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THE MESSAGE

YOUR APPOINTED TIME

progeny (his descendants) and what people (others) did for or against him. Not until Abram was well into the journey did God reveal the land He had in mind for Abraham and his descendants. When he came to the land of Canaan, inhabited by the Canaanites, God told him: “To your descendants I will give this land.” As time went, Abraham would get more commands to obey from God. However, not once did God give Abram a timeline for the fulfilment of the promises – except on two specific occasions. The first occasion was the one concerning the birth of Isaac. The second was concerning the captivity of his descendants in Egypt.

More about it later.

God’s first mention of Isaac, the promised heir to Abraham, is recorded in Genesis 17:19. In two steps, God reveals to Abraham that a son would be born to him through Sarah and that the boy ought to be called as Isaac. Before He made things so explicit to Abraham, God ruled out two people – that Eliezer was not the heir (‘This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir’ – Gen. 15:4) and Ishmael, although Abraham’s son, will not be the heir (‘No, Sarah your wife shall bear your son, and you shall call his name Isaac.’ – Gen. 17:19).

Eliezer is an easy option called adoption that came out of Abraham’s desperation and Ishmael is the son of convenience birthed by Hagar because of Sarah’s desperation. However, Isaac will be the son of the covenant. Hallelujah! We cannot thank God enough when we understand the weight of His words! When God called Abram out of Haran to Canaan, he was already married to Sarai. And, hence, God saw them as the original contractors with whom He will make the covenant. Yes, Eliezer and Hagar will come in between but they will not be considered as partakers (Continued on Page 8)

BY ROBIN SAM What will you do in the appointed day, and in the day of the feast of the Lord? (Hosea 9:5. NKJV) AN appointed day is a day set apart for a particular activity. The King James Version has Hosea 9:5 as follows: “What will ye do in the solemn day, and in the day of the feast of the Lord?” The appointed day is a solemn day. It is intense and we need to treat it as such in all earnestness. That’s what appointed days are for.

The Word of God mentions many appointed days.

We will briefly examine 4 kinds of appointed days that the Bible talks about. It is essential for us to understand what they are so as to inherit what we are appointed for and stay in it.

1. An appointed time is set for the fulfilment of the promise of God “Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son” (Genesis 18:14).

God called Abram out of Haran by giving him specific commands and specific promises. We read about them in Genesis 12. God asked Abram to do four things. He was asked to get out of his country (his identity), away from his relatives (the outer circle), away from his father’s family (the inner circle) and go to a land that the Lord will show him (the unknown). As if leaving one’s comfort zone is easy enough, God asks him to do the unthinkable – that is launch out into an unknown and an unheard of terrain. He was given plenty of promises, though.

One theologian lists and numbers the promises God gave to Abraham as 48. In Genesis 12, between verses 1 and 7, there are 9 specific promises that God gives Abram. They were concerning the property (the land), the person (Abraham himself), the

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NOVEMBER, 2015

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LIFE GUIDE

How to teach your children to pray

BY CATHERINE DEVRIES WHEN it comes to teaching our kids or grandkids how to pray, we might not always know where to start, or even feel comfortable doing this ourselves. What do we say? Do we close our eyes and fold our hands? Or do we just have a conversation in the midst of our day? Do we pray with other people or by ourselves? Well, I believe the answer is yes to all.

God invites us to talk with Him through prayer. I don’t think He is as concerned about the various customs and methods surrounding prayer as much as us sharing with Him what’s going on it our lives. He wants a relationship with us, no matter what our age. And that is so important to express to children early on in their faith development.

So now that we know prayer is important, where do we start? Jesus Himself gave us a great model to follow in the Bible with the Lord’s Prayer. We can put our hesitations aside with Jesus guiding us through. The beautiful thing about the Lord’s Prayer is that it is simple but also profound. It is structured in such a way to teach us to first honor the Lord, to thank Him for who He is. Then once we have acknowledged that, we bring our requests to the Lord—providing for our needs and helping us steer clear from temptation.

With thankful hearts, we once again honor the Lord by remembering that He is all-powerful and that we want to follow Him in all we do. As we learn the Lord’s Prayer, we also learn how to pray, how to put God before our requests and also remembering that God provides for all of our needs.

We know that young children are rather literal (concrete thinkers), and they feel successful when they achieve specific goals. With the Lord’s Prayer, they have something very specific to follow and get to repeat it over and over again. This repetition really helps them commit what they’ve learned to memory.

The Lord’s Prayer is often said around the dinner table, allowing parents and grandparents with a natural way to invite children to participate in this tradition at home. Many churches still say the Lord’s Prayer together during the service—maybe not every week but at least a few times during the year.

So by knowing the Lord’s Prayer, children are also invited to participate in community worship as well.

THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

What has worked best in my family of five is weaving prayer into our daily routines. We try to have meals together as much as possible. Before we eat, we take turns praying.

One person prays for us all on that day, and on Sundays, we always pray the Lord’s Prayer together as a family. My husband and I have also encouraged our children to pray at night before bed. We started with ‘Now I lay me down to sleep,’ but then added on blessings to our friends and family members.

When the kids were old enough, we invited them to simply talk to the Lord about the day. We also have a tradition of praying in the car before leaving on a big trip. We ask for the Lord’s presence with us and that He will give us safe travels and protection.

One other thing we do is pray whenever we see an ambulance or life alert helicopter. We live near a hospital, so this is a regular occurrence as we drive around town doing errands. I love how my kids initiate it now when they see these visual reminders to pray for others.

I have learned so much about faith through the eyes of my children, as well as other children. Jesus talks about how strong the faith of a child is and that we all should seek that depth of faith (Is. 11:6; Matt.

19:4). I know in my heart that God hears every prayer. It is up to Him how He chooses to respond to prayers. He might not answer the way we expect Him to, but we can rest in knowing that He knows our heart and He hears us and is with us every step of the way through life’s journey. He wants what is best for us (Jer. 29:11), and we can trust in that.

Catherine DeVries has written 20 books for children, including the best-selling The Adventure Bible Storybook and Let’s Learn about the Lord’s Prayer.

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THE MESSAGE

YOUR APPOINTED TIME (Continued from Page 3) of the covenant. By that single decree, God honoured the institution of marriage. God’s blessings find their fulfilment when you are within the family.

In Gen 17:21, God – for the first time ever – gave Abraham a timeline for the fulfilment of the promise. ‘But My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year.’ In Gen 18: 14, He rephrased ‘this set time’ as ‘the appointed time.’ (‘Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.’)

If you are still with me, may I ask you something?

Has God given you a promise? If He has, you will not find Him wanting. He is as good as His word because He is the God of the Word. If you abide by the principles laid out in the Word of God, He will be faithful to fulfil His promises to you (Hebrews 10:23). Before He would do that, however, He would make you see the futility of your options that came out of your own desperation. Amen?

The promise relating to the birth of Isaac was fulfilled just as God had told Abraham. We see the fulfilment in Gen 21:1-2 (‘And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had spoken.’) He is the God who visits as He says and does as He speaks. Hallelujah!

2. An appointed time is a time of deliverance set

by God Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years” (Genesis 15:13).

The promised seed will also be the persecuted seed. This is the essence of what God told Abram.

When God revealed to Abram that a time of affliction that will go beyond 400 years will come upon his descendants, the old man did not even have Ishmael born to him much less Isaac. Yet, it pleased God to show Abram, his friend, what was about to happen several generations later. Persecution precedes the fulfilment of the promise. As God's children, we must understand that since we are the promised seed (Galatians 4:28) we can also expect a measure of persecution in our life. Before the hour of his betrayal and trial came, Jesus told His disciples: “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). That’s God’s way of dealing with His children. He does not always lay a path of gold dust and rose petals to His children. The path that believers need to walk is fraught with dangers, boulders, vipers and pitfalls, but we need not fear because He who went before us has already taken victory. He has overcome the world. Hallelujah!

Joshua and the children of Israel came to the Jordan and had to camp at the riverside for three days. The Promised Land was on the other side of the Jordan and here they were on the threshold of the fulfilment of the promise. However, they had a problem. River Jordan was in full spate – it was overflowing its banks since it was the time of harvest. Crossing the river could be a bad idea because the river was deep and its mighty current treacherous. And, they had not gone the way before.

That's when Joshua encourages his people. ‘And Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you”.’

(Joshua 3:5). Why won’t the Lord do wonders among them today? Why are wonders reserved for tomorrow? Two reasons: the first being this – the children of Israel are not yet ready for a miracle.

Before the wonders could happen they need to sanctify themselves. Two: tomorrow is the appointed time set by God for crossing over the Jordan. When God has appointed a time for the fulfilment of your promise or your deliverance, don’t run ahead of God – you will only be spoiling your chance of crossing over to the other side!

Before God told Abram about the bondage that Israelites would be under in Egypt, we read in Genesis 15:12 that ‘…a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him.’

It was not a trance nor a vision. It was as the Bible 8

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says ‘a deep sleep’. However, the sleep was not pleasant to him rather it held out horrors to him.

Abram must have had a ringside view of all the sufferings his descendants would endure in the 400odd years of persecution in the deep sleep. What a privilege to be let into God’s secrets. What an honour it is that the God of heavens will let us into the domain of the future. Four hundred years was a long time, but the grace of God made sure it was a limited time. When troubles look like unending trials and when we think that we will go under the tempests that blow in our lives, God will come near us to say: ‘The Egyptian that you see today you will see no more’ (Exodus 14:13). Thank God for His grace that shortens the period of persecution. When Jesus Christ was telling His disciples about the Great Tribulation that is to happen in the last days, He spoke those comforting words in Matthew 24:22.

‘And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.’ Praise God if you count yourselves among the elect. He is the One who does as He says. He did it for the Israelites just as He said.

'Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years – on that very same day – it came to pass that all

the armies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt’ (Exodus 12:40-41) ‘So it came to pass, on that very same day, that the Lord brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, according to their armies’ (verse 51). The people who were a band of slaves under merciless oppressors turned into the armies of the Lord at the appointed time. He will do the same for you. Hallelujah!

3. An appointed time is the time when your enemy will be annihilated Then the Lord appointed a set time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land” (Exodus 9:5).

We do not know what will happen tomorrow (James 4:14). That’s a sad fact about our limited knowledge, but praise God we have Someone who knows what will happen tomorrow. He is simply not in the know of things; He is the One who does them.

‘Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.’

God has appointed a time when your enemy will be routed, totally. God asked Moses to go up to the pharaoh and ask him to let His children go. The pharaoh, however, had no such notions. He was stubborn. So, God sent four plagues into the land.

Every time, a plague had subsided the pharaoh hardened his heart. God intended pharaoh to know that ‘I am the Lord’ (Exodus 7:17) when He sent the

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THE MESSAGE first plague. After the second plague, God made pharaoh plead with Moses to intercede for him (8:8).

The magicians in Egypt saw the finger of God in the third plague because they could not replicate it (8:19). The fourth plague made pharaoh come down from his rigid stance. He made a concession to the Israelites: ‘Go, sacrifice to your God in the land’ (8:25) after he saw that God had made a difference between His people and the people of Egypt. The fifth plague was God’s chance to show pharaoh the difference between the livestock of the Israelites and the Egyptians. Although, He knew pharaoh would be a tough nut to crack, He said: ‘Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.’

To teach a lesson to the enemy, God will show a difference between His children and others.

However, to annihilate the enemy, God will defeat the counsel – even if it is a good counsel – of the enemy. That’s what He did in David’s life. Absalom, his son, was an ambitious young man who wanted to be king even while his father, King David, was alive.

So, he provided himself with chariots and horses and had 50 men to run before him. He went to Hebron with 200 men with the intent of making it a place of power to counter the influence of Jerusalem, where David was reigning as king. Absalom had Ahithophel, David’s counsellor, to switch sides.

When all these were told to David, he decided to flee from Jerusalem. He took 600 men with him and crossed over the Brook Kidron to go into the wilderness. We see a desolate David making a prayer in 2 Samuel 15:31, ‘O Lord, I pray, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness.’ There is a God in heavens who hears the faintest prayer of His weakest children. He heard David’s prayer and did just as he had prayed. When two powerful men, once allied with David, gave two different counsels to Absalom, God made him reject Ahithophel’s counsel. In 2 Samuel 17:14 we read: ‘So Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel.” For the Lord had purposed to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the intent that the Lord might bring disaster on Absalom.’ Shortly thereafter, God settled scores with Absalom without David even raising a little finger against him. He is the God who says, vengeance is mine (Deuteronomy 32:35).

Who is your enemy? You may think it is that person who mocks at you, the man who wants to see you fall, the group of people who are conspiring against you. They may be against you but they are not your real enemies. Ephesians 6:12 helps us identify the real enemies that threaten to destabilize a child of God. ‘For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

Christianity has been lulled into complacency by some who preach God as if He were Santa Claus. They don’t see Him as the Righteous Father. against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.’

To confront and overcome these enemies, you need to put on the whole armour of God (Ephesians 6:11, 13).

God has also appointed a time for the annihilation of the devil, that old serpent. In Revelations 20:10, we see the total annihilation of the devil, the beast and the false prophet. ‘And the devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.’

4. The appointed day is the day God will upbraid us for our wickedness Christianity has been lulled into complacency by some who preach God as if He were Santa Claus.

They don’t see Him anymore as the Righteous Father (John 17:25), the One who hates sin but loves the sinner, as the One who sits in unapproachable light. Our false teachings about the God who is righteous and who recompenses and rewards His children and has reserved eternal hellfire and damnation for those who reject Him have made Him into a genteel god, a god after our own desires.

This God whom we serve is a jealous God. He will not tolerate our affections going to worthless idols or gods of our own making. He will not suffer those who profess religion and its accompanying rituals.

He is looking for those who worship Him in spirit and in truth. He is looking for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. He is ready to call the peacemakers, ‘sons of God.’ He is ready to reveal Himself to those who are pure in heart. He is willing to give the kingdom of heaven to those who are the poor in spirit and those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. He is looking for those who will stand in the gap and intercede for others. Do we fit the bill? Do we find ourselves in the list given above? If we don’t or if we aren’t sure, then it is to us that God asks, ‘What will you do in the appointed day? (Hosea 9:5).

The appointed day is also known as the day of the Lord. Zephaniah 1:14-16 has this to say about the day of the Lord: ‘The great day of the Lord is near; it is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the Lord is bitter; there the mighty men shall cry out.

That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of devastation and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick

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darkness, a day of trumpet and alarm against the fortified cities and against the high towers.’

On the day of the Lord, men ‘shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord; their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like refuse.’ On that day, neither silver nor gold shall be able to deliver us.

But the good news is this: ‘For God did not appoint us to wrath but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him’ (1 Thessalonians 5:9).

‘It is appointed for men to die once but after this the judgment’ (Hebrews 9:27). ‘…He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained’ (Acts 17:31). That Man is none other than Jesus Christ, ‘who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation’ (Colossians 1:15).

If you are unsure about your relationship with Jesus Christ, may I invite you to accept Him as your Lord and Saviour today, right now?

There is nobody else who can save us from the day of the Lord, the appointed day. Acts 4:12 says: ‘Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.’

He is just and merciful to those who trust in Him. The way to come to Jesus is only through a penitent heart. A broken heart and a contrite spirit He will not despise (Psalm 51:17). He will have mercy on those who is poor, and of a contrite spirit, and trembles at His Word (Isaiah 66:2). Are you that man? Are you that man whose repentance will make the heavens rejoice? If the Spirit of the Lord has spoken to you through this message and shown you the need to be a new creation, I suggest you come before Him and pour out your heart. Tell him you are a sinner and that you need Him as your Saviour.

‘If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness’ (1 John 1:9).

‘Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new’ (2 Corinthians 5:17).

If you have sincerely confessed your sins and invited Jesus Christ into your heart, you are a new creation in Christ. We welcome you into God’s family. If you require any additional information about how to grow in the Lord and in His Word, please write to us at our address found on page 4. We would be happy to help you by sending you literature that would help you in your spiritual life. May God bless you and make you a blessing to others. Amen.

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OPINION

Stripper-dancing pastor wives and non-judgmental Christianity

BY MICHAEL BROWN I could hear the shock and pain in his voice. He could not believe what he had just seen at a birthday party for a pastor’s wife.

How could this be?

I received a text from this friend during my radio show, so I called him as soon as the show was over.

What he told me brought tears to my eyes.

Please understand that the man calling me was no Christian prude.

He had lived a worldly life before meeting the Lord, and he knew the party scene well.

And he was no uptight, old-fashioned traditionalist, no fun-killing legalist.

He was simply a lover of Jesus who was mortified by the spirit of the world flooding into the church, and in a million years, he would never have believed that the party he attended was for the wife of a respected pastor.

He told me that the pastor functioned as the DJ, playing 30-40 songs over the night. Not one of the songs was Christian, and some of them were downright profane — meaning full of profanity and even celebrating pot and the like. These were the sounds that filled the room.

At one point, the wife of another leader climbed onto a chair, grabbed the ceiling to brace herself, then began to dance like a stripper.

This was at a party for Christian leaders!

But should we be surprised when we hear reports like this?

After all, to speak against sin today is to be “judgmental.”

To call for holiness is to be “legalistic.”

To live differently than the world is to be “religious.”

Yes, this is the putrid spiritual atmosphere we find ourselves in today.

I don’t know this pastor personally, but I do know that he errs on the side of “grace” and “liberty” and prides himself in not being “judgmental.”

And so, as grieved as I was to hear the report, I couldn’t say I was shocked, especially since this pastor openly celebrates his love for carnal entertainment.

You see, it’s one thing to welcome the worst of sinners into our midst, showing them the love of God, introducing them to Jesus, and being patient with them as we grow.

It’s one thing to show mercy to believers who fall, reaching out to them with compassion and gently THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

Do you want to be an imitator of God? I do! If you want to be like Christ, then let us walk in his life-giving, grace-filled light, loving what is good and hating what is evil. That is the life of a disciple of Jesus, and it is life indeed, life to the full. leading them back to restoration.

It’s one thing to preach against legalism, which I define as externally imposed religion, meaning, laws without love, rules without relationship, and standards without a Savior.

And it’s one thing to extol God’s grace, recognizing that He loves on our good days and our bad days and that our relationship with Jesus is not measured by our latest spiritual accomplishment.

But it’s another thing entirely to be polluted by the world in the name of liberty and to exalt the flesh in the name of freedom.

Paul warned about this plainly, writing, “For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” (Galatians 5:13) Peter warned about it as well, writing, “Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God.” (1 Peter 2:16) But there’s something even worse than abusing the freedom we have in Jesus, which, for the record, is freedom from sin not to sin.

It’s the fact that we cannot possibly have intimacy with God’s heart and, at the same time, indulge the flesh so freely. Something very deep is lacking in our relationship with God if we can party like the world

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without shame.

It is impossible to be close to the Father of lights and to love darkness, just as it is impossible to be in a close, intimate relationship with your spouse while living in unrepentant adultery. If you’re faithful to the one, you’ll hate the other.

Take a moment and bathe yourself in these beautiful words from Paul, then go back to the scene of that party, which my friend could barely convey in words, and ask yourself if the two are compatible: “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.

For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.

Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is

found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.” (Ephesians 5:1-12) Do you want to be an imitator of God? I do!

Then let us walk in his life-giving, grace-filled light, loving what is good and hating what is evil.

That is the life of a disciple of Jesus, and it is life indeed, life to the full.

But there’s one more part to this story, and it’s the most heartbreaking part of all: People will come flocking to hear this pastor preach on Sunday, loving his “no condemnation” message, continuing to live in sin and continuing to be comfortable in sin, deceived by this self-deceived leader. They love his message because they love the world.

May we all examine our own lives first, may we pray for this pastor and his family, and may we, as dearly loved children of the Father, “cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.” (2 Corinthians 7:1) (I encourage you not to try to figure out which pastor I’m talking about, as it could easily be one of hundreds, if not thousands. Let’s simply pray for him and examine our own lives.)

TASTY TIMES OF BURMA

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NOVEMBER 2015 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER

ALTER CALL

A church for those believers who don’t do church IN a town where a church has been planted on every corner, Chattanooga’s Net Church is challenging and re-defining the stereotypical description of modern day Christian sanctuaries.

From 9:30 am to 12:00 pm on Sundays, Cleveland’s Carmike Bradley 12 Cinema opens its doors to church-goers of all denominational backgrounds.

The Net Church’s specific goal is to draw in those who have felt isolated or judged by the church and have no desire to attend regular services, following the slogan “Why I Don’t Do Church.”

On a recent Sunday the service was kicked off by a contemporary band leading worship, putting the crowd at ease by performing relatable songs, during which the lead singer broke out into a rap number.

Pastor Ryan May of the Chattanooga branch has led his congregation since 2009. After working as a steel mill industry employee in 1999, May felt a calling to give both non-believers and believers alike a place to feel accepted.

“In that time in my life, as I was frantically looking for a place for my un-churched friends to feel welcome, I couldn't find [one]. If it existed, it didn't exist in enough quantity to make it easy to find; and it broke my heart,” May said. “It created in me this burden to see more churches, more towns, where it was less difficult to fit in.”

Lee Alumnus Sam Kidwell has become a key component in bringing the Net Church’s campus to Bradley County. Since May 2015, Kidwell and his wife, Rebekah, connected and recruited team members, known as the Dream Team, which paved the way for establishing partnerships with BonLife and the Bradley Square mall for church space.

Kidwell and May both lead weekly luncheons called Growth Tracks, which guide potential members through the church’s mission statement and objectives. Participants are provided with a booklet which outlines the process and includes a personality and spiritual gifts test. The Growth Track booklet also describes the Net’s leadership and structural support under the guidance of the Association of Related Churches (ARC) and the organization’s Ministry Leaders and Trustees.

To promote networking within its structure, the Net Church offers semester-based Net groups, various clusters that meet for the purpose of relational and spiritual growth.

“We want to make it as easy as possible to start or join a group. We provide training to our Net group leaders and we believe in empowering people to do the work of the ministry,” Kidwell said. “We also encourage partnering with organizations who are THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

already doing good work. The win for us is not the size of the group, it’s that people are connecting with one another and connecting with Jesus.”

The Net has revitalized the faith of many students such as senior Laine Ansel, who accidentally found herself at a service one Sunday morning.

“One of my friends needed a ride there. I originally said no, but then begrudgingly agreed. But after I got there, and before the service even started, I knew I'd found my church home,” Ansel said. “It’s a group of people living life together, openly wounded and broken but also trying to live in intimate community with one another and their creator.”

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INSIDE INDONESIA

Govt demolishes churches to appease Muslim mobs AUTHORITIES in the Aceh province of Indonesia began tearing down a number of Christian churches on Oct 19 at the demand of hardline Muslims, as religious tensions have risen in the province in recent weeks.

According to Reuters, government workers in the Aceh Singkil district used axes and sledgehammers to dismantle several small Christian churches after many hardline Muslims in the area demanded that at least 10 Christian churches be demolished.

BBC reports that over 200 police officers and military personnel protected government workers as they destroyed the church buildings on the grounds that the structures lacked the proper building permits.

Initially, government authorities had instructed church parishioners to tear down their own buildings, but the congregants refused to do so.

“How can we do it? It is the church we built to pray. It is impossible (for us to take it down),” said PaimaBerutu, a leader of one of the churches, to BBC. “Some of us watched (the demolition) from afar, man and women. It was painful.”

The destruction of the churches comes after a mob of several hundred enraged Muslims burned down three other Christian churches — one Protestant and two Catholic — last month. Christians who attempted to defend their places of worship killed one of the Muslim attackers, and injured three others.

A meeting between local political and religious figures, which included Christian leaders and members of the Indonesian ministry of religious affairs, was held on Oct 18, and an agreement was made to close the church buildings.

“On a day-to-day basis, the communities live in peace with each other and there is no pressure to close down these churches,” said GentiBrutu, the chief of the Siompin village where three churches were torn down. “But what we are told is that it is a matter of permits, so we have to abide by the rules.”

BardanSahidi, a member of the Aceh parliament, reiterated to RT that the church closures are due to a lack of permits.

“All houses of worship, regardless of the religion, need to be in accordance with the laws of Aceh,”Sahidi said after the meeting.

Although the government authorities claim that THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

“On a day-to-day basis, the communities live in peace with each other and there is no pressure to close down these churches,” said GentiBrutu, the chief of the Siompin village where three churches were torn down. “But what we are told is that it is a matter of permits, so we have to abide by the rules.” the issue is a “matter of permits,” PaimaBrutu, a caretaker of a 100-member Protestant church that was closed down, explained that the church had applied numerous times for a permit, but was not granted one.

“Whether or not we agree, we are going ahead with it,” Brutu said. “We have applied for the building permit again and again. So at this point, all we’re asking the government is to be allowed to have that permit.”

The Aceh province is the only province in Indonesia, the most populous Muslim-majority nation, to have officially introduced Shariah law.

Since the passing of Shariah law, which can be used to brutally punish, torture and kill non-Muslims and Muslims who disobey Islamic law, thousands of Christians and non-Muslims have fled from the province.

The hostility toward Christianity in the province is so pervasive that even before the three churches were burned down last month, another church was burned down in August, BBC reports.

Religious tensions are rising in other Indonesian provinces as well, as a mosque was torched in the Christian-majority province of Papua in eastern Indonesia in July.

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NEWS REPORT

Singapore megachurch pastor found guilty of misusing church funds for wife’s career SINGAPORE’S City Harvest Church founder pastor Kong Hee and five other church leaders on trial were found guilty of having misused close to $35 million in donation funds by Judge See KeeOon on Oct 21.

The Straits Times reported that Kong, 51; deputy senior pastor Tan Ye Peng, 42; former CHC fund manager Chew Eng Han, 55; former CHC finance managers Serina Wee, 38; Sharon Tan, 40, and former CHC finance committee member John Lam, 47, have all been found guilty of funnelling more than $35.5 million in church donations to support the popstar career of Kong’ wife, Sun Ho. “Each of them participated and functioned in their own way as crucial cogs in the machinery,” said the judge.

The church leaders were found guilty of sham bond investing through the management company Xtron, which used the money to fund Ho’s career.

“They claim that they believed the Xtron bonds were genuine investments. They believed the Xtron bonds would bring CHC financial return,” the judge continued. “But on my evaluation of the evidence I consider that the prosecution has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that they did not hold that belief.”

The defense had argued that Xtron is a legitimate company handling Ho’s career on its own, but the prosecution presented evidence that CHC leadership controlled the company, and used it as a conduit for money that went into the pop singer’s career.

The CHC leaders face up to 20 years in prison for the crime, though a sentencing date has not yet been announced.

Ho, who wasn’t trialed herself in the case, posted a statement on behalf of the CHC Management Board, noting that Kong and the other leaders are “disappointed” by the outcome.

“As was the case throughout these past three years of court trial, and the earlier two years of investigation, we have placed our faith in God and trust that whatever the outcome, He will use it for our good (Romans 8:28). This protracted season has been extremely difficult, not just for the six, but also for all their families and friends, as well as for our congregation,”Ho wrote.

She thanked followers for the “tremendous outpouring of love and support,” and asked for continued prayers for the CHC leaders who have been found guilty.

Kong had argued that the church supported Ho only through its ‘Crossover’ project, which aimed to spread the Gospel to people around the world Website: www.christianmessenger.in Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com

They were found guilty of sham bond investing through the management company Xtron to fund Ho’s career. through his wife’s music.

Judge See insisted, however, that the “perceived success of Crossover was inflated,” and that millions of church funds went into Xtron, operating under the “unrealistic projection” that Ho’s planned U.S. album could sell more than 200,000 copies.

“It may be arguable that all of them thought they were not acting dishonestly to cause wrongful loss since no permanent loss was intended, but this was premised on their unquestioning trust and belief in Kong Hee and their confidence that the Crossover would succeed,” the judge added of the accused.

“Thus they convinced themselves that it was both morally and legally permissible to temporarily use the money from CHC’s funds when they knew it was not.”

Kong and Ho founded CHC in 1989, leading it to grow into one of Singapore’s largest megachurches, with a membership of close to 25,000 people.

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NOVEMBER 2015 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER

INSIDE AFRICA

How churches in Zimbabwe retain, woo new believers

BY CONELIA MABASA AS economic hardships bite, people are finding solace in religion and since most churches are selffunding, competition for followers has forced leaders to re-strategise, it is not business as usual.

New churches, new ministries and old religious orders are all seeking to reach more people and to boost their numbers.

In the wake of serious competition for followers, some age old institutions have had to change this and that to remain relevant and pacify the restive believer, who is demanding much more than happiness in the after-life.

Take for example, the Catholic Church. At one time the church was totally opposed to the charismatic movement, such that those that subscribed to it gathered in the dead of the night and conducted Mass in hushed tones under a veil of secrecy. Some leaders tried to stifle it in its infancy, but since it answered to the needs of a huge section of the church and it had priests who said they were called to pray and exorcise demons among other things, now it is accepted and acknowledged by the church.

There are people like Sister Briege McKenna OSC, who have been working in the charismatic movement and have testimonies of miracles happening in the Catholic Church, not on a daily basis or as she purposed or wanted, but as the Lord willed. She stands proud among senior priests and fellow sisters as someone who was miraculously healed from rheumatoid arthritis and has been called to strengthen others’ faith through serving, testifying, leading retreats and obeying the Lord.

She has actually written a book, ‘Miracles Do happen: God Can Do the Impossible’ (Briege McKenna with Henry Libersat, 2002). The Catholic Church has managed to keep some of its faithful just by letting them be in the charismatic movement, if they so wish.

Closer home, some churches are wooing people by promising miracles and deliverance. Some are even inviting secular musicians to perform so as to appeal to the youths. Last year in November, Zimdancehall musician, Tocky Vibes performed at Prophetic Healing and Deliverance Ministries’ allnight prayer. Some churches are also offering quick solutions to healing like wrist bands, anointing oil, anointed apples and anointed water, among other stuff that is deemed holy, precious and a gateway to a life free of sickness, discomfort and bad luck.

Yet some are picking scriptures that speak to the hunger for luxury that is inherent in man. These THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

Some churches are wooing people by promising miracles and deliverance.

Some are even inviting secular musicians to perform so as to appeal to the youths. promise instant rewards, including miracle money.

It’s as if one does not need to sweat anymore, if one has enough faith, God will provide.

There are also those that use crusades to evangelise and stimulate worship. Some are also riding on the social media craze, they have Facebook pages, WhatsApp groups, etc.

Others make use of church literature to reach out to the faithful or potential worshippers. What comes to mind is the Rhapsody of Realities, now on app (Christ Embassy), The Watchtower (Jehovah’s Witness) and Our Daily Bread (Our Daily Bread Ministries), among others.

This invaluable literature has worked wonders in many believers’ lives. They motivate, direct, teach and lead daily devotions. They close the gap between the weekly church services. They offer scriptures that draw people to God, answers to questions, good counsel or even dispel some misconceptions and myths. However, the faithful need to be careful to read the Bible itself. Devotion literature guides, but it cannot take the place of the Word.

Some literature might just extoll the virtues of a church at the expense of the body of Christ. We need to be so careful as not to drift or be drowned in the numbers.

Careful also not to follow individuals with spiritual gifts, but to seek God Himself as the scriptures say, “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20 v 3).The Standard

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READ & PASS IT ON After you are done reading The Christian Messenger, will you please pass it on to a friend or a relative? They, too, can be blessed by the messages, testimonies and other faith-edifying content in it.

If you don’t like sharing your copy with others, why don’t you encourage them to subscribe to the magazine? Or, better still why don’t you gift them a subscription?

For details, turn to back wrapper page.

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by Sha gi re fti G ng os a pe Bi l bl e

SE ES N

SION IS

R GE M

THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER

S

M

THIS BOOK HAS BROUGHT HOPE, JOY AND LOVE IN MILLIONS OF LIVES! Wasn’t your life also transformed for the better by the Bible?

Will you now place it in the hands of those who seek the Truth?

GIFT someone a Bible in Hindi or Punjabi today. A copy of the full Bible in Hindi / Punjabi costs Rs.200/Join MESSENGER MISSIONS in taking the Gospel to the unreached people in Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh besides, of course, in Tamil Nadu.

I would like to partner with MESSENGER MISSIONS by gifting 100 Bibles in ________________________(specify the language here) 50 Bibles in ________________________ 25 Bibles in ________________________ 10 Bibles in ________________________ 1 Bible in ________________________ I am enclosing a cheque/DD in favor of MESSENGER MISSIONS for Rs.___________/- as my gift.

I would like to partner with MESSENGER MISSIONS by contributing Rs.5,000 to print 50,000 Gospel tracts in Hindi or Punjabi ( Tick the appropriate box) Rs.5,000 to support a missionary in one State once a year / every month I am enclosing a cheque/DD in favor of MESSENGER MISSIONS for Rs.___________/- as my gift.

To send your contribution through Bank Transfer, Net Banking or Money Order, please check details on Page 21.

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NOVEMBER 2015 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER

CHURCH & COUNSELING

Faith matters when it comes to tackling ‘epidemic of suicide’ ABOUT 7,000 Christian counsellors gathered at the Be Strong National Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, from Sept. 23 to 26 where they discussed the growing “epidemic of suicide” in the church.

“There is only one institution you’ll find in every community around the globe, and it is a place of worship. Faith matters when it comes to addressing mental health. Faith matters when it comes to racial reconciliation, and faith matters when it comes to the epidemic of suicide,” said Dr. Tim Clinton, president of the American Association of Christian Counselors.

Clinton said, “We believe that faith and mental health are indispensable.”

“We understand ourselves and our clients better through the lens of faith, and communities of faith are in a position of being ‘first responders’ to those struggling with mental health; they are often the ‘first line of defense,” he said.

He underscored that faith is often a missing component to address suicide.

Saddleback Church co-founder Kay Warren and other Christian figures said the mental health system in the US is broken.

“The sad fact is the mental health system is broken in the United States. I can’t say that strongly enough.

It is not that people aren’t trying and not that there aren’t some really wonderful, compassionate people in the field of mental health, but the problem is complicated, and most of the attempts to help don’t always help,”” said Warren, as reported by The Huffington Post.

He said, “The Church’s central commitment is to be the hands and feet of Jesus. This should include intentionally coming alongside people living with mental illness and supporting their families. If the Church lives out its calling in this area, its compassionate voice will rise within the community, the nation and the world — extending an unwavering message of hope and acceptance for those affected by mental illness.”

Matthew, a son of Warren and husband Rick, committed suicide in 2013 after years of struggling with mental illness.

“What I want to see happen around suicide prevention is to try to get to people before they get to that place. I want to bring hope to them, to encourage and build their hope before they get to that place where they think ‘I can’t go on and I’m ending it right now.’ What we have learned about suicide is that often, impulsivity meets a lethal means and suicide occurs,” she said. The Christian Post

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SUPPORT OUR MINISTRY

Missions trip to Jammu, Punjab & Himachal: A report BY the grace of God, I was able to tour three states in north India where Messenger Missions is engaged in evangelism and church planting work. From September 19 to 28, I was in Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.

I am delighted to share with you about what the Lord is doing in our mission fields in these states. I praise God for enabling and equipping me to visit our mission fields and encourage Gospel workers and believers with the Word of God. To God be all glory.

Jammu: God helped build a church through us in RS Pura Sector of Jammu & Kashmir five years ago.

The church is growing by God’s grace even amidst threats and pressures exerted on it by people opposed to the Gospel. This time around, we were able to hold a meeting for pastors and evangelists in the church. Fifteen Gospel workers from six districts of the state had come to be part of the meeting. I’ve asked our local pastor in Jammu to hold the pastors’ meeting every month in the church. It was held in October, the pastor later told me over phone.

Punjab: Messenger Missions began its work in Pathankot 18 months ago. Our missionary, a man from Odisha, is staying in Punjab along with his family and ministering God’s Word in Preet Nagar, Prem Nagar, Gulpur, Sarna, Samrala and Simbili.

The local pastor had arranged a baptism service while I was there. Twelve people from Gulpur

village who had earlier accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour came forward to receive baptism on September 25. I was glad to know the village head (sarpanch) and his wife from the village were also among those who received baptism. I praise God because He speaks to the weak and the mighty alike. During my stay there, as Punjab pastor with the new bike. many as four meetings every day was the norm.

On one particular day, from 12 noon to 11 pm, I had to travel to six different places and preach the Word of God. It was a new and challenging experience. God-willing, we will expand our work in Punjab to Amritsar, Sarna, Batala and Gurdaspur.

We are waiting on the Lord to find the right people and the right places to begin the ministry in other areas of the state. Please uphold us in your prayers.

(Continued on Page 25)

HOW TO SEND YOUR OFFERINGS TO OUR MINISTRY You can support this ministry through your sacrificial contributions & donations once a month or every quarter, half-yearly or even once a year.

1. CHEQUE/DD: When you send us a cheque or a DD, Account Name: Messenger Missions please send it in the name of MESSENGER MISSIONS. A/C No: 913020055473409 Or you can send it in the name of MESSENGER IFSC code: UTIB0000345 MISSIONS, A/c No. 913020055473409. If you are Swift Code: AXISINBB016 sending a cheque, please ensure it is crossed (A/c Bank: Axis Bank Payee Only) for added safety.

Branch: Mogappair 2. DIRECT BANK TRANSFER / NET BANKING: Please Branch: 345 use the appropriate and relevant information given in the box to send us your contributions directly through your bank or online banking.

3. MONEY ORDER: Your contributions through money order can be sent to us directly at Messenger Misssions, 20/20, Bharathiar Street, Srinivasa Nagar, Padi, Chennai 600 050.

Please let us know of your money order remittance by phone (044-65145334, 0-7299063345) or email: contact@christianmessenger.in Please send us your cheques and demand draft directly to our office and not to the bank address.

Please tell us how you would like your contribution to be used. Giving us your details such as your full name, complete address, phone number and email ID will help us acknowledge your contribution and send you receipt.

MESSENGER MISSIONS (missions wing of The Christian Messenger) No. 20/20, Bharathiar Street, Srinivasa Nagar, Padi, Chennai 600 050.

Website: www.christianmessenger.in Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com

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NOVEMBER 2015 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER

CROSSWORD HEMA DHANASEELAN

PROVERBS Read the clues given in Across and Down carefully. Look for the right words and fill in the boxes. Give your Bible reference for the words in the relevant areas in Across and Down. You can use a photocopy of the Crossword pages of the magazine to send your responses. Do not write your answers in postcards or draw similar patterns on plain papers to fill your answers. Such attempts will not be considered for the competition. Ed. Last date to receive your answers: November 30, 2015.

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Across: 1. Reliance on the unfaithful in times of trouble (3, 5) 4. Every ________ of God is flawless (4) 6. It is cruel (5) 8. Wisdom well set a ________of grace on your head (7) 10. Do not ________ the poor (7) 12. A prostitute (4, 3) 14. Do not be wise in your ________eyes (3) 15. This is made ready for the day of battle (5) 16. It is a disgrace to any people (3) 19. Pride of the children (7) 20. Wisdom is ________. (7) 24. The one who plots evil (7) 25. The fountain of wisdom is a bubbling ________. (5) 27. A wife of noble character laughs at the days to ________ (4) 28. Dishonest money ________away. (8) Down: 1. Beer is a ________. (7) 2. If you ________ a pit, you will fall into it (3) 3. Choose knowledge rather than this (4) 4. It is not for kings (4) 5. A scoundrel plots evil with ________ in his heart (6) THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

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(______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) (______________) Website: www.christianmessenger.in Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com

(______________) 7. ________ men do not understand justice (4) (______________) 8. They will become poor (8) (______________) 9. The clouds drop the ________ (3) (______________) 11. A wise man has great ________ (5) (______________) 12. Have no fear of sudden ________ (8) (______________) 13. It goes before destruction. (5) (______________) 17. Small, yet wise (3) (______________) 18. Whoever ________ a wicked man incurs abuse (7) (______________) 19. Wisdom raises her voice in the ________ squares (6) (______________) 21. A king’s rage is like the________ of a lion (4) (______________) 22. Even in laughter the heart may ________ (4) (______________) 23. The ________ of the upright will flourish (4) (______________) 26. Whoever loves this will never be rich (3) Send your response to the address below before November 30, 2015.

The Christian Messenger, No. 20/20, Bharathiar Street, Srinivasa Nagar, Chennai 600 050.

Answers to last month’s Crossword Puzzle are on Page 25.

Steps to the Christian life 1. REPENT: Turn around. Change your mind.

Confess your sins. ‘I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.’ (Luke 13:3) 2. RECEIVE HIM: You need the Savior. His name is Jesus Christ. Accept Him. ‘But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name’ (John 1:12) 3. BE ‘BORN AGAIN’: This is what God does for you. Being ‘Born Again’ is a new birth. It’s your spiritual birth. It’s a miracle of spiritual life performed by the Holy Spirit. ‘…who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.’ (John 1:13) 4. REJOICE PUBLICLY: Make known your testimony for Christ to others. ‘If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.’

(Romans 10:9, 10) 5. REQUEST WATER BAPTISM: This is an outward stand you take for the inward change that has happened in you. ‘He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.’ (Mark 16:16) 6. READ THE WORD: The Word is the source of your faith. ‘He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.’

(1 John 5:13) 7. REACH GOD IN PRAYER: Prayer is conversation with God. Life is sustained by union and communion (Ephesians 6:18, James 4:2) ‘Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.’ (1 John 5:14, 15) 8. RESIST THE DEVIL: Temptation is not sin. It is Website: www.christianmessenger.in Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com

yielding to temptation that is sin. ‘That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ’ (1 Peter 1:7) 9. RESTITUTION: Your guilt is gone, your sins are washed. You are a new being. You can convert your influence for good. ‘Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.’ (Luke 19:8) 10. RENDER TO GOD THINGS THAT ARE HIS: Start tithing your income immediately. ‘Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.’ (Malachi 3:8, 10) 11. REGULARLY ATTEND CHURCH / SUNDAY SCHOOL: Associate yourself immediately with God’s people.

Become a church member (Heb 10:25). ‘So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.’ (Luke 4:16) 12. RELATE YOUR EXPERIENCE TO OTHERS: You maintain strength by exercise. ‘Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul. “Therefore you, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: ‘Thus you say, “If our transgressions and our sins lie upon us, and we pine away in them, how can we then live?”’ (Ezekiel 33:9, 10)

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NOVEMBER 2015 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER

BOOKS OF THE BIBLE

ESTHER IF there’s a key message that the book of Esther gives to us, it is this: ‘Step out and act! Don’t wait for others to do what you can do for yourself.’

And what’s it that you can do? You can pray!

That’s exactly what Queen Esther did. Her intervention came at the right time. She believed in divine deliverance and she got what she prayed for!

Deliverance and safety come only from God but Esther did not sit around and wait. It’s a true story, lived and written centuries ago.

The book of Esther is one of the only two books named after women (Ruth is the other).Though God is not specifically mentioned in this book, His presence fills the pages. God is sovereign and works through people.

Author: Most probably Mordecai (9:29). Some have suggested Ezra or Nehemiah because of the style of writing.

Period: Esther’s story begins in 483 BC, 103 years after the captivity of Jews from Jerusalem and 54 years after Zerubbabel led the first group of exiles back to Jerusalem and 25 years before Ezra led the second group of exiles to Jerusalem.

Place written: King’s palace in Shushan, in the Persian capital.

Timeline: First batch of exiles return to Jerusalem – 538 BC Temple reconstruction –begins 536 BC Temple work completed – 515 BC Ahasuerus (Xerxes) becomes King of Persia – 486 BC Esther becomes the queen – 479 BC Haman’s decree to destroy the Jews – 474 BC First feast of Purim – 473 BC Ezra comes to Jerusalem – 458 BC Nehemiah comes to Jerusalem – 445 BC Outline of the book: 1. Esther becomes queen ( 1:1 – 2:23) 2. The Jews are threatened (3:1 – 4:17) 3. Esther intercedes for the Jews ( 5:1 – 8:17) 4. The Jews are delivered ( 9:1 – 10: 3) Key incidents with reference: 1. Queen Vashti is deposed (1) 2. The King chooses Esther ( 2) 3. Haman plans to exterminate the Jews (3) 4. Mordecai asks Esther to help (4) 5. Esther appears before the King (5) 6. The king honours Mordecai (6) 7.The king hangs Haman (7) 8. The king makes a decree for the Jews (8) 9. The Jews triumph over the enemies (9) 10. The Feast of Purim inaugurated (9) 11. Mordecai is given great authority (10) THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

Key characteristics of God: 1. God displays His sovereignty 2. God shows His divine guidance to His people 3. God is in charge of every area of His people’s lives 4. God displays His power in carrying out His will 5. God hates racism 6. God saves us from the evil of this world 7. God delivers us from death 8.

God has a grand design for His people 9.

God prepares places and events ahead 10. God is always in control God – behind the scenes in the book of Esther Divine and indirect References interventions of God 2:17 1. Esther becomes queen 2. Mordecai overhears about the 2:21, 23 death plot and saves the king’s life 3. God’s existence and His power 4:14 over the affairs of men 4. Fasting, a spiritual activity 4:16 connected with prayer 5. Ahasuerus cannot sleep and 6:1 decides to read a history book 6. Ahasuerus reads the exact page 6:2 reminding him of an unpaid reward to Mordecai 7:9, 10 7. Haman’s plan is exactly reversed Key verse : Esther 4:14 “ For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.

Key people: Esther, Mordecai, King Ahasuerus, Haman Key places: King’s palace in Shushan, Persia Christ in Esther: Although the name of God is not mentioned in the book of Esther, it does not mean He isn’t there. But there is a mention about a hero, Mordecai, who in a small measure reflects our Lord Jesus .He is kind, faithful, persecuted, honoured and exalted and these are the foreshadowing of Jesus Christ in this book.

God is always at work. God is always working quietly and patiently throughout our lives. Many of the events that have worked together for good are more than mere coincidences. In challenges, seek to know what God wants you to do. Ask God for His direction and act. God may have placed you where you are “for such a time as this.”

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Website: www.christianmessenger.in Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com

SUPPORT OUR MINISTRY

Missions trip: A report (Continued from Page 21) New bike for our worker: Our local pastor in Pathankot expressed the need for a new motorbike. We prayed with him for the need to be fulfilled. By God’s grace, we bought a new Honda Activa for him. The pastor and his family praise God for hearing their prayers. We are praying that God will help us buy new motorbikes for two other missionaries. Pray along with us as we are hoping that God will perform a miracle in this regard within this year.

Himachal Pradesh: In September, God opened a way for us to baptize three people (two sisters and their brother) of a family in Himachal Pradesh. The siblings are new believers who have come to the Lord as a result of our local pastor’s efforts. I was reminded of Martha, Mary and Lazarus, whom Jesus loved, when I met them. The siblings have another brother who is yet to give his life to the Lord.

Pray for him.

Evangelical work is not easy in Himachal Pradesh. The locals call it devbhoomi (the land of god). You can see only temples and huge idols wherever you look. Himachal Pradesh is also a favorite place of the pilgrims. However, our work continues to be difficult as those opposed to the work of the Lord continue to be vigilant to thwart Gospel outreach. I urge you to pray for the safety of our worker and his family as they go around doing the Lord’s work in the state. Pray that our efforts bear fruit and more people are added into the Lord’s family.

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh): Last month (October), I was in Varanasi for four days. God-willing, we will soon begin our mission field in Varanasi. Two Gospel workers are raring to go; I met them, interviewed them and prayed with them. Pray that God will reveal His plan for Varanasi to us. Beginning missions work in Varanasi was the dream project of the late Mr. Y Thanga Bose, senior evangelist and pioneering church planter. He had shared his vison for Varanasi briefly with me on a couple of occasions in 2013 and 2014. A prayer fellowship has come forward to support the Varanasi missions. They are prayerfully supporting the Varanasi missions project. I covet your prayers for it. Will you pray along with us that in God’s time we will commission a Gospel worker for Varanasi and that He will show us the right person for the project? May God bless you. Amen.

Answers to last month’s Crossword Puzzle Across: Down: 1. Wrath of God (1:18), 5. Gift (5:15), 1. Whole world (3:19), 7. Peace (8:6), 2. Abraham (4:1), 9. Leadership (12:8), 3. Hated (9:13), 10. Knee (14:11), 4. Frustration (8:20), 11. Weak (14:1), 5. Greeks (1:14), 12. Urbanus (16:9), 6. Disappoint (5:5), 14. Debt (13:8), 8. Epaenetus (16:5), 15. Perfect (12:2), 13. Beautiful (10:15), 16. Liar (3:4), 14. Drinking (14:17), 17. Bodies (12:1), 18. Spain (15:24 or 28), 19. Sins (4:7), 19. Sword (8:35), 21. Tracing (11:33), 20. Zeal (10:2), 23. Holiness (6:22), 22. Good (16:19), 25. Leads (2:4) 24. Sea (9:27) Website: www.christianmessenger.in Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com

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THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER is available at the following Christian bookshops: CHENNAI CLS Book Shop, (Park Town), ELS Book Shops, (Doveton, Vepery & Mount Rd.) God is Good, (Choolaimedu) Galilee Literature Paradise, (Ashok Nagar & Ponneri), Hebron Literature Centre, ICSA Book Shop, (Egmore), IVP India Book Room, (Millers Rd.), The Bible House, (Anna Nagar), Word of Christ, (Kilpauk), Word of the Lord, (Koyambedu) Alpha Book Store, (Kumanan Chavadi),

TAMBARAM Eltekon Christian Shop, Hepzibha Bible Centre, Manna Book Centre, Word of Christ Book Shop, Zion Bible Centre, (Pallavaram, Perungudi)

VELLORE ELS Book Shop, (CMC, Vellore) Karunya Bible Centre, (Opp. Eye Hospital, Vellore) Vellore Bible Centre, (Near CMC)

COIMBATORE CLS Book Shop, ELS Book Shops, (Gandhipuram, Town Hall) Goodnews Bible Book Centre, Pages Christian Book Store, (Inside IPA Church)

TRICHY Addan Book Centre, Good News Book Shop, Kirupa Book Centre, Peace Bible Book Centre

TIRUNELVELI Bible Book Club, Eagle Book Centre, Living Voices, Rehoboth Bible Centre

NAGERCOIL R. Rajendran Nadar & Co. (Near Vadasery Junction)

THOOTHUKUDI Eagle Book Centre, Gospel Centre, Jeya Bible Book Centre.

SHILLONG Beautiful Books (Laitumkhrah)

For details, call:

044-65145334

NOVEMBER 2015 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER

LITTLE MESSENGER IDA KIRUBA

BIRDS IN THE SKY Hello kids,one of the beautiful creations of God are the birds. He created them on the fifth day of His creation to fill the sky. God has used birds in the Bible to help man in many ways. He has taught many good things to us by referring to them. There are more than 55 verses in the Bible that talk about birds.

Let us look into the Bible and find them.

1 Steps to find: O • Read the reference from the given clue 2,3 S • Look in the puzzle for the starting letter of the word.

• Look for the word in the verse from the BIBLE • Write the word according to the number in the puzzle • Tear this paper and send it to us 5 7E D 6O

CLUES 1. Leviticus 11:17 2. Matthew 10:29 3. Psalm 104:17 4. 1 kings 17: 4 5. Genesis 8:8 6. Job 30:29 7. Exodus 19:4 8. Job 39:26 9. Deuteronomy 14:13 10. Matthew 23:37

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NAME …………………………………………………. AGE ..…………

CLASS …………………. SCHOOL .....………………………………..

RESIDENCE: ……………………………………..………….……......... ………………………………………………………………...………………. …………………………………………………………………..……………..

CONTACT NUMBER ..………………………………….………………

Answers to last month’s puzzle: 1. Ant, 2. Bees, 3. Flea, 4. Gnat, 5. Locust , 6. Hornet, 7. Lizard, 8. Moth, 9. Spider, 10. Leech.

Send your response to the address below before November 30, 2015.

Contact: The Christian Messenger, No. 20/20, Bharathiar Street, Srinivasa Nagar, Padi, Chennai 600 050.

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Subscribe to our magazine Annual: Rs.240/5 years: Rs.1,200/re;jh tpguq;fSf;F> gpd; ml;iliag; ghh;f;fTk;.

THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w NOVEMBER 2015

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Website: www.christianmessenger.in Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com