It’s all about HIM!

¹⁰ And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.

He gave them power to heal, cast out demons, and all sort of supernatural endowments that would allow them to be used of God in the ministry of people.  They went out and were used of God in a mighty way.  Once they returned, how brilliant was it to take them privately to a place where they could get away from the crowd and get the whole event in proper perspective.  They got away.  It was a deserted place…a place just opposite from where they had spent their life for the past little while.

It doesn’t take long to begin to believe in your own stuff.  Owning what only God can give and do is tacky to say the least but I find if I am not careful it is easy to believe that “I” did that or it was something that I planned or it was generated by my own wisdom.  How sad.  Only God can do this kind of thing.  They would have not had the gifts nor the power to get the work done had he not given it to them.  So before it got to be a problem he carried them off to a private place and got it all in perspective.

I am depending on God to do a great work tomorrow at church as we journey with the Father through this whole concept of prayer.  Our instructions will be to pray for everyone…people we like and people we may not find it so easy to like…pray for our friends and our enemies.  I ask God to help us as we gather together so that he does a great work in our midst.  There are so many hurting people in our church.  There are people who need to take what they are facing and take it to the Lord.  We are taught to pray.  We are taught to pray for everyone.

I am reminded again – I am so thankful to be a part of what HE is up to in this world.  It takes my breath away to think that he has that kind of confidence in me.  How he loves me.   It’s not about me or us but about HIM!  Oh, how I want to see HIM move among us!

Have you prayed about it?

¹² One day soon afterward Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night. ¹³ At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles. Here are their names:

What would it have been like to have been one of the disciples gathered around when Jesus said to them that he would be back in the morning.  He needed to pray and he would disappear by going up into the mountains to pray.  Then at times he would pray all night.  I would love to be privy to one of those conversations…if there was conversation to them at all.  Was it communion in silence?  What did he say?  What did he hear?  What were the contents of the communion between the Father and the Son?  A dozen was what was needed.  There were more than a dozen in line for potential selection.  Can you imagine the conversation that God and Jesus had about each person?  Could you possibly hear Jesus and God talk about what they saw in each person?  I would love to have been there to hear it.

He checked it all out with God before he moved forward…that is for sure.  He came back and had a list of 12 on his heart.  He and the Father had talked it all out.  Or at least Jesus got quiet enough until he was  confident that the selections were consistent with the heart and big plan of God.  I know we as a church will spend some time in the near future selecting the men that will be our new deacons.  To prayerfully talk to God about the potential selections is a process one cannot “hurry”.  I am glad that we take the time to interview each candidate, review their commitment to the faith, observe their commitment to the local body of Christ, discover their ability to lead at home and in the church.  I am reminded this morning that it is powerfully important to insure that these names are gathered before the Father and a concerted effort be made to insure that the ones presented are the ones that are in the middle of God’s will and those who will work out his purpose as deacons in our church.

Whether it is choosing deacons or meeting with a member today, my heart should bathe each thing in prayer before I take the time to deal with each issue.  I have to fight the tendency to jump into it talking it over with the “Three” who know best.  Praise be to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Thank you Jesus, for sending the Holy Spirit to live in us and to be our school teacher and one who goes along side us to guide us.  Help me, today, to choose to bathe what I do in prayer.

Rev. 19 – “We Win!

Both the beast and his false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

This job of mine is never boring.  You deal with real interesting things every day.  There are a lot of things you can say about what I do, but you can rest assured that it is never boring.  I got a phone call the other day from my Associate Pastor at the church telling me that he had been asked to do the funeral service for a young woman who had been murdered.  It was sad.  He had been so faithful to pray for and minister to the family and to the young lady.  It seems that she was in the wrong place at the right time and was murdered along with another young man and left in a ditch to die.  I remember several years ago another dad who was smitten as he learned of his son’s death in a similar manner – young people being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  I think of another woman and her husband who spends a good time every two years doing what they can to keep the man who murdered and raped her daughter in jail.  Those are just three that have affected our own church family.

Behind the scenes the enemy of God and his hordes of hellish armies fight against the Hosts of Heaven.  Today I was reminded again that the battle one of these days will be forever over.  Hell will fill the Lake of Fire and we will finally be free from the influence of evil.

Until then, I will continue to pray and trust God through it all.  It is a new day.  One that has a great deal of potential.

Watchman!

⁷So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.

Ezekiel was asked by God to be the watchman over the house of Israel.  Judgment was coming and his job was to see it coming and warn the people.  At least they will not be surprised when it comes.  Can one man make that kind of difference for an entire nation?  Can one Ezekiel-like individual make that kind of impact on the lives of so many people in the church?  Can a family benefit with the “watchman” standing watch over their home?  Is there some kind of public trust put on my own life to be a man of prayer?  Could my wife, children, church, community and nation be depending on me to “watch” for the enemy?  Could it be possible that I am in a war that finds need for me to stand watch?  Is the picture bigger than I want to admit?  Is it my responsibility to be keenly aware when the enemy is moving and to be watching for where he is attacking next?  Is it my job to give warning to the body at large when I see it happening?  Is there some kind of personal trust that God has on my life to equip me to watch and see and do the people of God over whom I pastor have the solid expectation that I am watching over their souls faithfully?  There is unbelievable consequences in how I complete the tasks of my office!

Next week I am going to preach on the watchman and some one willing to step up and stand in the gap.  I am going to share how gaps in the wall let the good out and the bad in.  I am reminded again this morning of that great work of prayer.  Praying and preaching the Word of God – two powerful tasks that are mine today.  And it does make a difference even in the light of such indifference on the part of the people.  Mine is the task of preaching and praying – not making the people change.  I am reminded that Ezekiel warned them and the people chose not to listen to the warning.

One person can make a difference.  There is a war.  When I gave my life to Christ I was commissioned to be a watchman and given the awesome responsibility to pray.  That is the battle field.

I am reminded!  Thanks!

Some pretty good company in there!

Daniel was a “one of a kind” guy!  God allows him to see things that are hidden to some.  We simply have the record of what he had the chance to see!

²⁵ He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”

Three Hebrew young men who made up their minds to be Godly in a world where godliness was not at a premium and  find themselves in a “hot spot” walking around the fire with Jesus.  It’s what you can’t see that is really vital here.  There are times when I think that the battle in life is not between Washington DC and Iraq or N. Korea or China.  NOT!  There is a battle going on behind the curtain in the spiritual world, and our earthly struggles simply mirror the real battle going on.  Listen to what Abraham Kuyper states:    if once the curtain were pulled back, and the spiritual world behind it came to view, it would expose to our spiritual vision a struggle so intense, so convulsive, sweeping everything within its range, that the fiercest battle ever fought on earth would seem, by comparison, a mere game. Not here, but up there – that is where the real conflict is waged. Our earthly struggle drones in its backlash.

I see the battles day in and day out.  I see couples that struggle with their marriages and I can see the enemy trying his best to slam God’s best.  I see the spiritual forces of darkness swarming over Washington DC and see our country struggling reflecting the impact of that struggle.  A war is raging.  I see young people who are consistently following the empty  promises of this sex crazed media hyped world we live in and the battle rages.  The enemy is trying to get us to bow to the gods of this world.  The list could go on!

What is needed today in my own life is a renewed commitment to simply stand up in solid commitment to walk out my faith in my daily life.  It is a life of serious attention…one where faith and spiritual things cause me to care about what is going on in places where the eye cannot see but the spirit can.  A. W. Tozer has a comment that stopped me in my tracks…

The Bible was written in tear and to tears it will yield its best treasures. God has noting to say to the frivolous man. It was to Moses, a trembling man that God spoke on the mount, and that same man later saved the nation when he threw himself before God with the offer to have himself blotted out of God’s book for Israel’s sake. Daniel’s long season of fasting and prayer brought Gabriel from heaven to tell him the secret of the centuries. When the beloved John wept much because no one could be found worthy to open the seven-sealed book, one of the elders comforted him with the joyful news that the Lion of the tribe of Judah had prevailed. A. W. Tozer “God Tells the Man Who Cares”  an Essay!

Daniel tells the story of three young men who were giants in their walking with God.  They made up their minds that they would live according to a standard of God.  They were not frivolous about it – it was serious business to these men.  Their seriousness from earthly terms was leading them to the end of their lives.  Instead they were able to see the curtains of the other world pulled back and they got a chance to do what few have been able to do and that is walk around the fire with the Son of God.  It is a historical event and it did happen in time.  But I am reminded this morning that the battle is not out here where I live but a spiritual battle that is trying to thward the work of God in history.  I am compelled by being a child of God to wake up to that reality.  When I signed up for the draft in God’s military he openned up the curtain and gave me a chance to see where the battle is located.  I am called to the battle, given the clothing to wear (Eph. 6) and am allowed to join in the battle through prayer.  It is God’s power at work and I am encouraged to be like Daniel and those three Hebrew boys – to live a righteous life.  It is interesting to me the direct connection between righteous living and a powerful prayer life.   Last of all I am reminded that I am never alone.  The Son of God walks around in the fire and the Angels of God are around me.  I have never been more comforted by the forces of Glory.

It ain’t for the sissy!  It ain’t for those who want to profess the name but not possess the name and the determination to walk our relationship with Christ out in our daily life. It might cost you a trip into a major fire!   I am glad because of the blood of Christ and his resurrection that I am able to know with confidence that I, too, can walk through my fires with the Son of God!  But hey, there is some great company in there!

Pretty Dress on a Ugly Woman!

⁹ He burned down the Temple of the Lord, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem. He destroyed all the important buildings^[g] in the city.

“Now, son, she is as pretty as she CAN be…if she could be prettier she would!”  I will never forget the first time I heard that phrase.  What a way to say that someone is ugly without saying that outright.  What was that line I heard at a preacher’s meeting once…”I have never seen an ugly bride…however, I have seen one or two that come mighty close…”

I thought I had heard them all…

Wednesday, July 05, 2006
By MARLA A. GOLDBERG
mgoldberg@repub.com
SPRINGFIELD – Arranged marriages are an ancient tradition in India, but when a Belchertown family went there to meet a bride-to-be and judged her too ugly for the groom, they chose a 21st-century solution. They called the wedding off, and the groom’s father is now suing for damages.

Vijai B. Pandey, 60, filed a lawsuit in Hampden Superior Court last month against friends who tried to arrange a marriage between his son Pranjul K. and their niece. The Pandeys, after spending money on long-distance calls and airfare, found her much too homely.

When the Pandeys saw the bride in New Delhi last August, they were “extremely shocked to find … she was ugly … with protruded bad teeth, and couldn’t speak English to hold a conversation,” Vijai Pandey stated in the lawsuit. The woman’s complexion was also cited for the broken engagement.

It ended up in a lawsuit for @200,000.00 in damages.  Now go figure!

God’s “special people” are so ugly and their lives so messed up that he sends a nation to come and destroy them.  Babylonian captivity is a great classroom for the survivors of the invasion.  Maybe they will learn there.  However, it is as if God allows a heathen nation to come and destroy the lovely place where they have lived together.  I almost shivered as I read about how they tore the temple down and took the valued precious metals.  They lit the thing up and let the flames destroy it completely.  WOW!

He, God, values the heart.  Always has.  Always does.  He looks at the heart of the matter and is not so much consumed in the building that we meet in than he is the condition of the hearts that meet in the building.  My skinned crawled when I read about how they destroyed the house of meeting until I remembered that the value of the house is equal to the condition of the hearts of those who dwell in the building.  Character matters.

The fact that God had had enough causes me deep respect for what He says and what He is about.  I am reminded that it was his House and His people.  His special people had gotten awfully ugly and they were now gone.  A beautiful dress (temple) is of no use when the bride is gone.  A beautiful dress can never hide the ugly nature of the one wearing it.  If there is no bride then there is no need for a dress.

I am also reminded that externals are of no value if the internal nature is so ugly.  And God let a heathen tear it down because his people didn’t have enough sense to keep it clean.

God sued the nation of Israel for being too ugly.  He won the lawsuit.

IF you love me – OBEY!

¹⁰ Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true wisdom.
All who obey his commandments will grow in wisdom.

Maybe this piece of advice fell on my heart after reading two chapters in Ezekiel and watching a whole nation face the certain judgment of God.  A whole nation never got it…granted there was a remnant who “got it” and lived consistent to the faith,  however, most did not get it and were on line ready to face God’s wrath.

Reverence?  I still remember Nelson Price (I believe) say that the greatest part of worship is to 1.  Remember that He is God, 2.  Remember I am not God, and then 3. Spend most of our time trying to get that in the right order and keep it in perspective.  I walked there again this morning.  His was are always perfect even though the options of the world and the guidance of the enemy are completely opposite of God’s gracious guidance.

Obey?  Like that lady said about prayer, “Has it come to that?”  Obey him?  Certainly that is the key and it was even elevated when Jesus said that those who do the commandments are the ones that love God.  I am good at talking a great game and I hang with a great group who love to posture and convince ourselves that we have “done enough”…when the ultimate expression of our love for the Father is to obey him.

Jay told us Monday at staff meeting that one of the men speaking in the Promise Keepers meeting shared that “what you lust after you use…you will serve what you love.”  I guess that is another way of saying that if you love the Father, I will obey (serve) him.

God, thank you for the reminder this morning!

These are They….

¹³Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵Therefore,
“they are before the throne of God
and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.
¹⁶Never again will they hunger;
never again will they thirst.
The sun will not beat upon them,
nor any scorching heat.
¹⁷For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd;
he will lead them to springs of living water.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

No matter what beliefs are held regarding the events that are ahead of us in Salvation History, and doing my best not to get caught up in the quagmire of a lengthy eschatological discussion,  I was reminded this morning that the only claim to fame that we have have is the blood of Jesus Christ.  I stand there in the presence of God notwithstanding the tribulation, testings, and all the character of what I have walked through and someone asks me “Crooks, where did you get that robe of righteousness you are wearing?”  I will joyfully say to my friend that the only clothing I have is what was given to me by the Lord Jesus as he washed me white in the blood of the Lamb of God.

I was humbled again this morning to be reminded that that this life is not my home.  I am not an “earth dweller”.  I am a pilgrim.  I am a stranger here.  I look for a future where I can take this old tent down and trade it for a wonderful permanent place that the Lord God has prepared for me in glory.  This tent dwelling is a privilege.  I am sent on one assignment after another by the one journeying through this life with us.  I have hooked my heart to the fact that one of these days I will be called to give up my “tent life” and all the “assignments” down here and will be welcomed home to dwell with HIM forever,

Praise God!  The Blood of Jesus IS my only plea.  “Nothing in my hand I bring…simply to the cross I cling!”

And when you hover over the mass gathered there you will be able to say with confidence that all who are gathered that “…these are they who have come out of great tribulations and they are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb…”  I will be there!

Look what you’ve done with the lovely things…

¹⁶ You used the lovely things I gave you to make shrines for idols, where you played the prostitute. Unbelievable! How could such a thing ever happen?

Ezekiel again!  God is speaking to the nation of Israel.  He reminds them of how much he has fallen in love with them.   He describes his love for in the most intimate terms possible.  God cherishes these people or else he would heave them into outer darkness.  He made a commitment to Abraham that will stand the course of time.

As I read this verse I was reminded to think of what God has given me that in my own human way of thinking would be a gift of God and review how I may have taken what he has given me as a lovely thing and used it the wrong way.  It will be a healthy process.  What could he do if he had my eyes to see myself, my family, those at the church house, the world of people the way he views it all.  What could he do if I would give him my mind?  What would happen if he genuinely had the chance to renew my mind with His word and thoughts?  What would happen if he had my mouth to speak only His words, words of encouragement and affirmation to people who will be hurting today instead of using them for my own gain and deceptive purposes?  What could he do with my hands if I would but simply give them to him…he say to me “look what you have done with the lovely things I have given to you”.  What have I done with the talents, time and treasure He has given me?  Have I simply used it for my own personal gratification?  My own happiness?  My own selfish ends?

Jason (my son) and I were having a conversation yesterday and I was reminded of the great ministry God has given to the company for whom Jason works.  It is amazing to watch how God puts the right people at the right place to do the right thing.  He is being so faithful to his current assignment at Erickson.  I am proud of him and so thankful to God that Jason is using the “lovely thing” that God gave him.  He is an accountant.  He is a good accountant and is in a department where 5 or 6 people have to do the work of 15 due to the economic times.  I am thankful for his faithfulness at the place where God put him.  I intend to do that today where I work.

There are days when I have to face the fact that I am not as perfect as my daughter thinks I am.  I have the same struggle that so many other people have.  I have a tendency to take what God gave me as a gift and talents and use them for my own selfish ends.   It seems that even I can get in touch with my own sinful side from time to time.  And then I would have the nerve to point my finger at anyone else?  God help me to use the lovely things that God has given to me to glorify Him.

Worthy is the Lamb!

12In a loud voice they sang: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”

Ms. Anderson instant messaged me on Facebook a bit ago and asked me what my verse was for the day.  May I say “thanks” to my young friend for a reminder to spend a moment listening to God tonight from the Word of God.  I am excited that the youth in our church are following the same process that I am following (supposedly each day – and yes, I was reminded tonight that I am sufferably human and find myself needing to be reminded that I focus on the Word of God each day).

Ezekiel!  You have to be kidding.  I am excited that the Youth are willing to journey with Ezekiel and John through two of the most visual books in the bible, two books that are filled with warning and the judgment of God.  Congrats to all of you who read each day.   What a journey it is!  People have no excuse for they have been really warned by God before judgment fell.  What a preacher, this Ezekiel is.  He is told to act out his sermons as he preaches them.  God is never boring in the way he presents the message given to him by God.

There is a big longing to find someone worthy to open the book in Revelation 5.  They found one worthy and it is the Son of God.  I am grateful that Jesus Christ paid the price necessary so that He would be able to fulfill all of our salvation for us.

My heart joins those in heaven who say -

¹²In a loud voice they sang:
“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and praise!”

Surviving swords and rest in the desert…

² This is what the LORD says:
“The people who survive the sword
will find favor in the desert;
I will come to give rest to Israel.”

He never takes his eyes off of His children.  Escape deserts and swords?  I don’t think so.  We all go through times where we work through tough times.

Those who were precious once and well favored, are still loved by our God.    He talks about surviving the sword and finding favor in the desert.  The last place one would look for favor would be after surviving the sword and being in the desert.   Yet anywhere He is, His grace can be found.

When you have HIM you have all you could ever wish for!

That “giving rest” stuff sounds pretty good to me…  To sit down…stop…rest…let the running end…let the desert be hidden in the oasis of His love…

And to think of all they have done.  They have rejected his ways.  They have run after other gods.  They have sought their own way.  It would have been enough for God to seek and destroy the whole lot of them.  However, HE made a promise to them.  He loves them.  He lavishes His love out on them.  Thank God He does.

That “Grace Thing” has been around a long time.

Sounds like He wants that for his children!

Major and Minor Surgery

¹ May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine upon us,
Selah

They tell me (whoever “they” are) that minor surgery is when they are operating on your child.  Major surgery is when they are operating on my child.  I am reminded in a few minutes a family will gather at the outpatient surgical center and send their son off to the operating room to have his tonsils removed.  It will take them longer to knock him out and wake him back up than it ever will to take out his tonsils.  I plan on being there with them.  God will be gracious to them and bless them today and His face will shine upon us.  His gracious look is there with them.

My friends Ken and “Dee” Smith have walked through an interesting week where God was gracious to them and blessed them and made His face to shine upon them as well.  She had to have her gallbladder removed after a time of real struggle with elevated enzyme levels.  She had surgery late yesterday afternoon and at the last report was doing wonderful.

I am still thankful for Steve Lee who has seen the gracious hand of God, seen the blessings flow, and been one who has seen the Face of God shine down on him.  I remember Steve and the family as they wait in Marietta, GA as he recovers from serious surgery.

I have complete confidence that God will be gracious to me today and bless me and will make his face to shine upon me.  I want to see him today.  I long to watch for His face and hear His voice.

The verse is my prayer today!

¹ May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine upon us,
Selah

I will surely save you out of a distant place…

²⁷ “Do not fear, O Jacob my servant;
do not be dismayed, O Israel.
I will surely save you out of a distant place,
your descendants from the land of their exile.
Jacob will again have peace and security,
and no one will make him afraid.

I remind myself this morning that I am self-centered.  On a good day, I like so many others, struggle to see who is really going to call the shots in my life.  I don’t have idols of myself in my home or pictures on the walls, but in honest reflection, I do long to do life my own way.  Yesterday while saturated in that great passage in Philippians 2, God said that he has exalted His Son and given him a name above all names – He called him LORD!  Boss, One who Calls the shots, sovereign authority.  I asked the class of senior adults to draw a circle in the middle of the sheet of paper and in that circle list the one who is actually in control of their lives.  They gave me the Sunday School answer and told me, “Why Jesus of course.”  Good answer.  There is always a struggle to do things in complete abandon to the Lord’s instructions or to do things my own way.  Since developing a relationship with him at age 11, I have discovered that he has never forced me to do  anything in that relationship.  He let’s me choose.  There are no robots in this wonderful relationship.  And to be honest with you I take advantage of my position in Christ in that since I am a child of God and cannot loose that status, and since I am a free agent in this relationship, I decide to do what I want to do.

When you observe what Israel had done, it is no wonder that God’s patience had run thin.  I have been reading through Jeremiah and hear the stomping of horses hooves as they are traveling toward the Israelites getting ready to kill and capture the whole lot of them.  I hear the clanging of the swords as they are being pulled from their sheathes and begin to be waved in the air waiting for battle.  The spears are up and the enemy is coming…you can hear it in the writings.  God has had enough.

His heart sings with restoration.  There is a price to pay for their disobedience.  However, the phrase, “I will save you from a distant place” sounded a note of hope in my own heart this morning.  I am reminded that He will restore…not all…but there is a remnant who will be restored.

I could never be more excited to remember that for every prodigal that goes off to a distant country wasting what was given to him, there is still the ability to come home.   For every woman who stands at the well there is still the chance to meet Jesus and watch her life and the lives of a town be changed.  For every woman who is drug up to the feet of Jesus caught in the act of adultery, there is still the promise of forgiveness and a future life that is bright.  For every demon possessed man who is chained in the grave yard there is the promise of peace and a productive future.  For every Lazarus who is dead…there still reigns the possibility of resurrection and another chance to face the future.  For every Nicodemus who will meet Jesus there is the promise that you can trade religion for a viable relationship with God that allows you to be born again…freed from the bondage of a religious background.  For every nation that walks away from the blessing of God there is still the promise of “I will save you from a distant place….there is hope in the future.  On and on the list could go this morning because the New Testament is filled with illustrations that promise a new life…even from a distant place.

“I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten–the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm–my great army that I sent among you”.  The promise of God from the pen of Joel gives a new touch to describing the restoring desire in the heart of God.  Thank God, He is making all things new today.

“Granny” Green and Jesus – Lessons at the grave!

…he came and took the body away. ³⁹He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.

I woke up this morning tossing around in my mind the fact that I will bury Mrs. Green today.  She has been a part of our church since 1961.  She and her family has a stong legacy of faith that has been passed down to several generations.  There will be a gathering today at 2 p.m.  I call it a gathering because those who will miss her will be there.

The crowd followed Christ to the cross.  They watched him die.  They felt the darkness and heard the cries from our tortured Savior.  But isn’t it interesting only a few, that will truly cry when you die.  There were just a few that followed him to the grave.  Pilate gave them permission to take his body down and his friend Nicodemus followed them to the grave where they buried Jesus.

Sometime back I determined that I would find the few that would cry when I am gone and spend time – quality time – with that bunch.  I have a lot of acquaintenances but only a few friends.  I know people who know me on the surface.  But there are a few that know me and know my heart.  We have spent time together and it has changed both of us because of that relationship.  I was captivated by Nicodemus who as a great teacher staggered away from an encounter with Jesus that changed his life after Christ told him “…you must be born again!”.  His life changed.  I can tell it because he was there when they needed him the most.  He followed them to the grave.  He laid his body to rest.  Nicodemus was returning the favor.

Barbara McElveen and Shirley Hill will both get a glimpse of those whose lives have been impacted by their mother.  I will never forget a pocketbook full of Juicy Fruit gum.  I will never forget how she loved to hold children.  Here is a woman who had to quit school in the tenth grade because of having to help raise a her siblings and take care of a home, and then spent the greater part of her life making a difference in the lives of a church full of families by loving on their children.  We will get to see the difference one life makes.

I want to hang around the group of people who will cry when I am gone.  I am thinking of my dearest friends this morning and celebrating the fact that I have some that will follow me to the grave.  Our love is deep.  Our respect for one another is solid.  Our relationship is strong and growing richer.

Life is anything but boring!

⁷ He will have no fear of bad news;
his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.

WOW!  I am amazed at the confidence that we can place in the love of our Lord toward us.  This morning as I sat and thought about what is going on around me of the verse in Proverbs that says for us to trust in the Lord with all of our heart and lean not to our own understanding…but in all of our ways we acknowledge HIM and HE will direct our paths (or make our paths straight).  What A God!  What joy there is in trusting in the Lord.

My friend Ken, is facing physical problems.  Complicating that his wife, Dee, is in the hospital in Florida needing her gall bladder removed on Monday.  Her enzyme levels which should be 30-50 were at 12,000.  It was critical.  People started praying and trusting in the Lord and the level is down to 120.  We are trusting the Lord that He will make that path straight where they can remove the gall bladder on Monday.  I have another young friend in the hospital whose life has been protected by God and we are trusting in the Lord for her complete recovery.  Steve is recovering in Marietta, GA and has God give him success through this tough surgery.  We are trusting in the Lord.  So many are hurting.  Our hope is in the Lord.  There is no One like our Father who daily shovels his blessings all over us.  We are a blessed people.  My cousin, Carol is still struggling with infection.  Oh, how I celebrate the grace and mercy of the One who is here pouring that over our life as we face each moment, each circumstance, through every situation.

Be still, My Soul

You are my hiding place…

I Know, LORD, that our lives are not our own.

²³ I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own.
We are not able to plan our own course.

A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord

1. A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord,
   A wonderful Savior to me;
   He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock,
   Where rivers of pleasure I see.
   • He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
     That shadows a dry, thirsty land;
     He hideth my life in the depths of His love,
     And covers me there with His hand,
     And covers me there with His hand.
2. A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord,
   He taketh my burden away;
   He holdeth me up and I shall not be moved,
   He giveth me strength as my day.
3. With numberless blessings each moment He crowns,
   And, filled with His fulness divine,
   I sing in my rapture, oh, glory to God,
   For such a Redeemer as mine!
4. When clothed in His brightness, transported I rise
   To meet Him in clouds of the sky,
   His perfect salvation, His wonderful love,
   I’ll shout with the millions on high.

Maybe it is the day.  A friend of mine is on his way to face one more critical surgery.  He has cancer of the esophagus and will have MAJOR surgery tomorrow.  His actual surgery and recovery will be done, believe it or not, in the same hospital in which I was born.  Kennestone Hospital and Steve Lee will be dear friends for the next two weeks at least.  I am thinking of him tomorrow and remembering “… that our lives are not our own.  We are not able to plan our own course…”  I am remembering that we are cared for by our heavenly Father.  A wonderful Savior is Jesus our Lord.  He does hide my soul in the cleft of the rock especially as we face very critical days ahead.  We are not able to plan our own course.  I would have never wished cancer on Steve.  I would suspect that he never prayed for it.  However, our God, who is great beyond measure, is helping him get through these days ahead.  Only God knows and I choose to trust Him this morning.

My friend, Frank is dealing with cancer, recovering from thyroid surgery, and planning to go through a series of radiation treatments.  My friend Johnny is dealing with an illness that is stealing his life from him.   My friend Janice is dealing with the recovery process from brain surgery.  My friend Mary is learning to walk again after knee replacement surgery.  My friend Mark prays for his son and family.  My friend Tony has a grandmother who is struggling and a son whose arm is healing.  My friend Tammy is dealing with praying for her friend who has had a heart transplant while she is dealing with the condition of her own heart as she prepares her heart to send her son to Clemson.  I rejoice that my friend Jim is in heaven and that God is helping a whole family deal with the daily plans He has for them.  My friends Connie and Everett are both dealing with a family member with Alzheimer and needing a job for him.  My friend Brad is in Africa doing mission work.  And that is just a few of the ones that have to deal with the fact that God is at work even in tough circumstances.

And that’s just a few of my friends!

I am reminded again this morning to focus on the Father.  There are so many things we can focus upon.  Today I choose to focus upon HIM!  He is mighty.  He calls us to Himself.  The best thing I can do is to fall into his hands.  I trust Him today!

I want some of that ‘rest for your soul’ stuff!

¹⁶ This is what the LORD says:
“Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
and you will find rest for your souls.
But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’

Yesterday I stood in our pulpit and read from the Bible, an ancient book given to us from the heart of God.  It has not been edited nor added to nor taken from in years.  This power packed Book is filled with stories and information with details that have not changed one bit.  It is incredibly old yet unbelievably new and fresh every day. What is so fresh about it is that people still respond to the message of the Scriptures.  People still can ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and can still walk in it, and yes, still find rest for their souls.

Ken Smith invited Anne Graham Lotz to share in a weekend in Wauchula, FL.  It was a big step for him and his church, especially since he has been there only a few short years.  However, he felt the leadership of God to bring her there.  He was faced with opposition from different places, which is to be expected when you are taking the message of Christ forward into a community.  The sting of it was that most of the opposition came from “religious” people, and I will leave it at that.  Hang in there with me… Anne spoke to over 16o people on Friday night, over 1000 on Saturday with 200 decisions following an invitation and then yesterday praise the Lord they had over 700 in worship.  Overall there were over 300 decisions for Christ in some form or fashion.  Pretty good weekend, huh? I guess so, if numbers can accurately indicate just the decisions, we are able to see, not to mention those who only God can see.  The impact of this weekend is still to be seen.

And she used some new presentation or technique?  I am certain that she stood up taking her place in the pulpit and  gave them some new thoughts on positive thinking or how to feel good.  NOPE!    Not Anne Graham Lotz, the daughter of Billy Graham.  Guess what she did.  She formed her messages from places in that old ancient book, we call it the Bible.  John17 and Isaiah 6.  She spoke on how to study the Bible on Friday.  I am looking forward to the messages being posted on the website, so I can hear them as well.  The old ancient paths are still valid. She got the old ancient book out with its fire and heat and fanned the flame until it began to burn in her heart and the hearts of people gathered there.  The ‘rest for your soul’ is still available.

Stand at the crossroads and observe…just look!

The mystery of it all are the numbers of people (including myself at times) who look and ask…see the right way…and yet as an act of their own free will chose not to walk in it.  Why, then,  do we cry when we don’t find rest for our souls?  It’s not difficult.  His way is still the right way.  His guidance in life is still valid.    The context of this passage today was so interesting for it is seated in a warning of certain doom and destruction.  However, in the middle of that kind of warning comes a voice from heaven giving an option, old as it might seem, yet an option that is still as fresh and inviting as it ever was.  However, some still walk away from it.  They did yesterday and do every Sunday as the Word is preached and invitations are given.  They do it every day as they read the Scriptures for we are always standing at the crossroads with Jesus.

I hear him say, I am the Way, the Truth and the Life…no man comes to the Father but by Me!  Oh, how I want some of that ‘rest for your soul’ stuff!  Bring the Fire Father!

It’s an Alabama Thang!

What is he trying to teach his class?

I forget.  He IS an Auburn Fan!

Lord, I’m Coming Home!

¹¹ Then the Lord said to me, “Even faithless Israel is less guilty than treacherous Judah! ¹² Therefore, go and give this message to Israel.^[a] This is what the Lord says:

“O Israel, my faithless people,
come home to me again,
for I am merciful.
I will not be angry with you forever.
¹³ Only acknowledge your guilt.
Admit that you rebelled against the Lord your God
and committed adultery against him
by worshiping idols under every green tree.
Confess that you refused to listen to my voice.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Bishop Patterson has a unique way of putting an old hymn in another perspective…I listen and smile and rejoice at the truth I can still come home…

I guess it was verse 12…come home.  I am so glad that we still can.  He has made a case of how faithless Israel has been.  How unfaithful that the people of God have been to their Lover.  Jeremiah is the mouth piece of God and calling to the people God loves the most and tells them to come home for He is a God of mercy.  Hearing the plea from God to come home pierced my heart this morning.  He still gives me another chance.

Confess – Admit – Acknowledge that you have done it…Acknowledge that you are worshipping other gods.  Everything in me rebells as admitting that because I am a preacher and I am writing this blog so other people can see.  Worship other gods?  I am reminded again this morning of a comment made in Amy Thompson’s testimony last week.  While in Romania one of the women who was blown away at her presence there knowing she has children and a husband in the states wrote her a note and stated that she was amazed that Amy loved Jesus more than her children.  Amy said she appreciated the note but was humbled by it because Amy knew the truth – she did not love Jesus more than her family.  She is obsessive compulsive about her children.  Challenged by her love for Jesus and watching her struggle over how that compared to her love for her children reminded me again that at all points in my life I have to ask myself consistently how much I love Jesus.  I come face to face with the fact that I love Jim.  I love what “I” want.  I have my own altars that I worship at.  Some of them look like a food bar at the local buffet.  Some of them are created simply to satisfy my own desires.

Again, as I prepare to worship and lead in worship with the greatest group of people in the world, I prepare my ownself by coming home to the Father.  A Father who takes me in His arms and loves me all the time, forgives me consistently, and uses me to His glory.  I am blown away because I can keep coming home where my heart is.

Old Sweet twittered yesterday – Know some ought-y people? Oughtiness next to haughtiness, then naughtiness. But gift of ought can also be gift of thought & wrought. I know I ought to confess and come home…but there are times when my pride gets in the way and I end up doing the very things that I should stay away from.  However, this morning God has called me to think that thing through and watch him bring out in me a walk that pleases the Father.

Repentance is the gift of God.

Sidebar – I have mentioned that I am praying for the event in Wauchula, FL with my friend Ken Smith who has had Anne Graham Lotz this weekend.  Friday they had a good number of preachers and leaders in the community and Anne Lotz spoke on how to study the Bible.   Last night there were two sessions at the church with over 1000 people present and over 200 decisions made, WOW!  Her husband Danny is to speak this morning during Sunday School and she will share in her final discussion with the church at 10:45 a.m.   I am looking forward to the report of how things went.  I will keep you in touch with it all. There are many victories that have come out of this single event for the Wauchula area.  God is so faithful in His work among His people.  Thank you Jesus!

I get in trouble when I dig my own!

¹³ “My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me,
the spring of living water,
and have dug their own cisterns,
broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

I am almost certain that this verse is for people in another town and living in another time for it certainly couldn’t be the reason that God stopped me at this verse this morning could it.  Diggin’ my own cistern…broken cistern that can’t hold water?  Nah.  That has to be for other people.

I remember cutting grass as a young man at a woman’s house who had an stream of water flowing out of the ground.  It was an amazing thing to me – an ever abundant never stopping supply of cool clear water.  When water is so vital to life, why would one leave the plush green place where the flow of water provided a pool of refreshment only to travel out into the arid desert and dig a cistern that could not hold water.  I was reminded of the son who told his dad that the days of his staying around the house were over.  He was on his way to find real joy in life.   His demands were answered as his father handed him money.  He went to the city and blew it all eventually ending up in a hog pen feeding the swine.  Why would he forsake his father, the spring of living water that provided for him, only to dig his own cistern – and a broken one at that.  Why is it that our tendency is to walk away from the spring of living water or better yet why is it that we forsake God?  His thirst was so bad that it drove him home to where the water was.  There waiting on him was his Father!

It is a good reminder to remember where the water is.  I faintly remember something in the Bible that states that a river of living water will come out from within us.  If I am not mistaken Jesus told a woman that if she would drink of the water that He supplied that she would never thirst again.  Her thirsty soul – dry because her desire to fill it with the broken cistern that she thought would fill the thirst in her life – was answered when she met the Living Water.  She drank.  Her thirst was so satisfied that she was able to be used of God to see a whole town come to know this living water.

Maybe it is because I have used every excuse in the book.  Maybe it is because in counseling people for 35 years I have heard every conceivable twist and turn on the old story of how people do what they do.  Maybe it is because I am a sinner and want to find my own way to do things.  But I am reminded again of the River of Living Water…  I am reminded again this morning to stay at the fountain…to get my thirst satisfied from that place alone.  There is nothing more refreshing than to drink from that fountain every day.

The lyrics are old.  There is no heavy metal that could wrap around this old song that I first heard Jimmy Swaggart sing…but to spare myself from his performance of the song, I am reminded of the lyrics…

• • There is a river that flows from deep within.
    There is a fountain that frees the soul from sin.
    Come to these waters, there is a vast supply.
    There is a river that never shall run dry.
  • There came a sound from Heaven, like a mighty rushing wind.
    It filled their hearts with singing and gave them peace within.
    The Master gave this promise, the Spirit will descend
    And from your inner being a river with no end.

    There came a thirsty woman, who was drawing from a well.
    Her life was ruined and wasted, her soul was bound for Hell.
    But then she met the Master, who told of her great sin
    And if you’ll drink this water, you’ll never thirst again.

    There is a river that flows from God above.
    There is a fountain, that’s filled with His great love.
    Come to the water, there is a vast supply.
    There is a river, that never shall run dry.
    That never shall run dry.