For unto us a Child is Born

I love Christmas, simply because it reminds me of the generosity of our Great God towards a sinner like me. And it displays Christ's humility as He chose to come in the form of a Man to dwell among us!!!

He is truly Emmanuel, God with us!!

Peace and Quiet

The last few days have been very difficult for me. And all I desire is some peace and quiet, and what better person to seek from, than the Prince of Peace Himself, Jesus Christ my Lord. The following hymn just entered my mind and just singing it quietened my soul!

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Refrain

It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

Refrain

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

Refrain

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

Refrain

But, Lord, ‘tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord!
Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!

Refrain

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Refrain

---

The Glory Of The Cross

There is so much truth spelled out in this song about the wondrous work of God on the cross and how God's glory shines brightly on the cross. Sang this song at church last Sunday and was truly blessed.

"The Glory Of The Cross"

What wisdom once devised the plan
Where all our sin and pride
Was placed upon the perfect Lamb
Who suffered, bled, and died?
The wisdom of a Sovereign God
Whose greatness will be shown
When those who crucified Your Son
Rejoice around Your throne

And, oh, the glory of the cross
That You would send Your Son for us
I gladly count my life as loss
That I might come to know
The glory of, the glory of the cross

What righteousness was there revealed
That sets the guilty free
That justifies ungodly men
And calls the filthy clean?
A righteousness that proved to all
Your justice has been met
And holy wrath is satisfied
Through one atoning death

What mercy now has been proclaimed
For those who would believe
A love incomprehensible
Our minds could not conceive?
A mercy that forgives my sin
Then makes me like Your Son
And now I’m loved forevermore
Because of what You’ve done

Words and music by Bob Kauflin
As recorded on Songs for the Cross Centered Life

© 2000 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI).

Desire a quiet soul...

"Lord my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever." Psalm 131

I love this Psalm coz it is a simple reminder that I need not be hassled about the why's of my life. Let God be God. And I need to trust Him like a child that trusts his mother. To have a soul calm and composed and resting quietly in the hands of my Heavenly Father is what I desire.

What a friend we have in Jesus!!

What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do your friends despise, forsake you? Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield you; you will find a solace there.

Blessed Savior, Thou hast promised Thou wilt all our burdens bear
May we ever, Lord, be bringing all to Thee in earnest prayer.
Soon in glory bright unclouded there will be no need for prayer
Rapture, praise and endless worship will be our sweet portion there.

A heart full of praise!

"Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name." Hebrews 13:15

When does praise to God become a sacrifice? It is very convenient to praise God when we are comfortable and things seem to be going our way. But what happens when we are stuck in a difficult trial or a painful circumstance? Do we still continue to praise God??

When we choose to rise above our difficult circumstances and praise God, it becomes a sacrifice, a fruit of our lips which is very precious in our Father's sight. Don't let your heart be troubled, God is very near, a ever present help in times of trouble. Our God is worthy of our praise. Continue to thank Him for all the benefits He so generously bestows.....Giving thanks is the best antidote to a complaining spirit!!!

New things anew!!

"Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it?” Isaiah 43: 19

Yesterday I heard some news which immediately signaled that a change was near. Thankfully I was not upset but I knew a lot of things were going to change. I know God is in complete control of everything, hence I have nothing to be scared about. When God takes away something it is always for our good. These times are precious as we lean more on Him.

Whenever God has taken something out of my life, He has always replaced with something much much better. And I have learnt to depend on Him more and experience His Sufficiency.

I love this verse from Isaiah 43, where God talks about doing a new thing in the lives of Israelites. How much more for His children? Heavenly Father I trust in you completely and the plans that are in store. You are good and You always do good!!

Forgiveness

A dear sister in Christ once told me that if you have truly learnt to forgive, you have achieved much! That statement has never left me since then. All of us struggle with forgiveness and nobody is an exception here. Yes! It is difficult to forgive someone who has sinned intentionally against us and does not care. It hurts!

I struggle with this often. But this verse reminds us of how we have been forgiven in Christ. Let's think about our own sinful lives and how much we have offended Our Holy God and still do. It is a fearful place to be. But thanks be to God that we are completely forgiven in Christ. What a precious gift!

If Christ has freely forgiven me, why am I holding back?? Let's give back what has been given freely to us. Forgiveness!!! Let's continue to forgive one another continuously just as our Savior continues to do so with us.

Wait and Watch!

"My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him." Psalm 62:5

We live in a world that is bustling with activity and we are constantly on the move. When was the last time you actually slowed down and rested? We have become so impatient and restless that we sulk when God seems to take a lot of time to answer our prayers.

This used to trouble me a lot earlier about God's delay in answering my prayers. But then slowly I realized that these waiting periods can be a blessing when I turned my soul to look to God alone. Slowly my dependence on began to grow.

It is one thing to wait and another to wait silently upon God alone! The reward is much sweeter than what you can dream of. You are slowly drawn in a closer fellowship with Him.

God is worthy of my trust...

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverb 3:5-6

Many times the kind of lives we lead and the type of attitudes on display clearly depicts our lack of trust in our Heavenly Father. We know God is Sovereign, but how often is that knowledge lived out when our cars break down or the computer crashes? Does my life reveal complete trust in God about everything? Or do I constantly try to rationalise what God commands me to obey?

God wants us to trust Him at all times coz that is what glorifies Him...

My Shepherd

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." Psalm 23: 1

What more can a sheep ask than the presence of the Shepherd. Note the possessive pronoun used "my" that gives a sense of belonging to the sheep. We are the sheep, always in need of guidance, food and protection from the dangers of this world. Let's thank Jesus Christ for being our shepherd.

What happens with the knowledge that Christ is our Shepherd? It causes us to be calm and to be at rest! Coz we shall have no want since Jesus knows our every need. Isn't that a great promise to hold onto? We can be truly satisfied in Christ Jesus.

Why worry?

"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?"
Matthew 6:25
One of the biggest struggle of every Christian is worry. No matter how hard we try, worry seems like a formidable foe. But we have much to thank Christ for. He has spoken very clearly in His Word about worry and how to combat it.

Remember that worry is sin. Yes! Worrying is sinful, it is not a small habit picked up while growing. It is a huge indication of where our trust basically lies. What do we worry about? Our daily necessities!! Our Lord commands us not to worry. Period. When we worry we are indicating that our trust in God is weak.

Our God is enough. He is all-sufficient. Help me Lord to remember that!

Contentment

Hebrew 13:5 "Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake".

Contentment! What a wonderful gift from God Our Heavenly Father. It is to be satisfied with whatever is provided to us. This is one lesson I took years to learn and I still stumble at times.

But the word of God clearly exhorts us to keep ourselves free of the love of money. Money is not evil in itself. It is the love of money that spoils every thing! When we are consumed in the hoarding of things in our lives, we immediately replace God.

Hence it is very important to be content with what we have rather than what we do not have. God knows what we really need and we should trust Him completely, coz we have His promise. He is with us at all times!