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My Father...

...loves to give me good gifts.

Last evening I was looking around at my life. I saw my sweet wife; my healthy and happy children; the great church that I have the privilege to serve and my heart was filled with thanksgiving.

My God truly has filled my life with good gifts!

All Glory belongs to God!

"Walk A Little Plainer Daddy"

Walk a little plainer daddy Said a little boy so frail,

I'm following your footsteps and I don't want to fail.

Sometimes your steps are plain Sometimes they are hard to see,

So walk a little plainer Daddy. For you are leading me."

I know that once you walked This way many years ago,

What you did along the way I'd really like to know

For sometimes when I'm tempted I don't know what to do

So walk a little plainer, Daddy, For I must follow you.

Someday when I'm grown up. You are like I want to be,

Then I will have a little boy Who will want to follow me

And I want to lead him right. And help him to be true

So walk a little plainer, Daddy For we must follow you.

~ Author Unknown

That I might win some...

These thoughts were inspired by Brother David Martin and the profoundly powerful lesson that he taught Sunday Morning.

1 Cor 9:22-23
22 To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.
23 And this I do for the gospel's sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.

Paul wrote these profound words of passion and desire to see souls saved.

Jesus himself lived this example by speaking in parables that were specifically design for his audience.

To fishermen he spoke of fishing...
To Scholars he spoke of the law and prophets...
To shepherds he spoke of sheep...
To farmers he spoke of agriculture...

Let me be wise enough to convey THE MESSAGE by the most effective METHOD for those that I am trying to reach.

LIFTERS AND LEANERS

There are just two kinds of people on earth today,
Just two kinds of people, no more, I say.
Not the rich and the poor, for to count a man’s wealth
You must first know the state of his conscience and health.
Not the humble and proud, for, in life’s little span,
Who puts on airs is not counted a man.
Not the happy and sad, for the swift counting years
Bring each man his laughter and each man his tears.
No, the two kinds of people on earth I mean
Are the people who lift and the people who lean.
Wherever you go you will find the world’s masses
Are always divided in just these two classes.
And oddly enough you will find, too, I ween,
There’s only one lifter to twenty who lean.
In which class are you? Are you easing the load
Of overtaxed lifters who toil down the road?
Or are you a leaner who lets others bear
Your portion of labour and worry and care?
- Ella Wheeler Wilcox –

The Love of God - by Fredrick M. Lehman

Verse 1

The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell;
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And pardoned from his sin.

Chorus
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure
The saints’ and angels’ song.

Verse 2

When years of time shall pass away,
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men, who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God’s love so sure, shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam’s race—
The saints’ and angels’ song.

Verse 3
Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

Do You Miss It?

Today my mind goes to all those dear friends and loved ones of mine that have allowed themselves to slip away from presence of God.

Through neglect or deception you have have lost the precious things that you once held dear.

Relationship...
Holiness...
Trust...
Peace...
Contentment...
Truth...

Do You Miss It?

The Church is still here. There are still people that are holding on to the name. There are still people that love the principles of biblical holiness; still people who love to pray; to worship; to serve.

Come on home.

I am praying for you today!

A Fiery Sermon...

A member of a certain church, who previously had been attending services regularly, stopped going. After a few weeks, the preacher decided to visit him. It was a chilly evening.. The preacher found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire... Guessing the reason for his preachers visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace and waited.

The preacher made himself at home but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the preacher took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone then he sat back in his chair, still silent.

The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember's flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more.. Soon it was cold and dead. Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting. The preacher glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow, once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it.

As the preacher reached the door to leave, his host said with a tear running down his cheek, 'Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I will be back in church next Sunday.' We live in a world today, which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen. Sometimes the best sermons are the ones left unspoken.

Author Unknown...

Cracking Conventional Wisdom - Satan?

What does conventional wisdom say about Satan? It says that Satan is...

1. equal in power to God
2. able to stop God's purpose
3. able to defeat the church
4. able to control our actions
5. the king of a domain called hell

What is the real truth?

1. Satan is not an equal to God. God has no equal. He is the creator of all things and His power is unmatched. God does not even have to break a sweat to defeat the enemy. Satan is simply a fallen angel that was cast out of heaven by God and his fall was like lightening from heaven.

2. God's purpose will not be stopped. He will ultimately be worshiped. He will ultimately be proclaimed king. Satan will ultimately be defeated.

3. God will have the Church. The Church will not fail or be defeated. It is founded on Jesus Christ the solid rock.

4. The devil cannot "make" us do anything. We have to give him influence. If we submit ourselves unto God then we can resist the devil and he will flee from us.

5. Hell is not Satan's domain. He is not in charge of hell. He fears hell. He dreads hell. He will be a victim of its torture just as any unrepentant sinner.

We have nothing to fear from our enemy, Satan. If we stay in the church and stay submitted to God then we will be victorious.

Remember, if Satan COULD destroy you he WOULD.

I met the Master face to face

I had walked life's way with an easy tread,
Had followed where comfort and pleasures led,
Until one day in a quiet place
I met the Master face to face.

With station and rank and wealth for my goal,
Much thought for my body, but none for my soul,
I had entered to win in life's mad race,
When I met the Master face to face.

I met Him, and knew Him and blushed to see
That His eyes full of sorrow, were fixed on me;
And I faltered and fell at His feet that day,
While my castles melted and vanished away.

Melted and vanished and in their place
Naught else did I see but the Masters face.
And I cried aloud, "Oh, make me meet
To follow the steps of Thy wounded feet."

My thought is now for the souls of men,
I have lost my life to find it again,
E'er since one day in a quite place
I met the Master face to face.

Author: Unknown

Beware of theThree Types of Leaven

Matt 16:6
6 Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

Mark 8:15
15 And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

The leaven of the Pharisees - This leaven expands the philosophy that if you dot every i and cross every t on the outside that you are pleasing God.

This is the leaven of hypocrisy.

The leaven of the Sadducees - This leaven expands the philosophy of questioning and doubting traditionally held views. They refused to acknowledge Oral History or Oral Law.

This is the leaven of compromise.

The leaven of Herod - This leaven expanded the philosophy of tolerance. Herod had to walk a fine line between Roman paganism and Hebraic doctrine to remain in favor with the Roman government. This resulted in a hybrid and convoluted religious culture that embraced worldliness.

This is the leaven of appeasement.

God help us to remove all the leaven from our lives and preach it out of our churches.

Withholding...

Ananias and Sapphira withheld a part and was judged.

I ask us a simple question today, while we preach, teach and live as examples of consecration, "What are we withholding?"

Have I given Him all?

My time? My will? My Finance? My Effort?

What am I reserving for myself?

Search me O' Lord and help me surrender all!

Acts 5:1-11
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet.
3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.
6 And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him.
7 And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in.
8 And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.
9 Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out.
10 Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband.
11 And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.

Learning the Way of the Cross

Surrender
Discipline
Sacrifice
Giving
Loving

Oh, that I can learn the way of the Cross...

Satan has You Right Where God Wants You!

Satan is so dumb! (I say that in the kindest possible way...smile)

I have noticed that God loves to let Satan think that he has you right where he wants you. When, in reality, he is positioning you for your greatest victory.

Pharaoh thought he had Israel right where he wanted them. With mountains to each side and a sea before them, Pharaoh bore down on them. However, God had a different plan. God was using the enemy for His own purposes.

Purpose One - To show Israel who He is.

To show them…

...that He is the God of all the elements.

(Cloud, Fire, and Sea)
...that He is well able to deliver.
...that He is well able to defeat any enemy no matter how large or advanced their armies may be.

Purpose Two - To show us the type and shadow of the New Birth message

Israel…
...left their old life - Repentance
...passed through the sea - Baptism
...passed through the cloud - Holy Ghost

Therefore, the enemy was just a tool in the hands of God used to fulfill God's purpose in the lives of His people.

Satan thought he had Joseph where he wanted him… (Egypt)

Satan thought he had Daniel and the Hebrew boys where he wanted them… (Lion’s Den and the Fiery Furnace)

Satan also thought he had Jesus where he wanted him... (On the Cross)

Once again God was just using Satan's lust for power and his hatred for man kind to fulfill His purpose. He allowed Satan to orchestrate circumstances that seemed to be a defeat for God and His people, only to use those circumstances to propel His purpose in to the light for all to see.

So, when you feel that you have reached the end and the enemy has won.

Don't give up!

You are only being positioned for your promise!

Why Do We Seek the Lord?

Revival?

Growth?
Miracles?
Signs?
Wonders?
Finance?
Provision?
Direction?
Miracles?
Healing?
Salvation?

So many reasons... seemingly valid reasons... seemingly noble reasons...

However, I hear the voice of the Lord crying... "What about Me?"

He is wanting us to seek Him for Him... Relationship!

If we will ever seek Him for Him... Then true revival will come! All that we so desire is only found in Him and a relationship with Him!

Let us stop seeking Him so that we can grow a church or even reach our cities.

Let us seek Him for Him. Let us fall in love with Him. Then and only then will we truly have what He wants us to have.

Then and only then will we find His direction...His love...His compassion...His power...

Forgive me Oh Lord for seeking You for my own means... Help me to seek You for You!

Only when my will and desires become one with His will I truly be revived.

Help me to stop being "holy" for me... help me to stop "praying" for me... help me to stop "preaching" for me... help me to stop "reaching souls" for me...

Let my ego die on the cross. Let me become of no reputation for Your glory. Let me live only to establish and maintain a relationship with You.

The Power of Wonderful Words

I was thinking today of how powerful words can be...

Negative words...

For years I thought I could not sing, even though I enjoyed singing, all because my sister used to tell me I "couldn't carry a tune in a bucket." I am 38 and her words still ring in my ears as if she said them today. I am still not a great singer but I can sing enough to get by...

Ugly, Dumb, Absent Minded, Sloppy...on and on... negative words ring their demoralizing tune.

Positive words...

"Your handwriting is so neat," were the words of some nameless substitute spoken to me in 5th grade. Almost 30 years later I can still hear these words of encouragement.

"You are too smart for this level of work," were the words of my 8th grade English teacher after I have failed miserably one six week period. I became her best student and went on to AP English classes in High School. (Even though you may not can tell it now...

You're Smart, Organized, Precise, Loving, Kind, Generous... Powerful Words!

Words are Powerful!

Whoever made up the rhyme "Sticks and Stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me" was just kidding themselves.

I've seen bruises and breaks heal much faster that destructive words. In fact, many times wounds from words never heal.

Let us be careful today... Give someone the gift of wonderful words today! Maybe you will give them something to build on for the future.

There is Power in Your Wonderful Words!

Its Dark!

We live in a dark hour in the history of the world. It seems that the enemy has won. He has captured the airwaves and the political power of our world.

Truth, Purity and Righteousness is made the punch line of the enemies jokes.

Collectively and individually we are battling things that we have never battled.

Financial stress interrupts peaceful dreams...

Sin steals our brothers and our sisters...

Drugs ravage the youth of our culture...

Sexual Perversion is winked at and accepted...

Nevertheless, the Light is still shining!

The Church is still victorious!

Jesus is still on the Throne!

Its Dark! Yes...

Keep Shining...

Keep Praying...

Keep Worshiping...

Keep Reaching...

Keep Walking...

Helpless does not equal Hopeless...

There are many times in life that we feel helpless. The current of life's circumstances push us along in a direction that we do not always understand and problems seem to overwhelm us.

We cry out to God in our weakness and the heavens seem to be made of brass.

However, we must always remember that helpless does not equal hopeless. We feel helpless...yes. Yet our faith is built on nothing less that Jesus Christ and His Righteousness!

We firmly believe that He knows the way that we take.

In fact, our helplessness is the perfect environment for Jesus to perform.

2 Cor 12:9
9 And he said unto me, 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.

Heb 11:32-34
32 And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
33 Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.

Ps 16:9
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.

You may feel HELPLESS...but you are not HOPELESS!

Appetite...

Appetite determines our...

...Attitude
...Aptitude
...Altitude

Attitude...
When we are hungry for God and God alone... no thought... no offense... no sin... will get in our way... Hatred, Bitterness, and Offense are pushed aside by our hunger for Him and Him alone.

Aptitude...
When we are hungry for God and God alone... no occupation... no entertainment... no task will keep the hungry from studying, meditating, and endeavoring to learn more of Him.

Altitude...
When we are truly hungry for God and God alone... no position... no attainment... no success wil satisfy our desire to go higher... to see farther... reach further...

The reason some are not hungry is two-fold...

1. We have filled ourselves with so many other things
2. We have not really tasted the things of God

The View from the Cross

It is said that perception is 9/10 of reality. The way we perceive things to be are the way that they are, at least in our minds.

In our flesh it is so easy to have misconceptions or more precisely mis-perceptions. Therefore, how do we find the proper perception?

As Christians and as church leaders we can only find a true perspective and perception at the cross.

Daily we must trudge up the hill called Calvary. We must stand in the shadow of that beautifully awful place. From there the view is so clear. From there reality can be found. When I view life from the cross everything takes on it's true meaning and value; everything falls into focus.

Firstly, the cross changes the way I see God. No longer is He a distant; no longer is He an anonymous creator, but he is my savior. As I review the nails, the spear, the crown, and the blood I am overwhelmed by the love. No not shallow "I love you" love but a deep unwavering "no cost is too high" kind of love.

From this location I can see His eyes and hear his voice saying "Father forgive them, they know not what they do." As He took the ultimate offense, as He became sin for those that stood there jeering and mocking He offered them mercy instead of revenge. Peace instead of wrath. Love instead of hate.

It amazes me that He could react that way to such a terrible, unmerited offense and it makes me ask myself "how should I react when my feelings get hurt?"

Secondly, the cross changes how I view myself. I see myself reflected in this monument of suffering. What I see is a paradox because simultaneously I see my weakness and my possibility. My weakness overwhelms my thoughts, as my voice cries for mercy. Yet, at the same time my soul is empowered with the possibility that His sacrifice purchased for me. In my weakness I am humbled and at the same time in my weakness His strength is perfected.

The view from the cross changed my personal perspective. It has changed forever the way I see God and the way I see myself.

Thirdly, the cross changes my view of others. It is impossible to judge others harshly in the shadow of mercy. Desire for position seems so petty and insignificant at the cross. My offenses fade in the light of His long suffering love.

When I find myself growing cynical and becoming me centered I make my way back to the cross. The view from there brings everything back into focus. The cross experience purifies my desires, my ambitions, and my motives.

Have you been to the cross today? The view from there will change your life.

Phil 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.