So you want to quit?

 

“I cannot do this even one more day!”  Ever said that or at least felt like that? Most of us do. Working a job that is terrible? Living in a marriage is hard?  Or, you could be fighting inside, trying to overcome a habit that makes you feel helpless.  It might even be your faith walk, a real struggle between Self and the Spirit that makes you want to just walk away!

Christian there is a way ahead, a victory in the making!

His colleagues mocked him, accusing him of losing his common sense to religious fervor. The business elites warned him that his idealism would destroy the economy.  Stress took a toll on his health and he aged far beyond his years. At first a public majority believed his activism was a fool’s crusade. But, William Wilberforce would not quit! For 26 long years he brought up the same subject in the Parliament every time he could.  Using wit and wisdom, he turned the issue of slavery and the immoral trade of human beings into the talk of England. Finally in 1807, this great Christian succeeded in getting the House of Commons to vote to end slave trade.  The Crown agreed and a vile practice came to an end.  This wealthy man, first elected to Parliament at age 21, nearly left politics to become a pastor but, urged by his friends, he did not quit the fight and his persistence changed history!

Have you experienced some period in your life when the effort was all consuming, when the hardships were overwhelming?
Did it seem that the only option was to just quit?
When we’re opposed by most, rejected by some, or resisting the majority, we be tempted to think that the right thing to do is to call it quits.
“How much more can I take before I break?” we think to ourselves. 

I wonder if Joseph wondered if he would break under pressure anytime along his long, circuitous route to fulfillment of his dreams? He endured 20 years of one injustice and hardship after another. His brothers sold him into slavery, motivated less by greed than hatred.  The wife of his household owner, Potiphar, tried to seduce him and when he resisted her, she accused him of rape, leading to a long prison sentence! A man he befriended and helped in prison, forgot all about him when released. But, he kept his dreams and his faith in God.

Joseph kept on doing the right things, trusting God, and refusing to become a bitter cynic. Finally God brought him into serving as Prime Minister of Egypt. He guided the nation through a terrible crisis of famine.  When given the ‘perfect’ opportunity to settle the score with his cruel brothers he chose instead to forgive them.  He saw God’s promises fulfilled as he provided safety for his people. The story takes us a few minutes to read and sounds so inspiring. Joseph had to live it – one day after another!  That’s faith, friend.

The Bible urges disciples to keep their faith.  "So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised." (Hebrews 10:35-36, NLT)  There are many seasons in life- preparation, building, working, investing, before we see the realization of God’s purposes in us.

Failure is inevitable IF we quit too soon.  Perhaps that sounds like a strange piece of advice coming from a man just days away from retiring from 45 years of pastoral service.  I may be stepping down from leading a congregation but I pray for opportunities to continue to do the work of God until the day He calls me home.

Those who would do the will of God must make a priority choice to focus and then stick with their convictions.  Our example is none other than Jesus! The Word says “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." (Hebrews 12:1-3, NIV)

By the way, don’t confuse persistence with stubbornness! A stubborn person keeps on doing the same thing, refusing to adapt and learn, thinking himself above advice.  He perpetuates his failure!  A persistent one studies his plans, prays fervently, listens well – and keeps trying, and trying, and trying – until he finds a way to do what he was born to do.

Our word from the Word encourages a renewed hope:
"But thanks be to God!
He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
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." (1 Corinthians 15:57-58, NIV)

Now, what did He say to YOU? Are you ready to live the promise?

______________

 Way Maker

You are here moving in our midst
I worship You I worship You
You are here working in this place
I worship You I worship You

(You are) Way Maker Miracle Worker Promise Keeper
Light in the darkness my God that is who You are

You are here touching ev'ry heart
I worship You I worship You
You are here healing ev'ry heart
I worship You I worship You

You are here turning lives around
I worship You I worship You
You are here mending ev'ry heart
I worship You yeah I worship You Lord

That is who You are
That is who You are
That is who You are
That is who You are

Even when I don't see it You're working
Even when I don't feel it You're working
You never stop You never stop working
You never stop You never stop working

Osinachi Kalu Okoro Egbu © 2016 Integrity Music Europe (Admin. by Integrity Music)

CCLI License # 810055

 

Who needs Heaven?

 

Heaven! Home!  As I do often, I stood in a cemetery to minister to a grieving family on Monday. The grave in front of us defied hope, daring us to believe that there is ‘more beyond.’  A little stone on a grave close to the one where we would lay Ellen’s body to rest carries this bleak epitaph after the name – “Game Over.”  The funeral director pointed it out with a wry smile. In a sense, a grave is irrefutable evidence that the game is over for the present here on earth.  However, the heart of our Christian faith rests on a resurrected Lord who said he “who believes in me will live, even though he dies;   and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”  (John 11:25)

Isaiah caught a glimpse of Heaven and it changed his life. Seeing the wonderful worship of the angels in the Throne Room of God he was overcome by a realization of his sinfulness, his inability to gain a home with God by his own efforts. “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” (Isaiah 6:5, NIV)

Paul tells of being lifted up to Heaven, seeing visions that were too holy to describe. Those visions sustained his faith through a life of unbelievable difficulties in his ministry and near the end of his earthly journey allowed him to face his death with assurance: "now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return." (2 Timothy 4:8, NLT)

John, in The Revelation, tries to describe other worldly visions that had no earthly equivalent. His attempts have given us the words that forms the idea of Heaven in most of our minds, including streets of gold, gates of pearl, and streams of pure water.  "So he took me in spirit to a great, high mountain, and he showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. It was filled with the glory of God and sparkled like a precious gem, crystal clear like jasper." (Revelation 21:10-11, NLT)  "The twelve gates were made of pearls—each gate from a single pearl! And the main street was pure gold, as clear as glass." (Revelation 21:21, NLT)  John uses metaphors to describe the indescribable!

When I think of Heaven the best part is this promise: "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." (Revelation 21:3-4, NIV) Oh, what joy!

The Lord I love now only in part, I will then love completely.
The hand of Jesus will dry my tears and I'll never cry again, ever.
There will be no regret, no pain, no disappointment, no longing for what cannot be, no loneliness because where God, in all His Fullness, is, we are made whole.  He will draw us into His Beautiful Presence and there no sin can exist. It is this that John celebrates when he writes- "After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God." (Revelation 19:1, NIV)

Heaven is not irrelevant to real life as some suggest. It is not a trick to allow us to escape the grim reality of mortality. At one time in my life, I thought that way. Oh yes, I believed in Heaven and Christ’s promise to take me to that place prepared for me, but I seldom thought about it. I dismissed talk of older Christians about Heaven thinking that there is just too much living right here and right now to 'waste' time thinking about Eternity. What a foolish boy I was.

With your heart aimed at Heaven and home, invest yourself in God's work here and now. We are, in word and deed, "laying up treasure" that is beyond the reach of decay, rust, or thieves!  Heaven is for now. A Christian who does not have Heaven in view on the horizon of life will wander, become distracted by earth's pleasures, and even lose heart when the questions outrun his answers. A firm grasp on the promise of Heaven and the disciple's assurance of eternal life is what keeps him on track, holy and wholly committed to a godly life.

In the word from the Word for today, we find out just how important Jesus felt about having Heaven in our hearts. He says “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." (John 14:1-3, NIV)

We’re going Home! “Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus.” Amen.

_________________

When We All Get To Heaven

Sing the wondrous love of Jesus
Sing His mercy and His grace
In the mansions bright and blessed
He'll prepare for us a place

 When we all get to heaven
What a day of rejoicing that will be
When we all see Jesus
We'll sing and shout the victory

While we walk the pilgrim pathway
Clouds will overspread the sky
But when travelling days are over
Not a shadow not a sigh

Let us then be true and faithful
Trusting serving every day
Just one glimpse of Him in glory
Will the toils of life repay

Onward to the prize before us
Soon His beauty we'll behold
Soon the pearly gates will open
We shall tread the streets of gold

Eliza Edmunds Stites Hewitt © Words: Public Domain

 

Oh, Jesus

 

An old Gospel song drifted through my thoughts in the early hours of the morning: “I have no song to sing, but that of Christ my King; to Him my praise I'll bring forevermore.”  In that line there is a summation of my experience and my aspirations.  Christ has been my life and I pray that the rest of my life will honor Him.  I understand the world through the lens of my faith. I do not simply ‘exist’ as a random speck of carbon atoms, though some might try to tell me that I do. My best life is not defined by the things I own or the pleasure that I can experience. Made by God, I am owned by Him, though naturally I was separated from Him.  “In Christ” I am restored to my place as His child, my destiny to serve Him until He calls me to my eternal home!  Those are the simple facts that define Jerry.

I have little patience for those who complicate the Christian experience by adding long lists of religious duties or by insisting on seeking mystical revelations.  I love the Church, but find the complex ritualism that creeps into ‘worship’ a distraction from the heart of the faith- Jesus Christ alone. 

I live to love -

Jesus, God come in Flesh.
Jesus, Who died on the Cross to save us.
Jesus, Who rose from the dead to assure us of life eternal.

The Scripture speaks to the corruption of the faith by human additions. "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. 

Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow." (Colossians 2:13-19, NIV)

Do not be taken in by those Christians who love to argue about doctrine, who love their systematic theology books more than their Bible.  Ignore those teachers who talk more about the “End Times” with their conspiracy theories and timelines than they do about Jesus. Those who try to make you a captive of their particular religious practice, trying to convince you that in order to know Jesus as Savior you have to be … baptized a certain way, avoid specific foods, worship in a prescribed manner on a special day, join their denomination, espouse their political persuasion, or whatever their pet idea – have ‘lost connection with the Head’  Who is Christ Jesus!

You want to rediscover Jesus?  Pick up your Bible again and read the Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Meditate on the stories of Jesus found there. Let the Holy Spirit show you His face again.

When the disciples asked how they could know the way to God "Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work." (John 14:9-10, NIV)  Jesus reveals the love of God to us and makes us His children.  Ah, yes, we need to know Jesus Christ.

Do you know Him or just about Him?
Have you opened your mind and heart to Him in faith, inviting the Spirit to make you alive in and through Christ Jesus?
He, friend, not the rituals, nor the doctrines, nor the fanciful mystical ideas make us truly Christian.

The word from the Word is my aspiration. I hope you share it. "Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I may have Christ and become one with him. I no longer count on my own goodness or my ability to obey God’s law, but I trust Christ to save me. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. As a result, I can really know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I can learn what it means to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that, somehow, I can experience the resurrection from the dead!" (Philippians 3:8-11, NLT)

___________

Good God Almighty

I can't count the times
I've called Your name some broken night

And You showed up and patched me up

Like You do every time

I get amnesia I forget that You keep coming around

Yeah ain't no way You'll ever let me down

 

Good God Almighty

I hope You'll find me

Praising Your Name no matter what comes

'Cause I know where I'd be

Without Your mercy

So I keep praising Your name at the top of my lungs

 

Tell me is He good (He's good)

Tell me is He God (He's God)

He is Good God Almighty

 

You say Your love goes on forever

That Your mercy never stops

So why would I assume

You'd be somebody that You're not

Like sun in the morning

I know You're gonna be there every day

So what on earth could make me be afraid

 

Praise Him in the morning

Praise Him in the noon time

Praise Him when the sun goes down

Love Him in the morning

Love Him in the noon time

Love Him when the sun goes down

 

Jesus in the morning

Jesus in the noon time

Jesus when the sun goes down

Jesus in the morning

Jesus in the noon time

Jesus when the sun goes down

 

Ben Glover | David Crowder | Jeff Sojka

© 2021 9t One Songs (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

Ariose Music (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

Capitol CMG Genesis (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

 

CCLI License # 810055

The Dark, the Doubts

How is your ‘hope’ today?  Yesterday word came that a friend who has given his life to ministry is critically ill, weeks from death apart from a miracle.  My heart was moved by the news, my mind resisting it. “Lord, why this, for him, of all people?”  Yes, I know that prayer is irrational. My friend lives in a world where there is death, disease, cancer, and corruption, as do I. Intellectually I understand that my God still rules.  My theology is sound and there is the assurance that “His ways are higher than our ways" but sometimes “knowing” the words is just not enough. I do not want someone to ‘explain’ life to me, I just want to be held in God’s embrace.

Ever been there, Christian? 

St. John of the Cross spoke of living through the "dark night of the soul."  When pain, sorrow, death, or disappointment are my companions in life, the Tempter accuses – “You caused this. You failed. You are being judged. Your fault … “  Most days I am able to ignore the growl, but there are moments in the dark when I waver.   But, God …  yes, God is greater!  

Shall I, on dark days, after preaching God’s love and grace, turn to the emptiness of religiosity, believing in my own ‘righteousness?’ If I do, I will add guilt to sorrow. Sometimes boldly, sometimes pitifully, I turn my heart to God, no matter how distant He may seem to be, and pray.  It’s not eloquence that wins me a hearing in Heaven, it is confidence in the One who has made me whole and holy inviting me to come into God’s Presence with confidence.

This Monday morning, in a world that is too often full of troubles, let’s make faith choices that honor the Lord. What are they? 

First-  We continue in what He has said to us in the past and in His Word.

If God is silent today, we cannot forget His Word. "What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness? Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”" (Romans 3:3-4, NIV)

Second- We look up, remembering that we are more than flesh and bone.   

We are eternal beings, citizens of the heavenly kingdom, aliens in this present world on our way home. In the dark, we may be tempted to seek solace through food, sex, materialism, or other entertaining diversions. Should I look to the things of this earth to heal what can only be healed by His touch?  Many is the person who has gone onto the rocks and wrecked their life when they sought some temporary comfort for the distress of their soul. 

Third-  We commit ourselves, in the company of others, to go "Steady on!" 

This is the directive of the Word for such times.  "Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong." (Hebrews 12:13, NLT)

Fourth-  We choose to govern our emotions.

When the heart is broken it is good to weep. Sorrow is just as real as joy, as surely as there are both day and night. But, to hand ourselves over to the rule of our heart is a tragic mistake. In the depth of our sorrow we may question God and His ways wondering why we are not able to hear His voice or sense the comfort of the Spirit. But, if we rage against Him, if we accuse Him of being uncaring, unloving, or unjust we will become blind to the Truth. There will may slip into bitterness. The Word warns that “from that root of bitterness comes great and troubling discontent!” 

Lastly-  We lean hard on the Lord, praying that He will keep us faithful!  

“Lord, am I weak, wavering, unable to see the way ahead, but You are the Eternal God, the Faithful One.” Paul, who knew both great triumph and terrible rejection, reminds those who are broken by life that our weakness creates a place for His strength to shine through. Here is his testimony -  “I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.  Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.”  (Lord, I believe. Help me overcome my doubt!) So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”  (2 Corinthians 12:7-10 NLT)

Here is a song of the Psalms, our word from the Word.
Make this your prayer, dear friend, as I have this morning.

"Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name.
For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime;
weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

When I felt secure, I said, "I will never be shaken."
O LORD, when you favored me, you made my mountain stand firm;
but when you hid your face, I was dismayed.

To you, O LORD, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy:
"What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down into the pit?
Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness?
Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help."

You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever." (Psalm 30:4-12, NIV)

___________________

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

(What a beautiful affirmation of the goodness of God!)

Great is Thy faithfulness

O God my Father

There is no shadow

Of turning with Thee

Thou changest not

Thy compassions they fail not

As Thou hast been

Thou forever wilt be

 

Great is Thy faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness

Morning by morning

New mercies I see

All I have needed

Thy hand hath provided

Great is Thy faithfulness

Lord unto me

 

Summer and winter

And springtime and harvest

Sun moon and stars

In their courses above

Join with all nature

In manifold witness

To Thy great faithfulness

Mercy and love

 

Pardon for sin

And a peace that endureth

Thy own dear presence

To cheer and to guide

Strength for today

And bright hope for tomorrow

Blessings all mine

With ten thousand beside

 

Thomas Obediah Chisholm | William Marion Runyan

© Words: Public Domain