karisma november 2015.pdf

8/20/2019 Karisma November 2015.pdf

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2015 DAWN MASSES / SIMBANG GABI

As the year-end approaches, we start preparing for Christmas - the birth of our Lord andSaviour Jesus Christ. Our prayer community (KNK) is once again organising the 9 day DawnMass Novena which is a great way of preparing spiritually for Christmas. The Dawn MassNovena starts with a Eucharistic Celebration at 5 am followed by an Agape breakfast in theChurch Hall. Mass will be celebrated each day by different Celebrants, with different musicproviders and sponsors for the breakfast.

In this our twentieth year, the 2015 Dawn Masses promise another grand preparation forChristmas with the participation of various cultures from our parish as well as neighbouringparishes. Our St Peters Charismatic Prayer community (KNK) would like to thank all thePriests, Music providers, sponsors and participants for supporting the Dawn Masses. Belowis the 2015 Dawn Mass schedule.

DAY DATE CELEBRANT MUSIC PROVIDER

Wednesday Dec 16 Fr Pius Kodakkathanath andFr Falaniko Leota

Samoan Choir

Thursday Dec 17 Fr. Luciano Toldo Youth Band

Friday Dec 18 Fr Joselito Asis Shirley’s Group

Saturday Dec 19Fr Raphael Mahn Tha Khlein& Fr Matthew (Manoj)Kannamthadathil

Filiorum Dei

Sunday Dec 20 Fr. Aurelio Fragapane Mt Zion

Monday Dec 21 Fr Thang Vu St. James Youth

Tuesday Dec 22 Fr Benneth Osuagwu Footsteps

Wednesday Dec 23 Fr Jude Pirotta St James Choir

Thursday Dec 24Fr Greg BourkeDeacon Charles English

FilOz

CAROLLING AND THE KNK CHRISTMAS BREAK-UPThe annual Christmas break-up will be on 28th November from 2.30 pm to 6 pm at St Peters.Following praise and worship, we will have fellowship with a lot of fun, games and gifts. TheKNK music ministry will be carolling from 1st to 15th December, heralding the spirit ofChristmas by singing carols to its benefactors, the sick and the elderly in the community. If

you know someone who would like to be visited by our Music Ministry, please contact anyof the KNK Core members.

St. Peter Apostle Mission Parish, Hoppers Crossing, VIC Australia 3029 Ph: 9749 4300

Email: [email protected] Helping to build the ody o f hrist Facebook a/c: Katawan N. Kristo

Glory to God in the highest, Peace on earth, goodwill toward men!

Official Newsletter of

St. Peter’s Charismatic

Prayer Community (KNK) Vol No 7/November 2015

KNK Miscella-News

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://knkprayercommunity.multiply.com/http://knkprayercommunity.multiply.com/http://knkprayercommunity.multiply.com/mailto:[email protected]


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YEAR END MESSAGE By Josephine Thomas

The last issue for the year2015 - with hope for moregrowth and more faith and

more love for Jesus in 2016- this is our desire for ourPrayer Community. This isalso my desire for myself, that as I grow infaith, I learn to love Jesus above all - whata confirmation it was indeed to concludethe year with a prayer meeting thatresounded this desire.

Am I leading the prayer group in the rightdirection Lord? Am I travelling well with

you Lord? A few weeks ago when I soughtguidance for the last article for the year,these were my questions. I love the waythe Lord confirms that my prayer anddesire is in the right track each time I seekHim.

Sat down to write the article and I wasreminded of a few Scriptures, (which I willreflect on later) but still there wassomething that was not coming together to

complete my article - so I waited on theLord. Was I happy I did when I heardJonathan's testimony!! I couldn't thankJesus enough for that beautiful afternoon.

When Jonathan said, do not pray forhealing, do not pray for miracles, but prayto love the Lord Jesus above all things -the truth dawned on me clearly - all weneed to do is keep the first commandmentand love our God and everything else willfall in place. In a flash, the past ten yearswent through my mind and I realised howattending our prayer group each Saturday,singing praises, listening to the LivingWord, had, over a period planted a desirein me to want to love Jesus more thananything. Whenever the anxieties of thisworld gets me down and I falter in my faithwondering if I should be out theregathering wealth, the Lord reminds me

time and again of the parable of the sower:Matthew 13 That same day Jesus went

out of the house and sat by thelake. 2 Such large crowds gathered aroundhim that he got into a boat and sat in it,while all the people stood on theshore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out tosow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the

seed, some fell along the path, and thebirds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell onrocky places, where it did not have muchsoil. It sprang up quickly, because the soilwas shallow. 6 But when the sun came up,the plants were scorched, and theywithered because they had noroot. 7 Other seed fel l among thorns,which grew up and choked the

plants. 8 Sti l l other seed fel l on g ood

soi l , where it produced a crop —a

hund red, s ix ty or th i r ty t imes w hat wassown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them

hear.”

18 “Listen then to what the parable of thesower means: 19 When anyone hears themessage about the kingdom and does notunderstand it, the evil one comes andsnatches away what was sown in theirheart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The seed falling on rocky ground

refers to someone who hears the word andat once receives it with joy. 21 But sincethey have no root, they last only a shorttime. When trouble or persecution comesbecause of the word, they quickly fallaway . 22 The seed fal l ing among thethorns re fers to someone w ho h ears

the word , but the wo rr ies of th is l i fe and

the deceit fu lness of w ealth cho ke the

word, making i t unf ru i t fu l . 23 But the

seed fa l l ing on good so i l re fers to

someone who hears the word and

understands it . This is the one who

produc es a crop, y ie ld ing a hu ndred,

sixty or th ir ty t im es what was sown.”

Thanking God for His constant nudging,reminding me of His word, I pray for Hisforgiveness and ask for the grace to be thegood soil where His word will take deeproot and give me the wisdom to seek

treasure for eternity, not for this earth.Instantly, an overwhelming peace and joy


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envelopes me and I know that I haveovercome temptation and am driving in theright direction. Likewise there are manyother scriptures that have taught me toforgive, to accept forgiveness, to seeJesus in every person and to pray for themwhether they treat me as their friend or foe,

to help others to bring joy to them and notfor my self-satisfaction, to accept helpgraciously knowing that it is the Lord atwork, to be charitable without being self-righteous, knowing very well that what Igive is not mine but what God has givenme (I hope someday I will be able to givewith the heart of the widow who gave allthat she had trusting totally in Hisprovidence), being slow to anger and stillin the process of learning to be quick to

forgive and the list goes on. In ten years,I have come a long way, but have muchlonger to go. I can now declare withconviction that I love Jesus above all, but Istill wonder if I have enough love for Himthat I may love all His people the way heloves - unconditionally and with totalforgiveness. Will I have the courage tostand up in times of distress and proclaim"He is Lord"? There are times I feel I will,but what I fear most is, will I then pray for

my persecutors and forgive them or will myunforgiving heart draw my soul away fromour God? But time and again our Godthrough our weekly prayer meetingsreminds me not to be afraid and hearingtestimonies of great faith among thepersecuted, gives me hope.

I reflected on the various teaching &sharing we have had this year. When wegather, our Praises are anointed and OurLord Jesus is ever so present with us.Healing flows and many are comforted,healed and strengthened. Each week Ican witness the growth among ourmembers - like myself, many have sharedhow the time spent each week has madea difference in their lives and has drawnthem closer to our Triune God, kindling inthem a fire of great love for the Almighty.My heart then rejoices and Praises God. It

saddens me sometimes to see how someof the members slip away; giving in to

anger, unforgiveness, jealousy, pride, ego,things of the world and the list is unending – but I take hope and pray for them all, likeI do for myself, when, ever so often, I amon a down slide in faith, I seek intercessionfrom our intercessors and the Lord alwaysrestores. So I have learnt that nothing is

impossible for God and the power ofprayer and intercession is beyondmeasure. The only thing I need to remindmyself is to be patient and wait upon ourGod.

This takes me to these scriptures: A few years ago it was as though St Paulwas saying to me:1 Corinthians 3: Brothers and sisters, Icould not address you as people who live

by the Spirit but as people who are stillworldly —mere infants in Christ. 2 I gaveyou milk, not solid food, for you were notyet ready for it. Indeed, you are still notready.3 You are still worldly. For sincethere is jealousy and quarrelling amongyou, are you not worldly? Are you notact ing l ike mere humans? 4 For when

one says, “I follow Paul,” and another,“I follow Apollos,” are yo u not merehum an beings?

I am reminded of my years as a "fulfil yourSunday obligation Catholic" - I did not lovethe Lord then, He was just someone Iturned to for when I needed something. Igave offerings and tithes to look good inthe books, sang in the choir, read in thechurch to display my talents - not to PraiseGod or proclaim His word. Engaged incharitable works so the society consideredme a good person. I did not realise thenthat I did not follow Jesus, I followed thepriest I liked, (wouldn't pay attention to thepreaching if I didn't like the priest);followed the church where thecongregation liked me - I laugh at myfoolishness now to think what a shallowChristian I was.

But the one week retreat at the DivineRetreat Centre changed me completely -

in His mercy the Lord opened my eyes andgave me the gift of faith. The Holy Spirit


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that I willingly received at that time tookcontrol of my life and slowly but surely Hebrought to light my shallowness andstarted chipping off all the rough edges. Igrew in faith and grew in grace as I shedmy pride, my ego, my wanting to be apeople pleaser, my wanting for everyone

to like the person I am, me loving thethings and glories of this earth, my self-righteousness and everything else thatkept me away from Christ. The retreat wasme being weaned from infant milk to solidfood. My journey started then with Jesusleading me and these ten years of being aCharismatic has taught me to love Jesusabove all and he is working miracleschanging me to the person I am and thework continues (many more rough edges

to chip off).

Now I clearly understand what Paul said in 1 Corinth ians 3 5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Onlyservants, through whom you came tobelieve—as the Lord has assigned to eachhis task. 6 I planted the seed, Apolloswatered it, but God has been making itgrow. 7 So neither the one who p lantsnor the on e who waters is anyth ing, but

on ly God, who makes th ings

g row. 8 The one who plants and the onewho waters have one purpose, and theywill each be rewarded according to theirown labour . 9 For we are co-wo rkers inGod’s service; you are God’sf ield, God’s building. 10 By the grace God has given me, I laid afoundation as a wise builder, andsomeone else is building on it. But eachone should build with care. 11 For no onecan lay any foun dat ion other than the

on e already laid, which is Jesus Christ .

When Jesus Christ is our foundation - thebuilding that we are, is strong andunshakeable and our soul is safe. But thisgrowth and understanding my brothersand sisters in Christ, does not happenovernight; it is with our willingness tospend time with Christ, allowing Him to

work through us every moment of our life,do we change and become mature. I

Praise God that each week He brings meto His throne in Adoration and opens myears to His word so that I will be given solidfood that will give me clear understandingto keep my soul safe. We are blessed tobe able to do this week after week.

Lysa TerKeurst is a wife, mother of five,and the president of Proverbs 31Ministries, I receive devotions from herministry and draw great strength from it.She is the New York Times bestsellingauthor of The Best Yes, and other books,but I am going to share with you what drewmy attention to her broadcast on Focus onthe Family discussing her book "The BestYes".

As servant leader, it is my responsibility toencourage our members to freely give oftheir time and talent to serve our God invarious ways. Be it in attending the weeklyprayer meetings or for the leaders - thefortnightly core meetings, for the prayerministry to spend time in praying formembers after the prayer meeting, for theMartha ministry to plan and prepare eachweek for fellowship, the music ministry topractice and then to serve not only in our

parish but to the groups outside the parishwhen we outreach, for us to spend time inwriting the wonders of our God for theKarisma, are a few ways we serve ourLord, not forgetting our ministry at homecaring for our family.

There are times when I feel, that perhapsI am expecting too much from them all,especially when I find members givingexcuses of how much work they have andhow tiring it is to do all this or when theyimply that we should really cut down onwhat we do in the church, etc. There weretimes when I used to go to great lengthsand explain that time spent serving God isnever wasted and that He will give us thestrength to endure our day to daydifficulties and remind them that His yokeis easy and burden light. This wouldconvince most of them to do what I

wanted them to do, but the repeatedsense of reluctance and complaining


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nature began to disturb me. Making mewonder if this is what I want them to door is it what God has called us to do, with me as the instrument to bring ittogether? Being His instrument, do I haveto constantly convince them to serve Godthrough the various ministries and not be

discouraged when I sense reluctance butlift the ministries and members up inprayer?

Praise God, each time I seek the Lord, theHoly Spirit always guides me when myheart is disturbed and grants me wisdomto discern and His peace overflows. I wasprompted to pray for the group and not toworry who turns up and who doesn't. Itwas like the Lord saying. "Say yes to what

you have to do for me, send out theinvitation to all to come and leave the restto me, just pray and I will make all thingshappen." I have been obedient and doing just that, now when someone says, I can'tmake it, I just say, "I'm sorry you cannotcome, but shall keep you in prayer". And Ipray, it is marvellous how for everyministry that the Lord has sprung upon usthis year, He has prepared the heart of Hisfaithful, heard my prayer and provided in

abundance.

One such afternoon was the last prayermeeting to hear Jonathan's testimony - itgave me great joy to see how many theLord had drawn to hear of the wonder heworked in Jonathan, giving us hope. Icontinue to pray that the church be filledeach week, more than it was that week,with a people of Praise. So that, as we setaside all our activities and willingly comeinto His presence each week, we willreceive the solid food and grow from mereinfants, training ourselves to becomemature in our faith as is mentioned in:Hebrews 5 : 11 We have much to sayabout this, but it is hard to make it clear toyou because you no longer try tounderstand. 12 In fact, though by this timeyou ought to be teachers, you needsomeone to teach you the elementary

truths of God’s word all over again. Youneed milk, not solid food! 13 Anyone who

lives on milk, being still an infant, is notacquainted with the teaching aboutrighteousness. 14 But so l id food is forthe mature, wh o by co nstant use have

t rained themselves to d is t ingu ish g ood

from evi l .

Where does Lysa TerKeurst and herbroadcast about her book "The Best Yes"fall into amongst all this, you ask, well itsurely does, because it answered all myquestions to our God and most importantlytaught me a valuable lesson of how I willmanage my time.

Lisa spoke on overwhelmed scheduleand underwhelmed soul. She said howvery often we are overwhelmed taking

care of our family, trying to balance workand there is just no time for anything - rest,relaxation, prayer. This leads to anunderwhelmed soul. When shementioned underwhelmed soul, Iimmediately related it to Jonathan's talk.We are so caught up with our life here thateven as Christians, we do not payattention to our soul. Lisa goes on to saythat with an underwhelmed soul all she feltlike was a walking testimony of a crazy

woman but she wanted to become awalking testimony of a loving woman.

She prayed for guidance and worked outhow to balance her time - we all have 168hours per week - so she went ahead andbroke it down and wrote what she did eachday noting down also the time spent insleep. She then realised that all she hadspare was 3.5 hours per week. In herwords, "I’m passionate about studyingScripture and teaching from the lessonsGod is teaching me. I’m no preachy expert.I’m a simple girl who speaks about hope inthe midst of my own struggles. BringingGod’s Word to life so that it makes adifference in our everyday life is mygreatest joy in speaking."

She then realised that her strength was inwriting, so she decided that like she

marked the calendar with all theappointments, be it with a doctor or the


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school or the kids sport - all thoseappointments that we never fail to turn upto - she marked herself an appointment for3.5 hours each Saturday afternoon towrite. This time was spent to read God’s word and write - the underwhelmed soultaken care of when we say Yes to God and

His purpose. But she warns us that it isnot easy to keep that appointmentunless you willingly say Yes to God andNo to everything else. The very weekshe decided to do that, a friend called andinvited her for that same afternoon to alunch and walk in the park and she said,"Sorry I have an appointment to write," itsounded foolish she said knowing that shewas not a writer and her friend knew shedoesn't write, but she kept the

appointment. To cut a long story short -Lisa has best sellers now and the Proverb31 ministry that she heads, ministers to somany women across the globe and I amone of them, very often the Lord helps mediscern many plans through what I readfrom this ministry and many others. Allbecause she was able to keep herappointment saying yes to God.(http://proverbs31.org - is the website ifyou all wish to know more about the

ministry).

The next thing that drew my attention washer comment on how we confuse ourLord's commandment to Love, with thedesire to please people. What she saidmade me realise of my past and PraiseGod for what He has done in me for thepresent. I realise that I obey hiscommandment to love when I serve otherswith the only intention to fulfil their need tobe served and not to please them oranybody else. When we have this attitudethen it is easy to say No when we areunable to do something, without the fear oflosing our joy, our position, our friend,whatever it might be.

It dawned on me then, that unlike in thepast, I am able to do all things and spendtime serving God in the various ministries

He has called me to, without beingstressed, only because, now I have learnt

to please God and not people. My Yesshould always be to God - so if I attendthe prayer meeting it should be because Ilove Jesus and want to spend time withHim not because I am the servant leaderor because I want to please all of you orFr. Pius with my regular attendance. If I

was called to sing in the choir, I go topractice not because my husband headsthe ministry and I have to support him, no,I go because I love Jesus and want to singHis praises. If I am asked to cook for thefellowship, it is not because I want todisplay my cooking skills, but because Iwant to share the goodness of the foodJesus has taught me to cook and enjoy Hispresence when we fellowship with oneanother. If I am called to pray, I do so with

joy in my heart knowing that Jesus willpour out His love when I pray withoutcomplaining. If I help someone it is notbecause they will help me someday, butbecause God has given me an opportunityto be of service.

In conclusion, my prayer for us all isthat we will say Yes to the Trinity at alltimes without having the desire toplease people - be it our spouse, our

children, our employer, our friend,whoever it may be and obey the Lord'scommandment to Love one another as Hehas loved us - unconditionally. When welove God above all, then we will be able toobey this commandment. So let us pray tohave the grace to say "The Best Yes" andcontinue to come together each weekin 2016, as the Body of Christ, to buildthe Kingdom of God. I Praise andThank God for each one of you and theblessing you have been, for thewonderful year 2015 and pray that Hewill continue to guide us for the Gloryand Honour of Father, Son and SpiritAmen. Wishing you and your familiesA Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year. Have a happy and safe holidayand glorify Christ with joyful hearts!


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THE SOULS IN PURGATORYBy Jean Ephraums

The month of Novembereach year is dedicated tothe Holy Souls in

Purgatory, beginningfrom All Souls Day (2nd November). It is a time toremember our loved ones and all thosewho have passed away from this world,whose souls may be amidst the cleansingflames of purgatory. We have in our handsan immense power on this earth to giverelief and happiness to the souls of ourdeparted, and to find happiness in our livesas well. The most effective means to help

deliver the souls in purgatory and for themto enter and experience God’s everlastinglove and mercy is by us offering Masses,doing good works and praying for them.

In her message at Fatima, the BlessedVirgin Mary expresses the importance ofpraying for the dead. She said, “Manysouls are going to hell because there isnobody to pray for them. You must prayand pray very much.” Maccabees 12:46

says, “It is a holy and wholesomethought to pray for the dead, that theymay be freed from their sins.”

The following prayer of St. Gertrude theGreat is known to be a powerful prayer,which would release souls from purgatoryeach time it is recited:“O Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Mos tPrecious Blood of Thy Divine Son,

Jesus, in unio n with the Masses said

througho ut the wor ld today, for a l l the

ho ly s ou ls in p urgatory , for Sinners

everywhere – for s inners in theun iversa l church, for those in my own

hom e and for those wi th in my fami ly .

Amen.”

A booklet entitled ‘The Amazing Secret ofthe Souls in Purgatory’ by SisterEmmanuel Maillard of Medjugorie, tells the

following story about a lady named MariaSimma, whom she interviewed.

Maria Simma is a simple country woman,who, since her childhood, has prayed agreat deal for the souls in purgatory. Whenshe was twenty-five, she was favouredwith a very particular and rare charism inthe church – the charism of being visitedby the souls in purgatory. She is a fervent

Catholic and has great humility andsimplicity. She is very much encouraged inher task by her parish priest and bishop.She lives in real poverty in a little room withhardly enough space to move around. Inthe history of the church, many saintscanonized or not, have exercised thischarism – for example, St. Gertrude,St.Catherine of Genoa, St. John Bosco,St. Margaret Mary, St. Faustina and a fewothers.

In her own words, Maria Simma relates herexperience of her first visit by a soul (frompurgatory) in 1940:

“One night, around 3 or 4 o’ clock in themorning, I heard someone coming into mybedroom. This woke me up. I looked to seewho on earth could have walked into mybedroom. That night I saw a completestranger. He walked back and forth slowly.I said to him severely, “How did you get inhere? Go away!” But he continued to walkimpatiently around the bedroom, as if hehadn’t heard. So I asked him again, “What

are you doing?” But as he still didn’tanswer, I jumped out of bed and tried to


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grab him, but I grasped only air. There wasnothing there. So I went back to bed, butagain I heard him pacing back and forth. Iwondered how I could see this man, butcouldn’t grab him. I rose again to hold ontohim and stop him walking around – again Igrasped only emptiness. Puzzled, I went

back to bed. He didn’t come back, but Icouldn’t get back to sleep.

The next day, after Mass, I went to see myspiritual director and told him everything.He told me that if it should happen again, Ishouldn’t ask “Who are you?” but “What doyou want from me?”

The following night, the man returned,definitely the same man. I asked him,

“What do you want from me?” He replied,“Have three Masses celebrated for me andI will be delivered.”

So I understood that it was a soul inpurgatory. My spiritual director confirmedthis. He also advised me never to turnaway the poor souls but to accept withgenerosity whatever they asked of me.”

The poor souls have told Maria that

because they no longer possess aphysical body, they can no longer makesacrifices for themselves in reparation fortheir sins; nor can they physically give anoffering(s) in request for a holy Mass (orMasses) for themselves - essentially theyare able only to offer up to God theirprayers and the repentance for their sins,so in many ways they are almost helpless,and are forced to rely on the mercy of God,the most extraordinary and blessed help ofthe Virgin Mary, the prayers of the Saintsin heaven, and the prayers and sacrificesof the Church and of all the peoples hereupon the earth.

Maria Simma has had many experiencesof the souls in purgatory. She was born on2nd February 1915 and died in 2004. Shelived a very humble life all by herself in alittle house in Sonntag, a very lovely village

in the Vorarlberg Mountains in Austria.

GOD IS LOVE, GOD IS GOOD!

By Mabel Fernandes

This is my faith journeywith my Jesus. Jesus isnot only my Living Godbut my Friend, as when Iwake up in the morningor going to bed at night, Italk to him as though Heis present in person. I have come todepend on him at every waking moment ofmy life. I just feel joyous being around withHim, as I know I am safe.

My faith was tested again! This scripturereading “When they walk through the

Valley of Weeping, it will become aplace of refreshing springs. Theautumn rains will clothe it withblessings” Psalm 84:6, made asignificant impact through a toughsituation that I recently encountered.

I did my routine blood tests as usually I doit every three months. One of the testscame out with a bad result. My GP wasnot happy at all. When I walked into the

clinic that day 14th October, I was feelingvery nervous (normally I don’t getnervous). My heart was racing like crazyand my palpitations just shot up. When Imet up with my GP, he was pacing theroom nervously. I found it very unusualas he is always smiling and warm but thatday he could not look at my face. Thealarm bells rang in my head! Immediatelyfrom the depth of my heart I called out tomy God to be with me, as I had gone alone

to see the doctor. I asked the doctor whatwas the matter. He just stood still andlooked at me for a very long time. Then tobring some sense in the atmosphere, Iasked him straightaway: is it bad news? Ifit is so, I am prepared to listen.

Then he said, that the report is extremelybad and I have to do a series of tests,treatments, specialists, hospital, etc….. Atfirst it was like a ball hitting my head. Hegave me a long list of tests to do. First X-


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ray and ultrasound, both came out withbad results! I came out and sobbeduncontrollably. Further blood tests, morebad results! Then I was sent to thehospital to do the biopsy.

Before going to the hospital, I came into

the presence of Jesus; I cried and criedwithout praying. I was not afraid of deathbut I asked God why I had to go throughthe Valley of Weeping, despair, trials,afflictions and sufferings. His message:Trust me, I will never forsake you. Itrusted Jesus to take over this situation asI could not handle it. A day before thebiopsy, I went to do my hydrotherapy formy knees and some exercise. When I wasin the pool, I just could not concentrate.

When I was exercising very clumsily, myeyes were drawn towards an empty wall.There I saw very distinctly a rainbow. Ithought it could be the reflection of thewater or the light surrounding it. It wasn’tas I looked all around elsewhere, therewere no rainbows. Only on this particularwall I could see one. I didn’t makeanything of it. I went home.

Next day I was at the hospital and I was

sitting there waiting for my turn, again Isaw that rainbow. I thought it was weird!But suddenly I felt the presence of Jesus.The bible spoke to me that weeping mayendure for the night, but joy comes in themorning, and the path of the righteous islike a light of dawn shining brighter until thefull day. No matter how dark mycircumstances may seem, I am on a paththat is shining brighter and brighter, andplace of victory beyond all challenges oflife! Amen. What a message God gaveme. I was touched and overwhelmed.

I did the biopsy. After two days I was flyingout to Brisbane to attend a friend’s Silverwedding. I didn’t want to hear the result asI wanted to enjoy first, blot out everythingout of my mind and come back toMelbourne refreshed to hear any news.But the doctor at the hospital said that the

report will be sent urgently to my GP in twodays and I have to see him. But I didn’t

want to see my GP before the Brisbanetrip.

However God spoke to me: Stand in faithbelieving Jesus your mighty healer is onyour side, and you and God are a majority!There are so many things that can come

against you, but my promise that noweapon formed against you shall prosper.Your Deliverer is coming! What a beautifulmessage God whispered to me!

I made a decision to visit my GP on the dayI was leaving to Brisbane. The flight wasin the afternoon and my appointment withthe GP was in the morning. When Ientered the clinic, GP looked at me andasked me how I am feeling. I said fine. He

was amazed! Then he asked me what Iwould like to hear. I said I am prepared tohear anything as God is with me. Then hesaid, Cheer up, everything is clear, thelumps are not significant any more but Iwould like to continue doing the blood testtill I am certain everything is ok. On thespot, the blood test was done and sent fortesting. The levels came normal. My GPwas astounded and so pleased to see theresults. Again I cried, this time, the tears

of joy and I looked to the heaven smilingand thanking God for his faithful love andhis promises never to forsake me. I placedall my trust in God, his hand of healing andblessings were upon me.

This is my Jesus who is with me everysingle moment of my life, as He has carvedeach and every one of us on the palm ofhis hand very uniquely. Psalm 91 is hispromise to all of us. There is no fear inlove and perfect love drives out fear 1John 4:18

Special sincere thanks to the intercessoryand prayer ministry of KNK for thepowerful prayer and intercession duringthese traumatic moments. Also to myfamily and friends who stood by me duringthe difficult moments and for their patienceand understanding.


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God bless each one of you, and remember

GOD LOVES YOU JUST THE WAY YOU

ARE! NEVER GIVE UP!

Praise God! Thank you God! Alleluia

CELEBRATING

THE ‘C-H-R-I-S-T’

in ‘CHRISTMAS’ By Beverly de Silva

I had a few topics to writeon for ‘Karisma’ and I hadpreviously decided what I was going towrite about, until I watched a Christianprogramme on TV, which was all aboutChristmas, its customs and traditions, andexplanations and reasons for some ofthese customs and traditions. I found thisprogramme very interesting and feltinspired to write on this topic, but I stillwasn’t sure until I was prompted at leastthree times to do so.

Christmas is a time of much celebration

and joy for those Christians who trulybelieve in, and follow Christ. It is a time forremembering the birth of Jesus and theChristmas story, and God’s love for us insending Him (Jesus) to us as our Saviour.Christmas is also a time for showing loveby thinking of those disadvantaged andless-fortunate than ourselves andgiving/sharing what we have with them. Itis a time of family, love, reconciliation,good-will, and giving.

In many countries all over the world,including Australia, Christmas is greatlycelebrated with much pomp and glamour – homes, buildings and streets decoratedwith coloured lights and beautiful glitteringdecorations; Christmas trees adorned withfancy ornaments and decor; and shopsteeming with toys, gifts, Christmas-cardsand festive foods. Streets and shops arecrowded with people rushing here and

there busily trying to do everything theywant before Christmas Day arrives. In

most shopping centres Christmas carolscan be heard playing and replaying, morea festive-trend than a religioussignificance. Everyone seems to be in a‘holiday mood’ and en joying themselves,yet for some others it is a time of painfuland sad memories.

In those households celebratingChristmas nowadays, people are trulycaught up in the careful planning andorganisation of their celebration onChristmas Day and there is muchhappiness and excitement. There is nofault in celebrating this great event, but forsome it is all about the ‘big party’ ratherthan the real reason for the celebration. Itis like celebrating a birthday party and

forgetting who it is in honour of; there is noemphasis at all placed on Jesus and Hisbirth, which is really sad – it seems thatthey have removed the ‘C-h-r-i-s-t’ out of‘Christmas’. In fact, there are some peoplewho do not even know why Christmas iscelebrated – they think it is just a festivalof fun, feasting and enjoyment like anyother, and have no idea whatsoever of itsreligious significance.

The word ‘Christmas’ means ‘Christ’sMass’, derived from the Old English word‘Cristesmaesse’ (a phrase first recorded inthe year 1038 AD).

According to some historical research,there are a few ancient theories about whywe celebrate Christmas on December25th. Much has been written about datingthe birth of Christ. One such theory is that

it was a custom of the pagans in Rome,who worshipped the sun, to celebrate the


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‘Dies Natalis Solis Invicti’, or ‘Birthday ofthe Unconquered Sun’ festival on this day,at which they kindled lights as a token oftheir festivity. This festival wasinaugurated by Aurelian, who was Romanemperor from 270-275 AD, to celebratethe sun god. The Christians also

participated in these solemnities andcelebrations, and when the Churchperceived that the Christians had a leaningtowards this festival, they decided that thetrue Nativity of Jesus Christ should besolemnized on this date. According to thistheory, during the reign of the Romanemperor Constantine I (306-337 AD), whobecame a Christian on his death-bed in337 AD, Christian writers assimilated thisfeast as the Birthday of Jesus associating

him with the ‘Sun of Righteousness’ asmentioned in Malachi 4:2 – “But for youwho revere my name the sun ofrighteousness shall rise, with healingin its wings...”

More recent study has shown thatChristmas had been observed for yearsbefore Emperor Aurelian established thepagan festival in 274 AD.

It was assumed that the date of the Annunciation (25th March) was set inrelation to the date of Christmas.

The practice of putting up specialdecorations at Christmas has a longhistory. In the 15th century, it was recordedthat in London it was the custom atChristmas for every house and all theparish churches to be decked with holm (atype of evergreen oak), ivy, holly and othertypes of green leaves/branches. Theheart-shaped leaves of the ivy were saidto symbolize the coming to earth of Jesus;while holly was seen as a protectionagainst pagans and witches, and its thornsand red berries held to represent the‘Crown of Thorns’ worn by Jesus at thecrucifixion and the blood he shed.

The traditional colours of Christmas

decorations are red, green and gold. Redsymbolizes the blood shed by Jesus in his

crucifixion; green symbolizes eternal life,hence the evergreen tree, which does notlose its leaves in winter; and gold is thefirst colour associated with Christmas as itis one of the gifts presented to baby Jesusby the wise men and it symbolizes royalty.

The modern Christmas-tree tradition isbelieved to have begun in Germany in the18th century,althoughmany arguethat MartinLuther beganthe traditionin the 16thcentury. TheEnglish

languagephrase“ChristmasTree” is firstrecorded in1835 andrepresents an importation from theGerman language. Saint Boniface (634-709 AD), who was a missionary inGermany, stated that the fir tree (anevergreen conifer similar to cypress, pine)

was a more fitting object of reverencebecause it pointed to heaven and it had atriangular shape, which he said wassymbolic of the Trinity.

Nativity scenes are known from 10th-century Rome. They were popularised bySaint Francis of Assisi from 1223 AD,quickly spreading across Europe.

Christmas carols were originallycommunal folk songs which were sungduring celebrations such as "harvest tide"as well as Christmas, and it was only laterthat carols began to be sung in church.Some carols like "Good King Wenceslas”and “The Holly and the Ivy” can be traceddirectly back to the Middle Ages (5th-15th century AD).

‘Santa Claus’ or ‘Father Christmas’, as he

is called, can be traced back to the DutchSinterklaas, which means simply Saint


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Nicholas. Nicholas was a 4th-centuryGreek bishop of Myra, a Roman city, who,among other saintly attributes, was notedfor caring of children, generosity, and thegiving of gifts. He traditionally appeared inbishop’s attire, accompanied by helpers,inquiring about the behaviour of children

during the past year before decidingwhether they deserved a gift or not. By the13th century, Saint Nicholas was wellknown in the Netherlands, and the practiceof gift-giving in his name spread to otherparts of central and southern Europe. Themodern popular image of Santa Claus,however, was created in New York, UnitedStates with the aid of notable contributorsincluding Washington Irving, an Americanauthor, and Thomas Nast, the German-

American cartoonist. It is Nast’s Santa thathas evolved into the modern vision of thefigure we have today.

The traditional Christmas-card wasintroduced in 1843 by Sir Henry Cole ofLondon, who produced the firstcommercial Christmas card with thegreeting “Wishing you a Merry Christmasand a Happy New Year”.

The above are just some of the morecommon Christmas customs andtraditions. As we reflect on these, let us notforget what they mean to us in relevanceto Christ’s birth.

Let us all not forget to put ‘C-h-r-i-s-t’back into ‘Christmas’!

TESTIMONY RECEIVED FROM

JOSEPHINE THOMASOn Saturday the 14th November, the lastprayer meeting before our Christmasbreakup, I had no voice, my sore throat gotworse and I lost my voice on Friday. So Iwas lip singing the praises on that day at

the prayer meeting, sad that I could notsing out aloud. When the message ofhealing was given for the throat I claimedit immediately saying, "Lord it is ok if I amunable to do the announcements or thankJonathan today, but please, please healmy throat so I will be able to sing yourpraises and preach your word." The Lordwas gracious indeed, He knew my heart,during Jonathan's testimony, I thought tomyself, I should have asked for immediatehealing, I so want to thank Jonathan andPraise God for confirming that our PrayerGroup is travelling in the right direction.Week after week, our Lord calls out to usall to love Him above all things. So that wewill have the courage to be steadfast in ourfaith and guard our soul, having hope thatthrough the mercy of our God, we will allbe in His Glory on the day of salvation.Jonathan's message confirmed this calling

and I so wanted to Praise God for thisconfirmation, but I said, "Lord, excuse myrambling, if you wanted me to speak today,of course you will let me know, you knowmy heart, if it is your will, let it be." Justthen, an instant answer to my prayer,Buxton asked me if I wanted to do theannouncements, I did not hesitate even asecond, just said yes and went up, prayingthat even if it is croaky, please Lord helpme convey my joy. The wonders of His

miracles - He restored my voice and mademe speak, Praise the Lord!

ARISMA

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