Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everybody!!

Pope Francis gave a Christmas message worth reading:-
- http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/pope-francis-there-are-so-many-tears-christmas

- Pope Francis makes phone call to refugees fleeing Isis

What do you want from God?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joni_Eareckson_Tada:

"On July 30, 1967, Joni (http://www.joniandfriends.org/) dove into Chesapeake Bay after misjudging the shallowness of the water. She suffered a fracture between the fourth and fifth cervical levels and became a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the shoulders down. During her rehabilitation, she experienced anger, depression, suicidal thoughts, and religious doubts.

In 2010, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She emerged successfully from cancer surgery and is hopeful of a positive prognosis."  

So, Joni has seen and experienced a lot of sufferings and hardships in life.

So, what does Joni expects from God in heaven? :-

Joni (http://www.joniandfriends.org/nrb-awards-dinner):- "So don’t be thinking that a new body (Joni was left paralyzed from the shoulders down) is what I am looking forward to most in heaven: jumping up, dancing, kicking and doing aerobics. Oh, that’ll be wonderful; it would be a great fringe benefit of being invited to Christ’s coronation party, but that’s not what I am looking forward to. I want a new heart; I want glorified heart that no longer twist the truth or resists God (heart free of selfishness), or looks for an escape, or gets defeated by pain, or becomes anxious or worrisome about the future — no longer trying to justify itself. Oh, that’ll be heaven for me."

This also flies in the face of "health-wealth" / "prosperity" gospels.

God wants us to prosper from inside!

"God loves you. God is for you"

"He holds the stars and He holds my heart ..."

http://www.klove.com/music/artists/chris-tomlin/songs/jesus-loves-me-lyrics.aspx

A Night for the Persecuted!

One of this highlights last summer, in our campus ministry, was "Awareness and Praying for the Persecuted Church", led by Sofia.

"He (GOD) KNOWS" - Jeremy Camp

When 9-year-old Nyabwiri and her family need to wash clothes, cook meals, or drink water, they can’t just turn on a faucet.

Fall 2014 issue of Compassion Magazine is out!

"When 9-year-old Nyabwiri and her family need to wash clothes, cook meals, or drink water, they can’t just turn on a faucet ...  Read more > "

More on EXTREME Poverty:  http://www.compassion.com/poverty/poverty.htm


Join Compassion in fighting global poverty: http://www.compassion.com (Want to Change the World? Sponsor a Child)

“It will be a miracle for me to walk by myself again” - 14-year-old Jamie

Help IJM protect children from violence:
https://www.ijm.org/jamies-story

Yazidis and Persecuted of Iraq Need Your Prayers and Help NOW

http://time.com/3091932/yazidi-iraq-isis-obama/

Quoting from above:-

8Aug14:- "On the peaks of the Sinjar mountains, 50,000 members of the Yazidi people are facing a slow death from dehydration and exposure. Below them waits the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), a militant extremist group who will kill any that descend."

Experiencing GOD - guaranteed!

Often people ask "how do I experience God?".

Well, obedience helps.

In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus said “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”".

So, when we live like that, Jesus assures that we will experience HIM/GOD for sure ("I am with you always") : )

POWER

When GOD speaks, universe/planets/humans/mountains/animals come into being (Book of Genesis)! Eggs unscramble and dead rise too (even from dry bones & ashes)! - Wow that is called POWER! 

Now, GOD's spoken Words are also stored in the Bible. That is why we study Bible regularly - to experience "THE SAME KIND OF" God's power in our life : )

Yes you can do it!

At times you may think it's all over ... You may not have any motivation left to continue ...

Remember, people managed to kill and lay dead GOD (Jesus) too! But then Jesus rose and  Romans 8:11 says: "And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.".

So, the same Spirit that RAISED Jesus FROM BEING DEAD, is NOW IN YOU, Christian!! So why are you worrying and stressing out? Your situation cannot be that dead, that the Spirit of GOD, in you, cannot bring it back to life!

WHO is right and who is wrong?

Your friends are telling you one thing, your professor is telling you one thing, your pastor is telling you one thing, your parents are telling you one thing, and your own flesh is telling you one thing ...
And you wonder who is right? Whom do you believe?

Well, that is why GOD has given us His Word - the Bible!

Remember, whenever the devil tempted/provoked Jesus in the dessert (Luke 4), EVERY TIME (note "everytime"), Jesus responded by going to God's Word / Holy Scriptures:- "It is written ...".


Psalm 119:105: "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path". 

Thank God for the Bible : ) So, yes, READ YOUR BIBLE : )

Why Was Judas Carrying the Moneybag?

Why Was Judas Carrying the Moneybag?

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/why-was-judas-carrying-the-moneybag

Fighting Extreme Poverty

Fight Extreme Poverty with Compassion:-
- Want to Change the World? Sponsor a Child
- http://www.compassion.com/child-sponsorship/sponsor-older-child.htm


http://www.compassion.com/poverty/poverty.htm
 :-

Learn the facts about poverty and how it affects children in need and their families.

• Worldwide 600 million children are living in extreme poverty.
• The cost of eradicating world poverty is estimated at 1 percentof global income.
• Almost half the world — over 3 billion people — live on less than $2.50 a day.
• The poorest 40 percent of the world’s population accounts for 5 percent of global income. The richest 20 percent accounts forthree-quarters of world income.
• 1.6 billion people — a quarter of humanity — live without electricity.
• 6.9 million children under five years of age died in 2011, nearly 800 every hour.
• The highest rates of child mortality are still in sub-Saharan Africa – where 1 in 9 children dies before age 5.
• The number of under-five deaths worldwide has declined from more than 12 million in 1990 to 6.9 million in 2011.Nearly 19,000 children under five died every day in 2011.
• Globally, the four major killers of children under age 5 are pneumonia (18 percent), diarrheal diseases (15 percent), preterm birth complications (12 percent) and birth asphyxia (9 percent).
• 58 percent of deaths in children under age five are caused by infectious diseases.
• In 1981, 52 percent of the world’s population lived in extreme poverty (defined as living on $1.25 or less a day.) Data from the World Bank released in February 2012 estimates that 22 percent of people live in extreme poverty.
• Country with highest number of under five deaths: India.
• Every day, approximately 800 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth.
• 99 percent of all maternal deaths occur in developing countries.

Sources: www.unicef.org, www.childinfo.org, www.crin.org, www.who.int,www.globalisses.com

IJM Calls for Help to Fight Child Slavery in Ghana!

https://www.ijm.org/content/urgent-messages-from-the-field

You are a Overcomer!

"You're an overcomer
Stay in the fight ‘til the final round
You're not going under
‘Cause God is holding you right now"

Science vs God: Bryan Enderle at TEDxUCDavis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sn7YQOzNuSc

- Can GOD be outside time, without defying science?
- Can GOD be omnipresent, without defying science?

Honestly, I am not knowledgeable enough to decide how right Bryan is ...

Pray for the 200+ School Girls Abducted in Nigeria!!

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/the-worlds-media-have-failed-in-their-response-to-the-kidnap-of-200-nigerian-schoolgirls-9321186.html

http://time.com/84414/how-we-failed-the-lost-girls-kidnapped-by-boko-haram/

http://www.capwiz.com/womenthrive/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=63203141

"Why Science Does Not Disprove God"

http://time.com/77676/why-science-does-not-disprove-god/

The Greatest Turnaround In the History of Humanity! (Happy Easter)

If you are looking for hope then read on ...

If you feel your situation right now is very hopeless then read on ..

BTW, Happy Easter !! : ) Easter is the greatest symbol of hope that I am aware of!

About 2000 years, a guy named Jesus started Christianity. His movement for barely 3-4 years old, when he was unjustly arrested and crucified! And Jesus was given an extremely horrible death  ... Isaiah 57 says: "His appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness" ...

The disciples of Jesus who witnessed all this, must have been utterly shaken & shattered to the core and must have thought the "Jesus  movement", which was barely 3-4 years old, is all over ... Things surely looked completely hopeless at that point ...

But, then came the biggest turnaround in the history of humanity ... Jesus rose from the dead in three days (http://www.leaderu.com/everystudent/easter/articles/josh2.html)!! And 2000 years from then, today, ~2 billion people (1 out 3 people in this planet) claim to be Christian!!
Isn't this the biggest turnaround in the history in humanity?!

This is why I am always in so much awe of our GOD ... history shows how GOD can turnaround and bring back to life situations that may look so bad, so dead, so hopeless ...

And, all this makes Easter - the ultimate symbol of hope - So, HAPPY EASTER TO YA'LL!!

Can a dead man rise from grave?

Can a dead man rise from grave?

YES!! : ) Happy Easter!!

Well, you may think it is superstition, unscientific, bla bla ...
But I believe, if you are open minded, it can all seem scientific/logical/etc.

These are some good articles to start with, to understand how a dead man (Jesus ~2000 yrs ago) could have came back to life:-
http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/historical-evidence-for-the-resurrection
http://christianity.about.com/od/easter/a/7-Proofs-Of-The-Resurrection.htm
http://www.leaderu.com/everystudent/easter/articles/josh2.html

#FreeSaeed

It was an honor to meet Saeed Abedini's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saeed_Abedini) wife Naghmeh last weekend at the Church! She gave a very powerful testimony:-
http://vimeo.com/channels/724451/91924970

Francis Chan on his downsized lifestyle

http://video.foxnews.com/v/2267196777001/pastor-francis-chan-on-his-downsized-lifestyle/#sp=show-clips

Chan: (~5:45) " ... when I came back from Africa my heart was just broken, I look at all the stuff around (here) ... and I go honey (to wife) it's so hard ... you gotto see these kids they are so beautiful but they are digging through the trashes and you gotto go with me and you gotto see it .. "

(A brief interview on why Francis Chan left his mega Church and moved on to serve in SF ...)

What do you do in your spare time? ;)

A clip from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93hux7vQSyY Francis thinks it's the story of the most interesting man ; ) An incredible, mind-blowing, heart-warming, superbly-inspiring ministry accomplished in spare time! " .. With God all things are possible!" Matthew 19:26

"Overcoming Hopelessness", Nick Vujicic @TEDxNoviSad

Nick Vujicic is an superbly awesome Christian preacher!

END IT MOVEMENT :: FEBRUARY 27TH

http://enditmovement.com/

http://www.youtube.com/enditmovement :
"FEBRUARY 27TH. Will you stand by or will you stand up? Will you join the fight for FREEDOM? #enditmovement"

Pray for North Korea

It's pretty crazy all that has been happening in North Korea:-

"A Dog of a Story: Why Kim Jong Un Probably Did Not Feed His Uncle to 120 Hounds
Read more: North Korea: Did Kim Jong Un Feed His Uncle to the Dogs? | TIME.com http://world.time.com/2014/01/03/a-dog-of-a-story-why-kim-jong-un-probably-did-not-feed-his-uncle-to-120-hounds/#ixzz2pNxTB3oI"