Most of us seek God for earthly blessings, which he may or may not give, but what he promises to give are far better: heavenly blessings which satisfy the deepest needs that we are trying to satisfy through earthly blessings.
It comes that time of year again when people get busy and feel excited about Christmas. Have you ever wondered why we indulge in enjoyable activities at this time? Why do we get together with our loved ones? Why do we feel especially charitable and generous? These good things point us to something even better, something that will actually make a difference not just for a day or for a season, but for every day of our lives.
Do you have enemies? Is anyone out to get you? Most of us would confidently answer such questions in the negative. And we would be wrong. The devil a sinister foe who is unseen, powerful and so cunning that many of are unaware of his existence or realise it when we are under attack. But we can win, if we know whom we are up against and how we can overcome.
Have you ever been blessed to know the ecstasy of winning a lucky draw and redeeming your prize immediately? Perhaps, made sweeter by the fact that your prize has a huge price to it. The Bible tells us there is nothing “lucky” when we were chosen by Christ to be redeemed by His blood. He did so at huge cost to Himself out of a profound, divine love to call us children of God.
Have you ever wished you were born into a rich and famous family? Or hoped that you could marry someone accomplished and influential? The Bible tells us that when we are in Christ, something even more wonderful happens to us: we are adopted by the most powerful being in the universe and we occupy a special place in his house. What does it mean to be a child of God?
We all wish that we can be special, and not only that, to be special to someone who really matters. The wonderful message of the Bible is that our desire can be met, and we can experience the thrilling sense of joy, worth, dignity and purpose every day of our lives, no matter who we are, what we have done and what may happen to us. Pastor Tiak explains how we can freely receive this priceless blessing.
Peace is knowing everything may not be okay and standing confidently anyway, knowing that God is with us in every way.
Another new year has dawned, and no doubt all of us have engaged in the same mind game, wishing and persuading ourselves that on the stroke of midnight of 31 December, things would somehow be better going forward.
Mani the parrot, an assistant to a fortune teller in Little India, became an international sensation after he correctly predicted all 4 winners for the quarter-finals in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Cultural norms are self-validating. Once an opinion or belief achieves widespread acceptance, there is no longer any need to defend it, let alone examine its validity through sound reasoning.
We live in an age where there is a significant amount of resistance, and even irritation, over what is perceived as the overbearing attempts of Christians to win others over to their faith.