joyancejames

Category: faith

  • Legacy > Inheritance

    The words “inheritance” and “legacy” are synonymous and are used interchangeably yet they are poles apart in terms of their impact.

    Good inheritance equates to a comfortable life for the next generation.
    Legacy relates to the impact the next generation will have on the world around them.
    Inheritance is usually material.
    Legacy transcends the tangible.

    Inheritance impacts the family and children.
    Legacy outlasts familial boundaries.
    Inheritance is proportional to the vocation and hard work.
    Legacy is impacted by the life lived not just the work done.
    Time spent away from the family contributes to the inheritance.
    Precious time with the family and children shapes the legacy.

    The race to work the fingers to the bone and hustle culture will probably translate to an eventual huge inheritance (economically) .
    Memories and moments around the dinner-table, bed-time stories and family time and activities influence the legacy left.

    The castle constructed and bequeathed is the inheritance but if it’s not equally matched with an impactful life and legacy then the castle is just another decoration on the landscape.
    May our children be always assured that their applause matters more to us than the accolades that adorn our walls.
    May our legacy outlasts generations.

    ‭Matthew 6:19-21 NLT‬
    [19]  “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. [20] Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. [21] Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

    God bless you!

  • Because He Lives

    ‭Matthew 28:5-6 NLT‬
    [5] Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.

    [6] He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying.

    https://bible.com/bible/116/mat.28.5-6.NLT

    Because He lives

       Death has been defeated

       Fear has been conquered

       Sin has no final say 

       The plans & the hordes of hell have been       vanquished

       The grave is not our final destination

       Heaven is our hope

       We can face tomorrow

       We can face uncertain days

       We are forgiven, made whole and made  Holy

       The creation will be untied with the Creator

    Because the grave is empty

       Our hearts need not be

       Joy comes in the morning

       The hope of glory permeates even the most hopeless days

       The Light of life is our beacon in the  darkest night

       Every Lazarus has a hope

       Every tragedy has a testimony potential 

       Our failures are not final

       The plans of hell will never prevail

       The plans of heaven will be be accomplished.

    God bless you, Have a blessed Resurrection Sunday!

  • Constant

    Times change, people change, relationships change, workplaces change but Jesus doesn’t. In a culture which normalises change and diversity Jesus is the only constant.

    Jesus our constant

    Jesus the only true constant assured us, “Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.”
    Luke 21:33 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/luk.21.33.NLT.

    Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
    Hebrews 13:8 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/heb.13.8.NLT.

    Many times in our lives when we find ourselves surrounded by the unknown, change in our circumstances and comfort zone unnerves us or makes us uncomfortable but He who is the author of our story isn’t surprised a bit.

    He is constant through the trial and in the triumph, constant in the sunshine and in the rain.
    Because He is constant, we need not be afraid of the storms
    Because He is constant, we are not alone in the valley
    Because He is constant, we’ve a hope for tomorrow
    Because He is constant, we’ve grace for today
    Because He is constant, we will not be limited by our yesterdays.

    He is the unchanging one and what He says (Word of God) is unchanging, so what He says about us will never change irrespective of the changes around and about us. Our hope is hinged on an unshakeable and unchanging anchor.

    Now may God, the fountain of hope, fill you to overflowing with uncontainable joy and perfect peace as you trust in him. And may the power of the Holy Spirit continually surround your life with his super-abundance until you radiate with hope!
    Romans 15:13 TPT
    https://bible.com/bible/1849/rom.15.13.TPT.

    God bless you.

  • Temporality vs eternity

    The same rose 4 days apart.

    The temporality of beauty and life hits hard as I study this picture.

    “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?
    Matthew 6:28‭-‬30 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/mat.6.28-30.NLT

    We are obsessed with things which catch our eyes, we fuss over things which are here today but gone tomorrow. God cares enough for you so that you can be carefree about tomorrow. May our worries be shaped into prayers to the One who holds our future.

    As the Scriptures say, “People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. But the word of the Lord remains forever.” And that word is the Good News that was preached to you.
    1 Peter 1:24‭-‬25 NLT

    Let us make choices that outlast our lifetimes. The Bible compares our lives with the grass so transient that it vanishes without a mark, but the thing that remains forever is the word of the Lord. I pray that our lives and the choices that we make will be worthy of an eternity with Jesus.

    “Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
    Only what’s done for Christ will last.” – C T Stuff

    God bless you.

  • Favoured, loved and never alone

    World mental health day 2022

    May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
    2 Corinthians 13:14 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.13.14.NLT

    1. Grace = unmerited favour/ getting what we don’t deserve.
    Justice – getting what we deserve
    Mercy – not getting what we deserve
    Grace – not only being spared of what we deserve but getting better than what we deserve.
    It is through the Grace of Jesus Christ that His sacrifice on the cross makes us eligible for the love of the Father.

    2. Love. Let it be a reminder that we are loved by the Father by the virtue of being a child and being adopted into His family and not because we are inherently worthy.

    3. Fellowship. We are never alone, the Holy Spirit is our comforter, advocate and helper as promised by Jesus to His disciples before He ascended.

    Wherever you might be today, facing a trial or a triumph, in a valley or a mountain top, alone or surrounded by family/friends, remember that you are favoured, loved and surrounded by the Trinity.

    https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cjh6GWODOZJ/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

    God bless you.

  • It’s mine (Is it really mine?)

    “It’s mine” says my little daughter Faith while snatching a toy or hair clip from my hand and sometimes I gently remind her that since she is mine, so whatever she owns is actually mine. As a child she feels entitled to her toys and hair clip and throws a tantrum when she can’t have her way, are we any different than my toddler? We feel entitled to all the blessings, crave things to happen our way, on our time schedules, forgetting that God is sovereign and we are not.

    The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him.
    Psalms 24:1 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/psa.24.1.NLT

    Let us remind ourselves that things better in the almighty hands that never falter nor fail than our butter fingered hands. A heart that trusts is better than a mind that comprehends. Even the wisest King of Israel, Solomon advised us not to lean on our own understanding but to trust the Lord with all our heart.

    Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways! For who can know the Lord’s thoughts? Who knows enough to give him advice?
    Romans 11:33‭-‬34 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/rom.11.33-34.NLT

    We end up wasting a lot of our time and energies and mental peace because we do not realise and acknowledge the sovereignty of God in our lives. Let us remind ourselves that the sheep never search, “pastures near me” on the maps trying to make it’s life easier but trusts the shepherd to lead it to the right pasture.

    The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?
    Proverbs 20:24 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/pro.20.24.NLT

    God bless!

  • Take me deeper vs carry me

    Lessons from Faith’s first day at beach

    Faith with mummy vs daddy at the beach

    Yesterday was Faith’s first day at beach and it taught us a lesson or two. She was so scared to step into the water even after seeing smaller babies rolling in the sands/water. Shalom took her to the edge where the waves just kiss the shore and baby cried her heart out, as if she was afraid for her life. I’d to salvage her first beach experience’s trauma by picking her up and calming her and that decent photo is the evidence of that calmness.

    There are days when He takes us deeper into the waters and days when we see only one set of footprints 👣 on the sand (when He carries us in His arms). The hands that hung the stars are big yet small enough to carry you too.

    We’ve days when we can’t imagine going further or deeper yet God knows when to stop and pick us up. Whether it’s in deeper waters or in His arms may we never forget that it is His presence that matters. He will never forsake us nor leave us.

    ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.
    Exodus 19:4 NLT
    https://bible.com/bible/116/exo.19.4.NLT

    Even to your old age I am He, and even to hair white with age will I carry you. I have made, and I will bear; yes, I will carry and will save you.
    Isaiah 46:4 AMPC
    https://bible.com/bible/8/isa.46.4.AMPC

    God bless.

  • Fix versus love

    We spend a major lot of our lives wishing we could fix our friends, family, spouses, children, neighbours, bosses, co workers and the list is endless, but fixing people isn’t our job description. If we had our way we’d love to see the people around us molded to our likeness, but we forget that all of us are made in God’s likeness inspite of the idiosyncrasies. It is the Holy Spirit’s to convict and change people and we can’t do His work for Him.

    Love from the center of who you are; don’t fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle. Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take care of it.”
    Romans 12:9‭-‬10‭, ‬17‭-‬19 MSG
    https://bible.com/bible/97/rom.12.9-19.MSG

    Paul has some hard to digest and harder to practise commands for the church. If we learn to discover the beauty in everyone then maybe we’ll stop yearning to fix everyone.

    God bless! 🤠

  • Life update: End of an era

    June 2008 I left home to pursue my undergraduate studies in medicine and now I’m back home, it’s end of July 2022. 14 years away from home, MBBS and MS, wife and a baby. God has blessed and multiplied me.

    After completing MS Orthopedics from CMC Ludhiana, I worked in mission hospitals under EHA. I got an opportunity to work in the following hospitals as an Orthopedic surgeon in the last 3 years: 1. Jiwan Jyoti Christian Hospital, Robertsganj, UP
    2. Kachhwa Christian Hospital, Mirzapur, UP
    3. Herbertpur Christian Hospital, Herbertpur, Uttrakhand.
    4. Landour Community Hospital, Mussoorie, Uttrakhand
    5. Duncan Hospital, Raxaul, Bihar.
    I was posted primarily in Robertsganj and worked there the maximum, rest were deputation, ranging from a few days to weeks/months.

    Last surgery in Herbertpur Christian Hospital (30.07.2022)

    I have seen first hand the legacy of the medical missionaries and contributed my little bit to their huge contribution towards nation building. I’ve learnt not only to bridge broken bones and crooked limbs but also gained a deeper understanding of the word of God. Last 20 months I’ve been away from Shalom and Faith, but God has been with us and we’ve seen the goodness of God.

    “You have led me through the fire
    In the darkest night
    You are close like no other
    I’ve known You as a Father
    I’ve known You as a Friend
    And I have lived in the goodness of God”. – Goodness of God by Bethel Music

    But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
    1 Peter 2:9 NLT
    ( https://bible.com/bible/116/1pe.2.9.NLT ). So here I am testifying the goodness of God, He is a Father who never leaves us nor abandons us.

    What’s next? We’ll find jobs in Ahmedabad, school for Faith, church community where we’ll thrive and flourish. As someone rightly said, “I don’t know what tomorrow holds but I know the One who holds tomorrow”. So even with the uncertainties surrounding me I am certain of the goodness of God and His favour which lasts a lifetime.

    God bless you.

  • The birthday of His bride.

    Shavuot (שבועות) / Pentecost

    Shavuot is the second of the three main harvest festivals (Passover and Feast of Tabernacles are the other two), described in Leviticus 23, also called feast of weeks (shavuot is Hebrew for weeks). Pentecost comes from the Greek and means 50, since it is celebrated 50 days from the feast of first fruits (Resurrection Sunday).

    Passover symbolises the redemption of Israel and Shavuot the abundant provision of God.
    It was on this day that Moses recieved the Law at Mount Sinai (according to rabbinical tradition) and it was on this day the promise of the Holy Spirit was fulfilled and the church was born.
    While the Jews eagerly counted off 7 weeks from Passover and waited for this festival, the disciples were eagerly waiting for the fulfillment of the promise of the Holy Spirit by Jesus. In Acts Chapter 2 the disciples were surrounded by a sound of a violent wind, the Hebrew word Ruach for the Holy Spirit and the Greek pneuma for the Holy Spirit both mean wind or breath. God breathed into Adam and He came alive and now He was breathing over and baptizing the disciples with the Holy Spirit.

    The baptism with the Holy Spirit transformed these unsuspecting, unremarkable and mostly underrated Galilean men and women into the most powerful witnesses and birthed the church. Hence, it became the birthday of the church. What originally was an agricultural harvest celebration became a celebration of the harvest of souls.

    Acts 2:5 says there were Jews from every nation gathered in Jerusalem for the feast and 3000 of them responded to the first sermon by Peter and God added to their numbers daily. These thousands of Jews who accepted Yeshua as the Messiah and received the Holy Spirit would then take the gospel back to their homes in their nations. So the great outpouring on the Pentecost not only have birth to the Church but also to evangelism.

    It’s been ~ 2000 years since then and the world continues to wage war against the church but Jesus promised that the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The wind and the fire phenomenon which birthed the church is not a one time event (as erroneously taught by many) but it is for each of us who believe in Jesus.
    Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”
    Acts of the Apostles 2:38‭-‬39 NLT

    God bless you.