Yearning like Miraclin?

“Ammaaa…” were the familiar cries that I heard this morning coming from my neighbour’s house who live opposite to ours. Immediately I recognized the voice to be that of the sweet little girl whose life resounds her name – Miraclin!

Her mother was leaving for school, leaving little Miraclin home with her father and brother and that was the reason for her cry. From my home I could see her, standing behind the mesh door, her hands on the door, occasionally tapping it and crying for her mother. As her father calls her, she would go back, only to return in a moment to stand at the door trying to see if her mother was back.

In a while I could hear her cry again and I could hear her father leaving the house with instructions to his son to take care of Miraclin. As in every home, offering of different toys and amusement could only satisfy her for sometime. Though her cries subdued in a while, her occasional cries stopped only when her parents returned back.

As I came back and sat in my room I was thinking about every man’s inner cry like that of Miraclin. Even as nothing could satisfy Miraclin except being with her parents and being loved by them, nothing else can satisfy us, except from being in a relationship with God. All that we seek to satisfy us – movies, relationships, books, travelling places, nothing can give us complete satisfaction. We would still be living with that vacuum in our hearts.

Often we try to pacify those “cries” by offering it with variety of things to get pleasure, some legitimate and others illegitimate. Ironically, when I check the virtual dictionary in my computer, WordWeb, for the definition of ‘pleasure’ it says, “A fundamental feeling that is hard to define but that people desire to experience”! Only a relationship with God can satisfy our inner yearnings and give meaning and purpose to our life.

After I think about this I return to continue reading Ravi Zacharias’ book “Has Christianity Failed You?” and I turn to the Authors Interview at the end of the book and amazingly I find Ravi talking in these lines answering a question,

You’re speaking of religion in terms of an inviting and intimate relationship with God rather than a performance. The relationship is essential in this question, is it not?

Ravi: ….The older I get, the more I learn by observing children—and they don’t even have to be your own children in order to make these observations. I may be sitting in a restaurant watching a parent-child interaction and notice the child taking advantage of the parent. Or I may go to a graduation ceremony. When a student is speaking, you can easily identify the parents. They are wearing the biggest smiles in the room. We see ourselves in children and in observing parent-child relationships. When I was struggling with my studies as a boy, my mother’s delight when I did well was part of my own reward. The thrill of doing well was not just in receiving a good mark but in going home and showing my grade to my mom. Her pleasure in my achievement was the affirmation I needed. So I think my relationship with God is not by any stretch of the imagination a performance for him. (Courtesy: HAS CHRISTIANITY FAILED YOU?)

It is not only that only a relationship with the living God matters, it is not a call to perform, but to please. It is a relationship of love that we enjoy with God.

“We love Him because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19 NKJV)

“God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8 NKJV)

Draw me nearer, nearer blessed Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died;
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessed Lord,
To Thy precious, bleeding side.

Oh, the pure delight of a single hour
That before Thy throne I spend,
When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God
I commune as friend with friend!

---

Technorati Tags: Inner Cry,Heart Cry,Inner Vaccuum,Emptiness,Relationship with God

When I am Alone

Apart from our time with our friends and families, at our schools and workplaces, in professional and social circles, we have our times alone. I remember a few of them which I am going to narrate here and I am sure you would have had such similar experiences.

I was very new to the campus where I was working as a teacher at the English School and as a warden at the school’s boys hostel. That was my first summer in Bihar and since it had been only a few months of my joining at the organization, I did not have the provision for annual vacation and so had to spend the vacation at the campus. Those were days, to my surprise, when the campus had become empty and I was the sole soul at one end of the campus and was all alone in that big hostel surrounded by empty rooms and deserted floors.

Being alone brought with it this very strange fear within me that I barely slept through the entire vacation, peacefully. The strange stories and rumours of demons strangling the staff and the students, added fuel to the fire of my fear, that I startled at every slight sound that came from the creaking doors and the croaking frogs. I became more prayerful that summer than ever before! If you would ask me to describe this whole episode of being alone I would sum it up as “fearsome”.

This happened when I was very small, when I was in 4th or 5th std. I had gone with my parents and younger sister to a pilgrimage centre and were returning back. We alighted from the bus at the Trichy bus stand and we had to take an auto to go home. It had crossed midnight. I was very sleepy. We all went to answer the nature’s call in the bus terminus’ wash room. I had come out before others and came to the spot where we alighted from the bus and to my surprise found no one. Until now I do not know how this thought had come into my mind; I felt either I had missed the spot or that my parents & sister had left! I felt so lonely in that bus terminus. Not wanting to stay there, immediately I started finding my way to home, which was around 10 kms away. In the middle of the night tracing the path in my mind, I started walking out of the terminus, came to the junction near Hotel Aristo, took the road to the bridge-over-railway line and crossing Railway Colony, Crawford and the railway crossing, I reached my home in Bharathipuram.

Though I was fearful walking alone in the middle of the night, all the more I was haunted by the thoughts of why would my parents leave me and go! Only after I reached home, did I find it locked and came to know later that my parents had searched for me everywhere, informed the bus terminus police, announced over the P.A. System and came back fearing that I might have been kidnapped!

I would call the experience that night walking all alone finding my way home as “dubious”.

I had gone to my hometown owing to my sickness. I was discharged from the hospital after four months and I was back home. Though still I had occasional bouts of pain in my abdomen, the pain that that night caused was unbearable. The peace-treaty between my parents had come to an end and they quarrelled with each other and all my efforts to pacify them fell into deaf ears and unheeding hearts. And I was left heart-broken. I started the motorcycle and left the house and drove through the city’s highway in that late night and as it was raining parked the bike outside a closed shop and sat on the pavement. Though the rain waters were concealing my tears, the pain in my heart could neither be concealed nor consoled. I sat through that entire night, alone, in the rain, thinking that all my efforts and prayers to bring peace in my family, between my parents had come to a hopeless end.

If I were asked to brief this incident of being alone in one word I would call it “painful”.

Let me share an interesting moment that I spent alone. I still remember the day when I as a kid I was alone at home and I started experimenting making mixed fruit juice in the mixer grinder. Except for a few drops of juice nothing came out of the nozzle, as the bananas that I dropped first jammed the mixer! It was “alone & experimenting”.

At certain situations, being alone brings in along with it shame, guilt, cornered and lot more negatives too.

Though I have also had a few other happier, interesting, intriguing, moments alone, the best of all my lone times, were and are when I am with God, in prayer. The time that I spend in worshipping my Creator, Comforter, the Christ. It is through these times that I spend alone with God that strengthens me to face my fears, to live happily through seemingly hopeless situations, gaining strength from His grace.

Being alone with God, in prayer and in reading & meditating the Bible, gives the strength to stand strong in the storms of life, the grace to go ahead in life, the confidence to cheer up amidst collapses, to hope in spite of hopelessness, to come out of causeless concerns, and produces Christ-like character in us!

I remembering someone saying this, “You are who you are when you are alone”. If we want our times alone to be meaningful, purposeful, grace-full, we need to be alone with God! And when you are alone with God you know that you are never alone!!

“The Lord God has given Me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him who is weary. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to hear as the learned.” (Isaiah 50:4 NKJV)

No, never alone,
No, never alone,
He promised never to leave me,
  Never to leave me alone;

The world’s fierce winds are blowing,
  Temptations are sharp and keen;
I feel a peace in knowing
  My Savior stands between;
He stands to shield me from danger,
  When earthly friends are gone,
He promised never to leave me,
  Never to leave me alone.

(Source: No Never Alone)

---

Technorati Tags: alone,lonely,fearful,solitary,solitude,memoirs,prayer,alone with God

Counting the least as Crucial

This morning one of my colleagues gave me a booklet which contained the story of a church.

This booklet beautifully tells the history of that church and its current condition. As a writer and editor I was fascinated at its presentation styles, choice of words, the paper, the print quality... I got so much absorbed into it.

I was turning over and pouring over the pages with the intent to know about the church and as well to learn from its presentation styles. But God had intended something more beautiful and a needed truth for me to learn.

I was surprised to find a few ministries listed in its various ministries list – Security, Ushers, etc.!

Though I have browsed through many brochures and information booklets of worldwide ministries, this is the first time that I find “security” “ushers” being mentioned in the ministerial list. Though everywhere the help of the security people, the ushers are taken, seldom or never they are counted as part of the “main ministerial team”.

I started pondering upon the reason in the Indian context.

One, the caste system has played a major role in segregating works for different caste people; wherein one is to do only the job that which is prescribed for his caste members. This is enforced much upon menial labours. Only a particular caste people were meant to sweep and clean the toilets and so on.

Second, when someone belonging to a higher caste would sweep or do some menial work, even occasionally, he is considered as a mahan (great person)!

This influence is seen in the Indian Christianity and ministries too. Either it be recognition in a ministry or classification of ministries, they are based only upon those works that are considered “big”. We only write, propagate, publicize and acknowledge those who “preach”, “lead worship”, “play music”, “write books”, “direct films”, “administrate” and the like.  There is a need for a paradigm shift in our thinking and approach to ministries in this regard. We need to start acknowledging, accepting and accrediting the works of menial labourers and everyone as crucial and integral part of ministry. People working in the Kitchens, Construction sites, Cleaning, Electrical jobs, Driving vehicles, etc. all are important.

After I read that information booklet and was pondering upon it, I receive a PPT from a friend with these beautiful words -

“... after some months at the faculty of medicine, the professor gave us a test. Being a good student, I quickly answered all the questions… all, but the last: “What is the baptism name of the maid of our institute?

I handed over my test paper, leaving the last question unanswered. Just before the lesson ended, another student inquired if the last question would be marked. “Certainly!", the professor replied. “You will meet many people in your life. All of them will have some degree of importance.

They will deserve your attention, even if it is a simple smile or a simple hello".
I never forgot this lesson… and went on to learn that the baptism name of our maid was Marianna.”

We need to count the least as crucial. Count everyone as Crucial!

“man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7 NKJV)

And when we start valuing people for who they are, we will see the real revival. This revolution has the potential for revival – a bottom up, though! Because everyone will be valued and this in turn will make them feel very much part and parcel of the ministry – its success and failure. They will wholeheartedly involve and will play their part well, realizing that their contribution counts! For People Count!

“those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary. And those members of the body which we think to be less honourable, on these we bestow greater honour… And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honoured, all the members rejoice with it.” (1 Corinthians 12:22,23,26 NKJV)

---

Technorati Tags: Least is important,People Count,All are important,Valuing everyone

வாலிபனின் ஜெபம்–5 (Youth Prayer)

மென்மையானவரே உம் மெல்லிய சத்தத்திற்கு செவிக் கொடுக்கவில்லையே

பரிசுத்தமானவரே உம் பரிசுத்த அழைப்பில் பங்கு கொள்ளவில்லையே

 

மகிமையின் தேவனே என் இருதயத்தை மாசுப் படுத்தி விட்டேனே

பரிசுத்த ஆவியே உம்மை நான் துக்கப்படுத்தி விட்டேனே

 

மன்னவனே என் மனதை தீய பாவ ஆளுகைக்கு உட்படுத்தினேனே

பலியானவரே என் பாவச் செயலால் உம் பலியை வீணாக்கினேனே

 

மரித்துயிர்த்தெழுந்தவரே என் மனதை சாவானவைகளில் செலுத்திவிட்டேனே

பாதாளாமிரங்கினவரே என் மனதை கீழானவைகளுக்கு விட்டுக்கொடுத்துவிட்டேனே 

 

மக்களுக்காய் கண்ணீர் சிந்த வேண்டிய நான் எனக்காய் அழுகிறேனே

பரிசுத்தத்திற்காக அழைக்க வேண்டிய நான் பரிசுத்தம் கெஞ்சுகிறேனே

 

 

மாசில்லாதவரே என் பாவத்தை அறிக்கையிட்டு மன்னிப்பு வேண்டுகிறேன்

பின்மாறிப் போய்விட்டேன் பின்மாரிக்காய் வேண்டுகிறேன்

 

 

மோசமாக்கப்பட்ட பூமியின் மீது அசைவாடின ஆவியானவரே

பாவ மோசத்தால் கெட்டுப்போன என் இருதயத்தின் ஆழத்தை ஆட்கொண்டுவிடும்

 

மனுக்குலமும் ஜீவன்களும் வாழ மீண்டும் இப் பூமியை மாற்றினவரே

பாழாய்ப் போன என் இருதயத்தை மறுரூபப்படுத்திவிடும்

 

முற்றிலும் இருளாயிருந்த பூமியில் வெளிச்சம் உண்டாகக்கடவது என்றவரே

பலவித சோதனைகளால் இருளாய் போன என் வாழ்வில் வெளிச்சத்தை கட்டளையிட்டுவிடும்

 

மாற்றப்பட்டு ஒழுங்கின்மையும் வெறுமையுமாய் காணப்பட்ட பூமியை சீர்ப்படுத்தினவரே

பரிசுத்த வாழ்வில் நிலைத்திட கனித் தந்திட நீர் நல்லது என கண்டிட சீர்ப்படுத்திவிடும்

 

---

Technorati Tags: Tamil Christian Poem,Youth Prayer,Youth Poem,Christian Poem,Sin,Backslider,Repentance,Holiness

Egg Rolls or Rolls Royce

Going to Dehri bazaar for shopping does not come to a satisfactory end without having “Egg Roll or Chicken Roll” at the popular ‘Raju Hotel’! But the other day as I went there along with my colleague Bro Selva; we were little earlier for the Egg Roll section to open. As we sat there, my eyes were fixed on the nearby snack shop on wheels – the Thela Gadi.

Whenever I go to the Egg Roll shop I see this Thela Gadi parked at its side and the shopkeeper would be selling home made snacks; and every time I wonder at whether people come there to buy. But that day I saw people – children, men on bikes, old man, all coming and buying snacks at his shop, one after the other.

 

Raju’s younger brother arrived just then with the shop items in a Thela Gadi and started setting up the shop. He greeted us with his usual “Vanakkam Anna” (Greetings Elder Brother) and placed the gas cylinder on the floor near the table, put the big pan on the stove, cleaned it and then started making Egg Rolls for us.

In the meantime the eldest brother Raju came and sat near us and was telling about his plans to take his wife and kids for a vacation down South. “We work throughout the year, night and day, but I want to take my family for vacation at least for two weeks. And it is nice to go on a vacation with the family than going alone”.

All that while I was admiring the skilful, clean and committed work of Raju’s brother. We two were the very first customers for the Rolls that evening and he was making it very specially for us.

After we ate, as I paid the money, Raju gave back the remaining two rupees and did not allow us to go until he ordered tea for us to drink.

As we were drinking tea, Raju’s brother asked me, “Anna, Roll kaisa tha?” (Brother, how was the Roll?) and as I replied, “It is very nice”, he went on “I made specially for you both”.

As we were having the Roll I noticed these letters in the T-shirt that Raju’s brother wore that evening for work which read ,

Get Up

Survive

Go to Bed

Call this ironical or coincidence; I learnt many lessons that day from the Rajus (and they keep surprising and inspiring me every time). Sincerity, Friendliness, Love, Customer care, Timely delivery and much more could be said of the Rajus and their work. And they don’t seem like working to just “survive”!

The other day I suggested Raju that if he would remodel his shop so as to cater to families more people could become his customers. “Anna, I am planning to taking up another shop in the Pali road which would be a complete restaurant with good ambience. Even then I will not leave this shop for two reasons – this is my first shop and I have a regular flow of young boys and men who frequent my shops who I don’t want to miss”.

This evening we went to Dehri and as usual went to Raju’s shop and had Egg Roll and I also took some pictures of the Rajus and their skilful work. After we finished the Rolls, Raju had ordered Thumps Up for us! He told us that the cost of the Rolls have increased owing to the price rise, but still he charged us only on the older price saying, “I will charge you anna on the newer price from next time onward”.

“Work is the best antidote to sorrow, my dear Watson” says Sherlock Holmes to his friend in ‘The Adventure of the Empty House’ and continues “will in itself justify a man’s life on this planet.”

I am in a dilemma whether to agree upon Holmes’ philosophy of work or on that which was on the T-Shirt? Though why people work may have many reasons (may be I should deliberate on this in another post), I would like to pen some inspirations on “how to work” or rather ask questions -

• How meticulous am I at my work? Do I care for the details or just rush through so as to clear my table or complete the task?
• Is pleasing people and God, the priority of my work or pleasing me? Ultimately it is for people that we deliver our work, isn't it?
• Do I review my work? To judge its quality, desirability, completeness, goodness, worthiness.
• Am I open to criticisms and suggestions? And am I willing to improve and open to change?
• Do I plan my work with people (the beneficiaries / customers) in mind or me (my comfort / my feasibility) in my mind?
• Do I work to reach more people at the cost of losing some or do I work to reach the few and care for everyone?

Even as you think in these lines try adding much more and if you would like to share it, mention in the comment below, so that we can learn from each other.

Whatever we might make – Egg Rolls or Rolls Royce, let’s be sincere! (And if you happen to visit Dehri-On-Sone, do eat at the Rajus)

“the quality of each person’s work will be revealed in time as it is tested by fire.” (1 Corinthians 3:13 VOICE)

“And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men” (Colossians 3:23 NKJV)

---

Technorati Tags: Work,How to Work,Raju Hotel Dehri,Egg Roll

William Careys in the Making

This week teaching on “Leadership Lessons from Historical Leaders”, I taught the TBC* students from the life and ministry of William Carey. While doing research to add more material to my notes on William Carey, for the very first time I came across a material (William Carey: Pioneer, A paper originally presented at the Carey Conference, Swanwick, Derbyshire, UK, by Mike Tindall) that cited that the Indian plant (eucalyptus) is named after William Carey, Careya herbacea!

I also found that other variety of plants too were carrying Carey’s name.

Though I had known the fact that it was William Carey who established the Agri-Horticultural Society of India, I was unaware of this information. I also learnt that it was William Carey who introduced the Linnaean System to Gardening in India. I also went and checked the website of the Agri-Horticultural Society of India and found Carey’s name in its History.

Interestingly the document in which William Carey had written his notes was rediscovered only last year! Carey document rediscovered by Baptist minister.

(Courtesy: BMS World Mission)

While sharing these to the TBC students I learnt that they not only maintain the garden, they also farm vegetables and trees.

Yesterday evening I visited them to witness their farming. Let’s meet the Timothys (or rather William Careys) at their farm!

The Beet Roots were grown to their full size and the students were plucking them out to be sold in the campus.

While all were busy at the farm, weeding, watering, plucking, Bilkan was busy munching the freshly plucked raw Beet Roots, in one corner! But he could not escape the sharp eyes of the Warden, Mr. Ravi!

You need to meet Rajesh Kumar Ranjan, the best marketer of TBC!

“Last week we went to sell the Beet Roots in the campus and I gave the Beet Root greens to all who bought Beet Root. People said that they had never cooked this Greens before. I told them, “This is FREE, this time and after you taste it and like it, I will sell for money””.

Doesn’t Ranjan qualify to be a good marketer? A marketer with a good and generous heart, though!

Last, but not the least, on the other end Sumit and Satyalal were having fun with the pruned leaves!

When we live in a time when farming is considered as a low profession and when everyone is hunting for a high paid job in the IT industry, a paradigm shift in our thinking is necessary. While William Carey was a Professor of Oriental Languages at the Fort William College and was involved in Bible translations, preaching the gospel, running a school, administrating the mission, etc., farming and gardening were a part of his daily routine. William Ward his colleague writes in his journal on 1st August 1800,

“About six o’clock we rise; brother Carey to his garden; brother Marshman to his school at seven; brother Brunsdon, Felix, and I, to the printing-office…”

And when I witnessed these students enthusiastically doing farming, all the more I wished that I had learnt farming! Still I feel that it isn’t late enough for me to learn and involve in farming. When an English missionary could come and do farming and teach different ways of farming and gardening in India, how much more we, born in India, a land of agriculture, need to involve in farming. As I went home I told my wife, “We need to be socially concerned and active, as individuals, like William Carey and along with other subjects our schools should teach farming”.

May be, I should start farming and gardening along with my students at TBC!

---

*GEMS Timothy Bible College (TBC) is a training unit of GEMS that offers one year Leadership Training course and it is affiliated with the Senate of Indian Institute of Missiology.

---

Technorati Tags: William Carey,Careya herbacea,Agri Horticultural Society of India,Timothy Bible College,Farming,Gardening

6 Reasons why we might flyby Mars in 2018!

Five years from now I might be typing a post for this blog from a Space Capsule. You might wonder, how! On 27 Feb Space.com published a news titled “Married Couple Wanted for Private Mars Voyage in 2018”.

(Photo Courtesy: Space.com)

American millionaire Dennis Tito launching his new organization, the Inspiration Mars Foundation, announced his private Mars voyage plan wherein he is planning to send “one male and one female, preferably a married couple”.

And Angel and I might turn out to be that couple! You may ask “How ?”. Here I am going to give 6 reasons why Dennis Tito will consider us.

One, Dennis Tito will be very well pleased to send a husband whose name is same (sounds same) as his! You might wonder is my name “Dennis Tito”? Here is a confession that I long made - What’s in a (nick) name?

The news highlights in January 2018 would read like this -

“Tito sends Titu to Mars”

Second, I have always had a craze for Astronomy and space travel. So much so that I spent the money given for buying school uniform to buy books on Astronomy. Here is a glimpse on my book collections on Astronomy -

The first set includes books on “Mars”!

Do you know how I got this craze for Space Travel? It all started with a dream that I had one night. Read about that dream that inspired interest towards Space Travel - Up, up and up

Third reason why Dennis Tito might send us to Mars. This voyage needs “an adventurous married crew” and we might qualify for our adventurousness! Just a gist on our adventurous spirit -

Fourthly, the newspapers, new channels, news sites and Space.com and Dennis Tito’s company itself will have attractive acronyms and presentation styles while presenting updates on this mission, if we were sent. I believe it has power to give several USP for this campaign.

MMM Mission – Mariyosh’s Maiden Mars Mission

One another headline will be MARS’ MARS,

MARS – Mariyosh & Angeline Reporting from Space

This even has the potential to start off the first Space Radio Station broadcasted literally from Space; as we both would do  a series of Radio Talk Shows from the Space Capsule. “You are listening to MARS’ MARS – Mariyosh & Angeline Reporting from Space.”

Fifthly, in 2018 Angel and I will be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. Traditionally Tin or Aluminium products are presented as gifts on 10th anniversaries. In 2018 since we will be flying in Space, the Space Capsule itself will be our wedding gift. Since Aluminium is mostly used in the construction of the Capsule. “Aluminium is very light, and the structure gives the space capsule extra strength.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_capsule) “Structural components made from aluminium and its alloys are vital to the aerospace industry” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aluminum).

And the news headlines will read,

“Mariyosh & Angel celebrate their 10th Wedding Anniversary in ‘Inspiration Mars’”. The radio and TV would go live with these - “Inspiration Mars and this Space Capsule in itself is a great gift on our wedding anniversary. Thank you Dennis”.

Sixthly, since India’s Space agency ISRO is planning its maiden mission to Mars in November 2013, Mangalyaan, sending us also gives the possibility of a tie up between Dennis Tito, NASA and ISRO.

I hope Dennis Tito will be completely convinced to choose us for this mission to Mars. But before Denis calls us to talk about this mission I need to convince one more person, that’s my wife. Though at the outset as I told her about this idea of going to Mars in 2018 she was happy, she put forth another 6 reasons why she may not consider going on this mission -

1. No fresh air for 501 days

2. No natural environment – plants, animals

3. It would be boring to sit all the time

4. Can’t have fresh food

5. Time for preparation, the voyage days (501) & time to get accustomed to earth after coming back – Is so much of time, worth?

6. Is it worth the risk?

It’s time for me to convince my wife. Even if we do not qualify for this mission to mars or even considered, I would not worry. I would be thankful to Dennis for making me dream about flying into space one more time, and to include my wife in it! And also to remember our wedding Scripture that calls us to walk in unity,

“Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” (Amos 3:3)

Can two fly together, unless they are agreed?

---

Technorati Tags: Mars Voyage 2018,Mars Mission,Space Travel,Dennis Tito,Inspiration Mars