Author: America's Keswick

The purpose of America's Keswick is to model and teach Biblical victorious living in Christ Jesus, to provide an environment in which Biblical life transformation takes place and to foster active personal involvement in the local church.

Do Battle with Temptation with Prayer

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DO BATTLE WITH TEMPTATION WITH PRAYER

“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16

Everyone of us faces temptations. There are times when the battle seems to rage out of control. One of the major ways we can do battle with temptation is by praying. Today’s insight on this topic comes from VOICES FROM THE PAST (Banner of Truth):

[Jesus instructed His disciples] to ‘pray that you do not enter temptation.’ Prayer is a means to preserve us from it. All men that know nothing of prayer, know what glorious things it can do, yet half is not told of its excellence, power and effectiveness to avoid temptation.

Prayer casts our souls into a military posture of opposition to temptation (Ephesians 6:18). Without prayer, the armor of God will be of no value to stand against Satan’s strategies. Consider what weight Paul lays on prayer when he says, “praying always!” He means at all times and in all seasons.

We should always be ready and prepared for the discharge of this important duty (Luke 18:1). Paul also exhorts, ‘with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.’ We are to pray with desires for God, that are suited to our condition, and according to His will, in which we are assisted by the Holy Spirit. We are to be watchful in it, so we are not diverted by ANYTHING whatsoever, and we are to pray with all perseverance to the very end, that we might stand firm.

The soul thus engaged is in a healthy posture. Without prayer, this important work will not be accomplished. If we do not abide in prayer, we shall abide in cursed temptations. With this in mind — abide in prayer with this express purpose: that we do not enter into temptation.

Let this be one part of our daily wrestling with God: that He might preserve our souls, and keep our hearts and our ways. Pray that His good and wise providence will order our ways and affairs, that no pressing temptation might befall us. Pray that He would give us diligence, carefulness, and watchfulness over all our ways, that we should be delivered when others are held fast with cords of their own folly. — Puritan Preacher — John Owen

I needed to be reminded of this truth this morning. Are you do battle with temptation today? Don’t try to do it in YOUR strength. Pray! Pray! Pray! And allow HIM to come to your aid. — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 9; 1 Samuel 13-14; Luke 1o:1-24

Dig This Quote: Let us never forget that the Husbandman is never so near the land as when he is plowing it, the very time when we are tempted to think He hath forsaken us. His plowing is a proof that He thinks you of value, and worth chastening: for He does not waste His plowing on the barren sand. He will not plow continually, but only for a time, and for a definite purpose. Soon, aye soon, we shall, through these painful processes and by His gentle showers of grace, become His fruitful land. Mrs. Charles E. Cowman

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 119:11; Level 2 — Psalm 51:5-9

TAKE THE CHALLENGE: May is fast approaching and we will be hosting our 2nd annual Family Freedom Walk on Saturday, May 8th. You can help in two ways. 1. walk – call guest services to obtain a walk package, solicit sponsors and come to the walk. 2. (this is a fun one) Sponsor Freedom Fighters for the walk. We are having a friendly competition between the 2 groups of devotional readers (Freedom Fighters and Victory Call).

Our goal is to raise more funds for the Freedom Fighters team than the women raise for the Victory Call team.If you would like to join the fun, simply go to this link on our website: Donate for Family Freedom Walk fill out the information and indicate in the “DESIGNATION” area : Family Freedom Walk: Freedom Fighters or if you prefer make your check out to America’s KESWICK and put in the memo line: FFW/Freedom Fighters and mail to : America’s KESWICK 601 Route 530 Whiting, NJ 08759. ALL DONATIONS MUST ARRIVE NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY, MAY 5TH in order to be counted for our TEAM. Come on men, we can do it!!!

Sit Still

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Sit Still

“Their strength is to sit still.” Isaiah 30:7

Yesterday marked the second year anniversary of an amazing six week journey for our family. Some of you will remember that our precious granddaughter, Lindsay, had her first open heart surgery two years ago, beginning a six week journey that we have called the worst/best six weeks of our lives.

As men, we are fixers. I am sure you have heard your wife say as mine has had on numerous occasions, “I don’t want you to fix this situation, just listen!” I wanted to fix Lindsay. I wanted to step in and take away the pain and hurt for my kids. But on the day of her surgery, God spoke to my heart and said “SIT STILL!”

He used the words from Streams in the Desert to quiet my heart when it was stirred with fear and anxiety. Listen to these words:

Inner stillness is an absolute necessity to truly knowing God. I remember learning this during a time of great crisis in my life. My entire being seemed to throb with anxiety, and the sense of need for immediate and powerful action was overwhelming. Yet the circumstances were such that I could do NOTHING, and the person who could have helped would not move.

For a time it seemed as if I would fall to pieces due to my inner turmoil. Then suddenly “a still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12) whispered in the depths of my soul, “Be still, and know that I am God” Psalm 46:10. The words were spoken with power and I obeyed. I composed myself, bringing my body to complete stillness, and forced my trouble spirit into quietness. Only then, while looking up and waiting, did I know that it was God who had spoken. He was in the midst of my crisis and my helplessness, and I rested in Him.

This was an experience I would not have missed for anything. I would also say it was from the stillness that the power seemed to arise to deal with the crisis, and that very quickly brought it to a successful resolution. It was during this crisis I effectively learned that my “strength is to sit still.”

There is a perfect passivity that is not laziness. It is a living stillness born of trust. Quiet tension is not trust but simply compressed anxiety. — Hannah Whitall Smith

Looking back today to two years ago — we could have written those words. We give testimony to the fact that this was true! There was NOTHING we could do but to SIT STILL and wait on Him. What are YOU facing today in YOUR life? Is it something YOU can’t fix? Then take His words into YOUR heart today — SIT STILL! — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 8; 1 Samuel 10-12; Luke 9:37-62

Dig This Quote: Christ did not teach and suffer that we might become, even in the natural loves, more careful of our own happiness. If a man is not uncalculating towards the earthly beloveds whom he has seen, he is none the more likely to be so towards God whom he has not. We shall draw nearer to God, not by trying to avoid the sufferings inherent in all loves, but by accepting them and offering them to Him; throwing away all defensive armour. If our hearts need to be broken, and if He chooses this as the way in which they should break, so be it. C. S. Lewis (The Four Loves)

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 119:11; Level 2 — Psalm 51:5-9 TAKE THE CHALLENGE: May is fast approaching and we will be hosting our 2nd annual Family Freedom Walk on Saturday, May 8th. You can help in two ways. 1. walk – call guest services to obtain a walk package, solicit sponsors and come to the walk. 2. (this is a fun one) Sponsor Freedom Fighters for the walk. We are having a friendly competition between the 2 groups of devotional readers (Freedom Fighters and Victory Call). Our goal is to raise more funds for the Freedom Fighters team than the women raise for the Victory Call team.

If you would like to join the fun, simply go to this link on our website: Donate for Family Freedom Walk fill out the information and indicate in the “DESIGNATION” area : Family Freedom Walk: Freedom Fighters or if you prefer make your check out to America’s KESWICK and put in the memo line: FFW/Freedom Fighters and mail to : America’s KESWICK 601 Route 530 Whiting, NJ 08759. ALL DONATIONS MUST ARRIVE NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY, MAY 5TH in order to be counted for our TEAM. Come on men, we can do it!!!

Expecting God to Work

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Expecting God to Work

“I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me.” Habakkuk 2:1

Do you REALLY believe that God is at work all around you? I do — but how easy it is to fall back into the trap of not really believing and trusting.

Today’s reading from Streams in the Desert is a good reminder for me about watching for God to work:

Without watching expectation on our part, what is the sense of waiting on God for help? There will be no help without it. If we ever fail to receive strength and protection from Him, it is because we have not been looking for it. Heavenly help is often offered yet it goes right past us. We miss it because we are not standing in the tower, carefully watching the horizon for evidence of its approach. and then are unready to throw the gates of our heart open so it may enter. The person who has no expectations and therefore fails to be on the alert will receive little help. WATCH FOR GOD IN THE EVENTS OF YOUR LIFE!



There is an old saying: “They who watch for the providence of God will never lack the providence of God to watch for.” And we could turn the saying around as well and say, “They who never watch for the providence of God will never have the providence of God to watch for.” Unless you put the water jars out when it rains, you will never collect the water.

We need to be more businesslike and use common sense with God in claiming HIS promises. If a man were to go to the bank several times a day, lay his paycheck at the teller’s window, and then pick it up and leave without cashing it, it would not be long before the bank would have him ordered from the premises.

People who go to the bank have a purpose in mind. They present their check, receive their cash, and then leave, having transacted REAL business. They do not lay their check on the counter, discuss the beauty of the signature, and point out the lovely design on it. No, they want to receive money for their check and will not be satisfied without it. These are the people who are always welcome at the bank, unlike those who always waste the teller’s time.

Unfortunately, a great many people also play at praying. They do not expect God to give them an answer, so they simply squander their prayer time. Our heavenly Father desires us to transact real business with Him in our praying. — Charles Haddon Spurgeon — Streams in the Desert

Are we willing to trust God to work all around us? I know that I needed to be reminded of this truth today. As Habakkuk declared, I will stand at my watch and look for Him to work today! — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK



Digging Deeper: Proverbs 7; 1 Samuel 7-9; Luke 9:18-36

Dig This Quote: What do we want? What would we be at? What do our souls desire? Is it not that we might have a more full, clear, stable comprehension of the wisdom, love, grace, goodness, holiness, righteousness, and power of God, as declared and exalted in Christ unto our redemption and eternal salvation?John Owen

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 119:11; Level 2 — Psalm 51:5-9

TAKE THE CHALLENGE: May is fast approaching and we will be hosting our 2nd annual Family Freedom Walk on Saturday, May 8th. You can help in two ways. 1. walk – call guest services to obtain a walk package, solicit sponsors and come to the walk. 2. (this is a fun one) Sponsor Freedom Fighters for the walk. We are having a friendly competition between the 2 groups of devotional readers (Freedom Fighters and Victory Call). Our goal is to raise more funds for the Freedom Fighters team than the women raise for the Victory Call team.If you would like to join the fun, simply go to this link on our website https://01.secure.elexio.com/donations.aspx?id=366346&websiteurl=http://www.americaskeswick.org&siteid=2184 fill out the information and indicate in the “DESIGNATION” area : Family Freedom Walk: Freedom Fighters or if you prefer make your check out to America’s KESWICK and put in the memo line: FFW/Freedom Fighters and mail to : America’s KESWICK 601 Route 530 Whiting, NJ 08759. ALL DONATIONS MUST ARRIVE NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY, MAY 5TH in order to be counted for our TEAM. Come on men, we can do it!!!

He Was There All Three

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He Was In All Three

“But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built!” 2 Chronicles 6:18 (ESV)

So while my study into the “Life Principles for Worship from the Tabernacle” has continued this question pops up from the leaders guide. “What similarities do you see between the Tabernacle, and the Temple, and the life of a believer in Jesus?” Well it’s all about where we meet God to worship Him. We first have to realize that God has been trying to get back into communion with us since Genesis 3:6. Then we can go step by step in His instruction on the how’s, why’s, where’s and when’s we are to worship Him. Notice I didn’t have say the “who” we are to worship.

In the Tabernacle of Meeting that was built in the wilderness every pattern, design, and order of worship were His. He had a straight arrow planned purpose in what He commanded and what He had revealed. When you look at the way the nation of Israel had to camp and the formation they were in when they traveled it is in the form of the Cross, with Him at the center. Everything that was used in the Tabernacle had signified some aspect of the nature of Him and His relationship with His people. And the great “I am” lead His people by a cloud of glory during the day and by a pillar of fire by night.

Before King David dies he announces that his son, Solomon, has been chosen to build a new “house for the sanctuary.” David gives Solomon the “Deuteronomical” blessing to “Be strong and of good courage, and do it; do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord God-my God-will be with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you, until you have finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord.”(2 Chronicles 28:20) When Solomon finishes building, the priests are done with the ritual cleansing and sacrifices (there was much in the way of sacrifice) and the Ark of the Covenant is placed in the Holy of Holies-the Shekinah Glory Cloud of the Lord fills the Temple, reclaiming His place as the center or focal point of worship.

Well so far I find two places that have similarities to where we can find God…in the Old Testament. But now we have a new covenant and a New Testament. Jesus walks into Herod’s temple, lets the pigeons loose and dumps the money-changers tables. “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” they cry out. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” He proclaims. Those folks hanging out at Herod’s temple never even realize that they are a slave to the grind of what they think is worship/atonement. He is among them and yet their hearts are so hard and blind they see not the Light that is Jesus Himself. But this isn’t the third place I find my last similarity.

They were all with one accord in one place when a gale force wind comes rushing into the house where they were. Then what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and rested upon each one of them. This may not be the “Shekinah Glory Cloud of the Lord” but these men were filled with the Holy Spirit and they began to speak in another “dialecto” or in another tongue. I say this is my third similarity. The wind is kicking up the dust making a dust cloud and the fire of the Holy Spirit being in their mist. Where two or more were gathered in His name to hear a sermon that forever changed how we are to worship after it was realized we were in His Temple the whole time. So, Solomon was the one with wisdom and he still wondered will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? What do you think? — Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a frequent Freedom Fighter contributer

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 6; 1 Samuel 4-6; Luke 9:1-17

Dig This Quote: The ideal is for the whole person to do only what the heart directs. Spiritual formation in Christ is the process leading to that ideal, and its result is love of God with all of the heart, soul, mind, and strength and love of neighbor as oneself. Each aspect or dimension of the person will be a source of weakness or strength to the whole person, depending on the condition it is in. The condition it is in will depend on the heart. A person who is prepared and capable of responding to the situations of life in ways that are good and right is a person whose soul is in order, under the direction of a well-kept heart, in turn under the direction of God.” Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice — Dallas Willard and Jan Johnson

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 119:11; Level 2 — Psalm 51:5-9

TAKE THE CHALLENGE: May is fast approaching and we will be hosting our 2nd annual Family Freedom Walk on Saturday, May 8th. You can help in two ways. 1. walk – call guest services to obtain a walk package, solicit sponsors and come to the walk. 2. (this is a fun one) Sponsor Freedom Fighters for the walk. We are having a friendly competition between the 2 groups of devotional readers (Freedom Fighters and Victory Call). Our goal is to raise more funds for the Freedom Fighters team than the women raise for the Victory Call team.If you would like to join the fun, simply go to this link on our website https://01.secure.elexio.com/donations.aspx?id=366346&websiteurl=http://www.americaskeswick.org&siteid=2184 fill out the information and indicate in the “DESIGNATION” area : Family Freedom Walk: Freedom Fighters or if you prefer make your check out to America’s KESWICK and put in the memo line: FFW/Freedom Fighters and mail to : America’s KESWICK 601 Route 530 Whiting, NJ 08759. ALL DONATIONS MUST ARRIVE NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY, MAY 5TH in order to be counted for our TEAM. Come on men, we can do it!!!

I Need a Tennis Racket

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I Need a Tennis Racket?

“If I speak in tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing”1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (ESV)

In “The Foremost Webster’s Paperback Dictionary” the definition of love has about five different ideas on what love is. One of them is meant for tennis. Number five says, “A score of zero in tennis”. I think if we take the Scripture reference I am using today we can come up with a zero being the score without love. This chapter starts with Paul plainly coming out and saying that even with a long list of accomplishments if he has not love he is nothing or has gained nothing. So…If I cannot love my neighbor, cannot love myself or I cannot love the Lord my God with all strength, mind, heart and soul, I am nothing? I am a zero? I need to look at this.

Paul tells the spiritually seeking Corinthians a great deal on the subject of love. He walks into the subject by saying, “And I will show you a still more excellent way.” Jaws must have dropped in that crowd, after all the church in Corinth was shooting for the stars with acquiring spiritual gifts. Prior to Paul addressing the issue of love he had to tell these Corinthians how dumb they were for following idols, there being different ministries but the same Spirit and there maybe diversity but still unity in one Church body. It was important that Paul gather all this together so he can tell them the secret ingredient that makes all this the unified body of Christ.

Can you imagine the noise that went on as some Corinthian preachers started to make the attempt to speak another language? If there was no Holy Spirit in the language it must have sounded like fingernails against a chalkboard. Nope that is not good preaching! And to give all your stuff away so everyone can see what you are doing. In that port city they would have taken and left you feeling foolish in front of people. And to this day we’ve had times where Buddhist monks have set themselves on fire as a sign of their protesting the lack of a spiritual oneness with each other. I wonder what The Creator said to them when they came face to face?

Matthew Henry titles his chapter on this part of 1 Corinthians as “THE NECESSITY AND ADVANTAGE OF THE GRACE OF LOVE.” Within the introduction he writes, “Without this, the most glorious gifts are of no account to us, of no esteem in the sight of God. A clear head and a deep understanding, are of no value without a benevolent and charitable heart. There may be an open and lavish hand, where there is not a liberal and charitable heart. Doing good to others will do none to us, if it be not done from love to God, and good-will to men.”

Looking at these three verses I come to the conclusion that if there is no love of God or love for His people when I step into action I am doing whatever I’m doing for no heavenly gain. It reminds of a saying that goes like this…”If it serves no purpose in eternity it is eternally useless.” I sometimes look at what I do for a living and wonder if there is a use for fence and railing in God’s Kingdom. Well He gave me a talent to make this stuff…let’s see what happens at another time. After all there is a decorative purpose for some of what I make as long as I am making it to the Glory of God. — Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a frequent contributor to Freedom Fighter

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 5; 1 Samuel 1-3; Luke 8:26-56

Dig This Quote: “Have you ever thought that Jesus wants you to love Him not merely with your love but with the love which God the Father has for Him? How is this possible? It is possible because of the new birth. Becoming a Christian means getting a new nature, which is given by God. Practically speaking this means that God comes into our lives by the Holy Spirit and begins to give us new affections, new emotions namely the emotions of God. It is the presence of God the Spirit in our lives that causes us to love Jesus with the new love of God the Father.” “Pierced By The Word” John Piper

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 119:11; Level 2 — Psalm 51:5-9

TAKE THE CHALLENGE: May is fast approaching and we will be hosting our 2nd annual Family Freedom Walk on Saturday, May 8th. You can help in two ways. 1. walk – call guest services to obtain a walk package, solicit sponsors and come to the walk. 2. (this is a fun one) Sponsor Freedom Fighters for the walk. We are having a friendly competition between the 2 groups of devotional readers (Freedom Fighters and Victory Call). Our goal is to raise more funds for the Freedom Fighters team than the women raise for the Victory Call team.

If you would like to join the fun, simply go to this link on our website https://01.secure.elexio.com/donations.aspx?id=366346&websiteurl=http://www.americaskeswick.org&siteid=2184 fill out the information and indicate in the “DESIGNATION” area : Family Freedom Walk: Freedom Fighters or if you prefer make your check out to America’s KESWICK and put in the memo line: FFW/Freedom Fighters and mail to : America’s KESWICK 601 Route 530 Whiting, NJ 08759. ALL DONATIONS MUST ARRIVE NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY, MAY 5TH in order to be counted for our TEAM. Come on men, we can do it!!!

HE IS RISEN

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HE IS RISEN!

“Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here: He has been raised! Remember what He said to you, while He was still in Galilee — that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men, and must be crucified, and must rise again on the third day.” Luke 24:5b-7 (Phillips)

Good morning, my brothers! HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED! This quote this morning captures what is in my heart this morning:

Some years ago a newspaper editor telephoned and asked me to tell in a few words what Easter means to me. My testimony was this: Easter means Christ to me. It means Christ in His kingly splendor, Christ in His serene glory, Christ in His gracious condescension. This is because Easter is the return of Christ from inflicted violence, from induced death, from imprisonment in a tomb. Easter is Christ triumphant over all that sin and death could do to Him. EASTER MEANS CHRIST!

And where Christ goes, drama goes. For it is impossible to look anywhere in the Gospels and fail to find something powerful happening. This is because Christ is Himself the Gospel and He is life, abundant life, and His life means action, pilgrimage, arrival.

Easter means life. Christ defeated death in order that life in Him might always live. And it is life that we want, life in Christ. Whether we put it into words or not, our constant thought is “Life, more life, always more and more life!” We want life in ourselves, in our loved ones, in our friends, the kind of life that cannot be diminished, the kind of life that always expands.

Easter is Christ’s victory over all that would restrict, deny and strangle. “For to me to live is Christ.” That is Easter. — Raymond Lindquist

My brothers, is HE your life today? Rejoice! He lives! You ask me HOW I know HE LIVES — He lives within my heart. I trust that HE lives in YOUR heart today! If not, please write and I will be happy to send you information how you can know for certain that He can be YOUR Savior — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK.

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 4; Ruth 1-4; Luke 8:1-25

Dig This Quote: When all other doors in life are closed to us, Jesus will be for us the ever open door. If we really believe this then no situation in life will ever be hopeless. For to call any situation hopeless is to shut the door on God. Anthony M. Coniaris

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 119:11; Level 2 — Psalm 51:5-9

TAKE THE CHALLENGE: May is fast approaching and we will be hosting our 2nd annual Family Freedom Walk on Saturday, May 8th. You can help in two ways. 1. walk – call guest services to obtain a walk package, solicit sponsors and come to the walk. 2. (this is a fun one) Sponsor Freedom Fighters for the walk. We are having a friendly competition between the 2 groups of devotional readers (Freedom Fighters and Victory Call). Our goal is to raise more funds for the Freedom Fighters team than the women raise for the Victory Call team.

If you would like to join the fun, simply go to this link on our website https://01.secure.elexio.com/donations.aspx?id=366346&websiteurl=http://www.americaskeswick.org&siteid=2184 fill out the information and indicate in the “DESIGNATION” area : Family Freedom Walk: Freedom Fighters or if you prefer make your check out to America’s KESWICK and put in the memo line: FFW/Freedom Fighters and mail to : America’s KESWICK 601 Route 530 Whiting, NJ 08759. ALL DONATIONS MUST ARRIVE NO LATER THAN WEDNESDAY, MAY 5TH in order to be counted for our TEAM. Come on men, we can do it!!!

If We Had Been There

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If We Had Been There

Here is food for thought as you contemplate what took place yesterday when Jesus died on the cross for you and me.

If we had been Jews, would we have spoken out for Him when the Sanhedrin accused Him of blasphemy? If we had been Gentiles, would we have defended Him when the Romans condemned Him to death?
If we had been disciples, would we have stayed with Him when the crowd became a crucifying mob? Or would have been like Peter – who followed Him and loved Him and denied Him three times before the dawn?

Where you there when they crucified my Lord? O! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.

And the Christ who was crucified there, once said: “As you have done it to the least of these, My brothers, you have done it unto Me.”As nations rise in war. As governments oppress the poor. As passive people turn and look aside –In silence We crucify. Again, We crucify.

As indifference forms the pattern of our lives,As hungry children cry for food, As widows mourn alone in empty rooms, In apathy – we crucify. Again – we crucify.

Were you there when they nailed Him to a tree? O! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.

I think of the nails that crucified my Lord. They were made of iron, but more – They were made of hatred, prejudice and greed. And I wonder – what part of myself is found in the shadow of that mob that stretches down through history? What part of myself creates nails in other forms that wound my brother – and my Lord?

You know how many times I have betrayed You, Lord.You know the times I have chosen evil over good. Guilt lies upon me like an iron cloak. My soul is heavy – my burden hard.

Were you there when He rose up from the grave? O! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.

In the act of death He absorbs our sins. In love, He forgives our failures. In the act of resurrection He gives the promise of acceptance, the assurance of forgiveness, the affirmation of eternal life. “Your sins are forgiven you”, He said, “Go and sin no more.”

Through your love, I am made whole, Through your death, I have found new life. You are my shield, my redeemer, my hope. My sins are forgiven – Reading from Hymns for the Family of God

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 3; Judges 19-21; Luke 7:31-50

Dig This Quote: As you gaze upon the cross, and long for conformity to him, be not weary or fearful because you cannot express in words what you seek. Ask him to plant the cross in your heart. Believe in him, the crucified and now living one, to dwell within you, and breathe his own mind there. Andrew Murray

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 91:1; Level 2- Psalm 51:1-4

Join us tonight for our Keswick Celebration Choir presentation of KNOWN BY THE SCARS. 7:00 PM at the Activity Center. You can also watch live at www.americaskeswick.org.

Check out this week’s STEWARDSHIP INSIGHT from George. We appreciate George providing this insight for us: http://keswickgeorge.blogspot.com/2010/03/whats-so-bad-about-being-in-financial.html

Good Friday — Substitution

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GOOD FRIDAY — SUBSTITUTION

SUBSTITUTION

See, my servant will prosper; he will be highly exalted. But many were amazed when they saw him. His face was so disfigured he seemed hardly human, and from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man. And he will startle many nations. Kings will stand speechless in his presence. For they will see what they had not been told; they will understand what they had not heard about.

Who has believed our message? To whom has the LORD revealed his powerful arm? My servant grew up in the LORD’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground.There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him.
He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins.He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own.Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all.
He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word.He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.8 Unjustly condemned, he was led away.No one cared that he died without descendants, that his life was cut short in midstream. But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people. He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone.But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man’s grave.
But it was the LORD’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants.He will enjoy a long life, and the LORD’s good plan will prosper in his hands. When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied.And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins. I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier, because he exposed himself to death.He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels. — Isaiah 52:13-53:12
And my brothers, He was nailed to the Cross for YOU and ME! What wondrous love is this, O my soul. Take some time today to reflect on what HE did for you on the Cross. — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK

Join us tomorrow night at 7:00 PM for our Choir Extravaganza Concert — KNOWN BY THE SCARS. The concert is in the Activity Center. If you cannot join us on site, you can watch the concert on the website: www.americaskeswick.org

Dig This Quote: No vital Christianity is possible unless at least three aspects of it are developed. These are the inner life of devotion, the outer life of service, and the intellectual life of rationality. Elton Trueblood
Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 91:1; Level 2 — Psalm 51:1-4

Consider Yourself Dead to Sin

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Join us Saturday evening for our Celebration Choir Concert: Known By the Scars. 100-voice choir and congregational praise. 7:00 PM — Activity Center. Come bring a friend. If you can’t join us live, you can watch the concert from our website: http://www.americaskeswick.org/.

Consider Yourself Dead to Sin

“Consider yourself dead to sin and alive to God.” Romans 6:11

Tomorrow we remember what Christ did for us on the cross. With that in mind, I thought that the reading from VOICES FROM THE PAST –Puritan Devotional Readings (Banner of Truth) was so appropriate and timely. It was written by the great preacher Thomas Brooks:

We do not stand in our own righteousness, but in the perfect, spotless, and matchless righteousness of the Lord Jesus. Weak hearts are apt to be troubled and discouraged when the look upon the sin that is in them, and the imperfections that attend their best service. Yet in Christ we have all.
Your sins shall never provoke Christ to give you a bill of divorce. They may provoke Him to frown upon you, chide you, correct you, but they will never provoke Christ to give you a bill of divorce. This is a great support that sin shall never separate us from God. It is slain judicially, and it is under the sentence of condemnation. It has been sentenced though not fully put to death. The power of it is much abated, and its dominion and tyranny are overpowered.

The Lord has stripped sin of all its ruling, reigning, domineering, and tyrannizing power. O, Christian, look upon sin as DEAD! It is not to be obeyed, and not to be acknowledged. The Lord Jesus has given sin a mortal wound by His death and Spirit, and by the communication of grace to the soul. Thus sin shall NEVER recover its strength and shall die a lingering death in the souls of the saints. It is like a tree cut at the root with a serious gash, and must die soon. Though for a time it may flourish, it may have leaves and fruit, yet it secretly dies, and will shortly wither and perish.

Christ did not die all at once upon the cross, so the slaying of sin is gradual in the souls of the saints. Christ has given sin such a mortal blow, it will NEVER recover. We may truly say that it is slain. Therefore, cheer up O weak souls, for certainly sin that is thus slain can never provoke Jesus to give you a bill of divorce!

Amen, brothers? As your heart and mind meditate on what Christ suffered on the cross, remember this — HE DID IT FOR YOU! And He died for our sins! Hallelujah! Consider yourself dead to sin today and alive to God! — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK

Dig This Quote: I can get more out of God by believing Him for one minute than by shouting at Him all night. Smith Wigglesworth
Determined Digging — Level 1 — Psalm 91:1; Level 2 — Psalm 51:1-4

Calvary’s Anthem

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Calvary’s Anthem

For the next several days, I want to share a few prayers and hymns to help prepare our hearts for Good Friday.

Here is a powerful prayer written by one of the Puritans and published in THE VALLEY OF VISION (Banner of Truth).

Think through the words as you reflect on what Christ did for YOU on the cross:

Heavenly Father,
You have led me singing to the cross where I fling down all my burdens and see them vanish,
where my mountains of guilt are leveled to a plain,
where my sin disappears, though they are the greatest that exist,
and are more in number than the grains of fine sand.

For there is power in the blood of Calvary
to destroy sins more than can be counted
even by one from the choir of heaven.
You have given me a hill-side spring that washes clear and white,
and I go as a sinner to its waters,
bathing without hindrance is its crystal streams.

At the Cross there is free forgiveness for poor and meek ones,
and ample blessings that last forever;
The blood of the Lamb is like a great river of infinite grace
with never any diminishing of its fullness
as thirsty ones without number drink of it.

O Lord, for ever will Your free forgiveness live
that was gained on the mount of blood;
In the midst of a world of pain
it is a subject for praise in every place,
a song on earth, an anthem in heaven,
its love and virtue knowing no end.

I have a longing for the world above
where multitudes sing the great song,
for my soul was never created to love the dust of the earth.
Though here my spiritual state is frail and poor,
I shall go on singing Calvary’s anthem.
May I always know that a clean heart full of goodness
is more beautiful than the lily,
that only a clean heart can sing by night and day,
that such a heart is mine when I abide at Calvary.

Amen!

Take some time today to meditate on this prayer. Thank HIM for what He did for you at Calvary! — Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s KESWICK

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 31; Judges 11-12; Luke 6:1-26

Dig This Quote: He is always thinking about us. We are before His eyes. The Lord’s eye never sleeps, but is always watching out for our welfare. We are continually on his heart. – Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Determined Digging: Level 1 — Psalm 91:1; Level 2 — Psalm 51:1-4