In Exodus now in my daily Bible reading. Chapters 3-4. God finds Moses on the far side of the wilderness. Calls to him from a burning shrub that attracts his attention—not because it’s on fire but—because the fire is not destroying it. That’s a lesson right there. There’s fire

“So Moses finished the work.” (Exodus 40:33) I came to the end of my reading in Exodus this morning. To fully appreciate those 5 words, you really need to read the 39 preceding chapters. The whole thing had been such an ordeal, drama from the time God called out to Moses from

the burning bush to the moment he “inspected all the work they had accomplished” in the building of the tabernacle. For starters, Moses wasn’t looking to lead anything but sheep to pasture. He was hiding when God found him. Moses was no volunteer. And even after God called him,

he insisted God find someone else. But the force of the divine call is hard to resist. The people he served nearly drove him nuts. He was supposed to lead a group of worshippers and what he mostly got was whiners. He’d lost his temper over & over. Even thrown the stone tablets

inscribed by the finger of God. Nope. Moses couldn’t say it had gone well. What the whole thing had been was WORK. Unrelenting, frustrating work so detailed that it had to match the divine instructions down to every clasp on endless yards of curtains. There had been some great

moments like the time the people were invited to contribute any personal possessions to the makings of the tabernacle furnishings. They had given so freely, Moses had to tell them to stop. There was that. But overall, what he’d done, what they’d all done, was WORK. Lo & behold,

Oh man, I loved my Bible reading this morning. It was Exodus 28 where God gave Moses the instructions for the priestly apparel Aaron & his sons were to wear. The attention to the minutest detail confirms what we can still count on today: everything God prescribed had purpose.

Whether or not they understood it, whether or not we understand it, God is not haphazard. Nothing is for nothing. For me, one of the most marvelous parts of Bible study is how often he does tie things together for us, connecting the dots, connecting the testaments, the covenants.

I’ll just offer 1 example from Ex 28. V.3 says “You are to instruct all the skilled artisans, whom I’ve filled with a spirit of wisdom (isn’t that fantastic?), to make Aaron’s garments for consecrating him to serve Me as priest.” The turban was an important piece of the apparel.

Something I find particularly fascinating is that the skilled artisans were to make a pure gold nameplate to fasten onto the very front of the priest’s turban. It was to have 4 words engraved on it -all caps in our Bibles- “HOLY TO THE LORD. “It is always to be on his forehead.”

Imagine how a conversation would change if we were talking to a person while staring at those four words on his or her forehead. Ok, fast forward to the New Testament where the Holy Spirit says through Peter that we who are in Christ are part of a “royal priesthood.” (2 Pet 2:9)

Well, folks, the reason I haven’t been sharing many short clips from my morning readings lately is that, well, I’m in chapters 11-17 of Ezekiel. They involve complicated visions that don’t lend themselves to Twitter threads. But at the end of my reading today in Ezek 17,

God delivered a word to the prophet depicting a theme that may be uncomfortable but it’s not incomprehensible.

“I bring down the tall tree and make the low tree tall. I cause the green tree to wither and make the withered tree thrive. I, the Lord, have spoken and I will do it.”

God’s got this thing about pride. He does not let it go unchecked. When his people continue in arrogance after multiple warnings, he is going to bring them down. He will turn the tables. That which has been high will be brought low. This is why we are told by both James and Peter

in the NT that God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. We need his grace so badly. Repentance is our only real way forward. He also views idolatry as spiritual adultery. This was the case in the judgment that was coming to his people through the Babylonians.

We are caught in a cycle. We keep repeating the same offenses and keep excusing them the exact same ways. Study even just the last century. I beg you to. Face how we evangelicals have bedded down with worldly systems for power. See how every time prophetic voices confronted us

You know the old adage, “It’ll probably get worse before it gets better”? Oh, and this one: “It’s always darkest before the dawn” and, meanwhile, that coal-black night seems to go on for eons? Exodus 5 in my morning reading. If you didn’t know God was faithful, you might think

He liked getting you into trouble. Moses has returned to Egypt. Aaron’s reintroduced the former prince to the Israelite elders. Told them God has seen their misery. Moses performed a few signs. They’re bought in and bowed low in worship by the end of Exodus 4. Then Moses & Aaron

go to Pharaoh with the Lord’s message: “Let my people go.”
No. “Please.” Nope. Can’t lose my labor force. So Pharaoh commands overseers to drastically increase the Israelites’ workload without changing their daily quota. When they can’t fill it, the Israelite foremen are beaten.

The Israelite foremen go to Pharaoh & cry out for help. He says, “You are nothing but slackers! Now get to work!” So they do what you know they are going to do and do not blame them for doing and know you would do it, too. They go to Moses and Aaron. “What have you done to us?!?”

Moses then goes to the Lord. “What have you done to them??And why did you ever send me?? Nothing but trouble has happened since we did what you said. “AND,” Moses cries, “You haven’t rescued your people at all!”

It’ll be that way sometimes. It’ll get worse before it gets better.

My reading today was Exodus 32. Moses has been on the mountain with God, hearing the instructions for the tabernacle & receiving the stone tablets. The people below, who’d seen the smoke above & heard the thunder &, that very morning, filled their bellies with bread from heaven,

decided Moses & that God above were taking too long. They needed a god below who would get with it. Get with them. Get them where they wanted to go. So they gathered around Aaron & said, “Come, make gods for us!” The same Aaron of Ex 24 who’d been invited by God to see the very

pavement beneath God’s feet. Aaron & his sons & the 70 elders, “saw Him and they ate and drank.” That Aaron. So he tells them in Ex 32, Bring me your gold & let’s see what I can do. He fashions it into the image of a calf & they present it to Israel in wording shudderingly

blasphemous. “Israel, these are your gods, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” Over and over God has reminded them not to forget who had brought them out. Perhaps this started making Aaron a little nervous. Or maybe it didn’t. Maybe he just bought in. But his next move

is particularly telling. “When he saw this (the masses reacting to the gold idol he’d fashioned for them), he built an altar in front of it and made an announcement: ‘there will be a festival to the Lord tomorrow.’ Early the next morning they arose, offered burnt offerings &

NĀRADA & HIS BHAKTI-SŪTRAS :
Bhakti – Love Divine :-
Of Love Divine (Sūtra 1 to 6)

All our philosophical textbooks are written out by the great 'rishis' and 'thinkers' in the form of sūtras.
The term, ‘sūtra’, means ‘string’ – the string on which the arguments &
#Thread

thoughts are strung together to become an enchanting garland of ideas.
This is the philosophy of devotion, of love for 'Paramatma' stands today attributed to the Devarṣi Nārada.
He works everywhere as friend, philosopher and guide, to all devotees.
Let's begin the journey !

NĀRADA & HIS BHAKTI-SŪTRAS :
Bhakti – Love Divine :-
Of Love Divine (Sūtra 1 to 6)

Sūtra 1
अथातो भक्तिं व्याख्यास्यामः॥ १॥
Now, the doctrine of devotion we shall expound.
After having developed all the qualifications necessary for the practice of devotion (atha), the student

feels no spiritual satisfaction, and therefore (ataḥ), he must now diligently walk the path of devotion. According to Rāmānuja, the teacher of viśiṣṭādvaita, there are seven qualifications necessary in a seeker who plans to pursue devotion. They are:

(1) Discrimination in food (viveka), (2) Freedom from desire (vimukha), (3) Practice (abhyāsa), (4) Habit of doing good to others (kriyā), (5) Purity in thought, word and deed, non-violence, charity, and such other virtues (kalyāṇa), (6) Cheerfulness (anavasāda), and (7) Absence

My faith in Christ was settled at 18. After that, my struggle was not with belief as much as with believers. In college, I wrestled mightily with indentifying myself openly as a Christian. Others, both in the culture & on my campus, had made the label toxic. Christians were...

...not respected. Some Christians on campus welcomed the disrespect as authentication of their faith. After all, Jesus was disrespected too. What they missed, however, was that Jesus was maligned for his compassion, love, association with the lowly & sinners, & for rebuking...

...the powerful & self-righteous. Christianity on my campus was maligned for being intolerant, bigoted, unintellectual, partisan, arrogant, mean, & condemning. This reputation was earned by the behavior of some believers at my school, but more by the national figures leading...

...the Religious Right. Simply put, the disrespect didn’t come because Christians were emulating Jesus, but because they were not. That’s why I struggled. To identify myself with this twisted anti-Christ Christianity would be a betrayal of the true Christ to whom I belonged...

...That was 1994. Today, I have teenage kids including one attending my alma mater. As we talk about faith, I hear echoes of my struggle in them & my heart breaks. The idolatry & hypocrisy that existed in American Christianity a generation ago I now far, far worse. My kids know..

#DoYouKnow -The place where
Lalitha Sahasranamam -1000 names of Devi originated.

It is in Lalithambigai temple -Thirumeeyachur,Near Mayiladuthurai,TN

There is a Legend #story & it is related to this beautiful #sculpture of Kshetrapuraneswarar & Ambal Lalithambigai #Thread 👇

#Legend #story
It is believed that this is birth place of Kashyapa Maharishi’s sons, Arunan& Garudan. Arunan(charioteer of Surya)was physically handicapped.He was a Shiva devotee.Arunan wanted to visit Kailash to have Shiva Darshan,but Surya Dev denied permission.

So Arunan disguised as a girl & was on his way to Kailash.On the way Surya Dev saw this girl & outraged her modesty.Shiva was very angry with Suryan for misbehaviour & cursed him to get darkened. Whole world plunged into darkness.Surya Dev pleaded to Bhagwan Shiv to forgive him.

Shiva Bhagwan asked him to go to Thirumiyachur & worship him there. As advised, Surya Dev performed rigorous penance, placed murthi of Shiva& Parvathy on an elephant & took them to the clouds.Shiva in this temple is known as Meganathaswamy,Devi is known as Lalithambigai

Even after severe penance,Shiva does appear,so Surya Dev cries out in agony.Disturbed by his call, Parvathy protests.Siva pacifies her & offers relief to Surya Dev.The sculpture of Shiva pacifying Ambal shows her sullen from one angle &smiling from another.

@Hadithoftheday Jannah.
Jannah (Paradise/Heaven) has eight gates while as Jahannam (Hell) has seven gates.
Allah in His mercy has made more entry points to Jannah than Jahannam.

Eight gates of Jannah are:
1.Bab-As-Salat
2.Bab-al- jihad
3.Bab-al- sadaqah
4.Bab-Ar-Rayyan
5.Bab-al-kazimeen-al-ghaiz-wal-aafina-anin-naas
6.Bab-al-hajj
7.bab-al-iman
8.bab-al-dhikr
Each gate has a name describing the kinds of people who will enter through these

Seven gates or levels of Hell/Jahannam are:
1. Jahannam
2. Ladha'
3. Saqar
4. Al-Hutamah
5. Jaheem
6. Sa'eer
7. Al-Haawiyah

Allah mentions seven gates of Hell in Surah Hijr of Glorious Qur'an.

Allah says in Qur'an:
"And indeed, Hell is the promised place for them all."
"It has seven gates; for every gate is of them a portion designated."
(Qur'an :Al-Hijr 15: Verse 43,44)

Each level of Jahannam not only contains different temperature, but also have different punishments and also contain different people.
The gates of Hell are structured one gate below the other descending.