I have a map of India on the wall in my office, and I’d love to have 50 rupees for every time someone walks in and says, “I didn’t know India was next to Pakistan or so close to Afghanistan or China…” or whatever.

So I thought a short geography lesson might help us and inspire us as we pray for India today.  As you can see from the map on the right, India is bordered on the west by Pakistan which was partitioned from India in 1947, just prior to India’s independence from Great Britain.

In the extreme northwest in the disputed area of Kashmir, there is also a short border with Afghanistan.  In the North in the Himalayan Mountains, India shares a border with China, Bhutan and Nepal.  More »

“I WILL GIVE YOU BEAUTY TO REPLACE YOUR ASHES. ” (Isaiah 61:3)
Recently  when I saw a person i knew, I thought she looked a lot younger.   But someone said that she probably had face work.  But our heavenly Beautician does something for us that is better.  He pours in us inner beauty and decorates us with a garland and a crown of beauty.

No matter what you have gone through in your life, no matter how much your life feels like a heap of ashes, the promise of God is that He will replace the ashes of your life with a crown of beauty.  Let us note some of the experiences of ashes that we go through: More »

From Ghuna Kumar

“The Lord is with us.  Do not fear….” (Numbers 14:9)

This morning I am encouraged by the following thoughts. I pray that you also will be blessed by reading this.

God Has the Greatest Plan for You

In Exodus 3:8 we read, “He has prepared a good and large land flowing with milk and honey.”  Num 13:1 says, “I am giving to you…”  Joshua and Caleb said, “The land is exceedingly good land.” God has a larger plan and blue print for us.  Let us come out of our nut shell and selfishness to discover His plan and purpose.  It is the highest and most amazing plan. More »

By Ghuna Kumar

“Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand,…” (Jeremiah 18:6)

The Lord blessed me as I pondered over the Potter and the clay. Let me share with you what the Lord meant when He spoke the above-mentioned words to Jeremiah almost 2600 years ago. More »

“I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.  This is good, and pleases God our Savior,  who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:1-4)

I was reminded today of the need to continue praying for peace and protection for our brothers and sisters in India.  While India doesn’t rank near the top of the list of countries with extreme persecution of Christians, believers there do face pockets of trouble ranging from general harassment to outright attacks. More »

“With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God.  I will give glory to Your name forever, for Your love for me is very great.  You have rescued me from the depths of death.”  (Psalm 86:12-13)

A message from Ghuna Kumar:  We have had two major celebrations recently.  One was the 19th anniversary of Gospel Friends in India.  The other was a prayer meeting in preparation for the birth of our daughter’s first baby.
After all these celebrations  I was reminded of the feasts and festivals God ordained for the children of Israel to observe.

More »

This whole chapter of Acts 27 is taken up with an account of Paul’s voyage toward Rome, when he was sent as a prisoner by Festus the governor, upon his appeal to Caesar. On the 14th night the ship was in crisis. They had been hearing the waves hitting the rocks. They were all in danger of even losing their lives.

Both the crew and the soldiers planned to end the lives of all the prisoners in their own style. The crew had lowered the life boat into the water attempting to escape and to abandon the ship. So Paul was in the group of people who would be drowned in water. The soldiers planned to kill all of prisoners including Paul for they were fearful of any of these prisoners might escape and cause endless trouble for them. So Paul faced danger from both crew and the soldiers.

We may not be facing similar dangers but could be facing some situations which are really threatening and alarming. We read that those sailors threw four anchors into the sea in an attempt to steady that ship. But those anchors failed. In the midst of such a crisis Paul had four anchors as well. These anchors steadied him during the storm. Even though that ship was shaken and battered, Paul was able to stand steady and strong.

The Presence of God Was Real

Even in the midst of that raging storm, Paul found that he was not alone. The Lord came to him to minister peace to his heart. (Ver 23-24) . God never leaves us alone and He sends His angels to minister to us.

The Promise of God Was Real

As Paul weathered that long, terrible storm, the Lord came to him with a precious promise. He reminded Paul that he would stand before Caesar, and that all those on the ship were to be spared as well. The promises were :- “THERE SHALL BE NO LOSS OF LIFE (Ver. 22) and THERE SHALL NO LOSS OF HAIR FROM ANYONE’S HEAD” (Ver. 34)   One Dr. Everek R. Storms of Ontario spent a vast amount of time studying the promises of Scripture. He says, “The Holy Scriptures contain a grand total of 8,810 promises and among them 7,487 promises are from God to man. PRAISE THE LORD.

The Providence of God Is Real

Paul wad told by the Lord that this storm was a part of God working out His plan in Paul’s life. At that moment in time, that storm was the safest place in the world for Paul to be! Why? Because he was in the will of the Lord, and God was working in a mighty way in the situation to bring about His will for Paul’s life. The best thing we can do when the storms rage about us is run to Him for refuge and cling to Him until the storm passes ( Psa. 57:1; Isa. 25:4.)

The Performance of God Is Real

What the Lord told Paul and what Paul believed would happen came to pass. Everyone made it safely to the shore. God kept His Word! He spared every life and proved Himself to be as good as His promise. God will get us through our storm and land us safely beyond it. It may look like the boat is going to sink, and the storms of life are going to prevail. But surely the winds will cease to blow, the rains will stop and the stormy clouds get moved off. You will see that God is in control. God will secure us during the storm and He will victoriously deliver us to the safe harbor of His glory.

Prayer

Thank You, Lord, for Your presence, promise, providence and performance in the midst of crisis in my life. Amen

Praises & Prayer Needs

• Praise God for the dedication of Gospel Church at Pallipet on 4th Aug. Praise God for enabling grace to baptize 24 people at Pallipet when the church was dedicated.  And also we adopted the orphan girl and named her ESTHER.
• Thank God for His moving spirit at St. Mark’s church at Odankudi last Sunday. Several hundreds stood making commitments to the Lord.
• Thank God that the pastors retreat at Kovilpatti went on with great decisions. Over 75 pastors were blessed.
• The Lord was glorified in the 61st Birth day celebrations. It was celebrated as Founder’s Day at Mount Zion.
• Pray for the para medical students. We want them to know our Saviour deeply.
• Pray for our Home boys and girls that they may grow spiritually.
• Our Bible college students namely Mary and Thomas are blessed with a boy baby. Please pray for her health. She is very weak.

My Birthday Confessions

I AM YOUR’S (PS.119:94)
I AM YOUR SERVANT (PS. 116:16)
I AM NOTHING (2 COR 12:11
I AM A FRIEND TO ANYONE WHO FEARS YOU (PS 119:63)
Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, He graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.   I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. (Eph. 3:8-9)

David wrote the Psalm 13 when he was very sad and depressed.  He was feeling heavy inside.  He thought God had left him.

David lingered around four questions :- How long, O LORD?  Will You forget me forever?  How long will You hide Your face from me?   How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day?   How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? More »

A recent discovery of buried treasure in a Hindu temple in the south of India is causing quite a stir.  The incredible stash of gold coins, gold statues, diamonds and precious stones is still being inventoried, but reports are that the final tally of this treasure’s value will easily be in the tens of billions of dollars.

Now the question becomes:  What’s to be done with all that wealth? More »

A message from Ghuna Kumar:

“Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified.  He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him.” - Mark 16:6

The empty tomb witnesses even today that Jesus Christ is a risen Lord and Savior.  A few years back Jaya and I had the privilege of sitting inside this empty tomb.  It was indeed a great experience.  And this Easter I am reminded again that the resurrection power of Jesus Christ brought changes in the lives of people who witnessed the risen Lord. More »