Christmas ponderments

The best way to spread Christmas cheer is to shine the Light of Jesus both far and near…

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)

"I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness. ( John 12:46)

Christmas - a time to rejoice and celebrate as we give thanks and praise to God the Father for His indescribable gift to man…

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

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights (James 1:17)

Bless the Lord...

Bless the Lord, Bless His Holy Name and forget none of His Benefits….

For He is our God who -

Loves us

Pardons us

Forgives us

Heals us

Redeems us

Sanctifies us 

Crowns us

Satisfies us

Knows us

Cares for us

Blesses us

Provides for us

Protects us

Created us

Gave His all for us

Died for us

And is expectantly waiting for us

Yet, He will not always strive with us….in our disobedience, in our faithlessness, in our lack of trust in Him…

So, all you saints of the Living God bless the Lord God Almighty, bless His Holy Name and forget none of His benefits.

the time has come...

The time has come…the time is now.

We must pray fervently for the Lord to lift up a wave of His people for His purpose for His glory…

To raise up a people for His possession that are:

               - unwavering grace and truth dispensers

               - worship and praise warriors 

               - soldiers of prayer 

To stand in the breach, to fill the gap, to rebuild the walls

A people who are Spirit filled and Spirit led that rejoice with new songs of praise to our Lord 

A people who are willing to abide completely in Him as they stand firm against the enemy and his schemes of distraction and death and destruction

A people who earnestly desire to press on and persevere in His power for His kingdom as this world continues to walk in darkness

A people who will boldly walk the path that Jesus has prepared to bring His grace and His truth to this lost and dying world

Arise, the time has come you people of the Lord….

Surely the righteous will give thanks...

Surely the righteous will give thanks to Your name… (Psalm 140:13)

As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving this month, I would exhort you to deeply ponder upon this verse from the Psalms. 

Do we have an attitude of gratitude in all things, every day of our lives? 

Rejoice always; 

pray without ceasing; 

in everything give thanks; 

for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.   

(1 Thessalonians 5:16-19)

great quote for your ponderment

God is looking for those with whom He can do the impossible -- what a pity that we plan only the things that we can do by ourselves. 
 
A.W. Tozer 

What does your wake look like?

We all leave wakes as we proceed through each day of our life on this Earth just 

as a boat creates a wake as it makes its way through the water. Our actions, our 

deeds, our decisions, even our thoughts create wakes in the fabric of life that 

touch other people – whether we see it or not! These surges of 'waves of 

water' that emanate from what we do, say and think are the indicators of who we 

are and what we truly believe in our heart. And these wakes that we create can 

either bring glory to God or they can bring vainglory to ourselves. 

Our example of what a perfect wake looks like is found in Jesus Christ and His 

walk upon this Earth. Abounding in grace and truth to all those that were around 

Him – this is what was revealed in His wake. Sometimes His wake was large and 

powerful and hit people firmly and directly with His truth other times it was 

small ripples that gently enveloped people with His unconditional love. All of 

His wakes were for the purpose of bringing people to a place where they had to 

make a decision regarding the issues of life and eternity, truth and falsehood, 

sin and righteousness, heaven and hell – a wake of unconditional love that 

brought the truth of God into the lives of mankind. 

I don’t know that the church (each person that is a part of the body of Christ) 

today really thinks about the wakes that we are creating. Our words say that we 

want to leave 'Jesus filled' wakes in our daily lives but our actions seem to 

indicate that we are satisfied with leaving wakes of our own making – wakes that 

reflect conditional love, self centered focus, material desires. 

I know in my life one of my wake struggles is with our call to be ready to 

encourage, exhort and rebuke – for I am all to ready to rebuke before I am ready 

to encourage and exhort. 

So, are the wakes that we are creating each day Jesus filled? Are we using the 

gifts that He gave us to create wakes that ripple with eternity in mind? Do our 

wakes minister unto Him or are they just like the world’s - wakes that wreak 

confusion and havoc, wakes that are filled with vainglory and selfishness and 

wakes that do not edify and glorify the Lord Jesus Christ? 

our lives are to be filled...

In Him our lives are to be filled -

Filled with Grace

Filled with Truth 

Filled with Faith 

Filled with Hope

Filled with Loving-kindness 

Filled with the Spirit 

Filled with Praise 

Filled with Worship 

Filled with Prayer 

Filled with His Power

Filled with Fruit of the Spirit

Filled with Wonder and Amazement

Filled with Joy and Peace

Filled with the Fullness of God

Filled with the Fruit of Righteousness

Filled with the Knowledge of His Will in all Spiritual Wisdom

Filled with the Glory of the Lord

Filled with Love for Him who gave Himself for us

Filled with Him…

How is your life filled?

a still small voice...

A LESSON ON LISTENING 

by David Wilkerson

[May 19, 1931 – April 27, 2011]

God had to teach Elijah a lesson on listening so He took him to the top of Mr. Horeb and gave him an illustrated sermon.

“And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.  And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19:11-13).

When that wind began to howl, I think Elijah thought, “It’s about time, Lord. Blow Jezebel right off her throne and throw her and her sinner friends to the   winds. Blow them all away!” But God was not in the wind!

Suddenly, there was a great earthquake and Elijah said, “That ought to scare them good. God will get even. He will shake them right out of their shoes.”  But God was not in the earthquake. 

After the earthquake, a fire! The heavens were aglow with white-hot flames! Elijah said in his heart, “Lord, they didn’t accept the fire that fell on the altar  so burn them out! Burn out wicked Ahab! Fry Jezebel. Cause your fire to consume the wicked.” But God was not in the fire!  “And after the fire a still small  voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it that he wrapped his face in his mantle” (verses 12 and 13).

Can you imagine this? A prophet who was not afraid of a hurricane or an earthquake or heavenly fireworks is frightened by a still small voice! Elijah covered his head with his coat. Why? Had not this prophet talked to God many times? Was he not a great man of prayer? Hadn’t God used him mightily? Yes! But Elijah was a stranger to the still small voice! When he finally allowed that voice to speak—alone, quiet, away from all the power displays—he got the most specific directions in all his ministry.

“Go to the wilderness of Damascus; anoint Hazael king over Syria; anoint Jehu king over Israel; and anoint Elisha to be the prophet to follow you” (see 1 Kings 19:15-16).

How many busy children of God today have never had the voice come to them? 

They are busy witnessing - doing good - praying for a spiritual awakening - fasting.

So intense -so dedicated. 

Yet, they have heard everything but the voice of the Lord. 

Are we there yet?

Martin Luther wrote that "when there is no battle for the Gospel it rusts and it finds no cause and no occasion to show its vigor and power. Therefore, nothing better can befall the Gospel than that the world should fight it with force and cunning." 

The conflict that sometimes occurs when we witness for Christ can lead to an opportunity to glorify Him.

What does this mean for the church in America? It's quite simple. If we want to understand the power of the Holy Spirit in witnessing, we need to get out there and witness. If we want to understand what it means to function as the body of Christ, we need to endure the conflict that may come as a result of witnessing, together. Without the conflict, would the early church have fully realized the Holy Spirit's power and what it means to be the church?

Conflict was a gift. 

As a result of persecution, the early church witnessed more boldly and there was unity in the church…they learned [and experienced] the power of the Holy Spirit and how to function as the body of Christ among conflict. Like the early church, we don't seek conflict, but we don’t avoid witnessing just to avoid it.

(VOM)

Ponderments:

- Don't wait for tomorrow, be faithful in what He has for you today…

- It's not about stuff, it's ALL about people…

- God showed His love by getting involved. He is not a spectator! Are you?

- Are you a grace and truth dispenser or a worldly wisdom distributor…

- When man's search for wisdom relies totally on the wisdom of man we can be sure that problems will follow…

- Have you been blinded to the Light of Truth by the ways of the world…

- We know too much about what we want and too little about what God wants. (Wilkerson)

Oh Lord....

Oh Lord, our country struggles, our world is entrapped, the snare enlarges 
Mayhem and violence, division and ignorance, lies and decay 
Concern, confusion, fear, anxiety, distrust - they cling to us like a heavy, dense fog 
Even the earth groans about us... 
 
Are these the travails of birth pangs, are these the harbingers of Your return 
Must a time of delusion overtake us, must the wisdom of men be our captivity 
Must truth be held imprisoned while the enemy rages... 
 
How long will we turn from You, how long will we exploit Your grace 
How long will we seek after that which is not honorable, which does not glorify... 
 
Man, Your creation, pushes You away, seeking to justify himself, creating a world of his own making 
Lacking wisdom, having no understanding, holding to a form of knowledge lacking a foundation 
A striving after wind, surrendered to the lie, exchanging the eternal for that which is dust 
 
What can we do, how can we stand, where does our help come from... 
 
And the Lord God Almighty says to His children - stand firm in My truth, rest in My grace, trust in My loving-kindness 
For I know the lot of man, since the foundations of the world - My plan unfolding 
Salvation, redemption, restoration, new life... 
 
Yes, this world is perishing and man’s overt rejection of the truth makes his demise complete for the time of the Gentiles shall surely be fulfilled… 

To learn strong faith is to endure great trials. I have learned my faith by standing firm amid severe testings. 
George Müller 
(Christian evangelist and Director of the Ashley Down orphanage in Bristol, England, cared for 10,024 orphans in his life) 

pondering the path of life

Our calling

They first gave themselves to the Lord;

Then to the building up of the body (the church);

Then to make known the Grace and Truth of God to the world…

Our goal

In holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world - our faith working through love.

The Truth creates friction with the flesh

But the spirit thrives on the Word of Truth

The Spirit of Truth has come and the flesh is at enmity with it

With the Spirit there is life

With the flesh there is death

And the flesh will persecute those of the Spirit

the gospel equation

God's Love = Grace + Truth

Grace + Truth = Our Redemption

Our Redemption = Faith + Hope + Love

Faith + Hope + Love = A Light to the World

A Light to the World = God's Love

Where is our battle, who is our enemy?

The darkness comes upon us, the wicked multiply

There is no fear of God among them

Torrents of ungodliness overtake the land

Deceit and treachery and death

Pride and arrogance and greed

The enemy's foothold grows in the heart of the weak

For where the darkness grows there is no strength

Lawlessness abounds

Evil pervades

Truth is rejected

Man's heart of stone is filled with wickedness

They delude themselves with their own wisdom

They call evil good and good evil for the darkness has overtaken them

How shall we embark upon this battle?

How can we fight against this enemy?

…be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. 

Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. (Eph 6:10-13)

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.                 (2 Cor 10:3, 4)

trust...

If we say we have faith in Him, yet we do not trust our lives to Him, where will our hope and our joy be found…

I trust in the Lord, I will rejoice and be glad in His loving-kindness

As for me I trust in You, O Lord, and I say "You are my God"

Religion today is not transforming people; rather it is being transformed by the people. 

It is not raising the moral level of society; it is descending to society's own level, and congratulating itself that it has scored a victory because society is smilingly accepting its surrender.

A. W. Tozer (1897-1963)

Standing firm in the grace and truth of Jesus Christ or following the rolling waves of popular opinion - on which ground do we stand?

quote for ponderment

Religion today is not transforming people; rather it is being transformed by the people. 

It is not raising the moral level of society; it is descending to society's own level, and congratulating itself that it has scored a victory because society is smilingly accepting its surrender.

A. W. Tozer (1897-1963)

If the foundations are destroyed

If the foundations are destroyed, What can the righteous do? (Psalm 11:3)

We live in a time when the foundations are being destroyed in our country. What can the righteous do? 

Maybe the first question we need to ask is- what destroyed the foundation to begin with? 

We've 'progressed' from devoted follower to moderate acknowledger to social participator to functionally ambivalent. And the guilty party that I am referring to is the church, not the world.

We have proceeded from having Christ as our first love to the place where He is not even found on the list anymore.

We have transitioned from THE TRUE GOSPEL to a watered down version of the gospel (gospel-lite) to a social gospel that is far removed from the grace and truth of God.

And where do we end up - there is no faithfulness or kindness or knowledge of God in the land…

We do not pay attention to the deeds of the LORD, nor do we consider the work of His hands.

With the foundations of God's grace and truth removed from our everyday life, what will the righteous do?

It all comes down to - 

Faith, Hope and Love…

We must seek the Lord and prevail upon Him to restore and strengthen our Faith in Him and Him alone, 

We must desire that our Hope in Him (our first love) shall be revived and burn within us like a refiner's fire and 

We must Love the Lord with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength and our neighbor as ourselves. 

The righteous shall walk in faith, they will show kindness to the lost in this world and they shall grow ever closer to the Lord as they seek Him and gain knowledge of God…

I will....

As we walk through these times of rough and turbulent waters that are ever present before us, let our confidence be solely in Him, and let our hope not be shaken, and may our resolve to trust in the Lord stand firm.

Girded by the power of the Holy Spirit, may we proceed with thanksgiving in our hearts, our voices filled with praise and the words of Your truth ever ready to share with this lost world.

I will give thanks, I will tell, I will be glad, I will sing praise                                                         

For your are my stronghold, You will not forsake me in times of trouble   

                                                              

In Your name shall I put my trust                                                                                                          

For I know that the wickedness of man shall not prevail                 

For it is Your kingdom, Your glory, Your power forever O Lord Most High…                                                                                                                                                      

Excerpted from Psalm 9

I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart; I will tell of all 

Your wonders. 

I will be glad and exult in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High. 

The LORD will be a stronghold for the oppressed, 

A stronghold in times of trouble; 

And those who know Your name will put their trust in You, 

For You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You. 

Arise, O LORD, do not let man prevail; Let the nations be judged 

before You. 

Put them in fear, O LORD; Let the nations know that they are but men. 

Psalm 8

Psalm 8

O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth!

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;

What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?

Yet You have made him a little lower than God, And You crown him with glory and majesty!

You make him to rule over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet,

All sheep and oxen, And also the beasts of the field, The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth!

(Majestic: regal, royal, grand, stately, magnificent, splendid)

Follow the link, turn up the volume, close your eyes and listen to Keith Green's song of Psalm 8  as you worship our Majestic Lord God Almighty.

How Majestic Is Thy Name - Keith Green

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydvVNE36oyY

for your consideration and ponderment....

Brethren and sisters doing underground work have a special mentality, difficult for those leading an ordinary life to grasp. 

A woman who was asked if she did not fear the terrible danger of being apprehended and tortured replied, "I surely would not like our work to be discovered. As for my person, it is something else. Torturers are men who would never go to church, read a holy book, or frequent the homes of believers. Their only chance to be saved is to have a Christian prisoner before them, to speak to them about Christ with love, even while being beaten. Throughout church history, many saints have brought their tormentors to heaven."

VOM

The Passover Lamb of God

As another Passover is celebrated
The foreshadowing of what was to come
Celebrating a future fulfillment of the promise
A promise made from the foundation of the world
The Passover Lamb of God

His broken body would be pierced for our transgressions
He would be crushed for our iniquities
By His scourging we would be healed
He would be poured out even to death for our sin
His blood would be shed to overcome death’s sting
The Passover Lamb of God

And yet, 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
The Passover Lamb of God

The Righteous One who came to serve
His sacrifice made, the price paid that many might be set free
Redemption accomplished through an act of His loving-kindness
Grace and mercy interceding for our transgressions
The Passover Lamb of God

Salvation is among us, liberty and life anew
Rejoice for He has risen, Rejoice for He is alive
Our Passover Lamb of God
Our Redeemer, Our Savior, Our Lord
Jesus 

based on a book...

Christianity is based on a book. 

It centers in a Person. 

It expresses itself in a message. 

It authenticates itself in an experience.

That basic book is the Bible. 

That central Person is Jesus.

That expressive message is the Gospel. 

That authenticating experience is the new birth.

Think here about that basic book. Christianity stands or falls with the Bible. It is no use saying, as the liberalists or modernists do, that so long as we have Jesus we do not need an infallibly inspired Bible.

Nay, all that we know authentically about the Lord Jesus we owe, and shall keep on owing, to the Bible. To say that so long as we have Jesus we do not need the Bible is about equal to saying that so long as we have the sunshine we don't need the sun.

I have said it many a time, and am surer of it than ever, that the life and death issue of Christianity is the inspiration and authority of the Bible.

If the Bible is uniquely and inerrantly inspired, then we have certainty; we may know real truth about God, about man, about origins, about morals, about the race's future, and about human destiny on the other side of the grave But if the Bible is not the uniquely and inerrantly inspired Word of God, then (let us be blunt) we do not have certified truth about God, about man, about origins, about morals, about the race's future, or about human destiny in the hereafter: we are only groping.

If the Bible is provenly inspired by the divine Spirit, then Christian theology is truly a science, for by it we may truly "know". But if the Bible is anything less than provably inspired, then Christian theology instead of being "the queen of the sciences", is merely religious philosophy and human speculation.

-- J. Sidlow Baxter (1903-1999, Our Bible: The Most Critical Issue)

now is the time

Another day, another week, another month....the trials and tribulations continue, seemingly mounting as time proceeds. The condition of man reflects the hardness of his heart and the brokenness that creates his bondage.

So the question my friends is 'what is the answer'?

The answer is the same today as it has always been - Jesus Christ our Lord. Seek Him with your whole heart, mind and soul and allow the Holy Spirit to fill you completely....now is the time to worship.

a refuge in times of trouble

Right now America is under a "signature judgment" of God. Signature judgments bear a special mark of God in that they mirror the sins committed against Him. As these judgments take place before our very eyes, our only answer is to have Jesus as our shield. Run today to meet Him in the secret closet of prayer. Let your roots go down deep into Him and know that He will keep you in all circumstances.

The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. 

And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee" 

(Psalm 9:8-10). 

David Wilkerson

quote for the week

Jesus, I need You. I need to be forgiven and loved by You. I confess all my sin and stubbornness. I've neglected You, Lord. I've not put You first and from this day on, I make You my life, my everything.

David Wilkerson

To know God

A. W. Tozer said, "What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us."

What we think of Him affects every area of life. It is all too easy to adjust our thoughts of who God is to suit our present need or situation. Even mature believers face this temptation. Returning to the Bible is the only safe path for us in seeking to know Him and live unto Him. To know God is the life-long pursuit and delight of the believer. (Tim Wildmon)