11/01/2010
LOVE WENT DEEPER
“LOVE WENT DEEPER than the crown of thorns they placed upon His head
Love went deeper than the stripes He bore as the blood flowed crimson red
Love went deeper than the hole they dug when they dropped that old cross in place
Love went deeper than the depths of hell
Deep enough to take my place …
He took my place.”
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” – Jesus (John 15:13)
08/13/2010
WHAT DO THEY SEE?
YOU GET UP every morning and step out the door into a mad world. You know it’s mad – but, hey, that’s just life, right? Not much you can do to change it, and you’ve gotta keep on living. You know it’s full of all that’s dirty, filthy, and polluted – but by now you’ve learned to deal with it by just turning your head the other way.
BUT EACH DAY that you walk out the door to face a mad world, there is a mad world watching you. That world is watching when your children misbehave, when someone cuts you off, when others tease and frustrate you. And when these little aggravations come your way, how do you respond? What does that world see?
WHEN THE WORLD LOOKS AT ME
I want my life to be a light for those around me.
I want my life to be that roadmap that says home.
I want my life to be a beacon on life’s raging sea.
I want the World to see Jesus when they look at me.
When the World looks at me, do they see Jesus?
When the World looks at me, what do they see?
Do they see hope? Do they see love? Do they see charity?
When the World looks at me what will they see?
When I spoke, did my words contain your wisdom, Lord?
And when I prayed, did my prayers contain your love?
And did my life reflect the glory of your Spirit?
And did I show the ones around me they were loved?
And when the World looks at me, do they see Jesus?
When the World looks at me, what do they see?
Do they see hope? Do they see love? Do they see charity?
When the World looks at me what will they see?
And when the World looks at you, do they see Jesus?
When the World looks at you, what do they see?
Do they see hope? Love? And Charity?
When the World looks at you, what do they see?
And Lord, when the World looks at me, what do they see?
08/05/2010
INFLUENCE BY TESTIMONY
“KEEP THY HEART WITH ALL DILIGENCE; FOR OUT OF IT ARE THE ISSUES OF LIFE.” (Proverbs 4:23)
ALL OF US are having some kind of influence in someone’s life, whether good or bad. If we are a Christian, it is our goal to be a godly influence in the lives of those around us.
OUR INFLUENCE is greatly affected by the testimony we hold, not merely by the testimony of our mouth (what we say) but also more importantly by the testimony of our lives (how we act). Our life’s testimony can have a powerful influence.
I THINK THAT often times we don’t realize the scope of influence we have. Our words, actions, and attitudes sometimes affect more people than we realize. Family, friends, coworkers, school mates – all can be affected by how we conduct ourselves. They may be watching even more than we realize. Perhaps even your little sister’s friend or your parent’s employer – perhaps they too are watching you and observing the way that you look at life. Often little children are looking up to those just a few years older than them and imitating them. I know that I did that when I was younger and I know that now, there are other younger children/young people that watch me. They want to talk to me and hang out with me. What kind of influence am I holding over them? They are young and impressionable. I am claiming to be a Christian. Are they seeing mirrored in me the real picture of a Christian? Am I influencing them to be kinder to others, to be respectful, to be pure, to be honest? Do I take the time to say hi and chat with them? Or could I care less about how I am affecting them? Do I view them as young impressionable souls or as bothersome kids that I don’t have time for?
“Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in faith, in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12)
OUR TESTIMONY is a major influence in working for Christ and in helping souls to get saved. If we are not holding a proper testimony before them, it will greatly hinder both us and them. It is important that we take heed and give all diligence to keep our testimony pure and upright so that we can be more effective for Christ.
“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:” (2 Peter 1:10)
LET US CHECK the motivation of our hearts. If we are saved and have Christ’s love in our hearts, we want to influence as many people and see as many people as possible won to Christ. Let us ever be mindful of our testimony and how we may be affecting those around us, even maybe unknown to us. We want to be as effective as possible, God being our helper. Through Christ’s strength we can do all things (Philippians 4:13)!
07/14/2010
WHY DOES PURITY MATTER TO ME?
TO SPEAK FOR MYSELF, why is “purity” so important to me? Well, to start, let’s look at the definition of “purity” and “pure”:
PURITY: The quality or state of being pure.
Some applicable definitions of “PURE”:
- unmixed with any other matter
- spotless; stainless
- free from what vitiates, weakens or pollutes
- containing nothing that does not properly belong
- free from moral fault or guilt
- marked with chastity
- ritually clean; chaste
SO IN REFERRING to purity, I mean physically as well as emotionally and spiritually – sexual purity, to be even more specific.
SO WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO ME???
WELL, NUMBER ONE, God desires us to be pure and to “save ourselves” for the “one” He has chosen for us.
“Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” ~ 1 Timothy 4:12
“The elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity.” ~ 1 Timothy 5:2
“. . . Even as Christ loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” ~ Ephesians 5:25-27
“My dove, my undefiled is but one . . . ” ~ Song of Solomon 6:9
“Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whore-mongers and adulterers God will judge.”~ Hebrews 13:4
SO IT’S OBVIOUS by these scriptures and perhaps others, that God desires of us to keep our bodies pure – undefiled – set aside. While many of these scriptures are referring to purity in heart, in our relationship with Christ – “physical” or “sexual” purity is just as as important. Sexual purity is a part of spiritual purity.
IF I HAD NO other reasons for keeping myself pure, the fact that GOD asks me to be pure – that reason alone would suffice. But really, are there any other reasons for wanting to stay pure? I believe so.
ONE WOULD BE for my own personal benefit physically, mentally, and emotionally. Another would be for health reasons. I am sure that purity decreases many risks.
WHEN I SAY “emotionally” and “mentally”, I mean that I don’t want to allow myself to give in to multiple desires and then, when it comes to the right
“one”, have on my conscience the thoughts of what I’ve done and allowed before. I don’t want to allow myself to be so emotionally “drained” that all my “love” was spent on others instead of that “one” that God wanted for me. To have a clear conscience, mind and heart is more important to me. To be pure and save myself for just that one is not only morally right but also emotionally, mentally and physically the safer, better way to go.
THINK OF PURITY AS A GIFT that has unmeasured value.
YOU HAVE THIS GIFT for someone special – not just anyone. Just the fact alone that it has such value means that, if you are thinking right, you will not just take that gift anywhere and everywhere or allow others to take it and use it. You won’t expose it – rather, you may even hide it in a safe place until you are ready and able to give it to that one special friend that you have been saving it for. We should look at the gift of purity in the same way. We should place the same kind of value on it and handle it in the same way. It’s not for anyone, but it’s our choice of who we decide to give it to.
DON’T ALLOW YOURSELF to be pressured by emotions or other sources and give up the precious, priceless gift of purity that God has given you! It only takes one spot to make something blemished and it only takes one time to lose your purity forever. You can never take it back. God keep us pure!!!
“Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies . . . many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.” ~ Proverbs 31:10&29-31
07/06/2010
DELAYS ARE NOT DENIALS
“FOR THE VISION is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry…the just shall live by faith.” (Habakkuk 2:3&4b)
In the captivating booklet Expectation Corner, one of the characters, Adam Slowman, was led into the Lord’s treasure-house. Among the many wonders revealed to him there was the “Delayed Blessing Office,” where God stored the answers to certain prayers until it was wise to send them.
For some who pray expecting an answer, it takes a long time to learn that delays of answers are not denials. In fact, in the “Delayed Blessing Office,” there are deep secrets of love and wisdom that we have never imagined! We tend to want to pick our blessings from the tree while they are still green, yet God wants us to wait until they are fully ripe.
“AND THEREFORE will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: BLESSED ARE ALL WHO WAIT FOR HIM.” (Isaiah 30:18)
The Lord watches over us in all the difficult places, and He will not allow even one trial that is too much for us. He will use His refining fire to burn away our impurities and will then gloriously come to our rescue.
Do not grieve Him by doubting His love. Instead, lift up your eyes and begin praising Him right now for the deliverance that is on its way. Then you will be abundantly rewarded for the delay that has tried your faith.
(Selection from Streams in the Desert)
07/01/2010
I PLEDGE MY ALLEGIANCE
THIS WEEKEND MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE pledged their allegiance to our flag will be celebrating our country’s independence and freedom. Have you ever stopped to consider what a pledge of allegiance means?
TO PLEDGED MEANS TO PROMISE SOLEMNLY or formally. It means you are entering into a binding agreement. You are giving a very serious promise to keep something.
ALLEGIANCE IS THE ACT OF BINDING YOURSELF to a course of action; loyalty to some cause, nation or ruler.
WHEN YOU PLEDGE YOUR ALLEGIANCE you are basically making a vow of fidelity to whoever or whatever is the focus of your pledge. You are making and agreement to uphold what they stand for and what they do. You are saying, “I am one with them- in complete agreement with them, behind them and I will do all I can to defend them, even to the laying down of my own my own wants, my own needs, my own life.” That is a pretty serious promise, and one not to be taken lightly, nor made without some sober forethought.
WHAT ABOUT THE CHRISTIAN? Are we not entering into a binding agreement with Christ when we become a Christian? To be a Christian means to be Christ-like. All that you do is a reflection on your heavenly father. And just as our country has it’s laws and principals that a loyal American has pledged to live by, so God has his word, the Holy Bible, in which his principals of living are spelled out. When we study with an open heart to the Holy Spirit, the word of God, and drink in its truths, our hearts ought to be pledging there allegiance to every new principal we come to understand.
WHEN WE WAVE OUR FLAG OF ALLEGIANCE TO CHRIST, by saying that we are a Christian, we need to be very careful that our actions and our life reflects Christ. Is where we are going, what we are partaking of, what we are wearing, how we are treating others etc… reflecting a Holy Christ? We are to be living epistles that others may read the word of God just by looking at our lives:
“Ye are our EPISTLE written in our hearts, known and read of all men:” 2 Corinthian 3:2
WHAT WE PUT OUT THERE IS CHRIST; We are dead to our own ways and our own will; Our allegiance is not to our SELF, it is to CHRIST. We are not self-representing, but Christ- representing:
“For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.” Colossian 3:4
WHEN AN AMERICAN SOLDIER IS OUTSIDE OF OUR COUNTRY, it is of utmost importance how he represents us as a nation; His representation is a reflection on America. So too, it is important how we represent Christ. As Christians in this present world, we are soldiers for Christ in enemy territory. We are pilgrims and strangers in this world and when someone sees us that is not a Christian, they should be able to identify that we are not one of them. We are not a part of the enemies camp at all. Our allegiance is wholly pledged to our King, the LORD JESUS CHRIST!
“No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” 2 Timothy 2: 4
“Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.” 1 Peter 2:11-12
“Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.” John 18:36
I pledge my allegiance to the cross,
and to the Heavenly Kingdom of Jesus:
And to freedom from sin,
for which it stands;
One Kingdom, ruled by God,
With freedom and deliverance for all!
06/22/2010
“TRUSTING THE LORD”
(Excerpt from Heart Talks by C. W. Naylor)
“THROUGHOUT THE BIBLE we are exhorted again and again to trust in the Lord. We are warned against trusting in princes, in riches, or in ourselves; for all such trusting is vain. Trusting in the Lord is represented as being safe, as blessed, and as producing very desirable results. In it is our hope, our strength, our safety, and our help.
“TRUST DOES NOT mean shutting our eyes to facts. There is no such thing as “blind faith.” Trust looks at things are they are. It sees the dangers that threaten, and assesses them at their true value. It sees the need, and does not try to disguise it. It sees the difficulties, and does not discount them. But seeing all this, it looks beyond and sees God, it’s all-sufficient help. It sees Him greater than the needs or the dangers or the difficulties, and it does not shrink before them.
“TRUSTING BRINGS confidence. It permits us to see God in His true character. It causes us to realize the greatness and tenderness of His love. It gives us a consciousness of His might, and through it we are sheltered under His wings. By it our enemies lose their power; our dangers, their terrors. We have a consciousness of safety, and that brings rest.
“TOO MANY OF US are like a woman whose husband recently said that they had often gone driving [carriage] together, that their horse would sometimes become frightened, and that when it did, his wife would invariably seize the lines. Thus, he would have to manage both his wife and the horse, making his task doubly difficult.
“HOW MANY of us are just like that woman! When anything threatens, we become alarmed and try to help God. We feel that it is not safe to leave all in His hands and let Him manage the circumstances. Our failure to submit to Him often complicates matters, and it is harder for Him to manage us than it is to manage the difficulties. To trust God means to keep our hands off the lines. It means to let Him have His way and do things as He thinks best. It may be a hard lesson to learn, but you will hinder God until you learn it.
“ ‘IT IS GOD which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure’ (Phil. 2:13). If your life is submitted to Him, He will work in you to will as well as to do. He will help do the planning as well as the working out. He will aid you in the choosing, no less than the doing. If you can not submit to Him thus, you have not reached the place where you can trust. You must first learn to take your hands off yourself and off circumstances; then trust will be natural and easy. How can you trust Him if you are not willing for Him to do just as it pleases Him? When you have submitted all and He has His way fully with you, then the blessed fruitfulness of trust will come into your life.”
“TRUST IN THE LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths (Proverbs 3:5&6).”
06/02/2010
SONG IN THE NIGHT
Is the midnight closing round you?
Are the shadows dark and long?
Ask Him to come close beside you,
And He’ll give you a new, sweet song.
He’ll give it and sing it with you;
And when weakness lets it down,
He’ll take up the broken cadence,
And blend it with His own.
And many a rapturous minstrel
Among those sons of light,
Will say of His sweetest music
“I learned it in the night.”
And many a rolling anthem,
That fills the Father’s home,
Sobbed out its first rehearsal,
In the shade of a darkened room.
04/27/2010
WILL I STILL BLESS HIS NAME?
IN LIFE, we come up against many a hard spot. Many places where the path is steep, rough and unclear. Many trials that nearly overwhelm us. Emotions that knock us on our face and bring us to our knees. Yet in all of this can we still praise the Lord? Can we still bless His name?
THERE’S A SONG that has been going through my mind lately after I heard it the other day. It has these words in it:
“Every blessing You pour out I’ll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord, Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your name….
You give and take away, You give and take away
My heart will choose to say, Lord, blessed be Your name.”
CAN WE STILL praise God in the tough times? “When the darkness closes in”? It’s so easy to praise God when things are going good, when life is good, when we are happy. It’s not so easy when the going gets tough. When we don’t feel like life is going the way we want it to. When we come up against things that are too big for us. Only through God’s strength and by praising HIM can we come through “conquering unto conquer”. Oh, it’s often a hard thing to do! I know this to be true. But He did so much for us – can’t we do a little for Him? Let us say with Job, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15). And with this song, let our hearts and mouths also sing, “You give and take away. My heart will CHOOSE to say, LORD, BLESSED BE YOUR NAME!” Amen!
03/31/2010
I CAN TRUST JESUS
This is a song that we are singing at a church youth cabin trip we are going on. I love the words of this song. It is our testimony. I hope it blesses you as it did us!
“GOD PICKED UP a sparrow that could no longer fly
He brushed off it’s wounds and then watched it soar into the sky
If He’s mindful of creation on this I can depend
I am his child and I can place all my trust in Him.
“I CAN TRUST JESUS, I can trust Jesus.
He never once has failed to meet my needs.
He is my strong tower, the strength in my weakest hour.
I can trust Jesus, He takes care of me.
“I HAVE PRAYED some prayers and felt they never were heard
But I held to God’s hand and kept right on trusting in His word
My wants and God’s desires don’t always agree
But I lean on His will for He always knows what’s best for me.
“I CAN TRUST JESUS, I can trust Jesus.
He never once has failed to meet my needs.
He is my strong tower, the strength in my weakest hour.
I can trust Jesus, He takes care of me.”
