Year: 2016 (Page 4 of 7)

Article : Sports Imagery in the Scriptures

August 17, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 0 Comments

7032461261_59f7c78c15_z (1) - A visual of a sports stadium. — Photo Credit – @Doug88888 courtesy flickr

Since last week, the eyes of the sports world have been firmly fixed on the Rio Olympics. As expected, new records have been set, new talented athletes haven been discovered and some of the more seasoned campaigners have also proved that they are still at their best!

Personal Sports Memories-

I have always been a fan of sports and my favorites have been cricket, football and tennis, in that order. As a schoolboy, I remember waking up very early to listen to cricket commentaries on short-wave radio from Australia, staying up late when they were being transmitted from England, and staying up even later to listen to commentaries from the Caribbean. All the listening was done through a small radio we owned.

Another sports memory that will always be entrenched in my mind is tuning in at around 3 in the morning to listen to the 1970 Football World Cup final between Brazil and Italy, being played in Mexico. I still remember the thrill I felt when the legend Pele scored the 1^st goal and very specially, the final goal scored by the Brazilian captain, Carlos Alberto, later to be described as one of the most memorable goals in World Cup history! The commentary team from BBC Radio made you feel like you were actually watching the game!

Nehemiah : Building A City On Prayer – Part 2

August 2, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 0 Comments

Photo credit – Bethany Krueger – courtesy of flickr

Hi Friends, in our last post we shared 4 prayer pointers from the life of Nehemiah. They were,

He prayed fervently
His focus was on the greatness of the One he was praying to
He prayed for favor
His prayer included the promises of God

Today, we will look at 3 more prayer thoughts from Nehemiah. They are,

Devotional : Building A City On Prayer – Part 1

July 27, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 0 Comments

pexels-photo-27633

The book of Nehemiah is one that is filled with courage, effective leadership, faith, motivation, a great sense of adventure and a desire to honor God. Upon receiving information that the walls of Jerusalem were broken down and in ruins and the gates burned with fire, Nehemiah clearly understood the dangers and disgrace involved (Nehemiah 1:3). It meant the city was unprotected, probably a laughing stock, with its security under grave threat from enemies. (Today we are battling with an unseen enemy that has crossed most borders in the form of a dangerous virus). He therefore resolved to do something about it. This great task that he undertook and finished efficiently was covered by much prayer.

God’s Splendour

July 23, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 0 Comments

quotes s

Lessons From The Life Of Joseph – The Palace Factor

July 15, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 0 Comments

This is a a sermon preached at the People’s Church, Sri Lanka recently. The sermon is based around the time when God was training Joseph in Potiphar’s house for the great task ahead!

Devotional : Trusting God in Extreme Situations (From Psalm 11)

July 7, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 5 Comments

mountains-sky-sunny-people (1)

The writer of the passage, David, was obviously facing extreme dangers when he wrote this beautiful Psalm. His enemies were waiting in the shadows (v 2) to shoot their arrows at him (v 2). This could refer to verbal attacks & very definitely, to attacks on his life. King Saul had already been using him as target practice to enhance his skills in javelin throwing (1 Samuel 19:10)! In verse 3, David speaks about his very foundation being destroyed. At this point, it seems like David’s close friends had encouraged him to flee to safety.

Let’s look at how David responded to this extreme challenge.

Sermon: Father’s Day

July 1, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 0 Comments

This is the full sermon preached on Father’s Day. In this sermon we look at five qualities from the life of Joseph who had the responsibility of bringing up the Lord Jesus Christ.

Devotional : Father’s Day

June 17, 2016 / Palitha Jayasooriya / 5 Comments

Devotional For Father’s Day:

As the world prepares to celebrate Father’s Day, it is our joy to present this devotional about a special biblical father. We would like to focus on the life of Joseph, the earthly father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Bible shows us the following characteristics about Joseph.

Lessons For Father’s Day:

1) He was a righteous man – Matthew 1:19 says, ‘Because Joseph… was a righteous man’. This desire to do what was right is clearly seen in the way he handled Mary’s pregnancy, Jesus’ birth, and the challenge of being a father to the Savior of the world. His moral behavior too was exemplary as seen in Matthew 1:25.