Learn from Him

B. A. Manakala I am exhausted from crying for help; my throat is parched. My eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for my God to help me. (Ps 69:3 nlt) Daniel was not tired of praying to God. He kept praying three times daily no matter what! He did that even when he had painful moments in his life; he prayed even when everything was normal. It is natural for us to be exhausted. We sometimes pray to God for one particular thing to be changed in one particular way, and at one particular time that we want. This could be a reason for us to be exhausted from prayer. God may or may not answer our prayers just as we want. Sometimes God’s response to our prayers may not be in the same manner we expect. He may have a specific purpose to be achieved through responding to our situations in a certain manner. How would you understand that God knows and chooses the best way to respond to your prayer? Our prayers cannot change God’s plans and purposes; but they change us! Prayer: Lord, hold my hand ...

B. A. Manakala Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can’t find a foothold. I am in deep water, and the floods overwhelm me. (Ps 69:2 nlt) Mire is one of the most dangerous places to go through, especially, if you are alone and there is no one around to help. You would keep sinking despite all your efforts to escape! We often sink in the floodwaters and mire in this world. Only God can save us from such miry clay (Ps 69:1-2). We cannot sink when God is holding our hands. But as long as we are living in the world we still have many things around that can sink us. We often run away from God and sink in the troubles of this world. We are called to help others who are sinking in this world , and to do good to them. But if we ourselves are sinking in our own problems how could we help others? Once you are in the mire, finding a foothold is almost impossible! Prayer: Lord, let me never run away from you and run into troubles. Amen

B. A. Manakala God is awesome in his sanctuary. The God of Israel gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God! (Ps 68:35 nlt) There was a man named Paul. He had many needs. He had sometimes lived with an empty stomach. Sometimes he had almost nothing to survive! In such a time as this he said: ‘I can do all things or even live without anything, because of the one who strengthens me’. God gives his power and strength to His people (Ps. 68:35). We often misunderstand what God's power is. We think God’s power is just to get our things done, like win a war or defeat an enemy. But His power in us enables us to overcome or go through all kinds of circumstances that we may go through as we live on earth. It may include sickness, poverty, solitude, sorrows etc. Do you hear the voice of Him who said, ‘my grace is sufficient for you?’  Man tends to think he has enough power, while even his power to think is from God! Prayer: Lord, teach me to thank you for the power that I have ...

B. A. Manakala Sing to the one who rides across the ancient heavens, his mighty voice thundering from the sky. (Ps 68:33 nlt) The volume of a  normal conversation is about 60 decibels (dB); a thunder is about 120dB. An increase in 10 decibels means 10 times more louder sound. The loudest sound ever reported on earth’s surface is of the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883 (180dB). A sound louder than 194dB cannot sustain on earth’s surface! Loud noise of about 120dB can cause immediate damage to human hearing. About 2000 people are killed every year by lightning. If God speaks to us in a thundering voice it is only going to damage our hearing! Do we realise that God is much beyond what we think about Him? Verses 32 to 35 of Psalms 68 is about worshipping God knowing about His mighty power. ‘Praise be to God’ is the final phrase of the Psalm. In human words we can only say, ‘He is awesome!’. But this is not enough to describe who God is. How much about God do you know as you worship Him? Li...

B. A. Manakala Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth. Sing praises to the Lord. (Ps 68:32 nlt) Once I attended a church. As usual many songs of praises were sung. At the end of a song I realised only my lips were singing, not my heart. I was so sorry that I could sing loudly and melodiously, without even remembering God throughout the song!  The Psalmist encourages all nations including Egypt and Ethiopia to sing to God (Ps 68:31-32). It is true that one day all nations will be bringing tribute to God. One day, every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. That is about the future; what about the present?  How am I singing to God? Would the Lord say, 'you honour me with your lips, but your heart is far from me'? (Is 29:13) Sing, if your heart is involved; stop, if only your lips are singing. Prayer: Lord, let me have a singing heart, rather than a singing mouth. Amen

B. A. Manakala Rebuke these enemy nations— these wild animals lurking in the reeds, this herd of bulls among the weaker calves. Make them bring bars of silver in humble tribute. Scatter the nations that delight in war. (Ps 68:30 nlt) Many years ago I had a friend who was usually very calm in the class. But he appears if there is a fight among friends. A couple of questions from him in soft volume would calm down the whole situation in a few seconds. He would enquire about the cause of the problem and suggest a way to solve it. Often his intervention solved many problems! Those who delight in war may soon be scattered (Ps. 68:30). Fights and wars are normal on earth because of the sinful nature in man. But those of us who have got the peach through Jesus Christ must become the peacemakers on earth. Jesus was the Peacemaker who came from heaven to earth. Each of us is enabled by his Spirit to be a peacemaker on earth. Some are trouble-makers, some like watching the fight, some try to esc...

B. A. Manakala The kings of the earth are bringing tribute to your Temple in Jerusalem. (Ps 68:29 nlt) Geese fly in V-formation during their long flights. Flying is harder for the leader and therefore they take turns in leading. This way they are able to fly longer before they have to take a break. The kings of the earth worship the King of heaven (Ps. 68:29). Though some of us may have very high positions on earth we are to acknowledge the supreme authority in heaven. All of God’s creations are submissive to the supreme authority. Either, because humans have the freedom to choose or because we forget we often tend to ignore him and go our own way. The earthly kings may never know you and give any personal attention to you. But the heavenly King is highly interested in you, loves you and wants to live with you! Are there times when you have to remind yourself to think of the sovereign King? The kings on earth who are submissive to the supreme King will rule with wisdom and prudence! Pr...

B. A. Manakala Look, the little tribe of Benjamin leads the way. Then comes a great throng of rulers from Judah and all the rulers of Zebulun and Naphtali. (Ps 68:27 nlt) Whenever we go for a walk as a family our young son wants to be in the front and be our leader. Sometimes he gets stuck not knowing where to go; other times he guesses about the way and moves ahead. 'Little leader' appears to be an ironic phrase. The questions in our mind would be 'can a leader be a little one?' or 'can a little one be a leader?'. Maybe both are illogical in human perspective. In this world one could become a leader with money, smartness, knowledge, influence, appearance etc. So we often think a leader must have these qualities. The best model of leadership can be found in Jesus who said ‘I came to serve, not to be served’ (Mtt. 20:28). True leaders always may not be accepted as leaders. Are you a leader approved by men or God? You do not become a leader because you have a desi...

B. A. Manakala Praise God, all you people of Israel; praise the Lord, the source of Israel’s life. (Ps 68:26 nlt) Flatworms can regenerate and live again even if they are cut into two or three pieces! Some (hermaphrodite) have both male and female reproductive organs and can switch from one to another as required! God gave them a regeneration ability. But not all creatures, that have head and tail, have this ability. God is the source of life. There is only One who said, "I am ... the life" (Jn 14:6). We are dead when there is no life in us. In other words we cannot live without Him who is the source of life. There is both life that sustains the body and life that sustains our spirit. God is the source of both. When Adam and Eve ate of the tree from the middle of the garden of Eden their immediate death was spiritual; but, eventually they died physically too. I do not accept the argument that God as the source of life, cannot allow it to end up in eternal hell. God has given ...

B. A. Manakala Your procession has come into view, O God— the procession of my God and King as he goes into the sanctuary. (Ps 68:24 nlt) Many years ago a man named Zacchaeus saw a procession. As he was a short man he had to climb a tree to see who was in the middle of the procession. Finally, when it reached under the tree Jesus who was at the centre of the procession looked up and said ‘Zacchaeus, come down; I must stay in your house today’. Many different processions come into our view and we may have often been attracted to many such processions. God’s procession goes into His sanctuary (Ps. 68:24). Today we are his temple and His procession is heading to us. Though God is in us, often we occupy the centre of the procession. And we may show ourselves and attract others to us rather than God who lives in us. Do you direct others to God’s procession or to your own? God may take a backseat if you are leading the procession yourself! Prayer: Lord, let me always allow you to be the lead...

B. A. Manakala The Lord says, “I will bring my enemies down from Bashan; I will bring them up from the depths of the sea. (Ps 68:22 nlt) Victor Vescovo dived to the lowest point in the ocean (5,550 meters) known as the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench on 24th August 2019. But more than 80 percent of oceans remain unexplored until today! Only about 7 percent of the world's ocean is declared as Marine protected areas! We do not have sufficient information to define 'the depths of the sea' that God is referring to; but the Creator has! Probably, we do not even know how much of His creation we have explored so far! There is no place where we can hide from Him. He can bring us down even if we build the nest among the stars (Ob. 1:4). Are you curious to explore more about God? God is probably not what we think He is, because we know very little about Him! Prayer: Lord, please let me explore more about you and your creation so that I can truly acknowledge and honour You. Amen

B. A. Manakala But God will smash the heads of his enemies, crushing the skulls of those who love their guilty ways. (Ps 68:21 nlt) “A washed pig returns to the mud” is a proverb found in the Bible (2 Pet 2:22). A pig is not transformed from its nature when it is given a bath. But there is a transformation happening in us when we become God’s children. Generally, we do not want to follow the guilty ways. But even those who love God can choose to  love and follow their sinful ways in secret. But it is clear from the above verse that this is something that God hates and will have to face the consequence (Ps. 68:21). Though we are saved God does not take away the freedom to sin. Therefore, we need to be intentional and serious about loving and following the way of righteousness. The Holy Spirit in us will strengthen us to follow the way of righteousness. Remember, sometimes we cannot even identify our own sinful ways until we thoroughly look into the scripture or until other godly peo...

B. A. Manakala Our God is a God who saves! The Sovereign Lord rescues us from death. (Ps 68:20 nlt) He met with a serious accident. The people around took him to the hospital. He was moved to the intensive care, and then to the ventilator. In a few minutes the doctor came out with the saddest news that was never expected! We may desperately look to doctors for help. But they can't manage to go beyond certain limits and may have only sad news to share with us at the end. Some people get upset with the doctors thinking that it is their mistake. We often fear only the physical death. Therefore, most of the things we do on earth cater to the physical needs. But God saves us from both physical and spiritual death. Remember, even Jesus himself yielded to physical death, and had a glorified body before ascending to heaven. Do you recognise that your current body is not meant to survive eternally? Live and die is the worldly principle;  life through death is the biblical principle! Prayer:...

B. A. Manakala Praise the Lord; praise God our savior! For each day he carries us in his arms. (Ps 68:19 nlt) Every day when our one-year-old daughter feels sleepy she cries for her mother. Mother's arms seem to be the most comfortable place for her to sleep. How wonderful it would be if we can always recognise and remember that we are carried in the most powerful arms! There is no other place where we can have such security. There is no power that can snatch us away from His arms! It is either when we do not realise  that we are in His arms, or when we do not understand about the power of His arms that we are worried. How much do you sense that each day you are in His arms? When we are carried by Him we do not have to carry our burden ourselves! Prayer: Lord, help recognise that you carry me each day in your arms. Amen

B. A. Manakala Surrounded by unnumbered thousands of chariots, the Lord came from Mount Sinai into his sanctuary. (Ps 68:17 nlt) Sometimes when we ask our young children 'how much do you love us?', they respond by saying, 'hundred-thousand, hundred-thousand, hundred-thousand...' and a few more times! This is just to express their immeasurable love for us. Is there anything on earth that is unnumbered? Sand on the sea? Hair on our heads? Stars in the sky? But probably they could all be numbered or measured. ‘Unnumbered’ is not a concept that we can grasp with our brain; but God does. Who has no beginning and no end? Who knew you before you were born? Who created the universe? Who can have unnumbered chariots, but God? Unnumbered chariots of God show His immeasurable power to win. Numbers have many magics that would surprise us. And we will keep discovering many things till the end; yet there will be many more things that humanity may never discover! How would you underst...

B. A. Manakala Why do you look with envy, O rugged mountains, at Mount Zion, where God has chosen to live, where the Lord himself will live forever? (Ps 68:16 nlt) Many religious centres like temples, churches and monasteries are located on top of mountains. In 2006 I visited Key monastery in Himachal Pradesh (picture given above), which is on a mountain that is about 14,000 feet high above the sea level. God chose to live on Mount Zion forever! This is a symbolic dwelling place of God, because the whole earth will pass away including Mount Zion. God does not live even in man-made temples. He lives in us. We are His temple. We may look up to the mountains, the religious centres or the religious leaders; but only the Almighty can help us ultimately. How often do you look up to this Mountain for your help? Everything we see will pass away; God’s dwelling place will never! Prayer: Eternal God, thank you for choosing to live in my heart. Teach me to look up to You more than anyone else. Am...

B. A. Manakala Even those who lived among the sheepfolds found treasures— doves with wings of silver and feathers of gold. (Ps 68:13 nlt) Once a man had a duck that lays golden eggs that made him very rich ! One day, as he was not too patient to wait for an egg each day he cut open the duck to get all the eggs. To his disappointment there was only one egg! We are easily deceived in two ways: 1) Our understanding sometimes misleads us in having the right perspectives about the true treasure 2) We become selfish and greedy to get wealthy quickly. Wealth on earth can be a wonderful blessing from the Lord if we have the heavenly wisdom to handle it well. Loving wealth can become the root cause of all evil (1 Tim 6:10). Get rich as much as possible with the right perspectives about it. Have you got at least a glimpse of ‘the dove with golden feathers’? Treasure only the true treasure; keep seeking God’s wisdom to handle earthly wealth! Prayer: Lord, help me to grow continually in right pers...

B. A. Manakala The Lord gives the word, and a great army brings the good news. (Ps 68:11 nlt) A strange dog came into our village. One dog came out barking against it. In a few seconds, many other dogs joined the first one to protest against the uninvited guest. All of God's creation including angels are ready to act according to His commands. In fact, angels are available for our service too (Ps 91:11). Disobedience is common among people, though all of the other creation obey Him. Sometimes I wished that God always forced me to obey Him, as He did with Jonah once. But He doesn't always do that. He desires that we willingly obey Him. Are we available and willing to obey at His word? God has a great army on His side; if we are willing we can join His army! Prayer: Lord, being part of your army help me to follow all your commands. Amen

B. A. Manakala There your people finally settled, and with a bountiful harvest, O God, you provided for your needy people. (Ps 68:10 nlt) A man from a poor family got into business and became prosperous in a short while. He built a huge bungalow in a 45,000 square feet area. Soon he found himself in some trouble and ended his life! He left all that he possessed and his family forever! The Israelites finally got settled in the promised land (Ps. 68:10) after many years of wandering around. If the Lord permits, we too look forward to buying a piece of land, building a house and settling down. If you too have such a desire, I wish and pray that the Lord fulfils your desires in His own way. But there is no point in keeping that as a big dream. All of us including the Israelites who seemed to have settled down, look forward to the final destination. Do your earthly settlement efforts distract you from focusing on your permanent settlement? We live in Him, He lives in us; what a wonderful wa...

B. A. Manakala You sent abundant rain, O God, to refresh the weary land. (Ps 68:9 nlt) It is possible to create artificial rain through a process called cloud seeding. Many countries, including India, have used the technology to help regions with severe drought. Though it is believed that it can give up to 30-35% increase in rain it is not a cost-effective method. Heavenly storehouses have enough to refresh the earth without any limit. Abundant rain is God’s creation (Ps. 68:9). Man may only manipulate the system that God has already made. In fact, man himself caused a lot of imbalance in the ecosystem. God is the best source of refreshment even for people. Let’s wait on him for his refreshing abundant rain that we can bless others. Do you experience God’s refreshing rain on you? You can water the plants in your garden; God refreshes the whole earth! Prayer: Lord, let me always choose you as the best source of refreshment. Amen

B. A. Manakala the earth trembled, and the heavens poured down rain before you, the God of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel. (Ps 68:8 nlt) The principal called all the students in the class to her room. There was a pin drop silence in the room. She made the students watch the CCTV videos from the classroom. The students were unaware that the principal watched and heard the noise in the classroom. They all trembled before the principal by seeing their own behaviour in the classroom. The earth and all of God’s creation trembles before God (Ps. 68:8)! Even if we get a glimpse of who God is, what He can do, how He can perform, His characteristics etc we will begin to tremble before God. We will also tremble before the Creator, if we are able to see our own behaviour which may be offensive to the Creator. Look into the scriptures to see yourself better. Do you tremble before God or something else in the world? If we tremble before God we will not have to tremble before anyone or anythin...

B. A. Manakala God places the lonely in families; he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy. But he makes the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land. (Ps 68:6 nlt) After my mother went to be with Jesus in 1995 I enjoyed motherly love from many families. If my mother was still there I might neither get such care, nor realise that God can show me motherly love even in her absence. Reasons for loneliness may be different. Sometimes we may have all family members or many friends around; yet, we may have no one to openly share our heart with. God never intended loneliness for His children. In case, we are feeling lonely it is just because we are not aware of the family that we are part of. We are adopted into the most wonderful family where God is the head! This family grows continuously with loving members who are bound together with the love of God. All attempts to destroy this family have never succeeded; because God is the head. Do you recognise that you and I are members of the sam...

B. A. Manakala Father to the fatherless, defender of widows— this is God, whose dwelling is holy. (Ps 68:5 nlt) She was born in 1910, and came to India in 1931, lived until 1997, giving her life completely to the service of the poor and the orphans. She gave her life for the poor from the slums of Kolkata to the ends of the earth, because of her love for Christ. She was an expression of God’s love on earth. Mother Teresa's life interpreted religion well according to the Bible (Jam 1:27). Until today my definition of 'religion' does not match with that of the Bible. God is father to the fatherless and defender of widows (Ps 68:5). If we say we are God’s children, we are to have the nature of God by caring for the poor. How would you represent God meaningfully with the right religious attitude? If I truly love God, my heart will identify with the poor! Prayer: Lord, let me have your heart in caring for the poor and orphans. Amen

B. A. Manakala But let the godly rejoice. Let them be glad in God’s presence. Let them be filled with joy. (Ps 68:3 nlt) Some time ago I attended a Christian funeral service. The body was kept in front of the house. As usual the immediate family members sat very close to the body, with an eternal hope. Suddenly, I saw a Hindu lady from the neighbourhood, in her casual dress, rushed to the body and began to weep loudly. The Psalmist repeats the theme joy thrice in this verse showing the importance of rejoicing (Ps. 68:3). Sometimes, we sink in the details of life, that we lose out on the bigger picture. There is a powerful link between ‘the godly’ and ‘joy’. Rejoicing is so natural for the godly; but the case of the ungodly is different. There are many things in the world that may give us joy; but they are temporal and cannot last long. How would you focus on the eternity to rejoice always? The joy of the godly is eternal; the worldly joy is momentary! Prayer: Lord, give me the right pe...

B. A. Manakala Rise up, O God, and scatter your enemies. Let those who hate God run for their lives. (Ps 68:1 nlt) One of my teachers in my school-days used to sit and teach. Many students took advantage of the fact that she was not bothered even when there was some noise in the classroom. When it goes beyond a limit she stops teaching, rises up and walks around in the classroom. There will be a pin drop silence again! In our day to day life, sometimes we make God sit in a corner and we carry on with our busy life. Some people think they are doing well as everything is going smooth. When He rises up His enemies run for their lives (Ps. 68:1). It is enough for Him to just ‘rise up’ to remind us if we are on track. Each of us may see God rising up through different circumstances in our lives. On what occasions in your life do you see God rising up to help you make progress in life? Whenever we tend to corner God aside He tends to ‘rise up’! Prayer: Lord, help me to understand whenever yo...

B. A. Manakala The land has produced its harvest; God, our God, has blessed us. (Ps 67:6 nlt) Recently we started developing a small kitchen garden with some greens and vegetables. We started harvesting a little bit there and here. We also planted a stem of a curry leaf, and it sprouted; generally it can be planted only with seed or plant. But we often forget the fact that only God can bless the harvest. I wonder how many farmers know the fact that we can only plant and water; only God can make it grow (1 Cor. 3:7) and the fact that the harvest is God's blessing (Ps 67:6). In fact, God is the best Farmer who plants most of the trees on earth and he waters them regularly. He also graciously trusted and allowed us to join Him in planting and watering. Now the harvest is plenty and the labourers are few (Mtt 9:37). Are we trustworthy and faithful in doing our part in planting and watering? Do the planting and watering, give God the credit for growth! Prayer: Lord, help me to be faithf...

B. A. Manakala Let the whole world sing for joy, because you govern the nations with justice and guide the people of the whole world. (Ps 67:4 nlt) I had a guide when I was doing research. He was guiding a few more other researchers other than me. Either because of the regulations or for practical reasons he could not guide more than a certain number of researchers. Our Guide above is the one who guides the people of the whole world! (Ps 67:4) Under any authority on earth there is a limitation as to how many people one can manage. This Guide is responsible not just for the people on earth, He also guides the whole universe: all creatures, the weather, the sea, the wind, the sky, the planets. If He allows some of the above to function in a disordered manner we can only just call them 'natural calamity', 'pandemic' etc. We cannot control most of them just as we think. When helpless, we look toward the Guide. People are given power and authority to guide many things; but t...

B. A. Manakala May your ways be known throughout the earth, your saving power among people everywhere. (Ps 67:2 nlt) I have a 23 year old guitar which was recently damaged. Initially, when I took it for repair they said it is irreparably broken. A week ago I took it to another repairman. As soon as he saw the guitar he said, ‘it is about 20-25 years old guitar; I can give it a new life again’. He repaired and gave it a brand new look again! We cannot fully understand God’s saving power which will be known everywhere (Ps. 67:2). Often we consider certain areas of our life as permanently damaged. Wait a minute!  This is only because we cannot identify the real Repairman; or because we do not allow Him to do the repair. He can just repair any condition of our life! Just trust and give it to Him. What areas of your life do you want to surrender to Him to see a change? You may have found the Repairman; but He can't do anything until you give it for repair! Prayer: Lord, give me a better...

B. A. Manakala May God be merciful and bless us. May his face smile with favor on us. (Ps 67:1 nlt) One day at a bus station a beggar came to me and asked ‘can I have just two rupees?’. I had mercy on him and gave him 10 rupees. He went away with a shining face. God’s mercy for us is immeasurable! The abundance of His grace upon us is more than what we ask for or imagine.  God has chosen us to be agents of His mercy on earth. In other words, the people of this world experience God’s mercy through you and me. We are able to show mercy to others by the help of the Holy Spirit. How much of God’s mercy do you expect in your life and how much mercy others expect from you? The more merciful we are to others, the more merciful God will be with us! Prayer: Lord, help me to be merciful to others as much as you are merciful to me. Amen

B. A. Manakala Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw his unfailing love from me. (Ps 66:20 nlt) I requested a friend to help me with something. He agreed to do that for me on the appointed time. But he never did anything about it! Do not think God ignores our prayers. Close friends or relatives may sometimes ignore our requests. God never ignores our prayers, though sometimes He may seem silent. He listens to our prayers, but responds to it in His own way. Often when we pray, we also give to God a blueprint of how He should respond to our prayer. Sometimes we even have a preference or make our choice in advance, and ask for God's favor on our choice. It would be best if we can let God decide how to respond. How would you accept the fact that God never ignores your prayers? God is ALWAYS attentive to the prayers of His loved ones! Prayer: Lord, help me not to push my own way when I pray. Amen