The Journey 89
Friday, March 30
Read: 1 Samuel 1, 2
“Casting Crowns”. They finally came to Philly and performed at the awesome Liacouras centre, in the Temple University Campus. It was a dream come true for me because all of their songs has been a tremendous influence in my life and these were the songs that were used for praise and worship sessions even in some of the church’s in India. Each song that the Mathew West, Ross Taylor and Casting Crowns sang were wonderful. The songs like “Jesus Friend of Sinners”, “ Praise you in the Storm”, “Voice of Truth”, “East to the West”, “Just another day”, Glorious day” was all awesome and wonderful to hear and also see the group performing live. But the moment of sheer joy and excitement was when casting crowns sang the song “ Whom Am I”. I don't have words to describe the feeling as they sang that song. I went delirious. This was one song that had touched me and also lot of my friends. But along with the songs, what made my day unique was the fantastic feeling of being in a stadium and experiencing the joy of being a part of wider Christian fellowship and experiencing common bond with so many known and unknown believers because of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Another aspect both Mathew West, Ross Taylor and Mark of Casting Crowns stressed was the need for the people to be a source of influence in the community. In a world where people are driven by selfish and individual pursuits, God calls us to be a source of influence for Him. But where will this source of influence come about, and who will spark in an individual the desire to live for Jesus, as the best option in life?. I believe it is here the importance of nurturing patterns in the family comes into the picture.
This week we are meditating on the theme “ Transformation in our family life” through the family life of Elkanah and Hannah, which is mentioned in the book of 1 Samuel 1. Hannah in her crisis, comes to God’s presence and then makes a decision to dedicate her child to the Lord, if the Lord would bless her with one. This was an honest attempt to pass faith to the next generation and that is what we meditated yesterday-Inter generational faith. Hannah as she decides to dedicate her unborn child to the Lord is also showing another concept in here act of dedication. Here is a mother who wants the child to be used by God so that he becomes a source of influence for others, and all his pursuits in life are to be directed by God. Later in the history of Israel, we can see how Samuel becomes a prophet for the Lord and the way he becomes a influencing and also a correcting force in the life of so many people. I think this is one of the truths that directs my ministry too and I praise God for that. In a world where every individual is concerned only about their own selfish pursuits, God is asking us to be a source of influence for him. It is here that we as parents and faith teachers instill in our children and the next generation, how to live for God and be a source of influence for Him in the context that we live. God designed that our family will grow in this mission that He has given us.
Can our families be a source of influence, so that we all live for Him and also influence others to live for Him?.

The Journey 88
Thursday, March 29
Read: 1 Samuel 1
             Inter Generational Faith Transmission: Every parent would want to give the best to their children and hence in most of the families of  Indian origin, the parents still consider that it is their duty to struggle so that they can give the best to their kids, and have a dream that they should be able to leave behind for their children something precious. What are the most important things that a parent normally would want to pass on to their children. A house, financial assets, property are the things that may come on the top the list. But has the family ever thought that in the quest for all these material things can we pass on rich legacy of faith to the next generations?. Faith is always an inter generational journey. But today with growing number of non denominational church's, coming to the scene, each one having their own understanding of faith, worship patterns and interpretation of the scripture, what has happened is that faith journey has become very individualized and non generational. I respect an individual’s faith orientation but what has happened at least in some cases is the outright condemnation of the rich biblical faith traditions of their parents by the children. In the Old Testament history we find children affirming that they believe and affirm the faith of their father, their forefathers and hence the phrase "our God of Abraham, Jacob and Isaac we praise you”.  One of the most moving and powerful faith expression in our church is found in the sacrament of baptism, where the parents and the godparents make a solemn faith affirmation before the Lord, that the child whom the Lord is receiving into His Body- The Church through His grace, will be trained and nurtured in Christian faith,  in such a way that the child one day will be able proclaim and affirm his commitment to Jesus Christ. It is a commitment on the part of the parent to take ones faith journey seriously and also make a conscious effort to pass on the legacy of faith to the next generation. An effort to make faith not only personal but also inter generational.
              This week we are meditating on the theme" Transformation in our family life" based on the family life of Elkanah and Hannah which is recorded in 1 Samuel 1. We understand from this family that both the spouse grew closer with each other through crisis and also Hannah had her own emotional profile, of expressing her anguish through tears. One of the things that Hannah does as she reveals her emotional profile is her act of dedication of her child to the service of the Lord, in the course of her expression of her emotions and also as a part of her silent conversations with the Lord. Here is a mother who seems to be selfish, but on the contrary she is committing herself to an intergenerational faith transmission. She is solemnly committing before the Lord that she will take concrete steps so that her child will affirm the faith patterns of her family. It is this model of Hannah that needs to be transmitted in today’ family. What is needed today are families who will deliberately make effort and time to see to it that they will transmit to the next generation rich biblical faith traditions, so that through those transmission every child in the family is able to affirm his/her commitment to the Lord as he grows up in life.
Is your faith and your faith practices in the family intergenerational?

The Journey 87
Wednesday, March 28
Read: 1 Samuel 1
           Emotional Profile: The magazine “Newsweek” dated February 27– March 5, 2012 has an interesting article on the topic that deals with science and psychology. It talks about an “ Emotional Profile” The author says that as each individual is unique, each person also has a unique way of expressing emotions which can be called as the emotional style or the emotional profile of the person. This style or profile is the   constellation of reactions and response, that differ from person to person in kind, intensity and duration. This means that each individual just as he/she is unique will also have a unique emotional profile, a unique way of expressing emotions. Tears is one of the strongest emotions that is expressed by individuals. But  tears are normally misunderstood. In the Indian context, it may be ok if a woman cries but “not ok” if the male sheds tears as it may be viewed as a sign of weakness. On a personal note, being a very sensitive person, tears come automatically in my eyes,  hence I feel it is ok for me to cry if I am upset or if I feel I need to cry. But as the article in the Newsweek said each of us has a unique way of expressing emotions whenever we go through different contrasting experiences. For a Christian what does tears show or express? A sign of weakness or strength?
                  This week we are meditating on the theme “Transformation in our Family life” based on the family life of Elkanah and Hannah in 1 Samuel 1. Here is a couple who sticks together in crisis, but even when the Elkanah show “Intentional” way of strengthening his relationship with his wife Hannah, Hannah is still devastated. The reason for her devastation is that she is childless and according to the concept among the Jews ‘ that is because the Lord had closed her womb’. It is in such a context of devastation and crisis that we find the unique emotional profile of Hannah. She goes to the temple and in bitterness she prays to the Lord with tears [v:10]. The way she expresses her emotions in the temple seems to be very deceptive to Eli the priest, who thought that she was drunk. But when Eli confronts her, that is when Hannah confides in him the crisis that she is going through and the tears of remedy is  what she feels is her only hope in life. Here is a woman who expressed herself in tears in the sight of God, she has no qualms to express her anguish before the Lord. The word of God says, that the Lord answered her tears and she had a son whom she named “Samuel”.  Every family may go through crisis that may be unique or may be similar to what other families also face. But when crisis comes, our unique emotional profile also come into the picture. There are some who may take a strong posture, while some goes into a depression mode. The result of all these stance is that suddenly you may find family members during crisis, fighting with each other or expressing emotions by wailing and crying,  in front of other family members. Here is Hannah who teaches us that tears are powerful, where?- In the sight of God. She teaches us to shed tears in the sight of God, to express unto the Lord our pain, our anguish, our crisis and also submitting ourselves through the  expression of tears “Lord let your will be done in my life”. That is what tears should lead to.
Ready to cry? Cry before the Lord……..

The Journey 85
Monday, March 26
Read: 1 Samuel 1
          A woman  appeared before the judge in divorce court. "How old are you?" the judge asked. "Thirty-five," said the woman. The judge noticed her graying hair and wrinkles and said "May I see your birth certificate?" The lady handed him her birth certificate. "Madam," he said, clearly annoyed, "according to this certificate you are not 35 but 50." "Your honor," replied the lady, "I'm not counting the last 15 years I spent with my husband. You call that a life?" . There are lots o of people like this lady who would want to forget the years of marital life. But meet Herbert and Zelmyra Fisher of North Carolina. They have been married for 85 years and hold the Guinness World Record for the longest marriage of a living couple. Zelmyra is 101 years old and Herbert is 104.  When Twitter asked them about how they could keep their marriage intact, they said that  “With each day that passed, our relationship became more solid and secure. We never thought of Divorce, and it  was  never an option. We grew up together  and were best friends before we married. Thus we also became friends for life and hence our marriage has lasted a lifetime. We had crisis, and we agreed that it’s okay to disagree, and fight for what really matters. We learned through our relationship  to bend  and not break! . We are both Christians & believe in God and hence through each crisis and experience we became close to each other because for us marriage is a commitment to the Lord”. Life experience and crisis that brings spouses closer to each other and to the Lord.
                       This week we will start meditating on a new theme “ Transformation in my family life”. The family that we are going to consider as the model family is found the book of 1 Samuel chapter 1. Here we find a wonderful couple whose name was Elkanah and Hannah. The uniqueness of this  home was that Elkanah had two wives. One was Penninah and the other was Hannah. What was distinct in the life of Hannah and Elkanah was that, Hannah did not have any child while Penninah had children. This resulted into a lot of mental anguish in the life of Hannah, and her anguish was also compounded by the fact that Penninah also used to mentally torture her. But in the midst of all these crisis  we find that her husband Elkanah loved her, and showed his affection to her in  a special way.  Here is a couple who is facing crisis in their family life. Realizing that there is crisis in his family and that his wife is going through mental and emotional anguish, the husband takes special care to show love and concern to his wife. A couple who uses crisis situation to come close to each other and also to the Lord. What a contrast today in our world. When there is crisis in  the family, we tend to move away from our spouses and our relationship with the Lord also become lukewarm. Elkanah and Hannah teaches us that crisis is normal in human life and that all of us may go through different types of crisis. But when crisis happens do we support each other, do we stand with each other and strengthen each other, or do we leave each other alone to fight their own battles and experiences  of life?
Think...Has crisis strengthened your family relationship or is ripping you apart?

 

The Journey 83
Saturday, March 24
Read: Mark 7:24-30
Key Bible Verse: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you”. [1Peter 5:6-7].
               Are You Hurt?. Remember “The Law of the Garbage Truck”.  A story is told of a man who one day  hopped in a taxi and to go to the airport. As they were driving in the right lane, suddenly a car jumped out of a parking space right in front of them . The taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches.  The driver of the other car who was actually at fault, whipped his head around and started yelling at the taxi driver. The taxi driver only  smiled and waved at this guy who was shouting abuses at him. Observing the strange behavior of the taxi driver the man asked “Why did you just do that”? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!' This is when the taxi driver said that he believes in the “The Law of the Garbage Truck”.' He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. It is you who decide whether to receive it and get hurt by it. I decided not to get hurt because, God has given me the freedom to decide whether to get hurt or not. Suffering in life is sometimes because of the hurt that we have taken in personally when other may  not have meant to hurt us.
                This week we are meditating on the theme “ Transforming the life of the sick and the suffering” based on the experiences of the Syrian Phoenician woman and her encounter with Jesus in Mark 7. Yesterday we learnt that conversations are a powerful tool for change and transformation. It is this tool that Jesus used to bring about healing and change in the woman. Another method that Jesus teaches us in this passage is the capacity to deal with other people critical comments and words of apathy so that we become people who are empowered and not grovel in pain because of insensitive words of others. As Jesus dialogues with the woman, we find how strong Jesus is when he uses words like “tossing it to the dogs” [ v: 27], “ I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel” [ Mathew 15:24]. These are word that can cause hurt to a person especially at a time of desperation, but the intention of Jesus Christ I believe is not to hurt but to empower the woman to rise above a life of insults and hurts that she has been facing every day, because of her type of race and sex. Here is Jesus teaching the woman not about isolation from the words and the hurts that other seemed to cause to her on the contrary to insulate her and also give her the power to decide when to get hurt and when not to.
I believe this is the step that leads to healing. Suffering may come about because we tend to get hurt when other dump their anger and their resentful feeling on us. Let us decide today that we are not going to be hurt by their behavior, because we decide who whether to get hurt or not
Whom have you given the power to hurt? Who has the power to heal

The Journey 82
Friday,  March 23
Read: Mark 7:24-30
            “Conversations”. Who does not like conversations. I think the majority of people enjoy doing this– conversing, especially with friends and family. But do you know that there is healing, and the power to change through the gift of conversation?. In March 2005, after allegedly killing four people in Atlanta, Brian Nichols took Ashley Smith hostage in her apartment. For seven hours, Smith, a widowed single mom, in the midst of her ordeal, conversed and talked to Nichols about her faith, her addictions, and the pain that she was going through for regaining the custody of her young daughter. She also began reading to Nichols passages from the well known book "The Purpose-Driven Life." by Rick Warren. As the hours rolled by, Nichols calmed down. Through her conversation she convinced him that his life had a purpose, given to him by God. Smith suggested to him that God's vision for her life,  was to help Nichols see his own purpose in life and that she would want him to finally be a channel in God’s hand- of doing evangelism in in prison. Finally Smith was able to convince Nicholas and he surrendered to the cops. This story was featured on Beliefnet in October 2005. Today, Smith is free from her addiction, reunited with her daughter, and rededicated to her Christian faith. She believes it was God who helped her survive not only the encounter with Nichols, but also to find purpose in life.  
                 This week we are meditating on  the theme “ Transforming the life of the sick and suffering” based on the encounter between Jesus and the Syrian Phoenician woman in Mark 7. As we meditated this week we found out that the method Jesus used for healing the woman’ daughter was very unique. A method where Jesus engages in a dialogue with a woman, who has been subjected to discrimination because of her race and her sex.  The woman engages in dialogue with Jesus Christ and finally her daughter gets healed. In this encounter with woman, another unique aspect of the working of Jesus Christ is the way he empowers the woman  through the power of conversation. Any person who encountered Jesus Christ, had to converse with him, and with the process of conversation, the ultimate result was that the person went away not only healed but totally empowered. When we deal with the people who are suffering and who are going through pain, what they may need,  are people who can be with them, listen to them, converse with them, be empathetic to their suffering and pain. Conversations are not monologue but dialogue, dialogue that brings about change and transformation. Hence let us affirm that every conversation that we use has power,  and let us commit ourselves to use this gift of conversation wisely so that we can bring about change and transformation.
Ready to converse today?                 

 

The Journey 81
Thursday, March 22
Read: Mark 7:24-30
                 The Girls who silenced the world for five minutes: This is a another video that is a huge hit on You Tube. It is about a twelve year old Canadian girl, Severn Cullis- Suzuki, who spoke at the  United Nations Earth Summit at Rio De Janeiro two decades back, and in the process left the everyone in the summit and the world completely silent and speechless for five minutes. Speaking about the hole in the ozone layer, pollution, the devastation of the forests and extinction of so many species, Severn charged that the adults have no idea how to fix these things, in fact if they can’t fix them, she said that the adults must change their ways. “If you don’t know how to fix it, stop breaking it,” she pleaded. Severn continued by saying that “I am here to speak for all generations to come. I am here to speak on behalf of starving children around the world whose cries go unheard. I’m only a child and I don’t have the solutions…but neither do you. I am only a child, but I know we are all part of a family five billion strong; in fact, 30 million species strong, and borders and governments will never change that. Even when we have more than enough, we are afraid to share. We are afraid to let go of some of our wealth. If child on the streets who has nothing is willing to share – why are we, who have everything, still so greedy?”. She emphatically said that “I am only a child, but I know if all the money spent on war, was spent on finding environmental answers, ending poverty, and finding treaties – what a wonderful place this world would be.”  Years have passed since this 12 year old girl raised her voice. We live in a culture where we are taught not to raise ones voice. Yes it is a good etiquette while talking or in an interpersonal relationship setting, but what about when one goes thorough pain, suffering or even injustice?
                                    This week we are meditating on the theme “Transforming the life of the sick and the suffering” based on the Syro Phoenician woman in Mark 7. The context of this passage deals with a race of people who were condemned for their belief, an individual who is condemned and ostracized due to her sex and her race, is in the midst of gentle communication and confrontation with Jesus Christ. As discussed this week any person reading this passage, in the first instance may be astonished and also sometimes dismayed at the queer response that Jesus does to the woman who is desperate and is so helpless because of the sickness of her daughter. But why does Jesus engage the woman in a topics of his  ministry and about his understanding of mission?. But as the conversation goes further, we see that Jesus finally commends the woman for her faith. It is then we understand the rationale and logic of Jesus. Here is Jesus allowing the woman, who had no  rights or privileges in the society, the freedom to speak and stand for her need– the privilege of arguing and raising her voice, to give a vent and also express her genuine needs. A woman who finally feels is empowered by our Lord to speak up, to raise her voice, to engage in dialogue with the Master with regards to her need. I think if we need to transform the life of the sick and the suffering, Jesus teaches us to empower the people to find their voice, to raise it, and to help them to communicate their feelings and needs. In a time of suppression of ones voice and feeling, what Jesus requires from us is to help other find their voice in the midst of their pain and suffering. That is what transformation is all about.
Have you ever helped another person to find their voice?.
Let us Pray: O Lord we live in a world where there are lots of people who have been stifled of their voice, their dignity. Help us to be a channel so that we help them to find and raise their voice so that it brings healing, change and transformation. Amen

The Journey 78
Monday, March 19
Read:  Mark 7:24-30
Key Bible Verse: “ Show  me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me for you are God my saviour, and my hope is in you all day long.  [ Psalms 24:4-5]
                 Ready to Wait– In a Line: Finally Apple die hard fans could lay their hands on The I Pad 3. The I Pad 3 for the first time went on sale on Friday, March 16th, at 8 a.m. local time in the U.S. and nine other countries. There were thousand of  Apple fans who started lining outside from the previous night itself, in front of the apple stores all over the country, but what caught my attention in the news was the picture of one man waiting in the line to get his hands on I Pad 3. This man was Steve Wozniak, who was waiting in line at the Century City in California. But who is Steve Wozniak?.  Wozniak along with Steve Jobs were the co founders of Apple industry but then Wozniak  left Apple in 1987. When asked by the news reporters as to why he was waiting in the line all the  night when he could have easily bought it through other means, Steve said that although he could have easily got the I Pad  in an easier and simpler way, he preferred to rough it with the common people who are the real people.  He continued and said that he would prefer to stand all night along with these people so that he could be like them and go through their experience. At a time when all the  buying is done online, when people do not like queues nor  waiting in any way to get their things done, here is one man who stands out in the crowd, ready to show to the world what his attitude and morals are. Waiting is an impatient act for most of us, but if we need to get the desired fruits in our life, I believe the Word of God is very emphatic on the positive aspects of waiting.
                 This week we start with a new theme for our meditation. This week the theme will be “ Transforming the life of the sick and the suffering”. We live in a society and a time, when every other person is going through  sickness and suffering in one way or the other. It is the mission of the church in general and the believers in particular to see to it that we play a proactive role to alleviate suffering of others and also be a channel in God’s gift of  healing. The biblical portion that we are using for our mediation is from Mark 7:24-30. It is about the pain that a Syrophoenician goes through because her daughter was demon possessed and needed healing [ v: 25]. The Bible begins the account of this woman’s story by telling us that Jesus departed into the coast of Tyre and Sidon, the area known as Phoenecia. When Jesus arrived in this area, He went into a house and did not want anyone to know of it (Mark 7:24a) It was the Syrophoenecian woman who seeks Jesus and request him to help her. It is important to note here that the woman is unknown and what is known is only about her race– woman from syrophoenicia. But when she approaches Jesus Christ, the response that our Lord makes to the woman may seem to be very strange. Her pleas and cries are  met with comments and quotes that seem to bring from our Lord word that seems to be condemning. But was the words and the attitudes that Jesus used in dealing with the woman condemning? I believe every experience that God brings in our life, there is something that He wants to teach us and mould us in a better way before our prayers are answered. Here is a wonderful lesson learnt through pain, the lesson of waiting for the Lord, waiting so that we are made more and more humble, waiting so that we truly know the price of the gift that God gives to us. An unknown author quotes “ The longer you wait for something, the more you will appreciate it, when you get it, because anything worth having is definitely worth waiting”. That is what our Lord sometimes does in our life.
Think what are the things that you have got in life after waiting for a long time– That is precious and can be divine too.
Wait…….It worth waiting.
Let us Pray: Lord there are times in life, when we do not understand your ways and plan in our life. At those times teach us to wait  so that we learn how to be patient and also allow You to mould us that is accordance to your will.  Amen

The Journey 75
Friday, March 16
Read; Nehemiah 5
Key Bible Verse; Love is patient, Love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs”. [ 1 Corinthians 13:5]
CRYSTAL CATHEDRAL CHURCH: Almost all the news journal like Wall street, CBS News, Washington Post carried a significant news yesterday. The news was about how the famous Crystal Cathedral Church, founded by Robert Schuller has gone bankrupt. The church was earlier sold to the Roman Catholic Church of the Diocese of Orange for $ 57 Million. What a tragedy. Dr. Schuller, his wife Arviella, and his children who were part of Crystal Cathedral Ministries have all split from the church. The reason for the split began with the public feud with the church's board over matters both theological and financial and later it became a family issue too. It's the "end of an era," proclaimed a headline in Los Angeles Times. Robert Schuller had retired in 2006, passing the leadership of the church to his son, Robert Schuller Jr., and then after sometime he fell out with him over the church's direction. The church's income has fallen dramatically since the elder Schuller stepped back. After this development , Schuller and his wife, Arviella, resigned from the church board, citing “a negative environment”. After this it was their daughter Sheila who was pastoring the church. Last weekend, even Sheila Schuller Coleman announced that she was departing as well, stating her intention to start a breakaway church and thus leaving no Schuller family member on the ministries' board of the Crystal Church, for the first time in the church's history. What a sad end to a vision and ministry of a pioneer Christian. One of the aspects of the Christian ministry here in the United Sates and also in India is the mushrooming of family ministry where it is a particular person or a family who controls and conducts ministry and all the financial dealings. The strange aspect of these family ministries is that financial profits and benefits are normally reaped by the family or the individuals who run the show, while if there is a loss, it is borne by the people who are part of this ministry and not by the leaders. There is also a different lesson that main line church’s lie the Marthoma Church and its parishes also need to learn from the Crystal Church. I think message is there on the walls of our parish too.
This week we are meditating on the theme “Transformation in my parish” based on the life and ministry of Nehemiah. We find as we read Nehemiah, that he finally builds the wall in the midst of all the challenges that he faced. But in the midst of the work of building the wall as he faced opposition from Sanballat and Tobiah, he suddenly also has to deal with problems among the Jewish people itself. Some Jews raised a complaint against their fellow Jewish brethren. The complaint was that men could not provide enough food for their sons and daughters because they had mortgaged their fields, vineyards, and houses to get money to buy food, as there had been a famine or drought, while some had to borrow money to pay the taxes that the king had levied on fields and vineyards. Instead of helping these fellow brothers and sisters what some of the Jews did was to use this opportune time to exploit them. What the Jews did was against God’s holy laws [Exodus 21:2-6; 22:25-27; Lev. 25:13-17,35-38,39-46; Deut. 15; 23:19,20; Ezek. 22:12]. Such exploiting attitude of the Jews, while undertaking work of rebuilding the wall, brought anger in Nehemiah. Finally Nehemiah takes certain steps to rectify the issue. What a strange attitude of the Jews. While the leader is busy, trying to bring about a spiritual reformation, some members of the flock is more interested in making financial gains at the expense of their own brothers and sisters. I believe this is a true picture in many of the Marthoma parishes. When there are genuine and committed people in the parish who wants to create a spiritual reformation, it is some members of that parish itself who creates all sorts of problems and issues. Finally you find members and the clergy battling each other, thus ultimately pulling down the cause of Lord’s ministry. What is needed in our parish is people whose commitment are genuine and who can rise about petty politics and financial and personal gains. This I believe includes the leader of the parish the clergy also, so that we all can work together as a team, in partnership for bringing about God’s kingdom earth. Hence let us pause and think-
Are you a part of the problem in the parish or part of the solution? Let us see the cracks on the wall and its message
Let us Pray: God we are sorry that we often think of our own personal gains rather than the common and total interest of our parish. Forgive our sins of selfishness, arrogance and pride. Help us all to work together for your glory. Amen.

The Journey 74
Thursday, March 15
Read: Nehemiah 4,5
Key Bible Verse: “ I am sending you out like sheep among wolves, therefore be as shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves” [Mathew 10:16]
                 ARAB SPRING.  This is the watch word spoken in the Arab world,  as every day people all over the world get to see the disturbing going on that is happening presently in Syria. Acts of violence and injustice going on as pro democracy protesters rage a battle to overthrow President Assad. This is the latest chain of protest by the pro democracy group and this is what is called as“ Arab Spring”.  Syria joins nations like Tunisia, Liberia, Libya and Egypt where people have come together as one nation to overthrow unjust rulers who fleeced the people. But the  man who unknowingly brought about this phenomena called Arab Spring is from Tunisia,  a young, unemployed Tunisian by the name Mohamed Bouazizi who on December 17th, 2010, set fire to himself after officials had blocked his attempts to make a living selling vegetables without a permit. Bouazizi’s action reflected not only his hopelessness and desperation, but the anger of the majority of Tunisians. Hundreds of thousands filled the streets of the capital of Tunisia in protest against a corrupt regime. A few weeks later, President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali resigned and flew to exile in Saudi Arabia after he had ruled Tunisia for nearly a quarter of a century. The downfall of Ben Ali inspired pro-democracy activists across the Arab world and beyond. Within weeks, similar protests erupted in almost all Middle Eastern countries thus bringing about protest and overthrowing of the unjust rulers in Liby, Egypt and host of other countries, presently in Syria. People who came together when they realized their dream of having a decent and just living is thwarted by leaders who had a selfish agenda of their own. Till then people were passive but then suddenly you find every group of people becoming pro active. Sometime their means of protest may not justify the cause for which they stand for. Looking at the phenomena of Arab Spring, the thought that came to my mind, is whether the parish and the church should also pro active role in times of today,  when the whole concept of vision and mission of the ministry of the parish is getting lost.
                                  This week we are  meditating on the theme “ Transformation in my parish” based on the life and ministry of Nehemiah. As Nehemiah tries to bring a spiritual reformation in the life of people through the building of the walls of Jerusalem, he encounters problem at all quarters. We learnt how during these crisis and opposition, Nehemiah and the people depend on the Lord and also doing collective effort to see to it that their mission of building the wall of Jerusalem gets completed. But in the portion that we read today, we find another strategy of Nehemiah to combat the ulterior motives of Sanballat and Tobiah. In Nehemiah 4: 16– 23, we find a new strategy taking place. When half of the people worked in building the wall, the other half did the duty of protection or standing as armed guard so that the enemies do not succeed in the plan. Here is Nehemiah becoming pro active. Till this time he was “Passive”. Becoming pro active is using ones resources that God has given to us, to be forthright, to be outspoken and take a stand for justice. Somehow what happens in most of the parish is that we have lots of members who do not want to take such a pro active role in the affairs of the parish because they feel it is not good or their dignity does not allow them to go beyond certain level,  to argue or involve in discussion with others related to the affairs of the  parish. Jesus was someone who always took a pro active role whenever forces of evil opposed the divine plan of God [ Mark 5]. If our parish has to be an avenue of spiritual reformation what is needed is another “Arab spring” in our parishes also.
Ready for an “Arab Spring”?
Let us Pray: O Lord we are members in your body so that we become channels of your mission and vision.  Forgive us our sins of complacency and being passive to all that happens contrary to the will of God in the affairs of our parish. Amen

The Journey 73
Wednesday, March 14
Read: Nehemiah 4, 5
Key Bible Verse: “ By the grace God has given me, I laid the foundation as an expert builder, and someone else building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds” [ 1 Cor 3: 10].
March 11, 2011– Tsunami Hits Japan. It has been one year, as the world remembers  one of the worst natural disasters—Tsunami, that devastated the northeast coast of Japan. : A 9.0 magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami led to the deaths of more than 15,000 people. It also damaged the Fukushima Daiichi atomic power plant, thus unleashing a nuclear crisis that was somewhat similar to the one created in 1986 by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in  Ukraine.  To mark this painful event in the history of the country the people across Japan, people paused at 2:46 p.m, the moment the magnitude-9.0 quake struck a year ago, for moments of silence, prayer and reflection about the enormous losses suffered and monumental tasks ahead. These are enormous burdens on this  country which is already buckling under the weight of an aging, shrinking population, growing national debt and an economy that's been stagnant for two decades. Fox News reported, the Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda reminding the people of Japan “that they have overcome many disasters and difficulties in the past and pledged to rebuild the nation so it will be reborn as an even better place." But one of the most startling features that people from other countries could learn from the Japanese people is the resolve of this tiny country. The determination, the ability to maintain unity and calm, and the persistence to stand together, to face the adversity as one team and to slowly rebuild the country. I think this is the model that we need today when we think of how we the members of the body of Christ, can bring transformation in the local body of Christ– The Parish.                                                This week we are meditating on the theme “ Transformation in our Parish” based on the life and ministry of Nehemiah.   The portion that we are using for our meditation is Nehemiah 4. Yesterday we found out that when adversity comes, rather than depending on the innate strength that is there within us or the authority and the power that the world gave to him, Nehemiah tells people to bring all their supplication and their problems from their adversaries to God. Another aspect that we find in the life of the people of Judah and the ministry of Nehemiah, is that as they prayed [ Nehemiah 4:8], they also stand collectively together and also take action to thwart the evil designs of the enemy. We find Nehemiah taking precautions and posting certain families and people behind the lowest point of the walls [ Nehemiah 4: 13]. Here we find that when people like Sanballat and Tobiah plotted to stop the building of the wall, the people did not fall to the evil designs of these leaders, on the contrary they stood firm with their leader Nehemiah. It is this collective effort and the effort of trust and unity that the people of Judah maintained resulted finally in the building of the wall of Jerusalem. I somehow feel that this has to be replicated in the way our parishes function. Whenever there are issues in the parish, what I find is that there certain people who will use those issues, as a plank to bring distrust and disunity in the parish. It is here that every  member is the parish needs to realize that the ultimately parish functions effectively and can do the Lord’s work only when we strive to be together even in the midst of adversities. The moment the parish is divided into multiple groups, let us remember that more than the Lord’s work of building, we become the members of the devils army doing the work of not rebuilding but the work of disunity, of destroying and uprooting the body of Christ. Let us stand together as members of one body, so that we become channels of transformation in our parish.  Be agents of unity and not divisions.
Let us Pray: O Lord we you want us to work together in your body, as members joined together in unity and trust. Help us to always to see to it that we do not sow seeds to mistrust, and disunity so that the ministry that you have given to us suffers. Amen

 

The Journey 72
Tuesday, March 13
Read: Nehemiah 4
Key Bible Verse: “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” [ Psalms 50:15]
          IHOP: Ask any one in United States what  IHOP stands for, they will say it without blinking an eyelid, that it is the well known restaurant that offers delicious pancakes and the 7x7 dollar menu items,  and  the restaurant where a majority of people go or have gone,  to either have their breakfast or brunch. IHOP is a household name here in in the United Sates. But in Kansas City, Missouri, IHOP does not just stand for International House of Pancakes. It is also an acronym for International House of Prayer. What is unique about this church is that this church started a prayer chain on  Sept. 19, 1999, and I believe it still has not stopped. This was reported by Los Angeles Times. Through out the day, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, there is a live music  being played. You can find the church packed sometimes even in the early hours of the  morning, where you find people coming from all over the United States and Mexico to worship and hear the worship band playing songs of worship. There are about 25 bands playing in the church for a two hour session. This group is a growing movement who believes in the concept that prayer is the most effective weapon to be used for spiritual warfare. This group has also courted controversy when the IHOP filed a case against them, but it was resolved out of the court. Whatever be the controversy, we can applaud a group who 24x7, 365 days are making people aware the importance of the ministry of prayer in times of today when grave moral and ethical issues are stalking individual and community living. This church stands for what a true transformation in a parish truly means. If transformation in our parish has to take place I believe every member in the parish has to be part of this ministry, the ministry of prayer and intercession.
               This week we are meditating on the theme “ Transformation in our parish”, based on the life and ministry of Nehemiah. In the portion that we are using for our meditation, which is Nehemiah 4, we find,  Nehemiah inspiring the people to build the wall, and when the wall was built half of its height, there is renewed and vigorous opposition from Sanballat and Tobiah [Nehemiah 4: 1-8]. But when opposition come from them, look at the strategy that Nehemiah uses. Here is a man who is the cup bearer of the King. He has power and authority in his hand. Anyone in his place would use his power and authority to annihilate any opposition that he  may encounter be it Sanballat or Tobiah. But Nehemiah does not do that, on the contrary, he uses an entirely different weapon from his armoury, the armour of prayer. Here is a leader when faced with an issue, does not take or do whatever he pleases because what he was doing was morally and ethically right. But he consciously places his issue and dilemma in the hands of the Lord. In verse 9 we find, people praying to the Lord. I believe we learn a very valuable lesson from Nehemiah and the  people here. When there are issues in the parish, how many of us resort to this weapon of victory which is prayer?. On the contrary we all use our power and might to deal and face the issues that crops up in our parish life and ministry.  Whenever there is opposition it is the opportune time to know the will of God and also to proceed in the way and means that God wants us to do. When there is opposition in the parish, it is the time that reminds us that we need the grace and strength of God to carry His work, rather than being over confident on our strength  and our abilities.
What each parish needs today is people who can look up to God in prayer and say “ God our parish is facing an issue, give us your grace and wisdom through prayer to solve this issue”. I believe if every member in our parish, humbles himself/herself in this way before God, there wont be any issues in the parish.
If life gets too hard to Stand– Kneel [ Gordon B Hinckley]

Let us Pray: Dear Lord we often depend on our strength and our abilities to solve the issues that we face in our parish. Thank you for teaching us that it is in the power of prayer that can help us to view our problems and issues in a new light and face it successfully. Amen

The Journey 71
Monday,  March 12
Read; Nehemiah 4
Key Bible Verse: “I appeal to you brothers in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another, so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought” [ 1 Corinthians 1:10]
                                The 57 Cent Church :A little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it was 'too crowded.' 'I can't go to Sunday School,' she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by. Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, the pastor guessed the reason and, taking her by the hand, took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday school class. The child was so happy that they found room for her, and she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus. Some two years later, this child lay dead in one of the poor tenement buildings. Her parents called for the kindhearted pastor who had befriended their daughter to handle the final arrangements. As her poor little body was being moved, a worn and crumpled red purse was found which seemed to have been rummaged from some trash dump. Inside was found 57 cents and a note, scribbled in childish handwriting, which read: 'This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School.' For two years she had saved for this offering of love. When the pastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do. Carrying this note and the cracked, red pocketbook to the pulpit, he told the story of her unselfish love and devotion. He challenged his deacons to get busy and raise enough money for the larger building. But the story does not end there… A newspaper learned of the story and published It It was read by a wealthy realtor who offered them a parcel of land worth many thousands. When told that the church could not pay so much, he offered to sell it to the little church for 57 cents. Church members made large donations. Checks came from far and wide. Within five years the little girl's gift had increased to $250,000.00--a huge sum for that time (near the turn of the century). Her unselfish love had paid large dividends. This is the story about Temple Baptist Church in Philadelphia, Close to this church is the Good Samaritan Hospital and a Sunday School building which houses hundreds of beautiful children, built so that no child in the area will ever need to be left outside during Sunday school time. In one of the rooms of this building may be seen the picture of the sweet face of the little girl whose 57 cents, so sacrificially saved, who made such remarkable history. Alongside of it is a portrait of her kind pastor, Dr. Russell H. Conwell, author of the book, 'Acres of Diamonds”. Transformation in small ways by giving what is right to the Lord. This week we are gong to start meditating on a new theme.
                 This week we shall meditate on the theme : Transformation in my Parish”, based on the life and ministry of Nehemiah. We had discussed this theme a few weeks back. Nehemiah wants to restore the broken relationship of his people with the Lord, and he saw the broken wall of Jerusalem as a sign of stagnation and decay in the spiritual life of the people. When the wall was in ruins the irony of the  matter, was that nobody was bothered, but the moment Nehemiah rallies his people to build and repair the walls, there is opposition from Sanballat and Tobiah. Their modus operandi to put opposition to the Lord’s work is by mocking Nehemiah and also the people. Here is a group of people who does not contribute anything monetarily nor physically on the contrary their contribution to the Lord’s work is words of mockery, sarcasm and opposing everything and everything that comes their way. Their arguments are sometimes based on flimsy and selfish reason. What happens in most of the parish are similar to what Nehemiah faced. There are lot of people in the parish today who have the similar attitude of Sanballat and Tobiah, who will not contribute anything financially nor will do anything creative and constructive work for the parish. Their contribution in the parish is only by opposing anything and everything  that people who are interested in seeing their parish grow and flourish in the Lord’s work bring forth.
On this day let us take a decision that we shall first contribute to the Lord’s work and then only criticize what is happening in our parish.
Contribute and then criticize. That is what Parish needs.

 Let us Pray: Lord you expect us to work for the transformation in our parish in our own and unique ways of our contribution. We are sorry hat we often criticize before even dong anything creative and contributing to the parish. Forgive us our sins of arrogance and sarcasm . Amen

The Journey 69
Saturday, March 10
Read: Exodus 3
Key Verse: “ There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus”.        [Galatians 3:28]
                  High BP and Racism?  Strange Combination. Don’t be surprised. A news channel yesterday reported that in a new study conducted at the Oxford University, it was found out that,  the beta-blocker drug Propranalol, which patients normally take to reduce high BP, by lowering the heart rate, as well as angina and irregular heartbeat,  can reduce racist tendency that occurs in ones ‘subconscious’ mind. The finding of the study has been reported by the Journal Psycho Pharmacology and can be viewed on the web page                           http://btx3.wordpress.com/. The study was conducted by  Sylvia Terbeck and Professor Julian Savulescu, who found that found that people who took Propranalol scored significantly lower on a standard test used to detect subconscious racial attitudes, than those who took a placebo. The researchers believe that the drug Propranalol reduces racial bias because such subconscious thoughts are triggered by the autonomic nervous system. So in a lighter vein if you if you are worried that you are taking drugs to reduce your blood pressure, be happy it is not only reducing your BP but is also helping you to reduce your racist tendency too.  But on a serious note racism is a blot to the society and hence transformation in our community is all about accepting others irrespective of colour of the skin or the region or the culture that you belong to.
                This week we are meditating on how we can bring transformation in our community based on the life and ministry of Moses. Moses has been asked to be the liberator of the Israelites and also in the process communicate to Pharaoh, the mind of God. The creator God who created all the human being in His image, is in agony because now one group of people are oppressing another group of people purely on divisive policy. Here is a group of people, the Egyptians  who tends to think that they belong to a class and race that is superior and hence it is their right to suppress the rights and freedom of the Israelites. I think they may also tend to think that Israelites were called to be their  slaves. It is this unjust thinking in ones mind that God tries to negate. When racism was very open and prevalent in this country, I was told that there were Christian clergy and preachers who preached and supported racist ideas because of they believed that God made some people consciously slaves as  a part of His divine plan. Strange...but that is the truth. We may tend to think that we are not racist, but I believe we sometimes tend to show racist tendency in our day to day affairs. Have we ever isolated a colleague in your work place or college or a fellow member in your church because he/she thinks differently or comes from a different culture or has a different faith perspective?. Then  in God’s sight we are racist. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” [Galatians 3:28]. If we need to transform our community, let us consciously accept people and take steps and make amends so that we don't allow racist tendency in our life. By the way you don't need to take Propranalol to reduce racist tendency, rather let us have the mind of Christ in us [ Phil 2:5].
Very Queer - High BP and Racism– Strange Combination?

Let us Pray: Lord you want all of us to live in harmony and unity irrespective of our skin colour, Help us to bring your order in this world so that justice and peace prevails every where. Amen

The Journey 68
Friday, March 9
Read: Exodus 3
Key Verse: “ For you created my innermost being, you knit me together in my mothers womb, I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made” [ Psalms 139: 13-14
                “Pro Life or Pro Choice”. This is what Americans are debating about, which one of the stand regarding abortion is ethically and morally good– pro life or pro choice. This comes on a day when the State of Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell on Wednesday signed into law, a bill requiring women to obtain an ultrasound before having an abortion, making Virginia the seventh state to adopt such a law, according to the Christian Post reports. This has been widely welcomed by the pro life groups and protested by pro choice groups. But in the midst of all these there is another group that is slowly raising its head by arguing for a new dangerous choice and law of “After-Birth Abortion”. These are people who are now arguing for the morality and legalization of “after-birth abortion.” Some one rightly said that we live in a culture of death. But sometime I feel that this culture of death is not only related to the unborn babies but is also related to every human being who is suppressed from living his life to the fullest, because of many oppressive factors that he has to face as he tries to live his life in the present day society and community, full of violence and death. Thus it is in this wider context of the culture of death, culture where people are trampled and oppressed by not allowing them to live life in in its fullest,  that we are called to be instruments in the transformation of our community, through our relationship with Jesus Christ.
               This week we are meditating this week on the theme “ Transformation in our community” based on the life and ministry of Moses. In the biblical portion that we were meditation we understand the nature and the character of God as God reveals his mind to Moses so that He can become and instrument in God’s hand to bring justice and liberation. God is very affirmative and clear in telling Moses that He has heard the cry of the suffering people. As we meditated this week, when God reveals that He is sensitive to the cry of the suffering people, He is revealing continuously His nature to Moses. When God says He wants to bring justice and liberation to the people of Israel, what I feel is here is God who is “ Pro Life”. Pro Life in a sense that, God wants every created being to live life in its fullest. That is why even Jesus Christ said that “ I have come that you may have life and life in all its fullest” [ John 10:10]. What God wants or the will of God is that every human being should have opportunity and avenues to live life to the fullest and hence any context, or structure or laws that inhibit a person to live life to the fullest is something that God disapproves. It is here that we as Christians are called to oppose anything that hinders that fullness of life that God offers to everyone. This also requires on our part, to see that we also as we live in the community, our life also  needs to ordered and organized in such a way that we do not become knowingly or unknowingly the agents of oppression in the life of the common people in their quest to live life in its fullest, on the contrary be agents of change and transformation in the life of others where we help other and be a catalyst for them to live life in its fullest.
Pro Life or Pro Choice?

   Let us Pray: Dear God we live in a world where more than your will, the will of each individual is taking precedence. Help us to live our life in such a way that we are able to live and allow other also to live life in its fullest. Amen

The Journey 67
Thursday, March 7
Read: Exodus 5
Key Verse: “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God” [ 1 Corinthians 1: 18]
               “ KONY 2012” is the latest vogue. Everyone on Facebook, seemed to have jumped onto this bandwagon. This is because an 'international justice' internet campaign by a humanitarian group “Invisible Children” has become a huge online hit, with their production KONY 2012, a  documentary about a atrocities committed in  Uganda. The venture is by an American filmmaker  who is determined to use social media to highlight the atrocities committed by an International Criminal Joseph Kony. He  doesn't want to win Kony any fans but wants to educate the world "to raise support for his arrest and set a precedent for international justice." Thus Every one wants to post or share “Kony 2012” on their page or share with their friends. Yesterday I had a number of friends who shared Kony 2012 both through mail and through face book. With so many shares I decided to watch Kony 2012, and indeed it was a moving portrayal of the suffering of the children of Uganda at the hands of a man Joseph Kony. The purpose of the film maker to highlight the cause of tracking down Joseph Kony, and also bring to the attention of the world the suffering of the children,  has been achieved to a great extent.  But there were some questions that came to my mind. This was because of my limited knowledge of the organization “ Invisible Children” and also about the African country Uganda and also about its present turmoil. I sought the help of the net and also my friends. These were the questions that came to my mind. How do we go from here in espousing the cause that will lead to the arrest of Joseph Kony? Secondly as a Christian, can I support the means that the organization will use to bring Joseph Kony to justice. But most important, Is  my commitment as a Christian so easy and cool, as sitting in front of a laptop, watching a documentary with a noble cause and then sharing  it to others with a click of a mouse?. Is this the level of commitment that Jesus Christ wants, when we address social issues and when we come to know about the suffering of poor, the helpless and voiceless?
           This week we are meditating on the theme “ Transformation in our community’ based on the life and ministry of Moses. What Israelites went through was also oppression by an individual, a ruler, The Pharaoh another form of Joseph Kony.  It is here that we learnt in the last few days, that God heard the cry of the oppressed, the suffering and that we are supposed to be the voice of the voiceless. It is in such a context that God sends Moses to be the voice of God, to be the hand and feet of God and pave way to bring freedom and justice to the people of Israel. For Moses, commitment to God, meant that he should be going into the presence of the King, going into the palace where he grew up, and then challenging the King, to let his people go. This commitment of Moses was not like sharing Kony 2012 by “click of the mouse”, but this commitment was costly because he knew that he could even loose his life, when he confronts the Pharaoh, which represents the power of the world. It is here that God teaches us through Moses that if we are to be channels of transformation in our community and be agents of justice we need to move beyond the level of emotional commitment to the level of costly commitment.  We live in a world where even “ The Passion of Christ” was marketed by Mel Gibson, in the name of spirituality, but with an eye on both personal and financial gains. Hence we as Christians are called to be a critic of the ways of the world. We have been asked to set our  minds on things above [ Col 3:1-2] and we have been asked to preach about a commitment to Jesus Christ which is costly and a message of the cross that may be foolish to the world [ 1 Corinthians 2]. It is here that we need to ask ourselves “ Lord am I ready to show commitment to you which is very costly thus becoming a tool in your hand in bringing justice to the untold suffering people of this world” or am I just showing certain strains of emotional commitment in my life.
Let us rise above pure emotional commitment to costly commitment to our Lord, that of carrying the experience of cross daily in our life. This is the means that God wants us to use for whatever cause of justice that we are supporting.
Let us Pray: Lord we often show our commitment to you in very shallow and emotionally. What you want us to show is commitment that is costly, that involves carrying cross in our life. Help us to rise to that level of commitment Amen

The Journey 66
Wednesday, March 7
Read: Exodus 3
Key Verse: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, Le my people go so that they may celebrate a festival to me in the wilderness” [ Exodus 5:1]
              There is a silent group of unknown people in my city of Philadelphia and they are “The homeless”. It is said that the number of this group is growing and what is alarming is that there are very few people who wants to stand up for their rights. It is under such a circumstances that a fresh hope of light has come. CBS news reported yesterday that an  advocacy group named “Project HOME” opened a new apartment building in Philadelphia’s Tioga section day before yesterday, so that they could provide homes to the growing number of  homeless men, women, and children. In the news that followed the inauguration, along with Mayor Michael Nutter, Sister Marcy Scullion of Project home said that “We are celebrating what it means to have a home,” and she described this project home as “the light that all follow” so that  Philadelphia can try to break the vicious cycle of homelessness and poverty.  The number of homeless people, people who have no voice of their own are growing. What happens because of that is, the powerful and the ones who can yell and shout are ruling when the so called silent ones are snubbed, consciously made silent and oppressed.  The silent ones are not there not only on the streets, but you can find them in many homes, church and in school. What is the response and responsibility of us as Christians to these silent people.
                   This week we are meditating on the theme “ Transformation in our community” based on the life and times of Moses. Moses is asked by God to be His spokesperson to Pharaoh. The duty of Moses is two fold. He has to convey to Pharaoh, the mind and will of God and secondly He has to be a tool in the hands of God so that the process the liberation takes place. In today’s portion the first part of Moses duty takes place. Moses conveys to the Pharaoh what is the mind of God with respects to the suffering that the Israelites go through. Yesterday we learnt that God hears the cry of the suffering and today He communicates to Moses, that not only has He heard the cry of oppressed,  but He also wants to be the voice of the voiceless. The Israelites in this context are the people who suffer silently, there is no one to speak for them on their behalf to the Pharaoh and it is in such a context that God sends Moses to be their spokesperson.  Whenever I read this portion I feel greatly empowered in my ministry. This is one text in the Bible that gives us hope to move to the future in the midst of untold suffering and oppression which we may have to bear silently. A God who is ready to be the spokesperson for all those people who believe that they have no voices or they feel that their voices are often stifled. I believe we may encounter in our life,  people who do not have voices, or whose voices are stilled and stifled by others. This is a stark reality in home, church and society. The powerful and the ones who can yell, shout and scream, who has no feelings of their brothers and sisters are the ones who rule the world today. The world today is all about how loud you can shout and scream, a cacophony of noises. It is in the midst of the noises of suffering and silence, that God wants us to be the voice of the silent people, to stand up for those people who cannot stand up by themselves.
Can we the voice of the silent people in the midst of the cacophony of noise-
Let us Pray: O Lord you want us to be the voice of the silent people who are humiliated, snubbed and oppressed at every moment of their life. Give us your strength to be your channel of transformation. Amen

The Journey 65,
Tuesday March 6,
Read : Exodus 5
Key Verse: “ The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles” [ Psalms 34: 17]
                The common man in US is getting a slight pinch of one thing– Gas. The gas prices were shooting up till yesterday. According to the motorist organization AAA, it is for the first time today in the morning of Tuesday March 6th, that the nationwide average for gasoline prices eased a little, thus showing the first decline after 27 straight days of price increase in gas. In the morning today the average price of regular unleaded gasoline is $3.76 a gallon. The nationwide average was $3.48 a gallon a month ago and $3.72 a week ago. Last year at this time, the average price stood at $3.51 a gallon. News  analyst have put forth a number of reasons for the soaring oil prices. One of the reasons that they assume is because of the escalating tensions between US and Iran over nuclear build up, which may build up to an all out war, thus disrupting  the oil supplies is one of the immediate reason.  There are also other political figures from the Republican sides who are trying to score points by attacking President Obama for his inability to check the rising gas prices. In between all these, lots of organizations and people who want America to go green have come up with educative programmes whereby people who drive can use certain techniques while driving so as to preserve and save gas. But then there is stark reality behind these oil prices soaring up. The demand for cars and also to travel alone has increased tenfold. Even when a car could be shared at least on certain occasions by the family members, we all tend to ignore that and then use our individual vehicles. Then there are the people who run these gas companies whose motive is only greed and making more and more profits, even if it means to skin the nation dry. It is here that we as Christians need to rethink about our role as citizens in this country. Do we have a commitment to our society, to our next generation, whereby we can leave them a good example to follow, a good witness to be shared?. Only when that happens can we truly bring in transformation in our community.
                   This week we are meditating on how we can bring transformation in our community, by meditating on the life and ministry of Moses. In the portion that we read now [ Exodus 5 ], we find some sadistic attitudes of the rulers of Egypt, the Pharaohs. When Moses and Aaron come to the presence of the Pharaoh, to demand that their people should be set free, the Pharaoh brands the Israelites as lazy people [ Exodus 5: 6-9]. Then he orders the slave drivers and foremen to stop supply of straw that are meant to be used to make bricks, and ask them to make Israelites to find and gather their own straw and also with another stringent condition that they need to  make the same amount of bricks before. This was shocking to the Israelites, because the oppressors were now becoming more and more sadistic. The pain and the pleas of the common man goes to the deaf ears of the rulers. It is here that we see the contrast. God hears the cry of the people, but the rulers of the world turns deaf to the cry of the common man. For them more than the pain of the common man what they interested is gain, or even when others suffer, I want to make a fast buck. The attitude of Pharaoh is prevalent today in many of our life. Even when others suffer, there are people who are more interested in their personal welfare only, and also going the extra way to make fast  money at the cost of the suffering of the common man. Then there are huge oil companies who also behave like Pharaoh's whose sole interest is profit, no matter what happens to ones nation or how it affects common man.
                   It is here that we as Christians need to seriously think on our role on how we can be responsible citizens in our nation, whereby we show our commitment to our Lord in the way we responsibly live in this nation, being careful on the way we spend the resources that God has given to us and also living in such a way that we make our world a better place not only for us but for our future generations too.

 Let us Pray: Dear Lord we often are more interested in only our welfare not bothered to think about how our actions and deeds affect others and our nation. Help us to live more responsibly so that we show others what our true commitment is . Amen

The Journey 64
Monday, March 5
Read: Exodus 3
Key Verse: “The LORD said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. [ Exodus 3:7]
             A huge tornadoes  ripped across the Midwest and South on Friday, which killed an estimated 40 people in five states, 22 of them in Kentucky and 13 in Indiana, including a 15-month-old toddler named Angel, who was in the news for the last two day, as a survivor of the tornado, but later succumbed  to her injuries. The tornado had  killed her parents and two siblings too. The deaths also included three in Ohio and one each in Alabama and Georgia. The destruction of the property, homes and other essential belonging is also another concern for the residents there. Yesterday I celebrated Holy Communion service at the St. Peter’s  Marthoma Church, Teaneck, New Jersey. As we were travelling back, my wife mentioned to me as to how I forgot to pray for the victims of tornado during the intercessory prayers. That is when I remembered that I had totally forgotten the people of Midwest and south. Being in south east region in Philadelphia, I had totally taken for granted the suffering and magnitude of death and destruction in another part of the state. That set me thinking. ...Aren't we become so immune to all these innumerable news people being killed both by natural disasters or otherwise, that whatever happens it is life and business for us as usual. Is that what God expects from us?
                 This week we shall meditate on the theme : Transformation in the Community”. Transformation in our personal life has a repercussion for the better in the community that we live. Our faith and faith living is not only expressed in our personal life but we need to be a witness of that faith in our community too. The character that we will meditate this week will be on the life and ministry of Moses. In today’s portion we find one of the most powerful statement that brings hope to all the suffering people. A statement that God makes to Moses and we find that in Exodus 3:7, “The LORD said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering”. Here we find the nature and character of God which gives us a model for how we need to bring transformation in our community. I think even the people of Israel live in a mind set and got so used to take their suffering and oppression, that though they were the ones suffering, they continued to endure it as something normal as they had no other option. A whole nation is suffering, men, woman and children. Suffering because of the oppressive nature of the rulers of Egypt. That is when God makes known his mission and His mind to Moses. He is concerned about the untold suffering of his people. He cannot be a mute spectator or witness to all that is happening around, and that is when He wants to commission Moses to go to Egypt as His deliverer and liberator. The mind of and nature of God teaches us that we are not to be a mute spectators to all that suffering that we see around us if even it is in another state of our land. Transformation in the community starts when each of us build in us the attitude of empathy, a sense of commitment and duty to do something for the  people who suffer.
Are we mute witness to all the suffering that happens or do we want to live a life of trying to be immune from all these tragedies that happen around us?
Let us open our eyes and ears…...so that we can see and hear the cries of our neighbour. That is the beginning of the transformation process in our community.

Let us Pray: Lord forgive us because we sometimes tend to live like a mute witness to all that is happening around us. We are only concerned when something disastrous happens to us only. Empower us to be channels of change and transformation. Amen

The Journey 62
Saturday February 3
Read: John 21: 15-19
Key Verse: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come”[ 2 Cor 5:17]
                I Pad 3: Apple it seems has set March 7th as the date when they intend to unveil the latest model of I Pad. I have a few of my friends here in Philly, who are so eager to lay their hands on I Pad 3, and they said they will try be one early buyers of I Pad 3. Just like them there are millions of apple users who are waiting eagerly to get their hand on the latest apple product and the company feels that they  may face huge shortage if the demand is more than the supply. The rumors is that the latest apple I pad has some wonderful features like 4G LTE Connectivity to make the browsing  on the internet lightning fast and also to see to it that they don't fall behind the other leaders in the industry like Samsung with its Galaxy products, who have already the 4G LTE connectivity. I Pad 3 may also have Siri, which is the famed artificial intelligence system that made its debut on the I Phone 4S with a better version. It seems I Pad 3 will boast of A6 Quad-Core Chip which will give the  tablet the much needed boost in speed setting and finally the retina display make the viewing of the pictures and  movies also a sight to watch. These are only potential changes that may be seen in the I Pad, till we get the authentic information from Apple. But whatever be it everyone is glued to the news of the new version coming out in the market and people wanting to lay their hands on it. Everyone is interested in a newer version of a product basically because it can sometimes be more relevant and more useful and effective with the challenges and the demands of the present day work. I believe when I think of Christian life and the transformation that God does in our life,  is also something similar like that of the I Pad 3 but totally different in nature and the function.
            This week we were meditating on how we can bring transformation in our personal life based on the life and ministry of Simon Peter. Yesterday we learnt how Peter buckles under pressure, cracks and then denies Jesus Christ. In today’s bible portion, the risen Lord Jesus Christ is again encountering Peter and this encounter is very important for Peter as he is going through pangs of guilt and also remorse at his past actions. But Jesus strengthens him gives him the responsibility of feeding his lambs. A failed person is once again reformed, strengthened and given the charge to the Lord’ ministry. Here is Jesus communicating to him that Christian life is not once in a life experience but on the contrary a day to day life experience walking with Lord, whereby by the power of the Holy Spirit, he is made into new creation to do His work. Paul says that if any man is in Christ he is a new creation. This new creation is an everyday process, as I walk with the Lord daily. Thus the Lord is making something new in me and out of me, so that I become an effective witness of my Lord in this world. For some, new creation is something that they experienced long time back when they came to know the Lord. It is here we need to consciously submit our life to God’s hand so that he transforms us daily and we become a new creation daily, to do his ministry effectively.
Apple brigs a new model of the I phone or I pad may be once in a year, but Jesus Christ  makes us a new creation daily. That is what transformation is all about.
A new model or a new creation?
Let us Pray: Lord as we walk with you, you bring into our life experience of change and experience of transformation. Help us to always experience this change and newness every day so that we become more like you. Amen

The Journey 61,
Friday,March 2
Read: Mathew 26: 31-36
Key Verse: “ Then he said to them all “ If anyone comes after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me [ Luke 9:23].
              Cracking……. Under Pressure. This is the only term that came to my mind when I saw how the Philly 76ers lost their game against Oklahoma on Wednesday. What else can you say about that game when at one stage, the Sixers were having a seven point lead, with less than five minutes remaining for the game to end, and that is when the Sixers  miss their next 10 shots thus allowing the Oklahoma city to take advantage. This was also the time and the game, when both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook played excellently to help Oklahoma City to win 92-88. This script was also repeated earlier in the week, when sixers played Houston Rockets,  leading till the end, but allowing the opponents to win 93-87. Same was the case when they played both Minnesota Timberwolves and the Memphis Grizzlers, loosing closely fought games. It was the case of choking at the very end, when they had to put in their extra best for victory. Thus other than their victory against Detroit Piston, the Phillies have lost five consecutive games. A game of missed opportunities but the truth is that when pressure builds up, sixers were cracking up. I think this is true not only for the Philly sixers but also for all of us. What elevates a person from being an ordinary individual to the realm of extraordinary is the ability of that person to cope up to the pressures that suddenly comes to ones life without cracking up. That is what the signs of a true transformed individual is and also a true witness of a transformed living.
                 We are meditating this week on the theme “ Transformation in our personal life” based on the life and ministry of Simon Peter. In today’s portion for meditation, we read the well know portion where  Simon Peter denies Jesus Christ. Here is a disciple who affirms in the presence of Jesus Christ a few day back that “ Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you” [ Mathew 26: 35]. Now the scene shifts, Jesus is arrested and all the disciples are scattered. They do not know what is happening and what is their future, is it death or something else. Everyone is fearing his life. That is when  Peter goes to the courtyard to warm himself  and suddenly a servant girl recognizes Peter as one who was with Jesus Christ. Peter feigns ignorance but he is trapped again by another girl and also by another set of people. In all these occasions, more than the courage that he should have mustered, fear grips him, and all the valiant talk that he does in front of his Master, goes in vain, and sheepishly Peter denies Jesus, just the way Jesus had predicted. We need to remember that Christian life is not easy that is why Jesus said that if anyone wants to follow me, let him deny himself and  take up the cross[ Luke 9: 23]. Somehow in the world of today, there are many leaders and church’s that have diluted the message of the gospel whereby Christian life is turned into a life of profit making and prosperity, a life where all our dreams and desires bear fruit. When we follow Jesus Christ, there is a price to pay, we need to live this life , with our focus on the Lord and running with perseverance, the race that is marked for us. [ Hebrews 12: 1-2]. Transformation is a painful process, a process which entails a lot of pressure, lot of challenges in our quest to live authentic Christian life.
Let us ask ourselves whether we are like Peter, boasting about ourselves, before the Lord and to the world, but deep inside, denying Him whenever pressure and the pleasure of the world comes.
In the game of basketball, Phillies sixers seems to do just that.
What about in Christian life– Are you a Christian that cracks under pressure?

Let us Pray: Dear God we often boast about our intimacy with you, but at the opportune time when we face pressures from the world we tend to deny you. Forgive us of our sins of ungratefulness . Amen