God's Mercy

So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. Romans 9:16

As I was praying and considering before the Lord the propagation coming up in cities like Jaipur, Shillong and Lucknow, humanly speaking, it seems like hitting against the wall; however, the Lord spoke to me this verse, "not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy." What a comfort this rhema word to me it was! If it was a  mere human work, it would indeed be impossible; but the work of God is not of him who wills! Even the human works initiated by man may somehow be accomplished by natural zeal, fleshly strength and soulish skill; but the work of God is not of him who runs! If at all the work initiated by God is accomplished by the Spirit's power through those unworthy "us", then it is purely of God who shows mercy. What a relief this revelation has brought!

The more I prayed concerning the Lord's work in all these cities the more faith He fills me with, and the more peace and joy I have, that the Lord's work has already been accomplished!  As members of the Body, I, by the Lord's mercy, can have a part in it. What a blessing!

As the actual scheduled dates for these cities propagation are approaching, the more I felt the intensity of what the Lord is going to do, and the stiff resistance and subtle attacks from the enemy. Often I had a faint hope I could actually participate in His move; many other official matters seem to hinder me. However, last night I declare out Lord to the Lord and to Satan that I am participating in the Lord's move and that Satan had no ground to touch me in any way. With that declaration, all official matters cleared up today  and finally I could book my ticket. The Lord of Host, Jehovah Sabaoth is His Name! And praise be to Him!

Starting today, phone calls and contacts from these cities started popping up one by one; the Lord is the Victor and we are fighting in His victory. The victory is already won, we are just replaying it. And to partake of this victory is truly and sovereignly, the Lord's mercy: not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. 

Lord, have mercy on me!

Divine Blinding

I was in a hurry to renew my passport which was due to expire six months from now. I did my best to renew it as soon as possible even to the point of writing to the chief passport officer, trying to push in every angle possible. Even when I got the appointment online I kept this as my first priority above any other matters. However, I was blind to the fact that the Lord's timing was not yet. 

On the day of the appointment, I mistook the road and was deriving merry-go-round. When I did enter the passport office, I was slowed down at the counter for my marriage certificate verification and was asked to wait. But so impatient I was, I spoke unkindly to the counter and was given an option to meet the passport officer myself for verification. Doing so made the process slower and I was forced to wait even more longer, as the officer was on her lunch break. When she finally came and checked my document, she asked me to attest it from Taiwan embassy in New Delhi. Actually this certificate was already attested but I was blind to that fact; then I cancelled the appointment and came back home only to realize that the certificated was already attested. Disappointed I was for such a simple absence of mind. But behind the scene, was God in control.

The real facts were: 

1. I still had time and need not be too hurry to renew my passport

2. There were two main matters I had to take care instead of my passport; I tried to forego yet the Lord's wisdom would not allow me to. Instead of this, I had to deal urgently with the official matters of the literature service I am involved in and had to go to Jaipur urgently for the preparation work of the gospel. Had I went through the the passport matter I would have missed the weightier matters of things at hand. The Lord knew what was best and gave be divine blinding, so as to take care of the more important and urgent matters than that of my own.

This incident was a real life-lesson to me. First things first, not according to my will or choice, but according to the real need. Even if I had to go ahead with my own strong will, the Lord would block the way and gave me blessed divine blindness so as not to bypass the weightier matters. Praise the Lord for His sovereignty!

Lord, praise You! Never allow anything not out of or according to You. Even if in my folly I went blindly ahead, bless me with the divine blinding, so as not of mine will but yours be done.

A Gentle, Quite Voice

Outwardly, God answers by fire, and with many other manifestations. Inwardly, He speaks to us, especially today, in the New Testament age, He speaks a gentle, quite voice. Can you hear Him?

Today, the Lord impressed me deeply; He speaks in a gentle, quite voice. If I am too busy with my own things or even the things of God, I can't hear Him. I need time to spend in His presence and come to His word. Then I hear Him speak, in a gentle, quite voice. 

Many of the speakings of the Lord were heard only when I yield to Him, giving Him adequate time, freed from my own preoccupation, releasing my self from all burden and anxiety and simply coming to His presence in prayer and musing on His word.

"Thus spake the Lord!", the ancient thunderous way is not the only way today. God does speak in myriad ways, yet one thing is sure, He speaks in the way we understand Him best. And we best understand Him, when He speaks to us, as friend with friend, intimately in a gentle, quite voice. 

In my little experiences of the Lord, most of the speaking of the Lord to me are when I have my personal time with Him. Many of the decisions I make are according to God's speaking in His gentle, quite voice. And I dare not take a step ahead, unless I hear this gentle, quite voice first from the Lord.What a blessing! I have a speaking God!

Lord, grace me daily to hear Your gentle, quite voice.

The God Who Answers By Fire

If Jehovah is God follow Him;

Then call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of Jehovah; and the God who answers by fire, He will be God.  1 Kings 18:21b, 24a

A challenge in Mount Carmel to test and proof who the real, true and living God is; between Jehovah and Baal. The test was, "the God who answers by fire." The test was done, a sacrifice, ritual observances, even jealous worshippers calling on their gods even to the point of cutting themselves, shedding blood according to their customs, yet all turned out to be futile. For the sure reason that Baal was no God at all. Then, when the test for Jehovah was done, instantly was the answer, "And the fire of Jehovah fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stone and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench." And when all the people saw this, they fell on their faces and said, Jehovah--He is God! Jehovah--He is God! vv.38, 39.

This "Jehovah--He is God!" is my God! Outwardly, there were times, God manifested Himself through many circumstances in my life. Sometimes, out of my own weakness I seemed to falter, yet never, He failed once, though I, many times. From my birth till today, I have not remembered an instant God failed me. Never, even once. In terms of physical provision, spiritual supply or whatever, He always is dear to me. When needed, He speaks, He chides, He chastens, He warns,.... He  is God--Jehovah: God becoming my Saviour!

These days in desperation for growth and increase inwardly as my portion and outwardly as spiritual fruits, my sky seems dry and cloudless, yet my hope looms large; watching and waiting, and in due time, the cloud will fill the sky and God will send the rain! The goal to gain increase is purely by faith, and out of the burden God Himself planted, so it will be fulfilled! Targets to raise up churches, recover the Lord's lost children and the weak saints, and save many gentiles are never a herculean tasks. In spite of circumstantial difficulties, prayer is paving the way, treading a step at a time, slowly yet steadily, as the Lord did in the past, He is doing again and will finally accomplish it. He is indeed, the God who answers by fire. As in the days of yore, so is in the days of ours.

Amen, Lord! You are Jehovah, who answers by fire, answer again.

Man of Prayer

(In his upper room [Daniel] had windows open toward Jerusalem) and three times daily he knelt on his knees and prayed and gave thanks before God, because he had always done so previously. Dan. 6:10

This morning in my corporate morning revival and personal time with the Lord, the life of Daniel challenged me deeply. A man in captivity among the Babylonians, amidst godlessness and idolatry, buffeted his body, timed his body clock and disciplined to pray three times daily! Moreover, he had always done so previously! A man of prayer indeed he was, a wonderful pattern for me to follow. 

This is no mere outward enthusiasm or zeal of a young blood. But the burden within me is real, to be a man of prayer. To be such, humanly, I need to set time and discipline myself, and divinely, God will grace me to execute the burden He implanted. Andrew Murray made such a statement, "He who does not set time to pray also do  not pray at all." This is true experientially. So there is a need to set time to pray!

To be such a man of prayer is to give God the highest cooperation and coordination to co-work with Christ in His heavenly ministry on this earth. Such a man is single-hearted towards God and absolute to Him. To such, God has a free way to reveal, to speak His mind and dispense Himself into him. As such, such a man fully depended on the Lord for everything and could do what generally and normally others cannot do, and understand what is mystery to all. And such was Daniel. And such can also be you and me. For, today, we have more than what Daniel did then--the Spirit of wisdom and revelation (Eph.1:17.)

Day by day, I am experiencing the leading of the Lord for every matter, when I come before His presence in prayer. To me, this is the best and most healthy exercise a Christian should daily and moment by moment have. And this, not for outward boasting of being "a man of prayer" but for the daily health and growth in our Christian life, to be of value to God for His move on this earth. And also, this is not a mere practice but a living, a being, a person of prayer.

Lord, make me a man of prayer. Fill me with Your Spirit everyday that I may in turn correspond it in prayer.

Set My Face

So I set my face toward the Lord God to seek Him in prayer and supplications with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. Dan. 9:3

This morning the Lord touched me deeply as I pray-read this verse:

1. Set my face: A turning in position, to be rightly angled.

2. Toward the Lord God: Setting face is toward God, turning away from anything other than God to God. This is the real repentance, the basic requirement for salvation from negative things and salvation to the positive things of God.

3. To seek Him: Setting face toward the Lord God is to seek Him; being poor in spirit, longing for more of God, to gain God and be filled, saturated and permeated with God Himself.

4. In prayer and supplication: Doing all the above in prayer and supplication, earnestly and desperately longing for God.

5. With fasting and sackcloth and ashes: Proving the seriousness and diligence in our seeking for God, paying any price to gain the priceless treasure, the Lord Jesus Christ!

It is indeed not enough to diligently and regularly read the word, much more there must be the joining to the word that was read, to the extend of paying any price, even if it is deemed martyrdom. This is where I need the Lord's grace more. I have been lover of the word, or at the least, reader of the word. But how much of what I read do I really understand with spiritual insights and revelations and visions, and how much of what I understood are truly lived out, practically and experiencially? Honestly, not so much. But thank the Lord for the revelation of the word, a testimony of Daniel!

Lord, I set my face toward You; to seek You, to gain You and to be one with You in every matter great and small. Lord, grant me the grace to be Your ardent and genuine seeker.

Matching

"..with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." 2 Tim. 2:22b

The principle in the Body of Christ is "matching." Members of the Body matched to members of the same Body. This matching is nothing of man's choice but of God's arrangement. Best case is our partners, spouse for those who are married, and companions in our Christian life in the church life. 

Moses was matched with Aaron, Paul with Barnabas or Silas or Timothy. So are we matched with any saint in our church life? Are we "..with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart?" One in spirit and one in soul? Do we have spiritual companions? Do we blend and be built up with one another? These sounds enigma to the natural worldly man, but to the saints, it is vital and simple as breathing. Otherwise, the life-supply is cut and there will never be any vitality in our Christian life in the church life.

Today, I thank the Lord for my wife, who matched me so very well, beyond expectation and yet without an iota of doubt. Praise the Match-Maker! And I thank the Lord for the brothers surrounding me in the church and in my service. Often I wondered, how the Lord so cared for me! What am I and who am I? A descendant of vipers, wretched to the core, yet the Lord so cared for me. 

Still I feel, deep within me, I need more matching; inwardly and deeply, as one with my vital companion. An independent self need more breaking and be more blended with my spiritual companion. My inner cry is that the Lord may fully break through in me and gain me to the uttermost until He obtain His heart's desire in me and through me, with the saints.

Lord, match me with my vital companion perfectly.