Are your eyes on HIM ?

It is said that Cyrus, the founder of the Persian Empire, once had captured a prince and his family. When they came before him, the monarch asked the prisoner, "What will you give me if I release you?" "The half of my wealth," was his reply. "And if I release your children?" "Everything I possess." "And if I release your wife?" "Your Majesty, I will give myself." Cyrus was so moved by his devotion that he freed them all. As they returned home, the prince said to his wife, "Wasn't Cyrus a handsome man!" With a look of deep love for her husband, she said to him, "I didn't notice. I could only keep my eyes on you- -the one who was willing to give himself for me."

Mark 14:22 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.”

Perhaps never in history was this ever witnessed and won’t be ever repeated. The cross became a sign of God’s love simply because of the sacrifice. Not that Jesus was willing to die for us, HE went ahead to die for you and me. That is how much He values us. He gave it all.

But what are we doing in response to HIS love. Of course we will never be worthy of His love. In fact we just don’t deserve it, and we can’t do anything to deserve it. But are we able to love Him back ? Can we just focus on Him who truly loves us, who was not only willing but even died for us. Are your eyes on HIM ?

http://xfiloz.blogspot.in/

Stanley Thomas Isac

Stanley is serving as the Pastor of Crossway Church in New Delhi, he can be reached at Pastorstanleytisac@gmail.com

Just do it

When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, "You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages." To that, Calvert replied, "We died before we came here."

Philippians 1:20  I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body,whether by life or by death.

All of us are scared of bad things happening to us. And the worst of them is death. In fact the probability is so high that one out of one dies. To be honest some are so engrossed with the thought of failure and bad things, that they never tend to try it or even put their best effort. In this way life just goes on and someday gets over.

Apostle Paul was prepared for death while in prison. He was glad that either he could meet Jesus or can serve Jesus more. In this manner, he had eliminated the element of fear which could have affected his performance to bless many.

Most of us operate in fear due to the risk of failure and the shame involved with it. But if we can completely give our lives to Jesus, then there is nothing to fear. When we are prepared for the worst, everything around becomes easier and we operate in freedom. Don’t hold back by thinking toooooo much, Just do it.

http://xfiloz.blogspot.in/

Stanley Thomas Isac

Stanley is serving as the Pastor of Crossway Church in New Delhi, he can be reached at Pastorstanleytisac@gmail.com

Chill man, Chill….

Two men who lived in a small village got into a terrible dispute that they could not resolve. So they decided to talk to the town sage. The first man went to the sage's home and told his version of what happened. When he finished, the sage said, "You're absolutely right." The next night, the second man called on the sage and told his side of the story. The sage responded, "You're absolutely right." Afterward, the sage's wife scolded her husband. "Those men told you two different stories and you told them they were absolutely right. That's impossible -- they can't both be absolutely right." The sage turned to his wife and said, "You're absolutely right."

Philippians 1:18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,

Every now and then we hear of a brother or a sister serving Christ differently than us. Sometimes a pastor or a preacher seems to be offending to us in nature and through there acts. But what we often tend to forget is that we are not called to judge. Moreover everyone is right from there point of view. So there’s no point of criticizing someone because of their approach or for that matter anything they do which they call ministry.

When Apostle Paul was in prison many got the opportunity to preach, he knew that some were doing it out of selfish ambitions, and some simply putting up a show. But even in such a situation the greatest theologian of all times was happy that Christ is being preached. If so, then let’s not get irritated when that guy starts getting more followers. Don’t bother when He/She is becoming more famous than you while preaching in some way or the other. Instead of criticizing and putting anyone down, let us rejoice that Christ is being preached. Chill man, Chill….

http://xfiloz.blogspot.in/

Stanley Thomas Isac

Stanley is serving as the Pastor of Crossway Church in New Delhi, he can be reached at Pastorstanleytisac@gmail.com

Let’s keep going

After William Carey was well established in his pioneer missionary work in India, his supporters in England sent a printer to assist him. Soon the two men were turning out portions of the Bible for distribution. Carey had spent many years learning the language so that he could produce the scriptures in the local dialect. He had also prepared dictionaries and grammars for the use of his successors.

One day while Carey was away, a fire broke out and completely destroyed the building, the presses, many Bibles, and the precious manuscripts, dictionaries, and grammars. When he returned and was told of the tragic loss, he showed no sign of despair or impatience. Instead, he knelt and thanked God that he still had the strength to do the work over again. He started immediately, not wasting a moment in self-pity. Before his death, he had duplicated and even improved on his earlier achievements.

Philippians 1:14 And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.

Some lives indeed have that strength and vigor to impact generations. Luxuries and riches can only lure this generation, but the tough experiences and the willingness to go through the hardships encourages many. Paul while being in prison was so joyfully going about his life and ministry that the ones outside were surprised and indeed encouraged. People thought that prison would be the end of it and his ministry has ended forever. But to the utter surprise he stood strong to serve the Lord in prison and this became a great lesson for the those without the chains to serve Christ more effectively.

When we go through hardships and difficult situations in life, we tend to neglect God and His presence. We forget that He is with us and can lead us through if we trust Him. When we are able to stand firm during a loss and a tragedy, surely we become a great testimony and an encouragement to those around us. Thus we can make an impact unto generations even while being in prison and the darkest of situations. Let’s keep going.

http://xfiloz.blogspot.in/

Stanley Thomas Isac

Stanley is serving as the Pastor of Crossway Church in New Delhi, he can be reached at Pastorstanleytisac@gmail.com