GETTING ALONE WITH GOD.

 

We constantly hear that we are to use Christ as our example.

But do we?  There is one habit Jesus had that speaks

volumes to me.  It is where he got his power here on earth

as a man.

"But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness

for prayer."

(Luke 5:16 NLT)

"After sending them home, he went up into

the hills by himself to pray.  Night fell while

he was there alone."

(Matthew 14:23 NLT)

"Before daybreak the next morning,

Jesus got up and went out to an 

isolated place to pray."

(Mark 1:35 NLT)

"After telling everyone good-bye, 

he went up into the hills by himself

to pray."

(Mark 6:46 NLT)

"One day soon afterward Jesus went

up on a mountain to pray, and he

prayed to God all night."

(Luke 6:12 NLT)

If the one who created the heavens and the

earth needed to pray while he was here on

 earth as a man - we need to pray even more.

TODAY'S PROMISE

“The LORD is good,

a strong refuge when

trouble comes.

He is close to those 

who trust in him.”

(Nahum 1:7 NLT)

 

FAKE CHRISTIANS

Around my house there are some fake flowers.

They look like the real thing, at least from a distance,

but they sure do not smell like flowers.

Or like you have seen, a beautiful bowl of fruit.

But try biting into some of the fruit and you will

be eating; glass or plastic or wax.

Look around you.  There are a lot of Christians that

fall into the same category,  they are fake.  They claim

to be Christian because they were born into a "Christian"

nation, or a Christian family, or go to a Christian church.

But watch their lives.  They are no different than anybody

else.  There is nothing about them that makes them a 

Christian i.e. a follower of Christ.

Let Jesus Christ himself tell us what a follower

of his is;

"If any of you wants to be my follower, you must

give up your own way, take up your cross and

follow me.  If you try to hang on to your life, you

will lose it.  But if you give up your life for my sake

and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it.

And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world

but lose your own soul?  Is anything worth more

than your soul? 

(Mark8:34 - 37 NLT)

Do I profess to be a follower of Christ, 

but go on living like I want instead of 

yielding whole heartedly to Him?

If I do,

I will loose it all.

TODAY'S QUOTE

 

“Bible records and church history

reveal to us that many of God’s

servants have at times handed

God their resignation.”

- Erwin W. Lutzer in

Failure The Back Door to Success

DOING GREAT THINGS FOR GOD.

 

You probably know the story as well as I do.

We call it "the mount of Transfiguration".

Several things stand out to me in this event.

One is that as happened so often Jesus took with him

Peter, James and John.  It seems that these guys were

especially close to Jesus.  That is the way we "ought"

to be.  But lets look at it more closely.  After Jesus was

Transfigured before them with His face shinning like the

sun and his clothes glistening white;

"Peter said to Jesus, 'Lord, it is good for us to be here;

if You wish, I will make three tabernacles here, one

for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.'  While

he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadows them,

and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, 'This is My

beloved Son, with who I am we pleased; listen to 

Him!'" ------

"And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus

Himself alone." 

(Matthew 17:4,5 & 8 NASB)

Now I can relate to that.  When they realized that they

were there "with God himself in the flesh" they were

awe struck.  They were like you and I.  What can I do

for you Lord.  Can I make something for you.  Can I 

bake a cake for you, can I etc., etc., etc.

Peter wanted to build buildings for Jesus, Moses and 

Elijah.  He wanted to do something great for God.

But God the Father spoke right out of a cloud to the

disciples and in essence said, "Listen to Jesus."

 It is easier for most of us to "do something" for 

God than it is to pay attention to what he is trying

to tell us.

One other point.

After God the Father spoke there was only Jesus left.

Perhaps the two greatest prophets that ever walked the

face of the earth, Moses and Elijah were no longer seen.

The point is;

forget Dr. Know-it-all or Dr. Loudmouth, or some

other famous person.

LISTEN TO JESUS.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"Trust in the LORD and do good.

Then you will live safely in the

land and prosper.

Take delight in the LORD,

and he will give you your 

heart's desires.

Commit everything you do to the Lord.

Trust him, and he will help you."

(Psalms 37:3 - 5 NLT)

 

BEAT OUT BY A KID.

Do you ever get to feeling like a "nothing".  I do.

Do you get sick of all these celebrities that think

the whole world revolves around them.  I do.

And even some common people who want all the 

attention,  Again, I do.

Then even more important in the realm where it really

matters - the Kingdom of God.  There again is Dr.

Know-it-all, pastor of the Great Church on the corner.

And his "good friend" [All writers have a good friend

that is famous they often refer to.] Dr. Dry-dust who

preaches on T.V.

The disciples of Jesus must have felt a lot like you

and I do when they came to Jesus and ask;

"About that time the disciples

came to Jesus and asked,

'Who is greatest in the Kingdom 

of Heaven?'

Jesus called a little child to him

and put the child among them.

Then he said, 'I tell you the truth,

unless you turn from your sins and

become like little children, you will

never get into the Kingdom of 

Heaven.  So anyone who becomes

as humble as this little child is the 

greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven."

(Matthew 18:1 - 4 NLT)

I just love it, BEAT OUT BY A KID.

You are smart enough to make your own application.

TODAY'S QUOTE

 

“Bible records and church history

reveal to us that many of God’s

servants have at times handed

God their resignation.”

- Erwin W. Lutzer in

Failure The Back Door to Success

RAISED FROM THE DEAD

 

I know and you know that we are all going to die

someday.  God himself made it that way.  He said:

"And just as each person is destined to die

once and after that comes judgment," 

(Hebrews 9:27 NLT)

 

But did you know that both you and I are going to

rise from the dead someday.  Yes, both good people

and bad people.  Through the prophet Daniel and 

even Jesus himself we learn;

"Many of those whose bodies lie dead

and buried will rise up, some to ever-

lasting life and some to shame and 

everlasting disgrace." 

(Daniel 12:2 NLT).  

"Don't be so surprised!  Indeed, the

time is coing when all the dead in their

graves will hear the voice of God's Son,

and they will rise again.  Those who 

have done good will rise to experience

eternal life, and those who have continued

in evil will rise to experience judgment."  

(John 5:28,29 NLT).  

But the one that caught my attention was

what God reviled to the prophet Isaiah about

God's people.  This does not apply to every

one, but only those who are in a relationship

with God himself.

"But those who die in the Lord will live;

their bodies will rise again!

Those who sleep in the earth

will rise up and sing for joy! 

(Isaiah 26:19 NLT).  

Did you catch that?

Those of us who are in a relationship with

God will die, yes.  But we will be raised up

out of our graves someday singing with joy.

TODAY'S PROMISE

 

"The instructions of the LORD are perfect,

reviving the soul.

The decrees of the LORD are trustworthy,

making wise the simple.

The commandments of the LORD are right,

bringing joy to the heart.

The commands of the LORD are clear,

giving insight for living.

Reverence for the LORD is pure,

lasting forever.

The laws of the LORD are true,

each one is fair.

They are more desirable than gold,

even the finest gold.

They are sweeter than honey,

even honey dripping from the comb.

They are a warning to your servant,

a great reward for those who obey them."

(Psalms 19:7 - 11 NLT)

THANK GOD FOR THE STORM

 

Reading in the book of Jonah yesterday turned

my mind to the blessings of storms in our lives.

We know that in Jonah's case Jonah was running

from God.  Jonah was prejudice and did not want to

do what God wanted him to.  So Jonah tried to run

away.  You would think that God's prophet would 

know you can't run from God.  But Jonah tried, so;

"But the LORD hurled a powerful wind

over the sea, causing a violent storm that

threatened to break the ship apart."

(Jonah 1:4 NLT)

If you have read the book of Jonah you know that

got Jonah's attention.

In my own life I have to think back to over sixty

years ago.  In a period of a couple years God allowed

several storms in my life.  I can remember three 

distinct storms and it was finally the third one

that God my attention.  Simply put, God was trying

to get my attention.

Not all storms are because we are running from God.

Just the last few days while enjoying the presence 

of God and a new sense of direction and rejoicing

in God's goodness a storm hit me all at once that

tried to stop me all together.  I now believe it was

from Satan trying to stop me.  But thank God, it

only drove me closer to God for help.

Most of us have storms of one sort or another in

our lives.  The storms in your life.  Are they trying

to tell you something?  Let them drive you closer

to God and you will be all the better off for the 

storm.

TODAY'S QUOTE

 

“Obviously, unless we are really

spiritual, we are not going in for

self-examination.  The farther one

gets away from God, the more he

tries to justify his action.  The closer

one is to God, the more he goes in

for introspection.” 

 

- A.C. Valdez

PREPARING FOR THE COMING TROUBLE

 

By nature I am a survivalist.  Knowing what is coming

because God said it is, and it has been happening like

he said, about fifty years ago I moved out of town and

into the hills.

Like Noah who built an ark or boat, I built a bomb shelter.

Like Joseph in Egypt storing up wheat, I spent a lot of money

on survival foods.  I have guns to hunt with and fishing 

equipment to fish with.  And yes, in addition I have a hideaway

another place out in the woods.

BUT, BUT, BUT.

After watching and tending all these things for all these

years God has let me see that they are FUTILE.  They are

not adequate.  There are far to many other things that can

kill you.

As I see the terrible times coming that are just ahead

I have been praying about it for a few years now and

this is the way he is leading me.

[Please, seek God's will for you, your life and how he

would have you Go.  If he clearly leads you another

way - follow his direction.]

God keeps pointing me back to the "Sermon on the

Mount."  Don't worry about food and clothes.  Don't

worry about tomorrow.  Look at the birds and their

carefree life. etc. etc. etc.  Jesus gives us this specific

instruction;

"Seek the Kingdom of God above all else,

and live righteously, and he will give you

everything you need.

So don't worry about tomorrow, for

tomorrow will bring its own worries.

Today's trouble is enough for today." 

(Matthew 6:33,34 NLT). 

The only safe preparation that can be made for

the coming days is; PUT GOD FIRST IN

EVERYTHING.  Leave it in his hands.

Thinking of seeking first the Kingdom of God

the Apostle Paul puts it another way, i.e., if 

you are in a relationship with Jesus Christ.

If not, you have lost everything away.

"Since you have been raised to new life

with Christ, set your sights on the realities

of heaven, where Christ sits in the place

of honor at God's right hand.  Think about

the things of heaven, not the things of earth.

For you died to this life, and your real life

is hidden with Christ in God.  And when

Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the

whole world, you will share in all his glory." 

(Colossians 3:1 - 4 NLT)

Grab a tight hold on God and meet me in 

heaven .

TODAY'S PROMISE

 

“But blessed are those who 

trust in the LORD and have made

the the LORD their hope and

confidence.” 

(Jeremiah 17:7 NLT)

TODAY'S QUOTE

“What a great loss we incur both

spiritually and materially by not

waiting patiently till His perfect

will is made fully clear to us.” 

- Brother Bakht Singh of India -