Good Morning,
Praise the Lord that He is the Lord of the whole of creation. He is the Christ in every crisis. Even the wind and storms obey Him. The Lord performs miracles in the midst of the storms in our lives. He calms the violent storms and He calms the fears of His servants. Matthew, Mark, and John all tell their own versions of the story of calming the storm on the sea of Galilee. (See Matthew 14: 24-33; Mark 6:47-52). The three accounts vary in the details they record. For example, in Matthew’s account that we see Peter's attempt to walk on water. John leaves that out, possibly to keep the focus on Jesus. Regardless, they all emphasize the terror that gripped these men in that dark hour of the night when the storm was raging about them. Whether it was the suddenness of the storm, the darkness of the hour, or the worry about Jesus and his puzzling reaction to the adoring crowds that day, this storm seemed worse than others they had faced.
One thing is sure, and that is the fact that each account tells of the miraculous appearance of Jesus on the water. His appearing in that way struck terror in their hearts. It was something totally out of the ordinary and unexpected. They were very much afraid! Fear is like that. Sometimes it is not just the particular situation that heightens our fear, but it is reflective of a condition inside us. Fear is intensified by being alone or, worse yet, feeling lonely. Jesus’ simple message to those terrified fisherman is the same message He has for you and for me when we are caught alone in the darkness, tossed by the winds of life, or feeling helpless. He said, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” Jesus climbed into the boat and suddenly all was right with the world again. Mark’s gospel makes an important connection with the events of the day. “{51} Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, {52} for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened." They should not have been surprised that the same one who can feed five thousand plus people with a few loaves and fishes can also stay the storm, but they didn’t make the connection. Neither do we! How often we claim to believe in Jesus the Savior, the crucified and risen one but then we fail to understand that He can carry us through the tumult of the day. In the midst of your storm, do not be afraid! He is here. “Lo, I am with you always,” he promised his followers (Matthew 28:20). The night before the cross He told His men, "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you,” (John 14:18)."
David echoed this beautifully in Psalm 139, “You hem me in--behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, 'Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,' even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you “(5-12). Whatever fear we face, whatever the storm we feel caught up in, it will not - it cannot - separate us from the presence of Jesus. In the mist of our storm, let us not be afraid! He is here. In one of his most unforgettable stories Robert Louis Stevenson told about a storm-tossed ship at sea. The passengers were all order below deck while the crew contended with the winds. They were terrified as they huddled nervously in the galley, hearing and feeling the storm but not knowing how the crew was fairing. One passenger volunteered to venture out to check on conditions. Several minutes later, he returned and simply reported, “All is well. I saw the captain and he smiled.” Regardless of the terror of the storm, we can rest assured that the captain of our souls has not forgotten us. He knows our circumstances just as assuredly as he knew about the wind and the waves. He knew their limits. He knew their fears. He knew their peril. He saw it all. He still does all of this! He sees and knows every problem we face. He also knows when to intervene (and when not to). We may wonder why, if He can rescue us, He waits so long. Why does He sometimes let us go through so much or allow us to get in so deep before He steps in? Why does it sometimes look like He will not come to our aid and rescue? Why does it sometimes feel as if He has abandoned us?” C. S. Lewis gave an answer in his book, "The Problem of Pain". Rather late in his life Lewis married American woman, knowing she only had a short time to live. Lewis said, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world” (page 93). In the latter part of the book, Lewis wrote about how sometimes life’s storms are really God’s spiritual curriculum. If we were to remove all of the storms, we might never learn the most important lessons of life. He stated that sometimes, as we are on a happy course through life, suddenly “a stab of pain threatens serious disease or a newspaper headline threatens us all with destruction, sends the whole pack of cards tumbling down. At first I’m overwhelmed and all my little happiness looks like broken toys. And perhaps, by God’s grace, I succeed, and for a day or two become a creature consciously dependent on God and drawing its strength from the right sources. But the moment the threat is withdrawn, my whole nature leaps back to the toys. . . . Thus the terrible necessity of tribulation is only too clear. God has had me for but forty-eight hours, then only by dint of taking everything else away from me. Let Him but sheathe the sword for a minute, and I behave like a puppy when the hated bath is over. I shake myself as dry as I can, and race off to reacquire my comfortable dirtiness in the nearest flower bed. And that is why tribulation cannot cease until God sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless” (p. 106-107). Once we have made the decision to welcome Him into our boat, we do not have to be afraid, though the wind blows and the sea billows roll. He is here.
In Him,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlAYiQetZoQ
Friday, May 8, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Brown's Daily Word & India update 5-7-09
Good Morning,
Praise the Lord that the Risen Savior is almighty and awesome in every way. He reigns and rules, and He overrules. It is written that the Lord is quite capable of doing "immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us" (Ephesians 3:20). One such amazing aspect of His work is his ability to give power in suffering. Several years ago, the well-known German pastor and theologian Helmut Thielicke( Now part of the church, triumphant) was asked during a visit to America what he considered the greatest problem in the US. He surprised many with his unexpected reply. "The biggest problem," he said, "is an inadequate view of suffering." He went on to explain that, in his view, the American dream of perpetual progress had led many to believe that any and all problems could be solved with a minimum of effort or discomfort. Unfortunately, he insisted, this is simply not the case. There are, and always will be, certain burdens in life that cannot be eliminated. In Thielicke’s words, "These burdens obviously pitch the American into such helpless embarrassment that he either capitulates, to them or represses them or glosses them. Unfortunately, the German pastor’s words have as much relevance for many Christian’s view of life as for society at large. In the popular mind of our age, it is assumed by many that power always leads to pleasure, and that adversity and suffering are certain signs of weakness. Assuming this attitude and under this mind-set, the Risen Lord's power is measured by his ability to make life easy for the believer. For them, health, wealth, and success are the true signs of the Risen Lord's blessings. Adversity and suffering, on the other hand, are the companions of spiritual weakness. For many, the Risen Lord is powerful enough to enable a believer to escape adversity, but not strong enough to sustain him during times of adversity. Such an attitude is far removed from the teachings of the New Testament. Nowhere does Jesus promise his followers an easy life. On the contrary, Jesus insisted that the path of discipleship is straight and narrow and the way hard (Matt- 7:13-14). Rather than rejecting adversity as a sign of spiritual weakness, the early Christians rejoiced that they were counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name" (Acts 5:41). Paul even taught that suffering was an expected part of the Spirit-led life (Romans 8:14-27). The late Dr. Paul Brand, world-renowned leprosy specialist, provides some enlightening background for this spiritual truth from his experiences with the lepers of India. Dr. Brand tells how he discovered, contrary to once popular medical opinion, that leprosy, does not directly cause the deterioration of the flesh of its victims. The disease simply deadens the nerves of the body’s extremities. Eventually the leper loses all feeling in his fingers and toes. The afflicted person can burn his hand and never feel the pain. Infection, and even gangrene, can eat away at his flesh with out ever creating the slightest discomfort. In fact, in certain villages in Africa and Asia the town leper is given a unique job because of his inability to feel pain. The leper stands by a heavy iron cooking pot watching the potatoes. As they are done, without flinching, he thrusts his arm deep into the boiling water and retrieves the cooked potatoes. Such extreme insensitivity soon destroys the leper’s flesh. After years of working with lepers, Dr. Brand learned to rejoice in the sensation of cutting a finger, turning an ankle, or stepping into a too-hot bath. Pain itself, and the hurt of pain, is a gift. "Thank God for pain!", writes Dr. Brand. This is precisely the attitude of Scripture toward adversity of every sort. Such a view, however, is not simply a Stoic acceptance of fate. It is not a fatalistic attitude toward adversity as being a necessary evil that we must simply endure. Not at all! The Bible insists that adversity is not simply something to be endured. It is, in fact, a tool of God used to teach us much needed lessons (Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-4). Adversity, like a cloud, may block the sunlight for a time, but it also brings the rain. Both sunlight and rain are needed for growth. C. S. Lewis aptly phrased it when he wrote, "God whispers in our pleasures, but shouts in our pain." Phillip Brooks must have understood this spiritual truth when he wrote, "Do not pray for easy lives, pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle but you shall be a miracle. Every day you shall wonder at yourself at the richness of life which has come by the grace of God." The Risen Lord can and does bring power to His people. Because He is the Lord of the valleys as well as the God of the mountain tops, His power often brings the quiet strength needed to endure adversity and not simply the power to escape it.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sR8rlTIU8_Y
US Commission for Religious Freedom to visit Orissa and Gujarat
by Nirmala Carvalho
http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=15148&size=ASecretary General of the Indian Bishops Conference hopes the visit will contribute to “accelerating the path of justice for the Christians of Kandhamal”. “The Church does not want revenge”, but peace and reconciliation.
Mumbai (AsiaNews) – The United States Commission for Religious Freedom has announced a delegation will visit India next month. Marking the release of their annual report on the state of religious freedom throughout the world, the organism explains that at the heart of their visit will be the violence which has marred two states in particular: Orissa, the stage for anti-Christian violence and Gujarat, which in 2002 registered clashes between the local Hindu and Muslim communities resulting in over a thousand deaths among the Muslim faithful.
Msgr. Stanislaus Fernandes, Secretary General of the Indian Bishops Conference (CBCI), in an interview with AsiaNews, commented on the announced visit by the US delegation affirming that “anyone who is committed to human rights and religious freedom is welcome”.
“We hope – says Msgr. Fernandes - that this visit of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom helps the various Rights groups, social activists and the Indian Church in speeding up the processes of Justice for our Kandhamal Christians and others victims of communal violence”.
The violence in Orissa and the condition of the refugees, who have yet to return to their villages, are live concerns for the CBCI, but Msgr. Fernandes states that “the Indian Church trusts and hopes in the national Justice system”. Confirming these expectations the bishop points to the recent Supreme Court decision to institute a commission to investigate and bring to justice those responsible for the violence against the Muslim community in Gujarat. “We pray, in other cases such as Kandhamal, that the Supreme Court may intervene, particularly where the bureaucracy and administration is not taking a pro-active stand”.
Praise the Lord that the Risen Savior is almighty and awesome in every way. He reigns and rules, and He overrules. It is written that the Lord is quite capable of doing "immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us" (Ephesians 3:20). One such amazing aspect of His work is his ability to give power in suffering. Several years ago, the well-known German pastor and theologian Helmut Thielicke( Now part of the church, triumphant) was asked during a visit to America what he considered the greatest problem in the US. He surprised many with his unexpected reply. "The biggest problem," he said, "is an inadequate view of suffering." He went on to explain that, in his view, the American dream of perpetual progress had led many to believe that any and all problems could be solved with a minimum of effort or discomfort. Unfortunately, he insisted, this is simply not the case. There are, and always will be, certain burdens in life that cannot be eliminated. In Thielicke’s words, "These burdens obviously pitch the American into such helpless embarrassment that he either capitulates, to them or represses them or glosses them. Unfortunately, the German pastor’s words have as much relevance for many Christian’s view of life as for society at large. In the popular mind of our age, it is assumed by many that power always leads to pleasure, and that adversity and suffering are certain signs of weakness. Assuming this attitude and under this mind-set, the Risen Lord's power is measured by his ability to make life easy for the believer. For them, health, wealth, and success are the true signs of the Risen Lord's blessings. Adversity and suffering, on the other hand, are the companions of spiritual weakness. For many, the Risen Lord is powerful enough to enable a believer to escape adversity, but not strong enough to sustain him during times of adversity. Such an attitude is far removed from the teachings of the New Testament. Nowhere does Jesus promise his followers an easy life. On the contrary, Jesus insisted that the path of discipleship is straight and narrow and the way hard (Matt- 7:13-14). Rather than rejecting adversity as a sign of spiritual weakness, the early Christians rejoiced that they were counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name" (Acts 5:41). Paul even taught that suffering was an expected part of the Spirit-led life (Romans 8:14-27). The late Dr. Paul Brand, world-renowned leprosy specialist, provides some enlightening background for this spiritual truth from his experiences with the lepers of India. Dr. Brand tells how he discovered, contrary to once popular medical opinion, that leprosy, does not directly cause the deterioration of the flesh of its victims. The disease simply deadens the nerves of the body’s extremities. Eventually the leper loses all feeling in his fingers and toes. The afflicted person can burn his hand and never feel the pain. Infection, and even gangrene, can eat away at his flesh with out ever creating the slightest discomfort. In fact, in certain villages in Africa and Asia the town leper is given a unique job because of his inability to feel pain. The leper stands by a heavy iron cooking pot watching the potatoes. As they are done, without flinching, he thrusts his arm deep into the boiling water and retrieves the cooked potatoes. Such extreme insensitivity soon destroys the leper’s flesh. After years of working with lepers, Dr. Brand learned to rejoice in the sensation of cutting a finger, turning an ankle, or stepping into a too-hot bath. Pain itself, and the hurt of pain, is a gift. "Thank God for pain!", writes Dr. Brand. This is precisely the attitude of Scripture toward adversity of every sort. Such a view, however, is not simply a Stoic acceptance of fate. It is not a fatalistic attitude toward adversity as being a necessary evil that we must simply endure. Not at all! The Bible insists that adversity is not simply something to be endured. It is, in fact, a tool of God used to teach us much needed lessons (Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-4). Adversity, like a cloud, may block the sunlight for a time, but it also brings the rain. Both sunlight and rain are needed for growth. C. S. Lewis aptly phrased it when he wrote, "God whispers in our pleasures, but shouts in our pain." Phillip Brooks must have understood this spiritual truth when he wrote, "Do not pray for easy lives, pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle but you shall be a miracle. Every day you shall wonder at yourself at the richness of life which has come by the grace of God." The Risen Lord can and does bring power to His people. Because He is the Lord of the valleys as well as the God of the mountain tops, His power often brings the quiet strength needed to endure adversity and not simply the power to escape it.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sR8rlTIU8_Y
US Commission for Religious Freedom to visit Orissa and Gujarat
by Nirmala Carvalho
http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=15148&size=ASecretary General of the Indian Bishops Conference hopes the visit will contribute to “accelerating the path of justice for the Christians of Kandhamal”. “The Church does not want revenge”, but peace and reconciliation.
Mumbai (AsiaNews) – The United States Commission for Religious Freedom has announced a delegation will visit India next month. Marking the release of their annual report on the state of religious freedom throughout the world, the organism explains that at the heart of their visit will be the violence which has marred two states in particular: Orissa, the stage for anti-Christian violence and Gujarat, which in 2002 registered clashes between the local Hindu and Muslim communities resulting in over a thousand deaths among the Muslim faithful.
Msgr. Stanislaus Fernandes, Secretary General of the Indian Bishops Conference (CBCI), in an interview with AsiaNews, commented on the announced visit by the US delegation affirming that “anyone who is committed to human rights and religious freedom is welcome”.
“We hope – says Msgr. Fernandes - that this visit of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom helps the various Rights groups, social activists and the Indian Church in speeding up the processes of Justice for our Kandhamal Christians and others victims of communal violence”.
The violence in Orissa and the condition of the refugees, who have yet to return to their villages, are live concerns for the CBCI, but Msgr. Fernandes states that “the Indian Church trusts and hopes in the national Justice system”. Confirming these expectations the bishop points to the recent Supreme Court decision to institute a commission to investigate and bring to justice those responsible for the violence against the Muslim community in Gujarat. “We pray, in other cases such as Kandhamal, that the Supreme Court may intervene, particularly where the bureaucracy and administration is not taking a pro-active stand”.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Brown's Daily Word 5-6-09
Good Morning,
Praise the Lord for this new day a gift from the Lord. Alice and I drove out to Boston last Sunday after worship for my annual check up with my doctor. We had a great time of visiting with Janice, Micah, and Simeon. Jeremy was away for few days in Washington, DC on business. Boston looked brilliant and beautiful in full blown spring. The arboretum was filled with dozens (maybe hundreds) of varieties of lilacs, in bloom or nearly so. Praise Jesus for the beauty of the earth.
The late great Prussian-born English Christian evangelist and coordinator of orphanages in Bristol, England, George Fredrick Muller (Born: George Frederic Muller) is known to have lived a life of sin and crime while studying for the ministry in the "State Church!" He was converted at a prayer meeting in a private home; and, from that time in his life, he was a changed person! He moved to England, where he sought acceptance by the London Missionary Society as a missionary to the Orient! Upon being rejected, he began to preach and minister wherever the Lord God Almighty opened a door! He was led to Bristol, England, where - in 1834 - he founded the "Scriptural Knowledge Institution for Home and Abroad! One year later, with no financial assistance, he opened his first orphanage for 26 girls. By 1870, he had built five (5) orphanages - and, by prayer and faith in Almighty God - he was feeding 2,100 orphans on a daily basis.
The story of George Frederick Muller is extraordinary in many aspects. He read through the Holy Bible over 200 times (half of those times on his knees). In reading through the Word he claimed the Promise found in Psalm 81:10 (KJV): "I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it." There are many stories of simple, regular Christian people who have done great things for Almighty God, people such as "Mother Teresa", because they were willing to sacrifice for His Kingdom! Living a life of service in God’s Kingdom is synonymous with sacrifice! When we make a commitment to Jesus, the Christ, as our personal Lord and Savior, it is an Eternal commitment. Our commitment to serving Him should be no different! In Luke 9:23-24 (KJV), Christ, Himself, said, "...If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. (v. 24) For whosoever will save his life, shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it." We are called to be a personal sacrifice offered unto the Lord. He calls for your sacrifice and my sacrifice!
The story is told about a family who visited a church. As they were leaving the church parking lot, while in their vehicle, the father commented. "That was the worst sermon I have ever heard - it was long - it was boring - and, it was awful!" The wife, seated in the front passenger seat, chimed in, "Yes, the music was awful too - it was off-key - it was too loud - and, I didn’t like the songs!" The teenage girl, seated in the back seat, said, "The people weren't friendly either!" The little boy, also seated in the back seat, who had watched his father when the offering plate was passed, said, "Dad, you have got to admit that it was a pretty good show for a quarter, wasn't it?" Often we get out of something what we put into it. It is written in Hebrews 13:15-16 (KJV), "By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name. (v. 16) But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased."The late great Russian religious and political philosopher, Nicholas Alexandrovich Berdyaev (1874 - 1948), who abandoned Marxism for Christianity, insisted that it was not theology or history - nor the church that caused his conversion! He stated that he was present at a concentration camp in Nazi Germany when the Nazis were killing Jewish people in the gas chambers! One distraught mother, whose first name was Maria, saw that the officer in charge, Berdyaev, was really only interested in numbers. So, without a single word, Maria was pulled aside by an unknown woman who took her place! So powerful was that image that it turned Berdyaev toward the Christ who sacrificed His life for all of humanity!
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ld3D4oOzx8o
Praise the Lord for this new day a gift from the Lord. Alice and I drove out to Boston last Sunday after worship for my annual check up with my doctor. We had a great time of visiting with Janice, Micah, and Simeon. Jeremy was away for few days in Washington, DC on business. Boston looked brilliant and beautiful in full blown spring. The arboretum was filled with dozens (maybe hundreds) of varieties of lilacs, in bloom or nearly so. Praise Jesus for the beauty of the earth.
The late great Prussian-born English Christian evangelist and coordinator of orphanages in Bristol, England, George Fredrick Muller (Born: George Frederic Muller) is known to have lived a life of sin and crime while studying for the ministry in the "State Church!" He was converted at a prayer meeting in a private home; and, from that time in his life, he was a changed person! He moved to England, where he sought acceptance by the London Missionary Society as a missionary to the Orient! Upon being rejected, he began to preach and minister wherever the Lord God Almighty opened a door! He was led to Bristol, England, where - in 1834 - he founded the "Scriptural Knowledge Institution for Home and Abroad! One year later, with no financial assistance, he opened his first orphanage for 26 girls. By 1870, he had built five (5) orphanages - and, by prayer and faith in Almighty God - he was feeding 2,100 orphans on a daily basis.
The story of George Frederick Muller is extraordinary in many aspects. He read through the Holy Bible over 200 times (half of those times on his knees). In reading through the Word he claimed the Promise found in Psalm 81:10 (KJV): "I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it." There are many stories of simple, regular Christian people who have done great things for Almighty God, people such as "Mother Teresa", because they were willing to sacrifice for His Kingdom! Living a life of service in God’s Kingdom is synonymous with sacrifice! When we make a commitment to Jesus, the Christ, as our personal Lord and Savior, it is an Eternal commitment. Our commitment to serving Him should be no different! In Luke 9:23-24 (KJV), Christ, Himself, said, "...If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. (v. 24) For whosoever will save his life, shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it." We are called to be a personal sacrifice offered unto the Lord. He calls for your sacrifice and my sacrifice!
The story is told about a family who visited a church. As they were leaving the church parking lot, while in their vehicle, the father commented. "That was the worst sermon I have ever heard - it was long - it was boring - and, it was awful!" The wife, seated in the front passenger seat, chimed in, "Yes, the music was awful too - it was off-key - it was too loud - and, I didn’t like the songs!" The teenage girl, seated in the back seat, said, "The people weren't friendly either!" The little boy, also seated in the back seat, who had watched his father when the offering plate was passed, said, "Dad, you have got to admit that it was a pretty good show for a quarter, wasn't it?" Often we get out of something what we put into it. It is written in Hebrews 13:15-16 (KJV), "By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name. (v. 16) But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased."The late great Russian religious and political philosopher, Nicholas Alexandrovich Berdyaev (1874 - 1948), who abandoned Marxism for Christianity, insisted that it was not theology or history - nor the church that caused his conversion! He stated that he was present at a concentration camp in Nazi Germany when the Nazis were killing Jewish people in the gas chambers! One distraught mother, whose first name was Maria, saw that the officer in charge, Berdyaev, was really only interested in numbers. So, without a single word, Maria was pulled aside by an unknown woman who took her place! So powerful was that image that it turned Berdyaev toward the Christ who sacrificed His life for all of humanity!
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ld3D4oOzx8o
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