I CAN'T LOSE FOR WINNING

I CAN’T LOSE FOR WINNING!

Read: Acts 12:6-17

Acts 12:11

11 And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.

           Peter had lost. He was chained between two soldiers. It was impossible for him to break free. But Peter had a key and that key was the prayers of the church. Only one angel was dispatched to release Peter and refresh the church but he was enough.

           How many times would we have lost if God had not intervened? Peter thought he was dreaming! Nudged in the ribs by a glimmering angel in the middle of the night! It must be a dream. He dressed himself and put on his shoes still sleepy-eyed. Now he suddenly finds himself in an alley outside the prison. What just happened? It must be a dream!

           It wasn’t until verse 11 that Peter became fully awake. The angel had gone and he decided to go to a prayer meeting to give a praise report. Rhoda came to the gate and was so amazed to see Peter that she didn’t open it. Instead she reported to the praying church that their prayers had been answered. They responded with disbelief. Ah! Disbelief among those praying. I suspect it happens often.

           Are you in trouble? Does it seem you are losing the fight? Are you chained to impossible circumstances? Do you have any idea how many of your Christian friends are praying for you? Friend, if you are a believer, you can’t lose for winning.

Ps 73:24

24 Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory.

Dear Lord, I walk sleepy-eyed through life often feeling like a loser but there are unnumbered friends praying for me and angels standing ready to relieve me of my distresses. Why, I can’t lose for winning! Thank you Lord. AMEN

THE ROOTS OF FREEDOM

THE ROOTS OF FREEDOM!

John 8:32-36

32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

33 They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?

34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.

35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.

36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

What has come to be called The Great Awakening was led by George Whitfield, Jonathan Edwards and Gilbert Tennant. It swept the mid-Atlantic colonies in the 1730’s and 1740’s. This sweeping spiritual revival focused on those who were already church members! It challenged their rituals, their piety and their self awareness.

Jonathan Edwards’ most famous sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” was based upon Deut 32:35 “To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste.” It is said that those who listened to this sermon held onto the pillars of the meeting house for stability fearing the floor would open and hell would swallow them up!

While some discount its importance, the impact upon the American Revolution seems clear. The American Revolution was less about tea and taxation than it was about tyranny, freedom and man’s inalienable rights handed down by the Creator. Just as Jesus said, “the truth shall make you free.” The foundation of the truth preached by Whitfield, Edwards and Tennant created the air in which freedom could breathe.

The need today is not so much a return to political conservatism and integrity but a spiritual revival which will produce a climate in which government reform can take place. Without a spiritual revival political reforms will only serve to replace one tyrant with another. The most important thing I can do for my country is to be a godly citizen!

Prov 29:2

2 When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.

Dear Lord, our nation needs you desperately! Create in us a thirst for godliness and return to us in great strength. Hear us when we pray! Restrain evil in our land. Oh Lord, revive us again! AMEN

NUMBER ONE ON YOUR BUCKET LIST

NUMBER ONE ON YOUR BUCKET LIST!

           Maybe it’s all the birthdays, but I have actually received calls from casket manufacturers trying to sell me my final bed! Of all the telemarketers, these are the most unsettling. What’s up with these people? If I bought a casket where would I store it? I hardly have room for the riding mower!

           Not long ago there was been a movie made about two men in a hospital room. Both are told they would die so they write out their “bucket list,” a list of things they want to do before they “kick the bucket.” I suppose there are any number of things that should be considered before one “passes” if we only had some clue as to how much time we had left. We don’t.

John Baptist was in a prison in Jerusalem because he dared challenge the morals of King Herod “for John had said unto Herod, it is not lawful for thee to have thy brother’s wife.” (Mark 6:18) John knew it would not end well for him. He knew his life’s purpose and he had performed his assignment faithfully. It was time to go but one item of utmost importance plagued his mind. Had it all been for nothing? Was Jesus who he claimed to be?

Matt 11:2-3

2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples,

3 And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?

           Here is one thing to put at the top of your “bucket list.” Find out who Jesus is! Make your calling and election SURE! With all your heart pray: “God, I thank you for loving me. Thank you for sending your Son, Jesus, to die for me. I acknowledge my sins and repent of them. Please come into my heart and be my Savior. I give you control of the rest of my life.”

Dear Lord, because we can not know what tomorrow holds, help us to make sure to know the One who holds tomorrow. AMEN

CARING FOR EACH OTHER

CARING FOR EACH OTHER!

2 Thess 1:1-4

1:1 Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

2 Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth;

4 So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure:

One of Satan’s most successful strategies is to isolate believers from each other. He does this easily by telling us that it is more important to spend time taking care of our business ventures or in the pursuit of pleasures than to spend time in mutual encouragement with others. The weakness of a single raindrop becomes a torrent when joined with countless others.

In 1738 John Wesley commented on the need to form “societies” of those who had responded to the preaching of George Whitfield. Wesley said: “But those who were more or less affected by Mr. Whitefield's preaching had no discipline at all. They had no shadow of discipline; nothing of the kind. They were formed into no societies: They had no Christian connection with each other, nor were ever taught to watch over each other's souls. So that if any fell into lukewarmness, or even into sin, he had none to lift him up: He might fall lower and lower, yea, into hell, if he would, for who regarded it?”

Many people have the mistaken idea that preachers promote church attendance so that they may boast of their ability to attract a crowd. The truth is that they know the danger of isolation and the tendency of faith to decline if it is not joined with the faith of others. The lion runs after the entire herd but he feasts upon the one who drops away from the rest.

Henry Ward Beecher had this to say about church. “What is the Church worth to you? It is worth just what it develops in you, as an educating institution. Its whole design is to hold you up in weak hours; to inspire you with higher thoughts and with sweeter dispositions; and to give you power to lift yourself up to the invisible.”

Dear Lord, let me not be fooled regarding the value of my friends at church. Help me to see the importance of encouraging others and being encouraged by them. AMEN

A THREE "SNOOZE" MORNING

A THREE “SNOOZE” MORNING!

A “classic” originally posted June 23, 2013

1 Kings 19:2-8

2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.

3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.

4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O Lord , take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.

5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.

6 And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again.

7 And the angel of the Lord  came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.

8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.

           Some mornings are a “three snooze” morning! Today is one of those for me. More often than not I am up before the alarm ever sounds but this morning the comfort of the comforter beckoned me to stay awhile longer. There are some days – or weeks – that are so taxing that our bodies scream for rest. Our scripture describes just such an occasion for Elijah.

           Elijah had engaged in a spiritual contest with the prophets of Baal and had won. Spiritual conflict and mental or emotional challenges often wear the body down more than physical exertion. When Jezebel added her threat to the mix, Elijah folded. I’d like to offer a few reasons why rest for the body and for the spirit is needed.

           When we are overly tired we become self-focused! Elijah imagined that he was carrying God’s banner alone. He did not know that there were other champions doing battle on other fields and fronts.

           When we are overly tired we become irrational in our thinking! We make foolish decisions and bad judgments. I have always found it to be curious that, in the face of Jezebel’s threat of death, Elijah requested from the Lord that he might die. If he had only stayed where he was Jezebel would have surely accommodated him. He wasn’t thinking right. He was tired. Melancholy overwhelmed him and he wanted to resign. He couldn’t see any progress or benefit for all his labor.

           When we are overly tired often God steps in! Exhaustion put him to sleep and an angel woke him saying: “Get up! It’s time for breakfast.” Refreshed but still tired, he went back to bed and slept until the angel woke him again. There was no scolding sermon from the angel; no message of disappointment from God. Only refreshment and a chance for rest. The angel warned that he needed to rest and refresh himself because he was about to embark upon another hard task. He said: “The journey is too great for thee!” Those two meals and that wonderful sleep carried him another forty days.

           If you are tired listen to your body. If you are stressed listen to your spirit. Are you beginning to complain? Do you feel overwhelmed? Do you see no accomplishments or progress in all your labor? Maybe all you really need is a three-snooze morning.

Ps 103:13-14

13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord  pitieth them that fear him.

14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.

Dear Lord, thank you for the refreshment and rest that inevitably comes when we put our trust in you. Give us the strength for yet another forty days of labor. AMEN