Praying for Your Shepherd (Part 2)

Pray for Your Shepherd (Part 2)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Praying for Your Shepherd

Praying for Your Shepherd

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

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

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

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

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

Here are the first three:

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

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

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

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

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

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

Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

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

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

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

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

The Care of Feet

The Care of Your Feet


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


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


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


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


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


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


He will keep our feet from wounding: our shoes shall be iron and brass so that even though we tread on the edge of the sword, or on deadly serpents, we shall not bleed or be poisoned.
 
He will also pluck our feet out of the net. We shall not be entangled by the deceit of our malicious and crafty foes. With such a promise as this, let us run without weariness and walk without fear.


He who keeps our feet will do it effectually.

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

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

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

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

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

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

How to Spend an Hour in Prayer

How to Spend an Hour in Prayer

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

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

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

So if we were to do it, how?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Breakfast Sandwich Banquet

Breakfast Sandwich Banquet 

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

1. We have all been invited!

2. Are you ready and prepared to attend?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

God's Vote in the Primaries and Caucuses

God's vote in the Primaries and Caucuses

 

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

 

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

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

So based on this I have my candidate picked out.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Let the Mummies Dance

Let the Mummies Dance

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2.     Spend some moments settling down.

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

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

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

6.     Let the drama slowly unfold.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Oh man, is earthly life short. 

Oh my, eternity is forever.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The Bleeding Edge of Victory

The Bleeding Edge of Victory

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

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

~ Psalm 34:17-18

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

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

~Erwin W. Lutzer (1941- ) 

What is the bleeding edge of victory in our lives?  

Failure.

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

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

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

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

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

~ Philippians 3:7-11

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

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

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

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

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

Come To Me and Rest

Come To Me and Rest

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Semper-Victoria

Semper-Victoria

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Repeat 1 and 2 constantly....

And to get the most out of the above:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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