Overcoming Fear Part 4 - Conclusion

In conclusion, I would like to share with you this simple acrostic for you to remember when experiencing fear in your life:

F – Focus on Christ, not your fears

Remember to keep your eyes focused on Christ. When you focus on the problem instead of Christ, it will be bigger than you can handle. When Peter took his eyes off Christ, he started to sink. He began focusing on the storm instead of on Christ.

E –Exercise your God-given power

Remember that we have power over our fears through Jesus Christ. "God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power..."

A –Arm yourself with the Word of God

Memorize and meditate on God’s Word so that when worry, fear and doubt creeps in; you are armed with the Word of God. Just as a soldier would not go into battle unarmed, we should not go into battle without being armed with the Word of God. 

R –Rest in the Arms of Christ 

Find peace and security by resting in the arms of Jesus. Deuteronomy 33:27, “The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.”

Overcoming Fear - Part 1

Overcoming Fear - Part 2

Overcoming Fear - Part 3

 

 

Overcoming Fear Part 3 - Overcoming Fear

“but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

a.      With Power

                                                              i.      God has all power

We have a powerful God. He is able to overcome any fear that we have.

Psalm 147:5, “Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.”

Jeremiah 32:17, “Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:”

                                                            ii.      The One who has all power is with us

Matthew 28:18, 20 “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth…and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

Hebrews 13:5, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

                                                          iii.      He gives us power

God has given us the power to the weary to help them through their trials.

Isaiah 40:29-31, “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

We must rely on God’s power not our own, as the disciples failed to do.

II Corinthians 4:7, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”

b.      With Love

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the love Christ has for us. It is just so far beyond our comprehension.

Recently, I was reading the story of the rich young ruler and one of the verses jumped out at me.

Mark 10:17, “And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.”

Jesus knew that the young man would not be willing to sacrifice his possessions to follow Him. The one thing the young man lacked, was loving God with all his heart. Jesus knowing this still chose to love him.

Jesus also chose to love Judas knowing that he would one day betray Him. I could not imagine this kind of love. If I knew someone was going to betray me, the last thing I would think of doing would be to love him.

I have also been pondering a great deal on the Crucifixion. I think we make this so much lesser than it really was. When you see pictures of Jesus after His resurrection, you see red marks on His hands from the nails. Jesus had large spikes driven through His hands. Those holes will be in His hands for all of eternity. I think that they will serve as a continually reminder of what Christ did for us.

How does love tie in with fear?

I John 4:18 answers this question, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”

We can find peace and security in the great love that Christ has for us. Just as a child finds security in the arms of their parent, we can find security be resting in the arms of Christ.

c.      With Sound Mind

                        “Sound mind” here is referring to moderation and self-control. How does self-control tie 

                          in with fear?

I think that many times fear starts out with our mind. We start doubting and worrying, instead of turning to God in faith. By bringing every thought captive into the obedience of Christ, we can conquer our fears with the Lord’s strength.

II Corinthians 10:3, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.”

By meditating on God’s Word, our thoughts will be turned to the Lord instead of our fears and worries. If you are struggling with fear, I would suggest to you to find some verses to memorize and meditate on.

Charles Spurgeon said, “The worst evils of life are those which do not exist except in our imagination. If we had no troubles but real troubles, we should not have a tenth part of our present sorrows.    

“If we want the Word of God to have authority in our life, there is only one way - obey it. If we want the Holy Spirit to have authority in our life, there is only one way - Obey Him. If we always obey impulses of fear or doubt or resentment, what will have authority over our minds? Fear, and doubt and resentment.”  (Tom Marshall)

Overcoming Fear Part 2 - The Source of Fear

1. Fear is Not of God 

                "for God hath not given us the spirit of fear"  

            Fear does not come from God. Repeatedly, throughout the Bible God tells His people to "fear not."

Abraham
Genesis 15:1, “After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.”

Jacob
Genesis 26:24, “And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake.



Hagar
Genesis 21:17, “And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.”

Children of Israel
Deuteronomy 1:21, “Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.

Deuteronomy 20:3, “And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;”

Deuteronomy 31:6, “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”

Isaiah 41:14, “Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.”

Isaiah 43:1, “But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.” 

Joshua
Joshua 8:1, “And the LORD said unto Joshua, Fear not, neither be thou dismayed:”

Zacharias 
Luke 1:13, “But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.”

Disciples 

Luke 5:10, “And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.” 

Luke 12:4-7, “And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him. Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.” 

Revelation 1:17, “And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:”

Jesus is the first and the last. He created all things and by Him all things exist. There is nothing that He cannot control. He controls every single circumstance in which we find ourselves. 

2. Fear is of the Devil

  

A. B. Simpson said, “Fear is born of Satan, and if we would only take time to think a moment, we would see that everything Satan says is founded upon a falsehood.”

I think the devil uses fear to keep us from accomplishing God’s will for our lives.

I once heard a story of a man who was called to the mission field. This man chose not to go because he was afraid of snakes. One day as his children were playing, two of his boys climbed under their trailer and found a nest of rattle snakes. The man quickly put the boys in the car to rush them to the hospital. As he was backing out of the driveway, he ran over his other child. His wife came out of the house seeing what had happened, dropped dead of a heart attack. The man lost his entire family because he tried to flee from his fear instead of obeying God. In the end, his fear ended up finding him.

Fear is just another tactic the devil uses in attempts to destroy us.  

3. Fear comes from within ourselves

"Fear is the passion of our nature which excites us to provide for our security, on the approach of evil."                        ~Rogers

                       

Fear comes when we are looking to ourselves for security instead of to God. It comes when we are looking at God through our circumstance instead of looking at our circumstance through God. It is a lack of faith in God. It is a matter of looking to ourselves instead of to the Lord for help and strength.

The disciples did this when they were in the midst of the stormy sea. 

Matthew 8: 23-27, “And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him. And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!”

They toiled on in their own strength before finally crying out to the Lord. So often, this characterizes us. The Lord is often our last resort when facing difficulties in our lives. Fear comes from our own hearts when we fail to put our faith in the Lord.                        

Elisabeth Elliot said, “Where does your security lie? Is God your refuge, your hiding place, your stronghold, your shepherd, your counselor, your friend, your redeemer, your Saviour, your guide? If He is, you don't need to search any further for security.”

Overcoming Fear - Part 1 Introduction

I recently shared a devotional on fear with a ladies group. I thought I would post my notes from it on here. Hopefully, it will be a blessing and encouragement to you. 

II Timothy 1:7

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power,

and of love, and of a sound mind.”

Introduction:

            Glorianne Gibbs tell of a story:

“When my husband and I were just newly married we were sitting in our VW bug in the parking lot next to our apartment building that actually was an old, infrequently used church’s parking lot that, as apartment renters, we were allowed to use. We were just sitting there enjoying each other’s company and intensely talking, not noticing anything but each other as the twilight of a late October evening was settling in. it was a cold October, and we were pausing to warm up before making the long walk to our apartment. The side of the church facing us was windowless, and we were several hundred feet from the road and any passerby.

Suddenly our whole car shook and we looked out to see that a gang of about fifteen fierce looking older teenagers had appeared and surrounded our car. They kept circling the car and rocking it with more and more momentum until we were afraid that it would roll over. I was terrified! My husband could in no way get out of the car to confront them as they were armed with chains and knives and we were living close to where the Cleveland riots had occurred that past summer. Tempers and hostilities had not cooled as fast as the weather that year. We just held hands and prayed as they rocked our car and yelled at us! It was a horrible experience and I actually thought they were going to kill us. Then, just when I thought the car was definitely going over, they suddenly stopped, banged a chain once more on our roof and sauntered away across the parking lot.

When I think of fear, the first thing that comes to my mind is a child being afraid of the dark. This is probably one of the first fears that many people face. As a child, you probably experienced a number of fears. Children are generally much more open and willing to discuss their problems. However, as we grow older it seems like we have less of a tendency to really talk about our struggles.

I think that we have the attitude as adults we should be tough and not have any fears. I have often seen decals on vehicles that say, “No Fear.”  I think we are the “No fear” generation. This is just an attitude of pride – that we can first of all, handle our problems on own; and secondly, it is a denial of God for we are to have a healthy fear of Him.

 Some fears that you may be dealing with or have dealt with in the past:

·        Darkness

·        Sickness

·        Trials

·        Death

·        Personal or family safety

·        Of man/public speaking

·        Failure

Going on the mission field, I have many fears to face. Things are bad enough in our own country, yet even more so in most other countries. I have a decision to make as to whether I am going to let the fears control my life or trust God for the outcome. 

Don't You Just Love Being Criticized?

Yeah, I thought so, You love it as much as I do. Who doesn't hate being criticized? Lately, it seems the Lord has thought it necessary for me to learn how to respond to criticism in the right way. Fun. I started working through the first issue only to turn around and have it coming from another direction. Okay Lord, I guess you are trying to teach me something here. It is especially hard when you feel it is unjustified or that the person didn't get all the facts before being critical.

So, how do you respond? My first reaction is to become self-defensive. It is so easy to come up with a million reasons to defend yourself. But, wait a minute...am I letting pride real its ugly head? Maybe God is trying to show me mine own critical attitude. You know, of course I never criticize and neither do you, do you?

Let's look at this criticism again...ok, maybe there is at least some truth in it. Still, it is so easy to go on the defensive. Isn't is easy to turn around and start being critical of the one criticizing you? Yup, I'm not the only one. So...do I listen to the criticism or do I let it make me bitter?

Next time you think of being critical, think of something kind or encouraging to say to the person instead. And...next time someone criticizes you, take what you can from it, forgive and move on. It's not worth getting bitter over.

Proverbs 15:23, "A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!"

Moments

Pressing Forward into a New Year!

Happy New Year to all you my dear friends!!!

I must apologize for the lack of posts of late. To be quite honest I just haven't felt like posting. Have you ever felt like everything seems to be going wrong all at the same time? Have you felt the pressure of life and find yourself telling God that you just can't take any more? That is the way I felt quite a few times over the last several months. In the midst of all this where do you turn?

The last few weeks I have been clinging to the verse, 1Corinthians 10:13, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."

God does not test us above our abilities. He knows my frame. He knows I am merely dust. Who could know me better than the One who made me? As I have meditated on this verse I have realized that God knows what I can handle. Even when I think I am beyond my limit, He knows what is best. He is seeking to make me into a finer vessel fit for the Master's use.  I may not be responsible for the trials in my life, but I am responsible for how I respond to them.

As I reflect upon this past year, I see how God has worked and how He has blessed. I look forward to the coming year and what God has in store for me. I know there will be more trials and testings. But I also know that as I walk in obedience to Him, there will be abundant blessings. God has already provided new opportunities of service for Him. Some of these opportunities are out of my comfort zone. But I know that He will enable where He has called.

I have chosen two verses as my theme for the coming year. I feel they are fitting as I seek to put the past behind and pressing on and move forward in my walk with my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Philippians 3:13-14 

"Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

99.9% Committed?

As consumerists, we expect perfection from services rendered or items purchased. Near perfection or half-hearted efforts don't satisfy us, and many times we complain if things aren't exactly as we want them. The Canadian company Syncrude Canada Ltd. desired to motivate employees to strive for perfection, so they published a list of near-perfect results in their company publication Insight:

If 99.9 percent is good enough, then...

- Two million documents will be lost by the IRS this year.
- 22,000 checks will be deducted from the wrong bank accounts in the next 60 minutes.
- 1,314 phone calls will be misplaced by telecommunication services every minute.
- 12 babies will be given to the wrong parents each day.
- 268,500 defective tires will be shipped this year.
- 103,260 income tax returns will be process incorrectly this year. - 2,488,200 books will be shipped in the next 12 months with the wrong cover.
- Two plane landings daily at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago will be unsafe.
- 3,056 copies of tomorrow's Wall Street Journal will be missing one of the three sections.
- 18,322 pieces of mail will be mishandled in the next hour.
- 291 pacemaker operations will be performed incorrectly this year. - 55 malfunction automatic teller machines will be installed in the next 12 months.
- 20,000 incorrect drug prescriptions will be written in the next 12 months.
- 114,500 mismatched pairs of shoes will be shipped this year.
- $761,900 will be spent in the next 12 months on tapes and compact discs that won't play.
- 107 incorrect medical procedures will be performed by the end of the day today.
- 315 entries in Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language will turn out to be misspelled.

If we wouldn't allow a company to send us a defective product or mistaken order without complaining and demanding a replacement, why do we offer God less than 100% of our lives? 

Too many Christians give God parts of their lives without wholly committing themselves to Him. They accept parts of God's commands and follow His will partially, but don't give up total control to God.

Paul is a perfect example of what a wholly committed Christian can accomplish for God's glory. Just before his death, Paul wrote Timothy to encourage him in his Christian journey. Paul starts off his second letter to Timothy by assuring him that no matter what Paul faced, he was confident in God's will: "Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." Paul had wholly committed his life to God.

Have you ever given God your life? God doesn't simply want parts of your life, or areas you're comfortable giving away, but every idea, goal, dream, aspiration, behavior, and desire. God gave you all He had when He sent Jesus to die for your sins; don't you want to give Him everything you have?

To learn more about the ministries of Lancaster Baptist Church and Pastor Chappell, please visit lancasterbaptist.org, paulchappell.com, or follow him on twitter.

Love Me First

Love Me First

~ Author Unknown

Everyone longs to give themselves completely to someone, to have a deep soul relationship with another, to be loved thoroughly and exclusively. But God says to the Christian, “No, not until you are satisfied, fulfilled and content with being loved by Me alone. Not until you have given yourself totally unreservedly to Me, until you have an intensely personal unique relationship with Me alone. Not until you have discovered that only in Me is your satisfaction to be found. Then will you be capable of the perfect human relationship that I have planned for you.

You will never be united with another until you are united with Me, exclusive of anyone or anything else, exclusive of any other desires or longings. I want you to stop planning, stop wishing, and allow Me to give you the most thrilling plan existing, one that you cannot imagine. I want you to have the best. Please allow Me to bring it to you. Just keep watching Me, expecting greatest things. Keep experiencing the satisfactions that I am. Keep listening and learning the things I tell you.

You just wait, that’s all. Don’t be anxious, don’t worry. Don’t look around at the things other have gotten or that I’ve given them. Don’t look at things you think you want. And then, when you’re ready, and until the one I have for you is ready – I am working even this moment to have both of you ready at the same time – until you are both satisfied exclusively with Me and the life I prepared for you, you won’t be able to experience the love that exemplifies your relationship with Me, and is thus the perfect love. And dear one, I want you to have this most wonderful love. I want you to see in the flesh a picture of your relationship with Me. I want you to enjoy materially and concretely the everlasting union of beauty, perfection, and love that I offer you with Myself.

Know that I love you utterly,
I am Almighty.

Three Questions

Great Post to Check Out:

"The Blessed Life"

Great post on becoming completely abandoned to God by Sara Nicole @ Simply Sanctified

Thought Provoking Thursday

The Chosen Vessel

Author Unknown

The Master was searching for a vessel to use;
On the shelf there were many - which one would He choose?
"Take me", cried the gold one. "I'm shiny and bright.
I'm of great value and I do things just right.
My beauty and luster will outshine the rest
And for someone like You, Master, gold would be the best!"

The Master passed on with no word at all;
He looked at a silver urn, narrow and tall;
"I'll serve You, dear Master, I'll pour out Your wine
And I'll be at Your table whenever You dine,
My lines are so graceful, my carvings so true,
And my silver will always compliment You."

Unheeding the Master passed on to the brass,
It was wide mouthed and shallow, and polished like glass.
"Here! Here!" cried the vessel, "I know I will do.
Place me on Your table for all men to view."

"Look at me", called the goblet of crystal so clear.
"My transparency shows my contents so dear,
Though fragile am I, I will serve You with pride,
And I'm sure I'll be happy in Your house to abide."

The Master came next to a vessel of wood,
Polished and carved, it solidly stood.
"You may use me, dear Master", the wooden bowl said,
"But I'd rather You used me for fruit, not for bread!"

Then the Master looked down and saw a vessel of clay.
Empty and broken it helplessly lay.
No hope had the vessel that the Master might choose,
To cleanse and make whole, to fill and to use.

"Ah! This is the vessel I've been hoping to find,
I will mend and use it and make it all Mine.
I need not the vessel with pride of its self;
Nor the one who is narrow to sit on the shelf;
Nor the one who is big mouthed and shallow and loud;
Nor one who displays his contents so proud;
Not the one who thinks he can do all things just right;
But this plain earthy vessel filled with My power and might."

Then gently He lifted the vessel of clay.
Mended and cleansed it and filled it that day.
Spoke to it kindly. "There's work you must do,
Just pour out to others as I pour into you."

Taking up My Cross

 

Galatians 2:20 

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Matthew 10:38

  And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.

Matthew 16:24

Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

 This year I have been wanting to focus on an area spiritually in my life. I have thought of several verses, but it has taken me several weeks for the Lord to show me what area needs the most work in my life. There are plenty of areas which could be improved, but the one the Lord has impressed upon me is the need to completely die to myself.

I am one of those people who like to plan and can be very disjointed when people interrupt my schedule with needing me to do this or that. It is so easy to go about MY life and be worrying about what I need to get done and neglect to serve others along life's way.

I think many Christians are like the Priest and Levite in the story of the Good Samaritan. If I had to decide who I am most like in this story, it would have to be one of them. I am sure they were busy needing to get to their next "appointment" or too busy "serving" God to stop and help that poor man. How many people do we overlook who need an encouraging word, a helping hand or even more importantly to hear the gospel? So many times I go to the store and am in such a hurry to take the time to stop and hand the cashier a tract. Isn't this why we are here on the earth to serve others?

What better example is there than the Lord Jesus Christ who was never too busy to stop and show a little compassion. He took the time to talk to the "woman at the well." He took the time to gather little children up in His arms. He took the time to talk to the woman with the issue of blood. He could of just kept on going, after all He knew who had touched Him and He knew that she was healed. He lived a completely selfless life. He is the Almighty God, yet He was not afraid to become a servant of His own creation, mankind.

This year I am praying that the Lord will help me to die to myself in a much greater way than I have ever done before. I want to be completely emptied of myself, my plans, my hopes, and my dreams that I might be fully surrendered to Him that He might be glorified and honored through my life.

John 3:30,  

" He must increase, but I must decrease."

True Beauty

Where is Your Mission Field?

Read this really great post by my dear friend Anna by clicking here

One Small Act of Kindness

One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, 'Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd.' I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on.

As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him...

He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes. My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, 'Those guys are jerks.' They really should get lives.

' He looked at me and said, 'Hey thanks!'

There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before..

He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.  I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends. He said yes..

We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my  friends thought the same of him.  
Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again.

I stopped him and said, 'Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!' He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends...

When we were seniors we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor and I was going for business on a football
scholarship..

Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak

Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous! Today was one of those days.

I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, 'Hey, big guy, you'll be great!' He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. ' Thanks,' he said.

As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began, 'Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostlyyour friends.....

I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story.'

I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.

'Thankfully, I was saved...My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable..'

I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile.

Not until that moment did I realize it's depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions...With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse....

God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way. Look for God in others.

Please note: I receive this as a forward. I am not sure the author of this story although I have heard it on several occasions. No copyright infringement is intended.

Living to the Hilt

The Lord has taught me some things this fall which have really changed my thinking and outlook on life.

I have a burden and a desire to serve the Lord in full-time service. Right now though, I am in a transitional phase, waiting for the next "big" step. I have a desire, if it is the Lord's will, to serve Him on the mission field.

While in this waiting stage, my initial thinking was, "I could serve Him so much better right now if I was on the mission field or serving Him full-time." I also have other friends who are waiting for God's will in different areas. Some are waiting for visas to get to the field, others are waiting to meet "Mr. Right" and still others are waiting for the Lord to open up some area of service. In each of these cases, as well as my own, I have thought the same thing. "Wouldn't we be serving God so much better if our circumstances were different, the way we think they should be?"

God has taught me though, that the best place I can serve Him, is right where He has placed me. I know that I am in His will living at home, working the jobs I have and helping in my home church. It is not God's will for me to "Go" yet. Therefore, the best place I can serve God today, is right here. Who even knows what tomorrow will bring? We are so caught up in how we are going to serve God that we forget to serve Him today, this very hour or minute. 

Recently, in a message, our pastor made the statement that the will of God begins with the vacuum cleaner. The VACUUM CLEANER?!!! I always had the mindset that cleaning and other such tasks had little or no eternal value when in reality they do. God has commanded that we do all things decently and in order. Maybe all God's will for me today is to improve on doing things decently and in order by cleaning and organizing. The little things in life matter much more than we comprehend. They do add up!

Jim Elliot said, "Wherever you are, be all there. Live to the hilt ever situation you believe to be the will of God." If you know you are in the center of God's will, then give it all you've got! Who knows if you'll even have another day to serve the Lord?

Colossians 10:31 

"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."

"The will of God is like a rose, unfolding one petal at a time."

Missionaries are the cream of the crop of Christianity.
A few decades ago, a missionary was working hard at spreading the Gospel in China. Impressed by the advances he was making with the Chinese government, the Standard Oil Company offered the missionary a weighty sum of money to work for them in developing a branch of the company in China. The missionary promptly turned them down. Shocked, the company doubled their offer, giving him a sum of money that would draw even the strongest of people to consider the life of luxury it could offer. Again, the missionary refused the job. Puzzled, the company asked him what it was he wanted. "We can't offer you any more money." The missionary replied, "The money's not too small; the job is."

Time Management

I haven't shared much about what I learned at the conference yet. I thought I would share about one of the sessions which I have been working on applying in my life.

One of the sessions that has made a difference in my life was on time management by Jeremy Rands. What he shared wasn't really profound, it was just something that I needed some encouragement and motivation to apply to my life. He emphasized the importance of having a schedule and just being organized with how you use your time by good planning.

I used to be fairly good with this but have been slipping in this area more recently. As a result, I have been wasting a lot of time. Then things don't get accomplished that need to be done and the frustrations and stress begin to mount. Ever been there?

I have tried in times past to go by a detailed schedule everyday but have found that this just doesn't work for me. So, the first step I have taken is to just stick to going to bed at a certain time and getting up at a specified time. This has helped me to be well rested and also to get a good start on my day with spending a good amount of time with the Lord. It is amazing how much better the day goes when it gets off to the right start.

I have found the best way to get the things accomplished that I need to is by making a list and then set an amount of time to accomplish it in. I have also been trying to use up small amounts of time that usually go wasted. I am also working on getting my areas of the house better organized and working to keep them that way. I have decided that even if I am in a hurry, in the long run it saves time if I put things away instead of leaving it out to do later.

One thing Bro. Rands also mentioned is that sometimes it is the spiritual thing to say no to people. It is not God's desire that we live overwhelmed lives, constantly under stress and pressure. One thing my pastor said in his sermon on Sunday was that sometimes we may need to seem standoffish just to be sure that we are keeping God in His proper place. We have to keep things in the right priorities and our relationship with our Lord must be placed above all else.

"If you are too busy, hectic, and overwhelmed, you are not effectively ministering to people."

"The purpose to being organized is living a life that glorifies and honors God and helps others to do the same."