While the impostor draws his identity from past achievements and the adulation of others, the true self claims identity in its belovedness. We encounter God in the ordinariness of life: not in the search for spiritual highs and extraordinary, mystical experiences but in our simple presence in life.
~ Brennan Manning

Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the universe, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.
~paul, The Least of The Apostles, in Philippians 2

Oh beloved, it is true.

There is this moment, for each of us who have, where we come to trust Him. And this moment is really something that sets everything else in motion. But, without the abiding and restful motion of His work in our lives – and our cooperation with it – we are still doomed to failure in so many ways.

Our lives can drumbeat on in repetitious failure and fear and anger. We’ve trusted Him for salvation, but it feels like that salvation is somewhere well into the future.

And beyond the inner rhythms of failure, come the waves that beat through into our lives. As we begin to grow, we find that others who have not – or who never will – call out to us, and try to distract us. They scream their hatred and anger towards us.

If we are not careful, we can believe the lie the distraction is trying to present. All lies do this. Lies are not so much total falsehoods, as they are a downgrading of the truth. And, in doing what they do, they try to drag us away from who we really are.

Beyond these things, so many things call for our attention. But, should we be listening?

Can we see it?

There does come a moment where we can.

In us, has begun to grow SomeOne Who is already full beyond time and measure and space and even eternity. The Same One is Love Himself. And, while He has finally captured our heart, the astounding thing is that we have already captured His.

Read those last two sentences again, beloved. The real us is something completely other than what we expected our Christianity to be when it began. We looked forward to some sort of Heaven, and this was great.

What we never expected is that we would begin to taste both its pleasure – and its power – right now. And, we never, ever really expected the Package in which both these things would come. They have come from The very Love of G_d.

So, are you feeling like you want your faith to go to the next level? Maybe you are trying to climb a mountain that is not even there. Maybe you need some really powerful motivation. Have you ever considered that you may be missing the point of this whole thing?

You, and this fool of a writer, are amazingly Loved. His Word is Life. He has set us free from darkness already, and made us shine like stars.

Tonight is your night, beloved. Time to believe you are beloved.

Written by Makala Doulos: Makala Doulos is a child of G_d, a husband to his wife, a father to his children, and a teacher to his students. But mostly, he is a prisoner set free by Jesus. Love has invaded his life, crushed it, and made it new. Now, G_d’s Love is what constrains him to live in full surrender to the freedom The Father and Son and Holy Spirit have bought for us all. Grace and Peace to you all.

The Daily Bible Reading: Psalm 128-130| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. This is the true self. Every other identity is illusion. ~Brennan Manning

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.
2 Corinthians 4:15

 

 

“The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.” (Isaiah 60:19)

In the natural, dark doesn’t mean much of anything but the absence of light, and dark thinking is the absence of understanding. A few ways dark is translated in the Bible are obscurity, mourning, perplexity, confusion, ignorance, evil, sin, or absence of God.

On the other hand, light illuminates and has value for the natural as well as spiritual implications. Light exposes dark and it provides direction in many ways. Light is a provider of energy; food is produced by that energy. Light is a source of vitamin D; it enhances vision, colors, and maintains our temperature. We haven’t even explore the implication of solar panel energy. Light is essential!

The Israelites didn’t have the understanding or the technology of modern culture and the Sun and the Moon were the standard of radiant glory among other daily necessities. But God is introducing the true everlasting light. The light that would help them expose evil and direct them to a right relationship with their Creator.

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. (John 8:12)

Light for the believer is a Person. And out of our relationship with Christ we are to radiate love, grace, truth, mercy, morality, and the like…

“And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:23)

Are you being a light?

Written by Juan Mendez: Juan is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and full-time staff member at America’s Keswick.

The Daily Bible Reading: Psalm 125-127| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: “We are indeed the light of the world–but only if our switch is turned on.” – John Hagee

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. Psalm 100:4

 

 

Men’s Fellowship Night is THIS Thursday, November 9th at 6:15PM. Join us!

But as for me, I would seek God, And I would place my cause before God; Who does great and unsearchable things, Wonders without number. He gives rain on the earth, And sends water on the fields. Job 5:8-10

Last week we looked at Psalm 111:3-4 and talked about pondering God’s power and might. Here is an amazing illustration from Dr. John Piper, Desiring God, on rain. It blew me away:

Is rain a great and unsearchable wonder wrought by God? Picture yourself as a farmer in the Near East, far from any lake or stream. A few wells keep the family and animals supplied with water. But if the crops are to grow and the family is to be fed from month to month, water has to come on the fields from another source. From where?

Well, the sky. The sky? Water will come out of the clear blue sky? Well, not exactly. Water will have to be carried in the sky from the Mediterranean Sea, over several hundred miles and then be poured out from the sky onto the fields. Carried? How much does it weigh? Well, if one inch of rain falls on one square mile of farmland during the night, that would be 27,878,400 cubic feet of water, which is 206,300,160 gallons, which is 1,650,501,280 pounds of water.

That’s heavy. So how does it get up in the sky and stay up there if it’s so heavy? Well, it gets up there by evaporation. Really? That’s a nice word. What’s it mean? It means that the water sort of stops being water for a while so it can go up and not down. I see. Then how does it get down? Well, condensation happens. What’s that? The water starts becoming water again by gathering around little dust particles between .00001 and .0001 centimeters wide. That’s small.

What about the salt? Salt? Yes, the Mediterranean Sea is salt water. That would kill the crops. What about the salt? Well, the salt has to be taken out. Oh. So the sky picks up a billion pounds of water from the sea and takes out the salt and then carries it for three hundred miles and then dumps it on the farm?

Well it doesn’t dump it. If it dumped a billion pounds of water on the farm, the wheat would be crushed. So the sky dribbles the billion pounds water down in little drops. And they have to be big enough to fall for one mile or so without evaporating, and small enough to keep from crushing the wheat stalks.

How do all these microscopic specks of water that weigh a billion pounds get heavy enough to fall (if that’s the way to ask the question)? Well, it’s called coalescence. What’s that? It means the specks of water start bumping into each other and join up and get bigger. And when they are big enough, they fall. Just like that? Well, not exactly, because they would just bounce off each other instead of joining up, if there were no electric field present. What? Never mind. Take my word for it.

I think, instead, I will just take Job’s word for it. I still don’t see why drops ever get to the ground, because if they start falling as soon as they are heavier than air, they would be too small not to evaporate on the way down, but if they wait to come down, what holds them up till they are big enough not to evaporate? Yes, I am sure there is a name for that too. But I am satisfied now that, by any name, this is a great and unsearchable thing that God has done. I think I should be thankful – lots more thankful than I am.

I don’t know about you, but this really blew me away!!! Next week we will look at Psalm 111:4-9

Rejoice! Pray! Give thanks!

Bill Welte, President/CEO
America’s Keswick

Written by Bill Welte, President/CEO of America’s Keswick: Bill has been married to his child sweetheart for 40+ years and has four married kids and 11 amazing grand kids. He loves music and is an avid reader.

The Daily Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 10-12| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Think About This: What are the heavens, the earth, the sea, but a sheet of riyal paper, written all over with the wisdom and the power of God? Thomas Brooks

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. Psalm 100:4

 

 

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” — 2 Corinthians 9:8

I have been known to use absolute words out of context and for me it was learned behavior. For instance, ‘you never take out the trash,’ ‘you are always in trouble,’ or ‘You will never amount anything.’ In rooms AA, we were trained to never say never, or this is a disease that will be with always.

In this, changing, confusing, inconsistent world there is not much to be certain. In fact, the one thing that you can be certain, is uncertainties. In the natural sense, we are limited. But God!

In this verse alone:

All Grace abound to you

Having All things

At All times Abound in Every good work.

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” — (Matthew 19:26)

“Ah Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You.” (Jeremiah 32:17)

God is our absolute, and believers can be confident because He is faithful. Our confidence is not in our own strength; the exact opposite. As we surrender to Him, there is safety, healing, and a level of trustworthiness that is not found in the parameters of this world. His absolute Word transcends all of our reason and there is rest and peace In His unchanging nature. God is Absolute.

Written by Juan Mendez: Juan is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and full-time staff member at America’s Keswick.

The Daily Bible Reading: Psalm 122-124| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: “Only he who can say, The Lord is the strength of my life can say, ‘Of whom shall I be afraid?'” – Alexander MacLaren

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. Mark 11:25

 

 

Just as a lamp helps me find my way in the darkness, so too does God’s Word enable me to see ‘The Way’ I should walk.

Getting to the right place, at the right time, and in the right way, requires first that we know what ‘The Way’ is, second that we disentangle ourselves from what holds us back from actually traveling ‘The Way’, and finally that we travel ‘The Way’ how it was designed to be transversed.

So how do we start this trip? First, scripture tells us that “God is calling you to come out of the darkness and into the light.” (1 Peter 2:9) So the first thing is to not harden your heart and reject Him, but answer His call. Second is to accept that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to God but by Him” (John 14:6). So, the next step we must take is to walk, or live, as Jesus did (1John 2:6). As we begin this journey, having let go of our old ways of thinking and doing (very important or we won’t get very far) and placed our trust in ‘The Way’, that is Jesus Christ, we are given two ‘helps’, His Spirit that will guide, strengthen, and comfort us… and His Word as the map His Spirit will use to direct our path. His Word, as our map and compass, is “the lamp to your feet and a light to your path” (Psalm 118:105) and is “inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God (that’s you) may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16-17). These two ‘helps’ are important. First, they help us avoid the pitfalls and navigate through the obstacles in this world. And second, when we do stumble and fall, they help us get back up and reorient ourselves with ‘The Way.’

If we do these things, our God has promised us that we will benefit from all He has provided along ‘The Way’… all those provisions that are to be ‘found IN Christ’, for “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him ‘who called’ (referring back to where we started) us by his own glory and goodness.

Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” (2 Peter 1:3-4)

So where are you in your journey? Have you responded to His call.. Or are you resisting it? Are you studying the map and listening to the Guide as He explains the trip? Are you maneuvering through ‘the valley of the shadow of death’ or resting by ‘still waters’ that He has provided for your maturity as a Believer? Or, are you struggling to get up again after a fall? No matter where you are… you are not alone! He has promised to never leave you, not forsake you’… So grab His hand and get going!

Choose Wisely….

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

Praying you choose Jesus today

Written by David Brown: David Brown is a husband, father, and grandfather with a Masters of Religious Studies and a Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Religions. Dave is a member of Pemberton’s First Baptist Church.

The Daily Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 29-32| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: “Let us therefore not deceive ourselves. In walking according to the spirit we shall hear the direction of conscience. Do not try to escape any inward reproach; rather, be attentive to its voice.” – Watchman Nee

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Romans 1:20-21

 

“How amazing are the deeds of the Lord! All who delight in him should ponder them. Everything he does reveals his glory and majesty. His righteousness never fails.” — Psalm 111:3-4

We have been digging into Psalm 111 for the past two weeks. Today I want to suggest to you that Psalm 111:3-4 offers another “we get to.”

We get to see God’s might and power all around us.

The word “ponder” in the Old Testament means: to weigh in the mind; to view with deliberation; to examine carefully.

In the Hymn, “Praise to the Lord, The Almighty,” the fourth stanza says, “Ponder anew what the Almighty can do.”

Too often we adopt a “ho-hum” approach to our lives because we are never truly satisfied. We are always looking for the “something” or “someone” rather than being fully satisfied in the ONLY one that can bring us true and meaningful satisfaction.

It is a good thing to put the DVD on pause, to just step back and be still and ponder and examine what God is doing all around you.

When was the last time you pondered His beautiful creation? I don’t know what your sunrises and sunsets have been like recently, but ours have been breathtaking.

For seven years I served at Sandy Cove Ministries as Vice President of Ministries. Sandy Cove is located on the headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay. I can’t tell you how many nights I walked by the water and saw spectacular sunsets. In all four seasons, the sunsets were completely different.

Have you ever visited the Hubble Space Craft website? Take some time and check out the amazing satellite pictures still coming back. Our awesome God is in total control of the universe. Everything works like clockwork. God is still creating stars and planets, and yet He knows exactly where they are, has them all numbered and even calls them by name!!!

Your body is another amazing miracle. You have been fearfully and wonderfully made. Look at your index finger. NO ONE who has ever lived before you, during your lifetime and no one after you are gone will never have your same fingerprint. The iris of your eye is unique to YOU.

When we take medication today, that medication is toxic if it doesn’t go to the right part of your body. When God created you, most likely that medication didn’t exist. But guess what? He created your body, so it takes that medicine to just the right spot, going through the bloodstream, kidneys, and other organs to make sure it doesn’t harm the other parts of your body.

The bottom line is what the Levite who penned this understood this principle and wanted you and me to grasp it: EVERYTHING He does reveals His glory and majesty.

Joachim Neander paints this picture:

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!
O my soul, praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation!
All ye who hear, now to His temple draw near;
Praise Him in glad adoration.

Praise to the Lord, who o’er all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under His wings, yea, so gently sustaineth!
Hast thou not seen how thy desires e’er have been
Granted in what He ordaineth?

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee;
Surely His goodness and mercy here daily attend thee;
Ponder anew what the Almighty can do,
If with His love He befriend

Praise to the Lord, who, when tempests their warfare are waging,
Who, when the elements madly around thee are raging,
Biddeth them cease, turneth their fury to peace,
Whirlwinds and waters assuaging.

Praise to the Lord, who, when darkness of sin is abounding,
Who, when the godless do triumph, all virtue confounding,
Sheddeth His light, chaseth the horrors of night,
Saints with His mercy surrounding.

Praise to the Lord, oh, let all that is in me adore Him!
All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him;
Let the Amen sound from His people again,
Gladly for aye, we adore Him.

Rejoice! Pray! Give thanks!

Bill Welte, President/CEO
America’s Keswick

Written by Bill Welte, President/CEO of America’s Keswick: Bill has been married to his child sweetheart for 40+ years and has four married kids and 11 amazing grand kids. He loves music and is an avid reader.

The Daily Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 7-9| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Think About This: Every work of God serves to display His glory, and set off the greatness of His majesty. John Gill

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Romans 1:20-21

 

It is not true to say that God wants to teach us something in our trials. In every cloud he brings, God wants us to unlearn something. God’s purpose in the cloud is to simplify our belief until our relationship to him is exactly that of a child. God uses every cloud which comes in our physical life, in our moral or spiritual life, or in our circumstances, to bring us nearer to him, until we come to the place where our Lord Jesus Christ lived, and we do not allow our hearts to be troubled. ~Oswald Chambers (1874-1917)

Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight. The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips. The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption. You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
~ Psalm 16

Oh beloved, it is true.

We serve an infinite G_d. He is unchanging. He is trans-temporal. He is able in all ways, in all places, in all times, to make all things work together for good. These are truths that are true regardless of our feelings… And this is where things get even better.

The natural mind can categorize things fairly well. We engineers and teachers and others can slice what we see, into smaller pieces. We can look at things and identify what they are. However, lower order thinking skills are not what are needed to get us where we need to be, when it comes to the beginning of comprehending our Jesus.

However, what we have is a problem actually comprehending many truths. We especially have trouble comprehending the infinite truths of Scripture.

Can we see it? It is subtle.

Look at the passage. Psalm 16 is the very prayer of Jesus, somewhere between His death on the cross, and His eternal resurrection as King of The Universe. Jesus had committed His entire Spirit into the keeping of the Father. As in the same moment, His sacrifice crushed the enemy, and made death irrelevant to those who would but trust in Christ.

And, to put it bluntly: Jesus had just been through one hell of a time.

But, can we see the response? Gorgeous. Beautiful beyond words.

“The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.”

Keep looking… Ask Him to show you…

Jesus got bigger through dying.

How?

He got you. And… He got me.

The very infinite unending Creator of existence itself, the Triune One with absolutely no need whatsoever, and the very inhabitor of eternity; the One Who is bigger than any definition of big, inherited a family of billions of brothers and sisters forever.

Stop beloved… Don’t run past this. Jesus was not just victorious over sin and death in His death. Jesus even overran His our limitless boundaries in His work on the cross. Said more simply: The infinite got bigger. The walls of separation across anywhere in creation were torn down. And, Jesus is made even better by having you (and this fool of a writer) in His eternal family.

So, are you facing problems? We all do. Our King/ Brother/ Husband/ Captain/ Friend/ Savior/ Lord has gone through them too. But, if we are willing to see it. The biggest problem ever, was solved through the greatest suffering ever experienced. And in this too, Jesus took on the very limits of His own infinity – and beat them too.

Tonight is your night. Time to believe Jesus is bigger.

Written by Makala Doulos: Makala Doulos is a child of G_d, a husband to his wife, a father to his children, and a teacher to his students. But mostly, he is a prisoner set free by Jesus. Love has invaded his life, crushed it, and made it new. Now, G_d’s Love is what constrains him to live in full surrender to the freedom The Father and Son and Holy Spirit have bought for us all. Grace and Peace to you all.

The Daily Bible Reading: Psalm 120-121| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: When compassed about on every side with tribulations, remember that it is the way of the saints, through which they passed to the kingdom of heaven. Learn to comfort thyself also, because that in this thou art made like unto Christ Jesus, thy Lord; and return thanks, if thou art in any small degree able to repay this to him. For I say unto thee that it is a greater merit in thee to suffer affliction patiently than to perform good works. ~Thomas à Kempis (c. 1380-1471)

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks. Romans 14:6

 

 

 

“No soul can be really at rest until it has given up all dependence on everything else and has been forced to depend on the Lord alone. As long as our expectation is from other things, nothing but disappointment awaits us.” – H.W. Smith

There use to be a Serta mattress commercial that showed customers falling backwards into a beautifully soft and restful mattress. As they made contact with this place of rest, they would be engulfed by its cushion and find a sense of stability, peace, comfort, and contentment. That is the idea Jesus is trying to convey to us when He says, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

The biggest mistake we make in our desire for autonomy is to think we can carry the load life burdens us with on our own. Jesus has already accomplished all the work necessary for our salvation and has established ‘the way’ home to our God’s presence for all eternity. It is when we ‘rest in’ His perfect work, like letting go and falling into the Serta mattress, that we find the joy, rest, peace, and contentment we long for… no matter the circumstances.

Jesus goes on to say, “Take my yoke upon you. (Which is to glorify God, our Heavenly Father) and Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”(vs. 29-30) We need to stop striving for acceptance, significance, and purpose; and we must take on Jesus’ ‘yoke’ of praising our God for all the wonderful promises He desires to fulfill in and for you. That’s what Jesus wants to teach us… and we can read all about it in His Word.

“It is Finished!” Jesus said. On the cross His work for us was completed and all our guilt and shame was removed “as far as the east is from the west.” (Ps 103:11) And this finished work of His makes us able to be declared justified (or not guilty!) in God’s sight… when we put our faith in Him. Because of the cross, “there is now therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

The answer to our struggle is not more work, BUT to fall into Jesus, finding rest in His perfect work of salvation for us.

Are you struggling today? Turn to Jesus, fall into His Words of comfort and find rest.

Choose wisely….

“He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

(Psalms 23:2-6)

Praying 4 U

Written by David Brown: David Brown is a husband, father, and grandfather with a Masters of Religious Studies and a Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Religions. Dave is a member of Pemberton’s First Baptist Church.

The Daily Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 25-28| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: “God brings men into deep waters not to drown them, but to cleanse them.” – James H. Aughey

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks. Romans 14:6

“Simon Peter said, ‘I’m going fishing.’ ‘We’ll come, too’  they all said. So they went out in the boat, but they caught nothing all night.” John 21:3 (NLT)

I’m a guy that has to wear glasses so I can see with clarity. I do pretty good with things that are far away, but that stuff that is right under my nose? Well let’s just say it’s a blur to me. Like when I put my foot in my mouth. If I only could see that coming, I’d shut up a lot more frequently. I think that may have been Simon Peter’s problem as well. When things were or seemed to be in a far-off-in-the-distance situation to deal with, Peter was right on board with it. During the Last Supper, Jesus would tell Peter that Satan wanted to sift him like wheat and his response was “Lord, with you I am ready to go to both to prison and to death”, then he should have said, “Just not right away Jesus.”

We’ve been going through Pastor Tony Evans’ Bible study titled “It’s Not Too Late” at church. It’s been pretty slam dunk thus far. The last part we got into dealt with “Peter-The Apostate Who God Used.” We were taken back to a scene that is all too familiar, Peter’s denial of Jesus. “You are one of this man’s disciples, aren’t you?” Answering the question Peter say’s “I am not”, then he found a place among the circle of people that had gathered around a charcoal fire to keep himself warm. “You, too, are one of His disciples, aren’t you?” “NO!! I am not.” “Dude, who you foolin’? Your Galilean accent gives you away, you have to be one of His followers.” “I told you #@% #@ % #@%#%@# I DON’T KNOW THE MAN!!!” Alrighty Then…

Another scene we visited has one of Peter’s infamous sayings happening when all the may-lay has past. Three plus years of ministry seem to have come to an end and a good portion of the disciples find themselves along the shore of the Sea of Tiberias. “I’m going fishing”, says Peter and the others follow straight away. After a night of catching NUTTIN’, Jesus is on the shore encouraging them to cast that net one more time. “It’s the Lord” and Peter dives into the water to find himself arriving to a fish breakfast cooking on a charcoal fire. “Uh-oh” thinks Peter, “I’ve been around this fire before.” Jesus asks Peter two times “Do you love me unconditionally?” and all the response Peter can muster up is, “Yeah, like a brother.”

It’s that third time where Jesus asks, “Do you love me like a brother?” and Peter replies, “Lord, You know everything! You know that I love You.” Now in each of those three questions asked of Peter, Jesus would give Peter a hint that he needed to go back to ministry, lead and nurture those people who would come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Fishing might have been a good way for Peter to go to after what he thought was a failure, or as Pastor Evans put it, “an implosion” that Peter had went through, but God had other plans for Peter and Jesus was gonna set him back on the path. Jesus met Peter at both his moment of implosion and level of understanding and give him one simple instruction, “Follow Me” and if you know your Bible, Peter does get to the next level.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who can say “I blew it” when it comes to ministry opportunities and thought there was no way to start over. I recently had an “implosion” and the mess left behind made me feel there was no way things could ever get cleaned up enough for me to be able to carry on. I might as well just be a Colony grad and that’s all. I also could hear the accusation, “See. You were never good enough to be used by Him.” I almost let that lie sink in as I spent Sunday mornings on my boat…fishing.

But God showed me He wasn’t done with me. A few “tent meetings” deep inland with my in-laws were enough to encourage me that He wanted me back and He began to show me where it was that I tripped up. Guess I’ll be seeing what He has in store for me now that my “fishin’ season” is over. How about you? Do you think it’s so bad that all you’ll ever be ruined? Friend, don’t fall for that nonsense. God uses messed up, jacked up people to get His work done. The Bible is full of our kind. The best thing you can do is to look for Jesus in it all and if ya gotta use glasses to see out then put them. Peter got out of the boat twice. The first time he didn’t fare too well, Jesus had to save him but that second time, Jesus restored him. If it can happen to Peter, it can happen to you. Amen?

Written by Chris Hughes: Chris, a graduate of The Colony of Mercy (11-2003) is married (Kathy) with two adult children (Kevin and Karen) and has been a Freedom Fighter contributor since 2008.

The Daily Bible Reading: Proverbs 29-30| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: “When you have been taken through the accusations of Satan and beaten down, God has a way of resurrecting you and using you for His glory” — Tony Evans

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name; The upright shall dwell in Your presence. Psalm 140:13

 

In preparation for my message at the Colony of Mercy, I was camping out in Psalm 111. It was one of those mornings where I felt compelled to stay put in one Psalm rather than read the four Psalms for the day.

It was one of those WOW moments that happens when the Spirit of God causes a passage to come alive, and the words seem to leap off the page of the sacred text.

Psalm 111 is one of five “Hallelujah” Psalms. These five Psalms either begin or end with the words, “Praise the Lord.” The Psalm is also an acrostic in that each line begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In addition to Psalm 111 and 112 being acrostic Psalms, 9, 10, 24, 34, 37, 119 and 145 are as well. Scholars believed that this aided in the memorizing of the Scriptures.

Many of us, particularly American Christians, live a shallow, empty, selfish, defeated version of the Christian life. We tend to look at our faith walk the same way we look at life – through the glass-half-empty syndrome, rather than looking at life like a glass filled and overflowing.

In this Psalm I have observed five “I get to’s” vs. “I have to’s. Our Pastor recently did a study on the Sabbath and made the point that we don’t have to do Sabbath, we get to!!! That right thinking changes our entire perspective.

Here’s the Psalm from the New Living Translation:

Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
² Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them.
³ Full of splendor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever.
⁴ He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered;
the Lord is gracious and merciful.
⁵ He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever.
⁶ He has shown his people the power of his works, in giving them the inheritance of the nations.
⁷ The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy;
⁸ they are established forever and ever, to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.
⁹ He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever.
Holy and awesome is his name!
¹⁰ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;  all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!

We will unpack them for the next couple of weeks.

1. We get to meet with God’s people (vs.1) What would the Lord’s day look like if I went to church with a thankful heart and an “I get to go meet with the people of God,” vs. “I have to go to church today?”

Most of the worlds Christians on the Lord’s day go to church with the very fear that if caught, they could literally lose their lives. They will go to worship not for just one hour, but in many places outside of America, they will meet for most of the day. Some will meet for hours and will do so with people of all ages, standing for the entire service packed in like sardines and with no modern conveniences.

We American Christians view our worship through the lens of “it-will-be-a-good-Sunday” if:

I like the music
The temperature is just right
No one takes my seat
The sermon isn’t too long or too short
Someone speaks to me
Everyone agrees with my point of view

If you didn’t get the memo – Worship isn’t all about you! Worship is all about Him!

And I just ran over my words for this blog. So stay tuned for next week. Can I ask you to do me a favor? Read through Psalm 111 and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you too.

Rejoice! Pray! Give thanks!

Bill Welte
President/CEO America’s Keswick

Written by Bill Welte, President/CEO of America’s Keswick: Bill has been married to his child sweetheart for 40+ years, and has four married kids and 11 amazing grand kids. He loves music and is an avid reader.

The Daily Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 1-3| You can download our 2017 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Think About This: Worship is never about being a spectator. Worship is designed for you and me to be a participator.

This Week’s Verse to Memorize:

Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name; The upright shall dwell in Your presence. Psalm 140:13