Monday 11 August 2014

What makes you HAPPY?

For many people joy and happiness is a result of their life's situations. Some find happiness in their belongings, some in their positions, some in their knowledge, some in their friend circle, some in their privileged opportunities, some in their finances etc. Their happiness is centered on what they are and/or on what they have. They put full strength in protecting the reasons for their happiness. But when that reason goes away, they lose their happiness. Depending on situations is not the authentic means to be happy as it gives only temporary happiness.

But do you know what is the Biblical Christian way to be happy? It is to have an intimate fellowship with God and His Son Jesus Christ. God wants to give us divine joy, to all who repent of their sins and decide to walk in fellowship with Him. The Bible says, "...There is none righteous, no not one." (Romans 3:10 NKJV), "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23 NKJV), "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:23, 24 NKJV), "For 'whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:13 NKJV).

All the above verses indicate that everyone born in this world needs to be cleansed of their sins. ".....'Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." (Acts 16:31 NRSV). "If we confess our sins, He Who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9 NRSV). "But to one who without works trusts Him Who justifies the ungodly, such faith is reckoned as righteousness." (Romans 4:5 NRSV). "Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Happy are those to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit their is no deceit." (Psalm 32:1, 2 NRSV).

By reading the above verses, we understand that we should confess our sins by faith in Jesus Christ. He came down to earth, though being God, and suffered a brutal death for the whole mankind. Without saying that we are good people, we must pray to Him in our own words to come into our hearts, cleanse our sins and to make each one of us a new creation. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here." (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV). "God made Him Who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God," (2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV).

Just understand that God sees your hearts, He knows the depths of your hearts. Without being worried about your words' accuracy, pray to Him in the words you can to cleanse you of your sins and to reign in your hearts as King of kings. If you pray thus with humility and childlike faith, you will become a child of God instantly after your prayer.

It is to such people that God gives His divine joy. But this joy must be preserved by daily communicating with God through prayer and Bible meditation. You will experience the difference between earthly happiness and divine joy. The presence of God experienced by walking in fellowship with Him gives us excellent joy.

Such happiness does not gets deleted when life's situations are difficult. But it is natural to doubt God when problems arise. But if we cling to Him in spite of our difficulties, we can find comfort for our hearts in His arms. In midst of our pains, we will rejoice in the Lord. God will make all things work together for our good, if we trust Him and praise Him no matter what is going on with us. To make it more clear, God is the source of our happiness.

Friend, if you are not having true joy till now, accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour  and daily experience His joy and peace by praying to Him and reading His Word, the Holy Bible. This joy will be found in the depths of your heart. Others will recognize this joy in the way you live your life. You will be a blessing!

Friday 6 June 2014

Facing, Fighting and Overcoming obstacles

A large number of people in this modern area are unable to protect and preserve their strength and zeal for being brave. Everybody loves to be called fearless but when impossibility comes many and many people give up. They skip their ambitions, goals, sky-high desires and welcome failure. Yeah! I am talking about determination in midst of painful experiences. Fear makes us unworthy, worthy of no good. We must also be brave in the Lord to depend upon Him for total happiness. We should never ever even think of trying to depend on our heart's capacity to be happy at all times. It is Jesus who makes us happy and not we ourselves or anything else in this world. When problems come, never wrestle with those problems but relax in Christ. He will take care of it most wonderfully.

Life is beautiful. Biblical experts say that in the Bible, the phrase "Do not fear" is written 365 times. "Do not let your hearts be troubled (distressed, agitated). You believe in and adhere to and trust in and rely on God; believe in and adhere to and trust in and rely also on Me." (John 14:1 Amp.) "Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition (definite requests) with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God. And God's peace [shall be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and being content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace] which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:6, 7 Amp.) So, the secret to inner courage is believing totally in God and making our requests known to Him.

If, at any circumstance, you come across a person who is fearing something, understand that he does not trust in God. Worry and faith can not be mixed, never. They both stand separately. The only efficient tool to kill our fear is faith. Fear does not come without purpose, its desire is to completely destroy us by drifting us away from God's ways and accepting failure. Whenever we come across situations when we are tempted to doubt God, we must look on the ways in which He led us thus far. If we are successfully going on with a task and suddenly our resources get deleted, it is never wise to quit. We must never forget that it is only through God's grace that we can complete all our good works.

What is the thing that makes you quit, my dear friend? Are not we aware that our happiness and joy will be lost if we admit failure? Your obstacle is never greater than your faith in God. Do not let fear overcome you. Just believe that The Lord is fighting for you, you need only to be still. Go on with the strength you have. Do not concentrate on problems, look on the face of Jesus with your inner eyes. Looking on His merciful face, be encouraged to continue the good things you are doing. Life is meant to be successful. You are made to accomplish God's purpose in your life. If you quit halfway, the result will be eternal. Not only you, but others who would have been blessed through you, will lost something very special. What's more, your chance to please and glorify God will be missed and God's purpose for your life will remain incomplete.

So after understanding the need to have courage and faith, defeat your obstacles by depending on the extreme power of God. It is not by our strength that we can face, fight and overcome, but by God's power and grace. You may be going through difficult situations right now, but God Immanuel is walking with your in your fiery situation. Just focus on His presence, that's all you need to live a life of a winner.

Saturday 7 September 2013

Walking in the Positive

So often we people because of our mere human intellect, misunderstand the meaning of positive living. We hesitate to sacrifice our efforts for those in dire need. We see only our goal, what we can achieve from such and such an effort. If we are busy in doing a hard job and suddenly see someone fainting how easily do we continue with our work. It is because we will finish the job well and get a good result. Whom do you prefer?A labourer who toils day and night for his family alone or a labourer who works with full effort but also sacrifices some of his precious working moments to do some other works, like guiding someone who has lost the way? Students gain good marks in their college levels just for the sake of good marks in their exam, to get a bright future and a good paying job. No one toils hard for people outside their family. To be positive means to do something for OTHERS even though our efforts do no good for us, gladly bearing all, knowing that not we but someone else is being benefitted through our strength. Is this not the way we ought to live?

Next common misunderstanding about positivity is that we all only welcome things that make us happy. If doing some noble thing leads to our destruction, we will not do that workable goodness. The thing may shape the society but because we do not want to sacrifice our well-being for the good position of others we hesitate to do the particular good task. What can be an example of such a thing? You may have heard about brave people who lost their hands or legs while saving some child or blind person who has unknowingly come before a speeding bus. They offer themselves to self sacrifice for saving another. The soldiers who go for war and die a brave martyr's death or become handicapped due to being fired by the enemy force are a powerful example of this. Salute to Jesus who poured out His even last drop of blood for the cruel mankind.

Positivity does not welcome wellness which has nothing to do with the good of others, but takes pleasure in sacrifice. It does not say, "I want to be successful. So let me concentrate on my job rather than on someone else's problem." You may be understanding what I want to tell from this article. But what has this teaching got to do with our primary topic, 'happiness', readers may ask. It is understandable that leading such a life will create a happy world. Those who are of a sacrificial heart only make others happy. But now, what about their own joy? Such people cannot rejoice in worldly terms but their delight is in reading and meditating God's word and finding solace and happiness in Christ. This is a spiritual mystery. All outward reasons for their happiness may be burned up, but my Lord the God gives them happiness that can not be comprehended. They are people who truly believe that true happiness is not at all from material things but only from God. What a shame for us who pray to God for material well-being in order to be happy!

But this never means that God wants us to live a poor life. But it only means that we should find true happiness by keeping our minds in the care of God. "Do not keep your eyes on the things of the world but let your hope in Christ increase as you keep on discovering true life of sacrifice. of concern for others and most importantly a life that pleases God and we enjoy His pleasures." This statement is the core meaning of 'Walking in the Positive'. It is to do all good things not worrying what will go or come, or what we will have to gain or lose, protecting our relationship with our Father in all its fullness. It does not mean that our sacrificial living is the basis of our spiritual walk but it means that because we are new creatures in Christ we can live a sacrificial life. May God help each one of us to BE POSITIVE!

Tuesday 3 September 2013

Happiness in the Lord: The root cause of an undaunted heart

A life full of courage in midst of life's perils and problems is indeed needed for a successful living. People who get discouraged seeing their circumstances never reach their destination. But even great people are in certain times, bound to discouragement. The Prophet Elijah's life-incident proves this fact. "Ahab told Jezebel everything that Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, "May the gods punish me and do so severely if I don't make your life like the life of one of them by this time tomorrow. Then Elijah became afraid and immediately ran for his life. When he came to Beer-Sheba that belonged to Judah, he left his servant there, but he went on a day's journey into the wilderness. He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die. He said, "[I have had] enough! Lord, take my life, for I'm no better than my fathers." (1 Kings 19:1-4 HCSB). It is not compulsory that saints and children of God are always brave and bold. It is human nature to feel fear during threats. Now, when a child of God feels discouraged, God Himself plays the role of strengthening His child. He doesn't abandon him halfway. God doesn't need people who do not need the Lord's strength and encouragement but He desires those who humbly appeal for His grace and strengthening. This fact leads us to yet another amazing truth: The cause of success is courage and courage is given by the Lord.

Those who are happy in the Lord are those who get His strengthening and thus live an undaunted life. According to mere human wisdom, to be ever-happy, man needs to be courageous before life's difficult situations. But according to the Christian way of living it is the happiness and solace found in the Lord that helps a man to be courageous in his endeavours. When a child of God feels threatened, he doesn't need to run here and there for safety, but God himself comforts him miraculously and reminds to him His promises in the Bible and the ways by which God lead him thus far. The Holy Spirit works in his heart and mind and ensures him that God is already dealing with his problems and He has a purpose and plan for him, a purpose even through the problem or threat he is currently facing. Every thing that occurs in a believer's life is pre-planned by the Lord Almighty. It all happens because He wants us to come out as pure gold from the fiery furnace of tests and trials. We may feel that we are broken completely, but we must assume that God is in the process of moulding and making us according to His concern for us. Isn't this enough to make us find happiness in the Lord and thus live an undaunted life?

The next powerful truth is that God not only encourages us, but also provides a solution for us beforehand, makes all arrangements for us that we face our situations courageously and even walks with us in our path to victory. "No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape, so that you are able to bear it." (1 Cor. 10:13 HCSB). What a profound promise of God! What a great love and concern of the Lord God Almighty! The reading and meditating of the Bible allows the Bible to speak to us which enables us to feel God's presence. This spiritual and supernatural experience leads our hearts to complete rejoicing in Christ. If you feel you are discouraged and there is no one to help you, just develop the habit of daily Bible meditation. Read it during good as well as bad times. You will get your daily strength and rejuvenate yourself. The common-to-man daily worries will not bother you on the day you have read your Bible passage. To whom does God provide a way of escape? Only to those who are willing to pass through the temptation. Those who fear and move back, those who start blaming God are of no use in the spiritual arena.

Friend, how is your life today? Are you living a victorious life by finding joy in the Lord and thus boldly and undauntedly facing all problems in life through the strength and grace given by the Lord and through His speaking from His Word, the Bible? Happiness in the Lord does not need to delete all problems, but it surely deletes our fear and anxiety. "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." (1 Pet. 5:7 NIV) "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6, 7 NIV). "---- I will always be with you; I will never abandon you. Be determined and confident. Remember that I have commanded you to be determined and confident! Don't be afraid or discouraged, for I, the Lord your God, am with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:5, 6 & 9 TEV). "Fear thou not, for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isa. 41:10 KJV). "Be strong, be courageous, all you that hope in the Lord." (Psa. 31:24 TEV) "You that are righteous, be glad and rejoice because of what the Lord has done. You that obey Him, shout for joy!" (Psa. 32:11 TEV). "The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears are open unto their cry. The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all. The Lord redeemeth the soul of His servants: and none of them that trust in Him shall be desolate." (Psa. 34: 15, 17-19 & 22 KJV). "Let not your heart be troubled, ye believe in God, believe also in Me." (John 14:1 KJV) "These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33 KJV). "---And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." (Matt. 28:20 HCSB). "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." (Matt 5:4 NIV). "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." (Lam. 3:22, 23 NIV).

All the above promises of God are for the sake of us to find immense strength and happiness in the Lord. When we follow the precepts of man, we get discouraged soon. But when we grow spiritually by feeling His presence by daily reading His word, we find strength and happiness in the Lord which is the root cause of an undaunted heart. Leading a life as such will enable individuals to live boldly with daily victory. May God bless you.

Saturday 24 August 2013

Examine and visualize your happiness

The world now is uncertain and ignorant in many aspects of life. Technology has grown but love and respect to fellow human beings are diminishing without reasons. Pride, love for money and hatred towards others is growing day by day. No one knows to forgive, no one likes to say 'sorry', This type of lifestyle leads such people to spiritual blindness disabling them to visualize true happiness. They cannot realize or understand that even if they be happy with worldly gains and pleasures, they are going to eternal damnation. We need to be knowledgeable about the eternal will of God for each one of us. It is to live a life (on earth) filled with love towards God and fellow human beings and to spend eternity with Him in heaven. We must have the power to distinguish between good and bad, to examine our happiness whether it is from God or evil.

But how are we going to do it? Happiness is not only a state of mind. Outward happenings must not have any authority over what we feel inside. People who trust in God are happy even during life's calamities. They do not know to complain, are ever unwilling to criticize the existence of The Truth, and they just know how to pour out their sorrows unto God and gain His happiness. Friend, is the happiness that you are experiencing based on God's love rather than in what is going on in your life? If your answer is no, it is time to understand that God still loves you and He wants you to be happy truly.

We feel excited when we get a loving surprise from a dear friend and become very glad. We are happy when others praise us because of our success and good deeds towards others. But how happy will we be when there is no one to notice us? How happy will we be when our friends misunderstand our good actions? A man who knows how to depend on God in not concerned over what is going around, but knows that the true source of true happiness is not anything else in heaven or in the universe, but the source is God Himself.

Friend, do you now know the formula to examine your happiness and to distinguish between the duplicate and original happiness? You just need to observe whether the means of your happiness are scripture-based or situation-based. If you are happy to forgive your enemies, happy in the Lord during troubles, happy to be patient with angry people, then you are on the good point of happiness. If you are happy when you love all alike irrespective of relation or position, when you respect your elders in times they punish or scold you, when you give respect to God's Word during perils and are happy to go through the test of faith and holiness to come out as pure gold not compromising with the comforts of the world then you are truly happy. The knowledge we gained thus far from this article is able to make us examine our happiness.

Second thing is to visualize our happiness. We must know the greatness of happiness placed in our hearts by God. We must understand its full nature to know its greatness over worldly happiness. But how are we going to do it? Any good thing is enjoyed only when it is utilized for the purpose behind its existence. The purpose behind the existence of happiness is to get spread towards others through people who are enjoying it already. We cannot maintain the experience of divine happiness if we are stubborn in matters of sharing our happiness with others by actions of love and help. Thus, preserving our happiness enables us to visualize its importance. The next method is to focus on God's promises i.e. His Word. When we visualize our happiness on the basis of God's Word, we get more clear understanding about the greatness of finding happiness and solace under the power of God's authority and can also visualize our happiness found in Him..  

Friday 23 August 2013

The meaning of true and original happiness

Every thing contained in life, whether big or small, important or unimportant, popular or unknown, good or evil, famous or secret, they all have a basic source. The source of a particular thing has control and authority over it. It is what drives that particular thing. So whenever we deal with anything in life, we must first know its origin. If the origin is 'Purpose of God through us' then only should we carry on with it. This is the secret to true happiness. The fact may be not understandable to human intellectual limits. Doubts and confusions, curiosity and reasoning, anxiety and worries may find place in our heart but we must not depend on our earthly wisdom, instead we must carry on in full faith that the source is placed in the will of God. This attitude towards life's truth will make our lives find meaning in Christ and thus find divine happiness. Other things can only provide temporary happiness. 

So, what is the source of true happiness? It is based on God's will to make us walk according to His will. Had not God provided true happiness for us via His divine purpose, we could only live in vain. But our God is Love. The place we have in His love is powerful enough to reduce our worldly understanding and replace it with FAITH IN GOD, to rely on Him and not in the seemingly possible, to fix our minds in Christ and not on human reasoning. We can thus know the meaning of true and original happiness. No one can explain it, no one preach about it in full, it is indescribable. But it can be experienced by walking in the ways of God. 

The credit for our happiness belongs to our God alone because He not only wants us to experience happiness, but has provided all means for the same. The factors leading to this happiness are The Bible, Christian Fellowship, True Christian living and most important of all: The Power and Purpose of God. Once we deviate from this source, we lose our true life and get busy in pleasing ourselves for the sake of temporary happiness. This type of lifestyle brings ruins and destruction both in the outward as well as in the heart. The meaning of true and original happiness can not ever be explained, but can only be felt by walking in His ways. As it is clear till now, the driving force behind our happiness must be God's intentions for us. This will change the way we live, it will help God to use us. May God Almighty be allowed to make us happy via our decisions to follow Him. If we are unwilling and unbelieving, God can do nothing for us because He gives importance to freewill. He wants that everyone enjoys happiness from a deep desire to get it through the original source, and that source is 'Purpose of God through and for us.' Will you give your hearts to Him? May He enable you all to know the true meaning of happiness by experiencing it through its true and original source.

Thursday 22 August 2013

Importance of making others HAPPY

Every individual living in this world has his own way of living. The methods of talking, writing, understanding things, tastes and hobbies all differ in different persons. Everyone is unique. One of the major uniqueness is the evaluating and estimating power of humans. It also differs in different individuals. The major evaluation one must do is about his goals and way of living. We must constantly examine our life whether or not it is according to the will of God. Many people do not even have an aim in life. Many have selfish ambitions which are of no use to anyone. Our purpose should do be to do the will of our Father Who is in heaven, to experience His love and presence daily and to have goals that can be fruitful in the spiritual realm and arena.

So, what according to you can be one such goal? The primary responsibility of God in keeping us in this world is to share our happiness to others through our potentials and talents. Yes, God wants us to ignite happiness in others. But how do we do this? Can we do this by gifting them 10,000 Rupees or a LCD TV? Can we do it by praising them to make them boast about themselves? You know the answer. It can only be done by helping them in their times of need, by correcting them in their mistakes, by praying for them, by being ever ready to warn them in times when dangers are suspected, by encouraging them to come out of wrongs whenever they realize it, by being a motivation and inspiration to them. The most important thing is to hand over all their life's issues to the One Who is able to keep them in perfect holiness, has a caring purpose for them and can handle their weaknesses and problems in the greatest way. To do this, we need to be filled with the love of God. Where there is agape (love of God), there is life. This love fills us with compassion towards those who are in sorrow and fills an enthusiasm in us to make them be happy.

Our goals must be for the happiness of others. If through our goals, others get no benefit, we show our true selfish nature. I mean, whatever things we are good in, we must utilize them for the welfare and benefit of others. The importance of making others happy is quite simple and clear to understand. It makes us live a life of lasting impact, others enjoy our company and we become respectable in their eyes. Most importantly, we gain the honour from God who sees our hearts' purposes. Happiness may not delete all problems, but it will strengthen the hopes of our dear ones in times of trouble. In midst of crisis they will know that they are not alone and helpless but that God's love has reached them through us. This is the importance of the topic we are reading now, this is the importance of life. The world must see a change, a fine drastic change in those who call themselves children of God. A change of heart to understand others and consider them better than ourselves, a changed life which forgives others repeatedly, continuously and without end, a life which realizes the needs of other people. Let us pray to God to speak in the hearts of those who call themselves Christians but are unwilling to spread happiness. On the day when God answers our prayers, mankind will change from inside, many will know what divine happiness is and enjoy the leading of God even in midst of impossibilities. They will know that true meaning of life is in the heart and not in what luxuries we have or not have. When a famine comes in their area and other locality provides them with not-so tasty food, they will not complain, but will thank God for keeping them alive and also thank the people who gave them food. If a friend cannot give (as he has nothing) material things, yet he can give love. Love does not always need to give, love itself is the gift. 

Are you enjoying a blessed life today by being a channel of happiness to others? Do others see the mind of God in your words and deeds? God's agape love is revealed through His children. Let God change our hearts, let us make others HAPPY.