Green Pastures and Still Waters

UV 2203/10000 Green Pastures and Still Waters

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

Psalm 23 v 2

Life consists of a spiritual geography of green pastures, still waters, mountains and valleys. Every scriptural promise is an evergreen pasture. The hope that that promise evokes in one’s soul will never dry up. Faith fuels hope and hope fulfils faith. Hope is the oxygen that the protoplasm of the human being most needs. The nourishment and strength that hope affords the believer, who holds that promise as true and the promise-giver as living, active and able to do that which He has promised therein, will never cease. In that same promise or pasture the manger leader or manager can also find rest, peace, comfort and security. A pastor is someone who leads people to the eternal pastures of God’s promises. The pastures are meant to meet our earthly and eternal need. The still waters are not often located right next to green pastures. In order to get to these still waters, we need to climb mountains and traverse valleys.

We hunger some times and thirst often. Thirst is an even deeper longing than hunger. “Still waters” is a metaphor for the deeper truths that we discover as we remain still and meditate on the Word of God. It is the longing for righteousness and perfection of the Creator Jehovah and Redeemer Jesus. The commands, statutes, the precepts, the principles of the Word are the still waters. These do not change with changing times, environment and values. We need to go to the watering hole of God’s Word early in the morning and as often as we need to satisfy our thirst for righteousness.

As sheep are led over mountains and through valleys to newer green pastures and still waters, in the course of our lives, the manger leader or manager needs to climb mountains and pass through valleys. The mountains are our personal weaknesses as well as the impossible situations, the difficulties, the troubles, the opposition and persecution which we inevitably face in life’s journey. The strength gathered in the pastures enable us to face, climb and conquer the summits of these mountains. Every mountain climber knows that there is nothing at the top of the mountain. But it is the process of climbing, the enduring of hardship, the loneliness, the weathering of the storms, the battling with the bitter cold, the sense of overcoming step by step that gives the accomplishment the sweetness of lasting victory. To climb the mountains, we need special equipment of our spirits and minds, appropriate footwear, safety and belaying ropes. The learning and life lessons from the difficult experiences we pick up are the rivers that feed into the still waters of wisdom that we drink from frequently. The valleys are the times when we feel defeated, downcast, walked upon. This is the season of “dry bones,”- the times when we feel like questioning our hope and faith. The deeper the valley, the greater is the next mountain we climb and conquer. The river of the Word and the Spirit broadens in the valley times. The river speeds up and gushes influencing both banks of our minds and our spirits causing all types of crops, evergreen trees and fruit trees to grow in our lives for the benefit of others and for succeeding generations.

Prateep V Philip

Feed the Need

UV 2202/10000 Feed the Need
So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

John 21 v 15

Jesus seemed to encourage a competitive love for Him among the apostles by asking Peter, “ Do you love me more than these?” John in His gospel stated that he was the disciple who was closest or most beloved of Jesus. Two other disciples enquired of Him through their mother who would be seated on his right hand in the kingdom of heaven. In this uni-verse, Jesus asked his chief disciple, Peter if he loved Him. As the sign of his love, Jesus asked him only to do one thing – to feed His lambs. Peter was entrusted the task to feed those who believed in Him but their faith was tender like the young of sheep. The manger leader o r manager ‘s primary task is caring for the young. It was this attitude of caring for the disciples that caused the resurrected Jesus to appear for the third time to the disciples. They had gone back to their prior profession – fishing. The night had seen them catch nothing. We too when we catch nothing or little for the efforts we invest in some venture, should remember that at that moment the Lord is nearby, within hearing distance, watching us, calling to us as He did on that day with the disciples. He allows us some times to catch nothing in order to get our attention. He then feeds us with His word as He did with the disciples. He prepares us for a great catch, a great harvest and amazing success. Jesus guided them to such a great catch by asking them to cast the net on the right side. It was not as if the fish were all lingering only on the right side and that Jesus only changed the direction of their fishing. It was a supernatural result. The manger leader or manager by virtue of his faith is not daunted or discouraged by the limitation of resources available for his task. He believes in the supernatural wisdom, knowledge and power of Jesus that is available to him at all times.

John was the disciple who first recognized the figure standing by the shore as that of Jesus. He recognized Him by His voice for Jesus had said, “ My sheep know my voice and will come to Me.” The manger leader or manager acts as an amplifier or loud speaker for the voice of Jesus to reach near and distant shores. Peter in his enthusiasm jumped into the water stark naked, having left his clothes in the boat. He was then asked thrice whether Peter loved Him? Peter acknowledged the omniscience of Jesus , that He knew all things. Nothing in his heart or mind was secret but it was all known to Jesus. The manger leader or manager knows that despite the knowledge Jesus has of his betrayals like that of Peter, his backsliding, his failures, his limited strengths and weaknesses, his fears, his inhibitions Jesus loves him. This is agape or God ‘s unconditional love demonstrated and manifested repeatedly by Jesus.

We are called to lead by feeding the need. A human being’s deepest and greatest need is the need for salvation. The second greatest need is the need for sanctification- to become perfect and mature like Jesus. The third greatest need is multiplication or replication. Jesus is the way to salvation, sanctification and multiplication. We feed people, the ones who are inclined to hear the voice of the great Shepherd Jesus to satisfy these primary needs. But before Jesus asked Peter to feed the lambs and sheep, He personally fed them with fish cooked on a coal fire. We are also called to meet or do what ever lies in our reach to satisfy the secondary needs of people – the need for physical food, clothing, shelter, security, education, jobs and so on.

Prateep V Philip

The Beautiful Life

UV 2201/10000 The Beautiful Life
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
Hebrews 10 v 38

We are set right with God by faith in the supreme sacrifice of Jesus. Having been so justified or straightened, we ought to live straight lives, in alignment with His will as expressed in His Word and as revealed by the Spirit of God. The manger leader or manager lives and leads in accordance with the revealed will of the Lord. Such a life is a pleasing offering to the Lord. The Lord invests such a person with His spirit. This explains why manger leaders and managers have the spirit of excellence. The delights in showing the faithful both mercy and grace.

The manger leader lives by faith and hope in the promises, precepts and commands of the Lord. He has implicit and explicit faith in the Word. He sustains himself in this world by inner sight and does not live by the information provided by the senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste or smell. His senses are in fact subjected to the patterns or templates indicated in the Word. The manger leader believes that his whole life is an invisible tabernacle or residence or temple of the Lord. Everything he says or does is dedicated to this overarching design of the tabernacle. Like Bezalel, a skilled and versatile master craftsman he is always overshadowed by the invisible but tangible presence of the Lord. He is guided and gifted by the genius of Jesus and not the genius of the enemy of our souls.
The uni-verse also contains a warning that no man having accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour should live contrary to His teachings or the Word. Such a life of disregard or disrespect of the commands and promises of the Lord invites divine displeasure. It is a denial of the greatness of the sacrifice of Jesus. We cannot live a double life- one of faith and one of denying what faith teaches us. Justification by faith should always be followed by sanctification by faith. We need to hold onto our faith in the midst of tests, trials and tribulations with hope, persistent faith and patient endurance. Such a life is one of integrity and righteousness. It implies that we are not to be mere hearers but doers, people who daily apply, practice and trust the Word. The Lord promises in a psalm that He will “beautify the believer with His salvation.” The result of being justified by Christ and sanctified by the Spirit is that our lives and our testimonies would be full of power, beauty and grace. We are called to live the beautiful life that is pleasing to the Lord.

Prateep V Philip

Submission

UV 2200/10000 Submission
Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child
Psalm 131 v 2

Submission to the Lord is essential for the fulfillment of vision, passion and mission. The Psalmist is saying in this uni-verse, “ I having found my identity in Christ, in the Creator, in the Redeemer of my soul, no longer am I restless and dissatisfied. “ He is as satisfied as a child lying asleep in his mother’s lap, quiet, still and trusting the Lord in all situations and for all his need. He knows that in each situation the Lord takes him through, it is like weaning a child of his mother. It is taking him to a new level of confidence, trust, patience, faith, love and strength. He is being prepared for a greater and deeper intimacy with his Redeemer. He is being prepared for greater responsibilities and challenges. Ironically, such surrender or submission like a child to his mother is a sign of the onset of maturity and wisdom of the manger leader or manager. This kind of humility of spirit emerges when we are drained of all personal ambition, vanity and ego. We become like Moses after driven from Egypt into the wilderness for forty years. He no longer had any pretensions of any ambition that he could save his fellow Hebrew people from Egyptian oppression. He is tamed of anger, aggression and pride. He no longer had any confidence in the strength of his own flesh, mind or even tongue. It is at such a moment, such a point in our earthly journey that we are ready to be used of the Lord as we are yielded and still. It is not as much physical, an intellectual or emotional but spiritual stillness. It is not the stillness of an instrument like a knife, a scalpel or a hammer in the hands of an expert but the stillness of the human person in the hands of the Lord.

Knowing that the Lord knows us intimately, that He loves us and cares for us, that He provides, protects and promotes us without our asking or without our longing for it, induces in us the attitude of waiting for the Lord patiently, calmly and with hope. We pass through different seasons, stages or phases in our lives. In each season, He not only more than adequately meets the holistic need of our spirits, minds and bodies but He prepares us for the next big shift to another phase or season. Instead of resisting change and challenges , we should yield to the Lord with a lot of trust, confidence and hope.

We need to submit our desires, our plans and projects, our personal ambitions, our hopes to the Lord. As we confide these in Him, He will either enable us by His grace to attain these or He would give us the grace and wisdom to give it up. As we do so, we will not feel frustrated or distressed or disappointed. We repose our confidence in Him as not only does He have deeper insight and knowledge of us but He has the best plan for our lives. As we yield ourselves to the Lord, He will undertake for us. No longer do we have to struggle to achieve any goals or aims. An exchange in the spirit takes place. He takes our heavy yoke of desire, ambition, worry and anxiety and places it on His able shoulder and plants the yoke or seed of calmness, joy, peace, assurance, confidence and wisdom in us.

Prateep V Philip

The Heart of the Matter

UV 2199/10000 The Heart of the Matter
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life
Proverbs 4 v 23

The heart of the matter is a matter of the heart. Just as the physical heart receives deoxygenated blood and pumps out oxygenated blood to all parts of the body, our emotional hearts sustains our whole being. The physical heart works round the clock and through our entire lifetime. Likewise, we experience feelings or emotions right through our lives. The emotional heart energises our lives. The uni-verse exhorts us to take good care of our emotional health. We need to preserve it through study and application of the word of God for only a fool trusts his own feelings or heart. The human hearts is described as being deceitful and desperately wicked. When we study the Word diligently and apply it to our hearts, the source of deceit, folly and wickedness is removed surgically as with a double edged sword. It is replaced with spiritual wisdom, the wisdom of the Lord who knows our hearts inside out. We need to constantly invite the Lord to study or search our hearts and point out to us any wicked thought or way or attitude in us. Jesus is the foremost of “heart specialists”. He said of the human heart that out of it proceeds evil thoughts, covetousness, murders, fornications, blasphemy, adulteries, false evidence. If our inmost being is constantly watched, monitored and cleansed by the Holy Spirit, there will be no room or scope for any of these issues of death to emerge. But the heart does not exist in a vacuum. If it is not filled with evil, it should be filled with good. It is again the work of the Holy Spirit to allow the issues of eternal life, the blessed life- the rivers of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self control. It is called a river as these issues will flow continually touching both banks or sides- the eternal on the far side and the earthly or the here and now on this side of life. Yes, the rivers of positive emotions will wax or wane depending on how much care we take to feed it with the Word and how much we yield to the Spirit of God.

In the decades since the nineties of the twentieth century, emotional intelligence is hailed as being far more indicative of success in all spheres than intelligence quotient. But mankind is yet to find a single effective way to enhance emotional intelligence. People are in the grip of various negative emotions and traits like anger, bitterness, jealousy, fear, hatred, greed, lust, deceit, low esteem, pride, discontentment and so on. These are the thorns and snares of the heart that scripture refers to. The thorns cause pain. The snares entrap us and keep us from fulfilling our God –given potential. By studying the Word and our hearts side by side, we can discover the spiritual medicine that we need to apply to whichever disease of the emotional heart we are suffering from.

The only thing that Jesus asks in return for eternal life is to give Him our hearts as His place of residence. When we surrender our heart to Him, we are surrendering our autonomy or sovereignty as individuals. He then makes it His concern and responsibility to remove the thorns and snares, to perfect our hearts unto God. Jesus is the Balm of Gilead to heal every ill of the human heart.

Prateep V Philip

To Be Spiritually Minded

UV 2198/10000 To Be Spiritually Minded
For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Romans 8 v 6

Those whose minds are controlled by the flesh have set their minds on what the flesh desires. They sow in the flesh and reap strife or eternal death and its consequences. To be carnally minded yields pleasure and benefits in the short run but in the long run and in the eternal run, it is harmful to our souls, our entire being. Those whose minds are controlled by the Spirit of God set their minds on what God desires. Their lives will be overflowing with eternal and abundant life and with a river of peace flowing from their hearts. The Spirit controls and directs all that they think, speak and do. They think thoughts of peace, speak words of peace and do acts of peace. Having found peace with God through Jesus, the same peace overflows into all aspects of their lives. They have the peace that the world cannot give and the world cannot take away. It is a comprehensive peace though not comprehensible. It is a holistic peace, not compartmentalised to certain areas of our lives. They have peace of mind, spirit and body.

Personality is the quality of the mind of a person. Normal management education or training does not impact the quality of the mind of a person. The manger leader or manager is spiritually minded. He sets his love upon the name and person of Jesus. To be spiritually minded is to develop a mind like Jesus. Jesus is his Saviour, mentor, leader, shepherd, teacher, guide and model. The manger leader or manager sows in the spirit and reaps in the spirit the fruit of the spirit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self control. These fruit are found in seed form in the Word. The manger leader or manager makes himself willingly and enthusiastically subject to the law of God- the Word. As he intakes of the Word, the seed begin to cast deeper and deeper roots in his spirit and mind and influences all that he does in this world. As he obeys the Spirit of God, he enjoys a life of righteousness, peace and joy.

When we are controlled by the Holy Spirit, we are putting to death the evil desires of our flesh that provoke us to disobey the Lord. These desires are at work in the natural man in all the members of his body. By continually chipping away at these desires, the Holy Spirit sanctifies the various parts and members of our bodies. We become pleasing and acceptable to the Lord. Earlier, we in our ignorance of the ways and word of God, used to resist the Spirit of God and yield to the enemy of our souls. The mere suggestion of the enemy was our command. Now, we have the power from above and within to resist the enemy and yield to the Lord. As we increasingly yield our intellects, our emotions, our wills to the Lord, we will increase in our yield of eternal life and peace.


Prateep V Philip

Experiencing Resurrection Power

UV 2197/10000 Experiencing the Resurrection Power
Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before
Philippians 3 v 13

Paul never thought that he had attained his goal of knowing Christ, becoming like Him and making Him known. He was pressing towards that goal of the high calling he had received from Christ. In the past, he had zeal without true knowledge. It led him to put his entire faith in the works of the flesh, in Hebrew rituals and rites like circumcision. His zeal caused him to persecute and put to death the followers of Jesus. But, after he encountered Christ in a vision and heard His voice, his perspective on life and his life goals, his priorities completely changed. He then began to experience the miraculous , tremendous and supernatural power of the resurrection of Christ. The resurrection power which is at work in all believers puts to death our faith in the works of the flesh, in mere rituals and traditions. The guilt and pride of our past is left behind and we are called to strive to attain our hope in Christ of eternal life and the abundant life. There is no room in our hearts or minds for complacency or misplaced confidence. The result would be that just as there is a clear divide in history between BC and AD in terms of human progress in all aspects, so also our BC and AD days would be completely distinct. While death will be at work in our flesh and its works, the resurrection power of Jesus is at work in our spirits. Our memories of the past will fade while our hope in eternity and our joy in the present moment will be revived.

The single-mindedness of the apostle Paul is the trait that manger leaders and managers should imbibe and imitate. We need to forget the achievements and failures of our BC or before Christ days, the bitterness and frustration as well as the things that were a source of pride and belief in our past. All our activities, our subsidiary aims and goals should be subordinated to our chief goal of being like Jesus and glorifying His name. This kind of single-mindedness or dedication enabled Paul to have the greatest impact on the early church and early believers. He was willing to pay any price to attain his supreme goal.

Unlike Lot’s wife, we should not look back at what we left behind us in following Jesus. Our focus like Paul should be on Jesus, the author who began our life of faith with God and on Jesus, the one who set His eyes like flint on the cross, on Jesus who is resurrected and glorified at the right hand of the Father. We need to run patiently our race of faith. We need to press on despite the naysayers, the criticisms, the persecution, the opposition, the hostility, the sufferings. We need to lean on the Lord for strength and guidance and not on our own limited strength. We need to believe that the Lord who has brought us this far would take us the entire distance and thereafter, take us to His right side.

Prateep V Philip