Spiritual

RESPECT


Spiritual Blog - Respect

Mark 12:28-31 – “Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is the first commandment of all?”  29 Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. 30 And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. 31 And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
NKJV

 

ANOTHER FRIDAY to enjoy the BLESSINGS OF THE LORD and reflect on the week past and look at the week ahead.  Beautiful cool, crisp, morning in Texas about 50 degrees at this moment.  With Bible & coffee in hand and conversation with the LORD, this is an especially good and quiet morning.  The Lord has reminded me of something my Grandfather told a neighbor and then the Lord related it to today.

The story goes that my maternal Grandfather was sitting on his front porch one day and a man who lived just down the road came up and began talking. Finally, the man said, “Mr. Kellum, everybody I know respects you and values your opinion, but I know you don’t like me, can I ask why?” My Grandfather replied, “It’s not that I don’t like you, in Christ I love you, but I don’t respect you.” The man was taken aback and pressed further asking, “Would you mind telling me why?” To which, my Grandfather responded, “You mistreat your family, your wife and kids and you mistreat your animals too. I cannot respect a man who does that. You get drunk and come in and physically abuse your family. You don’t provide for them like you should and that I cannot respect.” The man went away with no visible change. A number of years later he accepted Christ and said that one of the reasons was what my Grandfather said to him years earlier.

The Lord spoke to me about RESPECT.  Respecting others and being respected. He also addressed what we often call respect and the demanding of respect and the anger some in the public arena have said about being “disrespected”.  Respect, in some areas, is not automatic. I respect your right to privacy.  You have a right to your own opinion.  You have a right to live where you choose and can afford.  You have a right to pursue your career in whatever fashion you desire so long as its legal.  I respect your right to believe whatever you choose to believe. But, if I am to respect you as a person then there are some standards that I find in the Bible that I use to determine respect or the level of it.

I respect people I have never met and do not respect some that I have.  If a person, as the man my Grandfather addressed, will not provide for his own, mistreats his family and even his animals, is abusive physically, mentally and verbally then I do not respect that. If that individual were to ask me why I would give much the same answer my Grandfather gave with the addendum of sharing more of Christ’s plan or offer of salvation to them.

I want people to respect me, therefore it is incumbent upon me to conduct myself and condition my heart in a respectable manner! If I manifest Christ in my life, my words and my walk then there would be little, if anything to disrespect unless you have disrespect for Christ Himself.  If in me, they see Jesus respect will not be an issue. They may disagree with what I believe, even dislike me as a person but it will be difficult for them to actually have disrespect.  I want to live my life in such a way as to bring honor to Christ nor dishonor!

Let’s begin our day and live our lives in such a manner as to earn the respect of others and thereby bring honor to our Lord! Blessings as you go through your day!

 

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WHAT IS THE FIRST STEP?


Spiritual Blog - First Step

Genesis 1:1 – ” In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” NASU

Good morning Lord!  I almost felt like saying “Good Morning Vietnam!”, because lately, it seems like I’ve been in a war zone in so many areas. Great morning developing and, wonderful solitude in my office with a cup of coffee in hand or on the table next to my chair, bible in hand and listening to the sounds of life and… the voice of the Lord. Some interesting thoughts were raised in this session.

WHAT IS THE FIRST STEP? The first step to believing.  The first step to a relationship with God.  The first step to abundant life.  The first step to a life of victory and overcoming. Genesis 1:1 – “In the beginning God….” If I don’t believe that as the foundation of everything that I believe then I have no foundation upon which to build. Without God, I am drifting aimlessly in the sea of life.  I either believe that in the dateless past (the beginning) there was God, and God created what I see before me or I believe the explanation of the theories presented by the evolutionist. Which is more difficult to believe? To me the answer is simple; the easier to believe is that God IS and CREATED this world as well as we human beings.

I had a long conversation with a college professor some time back who holds a Ph.D. in Biology and he assured me that he was both a devout evolutionist and a devout Christian and the two did not conflict. His brand of Christianity is not important, only his belief that somehow dismissing the Bible and still being a Christian was somehow compatible. To him, it was ludicrous to believe that God spoke the world into existence, that somehow all this was by divine design and that God took dirt and formed Adam then breathed the breath of life into him, took a rib from Adam and created Eve. Yet, he could believe that from a single-celled piece of slime, gradually over millions of years that piece of slime evolved into every species of creature including humankind on the planet. He could believe that all we see and know somehow all this just happened by random chance. Not to get political in my devotional but if people really think like that in the realm of science and education and still believe that they are followers of Christ and see no conflict no wonder we have so much diversity in the political arena.

If I dismiss God as the beginning point, dismiss the creation, dismiss the Garden of Eden, dismiss Adam & Eve and the fall of man then I must dismiss the remainder of the Bible.  That would include the virgin birth of Jesus, His sacrificial death on the Cross, resurrection, and ascension to Heaven and thereby dismiss Grace. I would have no basis for believing anything that is in the Bible and thereby negate my foundation of faith. I would drift into nothingness in my belief system and become nothing more than the soulless animal creation. Any moral character would dissipate and there would be no restraints on my life. After all, if we are just evolved creatures with no soul then what law would there be other than my own desire, to rule my life.  I would effectively become the god of my own world and my world would exist so long as I was either cunning enough or was powerful enough to keep it intact.  Nothing would be off limits!

However, I choose to believe the report of Genesis 1 and believe that GOD IS, and He CREATED the heavens and the earth as well as man and the rest of the creatures on it.  I believe He hung the stars in place and placed everything where it was to be with the gravitational pull exactly as He designed and desired. I believe that man fell in the Garden of Eden and brought condemnation to the race.  I believe that Jesus came to set us free from that bondage, give us Life and that Life more abundant!  I believe that when we die we will stand before God and if we have accepted Christ as our Savior we will enter into the joy of the Lord and if we have rejected Him we will be cast into outer darkness (hell). I believe that the final result is based on our choices to accept Him or reject Him, and it is not by random chance that I am here.  If you believe that you came from monkeys that is your choice. You may, as some do, act like a soulless animal and live as though this life is all that there is. I choose to believe that God is both a loving God and one who will judge us in the end.

Therefore, the first step is to either accept or reject Genesis 1:1.  If I accept it then the Bible opens an incredible world to you, and if you do not then you are left in the darkness of the speculation of the theories as to how we got here. I choose to believe in Jehovah God not just some higher power, but the God of all creation as MY GOD.  I choose to follow HIM and His directives and guidance. I’ve had too many personal encounters and experiences to discount and dismiss my belief and faith, at this point in my life! Therefore, I’ve taken the first step and believed and now I take the remaining steps and walk out that life step by step until the day He calls me home, which I believe is a VERY REAL PLACE – – HEAVEN!

God bless you as you go through your day!

 

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HOW DO YOU KILL A DEAD MAN?


Spiritual Blog - Protected

2 Corinthians 5:17 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” NKJV

Romans 6:1-4 – “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk
in newness of life.” NKJV

Philippians 1:21 – “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” NKJV

 

Hello Lord! Good morning world! This is the beginning of a beautiful day and having coffee and conversation with the Lord. He asked me the title question.

Three times in my life the devil said to me in what seemed to be an audible voice, “I’m going to kill you.” Three times, the Lord performed a miracle to prevent my death in situations where I could have and would have died had He not intervened. I have known for almost all my life, in a very real way, that I am alive for a purpose and do not sense
that I have fulfilled that purpose as of this date.

The devil tried to kill me almost from birth and during the first two years, we spent almost 50% of the time in the doctor’s office where the medical personnel tried to properly diagnose and find what was making me sick. The doctors gave my family virtually no hope that I would live to be a teenager, but God intervened and gave my dad wisdom to relocate and in the relocation, I got completely well.

The first time that I heard those words, “I’m going to kill you, or you are going to die”, was in Vietnam on the day of my arrival in the country. God miraculously changed my orders and relocated me to a safe-haven. Unfortunately, I learned that those who went
where I was to be that day lost their lives that day. I was not a Christian at that time, but God’s mercy spared me for His purposes.

The next time, I was on a plane flying to Colorado from Austin, Texas and had to change planes in Dallas. As we were coming into DFW I heard those words so clear it startled me, and I looked around to see who had said them, but no one had been speaking to me. As we made our descent I sensed something very wrong and just as the wheels touched the ground the engines roared, and we lifted off again and as I looked down and back I saw another plane crossing our runway.  I was going to a retreat with other ministers for spiritual renewal and came away energized with a new vision and sense of purpose.

The third time I heard those words was a few months before being diagnosed with Parathyroid Cancer. God miraculously used the surgeons and provided a healing touch that caused the surgeon to say as we were going in for a second surgery, “somebody much higher than me has been at work here.” He said that what had transpired does not
happen medically and considered it a miracle. We rejoiced then and continue to rejoice now in the mercy, grace, and power of God!

God asked me after the last time the question in the title – “How do you kill a dead man?” So, my response to the devil since then has been, “if you do manage to kill me what have you done?”  The reality is I would go home early, and someone would take my place and carry on the work that I’ve been assigned to do.  I’m already dead, in Christ, so you can’t kill a dead man.  I’m not trying to be flippant nor disregard the seriousness of attacks of the enemy but in Christ, we are more than conquerors and He has overcome the evil one and we are IN CHRIST, therefore, we are overcomers!  I want to live out the full length of my days and accomplish all that God has for me to do!  I want it to be said of me as it was of David in Acts 13:36 that I fulfilled the purpose of God in my generation and then I died.  Not before and not until my destiny is complete, my race is run, my is journey complete, and my fight won THEN I WILL GO HOME!

You have a destiny and a purpose that God has designed and desired for you.  It is my sincere prayer that you fulfill every portion of it and lives out the remainder of your days in abundant joy, grace, power, and love!

Blessings to each of you!

 

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I LIKE GOD’S PROMISES….


Spiritual Blog - Promises

Psalm 50:15 – “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.” NASU

There are things I like and things I do not like in life.  This Psalm depicts something that I like very much and I depend upon entirely and that is the Promises of God.  I like it when God’s gives us permission to do something and affirms it with a promise and a prophetic declaration.

Consider what is said here:

  1. The Invitation.

Call upon Me in the day of trouble.   God is telling us that when difficulties arise and we are facing something that is larger than us we have His permission to appeal to Him.  The New Testament tells us in Hebrews 4:14-16 –“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. 16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” NASU

That is nothing short of phenomenal!  We have a High Priest, Jesus who has been touched by the things that we face and knows our very weaknesses.  He is one that has faced the temptations that we face and did so WITHOUT SIN.  He overcame and invites us to enter the Throne Room of Heaven with confidence and even boldness knowing that we will receive mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.  How can you beat that promise and invitation?

  1. The Promise.

I shall rescue you!  Wow!  We all face problems and difficulties in life and in those times we have a standing invitation from the Lord to “Call upon Him” with the promise that HE WILL COME TO MY AIDE!  The Psalmist tells us in Psalm 46:1-3 – “God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; 3 Though its waters roar and foam, Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah.” NASU

 He not only promises to HELP but He is a PRESENT HELP a RIGHT NOW HELP!  It’s not a sometime down the road promise, it is – “You call and I WILL.”  How do you beat that?

  1. The Prophetic.

You will Honor Me!  So both with my testimony in words but in my life demonstrating His help, deliverance, comfort, power, and provision I HONOR HIM!  Others can look at what God is doing in my life and know that there is a God and that God is a Living God and a Present God.  That is a powerful tool for Evangelism.  Living a life of reception of the Promises of God is like honey drawing flies.  It has an appeal that nothing else can have.

YES, I like God’s Promises!  I hope you do to and I hope that you accept His invitation to Call upon Him and know that He will never fail and that the end result is Honor will be brought to Him through us!

May God be with you as you go through your day!

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WITH WINGS OF EAGLES…..


Spiritual Blog - Eagles wings

Isaiah 40:28-31 – “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. 29 He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, 31 But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.”  NKJV

 

Thank God that God NEVER GETS TIRED although sometimes I wonder if He grows weary with us due to our inaction, unbelief, and resistance to His promises and plans.  He is the ALL WISE creator of the universe and infuses His power into our lives when we are weak and need His strength.  He comes to us when we are faint and on the verge of collapsing under the load and enables us to have renewed strength for the struggle, the journey, and battle.

Here Isaiah gives us something that sometimes in our “Microwave World” and “Instant Everything” lifestyles we miss or find it difficult to accept.  He tells us that those that WAIT on the LORD will RENEW their strength.  The result of that is given in the word picture that the prophet uses.  We will mount up with wings like eagles.  Eagles can soar high above everything and see with precision minute things on the surface below while soaring so high that they are almost invisible to the naked eye.  We will also run and not grow weary.  All of us who have ever had to run know that this is humanly impossible and therefore it is a clear indication that this strength and stamina will come from DIVINE SOURCES.  Not only will we run and not grow weary but in our WALK we will not faint, give up, or give in.  WE WILL MOVE FORWARD TO VICTORIOUS LIVING!

The key to everything in this is WAITING ON THE LORD!  Not only is timing everything but the development of character and the learning that takes place in the time of WAITING ON THE LORD is indispensable for a victorious spiritual walk.  If there was one thing that I could teach all new believers it would be the secret and art of WAITING ON THE LORD.  If I could convince people of the value and need of this I would have succeeded in enabling them to live above the circumstances, obstacles, and trials of life in a rarified atmosphere that is known only to the angelic hosts.

Therefore, instead of being impatient and in a hurry learn and ask God to help you LEARN TO WAIT on the LORD!  As you do you will find that you not only accomplish more but you do so without the stress and pressure that life in human strength brings.

May God be with you as you go through your day!

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GOD’S WAY NOT MAN’S WAY…..


Spiritual Blog - Two Ways

James 1:19-20 – “So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; 20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”  NKJV

            A number of years ago I had a member of the congregation that I was leading tell me regarding some incident that has just taken place in his life, “I don’t get mad I get even.”  I asked if he believed that was God’s way and his reply was, “I don’t know but it’s my way.”  Among other passages of scripture that I called to his attention was this one from James.  He was unflinching in his resolve to exact a pound of flesh from the person that had caused him a wound and nothing I could say changed his mind.  I prayed for that man over this issue until the day of his death and so far as I know he never altered that view.

     James warns or encourages us depending on how you view it how we should interact with other people.  He tells us that we should be SWIFT TO HEAR.  That would be beautiful if it were not so contrary to our natural human mindset that many find it almost impossible.  Most are either anxiously framing their response to what is being said without really listening or they are so absorbed with what the points they want to make that they do not hear anyone or anything else.  He also said we are to be SLOW TO SPEAK.  I cannot tell you how many times I’ve had someone tell me, “Well, I just say what is on my mind and let the chips fall where they may.”  That may sound good but is it really the heart and mind of God.  Sometimes SILENCE is the right response and the Bible makes it crystal clear that “a soft answer turns away wrath.”  Usually, that statement (speaking the mind) is made by a person who justifies saying whatever they want to say as though it were a pious thing when it is laden with self and selfishness.  It does not consider the other brother or sister or even the situation it only gives a release for the individual to SPEAK THEIR MIND.

   James continues and tells us that “the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”  If we speak in anger the chances are we will say things that we will later wish we could take back but you cannot retrieve words.  Once they are released into the atmosphere they are there forever and sadly, we will hear them played back one day when we stand before God.  The only solution is to bring them under the Blood of Jesus and washed away and that requires repentance.  No wonder the Bible tells us to “not let the sun go down on our anger.”  If you allow it to fester in your heart, it will permeate your thought processes and become part of your reasoning and interaction with others and eventually will produce a poison that will damage you and others around you.  It will cost you relationships, peace of mind, and possibly even the fulfillment of the purposes of God for your life.

     If we learn to LISTEN and carefully weigh our words and diffuse anger we will see God’s Righteousness shine forth into the situation and what God can do in an instant we could never accomplish in two lifetimes.  So, I encourage everyone to become HEARERS and not just SPEAKERS or DOERS. 

       May God bless you and be with you as you go through your day!

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GOD SEES IN US WHAT WE CANNOT SEE…


Spiritual Blog - Valor

Judges 6:11-18 – “Then the angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak that was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite as his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press in order to save it from the Midianites. 12 The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, “The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior.” 13 Then Gideon said to him, “O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 The LORD looked at him and said, ” Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?” 15 He said to Him, “O Lord, how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.” 16 But the LORD said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man.” 17 So Gideon said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who speak with me. 18 “Please do not depart from here, until I come back to You, and bring out my offering and lay it before You.” And He said, “I will remain until you return.”  NASU

 

        It is sometimes amusing but comforting to realize that God does not see as man sees.  He is not limited to what is presently visible or a current reality in the natural.  God sees the end from the beginning and we are limited to seeing the beginning from the end.  We may believe there is potential, but God not only believes the potential but sees it as a finished product, IF…  If what?  If we will walk in obedience and dare to dream and press toward the prize of the high calling.

      In this account which is a most powerful revelation of the truth that “God sees in us what we cannot see in ourselves.”  I have known some who thought they were a god or God’s gift to the world, but my focus is the masses who do not view themselves that way.  I can only imagine how Gideon felt when the angel of the LORD came to him and called him a ‘valiant warrior.’  We don’t have to wonder because the account gives the mental attitude of Gideon.  Gideon did not simply shrink back in a sense of insufficiency, he questioned God.  That can be a dangerous condition but sometimes, it seems that God welcomes our questions.  Why?  Because it gives him the opportunity to demonstrate His power, person, purpose, and love.  It allows Him to demonstrate the truth that what He has placed in us can produce incredible results in this life.

       Gideon asked, “if the LORD is with us THEN WHY???”  Why what?  Why are we in such deep turmoil nationally?  Why is there such calamity in our lives?  Why is there such unrest?  Why are the enemies enjoying such apparent success?  WHY?  He also asked, “if the LORD is with us THEN WHERE???”  Where what?  Where are all the miracles we’ve heard about in our history?  If the LORD brought us out to freedom from bondage, why has he apparently abandoned us?  I love the next verse.  It says, ‘The LORD looked at him…’  It did not say the angel of the LORD, it said THE LORD.  The LORD revealed what He saw in Gideon, which was something Gideon could not see in himself.  I have no doubt Gideon longed for Israel’s deliverance and for someone to champion the cause of Freedom for the people, but never saw himself as that vessel.  The LORD said, “Go in this your strength and deliver Israel…”  WOW!  Hey, Gideon, ITS IN YOU!  God has made you a conqueror, a valiant warrior, and a victory.  This is your assignment.  I AM WITH YOU!   Hallelujah!  That’s enough!

     Gideon, as did Moses protested that he was insignificant and that’s what made him a candidate for God’s demonstration of incredible exploits through him.  Had he been full of himself and seen himself as larger than life, he would not have been usable for the King of Kings.  Had he not been humble and little in his own sight, he would have disobeyed when the LORD began sending home his warriors and left him with 300 men to face an entire army.  But, God saw in him a heart that was pliable, teachable, and humble.  That’s what God saw in David calling him a man after God’s own heart.  It was not that either of them was sinless or perfect, but they were obedient and recognized God as God.

      God sees in you far more than you see in yourself and as Jeremiah declared, God knows the plans He has for you and it is far greater than you can imagine.  God knows His purpose and assignment for your life and it is not limited to the natural or immediate it is only limited by your willingness to walk in obedience.  I am not suggesting that each of us will become national leaders or deliverers.  Some of us may simply be those who pour water on the hands of those who are, but each assignment is vital and what God sees in you is far more than you see in yourself.  NEVER, and I plead NEVER limit your vision to what you think you can do.  Learn to listen to the voice of the Spirit of God and the Word of God.  God says that we are more than conquerors through Jesus.  All things are possible to those who believe.  Obedience is far better than sacrifice and if we are willing and obedient we will enjoy the fruit of His victory!

   God bless you as you open your hearts to His Possibilities in your life!  

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THE SCHISMS AND DIVISIONS….


Spiritual Blog - Church

1 Corinthians 1:10-17 – “Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. 11 For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you. 12 Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, “I am of Paul,” and “I of Apollos,” and “I of Cephas,” and “I of Christ.” 13 Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one would say you were baptized in my name. 16 Now I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized any other. 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void.”  NASU

         Most of the time I do not have a significant problem with people following different elements within the Body of Christ as their primary worship center or foundation of faith and practice!  That being said, sometimes I wonder how the heart of God is grieved when we separate, alienate, and seek to annihilate others from differing denominations over schisms and points of faith because we believe that we and we alone are right and they are not only wrong but heretical in their beliefs.

           I do not expect everyone to believe exactly what I believe but I do ask that we seek to believe what the Bible teaches and allow the Word of God to be the true and final interpreter of God’s Tenets and Truths.  Paul exhorted the Church in Corinth along these lines urging them to settle or move away from divisions and schisms which were not only points of disagreement but points of separation doing damage to the efforts of the fledgling Church of Jesus Christ.  He went through his list of people identifying with a particular personality, as their argument and basis for their rightness.  That is no different than the hordes of people who not just proudly but divisively declare, “I’m this or that” regarding a particular denomination or non-denominational denomination.

      A number of years ago the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and said, “You are too exclusive and not open to some outside your group or groups and I want to use them to speak to you.”  I attended some conferences and meetings where men and women were speaking things that in the past I had severely criticized as being in gross error.  The Holy Spirit instructed me to LISTEN and that in doing so I would find more to applaud than to criticize.  One of the main speakers preached a message that so stirred my heart I developed several series from his message because God had used him to speak a truth to my heart that in a very real way changed my outlook on many things.  The church he was leading and a part of were putting the principles of the gospel in practice and while I still do not agree with all he taught I will allow the Holy Spirit to speak to me through whatever means He chooses.

    I realize that some will say that I am compromising my faith and I hope that is incorrect.  I do not excuse or wink at sin nor will I sit silently when I hear what I believe to be heresy taught, at least not silent with those whom I have any influence or responsibility.  I will separate the message from the messenger and identify what I believe the Bible says while refusing to focus on the personality.  If that is compromise then I guess I am guilty but in my desire to do what the Spirit of God instructed me I will follow this practice and ask you to disagree disagreeably if you choose.  I ascribe to the idea, “in essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, and in all things charity.”  There are some things that are foundational such as the virgin birth of Jesus, the truth that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and that He is the only access to the Father.  The Blood of Jesus is not just important but essential.  It is by Grace that we are saved.  It is by the blood of Jesus that we are cleansed.  There are essentials and in those we need unity.

     May God be with you as you go through your day!

 

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I CAN, YOU CAN, WE CAN……


Spiritual Blog - All Things

Philippians 4:13 – “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”  NKJV

     I desire to be contextual in the use of scripture and find it difficult when people fail to acknowledge or consider what is before and after a particular passage or even the overall teaching of scripture on the matter.  I have pulled a single verse out of a passage to say something that is tugging at my heart today.

            Paul was addressing the Philippian Christians with regard to the difficult times he had had and their over the top support for him.  He gave them a little insight into his basic God-Inspired philosophy of life, “Being Content” in whatever state he was in at the time.  He knew what it was to have plenty and he knew what it was to be in want.  He knew what it was to have a surplus and he knew what it was to be hungry and not know where his next meal was coming from in the natural.  He knew what it was to be free and he knew what it was to be imprisoned and yet his undergirding foundation was HIS CONFIDENCE IN GOD!  That was what he wanted to pass on to the Philippian Church and to all who would read and hear what he had to say thus we get verse thirteen.

          “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

        This is a foundational truth that if we could all wrap our hearts, minds, and faith around we would NEVER find an obstacle that became bigger than life to us.  We would walk into every battle with a confidence that the outcome had already been decided and fight with an assurance of victory.  It would not be a matter of overconfidence or self-confidence but God-confidence.  It would be a complete dependence on THE WORD and PROMISES OF GOD.  It is one thing to “HOPE” for something and quite another to “KNOW” something.  We see the beginning from the end but God sees the end from the beginning.  That is an attribute that we humans do not possess except through the eyes of the Spirit of God and through faith!

       The overriding message of the Bible and especially the New Testament is that WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERERS through Jesus!  It is that WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE.  It is that NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE to those that believe.  So, as Paul speaks these words they leaped off the page at me on this day and my heart cried out, “Oh God make it so in my life and in the lives of all who read what I write today.”  I speak to those who are struggling with events of life that have become burdens to bear!  I speak to those who have just received some devastating news that is more than your heart is prepared to hear.  I speak to those who have been betrayed by a trusted friend, companion, business partner, or confidant.  I speak to EVERY PERSON reading and say – “You can do this in Jesus and through Jesus.”  I don’t know if the outcome or the ultimate victory will be on this earth or as you stand before God but I know that ultimately YOU WIN in Jesus!

       So no matter what you are facing today, no matter what news has come or will come know that GOD KNOWS, CARES, and IS BIGGER THAN ALL YOUR PROBLEMS and WHEN JESUS SAYS ITS ENOUGH IT’LL BE ENOUGH!

      May God be with you as you go through your day!

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DON’T GROW FAINT HEARTED IN DOING GOOD….


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Galatians 6:9-10 – “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”  NKJV

             We have all known people who just seem to always be doing good things for other people.  It was or is their heart and no matter the recognition or the reward they did it.  Then we have known those who do good things if the recognition or reward is there and as long as the accolades roll in they continue their efforts and actions.  I’ve known parents, spouses, and even workers and bosses express their weariness at doing good things for others only to have it go unappreciated and frequently I have seen them cease their actions and some even fallen into bitterness over it.

            If what you are doing is based on the immediate gratification of recognition then you are doing it for the wrong reason.  If you do what you do “in the name of the Lord” and “for the Lord” then your reward is beyond this life as well as in this life.  Paul encourages us to not give up and not grow weary in our efforts to do good things.  He assures us what we should all have settled deep in our hearts – GOD SEES ALL!  Just like farming, there is a time of preparing the soil, a time of planting the seed, a time of germination of the seed, a time of growing, and then finally a time of harvest.  We reap WHAT we so, we reap LATER than we sow, and we reap MORE than we sow.

            When we are doing good things for anyone, God sees it.  When we are doing good things for those of the household of faith according to Paul here this is especially noted.  Let me give you a Roy reason for this:  Those of the household of faith are already in the fight and are either sowers of the Gospel or potential sowers of the Gospel.  They are laborers in God’s harvest and when we do good things for them and help them continue their efforts we are furthering the cause of the Kingdom in a very tangible way. 

         Therefore, even if no one recognizes your efforts or even expresses appreciation for what you do – DON’T LOSE HEART!   God will never forget what you do or have done and even if it is in Heaven He will honor your labors, especially if they are labors of love out of a pure heart for the right reasons.

            As you go through this day and this year look, for opportunities to bless others and especially those of the Household of Faith!  May God be with you, guide you, guard you, protect you, and richly bless you in all things and at all times!

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