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Festivities and Opportunties Posted on 11/30/2009 12:00 AM   |  EMail to Friend   |  View Comments (2)

It seems as though the city has gone back into panic mode. For a few days with the celebration of Eid we had some peace and calm. A lull with an air of the celebratory had come upon us. The only punctuation was the bleeting of our neighbours sheep who seemed to have resigned himself to his fate as the sacrifical animal for the family. The neighbour's kids would come out and play with him knowing full well that on one of the three days of Eid in memory of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son, they too would cast all their sins onto the sheep and kill him. So while we kind of surmised that during the Eid break there would not likely be any explosions or bombs - at least not huge ones, as Christians the pressure remains. Though we may be mildly safe from bombs and violence, the awareness that we as Christians are not taking part in the sacrifice of an animal is heightened. However we knew it would not last forever. As soon as that poor sheep stopped bleating (which gets worse before it gets better) we knew it would all begin again. Fortunately the weather has changed and we will be spared the horrendous stench of death that lingers in the streets after our neighbours have sacrificed their sheep, goats, cows, lambs and even camels for the Eid Celebration. So while they believe that this unblemoshed male animal has taken their sins, the stench of the skin and caracsses reminds us each day of the deception Satan has wound them into. A deception whereby the real LAMB OF GODm who came to take away the sins of the world has been rejected and forgotten and in his place the story of Abraham from the Old Testament has been misrepresented and the faith of millions has been misplaced. Millions have been on Haj which is one of the most sought after pilgrimages among Muslims. It is one of the 5 pillars of Islam. A neighbour of ours has returned with his head shaved. His wife now dones a heavy black chadder and is sending bottles of holy water from Saudi Arabia to her Muslim neighbours. I long to share with them. My heart aches and I think of how Jesus wept over Jerusalem. He has filled me with the same compassion with them and every whiff of the blood and gore of the sacarifices through out the country remind me of their misplaced faith. I so want to reach out to them and minister His love to them and HIs ultimate sacrifice. He is the lamb of God and He has performed the ultimate work of Grace and forgiveness taking our sins on Himself. No lamb or animal can save me now. How will I share that with my neighbours. Please pray that this Christmas as they come over for cookies and Christmas cake and to see the lights of the Christmas tree we will be able to talk about the Light of the World, Jesus the Lamb of God, who was born 2000 years ago and died for us - for them. Pray that every Christmas cake be blessed and create an opportunity to minister Christ to our Muslim neighbours in Pakistan. Let us make this our Advent Prayer request. For each day of Christmas let us share this prayer request with one more and ask them to share it with another.

Closing in on Christmas Posted on 11/26/2009 12:00 AM   |  EMail to Friend   |  View Comments (5)

As I child I loved going to the meat and veg market with my grandfather.We would meander through the open market place looking for the best and ripest fruit and veg. He taught me how to chose perfect apples, pears, peaches, chikus, loose jacket oranges, pumpkin, onions, corriader, yams, potatoes etc... He taught me how to chose, weigh, smell and above all BARGAIN. What fun I would have. All the farmers knew us well and would give me a piece of fruit here and there. It was pretty icky to walk through the market place. Nothing has changed. It is still icky, I just dont get treats any more. They think I am old enough to be married and have children to give treats to. Another thing that has not changed is the smell of meat. The wegies and fruit vendors give into the meat market where the carcasses of goat and lamb hang from the roof of the refrigerated rooms where the butchers sit with tons of meat in piles around them. I wish this smell of meat was not part of the experience. The butcher we go to is the third stall from the end. I have been going to his shop since I was little. He keeps the best chops for us. Of late with all the new health consciousness and rules about what meat to eat and not eat, we hardly buy any lamb and he tells us that the consumption of the red meat has gone down so much that he is having to close up shop. His son is starting a poultry farm because more people want chicken. Sadly is these relationships that are so cruicial to the hope for Pakistan. These relationships are divorced from the violence and the Taliban-built on years of good will and good faith. Years of prayer requests that a Muslim butcher has put to a Christian man and his grand daughter. Years of conversations of why we do not celebrate Eid and buy the sacrificial animal from him. Explaining the work of Jesus on the Cross and we do not need to remember Abraham and Isaac for Salvation and Forgiveness. I wonder whether his son will be as talkative and open to discussion. Things have changed. From one generation to the next attitudes and relationships have deteriorated. Pakistan's crisis is the break down in relationships between communities and trust in one another. Next Christmas when I come to buy dry fruit and nuts from the open market, Chacha Malik's butcher shop won't be there. The way things are going, I wonder if any of this Market will be here, or whether I as a woman will be able to come and shop here. Pray for us, we do not know what the future holds, but this Christmas, pray we will take hold of every opportunity to share Christ with all our friends, butchers, fruit and veg vendors, fabric sellers, tailors, all those who we visit as we celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Thank you for your prayers Posted on 11/18/2009 12:00 AM   |  EMail to Friend   |  View Comments (2)

Mehreen surprised us all by actually wearing a wedding dress! Her Auntie& Uncle & Ephraim's god parents who love her dearly persuaded her that not only would this have been how her mother would have wanted to see her, also this is a day when the purest commitment&promises are being made between a woman&her husband in the presence of the creator of that prurity. In His presence we must acknowledge the meaning of marriage&celebrate it for what it is. They counselled&prayed for them reminding them that in acknowledging the significance of marriage, the service, the blessing& in declaring their commitment&love in God's presence, did not reduce their respect for her mother& grieving process. It may seem strange but it was not disrespectful. In fact it was in keeping with the plans. Any other way would be unsafe& a betrayal of her mother's desire for her safety. Not all her relatives were in agreement& that in fact only relatives ought to have been invited as witnesses& there should have been no sparkle at all. Thankfully Mehreen was strengthened by the Lord&those He raised up to minister to her. She looked so pretty. She did look momentarily awkward&uncertain as she walked into Church. There were very few people perhaps some 100 (Pakistani weddings take 1000s so this was very few) some family members, and their Church family. I know her mum would have longed for a lot more&to pour herself out at the wedding in every detail. The Church folk had pitched in and did table decorations, wedding favours, laid out flowers, prepared garlands&floral bracelets of jasmin&roses. I sadly was not able to make it. I wish I could have but we live too far out&Dadi desperately wanted to go. She needed help getting ready. I felt like crying but I know distance was a problem. Ephraim looked proud of her but when she relaxed some what, he, began to look concerned that she would not take the pressure. Her Uncle walked her up the aisle. There was a surprise. Ephraim's parents came up & stood with them and took vows before God to treat Mehreen as their own daughter& be mother& father both to her& Ephraim. It was a beautiful way to comfort her, letting her know she was not going to be the dreaded daughter in law. Please continue to pray for strength& the Lord's comfort& joy even now. It is still painful she did cry. But if we pray for her I know she will be strengthened when it gets hard. Mehreen is blessed in that she&Ephraim know each other, prayed together& know God's will. They love one another. Millions of girls in the Muslim world, every year are forced to marry. They do not even know that God's will is important, all they know is that they HAVE to marry because their parents have chose&God has given them parents to make those decisions. If their heart belongs to someone else, that is just too bad. Things are changing in some places but for the most forced marriages continue, leaving millions of Muslim women depressed&disillusioned in life. Is there a Muslim in your neighbourhood who had a cloud over their wedding day? Who loved someone else? Who has cold marriage? Why not reach out and give them cause for joy and cause to hope again. In your reaching out perhaps they will see a glimmer of that star that the wise men followed in the Gospel Narrative. Perhaps it will become a bright light and lead them to the Emmanuel, Wonderful counsellor and the Prince of Peace.

You are a treasure to me Posted on 11/15/2009 12:00 AM   |  EMail to Friend   |  View Comments (11)

I just have to be so careful with how I save your coments and replies to my posts. It means so much to me to read your encouragment and your messages to me. I feel blessed. Please keep writing and asking. I am blessed by the way you pray for us and the way you engage with the prayer requests I share with you. Please know that it is not just you praying for us, but we pray for you too. We see the dangers, struggles and challenges our brothers and sisters in the West face and we see the way the Evil One is revelling in that. Please know that every day we thiink of you. Every day we know we cannot stand except that you stand in the gap for us and you are reaching out to Christ for us and we are able to balance ourselves and not fall because of that. But we know we are not the only one's walking the tight rope. You are too and in that we must all reach out to the Lord for balance and strength to remain standing- for Him. So know that you are prayed for and we give thanks for you and we cannot see ourselves in isolation from you. Today in Church we gave thanks for you and asked Jesus to be with you. We love you. You are a treasure to us.

A Funeral and a Wedding Posted on 11/13/2009 12:00 AM   |  EMail to Friend   |  View Comments (4)

Despite bombs,explosions- terror every day, lives continue. Joy& pain of every day life continue to visit us. Soometimes they meet ever so closely in our honour& shame society. Just days ago we savoured the sweetness of yellow ladoos. Ladoos are Pakistani&Indian sweets with yellow lentils, sugar, rolled into balls&fried- the ultimate expression of celebration -a spreading of the sweetness God has brought to the giver. Abraham's best friend- Ephraim is from our Church family. We grew up together. A year ago his parents asked if he would consider marrying a young lady from Church as they felt God guided them in praying this. He was thrilled- he has been in love with her for years. No one except Abraham knew& they had spent much time praying about this. Ephraim was ecstatis&the day Mehreen's mum said the big ' YES' on her behalf we were treated to sweets&celebration from both families. The date was fixed for Dec 16th 2009. We have prayed for safety in the midst of turmoil& we would not have any kind of crisis. Mehreen is an only child, her father died when she was very little& she& her mum have been very close. Today we sat together in the same room where she and her mum had chosen silk& colours& perfume for the wedding day not too long ago. It was the same room where they had lain awake, crying themselves to sleep thinking of the day she would go to her new home&her mum would be left here. Ephraim had suggested taking her mum home to live with them. The past months have been times of decision making&celebrations. Suddenly 2 weeks ago, the Peshawar bombing occured her mum's heart could no longer take the strain& gave in. Mehreen's mum went to be with the Lord. These are not times to leave a young girl on her own. Her uncles live in the US- came immediately to be with her but this meant they would not get more leave in December to be with her for her wedding nor could they stay till then. No one was in favour of her being alone for that duration. Tomorrow afternoon, 2 weeks after her mother's passing away, Mehreen will go back into Church, this time to say her vows &marry Ephraim. No dress as planned,a brocade saree& boquet of her mum's favourite flowers. Thankfully there will be the open arms of Ephraim&his family who love her. But what a day. Every year her anniversary will be marked by the memory of losing her mum& the reminder of her mum not seeing her grandchildren. While she grieves for her closest friend, Mehreen will be in the midst of what is normally the great celebration of our lives. 22, grieving on the day she is marrying the man she loves. In some ways their spiritual&emotional prep time has been cut short. They both know this is the right thing to do. These are hardly times for a young Christian girl to live alone. With the rest of her family in the US she cant just move in with an Aunt or Uncle. Amma offered to have her stay with us for a while, but Mehreen had agreed to the wedding being brought forward. Pray for Ephraim&Mehreen. In a few hours they will be getting married. May Jesus be their joy&comfort today. Could I ask you to pray for them&their live ahead& for the many other Christians who are in similar situations because bombs, explosions& terror have taken away someone in similar cirsumtances. So many marriages beginning in the midst of grief, so many weddings risk being bombed and attacked by terrorists. Something is seriously wrong when in place of a dance& celebration, the sound of drums&flutes there is the sound of explosion, the of mourning and grieving among the men an

Conflict Within Posted on 11/10/2009 12:00 AM   |  EMail to Friend   |  View Comments (5)

A parade of lies& deceit is marching through our streets, drawing in unsuspecting onlookers, turning them from being observers to participants and those who do not join the parade get caught in the stampede, get trampled on, becoming victims of the destruction and the cruelty of this wave of Islamic extremism that is flwoing not just across Pakistan but the world. For the loss at Fort Hood in the USA as a child of God I feel deep&utter sadness. Know that we in Pakistan are praying for you&those who lost family. Not just that any human being could find it in his heart to spray bullets killing so many of God’s children, but also something severe has happened to pervert&deprave the mind of someone who should be serving with compassion for the vulnerable people who come to him. That wave&torrential storm of Islam is raging. Honestly I was a shocked despite knowing that the forces of the Americans&the British do have Muslims in their ranks. Shocked that there seems so little comprehension of Islam&its high ground in the life of its follower. The primary identity of most Muslims is not to do with the passport they hold, but their Islamic faith. The primary purpose of the Muslim is not a 9 – 5 job, but to transform that 9-5 environment& rest of their world by living out an Islamic life&allowing the principles of Islam to become attractive to those around them so that their national identity ultimately submits to their spiritual identity. Perhaps there are liberal Muslims seeking to eliminate extremist elements, in the final analysis even liberals will question war that kills so many fellow Muslims who have never touched a gun, or thought of killing someone else. While questioning such a war, whether it is just or not, on his heart and mind it will weight heavy. He will be forced, either to withdraw&seek another form of transformation of the extremist Muslim or to become embittered against the west intent on wiping out the extremist regardless of the human cost of doing so. As a Christian I ask why a military would have a psychiatrist who subscribes to the principles&faith of the enemy. I am forced to wonder how one could entrust the psychological well being, therapy&healing of their troops to the care of someone whose own intellectual&psychological health is based on a faith that ties into persecution,violence&even a false concept of peace. Christians must be alert to where we are going for our wellbeing& to whom we are looking for help. Does not the Psalmist tell us our help comes from the Lord who made heaven&earth? I pray that the nations of the world will look to the Lord and recognise Him as the giver of peace and healing and that people like Dr Nidal Hassan will be forced to seek balance&wholeness, peace&rest from Jesus the Prince of the Peace, the one to whom it has been given by the Father. My prayer is that those nations who have gone forth against the Taliban&Al Qaeda will recognise their own Christian heritage and will recognise why they were attacked in the first place and will see the danger or entrusting their safety and their war into the hands of those whose concept of peace is as mixed up as their religious and national loyalty and identity. I pray that as individuals, as a Church, as a Body and as nations, we would seek our identity in the Lord and in that we would find forgiveness and compassion for those like Dr Nidal, because it should have been him at the receiving end of help and therapy that was founded on the word of God and the teachings of Jesus. One more lamb in Jesus’ fold.