PRAYER — HIS PART AND OURS . . .

“Then Isaiah said, ‘Prepare a poultice of figs.’ They did so and applied
it to the boil, and he recovered.” 2 Kings 20:7

“I would have you understand that prayer must be accompanied by means.
It is an outrage to ask God to do a thing while we sit passively.
Prayer, to be acceptable, must come not only from the heart, but from
the hands. We must work while we pray — devotion and work going
together. Martin Luther cam to his dying friend’s beside and prayed for
his recovery, and insisted, at the same time, that he should take some
warm soup, the soup being just as important as the prayer.

In the time of the great plague that came to England, the priests prayed
all day and all night for the removal of the plague, but didn’t think of
clearing out the dead dogs and cats that lay in the gutters causing the
sickness. We must use means as well as supplication.

If a man prays for good health, and then sits down to a full supper of
indigestibles at eleven o’clock at night, his prayer is a mockery. A man
has no right to pray for the safety of his family when he knows there is
no cover for his cistern.

The Christian man, reckless about his health, ought not to expect the
same answer to his prayer as the Christian man who retires regularly at
a reasonable hour and practices good hygiene. Paul said to the
passengers of the Alexandrian corn-ship that they would get safely
ashore, but he told them that they must use means, and that was, ‘Stick
to the old ship!’

God is not weak, needing our help, but God is strong and asks us to
cooperate with him that we may be strong too. Pray by all means, but
don’t forget the fig-poultice . . . Sometimes, we know full well what to
do, but we continue to pray, asking God to do what we know we should do.
As you pray, always be asking God, ‘Is there a fig-poultice for this
situation?’ If the answer is yes, then do what you know you must.”
adapted from MAGNIFICENT PRAYER — 366 Devotions to Deepen Your Prayer
Experience by Nick Harrison — published by Zondervan.

“See that you do not use the trick of prayer to cover up what you know
YOU ought to do.” — Oswald Chambers

This weekend we added a number of new men to our Freedom Fighter list.
Welcome guys! We are glad you have joined us. Freedom Fighter was
birthed because of our passion to see men living victoriously in a world
filled with craziness and change. We desire to see men not living on the
edge with temptation and sin — but living in freedom — being more than
conquerors.

Most of what I share with you each morning is fresh from what I am
reading and learning through my daily devotional time with the Lord.
This morning my friend Oswald Chambers once again nailed me . . . I
admit to you that one of my life long battles has been pleasing people.
Sometimes I have allowed the fear of man to override my fear of God. But
it isn’t about pleasing people — it’s about PLEASING HIM! Listen to the
words of Chambers from today’s devotional from MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST
. . .

“We make it our aim . . . to be well pleasing to Him.” (2 Corinthians
5:9)

“It requires a conscious decision and effort to keep our primary goal
constantly in front of us. It means holding ourselves to the highest
priority year in and year out; not making our first priority to win
souls, or to establish churches, or to have revivals, but seeking only
‘to be well pleasing to Him.’ IT IS NOT A LACK OF SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE
THAT LEADS TO FAILURE, BUT A LACK OF WORKING TO KEEP OUR EYES FOCUSED
AND ON THE RIGHT GOAL.’ At least once a week examine yourself before God
to see if your life is measuring up to the standard He has for you. Paul
was like a musician who gives no thought to audience approval, if he can
only catch a look of approval from his Conductor.

Any goal we have that diverts us even to the slightest degree from the
central goal of being ‘approved to God’ (2 Timothy 2:15) may result in
our rejection from further service for Him. When you discern where the
goal leads, you will understand why it is so necessary to keep ‘looking
unto Jesus (Hebrews 12:2). Paul spoke of the importance of controlling
his own body so that it would not take him in the wrong direction. He
said, ‘I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest . . . I
myself should become disqualified. (1 Corinthians 9:27)

I must learn to relate everything to the primary goal, maintaining it
without interruption. MY WORTH TO GOD PUBLICLY IS MEASURED BY WHAT I
REALLY AM IN MY PRIVATE LIFE. Is my primary goal in life to please Him
and to be acceptable to Him, or is it something less, no matter how
lofty it may sound?”

Powerful words for our consideration this morning. “Lord, my desire
today is to be pleasing to YOU, and you alone. Help me today not to fear
people, but to fear YOU. Help me today to stay focused on the RIGHT
goal. I pray that for me and for my fellow Freedom Fighters.”

THE VALUE OF A GODLY MENTOR

Three verses today that jumped off the pages of the Word (from THE
MESSAGE) and reminded me of how grateful I am for the older men God has
placed in my life over the years:

“Moral dropouts won’t listen to their elders; welcoming correction is a
mark of good sense.” — Proverbs 15:5
“Know-it-alls don’t like being told what to do — they avoid the company
of wise men and women.” Proverbs 15: 12
“Listen to good advice if you want to live well — an honored guest
among wise men and women.” Proverbs 15:31

Over the years God has placed in my life older, mature men who have
impacted my life in astounding ways. Much to my dismay, many of my peers
and men younger than me tend to shy away from older folks and don’t see
the value of allowing them to come alongside to give counsel and
assistance. My life is richer and fuller because of the many men that I
have allowed to come alongside of me to counsel, guide, pray with, and
simply listen too.

Some have offered me correction. It hasn’t always been easy to listen to
— I do struggle with pride. But I have to tell you — I have avoided
some pretty major disasters in my life by listening to their godly
advice. Some have actually given me an action plan. I must admit that
there were times when “their” plans didn’t make any sense. But it did it
— and I avoided some major blunders.

I am reminded today of one mentor, Joe Dariano. He was the choir
director of a church in Pennsylvania for many years. I was asked to
candidate for the position as he was wanting to “retire” as the choir
director. I can remember sitting on the swing with Joe at his home as he
shared time after time with me, godly counsel that I needed to hear.
Sometimes he said tough things. At times he encouraged me and helped me
to grow.

During a major tough time in our lives, Joe came alongside of us, not to
condemn us, but to support us and stand with us when we were facing one
of the most horrible moments of our lives. At that point in our lives —
he was there to put an arm around us, give a hug, pray, and just love on
us. God used Joe Dariano in our lives to walk us through this crisis and
to help us get to the other side victoriously.

Do you have a mentor in your life? Find an older man in your church and
ask to spend some time with him. Ask him questions. Share your
struggles, your concerns, your fears. Then do what most of us have a
hard time doing — LISTEN! You might be amazed at what you hear!
Thanks, Joe Dariano for investing in my life.

WHAT ARE YOU YIELDING TO?

” . . . you are that one’s slave whom you obey . . . ” (Romans 6:16)

“The first thing I must be willing to admit when I begin to examine what
controls and dominates me is that I am responsible for having yielded
myself to whatever it may be. If I am a slave to myself, I am to blame
because somewhere in the past I yielded to myself. Likewise, if I obey
God I do so because at some point in my life I yielded myself to Him.

If a child gives in to selfishness, he will find it to be the most
enslaving tyranny on earth. There is no power within the human soul
itself that is capable of breaking the bondage of the nature created by
yielding. For example, yield for one second to anything in the nature of
lust, and although you hate yourself for having yielded, you become
enslaved to that one thing. (Remember what lust is — ‘I must have it
now [INSTANT GRATIFICATION],’ whether it is the lust of the flesh or the
lust of the mind.) No release or escape from it will ever come from
HUMAN power, but only through the power of redemption.

You must yield yourself in utter humiliation to the only ONE who can
break the dominating power in your life, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ.
‘. . . He has anointed Me . . . to proclaim liberty to the captives . .
. ‘ Luke 4:18 and Isaiah 61:1)

When you yield to something, you will soon realize the tremendous
CONTROL it has over you. Even though you say, ‘Oh, I can give up that
habit whenever I like,’ you will know you can’t. You will find that the
HABIT absolutely DOMINATES you because you WILLINGLY yielded to it. It
is easy to sing, ‘He will break every fetter,’ while at the same time
living a life of obvious SLAVERY to yourself. But yielding to Jesus WILL
break every kind of slavery in any person’s life.'” — amazingly
powerful words today from the pen of Oswald Chambers in the daily
devotional, MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST.

On Saturday at our Freedom Fighter day, I was amazed how few men have
protection on their computers for them and their family. Of the 275 men
in attendance, only 7 men raised their hands to indicate that they are
using a software to provide protection from the smut that is one-click
away from disaster. We cannot play with fire men. You MUST protect
yourself and the ones you love. SAFE EYES is a filtering program that
will provide protection and accountability. Do you want your kids
trapped in the same bondage that you have been in for years? A $50
investment can make a difference. If you are not protected– call our
Keswick Bookstore today and order SAFE EYES. We will ship it to you
postage free. IT IS AN INVESTMENT THAT WILL KEEP YOU FROM YIELDING TO
THE FLESH and protect your family. Do it today! 732-350-1187 ext 31.

EXCUSES!

My good friend, Mark Fisher, shared this at our Freedom Fighter day on
Saturday, and I thought it was worth sharing with you this morning . . .
Next time you THINK you have an excuse as to why God CANNOT use you,
think of these:

Noah got drunk
Abraham was too old
Sarah had stopped ovulating
Isaac was a daydreamer
Leah was ugly
Judah committed incest
Joseph was abused
Moses murdered (so did David and Paul)
Moses stuttered, tended sheep and died too you
Deborah was a woman
Gideon was afraid
Samson had long hair
Hosea’s wife was a prostitute
Rahab WAS a prostitute
David was too you (so were Jeremiah and Timothy)
David had a nervous breakdown and an affair
Elijah was suicidal
Jeremiah was depressive
Isaiah had to preach in the mud
Daniel was torched
Jonah ran away
Naomi was a widow
Job was attacked by Satan
John the Baptist ate bugs
Peter had a temper
John was self-righteous
The disciples fell asleep
Matthew was a thief
Simon was fanatical
Nathaniel was cynical
Martha was a worry wart
Mary was lazy
Mary Magdalene was demon-possessed
The little boy only had five loaves and 2 fish
The Samaritan woman had been sleeping around
Zaccheus was too short
Paul was a prisoner and a poor speaker
Philip disappeared
Mark quit
Timothy had ulcers
And Lazarus . . . was dead.

Now what’s your excuse? God does not use us because of WHO we are, but
in spite of who we are … Good words for today.

A number of our Freedom Fighter family are graduates of the Colony of
Mercy. I wanted to let you know that Nell “MOM” Morrison went home to
glory yesterday afternoon. Tentatively, the plan is to have a Memorial
Service on Wednesday at 11:00 AM at the Colony Chapel. Check the website
later today for details.

A PRAYER OF PREPARATION

As you prepare your heart for worship, here is a prayer of one of the
Puritans from THE VALLEY OF VISION . . .

O God,
Praise waits for You, and to render it is my noblest exercise;
This is You due from all Your creatures,
for all You works display Your attributes and fulfill Your designs;
The sea, dry land, winter cold, summer heat, morning light, evening
shade are full of You,
and You give me them richly to enjoy.
You are King of kings and Lord of lords;
At Your pleasure empires rise and fall;
All Your works praise You and Your saints bless You;
Let me be numbered with Your holy ones,
resemble them in character and condition, sit with them at Jesus’ feet.
May my religion be always firmly rooted in Your Word,
my understanding divinely informed,
my affections holy and heavenly,
my motives pure and simple,
and my heart never wrong with You.
Deliver me from the natural darkness of my own mind,
from the corruptions of my heart,
from the temptations to which I am exposed,
from the daily snares that attend me.
I am in constant danger while I am in this life;
Let Your watchful eye ever be upon me for my defense,
Save me from the power of my worldly and spiritual enemies
and from all painful evils to which I have exposed myself.
Until the day of life dawns above let there be unrestrained fellowship
with Jesus;
Until fruition comes, may I enjoy the earnest of my inheritance and the
firstfruits of the Spirit;
Until I finish my course with joy may I pursue it with diligence,
in every part display the resources of the Christian, and adorn the
doctrine of You my God in all things.
Amen

Powerful prayer as we together prepare our hearts to worship Him — not
just today, but every day!

FREEDOM FIGHTER DAY

Today is our FREEDOM FIGHTER day at America’s KESWICK and we are praying
that there will be many men that will be SET FREE to live victoriously.
As I was waking this morning, the words to a powerful song that the
Brooklyn Choir sings came to my mind. In fact, we are going to be using
this as the signature song for our KESWICK TODAY radio program. I
encourage you to read the lyrics and allow them to bless your heart this
morning.

This Is How It Feels To Be Free

Performed by Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir

Words and Music by Shawn Craig, Dave Clark & Don Koch

There’s a wall that has been standing since the day that Adam fell
Sin is where it started, sin is why it held
Speaking as a prisoner who was there and lived to tell
I remember how it felt
I could hear the sound of freedom like a distant voice it called
And beckoned me to follow where I had never gone
Though myheart was willing, I just stood there at the wall
Praying somehow it would fall
But in a cross I found a doorway and a hand that held the key
When the chains fell at my feet, for the first time I could see

Chorus:
This is how it feels to be free
This is what it means to know that I am forgiven
This is how it feels to be free
To see that life can be more than I imagined
This is how it feels to be free, this is how it feels to be free

There are days when I’m reminded of the prison I was in
Like a living nightmare burning from within
I can feel the voice of evil, I can hear the call of sin
But I won’t go back again
Once I tasted freedom then the walls could bing no more
Since mercy gave me wings to fly, like an eagle I can soar

Somewhere there’s a prison where the chains still bind
There but for the grace of God those walls could still be mine
So for all the captives I say

My friend, if you are struggling, PLEASE allow Christ to transform your
life.

FAITH VS. FEELINGS

“Often our feelings and emotions are mistakenly substituted for faith.
Pleasurable emotions and deep, satisfying experiences are part of the
Christian life, but they are not the essence of it. Trials, conflicts,
battles, and testing’s lie along the way and are to be counted not as
misfortunes but rather as part of our necessary discipline.

In all of these various experiences, we are to rely on the indwelling of
Christ in our hearts, regardless of our feelings, as we walk obediently
before Him. And this is where many Christians get into trouble. They try
to walk by feelings rather than by faith.

Trust God’s Word and His power more than you trust your own FEELINGS and
experiences. Remember, your Rock is Christ, and it is the sea that ebbs
and flows with the tides, not Him. Keep your eyes firmly fixed on the
infinite greatness of Christ’s finished work and His righteousness. Look
to Jesus and believe– look to Jesus and live! In fact, as you look to
Him, unfurl your sails and bravely face the raging storms on the sea of
life. Do not exhibit your distrust by staying in the security of the
calm harbor or by sleeping comfortably through your life of ease. Do not
allow your life and emotions to be tossed back and forth against each
other like ships idly moored at port. The Christian life is not one of
listless brooding over our emotions or slowly drifting our keel of faith
through shallow water. Nor is it one of dragging our anchor of hope
through the settling mud of the bay, as if we were afraid of
encountering a healthy breeze.

Sail away! Spread your sail toward the storm and trust in Him who rules
the raging sea! A brightly colored bird is safest when in flight. If its
nest is near the ground or if it flies too low it exposes itself to the
hunter’s net or trap. In the same way, if we cower in the lowlands of
feelings and emotions, we will find ourselves entangled in a thousand
nets of doubt, despair, temptation, and unbelief. PUT YOUR HOPE IN GOD
(Psalm 42:5). When I cannot FEEL the faith of assurance, I live by the
FACT of God’s faithfulness.”

Good words today from STREAMS IN THE DESERT, published by our friends at
Zondervan and available at the KESWICK ONLINE BOOKSTORE.

Tomorrow is our FREEDOM FIGHTER DAY. Men are struggling in the area of
sexual sin. If you are there, don’t stay away. This day is for YOU! It
can mean the difference between death and life for you. Come find out
how you and live in freedom vs.. bondage. Mark P. Fisher, Sandy Cove’s
new President, will be sharing his story and from God’s Word. To may a
reservation, call 800-453-7942. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow!!!

THE SURRENDERED LIFE

“I have been crucified with Christ . . . ” — Galatians 2:20

“To become one with Jesus Christ, a person my be willing not only to
give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things.
Being born by the Spirit of God means that we must first be willing to
let go before we can grasp something else. The first thing we must
surrender is all of our pretense or deceit. What our Lord wants us to
present to Him is not our goodness, honesty, or our efforts to do
better, but real solid sin. Actually, that is all He can take from us.
And what HE gives in EXCHANGE for our sin is real solid righteousness.
But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything, and give up all
our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.

Once we have done that, the Spirit of God will show us what we need to
surrender next. Along each step of this process, we will have to give up
our claims to our rights to ourselves. Are we willing to surrender our
grasp on all that we possess, our desires, and everything else in our
lives? Are we ready to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ?

We will suffer a sharp painful disillusionment before we totally
surrender. When people really see themselves as the Lord see them, it is
not the terribly offensive sins of the flesh that shock them, but the
awful nature of the pride of their own hearts opposing Jesus Christ.
When they see themselves in the light of the Lord, the shame, horror,
and desperate conviction hit home for them.

If you are faced with the question of whether or not to surrender, make
a determination to go on through the crisis, surrendering all that you
have and all that you are to Him. And God will then equip you to do all
that He requires of you.” from the pen of Oswald Chambers — MY UTMOST
FOR HIS HIGHEST — available at the KESWICK ONLINE BOOKSTORE —
http://www.americaskeswick.org
There must be a constant and increasing appreciation that though sin
still remains it does not have the mastery. There is a total difference
between surviving sin and reigning sin, the regenerate in conflict with
sin and the unregenerate complacent to sin. It is one thing for sin to
live in us: it is another for us to live in sin. It is of paramount
concern for the Christian and for the interests of his sanctification
that he should know that sin does not have the dominion over him, that
the forces of redeeming, regenerative, and sanctifying grace have been
brought to bear upon him in that which is central in his moral and
spiritual being, that he is the habitation of God through the Spirit,
and that Christ has been formed in him the hope of glory. — Eric
Liddell

Good words for your consideration this morning.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SIN ISSUE

Last week I shared with you some thoughts about the grip of sin and one
of my staff members said, “You are going to share the other side of the
coin . . .” Well as I was reading this morning, here are some WORDS FROM
THE WORD that will encourage you this morning:

“You have cast all my sins behind Your back. Who is a God like You,
pardoning iniquities and passing over the transgression of the remnant
of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He
DELIGHTS in mercy. He will have compassion on all of us, and will subdue
our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”

“For a moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercy I will gather
you. With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; but with
everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you,”says the Lord, your
Redeemer. I will forgive their iniquity and their sin I will remember no
more.

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and in
whose spirit there is no deceit. The blood of Jesus Christ His Son
cleanses us from all sin.”

(Isaiah 38:17; Micah 7:18-19; Isaiah 54:7-8; Jeremiah 31:34; Psalm
32:1-2; 1 John 1:7) Taken this morning from THE DAILY LIGHT

Grace remits sin and peace quiets the conscience. Sin and conscience
torment us, but Christ has overcome these fiends now and forever. Only
Christians possess this victorious knowledge given from above. These two
terms, grace and peace, constitute Christianity. Grace involves the
remission of sins, peace and a happy conscience. Sin is not canceled by
lawful living, for no person is able to live up to the law…the fact is
the more a person seeks credit for himself by his own efforts, the
deeper he goes into debt. Nothing can take away sin except the grace of
God. In actual living, however it is not so easy to persuade oneself
that by grace alone, in opposition to every other means, we obtain the
forgiveness of our sins and peace with God.

Martin Luther

Good thoughts for you to ponder today. Men’s Day is coming quickly. Have
you registered for our Freedom Fighter Day — Saturday, March 11th? Call
to today.