Why Should I Worry?

We live in a world where it is somehow considered cool to be worried or stressed about things. How are you doing? We ask and the common reply we hear is ‘I am doing ok. I am worried about the weather or I am worried about my job."

What does it mean to worry? The dictionary meaning says that this is to ‘allow one's mind to dwell on difficulty or troubles. I like this explanation. "Allow my mind to dwell on troubles." Hmm. As a Christian, I am called NOT to worry. The bible is very clear on this issue. Jesus commands us not to worry. So, every time, I worry, I sin.

He says in Matthew 6: 25-27:

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?"

We are people who worry over earthly matters. Food, drink, clothing! We are folks made in the image of God and yet, we live as if our life is all about what we eat and what we should wear.

What is sad is that we live in a generation where we are not concerned about what happens once we die. What about eternity? Can we assume that we can live as we want and forget that we will have to give an account to the Eternal Judge?

Am I concerned how will I appear before the judgment seat of Christ?Am I concerned about the things that I take for granted and constantly complain? Am I really concerned about the kind of life I live that often betrays my faith?

Every time, I am tempted to worry over things that are truly trivial and passing, I pray that I think of things that matter for eternity, things that please my Father in heaven.

Like Paul who says in the book of Philippians 4:8:

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things."

As it says in Romans 12:1-2

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Help me O Lord not to be like the world!

Life is full of surprises!

I said to my sister last night, 'You know what, life is full of surprises.' Just before penning down this post, I read about a famous photographer, David Sacks who passed away due to cancer.

I was surprised to read that account as I was a fan of his art. He is with the Lord Jesus Christ. My heart grieves for the family left behind.

Death is so inevitable. I cannot stop it nor can I avoid its imminent coming. Ecclesiastes 8:8a comes to mind, 'No man has power to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death.'

Thank you Jesus for coming down to earth and saving me from the fear of death and for the promise of life eternal with You. " Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, He himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery." Hebrews 2:14-15

Life is full of surprises!

You can check out David Sacks' work here. 

Blessings!

Writing a new post means stretching a bit, scratching your head and thinking of short anecdotes to put in! I guess, I have become rusty to frankly admit. One of the reasons for my non-regularity is my no-access to the Internet.

Now that I do have some access, I am at loss of words as I stare at the computer! Life so far has been very very good! I got ample amount of time to read, relax and think through a lot of issues. Sometimes, it is good to step back once in a while and see where God has brought you. To simply put, to count your blessings!!

And surely, it has surprised me to see what God has DONE!! :)

The simple things!

The last few days were crazy!! I would wake up in pain (headaches) and it would linger the whole day through. Even to walk across my room and turn around was difficult. Sudden movements were a complete no-no as it would send shooting pains in my head!!

What am I getting to? Well, if you noticed, I have mentioned very simple activities, like....."walking"......"turning my head"......something we take for granted! At least I would!! There are some lessons God teaches us through pain alone! Today, I have a greater appreciation for the way God has fashioned my body. To be able to function, to run, to walk and of course to turn my head with ease is a blessing indeed!!

True, our life is fraught with problems! "Man is born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward" says the book of Job! But as of now, I want to thank My heavenly Father for the ability to do the SIMPLE things that we always take for granted......

I am learning my lesson. What about you, my friend?? :)

Less is More

Has it ever occurred to you that when you have less, you actually have more?? You are wondering what am I getting at? Ok. Let me try rephrasing this sentence, did you know that when you have less things (space to live, paltry wage.....) in your life, you actually have more?? Sounds crazy right, but it's true!!!

Think with me for a minute. Suppose you are earning peanuts in terms of a decent salary and you are looking at that neighbour who is drawing a great paycheck. What do you do? Mope around the house, crying over your misfortune? I will tell you a secret......People who have more things in their life, whatever it may be do not have one thing, that is the ability to enjoy!! Yes! It is true. Because of the presence of so many goods vying for their attention, they are at a loss what to do!

Let me give you a crisp example. Remember the good old days of Doordarshan. Ahh!! How eagerly we waited for Chitrahaar or for Disney Cartoons. We gave our complete attention and the best part, we were satisfied!! Fast Forward!!!!......20 years ahead...In an age of Dish TV with 100 and odd channels with flat screen and surround sound......Are we happy?? Ask your self? More fights over the channels. Everyone has their own favourite serials and not much to discuss in common. Whenever we sit down to watch TV, the initial half an hour is spent in browsing, trying to pick one channel to enjoy! It can be frustrating at times!

So the point I am trying to say is that when we possess few things in our lives, we are able to give our full attention to it and enjoy ourselves completely. Less is more!!!

Love this verse from the Bible where Jesus Christ said on one occasion, “ Take care, and be on guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Luke 12:15

A typical day in my life!!!

What the rains taught me

This week moved pretty fast and not to forget the rains that lashed on Tuesday creating chaos amidst people. On that fateful day, when I left home it did not occur to me that I would be spending the night at my friend's place. Becoz of the rains, all the roads that led to my home were heavily congested in the evening, so had to take a diversion.

There were many things that I learnt on Tuesday and would like to list them down:

• We are so helpless in the face of nature
• It brought in a sense of great fear thinking how powerful God is and what He is actually capable of
• Kinda experienced the callous nature of people
• Was able to understand the famous line, 'A friend in need is a friend indeed'
• We are so susceptible to stress and weariness
• Grateful to technology-was able to keep in touch with my family
  
• Life is so unpredictable and very short
• Ultimately God is the Creator and Sustainer of life!!

As I always say, live one day at a time!!

Death's persona

In our day to day functionalities of our fast paced life, something that acts as a brake is death. Not a favorite topic of anyone, but its a sobering thought, lets you think on the real issues of life. The day you were born there is a day marked for your death....Even as a child, I came across this as very scary after my grandparents died. But as I grew older it dawned upon me that every single individual is heading towards death.

I distinctly remember the incident when I was posted in the emergency ward (well, I'm a doctor by profession-I don't practice now) and saw a patient die in front of me, I was shocked. When I touched his body it was cold, and it gave me an eerie feeling. Another time, there was this young mother howling over her dead child, I couldn't handle the depressing atmosphere. A visit to the ICU ward will realign our priorities as we see solemn faces

I was afraid of death since a child, but now I'm not. I think of 1Corinathians 15: 55, “ O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” and another verse from Romans 5: 6-8 “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man one would die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

What's the reality about death? the just consequences of our sin, our blatant rebellion against a Holy God. Romans 6: 23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” Choose LIFE or DEATH......

Good Morning!!

Had a real 'good morning' today after a long time! As I was rushing to work ( like I always do) the lyrics of the song, “In the light” gripped me, especially the words where the singer is wanting (rather passionately desiring) to be where God is.....In the light...

I was in darkness and now by the grace of God, I'm in the light...Praise God for that....What more can I ask when I have Christ in my life?

Life..full of care....

I just felt I needed to pen down something, but unfortunately I'm not in a state to write a poem of my own. So decided to emote myself through one of my yet another favorite poem "Leisure" by W.H.Davies. Loved reciting it in school..... Here goes.....

WHAT is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?—

No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

Joie de vivre

Hurray! Just completed a month in blogging and it feels so great. The experience have been new and exciting altogether, not to mention apprehensive...Not much of a computer person, but I love to experiment and here I am blogging my heart out!!!

Let's see how far this goes and what I learn on my way...So I'm gonna have fun and celebrate life....
As they say in French, "Joie de vivre".....