Category Archives: Hope

The Remedy

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Oh how the list grows long, when people let the world get them down.

The remedies range from busy to murder, from sleep to whatever is found.

I have tried them all, short of blood on my hands.

From drugs, to the movies, and nothing commands

My joy.

Do you dare hear my words, will you let them be true?

Or must trial and error come visit you too?

To enjoin my heart to remember, His word, Holy firm as spoken.

To consider his promise established, and never, no never, be broken.

Then to speak with my mouth, a request to the Lord.

Revealing my heart as he sees:

“Come help me my God lest the darkness surround me.

Come grant me your promise of peace.

There is quite nothing here that can equally blessed me,

As when you’re sweet presence, kills fear .”

You don’t need the drugs, nor trifles, nor murder, when gloominess calls your name.

He responds to the earnest, the humble, contrite, who call for relief from the games.

His name is Christ Jesus, compassion his fame.

Those who call out in earnest, restrain.

By His Grace

The Constitution of the Faithful

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Do you realize that in heaven there will be all manner of men.  Among the faithful will be people who were formerly child molesters, murderers, vicious kings, prostitutes, corrupt men who embezzle, cheaters, and adulterers of every kind.  Look around they are in the kingdom of heaven today.

By His Grace

Purposefully Single!

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The choir sings, while one sings alone.

The preacher preaches to hundreds,  while one bows in the dust alone.

So many are witness to each others worshiping soul.

While the single one grapples with truth before the master of it all.

“16 At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them! 17 But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen”  (2nd Timothy 4)

By His Grace

“I Will Not Go Quietly”

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“I Will Not Go Quietly”

I was born with an angel whispering in my ear
Telling me sacred secrets that God wanted me to hear
And I have lived to tell the mysteries I’ve been told
And even when they tell me it’s my time to go

No I will not, no I will not, not go quietly
No I will not, no I will not, not go quietly
No, no, not go quietly no, no, not go quietly

These things I tell, they are much truer
Than the heart of he who speaks
Even so, this humble servant

Cannot help but talk about his king
So I will sing ’cause I can’t hold back the song
I shout and scream, until God takes me home

No I will not, no I will not, not go quietly
No I will not, no I will not, not go quietly
No, no, not go quietly no, no, not go quietly

So how can I keep silent?
So how can I not speak?
And tell about the Savior
Who has set this prisoner free?

No I will not, no I will not, not go quietly
No I will not, no I will not, not go quietly
No, no, not go quietly no, no, not go quietly

Steven Curtis Chapman

By His Grace

The Resilient Church

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The persecution of the Christian Church does not work.  It’s been proven through the generations, that the more you beat Christians, the more Christians there are.  There’s a very logical reason for this.

It’s like a man who was brought before the judge for social disobedience.  When he refused to mend his ways, he was sentenced to 30 lashes.  When the lashing was completed he was sent with his bloody back to sit in a jail cell until he healed.

Two months went by.  He was called again before the magistrate.  “Did you love the lashes?”   The prisoner was asked.  The reply was matter of fact, there was no defiance in the man’s tone.  “No sir, I did not love the lashes.”

“That’s a good reply.”  Said the magistrate.  “Are you willing then to return to society and never repeat your wicked behavior?” 

“Sir, with all due respect, I did nothing wrong.  I was speaking the words of the Living God in public.  Many took offense at the words and the disturbance came up.  I was arrested as a social dissident.  But I did nothing wrong.”

“Then you will receive 30 more lashes and spend time in jail to heal.  Perhaps then you will change your mind.”   The judge’s sentence was firm.

“Your honor, I must confess.  I did not love the first lashing.  I will not love the second.  And I will refuse to capitulate with a society that is so corrupt, and hold so highly such unjust laws.”

My friends you cannot stamp out Christianity by violence.  But you have obviously learned your lesson.  You could not make us join your corrupt society.  So you have sent your corrupt society in among the family of God.

These have feigned allegiance to the Christ, long enough for the family of God to love them.  Then with heartbreaking stories they appealed for inclusion.  Willingly denying the call for holiness.

Now the family of God in Christ is bewildered.  They have loved you are corrupt people.  They do not desire to send them back outside.

You are succeeding in corrupting the church where beatings offered no profit.  But I will tell you this.  Christ Jesus is busily planting his crop outside your corrupted churches.

You thought you had finally succeeded in what beatings could not accomplish.  The church had become located in a prominent and conspicuous place.  But the Lord has anticipated and responded to your wicked behavior.

Christianity is on the rise!  You failed once by violence.  You will certainly fail by corruption.  No matter what you do, you will never stamp out the Church of Christ Jesus!

By His Grace

Love Doesn’t Hyde (pun intended)

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The gospel of Christ Jesus is far more than to simply say, “God is love”.  The proverbial “Kum-by-ya” stuff isn’t the whole story. The gospel of Christ Jesus requires us to prove it.

In case I’m misunderstood, which is highly likely, let me take a minute to explain please.

How many people do you know have said, “God is love”, but there’s no apparent change in their life?   And whatever change there might be lacks the rich and bold testimony of words.

If you examine their testimony, you would believe that the gospel asks nothing more of us than to admit that God is love.  But we know that isn’t true.

The cynic will point out their failure to believe.  He would accuse such people of being traitors to the cross.  Many times the cynic is not wrong.

But there’s another reason why people don’t “do” the gospel.  For the other reason, I gotta set it up.

No matter which way I turn I’m going to offend somebody.  After all this is a problem here, so there is then a fault.   So if this other reason offends somebody, that’s just going to have to be too bad.

We say the gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives.  But apparently there’s not enough proof available.  I mean, we’ve got 20 million Christians in America (a number I just pulled out of my hat), and only about 5 million, are head over heels in love with Christ Jesus (another hat number).  So the examples of proof that the gospel changes lives are relatively few.  Not to mention that the changes we do see are somewhat minor.  Many changed Christian lives could be generated by laying on a psychiatrist’s couch. And isn’t that often literally the case?

Now this gets kind of sticky from here on out. 

But there are a lot of marginal Christians.  I don’t mean to say they’re not Christians.  And I don’t mean to say that they are new Christians.  They are Christians who just can’t seem to find the fire to do the whole gospel.

They know what the gospel says.  But apparently they just don’t care.  They only see the gospel as a self changing idealistic notion.  They may live a lot better than they did before they knew the gospel.  But sadly that seems to be enough for them.

What about all the other people that are looking for someone to say, “Hey this works”?  I’m not talking about pastors and preachers and teachers, in that they should say this!  But that the average Joe ought to jump in and provide the proof.

Look, let’s nail this down.  A hero is a hero because he does the stuff the average guy can’t do.  The entire world has a whole basket full of heroes.  That’s proof to me that they want somebody who can do the stuff the average Joe can’t do.

So come on average Joe Christian, why don’t you stop using the gospel for your own selfish interests, and start doing it so that you can be a hero for those who are looking for the truth.

Where is the love of God if we don’t dig in and prove that the gospel works?  How do we love our brother if we hide the efficacy of God’s love?

You know the gospel.  You know the heavy duty demands it has on anyone who calls on the name of Christ.  If you don’t obey God for yourself, do you think you might find the energy to do it for someone else?

You can pass this article around if you’d like to.  Or you could rewrite the concepts in your own words.  It really doesn’t matter.

But the way I see it, if we go on the hunt for a few who will turn into heroes, and find them, Christ wins!  The hungry win.  The world is put to shame.  And the church gets stronger.

How do we know there isn’t some selfish little guy out there, who after reading this becomes the next Spurgeon, Dwight l. moody, CS Lewis, Billy Graham, or (pick your Christian hero)?

By His Grace