The Answer my friend... is blowin in the wind...

Ed Ames Song Lyrics :

From the canyons of the mind,
We wander on and stumble blindly
Through the often-tangled maze
Of starless nights and sunless days,
While casting for some kind of clue
Or road to lead us to the truth,
But who will answer?

Side by side two people stand,
Together vowing, hand-in-hand
That love's imbedded in their hearts,
But soon an empty feeling starts
To overwhelm their hollow lives,
And when we seek the hows and whys,
Who will answer?

High upon a lonely ledge,
a figure teeters near the edge,
And jeering crowds collect below
To egg him on with, "Go, man, go!"
And who will ask what led him
To his private day of doom,
And who will answer?

On a strange and distant hill,
A young man's lying very still.
His arms will never hold his child,
Because a bullet running wild
Has cut him down. And now we cry,
"Dear God, Oh, why, oh, why?"
And who will answer?

(Full melody the rest of the song)

If the soul is darkened by a fear it cannot name,
If the mind is baffled when the rules don't fit the game,
Who will answer? Who will answer? Who will answer?

In the rooms of dark and shades,
The scent of sandalwood pervades.
The colored thoughts in muddled heads
Reclining in rumpled beds
Of unmade dreams that can't come true,
And when we ask what we should do,
Who? Who will answer?

'Neath the spreading mushroom tree,
The world revolves in apathy
As overhead, a row of specks
Roars on, drowned out by discotheques,
And if a secret button's pressed
Because one man has been outguessed,
Who will answer?

Is our hope in walnut shells
Worn 'round the neck with temple bells,
Or deep within some cloistered walls
Where hooded figures pray in halls?
Or crumbled books on dusty shelves,
Or in our stars, or in ourselves,
Who will answer?

If the soul is darkened
By a fear it cannot name,
If the mind is baffled
When the rules don't fit the game,
Who will answer? Who will answer? Who will answer?
Alleluiah! Alleluiah! Alleluiah!

Annie J. Flint - An extraordinary poet with extra ordinary disabilities yet how?

1. He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
   He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
   To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
   To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.
2. When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
   When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
   When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
   Our Father’s full giving is only begun.
3. Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
   Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
   Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
   The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.
4. His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
   His power no boundary known unto men;
   For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
   He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

Prayer to my God

O Thou who camest from above,

the pure celestial fire to impart
kindle a flame of sacred love
upon the mean altar of my heart.

There let it for thy glory burn
with inextinguishable blaze,
and trembling to its source return,
in humble prayer and fervent praise.

Jesus, confirm my heart's desire
to work and speak and think for thee;
still let me guard the holy fire,
and still stir up thy gift in me.

Ready for all thy perfect will,
my acts of faith and love repeat,
till death thy endless mercies seal,
and make my sacrifice complete.

Love - What is it and how do the present generation fight it ? Yes , How do they win their love ?

'Love' is one of the most sacred words I have ever heard. While there are several types of love as identified by ancient Greeks -- Philo , Eros and Agape . This post discusses the second one which is the most confused as we know.  

Eros is a type of bond shared between a boy and a girl mostly involving romantic relationships.

Some see it as a passage to express their care for someone while others take it as a relationship to satisfy their personal desires and momentary needs. The present day love barely stands on the pillars of media projected love relationship.  Some fall prey to adoloscent infatuation confusing friendship  with love. These to some extent owe their share to peer pressure and the society we live in. Shakspeare once talked about , " Love at first sight ." Well , I am still trying to figure out whether he was drunk when he wrote that :) . Looks and beauty are not a good point to start with your so called 'Love'. Sadly , what Shakspeare said is irrefutably the plight of human beings. Each one will find something different and appealing in others in their first meeting or in due course after spending days together.If it happens the second way, I feel it’s well and good.

 

I have seen people swapping girl friends just like switching channels on a T.V . To those light hearted souls , it is just another mischevious page in their dairy of life - probably beefed up with colour and fun-filled days. They are always on a lookout for someone to support and be with them through their darkest and happy times. Things get topsy curvy when a break-up happens owing to family problems and ego clashes. Some stand against all the odds fighting their way to achieve what they want. Others simply compromise that they were not really made for each other and be on the backfoot , embracing the family and live in memories of the good times they shared - once upon a time. 

 

The last question which comes between people who love is -- How are they going to break the jinx with their family ? Some take a daring attempt to answer this question combating the sorrows and difficult situations thrown by the society while others simply succumb to it , paving way for their parents happiness and social acceptance. It's left to the individual.It all depends on how mentally prepared the couple are. With a society which bases its pride and existence on caste , love is still a blasphemous word to most of the Indian families. They are simply not ready to let off their pride to accept an inter-cultural marriage. Their fears are justified - we should not simply ignore the fact that they will be treated as social outcasts by their own relatives.  Still,  there are good families who are more interested in their children's future , who let go off their caste and family relations , to stand beside the couple and acknowledge their love. But rarely do we find such scenario. 

 

More on the cause and effect , the bonds shared between lovers and who are successful in future posts.

 

A breathtaking testimony

Click here for reading an amazing testimony by Dr. Srinivasa Bhattachary

Sometimes we need somebody to help overcome our ignorance. Hope it helps you in the pursuit of the truth.

Its not a full stop , its just a comma!!!

The dusk of FIFA and the dawn of my understanding:

Here's a confession(it teaches you lessons) of sorts to all Game-addicts, Internet-addicts and whatever-addicts out there :

I once came across this game called FIFA'07 and wanted to master it. There's no wonder that we don't feel this kind of determination to conquer things in our academics or life. Like every other kid, I always loved the air of chill after winning a game. Oh! How glorious it would be to kick a swinging corner shot or a direct fireball from the half line ! The passion which caught me first turned into addiction and I never realised that. I whiled away time neglecting the other little pleasures of this world, and sometimes getting irritated to do my own daily chores. It was something which cannot be simply left un-noticed or convived(GRE padichathula chinna santhosham). Days passed by without any change. The little time I used to spend creatively shrinked and I was nowhere for many days. I achieved nothing except for soar eyes and a cluttered head after every game(even..if I win).


One fine day , I had to make a choice. Choice always comes with his arch-rival called sacrifice. If there are two good options, you have to sacrifice one and embrace the other. After all, you will love to choose the one which returns the greatest favour. My Lord struck me in the form of my friend and rebuked me for bothering least about the other things which I have left un-turned. Things which are to be tested and tasted for its goodness. I was neglient. May be a game or two a day(like an apple a day) can save you time and peace of mind, but I did not want this routine to inhibit my passion for trying new things. I realised that it becomes a habit and it gets worser unless you have some control (it was the case with mine and most of the young people). However there are some rare exceptions like Shankar :) .

Dear friends ,
I don't suggest you to become an 'ascetic' and give-up FIFA once for all in your life. Anything which tries to control you is dangerous. We cannot forsake the little pleasures in our life ; we need something to cherish and laugh about. I can boast that I have got enough of this tonic(FIFA) to convert one of my future mechanical work-oriented life into a merry day just by recalling a memory of it. I have tasted it and found it good. The journey is everlasting and never-ending. I just don't want to miss out several other , FIFA-like-pleasures which God has created me and lying out in the open fields. Its not a full stop , its just a comma!!! :)


Jai Praveen.


P.S: Only God knows, I may install FIFA'09 and try that too.lolllz
For all you folks who haven't played FIFA , you have missed 'something' in your life. Better download hamachi and rock-on for sometime.Make it a testimony of how good life is and not a confession ;)

Wilderness training by God - But why?

When I finish this post , you will be able to explain anyone 'Why evil exists in the world and why there is suffering in this world?'. Pastor Teju started the sermon with a scripture from

Hosea 2:14
"Therefor, Behold, I will allure her, Will bring her into the wilderness, And speak comfort to her."

'I' here refers to God and 'her' refers to God's children and that includes not only Israelites but also us. Why does God want us to enter into wilderness? Is God a sadist to lead us into a dangerous path and then take pleasure in watching us suffer ? [ Definitely NO!] He lead the Israelites towards the fertile land which flowed with honey - Canaan - as promised to their forefather Abraham. He promised us heaven and eternal peace for eternity, but do we have them or atleast are we on the path to reach them? God made us know the destination and endpoint but what about the route?? Is God playing the fool with us by leading us astray into the wilderness and then comforting us? I ask these questions just to trigger your thoughts and opinions.

Three things are to be noted carefully from the above scripture verse and what does God want to communicate from it?

1.] Imagine a case where the Earth is full of heavenly places and desert was some place which was hard to find. The mere thought of it creates a nice feeling and comfort. But will it always keep us in a close relationship with the Master who made us ? We will soon forget Him and remember only His works. Not only that, we will attach ourselves closely to this world and forget the place which our father in Heaven has reserved for us . God wanted to test and correct our ways before we reach Heaven. So he created something like wilderness which is devoid of all earthly beauty. While we go through the tribulations and sufferings , God speaks to us during our times of our endurance. Soon we will start to depend on Lord for everything and reciprocate his grace towards us. He takes us through a journey of tears and pain , teaching us to trust in Him even at times of despair and depression. It also creates a hatred towards this worldly pleasures and when we humble ourselves before the Lord, he will show us great and mighty things which we have not seen. Of course, God created the world for us to enjoy and live in harmony. But the technology advancements have only widened the gap between God and mankind besides creating a materialistic and self-centered society. It is rare to find people who really do care for their fellow human beings nowadays.

I Corinthian 7:31 clearly teaches us not to misuse this world.To sum up, " Too much of friendship with this world is enemity with God."



2.] This point will be incomplete without starting with the centre verse of the Bible ,

"It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man" says Psalm 118:8.

When we go through the wilderness, it's easy to catch up with fever or allergy . When we have a doctor at our side , we will take the medicines with great faith in his diagonsis skills and rely heavily on it. Eventually we may get cured. But under certain cirumstances, when we get an incurable. In a similar way, God wants us to learn, to trust in Him , in all our ways - whether it be small or big.

This was the second reason for God to take the Israelites through the wilderness. Their faith was shattered and mended - it grew with time and learnt from God. Similarly whenever you face a tough time in our life , just say 'I trust in the Lord with all my heart, mind and soul'. He would love to hear us saying that and will not allow us to be tempted beyond which we can bear. The moment you raise your hand and heart in prayer, he will start fighting for you. Sometimes our situation may seem desperate and totally lost, but He will watch us closely and bless us till our cup overflows once we cross the temptation.


3.] The crux of the third point is , " God wants us to love Him , more than anything in this world." When I say this , most of us may get a feeling of ascetic and spartan life. The answer my friend is -- please think carefully. He wants us to lead a God-centered life rather than a world-centered life. It doesn't mean that we need to surrender all the good pleasures of this world for God's sake. When we live a God-centered life loving him alone and setting a limit for all the worldly things, he will give us all those things which we need. Its true and His mouth has said it,

"For your heavenly Father knows that you need ALL these things. ' But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.'" Matthew 6:32,33.

All these things include all that is good for us in this world. Once we focus on God and his righteousness, he will add all the worldly things which we need to our life. Entertainment, happiness, pleasure and other worldly needs are addressed by Him in our life.

Why did God love us? --- Tough question to be answered. Are we sinners , worthy of his unfailing love and mercies? The Answer is pretty simple. There is no reason for Him to love us and that makes God's love unique from Earthly love(sometimes confused with divine love in the case of laila-majna,romeo-juliet :-) ). He wants us to love Him the same way and most of the time we fail when he keeps a simple test. We would have prayed to him the other day thanking Him and singing how much you love Him.But when you fail in an exam or rejected in an interview after long hours of prayer , we start to mumble if not curse or question his existence :-) !!

I would like to end this long blog with a quote from Song of Solomon 8:5 ,
'Who is this coming up from the wilderness, Leaning upon her beloved.'

When we truly understand God's love and trust in Him completely, we like the woman in the desert may come out of the wilderness(world) leaning on our beloved Saviour(Jesus).

Jai Praveen