ZEALSpeaker: Sis. Stella Dhinakaran Gist: Determine that you would pray and also help your enemies and other dear ones. Love is as strong as death (Songs of Solomon 8:6). You may sing, “I love God better everyday.” It is not the singing alone that matters but to find out how much you love God from the bottom of your heart. The Lord knows how you love Him whether it is zealous and sincere or otherwise.
You can read in the Bible about a certain man whom the Lord appreciated for his zealous nature. How did that man exhibit his zealous nature for God? The wrath of the Father descended upon the people of Israel who went away in wicked ways. At that time, when the congregation of the people of Israel gathered and were crying out to God, this man saw one of his fellowmen carrying a Midianite woman. He followed and killed both of them with a javelin. The Bible says, 'and it shall be to him and his descendants after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was zealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel' (Numbers 25:13). Since he showed his zealous nature towards the Lord, God made a covenant with him granting him and his descendants the eternal priesthood.
A certain young girl loved the Lord very much and was zealous for Him. Her family members did not like this. They irritated and sneered at her in all possible ways. Whenever she knelt down to pray they would beat her ruthlessly. If she stepped out of the house for hearing God’s word through the gospel meetings they would lock her up inside the house. They never even gave her proper food. They would shout, “Be lost from here without eating.” On the contrary, she neither lamented, “Oh! They are persecuting me!” nor kept shedding tears whenever they offended her. Unruffled by their torments she continued steadfast in prayer and clung to the feet of the Lord. How long would the tormentors try to trouble someone who can never be troubled? Surely there is an end.
One after another, sickness, sorrow, sufferings, loss in business, affliction and so on struck the members of her family – those who tormented her. They got diverted looking into the matters that were of great concern and temporarily stopped tormenting her. That girl took advantage of this opportunity and not only prayed for all those who taunted her but also assisted them physically to come out of the afflictions. She forgot the fact that they had ridiculed her but remembered to pray and help them. In the same way, do not harbour the hurt that others have done to you instead remember them in your prayers.
Through the genuine gesture of that girl, the Lord made her family members realize that God’s love flowed through her and only because of that she could love even those who jeered at her. Slowly she began to proclaim God’s love to her family members. The whole family came under His fold. Through the zealous and unceasing love of that girl her family serves God today.
When you finish reading this message, go with the determination that you would pray and also help your family members, neighbours, friends, relatives, enemies and other dear ones. Continue the work that God has entrusted in your hands with zeal.
Prayer:
Loving Lord,
Help me to love You with all my strength, mind, soul and body. May my first priority in this world be to sing praises of all the goodness that You have done and are doing for me. Give me the grace to pray for those who persecute me and particularly to love my enemies. I beg You to give me the zeal that I may carry out the tasks entrusted to me this day and bring glory to Your holy name. In Jesus’ name I pray.
Amen |