On this Sunday evening, just returned from the Covenant Service at our Church.

While sitting in the church I was praying for God’s direction in this new year. My mind wandered to the days when I used to make plans and decisions in the beginning of a new year.

While growing up I was a shy, quiet, reserved young girl. I was a book-learning girl who constantly was reading and studying. Of course all the studying certainly paid off and I definitely had good grades in my education.

But the more I studied books, the more I came to rely on my mental thought process. Everything had to be planned, down to the smallest detail, and I thought I was clever in detailed decision making.

But as the time passed by, I hit a speed bump which completely turned my world upside down, and after living with the consequences of a number of bad decisions, I began to look at God’s direction in my life.

King Solomon says in 1 Kings 3: 9,
‘Here’s what I want: Give me a God listening heart so I can lead your people well’.

The ‘heart’ in the Biblical sense is not just our inward life, but the whole being surrendered to God. Solomon longed for a heart that could listen to God and follow His direction!

If we look closer at the very wise decisions Solomon made, the root of his good decisions was that his mind and heart were under God’s control.

Thou rulest the raging of the sea; when the waves thereof arise, Thou stillest them. (Psalm 89: 9)

Do I have a listening heart this evening? A heart that listens to His still small voice through the perils of life?

Do I have a listening heart this evening? A heart that listens to His still small voice saying ‘Fear Not’ when my voyage over life’s sea trembles, when the storm of suffering roar by?

As I meditated on Solomon’s request for a listening heart this evening, my prayer and longing is to have my heart focused on the One who speaks to me with His Word and to follow His directions!

God give me a listening heart!

Prema Sunder Raj

Ouch, this morning! was the feeling that came upon me when I woke up this Sunday morning and I felt as though I was pressed under a heavy weight and felt it in the muscles of back and neck.

Recently had a road trip to Valparai. As we climbed the mountain, my eyes caught the lovely plants, or some wild flowers peeking out from under the big rocks. It is as if the plant is shouting, ‘big rock, you cannot weight me down, you cannot destroy me.

The effect of burdens in our lives is like the weight caused by heavy rocks on plants.

But as I witnessed that from under the heavy burden, new life sprang up and blossomed, I looked back at my own life and realized that the life’s burdens brought about over the years, by strong rocks of embarrassment, unworthiness, and disgrace have neither crushed me down nor destroyed because the Lord who promised me the following has truly dealt wondrously with me! Hallelujah!

And I will restore for you the years that the locust has eaten … and you shall be satisfied and praise the name of the Lord, your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you. ( Joel 2:25)

Prema Sunder Raj

On this Sunday evening I was reading from Psalm 51:12 where David after his fall says ‘Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation’.

Fall????? My God David did fall big! Whenever I review David’s life, I always wonder what made him a leader after such a disastrous fall! He had multiple wives, rebellious children, and then added to that was his own sin of adultery and murder.

What a winning record! But while in man’s eyes David looks unfit for leadership, in God’s eyes David’s messed up life had potential. How? Because God looks at you and me through His restorative eyes. Our heavenly Father sees you and me not as we are but as we can be. And in this Psalm David told God he longed for Him to ‘restore the joy of salvation’.

I continued to study to understand why David used the word restore in Psalm 51. And of course the Hebrew definition gave the answer. It means “turn back” and carries with it the idea of returning to the starting point.

David asked God in Psalm 51, to turn the clock back to a time when his heart was pure and steadfast before God. He looked at God and said, I want things like they used to be between us. I want the young David back Lord, the David you chose and anointed.

How lovely were those days in David’s life when his focus was directed to his Heavenly Father whom He loved.
He looked back to that time when he did not have a divided heart and he was so faithful to God.

Now after his disastrous affair with Bathsheba, he was reminded of those lovely days when his walk with God was on the right track. Oh how he longed to be restored into the relationship he once enjoyed.

I can imagine David as he wrote the Psalms, thinking back on the days when he cared for his father’s sheep on the hills. Out there under the blue sky with a soft breeze passing through the leaves of the trees, he began to sing as he played on his harp,

The Lord is my Shepherd 🎼 He restoreth my soul!

Praise God! When David came to his Heavenly Father asking for “restoration” He not only accepted his request also restored him back to his fellowship with Him! This is what God, our restorer promises to do for us today!

Prema Sunder Reaj

Recently I was traveling back from Valparai, and eyes caught the beauty of tall trees. Their trunks were like made of iron and the roots embedded on the rock looked like rock itself.

As I looked at those mighty trees, I thought about all the years it took to grow so large and tall! How many storms and winds they had to face to become so strong like iron!

This evening I was looking at the life of David where he said in his heart,

I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape into the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of seeking me any more within the borders of Israel, and I shall escape out of his hand. (I Sam 27: 1)

David, like many people, knowing he was not safe in Israel, decided to head off to the land of the Philistines.

Yes, the very David, who killed the Philistine giant Goliath, decided it would be safer to run to the Philistines than to stay in Israel and ask his heavenly Father to keep him under the “shelter of His wings.” In the valley of discouragement, David forgot who his protector really was and he went, seeking shelter, from the enemy of God.

Like David when we face challenges in our life, we long for life to be easier. We want things to improve. This is not a ridiculous desire. Who among us loves to have trouble heaped on our heads all the time? I know I don’t and I imagine you don’t like living under a cloud of adversity either.

In the case of David, faced with a future that appeared to be filled with one difficulty after another, he took things into his own hands and decided to take shelter in the land of Philistines.

BUT very soon as he writes one of my favorite Psalms,
‘As for you, the one who lives in the shelter of the sovereign One, and resides in the protective shadow of the mighty king’ ( Psa 91:1) David found out that He is safe only under the protective wings of the Father!

It is my prayer this evening that in times of discouragement and adversity I should not try to solve the problems by myself BUT allow my Father to make a way for me through my difficulties!

Prema Sunder Raj

1 சாமுவேல் 9:3,6 சவுலின் தகப்பனாகிய கீசுடைய கழுதைகள் காணாமற் போயிற்று.ஆகையால் கீச் தன் குமாரனாகிய சவுலை நோக்கி: நீ வேலைக்காரரில் ஒருவனைக் கூட்டிக் கொண்டு, கழுதைகளைத் தேட புறப்பட்டு சென்றான்.

அதற்கு அவன்: இந்தப் பட்டணத்திலே தேவனுடைய மனுஷன் ஒருவர் இருக்கிறார். அவர் பெரியவர். அவர் சொல்லுகிறதெல்லாம் தப்பாமல் நடக்கும். அங்கே போவோம். ஒருவேளை அவர் நாம் போகவேண்டிய நம்முடைய வழியை நமக்குத் தெரிவிப்பார் என்றான்.

காணவில்லை! சவுல் வீட்டுக் கழுதைகளைக் காணவில்லை!

சவுலின் தகப்பனாகிய கீஸ் அவனை கழுதைகளைத் தேடும் பணியில் அனுப்புகிறான். பல நாட்கள் அலைந்து திரிந்து தேடிய பின்பு, அவற்றைக் காணாத சவுல் வீட்டுக்கு திரும்ப உத்தேசிக்கிறான். திடீரென்று அவனுடைய வேலைக்காரன், அந்தப் பகுதியில் கர்த்தருடைய மனிதன் ஒருவர் இருப்பதாகவும், அவரைக் கண்டால் ஒருவேளைக் கழுதைகளைப் பற்றித் தெரிந்து கொள்ளலாம் என்று கூறுகிறான்.

இதை வாசிக்கும் போது கழுதைகளைக் கண்டு பிடிக்கக் கூடவா ஒரு தேவனுடைய மனுஷனைத் தேடி செல்ல வேண்டும் என்ற எண்ணம் சட்டென்றுத் தோன்றியது.ஆனால் அவர்கள் எல்லா இடங்களிலும் தேடினர், காடு மேடெல்லாம் அலைந்தனர். கடைசியில் வேறு வழி தெரியாமல் தேவனுடைய மனிதனை நாடினர் என்று பார்க்கிறோம்.

நம்மில் அனேகரைப் போல நானும் ‘இந்த சிறு காரியத்துக்குக் கூடவா கடவுளைத் தொந்தரவு செய்வது’ என்று பலமுறை யோசித்திருக்கிறேன். காணாமற்போனது கழுதைகளாகட்டும், அல்லது வீட்டு சாவிக் கொத்தாகட்டும், இவ்வவளவு சிறிய காரியத்தைக் குறித்து அக்கறை கொள்ள தேவனாகிய கர்த்தர் என்ன அவ்வளவு சிறியவரா என்று யோசிக்கிறோம்!

இவற்றைப் பற்றி சிந்தித்துக் கொண்டிருந்த போது,அலங்காரமான வார்த்தைகளால் எழுதப்படாத சில குறுகிய ஜெப விண்ணப்பங்களை என் கண்கள் புதிய ஏற்பாட்டில் கண்டது.

‘ஆண்டவரே, என் அவிசுவாசம் நீங்கும்படி உதவிசெய்யும்’ மாற்கு 9:24

‘ஆண்டவரே என்னை இரட்சியும்’ மத்தேயு 14:30

‘ஆண்டவரே நீர் உம்முடைய ராஜ்யத்தில் வரும்போது அடியேனை நினைத்தருளும்’ லூக்கா 23:42

‘ஆண்டவரே … அந்தத் தண்ணீரை எனக்குத் தரவேண்டும்’ யோவான்: 4:15

மிகக் குறுகிய வார்த்தைகளால் ஆன இந்த சாதாரண விண்ணப்பங்கள் நம்முடைய கர்த்தரின் செவிகளை எட்டாமல் போகவேயில்லை! நம்மைக் கவலைக்குள்ளாக்கும் எந்த சிறிய பிரச்சனையும் நம்முடைய கர்த்தரின் கண்களில் படாமல் போகாது.அது தப்பிப் போன கழுதைகளாகட்டும் அல்லது தவறிப் போன நம் மணி பர்சாகட்டும்.

சிறிய காரியமானாலும் ஜெபிப்பதில் தவறு இல்லை என்ற பெரிய பாடம் நமக்கு இன்று விளங்குகிறது!

சவுலும்,வேலைக்காரனும், காணாமற்போன கழுதைகளும் என்ர இந்தக் கதையில், சவுல் சாமுவேலை சந்திக்க சென்றதில் தேவனாகிய கர்த்தரின் இன்னொரு திட்டமும் இருந்தது என்று பார்க்கிறோம். சாமுவேலிடமிருந்து கர்த்தரின் பெரிய திட்டத்தை அறிந்து கொண்ட சவுல் கழுதைகளை மறந்தே போய்விட்டான். சாமுவேல் தான் கழுதைகள் கிடைத்து விட்டன என்று மலைத்துப் போன சவுலுக்கு சொல்ல வேண்டியிருந்தது!

ஒவ்வொருநாளும் தேவனுடைய சமுகத்தில் நம்முடைய பெரியதும், சிறியதுமான எல்லாவற்றையும் ஒப்புக்கொடுக்கும் போது, அவர் எல்லாவற்றையும் தம்முடைய கரத்துக்குள் ஏந்தியிருக்கிறார் என்பது நமக்கு புரியும்கு!

உங்கள் சகோதரி,

பிரேமா சுந்தர் ராஜ்