Fight for Your Joy

Hello All,

Marvel at His magnificence, As you hasten to His throne.
Worship in the Beauty of holiness, Amazing Grace we have been shown.
Just as I am before His Mercy Seat, Oh Lord! I am undone.
In Him I move and am complete, I’m hidden in the Son.
So often life deals dreary days, And problems that arise.
But it’s He who listens as you pray, He knows the tears you’ve cried.
It’s HE who loves your very soul, For in His Word we read.
Nothing is ever out of His control, He knows your depth of need.
He’s exalted, high and lifted up, His eyes run to and fro.
He offers to come in and sup, He leads the way you go.
Whenever I’m curled up and cold, As when the shadows come.
Never forsaken as He has told, He leaves the ninety-nine for one.
No greater love than one can show, no temporary plan.
Nowhere to run where He can’t go, you can’t escape His hand.
Oh Yes, our God is mighty to save, though at times we lament.
We’re not overtaken by the wave, God is our refuge and strength.
Weeping may endure for a night, and this my final plea.
Be strong in the Lord and the power of His might, I know He watches me.

This poem, as you can see is a ‘pulling together’ of many songs, hymns and Scriptures that help me when I’m going through. Life is hardly ever easy and sometimes it’s downright unbearable. The Bible says that weeping may endure for a night but joy comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5). I don’t think it’s safe to assume that this joy ‘Bogarts’ its way past your problems; sometimes you have to fight for your joy. I’ve never been an advocate for the “happy all the time” Christian, but His strength is made perfect in our weakness and I think we, as well as onlookers, benefit when we witness problems befall us and our response is to lean into Him. Some tunnels seem to have no light at the end of them, so I’ve resolved to bring my own.

Here’s The Word;

2 Corinthians 4:8-9 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;

Isaiah 25:8 He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it.

Revelation 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

SO when you feel like less than a conqueror; know the schemes that Satan employs He may win a battle, but never the war, come back and fight for your joy!

In Him,
Cros

Curb Your Appetite

Hello All,

I recently had a conversation with a friend which revolved around the idea of “why the Israelites couldn’t get their act together?” As I pondered that idea; I looked at all of the direction and warnings God gave to His people. He told them not to associate with the Edomites, Moabites, and Ammonites. As I looked further back, I realized that there’s an “ites” in our midst that I think neither we nor the Israelites consider much; Our appetites. Think back to Adam and Eve in the garden; in perfect communion with the absolute presence of God on a daily basis, He provided everything they needed. His will and their pleasure were perfectly aligned. There’s one thing that neither Adam nor Eve had a use for; an appetite. Outside of daily fellowship with God, who would want anything else? They didn’t. Well, that all changed when the serpent offered them an apple, introducing them to the subjectivity of their appetite. Doctrinally, we’re pretty sure it wasn’t really “an apple” but funny how the general consensus flows – from apple to appetite. That’s really the “ite” that crippled the Israelites and it’s the same thing that cripples us today. Of course I need to clarify that it’s not a sin to have an appetite, Satan didn’t create the appetite, he just redirected its attention to self-fulfillment.

Here’s The Word;

Ecclesiastes 6:7 All the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled.

Philippians 3:17 - 20 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.) 20 For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:

It’s easy to look at and blame all the bad things around us that, like the Edomites and other things, we know we’d do better to steer clear of but we really need to put our minds to the idea that we are able to “want” some things that aren't only not good for us but that obviously don’t honor or glorify God. I pray that we would consider curbing our appetites; to redirect them back to a desire of daily fellowship and a hunger for things pleasing to The LORD.

In Him,
Cros

Logon!

Hello All,

I’ve had an idea that I’ve shared with a few friends: It’s something I planned on doing when/if I’m in a teaching position again. But I see that “holding on” to the idea in light of the fact that “tomorrow is not promised” may not be the best thing. SO here it is; I would encourage my friends who have a desire to engage in evangelism, yet don’t feel they have the courage or skill to “LOGON” – There are several internet sites where you can “practice”. I use Yahoo Answers; It’s more like a gym where you’re training for a main event but not as intimidating as a face-to-face encounter. You can discover what type of “engager” you are. Keep in mind, this is not for the faint of heart but that’s the point; “Standing” in the face of people hostile to the Gospel will train you to keep your focus on Truth as opposed to your emotions and their tactics. And a real benefit to discussion on line is when you’re feeling frustrated or overwhelmed - Log off. You will be challenged, and your ability to address the issues in evangelizing will be strengthened. The best part is, there are so many people listening on the side lines that your words(along with prayer and the work of the Holy Spirit) may penetrate hearts toward repentance. Here’s an issue I posted to challenge (truth in love) the people there;

People "cherry pick" Bible verses to support their own ideas or refute the ideas of others without relating the "heart" of Scripture. They promote themselves as learned and being above the idiots "who don't know their own Bible." The Bible is a WHOLE book, not just the ideas that people tend to throw haphazardly at topics that they feel strongly about.

Jesus challenged the "religious elitists" of His day (Pharisees & Sadducees) on their keeping of The Law (Leviticus) - He said that He didn't come to do away with it, but to fulfill it, and in doing so, He actually raised the standard by basically saying "If you cared about the "heart" behind the law, it's fulfilled in Love for your God and Love for your fellow man. But the elitists "prided" themselves in making it a checklist and proclaimed "righteousness" to the ones who could keep them the most. Many here still throw around the lists like that's what should matter to Christians. Jesus Himself was the only One who could've rightfully stoned the woman caught in adultery, but He loved her, freed her, and told her to stop. He didn't "keep the law"; He "fulfilled" the heart of it. God addresses "unclean" foods with Peter in Acts 10:13-15. There's also applicable info in 1 Corinthians 8. So even condemnable SIN is not the idea of a "do not do" list; The heart of it is - There's a Holy & Pure God who will not allow us to track our muddy feet into His Eternity. And sadly, sin has a way of finding refuge in us, and we have to keep on guard and realize its manifestations (Galatians 5:19). So for people here to continue trying to call out Christians for being inconsistent with Leviticus, really read The Bible, you might be surprised at what's REALLY the heart of the matter.

Most of the responses were spiteful, but not all. Of course, you’ll second guess yourself, and wish you said something different sometimes, but Lord willing; there’s always next time.

Here’s The Word:

Acts 26:29 And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds.

I encourage you – I’m out there and anyone who wants to contact me to help you get started, I’m more than willing and I will give you feedback and help strengthen you. Let’s become TRUE “evangelizing” evangelicals – Let’s Logon!


In Him,
Cros

Prayer and Praying

Hello All,

For the past few weeks, I have been more consumed with the idea of ‘Prayer’ than I've ever been before. The interesting thing that I have to keep telling myself is “Remember to get past this.” I know it seems an odd thing, but I think that’s one of the biggest problems in our churches today – not that we don’t focus on prayer, but that we focus on the things we study as if “studying” is the work. It’s not. The Bible says “Study to show thyself approved” – I think we've grown accustomed to interpreting that it’s the “study” that’s being approved – I think it’s the “SHOWING” that’s being evaluated. You study so that when you show, you show that you've learned doctrinally sound principles that make the difference in “living out” the Christian experience. But if we allow ourselves to think otherwise, Church just becomes the place where we are overly concerned with more and more study. We sit around impressing each other, equating “holiness” with knowing all the stuff we learned studying. Tossing around big words like ‘Dispensationalism’ and ‘Supralapsariansm’, we believe we’re at the forefront of Christianity, and all the while, there’s a world of lost people who could use a meal, or some clothes and somebody to talk to who have an ‘uncanny’ sense of hope about themselves. Don’t get me wrong, I believe wholeheartedly that the time I’ve spent studying prayer (and Doctrine) has been time well spent. I’m really expecting my prayers to make a difference but the difference will be actualized as I'm on my knees actually praying, not as I study.

Here’s The Word;

1 Timothy 4:16 Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

2 Timothy 4:5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.

James 1:25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

So again, this is not meant to be condemnation, but encouragement. This is not to denounce the study of doctrine, but to a prompting to move into service. Do study to show yourself approved, and be ready with an answer for the hope, and know how to defend The Gospel, but don’t forget what all the studying is for: Remember to get past this; There’s a big difference between studying prayer and praying.

In Him,
Cros