Saturday, February 25, 2017
Perfect Peace
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose
mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusts
in Thee. (Isaiah 26:3)
Perfect peace means, Shalom Shalom.
Shalom in Hebrew: safe, well, happy,
health, prosperity, peace, favor, good
health, rest, welfare, be well wholly.
'If you have never used your mind to place
yourself before God, begin to do it now.
There is no reason to wait for God to come
to you. You must turn your thoughts and
your eyes away from the face of idols and
look to Him and be saved. (Is 45:22) Your
mind is the greatest gift God has given
you and it ought to be entirely devoted to
Him.' (Oswald Chambers)
We must recognize and act on what
God has done for us which is to place us
firmly into Him. He said, "It is finished."
I can either believe my emotions or my
mind which is all ready stayed on Him.
Then comes peace...perfect peace.
The Now of God
The land I do give to them, even to the children
of Israel. (Joshua 1:2)
God is speaking about something immediate in
this verse. It is not something He is going to do
but something He does do, at this very moment.
As faith continues to speak, God continues to
give. He meets you today in the present and tests
your faith. As long as you are waiting, hoping,
or looking, you are not believing. You may have
hope or an earnest desire, but that is not faith,
for 'faith is being sure of what we hope for and
certain of what we do not see. (Heb. 11:1)...
Have we come to the point where we have met
God in His everlasting now?
(from Joshua, by AB Simpson)
The verse at the top was penned before
one battle was fought, or one inch of land taken.
We dwell in the Eternal Jesus where all is in
the now.
Are You Listening?
Samuel answered, "Speak for Your servant hears."
1 Samuel 3:10)
'The goal of my spiritual life is such a close
identification with Jesus Christ that I will
always hear and know that God always hears
me. What hinders me from hearing is my
attention to other things. It is not that I don't
want to hear God, but I am not devoted in
the right areas of my life. God may say
whatever He wants, but I just don't hear Him.'
(Oswald Chambers)
There are so many distractions and
so much noise in our modern world that it
is almost impossible to hear that still small
voice throughout the day. Samuel heard the
voice of the Lord in the dark of the night.
His spirit was always awake to the call of
God through the priest, but that night God
had something very personal to share with
Samuel himself. Are you listening?
He Prunes
"Every branch that does bear fruit he
prunes so that it will be even more
fruitful. (John 15:2)
It is the branch that bears the fruit,
That feels the knife,
To prune it for a larger growth
A fuller life.
Though every budding twig be trimmed,
And every grace
Of swaying tendril, springing leaf,
May lose its place.
O you whose life of joy seems left,
Of beauty shorn;
Whose aspirations lie in dust,
Each hope of thine
Will fall and fade; it is the hand
Of love Divine.
That holds the knife, that cuts and breaks
With tenderest touch,
That you, whose life has borne some fruit,
May now bear much.
(Annie Johnson Flint)
prunes so that it will be even more
fruitful. (John 15:2)
It is the branch that bears the fruit,
That feels the knife,
To prune it for a larger growth
A fuller life.
Though every budding twig be trimmed,
And every grace
Of swaying tendril, springing leaf,
May lose its place.
O you whose life of joy seems left,
Of beauty shorn;
Whose aspirations lie in dust,
Each hope of thine
Will fall and fade; it is the hand
Of love Divine.
That holds the knife, that cuts and breaks
With tenderest touch,
That you, whose life has borne some fruit,
May now bear much.
(Annie Johnson Flint)
Not Scaring Others Off
I know nothing of this author or his book, but I woke up to this in my inbox this morning.
This is what I wish the Bible-thumpers would understand, and I wish I’d known it before I got into my 50s. If we could understand what he says here we will find ourselves in conversations that matter with people. If we don’t, we’ll forever wonder why people run from us…
Parker J. Palmer in The Courage to Teach:
If we want to support each other’s inner lives, we must remember a simple truth: the human soul does not want to be fixed, it wants simply to be seen and heard. If we want to see and hear a person’s soul, there is another truth we must remember: the soul is like a wild animal – tough, resilient, and yet shy. When we go crashing through the woods shouting for it to come out so we can help it, the soul will stay in hiding. But if we are willing to sit quietly and wait for a while, the soul may show itself.
- Wayne Jacobsen
This is what I wish the Bible-thumpers would understand, and I wish I’d known it before I got into my 50s. If we could understand what he says here we will find ourselves in conversations that matter with people. If we don’t, we’ll forever wonder why people run from us…
Parker J. Palmer in The Courage to Teach:
If we want to support each other’s inner lives, we must remember a simple truth: the human soul does not want to be fixed, it wants simply to be seen and heard. If we want to see and hear a person’s soul, there is another truth we must remember: the soul is like a wild animal – tough, resilient, and yet shy. When we go crashing through the woods shouting for it to come out so we can help it, the soul will stay in hiding. But if we are willing to sit quietly and wait for a while, the soul may show itself.
- Wayne Jacobsen
Sunday, February 19, 2017
Falling Into Evil
Who would ever think that trees could cause so many problems? But the Bible in the 2nd chapter of the 1st book tells us 2 trees affect EVERY individual’s life, from birth to grave. Michael gives us a great look at one particular tree…
But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die. --Genesis 2:17
Many are surprised when they fall; they were doing so well, they just did not see it coming. There was nothing evil in their lives; in accordance with deliverance teaching, everything evil had been “dealt” with in their lives. How did they fall? Instead of looking for the place where evil began, they should go back and look at the place of good, where they decided that their flesh had improved so much that they did not think about abiding when they entered their house, went on vacation, arrived at work, or taught the Bible study.
What “good-looking” flesh was it with which they had gotten involved? Was it living to people instead of loving them, people pleasing, manipulating, reworking the portfolio, counting the savings, or lusting for the latest from the material world? Were they agreeing to pacify others while staying silent to avoid conflict? Did they avoid telling the truth? Once the gate to the flesh corral is open, not only do the dark horses go out, but those of every stripe. Those who begin to walk in the “good” deeds of the flesh will soon find themselves in evil deeds.
Each day resolve not simply to turn away from evil, but to turn away from the “good” arising from what can be done in the natural, to avoid all strength in the power of the self-life, and to turn to Jesus.
In over 30 years of pastoring, I have rarely encountered a Believer who wasn’t focused on this one tree…the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Surprisingly, the number thinking of one side of the tree basically equals the number thinking of the other side.
Almost never have I found any Believers whose focus was on that “other” tree…the Tree of Life. All the while “flesh” and “self” battle it out in the Believer while every benefit of the Life of Christ goes unused.
But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die. --Genesis 2:17
Many are surprised when they fall; they were doing so well, they just did not see it coming. There was nothing evil in their lives; in accordance with deliverance teaching, everything evil had been “dealt” with in their lives. How did they fall? Instead of looking for the place where evil began, they should go back and look at the place of good, where they decided that their flesh had improved so much that they did not think about abiding when they entered their house, went on vacation, arrived at work, or taught the Bible study.
What “good-looking” flesh was it with which they had gotten involved? Was it living to people instead of loving them, people pleasing, manipulating, reworking the portfolio, counting the savings, or lusting for the latest from the material world? Were they agreeing to pacify others while staying silent to avoid conflict? Did they avoid telling the truth? Once the gate to the flesh corral is open, not only do the dark horses go out, but those of every stripe. Those who begin to walk in the “good” deeds of the flesh will soon find themselves in evil deeds.
Each day resolve not simply to turn away from evil, but to turn away from the “good” arising from what can be done in the natural, to avoid all strength in the power of the self-life, and to turn to Jesus.
In over 30 years of pastoring, I have rarely encountered a Believer who wasn’t focused on this one tree…the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Surprisingly, the number thinking of one side of the tree basically equals the number thinking of the other side.
Almost never have I found any Believers whose focus was on that “other” tree…the Tree of Life. All the while “flesh” and “self” battle it out in the Believer while every benefit of the Life of Christ goes unused.
The Hardest Thing
"If anyone would come after Me, he must deny
himself and take up his cross daily and follow
Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose
it, but whoever loses his life for Me will save it."
Luke 9:23,24
'Abiding in Christ is something that every believer
has experienced, and yet it seems most difficult
to maintain...
1 Abiding is not something we do, but an
awareness that we trust the Lord completely.
2 Abiding is not dependent on us but on Christ.
It is a faith issue. He is the one keeping us.
3 It is the setting of the mind on things above
instead of on our self and flesh.
4 Abiding is the beginning point of an abundant
life, and all hell is against victory.'
(My Weakness for His Strength
by Michael Wells)
himself and take up his cross daily and follow
Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose
it, but whoever loses his life for Me will save it."
Luke 9:23,24
'Abiding in Christ is something that every believer
has experienced, and yet it seems most difficult
to maintain...
1 Abiding is not something we do, but an
awareness that we trust the Lord completely.
2 Abiding is not dependent on us but on Christ.
It is a faith issue. He is the one keeping us.
3 It is the setting of the mind on things above
instead of on our self and flesh.
4 Abiding is the beginning point of an abundant
life, and all hell is against victory.'
(My Weakness for His Strength
by Michael Wells)
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