Ancient Rome & Today

Alfred Edersheim a Jewish convert to Christianity was a Biblical Scholar especially known for his work "The life and Times of Jesus the Messiah (1883)".  Edersheim's scholarship is little know among contemporary Christians but it towers over modern day skeptics and their idle bantering of how the existence of a true God is a fancy idea. Edersheim's scholarly works are gold mine of information on the religious and cultural conditions of Christ's ministry in the Roman times. The description of Rome given by Edersheim is not much different from today's America, here's an excerpt for you to follow about the state of Rome before its complete fall.

Religion, philosophy and society  had passed through every stage to that of despair. Without tracing the various forms of ancient thought it may be generally said that in Rome at least the issue lay between stoicism and Epicurean-ism.  The one flattered its pride and other gratified its sensuality. One was in accordance with its national character and the other with decay & corruption. Both ultimately led to atheism and despair. The one by turning all higher aspirations self-ward and the other by quenching them for satisfying  the desires of the moment. The one by extinction of all feeling and deification, the other by indulgence of every passion & the worship of matter as it ideal. It would be unsavory to describe how far the worship of indecency was practiced and carried in Rome. How public morals were corrupted by mimic representations of everything that was vile and even by the pandering of corrupt art. The impersonation of gods, oracles, divinations, dreams, astrology, all contributed to general decay. It has been rightly said, that the idea of conscience, as we understand it, was unknown to heathenism. Absolute right did not exist. Might was right. The social relations exhibited, if possible displayed even deeper corruption. The sanctity of marriage had ceased. Female dissipation and the general dissoluteness led at last to an almost entire cessation of marriage. Abortion, and the exposure of murder of newly-born children were common and tolerated; unnatural vices, which even the greatest philosophers practiced, if not advocated, attained proportions which defy description. .

Edersheim wrote this almost a hundred years ago, and unfortunately its no different from the world view that we we stand and stare into (or I should say live in). The english journalist Steve Turner wrote a satirical sarcasm in poetic form called "Creed" on today's social norms which I have taken from Ravi Zacariah's Book "Can man live without God?" a answer to which Steve Turner says "No, but we try all the time...

We believe in Marx, Freud and Darwin We believe everything is OK as long as you don't hurt anyone to the best of your definition of hurt, and to the best of your knowledge. We believe in sex before, during, and after marriage. We believe in the therapy of sin. We believe that adultery is fun. We believe that sodomy’s OK. We believe that taboos are taboo. We believe that everything's getting better despite evidence to the contrary. The evidence must be investigated And you can prove anything with evidence. We believe there's something in horoscopes UFO's and bent spoons. Jesus was a good man just like Buddha, Mohammed, and ourselves. He was a good moral teacher though we think His good morals were bad. We believe that all religions are basically the same- at least the one that we read was. They all believe in love and goodness. They only differ on matters of creation, sin, heaven, hell, God, and salvation. We believe that after death comes the Nothing Because when you ask the dead what happens they say nothing. If death is not the end, if the dead have lied, then its compulsory heaven for all excepting perhaps Hitler, Stalin, and Genghis Kahn We believe in Masters and Johnson What's selected is average. What's average is normal. What's normal is good. We believe in total disarmament. We believe there are direct links between warfare and bloodshed. Americans should beat their guns into tractors . And the Russians would be sure to follow. We believe that man is essentially good. It's only his behavior that lets him down. This is the fault of society. Society is the fault of conditions. Conditions are the fault of society. We believe that each man must find the truth that is right for him. Reality will adapt accordingly. The universe will readjust. History will alter. We believe that there is no absolute truth excepting the truth that there is no absolute truth. We believe in the rejection of creeds, And the flowering of individual thought. If chance be the Father of all flesh, disaster is his rainbow in the sky and when you hear State of Emergency! Sniper Kills Ten! Troops on Rampage! Whites go Looting! Bomb Blasts School! It is but the sound of man worshipping his maker.

Isn't that an amazing parallel to ancient Rome. We know the reasons of the decline and demise of Rome. I will quote Huxley here who said - "If we don't learn from the mistakes of the past we are bound to repeat them". We are in interesting times challenged by the clash of world views that takes place in everything you do or even just merely being a part of. But at the same the deeper truth is what we are called to reflect, which is as Christians we know we are a people redeemed, saved by grace alone, and called to look upon the face of God to surrender our hearts, so that it will go well with our souls.

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

My Prayer Notes From Proverbs

I read through the book of Proverbs every month and here are some of the prayers that I have attached as notes to some of these incredible verses. I thought it was a good idea to post them here as memorial stones to bring them to remembrance from time to time.

It is the glory of God to conceal a matter to search out a matter is the glory of kings. (Proverbs 25:2) O Lord you servant and child asks you for wisdom so that I can do all the things that you have for me. O Lord you take delight in your children searching, finding and being filled with joy. O Lord even in the mundane routines of studies, work, and other exciting adventures and purposes you may have for us you rejoice in us. Lord help us to search out matters, mysteries and above all your mind to do the things that you have for us in our generation. Amen Amen.

A man's step are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand his way? (Proverbs 20:24) O Lord God of Israel, guide my steps as you guided the steps of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Help me to set my heart to worship on these steps, help my heart to be completely devoted to you and your ways. Holy Spirit Ruach Adonai help me to walk in these steps guided by your hand of mercy. O Lord you promised - the steps of the righteous redeemed and those who look upon your face are guided by you. love you O Lord. Amen.

A man's step are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand his way? (Proverbs 20:24) O Lord God of Israel, guide my steps as you guided the steps of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Help me to set my heart to worship on these steps, help my heart to be completely devoted to you and your ways. Holy Spirit Ruach Adonai help me to walk in these steps guided by your hand of mercy. O Lord you promised - the steps of the righteous redeemed and those who look upon your face are guided by you. love you O Lord. Amen.

A inhertiance gained quickly will not be blessed in the end. (Proverbs 20:21) O Lord Bless the inheritance that you give me, may your blessing rest upon it till the end of my life and beyond for my children's sake, for O Lord I have dedicated my heart and deciated their hearts to you. What are we O Lord specks of dust of the earth, but redeemed by your love, brought into righteousnes and brought into worship to you. So O Lord for your name sake do this for your servant, in your chesed raise your sceptre and give the inheritance of the saints and let not me or my children squander this inheritance in pride or sin. Help us be a pleasing aroma to spread your fragrance and your light in the world. love you O Lord. Amen.

The fear of the Lord leads to life. Then one rests, untouched by trouble. (Proverbs 20:6) O Lord help me to fear you all the days of my life. O Lord let me children live in the sacred fear of intimacy with you. Amen.

Many are the plans in man's heart but its is the Lord's purpose that prevails. (Proverbs 19:21) O Lord let your purpose prevail in my life. Your ways for me are good, your plans for me are to prosper me and give me life in abundance so O Lord align my purposes to yours help me make my purposes the purposes of the Lord. O Lord you promised your servant prosperity of my sould and heart and I bring to reminder your greate promises, this is where I thrive. O Lord may my heart's meditation be pleasing to you. Amen.

Chesed

חֶסֶד

Well, the above word is is not 'Cheesed' or 'Cheezed' or 'Cheez It' but as my hebrew scholar friend Glen will point that the right pronunciation would be with the jaw and the tongue going in backward and pronouncing the 'Ch' with almost a slight rough growl. Anyway that is the oddness of the Hebrew language but its deep meanings make it a beautiful language for expressing the heart of God. The words have so much depth and meaning so much so a exact literal translation word-to-word into English is not possible. So an entire post on a word?- Yes, from my last  post you might remember in Jeremiah Chapter 2 God uses this word "Chesed" in addressing Israel.

Biblical scholars have often complained that the word חֶסֶד in the Hebrew Bible is difficult to translate into English, because it really has no precise equivalent in our language. English versions usually try to represent it with such words as "loving-kindness," "mercy," "steadfast love," and sometimes "loyalty," but the full meaning of the word cannot be conveyed without an explanation, such as the one given in the article below. This article, by Norman H. Snaith, is reproduced from A Theological Word Book of the Bible, edited by Alan Richardson (New York: MacMillan, 1951), pp. 136-7.

This word cannot be used unless the two parties have a very intimate relationship as was with God and Israel. It is a word that is exclusively used in the marriage-covenant relationship that God had with Israel. He uses this very romantic term of endearment several times in the scriptures. As said earlier in english the word is loosely translated as "loving-kindness"; but it is so much more,  the exact depth of meaning comes close to something like Israel is the young maiden in love with God and when God looks at this young maiden with 'chesed', she looks into His eyes and sees herself in Him. He therefore considers her as the apple of His eye and will do anything for her. Sir George Adam Smith suggested the rendering of the word to "leal-love" which combined the meanings of extreme loyalty and utmost love. In this case God's loving-kindness or 'chesed'  is something more than sure love, His faithfulness will not let Israel go in spite of her unfaithfulness. God in His 'chesed' love for Israel will not wash His hands, He is not willing to break covenant even when His bride will. The wider meaning then also encompassed covenant and mercy. We know from Israel's history how His mercy has been exemplified time and again in spite of Israel's straying away from Him. For this reason the Greek translators of the Old testament in the 3rd century B.C used the Greek word 'eleos' which meant mercy or pity as the regular rendering.

Rashi the (eleventh-century A.D) Jewish commentator said that Yahweh gave the precedence 'rule of mercy' and joined it with the 'rule of justice' which meant that because of His passion of righteousness he will not thwart justice but to estimate the depth of His love he continually shows his 'chesed' in coming after Israel. In my previous post on Hosea we saw this aspect of God of how He demonstrated this point through Hosea's life story.  One can almost also loosely relate God's heart for justice and love to the analogy of King Arthur who wanted Lancelot to come and whisk away Guinevere because Arthur as a king could not stop being just or executing the law of the land for adultery and treachery but at the same time his love for Guinevere wanted her to escape so that she could live.

So 'chesed' - Is God viewing us as the maiden He is madly in love with, we are the apple of His eye and His loving kindness, mercy, covenant relationship and faithfulness and relentless pursuit is all what is encompassed in this powerful expression.

Blessings & Shalom,

Decline of a Nation

A few days back I heard a neat podcast from Ravi Zacharias a Christian apologist of par excellence. His source of analysis, knowledge with the ability to express deep theological concepts & ideas keeping the aroma and richness of the Gospel message intact have always left me spell bound. We are in a time when we need more  Christian leaders like Ravi who emulate from their personal life as good examples & have the ability to articulate the word of God in clear, concise and accurate ways that will pierce the hearts of people in the deep places.

The talk was about the decline of a nation and I summarize the things that I have learnt for everybody's enrichment and hoping that this helps us all in our personal journeys.  Ravi  relates the current state of affairs in America today to the day of Jeremiah when the final curtain comes down on the nation of Israel with the tender-hearted prophet lamenting on what has happened. The Assyrian army has come ravaged and razed down the city of Jerusalem. This event culminates exactly 1000 years after their Exodus from Egypt a nation that was shaped by God himself has now allowed judgment to come upon it.  In Jeremiah chapter 2 God is reminding about Israel's mistakes, I will lump some of the love verses of God's heart over Israel from this chapter:

1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem:        " 'I remember the devotion of your youth,         how as a bride you loved me         and followed me through the desert,         through a land not sown.  3 Israel was holy to the LORD,         the firstfruits of his harvest;         all who devoured her were held guilty,         and disaster overtook them,' "         declares the LORD.  5 This is what the LORD says:         "What fault did your fathers find in me,         that they strayed so far from me?         They followed worthless idols         and became worthless themselves.  6 They did not ask, 'Where is the LORD,         who brought us up out of Egypt         and led us through the barren wilderness,         through a land of deserts and rifts,         a land of drought and darkness, [a]         a land where no one travels and no one lives?'  8 The priests did not ask,         'Where is the LORD ?'         Those who deal with the law did not know me;         the leaders rebelled against me.         The prophets prophesied by Baal,         following worthless idols.  9 "Therefore I bring charges against you again,"         declares the LORD.         "And I will bring charges against your children's children.  11 Has a nation ever changed its gods?         (Yet they are not gods at all.)         But my people have exchanged their [d] Glory         for worthless idols.  15 Lions have roared;         they have growled at him.         They have laid waste his land;         his towns are burned and deserted.  16 Also, the men of Memphis [e] and Tahpanhes         have shaved the crown of your head. [f]  17 Have you not brought this on yourselves         by forsaking the LORD your God         when he led you in the way?

God is bringing a charge against Israel, He reminds them that He had redeemed them from Egypt, (He has redeemed us from sin), brought them out into a land of spaciousness and made them righteous and He was to be the center of their worship. Instead they had forgotten who He was, What He did for them and forsaken worship of Him. As a result the nation has collapsed,  invading kingdoms are here taking the land and its people back into slavery. Ravi points out four reasons and reminds us that it started way back in the beginning. The four chief reasons he gives for the decline of the nation are:

1. Ancestral Disappointments
2. Prophetic Duplicity
3. National Desertion
4. Personal Disavow

I add a fifth one to the list and that would be male prostitution in the land.

Let us explore them one by one and see how a nation's decline begins and the curtain of is glorious history, heritage and prosperity ends. Ancestral disappointments started in Israel's history just after three days of their miraculous journey through the parting of the seas. They complained why God had brought them out of Egypt, they showed unbelief and lack of trust in spite of the Lord's miraculous provisions. It is interesting that in Jeremiah Chapter 2 the Lord pin points not on national leaders but brings back the charge  Fathers who have betrayed, doubted and followed after worthless idols.

Secondly "prophetic duplicity" in the land meant a mixed message was coming across to people from the spiritual leadership that God need not be in the first place. The priests and the prophets were in the business of asking "What's in it for me?". Everyone struggles with this one; especially men who are wired to work and lead. I have longed told the Lord that if I were in full time ministry I wouldn't want to see how my wages or provisions came through.  Today's ministers trained out of seminaries, the first question they ask is "What will be my salary or benefits?" - Now I am not saying this is bad or judging anyone because times have changes and governance/structure and important components of ministries and every minister is due the laborers wages but it is the heart & mind attitude that counts. It is not about self-seeking, self-promoting or just wage-based support for surviving in contrast Ravi reveals about men like Henry Martin & C.T Studd.

Henry Martin left the girl he loved and travelled as a missionary to Burma, India and Iran, dragged into the desert and died a martyr's death at the young age of 31 but not before translating the Bible into Arabic, Hindustani and Persian all without a computer. C.T Studd a man who was the captain of the Cambridge cricket team left his illustrious career and wealth to be a missionary in Africa. In the 11 years that he lived apart from his wife who was raising support for him they saw each other for two weeks. Tremendous sacrifices have been made by men who gave it all and completely surrendered it for Christ. When men like this disappear a nation's collapse is assured.

Thirdly  "National Desertion"  meant the nation had given up on God completely and gone after false gods and worshipped idols . Today's leaders boldly proclaim that America is and was never a Christian nation.  It was only a 180 years ago when President Lincoln said I quote:

"We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven. We have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power, as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us!" -    Lincoln, Abraham

God's mercy has been great but we have quickly as a nation forgotten.We have taken the true God of heaven and earth out of America,  out of our schools systems and political arenas in the name of political correctness and fairness. In his advocacy of thankfulness to God, Lincoln left a stern warning to the people of his day and they remain relevant to our times as well. Today's leaders are ashamed to repent or pray, or take a strong stance on anything but mix their words to be fair. They set a poor precedence for the nation and the core unit of the nation "the family".

I ended the third point on family on purpose because individuals make up the family and at the individual level the last point is of  "personal disavow" with God. We tend to become complacent saying "I used to believe in Him and now I don't" and this may stem from our personal experiences, feelings and discouragements (the battle for the heart).  A couple of years ago there was a segment on 60 minutes on the "The Lost Boys of Sudan" a documentary that studied war torn abandoned children who made this trek from Sudan to Kenya. Thousands of children without food, water made and exodus through war afflicted nations and genocide survived with the hope in their eyes and faith in the living God of the Bible. The documentary then focused also on a segment of teenage children in a affluent neighborhood in Georgia where sex, booze and drugs were freely flowing. A church revival spurred them to come back to the Lord but as soon as a discouraging event or a something that a kid wished or asked of God did not happen they went back to their old ways primarily disappointed in God and a personal disavow.  You get the picture.

Finally the decline of nation gets sealed when men prostitute themselves in the land. The point here is not just physical prostitution but men who exchange their hearts to self seeking idols and lead others to that kind of harlotry and idolatry. The consequences then are severe and its a wake up call at an individual, corporate and national levels  that we see this condone & condemn it, repent, fall flat on our faces and seek the face of God. The message is grim but my hope and prayer is for men and make a stand against idolatry and harlotry both at physical and heart level. Let us guard our hearts and ask the Holy Spirit of God to bring revival in the land. Hope is beautiful when we enter into worship and surrender our strength and hearts to the one who can rescue, redeem and bring us into the relationship that we are made for.

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

Live Life Large

Two days back I was feeling horrible about something, that's when God intervened and said "I want you to live life large". I have been musing about it ever since, sometimes ambitions, aspirations visionary things to do great  can leave you with a sense of guilt...questioning oneself "Am I suppose to do this?" Isn't it greedy or selfish...but God has a funny way to teach you through His word, through His ecounters with you and He is good at getting His point across.

Having said that, I was listening to Bill Johnson from Bethel Church, I love what is happeining there and every time I hear news about what is happening in the super-nautual of what God is doing all over the earth I am excited of the adventorous journey I am on.

Transitioning back to the point of God asking me to "live life large" and not be guilty about it. I was reminded of a Marlboro cigarette Ad that used to run in the late 80's showing a guy in cowboy hat puffing away and the commercial ending in the chime in "live large king size",  however its not that kind of living the Father was hinting to me about. I am slowly beginning to understand deeply that living large is about constantly having the presence of the Lord, having His habitation in me, around me, with me, beside me, front of me and behind me. Oh I love it!; the dichotomy of secular and sacred no longer exists, whatever we do, we do unto the Lord, we do for the Glory and fame of our savior. And this is super natural living and the only natural way of living. We begin to view life in a different context, our problems are no longer ours, they are His. The Bible says we are now seated in heavenly realms looking down on the situations that pertain to us, our friends, neighbors, nations and the world. We are confiding in the one who is more than able, who has given us erga and dunamis power to bring order in chaos. To call out life into the lifeless, to call out light where there is darkness, to bring strongholds down and move in the power of Yeshua.

The word Bill mentioned was from Haggai Chapter 2 verse 9 which says:

"The glory of the latter house will be greater than the former house".

When you allow God to intervene your daily life, His habitation in us & among us changes things.  And the way He does things becomes every time better. Jacob slept on holy ground where without a church building, Jacob became aware of God's presence, changed the course of His life.  We see throughout scriptures that God's glory is going to cover the face of the earth, today we are the living temples of His presence and that is the secret of living large.  Like the Psalmist rejoices for God putting him in a spacious place, He has enlarged my territory. The physical manifestations and blessings are all good but what makes it sweet and complete is we don't take our focus away from our Maker and that we never forget the longing for His habitation.

I will end with a reminder of the chorus of a song written by Lynn DeShazo that sums my desire:

"In His Presence that's where I am strong; In your presence O Lord my God In your presence That'w where I belong, Seeking your face, Touching your grace, In the cleft of the Rock In your presence O God.

My thoughts, Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

A little Horseback Riding, Cowboy Hat & the Spirit of the West!

A couple of weeks back I went horse back riding with the family into the beautiful mountains of Colorado. The crisp air, afternoon sun and the long rocky range in the backdrop made this picturesque vista perfect. A little horse back riding and a cool cowboy hat can do a lot of good for the soul, if you don't believe me try it out, but do it somewhere in Colorado. Well this trek led my thoughts way back to my childhood days in India where my best friend in school Nikul would come to my place and we would take off in the back parking lots of a government office building to pretend play that we were cowboys back in the old west. Those days were filled with idyllic musings of boyhood dreams of riding away - exploring new untamed territories, scurrying off an Indian attack, rescuing the damsels in distress and following the heart of the lone ranger in adventure pursuing gold and bringing the "wanted" to justice. Most of these stories came from the wild west comics we exchanged and most of the pretend play was never even rehearsed, it just came naturally from our imagination. We led the stories to take their own twists & turns....the plot always thickened when we would jump a 100 years in the future and play American & Russian spy's in covert operations during the cold war.

Anyway those dreams had in them an innate sense of wonder and awe about the spirit of the west which has remained with me to this day. What is the spirit of the west? For each one of us it may be different but for me it is the courage of venturing out to an unknown place, it is faith in the Lord that He is able to guide your paths, it is the not only taking hold of new territory but an opportunity to do good and spread the gospel in the land. Of course, historically it has been much more and maybe even very different, for it has taken many forms and many a trials but I see these threads have weaved and formed a vital part of those adventures and stories that made the west. 

The nostalgia of finding new places, extension of the rail lines, establishing of new cities and the leading & founding of a nation that would eventually become a melting pot for all the races of the earth. I know the spirit of the West is even much more, it is also the embodied in the smaller stories of families that went out in search of new opportunities, search for gold, search for jobs, search for new life and along the way forming the myriad threads that build a young nation. 

Why am I relating this? The idea I want to express here is simple, God puts in us desires, hopes and He fills a man's heart with the ideas of going out, taking on new territories, exploring, conquering, subduing, settling and launching others into that calling of adventure; We are wired that way. The good Lord put in each one of us a desire to be much more than what we are. Our endeavor and charge is not to kill those desires and not to let them die with the arrow wounds that fly at us from the past, present or our surroundings. It is in those encounters of our heart the evil whisperer comes and fills us with resignation, wrong ideas, leaning and crippling us with sin. Sometimes we allow ourselves to play the blame game, or the self-pity game and some times we resign to do nothing, the desire dies and so does our hearts. And that is why Yeshua cautions and guards us by quoting from Proverbs 4:23:

Which  reads: “Above all else guard your heart for it is the wellspring of Life."

I like how Ellie in the animation movie 'Up' shouts out "Adventure is out there" - all you have to do is set out and that my friend is the spirit of the west. And even if you don't "Adventure's are still out there" and you still have to go out and live it. I have added one my favorite clips between Carl and Ellie from the movie for you to enjoy; the calling is clear once again "Adventure is out there!!"



Blessings & Shalom,


Sam Kurien

We are Ring Bearers

If you are following this blog, you all know that I love the LOTR books and absolutely love the LOTR movies. I highly recommend the high-def versions available on Blu-Ray for catching all the fine details the movie makers put in on this magnum opus work.

Like Frodo we are all ring bearers, carriers of a story (& carriers of purpose) that is being told on the grander scale. And as the story of life unfolds and takes on different paths we come to a point where we like Frodo say, "my adventure turned out so different, I didn't expect it to go this way". The longings, desires, hardships of life, and events that bring heart wrenching aches make us wonder that my adventure is not that fun after all. In the exchange between Gandalf and Frodo, Gandalf assures Frodo that it is not for us to decide as to whats should have happened, but it is up to us to decide what we are going to do with the time that is given to us. Here is the snippet for you to enjoy!. I have sliced this with the final scene in the "The Fellowship of The Ring" for you to see that Frodo's trusted friend and servant Sam will not give up Frodo half-way on the journey. The fellowship does get broken, but as long as we are true to each other (in spite of being on the opposite side of the spectrum), we will make it against all odds.

Gandalf Final Words To Frodo from Sam on Vimeo.

Life is hard but life is also joyful when we rely on the things that get us through, strength, honor, friendship, faithfulness and love. There are times when these are thoroughly tested and there are times when the closest ones feel that we have failed, but it is in those times that we look in deeper within ourselves and look deeper to those who were near us and who are near now. We should aim to see the good that surround us and these things helps us to move forward. I have learned when we realize this and keep the first things first, believe that many things happen that are not in our control or couldn't be. But know God has given each of us a task, each of us a ring to bear, to see to, that we accomplish the mission that He has entrusted us with. The journey is long, sometimes tedious, but on the way there are great flashes, flashes of joy, pain ....Yes! the journey is also full of perils, full of uncertainties and in spite of all this the journey is worth taking and the journey is worth finishing.

Shalom & Blessings,

Sam Kurien

P.S: And thus two Hobbits set out to change the course of Middle Earth

Hosea You are a Fool!

The creation of a man and a woman is part of the core story that God is completing for the glory of His son. The family, husband, wife, children are all part of the reflection of what God has set upon as model on the face of earth.  God is fierce and is beautiful two adjectives with almost opposite connotations. When you study the creation story in Genesis each day is magnificent, the crescendo goes on swelling like a great symphony till God creates man, the work of his glory. He creates Adam in his very own image; Adam bears the likeness of God, he possesses his fierceness and his passionate heart and yet one more thing remains. In the finishing touch of creation God unveils the beauty part with the creation of the woman. Eve is the crown of His creation and no wonder man is captivated by the woman.  God fashions Eve embodying the beauty and mystery and the tender vulnerability of God. William Blake says "The naked woman's body is a portion of eternity too great for the eye of man".

With this background set I want to introduce you to how God shows His pattern of love in rescuing us and coming after us no matter what. Michael card wrote a song on the book of Hosea a minor prophet entrusted to be an example of enormous proportions to tell God's story of love through his life. Hosea is asked by God with an unusual request ...to marry a prostitute, a adulterous woman.  He is deeply in love with this woman and she bears him children. Eve has enraptured him in her love and he finds no satisfaction elsewhere. But time to time she runs away from him to her way ward ways, but each time she runs away Hosea pursues her and brings her back.The pursuit of Hosea's love is so strong that finally Gomer has realized she is not worthy for him, the scene in the story finally ends at the place where Gomer is on the auciton block of the flesh market, naked, abused, humiliated and torn. The bidding starts but nobody can match Hosea who has sold everything he has to redeem her. Here are the lyrics of the song and if you don't want to read it you can hear it here:

Don't know what he sees in me He is spirit, he is free And I, the wife of adultery Gomer is my name. Simply more than I can see How he keeps on forgiving me; How he keeps his sanity Hosea, you're a fool. Chorus: A fool to love someone like me, A fool to suffer silently;Though sometimes through your eyes I see I'd rather be a fool. The fondness of a father, The passion of a child; The tenderness of a loving friend An understanding smile. All of this and so much more, You've lavished on a faithless horror I've never known love like this before Hosea, you're a fool. Chorus: A fool to love someone like me, A fool to suffer silently; Though sometimes through your eyes I see I'd rather be a fool. This God of yours would not have told To lift a love that you couldn't hold; And though time and time again I flee, I'm always glad to see you coming after me! Simply more than I can see, How he keeps on forgiving me The wife of adultery; Gomer is my name.

Listening to the song, I was overwhelmed by the God's great love for us. God stands and bears and is willing to even be a fool to pursue me inspite of knowing my "adulterous behavior". He is willing to forgive again and again because He has chosen to love me unconditionally. His pursuit is so strong that he won't quit, give up on me and is willing to risk everything to redeem me and bring me back to Him. I am overwhelmed not just with emotions of praise and adulation of what my savior did for me on that cross, I am overtaken by His love and great concern for my life. The Lord says in Hosea:

"I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the LORD…I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people,’ ‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.’” (Hosea 2:19-20,23)

My love thoughts for the day,

Sam Kurien

The Nice Guy! - Warning Nice Guys not permitted to watch the 2nd Clip

I love the work of Ransomed heart ministries, John Elderege is among my favorite hero- authors and the team at Ransom heart is awesome in carrying out the special message of discovering freedom that Yeshua won for us and liberating the hearts of men and women. WOW! What a mission? The clip below is one that they share in the introduction of what masculinity was not intended to be. No offense to Mr. Rogers and his nice guy image but come on...our entire culture of Christianity is moving towards the belief that the highest aspirations is to be nice all the time and the greatest virtue is not to offend anyone



Jesus invites us to have the heart of passion, and the passionate heart is powerful when it is free, it is released to chase after hunger and righteousness. When I survey the life of The King of Kings in the Gospel all I see most of the time is a fierce savior, gentle and a consuming God on a relentless rescue mission. It is not this nice guy who has come to invite everybody to be friends. Yeshua says the kingdom heaven belongs to violent men (passionate men) and they will take back and bring the kingdom of God on earth. I relate well when Elderedge paints this picture with the opening scenes of 'Saving Private Ryan' - the greatest generation that ran and jumped on the beaches of Normandy to meet the enemy dead on.  The idea to lay down, take the stand and meet head on the enemies that have come to steal and destroy. I have included the whole scene here for a purpose, these men sacrificed against all odds, these men overcame their fears, weakness's for the higher purpose just like Jesus did. And these men lived based on one of the truths Yeshua taught "A good friend lays down his life for the sake of others".



I think the greatest enemy today within our Christian cultures and circles is that of apathy, this unfortunately is also the greatest enemy of our pursuit of being passionate for holiness and righteousness. Friends our calling is not just to be the nice guy, but to take a stand where need be and go out with passion and courage. Look at your savior, He is something just more than powerful, He is Holy and demands holiness and may Yeshua instill in us His Spirit of courage to follow Him wherever He may lead.

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

The Open Tents Of Abraham & David

I am on a journey exploring the blessings of being in intimacy with God, its not just about the idea of being blessed or pursue God to be blessed, it is much more. To be in the realm of friendship with God translates into our lives in imitating Him and doing things that please Him. And this reflects on how we treat our families, friends, superiors and people in general.

I have been reading the book Jasher and I love the stories of the patriarchs and their wanderings by the leading of the awesome God of Israel. Abraham became a wealthy Prince of the Middle East, respected by his friends, enemies, and the pagan nations that surrounded him. He was known as a man of faith, a righteous man, a prophet, and most befittingly held the title of being the ‘friend of God”. Wherever Abraham pitched his tents, his tents were open; the book reveals that Abraham pitched his tents always over the hills so that he could see travelers who journeyed from one place to the other. Any traveler was welcome to stop by and be  refreshed with water, meals and supplies for their journey. Abraham treated thus the pagan and believer alike. His tents were open to hospitality to strangers; he took care of the poor and when need be he chased after kings to rescue the weak from the hands of the strong.

Though the tent of Abraham has a larger concept and deeper hidden meaning which I don’t want to explore in this post but in passing I do want to make a important point. God grafted the gentiles and sons of Ishmael into the Jewish vine by the grace and miraculous rescue of Yeshua. The Tent of Abraham was open in a physical sense thousands of years ago and the concept of that open tent has been enlarged by Yeshua to bring us into the glory of our savior.

King David was a man after God’s own heart. When David became King of Israel, he brought the Ark to Jerusalem and set it in a tent that he had prepared for it. Logically, one would think that David would have brought the Ark to the Tabernacle of Moses in Gibeon, but he did not. Instead, he brought it to Jerusalem and instituted worship before the Ark. David established a totally new form of worship. He provided for and appointed thousands of worship singers and musicians to praise the Lord continually in the tent. Indeed, they functioned around the clock for the remainder of David's reign. There was no veil in the tent; so the praise, worship, and intercession continued before the Ark — in other words, directly before the Throne of God.

King David also appointed priests and Levites to minister before the Lord and lead people into worship. He not only gave Israel a national identity but encouraged his people to come into intimacy with the Lord, the very intimacy that he himself enjoyed. Another character I want to highlight about him caring for his people is from the story when we see in his lifetime breaking the law by stealing consecrated holy temple bread and giving it to his hungry soldiers, men who rallied and depended on him.

David's intimacy with Lord translated in a life of seeking and pleasing Him and that in turn reflected on how he treated people; a man who valued people. Abraham and David were new covenant believers in old covenant times. They moved and lived their lives in intimacy and by the leading of the Ruach Adonai (The Holy Spirit of God). Their physical dwelling places were open tents and these dwelling places were beautiful because Lord inhabited in them and with them.

“For from the rising of the sun to its setting My name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to My Name, and a pure offering. For My Name will be great among the nations, says the LORD of hosts. (Mal. 1:11)

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

Stones of Remembrance - 'Reheboth'

Yesterday was father’s day, and as usual I was a recipient of some awesome gifts and one of them was wooden plaque designed and crafted by my wife Sarah. She knew I wanted that one for long time and it was titled ‘Reheboth’. A significance, a stone of remembrance of the Lord’s goodness to me. ‘Reheboth’ is an interesting name, its meaning is ‘Now God has made room for us in this land and we will flourish and prosper in it”.

We are putting this up in our garage for now but want to order one with brass gold lettering on marble to put on the pillar of our estate house right at the entrance…a symbol, a reminder and memorial stone of remembrance of the wondrous provision of the Lord in this time of our life and in this place where He has brought us to.

The name comes from the story of Genesis 26,  Isaac the patriarch is living among the philistines and has prospered in the land with cattle, crops, men servants and maid servants. Along with the man’s wealth his influence, power and honor grew. But with that also came contention from the pagan aliens who surrounded him. Often a quarrel between his servants and Abimelech’s (the local ruler) servants ensued for a precious resource – ‘water' in the middle eastern deserts they lived in. Isaac seemed to have a knack of digging wells and finding water…I personally feel because God was with the patriach, whatever he touched turned to gold and whatever he set his hand to prospered.So let us pick up the story in Geneis 26: 12-22 about the dispute with the Philistines.

12 Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the LORD blessed him. The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy. 14 He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him. 15 So all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth. 16 Then Abimelech said to Isaac, "Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us." 17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there. 18 Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them. 19 Isaac's servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herdsmen and said, "The water is ours!" So he named the well Esek, because they disputed with him. Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah.22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth, saying, "Now the LORD has given us room and we will flourish in the land.":

Fascinating incident isn’t it? This post is a like a reminder of what God has done for me and my family. We have crossed the Red Sea, we have crossed the Jordan, and now we are setting to conquer and put our enemies to flight. But it is also a time to set up stones of remembrance...for the Lord has enlarged our territory, made room for us in the land and prospered us. I thank you O Lord, for your promises never fail, your faithfulness never ends….what good is in me that you will lead and look upon a speck like me, a servant at your hand to posess and flourish?. May the plaque remind us of your goodness and your mighty works on our behalf.

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

Come out of the Cave....I have a Remnant In the Land

In my devotional time I read today from 1 Kings 19. The story is of Elijah running from Jezebel after slaughtering 400 prophets of Baal. After a heroic act and the mighty display of the strong hand of deliverance from the Lord, Elijah is on the run from a wicked queen who has signed his death warrant. Fearing for his life Elijah's journey takes him to Horeb the mountain of the Lord. He hides in a cave and the Lord has promised to come. There is a strong wind shattering the rocks, earthquake and fire but the Lord was not in any of them.

Finally Elijah hears the Lord in a soft whisper and gets instructions about anointing Hazael king over Aram and Jehu King over Israel. The Lord reveals the strategy that these kings will be used to destroy the followers of Baal and then tells Elijah to anoint his successor Elisha to the office of the prophet. Finally the Lord reveals to him that there are 7000 still left in the land who are the remnant and have not bowed their heads to Baal.

What is the definition of a remnant? A remnant is a generation that chooses to live life contrary to culture and norms of the world but follows whole heartedly in intimacy the walk prescribed by the Holy Spirit of God. Though they are in the world, they are not of the world. Though they are are part of the authority and structure of the world their hearts are devoted to the purposes and the mind of the Yeshua Ha Messiah, the King of the universe. They go about doing the ordinary as part of the massive work of the Kingdom of god.

So in that light these are my observations for learning or applications to all believers.

Those believers who wish to continue to follow God must therefore swim upstream against the mainstream current of the professing religious majority. Godly men and women need to take care to (a) carefully remain separated and unstained by the world (James 1:27), yet, remain "in the world but not of the world;" (b) maintain a solid personal prayer life (1 Thess. 5:17) and a life-long habit of studying all of God's word (2 Tim. 2:15, 3:16), (c) regularly seek out the fellowship and wisdom of other believers (Heb. 10:25).

Love of the world competes with the love of God (1 John 2:15,16; James 4:4). Normal Christian living will bring persecution, (2 Tim. 3:12) suffering, and pressures from the flesh, the world, and the devil (Gal. 5:17-26). Spiritual warfare is a life-long reality (Eph. 6:12, 2 Cor. 10:4). Christ demands our undivided attention, our submission to Him and a path of demanding discipleship (Luke 14:26-35).

Nominal religious belief does not suffice! The reminder is the remnant in any age is small. Yeshua Himself said:

Not every one who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.' "Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And every one who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it." And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes." (Matthew 7:21-29)

So this was the prayer I prayed, I record it here because as the eyes of the Lord go back and forth to look after the ones who worship Him and have given their hearts to Him:

O Lord blessed are you for you leave a remnant in the land, a people who will not bow or kiss to fallen and false gods. O Lord I pray today that your servant and your servant's family will have the heart and courage to follow you. O Blessed Lord God of Israel , God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, hear your servan'ts cry today, Yeshua the King of the Universe, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Holy and anointed one of God and Holy Spirit strenghten your servant to be among the remnant of the Lord. Let your servant's heart be circumcised to you, let your servant live in the faithfulness and goodness of the Lord. O Lord your servant is no better than his fathers, I am a mere speck on the face of the earth so hear your servant's prayer and your child is asking. I will not leave until you have blessed me, because you have promised that your servant will remain in the land of living, praising God in the highest for you are the God who deserves all honor, glory and praise. May your kingdom come and Marnatha Lord!

Amen Amen.  Shalom & Blessings,

Sam Kurien

Discovering The Masculine Heart!

Though most of us may not know it, a man’s journey in life is often a discovery and a journey of reclaiming his heart. We get inundated with books and speeches with the search of significance and seven habits and seven principles and stuff like that but they all are pretty terms quoted and paraphrased differently but all of them at least attempt and point towards this drive of reclaiming of that masculine heart. I strongly believe that a full restoration and reclaiming of the masculine heart can only come when we allow Yeshua to be our King and heavenly father. Our allegiance to Him puts everything else in order with an adventure and beauty of lifetime to pursue.

God sets his character and his model on earth in the structure we call ‘family’. He created and made it and He began it. The father and mother are expressions of God’s character, but unfortunately in a fallen world we do not have model fathers and model mothers even when we have the ones that aspire to be like Him. Becoming like Him is a process and does not happen overnight but living in His presence and inviting the Spirit of God to take control of our lives transforms us to the discovery of that masculine heart. That said, I bring the point to mind that often a son’s heart needs to shepherded by his earthly father because that’s how he finds his identity, his masculine heart, his purposes in life and ultimately a pathway of discovering His own maker. Every man as John Elderedge quotes carries a ‘Father wound’ and so does every woman. Along with this wound he also points that there is a God given vacuum that no one can fill but the Father in heaven. The healing of this wound is crucial for the reclamation and restoration of the heart to live life fully (in abundance) and getting on that ship to pursue a life-time of adventure in building and bringing on earth the Kingdom of heaven. If we don't we will miss the boat and live life lifeless.

The First two clips are from the movie 'City Slickers' that show us three best friends who go out to experience cowboy country and cowboy lifestyle. They are chartered for a course of corralling and transporting thousands of cattle from Texas to Colorado. On the journey the men are discussing the best day and the worst day of their lives and it was interesting to me that all three related the event with a central figure in their lives their fathers who shaped their entire sense of self in adulthood.


CitySlickers_TheBestDay from Sam on Vimeo.

The second scene is about a conversation that takes place between Curly the old cowboy and Mitch. Curly in his wisdom tells Mitch the secret of life is finding that one thing that puts everything else in order. Through that journey of driving cattle Mitch discovers that one thing is ‘Love’ for him and rest everything fell in place, all the confusion, mid-life crisis and meaningless existence vanished. He had discovered and reclaimed his heart.


Secret Of Life from Sam on Vimeo.

The last two clips are from the movie 'Secondhand Lions'. It is the story of a boy who was abandoned by his father and mother and dumped on his two uncles who have been real men, men who found their masculine hearts early on in life. The boy’s stay with them drives the lessons to his heart, shape him to be the man he wants to be, shape him to discover his masculine heart and infuse in it the things that really matter.


Secondhands Lion from Sam on Vimeo.

And finally the idea of real courage can come out only when one has discovered his masculine heart.

Secondhands Lion Bar Scene from Sam on Vimeo.

I long for you Zion....See your Redemption is near!

I am a Zionist by heart, a firm believer in the spiritual and the physical nation of Israel. I believe in the sovereignty of the state of Israel, the promises of God to Abraham and the children of Israel and its future destiny as linked with Yeshua and every believer in Yeshua. I believe in the obedience of His command to 'pray of the peace of Yerushalaiym for they are blessed and they shall prosper'.  Why are my fundamental beliefs appearing as thoughts today on this post. The reason is simple with the events that are happening around us. The nations of the world are raging against Israel and its promised heirs. Many national and international leaders are openly wanting the Jewish nation destroyed from the face of the earth. United Nations condemns actions of Israel when they have the right to defend and protect their boundaries. In spite of these tumultuous events we have this hope as the prophecies foretell "though the nations rage, I will not allow harm to come to my beloved" says the Lord. The nation of God and people of God have survived against all odds.

My heart is stirred by reading today songs from the sons of Korah:

2 With your hand you drove out the nations and planted our fathers; you crushed the peoples and made our fathers flourish. 3 It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them. 4 You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob. 5 Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes.

Time and again throughout history the Jewish people have been hunted, targeted, persecuted by the gentiles and even by the so called Christian & Islamic nations (who are to stand by Israel), right from the days of Philistines, Egypt, Romans, Russians, concentration camps and right to this day the enemy wants to destroy the promises and the prized possession of God. But, Yeshua is coming just as Joseph revealed himself to his brothers, Israel as a nation and people group will know the King. It will be a revelation and a mighty saving right in the midst of disaster and total annihilation. The return of the King of Kings to establish His throne and take over the city of Zion is a promise He made, and more than that its a promise He made that those who are His..they will be protected, secured and will stand with Him on Zion. Look at these verses and encourage yourself:

Luke 17:27 - For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 2 Peter 3:10 - But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.  Psalm 50:3 -Our God shall come, and shall not keep silent; A fire shall devour before Him, And it shall be very tempestuous all around Him.

With all the junk theology out there some of you might question who is today's Israel?. I believe its not only the sons of Isaac but those grafted into the vine by grace and faith in Yeshua, and this includes the sons of the gentiles as well as the sons of Ishmael as promised in the book of Ezekiel. Each one of us called to faith and is a promised heir to salvation and each one of us has to know our place in the hierarchy as we stand with the sons of Jacob. God has promised this blessing upon the nations and this blessing has come upon us through Yeshua and the jewish nation and we have a debt of gratitude and support to them.

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

"Fight! Fight!" - My Son Is Wild

I love watching my little boy grow. He is such a combination of a lover and a warrior. The other day we were at Panera's and the simple sipping straw turns into a mighty sword and he beckons his papa to lift up that fork and fight him. At home he has his play swords, sometimes he carries them to bed ever watchful if some monsters were to jump out of the closet, he is ready to spill blood (green or red...he doesn't mind). He  runs around the hallways of our home sometimes chasing his sister or many a times rising in her defense.  Waving his sword, he stomps the spiders and bugs rescuing the damsels in distress (his mother and sister) who are terrified at the very sight of these bugs. The chants of 'Fight, Fight' is common sound in our household. Don't misunderstand me, its a good sound to hear especially coming from a two year old; reminds me we are in constant warfare in the spiritual realm and in the natural. I love watching this in Issac, no one has taught him to fight (especially from his papa who considers himself as a man of the tents) it is  built into him, its a heart that God has created in him. Isaac is also a snuggler and a lover, always ready to show love and compassion. At Sunday School, he pushes the bigger boys down if challenged and at the same time obedient to his teachers and doing what is commanded and gentle to the girls.  Why am I bragging? I not only want to but I learn from my little boy. Men are created in the image of God to be that warrior and yet to be gentle and tender hearted. Yeshua showed this He was filled with compassion, love and mercy but He is the same God who made a whip and lashed out at the merchants who had turned his sanctuary into a marketplace. He is the same God who stood in the pillar of fire terrifying the armies of Egypt, He is the same God who had wept at Lazarus's tomb but is enthroned on heaven's throne as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

The Son of God is Wild (lover-warrior & a consuming fire), and he has created me and my son in His image.

My love-thoughts for the day.

Sam Kurien.

Silence The Rooster

Sometimes we find ourselves doubting and questioning “If the freedom that Christ won for us is real?”. The questions lurk in our mind in form of difficult financial cirumstances, death of a close one, despair, disappointment, unfulfilled promises, a debilitating disease, treachery and the list of troubles go on. The adversary of our soul connives in soft whispers through these tough spots of life that the freedom and grace we live in is not real. Our adversary is more afraid of knowing what we are capable of if we know who we are in Christ and what we may become when we realize our real identity in Him.

The sound of these doubts are like the dark lord Sauron's murmurings (In the Lord of The Rings) to Aaragon that he is not Elessar, that he is not Issiuldur’s heir or the rightful king of Gondor. Over and again Sauron reminds him that he is just that lone strider meant to roam about in the deep woods with no purpose and no freedom.  I say it is time to silence those crowing roosters.

Max Lucado tells us about the story of Booker.T Washington’s family who were slaves serving in the cotton plantations of the south. The early morning rooster’s crow was a everyday reminder for them to report to duty to the plantation fields, a reminder of servitude with no wage, a reminder of bondage to an earthly master who did not treat them justly.  But then came Abraham Lincoln’s emancipation proclamation. Early morning, next day Washington’s mother was not answering to the rooster’s call but was chasing it down. Booker .T Washington’s family killed and ate the rooster for lunch that day.

Let not anyone tell you that your freedom is not real. It may be time to silence those roosters forever.

John 10:10  reads: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it in abundance."

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

God is the Fiery Lover

God is the source of all masculine power; God is also the fountain of all feminine allure. My eastern friends may look into it and draw conclusions that this is very familiar with their gods and goddess's but it is not, there is no comparison here with false gods and deities but the idea here is to look into the face of the God of Israel and see His love and love his character completely. The endeavoring aim of this heart is to become more like him. He is the source of all perfection and every man or woman aiming to be more like Him has found the fount of all perfection.  Come to think of it, he is the wellspring of everything that has ever romanced your heart. The thundering strength of a waterfall or the thunderstorm, the delicacy of a flower, or for that matter the delicacy of your entire physical being, the stirring and romantic capacity of music, the richness of wine. The masculine and the feminine that fill all creation come from the same heart. What we have sought, what we have tasted in part with our earthly lovers, we will come face-to-face with in our True Love. For the incompleteness that we seek to relieve in the deep embrace of our earthly love is never fully healed. The union does not last, whatever the poets and pop artists may say, its only the futility of human wisdom and words that such earthly union lasts forever...unfortunately it does not. However, morning comes and we've got to get out of bed and off to our day, incomplete once more. But oh, to have it healed forever; to drink deeply from that fount of which we've had only a sip; to dive into that sea in which we have only waded.

And so a man like Charles Wesley can pen these words: "Jesus, Lover of my soul, let me to thy bosom fly," while Catherine of Siena can pray, "O fire surpassing every fire because you alone are the fire that burns without consuming! . . . Yet your consuming does not distress the soul but fattens her with insatiable love." The French mystic Madam Guyon can write, "I slept not all night, because Thy love, O my God, flowed in me like delicious oil, and burned as a fire . . . I love God far more than the most affectionate lover among men loves his earthly attachment."

Your God is a consuming fire, a fire in whose embrace the beloved will not be scorched or burned but the wicked will be destroyed.  As I pen this my heart is overwhelmed these days with the goodness of my God. Just as Yeshua raised Joseph and Daniel in the courts of kings so has His mercy come upon my life, so has his love consumed me. The verses from the Psalmist's heart come to mind:

Psalms 105:13 reads: “They went from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people. He permitted no one to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm".

I meditate on these thoughts for the day.

Blessings & Shalom in the name of Yeshua Ha Meshiach

Sam Kurien

If a Tree Falls In a Forest....

At work we have interesting philosophical discussions about faith, theology, stories, quantum physics, metaphysics, astrophysics, the theories of anything and everything and their confluence ends up giving me things to ponder about.  Recently finished reading Edwin Abbot’s book Flatland written in the 1800’s a treatise making fun of Victorian England, but it seems Abbot had much more to say that have significant impact on Physics, Metaphysics and even faith theology in general.  My pondering's or rants over this so bear with me:

‘Flatland’ basically describes a two dimensional world where shapes like squares, triangles, circles, polygons and lines live, almost in structure like ours but only in a two-dimensional plain. This two dimensional world has its own set of rules and regulations. The lines are normally females, and of course dangerous as they can severely damage you if you don’t see them coming, cutting you into half – so the apparent rule that they need to be walking in squiggly fashion to avoid accidents. Then there are things like houses are built in such a way where females have one entrance and the males have another entrance. The triangles belong to the soldier class, squares and rectangles belong to the gentleman class and the idea that the more sides you have, higher up you are in social class order. This means the circle which has so many sides that it’s almost impossible to count all of them is considered to be the perfect shape and hence on top of the social order and the one’s entitled to make the rules.   

One day in Flatland a sphere from the three-dimensional world comes into the two dimensional world. Now from all sides the sphere appears to the Flat-landers as a perfect being able to be in multiple places at the same time. The Sphere meets the Square and tries to explain him about the third dimension and the idea that there is much more to this world than two dimensions. The square has no perception of what the sphere is talking about.  Finally the sphere explains him with the concept saying “what if your world is one-dimensional?”-  Which means all you will be doing is walking in a straight line.  The square begins to understand but is unable to relate this concept to others. The idea of becoming aware of another dimension then opens up quite a few, or more possibilities.

Again, we all have heard about the age old philosophical riddle “If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?”. Quantum Physicists will say the event never occurred since there was no observer. The deeper philosophical question then becomes what is the difference between perception and reality? Or when do these lines blur? Does observation affect outcome? Does the observer have an impact or influence on the event? Does the even influence the observer. If the tree did fall and did make a sound it must have traveled as a wave in the observable universe and propagated to someone.  If I say Disney World existed to someone who has never been there but has only heard about it and believes it exists is relating himself or herself to the experiences of others.  Sound is the variation of pressure that propagates through matter as  a wave is what we study in Physics, which tells me the most important part of this riddle is the division between perception of an object and how the object really is. If something exists outside of our perception there is no way for us to know that the tree exists. The kind of dimensional problem the square felt when listening to the sphere.

Now what am I trying to say here..I really don’t know how to relate...but I will do my best to explain.  Math and Physics do prove that multiple dimensions exist but we are not aware of it by our mere senses. The spiritual realm is as real as the physical realm.  I tend to think the tales in Narnia or Lord of the Rings may be a reflections of something that is more real than we can really perceive. If I was looking at a physical object like for example a table, and was aware of all the dimensions, it wouldn’t be much of a problem for me to walk through that table or say walk through the wall. Didn’t Jesus do it?

I believe eternity and heaven will be interesting places because in the resurrected body we will become aware of multiple dimensions and will be in the pursuit of the infinite dimensions of His nature. Eternity doesn’t sound boring after all. A mind and heart that is aware of all these dimensions or at least the dimensions that God makes us aware of is truly liberated. This has enormous implications a event happening in distant planet 'X' in the farthest corner of the universe trillions of light years away will be known to you just like that or like Philip who talked to the Ethiopian official and disappeared in a whirwind, or like Elisha servant Gehazi’s eyes that were opened to see the heavenly armies that were with them opened up new possibilities of renewed hope.

I believe as we grow in our relationship with Yeshua we become aware of more dimensions, our faith and hope grow and stretch, walking in the supernatural is the natural. Teleportation across the universe is the natural thing to do. And If the tree falls in a forest, you will not only know it and hear the sound but you can say the words and even re-plant it. Moving mountains is even easier...:) 

 Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien

Multitude of His Mercies/Your Heart is His!!

Today I read in the accounts of Kings, the life of Solomon. It is sad to observe that though Solomon was loved deeply by God and was called ‘Jeddiah’ - meaning ‘beloved of the Lord’, Solomon in his latter days did not follow in all the righteous ways like his father David did.  The observations I am making here between David and Solomon are, though David committed sins and made terrible mistakes in his life journey, never once in his life did he give his heart or a place in his heart for anybody else but God.  On the other hand Solomon though he loved God, gave his heart away to things, power, women and followed after the idols of gods/goddess’s of other nations. In spite of being the wisest and the smartest man on planet earth Solomon’s life ended tragically, I say tragically because he left the path of following God and lost his heart,  exchanged it with perishable things of this world. Somehow, I know Solomon knew this, but was lazy or had traveled so far away from God that he didn't take corrective action. At least the Bible doesn't reveal to us that he did.

Yet, God in his mercy told Solomon that for his servant David’s sake He will not take away his kingdom in his life time but his kingdom nevertheless will get divided into ten smaller kingdoms and will be taken away from his son.  We see the fulfillment of what the Lord had said in Rehoboam – Solomon’s son’s life.  However, during Solomon’s own lifetime God had raised up men who were rebellious to Solomon and cause him lot of anguish during his rule.  And that brings us to the discovery I made in the reading this morning…

Edomites were a group of people that came from Esau’s lineage, we know God had chosen Jacob/Isarel over Esau as the chosen one for the scriptures say:

Romans 9:13 Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

Esau married pagan women and the Edomites came into existence. However the Edomites were blood brothers to Israel, they surface from time to time as arch rivals and enemies in various battles throughout Israel’s history. But it is during David’s time, Joab the commander of the armies of David almost routs out this race. He kills all the Edomite men and women; the race is almost obliterated. I say 'almost' because, God in his mercy had spared a boy called ‘Hadad’, who had fled to Egypt, grew up in Pharaoh’s household and married the sister of  Queen Tahpanhes. When Hadad learns about Joab’s and King David’s death, he returns as a grown young man to Edom and becomes a a life-long thorn in Solomon’s flesh during the latter's reign..

Why am I relating this obscure event here? I think it is important to observe and learn the working of our God and the multitude of His mercies even to his Gentiles. Though he loves his children deeply and expects a very high standard from them, He is long suffering, waits patiently, corrects us, judges us, justifies us and redeems us. I see God’s mercy on Abraham’s seed even in the sparing of Hadad’s life. Edom as a people group almost vanished because of the generational sins but for the mercy of God on Abraham’s seed. We also see Solomon is corrected by the Lord, he does not turn his ways, yet God has raised problems that surround him in his life time. We see this time and again in Israel’s history as a chosen people as well as a nation, when they surrendered and followed God as their first love, no one could stand up against them. But when they went seeking after other idols and other gods, they were not only judged but lost their standing with God. Yet God was merciful and kept on loving them unconditionally.

So what am I learning; apart from the enjoying the mercies of my God, the teaching here is simple and the lesson very important: Instead of identifying our hearts with His, we identify ourselves to things, people, idols, and other gods that distract and take our attention from Him; ultimately we stray and exchange our hearts for something else.  But Friends, we know our hearts are won and He is worthy to have it in complete surrender and complete devotion. I think it is the best place to be, the coolest dwelling place, it is a place when you will see the cup overflowing with His goodness and mercies. Now I understand why the Psalmist sings:

“Surely Goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life”

Blessings & Shalom,

Sam Kurien