K.P. Yohannan's Blog, page 12

How Seriously Do You Take Your Calling?

I was driving along the road in my noisy ’62 VW Bug with my seatbelt on, calling a friend on my hands-free phone. After a few rings, he picked it up, but as soon as I said “Hello,” I heard a sound like a siren going off.

“Oh, I’m sorry, it’s my car alarm,” explained my friend. “I didn’t put my seatbelt on.”

A few seconds later the alarm stopped—after he had buckled up. When our conversation ended, I reflected on the incident.

This is interesting, I thought to myself. That alarm made my fr...

Choosing Christ’s Way Over My Rights So Others Might Live

When Jesus came to live on this earth, He entered a world in which everyone continually fought to preserve his or her own rights, reputation and life. How foreign it must have sounded to them when Jesus, in reference to the cross, replied to those who wanted to see Him:

“The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his lif...

The Way I Found My Life Was to Think of Others and Their Hurts

Have you noticed how sad they look

Old or young—they care for none

Each one walks as if alone.

 

Are you alone on this crowded street?

The sound you hear is your heart beat

No one to talk to for you see none.

 

I, too, walked alone, as you do now

Then one day I stood still, by the road

And saw the many, just like me.

 

Blinded by my own ego, I couldn’t see

That I was far better off than many out there.

Others became my concern from then on;

It was no longer me alone.

 

To think of others and...

Why Do We Judge Others So Quickly?

Many years ago, I was invited to speak to a group of medical doctors who were all interested in missions. I was excited to share with them about the many needs in Asia—until I walked into one of their homes, where the meeting was taking place.

To my mind, the house was nothing less than a king’s palace. I was so angry and upset that I spent half of my speaking time attacking materialism. Anyone who heard me could clearly understand that I was condemning the brother who owned this house.

Woul...

Combine God’s Word and Faith in Your Heart

Lok, a man from South Asia, had been suffering from severe back pain for three years. He had begun listening to a GFA-supported daily radio program, and one day he joined the broadcaster in a prayer to Jesus. He simply asked the Lord to heal his back.

A few weeks later, the local GFA-supported workers received a letter from Lok. With great joy he reported that God had heard his prayer and healed him completely!

This stack of letters is just a fraction of over a million responses GFA-supported...

The Love of the Sparrow Touched My Heart

That evening

I was playing
with my children
in front of our house
in our yard
under the tree.
Sparrows were chirping—
we looked up
and saw their nest
up in the tree.
There she sat,
motionless,
two tiny birds
under her wings.

That night

no star in the sky—
darkness reigned
from its throne.
A storm roared through
trees shook
branches fell.
The sky grew angry
clapped its hands
lightning shot out
thunder growled.
Clouds burst open
and began to weep
in a great downpour—
no letting up.

Next m...

What is of Supreme Importance to You?

When we read the life stories of Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Paul and the other apostles, Hudson Taylor, William Carey, Amy Carmichael, Adoniram Judson, Jim Elliott and others, we are awed by the total commitment these people had to follow the Living God. What was it that caused them to love God more than their own life and impact their generation and the world in the process?

I believe there was a common denominator in each of their lives: a continuous work of the Lord, removing...

He Chose Calvary to Redeem Me

Creator became creation
Holiness became sin
Innocent pronounced guilty
Life-giver killed by sin and hate

Trinity was broken
Father forsakes His Son
His friends ran away
Left all alone to suffer

Bloody and wounded
His back plowed over
Flesh from His body torn
Blood pouring out

Fairest among 10,000
Disfigured from abuse
Human, He no more looked
My Savior and Lord

The cross was heavy
Fell He along the way
He chose Calvary
To redeem me from sin

I stood by the cross
Looked into His bloody face
He...

Compassion Like an Ocean

This last week there were winter storms running across the Northeast and the Midwest in the U.S. bringing lots of snow, with even some records being set for the amount of snow for this time of year. I don’t know about you, but that sounds cold to me!

In some of the nations where we work, it can get quite cold. I remember the days when I served with a team in North India. It was so cold. We slept outside every night, but thankfully we had these feather sleeping bags that kept us warm during...

World Water Day: God Needs Us to Be His Hands and Feet

Imagine waking up tomorrow, and the first thing you have to do is walk three to six miles in order to collect and carry back enough water to last you and your family for the whole day. That’s a difficult start to your morning. Now imagine having to make that trek every single day.

That was a reality for Nandita, a mother living in West Bengal, India. On the days when she wasn’t feeling well enough to walk that far to get water, she would instead use water from the local pond, and her family w...