Month: October 2020

Posted in Ages 11 & above, God & Me

You Ain’t Alone!

Posted on by christianliving4young

In life, we go through different moments and situations that bring about various emotions in us. Happiness, sadness, anxiousness, worries, fear, pain, excitement, etc., are all outcome of these moments and situations that we go through. Even though we have our family and friends to support us, mostly we face LIFE on our own – for e.g., writing an exam, times of sickness and pain, facing an interview, peer pressure, etc. Our friends and family might know the situation we are in, but they do not EXPERIENCE it as we do. A simple example is that when we feel pain in any part of our body, we can only explain to others what kind of pain it is, but they do not experience it as we do. We might feel frustrated and lonely when the issues of life overwhelms us. We might then wonder – “who will be by my side during this time? None will understand my situations. I am indeed very lonely!!!” Are you really lonely?

Let us open the treasure book and find clues

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

Clue 1: Are you really lonely?

Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there. If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me.

Psalm 139: 7-10

The presence of God is everywhere around us. The skies, the sea or the darkness cannot hide us from His presence. Wherever we go He is present there. We cannot hide from His presence no matter how we try or what we try. He is an omnipresent God who is around us wherever we go. He will lead us and guide us.

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Corinthians 3:16

When we believe in Jesus and invite Him to our heart to be our Lord and Savior, the spirit of God – the Holy Spirit, comes and lives inside us. We are His temple and He dwells in us. Since He lives inside us, He knows exactly what we are going through. He knows what our body is going though – sicknesses, pain, etc. and also what our mind is going through – anxieties, worries, fears, etc. Living inside us, He not only knows our situations but also EXPERIENCES everything AS WE DO.

When we are overwhelmed with our negative feelings, the enemy takes advantage. He blinds our minds and injects the thought that we are lonely… This is just another lie of the devil. Moreover, it is a weapon that he uses to push us into sinful living. When we have GOD everywhere around us and within us how can we say we are lonely? We are NEVER LONELY. Our God NEVER ABANDONS us! He loves us and He cares for us!!!

Clue 2: Will these situations stop us from reaching our destiny?

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.

Isaiah 43: 2

Uncertainty is a major aspect of our life. It mostly brings unexpected and unpleasant situations when we are least equipped / prepared to handle it. But our God knows what is ahead of us and what we have to face. He understands all our problems, our thoughts, our fears, our worries and all contents of our heart. He knows our exact situations at any given point of time and experiences it like us. He PROMISES to be with us all throughout and will make sure our situations will never overpower us. He always keeps His promises. He has the best solutions for all our situations. So when you are going through uncertain times, Be confident and Do Not Fear, but submit yourselves to God and Trust in Him to take you forward. Remember you aren’t alone, God is with you and in you and he will walk you through. With God by our side, we will reach our destiny no matter what situations life brings us. Nothing can stop us when God is with us and in us. The only person who can stop you from reaching your destiny is “yourself” and that happens when you give in to the lies of the enemy!

Clue 3: Example of Elijah ( 1Kings 17-22)

We all know Elijah as a great prophet of God. He too had his share of tough times and fearful times and times of loneliness. When King Ahab ruled Israel, he and his wife Jezebel did evil in the eyes of God. He worshipped Baal and did more to provoke the Lord to anger more than all the kings of Israel who were before him. As instructed by God, Elijah went and asked King Ahab to gather all Israel at Mount Carmel along with the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Ashereh. The prophets of Baal and Ashereh built an altar, sacrificed a bull and kept it on the altar waiting for fire to come down and burn the sacrifice. It did not happen. But Elijah built the altar, kept the sacrifice and called on the name of the living God. Fire from heaven came down and burnt the sacrifice. So people of Israel worshipped the Living God. Elijah turned against the false prophets and executed them. Jezebel, the king’s wife, got very angry and swore to kill Elijah before the next day. Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. Even though God was with him and did many miracles through him including the recent burning up of sacrifice, Elijah became afraid and ran for his life. He prayed to God to take HIS LIFE as he felt very lonely in this race against the king and his wife. But the Lord was with him even when he was alone in the wilderness and strengthened him for the journey that was ahead of him. Elijah became victorious and fulfilled his destiny.

Remember, you aren’t alone, God is walking with you and living in you knowing your exact situations & feelings and experiencing it like you do. Our God will never abandon us, leave us nor forsake us – He is with us always, knowing everything we are going through and will guide us and help us. We saw that in the life of Elijah. Our God is a promise keeper. He is true to His word.

Treasures uncovered

We are Never ALONE!!!

Our God is omnipresent – He is present everywhere around us, He is with us all the time and He lives inside of us

He knows all our situations and feelings and experiences them as we do

He is a promise keeper and will never abandon us, leave us nor forsake us but leads us and guides us in the walk of life.

Cheer up!!! Do not be afraid! We are never ALONE!!! Do not give in to the lies of devil. Our God is with us even when we are in the darkest of darkest times.

Prayer:

Father we thank you for being with us always. Thank you for living inside of me and experiencing everything like I do. Thank you for understanding me thoroughly and guiding me in everything. Thank you for never letting me be alone. Love you, in Jesus Name Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, Life Skills

Valuing people

Posted on by christianliving4young

In this world that we live, people value one another based on their status in the society. Profession, achievements, power, authority, finances, family background, nationality, caste, religion, skin color, etc., are considered for honoring and respecting one another. If we see a wealthy person or a famous personality or a person with power and authority, we show them respect and give them importance. When we see someone from a financially weaker background compared to us or someone who is from a lower social status than us, do we respect them and give them importance or do we look down upon them and DESPISE them? Looking down upon people who are weak and who are from poor background is very common today as was in the past. Respecting people is good, but is despising or looking down upon someone correct? Something is being commonly practiced for many years doesn’t mean it is right. Let us open the treasure book and see what it says.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

Clue:1 How does God value people?

Yet He is not partial to princes, Nor does He regard the rich more than the poor; For they are all the work of His hands

Job 34:19

God is NOT PARTIAL to anyone, be it kings, princes, rulers, governmental authorities, police, the rich, celebrities or any other influential people in this world. He does not regard people based on their possessions, trade, authority, power or achievements. All people are His creation – whether rulers, authorities, rich, famous, poor or weak – all are His children.  

Jesus too was not partial during his time on earth. He was friends with people from all social standing. Tax collectors and sinners were despised by the religious Jews in those days and they wouldn’t associate with such people. But Jesus, even though a Jew, were friends with them and ate with them at their houses . He also made friends with people who were oppressed and under the bondage of sin. He helped them out of sin, healed the sick and the demon possessed. We also see Him in John chapter 4, talking to the Samaritan woman at a time when Jews despised the Samaritans. She even asks Jesus, “you being a Jew, why ask me for a drink”. He did not despise people, rather was very approachable for all who were considered lowly in the society. He helped them and healed them physically & spiritually… Even his disciples were from diverse background – tax collectors, doctors, fishermen, religious leaders, etc. He did not despise anyone based on their social status or trade but in fact saw all of them through the eyes of God.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 3:16

Here the world means people. God loves all people!!! The plan of salvation – “Jesus dying on the cross for the sin of the world” was not for only a certain community or religion but for the entire humanity irrespective of social status or wealth or power or authority or gender. He died for all humankind, taking their punishment so that people who believe in him can have eternal life.

So we now know that God does not despise anyone but loves everyone!!! He does not value people based on their status or authority or wealth, but is impartial and loves each of us very much.

Clue:2 How does despising affect people? Judges 6

During the time when Judges ruled Israel, Midianites greatly oppressed Israel by destroying their land’s produce and cattle. In fact, Israel became very poor because of this. Now there lived a man named Gideon who was from the Clan of Manasseh. God sent an angel to him who called him “Mighty man of valor” and told him “Go and save Israel from the hand of Midianites and I am with you”. He replied to the angel “My clan is the WEAKEST in Israel and I am the LEAST in my father’s house, how will I save Israel?”. He had a very poor self image. He would have been hearing his whole life that he is the least and this was deep-rooted in his heart. This is the reason why he replied to the angel about him being the least and did not take up the task with courage even though the angel confirmed to him that God is with him. He was not at all confident that he could accomplish what God told him. He asked God for several signs and God gave him all the signs he asked. Then… after getting all these signs from God, Gideon went as God told him. He defeated the Midianites and brought victory for Israel.

When you despise someone, they will lose their self confidence that will eventually result in a very poor self-image. This would hinder them from accomplishing the tasks God has in mind for them and slow them down in their journey to their destiny . So do not despise anyone and do not be a hindrance in the path of people’s destiny but be a blessing to them.

Clue:3 How to treat people?

“Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.

Matthew 18:10-14

DO NOT DESPISE PEOPLE. It is not the will of our Father that anyone perishes. He loves everyone of us, even the people who live in sin. He loves humankind so much that He sent His only son Jesus to die on the cross for their sake. God loves all His children and want all of them to be saved. Do not even despise the ones who is living in sin, but rather slowly give them Jesus. Bring them to repentance and introduce them to the plan of salvation. There is much rejoicing in heaven for a sinner who comes to God.

It is not good to show partiality to the wicked,
Or to overthrow the righteous in judgment.

Proverbs 18:5

You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial to the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty. In righteousness you shall judge your neighbor.

Leviticus19:15

DO NOT BE PARTIAL OR UNJUST TO PEOPLE. We should not show any kind of partiality while dealing with people. We should not honor a rich person or a powerful person more than a poor or a weak person. We should not be partial either to the poor or to the wicked. We should also not be unjust to people, but deal with them in righteousness. Be impartial with people, be righteous and just in all your dealings with them. Look at them as God sees them!!!

Treasures uncovered

God is not partial to anyone and does not value people based on their social status, but loves all people very much that he chose to send his son to redeem them from the power of darkness and sin.

By despising people, you damage their self-image, hinder them from accomplishing God’s plan and slow them down from reaching their God ordained destiny.

Neither despise people nor be partial & unjust to them, rather love each other and look at people as how God sees them.

Prayer:

Father we thank you for enlightening our understanding about how to deal with people. Help us to be impartial and just in our dealings with people and help us to regard everyone equally. Help us not to despise anyone based on their social status. We thank you for loving us unconditionally despite our shortcomings. Love you Jesus, in Jesus Name Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, God & Me

He follows you, Do you?

Posted on by christianliving4young

In this present age, social media plays a vital role in our lives. We spent hours and hours on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, Twitter, etc., gazing on what other people are up to. We follow many people on the social media who inspire us. When we follow such people, we get to know what they eat, what they wear, where they go, who their friends are and pretty much everything else about them. We also try to imitate what they do – let it be fashion, DIYs, fitness, cooking or baking, trying out new eat-outs, and whatnot. All these people who have millions of followers doesn’t know the people who follow them. They might get to know a few, but definitely NOT ALL.

Today shall we read about a person who has millions and millions of followers all around the world, and He knows everyone of them so very well!!! Are you ready to meet Him today???

Which media platform do we find Him? Well… this platform is called “The Holy Bible”. Here we call it the treasure book. Let us open the treasure book and meet this wonderful person.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

Clue 1: Who is this and how far does He know me?

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 

John 1:1-4

For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.

Psalms 139:13

In the beginning, He was with God during the process of creation and nothing was made without Him. All things were made through Him and for Him. He is the image of God. He is the word of God who became flesh to dwell among people. HE IS JESUS CHRIST THE SON OF GOD WHO DIED FOR OUR SINS.

He created us and covered us in our mother’s womb!!! Everyone else in this world including our parents get to know us only after we are born into this world, but He knew us before we were placed in our mother’s womb!!!

JESUS knew us wayyyy….. BEFORE our family and friends.

O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether

Psalms 139: 1-4

He knows everything about us!!! Everything really means E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G. He knows when we sit down and when we rise up. He understands every thought of ours and its intents. He follows all our paths. He is familiar with ALL our WAYS. He knows all our characteristics and our behavioral traits. There is not a word on our tongue that He doesn’t know before it comes out of our mouth!!! He knows all our actions too, even if we hide it from everyone else. He even knows our future.

JESUS knows us wayyyy….. DEEPER than everyone else in this world.

Clue 2: Does He really care for me?

For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:6-8

We all like to be with good people who encourages us and cares for us. People normally wouldn’t die for friends or family, but there are rare cases where people sacrificed their lives for their loved ones. But have you ever heard of anyone sacrificing their lives for a bad person? Never!!! But Jesus loves us so much that He chose to die for us while we were still sinners and bad… His LOVE for us is more than what we could ever imagine.

JESUS loves us wayyyy….. MORE than everyone else.

Jesus knew us before we were born into this world, He knows us deeper than everyone else in this world. He follows us and loves us so much that He took our punishment and gave His life for us. He even knows what future holds for us.

Wouldn’t it be great to follow such a person and be inspired by HIM?

Clue 3: How to follow Him and get to know Him better?

To be a follower of Christ and be saved – we should repent of our sins, confess Him with our mouth and believe that “Jesus is Son of God. He died for our sins and rose on the third day”. Whoever confesses Jesus as the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.

To know him better – Same like how we browse through the pages / profiles of people that we follow on social media to get to know them better, “The Bible” is our platform where we get to know more about Jesus and His personality. We might think, “this book is written many years back and is everything written about Jesus still valid?”. Yes it is – Hebrews 13:8 says “Jesus Christ is the same Yesterday, Today and Forever” So everything written about Him in the Bible is still valid and up-to-date and true even for the ages to come!!! Read the bible and get to know him better!!!

Treasures uncovered

JESUS knew us before our birth and knows everything about us. He loves us very much that He gave His life for us while we were still sinners.

Follow JESUS CHRIST on the platform “The Bible”, and be inspired by him.

Jesus loves us and follows us. He knows EVERYTHING about each one of His followers and cares for them. Moreover, by following Him we will receive everlasting life. This makes Him different from others who have millions of followers. FOLLOW JESUS for LIFE EVERLASTING…

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for being so wonderful.. Jesus we love you and we thank you for following us everywhere and caring for us. Thank you for giving yourself for our sake. Help us to follow you and be your imitators. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, The Trinity

Staying Connected

Posted on by christianliving4young

We all use smartphones, tablets, laptops, etc., in our day-to-day lives. In fact, these gadgets along with internet connectivity play a major role in our lives. It is even hard to imagine a life without them… They help us in our studies, ease our daily tasks to a great extend, help us to stay connected to people, help us to listen to music, watch movies, play games etc. However, to connect to internet on these devices, we need to switch on the Wi-Fi/ mobile data on them. If not, even if the internet connection is available for use, we won’t be connected.

Staying connected to God also follows a similar principle. His presence is everywhere. However, to stay connected to him, we need to switch on our Wi-Fi/mobile data buttons. And what is that? Let us open the treasure book and find out clues!!!

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

Clue 1: Our Wi-Fi Button

John 14:16-17, Ephesians 1:13

And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 

John 14:16-17

In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise

Ephesians 1:13

Jesus before leaving the earth, promised His disciples that He will give a Helper – the spirit of truth who will abide with us forever. When we accept Jesus as our savior, we are sealed with His Spirit – The Spirit of Truth – The Holy spirit. This spirit of God dwells with us and in us. The worldly man who is controlled by the desires of his flesh (Galatians 5:19-21), will not know him and cannot receive him.

If you are saved, Holy Spirit lives with you and inside you.

If you are not saved, invite Jesus to your heart today and confess Him with your mouth to accept Him as your savior and the Spirit of God will come and abide with you and in you!!!

Clue 2: Our Wi-Fi Button

John 14:26, 1 Corinthians 2:9-14

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

John 14:26
1 Corinthians 2:9-14 (To read this bible portion click on this video)

We humans are made of Body, Soul and Spirit. Only a man’s spirit knows the deep things inside him. When you have a secret plan or you have a secret desire, only your own spirit will know it. Your friends, your siblings, your parents or others will not know it unless you reveal it to them. Similarly, only the Spirit of God knows what is in the mind of God and no one else knows the things of God except the Spirit of God – the Holy Spirit. He searches the mind of God and reveals to us the deep secrets of God and revelations from God. The Holy spirit helps us to understand the things that are freely given to us by God. The Holy Spirit also reminds us of the things of God and teaches us the wisdom of God. This wisdom is not understood by the world.

Now we know that Holy Spirit knows all the deep secrets of God and He lives inside us. So to stay connected to God, our Wi-Fi button is the Holy Spirit!!!

Clue 3: Switching on the Wi-Fi Button

All those who have accepted Jesus as their savior has the wifi button – the Holy Spirit. But if the button is not switched on, we cannot stay connected even though the connection is available. This means, even though the Holy Spirit lives inside us, and is available for us, we cannot stay connected to God if we are not sensitive to His Spirit – the Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit is always speaking to us, guiding us, teaching us and helping us in everything. But, if we do not identify His voice, then we cannot make use of the help and guidance available to us. Listen to that still voice that speaks inside of you, guiding your steps and stopping you from doing wrong. Haven’t you felt someone from inside you warning you when you are about to do something wrong, speak something wrong or watch something wrong? Or at times when you do not know which way to go forward, there is that inner voice strongly urging you to choose a particular path. Be sensitive to that voice, listen and obey… Each time you obey that voice, it becomes clearer and audible… So you become more sensitive to His voice. Also praying in the spirit – praying in tongues helps you to become more sensitive to the Holy Spirit.

But if you do not listen to the voice or obey it, the voice becomes feeble within you and other voices from outside will rule over your mind. The devil will take advantage of this situation and put his voice in your head and that voice only leads you to destruction. Be alert and do not let that happen to you.

By being sensitive to Holy Spirit, you listen to His voice, His teachings, His guidance, revelations and the wisdom of God.

To stay connected to God, be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, listen to His voice and obey His voice.

Treasures uncovered

Everyone who has accepted Jesus Christ as their savior has Holy Spirit living with them and inside them

Holy Spirit searches the mind of God and knows the deepest secrets of God

To stay CONNECTED to God, be SENSITIVE to the HOLY SPIRIT, Listen & Obey His voice

Prayer:

Father we thank you for the Spirit of God whom you have sent as a helper to live with us and inside of us. Help us to be sensitive to the Holy spirit and be attentive to Him. Help us to stay connected to you always and walk in your ways, In Jesus name Amen!