It felt very heavy after reading Paul's second letter to Timothy. Paul was not living under favorable circumstances at that time. He was in prison, awaiting his execution. We can see him talking about the people who deserted him in his suffering. In chapter 2, verse 9, he says, "And because I preach the Good News, I am suffering and have been chained like a criminal. But the word of God cannot be chained." In many instances, he talks about the death that awaits him. We can se

God's Heart for the Fatherless and Widows I was recently listening to Giftson Durai's podcast with Joyce, which I really loved. Giftson Durai made a profound statement where he said nobody can understand "grief and rejection." We, at churches and in our houses, talk about widows, but we rarely talk about them in a good way. As much as I have seen, we are not too different from secular society. There is a Bible translation called the NRSV, which says in 1 Timothy 5:3, "Honor w

We, those who love Christ, have a divine purpose for our lives. Each of us has a calling. Some are called to preach, some to evangelize, some to lead worship, some to literature ministry, some for teaching, some to counsel and exhort others, some to build churches, some to prayer ministry—the list goes on and on.. Paul is clear when he writes to the Thessalonians about this. To the believers he says, "So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life

I remember meeting a young girl, a pastor's daughter, many years ago in Chennai. A non-believer friend called Divya introduced her to me. She said, "Today I am going to take you to a friend of mine who is so full of bright joy." We walked to her house and met the young girl, who was, I'd say, simply adorned with the beauty Paul mentions in Colossians 3:12–14. "Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, ge

Sometimes some of us are not aware of the weight of God's purpose for our lives. I have read the Book of Esther many a time. In a way, it was a feel-good read. An orphan girl raised to be a queen in a dramatic way. But God, in His great purpose for Esther, raised her as queen at the Susa Palace for such a time to be a weapon against the enemy who was there, fuming, scheming, and plotting against the Jews to bring them to nothing. And Esther got grace and favor in the eyes of

Preaching the Gospel where it has not been heard is the most challenging, yet most meaningful, work anyone could do for Christ. Paul started it. He taught the Galatians about Jesus. He says that he taught them everything about Jesus as though they were watching it (the life of Jesus) happening before their eyes. But Paul sees that people are being attracted to a gospel that was not true. It was a gospel based on getting approval from God by following Jewish traditions. Paul s

-Jasper. "Five Times More" Today I want to open up the story of Joseph and his brothers in Genesis 45. If you know the story, Joseph was sold by his brothers, falsely accused, thrown in prison, forgotten. But God used all of it to put him in a place of authority in Egypt. Years later, famine hits, and his brothers come begging for food. They don’t recognize him. But he recognizes them. Now here’s where we pause and see the picture: *Joseph is a type of Christ.*

It is always amazing to get to know an author like Paul through his writing. He had his own principles in doing the work of God, which is really impressive. Indeed, he never did anything to impress others. Let me share what I learned about his ministry from the book of 2 Corinthians. Firstly, he says he preached God's Word with sincerity and with Christ's authority (2 Corinthians 2:17). He used the word sincere again when he wanted people to know that his ministry was not a v

Apostle Paul is a great personality. He talks about God with so much authority. He has understood God in a personal way. Otherwise, how could anyone declare such a firm affirmation about God? In 2 Corinthians chapter 1, verses 12 to 23, he speaks to the Corinthian church about his upcoming visits to them. He says he is going to bless them doubly by visiting them twice. It is in verse 15: "I wanted to give you a double blessing by visiting you twice." And then he affirms the s

One of the dream lives all of us who have accepted Christ as our Savior would love to have is a life of victory. What is a life of victory in the Christian life? It is a life that overcomes sin. It is a life that puts the old man and his desires on the cross and walks victoriously in holiness in every walk of our life. The Bible clearly gives us the key to having a victorious life in Christ. The Bible says that when we have the knowledge of God, a life of victory in our Chris

I had a small chat with a young lady who had plans for her next ten years. She told me where she wanted to live and where she wanted to invest her money in order to be rewarded in the future. Smart, isn't she? The Bible is a book which leads us to live for the heavenly future and invest for that. It asks us to live a life that will get us into heaven. It asks us to add our investments there. We are going to live in eternity, and our rewards are there. Matthew 6:19–21 (KJV): 1

We know Job was having a hard time after the devil challenged God. Does that mean he never faced any difficulties before? When remembering the past, Job talks as follows in Job 29:3: “When his candle shined upon my head, and when by his light I walked through darkness;” This clearly shows his way of dealing with the tough times in life. He just needed the light from God to come through the darkness in his life. Light refers to the word of hope from the living God, as in Psalm

Every day is a gift from God. The Bible has practical ways to approach the God-given day. 1 Peter chapter 1, verse 13 says, "Therefore prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves. Set all your hope on the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when He is revealed." When God showed me these verses, the words prepare, action, and discipline stuck in my mind. All this preparation and action for what? To wage a fight against the flesh and to live a holy life. Verse 15 sa