Wednesday, October 31

Another Christian leader falls......

All about Kitna's questionable Halloween costume
by Philip Zaroo | MLive.com
Wednesday October 31, 2007, 3:42 AM

Jon Kitna dresses as Lions defensive line coach Joe Cullen, who last year drove through a Wendy's drive-thru naked. Kitna's wife is dressed as the Wendy's girl. Sure, Jon Kitna may be a devout Christian, and that's something he's very proud of. But that certainly doesn't mean he's above giving an elbow to the ribs of his coaches or teammates. Take, for example, Kitna's costume at the Mike Furrey Foundation's charity Halloween party Monday night at Plaza Alley Bowling Alley in Plymouth.


Yeah, that's right, Kitna dressed up like defensive line coach Joe Cullen while Kitna's wife went as Wendy, from Wendy's Restaurants. (For those who slept through last year, Cullen caused quite a stir, locally and around the country, when he allegedly made a late night run to a Wendy's drive-thru ... naked.) Fox 2 Detroit was there to get Kitna's costume on record.

Drew Sharp, of the Detroit Free Press, was not amused. In fact, he wrote a column about it. What was conspicuously missing from his column, though, was Cullen's opinion on the topic. Sure wish I could've heard an opinion from the guy who this is about. Lucky for us, though, we all know what Drew thinks.

Detroit Free Press, October 30: "A lot of the guys on the team remember what happened," Kitna told Fox 2 at the party. "It's far enough removed that you can laugh at it now."

I wonder if Cullen or head coach Rod Marinelli share that sentiment, considering the humiliation that the episode caused Cullen and his family.

It's one thing if such insensitivity emanates from a smart-alecky columnist who has long accepted the inevitability of his eternal damnation. But it's a wholly different matter when it's one of the coach's own players who obviously is comfortable publicly mocking the man's personal fallibilities.
...
The stunt was consistent with Kitna's in-your-face style. If you don't like what he says or what he does, that's tough. He's not changing.

But he crossed the line this time and owes Cullen an apology, if for nothing else but for pushing that embarrassing evening back to the forefront of local consciousness.

This is my reply to Jon Kitna regarding his choice in costumes the other night. I would say that we all, as followers of Christ, need to make Mr. Kitna realize that he committed an error in judgment and repent of the sinful and shameful way he's ridiculed someone else.

Mr. Kitna,
I just wanted to write you concerning the choice of costume that you wore for the event recently. This character who walked into the room with his Wendy's clad wife was a far cry from the one who did the interview with Eric Smith for Tales from the Heart. It is a sad devation from the person who wears the cross on his hats and stands in prayer circles on the field, has bible studies at his home and speaks out to the youth of today regarding choices.

Would you like one of those kids to do this to one of their peers? Isn't that what you have talked against?

I know that Christ wouldn't have thought this appropiate regardless of the length of time since the incident or the recovery of the person invovled. And your glib comment that it is so far in the past bodes ill for Christians speaking out for the protection of family (a thing of the past), honoring our christian heritage (again a thing of the past), and so on. Paul also spoke of not causing your brother to fall by doing something that would tempt him. Have you not tempted a lot of youthful Christians to feel okay with ridiculing another?

I would call upon your faith, if indeed you are not just a cultural christian but a true follower of Christ, and correct the situation. Inform Cullen publicly that you apologize for this, tell your fans (like me) who look at you as a Christian leader that you apologize for your error in judgment, and then have your wife do the same, as she followed in your lead……

I've already had several coworkers come up to me and say, "See, you Christians are all alike. Hypocrites." Just the other night, I spoke to my wife during the "Tales from the Heart" program of how you were impacting the faith by your leadership and your 'not ashamed to be a Christian' attitude. How I respected and looked to you to impact the sport and the city for Christ…………….

Now, as most leaders in the faith are doing now, you have disgraced us who would cheer you on. Though I forgive you, I wonder how much of an impact this will have on those I speak to about my faith…..

Thanks for your impact on my ministries…...

Chaplain Jim Hutson

Now they are trying to attack our children's values

There will be a new children's movie out in December called "The Golden Compass". The movie has been described as "atheism for kids" and is based on the first book of a trilogy entitled "His Dark Materials" that was written by Phillip Pullman. Pullman is a militant atheist and secular humanist who despises C. S. Lewis and the "Chronicles of Narnia". His motivation for writing this trilogy was specifically to counteract Lewis' symbolisms of Christ that are portrayed in the Narnia series.
Clearly, Pullman's main objective is to bash Christianity and promote atheism. Pullman left little doubt about his intentions when he said in a 2003 interview that "my books are about killing God." He has even stated that he wants to "kill God in the minds of children". It has been said of Pullman that he is "the writer the atheists would be praying for, if atheists prayed."

While "The Golden Compass" movie itself may seem mild and innocent, the books are a much different story. In the trilogy, a young streetwise girl becomes enmeshed in an epic struggle to ultimately defeat the oppressive forces of a senile God. Another character, an ex-nun, describes Christianity as "a very powerful and convincing mistake." In the final book, characters representing Adam and Eve eventually kill God, who at times is called YAHWEH. Each book in the trilogy gets progressively worse regarding Pullman's hatred of Jesus Christ.

"The Golden Compass" is set to premier on December 7, during the Christmas season, and will probably be heavily advertised. Promoters hope that unsuspecting parents will take their children to see the movie, that they will enjoy the movie, and that the children will want the books for Christmas.
Please consider a boycott of the movie and the books. Also, pass this information along to everyone you know. This will help to educate parents, so that they will know the agenda of the movie

Growing according to the Grower

1BLESSED (HAPPY, fortunate, prosperous, and enviable) is the man who walks and lives not in the counsel of the ungodly [following their advice, their plans and purposes], nor stands [submissive and inactive] in the path where sinners walk, nor sits down [to relax and rest] where the scornful [and the mockers] gather. 2But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night. 3And he shall be like a tree firmly planted [and tended] by the streams of water, ready to bring forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not fade or wither; and everything he does shall prosper [and come to maturity]. Psalm 1:1-3 (AMP)

Often called the "Preface Psalm" because of the fact this is the divine sermon of the Psalms.

It brings to mind the Jeremiah verse that was the basis of the book "Leaf in Drought", which was sent via my wife from Rose Anne Coleman concerning the 'drought' of the season that I am facing in regards to the opposition to ministry.

For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear[a] when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit. Jeremiah 17:8(NKJV)

I sent out a resume in response to a position opening at a church in the area. And spent the rest of the day since agonizing over whether or not I'm qualified, whether or not I should even expect a favorable reply, and whether or not someone will ever realize I'm called (beside me and God).

The church I've sent the resume to is actually quite like the church I attend now, maybe a bit more mature in its growth. I don't know its depth, but the structure shows favorable signs of a good fertile soil. And they have been kind in the past in regards to my resume. I sent it to one of the Pastors just to see about some pointers and he sent it to the position committee for consideration. When I apologized, he said that they do everything by prayer. So I am content in the knowledge that if God intends, God will speak into the hearts of those who would make such decisions. It is much better than a seemingly office-politics kind of atomsphere which typically prevades the 'mega' church or one growing into such.

But, what a merciful Father we have. Redirecting my attention to the Jeremiah verse via the Psalm. Showing me what He has intended and what is going to come to past within the season of His choosing.

Like a tree, I need to plant my roots deep in the fertile soil of the Lord's substance and drink deeply of the waters so that I may produce the fruit that would draw others into Him.

Sure am thirsty....

Jim

Tuesday, October 30

Evening lesson

Isaiah 45:7 (NIV) "I form the light and create the darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I,the Lord, do all these things."

This ties into the reference found in Jeremiah, that most of us can recite verbatium, about plans to prosper us and not harm us..............

Jeremiah 29:11-13(NIV) "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon Me and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart."

The verses immediately following verse 11 aren't often quoted in this 'famous' promise, but I think they should be. It is a new truth for us to realize. Why God has the plans He has for us. To drive us back to relationship, to give us a reason to call upon and seek our Father's face.

Don't we do that with our earthly fathers? We look to the promises made by our fathers to be fulfilled, resting in the assurance that they have nothing but the best intended for us. The greatest tragedy that can take place, I think, is the corruption or loss of that trust between a father and their child(ren).

Last night, my youngest daughter who has been sick, recalled a promise I had made to her that wasn't fulfilled. She wasn't too accepting of the demands of time that prevented it, both on her part and on mine, but looked to me as the deliverer of the promise --no matter how many other people were involved. It was her dad who made the promise, her dad who can move heaven and earth to make sure to deliver (at least in my daughter's eyes). And it was designed, this promise made, to bring us together, to spend some time one-on-one with the youngest and least demanding child in the house. The one who is most like me.

She wanted some time, to spend as a daughter beloved by her father, not challenged by the demands of school, the world, home, her family, or her society. Just to be a daughter, to take substance from the knowledge that she was loved and cared for. To know that she had her father's heart.

And I found myself in the position that Isaiah brings to light in chapter 45, to bring prosperity or disaster into my daughter's world. To respond to that need of connection with a heart full of love and joy, or to deny the reality of her need and send a notice of rejection to her.

So I spent time with my youngest last night, telling her in word and deed that she has always my attention, my love, and my joy. That she is a beloved daughter, one of three children, unique in herself and vital to the family.

And so, plant the seed again and watch it grow....the seed that my daughter knows that she can turn to her father, ask him for a heartfelt need and know he will respond.

And I rejoiced that I could experience a bit of my Heavenly Father's love for me in that relationship with my daughter.

He has given me a promise that if I turn to Him and ask, He will reveal His beautiful plans for me.....plans for prosperity.......in relationship with Him.

Monday, October 29

Expect more....

"That servant who knows his master\'s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked. Luke 12:47-48 (NIV)

My wife saw, in a documentary viewed on Channel 7 labeled \"Tales from the heart\" that L. Brooks Patterson, the Oakland County Executive, had a poster on his wall.....it said, \"God doesn\'t give me more than I can handle, but He gives me the ability to hand it all to Him.\" or something to that affect. I was more interested in my wife\'s reaction than to the exact verbage of the poster.

Paul tells us that God will not give us more than we can handle. That is touted by many Christians to point out that someone isn\'t truly saved or isn\'t truly following God\'s will in the situation or their lives. I think it is one of the most abused verses in the bible.

God DOESN\'T give us more than we can handle, true. But in this world of fallen natures, sinful bodies, and broken creation, there is a point that is different for everyone where they are overwhelmed; by the past, the present, or the incorrect view of the future. So, if God doesn\'t give us more than we can handle, then why are Christians overwhelmed? Because they aren\'t given the tools to catch and release. Or, they aren't shown how to give up to God what they themselves cannot handle.

God is LOVE. God desires nothing but the best for us and would never do anything to harm us. There is no fire and brimstone spoken in the modern Church because we simply wouldn\'t want to offend anyone. What if....what if we said that homosexuality is wrong, by biblical standards and statements.....why, we might turn away that one homosexual who was ON THE EDGE of salvation......because we are too judgmental and cruel.

Or that alcoholic that is fighting the disease, that porn-addict, or the sex-addict. The prideful individual who is in a situation of devastation and despair. The husband who is verbally abusive to his wife. The wife who refuses to believe that her spending habits are the cause of financial distress.

These are the people that the modern Church is trying to reach, with a watered down, dumbed down version of the Gospel which is no where near what Christ preached and commanded his disciples to continue with. But the Chrisitan view of tolerance has been so distorted that it has turned on those who described it originally, the Christian.

Am I homophobic? I would say, through the mercy of God, no. Am I an alcoholic? No, again by the grace of God. I have experienced and managed to escape alcohol,porn and their addictive natures. I have a healthy sexual appetite.

But the sinful nature I do fight, the struggles I do face, are just as sinful in God\'s eyes as the homosexual, the alcoholic, the porn-addict. And so, I am no more in God\'s eyes than they are. Everyone sins, everyone falls short, but not everyone is willing to admit that.

So what has this diatribe have to do with the reference found in the physician\'s gospel? What does the fact that the modern Church doesn\'t do what it is supposed to do; speak the truth in love with open and outstreched arms?

Simple.

With great blessings come greater responsibilities. We are called, in our forgiven and grace-given status, to reach out with greater love and forgiveness to those still lost, those still in the enemy\'s grip.

We are called, with the full knowledge of forgiveness and grace, mercy and wisdom, to bring attention to the wayward ways of our lost brethren. Bring attention, not judgment. Too many in the Church today combine judgment with attention rather than attention with solution. We shouldn't water down the Gospel to reach those who would come, but teach it in love and understanding to those who are looking.

As Christians, we feel our sinfulness more than the non-believer because we know better. And it hurts us more when we do sin. With this knowledge and understanding, we should modify our evangelism to address this.

The sinner doesn\'t feel sin as badly, because they don\'t know any better. And it is that conviction, by the Holy Spirit (not us), that allows the sinner to realize the need for forgiveness.

And to seek it out.

Friday, October 26

But I am the least of the least....

A dear friend of mine has stood in the gap with me and has spoke words of God's truth for me to hear. It is visions from people like her that have inspired, edified, and affirmed me in the struggles to be "allowed" by man to do what God has called me to do.

She gave me this verse in Judges 6:12 that she said spoke of me and the struggle I have recently endured about 'people's opinions about my call'.

"The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?""

We all know Gideon's response to this call of the Lord, what could be called a bit of hesistation! Gideon himself has severe issues with the call,

"But Lord ," Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."

Funny thing is, Gideon asked God why the Israelites were having to endure the Midianite raids if the Lord was with the people....

And Gideon didn't stop there, but requested to have the Lord wait for him to give an offering, and asked again for confirmation of the call to save his people, Israel, with the fleece.....not once, but twice! Finally, though, once Gideon was convinced....he was convinced. He is considered one of the greatest generals Israel ever had, not too bad for the least of the least of the least.

And, as this devotion points out, we need to reach a point of decision; full commitment or full disvowing. There is no in-between.

"Somewhere in your life you should have a vision that humanly speaking makes no sense, something you know could never happen without God. When you first receive it, something inside you will say, "I will" while everything around you is saying, "You can't." ....Quit asking people who they think you are. Ask God! If He endorses you what difference does their opinions make?"

As Paul put it in his letter to the Collossians;

"But now He has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation --IF you continue in your faith, ESTABLISHED and FIRM, NOT removed from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, HAVE BECOME A SERVANT."

I cannot do what I am called to do, humanly speaking, but I have the faith that the gospel I know and the Lord proclaimed in it IS capable. And the promises He has made regarding my submitting to the call are valid and true. It's ridiculous to think that I can defeat other's negative opinion of where God has called me to go. And it is foolish to think that there is something I can do, say, or reveal that will overcome their reluctance to follow suit and support this adventure God has blessed me to go on. So what!

God has called me, and God keeps on proving without a doubt that He is fully capable and fully aware of the demands He's put upon my shoulders and He will be faithful to see me through. I cannot do what He calls me to do, but I can surrender myself to the call for Him to do what He would do.

To share in the Kingdom work that He owns is only possible when I allow Him to work through me, a fragile and broken man who endures for the kingdom.

As the Angel of the Lord told Gideon......

"The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."

I will gladly suit up and stand on the battlefield with the other warriors God has enabled for His glory and praise.

Am I fearful? Yes, but my Lord is just and good and would not call me to harm.

Am I sure? Yes, as much as God has worked in my life so far, there is much He has given to be used for the Kingdom glory.

Am I perfect? No, but as a MAN in quest of God, I will move in my broken and fearful state upon feet supported by a Savior's love and a burden made lighter by my Father's assurance.

I will be Issachar, a rawboned donkey, bent to the burden of others to bear them with love and endurance. As a warrior, I will stand accountable in the Army of the MOST HIGH GOD, shield and broadsword, weld in the imperfect hands of this warrior and swung by the might of the Savior's own.

In victory shall we all be,
Jim

Thursday, October 25

HOLD!!! We must hold here or we never will hold anything.

1 Corinthians 15:58 (NIV) "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the LORD, because you know that your labor in the LORD is not in vain."

Boy, this is something that I know God is speaking to me. And I know that the words I spoke to a dear brother last night, who knew me from the beginnings, were true even as I spoke them. That I am destined and purposed to become a pastor, in the shepherding and teaching sense, of a church. Six months is what God has spoken to my heart. And yet, the offers do not fall from the shelves. I know my home church won't be the place, there is just no discipleship or training there. And, my request to be developed was turned down.

But I feel it, in my bones as a fire that cannot be quenched. Even with all that I can point out as to why MAN would refuse me this call, I cannot point out anything that would give me the right to refuse GOD's call.

His word is a fire in my bones, that will consume me if I do not let it out. I cannot NOT be about my Father's business as I cannot live without breathing.

And I will no longer be moved. I will no longer believe the Enemy's confusion of the call nor will I refuse to answer the calling of my Savior.

We all must realize what we have been doing with what we have been given. The Church is a collection of faithful servants of the Lord Almighty, not a buliding or a place. It is God's reflection into a world full of darkness.

The Enemy has confused us all, with how comfy the seats are or whether or not we have the approval of man to do what God would have us do. Are we fit enough? Do we have enough righteousness?

God provides for the purpose in which HE calls us to. God gives us the authority, ability, and the righteousness to do what He would have us to do. All we have to do is provide the willingness to submit to His will. And we are not to have lukewarm food, but strong and healthy meat to substain us. If we don't receive our food, we should establish our own pantry in which to partake, until we find the teaching that would challenge us. A church is a builiding that stands in one place, the CHURCH is a moving and breathing entity of the LIVING GOD.

Love is to be spoken, lived, and emulated. Agape love is what the standard to achieve is. But LOVE spoken in TRUTH, without VARNISHING, without DUMBING DOWN is what we are called to do.

If we don't stand the ground for our Savior, where will we stop? Stand, shields locked in tight with the brother and sister beside you, with those who are gifted with evangelism standing behind with spears of truth ready to fly! This is the day, this is the time, and THIS IS THE PLACE!


In Christ,
Jim

Tuesday, October 23

Jeremiah 2:13 (ERV) "For My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can not hold water."


A lesson in the basic premise of humanity, that we can do it without God, even as our world falls apart at the very hemline because we have taken God out of most of everything.
The water (that life-giving, thirst quenching water) pours out, soaking into the parched ground, and we ignore it.

Instead of realizing that the reason behind the lack of water in the provided recepticle is the gaping hole in its side, we create our own way of handling the situation, i.e. creating our own cisterns.

This is where I am in the Dr. Crabb book, INSIDE OUT, that I spoke of before. Chapter Two is entitled, "An inside look can be frustrating" and Chapter Three is "Knowing what to look for". The above verse Dr. Crabb references in the third chapter.

And it brings me to another verse I've been led to today, 2 Timothy 3:13 (AMP),

"But wicked men and imposters will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and leading astray others and being deceived and led astray themselves."

We can do great damage, both leader and lay, to others in our doctrinal fevor and approach. But, unfortunately, it seems that many Mega-churches and their wanna-be up and comers all have the approach of 'feel good' theology and contextial understanding which is bent to diminishing the effective and strong wordage of the Bible. And it seems that there are few who would realize this. Bill Hybel and his leadership team at Willow Creek have come to the realization that their "seeker" model isn't helping people grow in their spiritual walk, despite the growth of membership in this 'most influencial' mega church. I feel special affinity to Willow, as this is where I received my call to ministry.

I will discuss this more, but I have to make this post short. I so miss my laptop, which gave me greater freedom in writing this blog.

In Christ,
Jim

F.A.M.I.L.Y.

When you think that you KNOW what's important, God has a way of showing you what is TRULY important..............................This says it all..........a poem someone sent me.

F A M I L Y
I ran into a stranger as he passed by,
'Oh excuse me please' was my reply.
He said, 'Please excuse me too; I wasn't watching for you.'
We were very polite, this stranger and I.
We went on our way and we said goodbye.
But at home a different story is told,
How we treat our loved ones, young and old.
Later that day, cooking the evening meal,
My son stood beside me very still.
When I turned, I nearly knocked him down.
'Move out of the way,' I said with a frown.
He walked away, his little heart broken.
I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken.
While I lay awake in bed,
God's still small voice came to me and said,
'While dealing with a stranger, common courtesy you use,
but the family you love, you seem to abuse.
Go and look on the kitchen floor,
You'll find some flowers there by the door.
Those are the flowers he brought for you.
He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue.
He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise,
you never saw the tears that filled his little eyes.'
By this time, I felt very small,
And now my tears began to fall.
I quietly went and knelt by his bed;
'Wake up, little one, wake up,' I said.
'Are these the flowers you picked for me?'
He smiled, 'I found 'em, out by the tree.
I picked 'em because they're pretty like you.
I knew you'd like 'em, especially the blue.'
I said, 'Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today;
I shouldn't have yelled at you that way.'
He said, 'Oh, Mom, that's okay.
I love you anyway.'
I said, 'Son, I love you too,
and I do like the flowers,
especially the blue.'
FAMILY
Are you aware that if we died tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days. But the family we left behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives. And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than into our own family, an unwise investment indeed, don't you think? So what is behind the story?
Do you know what the word FAMILY means?


FAMILY =
(F)ATHER
(A)ND
(M)OTHER
(I)
(L)OVE
(Y)OU

Monday, October 22

Beware the cat inside your soul

October 20, 2007

BY GARY SOULSMAN

THE NEWS JOURNAL of the Detroit News.

The joke: A dog says, "You pet me, you feed me, you love me, you must be God."
A cat says, "You pet me, you feed me, you love me, I must be God."

When evangelist Bob Sjogren (pronounced "SHOW grin") of Richmond, Va., heard the punch line, it was an eye-opener.

"That's it," he says. "That's the American church. There's a tidal wave of me-ism out there."

Or, to put it in pet terms, there's too much catlike self-centeredness and not a lot of doggie glorifying of God.

That's a major thesis of "Cat & Dog Theology: Rethinking Our Relationship with Our Master" (Gabriel Publishing, $12.99), a book Sjogren wrote with his friend, Gerald Robison. They also created a DVD that churches like Newark United Methodist Church in Newark, Del., have used in adult education classes.

Haig Stubblebine of Newark United believes the dog and cat metaphor stimulates plenty of interest.

"There's a little bit of dog and cat in each of us," says Stubblebine, who led a workshop on the topic at the church.

The authors agree.

"Odds are you aren't either," they write. "You are somewhere in between."

Considering that there are so many pets in so many homes, people tend to smile at the analogy. Cats tend to be aloof and self-centered. Dogs are warm and have no trouble looking to a higher authority.

To the authors, the analogy goes farther. Cats are like Christians who always want to feel blessed and feel that life is fair. But what if a person's life becomes like Job's?
For many, he says, "our faith is three thousand miles wide and half an inch deep. Most church members pray for three minutes a day, most pastors for five minutes.

"When we do, what's on our minds? We want a bigger house, a nicer car, a prettier spouse.

"We want to get from birth to death in an easy way. Well, I've got news for you, that's cat, cat, cat. And it may not be what life has in store. So we might want to think about changing this me-ology to a theology that makes room for everything life offers, even when it's tragedy and loss."

It's not that wanting a blessed life is wrong, he says, it's just not a complete view of how God might decide to glorify a life.

What kind of Christian are you? A cat or a dog?
Dogs

• God is lord

• Serve God whatever comes

• Hungry to worship

• An obedience theology

• Knows hell exists

• Repentance is in; holiness is in

• A job is an opportunity for ministry

• Blessings are to be passed on

Cats

• I am lord

• Serve God when it's fun

• Hungry to be entertained

• A feel-good theology

• Can't believe in hell

• Repentance is out; self-esteem is in

• A job is a means of wealth

• Blessings are to be hoarded

On the Web: http://www.catanddogtheology.com/

The gentle prompting of the Father

I sat outside Chapel this Sunday as I usually do, spending time with my Father to search my heart and prepare it for ministering to the saints of Meadowbrook Chapel. It was harder this time, as my wife and I had a rough morning. The preparation I had given to the sermon "WWJD" based on the counseling training I had the previous Thursday was seemingly for naught, as God impressed Romans 6:12-15 upon my heart.

"Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, 13 and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. 15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!" NASB

Of course, in my foolishness, I assumed that this was very much a directed verse and so wasn't something I needed to pursue in Chapel. But then God put 1 Corinthians 13:1-10 into my heart and I turned to it:

"If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part; 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away."

So I was honest, when I spoke to the saints of the Chapel, about my indecision of what to do. I had, as I told them, prepared a sermon regarding What would Jesus do? that I had (in typical fashion) prepared at four in the morning or I could 'wing' it with what God would have me do with Romans and 1 Corinthians. I asked for prayer regarding that during our worship singing. And God spoke, in the words of the hymns we sang.

Ministry, at least my calling into it, has come under attack (see previous postings) lately and I have wavered....not in my desire to follow, but my ability to truly understand the voice of my Father God in the calling. Did I truly hear it or did I simply get overwhelmed in the passion of the moment when I thought I heard it? Seeking the counsel of others, I was in turmoil as I received no clear consensus.......and then I received the slap in the face.

And God is honoring my hearing His question in the questioning of the speaker in the counseling class. And in typical God fashion, He confirmed what I thought He said in an email I received in reply to my thank you for the slap:

I want to see you succeed in Gods plan and take on whatever way he wants you to go. I want to see you walk in the promise land! It reminded me of Joshua and Caleb and how they came with a good report but 10 other spies had a bad report and the people listened to them - they all died while wondering around. I just think you should do whatever God tells you not man. You have just been in seeming agony over this so I simply said what the bible says. Whose report are you going to believe, trust not in the wisdom of man but in the power of God, and we hear the voice of the good shepherd, we hear our fathers voice and the voice of a stranger we do not follow.

And He reaffirmed it in the Chapel service on Sunday, when He changed the sermon I was to give. I apologized to my saints that I would not be as "fluid" as I am during a 'prepared' sermon, but that God was impressing this upon my heart and I had to speak it. It is one of my fervent prayers during our corporate prayer that my voice is only a medium for God's in this place.

At the end of Chapel, one of the newest saints was in tears and spoke of some pain she had in her life. And she spoke of how Romans was important in her past and how 1 Corinthians spoke of the underlying passion of God in her life.

And my heart broke as I felt the hand of the Father upon my shoulder, and His gentle voice whispering to me, "Without love, there is no salvation. For it is My love for you that sent My son to the Cross. And it is My love for those to whom I will send you, that I call you to My service."

Oh, the sweet sweet sound of our Saviour's voice.

In Christ,
Jim

Friday, October 19

A slap heard across the classroom

"The LORD confides in those who fear Him; He makes His covenant known to them." Psalm 25:14 (NIV)

Last night, the facillator for the class I'm taking over at NorthRidge spoke to me matter-of-factly (as is her perchance to do) and asked me why I am asking everyone else what God said to me. As Billy Graham once said, "God said it, I believe it, and that settles it." That hasn't been the standard for me lately as it builds and builds into a cosmic ping-pong match.

God called me to ministry over three years ago. And each step since has been with that pursuit in mind. Oh, I'm not perfect in my marriage because I'm still working with the Spirit on that. Oh, I am considered poor by many secular standards and have been in binds several times over the last two years. I have other issues I deal with from time to time that I rely on friends and partners to hold me accountable for.

Funny thing. I don't want to be one of those leaders in ministry that is hidden. My life, my faults, MY BROKENNESS, is available for all to see. You don't have to like it, you don't have to listen or read it. You don't even have to agree with it. I'm accountable for one person's approval, and that's God. And all He requires is that I love Him with all my heart and soul and mind which leads me to obedience, trust, and faith in the direction He takes me and calls me to go.

It just seems funny to me that the Church today will not point to the standards GOD Himself set, but will allow human decision to come into God's house. The Church is not ours, our pastors, or even the saints who have willed their life insurance for......the Church has a leader, an owner, and a mission.

It's time that the Leaders today deal with that.

And realize who they are accountable to.

My thoughts
Jim

Thursday, October 18

Lament for the nation

We have all heard the old phrase, "While the cat's away, the mice will play." And it seems the longer the time goes by since the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ to Heaven to prepare our places there, we have been guilty as a people of 'playing'.

It seems that we are developing a "Babel" complex again, you know the one…..where we think we can decide the path to God.

The funny thing is…..like the Golden Calf incident of Israeli history, God is standing on the mountainside, His mouth wide open in disbelief at our audacity to thumb our noses at Him. And we're wondering why things are returning to a pagan origin.

A history teacher, my grandmother, told me that "History is learned so that we can realize the mistakes made, the solutions found, and the steps to prevent it from repeating." And yet, we act surprised to find increased discord and disharmony in a world that refuses to acknowledge God's hand.

Remember the Golden Calf experience. Let's step back in time……… Moses has been on the mountaintop, spending some extended fellowship time with the Heavenly Father while down below him, the people apparently cannot handle the separation and succumb to the abandonment issues.

Aaron is out of his depth and is convinced to aid them in constructing a more visible "god" to worship. "As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don't know what has happened to him," the people cry out to Aaron, who apparent forgets Moses too. How quickly some leaders, and their work for the Body, can be forgotten!

An image made of gold became the Israelites' focus of worship, regarded as the "gods" that brought them out of Egypt and an wild, frantic orgy of pagan rituals began. After what Israel had experienced since the Exodus from Egypt, it would seem to be something that would take place over months---this concentrated and deliberate turning away from God, but it only takes a few days for the nation to fall back upon its unspiritual influences.

Aaron would later try and distance himself from this idol building, saying the golden calf "just popped out" of the fire and wasn't designed by his hand on behalf of the people he was entrusted to care for.

All in all, this is not an memorable time for the Israelite nation. And we are repeating history today.

According to the latest polls, 98% of Americans are Christian. But is it shallow spirituality, cultural Christianity, or something even more sinister, like false beliefs, that cause issues like abortion, divorce, homosexuality, and same sex marriages to haunt the landscape?

You've an example of a nation forgetting its heritage and reneging on the deal made, because shallow spirituality (the rest are the same thing, to me) is what 95% of Americans have as 'Religion'. The leadership of God's church today are too weak, too 'culturally sensitive', too afraid of offending anyone and everyone to speak out against what the culture believes is what they need.

You hear of God's love in the church today, but nothing of God's wrath for sins unrepented. This is what America is experiencing, God's loving wrath against the sins we are committing by the deliberate and concerted turning away from God's gifts upon our nation.

Can you picture your parents coming home to the house being destroyed by a party you were told you couldn't have, but did anyway? Imagine Moses' thoughts of what he came down from the mountain to find. I don't think Charlton Heston put enough emotion into the reaction.

Shallow spirituality is what Moses saw when he joined up with Joshua and laid his eyes upon the Israelite camp. God is gazing upon America now, and I'm sure sparks from the lighting bolts are flashing across the sky. Our Heavenly Pappa isn't too pleased with how His children are acting since Christ returned home.

If we go back in the story in the Bible, Moses was told by God during his communion time on that mountain top that something was going on in the people that were left alone. God said, "They are a stiff-necked people." As in time's past, Moses intervened for the people; convincing an impatient God that He should allow time to conform rather than impose a harsh brand of justice. I wonder, as he stood on that mountain side and watch the Israelites committing sinful worship to a pagan idol, if Moses was enraged at the mockery.

God gave us His only Begotten Son, to come to the world so that the price of sin can be paid IN FULL. No more dues, no more accessments on our worth. He did this so that we can return to relationship with Him, working towards our heavenly return. And we are turning our backs on Him.

Can you imagine Moses' reaction when he returned only to find that God was right and the people were foolishly challenging God's justice? Talk about ballistic! We all can recall the Heston portrayal of Moses SMASHING the tablets on the mountainside. Can we expect anything different from God about our own challenge to His holiness, His righteousness? Moses said that the people weren't worthy of hearing God's commandments, let alone try to keep them. The smashing of the Commandments seem to me to be symbolic of the people's decision to cut themselves off from God's voice.

But, the punishment for the people's straying, for their evilness, wasn't over there.
Moses destroyed the calf and mixed the gold powder into water. This, the Israelites had to drink. And a bitter drink it would have been.

Today's Christians are tempted, at times, to emulate this righteous anger that Moses shows on the mountainside and in deliverance of the punishment he could impose. With the landscape of America rapidly approaching the pagan origins of other nations and our immigrant forefather's cultures, it seems to be something that Christians have sought to avoid even the appearance of.. Righteous anger. We wouldn't want to make anyone say "INTOLERANT", or to say that we were being overdramatic, or even……gasp……..militant in our views, would we?.

We know the end of the story, which was displayed in one of the most famous Hollywood movies regarding the Bible, The Ten Commandments. Moses went back up the mountain and once again asking God to forgive His people. God, being the righteous and holy God He is, forgave the Israelites AGAIN. But God did impose judgment against the Israelites, striking them with a plague "because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made."

Is it any wonder that America is falling to the pagan and heretical religions who claim an open path to redemption, who claim that the past is not where we will find the healing that America requires? That Christianity is labeled heretical while a religion declaring all who disobey its tenants is 'honored'? That Mega-churches are the thing of today because there is no judgment, no ruling on biblical standards, only LOVE. Is it any wonder in the world today that things are increasingly seeking to absolve God of any authority in our lives? Man once again is seeking to be something they were designed to be, gods.

Soon it will come to a day when the judgment of our sins as a nation will be called in for payment. And the simple drinking of the golden calf's powder will not satisfy or justify the withholding of a righteous and angry God to bring judgment upon His children. It will not absolve us of our sorrows at the realization that we knew all along, but decided not to accept; our sinful nature that is against God.

When are we, as Christians and Americans, going to wake up and realize that we have to stand, or fall leaderless into the sin that the Devil works upon our shores this day? When are the Leaders of the Church going to stand, stand, STAND and declare for the Lord instead of for the numberless shallow spiritual people in their pews? When are the new leaders of the church going to realize that they haven't picked up the mantel left by the leadership of old but fashioned their own choice of God's image to present to a people who are easily swayed?

True Christians are left with a feeling of bewilderment, fury, and sense of devastation as they gaze upon the American landscape of our demise. And God smashes His commandments against the stone wall of the mountainside.

Bye bye easy street

Well, it is official. My poor laptop, which has seen me through many a project and research, and which is like my left arm in the ministry work I do, is done.

I used this laptop, a Compaq Presario 700 with 1.29 Ghz and 240 MB of RAM for alot of things, the memory size was incredible. I was currently using it to prepare PowerPoints for worship songs for the recovery ministry, rewriting my notes from Counseling class and so on.

The battery never worked on it and I never got a new one. The power cable was starting to short out, so that would've been another thing to worry about.

The screen broke and I can't use it for much more than a paperweight, but I am able to pull off my files and stuff (at least so far) which is good. I've got to get some CD-R discs to write the stuff to.

But this concludes my dream at the moment to get a projector and screen for Chapel. Need the laptop to do the powerpoints.

Pray God will bless me with another laptop in the future, as He has blessed me with the one I have.

In peaceful frustration.

Thanks,
Jim

A warrior goes home

Al Boyce, a brother in Christ runs a Church in the Woods ministry that reaches out to the homeless in North Carolina. One of his warriors-a homeless friend named Juan Evalio Torres, was hit by a car and died a few hours later.

Al posted this on the outofthewild website:

Evalio was a former gang member from Belize who knew Christ, helped us with our Hispanic outreach and who gave me a CD of Christian songs in Spanish so I could learn to play and sing them (something I still have not done). Please pray that authorities will be able to find his next of kin in Belize. Evalio listed my wife and I as his closest "relatives" when he was in the hospital last and still carried the Church in the Woods card in his wallet wtih our phone number.


Evalio was close to our autistic son, Parks. At the hour of Evalio's death last night, Parks woke up and came to our bedroom to get his mom. She lay down with him and both stayed awake for a few minutes.

Cindy was jolted by a dream/vision in which she saw a glowing arm reaching down from the sky, pointing a finger and touching Evalio's forehead. She felt something like an electric shock. She looked at Parks, and he was asleep, smiling. A few minutes later, a pastor at the hospital called and said she was there when Evalio died. She said, at that instant, he stiffened as if he had been jolted by electricity. Then he lay quiet, smiling.


Here is a picture of Evalio and his infectious grin:

I wanted to post this on my blog to bring honor and awareness to this man and the ministry that touched his life. http://home.earthlink.net/~churchinthewoods/ is the website. This is a ministry blessed of God and Al, a warrior worthy of note and praise.

If you feel led, please contact via his website to donate to this ministry. I am posting this on my own and Al hasn't approved this.

Jim

Wednesday, October 17

Worthy Ministries.....A devotional

Isaiah 33:6 And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure.

Have you ever felt uneasy, unsettled or unstable? Or maybe a better question is -- who hasn’t? How do we overcome these feelings?

This is what George Muller wrote in His diary on May 9, 1841:

"Now, I saw that the most important thing I had to do was to give myself to the reading of the Word of God, and to meditation on it, that thus my heart might be comforted, encouraged, warned, reproved, instructed...by breakfast time, with rare exceptions, I am in a peaceful if not happy state of heart."

The word faith in Hebrew is “emunah” (em-oo-nah). But interestingly, in our Hebrew Bible, the word stability in the verse above is written “emunah”!

Faith and stability are linked one to another. How do we become more stable and settled despite the circumstances surrounding our lives? By gaining faith!

"Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God."

When we search for wisdom and knowledge in His word, we become more stable in our walk! Let’s aim to spend more time in the Word and gain more stability in our lives.Your family in the Lord with much agape love,George, Rivka, Elianna & Ovadiah

A tri-packet of wisdom

There are three different verses that spoke to me today regarding the drought I am in right now concerning the call to ministry and it might seem they aren't related, but bear with me.......

Numbers 13:1-20. 1 And the Lord said to Moses, 2 Send men to get knowledge about the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from every tribe of their fathers you are to send a man, every one a chief among them. 3 And Moses sent them from the waste land of Paran as the Lord gave orders, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel. 4 And these were their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua, the son of Zaccur. 5 Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat, the son of Hori. 6 Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb, the son of Jephunneh. 7 Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal, the son of Joseph. 8 Of the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea, the son of Nun. 9 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti, the son of Raphu. 10 Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel, the son of Sodi. 11 Of the tribe of Joseph, that is of the family of Manasseh, Gaddi, the son of Susi. 12 Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel, the son of Gemalli. 13 Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur, the son of Michael 14 Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi, the son of Vophsi. 15 Of the tribe of Gad, Gevel, the son of Machi. 16 These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to get knowledge about the land. And Moses gave to Hoshea, the son of Nun, the name of Joshua. 17 So Moses sent them to have a look at the land of Canaan, and said to them, Go up into the South and into the hill-country; 18 And see what the land is like; and if the people living in it are strong or feeble, small or great in number; 19 And what sort of land they are living in, if it is good or bad; and what their living-places are, tent-circles or walled towns; 20 And if the land is fertile or poor, and if there is wood in it or not. And be of good heart, and come back with some of the produce of the land. Now it was the time when the first grapes were ready.

2 Thessalonians 1:5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.

1 Corinthians 9:14 So also the Lord directed those who proclaim the gospel to get their living from the gospel.

In Numbers is one of my favorite stories, and the funny thing is is that it isn't about a drought but an abundance in the land. This land that was set aside by God for His nation Israel. The time had come where it was time to prepare to claim this inheritance from Abraham's promise that God had convented so long ago.

Of course, you want to send your very best and that was what Moses did. Each of the twelve tribes had a chief sent into the Promised Land. Now, these leaders would give an accurate and detailed report when they returned, right????? NOPE!!!! All, except the two dissenters of the status quo (Judah's representative, Caleb and Ephraim's rep, Hoshea who Moses called Joshua) came back with the dismal report that the land was rich in resources but controlled by big bullies that couldn't be defeated.

In Chapter 14 of Numbers, starting at verse 6 and carrying through to verse 10, we find the proper way to respond to the Lord's blessings without fear. Joshua and Caleb said in verse 7, "The land which we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. If the LORD is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us—a land which flows with milk and honey." Of course, all they wanted to do was stone these upstarts. But the "glory of the LORD appeared in the tent of meeting". The rest, they say, is history.

In 2 Thessalonians, which ironically my home church is studying as "The Letters" fall series, Paul shows that his preaching is blessed because of the Holy Spirit and assurance within the minds of those he preached to. Here God supports Paul's ministry to the Thessalonians, who have the ability through the Spirit to discern that Paul was an emmisary of Jesus.

And in 1 Corinthians, we see that those who preach the gospel, i.e. The Good News, should be supported by those who hear it. Paul declined this, spending his time tent-making, and he made very clear why in his letters of his decision why. But, as Matthew Henry states in his commentary on this subject, that wasn't the biblical standard:

"It is not new for a minister to meet with unkind returns for good-will to a people, and diligent and successful services among them. To the cavils of some, the apostle answers, so as to set forth himself as an example of self-denial, for the good of others. He had a right to marry as well as other apostles, and to claim what was needful for his wife, and his children if he had any, from the churches, without laboring with his own hands to get it. Those who seek to do our souls good, should have food provided for them. But he renounced his right, rather than hinder his success by claiming it. It is the people's duty to maintain their minister. He may wave his right, as Paul did; but those transgress a precept of Christ, who deny or withhold due support."

So, we are to go out into the abundant land without the fear of the inhabitants, who are just big bullies, and realize that our witness of God's authority in sending us will be established through and by the Holy Spirit and finally, that we who preach the gospel should be supported by those who hear it.

Interesting.
Jim

Tuesday, October 16

What is Godly leadership?

this was posted on http://www.culturedefense.org/, a blogsite I sometimes write on. Seemed very timely for the struggles I am facing right now.

In the midst of today’s trials and opposition, what does godly leadership look like? Scripture shows, through the book of Nehemiah, that there are eight (8) aspects of godly leadership:
1. A Godly Leader Prays
2. A Godly Leader Acts
3. A Godly Leader Faces Opposition
4. A Godly Leader Cares
5. A Godly Leader Turns People To God’s Word
6. A Godly Leader Confesses Sins
7. A Godly Leader Leads People To Specific Commitments
8. A Godly Leader Keeps Leading
[Source: ‘The Message of the Old Testament: Promises Made’; Dever, Mark; p.414-439.]

Great book, inspired thoughts

Andrew Murray states, in warning, "The power of the world, the spirit of its literature, the temptations of business and pleasure, all unite to make up a religion in which it is sought to combine a comfortable hope for the future with the least possible amount of sacrifice in the present."

That is the gist of the book Green Leaf in Drought by Isobel Kuhn. The quote is in the last page under the conclusion title. This book has given me hope. Hope to survive the drought in which I find myself, hope that my Lord and Saviour has me in His sights and will favor me in my striving to honor the call. But, some additional thoughts about what this book (and God's prompting) has given me:

That is the plight of the American Christian today. Not the fact that wherever you go, Christ and His followers are maligned and the truth distorted. But simply the fact that no matter 'what' we do for Christ, we want to be comfortable.

Alot of Christians say, "Well, I make the money, I should be blessed with the rewards of making it." While their fellows are losing homes, losing family, and losing their very livelihood. There is no reason why they should drive the fancy cars and live in the too-big house, after all God has blessed them with it all, right?

Immediately a Pastor will usually say, "I'm not talking about everybody and I think that it is okay....if...." That's the pursuit today, to be comfortable when we give.....as one Pastor puts it, "Give generously or not at all." Another will throw up "God loves a generous giver." with the scripture to support it. But when does the pursuit of money become the god we worship?

I don't have a brand new car, the one I have is falling apart. It, along with my wife's car, is in desperate need of repair....but we have a car, which a majority of the world does not....and we have two.

The loss of the house is still a thorn in my side, each moment I wake up and each moment I fall to sleep. I miss having the office where I could go, study and prepare. Now, if I want to study or prepare my sermon, I do it at work or at the kitchen table. But there are those who are living in cardboard boxes, in garbage dumps, and/or in the open. We have rooms for each of the five of us.......

I hate my job, it doesn't challenge me or fulfill me the way the Chapel does on Sunday or the Men Mentoring Men does on the Saturday meets. I don't feel I'm doing what I'm qualified to do, or what I'd like to do. But, even in the very state I live in, there are those who would love to have the job I have.......because it would enable them to step up from where they are.

Do you have riches? Do you really need those things that adorn the driveway or the garage? Rather than an end to the means, are they a means to an end? What pursuits drive your day? Do you wake every morning hoping that God will bless you with someone in need of blessing or do you wake every morning thinking about what financal needs you have that day?

I struggle with this, but on the end of not being blessed financially. Which gives me the perspective other than the 'rich man' of the biblical warnings.

That is a blessing of itself.

As it says in Isaiah 58:11; "And the LORD will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail."

No matter what drought we face; financial, personal, spiritual, God will always provide. All we have to do is allow Him that priviledge to subject our wants, needs, and desires to His will.

With a view that spans the centuries, don'cha think He's in a position to know best?

In Christ,
Jim

Monday, October 15

A message from the Father.........

"As for me, my charter is Jesus Christ; the inviolable charter is His cross and His death and resurrection, and faith through Him." The early church father, Ignatius of Antioch, spoke these words during his life. And it seems I have forgotten this fact in the struggles of the last week or so. My call is given by Christ, and so the ability to do the job, and the authority to perform the job, is all on Him and the Father. Why am I letting those who would oppose, either consciously or unconsciously, the Father's design?

My wife had an experience during her women's retreat at Springhill in Evert, Michigan that was for me, of all people. She said that she was in the crowd of women (some 600 plus were there total for the retreat, a portion were there in the meeting) and the speaker, a Rose Anne Coleman, came up to her and started talking to her. My understanding is that God directed Rose Anne to speak with my wife. She said that she had a word for someone that my wife knew that was being deflected and opposed in the entry into ministry. My wife, stunned, told her about my struggles as of late.

She gave my wife a book for me, titled Green Leaf in Drought, by Isobel Kuhn who was a member of the China Inland Mission (now known as Overseas Missionary Fellowship, International). In the 1950's, with the spread of communism, a missionary family, Arthur and Wilma Mathews, would experienced the cold cruelty of the Red Government while learning God's grace and mercy. They would eventually make it out and the story is what the book is about. The premise on the back cover is; "Is it possible for a Christian to put forth green leaves when all they enjoy in this life is drying up around them?

Rose Anne said this book is what propelled her into ministry, at the age of 40? (Not sure of age) despite receiving the call in the tender age of 5. She wasn't even a christian then.

But the thing that has stuck with me the most since I started reading the thin book last night and has stuck with me since is the verse that the book's title and story is based. It has resounded in my heart and match the thirst of the fire in my bones.

"For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought Nor cease to yield fruit." Jeremiah 17:8 NASB

The King James version, I believe, in the book has it as "his leaf shall be green and shall not be careful in the year of drought"

Should I be anxious about the financial situation that my family faces, or realize that we are blessed indeed to have a Father who would bless us abundantly even in the face of seemingly un-abundance? It is not the Church's place to tell me of the call, but rather to develop me under God's guidance in the calling. Am I wrong to seek that from the church as a primary importance in my life?

Doesn't the bible tell us that God is first Master of our hearts?

Could it be that, by focusing my eyes upon the Savior, that I gain all I would wish for my family? And that, in spite of rather than in response to, I should be happy to have the focus I do as the things of the world dry up around me?

In pursuit of God's glory,

Jim

Friday, October 12

Stepping forward shaking like a leaf.....

"And it came about in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, that wine was before him, and I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. 2 So the king said to me, “Why is your face sad though you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart.” Then I was very much afraid. 3 I said to the king, “Let the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What would you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven. " Nehemiah 2:1-4 NASB.

Life continues, often even past the very point where we don't have confidence it will anymore. And the call still echoes like life in my bones, and I find myself struggling like Isaiah where I do not want to speak of things of God, but I find I have to, because I cannot contain the fire in my bones.

Who am I? I am a sinner, broken and bruised, unworthy of salvation, unworthy of the call God has placed upon me. But God, the Creator of all that is good and worthy made me.....so, I find that I do have value, when viewed in my Father's eyes.

And how do I get the God of Holiness to look my way? He who is righteous beyond all measure and standards known? Through the blood sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If I lead, who will follow? Does it matter in the scheme of the Father's plan to wonder about that? I've expressed frustration this week, over the seemingly echoing silence from Heaven over the turmoils in my life. The lack of endorsement from the leadership, the lack of discipleship from the church, and the fire....consuming and demanding that I follow the call.

Nehemiah, despite being a highly placed official in the court of the King, was afraid when the King asked him why he was sad. Not because he didn't have the answer, but because he was afraid of the results. So what did he do? He prayed.

He phoned home.

In our counseling class last night, we learned that theological standard of communication with God. God won't communicate anything that is opposing to His word. Though, as Dr. Sandra Wilson said in the DVD, I haven't heard an audible voice since the call to come home in my relationshipal conversations with God, I have been spoken to.

God doesn't require perfection to be in ministry, God doesn't require all the ducks in a row. God requires obedience and desire to serve. God requires an answering to the call. God requires that I subject myself to Him and all my faults, sins, and sorrows upon His table so that He can address the problems and enable the solutions. To be an open book.

I struggle, with finances, in my marriage relationship, and with other personal issues that it seems many Christian leaders would say disqualifies me from service. But I see nowhere in the Bible where anything I have done would do so in God's eyes. Moses murdered. Jonah ran.

I cannot offer anything to the call that would enable me to point to myself as the source of the glory. I cannot boast upon my own strengths.

I can only offer service and allow my will to be subjected to the will of the Almighty God of all Creation.

Jim

Thursday, October 11

A forwarded story I loved to read....

A young man had been to Wednesday Night Bible Study.
The Pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice

The young man couldn't help but wonder, "Does God still speak to people?"
After service, he went out with some friends for coffee and pie and they discussed the message.

Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different Ways.

It was about ten o'clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, "God...If you still speak to people, speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey."

As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought to stop and buy a gallon of milk. He shook his head and said out loud, "God is that you?"

He didn't get a reply and started on toward home.

But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli. "Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk."

It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience. He could always use the milk. He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home.

As he passed Seventh Street, he again felt the urge, "Turn Down that street."

This is crazy he thought, and drove on past the intersection. Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street .

At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh

Half jokingly, he said out loud,

"Okay, God, I will."

He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop. He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in a semi- commercial area of town. It wasn't the best but it wasn't the worst of neighborhoods either.

The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed.

Again, he sensed something, "Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street." The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep. He started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat.

"Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid." Again, he felt like he should go and give the milk.

Finally, he opened the door, "Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something, but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here."

He walked across the street and rang the bell. He could hear some noise inside. A man's voice yelled out, "Who is it? What do you want?" Then the door opened before the young man could get away.

The man was standing there in his jeans and T-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep. "What is it?"

The young man thrust out the gallon of milk, "Here, I brought this to you." The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face

The man began speaking and half crying, "We were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk."

His wife in the kitchen yelled out, "I ask him to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?"

The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put in the man's hand. He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face.


He knew that God still answers prayers.


Sometimes it's the simplest things that God asks us to do that cause us, if we are obedient to what He's asking, to be able to hear. His voice more clear than ever Please listen, and obey! It will bless you (and the world). Phil 4:13


If you aren't ashamed to forward this, please send it to ten people. Follow the directions, Jesus said, "If you are ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of you before my Father."

Not ashamed...Pass this on.

Every once and a while you get a forwarded story, prayer, or chain letter that speaks to you. My dear friend sent this to me and it spoke to me.

God does speak to us today, instead of through prophets and preachers, He does it directly. But too many of us don't hear. Too many of us are afraid.

Pass it on or don't. I know I am blessed to have read it.

Broken, depressed, and doing alright.....

"Christians are realizing that their version of church involvement, time in the Word, commitment to do right, claiming God's promises, and surrendering to God's power is somehow not getting at the core troubles of their hearts," author Larry Crabb states in the first chapter of his book, INSIDE OUT, almost twenty years ago in 1988.

This is a book that I'm reading that my brother in Christ, Kurt, gave me as a birthday present this year.

The premise of Dr. Crabb's book, that 'real change…possible if you're willing to start from the inside out', is not new to the world, which seems to eject another 'self-help' book from its innards every day espousing biblical wisdom in a secular and distorted fashion. Books like The Secret, Living Your Life Today, and a host of others share the focus of helping their readers divine some simplistic or ten step program to finding that eternal joy that we all seek as humans, are unique in their approach but carbon-copies of the same old same old……"You think what you feel." Or “Name it and claim it.” fame.

Not that I am lumping Dr. Crabb's book into the same category. Rather, Dr. Crabb seems to offer up understanding of why we are not always 'happy' Christians, despite our gracious and merciful Father. I will keep updating as I read deeper in Inside Out.

What this first chapter speaks to me on is this:

Many Christians fail to realize the realities and joyfulness of their faith because when they hold it up to the standards of the worldly 'self-realization' and even the “name, claim, and live” crowd of preachers that are famously lighting the landscape of Christianity today. What happens to those Christians who find that there isn't the happiness and completeness that they've been promised after that tenth step or that simple declaration of promises claimed? They still hurt; they still bleed in a world that seems to be passing them by, handicapped by a God who wouldn’t give them the most basic form of peace no matter how high or loud their praises are.

The church of today doesn’t seem equipped to answer these deeper theological and spiritual questions that a majority of Christians have. They don’t want to go deeper, to experience as a body the collective healing of the Holy Spirit. Leaders are sidelined because their lives aren’t perfectly hidden, their brokenness and inability to clear the slate is given as cause to keep them from the calling God has given them. We vett and hemhaw over our leadership's background, being very unChristian in our desire to help them become what God would have them be and not something we think they should be.

We live in fear of our leaders falling to sin. When they do, we act surprised. How could we have missed their sinful, broken state? Aren’t they supposed to be ‘perfect?’

A loved one dies of a disease that seems to defy the prayers of the faithful or a baby dies despite the desperate pleas of the father and mother, both who are faithful and spiritual giants in the body of Christ.

A husband, struggling to be a representative of Christ's love to his wife, fails again and the fighting continues until both are battered and bruised by their words.

A seeker turned away from what they perceive Christianity to be because there are hypocrites in the woodwork.....

Random evil affects the righteous while those who would follow the Evil One are abundantly blessed.

The world celebrates those who are steeped in evil, while the righteous are persecuted and killed.

Where was God on 9-11, the Virginia Tech massacre, or that fateful day in Columbine?

Why did evil win?

What power does our God have if He could not overcome that evil?

Does He even care?

Doesn't God promise us joy, peace, and mercy when we experience relationship with Him?

Doesn't He promise the hope for a better day?

He does, and it is by our faith that we experience it better some days and not at all on others. It is by our faith that we suffer through, waiting on the storm to pass and God to once again be seen. He has been there all the time, our broken state has distorted our view of Him in that stormy atmosphere.

He was there for each of those situations, He weeps for the suffering of His children, and knows that the time will come soon when He will reclaim His own. There will be no more suffering. There will be no more evil to vanquish.

Total relationship will bring total peace and joy.

We should all seek to go deep, to discover those wounds that are at our heart and invite God in to do one of three things;

1) Heal us completely as only the Creator of the Design can.
2) Heal us partially to where the occasional twinge is all we feel.
3) Leave the wound open and bleeding, giving us the grace to suffer through until our bodies are redeemed.

So that we can realize what Paul meant when he said, "I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need." Philippians Chapter 4:12 NASB.

Realizing joy in the suffering and peace in the pain, still realizing that we are indeed God's children regardless of our emotional state. That I can suffer depression, deal with it through the means God gives me and still realize His purpose to me. I can be broken, depressed, and sad....as a Child of God.

Never shall I lose my Father's love.

Wednesday, October 10


And they say there was no life before technology!

The first automatic weather service................

"There's your sign."

Worthy Ministries.....A devotional for the question

Psalms 23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

Leonardo da Vinci, who excelled at many things -- as a painter, sculptor, poet, architect, engineer, city planner, scientist, inventor, anatomist, military genius, and philosopher said a wise thing:

"Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer, since to remain constantly at work will cause you to lose power of judgment...Go some distance away because then the work appears smaller, and more of it can be taken in at a glance, and lack of harmony or proportion is more readily seen."

Have you found this to be the truth?

It's time to take a rest from all the things that make us weary today -- ministry work included. Let's take some time out with the Lord and get quiet before Him.

Hi, it's me again......this devotional seems so timely, especially with the questions He's put in my path. I do think I've done the right thing for the season, backing out of Recovery into a admin support role and focusing on the counseling and chapel aspects of ministry. Plus, keeping with the pursuit of the Men's leadership training....haven't been accepted yet.

In Christ,
Jim

Even the blind man could see......

"We live by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV).

At least, that's the plan every Christian struggles with daily, to understand that the world isn't beholden to us, but that it is beholding to the Creator.

This verse always reminds me of the Indiana Jones movie, "Indiana Jones and the Holy Grail" where Harrrison Ford is standing in a passageway and before him is a wide open chasm. He can see no way to get to the other side. Through the notes taken by his father, he realizes that it is a leap of faith that will get him across. He jumps.....

And finds out that the walkway beneath him was camoflaged to reflect the cliff wall. Once he realizes it was there, a bit of thrown rocks highlight the path ahead for him and he strolls confidently to the other side.

How often do we do the same for God? We stand at the chasm, wondering how on earth we are ever going to get across. Every indication in the biblical notes of our Heavenly Father says to step out.....but do we truly? What might happen if we do?

We would either fall or find that the pathway was just hidden from view, only needing a different perspective to find it. And God tells us that He would never cause us harm, which falling would be prone to do. So do we believe enough to 'jump'?

I am distinctly uncomfortable with leaving my active participation in the Recovery Ministry and am getting a bad feeling that there is much more going on at the Home Church than I would think is godly, righteous, or even fair. It is almost as if....someone has made a judgment call upon me and decided to pass me up. Even the person who spoke to me about the decisions they felt I HAD to make said, "You've got to allow the knowledge to catch up with the passion."

Here I thought God was calling me out, not man. I thought God provided knowledge and wisdom to those who asked, not left us alone for a period to learn it. I thought we were to encourage and uplift each other, discipling those in their God-given purpose, not do a personality decision on whether we thought they were suitable or not.

God has called me to ministry. God will provide as He wills.

Jim

Monday, October 8

The Ten Commandments

Condemned to die by Pharaoh while just a baby, Hebrew Moses is set adrift on the River Nile by his mother and his sister. Rescued by the daughter of Pharaoh, he grows up thinking he's an Egyptian prince. Eventually exiled from Egypt when he is exposed as a Jew, he is touched by God, and told that he will lead his enslaved Chosen People to the Promised Land.

With the hand of God firmly on his shoulder, and with faith as his only weapon, Moses performs miracles, casts down plagues, evades a pursuing Egyptian army, parts the Red Sea and, after forty years of leading the Hebrew Chosen Ones to the Promised Land, is embraced by God and led to a better place. What makes this version of "The Ten Commandments" unique is that it highlights Moses™ family, both real and extended, on this long journey.

Filled with high adventure, the miraculous, and a gentle sense of humor, "The Ten Commandments" showcases Moses, the reluctant prophet, who was the only man in Biblical history to see the face of God and call him 'friend.'

Seasonal changes....

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." Galatians 6:9 (NIV).

It might seem funny to the non-Christians that a verse about seasonal work would come up as I struggle with the decision to retreat from ministry or stand firm and potentially lose some 'respect' in the faith community I belong to. But to a Christian, it isn't. And to me, it's just a sign of God's wisdom and humor (yes humor) to show me what He would have me to hear even if I'm not wanting to listen.
We sat down with a counselor this weekend to start claiming back our finances and things are tight....really tight....but they aren't that bad. We were encouraged and unburdened to realize that we will, through hard hard work, see the way to a easier day. My wife discussed her feelings of seasonal change, to return to the job field she left during the economic collaspe here in Michigan and how she would like to return when the changing climate takes hold. For now, God has given her a task to do in the Food Pantry.
That made me start to think about my own fields. I have worked so hard, and seem to find little 'respect' from those who would bless me and would be blessed by me in ministry that I have felt the weariness of keeping on. It is hard to keep pressing when you hit the wall, over and over and over and over and over............you get the point.
But, as any 'good' farmer will tell you, you have to let a field lay empty for a time to replenish the nurtrients that would grow great crops. You focus on other fields, other pursuits, to allow that field time to replenish itself.
So I am going to take a hiatus from the Recovery ministry I belong to and focus on the counseling training I have the blessing to be a part of. I have no call to give up the Chapel and will keep my focus on those two areas.
As always, I continue to lift up my writing into God's hands that He would bless someone with it or even allow me to make a living doing so.
Thank all of you who lifted me in prayer.
In Christ,
Jim

Friday, October 5

The Law of the Garbage Truck

How often do you let other people's nonsense change your mood?

Do you let a bad driver, rude waiter, curt boss, or an insensitive employee ruin your day?

Unless you're the Terminator, for an instant you're probably set back on your heels.

However, the mark of a successful person is how quickly one can get back their focus on what's important.

Sixteen years ago I learned this lesson. I learned it in the back of a New York City taxi cab.

Here's what happened.

I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station. We were driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his breaks, skidded, and missed the other car's back end by just inches!

The driver of the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident, whipped his head around and he started yelling bad words at us.My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was friendly.

So, I said, "Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!"And this is when my taxi driver told me what I now call,

"The Law of the Garbage Truck."

"Many people are like garbage trucks.
They run around full of garbage, full of frustration,
Full of anger, and full of disappointment.
As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it.
And if you let them, they'll dump it on you.
When someone wants to dump on you, don't take it personally.
You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on.
You'll be happy you did."

So this was it: The "Law of the Garbage Truck."
I started thinking, how often do I let Garbage Trucks run right over me? And how often do I take their garbage and spread it to other people:

At work, at home, on the streets?

It was that day I said, "I'm not going to do it anymore." I began to see garbage trucks. Like in the movie "The Sixth Sense," the little boy said, "I see dead people." Well, now "I see garbage trucks." I see the load they're carrying. I see them coming to drop it off. And like my taxi driver, I don't make it a personal thing; I just smile, wave, wish them well, and I move on.

One of my favorite football players of all time, Walter Payton, did this every day on the football field. He would jump up as quickly as he hit the ground after being tackled. He never dwelled on a hit. Payton was ready to make the next play his best.

Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting.

Good parents know that they have to welcome their children home from school with hugs and kisses.

Leaders and parents know that they have to be fully present, and at their best for the people they care about.

The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks take over their day.

What about you?

What would happen in your life, starting today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by?

Here's my bet. You'll be happier.

Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so…
Love the people who treat you right.
Forget about the ones who don't.
Believe that everything happens for a reason.
If you get a chance, TAKE IT!
If it changes your life, LET IT!
Nobody said it would be easy...
They just promised it would be worth it!

Thursday, October 4

From the Worthy News ministry....

We came across this interesting story, written by Steve Brown of Key Biscayne Florida.

In the eleventh century, King Henry III of Bavaria grew tired of court life and the pressures of being a monarch. He made application to Prior Richard at a local monastery, asking to be accepted as a contemplative and spend the rest of his life in the monastery.

"Your Majesty," said Prior Richard, "do you understand that the pledge here is one of obedience? That will be hard because you have been a king."

"I understand," said Henry. "The rest of my life I will be obedient to you, as Christ leads you."

"Then I will tell you what to do," said Prior Richard. "Go back to your throne and serve faithfully in the place where God has put you."

When King Henry died, a statement was written: "The King learned to rule by being obedient."

Could I dare think that God would speak this way to me? I dare to! God will what God wills, and it is through obedience and supplication to Him that I gain that wisdom to know what His will is.

Powerful thoughts, eh?
Jim

Godly wisdom....with a little help from my friends.

"I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains, from whence help shall come to me…….My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth……………..The Lord keepeth thee from all evil: may the Lord keep thy soul." Psalm 121:1, 2, 7 Douay-Rheims Bible

"It is impossible for a man to despair who remembers His helper is omnipotent." Author unknown.


If you cry out for Godly counsel, you had best be ready to receive it! I have heard from several friends that I have cried out to for wisdom and counsel. And I have several opinions and counsel in return. But the overwhelming sense is that of surprise that I would have this situation come across my bow.

A dear and loved friend sent this with their reply, "Don't let your past defeat you. If you won't face it, it's beaten you. Destined to repeat today what you try to hide from yesterday." The author is unknown. But therein lies the truth, I am not hiding from my past or my failures, like so many of the Christian leadership is today----at least until they get caught. I fully accept that I am not perfect, not God. And I fully accept that it is by the authority of God that I am in the ministries and positions I am, because in my weakness, HE is made perfect.

God knows my finances and He knows my heart in regards to my family. He knows what we need before we need it and He knows where He would have me go. And if it includes suffering, either from financial stress or physical illness, how can I refuse on that basis to go? Christ didn't.

"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness." 2 Peter 1:3 (NIV)

So, if I have all I need for life and godliness, then what else do I need?

Pray that the direction becomes clearer in the coming week. I will have to make a decision soon in this regard. Pray that the counsel I have sought and the people I have in my core group have godly wisdom on their lips and in their hearts.

Thanks,
Jim

Wednesday, October 3

Should I stay the path or go???

In the midst of a struggle, I have found that everything I might have thought is wrong and everything I thought was true is misunderstood. A refining process I thought I was going through has been reflected by a friend to be a wake-up call to 'turn around.'

Malachi 3:3 DRB: "And he shall sit refining and cleansing the silver, and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and shall refine them as gold, and as silver, and they shall offer sacrifices to the Lord in justice."

God allows trials, temptations, afflictions, and death to be part of the believer's experience upon this earth, whether they have accepted the salvation gift or not. And it is always for the same purpose, which is realized in the refining process that we all experience.

The Refiner, Christ, doesn't put us through this process of burning off the dross and corruption which dilute and distort the offerings of gold and silver which have worth and value in the Father's kingdom. We are brought through this to burn off the sinful impure nature which is inherent to our old bodies and to purify our new bodies in Christ.

This refinement process brings us to an position of righteousness where all our service, prayers, praise, and 'alms deeds' can be offered for the glory of God. We are cleansed through the blood of Christ, but the process to attaining doesn't stop there. We are enabled to grow through the gifting of the Holy Spirit which Christ left to sustain and guide us, lift and sanctify us until His return.

My family and I have faced extreme hardships as we have aligned ourselves to God's purpose in our lives. It reached a point where a dear and loved member of the Body of Christ came to me and expressed their concerns. It was an unexpected conversation and I left confused, upset, and depressed. Could it be that I was wrong? That the timing which I sensed God in was waaaaayyyyy off. The gist of the conversation was that I needed to put the ministry pursuits that I have been engaged in on hold and focus on God's primary job for me, "taking care of my family's needs." This, because of the financial stress we are in, would entail me obtaining another job.

A brother in Christ, Garry, that I fellowship with on the Out of the Wild website pointed me to Job's experiences. Garry said, "Job's friends thought they were doing him a favor when they offered him advise. Their intentions were to comfort Job but they were actually causing Job to look to himself and their advice for answers instead of looking to God."

In Job chapter two, we see the intent of his friends, "Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him, they came each one from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite; and they made an appointment together to come to sympathize with him and comfort him."

Eliphaz is the first to speak about how Job can't walk the walk when it's on his plate, "If one ventures a word with you, will you become impatient? But who can refrain from speaking? “Behold you have admonished many, and you have strengthened weak hands. Your words have helped the tottering to stand, And you have strengthened feeble knees. But now it has come to you, and you are impatient; It touches you, and you are dismayed. Is not your fear of God your confidence, And the integrity of your ways your hope? Remember now, who ever perished being innocent? Or where were the upright destroyed?"

Bildad the Shuhite is the next to jump in with his thoughts,“ Does God pervert justice?
Or does the Almighty pervert what is right? If your sons sinned against Him,
then He delivered them into the power of their transgression. If you would seek God and implore the compassion of the Almighty, If you are pure and upright, surely now He would rouse Himself for you and restore your righteous estate."
Bildad places the blame upon the sons of Job, saying that God cannot give out incorrect justice or change the situation and so it must be something in his children's lives.

Of course, it is the last of Job's friends who's diatribe is the harshest. Zophar the Naamathite answered, “Shall a multitude of words go unanswered, And a talkative man be acquitted? Shall your boasts silence men? And shall you scoff and none rebuke? For you have said, ‘My teaching is pure, And I am innocent in your eyes.’ But would that God might speak, And open His lips against you, And show you the secrets of wisdom! Then, indeed, you could lift up your face without moral defect,And you would be steadfast and not fear. For you would forget your trouble, As waters that have passed by, you would remember it. Your life would be brighter than noonday; Darkness would be like the morning. Then you would trust, because there is hope; And you would look around and rest securely. You would lie down and none would disturb you, And many would entreat your favor. But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them; And their hope is to breathe their last.” Zophar would have Job believe that it is some moral defect that he has because he is not exhibiting the characteristics of a righteous man.

Yet we know that Job was a righteous man, indeed, it is his very righteousness that draws the attention and ire of the devil, who tries to claim only the blessings of God has made Job so.

Garry also pointed out that the friends' intention couldn't have been of the refining process because, "Their words brought accusations and blame. God never accuses. The words from His mouth are intended to bring corrections. His rebukes are intended to teach us and train us in righteousness. 2 Timothy 3:16. God's purpose for correcting and leading us is done to lovingly guides and directs us in the direction we need to go, and it will always come to those who seek it."

Indeed, Paul tells us in Philippians 4:8, that we should look to God and qualify the lessons by the standards of " whatever things are true, whatever things have honour, whatever things are upright, whatever things are holy, whatever things are beautiful, whatever things are of value, if there is any virtue and if there is any praise, give thought to these things." There is nothing in any of Job's friends statements that have any of those characteristics and so they can be rejected out of hand. Although we see Job struggle to do so.

And, of course, my wife's wisdom shows through the loving response she gave me as I wrote this, "If you are doing this to honor God, then it is right. But if you don't feel it in your heart to drop the ministry pursuit, then you are dishonoring God."

Another friends opinion offers that I should step in that direction of taking a break from the small ministries I participate in, because I'm bogging down in the minute details and ignoring the preparation of the bigger purpose.

And yet, a valued counselor and mentor has stated, "A wise elder doesn't move to fix the problem but instruct through their own brokenness and trials to those who would follow after him."

It is that very statement that I feel is at the heart of my despair, that a level of perfection seems to have to be achieved to be recognized and supported by the Body of Christ. But Christ didn't even have a place to lay His head.

Whenever we doubt what God's call is for us, we have to realize that we have been pre-purposed by God before we were even born. Our purpose was designed, created, and set aside for each of us, uniquely and singularly qualified by the Spirit to fulfill the wishes of the Father for the Kingdom. And the end result to any purpose that God has for us is the same, regardless of who we are.

"Even as he made selection of us in him from the first, so that we might be holy and free from all evil before him in love. Ephesians 5:2 BBE."

Continue to pray for me as I struggle to find the direction here in this mist...................