Freedom Fighters

Know Your Strengths and Weaknesses

2012-02-10T00:00:00.001-05:00

Know Your Strengths and Weaknesses

This is a good word for you to hear today. I trust it will be helpful. (Bill Welte)

Everything transacted in heaven or hell passes through Christ's hands. The Son knows all the Father knows, and He is ready to reveal to His saints all they need to know in this life (John 15:15). We live in days of high political intrigue. Only the few who stand on the upper end of the world understand the mysteries of state; the rest of us know little more than what we read in the newspaper.

It is the same with regard to the plots which Satan is furtively weaving against the souls of men. Only a few have an inkling as to the purpose of Satan's designs against them. These are the saints, to whom God's Spirit reveals not only what He has prepared for them in heaven but also the warp and woof of Satan's deadly schemes here on earth.

Know your heart. Be intimately acquainted with yourself, and you will better know Satan's design against you. He takes his method of tempting from the inclination he finds there. As a general walks about the city and views it well, then directs his assault where he has the greatest advantage, so Satan surrounds and considers the Christian in every part before he tempts.

Read God's Word attentively. It gives a history of the most remarkable battles between the great soldiers of Christ and their adversary Satan. You can read how Satan has foiled them, and how they recovered lost ground. There is not a lust of which you are in danger, but you have it disclosed; there is not a temptation which the Word of God does not arm you against.

It is reported that a certain man planned to poison Martin Luther, but Luther was forewarned by a faithful friend who sent him a picture of the would-be murderer. The Bible shows you, Christian, the faces of those lusts which Satan hires to destroy your precious soul. "By them is thy servant warned" (Psalm 19:11). William Gurnall. The Christian in Complete Armour (Kindle Locations 512-523). Kindle Edition.

Team YOU: Leviticus 8-10; Proverbs 10; Matthew 25:31-46

Motivations: The church that ceases to be evangelistic will soon cease to be evangelical.Oswald J. Smith

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:19; Level 2: Ephesians 2:19-22

Powered Up: When you pray you get in God’s will before it happens. Delores Jarvis

A Dog's Life

2012-02-09T00:00:00.000-05:00

A Dog’s Life

"And since then, O Kings and Ladies, I have been wandering to find him and my happiness is so great that it even weakens me like a wound. And this is the marvel of marvels, that he called me, Beloved, me who am but as a dog." ~ Emeth, "The Last Battle" by C.S. Lewis

And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.” Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
~ The Syrophoenician Woman in Matthew 15:21-28

We (those of us gentiles) are this woman beloved readers. Jesus came to save (first) His precious possession. Those children of Abraham who were looking for the Messiah, were to find Him first. The Kingdom of heaven was (is) for all of us, but the over-arching plan has been that that plan would be dispensed through His chosen people, the Jews.

And this Canaanite woman had the dazzling audacity to scream out from the back of the crowd.

Help! i am in WAY OVER MY HEAD!

Jesus answers with: Silence...

HELP!!! ME AND MY DAUGHTER NEED YOU JESUS!!! WE ARE ABSOLUTELY STUCK WITHOUT YOU!!!

Jesus answers with: Why should I help a dog like you? Look at all these religious people here trying to show me how good they are...

because i am a dog. i am nothing. But You are able Lord. Only You can help me.

And it is here that Jesus tips His Beautiful hand. He poured out the core of His message through the barking of a Syrophoenician dog. Nobody else seemed willing to say it: "i am poor in spirit Lord. Only You can make me rich." Worship and faith poured out of this woman's words... Thou art worthy. Thou art Who Thou claim to be. And i will approach NO other for help. Thou art my help, and my only hope of deliverance.

Absolutely gorgeous.

Jesus didn't want her to be worthy. Jesus wanted her to admit her unworthiness to be helped. And in admitting this weakness - she made the leap of faith that engages the awesome Grace and power of a great and Loving G_d.

And that day, He did not just free a woman and her daughter. He propounded (again) a truth that has set 100's of millions of us free. We are nothing but dogs. We are a mess. AND Jesus is crazy about us. He does not want us worthy. He wants us broken - and knowing we are broken. It is only in this place that the faith in His saving work begins to work in us.

And once He sets us free... RUN like He's opened the prison door. Because He has! Run like a dog who's master has just left the gate open! – Makala Duolos is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy

Team YOU: Leviticus 6-7; Proverbs 9; Matthew 25:1-30

Motivations: “When arrogant people who know they deserve eternal misery tremble before a holy God of passionate wrath, they discover grace. The encounter the depths of God’s kindness and love, a kindness and love they find nowhere else. They fall to their knees and worship Christ as their Lord and Savior and as their truest friend, really their only true friend. They know they don’t deserve a hug, no matter how badly they’re hurting; but they get an eternal one anyway. That’s the grace that takes their breath away.” Larry Crabb, Shattered Dreams

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:19; Level 2: Ephesians 2:19-22

Powered Up: You can love more people through prayer than any other way. You can love, by your prayer, people who avoid your or resist you. You can love people anywhere in the world by your prayer. The more you pour out God’s love through your prayer and actions, the more the Spirit will pour in as you ask Him. Wesley Duewel

Know How Satan Plays the Game

2012-02-08T00:00:00.001-05:00

Join us this Thursday night for our Men’s Fellowship with Pastor Dave Rittinger. Call 732-350-1187.

Know How Satan Plays the Game

"We are not ignorant of his devices," he says (2 Corinthians 2:11)

I read this devotional on Monday and it was too good to not share with you.
Study Satan's tricks, and acquaint yourself with his tactics. Paul takes for granted that every Christian understands them in some measure: "We are not ignorant of his devices," he says (2 Corinthians 2:11). Can this be said of you? Do you know how subtle and clever your enemy is? What pleasant company he can pretend to be?

"Sit down at my gaming table," says Satan. "Here are some tempting prizes: your earthly estate, your life, your liberty" Now you must agree, these things are good and lawful. But here is Satan's gimmick: he expands the rule of his game so that if you play for him, you will certainly violate the irrevocable and unchangeable laws of God.

If you cannot have good things by plain dealing but must resort to sleight of hand, you know the prize is counterfeit and will turn to dung in your hands. How utterly foolish to fast shuffle with God by compromising His truth. You may think you have won a hand or two, but when the game is over, you will find yourself bankrupt.

If Satan can entice you to sin for what he assures you is a worthy prize, you are in serious trouble, but the worst is yet to come. Once he has you sitting at his table, he will begin in earnest to teach you the tricks of his trade. This diabolical dealers will show you how to slip your sins under the table, telling you no one-not even God-will see. He has been teaching this trick since Adam, who thought he could hide behind a fig leaf. What did Joseph's brothers do when they had left him for dead but hide their deed under the coat they had bloodied? And how did Potiphar's wife respond when Joseph turned away from her adulterous gaze? She hid her sin (again in his coat) and accused him of her own wickedness.

Beware of playing such games of chance with God. No coat is large enough to hide your sin; no hand is quick enough to slip it under the table and miss the all-seeing eye of God. If He does not call you to account for it in this life, you can be sure you will answer for it in the next. William Gurnall. The Christian in Complete Armour (Kindle Locations 498-510). Kindle Edition.
Beware brothers! The enemy is after you and me. It’s important for us to know how Satan plays “the game.” Knowing this will be very helpful. -- Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Leviticus 4-5; Proverbs 8; Matthew 24:29-51

Motivations: Cold words freeze people, and hot words scorch them, and bitter words make them bitter, and wrathful words make them wrathful. Kind words also produce their image on men's souls; and a beautiful image it is. They smooth, and quiet, and comfort the hearer. Blaise Pascal

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:19; Level 2: Ephesians 2:19-22

Powered Up: Our prayers lay the track down which God’s mighty power can come. Like a mighty locomotive His power is irresistible, but it cannot reach us without rails. Watchman Nee

Two Observations about Obedience

2012-02-07T00:00:00.000-05:00

Just a reminder: Come join us Thursday night for our Men's Fellowship Night with Pastor Dave Rittinger (Whiting Bible Church). Dinner starts at 6:15 PM followed by worship, message and fun in the Activity Center. Call today for reservations: 732-350-1187

Two Observations about Obedience

“And Moses inspected all the work, and behold, they had done it; as the Lord commanded, so they had done it. And Moses blessed them.” Exodus 39:43

Something jumped off the page this morning when I was reading the final chapters in our reading of Exodus (38-40). Yesterday I talked about Bezalel and Aholiab and I was even more impressed with them as I read the final chapters of this amazing book.

I would love to have these two guys on my team. They exhibited a trait that is very rare these days in that they did exactly what they were told. If that wasn’t something of importance, why would did the writer of Exodus repeatedly say that the did “as the Lord commanded Moses.” By the way – that phrase is used nine times – so obviously the Lord wants us to see something.

I have shared this quote with you on a number of occasions from Pastor Tim Shorey: "Obedience is doing everything you are told to do IN THE RIGHT WAY (with the right heart attitude inwardly), RIGHT AWAY (immediately) and ALL THE WAY (do a complete job.)

That’s exactly what Bezalel and Aholiab demonstrated. They could have tried to do it their way – but they were obedient and God blessed the work of their hands.

But something else to note: chapter 40 which closes out the book showed that Moses modeled what he wanted others to do. Eight times it says: “Thus did Moses; according to all that the Lord commanded him, so he did!”

If we want those that follow us to get it – then we as leaders, fathers, supervisors, must model it for those who look up to us. Good reminder, Moses.

How about you today? As you look at Pastor Tim’s definition of obedience, how are you doing? Take some time today to think about it! – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Leviticus 1-3; Proverbs 7; Matthew 24:1-28

Motivations: Only in obedience can we discover the great joy of the will of God. —Sinclair Ferguson

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:19; Level 2: Ephesians 2:19-22

Powered Up: From one end of the Bible to the other, we find the record of people whose prayers are answered – people who turned the tide of history by prayer, men who prayed fervently and whom God answered. Billy Graham

Bezalel and Aholiab Who?

2012-02-06T00:00:00.001-05:00

ATTENTION ALL GUYS -- What are you doing this Thursday evening? Why not join us for our monthly Men's Fellowship night at America's Keswick. Great meal, fellowship, worship, challenge from the Word, and fun in the Activity Center. Pastor Dave Rittinger, Senior Pastor Whiting Bible Church will be our guest speaker. Call today and register. Begins at 6:15 PM. Come and bring a friend! (732-350-1187)

Bezalel and Aholiab Who?

Bezalel and Aholiab and every wise hearted man in whom the Lord has put wisdom and understanding to know how to do all the work for the service of the sanctuary shall work according to all that the Lord has commanded. Exodus 36:1 (Amplified Bible)

For those of you who haven’t dialed in to read the Bible with me this year, it’s not too late to start. Under the TEAM YOU section below, you can pick up where we are and begin to read an Old Testament and New Testament passage and then a chapter in Proverbs.

The past several days we have been in the book of Exodus and reading about the construction of the tabernacle and all the furnishings. Often time we tend to gloss over this as it is very detailed (and if you are like most men, we hate reading instructions!) instruction manual on how God wanted the tabernacle and all the accessories built.

There’s not a lot in Scripture about the guy Bezalel (what a name!) but he played a very pivotal role in doing the major part of the construction of the tabernacle and its furnshings.

Of this man, we read in Exodus 35:31 (Amplified Bible) that”God filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and wisdom, with intelligence and understanding, and with a knowledge of all craftsmanship.” It also said that “God has put in Bezalel’s heart that he my teach, both he and Aholiab …” (Exodus 35:26). God “filled them with wisdom of heart and the ability to do all the manner of craftsmanship, of the engraver, of the skillful workman, of the embroiderer in blue, purple, and scarlet, and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of those who do or design any skilled work.” (Exodus 35:34-35)

Read through the remaining chapters of Exodus and you will see the phrase “He made” 46 times (Amplified Bible). Bottom line he did it all just the way God commanded Moses.

What has God called YOU to do? Does the job require that you follow His commands and instructions? Is it a job that seems “over your head?” One that seems to be above your pay-scale? Well God will never call you to do something for Him unless He will be faithful to equip you to do the job.

Paul wrote to the body at Thessalonica: “Faithful is He who is calling you [to Himself] and utterly trustworthy, and He will also do it [fulfill His call by hallowing and keeping you].

If He has placed a call on your life – be obedient. Trust Him. And be amazed at what He will do in and through you! – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Exodus 39-40; Proverbs 6; Matthew 23:23-39

Motivations: I am persuaded that all of your problems are conceived and born in the sinful belief that something or someone other than Jesus Christ can quench the thirst of our souls. C. Samuel Storms

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:19; Level 2: Ephesians 2:19-22

Powered Up: I can take my telescope and look millions of miles into space; but I can go away to my room and in prayer get neared to God and heaven than I can when assisted by all the telescopes of earth. Isaac Newton

Honor, to the Shame of ... Part Three

2012-02-03T00:00:00.000-05:00

Honor, to the Shame of…Part Three

“And making a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And He poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And He told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make My Father’s house a house of trade.” His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume Me.” John 2:15-17 (ESV)

I think that the use of the word disrespect today has to be undone and re-done for people. I mentioned in my earlier Freedom Fighter that it seems that the showing of disrespect cannot go unchallenged. Say the wrong word and you got someone “all up in your business” and looking to engage in a good ole’slobber-knocker. And you know what…sometimes it is over the stupidest thing. When I hear kids use the “D” word now, I just wish someone would call their mama and tell her to do their child a favor, take them home and tuck them in.

To conclude my time with the issue of honor/shame I have chosen what I consider the most disrespectful thing done to the Father right in front of the Son. It is the Passover and Jesus is going to the Temple as a grown man. He is most definitely about His Father’s business at this point in time. He walks into the huge courtyard to find sacrifice for sale. If your sacrifice was rejected at the altar, after you’ve spent time, money and effort to just to this moment, it was okay…just go to the courtyard and get yourself a new one. And if your currency is different from what we use, there’s a table for that. Just make sure you use the right exchange when you re-pay the Temple Tax to try this again.

Now Jesus doesn’t waste no time in what He is about to do. Over go the tables, upside down go the boxes full of gold and silver coins and with that whip He chases the animal’s outta the courtyard. His disciple’s see what is written in Psalm 69:9 come to life, “For zeal for Your house has consumed Me, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on Me.” This whole scene has its root in the shame that God’s people conduct themselves with and they don’t even see it. They have become so complacent with what they do they don’t even realize the shame they show the very God of Israel… and the Son is there, in the flesh, to see it all up front and personal.

After He answered their question with, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” the Jews taunt Him by saying it took forty-six years to build Herod’s Temple, raise it up in three days, HA!!! But in their dishonor they miss the point. The Pharisees and the Sadducees spent a great deal of time trying to regain their honor after they were shamed by Jesus at every turn. It was no problem to bring shame to God in His very House by these kinds of men but it did not sit well with them when the Son brought honor to the very Laws set forth by His Father. Imagine that…Jesus sent here not only to save us from ourselves but to restore the honor that His name rightly deserves.

I hope that when you sit down with your Bible you can focus in on the honor that you can bring Him and not what He can do for you. I for one will be taking my western lens out now and re-read some of those Old Testament tales too. I wonder what Samson looks like through the honor/shame lens now? Gideon? Job? Peter? Moses? Abraham? We need to realize that Jesus isn’t an investment but Family. And even if the actual family that God provided for us still sees through those profit/loss lenses we can rest in the knowledge we have what we need to maintain family honor by not bringing shame to the name of…Jesus Christ. Amen? – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a member of the Freedom Fighter Team

Team YOU: Exodus 31-33; Proverbs 3; Matthew 22:1-22

Motivations: “Does it matter if you receive the gifts of grace the way a beggar receives bread? This would not cause the gifts to be less pure or less precious. Receive with humility the sweet grace that God wants to give you.”-Fenelon

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:10; Level 2: Ephesians 2:11-18

Powered Up: Prayer can do anything God can do. E. M. Bounds

Honor, to the Shame of ... Part Two

2012-02-02T00:00:00.001-05:00

Honor, to the Shame of… Part Two

“And He said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And His disciples believed in Him.” John 2:8-11 (ESV)

Saving family honor was definitely the underscore when we read about the Wedding at Cana. Even though we read this as Jesus’ first miracle in the Bible we might want to take note here something that else is happening. “Everyone serves the good wine first” is a really great way to impress the wedding guests. Everything from the food to music had to be made to the approval of everyone in attendance. The bridegroom had to make that first impression in order for his families honor to be preserved. Once he had that, his place in the whole of the family was assured and approved of.

The focus of those folks in the Eastern world, third world or in Biblical times on honor and shame meant that they were particularly oriented to what a group held to be honorable or shameful. Here in the west we tend to keep this in an individual sense. And in the urban setting it has taken this respect/disrespect sense. Where respect has more value than human life and that disrespecting is a challenge that cannot go unanswered. I find that those individuals that offend easily are the ones who feel disrespected the quickest. They gain their honor just for a name’s sake and not for the community as a whole.

I wonder if we realize the level of “disrespect” we give God when His name is spoken ill of? Those of us in Secular-land can hear the name of God spoken in ways that make you kind of slide a little to the left of those saying them after they have uttered their dishonoring words. What of those Christians who even invoke His name in hopes of bringing a calamity down on someone? We need to keep in mind that God will vindicate His name by bringing down punishment on those who choose to dishonor Him. I think it is the most dishonoring of Elohim when we hear everyday people complain about the weather. Without His common grace upon us all this planet could get rather hot and dark.

What of the honoring we do when we pray “In the name of”…? If you are in your Wednesday night prayer group you might have heard this. I would like to attribute this to when we are coming to the throne of grace, humble and contrite, asking for what we know we cannot do on our own. I have heard His name uttered in English, Spanish and in Hebrew. Coming with your requests “In the Name of Jesus the Christ” needs to be held in the highest honor given to whom who gave Himself for you. A great reason for you to defend His honor in public when you hear His name uttered by dishonoring lips.

I hope you are getting the idea that your Savior doesn’t just want you to love Him with all your mind, heart, strength and soul but that you also honor Him by maintaining a right relationship with all three parts of the Godhead. There is one more aspect to cover concerning the honor/shame system we need to look at. In the last part of this we will see how easy it was for men to get angry and do whatever was needed to do to regain honor…even if that honor was based in those things not of God but allowed by Him none the less. Things that were at the very heart of a people who thought they had the honor/shame system down to a science. – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and member of the Freedom Fighter Team

Team YOU: Exodus 29-30; Proverbs 2; Matthew 21:23-46

Motivations: “The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One.”-A.W.Tozer

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:10; Level 2: Ephesians 2:11-18

Powered Up: The Lord is great and high, therefore He wants great things to be sought from Him and is willing to bestow them so that His almighty power might be shown forth. Martin Luther

Honor, to the Shame of ... Part One

2012-02-01T00:00:00.000-05:00

Honor, to the Shame of… Part One

^“On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” John 2:1-5 (ESV)

Working in an environment that has such a diversity of culture can leave a lot lost in translation. Yes you can get the basic of the daily duties across, even find out how folks are doing at times but when the meat of a problem has to be dealt with, things can and will get misunderstood. I work alongside a younger man from the outskirts of Kingston, Jamaica and a man, about my age, who is a Puerto Rican but, hails from Vineland, New Jersey. Albert and Pablo are two men who not only keep me on my theological toes but there are times where they challenge me in the cultural fine art of communication.

Both of these men have approached me on several occasions to fill me in on how the production crew feel about how I run the crew. Because I have to stick to certain policies and procedures sometimes I can come across as an uncaring boss who doesn’t understand the heart of the crew. Pablo sees things from a labor union stand point where Albert sees things from a “man coming into this country to make a reasonable living only to have found that it seems America only cares about business and making money” standpoint…that’s it!!!

I thought that I tend to look at this with my Biblical eye to the grindstone and we live in the greatest country in the world until I heard Dr. Norman Goos ask, “We here in America read the Bible with our western eye’s don’t we?” I am taking his course on Tuesday nights titled “New Testament Survey in Antiquity” and Dr. Goos’ approach to it is quite different than I thought. “We need to change the lens in our minds so we can filter out our culture of profit and loss while we read the Bible.” His point in this is that we need to look our Bible reading in terms of how life is in the Middle East. It is an “Honor and Shame” culture and within that framework we can see what really ticked off the Pharisees of Jesus’ time.

When I first looked at what has been written in John 2:1-5, I almost got the feeling that not only is the mother of Jesus seeking a miracle from her Son but that Jesus may have been putting His mother in her place by saying, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” All that is really going on here is that a wedding is going on and His mother is in charge of the kitchen. She knows her Son can help but the kitchen is her ministry what does that have to do with Jesus’ ministry? But in order to save the family honor Jesus gives us His first miracle at Cana and that it sounds like the wine was pretty good.

Now the family honor here just happens to be from the lineage of David when it comes to Mary. It is the starting point for an honor that is ascribed to Jesus as well but ultimately we know the true honor here comes from The Father Himself. Over the next few Freedom Fighters I am going to try and hit on the need to read our Bible with those honor/shame lenses rather than those profit/loss lenses. I would like to leave you with this thought…if we were to stop wrestling with finding our self-worth or with self-esteem we wouldn’t have to feel the pushing and pulling of what other people think. Would it be in that we would find honor and feel no shame? Just a thought? -- Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a member of the Freedom Fighter Team

Team YOU: Exodus 27-28; Proverbs 1; Matthew 21:1-22

Motivations: “Jesus brought humility from heaven to us. It was humility that brought Him to earth, or He would never have come.”-Andrew Murray

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:10; Level 2: Ephesians 2:11-18

Powered Up: To this day the prayer level is the power level of the church. Our prayer meetings give us away. When the knees are not often bent the feet soon slide! – Armin Gesswein

Praying for Your Shepherd (Part 2)

2012-01-31T00:00:00.001-05:00

Pray for Your Shepherd (Part 2)

"To speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people." Titus 3:2

Here are the four additional ways you can pray for your shepherd. If you missed yesterday, go back and read the first three:

4. Pray that your shepherd would have a tender heart. One of the primary duties of a shepherd is to see and deal with sin, folly, and horror in the lives of people they love. It is brutal. If you are not a shepherd, imagine spending much of every week visiting the sick and dying in the hospital, preaching funerals, mending the broken marriages, serving addicts of various ills, and weeping with victims of molestation and rape. The needs are overwhelming, the shepherd feels woefully unfit for the work, and there is no end in sight. Pray that his heart would remain tender toward God and his flock, because that requires a miracle of grace.

5. Pray that your shepherd would have a humble disposition. Simply put, pride is the root that nourished the fruit of all sin and is akin to picking a fight with God. But God promises to give grace to the humble. Nothing breaks a church like pride, and nothing builds it like humility. Jesus the Chief Shepherd is the most perfectly humble person who has or will ever live ...

Without this humility, a proud shepherd contributes to a church culture of rivalry, conceit, competition, and selfish ambition, and a lack of teachability, submission to godly authority, and repentance.

Pray that as a result of humility he would follow the truth wherever it leads, invite and pursue correction from fellow shepherds, have the courage to lead boldly despite the personal cost, learn from everyone, repent quickly and thoroughly, seek and celebrate God's grace at work in the lives of other Christians and churches, have a spirit of thankfulness, listen to Scripture more than himself, and sleep like a Calvinist, even if he is Armenian!!!

6. Pray that your shepherd would have a supportive family. Between the accusations of Satan, stings of critics, and discouraging awareness of his personal shortcomings and inadequacies, a shepherd is greatly served by an encouraging wife and a home in which the Holy Spirit's work is evident. Pray for the shepherd's wife, because she is often put under great demands to be friends with women in the church she does not enjoy, reveal details from her personal life with people she does not trust, attend parties with people she does not know, share her marriage and family with people she does not feel appreciated by, endure gossip from people she has not met, and lovingly serve people who are not thankful.

Pray for the shepherds children. If they are struggling with sin and faith, there is great pressure to hide it so that their father retains the respect of the sheep and so that the swine do not have an opportunity to gloat and call their father a hypocrite, the wolves do not have an opportunity to attack their father, and the dogs do not have an opportunity to bark at their father.

7. Pray that your shepherd would have an evangelistic devotion. People are dying and going to hell without Jesus. It is easy in light of the needs of the sheep, folly of the swine, dangers of the wolves, and threats of the dogs for the shepherd to become so consumed with his flock that he does not seek the conversion of lost people.

Pray for your shepherd that he would have a heart for lost people and make time in his schedule to labor for their salvation.

I want to encourage you to take up the challenge. Start with just a day, and then may add another – but pray for your Pastor and other church staff members. Who knows – revival might break out – and my guess is this – it will start with YOU. – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Exodus 25-26; Proverbs 31; Matthew 20:17-34

Motivations: I prayed for Faith, and I thought that someday Faith would come down and strike me like lightning. But Faith did not seem to come. One day I read in the tenth chapter of Romans, "Now Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God"...I had closed my Bible, and prayed for Faith. I now opened my Bible, and began to study, and Faith has been growing ever since. Dwight L Moody

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 2:10; Level 2: Ephesians 2:11-18

Powered Up: The mightier any is in the Word, the more mighty he will be in prayer. William Gurnall

Praying for Your Shepherd

2012-01-30T00:00:00.000-05:00

Praying for Your Shepherd

"To speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people." Titus 3:2

This afternoon we will begin our annual conference for Pastor’s and their wives. I love this group of men and women who are committed to serving God through the ministry of the local church.

I want to share the next two days the number one way that you can impact your church: PRAY FOR YOUR SHEPHERD.

I had a man once come to me who wanted to know if I would help him “fix” his pastor. He wanted me to read all the documentation that he had gathered to prove that his pastor was teaching erroneous truth (which he wasn’t) and help him figure out a way of fixing the situation.

Right before this brother had asked to me with me, I read a box complied by Dr. John Piper entitled The Power of Words and the Wonder of God (published by Crossway). One of the chapters gave the answer for how to fix your pastor: PRAY FOR YOUR SHEPHERD. The author of the chapter recommended seven ways to pray for your pastor.

Here are the first three:

1. Pray that God would give your shepherd a discerning mind. Your shepherd need to discern who the sheep, swine, wolves and dogs are so that he know how he and the church should respond.

2. Pray that God would give your shepherd thick skin. Critics can be merciless, and Judas-like friends can be even crueler. Your shepherd receives mean-spirited emails from the people he cares for, suffers from constant gossip and rumors about him and his family, and spends hours every day simply turning the other cheek. When he fails, he is criticized for being a poor leader. And when he succeeds, he is criticized by those who are jealous. When he is young, man he is criticized for being inexperienced and arrogant. And when he is old, he is criticized for not being as energetic, passionate, and innovative as when he was young. Pray that your shepherd would have thick skin and selective hearing to ignore people and comments he should -- and yet to receive the people and comment he should.

3. Pray that your shepherd would have a good sense of humor. With a good sense of humor, shepherds will be overcome with anxiety and stress and will miss wonderful opportunities to laugh deeply from the gut as an act of faith. Shepherds are imperfect as are their individual sheep (sorry, but it's true!) and their collective flock.

Ministry is pressure, and humors is a good release valve that helps to relieve the pressure. Without the release valve of humor, the pressure on a shepherd increases until he simply breaks. This break will be spiritual, emotional, mental, or physical depending upon the weakest cracks in his life. Too many shepherd break. Some leave ministry altogether, while others limp along as their outlook grows bleaker, darker and more somber.

I will share 4-7 tomorrow, but I want to challenge you: pray for your shepherd! If you want to see God work in your church, make a commitment to pray for your shepherd. Pick a day or two each week and pray! You might just be amazed at what God might do.

PS – And it might be that before he starts to work on your pastor – He just might start with you.

Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Exodus 23-24; Proverbs 30; Matthew 20:1-16

Motivations: Faith is remembering that the "saint" who drives me crazy is indwelt by God and precious to him. Pamela Reeve

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Ephesians 2:10; Level 2: Ephesians 2:11-18

Powered Up: Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the Spirit, for such things as God has promised. John Bunyan

The Care of Feet

2012-01-27T00:00:00.001-05:00

The Care of Your Feet

He will keep the feet of His saints. (1 Samuel 2:9)

Growing up my grandmother would often say, “Me feet and legs ache so bad it kills me.” It always made me laugh
.
Now that I am older, and do battle from time to time with sore feet, I realize how important my feet are and how thankful I am for the two feet God has given me.

I read this about the “care of my feet this week in Spurgeon’s book, Faith’s Checque Book:

The way is slippery and our feet are feeble, but the Lord will keep our feet. If we give ourselves up by obedient faith to be His holy ones, He will Himself be our guardian. Not only will He charge His angels to keep us, but He Himself will preserve our goings.
He will keep our feet from falling so that we do not defile our garments, wound our souls, and cause the enemy to blaspheme.

He will keep our feet from wandering so that we do not go into paths of error, or ways of folly, or courses of the world's custom.

He will keep our feet from swelling through weariness, or blistering because of the roughness and length of the way.

He will keep our feet from wounding: our shoes shall be iron and brass so that even though we tread on the edge of the sword, or on deadly serpents, we shall not bleed or be poisoned.

He will also pluck our feet out of the net. We shall not be entangled by the deceit of our malicious and crafty foes. With such a promise as this, let us run without weariness and walk without fear.

He who keeps our feet will do it effectually.

Spurgeon, Charles Haddon (2009-06-18). Works of Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon. According to Promise, All of Grace, Faith's Checkbook, Morning and Evening: Daily Readings, A Puritan Catechism & more (Mobi Spiritual) (Kindle Locations 2772-2779). MobileReference. Kindle Edition.

Are you thankful today for your feet? For His care of your feet? I am! – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Exodus 16-18; Proverbs 27; Matthew 18:1-20

Motivations: Charles Spurgeon and his wife would sell, but refuse to give away, the eggs their chickens laid. Even close relatives were told, "You may have them if you pay for them." As a result some people labeled the Spurgeon’s greedy and grasping. They accepted the criticisms without defending themselves, and only after Mrs. Spurgeon died was the full story revealed. All the profits from the sale of eggs went to support two elderly widows. Because the Spurgeon’s where unwilling to let their left hand know what the right hand was doing (Matthew 6:3), they endured the attacks in silence. Chaplain Magazine

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Ephesians 2:8-9; Level 2: Ephesians 2:1-10

Powered Up: God has instituted prayer so as to confer upon His creatures the diginity of being causes. – Blaise Pascal

How to Spend an Hour in Prayer

2012-01-26T00:00:00.000-05:00

How to Spend an Hour in Prayer

You probably are thinking, “Welte, are you nuts! One hour in prayer?” Well actually I am nuts. But then did you ever try it?

We can watch several hours of football? Play an hour of racquet ball? Go to a 2 – 3 hour movie? But really now – spend an hour in prayer?

Well the disciples were asked the same question by Jesus and we know that they struggled like we do.

So if we were to do it, how?

Dick Eastman from World Literature Crusade suggests that we take these 12 categories and spend five minutes of each:

1. Praise: Psalm 63:3; Hebrews 12:15; Matthew 6:9b

2. Waiting: Psalm 37:7; Isaiah 40:31; Lamentations 3:35

3. Confession: Psalm 139:23-24; Psalm 51:10; 1 John 1:9

4. The Word: 2 Timothy 3:16; Psalm 19:7-8

5. Intercession: 1 Timothy 2:1-2; Psalm 2:8; Matthew 9:37-38

6. Petition: Matthew 7:7; Matthew 6:11; James 4:2

7. The Word: Jeremiah 23:29; 2 Samuel 22:31; Numbers 23:19

8. Thanksgiving: Philippians 4:6; Psalm 100:4

9. Singing: Psalm 100:2; Ephesians 5:19; Psalm 114:9

10. Meditation: Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:1-2; Psalm 77:12

11. Listening: Ecclesiastes 5:2; 1 Kings 19:11-12

12. Praise: Matthew 6:13; Psalm 100:4; Psalm 150

Please note that the plan starts with praise and ends with praise!

So if the Lord came to you and said, “Can you spend one hour with me in prayer?” – do you think you would do it? I am asking myself the same question. I sure want to try it! – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Exodus 14-15; Proverbs 26; Matthew 17

Motivations: Doest thou indeed say, "Hallowed be thy name" with thy heart? Doest thou study, by all honest and lawful ways, to advance the name, holiness, and majesty of God? Doth thy heart and conversation agree with this passage? Doest thou strive to imitate Christ in all the works of righteousness, which God doth command of thee, and prompt thee forward to? John Bunyan

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Ephesians 2:8-9; Level 2: Ephesians 2:1-10

Powered Up: That which God abundantly makes the subject of his promises, God’s people should abundantly make the subject of their prayers. Jonathan Edwards

Breakfast Sandwich Banquet

2012-01-25T00:00:00.000-05:00

Breakfast Sandwich Banquet

“So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’ ” Luke 14:21-24 (ESV)

My Brother-in-Christ (and the closest thing to a real brother) Mark Fisher gave us quite the devotional at our last men’s breakfast. He shared with us how he had this amazing revelation that there are two things that are very much in common when any men’s fellowships are called. The first most important thing is our saving grace knowledge, understanding and commitment to Jesus Christ. And the second thing is food. He has been to many in his time, like the first Promise Keepers where they served bologna sandwiches with some other stuff on a Styrofoam plate with a bag of chips to the Keswick Men’s Fellowship night to our most recent find at Mission Point Church in Somers Point, NJ. They serve pizza and homemade chili…I like the chili part!

But the best part of fellowship is YOU HAVE BEEN INVITED!!

When we look at the Parable of the Great Banquet you see that it starts off with those who have been invited by the master of the house but they all had excuses to NOT attend. Funny thing is that those he invited sound like they were well to do folks just like him but when you have enough meat to keep you knee deep in quarter-pounders for the rest of your days you kind of panic when no one shows up to eat them. He ends up inviting the kind of people he normally wouldn’t have around. Try to look at what is being served as spiritual meat and those invited are the “already spiritual” ones. The ones who came to eat were the poor, crippled, blind and the lame.

Another part of fellowship is BE PREPARED TO ATTEND!! Matthew 25:1-13 gives the Parable of the Ten Virgins. So many times I notice that brothers coming to breakfast or even dinner leave the sword behind. It is sad to think that the reason brothers show up is to eat only. We are told in Psalm 119:105… “Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light to my path” It is to us to keep enough oil for our lamps and the only way I know to do that is to stay knee deep in God’s Word. Can’t cut a steak with a butter knife can you? So when a brother has a devotional to share open your Bible up and see things for yourself.

The last part of fellowship is WE CAN’T SNEAK IN!! Oh you can think showing up late will do it but we all hear the door open when you arrive. It’s how we react to it that’s key. Matthew 22:1-4 tells the Parable of the Wedding Banquet and this one ends kinda tough doesn’t. This person shows up and doesn’t have the wedding clothes on. Flat out dishonoring the king and winds up being tied up, thrown outside into darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (that gnashing stuff sounds scary). Getting into the Heavenly Banquet is like going to a “black tie” event. If you are a “party crasher” in jeans and a t-shirt you will stick out like a sore thumb. The Father will notice that you are not covered with the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

So getting into “The Breakfast Sandwich Banquet” goes like this.

1. We have all been invited!

2. Are you ready and prepared to attend?

3. Will you be clothed for the “black tie” event and welcomed when you get there?

4. Even though we don’t know the day or hour there is no sneaking in!

And for the record if Brother Mark is there and he is behind the grill that day, he makes a killer pork roll breakfast sandwich that will stick with for the morning. Make sure you grab to home to the family…they’ve been invited too!!! – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and served on the Freedom Fighter team

Team YOU: Exodus 12-13; Proverbs 25; Matthew 16

Motivations: “God’s dream is that ‘Christians’ would actually live like Christians”---Chip Ingram

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Ephesians 2:8-9; Level 2: Ephesians 2:1-10

Powered Up: The whole field of prayer, and praying as laying hold on unlimited power, is unexplored, with the result that spiritual laws still lie undiscovered by the average believer.

God's Vote in the Primaries and Caucuses

2012-01-24T00:00:00.001-05:00

God's vote in the Primaries and Caucuses

My friend and brother in Christ, George Hutchison wrote a timely blog last week and since I was on vacation, I didn’t get to share it. It’s too good to not share with you:

There has been plenty of chatter about the debates and the primaries and caucuses over the last few months. Most of us have our favorite candidate that we would like to see challenge the current President. Maybe your favorite is still in the running but then again maybe they have dropped out. Or perhaps you are comfortable with the job that President Obama is doing and have not even paid attention to the primaries.

Although I am very concerned about our country on so many fronts, right now I am most concerned about the totally irresponsible position financially we are in. I think that unless we quickly get our financial house in order the future of America is very dark.

So based on this I have my candidate picked out.

Each Sunday morning, after we get done talking about politics and sports over coffee and pastry our Sunday School class has been studying Daniel. I was a little concerned when we began studying Daniel, that it was an Old Testament book that we would have a hard time finding relevant to today. Once again I was so wrong on this front.

This week and last week we are studying Daniel 4. In this chapter, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that covers his 43 year reign as king of Babylon. For the most part, it was a good time for King Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon. But for Daniel it was a little different. First at age seventeen he was taken into captivity, then he was then told that if he did not interpret a dream in chapter 2 he would be torn limb from limb and then he was thrown into a Lion’s den. Besides that he watched his friends thrown into a fiery furnace. I am sure that there were many times that Daniel had cause to worry about the events of Babylon, like I am now worried about the events in America.

But the main theme in Daniel is clear and that is the sovereignty of God. His sovereignty includes nations, kings and presidents. Even though King Nebuchadnezzar is considered one of the most powerful men in Ancient History, it is very clear in Daniel that God was sovereign over his reign as king. Even King Nebuchadnezzar eventually understood this as Daniel is reflecting on Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Daniel 5:21b: “…he (Nebuchadnezzar) acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms of earth and sets over them anyone He wishes.” Did you hear that!!?? God gives power to whoever He desires to give power. God is ultimately in control of who will be sworn in as President of the United States on January 21, 2013.

Over two thousand and five hundred years after Daniel’s time it is pretty easy to see the sovereignty of God in King Nebuchadnezzar’s reign over Babylon. I believe that as we move forward from history, it gets easier it is to see the sovereignty of God. I believe that is why in eternity, God’s ways will be made perfectly clear. Someday we will see God’s plan for America and understand why He chose the leaders He did.

So should I be concerned if my candidate is still running or if my candidate wins the election? Yes, very definitely we should be concerned, just like I am sure Daniel was concerned with the events of Babylon, we need to be concerned and even involved in political events of America.

But what a blessing and assurance we can take from the book of Daniel. God is in control and it was His choice of King that ruled Babylon just like it will be His choice of Presidential candidates that will win the election in November. -- George is an instructor with Crown Financial and writes a blog called Stewardship Insights. You can subscribe to his blog by visiting our website: www.americaskeswick.org.

Team YOU: Exodus 9-11; Proverbs 24; Matthew 15:21-39

Motivations: For he that does not look to the Spirit of God for all goodness and virtue must therefore look to some other source for some goodness and virtue. Yet whether one looks to his own religious self, learned in scripture doctrines, or to Satan, his religion is equally an abomination to God. William Law

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Ephesians 2:8-9; Level 2: Ephesians 2:1-10

Powered Up: True prayer rooted in the promises and covenants of God, in his past achievements, in his ability to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine. Bob Colton

Let the Mummies Dance

2012-01-23T00:00:00.001-05:00

Let the Mummies Dance

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Colossians 3:16

I just listened to a great message by my friend, Dr. Richard Allen Farmer on the subject of giving God your very best and being the best as you can be as a communicator of truth.

In his message he shared that he often talks out loud to himself when in his study preparing for a message. He will say, “Come on, I know you are in there … what is it that you want me to see today.”

Knowing this dear brother, I chuckled as I can visualize him doing this in his office. I can see the big smile on his face as the text takes root and comes alive.

I came across this simple outline years ago on how to see a passage come alive in our personal study of the Word. It comes from a book by Martin L. Smith, The Word is Very Near.

Here are the 8 nuggets for using the Word of God and your mind:

1. Select a single story from the Bible before praying.

2. Spend some moments settling down.

3. Ask God to touch you through the passage of Scripture you have chosen.

4. Pick up your Bible and read the passage slowly and carefully several times.
Pause between each reaching. Notice details. Ask questions.

5. Put down your Bible. Give your imagination a free rein to bring the scene to life with you as a participant. Hear. Smell. Taste. Look. Touch.

6. Let the drama slowly unfold.

7. Talk to Jesus about what you are feeling. Tell him how this passage has touched you.

8. Bring this time to a close with thanks to God and by saying the Lord’s prayer or a favorite Psalm or by singing a chorus or a verse or a hymn.

Give it a try. Maybe just maybe as you open your heart to him, the mummies will begin to dance and you will allow “the Word of God to dwell in your heart richly!” – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Exodus 7-8; Proverbs 23; Matthew 15:1-20

Motivations: Too many Christians are no longer fishers of men but keeper of the aquariums. – Paul Harvey

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Ephesians 2:8-9; Level 2: Ephesians 2:1-10

Powered Up: All the prayers in Scripture you will find to be reasoning with God, not a multitude of words heaped together. Stephen Charnock

A Tribute to My Mom, and a Message to Us Men

2012-01-20T00:00:00.000-05:00

A tribute to my mom, and a message to us men.

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. Isaiah 40:8

Oh man, is earthly life short.

Oh my, eternity is forever.

There is a woman i know. She is almost 70. Eye's bright. Eternity gleams elfin in her eyes. That up tilt of chin brought about by æons victorious in warfare on the spiritual plane. She has seen Him win the battles truly impossible to win; and those, over and over. She would say: "Every time."

Hyper-faith. Ultra-trust. Her yoke fits perfectly. She carries some, but very little, luggage of the old self. Rather, she joyfully hoists the light burden of her Champion and marches on singing.

She is getting old, but the only things worn out in her life are probably the bottom of her knees, and the half-dozen study Bibles, some re-bound and re-fit, for deft wielding beyond the carnal realm.

There are days when - even though she is in the room - you can hardly see her. With the pressure-wave of truth from Galatians 2:20 giving weight, she might say something like: "Christ is in fact, the cause of His own effect in my life."

Do not worship such a woman. Not ever. Don't tell her you are proud of her. She might be rightly offended by such mis-directed praise. But, reader, take note. When around such a fully-feminine being, there is a warrior in your midst. She is simply a woman being fully the woman G_d ever intended her to be. She is a carrier of the Presence, a vessel for LORD of terrible aspect. A channel of The Love that made the worlds. Such a woman is the bane of much evil. Stand in double-honor of your sister, oh men. Deference is in order.

Would that men might rise and call women like this blessed. For surely, many of us have lived vicariously by the Life that spills out from them as G_d lives in them and through them. Would that men might follow such an example and submit fully to the Source that empowers such lives. Can anyone say?: IT IS ALL ABOUT JESUS!

Now, to the meat of the matter. Humans - even spirit beings like this one - die. As they move into the final season, what do they do? Pass-down... One last push... Hand the baton to those younger who would have both hands to receive and ears to hear.

Would that women might look to these female warrior-saints around them with expectation. Would that they might come under their tutelage and learn how to live in victory; that THEY TOO can finish life with the hope that they will hear "Well done!" in just a minute or two.

And might us men be provoked to righteous jealousy! Might we, in fact, shake off the world, step up and find those old, manly, G_d-honoring men in our midst. We'll find them. Just look for the glint in their spiritual eyes, and their beat-up old Bibles.

Beloved, let's find them, both men and women, and start asking a few questions of our own. – Makala Doulos is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and is a new contributor to Freedom Fighter

Team YOU: Genesis 49-50; Proverbs 20; Matthew 13:31-58

Motivations: If God sends us on stony paths, he provides strong shoes. Corrie Ten Boom

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:15-16; Level 2: Ephesians 1:15-23

Powered Up: In regards to his prayer life: David Livingstone’s motto was, “I resolved never to stop until I had come to the goal and achieved my purpose.” He was victorious through unwavering persistence and faith in God. – Streams in the Desert

The Bleeding Edge of Victory

2012-01-19T00:00:00.000-05:00

The Bleeding Edge of Victory

Thank you, Father, for these tears that have carried me to the depth of your love. How could I have known your fullness without the emptiness, your acceptance without the rejection, your forgiveness without my failure, our togetherness without that dreadful loneliness. You have brought me to Gethsemane, and oh, the joy of finding you already there! Amen.
~ Bonnie Barrows Thomas

When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

~ Psalm 34:17-18

G_d has no need. "Need is a creature word," said our friend A.W.... And friends, we are creatures - and we have desperate need of the One who has no need.

One of my great encouragements is to be friends with those who were personally acquainted with A. W. Tozer. This man, who knew God so intimately, had days when he was so discouraged he felt he could not continue as a minister. A man who instructed thousands in the deep things of God often felt he was a miserable failure.

~Erwin W. Lutzer (1941- )

What is the bleeding edge of victory in our lives?

Failure.

Now, don't even for one second, dear reader, misread that failure is an acceptable option in our lives. We cannot hold on to the right to failure, it is just a truth of our existence. Our brains and bodies are a law at work against a perfect life of walking in His Spirit.

Failure, though, does seem to be the pathway to victory in our lives. Each time we blow it in some area, it shows us the desperate depth of our need for Him to actually run our lives; to actually control what we do with our hands, feet, mouths, brains and eyes.

Further, as we walk with Him, we begin to be convinced that the cost of failure is just not something that we can (or even care to try to) afford. As He begins to transform us the through the renewing of our minds we learn that the only way we really want our lives spent is by and for Him and His purposes. It is the only reasonable choice. We no longer want to spend or be spent on anything else.

So, how do we get to this place where even failure looks more like victory in our walk with Him? How about we simply trust Him - and put zero confidence in our own ability to try to please him in our own power?

But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know Him and the power of his resurrection, and may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

~ Philippians 3:7-11

Then, as we take on His righteousness - from that firm foundation - let us then fight with all the might that He gives us to destroy any remaining confidence in our own self to fight the problem of evil in our own lives. Let us kick at the darkness generated by our own brains and yield to the light of His Word in our lives. – Makala Doulos is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a new member of the Freedom Fighter contributors.

Team YOU: Genesis 46-48; Proverbs 19; Matthew 13:1-30

Motivations: To love is not to experience a particular sensation in the heart; that emotion is but a reflex phenomenon, a detail of love at the least. To love is to wish for the good, it is to give the best of one's self for the good of another; it does not mean grasping for one's self; love means giving one's self. Maurice Landrieux

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:15-16; Level 2: Ephesians 1:15-23

Powered Up: Prayer among evangelical Christians is always in danger of degenerating into a glorified gold rush. Almost every book on prayer deals with the “get” element mainly. How to get things we want from God occupies most of the space. Now, we gladly admit that we may ask for and receive specific gifts and benefits in answer to prayer, but we must never forget that the highest kind of prayer is never the making of requests. Prayer at its holiest moment is the entering into God to a place of such blessed union as makes miracles seem tame and remarkable answers to prayer appear something very far short of wonderful by comparison. – A. W. Tozer

Come To Me and Rest

2012-01-18T00:00:00.001-05:00

Come To Me and Rest

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

One of the devotional tools I have been using the past two years is Spurgeon’s Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith. I am addicted to leather-bound devotionals, and while you can get this in paperback from Amazon or CBD, Christian Heritage Publications has a nice little leather-bound edition.

Spurgeon’s January 14^th devotional really spoke to my heart and I wanted to share it with you:

We who are saved find rest in Jesus. Those who are not saved will receive rest if they come to Him, for here He promises to "give" it. Nothing can be freer than a gift; let us gladly accept what He gladly gives. You are not to buy it, nor to borrow it, but to receive it as a gift.

You labor under the lash of ambition, covetousness, lust, or anxiety: He will set you free from this iron bondage and give you rest. You are "laden," yes, "heavy laden" with sin, fear, care, remorse, fear of death; but if you come to Him He will unload you.

He carried the crushing mass of our sin that we might no longer carry it. He made Himself the great Burden-bearer, that every laden one might cease from bowing down under the enormous pressure.

Jesus gives rest. It is so. Will you believe it? Will you put it to the test? Will you do so at once? Come to Jesus by quitting every other hope, by thinking of Him, believing God's testimony about Him, and trusting everything with Him. If you thus come to Him the rest which He wilt give you will be deep, safe, holy, and everlasting. He gives a rest which develops into heaven, and He gives it this day to all who come to Him.

What are you doing battle with today? He wants you to come to HIM and rest! – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Genesis 43-45; Proverbs 18; Matthew 12:24-50

Motivations: When Christ was in the world, He was despised by men; in the hour of need He was forsaken by acquaintances and left by friends to the depths of scorn. He was willing to suffer and to be despised; do you dare to complain of anything? He had enemies and defamers; do you want everyone to be your friend, your benefactor? How can your patience be rewarded if no adversity test it? How can you be a friend of Christ if you are not willing to suffer any hardship? Suffer with Christ and for Christ if you wish to reign with Him. Thomas a Kempis

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:15-16; Level 2: Ephesians 1:15-23

Powered Up: Lord, I draw close to You today, grateful that You will draw close to me as You have promised in Your Word (James 4:8). I long to dwell in Your presence, and I want to know You in every way You can be known. Teach me what I need to learn in order to know You better. I don’t want to be a person who is always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (2 Timothy 3:7). I want to know the truth about who You are, because I know that You are near to all who call upon You in truth (Psalm 145:18). – Stormie Omartian (A Book of Prayer: 365 Prayers for Victorious Christian Living)

Semper-Victoria

2012-01-17T00:00:00.000-05:00

Semper-Victoria

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. ~ 2 Peter 1:3-8

So, how in the world are we supposed to live a life as described in the passage above?

The Bible is abundantly clear that victory like this is truly possible, even normal, for the Christian who has simply (but absolutely) surrendered their lives to the One who has laid down the terms. He wants everything, and upon giving Him everything, this sets the stage for Him to bring about these victories in our lives. And just as clearly the Bible shows us that it is His Spirit's power filling us and enabling us to both desire and to do His good and perfect will.

But, what does this look like in our lives? What do we "do" as we live our actual physical existence in this world to help the process of living in victory?

What follows can be a dangerous exercise for someone trying to express some of the things that a Christian should actually "do" to live in a constant state of victory. The temptation is to somehow think that if we are "spiritually disciplined," God will be more happy with us, that we are doing things that get us closer to God and help complete the victorious path He has laid before us. Could this writer ask you to abandon any of those thoughts (not just here - everywhere and always).

What I am talking about is actually yielding our lives in such a way that we get "out of God's way." We may, by His grace, practice some things that enable us to better hear Him, discern His will, obey Him fully and experience His Presence (which is a place of great strength born of joy). Ready?

1.Pray. No, not just before meals. Not just a couple times a day. We gotta be praying like a Chicago Democrat - early and often. Get out of bed early, roll out onto your knees and get on your face before the One who has begun the good work in you. And may i be so bold? Be quiet. Listen. He knows your request already. He knows how to intercede for you already. Just listen. And let Him speak to you. He will. Pray all day. Pray into sleep. Pray, pray, pray.

2. Read your Bible. No, not just for 3 minutes before you gotta leave for work. No, not just listening to it on the stereo in the car. Get quiet a few times a day, and read a chapter or three. Yeah, really. And may I be bold again? Quit reading it like it some interesting book about God. His Word is HIM talking to you - right now. Listen. Let Him teach you. Ask Him to help you apply and live out what you have just read.

Repeat 1 and 2 constantly....

And to get the most out of the above:

> Turn off the TV. Unplug it. Put it in the closet for emergencies. What?

> Stop consuming copious portions of printed media, images and news. Huh?

> Trash the video game consoles. Oh, don't go there buddy!

> Fast from food and other stuff once in a while. Crazy legalist!

> Be very careful about what you put into your body. Who is this nut?

> Listen only to music that is uplifting to your spirit. Oh come on!

> Drink lots of clean water. You gotta be kidding me!

> Get good rest and physical exercise. Oh, now this guy is starting to sound like a Puritan!

Please, beloved, it is not about rules. It is about getting this stuff out of our lives, so there is room for Him to more fully fill our existence. We know this. Yet, we simply over-indulge in the world under the guise of freedom in Christ. We know that if we remove most of the shiny, loud, crunchy, entertaining stuff - we might actually be able to hear Him speak. And that sometime scares us. Because once we can hear Him speak, we know that He will have places He wants to take us, and things He wants us to do.

Do it anyway. Want to always live in victory? Get out of the way! – Makala Doulos is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy.

Team YOU: Genesis 41-42; Proverbs 17; Matthew 12:1-23

Motivations: Victory in service is to be expected from supernaturally born men who are supernaturally delivered, supernaturally sustained, and supernaturally directed. We are thus supernaturally created for a supernatural work which is supernaturally prepared and is to be supernaturally performed. ~L. L. Legters

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:15-16; Level 2: Ephesians 1:15-23

Powered Up: Be anxious for NOTHING, but in EVERYTHING by prayer and supplication let your requests be made know to God … The Apostle Paul

The Sweetest Despair

2012-01-16T00:00:00.001-05:00

The Sweetest Despair

Don't trust to hold God's hand; let Him hold yours. Let Him do the holding, and you the trusting. ~Hammer William Webb-Peploe

“For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh... But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith -- that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” ~ from Philippians 3

One profound mystery of the Gospel is it's utter backwardness to the ways of the cosmos. Everything in this system screams that somehow we can be good. We want to be good! We want to reach out to god, as we understand that it is right to reach out to him. We want to come to him on our terms and make him happy with our lives. We know the difference between right and wrong. Even the most evil among us seem to have some sense of justice - even if that sense is twisted beyond anything recognizable as normal.

We promise, we pray, we weep and we try - oh, do we try to get our act together. And we fail.

We try harder. We make promises. We write them down, and we share them with our friends so that we can be accountable to each other. And we fail again.

Then we get really serious. We change friends, churches, locations, diets, jobs, and doctrinal positions. We get a huge handle on truth. We fight the battle in our mind and finally get things straightened out. And we fail again.

Then we realize that we really need this god's help to get through the day. Really, we just don't have enough strength to make it happen. We make god our "co-pilot." And we really understand just how vital it is to have a co-pilot in our lives... REALLY important.

And we fail again. Epic fail after epic fail rolls with the credits.

And one day, we fall down on our face (spiritually and/or literally) and we just say: i can't do this G_d. Not even one little bit. i am desperate L_RD. Please, i am just so fricking sick of myself. Anything i try to do is really just veiled - but altogether abject - evil. please... and i am desperately all out of any prospects that this might ever get better. And we finally whisper... with our last bit of strength.

Please. i am nothing. i am fallen. Save me. And then it happens…

He just smiles and says... "Oh beloved. Welcome in from the storm. Come in! Would you like something to eat? I AM drawing a bath, it will cleanse you completely and begin to heal your wounds. When you get out, I have prepared fresh clothes to cover you and comfort you."

What? Don't I need to do something for all of this? It is so beautiful and quiet and peaceful here. Why is the sky different? Why does everything just smell better here?

No, nothing at all. I AM so glad you let me help you. There is no other way in from the storm.

Most die trying to get the Help they need. But…

Peace my child. Your despair has yielded its fruit. Like the death of a seed bringing life, your abandonment of any hope in yourself has finally brought about a death of yourself that has made room for my Hope to flood your entire being. And my Hope never fades. Not ever. What do I?

Nothing. Would you like to sing with me? I have been singing over you for years in anticipation of this day! Oh my!

Yes my beloved child. Oh, how I Love you. More than you will ever know. And this will never end. Just rest. There is no need to ever do anything on the feeble power supply you had before. I will provide all the power and purpose and strength you need - and I will teach you how to use it. Sound OK to you dear one?

And for the first time since you remember... you just fall off to sleep that night, knowing, KNOWING that that final despair was the sweetest moment of your life...

Oh yeah, it is going to get even better from here. – Makala Doulos is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy

Team YOU: Genesis 39-40; Proverbs 16; Matthew 11

Motivations: No soul can be really at rest until it has given up all dependence on everything else and has been forced to depend on the Lord alone. As long as our expectation is from other things, nothing but disappointment awaits us. Feelings may change, and will change with our changing circumstances; doctrines and dogmas may be upset; Christian work may come to naught; prayers may seem to lose their fervency; promises may seem to fail; everything that we have believed in or depended upon may seem to be swept away, and only God is left, just God, the bare God, if I may be allowed the expression; simply and only God. ~Hannah Whitall Smith

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:15-16; Level 2: Ephesians 1:15-23

Powered Up: Prayer must not be our chance work, but our daily business, our habit and vocation. As artists give themselves to their models, and poets to their classical pursuits, so must we addict ourselves to prayer. We must be immersed in prayer as in our element, and so pray without ceasing. Lord, teach us so to pray that we may be more and more prevalent in supplication. C. H. Spurgeon

Happy Birthday, Neil and John

2012-01-13T00:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday, Neil and John

Dear brothers and sisters, honor those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance. Show them great respect and wholehearted love because of their work. 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 NLT

Today I want to honor and thank two men who have been heroes in my life. I want to show them “great respect and wholehearted love” because of their service to Christ (see above).

I have had the privilege of knowing Neil Fichthorn for 41 years. I have been blessed to have mad many godly men in my life – blessed beyond measure, but Neil has been the one man who has had the greatest impact on my life.

I first met him when I was 16, and little did I know how that encounter would be impacting my life 40+ years later. I have learned from him as a musician, supervisor, employer, leader, and friend. I have observed his life so closely that I find myself doing things he does, thinking about how he would do something or handle a situation.

I have watched him live a life of integrity and observe a man who has loved and served the Lord with his very best. Tomorrow is his 77^th birthday, and I am privileged to call him my friend. Happy birthday, buddy!

I met Dr. John DeBrine the same year that I met Neil. He was a speaker at Sandy Cove and had a huge impact on my life. I still have notes in my file from his messages that summer. It was my privilege during my ministry years at Sandy Cove to get to know the real John DeBrine, and I have to tell you, while he is one piece of work, he is the real deal. Despite the fact that he calls me an “idiot” or a “moron” at times, he often calls me “kid!”

Tomorrow is his 87^th birthday. And he continues to faithfully proclaim the truth of God’s Word through the ministry of Songtime USA! John, we love you. Finish well, my brother and friend.

Has God put special people in your life? Today might be a good day to thank them for how they have blessed your life. – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Genesis 31-32; Proverbs 13; Matthew 9:18-38

Motivations: If we say that monsters [people who do terrible evil] are beyond forgiving, we give them a power they should never have...they are given the power to keep their evil alive in the hearts of those who suffered most. We give them power to condemn their victims to live forever with the hurting memory of their painful pasts. We give the monsters the last word. Lewis Smedes

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:13; Level 2: Ephesians 1:7-14

Powered Up: Prayer is the conduit through which power from heaven is brought to earth. O. Hallesby

A Man of God

2012-01-12T00:00:00.000-05:00

A MAN OF GOD

“But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.” (1 Timothy 6:11)

Are you a man of God…a woman of God? Though used frequently in the Old Testament, the term is used only here in the New Testament. It was the term Paul chose to describe and define young Timothy. It was a title that conveyed both compliment and challenge.

What must one do to be worthy of such a title? What are the characteristics of a man of God or a woman of God. Paul reminds Timothy that there are at least four characteristics which should set him a part from others. These are four characteristics for which all men and women of God should be known. Paul lists these four distinguishing characteristics in First Timothy 6:11-14.

We should be known by what we flee from, verse 11 “…flee these things…” Paul reminds Timothy that a man of God will flee from certain things. Here, Paul speaks specifically of lust and pride and greed.

Flee these things. It is important to note that there are some things with which Christians are not to fight or flirt. The only safe option is to flee. Have you ever heard the Holy Spirit shouting to you…RUN! When He does it is a good thing to RUN!

We should be known by what we follow after, verse 11, “…pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness…” Seven noble characteristics are to be pursued. A.T. Robertson reminds us that verse 11 contains vivid verbs which indicate active effort on the part of the man of God. We are to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience and gentleness as a lion pursues its prey.

We should be known by what we fight for, verse 12, “Fight the good fight of faith…” There is a time to flee, but there is also a time to stand. Someone said that a man who stands for nothing will fall for anything. In a world that is becoming more and more resistant to Christ and His Gospel, it is imperative that the people of God stand fast and fight the good fight of faith.

We also should be known by what we are faithful to, verse 14, “…keep this commandment…” Paul’s use of the word commandment refers to the entire word of God.

What a marvelous title…O man of God! Can God write this title across your life? Roger D. Willmore is Senior Pastor of Deerfoot Baptist Church in Weaver, Alabama. He is a frequent speaker at America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Genesis 29-30; Proverbs 12; Matthew 9:1-17

Motivations: A true and faithful Christian does not make holy living an accidental thing. It is his great concern. As the business of the soldier is to fight, so the business of the Christian is to be like Christ. Jonathan Edwards

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:13; Level 2: Ephesians 1:7-14

Powered Up: Prayer is striking the winning blow...Service is gathering up the results.

S. D. Gordon

Honi ... Right Between the Eyes

2012-01-11T00:00:00.001-05:00

Honi…Right between The Eyes!!

“You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.” Joshua 6:3-4 (ESV)

When you read about him in the writings of Flavius Josephus he is referred to as Onias, a righteous man of God who in a certain drought prayed for the intense heat to end and when it did rain fell. When he refuse to pray for God’s wrath to fall upon a man named Aristobulus, Onias was stoned to death by some pretty wicked Jews, who themselves suffered a vehement wind storm that destroyed the fruit of the land. And from a read of the whole text, it didn’t sound like they should have stoned Onias to death.

The Talmud tells a different side to this man who was stoned to death. Instead he fell into a 70 year sleep and his name wasn’t Onias, it is really Honi ha-M’agel or Honi (for short) and he is known as “The Circle-drawer”. The Talmud tells how Honi drew a circle in the dust when the winter rains did not fall and did not move until the rains came. It started as drizzle, began to pour and then Honi explained to God that he really wanted a calm rain. In his book “The Circle Maker” Pastor Mark Batterson shared Honi’s story from “The Book of Legends” and it goes a little something like this.

He drew a circle as a crowd looked on and with the authority of the prophet Elijah, Honi called down rain. “Lord of the universe, I swear before Your great name that I will not move from this circle until You have shown mercy upon Your children.” Now keep in mind that is happening during the last part of the four hundred year silence before Jesus Christ comes to live among the people. Honi’s voice has no hint of doubt but it does have authority in its tone.

A drizzle begins but Honi was not happy with it. “Not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain that fill cisterns, pits, and caverns.” It down pours now and causes a flash flood that sends people running to the Temple Mount to escape the rising waters. Honi does not move and then refines his request, “Not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain of Your favor, blessing, and graciousness.” It is at this point where I get this strange feeling between my eyes as if God has just flicked His index finger and said “Get it?”

Within the first thirty pages of Batterson’s book I found enthusiasm towards prayer. I also found some scary stuff about how we are doing it. Because, at times, I can pray in a vague way (as if I shouldn’t be asking) and I may not be heard because I am not circling my prayers in God’s promises. I have written about how great they are but it never dawns on me that I should conduct a prayer circle around God’s promises. OH WELL!! In any case it is back to the drawing board with my prayer life but in the meantime since Bill Welte recommended reading this, I will also recommend this book to you. I pray that you get Honi…right between the eyes! -- Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a regular Freedom Fighter contributor

Team YOU: Genesis 27-28; Proverbs 11; Matthew 8:18-34

Motivations: “After seven days of circling Jericho, God delivered on a four-hundred-year-old promise. He proved, once again, that His promises don’t have expiration dates. And Jericho stands, and falls, as a testament to this simple truth: If you keep circling the promise, God will ultimately deliver on it.”-Mark Batterson

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:13; Level 2: Ephesians 1:7-14

Powered Up: Prayer is able to prevail with Heaven and bend omnipotence to its desires. Charles Haddon Spurgeon

S.W. 1-8-12

2012-01-10T00:00:00.001-05:00

S.W. 1-8-12

^“Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” 1 John 4:4-6 (ESV)

Do you remember when the year was 1999? They were saying that once the new year of 2000 hit we would experience the “Y2K” bug. Well when the countdown came to its three, two, one crescendo and the ball dropped, it was as the great Yukon Cornelius would say…nuttin’!!! No bugs, no systems crashing, no nothing.

Well okay, maybe a new century started but there was no apocalyptic end of civilization as we knew it. All we really got from the “Y2K” bug was the i-pod and there are a lot of thankful people because of it.

But now we are facing a new/old threat to end times and that is 12-21-2012. According to the Mayan calendar, Michel de Nostreame (Nostradamus) and Marvin the Martian of Looney Tunes fame, the world as we know it now will end before we are allowed to celebrate Christmas this year. Seems kinda unfair doesn’t it? That even though there are some of us who really think we have a right to long life, liberty and a continued pursuit of happiness, all of this is going up in a puff of smoke. My problem with this all is that it doesn’t align with what my Bible tells me.

Matthew 24 is an almost solid red letter chapter and tells us of all kinds of done and over with stuff but Jesus never tells us an exact time and date. Instead He says, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. (Matt 24:36) This tells us that Jesus, Himself, is not going to even take a guess and we all need to rest in that. We need to focus in on what He says earlier in that chapter, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.”(Matt 24:4-5)

That is why what we find in 1 John 4:1-6 is our instruction to test the spirits. From that infamous moment in The Garden until now man (and woman) has had to deal with a spirit of antichrist. We need to be in an understanding that we are always going to be in spiritual warfare and that our adversary is at the ready to usurp the authority of God’s word. The parables of Jesus put emphasis on faithfulness, watchfulness, stewardship, expectancy and preparedness. Any other teaching only serves to take us off this path and have us all walk openly on New Age Boulevard.

As this year goes by I will be paging through a book titled, “The Handbook for Spiritual Warfare.” The author of this book even goes as far as giving warning on a total focus on his book for fear of a constant thought pattern that puts emphasis on Satan and the evil we can do. That is a warning coming from a watchman isn’t it? This year I urge you Brothers (and Sisters) to purpose yourself to practice the lost art of being a Biblical Watchmen and be ready to give answer to Marvin the Martian. He has a P32 uranium explosive device and is ready to blow up the earth because it ruins his view of the planet Venus. Seriously folks…the prince of lies is hard at work. Be Ready!!! – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and Freedom Fighter contributor

Team YOU: Genesis 25-26; Proverbs 10; Matthew 8:1-17

Motivations: “Many Christians imagine that victory in Christ is to become the epitome of what the world desires in wealth and success and fame and to do it all better than the ungodly because Christians have Jesus on their side.”—Dave Hunt

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:13; Level 2: Ephesians 1:7-14

Powered Up: Units of prayer combined, like drops of water, make an ocean which defies resistance.

Mentoring

2012-01-09T00:00:00.000-05:00

Mentoring

Join us Thursday night for our first Men’s Fellowship of the New Year. Pastor John Helm is our speaker. Dinner is at 6:15 PM followed by a time of worship, Bible study and fun. Call 732-350-1187 for information.

“ … each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting His glorious miracles and obeying His commands. Then they will not be like their ancestors – stubborn, rebellious, and unfaithful, refusing to give their hearts to God.” Psalm 78:7-8 (NLT)

I have been doing a lot of study about the Millennial generation as I believe God wants to really do something with that group. This is a group that I believe has the potential to turn this world upside down for the Kingdom if we can win them to Christ and encourage them to grow in their walk with God.

One of the characteristics of this group is that they want to be mentored. They want someone to teach them about their jobs, how to raise their families, how to handle money.

For those of us who are Boomers, this is unfamiliar territory. We didn’t want anyone’s help because we had all the answers. But this generation wants us to come alongside and not just tell them what to do – “teach us” is their mantra.

Singer-songwriter-worship leader, Darlene Zschech in her new book, The Art of Mentoring – Embracing the Great Generational Transition (Bethany House Publishers) writes that in order to foster the next generation, we must become selfless leaders who are not out to make a name or position for ourselves but rather willing to pass on our knowledge and understanding for the Kingdom’s sake … Man has a tendency to put his own reputation and desire for recognition above all else. Too often, when those who follow us start to advance beyond what we have accomplished, jealousy prevails and the mentoring comes to a screeching halt.

Mentoring takes place at home, on the job and in church. As leaders, parents, ministry leaders, we need to start thinking about ways to come alongside of these precious young people and lovingly find ways that we can pull up and say, “How can I help you get from here to there.”

Solomon says that there is nothing new under the son. That’s the kind of relationship Paul and Timothy had. Are there Timothy’s around you that need mentoring? Are their Paul’s in your life that you could learn from? Let’s be intentional and be there for the next generation. – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: Genesis 23-24; Proverbs 9; Matthew 7

Motivations: If we work on marble it will perish. If we work on brass, time will efface it. If we raise temples, they will crumble to dust. But if we work on men's immortal minds, if we imbue them with high principles, with just fear of God and love of their fellow-men, we engrave on those tablets something which time cannot efface, and which will brighten and brighten to all eternity.

Daniel Webster
.

Practice to Remember: Level 1: Ephesians 1:13; Level 2: Ephesians 1:7-14

Powered Up: God does not keep office hours. A. W. Tozer