Bring on the Courts

Bring on the Courts and their judicial legislation of socialistic agendas resulting in the loss of our freedoms and condoning a legacy of death….
Let them trample upon the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution…….
Let their decisions continue to wreak havoc upon this country that was founded upon the solid foundation of God’s immutable truths…..
And maybe, just maybe, the true church of Jesus Christ will arise from the shadows to boldly fulfill its mission.

For the church, under persecution, may actually begin to take its ordained place and do what Jesus has called it to do…..

- Love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength
- Love our neighbor (with God’s love) as our selves

The church in America today has been abysmal in following Jesus’ commands….we have not stood firm in our faith.

And the organized church in America has been so worried about numbers and money and prestige and large facilities and entertainment and the various and sundry social issues of the day that we are not even luke warm……

We don’t even show love to one another as we gather together as the body of Christ; how can we expect the world to listen to what we have to share ?

We must take seriously our call as believers to preach the gospel and make disciples – to be the city set on a hill…touching one life at a time…sharing the hope that is found only in the Lord Jesus Christ…and it will probably take persecution to move us to that place….

prb

the Lord says

The Lord says

I will take you from where you are, My servant

And I shall make you like My Son, My beloved

For I have chosen you for My inheritance, My child

For you are My possession

And My love and My grace and My mercy
shall be to you from everlasting to everlasting

For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (Colossians 1:13‑14)

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession (1 Peter 2:9)

(prb)

let your

Let Your wisdom be upon me
Let Your fullness dwell within me
Let Your peace reign in me
Let Your light shine through me
And the world shall see the beauty of Your presence, the wonder of Your glory, the miracle of Your grace and the awesomeness of Your mercy.
(prb)

narrow is the path

Make straight your ways
for the path is narrow that leads to life
Let your heart be prepared for the Lord Jesus
that He would lead you
Let your mind be open to the Holy Spirit
that He would empower you
With all of your soul give thanks to the Father
for all blessings flow from Him
For love and honor and praise and glory are His forever.
(prb)

all things

1 Chronicles 29:9
Then the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the LORD with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly.
Rejoicing because we have given to the kingdom of God so willingly for our offering was made with our whole heart !
How do you look at giving to the kingdom of God ?
What is the status of your heart as you give unto the Lord ?
I think the first step is understanding where everything comes from to begin with. If we do not believe that all things come from the Lord then we will surely not have the proper perspective on our giving back to Him. One of the few memories that I have from the Methodist church was a teaching on tithing by one of the associate ministers. He asked me the question, if I had ten apples how many of them belonged to me and how many belonged to the Lord - I said all ten were mine ! He asked me again, and again I said that all ten were mine ! It took me quite a while to figure out this biblical truth. As I look back on that conversation it wasn't until later that I realized that all ten apples belonged to the Lord - not just one (or the tithe) for He created them all.
He gives us all good things and the sooner we believe that all things come from Him the sooner will shall be able to worship Him with our offerings while rejoicing with our whole heart.
(prb)

lead me

Holy Spirit lead me into the presence of Jesus
Bring me to the place where He is
Let me dwell in His presence and look into His face
For He loves me with a jealous love
He longs for me to be in His presence
Holy Spirit lead me to that place
For that is where I want to be
(prb)

conformed

Ezekiel 3:10-11 Moreover, He said to me, "Son of man, take into your heart all My words which I shall speak to you, and listen closely. "And go to the exiles, to the sons of your people, and speak to them and tell them, whether they listen or not, 'Thus says the Lord GOD.'"
Isaiah 53:3-7 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face, He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth.
When we are oppressed and afflicted, how do we handle it ?
The word says that we are being conformed into His image - look at these verses and see what being conformed into His image looks like in real life ! The humble servant who gave His all so that we might have it all - abundant life, a hope, a future......
Isaiah 40:31 Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.
Again, it comes down to our humility before the Lord and others and our obedience to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
"The turning point in our lives is when we stop seeking the God we want and start seeking the God who is." (Patrick Morley)
prb

what are you waiting for

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. . .
For the most part in our day and age we spend so much time dealing and dwelling and planning on the temporal that we neglect the eternal ! But where is our home ? Where will we spend eternity ? How long will our life on this earth last in comparison to eternity ?
I think it comes down to what we really believe about where our hope and future are ? If you are spending all of your time planning for your earthly future you are missing your calling.....
Our hope is in Christ Jesus, our future is in Christ Jesus - what else do you need ? ? ? ?
So what are you waiting for ?
(prb)

sowing

As believers in Christ Jesus, our perspective should be different from the world. And as His children we are to understand that everything was made by Him. He is the creator and owner of all things. We are called to be the good stewards of all His creation. Our responsibility, being led by the Holy Spirit, is to sow to the world - we are to sow the truth of Jesus Christ to a lost and dying world, we are to sow the fruit of righteousness all around us, we are to sow blessing to those who are in need, we are to sow to the body of Christ for the work of the kingdom.....where are you sowing ? (prb)

born again from above

What happens when we are born again from above ?
By His grace we are saved from eternal separation from God and we shall spend eternity with Him, all of our sins have been forgiven and we receive the Holy Spirit as His promise.
But what about our daily lives ? What should happen in our lives after we are born again ?
Upon considering this question I have been impressed with the Biblical fact that when we are born again we become new creations - the old has passed away - we have newness of life !
Yes the flesh is still there and we deal with it daily, yet through God’s grace and the power of His Holy Spirit He has provided the victory for us to overcome the flesh - but we must walk in it !
Are we walking in our newness of life each and everyday ?
Might it be that the church in America today is so ineffectual because we have not understood or maybe do not even believe that our new life is now in Jesus Christ ? And that we must walk in it daily ?
It seems that we have millions of people attending churches across our country each Sunday morning and we praise and worship our Lord, we give Him honor and glory, we lift up our hearts to Him and we seek after Him. But then comes Monday morning and we are back to our same old lives !
I do not believe that is what Jesus Christ has for us ..... His desire is that we be His ambassadors, that we are His witnesses every day of the week ! That we walk in the newness of life and serve in newness of Spirit each and everyday of the week.....And He has promised that He will give us His power to serve Him and to give glory to Him in all that we do....I can’t even begin to imagine what a difference that would make for the kingdom of God in our country if God’s people walked daily in newness of life.
So are you walking in newness of life each and everyday ?(prb)

your temple

1 Chronicles 29:1 ..... for the temple is not for man, but for the LORD God
Where is the temple now ? Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body. (1 Cor 6:18-20)
Do we really believe this ? Especially the part that says ‘we are not our own’ !
Once we have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, we are not our own anymore. We have been bought with a price - a very high price. We have been called out of ‘ourselves’ to glorify God - to live as Christ.
So what have you been doing with your temple ?
So easily we get caught up with the things of this world that we don’t even remember why we were redeemed ! Is our focus on glorifying our Lord ? Or is it on our own life ? If it is on our own life then we are not being obedient to the Lord’s call on our life - we are not fulfilling our place as a bond servant of the Lord - we are nullifying the price that was paid for our redemption...... and our temple is for man and not for the LORD God !
(prb)

salvation is from the LORD

My Salvation is from the LORD

Where does my hope come from ?
Where is my joy found ?
Who is my strength and my shield ?
Where may I find life everlasting ?
Who knows my frame, that it is but dust ?
Who pardons my iniquities and does away with my sin ?
Where does my help come from ?

In Christ and Christ alone

He and He alone is the answer
For God’s mercy and grace have been poured out upon me in full measure
And I can say my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
(prb)

thoughts from Jonah

Some thoughts from the book of Jonah . . . .

Jonah 1:9
......I fear the LORD God of heaven who made the sea and the dry land
When did Jonah say this ? When he was about to get tossed overboard, after the lots had been cast and the crew knew that it was because of him that they were about to perish due to the storm.....When do we ‘willingly’ acknowledge that we fear the Lord God ? It should be a normal part of our everyday life....

Jonah 2:6
But Thou hast brought up my life from the pit, O LORD my God
And here is the best picture of God’s grace toward us through Jesus Christ....by His grace and mercy we have been brought up to life (eternal life) from the pit (separation from God)
(Ephesians 1:7‑8 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us; Romans 6:4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life)

Jonah 2:7
While I was fainting away, I remembered the LORD
Just as Jonah did, why do we wait until we are ‘fainting away’ before we remember the Lord ?
Is it our self-reliant nature, our stubbornness, our proud attitude that we can handle everything ourselves, our disobedient nature or a combination of all of these ?

Jonah 2:9
But I will sacrifice to Thee with the voice of thanksgiving.
We are to give our lives as a sacrifice to Him who has ransomed us from the pit with thankful hearts for His indescribable gift
(Romans 12:1 I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship)

That which I have vowed I will pay
What have we vowed to the Lord ? I would hope that when you were born again from above you (whether knowingly or not) vowed that Jesus Christ would is Savior and your Lord - and that you are His bond-servant....are you, through the power of His Holy Spirit working in you, upholding your vow ?

Salvation is from the LORD
For there is no other way.........for by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast (Ephesians 2:8‑9)
Is this an ever present thought in our minds - that our salvation is from our Lord...or are we too caught up with our own agendas, our own seeking after knowledge, our own accomplishments, our own self gratification ?
The pride of life, the lust of the eye and the lust of the flesh can pull us away from our unceasing acknowledgment that our salvation is from the Lord......but glory be to Him who has given us the ability to stand firm - for I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me (Galatians 2:20)
(prb)

what greater work

The Word of God says that -
the gift of prophecy will be no more
the gift of tongues will be more
the gift of knowledge will be no more
(1 Corinthians 13:8)
But love shall be forever
For God is love, for He first loved us and He showed us His love in and through His Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

So, from an eternal perspective (which we are to have as believers) when Jesus Christ said
"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to the Father.” (John 14:12‑13)

What is the greatest work of God that we can participate in ?

The saving love of God poured out for people to change their eternal destiny !

We have been invited by the Creator of the universe to join with Him as He shows His love to His creation.....His desire is that we allow the love of His Son to flow through us so that the lost and dying of this world might be saved.

What greater work than this would we want to participate in ?
(prb)

essense of our faith

Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift !
(2 Corinthians 9:15)

Here is the essence of our life of faith . . . .

(prb)

how do we trust Him

Amos 5:21-26
"I hate, I reject your festivals, Nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies. "Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them; And I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings. Take away from Me the noise of your songs; I will not even listen to the sound of your harps. "But let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever‑flowing stream.
"Did you present Me with sacrifices and grain offerings in the wilderness for forty years, O house of Israel? "You also carried along Sikkuth your king and Kiyyun, your images, the star of your gods which you made for yourselves.


It is not in our traditions that we trust in Him. . . . .
Nor is it in our rituals that we walk with Him. . . . . .
Nor is it in our programs that we grow in our faith in Him. . . .
It is only in our personal and intimate relationship with Him, the Lord Jesus Christ, that our trust will grow deeper and our walk will grow stronger and our faith will grow in full measure.......
(prb)

stand boldly

The essential work of Jesus was to create around him a circle of disciples, whom he inspired with boundless affection, and amongst whom he deposited the germ of his doctrine. To have made himself
beloved, to the degree that after his death they ceased not to love him, was the great work of Jesus, and that which most struck his contemporaries. His doctrine was so little dogmatic, that he never thought of writing it or causing it to be written. People did not become his disciples by believing this thing or that thing, but in being attached to his person and in loving him.
(Ernest Renan, Vie de Jesus (1863))

Although I do believe that people become disciples by growing in our relationship with Jesus, I do take exception to portions of this quote. His doctrine was already written throughout the old testament. He was the fulfillment of the word that had come to His people which preceded His walk on this earth as a man.
He held fast to the truth of God and did not depart from it. He quoted from the scriptures repeatedly and confirmed their authority.
It was the religious leaders that had taken “religious practice” so far away from the truth ! The new testament reflects numerous occasions where he confronted the religious leaders for their wrong motives. He went even so far as to say that they where “hindering” people from the truth.
If we love Him as He has loved us, our desire will be to follow Him, to obey His commands - to seek after His truth (which has been left to us in His word - the Bible).
Our responsibility is to seek to obey the greatest commandment -
"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And He said to him,"' You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' "This is the great and foremost commandment. "The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'
"On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Matt 22:36‑40)

Let us stand boldly on His truth - this is why He came for us - For our God is true and His love for us is never ending, His mercies are new every morning, great is His faithfulness. May we practice His truth, empowered by His Holy Spirit to do His will.

John 3:16‑21 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him. "He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. "And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their deeds were evil. "For everyone who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. "But he who practices the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God."
(prb)

Holy Spirit

The place of the Holy Spirit in our lives is to - to glorify Christ, give us power to be Christ’s witnesses, to empower us to minister for Christ’s sake, to teach us all things about Jesus Christ, to lead us into all truth (and Jesus Christ is the way and the truth and the life).
We receive the indwelling of the Spirit upon our conversion, as a part of our new birth, but we also must seek after the baptsim of the Spirit. The “filling” of the Spirit - so that we are able to minister in His name. The Bible shows us that even Jesus’ public ministry did not start until He had been baptised with the Holy Spirit (Luke 3:22). He says that He will give us the empowering presence of His Spirit if we ask ! We need to be asking for that empowering presence in our lives each and every day so that we may be lead in the path of righteousness. Then shall we have the ability to be His mouth and His hands and His feet to His body and to this lost generation.
Are you allowing the power of His Holy Spirit work in and through you this day ?

Acts 1:8 but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."

John 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

Luke 11:13 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"

Acts 2:38‑39 And Peter said to them, "Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
"For the promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God shall call to Himself."

(prb)

comfortable christians

Comfortable Christians ..... a predominant concept in today’s world ! We want our cake and eat it too ! ! ! Do not get me wrong, I fit in the same boat. I have a hard time crossing the street to minister to my neighbor ! Why ? First of all it is an uncomfortable thing to do - to “care” for someone who is not in my circle of “friends” and family.
But, we are commanded to ‘love your neighbor as your self’ !
So how do we get out of the ‘rut’ that we have comfortably moved ourselves into ?
1. Focus daily (actually every minute !) on Jesus Christ
2. Rely totally on the Holy Spirit to lead us in all that we do
3. Study and meditate on His word (the Bible)
4. Seek after His kingdom and its righteousness
5. Seek after His agape love for those around us
6. Do not be afraid to be bold for the sake of the gospel
7. Pray, pray, pray, pray
(prb)

a joyful heart

Can we have fun and still be a Christian ? Of course we can and we should. I know in my life the fun that I have with my family is such a wonderful blessing. To laugh with your wife (notice I said “with” not “at”) and with your children is not only great but it is as the Proverb says- a joyful heart is good medicine. I think about the times that the gospels tell of Jesus’ interaction with children - I can just hear them giggling and Jesus having a great time playing with them ! Sometimes (for some people most of the time) we take living too seriously. We focus so much time on what we can accomplish or how to meet “our” goals that we miss the “living” of our lives. Yes there is a time for diligence and reverence but as in all things there must be balance.
Living our lives for the Lord will bring us times of growth, times of reverence and worship, times of trial and tribulation, times of rejoicing, times of work, times of fun and refreshment- let us keep our eyes on Jesus Christ - let us make Him the focus of our lives and the “living” of our lives will bring us (and others) great blessing.
(prb)

real fruit

This life can be a struggle and sometimes we think that it has us beat !
Even in our walk of faith, we can feel like "giving up" . . . .
But, where does our hope come from ?
We must always remember that if our hope is in Jesus Christ, He shall never leave us nor forsake us ‑ for there shall be trials and tribulations ‑ but there will also be times of refreshing and rejoicing and triumph !
Let us keep our eyes on Him for only when our eyes are on Him shall we be able to run the race
and yes it can be a hard and painful race ‑ but the reward is well worth our effort !

In closing, remember ‑
the real fruit of conversion is perseverance . . . . . . . .
(prb)

my hope

I find my Hope fully in Him
Therefore in Him I can Trust fully
Because He will be Faith fully there by my side
For my desire is to walk Prayer fully
For I have been Wonder fully made in His image
So I will Joy fully exalt Him through out my days

We are hopeful because He is trustful and because He is faithful we can walk prayerfully for we are wonderfully made to joyfully exalt His Holy name.
(prb)

revival

We say in the church that we want ‘revival’, we pray for it, we seek after it, we look for it in any and all places. But are we willing to pay the price that real revival costs ?

You might ask “well, what is the price that is required ?”
1. Deny our selves and take up our cross and follow Him
2. Present our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice
3. Do not be conformed to this world
4. Be transformed by the renewing of our minds by the washing of the Word

Components that have been a part of revivals of the past have included:
1. Fervent prayer seeking after His face not His hand
2. Humility of spirit, confession of sin and iniquity, a seeking after His righteousness
3. Bold proclamation of God’s Word to His people
4. A hunger for the truth of His Word in His people

Are we willing to seek after those things that are required for revival to occur ?
Are we willing to put our ‘rights’ aside for the benefit of the gospel ?
Are we willing to ‘pay the price’ ?

I believe that we have a hard time in this country of ours because we are as Revelation 3:15‑18 indicates -

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I would that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.
Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked

Mark 8:34
"If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.

Romans 12:1-2
I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
(prb)

impatient people

Numbers 21:4-9

4 Then they set out from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the people became impatient because of the journey.

5 And the people spoke against God and Moses, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food."

6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.

7 So the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned, because we have spoken against the LORD and you; intercede with the LORD, that He may remove the serpents from us." And Moses interceded for the people.

8 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he shall live."

9 And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.

1) the people became impatient with the journey
a. why – God was not moving the way they expected and wanted Him to
2) the people spoke against God
a. why – they were not getting their way
3) we loathe this miserable food
a. why – God’s grace and provision was not sufficient for them
4) sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people so that many died
a. why – impatience, disobedience and rejecting God’s grace give opening to the wiles of this world (sin) to get a hold on our lives
5) what was their response
a. the people acknowledged their sin (in answer to the consequences they were paying)
b. they sought intercession for forgiveness
c. the Lord provided the ‘standard’ that was lifted up for their salvation
d. their role was to believe by faith that the standard would give them life

How is this story any different than the way things are today ?

We are an impatient people, who speak against the things of the Lord, who ignore His grace and so live in the misery and lifelessness of sin……but we can be redeemed from this rut just as the Hebrews were – acknowledge our sin, seek intercession, ask for forgiveness, look to the one who paid the price – our standard – the Lord Jesus Christ for the joy of our salvation…and live in the abundant life that He has for us…..

Jesus is our standard…..He was lifted up for us……by His grace and mercy perfect intercession is made…..forgiveness is granted….He calls upon us to believe by faith and live………
prb

where have we fixed our hope

“In pointing out these things...will you be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine….having nothing to do with worldly fables….disciplining yourself for the purpose of godliness, for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come…
Are we laboring and striving because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior…….
And we are called to prescribe and teach these things…..
In speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, are you showing yourself an example to those who believe………
Are you giving attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching.
Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress may be evident to all……Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things…..”
(1 Tim 4)

I guess the real question is where have we fixed our hope ?
And how much ‘discomfort’ in the process of disciplining ourselves for the purpose of godliness are we willing to ‘tolerate’?

For we are all called as believers in Christ Jesus to follow the Lord’s command to make disciples and bring His good news to all creation……and to accomplish this we must know where our hope comes from…..constantly being nourished with the words of life….and it is by faith in the One who called us that we strive….for without Him we can do nothing.…

prb

Faith and trust

How is our faith and trust in the Lord exemplified in America today ?

It has been the American mantra/focus/goal to work your way to a place where you are comfortable – both physically as well as financially (of course we don’t usually take into consideration our spiritual condition). A place where you have no ‘worries’ about today and if you are really ‘successful’ no worries about tomorrow !

By striving for this level of comfort and ‘worry free’ living it appears that we have extremely limited our ability to exercise and totally rely upon our faith and trust in the Lord in our daily lives. For the most part we leave our faith and trust for the ‘really big’ concerns of life (ie: when our own efforts don’t seem to be working !)…..interpersonal trials, health matters, financial struggles, etc…and have not fully surrendered to the Lord and rested in the faith and trust that He calls us to by His grace ….

I believe this excerpt from the writings of Matthew Henry, one of the great commentators and pastors, is worth meditating upon and a very good place to start a revived walk of faith and trust –

Matthew Henry, who died in June 1714; on January 1 of that year wrote:“I, this morning, renewed the dedication of myself to God, my whole self, body, soul, and spirit. Father, I give Thee my heart; use me for Thy glory this year; employ me in Thy service; fit me for Thy will. If this should be a year of sickness and pain; if a year of family affliction; if a year of public trouble; if of silencing and suffering; bonds and banishment; if it be my dying year, welcome the holy will of God. If this is a year of continued health, peace and liberty, Lord I desire to be busy in Thy service, both in study and preaching, in entire dependence upon Your divine grace, without which I am nothing, and can do nothing.”That day, Matthew Henry preached a sermon to young people from Proverbs 23:26: “My son, give me thy heart.” He then added in his diary the following affectionate and devout aspiration, “Lord, take my heart and make it such as it should be.”

Where is our faith and trust in a God who loves us with an everlasting love
Where is our faith and trust in a God who loved us first
Where is our faith and trust in a God who sent His Son to die so that we might live
Where is our faith and trust in a God who showers His grace and mercy upon His children
Where is our faith and trust in a God who is forever faithful even when we are faithless
Where is our faith and trust

prb

Agents of change

Agents of change…

We are hearing a lot about ‘change’ as we proceed through this election cycle and it seems that the ‘change’ tag line is gathering quite a bit of interest…and in most instances I would say that we, as a nation, are tired and frustrated with the status quo. So, we have campaigns running on their ability to be ‘agents of change’ for our future.

Well these politicos are not the first to seek change…..God sent His Son to fulfill His promise of change. To set us on the narrow path that leads to life…..delivering us from the wide path that leads to destruction. Overcoming our trespasses and restoring the way to His fellowship as well as His throne. But the price for this change was great – the life of a sinless man, God’s own son, Jesus.

And once He has set us upon that narrow path it is His desire that we also become ‘agents of change’….showing all creation His plan for change…

Are we -
- loving our wife, our children, the church (which is His bride), as well as our neighbor as Christ loves us
- making disciples
- encouraging, exhorting and reproofing our brothers and sisters in Christ
- sharing in word and deed the good news of the gospel with the lost
- relying upon God’s wisdom as we address the issues of our daily lives
- resting not on our own understanding but in all things acknowledging Him
- being lead by the Holy Spirit in all that we say and do
- allowing the fruit of the Spirit to emanate from a life that is fully surrendered to our Lord who loves us with an everlasting love

Are we being ‘agents of change’ for God’s truth and His kingdom in our world ?

prb

In your presence

Lord, how I long to be in Your presence
To dwell in Your loving kindness
To be seated before Your graciousness
To be justified by Your holiness
And be restored by Your mercy

But in my unworthiness I retreat
For my frame is but dust
My faith like a sieve
And the power of the world is so great
And sin abounds all around ensnarling me

And yet, You are a shield about me
You are my glory
You are the One who lifts my head
Your loving kindness never fails me

You call me to You by Your grace
With open arms through Your mercy
Come into My peace
Come into My joy
For you are my child
And My love is everlasting

prb

Here in this verse in Zechariah we find God’s word for us as well as a challenge to us as believers-
.....so I will save you that you may become a blessing (Zech 8:13)

Can you say that you have been saved by grace so that you may bless those that are around you ?
Have you made effectual your being called from out of the darkness and into the light by becoming a blessing to others ?
Has the church of Jesus Christ been a blessing not only to the body of Christ but also to the lost and dying world around us ?

After meditating on these verses in Zechariah I believe that if we truly understood and acted on the fact that we are saved so that we may become a blessing then the proclamation of the gospel would indeed go forth boldly.....

Look at what the Lord says will happen to the people around us after we have become a blessing
1) people will say “let us go and entreat the favor of the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts’ (Zech 8:21)

2) Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you (Zech 8:23)

If we seek after Him with all of our heart, mind and soul,
If we allow our Lord to shine His light through us,
If we truly follow His leading and become His witness,
If we become a blessing to those around us
Then our neighbors, our communities, our state, our country, our world will say ‘we have seen and heard that God is with you, let us go with you and seek after Him’. . . .

The light shining in the darkness is a powerful thing to behold......and what greater light is there then the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ shining forth through our lives bringing blessing to those around us. . . .

(prb)