Pray for Storm Victims in Southern Illinois

By now all have heard of the tornados that struck in deep Southern Illinois early this morning. The good great news I just heard was that the number who have died has been revised to a lower number…praise God! Now, I know several are wanting to help and there are many different ways we can help, but one of the most effective ways to help is to fall to our face in prayer, with intercession on their behalf. Now, don’t just say you’ll pray, or offer up a small prayer while you’re reminded of it…I am speaking of fervent, heartfelt prayer asking God first to meet physical, emotional, and financial needs. Secondly ask God to use these people, this tragedy to glorify Himself. Pray that the testimonies about how God protected people, comforted and provided for people and how He used people to help those in need will flow from the lips of those affected like the waters of a river flow in the springtime. Remember, our God is worthy of our praise in both good times and in time of distress and despair. Then pray for God to direct you as to how you can help. One way to pray is to ask God to enable you to help them in proportion to the help you will need in the future…that seems like the best way to “pay it forward!”

Love Packages, Butler, IL

If you are looking for someplace to do some mission work for youth or adults that is close, inexpensive, and life-changing, I would like to suggest Love Packages at Butler, IL. You can work for hours or days and know that your time will be used by God to change the lives of hundreds around the world! Here’s Steve’s story…I cannot recommend it enough. Watch this (and other Love Packages videos on YouTube) and then call Steve!

Making the Shift!

George Barna concludes his book, “Think Like Jesus” with these words:

          “To be a genuine Christian is more than simply believing in God or Jesus Christ; even the devil meets that criterion. Being a true Christian requires more than simply believing that the Bible is a reliable ancient document; many archaeologist and historians who are atheists believe that. To be an authentic Christian is to accept that God is the Creator of all things, the indisputable Ruler of the universe, and the One who gave us life and purpose—the purpose of loving and obeying Him, and of loving and serving other people, and of living in accordance to the guidelines He provided in the Bible and in concert with the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit that He instills within us once we surrender fully to Him. It is at that point that we see the world for what it is and invest our time and energy in trying to think like Jesus so we can behave like Jesus—all so that we might please and honor God.

          If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, what better way is there to express your reverence for God than to commit yourself to thinking like Jesus?” (p. 198).

All I would add is Amen!

Send Satan Packing!

As we begin this Lenten season, some of us will inevitably fail in our endeavor to draw near to God. The distractions of daily life, our human weaknesses, unfamiliar disciplines, each can contribute to our failure, as can satan. Of all the things I know, I know satan does not want us to draw closer to God. However, and I’ve said this before, he has no power over us. We must remember that satan is not co-equal with God as it sometimes might feel, satan is a created being, a fallen angel. C. S. Lewis said it well: “Satan, the leader of or dictator of devils, is the opposite, not of God, but of Michael.” Yes, Paul does describe him as a roaring lion, but the Lion of the tribe of Judah is far greater than satan will ever be. John gives us the only word we really need, “The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 Jn 4:4). Now, if those words were not enough, James gives us the formula for defeating him soundly: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (4:7). This Lent don’t believe the lies of satan…keep your eyes on the prize and He will reward you with the intimacy you seek.

Ash Wednesday

Yesterday I buried a woman who, for the past 15 years or so, had been praying for me and my ministry. She was a prayer warrior. I say this, not to solicit sympathy, but to sound an alarm. Could one of the reasons the Church is in such a feeble state in America be that we are not replacing those elderly prayer warriors with younger ones? My observation from the past five charges I have served is that we have lost more warriors than we have raised up. Perhaps it is my fault as well. Today is Ash Wednesday. For many, a time to give up something they enjoy so they might focus more intently on the Lord. The fault in this practice is that many will wait either patiently or painfully for the end of Lent so they might again enjoy that which they have denied themselves of. Is that the point? I would suggest to you that instead of “giving up” something for Lent, why don’t we “take up” something new for Lent. Why not add prayer time to our day…why not add time to seek God’s face…why not add time, intentional time, to explore God’s will for you? It seems if the Church today is weak and powerless it is only because we have not yet discovered the power of the Holy Spirit. Why not add time asking the Spirit to come upon us…that we might truly be the Church God intended for us to be? I pray you have a productive Lenten season, whatever your practice.

Discipline & Revival

dis•ci•pline


a : control gained by enforcing obedience or order

b : orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behavior

c : self-control

Okay, so here I go again…trying to master the discipline of daily writing on my blog. Yeah, I got a million excuses…some of them valid, but that doesn’t necessarily relieve me of this discipline I chose so many years ago. After all, I manage to write a sermon each week…and please, no disparaging remarks about my sermons! So, having said that, let me share something I read this past week and repeated during a revival service. A. W. Tozer stated in The Pursuit of God, “Social religion is perfected when private religion is purified.” Did you hear that? I mean, we’ve heard it all before, but he said it so well. If you want to change your city, country, or world for the good, it begins with you and God. We can no longer (if we ever could) fault others for the state of the Church or the Country…it is our own personal sin, our own personal disconnectedness from God, our own disobedience that, when added to the disobedience, disconnectedness, and sin of everyone else, that has put our Church and our Country, even our world in the sad condition it’s in. So where and how do we start to fix this mess? Let’s each pray for our own revival.

Courage

I found this on another blog ( http://pass-forward.blogspot.com/2011/06/courage-three-men-three-stories.html ) and thought it worthy of sharing.

One person with COURAGE makes a majority.


A nineteenth-century preacher named Peter Cartwright was preparing his sermon on Sunday wen he was warned that U.S. President Andrew Jackson would be in the congregation. He was told to keep his remarks benign, so as not to offend the president.

During his message, Cartwright acknowledged his famous guest. "I have been told that Andrew Jackson is in the congregation," he said. "And I have been asked to guard my remarks. What must I say is that Andrew Jackson will go to hell if he doesn't repent of his sin."

Some people in the audience cringed. Others gasped. What would become of this outspoken pastor? What penalty might he face?
After the service, Jackson strode up to Cartwright. The noble preacher stood his ground. "Sir," the president said, "if I had a regiment of men like you, I could whip the world."

It's not always easy to speak the truth, especially if you're intimidated by the size or import of your audience. It's much easier to say what we believe people--especially our superiors--will want to hear. When you don't say what you truly believe, not only are you speaking untruthfully to others, but you are betraying your own ideas and convictions. Speak what you believe - the results of such honesty might just surprise you.
-- The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy. Proverbs 12:22 --

Dialogue of the Day

Here's a Facebook post that I caught...thought it was well worth all seeing...

 

DIALOGUE OF THE DAY -  Me (in a tizzy) : God, can I ask you something? GOD: Sure. Me: Promise you won't get mad? GOD: I promise. Me (frustrated): Why did you let so much stuff happen to me today? GOD: What do you mean? Me: Well I woke up late, GOD: Yes. Me: My car took fore...ver to start, GOD: Okay.... Me (growling): At lunch, they made my sandwich wrong and I had to wait. GOD: Hmmmm.. Me: On the way home, my phone went dead, just as I picked up a call. GOD: All right… Me (loudly): And to top it all off, when I got home, I just wanted to soak my feet in my foot massager and relax, but it wouldn't work. Nothing went right today! Why did you do that? GOD: Well let me see..... the death angel was at your bed this morning and I had to send one of the other angels to battle him for your life. I let you sleep through that. Me (humbled): Oh... GOD: I didn't let your car start because there was a drunk driver on your route that might have hit you if you were on the road. Me (ashamed): ............ GOD: The first person who made your sandwich today was sick and I didn't want you to catch what they have, I knew you couldn't afford to miss work. Me (embarrassed): Oh..... GOD: Your phone went dead because the person that was calling was going to give a false witness about what you said on that call, I didn't even let you talk to them so you would be covered… Me (softly): I see God………… GOD: Oh and that foot massager, it had a short that was going to throw out all of the power in your house tonight. I didn't think you wanted to be in the dark. Me: I'm sorry God. GOD: Don't be sorry, just learn to trust me.........in all things, the good and the bad. Me: I WILL trust you God. GOD: And don't doubt that my plan for your day is always better than your plan Me: I won't God. And let me just tell you God, thank you for everything today. GOD: You're welcome child. It was just another day being your God and I love looking after my children.

Complete Submission

In his classic, The Pursuit of God, A. W. Tozer writes, “God being who and what He is, and we being who and what we are, the only thinkable relationship between us is one of full Lordship on His part and complete submission on ours. We owe Him every honor that is in our power to give Him. Our everlasting grief lies in giving Him anything less.” Tozer’s words of truth remind me just how perverted our world is…and how I often miss the mark myself. It is easy for me to see how the world has elevated all sorts of treasures, positions, and relationships to the status of god and then worship them…golden calves are everywhere! It’s a bit tougher, and much more necessary, for me to read Tozer’s words without rushing pass the words “complete submission” pretending my submission is not conditional. You see, too often I completely submit to God where His will and my will intersect…and when they do not intersect, I justify my incomplete submission by saying/thinking things like, “Lord show me your will,” or “I need a sign” (that is a personal favorite of mine!), or “This cannot be God’s will for me.” I am reminded of that famous author, Anonymous, who wrote, “Anything less than total obedience is actually disobedience.” God help us...especially me!