The Thrill of Seeing and Hearing

 This past Sunday my Son and Daughter-in-law stopped over for a visit, and time for Nanny and Pappy to love on their little granddaughter. We were in the kitchen carrying on and laughing, and while all of us adults were just plain carrying on, I just happened to look in the other room and caught my granddaughter sitting up with her eyes wide open. I mean they were as big as an eye can open and her little body, which is just now learning how to stay stabilized while sitting up, was bent in the direction in which her ears could hear everything that was fascinating her. It is a fact that little kids at that age learn most by hearing and seeing…

    Sitting under my pole lamp studying later that night, I got to thinking on what I had seen with that wide-eyed granddaughter and still getting a heap of delight from that look on her face….. I thought of Jesus and how He trained His disciples; especially the twelve, for the work of apostleship. Hearing the words and seeing the things He did played an important part in their preparation for ministry life. Their eyes and ears witnessed the facts of an unrivaled life and were an essential pair of tools necessary in the preparation for their future testimonies.

    Seeing things first hand and hearing things right from the mouth of Jesus, the apostles could add credence to the miraculous and unbelievable stories of Christ because they were able to say, “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you” (1Jn 1:3). No one would have believed their report, save those who, at the very least, were satisfied that it emanated from men who had been with Jesus. So it is with the third evangelist who was not an apostle but a companion of the apostles, as he presents his Gospel to the generations as genuine history, and not just some collection of fables, because its contents were witnessed by men who “from the beginning were eye witnesses and ministers of the word.”

   In the early period of their following Christ, ‘listening’ and ‘seeing’ seemed to have been the main occupation of the twelve.  They were like the granddaughter I was telling you about at the beginning of the article; full of big eyes and wide open ears. The things which the twelve saw and heard were amazing things. Jesus was quick to impress on the guys the magnitude of their privilege. “Blessed,” said He to them on one occasion, “are the eyes which see the things that ye see: for I tell you, that many prophets and kings desired to see the things which ye see, and saw them not; and to hear the things which ye hear, and heard them not.”(Lu. 10:23-24)

    But other generations saw great things as well. Some of them saw the wonders of the Exodus, others witnessed the thunderings at Sinai and still others witnessed the parting of the river. Many saw Elijah and Elisha’s great miracles and successive generations had the privileged to listen to the not-less-wonderful oracles of God spoken by David, Solomon, Isaiah, and the rest of the prophets. But the things witnessed (seen) by the twelve eclipsed the wonders of all bygone ages; for a greater than Moses, Elijah, David, or Isaiah, was here, and the promise to Nathanael was now being fulfilled. Heaven had been opened, and the angels of God - the spirits of wisdom and power and love were ascending and descending on the Son of man.

   This holiday season, let's all ask the Lord to open our eyes and ears to Him more than ever - even more so than our eyes and ears will be filled with wonder at the new gadgets aimed at separating us from our money!!

What a Privilege

KJV 1 Sam 12:23:
   “Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way”

As I was sitting enjoying a cup of hot apple cider out on the deck the other morning my mind was captured by the thoughts of the misery I knew someone was going through. In those few minutes of wondering I was moved to praying for that single heart the Lord had laid upon my soul. I thought of what a privilege it was as children of God to not be limited to only “thinking” about a dear one, but how we as believers could pray for them. In my reasoning I realized that being concerned for someone is kind, sincere, caring and a proof of our awareness and concern for their wellbeing….but thoughts do nothing for them…they may never even know you were thinking of them unless u follow the thought up with some rescue or act of compassion. That thought may go the way of many thoughts and eventually it will drift away or be forced out of your thoughts by the more demanding routines of life. Or it may just plain be eclipsed by some other great wondering, or the thought runs its course and fades away in the great abyss of the mind. Maybe a more urgent distraction will replace it or some other “something” will usurp it.
  BUT when we pray; that wonderful privilege permitted us by God, we can do more than merely think of a person and their problems, instead, we can HELP them when we lift them up to the LORD in prayer. May it be so set in our heart to pray for others, that we can say as Samuel said, “God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you”…..because Samuel knew when he prayed for the people of Israel, God would work on his behalf for them….. and that is the same assurance we have when we pray for others…..

God's Road Signs

When we travel, we generally follow a specified route, like I-79 or 70E.
If your heading across the state, I-80 is a good choice. And if you don’t mind prying a little cash out of your wallet and trading it for speed, the turnpike is great! To get somewhere fast, you have to “hit the open highway” as we call it….where you’re free of all the restaurants, strip mall traffic, stop lights, patience-testing congestion and get yourself where you can put the pedal to the metal and as Mazda so aptly puts it…"Zoom-Zoom”. 

But most of us don’t spend our daily lives traveling on a speedway, instead, we’re on the roads we would try to avoid if we wanted to get away. Just like a patient in the ER has to have his BP/heart rate checked before anything else gets done, we usually have to have an innumerable amount of red, yellow and green lights before anything productive other than a coffee at Dunkin Donuts takes place.  Most of us deal continuously with red lights, 4-ways, backed up exits, tied up entrances, stand stills, delays, yields and stop signs….

And that’s the way it is with our Christian experience as well. Read Romans chapter 1, Galatians 5:19, and 1st Corinthians 6:9-10. These are some examples of  “Stop Signs of Life” that God wants us to follow. Also, the Ten Commandments put a pretty quick halt to each of their specific vices. We see yield signs as well…..where God has, in His divine wisdom, put stop signs for our carnal nature. That’s when we have to make a decision to obey what God has declared, and stop!!.....or in self-will and disobedience to God, we proceed on in defiance. As followers of Christ, we need to yield to God's will.

I have never found it to be an advantage, for myself or anyone else, to proceed where God has put stop signs.
 Personally, I have never found it hard to allow my mental, physical and spiritual person to be divinely sculpted by the chisel of God’s written Word, lovingly and artistically shaping my moral character.

 I always knew, or maybe I could say it this way, “I learned early on in my life, even before I became a Christian, before I was born again, that there was in me a part that I never liked, trusted or wanted to be alone with. I thank the Lord Jesus Christ that I never got out on the open road, like some of my peers wanted to do (and many of them did). As I looked at their lives later, some ended up in places where they never thought the road would have taken them.

.. I love my Christian life, I absolutely do…..

And I want you to also. Make sure you obey God’s “Roadsigns of Life”. The road can be bumpy, have detours, construction and sometimes long waits, but it's a road that will take you the whole way to eternity!

Beating up on Jesus.

 

KJV Ps 2:1 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?

I always thought it an odious and detestable thing to hear the heathen rage. They stand at the very foot of hell and eternal damnation and they shake their fists at God as though they have the world conquered and immortal blood pouring through their veins.

?Why do they rage against Jesus…why do they shake their fist at Him as though they have conquered the Kingdom of God and stand at the balcony overlooking the profligate masses as though they are equals to Zeus or even the subdued Prometheus or the great myths, Titans and heroes of man’s imaginations of yesteryear?

Remember church….other religions have no God.
All the world’s knowledge of the afterlife, the whispers of eternity, the soul’s rest in heaven, the identity of the Godhead (the trinity)…..all of man’s knowledge of the love of God… all we know about the earth’s beginnings and where man came from -- all these questions and many, many more, come to that great confluence of wisdom and revelation given to man only by Jesus. Without the gospel, the church, and the Christ, man is left - at best - to the deep thinking philosophers of Greek mythology and their creative, but terribly shallow, explanations of how things are.

But when you come to Jesus, you don’t get a “Dagon of old” whose head and shoulders need put back on him because he can’t help himself. (1 Samuel 5)

And when you come to Jesus you don’t get the ridiculous story of a God falling from out of heaven from Jupiter (and that’s your explanation of God, or for God, or how he got here). A God who falls out of heaven? 

And when you get Jesus, you don’t get the visibly absent, uncaring and otherwise preoccupied gods of Baal on Mt Carmel who failed to make an appearance and come down in fire to the reverent and desperate pleadings of 450 priests shouting, begging and cutting their bodies before thousands of witnesses to make themselves worthy to receive an answer….but who, in their rage never even heard a whisper from their god.

We can tell them what Elijah had already told them….. that all their worship was to a throne in their hearts and minds that never had a god in it in the first place…they did it all for nothing…..the same with Dagon…there is no God in it. The same with Zeus…he is no Divine…But Jesus, oh Jesus, He is different! He is God! Colossians 1:15-17 says about this Jesus, who the heathen rage against, that, “He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God…..for by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him…..and in Him all things consist.”

……at least the heathen idol worshippers of today are a little different from those who revered Baal yesterday in that today they are at least vexing in the right direction….

Can the Bible Change a Person?

Many people have made a mess of their lives and they know it. They wish there were some way they could start again. Luckily, that wish can be a reality, thanks to the Word of God.
 The New Testament tells us the only way to change is from the inside out - through the One Who boldly proclaims, "Behold, I make all things new." (Rev.21:5) That claim is made by Jesus Christ. How marvelous, how wonderful He is at changing the human heart.

I found this article from D. James Kennedy's book 'What if the Bible had Never been Written'. I thought I would include it as it relates to 'Can the Bible Change a Person?' This article is written by a complete unbeliever who lived in the midst of intellectual atheists in England, he wrote....
"But I observed the futile amazement with which every skeptic from Celsus to Wells stood around the cradle of the Christ. I wondered why this helpless Babe was thrust into the world at a time when Roman greed, Jewish hate, and Greek subtlety would combine to crush Him. And yet this most powerful, devastating combination ever known in history served only to advance the cause of the infant who was born in a stable...
No unbeliever could tell me why His words are as charged with power today as they were nineteen hundred years ago. Nor could scoffers explain how those pierced hands pulled human monsters with gnarled souls out of a hell of iniquity and overnight transform them into steadfast, glorious heroes [of the cross]....no agnostic{An agnostic - is someone who believes that nothing can be know of the existence or nature of God} could make clear why seemingly immortal empires pass into oblivion, while the glory and power of the murdered Galilean are gathering beauty and momentum with every attack and every age.
Nor could any scoffer explain, as Jesus Himself so daringly foretold, why by telephone, airplane, radio, rail, horse, and foot, His words are piercing the densest forest, scaling the highest mountains, crossing the deepest seas and the widest deserts, making converts in every nation, kindred tongue, and people on earth.
No doubter could tell me how this isolated Jew could utter words at once so simple that a child can understand them and so deep that the greatest thinkers cannot plumb their shining depths. The life, the words, the character of this strange Man are the enigma of history. Any naturalistic explanation makes Him a more puzzling paradox, a fathomless mystery. But I learned that the paradox was plain and the mystery solved when I accepted Him for what He claimed to be - the Son of God, come from heaven, a Saviour of men, but above all, my own Saviour.
I learned to thrill at the angel's words: "Behold....unto you is born this day...a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." Now I have learned the great truth that "though Christ a thousand times in Bethlehem be born, if He's not born in thee, thy soul is still forlorn."
Wow....
And to answer the original question, "Yes, the Christ found in the Bible does change a person."

The least

I want to tell you about something I've observed in my ministering over the years. It's a tendency that I have observed working in certain people...
..I'm speaking here as a Sociologist (and not qualified to do that), so I am taking a liberty. Here's what I've noticed frequently.....

What you like the least is what you need the most.

It's true. That which you like the least is probably what you need the most to change or redirect your life, in a positive way…..

• The people that seem to have a problem with teachings on giving finances are usually stingy people, selfish towards God with their money. Selfish toward missions, selfish to the Salvation army, Samaritan's Purse & other helpful organizations, blinded to the needs of others, compassion-challenged people in whatever…they just horde what they have. What they like the least….giving or sharing, …they need to do the most….

• The people that take exception to teachings on commitment, keeping holy the Sabbath and to the church in general, are generally the unfaithful ones. Many times they are the ones that so often misrepresent church life and church culture because they do it half-heartily, and then try to represent the Christian faith. They lack the depth and understanding to properly give a good account of our faith.

• Likewise, the people who have problems with authority and boundaries are usually rebellious and obstinate. What they hate to do is observe the rules. Unfortunately, they usually are continually having difficulties (and can't figure out why). What they think they need the least, is really what they need the most. They rebel against what they need the most to make a better life for themselves…..

All of these mentioned above, and many others, never make the connection that what they have been doing the least is what they need to do the most (please, don't anyone bring up me NOT eating broccoli here).

In 1 Sam 15, what Saul wanted to do the least….destroy those good animals he had taken as spoils….obey Samuel's totally God-given instructions concerning postwar conduct…..and not play by his own rulz...was what he needed to do the most to get the blessing of God and favor as a King. His blessing was withheld because what he did the least- obey God and the prophet whom God sent to assist him - was what, as a God appointed King, he needed to do the most. Let’s look at it for a second to see the truth of this matter.

Saul is given a specific command to totally destroy the Amalekites and everything within their land. Saul destroys all of the people....with the exception of King Agag. He also takes the best of the usable beasts and brings them back with him. There is a key word I would like to infuse here. That's the word ‘unwilling.' Saul was unwilling to do what God had commanded. He was unwilling to obey fully what he was told to do.

When someone is unwilling, their own will is being exalted. Saul had exalted his will above the will of God. He had exalted his own desire to keep the beasts, to spare the King, and to listen to the people, above the desire of the Lord.
I want to close with this scripture which is so profound. It's found in Proverbs 13:14-15, "The law of the wise is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. Good understanding gives favor; But the way of transgressors is hard." 
The thing Saul needed to do the most was to obey God, but the thing he did the least was exactly that, and his path became the way of the transgressor. He lost the authority he had been given.
It's so sad to see this happen to all the Saul's in the world..... and really difficult if it is your kid.....but it is even worse if it is you.

 

 

God Where Are You? by Ashley McKlveen

    Let me start out by saying I’ve never written a  blog or ever had a desire to read blogs, until now. As a matter of fact, this opportunity literally just jumped into my lap; therefore, I’ve decided to embrace it and see where it goes.  I am not a pastor, minister, or anything of the sort. I am just someone on a journey to seek answers and this blog is a reflection of some of my most intimate thoughts, questions & feelings regarding God. When beginning a new journey, it's crucial to have an open mind, otherwise you can find all the answers and never get any “truth” from them. The mind you have right now has led you to a ton of questions, and if you seek the answers you must be open to the possibility that the way you currently think about something may change. A closed mind does not give room to learn, change or grow. We must enter into a place where we can see in a new light which brings new understanding. (Galatians 1:12 I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.)

       

    How many of us have prayed and asked God for something and not received what we asked for, which resulted in disappointment setting in? When we pray to God we are looking to see results and when don’t get what we wanted we become disappointed, lose faith and even become bitter.  How many of us have experienced severe loss and not understood why it happened and have blamed God? How many of us pray everyday and may even do church on Sundays because it is what we are supposed to do? However, after years and years of disappointments and silence when we pray, we've stopped thinking that our words even reach God's ear. Now we pray and don't even expect to see results. Therefore, the question remains deep inside our hearts: God, where are you?

    Somewhere in between the point of our prayers and what appears to be a total silence in response to them, we develop a distorted view of God and who He is. We hear of God’s goodness and all of the miracles and the healing’s that have taken place in the Bible right? His goodness is constantly beaten into us at church, and we hear all about God’s power but why haven’t we seen it? When people don’t see God’s power we begin to make excuses as to why something didn’t happen. We makes these excuses because they make us feel better about our disappointment.

    Some, turn to science to explain the unexplainable, that way there is no room for a “God”. Therefore, giving their hurts and disappointments an explanation; which is, there is no God and the world is a cruel place.

    Others, begin to develop their own doctrine and begin to makes excuses for why they don't hear or see God, they say “Well miracles are not for today they are from another era”. This theology makes them feel better, and their disappointment is now cushioned.

  I can remember as a young girl sitting on my grandfather’s lap as he would tell me Bible stories. During those times I clearly remember that I NEVER questioned God, I just trusted and believed in Him with every part of my being.That is until I experienced my first disappointment with God, and from there the questions began. I had so many questions for God, I was torn in two and there was so much that I did not understand. It says in James 1:8 such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. That definitely hit the nail on the head and it was very evident in all that I did.

   Regardless, of where you are in your life right now, we all have questions and desperately need answers. With that said, over the next several weeks we will embark on a journey to investigate our deepest most hidden thoughts, feelings,and ideas about God. So let’s begin our quest for the “Truth” and be rid of our double-mindedness. I would love for readers to respond with your questions and thoughts concerning God and in return I will do my best to address them.

                                                                Ashley McKlveen

Overflow

Joel 2:32; " for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil." 

Today my prayer is, “Lord, rain on us!” We need the rain of the Holy Ghost in our lives like never before. During a good rain, vegetation is nourished, animals are nourished, the grass gets greener; rain refreshes the land. Rain causes things to grow and be fruitful. We as well need to be nourished and refreshed. We need God to rain on us, to make us fruitful for His kingdom. 

There comes a time in every person’s life when they experience a drought of some type.    

• It may be the drought of health when it seems like there is no end in sight to your physical problems.    
• It may be the drought of finances when it seems like the bills are coming in faster than the money to pay them.         
• It may be the drought of your occupation because you have lost the enjoyment of doing what you do for a living.  
• There may be a drought in your marriage because you're staying together "for the sake of the children" and you have lost your "first love" for one another. 

But of all the droughts I can think of, probably the worst is a spiritual drought.  We have all had them. You pray but you feel like your prayers don’t leave the ceiling in your house. You read your Bible but it is like reading Greek and Hebrew, and worse yet, it puts you to sleep; and you go to church and get absolutely nothing out of it.    

Sometimes the pickings in our spiritual bean patch are pretty slim too! Lord, we need some rain.

We need the rain, both the former (early) rain before the difficult growing season and the latter day (fall) rain to bring plants to the harvest season. But how do we get the rain?

When we get saved the Holy Spirit starts to work in us. The heavens become new to us. I liken this to the former early rain. It's all new! Talking to God, hearing from God, having life change because of God, the first experiences with the Holy Spirit....all things that are new to us. All early rain.

Then we start to grow with the Lord. In Israel between the two rains comes the dry arid hot season. The time when plants are tested and have to grow deep roots in the soil to survive. If they don't get deep roots, this middle season will kill them. And that is the same with you and I when we get saved. God tutors us for a while, then He steps back and watches us grow and struggle and do things on our own. God wants us, in this middle season, to become strong and to learn through His leading. He wants us to stand with Him through life events....But God will not make us dependents and He certainly won't become an enabler. He wants us to stand on our own, making the choice to invite Him into our life situations. During this time we are growing our roots deep with the Lord's encouragement.  

All this is preparing us to go into the latter day rain. For our article today, we'll call the latter day rain  the season when God communes with us on a daily, personal basis and we are being prepared to go on and be with Him eternally. His rain, the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, takes us into a mature relationship with Him. We can walk with Him right out of this place into eternity. To me the latter day rain is the best rain, because here we have come to love the Lord. We are walking with the Lord, we've learned to trust the Lord, we see the Lord bless and influence us and we've seen Him prove He is capable of sustaining us. In this season of latter day rain -  He is so real to us.

Can you say, "Give me that latter day rain, Lord"?