Tag Archives: Jesus

The Wings of the “I”

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Psychology SymbolYou read our books.  You watched us worship.  You listened to how we talk.  And you watched and mimicked us as we lead our lives.  You said to yourself, “I will become like they are.  I will do and speak the same as they.  Then I will surely have what they have.

You made a science out of relationships.  You analyzed the mind of men and used our teachings to create what you call “normal”.  You said that if men were to follow your teachings they would be good men.

But there is something you have not appropriated to yourself.  You do not have the Lord Jesus among you.  You do not have the prayer of The Faith walking with you during the morning, noon, and night.  You do not have the hope of eternal life.  For you it is enough that you have a working society.  But how long can you possibly think your society will work?

What you have is a mirror of what you perceive in Christians.  It is a reflection.  It is not real.

A Shred of Faith

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English: Folio 9 from the codex; beginning of ...

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There are times, in every Christian’s life, when faith is so very small.  Those moments come and go.  And the reasons for them vary when we look at it from our perspective.  But in times like those, I take heart remembering when simply speaking the word “God” was nearly impossibly difficult.  And it is good to remember what the Lord said, “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory.”  (Matthew 12:20)

Take heart!  The Lord knows your name!  And in His promise, He can neither lie nor forsake.  Two other scriptures enter here:

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”  (Deuteronomy 31:6)

And:

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”  (Psalm 51:17)

We are told to tear our hearts, not our garments.  If your heart is broken or shrunken before the Most High God, consider that this is a proper situation for a Living Faith.

 

By His Grace.

Slaves to Freedom?

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Old Leg irons

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All men want freedom to do as they please.  And look how we balk and complain when we are forced, by any means, to do something we don’t want to do.  Listen to how many grumble as they are required to end their weekend and serve others on Monday morning.   Listen to them as 5 pm comes nearer.  Listen how they cheer as the moment comes near for them to be released back to their “freedom”.

Billions have lived their entire life chained to the will of others.  We called them slaves and prisoners; the masses of men, women, and children who lived under the horrible hand of someone else’s ideals.  It was the life they knew from birth to death.  Did they complain also?  Of course they did!  But they were not able to gain even one second of freedom more than the one allowed who ruled over their very breath.

It is not acceptable before God to grumble at restrictions placed on you.  It is honorable, however, before God to accept these restrictions with a certain joy; knowing that we are but a short number of years in this place of testing.  I know I speak the truth in this.  Yet I also know I will find myself grumbling today because I am forced to wait for someone else as they push their way in front of me.  How pitiful is man that he should know to do good yet not be able to find the ability to do it.

Christians are those who are learning to submit to the absolute rule of the One who made them.  We serve Jesus because He shows us that He knows what is best.  We love, because He first Loved us and gave His life for us.  He has said, “Whoever would be first will be last”.  And He has said, “”If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.  24  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.  25  What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self ?” (Luke 9).

Men crave freedom.  Jesus tells us clearly that freedom in Christ Jesus is not the freedom of man.  We are set free, not of submission as a slave, but set free to serve as a slave to righteousness.  So let us consider how to spur ourselves and others into a life of service to the Most High God through the Spirit.  Jesus plainly said to us that He would ask the Father and the Spirit would be sent to His people to guide us into all righteousness.  Are you a willing participant in the things of God through Jesus?  Or are you still looking to be set free, as men count freedom?

Service Remembered.

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I thank You Lord, for Herman Wilson.  He is now with You.  But you guided me to his feet when You opened my eyes.  I thank you for what You did within him.  And I thank you for the memories I have of him.  Of all the men I have ever met, he is the one who remains beautiful within me.  I also thank You for his wife Mervine.  What a lovely creature You had made in her.  And I am so very blessed to retain a memory of their service to You.

Lord, You know that Herman gave me this painting many years ago.  But You alone know its value in my heart.  Not even I can know it’s true value.  But when I consider the love Herman and Mervine showed me and my family during those years, I am brought back to a place of sobriety in my walk with You.  So I present this post as a testimony to their service to You.  And I post this picture here to set up a place of memory.  May You receive Glory from their service to all who You brought across their path.

For those of you who love this picture:  http://www.warnersallman.com/about/the-artist/

Lost

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What is to become of the sinner who knows better;

The one, who though warned, continued to sin.

Lost among men from a self-made guilt.

Lost before God for the self-same prison.

Lost in himself for the folly of thought.

Lost in this world because of what his hand has wrought.

Lost for eternity in a shroud of despair.

And all of this becomes simply because he didn’t care.

Lost!

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Speak Now, or Your Children’s Children Will be Silenced.

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In response to a lament of the current state of affairs in the world, I responded, “Nothing is ever won by a defensive posture.  Winning requires an aggressive offense.  The more Christians speak up, the less room for the anti-Christian values to prosper.”

 

 

 

Perhaps you think you can’t talk about Jesus in public.  And perhaps you’re right.  Perhaps you know so little that you can’t really add much to the debate between wickedness and godliness.  But consider this:  Every day millions of words are being written and spoken against Jesus and His perfect values among His people.  And every time another word is uttered against Him, space is taken from Christians to speak of what is true.

 

With this in mind, I think it’s clear that if we don’t speak “something”, we are losing ground.  In the end, we will become the hunted.  Though this might be the case regardless how we go on the offensive, we still live in a free society.  You didn’t inherit this place of freedom of speech from those who kept silent in the face of opposition.  Your grand children will not inherit a free society if you keep silent.  What you hold dear is being undermined by those who would be quite happy to see you simply disappear (regardless the method).

 

Either speak now, or keep silent when your rights are taken away.  Do you really think evil will allow you to worship Jesus when they finally take over all the power structures of this world?  Surely you’re not that blind to their agendas.

 

You don’t have to be a “Know-it-All” when it comes to Christianity.  All you need to start doing is mentioning the name of Jesus, virtually everywhere you speak.  The first few times are difficult to muster the strength to utter.  But soon, you’ll find speaking of Jesus comes naturally and easily.  If you can’t speak of Christianity, out of whatever keeps you back now, at least link to it on your facebook page or blog.  And if you don’t use either of those, simply refer to Christian authors often (such as C. S. Lewis, The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.  Or perhaps John Bunyan’s “Pilgrims Progress.)

 

Speak up folks.  The time for offense is nearing an end.  Personally, I know it’s an opinion, I think we have less than 5 years left to make a dent in the way this world is headed.  My life is full of things that others can attack.  I have not led a godly life very much.  Yet, I will still speak of Jesus, for the sake of His Holy Name and His people.

 

By His Grace.

 

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