Kris sent me this mail once..... and its beautiful. Lets do it this Christmas!

"Lets nestle, not wrestle."

Billy Graham and Oprah

Last year I watched Billy Graham being interviewed by Oprah Winfrey on television. Oprah told him that in her childhood home, she use to watch him preach on a little black and white TV while sitting on a linoleum floor.

She went on to the tell viewers that in his lifetime Billy has preached to twenty-million people around the world, not to mention the countless numbers who have heard him whenever his crusades are broadcast. When she asked if he got nervous before facing a crowd, Billy replied humbly, "No, I don't get nervous before crowds, but I did today before I was going to meet with you."

Oprah's show is broadcast to twenty-million people every day. She is comfortable with famous stars and celebrities but seemed in awe of Dr. Billy Graham.

When the interview ended, she told the audience, "You don't often see this on my show, but we're going to pray." Then she asked Billy to close in prayer. The camera panned the studio audience as they bowed their heads and closed their eyes just like in one of his crusades.

Oprah sang the first line from the song that is his hallmark "Just as I am, without a plea," misreading the line and singing off'-key, but her voice was full of emotion and almost cracked.

When Billy stood up after the show, instead of hugging her guest, Oprah's usual custom, she went over and just nestled against him. Billy wrapped his arm around her and pulled her under his shoulder. She stood in his fatherly embrace with a look of sheer contentment.

I once read the book "Nestle, Don't Wrestle" by Corrie Ten Boom. The power of nestling was evident on the TV screen that day. Billy Graham was not the least bit condemning, distant, or hesitant to embrace a public personality who may not fit the evangelistic mold. His grace and courage are sometimes stunning.

In an interview with Hugh Downs, on th e 20/20 program, the subject turned to homosexuality. Hugh looked directly at Billy and said, "If you had a homosexual child, would you love him?" Billy didn't miss a beat. He replied with sincerity and gentleness, "Why, I would love that one even more."

The title of Billy's autobiography, "Just As I Am," says it all. His life goes before him speaking as eloquently as that charming southern drawl for which he is known.

If, when I am eighty years old, my autobiography were to be titled, "Just As I Am," I wonder how I would live now? Do I have the courage to be me? I'll never be a Billy Graham, the elegant man who draws people to the Lord through a simple one-point message, but I hope to be a person who is real and compassionate and who might draw people to nestle within God's embrace.

Do you make it a point to speak to a visitor or person who shows up alone at church, buy a hamburger for a homeless man, call your mother on Sunday afternoons, pick daisies with a little girl, or take a fatherless boy to a baseball game?

Did anyone ever tell you how beautiful you look when you're looking for what's beautiful in someone else?

Billy complimented Oprah when asked what he was most thankful for; he said, "Salvation given to us in Jesus Christ" then added, "and the way you have made people all over this country aware of the power of being grateful."

When asked his secret of love, being married fifty-four years to the same person, he said, "Ruth and I are happily incompatible."

How unexpected. We would all live more comfortably with everybody around us if we would find the strength in being grateful and happily incompatible.

Let's take the things that set us apart, that make us different, that cause us to disagree, and make them an occasion to compliment each other and be thankful for each other. Let us be big enough to be smaller than our neighbor, spouse, friends, and strangers.

Every day, may we Nestle, not Wrestle!



~author unknown ~

His name: Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isa 9:6b)

Here are a few ways of celebrating Christmas meaningfully...

• Raise the voice of praise & thanksgiving! Raise your voices and praise God for the most indescribable gift He gave us! (2 Cor 9:15)
• Reach out to non-Christians! The birth of Jesus is "good tidings of great joy," not to the Christians only, but to "all the people!" (Lk 2:10).
• Remember the poor! "The poor have the Gospel preached to them!" (Mt 11:2-5).
• Marital Relationships Have a God centered life...rather than self centered. And do not be egocentric.
• Social relationships "If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men" (Rom 12:18). Visit the homes of your enemies and opposers with eatables. If they refuse to receive you, come back with a smile. The Lord will honour you for your initiative.
• Why don't we take advantage of this Season for reconciliation and restitution?

Give these a thought.......and make this Christmas meaningful... Not just a party, but bring love and happiness to many.

This beautiful song really sets one thinking....

I can only imagine,
What is will be like...
When i walk,
by Your side...

I can only imagine,
what my eyes will see...
When Your face,
is before me...

Surrounded by Your glory,
what will my heart feel...
Will i dance for You Jesus
Or in awe of You be still...
Will i stand in Your presence,
Or to my knees will I fall?
Will i sing Hallelujah!
Will i be able to speak at all...

I can only imagine....
:)

If you wanna listen to it.... clik here

http://www.andiesisle.com/icanonlyimagine.html

This is a prayer for Mr Anonymous... who has been posting obscene comments on my blogs.
Lord Jesus! I surrender this person into your hands God! You see his heart God! You created him O Lord! Forgive him, for he knows not what he does Lord Jesus!
Touch his heart God Father! And reveal Yourself to him too, like You did to me.... Change him Lord! Send Your Holy Spirit!
Thank you Lord God! Thank you for this lovely creation of Yours, who read my blog...and commented on it!
Bless him Father......
In Your most precious and mighty name i pray...Jesus!
Amen

God Loves You

My testimony: -

before I continue with this site... I think I should share my testimony with you all.
I am Rini Sarkar. I belong to a Hindu family. We are a family of four, my parents and my elder brother. We reside in Indore.
After my graduation, i moved to Mumbai for pursuing MCA. I got into a hostel, and my roommate is Maria.
Ad time passed by, I noticed, her relationshiop with God. I saw, that she loved God and she was so content with His work in her life. And I felt so empty inside. I'd never known that void in my life, till I met her. Slowly, the temptaion to know God for myself grew in me.

Yet, I didn't turn to God. But one day, I was in sheer despair. So many things were happening in my life, and making me feel low. I wanted peace... But didn't know where to look for it. It was a wild search, in all the WRONG places.

Maria dreamt that I was in distress, and she came to me. I talked to her about all that was happening in my life....
She took my hands in hers, and we prayed. THat was the moment, my life was transformed. It wasn't an explosion or something evry dramatic. It was just a subtle gesture from God, which I felt. It was His love and Peace flooding my entire being. I was changed internally....

By the time she finished praying for me, I was perfectly happy and in peace. God had revealed Himself to me... He has answered all the queries that were there in my mind. And enveloped me in His eternal love.

Soon after, I told Maria that I wanted to go to church with her. She was ecstatic! We went to church...And I found myself bonding with it. By the time I came back in the evening from my Pastor's house, something very important had happened. I had started believing in Jesus Christ, and I had faith!!

It was amazing.... after that gradually, things started happening. I was changed as a person. I was a sinner to the core, but after coming to the Lord..slowly that all went away. I started experiencing freedom and mental peace.

Then, God opened the ways for me to attend a worship camp at Khandala! It was only the mercy of God, that I was allowed to go. I saw so many of my friends trying to go, but their parents wouldn't allow them. but my parents...They just said "yes!" It was so amazing!!

Hallelujah!

God opened all ways for me to take the first step of obedience too. I was baptised on 27th Nov 2005. And I was able to speak of my faith openly, without fear of any man. I am so thankful to Jesus..

He healed my ear, which was deaf. He provided for me when I needed something.

And most of all, He died on that cross for me!

Oh, when I see people who don't believe in Him, I just cant stop telling them, what Jesus did for them. If only they realise someday, by the mercy and grace of The Holy Spirit! The heavines will rejoice for their realisation.

What is God's salvation? Why did he die on the cross for me?
read this and find out....

http://www.godssalvation.org/

THere is this site my uncle forwarded to me....

check it out.

http://www.biblicaltraining.org/


Blessings and prayers for all of you....

Rini

I just found this site...And I think its such a blessing...

Copies of Sharon Star can be found here in pdf format. East to store in your systems and go through...

http://thesharonstar.org/

Please do see it... Its priceless.

A Quote On Healing by Dr Charles S Price

"When we want to bring light into a room, we do not try to cast the darkness out, but we put light in. It is vain to struggle to get rid of our pains and our sufferings and even our sins and our weaknesses. The only way one can rid himself of the power of the devil is to admit and give authority to the power of the Lord Jesus. We cannot do it, but HE CAN! No man can save himself by abstinence from things which are sinful. That is why salvation is not what we do, but what we are. We are transformed into His image and, beholding that Image, as in a glass, we are changed from glory to glory, until at last we shall awaken completely IN HIS LIKENESS! That is why whenever we hear some of God's sincere, but immature children, pounding away on the externals, we know that the glorious light of the revelation of the truth as it is in our blessed Lord has not yet fully come to them. When we become LIKE HIM, we are delivered from the bondage of the outer, Of course, that will reflect the transformation in the inner. Then we abstain, not to be saved, but because we are redeemed. The same is true when it comes to the healing of the body. In the days of old, virtue flowed from Jesus, when people pressed forward to touch Him. That virtue was an integral part of the Christ Himself. The disease simply could not abide in the presence of the Virtue! Can corruptioncontinue when Incorruption takes the throne? Will mortality still exist when Immortality reigns? Have we not known that there is a law--a Divinely appointed and imparted law--and it is called THE LAW OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS! It makes us free from the lawof sin and of death! It supersedes it. It overwhelms it. It makes it incapable of operation. Why should we try to remove by our own struggles the law of sin and death when such victory can only be brought about by the operation of the LAW OF LIFE in Him? In the last analysis, the goal of every mature Christian should not be Divine Healing but DIVINE HEALTH! The flow of His life through ours; the surrender of our will to His; the impartation of His nature, until our natures are impregnated with the glory and the presence of the Divine! Not in an instant! Not in some emotional moment at an altar! But by that daily acknowledgment of His lovely presence in ALL OUR WAYS, and the surrender of EACH MOMENT to His care and to His keeping."

I was reading "Our daily bread" , and in that, I found the reference to Leo Tolstoy's story of an old cobbler called Martin.

'.....After the death of his wife and child, Martin cried out in despair to a godly old friend,"What nowis a man to live for?" his friend replied,"God, Martin. God" "And how must one live for God?" Martin asked. "Christ has shown the way" said his friend, the believer. "Buy the gospels and read." The same day Martin bought the New Testament and began to read... When he read Luke6:27-35, it suddenly hit him that Jesus' words were hard sayings. And that his life didn't measure up to Jesus' words...He cried out, "O Lord Help me!" .....'

I'm a new believer, and have been baptized on 27th Nov 2005. I'd already read the book Luke by then. But today, after reading this particular article... I reread Luke6:27-35... And it hit me too, it hit me HARD. I ended up in tears, when I realised, that my life even after coming to the Lord was not up to what Jesus wants me to be. I too cried out to the Lord, praying earnestly, that He remove my shortcomings, and fill me with compassion. It was perhaps my first real prayer to God. This was the first time, that I really found me falling so short of being His beloved, and yet He loves me. The feeling made me so overwhelmed. I am so blessed....

And so is everyone else on this Earth. God loves us so mightily. He loves us despite all we've done. Knowingly and unknowingly, we've grieved His heart. But He still loves us.

I hope this blog will make many of you realise like me, where you have fallen short of His words, and may you all pray for deliverance from them. May you all follow His steps...
---------------------------------------------------------------
Obeying Christ can seem too hard,
But we must come and see
That all He asks is for our good
To make life full and free.
-D. De Haan

Hey everyone!! Here I am...before you. And eager to speak my heart out to all of you.

I want to tell you, that today onwards, I am going to write only about God, what is He like....How much He loves you and me.. And what could be a better way to begin, than with Psalm139??

Here it is...

Psalm139
O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You know my thoughts afar off.
You comprehend my path and my lying down.
And are acquainted with all my ways.
For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.
You have hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.
If I take the wings of the morning.
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
If I say,"Surely the darkness shall fall on me,"
Even the night shall be light about me;
Indeed, the darkness shall not hide form You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and light are both alike to you.

For you have formed my inward parts;
You have covered me in my mother's womb.
I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skilfully wrought in the lowest parts of the Earth,
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
THe days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

How precious also are your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I am awake, I am still with you.
Oh, that You would slay the wicked,
O God!
Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men,
For they speak against You wickedly;
Your enemies take Your name in vain.
Do I not hate them, O Lord, who hate You?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?
AI hate them with my perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting.

Sigh....Could you imagine the love God has for each one of us? Doesn't it fill your eyes with tears, to know that God knew you before you were even born or even formed in your mother's womb?
I praise God for His everlasting love and His mercy upon me...

"P.S. I shared this post on Heart to Heart with Holley."