I Want to Know Christ (Part 3)

I Want To Know Christ (Part 3)

10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. –
Philippians 3:10-11

Another one of my friends crashed and burned. He had it all together but made compromises in his life and now is in the throes of downward spiral.

As I was thinking through what happened, I was reminded of WHY I need to stay connected to the vine = abiding in Christ. A friend of mine sent this note to me a number of years ago, and I went on a hunt to find it.

You are the weakest link in the Keswick ministry, Bill.   Even though you have experienced a lot of overhaul in your Christian life, especially in recent years, you are STILL the one, most needy of further overhaul, the one most needy of greater FAITH.   In my not-so-humble opinion, all Christian leaders are the weakest links in their organizations: the ones most needy of further growth, no matter HOW much God has grown them, to date.  

You don't have the luxury of a healthy devotional life, Bill: you need extraordinary devotional life, or you will be chewed up and spit out, by the enemy.   And you don't have the luxury of healthy prayer mobilization: you need extraordinary prayer mobilization.  And you're doing a great job of that, especially when you ask prayer for your FAITH, in light of the extreme faith-needy, prayer-needy circumstances, the ministry of Keswick faces, not just financially, but in every other way.    

So Bill needs to be on the list of people he's concerned about, so that Bill is maximally healthy, physically, emotionally and spiritually.   If I were Satan, I'd do everything I could, to undermine Bill's health, physically and emotionally, so it would be much, much harder for him to simply BELIEVE.   NURTURE yourself, Bill, physically, emotionally and spiritually: it's not a selfish thing, but a strategic investment for the Kingdom.  In my not-so-humble opinion.   Satan wants you neutralized, rendered impotent, so you and the ministry of Keswick will not be such a threat to him.  YOU, Bill Welte, are the weakest link at Keswick. 

I don’t have to stay connected to the Lord to earn more of His love! I don’t have to stay connected because if I don’t I will lose my salvation. I stay connected because HE wants to live His life through me. I need to stay connected because I AM the weakest link! Thank You, Lord, for the reminder! – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

Team YOU: 1 Samuel 22-24; Proverbs 13; Luke 12:1-31

Motivations:  I liken God's use of adversity to walking a dog. If the dog gets its leash wrapped around a pole and tries to continue running forward, he will only tighten the leash more. Both the dog and the owner are after the same end, forward motion, but the owner must resist the dog by pulling him opposite the direction he wants to go. The master, sharing the same intention but understanding better than the dog where he really wants to go, takes an action precisely opposite to that of the dog's will. It is in this way that God uses adversity. C. S. Lewis

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Ephesians 4:25; Level 2: Ephesians 4:11-16

Powered Up:  Prayer should never be an excuse for inaction. Nehemiah prayed, but he also set watches for protection – he used common sense. As a result, what had not been done in a hundred years’ time was finished in fifty-two days. Corrie ten Boom