THE COLLISION OF GOD AND SIN . . .

Today’s reading from the pen of Oswald Chambers was powerful. It is a
good reminder of the purpose of the cross . . .

“The cross of of Christ is the revealed truth of God’s judgment on sin.
Never associate the idea of martyrdom with the cross of Christ. It was
the supreme triumph, and it shook the very foundations of hell. There is
nothing in time or eternity more absolutely certain and irrefutable than
what Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross — He made it possible for
the entire human race to be brought back into a right-standing
relationship with God. He made redemption the foundation of human life;
that is, He made a way for every person to have fellowship with God.

The purpose of the incarnation was redemption. God came in the flesh to
take away sin, not to accomplish something for Himself. The cross is the
central event in time and eternity, and the answer to all the problems
of both.

The cross is not the cross of a man, but the cross of God, and it can
never be fully comprehended through human experience. The cross is God
exhibiting HIS nature. It is the gate through which any individual can
enter oneness with God. But it is not a gate we pass right through; it
is one where abide in the life that is found there.

The heart of salvation is the Cross of Christ. The reason salvation is
so easy to obtain is that it cost God so much. The cross was the place
where God and sinful man merged with a tremendous collision and where
the way to life was opened. But all the cost and pain of the collision
was absorbed by the heart of God.” — from MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST by
Oswald Chambers

“When I survey the wondrous cross, on which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss, and pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ, my
God;
All the vain things that charm me most — I sacrifice them to His blood.

See, from His head, His hands, His feet, Sorrow and love flow mingled
down;
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, or thorns compose so rich a crown?

Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small:
Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.” Isaac
Watts (1674-1748)

May these words cause you today to reflect on the Cross of Christ, not
just at this Easter season, but throughout the year.

LAYING DOWN THEIR LIVES . . .

Have you ever considered how amazing your body is — the one that God
created? Did you ever stop to think that while you are sitting here
reading today’s Freedom Fighter, every cell in your body is doing
exactly what God created it to do? Everything is working with precision:
your heart is beating. Blood is being pumped throughout your body. And
then there is the work of the blood cells that is going on unbeknownst
to you.

Dr. Mark Swenson writes that “the red blood cells [in your body] are
workhorses, but the real heroes swimming through the circulatory system
are the white blood cells and platelets. They die for us. They were born
ready to die.

Platelets are half the size of the red blood cells and survive only a
matter of days. This is why we must continually produce five million new
platelets every second. They are critical for the clotting of the blood,
rushing to the site of injury and heroically throwing their tiny bodies
into the hole.

The white blood cells are no less self-sacrificing. They are a vital
link in our quest for daily survival. Not to be paranoid about it, but
there are billions of microbes continuously seeking to do us harm. This
is why the body must have ready fifty billion white blood cells standing
guard. These are the active duty forces. But in the reserves, hiding in
the bone marrow, we have a backup force one hundred times as large
should the need arise. We ought rightfully to be grateful for this
profound immunologic margin.

The skin and mucosa of the respiratory track are the first line of
defense against microbial attack. Yet should any infectious agents
breech the outer defense, the immune system takes over. Here the white
blood cells is an important player.

Next time you get a sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, or inflammation,
remember your body is doing battle on your behalf. Don’t be irritated by
the fever or discomfort. Instead just think about the billions of white
blood cells that are dying so that you may live.

These cells have one mission, one purpose: to give their lives in
defense of ours. ‘Greater love has no one than this,’ Jesus said, ‘that
he lay down his life for his friends.’ Jesus did it for us; our white
blood cells and platelets do it for us. Why do we doubt His vigilance
when He so faithfully performs it on the microscopic level every day of
our lives? The evidence is overwhelming — HE SEES, HE CARES, AND HE
DEFENDS!” We are fearfully and wonderfully made! — from ONE MINUTE OF
MARGIN published by NavPress.

I trust that this truth encourages your heart today!

Attention Colony grads . . . visit our website and see pictures of your
fellow graduates. Go to http://www.americaskeswick.org and click on the
addiction box. When you get to the addiction page, click other resources
and visit the alumni page. We’d love to have YOUR picture too. You can
email it to me at bwelte@americaskeswick.org.

OBSERVATIONS ON A “WALK BY FAITH” — How’s your attitude?

Many of us have quoted the verse — “we walk by faith not by sight” —
but do we really understand what we are quoting? Your attitude can
AFFECT your walk. Chuck Swindoll, in his new daily devotional, GREAT
DAYS WITH THE GREAT LIVES . . . DAILY INSIGHT FROM GREAT LIVES OF THE
BIBLE, shares three insights on this “walk of faith” from the life of
Joseph (Genesis 45:10-15).

“If you’re under the impression that you are going to be great because
of some accomplishment you’ve achieved by harboring wrong attitudes,
you’re in for a terrible jolt. Greatness comes in the sweet-spirit
attitudes of humility and forgiveness towards others. Joseph sets before
us a magnanimous example. How beautifully forgiving he was, how generous
in his mercy.

It takes God to make the heart right. When I have a wrong attitude, I
look at life HUMANLY. When I have a right attitude, I look at life
DIVINELY. That’s the real beauty of Joseph’s life. That’s the kernel of
truth his life represents. He was great, mainly because of his attitude.

And there are three specific lessons that grow out of that single truth:

1. When I am able, by faith, to see God’s plan in my location, my
attitude will be right . . . Not until you can relax and see God in
your PRESENT location will you be useful to Him. A positive theological
attitude will do wonders for your geographical latitude.

2. When I am able, by faith, to sense God’s hand in my situation, my
attitude will be right. I don’t begin the day be gritting by teeth,
asking, ‘Why do I have to stay in this situation?’ Instead, I believe
that He made me the way I am and put me where I am to do what He has
planned for me to do.

3. When I am able, by faith, to accept both location and situation as
good, even when there’s been evil in the process, my attitude will be
right. When I can say with Joseph, ‘but God meant it for good,’ then I
become a trophy of grace.

Joseph shows us that the only way to find happiness in the grind of life
is to do so by FAITH. A faith-filled life means all the difference in
how we view everything around us. It affects our attitudes towards
people, toward location, toward situation, toward circumstances, toward
ourselves. Only then do our feet become swift to do what is right.

Good words for your consideration on this 4th day of April.

YOU

Yesterday I shared some thoughts from a message I heard by Lou Giglio on
a John C. Maxwell tape. The following reading by Amena J. Brown is also
from that CD. It is a powerful expression of praise and thanksgiving for
our great God. I am printing it as it appears in the notes from
Injoy.com:

You
by Amena J. Brown

You find me when I’m hiding behind all my disguises. You see me.
It takes you to keep me breathing. You are heart. Passion. Vision. Word.
Incision. You send me and you bring me close. Close. Close. Closer . . .
Until you look at me you see you. You are heavenly. My present and
future destiny.
You are father. Creator. Sustainer. Life-changer. Pride-breaker. You are
yesterday, today and forever. You are pleasure. Your are worth. Reason.
Present in every season. You are worship. Devotion. You are the reason
for all my commotion.
You are the one that I pray to. You can tell that I’m nothing without
you.
So awesome that I can pray to you about you to know you,
To sense you, to believe you more — to love you more — to obey you
more —
to give you more of my heart.

Oh God search me, know me, see me, examine me, test me, love me,
watch me, protect me, show me, investigate me, be pleased with me.
Question me, keep me, change me, have me, correct me, take me,
Help me, create in me, break in on me. Be my reality, sustain me,
Decrease me,
decrease me, decrease me, decrease me, until there is no me left and
Only You! Only You! Only You!

You are light . . . are hope …. are love . . . are strength . . . are
escape . . .
rescue . . . safe. You are peace. You are belief. Your are advance and
retreat —
Of what, to what, to whom can I compare you? You are my all things new.
You are my place of refuge. Your are my fortress — my rest — my
creativity in the
strength of your words to me. You are my ability to see, hear, feel,
move, live,
breath, be. You are life and death all at the same time. You are friend.
You are
believer, Savior, Redeemer. You are today, tomorrow, and the next day .
. .
and the next day and the next day and the next day. You are truth. You
transcend old
age and youth. You are timeless, priceless, lightness in darkness,
greatness,
goodness, sinless. And in a mess like my life, you see righteousness.
You leave me speechless. YOU ALONE!

Powerful words to ponder as we begin this new week. Have a great week IN
CHRIST.

I AM

Good morning! Hopefully you remembered to turn your clocks forward and
you are excited about the day before you. In just a few hours, many of
us will gather together with the body of Christ to worship, and many
will observe the Lord’s Supper.

For some, the focus of the morning service has become more about what WE
will get out of the service instead of focusing on WHO we are
worshipping. We get caught up in the style of music not being MY style
or there were too many announcements. The temp was quite right and the
Pastor, well we love him, but he went way too long.

Remember my friend, the body of Christ gathers not to concentrate on YOU
but on the One who told Moses I AM! I have been listening to a powerful
message given by Pastor Louie Giglio from an INJOY LIFE CLUB CD
available through Dr. John C. Maxwell’s ministry. Think about the I AM
who you are worshipping this morning . . .

You say, ‘I need an new idea.’ I AM.
Who could possibly be smart enough to figure this out? I AM.
I’m going under; somebody help me. I AM.
What works? I AM.
What’s the latest thing? I AM.
What’s the hippest thing? I AM.
Nothing’s real anymore. I AM.
Leaders are bailing out. Who’s going to last? I AM.
If we fail to get the job done, who’s going to do it? I AM.
This generation deserves more. I AM.
I’m pouring into others. Who pouring into me? I AM.
I’m not sure who’s on my team. I AM.
Nobody’s listening to me. I AM.
I can’t hold it together anymore. I AM.
Who can I trust? I AM.
I’ve got visions bigger than my resources. I AM.
I’ve given all I can but it’s never enough. I AM.
Somebody just hold me. I AM.

I AM the way, I AM the truth, I AM the life. I AM yesterday, I AM the
same today, I AM the same forever. I AM the solution, I AM the
sustainer, I AM the restorer, I AM the life-giver. I AM the beginning, I
AM the end, I AM the first, I AM the last; I AM God, and there is NO ONE
BESIDES ME. I AM the Lord, and there is NO other. I AM that I AM; that
is My name; that is MY memorial name to every generation. I AM GOD . . .
And all I AM looking for is a little man who’s thrilled to be I AM NOT,
because they know I AM!

That’s who you are worshipping this morning, my fellow Freedom Fighter
partner — you are worshipping the great I AM. Enjoy Him today.

THE GREAT GOD

As you prepare your heart for the Lord’s Day tomorrow, here is a Puritan
Prayer from THE VALLEY OF VISION:

O Fountain of All Good,
Destroy in me every lofty lofty,
Break pride to pieces and scatter it to the winds,
Annihilate each clinging shred of self-righteousness,
Implant in me true lowliness of spirit,
Abase me to self-loathing and self-abhorrence,
Open in me a fount of penitential tears,
Break me, then bind me up;
Thus will my heart be a prepared dwelling for my God;
Then can the Father take up His abode in me,
Then can the blessed Jesus come with healing in His touch,
Then can the Holy Spirit descend in sanctifying grace;
O Holy Trinity, three Persons and one God,
inhabit me, a temple consecrated to your glory.
When You are present, evil cannot abide;
In Your fellowship is fullness of joy.
Beneath Your smile is peace of conscience,
By Your side no fears disturb,
no apprehensions banish rest of mind,
With You my heart shall bloom with fragrance;
Make me meet, through repentance, for You indwelling.
Nothing exceeds Your power,
Nothing is too great for You to do,
Nothing too good for You to give.
Infinite is Your might, boundless Your love, limitless Your grace,
glorious Your saving name.
Let angels sing for SINNERS REPENTING, PRODIGALS RESTORED, BACKSLIDERS
RECLAIMED, SATAN’S CAPTIVES RELEASED, BLIND EYES OPENED, BROKEN HEARTS
BOUND UP, THE DESPONDENT CHEERED, THE SELF-RIGHTEOUS STRIPPED, THE
IGNORANT ENLIGHTENED, AND THE SAINTS BUILT UP IN THEIR HOLY FAITH.
I ask great things this morning of a GREAT GOD!

Good words to consider as we prepare to worship Him with brothers and
sisters of like-minded faith tomorrow. Have a great day.

AN ATTITUDE OF THANKSGIVING

We’ve talked about this before, but it is a good reminder —
Thanksgiving is not just a holiday we celebrate in November.
Thanksgiving needs to be a part of the very fabric on our lives. Someone
said that for the believer it is not thanksgiving — it’s THANKSLIVING.

Charles Swindoll in his new daily devotional, GREAT DAYS WITH THE GREAT
LIVES– DAILY INSIGHT FROM GREAT LIVES OF THE BIBLE,
shares that the Apostle Paul “had an attitude of genuine thanksgiving:
‘Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of
thanksgiving, praying that at the same time for us as well, that God may
open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the
mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; in order that
I might make it clear in the way I ought to speak’ (Colossians 4:2-4).

Here’s a man in his sixties who has been preaching for years asking for
prayers for a clearer delivery. There was no pretense with Paul. No
degree of success or number of years in the ministry gave him a false
sense of ultimate accomplishment. He knew he had not yet arrived. He was
convinced his preaching could be improved. And so with a genuinely
thankful heart, he entreated his fellow believers for their prayers. Can
you see the power of that kind of attitude? Very refreshing.

No wonder the man had such a lasting impact for Christ. His secret bled
through every one of his letters. He had learned to be content in all
things. But we can’t leave the ink of these truths to simply sit and dry
on the page. We must embrace the same secret for ourselves if we are to
have the same lasting impact . . .

Let’s turn the spotlight away from the many housed in Rome back then and
focus it on you and your life, wherever you find yourself right now. Are
you making a difference in the lives of those closest to you by the way
you respond to your circumstances? Are others inspired by your faith, or
are they discouraged by your fears? Are the attitudes of unselfish
humility, joyful acceptance, strong determination, and genuine
thanksgiving evident in the way you respond to circumstances? Maybe its
time to make some changes.

Start by refusing to let your situation determine your attitude. When
your attitude overshadows your situation, transformation really begins.
As we saw in Paul, the power to transform stubborn attitudes of fear and
bitterness, anger and defeat, comes from Christ. The Lord our God stands
ready to pour his strength in you. He alone has the power to deliver you
from those relentless foes and send you soaring. Keep an attitude of
thanksgiving.” GREAT DAYS WITH THE GREAT LIVES — DAILY INSIGHT FROM
GREAT LIVES OF THE BIBLE is available from the KESWICK ONLINE BOOKSTORE
— http://www.americaskeswick.org.

Good words for you to apply to your heart today. One last call for
FREEDOM FIGHTER DAY CD’S . . . Mark P. Fisher shares three pratical
sessions on how you can live victoriously in your sexual life. 3 CD’s
are yours at no cost. Simply respond to this email with your mailing
address.

YOUR LORD PROCEEDS YOU . . .

One of the traditions established by our founder, William Raws, many
years ago, is the use of Deuteronomy 31:8 as a benediction at the close
of our chapel services . . . “And the Lord, it is He that doth go before
you; He will be with you neither forsake you; fear not neither be
dismayed.”

Sometimes we face those times and situations where we FEEL like we are
all alone. Henry Blackaby in his daily devotional EXPERIENCING GOD DAY
BY DAY reminds us that: “God never sends you into a situation alone. He
always goes BEFORE His children, as He did with the children of Israel
when He led them with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

You do not serve as His advance troops in a foreign and hostile
situation. HE always proceeded YOU in any situation you encounter. God
is never caught by surprise by your experience; He has already been
there. He is prepared to meet your every need because He has gone before
you and knows exactly what you will need for your pilgrimage (Deut.
31:8)

Not only does God go BEFORE you, but He also stands BESIDE you and
BEHIND you, to provide protection and comfort (Psalm 139:7-12). Jesus
knew His disciples would be totally bewildered by His crucifixion, so He
assured them in advance that no matter what happened, not matter where
they went, they could go in confidence that He had already gone before
them. Paul, too, experienced this assurance (Acts 18:9; 23:11). In the
most bewildering circumstances, His Lord was there!

If you are going through a difficult or confusing time, know that your
Lord has gone BEFORE you and He is present with you. He is fully aware
of what you are facing, and He is actively responding to your need.
There is nowhere you can go that you will not find Christ waiting for
you to join Him. Even when you face death, you can be assured that He
has gone before you in triumph. As a child of God, rest in the knowledge
that your Savior PROCEEDED you, and He will walk WITH YOU through each
experience of your life.”

EXPERIENCING GOD DAY BY DAY is published by Broadman Holman and can be
ordered from the KESWICK ON-LINE BOOKSTORE (www.americaskeswick.org).

It’s not to late to request a complimentary set of the free FREEDOM
FIGHTER DAY CD’s. To order your copy, respond to this email.

RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!

“The appeal of sensual lust works like a magnet, drawing two ‘sudden and
fierce’ forces toward each other — inner desire and an outer bait.
Let’s face it, you can’t escape the bait if you live in the real world.
In fact, even if you somehow manage to shut yourself away from the REAL
world, your MIND will not let you escape the outer bait. But keep in
mind that there is no sin in the bait. The sin is in the BITE.

When the lust of another TEMPTS you to give in to your OWN lust, so much
so that your resistance weakens, you have been enticed. You have given
in to the lure of temptation. The secret of victory is modeled
beautifully by Joseph. He REFUSED to weaken. He continued to resist.

Potiphar’s wife dropped the bait day after day after day. And each time
Joseph refused to take it. ‘No, no, no!’ he replied. Not only did he not
LISTEN to her, it got to where he did not even want to be near her. She
was not safe to be around. Joseph had rebuffed her time and time again,
refusing to yield to her advances. Finally, she set a trap for him.

Joseph had come into the house to do his work one day. He noticed that
the house was quiet. There were no servants nearby. She was alone with
Joseph in the house, and she again made her move. Only this time she
would not take no for an answer. She went beyond her verbal advances and
physically grabbed hold of Joseph. She held on so tightly that when he
jerked away from her and dashed out into the street, he left his outer
robe in her hands.

What a clear image! What a practical spotlight from Joseph’s life. What
strong biblical counsel. Whenever the New Testament lingers on the
subject of sensual temptation, it gives one command: RUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It 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 you
CANNOT 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!’

My question for you this morning — are you facing a situation in your
life where you need to RUN? Are you dabbling with temptation thinking
you won’t get burned? Then do what the Scripture says . . . RUN!

from Charles R. Swindoll’s new daily devotional “GREAT DAYS WITH THE
GREAT LIVES . . . Daily Insight from Great Lives of the Bible” published
by W. This book is available at the KESWICK ONLINE BOOKSTORE —
http://www.americaskeswick.org.

This week I am offering to you a complimentary set of the messages
presented at our March Freedom Fighter Day. To order a set, respond to
this email and please include your snail address. If the CD’s or this
ministry is a blessing to you and you would like to make a donation to
the Colony of Mercy, you can now make donations on-line by visiting our
website — http://www.americaskeswick.org. America’s KESWICK depends on
friends like you to support us with your gifts and prayers.

BOLD FAITH

“As soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord — the Lord of all
the earth — set foot IN THE JORDAN, its waters flowing downstream will
be cut off and stand up in a heap.” Joshua 3:13

Sometimes when God calls us to join Him in something exciting, it
requires I bold step of faith to step out into the deep with Him. In
this amazing account in the life of Joshua, the children of Israel were
instructed by God to cross the river. Their parents had done this once
before and God had demonstrated His power and glory — but where they
willing to trust God and His promises to do it again? God was about to
once again demonstrate HIS faithfulness and power, but they had to first
take the step of faith and put their feet in the water.

Listen to the words from today’s reading from STREAMS IN THE DESERT . .
. “Who can help but admire those brave Levites! They carried the ark of
the covenant right into the water, for the water was not divided UNTIL
THEIR FEET TOUCHED THE WATER’S EDGE (vs. 15). God had promised nothing
else.

God honors faith — stubborn faith — that sees HIS PROMISE and looks to
that alone. We can only imagine how bystanders today, watching these
holy men of God march on, would say, ‘You will never catch me running
that risk! The ark will be swept away!’ We must not overlook the fact
that faith on our part helps God to carry out His plans. Be willing to
come to the help of the Lord.

The ark of the covenant was equipped with poles so the priests could
raise it to their shoulders. So even the ark of God did not move by
itself but was carried. When God is the architect, men are the
bricklayers and laborers. Faith assists God. it can shut the mouths of
lions and quench the most destructive fire. Faith still honors God, and
God honors faith.

Oh, for the kind of faith that will move ahead, leaving God to fulfill
His promises when He sees fit! Fellow Levites, let us shoulder our load,
without looking as though we were carrying God’s coffin. It is the ark
of the living God! Sing as you march toward the flood!

One of the distinguishing marks of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament
church was the spirit of BOLDNESS. One of the great essentials of the
kind of faith that will attempt great things FOR God and expect great
things FROM God is holy boldness and daring. When dealing with a
supernatural Being and taking things from Him that are HUMANLY
impossible, it is actually easier for us to take a lot than it is to
take a little. And it is easier to stand in a place of bold trust than
in a place where we cautiously and timidly cling to the shore.

Like wise sailors living a life of faith, let us launch out our ships
into the deep. We will find that ALL THINGS are ‘possible with God’
(Luke 18:27), and ‘everything is possible for him who believes.’ (Mark
9:23). Today let us attempt great things for God, taking His faith to
believe great things and taking HIS strength to accomplish them!”

Are you willing to be bold today in your faith? I’d love to know how God
is working out this truth in your life. Let me hear from you today.

Missed our Freedom Fighter Day? I would be happy to send you FREE — the
three messages that Mark P. Fisher shared on living in sexual freedom.
Respond to this email with your address.