New Hope's Blog

         Day 11   Read: Luke 9:51-58 It is interesting to note that Palm Sunday is also referred to as the Triumphant entry. Jesus entered Jerusalem knowing He was going to experience immense and unimaginable suffering, the people were going to insult Him, mock Him and betray Him. In Luke 9:51, it records that “as the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem”. He was determined to go there. This verse focuses first on the ascension and not on the sufferings Jesus would face shortly. He was going back to the Father and to be seated at the right hand of God. This glory that awaited Him led Him to Jerusalem. Hebrews 12: 1,2 talks about endurance and joy. Jesus knew He was going to be with the Father which brought Him tremendous joy. In the midst of the quarantine and all its limitations, let us not forget the joy that awaits us. We hope all this will end soon and normalcy will be restored. But in the meantime, we need to experience joy as we

        Day 10  Read: Psalm 23 At the moment, it may feel like you are in a valley. The Psalmist says with confidence, inspite of the fear, valley experience, I have hope because the Lord is my Shepherd, He is with me. Therefore, I am content, I am satisfied. www.newhopetv.org In the American Journal of Public Health, in the section Emotion and Health, there was an article on the ‘Benefits of believing in God’. It stated that people who believed in God were happier, more optimistic, healthy, had better self-worth, and had purpose. They also had less anxiety, lower rate of drug and alcohol abuse, better marriages and greater meaning to life. This enabled them to handle difficult situations better.  In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we believe in a loving God who inspires us and gives us meaning and purpose to life.  :: Prayer :: Lord Jesus, life is more meaningful because You are in control and You will see us through. Help us to experience the Good Shepherd who will take care of u

       Day 9  Read: 1 Peter 5:6-11 As we read in 1 Peter 5:7, the Lord cares for us. He is concerned about our wellbeing. He is thinking about us. We have nothing to worry about, He who is mighty and powerful cares about us. With this assurance we hold onto God. As the Message Bible says, “live carefree before God, He is most careful with you”. Give your problems to Him, it will diminish in size, seriousness and severity and eventually disappear! When submitted to God, our problems are reduced to its right and proper magnitude as seen in the eyes of God. As we go through this difficult time of uncertainty amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, may we submit to Him. He will protect us and take care of us.                   www.newhopetv.org :: Prayer ::   Dear Lord, help us to rest in You. In Jesus name, Amen. ---------------------------------------------------- The Book  'Covid19 is a Word Not a Sentence'  is available online on Amazon.in as Paperback and Kindle Versions. Click Below

      Day 8  Read: Psalm 91 In Psalm 91, the words pestilence and plague are used thrice. As believers we need to claim this promise that God will take care of us and protect us. As we dwell in the shelter of the Most High, we can rest in His love. We need to abide in the shadow of the Almighty. We must choose to remain in God.  Jerry Root a famous Christian scholar describes the greatest sin as a failure and a denial to recognize the love of God. In the garden of Eden, Satan deceived Eve by suggesting that she can find out for herself and not be fooled by God’s promises. A failure to recognise God will lead to fear and insecurity that then leads to worry and anxiety resulting in us trying to control our lives. Pride says ‘I will be like God’. As we dwell and abide in God, we rest in Him and therefore we are secure, confident and settled in His love.   www.newhopetv.org 1 John 4:18 says, “Perfect love casts out all fear”. In this time of uncertainty, we can be secure in God’s love, hum

     Day 7 Read: Titus 2:11-15 Titus 2:11 says “For the grace of God has appeared to bring salvation to all men”. We are living in the end times. Look at the world, it has come to a standstill.  A time when the whole world is humbled, and man has been rendered powerless.   God is above all; He is above man’s achievements and his boasting. He has the final word.       www.newhopetv.org In the midst of the darkest hour, Paul says, we have a blessed hope.  Blessed implies being joyful, content, peaceful, happy and pleasant.  This blessed hope is that Christ is coming in glory. This is not a time of mourning or grieving. We are sad at the things happening around us, but we do not allow it to rob us of our joy and peace. Never cease to celebrate the blessed hope of the more glorious thing that is to come: Christ coming in glory. Focus not on the death toll but on the glorious life in Christ. Do not be glued to the television feeding your mind with the gloom around that leads to fear and hop

INTRODUCTION   DAY 1 - Personal Revival During Quarantine   DAY 2 - Focus On God   DAY 3 - Rejoicing In The Midst Of Covid19   DAY 4 - Strength During Difficult Times   DAY 5 - The Lord Is My Shepherd   DAY 6 - Reviewing Our Priorities   DAY 7 - A Blessed Hope Amid Uncertainty   DAY 8 - Protection Amidst The Coronavirus   DAY 9 - God's Care For You   DAY 10 - Benefits of Believing In God   DAY 11 - Joy In The Midst Of Coronavirus   DAY 12 - Inner Quietness  DAY 13 - An Even-Though Faith  DAY 14 - Boosting Your Immune System  DAY 15 - Peace In The Midst Of Lockdown   DAY 16 - Perfect Peace   DAY 17 - Hope  DAY 18 - Resilience   DAY 19 - The Goodness Of God in Difficult Times   DAY 20 - Enjoying God   DAY 21 - Living Carefree In The Midst Of Furnace   DAY 22 - Pause & Smile   DAY 23 - Celebration Without Any Expenditure   DAY 24 - Listening To The Good News Or World News  DAY 25 - Being Subjects And Not Objects Of God's Big & Wonderful Story   DAY 26 - God's Love   DA

    Day 6 Read: James 1:1-11 God has allowed this situation into our lives so that we may recognize the true desires and longings of our heart so that there can be a transformation. When the true longing of our heart is not God, holiness and to live a life for Him alone, God sends us situations that will get our attention.  You can either deny His voice or turn to Him and seek His face.  James 1:2 says  “ Consider it a sheer gift friends, when tests and challenges come to you from all sides.  You know that under pressure your faith life is forced into the open and shows its true colors.  So, don’t try to get out of anything prematurely, let it do its work so you become mature, well developed and not deficient in any way”. When God allows pressures, difficulties, challenges and unusual circumstances into our lives, there is a way in which the superficiality of our spiritual life gets exposed and the real longings of our heart is revealed. We have pride, arrogance and rebellion which are

    Day 5   Read: Psalm 78:52-55 Psalm 78 speaks about the Lord who leads us like a Shepherd. In the present situation it seems like we are in the wilderness, confined to our own tents. Psalm 78:52 says,  “He led forth His own people like a sheep and guided them in the wilderness like a flock”.  It gives us a picture of the Lord being our Shepherd, the good Shepherd (John 10) carrying us in His loving and protective arms.                              www.newhopetv.org We understand the word ‘desert’ in the English language as a dry place. But Jonathan Lipnik, a professor in the Israel Institute of Biblical Studies, says, the word for ‘desert’ in Hebrew means “to pasture one’s flock”, to lead them through an unsettled area with sparse but sufficient vegetation for the flock. Throughout the wilderness experience God was telling the Israelites that He is their Shepherd and He will carry them through. He assures them that He will be with them, protect them and care for them. In today’s con

     Day 4   Read: Deuteronomy 33:25-27 The Bible tells us in Deuteronomy 33:25 that as your days are so shall your strength be. Whatever God allows through the day, He will give us the strength to go through. We are assured that He will supply the strength we need to face whatever today has in store. His grace, power and strength are adequate for me to be triumphant today!! In ourselves, we are inadequate, but in Jesus we are more than able to face any challenge. In the midst of uncertainty, may we know that God will carry us through. Do not give into despair. As Paul says, in my weaknesses, I experience the power of God at work. I am strong because of God’s grace upon me. Hold onto God’s promises. There are three important points that Jewish mothers teach their children to pray each day: 1. Lord, thank You for giving my soul back to me. It is a new day and I am alive. 2. Lord, all that I need for today, You have already supplied. 3. Lord, I thank You that You believe in me.       ww

  Day 3 Read: 2 Corinthians 1:1-7 As we go through the lockdown, we need to ask God to help us choose joy in the midst of our present situation. The Bible in 1 Thessalonians 4:13 tells us not to grieve like the rest who do not have hope. We grieve but we have hope. We have sorrow but we are joyful. We are called to be rejoicing always.  Hope results in joy, peace and confidence. The Coronavirus pandemic has brought the world to a standstill. It has proven that man is powerless. At this time, we need to remind ourselves that God is still on the throne and He is coming again. All suffering will end; there will be no more pain nor tears. Until then, we need to share the good news that Jesus loves us, died for us and will come again to take us to His home on high. As Paul tells us in the book of Romans that nothing can ever separate us from the love of God.                                        www.newhopetv.org The Jews follow the lunar calendar which has an additional month called Adar.

  Day 2  Read: Mathew 11: 28-30 The Jewish people have a certain reading for each day. It is significant that what happens on that day often has a connect to the respective scripture portion read from the Torah. An example of this connect is seen in Luke 4:17-20, when Jesus enters the synagogue and reads from Isaiah 61:1, “The spirit of God is upon me to preach good news, to free the captives and heal the broken hearted”. Jesus goes on to say “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”  Another fascinating example is the reading on the funeral of Billy Graham, a renowned man of God and an incredible evangelist who won many souls to Christ. He died on 15th February 2018 and at his funeral, his daughter, Anne Graham Lotz read the scripture portion allotted for that day according to the Jewish calendar. The reading was the death of Moses and challenge for Joshua to take on leadership to bring the Israelites into the Promised Land. The day the lockdown was announced in America the

DAY 1 Read: 2 Timothy 3: 1-9 In a time of being quarantined, we are forced to spend time alone. It allows us to see ourselves as we are. It is imperative to use this time wisely. Ask God this important question, ‘Lord show me my weaknesses, my failures, my sin, my disobedience and my priorities’. It is a wonderful time to ask God to reveal and remove the things that hinder us from being holy. It is time to open our hearts and lives to God, a time for self-examination, a time for personal revival, a quickening of our hearts. The things we have hidden from Him and not surrendered to Him need to be brought into His light so that we may be well prepared for His second coming. 2 Timothy 3: 1 says that in the last days difficult times will come. Men will be lovers of self. As believers we require sanctification at a deeper level. Are we more concerned about our own desires, pleasures and ego, holding onto a form of godliness rather than God? The Bible clearly instructs us to avoid such men.