​In an old movie, I watched a story about a shrewd businessman who eagerly helped to restore a damaged nunnery during the WWII. When asked why he did it, the unbelieving businessman said, “just in case!” It made me think, aren’t we all like this businessman somehow?

We too, do things for God because of “just in case.” We store our good works like cookie points for the Lord to answer our prayers or needs whilst the businessman believed his good deeds would earn him an eternal place in Heaven if there is a God.

May I respectfully say, “it is foolish to think we could buy our own righteousness or answers to prayers.” If we think of such, we allow pride to bound ourselves to human law and we deny the free gift of salvation including the righteous privileges that Jesus has died for us to have.

Friends, humble yourself before the Lord (James 4: 10) and have faith that the Lord always have your back, He will not forsake you. Jesus do not keep any scores for us to achieve till he unlocks another reward for our good works.

None of us could ever buy our own righteousness and salvation with any good works, Jesus is bigger than that; He gave it for free for us who needs and seeks it. Come to Him in prayers, friends. Jesus loves you. When we invite the Lord into our hearts, we gain in this life a wonderful Counsellor, a loving Saviour, a best friend, a Father and much more I could not fathom. He is the Rock we could lay our foundations on and rely on when the storm hits.
 
James 4: 10 NLT
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.

Philippians 3:9 NLT
and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.

- John W.

John 3:16
For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
 
Have you ever pondered on this passage? Imagine if it were you sacrificing for your loved ones. What would you want your loved ones to see and gain from your sacrifices for them?
 
Jesus sacrificed His life for us, He sacrificed willingly for us to gain hold of the promise of salvation, healing, peace, provision and abundant joy. In doing so, He demonstrated an incomprehensible love to us as a loving Father, Saviour and a Friend. This is what the Father and His Son want us to see. They gave the best treasure of Heaven and held nothing back to gift us eternal salvation.
 
Equipped with this knowledge, will you press on when the devil is trying to bring you down? Fix our eyes on our loving Saviour continually; fully trusting in Him. How can He who gave up his one and only Son gives conditional love and withheld anything that is good for us? Trust and continually seek His face
 
Romans 8:32
He who did not spare His own son but deliver Him up for us a. How shall He not with Him also freely give us all things.

- Annie Pisca

How did God perform the miracle of the Red Sea? By shutting His people in on every opportune side so that there was no way out but by the supernatural  way. The Egyptians were behind them, the sea was in front of them, the mountains were on both sides of them.

There was no escape but from above.The devil can wall us in, but he cannot roof us over as we can always get out at the top. Our difficulties are but God's challenges, and many times He makes them so hard that we must get above them or go under.

During such trial, it presents us with highest possibilities to build the muscles of our faith. We are pushed by the very emergency into God's best inteference. Friends, this is God's hour. If you will rise to meet it you will get such a hold upon Him that you will not be in extremities again; or if you are, you will learn to call them not extremities, but opportunities.

Like Jacob, you will go forth from that night at Peniel, no longer called Jacob, but as victorious Israel. 

2 Corinthians 4:9
We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.

- Writing of A Simpson

With heightened awareness globally, the corona virus (COVID-19) has sown much fear, panic and uncertainties. The death toll continues to increase and some questions such as “should I stop attending church”, “how long will this pandemic last”, “will the financial recession hits hard” and/or “is this one of the Biblical plagues of the end times” drift in most conversations.

As much as I’d love to have some questions answered, I think there is no better time to show practical kindness than now. Firstly, pray for wisdom to do the right thing; “..the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere (James 3: 17). If we heed and ask for such wisdom, it will stir us to intentionally act with compassion that considers the needs of others and not just our own.

​When buying supplies at the stores, we will then remember the needs of other elderly seniors and disabled citizens and buy in a sensible ration instead of a panicked frenzy. We will follow the strict guidelines provided by the healthcare system if we are feeling un-well and we will regularly offer prayers for people who are affected by the virus either through telephone or many social channels this digital era has gifted us.

Together in prayers, we could supernaturally fight this pandemic fear that is affecting many people with worries and hopelessness. These simple and practical kindnesses though unseen, elate the human spirit wherever you go; it births seeds of hope and the human will to pay the kindness forward. You could make a change in your sphere of influence and remember that the Lord is your very rewarder in trying times like this.

"The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25:40

- Irene Soon

A friend of mine named Paul received a brand new car from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve when Paul was walking to his brand new car, a street urchin was admiring it. “Is this your car, Mister?” he asked.

Paul nodded. “My brother gave it to me for Christmas.” The boy was astounded. “You mean your brother gave it to you and it didn’t cost you nothing? Boy, I wish . . .” He hesitated.

Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that but to Paul's surprise, the boy went on and said, “I wish... that I could be a brother like that.”

“Would you like to take a ride in my car?” Paul sincerely offered then. 

“Oh yes Mister, I’d love that.”

After a short ride, the boy turned and with his eyes aglow, said, “Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?”

Paul smiled a little. He thought the boy wanted to show his neighbors that he rode home in a new shiny car. The boy quickly got off the car and ran up the steps of his house. Then in a little, the boy came back. He was carrying his little crippled brother. He sat him down on the bottom step and pointed to the car.

“There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didn’t cost him a cent. And some day I’m gonna give you one just like it . . . then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that I’ve been trying to tell you about.”

Paul got out and lifted the little brother to the front seat of his car. The shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the three of them began a memorable holiday ride.

That Christmas Eve, Paul learned what Jesus meant when He said: “It is more blessed to give . . .”

Acts 20: 35 
In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.

- Dan Clark

If you’re trying to recover from a broken relationship, don’t rush into another one. As you become healthy you begin to make healthy choices. Some hurts take a long time to heal, but don’t be discouraged: ‘He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds.’

Give God a chance. Take time to search His Word and find out how He feels about you, for that’s the true basis of all self-worth. If God can love and accept you with full knowledge of your imperfections, then the message is: "Lighten up, you can love, and be loved again, but remember the second greatest commandment, only with the same wholeness with which you love yourself.

When you don’t value yourself, you attract people who feel the same way about you, including those who seek to control you. So hold out for it for better! Remember, you train others how to treat you by how you treat yourself. As you become whole, you’ll start to see how unwholesome some of your relationship choices have been. If some people walk away, ‘so be it’.

Sometimes you’ve got to give up less so that God can give you more. He has new relationships in store for you, but He’s waiting until your values, perceptions, and self-worth line up with His Word. So take it step by step, one day at a time. And take heart —your best days are ahead.

Psalm 147: 3
He heals the broken hearted, he binds up their wounds.

- Word for Today devotional Bob Gass

As the days are leading to Christmas, it has been a leading to share what has been the core heart of Hopeful Heart. Hopeful Heart started on a mundane night of August 2011 where God has been speaking much about hope unto our seasons.

Hope through Christ has been such a key message we delight in sharing to believers. When we as believers speak of hope, it resonates deeper that any earthly desires but it is an affirmation that our hope is made certain and it rests on the finished work of Jesus to bring us forgiveness, eternal salvation and reconciliation of humanity's brokenness in a fallen world. We are not left in this world to fight our own battles, Christ is the anchor of our soul, He has come to this world to be a Saviour and a secure hope in times of need and hopelessness.

Through the coming of Jesus, He has secured us hope in many ways. We are able to hope for the future; that we will be redeemed through the free gift of salvation, we could hope in the present that we are sustained, upheld and loved by a God who loves unconditionally. We are also enabled to hope for reconciliations over the scars and consequences of past mistakes; failures are no greater than God’s restorative power.
​
As we were led to the verse of Hebrew 16: 20 about hope, it brought about the name of Hopeful Heart. The word Heart is derived from Proverbs 4: 23 NLT. It instructs us to guard our heart above all else as it will determine the course of our lives. So dear friends, as we anchor our hearts in Christ Jesus our Saviour and Redeemer in this month where Christ needs to be celebrated more than gifts and festive activities, we will find His Words to continually guard our hearts through the providence of insightful wisdom and deeper Biblical understanding. May you always find hope in Christ, your living hope and continue to spread His Good News. Jesus is the real reason for Christmas, it is because of His birth, we have Christmas; let Him be at the center of it.

Hebrew 16: 20 NIV
We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf...

- Irene Soon

God's sweetest memorial is the transformed thorn and thistle blooming with flowers of peace and goodness where once recriminations grew. God is waiting to make just such memorials in your life out of the things that are hurting you most today.
 
Take the grievances, the separations, the strained friendships and the broken ties which have been the sorrow and heartbreak of your life and let God heal them. Allow Him to give you grace that can make you right with all those with whom you have been wrong. You will wonder at the joy and, blessing that will come out of the things that have caused you nothing but regret and pain.
 
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God (Matthew 5:9). The everlasting employment of our blessed Redeemer is to reconcile the guilty and the estranged from God. The highest and most Christlike work that we can do is to be like Him.
 
Shall we go forth to dry the tears of a sorrowing world, to heal the brokenhearted, to bind up the wounds of human lives, and to unite heart to heart and earth to heaven? Instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree.
 
Isaiah 55:13 NLT
Where once there were thorns, cypress trees will grow. Where nettles grew, myrtles will sprout up. These events will bring great honor to the LORD's name; they will be an everlasting sign of his power and love.

-  A.Simpson

The day of miracles from God is not of the past. God still reigns, loves His children no matter how broken they are and working just as powerfully from the days of Abraham to our current time. He promised us in His Words, “I’am the Lord, I do not change (Malachi 3:6)

God promises to heal us regardless what ailment our body or mind may have. To heal His children is a small thing for God who created all parts of our beings. “I’am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for me?” He knows when your flesh is hurting, when you are weak and he knows your demons, the ones whom you thought you will never be able to overcome. 

Your demon may be that big mountain of debt, that sickness that you have prayed for healing for ever so long, a wayward child, a stale career, a broken relationship or it could a mental torment within you. Whatever it may be, God knows the story better than your own heart and mind. He knows how hope deferred makes the heart sick and when we will reach a weary, worry-full state, thinking if God will ever come through for us.

God can and wants to heal us. He wants to provide for us but we must first make the decision that we want what He wants and knows His plan is the best for us, without reservation. In following through that decision, let us faithfully do our part to address the physical or spiritual problems that may be a contributing factor. Perhaps this is where the saying comes in, do your best and let God do the rest. Prayerfully surrender what you can’t do; tell Him the pain you feel and watch God’s supernatural power swept you up to His embrace. The day of miracles from God is not of the past.
 
Jeremiah 32:27
I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?
​
- Irene Soon

Hebrews 3:12-15 (NKJV)
Beware brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end, while it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion...”
 
Have you allowed your heart to harden…?
 
Recently, I was watching a livestream of Ps Steven Furtick’s sermon on “Choosing your chains.” During the sermon, he uses a C.H.A.I.N. acronym – Choice, Habit, Automatic, Identity and Nature. It was the progression of our deeply rooted attitudes and behaviours through our choices and decisions. After this sermon, I reflected upon all the times I have allowed disappointment, anger, hurt, doubt and unbelief to reign in my heart.
 
In Hebrews, the author writes to an audience to be aware about how our unbelief separates us from being in relationship with God. In this passage, it identifies our unbelief as our unwillingness to trust God. Unbelief is deeply rooted in deceit and presents as hardness on the surface. It is not the weakness of faith, but rather an opposition towards faith.
 
Hardening our hearts is often the response of what has happened to us rather than from others or our circumstances. Some examples are hardening our hearts through unbelief, asking for more signs, presuming upon the mercies of God and relapsing into old indifferences (David Guzik). So how can we soften our hearts and be responsive in our relationship with God?
 
1. The time is NOW!
The Holy Spirit identifies that there is no time like the present. While you may have heard of the saying ‘time heals all wounds’, the Holy Spirit invites us to act upon addressing this today as so far as providing an example of those previously lost in their unbelief (the hearts of the rebellion – Numbers 13 & 14).
 
2. Stay in FELLOWSHIP
While we are in fellowship, we hold one another accountable and keeps us from being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. The word exhort is to call to one’s aid or side. Without the support of the fellowship, our belief in our God can shift into a belief in lies without us even knowing, thus distancing our relationship with God. Many Christians who have tried being separate from the church and other Christians often find their relationship with God also distant and some may even turn from God.
 
So consider the condition of your heart. Do you have the support around you? If not, what are you planning to do about it today?

- Melanie Riley