1 Samuel 7:12, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.
The word "hitherto" seems like a hand pointing in the direction of the past. Twenty years or seventy, and yet, "hitherto the Lord hath helped!" Through poverty, through wealth, through sickness, through health, at home, abroad, on the land, on the sea, in honour, in dishonour, in perplexity, in joy, in trial, in triumph, in prayer, in temptation, "hitherto hath the Lord helped us!" We delight to look down a long avenue of trees. It is delightful to gaze from end to end of the long vista, a sort of verdant temple, with its branching pillars and its arches of leaves; even so look down the long aisles of your years, at the green boughs of mercy overhead, and the strong pillars of lovingkindness and faithfulness which bear up your joys. Are there no birds in yonder branches singing? Surely there must be many, and they all sing of mercy received "hitherto." But the word also points forward. For when a man gets up to a certain mark and writes "hitherto," he is not yet at the end, there is still a distance to be traversed. More trials, more joys; more temptations, more triumphs; more prayers, more answers; more toils, more strength; more fights, more victories; and then come sickness, old age, disease, death. Is it over now? No! there is more yet-awakening in Jesu's likeness, thrones, harps, songs, psalms, white raiment, the face of Jesus, the society of saints, the glory of God, the fulness of eternity, the infinity of bliss. O be of good courage, believer, and with grateful confidence raise thy "Ebenezer," for-
He who hath helped thee hitherto
Will help thee all thy journey through.
When read in heaven's light how glorious and marvellous a prospect will thy "hitherto" unfold to thy grateful eye!
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Pastor Chuck Smith
From Greg Laurie's blog:
"Last night, Pastor Chuck Smith was taken to the hospital and had what was described by his doctor as a “mini-stroke.” His doctor expects him to make a full recovery.
Let’s remember this beloved man of God in prayer, that the Lord would touch, bless, and heal him."
Please pray for Chuck and his wife Kay.
"Last night, Pastor Chuck Smith was taken to the hospital and had what was described by his doctor as a “mini-stroke.” His doctor expects him to make a full recovery.
Let’s remember this beloved man of God in prayer, that the Lord would touch, bless, and heal him."
Please pray for Chuck and his wife Kay.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
God's Christmas Tree, by Randy West
This song was written by my friend over 30 years ago, and is still one of my favorite Christmas songs ever written:
"On God’s Christmas tree,
Hung not a silver ball
No candy cane, choo choo train,
No, not a toy at all
On God’s Christmas tree,
No candlelight not one
But on His tree, Who died for me
Hung His only Son"
"On God’s Christmas tree,
Hung not a silver ball
No candy cane, choo choo train,
No, not a toy at all
On God’s Christmas tree,
No candlelight not one
But on His tree, Who died for me
Hung His only Son"
Monday, December 21, 2009
A Manger Without a Baby, By Lilly Green
The following is the testimony of a very dear lady who, her and her husband, endured what all parents fear - the death of child in the womb. Their courage, faith, and witness is a testimony of those who turn to Jesus in time of sorrow instead of turning away from Him. Never once did there faith fail. Faith in a heavenly Father who gave a Son, so all could live.
Here are Lilly's own words:
"I equipped the big walk-in closet in the living room of our tiny duplex with a green second-hand crib and stocked the built-in drawers with soft little layette items. Long, wispy, white curtains tied back with yellow ribbon made an inviting entrance to a close room. Everyday, my tummy grew larger. Everyday, I fingered and rearranged clothes, blankets, and toys. I felt happy and excited, despite the christening I gave many toilets and gutters. Even with the little white pills, I threw up several times a day for nine months.
The baby squirmed and punched, kicked, and danced. I massaged hands and feet that fluidly traveled across my abdomen, pressing tight under ribs, giving me indigestion. The mountain of head and back rose, fell, and shifted. I had always wanted to be a mother, and now I was.
November’s sun began dipping to the south. The air held a slight chill, even for California. I counted the days—expectation high. With my friend’s stethoscope, I listened to the music—the strong, steady rhythm of life. But two weeks overdue, the rhythm stopped.
Kelly and I met in mid-August 1973. We worked with an over-zealous ministry that concentrated so much on Christ’s soon return that we made many decisions abruptly and unwisely. One of those was to marry quickly with little preparation or counsel. I guess we feared the Lord might come back before we had a chance to have sex. The night Kelly introduced me to his parents for the first time, we calmly announced our engagement. For all they knew, I could have been an ax murderer. Actually, for all I knew, Kelly could have been an ax murderer. After we left, his folks “discussed” our decision long into the night and woke with hangovers in the morning. But they bravely came along side, and we did marry. In this time of “Maranatha madness,” we were encouraged by our pastor not to have children, but to totally commit to the “work of the Lord.” We married in October, and by February, I was violently throwing up—a sure sign I was to be a mother. We figured my pregnancy just had be a miraculous work of God. Of course, as our friend Jo put it, “Those who use faith as birth control are called parents!” And so we were to be.
By the time I was six months pregnant, we moved from the ministry’s communal quarters to a small duplex down the street. For the first time, Kelly and I lived alone. It was a precious and necessary time to actually get to know one another after several months of marriage.
Then the baby died. November was a blur of death, tears, comfort, cremation, and far flung ashes. Thanksgiving came and went. It was hard to feel thankful when my arms ached to hold my little one. As cheery Christmas songs began to filter through radio speakers and shopping mall sound systems, my ache grew to intense pain. One part of my heart leaned in to the Savior, understanding that He too felt pain and loss. I wanted to trust that I was safe in His love and care. Another part of my heart felt cold and brittle, betrayed by life and Lord. A battle raged. Tears seemed never-ending, dreams dashed. Questions went unanswered. Joyful Mary knelt by her beautiful baby Jesus in nativity scenes all over town, but my manger was empty.
Years have added layers of depth and understanding to my loss, but even today there is a raw place—a place of longing for our baby girl Noelle. With a new Christmas season right around the corner, I have been reflecting once again on the incarnation. What does Christ’s birth really mean to me? My thoughts, as they often do at this time of year, are interwoven with thoughts of the death of our first child. Noelle was named for Christmas—a reminder of the miraculous event when God came to earth as a baby. It has crossed my mind, “What would our lives be like if Mary’s manger had been empty. What if Jesus had never come?” My sense of loss is great, but the devastating loss of Christ as God’s gift to the world would be unfathomable. No high priest to intercede for me, no forgiveness, no fellowship, no whispers of comfort in the night, no eternal promise of heaven.
After the funeral home cremated Noelle’s remains, Kelly and I drove to a secluded wooded area near his grandfather’s cabin to spread the ashes. The tiny white box fit in the breast pocket of Kelly’s plaid shirt. He held my hand tightly as he led the way uphill, brushing by scratchy shrubs and tree branches. Weak in body and spirit, I struggled to fix my steps on the narrow rugged path. Tears fell and feet fell. When finally we reached the top, we prayed. We held one another and the remains of a life so little known, then threw her ashes to the wind to become a part of the trees and bushes in that special place.
Christ carries my death next to his heart. He came to set me free from the spiritual consequences of my sin. I am free, but the way is often rugged; and through my tears, I don’t always see too clearly. I have no idea what’s up ahead. But He is in the lead. He holds my hand, and all I need do is stick to the path and match Him step for step.
I met that tearful Christmas many years ago with empty arms, but because of the babe in Mary’s manger, because her manger was not empty, I continue to have hope."
Here are Lilly's own words:
"I equipped the big walk-in closet in the living room of our tiny duplex with a green second-hand crib and stocked the built-in drawers with soft little layette items. Long, wispy, white curtains tied back with yellow ribbon made an inviting entrance to a close room. Everyday, my tummy grew larger. Everyday, I fingered and rearranged clothes, blankets, and toys. I felt happy and excited, despite the christening I gave many toilets and gutters. Even with the little white pills, I threw up several times a day for nine months.
The baby squirmed and punched, kicked, and danced. I massaged hands and feet that fluidly traveled across my abdomen, pressing tight under ribs, giving me indigestion. The mountain of head and back rose, fell, and shifted. I had always wanted to be a mother, and now I was.
November’s sun began dipping to the south. The air held a slight chill, even for California. I counted the days—expectation high. With my friend’s stethoscope, I listened to the music—the strong, steady rhythm of life. But two weeks overdue, the rhythm stopped.
Kelly and I met in mid-August 1973. We worked with an over-zealous ministry that concentrated so much on Christ’s soon return that we made many decisions abruptly and unwisely. One of those was to marry quickly with little preparation or counsel. I guess we feared the Lord might come back before we had a chance to have sex. The night Kelly introduced me to his parents for the first time, we calmly announced our engagement. For all they knew, I could have been an ax murderer. Actually, for all I knew, Kelly could have been an ax murderer. After we left, his folks “discussed” our decision long into the night and woke with hangovers in the morning. But they bravely came along side, and we did marry. In this time of “Maranatha madness,” we were encouraged by our pastor not to have children, but to totally commit to the “work of the Lord.” We married in October, and by February, I was violently throwing up—a sure sign I was to be a mother. We figured my pregnancy just had be a miraculous work of God. Of course, as our friend Jo put it, “Those who use faith as birth control are called parents!” And so we were to be.
By the time I was six months pregnant, we moved from the ministry’s communal quarters to a small duplex down the street. For the first time, Kelly and I lived alone. It was a precious and necessary time to actually get to know one another after several months of marriage.
Then the baby died. November was a blur of death, tears, comfort, cremation, and far flung ashes. Thanksgiving came and went. It was hard to feel thankful when my arms ached to hold my little one. As cheery Christmas songs began to filter through radio speakers and shopping mall sound systems, my ache grew to intense pain. One part of my heart leaned in to the Savior, understanding that He too felt pain and loss. I wanted to trust that I was safe in His love and care. Another part of my heart felt cold and brittle, betrayed by life and Lord. A battle raged. Tears seemed never-ending, dreams dashed. Questions went unanswered. Joyful Mary knelt by her beautiful baby Jesus in nativity scenes all over town, but my manger was empty.
Years have added layers of depth and understanding to my loss, but even today there is a raw place—a place of longing for our baby girl Noelle. With a new Christmas season right around the corner, I have been reflecting once again on the incarnation. What does Christ’s birth really mean to me? My thoughts, as they often do at this time of year, are interwoven with thoughts of the death of our first child. Noelle was named for Christmas—a reminder of the miraculous event when God came to earth as a baby. It has crossed my mind, “What would our lives be like if Mary’s manger had been empty. What if Jesus had never come?” My sense of loss is great, but the devastating loss of Christ as God’s gift to the world would be unfathomable. No high priest to intercede for me, no forgiveness, no fellowship, no whispers of comfort in the night, no eternal promise of heaven.
After the funeral home cremated Noelle’s remains, Kelly and I drove to a secluded wooded area near his grandfather’s cabin to spread the ashes. The tiny white box fit in the breast pocket of Kelly’s plaid shirt. He held my hand tightly as he led the way uphill, brushing by scratchy shrubs and tree branches. Weak in body and spirit, I struggled to fix my steps on the narrow rugged path. Tears fell and feet fell. When finally we reached the top, we prayed. We held one another and the remains of a life so little known, then threw her ashes to the wind to become a part of the trees and bushes in that special place.
Christ carries my death next to his heart. He came to set me free from the spiritual consequences of my sin. I am free, but the way is often rugged; and through my tears, I don’t always see too clearly. I have no idea what’s up ahead. But He is in the lead. He holds my hand, and all I need do is stick to the path and match Him step for step.
I met that tearful Christmas many years ago with empty arms, but because of the babe in Mary’s manger, because her manger was not empty, I continue to have hope."
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Prayer for Tiger Woods
I don't know if Tiger is a believer or not and it is not my intention to judge him. We know that Tiger has made some serious mistakes and hurt a lot of people who trusted him.
What I am asking is that Christian's everywhere pray for him. Imagine how it would make him feel if he knew that thousands of Christian's everywhere were praying for him, were willing to forgive him, and receive him into fellowship.
I believe that he is probably closer to being open to the Gospel of Jesus Christ than at any other time in his life. Let's reach out to the Father in prayer for Tiger.
What I am asking is that Christian's everywhere pray for him. Imagine how it would make him feel if he knew that thousands of Christian's everywhere were praying for him, were willing to forgive him, and receive him into fellowship.
I believe that he is probably closer to being open to the Gospel of Jesus Christ than at any other time in his life. Let's reach out to the Father in prayer for Tiger.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Glorious News!
Isaiah 9:6-7:
"For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."
"For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
When God will Not Answer...
Proverbs 1:24-30:
Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded, Because you disdained all my counsel, And would have none of my rebuke, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes, When your terror comes like a storm, And your destruction comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. "Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD, They would have none of my counsel And despised my every rebuke.
Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded, Because you disdained all my counsel, And would have none of my rebuke, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes, When your terror comes like a storm, And your destruction comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. "Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD, They would have none of my counsel And despised my every rebuke.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
God Keeps His Promises
Galatians 4:4-5: "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons."
Christmas reminds us that God kept His promise made some 5,000 years earlier. This should always be a comfort to us that, no matter what, God is as faithful as His Word.
This reminds me of another promise, John 14:1-3:
"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."
Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus.
Christmas reminds us that God kept His promise made some 5,000 years earlier. This should always be a comfort to us that, no matter what, God is as faithful as His Word.
This reminds me of another promise, John 14:1-3:
"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."
Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Funny laws that guide us, from Gayle Irwin
Law of Mechanical Repair
After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch.
Law of Gravity
Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.
Law of Probability
The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.
Law of Random Numbers
If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal and someone always answers.
Law of the Alibi
If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.
Variation Law
If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will always move faster than the one you are in now (works every time).
Law of the Bath
When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.
Law of the Result
When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.
Law of Biomechanics
The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.
Law of the Theater
At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.
The Starbucks Law
As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.
Murphy's Law of Lockers
If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.
Law of Physical Surfaces
The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.
Law of Logical Argument
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
Brown's Law of Physical Appearance
If the shoe fits, it's ugly.
Oliver's Law of Public Speaking
A closed mouth gathers no feet.
Wilson's Law of Commercial Marketing Strategy
As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it, or improve it.
After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch.
Law of Gravity
Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.
Law of Probability
The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.
Law of Random Numbers
If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal and someone always answers.
Law of the Alibi
If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.
Variation Law
If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will always move faster than the one you are in now (works every time).
Law of the Bath
When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.
Law of the Result
When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.
Law of Biomechanics
The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.
Law of the Theater
At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.
The Starbucks Law
As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.
Murphy's Law of Lockers
If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.
Law of Physical Surfaces
The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.
Law of Logical Argument
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
Brown's Law of Physical Appearance
If the shoe fits, it's ugly.
Oliver's Law of Public Speaking
A closed mouth gathers no feet.
Wilson's Law of Commercial Marketing Strategy
As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it, or improve it.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
"The Logical Song" by Supertramp
When I was young
It seemed that life was so wonderful
A miracle, oh it was beautiful, magical
And all the birds in the trees
Well they’d be singing so happily
Oh joyfully, oh playfully watching me
But then they sent me away
To teach me how to be sensible
Logical, oh responsible ,practical
And they showed me a world
Where i could be so dependable
Oh clinical, oh intellectual, cynical
There are times when all the world’s asleep
The questions run too deep
For such a simple man
Won’t you please, please tell me what we’ve learned
I know it sounds absurd
But please tell me who I am
Now watch what you say
Or they’ll be calling you a radical
A liberal, oh fanatical, criminal
Oh won’t you sign up your name
We’d like to feel you’re acceptable, respectable, oh presentable, a vegetable!
At night when all the world’s asleep
The questions run too deep
For such a simple man
Won’t you please, please tell me what we've learned
I know it sounds absurd
But please tell me who I am, who I am ,who I am.
It seemed that life was so wonderful
A miracle, oh it was beautiful, magical
And all the birds in the trees
Well they’d be singing so happily
Oh joyfully, oh playfully watching me
But then they sent me away
To teach me how to be sensible
Logical, oh responsible ,practical
And they showed me a world
Where i could be so dependable
Oh clinical, oh intellectual, cynical
There are times when all the world’s asleep
The questions run too deep
For such a simple man
Won’t you please, please tell me what we’ve learned
I know it sounds absurd
But please tell me who I am
Now watch what you say
Or they’ll be calling you a radical
A liberal, oh fanatical, criminal
Oh won’t you sign up your name
We’d like to feel you’re acceptable, respectable, oh presentable, a vegetable!
At night when all the world’s asleep
The questions run too deep
For such a simple man
Won’t you please, please tell me what we've learned
I know it sounds absurd
But please tell me who I am, who I am ,who I am.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
A Simple Explanation of Baseball
This is a game played by two teams, one out the other in. The one that's in, sends players out one at a time, to see if they can get in before they get out. If they get out before they get in, they come in, but it doesn't count. If they get in before they get out it does count.
When the ones out get three outs from the ones in before they get in without being out, the team that's out comes in and the team in goes out to get those going in out before they get in without being out.
When both teams have been in and out nine times the game is over. The team with the most in without being out before coming in wins unless the ones in are equal. In which case, the last ones in go out to get the ones in out before they get in without being out.
The game will end when each team has the same number of ins out but one team has more in without being out before coming in.
When the ones out get three outs from the ones in before they get in without being out, the team that's out comes in and the team in goes out to get those going in out before they get in without being out.
When both teams have been in and out nine times the game is over. The team with the most in without being out before coming in wins unless the ones in are equal. In which case, the last ones in go out to get the ones in out before they get in without being out.
The game will end when each team has the same number of ins out but one team has more in without being out before coming in.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Glorious Result
Job 23:8-10: "Look, I go forward, but He is not there,And backward, but I cannot perceive Him; When He works on the left hand, I cannot behold Him; When He turns to the right hand, I cannot see Him. But He knows the way that I take; When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold."
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Purpose of Suffering
The purpose of suffering is not to drive you away from God, but rather, to draw you near to Him. The secret (according to Hudson Taylor, missionary to China) is to let the suffering drive you closer to Jesus.
It is not necessary that you understand what you are enduring, only that you believe that He is with you in your suffering and has a glorious purpose in allowing it.
It is not necessary that you understand what you are enduring, only that you believe that He is with you in your suffering and has a glorious purpose in allowing it.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Suffering
2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,
18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
You can successfully deal with suffering if you are looking in the right place.
Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,
18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
You can successfully deal with suffering if you are looking in the right place.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Interesting quote
“The Devil is wildly optimistic if he thinks he can make human beings worse than they are.” — Karl Kraus
I borrowed this from my good friend, Pastor Jon Clayton over at http://blog.jonclayton.name/
I borrowed this from my good friend, Pastor Jon Clayton over at http://blog.jonclayton.name/
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Update on Rachel
She is home from the hospital and is doing better. She is on the way to speak with a new counselor, so hopefully this will help.
Thank you all for praying...
Thank you all for praying...
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
My Daughter Rachel
Honestly, tonight my heart is broken for my daughter. For those of you who know her, she is still struggling with mental issues. It has come to a head again, and she is back in the hospital.
I know that God is good and that He has a plan. Thank you for your prayers.
I know that God is good and that He has a plan. Thank you for your prayers.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Prayer Request
My friend, Pastor Bill Walden, is making another trip to Mexico for the missionary work they sponsor down there. Please pray for their safety and for the Lord's blessing on all who attend.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Prayer Request
I have a physical problem that the doctors have not been able to identify. It has been characterized by severe muscle pain and weakness, joint pain, fatigue, shortage of breath, dizziness, difficulty swallowing, and coughing fits that almost cause me to pass out. I have only let a few people know as I wanted to find out exactly what it is. Hear is an email I sent out last week:
We went to the MD doctor yesterday for a consultation. After all the tests, he had found that there is nothing wrong with me neurologically or muscularly; in other words, I do not have MD or MS or anything related. This is of course, good news. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find any physical reason for my pain and fatigue. The Dr. believes me that I there is something wrong, as he commented that the shaking I suffer from is the body’s reaction to pain – the worse the pain, the greater the shaking (usually in the late afternoons and evenings).
I am starting to believe that I am Job and that God has purposed this for my good (which is the case with all the trials we go through). So, I am grateful for the test, knowing that 1) God loves me, 2) He is in control, 3) He is wiser than I am. Tuesday this week, in prayer, I told the Lord that if this is His plan to perfect me, then I thank Him for the trial. Not that I am some kind of deeply spiritual person, but because I recognize that He is allowing the test, so His purposes in it are only for my good.
Now I will be perfectly honest. At times there is great discouragement, as it is very difficult to be in constant pain. It is discouraging to go to bed tired, wake up tired, and live in a constant state of fatigue. It is difficult not to be able to walk for more than 50 feet without being winded and having to rest (most of the time). I have suffered from depression, to one extent or another my entire life. Honestly, this is worse and for the first time in my life I have asked the DR. for, and am on, depression medication, which doesn’t affect my cognitive abilities and seems to help.
Thanks for your prayers.
We went to the MD doctor yesterday for a consultation. After all the tests, he had found that there is nothing wrong with me neurologically or muscularly; in other words, I do not have MD or MS or anything related. This is of course, good news. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find any physical reason for my pain and fatigue. The Dr. believes me that I there is something wrong, as he commented that the shaking I suffer from is the body’s reaction to pain – the worse the pain, the greater the shaking (usually in the late afternoons and evenings).
I am starting to believe that I am Job and that God has purposed this for my good (which is the case with all the trials we go through). So, I am grateful for the test, knowing that 1) God loves me, 2) He is in control, 3) He is wiser than I am. Tuesday this week, in prayer, I told the Lord that if this is His plan to perfect me, then I thank Him for the trial. Not that I am some kind of deeply spiritual person, but because I recognize that He is allowing the test, so His purposes in it are only for my good.
Now I will be perfectly honest. At times there is great discouragement, as it is very difficult to be in constant pain. It is discouraging to go to bed tired, wake up tired, and live in a constant state of fatigue. It is difficult not to be able to walk for more than 50 feet without being winded and having to rest (most of the time). I have suffered from depression, to one extent or another my entire life. Honestly, this is worse and for the first time in my life I have asked the DR. for, and am on, depression medication, which doesn’t affect my cognitive abilities and seems to help.
Thanks for your prayers.
Friday, October 30, 2009
The Love of God
Psalms 116:1-2: "I love the LORD , because He has heard My voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me..."
After 37 years I am still overwhelmed by the fact that Jesus saved me. Of all the people, we are indeed the most privileged.
Why do you love the Lord?
After 37 years I am still overwhelmed by the fact that Jesus saved me. Of all the people, we are indeed the most privileged.
Why do you love the Lord?
Endurance
It cannot be stated too frequently that the life of a Christian is a warfare, an intense conflict, a lifelong contest. It is a battle, moreover, waged against invisible foes, who are ever alert, and ever seeking to entrap, deceive, and ruin the souls of men. The life to which Holy Scripture calls men is no picnic, or holiday junketing. It is no pastime, no pleasure jaunt. It entails effort, wrestling, struggling; it demands the putting forth of the full energy of the spirit in order to frustrate the foe and to come off, at the last, more than conqueror. It is no primrose path, no rose-scented dalliance. From start to finish, it is war. From the hour in which he first draws sword, to that in which he doffs his harness, the Christian warrior is compelled to “endure hardness like a good soldier.”
E. M. Bounds
E. M. Bounds
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Man's Effort
When you earnestly believe you can compensate for a lack of skill by doubling your efforts, there's no end to what you can't do.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Death of Self
When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the caption of the ship sought to turn him back. "You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages," he cried. Calvert only replied, "We died before we came here."
David Augsburger
David Augsburger
Sunday, October 25, 2009
The Ministry
The ministry is a foundry; you are either in the fire or on the anvil being shaped by the Master.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Courage
Courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to trust in Christ no matter what the situation or outcome.
Friday, October 16, 2009
God's Delays
I want to share something with you that my pastor, Chuck Smith, shared with me years ago: "God's delays are not the delays of inactivity; they are the delays of preparation."
Take heart, beloved of God. He is working behind the scenes on your behalf.
Take heart, beloved of God. He is working behind the scenes on your behalf.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Spurgeon on the Love of God
Daniel 10:11: "A man greatly beloved."
Child of God, do you hesitate to appropriate this title? Ah! has your unbelief made you forget that you are greatly beloved too? Must you not have been greatly beloved, to have been bought with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot? When God smote His only begotten Son for you, what was this but being greatly beloved? You lived in sin, and rioted in it, must you not have been greatly beloved for God to have borne so patiently with you? You were called by grace and led to a Saviour, and made a child of God and an heir of heaven. All this proves, does it not, a very great and superabounding love? Since that time, whether your path has been rough with troubles, or smooth with mercies, it has been full of proofs that you are a man greatly beloved. If the Lord has chastened you, yet not in anger; if He has made you poor, yet in grace you have been rich. The more unworthy you feel yourself to be, the more evidence have you that nothing but unspeakable love could have led the Lord Jesus to save such a soul as yours. The more demerit you feel, the clearer is the display of the abounding love of God in having chosen you, and called you, and made you an heir of bliss. Now, if there be such love between God and us let us live in the influence and sweetness of it, and use the privilege of our position. Do not let us approach our Lord as though we were strangers, or as though He were unwilling to hear us-for we are greatly beloved by our loving Father. "He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" Come boldly, O believer, for despite the whisperings of Satan and the doubtings of thine own heart, thou art greatly beloved. Meditate on the exceeding greatness and faithfulness of divine love this evening, and so go to thy bed in peace.
Child of God, do you hesitate to appropriate this title? Ah! has your unbelief made you forget that you are greatly beloved too? Must you not have been greatly beloved, to have been bought with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot? When God smote His only begotten Son for you, what was this but being greatly beloved? You lived in sin, and rioted in it, must you not have been greatly beloved for God to have borne so patiently with you? You were called by grace and led to a Saviour, and made a child of God and an heir of heaven. All this proves, does it not, a very great and superabounding love? Since that time, whether your path has been rough with troubles, or smooth with mercies, it has been full of proofs that you are a man greatly beloved. If the Lord has chastened you, yet not in anger; if He has made you poor, yet in grace you have been rich. The more unworthy you feel yourself to be, the more evidence have you that nothing but unspeakable love could have led the Lord Jesus to save such a soul as yours. The more demerit you feel, the clearer is the display of the abounding love of God in having chosen you, and called you, and made you an heir of bliss. Now, if there be such love between God and us let us live in the influence and sweetness of it, and use the privilege of our position. Do not let us approach our Lord as though we were strangers, or as though He were unwilling to hear us-for we are greatly beloved by our loving Father. "He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" Come boldly, O believer, for despite the whisperings of Satan and the doubtings of thine own heart, thou art greatly beloved. Meditate on the exceeding greatness and faithfulness of divine love this evening, and so go to thy bed in peace.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
...like a good soldier
It cannot be stated too frequently that the life of a Christian is a warfare, an intense conflict, a lifelong contest. It is a battle, moreover, waged against invisible foes, who are ever alert, and ever seeking to entrap, deceive, and ruin the souls of men. The life to which Holy Scripture calls men is no picnic, or holiday junketing. It is no pastime, no pleasure jaunt. It entails effort, wrestling, struggling; it demands the putting forth of the full energy of the spirit in order to frustrate the foe and to come off, at the last, more than conqueror. It is no primrose path, no rose-scented dalliance. From start to finish, it is war. From the hour in which he first draws sword, to that in which he doffs his harness, the Christian warrior is compelled to “endure hardness like a good soldier.”
E. M. Bounds
E. M. Bounds
Monday, September 21, 2009
Sobering Words from one Generation to Another
“The choice before us is plain: Christ or chaos, conviction or compromise, discipline or disintegration. I am rather tired of hearing about our rights…The time is come…to hear about responsibilities…America’s future depends upon her accepting and demonstrating God’s government.” — Peter Marshall
Thursday, September 3, 2009
One use of Fire
Fire is used in the purification of metals. The refiner uses fire in a controlled manner to take that which is polluted and valueless, to create that which is pure and of great value. His is an exacting process using that which is capable of destroying, to deliberately and carefully over a period of time, produce that which pleases him and ultimately others as well. Those ignorant of the process would question the intentions of the refiner. “Why would someone deliberately put something of such potential value in the fire?” And yet in time they themselves would see the wisdom of the refiner in that which they themselves previously questioned.
Comparatively, the Lord is the Refiner. He uses the fiery trial in the life of the believer to accomplish His work of purification. He takes that which is polluted and valueless, to create that which, “…may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” His is also an exacting process, although the believer may feel as if at times He is acting in a carless manner. He takes that which is capable of destroying and, over a period of time determined by Him, He produces that which pleases Him and ultimately others as well. One difference between the earthly refiner and the Heavenly Refiner is that we can observe and understand the intentions of the earthly, but not always the Heavenly. So, ignorant of the process and the intentions of the Refiner, we often question His intentions. “Why would the Refiner deliberately allow me to endure this fire?” And yet we ourselves see in time the wisdom of the Refiner in that which we previously questioned. Yet another difference between the earthly and the heavenly is that we do not always understand in this life the wisdom of the Refiner in allowing us to endure the fire. So we are encouraged to endure, not yet seeing the wisdom of the Refiner.
Like the earthly, so is the Heavenly. The process of refining is ongoing, as often as the Refiner desires, until He is satisfied, until His intended result is achieved: “that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (I Peter 1:7).
Comparatively, the Lord is the Refiner. He uses the fiery trial in the life of the believer to accomplish His work of purification. He takes that which is polluted and valueless, to create that which, “…may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” His is also an exacting process, although the believer may feel as if at times He is acting in a carless manner. He takes that which is capable of destroying and, over a period of time determined by Him, He produces that which pleases Him and ultimately others as well. One difference between the earthly refiner and the Heavenly Refiner is that we can observe and understand the intentions of the earthly, but not always the Heavenly. So, ignorant of the process and the intentions of the Refiner, we often question His intentions. “Why would the Refiner deliberately allow me to endure this fire?” And yet we ourselves see in time the wisdom of the Refiner in that which we previously questioned. Yet another difference between the earthly and the heavenly is that we do not always understand in this life the wisdom of the Refiner in allowing us to endure the fire. So we are encouraged to endure, not yet seeing the wisdom of the Refiner.
Like the earthly, so is the Heavenly. The process of refining is ongoing, as often as the Refiner desires, until He is satisfied, until His intended result is achieved: “that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (I Peter 1:7).
Isaiah 51:5: On mine arm shall they trust.
In seasons of severe trial, the Christian has nothing on earth that he can trust to, and is therefore compelled to cast himself on his God alone. When his vessel is on its beam-ends, and no human deliverance can avail, he must simply and entirely trust himself to the providence and care of God. Happy storm that wrecks a man on such a rock as this! O blessed hurricane that drives the soul to God and God alone! There is no getting at our God sometimes because of the multitude of our friends; but when a man is so poor, so friendless, so helpless that he has nowhere else to turn, he flies into his Father's arms, and is blessedly clasped therein! When he is burdened with troubles so pressing and so peculiar, that he cannot tell them to any but his God, he may be thankful for them; for he will learn more of his Lord then than at any other time. Oh, tempest-tossed believer, it is a happy trouble that drives thee to thy Father! Now that thou hast only thy God to trust to, see that thou puttest thy full confidence in Him. Dishonour not thy Lord and Master by unworthy doubts and fears; but be strong in faith, giving glory to God. Show the world that thy God is worth ten thousand worlds to thee. Show rich men how rich thou art in thy poverty when the Lord God is thy helper. Show the strong man how strong thou art in thy weakness when underneath thee are the everlasting arms. Now is the time for feats of faith and valiant exploits. Be strong and very courageous, and the Lord thy God shall certainly, as surely as He built the heavens and the earth, glorify Himself in thy weakness, and magnify his might in the midst of thy distress. The grandeur of the arch of heaven would be spoiled if the sky were supported by a single visible column, and your faith would lose its glory if it rested on anything discernible by the carnal eye. May the Holy Spirit give you to rest in Jesus this closing day of the month.
Charles Spurgeon
Charles Spurgeon
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Unrequited Love
Nothing takes the taste out of peanut butter quite like unrequited love.
Charlie Brown
Charlie Brown
Posted from Toyko, Japan
Psalm 51:1: Have mercy upon me, O God.
When Dr. Carey was suffering from a dangerous illness, the enquiry was made, "If this sickness should prove fatal, what passage would you select as the text for your funeral sermon?" He replied, "Oh, I feel that such a poor sinful creature is unworthy to have anything said about him; but if a funeral sermon must be preached, let it be from the words, 'Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy lovingkindness; according unto the multitude of Thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.'" In the same spirit of humility he directed in his will that the following inscription and nothing more should be cut on his gravestone:-
WILLIAM CAREY, BORN AUGUST 17th, 1761:
DIED - -
"A wretched, poor, and helpless worm On Thy kind arms I fall."
Only on the footing of free grace can the most experienced and most honoured of the saints approach their God. The best of men are conscious above all others that they are men at the best. Empty boats float high, but heavily laden vessels are low in the water; mere professors can boast, but true children of God cry for mercy upon their unprofitableness. We have need that the Lord should have mercy upon our good works, our prayers, our preachings, our alms-givings, and our holiest things. The blood was not only sprinkled upon the doorposts of Israel's dwelling houses, but upon the sanctuary, the mercy-seat, and the altar, because as sin intrudes into our holiest things, the blood of Jesus is needed to purify them from defilement. If mercy be needed to be exercised towards our duties, what shall be said of our sins? How sweet the remembrance that inexhaustible mercy is waiting to be gracious to us, to restore our backslidings, and make our broken bones rejoice!
Charles Spurgeon
When Dr. Carey was suffering from a dangerous illness, the enquiry was made, "If this sickness should prove fatal, what passage would you select as the text for your funeral sermon?" He replied, "Oh, I feel that such a poor sinful creature is unworthy to have anything said about him; but if a funeral sermon must be preached, let it be from the words, 'Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy lovingkindness; according unto the multitude of Thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.'" In the same spirit of humility he directed in his will that the following inscription and nothing more should be cut on his gravestone:-
WILLIAM CAREY, BORN AUGUST 17th, 1761:
DIED - -
"A wretched, poor, and helpless worm On Thy kind arms I fall."
Only on the footing of free grace can the most experienced and most honoured of the saints approach their God. The best of men are conscious above all others that they are men at the best. Empty boats float high, but heavily laden vessels are low in the water; mere professors can boast, but true children of God cry for mercy upon their unprofitableness. We have need that the Lord should have mercy upon our good works, our prayers, our preachings, our alms-givings, and our holiest things. The blood was not only sprinkled upon the doorposts of Israel's dwelling houses, but upon the sanctuary, the mercy-seat, and the altar, because as sin intrudes into our holiest things, the blood of Jesus is needed to purify them from defilement. If mercy be needed to be exercised towards our duties, what shall be said of our sins? How sweet the remembrance that inexhaustible mercy is waiting to be gracious to us, to restore our backslidings, and make our broken bones rejoice!
Charles Spurgeon
Friday, August 14, 2009
Friday Spurgeon
Colossians 3:4: "Christ, who is our life."
Paul's marvellously rich expression indicates, that Christ is the source of our life. "You hath He quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins." That same voice which brought Lazarus out of the tomb raised us to newness of life. He is now the substance of our spiritual life. It is by His life that we live; He is in us, the hope of glory, the spring of our actions, the central thought which moves every other thought. Christ is the sustenance of our life. What can the Christian feed upon but Jesus' flesh and blood? "This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die." O wayworn pilgrims in this wilderness of sin, you never get a morsel to satisfy the hunger of your spirits, except ye find it in Him! Christ is the solace of our life. All our true joys come from Him; and in times of trouble, His presence is our consolation. There is nothing worth living for but Him; and His lovingkindness is better than life! Christ is the object of our life. As speeds the ship towards the port, so hastes the believer towards the haven of his Saviour's bosom. As flies the arrow to its goal, so flies the Christian towards the perfecting of his fellowship with Christ Jesus. As the soldier fights for his captain, and is crowned in his captain's victory, so the believer contends for Christ, and gets his triumph out of the triumphs of his Master. "For him to live is Christ." Christ is the exemplar of our life. Where there is the same life within, there will, there must be, to a great extent, the same developments without; and if we live in near fellowship with the Lord Jesus we shall grow like Him. We shall set Him before us as our Divine copy, and we shall seek to tread in His footsteps, until He shall become the crown of our life in glory. Oh! how safe, how honoured, how happy is the Christian, since Christ is our life!
Paul's marvellously rich expression indicates, that Christ is the source of our life. "You hath He quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins." That same voice which brought Lazarus out of the tomb raised us to newness of life. He is now the substance of our spiritual life. It is by His life that we live; He is in us, the hope of glory, the spring of our actions, the central thought which moves every other thought. Christ is the sustenance of our life. What can the Christian feed upon but Jesus' flesh and blood? "This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die." O wayworn pilgrims in this wilderness of sin, you never get a morsel to satisfy the hunger of your spirits, except ye find it in Him! Christ is the solace of our life. All our true joys come from Him; and in times of trouble, His presence is our consolation. There is nothing worth living for but Him; and His lovingkindness is better than life! Christ is the object of our life. As speeds the ship towards the port, so hastes the believer towards the haven of his Saviour's bosom. As flies the arrow to its goal, so flies the Christian towards the perfecting of his fellowship with Christ Jesus. As the soldier fights for his captain, and is crowned in his captain's victory, so the believer contends for Christ, and gets his triumph out of the triumphs of his Master. "For him to live is Christ." Christ is the exemplar of our life. Where there is the same life within, there will, there must be, to a great extent, the same developments without; and if we live in near fellowship with the Lord Jesus we shall grow like Him. We shall set Him before us as our Divine copy, and we shall seek to tread in His footsteps, until He shall become the crown of our life in glory. Oh! how safe, how honoured, how happy is the Christian, since Christ is our life!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Spurgeon on Romans 8:28
Romans 8:28" "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God."
Upon some points a believer is absolutely sure. He knows, for instance, that God sits in the stern-sheets of the vessel when it rocks most. He believes that an invisible hand is always on the world's tiller, and that wherever providence may drift, Jehovah steers it. That re-assuring knowledge prepares him for everything. He looks over the raging waters and sees the spirit of Jesus treading the billows, and he hears a voice saying, "It is I, be not afraid." He knows too that God is always wise, and, knowing this, he is confident that there can be no accidents, no mistakes; that nothing can occur which ought not to arise. He can say, "If I should lose all I have, it is better that I should lose than have, if God so wills: the worst calamity is the wisest and the kindest thing that could befall to me if God ordains it." "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God." The Christian does not merely hold this as a theory, but he knows it as a matter of fact. Everything has worked for good as yet; the poisonous drugs mixed in fit proportions have worked the cure; the sharp cuts of the lancet have cleansed out the proud flesh and facilitated the healing. Every event as yet has worked out the most divinely blessed results; and so, believing that God rules all, that He governs wisely, that He brings good out of evil, the believer's heart is assured, and he is enabled calmly to meet each trial as it comes. The believer can in the spirit of true resignation pray, "Send me what thou wilt, my God, so long as it comes from Thee; never came there an ill portion from Thy table to any of Thy children."
"Say not my soul, 'From whence can God relieve my care?
Remember that Omnipotence has servants everywhere.
His method is sublime, His heart profoundly kind,
God never is before His time, and never is behind.'"
Upon some points a believer is absolutely sure. He knows, for instance, that God sits in the stern-sheets of the vessel when it rocks most. He believes that an invisible hand is always on the world's tiller, and that wherever providence may drift, Jehovah steers it. That re-assuring knowledge prepares him for everything. He looks over the raging waters and sees the spirit of Jesus treading the billows, and he hears a voice saying, "It is I, be not afraid." He knows too that God is always wise, and, knowing this, he is confident that there can be no accidents, no mistakes; that nothing can occur which ought not to arise. He can say, "If I should lose all I have, it is better that I should lose than have, if God so wills: the worst calamity is the wisest and the kindest thing that could befall to me if God ordains it." "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God." The Christian does not merely hold this as a theory, but he knows it as a matter of fact. Everything has worked for good as yet; the poisonous drugs mixed in fit proportions have worked the cure; the sharp cuts of the lancet have cleansed out the proud flesh and facilitated the healing. Every event as yet has worked out the most divinely blessed results; and so, believing that God rules all, that He governs wisely, that He brings good out of evil, the believer's heart is assured, and he is enabled calmly to meet each trial as it comes. The believer can in the spirit of true resignation pray, "Send me what thou wilt, my God, so long as it comes from Thee; never came there an ill portion from Thy table to any of Thy children."
"Say not my soul, 'From whence can God relieve my care?
Remember that Omnipotence has servants everywhere.
His method is sublime, His heart profoundly kind,
God never is before His time, and never is behind.'"
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Sunday Quotes
" If lips and life do not agree, the testimony will not amount to much."
H. A. Ironside
"The man who is thoroughly devoted to the Lord does not need to wear some badge in his coat lapel, nor to proclaim that he is “living a life of victory.” It is still true that actions speak louder than words."
A. W. Pink
"To many Christians Christ is little more than an idea, or at best an idea. He is not fact. Millions of professed believers talk as if He were real and act as if He were not. And always our actual position is to be discovered by the way we act, not by the way we talk."
A. W. Tozer
"Let it ever be remembered that genuine faith in Christ will ever be productive of good works; for this faith worketh by love, as the apostle says, and love to God always produces obedience to his holy laws."
Adam Clarke
"Before we can pray, "Lord, Thy Kingdom come," we must be willing to pray, "My Kingdom go.""
Alan Redpath
"Tradition is Death to a true relationship with God. It allows people to go through the motions without having a heart experience. When the church starts doing things just because “we’ve always done it that way,” it is moving in the direction of a man-made religion. It is just an easy step to go from there to the elevation of tradition to dogma, allowing tradition to crowd out the Word and to excuse violations of the Word."
Chuck Smith
H. A. Ironside
"The man who is thoroughly devoted to the Lord does not need to wear some badge in his coat lapel, nor to proclaim that he is “living a life of victory.” It is still true that actions speak louder than words."
A. W. Pink
"To many Christians Christ is little more than an idea, or at best an idea. He is not fact. Millions of professed believers talk as if He were real and act as if He were not. And always our actual position is to be discovered by the way we act, not by the way we talk."
A. W. Tozer
"Let it ever be remembered that genuine faith in Christ will ever be productive of good works; for this faith worketh by love, as the apostle says, and love to God always produces obedience to his holy laws."
Adam Clarke
"Before we can pray, "Lord, Thy Kingdom come," we must be willing to pray, "My Kingdom go.""
Alan Redpath
"Tradition is Death to a true relationship with God. It allows people to go through the motions without having a heart experience. When the church starts doing things just because “we’ve always done it that way,” it is moving in the direction of a man-made religion. It is just an easy step to go from there to the elevation of tradition to dogma, allowing tradition to crowd out the Word and to excuse violations of the Word."
Chuck Smith
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
WHEN YOU GIVE UP, by Gayle D. Erwin
Have you ever said, "I give up. I can't do it."? Most
everyone, at some point in their life, spouts that statement.
Usually it results from despair and failure, which actually
is not a bad starting point.
So, what's the secret of changing directions and finding
success? Let me share two biblical principles of phenomenal
grace. First, when Jacob landed in his famous moment, away
from his family and wealth and awaiting death at the hand of
Esau, an angel (obviously a pre-fleshly appearance of Jesus)
appeared and challenged him to a wrestling match. In spite of
this strange encounter, Jacob, ever the competitor, took him
on, and on, and on.
After a night of fight, a draw was the best he could achieve.
No victory. Then, Jacob, recognizing who his opponent was,
did the smartest thing available to him--he gave up. "You
must not leave here until you bless me." You miss this moment
if you don't understand contests in that ancient world. Then,
since the winner was the stronger, he gave a gift to the
loser. Gift-giving was a show of strength! So, then, if you
had a case filled with trophies, you would merely show how
often you lost.
When Jacob demanded to be blessed, he was calling himself the
loser. God's response? You get a new name, Israel, because
you wrestled with God and won. Whoa! He just gave up. How
could he win? Ah, that is where the secret kicks in. When you
want to win with God, give up. So, examine your wrestling.
What wears you out? Could you be wrestling with God? Then
give up and ask him to bless you!
Second, Paul reveals the most glorious provision for us in
2 Corinthians 3:17,18: "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where
the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with
unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being
transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory,
which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." NIV
Here we are offered the opportunity to become God's problem
rather than our own. This is the process: We rip the veil off
by believing in Jesus, thus exposing ourselves (face to face)
to God. This could also be called immediate confession of sin
or need. Then God shines His glory (mercy, grace, compassion,
forgiveness; see The Father Style) on us and He transforms
us. Please note that "are being transformed" means that it is
an on-going process happening as often as needed and
happening to us. We are not doing it, God is.
Furthermore, not mere transformation, but "into His
likeness." So, if I keep my state of being instantly before
him, I become God's problem which He accepts and does the
changing. Whoopee!
everyone, at some point in their life, spouts that statement.
Usually it results from despair and failure, which actually
is not a bad starting point.
So, what's the secret of changing directions and finding
success? Let me share two biblical principles of phenomenal
grace. First, when Jacob landed in his famous moment, away
from his family and wealth and awaiting death at the hand of
Esau, an angel (obviously a pre-fleshly appearance of Jesus)
appeared and challenged him to a wrestling match. In spite of
this strange encounter, Jacob, ever the competitor, took him
on, and on, and on.
After a night of fight, a draw was the best he could achieve.
No victory. Then, Jacob, recognizing who his opponent was,
did the smartest thing available to him--he gave up. "You
must not leave here until you bless me." You miss this moment
if you don't understand contests in that ancient world. Then,
since the winner was the stronger, he gave a gift to the
loser. Gift-giving was a show of strength! So, then, if you
had a case filled with trophies, you would merely show how
often you lost.
When Jacob demanded to be blessed, he was calling himself the
loser. God's response? You get a new name, Israel, because
you wrestled with God and won. Whoa! He just gave up. How
could he win? Ah, that is where the secret kicks in. When you
want to win with God, give up. So, examine your wrestling.
What wears you out? Could you be wrestling with God? Then
give up and ask him to bless you!
Second, Paul reveals the most glorious provision for us in
2 Corinthians 3:17,18: "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where
the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with
unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being
transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory,
which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." NIV
Here we are offered the opportunity to become God's problem
rather than our own. This is the process: We rip the veil off
by believing in Jesus, thus exposing ourselves (face to face)
to God. This could also be called immediate confession of sin
or need. Then God shines His glory (mercy, grace, compassion,
forgiveness; see The Father Style) on us and He transforms
us. Please note that "are being transformed" means that it is
an on-going process happening as often as needed and
happening to us. We are not doing it, God is.
Furthermore, not mere transformation, but "into His
likeness." So, if I keep my state of being instantly before
him, I become God's problem which He accepts and does the
changing. Whoopee!
Monday, July 27, 2009
Very Interesting...
On a church bulletin board: “God does not believe in atheists; therefore atheists do not exist.”
Friday, July 24, 2009
Spurgeon on waiting...
Exodus 14:13: Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord.
These words contain God's command to the believer when he is reduced to great straits and brought into extraordinary difficulties. He cannot retreat; he cannot go forward; he is shut up on the right hand and on the left; what is he now to do? The Master's word to him is, "Stand still." It will be well for him if at such times he listens only to his Master's word, for other and evil advisers come with their suggestions. Despair whispers, "Lie down and die; give it all up." But God would have us put on a cheerful courage, and even in our worst times, rejoice in His love and faithfulness. Cowardice says, "Retreat; go back to the worldling's way of action; you cannot play the Christian's part, it is too difficult. Relinquish your principles." But, however much Satan may urge this course upon you, you cannot follow it if you are a child of God. His divine fiat has bid thee go from strength to strength, and so thou shalt, and neither death nor hell shall turn thee from thy course. What, if for a while thou art called to stand still, yet this is but to renew thy strength for some greater advance in due time. Precipitancy cries, "do something. Stir yourself; to stand still and wait, is sheer idleness." We must be doing something at once-we must do it so we think-instead of looking to the Lord, who will not only do something but will do everything. Presumption boasts, "If the sea be before you, march into it and expect a miracle." But Faith listens neither to Presumption, nor to Despair, nor to Cowardice, nor to Precipitancy, but it hears God say, "Stand still," and immovable as a rock it stands. "Stand still";-keep the posture of an upright man, ready for action, expecting further orders, cheerfully and patiently awaiting the directing voice; and it will not be long ere God shall say to you, as distinctly as Moses said it to the people of Israel, "Go forward."
These words contain God's command to the believer when he is reduced to great straits and brought into extraordinary difficulties. He cannot retreat; he cannot go forward; he is shut up on the right hand and on the left; what is he now to do? The Master's word to him is, "Stand still." It will be well for him if at such times he listens only to his Master's word, for other and evil advisers come with their suggestions. Despair whispers, "Lie down and die; give it all up." But God would have us put on a cheerful courage, and even in our worst times, rejoice in His love and faithfulness. Cowardice says, "Retreat; go back to the worldling's way of action; you cannot play the Christian's part, it is too difficult. Relinquish your principles." But, however much Satan may urge this course upon you, you cannot follow it if you are a child of God. His divine fiat has bid thee go from strength to strength, and so thou shalt, and neither death nor hell shall turn thee from thy course. What, if for a while thou art called to stand still, yet this is but to renew thy strength for some greater advance in due time. Precipitancy cries, "do something. Stir yourself; to stand still and wait, is sheer idleness." We must be doing something at once-we must do it so we think-instead of looking to the Lord, who will not only do something but will do everything. Presumption boasts, "If the sea be before you, march into it and expect a miracle." But Faith listens neither to Presumption, nor to Despair, nor to Cowardice, nor to Precipitancy, but it hears God say, "Stand still," and immovable as a rock it stands. "Stand still";-keep the posture of an upright man, ready for action, expecting further orders, cheerfully and patiently awaiting the directing voice; and it will not be long ere God shall say to you, as distinctly as Moses said it to the people of Israel, "Go forward."
Thursday, July 23, 2009
How many Christians does it take to change a light bulb?
Charismatic: Only 1, Hands are already in the air.
Pentecostal: 10, One to change the bulb, and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness.
Presbyterians: None, Lights will go on and off at predestined times.
Roman Catholic: None - Candles only.
Baptists: At least 15 - One to change the light bulb, and three committees to approve the change and decide who brings the potato salad and fried chicken.
Episcopalians: 3 - One to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks and one to talk about how much better the old one was.
Mormons: 5 - One man to change the bulb, and four wives to tell him how to do it.
Unitarians: We choose not to make a statement either in favor of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey you have found that light bulbs work for you, you are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your light bulb for the next Sunday service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions, including incandescent, fluorescent, 3-way, long-life and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence.
Methodists* : Undetermined - Whether your light is bright, dull, or completely out, you are loved. You can be a light bulb, turnip bulb, or tulip bulb. Bring a bulb of your choice to the Sunday lighting service and a covered dish to pass.
Nazarene: 6 - One woman to replace the bulb while five men review church lighting policy.
Lutherans: None - Lutherans don't believe in change.
Amish: What's a light bulb?
Pentecostal: 10, One to change the bulb, and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness.
Presbyterians: None, Lights will go on and off at predestined times.
Roman Catholic: None - Candles only.
Baptists: At least 15 - One to change the light bulb, and three committees to approve the change and decide who brings the potato salad and fried chicken.
Episcopalians: 3 - One to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks and one to talk about how much better the old one was.
Mormons: 5 - One man to change the bulb, and four wives to tell him how to do it.
Unitarians: We choose not to make a statement either in favor of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey you have found that light bulbs work for you, you are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your light bulb for the next Sunday service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions, including incandescent, fluorescent, 3-way, long-life and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence.
Methodists* : Undetermined - Whether your light is bright, dull, or completely out, you are loved. You can be a light bulb, turnip bulb, or tulip bulb. Bring a bulb of your choice to the Sunday lighting service and a covered dish to pass.
Nazarene: 6 - One woman to replace the bulb while five men review church lighting policy.
Lutherans: None - Lutherans don't believe in change.
Amish: What's a light bulb?
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Government Farm Visit
A cocky Department of Agriculture representative stopped at a farm and talked with the old farmer; "I need to inspect your farm."
The old farmer said, "You better not go in that field."
The Agriculture representative said in a "wise" tone, "I have the authority of the U. S. Government with me. See this card, I am allowed to go wherever I wish on agricultural land."
So the old farmer went about his farm chores.
Later, the farmer heard loud screams and saw the Department of Agriculture man running for the fence; close behind was the farmer's prize bull. The bull was madder than a nest full of hornets, and the bull was gaining at every step.
"Help," the rep shouted to the farmer, "what should I do?" he screamed helplessly.
The old farmer, hooking his thumbs in his overalls, called out: "Show him your card!"
The old farmer said, "You better not go in that field."
The Agriculture representative said in a "wise" tone, "I have the authority of the U. S. Government with me. See this card, I am allowed to go wherever I wish on agricultural land."
So the old farmer went about his farm chores.
Later, the farmer heard loud screams and saw the Department of Agriculture man running for the fence; close behind was the farmer's prize bull. The bull was madder than a nest full of hornets, and the bull was gaining at every step.
"Help," the rep shouted to the farmer, "what should I do?" he screamed helplessly.
The old farmer, hooking his thumbs in his overalls, called out: "Show him your card!"
Monday, July 13, 2009
Spurgeon on my least favorite subject :(
1 Peter 5:10: After that ye have suffered awhile, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
You have seen the arch of heaven as it spans the plain: glorious are its colours, and rare its hues. It is beautiful, but, alas, it passes away, and lo, it is not. The fair colours give way to the fleecy clouds, and the sky is no longer brilliant with the tints of heaven. It is not established. How can it be? A glorious show made up of transitory sun-beams and passing rain-drops, how can it abide? The graces of the Christian character must not resemble the rainbow in its transitory beauty, but, on the contrary, must be stablished, settled, abiding. Seek, O believer, that every good thing you have may be an abiding thing. May your character not be a writing upon the sand, but an inscription upon the rock! May your faith be no "baseless fabric of a vision," but may it be builded of material able to endure that awful fire which shall consume the wood, hay, and stubble of the hypocrite. May you be rooted and grounded in love. May your convictions be deep, your love real, your desires earnest. May your whole life be so settled and established, that all the blasts of hell, and all the storms of earth shall never be able to remove you. But notice how this blessing of being "stablished in the faith" is gained. The apostle's words point us to suffering as the means employed-"After that ye have suffered awhile." It is of no use to hope that we shall be well rooted if no rough winds pass over us. Those old gnarlings on the root of the oak tree, and those strange twistings of the branches, all tell of the many storms that have swept over it, and they are also indicators of the depth into which the roots have forced their way. So the Christian is made strong, and firmly rooted by all the trials and storms of life. Shrink not then from the tempestuous winds of trial, but take comfort, believing that by their rough discipline God is fulfilling this benediction to you.
You have seen the arch of heaven as it spans the plain: glorious are its colours, and rare its hues. It is beautiful, but, alas, it passes away, and lo, it is not. The fair colours give way to the fleecy clouds, and the sky is no longer brilliant with the tints of heaven. It is not established. How can it be? A glorious show made up of transitory sun-beams and passing rain-drops, how can it abide? The graces of the Christian character must not resemble the rainbow in its transitory beauty, but, on the contrary, must be stablished, settled, abiding. Seek, O believer, that every good thing you have may be an abiding thing. May your character not be a writing upon the sand, but an inscription upon the rock! May your faith be no "baseless fabric of a vision," but may it be builded of material able to endure that awful fire which shall consume the wood, hay, and stubble of the hypocrite. May you be rooted and grounded in love. May your convictions be deep, your love real, your desires earnest. May your whole life be so settled and established, that all the blasts of hell, and all the storms of earth shall never be able to remove you. But notice how this blessing of being "stablished in the faith" is gained. The apostle's words point us to suffering as the means employed-"After that ye have suffered awhile." It is of no use to hope that we shall be well rooted if no rough winds pass over us. Those old gnarlings on the root of the oak tree, and those strange twistings of the branches, all tell of the many storms that have swept over it, and they are also indicators of the depth into which the roots have forced their way. So the Christian is made strong, and firmly rooted by all the trials and storms of life. Shrink not then from the tempestuous winds of trial, but take comfort, believing that by their rough discipline God is fulfilling this benediction to you.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Spurgen on God's Promise
Numbers 11:23: Thou shalt see now whether My word shall come to pass unto thee or not.
God had made a positive promise to Moses that for the space of a whole month He would feed the vast host in the wilderness with flesh. Moses, being overtaken by a fit of unbelief, looks to the outward means, and is at a loss to know how the promise can be fulfilled. He looked to the creature instead of the Creator. But doth the Creator expect the creature to fulfil His promise for Him? No; He who makes the promise ever fulfils it by His own unaided omnipotence. If He speaks, it is done-done by Himself. His promises do not depend for their fulfillment upon the co-operation of the puny strength of man. We can at once perceive the mistake which Moses made. And yet how commonly we do the same! God has promised to supply our needs, and we look to the creature to do what God has promised to do; and then, because we perceive the creature to be weak and feeble, we indulge in unbelief. Why look we to that quarter at all? Will you look to the north pole to gather fruits ripened in the sun? Verily, you would act no more foolishly if ye did this than when you look to the weak for strength, and to the creature to do the Creator's work. Let us, then, put the question on the right footing. The ground of faith is not the sufficiency of the visible means for the performance of the promise, but the all-sufficiency of the invisible God, who will most surely do as He hath said. If after clearly seeing that the onus lies with the Lord and not with the creature, we dare to indulge in mistrust, the question of God comes home mightily to us: "Has the Lord's hand waxed short?" May it happen, too, in His mercy, that with the question there may flash upon our souls that blessed declaration, "Thou shalt see now whether My word shall come to pass unto thee or not."
God had made a positive promise to Moses that for the space of a whole month He would feed the vast host in the wilderness with flesh. Moses, being overtaken by a fit of unbelief, looks to the outward means, and is at a loss to know how the promise can be fulfilled. He looked to the creature instead of the Creator. But doth the Creator expect the creature to fulfil His promise for Him? No; He who makes the promise ever fulfils it by His own unaided omnipotence. If He speaks, it is done-done by Himself. His promises do not depend for their fulfillment upon the co-operation of the puny strength of man. We can at once perceive the mistake which Moses made. And yet how commonly we do the same! God has promised to supply our needs, and we look to the creature to do what God has promised to do; and then, because we perceive the creature to be weak and feeble, we indulge in unbelief. Why look we to that quarter at all? Will you look to the north pole to gather fruits ripened in the sun? Verily, you would act no more foolishly if ye did this than when you look to the weak for strength, and to the creature to do the Creator's work. Let us, then, put the question on the right footing. The ground of faith is not the sufficiency of the visible means for the performance of the promise, but the all-sufficiency of the invisible God, who will most surely do as He hath said. If after clearly seeing that the onus lies with the Lord and not with the creature, we dare to indulge in mistrust, the question of God comes home mightily to us: "Has the Lord's hand waxed short?" May it happen, too, in His mercy, that with the question there may flash upon our souls that blessed declaration, "Thou shalt see now whether My word shall come to pass unto thee or not."
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Spurgeon on the 4th
Psalm 33:21: Our heart shall rejoice in Him.
Blessed is the fact that Christians can rejoice even in the deepest distress; although trouble may surround them, they still sing; and, like many birds, they sing best in their cages. The waves may roll over them, but their souls soon rise to the surface and see the light of God's countenance; they have a buoyancy about them which keeps their head always above the water, and helps them to sing amid the tempest, "God is with me still." To whom shall the glory be given? Oh! to Jesus-it is all by Jesus. Trouble does not necessarily bring consolation with it to the believer, but the presence of the Son of God in the fiery furnace with him fills his heart with joy. He is sick and suffering, but Jesus visits him and makes his bed for him. He is dying, and the cold chilly waters of Jordan are gathering about him up to the neck, but Jesus puts His arms around him, and cries, "Fear not, beloved; to die is to be blessed; the waters of death have their fountain-head in heaven; they are not bitter, they are sweet as nectar, for they flow from the throne of God." As the departing saint wades through the stream, and the billows gather around him, and heart and flesh fail him, the same voice sounds in his ears, "Fear not; I am with thee; be not dismayed; I am thy God." As he nears the borders of the infinite unknown, and is almost affrighted to enter the realm of shades, Jesus says, "Fear not, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Thus strengthened and consoled, the believer is not afraid to die; nay, he is even willing to depart, for since he has seen Jesus as the morning star, he longs to gaze upon Him as the sun in his strength. Truly, the presence of Jesus is all the heaven we desire. He is at once
"The glory of our brightest days;
The comfort of our nights."
Blessed is the fact that Christians can rejoice even in the deepest distress; although trouble may surround them, they still sing; and, like many birds, they sing best in their cages. The waves may roll over them, but their souls soon rise to the surface and see the light of God's countenance; they have a buoyancy about them which keeps their head always above the water, and helps them to sing amid the tempest, "God is with me still." To whom shall the glory be given? Oh! to Jesus-it is all by Jesus. Trouble does not necessarily bring consolation with it to the believer, but the presence of the Son of God in the fiery furnace with him fills his heart with joy. He is sick and suffering, but Jesus visits him and makes his bed for him. He is dying, and the cold chilly waters of Jordan are gathering about him up to the neck, but Jesus puts His arms around him, and cries, "Fear not, beloved; to die is to be blessed; the waters of death have their fountain-head in heaven; they are not bitter, they are sweet as nectar, for they flow from the throne of God." As the departing saint wades through the stream, and the billows gather around him, and heart and flesh fail him, the same voice sounds in his ears, "Fear not; I am with thee; be not dismayed; I am thy God." As he nears the borders of the infinite unknown, and is almost affrighted to enter the realm of shades, Jesus says, "Fear not, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Thus strengthened and consoled, the believer is not afraid to die; nay, he is even willing to depart, for since he has seen Jesus as the morning star, he longs to gaze upon Him as the sun in his strength. Truly, the presence of Jesus is all the heaven we desire. He is at once
"The glory of our brightest days;
The comfort of our nights."
Friday, July 3, 2009
Content
I have posted men on this site in the past who I didn't completely agree with. This was done because I agreed with what they were saying in a certain article or statement.
However, it is now coming to light that some of them had historical roots in the "Demon Possession of Christians Movement", "Shepherding Movement", the "New Age" (through the guise of the "Church Growth Movement) or "Evangelicals and Catholics Together". I cannot state in strong enough terms how much I disagree with these.
Henceforth,I am going to be very particular about what is posted here. I do apologize if what has been posted in the past led anyone to believe that I endorsed any of these teachings or movements.
No doubt some will be offended by my drawing a line in the sand and want to argue. However, I must stand for the truth as defined by the Word.
Okie Preacher
However, it is now coming to light that some of them had historical roots in the "Demon Possession of Christians Movement", "Shepherding Movement", the "New Age" (through the guise of the "Church Growth Movement) or "Evangelicals and Catholics Together". I cannot state in strong enough terms how much I disagree with these.
Henceforth,I am going to be very particular about what is posted here. I do apologize if what has been posted in the past led anyone to believe that I endorsed any of these teachings or movements.
No doubt some will be offended by my drawing a line in the sand and want to argue. However, I must stand for the truth as defined by the Word.
Okie Preacher
Saturday, June 27, 2009
God hears us!
Psalms 116:1-2: "I love the LORD, because He has heard My voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live."
If we are honest today we all would admit that there are times that we feel as if the Lord is not hearing our prayers. I believe that everyone, at one time or another, feels this way.
The Psalmist is rejoicing because God has delivered him from death (verse 3). So he rejoices and gives God praise, which is the correct thing to do. When God answers our prayers, it is only right to thank Him and give Him praise (Luke 17:17-18).
However, do we thank and praise God before our prayers are answered? Often, we all fail to do so.
God hears our prayers, not because we feel He does or because our circumstances confirm that He does (for often our circumstances declare the opposite). God hears our prayers because He says He does. The Psalmist uses the word, "inclined." This word means to pay attention to and concentrate on what is being said. Think about it - when you or I pray, God gives us His undivided attention - He hears our prayers!
Chuck Smith is fond of saying that God is always working behind the scenes. This is true. We often don't see Him working, but He is there just the same, working out His plan and purpose for our lives.
So rejoice - God has inclined His ear to our prayers, and is working on our behalf. Always!
If we are honest today we all would admit that there are times that we feel as if the Lord is not hearing our prayers. I believe that everyone, at one time or another, feels this way.
The Psalmist is rejoicing because God has delivered him from death (verse 3). So he rejoices and gives God praise, which is the correct thing to do. When God answers our prayers, it is only right to thank Him and give Him praise (Luke 17:17-18).
However, do we thank and praise God before our prayers are answered? Often, we all fail to do so.
God hears our prayers, not because we feel He does or because our circumstances confirm that He does (for often our circumstances declare the opposite). God hears our prayers because He says He does. The Psalmist uses the word, "inclined." This word means to pay attention to and concentrate on what is being said. Think about it - when you or I pray, God gives us His undivided attention - He hears our prayers!
Chuck Smith is fond of saying that God is always working behind the scenes. This is true. We often don't see Him working, but He is there just the same, working out His plan and purpose for our lives.
So rejoice - God has inclined His ear to our prayers, and is working on our behalf. Always!
Friday, June 26, 2009
Spurgeon on THE Foundation
2 Timothy 2:19: The foundation of God standeth sure.
The foundation upon which our faith rests is this, that "God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." The great fact on which genuine faith relies is, that "the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us," and that "Christ also hath suffered for sin, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God"; "Who Himself bare our sins in His own body on the tree"; "For the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." In one word, the great pillar of the Christian's hope is substitution. The vicarious sacrifice of Christ for the guilty, Christ being made sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him, Christ offering up a true and proper expiatory and substitutionary sacrifice in the room, place, and stead of as many as the Father gave Him, who are known to God by name, and are recognized in their own hearts by their trusting in Jesus-this is the cardinal fact of the gospel. If this foundation were removed, what could we do? But it standeth firm as the throne of God. We know it; we rest on it; we rejoice in it; and our delight is to hold it, to meditate upon it, and to proclaim it, while we desire to be actuated and moved by gratitude for it in every part of our life and conversation. In these days a direct attack is made upon the doctrine of the atonement. Men cannot bear substitution. They gnash their teeth at the thought of the Lamb of God bearing the sin of man. But we, who know by experience the preciousness of this truth, will proclaim it in defiance of them confidently and unceasingly. We will neither dilute it nor change it, nor fritter it away in any shape or fashion. It shall still be Christ, a positive substitute, bearing human guilt and suffering in the stead of men. We cannot, dare not, give it up, for it is our life, and despite every controversy we feel that "Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure."
The foundation upon which our faith rests is this, that "God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." The great fact on which genuine faith relies is, that "the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us," and that "Christ also hath suffered for sin, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God"; "Who Himself bare our sins in His own body on the tree"; "For the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." In one word, the great pillar of the Christian's hope is substitution. The vicarious sacrifice of Christ for the guilty, Christ being made sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him, Christ offering up a true and proper expiatory and substitutionary sacrifice in the room, place, and stead of as many as the Father gave Him, who are known to God by name, and are recognized in their own hearts by their trusting in Jesus-this is the cardinal fact of the gospel. If this foundation were removed, what could we do? But it standeth firm as the throne of God. We know it; we rest on it; we rejoice in it; and our delight is to hold it, to meditate upon it, and to proclaim it, while we desire to be actuated and moved by gratitude for it in every part of our life and conversation. In these days a direct attack is made upon the doctrine of the atonement. Men cannot bear substitution. They gnash their teeth at the thought of the Lamb of God bearing the sin of man. But we, who know by experience the preciousness of this truth, will proclaim it in defiance of them confidently and unceasingly. We will neither dilute it nor change it, nor fritter it away in any shape or fashion. It shall still be Christ, a positive substitute, bearing human guilt and suffering in the stead of men. We cannot, dare not, give it up, for it is our life, and despite every controversy we feel that "Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure."
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Wrestle with this for a while...
Psalms 103:17: "But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children."
"Is from the eternity past to the eternity to come. It had its foundation in the eternal decrees of God; it has its security in his purpose that where it is conferred, it shall not be withdrawn. It had no beginning; it will have no end. There never was a period in the past when it was not the purpose of God to save his people; there never will be a period in the future when it will be said that his saving mercy has ceased. It would be difficult to think of a statement which would at the same time, in so few words, confirm at once the doctrine of the divine decrees, and the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints.
If either of these doctrines is denied, then what is here stated by the psalmist is not true: if the doctrine of the divine decrees is denied, then his purpose of mercy had a beginning, and is not "from everlasting;" if the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints is denied, then his mercy has an end, and is not "to everlasting."
(from Barnes' Notes)
"Is from the eternity past to the eternity to come. It had its foundation in the eternal decrees of God; it has its security in his purpose that where it is conferred, it shall not be withdrawn. It had no beginning; it will have no end. There never was a period in the past when it was not the purpose of God to save his people; there never will be a period in the future when it will be said that his saving mercy has ceased. It would be difficult to think of a statement which would at the same time, in so few words, confirm at once the doctrine of the divine decrees, and the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints.
If either of these doctrines is denied, then what is here stated by the psalmist is not true: if the doctrine of the divine decrees is denied, then his purpose of mercy had a beginning, and is not "from everlasting;" if the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints is denied, then his mercy has an end, and is not "to everlasting."
(from Barnes' Notes)
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Prayer for a friend...
Please pray for my friend, Pastor Bill Walden, of Cornerstone Miniseries, Napa, CA. He is taking a group back to Mexico for the ongoing work they are doing there.
Pray for their safety, in both building and witnessing.
Pray for their safety, in both building and witnessing.
Spurgeon on Sifting
Amos 9:9
For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.
Every sifting comes by divine command and permission. Satan must ask leave before he can lay a finger upon Job. Nay, more, in some sense our siftings are directly the work of heaven, for the text says, "I will sift the house of Israel."
Satan, like a drudge, may hold the sieve, hoping to destroy the corn; but the overruling hand of the Master is accomplishing the purity of the grain by the very process which the enemy intended to be destructive. Precious, but much sifted corn of the Lord's floor, be comforted by the blessed fact that the Lord directeth both flail and sieve to His own glory, and to thine eternal profit. The Lord Jesus will surely use the fan which is in His hand, and will divide the precious from the vile. All are not Israel that are of Israel; the heap on the barn floor is not clean provender, and hence the winnowing process must be performed.
In the sieve true weight alone has power. Husks and chaff being devoid of substance must fly before the wind, and only solid corn will remain. Observe the complete safety of the Lord's wheat; even the least grain has a promise of preservation. God Himself sifts, and therefore it is stern and terrible work; He sifts them in all places, "among all nations"; He sifts them in the most effectual manner, "like as corn is sifted in a sieve"; and yet for all this, not the smallest, lightest, or most shrivelled grain, is permitted to fall to the ground.
Every individual believer is precious in the sight of the Lord, a shepherd would not lose one sheep, nor a jeweller one diamond, nor a mother one child, nor a man one limb of his body, nor will the Lord lose one of His redeemed people. However little we may be, if we are the Lord's, we may rejoice that we are preserved in Christ Jesus.
For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.
Every sifting comes by divine command and permission. Satan must ask leave before he can lay a finger upon Job. Nay, more, in some sense our siftings are directly the work of heaven, for the text says, "I will sift the house of Israel."
Satan, like a drudge, may hold the sieve, hoping to destroy the corn; but the overruling hand of the Master is accomplishing the purity of the grain by the very process which the enemy intended to be destructive. Precious, but much sifted corn of the Lord's floor, be comforted by the blessed fact that the Lord directeth both flail and sieve to His own glory, and to thine eternal profit. The Lord Jesus will surely use the fan which is in His hand, and will divide the precious from the vile. All are not Israel that are of Israel; the heap on the barn floor is not clean provender, and hence the winnowing process must be performed.
In the sieve true weight alone has power. Husks and chaff being devoid of substance must fly before the wind, and only solid corn will remain. Observe the complete safety of the Lord's wheat; even the least grain has a promise of preservation. God Himself sifts, and therefore it is stern and terrible work; He sifts them in all places, "among all nations"; He sifts them in the most effectual manner, "like as corn is sifted in a sieve"; and yet for all this, not the smallest, lightest, or most shrivelled grain, is permitted to fall to the ground.
Every individual believer is precious in the sight of the Lord, a shepherd would not lose one sheep, nor a jeweller one diamond, nor a mother one child, nor a man one limb of his body, nor will the Lord lose one of His redeemed people. However little we may be, if we are the Lord's, we may rejoice that we are preserved in Christ Jesus.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Seperation
"Would that we could see the wall of separation between the church and the world made broader and stronger. It makes one sad to hear Christians saying, “Well, there is no harm in this; there is no harm in that”, thus getting as near to the world as possible. Grace is at a low ebb in that soul which can even raise the question of how far it may go in worldly conformity." C.H. Spurgeon
Perhaps it is time to emphasize separation between the Church and the World as much as the world emphasizes separation of Church and State?
Perhaps it is time to emphasize separation between the Church and the World as much as the world emphasizes separation of Church and State?
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Can It Happen Here? Chuck Colson
In China, Christians have a choice: Join a government-approved church-which is constantly monitored by the authorities-or join an underground church.
Thank heavens things like that don't happen in the West, you may be thinking. Think again. In Britain, the government has begun sticking its nose in church business, telling churches what to do.
According to the Daily Telegraph, starting next year, the British government is going to begin forcing churches and other religious institutions to hire open, practicing homosexuals. It will happen under the provisions of the so-called Equity Bill, which forbids discrimination against homosexuals or transsexuals.
The law would "cover almost all church employees," according to Deputy Equities Minster Maria Eagle. "The circumstances in which religious institutions can practice anything less than full equality are few and far between," Eagle said. Church groups, she said, "cannot claim that everything they run is outside the scope of anti-discrimination law."
What's next-regulating the content of sermons? I'm not kidding. According to Eagle, "Members of faith groups have a role in making the argument in their own communities for greater" acceptance of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered people.
Maybe it would simplify things if the government simply wrote the sermons for the pastors.
The Equity Law could lead to some interesting situations. What happens if a church, under pressure, hires a gay youth minister-and orders him to teach kids about the sinfulness of homosexual behavior? And I can only imagine the reaction of a British mosque when the religion police orders it to hire a lesbian secretary.
Neil Addison, a Catholic barrister who is an expert on religious discrimination laws, told the Telegraph that the Equity Law "is a threat to religious liberty." "What we are losing," he said, "is the right for to make free choices."
He's right. To put it more bluntly, the government is beginning to run the churches. And if they succeed, it will be the end of religious freedom in Britain.
Legislation like the Equity Law should concern Americans. So-called "social reforms" that begin in Europe soon wash up on our own shores.
And then, what will happen to the Church? Will we put our congregations under the authority of Caesar? Or will we resist and, if need be, abandon our elegant buildings and, like our faithful brethren in China, form underground churches?
The Bible teaches that the followers of Christ will be tested. We ought to be in prayer for the church in Great Britain, asking God to guide it as the government bears down.
Second, we ought to be preparing for similar laws here. Many churches are already under great pressure by homosexual activists to violate their own teachings under the guise of "fairness"-a much abused word.
This, by the way, is not a hysterical rant. The threat is very real.
Third, we ought to remind our neighbors that the First Amendment was written not just to protect the government from churches, but more so to protect churches from the government.
Thank heavens things like that don't happen in the West, you may be thinking. Think again. In Britain, the government has begun sticking its nose in church business, telling churches what to do.
According to the Daily Telegraph, starting next year, the British government is going to begin forcing churches and other religious institutions to hire open, practicing homosexuals. It will happen under the provisions of the so-called Equity Bill, which forbids discrimination against homosexuals or transsexuals.
The law would "cover almost all church employees," according to Deputy Equities Minster Maria Eagle. "The circumstances in which religious institutions can practice anything less than full equality are few and far between," Eagle said. Church groups, she said, "cannot claim that everything they run is outside the scope of anti-discrimination law."
What's next-regulating the content of sermons? I'm not kidding. According to Eagle, "Members of faith groups have a role in making the argument in their own communities for greater" acceptance of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered people.
Maybe it would simplify things if the government simply wrote the sermons for the pastors.
The Equity Law could lead to some interesting situations. What happens if a church, under pressure, hires a gay youth minister-and orders him to teach kids about the sinfulness of homosexual behavior? And I can only imagine the reaction of a British mosque when the religion police orders it to hire a lesbian secretary.
Neil Addison, a Catholic barrister who is an expert on religious discrimination laws, told the Telegraph that the Equity Law "is a threat to religious liberty." "What we are losing," he said, "is the right for to make free choices."
He's right. To put it more bluntly, the government is beginning to run the churches. And if they succeed, it will be the end of religious freedom in Britain.
Legislation like the Equity Law should concern Americans. So-called "social reforms" that begin in Europe soon wash up on our own shores.
And then, what will happen to the Church? Will we put our congregations under the authority of Caesar? Or will we resist and, if need be, abandon our elegant buildings and, like our faithful brethren in China, form underground churches?
The Bible teaches that the followers of Christ will be tested. We ought to be in prayer for the church in Great Britain, asking God to guide it as the government bears down.
Second, we ought to be preparing for similar laws here. Many churches are already under great pressure by homosexual activists to violate their own teachings under the guise of "fairness"-a much abused word.
This, by the way, is not a hysterical rant. The threat is very real.
Third, we ought to remind our neighbors that the First Amendment was written not just to protect the government from churches, but more so to protect churches from the government.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Quotes for Today
"I thought I finally had life all figured out but there was a flag on the play." Charlie Brown
"Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread." D. T. Niles
"The world is looking for better methods, but God is looking for better men." E. M. Bounds
"The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing." Edmund Burke
"God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with him." Jim Elliot
"Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread." D. T. Niles
"The world is looking for better methods, but God is looking for better men." E. M. Bounds
"The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing." Edmund Burke
"God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with him." Jim Elliot
Monday, June 15, 2009
Wisdom from Spurgeon
Daniel 9:8: O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face . . . because we have sinned against Thee.
A deep sense and clear sight of sin, its heinousness, and the punishment which it deserves, should make us lie low before the throne. We have sinned as Christians. Alas! that it should be so. Favoured as we have been, we have yet been ungrateful: privileged beyond most, we have not brought forth fruit in proportion. Who is there, although he may long have been engaged in the Christian warfare, that will not blush when he looks back upon the past? As for our days before we were regenerated, may they be forgiven and forgotten; but since then, though we have not sinned as before, yet we have sinned against light and against love-light which has really penetrated our minds, and love in which we have rejoiced. Oh, the atrocity of the sin of a pardoned soul! An unpardoned sinner sins cheaply compared with the sin of one of God's own elect ones, who has had communion with Christ and leaned his head upon Jesus' bosom. Look at David! Many will talk of his sin, but I pray you look at his repentance, and hear his broken bones, as each one of them moans out its dolorous confession! Mark his tears, as they fall upon the ground, and the deep sighs with which he accompanies the softened music of his harp! We have erred: let us, therefore, seek the spirit of penitence. Look, again, at Peter! We speak much of Peter's denying his Master. Remember, it is written, "He wept bitterly." Have we no denials of our Lord to be lamented with tears? Alas! these sins of ours, before and after conversion, would consign us to the place of inextinguishable fire if it were not for the sovereign mercy which has made us to differ, snatching us like brands from the burning. My soul, bow down under a sense of thy natural sinfulness, and worship thy God. Admire the grace which saves thee-the mercy which spares thee-the love which pardons thee!
A deep sense and clear sight of sin, its heinousness, and the punishment which it deserves, should make us lie low before the throne. We have sinned as Christians. Alas! that it should be so. Favoured as we have been, we have yet been ungrateful: privileged beyond most, we have not brought forth fruit in proportion. Who is there, although he may long have been engaged in the Christian warfare, that will not blush when he looks back upon the past? As for our days before we were regenerated, may they be forgiven and forgotten; but since then, though we have not sinned as before, yet we have sinned against light and against love-light which has really penetrated our minds, and love in which we have rejoiced. Oh, the atrocity of the sin of a pardoned soul! An unpardoned sinner sins cheaply compared with the sin of one of God's own elect ones, who has had communion with Christ and leaned his head upon Jesus' bosom. Look at David! Many will talk of his sin, but I pray you look at his repentance, and hear his broken bones, as each one of them moans out its dolorous confession! Mark his tears, as they fall upon the ground, and the deep sighs with which he accompanies the softened music of his harp! We have erred: let us, therefore, seek the spirit of penitence. Look, again, at Peter! We speak much of Peter's denying his Master. Remember, it is written, "He wept bitterly." Have we no denials of our Lord to be lamented with tears? Alas! these sins of ours, before and after conversion, would consign us to the place of inextinguishable fire if it were not for the sovereign mercy which has made us to differ, snatching us like brands from the burning. My soul, bow down under a sense of thy natural sinfulness, and worship thy God. Admire the grace which saves thee-the mercy which spares thee-the love which pardons thee!
Sunday, June 14, 2009
False Ministers, 2
Shallow preaching that does not grapple with the terrible fact of man’s sinfulness and guilt, calling on “all men everywhere to repent,” results in shallow conversions; and so we have a myriad of glib-tongued professors today who give no evidence of regeneration whatever. Prating of salvation by grace, they manifest no grace in their lives. Loudly declaring they are justified by faith alone, they fail to remember that “faith without works is dead”; and that justification by works before men is not to be ignored as though it were in contradiction to justification by faith before God. We need to reread James 3 and let its serious message sink deep into our hearts, that it may control our lives. “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” No man can truly believe in Christ, who does not first repent. Nor will his repentance end when he has saving faith, but the more he knows God as he goes on through the years, the deeper will that repentance become. A servant of Christ said: “I repented before I knew the meaning of the word. I have repented far more since than I did then.”
- Harry Ironside (from ‘Except Ye Repent’)
1876 – 1951
- Harry Ironside (from ‘Except Ye Repent’)
1876 – 1951
Saturday, June 13, 2009
False Ministers
The apostles of Satan are not abortionists and sex traffickers, but are for the most part ordained ministers. Thousands of those who occupy our post-modern pulpits are no longer engaged in presenting the fundamentals of the Christian Faith, but have turned aside from the Truth and have given heed unto fables. Instead of magnifying the enormity of sin and setting forth its eternal consequences, they minimize it by declaring that sin is merely ignorance or the absence of good. Instead of warning their hearers to “flee from the wrath to come” they make God a liar by declaring that He is too loving and merciful to send any of His own creatures to eternal torment. Instead of declaring that “without shedding of blood is no remission,” they merely hold up Christ as the great Exemplar and exhort their hearers to “follow in His steps.” Of them it must be said, “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God” ( Romans 10:3).
Their message may sound very plausible and their aim appear very praiseworthy, yet we read of them— “for such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves (imitating) into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore, it is no great thing [not to be wondered at] if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their works” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).
In addition to the fact that today hundreds of churches are without a leader who faithfully declares the whole counsel of God and presents His way of salvation, we also have to face the additional fact that the majority of people in these churches are very unlikely to learn the Truth themselves.
A. W. Pink (1886–1952)
Their message may sound very plausible and their aim appear very praiseworthy, yet we read of them— “for such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves (imitating) into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore, it is no great thing [not to be wondered at] if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their works” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).
In addition to the fact that today hundreds of churches are without a leader who faithfully declares the whole counsel of God and presents His way of salvation, we also have to face the additional fact that the majority of people in these churches are very unlikely to learn the Truth themselves.
A. W. Pink (1886–1952)
Friday, June 12, 2009
Friday's Spurgeon
Psalm 126:3: The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad.
Some Christians are sadly prone to look on the dark side of everything, and to dwell more upon what they have gone through than upon what God has done for them. Ask for their impression of the Christian life, and they will describe their continual conflicts, their deep afflictions, their sad adversities, and the sinfulness of their hearts, yet with scarcely any allusion to the mercy and help which God has vouchsafed them. But a Christian whose soul is in a healthy state, will come forward joyously, and say, "I will speak, not about myself, but to the honour of my God. He hath brought me up out of an horrible pit, and out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings: and He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. The Lord hath done great things for me, whereof I am glad." Such an abstract of experience as this is the very best that any child of God can present. It is true that we endure trials, but it is just as true that we are delivered out of them. It is true that we have our corruptions, and mournfully do we know this, but it is quite as true that we have an all-sufficient Saviour, who overcomes these corruptions, and delivers us from their dominion. In looking back, it would be wrong to deny that we have been in the Slough of Despond, and have crept along the Valley of Humiliation, but it would be equally wicked to forget that we have been through them safely and profitably; we have not remained in them, thanks to our Almighty Helper and Leader, who has brought us "out into a wealthy place." The deeper our troubles, the louder our thanks to God, who has led us through all, and preserved us until now. Our griefs cannot mar the melody of our praise, we reckon them to be the bass part of our life's song, "He hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad."
Some Christians are sadly prone to look on the dark side of everything, and to dwell more upon what they have gone through than upon what God has done for them. Ask for their impression of the Christian life, and they will describe their continual conflicts, their deep afflictions, their sad adversities, and the sinfulness of their hearts, yet with scarcely any allusion to the mercy and help which God has vouchsafed them. But a Christian whose soul is in a healthy state, will come forward joyously, and say, "I will speak, not about myself, but to the honour of my God. He hath brought me up out of an horrible pit, and out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings: and He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. The Lord hath done great things for me, whereof I am glad." Such an abstract of experience as this is the very best that any child of God can present. It is true that we endure trials, but it is just as true that we are delivered out of them. It is true that we have our corruptions, and mournfully do we know this, but it is quite as true that we have an all-sufficient Saviour, who overcomes these corruptions, and delivers us from their dominion. In looking back, it would be wrong to deny that we have been in the Slough of Despond, and have crept along the Valley of Humiliation, but it would be equally wicked to forget that we have been through them safely and profitably; we have not remained in them, thanks to our Almighty Helper and Leader, who has brought us "out into a wealthy place." The deeper our troubles, the louder our thanks to God, who has led us through all, and preserved us until now. Our griefs cannot mar the melody of our praise, we reckon them to be the bass part of our life's song, "He hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad."
Monday, June 8, 2009
The Media on Obama...
http://www.eyeblast.tv/public/checker.aspx?v=ydaG6UprkU
"We're not just parochial, we're not just chauvinistic... we stand for something. In a way, Obama's standing above the country, above the world. He's sort of God. He's going to bring all different sides together." --Newsweek's Evan Thomas on the June 5 "Hardball with Chris Matthews" about Obama's upcoming D-Day Anniversary speech at Normandy, comparing Obama to the 'parochial' Ronald Reagan.
"We're not just parochial, we're not just chauvinistic... we stand for something. In a way, Obama's standing above the country, above the world. He's sort of God. He's going to bring all different sides together." --Newsweek's Evan Thomas on the June 5 "Hardball with Chris Matthews" about Obama's upcoming D-Day Anniversary speech at Normandy, comparing Obama to the 'parochial' Ronald Reagan.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Wisdom from Spurgeon
Psalm 55:22: Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee.
Care, even though exercised upon legitimate objects, if carried to excess, has in it the nature of sin. The precept to avoid anxious care is earnestly inculcated by our Saviour, again and again; it is reiterated by the apostles; and it is one which cannot be neglected without involving transgression: for the very essence of anxious care is the imagining that we are wiser than God, and the thrusting ourselves into His place to do for Him that which He has undertaken to do for us. We attempt to think of that which we fancy He will forget; we labour to take upon ourselves our weary burden, as if He were unable or unwilling to take it for us. Now this disobedience to His plain precept, this unbelief in His Word, this presumption in intruding upon His province, is all sinful. Yet more than this, anxious care often leads to acts of sin. He who cannot calmly leave his affairs in God's hand, but will carry his own burden, is very likely to be tempted to use wrong means to help himself. This sin leads to a forsaking of God as our counsellor, and resorting instead to human wisdom. This is going to the "broken cistern" instead of to the "fountain;" a sin which was laid against Israel of old. Anxiety makes us doubt God's lovingkindness, and thus our love to Him grows cold; we feel mistrust, and thus grieve the Spirit of God, so that our prayers become hindered, our consistent example marred, and our life one of self-seeking. Thus want of confidence in God leads us to wander far from Him; but if through simple faith in His promise, we cast each burden as it comes upon Him, and are "careful for nothing" because He undertakes to care for us, it will keep us close to Him, and strengthen us against much temptation. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee."
Care, even though exercised upon legitimate objects, if carried to excess, has in it the nature of sin. The precept to avoid anxious care is earnestly inculcated by our Saviour, again and again; it is reiterated by the apostles; and it is one which cannot be neglected without involving transgression: for the very essence of anxious care is the imagining that we are wiser than God, and the thrusting ourselves into His place to do for Him that which He has undertaken to do for us. We attempt to think of that which we fancy He will forget; we labour to take upon ourselves our weary burden, as if He were unable or unwilling to take it for us. Now this disobedience to His plain precept, this unbelief in His Word, this presumption in intruding upon His province, is all sinful. Yet more than this, anxious care often leads to acts of sin. He who cannot calmly leave his affairs in God's hand, but will carry his own burden, is very likely to be tempted to use wrong means to help himself. This sin leads to a forsaking of God as our counsellor, and resorting instead to human wisdom. This is going to the "broken cistern" instead of to the "fountain;" a sin which was laid against Israel of old. Anxiety makes us doubt God's lovingkindness, and thus our love to Him grows cold; we feel mistrust, and thus grieve the Spirit of God, so that our prayers become hindered, our consistent example marred, and our life one of self-seeking. Thus want of confidence in God leads us to wander far from Him; but if through simple faith in His promise, we cast each burden as it comes upon Him, and are "careful for nothing" because He undertakes to care for us, it will keep us close to Him, and strengthen us against much temptation. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee."
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
A Conversation with an Unhappy Sheep, Joe McKeever
"You don't like your pastor. What else is new?"
"You say that like there's a lot of it going around."
"It's like a plague. I've been thinking of going back and reading Exodus where God sent the plagues on Egypt to see if this was one of them. Frogs in the street, blood in the Nile, unhappiness in the pews."
"Are you dismissing the subject? You're so pro-pastor that you can't see sometimes a church has genuine issues with a preacher and he needs to leave?"
"Not at all. I'm just voicing my unhappiness with the whole business. It hurts to see pastors and congregations at odds with one another."
"Do you want to hear my side of this matter? Do you have time?"
"I can make the time. This is important."
We sat there in my office quietly for a moment, then I said, "But first, would you let me tell you something on my heart? This is not about you or your church, but about the whole issue of the relationships of pastors and congregations."
"I'm a good listener," he said. "Shoot."
"One of the primary reasons for so much unhappiness in the pews with the preachers is faulty understanding of what God intends. I've come up with four half-truths which most church members believe. When we believe wrong, as you know, we do wrong and no good comes of it."
He was listening well, so I went on.
"Let me name all four. One, the church hires a pastor. Two, the church can vote him in and can vote him out. Three, his job is to serve the people. And four, if the congregation is not happy with him, he has failed and needs to leave. Does this sound familiar?"
He sat up. "That's pretty well how we do it. And you're calling these half-truths?"
"The best way to explain why they are faulty is to turn it around and list the truth, the way God actually meant things to be."
"Four truths to answer the four half-truths?" he smiled.
I said, "Well, five, actually: One, the church belongs to Christ. Not to the congregation or the denomination. Definitely not to the pastor and most definitely not to the deacons or elders."
"Okay," he said. "No problem there."
"Second, the pastor's job is to serve Christ."
"Hold it," he said. "I thought his job was to serve the church. Didn't Jesus tell Peter to 'feed my flock'?"
"He did. But in doing that, Peter would be serving the Lord, obeying Him. There is definitely a sense in which the shepherd is serving the sheep. But notice, the shepherd does not take orders from the sheep. He takes orders from the owner of the sheep as to the care and tending of the flock."
"I need to give that some thought," he said. "But go on."
"You might recall that Paul said, 'We do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake.' That's 2 Corinthians 4:5. Notice that he's your servant, but 'for Jesus' sake.' Which means he takes orders from Jesus as to how to serve you. That's important."
"Okay. What else?"
"Third, just that point--the pastor is a servant. Not the lord of the church, not the boss, or ruler, not the CEO or anything else people come up with. He's a servant. That's the meaning of the word 'minister.'"
He was quiet. I continued.
"Fourth, God chooses and sends the pastor. The choice of the minister for a particular church is His. We can complicate it anyway we please--with recommendations and resumes and search committees and bishops making assignments--but biblically, the Lord calls the shots."
"I'm not sure about that one," he said. "It seems to me He gives us a lot of leeway to find the guy who fits our congregation best, the one with the qualifications we feel we need, that sort of thing."
"And that's how we get in trouble," I said. "The sheep do not have a clue what they need in a shepherd. They do not see the storm approaching or the danger lurking over the next hillside. Left to themselves, sheep would always choose the shepherd who caters to their every want."
"I can tell you don't think a lot of pastor search committees surveying the congregation to see what they want in a preacher."
"Oh, I think a lot of it. I think it is a complete waste of time and leads the people to faulty conclusions, that the pastor is their choice and is there to satisfy them."
"What's the fifth 'truth'?"
"You're going to love this one. Fifth, the Lord does not care one iota whether the sheep approve of His choice of a shepherd. The shepherd is there at His pleasure, not the congregation's."
"So," he said, "if the congregation feels there is a mismatch between us and this preacher, tough cookies. Is that what you're saying?"
"Probably. If there are moral or ethical or biblical reasons for getting rid of a pastor, the leadership of the congregation should step up and do the job. It's a difficult task and it's probably going to make a lot of people unhappy with them, but they are the leaders. If the preacher absolutely should be removed, they ought to do it."
He was quiet, taking all this in, and a little restless.
He said, "It has to be something big? It can't be that we don't like his style? Or that he sometimes mangles the King's English? And that his wife is unfriendly?"
I said, "You folks have lost your way."
"Say what?"
"You have forgotten the church is not a social club. This is not a popularity contest. The pastor and his wife were not sent by God to be the congregation's mascots or the favorite guests at the civic clubs.
"The pastor was sent to shepherd the Lord's flock. He was sent to represent God, to preach His word, and to train the people for being salt and light in the community.
"The church is not a human enterprise and we are not running a business. The church was never intended as a democracy where the majority calls the shots. The church is Christ's body. He is its Head and we are individual cells in it. We are to obey Him. The way to do that is to read His Word and then follow it.
"I grant you a preacher should use proper English. It's distracting when he's preaching and he says 'John and me were visiting the other day.' But that's all it is--distracting. If he's opening the Word and telling what God has said, if he is a man of prayer and is sincerely working to lead the Lord's people, then cut him a little slack, for Pete's sake."
He didn't say anything.
"It's not just you or your church, it's like an epidemic in our land. People on the pastor's back because they don't like his sermons, they don't find his wife friendly, his children are unruly sometimes, the pastor doesn't give enough respect to the older members, he is introducing too much change into the church, he uses too much humor or tells too many stories or doesn't wear a tie. It's enough to drive a man crazy.
"None of this has the first thing to do with anything," I said.
"The Lord did not send the pastor to make the church happy. He sent the pastor to make the church healthy and Himself happy. I can't put it any stronger than that."
I finished, "Sorry for the outburst. You can see I feel pretty strongly about this."
He said, "I still want to talk with you about our church situation sometime. I grant you that it would be wrong to run the pastor off, but maybe you could help him do a better job of relating to the older people."
I said, "If I can, I'll be happy to. Especially since I happen to be in that age group myself.
"Before you leave, could I give you something? This is a verse of scripture I'd like you to read and think about over the next few days. Acts 20:28 may be one of the most important texts in the Bible for what your church is going through right now.
"Paul is talking to the pastors or elders of Ephesus. He tells them, 'Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among whom the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood."
He agreed to read that scripture several times and think about it.
If he does, I'm confident he will be in for a realignment of his attitude about the pastor's role in the church. Scripture has a way of doing that to all of us.
Almost every one of the five points we talked about are found in that one verse. The Lord owns the church. The pastor's job is to obey the Lord by shepherding the flock. God chooses the pastor. How the flock feels about the man God sends at any particular time is irrelevant.
I called him a week later and we met at McDonald's for coffee. I said, "Now, let's talk about whatever it was that brought you to my office the other day..."
Dr. Joe McKeever is a Preacher, Cartoonist, and the Director of Missions for the Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans. Visit him at joemckeever.com/mt.
"You say that like there's a lot of it going around."
"It's like a plague. I've been thinking of going back and reading Exodus where God sent the plagues on Egypt to see if this was one of them. Frogs in the street, blood in the Nile, unhappiness in the pews."
"Are you dismissing the subject? You're so pro-pastor that you can't see sometimes a church has genuine issues with a preacher and he needs to leave?"
"Not at all. I'm just voicing my unhappiness with the whole business. It hurts to see pastors and congregations at odds with one another."
"Do you want to hear my side of this matter? Do you have time?"
"I can make the time. This is important."
We sat there in my office quietly for a moment, then I said, "But first, would you let me tell you something on my heart? This is not about you or your church, but about the whole issue of the relationships of pastors and congregations."
"I'm a good listener," he said. "Shoot."
"One of the primary reasons for so much unhappiness in the pews with the preachers is faulty understanding of what God intends. I've come up with four half-truths which most church members believe. When we believe wrong, as you know, we do wrong and no good comes of it."
He was listening well, so I went on.
"Let me name all four. One, the church hires a pastor. Two, the church can vote him in and can vote him out. Three, his job is to serve the people. And four, if the congregation is not happy with him, he has failed and needs to leave. Does this sound familiar?"
He sat up. "That's pretty well how we do it. And you're calling these half-truths?"
"The best way to explain why they are faulty is to turn it around and list the truth, the way God actually meant things to be."
"Four truths to answer the four half-truths?" he smiled.
I said, "Well, five, actually: One, the church belongs to Christ. Not to the congregation or the denomination. Definitely not to the pastor and most definitely not to the deacons or elders."
"Okay," he said. "No problem there."
"Second, the pastor's job is to serve Christ."
"Hold it," he said. "I thought his job was to serve the church. Didn't Jesus tell Peter to 'feed my flock'?"
"He did. But in doing that, Peter would be serving the Lord, obeying Him. There is definitely a sense in which the shepherd is serving the sheep. But notice, the shepherd does not take orders from the sheep. He takes orders from the owner of the sheep as to the care and tending of the flock."
"I need to give that some thought," he said. "But go on."
"You might recall that Paul said, 'We do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake.' That's 2 Corinthians 4:5. Notice that he's your servant, but 'for Jesus' sake.' Which means he takes orders from Jesus as to how to serve you. That's important."
"Okay. What else?"
"Third, just that point--the pastor is a servant. Not the lord of the church, not the boss, or ruler, not the CEO or anything else people come up with. He's a servant. That's the meaning of the word 'minister.'"
He was quiet. I continued.
"Fourth, God chooses and sends the pastor. The choice of the minister for a particular church is His. We can complicate it anyway we please--with recommendations and resumes and search committees and bishops making assignments--but biblically, the Lord calls the shots."
"I'm not sure about that one," he said. "It seems to me He gives us a lot of leeway to find the guy who fits our congregation best, the one with the qualifications we feel we need, that sort of thing."
"And that's how we get in trouble," I said. "The sheep do not have a clue what they need in a shepherd. They do not see the storm approaching or the danger lurking over the next hillside. Left to themselves, sheep would always choose the shepherd who caters to their every want."
"I can tell you don't think a lot of pastor search committees surveying the congregation to see what they want in a preacher."
"Oh, I think a lot of it. I think it is a complete waste of time and leads the people to faulty conclusions, that the pastor is their choice and is there to satisfy them."
"What's the fifth 'truth'?"
"You're going to love this one. Fifth, the Lord does not care one iota whether the sheep approve of His choice of a shepherd. The shepherd is there at His pleasure, not the congregation's."
"So," he said, "if the congregation feels there is a mismatch between us and this preacher, tough cookies. Is that what you're saying?"
"Probably. If there are moral or ethical or biblical reasons for getting rid of a pastor, the leadership of the congregation should step up and do the job. It's a difficult task and it's probably going to make a lot of people unhappy with them, but they are the leaders. If the preacher absolutely should be removed, they ought to do it."
He was quiet, taking all this in, and a little restless.
He said, "It has to be something big? It can't be that we don't like his style? Or that he sometimes mangles the King's English? And that his wife is unfriendly?"
I said, "You folks have lost your way."
"Say what?"
"You have forgotten the church is not a social club. This is not a popularity contest. The pastor and his wife were not sent by God to be the congregation's mascots or the favorite guests at the civic clubs.
"The pastor was sent to shepherd the Lord's flock. He was sent to represent God, to preach His word, and to train the people for being salt and light in the community.
"The church is not a human enterprise and we are not running a business. The church was never intended as a democracy where the majority calls the shots. The church is Christ's body. He is its Head and we are individual cells in it. We are to obey Him. The way to do that is to read His Word and then follow it.
"I grant you a preacher should use proper English. It's distracting when he's preaching and he says 'John and me were visiting the other day.' But that's all it is--distracting. If he's opening the Word and telling what God has said, if he is a man of prayer and is sincerely working to lead the Lord's people, then cut him a little slack, for Pete's sake."
He didn't say anything.
"It's not just you or your church, it's like an epidemic in our land. People on the pastor's back because they don't like his sermons, they don't find his wife friendly, his children are unruly sometimes, the pastor doesn't give enough respect to the older members, he is introducing too much change into the church, he uses too much humor or tells too many stories or doesn't wear a tie. It's enough to drive a man crazy.
"None of this has the first thing to do with anything," I said.
"The Lord did not send the pastor to make the church happy. He sent the pastor to make the church healthy and Himself happy. I can't put it any stronger than that."
I finished, "Sorry for the outburst. You can see I feel pretty strongly about this."
He said, "I still want to talk with you about our church situation sometime. I grant you that it would be wrong to run the pastor off, but maybe you could help him do a better job of relating to the older people."
I said, "If I can, I'll be happy to. Especially since I happen to be in that age group myself.
"Before you leave, could I give you something? This is a verse of scripture I'd like you to read and think about over the next few days. Acts 20:28 may be one of the most important texts in the Bible for what your church is going through right now.
"Paul is talking to the pastors or elders of Ephesus. He tells them, 'Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among whom the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood."
He agreed to read that scripture several times and think about it.
If he does, I'm confident he will be in for a realignment of his attitude about the pastor's role in the church. Scripture has a way of doing that to all of us.
Almost every one of the five points we talked about are found in that one verse. The Lord owns the church. The pastor's job is to obey the Lord by shepherding the flock. God chooses the pastor. How the flock feels about the man God sends at any particular time is irrelevant.
I called him a week later and we met at McDonald's for coffee. I said, "Now, let's talk about whatever it was that brought you to my office the other day..."
Dr. Joe McKeever is a Preacher, Cartoonist, and the Director of Missions for the Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans. Visit him at joemckeever.com/mt.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Steven Curtis Chapman, "The Change"
Well I got myself a t shirt that says what I believe
I got letters on my bracelet to serve as my id
I got the necklace and the key chain
And almost everything a good christian needs yeah
I got the little Bible magnets on my refrigerator door
And a welcome mat to bless you before you walk across my floor
I got a jesus bumper sticker
And the outline of a fish stuck on my car
And even though this stuffs all well and good yeah
I cannot help but ask myself
What about the change
What about the difference
What about the grace
What about forgiveness
What about a life thats showing
Im undergoing the change yeah
Im undergoing the change
Well Ive got this way of thinking that comes so naturally
Where I believe the whole world is revolving around me
And I got this way of living that I have to die to every single day
cause if gods spirit lives inside of me yeah
Im gonna live life differently
Im gonna have the change
Im gonna have the difference
Im gonna have the grace
Im gonna have forgiveness
Im gonna live a life thats showing
Im undergoing the change
What about the change
What about the difference
What about the grace
What about forgiveness
I want to live a life thats showing
Im undergoing the change
I got letters on my bracelet to serve as my id
I got the necklace and the key chain
And almost everything a good christian needs yeah
I got the little Bible magnets on my refrigerator door
And a welcome mat to bless you before you walk across my floor
I got a jesus bumper sticker
And the outline of a fish stuck on my car
And even though this stuffs all well and good yeah
I cannot help but ask myself
What about the change
What about the difference
What about the grace
What about forgiveness
What about a life thats showing
Im undergoing the change yeah
Im undergoing the change
Well Ive got this way of thinking that comes so naturally
Where I believe the whole world is revolving around me
And I got this way of living that I have to die to every single day
cause if gods spirit lives inside of me yeah
Im gonna live life differently
Im gonna have the change
Im gonna have the difference
Im gonna have the grace
Im gonna have forgiveness
Im gonna live a life thats showing
Im undergoing the change
What about the change
What about the difference
What about the grace
What about forgiveness
I want to live a life thats showing
Im undergoing the change
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
A Warning From Peter Marshall
"The choice before us is plain: Christ or chaos, conviction or compromise, discipline or disintegration. I am rather tired of hearing about our rights...The time is come...to hear about responsibilities...America's future depends upon her accepting and demonstrating God's government."
The Destruction of the Church
"Where does Christianity destroy itself in a given generation? It destroys itself by not living in the light, by professing a truth it does not obey. What the combined forces of Hell cannot do, the church can do. Love of money, love of the world, unconfessed iniquity, private sins that no one dreams we have - these are destroying the Church of Christ."
A.W. Tozer
A.W. Tozer
Monday, May 25, 2009
The Place of Nothingness, Os Hillman
"Be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10).
Do you find yourself in a place of nothingness? There is a time and place in our walk with God in which He sets us in a place of isolation and waiting. It is a place in which all past experiences are of no value. It is a time of such stillness that it can disturb the most faithful if we do not understand that He is the one who has brought us to this place for only a season. It is as if God has placed a wall around us. No new opportunities - simply inactivity.
During these times, God is calling us aside to fashion something new in us. It is a place of nothingness designed to call us to deeper roots of prayer and faith. It is not a comfortable place, especially for a task-driven workplace believer. Our nature cries out, "You must do something" while God is saying, "Be still and know that I am God." You know the signs that you have been brought into this place when He has removed many things from your life and you can't seem to change anything. Perhaps you are unemployed. Perhaps you are laid up with an illness.
Many people live a very planned and orchestrated life where they know almost everything that will happen. But for people in whom God is performing a deeper work, He brings them into a time of quietness that seems almost eerie. They cannot see what God is doing. They just know that He is doing a work that cannot be explained to themselves or to others.
Has God brought you to a place of nothingness? Be still and know that He really is God. When this happens, your nothingness will be turned into something you will value for the rest of your life.
Do you find yourself in a place of nothingness? There is a time and place in our walk with God in which He sets us in a place of isolation and waiting. It is a place in which all past experiences are of no value. It is a time of such stillness that it can disturb the most faithful if we do not understand that He is the one who has brought us to this place for only a season. It is as if God has placed a wall around us. No new opportunities - simply inactivity.
During these times, God is calling us aside to fashion something new in us. It is a place of nothingness designed to call us to deeper roots of prayer and faith. It is not a comfortable place, especially for a task-driven workplace believer. Our nature cries out, "You must do something" while God is saying, "Be still and know that I am God." You know the signs that you have been brought into this place when He has removed many things from your life and you can't seem to change anything. Perhaps you are unemployed. Perhaps you are laid up with an illness.
Many people live a very planned and orchestrated life where they know almost everything that will happen. But for people in whom God is performing a deeper work, He brings them into a time of quietness that seems almost eerie. They cannot see what God is doing. They just know that He is doing a work that cannot be explained to themselves or to others.
Has God brought you to a place of nothingness? Be still and know that He really is God. When this happens, your nothingness will be turned into something you will value for the rest of your life.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Interesting...
Ever wonder about some blogs, that invite to you disagree, then spend hours slaughtering you because you do?
This has happened to a friend of mine. She posted her feelings about a certain blog that claims to be a place where people can discuss and disagree without judgment or condemnation, only to be lambasted for doing so.
Just amazing that those who claim to be so insightful are so blind...
(Just my thoughts for which I am sure I will be attacked as well).
I'll close with this quote (from my friend at Laboring in the Lord): "The three greatest needs of every man: to be dead in Christ, to be dead to sin, and to be dead to what people think." — Unknown
This has happened to a friend of mine. She posted her feelings about a certain blog that claims to be a place where people can discuss and disagree without judgment or condemnation, only to be lambasted for doing so.
Just amazing that those who claim to be so insightful are so blind...
(Just my thoughts for which I am sure I will be attacked as well).
I'll close with this quote (from my friend at Laboring in the Lord): "The three greatest needs of every man: to be dead in Christ, to be dead to sin, and to be dead to what people think." — Unknown
Monday, May 18, 2009
Words of wisdom from Chuck Swindoll
The Hammer, the File, and the Furnace
James 1:2-4, 12
It was the enraptured Rutherford who said in the midst of very painful trials and heartaches: Praise God for the hammer, the file, and the furnace!
Let's think about that. The hammer is a useful and handy instrument. It is an essential and helpful tool, if nails are ever to be driven into place. Each blow forces them to bite deeper as the hammer's head pounds and pounds.
But if the nail had feelings and intelligence, it would give us another side of the story. To the nail, the hammer is a brutal, relentless master---an enemy who loves to beat it into submission. That is the nail's view of the hammer. It is correct. Except for one thing. The nail tends to forget that both it and the hammer are held by the same workman. The workman decides whose "head" will be pounded out of sight . . . and which hammer will be used to do the job.
This decision is the sovereign right of the carpenter. Let the nail but remember that it and the hammer are held by the same workman . . . and its resentment will fade as it yields to the carpenter without complaint.
The same analogy holds true for the metal that endures the rasp of the file and the blast of the furnace. If the metal forgets that it and the tools are objects of the same craftsman's care, it will build up hatred and resentment. The metal must keep in mind that the craftsman knows what he's doing . . . and is doing what is best.
Heartaches and disappointments are like the hammer, the file, and the furnace. They come in all shapes and sizes: an unfulfilled romance, a lingering illness and untimely death, an unachieved goal in life, a broken home or marriage, a severed friendship, a wayward and rebellious child, a personal medical report that advises "immediate surgery," a failing grade at school, a depression that simply won't go away, a habit you can't seem to break. Sometimes heartaches come suddenly . . . other times they appear over the passing of many months, slowly as the erosion of earth.
Do I write to a "nail" that has begun to resent the blows of the hammer? Are you at the brink of despair, thinking that you cannot bear another day of heartache? Is that what's gotten you down?
As difficult as it may be for you to believe this today, the Master knows what He's doing. Your Savior knows your breaking point. The bruising and crushing and melting process is designed to reshape you, not ruin you. Your value is increasing the longer He lingers over you.
A. W. Tozer agreed. In The Root of the Righteous, he wrote: “It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply.”
Aching friend---stand fast. Like David when calamity caved in, strengthen yourself in the Lord your God (1 Samuel 30:6). God's hand is in your heartache. Yes, it is!
If you weren't important, do you think He would take this long and work this hard on your life? Those whom God uses most effectively have been hammered, filed, and tempered in the furnace of trials and heartache.
Take time to thank your Master for any trials and heartaches in this season of your life.
James 1:2-4, 12
It was the enraptured Rutherford who said in the midst of very painful trials and heartaches: Praise God for the hammer, the file, and the furnace!
Let's think about that. The hammer is a useful and handy instrument. It is an essential and helpful tool, if nails are ever to be driven into place. Each blow forces them to bite deeper as the hammer's head pounds and pounds.
But if the nail had feelings and intelligence, it would give us another side of the story. To the nail, the hammer is a brutal, relentless master---an enemy who loves to beat it into submission. That is the nail's view of the hammer. It is correct. Except for one thing. The nail tends to forget that both it and the hammer are held by the same workman. The workman decides whose "head" will be pounded out of sight . . . and which hammer will be used to do the job.
This decision is the sovereign right of the carpenter. Let the nail but remember that it and the hammer are held by the same workman . . . and its resentment will fade as it yields to the carpenter without complaint.
The same analogy holds true for the metal that endures the rasp of the file and the blast of the furnace. If the metal forgets that it and the tools are objects of the same craftsman's care, it will build up hatred and resentment. The metal must keep in mind that the craftsman knows what he's doing . . . and is doing what is best.
Heartaches and disappointments are like the hammer, the file, and the furnace. They come in all shapes and sizes: an unfulfilled romance, a lingering illness and untimely death, an unachieved goal in life, a broken home or marriage, a severed friendship, a wayward and rebellious child, a personal medical report that advises "immediate surgery," a failing grade at school, a depression that simply won't go away, a habit you can't seem to break. Sometimes heartaches come suddenly . . . other times they appear over the passing of many months, slowly as the erosion of earth.
Do I write to a "nail" that has begun to resent the blows of the hammer? Are you at the brink of despair, thinking that you cannot bear another day of heartache? Is that what's gotten you down?
As difficult as it may be for you to believe this today, the Master knows what He's doing. Your Savior knows your breaking point. The bruising and crushing and melting process is designed to reshape you, not ruin you. Your value is increasing the longer He lingers over you.
A. W. Tozer agreed. In The Root of the Righteous, he wrote: “It is doubtful whether God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply.”
Aching friend---stand fast. Like David when calamity caved in, strengthen yourself in the Lord your God (1 Samuel 30:6). God's hand is in your heartache. Yes, it is!
If you weren't important, do you think He would take this long and work this hard on your life? Those whom God uses most effectively have been hammered, filed, and tempered in the furnace of trials and heartache.
Take time to thank your Master for any trials and heartaches in this season of your life.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Pain
Guests
Pain knocked upon my door and said
That she had come to stay,
And though I would not welcome her
But bade her go away,
She entered in.
Like my own shade
She followed after me,
And from her stabbing, stinging sword
No moment was I free.
And then one day another knocked
Most gently at my door.
I cried, "No, Pain is living here,
There is not room for more."
And then I heard His tender voice,
"'Tis I, be not afraid."
And from the day He entered in,
The difference it made!
---Martha Snell Nicholson
Pain knocked upon my door and said
That she had come to stay,
And though I would not welcome her
But bade her go away,
She entered in.
Like my own shade
She followed after me,
And from her stabbing, stinging sword
No moment was I free.
And then one day another knocked
Most gently at my door.
I cried, "No, Pain is living here,
There is not room for more."
And then I heard His tender voice,
"'Tis I, be not afraid."
And from the day He entered in,
The difference it made!
---Martha Snell Nicholson
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Sabbatical...
I will not be posting for awhile. My wife and I have been going through some very difficult times since we left our last church pastorate. I would rather not go into detail at this time, although I may in the future.
There are many things that are currently distracting and many hurts from the past that need healing. I have been advised by a good friend to perhaps consider taking a sabbatical for a period of prayer and reflection, which I am inclined to do so at this time.
Please pray for us as we wait on God for healing, guidance, and direction. Thank all of you who have posted here; it has been a pleasure getting to know you and praying for you as well.
For those of you who have our phone number, please do not call at this time. I don’t have any answers for you, so just pray for us.
God bless and keep you all in His tender care…
There are many things that are currently distracting and many hurts from the past that need healing. I have been advised by a good friend to perhaps consider taking a sabbatical for a period of prayer and reflection, which I am inclined to do so at this time.
Please pray for us as we wait on God for healing, guidance, and direction. Thank all of you who have posted here; it has been a pleasure getting to know you and praying for you as well.
For those of you who have our phone number, please do not call at this time. I don’t have any answers for you, so just pray for us.
God bless and keep you all in His tender care…
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Wisdom from Spurgeon...
Matthew 27:51: Behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.
No mean miracle was wrought in the rending of so strong and thick a veil; but it was not intended merely as a display of power-many lessons were herein taught us. The old law of ordinances was put away, and like a worn-out vesture, rent and laid aside. When Jesus died, the sacrifices were all finished, because all fulfilled in Him, and therefore the place of their presentation was marked with an evident token of decay. That rent also revealed all the hidden things of the old dispensation: the mercy-seat could now be seen, and the glory of God gleamed forth above it. By the death of our Lord Jesus we have a clear revelation of God, for He was "not as Moses, who put a veil over his face." Life and immortality are now brought to light, and things which have been hidden since the foundation of the world are manifest in Him. The annual ceremony of atonement was thus abolished. The atoning blood which was once every year sprinkled within the veil, was now offered once for all by the great High Priest, and therefore the place of the symbolical rite was broken up. No blood of bullocks or of lambs is needed now, for Jesus has entered within the veil with his own blood. Hence access to God is now permitted, and is the privilege of every believer in Christ Jesus. There is no small space laid open through which we may peer at the mercy-seat, but the rent reaches from the top to the bottom. We may come with boldness to the throne of the heavenly grace. Shall we err if we say that the opening of the Holy of Holies in this marvellous manner by our Lord's expiring cry was the type of the opening of the gates of paradise to all the saints by virtue of the Passion? Our bleeding Lord hath the key of heaven; He openeth and no man shutteth; let us enter in with Him into the heavenly places, and sit with Him there till our common enemies shall be made His footstool.
No mean miracle was wrought in the rending of so strong and thick a veil; but it was not intended merely as a display of power-many lessons were herein taught us. The old law of ordinances was put away, and like a worn-out vesture, rent and laid aside. When Jesus died, the sacrifices were all finished, because all fulfilled in Him, and therefore the place of their presentation was marked with an evident token of decay. That rent also revealed all the hidden things of the old dispensation: the mercy-seat could now be seen, and the glory of God gleamed forth above it. By the death of our Lord Jesus we have a clear revelation of God, for He was "not as Moses, who put a veil over his face." Life and immortality are now brought to light, and things which have been hidden since the foundation of the world are manifest in Him. The annual ceremony of atonement was thus abolished. The atoning blood which was once every year sprinkled within the veil, was now offered once for all by the great High Priest, and therefore the place of the symbolical rite was broken up. No blood of bullocks or of lambs is needed now, for Jesus has entered within the veil with his own blood. Hence access to God is now permitted, and is the privilege of every believer in Christ Jesus. There is no small space laid open through which we may peer at the mercy-seat, but the rent reaches from the top to the bottom. We may come with boldness to the throne of the heavenly grace. Shall we err if we say that the opening of the Holy of Holies in this marvellous manner by our Lord's expiring cry was the type of the opening of the gates of paradise to all the saints by virtue of the Passion? Our bleeding Lord hath the key of heaven; He openeth and no man shutteth; let us enter in with Him into the heavenly places, and sit with Him there till our common enemies shall be made His footstool.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Domestic Violence within the Church - Chuck Colson
A woman I'll call "Marleen" went to her pastor for help. "My husband is abusing me," she told him. "Last week he knocked me down and kicked me. He broke one of my ribs."
Marleen's pastor was sympathetic. He prayed with Marleen-and then he sent her home. "Try to be more submissive," he advised. "After all, your husband is your spiritual head."
Two weeks later, Marleen was dead-killed by an abusive husband. Her church could not believe it. Marleen's husband was a Sunday school teacher and a deacon. How could he have done such a thing?
Tragically, studies reveal that spousal abuse is just as common within the evangelical churches as anywhere else. This means that about 25 percent of Christian homes witness abuse of some kind.
These numbers may shock you-and they certainly shocked me-so you may be wondering if the studies were done by secular researchers hostile to the church. I can assure you, sadly, they were not.
Denise George, a gifted writer and the wife of theologian Timothy George, has published a new book called What Women Wish Pastors Knew. "Spouse abuse shocks us," George writes. "We just cannot believe that a church deacon or member goes home after worship . . . and beats his wife." Tragically, however, George notes, some of these men justify their violence "by citing biblical passages."
Well, obviously they're misinterpreting Scripture. In Ephesians 5:22, husbands are told to love their wives as Christ loved the church; beating wives black-and-blue hardly constitutes Christian love. First Peter tells husbands to live with their wives considerately. And the Bible makes it clear that the church has no business closing its eyes to violent men. In 1 Timothy 3:3, the church is told that when it comes to choosing leaders, they must find men who are "not violent but gentle," sober, and temperate.
The amount of domestic abuse in Christian homes is horrifying, and the church ought to be doing something about it-not leaving the problem to secular agencies. But this is one mission field where the church is largely missing in action. And sometimes pastors, albeit with good intentions, do more harm than good.
George sites a survey in which nearly 6,000 pastors were asked how they would counsel women who came to them for help with domestic violence. Twenty-six percent would counsel them the same way Marleen's pastor did: to continue to "submit" to her husband, no matter what. Twenty-five percent told wives the abuse was their own fault-for failing to submit in the first place. Astonishingly, 50 percent said women should be willing to "tolerate some level of violence" because it is better than divorce.
Advice like this, George warns, often puts women "in grave danger"-and in some cases, can be a death warrant.
Pastors need to acknowledge that domestic abuse in the church is a problem, and learn how to counsel women wisely.
Stay tuned for more on this subject-one the church has not said enough about.
Obviously, Christians must uphold the sanctity of marriage. But we should never ignore the dangers of violent spouses-men who use the Bible to justify abusing, and even killing, their wives.
Marleen's pastor was sympathetic. He prayed with Marleen-and then he sent her home. "Try to be more submissive," he advised. "After all, your husband is your spiritual head."
Two weeks later, Marleen was dead-killed by an abusive husband. Her church could not believe it. Marleen's husband was a Sunday school teacher and a deacon. How could he have done such a thing?
Tragically, studies reveal that spousal abuse is just as common within the evangelical churches as anywhere else. This means that about 25 percent of Christian homes witness abuse of some kind.
These numbers may shock you-and they certainly shocked me-so you may be wondering if the studies were done by secular researchers hostile to the church. I can assure you, sadly, they were not.
Denise George, a gifted writer and the wife of theologian Timothy George, has published a new book called What Women Wish Pastors Knew. "Spouse abuse shocks us," George writes. "We just cannot believe that a church deacon or member goes home after worship . . . and beats his wife." Tragically, however, George notes, some of these men justify their violence "by citing biblical passages."
Well, obviously they're misinterpreting Scripture. In Ephesians 5:22, husbands are told to love their wives as Christ loved the church; beating wives black-and-blue hardly constitutes Christian love. First Peter tells husbands to live with their wives considerately. And the Bible makes it clear that the church has no business closing its eyes to violent men. In 1 Timothy 3:3, the church is told that when it comes to choosing leaders, they must find men who are "not violent but gentle," sober, and temperate.
The amount of domestic abuse in Christian homes is horrifying, and the church ought to be doing something about it-not leaving the problem to secular agencies. But this is one mission field where the church is largely missing in action. And sometimes pastors, albeit with good intentions, do more harm than good.
George sites a survey in which nearly 6,000 pastors were asked how they would counsel women who came to them for help with domestic violence. Twenty-six percent would counsel them the same way Marleen's pastor did: to continue to "submit" to her husband, no matter what. Twenty-five percent told wives the abuse was their own fault-for failing to submit in the first place. Astonishingly, 50 percent said women should be willing to "tolerate some level of violence" because it is better than divorce.
Advice like this, George warns, often puts women "in grave danger"-and in some cases, can be a death warrant.
Pastors need to acknowledge that domestic abuse in the church is a problem, and learn how to counsel women wisely.
Stay tuned for more on this subject-one the church has not said enough about.
Obviously, Christians must uphold the sanctity of marriage. But we should never ignore the dangers of violent spouses-men who use the Bible to justify abusing, and even killing, their wives.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Update on Rachel, 5
Rachel is still in the hospital. We do not know when she will come home or go back to work. Please continue to pray...
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Update on Rachel, 4
Rachel is doing better, but is expected to remain in the hospital for 2 or 3 more days. She had a very good meeting with her doctor and has had several opportunities to share her faith with others.
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Update on Rachel, 3
The meeting with her counselor went well (he is not a believer). She thinks that she will be home on Monday; however,she is upset because she will not be with us for Easter. Thank you all for your prayers.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Update on Rachel
Rachel is doing better. They have adjusted her medication and it seems to be working. She will probably get to come home on Monday. Thank you all for praying.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Diplomats or Prophets?
“We who preach the gospel must not think of ourselves as public relations agents sent to establish good will between Christ and the world. We must not imagine ourselves commissioned to make Christ acceptable to big business, the press, the world of sports or modern education. We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum.” A. W. Tozer
Now those of you who know me know that I am a big fan of A.W. Tozer. He lived from 1897 to 1963 and within 5 years of his conversion, he was asked to pastor his first church. He had no formal education. He was a diligent student of the bible and was described by one as a “Spirit taught man.” He never owned a car and signed away most of the proceeds from his books to the poor. He truly lived that which he taught.
It was said of him by Harley Howard, “A. W Tozer, unquestionably one of the greatest men who ever preached the Bible, was a man ridiculed while he lived because he was so ‘out of touch’ with the religious establishment around him. What made him so ‘out of touch’ with those around him was the fact that he was so ‘in touch’ with God.”
Clearly, if one will read his writings, they will see that Tozer was indeed in touch with God.
The above quote by Tozer, written sometime in the 1950’s, is still contemporary today. Tozer saw many pastors (so-called) of his day attempting to make the gospel more attractive; unfortunately, in their attempt to attract the world, they watered down the gospel in the process, making their message of no effect.
Today, some 50-60 years after he wrote, we see the same in the church (so-called) today. (I say so-called because many who call themselves “Christian Churches” clearly are teaching a different gospel, another Jesus, and another Spirit and therefore are not part of the true church (see Matthew 7:21-23).
There is no connection between the Church and the world (the world system in rebellion to God and those who are part of it). Paul the Apostle, writing to the Corinthians said, “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?” (2 Corinthians 6:14-15). One would think that his words (inspired by the Holy Spirit) would be clear enough for all; however, that is not the case.
There are “movements” within the church (so-called) today as which Tozer wrote, that are trying to “make Christ acceptable to big business, the press, the world of sports or modern education.”
The church is not for the world. The church is the body of Christ, of which Jesus is the Head, Colossians 1:18: “And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.”
To make the church “palatable” to the world is to attempt to unite “righteousness with lawlessness,” “light with darkness,” and “Christ with Belial" (worthlessness, wickedness). Yet this is what many in the “Church Growth Movement” are doing today.
Does this mean that we are not to invite those who don’t know Jesus to church? Of course not! What is does mean is that when we invite them we are not to water down the message to make them more comfortable; rather, we are to proclaim the truth of the message of the Gospel. Our responsibility is as Tozer said, “We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum.”
Anything less is compromise, and therefore sin.
Now those of you who know me know that I am a big fan of A.W. Tozer. He lived from 1897 to 1963 and within 5 years of his conversion, he was asked to pastor his first church. He had no formal education. He was a diligent student of the bible and was described by one as a “Spirit taught man.” He never owned a car and signed away most of the proceeds from his books to the poor. He truly lived that which he taught.
It was said of him by Harley Howard, “A. W Tozer, unquestionably one of the greatest men who ever preached the Bible, was a man ridiculed while he lived because he was so ‘out of touch’ with the religious establishment around him. What made him so ‘out of touch’ with those around him was the fact that he was so ‘in touch’ with God.”
Clearly, if one will read his writings, they will see that Tozer was indeed in touch with God.
The above quote by Tozer, written sometime in the 1950’s, is still contemporary today. Tozer saw many pastors (so-called) of his day attempting to make the gospel more attractive; unfortunately, in their attempt to attract the world, they watered down the gospel in the process, making their message of no effect.
Today, some 50-60 years after he wrote, we see the same in the church (so-called) today. (I say so-called because many who call themselves “Christian Churches” clearly are teaching a different gospel, another Jesus, and another Spirit and therefore are not part of the true church (see Matthew 7:21-23).
There is no connection between the Church and the world (the world system in rebellion to God and those who are part of it). Paul the Apostle, writing to the Corinthians said, “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?” (2 Corinthians 6:14-15). One would think that his words (inspired by the Holy Spirit) would be clear enough for all; however, that is not the case.
There are “movements” within the church (so-called) today as which Tozer wrote, that are trying to “make Christ acceptable to big business, the press, the world of sports or modern education.”
The church is not for the world. The church is the body of Christ, of which Jesus is the Head, Colossians 1:18: “And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.”
To make the church “palatable” to the world is to attempt to unite “righteousness with lawlessness,” “light with darkness,” and “Christ with Belial" (worthlessness, wickedness). Yet this is what many in the “Church Growth Movement” are doing today.
Does this mean that we are not to invite those who don’t know Jesus to church? Of course not! What is does mean is that when we invite them we are not to water down the message to make them more comfortable; rather, we are to proclaim the truth of the message of the Gospel. Our responsibility is as Tozer said, “We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum.”
Anything less is compromise, and therefore sin.
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