Following God off a cliff . . . Part III

I read a quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, he said, "When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die." Dear ones, that is the unvarnished truth. I wish that so many were not "sold" on coming to Christ, but it happens over and over again. Too many, offer Christ as a cure-all for whatever ails you. I don't for a minute try to hide the fact that Christ will change your life, but so many are trained to hide how he will change it. Loved ones, most of the world's Christians are paying a higher personal cost for their faith than we here in America have ever known. They, in some countries are persecuted, and in others, they pay for their faith with their lives, and they do so willingly. That is what separates Christianity from every other form of religion, people willing give their lives rather than say that they don't believe in Christ. Lions hearts in lambs bodies, that's what makes us so incredibly different.

Loved one, listen to me, God is working in your life, and it is not going to be easy. Dear souls, we are in the relentless pursuit of perfection, that means we can't check out. J.B. Phillips puts it this way:

When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives my brothers, don’t resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends! Realize that they come to test your faith and to produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the process go on until that endurance is fully developed...

Has anything in your whole experience ever taught you that growing up is easy? So, why in the world do we have preachers, of all people, trying to endure the worst of it, and at the same time, try to present to others how easy it is. Man of God, let your people deal with some of life's heartaches, so that they can grow up. Quit hiding the fact that trouble comes to everyone, especially to those who believe. Let them come to terms with the fact that when you stand in the pulpit, nothing you say can be categorized as "Easy for him to say."

Listen, loved ones, we are all in this together. God loves you too much, to let you remain in your comfortable existence, and spend the rest of your life minimally contributing to His work. Dear ones, we all get knocked down, but what I want you to get, is that you have to be one of the ones who will not stay down. Let me give you a word picture: when you get knocked down, and you get up bearing the weight of your trial, you find grace with God. You are admired by God! When Steven preached the sermon that ended his life, the very last thing that he saw, was Christ, not seated at the right hand of the Father, but so filled with admiration, that He rose to His feet, to welcome Him to glory! Loved ones, that is the way that you want to go. If you've imbibed the notion that too many peddle, that Christ offers a life of ease; then it's time you get your proper introduction to Christianity. Bless you all.

Following God off a cliff . . . Part II

Loved ones, these trials are those that have resulted in so many checking out of the ministry, and truthfully, countless others who were not in leadership positions to leave the faith. I'm not for a second trying to diminish the fact that these trials hurt and cause terrible pain. Listen to me, the difference between those whom we look to as beacons of the faith, or those whom we look to with a sigh as to what they might have been in the faith, are made by these trials and their response to them. This is why it is off absolute importance that we respond properly to them. Peter tells us, that when we bear up under our trials, that we find grace with God; and dear soul, you can not make it through these rough waters without that Divine grace.

To those of you who are teetering on the brink, let me tell you, don't check out, do you hear me? Don't in a few hours, throw away what God has been taking a life time to build in you. God has never quit on you, so don't you dare quit on Him! I know that this life can be so unbelievably hard, but that can not be an excuse for giving up, ever. You have to guard yourself against the evil one, and alone and discouraged is exactly how he wants you. You can't allow your hurt to be a reason that you seek comfort by some means outside of God's plan. It is not okay to sin, because you are hurting. You have to be watching most intently when you are in such dire straits, to make sure that you don't seek some relief from your hurt out of God's plan and into Satan's.

Listen, loved one, I know that you may have broached a subject that you never thought you would face, but in it all and through it all, God is there beside you. As William Blake put it, "Think not thou canst weep a tear, And thy Maker is not near." Turn to God, and draw closer to Him. The eyes of God are upon you, and most certainly, when you are facing great difficulty. He wants to see you trust in Him, and indeed these trials make it necessarily so. Dear ones, this is not easy stuff, but if no one ever shares the struggles of their faith, where do we leave those who come after us. Oh, they were bullet proof, until one great trial of their faith, and they just quit all together. No!!! Loved ones, these trials are so that we have something to share with our younger brothers and sisters. Do you get it? When we have found the comfort of God offers to us in these terrible trials, then we can share that consolation with those who look to us for answers. God is at work, making you some one that others will look up to! Dear souls, there is more at stake than just your broken heart: now, more than ever, it is imperative that you stay faithful to God. Bless you all.

Following God off a cliff . . .

Have you ever felt like you have followed God closely, and then you find yourself in a situation that you can hardly believe? I have. I seem to live in such situations. I'm not talking about a little discomfort, I am talking about full-on devastation. How could God allow something like this to happen to me? If you haven't said it, I have. Does God really allow those who follow Him to be hurt? The simple answer is: yes. I know that isn't pleasant to hear, but it's true. Listen to the words of the apostle Peter, "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you." The opposite side of that coin is this: Fiery trials that come upon you to test you, are perfectly normal. Why? Because, if you are not careful, especially as a Christ-follower, you can sit in the same place for decades; never growing, never learning or getting any closer to God. Sometimes, God allows us to be sifted; beaten, broken, and winnowed so that the chaff of our existence can be blown away.

That is why a devastating test is not to be counted as a strange thing. Dear one, if I haven't answered the question can it happen, well enough: it can and will happen. It happens, not to leave us broken, but so that we can be made whole. Let me tell you, loved one, this is not easy stuff, but I want to share with you something from Roy Underhill. He writes in his one of his book about making half-blind dovetails, which will be Greek to you, unless you have an understanding of fine furniture or of the cabinet makers trade. After he explains in detail how to make them, he describes the process as crossing a mountain and then peering in to the valley of cabinet makers. So the point of it all is this, a hack that can cobble together a bookshelf, cannot make half-blind dovetails, but a skilled cabinet maker can. You see, these things are only produced by those who have a great degree of skill with the tools of their trade. Decidedly difficult, hard to accomplish, but anyone who sees them instantly recognizes the mark of craftsmanship. Listen to me, loved ones, we have way too many saints cobbling together orange crate book shelves, and we are in desperate want of those who can build a case and fit it with a half-blind dovetailed drawer.

I hope that you get, that I am saying that we are lacking Christians who are mature in their faith, skilled in the Word and able to pass what they have learned on to others. It is only through those most difficult situations, that literally drive you to your knees, that you learn to completely rely on God. Those trials that hit you will all the subtlety of a bomb going off, that make you cry from you heart and send you looking for answers, drive you to God's word to look for them. It is not in any way an absence of God's faithfulness; it is the pinnacle of His faithfulness. Charles Stanley said in a sermon once, "I've never seen God do anything with a comfortable Christian." He's right! God, who loves you perfectly, will allow pain into your life, because He loves you, and He doesn't have any intention of leaving you the way that you started off. He wants you to move on to maturity. Listen, dear souls, it is absolutely necessary that you grow to maturity, and if you haven't recognized that, then it is time that you start. More coming, dear ones.

Give and it shall be given . . .

Give and it shall be given to you; I've heard that often, but I'm not sure I ever really understood it, especially the part about "good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over." I finally began to comprehend this when I came across what Matthew Poole had to say about it:

Nothing can more concur to make good measure, than the shaking of the bushel, the crowding and pressing down of the corn or meal with the hand, and the pouring in till the measure runneth over.

If we all grew up in an agrarian society, we would immediately understand this concept, but for many today, if they were given a bushel of anything, they wouldn't know what to do with it. If my sister-in-law were given a bushel of tomatoes, she would probably can them; if I were given a bushel of tomatoes, I'd be eating a tomato or two with every meal, including breakfast, until they were gone or spoiled. But, I digress, the point is the concept of a bushel basket filled with grain. It is one thing to get a bushel basket that grain has been scooped or poured; it is quite another to get a bushel basket that has been shaken, so that there are no air pockets, pressed down or compacted so that it increases in weight, and then running over the top, so that the container literally holds all that is possible. How does that sound for a blessing?

I once worked with a young man that told me he had to pay his tithes, so that his sales would be good. That expresses the attitude of so many, I'll be happy to give, so long as I get. Said or unsaid, that's why many give: at least this young man was honest about it. Everybody likes the idea of taking home a packed bushel, but how many of us like to send others away with a full and overflowing bushel. I hope that you get that I am talking about more that bushel baskets. Lord, I've put in twenty whole dollars, now open the floodgates and pour out a blessing that I can't contain.

Do you give that way, or do you pack the bushel? But wait, I want to hear more about the way God gives. Listen, God isn't honored by those who only use Him as a means to the end of getting what they want. Let me revisit the previous example, what if you gave one of your friends twenty bucks, how long do you think they would put up with you acting like they owed you, big. After about five minutes they would say, "Here's your twenty bucks back, jerk." Look, if people can see the intent of your heart that easily, how much do you think that you can hide from the One who created you?

This is what I am trying to get across to you; God is not weighing grain, He is weighing what is in your heart. He said, "Prove Me," not, wait till I start giving to you and then you start giving back to me. God measures what is in your heart, the very same way that you measure what is in the basket. Think about the widow with her two mite offering. She gave, in common language, what she was going to eat on. She stared down the decision to meet her physical need or give to the Lord; and she decided to go with out, so that she could give an offering to God. Let me tell you what happened in the spiritual realm; she packed that basket so full, it started to burst, and she was honored for all time by Christ. When you give to God that way, He will honor you too. Bless you all.

Coping with Depression . . . The Survival Kit

These are the things that will help you most in dealing with depression.

1. Read your Bible daily, at least a chapter.
2. Pray, not just a prayer from the time you get into bed and your head hits the pillow. Take your shoes off. Get on your face before God first thing in the morning. Pour out your heart to God, and then wait and listen. Get up when God says your done.
3. Go to church every time the doors are open, and then see if you can get a mature saint to meet you there and open the doors to pray with you and counsel with you.
4. Get out of bed, and get out of the house, spend time doing something fun.
5. Cry when you need to cry.
6. Adopt a loving and forgiving spirit.
7. Let God handle all of the things you can't.

Bless you all loved ones.

Coping with Depression . . . The Power of Surrender Part III

Surrender is the diving board to freedom. Listen, when you trust God enough to let go of the hurts and let Him take care of the circumstances that you can't control anyway; you give God room to work in the situation. Why else would He say, "Be still and know that I am God?" You have two options: Let God work in the situation, and leave the results up to Him, or you can have a daily conniption fit and scream and cry why me. You are not going to be happy, if you constantly push God out of the way and try to do His work, for which you are not equipped. But, if you yield, in the fullest since of the word, to God and His providence, He is able to do exceedingly and abundantly more than you could ask or think.

Surrender to God's will, is the very thing that puts you in God's will. Look, it is one thing if you suffer for what you deserve, but it is quite another to suffer for something that you don't deserve. When you surrender to God's will and bear up under the trial, the Bible tells us that it is there, that you find grace. Do you understand that in the worst of circumstance, that you can then be honored by the Father? Loved one, there are servants of God this world is not worthy of, according to Scripture. It is because, they choose the will of God, not matter the cost. What you get in return for choosing God's will is peace.

Dear one, you must understand that you need the peace of God to make it through any trial, and that only comes with surrender. Let me just tell you plainly, if you have a score to settle: you are wasting your life. God is not interested in you vindicating yourself while passing yourself off as a Christian: that's right, no matter how well versed you are in getting your pint of blood, God doesn't have anything to do with it. Loved one, submit yourself underneath His mighty hand, let Him deal with what you are not capable of dealing with anyway. Follow God, and trust the situation to God's care, and find the freedom that comes from surrender.

Coping with Depression . . . The Power of Surrender Part II

Loved ones, this is difficult. I know that is rough going when few or no one knows what is going on inside you; when you have a heart full of hurts and no answers as to why. You are not alone. Everyone faces trials and tribulations, in fact, Paul wrote that there isn't a single testing or trial that isn't common to all men, and the beautiful end to that verse is that God is faithful. He won't let you be tested past your breaking point, but that doesn't mean the test won't get close to it. Listen, the all powerful God who is sovereign over everything, with every trial makes a way for you and I to bear it.

So how do we bear the seemingly unbearable? Surrender to God. You may think that this sounds way too simple, but trust me: the only time you will have peace is when you are surrendered to God. So, what does that mean in "real life" terms; it means you have to throw out the he did this to me, she said that or I can never forgive them for what they did to me. Why? Because God's word says get rid of it, and you won't experience peace until you do. I know that I say that unable to know all of the circumstances of those who read this, but consider for a moment the crucifixion; has there ever been a time when so many deserved what they had coming to them? Pilate, Herod, the chief priests and the scribes or the soldiers who beat Him and nailed Him to the cross; all of them deserved exactly what they had coming, and Christ stepped in and took all of their sins on Himself, and not only that He prayed for the soldiers while they were nailing Him to the cross, saying, "Forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing." Loved one, can you visit that scene and hold anything against anyone? If you have not started praying for those who have hurt you, by all means start, so that you can see them the way the Father sees them.

Let me just say, that your shoulders are not big enough for some problems. You have, however, a loving Father and a caring Savior who will bear what you are not able, and give you peace that passes all understanding. How else can you make it through the "unbearable?" It is only through the peace that is given by God, and it is only given when you surrender your will to His. No contracts, no conditions: just surrender. More soon, dear ones.