A Good Word--For the New Year

You shall not go out with haste...for the Lord will
go before you, and the God of Israel will be your
rear guard--Isaiah 52:12

Security from Yesterday
"...God requires that which is past." (Ecl 3:15) 
At the end of the year we turn with eagerness to all 
that God has for the future, and yet anxiety is apt to 
arise from remembering the yesterdays. Our present 
enjoyment of God's grace is apt to be checked by yes-
terday's sins and blunders. But God is the God of our 
yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them in or-
der to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth 
for the future. God reminds us of the past to protect 
us from a shallow security in the present.

Security for Tomorrow
"The Lord will go before you." 
This is a gracious revelation, that God will send his 
forces out where we have failed to do so. He will keep 
watch so that we will not be tripped up again by the 
same failures, as would undoubtedly happen if He were 
not our "rear guard." And God's hand reaches back to 
the past, settling all the claims against our conscience.

Security for Today
"For you shall not go out in haste..." 
As we go forth into the coming year, let it not be in the 
haste of impetuous, forgetful delight nor with the quick-
ness of the impulsive thoughtlessness. But let us go out 
with the patient power of knowing that the God of Israel 
will go before us. Our yesterdays present irreparable 
things to us; it is true that we have lost opportunities 
which will never return, but God can transform this de-
structive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness of 
the future. Let the past sleep, but let is sleep on the bo-
som of Christ. Leave the broken Irreversible Past in His 
hands, and step out into the Irresistible Future IN HIM. 
Oswald Chambers

Reader, this was passed to me by a dear Russian friend.
It comes from My Utmost For His Highest on Dec 31.
Chambers has balanced our failures, our sorrows, with
our gracious God "who can and does transform de-
structive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness of
the future.' Open the scripture and spend time with Him
in this New Year, long enough to hear Him speak a per-
sonal word to you. Don't forget to write it down...

Lord of All!

God also highly exalted him.   Philippians 2:9

Child in the manger,
Infant of Mary;
Outcast and stranger,
   Lord of all!
Child who inherits
   All our transgressions,
All our demerits
   On Him fall.

Once the most holy
   Child of salvation
Gently and lowly
   Lived below;
Now as our glorious
   Mighty Redeemer,
See Him victorious
   O'er each foe.

Prophets foretold Him,
   Infant of wonder;
Angels behold Him
   On His throne;
Worthy our Savior
   Of all their praises;
Happy forever
   Are His own.
Mary MacDonald 1817-1890
Tr Lachlan MacBean 1853-1931

Reader, take the time this season to ponder His
birth and His death together. Then go to the
first chapter of Genesis where this Baby spoke
the worlds into existence.

He is Going On

In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being
predestined according to the purpose of him who 
works all things, after the counsel of his own will.
Ephesians 1:11

We need to recover an assurance and confidence and con-
viction that, however things may seem--through all things, 
over all things, behind all things, God is pursuing His 
counsels--He is going on.

Ceaseless action, undeviating in course, with tremendous 
energy, He is working all things after the counsel of HIs 
own will.

Sometimes, as we look out, we wonder if God is doing 
anything, and in our prayer times we try to get God to do 
something. What we need is to realize that God is doing, 
and we need to get into line with His doings...

For He is going, and He is going in our day; it can be seen--
more or less--in the world. But, seen or not seen, the fact 
remains--or our Bible is not right, and Paul was mistaken! 
And I am glad always to recognize this: that when Paul 
stopped traveling about the world and had all his tremen-
dous activities among the nations curtailed, it was then that 
he saw the goings of God from eternity, it was then that he 
wrote this letter to the Ephesians, containing the eternal 
counsels of God.

It is a wonderful thing, is it not? When we are taken out 
of our work, when we cannot run about and do all sorts of 
things, when we are perhaps physically unable to do any-
thing, God is going on.

Sometimes we think that, when we stop, God has to stop,
and if we do not go, well, God will not be able to go! Oh
no, He is going on--He is going on! May we be helped to
understand His goings, and to get into His goings.
T Austin-Sparks 1888-?  God dealt with a deep prejudice
and brought this man into a deeper ministry where Christ
was always first. I have read some of his books and I love
what this man has written.

Reader, when you watch the news, see what is going on be-
hind the news, wondering what tomorrow will bring, does
not your heart sometimes sink? The author hits the nail on
the head, that no matter what we see, think, or feel, God is
going on. His will is a certainty, regardless of the things
we are experiencing. AND, old age is nothing to Him and
His purposes!

What a Savior!

For there is one God and one mediator between God
and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as 
a ransom for all men...1 Timothy 2:5, 6

What a Savior is Jesus! How fully worthy is He of our
fullest praise! He stooped to us that He might put His
hand upon us, degraded though we were, and He has
done it tenderly and graciously, so that we are not afraid.

There is no terror for us in His hand, we do not shrink
from Him. He has touched us with the touch of a man,
and bound us with the cords of love. Yet was never less
than God, and God has touched us in Him. He has put 
one hand upon us and the other is placed upon the throne 
of God, and He is the one mediator. With the one hand He
has offered the fullest satisfaction to the righteous claims
of God, and with the other He has bestowed fullness of
grace upon us. He brings us to God and gives us a place
in His presence without fear, and in everlasting peace, a
peace established upon the infallible and immoveable
foundation of divine righteousness, secured for us by a
divine person for the eternal glory of God.

Thus we are justified before God, and all our fear is re-
moved and we are free to behold the hand that has been
placed upon us, and to mark the fact it is a wounded hand:
a hand that was nail-pierced for us when He identified
Himself with us, as we stood subject to the judgement of
God, that He might save us. We know the power of this
hand too: it has smitten death for us and will not relinquish 
its hold upon us forever. He will never surrender that 
true humanity which He has taken up, and as He is, so are 
they also who are His. The purpose of God is that we 
should be conformed to His own image. And so we shall 
be, and yet never shall we forget that He is "over all, God, 
blessed forever. JT Mawson 1873-1943
Such a sweet biography:
http://www.stempublishing.com/hymns/biographies/mawson.html

Reader, I have been pondering the conception and birth of
our Savior. His beginning made the cross and our salvation
possible. "The purpose of God is that we should be con-
formed to His own image. And so we shall be..."
May your heart soar this season, and give thanks, for such
an awesome salvation that keeps on giving!

It's All in the Timing

My words...will come true at their proper time.
Luke 1:20
What the Lord has said...will be accomplished!
Luke 1:45

Matthew Henry said, We can depend on God to fulfill
His promise, even when all roads leading to it are closed.
'For no matter how many promises God has made, 
they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the 
"Amen" (so be it) is spoken by us to the glory of God.'  
(2 Corinthians 1:20)

Reader, I love these verses. My soul sings at the trust-
worthiness of God to His children. It does not depend
on what I do, but on what He does. Hallelujah! So be it!

Weariness

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men
stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength. They will soar on wings
like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they
will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:30-31

The spiritual life is not passive. Too often it may look that 
way when we speak of ceasing from ourselves and  our own 
efforts. The point is that we need to learn to live and serve 
by the power God has provided, not self-effort. A true spiri-
tual life is even more active, enlarged and vital because the 
limitless power of God energizes us. Normally the spiritual 
Christian will occupy himself with effective service for his 
Lord. We should be yielded and ready to do whatever He
may choose. Spirit-filled Christians are quite likely to feel
physical exhaustion at the close of the day the same as other
people. They are weary in the work, but not weary of the 
work.  Lewis Sperry Chafer--1871-1952

Reader, when I am being energized by the Holy Spirit rather
than my own fleshly efforts, the task seems too easy. I come
away from a day of nudges by my Lord, with a deep sense
of satisfaction. As I get older, I have to be careful to do only
what I am given by the Lord--I wear out fast, so there are
gaps in my day that He fills with His requests. Works out
very well!

Something to Ponder

Have I been so long with you, and yet have you not known 
me? John 14:9

So immensely are our lives below the mark as nominal
Christians that we have next to no idea of the distance
at which we walk from God, and when the soul is turned
to seek Him only, we discover we have been leaning on
the love and approval of others and not upon the Father's
love alone. 
George Wigram of the nineteenth century.
The following is a very powerful biography of a man that
I knew nothing about.
http://sueyounghistories.com/archives/2009/07/09/george-vicesimus-wigram-1805-–-1879/

Reader, I continue to be confronted with the church of
a previous century when there were so many men and
women who had a grip on scripture and lived out what
they taught. How is it that a man of that century felt that
the Christians were living below the mark of a nominal
Christian? With all of our toys and conveniences, how
can we really know the Father's love for us? As I talk to
others this, feeling unloved by God, comes up frequently.

Mary brought forth her first born and called Him Jesus--
Emanuel, God with us.

Settled Peace

He that believes has the witness in himself.   1John 5:10

It is absolutely essential to the enjoyment of settled peace that
the heart should rest solely on the authority of Holy Scripture.
Nothing else will stand. Inward evidence, spiritual experiences,
comfortable frames, happy feelings, are all very good, very
valuable, and very desirable; indeed we cannot prize them too
highly in the right place. But, most assuredly, their right place
is not at the foundation of the Christian position. If we look to
such things as the ground of our peace, we shall very soon be-
come clouded, uncertain and miserable.

All this is essential to Christianity, but it must, in no wise, be
confounded with the witness of the Holy Ghost, as given to
us in Holy Scripture. The Spirit of God never leads any one
to build upon His work as the ground of peace, but only on
the finished work of Christ, and the unchangeable Word of
God; and we may rest assured that the more simply we rest
on these the more settled our peace will be, and the clearer
our evidences, the richer our experience.

In short, the more we look away from self and all its belong-
ings, and rest in christ, on the clear authority of Scripture, the
more spiritually minded we shall be; and the inspired apostle
tells us that "To be spiritually minded (or, the minding of the
Spirit) is life and peace." The best evidence of a spiritual mind
in childlike repose in Christ and His Word. The clearest proof
of an unspiritual mind is self-occupation. It is a poor affair to
be trafficking in our evidences, or our anything.

It looks like piety, but it leads away from Christ--away from
Scripture--away from God; and this is not piety, or faith, or
Christianity.   CH Mackintosh

Reader, in our day, we Christians take our spiritual temperature
several times a day to see if we are doing well. However, ac-
cording to Mackintosh, this leads us away from Christ and into
idolatry. It also undermines the peace and then rest we so greatly
desire. Perhaps between Christmas and New Years there will be
time to "enter into His rest." John 15:1-11 is a wonderful passage
to linger in as a foundation for the New Year. 

Pavement of Sapphire

Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abiju, and
seventy of the elders of Israel went up, and they
saw the God of Israel. There was under their feet 
as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the
very heaven for clearness. Exodus 24:9, 10

Amid the pressures of daily life, trust the Holy Spirit,
who is emphatically the Divine Remembrancer to bring 
all things to your remembrance, and to recall you to the 
consciousness of God. There is no duty in life, however 
trivial and commonplace, that may not be dignified by 
being rendered to God, as our service. This is indeed the 
secret of lifting all life to a noble and happy elevation. 
To do all for the Lord Jesus; to see Him standing behind 
every human relationship; to do the meanest and most 
irksome things because He takes them as service ren-
dered to Him. for which He will give reward--this is the 
Christian life, this makes the presence of God real, this 
dignifies the sweeping of a room...

Equally in our hours of recreation we may set the Lord,
always before us. Remember that it is said of the elders
of Israel that they saw Jehovah, and there was under his 
feet as it were the paved work of sapphire stone; they be-
held God, and did eat and drink... Happiest are they who 
are so at rest in Him that they do not hesitate to perform 
the natural functions of life with perfect ease, though all 
the while they recognize that He is nearer than hands or 
feet, nearer than breathing! The sense of God's presence 
would check immodesty, levity, self-indulgence, excess 
in eating or drinking, whilst it would give a new zest to 
all that was natural and innocent.  FB Meyer

Reader, there is a place of rest in service and in fun. The
Holy Spirit is able to keep God before you as you go
about your daily tasks. What an awesome God we have!
He does not want us to live independently from Him.

Great Encouragement

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, 
but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the 
twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the 
trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised 
imperishable, and we shall be changed.
I Corinthians 15:51,52

When scripture speaks of a mystery, it means that
God has kept it hidden in previous ages, but now
is made known. Paul outdoes himself in revealing
the mystery in this chapter:

If in this life only we have hope in christ, we are all 
men most miserable...
For as in Adam all die, 
even so in Christ all shall be made alive...
As we have been born the image of the man of dust, 
we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man...
The sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the 
law. But thanks be to God, who gives us  the victory 
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Reader, we have victory in Christ in this life, and eternal
victory through Christ and what He has done for us. The
very next event on the prophetic clock is the "Catching
away of the Saints," also called "The Rapture." Last even-
ing Glen and I watched a You Tube video which gave us
much joy and great expectation of the nearness of our
Lord's coming. If you are watching the news and have be-
come anxious about outcomes, take a few minutes and
watch the interview of this old saint, David Reagan, and
be greatly encouraged.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1KXiV73K3E

For the Lord will descend from heaven with a shout, 
with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet 
of God. And the dead will rise first then we who are 
alive and remain shall be caught up together with them 
in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we
shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore, comfort one another with these words!!!
(Share this post...)  1 Thessalonians 4

No Condemnation

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those
who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1

If God announces the gift of righteousness apart from 
works, why do you keep mourning over your bad works 
your failures? Do you not see that it is because you still
have hopes in these works of yours that you are depressed
and discouraged by their failure? If you truly saw and be-
lived that God is reckoning righteous the ungodly who 
believe on Him, you would fairly hate your struggles to
be "better;" for you would see that your dreams of good
works have not at all commended you to God, and that
your bad works do not at all hinder you from believing
on Him--that He justifies the ungodly. 

Therefore, on seeing your failures, you should say, I am
nothing but a failure; but God is dealing with me on 
another principle altogether than my works, good or bad--
a principle not involving my works, but based only on the
work of Christ for me. I am anxious, indeed, to be pleasing
to God and to be filled with His Spirit; but I am not at all
justified, or accounted righteous, by these things. God, in
justifying me, acted wholly and only on Christ's blood-
shedding on my behalf. 

I had justification from God as a sinner, not as a saint! 
My saintliness does not increase it, nor, praise God, do 
my failures decrease it! William R Newell

Reader, it is almost impossible for us to move from a works
based religion to a faith based justification by the work of
Christ on the cross. Every world religion is based on merit
through works, but not Christianity. If we are IN Christ
there is nothing more to be done to be good in God's eyes.
Oh, that we would be free from legalism that binds!

The Wonder of Christmas

God also hath highly exalted him...
Philippians 2:9

Child in the manger,
Infant of Mary;
Outcast and stranger,
   Lord of all!
Child who inherits
All our transgressions,
All our demerits
   On him fall.

 Once the most holy
child of salvation
Gently and lowly
   Lived below;
Now as our glorious
Mighty Redeemer,
See Him victorious
   O'er each foe.

Prophets foretold Him,
Infant of wonder;
Angels behold Him
   On His throne;
Worthy our Savior
Of all their praises;
Happy forever
   Are His own.
Mary MacDonald 1817-1890

Reader, I am having a hard time viewing the
babe this year. Lots of lights and decorations,
but where is the purpose for the celebration?

Transferred and Victorious

I have given you authority to trample on snakes and
scorpions, and to overcome all the power of the ene-
my; nothing will harm you. Luke 10:19

Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, as twin
events, certain definite issues in the conflict between God
and Satan were met and eternally settled. The victory over
Satan was fully and finally won which robbed him of the
last vestige of claim to sovereignty over the earth or the
race. He is henceforth a usurper and a thief. Jesus Christ
gained back all that had been lost and now the earth and
all that is therein are His not only by the right of creation
but by right of conquest.

To the believer in Jesus Christ it means that the sovereignty
of Satan over his life is ended and the sovereignty of God
begins; that he leaves the sphere of sin and death, darkness
and disorder, and enters the sphere of righteousness, life,
light and liberty; that he ceases to be a subject in the king-
dom of Satan and becomes a subject in the Kingdom of God,
and avows his allegiance as a member of Christ's Body the
Church, to Christ Himself who is its Head.

It means, in other words, that the old creation with all that
pertains to it ends at the cross and is buried in the tomb and
that a new creation comes forth in the resurrection.

It means that the old relationship with sin, self and Satan is
altogether annulled and a new union with God in Christ Jesus
is made, and that in this new relationship Christ becomes not
only the believer's Savior  but his Lord and his Life.
Ruth Paxson--died in October, 1949

Reader, it is so easy to forget that we have been transferred from
"The kingdom of darkness, to the Kingdom of God's dear Son,"
the Kingdom of Light. We look the same; we feel the same, but
we are not the same. The resurrected Lord now indwells us, and
that is why we can now live a victorious Christian life!

For Those Who Wait

Blessed are those who wait for him! Isaiah 30:18

We often hear about waiting on God, which actually 
means that he is waiting until we are ready. There is
another side, however. When we wait for God, we 
are waiting until He is ready.

Some people say, and many more believe, that as soon 
as we meet all His conditions, God will answer our 
prayer. They teach that He lives in an eternal now, that
with Him there is no past or future, and that if we can
fulfill all He requires to be obedient to His will, imme-
diatly our needs will me met, our desires satisfied,
and our prayers answered.

While there is much truth in this belief, it expresses only
one side of the truth. God does live in an eternal now,
yet He works out His purposes over time. A petition pre-
sented to God is like a seed dropped in the ground. 
Forces above and beyond our control must work on it 
until the actual accomplishment of the answer.
From, The Still Small Voice

Reader, there are many of you, including myself, who
have been waiting on God for something tangible for
many years. Truly, "there are forces above and beyond
our control" that are in the mix as to time and place. I
encourage you to be faithful in trusting the God who
has spoken to you about the matter.

The Refiner's Fire

For He will be like a refiner's fire...Malachi 3:2b

How does the Holy Spirit purify? He purifies by separation.
That is how the refiner purifies his metal. In Malachi 3, the
refiner is sitting before the crucible in which is the precious
silver.  

How does the refiner know that his metal is ready for him
to use? Well, he sits there; he tempers the fire and then as
the hard silver is made liquid and the fire operates, and the
dross gradually comes to the surface, he keeps on separating 
the dross from the silver; skims the surface as the dross is 
forced out of the metal through the action of the fire. He 
skims the surface, removes the dross, and when ultimately 
he sees his face reflected in the molten metal, he knows that 
it is ready.

The Holy Spirit sits alongside the crucible of your life and 
mine, and as the fire, He keeps separating  the dross from 
the metal, and He will keep on with holy work until He can 
see his face of the Lord He loves to magnify and glorify. 
Fire purifies. 

Take the illustration of the great plague in London. In 1665 
they walked through he streets and cried, "Bring out your 
dead; bring out your dead." And through the plague multi-
tudes died. The plague was followed by the great fire of 
1666, and as the result of the great fire, something happened.
The whole city was purged of the dread disease. But some-
thing els happened. The fire not only destroyed germs bring-
ing death to myriads, but it penetrated the soil. It warmed
the soil and after a while, unknown flowers sprang up from 
long, deeply buried seeds. The warming of the soil made 
possible the wonderful fertility of the seeds. That is the great
work of the Holy Spirit. 

There are some who have within them the long-buried seeds
of divine truth, and then the Holy Spirit operates, and as the
Spirit of Fire He destroys the plague of sin. Then He pene-
trates and warms the soil causing the life to bear fruit to the
glory of God. Henry Lockyer

Reader, I came across this reading many years ago when my
life was falling apart. It encouraged me so greatly that I real-
ized that my life was not falling apart, but falling together.

Human Nature Fails Us

Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.
2 Corinthians 10:17

On this planet earth, since the cross, and not before, God is 
pleased to make His people to be His habitation. He came 
down in the person of Christ, but  Christ abode alone as far 
as the dwelling-place of God was concerned.

It is not because the New Testament saints are more worthy 
in themselves than those of old. He that knows himself and
redemption knows that such an idea is a fallacy and a false-
hood; he knows that human nature is good for nothing as be-
fore God; he knows that, in His presence, there is no question
of flesh, or what flesh can glory in. 

But this is not all; not only is there a Lord to glory in, but now 
we have actual redemption in Christ through His blood. How
does God estimate the precious blood of His Son? What does
He feel about those on whom that blood is put by faith--those
who are washed in it? Does He not as it were say, "I can come
now and take my place in their midst?" This is indeed one of
the precious characteristics of the church. William Kelly

Reader, human nature which is called "flesh" in the Bible, can-
not be redeemed, but we constantly look at how we are doing
to see if we are getting better. We, in ourselves, will never get
any better, but our redemption is never dependent on our ef-
forts but upon the redeeming blood of Christ, and the work of
the cross. Because of this I have become His dwelling place.
I can creep close into the down of His wings. He becomes my
place of rest. (Why do I wait until I am at my wits end?)

Not Overwork, But Overflow

He saw the disciples straining at the oars. Mark 6:48

Straining and striving does not accomplish the work God
gives us to do. Only God Himself, who always works 
without stress and strain and who never overworks, can 
do the work He assigns to His children. When we rest-
fully trust Him to do it, the work will be completed and 
will be done well. And the way to let Him do His work
through us is to so fully abide in Christ by faith that He
fills us to overflowing.

A man who learned this secret once said, "I came to Je-
sus and drank, and I believe I will never be thirsty again. 
My life's motto has become "Not overwork, but overflow,"
and it has already made the difference in my life."

There is no straining effort in an overflowing life, and it
is quietly irresistible. It is the normal life of omnipotent
and ceaseless accomplishment into which Christ invites
each of us to enter--today and always.
from Sunday School Times

Reader, I can tell now when I am not at rest, for it drains
me dry and I shrivel up into an exhausted ball. I used to
be able to push through, but now, unless the Holy Spirit
is working through me, all is dust and ashes. 

Grace Triumphs Death

I give them eternal life and they shall never perish; 
no one can snatch them out of my hand. John 10:28

The way to heaven is as free as the way to hell. In hell
there is an accuser, but in heaven there is no one to con-
demn. The only being in the universe of God who has
a right to judge the sinner is now exalted to be a Savior.
Amid the wonders and terrors of that throne, He is a
Savior, and He is sitting there in grace.

The Savior shall yet become the Judge, but judgement
waits on grace. Sin has reigned, and death can boast its
victories, but shall grace not have its triumphs too?

As surely as the sin of man brought forth death, the grace
of God shall bring eternal life to every sinner who be-
lieves. One sin brought death, but grace masters all sin.
If sin abounded, grace abounds far more. Grace is con-
queror. GRACE REIGNS.

Not at the expense of righteousness, but in virtue of it.
Righteousness requires the sinner's death, and yet grace
has intervened to give him life. Righteousness itself has
set grace upon the throne in order that the sinner may
have life: "That as sin has reigned unto death, even so
might grace reign, through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Sir Robert Anderson

Reader, what a glorious day of thanksgiving when a
sinner, who recognizes his condition, repents and
receives the grace that gives him eternal life!

Those Who Have Not Seen

Blessed are those who have not seen, yet have believed.
John 20:29

How important it is for God to keep us focused on things
that are unseen, for we are so easily snared by the things
we can see! If Peter was ever going to walk on the water, 
he had to walk, but if he was going to swim to Jesus, he
had to swim. He could not do both. If a bird is going to
fly, it must stay away from fences and trees, trusting the
buoyancy of its wings. And if it tries to stay within easy
reach of the ground, it will never fly very well.

God had to bring Abraham to the end of his own strength
and let him see that with his own body he could do noth-
ing. He had to consider his body "as good as dead" 
(Heb 11:12) and then trust God to do all the work. When
he looked away from himself and trusted only God, he
became "fully persuaded that God had power to do what
he had promised." (Rom 4:21)

This is what God is teaching us, and He has to keep results 
that are encouraging away from us until we learn to trust 
Him without them. Then He loves to make His Word as real 
to us in actuality as it is in our faith.
AB Simpson 1844-1919

Reader, these days we have visuals of just about every-
thing at our fingertips. I have been in very few churches
that cast themselves on God for a thing. Most of the patri-
archs suffered for years as they awaited the promise.
Those in the first century who stopped waiting, stopped
watching, missed their Messiah. God will fulfill all of
His promises--without our help. That is the kicker!

The Way of the Cross

It has been granted to you...to suffer for him.
Phil 1:29

The world's finest china is fired in ovens at least three
times, and some many more. Dresden china is always
fired three times. Why is it forced to endure such in-
tense heat? Shouldn't once or twice be enough? No, it
is necessary to fire the china three times so the gold,
crimson, and other colors are brighter, more beautiful,
and permanently attached.

We are fashioned after the same principle. The human
trials of life are burned into us numerous times, and 
through God's grace, beautiful colors are formed in us
and made to shine forever. Cortland Myers

Reader, Oh, dear reader, all of what you are suffering
will be permanently etched into you and bring glory
to God through all of eternity.

Happening Now

Jesus said, "When you see these things beginning
to happen, you can know that my return is near,
even at the doors...So be prepared, for you don't
know what day your Lord is coming.
Matt 24:33, 42

Reader, I just watched a duo who, on November 13th,
laid out all the things that have taken place in the last
eight days that have prophetic implication. They are
both from California and shared some incredible things
related to the two big fires. Some of you may be snow
bound this weekend, but others may have an hour free
to watch the video. It is definitely worth your while!

Jack Hibbs and Don Stewart teaching on current events
and how things going on now, line up with prophecy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjQ91QHERqk

His Wonderful Deeds

Others went out on the sea in ships; they were mer-
chants on the mighty waters. They saw the works
of the Lord, his wonderful deeds in the deep.
Psalm 107:23, 24

Remember, our faith is always at its greatest point when 
we are in the middle of the trial, and confidence in the
flesh will never endure testing. Fair-weather faith is not
faith at all. Charles Spurgeon

May our prayer be that of an old Englishman: "O Lord,
send us into deep water of the the sea, for we are so close
to shore that even a small breeze from the Devil could
break our ship to pieces on the rocks. Again, Lord, send
us into the deep water of the sea, where there will be
plenty of room to win a glorious victory."
Mark Guy Pearse

Reader, every day now I wake up to storm clouds on the
horizon. It is indeed difficult these days to know the truth
in any given situation depicted by the media--any media!
I would rather be out to sea where God controls the wind
and the waves, than to be cruising just off shore. So, take
courage, dear heart, and trust your heavenly Father who
still controls the events on earth. And, look up, for your
redemption draws near.
Come, Lord Jesus.

By Faith Abraham Obeyed

By faith Abraham...obeyed and went, even though
he did not know where he was going.  Heb 11:8

This is faith without sight. Seeing is not faith but rea-
soning. When crossing the Atlantic by ship, I once
observed this very principle of faith. I saw no path
marked out in the sea, nor could I even see the shore.
Yet each day, we marked our progress on a chart as
if we had been following a giant chalk line across the
water. And when we came within sight of land on the
other side of the Atlantic, we knew exactly where we
were, as if we had been able to see it from 3,000 miles
away.

How had our course been so precisely plotted? Every
day our captain had taken his instruments, looked to
the sky, and determined his course by the sun. He was
sailing using heavenly lights, not earthly ones.

Genuine faith also looks up and sails, by using God's
great Son. It never travels by seeing the shoreline,
earthly lighthouses, or paths along the way. And the
steps of faith often lead to total uncertainty or even
makes the darkest of midnight hours as bright as the
dawning of the day.

Let us move forth today, not knowing or seeing, but
trusting.   From Days of Heaven upon Earth

Jesus wondered that at His coming would He find
faith on the earth? Sometimes I wonder if we are
at that point. "Seeing is believing" in our culture.

A Narrow Winding Path

The Lord alone led him. Deuteronomy 32:12

The hill was steep, but cheered along the way
By conversation sweet, climbing with the thought
That it might be so till the height was reached;
But suddenly a narrow winding path
Appeared, and then the Master said, "My child,
Here you will walk safest with Me alone."

I trembled, yet my heart's deep trust replied,
"So be it, Lord." He took my feeble hand
In His, accepting thus my will to yield Him
All, and to find all in Him.
One long, dark moment,
And no friend I saw, save Jesus only.

But oh! so tenderly He led me on
And up, and spoke to me such works of cheer,
Such secret whisperings of His wondrous love,
That soon I told Him all my grief and fear,
And leaned on His strong arm confidingly.

And then I found my footsteps quickened,
And light unspeakable, the rugged way
Illumined, such light as only can be seen
In close companionship with God.

A little while, and we will meet again
The loved and lost; but in the rapturous joy
Of greetings, such as here we cannot know,
And happy song, and heavenly embraces,
And tender recollections rushing back
Of life now passed, I think one memory
More dear and sacred than the rest, will rise,
And we who gather in the golden streets,
Will oft be stirred to speak with grateful love
Of that dark day Jesus called us to climb
Some narrow steep, leaning on Him alone.
LB Cowman

Reader, I dedicate this poem to all who have
lost loved ones, who weep in the night. But,
especially to one dear friend who lost the
love of her life in recent days. 

Outrageous Faith

I have faith in God that it will happen just as he 
told me. Acts 27:25

A number of years ago I went to America with a steam-
ship captain who was a very devoted Christian. When
we were off the coast of Newfoundland, he said to me,
"The last time I sailed here, which was five weeks ago,
something happened that revolutionized my entire 
Christian life. I had been on the bridge for 24 hours
straight when George Mueller of Bristol, England, 
who was a passenger on board, came to me and said, 
'Captain I need to tell youth I must be in Quebec on
Saturday afternoon.' I replied, 'That is impossible.'
'Very well,' Mueller responded, 'If your ship cannot
take me, God will find some other way, for I have
never missed an engagement in fifty-seven years. Let's
go down to the chartroom to pray.'

"I looked at this man of God and thought to myself,
'What a lunatic asylum did he escape from?' I had never
encountered someone like this. 'Mr Mueller,' I said,
'Do you not realize how dense the fog is?' He replied,
'No. My eye is not on the dense fog, but on the living
God, who controls every circumstance of my life.'

"He then knelt down and prayed one of the most simple
prayers I have ever heard. When he had finished, I 
started to pray but he put his hand on my shoulder and
told me not to pray. He said, 'First, you do not believe
God will answer, and second, I BELIEVE HE HAS.
Consequently, there is no need whatsoever for you to
pray about it.

"As I looked at him, he said, 'Captain, I have known my
Lord for 57 years, and there has never been even a single
day that I have failed to get an audience with the King.
Get up, Captain, and open the door and you will see that
the fog is gone.' I got up, and indeed the fog was gone. 
And on Saturday afternoon George Mueller was at the
afternoon meeting in Quebec. 

Reader, this is one of the most encouraging things I
have read in a long time. I have a promise from God
but have wondered, as the years went on, if I needed
to fast and pray more to see it answered, but the verse
above has answered that burning question: "I have
faith in God that it will happen just as He told me."
God has spoken and He will do it. Hallelujah!

lacking Wisdom

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask of God...
James 1:5-8

An open door in service is from the Lord and not from 
man. We may therefore, be independent of man alto-
gether, and we shall be if we keep our eyes wholly 
upon the Lord, remembering He always gets an open 
door before us if we keep His word and do not deny 
His Name.  Edward Dennett 1831-1914

I know your works and what you are doing. See! I 
have set before you an open door, which no one is
able to shut. Revelation 3:8

Reader, our lives are crazy these days because we
don't stop and ask God about the thing. We just
keep adding to our schedule. One of the indications
of the lateness of the hour is that the "Enemy is 
wearing out the Saints."

Peace

Being justified by faith, we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1

I hear the words of love,
I gaze upon the blood,
I see the mighty sacrifice,
And I have peace with God.

'Tis everlasting peace!
Sure as Jehovah's name;
'Tis stable as His steadfast throne,
For evermore the same.

The clouds may come and go,
And storms may sweep my sky--
This blood-sealed friendship changes
     not:
The cross is ever nigh.

My love is oft times low,
My joy still ebbs and flows;
But peace with Him remains the same--
No change Jehovah knows.

I change, He changes not,
The Christ can never die;
His love, not mine, the resting place,
His truth, not mine, the tie.
Horatius Bona 1808-89

Reader, I LOVE the old hymns because they contain
so many truths from the pens of Godly men and wo-
men. They fill my heart with hope and a re-assurance
of where I stand with God. May this hymn give you
peace today.

What is Needed

It is not in me. Job 28:14

I remember saying one summer, "What I really need
is a trip to the ocean." So I went to the beach, but the
ocean seemed to say, "It is not in me!" The ocean did
not do for me what I thought it would. Then I said,
"Perhaps the mountains will provide the rest I need."
I went to the mountains, and when I awoke the first
morning, I gazed at the magnificent mountain I had
longed to see. But the sight did not satisfy, and the
mountain said, "It is not in me!"

What I really needed was the deep ocean of God's
love, and the high mountain of His truth within me.
His wisdom had depths and heights that neither the
ocean nor the mountains could contain and that could
not be compared with jewels, gold, or precious stones.
Christ is wisdom and He is our deepest need. Our
inner restlessness can only be pacified by the revela-
tion of His eternal friendship and love for us.
Margaret Bottome

Reader, how often we look forward to some wonder-
ful event, and when it happens, it leaves us flat. As
a child I soon realized that the anticipation often out-
weighted the doing of it. True satisfaction is knowing
that "Christ is our deepest need."

Patiently

I waited patiently for the Lord. Psalm 40:1

Once we learn to wait for the Lord's leading in
everything, we will know the strength that finds
its highest point in an even and steady walk. 
Many are lacking strength we so desire, but God
gives complete power for every task. He calls us
to perform. Waiting--keeping yourself faithful to
His leading--this is the secret of strength. And 
anything that does not align with obedience to
Him is a waste of time and energy. Watch and
wait for His leading. Samuel Dickey Gordon

The rest of the verse at the top goes on to say:
And He inclined to me, and heard my cry. I
have found that my life has been lived in many
vestibules--waiting. Right now I am eagerly wait-
ing for His coming, but walking the path that He
has laid out for me--while rejoicing!

Victorious Living

Commit thy way unto the Lord; Trust also in Him
and he shall bring it to pass.  Ps 37:5

Victorious living is the heritage of every believer. It 
is supernatural. It is the life that Christ came to give.
The same Lord who lived in his sinless humanity on
earth over 1900 years ago now dwells in the heart of
everyone who has received him as Savior.

Are you thanking the Father that Jesus Christ came
and clothed himself with your humanity the moment
you believed in him? Are you counting on the fact
that because you put your trust in Christ, he, in you,
is equal to every situation and every circumstance as
it arises? Are you now meeting every circumstance,
every temptation by saying, "Thank you, Lord Jesus,
for your all-sufficiency?

God says your whole life is to be abandoned to him.
How simple it is to put God in charge to live his life
in and through you, so he can bring to pass that which
is his perfect will for you. Then you will live positive-
ly and productively. Then he will bring it to pass.
Ethel Jones Wilcox--I can't find the dates but since
she said we were 1900 years from the birth of Christ,
she probably lived in the early 20th century. She was
the author of Power for Christian Living.

Reader, I need to be reminded of where I come from,
on a regular basis and that, "He is equal to every situa-
tion and every circumstance as it arises..." which even
includes the training of a puppy!

Yielded

Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said,
"We ought to obey God rather than men." Acts 5:29

Has the Spirit borne witness that you are to do a cer-
tain work for God? As you heed that impression and
pray over it, does it become deeper and more indelible
on your heart? As you yield toward the carrying out
of that impression does there come a deep and settled
peace to your soul? If so, it is the leading of the Holy
Spirit.

...Has there been a time in your life when you came
to the place where it became your fixed intention to
surrender everything to the will of God and working
of the Spirit? Is it right to expect God to lead you to
the field of His choice if you have already determined
in your own heart where you want to go? If you really
want His guidance, you have to be ready to put your-
self in His hands and gladly follow His directions,
wherever they may lead. Does selfish ambition enter
into your plans, the desire for recognition and praise
from other Christians? It is better, and infinitely more
satisfying to please God than men.
G Christian Weiss
G. CHRISTIAN WEISS was director of the 
Gospel Missionary Union as well as director of 
missions for the Back to the Bible broadcast. 
Dr. Weiss also served as a missionary in 
North Africa and was well known for his clear and 
simple explanation of the Bible's message in nu-
merous books and booklets.

Reader, surrender to God, not to the situation, is
the beginning of freedom.

Quicksand

If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into
the pit. Matthew 15:14

It is a fatal mistake to suppose that, in order to pluck
people out of the fire, we must go into the fire our-
selves. This would never do. The best way to deliver
people from an evil position is to be thoroughly out
of that position myself.

How can I best pull a man out of quicksand? Surely
not by going into the quicksand, but by standing on
firm ground and from thence lending him a helping
hand. I cannot pull a man out of anything unless I
am out myself. If we want to help the people of God
who are mixed up with the surrounding ruin, the first
thing for ourselves is to be in thorough and decided
separation; and the next thing is to have our hearts
brimful and flowing over with tender and fervent love
to all who bear the precious name of Jesus.
CH Mackintosh 1820-1896--An Irishman was one of
the most prolific Brethren writers. He is still widely
read today. Check out his biography:
https://www.mybrethren.org/bios/framchm.htm

Reader, I am finding that most of my days go differently
than planned. It seems to me that time is flying and I
am, somehow, running to catch up with myself. It has
crossed my mind to cut something out--like the blog?
No, that is His desire, not my choice. However, the
numbers have fallen way down lately and the comments
are removed almost as soon as they are posted, so I
am pretty sure that this site is being shadow banned.
Please hit "like" on my FB page. I don't have any idea
of how many are accessing it either on FB or google.

Revival

Reader, we are in difficult times, not only here but
all around the world. Every day we get to watch
crazy, unheard of things from the persecution of
the church to the coming election. Things are not
what we in the west would call, "normal." How-
ever I think it is giving us an opportunity to find
out what really matters and it is a call to prayer.

Here is what I have been praying:

O Breath of Life come sweeping through us
Revive Thy church with life and power.
O Breath of Life, come cleanse renew us
And fit Thy church to meet this hour.

O wind of God, come bend us, break us
Till humbly we confess our need;
Then in Thy tenderness remake us
Revive, restore, for this we plead.

O Breath of love, come breathe within us,
Renewing thought and will and heart.
Come, love of Christ afresh to win us,
Revive Thy church in every part.

Revive us Lord! Is zeal abating
While harvest fields are vast and white?
Revive us Lord the world is waiting,
Equip Thy church to spread the light
Bessie Porter Head  1850-1936

First the revival of the church;
then salvation can come to the
world around us.

Asking

You do not have because you do not ask God...
James 4:2b

True praying involves serious attention and time,
which flesh and blood do not relish. Few people
have such strong fiber that they will make a costly
outlay when inferior work will pass just as well 
in the marketplace.

To be little with God is to be little for God. It takes
much time for the fullness of God to flow into the 
spirit. Short devotions cut the pipe of God's full 
flow. We live shabbily because we pray meagerly. 
This is not a day of prayer. Few men pray. In these 
days of hurry and bustle men will not take the time 
to pray. Prayer is out-of-date, almost a lost art. 
EM Bounds 1835-1913
He was a minister in the American Methodist
Episcopal Church. He served as a captain in the
Confederate Army. Today he's best known for
his many books on prayer, especially,
Power Through Prayer 

Reader, if it was true then, just how more true it is
now. We live in dangerous times full of anxiety--
admit it--and we desperately need a powerful move
of God in this nation.

Without Strength

For when we were without strength, at the right time,
Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die
for a righteous person--though perhaps for a good per-
son one would dare to die--BUT GOD shows His love
for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died
for us

Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his
blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the
wrath of God.

For if while we were ENEMIES we were reconciled
to God by the death of His Son, MUCH MORE, now
that we are reconciled, shall we be saved my His life.
Romans 5:6-10

Grace is not looking for good men whom it may ap-
prove, for it is not grace but mere justice to approve
goodness. But it is looking for condemned, guilty,
speechless and helpless men whom it may save, sanc-
tify and glorify. C I Scofield--1843-1921
Scofield was a lawyer and Confederate army officer
before his conversion.

I found several biographies and discovered that just
like John Newton, it took him awhile to actually live
as one who is saved. He discovered in himself total
helplessness to live the Christian life. However, God
took this fleshly lump of clay and worked in Him some-
thing that staggers. He is the CI Scofield that put
together the Scofield Bible that is still cherished today.

https://www.gotquestions.org/C-I-Scofield.html

Reader, the verses above are beyond comprehending,
but try...

Fellowship

...and our fellowship is with the Father and with 
His Son, Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:3b

You must abide in Christ in heaven before you can
descend with heavenly ability to act for Him down
here. The great secret of all blessing is to come from
the Lord. Most Christians go to Him.
AJ--Nothing is known abut him.

Reader, what does it mean that we descend with
heavenly ability? Don't we live down here?
Check out this verse:

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us 
up with him in heavenly places in Christ Jesus...
Ephesians 2:6

WOW!

Be Filled

...Be filled with the Spirit. Ephesians 5:18b

The promise of the Spirit is not for great or exceptional 
Christians, but for any Christian who yields himself to God. 
Paul addressed everyday Christian believers at Ephesus: 
husband, wife, parent, child, master, slave. He encouraged 
all to live lives full of the divine Holy Spirit, full from within.

What this command to be filled with the Spirit meant in 
Ephesus, it means in England, it means to the one who 
is writing these words in his study at Cambridge, and to 
his brother in Christ who reads them, wherever and when-
ever God has bid him dwell.
Hendley Moule 1841-1920
Moule was a popular leader of the evangelical wing of the
Church of England and a speaker at Keswick conventions.

I must be filled. It is absolutely necessary.
I may be filled. God has made it blessedly possible.
I want to be filled. It is eminently desirable.
I will be filled. It is so blessedly certain.
Andrew Murray 1828-1917
Murray was a South African clergyman who strongly in-
fluenced the missionary movement to South Africa. Today
he is largely remembered for his many devotional books,
still in print and still strong sellers.

Seek Him First

But seek first the kingdom of God and his
righteousness, and all these things will be
given to you as well. Matthew 6:33

Once it was a blessing,
Now it is the Lord;
Once it was a feeling,
Now it is His Word;
Once His gift I wanted,
Now the Giver own;
Once I sought for healing,
Now Himself alone.
WM Trumbull

Reader, this is a good word for today!

He Delights In You

How many of you believe that God delights in you?
Most of us feel that He tolerates us on a good day.
I watched a You Tube video this afternoon on this
very subject and rather than trying to summarize it,
I will post it below. Malcolm Smith is one of my
favorite teachers. He can get more out of one verse
of scripture than anyone I know. I once was at a
conference where he taught on one verse for one
hour, at least four times. And, each talk was differ-
ent in its emphasis. What was the verse?

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind 
is stayed on thee:  because he trusteth in thee.
Isaiah 26:3 King James

"He Delights in you" out of Luke 15
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfWp8jF9bLc

Perfected Forever

And they went in, went in male and female of all
flesh, as God had commanded him: and the Lord
shut him in.  Gen 7:16

Just as with Noah, how completely has God shut us
in a place of better blessing, by a covenant of His
own blood! There can then be no more offering for
sin--because there has been remission of all the be-
liever's sins and iniquities; but the blessing does not
stop here; the knowledge of the remission sets a
man apart to and for God--saying to him, as it were,
"You need look for nothing more either to cleanse
you or to make you meet. I, the Blood, am all you
want as to the question of acceptance: By Me you are
perfected for ever; go, go away from thinking about
self; go, go and serve God; for you are set apart to
Him--yes, perfected for Him. Let Him be your study,
your delight, your end in everything you do, or think,
or say."  George V Wigram  1805-1874

Here is a good biography:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Wigram

Why Are You So Afraid?

"Don't you care if we perish...?" Mark 4:38

Many of you have read the story of Jesus sending the
boats and His disciples to the other side after a grueling
day of ministry. He lay down in the back of the boat
on a cushion and fell deeply asleep. Suddenly a furious
squall came up with waves pouring into the vessels.
These seasoned fishermen were terrified and resentment
rose within. "What's wrong with Jesus?  He is still sleep-
ing and we are about to drown! So, they shake him and
say, "Don't you care...?"

Jesus, does not answer them but stands in that rocking
boat and says something like, "stop" to the wind and
then speaks three words to the waves, "Peace, be still"

He then turns to His disciples--wimps everyone--and
says, "Why are you so afraid? Don't you even yet have
confidence in me?"

Reader, it is so easy to go from great joy and confidence
to descent into fear. Some days it comes with the morn-
ing coffee and the news....

God has not given us a spirit of fear, 
but of power, love and a sound mind!

Fulness of Joy

You will show me the the path of life;
In Your presence is fulness of joy;
At your right hand are pleasures
    Forevermore. Psalm 16:11

In His presence is fulness of joy, and fulness of joy
is nowhere else. Just as the simple presence of the
mother makes the child's joy, so does the simple
fact of God's presence make our joy. The mother
may not make a single promise to the child or ex-
plain any of her plans or purposes, but she is, and
that is enough for the child. The child rejoices in
the mother herself, not in her promises. And to the
child there is behind all that changes and can change,
the one unchangeable joy of the mother's existence.
While the mother lives, the child will be cared for,
and the child instinctively, if not intelligently, re-
joices in knowing this.

And to the children of God as well there is behind all
that changes and can change, the once unchangeable
joy that God is. And while He is, His children will 
be cared for, and they ought to know it and rejoice in
it as instinctively and far more intelligently than the
child of human parents. What can God do, being what
He is? Neglect, indifference, forgetfulness, ignorance
are all impossible to Him. He knows everything. He
cares about everything. He can manage everything.
AND, He loves us! Hannah Whitall Smith

Reader, we saw some heartbreaking stories today of
children who have become Christians in hostile coun-
tries, but who will not not renounce their faith. They
have nothing. The parent they love is sometimes not
available to them, and school, for some is not  possible.
Yet, they cannot go back. The joy of the Lord, and His
protection His compassion sustains them.
They know they are loved. 

The Penny Dropped

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerers. 

Romans 8:37

What are these things? Tribulations, distresses, famine,

persecutions...For your sake we are killed all the day

long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 

(35,36.) The Amplified says that "we gain a surpassing 

victory through Him who loved us." Paul prays a 

prayer for the Ephesians church, Eph 1:17-23, in which he 

asks God that He "would give to them a spirit of wisdom 

and understanding, that the eyes of their understanding 

being enlightened they would know what is the exceed-
ing greatness of His power toward us who believe, 

according to the working of mighty power which He 

worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead..."

Surpassing victory, exceeding greatness, the working of 

mighty power, resurrection power!!!!!!

Reader, the penny has dropped. These thoughts are new

to me. For the past few days I have been pondering why 

Major Ian Thomas went from a discouraged legalist to 

a mighty force for God. Well, He discovered by reading 

scripture that within him was the resurrection power of 

His risen Lord! This understanding allowed him to move 

from failure to victory. He saw the Christian life as a 

challenge, as is the invigorating challenge of rock climb-

ing or shooting the rapids in spring. Most of the Centers 

He set up are located in an areas that offer physical chal-

lenges. Students come and study the Bible and then parti-

cipate in activities that stretch the mind and body. The 

physical and spiritual are then integrated. Most of the stu-

dents are on the younger side--those who want to be doing 

meaningful, difficult things. 

If you have not looked into this or if you want to know 

more about this man and what he birthed--as well as what 

continues through his four sons--check out the site below.
https://torchbearers.org

Now I wake up and say, "Lord within me is your power,
your resurrection power. May I live it out today."

An Exhilarating Life

Yesterday I shared a quote by Major Ian Thomas. I was
impressed with what I read about him and what he acom-
plished in his lifetime--and how it has been passed down
to the next generation. Here is part of his testimony:

"By the age of 19, every moment of my day was packed
tight with doing things. Thus by the age of 19, I had been
reduced to a state of complete spiritual exhaustion, until
I felt that there was no going on..."

"In my despair I discovered that the Lord Jesus Christ
gave Himself FOR me, so that risen from the dead, He 
might give Himself TO me, He who IS the Christian life. 
I learned to say, 'Lord Jesus, I can't, You never said  I 
could, but You can, and always you said you would. 
That is all I know.'  From that moment life became the 
adventure that God always intended it to be."

You can read his whole testimony by clicking into the
website and then scrolling down to "Learn more about 
Major W Ian Thomas." Today I looked more deeply into
the website and visited some of the 25 camps. It seems
that Major combined the Christian life with adventures
outside and he had a great love for young people.

https://torchbearers.org/who-we-are/history/

He and his wife gathered Christian men and women at
the end of the WW 2 and shared the truth that Christ is 
Life. That He, the resurrected Lord lives within and that
He desires to be our power. It had an amazing impact on
the young people who named the experience as becoming
"Torchbearers" of His light. It is interesting to me that all
four of his son's and their wives joined the ministry which
continues to this day. Thomas died in 2007 at 92 but his
wife is still alive.

Reader, it was in 2005 that I came across the truth that
there is another way to live the Christian life that is not
connected to "oughts." I had plenty of intellectual know-
ledge but it seemed disconnected from my heart and I
was desperately dry. In the process I came across the
books of men like, T Austen-Sparks, Andrew Murray,
Watchman Nee, Oswald Chambers and others who under-
stood that we--
"have been crucified with Christ. (past tense.)
And now it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in 
me..."

Are you terribly dry and tired of trying to be a Christian?

A Letter

You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts,
known and read by everybody. You show that you
are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry,
written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living
God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human
hearts. 2 Corinthians 3:2,3

The Christian life can only be explained in terms of
Jesus Christ, and if your life as a Christian can still
be explained in terms of you--your personality, your
will-power, your gift, your talent, your money, your
courage, your scholarship, your dedication, your sacri-
fice, or your anything--then although you may have
the Christian life, you are not yet living it!

If the way you live your life as a Christian can be ex-
plained in terms of you, what have you to offer to the
man who lives next door? The way he lives his life
can be explained in terms of him, and so far as he is
concerned, you happen to be "religious"--but he is
not! Christianity may be your hobby, but it is not his,
and there is nothing about the way you practice it
which strikes him as at all remarkable. There is 
nothing about you which leaves him guessing, and 
nothing commendable of which he does not feel him-
self equally capable without the inconvenience of 
becoming a Christian.

It is only when your quality of life baffles the neigh-
bors that you are likely to impress them. It has to to 
be patently obvious to others that the kind of life you 
are living is not only highly commendable, but that it 
is beyond all human explanation. That it is beyond the 
consequences of man's capacity to imitate, and how-
ever little they may understand this, clearly the conse-
quence only of God's capacity to reproduce Himself 
in you.

In a nutshell, this means your fellow-men must become
convinced that the Lord Jesus Christ of whom you 
speak, is essentially Himself the ingredient of the Life 
you live. Major Ian Thomas  191402007

Reader, this is a tough one. Only God can show me
how I am living my life. He wants me to tap into His
power in the inner man, So, when I realize that I am
functioning out of myself instead of from Him, I confess
it, and then give Him back the freedom to be the motor
within. So much more restful that way...

I have dug into the life of Major Ian Thomas and found
enough things to make this blog into two. Below is a
short video of part of a sermon which tugged at my heart.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekghF0lQyds

The Law

...the strength of sin is the law. 
       1 Corinthians 15:56B

You can have Christian law just as much as much as
you can have Mosaic Law; you can be in bondage in
Christianity just as much as men were in Judaism.
Christianity can be made into an imposed system just
as much as Mosaic law was, and there are many Christ-
ians today who live under fear of the "Thou shalt" and
the "Thou shalt not" of a legalistic conception of the
Christian life.

You can take the Bible as God's standard for your life
and try to fulfill it and yet be burdened with a sense
of constant failure. It is God's standard, and it is a very
exhaustive one which leaves no part of the practical
life untouched, but those who make the effort to try to
live up to it only end in disillusion.

No, it is not just a matter of a Book, but of a Person, 
the Person who did live up to that standard, absolutely
 fulfilling every least demand and with the most perfect 
success, so satisfying God to the full. By His death He 
has delivered us from the bondage of legal demands. 
This same Person now lives in us by His Holy Spirit, 
seeking to work out that perfect will of God not on the 
basis of some binding instructions from without but as 
a living force within. We have the law written in our 
hearts. 

Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new
spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone
from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I
will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk 
in my statutes...Ezekiel 36:26, 27

To be in Christ is a matter of life and not of legalism.
T. Austin Sparks  1888-1971

Reader, I was so far into legalism that whatever I was
doing was not quite right and there was no freedom in
my relationship with God. About 13 years ago, God
began to lead me into the scriptures which painted a
picture of all that is IN CHRIST including that big word
"sanctification." It is His Life in me that brings Life to
all I am doing. What freedom!  What joy!

T. Austin Sparks life:
http://reformedperspectives.org/search.asp/au/ta_sparks/scat//kw//st//

Fretting

After a week of fretting about this and that I read
Psalm 37 and found this encouragement:

Do not fret because of evil doers.
   Trust in the Lord and do good
    Feed on faithfulness
    Delight yourself in the Lord
    Commit your way to Him
                      HE SHALL BRING IT TO PASS
    Do not fret
    Forsake wrath
    Do not fret--it only causes harm

Wait on the Lord
And keep His way.

Why?

The steps of a good man are
    ordered by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
Though he fall, he shall not be
    utterly cast down.
For the Lord upholds him
    with His hand.

Reader, we leave Tuesday for Europe and we
will be there for three weeks so I thought that
I would give you something to ponder while
we are away. Please pray for us.
Thank you! (We will be visiting our daughter's
family. How wonderful is that!)
PS Plans were thwarted today and there was
a way around them. God is in the mix. He is
our sovereign God! Did not fret because of
words in the above Psalm:
"The steps of a good man are ordered by the 
Lord, and He delights in his way..."

The Sweetest Rose

We must go through hardships to enter the kingdom
of God. Acts 14:22

The best things in life are the result of being wounded.
Wheat must be crushed before becoming bread, and
the incense must be burned by fire before its fragrance
is set free. The earth must be broken with a sharp plow
before being ready to receive the see. And it is a bro-
ken heart that pleases God.

Yes, the sweetest joys of life are the fruits of sorrow.
Human nature seems to need suffering to make it fit
to be a blessing to the world.

"Beside my cottage door it grows,
The loveliest, daintiest flower that blows,
A sweetbrier rose.

At dewy morn or twilight's close,
The rarest perfume from it flows,
This strange wild rose.

But when the raindrops on it beat,
Ah, then, its odors grow more sweet,
About my feet.

Often with loving tenderness,
Its soft green leaves I gently press,
In sweet caress.

A still more wondrous fragrance flows
The more my fingers close
And crush the rose.

Dear Lord, Oh, lit my life be so
Its perfume when strong winds blow,
The sweeter flow.

And should it be Your blessed will,
With crushing grief my soul to fill,
Press harder still.

And while its dying fragrance flows
I'll whisper low, "He loves and knows
His crushed brier rose."

If you aspire to be a person of consolation, if you want
to share the priestly gift of sympathy, if you desire to
go beyond giving commonplace comfort to a heart that
is tempted, and if you long to go through the daily ex-
changes of life with the kind of tact that never inflicts
pain, then you must be prepared to pay the price for a
costly education--for like Christ, you must suffer.
Frederick William Robertson.

Reader, it is not what I want to hear. I don't like the
negatives dropping into my life, but it is comforting
to know that God is in the midst of it all for my good
and His glory. I find that in these times everyday be-
comes a challenge in some way or another.

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness...

Walk It Out

They that wait upon the Lord...shall walk and not 
faint.  Isaiah 40:31

There is no thrill in walking; it is the test of the stable 
qualities. To "walk and not faint" is the highest reach 
possible for strength. The word "walk" is used in the 
Bible to express character--John looking on Jesus as 
He walked, said, "Behold the Lamb of God." There is 
never anything abstract in the Bible, it is always vivid 
and real. God does not say--Be spiritual, but--"Walk 
before Me."

When we are in an unhealthy state physically or emo-
tionally, we always want thrills. In the physical do-
main this will lead to counterfeiting the Holy Ghost; 
in the emotional life it leads to inordinate affection 
and the destruction of morality; and in the spiritual 
domain if we insist on getting thrills, on mounting up 
with wings, it will end in the destruction of spirituality.

The reality of God's presence is not dependent on any 
place, but only dependent upon the determination to 
set the Lord always before us. Our problems come 
when we refuse to bank on the reality of His presence. 
The experience the Psalmist speaks of--"Therefore we 
will not fear, though..." will be ours when once we are 
based on Reality, not the consciousness of God's pre-
sence but the reality of it--Why, He has been there all 
the time!

At critical moments it is necessary to ask guidance, 
but it ought to be unnecessary to be saying always--
"O Lord, direct me here and there." Of course He 
will if our common-sense decisions are not His order, 
He will press through them and check; then we must 
be quiet and wait for the direction of His presence.

Reader--"must be quiet" is quite a fete these days! The
word "wait" might has almost been removed from our
vocabulary. It is difficult to get quiet in a culture that
worships sound, but it is very worthwhile...

A Story

But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory 
through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
1 Corinthians 15:57

A pickpocket once strolled into a rescue mission and
was converted. He saw in Christ pardon for sins and
power against them. Rejoicing in a new life he went
on his way planning for the future. "In my unregener-
ate days," said he to himself, "I used to pick twenty
pockets a day. But now I am a Christian man, and I
know that to pick pockets is a sin. So I must give it
up--gradually, of course. Tomorrow I'll make a start
and for the rest of this month I shall pick only ten
pockets a day: next month by striving and struggling
against this sin, I'll cut down to five a day--for I am
a Christian man now. By the end of the year by con-
stant endeavor (and the help of God) I hope to give
up picking pockets altogether."

Do you believe that story? The writer does not. But
have we not been guilty of this very thing in our deal-
ing with bad temper, pride, irritability, jealousy, un-
loved? We expect a pickpocket, or a drunkard, or a 
gambler to give up his sin once and for all--the very
moment of his conversion. We tell him--and tell him
truly--that Christ is able to give him complete and
instant victory. Is God unable to give us a similar vic-
tory over what we deem to be lesser sins? He is able
to make us "more than conquerors."

Victory is a gift of God and not a growth. Paul recog-
sized this. He did not say, "Thanks be to God who 
gives us a gradual victory," but "gives us the victory
through Jesus Christ our Lord."

There is no such thing as a gradual victory over sin--
although we may think there is. God's gifs are perfect.
the fact is, He gives us Jesus Christ Himself to dwell
in our hearts by faith. And Jesus Christ keeps us.
Can we trust Christ to do it?   
An unknown Christian

Reader, I came across this story some time ago and
it caught my attention--after I thought about it for
awhile. May you find him adequate to deliver you
out of every dominating sin. He really is our victory!

An Old Hymn

Lord Jesus Christ I seek Thy face,
Within the veil I bow the knee;
O, let Thy glory fill the place,
And bless me while I wait on Thee.

I thank Thee for the precious blood
That purged my sins and brought me nigh,
All cleansed and sanctified to God,
Thy Holy Name to magnify.

Shut in with Thee, far, far above
The restless world that wars below,
I seek to learn and prove Thy love,
They wisdom and Thy grace to know.

The brow that once with Thorns was bound
Thy hands, Thy side I fain would see;
Draw near, Lord Jesus, glory crowned,
And bless me while I wait on Thee.
Alexander Stewart 1843-1923

Reader, I had penned this poem back in 1996
and found it as I was going through my diary.
There is something to say for the old hymns
that open up our hearts to God.