This prayer by Ruth Harms Calkin spoke to my heart...
I Wonder You know, Lord,
How I serve You
With great emotional fervor
In the limelight
You know how eagerly
I speak for You
At a women’s club
You know how I effervesce
When I promote
A fellowship group.
You know my genuine enthusiasm
At a Bible study.
But how would I react, I wonder,
If You pointed to a basin of water
And asked me to wash
The calloused feet
Of a bent and wrinkled old woman
Day after day,
Month after month,
In a room where nobody saw
And nobody knew.
Most of us as followers of Christ display a cheerful spirit when we are serving Him in public. But it’s more difficult when we are called to serve Him over a long period of time in some out-of-the-way place, where no one can see us and when we receive no recognition. That’s the true test of faithfulness to the Lord.
Lord Jesus, help us to serve You faithfully in the humble tasks You have given us that no one ever sees. – DCE.
To Reflect God’s Light, Don’t Seek The Limelight.
Article selected from “Our Daily Bread”.
This Week @ Detonate:
Good Day Detonates! In preparation for the 3:16 event on the 12th Dec 2009, we will be having a session of fervor prayers. We are seeking the Lord and His mighty miracles to be upon this important event. Prepare your hearts and minds, cast away all your worries as we seek our Lord Jesus in prayer. We shall see you this Saturday at 4.45pm. Till then, take care and rest in His love.
Prayers and Fasting from the Body:
IMPORTANT! LET'S PERSEVERE IN YOUR PRAYER FOR YOUR UNSAVED LOVED ONES. WE ARE IN FOR A SERIOUS BUSINESS. THIS CONCERNS ABOUT THEIR ETERNAL LIVES. DO NOT BE DECEIVE BY THE devil THAT YOUR PRAYER IS USELESS AND INEFFECTIVE. INSTEAD, YOU MUST PRESS ON. PRAY AND PRAY AND PRAY.
This day, 12 Oct 2009 at 00:00 am, as we deny ourselves and fast till the end, a 3:16 movement, we gonna get down to our knees to pray for the people that we will be inviting for the 3:16 event on 12 Dec 2009 at 06:30 pm. We gonna trust and believe God to open the hearts of those in our generation to recognise God in their lives! Let us encourage each other along the way. Amen!
Love in Action
Communication is important to the expression of love and to life itself. Where there is love, there must be communication, because love can never be passive and inactive. Love expresses itself and moves out toward others. When communication breaks down, love is blocked and its energy will turn to resentment and hostility. Without communication, the possibilities for a relationship become hopeless and the means for healing the hurts that are caused previously will no longer be present.
Most people seem to think of communication as getting a message across to another person, “You tell him what you want him to know”, which is a one-way flow concept (monologue). However, communication is not monologue; it is a to-and-fro process (dialogue).
A couple, for instance, fail to deal with a disagreement or quarrel because each is thinking only what he wants to say, instead of trying to discover the concerns and meanings his partner brings.
Sometimes the real cause of a quarrel is not expressed and they can only deal with the superficial meanings of the conflict. The responsibility for communication calls for each other to pay attention to the meanings that the other one brings to the conflict, and also try to help the other say what he means, for his own and the sake of the other. In this way, constructive communication can be resumed and most of all, releases the expression of love.
Selected – “herein is love” by Reuel L. Howe.
This Week @ Detonate:
Bonjour Detonates! We will be having Brother Isaiah to speak in our youth service this coming Saturday. We shall see you this Saturday at 4.45pm.
Prayers and Fasting from the Body:
IMPORTANT! LET'S PERSEVERE IN YOUR PRAYER FOR YOUR UNSAVED LOVED ONES. WE ARE IN FOR A SERIOUS BUSINESS. THIS CONCERNS ABOUT THEIR ETERNAL LIVES. DO NOT BE DECEIVE BY THE devil THAT YOUR PRAYER IS USELESS AND INEFFECTIVE. INSTEAD, YOU MUST PRESS ON. PRAY AND PRAY AND PRAY. DO NOT USE THE EXECUSE THAT YOU HAVE NO TIME. MOST OF YOU ARE DONE WITH YOUR EXAMINATIONS. SO PRAY NOW AND THEN.
This day, 12 Oct 2009 at 00:00 am, as we deny ourselves and fast till the end, a 3:16 movement, we gonna get down to our knees to pray for the people that we will be inviting for the 3:16 event on 12 Dec 2009 at 06:30 pm. We gonna trust and believe God to open the hearts of those in our generation to recognise God in their lives! Let us encourage each other along the way. Amen!
Discipline in Love
He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him. – Proverbs 13:24
Christian love is firm. Jesus was not unloving when He rebuked the Pharisees for their hypocrisy in Matthew 23. Nor was Christ unloving to warn men of the fire of hell (Matthew 5:22 and 18:8). It would have been less than kind to leave men with the impression there are no consequences for their sins. Jesus manifested a firmness of love in expelling the money-changers from the temple in John 2:16.
Love need not be soft to be kind, “because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.”(Hebrews 12:6)
Fathers are to love their children by bringing them up in the training and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4). In fact, not to discipline is not to love. Love, it will be remembered, does not mean doing what people want; it means to do them the good they need.
It was the loving concern which caused the Corinthian Christians to expel an immoral member (1 Corinthians 5:5). It was love which restored that member after repentance (2 Corinthians 2:6). Love is forgiving but it is also firm. Love is not naïve and sentimental; it is realistic and strong. We should be thankful that they are people around us who guide and discipline us when we have done something wrong so that we can improve to be better. Amen?
Selected – “The Christian Ethic of Love” by Norman L. Geisler.
This Week @ Detonate:
He has been around in our church for quite some time and we are very pleased to have him to share with us the Word of God. Let's us come together and hear what he has for us. Don't miss this one a blue moon opportunity. See you this Saturday at 4.45pm.
Prayers and Fasting from the Body:
This day, 12 Oct 2009 at 00:00 am, as we deny ourselves and fast till the end, a 3:16 movement, we gonna get down to our knees to pray for the people that we will be inviting for the 3:16 event on 12 Dec 2009 at 06:30 pm. We gonna trust and believe God to open the hearts of those in our generation to recognise God in their lives! Let us encourage each other along the way. Amen!
URGENT! PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR YOUR FRIENDS, AS YOU FAST FROM YOUR FOOD ITEM
Fast a day keeps the devil away. Fast a day save your friend today. Fast a day keeps you awake.
Love by Forgiveness
But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
– Matthew 6:15
In Mark 11:26, Jesus was not teaching that believers can earn God’s forgiveness by forgiving others; for this would be contrary to God’s free grace and mercy. However, if we have truly experienced God’s forgiveness, then we will have a readiness to forgive others (Ephesians 4:32, Colossians 3:13). Our Lord illustrated this principle in the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant (Matthew 18:21–35).
Unforgiveness can cause us an inability to love God and bitterness which will block the blessings from God. If we fail to forgive, we break the commandments of loving God. Besides that, it retains the sins of our past, bringing them into our present state and if left untreated, they will affect our future and relationship with others. This causes us to stray from the Lord and alienates us from the body of Christ which causes division in the body of Christ. Worse of all, this gives satan an advantage to create havoc in our lives.
Forgiveness is surrendering our right to have justice done for the hurt that others may cause us. We must understand that forgiveness is an activity of the will and we cannot wait for a “right feeling” before we forgive.
So now, if there is anyone who has done you wrong or even hurt you in the past, don't wait any longer. Start praying for them by asking God to help you to forgive that person. Pray that you will treat them nicely with love and respect. If you happen to see that person again, do remember to show your love by actions.
What are you waiting for? If you miss this chance, you may not have the desire to pray for that person again. If we say that we love God, then let's do what God wants us to do. Amen?
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
– Romans 12:21
Selected – The Bible Exposition Commentary and www.amazingbible.org.
This Week @ Detonate:
Hello Detonate! We will be having our 3:16 service this Saturday at 4.45pm! There will be a briefing, workstations and prayer for ourselves and the event on 12 Dec 09. See you!
Prayers and Fasting from the Body:
This day, 12 Oct 2009 at 00:00 am, as we deny ourselves and fast till the end, a 3:16 movement, we gonna get down to our knees to pray for the people that we will be inviting for the 3:16 event on 12 Dec 2009 at 06:30 pm. We gonna trust and believe God to open the hearts of those in our generation to recognise God in their lives! Let us encourage each other along the way. Amen!
URGENT! PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR YOUR FRIENDS, AS YOU FAST FROM YOUR FOOD ITEM
Fast a day keeps the devil away. Fast a day save your friend today. Fast a day keeps you awake.
Love Your Enemies
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
– Matthew 5:44
There were some in Jesus days who had found a “loop-hole” in the love command, it said only to love one’s neighbour, they reasoned. That would imply that those who were not one’s neighbour by proximity were not included. In fact if one was not to love his non-neighbours, then surely he will be free to hate his enemies.
It was this erroneous thinking that Jesus attacked in Matthew 5:43-47. Jesus left no “loop-hole” in the love command. He corrected their misinterpretation.
In Luke 23:34, when Jesus was on the cross, He prayed for His crucifiers. Herein is love so divine that it can forgive those who crucify Him. Truly, the love of Christ is immeasurable. Jesus has overcome evil with good and Christians are taught to do likewise in Romans 12:14-21 and Luke 6:27-37.
Christians are taught not to seek revenge but to pray for and forgive their enemies. Hatred only breeds more hatred. Returning evil for evil, or good for good, is the way most people live. But Christians must live on a higher level and return good for evil because God has shown mercy to us. We are to treat others with mercy as God has treated us.
Of course, this requires love, because our first inclination is to fight back. It is difficult and surely we need to pray and ask God for love as we try to show kindness to our enemies. Do unto others in the same way you want God to do to you.
So now, if there is anyone who has done you wrong or even hurt you in the past, don't wait any longer. Start praying for them by asking God to help you to forgive that person. Pray that you will treat them nicely with love and respect. If you happen to see that person again, do remember to show your love by actions.
What are you waiting for? If you miss this chance, you may not have the desire to pray for that person again. If we say that we love God, then let's do what God wants us to do. Amen?
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
– Romans 12:21
Selected – “The Christian Ethic of Love” by Norman L. Geisler.
This Week @ Detonate:
Hello fellow Brothers and Sisters in Christ! We are pleased to inform you that a special speaker by the name of Pastor Bryan will be coming to service this Saturday at 4.45pm! Do remember to come in your sports attire. I repeat, come in your SPORTS ATTIRE(appropriate dressing still applies).
Prayers and Fasting from the Body:
This day, 12 Oct 2009 at 00:00 am, as we deny ourselves and fast till the end, a 3:16 movement, we gonna get down to our knees to pray for the people that we will be inviting for the 3:16 event on 12 Dec 2009 at 06:30 pm. We gonna trust and believe God to open the hearts of those in our generation to recognise God in their lives! Let us encourage each other along the way. Amen!
URGENT! PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR YOUR FRIENDS, AS YOU FAST FROM YOUR FOOD ITEM
Fast a day keeps the devil away. Fast a day save your friend today. Fast a day keeps you awake.
