Looking at the New Decade with New Hope

Here we are once again – at the beginning of a New Year and infact a new decade – a time for re- evaluations and a season of new beginnings....a season of new hope. In couple of hours time, we usher in 2010. Isaiah 42:9 says "Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them."

I believe it is always God's desire that we be filled with a sense of newness and freshness of what He desires and wants to do in our lives. He desires greatly for us to be filled with a renewed sense of purpose and destiny. This is what is really needed before we can give ourselves a good kick start. Jeremiah 29:11 says "The plans I have for you...are...good...to give you a future and a hope."

A few years ago the Soviet submarine Kursk went down in the Barents Sea. When the diving crews finally reached it they heard SOS signals coming from inside. Desperate sailors wondered "Is there any hope?" Sadly for them there wasn't.

Do you feel trapped in an impossible situation you can't seem to change or escape? If so, God is saying to you today, "The plans I have for you...are... good...to give you a future and a hope." Now, hope is not just the absence of despair, it's the presence of something greater; something only God can give. Hope is not passive; it's the most active force in the world because it's derived from the most powerful being of all - God. And it's never further away than He is. Clint Eastwood became famous for starring in a movie called The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Four decades later some of us still use those words when describing certain aspects of life.

But here's the good news: through His amazing grace God can take the good, the bad and the ugly experiences in your life and use them to make you unbelievably better at what He created you for, whatever that might be! In God's economy all is redeemed and nothing is ever lost. He can take the good things we remember fondly, the bad things we might like to forget, and the ugly things that shaped us into people we didn't start out to be, and use all of them to facilitate His purpose for each and every one of us.

So, don't give up hope!

ViveAlive wish all my blog readers a Blessed New Year. I pray and hope that this blog has been a blessing for you in one way another. Be Blessed.

We Are Managers, Not Owners

It seems like the last part of us to surrender to God is our chequebook. The extent to which this is true explains why more of us are not growing into maturity faster than we are. Your attitude towards giving is like the lights on your car's dashboard. When one of those lights comes on, something under the bonnet needs attention before there's a breakdown. When God turns on the indicator light of money and giving in your life, it's not because He's hurting for cash. No, He's looking at something in your heart that you can't afford to ignore. And He wants to deal with it.

Many Christians suffer from a disease Dr. Tony Evans calls "cirrhosis of the giver." It's been around since the earliest days of the church, first diagnosed around 34 A.D. in a couple named Ananias and Sapphira who became greedy with God's gifts and suffered some really bad consequences (see Acts 5:1-11). It's an acute condition. Those who have it show symptoms that include sudden paralysis and inability to reach for their purse or wallet at offering time. This strange symptom often disappears in stores, on golf courses, or when dining in fine restaurants. Some have attempted to treat this condition by offering tax deductions for charitable giving. But judging from the prevalence of the problem this incentive has not had great effect.

What's the answer? Realizing that you are a manager - not an owner. You're simply overseeing what belongs to God. So when He asks you to give, regardless of how much, remember, He's just asking for what He already owns.

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it. - Psalm 24:1 NIV"

Operation Year End Break....!!!!

This year end is going to be an awesome time for us as we will be starting our holiday from tomorrow evening onwards till year end. Looking forward for doing things outside of my day to day work. Here is some of the travel plan:

1. Balik Kampung (means back to hometown)



2. Youth Camp in SP.....the best camp of the year...maybe of the decade.....!!!!



3. Wedding in JB.......someone who is so dear to us getting married.....!!! Plus day trip to Singapore...yahoooo!!!



Expected to travel over 2000km in the next 11 days. It is really nice spending 11 days doing something that I love to do that is meeting people and building relationship.

Joseph Principles

God has made me forget...Genesis 41:51 NKJV

Joseph was thirty when he became governor of Egypt. He was seventeen when he was sold into slavery. For thirteen years he dealt with pain and confusion, maintained his character and his commitment to God, and allowed his trials to make him triumphant. So you can't just throw in the towel, have a pity party, or sit around doing nothing.

Joseph didn't simply forget what happened. Anybody who tells you, 'Just forget it' isn't living in the real world. It happened, but God can use it to enrich your life. God gave Joseph two sons: he named them Manasseh, which means 'God has made me forget,' and Ephraim, which means 'God made me fruitful in the land of my afflictions.' God gave Joseph new relationships to replace the old ones. One reason why old relationships may be destroying you is that you haven't replaced them with new ones. You're hanging out with the wrong reminders. God helped Joseph to forget the pain of what happened. He still had the memory, but he prospered in spite of it. When you walk with God, the promise before you is always greater than the pain behind you. But here are some 'Joseph principles' you need to live by:

1) Don't try to ignore or pretend it never happened. God will give you the grace to handle it, not deny it

2) Believe that God can 'make up to you' the time, the relationships and the opportunities you've lost 'So I will restore to you the years that the… locust has eaten… ' (Joel 2:25 NKJV)

3) List the people who've wronged you, forgive them and release them to God in prayer 'and forgiving one another… ' (Colossians 3:13 NJKV)

4) Tell God you're ready to start over. And start today!

Note: The article above is taken from daily devotion email from The Word for Today brought by TheVine in association with The Rhema Broadcasting Group Inc, New Zealand and UCB International Ltd

A Christmas Creed

I believe in Jesus Christ and in the beauty of the gospel begun in Bethlehem.

I believe in the one whose spirit glorified a little town; and whose spirit still brings music to persons all over the world, in towns both large and small.

I believe in the one for whom the crowded inn could find no room, and I confess that my heart still sometimes wants to exclude Christ from my life today.

I believe in the one who the rulers of the earth ignored and the proud could never understand; whose life was among common people, whose welcome came from persons of hungry hearts.

I believe in the one who proclaimed the love of God to be invincible:

I believe in the one whose cradle was a mother's arms, whose modest home in Nazareth had love for its only wealth, who looked at persons and made them see what God's love saw in them, who by love brought sinners back to purity, and lifted human weakness up to meet the strength of God.

I confess my ever-lasting need of God: The need of forgiveness for our selfishness and greed, the need of new life for empty souls, the need of love for hearts grown cold.

I believe in God who gives us the best of himself.

I believe in Jesus, the son of the living God, born in Bethlehem this night, for me and for the world.

1 CORINTHIANS 13 – - A CHRISTMAS VERSION

If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights and shiny balls, but do not show love, I’m just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not show love, I’m just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love, it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties and sing in the choir’s cantata but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.
Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.
Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn’t envy another’s home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.

Love doesn’t yell at the kids to get out of the way, but is thankful they are there to be in the way.

Love doesn’t give only to those who are able to give in return but rejoices in giving to those who can’t.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.

Computer games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rust, but giving the gift of love will endure.

The Season of the Heart

During this season, you see people everywhere, in the shopping complex, to get just the perfect gift for a loved one. Or perhaps they are trying to decide if they should buy a specific gift or just give a gift certificate. Either way, they are out there in the hustle and bustle of the holidays; some don't feel the least bit in the mood - just doing this out of habit. Then there are others who live for 'gift giving'...it puts them in the Christmas spirit to be able to shop!

Most people love the Christmas season and what it stands for, but some can't see beyond the Christmas trees, the beautiful lights and the expectation of gifts. How do you view Christmas?

What a heart God had when he sent his 'only begotten Son' to this earth 2000 years ago, to live as a man, to know the hurt and pain that you and I do - yet he lived a spotless life, and was crucified so that we could live without sin and one day live with Him eternally. WHAT a 'love' of the people GOD had to send His Word to us in the flesh, how unselfish - and this is the way we should live our life today - unselfish to the point that we want others to have what we would live, whether it be a gift, or maybe the spiritual gift of salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Season of the Heart means to me to be the season in which we truly show our love to others - unselfishly, unequivocally - with fervor!! We should be so 'in love' with our God that it our faces shine with 'his presence'.......our eyes should 'light up' for Him!! People should recognize us as having something they want!! And we should be ready to share Jesus with them when we are approached!!

Be Blessed.

Stewardship

If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. 2 Thessalonians 3:10 NKJV

The story's told of a guy who came to church looking very sad. 'What's up?' his pastor asked. 'Well, two weeks ago my uncle died and left me $75,000. Then a week ago my aunt died and left me $50,000.' His pastor asked, 'Then why are you so sad?' The guy answered, 'Because nobody died this week.' Cute story; only one problem, the Bible says this man ought to 'labour, working with his hands… that he may have something to give him who has need' (Ephesians 4:28 NKJV).

The first job God gave Adam was to take care of the garden and be productive. Even in a perfect environment, Adam had work to do. If you want to be a good steward, taking your master's resources and increasing them, you must engage in productive work. To have 'something to give,' you need to have 'something left over.' That's what's wrong with gambling; you can't substitute luck for labour. Now, you're not supposed to help people who don't want to work.

Tony Evans writes: 'Instead of wondering when he is going to get a slice of a handout pie, a good steward is busy baking pies, enjoying the results, and sharing what he has with others.' Some people question investing because it doesn't fit their idea of work. No, God told Adam to plant seeds. Planting seed is an investment made in anticipation of a harvest. Ever since the fall we've been inventing ways to avoid honest, productive labour. Your job is part of your stewardship.

Are you performing it as if God were your employer? He is!

Note: The article above is taken from daily devotion email from The Word for Today brought by TheVine in association with The Rhema Broadcasting Group Inc, New Zealand and UCB International Ltd