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Posts Tagged ‘Obedience’

WRONG ROAD…RIGHT DESTINATION?…IMPOSSIBLE!

Posted in A Nation Divided, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on June 26, 2020| 4 Comments »

The determination to continue traveling a road you know is not taking you toward your hoped-for destination will cause you to travel to places you didn’t want to be—meeting challenges and problems you hoped you’d never incur—dealing with consequences you aren’t prepared to endure. The only explanation for continuing such a journey is your refusal to admit you’re going in the wrong direction.

A number of years ago, on a very dark night in the swamps of the Florida Everglades, I found myself in that position. And my stubborn refusal to admit I was wrong could have cost my life as well as the life of a good friend traveling with me.

I shudder remembering the events of that Alligator Alley evening.

We were on our way to an art show in Marco Island the next day with a scheduled stop-over at Darlene’s brother’s house in Naples, Florida for the night. Due to a gas shortage, the lines were long as we made our way through South Florida. I made the decision not to sit in a long line and wait and hoped we’d make it to Naples—what a foolish choice. And somehow in the process, I missed a turn and wound up on a dead-end road which fed us onto Alligator Alley.
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Rather than admitting my mistake, turning around and back-tracking, I turned west onto Alligator Alley knowing that road would eventually lead us to Naples. But determination and foolishness flooded my soul when, after driving a few miles on this two-lane highway through the swamp in the utter blackness of night, the engine of my car sputtered and died. We were out of gas—alone and defenseless—on this notorious killer highway that ran through the Glades!

In a nano-second I had a crash course in the fact that attempting to reach a planned destination is never successful when you choose to travel the wrong road. But it was too late. We were stranded. Frightened out of our wits. And my stubborn stupidity had placed us in extreme danger.

Yet all these years later, I listen as the non-stop news blaring the same situation playing out in towns and cities all over America—stubborn, rebellious people, insisting on having their way—in spite of the fact the road they are traveling is dangerous, even lethal, to them and all those they are dragging along this treacherous trip.

Souls full of rebellion are being played the fools by covert enemies determined to destroy them and our nation. Enemies who don’t give a rip about those they’ve convinced their highway to lawlessness is the right road. These enemies of America are emboldened to create chaos and upheaval, by continually stirring the pot of lawless hatred, driving their targeted victims into a huge frenzy of hatred while these foolish victims fail to understand in their refusal to forgive who they perceive to be enemies, they have become the captors of the real, bona-fide transgressors.

And unless God intervenes, all Americans will eventually realize this road to destruction will never intersect with the only road that leads to a righteous destination. America is dooming itself to perish.
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Anger, hatred, and lack of forgiveness cripples’ individuals, families, and nations. God warns us throughout His Word that anger and a lack of forgiveness turns into a wretched root of bitterness that soils and spoils everything it touches.

“See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled…” (Hebrews 12:15 NAS).

The defiled quagmire of anger, unforgiveness, hatred, and bitterness, will color your life’s lens and blind your ability to find the true and only road to a righteous destination in the Lord Jesus Christ. But God allows you to choose—His truth or Satan’s lies. God’s peace or Satan’s chaos. God’s love and mercy or Satan’s hatred and destruction. A fulfilled life with Him or an eternity of pain and torture in hell with the father you’ve chosen…the devil.

The days of choice, however, are racing to an end. Never in the history of our nation has there been so clear a daily definition, splayed across the screens, between righteousness and unrighteousness. Many of you have already scoffed and turned away or shrugged and made light of this pivotal moment in history. Storm clouds of darkness deepen and gather to attempt an overthrow of this Republic, like the black swamp of Alligator Alley threatened to consume Darlene and me that awful night so many years ago.

I stared into the heavens that night and cried out to God against whom I’d rebelled. I confessed every sin I’d committed and pleaded for God to please help us.

In the distance headlights of a car approached, then slowed to a stop. A man and woman in the car rolled down the window and asked if we needed help. Darlene threw open her door, raced around the front of our car shouting, “Yes! Yes! We need help! DiAne, get out of the car so they can see we’re helpless girls.”

The man got out, checked, and surmised we’d run out of gas. He said he was a contractor, handed me his business card and said he had gas at his building site and suggested we ride with them to get the gas because it wasn’t safe for two women alone in this swamp. Darlene was already in the car, so I climbed in beside her and prayed we weren’t jumping from the frying pan into the fire.
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He asked if we wanted to call our husbands while he filled a gas can. After calling our guys, he and his friend drove us back to the car, filled the tank, and wouldn’t take a dime for their trouble, but followed us back to Naples.
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We were beyond thankful, but the impact of this rescue didn’t register until we returned home, and the following day when my husband called to check the phone number on the card and the street address he’d written down. “I called to thank them.” He paused then whispered, “There was no such business. No such phone number.”

“But I was there, honey. I saw it with my own eyes.” My mind raced.

“See what you can find out. I’ve got to work.” He hung up and I grabbed the card and phoned the Better Business Bureau in Naples.

“Not only do we not have a business by that name, but we’ve never had such a business at that address. It’s a vacant warehouse. Been vacant for years.” The lady gave me another number to check and see if there was even such a business by that name in the State of Florida—there was not.
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My heart pounded. Were they angels? I had no other explanation. I knew God had answered my prayers for rescue. But since that night I’ve been very careful to travel roads where there’s an easy access to fuel and help should there be an emergency; and I travel life roads where I have access to spiritual food, where brothers and sisters in Christ serve as sounding boards to help me make wiser decisions, and encouragers to help me keep on keeping on.

If America is to survive every citizen must make those same choices. This battle is not about skin color or racism, that’s just an ensnaring ploy. It’s about dividing and conquering. This is about Jesus or Satan—righteousness or unrighteousness—God’s kingdom or the lake of fire… and you must choose…or perhaps you already have.

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“Therefore, however you want people to treat you, so treat them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it. For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it.

Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit; but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

So then, you will know them by their fruits. Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My father who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’

And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” (Matthew 7:12-23 NAS).

The Word of God gives us information about a time when a man whom God identifies as “the man of lawlessness” will appear and seem to be the answer to the world’s problems. He will come on the scene shortly after the church suddenly vanishes. Then after seven years of rapid and increasing chaos and havoc—judgments foretold in Revelation—the likes of which have never been, this age will end with the physical return of the Lord Jesus Christ and His bride…The Raptured Church.

King Jesus will appear with His armies to kill them by the sword coming out of His mouth. The false prophet and the beast will be cast into the lake of fire. The carnage of the battle will leave soldiers’ blood up to the bridles of the horses and running two hundred miles like a river in the valley of decision. Satan will be bound in chains and thrown into the bottomless pit for 1,000 years.
But the choice is yours. Just consider me the gal holding the warning sign that reads… STOP! DANGER AHEAD!

The road you’re currently traveling, unless God intervenes like He did with me that night on Alligator Alley, is a good indicator where you’ll be in that day. If you don’t know or aren’t sure, let me share with you the ABC’s of settling that question.

Admit you are a sinner. Romans 3:10, Romans 3:23
Believe in your heart Jesus is Lord and He died for your sins. Romans 6:23
Call upon the name of Jesus to receive His gift of salvation. Romans 10:13

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with Me. He who overcomes I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne” (Revelation 3:20-21 NAS).
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“For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:16-17 NAS).

You can find DiAne’s complete story about “that” night at Amazon.com in Cecil Murphey and Twila Belk’s book Heavenly Company…Entertaining Angels Unaware

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PART TWO – SEEDS OF ANOTHER KIND

Posted in A Nation Divided, tagged , , , , , , on July 31, 2018| 5 Comments »

Last week, in Part One, I wrote about seeds of rage. Seeds we see harvested on the nightly news and in the headlines. But these aren’t the only kind of seeds growing and being harvested in America.

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A friend read the following article in the Wall Street Journal and passed it on to me and now, I’m passing this on to you. ‘Cause you certainly won’t hear this on the evening news. But could you imagine what would happen if every town U.S.A. adopted the attitude and actions of the citizens of North Platte, Nebraska.

While the story in and of itself is wonderful and amazing, be sure to catch the information this wasn’t the first generation of North Platte citizens who planted seeds of a town united…when called on this isolated town in Nebraska again repeated what they had been taught for several generations.

Thank you, Wall Street Journal, and  Author, Bob Greene, for carrying this very important story on July 22, 2018. To see photos of this story go to Wall Street Journal and type in North Platte, Nebraska.

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“We were overwhelmed,” said Lt. Col. Nick Jaskolski. “I don’t really have words to describe how surprised and moved we all were. I had never even heard of the town before.”

Col. Jaskolski, a veteran of the Iraq war, is commander of the 142nd Field Artillery Brigade of the Arkansas Army National Guard. For three weeks earlier this summer, the 142nd had been conducting an emergency deployment readiness exercise in Wyoming, training and sleeping outdoors, subsisting on field rations. Now it was time for the 700 soldiers to return to their base.

A charter bus company had been hired for the 18-hour drive back to Arkansas. The Army had budgeted for a stop to get snacks. The bus company determined that the soldiers would reach North Platte, in western Nebraska, around the time they would likely be hungry. The company placed a call to the visitors’ bureau: Was there anywhere in town that could handle a succession of 21 buses, and get 700 soldiers in and out for a quick snack?

North Platte said yes. North Platte has always said yes.

The community welcomed more than 700 service men and women, North Platte, Nebraska.

During World War II, North Platte was a geographically isolated town of 12,000. Soldiers, sailors and aviators on their way to fight the war rode troop trains across the nation, bound for Europe via the East Coast or the Pacific via the West Coast. The Union Pacific Railroad trains that transported the soldiers always made 10-minute stops in North Platte to take on water.

The townspeople made those 10 minutes count. Starting in December 1941, they met every train: up to 23 a day, beginning at 5 a.m. and ending after midnight. Those volunteers greeted between 3,000 and 5,000 soldiers a day. They presented them with sandwiches and gifts, played music for them, danced with them, baked birthday cakes for them. Every day of the year, every day of the war, they were there at the depot. They never missed a train, never missed a soldier. They fed six million soldiers by the end of the war. Not 1 cent of government money was asked for or spent, save for a $5 bill sent by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The soldiers never forgot the kindness. Most of them, and most of the townspeople who greeted them, are dead. And now, in 2018, those 21 busloads from the 142nd Field Artillery were on their way, expecting to stop at some fast-food joint.

“We couldn’t believe what we saw when we pulled up,” Col. Jaskolski said. As each bus arrived over a two-day period, the soldiers stepped out to be greeted by lines of cheering people holding signs of thanks. They weren’t at a fast-food restaurant: They were at North Platte’s events center, which had been opened and decorated especially for them.

“People just started calling our office when they heard the soldiers were on their way,” said Lisa Burke, the director of the visitors’ bureau. “Hundreds of people, who wanted to help.”

The soldiers entered the events center to the aroma of steaks grilling and the sound of recorded music: current songs by Luke Bryan, Justin Timberlake, Florida Georgia Line; World War II songs by Glenn Miller, the Andrews Sisters, Jimmy Dorsey. They were served steak sandwiches, ham sandwiches, turkey sandwiches, deviled eggs, salads and fruit; local church groups baked pies, brownies and cookies.

Mayor Dwight Livingston stood at the door for two days and shook every soldier’s hand. Mr. Livingston served in the Air Force in Vietnam and came home to no words of thanks. Now, he said, as he shook the hands and welcomed the soldiers, “I don’t know whether those moments were more important for them, or for me. I knew I had to be there.”

“It was one soldier’s 21st birthday,” Lisa Burke said. “When I gave him his cake, he told me it was the first birthday cake he’d ever had in his life.” Not wanting to pry, she didn’t ask him how that could possibly be. “I was able to hold my emotions together,” she said. “Until later.”

When it became time to settle up—the Army, after all, had that money budgeted for snacks—the 142nd Field Artillery was told: Nope. You’re not spending a penny here. This is on us.

This is on North Platte.”

Mr. Greene’s books include “Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Canteen.”

 

*          *          *          *          *          *

These seeds are called KINDNESS, GRATITUDE, CARING, RESPONSIBILITY, OBEDIENCE, AND LOVE!

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The parents and grandparents during World War II planted seeds these next generations in North Platte would harvest, and their children and their children’s children will continue to harvest these seeds as long as they are careful to plow and reseed as God instructs.

The people of North Platte didn’t ask these young men and women if they were liberal or conservatives—Republican or Democrat—they were Americans—American soldiers who were giving their lives so we can be free. The people from this generous city chose to stand in the gap for these young heroes, knowing united we succeed, divided we fail.

We might want to ask all news media why they didn’t cover this story? I guess without   violence or name calling it’s not an attention getter…well, this story certainly got my attention and changed Part Two of this series.

Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35 NKJ).

He also said, “As you go preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give” (Matthew 10:7-8 NKJ).

But God’s Word said, “They sow the wind, and reap the whirlwind” (Hosea 8:7 NKJ)

I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of whirlwinds, I think it is time to plow the prairie’s, fields, cities, and towns of America planting Gospel seeds in each and every metropolis, city, town, and county in this nation before America follows Venezuela down the path to suicide.

Part Three…next week!

 

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FIVE ACCOUNTS OF REWARDS AND CONSEQUENCES

Posted in A Nation Divided, tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 10, 2017| Leave a Comment »

                                                         Part Two

                                   SLICING, DICING, AND BURNING

Someone much wiser than me said, “It only takes a generation for a nation to turn away from God.” And the Book of Jeremiah gives the absolute proof certain of this proclamation.

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King Jehoiakim ruled in Judah from 609 B.C. until 597 B.C. He was the son of King Josiah who reigned from 630 B.C. until 609 B.C.

Josiah was a man after God’s own heart, but his son Jehoiakim, was bad-to-the-bone. Josiah cleared the land of idols, destroyed their places of worship, and found God’s word, which had been lost in the temple. (Can you imagine the Word of God being lost in the House of God? Still happens today in some churches, doesn’t it?)

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When Josiah finally heard the Word of God, he tore his clothes and commanded priests and scribes to inquire of the Lord concerning the words of the Book. His story is found in 2 Chronicles 34 and 35 and is so worth the read if you don’t know about this last good king in the land of Judah. God blessed Judah because of Josiah’s obedience. But generational sin lurked like a shroud of judgment, because Josiah’s father, King Manasseh had been the worst of the worst and that gene pool washed like a tsunami over his grandson Jehoiakim.

God sent Jeremiah the prophet, during the days of good King Josiah to remind the priests, rulers, and people of their refusal to listen and obey His Word. To remind them of the judgments He had pronounced against the granddaddy, and remind them of their urgent need to listen and repent.

When Jehoiakim inherited the throne, Jeremiah’s obedience to do what God called him to be and do, proved to be a perpetual pain in this king’s back-side. And the prophet ended up confined, unable to deliver God’s word to the people. But Jeremiah’s work was far from finished. So, the Lord told Jeremiah to take a scroll and write on it the words God spoke to him. God said, “Perhaps the house of Judah will hear all the calamity which I plan to bring on them, in order that every man will turn from his evil way; then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin.”

Even while they were back at their idol worship and evil ways, God was ready to hear and forgive their sins. Just like today, over twenty-six hundred years later, God’s message is still the same. And so is every man, woman, boy and girl—the same. Full of sin without the wisdom to see their great need for salvation through Jesus Christ or the ability to save themselves from God’s judgment.

Well, Jeremiah called Baruch, the scribe, and dictated to him all the words the Lord had spoken to him. We’re not told how long the process took, but remember, God called Jeremiah to be His prophet in 627 B.C. It’s now 606 B.C. That’s a bunch-a-words folks. Written by hand, in pen and ink, on a loooong roll of parchment.

What happened next is worth reading in the 36th Chapter of Jeremiah, verses 10-21. But picture this, the king is sitting in his winter house and there’s a fire burning in the brazier in front of him.

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Jehudi unrolled the scroll and began reading—one column, two, three, and four columns. Imagine the scene, the king is obviously incensed and grabs the scribe’s knife and slices the scroll and pitches it into the fire. Then he sliced and diced the whole scroll containing the Words of God and burned it all in the fire until it was consumed!

“Yet the king and all his servants who heard all these words were not afraid, nor did they rend their garments” (Jeremiah 36:24 NIV).

I’m waitin’ for the lightning and goose-bumps raced across my body as I read this and then again as I’m typing these words to you. Remember his daddy’s reaction when he heard the Word of God? He feared and tore his clothes. Jehoiakim and his crew? Not so much.

I have every Bible I’ve ever owned and if there were a fire at my house, my Bibles would be the first thing I’d race to save. Wouldn’t you? But to cut them apart and watch ’em burn?

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Yet before we cluck our tongues and look down our noses at King Jehoiakim, don’t we reject God’s Word when we leave it in the back of the car from one Sunday ‘til the next. Never thinking about where our copy of the Word is ‘til we leave for church the following week? Or worse yet, we leave it on the end table by our chair, right next to the HD remote. Which gets more use during the week—the Word of God or the remote?

But God didn’t wring His holy hands. No, He told Jeremiah to get another scroll and repeat the process. Which Jeremiah and Baruch did, because we have the words God spoke to Jeremiah in our Bibles today. But listen carefully to the words God spoke concerning King Jehoiakim.

“You will have no one to sit on the throne of David, and your dead body shall be cast out to the heat of the day and frost of the night. (He wouldn’t receive a proper burial. The birds and beasts would pick his bones.) I will also punish him and his descendants and his servants for their iniquity, and I will bring on them and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the men of Judah all the calamity that I have declared to them” (Jeremiah 36:29-31 NIV).

And God’s Words became reality for King Jehoiakim, the priests, and the people when Nebuchadnezzar and his great armies killed, captured and burned Jerusalem, and carried many from Judah captive to Babylon for seventy years. Why? Because they did not listen to the Words of God to obey them!

God’s Word is the same yesterday, today and forever. Neither Jehoiakim nor any of his descendants will be present in the coming kingdom. His choices brought the consequences of separation from God then, now, and forever. No more chances. His doom was sealed and God’s wrath on him was executed by the King of Babylon. Done. Finished. Forever.

But God’s mercy and grace are still available to us. How will the recount of Jehoiakim’s foolish choices and consequences resonate in your life? The words “…but they didn’t listen…” echo in my ears from 606 B.C., through the corridors of time, to today…

Am I listening? Are you listening? What choices will we make? Will we choose rewards or consequences?

“And He said to me, ‘It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. He who overcomes shall inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.

But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death’” (Revelation 21:6-8 NIV).

 

Part Three: Weak, Deceived, Can’t Trust – Jeremiah 37 – 38

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CHANGING THE FLOCK

Posted in A Nation Divided, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on March 5, 2016| 5 Comments »

The early spring sky flamed a watercolor wash of late afternoon hues and in the distance my attention riveted on wave after wave of vector lines racing across the sky. Some way, somehow the instinct God placed in each of these creatures whispered, “Time to go!” And the snow geese head north ‘til next Fall.

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I pulled in the driveway, opened the car door, and heard more honking. Again perfect vectors of these beautiful creatures winging their way north bound. What a beautiful sight! Winter is over and Spring is here. A changing of the flock. Robins have made their yearly appearance here in East Texas and the Meadow Larks aren’t far behind. While white pelicans with their flashy orange bills wait their turn to skim into settle on our Texas lakes and ponds.

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As I pondered this mystery of our Creator God, more bands of geese filled the heavens from horizon to horizon. I marveled at the order of their flight. How they all share the responsibility of the journey, and how they care for one another.
How I long to be attentive to every word the Spirit of God whispers to my heart. But I’m afraid I’m more like a homing pigeon than a soaring goose. I cling to my turf, or anything else I deem belongs to me, with tightly clutched fingers arguing mine.
What are you grasping with hand-clenched-vengeance today? Don’t you know, it’s going to hurt when God pulls your fingers off. So we’d be much better to hold everything He gives with open hands.

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Remember when God told Abraham to go to a land He would show him? Abraham obeyed. Remember when God told Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him “Let My people go?” Moses obeyed. Remember when God told Samuel to anoint Jesse’s youngest son to be King of Israel? Samuel obeyed. All of these commands required faith on the part of the one God gave instructions to and it sometimes meant difficult times when they obeyed. But God’s instructions are always right and best.
Sometime after our daughter died, God called me to become involved with GriefShare, and my first words were: No. I’m grieving enough for everyone. I sure don’t want to be around more grieving people. Absolutely not. Not me.
But God said to me, “Time to go.” Like He said to the geese, “There is a new flock I’m assigning to your care.”

And I grumbled, “I don’t want a new flock. I just want Michelle back.”
God didn’t zap me. He guided me. Patiently.

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Wish I could say I soared like a goose, eager to meet this new challenge, equipped with His wind beneath my wings. But I waddled like a pigeon, clucking and complaining about this new assignment, doubting my ability to do the job He assigned. I languished in longing for the comfort of solitude. Hiding out on the days grief overwhelmed me. But those times were gone. I tried to pretend I could hold onto both worlds, but when God calls you to leave, He means now and forever.

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Fifteen years later, I’m thankful He resettled me with GriefShare. Thankful God removed me from my solitary place of grief and pain and sorrow, so His purposes for me and those I’ve shared these past years with could be accomplished.
Has God recently plucked you up and moved you out of your comfort zone and deposited you in a place requiring painful stretching? A place you don’t much like? And try as you might, you just don’t have the ability or energy to waddle, much less soar.

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Whether the necessary change comes from a job transfer, or job loss, divorce, or failing health, perhaps even death of a loved one, that’s all right, remember, we’re like pigeons and they don’t soar. Not yet! We plod forward, one step at a time, in the path God places in front of us. And day by day, as we follow where He leads, we find He still has a purpose and plan for our lives, regardless of age or station in life.
And as we are faithful to obey, He is always faithful to provide comfort and help and encouragement, so we in turn can comfort and encourage the individuals He places in our new flock.
Remember there is coming a day when we will all shed our pigeon-winged-earth-suits. An appointed day when He will carry us home. No more pain. No more sorrow. No more death. And no more tears!

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And we will rise up with eagle wings to travel with Him along those spectacular high places. Forever.

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired.

His understanding is inscrutable.

He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power.

Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary” (Isaiah 40: 28-31 NAS).

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WHEN WE SEE JESUS

Posted in A Nation Divided, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 28, 2016| 12 Comments »

 

“…and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet…then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lamp stands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw Him. I fell at His feet as dead…” (Revelation 1:10-17 NKJV).

I write about real time people and paint the same—no sci-fi—no paranormal. So when it comes to grasping today’s scripture on the canvas of my mind, I come up lacking in an ability to describe or completely comprehend the majesty and power of this Revelation Jesus.

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We’ve painted Jesus on the cross, growing too familiar and insensitive to that graphic scene of depravity, unable to imagine the horror our Lord endured for the likes of us. Oh we’re quite comfortable with the picture of Him calming the sea, healing the sick, bursting from the tomb, or sitting in a meadow, smiling at a group of happy children.
But the cross is empty. And the tomb is vacant. He’s not there! That part of His work is finished and we must adjust our hearts and minds to King Jesus—at the right hand of the Father—King of Kings and Lord of Lords, clothed in regal garments, having taken His place as the sovereign ruler of the Universe.

I fear we’ve denigrated and isolated the Lord to the artists’ images painted over the centuries.
When we see Him, likely as not, the image we’re going to behold will be much like what John saw in the 1st Chapter of Revelation. King Jesus—In all His power, majesty, and might! And I’m betting our reactions will be just like John’s.
We don’t like the mental image of Jesus at the Temple—angry, whip in hand, tossing tables, rebuking the merchants, and driving evil from His Father’s house. ‘Cause that pricks our minds and prompts us to ask, What in my life displeases You?
And goodness! He called the religious leaders snakes, vipers, hypocrites, white-washed tombs. Do any of us qualify for a rebuke like that today? It’s much easier to focus on a one dimensional loving Savior who requires nothing in return. But is that a relationship?

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Whether you believe God’s Word or not in no way changes the Word, or who Jesus is, or what is to come. But the light of His knowledge and power is meant to change us. Change our behavior. Purify our hearts. And transform us to perform our mission as His Body—the Church.

Colossians 1:15-18 tells us about Jesus—who He is and what’s He’s done and what He’s going to be and do for eternity.
• He is the image of the invisible God
• The firstborn of all creation
• By Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth

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• He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together
• He is also the head of the body, the church
• He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead
• He Himself will come to have first place in everything
Jesus Christ is God’s plan from the beginning.
In the 19th Chapter of Revelation John tells us of seeing the Lord Jesus again. This time he paints a word picture of our Conquering King and the heavenly armies with Him—you and me!
“Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean followed Him on white horses. Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (Revelation 19:11-16 NKJV).

No, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is not a single dimensioned—ooey, gooey personality of blubbering-dismissive-nonsensical-amnesia-laden thoughts and words flower-child. He is the exact representation of God the Father, who chose to take into His perfect body the sins of all creation and paid the death penalty for all who choose to believe His sacrifice was sufficient to present us blameless before God. He is the personification of love. Sacrificial love.

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Remember the word pictures of God the Father in the Old Testament. Better yet, go back and look up the references to The Angel of the Lord, or The Captain of the Hosts of the Lord’s Armies—our Lord Jesus Christ in a pre-incarnate appearance. How did those folks act when they saw Him?
In the first chapter of Hebrews God has preserved these words:
“God who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they…
…to the Son He says: Your throne, O God is forever and ever. A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your Kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore, God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.
You Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; and they will all grow old like a garment; like a cloak You will fold them up, and they will be changed. But You are the same, and Your years will not fail.”

Last week’s blog talked about our position as soldiers of The Kingdom. We love the recruitment and social life of His righteous kingdom, but when we get down to the arduous task of crucifying our old selves—boot camp—most of us would-be-soldiers duck out the back door, don’t we? Choosing to lounge in the crowded grandstands of life rather than building the spiritual muscles necessary to be a soldier of the cross.
Jesus tells us, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:13-14 KJV). “Ask and you shall be given. Seek and you shall find. Knock and it shall be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7KJV).
Why don’t we ask Him to change us? Could it be we haven’t surrendered to His lordship? Or perhaps we just don’t want to change.

John 8:58, and 24 tells us:
“Jesus said to them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was I AM.”

Exodus 3:14 says:
“And God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.’ And He said, ‘Thus you shall say to the children of Israel ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

And in John 10:30 Jesus affirms:
“I and My Father are one.”

So precious one, where does the power come from to live your life filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding? A life where you are walking in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience?
This is the same power that resurrected Christ from the grave and made Him the firstborn of all creation. But God’s not going to hold you down and plug you into a holy socket for instant rehabilitation. No, it’s your choice. A life-long proving and testing ground of learning to abide in Jesus. Allowing the Spirit of God to fill you to capacity. Choosing every day to surrender your will for His will. Accepting the Holy Spirit’s teaching, changing, and transforming you into a power-filled soldier in the Lord’s Army.

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In light of all you’ve read in the scriptures in this blog today, if you choose to sit on the sidelines, refusing this transformation and the power Jesus offers, who else are you refusing? And what will you say to Him in that day?
More important—what will He say to you? Enter in, or depart from Me. I never knew you?

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A LINE IN THE SAND

Posted in A Nation Divided, tagged , , , , , , on January 24, 2014| 1 Comment »

The Sentinental Star’s headline screamed: EXECUTIVE ORDER SIGNED. JEWS TO DIE. EXECUTION DATE: THIRTEENTH DAY OF THE TWELVETH MONTH. Seizure of property and possessions. Commander –in-Chief and VP sit down to drink. City in confusion.

How would you react? Would this order have crossed your line in the sand?

If you are a Jew, what must you do?

Mordecai tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, walked downtown, wailing loudly and bitterly in front of the Citadel.

Think about the citizens of Susa. Some of the condemned folks were their neighbors. Their friends. Some taught their children in school. And some were local bankers and shopkeepers. The order was law. This was real. There was no recourse. People were going to die—all Jews from Ethiopia to India.

Unknown to the Commander-in-Chief, his wife was a Jew. The question of her nationality had never been discussed.

But Mordecai knew. And he refused to be silent.

Imagine the sound of weeping and wailing throughout the city, and the pandemonium. Or perhaps the Gentiles said nothing.

If you turned on TV tonight and a similar executive order had been signed into law, what would you do? It’s not beyond the realm of possibility—remember the Crusades? Remember Hitler? And in Joel 3:1-2, the prophet talks about a time just before the Day of the Lord when God tells us He will bring Judah and Jerusalem again into captivity.

Does the Church today have a heart to weep? A heart to fast? A heart to wail and put on sackcloth? Have we forgotten how to seek God’s face as a congregation? Or will we sit, like those German Christians, turning up the organ’s volume and singing louder so we don’t hear their screams?

Susa’s Secret Service kept the public away from the royal family. So Hadassah sent a servant to Mordecai, asking what was wrong.
Mordecai sent her a copy of the morning news and ordered her to intervene with her husband. He sent this message:

“Do not imagine that you can escape any more than all the Jews. For if you remain silent…relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place … and who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13-14 NAS).

Yes, Queen Esther sent word back to her uncle, asking him to assemble all the Jews in Susa and to fast for her for three days and nights. She and her maidens were going to fast also. And then she uttered those courageous words:

“And thus I will go in to the king which is notDSCF4320 according to the law; and if I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:16 NAS).

Christians what will it take to break our hard hearts? How much worse is it going to have to get before all of God’s people fast and pray for our nation? Yes, Jesus is coming, but it’s going to get real nasty on planet earth before that event. And we are to be standing firm, making disciples ‘til He comes, not hiding in the shadows, hoping not to be noticed.

God tells us in those last days all nations will rise up against Israel. America’s current leaders are well down the path of turning against Israel. One swipe of the pen could end that relationship and place our nation under God’s curse:

“And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee—” (Genesis 12:3 KJV).

In the final chapters of the Book of Esther, we see how God answered His people when they humbled themselves and fasted before Him. And how those who cursed the Jews were indeed cursed.

Whatever experiences God has allowed in your life have brought you “to such a time as this.” Will you remain silent? Or will you speak up, imploring the King’s favor for His people? Have you contemplated your line in the sand? Will you be courageous enough to stand firm in the principles of God’s Word? Drawing that line and agreeing with Esther, “If I perish, I perish.”

“And by smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action” (Daniel 11:33 NAS).

Next week: The rest of the story.

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