Praise the Lord, dear readers. It feels that New Year was here just now, yet already we are in the second month of 2023. Time is passing by at such speed and there is so much to do!

Matthew 5:16 “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”  In the book of Genesis, we read how God created the world, and how He separated the light from the darkness. God who has chosen us, His creation, has made us worthy to be His vessel by filling our emptiness and separating the darkness from our lives. Once God touches our lives, our lives are filled with light, and there is no darkness within us. This light will shine bright amongst us in this world, only when we glorify, magnify, and testify God’s mighty name, and His mighty works in our lives. Seeing our lives and the good works we do because of the light of God in our lives, the people of the world will praise our Heavenly Father!

Isaiah 60:2-3 “For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.” Look around – wherever you look, there is sin, pain, and suffering. The word of God says that the earth shall be covered in deep darkness, but those who have been walking with the Lord as per His commandments, on them shall the glory of the Lord shine. When we are in God’s light, we shall not be moved, neither shall we perish. Not only will the glory of His light shine upon us, but many shall see that light shining in our lives, and they will be drawn toward us. As we are the chosen ones, it is important for us to accept the light of the world, for JESUS has shed His blood for us so that we do not have to live in darkness.

Hence, dear brothers and sisters, today God is once again ready to enter our lives if we permit Him to do so. Once He enters your lives, there is no room for darkness. Once His light fills us, our lives will automatically be blessed. Remember, it is only when our Heavenly Father touches our lives and prospers our lives, that these blessing will be permanent, for every other thing is temporal in life.

1 Chronicles 17:27 “Now You have been pleased to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for You have blessed it, O LORD, and it shall be blessed forever.” Hence, let the light of God shine in your life, and may that light shine so much, that your life is a blessing to many!

Till we meet again,

Pastor Saroja M 

Praise the Lord. My name is Rahul. I have had an issue of puss oozing from my ears since childhood. Over the years, the problem worsened, and my ear now emanated a foul smell.

One day I was watching the Rose of Sharon TV programme, and I contacted Pastor Saroja right away, requesting her to pray for me.

I was immediately healed after her prayer, and I give all glory to Lord Jesus for healing me, and I thank Pastor for her prayers.

*Bro. Rahul, Gujarat. (ROS TV Program Viewer)

Praise the Lord. My name is Surti and I had a strain in my back, for which I had tried several Ayurvedic medicines for a long time.

One day I was watching the Rose of Sharon TV programme, post which I contacted Pastor Saroja to pray for me.

I was healed immediately from my back pain, and I give all glory to the Lord Jesus for healing me. I thank Pastor Saroja for her prayers for me.

*Bro Surti, Rajasthan. (ROS TV Program Viewer)

Praise the Lord. My name is Rani, and I am based in Chennai. For over nine years I was trying to conceive but was unable to do so.

This created a lot of unrest between my husband and his family. Last year, in October, I visited Mumbai and met Pastor Saroja who prayed for me. Now I am two months pregnant!

I give all glory to my Lord Jesus for opening my womb, and I thank Pastor Saroja for her earnest prayers for me.

*Sis. Rani, Chennai. (ROS TV Program Viewer)

Praise the Lord. A few months ago, all of a sudden, I experienced weakness, body ache, and coldness just before the Fasting Prayer Service.

Despite this, I attended the Fasting Prayer Service at our Kalina Church in faith, believing my Lord would take care of me. During the Praise and Worship session, I started feeling better, and towards the end of the service, I felt completely fine and normal.

I thank the Lord Jesus for touching me. I also thank Pastor Saroja for her fervent prayers for me always.

*Sis. Evangela Roberts, Mumbai

Praise the Lord!! My brother Shiva had knee pain, for which he took lots of medicines and injections. He could walk, albeit with a limp, and severe difficulty.

I contacted the Rose of Sharon prayer helpline and requested prayer.

After the prayer was made for him, Shiva no longer has any pain, and he can walk properly without limping. He has thereafter, stopped all his medicines for the same.

All glory to the Lord Jesus Christ for healing him, and thanks to the Rose of Sharon prayer team for praying for my brother.

*Sis. Meena Jacob, Kanpur, Madhya Pradesh (ROS TV Program Viewer)

 

Once upon a time, a young woman named Brenda, was invited to go rock climbing. Although she was scared to death, she went with her group to a formidable granite cliff.

In spite of her fear, she put on the gear, took a hold on the rope, and started up the face of that rock.  She got to a ledge where she could take a breather. As she was hanging on there, the safety rope snapped against Brenda’s eye and knocked out her contact lens. She was on a rock ledge, with hundreds of feet below her and hundreds of feet above her. She looked and looked and looked, hoping it had landed on the ledge, but it just wasn’t there. Without her lenses, her sight was now blurry. She was desperate and began to get upset, so she prayed to the Lord to help her find it.

When she got to the top, a friend examined her eye and her clothing for the lens, but there was no contact lens to be found. She sat down, despondent, with the rest of the party, waiting for the rest of them to make it up the face of the cliff. She looked out across the mountain ranges, thinking of the Bible verse that says, “The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth.” She thought, “Lord, you can see all these mountains. You know every stone and leaf, and You know exactly where my contact lens is. Please help me.”

Finally, they walked down the trail to the bottom. At the bottom, there was a new party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff. One of them shouted out, “Hey, you guys! Anybody lost a contact lens?” Well, that would be startling enough, but you know why the climber saw it? An ant was moving slowly across the face of the rock, carrying it.

When Brenda reached back home, she narrated to her father the entire episode. Her father was a cartoonist. When she told him the incredible story of the ant, the prayer, and the contact lens, he drew a picture of an ant lugging that contact lens with the words, “Lord, I don’t know why You want me to carry this thing. I can’t eat it, and it’s awfully heavy. But if this is what You want me to do, I’ll carry it for You.”

I think it would probably do some of us good to occasionally say, “God, I don’t know why you want me to carry this load. I can see no good in it and it’s awfully heavy. But if you want me to carry it, I will.”

God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called!

 Genesis 26:2 “And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of.” What was the reason that God blessed Isaac? God blessed Isaac because of his obedience. When there was a famine in Israel, the people fled the country and ran away to Egypt. God appeared to Isaac and said to him, ‘Do not go down to Egypt, but continue to dwell in this land and I will bless you.’ Genesis 26:1-3 “And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar. And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father.” Through Isaac’s obedience, the Lord thereafter blessed Isaac a hundred times. We see that the situation in Israel was not conducive due to a famine. Besides, the people were not supportive of Isaac, and they opposed him.

Acts 5:32 “And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.” Those who are obedient to the Lord God, He blesses. There was no one to support Isaac during the famine, for the people fled the country. Isaac did not get any support, as, in their hearts, the people were grumbling and murmuring. It was only due to Isaac’s obedience to God’s command that he was blessed mightily. God told Isaac to let those who wanted to leave the country go away, but that he must not leave this country. God pledged to bless Isaac and his family and be with them if he stayed back in the famine-swept land. Isaac obeyed God even as a child obeys his Father, and he was blessed manifold.

When Jesus Christ left the heavens and came into this world, He submitted Himself into the hands of the Holy Spirit to accomplish every promise of His Father God for Him, on this earth. Philippians 2:8-9 “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name.” The Lord God exalted His Son and made His name a name above all names in this world.

Isaac was a very diligent and quick worker, and he never delayed any work given into his hands to be accomplished. He was a farmer and a shepherd, and He never murmured or complained about anything. He had several sheep to tend to, and when he was done with tending to them, he toiled in the fields and harvested crops. Also, he re-opened all the wells which the Amalekites had blocked and filled after the death of his father, Abraham.

Genesis 26:12-31 “Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him. And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great.  For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him. For all the wells which his father’s servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth. And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we. And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them. And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him. And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah. And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land. And he went up from thence to Beersheba. And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake. And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well. Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath one of his friends, and Phichol the chief captain of his army. And Isaac said unto them, Wherefore come ye to me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from you? And they said, We saw certainly that the LORD was with thee: and we said, Let there be now an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee; That thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace: thou art now the blessed of the LORD. And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink. And they rose up betimes in the morning, and sware one to another: and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.”

Isaac obeyed every command of God, hence he flourished and prospered in this world. Genesis 26:16 “And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.” We have seen how there is always a rivalry between those born in the Spirit and those born in the flesh – as was in the case of Isaac and Ishmael. But Isaac always laughed away all the problems with a smile and had peace within himself. The Amalekites realized that Isaac received immense blessings from God wherever he laid his hands. What was the reason for these blessings? It was because Isaac obeyed God in every situation in his life.

Genesis 26:26 “Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath one of his friends, and Phichol the chief captain of his army.” The Amalekites who once asked Isaac to leave the country now asked him to make peace with them. Genesis 27-28 “And Isaac said unto them, Wherefore come ye to me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from you? And they said, We saw certainly that the LORD was with thee: and we said, Let there be now an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee.” The Amalekites who were against Isaac saw the hand of God and God’s grace and blessings upon Isaac, hence they wanted to once again join hands with Isaac. The meaning of Isaac is ‘laughter and peace,’ and true to his name, Isaac always kept himself happy and at peace with himself and the people around him. We see here that when we obey God, His blessings are immense upon us, and people around us will see and acclaim the same.

We should never forget the love, blessings, and the lease of life our God has given us. In many households, we have seen that the husbands are like the wicked man Nabal, instead of being like Abraham. God wants the women of the house to be wise and smart like Abigail, so that their families may receive God’s mercy and grace. (I Sam 25)

We don’t know about tomorrow, and what our life holds in the future, but it is important to live our lives in truth and righteousness. As we read earlier in Genesis 26:12-16, the Amalekites brought sorrow and pain in the life of Isaac, yet He did not think evil towards them. He joyfully did his work and diligently pursued and accomplished it.

Psalm 126:5-6 “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” We too must never grumble, but instead accomplish all God’s work set before us, rejoicing in our hearts. When we are doing work for the Lord, we must never grumble or murmur in our hearts. Psalm 128:2 “For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.”  No work done with murmuring in the heart will bear fruit. Rather, when we accomplish God’s work joyfully, He will bless us immensely. We must remember this always. Ecclesiastes 11:6 “In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.” We may have several plans in our hearts, but remember, the grace of God must be upon us, so that our plans may bear fruit. Proverbs 21:31 “The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD.” We can plan many things, and we can prepare intensely, but our victory comes only from the Lord God. To reap what we sow, we must have the grace of God upon us. Jesus Christ came to spread peace in this world. The Angel of God appeared before men and said in Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” The Lord God has planted the seeds of peace in our hearts, and these seeds must bear fruit. Ephesians 4:3 “Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Our God has united us in His Spirit and has bonded us with His peace.

None of our works must separate us from God – our carelessness, pride, ego, jealousy, etc., should never come in the way of God and us. The Lord has kept His Spirit in us to keep us in unity with Him. Romans 16:20 “And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.” The God of peace will trample the devil under His feet when God’s grace is upon us. It is on the Cross of Calvary that Jesus Christ had trampled the devil for six hours, hence the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ must always be upon us.

In Egypt, Pharaoh had passed a decree to destroy all the newborn Hebrew male children. It was God’s grace alone, that the Egyptian midwives did not kill them, instead, they gave an excuse to Pharaoh. We must gain God’s grace, kindness, and mercy in our lives. Though Pharaoh, in great anger, told the midwives to kill all the newborn Hebrew male children, God’s grace was upon the Israelite women, and they found favour in the eyes of these Egyptian midwives.

Exodus 1:16-19 “And he said, When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them upon the stools; if it be a son, then ye shall kill him: but if it be a daughter, then she shall live. But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive. And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, Why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive? And the midwives said unto Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively, and are delivered ere the midwives come in unto them.” The midwives told Pharaoh that the Hebrew women were very active and lively, and they delivered their child before they could reach them.

Yet, Pharaoh continued in great anger to plot against the Hebrew male newborn children. Exodus 1:21-22 “And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses. And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.” Even after all of this, the Lord’s kindness and grace were abundant upon Moses, and He prepared Pharaoh’s daughter to save Moses!

In a football game, when a player does a foul or deliberately hurts another player, he is shown a red card and is disqualified, and he has to immediately leave the field. But, when we foul against God, we cannot directly see His wrath or anger upon us, as we are spiritually blind. Hence, we do not bother to rectify our lives, and we tend to continue in our evil ways.

In the Holy Scriptures, when the enemies surrounded Prophet Elisha in the mountains, Elisha could see the chariots of fire surrounding the enemies, but his servant Gehazi could not see the same, for he was spiritually blinded. Even today, we can only see the rules and regulations of this world, and so we obey them fearfully. But we do not abide in God’s law, for we do not see God and hence, do not fear Him. We are spiritually blinded. It is very important to see with our spiritual eyes. Remember, each year the Lord sifts our ministry too! Hence it is important to abide by God’s law and live our lives fearfully before Him. Let us never take His love for granted in our lives.

Exodus 2:1-10 “And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi. And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink. And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him. And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it. And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children. Then said his sister to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee? And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the child’s mother. And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the women took the child, and nursed it. And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him out of the water.” Pharaoh plotted to kill the newborn Hebrew male child, but our Lord God is mighty, and He prepared Pharaoh’s daughter to save Moses, who in the future would save the Israelites and bring them out of bondage. In our lives and our families, it is very important to receive the grace of God. We must remain obedient to God’s Word and law.

Isaac was obedient to God’s command, and he stayed back in Israel during a famine, heeding the Lord’s word for him. We have seen how the Lord God blessed him, and prospered and flourished him a hundred times over. The Amalekites, who were the Israelites’ sworn enemy, saw this and marvelled; and they came forward to befriend Isaac.

We must remember that God came into this world to spread His ‘peace.’ For this purpose, Jesus gave His life for us on the Cross. If we do not acknowledge this great sacrifice, our lives are futile and worthless.

Today, let us ponder on our lives. If we do not live our lives for God in obedience to His command, what are we worthy of? Our lives are short and have no guarantee; we are alive today, but tomorrow God alone knows. Let our lives not be destroyed in this world, but rather let us live in obedience to God’s command alone.

I pray this message may be a blessing in each of our lives!

Pastor Saroja M.

 

 

Praise the Lord! Wishing all my readers a wonderful and blessed month ahead!

Whenever I visited our Rose of Sharon Old Age home, the residents religiously made one complaint. They wanted the Mira Road Church Sunday services to begin again! They kept telling me they wished to see me in person, preaching the Word to them. Though they were seeing my messages every Monday and Wednesday on Shubsandesh TV, and the weekly Sunday message on YouTube, they still desired to see me ‘live’ and in person.

Another reason for their complaint (and this really touched my heart), was that they wanted to receive the Holy Communion. Hence, especially keeping their persistent request in mind, with effect from January 2023, we have begun the Mira Road Church services after nearly 2 years.

I am overwhelmed when I see the thirst and hunger for the living WORD amongst our residents in the Home. The excitement they display, in getting ready and coming to Church at this age is something from which we all have to learn.

I pray and hope that their passion and enthusiasm to hear the WORD of the living God, spreads and catches all of us!

May God continue to keep our residents in the best of health today and always.

Till we meet again!

Pastor Saroja M.

 

Praise the Lord!

As we begin Sunday school in the new year, the children are over-excited and full of joy to be together once again to study more about Jesus’ love, faith, peace, miracles, etc.

We started with a general class, worshipping in oneness from juniors to seniors, singing a beautiful song “I’ve got peace like a river in my soul.”

We all were happy to welcome two new children, who were newly admitted to Sunday School, namely Joshua Das and Glory Singh.

On the very first day, both of them sang songs praising the Lord with great enthusiasm, and they also performed the dance actions very well. Through this, we can see the mercy of the Lord on our Sunday school children.

After praise and worship, the children were narrated a story to make them realize, “How important it is to have the mercy of the Lord, with which we can do any work, be it big or small. Whether we consider ourselves small or not worthy of anything, God’s thoughts are always special and different towards us. His plans are always the best, and that is why in our lives we must have faith in God and always walk in faith in Him.”

Do uplift our little ones in your prayers, so that whatever they learn in Sunday School is engraved in their hearts forever!

Kids Corner