrifice babies to their gods. Now, they sacrifice animals, they offer money or other things to the temple priests, they say long prayers, they do charitable works, they try their best to keep all the laws rigidly (yet fail) etc. None of these acts can appease God's righteous anger.

Jesus says, "I Am The Way":- meaning 'The Ultimate Sacrifice'. " I Am The Truth" :- 'The True Sacrifice'. "I Am The Life":- 'The True Life - Through Me My Father's anger will be appeased'. We cannot stand before a righteous God without being punished unless we stand covered by the atoning blood of Christ Jesus. 

If Jesus, Who is the Christ(Messiah) of the world says all that, it either makes Him the Lord or a liar. If He is a liar He would not have died such a cruel death and risen on the third day; He would not have given His life for you and me so that when we accept Him as our Lord and Saviour, all our sins get wiped away and we are made clean and ready to enter heaven.

Please consider accepting Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. Just call upon Him and be saved.

If you my dear, who believe in many gods, if you are still confused and not sure whether you are doing the right thing by accepting Jesus, just be assured that you don't lose anything by calling upon Jesus now. Just call out His name aloud, and say this, " Jesus, You say that You are the only Way to God. I am confused. I don't know what to believe. I have tried to lead a good life. Now, I want to be sure that I am in heaven with God when I die (is that not what you desire?) I do not want to be born again and again as an animal or ghost etc as I have believed. Please Father God, send me Your Holy Spirit and enlighten me. Speak to me. Help me be open to Your voice and help me believe in the TRUTH! Father God I pray this in Jesus name. Amen."

Please just say the above prayer daily till God reveals the truth to you. Then when you are ready, there is a 'Prayer of Acceptance of God's Gift' above; Just say it.

Not that you have accepted Christ, what do you do? Look up a Christian church in your neighborhood and pay a visit and talk to the pastor or elders of the Church. They will guide you. You need a church community to motivate you to grow in your relationship with God.

Next you must read the Bible. It is God's Word. Although the authors are many it was the  Holy Spirit Who inspired them to write it. 

Just as you have read other books, I implore you to take the Bible and start reading it from the New Testament. Read the 4 Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and proceed to read Acts of the Apostles and then all the letters of Paul who previously was a persecutor of Christians, begining with Romans,  letters of other apostles and finally Revelation. If you read 2 to 4 chapters a day you will finish reading within a couple of months. God will speak to you through His Word in the Bible.

God bless you abundantly.
Praying for you always
Your loving
Maria

Mary Augustine

11/04/18

'Faith without Gratitude'!

It must have been the time of day when not many people were walking around. Therefore these ten came out and stood outside to get some fresh air. They were the outcasts of the society. Actually they were considered the scum of the earth, the untouchables. They were lepers. That's why they stole themselves out when not many were around.

Isolated from family and friends, they were lonely, with only fellow lepers to share their woes with and talk to. They had given up all hope of recovering or being united with their loved ones again. They were left there in the lepers colony to die a slow and painful death. They could never go back to their camps.(Leviticus 13:45-46)

As they stood there to take in a quick breather before anyone came around, they spotted a group of men walking along  the border between Galilee and Samaria. This group entered their village. The ten, hurriedly prepared to turn back to their colony before they were shooed off.

Then they spotted Him leading the group. Their hearts missed a beat. Isn't He the One everyone was talking about? Isn't He the One Who healed the sick, made the cripple walk,  raised the dead, made the blind see and the deaf hear? Isn't He the same Jesus, the son of the carpenter Joseph, from Nazareth? They looked at each other with renewed hope. (Luke 17:11-19 NLT)

They had heard so much about Him and His amazing miracles. They had longed to meet Him, but in their condition they could not travel out. They were confined to their miserable dingy colonies. Now there was a golden opportunity knocking at their door. They were not going to miss it for anything.

Their hearts soared with hope. They could picture themselves healed completely, returning back to their families and loved ones. They could picture themselves being welcomed back by their parents, wives and children in a jubilant procession. At that moment, they did not care who saw them or who heard them. All that mattered to them was, their ultimate healing.
Not wanting to miss another moment, they mustered all their strength and shouted aloud in unison, "Jesus!... Master!... Have pity on us!..."

The ten lepers recognized Him as the Master. Master over all sickness and diseases, Master over everyone and all situations! They had complete faith in Him. They believed; they just knew in their innermost beings that when they call out to Him, He will answer. They knew without a slightest doubt that they will be healed totally. They knew that they will be reunited with their families soon. They will be free from social stigma forevermore!

Their pitiful, anguished but determined cries pierced the Master's ears. He stopped and looked at them. How could He refuse such bold and unwavering, faith filled cries for healing? He answered them.

Yes, He answered their cries. He told them to, "Go show yourselves to the priests". It was a requirement according to Leviticus 14:1-32. Those who had been healed from severe skin diseases must show themselves to the priests and get themselves ceremoniously cleansed before they can be reunited with their families. It would take about eight days; a long and tedious process.

The ten lepers knew that when Jesus, the Master says a word, it will happen. So they went in faith, pure unadulterated faith, although they were not healed visibly yet. If it was you or I, we would have stood there and refused to budge without being totally healed. We would have argued, "But I am not healed yet! How could I possibly show myself to the priests in this state. They will think I am crazy. They won't even let me go near the camp, what more near them! Heal me first!" But these simple folks just obeyed the Master with such unshakable faith. Faith embedded on that Rock of all Ages, Jesus!

The Bible says, 'and as they went, they were healed!' Their faith in Jesus prompted them to obey, without questioning, even when there was no evidence. Faith is believing for the things hoped for even before seeing the evidence. But it must be placed on Jesus, which they certaintly did.

Now while they were hurrying to show themselves to the priests, they noticed that they were healed completely. They began leaping for joy, looking with awe at their once deformed hands and feet, running even faster to show themselves to the priests and to share about the miracle that just happened. All ran, except one.

This one was a Samaritan and not a Jew. He turned back to thank the Master who healed him. He could not contain the joy which overflowed from his heart. He ran praising God loudly and threw himself at the feet of Jesus, thanking Him profusely.

Jesus looked at him and asked, "I healed ten and where are the other nine? Only this foreigner came back to give praise to God?" Then He told him, "Now rise and go; Your faith has healed you!"

All ten had unshakable faith in Jesus, they were healed because they had faith in Him, but only one came back to thank Him. Why didn't the others come? They could not wait to get back to their families to share the good news. How many years had they anguished in pain and isolation! Now it would take at least eight days before they could go back into their camps, after the rituals. The cleansing rituals were eight days long, moreover offerings had to be made. They could not afford to lose a single moment. That's why they hurried along without turning back. Can we fault them? No! What they did was right in their eyes and the eyes of the world. They obeyed Jesus. He told them to go and they went. They did not disbelieve Him. They did not argue with Him.They had firm faith in Him, coupled with obedience. Yet, what was missing in them was a heart of gratitude.

Like the Samaritan, who came back to thank Jesus, many a times it is the unbelievers who turn back to thank Him bringing with them offerings and gifts. How many times have we believers failed to thank the Lord for all the graces He has poured into our lives?

We pray in faith. We obey His precepts. We think that when we obey all that God has commanded, we have become righteous. Then we expect our prayers to be answered immediately.  When we are healed, we become puffed up with pride and go around telling everyone that because of our faith we were healed. We even testify that God healed us publicly yet forget to thank Him intimately in our hearts. We take all that He has given us for granted, as if we are truly entitled to all of them. When we are not healed or when our prayers are not answered we grumble and ask, "Why?"

Some of us are like the nine who ran to show themselves to the priests. When we are healed we joyously go about our duties, our unfinished work, which we could not do formerly because of our illness or our situations. We feel we can't waste anymore time now that we are able. We know we are accountable to God for the time given. All that is good, but we sadly forget to thank our Master from whom we receive all good gifts.

Jesus is neither looking for gifts nor offerings. He is obviously not looking for someone who treats Him as an ATM or someone who turns to Him only when they need Him like a blanket in winter. He is not pleased with people who go about thinking they are more righteous than others. He hates the proud and those with religious spirits. (James 4:6 & 1 Peter 5:5) He is looking for humble and grateful hearts. (Psalm 50:23-But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me)

So let us answer my question in the title of this article. Does 'Faith without Gratitude' work? From the above incident in the bible we learn that it surely does. James 2:19 says that even the demons also believe that there is one God. In Matthew 5:29, the demons shouted, "What do you want with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?" Anyone can have faith, but you can't please God without gratitude. What is the use of gaining the whole world in faith when you don't honour God with your praise and thanksgiving?

Therefore,  let us today, repent and build our relationship with Jesus. Let us develop an attitude of gratitude and thank Him daily, for everything in our lives, great or small. Let us praise and thank Him ceaselessly because that is what pleases and honours Him.

Mary Augustine
3/4/18

Misplaced Faith is Useless!

What is 'Faith'? 
Faith according to the dictionary is :- 
1. complete trust or confidence in someone or something.
2. strong belief in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual conviction rather than proof.

Faith according to God's Word is:-
Hebrews 11:1 NLT
Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.

We often hear people telling one another, "Have faith! You can do it! Just believe in yourself and your abilities! Have faith in me! I will never let you down! Have faith in God! He can make all things possible! Etc."

When do we need faith? Is it when things are bleak and situations are stormy; when someone is sick or dying; when we seem to have exhausted all avenues to resolve a situation? It is true in a way. During tough times is when our hearts will yearn for someone or something greater than us, with greater knowledge and capabilities to make things right again.

Yet, we see people of all ages and races and religions going about with simple, blind faith every day. We sleep every night trusting the sun to rise in the morning. We put our feet in our shoes hurriedly without checking for cockroaches or lizards which may be hiding inside, because we trust that there will be none there. We eat out at a hawkers stall trusting that the food which was cooked by the vendor was not sneezed into. We take a recommended vitamin trusting that it will strengthen us. We take a certain medicine given by the doctor trusting that it will cure our sickness. I can go on and on about how we put our simple blind trust and faith on things and people daily.

A soldier once woke up when he heard a siren and quickly put his feet into the boots to prepare for standby. Sadly he was bitten by a snake which was curled in one of  his boots and he died shortly.  An insurance agent was meeting with his client at a roadside restaurant, when a car driven by a drunk driver swerved into the restaurant and crashed into him. He was crippled for the rest of his life. Neither the soldier nor the insurance agent would have thought that there was danger lurking around the corner. They had simple, blind faith and trust that everything will be alright.

So where do we draw the line? On what or whom must we place our faith? Is just having faith enough? What does Jesus tell us about faith?

In Mark 6 Jesus was amazed at the lack of faith in the people of His hometown. He was amazed that they did not trust Him enough.
Mark 6:5-6 NLT
And because of their unbelief, he couldn't do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. [6] And he was amazed at their unbelief. ...

In Luke 17:5 the apostles asked Jesus to increase their faith. Jesus replied that it need not be increased; that faith, the size of a mustard seed will do the explosive work!
Luke 17:5-6 NLT
The apostles said to the Lord, "Show us how to increase our faith." [6] The Lord answered, "If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'May you be uprooted and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you!

In Matthew 17 the apostles ask Jesus why they were not able to cast out the demon from the boy. Look at the reply of Jesus below:
Matthew 17:19-20 NLT
Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, "Why couldn't we cast out that demon?" [20] "You don't have enough faith," Jesus told them. "I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it would move. Nothing would be impossible."

A mulberry tree's trunk is approximately 45 feet wide. It has deep set roots. To move it would be a humongous task even for several people put together. To move a mountain is not only impossible but it is also unthinkable.  Yet Jesus says both feats are possible if we have faith as small as a mustard seed.

Mustard seed is a common spice used in every household in Jesus' time. People were very familiar with its size. Therefore He used it as an example. On the lighter side, I wonder why He did not use 'a grain of sand' as an example! 😉 Anyway according to Jesus, faith that small, is sufficient to heal and restore.

Where or on what or whom do we place our faith? On our own natural abilities? No we are frail human begins and we can't do anything on our own. On doctors, engineers, lawyers, prayer warriors who pray over us or pastors? No, because they too are human beings. On machines and modern technologies? No they are man made and will surely fail us at one time or another.

Where then do we place our faith? Let us look at what Jesus says again;-
Mark 11:22-24 NLT
Then Jesus said to the disciples, "Have faith in God. [23] I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, 'May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. [24] I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you've received it, it will be yours.

Jesus gave us the answer here. We must place our faith in God. Not on anything or anyone else. Only God has the awesome power to uproot a mulberry tree or a mountain and throw it into the sea. Only God has the awesome power to heal cancer, to make the blind see and the deaf hear, to raise the dead, to heal emotions, to change a person's character and to give you the job you have never imagined you will get.

Remember that the people in the hometown of Jesus did not trust Him. Let us not make the same mistake as them. There is no other name greater than the name of Jesus in heaven or on earth or under the earth. Whatever we ask in His name without doubting, we will receive.
John 14:13 NLT
You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father.

In John 15, Jesus explains further.
John 15:7 NLT
"But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!"
Whatever we ask will be granted only when we remain in Jesus. When we abide in Him, we won't ask for worldly riches which perish. We will only ask for what is necessary to live each day to do His will and glorify Him. He will give us what we ask, as long as it is according to God's will for our lives. Just know that a parent won't give his three year old a knife even if he begs for it. Our God is a better parent than any other human parent.

Jesus also warns those praying in faith for others in the following verses: Luke 17:10 NLT "In the same way, when you obey me you should say, 'We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.'"

When we pray for others and they get healed or their problems get solved, we cannot and must not take the credit. We were obedient in carrying out the Lord's work and we must be humble and give Him the credit. 

Now let me give you one last word of hope. There are many if not most who place their faith on past experiences. If someone has the habit of breaking promises, the next time he or she makes a promise, we might not trust them. We get frustrated and even discouraged by their behaviour. When many people die of cancer even with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, when we get cancer, we will be afraid that we will die despite all treatments. When a child does not do well in school again and again, he is branded as a failure and people stop believing that he will make it in life. If you are the parent then you get worried and anxious cause you want your child to do well in life. When someone you love backslides we feel that all is lost and ask ourselves what we did wrong. When someone meets failure after failure and does not see a breakthrough, does not get a promotion, does not get a job, he or she will experience discouragement based on his or her past experiences. It is only human tendency to be anxious based on past experiences. This is where Hebrews 11:1 speaks to us. Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.

Let me encourage you if you are one who places your faith in past experiences, like I used to do. Make a decision now, to stop believing whatever evidence you see before your eyes. If you are praying for yourself or someone, your spouse, your child, your sibling, your parents or even your friends, look past what you see daily before your eyes. Form a vision of what you want to see in that person. Form a vision of how you want that person to be. Then thank God, Who is able to do and answer far more exceedingly and abundantly more than what we can ever ask for. Keep thanking Him for healing you completely even if you lay dying on the bed, keep thanking Him for changing the character of your sibling even if he is still a drug addict, keep thanking Him for giving you that breakthrough you are seeking for, although you see no results now. He will make all things you pray for in the name of Jesus, believing, come true. But first He will have to mould each person and let you go through a process. Only when He brings us through this process, we will be able to produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness and self control. He has His reasons for answering immediately, delaying or rejecting. But we will be wise if we look to Him and Him alone in faith.

Remember there will always be 'Faith Dampers' around, who will try to dampen your faith. They will say things like, "See there is no change in him or her or in you! What is the use of believing or even praying. Just tell him or her off. He or She will never change," or "No use lah! You will never improve or you will never get a job!" When you hear things like this, do not react; do not receive it into your spirit. Just keep focusing and believing in Jesus and His promises. He WILL bring about a change and an answer to your prayer.

We must place our tiny little faith without doubting on our BIG God. Then we will see supernatural miracles unfold before our eyes. It is God Who works through people, medicine and technologies. God is also able to act independently. So let us put our faith only on God and ask in the name of Jesus.  Misplaced faith will not get us anywhere!

P.S. I have seen extraordinary and supernatural miracles happen in my life because I shifted my faith from past experiences to our Saviour Jesus. My desire is for you to encounter the Lord Jesus just as I did.

Mary Augustine
30/03/18

Rebuking with a Purpose!

Luke 17:3,4 NKJV
3 Take heed to (watch) yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”

'' 'Rebuke!' What? Did I read it correctly? "

As I read the bible and came across Luke 17:3,  I was shocked! Jesus said,  "Rebuke the brother who sins against you." The same Jesus Who said, "If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to him the other," in Matthew 5:39, wants us to rebuke the brother who sins against us here in Luke 17:3 ?

I was confused at first, but after exploring deeply, my doubt cleared. I was able to see it clearly.

We are accustomed to rebuking our own children and family members to correct them and help them walk in the right way. But when it comes to outsiders, like members of our church who are also Christians, we just smile and try to pretend it is OK. We feel that it is impolite to rebuke or correct them. Then we grumble and gossip about what they did, behind their backs. This causes disunity and dissension in the body of Christ.

Here Jesus Who is the embodiment of Love itself, tells us to  rebuke a brother (a believer) when he sins against us. KJV says 'trespasses' against us. That means when we are wronged by a believer, not a persecutor who persecutes us for our belief in Jesus but a brother in faith, we are to rebuke (correct) him. Showing your cheek to someone (an unbeliever) who slaps you, is a topic for another time.

Jesus wants us to rebuke a brother who wrongs us. Why? The reason is simple. So that he will not be stumbled. Look at verses 1 & 2 before that. Jesus says do not stumble the little ones, meaning the young believers. A believer must be shown the right way. If he is not corrected when he does something wrong, then he will continue to do the trespasses in that same way. He who did it to you now, will do it to others some other time.  If we keep quiet without correcting him, we are doing him harm. That is why we must rebuke (correct ) him. Then when he repents we are commanded to forgive him, even if he does it numerous times and repents. Seven is an infinite number here.

Rebuking and forgiving a believer unifies and strengthens the body of Christ when it is done in love and out of a pure motive.

We must grow the attitude of hating the sin but loving the sinner. When someone keeps wronging us again and again and again, it is only human nature to get irritated and say, "You know what! You are incorrigible! I give up on you!" That is exactly what Jesus wants us to avoid doing. We need to rebuke, then forgive readily, without any grouses, when he repents.

Corrie Ten Boom in her book 'The Hiding Place', recounts how she could not forgive her sister's murderer who was repentant after hearing her preach. Only when she asked the Lord for strength a surge of God's love shot through her arm and she was able to shake hands with that person and even forgive him.

Like Corrie, let us ask Him to pour His love and compassion into our hearts to rebuke and forgive with His love.

Rebuking or correcting in selfish anger will become a sin on our part. We must not rebuke to seek vengeance. We need to rebuke in love, with a purpose. What is that purpose? It is to help the offender to change and live a life pleasing to God. We need to build him up and not tear him down by our rebukes.

Before telling us to rebuke, Jesus says 'Keep watch'. Let us therefore keep watch and pray without ceasing, at all times. Let us guard ourselves from stumbling others by our words and actions. Let us rebuke a brother who sins, with love. Let us readily forgive him who repents, no matter what it takes. We can't do it on our own. We need the strength and power of God. Let us therefore ask Him for it.

Remember, love the sinner while hating the sin. Let us do it all in humility. Pride will destroy us.

Mary Augustine
30/03/18

The Keys to Faith!

Abigail Judson and her husband who was a Pastor, raised up their children in the Lord's ways and rooted in the Word of God. But as their son Adoniram Judson grew, he formed friendship with a friend in college and this resulted in him abandoning his childhood faith. He backslided. Abigail saw that her son was hostile towards God. But that did not stop her from believing on God's promises for her son. She never gave up hope but prayed for him in faith. He left home to seek a job in New York. Eventually after several years, Adoniram repented, came back home and gave himself to God's service. He served as a missionary with his wife in Burma. He translated the entire Bible from Hebrew and Greek into the Burmese language. His mother's patience and faith filled prayers were not in vain.

What is 'Faith'? Paul says, that we walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). Here, sight not only refers to our physical eyes, but it includes all the five senses of hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting, and touching. Hence, this verse means that we cannot live by the five senses alone; we need to have faith. That is exactly what Abigail did. She did not believe what she saw and heard but believed on the promises of God.

Faith is seeing ourselves and our children as God sees us . Jesus said, “Blessed are they who do not see, and yet believe” (Jn. 20:26-29). “Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible.” Faith is an everyday affair of walking hand in hand with God. If we truly walked by faith instead of sight, our prayer life would be dramatically changed and we and those we pray for will be supernaturally transformed.

If we are anxious about our children, we parents must do our duties as good Christian parents. Then we must let God take over and be patient. We must  learn to trust God, that He will work in our children and transform them into who He wants them to be. If we are doubtful that we can be or do anything at all, we must have faith in God's promises and obey His Word. He is able to transform a cowardly kitten into a fierce lion; a waddling duck into a soaring eagle; a devious vulture into a gentle swan!

Let us now look at three men from the old testament and see how they viewed themselves and how God viewed them. Then we shall see how faith and obedience transformed them.

"Who me? Are you kidding me? Oh no, you must be mistaken! "

This must have been the thought running in the minds of the following folks:-
Moses, Gideon and David.

Moses the murderer of the Egyptian soldier, the coward who ran away from Pharoah, the stammerer who could not utter a sentence without stammering, was called to confront Pharoah and tell him to free God's people from their bondage. His immediate response was, "Not me, send someone else. I am not the right person for the job."(Exodus - Deuteronomy:- the narrative of how Moses was chosen and sent and transformed into a deliverer)

Gideon was fearful of the Midianites and Amalekites who invaded their country and destroyed all their crops and herds.They were terrorising the people. So Gideon, was laying low, hiding in the winepress and threshing the wheat for fear of the enemies. Just then, God's Angel appeared before him and called him a valiant warrior. He was amused. He, a coward, was addressed as a valiant warrior! He must have looked left and right and asked, "Who, me?" He thought the angel called upon the wrong person. (Judges chapters 6-8)

Samuel was looking for the future king of Israel among Jesse's sons. He rejected all of Jesse's tall and stately sons. Then the puny shephard boy, Jesse's youngest son was called in. When Samuel saw David he proclaimed that David was to be the next king of Israel. Everyone including David the shepherd boy must have thought that Samuel was old, demented and was mistaken.( 1 & 2 Samuel)

What they did not know at that moment was, God does not call the strong but the weak. God does not call the equipped but He equips those He has called. He empowers and strengthens those whom He has chosen. 

What they did not realise at that time was, God does not see us as man sees us. He sees us as warriors, deliverers and kings. We and our children are called by God to fight the good fight till the end. We are to do spiritual warfare against the principalities and powers of darkness. Not against one another. We are called to deliver those who are under Satan's bondage and lead them to Christ. We are chosen to reign with Christ forever as victorious kings.

Why then do we see ourselves as inadequate to do God's work? Why do we speak negative words into our own lives and our children's lives?

Faith is believing God inspite of all and any circumstances. Faith requires patience and obedience. When all seems dire and bleak, keep hoping. When nothing seems to change for the better, refuse to accept defeat, be patient.  Jesus said, “The things impossible with men are possible with God. ” (Lk. 18:27). For nothing will be impossible with God (Lk. 1:37).

Hebrews 11:1 says that, 'Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see'.

Moses, Gideon and David, in faith, obeyed God and were  transformed. Moses from a cowardly stammerer to a powerful deliverer; Gideon from a fearful low-laying person to a valiant warrior and David from a puny shepherd to a powerful king.

Abigail, in faith employed patience and held on to the promises of God and prayed non-stop for her son Adorinam Judson. As a result her son who was a deist, was transformed into a general of God.

The keys to employing faith are patience and obedience. It is the ability to trust God and see what only He can see. It is the inner strength to trust God to do what only He can do. Let us therefore step up in faith and see the invisible, believe the incredible and receive the impossible, in and through Christ Jesus, for ourselves and our children.

Mary Augustine
27/03/18