Our prayer:
Everlasting God, our Father, we pray for the East District Youth Day 2009, that all participants will experience HOPE through Your presence in the Holy Eucharist. May our young people be renewed, to rise on wings like eagles, run and not get weary. Dearest Mary, Mother of God, we ask for your intercession for our young people, may they experience the joy that comes from doing all that Jesus Christ, your Son calls them to do. Amen.
Good morning, Lord. Thank you for this absolutely beautiful day. God, I need for You to please tell me something. Do I place too much emphasis on my wants? my relaxation time? my family time? my job? anything? Please show me, help me know in my spirit, if there are any "rights" I need to relinquish that may be hindering my freedom to experience Your love and grace. Please help me to balance my time and activities, my desires and needs, my work and play; every area of my life. May You receive all the glory. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.
"Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle" (Psalm 144:1)
You'll never experience God in powerful ways by acquiring Bible knowledge alone. It is only when that knowledge is used in the heat of battle that you will know the reality of what you've learned intellectually. Otherwise, it remains only an exercise in spiritual gymnastics that yields little fruit.
David became a great warrior and leader of a nation at an early age. His training ground was his job as a shepherd in the open fields. When bears and lions sought to take his sheep, he personally fought them. This was his early preparation for future battles. Goliath was the real competition amongst a discerning audience to reveal how well his training prepared him.
Today, our local churches often look more like luxury cruise liners designed to tickle the ears, entertain its members and make them feel good instead of a battleship designed to train an army for war. The average member still watches from the sideline.
In sports you discover how well you handle pressure by competing. You can practice all you want but never know how you will do until you enter the game and test what you've learned and practiced when there is pressure added to the equation. In battle you discover how well you are trained by what you actually do on the battlefield.
Have you ever prayed with someone in public? Have you ever personally led someone to Christ? Have you ever served others for the sake of the Gospel? Have you ever taught a Bible study? If you said no to these questions, you are not engaged in the game. Today, why not ask God to give you the grace to step onto the battlefield.
A reflection by Os Hillman
Check this out! Our dear bro, Krish Mathavan will be giving the sessions.
FYI.. Krish is now working at Family Life Society. Woohoo! Surely you'll want to come and hear from this bro of ours, who had studied all the way right till PHD (yes he has a PHD!) but seems to have turned 180-degrees to follow his heart and God's call. A little bit like St. Paul isn't it?
Note: For 30 May & 20 June, we will be joining OLPS Youth for 1hr of prayer & intercessory, before continuing with our scheduled topics on St. Paul.
For more info, please contact us at info@youthariseministry.com
Hey all, introducing this new song to all of you (it's a fairly new song for us haha) --- called "In Christ Alone" by Brian Littrell.
Here's the other version of In Christ Alone, the older one, by Stuart Townend and Keith Getty -- which is also one of my favourite songs:
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me (John 15:4).
By Max Lucado
Insensitivity makes a wound that heals slowly. If someone hurts your Feelings intentionally you know how to react. You know the source of The pain. But if someone accidentally bruises your soul, it's difficult To know how to respond.
Someone at work criticizes the new boss who also happens to be your Dear friend. "Oh, I'm sorry-I forgot the two of you were so close."
A joke is told at a party about overweight people. You're overweight. You hear the joke. You smile politely while your heart sinks.
What was intended to be a reprimand for a decision or action becomes a Personal attack. "You have a history of poor decisions, John."
Someone chooses to wash your dirty laundry in public. "Sue, is it true That you and Jim are separated?"
Insensitive comments. Thoughts that should have remained thoughts.
Feelings which had no business being expressed.
Opinions carelessly Tossed like a grenade into a crowd.
And if you were to tell the one who Threw these thoughtless darts about the pain they caused, his response Would be "Oh, but I had no intention…I didn't realize you were so Sensitive!" or "I forgot you were here."
Listed under the title of subterfuge is the poison of insensitivity. It's called subterfuge because it's so subtle. Just a slip of theTongue. Just a blank of memory. No one is at fault. No harm done.
Perhaps. And, perhaps not. For as the innocent attackers go on their Way excusing themselves for things done without hurtful intention, a Wounded soul is left in the dust, utterly confused. "If no one intended To hurt me, then why do I hurt so badly?"
God's Word has strong medicine for those who carelessly wag their Tongues:
The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on Fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. (James 3:6)
He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity. (Proverbs 21:23)
He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will Come to ruin. (Proverbs 13:3)
When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is Wise. (Proverbs 10:19)
The message is clear: He who dares to call himself God's ambassador is Not afforded the luxury of idle words. Excuses such as "I didn't know You were here" or "I didn't realize this was so touchy" are shallow When they come from those who claim to be followers and imitators of The Great Physician. We have an added responsibility to guard our Tongues.
These practical steps will purge careless words from your talk.
1. Never tell jokes that slander.
2. Never criticize in public unless you: have already expressed your Disappointment with the other person in private, have already taken Someone with you to discuss the grievance with the person, and are Absolutely convinced that public reprimand is necessary and will be Helpful.
3. Never say anything about anyone in their absence that you wouldn't Say in their presence. Insensitive slurs may be accidental, but they Are not excusable.
"There is death and life in the power of the tongue."
Your encouraging words can lift someone up and help them make it through the day. Your destructive words can cause deep wounds; they may be the weapons that destroy someone's desire to continue trying -- or even their life.
Your destructive, careless word can diminish someone in the eyes of others, destroy their influence and have a lasting impact on the way others respond to them. Be careful what you say. Speak life to (and about) those who cross your path. There is enormous power in words.
"Peace does not mean to be in a place without noise, without problems, without hard work and without pain. Peace means that despite of being in the midst of all these things we remain calm within our heart. This is the true meaning of peace."
Have you ever experienced Murphy's Law? It is the law that states that anything that can possibly go wrong, does. I've just experienced this, where something went wrong, which led to other things going wrong, and the whole day just seems -- wrong?!
But being a believer, a child of God, we are called to prove this theory wrong. After all, our God is a big God and the God of all things in the world. He also tells that he makes ALL THINGS beautiful. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."
So rest assured -- and strive for the Peace of Christ! Did you also know that peace doesn't just come like "that"? We need to "STRIVE" for peace. Why? Read this article, written by Father Nicolás Schwizer who teaches that we play an active role in building peace on our own lives. He says, "To build peace, one must strive. Only in Heaven will we possess the peace of Christ forever. On earth, it is necessary to build it and to conquer it at every moment. To do this, there must be a struggle."
So let us follow Colossians 3 which says this:
Colossians 3:12-16 - "Put on, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection. And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." [Read full chapter in Colossions 3]
May You find Peace!
