November 19, 2013

Orthodox Disturbance: The State of Nepali Church at Present

Ever since Nathan, one of the precious friends we were able to meet while ministering in Korea, made the transition into Orthodox Church, my wife and I have been studying orthodoxy; have watched every available documentary in the internet about Mt. Athos, Meteora and the desert monks of the Coptic tradition.  The common thing that marks these monastic communities is their quest for purity from the evil that is within each of us.  Holy mountains of Athos, the roof top monasteries of Meteora, and the desert caves of saint Macarious have witnessed for centuries the tenacity of human spirit in overcoming unimaginable hardships and suffering of all kinds for the purpose of attaining purity, holiness, serenity and blessed union with Christ. 

November 9, 2013

Seasons and Rhythms of Life


There is time for everything, and life has a way of finding its own rhythm. God who created the time allows the seasons of life to play out His divine plan in a person's life. Just as he allows the time to take its own course of action in fulfilling his divine plans, he even allows the finite human beings to choose the course of action during the allotted time in this life. The nature of human beings is such that because we have this choice, we want to set our own clock, fix our own course of action and decide our own season without giving heed to the one who controls all. Because of this choice, life becomes a struggle when we give too much importance to the finite human will. A human being is free but not all powerful, s/he can only choose how s/he reacts to the seasons and rhythms of life, but s/he cannot change them. S/He can either choose to rejoice at the beauty of the fall season or be resentful of the falling leaves; s/he can either choose to dance with the rhythms of life or refuse to buzz, but s/he can change neither the season nor the rhythm of life. What happens outside of a person is not in one's control, but to some extent a person is in control of what happens inside of him/her.

October 9, 2013

Instant Success Attracts Imminent Fall

In developing nations, the prosperity gospel is attracting the preachers like a magnet.  I can only speak from the Indian sub-continental experience (though other parts of the world are not immune to it) where it has become a fashion for the upcoming and young preachers to preach instant success in such a way as if they want to outdo the “American Dream”.  Their sermons and social media interactions are filled with quotations and references from the Mega-Church Moguls and the Televangelist Tycoons; for them, the biblical texts become useful only for the footnotes.  Becoming rich and famous at any cost appears to be their ultimate goal in life; ministry provides them a noble mantle to hide their beguiling image.

October 6, 2013

रातोपाटी सेतोपाटी

रातोपाटी देखी सेतोपाटी र अन्य अनलाईन वा छापिएका पत्रिकाहरूमा बेलाबखत नेपालमा आर्थिक प्रलोभन देखाएर इसाईहरूले गैर-इसाईलाई धर्म परिवर्तन गराएको आरोपपुर्ण लेखहरू प्रकाशित हुन्छन्।  हुनत ती लेखहरू आफैमा (लेखकहरू) इसाई धर्मप्रति  अज्ञानता र पुर्वाग्रहका चरम उदाहरण हुन्।  तरैपनि यस्ता लेखहरू प्रकाशित हुनुमा इसाई नेत्रित्वको पनि भुमिका छ; पैसाको कारण कसैले पनि नेपालमा इसाई धर्म अपनाएको नहुनसक्छ तर निर्दोष र इमान्दार नेपालीले येशू ख्रीष्टलाई आफ्नो जीवनको मुक्तिदाता र गुरू बनाउने निर्णयको फाईदा कतिपय धुर्त इसाई अगुवाहरूले उठाएका छन्।
त्यसकारण, सम्पुर्ण नेपाली इसाईहरूलाई यस्ता लेखकहरूको अज्ञानता र पुर्वाग्रहको शिकार बनाउनुको सट्टा यी भ्रष्ट इसाई अगुवाहरूको गतिविधिहरूलाई प्रकाशमा ल्याउनसके असल पत्रकारीता र नेपाली इसाईत्वको विकास हुनेथियो।

October 5, 2013

नेपाली ख्रीष्टियन मिडियाका कम्जोर पक्षहरू

जसरी नेपालमा पास्टरको इज्जत छैन त्यसरीनै नेपाली सञ्चारकर्मिको वा माध्यमहरुको इज्जतमा पनि ह्रास आइसकेको जस्तो देखिन्छ। नेपालमा पास्टरहरुको इज्जत नहुनुमा अधिकांस पास्टरहरूकै दोष हो भन्दा खासै फरक नपर्ला।  परमेश्‍वरको बोलाहट र आफ्नो दक्षताको ख्यालै नगरी जसकसैले पनि रातारात नयाँ मण्डलीको सुरुवात गरेर मण्डलीलाई जिविकोपार्जनको माध्यम बनाउने प्रविर्तिले गर्दा नेपालमा पास्टरीय मर्यदामा दागलागे जस्तै नेपाली ख्रीष्टियन सञ्चार माध्यम र पत्रकार मित्रहरूको अवस्थापनि त्यस्तै देखिन्छ। 

September 25, 2013

Your Mind is a Vital Part of Your Spiritual Makeup

Albert Einstein said, “The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination”.  Indeed, knowledge can be had, but it is the imagination that brings new ideas into existence resulting in new inventions.  Even Christian spiritual maturity depends on the transformation of the mind; failure to transform one’s mind means living as a carnal Christian.  For Paul, the mind set on the things of the flesh is death but the mind set on the things of the Spirit is life and joy (Romans 8).