“I must not be disheartened when I flub in my spiritual life. A lot of flubs are not sins, just mistakes, and mistakes are the marks of immaturity and greenness. An infant makes endless mistakes, but is parents do not give up on him — they realize he is an infant. They know that he will outgrow a lot of his childishness.

As a disciple of Jesus Christ I must believe in progressive satisfaction. When God begins a work, the result thereof must be His satisfaction. His creation was very good. He viewed the work of His Son on Calvary and was satisfied. So I believe He is progressively satisfied with His work in His children, especially His growing children. This does not mean that our condition at a given moment is perfect morally, but it means that, like a potter, He is satisfied with our progress.

This also means that I must forget comparison with others. Comparison means we are at the same point, on the same level. But no two children of God are ever at precisely the same point, on the same level. I must not therefore, compare myself to David Brainerd, Henry Martyn, or Jim Elliot. I must only ask God if He is satisfied with my progress at a given moment. If He is, all is well, even though flaws and specs appear in my makeup.

The basic thing God looks for in me is not the absence of flaws but the presence of moldable clay. He can easily work out the flaws, but He cannot do a thing with clay that is hard, brittle, and crumbly. Brittleness means I have been hurt somewhere along the line and have not
gotten over it.

Lord, I want to be the best clay, soft and conformable to Your image! You ask, ‘Can I not . . . deal with you as this potter does?’ (Jeremiah 18:6) Yes, Lord, You can — abundantly, perfectly, eternally.” from DAILY WITH THE KING by W. Glyn Evans

Just in case you ever question God’s call upon your life . . . remember He uses people who faced challenges in their lives to do extraordinary things . . .

Moses stuttered.
David was an adulterer and murderer.
Hosea’s wife was a prostitute.
John Mark (who wrote the Gospel of Mark) was rejected by the Apostle Paul.
Abraham was too to become a father.
Sarah was too old to become a mother.
Peter acted impulsively and had a hot temper.
David was too young and small to fight Goliath.
Jonah ran from God.
Gideon and Thomas both doubted God’s voice.
Jeremiah was depressed and suicidal.
Martha was a worrywart.
Samson’s hair was too long.
Paul was a persecutor.

What about you? Is there a “challenge in your life” that is keeping you from God’s call upon your life?

“I will not walk as a disciple very long before realizing that God is a God of break-ins. He broke into Abraham’s life: ‘The God of glory appeared to . . . Abraham’ (Acts 7:2). The patriarch’s normal, average, everyday life was broken into. Whenever God does that it always means a
new direction for things, such as the time He broke into the life of Paul.

The appearances of God, whether visible or inward, are always along the line of interruption or change. Often the change is not understood by us. ‘He went out, not knowing where he was going’ (Hebrews 11:8) Abraham did not understand that God was going to make him a universal man, a true ‘father of the faithful.’ So it must come to me as a disciple. GOD MUST RESERVE FOR HIMSELF THE RIGHT OF TE INITIATIVE, THE RIGHT TO BREAK INTO MY LIFE WITHOUT QUESTION OR EXPLANATION. That shattering phone call, that disturbing letter, that unquenchable vision may indeed be the first stage of God’s interruption in my life. I must be ready, never doubtful.

Since God does the initiating, He must be responsible for the consequences. Nowhere does God start something and then say, ‘All right, the rest is up to those actions. For me that is a warning — do not tamper with the consequences that God has already appointed for me. But that also is my comfort; I need not worry about something that is out of my hands.

My response must always be to keep a sharp eye on God and obey His Word implicitly. Then He will surprise me with delights! ‘Be ready by morning, and come up . . . and present yourself . . . to Me on the top of the mountain . . . And the Lord descended in the cloud and stood there with him.’ (Exodus 34:2-5).

from Daily With the King by W. Glyn Evans published by Moody Press

Good word for your consideration on this August 10, 2005.

“Despite my sins, God is able to deal with me because He sees me complete in Christ (Colossians 2:10). That is not only a theological position, but also a means of my relating to all my brothers and sisters in Christ. I often fail in my interpersonal relationships because I see people as they are, not as they are in Christ. Paul’s ambition for everyone was to ‘present every man perfect [mature, full grown] in Christ’ (Colossians 1:28). In preaching the gospel, Paul had to see his
hearers as already completed in Christ.

I have had Christians say, ‘I don’t know why God puts up with me, I’m so weak and erring.’ Indeed we are! But God puts up with us because He sees the end product as actually realized. The difference between WHAT WE ARE and WHAT WE SHALL BE is the process of working out the ideal, which, in God’s eyes, has already been achieved. God is patient with us because He sees us PERFECTED, and you cannot become impatient with perfection.

So it is with my brother and me. The reason I am impatient with him is because I see his raw, ragged faults, not the ‘measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ’ in him (Ephesians 4:13). The moment I see him ‘perfect in Christ,’ the moment I will lose my irritation, discouragement, and exasperation with him. To be troubled by my fellow Christian is really not HIS fault, it is mine, because of a short-sightedness concerning Christ’s finished redemption. I deny, for
my brother, the Calvary work of Jesus Christ. I must keep in mind that heartwarming word of John, ‘It has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that when HE appears we shall see HIM as HE IS!’ (1 John 3:2)

Thank God for foreseen perfection — for my brother and for me!” from DAILY WITH THE KING by W. Glyn Evans published by Mood Press

Here are some insights on temptation from our good friend, Pat Williams:

1. When in doubt — don’t do it!
2. To tell whether an action is right or wrong, ask what would happen if everyone did it.
3. “Whenever the New Testament lingers on the subject of sensual temptation, it gives one command — RUN! The Bible does not tell us to reason with it. It does not tell us to think about it and claim verses. It tells us to FLEE! I have discovered that you cannot yield to sensuality if you are running away from it. So — run for your life! Get out of there! If you try to reason with lust or play around with sensual thoughts, you will finally yield. You can’t fight it. That’s why the Spirit of God forcefully commands, ‘RUN’! (from Chuck Swindoll)
4. Never give the enemy opportunity to trip you by offering him ammunition. ‘Any movie, book, magazine, friend, party, event or website that puts temptation into your mind is an open door to allow Satan into your life.
5. Never let self-assurance blind you to the possibility of an attack; never allow yourself to feel impervious to a fall.

Good words from “Unsinkable …Getting Out of Life’s Pits and Staying Out” by Pat Williams published by Revell

“Modern Christianity is simply not producing the kind of Christian who can appreciate or experience life in the Spirit. The words, ‘Be still, and know that I am God,’ mean next to nothing to the self-confident, bustling worshipper . . . .

This loss of the concept of majesty has come just when the forces of religion are making dramatic gains and the churches are more prosperous than at any time within the past several hundred years. But the alarming thing is that our gains are mostly external and our losses wholly internal; and since it is the quality of our religion that is affected by internal conditions, it may be that our supposed gains are but losses spread over a wider field . . .

The decline of the knowledge of the holy has brought on our troubles. A rediscovery of the majesty of God will go a long way toward curling them. It is impossible to keep our moral practices sound and our inward attitudes right while our idea of God is erroneous or inadequate. IF we would bring back spiritual power to our lives, we must begin to think of God more nearly as He is.” A. W. Tozer from TOZER FOR TODAY . . . TOZER ON THE ALMIGHTY GOD

“For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward.” — Deuteronomy 10:17

I am an avid reader and this weekend I finished a new book by one of my favorite authors, Jack Cavanaugh. Jack teamed up with the late Dr. Bill Bright to write a series of historical fiction books based on the revivals in America known as the Great Awakening. The second book in the
series is called FIRE. It is based on the preaching ministry of Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield.

The main character of the story is Pastor Josiah Rush and he has recorded in his journal insight into the “soul sickness” he observed in the lives of the people of his town. He describes six distinct stages of soul sickness that are worth considering today:

1. INSENSITIVITY — there is a cooling of spiritual zeal. Worship becomes routine. Bible reading and prayer are neglected. The things of the world take on greater importance than the things of the kingdom. God is thought to be distant, and thus is no longer feared. Men’s spirits
become calloused.

2. INITIAL PAIN — one becomes dissatisfied with life. Things that once were pleasurable become ordinary, even despised. There is no satisfaction in work. Family members are taken for granted or ignored. Food and drink lose their ability to cheer. There is a general feeling
of anxiety about life.

3. INCREASED PAIN — Depression sets in, as does bitterness and resentment. Dissatisfaction turns to anger. Those infected are quick to blame others and quick to find fault. There is a loss of sleep and a loss of appetite. At this stage relationships cause more pain than joy. People are defensive and quick to anger.

4. UNCHARACTERISTIC BEHAVIOR PATTERNS EMERGE — there is a noticeable change in personality. There are premeditated acts of revenge and hate that never would have been associated with the person previously. Camaraderie and wicked joy is found in promoting acts of party spirit. (At this stage, Christians often realize that what they are doing is wrong, but they find themselves unable to stop.) The cycle of guilt starts.

5. INCREASE IN DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIOR — shameful, hurtful, divisive acts are rationalized as being justified. The infected persons are blinded to the consequences of their actions. A prideful martyr spirit grows to such extent that the persons infected not only believe they are
justified in their sinful acts, they take pride in their sin.

6. THE SPIRIT DIES — All guilt is gone. A person sins without fear of impunity. Corruption, immorality, blasphemy, rage, drunkenness, orgies, factions, and idolatry are accepted and at times embraced as part of being human. Acts of sin are viewed as empowering. Violence is enjoyed. Self-destructive behavior results. The person lives as an antichrist.

Interesting observations for our consideration from 1740! Does it sound familiar? Check out YOUR heart today. I recommend this series to you. Available in the KESWICK BOOKSTORE:
FIRE by Jack Cavanaugh published by Howard Publishing.

Two years ago our facility was approved by the American Red Cross as a site that could be used to service our community in the event of a natural disaster or God forbid, a terror attack due to our proximity to two military bases as well as nuclear reactor. We went through a series of emergency procedures and talked about the “what-if” scenarios. On Tuesday evening there was an accident a Keswick Pines, the lifecare retirement facility next to our property. A maintenance man was working on a boiler that exploded and the elderly residents, except for the medical patients needed to be evacuated.

With the assistance of the Manchester Township Fire and Police and the American Red Cross, the Activity Center of America’s KESWICK was turned into a “temporary hotel” for over 210 senior citizens. The staff from Keswick Pines and America’s KESWICK did a phenomenal job in helping these precious people through a very traumatic event in their lives. Most of them had already been in bed — dressed in the pj’s!

The following morning I was walking through the Activity Center moving from cot to cot welcoming them to our facility and trying to help the other staff adjust to their new environment. As I looked into their faces you could sense gratefulness that they had temporary housing, but apprehension over how long they would be displaced. Some of them just
needed a hug, a handshake and a smile to settle them down to let them know it would be alright.

As I watched our staff in action, my mind raced back to the Scriptures. What would Jesus have done in this situation? I could see Him moving through the crowd calming the storm with His presence. I saw touching them with his hands that provided calmness and peace to a difficult
situation. I then realized that this is the privilege we have as his disciples and followers in 2005. We have the privilege of being his hands and heart as we have opportunity to serve in His name with those who come across our paths.

Remember the words of Jesus: ” . . . For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked and you clothed Me; sick and in prison, and you visited Me . . . Truly I say to you, to the
extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me!” (Mattew 25:35-40)

God may surprise you with an opportunity to be His hands this weekend. Maybe it will be a co-worker who is struggling and needs a word of encouragement from you. It may be a total stranger that you meet in the grocery store, at the gas station — open your wide eyes to
opportunities to serve others this weekend. When you are serving others — you are doing it for His glory.

“Pride is the great enemy of the Christian. Pride is an overly high opinion of yourself. It motivates you to do things that you know are not Christlike, and it hinders you from doing what brings glory to God. Pride influenced Adam and Eve to try to become like God (Genesis 3:5). Pride motivated Cain to murder his brother (Genesis 4:5). Pride provoked Joseph’s brothers to sell him into slavery (Genesis 37:8). Pride caused King Saul to resent David so deeply that tried to murder him (1 Samuel 18:8). Pride led King Hezekiah to foolishly reveal his nation’s wealth
to his enemies (Isaiah 39:2). Pride was at the root of the Pharisees’ anger toward Jesus. Pride was the reason the disciples argued over rank in the kingdom (Luke 9:46).

Pride is the relentless enemy. If you succumb to its influence, there will be consequences. You may know that you have offended someone, but pride holds you back from asking forgiveness. You may realize you need to reconcile a broken relationship, but pride will lead you to deny that
need. The Spirit may convict you that you are living a sinful lifestyle, but pride will discourage your admitting it. Pride will convince you that you deserve better treatment. Pride will impede your serving others. Instead, pride will have you striving for places of prominence. Pride will have you listen to flatterers and ignore honest counselors. Pride will lead you to isolate yourself so that you are not accountable to others.

Humility, on the other hand, is pleasing to God and places your life in a position where God will honor you. If pride has crept into some area of your life, ask God to give you victory over it before it robs you of God’s will for you.” from Experiencing God — A Daily Devotional by Dr.
Henry Blackaby, published by Thomas Nelson.

Good words to ponder on this Thursday, August 4, 2005.

I apologize that this Freedom Fighter is so late. Last night around 11:30 PM there was a accident at KESWICK PINES, our friends from the retirement village next to our property. A number of our staff were up through the night working around the clock to care for the over 250 guests that were brought on our grounds to sleep and be fed. The Red Cross provided cots, blankets and pillows for the residents and KESWICK PINES served their residents well with medical care and meals.

This was “GO GOD” day for us as it gave us many opportunities to share Christ with not only the residents, but their loved ones who came to check on their care and safety. The media were given a bird’s eye view into what we do on a daily basis. We are praying that we will have opened up many doors to serve these precious seniors in the days ahead.

I will write more tomorrow. Again, I apologize to our Freedom Fighter family for the delay.