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DARKNESS DOESN’T RETREAT WITHOUT A FIGHT

Carter Conlon


Whenever God is about to do something profound, His people will inevitably face opposition. The apostle Peter said it this way: “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy” (1 Peter 4:12-13).

Peter was saying to the people of that time, “Do not think it is strange when we have to fight opposition as we purpose to reclaim godliness in our nation.” In the same way, if you and I are praying for an awakening in our cities and in our country, we must be prepared for the fact that darkness simply will not retreat without a fight.

The Book of Exodus tells us of the time when the Israelites were close to being delivered from the hand of the Egyptians. A new king who did not know Joseph came into power and became very oppressive. He told the people, “We will tell you what you can build, and you must build it according to our specifications. You can go to your house of worship, but you must worship our way. You will bend your knee to our will, and if you refuse, it is going to cost you!” (See Exodus 1:8-11)

This is very similar to the opposition that you and I currently face and will see in greater measure in the coming days. The freedoms we have known are now in jeopardy; laws are soon going to change for the worse. The threats have the potential to prevent the Church of Jesus Christ from realizing the power that she actually has.

Let us believe God to fill us afresh with His Holy Spirit so that we will not bow to any threats of evil. As the Lord enables us to stand and speak His Word with boldness, we will find that our testimony will not be of ourselves but of God and His mighty power within us!

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Signs of the Coming of Christ
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

“For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they (the unrepentant) shall not escape. But you, brethren,(the repentant believers) are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief” (1 Thessalonians 5:3-4).

Right now, the world is in such turmoil that people are asking, “Is the world spinning out of control? Are we seeing the winding up of history?” We now understand what Jesus meant when he said: “There will be … distress of nations … men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Luke 21:25-26).

When Jesus gave that warning, he added this statement: “Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near” (21:27-28).

All the terrifying things we see coming upon the earth right now have to do with the coming of Christ. Beyond all the gross darkness covering the earth, a cloud is being formed in heaven, and one day soon Christ is going to enter that cloud and reveal himself to the whole world. “When you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near” (21:31).

The Christians in Paul’s day wanted him to write about prophetic times and Paul responded that “the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God” (1 Thessalonians 4:16). He went on to further describe the event and then he said, “Therefore comfort one another with these words” (4:18).

Paul’s exhortation was meant to be an encouragement. Likewise, today, we are not to fret or be overly concerned over current events because we well know that it is all signaling the coming of the Lord Jesus to take away his people.

When Jesus said, “Look up” (Luke 21:28), he was telling us to keep our focus on him and his soon return! Truly, this is our wonderful hope!

We are not in the last days, but the last seconds. Are you ready? Remember the ABC's. A- Accept the Lord Jesus as your Lord and Savior. B- Believe on Jesus that He is the Son Of God, and C- Confess your sins before Him and repent and turn your life to Him and Him alone. God bless and love to all....

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John 3:16-17
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.




The Story Behind Amazing Grace

This song isn’t a song of theology—it’s John Newton’s own heartfelt expression of gratitude to God, who helped him turn from his profane and wicked life and eventually fight against the ills he practiced.

Amazing Grace Lyrics

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.

Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.

When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.

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Prayer Inspired by God’s Spirit
Jim Cymbala

Paul told the Ephesians to “pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” (Ephesians 6:18). What an interesting phrase and word picture — pray in the Spirit. Pray in, through, and by the Holy Spirit, who is God himself!

In addition to this reference in Ephesians, there are more: “So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding” (1 Corinthians 14:15). Notice that Paul prays not only with his mind but also with his spirit, stirred and prompted by the Spirit of God.

Where else would the Spirit primarily work but in our human spirits? Also, to combat those who divide the Body of Christ, those who follow “mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit,” Jude told his leaders to “build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit” (Jude 20, emphasis added).

These directives about prayer inspired by the Holy Spirit might seem like emotional fanaticism to some. They feel it’s for those “other folks” who always sing too loudly and lift their hands in church every six seconds. They say, “That’s not how I was raised in church.”

God gave us the Bible so we could prayerfully and humbly search its depths and experience what it promises. Did the Holy Spirit’s power to inspire prayer somehow evaporate during the centuries following the book of Acts? Will the Spirit help us today any less, especially when we need him most? This does not sound like what a merciful God would do.

How will we boldly pray in faith if the Holy Spirit is not helping us? Only as the Spirit leads and inspires will we rise to a new level of prevailing prayer. Then strongholds will come down, loved ones will be visited by God’s grace, and people around us will be reminded that Christ is a living Savior and not a mere theological concept.

Nothing is too hard for God. “Lord, teach us to pray, and let it be prayer in the Holy Spirit.” Amen

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Mid-East Prophecy Update – April 14th, 2019

As Pastor JD says " Bible prophecy in not for our information but for our transformation and motivation to spread God's Word."

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God Gives Power to the Weak
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

“God has dealt to each one a measure of faith” (Romans 12:3). All believers are given a portion or degree of faith and that portion must be built up into an unshakable, unwavering faith. How does this happen? As faith grows, it is strengthened in one way only: by hearing and trusting in God’s Word.
AMEN
The Lord would never ask us to do what is impossible. It is possible for us to stir ourselves to ask, “Why am I so fearful? Why am I on this roller coaster of up-and-down despair? Why does the future cause panic in my soul?” It is because we have not fully committed our lives, our families, our health, our jobs, our homes into God’s faithful hands. We have not made the leap of faith that determines, “My Lord is true and faithful. Though I have failed countless times, he has never failed me. Come what may, I will cast my life and future into his care.”

How are we able to do this? By embracing the word he has given us. Right now, the world is in great turbulence and God has said to us, “My Word is in you and you are covered under the shadow of my hand. You are my child.” “I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad; moreover my flesh also will rest in hope” (Acts 2:25-26).

I urge you to make this power word from Isaiah your own: “He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. … But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:29-31).

God never sleeps and his arm is always outstretched on behalf of you, his beloved child.
__________________

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Facing the Enemy with Courage
Nicky Cruz

Whether we believe it or not, it is a fact that Satan is on a mission — a mission as simple as it is single-minded. He is out to steal our passion and he is determined to accomplish it. Imagine how effective he can be if he can carry out this one task — this one pursuit. This one thing he desperately needs to achieve.

If Satan can steal our passion, take away our excitement for Jesus, keep us from getting caught up in thoughts of winning souls and reach the world for Christ, he can effectively keep his dominion on earth intact. He knows that truth, and he works with every fiber of his being to see it happen. In far too many ways he is succeeding.

Too often Christians fret and complain about the future; they cry and moan about Satan’s many victories in the world, how he is winning so many battles and gaining so much momentum in this country, as well as around the world. They talk as if Satan is destined to win. “We’re losing our kids to the culture,” they say. “Our churches are dying in numbers, and our society is growing more evil by the day.” I see it myself but I know that when Satan is winning, it is because the people of God are cowering in retreat instead of standing up and facing the enemy with courage. They are giving up too easily. The Word of God tells us, “When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him” (Isaiah 59:19).

I long to see a day when Christians stand shoulder to shoulder, arm in arm, in this war with Satan and finally draw a line in the sand, right in the middle of his path. You can be a part of this army of soldiers rising up against Satan in this day. Let your heart be ignited by the Holy Spirit and become a warrior in this huge battle for God. The war is being waged, so take up your sword and find your place within his ranks!

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The Blood of the Lamb Has Power
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)
Jesus came as one blood sacrifice, and the blood of this Lamb has power. Power to cleanse, power to heal, and millions upon millions around the world have experienced the glory and the power of this cleansing blood of Jesus Christ.

We serve the living Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

Ask the Holy Spirit to come and speak to your heart in that still, small voice. If you don't know Christ, that's what Easter is all about. I want you to take a step as the prodigal son did: he walked back to the father.

First of all, I want you to know that there's no sin that anyone has ever committed that’s so horrible or so wicked that it can't be forgiven. God doesn't turn anybody down. Secondly, I ask you—once you've confessed your sins and believed in the cleansing power of Jesus Christ’s blood—don't go back to them. Give them over, and don't let the devil haunt you with them because those sins are under the blood of Christ.

Some of you live in condemnation. You live in fear. Believe that this lamb was slain for you, and your sin was laid on his shoulder. He carried your sin, and he paid the price for that, and there's nothing you can do to work it through. So, right now, just lay it down. Then when these thoughts come back to hound you, say, “Jesus is my righteousness. Christ is my righteousness. Christ is my righteousness.”

When Satan comes and lies to you, when he tells you that you still have some devil in you or whatever he says. Right now, just say back: “Christ is my righteousness.”

Say it right now. “Christ is my righteousness.”

Glory be to God. He is our righteousness. We deserved hell, and he gave us heaven because we trust in him.

I want you to allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart if you've drifted from him and want to come back to his love and grace on this Easter. The Bible says believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be saved. I believe that. I believe that with all my heart.

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Impossible Situations
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Jesus was ministering to a great multitude when the people began to get hungry. He took his disciple Philip aside and asked him an important question: “Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, ‘Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?’” (John 6:5-6).

Jesus was saying, “Look, thousands of hungry people are here. How are we going to feed them? What do you think we should do?” How incredibly loving of the Lord. He knew all along what he would do; the verse tells us so. Yet, he was trying to teach Philip something important and the lesson he wanted to impart has great significance to us today.

Our world is teetering on a precipice unprecedented in history. The present upheaval comes at a time when Christians everywhere are facing trials as never before. Multitudes sit up at night trying to figure out answers to their problems: “Maybe this will work. No, wait. Maybe that will solve it. No, that won’t work, either. What am I going to do?”

When Jesus posed his question to Philip, the disciples did not have just a bread problem, they had a bakery problem, a money problem, a distribution problem, a transportation problem, and a time problem. Add it all up and they had problems they could not even imagine. In fact, their situation was absolutely impossible.

Beloved, consider that in the midst of your impossible situation, Jesus would come to you asking, “What are we going to do about this?” He knows exactly what he is going to do; he has a plan. Yet he also wants to know how you, his servant, will face your difficulties.

Philip’s correct answer would have been, “Jesus, you are God! Nothing is impossible with you, so I am giving this problem to you right now. It is no longer mine, but yours.”

That is the response Jesus is looking for from us. I pray that you have the kind of faith that rests in the Father’s care and trusts him to come through for you in his own way and time. He can be trusted absolutely!

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They Shall Not Escape

1 Now as to the times and the epochs, brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. 3 While they are saying, ‘Peace and safety!’ then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape (καὶ οὐ μὴ [ou mē] ἐκφύγωσιν). 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief; 5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; 6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. 7 For those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him. 11 Therefore encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing.
(1 Thessalonians 5:1-11)
This passage is dealing with the rapture and the Second Coming of the Lord some seven years later. Verse 3 is saying this: those who refuse Christ, when the rapture comes and the Great Tribulation begins, these people “will in no way, under any circumstances, escape the hellish consequences that will follow.” As you can see in the quote above, the οὐ μὴ [ou mē] is attached to the English verb “escape,” which is an aorist active subjunctive, thus, this is the subjunctive of emphatic negation, implying that nothing they will do will facilitate an escape from the ensuing tribulation. In other words, it is too late since they rejected Christ.
Let’s note the actual verb “escape” in the Greek. Its root is ἐκφεύγω (ekpheugō), and it comes from two Greek words: (1) the Greek preposition ἐκ (ek), which means “out of, from, and away from”; and (2) the Greek verb φεύγω (pfeugō), which means “to seek safety in flight; to become safe from danger by eluding or avoiding it; to keep from doing something by avoiding it because of its potential damage; and to cease being visible.” As you can see, this verb incorporates almost every avenue of escape and avoidance that is available to someone, but in all of them, they shall not escape the coming tribulation and wrath of God that will be poured out!


The tragedy of sin and Satan’s lie

This is indeed the tragic commentary on that part of the human race that is in the bondage of spiritual, mental, and emotional darkness with regard to their sin and its self-destructive consequences. Satan is a liar. And although his lies go back to the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden, they are still with us today, and it is just as intimidating, abusive, and coercive now as it was then. However, God’s Eternal Truth is a message that is just as real, and the following passages illustrate this. In Genesis 2:15-17, the Lord speaks to Adam concerning the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil”:
15 Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; 17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.
This last phrase is one of the most emphatic in the Old Testament, as it is comprised of what is called an infinitive absolute with a finite verb form. Thus, God is emphatically declaring that if Adam eats from this “tree,” then without any equivocation or the remotest doubt, “he will absolutely die.” Then we go to Genesis 3:1-5, and we read the following:
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, lest you die.'” 4 And the serpent said to the woman, “You surely shall not die! 5 For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
(Genesis 3:1- 5)
In verse 4, we read Satan’s response to the woman, “You surely shall not die,” and this is the exact same grammatical construction as in Genesis 2:17 where the Lord said to Adam, “you shall surely die.” Thus, Satan used the same grammatical emphasis that the Lord used but making the exact opposite statement the Lord said, that if you eat of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you surely shall not die.” And guess what? This is the exact same lie he is propagating today:

“You will surely not die and spend an eternity in a fabricated hell because there is no life after death, and even if there is, your good intentions and actions based on those intentions will compensate for anything and everything you have done because you are your own god, and you decide what is right and wrong based on your personal proclivities, versus some fabricated law that is supposedly the foundation for all truth throughout human history – you and you alone are your own ‘God,’ and what you determine is right and wrong is all that matters!”

What happens to those without Christ

When I read the above, and I see the tragedy of the lives of those who overtly reject Christ in favor of their own self-deification, my heart breaks, but I am also prompted with an urgency of sharing the Gospel with all whom God brings across my path because I see what will happen to those without Christ as their end and the end draws near:
1 Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to Him, 2 that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. 5 Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? 6 And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he may be revealed. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. 8 And then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; 9 that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, 10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.
(2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)



In the above passage, we see several things that are important to point out:


1. The meaning of the word “apostasy.”

Some have taught that the word “apostasy” in verse 3 is actually referring to the rapture because of the construction of this word in the Greek. In the Greek, the English word “apostasy” is ἀποστασία (apostasia), and it comes from two Greek words: the Greek preposition ἀπό (apo), which means “from, or away from”; and the Greek noun στάσις (stasis), which means “a condition of being in a certain position or state of affairs; a movement toward a (new) state of affairs; and a lack of agreement respecting policy.” Thus, with reference to the rapture, those who say this is what ἀποστασία (apostasia) is referring to do so because they say the preposition ἀπό (apo) indicates “moving away from one position to another,” which would include “moving away from the earth” to heaven with Jesus when He raptures the church.
On the other hand, verse 1 is clearly referring to the rapture when it says, “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to Him,” and so what we would have if ἀποστασία (apostasia) is referring to the rapture would be something like this: “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together (i.e., being raptured) to Him, 2 that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord (i.e., our being raptured) has come. 3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come (i.e., our being raptured) unless the apostasy (i.e., our being raptured) comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.” So, according to those who say that ἀποστασία (apostasia) is referring to the rapture, based on the above passage, before the rapture occurs, we will be raptured! Now there is no way anyone can look at this passage and honestly say that is objective, honest, correct, and accurate exegesis of this passage. However, when we look at the word ἀποστασία (apostasia) and its use throughout Scripture, we see a quite different use of this word in the following passages:
(a) Joshua 22:22: “The Mighty One, God, the LORD, the Mighty One, God, the LORD! He knows, and may Israel itself know. If it was in rebellion (ἀποστασία – apostasia), or if in an unfaithful act against the LORD do not Thou save us this day! ”
(b) II Chronicles 22:19: “Moreover, all the utensils which King Ahaz had discarded during his reign in his unfaithfulness (ἀποστασία – apostasia), we have prepared and consecrated; and behold, they are before the altar of the LORD.” (LXX)
(c) Jeremiah 21:19: “Your apostasy (ἀποστασία – apostasia) shall correct you, and your wickedness shall reprove you: know then, and see, that you forsaking me has been bitter to you, saith the Lord your God; and I have taken no pleasure in thee, saith the Lord thy God.” (this verse is taken directly from the LXX, and the Hebrew MT has “apostasies,” which is obviously plural and is referring to many acts of “rebellion and unfaithfulness”)
(d) I Maccabees 2:15: “In the mean while the king’s officers, such as compelled the people to revolt (ἀποστασία – apostasia), came into the city Modin, to make them sacrifice.”
As we look at the above examples, we see is a clear act of “rebellion” and a “turning away” from that which is “truth” to that which is a “lie” – thus, the idea contained in στάσις (stasis), which means “a condition of being in a certain position or state of affairs; a movement toward a (new) state of affairs; and a lack of agreement respecting policy,” is consistently used with reference to a position of truth throughout the Scripture, as well as in Maccabees, and when ἀπό (apo) is attached, which indicates “moving away from one position to another,” that position that it one is moving “away from” with the use of (ἀποστασία – apostasia) is unequivocally, as just stated, the position of truth that the Scripture is emphasizing to a position of lies, contrary to biblical truth.
Consequently, the word ἀποστασία (apostasia) as used in 2 Thessalonians has absolutely nothing to do with the rapture, but rather it is talking about people who once had a “professed belief in Jesus,” but were persuaded by lies and false doctrines and eventually deserted Jesus, the Church, the Bible, and everything related to Christianity. After this occurs, at some point then the rapture will occur and the Anti-Christ will make his appearance.


2. The Anti-Christ will make his appearance.

As verse 3 indicates, The Anti-Christ will appear and proceed to proclaim his self-deification before the whole world: “3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.”


3. Verses 6-8 describe the rapture and the emergence of the Anti-Christ:

“6 And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he may be revealed. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. 8 And then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming.”


4. Verses 9-10 describe the tremendous deception that will spread over the earth through Satanic power and those who will be engulfed by it:

“9 that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, 10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.”


5. Verses 11-12 describe God’s judgment upon those who have rejected Christ and the Eternal Truth of God in Him:

“11 And for this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.” This last portion of Scripture is in line with Romans 1:18-32 with regard to God “giving people over” to their lusts and rebellion after rejecting Him on a consistent basis:


18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. 21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four- footed animals and crawling creatures. 24 Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them. 25 For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. 28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; 32 and, although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
(Romans 1:18-32)


Therefore, it is imperative for us who are Jesus’ followers to be the evangelists He has called us to be in Acts 1:6-8:


“6 And so when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, ‘Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?’ 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8 but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” There is no greater calling for us than to be Jesus’ “witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth,” and I want, therefore, to challenge all of you who read and respond to this Blog to begin being a witness to the world around you, versus simply embracing this or any other computer generated means of communication as your main source of communication with the world. As believers in Jesus, we need to the “salt and light” in a decaying and darkened world around us, proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who have clothed themselves in the Bad News of this dying world. I would like to challenge all of you who read this Blog, therefore, to begin praying and asking the Lord to lead you every day to share the Gospel with someone who needs Jesus in their lives. You will be surprised to see what the Lord does in opening doors for you to share, but that is what He has promised to do for us as we go forth in faith and trust in Him to share with those who we either know that do not know the Lord, or with those whom we have never met, but who also desperately need the Lord.


Let’s resolve to spread the good news to those around us!

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He Leaves the Ninety-Nine
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?” (Luke 15:4). Jesus is speaking here of a sheep that has been in the fold. Clearly, this represents a member of Christ’s flock, one that has been well fed and led by a loving shepherd. Yet this sheep had become lost so the shepherd has gone out looking for it.

Note what Jesus says about the shepherd here: “[He goes] after the one which is lost until he finds it.” God never gives up on anyone who belongs to him and has gone astray. Instead, the Shepherd goes out to find that sheep, embraces it, and brings it back into the shelter.

David testified, “If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there” (Psalm 139:8). Simply put, you can go so far into sin that you come to the very brink of hell, and he will still pursue you.

We have all heard the expression “hell on earth.” That is what life is like for those who run from God; their “bed in hell” is an awful condition. It means to be captivated by sin, drifting further and further from the Lord, eventually falling into a nagging fear of being lost forever.

You may have made your bed in hell, but you are not too deep in sin for Jesus to reach you and receive you with open arms. “When [Jesus] has found [the sheep], he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing” (Luke 15:5). When the shepherd finds the lost, injured sheep, he does not take it back to the fold right away. According to the parable, he carries the wounded creature into his house. Then he calls all his friends and neighbors together, exclaiming, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!” (15:6).

It does not matter what you have done, how far you may have strayed. Once the Shepherd brings you back, you are redeemed in full and he rejoices over you!

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Dry Seasons
Carter Conlon

Does it feel as though it has been a long time since you heard from the Lord? Does he seem to be silent while the fulfillment of his promises he once spoke to you remain nowhere in sight? Perhaps you started out full of faith, believing God when he told you, “I am going to deliver you. I am going to use your life for my glory.” When he first spoke these promises, they were the joy of your heart and the strength of your days. But now, in the midst of God’s silence, you wonder what happened to his word to you.

Rest assured that we all have such seasons in our walk with the Lord. Even one of the psalmists said, “Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David: his seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before Me. It shall be established forever like the moon, even like the faithful witness in the sky” (Psalm 89:35-37).

He was recounting words from the very mouth of God — an incredible promise given to King David regarding the establishment of his throne and the enduring reign that would result. However, the psalmist then lamented: “But You have cast off and abhorred, you have been furious with Your anointed. You have renounced the covenant of Your servant; You have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground” (89:38-39).

In that day, as the psalmist looked at the state of his nation, all he could see was Israel’s demise, so what happened to the promise God had given to David? You may feel the same at times. Why does everything seem to be crumbling? Has God withdrawn His hand?

We humans have a tendency to see with only our natural eyes. Oftentimes, however, we perceive our situation incorrectly. In those seasons, we must learn to stay strong. The things God has spoken to you will come to pass, but on His timetable, not yours. Say with the psalmist David today, “As for me, I trust in You, O Lord; I say, ‘You are my God,’ My times are in Your hand” (Psalm 31:14-15). AMEN

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Your Father Keeps His Promises
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Gethsemane was the garden where Jesus went to pray when his trial became crushing and his cup overwhelmed him. It was where he wept out his deepest sorrows before the Father. And it was also where he won the battle over every evil principality and power.

Some Christians today say, “Ours is not a generation of tears. We have been called to celebrate and commanded to take everything by faith. We can speak the Word and every mountain will be moved. We are to simply meditate on God’s goodness.” Such is the posture of the prosperous modern church.

I agree that our God is a God of love and, yes, we are to celebrate before him. But there comes a time when our trials are so overwhelming that we can do nothing but cry before his throne. It happened to Jesus, yet he did not sin in unbelief when he prayed in Gethsemane. On the contrary, Jesus was demonstrating to his people how to obtain power and authority over all satanic forces.

Consider Jesus’ prayers at Gethsemane:

• “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death” (Matthew 26:38). His declaration is saying, in essence, “This is beyond understanding and if it goes on, it will kill me.”
• Jesus continued, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me” (26:39). Have you ever prayed in such agony that hot tears streaked your face?

Jesus prayed the “ultimate prayer” at Gethsemane, meaning the final prayer that would move mountains and shake hell. It was simply this: “Not as I will, but as You will.” You may have wrestled in prayer over a situation. You tell God how you have fasted and interceded, knocked, sought and believed, and yet what you want is not happening. This has created a real conflict in your spirit.

I encourage you to cast everything into his hands and enter into the place of rest he has prepared (Hebrews 4:1). He has promised, “I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters” (2 Corinthians 6:18). And your Father keeps his promises!

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An Anchor for Our Faith
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

One verse of God’s Word will keep you through any and all perilous times if you will commit your very life to it. Beloved, embrace this one verse, fully believe it, and it will be a daily power-source of faith:

“Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him” (Matthew 6:8).

Jesus enumerates the things our heavenly Father knows we need — in short, food, drink and clothing. “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on” (Luke 12:22). The overriding theme of your life should be: God knows … and that is all that matters!

“If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?” (12:28). Jesus speaks of grass that is full and green today but is cut down tomorrow. He would have us remember that he gave it life and care and we dare not think he cares for our needs any less. If you are concerned about your family’s welfare, I have good news: your children are God’s children and he cares for your loved one more than you do. Jesus knows exactly what each one needs.

Jesus knows about your need to have a roof over your head; he knows about your rent or mortgage payment each month. He knows about all your needs and you can trust him fully to meet all of them. He promises to do it!

The Lord says to the rich and the poor alike, “Do not fret about your worldly possessions. Give me quality time and trust me. I am going to take care of all your needs.” “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

Anchor your faith in the fact that your heavenly Father knows exactly what you need. He delights in you and with him you will always be safe and sound.

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Cry Out in Faith
Gary Wilkerson

When God’s presence is missing in one’s life, things are out of kilter because there is no law, direction or righteous teaching to serve as guidelines for living. Everyone becomes a law unto himself, doing his own thing. Sadly, this is a picture of so many Christian homes today. There is no peace or rest because everyone is doing whatever he or she pleases. Such disorder deeply grieves the Lord, yet it does not have to be that way. The presence of God brings order and his promises are unchangeable. God’s Word pledges, “If you will seek me, I will be with you. When you cry out, I will be found by you.”

We read of King Asa, who led God’s people to a miraculous victory over Ethiopia’s million-man army. Afterward he testified that it was God’s presence that had scattered the enemy: “Lord, it is nothing for You to help, whether with many or with those who have no power; help us, O Lord our God, for we rest on You, and in Your name we go against this multitude … So the Lord struck the Ethiopians before Asa and Judah, and the Ethiopians fled” (2 Chronicles 14:11-12).

As Asa led his triumphant army back to Jerusalem, the prophet Azariah met him at the city gate with this message: “Hear me, Asa … The Lord is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you” (15:2).

This is not some complicated theology. In fact, anyone can have the abiding presence of God if he or she will simply call out in faith. God told King Asa the secret of getting and maintaining the presence of the Lord in his life and he wants to do the same for you. The Lord is merciful and his love is constant. With him, you can go through any fire — and you will not just survive, but you will be kept and protected through it all.

As the saying goes, "If you don't feel close to God, guess who moved." God our Father will never leave nor forsake you.

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Are You Overwhelmed By Fear?
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

When our fear becomes overwhelming, we must remind ourselves of how great our God is. We need to recall all his great deliverances for those who have trusted in him, and claim the same majestic power for our present trial. Fear cannot get a stranglehold on any servant who has a vision of God’s greatness and majesty.

Nehemiah understood this well. He paced back and forth as Jerusalem was surrounded by a fierce coalition of nations ready to attack. A weary remnant was working around the clock to restore Jerusalem’s walls against these adversaries. They had to toil with a hammer in one hand and a sword in the other. As the hours ticked away, fear began to set in.

How were they able to resist succumbing to fear? Nehemiah reminded them of how great and mighty their God is: “I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, ‘Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight” (Nehemiah 4:14).

That is exactly how Moses dealt with fear in Israel. He instructed the people, “If you should say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?’ — you shall not be afraid of them, but you shall remember well what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt … You shall not be terrified of them; for the Lord your God, the great and awesome God, is among you” (Deuteronomy 7:17-18, 21).

Moses was saying, “You are going to face many great enemies who are more powerful than you. You will wonder how you can ever gain victory against such odds but you must remember the awesome might of your God. Remind yourselves how faithful he was to deliver you in the past.”

“He is your praise, and He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things” (Deuteronomy 10:21). If your faith is shaken, remind yourself of how mighty your God is. Recount his many deliverances in your life and you will find any grip of fear being broken by a vision of his majesty.

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God Uses the Flawed
Jim Cymbala
Oddly, God loves to choose the most unlikely, untrained, and imperfect folks to accomplish amazing things. Abraham lied when under pressure, Moses killed a man before he became Israel’s deliverer, King David’s family dismissed him as only a shepherd boy, and the apostle Peter was a fisherman with no formal religious training.

“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him” (1 Corinthians 1:26-29).

Note that those words were written to a congregation of believers in Jesus, not to the clergy. In case you are feeling inadequate and untrained when the Spirit calls, please remember that this is the way God usually works so that he will be guaranteed to receive all the glory.

Let’s look at Paul for a moment. He was Jewish, trained as a Pharisee, and an expert in Old Testament teaching. No one was better equipped to take the good news to the Jewish people but that is not where God placed Paul. Instead, he used him to spread the gospel among the Gentiles!

When God’s Spirit moves, his purposes are revealed and accomplished in ways that no committee, personality test, or computer program could ever figure out. Christ did not die on the cross so that we would spend our time as Christians on earth merely sitting around waiting for his return. Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few” (Matthew 9:37). Jesus said there is a shortage of workers, but the actual work will be done by God’s Spirit through you and me doing things beyond our wildest imagination. It all begins when you offer yourself to serve.

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A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

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Even on Your Worst Day
Gary Wilkerson
Holy and anointed — these two important elements of Jesus’ life are meant to be part of our lives too. We are called to be holy and anointed but some Christians may be intimidated by this. “I live a moral life and I do my best to be godly — but holy? And anointed? How can that happen, considering all my failures?”

Straight from Peter’s pen comes this instruction: “It is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:16). The only way this could ever be accomplished is if Jesus gave us his own holiness and anointing. And that is exactly what he did through his perfect sacrifice for us!

For thirty-three years, Christ lived on earth, perfectly reflecting spotless motives, speech, and actions. If he had been guilty of just one sin, he could not have paid for all our sins. But through his perfect life on earth, his payment for the sins of the whole world is thorough and endless.

Christ’s work for us — his crucifixion, death, and resurrection — did more than cleanse us of sin. He also imparted to us his righteousness. Think about what an amazing thing this is: While all our sin is on him, all his righteousness is on us. One of the sins we must be cleansed of is the deep belief that our behavior makes us righteous. We can never earn our way to a higher level of righteousness; we are made righteous by him alone.

Paul testifies, “I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith” (Philippians 3:9, NLT).

Perhaps you feel holy on days when you are doing well; you’re worshipful and conscious of God in every way. But do not mistake that for a state of holiness because you can never be holier than Jesus’ blood makes you, even on your worst day. By his power, you are his worthy witness not just in good times but in bad times. His sacrifice frees you from sin and makes you righteous.
AMEN

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Shut the Door
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

In the midst of a time of volatility and upheaval, how are God’s people to respond? If you have confessed Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you need never fear. Those who are in Christ are forever sheltered by the blood that Jesus shed for them and this truth is the cornerstone of our faith. It will determine everything we think and all we do regardless of what is going on around us.

Paul assured the believers in Rome, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him” (Romans 5:8-9).

What are God’s people to do when the world is barraged with bad news? When markets rise and fall and the world becomes paralyzed with fear? God gives his children a hiding place: “Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past” (Isaiah 26:20).

When you are distressed — overwhelmed, laid low by affliction, concerned about the future — God says there is a place of comfort where we find composure for our souls. This secret hiding place is a chamber in your mind which Isaiah describes this way: “[The Lord] will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You” (Isaiah 26:3).

When the Lord tells us, “Shut the door,” he is showing us the need to shut out the many troubling voices in our heads. We are to close the door to all thoughts about tomorrow and about world events. The Lord who has faithfully brought us this far will not fail us in the days ahead.

God be praised! He is our hiding place in times of crisis and his faithful promises are our shield of protection. Cling to them!

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Self-Sufficient People
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

The apostle Paul wrote, “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16). The phrase “children of God” is often used to describe believers but the words may be used too flippantly, with little understanding of the power and depth of their true meaning.

To be a child of God means simply to be God’s dependent; that is, “one who is unable to exist or function without help.” The child of God knows he cannot control his own life without the Lord’s daily help.

Many sinners are self-sufficient people who see themselves as high achievers — can-do people. They preach that whatever the mind can conceive, it can achieve — that with the right mental attitude, a person can do anything.

The church has been flooded with self-help books of all kinds, many about winning your own victory over self, doubt, fear and loneliness. Many in the church believe if you have the right formula, you can figure out everything for yourself and solve your own problems. This attitude says, “God, you gave me a good mind so I’ll just think this through and work it out.”

Jesus once found his disciples arguing among themselves about which one was going to be the greatest in God’s kingdom and he gave them a lesson. “Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 18:2-3).

Jesus was saying, “Forget about who will be greatest. You must rethink your relationship to me and learn how to walk in this life.” This child represented a life of total dependency, because children cannot adequately take care of themselves.

Have you learned to be wholly dependent on the guidance of the Holy Spirit? Come to him as a little child and he will revolutionize your thinking!

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God Has Not Written You Off
Carter Conlon

“So Peter went out and wept bitterly” (Luke 22:62). In this scene just before Jesus’ crucifixion, we see Peter weeping inconsolably, stunned by his own sense of failure. After all, he was the follower of Christ who had declared, “I am willing not just to live for You but to die for You and with You in Jerusalem!” (see Matthew 26:35). However, only a short time later Peter denied he even knew Christ, swearing with an oath to this effect.

Many disappointed, disillusioned people in the Body of Christ feel they have somehow failed God. They recall the days when they loved to pray — when they could not wait to tell others about Jesus. But something happened along the way. They feel as if they have made a mistake of some sort, and now they don’t know if their relationship with God can ever be as it once was.

Remember, Christians do make mistakes. One such mistake is substituting human reasoning for divine counsel. When you and I pray, ideas will come into our hearts. However, we must remember that they are not always from God even though we are praying.

We often assume that we know exactly what He means when He sends us out to do something. Then when it does not work out as we thought, we become discouraged or even bitter. Allowing bitterness against God to enter the heart when a plan does not move forward as expected is a second common mistake of Christians.

You may have made mistakes but God’s plan for your life has not been thwarted! So if you are disillusioned, be assured that God has not forgotten you. He has not written you off. You are as precious to him, as valuable to him, today as you were before you ever even understood who he was.

Allow the Lord to comfort you and touch your life with his mercy. Choose to believe that he has not forsaken you — that his plan for your life will be fulfilled. In fact, the best is yet to come! AMEM

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Jesus Delights in Our Trust
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Our Lord has an almost insurmountable problem of communicating with those who claim to love him so. We come into his gates with thanksgiving and enter his courts with praise. We praise him with instruments, with song, with uplifted hands, with tears and loud hosannas — but it is still only one-way communication.

We rush into his presence in the secret closet with worship and requests and then rush out again. How many times has he been ready and anxious to open his heart and speak, but lo and behold, no one was there.

Immediately after his resurrection, Jesus appeared to two disciples on the Road to Emmaus. They were grieved about the departed Lord and in their grief they did not recognize him as their Messiah. As they reasoned between themselves, Jesus wanted to talk because he had so much to share with them. Finally he could hold back no longer: “Beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:27).

There could have been no finer experience for those disciples! They had heard his voice and went away saying, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” (24:32). Those two men shared a great joy but what about the joy of Jesus? He was fulfilled because he had taken a few hours just to talk! In his glorified form, he had experienced his first two-way communion; his lonely heart had been touched and his need had been met.

We think Jesus gets enough pleasure from what we do for him, but there is so much more. Our Lord responds to our faith; he talks to the Father about us; he delights in our trust, and it pleases him to give us rest and peace. I am convinced that His greatest need is to have a one-to-one personal communication with those he left here on earth.

When you get alone with the Lord and pour out your heart to him, be sure to take time to listen, as well.

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The Forgiving Love of God
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Many Christians joyfully tell others of the love of Jesus and his power to forgive their sin, and yet they find it difficult to fully accept that same forgiveness. They commit sin and seem to want to pay for their failure. “Lord,” argues the Christian, “I shook off the conviction of the Holy Spirit and went ahead stubbornly and committed sin.”

The enemy of our soul is not at all interested in making Christians into murderers, adulterers, addicts and thieves. He is interested in only one thing — turning Christians into unbelievers. He plants questions in your mind that lead to doubt. Is God a deliverer? Is he there to help in the time of temptation? Are his promises true? Is there freedom from sin? Does he really answer prayer today? Will he bring us out of the battle victorious? Will joy follow weeping? Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes!

Satan’s only goal for Job was to have him curse God! Likewise, he wants you to think God is not faithful and does not care about your needs and feelings which, of course, is completely opposite of the truth.

The accuser wants you to give up in despair but God wants you to receive the forgiving flow of his love. He will always answer a sincere prayer: “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). God never withdraws — only man does. So never limit God’s forgiveness to you! It is his nature. David said, “For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You” (Psalm 86:5).

The goal of every believer is to “sin not” but when a God-fearing child sins, there are answers in God’s Word: “If anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1).

If you have guilt, lay it down. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Open up your heart and let God’s love in. If you repent, he forgives you over and over and over!

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Causing Our Enemies to Flee
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Sin causes Christians to become cowards and live in defeat. Some once knew what it was like to live victoriously and experience the power, courage, and blessing that comes from obedience to the Lord. But a besetting sin has robbed them of their spiritual vitality and the enemy raises one battle after another.

It is possible to overcome a sin that has become a habit. Paul fought a battle between the flesh and the Spirit and confessed, “For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice” (Romans 7:19). The fear of God against sin is the basis of all freedom. God cannot condone sin and he cannot make an exception.

While God hates sin with a perfect hatred, he loves each of us with an infinite compassion. His love will never compromise with sin but he clings to his sinning child with one purpose in mind — to reclaim him. The knowledge that he loves you in spite of your sin should be enough to accept that love. And God pities you! He knows the agony of your battle and he is always there, reassuring you that nothing can ever separate you from his love.

“Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:37-39).

Victory over besetting sin causes all other enemies to flee. Worry, fear, guilt, anxiety, depression, restlessness, loneliness — all are your enemies. But the righteous are as bold as a lion and their clear conscience makes them a fortress that these enemies cannot overrun.

Do you want victory over all your enemies? Then deal ferociously with your besetting sin. “Lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1).

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Can Christians Stay Pure Today?
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Is it possible for a Christian to stay clean and pure in a world filled with violence, immorality, and corruption? Or is it inevitable that the spirit of this age will wear down the saints of God and vex their souls? It happened to Lot and his family in Sodom, and it is happening to multitudes of Christians all around the world. The overwhelming temptations of this evil generation have already caused numbers of Christians to compromise and indulge in ungodly practices.

Truly honest Christians must take inventory and ask of themselves these important questions, “Are my moral values changing? Is the wickedness of this age seeping into my life? Am I being affected by the barrage of sensuality I see all around me? Am I developing an appetite for worldly things?”

Evil has always been present. The devil tried to tempt and deceive David, Isaiah, Paul, and the people of God in every generation just as forcefully as he seeks to devour God’s people today. In spite of it all, God has always had a remnant, people who remained true to the end. The spirit of the age did not overwhelm them. In fact, they grew strong and holy in the midst of persecution and evil.

This generation is becoming wicked and vile because it is losing its faith in God — and that faith is dissipating because the Bible is no longer consumed as a life-giving force. Do not blame the devil — our backslidings are the result of one thing: lack of prayer and Bible reading.

We need to be praying, “Oh, God, cause me to see how cold I have become. Cause me to know how weak I am and put in me a new hunger for spiritual things.” Here is God’s desire to all who live in the midst of wickedness: “That you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15). Let your light shine! AMEN

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Vessels of God’s Glory
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

God has not forgotten you! He knows exactly where you are, what you are going through right now, and he is monitoring every step along your path. Too often in times of crisis, Christians forget that God has them in the palm of his hand. Instead, like the children of Israel, they are afraid they are going to be destroyed by the enemy. God must find it difficult to understand why his children do not trust him when they are down and in need. “Don’t they know I have inscribed them on the palms of My hands? I could no more forget them in their hour of need than a mother could forget her nursing child” (see Isaiah 49:15-16).

Again and again God came to Israel pleading for their confidence and trust in times of crises. “For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.’ But you would not” (Isaiah 30:15).

It seems even the New Testament echoes God’s displeasure with unbelief: “Ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:6-8).

Have you ever felt that God has forsaken you and left you to figure things out for yourself? Instead of submitting to the Lord in quiet confidence and rest in his promises, you may have tried to find your own solutions and things have blown up in your face.

Be assured that God wants to meet your every need but, most of all, he wants renewed fellowship with you. Get back to the secret closet of prayer and simple, childlike faith. Do not get so busy working on God that you forget he is trying to work on you, making you into a vessel of glory.

Man, this really speaks to very loudly. Like a thump on the head my Daddy would give me when I wasn't listening as a child......

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A Fervor for Christ
Nicky CruzJune 1, 2019

“For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). Oh, that each of us could have the fervor for living for Christ that filled Paul. Singlehandedly — at the direction of the Holy Spirit — he spread Christianity across the Roman Empire. He did not care if he lived or died, he just wanted to advance the kingdom of God.

Christians today have developed a false faith — a faith without commitment. We are busy running around to Bible conferences and retreats, searching out the most eloquent expositors of the Bible, and racing to weekly Bible studies to fill our heads with more outlines and formulas. Meanwhile, millions of hurting people all over the world are dying without hope. We are called to reach out to them.

What is commitment all about? It simply means to devote ourselves unconditionally to the Lord and his work. We stick with the job before us, despite circumstances. It means teaching a Sunday school class every Sunday — no matter what — and allowing the kids in that class to become the most important youngsters in the world to us. It means interceding for them and taking time during the week to find out what is bothering them.

Commitment does not take into account convenience, or the changing whims of emotion. True commitment remains an enduring thing, that which can be counted on. Sadly, most Christians do not even know how to be fully committed to the Lord. They are too caught up in their own lifestyle. And too many want to be entertained in church — not committed.

We run the risk of becoming like the church at Laodicea mentioned in the book of Revelation — lukewarm, do-nothing Christians. “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So, then, because you are lukewarm … I will vomit you out of My mouth” (Revelation 3:15-16). Ask the Lord to renew the spirit of commitment within you so that you will be that dedicated servant he wants you to be.


Oh sooo true.....

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Apologies Tarfoot, for not updating the various sections of this site.. I am now struggling to keep both myself & this site going..as our bank balance is now in DEBT

I do not believe that reading any book of prayer, nor kneeling on a prayer mat will help all the people around the world that are suffering & praying for help

After a few bad weeks, I actually asked the power above us all for help...& now even my old laptop is dying..:banghead:

I told him OK Lord..You have tested me enough..

Then I remembered the words of a song..

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When the Cross Is Too Heavy
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

It is very true that Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23). But Jesus fell under the load of his cross, weary, exhausted, and unable to carry it another step. John said, “And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called … Golgotha” (John 19:17). The Bible does not tell us how far Jesus carried his cross, but we do know that Simon, the Cyrene, was compelled to pick it up and carry it to the place of crucifixion (see Matthew 27:32).

Jesus had reached the end of his endurance; after all, there is only so much one person can take before they come to a breaking point and Jesus’ cross had become too heavy to bear. So, what does this mean to us? Would our Lord make us do something he could not do?

Jesus knows exactly what he is saying when he calls us to “take up our cross and follow him.” He understands the agony, the helplessness, the burden that crosses create. He remembers his own cross and he knows we cannot carry our cross all the way in our own strength.

There is a hidden truth here that is so powerful and edifying, it could change the way we look at all our troubles and hurts. And even though it sounds almost sacrilegious to suggest that Jesus did not carry his own cross, that is the truth. What this means to us today is that Jesus, who is touched by the feelings of our infirmities, experienced what it is to be weak, discouraged and unable to go on without help. He was in all points tempted just as we are.

The temptation for us is not in failing, not in laying down the cross because of weakness; the real temptation is in trying to pick up that cross and carry it in our own strength. Jesus said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

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Wounded Pride
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

For all the talk in the church about forgiveness, restitution, and healing, very little seems to be truly demonstrated by Christians. We all like to think of ourselves as peacemakers, lifters up of the fallen, always forgiving and forgetting. But even the most deeply spiritual are guilty of not showing a spirit of forgiveness.

We find it hard to forgive those who have injured our pride; or someone who is ungrateful; or anyone who deceives us. And the majority of Christians do not know the first thing about handling criticism. We employ all kinds of methods to hide our resentment, becoming adept at couching our defensiveness in masterful eloquence. Yes, wounded pride is a terrible thing.

Often, before we can forgive others, we must learn to forgive God. Although God has never sinned against anyone, that does not stop us from holding a grudge against him. We come into his presence to pray but we are harboring negative feelings toward him because we think he has not done what we thought he should. A prayer may have gone unanswered for weeks, months — even years. Or an unexpected illness occurs or tragedy claims a loved one — and faith begins to waver.

Remember, the Word of God makes it very clear that a wavering person will never receive anything from God: “Let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways” (James 1:6-8, KJV).

Jesus understood this tendency in his children to hold grudges against heaven when mountains are not moved on schedule. He warned Peter not to ask anything when standing in God’s presence unless he was forgiving. “Whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses” (Mark 11:25).

If you have a secret grudge in your heart against another person or against heaven, let the Spirit of forgiveness flow through you. God is faithful! AMEN

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Protection from Falling Away
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)
The apostle Paul speaks of a great apostasy to come upon the earth in the last days. What is apostasy? It is “a rejection of truth once believed and proclaimed.” Simply put, it is a falling away from God’s truth. Paul writes of the apostasy to come: “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word … as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-3).

Our spiritual fathers in the New Testament church were servants who gave their lives to defend the gospel. From the beginning, the disciples and apostles preached the whole counsel of God, proclaiming Christ as Messiah to their dying days. The Lord showered his gifts and blessings on them and the church grew and prospered in spirit and in truth.

Out of the roots of that early church sprang a tree with many branches which we call movements, denominations, organizations, fellowships — such as Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Pentecostals, Episcopalians and others. Most of these branches were sparked into flame by saintly servants of Christ, some of whom were martyred for their devotion to the pure Word of God.

God hates the lukewarm gospel of half-truths that is now spreading over the globe. Jesus came to a world that was in total apostasy and his coming was a pure act of mercy, undeserved by anyone. A great harvest of souls is still to come in this modern age and hungry believers from every nation will recognize the voice of the Lord. Their awakened hearts will respond, “Lord, bring me back to my first love for you.”

If you have walked with the Master for a long time, you may need a reminder to draw close to him and receive a renewal of your first love, lest you “fall away” and become part of this great apostasy. Beloved, he is waiting to embrace you and bring you into a new place with him.

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A Source of Strength During Our Trials
Carter Conlon

Jesus said, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

We would be wise to consider these words spoken by Jesus to His disciples, bearing in mind that in this life, we will have tribulation, trials, difficulties, opposition, sorrow, and sometimes even depression. We will be falsely accused, even slandered, yet we can be of good cheer because of the promise of God that no matter how dark the days may become, we are going to make it to the finish line. Remember, Jesus has already won the victory for us!

Although victory is assured, we are not exempt from fighting the battle that is currently before us. We are guaranteed that at the end of this life, we are going to sit with Jesus, ruling and reigning with him. We are going to have a mansion in glory and walk on streets of gold. We will stand before the throne of God, and we will hear him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in a few things, so I will make you ruler over many things. Enter now into the joy of the Lord!” (see Matthew 25:21). But we still have battles to fight.

One of the reasons we have tribulation in this world is because it is often the only way people around us will ever know that God is real. You and I have to walk through the same fire, the same flood, the same difficult days as everybody else. However, the difference is that we have an inner source of strength that will carry us through and give us a song.

The psalmist David wrote, “He also brought me up out of a horrible pit … and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps. He has put a new song in my mouth” (Psalm 40:2-3).

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Do You Know God’s Favor?
Gary Wilkerson

What are some of the ways you know God’s favor is on you? You woke up this morning; you were able to take deep, cleansing breaths; you have people in your life who love you — and you have met a Savior named Jesus Christ. Do you feel Jesus walking with you today? Is he talking with you, caring for you, providing for you, giving you strength, smiling on you? All these things are but a portion of the fullness of his favor. Yes, definitely, God’s favor is on your life!

There are two schools of thought regarding God’s favor: one side says Christians should have the very best of everything at all times (the Rolls Royce, the mansion, the constant joy) and the other side expects constant struggle, suffering, pain and hardship. Neither extreme should become our mentality or our experience.

God is a good, loving Father and he gives good gifts to his children; in other words, he loves to bless us. Any natural father or grandfather wants his children to be able to have a good home, ample provision, good schools and good health. But if they should encounter struggles of some sort, he wants them to have strength and fortitude to withstand adversity. He does not step in and coddle and fight their battles for them.

Likewise, God does not pour “things” out on his children all the time just because we ask; and, in fact, sometimes he even has to discipline us. But we can be assured that his father heart understands all we are going through and he expresses his favor by pouring out his grace as we grow in him.

God is for you and not against you! “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).

The ultimate, extravagant favor of God is his presence in your life, working for you, supporting you, loving you at all times.

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No Other Source of Peace
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

“He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). It is possible to turn your life around and discover a life of joy and peace beyond anything yet known. One of the keys to doing this is to learn once and for all that you cannot depend upon someone else for your happiness.

Those who lean on the arm of flesh are digging wells that cannot hold water. They constantly need someone to pour advice into them, or give counsel or encourage them. But they cannot hold these things because they are broken cisterns. Jesus says, “Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:14).

The Holy Spirit knows and sees all and He alone has the answers you need. Of course, godly counsel and Christian psychologists are good and can be very helpful at times, but any godly counsel should bring you to this absolute truth: no other human being can be your source of happiness and peace.

There is a great, indescribable power living within you wanting to break forth and there are many, many scriptures to support this notion. “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:37). “His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue” (2 Peter 1:3).

Is Jesus the lord of your life? Then you do not have to wait for some special revelation. You are ready to walk in the fullness of the Spirit the moment you confess him as lord and follow him absolutely. “You are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you” (Romans 8:9). What a glorious promise!

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Faith for Seasons of Silence
David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Are there times when you wonder if your prayers will ever be answered? Have you honestly done everything you know to do? The delayed answer to prayer is one of the most common experiences shared by even the saintliest of God’s children.

Ministers and teachers who preach faith stir us to expect miracles and answers to all our prayers — and that is a good thing. We desperately need to be reminded of the power of faith but our faith should not be afraid to investigate Bible passages that deal with God’s delays, his seasons of silence, and even his sovereignty — when he acts without giving man an explanation.

We see in the Word that at times God did not answer a request, no matter how many time it was asked of him or how great the faith. For instance, Paul was not delivered from the challenge that buffeted him, though he prayed diligently for an answer. “I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me” (2 Corinthians 12:8).

Peter warned that faith should not stand alone when he said, “Add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-8). Faith without patience and virtue and self-control becomes self-centered and unbalanced.

Likewise, Paul prayed he wanted more than deliverance from his prickly thorn, more than success — he wanted Christ! Paul would rather suffer than try to overrule God and that is why he could shout, “I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me … For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

God wants to see the work of his grace completed in you as you seek more of him. He loves you more than you can imagine and nothing you endure can compare with the glory that awaits you!

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A Greater Mission in Life
Nicky Cruz

Today’s families — both Christian and non-Christian — are under enormous pressure to conform to society’s views. Both parents and children are struggling beneath the strain of a world gone mad with sin and temptation. At times it seems we are in a war so one-sided we have to hold on, stay in the battle, fight for the integrity of the family — and fight for the souls of our children.

The greatest thing any parent can do for their kids is to lead them into a relationship with Jesus and then mentor them in their faith. Without Jesus, our children are left with no foundation to build on, no measure of right and wrong, no real purpose for their lives. They are forced to look to the world for their value system, and the world always comes up short.

There is an answer to the ills of our culture. There is a way to put an end to violence and hopelessness in every home, school, and neighborhood. We can do it by bringing families back together and introducing them to the power and person of Jesus — by calling on the power of God’s Holy Spirit to redeem our past and redefine our future.

Parents, you can train your children for service in the kingdom as soldiers in a war against spiritual poverty. Building on the foundation of Jesus instills a sense of hope and purpose within a family. When children fall in love with Jesus and allow him to instill in them a sense of passion and a resolve to live for him, they have no time for teen rebellion. They have a greater mission in life.

“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God” (Ezekiel 11:19-20). AMEN and AMEN