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1.  Respond Quickly.  Don’t wait to see who else may be going to pray or look around to note who may be watching.  Move on out when the appeal is given.  Jesus taught us what can happen very quickly after the Seed of the Word is sown, “Then cometh the devil and taketh away the word out of their hearts” (Luke 8:12).  There is no delay on the devils part.  He goes to work immediately.  Move out quickly and start watering in the seed with prayer and meditation.

2.  Recognize the Value of Corporate Prayer. When instructing on prayer Jesus taught that we should enter into our closet and shut the door (Matt. 6:6).  However, the scripture is filled with many examples of the corporate prayer meeting.  The Holy Ghost fell in a corporate prayer meeting in Acts 2.  The saints gathered at the house of Mary to pray for Peter’s deliverance in Acts 12.  The Altar Service is pretty much the only time when the entire church can pray together corporately.  It is imperative that we take advantage of this opportunity.

3.  Stay Alert, Someone May Need A Prayer Partner. Sometimes praying alone is sufficient and at other times a prayer partner can be a welcome addition. It is obvious that when praying with others, a person must be sensitive to the Spirit.  Be cautious about intruding into someone’s space when it appears that a work of the Spirit is going on and privacy would be appreciated.  Be respectful.  Most people just need you to pray with them, they don’t you to shake them.  A quivering hand will likely distract them.  Loudness in my own ears will definitely distract me.  And please, no bad breath in my face. How can I keep my mind of God with someone breathing down my neck with bad breath? Further, I don’t need 10 different hands laid on my head.  This is neither the place nor time for holy power hand competition to see who can get the job done.  With this being said there are times when a comforting hand on my shoulder is greatly appreciated.  It let’s me know that I am not alone and that someone is covenanting with me in prayer.  An uninvited and unwelcome prayer partner with too much zeal may be one reason some people don’t frequent the altar area more often.

4.  Get Involved. Please, do something during this time.  If you are going to stare at Facebook or Twitter on your cell phone, move on to Appleby’s. When you are uninvolved in the Altar Service, the message is clear, you’re not interested.  Enough already.  Further, if you choose not to come to the front please pray in the pew.  The last thing we need is a spectator section during an Altar Service. Someone may desperately need your help to lay claim to victory.  When you pray you are saying, “I care.” We cannot always know what personal challenge someone may be facing in their life but our prayers not only can, but will help bring about the needed breakthrough.

5.  Be Patient. People can easily spend an hour on Facebook or Twitter but after only 10 minutes around the altar they are ready to leave.  We may be into microwaves but God is still into marinating.  ”They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength” (Is 40:31).   Is there anything going on in your city as important as what’s happening around the altar. I think not!  Working to create the guest friendly short service may have cost us the lost art of waiting on God.  The great work that has been done by the Spirit while the saints waited on God around an altar is immeasurable.  A note to myself and other ministers, perhaps a shorter sermon would allow for more time around the altar.

6.  No Fellowshipping Until the Altar Service Is Complete. The prayers of the lingering minority who are lingering around the altar have often been drowned out by the fellowshipping and laughter of the majority who have lost interest.  When the disruptive moments come in your life (and they will come) you will then want the entire corporate body will pray with you. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  Don’t expect the whole church to rapidly respond to your special needs in the altar if your pattern has been to show disinterest in others when they were seeking God. “Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free” (Eph. 6:8).

7.  Don’t Criticize People Who Go Pray In The Altar Every Service. Stop asking those tired and worn out questions like, “Wonder what’s wrong with them?”  Or, “Wonder what sin they have committed?”  I have personally heard this statement, “I worry about people who go to the altar every service.”   Some people, like myself, happen to love this special time of the service and are always ready to respond.  It’s just that simple.  Rather than criticize others who always go to the front to pray, make involvement in the altar service a pattern for your own life.  The church needs you.

Somebody say Amen!

Written By Jerry L. Dean.

I am a long time fan of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories. Holmes is a compelling character. He almost always solves the crime. Rarely does anyone get the best of him. Regardless of how sparse the facts or clues, Mr. Holmes and his sidekick Dr. Watson get to the bottom of the mystery. Over time, I have become confident in Holmes’ abilities. I have come to trust his talent. I have faith he will do what he says he will do.

I was recently pondering this and my thoughts turned to my relationship with God. I found it amazing how I could have unwavering faith in Sherlock, but then sometimes my faith in Jesus would falter. Why do we doubt God at times? Why don’t we have more faith? Most of us would admit we want greater faith, but how do we obtain more faith?

Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Hearing God’s Word cultivates our faith. We try to offset six days of worldly pessimism and humanistic thinking with two messages on Sunday and one mid-week. If we want to combat the world and grow our faith, we should ingest more of the Word. Do you drive to work? Listen to sermons on tape or CD. Do you have internet access? Listen to or watch messages online. Fill your mind with the renewing Word of God and your faith will increase.

In addition to listening to the Word, prayer and fasting will also increase your faith. Matthew’s Gospel tells the story of the disciples’ inability to cast out a demon. After Jesus successfully frees the boy, the disciples ask, “Why could not we cast him out?” (Matthew 17:19). Jesus’ response is clear: “Because of your unbelief.” He then powerfully declares, “Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting (vs. 20). Jesus wasn’t saying the disciples didn’t have any faith. He was saying they didn’t have the level of faith necessary to perform the task, a level attainable only by prayer and fasting. Prayer builds a relationship with God. As you draw closer to God, your faith in Him increases. James 4:8 tells us, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” Fasting brings humility (Psalm 35:13). This humility builds our faith in Jesus Christ and not in ourselves. These two things together, prayer and fasting, build a sure platform for a stronger faith.

Jesus’ apostles approached Him one day and said, “Increase our faith” (Luke 17:5). His response is well-known, but often misunderstood: “If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you” (Luke 17:6). Some interpret this to mean all you must have is a little bit of faith, and nothing shall be impossible to you. This interpretation doesn’t make sense in light of the fact Jesus chided people on five occasions, declaring, “O ye of little faith.” (Matthew 6:30, 8:26, 14:31, 16:8, Luke 12:28). So what did Jesus mean?

The mustard seed is small, but it grows to be a large shrub. What’s important is not its beginning size, but its ending size. While it starts small, it grows to be much larger. It has potential. Jesus was not telling us to have a little faith. He was telling us to stretch and grow our faith. So why didn’t he compare faith to an acorn and an oak, surely a more distinct pair of opposites? Why a mustard seed and a shrub? Size is not the only notable difference. It’s true that the mustard shrub isn’t the largest. However, it does something that an oak can never do – it flavors. It enhances. Our faith is meant to do more than “just grow.” Our faith should enhance those around us. It should add spice to the lives of our family, friends, and coworkers.

Faith is not static – it can be increased. We can grow our faith by hearing and absorbing the Word of God. We can also increase our faith by praying and fasting. And the beautiful thing is that, in the process of bettering ourselves, we better those around us. As we reach for our potential in God, others will benefit from our rising faith. Growing our faith is not difficult. Increasing our faith is not hard. In fact, as Sherlock Holmes would say, it is, “Elementary, my dear Watson.”

- David Beeson

God owns everything and all blessings come from Him. We are to be good stewards – managers – of the many blessings for which we should be thankful. Money isn’t our possession; it’s God’s possession, which we hold in trust.

Tithing

Giving is an external testimony of God’s ownership of everything in our lives. And tithing is one of the first standards of giving found in the Bible – Abraham tithed 430 years before the Law was given to Moses.

• Under the law in the Old Testament, giving a tithe was required.
• The tithe is not a limit. God’s people in the Old Testament were to give nearly one-fourth of their income each year.
• God doesn’t own just 10 percent of our money; He owns the other 90 percent too.
• Tithe and give with the right attitude. Not out of necessity, but with thanksgiving to the Lord.
• Let your children witness your joyful giving and teach them the importance of commitment.

Beyond The Tithe

Giving beyond the tithe should be an outward material expression of the spiritual commitment of a willing and obedient heart. When giving beyond the tithe, give out of your abundance, according to the principle taught in 2 Corinthians 8:14.

• Faith promise – A commitment to give a certain amount. It’s understood that if God doesn’t provide the funds, you’re not obligated to give them.
• Pledge – An absolute commitment to pay something. This type of giving is presumptuous, but a faith promise is scriptural. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).
• Non-cash – This includes your time or services to an organization or gifts such as food, furniture, and clothing. You may also give gifts with appreciated values (an asset you bought at a low price that is now worth much more), such as stocks, bonds, real estate, or anything that grows in value.
• Draw the line on borrowing – It is not scriptural to borrow in order to give. It requires little trust to borrow money. In the Scriptures God never uses a loan to manifest His will in the lives of His people.
• Balanced approach to sacrificial giving – Sacrificing to give is a way to honor God, but this should be the result of a heart attitude and not a desire to impress others.

Remember that God is more concerned about the attitude of your heart in giving than the percentage or the amount given. Nevertheless, the minimum He asks His people to give is the tithe.

by Crown Financial Ministries

He confessed to 23 murders. Some believe he was responsible for as many as 50 more. Follow Ted Bundy’s dizzying descent from all-American boy to mass murderer. The following interview with Dr. James Dobson took place the day before his execution. The serial killer spoke a chilling warning of the dangers of pornography and the ways it can infiltrate even good, stable homes.

Fatal Addiction

Ted Bundy’s Final Interview

Ted Bundy, an infamous serial killer, granted an interview to psychologist James Dobson just before he was executed on January 24, 1989. In that interview, he described the agony of his addiction to pornography. Bundy goes back to his roots, explaining the development of his compulsive behavior. He reveals his addiction to hard-core pornography and how it fueled the terrible crimes he committed.

A road that leads to nowhere
When Ted Bundy was thirteen years old, he discovered “dirty magazines” in a dump near his home. He was instantly captivated by them. In time, Bundy became more and more addicted to violent images in magazines and videos. He got his kicks from seeing women being tortured and murdered. When he tired of that, there was only one place his addiction could go – from fantasy to reality.

Bundy, a good-looking, intelligent law student, learned to lure women into his car by various forms of deception. He would put a cast on his arm or leg, then walk across a university campus carrying several books. When he saw an interesting coed standing or walking alone, he’d “accidentally” drop the books near her. The girl would help him gather them and take them to his car. Then he would entice her or push her into the vehicle where she was taken captive. After he had molested the girl and the rage of passion had passed, she would be killed and Bundy would dump her body in a region where it would not be found for months. This went on for years.

By the time he was apprehended, Bundy had killed at least twenty-eight young women and girls in acts too horrible to contemplate. He was finally convicted and sentenced to death for killing a twelve-year-old girl and dumping her body in a pigsty. After more than ten years of appeals and legal maneuvering, a judge gave the order for Bundy’s execution. That week, he asked an attorney to call me and request that I come to Florida State Prison for a final interview.

When I arrived, I discovered a circus-like atmosphere outside the prison. Teenagers carried signs saying “Burn, Bundy, Burn,” and “You’re Dead, Ted.” Also in the crowd were more than 300 reporters who had come to get a story on the killer’s last hours, but Bundy wouldn’t talk to them. He had something important to say, and he believed the media couldn’t be trusted to report it accurately. Therefore, I was invited to bring a camera crew to record his last comments from death.

I’ll never forget that experience. I went through seven steel doors and metal detectors so sensitive that my tie tack and the nails in my shoes were enough to set off an alarm. Finally, I reached an inner chamber where Bundy and I were to meet. He was brought in, strip-searched, and then surrounded by six prison guards while he talked to me. Midway through our conversation, the lights suddenly went dim.

Ted said, “Just wait a moment, and they will come back on.”

I didn’t realize until later what had happened. The prisoner knew that his executioners were testing the electric chair that would take his life the next morning.

Ted Bundy wanted to tell the world about pornography

What was it that Ted Bundy was so anxious to say? He felt he owed it to society to warn of the dangers of hard-core pornography and to explain how it had led him to murder so many innocent women and girls. With tears in his eyes, he described the monster that took possession of him when he had been drinking. His craze to kill was always inflamed by violent pornography. Quoted below is an edited transcript of the conversation that occurred just seventeen hours before Ted was led to the electric chair.

James C. Dobson: It is about 2:30 in the afternoon. You are scheduled to be executed tomorrow morning at 7:00, if you don’t receive another stay. What is going through your mind? What thoughts have you had in these last few days?

Ted: I won’t kid you to say it is something I feel I’m in control of or have come to terms with. It’s a moment-by-moment thing. Sometimes I feel very tranquil and other times I don’t feel tranquil at all. What’s going through my mind right now is to use the minutes and hours I have left as fruitfully as possible. It helps to live in the moment, in the essence that we use it productively. Right now I’m feeling calm, in large part because I’m here with you.

JCD: For the record, you are guilty of killing many women and girls.

Ted: Yes, that’s true.

JCD: How did it happen? Take me back. What are the antecedents of the behavior that we’ve seen? You were raised in what you consider to be a healthy home. You were not physically, sexually or emotionally abused.

Ted: No. And that’s part of the tragedy of this whole situation. I grew up in a wonderful home with two dedicated and loving parents, as one of 5 brothers and sisters. We, as children, were the focus of my parent’s lives. We regularly attended church. My parents did not drink or smoke or gamble. There was no physical abuse or fighting in the home. I’m not saying it was “Leave it to Beaver”, but it was a fine, solid Christian home. I hope no one will try to take the easy way out of this and accuse my family of contributing to this. I know, and I’m trying to tell you as honestly as I know how, what happened.

As a young boy of 12 or 13, I encountered, outside the home, in the local grocery and drug stores, softcore pornography. Young boys explore the sideways and byways of their neighborhoods, and in our neighborhood, people would dump the garbage. From time to time, we would come across books of a harder nature – more graphic. This also included detective magazines, etc., and I want to emphasize this. The most damaging kind of pornography – and I’m talking from hard, real, personal experience – is that that involves violence and sexual violence. The wedding of those two forces – as I know only too well – brings about behavior that is too terrible to describe.

JCD: Walk me through that. What was going on in your mind at that time?

Ted: Before we go any further, it is important to me that people believe what I’m saying. I’m not blaming pornography. I’m not saying it caused me to go out and do certain things. I take full responsibility for all the things that I’ve done. That’s not the question here. The issue is how this kind of literature contributed and helped mold and shape the kinds of violent behavior.

JCD: It fueled your fantasies.

Ted: In the beginning, it fuels this kind of thought process. Then, at a certain time, it is instrumental in crystallizing it, making it into something that is almost a separate entity inside.

JCD: You had gone about as far as you could go in your own fantasy life, with printed material, photos, videos, etc., and then there was the urge to take that step over to a physical event.

Editor’s Note … you can use the Following as a Pull-Out Quote.

- T R McCary

I was a normal person. I had good friends. I led a normal life, except for this one, small but very potent and destructive segment that I kept very secret and close to myself.

Ted: Once you become addicted to it, and I look at this as a kind of addiction, you look for more potent, more explicit, more graphic kinds of material. Like an addiction, you keep craving something which is harder and gives you a greater sense of excitement, until you reach the point where the pornography only goes so far – that jumping off point where you begin to think maybe actually doing it will give you that which is just beyond reading about it and looking at it.

JCD: How long did you stay at that point before you actually assaulted someone?

Ted: A couple of years. I was dealing with very strong inhibitions against criminal and violent behavior. That had been conditioned and bred into me from my neighborhood, environment, church, and schools.

I knew it was wrong to think about it, and certainly, to do it was wrong. I was on the edge, and the last vestiges of restraint were being tested constantly, and assailed through the kind of fantasy life that was fueled, largely, by pornography.

JCD: Do you remember what pushed you over that edge? Do you remember the decision to “go for it”? Do you remember where you decided to throw caution to the wind?

Ted: It’s a very difficult thing to describe – the sensation of reaching that point where I knew I couldn’t control it anymore. The barriers I had learned as a child were not enough to hold me back from seeking out and harming somebody.

JCD: Would it be accurate to call that a sexual frenzy?

Ted: That’s one way to describe it – a compulsion, a building up of this destructive energy. Another fact I haven’t mentioned is the use of alcohol. In conjunction with my exposure to pornography, alcohol reduced my inhibitions and pornography eroded them further.

JCD: After you committed your first murder, what was the emotional effect? What happened in the days after that?

Ted: Even all these years later, it is difficult to talk about. Reliving it through talking about it is difficult to say the least, but I want you to understand what happened. It was like coming out of some horrible trance or dream. I can only liken it to (and I don’t want to overdramatize it) being possessed by something so awful and alien, and the next morning waking up and remembering what happened and realizing that in the eyes of the law, and certainly in the eyes of God, you’re responsible. To wake up in the morning and realize what I had done with a clear mind, with all my essential moral and ethical feelings intact, absolutely horrified me.

JCD: You hadn’t known you were capable of that before?

Ted: There is no way to describe the brutal urge to do that, and once it has been satisfied, or spent, and that energy level recedes, I became myself again. Basically, I was a normal person.

There are those loose in their towns and communities, like me, whose dangerous impulses are being fueled, day in and day out, by violence in the media in its various forms – particularly sexualized violence.

Ted: I wasn’t some guy hanging out in bars, or a bum. I wasn’t a pervert in the sense that people look at somebody and say, “I know there’s something wrong with him.” I was a normal person. I had good friends. I led a normal life, except for this one, small but very potent and destructive segment that I kept very secret and close to myself. Those of us who have been so influenced by violence in the media, particularly pornographic violence, are not some kind of inherent monsters. We are your sons and husbands. We grew up in regular families. Pornography can reach in and snatch a kid out of any house today. It snatched me out of my home 20 or 30 years ago. As diligent as my parents were, and they were diligent in protecting their children, and as good a Christian home as we had, there is no protection against the kinds of influences that are loose in a society that tolerates….

JCD: Outside these walls, there are several hundred reporters that wanted to talk to you, and you asked me to come because you had something you wanted to say. You feel that hardcore pornography, and the door to it, softcore pornography, is doing untold damage to other people and causing other women to be abused and killed the way you did.

Ted: I’m no social scientist, and I don’t pretend to believe what John Q. Citizen thinks about this, but I’ve lived in prison for a long time now, and I’ve met a lot of men who were motivated to commit violence. Without exception, every one of them was deeply involved in pornography – deeply consumed by the addiction. The F.B.I.’s own study on serial homicide shows that the most common interest among serial killers is pornographers. It’s true.

JCD: What would your life have been like without that influence?

Ted: I know it would have been far better, not just for me, but for a lot of other people – victims and families. There’s no question that it would have been a better life. I’m absolutely certain it would not have involved this kind of violence.

JCD: If I were able to ask the kind of questions that are being asked, one would be, “Are you thinking about all those victims and their families that are so wounded? Years later, their lives aren’t normal. They will never be normal. Is there remorse?”

Ted: I know people will accuse me of being self-serving, but through God’s help, I have been able to come to the point, much too late, where I can feel the hurt and the pain I am responsible for. Yes. Absolutely! During the past few days, myself and a number of investigators have been talking about unsolved cases – murders I was involved in. It’s hard to talk about all these years later, because it revives all the terrible feelings and thoughts that I have steadfastly and diligently dealt with – I think successfully. It has been reopened and I have felt the pain and the horror of that.

I hope that those who I have caused so much grief, even if they don’t believe my expression of sorrow, will believe what I’m saying now; there are those loose in their towns and communities, like me, whose dangerous impulses are being fueled, day in and day out, by violence in the media in its various forms – particularly sexualized violence. What scares me is when I see what’s on cable T.V. Some of the violence in the movies that come into homes today is stuff they wouldn’t show in X-rated adult theatres 30 years ago.

JCD: The slasher movies?

Ted: That is the most graphic violence on screen, especially when children are unattended or unaware that they could be a Ted Bundy; that they could have a predisposition to that kind of behavior.

JCD: One of the final murders you committed was 12-year-old Kimberly Leach. I think the public outcry is greater there because an innocent child was taken from a playground. What did you feel after that? Were they the normal emotions after that?

Ted: I can’t really talk about that right now. It’s too painful. I would like to be able to convey to you what that experience is like, but I won’t be able to talk about that. I can’t begin to understand the pain that the parents of these children and young women that I have harmed feel. And I can’t restore much to them, if anything. I won’t pretend to, and I don’t even expect them to forgive me. I’m not asking for it. That kind of forgiveness is of God; if they have it, they have it, and if they don’t, maybe they’ll find it someday.

JCD: Do you deserve the punishment the state has inflicted upon you?

Ted: That’s a very good question. I don’t want to die; I won’t kid you. I deserve, certainly, the most extreme punishment society has. And I think society deserves to be protected from me and from others like me. That’s for sure. What I hope will come of our discussion is that I think society deserves to be protected from itself. As we have been talking, there are forces at loose in this country, especially this kind of violent pornography, where, on one hand, well-meaning people will condemn the behavior of a Ted Bundy while they’re walking past a magazine rack full of the very kinds of things that send young kids down the road to being Ted Bundys. That’s the irony.

I’m talking about going beyond retribution, which is what people want with me. There is no way in the world that killing me is going to restore those beautiful children to their parents and correct and soothe the pain. But there are lots of other kids playing in streets around the country today who are going to be dead tomorrow, and the next day, because other young people are reading and seeing the kinds of things that are available in the media today.

JCD: There is tremendous cynicism about you on the outside, I suppose, for good reason. I’m not sure there’s anything you could say that people would believe, yet you told me (and I have heard this through our mutual friend, John Tanner) that you have accepted the forgiveness of Jesus Christ and are a follower and believer in Him. Do you draw strength from that as you approach these final hours?

Ted: I do. I can’t say that being in the Valley of the Shadow of Death is something I’ve become all that accustomed to, and that I’m strong and nothing’s bothering me. It’s no fun. It gets kind of lonely, yet I have to remind myself that every one of us will go through this someday in one way or another.

JCD: It’s appointed unto man.

Ted: Countless millions who have walked this earth before us have gone through this, so this is just an experience we all share.

Ted Bundy was executed at 7:15 am the day after this conversation was recorded.

Adapted from Fatal Addiction: Ted Bundy’s Final Interview. Copyright © 1989, Focus on the Family. All Rights Reserved. International Copyright Secured. Used by Permission.

God said, “And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.”  (Jeremiah 15:4)

The significance of a man and his influence for evil is displayed in the lives of Lenin, Stalin and Hitler while the opposite is shown in the legacy of Abraham Lincoln and Jonas Salk who influenced their world for good.  The apostles turned their world upside down and were responsible for great revival in their generation.  Men are often visionaries and due to their restless nature are not satisfied with the status quo constantly pushing the envelope and expanding horizons.  They become instigators for spiritual causes and change the world around them.  They leave tracks in the snow and footprints in the dust for others to emulate.  We can be living thermostats and alter our spiritual environment.  A man may live in a rural area but the power of his intercessory prayer will touch continents beyond the horizons of his neighborhood.  It doesn’t matter how obscure the cocoon that we live in, there exists a circle of influence that surrounds us and the ripples of life reach further than we often realize.  Men tend to keep their fences high and don’t allow themselves to be vulnerable but their influence is still strong in spite of their introverted nature.  He may exhibit a stubborn streak and some would consider him frugal but will empty his wallet in a missionary service.  The significance of a man and his life has lasting effects that goes beyond his generation and real man bear the weight of that responsibility with honor and dignity.

The images of manhood for most of us is best described in terminology such as courage, fortitude, loyalty, strength, and a square shooter.  Furthermore, an Apostolic man is one who fears God and keeps His commandments.  The enduring qualities of manhood are never out of vogue even in a world of changing times to those who will honestly admit it.  The cry of the ages is still, “Give us a man.”

In the church, our lives are greatly affected by the positive influence of men who are real men in a real world.  This transcends generations and the significance of godly men in our lives affects our past, present and future.  Whether those in the past were ministers, Sunday school teachers or involved in other aspects of ministry, only eternity will reveal the value of their eternal investments in others.  We are all on this vast conveyor belt of history and we each play our part on this moving stage of life.  For so many of us, fathers who exemplified Christian qualities impacted our lives.  The spiritual leadership of a father and the sounds of prayer in our homes long ago still echoes and resonates in every fiber of our being.

The measure of a man in our contemporary society today outside the church is different from the yardstick God uses.  They look at the size of his biceps, physical stature, and ability to toss a football or the net worth of his holdings.  If a man is successful, many refer to him as a self made man who did it, “My way.”

Some seek to degrade manhood and they have emasculated and reduced them to spineless creatures that have become couch potatoes interested only in sports, trash television and reading unwholesome magazines.  The rise of feminism has diminished his role as a man, a husband or a father and this has created frustration and sometimes even violent behavior.  Some are confused as to what may be expected of them now in the twenty first century.  The Lord has not changed and still has godly principles for men to live by that are relevant in our modern society.

We live in a real world in changing times.  We are not living in the 1940’s or 1950’s now where life seemed simpler and the pace of life was slower.  For most of us, the white bungalow with the picket fence is a fabrication of books and nostalgia.  The daily ritual of watching Dad leave for work clutching his metal lunch pail is from a different era.  Our society is replete with violence, gangs, wars on distant shores and escalating costs of living.  Situation ethics has replaced absolute moral values and many have sought to push God out of schools, and the Ten Commandments are banished from court rooms.  The pressure cooker of uncertain times creates anxieties that forces men to make decisions in which they desperately need the help of God.  Real men recognize their reliance on God and turn to Him in prayer.

This is not diminishing the influence of godly mothers but since men are the leaders, we need real men today to stand tall and meet the challenges of life.  One of the true tests of the character of a man is how they face these challenges.  These tests may be storms of life that blow against the sails and threaten to swamp us under the weight of crashing waves.  Success can bring its own opportunities to be overcome with pride, self sufficiency and arrogance.  We must keep our priorities in their proper order and always, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God.”

Some of the men whom I have been privileged to know as ministers and laymen that affect others greatly cover the spectrum in age and experience.  I have known young men who were wise beyond their years.  I have been honored to sit in the presence of aged elders who blessed me with their words.  I observed their lined faces, stooped posture and wrinkled hands that gestured in symphony with their spoken gems of wisdom that was accompanied by misty eyes and emotion.  The significance of these real men and the power of their lasting influence are worth more than pearls and diamonds.  They are leaving their mark on the generations to follow them.

We men are a unique combination of contrasts.  We cringe if someone calls us a sissy but melt in tears when our daughter marries her sweetheart.  I have seen a man with the calloused hands of manual labor hold and tenderly caress his newborn baby with his face filled with pride.  We like softball games, pitching horseshoes, old cars and fishing all night with our son.  Our interests might include home hobby projects, tending a garden or golfing but with our sometimes rough exterior, we can become like butter when our spouse tells us that she loves us.

The world says that men aren’t supposed to cry openly and we are to be macho but I’ve witnessed men who were broken and wept openly in the presence of God.  These same men who were in submission to God were later resolute and strong in the face of temptation and compromise.  They stood with a jutted jaw and stiff back when the enemy tried to allure them with an offer that he thought was too hard to resist.

During biblical times, men used signet rings to sign documents that were of impressionable material before it dried and became hard.  That impression represented their distinct mark for legal purposes.  It was their signature of that time in history.

The people that we meet daily are living clay in which we leave the imprint of our testimony.  We are continually leaving a mark on others as we go through life.  Our life has consequences and even more so to those closest to us such as family members.  Our words and actions are having their effect so it is vital to be a good example.  We want to be fruit bearing believers producing the fruits of the Spirit instead of the works of the flesh.

The Word of God is relevant as always to be the measuring yardstick of manhood.

God doesn’t look on the physical stature as He told Samuel when he was about to anoint a king for Israel.  God looks on the inside as to the condition of the heart. The inward qualities such as compassion, sincerity, honesty, a forgiving spirit and a teachable attitude are desired character traits.  A man who is loyal to his pastor and lives by principles instead of convenience will affect others and be a living testimony of God’s redemption.  He takes his wedding vows seriously and is faithful to his wife and family.  The words, duty, honor and country resonate with him.  His motto for life is still, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

The significance and potential within a man that will give himself to God is measureless.  A man is not superman and we have faults and failures but we turn to God in prayer for His assistance and direction.  We are on a life long quest to be the man He wants us to be.  We can be a real man in a real world.

- Denzil Holman

In Jeremiah 29:8-14 there is a wonderful passage of scripture that deals with the divine design of God for those that love him. The key verse in that passage is verse 11 which reads,” For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end”.

Leading up to that verse is the fact that there are as Paul cautioned the Corinthians, many voices and none of them without signification. All are ‘in the know’ and have their information from a good source. Many have a word from the Lord concerning you, or are up on the latest prophesy regarding the world situation ranging from the Middle East and National ID cards to big brothers tightening grip to name a few. There are without a doubt enough prognosticators of peril and folks with new found spiritual gifts to make one’s head spin. Everybody has an opinion but unfortunately they all think you need to know it.

You may remember as a child the nights you had to have your daddy come in and check under your bed and check in your closet to clear out the monsters. The impending doom that crept under the blanket with you until you finally had to scream, “Daddy, there’s monsters under my bed”! Daddy would often come in like the Cavalry and save the day.

As we grew older, we became emboldened and realized that there never were any monsters in the first place. With careful reading we find in the verses 12-14 that God will come when we truly call on Him because we remember that He is the source of all truth.

Most of the things we worry about are unfounded and borne of our own fears or insecurities. The people in this passage were bound up in fear of never getting back to the promises of God. Bondage such as this is more about attitude than reality. Timothy was told to stir up the gift of God and to know that God did not give us the spirit of fear, but of love and of power and of a sound mind. When we lean on Him, He brings a peace that passes understanding.

Knowledge of that kind of power is best spread by example. You would be hard pressed to think of the time that your daddy was afraid to look under the bed or check the closet. True leadership in the home rests on daddy, the father figure. The stalwart that knows it is impossible to avoid problem situations and times of trial, but has the ability to remember that greater is He that is in me, than he that stirred up the problem in the first place. As that leader you may not possess all of the answers, but you are smart enough to know where and how to find them.

12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. 13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. 14 And I will be found of you, saith the Lord: and I will turn away your captivity…

Certainly, these are the last days with all the potential for uncertainty. More so then when Paul was preaching about them, but the same God that filled you with the Holy Ghost knows these things better than any of us and is able to keep that which is His. When we look with our whole heart to Daddy, he will get the monsters out from under our bed.

We need men who are able to remind us by their lifestyle how to grab our bootstraps, know our strengths and our weaknesses and lean on God to get the monsters out from under our beds.

- Roger Roth

In the midst of failure one begins to examine within. We immediately feel the shame that is the result of our failures. We are so quick to throw in the towel in the midst of our imperfection. However if we were to observe the lives of bible heroes we would find that they too were not perfect. You look at Abel and all you see is the perfect sacrifice that he prepared before God. You forget the dysfunctional family he was born into. He inherited a world of sin and shame. You take a look at the life of Noah and you immediately think of the stand he took in the midst of an evil world. You think of the obedience and the determination it took to build an ark that would save his family. You don’t think of the time when he got drunk and stripped out of his clothing. Abraham is known to be the friend of God, the one who obeyed the call of God. Yet we forget his time of doubt, we dismiss the time he slept with a woman that was not his wife. We can conclude that the heroes of faith were not perfect. But these ordinary men somehow found a way to please God.

So I ask what these men did to please God. What was it that these men possessed that made the difference with God?  What special characteristics can be found by looking at the lives of these men?  It can be simply put into one word “faith”. It is the fact that these men were willing to believe in simple instructions. They may not have seen what God was trying to do but they trusted him anyway and they responded to the voice of God. Because of there faith in what they could not see, they received the reward of hope, they received the substance of the unimaginable.

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

I once heard it preached that this scripture can be changed to read like this:

But with faith it is possible to please him.

We can be so easily distracted by the reward, or in the seeking part of this scripture. We can easily believe that he is able in the lives of others, but not in ours. The main ingredient for pleasing God is easily forgotten and that is faith. Faith is what it takes to remove mountains of impossibility. Faith moves us to act upon our current situation and when we call upon the one that is able, things begin to happen.

There was a rich man who had a servant that fell ill. He was in so much pain he did not sleep. He could not get the rest he needed to recover and death was near. This centurion tracked Jesus down and he pleaded with him to heal his servant. Jesus offered to go and visit the servant but the man felt unworthy. He believed it was enough for Jesus to just speak the word. He trusted in the power of God. Jesus could not believe his ears; He had never encountered a man like this.

Mat 8:10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

It is evident through scripture that the thing that pleases GOD is faith. Faith will lead you into another dimension. The psalmist understood this because his faith took him further into an experience with GOD. He knew him so well that he was able to call him by name. He sang praises of his name. He sang songs of thanksgiving, he magnified his name. This man tapped into an area of worship that had a greater effect than sacrificing a bullock or an ox.

Psa 69:30 I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving.

Psa 69:31  This also shall please the LORD better than an ox or bullock that hath horns and hoofs.

David a man after Gods own heart. His story is filled with drama. Bloodshed, lies, lust and deception is found throughout his life. However David desired the presence of GOD and he understood that worship led to God’s presence. He worshipped God with all of his heart. Praise would continually come from David’s lips. He worked so diligently to get the Ark of the Covenant back to the people. And as he marched before Israel bringing that token of his presence back. He filled the streets with a dance, a shout, He called out the musicians, the singers and he worshipped his way back into the presence of the almighty God. The hour for men to please God is now; we must take hold of faith in God and his word and realize that God is looking for men to worship him in spirit and in truth.

1 Th 4:1 Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.

I believe God is still adding to his list of the heroes of faith. To qualify one must take hold of faith in God. You must have a spirit that desires to worship him. He is not looking for the perfect man, but the imperfect man that is willing to put his trust in him. A man that is willing to follow him. It is faith and worship that pleases God.

- Christopher Urrutic

Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the LORD thy God hath forbidden thee. For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God. (Deut 4:23-24)

We should not picture God as a tyrant or as an over-bearing king, for this is contrary to how the Word of God portrays Him. John emphatically stated twice; God is love. (1 John 4:8, 16)  When God spoke to Adam, he spoke first of the tree of life, then the tree of knowledge of good and evil. God promised blessings to the children of Israel for their obedience, before he warned them of curses for their failure to obey. In Deuteronomy chapter 30, God told Israel; I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live. (Deut 30:19). At the end of every verse in Psalms 136, David says, “for his mercy endureth for ever.”  God is not a tyrant, but the Creator and Savior of all mankind.

Just as we should not picture God as a tyrant, neither should we picture him as a soft, weak, spineless pushover. Living in the dispensation of Grace does not give us license to live however we choose.   The Apostle Paul stated; Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (Rom 6:1-2).

All of us desire to please the Lord, so in order to be pleasing to Him, we must know what displeases Him. Several things could be written about, but for the sake of time I would like to present three wrong spirits that we need to be aware of

1. The Spirit of Rebellion

The wise man wrote; The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. (Prov 9:10)  Our society does not have reverence or respect for authority; therefore, we must learn to fear the Lord.  Hebrews chapter 11 echoes the testimonies of men who were far from  perfect, but were pleasing to God simply because the feared or reverenced Him. Our society does not show this same fear of the Lord, instead displeasing attitudes and spirits are displayed. Each generation has a responsibility to praise thy works to another. (Ps 145:4)   Instead of praise, our culture has passed on a spirit of rebellion that is magnified with each generation. Today, all symbols of authority are challenged.  For example, law enforcement officers must continually be cautious of those that will challenge their authority, and school teachers no longer have control over the students, because of this spirit of rebellion.

Rebellion may sound like a strong word; however, a rebellious spirit is displayed in the attitude of doing it our way regardless of previous instructions. King Saul was instructed to smite Amalek and utterly destroy them. He was to kill every man, woman, child, and beast. But instead, he spared Agag, and the very best of the sheep, oxen, fatlings, and lambs. In his mind, he was going to bless the Lord, but the Lord saw it as rebellion. Samuel told Saul, rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. (1 Sam 15:23)  Paul wrote to Timothy and said; I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. (1 Tim 2:8)  God expects us to serve Him with a willing heart rather than allowing rebellion control us.

2. The Spirit of Pride

Pride is an effectual tool in the hands of the enemy. Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. (Prov 16:18)  Pride has always been an invaluable weapon in Hell’s arsenal. It was pride that prompted Eve to eat of the forbidden tree, brought about the destruction of Uzziah, and caused Hezekiah to fall. Scripture teaches that the woman is to follow the man as the man follows Christ, however, pride prevents man from yielding to His authority. If we are to successfully lead our families, we must successfully follow Christ. Jesus said; Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. (John 12:24)  Before we can produce the fruit God desires, we must first die. Our wills, desires, ambitions must cease to direct us.

In Philippians chapter three, Paul listed his credentials. If anyone had a reason to be confident in the flesh, he did. But Paul said, what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord… (Phil 3:7-8). Pride is a result of a carnal nature and carnality is enmity against God. Therefore, a prideful spirit is displeasing to the Lord.

3. The Spirit of Idolatry

Idolatry may seem to be irrelevant to us, today. While we may not have a physical image that we bow down to, there are other things that become idols in our lives. Careers, interests, activities, and hobbies will quickly become idols in our lives. One definition of idol is; “immoderate attachment or devotion to something”. God is displeased if anything comes between Him and His creation. For this reason Paul said, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us (Heb 12:1). It is becoming too common to find excuses to stay home on service night. How convenient it is to work a little longer or find something pressing and be unable to attend mid-week service. We are admonished to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together.

Idolatry can also be found in our religious rituals. We cannot be satisfied just going through the motions of having church. As one man said, “When your religion gets into the past tense, it becomes a pretense.”  The brazen serpent was a temporary fix for the judgment of God. When a member of the Israelite camp was bitten by a fiery serpent, they would be healed if they looked upon the brazen serpent. However, this was to be a temporary remedy for this particular judgment. But approximately 726 years later, Hezekiah removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it (2 Kings 18:4). We must be careful to make sure we have not erected idols in our hearts and minds.

The Lord is jealous. While he desires to give us the kingdom, he also expects us to surrender totally to him.  Joshua admonished the children of Israel to take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the LORD your God. (Josh 23:11)  If we are pleasing to Him, He will bless us, but if we are displeasing then His wrath will be upon us. As we approach the second coming of the Lord, may we find ourselves pleasing in His eyes; for there is Danger in displeasure.

- Steve Carrington

Gen 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

Heb 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

Enoch never tasted death. There was no grave for Enoch. No memorial service and no funeral. God just took him.

My own parents have already purchased a tombstone with the birth dates already engraved into the granite. Thankfully, there are no death dates as of yet, but if God tarries his coming there will come a day when their death dates will be carved into the granite headstones. Think of it this way. On Enoch’s tombstone there would only be a birth date followed by the words “God took him.”  Enoch did not die.

Abraham, with all of his great faith was buried. Moses, that great and mighty prophet of God who brought about many miraculous signs and wonders and spoke to God face to face, died and was apparently buried by God. Jacob, the great patriarch of old was placed in a tomb. David killed giants and lead the armies of Israel into great and victorious battles but, he died and was buried. The wisdom of Solomon was not enough to keep him from dying. Even Jesus, the Son of God, gave up the ghost and was laid in the borrowed tomb of Joseph. And so it will be with all of us but not so with Enoch. God just took him. No giving up the ghost, no memorial service, no gravesite, no processions, God just took him. What kind of man was this?

What kind of life did this man live that would please Jehovah so much that he would allow him to bypass man’s greatest enemy?  There are no recorded miracles from Enoch. Only a few short lines were left to define his life story. Here is what we do know, Enoch walked with God, Enoch pleased God, and Enoch had a testimony. The testimony was rather short and to the point, he pleased God.

Be encouraged man of God. You don’t have to perform great spiritual feats to delight the Lord.

Enoch was quite the man of God because what he did was no small task. Consider the fact that Enoch was 365 years of age when God took him. Even after 365 years he was still walking with God still pleasing God. In Enoch days, I am only a small child. My short fifty-four years are nothing compared to Enoch’s life. Looking at it this way, I’m still an adolescent. But, already I have to pray and seek God to keep bitterness and cynicism out of my life because of certain past disappointments I’ve had in myself and others. Who among us hasn’t had a Demas walk out on us or even had an Alexander the coppersmith do us much evil. As T. F. Tenney used to say, “I’ve been shot at many times; a few times by the enemy.”

Jesus lived a perfect life but even His perfect life was cut short at the young age of 33. We know from the writings of Paul, a man must have faith if he is going to please God so we can deduct then that Enoch kept the faith for almost four centuries. If he owned a buggy I’m sure he had a sticker on the back bumper that said, “Keep on Trucking.”  He did not own a copy of the Holy Bible. There was no book of Genesis with its creation story, neither was there a book of Revelation promising Enoch that the Lord wins in the end and yet, Enoch just kept walking with God. There were no ten commandments to keep him on the straight and narrow and no inspired Psalms of encouragement for him to sing when the days became dark and the nights long. But, Enoch kept walking with God for almost four centuries and kept his faith in God until God took him.

Like John the Baptist, Enoch doesn’t leave a legacy of great feats and miracles but perhaps we overlook the greatest miracle of all. Enoch kept the faith even though it appears from the record that Enoch walked the highway of holiness alone.

You know there had to be bad days and long nights. Surely there were times when he did not understand some things about God yet he never quit believing in God. To the contrary, he kept walking with God. Amos said, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3:3). Enoch made an agreement with God that might have went something like this, “I may not always understand you but I will always walk with you.”  My district superintendent used to tell me, “When you can’t track God, you trust God.”  Too often you and I require explanations or we pick up our marbles and go home.

In a world that is begging for commitment we need men like Enoch. Pastors need men like Enoch that will agree to follow them as they follow Christ. You don’t have to be spectacular, just walk with me. Children need men like Enoch who just keep walking with God even when all hell is breaking out in their lives. They walk with God in church, on the job, and at home. The dad everyone else sees at church is the same dad the kids and wife see at home. The greatest compliment I have ever had came from one of my sons and it had nothing to do with preaching or being a leader. He said, “My dad is the same man at home that you see at church.”

You are going to be given the chance to become cynical and bitter. As for internet pornography addictions I have read that there is little difference between those who claim to be believers and those who are unbelievers. Reports like this can confuse us and tend to make us cynical.

I’ve watched men walk away from their marriage vows and I’ve heard women saying, I just don’t think I love him anymore. Therefore, the kids become collateral damage and consequently are raised in single parent homes.

As a pastor, nothing means more to me than having men who are faithful. Men you can count on. Our churches need men who keep the faith and walk with God and keep a good testimony. We need men who are not blown off course by every little wind of doctrine. My good brother, you may not be a great miracle worker but if can you keep the faith and continue to walk with God, your pastor and your church needs you.

I’ve seen churches borrow money and go in debt because of members who wanted the church to build a “Life Center” or a “New Sanctuary” and yet after a year or two those same people move on and leave the pastor and remaining saints to make the payments. These things ought not to be. Can you be counted on?

Finally, let us notice that Enoch had a testimony. His testimony was that he pleased God. He was God’s witness. God needs you to do more than just show up and drop your tithe into the plate. God needs your witness and you need your testimony. It is your testimony that helps you overcome the devil. Revelation 12:11 says, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”  The Greek word for testimony is marturia and according to Strong’s Concordance means “evidence given.”

Does the man that works beside you on your job know that you are madly in love with Jesus Christ? Does he even know where you go to church? Has the young woman at the corner store where you purchase your gasoline heard your testimony?

Through the years I’ve seen some good men who always showed up for church but I couldn’t say they had a testimony. Rather, after I observed their worship and prayer room attendance I would question as to whether or not they were really in love with Jesus. Were they at church?  Sure!  Is there evidence that they love God?  No!

Do you have a testimony?  Is there enough evidence to convict you of being fervently in love with Jesus?  Keep the faith, keep walking with God and make sure that your life gives witness to the fact that you are in love with God.

- Jerry Dean

Micah 6:8

He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Oh, the power of the rhetorical question.

I grimace slightly while reading Micah’s stinging query posed to God’s people for it reminds me of the type of question my parents would ask when I was disobedient as a child: Now, why in the world did you do that when you knew it wasn’t right? Of course, to answer would have been considered disrespectful. Instead it produced the same childish shrug of the shoulders, dim-witted look, and sheepishly muttered, I dunno, that every guilty child responds with innately. The assumption on their part was that they had already instructed me in what was right and proper. The question was a scathing reminder to me that I should be practicing what I already knew. They were not looking for an answer. The question was, after all, purely rhetorical.

Some of the first recorded dialogue between God and humankind contains the poignancy of the rhetorical question. Cain and Abel presented their offerings to the Lord. Unto Abel’s offering God had respect, but unto Cain’s he did not. The scripture tells us that Cain was very angry because of this, causing God to ask, why art thou wroth and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? (Genesis 4:6-7).

By asking these questions, God wasn’t seeking a verbal response from Cain—he was looking to provoke Cain into a change of attitude and actions.

It was for the same reason he inspired Micah to rebuke Israel and Judah. For three chapters the prophet condemns God’s people for their treachery. Chapters four and five he brings a message of hope, concluding with prophesy of the coming Messiah. Finally, in chapter six, he begins his plea for their repentance by stating, He hath showed thee, O man, what is good, and by asking them the question, what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

The age-old rhetorical question presented by Micah has endured throughout the millenniums and still has applicability in our postmodern lives. Has not God clearly shown us by His Word and His example what is good? Indeed He has.

Jesus Christ exemplified the very things He requires of us. Jesus admonished during the Sermon on the Mount that we judge not, that we be not judged. As the Righteous Judge He had the power, authority, and right to render judgment upon me for my transgressions against His Word, yet He chose rather to take my place in judgment. It’s God’s divine sense of justice that keeps me from receiving what I deserve.

Likewise, He said, blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.(Matthew 5:7) I will always recall my pastor, in preparing me for the ministry, saying, In every bad situation, look to see if there is an opportunity to show mercy. People will hurt us. Offenses will come. Because of people’s wrong attitudes and actions, we will, on many occasions, have the opportunity to be justified in our feelings. But the merciful always defer judgment and extend mercy toward others. As apostolics, we of all people should comprehend this for it was according to His mercy He saved us through water baptism and the infilling of the Holy Ghost (Titus 3:5). Jesus had the option to condemn, yet instead He chose to become the condemned. For the creator to become subservient to His creation demonstrated the ultimate in humility—all for the sake of emulating that which is right.

To teach the Sermon on the Mount without embodying the principles of justice and mercy would have been purely rhetoric on the Lord’s part—words without action. But in Philippians Paul composes a beautiful description of Jesus’ posture toward His creation. He made Himself of no reputation, took upon Himself the form of a servant, and humbled Himself to point of death (Philippians 2:7, 8).

As a pastor, my heart grieves the most at seeing people unwilling to be moved or touched by the presence of God. Unfortunately, too many of these people are not our Sunday morning guests visiting the church; they are Water Baptized, Holy Ghost-filled, Apostolic Christians. I have found the common denominator in almost every one of these individuals to be the inability to be humbled before God.

Micah’s chastisement of God’s people is a reminder for us, revealing the key to what the Lord requires—humility. Humility is underrated. Brokenness and contrition are scarce commodities. They are virtually non-existent in this present world of pride, arrogance, and ultra-inflated egos, where every man desires to do that which is right in his own eyes. Micah’s question is probably best viewed in reverse of how it’s written: without a humble walk with God, we will find it impossible to do justly and love mercy. To wrap ourselves in humility is to take on the mind of Christ (Philippians 2:5). Without a humble attitude toward God, we cannot believe, apply faith, or ultimately, exercise obedience. For only the humble shall be the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 18:4).

At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock….(Matthew 7:24) When He finished speaking, the people were astonished at His doctrine and authority. His message went beyond mere rhetoric. There is no doubt that Jesus’ intent was to provoke the people listening and us today, to righteousness. So, I ask you, Apostolic Christian: Has not God shown us what is good and demonstrated for us just deeds, a love for mercy, and a humble attitude?

Oh, the power of the rhetorical question.

- Edward Herman

I know of no more potent killer than isolation.  There is no more destructive influence on physical and mental health than the isolation of you from me – and of us from them.

He concluded by saying:

The devil’s strategy for our times is to trivialize human existence in a number of ways: by isolating us from one another, while creating the delusion that the reasons are time pressures, work demands, or anxieties created by economic uncertainty …

What’s most troubling perhaps, about the professor’s musings, is the fact that they were published over eighteen years ago – underscoring not only how prescient was his perspective then, but how developed this diabolical device is now.  Certainly we are infinitely further down the road of individualism – and isolation – now than when the good professor wrote his warning.  And we do well to appreciate the impact of this societal anomaly on us spiritually, as well as naturally.

Despite Paul’s observation that, No man liveth unto himself, and no man dieth unto himself (Rom. 14:7), not a few spend their lives trying desperately to disprove it experientially.  But the fact remains, isolation is a killer – a destructive influence both naturally and spiritually – and is at the root of numerous ills of earth and time.

More importantly still, at least in our context, it’s a diabolical device wreaking unspeakable spiritual havoc on too many unsuspecting hearts.  In the first chapter of his epistle, James warns of the slippery slope of sin that ultimately leads to death.  The progression looks something like this:

• enticed
• lust
• tempted
• sin
• death

Then the apostolic writer is unequivocal in his contention that the first step down that dread path of destruction is frighteningly subtle – first, James says, we are drawn away (James 1:14).  Nothing dramatic – just drawn away.  We’re separated, isolated, drawn away.  It sounds deceptively simple.

As we might expect, there’s a dramatic life lesson on the subject in the Old Testament, when Elijah the Tishbite crashes into Ahab’s court like Halley’s Comet, thunders to Israel about their idolatry and indecision, and shuts up the heavens.  When drought and famine follow, he blames it on their bad behavior, then goes to the wilderness, by the brook Cherith, himself to be miraculously fed.

Soon enough, his odyssey takes him through the village of Zarephath, into a roadside confrontation with Ahab’s servant Obadiah, and finally to the summit of Carmel to face eight-hundred plus false prophets.  Thankfully, the fire falls when the prophet prays, righteousness rules the day, and all is well – until, that is, evil Jezebel hears of his exploits and pledges to end his growing legend, and life.

Sadly, something short-circuits in his soul.  Elijah arose, and went for his life. This fearless prophet whose word had halted rain and whose prayer and brought fire, suddenly flees into the wilderness, takes a seat under a juniper tree, and formally requests that he might die.  Said Elijah – It is enough.

Prophet of power – man of miracles – brave and bold … but just as vulnerable to being alone – to isolation – as any of us.  He’s unafraid to storm the court of a despot king.  He’s unafraid to live in the wild – on the elements.  He’s unafraid of eight-hundred-fifty false prophets.  But separated – isolated – alone … he wants to die.  Physically, emotionally, maybe more importantly spiritually … it’s a killer.  Elijah managed to salvage his soul, but it ended his usefulness, his ministry, and ultimately, his life.

The New Testament’s not silent on the subject either.  Jude elbowed his way into our Bibles – set the common salvation in order – commanded that we contend for the faith – then painted some graphic word pictures of apostates and angels.

He wrote of those who, Left their first estate – are reserved in chains of darkness – pursued strange flesh – and will suffer the vengeance of eternal fire. Jude held forth concerning, The way of Cain – the error of Balaam – and the gainsaying of Korah. He saw, Filthy dreamers – feeding themselves without fear – twice dead, plucked up by the roots – foaming out their own shame.

But having condemned the murmurers, mockers, and complainers, he concludes his commentary on these spots in the Christian feast, when he says, These be they who separate themselves – sensual, having not the Spirit. These are they, who draw away.

So what’s the antidote to this deadly device of satan?  Quite simply, involvement- the investment of ourselves in others.  Notwithstanding the perils and disappointments he had endured, Paul the apostle looked into the faces of those teeming masses to which he had ministered, and confessed – Ye are my joy! To be sure, to be wrapped up in oneself completely, is earth’s highest embezzlement.

Involvement empowers us.  It sets us free.  There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth: and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty (Proverbs 11:24).  The Savior said he who tries to save his life – for himself – loses it.  But the one who gives it away – finds it here, and hereafter.

In that graphic scene in Isaac’s tent, when a trembling Jacob is before his father desiring the blessing that belonged to his brother, the patriarch said: It is the voice of Jacob – but the hands of Esau.  Strangely enough, maybe that’s precisely what we need now.

The voice of Jacob – to Esau: sell me this day thy birthright. To Isaac: arise I pray thee that thy soul may bless me. At Bethel: if God will be with me, and will keep me in this way I go, then shall the Lord be my God.  To Laban: so shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come. To God Himself: I am not worthy of the least of Thy mercies. To the angel at Jabbok: I will not let thee go except thou bless me.

Listen carefully and you’ll hear the voice of Jacob saying what we want to hear – and indeed ought ourselves to say.  But the hands – the hands were Esau’s.  Working hands – hunting hands – hands with the scent of the field on them.  Hands unafraid to thrust themselves into harvest.  Hands strong – by reason of use.  Maybe weary from labor, or wounded in the fight, but wearing the scars of involvement and success.

Lest we forget, all the theory in the world – all the planning – all the good intentions – all of it taken together will not add up to the accomplishments of even one pair of hands … that have been thrust into the work of a white harvest.

This kingdom came from two hands – spread wide – and nailed to a cross.  Those hands need our hands – now.

- Michael Williams

Christ taught about finances
It surprises many Christians to learn that approximately two-thirds of the parables that Christ used in teaching deal specifically with finances. Christ never said money or material things were problems. He said that they were symptoms of the real problems. He constantly warned us to guard our hearts against greed, covetousness, ego, and pride, because these are the tools that Satan uses to control and manipulate this world. “He said to them, ‘Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions’ “ (Luke 12:15).

Finances – our spiritual barometer
A definition of “faith,” according to Hebrews 11, is trusting God totally. It means trusting God for things you cannot see or manipulate into happening. Most of us truly desire to be able to exercise this faith, but the world around us tells us to do just the opposite. If you don’t have the money for what you “need,” borrow to get it. If it’s too expensive for your income, so what? You deserve it; besides, you have to stretch yourself if you want to be successful in this world.

God’s Word tells us to learn to be content and dedicate ourselves to serving God. In Hebrews 12:1 we are told, “Let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”

Is it wrong to be rich?
Rich is a very subjective term, but here it’s used in the context of having enough money to meet all of your reasonable needs and still having funds left over. Clearly, God’s Word teaches that many of His people will fit into this category. God’s plan is clearly stated in 2 Corinthians 8:14-15: our abundance at the present time will meet the needs of others, and later their abundance will meet our needs (a good alternative to welfare within the church).

Christ warned those who are rich always to be on their guard (Luke 12:15-21). There is a great temptation to trust in the security that a surplus can provide. The greater the surplus, the greater the temptation. That’s why those who are rich (most of American Christianity) must guard their hearts and minds with the principles from God’s Word.

Conclusion
The greatest need in our generation is for God’s Word to be taught clearly and undiluted. The next greatest need is for Christians to demonstrate that it works.

by Crown Financial Ministries

Perhaps the most crucial gift came from professionals who volunteered their time and skills, making immediate relief possible to millions. The greatest number of these professionals came from the Christian community, providing evidence of God’s love at work in this often harsh world. An unintended result of the selfless sacrifice of these Christian volunteers was the natural reflection of the great truth that there is a personal God who cares. These men in motion obviously believe faith is better shown than spoken.

If there is a silver lining in the clouds of 2005’s great tragedies, it is that when the world cried, Christians responded with love in action. The beautiful revelation of last year’s giving is that today’s world, globalized and technologically advanced, provides a historically unique opportunity for the church to illuminate God’s love to people at their point of need. The Christian professional who volunteers for humanitarian service is a key end-time courier of the essence of the gospel of Jesus.

Compassion Services International (CSI) is a non-profit private volunteer organization originated by the United Pentecostal Church International. CSI organizes and facilitates disaster relief and humanitarian aid projects around the world, and it knows well the value of the Christian professional who volunteers his time. Last year CSI facilitated disaster relief and aid projects that included many Pentecostal medical professionals.

As well as maintaining full-time primary health care clinics in countries such as El Salvador and Pakistan, CSI organized ten medical mission trips in 2005 via its Mercy Medical Network program. Also, days after the Asian tsunami, CSI’s assessment team, including two medical professionals, toured the country of Sri Lanka, giving relief and desperately needed medical assistance in tsunami refugee camps and villages while developing a strategic plan for long-term relief.

The subsequent relief plan and funds raised by CSI produced months of ongoing medical and reconstruction support. USA and Asian Pentecostal medical professionals from CSI’s Mercy Medical Network volunteered and maintained the long-term medical relief project.

Although CSI works primarily abroad, many Pentecostal professionals volunteered to organize Katrina relief operations on the U.S. Gulf Coast. In less than two months over 350 tons of water, food, first aid kits, personal hygiene kits, bedding, clothing, baby supplies, and nursing home supplies were facilitated through six secondary staging areas on the coast and a primary distribution center in Jackson, Mississippi. A mobile medical unit staffed by a revolving group of more than thirty Pentecostal medical professionals administered vaccines such as tetanus and Hepatitis A, established a temporary mobile pharmacy, and helped evacuate Gulf Coast nursing home residents. More than seventy-five volunteer construction contractors and laborers helped remove debris and render pre-construction relief work.

After telling the “Good Samaritan” allegory, Jesus clarified the mission of love to his disciples by stating simply, “Go and do likewise.” In Matthew he spoke of loving the outcast as the only option for believers:

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what’s coming to you in this kingdom. It’s been ready for you since the world’s foundation. And here’s why: I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then those ‘sheep’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we…?’ Then the King will say, ‘…Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me’ (Matthew 25:34-36 The Message).

As always God provides the opportunity for believers to fulfill His Scripture. Could it be that catastrophes and poverty on such a grand scale around the world are providing a proving ground for the church’s love and a forum for God’s gospel of saving grace? Millions of people globally suffer from the effects of poverty. Conditions are often worsened by wars and natural disasters leading to human tragedies such as the homelessness of refugees, premature death because of a lack of basic health care, and even starvation. While the issues surrounding each community’s calamity are often complex and unique, there is always a fundamental need for loving assistance from the global community.

Many humanitarian aid organizations offer opportunities for professionals to volunteer their services. It is generally understood that the professional is volunteering a crucial service to the relief work, and therefore, it need not be given at the sacrifice of his career or personal financial stability. Organizations like Compassion Services International almost exclusively focus on short-term opportunities for which professionals can volunteer. For the Christian professional who is looking for a forum in which to contribute, he can contact CSI via its Web site www.compassionservices.org or by calling 314-805-4438.

The prayer for 2006 is for more Pentecostal professionals to awake to the understanding of the timeliness of their education and skill as a powerful communicator of the message of God’s kingdom.

- Andrew Tennyson serves as the international liaison officer for Compassion Services International (CSI) of the United Pentecostal Church International.

Perhaps we have all found ourselves wondering as we viewed a slideshow or a video during a missionary presentation, How can I share streets of gold with someone like this? Someone who has given so willingly and wholeheartedly to the cause of Christ? Will I occupy a seat at the table of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, or should I just hope for a plate “to go”? I struggled with this guilt—maybe guilt is too strong a word—but struggle I did for a long time, trying to find my place in the kingdom.

Then the call came forth from the sacred desk—a plea from a fellow Christian who articulated a need in a foreign land. He told how he was burdened many years ago to do something for God but did not know what that “something” was until this moment. This same moment, this tick in time, was the moment of definition in my life, my walk, and my journey.

“Go ye. . . .” How limitless is that phrase that provokes us to abandon the comfort of “here” and challenges us to go “there.” My “there,” along with sixteen others from our congregation, was the island of Borneo in East Malaysia. Danny Harrod was the man who spoke so passionately of a land of harvest with few storehouses. He wanted to go and build a church to house the harvest, and we would be able to be a part and fulfill our desire to do something for the kingdom.

The travel was fun, and we learned so much about one another. These men with whom and for whom I prayed at the altar of The Pentecostals of Apopka, became more than “Brother so and so on the fourth row in the third section.” I realized that these men had the same questions about their part in God’s kingdom that I had, and this trip was a way to give definition to their lives. They became three dimensional to me and I thank God for placing them in my life.

After a thirty-two-hour flight filled with food, trivia, laughter, and talk of what comforts of home each person had brought to help with the separation, we arrived at our destination, Kota Kinabalu. Pastor Clement greeted us. If ever a person personified love, it was this man; all of us have been forever changed by knowing him. The people of Malaysia have a quality that can only be explained this way. They smile with their eyes. We were made to feel so welcome, and we felt that we were truly in the perfect will of God.

Now let us consider how we got this far—a vision, a burden, a like desire, engagement, commitment, fruition. Not a complex equation, no big research committee, no bureaucratic red tape, just someone saying, “This is the need; who will help?” The actions of those seventeen who went to Malaysia were shared by an awesome congregation of believers. The Pentecostals of Apopka prayed, fasted, and gave to fulfill a vision; truly this is what being “oneness” is all about.

Hopefully, someone, somewhere, of like faith will allow what we, and others like us, have done to give birth to a dream of their own—the genesis of their own mission. It may be a church building in a country on the other side of the world or a building in the local community. The venue may vary but the vision remains the same: How can I make a difference in the kingdom?

As I have done dozens of times since the trip, I will again view the 2,500 pictures and more than eight hours of video of our time in Malaysia. I will remember the faces of the children who came with fruit to give us strength during the day, of women who made a lunch of rice and vegetables for all the workers, even though it may have been more than they would have for themselves. Willingly, they gave all that they had.

I will see images of men unaccustomed to 108 degree temperatures and 100 percent humidity praying with one another for strength. I will also see men, women, and children with tears rolling down faces turned toward heaven, arms raised, speaking in a heavenly language as they were filled with the Holy Ghost.

Updates from Pastor Clement tell of miracles, healings, and Holy Ghost outpourings in Malaysia, and it energizes our entire congregation. I like to think that in some part that trip answered the question, What am I doing here? for more than just the seventeen who participated.

- Donny Hawthorne

Often hearing a coworker tell of his participation in his religious group’s “quick builds”; I thought, Why can’t we do that? I grew up in a family of preachers and builders and knew the role of buildings in the kingdom of God. I had participated in many building projects, beginning when I was still a child. The thought of our doing “quick builds” lingered in my mind.

On a Sunday night in 1980, while mixing with the crowd after church, the pastor came over to me, pointed out a visitor on the other side of the building, and instructed me to “take care of that young man.” As the coordinator for the Military Ministry, I worked with the young military men—helping with transportation, organizing outreach on the base, and providing activities to reach and establish them in the kingdom of God.

After meeting Clement and learning of his background, I found that he was from the country of Malaysia, had joined the Malaysian Navy, and was on a British ship for training. His ship was to be in our port in Jacksonville, Florida, for three months. On his way to London, Clement had stopped in Germany to visit his brother, had gone to church with him, had received the Holy Ghost, and had been baptized. He left the next day for his assignment in London.

It became my job to mentor Clement and disciple him, teaching him biblical doctrine and Christian living. Clement’s stay was extended to five months, and during this time we established a friendship that has spanned the decades and distances. God has used Clement to establish many churches, open new regions of Malaysia, and reach into several other nations in Southeast Asia with this wonderful saving message.

One morning in early 2003 my cell phone rang. On the other end was that familiar voice with a British accent. Both of us had moved several times and had lost contact with each other for several years.

“Danny, do you know who this is?”

“Sure, Clement. How are you doing?”

Clement was in the States for “Because of the Times.” My wife and I immediately made plans to go to Alexandria for a visit. While sitting at the table after dinner, I asked Clement, “What is your greatest need?” He replied, “We need buildings.” I had found a need; I knew what I had to do. “I can help you with that,” I told him. Those words set in motion what would become the most rewarding experience of my life.

We returned home to Apopka, Florida and met with Pastor Mike Williams to outline our desire to take a team of men to the other side of the earth to build a building in the interior of East Malaysia. Brother Williams was fully behind us, so with his support we began work on this project.

We made an exploratory trip to East Malaysia in September 2003. Our hearts were overwhelmed by what we saw: hungry people who gave all—some who even risked their lives to serve Jesus Christ. We met with a local architect who had been educated and had worked in the States. He was familiar with both American building practices and Malaysian materials and construction methods. We visited several villages that were in need of building. We spent the night in Bongkol, where about sixty people gathered in a house to have service. God moved that night and several received the Holy Ghost. This was the village that God chose for us in which to build the first building.

We returned home thrilled with what God was doing in Malaysia and with a greater desire to be a part of His plan for that country. In the first part of January, intense planning began and applications were distributed for volunteers to go. We needed a total of seventeen men who were willing, able, and ready to do something that, to our knowledge, had never been done in that part of the world. Planning sessions were held with key team members; Charles Reid, a local builder and church family member, was designated to be the building superintendent.

Aaron Fong, the Malaysian architect, e-mailed us CAD drawings of his building design. His concept was a building that would use readily available timber and materials, and could be constructed quickly at low cost. With this design in hand, material lists were prepared. We held regular planning sessions, some of which included transcontinental conference calls. The plan was for all materials to be on site when the team arrived. We would build the building in four days and have the dedication service on the fourth night.

Prayer, fasting, and planning occurred in both hemispheres of the earth for this project. Passports, shots, airline tickets, containers of tools, camping gear, MRE rations—everything was sorted and meticulously labeled and packed for our long journey. Windows, doors, and roofing materials were gathered. Concrete needed to be mixed and poured by hand; lumber had to be cut by chain saw, stacked and dried. Teams went into the village, to hold Bible studies and to invite people to a service in a building that was yet to be built.

In April 2004, we boarded the plane for the thirty-two-hour flight to the other side of the world. A people whose language and culture we did not understand soon found a place in our hearts. We were greeted by a team at the airport who immediately made us feel welcome. Upon arriving in the village we worked side by side with Malaysian brothers and, with the guidance of the Holy Ghost, in four days a building was constructed. On the fourth night, as planned, though not without some adversity, service was held.

As daylight began to fade, people started arriving. From the roads and trails they came on foot. The building began to fill until there was no more room, and the crowd spilled out into the yard. The American team, though tired and haggard, gave up their seats to visitors who came to hear the gospel for the first time. The Holy Ghost moved and at least twelve were filled on that first night of service. The church established on that night has grown and become a lighthouse to the region. In the year and a half since it was built, it has established four daughter works in nearby villages.

Find a need and fill it. Every man is called to serve. God has placed in our hands the power to change lives. Some are called to a pulpit ministry; others are equally called. Each of us possesses skills and training that can be used to build the kingdom of God. We must find that need and see our lives enriched as we use the talents with which God has blessed us.

- Danny Harrod

Fraternal twins or dizygotic twins, is the result of two different cells being fertilized.  This leads to the development of 2 separate placentas, each with its own inner (amnion) and outer (chorion) membranes.   Fraternal twins are more common than identical twins and account for about 2 out of every 3 twin pregnancies.

Identical twins, or monozygotic twins, develop when a single fertilized cell splits.  Depending on when the split occurs will determine if the twins share a placenta or if they each develop their own placentas.  The later the split occurs, the more likely that the twins will share one placenta.  Although no DNA test have been done yet, the doctors are pretty certain our twins are identical because although they could not completely determine if they shared the same placenta, they are certain they only had 1 chorion layer.

Identical twins are always the same sex.  And in our case we have identical boys.  Identical twins always share the same blood types.  Identical twins have the same DNA chromosomes, with similar foot and hand prints, but different fingerprints and teeth marks.  Identical twins have similar but not exact fingerprints.  Identical twins do not “run in the family”, except by coincidence.  No hereditary influence for identical twins has been identified.   Fraternal twins can be hereditary on the mother’s side, being passed from mother to daughter.  No one knows exactly why identical twinning occurs.

Although Identical twins have the same DNA, there can be very slight differences due to their birth development.  For ours, Jackson has a small red blood vessel over his right eye while Kendall has the same red spot over both eyes.  That slight marking upon their body separates them one from the other.  One small blood vessel marks them.  One mark upon their body distinguishes the two of them.

We live in a world that is consumed with the thought of doing everything possible to magnify and exalt this body.  The greatest god of this world of our day is the god of entertainment, and for many men, the god of sports.  This world worships this physical body.  Paul warns about this in Romans:

“Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” Romans 1:25

The world paints, tattoos, brands, pierces, cuts, and marks this body in an attempt to make mankind greater.  You see people today with every kind of tattoo and piercing imaginable.  Why?  Because these tattoos and piercings and body marks represent something to them, they are an expression of something in there soul.  These marks upon their bodies associate them with a certain group.  These body marks are an outward symbol of what gang, organization, team, or unit that they are affiliating themselves with.  Many times it is an outward symbol of whom or what they love on the inside.

“Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.” Leviticus 19:28 KJV

“Never cut your bodies in mourning for the dead or mark your skin with tattoos, for I am the LORD.” Leviticus 19:28 NLT

The practice of making deep gashes on the face, arms, and legs, in time of bereavement, was universal among the pagan, and it was deemed a becoming mark of respect for the dead, as well as a sort of offering to the deities who presided over death and the grave.  The Jews learned the custom in Egypt; and, though weaned from it, later relapsed back into this old superstition (Deut 14:1; Isa 15:2; Jer 16:6; 41:5; 47:5)  The impression was made sometimes by means of a hot iron, sometimes by ink or paint. It is probable, from the association of Leviticus 19:29, that a strong propensity to adopt such marks in honor of some idol gave occasion to the prohibition in this verse; and they were forbidden, for they were signs of apostasy.

By tattooing; imprinting figures of flowers, leaves, stars, and other fanciful devices on various parts of their person, the ancients were very violent in their grief, tearing the hair and face, beating the body.  It was a very ancient and a very general custom to carry marks on the body in honor of the object of their worship.  Ancient writers abound with accounts of marks made on the face, arms, and body in honor of different idols.  These were not only signs of sorrow, but were even supposed to give ease to the dead, and appease the angry gods.  The blood from their markings was supposed to even make and atonement for the dead.

These marks from Leviticus 19:28 (print any marks upon you) were called stigmata among the Greeks.  The Greek word stigmata is where we get the English word for stigmatism.  A stigmatism is something in the eye, it is what you see.  These marks upon their body declared they worshipped the dead.  It was an outward expression of what they worshipped inwardly.

Paul wrote in Galatians 6:17, “for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.”

Paul uses the same Greek word stigmata.  Paul said he also carried an outward body mark upon him of who he worshipped inwardly.  It was an expression of who his soul loved.  It was a mark that associated him with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Tattoos were used to mark the body.  Tattoos showed what gods you worshipped.  Tattoos were symbols of worship to the Dead.  That marking upon their body separated them one from the other.

Apostolic men, we are not here to worship the dead, but the Living.  There is only one God, and He is alive.  We have a body to worship with and we need to use our bodies to worship the Living Savior, Jesus Christ.  Men, we have a responsibility when we go into the house of the Lord.  We are to use our bodies to show what side we are on.  Worship in the Hebrew required movement.  As men, we need to emphatically declare, with our bodies, which team we are supporting.  There should be an outward expression with our body of whom and what we inwardly love.

“19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?  20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Every 7^th Year, the Law required the male slave to be set free.  But if he, the slave decided he did not want to leave his master, then they would place an aul through his ear lobe, thus marking him for the rest of his life,  Deut 15:12-18.  He became a love slave to his master for ever.  One small mark upon his body associated him to his master for life.  It was a mark upon his body, a mark of love to his master.

Men, our children, our families, our church and the world should clearly know who we love.  How we use our bodies, inside and outside the sanctuary, will distinguish us from the world.  We need to have a mark upon our bodies, a mark of divine love to our Master, a stigmata of love to our Savior, Jesus Christ.

- Tim Williams

Ideally, while working for the common goal of constructing a church both economically and in a timely manner, positive personal relationships will be formed as men encourage and strengthen one another, and facilities can be provided where the Apostolic message is faithfully declared. Our ultimate aim is to complete the project within the time and budgetary constraints, and leave a building, congregation, and properly appointed pastor under the direction of our UPCI missionary personnel in the host country. The need is great. The rewards are eternal.

Let this be your personal invitation to make a lasting difference in the kingdom of God. For more information, please log on to www.upcmenonamission.org.

- Mike Williams

He then proceeds to rant and rave about his pet peeve of the day. The interesting psychological connection is that Earl Pitts is always angry enough to do something self-destructive. Through humor, Burbank is cleverly revealing the self-destructive nature of this acidic emotion called anger.

A Jewish rabbi has called anger a subtle form of idolatry. From a spiritual point of view, anger is simply the expression of a person’s condemning judgment – a feeling to which we do not have any right!  Our condemning judgments are inappropriate because 1) we are self-appointed judges, and 2) the attitude of the TRUE JUDGE toward us is one of forgiveness and acceptance. Our condemning judgment of people is basically an argument with God over who is to do the judging. Paul understood this issue when he instructed the Romans:

“Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” [Romans 12:19-21]

Therefore to lift up hands, symbolic of submission, in supposed worship to God with the idol of anger resting in our bosom [hearts] would be not only foolish [Eccelsiastes 7:9],  but also unconsciously hypocritical. No wonder Paul stated:

I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath [anger] and doubting [faithless cynicism]. [I Timothy 2:8]

Two Unholy Idolatries

To lift up holy hands requires a spirit that is holy. To have a spirit that is holy requires a heart void of anger and cynicism. Not only is anger a form of idolatry, but so is a cynical attitude. Why?  Cynicism is an acerbic denial or doubt that things are under God’s sovereign control, as His Word declares. Rather than “trembling at His Word” in the reverential “fear of the Lord”, the cynical doubter audaciously judges the infinite, eternal Word by his miniscule thimbleful of temporal, personal experience. The concept of a cynical Christian is an oxymoron since God’s Word clearly states:

“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” [Hebrews 11:6]

So how do I join the Psalmist in allowing God to try my heart [spirit] and my reins [literally, kidneys; figuratively, filter plant of my human spirit] to remove the idolatries of anger and doubting cynicism?

Antidotes for the Idolatry of Anger

I ask myself:  What is the fuel of anger?  Proverbs 13:10 quickly answers my question:

“Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.”

I then ask myself: What is the opposite of anger? James 3:13-18 provides significant insight:

“Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth….And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.” [the opposite of what anger produces]

The opposite of the spirit of anger is the spirit of meekness. To guard my spirit against the acidic poison of unreleased anger, I must seek to cultivate a spirit of meekness, which is putting on the spirit of Christ [Philippians 2:3-8]. Being clothed with meekness, I become slow to wrath [James 1:19]. When legitimately provoked to anger, I can more easily apply the anger antidote of forgiveness. I refuse to sin by not letting the sun go down on my wrath, which prevents the devil from having a foothold in my spirit.

- Marvin Walker

Nevertheless, it’s not the material possessions that cause difficulties; it is the attitude of the heart. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Are we more dedicated to accumulating material things and paying for those things than to serving God and giving in order to spread His Gospel throughout the world? Regardless of what we declare, if obtaining material possessions takes precedence in our hearts over reaching the world for Christ, our hearts’ attitudes betray our true priorities. Unfortunately, if accumulating possessions is a priority, our energies will become so depleted in worrying about bigger, more, and better things and how to pay for those things that we won’t have time to seek God’s kingdom.

Two choices
Christ said that His followers have only two choices: to serve and follow God or to serve wealth (possessions). “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth” (Matthew 6:24). Jesus was very clear when He indicated that we would be judged on the evidence of how we served God with our material lives, not on how successful or wealthy we were in life. Again, it’s not material possessions that are the problem; it’s materialism—a preoccupation with accumulating material things at the expense of a passion for God and His work.

Why Christians make the wrong choices
Many Christians in America today talk a lot about God’s material blessings but seldom talk about or experience real joy and peace. Why? Because they have become too busy to listen to God’s voice. There are two primary reasons: they become too busy to serve and they have too many distractions.

They become too busy to serve. Jesus told His disciples that many would be called to serve in God’s kingdom (Luke 14:16-26), but most would give excuses why they couldn’t. Too many outside obligations would prevent them from getting involved.

They have too many distractions. The more things accumulate, the more distractions they cause. Two cars break down twice as often, two computers cause twice the errors, two mortgages cost two times the interest, and so on. As we accumulate more things, we generally assume more debt. As we assume more debt, we pay more interest, increase family stress, and create reasons to worry. Yet Jesus said, “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:25).

Evidence of making the right choice
It’s always good to have some standard of measure to determine whether we have made the right choice between God and wealth. This standard of measure is expressed through humility, self-denial, and love for others.

Humility. Christ is the most exalted in the eternal kingdom of God. Yet, knowing this, He assumed the lowliest, most humble position during His earthly life. Since Jesus is our perfect example, we must look to Him for lessons in humility. Perhaps that will mean giving up having the most or best or giving your best to someone in need.

Self-denial. It is a contrast in human logic that by giving up something we can receive even more. However, this is what Christ taught; it’s called sowing and reaping. There are three amazing principles taught by Jesus regarding sowing and reaping: (1) we reap what we sow; (2) we reap in a different season and at a different time than when we sow; and (3) we reap more than we sow. These principles are established regardless of whether we sow good or evil, materialism or godliness, or love or hate.

Love for others. God’s Word tells us that an evidence of our commitment to His way is shown by our concern for others and what we do about those who are in need.

Conclusion
As we start each day we have a choice: to follow God or to follow the world and the ways of the world. If we decide to follow God’s path, it will cost us. Our enemy will probably buffet us as never before and we’ll doubt the wisdom and logic of the decision. On the authority of God’s Word, though, we can know that the decision was the right one.

by Crown Financial Ministries

Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate of heaven” (Gen 28:16-17 NKJV).  Jacob awoke from his dream to find the atmosphere alive with the presence of Jehovah. God’s Glory hung like a mist over the ground where Jacob had spent the night.  Jacob had made a connection with God.  He promptly changed the name of the place from Luz to Bethel which means the House of God.

In any local Christian Bookstore you are likely to find more books on the subject of prayer than any other particular subject, books both old and new.  With so much material written on this subject, you would think that prayer would be the first priority for every child of God.  Sadly I have found that motivating people to develop a consistent life of prayer is great challenge for every Christian leader.  I love reading but reading one hundred books on prayer cannot accomplish what one truly rewarding experience in prayer will achieve.  We all need the Bethel experience.

C. S. Lewis said in his Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, “We – or at least I – shall not be able to adore God on the highest occasions if we have learned no habit of doing so on the lowest.  At best, our faith and reason will tell us that He is adorable, but we shall not have found Him so, not have “tasted and seen.”  Any patch of sunlight in a wood will show you something about the sun which you could never get from reading books on astronomy.  These pure and spontaneous pleasures are “patches of godlight” in the woods of experience.”

In his dream Jacob saw the angels were ascending and descending upon a ladder that came down from heaven.  With practice we learn that prayer is communicating with our Father, both speaking and listening. Real communication is not a monologue, rather it is a dialogue.  Jesus said, “My sheep know my voice.” Let me ask you, do you know the voice of the Father?  Periodically I have an opportunity to read a book that was written by a personal friend. I really enjoy doing this. As I read the book I can clearly and distinctly hear my friend’s voice in my mind.  Can you hear the Shepherds voice when you read His Word? Have you spent enough time with the Shepherd that you have learned to recognize His voice?

Jesus said, “But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly (Matthew 6:6).  We need corporate prayer meetings.  Just as the church prayed together in the book of Acts there will be times when people come together and cry out to God but, it is imperative that each of us have a time when we go to our closet shut the door and get alone with the Father.  Do you have a secret place? Nothing completely takes the place of getting alone with God and knowing you are in His presence.  “…in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore (Psalm 16:11).  The New International Version reads, “You will fill me with joy in Your presence.”

James said, “Draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you.”  To put it another way, when you worship God, He will come near to you.  Enter into your closet and shut the door.  Let deep call unto deep.  Don’t picture God as being in some far off place. He dwells inside of us. Worship the Father until His presence comes.  Learn to pray in the Holy Ghost and build up your faith.  Don’t worry so much about the length of your prayer.  Here are the important questions.  Did the Father show up?  Did we have dialogue?  I heard a great man of God say last week, “I rarely spend more than thirty minutes in prayer but I never go thirty minutes without praying.” Paul said that we should “pray without ceasing.” Train yourself to stay in a perpetual state of prayer.

When Moses returned from being in the presence of Jehovah his face was shining.  Connect with God until your countenance has changed. Although the Jerusalem Council perceived that Peter and John were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled at their boldness and acknowledged that they had been with Jesus.  Just being in His presence leaves its mark on us.

I confess that I sometimes go to prayer and nothing in my flesh realm indicates that the Father is there.  On these occasions I continue on in prayer by faith because I know by His word that He is present.  Although I am not a good golfer, I do play the game from time to time.  It is not unusual for me to hit several bad golf shots.  But, the bad shots are not the shots that keep me coming back to whale away at the little white ball. It is the rare birdie that keeps me playing. Likewise, I do not necessarily connect with God in a special way every time I pray but often I do find His presence near and dear.  These special times are the reason I keep praying. The nothing prayer meetings may come more often than the special moment prayer meetings but, I always know while I am in my secret place, the Father might just show up in a special way and talk with me.  I know when this happens I will be filled with joy.

One reason people do not pray more consistently is that they have not seen the visible results from prayer they had hoped for.  Although we are taught in the Scriptures to bring our petitions to the Father we must not forget that there is more to praying than just turning in our list of needs.  We were instructed in the Word to seek His Face, not His Hands.  Don’t be guilty of always coming into His presence looking for a ‘handout.’ The Psalmist teaches us that there is only one way to come into His presence. You enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise.  The Father might be watching to see what we will bring in our hands.  In  Psalm 96:8 we read, “… Bring an offering, and come into His courts” (NKJV).  Be cautious about praying the ‘bless me Jabez prayer’ every time you come into the Fathers presence. Simply being in His presence is reward enough to merit the time I have spent there.

Before you start offering your petitions, connect with God.  Get some dialogue started.  Don’t try and rush the Father. Notice the instruction that Jesus gave when teaching His disciples the Model Prayer. First, He said, make sure the name of the Father is hallowed.  Before you start asking for your daily bread, pray that His Kingdom will come and that His will be done. He’s not looking at His watch (I don’t suppose He has one), so stop looking at yours.  Your goal should not be to pray a certain length of time. The old timers used to sing, “Pray until you pray, and then you can pray the clouds away

The disciples were moved to ask as they observed Jesus praying, “Lord, teach us to pray.”  Although it may be implied, I have often noted that the disciples request was not “teach us how to pray.” The request was simply “teach us to pray.”  Our first priority should be to establish the discipline and habit of spending time in prayer.   Before you succeed in learning all the nuts and bolts about successful praying, establish the habit of prayer.  When I was trying to learn to do some basic things on the computer I had several instructors trying to teach me.  All this new jargon was not registering in my brain.  I found that the only way I really could succeed on the computer was to just start working with one.  I made plenty of mistakes and for sure I am not a computer whiz today but I can navigate my way around.  Although I still often need help I learned by practice.  Our lack of understanding about prayer is not a good excuse for not praying.  I wonder who might have taught David how to pray?  With only the sheep for an audience I think David just started talking to God.  Practice praying. The Psalmist said, “I give myself to prayer, (Ps 109:4 NKJV).  Prayer is something you give yourself to. Finding your own special place in prayer doesn’t just happen.  You will not stumble into it accidentally.  You have to give yourself to it.

It is important to remember that Jesus prayed.  Being a man who was tempted in all points, He knew he needed to pray.  His advice to the disciples was to, “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak (Matt 26:41).  Prayerless flesh is always going to be weak flesh.  Jesus knew that before He entered into His greatest hour of temptation that He had to meet with the Father.  The writer of Hebrews was perhaps thinking of that particular night when he said of Jesus, “Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;” (Hebrews 5:7).

- Jerry Dean

Out in front they could see a man dancing, leaping and shouting uncontrollably.  Who was this mad man making a skeptical of himself?  Shouts of praise, cries of worship were coming out from deep within him. How could he bring embarrassment to the throne?  How could he rent his robes of royalty?  A king should not behave this way in front of his subjects.  But David could not help himself. He had been in the presence of the LORD.  Worship that was once caged up for years was now set free.  The Spirit of the LORD gave him that liberty and it was about to be restored to all of Israel.  All David could do was to demonstrate worship before the LORD.  He stripped himself before the King of Kings and said “Here I am LORD, here I am to worship”. He understood Psalm 118:24

This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

He was not going to keep his praise in but he was going to rejoice.  This was a life changing event for Israel. It was a new day for worship.

I remember my first year in church shortly after receiving the Holy Ghost at Landmark Tabernacle in Denver, CO, I watched those who caught the same fire for worship that David had.  I would watch men flood the alters in the dance, women at every service would catch hold of the presence of GOD and had such liberty in worship.  One sister who was in track in her early years would line up like she was running a race and when the Holy Ghost took over she took off running. In a moment she proclaimed unto the LORD “Here I am to worship” as she ran into the presence of her GOD.  In my observation I could remember something swelling up on the inside of me.  A calling came from deep within me.  It was as if he LORD was drawing me a little closer to my own place of worship.

In the early hours of the morning I was restless, tossing and turning in our tiny full size bed.  Tired of the constant movement my wife cried out “What is wrong with you?” I said “The LORD is calling me to worship, He is calling me to dance before him. He told me I would be blessed like David if I would answer the call”. Frustrated and in desperate need of sleep she cried out, “Would you hurry up and get it over with so that I could get some sleep.”  I jumped out of bed and went into the living room and immediately was overcome by a presence I never felt before. I began to dance before the LORD for the first time.  I began to sing the chorus to the song “Spirit of David”. For the first time I felt what those I used to watch felt. For the first time I experienced true worship. John 4:23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

Something got a hold of me that day and has never let go. The LORD has blessed me in my worship ever since. The LORD has given me opportunities to lead others in worship for many years. It has been an exciting endeavor to be a part of GODS worship team.

David was not afraid to worship.  He looked for every opportunity to worship. It started from the very mention that it was time for church. Psalm 122:1  I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. He entered the gates with thanksgiving and he moved into the courts high stepping with praise.  Lifting up holy hands, singing, playing instruments were all part of worship in the house of GOD.  Dancing, jumping, and running were not strange to those who desired to get a hold of him.  Miriam danced while playing her tambourine because she was finally free from years of bondage. Worship acknowledges GOD, his power, his greatness.  It lifts him to the number one spot in our lives.  The man at the gate beautiful wasted no time in giving GOD glory. After receiving his healing he could not contain what the LORD had done.  Not only was he healed but years of worship that was bottled up inside was released as he went into the temple jumping, leaping and praising GOD. His actions declared with liberty that he was there to worship GOD.

Pentecost needs men of worship.  Men that are not afraid to rent themselves of there worldly robes of self-righteousness.  Men not ashamed of the GOD they serve.  GOD is searching for men who are willing to put the cares of life to the side. Apostolic men that are willing to shout and let the LORD know “Here I am to Worship”.

- Christopher Urrutic

Love, joy, peace longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: these are the fruit of the spirit that are supposed to  be displayed in our spiritual life.  How can we as men accomplish this through worship?  One definition of worship is to prostrate oneself before his God.  When we are in a prostrate position we are in our most defenseless position.  In war our enemy would love to attack us while we are lying down.

First of all we need to realize that there is a great difference between praise and worship.  We are very comfortable with praising God but anyone or anything can give or receive praise. When we are praising, we are the one in control.  We can praise with anything in our heart or anything on our mind.  But, praise only brings the presence of the Lord into the place because He inhabits the praises of His people.

On the other hand, worship for we men requires a complete role reversal.  We in our natural lives are used to being the husband, the leader, the one she (the wife) submits to, but in worship, we, man or woman take our position as the Bride of Christ, the submitted, protected, yielded, empty vessel that is totally dependent on HIM to be filled.

Because of our natural desire to remain in control, we men sometimes never get past praising God.  In the same service our wives may reach a place of total submission to God and is really receiving what she needs from Him and we are still singing the songs and clapping our hands and are still just going through the motions and praising God.  WHY?  She is used to submitting, trusting, yielding and giving of herself and we are not!

The beginning of worship is to forget what is going on around us: our debts – our jobs – our children, etc. and get our minds totally on Jesus!  When we do this the words – not the music, rhythm or beat of the songs will begin to penetrate our shields and facades. This will cause our defenses to fall, then, genuine worship will begin to flow.  Genuine worship is not about us, our needs, situations, or problems, but it is All About HIM! As one song says, “put your minds on Jesus – let’s have church”

Our worship should not depend on how desperate our need is but on HOW GREAT OUR GOD IS!  When things are going good we need to worship Him.  When things are going bad we need to worship Him.  When we are sick or well we need to worship.  When we have plenty or have nothing we need to worship Him.  We need to learn to worship Him under any circumstance and in any situation.  If we can do this, He can really be our God.  “I’ve got a feeling, everything’s gonna be alright!”  Let’s worship Him like we believe it!

- Terry Riddick