Living a fulfilling life as a Lean Christian in a Fat World ©

The book of Exodus amazes me every time I read it.  It is an awesome place to see the mercies of God being exhibited on a bunch of self centered & rebellious people.  The verse in   Exodus 32:4  seems like an epitome of Israel ’s rebellion against God., " He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, "These are your gods, O Israel , who brought you up out of Egypt ."    We see that God has just delivered millions of Israelites from their 400 years of bondage, made them cross the Red Sea without a single boat, destroyed all their enemies, gave them food to eat and water to drink in the middle of the dry desert and finally seventy elders of Israel went up to the Mount of Sinai and “ saw God ” and “ ate and drank ” with God ( Exodus 24 ).  Now these people who have witnessed, seen and experienced the power of the living God are so quick to make up an idol, an...

The world we live in teaches us that if we have to be successful, we have to take care of our needs first, no matter what the cost. Other’s needs are not important for us. Does man get happiness when he or she considers their needs first? As a matter of fact, research tells us the opposite. According to Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, one thing surpasses all the rest in terms of importance: "The clearest message that we get from this 75-year study is this: Good relationships keep us happier and healthier. Period." Good relationships cannot happen, when we are too focused on self, it happens when we begin to consider others first, give them time and be there for them, so that we can develop a good lifelong relationship. There is a Chinese saying that goes: “If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lif...

About two weeks ago at least a billion+ people across the globe celebrated Easter. Wishes were sent through Facebook, WhatsApp, emails, twitter and phone calls were made to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ. But today everyone has moved on with their life, the celebration is over and many have forgotten that, “Christ is risen!”   A question that we may ask, is Easter to be celebrated just one day in a year? Before we answer that question, let me share about a journey that God took me over the past 3-4 years. About three years ago, I came to a point in life where my life came to a standstill, when every area of my life was negatively affected by other people’s actions and behaviors - my work, my family, my friends, my activity at church & ministry and my own self esteem. It seemed like I was in the middle of a perfect storm. I had done nothing wrong to be in it, nor could I do anything to get out of it. In midst of that I started asking - When will this end? What d...

Many years ago when my son Jacob was young he was trying to ask permission to do something that was not allowed in our house.   He tried to by-pass me by asking his mom for permission. I recognized his sly trick.   I asked him to come close to me, but he would not come.   I persisted, but he continued to stay away from me.   He knew that he had asked the wrong question and now he was scared.   He thought I would punish him.   I called him again and promised that I was not going to spank him. I just wanted him to be close to me, so that I could explain why I had put that rule in our house.   Finally, after some persistence, Jacob took the courage to move forward and come close to me. I explained the reason for the rule and he agreed to do the right thing.   I know that he did not fully understand the reason, but my love for him, made him do the right thing. At that moment all his fear vanished, since I was able to hug him and make him fe...

Trouble, trouble, trouble, everywhere where will I find peace and hope!!!! If we are living on this earth, our life is filled with circumstances that many times make us lose hope with life. Some time ago, I know of a friend who lost her house & husband due to a big fire in her home. She survived with her son and daughter, who were not in the house. I am sure you too can relate some challenging circumstance like this? What can we do? Should we stay miserable, depressed or lose faith in God?      In Genesis 35:18 there is a story of Rachel, who has a terrible childbirth, where “As she breathed her last—for she was dying—she named her son Ben-Oni . But his father named him Benjamin. ” Rachel in her misery named her son Ben-Oni which meant “son of my trouble.” Can you guess the son’s future? If he had grown up with that name, he would feel terrible. He would always feel responsible for his mother’s death. All his friends and family would ridicule him for ...

Last week, Dr. Larry Nassar from Michigan State University (MSU) was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison for sexual abuse of more than 150 athletes (including Gabby Douglas and McKayla Maroney, who won gold medal for USA in the Olympics). One of the 150 was one of my mentor’s daughter and listening to her testimony broke my heart. I could not come around to listen to others, since the pain was too much for me to handle.  Many of these girls/women were so broken that they had a tough time forgiving Larry for his crimes and the injustice they faced from all the authorities. As a man, I don’t think I or many others can fully comprehend the pain and suffering that these women went through or continue to struggle to find solace. All we can do is simply pray for these young women so that they can find hope and healing. Their life is ahead of them and God will bring them healing. Jesus assures us in, Matt 5:4 (ESV) “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” ...

Mark 14:71-72  Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this Man of whom you speak!” A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And when he thought about it, he wept. After Jesus was arrested and taken to the Chief priests Peter, Jesus's key disciple, denies knowing his master Jesus three times, with whom he had spent the last 3 years of his life. His denial came as a fulfillment of Jesus’ words mentioned earlier, “ before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times ”. As I read these verses, I wonder why Peter did not acknowledge knowing Jesus the first time, then the second time, and finally the third time.  I presume Peter wanted to protect his own life, so betrayed his master. I believe Peter failed to recognize his selfish & sinful nature until the rooster crowed a second time. Isn't that tragic? So many times, j...