Prayer is simply being with God. The greatest thing in life is to be able to touch the heart of God and have His heart touch you.
Thus says the LORD, "Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things," declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:23-24)
Monday, November 29, 2010
Sunday, November 21, 2010
We all have a sacred calling
Two nights ago, I re-watched the movie "Amazing Grace" on DVD. It's an excellent film about William Wilburforce, and his crusade in Britain's Parliament for the abolition of the slave trade. It was a fight that would take many years, and a toll on his health, because Britain and its empire flourished on the slave trade. But God used his man with his great oratory skills and sharp mind, who deeply believed that all man should be free, to accomplish a wondrous thing.
Today, I read about the Moravian Christians in Herrnhut. Herrnhut, Germany is the home of the renowned Hundred-Year-Long Prayer Meeting. In 1722, persecuted Christians from Moravia fled to Saxony and found protection in the domain of the regional Count Nicolas Ludwig von Zinzendorf. Initially, twenty-four people took one hour shifts during which they committed to pray – the Lord’s Watch. More joined the watch and this prayer watch went on unbroken until 1847.
Steve Hickey's website writes: "As Moravians at Herrnhut started to sense God’s missionary call to take the good news to the lost, they would hold funerals for the missionaries before they sent them off to places like Jamaica. (We found Moravian missionary graves when we were in Jamaica a couple years ago!) Imagine holding a funeral for someone who is about to leave because it was understood that the call of Jesus was to go give your life reaching lost people and that you’d not return in this life. To reach the slaves in Jamaica, the Moravian missionaries would sell themselves into slavery as it was the only way to gain access to Caribbean slaves. Stories of supernatural visitations and provision accompany each missionary account of the Moravians."
John Wesley wrote that he was led to Christ by a Moravian missionary from Herrnhut while sailing on a ship to America. When the ship was nearly overtaken by a storm, and he and the other passengers panicked, however the Moravian fellow on the ship was calm, had peace and prayed. In his revivals Welsey often talked about the “warming heart” moment of his born-again experience with the Moravian missionary."
I was deeply struck by this. God used lives given to Him to accomplish His purposes as the slave trade was going on. Moravian missionaries who were willing to sell themselves into slavery to reach the slaves. Full-time missionaries willing to give their all. And one William Wilberforce in government to eventually have slavery abolished altogether. His is not a secular pursuit either.
As Ravi Zacharias put it in "The Grand Weaver", "Because we are all priests before God, there is no such distinction as 'secular' or 'sacred'. In fact, the opposite of sacred is not secular; the opposite of sacred is profane. In short, no follower of Christ does secular work. We all have a sacred calling."
Today, I read about the Moravian Christians in Herrnhut. Herrnhut, Germany is the home of the renowned Hundred-Year-Long Prayer Meeting. In 1722, persecuted Christians from Moravia fled to Saxony and found protection in the domain of the regional Count Nicolas Ludwig von Zinzendorf. Initially, twenty-four people took one hour shifts during which they committed to pray – the Lord’s Watch. More joined the watch and this prayer watch went on unbroken until 1847.
Steve Hickey's website writes: "As Moravians at Herrnhut started to sense God’s missionary call to take the good news to the lost, they would hold funerals for the missionaries before they sent them off to places like Jamaica. (We found Moravian missionary graves when we were in Jamaica a couple years ago!) Imagine holding a funeral for someone who is about to leave because it was understood that the call of Jesus was to go give your life reaching lost people and that you’d not return in this life. To reach the slaves in Jamaica, the Moravian missionaries would sell themselves into slavery as it was the only way to gain access to Caribbean slaves. Stories of supernatural visitations and provision accompany each missionary account of the Moravians."
John Wesley wrote that he was led to Christ by a Moravian missionary from Herrnhut while sailing on a ship to America. When the ship was nearly overtaken by a storm, and he and the other passengers panicked, however the Moravian fellow on the ship was calm, had peace and prayed. In his revivals Welsey often talked about the “warming heart” moment of his born-again experience with the Moravian missionary."
I was deeply struck by this. God used lives given to Him to accomplish His purposes as the slave trade was going on. Moravian missionaries who were willing to sell themselves into slavery to reach the slaves. Full-time missionaries willing to give their all. And one William Wilberforce in government to eventually have slavery abolished altogether. His is not a secular pursuit either.
As Ravi Zacharias put it in "The Grand Weaver", "Because we are all priests before God, there is no such distinction as 'secular' or 'sacred'. In fact, the opposite of sacred is not secular; the opposite of sacred is profane. In short, no follower of Christ does secular work. We all have a sacred calling."
"The World is a great liar" - Peggy Noolan
Am presently reading management guru Tom Peter's book "The Little Big Things - 163 Ways to Pursue Excellence". For a management book, it's incredibly filled with biblical principles! Since turning 35 this week, I've been thinking a lot about legacy. Perhaps it's triggered by the notion that if God lets me live to 70, I'm half-way there. Time to think about legacy!
Here's a quote by Peggy Noolan in the book that made me think this morning. It says "The world is a great liar". How true. In the financial world I'm in, success is measured by mind-boggling pay checks and bonuses Wall Street used to pay. These days it's more moderate. Two years back, I sat in the memorial service after our CEO passed on from leukemia. I knew him briefly and he was a good man. What struck me was that although he was at the pinnacle of his career; had reached the height of his profession; was the leader of many thousands; during the eulogies, no one mentioned how brilliant, or bright he was. Everyone remembered him for the good man he was.
This week, Credit Suisse's former Chairman of investment banking Paul Callelo passed on. He was 49. The newspapers eulogised him, for being a rare-breed banker; one who was ethical, and who loved people. Even in an industry that seems to worship money, when all is said and done, it honours the men and women who exemplify goodness and kindness.
Here is what Peggy Noolan says:
"In a way, the world is a great liar. It shows you it worships and admires money, but at the end of the day it doesn't. It says it adores fame and celebrity, but it doesn't, not really. The world admires, and wants to hold onto, and not lose, goodness. It admires virtue. At the end it gives its greatest tributes to generosity, honesty, courage, mercy, talents well used, talents that, brought into the world, make it better. THat's what it really admires. That's what we talk about in eulogies, because that's what's important. We don't say, "The thing about Joe was he was rich." We say, if we can, "The thing about Joe was he took care of people."
Here's a quote by Peggy Noolan in the book that made me think this morning. It says "The world is a great liar". How true. In the financial world I'm in, success is measured by mind-boggling pay checks and bonuses Wall Street used to pay. These days it's more moderate. Two years back, I sat in the memorial service after our CEO passed on from leukemia. I knew him briefly and he was a good man. What struck me was that although he was at the pinnacle of his career; had reached the height of his profession; was the leader of many thousands; during the eulogies, no one mentioned how brilliant, or bright he was. Everyone remembered him for the good man he was.
This week, Credit Suisse's former Chairman of investment banking Paul Callelo passed on. He was 49. The newspapers eulogised him, for being a rare-breed banker; one who was ethical, and who loved people. Even in an industry that seems to worship money, when all is said and done, it honours the men and women who exemplify goodness and kindness.
Here is what Peggy Noolan says:
"In a way, the world is a great liar. It shows you it worships and admires money, but at the end of the day it doesn't. It says it adores fame and celebrity, but it doesn't, not really. The world admires, and wants to hold onto, and not lose, goodness. It admires virtue. At the end it gives its greatest tributes to generosity, honesty, courage, mercy, talents well used, talents that, brought into the world, make it better. THat's what it really admires. That's what we talk about in eulogies, because that's what's important. We don't say, "The thing about Joe was he was rich." We say, if we can, "The thing about Joe was he took care of people."
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Quotes from Robert Murray McCheyne
Today, I read an excerpt of the life of Scottish preacher and revivalist Robert Murray McCheyne, and was very inspired by the man. He died at 29 but left a deep impression.
He made prayer, meditation and self-discipline key aspects of his work throughout his life. His usual daily pattern was to rise at 6:30 am and spend two hours in private prayer and meditation (including an hour devoted to the Jews). From 8:30-10 am he had breakfast and family prayers. On Sundays his practice was to spend six hours in prayer and devotional reading.
Here are some of his quotes worth pondering:
"Live so as to be missed.”
“Most of God’s people are contented to be saved from the hell that is outside; they are not so anxious to be saved from the hell that is inside them. Lord, make me as holy as a pardoned sinner can be.”
“If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me.”
“Your own soul is your first and greatest care. Seek advance of personal holiness. It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to the Lord Jesus. A holy pastor is an awful weapon in the hand of God. A word spoken by you when your conscience is clear, and your heart full of God’s Holy Spirit, is worth ten thousand words spoken in unbelief and sin.”
Words worth pondering indeed.
He made prayer, meditation and self-discipline key aspects of his work throughout his life. His usual daily pattern was to rise at 6:30 am and spend two hours in private prayer and meditation (including an hour devoted to the Jews). From 8:30-10 am he had breakfast and family prayers. On Sundays his practice was to spend six hours in prayer and devotional reading.
Here are some of his quotes worth pondering:
"Live so as to be missed.”
“Most of God’s people are contented to be saved from the hell that is outside; they are not so anxious to be saved from the hell that is inside them. Lord, make me as holy as a pardoned sinner can be.”
“If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me.”
“Your own soul is your first and greatest care. Seek advance of personal holiness. It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to the Lord Jesus. A holy pastor is an awful weapon in the hand of God. A word spoken by you when your conscience is clear, and your heart full of God’s Holy Spirit, is worth ten thousand words spoken in unbelief and sin.”
Words worth pondering indeed.
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