Tag Archives: John

Faith

What’s The Difference?


Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name and driven out demons in Your name and done many mighty works in Your name? And then I will say to them openly (publicly), I never knew you; depart from Me, you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].

(Mat 7:21-23 AMP)

 

SEEING A TREND

I correspond with Christians all around the world.  While revival is happening all around the world, something else is happening here. Many of my American friends are telling me they are leaving their churches. In the last two weeks, I have had no less than 5 individuals tell me this. Many of these people are leaders in the Faith. Some of these people young Christians like me look up to. Last week, I was talking to my neighbors; A husband and wife, about my age. Known for their long relationship with their church, I have pictured them as being steady and steadfast rocks. Their love for Christ and devotion to His call is strong in them. This couple told me they are leaving their church, after being faithful to their church for decades.

Two people I look up to as Spiritual elders in my life told me the same thing.

The reasons others are giving me for leaving their churches are starting out to sound like the reasons Sandy and I don’t really want to join a church. We are not alone. Not by any stretch of the imagination. The trend is this: People who are genuinely interested in a relationship with Jesus Christ are starting to be excluded by churches who are more interested in marketing their church, and sacrificing their relationship with the living God for the idea of what God stands for.

WAIT A MINUTE, DAVE! WHAT ARE YOU SAYING???

I am saying this, and I am not the only one saying this. The new social experiment in American Christianity is to be so inclusive that we exclude why we are even calling ourselves Christians. We have traded our relationship with Jesus Christ for a cheap backdrop with a picture of Jesus hanging on it. American Churches are more interested in marketing their churches than in living the life of Christ. We have a business plan; we have a committee for entertainment, and publicity. We have become so relevant to everyone that we are becoming irrelevant to those who follow Jesus and to those who genuinely seek the Lord our God.

I have met many imitators. I once was one. I know what I am seeing when I see it. We, as individuals, and as a congregation, have become more concerned with being liked, and with being popular. We mistakenly believe that the more people that come to our building every Sunday is an indicator of our doing the right thing. Being popular is not our call. Behaving in a way that makes us popular, just to pack the pews will make us irrelevant to Christ.

I have met Church leaders all over America who have no knowledge of the scripture, but they know how to make you feel good and comfortable with your own ignorance. I have seen for myself that the minute you start asking the hard questions of the Bible, that you suddenly become less welcome in that church. After all, we are here to have fun, and fellowship, not to learn the deeper things of Christ.

We have all become salesmen of the Gospel. We have turned Jesus into a marketable commodity.

THAT WASN’T VERY NICE, DAVE. WHERE’S THE GRACE IN THAT?

This isn’t nice or comfortable either: The genuine Children of God are not a club that includes everyone BUT genuine believers. We do not have something to sell. We have a relationship with Christ. We are being made into the image of Christ. We are not salesmen of the idea of Christ, just so you can be comfortable knowing about Him without the conviction it takes to follow him.

Paul was the Apostle of God’s Grace. PAUL SAID IT BEST: 2Co 2:17 For we are not, like so many, [like hucksters making a trade of] peddling God’s Word [shortchanging and adulterating the divine message]; but like [men] of sincerity and the purest motive, as [commissioned and sent] by God, we speak [His message] in Christ (the Messiah), in the [very] sight and presence of God.

Here is the Grace: In His patience with all of us, God desires that we KNOW Him and His ways. Being this full of Love for us all, God applies His mercy toward us, and by the power of His grace, delays the final day of reckoning so that all peoples will come to know Him through Jesus Christ.

YOU ROB HUMANITY WHEN YOU EXCLUDE THE TRUTH

Enter through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and spacious and broad is the way that leads away to destruction, and many are those who are entering through it. But the gate is narrow (contracted by pressure) and the way is straitened and compressed that leads away to life, and few are those who find it. [Deut. 30:19; Jer. 21:8.] Beware of false prophets, who come to you dressed as sheep, but inside they are devouring wolves. [Ezek. 22:27.] You will fully recognize them by their fruits. Do people pick grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? Even so, every healthy (sound) tree bears good fruit [worthy of admiration], but the sickly (decaying, worthless) tree bears bad (worthless) fruit. A good (healthy) tree cannot bear bad (worthless) fruit, nor can a bad (diseased) tree bear excellent fruit [worthy of admiration]. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and cast into the fire. Therefore, you will fully know them by their fruits.  (Mat 7:13-20 AMP)

Just because it looks like a Church, just because there is a fabulous floor show before the preacher comes out, just because the preacher woos you with his glib wit, and humility, does not mean you have gone to a building whose interests are that you know Jesus personally.

There are MANY Mega-Churches in the land. Not all are hucksters of the Gospel. But the ones who are all about marketing and being appealing to everyone, for all the wrong reasons are driving sincere believers away.

Jesus said that if He is high and lifted up, he will draw all humanity to himself. If what you are lifting up is the idea of Jesus, not the knowledge of Jesus, if what you propound is a sack full of sweets and goodies, you have taken people off the path of genuine knowledge of Christ.

Here is the hard truth. There is one God. He created us. We decided to break off our relationship with Him. In order to heal that relationship with Him, he sent Jesus, His only son, to take all of our sin, and all the consequences of sin, and become those things. That way, the judgment of God could be satisfied. God poured all his wrath on Jesus, and sent Him to Hell in our place. When we believe this with all our hearts, and confess with our mouths that Jesus Christ rose from the dead, we become His adopted children.

From that point on, it is all about learning how to build a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. THAT is the truth.

KNOWING THE PATH IS NOT WALKING THE PATH

There will be millions of people headed to hell who know a LOT about Jesus, but never knew, or cared to know, that they could have had a real relationship with Jesus. Jesus became all our sin so we can become all of God’s children. God is calling us to a path that leads us to a sincere and real knowledge of Him. He is not interested in your marketing plan, or budget, or entertainment quotient. God is interested in YOU. God loves you. He is not in love with the idea of you, he loves YOU. He proved this when He sent Jesus to die in our places.

God is calling us to know Him through Jesus Christ. We are called to walk after Him. The more we identify with Jesus, and become just like Him, the more Holy Fruit we will produce. When we do that, more humans will be drawn to Jesus, and their salvation will be assured. You cannot do this with just a nodding glance a Christ.  If your church is standing in the way of the real knowledge of Jesus Christ, then leave that place, it is not of God.

The worlds stated goal is to change the way everyone thinks so we can all be just alike. The world has openly stated that Christianity is one of the religions that they cannot include because it is “intolerant”. By intolerant, they mean we have the raw nerve to say that the only way to God is through Jesus Christ. This calls for a real relationship to Christ, not the idea of a relationship with Christ.

REVIVAL

Churches all over the world are having real revival. They are having this revival in the very teeth of deadly opposition. The reason they are reviving from their slumber is because the uncompromising word of truth is being preached, taught and LIVED out in the individual lives of the revived.

It is better to not go along to get along if it means you have to give up a genuine relationship with Christ to get along. People the world over are being put to death for their faith. In the meantime, American Churches are no longer being a congregation of genuine believers.

It is time to put the toys away and start seeking the Lord, here in America. Don’t shut out real believers just because they do not fit into your marketing plan. If your plan is so important that you have to shut out genuine believers, then your plan is not of God.  If the conversation of genuine believers makes you, O Church, UNCOMFORTABLE, chances are, you have not known Jesus Christ.

Seek the Lord while He may be found. But do NOT make the mistake many people have, and think that just because you go to a place that calls itself a church, that you are among believers. You do not become a believer OR saved just because you attend a church. That would be like saying you became a Cheese Burrito because you went to Taco Bell.

HERE”S THE GRACE

The sin is not that you are lost. The sin is not accepting the free gift of salvation. If you do that, you are still dead. The sin is not in going to church. The sin of the church is believing that it is the answer when Jesus alone is the real answer.  The real church’s job is to uphold every believer, and lead others to Jesus.

Salvation is free. God loves you unconditionally. Jesus did not come here to establish a religion. Jesus came here to destroy all religion in exchange for a relationship with the Living and only God. Every religion on earth knows this, and despises Jesus for it.

God created you and loves you dearly. He is calling you back to His love. The way to get there is through Jesus Christ. There is no other way under heaven to know God.

Grace is why God has not already destroyed this planet. He is waiting for you to know Him through Jesus Christ. Stop being fooled by the joke “church” has become, and start knowing who Jesus Christ is. He is waiting to embrace you. Church is where real believers meet and share the love of the Lord. It is not about entertainment. It is about sharing the joy of the Grace of God through Jesus Christ. Church is about meeting the lost where they are, not where we say they have to be. You are the church, if you are a believer in Jesus.  When two believers meet and share the joy of the Lord, there is church.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

If what you have is what church really is, then you can expect genuine revival in the land, and serious opposition to your meetings. This is being proven true all over this planet…except America.

Let’s Be About It.

I love you in the Name of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior.

David G. Perkins

 


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Faith, Observations

“…but their hearts are far away”


Luke 6:46 ESV : “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?

Luke 6:46 ESV : “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?

The pressure to produce, lately, is overwhelming.  I have obligations, and the means to meet them are getting harder to come by.  As I fell into my “Charles In Charge” mode, and prepared to execute an action plan I had devised, I heard the Lord.

I recognize the voice of the Spirit, now that I have ears to hear.

“Come talk with me”, said the Spirit.

I am not used to this gentle Spirit of Love talking to me.

Keeping in mind the Business Model I have learned throughout life, I reminded the Spirit that I have things to accomplish, and I have broken them down into three categories:

1. MUST:   Do the things you MUST do first. KNOW THE MISSION, DO THE MISSION!   I have to accomplish a lot in a very little time if I am going to meet my obligations.  Earn your living, pay your bills, meet your deadlines.  If you have obligations, you MUST meet them, no matter what else is going on.  That is life, and how it is.  As I am running against real deadlines, and everything depends on me to accomplish them, I have to hit the bricks and perform my duties.

2. NEED:  Next, do the things you NEED to do. THESE ITEMS WILL ALWAYS BE HERE IN ONE FORM OR ANOTHER.    I need to get the car tuned up, and have the timing belt replaced (It is a Toyota, and has greater than 200,000 miles).  I need to replace the weather-stripping on the back door.  I am not fond of trying to air condition all of Texas.  I need to get braces for Hannah, get my wife knee surgery, glasses, and take her out on a few dates…

3.  WANT:   Finally, do the things you WANT to do.  I want to spend all my time praying and serving God, because of Jesus.  I want to be the best writer that ever walked the face of the earth.  I want to take my family on vacation…I want to show them the places I have been on this planet, so they can see the incredible beauty I have witnessed.  There are a thousand more things I want to do.  And, while stopping to spend time with the Lord would be fabulous, I have obligations that take precedence.

The agony of my obligations have been gnawing at me relentlessly.

“I MUST meet certain obligations…MUST, and do it NOW!!”, I practically shouted that at the Lord.

Did you know that you can actually hear the Lord sigh, and hear (see) Him grin?  It is true…you just have to know how to hear, and know how to see.

“Come talk with me”, said the Spirit. 

I am irresistibly drawn to His voice.

I lay my agenda on my desk…I cannot say “no” to His invitation.  

“Here I am, Lord”

“Hop on your bike and meet me at the third pond.”, He said.  (REALLY, Lord??  It is freaking HOT out here in Pearland.  HOT, and the Sun will melt me before I get out of the driveway!) 

“OK, Lord, I’ll do it.”

A few weeks ago, I decided I need to get back on my bike.  My car was in the shop, and I had obligations.  My bike was my back-up plan.  My first time out was a dismal failure.  I had a flat, and on the return leg, I had a mild heat stroke.  If it weren’t for the concern of two people whom I love very much, mild would have turned in to severe, and I probably would have ended up in the hospital.  After that, and after recovering, I decided I will get back on the bike, and relearn how to ride.  It really is an art, if riding a bike is one of your passions.     I am up to 12 miles, every other day.  I ride outbound 6 miles, to Highway 288, and ride back the same 6 miles.  The body doesn’t forget, and I had adapted to riding in real heat and humidity in decent time.  Perhaps I can lose that next 50 pounds this way.

I looked back at my agenda.  It lay on my desk, accusing me of being a slacker.  I HAVE OBLIGATIONS!!!  

“OK, Lord, I’ll do it.”

The rays of the Sun bore down like fine needles, piercing every part of me.

The 12 mile route includes passing by three water overflow reservoir, or ponds.  When it rains here, (AND IT RAINS HERE), these overflow reservoir collect all the run-off from all the neighborhoods in the area.  Reservoir abound through-out South Texas. Pearland is, after-all, in hurricane alley.    I pass by three reservoir when I ride.

I love to ride fast.  If found, however, that, if I maintain a 9 mile per hour pace, I get enough air flow so I can breathe (The air was just hanging around, not moving.).  I also discovered that, if I go faster than 9 miles per hour, the sapping energy loss of the heat and sun shine would deplete my reserves before I go a mile.  So, I kept the pace at a very leisurely 9 miles per hour.

I discovered that riding this slow gave me the chance to see where I am riding, to absorb the beauty that is Pearland, Texas, to actually look people in the face as I pass them by.  My blood pressure started falling.  The knots in my stomach were coming undone.  I felt a song stirring in my heart, “This IS my Fathers world…” . I hummed the song as I rode my bike. 

Recent heavy rains meant the reservoir were still laden with enough water to support wild life.  I watched the cranes and heron and gulls sitting in shallow water, their wings open, so they could get some natural air conditioning.  “This is my Father’s world,  the birds their carols raise,  the morning light, the lily-white,  declare their maker’s praise.”  The oppressive heat turned into a warm embrace…I caught myself singing out loud.  When did I start doing THAT?

After just a few minutes, I arrived at the third pond.  I walked my bike around the pond until I found some shade trees to rest under.  I drank some water and let the breeze off the pond cool me.  Those birds really knew what they were doing.  I listened to the frogs, and dragonflies, and heard turtles making their way to the water.  I saw snakes hiding in the rush under some trees that had their roots in the pond.  What a good thing it is to sit and watch God at work.  Nature is God’s work.

“How was the ride?”   “Amazing”  

He grinned again.  “I’m glad you came here.”  “Me too, Lord, me too…”  

“What has you so fearful?  “My life just went out of control, Lord.  I don’t know what to do.”  

“What did you learn from your last mission?“, He asked, gentleness soothing my soul.   “I need to keep my eyes on you, Lord.  I got caught up in their religion, and made their 12 commandments more important than the author and creator of those virtues.  I looked to man for approval, not to you.  When I got too caught up in trying to observe the “Law” of the commands, I forgot about the Grace of the Lord.”  “I learned that religious people can hide some pretty intense hate and fear behind their “Positive Attitude”.  I learned that, whether we are in the desert crossing to the promised land, or in Texas, “Living the Dream”, if we turn your virtues into a law, and make the law more important than the Creator, then we have lost sight of what is really important. In the end, we make hypocrites of ourselves.  And we advertise that we follow these virtues when it is apparent to everyone that we don’t.”  “I also learned that when I am keeping my eyes on you, things go really well.  But when I look to myself or others, I fail miserably.”

“That’s was a mouth full!  And I think I hear some judgement encroaching your lessons, too.”  “David, I don’t judge you.  All judgement of all sin and failure was poured out on Jesus at the Cross.  I am here to teach you.  What you said is true, but you didn’t mention THE truth.”

“Lord, please tell me THE truth, then.  What am I to you?  What am I going to do now?  How does this apply to the fact that You sent me here?”

“David, I have called you and Sandy to serve me, and me alone.  I sent you here, and soon, you will know why.  I need you to learn these lessons, as painful as they are.  Keep your eyes on ME, and trust that I know what I am doing.  Stop trying to please man AND serve me at the same time.  That is not possible.  Remember at all times the Love and Grace I have given you.  You are to give generously to all who you meet.  Never take matters into your own hands.  I am your Lord, I care for you, I love you, and there is no condemnation on you because you are in Me.  Seek me first, in all things, in all ways, and all the rest of the things on your list will be taken care of.”   What you experienced at that place was, in fact, exactly what you asked me for.

“What?”  “It’s TRUE.”  “WHEN?” “Remember you prayed to work at a place where My virtues are pointed out, where people are Christians, where ‘Doing the Right Thing’ actually means something?”  “Yes, I do.” “You got what you asked for.  You have no more business judging them for their shortcomings than they do judging you for yours.  I sent you to where you asked to be sent.  But, even so, I always send you where I need you, where you will do the most good, and grow to be like Me.”  “You simply forgot why I sent you, that’s all.  Now that you have learned this lesson, I will send you where you can do some good.  Just remember to keep an eye on Me.  I will meet all your needs.  My promise is not conditional, nor is it based on whether you behave yourself or not.  I always keep my promise.  You will serve me.  The more like me you become, the less you will have to worry about in this world.”

American Christians are not yet at the point where it will cost them their lives for their faith.  We have become complacent, and have turned what God has intended for good into a religion that drives mankind far away from God.  We have fellowships that are more like clubs.  We do not readily accept the unwashed, the sinner, the outsider.  If I don’t think like you, then I am wrong.  The hard truth is, neither of us think like God, nor do we have the mind of Christ.  That is not an accusation, that is a hard-earned observation.  In my anti-religious stance, I have built a new religion.  In your Americanized Christianity, you have built a religion.  Jesus did not come here to build a religion, but a relationship.  Any time we forget that seeking the Kingdom of God, and HIS righteousness is more important than anything else we will do, then we are in error.  We are still saved.  But we are not following God, through Jesus Christ.

Jesus died of all our sin, all our failure, all our fear, all our poverty, all our lack, and anything else that built a wall between us and His kingdom.  In return for this, He gave us eternal life, eternal fellowship with God, and everything that HE inherited as Lord.  We abound in God’s goodness, if only we can remember how to hear and see what God has done for us.  When what we do as Christians drives people away from God, then we are being religious.  When what we do does not bring the lost to the Kingdom of God, and the Saved to be more like Him, then we are practicing a religion.  If we are running a business that touts the virtues of God, but does not actually serve God, then stop saying what you are, and just be what you intend to be.  By seeking God, your business WILL have those virtues, and God will make sure everyone knows it.  Bragging on HIS children is one of the things God LOVES to do.

We still sin, and fail, but God’s promise is eternal.  You are His child.  You will be made in to the image and likeness of His son, Jesus.

Religion worships the idea of God, and the idea of the virtues of God, but the heart of religion is all about lip service to the Creator.  We are more concerned about being right than being like Him.

The Cure for Anxiety

“This is why I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He do much more for you — you of little faith? So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat? ’ or ‘What will we drink? ’ or ‘What will we wear? ’ For the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.” – Jesus – Matthew 6:25-33

This is why I know that, in spite of any failure on my part, or any judgement of mankind against me, in the end, I will serve the Lord.  He has become my first love, and I desire Him above all else.  My burning desire is to serve Him.  He is using my failures to teach me how to succeed HIS way.  And I love even these hard lessons.  Forgiveness, Love, Grace, Mercy, Service, Giving, are more important than any idolatrous covenant that God never asked you to agree to.  All things that God desires to give you will come to you when you seek Him first.

Let’s Be About It!
I love you.
David G. Perkins

 

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Faith

Transition States: Serving Man Is To Serve Christ


"I AM the bread of life" - Jesus

“I AM the bread of life” – Jesus

For I have come down from heaven,not to do My will, but the will of Him who sent Me. – John 6:38 HCSB

Do I understand that, for Jesus to make that statement, He had to be completely emptied of His Heavenly place of honor, leave His throne, and become one of us?  He humbled Himself and served God’s will by serving man.  Jesus left His own personal will behind, was filled with the Spirit of God at His baptism, and served God’s Will.  Not out of law, compulsion, or as a slave, but out of Love for His Father.  Jesus served God by serving man.  And He did it by the power of the Holy Spirit that had filled Him.

I grew up believing that if I sang in the church choir, went to all the youth rallies, worked in the annual church “revival”, attended the Summer Camps, and basically behaved myself, I would be a good christian.

When I became an adult (Not to be confused with growing up), I attended church because I wanted to please God.  I confused the scripture that says, “Hebrews 10:25 – KJV – Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”  Again, I saw a lot of “activity” and heard a great deal about God and Jesus, but it came across as a knowledge gained through consensus, a creating God out of parts of scripture that appealed to the idea of what I want God to be, rather than learn what the Bible actually says about God, His will, and Jesus, the Lord.

Let me be clear, and I will probably be pilloried over this, but you can research this yourselves.  The “Church” is the ekklesia…the body that consists of those who genuinely believe.  The “Church” is NOT the building you go to and socialize in.  These edifices are full of people who have no real belief or understanding of the scriptures.  They gather to serve themselves.  The “Church” was never called to serve itself, glorify itself, or do its own will, expecting God to approve its’ own agenda.  When we are filled with our own purposes, we have immediately forsaken the will of God.    Today’s churches have become irrelevant for this very reason.  It is a fortress that expects the sinner to come to it for help, and offering only trite messages, based on the popular psychology of the day, and “supported” by whatever scripture they can find to support that view-point.  They are the “Hucksters of the Gospel” you read about in the New Testament.   Having a form of Godliness, but denying the power thereof.

Christ’s church, His ekklesia, consists of those who have believed in  their hearts that Jesus died for and became their sin.  That Jesus became every sin that ever was and ever will be, and died and went to hell, a sinner, for our sake.  Christs church understands that, while Jesus was dead in Hell, cut off from God, but receiving the complete and full wrath of God, God reached into Hell and brought Jesus back to life.  Jesus, having been restored, preached freedom to the captives in Hell and took the captives and freed them.  Then Jesus rose from the dead to prove that He has the right to be called “Christ the Lord”.  Jesus did for us what we cannot do for ourselves.  He put all sin and death away for our sakes.  If you accept this simple truth in your heart, and declare with your mouth that Jesus did all this and rose from the dead, YOU HAVE SALVATION.  THAT is all there is to it.

Those are the people who are the ekklesia, the church.  And believing these things, are sold out, in faith, and grace, and have determined to follow their Lord.  These are the people who need to stick together.  These are the people who need to support each other.  Wherever two believers are gathered, Jesus is in their midst.  It is there they can support, exhort, teach and worship together.  You will not find that in the established church.  If this were not true, the established church would have no idea what religious dogma is, nor would they be trying to force their own agenda down the throat of the Living God.

Results matter, and what has become the modern church is proof that they have abandoned their first love, and taken upon themselves the idea that they know God’s will better than God does.

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5 ESV

I cannot do what Christ wants me to do.  Not if I intend to do it on my own power.  The only way I can “walk after the lord” is to rest in what HE accomplished on my behalf.  The minute I abandon the power and will and faith of Christ, and attempt to do His will on my own, I have abandoned the very thing Christ has asked us to do…ABIDE IN HIM.  Abiding means to rest, pitch your tent, make Him your home.  Know Him through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  It is what every New Believer experiences.  Unfortunately, because discipleship is a lost art, that new Christian becomes a blown out candle.  Then when he asks his pastor, or some other respected elder why has the joy left, that respected adviser usually tells them, “Well, this is all part of maturing . ”  God worked in you because you were a baby christian, but we all have to grow up, and do for ourselves.  We have to obey God through our effort”.  I actually was told that at Seminary.  We were taught that we must abide, but we were taught that it is an effort to do so, and we just have to work hard to get ourselves to abide.  I actually believed that, and the result was, I became as bad a sinner as I was before I was saved.  I didn’t understand what abide really meant.

Abide is a very intimate term.  Get to know Him through spending time with Him.  This starts with reading the word and prayer.  The Spirit of God that raised Jesus from the dead is the same spirit that now lives in you.  As long as you abide, you grow, and produce fruit.  But is done by resting in Him.  Believe as simply as you did when you were first saved.  Trust that He will guide you, teach you, uphold you, love you, and instruct you.  Give up your ideas of God’s will, and learn what His will actually is.  Rest in Him.  You cannot do this by your own strength.  You are already forgiven.  You are already His child.  You are already adopted into the Kingdom of God.  When you learn to relax and trust this truth, you will abide in Him.  When you do this, you will be shown how things look from God’s point of view.  You will, out of love for Christ, WANT to please him.  This is not something you can ever do on the power of your flesh.  It is only when you abide in the rest of the Lord that HE will guide you and teach you.  Your desire will be to do as Christ leads you.  He will make sure you have all you need to do His will.

John … said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name; and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow along with us.”  But Jesus said to him, “Do not hinder him; for he who is not against you is for you.” – Luke 9:49-50 NASB

You do not need “The Church’s” permission to serve Christ.  You already are a co-heir to the throne of Christ.  You have within you all the same power that God used, through Jesus, to create the heavens and earth.  The kingdom of God dwells in you.  You are now His child.  God is not sitting “way up there, in the distant by and by, sitting on a throne, unapproachable”.  He dwells in you.  His kingdom is in you.  You have all the power and authority and grace and love of God.  You are Saved and belong to Him as if you were Jesus Himself.  When He sees you, He sees his beloved child.

That “someone” who was casting out demons in Jesus’ name, was obeying the will of God because it became his heart to do so.  He did not need the permission of the disciples because he already had the kingdom of God in his heart.  He had a change of heart.  He learned a new thought.  Repent simply means to think again.  The disciples were already jockeying for position of authority, and desired to rule over others since they were the “First Disciples”.  This may be why Jesus chose Paul to do what others refused to do.

It is as simple as understanding that the price Jesus paid on the cross, in hell, and through His resurrection, Jesus gave you, the believer this free gift, that you are also the adopted son of God.  You have God’s permission to rest in Him and watch him use you as he moves you in your heart.  No church, ever, was able to do this for you.  It is simply and ONLY the completed work of Jesus Christ.  It is a free gift.  It goes beyond eternal life.  It goes beyond your resources, your thinking, your will, and your ability.

Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.  And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;  Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.  And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.   And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.  Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.  And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. – Acts 3:1-7 KJV

All of what I have written is because I am going through a transition state of understanding what Jesus actually gave himself for.  It was not a religion.  It is so that we can be restored to the place we were before the fall of man.

Peter and John were on their way to the church (Synagogue) to pray.  They were obeying the edict of the assembly.  But on their way, Christ showed them an opportunity to do the will of God.  This is because the Holy Spirit had taught them the Mind of Christ (Read the first few chapters of Acts).

Interestingly enough, it was the established church of their day that had a huge problem with this behavior.  They, however, had the joy of the Lord in them, even under persecution, because they had obeyed their Lord.

They didn’t have permission from the local church to obey Christ.  They simply were moved in their hearts and minds because it is what moves Christ.  Serving man is more important than serving your church.  Giving freely of all you were given by Christ is true obedience.

SILVER AND GOLD HAVE I NONE

The transition state I am going through is a real object lesson.  All I ever had, believed or possessed has been taken away from me.  I own nothing, I have nothing but my clothes, a wife who loves me unconditionally, and a wonderful family.  We live in a basement.  But we are discovering a joy that we would never have understood had this not happened.  We are learning that, out of our need, we give, we serve, and we obey.  We do this, not because we are trying to please God.  We please God because, when He moves us to be like His son, and we follow that lead, we get to see Christ at work.  We are finding that you do not have to have a lot of resources to give.  You do not need things to serve.  You start with what you do have, and let God guide you.  You do this because you are abiding in Christ.  You learn to hear his voice.  Our joy has multiplied because of this transition.  We are being remade into the image of Christ through resting in Him and knowing His word.

Where others have disassociated from us, where finances have fled from us, where all we ever thought important has been lost, we find that we have been given a new heart, a new mind, and a living Holy Spirit.

I do not need things to serve man.  I just need the same Love in my heart that drove Jesus to do for me.  I did not have to follow any rituals, or attend a church to get this knowledge or understanding.  My heart didn’t change from some church activity or program.  My thinking was renewed into the will of God by trusting that what Christ said he did, He did.  And trusting that what Christ said he will do through His Spirit in me, HE will do.  I can do nothing of my self.  I can only be useful to God if I let Christ make me into something completely new and different from all that I was.

I have learned that it is better to abandon my religion and pursue Christ.  I am inviting you to do the same thing.

Let’s be about it.

I Love You

David G. Perkins

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Faith

By the Will of God


Grace is the unmerited favor of God. Romans 3:23-24 tells us, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”

We inherited our sin nature through Adam and Eve.  Since then, before we were saved, all our desire has been to satisfy the desires of our own heart.  The Bible clearly shows that there is nothing we can do, produce, or say, or think that will be pleasing to God:  “For all of us have become like one who is unclean,  And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.”  Is 64:6   When we come to the startling discovery that there is nothing we can do to be considered right before God, we feel a sense of loss.  We ask ourselves, “What must I do to be saved?”

The fact that we have come to this point is proof that God has already begun His saving work in you.  Before you asked yourself this question, you lived a life where it would not occur to you to even consider God or His will for you.  But the second we are made aware that there is something missing, and there is nothing you can do about it, you ask again, “What must I do to be saved?” 

In Ephesians 2:8-9 we read, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

Here is when you learned that to cover the sin that separates us from God, Jesus, out of obedience to the will of God, gave His life in the place of yours (All of Humanity).  What did this mean?  Jesus obeyed God and became the one who took on all our sin, had it nailed to the cross, and accepted complete separation of God, and consumed all God’s wrath.  Jesus did this out of His Love for God, and in obedience to the will of God.

He became a Gift to us, from the Living God.  God does not desire that anyone should perish.  Jesus told Nicodemus in the garden, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should have everlasting life.” John 3:16.  He took this one step farther in the very next verses:  “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” John 3:17-19 KJV

So, if you have accepted this gift of God, you are saved.  What this means is, now that you are saved, God sees you as saved.  All the attributes of Salvation are at work in you.  You are complete in God’s eyes.  When He looks at you, He sees that the blood of Christ has covered you.  You are no longer condemned.

IT THAT ALL?

Positionally, you are complete in God.  He sees you as saved.  You have eternal life.  But what now?  Can I go on acting like I used to act before I was saved?  Yes, you can.  But that will negate any testimony you could have about Jesus.  One sure clue of your salvation is that you will want to know more about the one who saved you.  If you ignore that urge, two things can happen.  One is, you will fall right back into that sinful life Jesus died for.  Or you will become a legalistic individual who tries to live the Christian life by your own will and power.  Neither of these things is a thing God can bless.

“for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”  Phillipians 2:13

If you still feel the attraction toward our Savior, you will begin to feel in your heart the same power that drew you to Christ in the first place.  When you tell God you want to be just like Jesus, you are telling Him that that finished work He sees in you positionally, you want the Holy Spirit to make manifest in the life you live on Earth.  If this is your desire, then you will discover that you cannot fake the Character of Christ for very long.  You will fail if you try to do this on your own.  It is not the nature of the flesh to do this.  You could stomp your foot and tell everyone “God loves me the way I am.” or “This is just how I am, and God loves me. ” or “I am saved, I am going to Heaven.  God doesn’t expect me to change.”   Yet, you ASKED God to make you into the Character of God, not you own character.

YOU CANNOT HAVE IT BOTH WAYS

We are either depending on our ability or God’s ability.  There is no in between.  Jesus wants all of you, or none of you.  He said he would rather be hot or cold, but He will spit out luke-warm.  Are you saved?  If you met the conditions for salvation, yes.  From God’s point of view, are you complete?  Yes.  But that is just the position you hold because of the Blood of Jesus Christ.  There is nothing about you personally that He will accept outside of you being made in the image of His Son.

“For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.  Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work.  If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.  If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” I Corinthians 3:12

The people of Corinth were saved.  The saved ones of Corinth did something that brought their salvation to no effect.  They returned to their old lifestyles, and behaved no differently than they did before they were saved.

“Falling from Grace is not losing the born again experience.  Falling from grace is when you leave the realm of God’s ability.  It is when you attempt to have righteousness by your performance”  Dr. James B. Richards.  Impact Ministries, Publication Department.  3300 N. Broad Place, Huntsville, Alabama 35805

This is the assertion that you either can do it all on your own, or you don’t need to be transformed into the image of Christ.

There are a lot of people who complain about the “Hyper-Grace Movement”.  This movement teaches that all your sin in forgiven from the past, in the present, and in the future.  That God already knew you were going to sin, and He has already chosen to overlook it.  This is scripturaly inaccurate.   I can flesh this one out later.  These same people are the ones who think that because they have had a salvation experience, there is nothing else that they need to do to please God.  The end result is the exact same as the Hyper-Grace Movement.  This same thought teaches, by implication, that you do not have to change a thing about yourself because you are already saved.  This, too is a doctrinal error, and is offered by people who either do not really know the scriptures, or have chosen to accept only the things of scripture that please them.

If you are still alive, and you are saved, the Spirit of God will not be content leaving you unchanged.  He will call you and call you to be transformed in to the very image of the character of Christ.  To refuse to give any part of yourself, and ultimately, all of your self, in every aspect, in every way, is to tell God that you either don’t trust Him to complete in you His perfect work, or you are telling God you are already perfect, and there is nothing about you that needs growing up to be like Christ.

Your fall from grace comes when you are called to be like Christ, but do not sacrifice your will and self to allow the Spirit of God to change you.  When Christ said that many are called and few are chosen, he was not talking about your salvation.  If you are saved, you are saved.  Nothing can change that.  The chosen are the ones who allowed the Spirit of God to work in them so that they can obey Christ when He said:  “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. Luke 9:23 NASB

If you are content to be saved, but not effective in a call, just continue doing what you are doing.  But you need to know, the complications that exist in your life exist because you have chosen to try to make Christ into your image that let the Spirit of God transform you into the likeness of Christ.  Grace is not cheap.  It cost Jesus His life.  The ones He chooses are the ones who lay down their very lives, all aspects of it, and walk in the Grace of God through Jesus Christ.  It is all an act of Grace.

I can say all of this because I have just survived 20 years being saved, but not allowing the Spirit of God to work out my flawed character and make my character into the image of Christ.  My life used to be a living Hell because God allowed me to be my own master.  I could not be Godly and be myself at the same time.  Today, Christ is healing the wounds, and is turning what is positionally true in God’s eyes in to a child of God, made in the image of Christ.  This is not something I can do for myself.  It is simply allowing God to get me out of my own way so the Spirit of God can recreate me.  My desire is that God use me to witness to the lost and the fallen.  And I no longer want things done my way.  I only want things His way.

If He is calling you, allow Him to remake your character into something He can choose to follow Him.

It is all a choice.

I love you

Let’s Be About It!

David G. Perkins

sammy.snardfarkle@gmail.com

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Faith

Mastery


English: Jesus ascending to heaven

English: Jesus ascending to heaven (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“Ye call Me Master and Lord; and ye say well; for so I am.” – Jesus – John 13:13 KJV

A very remarkable thing about our Lord, Jesus, is that He doesn’t insist that you make Him your Lord.  He doesn’t say, “Thou SHALL make me your Master!”.

We are free to curse him, and we do.  We are free to use His name in vain, and we do.  We were free to spit on Him, and we did.  We are free to put Him to death, and we did.  We can do all this to Him, and he will not even utter a word about it.  Which is exactly what He did. Jesus said we can speak all manner of evil and vileness against Him, and still be forgiven for it.

How then are we compelled to obey Him, if he is not going to insist that we obey?

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.”  II Corinthians 5:17 HCSB

I did not become a Christian by my own will or by my own power.  It was at the will of God that the life of Jesus was created in me.  I became a new creation.  And when I beheld Him, I instantly recognized His right to absolute authority over me.  I beheld my creator.  His redemption, seen through God’s eyes, tells me that Jesus is worthy to be my Lord.

Had God forced this on me, it would have made Him a tyrant.  I am, and have always been free to choose to allow Jesus to be Lord.  His beauty, His life, His authority over death assures in my soul He has absolute authority over all Creation.  It is no ordeal to desire to follow him.  When I see Him, I want to obey Him.

 “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” John 15:15 NIV

This is a relationship that is described between a Father and a Son.  Obedience is only possible between equals.  Jesus told us that if you have seen Him, you have seen the Father.  He declared that He and His Father are one and the same.  “Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things He suffered.”

I bear the image of Christ, because He lives in me.

When I rebel against His authority, it is only the things that are not His that refuse to bow to Him.  As I give up these things to Christ, and He replaces it with His character, then my whole attitude of life is that I want to obey Him.  He obtains Mastery over the things I have no control over.  I am still free to do as I please, but it pleases me to be like Him.  That is the difference between legalism and grace.

I can still sin all I want, I just do not want to.  I am a new creation.

I love you

David

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Faith

FAITH TO BE RECKLESS


“FAITH IS NOT BELIEF WITHOUT PROOF, BUT TRUST WITHOUT RESERVATION.” – Anon

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Heb 11:1 – ESV

FACTOID: “The assurance of things hoped for (elpizomenōn hupostasis). Hupostasis is a very common word from Aristotle on and comes from huphistēmi (hupo, under, histēmi, intransitive), what stands under anything (a building, a contract, a promise). ” From Robertson’s Word Pictures

In this case, it is used as a contract of deed. Faith is the TITLE-DEED of things hoped for. It is the document that states clearly that you can have confidence in God‘s promises.

 FIRST THINGS FIRST

Faith is the Title Deed That says, “Because you have believed in Jesus Christ, you have inherited eternal life.” Almost everyone knows John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” That is the language of the Title-Deed.

The details of that title deed are detailed in the verses that follow:

“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” John 3:16-18 – ESV

Here you can see that there is spelled out a distinction between who inherits and who doesn’t inherit. Because you have believed, your first inheritance is Eternal Life. Those words are from Christ Himself. You can rest assured of your salvation, which is the language of the second half of the verse: “the conviction of things not seen.” Heb 11:1 – ESV

The number of Humans who have been to Heaven and returned to tell about it are few and far between. Chances are that you and I are not in that group. Because we hold the title deed to an eternal life, we can hold to the conviction that it has already been granted to us. You don’t have to stop what you are doing and go see the real estate. It is already your inheritance. Nothing in the world can take your inheritance away because it was signed over to you in the blood of the one who promised it to you.

BUT WHAT ELSE?

THAT is the bazillion dollar question!

The reason we were not raptured the second we accepted Christ as our Saviour and Lord is because he has a work for us to do here. Jesus has given you the authority to do those things. Jesus said to the Disciples: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12 NASB

Anyone with one eye and half a brain can tell things are going terribly wrong on this planet. THe reason we are still here is so we can bring the gospel to anyone who will listen. We have been given the authority to do that by Jesus Himself. You do NOT need your church’s permission to obey Christ. You do not need anything but a solid understanding of the scripture and faith. And Jesus has guaranteed that you will have all the tools He had at your disposal, PLUS more.

These facts are in the Title-Deed of our inheritance. While we are still here on this planet, we have the promise of salvation, and the promise that, if we believe, and obey, we are empowered to do all that Jesus Himself did to bring others to Himself.

BUT IT IS HARD!

Yes. It is hard. And most likely, people will think you are insane. People will hate you. People will run from you. People will lie about you, try to trip you up, and basically call you nuts…and it may begin with your family.

I can attest before God, I have, on more than one occasion, seen people try to kill me for the sake of the Gospel, but God always delivers. In fact, one of the would be assassins became a Christian, and later his wife became a Christian. Today, they live in California, and have a pretty good church going out there. They reach people that most ordinary Christians would run in fear from.

These things can be done because FAITH is your Title-Deed that assures you that whatever you ask in Jesus name will be done for you, if you are praying in God’s will. This assurance is the conviction of the thing hoped for.

“Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. “ – Mat 18:19 NASB

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” – Mat 7:7

“For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.” – Mat 7:8

BE RECKLESS ABOUT IT, TOO.

My favorite devotional is written by the daughter of Oswald Chambers. Chambers was the Chaplain for the British Airmen during WWI, while they were stationed in the Saudi deserts. Chambers wrote a diary that later became the famous devotional book called “My Utmost For His Highest”.

In several of the devotionals, Chambers describes this faith, this assurance, this conviction of things hoped for, as something we have to throw ourselves into with “reckless abandon”. Have no thought for yourself image, for your safety, for anything other than being willing to take that one step off the cliff, knowing that God is there to see you through to a path of His design.

There is a child like freedom in this kind of faith. When my daughter was a toddler, she had no problem or hesitation about running as fast as she could and jumping into my arms. She knew without hesitation that I would catch her. We have to put aside our practical worldliness. We have to put aside all concerns for how we will look to others. We just have to have the Joy of our salvation, and the faith that whatever it is that God asked you to do, you can do it with out fear or concern. Jesus promised you that you have eternity as your reward, and all the power in the Kingdom of Heaven to accomplish what God has asked you to do.

Do we really want revival? Start with yourself. Be recklessly abandoned to the assurance of the things hoped for, and stand on the conviction of the things not seen.

We need revival in this land. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit to do that thing that God has asked us to do. We can do this because we have our salvation. We have our salvation because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. The fields are ripe for harvest. Let’s be about it.

 

 

 

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The Return to God, Part II: God Will Then Let You Know He Is Aware of Your Situation


Part II: God will then let you know he is aware of your situation.

(All Bible quotes used herein are from the ESV, by means of the excellent software: e-Sword. )

I think the thing that slowed my return to God was me…my thoughts, my fears, the dread of being judged as irredeemable.

I was in the way of my own redemption. I had strayed pretty far. I didn’t know how to return to where I was. I didn’t know the way back. I could recall the day of my Salvation. But it seemed a lifetime ago, and I had done SO many things, much of it on purpose, to anger the Living God. I figured I had become irredeemable. Incurable. Incapable of being acceptable to God. Chances are you might feel that way too.

I had completely forgotten what Jesus said about any who are saved.

John 6:37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

John 10:28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Do you remember the day you were saved? Maybe it was a long time ago, and you have not lived the “victorious life”.  Maybe the burden of separation from God seems like it is too much for you.

But take it from me, one who recently returned, Jesus meant it when He said: I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. And: whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

I had forgotten this. I can remember the day of my salvation. But I had forgotten the above. When I recalled these verses, and finally realized what these verses mean, I realized that A: When Jesus said, ” and no one will snatch them out of my hand. ” He also meant that I myself cannot snatch ME out of His hand.  Jesus said repeatedly throughout His ministry that we can curse and blaspheme God and Jesus, and do all manner of wickedness, and be forgiven, as long as we have not blasphemed the Holy Spirit.  I knew I was saved. My doubts of being able to be forgiven was standing in the way of my redemption to God from my sins.

This Psalm describes how I was feeling:

Psalm 42:1- 2: As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?

I missed God. I missed serving Christ. I knew I was lost, and thirsty for the sweet presence of God in my life. I had to get out of my way. and that is when the changes started to happen.

First, I prayed:

Psalm 5:1-2: Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning. Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray.

AND

From Psalm 51: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.

This is what I discovered:

Psalm 145:8 – 9: The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The LORD is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.

So I unloaded everything on God:

Psalm 55:22 – Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

And, Psalm 57:2 – I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.

I have to confess. I mean I was prepared to hear Him tell me to go to hell. And I felt I deserved it. But God let me know he has been aware of what I had been up to all along, that he had never taken His eyes off me. And He didn’t do it in a way that was accusative. He did it in a way that let me know I can stop it now, and be forgiven. He knew anyway.

Psalm 44:20-21 If we had forgotten the name of our God or spread out our hands to a foreign god, would not God discover this? For he knows the secrets of the heart.

And:

Psalm 138:8 The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Psalm 145:8 The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

Psalm 145:9 The LORD is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.

Because you were saved, and because of the Blood of Christ you can rest assured:

1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

You will suddenly know: Psalm 40:1- 3 I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the LORD.

God knows you are in a plight. He always knew. He quietly intervened on your behalf, in ways you will discover after your return to Him. He led you to the point where you understood how far you strayed. No one who belongs to Him is irredeemable.

You discover: Lamentations 3:21 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Understand this, when you began to feel the weight of your guilt for leaving God, it was God making you aware he knows what plight you are in. It was God drawing you back to Him. It was the Holy Spirit convicting you of your need to return. He was letting you know that He knows. That you were the only thing standing in your way.

God gives you the strength and courage to confess, to return, to repent. You have earned this right because you were and are saved by the blood of Christ Jesus. Jesus has made it possible for you to go before God and do business with Him:

Hebrews 10:19-21 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Christ prayed for you. That you will never be snatched out of His hand. He came after you because of His love for you. The fact that you began to miss God, and desired to return to Him is a sure sign that the Spirit of God was at work in your heart. HE KNEW your plight and came after you.

Matthew 18:12-13 What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray.

You are home now. God went out of his way to find you, and heaven itself rejoiced over your return to Him.

THIS is where things get really interesting.

Stay tuned for Part III: God has made you exactly the way you are, so that you can do exactly what He intends for you to do.

If you would like prayer, please write me at: sammysnardfarkle@gmail.com

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