Friday June 22, 2012

Happy Friday! 
I pray that you and yours are well, happy, healthy, full of God's Joy and Peace.  
I am about to embark on a long drive back to see my three wonderful children.  Unfortunately, this trip is to get things ready to close out a big chapter of our lives, to sell our family restaurant.  
It is fraught with dangers and traps.  I can't do this alone, but I do believe and have full faith and hope in my God who has promised me to not abandon me and to uplift me.  


Consider today's promise in F. B. Meyer's daily devotions:



June 22


ANSWERED PRAYER
"If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you."-- Joh_15:7.


OUR LORD expected answers to His prayers, and in all His teaching He leads us to feel that we shall be able to obtain, through prayer, what otherwise would not come to our hand. He knew all that was to be known of natural law; but notwithstanding His perfect acquaintance with the mysteries of His Father's government, He said: "If ye shall ask anything of the Father, He will give it you in My Name."
When we consider the lives of some who have wrought mightily for God, it is clear that they learned a secret which eludes many of us. This is from the biography of Dr. Burns Thomson: "When much together as students," writes his friend, "we agreed on special petitions, and the Lord encouraged us by giving us answers, so early and so definite, as could only have come from Himself, so that no room was left for the shadow of doubt that God was the Hearer and Answerer of prayer. Once the answer came the same day, and at another time whilst we were yet speaking. My friend often spoke of our agreement, to the glory of Him who fulfilled to us His promise; and I refer to it to encourage others." This is but one leaf out of the great library of prayers, intercessions, and supplications, which stand recorded before God.
Prayer which is to prevail must be: For the glory of the Father. Whatever petition we offer must be tested by this thought: will it be for the glory of God? It is for this that our Saviour lives and pleads (Joh_14:13).
It must be in Christ's Name, which stands for Nature. In other words, when we pray it must not be as our self-nature but as the Christ-nature indicates. It is not enough to mention His Name at the end of our prayer: His Spirit must pervade every petition.
We must bear fruit (Joh_15:16). Answers to prayer largely depend on our ministry to others. If we are living for the accomplishment of God's purpose and the coming of His Kingdom, we may ask whatever is necessary for the achievement of our endeavour.
We must abide in Christ; then the sap of the Holy Spirit rising from the hidden root will produce desires and petitions like those which Christ ever presents to His Father (Joh_15:7).


PRAYER
All our desire is known unto Thee, therefore perfect what Thou hast begun, and what Thy Spirit has awakened us to ask in prayer. We seek Thy face, show us Thy glory. AMEN.

God Bless you and all of us in fulfilling His Will for our lives.  In Jesus's Holy Name, Amen.

Thursday June 21, 2012

How are you doing with this game of life?  Are you happy? Are you satisfied with your life and where you are headed?  Do you have a job, a career, a love, a mission, a goal, a vision?  What do you want in life?  
These are all vital questions. 
May I strongly recommend that you read the Holy Bible - go to www.e-sword.net  for many free downloads of Bibles, commentaries and other wonderful helps.  


God is waiting for you to come back to HIM!


Read His words and then you will find all you want and are seeking in life.  Accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and Redeemer and your life will never be the same again!  


Do it today!


Consider today's meditation from James Ryle who explains the process:



June 21


The Gospel in a Single Sentence
"A certain nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return." (Luke 19:12).


Jesus began a story with this brief sentence; a sentence, which in its brevity spans the entire fullness of the Gospel. Let me explain. The word certain means "unique and distinct", as in "only begotten Son." There has never been, nor will there ever be any other man like Jesus of Nazareth. He was born of a Virgin, without sin in any way. This is certain.
The Bible says, "God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." 
Jesus is God's only Son. Therefore, Jesus is man's only Savior. As one preacher said,
"Christ is not one of many ways to God, nor is he the best of several ways. He is the only way." Jesus Himself said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man comes to the Father but by Me." 
Christ is the way unchanging; He is the truth infallible; He is the life everlasting. Jesus is the way that you might be saved. He is the truth that you might be sure. He is the life that you might be satisfied.
The word nobleman speaks of the sinless life this certain man lived among us. He was tempted in all points like us, yet without sin. Never once — in thought, word, or deed — did Jesus ever sin. This uniquely qualifies Him to be the perfect sacrifice for sinners. Having no sins of His own to die for, His death on the cross now covers all of our sins!
His death, burial, resurrection and ascension into heaven are all included in the words "went to a distant country" — for that is how the Nobleman passed from this earth into Heaven.
Jesus said, "I go to prepare a place for you." He is there in heaven even now doing just that. And while there He "ever lives to make intercession" (Heb.7:25). In other words, He loves to pray for you as He sits at His Father's right hand. Let me ask you, when was the last time you asked Jesus to pray for you? Why not ask Him now!


Jesus, the Nobleman, went to a far country "to receive a kingdom for himself." This is clearly referring to the exaltation of Jesus Christ as Lord. For "God has given Him a name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father" (see Phil.2:9-11).
And, last but not least, the phrase "and then return" assures us of the hope of all Ages—the Second Coming of Christ!
The gospel in a single sentence — "A certain nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return." Commit this sentence to memory and use it as a mental outline for sharing your faith with your friends and family members.
Here, in the simplest of words, is the Gospel that we preach. Jesus was born without sin, and He lived without sinning. When He died on the cross, having no sins of His own to pay for, He paid the price for our sins. He was buried, and on the third day God raised Him from the dead—since Death had no rightful claim upon a sinless man. He was then taken into heaven and declared to be the Lord of all, the evidence of which is the Holy Spirit poured forth in our world establishing the influence of Christ's Kingdom in the hearts and lives of men and women from every tribe and nation. One day, at a time known only to God, Christ will return to this earth and abolish sin and death by creating a new heaven and a new earth, filled with the glory of God.


That's it. So simple even a child can understand it. Those who believe this and turn from their sins, trusting Christ for salvation, will be born again by the Spirit of God and brought into God's purpose for their lives here on earth.

Tuesday June 19, 2012

Hello my friend,
How are you?  How's life treating you?  
May I ask?  What do you want from life?  What do you expect?  What are your hopes, dreams, wishes?  


Surely we have all gone through the cycles of life: growth, maturity, getting, giving, courting, mating, raising, releasing, relishing, relinquishing, and now hopefully, rest.  
In this wonderful journey, for me, to live is Jesus Christ, my Savior and my God.  God gives meaning to life, His will brings about all the events of life, and you live a good life when you submit and surrender your life to God's Will.


Consider today's meditation from F. B. Meyer:



June 19


A SHELTER FROM THE TEMPEST
"And a man shall be as a hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest...as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land."-- Isaiah 32:2.


WE ARE reminded that this prophecy was uttered in a time of great unrest. The clouds of war were gathering dark on the horizon, and Israel was looking for help from the arm of flesh. In this emergency the voice of the prophet was heard, saying: "Look not to Egypt, but to God" (Isa_31:1). The kingdom depends on the king: "Behold a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes rule in judgment." 


When all politics and commerce, social and domestic life are under the sway and guidance of Jesus Christ, the Kingdom of God will come, and the Will of God shall be done on earth, as in heaven. The Lord Jesus is many-sided enough to meet all the varied needs of His people. Some need a covert from the tempest, others rivers of water to quench their thirst, others the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. But He is all and equal to all. 


When a man or woman owns the sway of Christ, eyes and ears are cleansed, there is no longer the hesitation of stammering confession, the judgment becomes rectified and the heart opened to a new generosity. First righteousness, then peace--such is heaven's eternal order.
This is a marvellous chapter! Note the words of warning to the women of Jerusalem. After all, the religious and political life of a nation is very much what the women make it, and there can never be a widespread deepening of religious life unless the women, who have such great capacity for God, turn to Him in repentance and faith.


Are our conditions similar? Surely they are! For if in the days of Solomon it was true that all things were full of labour and stress, how much more true is it in our time! The tides of human life are high and stormy, and there is no sense of security. We may surely plead that we need the quiet resting-places and sure dwellings, in which our souls may shelter! The promise is made to "'My people"--to those who have heard and obeyed the voice of the Good Shepherd. If you are one of the weakest and lowliest of these, you may draw comfort here (Isa_32:18).


PRAYER
Bring us, O Lord, through the troubled waters of life into a haven of repose. Hide us secretly in Thy pavilion from the strife of tongues and the fiery darts of the wicked one. May we be at peace with Thee, with ourselves, and with all. AMEN.

Wednesday June 13, 2012

So, what does it mean to be a Christian.
There are many, many views on this.  But always rely on the Bible.  Study the Bible, for the Bible IS the Word of God.  You will come to your own personal understanding and relationship with God through your reading and study of God's word.
One of the best resources is at www.e-sword.net  God there and download everything our brother Rick Myers has made available. 
Study everything- there is so much.  At the minimum, read the daily devotions by Bob Hoekstra, F.B. Meyer, George Morrison, James Ryle and Charles Spurgeon.  They will give you great insight into how to live the Christian life and be a true Christian.  
For example, yesterday's and today's lessons from James Ryle:



June 12


Four Points of a Prevailing Life (Part 1)


"What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?" (Romans 6:1, KJV)


In the earliest days of my journey with Jesus a godly man came alongside me and taught me a truth with such unrelenting resolve that it has stayed with me to this very day. Indeed, not simply stayed with with — it has powerfully swayed me from turning the wrong way on many, many occasions and kept my feet from stumbling. Yes, there have been times when I ignored the voice of the Holy Spirit, and tumbled in a ditch — but even then, it was this truth that factored in my recovery. I want to pass this truth along to you.
Paul uses four key words in his masterful argument against sin, and for righteousness; and these four words give us the bullet points of a prevailing life. Know, reckon, yield, and obey. Let's look briefly at these over the following four days.
First, there is something we are to KNOW — "our old man was crucified with Christ" (Romans 6:6). The Messages puts it this way — "Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the Cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life — no longer at sin's every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ's sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection."
Pass by any cemetery and you will see just what the Lord has done for you on the Cross. He brought you into His own death, and thereby rendered sin's power over you as ineffective as it is upon those buried there in the ground. Your enslavement to sin's power has ended, and through Christ's resurrection you now have been raised to a new way of living — free from always having to do what sin demanded.
You will never be able to walk victorious in faith without KNOWING this truth. This may be the primary reason why Satan is so set against the preaching of the Cross, and why so many churches have veered far off course in this happy-go-lucky-day of sentimental sensationalism in song and sermon.
Take your place in humble adoration at the foot of the cross my fellow pilgrim, and rise not from that place till you KNOW that all which is within you that once lived unto sin has been executed in your Savior's death.
"When I survey the wondrous cross, 
on which the Prince of glory died; 
my richest gain I count but loss, 
and pour contempt on all my pride. 
Forbid it Lord that I should boast, 
save in the cross of Christ my God. 
All the vain things that charm me most, 
I sacrifice them to His blood. 
Were the whole realm of nature mine, 
that were a present far too small! 
Love so amazing, so divine, 
demands my soul, my life, my all." 
(Isaac Watts 1748)

And,

June 13

Four Points of a Prevailing Life (Part 2)

"What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?" (Romans 6:1, KJV)

 

Yesterday we focused on the first of four key words used by the Apostle Paul in his classic case for the Cross presented in the sixth chapter of the Book of Romans. Today, we want to look at the second word: RECKON.

More modern translations use words like count, consider, think, or regard. All share the same essential meaning — "to take into account." In other words, this is the conclusion you are to carry in your heart once you KNOW that your were indeed crucified with Christ: "I am dead to sin, but alive to God through Jesus!"

Go ahead and give it a try — say it out loud just now as you read this. "I am dead to sin, but alive to God through Jesus."

Now, later on in the day when temptation comes creeping round the corner and suddly backs you against the wall — pause, take a deep breath, and then speak the truth of these words in the face of Hell's assault. You will stand, and the enemy will flee! Remember the Sienfeld episode where Jerry's dad kept yelling, "Serenity Now!" That didn't seem to work too well for him, and it won't work for you either. But THIS does work — "I am dead to sin, but alive to God through Jesus." Truth works!

Here is how The Message summarizes it — "From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That's what Jesus did. (Romans 6:11-14).

Because Jesus did it, you and I can now do it! He conquered sin and death, and ended their supremacy over our lives. We can now walk in freedom — and will do so only as we COUNT on it; reckoning ourselves dead indeed to sin, but alive to God!

"In the cross of Christ I glory,

 towering o'er the wrecks of time; 

all the light of sacred story 

gathers round its head sublime! 

When the woes of life o'ertake me, 

hopes deceive and fears annoy; 

never shall the cross forsake me — 

Lo! it glows with peace and joy. 

Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure, 

by the cross are sanctified; 

peace is there that knows no measure, 

joys that through all time abide." 

(John Bowering, 1872)

I reckon so.

Wednesday June 13, 2012

There comes a time when you sit down and wonder "What's this all about?" or the more common "Why ME?"  So many just exist, survive day to day and go through their routines, habits and motions.  But, don't you ever think that there must be more, that we have to have a reason for all this travail and troubles?  
Perhaps there isn't really, after all, if we are just a chemical happenstance, just a collection of water and chemical compounds, an evolutionary peak of adaptation, then why bother asking?  Just live, eat, conquer, destroy, and live at the most basic levels of motivation - eat, reproduce, conquer and amass, destroy enemies and foes, dominate and rule the kingdom.  After all, that life strategy works well for most life forms on earth.  
But, are we really different?  Are we special?  
YES!
We are the direct product of a loving and caring God.  He made us in His image - to love Him and obey God's laws and commandments.  
As human laws get displaced and replaced, so God's laws changed and adapted through human history.  The intent of the laws did not change, but the laws came to a fountain head in Jesus Christ the Son of God!
Jesus came to this world to reconnect man back to God on a personal level, where God could walk with man constantly.  God is waiting to hold you, love you, protect you, bless you, guide you, lead you, but most importantly redeem you from this animal world and make you His Spiritual son or daughter.  
All you have to do is accept His gift to you... Salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Son of God who died for the sins of the world.  
That's it, it's that simple.  
Jesus died for your sins and my sins.  He died to reconnect you back to God.  And it's all for just asking God to save you through the price of His Son's death on the cross... 
All you have to do is:

•  confess your sins, that you are a mortal, materialistic creature - "Lord God, I confess that I am a sinner,"
• Accept Jesus as your Savior "Please save me through the blood redemption of your Son, Jesus."
• open your heart, mind, body and soul to the Holy Spirit "Lord, come into and over my life, fill me with your Holy Spirit and be part of me, walk with me constantly"
• then live the redeemed life, follow the example of Jesus Christ.
• Read the Bible daily for your food and spiritual sustenance.

That's it.  You are now a child of God, and He will walk with you and be your God.

May you be blessed to become God's child.

Friday June 8, 2012

Well, the day is here and for the next two months we have "summer vacation"!
The cycles of life roll on and life continues in its ever changing ways.  


In all of your activities and journeys of life did you ever wonder about why God lets evil happen, especially to you?


Well, God is God and has good reasons, as we want to call them, for leading us through our lives.  
Consider today's thoughts, first from F. B. Meyer:



June 8


A CURE FOR ANXIETY
"Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass."-- Psa_37:5.


THIS PSALM from which our text is taken breathes the spirit of optimism. The Psalmist says: "Do not fret. Evil is transient, evil-doers shall be cut off in a little, while the wicked shall not be." You will not remove the evils of the world by all your anxiety, or by wrath. It is not worth while to lose your peace of mind. Be quiet in your heart, full of prayer, looking up to God that He would interpose to deliver.
In this Psalm there are excellent preservatives of the inward tranquillity of the soul when face to face with anxiety, or with high-handed wrong.
Trust in the Lord (Psa_37:3). Reckon on Him. Expect great things from your Almighty Guide and Friend. He cannot fail you.
Delight in the Lord (Psa_37:4). If your life twines about earthly things, of course you will be at the mercy of externals. Familiarise yourself with God's way of thinking and looking at things. If this is the bent of your life, you will lose your taste for things of the earth, while you will have great desires for the things of eternity, and God will give you perfect satisfaction in these, because He will give you Himself! The petitions of the heart (R.V. margin) are very sacred to God, and He never, never forgets them. "He shall give thee the petitions of thine heart."
Commit thy way unto the Lord (Psa_37:5). The margin suggests "Roll thy way upon the Lord." It is not enough to roll the responsibility of selecting our way on God in the great crises of our life. We must do so in the small decisions of every hour. Our lives are made up of trifles. To neglect these is to leave it to drift at haphazard. We need perpetually to look up to our Heavenly Friend, saying, "I cannot see over the hedge, I must leave with Thee the decision whether I should go this way or that."
Rest in the Lord (Psa_37:7). "Be silent to the Lord" (R.V. margin). There is so much clamour in the world, and often our heart becomes filled with its noise, so much so that we cannot hear His still small voice. But when every sound has died down into silence, we shall hear the voice of God telling us of things which will answer our questionings and still our doubts. Let your requests be made known unto God, and His peace shall sentinel your heart against all intruders.


PRAYER
My God and Father, enable me to roll my way upon Thee, to trust Thee, and to believe that when I stand with Thee in the perfect daylight I shall understand what now I take on trust. AMEN.

And this from James Ryle:

June 8

Disturb Us, Lord

"Since they didn't bother to acknowledge God, God quit bothering them and let them run loose" (Romans 1:28, The Message)

May it never be said of anyone of us that God quit bothering us!

Left to ourselves we will always settle for the least, not the best. Like a river unattended, we will take the path of least resistance, and suppose it had been the best route all along. We so easily set our lives on cruise control and zip along merrily, merrily — unaware that we are in fact drifting farther and farther away from God. Disturb us, Lord!

The famous prayer by Sir Francis Drake would find good use upon our lips in these indifferent days; I offer it with an encouragement that you pray it in earnest until the Lord sets your feet on the higher way, the nobler way, the better way — and that He never quits bothering you; never lets you run loose from His purpose for your life.

"Disturb us, Lord 

When we are too well pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we have dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore.

"Disturb us, Lord, 

when, with the abundance of things we possess,

We have lost our thirst for the waters of life;

and, having fallen in love with life as we know it,

We have ceased to dream of eternity;

And in our efforts to build a new earth,

We have allowed our vision of the new Heaven to dim.

"Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,

To venture on wider seas

Where storms will show your mastery;

Where losing sight of land,

We shall find the stars.

"We ask You to push back

The horizons of our hopes;

And to push us into the future

In strength, courage, hope, and love."

Sir Francis Drake -1577

Thursday June 7

How's your Thursday?  
This one, June 7, 2012 is special in that it is the last day of the school year.  Another one gone, another crop of students moving forward.
So, how's your life doing?  Are you in love with God?  Well, did you know that God is in love with you?  


Here's F. B. Meyer's meditation for today on that:

June 7


THE HOME OF GOD IN THE HEART OF MAN
"Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth Eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite spirit." Isaiah 57:15.


THIS VERSE has reference to God's two Homes--the macrocosm of .the great universe and the microcosm of the human heart. Our God is so great that the Heaven of heavens cannot contain Him, but He is so lowly and humble that He will stoop to fill the heart of a child. He bids us learn of Him, for He is meek and lowly in heart.
The humble and contrite heart. It seems almost too wonderful to believe that the Eternal One will care to come and live with the child of Time; that the Infinite and Holy God will descend to the narrow limits of a human heart! (see John 14:23: Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.)




PRAYER
Spirit of purity and grace,
Our weakness, pitying, see;
O make our hearts Thy dwelling-place,
And worthier Thee. 
AMEN.

Tuesday June 5th 2012

God is almighty, all knowing, and all present.  That's one of the fundamental attributes we have come to accept about God.  There are many foundational beliefs, creeds, truths that we have been taught and been told is TRUE.  
Really, if a "god" wasn't all that and even more, then that "god" wouldn't be much of a god.  
But our GOD is all that and more.  GOD is LOVE and Goodness.  God is pure and God wants us to become like Him - good, true, pure, righteous, and most importantly full of love.  We can not hate if we love, we can not kill if we love, we can not do evil if we love.  
Then the harsh reality of life comes in and makes us make decisions and weigh the options and choices.  That's the complexity of God.  Of course if being a Christian was easy and just fun, then heck nearly everyone would want to be a Christian!
Today's thoughts by F. B. Meyer addresses one of the key questions - why do bad things happen to good people?



June 5


GLORYING IN INFIRMITIES!
"My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."-- 2 Corinthians 12:9.


THE APOSTLE seems to have enjoyed wonderful revelations of God. Not once or twice, but often he beheld things that eye hath not seen, and heard words that ear cannot receive, and God felt it was necessary for him to have a make-weight lest he should be exalted beyond measure (2Co_12:7).
What the thorn or stake in the flesh was it is impossible to say with certainty. He may have suffered from some distressing form of ophthalmia. We infer this from the eagerness of the Galatian converts to give him their eyes (Gal_4:13-17), and from his dependence on an amanuensis. His pain made him very conscious of weakness, and very sensitive of infirmity, and kept him near to the majority of those to whom he ministered, who did not live on the mountain heights, but in the valleys, where demons possess and worry the afflicted. Be willing that your visions of Paradise should be transient, and turn your back on the mountain summit, where the glory shines, as our Lord did, in order to minister to souls in anguish (2Co_12:4; Mat_17:14-18).
On three separate occasions the Apostle besought the Lord for deliverance from his infirmity, and finally received the assurance that though the thorn could not be removed, yet sufficient grace would be given to enable him to do his life-work, and he was more than content. 
On the one hand, there was the buffeting of this messenger of Satan; but on the other, there were the gains of meekness, humility, and of greater grace than would have been possible if he had not needed it so sorely--and he gladly accepted an infirmity for which there were such abundant compensations.
Do not sit down baffled by your difficulties and infirmities, but run from them to claim Christ's abundant grace and strength, that at the end of life you may have done all that was set you to do, and more, because the greatness of your need made you lean more heavily on His infinite resources. "He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength."


PRAYER
Help us, O Lord, to look on the bright side of things; not on the dark cloud, but on Thy rainbow of covenant mercy; not on the stormy waters, but on the face of Jesus; not on what Thou hast taken, or withheld, but on what Thou hast left. Enable us to realise Thine all-sufficiency. AMEN.

June 2, 2012

Good morning my friends,
How's your life path going.  I don't really know if anyone even reads these thoughts of mine.  In reality, this is mostly my journal of life.
So, this morning, it occurred to me that life's great moments are really the Christian journey... to be born, to learn and grow, come to a moment, or several moments, where we make life decisions, and eventually arrive at that critical juncture where we decide between the base and the higher values of life.  
We come to a point where we must decide and choose - life over death, honor over vice, trust over betrayal, self over the good of others, higher over lowest, Christ or self!  
The Christian life is not an easy life.  The Christian life is opposite what the world teaches and seems to value.  Although the whole of life seems to highly value the essentials of honor, duty, responsibility, commitment, family, country and many similar.  
Look at the Medal of Honor, the Medal of Freedom, Nobel Prize, and other social recognition.  Yes, America still values these higher statements of humanity.
But, for the most part, wealth and power seems to go to those who flagrantly flaunt these values with cheating, lying, betraying, dishonesty, and all the base negatives.


So, how do we hold on?  


Several thoughts on this - first from Charles Spurgeon:

June 2


Morning


“For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.” Galatians 5:17


In every believer’s heart there is a constant struggle between the old nature and the new. The old nature is very active, and loses no opportunity of plying all the weapons of its deadly armoury against newborn grace; while on the other hand, the new nature is ever on the watch to resist and destroy its enemy. 
Grace within us will employ prayer, and faith, and hope, and love, to cast out the evil; it takes unto it the “whole armour of God,” and wrestles earnestly. These two opposing natures will never cease to struggle so long as we are in this world. 
The battle of “Christian” with “Apollyon” lasted three hours, but the battle of Christian with himself lasted all the way from the Wicket Gate in the river Jordan. The enemy is so securely entrenched within us that he can never be driven out while we are in this body: but although we are closely beset, and often in sore conflict, we have an Almighty helper, even Jesus, the Captain of our salvation, who is ever with us, and who assures us that we shall eventually come off more than conquerors through him.        


With such assistance the new-born nature is more than a match for its foes. Are you fighting with the adversary to-day? Are Satan, the world, and the flesh, all against you? Be not discouraged nor dismayed. Fight on! For God himself is with you; Jehovah Nissi is your banner, and Jehovah Rophi is the healer of your wounds. Fear not, you shall overcome, for who can defeat Omnipotence? Fight on, “looking unto Jesus”; and though long and stern be the conflict, sweet will be the victory, and glorious the promised reward.
“From strength to strength go on;
Wrestle, and fight, and pray,
Tread all the powers of darkness down,
And win the well-fought day.”


Evening
“Good Master.” Matthew 19:16
If the young man in the gospel used this title in speaking to our Lord, how much more fitly may I thus address him! He is indeed my Master in both senses, a ruling Master and a teaching Master. I delight to run upon his errands, and to sit at his feet. I am both his servant and his disciple, and count it my highest honour to own the double character. If he should ask me why I call him “good,” I should have a ready answer. 
It is true that “there is none good but one, that is, God,” but then he is God, and all the goodness of Deity shines forth in him. In my experience, I have found him good, so good, indeed, that all the good I have has come to me through him. 
He was good to me when I was dead in sin, for he raised me by his Spirit’s power; he has been good to me in all my needs, trials, struggles, and sorrows. Never could there be a better Master, for his service is freedom, his rule is love: I wish I were one thousandth part as good a servant. When he teaches me as my Rabbi, he is unspeakably good, his doctrine is divine, his manner is condescending, his spirit is gentleness itself. No error mingles with his instruction-pure is the golden truth which he brings forth, and all his teachings lead to goodness, sanctifying as well as edifying the disciple. Angels find him a good Master and delight to pay their homage at his footstool. 
The ancient saints proved him to be a good Master, and each of them rejoiced to sing, “I am thy servant, O Lord!” My own humble testimony must certainly be to the same effect. I will bear this witness before my friends and neighbours, for possibly they may be led by my testimony to seek my Lord Jesus as their Master. O that they would do so! They would never repent so wise a deed. If they would but take his easy yoke, they would find themselves in so royal a service that they would enlist in it for ever.


And from F. B. Meyer:



June 2


CHRISTIAN LIVING
"I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." Galatians 2:20.


THE HEART of true religion is to believe that Christ is literally within us. We must not simply look to Him as our Mediator, Advocate, and Example, but as being possessed by Him. He is our Life, the living Fountain rising up in the well of our personality. 
The Apostle Paul was never weary of re-affirming this great fact of his experience, and it would be well if each of us could say every day, before starting forth on our daily duty: "Christ is in me; let me make room for Him to dwell."


We must say No to self, that the life of Christ may become manifest in and through us, and our standing become a reality in daily experience and conduct. When evil suggestions come to us, we must remember that we have entered a world where such things have no place. We are no longer in the realm of the god of this world, but have passed into the realm of the Risen Christ. Let those who are tempted believe this, and assert it in the face of the tempter, counting upon the Holy Spirit to make their reckoning a living experience.
In Ephesians 6:13-17 is described the armour of the Christian soul; in Colossians 3:12-14 the habit or dress which he wears beneath his coat of mail. We must be careful to be properly dressed each day. 
If we lose our temper over trifles, or yield to uncharitable speech, it shows that we have omitted to put on the girdle of love; if we yield to pride, avarice, envy and jealousy, we must not simply endeavour to put off these evils, but take from the wardrobe the opposite graces. It is not enough to avoid doing wrong. 
Our Master demands that we should always do and be what is right. When we fail in some sudden demand, it is because we have omitted to put on some trait of Christ, which was intended to be the complement of our need.


 Let us therefore day by day say: "Lord Jesus, wrap Thyself around me, that I may go forth, adequately attired to meet life's demands." In Christ for standing; Christ in us, for life; we with him, for safety.


PRAYER
Set my heart on fire with the love of Thee, and then to do Thy will, and to obey Thy commandments, will not be grievous to me. For to him that loveth, nothing is difficult, nothing is impossible; because love is stronger than death. AMEN.

June 1 2012

Happy June!  Summer and all of its many wonders.  Vacations, trips, family time.  
That's the ideal.  How's your life compared to the "ideal"?
Mine is a total mash up!
But, God is in charge and I do not fret all that much.  Worry a bit, sure.  I'm human.  Consider today's meditation by F.B. Meyer:



June 1

MARCHING ORDERS
"Have not I commanded Thee! Be strong and of a good courage: be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest." Joshua 1:9.

IT WAS a host of young men and women that stood on the verge of Jordan, waiting the signal to enter the Promised Land. God had said that He would give them every place upon which the sole of their foot should tread (Jos_1:3). What an incentive this was for pressing on! Every time an Israelite put his foot forward on the territory of Canaan, he realized that piece of land would come into the possession of his people.
There is a counterpart of this in our own experience. We must learn to put down our foot upon the Promises of God's Word, and say: "These are mine by right, and shall be mine in actual enjoyment." In General Gordon's journal, he tells us that often before he reached some strange or hostile tribe, it seemed as though they had been given to his faith and subdued before he reached them.
In combating your spiritual foes, dare to believe that God has given them into your hand, and go forward assured that not one of them shall stand before you.

This is a blessed promise: "There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee" (Joshua 1:5). 

It does not matter how fierce the tempter, how often you have failed, how inveterate the bad habits, if you will dare to believe that God is with you, not one of all the band of besetting sins shall be able to stand before you. God cannot fail, and will not forsake; be strong, and go forward!
The one thing that God asks of all of us is that we should obey up to the hilt.
Here are our marching orders, and we must keep them well before us"
(1) We must meditate upon the Scripture day and night; it must not depart from our heart or mouth.
(2) We must be strong even when obedience seems impossible, and when all influences are brought to bear to weaken our resolution, we must still dare to obey the voice of God. 
And as we advance we shall find that the dreaded forms of opposition are but shadows; when they are touched with the spear-point of faith, they will divide and we shall pursue our way.

PRAYER
Before we enter upon our work and warfare, wilt Thou graciously equip us with the armour of light, that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. May we hear Thee saying: Fear not, I am with thee, I will help thee. AMEN.

Thursday May 31

And so here we are, end of May 2012.  We are near the half way point of the year.  So, how's the year going for you?  I know that we work and grind and go through our daily motions and life just rolls along.  
For many though each day is a struggle and labor of perseverance.  They must endure and suffer so much.  
May God bless those who suffer and endure.  


Today's meditation from Charles Spurgeon on the "Great Healer", our Lord Jesus:



May 31


Morning
“The king also himself passed over the brook Kidron.”
2 Samuel 15:23
David passed that gloomy brook when flying with his mourning company from his traitor son. The man after God’s own heart was not exempt from trouble, nay, his life was full of it. He was both the Lord’s Anointed, and the Lord’s Afflicted. 
Why then should we expect to escape? At sorrow’s gates the noblest of our race have waited with ashes on their heads, wherefore then should we complain as though some strange thing had happened unto us?
The KING of kings himself was not favoured with a more cheerful or royal road. He passed over the filthy ditch of Kidron, through which the filth of Jerusalem flowed. 
God had one Son without sin, but not a single child without the rod. It is a great joy to believe that Jesus has been tempted in all points like as we are. What is our Kidron this morning? Is it a faithless friend, a sad bereavement, a slanderous reproach, a dark foreboding? The King has passed over all these. Is it bodily pain, poverty, persecution, or contempt? Over each of these Kidrons the King has gone before us. “In all our afflictions he was afflicted.” The idea of strangeness in our trials must be banished at once and for ever, for he who is the Head of all saints, knows by experience the grief which we think so peculiar. All the citizens of Zion must be free of the Honourable Company of Mourners, of which the Prince Immanuel is Head and Captain.
Notwithstanding the abasement of David, he yet returned in triumph to his city, and David’s Lord arose victorious from the grave; let us then be of good courage, for we also shall win the day. 
We shall yet with joy draw water out of the wells of salvation, though now for a season we have to pass by the noxious streams of sin and sorrow. Courage, soldiers of the Cross, the King himself triumphed after going over Kidron, and so shall you.


Evening
“Who healeth all thy diseases.”  Psalm 103:3


Humbling as is the statement, yet the fact is certain, that we are all more or less suffering under the disease of sin. What a comfort to know that we have a great Physician who is both able and willing to heal us! Let us think of him awhile to-night. His cures are very speedy-there is life in a look at him; his cures are radical-he strikes at the centre of the disease; and hence, his cures are sure and certain. He never fails, and the disease never returns. There is no relapse where Christ heals; no fear that his patients should be merely patched up for a season, he makes new men of them: a new heart also does he give them, and a right spirit does he put with them. He is well skilled in all diseases. 
Physicians generally have some speciality. Although they may know a little about almost all our pains and ills, there is usually one disease which they have studied above all others; but Jesus Christ is thoroughly acquainted with the whole of human nature. He is as much at home with one sinner as with another, and never yet did he meet with an out-of-the-way case that was difficult to him. He has had extraordinary complications of strange diseases to deal with, but he has known exactly with one glance of his eye how to treat the patient. He is the only universal doctor; and the medicine he gives is the only true catholicon, healing in every instance. 
Whatever our spiritual malady may be, we should apply at once to this Divine Physician. There is no brokenness of heart which Jesus cannot bind up. “His blood cleanseth from all sin.” We have but to think of the myriads who have been delivered from all sorts of diseases through the power and virtue of his touch, and we shall joyfully put ourselves in his hands. We trust him, and sin dies; we love him, and grace lives; we wait for him and grace is strengthened; we see him as he is, and grace is perfected for ever.

Our Lord knows our needs.  Pray and yield to His Love.

Wednesday May 30, 2012

This journey of life is full of twists and turns.  And that is the reason it's called LIFE, not heaven or utopia.  Life has its load of problems and challenges and setbacks along with the victories and achievements and milestones.  
For me, the reason for this life is to get to know God.  This journey is all about becoming God's child.  The ultimate end of our journey is returning back to God's presence.  
I think that this journey helps determine who and what we are when we return to God's love and presence.  


Today's meditation from James Ryle:



May 30


The Inescapable Question


And Jesus asked, "Who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." (Matthew 16:15-16).


When Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do men say that I am?" They answered, "Some say you are John the Baptist. Others say you are Elijah, or one of the prophets." Unmentioned on this occasion were the many other epithets for Jesus circulating about Palestine — blasphemer, madman, false-prophet, drunkard, glutton, and demon-possessed maniac!
One fact is undeniable: everybody talks about Jesus. Everybody has an opinion about who He is — and the opinions are remarkably varied. In fact, the portraits of Jesus that have emerged throughout history make it difficult to believe that the same person is being described.
Authors have cast Jesus as a political revolutionary, a magician, a peasant unwittingly caught up in social revolution, a charismatic prophet foretelling the end of the world, a "marginal" Jew who challenged the teachings and practices of the religious leaders of his day, a spiritual master who overcame the humblest of origins to proclaim the gospel of love and forgiveness.
In a document published in 1984 by the Pontifical Biblical Commission, we are given no less than ten distinct methodologies for answering the Jesus question — speculative, historical, anthropological, existential, social, Judaistic, religious, moral, personal, and denominational. In other words, each of these sources give us a different spin on who Jesus was...and is.
One person has said that assembling a portrait of Jesus is a bit like crafting a stain glass window. Each piece of glass contributes to the mosaic, but an individual piece can seem incongruous, even contradictory, compared with the piece beside it. And, many times, the glass of the "Jesus Mosaic" is highly reflective; revealing at least as much about the person assembling the picture as about Jesus.
The Jesus of the Middle Ages was a heavenly King who ruled benevolently over his subjects, much as earthly kings of that era saw themselves. The Puritan's Jesus was a fire-and-brimstone-wielding Judge who would have been quite comfortable in a long black frock and three-cornered hat. The Jesus of the late '60s was a long-haired dropout espousing Free Love, or a political revolutionary bent on overthrowing the Establishment.
More recent studies have portrayed Jesus as a disenfranchised figure struggling to find His way in a world in which the old rules no longer applied — a compelling portrait in these days of nomadic searchers, running to and fro for a touch from God. Writer Tom McNichol said, "In the beginning God created man in His image, and ever since then, it seems, man has been trying to return the favor." ("The Many Faces of Jesus" USA Weekend, 12\18\92, pg4).
We each must know Jesus for who He is and be transformed into His likeness, rather than molding His image after our way of thinking. The question of the ages remains for you and I to answer, "Who do you say that I am?" Your eternal destiny depends upon how you answer that one inescapable question.

So, do you know Jesus?  Do so NOW!

Friday May 25, 2012

My oh my, how life can suck, how just terribly bad and challenging life can be - things go wrong, other things that you counted on to happen don't, dreams get squashed, hopes dashed, wishes never happen.  Hate, discrimination, prejudice, bias and disdain come suddenly into your life from nowhere, totally unexpected.  So, life can be such sorrow and full of regrets, shame, pain, remorse, and sad depressing memories.  
However, we are not alone.  God knows everything in our lives - EVERYTHING.  God still loves you and me and still wants to relevant and central in our lives.   God loves us and God will bless us by turning sorrow into joy, despair replaced by hope, setbacks replaced by gifts of love.  God loves us and will not let life beat us down.  
We have to do our part.  We must come to God, submit to His will and accept His Grace.  We must ask forgiveness of our sins, accept Jesus as our Savior and Redeemer, and then ask for the Holy Spirit to fill us with His presence.  We must accept our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as our pathway and our God who will lead us back to God the Father.
Come, come to God and ask.  Come to God in awe, worship and submission of your will to God's.  


Consider today's meditation by Charles Spurgeon:



May 25


Morning
“Forsake me not, O Lord.”  Psalm 38:21
Frequently we pray that God would not forsake us in the hour of trial and temptation, but we too much forget that we have need to use this prayer at all times. There is no moment of our life, however holy, in which we can do without his constant upholding. Whether in light or in darkness, in communion or in temptation, we alike need the prayer, “Forsake me not, O Lord.” “Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe.” 
A little child, while learning to walk, always needs the nurse’s aid. The ship left by the pilot drifts at once from her course. We cannot do without continued aid from above; let it then be your prayer to-day, “Forsake me not. Father, forsake not thy child, lest he fall by the hand of the enemy. Shepherd, forsake not thy lamb, lest he wander from the safety of the fold. Great Husbandman, forsake not thy plant, lest it wither and die. ‘Forsake me not, O Lord,’ now; and forsake me not at any moment of my life. Forsake me not in my joys, lest they absorb my heart. Forsake me not in my sorrows, lest I murmur against thee. Forsake me not in the day of my repentance, lest I lose the hope of pardon, and fall into despair; and forsake me not in the day of my strongest faith, lest faith degenerate into presumption. 
Forsake me not, for without thee I am weak, but with thee I am strong. Forsake me not, for my path is dangerous, and full of snares, and I cannot do without thy guidance. The hen forsakes not her brood, do thou then evermore cover me with thy feathers, and permit me under thy wings to find my refuge. ‘Be not far from me, O Lord, for trouble is near, for there is none to help.’ ‘Leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation!’“
“O ever in our cleansed breast,
Bid thine Eternal Spirit rest;
And make our secret soul to be
A temple pure and worthy thee.”


Evening
“And they rose up the same hour, and returned Jerusalem ... and they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them.”   Luke 24:33, Luke 24:35
When the two disciples had reached Emmaus, and were refreshing themselves at the evening meal, the mysterious stranger who had so enchanted them upon the road, took bread and brake it, made himself known to them, and then vanished out of their sight. They had constrained him to abide with them, because the day was far spent; but now, although it was much later, their love was a lamp to their feet, yea, wings also; they forgot the darkness, their weariness was all gone, and forthwith they journeyed back the threescore furlongs to tell the gladsome news of a risen Lord, who had appeared to them by the way. 
They reached the Christians in Jerusalem, and were received by a burst of joyful news before they could tell their own tale. These early Christians were all on fire to speak of Christ’s resurrection, and to proclaim what they knew of the Lord; they made common property of their experiences. 
This evening let their example impress us deeply. We too must bear our witness concerning Jesus. John’s account of the sepulchre needed to be supplemented by Peter; and Mary could speak of something further still; combined, we have a full testimony from which nothing can be spared. We have each of us peculiar gifts and special manifestations; but the one object God has in view is the perfecting of the whole body of Christ. 
We must, therefore, bring our spiritual possessions and lay them at the apostle’s feet, and make distribution unto all of what God has given to us. Keep back no part of the precious truth, but speak what you know, and testify what you have seen. Let not the toil or darkness, or possible unbelief of your friends, weigh one moment in the scale.


Up, and be marching to the place of duty, and there tell what great things God has shown to your soul.

Thursday May 23

Have you been there?  Down, angry, frustrated, denied, turned away, lost, rejected, depressed and beyond sad?  Maybe we all have been in that deep ditch at some time or other.  How did you handle it, or how are you handling it now?  
Do you try to solve it, work it out, get through it, endure it, wait it out, hope it will turn out ok, or did you just give up and give in?
God is.  God is always.  God is always willing and able to help and guide you, lead you and bless you.  Whatever you are enduring now, whatever you are suffering now - God is there with you and will be your strength, your answer, your solution.  
JUST ASK, JUST PRAY, JUST TRUST IN GOD and do what you know God wants you to do and GOD will help and assist and guide and empower you.  JUST ASK, JUST PRAY.


Today's meditation from Bob Hoeskstra:



May 24


Encouragement for Others, Glory for God


So then death is working in us, but life in you . . . For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.  (2Co_4:12 and 2Co_4:15)


We who live under the new covenant of grace are earthen vessels. We have no true spiritual life in ourselves. "You have no life in you" (Joh_6:53). The treasure who lives within us (Jesus) is our daily source of spiritual life: "Christ who is our life" (Col_3:4). Consequently, we must always be dying in order to live. We must be embracing the cross of Christ so that our bankrupt self-life will not be our resource for living. We must look to the Lord as our sufficiency. 
The Lord helps us in this process by putting us into impossible situations that necessitate our dependence upon Him. He faithfully responds to our trust and manifests Himself through us. "For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh" (2Co_4:11). Others observing this receive encouragement to look to the Lord for the life they need. Thus, Paul could write to the Corinthians (who were aware of this process in his life): "So then death is working in us, but life in you." 
Every difficulty that God brings into our lives not only has significance for us, but it can also have an impact on those to whom we are ministering. "For all things are for your sakes." How important it is to have a perspective on life that includes God working in us that He might touch others. Paul certainly viewed life and ministry in this manner. "I now rejoice in my sufferings for you . . . Yes, and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all . . . Therefore I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory" (Col_1:24; Phi_2:17; Eph_3:13). 
As the Lord works His grace into and through our lives, grace can be spreading to many other lives: "that grace, having spread through the many." When God's grace is at work in people's hearts, thanksgiving is so often the beautiful fruit that results. Such thanksgiving brings much glory and honor to God: "may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God."


My God and Father, teach me to handle trials in a way that will encourage people to trust in You. I want to touch others with life, as I am dying circumstantially.  Please make my life a vessel through which You cause Your grace to spread to many lives. May much thanksgiving result, all to Your honor and glory, Amen.

Tuesday May 22 2012

Here we are, approaching another milestone, another moment in time measured and noted... the end of May, Memorial Day in America, the unofficial start of  Summer, the end of school days for a needed summer vacation... a time of transition and growth and learning.  


What have you learned?  I've learned that the more I trust, believe and follow God, the better!  I've seen God's handiwork so many times, I am ashamed that I would even think to doubt God's love and grace anymore.  
But I am human and weak and a lost child much of the time. Today's meditation by Charles Spurgeon helps us focus on the true meaning of life - to love and be loved by God.



May 22


Morning
“He led them forth by the right way.”  Psalm 107:7
Changeful experience often leads the anxious believer to enquire “Why is it thus with me?” I looked for light, but lo, darkness came; for peace, but behold trouble. I said in my heart, my mountain standeth firm, I shall never be moved. Lord, thou dost hide thy face, and I am troubled. It was but yesterday that I could read my title clear; to-day my evidences are bedimmed, and my hopes are clouded. 


Yesterday I could climb to Pisgah’s top, and view the landscape o’er, and rejoice with confidence in my future inheritance; to-day, my spirit has no hopes, but many fears; no joys, but much distress. Is this part of God’s plan with me? Can this be the way in which God would bring me to heaven? 
Yes, it is even so. The eclipse of your faith, the darkness of your mind, the fainting of your hope, all these things are but parts of God’s method of making you ripe for the great inheritance upon which you shall soon enter. These trials are for the testing and strengthening of your faith-they are waves that wash you further upon the rock-they are winds which waft your ship the more swiftly towards the desired haven. According to David’s words, so it might be said of you, “so he bringeth them to their desired haven.” By honour and dishonour, by evil report and by good report, by plenty and by poverty, by joy and by distress, by persecution and by peace, by all these things is the life of your souls maintained, and by each of these are you helped on your way. 
Oh, think not, believer, that your sorrows are out of God’s plan; they are necessary parts of it. “We must, through much tribulation, enter the kingdom.” Learn, then, even to “count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations.”
“O let my trembling soul be still,
And wait thy wise, thy holy will!
I cannot, Lord, thy purpose see,
Yet all is well since ruled by thee.”


Evening
“Behold, thou art fair, my Beloved.”  Song of Solomon 1:16
From every point our Well-beloved is most fair. Our various experiences are meant by our heavenly Father to furnish fresh standpoints from which we may view the loveliness of Jesus; how amiable are our trials when they carry us aloft where we may gain clearer views of Jesus than ordinary life could afford us! We have seen him from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, and he has shone upon us as the sun in his strength; but we have seen him also “from the lions’ dens, from the mountains of the leopards,” and he has lost none of his loveliness. From the languishing of a sick bed, from the borders of the grave, have we turned our eyes to our soul’s spouse, and he has never been otherwise than “all fair.” 
Many of his saints have looked upon him from the gloom of dungeons, and from the red flames of the stake, yet have they never uttered an ill word of him, but have died extolling his surpassing charms. Oh, noble and pleasant employment to be for ever gazing at our sweet Lord Jesus! Is it not unspeakably delightful to view the Saviour in all his offices, and to perceive him matchless in each?-to shift the kaleidoscope, as it were, and to find fresh combinations of peerless graces? 
In the manger and in eternity, on the cross and on his throne, in the garden and in his kingdom, among thieves or in the midst of cherubim, he is everywhere “altogether lovely.” Examine carefully every little act of his life, and every trait of his character, and he is as lovely in the minute as in the majestic. Judge him as you will, you cannot censure; weigh him as you please, and he will not be found wanting. Eternity shall not discover the shadow of a spot in our Beloved, but rather, as ages revolve, his hidden glories shall shine forth with yet more inconceivable splendour, and his unutterable loveliness shall more and more ravish all celestial minds.

May 21

THE VOICE OF GOD IN NATURE AND REVELATION

"The Heavens declare the Glory of God; and the firmament sheweth His handiwork. Psa_19:1.

VERSES (Psa_19:1-6): Those whose hearts are in tune with God can hear voices in Nature which are inaudible to the ordinary man. The poet Blake says: "When the morning sun ascends the eastern sky, you may behold only a light yellow disc, whereas I shall see and hear the infinite multitude of the heavenly host, crying, Holy, Holy, Holy!" Yet, though there is no speech nor language, is it not true that "their words are gone forth to the end of the world"? There is no nation of men that has not heard the voice of Nature speaking of God (Act_14:16-17; Rom_1:20-21).

In Psa_19:7-11 the Psalmist describes the effect of the Word of God when the Spirit of Truth works through it and by it on the soul. There are many ways of reading the Bible--as a history, as a revelation of man's gropings after God, as a piece of great literature; but the best way is to ask the Divine Spirit to make it a medium through which He may approach our innermost nature. Listen to God's voice speaking within you. Be still, that you may hear. The Spirit searches into the deep things of God, and reveals them to our spirit (1Co_2:10). All that God has ever said or been to others, He will say and be to you, if only your heart is lowly and contrite. "Speak to me, Lord, by Prophet and Psalmist, by lyric and prose, by narrative and appeal. Speak through Thy Word to restore my soul, to rejoice my heart, and to enlighten mine eyes!" When to the quiet and waiting soul God uses His own Word thus, it is more to be desired than fine gold, and is sweeter than the taste of honey from the comb.

The effect of God's Word, when used by the Holy Spirit, is very remarkable (Psa_19:11-14). It convinces of sin. Just as linen is shown to be discoloured against freshly-fallen snow, so we realise our errors and cry to be cleansed from hidden and secret sins.

David knew little of the glory and wonder of the Cross, where God spared not His own Son, but in Him stooped to reconcile man to Himself. The starry heavens, telling of the glory of God, and even the Law itself, are not able to tell us what the Cross of Jesus does, of Love that matched itself against hate, and of Grace that would not be turned away by human sin.

PRAYER

I pray Thee, gracious Lord, that I may not miss any of those lessons which Thou art desirous of teaching me by Thy Spirit, Thy Word, and Thy Providence. AMEN.

Thursday May 17, 2012

Good morning my friend,
What is your statement of faith?  What do you believe in, what creed, belief, faith, teachings, etc do you follow and live?  For what we believe and what we hold true is what guides our actions and our minds.  
I believe in God, that God loves us, that God sent His Son Jesus to teach, reach and then bleach us from our sins.  By His sacrifice and resurrection, we can now approach and be blessed by our God at any time for anything.  
James Ryle writes this about my thankfulness:



May 17


The Power of a Thankful Heart
"As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving." (Colossians 2:6-7).
Something extraordinary happens to us when we purpose to always be thankful.
First, the power of a thankful heart keeps you from the destructive influence of bitterness, for it lifts you to a higher perspective and lets you see things from God's point of view. Yes, people will treat you badly and unjustly; but the Lord works all things for your good. Be thankful, and watch Him work.
Second, the power of a thankful heart prevents you from falling into pride; for thankfulness presupposes humility. A grateful man is a humble man; and a humble man receives the grace of God to face and overcome all things.
Third, the power of a thankful heart cultivates peace of mind and composure of character. When your life becomes rooted and built up in the truth of God's word, there is very little that can disturb your spirit.
Fourth, the power of a thankful heart increases your sense of purpose in God's work, for you know that He has plans for you; plans to bless you, to prosper you, to use you as a blessing for others, and to bring your life on earth to a happy end.
Fifth, the power of a thankful heart gives you a confident assurance for the future — not only for the life you live on earth, but after you pass from this world into the next; you will enter His presence with thanksgiving, seeing you've practiced it your whole life.
Sixth, the power of a thankful heart permeates the atmosphere with positive energy. Your outlook of faith is empowering for others who may not be able to see things so clearly. Your glad disposition brightens their dark moments, like Paul and Silas singing praise to God in the Philippian jail.
And finally, the power of a thankful heart honors God, for it dares to look beyond the obvious to see the actual. Circumstances may be bleak, and things may be bad; the economy of your life may be teetering on collapse, and situations may seem all but hopeless — but God is still in control. Your thankful heart demoralizes the powers of hell and glorifies your heavenly Father.
Abound in thanksgiving today and you'll see I'm right. All these things and more will be yours!

So, come, accept the free gift of Grace from God and come into His presence through Jesus.  

Profess your sins and need,

Accept Jesus as your Savior, Redeemer, and Lord of your life,

then open your heart and spirit to receive the Holy Spirit.  

Everything else will happen through the love of God.  All for your good and for your enlightenment.  

Do accept Christ today!

Tuesday May 15, 2012

You and I haven't met yet.  Don't know who you are and of course you are just checking out what this is all about. 


I hope that if anyone does read any of my writings they get the message - that you are the child of God, God loves you, God sent His Son Jesus to provide a way home for you and all you have to do is CHOOSE to follow and accept Jesus as your Savior, Redeemer, Friend, Guide, Advocate, and even Heavenly Brother.  
You were born outside the castle of God but God still loves you, bestows His Mercy on You, gives you His Grace, and then gives you the chance to come back home to Him.  There is only one gate and that is through the blood atonement of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  
So, come home, set your soul back to God.  He loves you and wants to lead you back home.  God even gives you a guide - the Holy Spirit, the loving aspect of God to guide you, lead you, protect you, convict you, and love you as you find your way home.  
Come home now, accept the gift of Grace and accept the free gift of Salvation through the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior.


Then all of this will make sense.  I didn't say it would be easy or fast.  But, it will become clearer as you get closer to Home.


Today's meditation from James Ryle:



May 15


The Pilgrim's Prayer of Progress
"But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2 Corinthians 3:18)
God is doing a work in each of our lives, slowly and deliberately transforming us from being self-centered and self-serving, to becoming more and more like Jesus. It happens as we come out from our places of hiding and lift our faces to the Lord. His favor and power change us from glory to glory. It is a lifelong process that will carry us onward into eternity.
Years ago I came upon this remarkable poem, untitled and unattributed to any author, it stands alone upon a high summit of inspirational prayer. It is the heart cry and testimony of every pilgrim. Read it for yourself and see if its words find a place of deep resonance in your own heart.
O the shame and bitter sorrow that a time could
ever be when I let my Savior's mercy 
plead in vain, and proudly answered, 
"All of self and none of Thee.”
Yet He found me. I beheld Him dying on the
cursed tree. I heard Him pray, Forgive him Father. 
And my wistful heart said faintly,
"Some of self and some of Thee.”
Day by day His tender mercy, healing,
helping, guiding me; sweet and strong, and O so patient,
brought me lower till I whispered,
"Less of self and more of Thee.”
Now, higher than the highest heavens, deeper
than the deepest sea. Lord, at last Thy love has conquered. 
Grant me now my soul's desire:
"None of self and all of Thee!"
.

Friday May 11, 2012

Here we are, approaching the middle of May.  
So many things in life just doesn't make sense.  Not to me anyways.  There is so much evil, pain, heartache, loss, hunger, hate, war, diseases, and other attacks on the happiness and joy of humanity.  If we focus on those, then there is not much right with the world.  
But.
Then God opens our hearts, our eyes, and our souls to His Love.  He gives us His Grace and His Blessings... the ultimate gift was the gift of His Son Jesus to all of humanity for its salvation.  Have you accepted Jesus as Your Savior?  
Consider today's meditation from Charles Spurgeon:



May 11


Morning
“I am with you always.”  Matthew 28:20
It is well there is One who is ever the same, and who is ever with us. It is well there is one stable rock amidst the billows of the sea of life. 
O my soul, set not thine affections upon rusting, moth-eaten, decaying treasures, but set thine heart upon him who abides for ever faithful to thee. Build not thine house upon the moving quicksands of a deceitful world, but found thy hopes upon this rock, which, amid descending rain and roaring floods, shall stand immovably secure. 
My soul, I charge thee, lay up thy treasure in the only secure cabinet; store thy jewels where thou canst never lose them. Put thine all in Christ; set all thine affections on his person, all thy hope in his merit, all thy trust in his efficacious blood, all thy joy in his presence, and so thou mayest laugh at loss, and defy destruction. 
Remember that all the flowers in the world’s garden fade by turns, and the day cometh when nothing will be left but the black, cold earth. Death’s black extinguisher must soon put out thy candle. Oh! how sweet to have sunlight when the candle is gone! The dark flood must soon roll between thee and all thou hast; then wed thine heart to him who will never leave thee; trust thyself with him who will go with thee through the black and surging current of death’s stream, and who will land thee safely on the celestial shore, and make thee sit with him in heavenly places for ever. 
Go, sorrowing son of affliction, tell thy secrets to the Friend who sticketh closer than a brother. Trust all thy concerns with him who never can be taken from thee, who will never leave thee, and who will never let thee leave him, even “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.” “Lo, I am with you alway,” is enough for my soul to live upon, let who will forsake me.


Evening
“Only be thou strong and very courageous.”  Joshua 1:7
Our God’s tender love for his servants makes him concerned for the state of their inward feelings. He desires them to be of good courage. Some esteem it a small thing for a believer to be vexed with doubts and fears, but God thinks not so. 
From this text it is plain that our Master would not have us entangled with fears. He would have us without carefulness, without doubt, without cowardice. Our Master does not think so lightly of our unbelief as we do. When we are desponding we are subject to a grievous malady, not to be trifled with, but to be carried at once to the beloved Physician. 
Our Lord loveth not to see our countenance sad. It was a law of Ahasuerus that no one should come into the king’s court dressed in mourning: this is not the law of the King of kings, for we may come mourning as we are; but still he would have us put off the spirit of heaviness, and put on the garment of praise, for there is much reason to rejoice. The Christian man ought to be of a courageous spirit, in order that he may glorify the Lord by enduring trials in an heroic manner. If he be fearful and fainthearted, it will dishonour his God. Besides, what a bad example it is. 
This disease of doubtfulness and discouragement is an epidemic which soon spreads amongst the Lord’s flock. One downcast believer makes twenty souls sad. Moreover, unless your courage is kept up Satan will be too much for you. Let your spirit be joyful in God your Saviour, the joy of the Lord shall be your strength, and no fiend of hell shall make headway against you: but cowardice throws down the banner. Moreover, labour is light to a man of cheerful spirit; and success waits upon cheerfulness. 
The man who toils, rejoicing in his God, believing with all his heart, has success guaranteed. He who sows in hope shall reap in joy; therefore, dear reader, “be thou strong, and very courageous.”


So, come to Jesus, and then let Jesus come to you!