Ramesh C. Reddy
Editor in Chief
Hi everyone :)
May the Lord Jesus empower you and give you endurance now and forever even as you weep for those that do not know our Lord and Personal Savior Jesus Christ!
Quiet Times (Psalm 131 and Philippians 3:17-18)
“For, as I have told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. (Philippians 3:18-19)
What stuck out to me is that Paul writes these verses with tears.
I asked myself why does Paul write with tears in his eyes?
Many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.
How do people live as enemies of the cross of Christ?
I saw important implications for my own life.
I found it so interesting that Paul had tears in his eyes not because people were living as his enemies but because people were living as enemies of Christ. That was so significant for me to realize that Paul wept because others were not following Jesus. He wanted people to follow Jesus so badly and not let their destiny be destruction, their god be their stomach, and their glory be shame because their mind was on earthly things.
As a believer in Christ, there is nothing wrong weeping for those that do not know Jesus and proclaiming Jesus Christ. It should be so important for me to tell others that they should not allow destruction to be their destiny, their stomach to be their god, and their shame to be their glory as they focus on earthly things.
I ask you now dear friends, when are your tears shed?
Weeping for those that do not show Jesus shows how much we love Jesus that we cannot stand others not knowing Jesus. We cry because we see others going the pathway of destruction because they are enemies of Jesus Christ.
The Lord Jesus has called us to such a time as this to reach out to others. When we see our friends engaging in tarot card readings, etc and we do not do anything to help them we are sending a implicit message that it is ok for them to be enemies of Christ. That is so wrong and I have been guilty of that just yesterday.
I hope you don’t follow in the same mistake I have done. Yesterday was Halloween and I wanted to so badly reach out to others with the love of Christ. When the Marketplace where I work at had Tarot Card readings, I should have set up my own table to read poetry about Satan’s tricks and Jesus’ treat but I did not do that. I sadly leaned on my own understanding and was giving people fun up front by hosting silly games.
Just dressing as a priest with a cross on me and telling others to have a blessed day did not do much as it would have if I had also given them a poem and asked the Lord to use that to minister to them.
Sadly, I let the classic reasoning, “they may not be interested so why bother and make them uncomfortable”. I should have at least tried but I did not.
So, yesterday night I felt so miserable at home including this morning because I had opportunities to reach out to students who were dabbling in the occult, etc but I did not. I was miserable because I did not take the opportunity to reach out to those who acted as enemies of Christ by their actions. For a lot tarot card readings may seem fun but Lord reminds us of the dangers of engaging in anything that has Satan's approval.
I have prayed to the Lord and hoped I would get a second opportunity to reach out to all those I missed reaching out to on Halloween day and night. I kept reliving flashbacks of when I could have done my part. But the Lord in His grace kept reminding me to put the past behind and move forward. So, I forced myself to forget the past and have my devotional this morning w/o dwelling in my misery. I am so glad for the Quiet Time I had because the Lord has given me ideas on how I could reach out to others.
Friend, I do not know if you weep for others who do not know Jesus but there is nothing wrong having tears for those who are lost. On the contrary, as we seek the Lord in our tears, it will move us to action to do our part and leave the results in the Lord’s hands.
I am reminded that it is not up to us to reason whether they will listen or not, but sow the seed and leave the results in the Lord’s Helping Hands.
May you feel for those that you see as enemies of the Lord Jesus Christ to the point that you cannot help move to action to let them see it is not worth it to be an enemy of Jesus Christ when Jesus wants to be their best friend! Amen!
Tears Engage Action Remembering Savior! (T.E.A.R.S)/”When are your tears shed?”
Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for being our friend. Lord, there are so many lost that I know personally. They do not know you and are living on their own. They need your help so please help them Jesus. You know what they have turned to and where their minds are focused. I pray you would use us to reach out to them for you tell us to love our enemies. I thank you Lord that you do not ask us to do anything you won’t do. Thank you for loving your enemies. Thank you for desiring to reach out to them. I give myself to you Lord and ask you to help me reach out to others. I am so sorry for using reasons not to reach out. Lord, yesterday so many people stood in line for tarot card readings and looked to the cards for their future without looking to you who know their future. Please forgive them Lord and forgive me for not standing up to what was happening and doing my part. Holy Father please give us opportunities to reach out as we seek you. Thank you Jesus for hearing us and answering us! In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!
Love in Christ,
Ramesh
P.S. Check out the ZanyCrossword puzzle I created for you all.
It is interactive which means you can solve it online.
Give us your feedback if you agree or disagree