Moratorium on the Christian faith

Moratorium on the Christian faith
Or at least that is what the media would have you believe!
It seems in our day that 'faith' in just about anything is acceptable - as long as that faith is not in Jesus Christ! Whether is it faith in science, or faith in the government or faith in nothing (which is really just faith in one-self wrapped up in politically correct attire) the media powers that be have no issue with these elements of faith (especially the government and the one self’s versions) and do their best to promote their awareness but just mention the name of Jesus Christ (and not in a cuss format) and watch what happens!
Yet we are called ‘more than conquerors’ in Christ Jesus!
But the road never promised to be an easy one and the gate was never said to be wide. You will have persecution for your faith in Me – Jesus taught His disciples. So, why do we think that we should be able to ‘slide by’ on this? We are called to stand firm in our faith, no matter what the trials may be, and His promise to us is that He would never leave us nor forsake us. He also told us that our war is not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers in the spiritual realm. And He has given us the weapons that we need to wage this battle. It is our place to appropriate them and stand firm in our faith with the indwelling of His Holy Spirit.
Remember, we are ‘more than conquerors’ in Christ Jesus!
These are exciting times that give us the opportunity to grow in our faith, grow closer to the One who saved and redeemed us, and provides us with the opportunity to show a lost and dying world what ‘real faith’ in a ‘real, living Savior’ looks like - in spite of the mounting persecution.
God will not fail and He will uphold His remnant with His strong Right Arm.
Let us push forward as long as it still today and show the world that we serve a loving God – a God of grace and truth, a God who redeems and restores, a God who sets captives free and grants liberty to those in bondage.
Might we, as God’s grace and truth dispensers, rejoice and be glad that we serve a living, loving Lord!
For we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus our Lord…

prb

Matthew 5:11-12 "Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

John 15:18-20 If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. "If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you."Remember the word that I said to you, ' A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.

2 Timothy 3:12 Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

Romans 5:1-5 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Romans 8:35-39 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, "for your sake we are being put to death all day long; we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered." But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

an unknown path?

Residing peacefully in its place, unmindful of time passing by, with not a worry, patient, waiting and wanting for not a thing

The lowly pebble lives its existence within a gathering of its kind
Yet with the disturbance of fate the pebble rolls and bounds down an unknown path bouncing and scraping down an embankment ending where it knows not
Its peace broken, its place changed, its patient waiting disturbed, the gathering of its kind scattered

Like that rolling, bouncing, bounding pebble on its unplanned and extraordinary journey so it is in the reality that we call our lives on this earth
Rest and tumult, excitement and fear, want and desire, trial and tribulation - these are the essence of life
No anchor to hold us restrained, no foundation to hold us fast - moved by the wind of an unknown fate
A vagabond, a sojourner seeking life's answers to seemingly unanswerable questions
Melded by circumstance, weathered by trials, driven by desire, exhorted by success, rebuked by failure
Longing for something to complete us, searching for truth to guide us - an emptiness of heavenly proportion

And then one day the light breaks through and truth is unveiled, a new life revealed
Profound truth that sets one free, a new creation unconstrained by the factious bonds of this world
Alas, a strong foundation to anchor the weary soul, the tried and tested cornerstone
The power of the flesh overcome,
Restored and risen for righteousness,
Resurrected to hope,
Redeemed for glory
Residing peacefully in Him, mindful of eternity, with not the anxiousness of the world
Patient in faith, steadfastness in waiting and wanting for not a thing

Darkness versus the Light

Have you ever sat in a room in the darkness of night, just before dawn, and looked at your surroundings attempting to discern what the items are that catch your vision? As you look around and try to figure out what an item is the shadows create question marks in your mind about its substance and it becomes clear that in the darkness it can be truly difficult to discern what reality presents before us – is that what I really think it is?

We live in a world that is in darkness so it should come as no surprise that the world cannot really understand nor discern what really is true. The shadows of darkness that blur the reality of life become the norm and we (the world) then subsequently accept the hazy, indiscernible substance around us as life’s true reality. Everything becomes ‘shadowy gray’ - there is no longer any black or white truth and we begin to accept the ‘gray’ as the true reality – thus we end up with our own interpretations of ‘truth’ that lack any true foundation.

The Holy Spirit leads us unto all truth and as such, believers in Christ Jesus, no longer need to scurry about in the darkness attempting to figure out whether the shadows of darkness are real or not. Yes, we live in the darkness which is this lost and dying world but we have been redeemed by the Great Light, the pure Truth that sets us free from the captivity which is the darkness. For Jesus came to bring us the Truth and it is His Truth that sets us free – the world’s truth is merely shadows that result in the bondage of uncertainty. And, as believers, we are called to seek after His Truth, to walk in the light of His Truth and to share His Truth with those who are lost in the darkness – and we are to do this while abounding with His grace, filled with His Holy Spirit - for we are His grace dispensers!



Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."
(John 8:12-13)

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
(Psalm 119:105)

true worship

A true worshipper is one who has learned to trust God in the storm. This person’s worship isn’t just in his words, but in his way of life. His world is at rest at all times, because his trust in God’s faithfulness is unshakable. He isn’t afraid of the future, because he’s no longer afraid to die.

'You see, worshippers are not made during revivals, in the good, sunny times, or periods of victory and health. Worshippers of God are made during dark stormy nights. And how we respond to our storms determines just what kind of worshippers we are....'

I pray that all who read this message can say in the midst of their storm: “Yes, the economy may collapse. Yes, I may still be facing a dark, stormy night. But God has proven himself faithful to me. No matter what comes, I will rest in his love for me.”

David Wilkerson

John 4:23-24 "But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."