Brown's Daily Word 3/23/17

    "Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever".  Revelation 5.  We live day by day in confidence and in mission knowing that Jesus is the victorious Lamb and yet He is the Shepherd of His people.  Praise the Lord, for the He ushers in every new day on earth and in His kingdom.

    We are saddened by the unbridled violence, defenseless brutality, and bloodshed that took place at Westminster, London yesterday.  Innocent people died.  I have been several times to London, and while there I have walked on the Westminster bridge over the river Thames, and stood by the British Parliament house, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, the Central Hall, and the Methodist Cathedral. As I looked out on my surroundings, I stood in awe, for Great Britain is the birthplace of John and Charles Wesley, William Carey, David Livingstone, Amy Carmichael, William Shakespeare, Sir Winston Churchill, and so many luminaries in  History.  We are called to pray for our leaders whom the sovereign Lord places in authority over us for such time as this.  We need to pray for Donald Trump, the President of this great Nation, for Theresa May, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, and for the leaders of the world, that the Lord would endow and anoint them with the wisdom of King Solomon, the Faith of Abraham, the strength and courage of Samson, the love for the Lord, of King David, the boldness of Peter, and the passion and courage of St Paul.  We know, believe, and declare that His Truth is marching on.. Glory, glory, Hallelujah.We are called with a divine imperative to pray for those victims of Satan, the enemy of the Cross,those who are driven and bent on brutality, terror ,bloodshed and senseless blindness and madness that they may see the Light of Jesus and begin to  walk in  genuine freedom and Light. The Lord is at work. The godless Communism that reigned and  brutalized soviet union collapsed after 70 years. The barbaric and brutal reign of Hitler that was supposed to last 1000 years lasted only 1000 days. It was few years ago some American youth were visiting Jerusalem. One evening they invited some Arab youth for a pizza party. They shared about Jesus the Messiah. One of the young man was open to the Gospel. In an going conversation and witness this young man gave his heart and life to Jesus. He was the son of the radical Islamist the founder of the Hamas . This young man was sponsored by the church to immigrate to   America “the land of the free and the home of the brave.”. This young man is a  committed Christian with a life long mission of witnessing Moslems. His kingdom shall never end.  His love never fails. 

    One of my favorite pastor/authors has written, "We have the opportunity to look at life two ways - from the bottom-up or from the top-down.  From the top down means to start with God and then go to the problems of life.  From the bottom up means to start with my problems and then work upwards to God.  Most of us instinctively start from the bottom and go up if we can.  What difference does it make?  Only all the difference in the world.  Maybe the difference between keeping your faith and losing it.  The difference between joy and bitterness, between self-pity and victorious faith." - Ray Pritchard

    If we  start with us, we will end with us and be no better off.  If we start with God, we  started in the only possible place to find any lasting answers. This may be the central message of the book of Job.  In the beginning Job faces unimaginable loss, a series of catastrophes that left him scratching his sores on the ash heap, with a wife urging him to curse God and die.  The largest part of the book is a dialogue with his friends over why these things have happened.

    I love to read the Book Job from time to time.  Here’s the most amazing fact..  Job never found out why God chose him for such suffering.  His central question remains unanswered.  He apparently never found out about Satan’s part in the whole scheme.  So, in terms of specific answers, he is left in the dark.  But by the end of the book there is a huge difference.  When he at last bows before the Lord, he acknowledges God’s sovereignty.  “I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you” (Job 42:2 NLT).  

    I suppose the question might be put this way: Am I willing to believe that God knows what he’s doing in my life when I don’t have a clue?  In his book “If God is in Charge,” Steve Brown tells the story of a class his associate pastor was teaching in which he said that God is sovereign, God is love, and no matter how bad things get, Christians should praise Him.  He went on to say that the real test of praise is not when things are going well but when they are going badly.  During the question and answer period that followed, a man raised his hand and said, “I just can’t buy what you say about praising God in the midst of evil and hurt.  I don’t believe that when you lose someone you love through death, or you have cancer, or you lose your job, that you ought to praise God.”

    The associate pastor then offered a simple, yet profound, answer. “What other alternatives do you propose?”  This question begs for an answer.  If God is not sovereign, then who is?  If God is not in control, who’s running the show?  But the good news is this.  Our God is in control.  “The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.”  I admit that it doesn’t always appear to be so, but it is true.

    There are two choices we can make.  We can reject God’s sovereignty, which ultimately leads to despair and frustration, or we can bow before him in humble submission, which leads to praise and freedom.  He made us, and although we left him, he found us and bought us with the price of Jesus’ blood.  Now we are his forever.

    This is God’s record.  “What then shall we say to these things?  If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)  We  know with certainty that his throne is in heaven, he rules over all, and he loves us so much that he gave his Son that we might have everlasting life.  He who upholds the universe holds me in the palm of his hand.  He who guides the stars guides my life too.  He who knows all things from beginning to end knows me, and I entrust my life to him.  Amen.

In Christ,

Brown

https://youtu.be/9k8jesR05zA

Brown's Daily Word 3/22/17

    Praise the Lord for this new day, a gift from the Lord indeed.  It is brilliant and bright.  As Alice and I were driving on the Interstate this afternoon we saw a herd of deer grazing on the hillside.  The deer looked mirthful, unhurried, and unafraid, full of great expectation and anticipation of the unfolding brand new, unaduletrated, Spring.  Thank you Jesus.  Today is infused with His grace, surrounded with His promises and paved with His power, wonder, and awe. The Ski resort near our town, which reminds me of the Alpine resorts in Europe, is still open, gladdening the hearts of snow lovers.  Avid snowmobile riders are criss-crossing the country and hillsides, fast and furious.  Weather prognosticators are predicting that it will be warming across the country, with a heat wave that might blow eastward. 

    One of our friends who lives in Oklahoma said that there is heat wave in the Western states.  The temperature is running in the nineties.  It is like summer.  It almost like the weather in Orissa, India.  I talked to some family members there today who told me that it is almost summer.  Temperatures are running in the high nineties.  The mango groves are in luxuriant bloom, promising an unprecedented harvest this year. 

    The festival organizers of our historic  town of Marathon are busy getting ready for the Historic Maple Festival which will be held on the 1st and 2nd of April.  Thousands of people of all ages and all backgrounds will converge upon the town.  Please mark your calendars.  Come on down.  It will be an exotic and sweet experience.

    In the movie “Fiddler on the Roof”, Tevye and his neighbors have been informed that the Tsar has evicted all Jews from their village and confiscated their land. There is a great upheaval and anger in the community, as you can imagine.  If someone gave this kind of news to you and all the people in your area, how would you feel, and what would you do?  They talk of an uprising and revolt.  One of the villagers says to Tevye, “We should defend ourselves.  An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth!”  “Very good,” mutters Tevye.  “That way the whole world will be blind and toothless.”

    Jesus deeply cares about what we are going through.  He understands the hurt and his heart goes out to us.  He wants us to know that, in the end, He  is our Judge and Vindicator.  He will take on our case.  He takes even the evil that happens to us and redeems it in the end.  It does not ultimately matter because we have a Lord  who rights the wrongs of the world and turns evil into good.  There is ultimate justice.  On that Day he will put all things to rights.

    The only way we can follow and obey Jesus is if we understand that in following Jesus we don’t have anything to lose.  We are not just living for this world, and it is not in this world where scores are ultimately settled.  It does not matter what people do to us here and now, because there is a Divine Judge.  What people do does not alter our eternity in the least. 

    As Christians we should be people of peace, who seek to bring healing rather than getting even.  We offer forgiveness, even when it is undeserved.  We seek reconciliation and restoration of relationships.  We seek to build up rather than tear down.  We pull others toward us rather than push away.  We want to reconcile our relationships, even when the other party does not.

    “Do not repay anyone evil for evil.  Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.  If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” (Romans 12:17-18).  We are drafted by Jesus to be people of grace, mercy, and forgiveness.  It is the heart and nature of Jesus.  Jesus  does not just bless those who are good, but he does good even to those who are not.  "For He maketh His  sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust."  Matt 5:45  We are to model the character of Jesus our Lord.  In his book, "Mere Christianity", C.S. Lewis wrote, “Do not waste your time bothering whether you ‘love’ your neighbor; act as if you did.  As soon as we do this, we find one of the great secrets.  When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love him.”

    There was an amazing story recently that took place during riots in Egypt.  As a backdrop remember that on New Year’s Day , there was a suicide bombing of a Christian church in the Alexandria, Egypt, which killed 23 Christians, and wounded 97 others.  Another incident took place days later in which three men in a car sprayed automatic gunfire into a crowd of churchgoers in the southern Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi, killing at least seven people as they left a midnight service.  But, in spite of that, something dramatic took place during the Egyptian riots against the government.  Government soldiers and police where everywhere, and many had been killed or beaten, but the time for prayer for Muslims came, and as these Muslims knelt for prayer, with their face to the ground, they were vulnerable and susceptible to attack by government soldiers.  Dramatically, Christians began to surround the praying Muslims.  They held hands and faced outward in a large circle to protect these men, even though they may have been their enemies and may have inflicted a great deal of harm on them or their fellow Christians.  The reporter covering the story posted a picture of the Christians holding hands in a circle on Twitter and stated, “Bear in mind that this picture was taken a month after the Alexandria bombing where many Christians died in vain.”

    Perhaps there were those among the men praying who cheered the bombing of the church.  Perhaps there were even collaborators, but the Christians there did not take justice into their own hands; they left justice to God.  They were following the Scripture which says, “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.  On the contrary, ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.’  Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:19-21

    The Egyptian Christians did not take revenge, but left room for God to work, and by so doing may have done more to stop the cycle of violence than all the legislation and intervention of global powers.  They did what Jesus had shown them by example.  They were followers of the Lamb.

In Jesus .

Brown

https://youtu.be/ngSsaSimi8A

Brown's Daily Word 3/21/17

    Praise the Lord for Jesus our Lord, the king of angels and the Lord of all.  The world is better place because Jesus came, He saw, and He conquered.  This world is better place because of His Church that is the salt of the earth.  We are blessed to be loved by Jesus and redeemed through the power of His blood.  We are blessed to be part of His Kingdom by His grace, in His grace, and because of His grace.  May Jesus keep us near the cross that we all might run the race well and finish it well.  We here at our local church will gather for a community wide dinner  on Wednesday that is prepared and served by our people.  The dinner will be served starting at 4:30 PM.  On Saturday evening, Dr. James Geer, Ph D, will be presenting " Simon Peter".  We will gather for a special meal at 6:00 PM.  The presentation of Simon Peter will be at 7:00 PM.  All are invited join.  

    Chuck Colson, who was blessed with brilliant mind and very warm heart, told the following story: “My mind goes back to a Christmas 20 years ago in Romania, when the country was still in the grip of communist tyranny.  The story begins with Laszlo Tokes, pastor of a fast-growing reformed church in the city of Timisoara. His powerful preaching had caught the attention of communist officials, and they began a strategy of suppression.  They stationed police officers around his church, machine guns cradled in their arms.  They hired thugs to attack him. Finally, just before Christmas, they decided to send him into exile.

    But when the police arrived to hustle Pastor Tokes away, they were stopped cold.  Around the church stood a wall of humanity.  Christians from around the city - Baptist, Pentecostal, Orthodox, Catholic - had joined together to protest.  All through the day they held their post.  As it grew dark, a young Baptist student named Daniel Gavra pulled out a packet of candles, lit one, and passed it to his neighbor.

    Then he lit another.  One by one the burning candles were passed out among the crowd.  Soon the darkness of the December night was pierced by the light of hundreds of candles.  When Pastor Tokes looked out his window, he saw a sea of faces lit up by a warm glow.  That night, he said later, was the ‘turning point in my life.’  He would never erase from his mind the picture of believers from all denominations joining hands in his defense.

    Two days later, police finally broke through the crowd and dragged Pastor Tokes away.  But that was not the end.  The people now streamed to the city square and began a full-scale demonstration against the communist government. Once again Daniel Gavra passed out his candles.  Once again the night was lit by their glow.

    Finally, the communist officials began to panic.  They brought in troops and ordered them to open fire on the crowd.  Hundreds were shot.  Young Daniel felt a searing pain as his leg was blown off.  Yet the brave example set in Timisoara inspired the rest of the nation.  Within days the entire population of Romania had risen up and the bloody dictator Ceausescu was gone.  The churches filled with worshippers offering praise to God.  For the first time in half a century, the people of Romania celebrated Christmas in freedom.

    In the hospital, Daniel Gavra celebrated while learning to walk with crutches.  His pastor came by, offering him sympathy, but Daniel wasn’t looking for sympathy. ‘Oh, Pastor,’ he said softly.  ‘I don’t mind so much the loss of a leg.  After all, it was I who lit the first candle.’

    What mighty things the church could do today when it is truly is the Church: when we stand shoulder to shoulder with all our brothers and sisters, ready to fight evil, prepared to give our limbs — and yes, even our lives — to light a candle in the darkness.  “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise [not you, but] your Father in heaven.”  Matthew 5:16  In this passage, Jesus was telling us not to live for the kingdom of the world, but the Kingdom of God.  Jesus is saying that we play an important role in the life of the world as salt and light.  Jesus was talking about a new way of obedience.

In Jesus the Light of the world.

 Brown

https://youtu.be/aIR5zFSkWUY

Brown's Daily Word 3/20/17

    Praise the Lord for the first day of Spring 2017.  Praise the Lord for He is the Lord of all seasons and He is the Lord in every season.  It is all calm and tranquil after the storm Stella.  He makes all seasons beautiful and glorious. 

    The Lord of the Sabbath and the Lord of the Church blessed us with an anointed and very celebrative time in His house yesterday.  It was a sunny and brilliant day.  The people were in joyful and celebrative mood.  People shared  during the worship about their joy in ministry and doing Gospel together.  They share about the joy and laughter found in visiting others with the Good News of grace and gladness.  They were sharing how the Lord blesses them in their daily lives and even in daily trials.  "When Jesus Is in the House" He turns our mourning to dancing.  He makes paralytics walk again, and they go home leaping and dancing and praising the Lord.  Lepers are cleansed and get baby skin again.  Cripples walk again and take on the new hobby of rock Climbing.  The Blind see and take on the new hobby of Bird Watching.  "The Bad Girls of the Bible" get a new lease on life.  Those who are set free keep on dancing, telling others about the Savior.  They come of out the shadow lands to walk on solid ground unafraid.

    Alice and I walked for over a mile in the late afternoon yesterday.  The Sun was high and warm.  The sun was playing hide and seek through the clouds.  The  spring birds are back to sing and talk over their natural habitats.  The snow is melting fast and furious.  The snow has no power in the presence of the blazing sun.  Thank you, Jesus.

    Praise the Lord for this Holy Season of Lent.  The Church around the corner and around the globe is preparing for Triumphant Easter.  Our daughters that live in Washington, DC were involved in a weekend of prayer retreat with retreat leaders who came from Florida.  They said that it was a wonderful weekend where the people's hearts were stirred as the Lord of power and of love poured His immense blessing on so many this weekend.  Whenever we go to Washington we worship with them in their church.  On any given Sunday Washington comes alive as people gather in house churches, store front church, mega churches and neighborhood churches and the cathdrals..  Many people go to church in their Sunday best.  Some attend in casual clothing.  In all Jesus is glorified and exalted.  There are many churches which are engaged reaching out to people of all backgrounds and groups.

    It was a week ago Sunday that we were in Boston where we worshipped in the Church Janice and Jeremy attend along with their family for worship.  This church consists of all young professionals with lots of young children.  One of their mission focus is reaching new Immigrants refugees.  Boston is one of the oldest Cities and it is full of churches.  There are many churches active in reaching out to their city with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I was talking to one young medical professional who was sharing that she attends a church full of young adults, with loud music and contemporary worship that draws young adults.  She was sharing she is blessed to be in that church that focused on growing in Christ and reaching others for Christ.  The Host family that we stayed is focused in sharing the Gospel with others.  The Husband, who is a professor in one of the prestigious universities, takes his graduate students once ever year overseas to a third world country on a study tour with the purpose of sharing with them the love of Jesus.  He shared with us that Every Sunday he makes time playing basketball with Arabs in the City thus building relationships with them to share about Jesus.  My doctor, who prays with me, shared that her husband who is a scholar and believer has befriended a Moslem couple who are owners of a neighborhood pizza shop.  They intentionally buy pizza from them.  The husband has started one on one Bible study with the owner of the pizza shop.  One of my Graduate School classmates is the Bishop of the United Methodist Church in Boston, which is Evangelical is its focus on making disciples for Jesus Christ. 

    Praise the Lord for all of you who are involved in the ministry of the Jesus at home and in the church, teaching Sunday School, preaching, leading prayer groups, leading mission groups, witnessing to neighbors and colleagues, teaching at Release time.  Praise the Lord for you all who participate in the ongoing ministry of the Church by serving on committees and by being hearers of the Word as well as doers of the word.  Praise the Lord for you all who invest your time, talents, and treasures in the Kingdom enterprise of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The Lord is doing a new thing around the corner and around the globe.  He is fermenting His church.  He is pouring new wine, the best wine, into the lives and hearts of His people.  We read and hear the Moslem refugees in Germany coming to faith in Christ.  The young and the old are drawn to Jesus indeed.  My daughter Sunita, who knows the pulse of the missions, shares with me that the Lord is doing an amazing thing in unexpected places with unexpected people.

    People of Jesus around the world and the around the corner are getting ready fo Spring and Summer.  There are thousands of college Students who go on short term missions during their Spring break.  They return home changed and challenged.  The world becomes a better place because Christians care and Christian give sacrificially and generously and with great hilarity.  The Lord loves a cheerful giver.  Many adults go on short tem missions all over the world.  We have some friends who are missions addicts.  Every opportunity they get to go on a mission trip they pack and go.  They, along with several others, are going on a short term mission.  They leave on Easter Sunday Evening.  The Church in Orissa where I was nurtured is getting ready for summer camp meetings.  Three to four thousand people gather for days for those tent meetings.  They are similar to our old time Methodist Camp meetings where people gathered in celebration and fellowship, when they "organized to beat the devil".  During the tent meetings in Orissa people come, gather, worship, cook the meals under the trees, and sleep under the open sky, under starry skies.  They look like they are living in Booths as in the days of Exodus.

    "The Church as the bride of Christ will be a body of many members united in one head, Jesus Christ.  In his Revelation, John saw “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.”  We must, if we would be in that multitude, sooner or later come to love this Church, the Church universal, as well as the whole body of the local church.  “The Church will outlive the universe; in it the individual person will outlive the universe.  Everything that is joined to the immortal Head will share His immortality.”^{C.S Lewis}

    We must embrace each other, not only in anticipation of our eternity together, but so that others may share that eternity with us:

"Usually it is those who know Him that bring Him to others. That is why the church, the whole body of Christians showing Him to one another, is so important. You might say that when two Christians are following Christ together there is not twice as much Christianity as when they are apart, but sixteen times as much."C.S.Lewis

Robert Louis Stevenson once wrote in his diary, as if recording some extraordinary phenomenon, ‘I have been to church today, and am not depressed.’It is great blessing to know Jesus as our Saviour and Lord and serve Him as our King. 

In Christ.

Brown