Where do we run to when it just seems to be too much?  Turning to exercise, drink, entertainment, sensory gratification (of any order), the emotional edification of others, anger, politics or depression, although temporarily effective, never quite give the lasting relief we need.  There are some things so painful they are meant to drive us to find shelter in the Lord.  Some pain is so internally irreconcilable there is no band aid to staunch the flow of our energy, wellness and tranquility.  The wounds and tears of an abused or hungry child, watching a friend die or agonizing for those whom are caught up in sin and tragedy with no understanding of safe harbor.

How can a rudderless ship be deemed anything other than “out of control”?  It is not always the enemy’s efforts to deceive me that are the most effective, often I am the perpetrator of my own deception.  Powerlessness is the frailty of my impoverished humanity to which prayer is the cure.  I will not seek to escape the pain for the emotions are indication of circumstantial dis-alignment.  These feelings were designed to create a need within me, a need for which I must seek treatment.  It is up to me whether I seek temporary release from the discomfort of my nervous system stimulus or quest for long lasting resolution only found under the Wings of Almighty God.

This world hurts.  I would like to say that is a bad thing, but it isn’t.  Sin, sickness and death are the results of man’s disobedience to God’s Law.  It is all perfect, at least in its ability to drive us into the Arms of God.  Father, I don’t know how bad it will have to get here before You come again.  I don’t even know how much I am capable of handling.  This world has done its work and produced such emotion, tragedy and hurt that it is hard to imagine Your return could be far off.  Please forgive them Father they seem to have been somehow blinded to the stench of this reality.  I pray that You awake them before it is too late.  And for those who will eventually refuse You I ask mercy.  There is no plan but Yours.  Lord Jesus come quick.  Amen.

To what extent have I comprehend that the Lord is sovereign over all?  It is not that I gave Him control over my life, my things, my heart and actions.?  He had control already the realization was my understanding of my continued struggle against the goads.  When I gave up the ground was plowed, seed planted and harvest collected.  And each time that I fought against the light influences of the yoke upon my life, was when my crops withered, failed or diminished.  Harmony for me has been in the service through “free will”, the greatest gift any of us has been given.

Father, make me capable of performing those things I always wish I had been wise enough to have known back then.  Give me a heart for willing surrender to Your guidance, Will and grace.  Let me not miss one opportunity, one chance, one dance.  I have spent the bulk of this lifetime pursuing differing frivolities or struggling to assert my hopeless will over Your overwhelming Grace.  Let me finally “give up” for good and freely go with the tide, swimming only when Your path bids me ashore.  Your Word says that we will do great things for the Kingdom, let me not miss out on anything You have prepared for me.  Let my Brothers delight in the Glory we have mirrored into the world for Your Honor.  Give us an eternal understanding of your Trustworthiness.  For it is in Your name I pray.  Jesus, how sweet that sound.

What would He have me say?  That He loves us like a parent searching for a lost child, perhaps?  That He cares and is indifferent about our behavior and that He has no requirements for those whom He loves, probably not?  Do you think maybe that it is somewhere in the middle or is God pretty strict about those things which He said must be done and those things which must be avoided?  Jonah was disobedient yet eventually did what was asked of him.  Nineveh was wicked yet received Jonah’s proclamation of God’s coming judgment in time to humble themselves and seek God’s forgiveness, diverting His wrath.  There is no cry for such a collective debasing to avoid destruction.  There is no new world prophet heralding the arrival of God’s angels for our deserved destruction.  And unfortunately in my heart I doubt that we would listen to him, we would most likely murder him as the Jews did to God’s Prophets in the past.  I know that you agree for we have gone past the axis point and the scales no longer have balance, justice and judgment lies ahead.

Christians are the only people that can avert such a crisis, yet we stand unaffected, afraid, uninvolved.  The fate of our nation comes yet we remain silent, comfortable, proud of our own behaviors casting aspersions upon the wicked, blaming them for the current state of affairs.  We must model humility for it’s need to be understood.  We must fast and pray seeking God’s face, begging Him for intercession on behalf of humanity.  We must forgive, refusing to hold grudges against those without wisdom, knowledge and truth.  We must proclaim the Word, beseeching all to flee, turning from sin and coming judgment.  We must find God in our own hearts and lives, so that His life can be seen through our own.  We must strip ourselves of pride, tear our clothes, fall to our knees in hope that our obeisance will stem God’s welling anger against US all.

Abortion, egregious dis-concern for the suffering, weak or non existent faith and a proclivity toward worship of glittering gold, violence, sexual promiscuity and self aggrandizement.  Rome styled wickedness tied to the overindulgence of the senses leading to a call to obesity, sexual oddity and wealth beyond sensibility.  False cries toward nationalistic unity where those in power tell everyone that we must rise to the challenges of the many when those needs have no boundaries.  Consumption our national motto where the wealthy who recycle are somehow perceived as evolved, removing reflection upon their frail foundations and the wickedness of their private practices.  God knows our hearts.

The nation cries out to God for a King instead of receiving our rightful Savior.  Without repentance we will be given such a leader far worse than Saul had ever been.  This man will require worship, spread death, blasphemy and false peace.  He will be an answer to our present requests for God to stay out of our business and let us follow our own desires.  We have become a nation where just doing it, and be yourself at any cost and follow your heart have created a national amnesia toward the source of our blessings.  It has become personally difficult and socially dangerous to live a righteous life, yet this is the life to which God beckons US.  Will you be a counter-cultural Christan knowing fully that friendship with this world is hate toward God?  Or will you continue to fall in lock step with the wicked, secretly mentioning your dismay once a week for about an hour?  The folly must end.  Christians and Jews must return to our knees before God in order to quell His fury.  There is no other path but the fulfillment of His prophetic wrath upon this planet for we all are sinners and have gone astray.

Lord save US all.  Return US to a quest for Your Face and Righteousness.  Let US be examples to a world bent on testing Your patience which nears its end.  Praise You in Your Fairness and Truth.  Your ways are Right.  Lord Jesus, thank You for defining forgiveness.

Are yours the dreams of fame and fortune that you have lain aside to serve the Lord?  Which family did the Lord place you in, knowing fully the weaknesses, obstacles and wisdom you would gain through that life?  Can you see the skinny path before you somehow knowing where it leads by the road previously traveled?  Are you delaying, avoiding or sabotaging what God has planned for you because you do know His will and are “unwilling” to accommodate?  Will you grab His ankle, sacrifice what He has asked for or go to Nineveh because that is what God’s Blessing requires?  Are you living the abundant life?  You know that answer right now and also know how to change it.

Give in to God, give to God but also accept from God those things He has planned for you before time immemorial.  Most I have spoken with play a nasty game of charades with God.  They say that they want to hear God’s voice, knowing His Will for their lives.  When in actuality that is the last thing their actions indicate.  Most have either heard the Spirit’s Leading or know God’s Will from reading His Word and they either ignore, avoid, deny or claim they are waiting for a sign.  These are evil times, only those of little faith will wait for a sign or must feel the holes in His hands and side.  I want you to know that I see God’s Will for your lives and if I can see it then God most certainly does.  The question remains, will you step forward to accept God’s challenges and blessings for your life?

This day we celebrate life and rebirth of our Savior into the Kingdom of God.  We honor what He did for us, remembering the sacrifice made on behalf of ALL humankind.  We also look forward to the sanctification of our lives and His eventual return to set things straight.  We should remain true to the memory but also to the prophecy of things to come.  We were made to do great things for the Kingdom to demonstrate His Glory in our words and works.  Celebrate this day in memory of what was done but also challenge yourself to embrace that which is yet to come.  For the resurrection demonstrated His authority to put away and take up His own life, but it also seated Him at the right hand of the Father where He lives in each of our lives.  He “is” alive which differentiates Him from any false god.  Ours is a relationship in celebration of life, the life that Christ Lives through us right now and the life He will spend with us throughout eternity.  Look forward knowing where the path leads for “not knowing” is denial, indecision or worse yet disobedience.  Serve His will and await His return.  Praise You Father in the Name of the Son through the guidance of Spirit.  Amen.

Even the devil knows the word of God and believes.  However like all the wicked, he must refute that Word in any manner or else be revealed for the hopeless case that he remains.  Lest we forget how powerful God’s nemesis is, we must look at how incredibly subtle his assaults upon humanity.  It is not a shock and awe campaign that humans would expect because of our lack of longevity, but rather a well planned and executed battle strategy perpetrated over thousands of years.  One of those subtleties is using Bible verses without the corresponding context.  This ploy delivers only that portion of the Word which empowers the hearer without the cautions, wisdoms and conviction carried through contextual delivery of the entire passage.  This battle stratagem has been most effective, especially when the lost believe that they wield the power of God by using verses such as “the truth shall set you free”, without understanding the preceding lines of that passage which declare how to receive the truth.

As believers it is incumbent on each of us to learn the Word of God, not so that we can become a Bible scholar to garner ourselves accolade, but rather so that we can protect ourselves from the wiles of the enemy.  Satan will seek to warp or twist God’s Word at each provided opportunity in order to lead us astray.  It is our responsibility to armor ourselves with the Lord’s Word so that we may never be deceived.

One of the greatest deceptions has been perpetrated surrounding how a nation finds its way back into God’s graces after infraction.  This deception is especially common among believers who do not understand the circumstances and context at which God pronounced the directions to recovering from an errant path.  Let us look at 2 Chronicles 7 to see just how the enemy has misconstrued God’s direction.  I used the NIV version to make it easily readable to the widest level of maturity.  However, there are some concerns about adherence to truth by translating God’s Word to suit the audience.  I ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth of God’s Word to each of your hearts and to forgive me for potentially leading any astray.  Keep them safe Lord.

When Solomon had finished the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the Lord and in his own palace, ¹² the Lord appeared to him at night and said:

What if there were no forgiveness?  What if we knew there was no second chance each mistake met with finality?  No redemption, no recovery from iniquity, no mercy, grace, each strike a “one and done” opportunity.  That is the price of sin.  That is the life of the unbeliever.  The first sin cost you everything as the wage you were paid was eternal separation from God, no quarter.  Like Akin, you disobeyed and according to the law of Moses there was no forgiveness only penalty for your transgression.  So, you forfeited all.  Your life, your family’s life, everything you owned including your beast of burden were stoned, set to flame, demolished for all to see.  That is each life without Christ.  There can be no remission of sin without the shed blood.

I don’t know about you but I tend to take it for granted.  Not everyday, but sometimes falling into a lull, being forgetful and not being mindful of the miracle of forgiveness.  Not the overwhelming fact that I am saved, set apart to spend eternity with God, but the “not so simple” fact that I am forgiven.  I get to know hope where without it that hope would have never existed.  I get to feel sorry for my transgressions because I know that I can ask for forgiveness and receive such a prize.  My life does not surround walking so cautiously that I am afraid to disturb a flower, offend a person or perhaps shame someone because the price would be “everything”.  These are blessings I own but do not fully comprehend.  This makes me morn for the lost.  To never know forgiveness.  I cannot even remember how that felt, perhaps it would be better if I somehow could remember.

The Angel’s awe begins to gain clarity.  They cannot fathom how God could be so merciful in offering forgiveness to the undeserving.  They were not forgiven when they transgressed, instead they fell. The price of their sin was infinity.  Instantaneous separation from God, doomed to live among a prideful people, a forgetful people, stubborn, immoral and spoiled.  A people who had zero understanding of the grace they were given.  They were allowed to grow in a sinful life and then freely choose righteousness through faith, with rewards or punishment to come “some day”.  No instantaneous banishment, shaming, imprisonment or death but a segment of time within which the gift was offered freely daily.  You see God doesn’t even need us, yet he offers me forgiveness.  Too grand for me to understand.  You Lord deserve my allegiance, obedience and praise.  I am sorry that I dishonor you repeatedly.  I am so thankful that You do and will forgive.

Have you ever been absolutely sure that you were right only to find that God had other plans?  Those times when the picture is so clear that you can already see yourself walking in those shoes and suddenly find that your path led elsewhere.  Achievement is a dream I whisper to myself on the way to volunteering for those the Lord has directed me to serve.  Day dreams and nightmares are all of self or Sheol.  It is funny how my imagination always leads me astray, trusting it is always my first mistake.  The second comes when I forget to trust in God alone.

Speaking with a young man today I realized to be thankful for the fire, struggle and heartbreak in my life as I always grow the most during those times.  The times when God loves me enough to stretch me, reminding me once again not to stray from the truly important.  You would think that a man can learn, but my repeated stumble at the same points on the road support the opposite.  Lord, give me only that which you want for me.  Forgive me for always messing it up by integrating my own screenplay.  Your way for me is the only truth, all else is false.  Save me from myself otherwise I am destined to play the fool at each night’s opening.  I want Your Dream lived through this life.  Don’t let me settle for my own understanding, sentencing me to second best or worse.  I love You Lord.

http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/love-worth-finding/player/counterfeit-christianity-327812.html  A resounding message from the late pastor Adrian Rogers

I cannot give song and dance in hope of bringing you to the Cross.  My dance, my song is to worship God and glorify Him, not a device to capture your ear.  I exalt the name of Jesus Christ the King.  I will not put on a circus side show hoping to grab the attention of the worldly, knowing that I must “package” the message in such a way that it will be palatable to the masses.  The Word is honey to my tongue and salve to my ears and heart.  I will not try to adjust, attenuate, morph or realign His Word so that it conforms to worldly need.  The Word is already the answer to “every” need, the solution to “every” problem.  I pray that the Lord God has placed a desire in “your” heart to hear and obey His Word.  I cannot create, develop or manufacture that desire in “your” heart.  I will give you the seed of God’s Word, encouragement, assistance, training and love but I cannot give you the desire to have a relationship with God, that is something He gave to you.

Accommodating those who would be saved is built into the church.  Allowing the worldly to bring into the church the lust for entertainment is not.  The problem is in the premise, “Church is boring”.  If I must vie for your attention competing with multimedia then I will lose each time.  For my job is to spread the Good News of Christ, planting the seed into “every” ground.  I do not embrace “witchcraft” hoping that my delivery will somehow make something transpire.  That my delivery is the mechanism which produces growth is satanic deception.  I trust in the Word of God for it always returns investment.  Those who have an ear to hear will hear the truth of the Word and seek God.  Certainly I must pray to the Lord to allow me to deliver the Word with authority, clarity and abundance, but whether or not I am a “professional” public speaker has very little if anything to do with the Power of God’s Word.  God’s Word is powerful without me.

Having unbelievers observe communion, practice fellowship and practice false worship is an abomination.  Churches that allow believers to become part of the fellowship have exchanged worship for opportunity and potential tithe.  If you are sitting in a church that welcomes unbelievers without establishing the need for repentance, then “Come Out”.  If the birds of the air are nesting in the mustard tree seeking the power of the Church without being transformed by the Power of the Gospel then, “Come Out”.  Would you seek illegal drugs, immoral relationships or witchcraft in order to alleviate some pain in your life?  Absolutely not.  Just as any Christian dabbling in the sinful practices of the world is horrific, so too is it wrong for an unbeliever to dabble in Christianity.    If you have a church leadership that consistently goes against, accommodates, twists or warps the apostles teaching then “Come Out”.  Even if your church has a million dollar “entertainment” program, reclining chairs and a T.V. show on prime time cable yet does not preach repentance, rebirth and faith, “Come Out”.  Read the book of Jude, by the way it is only one page in length, and you will see the warning for the Christian in “Today’s” Church.

We live in evil times, ACT accordingly.  Praise God in the Name of Jesus Christ the Lion of Judah.

I am no scholar, no prince of men, no prophet or hero.  My works are simple, my mind plain and my looks not those of a ruggedly handsome man such as David.  I am no farmer, no artist, no scientist, doctor or public servant.  I am a saint of God through Christ, born again to serve the King by healing, loving, caring for and encouraging those whom He loves.

I have no blade yet the sword I wield cleaves bone from marrow and Spirit from soul.  I have no wealth but the cattle of a thousand hills, the air that we breathe, the mountains, sky and sea.  I have little by the way of knowledge but wisdom answers my call giving me sight beyond the tangible through the omniscient God living within me.  I can barely stand myself yet the love in my heart transcends sin, weakness, character and hate.  I offer forgiveness where none is found through the endless coffer of understanding found at the foot of His Throne.

I have no children yet am blessed to be in the largest family whose roots extend beyond time into eternity.  My strength is found under the outstretched Wings of God and though I may have reached my limits, I shall not faint nor grow weary to the task.  I have very little yet the blessings with which I am daily showered bring envy to those caught in the snare of unjust pursuit.  For I am Kin to Christ the King and this is all His.  What greater honor may be bestowed than that which I hold dear.

All the Honor and Glory to you My Lord.

So many Lord, writhing through internal pain and disquiet.  I  want that all should find their way to you accepting the gift of eternal life, but so many Lord fade away choosing self, soul and safety in pocket, purse or padlock.  Am I to feel this ineffective, Lord, this useless?  Or should I find security in the knowledge that I have planted each seed with care and diligence, knowing fully that where growth is possible you will provide it?

We are in such a mess.  Justified murder of the unborn for convenience.  Blatant sexuality, even in our youth who would be innocent.  Same sex relationships no longer an anomaly be preached as norm.   Absolute disregard for pursuit of wealth, fame and familiarity with those investments that bring neither peace nor benefit to a wounded world.  Reciprocal politics contorted beyond the confines of morale and logical constraint, veracious in it appetite to consume all that may be absorbed, used up, requisitioned or borrowed.  Violence as a national motto, preached to our youth in their games, our men in their sport and our women in their attempts to overcome abhorred weakness.  The overwhelming strength and character of Love, peace and kindness relegated to those affectionately labeled town clown.  An complete misunderstanding of God’s Sovereignty, Character and Word, leading to a national ignorance as to the source of our blessing and the price of our desertion.

I hate only the evil which fills and controls mans’ heart.  None of these sinners my enemy, it is their sin I hold in contempt.  I reserve no lesser review of my own abomination.  The stench of my own self service and iniquity equally displeasing to God.  The only thing standing between me and the judgment that I deserve, being the Blessed Blood of a King who loved me enough to pay the price of His life for my forgiveness.  I do not condemn anyone, including myself, for this is not my plan for salvation but God’s.  I forgive because that Grace was Given to me.  I love because that Love was Given to me.  I pray because that Access to God was Given to me.  I pray that all accept every iota of that which is offered them by God, turn away from their evil sin and make their way to peace and fulfillment through Christ the King.  I pray that the Lord God hear the earnest prayer of a humble nation turning our face back to Him and He to us.  I pray for healing, hope and redirection for our collective consciousness toward those pursuits which are eternal.  Praise You Lord God in the Mighty Name of Jesus the Bringer of Hope.