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Facing Down the Lions


Jim Cymbala



“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world” (1 Peter 5:7-9, ESV).
Weakness will get you sympathy on earth, but it does nothing with Satan. He has no sympathy and no mercy. If you walk around complaining, “Oh, I’m so weak, and I haven’t read the Bible for days, and I never spend time alone with God,” you might as well be whistling for Satan to come and get you.
There’s a reason scripture refers to the devil as a roaring lion. Predators look for weakness. Lionesses lie in the high grass, studying their prey for hours, and you know what they’re looking for? Who’s weak!
Zoologists don’t even know how lions can tell if a prey animal is diseased, but they know. They can sense it somehow. They know disease like they’re veterinarians. Once they begin their run and the whole herd is going crazy, another animal can come up right in the lion’s grill, and often the lion won’t even look at it or attack it. That lion is going after one animal: the weak one.
If I’m in a spiritual coma because I haven’t picked up my Bible in months, what do you think the devil’s going to do? Be afraid of me because I had an experience with God three years ago?
We have to wake up! We must start seeking God. This is the only way we can resist the enemy and become, as Peter puts it, “firm in your faith.” In spiritual warfare, the only thing that wins is the power of God, as scripture promises us, “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
If you’re feeling weak, go to your Bible. Get down on your knees. Seek God’s face. Our enemy is pitiless, but our heavenly Father gives us strength in his name.

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Samson’s Call and Commission

Keith Holloway



Everyone knows Samson in the Book of Judges for his feats of strength, but I’ve noticed some things about Samson that we tend to overlook.
His whole life from womb to tomb was to be committed to Christ, to God and his service. He was not to cut his hair; he was not to drink anything alcoholic; he was not to touch any dead bodies. These were signs of a separateness, a holiness. Not only was he given a call, but Judges 13:5 gives us a peek into the purpose of his life.
“For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines” (Judges 13:5, ESV).
Samson would grow up and begin delivering God’s people out of the hands of their enemies. What a wonderful promise! He was given a call and commission directly from God, and I think that’s very important.
So many of us today think, “I’m just a normal person with no special skills or abilities. I have to wonder what my purpose in life is.” Many people go through life without realizing that, in the scriptures, everyone whom God has set apart for himself and destined for salvation is born with a call of God on their lives.
Paul writes, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). We are meant to be doing the work that God has put us on earth to do, and the importance of this is emphasized in another of Paul’s letters. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (2 Corinthians 5:10).
You have a holy calling. Do you know what that is?
If your answer is “No, I don’t”, I strongly encourage you to ask the Lord to show it to you. We all have a similar call and commission as Samson. It doesn’t matter what your age, gender, income, education level or location is. All of us have been commissioned to save lives out of the hands of the enemy. Our lives are not to be lived for ourselves!

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The Danger of an Easy Life

Gary Wilkerson

I’ve been in 60 different nations around the world, and many of those countries are places where you will suffer just for being a Christian.
For instance, in Turkey or Jordan, kids from Christian homes are treated like outcasts at school. They’re called all sorts of names. They’re given poor grades. Their reports are diminished simply because they call on the name of Christ. There’s tremendous persecution. In most of the world, persecution for being a Christian is the norm. Right now, somebody is dying for their faith in some part of the world. In the U.S., on the other hand, we’ve had religious safety and freedom.
I was talking to a pastor — he’s actually the head of a denomination in Jordan — and I mentioned, “How hard it must be for you and your two boys who have grown up in these Muslim centers. With the persecution you’ve personally received and your children have received, it must be so hard for you to stand up and be a Christian in a culture like this.”
He responded, “It’s easy to stand up in a culture like this. Where it’s hard is in America. I would rather my children know that it’s a fight living for Christ. I would rather my children grow up in an Islamic state like this than in America where they would be bombarded by secular agendas to pull us away from God and Jesus Christ.”
Church, we must not allow ourselves to be seduced away from God by the apparent ease of being a Christian in our culture. The greatest tragedy of all will be when the church stops shining its light, when it stops seeing Jesus as high and lifted up, when it stops exalting God as holy, pure, true, righteous and just.
As scripture exhorts us, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:10-12, ESV).
Our greatest hope is truly being a faithful church to the Word of God, true to his Word and consistently bringing honest, full revelations about God.

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At the Core of Hardship


Carter Conlon
Contrary to much of modern-day theology, God never promised us a life without trials and suffering, but rather one in which we would be refined and carefully molded into His image. He never intended for us to settle for the narrow life of living solely for ourselves with affections set on the things of this world, but rather to live with hands outstretched and hearts touched by the infirmities of others.
There are some people who have such an aversion to the idea of hardship that they immediately shut down at the mere mention of it. If they don’t hear a message that makes them happy and assures them that everything is going to be fine, they quickly leave in search of a place where they will hear some good news.
What this displays is an inherent lack of understanding of the ways of God. People ultimately do themselves a great disservice when they pursue God in this way because, in reality, this is good news.
At the core of hardship is the mercy of God.
God is always faithful to strengthen and strategically prepare his people for whatever they will have to face. However, this means that we must be careful to incline our ears to what he is saying. The people who constantly search for a more palatable message will ultimately be excluded from partaking in God’s strength in the days ahead. The Lord imparts this divine strength to believers who are not afraid to listen to what the Holy Spirit is speaking and are therefore able to discern the times.
In this context, I urge you to open your heart, to recognize the fleeting nature of our lives, and to understand that the Lord is issuing a great mercy call to his people, if only they will listen. Only then will we be able to live in a manner that glorifies God and is merciful to others, regardless of the hardships we may face.

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Can We Thrive without God’s Law?



Most of America knows that the Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that the Ten Commandments are no longer required to be displayed in any government courthouse. This landmark decision has been covered exhaustively by the media, but what does the ruling mean?
A courthouse is where laws are enforced. The Ten Commandments represent God’s moral law, which never shifts or changes. It is as fixed as the law of gravity. If you defy that law, it’s like stepping off a high building. You can deny that the law affects you, but there are consequences to be paid. The Ten Commandments are eternal laws designed by God to keep society from destroying itself.
Despite this, many sand-blasting companies have ground away those Commandments, as well as God’s name, wherever they were engraved in courthouse marble or concrete.
What a telling picture of the state of our society. These unchangeable laws were originally engraved in stone by the finger of God. Now they are being erased from stone by the law of man.
Some Christians are saying, “What’s the big deal? We are not under the law. Why should this be an issue?” No, we are not under the Hebrew law, meaning the 613 additional commandments added by Jewish rabbis. But every Christian is under the authority of God’s moral law, which is summed up in the Ten Commandments.
Other believers claim, “We don’t need these displays of the Commandments. All that’s really necessary is for us to have them written in our hearts.” That’s not what God’s Word says. Consider the very visible presence God intended for the Commandments as they were delivered to his people.
“These words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:6-9).
If you don’t want God in your midst, he doesn’t simply go away. The Bible offers warning after warning on this matter. Why did God judge Noah’s generation by sending a flood? It all happened because of lawlessness.
We must pray for people to turn back to the Lord and honor his law once more. AMEN

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Testing the Limits of Grace


“Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents” (1 Corinthians 10:8-9, NKJV).
What does Paul mean here when he speaks of “tempting Christ”? Simply put, tempting the Lord means putting him to the test. We tempt him whenever we ask, “Just how merciful will God be to me if I move forward into this sin? How long can I indulge my sin before his anger is stirred? I know God is merciful, and this is an era of grace with no condemnation toward sinners. How could he possibly judge me, when I’m his child?”
Multitudes of Christians casually ask the same question today as they toy with a wicked temptation. They want to see how close they can get to hellfire without facing the consequences of sin. All the while, such believers are casting off conviction from God’s Word. They’re tempting Christ.
Any time we go against truth that God’s Spirit has made clear to us, we’re casting off Paul’s warning: “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12).
Ask yourself if you are testing the limits of God’s precious gift of grace. Are you asking Christ to indulge your sin in the face of your outright rebellion? You may say to yourself, “I’m a New Testament believer. I’m covered under the blood of Jesus. God won’t judge me.” By continuing in your sin, you are treating Jesus’ great sacrifice for you with utter disregard. Your present willful sin is putting him to open shame, not just in the world’s eyes, but before all of heaven and hell (see Hebrews 6:6).
Paul describes a way of escape from all temptation: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Dear believer, don’t flirt with sin and tempt God. Our escape is a growing knowledge and experience of the holy fear of God.

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He Who Watches Sparrows


“Therefore whoever confesses me before men, him I will also confess before my Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies me before men, him I will also deny before my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33, NKJV).
The Greek word for confess in this passage means covenant, assent or agreement. Jesus is speaking of an agreement we have with him. Our part is to confess him, or represent him, in our daily lives. We are to live by his promises of protection and personal care for us, and we are to testify of his marvelous blessings by how we live.
Confessing Christ means more than believing in his divinity. The Bible says even demons believe this and tremble at the knowledge (see James 2:19). So what does Jesus mean when he says we are to confess him before men?
What had Christ just told his listeners before the passage in verses 32 and 33? He had said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will” (Matthew 10:29). Jesus was telling them, “Think of the millions of birds throughout the earth. Now think of all the birds that have existed since Creation. To this day, not one bird has died or been snared without your heavenly Father knowing it.”
He then pointed out, “The very hairs of your head are all numbered” (Matthew 10:30). Christ was emphasizing, “God is so great, he’s beyond your ability to comprehend. You’ll never be able to grasp how detailed his care for you is.”
Jesus concluded by saying, “Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:31), then he sums everything up by saying, “Whoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32). He is saying, “Think about what I’ve just revealed to you about the Father’s all-seeing, all-knowing care. You’re to confess this truth to the whole world. You’re to live, breathe and testify, ‘God cares for me.’”
Believe in the Father’s love for you, and accept his intimate care for you. Lay down all your fears and doubts. Confess to everyone, “His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches over me.” Live before men with the faith that God hasn’t overlooked you.

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Christians SILENCED & Imprisoned - ACLJ's Fight at Home and Abroad

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Walking as a New Man or Woman



You know the story. A young man took his portion of his father’s inheritance and squandered it on riotous living. He ended up broken, ruined in health and spirit. At his lowest point, he decided to return to his father. Scripture tells us, “He arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him” (Luke 15:20, NKJV).
Note that nothing hindered this father’s forgiveness of his son. There was nothing this boy had to do, not even confess his sins, because the father had already made provision for reconciliation. Indeed, the father ran to his son and embraced him as soon as he saw the boy coming up the road.
Forgiveness is never a problem for any loving father. Likewise, it’s never a problem with our heavenly Father when he sees a repentant child.
With that in mind, forgiveness is not the main issue in this parable. In fact, Jesus makes it clear that it wasn’t enough for this prodigal merely to be forgiven. There needed to be restoration. The father didn’t embrace his son to forgive him and then let him go his way. No, that father yearned for his child’s company and communion. Even though the prodigal was forgiven and in favor once more, he still wasn’t settled in his father’s house. Only then would the father be satisfied, his joy fulfilled when his son was brought into his company. That is the issue in this parable.
Here the story gets very interesting. Note how the father responds to his son. He utters not a single word of reproof. There is no reference to the prodigal’s rebellion, foolishness, profligate living and spiritual bankruptcy. In fact, the father didn’t even acknowledge his son’s attempts to stay outside. Why?
In the father’s eyes, the old boy was dead. That son was out of his thoughts completely. This son who had returned home was a new man, and his past would never be brought up. The father was saying, “As far as I’m concerned, the old you is gone. Now, walk with me as a new man.”
This is the same invitation our heavenly Father gives us. The sin problem is settled. We are invited to come boldly into his presence and partake in his mercy.

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Choosing the Better Fruit

By Claude Houde
In the book of Galatians, the apostle Paul draws up an unfiltered, precise and realistic list of numerous negative emotions and thoughts that we struggle with on a daily basis: impurity, anger, jealousy, envy, grudges, pity, shame, insecurity, pride, egocentricity, deceitfulness, laziness, despair, hatred, wickedness, hypocrisy, etc. We clearly see how our nature manifests itself in immorality and idolatry.
“Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21, ESV)
Understand that the apostle Paul’s words were radically politically incorrect in the eyes and ears of the religious legalists of his day who hypocritically claimed to live above all sin.
It’s as if he’s telling them but also us today, “Don't be hypocrites. These emotions, thoughts and bad actions are present in all of us. They are very real temptations on our doorstep every day. Let us not deny their existence and their impact on our relationship dynamics. On the contrary, let's recognize them, identify them and resist them by placing them daily in God’s hands.”
In the remainder of his letter, Paul uncovers the emotions and thoughts that God wants and can create or restore in us by his Spirit: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23). The fruit of a relationship with God produces an obvious work in us, which results in a wide range of strong but healthy emotions.
God did not give us a spirit of wickedness, fear, resentment or anger. He gave us a spirit of love, peace, forgiveness, hope and consolation. The fruit of the spirit of God in us is a gift that he desires to rekindle every day. To that end, Paul commanded believers to put certain practices in place to help these spiritual fruits grow: “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” (Romans 12:12).
Our lives can be a pleasing offering to God through the constant renewing of our hearts and thoughts.

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Eritrea The Secret State

Dateline AU JUL2021


The people of Eritrea, who are locked away in darkness.

Tortured and suffering, even for practising any religion...

The children are forced into the Miitary of a dictators' regime...

Eritrea is now known as the NORTH KOREA of AFRICA...

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The Father’s Joy


“Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, his flesh…. let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:19-20, 22, NKJV).
There are two sides to Christ’s work at Calvary. One side is to the benefit of man, and the other side is to the benefit of God. One benefits the sinner, while the other benefits the Father.
We are well acquainted with the benefit on the human side. The cross of Christ has provided us with forgiveness for our sins. We are given the power of victory over all bondage and dominion over sin. We are supplied with mercy and grace; and, of course, we are given the promise of eternal life. The cross has given us the means of escape from the terrors of sin and hell.
I thank God for this benefit of the cross to mankind, and for the wonderful relief it brings. I rejoice that it is preached week after week in churches all over the world.
There is another benefit of the cross, though; one that we know very little about. This one is to the benefit of the Father. We understand very little about the delight of the Father that was made possible by the cross. It’s a delight that comes to him whenever he receives a prodigal child into his house.
In my opinion, most Christians have learned to come before God for forgiveness, for the supplying of needs, for answers to prayer. However, they lack boldness in this aspect of faith, an aspect that is crucial in their walk with the Lord.
The Lord has great joy that the cross has provided us with open access to himself. Indeed, the most glorious moment in history was when the temple veil was rent in two on the day that Christ died. In the instant that the temple veil—separating man from God’s holy presence—was torn asunder, something incredible happened. From that point on, not only was man able to enter into the Lord’s presence, but God could come out to man.
This set the stage for Christ to send the glorious gift of the Spirit to his followers, and our relationship with God was transformed.

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The Lord of Miraculous Deliverance


Consider Israel’s miraculous deliverance from Egypt in the Bible. As God’s people crossed over on dry land, they saw the waves crash down on their enemy behind them. It was a glorious moment, and they held a mighty praise meeting with dancing, singing and thanksgiving. “We’re free! God has delivered us from the hand of oppression.”
Israel’s story represents our own deliverance from the bondage and guilt of sin. We know that Satan was defeated at the cross and that we were immediately set free from his iron grip. However, there is more to God’s purpose in saving and delivering us. God never meant for Israel to camp there on the victory side of the Red Sea. His greater purpose in bringing them out of Egypt was to take them into Canaan, his land of fullness. In short, he brought them out of slavery in order to bring them into his heart and into his love. He wanted a people who were totally dependent on his mercy, grace and love. The same is still true for his people today.
Israel’s first test came just a few days later, and they ended up murmuring and complaining, totally dissatisfied. Why? They had known God’s deliverance, but they hadn’t understood his great love for them.
Here is the key to this teaching: You cannot come into joy and peace—indeed, you cannot know how to serve the Lord properly—until you see his delight in your deliverance…until you see the joy of his heart over his communion with you…until you see that every wall has been removed at the cross…until you know that everything in your past has been judged and wiped away. God says, “I want you to move on into fullness that awaits you in my presence!”
Multitudes today rejoice in the wonderful benefits of the cross. They have moved out of Egypt, and they are standing on the “victory side” of their Red Sea trial. They enjoy freedom, and they thank God continually for casting their oppressor into the sea.
Many of these same believers miss God’s greater purpose and benefit to them. They miss why the Lord has brought them out, which is to bring them in to himself. He is where the ultimate joy, satisfaction and purpose of our lives may be found.

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Where Are the Timothys?


It was to the Philippian Christians that Paul first introduced this truth, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5, NKJV).
Paul wrote this message to them while he was imprisoned in Rome, declaring that he had the mind of Christ and casting aside his reputation to become a servant of Jesus and his church. Then he wrote, “I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, that I also may be encouraged when I know your state” (Philippians 2:19).
This is the thinking, the outworking, of the mind of Christ. Here was a pastor, sitting in jail, yet he wasn’t thinking of his own hard situation. He was concerned only about the spiritual and physical condition of his people, and he told his sheep, “My comfort will come only when I know you’re doing well in spirit and body. As a result, I’m sending Timothy to check up on you.”
Then Paul makes this alarming statement: “For I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state” (Philippians 2:20). What a sad statement! As Paul wrote this, the church around him in Rome was growing and being blessed. Clearly, there were godly leaders in the Roman church, but Paul says, “I have no man who shares with me the mind of Christ.” Why was this so?
Evidently, there was no leader in Rome with a servant’s heart, no one who had cast aside reputation and become a living sacrifice. None had the mind of Christ. Instead, everyone was set on pursuing his own interests. “For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:21). Paul’s words here cannot be softened: “Everybody’s out for himself. These ministers seek only to benefit themselves. That’s why there’s nobody here I can trust to naturally care for your needs and hurts, except Timothy.” Paul could trust no one to go to Philippi to be a true servant to that body of believers.
Dear believers, let us be a Timothy to our church and community! Our prayer should be “Lord, I don’t want to be focused only on myself in a world that’s spinning out of control. I don’t want to be concerned only about my own future. I know you hold my path in your hands. Please, Lord, give me your mind. I want to have your servant’s heart.” Once we have become servants to the church, only then will we truly have the mind of Christ.
AMEN

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Where Does God Dwell?



After Jesus was taken up to heaven, the apostle John received a magnificent vision of glory. He said, “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light” (Revelation 21:22-23, NKJV). In other words, the only temple in heaven is Jesus himself.
Now that God’s temple is in glory, sitting at his right hand, where does the Lord dwell on earth? We know that no building can contain God. As God himself says, “Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool. Where is the house that you will build me? And where is the place of my rest?” (Isaiah 66:1). Paul echoes this in the New Testament, “God, who made the world and everything in it, since he is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands” (Acts 17:24). If we look for God’s dwelling place in some building, we’re not going to find it.
Paul gives us our answer: “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). The Lord lives and rests in the bodies of his created humankind.
Once we place our belief in Jesus, we become God’s very dwelling place. This was demonstrated most visibly at the Upper Room. The Holy Spirit fell on the disciples there, filling them with himself. He claimed their sanctified bodies as God’s temple where the Father would come and live. The Spirit would help them to mortify and destroy the works of their sinful flesh, and he would give them power to live victoriously. Their bodies became God’s temple, a dwelling place not built with hands.
Jesus says, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (John 14:23). In other words, you belong to God, and he wants you to be his resting place.
Dear believers, give God glory by opening up your heart to the truth that you are his temple on earth. AMEN

The God Who Is Near
 

The God Who Is Near



When the Lord takes up residence in us, he brings with him all his power and resources. Suddenly, our inner man has access to God’s strength, wisdom, truth, peace, everything we need to live in victory. We don’t have to cry out to him to come down to us from heaven. He’s already in us. Paul tells us just how powerful we are in Christ.
“For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God”.
What an amazing passage. Paul lists but a few of the incredible treasures the Lord has made available to us. Indeed, all of God’s riches are available to us in Christ Jesus.
Some Christians have created an image of a self-centered God whose only pleasure is in receiving praise. May that never be said about our Lord because that isn’t at all why he has come to abide in us. He has come to show us that he’s a God who is not far off. The Lord wants us to know he isn’t just out in the dark expanse of the cosmos somewhere. He doesn’t flit in and out of our lives at will. No, he’s very present in us, and he never leaves his abode in us.
This is how Jesus could tell his disciples, “Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says”.
When the Father made his dwelling in our temple, he brought to us a strength in our inner man, a deep rooting and grounding in love, as well as access to ask him for all things. He has made all things possible through his divine power at work in us.

Character to Meet the Call
 

Character to Meet the Call

By Keith Holloway
In chapters 14, 15 and 16 of Judges, we’re shown how Samson lived his life. Now he knew that he was set apart by God for specific work. The way he lived, however, shows that he struggled with character.
When we go to Hebrews, we see “And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions” (Hebrews 12:32-33, ESV).
Samson knew full well that he had a holy calling on his life. He is named in the “Hall of Faith” because he knew that he didn’t have any strength of his own to accomplish these great feats. Despite this, he lived loosely.
There is no evidence in the four chapters about his life that he prayed, except once right before he died. He didn’t settle any disputes between people; he didn’t engage with any rulers; he didn’t lead Israel into battle.
Instead, Samson lived a self-indulgent lifestyle, often revolving around a woman. During his wedding, he killed thirty men and took their clothing to fulfill a bet. He seemingly abandoned his wife, and when he discovered that she’d remarried, he burned several of the Philistines’ fields. Then we find him with his head in Delilah’s lap. The Philistines captured him, cut his hair and put his eyes out. God, in his grace and mercy, still gave Samson supernatural strength once more to defeat Israel’s enemies.
This is the same with us. Who among us has a perfect record? God gives us grace and mercy in our time of need. I believe there was so much more that God wanted to do with Samson’s life, though, if only his character had come into alignment with his calling. His story is a warning for us to be mindful of how we live our lives.
Is your character developing according to your natural self? Are you gratifying your own impulses and desires? Or are you allowing the Holy Spirit to fill you with the character of Christ? Are you producing the fruits of the Spirit (see Galatians 5:22-23)?
We will never completely fulfill God’s purpose for our lives until we become men and women of prayer who seek the will of God wholeheartedly. Oh friends, I pray that our characters grow toward the holy calling of God in our lives.

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Apocalyptic Fires

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Remember Your First Love



Deuteronomy chapter 6 opens with an incredibly important prayer that Moses taught the Israelites. “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5, ESV).
Moses had been leading the nation in the wilderness for 40 years by this point. He’d seen the burning bush, then God sent him to the Israelite elders to declare, “The great I Am is here. God is going to move mightily, and your 400 years of captivity and slavery is coming to an end. As soon as I go to Pharaoh and talk to him, I’ll tell him ‘to let my people go.’ God is on the move!”
Can you imagine this man whose heart’s desire was to see the children of Israel set free from bondage, and instead they complained against God? After that, everyone was sent on a decades long trip through the wilderness. If that didn’t make Moses tempted to be cynical about both people and God, I don’t know what would.
The Israelites complained against God and doubted his promises a lot. I don’t know what kind of family you come from, but if you spend a lot of time in a family that is full of doubt and negative talk, that’s going to wear off on you. That’s when you have to do what Moses did. You have to get away from the crowd and get alone with God and pray, “Protect me in that place and in all of the places where I could be filled with these voices of unbelief.”
When we get in this place of closeness with God, away from the cynical voices, our heart will begin to be filled with joy. We must remember who God is in all of his holiness, and then we will remember our love for him. This is part of what Moses is teaching the next generation in this prayer.
When we purposefully remember God’s nature, the faith that remains in us will begin to be built up in our lives, and we will begin to see once again a confidence in the Lord. It’s this confidence that releases the outpouring of God’s blessing.

The Unrelenting Love of God
 

The Unrelenting Love of God



I want to talk with you about the word ‘unrelenting.’ It means undiminished in intensity or effort, uncompromising. To be unrelenting is to stick to a determined course and to not be persuaded by arguments.
Our Lord’s love is absolutely unrelenting. Nothing can hinder or diminish his loving pursuit of both sinners and saints. The Psalmist expressed it as “You have hedged me behind and before, and laid your hand upon me…. Where can I go from your Spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend into heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, you are there.”
David is speaking of the great highs and lows we face in life. He’s saying, “There are times when I’m so blessed; I feel lifted with joy. At other times, I feel like I’m living in hell, condemned and unworthy. But no matter where I am, Lord—no matter how blessed I feel or how low my condition is—you’re there. I can’t get away from your unrelenting love. You never accept my arguments about how unworthy I am. Your love for me is relentless!”
We also need to consider the testimony of the apostle Paul. As we read about his life, we see a man bent on destroying God’s church. Paul was like a madman in his hatred for Christians. He sought the high priest’s authorization to hunt down believers so he could charge into their homes and drag them off to prison.
After he was converted, Paul testified that even during those hate-filled years—while he was full of prejudice, blindly slaughtering Christ’s disciples—God loved him. The apostle wrote, “God demonstrates his own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” .
Through the years, Paul became increasingly convinced that God would love him fervently to the end, through all his highs and lows. He stated, “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things 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”.
Once we are God’s, nothing can separate his children from his love. No matter where we go, God knows our hiding place. Nothing can stop God from loving us.

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The Distracted Bride of Christ



Carter Conlon
“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies… He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the children of Israel.” (Psalm 103:2-4,7, NKJV).
To understand God’s nature truly, we must often be led into a wilderness first. What do I mean when I speak of the wilderness? First of all, it is a place of dryness and incredible hardship, a place where familiar comforts are stripped away. More importantly, the wilderness is a place that brings us to a total dependence on God.
Not only will God bring us into a wilderness in order to put an end to wrong pursuits and human schemes, I believe he is also after something much deeper. At the core of it all, we will find God’s jealousy over his bride and his yearning for her return to him.
Jesus once cried over his own people, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem… How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” (Matthew 23:37). Jesus referred to the inhabitants of the city of Jerusalem as if they were one person, like a bride who had once been brought into a place of worthiness so that she might honor him. Yet somehow this bride had fallen drastically from her calling in the earth.
We can hear the underlying longing in the Lord’s cry, much like a broken-hearted bridegroom who comes home to discover that his bride has not been faithful. “How I wanted you as my bride! I wanted you as my very own. I wanted to draw you into the closeness of my heart so that the two of us would walk together as one.”
The Lord is well aware that something else has captivated the heart of his bride, and he is determined to get it back, even if this means that he must draw her into the wilderness. There, distractions fall away. There, we may finally understand God’s ways and his heart.

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When Your Hurt Lingers



In one way or another, we are all hurting. Every person on earth carries his own burden of pain. When you are deeply hurt, no person on earth can shut down the inner fears and deepest agonies. Not the best of friends can understand the battle you are going through or the wounds inflicted on you.
This is what the Psalmist was wrestling with in Psalm 6:6-7, “I am weary with my groaning; all night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears. My eye wastes away because of grief; it grows old because of all my enemies.”
Is there a balm for a broken heart? Is there healing for those deep, inner hurts? Can the pieces be put back together and the heart be made even stronger?
Yes! Absolutely yes. If not, then God’s Word would be a hoax, and God himself would be a liar. God didn’t promise you a painless way of life. He promised you “a way of escape.” He promised to help you bear your pain, strength to put you back on your feet when weakness makes you stagger.
Our loving Father said, “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13, NKJV).
Your heavenly Father watches over you with an unwavering eye. Every move is monitored. Every tear is bottled. He identifies with your every pain. He feels every hurt. He will never allow you to drown in your tears. He will not permit your hurt to deteriorate your mind. He promises to come, right on time, to wipe away your tears and give you joy for mourning.
Paul encouraged the church, “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope” (Romans 15:4).
You have the ability to make your heart rejoice and be glad in the Lord. God’s eye is on you, and he commands us to rise up and shake off all those fears causing doubt.

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The Measured Glory of God



Christ warned his disciples, “He said to them, ‘Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him’”.
Jesus knew these words might sound strange to non-spiritual ears, so he preceded his message by saying, “If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear” . Jesus was telling us, “If your heart is open to God’s Spirit, you’ll understand.”
What exactly is Jesus saying in this passage? He’s speaking of how the Lord measures out his glorious presence in various amounts, whether to churches or to individuals. Some don’t receive any of his glory. Others receive an ever-increasing measure, emanating from their lives and churches.
God has promised to pour out his Spirit on his people in these last days. Indeed, all of scripture points to a triumphant, glory-filled church at the close of time. Jesus himself said the gates of hell will not prevail against his church. We won’t be limping into heaven. No. Our Lord is going to bring greater power to his church. This power won’t be manifested merely in signs and wonders. It will be revealed in his people and in the glorious transformation of hearts touched by God’s Spirit.
How can we obtain an ever-increasing measure of Christ’s glory? The Lord told us very clearly in Mark 4:24. Jesus was saying, “According to the portion of yourself you allot to me, I’ll give back to you in like portion. I’ll deal with you in the manner you deal with me.”
If you measure out to God sloth and laziness, taking for granted his great work, you’ll be dealt a spirit of slumber. “Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger” (Proverbs 19:15). As a result, your soul will go hungry.
God’s love, mercy and grace toward us are boundless. The issue here isn’t obtaining his love, mercy or grace; but having the blessing of his glory in our lives.
Jesus states plainly that he measures out different amounts of his glory to us, according to how we measure out our hearts to him. Our part is simply to move ever closer to him in our worship, obedience and diligence. AMEN

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God’s Endless Love for the Hurting



When you hurt the worst, go to your secret closet and weep out all your despair! Jesus wept. Peter wept bitterly; he carried with him the hurt of denying the very Son of God. Those bitter tears worked in him a sweet miracle, and he came back to shake the kingdom of Satan.
Jesus never looks away from a crying heart. He said, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—These, O God, you will not despise” . Not once will the Lord say, “Get hold of yourself! Stand up and take your medicine. Grit your teeth.” No, Jesus stores every tear in his eternal container.
Do you hurt? Badly? Go ahead and cry! Keep on crying until the tears stop flowing, but let those tears originate only from hurt and not from unbelief or self-pity.
Life goes on. You would be surprised how much you can bear with God helping you. Tears and emptiness may swallow you up at times, but God is still on his throne. You can’t help yourself. You can’t stop the pain and hurt. Our blessed Lord will come to you, and he will place his loving hand under you and lift you up to sit again in heavenly places. He will reveal his endless love for you.
Encourage yourself in the Lord. When the fog surrounds you and you can’t see any way out of your dilemma, lie back in the arms of Jesus and simply trust him. He wants your faith and confidence. He wants you to cry aloud, “Jesus loves me! He is with me. He will not fail me. He is working it all out right now. I will not be cast down. I will not be defeated. I will not be a victim of Satan. I love God, and he loves me!”
As Paul told the church in his letters. “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” .
Happiness is not living without pain or hurt. True happiness is learning how to live one day at a time, despite all the sorrow and pain.


I myself having MS have been in so much pain that it has brought tears to my eyes. I turn to God our Father and praise him for my pain because I know a day will come soon with no pain and tears. By praising God for my pain, it actually seems to lessen and go away.

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EVIL DEVILS Have Risen Again....

Many have died and many are left behind suffering. God help those poor people....




TALIBAN/ISIS Airport BOMB Attacks-Biden WARNS We Will Hunt You & Make You Pay


We will not forgive. We will not forget.

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Becoming People of Prayer



In Jeremiah 5, God pleaded, “Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem; see now and know; and seek in her open places if you can find a man, if there is anyone who executes judgment, who seeks the truth, and I will pardon her” (Jeremiah 5:1, NKJV). The Lord was saying, in essence, “I’ll be merciful, if I can find just one person who’ll seek me.”
During the Babylonian captivity, God found such a man in Daniel. When the Holy Ghost came to Daniel, the prophet was reading the book of Jeremiah and asking why God was not delivering Israel after the promised 70 years. When the revelation came that Israel had not repented, Daniel was provoked to pray, “I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. And I prayed to the Lord my God, and made confession” (Daniel 9:3-4).
Daniel knew God’s people had failed, yet did the prophet lambaste his peers for their sins? No. Daniel identified himself with the moral decay all around him. He declared, “We have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from your precepts and your judgments… O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against you” (Daniel 9:5, 8).
God strongly desires to bless his people today, but if our minds are polluted with the spirit of this world, we are in no position to receive his blessings. Daniel made this powerful statement: “All this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth. Therefore the Lord has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works which he does, though we have not obeyed his voice” (Daniel 9:13–14).
We must examine our own walk with the Lord and let the Holy Spirit show us areas of compromise. We should do more than pray for a backsliding nation. We should be crying out, “Oh, Lord, search my heart. Expose in me all of the spirit of the world that has crept into my soul.” Like Daniel, we could then set our faces to pray for the deliverance of our families and our nation.

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Remind your people of this, and give them a solemn warning in God's presence not to fight over words. It does no good, but only ruins the people who listen.
Do your best to win full approval in God's sight, as a worker who is not ashamed of his work, one who correctly teaches the message of God's truth.
Keep away from profane and foolish discussions, which only drive people farther away from God.
Such teaching is like an open sore that eats away the flesh. Two men who have taught such things are Hymenaeus and Philetus.
They have left the way of truth and are upsetting the faith of some believers by saying that our resurrection has already taken place.
But the solid foundation that God has laid cannot be shaken; and on it are written these words: "The Lord knows those who are his" and "Those who say that they belong to the Lord must turn away from wrongdoing."
In a large house there are dishes and bowls of all kinds: some are made of silver and gold, others of wood and clay; some are for special occasions, others for ordinary use.
Those who make themselves clean from all those evil things, will be used for special purposes, because they are dedicated and useful to their Master, ready to be used for every good deed.
Avoid the passions of youth, and strive for righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who with a pure heart call out to the Lord for help.
But keep away from foolish and ignorant arguments; you know that they end up in quarrels.
As the Lord's servant, you must not quarrel. You must be kind toward all, a good and patient teacher, who is gentle as you correct your opponents, for it may be that God will give them the opportunity to repent and come to know the truth.
And then they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the Devil, who had caught them and made them obey his will.

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Hurricane Ida: Louisiana Residents Begin Clean Up Amid Sweltering Heat

GOD BLESS THOSE POOR BRAVE PEOPLE

31 Aug 2021

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How Big Is Your Jesus?



John 14 contains two magnificent promises. First, Jesus states, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to my Father. And whatever you ask in my name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:12–14, NKJV). Jesus makes it plain and simple in the last verse: “Ask anything in my name, and I’ll do it for you.”
Two verses later, Jesus promises, “I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Helper, that he may abide with you forever — the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him; but you know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:16–17). Here Christ is saying, “I’m going to give you the Spirit of Truth, and his power will abide in you.”
These are two incredible promises from Jesus. Yet, notice the one verse that’s sandwiched between them: “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Why does this statement appear here?
Christ is telling us, “There is a matter of obedience connected to these promises.” In short, both promises have to do with keeping and obeying God’s Word. They were given to be fulfilled, so that nothing would hinder us from claiming the power that is Christ.
I’m convinced that asking little or nothing in Jesus’ name is a reproach to him. Year after year, many Christians settle for less and less. Finally, they settle for salvation only. They have no expectations other than making it to heaven someday.
Have you come to the end of your expectations for Christ? Do you expect nothing more than to be saved by his power and grace? Does ‘your Christ’ end at just enough strength to make it through another day? Does he end for you at a place of occasional peace and joy in a life lived mostly under Satan’s harassment? All of these passages in God’s Word persuade me that ‘my Jesus’ is no bigger than my requests. Sadly, many believers make Christ look insignificant and powerless by their unbelief.
Beloved, I don’t want Christ to be limited in my heart. Instead, I want every devil in hell to know how big my God is by how big my requests are. I want more out of Christ. I want him to be bigger than ever in my life. AMEN

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The Prayer God Seeks



When the book of Daniel was written, Israel was in captivity to Babylon. By chapter six, after a long life in ministry, Daniel was eighty years old.
King Darius promoted Daniel to the highest office in the land. He became one of three co-equal presidents, ruling over princes and governors of 120 provinces. Darius favored Daniel over the other two presidents, putting Daniel in charge of forming government policy and teaching all the court appointees and intellectuals (see Daniel 6:3).
Obviously, Daniel was one busy prophet. I can only imagine the kinds of pressures placed on this minister with his busy schedule and time-consuming meetings. Nothing, however, could take Daniel away from his times of prayer; he was never too busy to pray. Prayer remained his central occupation, taking precedence over all other demands. Three times a day, he stole away from all his obligations, burdens and demands as a leader to spend time with the Lord. He simply withdrew from all activities and prayed, and God answered him. Daniel received all his wisdom, direction, messages and prophecies while on his knees (see Daniel 6:10).
Daniel had always been a praying man. In his old age, he had no thoughts of slowing down. Scripture makes no mention of Daniel being burned out or discouraged. On the contrary, Daniel was just beginning. Scripture shows that even as this man turned eighty, his prayers shook hell, enraging the devil.
What is a prayer that shakes hell?
It comes from the faithful, diligent servant who sees his nation and church falling deeper into sin. This person falls on his knees, crying, “Lord, I don’t want to be a part of what’s going on. Let me be an example of your keeping power in the midst of this wicked age. It doesn’t matter if no one else prays. I’m going to pray.”
Too busy to pray? Do you say, “I just take it by faith”? You may think to yourself, “God knows my heart; he knows how busy I am. I give him thought prayers throughout the day.”
I believe the Lord wants quality, unhurried time alone with us. Prayer then becomes an act of love and devotion, not just petition time.

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Preparing to Do Spiritual Battle



You’ve heard of the U.S. Army’s Special Forces, a highly trained army-within-an-army, an elite unit of dedicated soldiers. Special Forces are made up completely of volunteers, fighters who have been noticed and called out by their superiors.
Before the war in Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden had said American soldiers were weak, cowardly and not trained for mountain warfare. He predicted the Taliban would send U.S. troops home in shame, but he hadn’t counted on America’s Special Forces. This fearless unit invaded Afghanistan with a mere 2,000 soldiers. Within days, it had located all the enemy’s strongholds.
I believe God is doing something similar in the spiritual realm. While in prayer, I was impressed by the Holy Spirit with the concept that God has been at work in the heavenlies on a covert operation. He’s raising up an army-within-an-army, searching his regular troops to form an elite unit of volunteers. This special force is made up of warriors he can touch and stir to do battle with the enemy. We see a picture of this in the Bible with Saul’s special militia. The Word tells us, “Saul also went home to Gibeah; and valiant men went with him, whose hearts God had touched” (1 Samuel 10:26).
God’s special forces today include the young, the middle-aged, even the elderly. They’ve been training in their secret closets of prayer. Their intimacy with Jesus has taught them how to fight. Now they know how to do battle on any spiritual plane, whether in the mountains or in valleys.
Scripture says, “The people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits” (Daniel 11:32), and “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 40:31).
God’s army-within-an-army is in place in every nation. Its activity may be covert now, but soon we’ll see it doing exploits in the name and power of Christ. God’s Word is coming forth, and the famine is ending. The Lord will prevail. His Word shall conquer all. AMEN

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Growing Bitter or Growing Better



Keith Holloway

In our humanity, we seem to have an inclination toward focusing on our problems. Sometimes rightfully so because they can be tremendous challenges that are overwhelming.
Many of you are facing unbelievable things. In our ministry at World Challenge, we get thousands of letters and emails coming in with people just pouring their hearts out in prayer requests. I've read some of those lately. Honestly, it’s shocking what many people are living through: drug addiction, alcoholism, infidelity, broken relationships, financial troubles. The list goes on and on.
Yet so many people get their ‘daily bread’, if you will, from watching the news, reading online reports or watching reality shows that are filled with lies, cheating, murdering, stealing and all manner of depravity over and over again. It's not surprising that people are in depression and suicide is at an all-time high.
Even many believers are being shaken in their faith and in their walk, feeling like God is not with them. People have turned against them, and they have started asking the questions of “Who am I? What am I here for? Is it worth it?”
I want to bring you a word today that I believe is a wonderful word.
Peter wrote the early church and encouraged believers, “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7, ESV).
When trials come, we can either grow better or grow bitter. The opportunity is there, but it's our response to crisis. Crises aren’t what causes our faith to falter or that change us. Our response to a crisis is what determines whether we grow better or we grow bitter.
Conduct yourself courageously. Admit and recognize the pain and suffering, but also equally recognize and admit that we have an eternal hope. Hope is an expectation of God's good to come to us, no matter how deep, no matter how dark, no matter how long our troubles are. We have a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
The mercy of God is abundantly available to us today. He's born us again into a living hope.

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Maturing in Godly Grace



Our growth in grace can be explosive if we’re willing to work at true edification. “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:29-30, NKJV). The root word Paul uses for edify here means “house builder.” That word, in turn, comes from a root word that means “to build up.” In short, everyone who edifies is building up God’s house, the church.
Paul is telling us three important things about the words we speak.


1. We are to use our words to build up God’s people.
2. We are to use our words to minister grace to others.
3. It is possible to grieve the Holy Spirit with our words.


I get deeply convicted as I read the life stories of some of the spiritual giants of the past. These godly men and women were heavenly minded, studious in God’s Word, praying often and concerned about growing in grace. What strikes me most about these people’s lives isn’t their devotion to Christ or the intensity of their prayers. It is the godly fruit that these things produced in them.
Moreover, I discovered a common thread among these spiritual giants: their main concern was to grow in the grace of a pure heart, out of which holy conversation would flow. Christ warned his listeners, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things” (Matthew 12:34-35).
I grow in grace when I choose to live for others and not myself. That growth in grace must begin in my home by showing my mate and my children ever-increasing Christlikeness. My home must become a proving ground where all problems, all misunderstandings are overcome by my willingness to give up “my attempts to be always right.”
Never having to be “right” has helped me enjoy the power of God’s grace as never before. All arguments, all so-called “rights” vanish when we seek to edify one another rather than trying to win some silly dispute.
Dear believer, let us grow up in grace.

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Hindrances to Growing in God



In Ephesians 4:31, Paul lists things we must remove from our lives if we are to grow in the grace of Christ: “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.”
We dare not skip over these issues on Paul’s list. If you ignore the heart issues Paul mentions here, you will grieve the Holy Spirit. Your growth will be stunted, and you’ll end up a spiritual zombie.
The first three items on Paul’s list—bitterness, wrath and anger—are self-explanatory. Bitterness is a refusal to let go of an old wound or forgive a past wrong. Wrath is a stronghold of resentment coupled with a hope to have revenge. Anger is exasperation, either a quick explosive outburst or a slow burn of indignation toward someone. Evil speaking is malicious, hurtful words that tear someone down.
Clamor is a sudden outburst over nothing, an unnecessary hubbub, a loud noise made for no purpose. We cause a clamor when we make a big issue out of something insignificant or cause a scene rather than trying to help or heal.
The final item on Paul’s list is malice. Malice is the desire to see someone else suffer. For many Christians malice means hoping God will punish someone who wounded them. It’s a devilish spirit, and it’s usually hidden deep within the heart.
When Paul says, “Put away all these evils from you,” he’s not talking about a quick fix. He’s describing a process of growth that takes time. At times, we may fail at ridding ourselves of these evils. If we will quickly repent and commit to making things right with the person, over time these issues will fade away. As we put away these evils, we are also commanded to “be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).
The apostle says we absolutely must confront those sins and cultivate these fruits of the Spirit if we are to grow in grace.

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With God in the Storm



Carter Conlon

I think the kindest thing the Lord can do for his church is put us in a place where we must pray, a place where we need one another, where we finally realize that it doesn’t matter what denomination the other person is from because we are all in the same boat together, fighting the same fight. That is the great kindness of the Lord.
God is doing this for the honor and glory of his name. He is doing it to bring his church back to strength again, to take away what has weakened her, to instill in her a right focus so that the power and virtue of Christ can begin to flow from her again.
His bride will once again speak with authority in her mouth, direction in her eyes and gladness in her heart. It is the mercy of God that he brings hardship and suffering upon us, stripping us of our comforts. Yes, judgment is coming on the entire world, but mercy precedes and triumphs over judgment (see James 2:13). God is willing to bring us to a place of realizing our true condition. How tragic it would be for us to live as if everything is fine only to discover that we missed the whole purpose, stopped short of the gateway to eternal life and lived a cultural Christianity with no reality behind it?
Scripture says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded” (James 4:7-8, ESV).
If we choose not to humble ourselves and to allow the Lord to deal with these issues in our hearts now, one day we will have to face what will clearly stand as a just judgment.
When you look around and see everything starting to fail, take heart! We are about to meet with God in the midst of the storm. Don’t allow your fear of the waves to cause you to miss out on what he has to say to you!

Re: POWER of PRAYER- No Matter Which Faith You Follow=GOD is With You
 

It All Starts with Love



We all understand that Jesus gave us the Great Commission, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20, ESV).
Now the Commission we have here is very fire-breathing and very passionate, but it’s also not very specific. It’s just kind of “Go and make disciples and teach them and train them to observe and go out around the world and do all these different things.”
So Paul helped clarify what we’re to do. More than building a program or a system, Paul wanted to build up a man. There are six aspects of disciple living that we can learn about in one part of Paul’s letter to Timothy. “I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:5-7, ESV).
I have six things from these verses that start with the letter ‘F.’
Number one, we can glean from this passage there is a forging of love. The second one is a faith that is sincere. The third one is a flame that can be fanned. The fourth is a fearlessness that is of faith. Number five is a following of a pattern. Number six is a fellowship of fire.
These are six things that I hope will build your heart to become that kind of disciple that Jesus so longs for you to be and that I believe you desire to be as well.
How we begin being a disciple or making a disciple does not start with power or authority or a job. The first movement in the life of a disciple of Jesus Christ is to love one another. “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13). Start by simply loving one another. Amen

Re: POWER of PRAYER- No Matter Which Faith You Follow=GOD is With You
 

You Need the Holy Ghost



Some believers have been saved for many years, some perhaps a year, and some just a few months or weeks. Being saved from sin is wonderful!In order to be a good soldier in the service of our Lord Jesus Christ, though, it’s not enough just to be saved. You need to be baptized with the Holy Ghost.
In Paul’s time, some believers didn’t even know there was a Holy Ghost. “He said to them, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?’ So they said to him, ‘We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit’” (Acts 19:2, NKJV). These people were saved, but it is clear they were not filled or baptized with the Holy Ghost.
Jesus himself did not send his disciples and followers into the world until they were baptized with the Holy Ghost. Certainly, his disciples had pure hearts. They had faith to heal the sick, to cast out devils. They had the Word of the Lord and already had been preaching Christ and gaining converts. They were witnesses to his resurrection. What more could there be? They were willing to die for Jesus. Wasn’t their love for him enough to send them into the world to do his work?
Beloved, none of that was enough. Clearly, there was more. Christ told them, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
You must know that the Spirit is still baptizing, still falling upon believers. Peter preached to the early church, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call” (Acts 2:38–39).
The baptism is especially for those living in the last days. “It shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh…. I will pour out my Spirit in those days” (Acts 2:17–18). God wants you to live and walk in the Spirit. We are all called to be witnesses who are full of the Holy Ghost and power!

Re: POWER of PRAYER- No Matter Which Faith You Follow=GOD is With You
 

A Little Taste of Heaven



A foretaste is an advance taste or realization. The Bible calls it “the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:14, NKJV). It means to experience a taste of the whole before we have the whole. Our inheritance is Christ himself, and the Holy Spirit brings us into his very presence as a foretaste of being received as his bride, enjoying everlasting love and communion with him.
Paul describes a people of God who are “sealed with that Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 1:13). This speaks of a people specially marked by a work of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit has produced in them a distinguishing mark, a glorious inner work, something supernatural that has changed them forever.
They are not ordinary anymore. They are no longer “of this world,” since they have set their affections on things above, not on the things of this earth. They are not moved by the world’s events; rather, they are unshakable. They are no longer lukewarm or halfhearted. Instead, their hearts cry out night and day, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus...”
What happened to them? What did the Holy Spirit do in these believers? What marked and sealed them forever as the Lord’s possession?
The Holy Ghost gave them a foretaste of the glory of his presence. He came to them and rolled back heaven, and they experienced a supernatural manifestation of his exceeding greatness. He gives us “a little heaven” to go to heaven with, a whetting of our appetite.
What kind of bride do you think the Spirit will present to Jesus Christ on that day of revelation? One who is halfhearted? Whose love is lukewarm or cold? Who is not devoted to Jesus? Who does not want intimacy with Christ?
If you truly love Jesus, he’s never out of your mind. He is present in your every waking moment. Some Christians think, “That will happen after I die. When I get to heaven, everything will change. I’ll become the special bride of the Lord then.” No, dying doesn’t sanctify anybody! This Holy Ghost is here today. He is alive and working in you to produce in you a passionate love for Christ on this side of death.

Re: POWER of PRAYER- No Matter Which Faith You Follow=GOD is With You
 

The Dating Game with God



Tim Dilena

If you have a real relationship with God, every day changes. This is why a relationship with Jesus Christ is called ‘being born again.’ We don’t need church just on Sundays. We need God every day. Religion will ask you for one day a week. God will ask you for every day. Religion will say, “Show up on Sundays, and everything will be okay.” That’s not true.
If true transformation is only for Sundays, then we’re in trouble. It’s the other six days that mess us up.
God says, “I want Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday onward. I want to walk with you. I don’t want a relationship with you where you see me in your best clothes for two hours a week. That’s a date. I want a marriage with you.”
When Jesus died, he sent out an RSVP that simply said, “What I’ve done for you is I’ve paved the way for the forgiveness of sins.” If we choose to answer, God comes and changes us from the inside out. There’s no church or religion on the planet that can radically change your heart and mind. Only Jesus can do that, and it really starts when we say, “God, I don’t have the right words. I don’t know what to say. All I know is that I want that relationship with you. I want you to change me. I want you to be in charge because when I’m in charge, I mess this thing up.”
This is for those who have just accepted Christ or don’t know God quite yet. This is for those of you who have been serving Jesus for so long that you knew Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is the life Paul pointed to when he said, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1-2, ESV).
The more you grow in God, the more you realize that you don’t know about who he is. No matter where we are in our walk, we must strive toward a better knowledge and passion for the Lord.
We don’t need a dating relationship with God. We need a marriage. AMEN