Bru Christian Fellowship

23/10/2013

The troubles of my heart are enlarged; bring me out of my distresses (Psalm 25:17).
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Unlike our day-to-day emotions which are the product of our day-to-day thought life, emotional baggage from the past is always there. Years of exposure and experience in life have etched grooves in our memory banks which are triggered by current events.

For example, if your kind, loving grandfather was named Bill, you probably have a favorable emotional reaction to other people named Bill. But if the school bully was named Bill, your initial reaction to the Bills in your life is probably negative. If your spouse suggests, "Let's name our first child Bill," you might even react, "Over my dead body!"

I call these long-term emotions, which lurk beneath the surface, primary emotions. The intensity of your primary emotions is determined by your previous life history. The more traumatic your experience, the more intense will be your primary emotion. Many of these primary emotions will lie dormant and have very little effect on your life until somethings comes along to trigger them. Have you ever brought up a topic of conversation which upset someone and sent him storming out of the room? "What set him off?" you wondered. He was "set off" because a bad experience in his past was triggered by your topic. The trigger is any present event which he associates with the past conflict.

Most people try to control their primary emotions by avoiding the people or events which trigger them. But you can't isolate yourself completely from everything which may set off a response. You are bound to see something on TV or hear something in a conversation which will bring to mind your unpleasant experience. You must learn how to resolve previous conflicts or the emotional baggage will accumulate and the past will control your life.

During the next few days we will consider ways to resolve our emotional baggage from the past.
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Lord, I don't want to be controlled by past events. Show me how I can resolve these issues so I can walk in freedom today.

18/10/2013

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you (John 14:27).
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Peace on earth--that's what everybody wants. But nobody can guarantee external peace because nobody can control other people or circumstances. Nations sign and break peace treaties with frightening regularity. Couples lament that there would be peace in their home "if only he/she would shape up." No one can guarantee peace at home or on the job site. However, we should always strive to be peacemakers. Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matthew 5:9). Paul instructed, "If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men" (Romans 12:18).

But let's face it: Peace with others isn't always not possible, because peace doesn't just depend on us. Peace on earth is what we want; peace with God is what we have; the peace of God is what we need.

Peace with God is something you already have (Romans 5:1). It's not something you strive for it; it's something you received when you were born again. The Prince of peace reconciled you to God by shedding His own blood.

The peace of God is something you need to appropriate daily in your inner world in the midst of the storms which rage in the external world (John 14:27). There are a lot of things that can disrupt your external world because you can't control all your circumstances and relationships. But you can control the inner world of your thoughts by allowing the peace of Christ to rule in your heart on a daily basis (Colossians 3:15). There may be chaos all around you, but God is bigger than any storm. I keep a little plaque on my desk which reminds me: "Nothing will happen to me today that God and I cannot resolve."

The peace of Christ will rule in your heart when you "let the word of Christ richly dwell within you" (Colossians 3:16). And when you turn to Him in prayer, " the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus"(Philippians 4:7).

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Prince of peace, rule in my heart today. Give me your peace and make me a peacemaker in all my relationships.

16/10/2013

The lust of the flesh....is not from the Father, but is from the world(1 John 2:16).
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Satan first approached Eve through the channel of the lust of the flesh. He planted a doubt in her mind about the fruit of the tree when he said: "Has God said, 'You shall not eat from any tree of the garden'?" (Genesis 3:1). Eve answered, "God has said, ' You shall not eat from it or touch it" (verse 3). But Satan had piqued her appetite for the forbidden fruit, and she "saw that the tree was good for food" (verse 6). Yielding to the lust of the flesh contributed to Adam and Eve's downfall.

Satan also challenged Jesus through the channel of the lust of the flesh. Our Lord had been fasting for 40 days when Satan tempted Him in the wilderness at the point of His apparent vulnerability: "If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread" (Matthew 3:4). Satan is not omniscient, but he's not blind either. He learn about Jesus apparent vulnerability to physical temptation by watching Him go without food for 40 days. He's watching you too, looking for soft spots of vulnerability in your appetites for food, rest, comfort and s*x. Temptation is greater when hunger, fatigue, and loneliness are acute.

The temptation of the lust of the flesh is designed to draw us away from the will of God to serve the flesh(Galatians 5:16,17). When Satan tempts you through the channel of the lust of the flesh, he will invite you to fulfill your needs in ways that are outside the boundary of God's will. Whenever you fell enticed to meet a legitimate need by acting independently of God, you are being tempted through the lust of the flesh.

When you resist the temptations of the lust of the flesh, you are declaring your dependence on God for your needs. As such you are remaining "in the vine,"tapping into the resources Jesus referred to in John 15:5. But when you yield to temptation in this area your fruitfulness as a Christian will suffer, because apart from Christ you can do nothing.

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You are strong, fruitful vine, Lord, and I will not wither as long as I remain in You. Strengthen me today to resist the temptation to meet my needs apart from you.

15/10/2013

"When you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition, as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words" (Matthew 6:7).

Jesus taught that Christian practices should be consistent with the inward condition of the heart. Holding to external practices which no longer correlate with the heart is repugnant to God.Jesus railed against praying in vain repetitions and putting on a gloomy face while fasting. Consistency cries for an affirmative answer to the question, "Is it real?" The Christian community searches for truth while the world searches for reality. These are large, overlapping circles, but i'm convinced that we must be real in order to be right. Change is most needed when Christian sit stoically week after week reciting endless creeds in utter hypocrisy.
Tragically, those who are coming to a church simply to fulfill a religious obligation are the most resistant to change. They have resisted the need to change under the instruction of the Word and are in a state of carnality. They are not coming to the changeless Christ and saying, "Change me so I may be like You." Time-honored faith and long-established practices often become intertwined in their thinking. When you advocate a different practice, they think you are tinkering with their faith!
Paradoxically, the ones who have a real Christian experience are the ones who are free to change their Christian practices. They are committed to the substance of their faith, not the form. Form always follows function, but people have a tendency to fixate on the form.
Organisational renewal will not bring spiritual renewal. When the spiritual tide is out, every little tadpole want his own little tide pool to swim in. When the spiritual tide is in, the fish swim in one big ocean where someone is synchronizing every move. When the Holy Spirit is leading almost any organization will work. But when He isn't, it doesn't matter the program and organization is, it won't work.

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Lord, I will not rest my faith on my Christian practice, but I will base my faith and practice on the truth of Your Word.

24/08/2013

13/07/2013

Ecclesiastes 11:9
Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.

27/03/2013

BCF-SHILLONG ADVENT CHRISTMAS ,2012

23/02/2013

'And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,with all your soul,with all your mind,and with all your strength. This is the first Commanment.
"And the second,like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself'. There is no other commanment greater than these." (Mark 12:30-31)

04/02/2013

THE ISSUE OF CHRISTIANS AND POLITICS.

And if Christians will do the same in politics, they will sway the
destinies of nations, without involving themselves at all in the base
and corrupting strife of parties. Only let Christians generally
determine to vote for no man for any office, that is not an honest man and a man of pure morals, and let it be known that Christians are united in this, whatever may be their difference in political
sentiments, and no man would be put up who is not such a character. In three years it would be talked about in taverns and published in newspapers, when any man is set up as a candidate for office, “What a good man he is, how moral, how pious!” and the like. And any political party would no more set up a known Sabbath-breaker, or a gambler, or a profane swearer, or a whoremonger, or a rum-seller, as their candidate for office, than they would set up the devil himself for president. The carnal policy of many professors, who undertake to correct politics by such means as wicked men employ, and who are determined to vote with a party, let the candidate be ever so profligate, is all wrong–wrong in principle, contrary to philosophy and common sense, and ruinous to the best interests of mankind. The dishonesty of the church is cursing the world. I am not going to preach a political sermon, I assure you. But I want to show you, that if you mean in impress men favorably to your religion by your lives, you must be honest, strictly honest, in business, politics, and every thing you do. What do you suppose those ungodly politicians, who know themselves to be playing a dishonest game in carrying an election, think of your religion when they see you uniting with them? They know you are a hypocrite!-Charles Finney

29/01/2013

Eight Reasons We Preach

1. We preach because God is a God who speaks; therefore we have something to say.

2. We preach as an act of service to others.

3. We preach because the Gospel is thrillingly good news.

4. We preach because people need to hear the Gospel.

5. We preach to build God’s kingdom.

6. We preach to equip others for ministry.

7. We preach because we can’t help but speak of Someone so wonderful.

8. We preach because we care about the people to whom we preach.

05/12/2012

The Reason for Hope

Parents must teach their children the difference between our culture’s view of hope and the hope we have in Christ. Hope is not mere optimism or wishful thinking; it’s an essential part of our faith. When we hope in the Lord, as mentioned 23 times in the Psalms, the following benefits await us.

Hope in the Lord gives us strength. Our culture teaches us to have self-confidence, but believers are to place their confidence in the Lord. When we hope in Him, we find the confidence and strength to face any challenge that comes our way.

Hope in the Lord teaches us patience. Society encourages us to solve our own problems. But when we face an impossible or hopeless situation, we must learn to wait patiently on the Lord. We do not need to be anxious or worried. We can find peace in God’s unfailing love for us.

Hope in the Lord brings encouragement. You know that feeling you get at the end of a long week? The anticipation of the weekend lifts your spirits. Now think about stretching that weekend out for eternity. We can find encouragement and joy amid life’s struggles because we know we will live forever with Jesus. That is why we are told to anticipate His glorious return (Titus 2:13).

23/11/2012

Ecclesiastes 12:1 -3 “Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, ‘Life is not pleasant anymore.’ Remember him before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is dim to your old eyes, and rain clouds continually darken your sky. Remember him before your legs—the guards of your house—start to tremble; and before your shoulders—the strong men—stoop. Remember him before your teeth—your few remaining servants—stop grinding; and before your eyes—the women looking through the windows—see dimly.” (NLT)