They say we have a drought, so we prayed and the Lord answered our prayers. The prayer for rain was inspired by the story of Prophet Elijah in the bible, who prayed for rain and the Lord honoured his prayer. Now let's be clear on one thing, though Elijah's story was our main inspiration, it was God who made it rain. Likewise, it was God who left us the story of Elijah in the scriptures so that we can gain inspiration to do the unthinkable.

Some may take the rain for granted, but a drought is no joke, neither are bushfires. For this reason, we say: "Thank you Lord for letting it rain. May you continue to give us rain in due season. For you Lord, are the one who gives rain both to the righteous and the unrighteous. 

'This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.'
- Psalm 118:24 - 

If anyone got the recent phone alert on 14th Aug 2026 regarding preventing fire hazards due to the increasing heat wave, you would realise the importance of the rain. Whilst the alert has since disappeared, the main takeaway from it is this: there is a drought and we need the Lord to give us rain.

If there is no water, there is no life. It's why we must pray for the Lord to rain over our land. The bible says in James 5:16 that,

'The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.'
- James 5:16, New Living Translation -

So, here is a prayer you can say for our land, to the God who,

'sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.'
- Matthew 5:45, New International Version -

Father God,
Bless our land with rain, so that our land can flourish and produce fresh pastures. Thank you Lord for answered prayers, in Jesus name, Amen.

We say this prayer in accordance to God's word which says to,

'‘Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime;
it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms.
He gives showers of rain to all people,
and plants of the field to everyone.’
- Zechariah 10:1, New International Version -

Even though it's Summer, this prayer still applies because he is the God of all seasons and he will hear the righteous prayers of those who earnestly seek him. God is so generous, he hasn't withheld the rain from those who are unrighteous. He provides the rain generously for the benefit of everyone and will hear the prayers of the righteous when they pray according to his will.

Stay blessed and keep on praying! 

On a recent group outing, we went on an art trail which was listed on our itinerary as a surprise visit. So, I had no idea where we were going. On getting there, it was such a hot day that I didn't look around but headed straight into the cool dimly lit space we were ushered into. Next thing I know, we were told the show was about to start. Lights went off and slowly the dim lights re-emerges, with voices in the background chanting incantations. This took place in the space of a few minutes and suddenly the show was over. 

Other than the symbol which was the focal point of the event, the dim lights and the voices chanting in the background, there was nothing else to see. So, turning around to the person next to me, I asked what had just happened and they had no idea. I went round asking other people in my group and they responded with blank confused expressions similar to mine. Stepping outside the place, I approached the attendant standing outside who was directing the crowd and asked what the show was about. This was the point where I got some understanding about the event that took place in those brief moments. 

Turns out we were at the London Mithraeum. Until that point, I had never heard of it. Naturally, I had to find out more as I just entered a space that was contrary to my faith ignorantly and had to be sure of what really happened or what took place in my ignorance.  

To begin with, I had to find out what the word Mithraeum actually meant and in simple terms, it's an ancient Roman temple used for idol worship. It's made up of an underground space that looks like a cave and in that space a cult performs secret religious rites to a god named Mithras. The strange language I and my group heard in the background, were occultic chants being made to a lesser god. I say lesser, because according to my Christian faith there is only one supreme God. In the book of Isaiah 44:6, God himself said this,

"I am the first and I am the last;
apart from me there is no God."
- Isaiah 44:6, NIV -

The key attributes of a Mithraeum are its underground design which mimics that of a cave.  It is a secretive place with small spaces to fit a small group for private rituals and it usually has an artwork, a carving or painting of Mithras killing a sacred bull. The sacred bull is called a tauroctony.

Why am I mentioning these names? Because I will be taking it to the Bible. The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians  5:21 that we should test all things,

'Test them all; hold on to what is good.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:21, NIV -

Let's start with the attributes of a typical Mithraeum which is usually cave-like. It looks dark, feels dark, is windowless and it is underground. Somewhat hidden, where things are done in secret. 

In the book of John 8:12, Jesus said this to his followers,

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 8:12 — New International Version (2011) (NIV)

Darkness represents things that aren't God-centred and light represents things that are God-centred. Which means that things done in the dark are not often about God. It is about masking or hiding things so it can't be seen in daylight. But when it comes to serving God through Christ, it is done openly, because salvation is for everyone. The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:5 of those who follow Christ,

'You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.'
- 1 Thessalonians 5:5, NIV -

Simply put, those who follow Christ do not have any business operating in darkness because God operates in light not in darkness. 

Another key attribute of the Mithraeum is the artwork depicting the Mithras killing a sacred bull called tauroctony. One description of the Mithraeum art work is that,

"The god strikes a heroic pose, plunging a dagger into the bull's neck”.
Source London Museum website

There is a suggestion that the artwork symbolises 'ritual and sacrifice'. Where the heroic deed of the god banishes a dark force and brings light and life to the world. 

Since this was a pagan practice that took place in Londinium  (that is, Ancient London) before Christianity was introduced, it's worth examining. The Bible says the only living sacrifice is Jesus Christ. We are told in the Bible that it was customary for God's people to offer a sacrificial lamb to God to atone for their sins. It was a custom God introduced to his people through his servant Moses. Leviticus 4:1-3 says,

The Lord said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. This is how you are to deal with those who sin unintentionally by doing anything that violates one of the Lord’s commands. If the high priest sins, bringing guilt upon the entire community, he must give a sin offering for the sin he has committed. He must present to the Lord a young bull with no defects."
- Leviticus 4:1-3, NLT -

And,

"If the entire Israelite community sins by violating one of the Lord’s commands, but the people don’t realize it, they are still guilty. When they become aware of their sin, the people must bring a young bull as an offering for their sin and present it before the Tabernacle."
- Leviticus 4:13–14 -

This involved a lengthy process for sin cleansing, it was unsustainable and the people couldn't keep from sinning. For this reason, God introduced a better solution in the form of Jesus, the living sacrifice. The aim was to eradicate sin once and for all. So entered Jesus Christ the living sacrifice. The Bible says in Hebrews 10:1-4 that,

'The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship. If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time and their feelings of guilt would have disappeared. But instead, those sacrifices actually reminded them of their sins year after year. For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.'
- Hebrews 10:1-4, NLT -

If this was the case, is it any wonder that when Christianity was later introduced to Londoners it was embraced? Because what the Bulls couldn't do, Jesus fixed once and for all. The Bible says in Hebrews 10:11-12 that,

'Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. But our High Priest  (that is, Jesus) offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.'
- Hebrews 10:11-12, NLT - 

So, now instead of offering bulls for atonement of sins, the Lord says in Hebrews 10:16-18 that,

"This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day...I will put my laws in their hearts and I will write them on their minds...“I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds. And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices."
- Hebrews 10: 16-18, NLT

That is to say, even though the London Mithraeum was the religion of the londinium, the ancient Londoners, it brought one key thing to my attention. Which is, the reaffirmation of Christianity as the main source of light and salvation in a modern world that can get very dark at times. It is why Christianity is needed to bring God's light and Salvation. It is why the gospel must continually be shared against all odds. For Jesus is the light of the world. Whoever follows him will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. See John 8:12.

And when you understand the gospel, you will understand more than the ancients, because you kept God's commands. See Psalm 119:100

Stay blessed and keep on sharing Christ's gospel!

The world is getting louder. There are too many cooks, too many hands and too many pies baking all at once. For this reason, finding quiet time to reflect becomes a necessity. Otherwise, what you get is information overload or you end up feeling overwhelmed. So, how can you find some quiet in the midst of a loud world? The answer lies in the Bible, in the book of Luke 5:15-16. The Bible says that when Jesus' fame grew due to healing the sick and performing miracles,

'The news about Jesus spread...large crowds gathered to hear him and have their diseases cured. But he would go away to places where he could be alone for prayer.' 
- Luke 5:15-16, God's Word -

Jesus had large crowds of people seeking after him and needing his attention, yet what did he do? He focused on the most important thing of all, his sustenance. Which was simply to do the will of God. That was why Jesus came to earth and that was what he focused his attention on. He couldn't afford to let the demands of life take his attention away from what mattered most. That was why Jesus himself said this in the book of John 4:34,

"My food...“is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work."
John 4:34 — New International Version (2011) (NIV)

Who was Jesus referring to? He was referring to God and the work God sent him to do. Why did Jesus use food to illustrate his mission? He used food because the sole purpose of food is to keep us alive and what kept Jesus going was his calling to do God's will. That is, to be crucified for mankind. Therefore, anything else he gave his attention to was solely in relation to that.

And we too can take a leaf from Jesus' book by asking if what we are doing is purposeful or adding value to our lives. This is because not everything that we consider good is beneficial for us.  It's why the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:23

You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial.
1 Corinthians 10:23 — New Living Translation (NLT)

It may look like things are turning out for the better. Especially now we have several  communication platforms to voice our opinions. But when we are all talking at once, who is doing the listening?

Aside from eternity, we can't all be headed in the same direction, it's why God made us humans diverse. Even the human body has many diverse parts all working together for the common good of the body.  However no one part of the body is more important than the other. For the body to perform at its best, all parts of the body must play their own part and it's the same with the human race. The Bible explains it this way in 1 Corinthians 12:21–25,

The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.” In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary. And the parts we regard as less honourable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, while the more honourable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honour and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other.
1 Corinthians 12:21–25 — New Living Translation (NLT)

In a loud world, everything is packaged or presented to look a certain way. To the point that anything that doesn't fit that package is dismissed or shoved aside. Many colours make a rainbow and in order to truly thrive in the world, we must unapologetically be ourselves.

For a Messiah, Jesus wasn't packaged the way the world expected. Jesus was a humble Carpenter and was born in a manger. But that didn't stop him from being the Messiah did it? Jesus was later surrounded by the noise of fame and the noise from the demands of life. All this happened at the height of his mission, but he kept focused by taking time away from the noise to spend time with God the Father. 

Why? Apart from gaining clarity, one of the key benefits of spending time alone with God is 'Peace'. The Bible says this about what God does when we shift our focus to him:

You will keep in perfect peace
all who trust in you,
all whose thoughts are fixed on you!
Isaiah 26:3 — New Living Translation (NLT)

Admittedly finding time away can be difficult for some. But it can be as simple as sneaking to the quiet space of an unoccupied bathroom, taking a short walk, conversing with the Lord as you commute through and from work. It doesn't matter how long or short your quiet escape is, what matters is that you get a break from the noise to gain some clarity. 

So, when the world gets louder, shift your focus to God, giving him your undivided attention and he will in turn give you peace. Not just peace, but he will give you the positive perspective you need to reclaim your place in the earthly space God has allotted to you wisely.  Think about it!