Considering God’s tremendous plan for redemption and His willing sacrifice to carry that out it would be reasonable for me to assume that it was done for me.  Reflecting upon His grand design of the world as it hangs presumably by itself as part of a grander universe, over billions or trillions of light years, it would be sensible to consider myself greatly loved by God.  It would make sense that since my enemies continue to make it clear that I am a wretched, over-valued, underproductive, unloved worthless piece of man flesh that the opposite is a truth he cannot tolerate.  It would be difficult to understand that God would expend other men on my behalf so that He might bring me through the travails, but this is what His Word tells me.  Am I to consider myself so highly, knowing that the Almighty Father of this and every universe did this all for me, of course not for that is the secret handshake, the ironic riddle, the unspoken rhyme of it all?

For pride was, is and has always been the avenue through which sin finds entry to creation.  Yes, God loves me that much, but it reflects upon Him, every facet, every shiny detail of His benevolence, grace and mercy toward His children.  I have done nothing except admit my love for a Father who deserves it, wants it and asks for nothing else.  Do I take delight in knowing that God will do whatever is necessary to bring me through this life, so that we might live together in the next?  Absolutely, but it is still simply put a benefit given to me neither deserved, derived or credited to my worthiness.  He chose me, He saved me, He sustains me, He protects me, provides for me and when time arrives He will snatch me out of here so I do not have to suffer His wrath set upon the Earth.  Was that done for me?  Let me put it this way, If I were God I would be last knucklehead allowed in eternity.  Perhaps He sees something to which I have been made blind.

Yes, this is for me, but not in the way you think.  I get the opportunity to make sound choices and be guided by His Spirit in a quest to become like Him.  That is the American Dream, but not only nationalistic it is the desire of all men to resemble their maker.  Unfortunately, what we are seeing in the degradation of this world is that we don’t all have the same maker and some are just learning, practicing and achieving resemblance to the father of lies.  Every situation is limiting the position of “fence-sitter”.  All arguments have become perfectly polar.  There after all are only two sides.  So those cabinets, cubbies, lockers and secret passages I maintain control of in my own life, failing to sacrifice or relinquish to Christ are my aids, abedments, services and likages to the enemy.  Yes, this is about me and How closely at the end of this life will my work here resemble His work here.  Lord, I wanna be like you in every way.  Thank you for loving me so I accept the opportunity and wish that you will help me to make the most of it.  In Jesus’s Name.

Test these words to see if they be sound, I want no error in my truth be found.  We are all Biblical characters, we are just in the part that has not been yet written.  Why is that do you think, that the Lord left off when the story got to Jesus?  Because my friends that is all that we needed know in order to complete this journey.  For it is the creation, nurturing and maturation of our faith that we have been left here with the Holy Spirit as guide, so that we might take time to become like Him.  My story does not matter except as it exalts Him, encourages you or gives hope to those who are fence sitting.

No matter the era, the circumstance, the episode or environment, those who consulted or prayed for God’s directions before acting always ended up better off then them who didn’t.  Additionally, those who listened to God’s direction prospered and those who didn’t either wandered or met with chastisement to encourage their return to God’s Will.  For that is the purpose of the Bible to acquaint us with God so that we might Love Him, trust Him and surrender the stories that we would write in exchange for the greater tale of His Merciful Kingdom.  Turning to Him for direction before action demonstrates a level of surrender synonymous with belief, trust and love.

I used to cherish the concept of the self-made man, until I met many of them and found them to be miserable.  I used to envy men who live alone with all their toys, time and treasure until I saw the truth of wealth in the man with a quiver full of children.  Conquest was king when it came to male exceptionalism, until I met a man with character who love the poor, protected the innocent and forgave the wicked.  My stories were always pipe dreams built upon childish understanding of prosperity and hope.  Jesus showed me the truth and now I no longer shoot so low as to wish to write my own script.  I would rather leave it and trust it to God, for He knows my fulfillment better than I ever will.  It will be nice to see how it turns out, I am certain it will be victorious.  In Jesus’s Name I pray.

https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/god-phil-robertson-duck-dynasty-evil/2017/11/08/id/825009/?oRef=idealmedia

When weights are uneven, transgressing the point of balance and gravity centered, the eventualities are overindulgence, struggle to capture inertia or reflex-compensation .  When rules, cultural norms or historical moralities cannot be sufficiently explained or appear at odds with the will of youthful appetites, they are sacrificed at the altar of collective indulgence.  When gods fail to materialize or become wooden in their capacity to overcome the weather, fates or fortunes, they are heaped and readied for the furnace.  When a people fail to effectively honor the Sovereign God, replacing their precious time with Him with other dalliance, the relationship becomes distant, impersonal, tenuous.  No system can remain in this imbalanced state in perpetuity for the event horizon approaches.

The youth are lost, lost to the noble historical expense of their ancestors.  Science presents itself with precision, sterile accuracy and unbound exploratory definition.  It is what I want it to be and when it displeases I erase it or blend it with another more pleasing reality.  For perception dictates belief and faith requires investment, what is real is what I feel.  If you do not know God, perhaps I can introduce you.  If you do not wish to know God, perhaps I can convince you.  If you have no need for God the only hope resides in my own heart of prayer that somehow gravity provide opportunity for re-calibration.  I do know that with a vacuum comes the inevitable urge to refill unoccupied space.  What will fill the space of our current failing religiosity?

Do you now see the precision of God’s eternal planning?  Forces are at play that may not be avoided or interrupted.  They will fall as they always do to the point of least resistance.  Our governing circumstance will be a lack or requirement for God’s Hand upon our desires.  We wish to serve ourselves and that is exactly what shall come to pass.  Inevitably we will accept the ebb and flow of natural influences maybe understanding the price of our conceit.  For the overwhelming crash that orderly follows overindulgence is ruthless in its capacity to destroy.  We will be given a new religion, conforming to our lustful hearts and in its willful darkness we will yearn for a flicker, a spark or flame to remind us we once stood in the light.

Truth and untruth, right and wrong, judgment and grace, isn’t that where we got into trouble in the first place?  Knowing my place with the Kingdom has been the greatest wisdom the Lord has given.  It is by grace I have been saved that wretched man that I was, it is by the Holy Spirit’s indwelling sanctification that I have become a new creature and is through God’s will, power, authority, provision and gifting that I fulfilled Kingdom requirements.  Unlike the enemy, the Lord rebuke him if He so chooses, I do not want to be in charge.  Not just of other people’s lives, but my own, for each time I have been given the opportunity to steer the boat, it’s straight into the rocks we go.

I have found peace and comfort in my position as servant.  If you need prayer, I will pray for you, knowing and trusting fully that God knows what is best for you.  If you need love I will welcome you with a Brotherly hug and wait until your danger passes.  If you need bread, my kitchen is yours, take that which you need and please take a little extra to give to someone you meet.  If you need wisdom I will sit and share with you the Word of God from which He gives amply to all who ask.  If you need a helping hand or a willing back, I will never avoid your call.  If you need a fellow soldier, I have donned the full armor of God so that we might stand in victory, courage and faith expecting our deliverance.  If you need salvation, I will bring you to the foot of that mighty Cross of Christ where you too might be redeemed by the only one who can, Jesus Christ the King.

None of this requires my definition, my grace, my authority or imputes one smidgen of glory to my columned diary.  He knew me in my Mother’s womb, He gave me the gifts, the money and the smarts I presently use to survive and when I was beyond redemption He gave His own life so that I might live.  You deserve my Love because He loves both of us.  Answer to Him for the accounting of your life, I will help guide you and expect from you the same as we walk this skinny path together.  in Christ’s Holy name I pray.

Source: Urgent prayer request from Amir.

Effort, struggle, determination, trying so hard that I am crying yet decay, filth, mildewed rags, filling God’s nostrils, these are the product of my very best.  Man, I can’t even brag because the stuff I have done really has been meager.  I’ve got no proud mansion, no quiver filled with sons and daughters with whom I might project my impact into the future, I’ve got few friends, no measurable treasure and a reasonably steady work.  No accolades,  notoriety, no fame, grand talent or history.  Truthfully, on my own behalf I probably have more failure on which to speak than successes.  Considering this unimpressive resume, how could I possibly consider myself fulfilled or complete?

In one moment filled with His Spirit anointed by the oil of His authority I surpass a lifetime of worldly achievement.  I have loved greatly, especially those who knew no love or deserved contempt.  I have fed the starving, clothed the naked and edified the downtrodden, with the magnified provision of the Lord.  I have loved God with all my heart and all my strength, each time renewed, refreshed, refashioned for the next mission.  To His Glory, he deserved the surrender of my life that would have amounted to very little had it not been for His purpose, His Gift, His intention.

My treasures are in heaven.  They are the people I have made disciples, the people I have spent the time to acquaint with Christ and the people for whom I showed love when otherwise they would have never known its blessing.  What I have done for the Lord remains.  All I know is that when I find myself trying to impress someone with my worldly resume I begin to feel sickly for that man is gone and I really don’t care how much the world approves.  I live for Christ, in Christ and through Christ, the best part of this life and the next.  In Jesus’s name I pray to you Father thanking you for all that I have been graciously given.

Don’t really care to know the day and the hour.  This world already possesses enough shiny objects to capture what is left of my attention.  I don’t need to feed the engines of conspiracy, sycophantic siphoning of my focus upon Christ.  I do love you so, but I cannot complete the tasks of God while fully engaged regarding our loss or wealth in this world. When my work is done I will be gone until then that is the reason I remain in this plane. What I have or don’t have here is governed fully by the Will of God, I ought not have an inkling regardless.

That considered, what next?  The Lord said, my sheep know my voice and another they will not follow.  It’s pretty clear.  If we belong to Him then we know when He is talking and we listen.  We also know those voices that are foreign, impostor or false and we clearly know that we shall not follow their direction.  So, if I follow flesh, the enemy, my neighbor and the voices of improper doctrine, then I know clearly it has been by choice.  My own choice, with none to blame but myself.  Additionally, the most difficult part to disciplined service is immediate and complete response to Sovereign dictate.  If I know what He wants me to do, which I do because I know His voice and to which direction I am being compelled, then to do nothing is contempt for Christ.  My love is found in my obedience.

If He has given me extra funds then there is something for which they should be expended that is Kingdom conscious.  If there is too little funds then there is work and faith that need be expended to produce the crops of His harvest until the ministry is fulfilled.  If I am set from a position, relationship, ownership or service then there is another door either readily waiting or one which shall be opened in due time for my entry.  If He has yet to give me a family then I am too be educated through the aspiration and desire of a man given to serving God entirely.  If I have been given a family that continues to sharpen my manhood, then I must commit myself fully to this perfect service.

Although, I am not fully emptied of self, I am finding that to remain such is similar to a comatose patient on life support.  I have so little energy when I am in the flesh that I never seem to get my sin programs off the ground.  You see the Lord is right, that which I have fed has gotten stronger and that which I have starved is slowly dying.  The end of this perfect program He has me on will result in my being like Jesus.  I can help it through obedience and surrender.  I hamper it when I try to inject my own energy, thought, time, reasoning, logic or righteousness.  If I ever could have done it He would have never had to come in the first place.

Will you honestly say, like Isaiah, “Here I am Lord send me”?  Do you know what that means to be ready to do whatever it is the Lord is asking of you?  Being honest requires that you understand the position of your heart when you say something like, “that depends on where he is sending me”.  His Will, His destination, His promise, His responsibility to deliver, His servant, My wish, My command.

Sitting here thinking about me, praying for me, wanting a little more time to get you to understand the pains inside of me, while I follow a steady dictate of worrying about what I need, don’t need, don’t have, won’t have and probably shouldn’t even consider having.  My expectations built upon what I have previously determined that God has promised me in my idea of a name it to claim it religion.  I know that my dreams have nothing to do with God’s will but isn’t this about the desires of my heart.  The God of my imagination keeps me from all pain, redirects all the rain that would fall on my parade and spends his time marshaling angels to watch over my every movement so that the entire pink party can be played over and over again in our minds.  This is supposed to be the Kingdom of God where my troubles are all gone, my tears are washed my unhappiness forgotten.  How dare he determine that I should be one of those that must sacrifice for his purposes.  Leave that pain stuff for martyrs, me I’m just here to love.

Oh, there are going to be some pastors paying a heavy price for leading so many astray.  Unfortunately, at the same time weeping and gnashing of teeth will be heard as the Master closes the door and many are left behind, wondering where they went wrong.

I died roughly two-thousand years ago on that cross with Christ.  Sharing in his suffering from that glorious day is what has set me free for eternity.  This is His life to live as He wishes, but I have the pleasure of surrendering to that idea and hopefully getting out of the way so that He may increase in my diminution.  What if he hasn’t scheduled me for one of those uplifting tales of victory that play well at family time on Sunday’s.  What if He has me intended for martyrdom or persecution so that in my resistance I demonstrate His Will to overcome for those who have not yet found their faith?  Am I then a loser?

It’s all about you and what I am going to do to get your attention when I mention how much I love my Saviour and my God.  And if I perchance begin to feel pity for myself or sorrow for the inclined or obstacle ridden road I must traverse, then remind me of the orphans who will go to be alone tonight with out my appropriately timed visit.  Remind me of the widows who struggle to just get around town while I rest comfortably in Christ.  Yes, lest I forget them who suffer from disease, sickness, poverty, hunger and death considering my own wants while them that truly need pray in silence to the God of Peace.

The measure of a man is his character, reflected in the ordered action of rational discernment.  Choices, decisions, actions, stances all taken as explicable reaction or commentary consistent with worldly circumstance or logical deduction.  Chances are that if the world has never seen you lie, cheat, steal, murder, waiver in your stance upon the foundations of Christianity then you are a person of good character.  Let us leave room for the caveat of those things which may only be seen by God, thus declaring human judgment a less than perfect method of character judgment.

If a man may safely be declared of good character, what then is the probability/possibility that a prophet would be equally well judged through this process of public scrutiny?  I would venture to say that it would be less likely for a prophet with blemishes or discrepancies to escape negative public judgment than a man of shady character.  For it is much easier to hide errant character than it is to hide faulty predictions or disproved words that were attributed to God.  We as humans have been warned of false prophets so we reserve a set of particularly cruel punishments for them who falsely prophesy.  We must then accept Jesus as a Prophet, for nothing he ever foretold failed to materialize.  Certainly there are outstanding prophecies attributed to the Lord but them not having yet occurred we must first wait for them to happen before proclaiming judgment.  Yet we are now confronted with logical quandary, for if Jesus has uniquely told the truth regarding prophecy and we have seen no character flaws, our assumed position must be one that accepts him as truthful.  And in so doing we must accept the fact that He proclaimed Himself God, one of the Trinity, equal, one and coexistent with the Father and Holy Spirit.  Certainly we may proclaim it false but not until we have seen evidence to the contrary which heretofore has yet been produced.

The atheist’s or scientific evolutionists only hope is to construct doctrine consistently challenging, condemning and proving Jesus to be a liar.  This practice, attempted by the Pharisees, would result in coupling Jesus with the prince of the power of the air, whom we know to be a dissembler of supernatural composition.  However, none of their attempts to label him such was effective.  Certain, accusations and emotional fist raising allowed the Roman’s to stir up the mob to label him false, none of the accusations stood against truth.  There was no other relevant position for the legal authorities to take, thy could not have proclaimed him of good character or esteemed him as a truthful man while mollifying the mob.  So, Jesus was labeled false without supporting data a close-minded practice that defies all the rules of effective case law and scientific experimentation.   If by nature, I exclude the possibility of some idea being true then I have effectively prohibited it from ever having a fair, honest, discerned debate and subsequently opened the thoroughfare to it having been proclaimed falsely false.  Jesus has never been shown to have lied about anything.

What does it mean to us that Jesus is our King?  We then are subjects within his realm of authority.  Hereditary, pre-eminence, authority, Sovereign, ruler, judge, monarch, these are the words that describe the character of any King.  Jesus was the rightful and prophesied messiah of God, sent at exactly the time in history to which he was ordained.  He fulfilled the law and the word of the prophets in over 100 completed predictions.  Jesus forgave when it was His right to Judge  Jesus loved when all that He was offered had been hate and He stood silent offering no excuses, mercy or explanation for His honorable behavior.  We have established that to be pronounced a good man we must demonstrate those characteristics consistent with good behaviors.  To be a prophet our predictions must be proven correct and to be King we must have the family rights to the inheritance and subsequent authority.  Jesus, is a Teacher, a Prophet and a King and nothing he said did or didn’t do can ever equate him with having been a dissembler.

Unlike in worldly Kingdom’s Jesus’s authority does not arise from our belief in that said authority.  It is not like a fiat currency that only has worth because we believe in that worth.  Jesus is King because He has always been King.  His Sovereignty does not depend on our reliance upon that righteous authority.  He is who is and that is all He ever need explain to any of us.

Do you remember when you first believed?  How did you know it was your time to be moved into the Kingdom of God?  Were you in trouble, like me, did your life depend upon Jesus saving you?  Or was it a subtle salvation, one borne of a good family, church attendance and scriptural understanding?

For me it was Him.  I couldn’t imagine someone so unselfish, someone who had no cause to love me the way He did, giving all so that I might live.

Do you remember that boy, girl, man or woman you were?  Where are you now?  How glorious the transformation in the Potter’s Hand.  Who have you become?  Someone totally different or can you still see the rough edges.

Have you yet found purpose, practiced your spiritual gifts or brought someone to Christ? How are your Bible Studies?  Have you shown yourself approved, ready to rightly divide the Word or give a solid defense of your faith?  Or have you dawdled, leaving the bulk of the work to your brethren?  What keeps moving you or have the fire in your lamp also dwindled?

What would rekindle that light or have you cast a basket, blanket or curtain of excuse upon it?  Jesus knocks.  He loves each of us completely, waiting for that moment when we reach out to Him for relationship.  I don’t know about you but I cannot run, avoid or willingly stay away from someone who loved me enough to die for me.  Especially, a God who waits even now for the time when we might spend eternity together talking in the cool of day.  Come King Jesus, if you must tarry for my younger brothers and sisters, I understand.  Perhaps it will give me the opportunity to show you how much I love you, while I am here.