Friday, November 27, 2009

Vineyard Workers Needed!

Dear prayer partner(s):

As we are nearing the completion of our first draft of the Lighthouse Commentary on the New Testament, we’re praying for a Publisher and Editor to come forth to share in this service for our Lord Jesus in preparation for His Kingdom to come.

First, if you’re interested in becoming a contributing Editor, express it by emailing us at LighthousePrayerLine3@gmail.com. In Early July of 2010, we will snail mail a copy to you as we should be finished by that time. You can then “red line” the copy and mail it back to us.

Secondly, we will then send it to an interested Co-publisher for typing (final draft). If this is something you would like to do, please contact us as we will get this final draft to you for production sometime around the end of September.

If neither of these duties sound like something you would be willing to take on, please keep this project in your prayers, just the same. All active participants will receive credit whether their work is only partially utilized [Ibid.: Rom 12:1-8].

Prayerfully,

Mark Seay
www.LighthousePrayerLine.org

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

*~*Prayer Requests for 11/30/09:

Atleast, take a peek!

www.HelpAngleTree.org

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"I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful" (John 15:1-2 - NIV).

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Bibles for America (BfA) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to distribute free copies of the New Testament Recovery Version and Christian literature throughout the United States. Please visit www.biblesforamerica.org to order a free Bible or browse our free Bible-reading resources.

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"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation,
that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners;
of whom I am chief" (1 Timothy 1:15).

John Newton lived to be eighty-two years old and continued to preach and have an active ministry until beset by fading health in the last two years of his life. Even then, Newton never ceased to be amazed by God's grace and told his friends:

My memory is nearly gone;
but I remember two things;
That I am a great sinner, and
that Christ is a great Saviour.

John Newton (1725-1807)
English minister and hymn writer

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Hi friend,

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

1) "My husband and I have been trying to have a baby for over 4 years now. . . Please pray that the Lord will bless us with a baby soon." -Katie

2) Beth asks for our prayers: "Please pray that I am on Mark's heart and that he will not let me go. Please pray that his heart will be convicted to me.";

3) "Hello, Today is my son Michael's 29th birthday. On Monday (Nov. 16th) he will go to court and expects to get 5 years in prison (3 years good time.) He is a Christian, but has already done about 3 years for his previous actions (resulting from meth use). Please pray with me for God's will in Michael's life, and for strength, peace, and even joy in the midst of his trials. Also please pray for God's guidance in using the time served (if he gets sentenced) to good use, for the glory of God. Thank you so much for praying!" -Michelle;

4) Sonya asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "I am very depressed and emotionally drained. The past year has been the hardest time of my life. I lost my husband and best friend because he didn't trust me any longer due to the things that I have done. I let him down and he said he could never be sure that I wouldn't hurt him that way again. I was unfaithful and put my trust into one person more than I should have. I have put myself into debt by loaning that person money and I am writing those funds off as a loss because I know I will not get it back. My husband divorced me- I was layed off from work - and just recently my father inlaw passed away. At his funeral my ex-husband's new girl friend was there. - I had so much hope we could find our way back to each other. My choices and his choices cost us our marriage. God didn't do this and I know that he didn't we didn't have faith enough in God to make the right choices and now this is where we are at. I know that God has provided me with my health, family and friends. Please pray for me that I find a brighter tomorrow and to help me continue to keep my faith in God and even though I am hurting that things would turn around in my so called existence. That I will find employment, continue to work with my therapist on my depression, and to let go of my ex husband and find happiness. Thank you.";

5) "Lord thank for today and for the ability to come to you and ask that you bless me with meaningful employment. I pray for my wifes safety as she is out of town on work. I ask theses things in the name of Jesus. Amen." -Terry;

6) Sandra asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for my daughter and grandaughter. Pray that my grandaughter's heart be filled with love and that she remember all the love that has existed between herself and her mother since she was a baby. Thank you.";

7) "All the power of god into Tom In the form of personal power..." -James;


8) "Pray for me that by disability benifits will be quickly restored." -Mr Brown;

9) Tom and Kate asks to be remembered in our prayers. They write: "All the power of god into Tom/Kate in the form of to get the job I am praying for I wanna work.";

10) "Bless Sacramento Delta, Bless our president Obama and his family, Bless those who fight for single payer health care, Kusinich -from Oregon, Jay R- Bless Rob who is so ill, Bless me and thank you for the gift yesterday, Bless guide posts. Thank you." -Eleanor;

11) Connie asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for my husband who has struggled with ssa since he can remember and is living with another man. Both of them believe in God and He has been working in their hearts. I need wisdom as my husband and I continue communicating with each other.";

12) "I am really in need of prayer. My girlfriend and I broke up recently, and it is killing me. I still think she has feelings for me, but she is so afraid of commitment that I feel she thought it would be better to break it off now instead of down the road where her feelings could be stronger. I love her so much and don't want to lose her. I have prayed for restoration and a renewal of our relationship. I really do believe it is God's will for us, but I believe there are way too many negative influences in her life that are keeping her from giving us another chance. Please Please pray that God would give us another chance together, and open her heart, mind, and will to give me a chance with her. Please pray that I act in such a way when I am around her that she looks at me in a very positive light. Let me not get angry or jealous so that she gets turned off, but let me remain calm at all times. Pray that God would send positive people into her life that will help her find Jesus. Pray that she will accept me for who I am, and that the Holy Spirit speak to her heart mind and will to give me another chance. Thank you and God bless you all." -Joe;

13) Marie asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for my daughter, Karen and her husband Keith who are experiencing many financial problems right now. They have a son who requires many medical procedures since his birth 11 years ago. Both of them have full time jobs but cannot meet the demanding needs of the every day bills especially with all the medical bills they've had which has been in the million dollars. Their insurance covers most but they must pay a lot out of pocket. I ask God to help them with their financial problems before they lose their home which I am so afraid may happen because the taxes keep going higher which means their mortgage goes up too as do gas, oil, electric and food for a family of four. They do not spend money on foolish things. They buy only necessities. Pray for them to be able to meet their monthly payments and tend to the needs of their children.";

14) "Yes, Mindy and issues in her life that are to numerous to relate. May the Lords will be done and financial guidence. Judy in hospital , H1N1 complications." -Mindy;

15) Jenni asks for our prayers. She writes: "I have had a little bad luck these days. I left a man who was very abusive. Because of this action I am left holding all of the responsibilities at home. We had a house together...my daughter and I still live in the house, but I am losing it. I have no job, but have been trying for months to find one. I am a smart capable woman who just cant seem to get a break. If I lose my home my daughter and I will have nowhere to go. Plus this is our home and because of the abusive relationship I dont want to move her and change her life even more. This is our home we have nothing else.I pray everyday that I find a job or find some help to keep our lives together. I also struggle everyday trying to deal with my past relationship and what it has done to me and my daughter. I am tired very tired of living like this...living day to day with no security. I know I am stronger than I realize....but I need some extra help right now. I am falling apart. So please pray for my daughter and myself that in a miracle...we can keep our lives together. And that the man in my past will leave us alone.";

16) "I would like to ask you to pray for Victor who was in a car accident on November 1 and was due to fly back to NY on the 17 of this November from to and then NY. He was taken to the airport and his body went into a deep stress that they did not allow him to fly. I have been calling his cell and got no answer I pray that God will bring him home safe and bless the doctors that are helping him, my name is Michelle but I ask you in the name of Jesus to pray for my husband." -Michelle;

17) "Please pray that God would grant me the judicial appointment for my community. Please pray that God would grant me the wisdom knowledge, strength and confidence to be a just and compassionate judge. To God be all the glory. Please pray in Jesus' name. Thanks." -Chris;

18) Dorcus asks for our prayers: "IM HAVING TO DEAL WITH ME AND MY HUSBAND NOT WORKING AND BILLS ARE DUE WERE TRYING TO PAY CAR AND INSURANCE AND RENT AND LIGHTS PLUS FOOD HHOW CAN WE GET THROUGH COLLECTORS KEEP CALLING INSURANCE CANCELLING ON CAR ITS CRAZY WE REALLY NEED SOME OTHER GUIDES TO HELP WE HAVE FIVE KIDS AND WERE TRYING TO MAINTAIN ALL OF THIS AND STILL SERVE GOD WEVE BEEN HOMELESS WITH NOTHING SLEEPING IN THE CAR WE JUST PRAY FOR A TURN AROUND PLEASE IN JESUS NAME.";

19) "Lord I ask you again for blessings and thank you for blessings. Let my heart be trouble free and my body healthy. Let my finances be like the fishes and loaves now for I know by faith God provides. And Lord please send the right companion to me now; let him be like Jesus and let me know when and who.In Jesus name amen." -Joan;

20) "Please pray for my grandson. He is sixteen and is very confused and is looking at gay pornography and books on the occult. I am trusting that God will deliver him. He is living with his dad who has never been there for him." -Doris; and lastly ...

21) "Please pray for my son. He knows the Lord & was baptized. He is living with a man who needs salvation. Ask God to send him Godly friends and that he will continue to come home and hear the truth in love. I need Godly wisdom as I talk with him." -Cindy


**God bless you for caring enough to pray!!!**

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A real friend is always and under all circumstances a friend (Proverbs 17:17a).

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*~*Spotlight Site*~*

http://www.IDesirePrayer.com

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Daily Devotional
By Bill Keller
LighthousePrayerLine.org


I have to admit to you, that through all that I have seen and experienced in my life and during over a decade in ministry, VERY little shocks me any more. It is not that I am apathetic to what happens in this world, but I realize that sinful men and women who rebel against God are capable of doing ANYTHING. But the other afternoon was one of those rare times that I was both shocked and deeply saddened.

I was at the salon the other day getting my hair cut. As I was waiting, I saw the cover of the recent Cosmopolitan magazine and the BOLD PRINT featuring an article on "50 Sex Tricks ." Now my friend, I am 51 years old, I have been married over 25 years, and prior to fully surrendering to Christ 20 years ago lived in rebellion to God for many years. So I am fully aware of what goes on between men and women not committed to the Lord. But here was a well established, national publication, geared primarily to young women in a place ANYONE of ANY AGE could see, espousing the glory of having sex outside of marriage. Yes, I was shocked and saddened by the message that Cosmopolitan was sending out.

When I got home, I told my wife about the Cosmopolitan cover and she told me
that she was in the supermarket check-out line a few weeks ago and saw a past issue of Cosmopolitan. She told me that as she looked through it, she was appalled at the graphic detailed nature of what they were promoting to young women as perfectly acceptable sexual behavior. While I couldn't believe what the cover I saw had said, I assumed that it was just for shock value to get people to buy the magazine.

So my wife and I went out, bought the copy that I had seen, and I can only tell you that I became even MORE SHOCKED as I read through the contents of the entire magazine. It was pure pornography. The saddest thing to me was that this a very prominent national publication that has been around for years, and is responsible in shaping the views of the young women who read it. What they were promoting as acceptable behavior was not only 100% AGAINST God's plan, but does not "empower" women as they claim, it cheapens them!!!! IT DESTROYS THEM!!!!

I make this an issue today for 2 reasons. First, moms and dads, DO NOT let your daughters read this garbage. It is as bad as any pornography that is on the market, and worse since instead of being in a plastic cover behind the counter, it is on shelves where YOUR daughter can see it and can purchase it. Second, young women, I often talk about "garbage in, garbage out." What is on the pages of that magazine is GARBAGE. Stay away from it!

Just so that I am clear, I am NOT for censorship. I believe in and support the first amendment of our Constitution. There are MANY out there who would love to censor what I say each day. The publishers of Cosmopolitan have EVERY RIGHT to print that garbage, just as Larry Flynt and Hugh Hefner have every right to print the garbage they do. BUT THAT DOES NOT MEAN WE HAVE TO CONSUME THEIR GARBAGE!!!! Sadly, what I saw in that issue of Cosmopolitan was just that, pure garbage since it was 100% in opposition to God's Word.

Young women, listen to me. I am saying this because I love you and care about you so much. Sex is a WONDERFUL thing. God created it so it HAS to be
wonderful. But God created sex to be enjoyed between a man and a woman in the bonds of marriage. Period! The Bible talks over and over about fornication. That is literally, ANY sex outside of the bonds of marriage. It includes ALL sexual acts, NOT just sexual intercourse! The line was clearly set by Jesus when He said that if you "lust in your heart" you have sinned.

God created you in His own image. He loves you. You are special!!! Sex does
not make you special, you are special because God made you. If you have made
the choice to accept Jesus Christ into your heart, YOU are a daughter of the King! Don't ever let Cosmopolitan, or any other magazine, or any TV program, or other person make you forget that you are special! You have a ROYAL bloodline if you know Jesus!!!

The sad thing about what Cosmopolitan, TV, the movies, and our culture do is
glamorize sin. They make sex seem SO WONDERFUL, which it is IF...IF..IF...it
is the way God designed it to be enjoyed....IN THE CONTEXT OF MARRIAGE!!!!
NOT OUTSIDE OF MARRIAGE!!! Well, I have news for you. I receive thousands of
emails daily from young women and young men who fell for satan's (Cosmopolitan's) lie. Their problems range from unwanted pregnancies, to STD's that they will have always have to deal with, deep emotional issues, and a full range of other problems.

These are permanent scars that they will carry with them for the REST OF THEIR LIVES!!! Many have had their world shattered at such a young age. So many are wonderful, good young people who simply fell for the lie of the enemy. LISTEN TO ME. YOU ONLY HAVE ONE LIFE TO LIVE.....DON'T MESS IT UP!!!!

The enemy is here for what? TO KILL, STEAL , AND DESTROY! Jesus promised
what? LIFE, AND LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY!!!!

I have broken one of my rules about length today. But I have SO MUCH passion
about this issue since I see daily thousands who have bought into the
"Cosmopolitan view of life." I will go so far today, without any hesitation and say that Cosmopolitan is just as much a tool of satan to destroy the lives of God's precious young women, as Playboy and Penthouse are in the destruction of men!

I pray this day, that this Devotional gets to the publishers of Cosmopolitan. I pray for their souls because of the damage that they are doing to young women all over the world with their magazine. I say to them that you are simply a tool of satan and you are as guilty as he is in the lives you are destroying. For those who read my Devotionals each day, you know that I don't say these things lightly. But I SEE THE DESTROYED LIVES EVERY DAY. I KNOW WHAT SATAN IS DOING THROUGH INSTRUMENTS LIKE COSMOPOLITAN IN DESTROYING THE LIVES OF YOUNG WOMEN!

I do love you and care about you so much. In closing, let me just say this. God loves you, never forget that! Follow Him daily and your life will be blessed. He gave us His Word so that we didn't have to get lost on our journey. He gave us the roadmap. If we follow it, we will know the joy, the peace, the abundance of this life. If we take a detour, we are on our own and there is a very real enemy out there just waiting for us to get off the path to destroy us! To those young women who are reading this today, forget Cosmopolitan and use that time reading God's Word. IT IS NO ACCIDENT THAT GOD IS LETTING YOU READ THIS TODAY! God, NOT Cosmopolitan will make you a REAL WOMAN, ALL THE WOMAN GOD RAISED YOU UP TO BE!!!

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"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect...For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit..." (1 Peter 3: 15,18)

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Saint Matthew's Churches is ecumenical in our scope and nature. We reach out with love, compassion, and understanding to people of all backgrounds regardless of their ethnic group, creed or gender. One of the ways in which Saint Matthew's Churches reaches out to the community is to hungry people. St. Matthew's food pantry feeds poor and underprivileged people every month.

http://www.SaintMatthewChurches.com

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Called to Suffer and Rejoice: That We Might Gain Christ (Part 1of 2)
By John Piper
LighthousePrayerLine.org


Philippians 3:1-14

Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you. Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh, although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the law, found blameless. But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, and may be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

The Bible Promises Suffering for God's People

We are focusing in these weeks on the need to prepare for suffering. The reason for this is not just my sense that the days are evil and the path of righteousness costly, but the promise of the Bible that God's people will suffer.

For example, Acts 14:22 says that Paul told all his young churches, "Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom." And Jesus said, "If they persecuted me, they will persecute you" (John 15:20). And Peter said, "Do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you" (1 Peter 4:12). In other words it is not strange; it is to be expected. And Paul said (in 2 Timothy 3:12), "Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted."

So I take it to be a biblical truth that the more earnest we become about being the salt of the earth and the light of the world, and reaching the unreached peoples of the world, and exposing the works of darkness, and loosing the bonds of sin and Satan, the more we will suffer. That's why we should prepare. And that's why I am preaching in these weeks from texts that will help us prepare.

The messages deal with four purposes that God has in our suffering in his service. One is the moral or spiritual purpose: in suffering we come to hope more fully in God and put less confidence in the things of the world. Second, there is the intimacy purpose: we come to know Christ better when we share his sufferings. That is our focus today.

The Purpose of Greater Intimacy with Christ

God helps us prepare for suffering by teaching us and showing us that through suffering we are meant to go deeper in our relationship with Christ. You get to know him better when you share his pain. The people who write most deeply and sweetly about the preciousness of Christ are people who have suffered with him deeply.

Suffering in the Life of Jerry Bridges

For example, Jerry Bridges' book, Trusting God, Even When Life Hurts, is a deep and helpful book about suffering and going deep with God through affliction. And so it's not surprising to learn that when he was 14 years old, he heard his mother call out in the next room, totally unexpectedly, and arrived to see her take her last breath. He also has physical conditions that keep him from normal sports. And just a few years ago his wife died of cancer. Serving God with the Navigators has not spared him pain. He writes with depth about suffering because he has gone deep with Christ in suffering.

Suffering in the Life of Horatius Bonar

Over a hundred years ago Horatius Bonar, the Scottish pastor and hymn-writer, wrote a little book called Night of Weeping, or, "When God's Children Suffer." In it he said his goal was, "to minister to the saints . . . to seek to bear their burdens, to bind up their wounds, and to dry up at least some of their many tears." It is a tender and deep and wise book. So it's not surprising to hear him say,

It is written by one who is seeking himself to profit by trial, and trembles lest it should pass by as the wind over the rock, leaving it as hard as ever; by one who would in every sorrow draw near to God that he may know Him more, and who is not unwilling to confess that as yet he knows but little.

Bridges and Bonar show us that suffering is a path deep into the heart of God. God has special revelations of his glory for his suffering children.

The Words of Job, Stephen, and Peter

After months of suffering, Job finally says to God, "I had heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees thee" (Job 42:5). Job had been a godly and upright man, pleasing to God, but the difference between what he knew of God in prosperity and what he knew of him through adversity was the difference between hearing about and seeing.

When Stephen was arrested and put on trial for his faith and given a chance to preach, the upshot was that the religious leaders were enraged and ground their teeth at him. They were just about to drag him out of the city and kill him. At just that moment, Luke tells us, "Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit and gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God" (Acts 7:55). There is a special revelation, a special intimacy, prepared for those who suffer with Christ.

Peter put it this way, "If you are reproached for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you" (1 Peter 4:14). In other words God reserves a special coming and resting of his Spirit and his glory on his children who suffer for his name.

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Arise 2 Write chronicles the journey of 1 human (me) hand in hand with the 1 and only God.

Everyday unfolds a new step in my journey. Follow along as I stumble, crawl, and run into the arms of my Heavenly Father.

http://arise2write.blogspot.com/

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Dawdling home from Sunday School

He was just a little boy, on a week's first day.
He was wandering home from Sunday School, and dawdling on the way.
He scuffed his shoes into the grass; he found a caterpillar.
He found a fluffy milkweed pod, and blew out all the "filler".
A bird's nest in a tree overhead, so wisely placed on high,
Was just another wonder that caught his eager eye.
A neighbor watched his zig zag course, and hailed him from the lawn,
Asked him where he'd been that day and what was going on.

"I've been to Bible School," he said and turned a piece of sod.
He picked up a wiggly worm replying, "I've learned a lot of God."
"Hmmm very fine way," the neighbor said, "for a boy to spend his time."
"If you'll tell me where God is, I'll give you a brand new dime."

Quick as a flash the answer came! Nor were his accents faint.
"I'll give you a dollar, Mister, if you can tell me where God ain't."

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Called to Suffer and Rejoice: That We Might Gain Christ (Part 2of 2)
By John Piper
LighthousePrayerLine.org


Three Observations from the Text

So the focus of today's message is on this intimacy factor in suffering. One of the purposes of the suffering of the saints is that their relationship with God might become less formal and less artificial and less distant, and become more personal and more real and more intimate and close and deep.

In our text (Philippians 3:5–11) I want us to see at least three things:

First, Paul's preparation to suffer by reversing his values; Second, Paul's experience of suffering and loss as the cost of his obedience to Christ; Third, Paul's aim in all of this, namely, to gain Christ: to know him and be in him and fellowship with more intimacy and reality than he knew with his best friends Barnabas and Silas.

1. Paul's Preparation to Suffer

In verses 5 and 6 Paul lists the distinctives he enjoyed before he became a Christian. He gives his ethnic pedigree as a thoroughbred child of Abraham, a Hebrew of Hebrews. This brought him great gain, a great sense of significance and assurance. He was an Israelite. Then he mentions three things that go right to the heart of Paul's life before he was a Christian (at the end of verse 5): "as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the law, found blameless."

Paul's Values Before He Met Christ

This was Paul's life. This was what gave him meaning and significance. This was his gain, his fortune, his joy. Different strokes for different folks—and Paul's was that he belonged to the upper-echelon of law-keepers, the Pharisees, and that among them he was so zealous that he led the way in persecuting the enemies of God, the church of Jesus, and that he kept the law meticulously. He got strokes from belonging, he got strokes from excelling, he got strokes from God—or so he thought—for his blameless law-keeping.

And then he met Christ, the Son of the living God, on the Damascus road. Christ told him how much he would have to suffer (Acts 9:16). And Paul prepared himself.

Paul Counted His Prior Values as Loss

The way he prepared himself is described in verse 7. "But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ." Paul looks at his standing in the upper-echelons of religious society, the Pharisees; he looks at the glory of being at the very top of that group with all its strokes and applause; he looks at the rigor of his law-keeping and the sense of moral pride he enjoyed; and he prepares to suffer by taking his whole world and turning it upside down, by reversing his values: "Whatever things were gain to me [that's verses 5–6], those things I have counted as loss."

Before he was a Christian he had a ledger with two columns: one that said, gains, and another that said, losses. On the gain side was the human glory of verses 5–6. On the loss side was the terrible prospect that this Jesus movement might get out of hand and Jesus prove real and win the day. When he met the living Christ on the Damascus road, Paul took a big red pencil and wrote "LOSS" in big red letters across his gains column. And he wrote "GAIN" in big letters over the loss column that only had one name in it: Christ.

And not only that, the more Paul thought about the relative values of life in the world and the greatness of Christ, he moved beyond the few things mentioned in verses 5–6 and put everything but Christ in that first column: Verse 8: "More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." He started by counting his most precious accomplishments as loss, and he ended by counting everything as loss, except Christ.

Normal Christianity

That's what it meant for Paul to become a Christian. And lest anyone of us think he was unique or peculiar, notice that in verse 17 he says with his full apostolic authority, "Brethren, join in following my example." This is normal Christianity.

What Paul is doing here is showing how the teaching of Jesus is to be lived out. For example, Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field" (Matthew 13:44). Becoming a Christian means discovering that Christ (the King) is a Treasure Chest of holy joy and writing "LOSS" over everything else in the world in order to gain him. "He sold all that he had to buy that field."

Or again in Luke 14:33 Jesus said, "No one of you can be my disciple who does not take leave of all his own possessions." In other words, becoming a disciple of Jesus means writing "LOSS" in big red letters over all your possessions—and everything else this world offers.

What This Means Practically

Now what does that mean practically? I think it means four things:

It means that whenever I am called upon to choose between anything in this world and Christ, I choose Christ. It means that I will deal with the things of this world in ways that draw me nearer to Christ so that I gain more of Christ and enjoy more of him by the way I use the world. It means that I will always deal with the things of this world in ways that show that they are not my treasure, but rather show that Christ is my treasure. It means that if I lose any or all the things this world can offer, I will not lose my joy or my treasure or my life, because Christ is all.
Now that was the reckoning that Paul reckoned in his soul (v. 8): "I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Christ is all and all else is loss.

Why Is This a Way of Preparing to Suffer?

Now let's stand back a minute and get our bearings. I am still dealing with the first point: namely, that this is Paul's way of preparing to suffer. Why do I say that? Why is becoming a Christian, and writing "LOSS" across everything in your life but Christ a way of preparing to suffer?

The answer is that suffering is nothing more than the taking away of bad things or good things that the world offers for our enjoyment—reputation, esteem among peers, job, money, spouse, sexual life, children, friends, health, strength, sight, hearing, success, etc. When these things are taken away (by force or by circumstance or by choice), we suffer. But if we have followed Paul and the teaching of Jesus and have already counted them as loss for the surpassing value of gaining Christ, then we are prepared to suffer.

If when you become a Christian you write a big red "LOSS" across all the things in the world except Christ, then when Christ calls you to forfeit some of those things, it is not strange or unexpected. The pain and the sorrow may be great. The tears may be many, as they were for Jesus in Gethsemane. But we will be prepared. We will know that the value of Christ surpasses all the things the world can offer and that in losing them we gain more of Christ.

2. Paul's Experience of Suffering

So in the second half of verse 8 Paul moves from preparing for suffering to actual suffering. He moves from counting all things as loss in the first half of verse 8 to actually suffering the loss of all things in the second half of the verse. " . . . for whom [that is, Christ] I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish in order that I might gain Christ." We are going to see this next week: Paul had experienced so much actual loss of the normal benefits and comforts of the world that he could say that he was not merely counting things loss; he was suffering loss. He had prepared by turning his values upside down, and now he was being tested. Did he value Christ above all?

3. Paul's Goal (and God's Purpose) in Suffering

So let me close by riveting our attention on Paul's goal and God's purpose in this suffering. Why did God ordain and Paul accept the losses that it meant for him to be a Christian?

Paul gives the answer again and again in these verses so that we cannot miss the point. He is not passive in this suffering loss. He is purposive. And his purpose is to gain Christ.

Verse 7: "I counted them loss for the sake of Christ."
Verse 8a: "I count all things to be loss for the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord."
Verse 8b: "For him I have suffered the loss of all things."
Verse 8c: "And I count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ . . . "
Verse 9: " . . . and that I may be found in him [so as to have God's righteousness, not my own] . . . "
Verse 10a: (still giving his aim in accepting the loss of all things) " . . . that I may know him"
Verses 10b–11: (followed by four specifics of what it means to know Christ)

" . . . [to know] the power of his resurrection"; and
"the fellowship of his sufferings";
"being conformed to his death";
"in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."
In other words, what sustains Paul in suffering the loss of all things is the confidence that in his losing precious things in the world he is gaining something more precious—Christ.

And two times that gaining is called a knowing—verse 8a: " . . . in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Verse 10: "That I might know him." This is the intimacy factor in suffering. Do we want to know him? Do we want to be more personal with him and deep with him and real with him and intimate with him—so much so that we count everything as loss to gain this greatest of all treasures?

If we do, we will be ready to suffer. If we don't, it will take us by surprise and we will rebel. May the Lord open our eyes to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ!

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How do you get into Heaven?
LighthousePrayerLine.org


You can't fool the kids in Sunday school; they are way too smart...
"If I sold my house and my car, had a big garage sale, and gave all my money to the church, would I get into heaven?" I asked the children in my Sunday school class.

"NO!" all the children answered.

"If I cleaned the church every day, mowed the yard, and kept everything neat and tidy, would I get into heaven?"

Again the answer was, "NO!"

"Well then," I continued, "how can I get to heaven?"

A five-year-old boy shouted, "You gotta be dead!"

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"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares
about you" (1 Peter 5:7 – NLT).

Be sure to send in your prayer request for the next
mailing.

You are in my thoughts and prayers! May the Lord
continue to bless you with knowledge of Himself.

In Christ's Love,


Mark Seay
Lighthouse Prayer Line
105 Quincy Drive
Greer, SC 29650
LighthousePrayerLine.org

"Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man
who takes refuge in Him. Fear the Lord, you His saints,
for those who fear Him lack nothing. The lions may grow
weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no
good thing" (Psalm 34:8-10 - NIV).

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He Tasted Death For Me
LighthousePrayerLine.org


"Jesus ... by the grace of God should taste death for every man." Hebrews 2:9

"Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:10

"The Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20

God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

The Son of God a ransom came
Down from His throne on high,
Into this world of sin and shame
For us to bleed and die.

We read the Father sent the Son
To die, on Calv'ry's tree;
"He tasted death for every man",
He tasted death for me.

The wrath that was my portion, Lord,
Was suffered all by Thee,
When tasting death for every man,—
When tasting death for me.

"'Tis finished", all on Calv'ry's cross,
Redemption's work is done;
"No condemnation" evermore,
Through God's beloved Son.

O wondrous love and matchless grace
That sets the sinner free;
"The Son of God who loved me so,—
He gave Himself for me."

May love like this unto Thine own
Our hearts and voices raise,
Unto the Father and the Son
Our everlasting praise.
—Lois Beckwith

"For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God." 1 Peter 3:18

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Corinthians 5:21

"For the wages of sin is death; but THE GIFT OF GOD IS ETERNAL LIFE through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23

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We hope you have found today's newsletter encouraging to your
walk with Jesus Christ. Please send all prayer requests and
praise reports to us by using the "comments" hyperlink, which
can be found at the end of each blog/article. God is Good!!!

A Candle Loses Nothing by Lighting Another Candle. Please Keep This
Candle Going!

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I'm just a nobody
trying to tell everybody
that there is somebody
who can save anybody!!

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Never get so busy doing the work of the kingdom
- that you forget who the King is.

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Friday, November 20, 2009

*~*Prayer Requests for 11/21/09:

**Special Prayer Request**

Noah Biorkman is a 5yr old boy who is in his last stages of neuroblastoma cancer after a 2 1/2 year battle. His family is celebrating Christmas next week and all he wants are Christmas cards. Lets try and see how many we can get to him from all over the world please. His address is 1141 Fountain View Circle, South Lyon MI 48178. Please re-post this as your status and let's ask God to heal him while we are at it.

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"You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob.
Through You we push back our enemies; through Your name
we trample our foes" (Psalm 44:4-5 - NIV).

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This year, with the help of churches and volunteers across the country, we hope to serve over 400,000 Angel Tree children. But we can't do it without you.

As we get closer to Christmas there are still thousands of children who need to know they haven't been forgotten. If you've already supported this year's campaign, thank you so much for your generosity.

https://www.angeltree.org/at-appeal-donation?dc=APPEAL4-1009

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"Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose ways you may not understand at the time" (Oswald Chambers).

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EARLY Christmas Present: *FREE* ESV Study Bible

Crossway is excited to give you the gift of FREE access to the ESV Online Study Bible for 30 days!

Register to access the ESV Study Bible notes or save your personal notes and highlights.

Visit: http://www.esvstudybible.org/promos/Christmas2009

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There are so many problems with dispensatinalism like: three separate judment days, three separate resurrections, two returns of Christ, and Christians having to leave heaven to return to live on a sin-cursed earth. None of this, ofcourse, is even hinted at in Scripture.

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Hi friend,

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

1) "Please pray for my brother Jim hearing to be healed. Also please pray that he gets approved for his mortgage to be refinanced fast. Please pray for his busines to be profitable so he can employe his employees and self. Please pray he gets financial blessings. God Bless you, In Jesus name, Amen." -Cellis;

2) Jamie asks for our prayers: "Please pray for Kyle - 22 yrs old. He was in a serious car accident and is now in a coma with brain injuries. His brain is swelling and we need a miracle.";

3) "PLEASE LORD CONTINUE TO BLESS MY FAMILY WITH THERE HEALTH IN STRENGTH, ALSO BLESS ME AND MY FAMILY WITH A HOME THAT WE CAN CALL OUR OWN. AND FOR A MIRACLE OF MONEY BLESSING." -Regina;

4) Debbie asks us to remember her in our prayers. She writes, "Bless us alll Father. We're in need of Blessing in 1 way or another!!! We need the Favors and gifts that are Promised in the Bible...Amen.";

5) "I would like you to pray for my mother who is far from the truth as she can be. Please pray for her soul, please pray that God touch her life please, I ask, please pray for her. Thank you." -Ashley;

6) "Please pray for healing and recovery for Thomas -who has had a bad fall resulting in a serious head injury. Please also pray for his family who are doing a great deal of traveling to be with him at a care facility far from home. Most importantly please pray that both he and his family will come to the Lord and accept him as their Lord and saviour. Thank you." -NN;

7) Michelle asks for our prayers. She writes, "My husband left the home on July 10, 09 and went to his mothers. From that time till September 14th he was not really helping us out so it left me no choice but to file for a divorce. He was served on September 18th. Since then I have told him many times and he is very aware of the fact that this is not what I want. However, this is what he wants. I have repented of my sins on October 18th and since have really been seeking in the Lord. I have even got my 3 youngest children to attend church and a youth group. The Lord fought that battle for me before it started and lead me to a church of non-denomination, I grew up catholic. Big change but worth it. I understand what is being said to me and my children like it as well. I never had to fight to get the kids to go and that was a huge blessing in it self. I was very thankful that the Lord helped me out in that. What I am really wanting is my marriage restored. I admit I have made many mistakes and am truly sorry for doing so. My husband is not perfect either but for what ever reason can't seem to get on the same page as me. This is breaking my heart and our son's heart as well. My husband is not religious so it makes it more of a challenge. Please pray for me and my husband to have a restored marriage and a loving marriage. MY name is Michelle and his name is Bob (Robert).";

8) "I have a son who namis Timothy. He is in -correctional institute facing 18 years to life. He has served 13 years already. He was sent to the hospital for chest pain over the weekend. I am asking for prayer agreement for his health, his mental stability, protection from the devil and the evil whipsers. Please pray that God keep him safe from harm dangerous people. Protection from his enemies. I am seeking an attorney to help him get an appeal or a sentence reduction. I pray that God guide me to the right attornty to help me with my son getting released early from his snetence. Prayer that judge's heart be softened when it isw time to talk to him again. Pray for love and mercy, mercy. mercy. Amen." -T.P.;

9) Christine asks for our prayers. She writes, "Dear Jesus I pray family please take the demons out of their heads, and stop them from listening to them. Jesus can you take over my moms mouth when it is time, and take me off of my medication. Thank you amen TO those who are reading this and will pray God will talk to you.";

10) "I'm studying carpentrey in Job Corps, and I'm very close to completing my trade. I want to transfer to -Job Corps to study Medical Assisting after this, because there are no jobs in carpentrey. In order to do that, I needed to have Mr. M, our lead trade instructor, to request a transfer. I thought he might be opposed to makeing the request, so I asked Mr. H to talk to him about it. Please pray that God will guide Mr. H when he talks to Mr. M. Pray that God will move Mr. M's heart, and that he will request the transfer. Also, please pray that God will guide Mr. M in how he makes the request, and pray that it will be accepted. Please pray that God will draw a lot of prayer warriors to pray for this with wisdom." -Seth;

11) Michael asks to be remembered in our prayers: "My daughter Jeana age 5 her mom Amber. My former friend Ursa attending U of- My personal prayer needs. A vision, obedient heart, deliverance from cruel harrasement at -, desire to remain sober from marijuana and anger/depression. I need a tremendous financial miricle to help with going back to college, handle on overwhelming debts, a job and car...simply a lot of prayer! Protection from Satan and his attacks on me and my friends/family."

12) "I have been unemployed for over nine months now and am simultaneously in seminary. The stress is sometimes overwhelming and money is running out. Please pray for leads to ministry role or return to corporate world if that is what God desires." -Elke;

13) Terry asks for our blessings: "Lord I pray for my married friends who are fighting. I dont know all the issues but they are not getting along. I pray for peace and happiness in their marriage Bless Travis & Linda in the name of Jesus, Amen.";

14) "My name is Deborrah and I very much would like for you to pray for me. I want to be closer to the Lord. I need him very much in my life. I am in dire need of a job. I'm behind in my bills. My son (John -)bis in prison for drugs and will be home soon. May 2010. I would like for him to be prayed for as well. We both believe in the Lord, we know He died on the cross for us. I need praying for some kind of money to pay to get my fathers will probated and sell his home. Please pray that I can get a job and that I may get the funds to move closer to my grandchildren and live the life God intended me to live. Thank you and May God Bless You.";

15) "PLEASE PRAY FOR MY GRANDAUGHTER AMANDA AND GRANDSON ERIC, THEY ARE HAVING DIFFICULTIES AND DEPRESSION ISSUES. THANK YOU." -Mary;

16) Deb asks for our prayers: "Please pray for my little brother, Timmy, and my sis, Julie, who has taken care of him for 25 or 30 years. He is severely retarded, with pneumonia, and very sickly now. I s 51 years of age, the docs told Mom & Dad that he would live to be 10 or 12. We have been blessed with him. But, I think the Lord is calling him home. He has been very sick the last 6 or 8 months now. And this time, he is VERY sick. Please pray for strength and comfort for Tim, Julie, his caretaker and sister, and her daughters who help her so with him, and all of her grandkids, who also are very, very close to Timmy.... Thank you so, and God Bless you all.";

17) "I need prayer. My husband left four years ago in the middle of a major renovation project. The house is still unfinished it is cold in the winter. I am continually without money and I am tired of trying to do this myself. Pray that the Lord would intervene as we are all feeling overwhelmed and unhappy. Pray for Steve L my friend that he would know how much I love and care for him. Pray for his salvation. And for my son Kyle to resolve his anger. Thank you for your prayers." -Rose;

18) Sherril asks for our prayers. She writes, "That my family be safe and learn that love is the answer to all of our problems. God Bless all of my family.";

19) "Pleae pray that my husband and I will find an affordable home. We live with my Mom who has Dementia and may have to be placed in a nursing home soon. Her home may be lost to Medicaid and we don''t have the money to buy it. Please pray that she will be calm and lucid for her remaining days. We are so stressed and feel so unstable. I am working but my husband needs a job which is even more stressful. Thanks for your prayers." -Frances;

20) Tom asks to be remembered in our prayers. He writes, "I am starting a new online business. Please pray that God will bless my business with reasonable success. Thank you. GOD Bless.";

21) "Thank those that have joined their voice to mine to pray for me and Bruce. I continue to ask for prayers for Bruce and I to be joined back together under God's love. May God help him overcome his fears or whatever they are and have him call me to re establish our relationship quickly. May we be back together for the holidays starting 2010 off as a couple joined in God's holy name." -Deb;

22) Annie asks for our prayers: "My business has been struggling for the last two years and I'm at the end of my rope. I can't afford to give up because so many people are depending on me. Please pray that some miracle will happen to help me. I'm desperate. Thank you!"; and lastly...

23) "I am asking all you prayer warriors to pray for a dear friend of mine who is in the hospital in ICU. Her name is Doreen. Please take a few moments of your time and hold her up to our precious Savior
in prayers of healing. Thank you." -Donna


**God bless you for caring enough to pray!!!**

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"Whoever says, I know Him but fails to keep and obey His commandments is a liar, and the Truth is not in him. But he who keeps His Word, truly in him has the love of and for God been perfected. By this we may perceive that we are in Him; Whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk and conduct himself in the same way in which He walked and conducted Himself" (1 John 2:4-6 - Amp.).

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*~*Spotlight Site*~*

http://promiseland-books.com

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"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit - fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name" (John 15:16 - NIV).

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Heavenly Rates

A man dies and goes to heaven.

Of course, St. Peter meets him at the pearly gates. St. Peter says, "Here's how it works. You need 100 points to make it into heaven. You tell me all the good things you've done, and I give you a certain number of points for each item, depending on how good it was. When you reach 100 points, you get in."

"Okay," the man says, "I was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated on her, even in my heart."

"That's wonderful," says St. Peter, "that's worth three points!"

"Three points?" he says. "Well, I attended church all my life and supported its ministry with my tithe and service."

"Terrific!" says St. Peter, "that's certainly worth a point."

"One point? Golly. How about this: I started a soup kitchen in my city and worked in a shelter for homeless veterans."

"Fantastic, that's good for two more points," he says.

"TWO POINTS!!" the man cries, "At this rate the only way I get into heaven is by the grace of God!"

"Come on in!!"

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"Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell" (James 3:5-6 - NIV).

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Jesus, Mediator of Mystery (Part 1 of 2)
By Rev. Dudley C. Rose
LighthousePrayerLine.org


John 17:20-26 (The Living Bible)

20“I am not praying for these alone but also for the future believers who will come to me because of the testimony of these. 21My prayer for all of them is that they will be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are, Father—that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me.
22“I have given them the glory you gave me—the glorious unity of being one, as we are—23I in them and you in me, all being perfected into one—so that the world will know you sent me and will understand that you love them as much as you love me. 24Father, I want them with me—these you’ve given me—so that they can see my glory. You gave me the glory because you loved me before the world began! 25“O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. 26And I have revealed you to them and will keep on revealing you so that the mighty love you have for me may be in them, and I in them.”

Because this morning’s reading from John is a first-person prayer, a personal word from Jesus, I have chosen to present the sermon in a similar fashion. For the next several minutes you will hear from Stephen, a late second century Christian from near Jerusalem. I am not, of course, the Stephen in Acts of the Apostles, who was stoned to death as a Christian martyr. He was alive much earlier than I, but I do think my parents may have named me after him. For when they would read aloud in our home of Stephen, full of faith and the Holy Spirit, they would say, “Nothing greater can be said of a man, Stephen, nothing.”

I do not presume to come before you today as a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, at least not like Stephen the martyr. But I was a faithful Christian, who came to love the church and Jesus the Christ. And I want to tell you this morning about what it was like. I want to tell you what it was like to be in the church back then. And I want to tell you a little bit about the scripture you read this morning from the Gospel of John. The Gospel of John, oh what a gorgeous and strange Gospel it is, filled with so many things that are hard to quite get your mind around. And especially this morning’s piece, where Jesus talks about being one with God.

Now I know that you have heard about being at one with things, especially the universe. In your day you even have jokes about it. You must have heard the one about the Buddhist who went up to the hotdog vendor and said, “Make me one with everything.” It’s a pretty lame joke, but I like it anyway.

Anyway, a lot of people have heard about being one with everything, but I’m not sure how many people really know what it means. And I hope I can say what it is, but I have to confess that it’s more than a little hard to describe. I cannot tell you the number of times we would read the Gospel of John in our home and I would ask my parents, “What does Jesus mean? What does he mean when he says, ‘21My prayer for all of them is that they will be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are, Father—that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me”? I used to ask my parents, “How can one thing be another thing? How can one person be in another person. And how can a person be inside of God? And how can God be inside of another person?”

They used to laugh and say to me, “Stephen, how did so many questions get inside of you? Maybe those questions are filling you up and there’s no room for God to get inside you.”But they didn’t really mean it. I could tell they liked it that I asked questions. But finally they would say, “Stephen, one day it will make sense to you.” I have to tell you, though, for a very long time it did not make any sense at all. I would sit out in the yard with two stones in my hand, and I would try everything I could think of to get one of them inside the other, or to squeeze them into one thing. But, of course, it never did work, no matter how hard I tried.

After awhile, I gave up thinking about making things one or how one thing could get
inside another. After awhile, I just forgot about those ideas and played ball and did all the things that young boys do. One day, though, I got into a mess of trouble. An older boy down the street took the stone I was hitting with a stick, and he threw it a long way into the bushes. And then he laughed as hard as he could. I got so mad at him that I wacked him as hard as I could with my stick. Of course, he was bigger than I was, so he grabbed another stick, and he beat me up. It was the first fight I was ever in, but my mother took one look and knew right away that I was in
a fight.

My mother washed by cuts and bruises and she put something on them that didn’t smell too good, but which she said would make me feel better. Then she sat me down, and she said, “Stephen, please tell me what happened.” I told her the whole story, and it made her a little sad, I think, but she didn’t get too mad at me. Then she said, “Stephen, when you got mad and hit the boy down the street because he stole your rock, do you think that was what Jesus would have done?” I told her I didn’t think so. Then she said, “Well, Stephen, remember when you used to ask what it meant for Jesus or God to be inside of you?” I nodded. She said, “Well, maybe a part of what it means is that you do what Jesus would do.”

I said to her, “Geez, Mom, I’ve seen those bracelets that say WWJD (You know, what would Jesus do?), but is that really all that it means to be one with Jesus?

She looked at me and said, “No, that’s not all there is to it, Stephen, but it’s not a bad place to start. And you found out today, didn’t you Stephen? that it’s not all that easy to do, either.”

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"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. Not by works, so that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9 - NIV).

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The Love of Christ
TruthMinistry.org

(Experienced and written by a member of Truth Ministry Men's Support Group)


WOW! What a thought! Jesus Christ, a Man I never met in flesh and blood, a Man who lived 2000 years ago, a Man who was so special that angels sang at his birth…this Man loves me. Not only that, it gets better. He is God in the flesh. That means that the God of heaven who knows what it’s like to live on this earth loves me.

But it gets even better. Jesus Christ knew me before I was born, He formed me in the womb, and He planned out my life so that I would be born to the parents I was born to. I would marry the wife that I married. I would beget the children I have. He planned out all of those blessings for me because He loved me.

But there is one more thing that is so amazing it’s almost beyond belief. Jesus Christ loved me when I was powerless to love him. He loved me even when I was ungodly and didn’t think about spiritual things at all. He loved me when I was an outright sinner. He loved me when I was his enemy. Can you believe that? Everyone of us was powerless, ungodly, sinners, and enemies -- every one of us. And yet Christ loved me.

Christ loved me and saved me even though He knew I would fail Him and sin against Him. You see, He’s omniscient. He knows all things: past, present, and future. So when I was a defeated backslider who could seem to never free myself from my sin, He loved me. When I was disobedient to His commands, He loved me. When I made all my own decisions the way I thought best, He loved me. When I acted like He didn’t see me and thought that I could operate in secret, He loved me. When I was trapped in my sin because of my own doing, and my sin shut out the work of His Spirit, He loved me. When sin began to produce bad fruit in my life, He loved me. When sin’s harvest was brought in, He loved me.

For many years I took the love of Christ for granted. I cheated on Him and worshipped other objects. I ignored Him. I gave Him little of my time. I did little or nothing for Him. I went to Him in minor crises and asked for His help, but I never really trusted Him for big things. I rarely told others about His great love. I was so ungrateful. Many times praise was not genuine, just some lip service on a Sunday morning. In all of this He loved me.

Oh, there were seasons of repentance, rejoicing, service and praise, but then I would slip back into lethargy. And over and over again, the One who loved me and created me for His purposes have to watch me return to a place of sin, defeat, and self-destructive behavior. The sad thing is that as sin wore me down, I became more and more withdrawn from the things that could give me life. I did not drink from the fountain of living water. I did not eat from His feasting table. I wandered in the wilderness, having lost my way, in the dead of winter, with no knowledge as to how to get home. Even when I was as far away from Him as possible, He loved me.

I was a lone sheep. I did not enjoy the fellowship of Christ’s Church. And the place where I should have experienced the love of Christ, the place where the love of Christ is supposed to be manifest in human form, where the love of Christ is felt by the human touch of one brother reaching out to another, I was even farther from the love of Christ. If Christ loved me, then why didn’t I feel loved by His people?

Why didn’t I experience the love of Christ in Church?

Because at church we all pretend to be perfect.

Because men don’t know how to love other men as Jesus commanded in the New Testament.

Because church had become a sermon-listening exercise where I, as a believer was merely an audience member.

Because at church it seems that there is conditional love and conditional acceptance.

Because I did not cultivate a camaraderie among the men at church .

Because at church men didn’t see the need to be intimate with other men and never advanced beyond sharing news about the weather.

Because the men in the church didn’t learn how to be accountable to each other.

Because pride pervaded the church to the point that no one would dare admit that he struggles with sin.

Because there was this idea that you and God were supposed to work everything out in the prayer closet or during the sermon.

Because John 13:35; James 5:16; Galatians 6; and 1 John were ignored.

Because sexual sins are disgusting, taboo, and never mentioned even though Christ and the apostles recognize their existence and even teach of great deliverance from them.

Because I was too proud to ask for help.

Because I was too afraid to ask for help.

Because keeping appearances was more important than having the reality of a life free from sin’s dominion.

Because my sin blinded me to the healing power of confession.

Because the devil is good at keeping people enslaved to their sin and the church sometimes doesn’t take spiritual warfare seriously.

Because the shepherds of the church didn’t know the sheep intimately.

The good news is that even when the Church is lacking and when I didn’t take advantage of the means of grace that were there, Jesus still loves me and He has plans for me, plans for deliverance, and plans for sanctification.

Jesus loved me so much that he was there during seasons of disaster in my life. I endured storm after storm so that I felt like Florida had it easy during its worst hurricane season. Then came an earthquake. The storms did not drown me, and no buildings crushed me during the earthquake.

Jesus loved me so much that He stood with me as I experienced the same kind of rejection He experienced on the cross. Many who loved Him, and those who hated Him, rejected Him. Because He endured that, He can minister to me in times of rejection. When the first hurricane hit I thought all was soon to be lost. An overwhelming sense of rejection came in like a tidal wave. First, I felt rejected by my wife, the one I loved the most in this world. Secondly, I feared that if my wife decided to leave for another man, the reasons would be known that triggered her infidelity and that everyone would blame me, reject me, and hate me. I feared the loss of my wife, my children, my parents, my in-laws, and all my friends. Having been a lonely soul my whole life, I would rather have people like me for who they thought I was. I could not risk letting them know those dark secrets that I had buried in my heart. But Christ had other plans; He was cleaning out my heart, unearthing buried skeletons, and creating a new man. He wanted me to be transformed into His image. He wanted me to be healed of the pains that I had bottled up for decades. He wanted to make me whole. He was not willing to let me languish any longer. So all the rejection had to be dealt with.

So more hurricanes came, week after week a new wind blew in to destroy my old life. The counseling and recovery I had to experience required that I face all the rejections in my life that had crippled me. I faced the pains of rejection by my father, by my peers, by my spouse. Each new remembrance and reliving of the pains of my past allowed me to cast my cares on Christ. His presence in my life was so real that I began to experience His love like I had never known it before. What was once head knowledge became heart knowledge. I gave over to my Savior all the pains of the sins that were committed against me, and He took that all away. Even if all forsake me, even if all reject me, I know that I am accepted in the Beloved. Rejection cannot hurt me as it did before. I know where to take my rejection and I know Who will take it away.

There were groves in my life; those had to be leveled too. In the Old Testament, the children of Israel became idolaters and planted groves of trees where they would worship false gods and commit sexual immorality in that worship. God put His finger on idols that I had in my life and, one by one, they were destroyed. At that time, He took away from me all the guilt and shame of the sins that I had become a willing participant in. Liberty was a reality. Freedom could be quantified by the measure of how little the former things attracted me.

While living life in the dungeon of despair, the wicked jailer will keep moving you deeper and deeper into the bowels of the dungeon. My heart was becoming freer day by day, but there were still several jail doors to pass through before being really free. Old habits still enslaved me. I still had too much love of the things of the world like TV, movies, and computer networking. I would not be completely free until my spirit could walk out with no jail doors to keep me locked up. So another earthquake hit. And just like the time when Paul was in prison and God sent an earthquake and all the prison doors fell off their hinges, my jail doors have fallen off too. Television, movies, Facebook, and other frivolous wastes of time don’t have the appeal that they once had.

The love of Christ is not merely a doctrine to be taught. It must be experienced in life. His love moves Him to intervene in your life’s affairs. And when it seems like the waves are going to drown you and the earthquakes are going to level everything to rubble, rest assured that those disasters will not destroy you. Does everyone have to experience His love in such disastrous surroundings? Perhaps those who are full of faith and obedience experience it to a greater degree and without the need of such dramatic dealings by our Lord. In any case, I do know that the heart that yearns to experience Christ’s love will not be disappointed.

So how do you conclude such a story? Well, what have I learned?

Christ’s love for me is UNCONDITIONAL and it NEVER WAVERS!

Christ’s love is ACTIVE, He is working all things out for my good.

Christ’s love is ETERNAL, nothing I do can cause Him to give up on me EVER.

Christ’s love is ALL-CONSUMING, He is a jealous lover and perfectly capable of tearing my idols down, if I don’t do it myself.

Christ’s love is PATIENT, He endures my follies and forgives over and over again.

Christ’s love is KIND, He only does what is best for me.

Christ’s love is MYSTERIOUS, I will not know how or when He will shower His love on me.

Christ’s love is MARVELOUS AND WONDERFUL AND MERCIFUL AND COMPASSIONATE AND CANNOT BE FULLY DESCRIBED OR EXHAUSTIVELY EXPLAINED.

I can’t just stop there though. Otherwise all of this will just be doctrine in your head, where I’ve just been the illustration and nothing more may come of it. You have to experience it for yourself.

Do you have pain that you have kept bottled up? Christ’s love can take away your pain.

Do you have loneliness that is overpowering and drives you to compulsive and self-destructive behavior just so that someone can accept you at any cost? Christ’s love can flood your most inner self with feelings of acceptance and He can take away that compulsive, self-destructive behavior of trying to get your needs met improperly.

Do you need the tough love of another brother in Christ who will strengthen you like iron strengthening iron? Christ wants to love you through brothers and sisters in Christ.

Do you need intimacy and a place where you can confess your sins and receive healing? Christ will provide you with such friends and give you the help you need. He is the Great Physician and He knows how to heal broken hearts and mend bruised souls.

Are you too afraid to become vulnerable? Christ has never rejected or mocked one who opens the deepest part of one’s soul to Him.

The love of Christ can reach into your life and change everything!

Wait, there’s one more thing.

When you’ve experienced the love of Christ, there is one super-amazing side effect. You will now have the ability to love others unconditionally.

You will be able to forgive anyone of any sin they have committed against you.

You will be empowered to speak of Christ’s love to perfect strangers.

You will be able to love those who were just like me and I’m perhaps like you.

You will be able to love the ones in your life who have disappointed you, because you will gain the stamina of Christ and His persevering love.

You won’t look at people as sinners and saints; you will look at people as another person who needs to know the love of Christ.

You will be able to love others as Christ has loved you.

So go experience the love of Christ.

Go and share the love of Christ.

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Whether you are a young person trying to make a place for yourself in the world, a parent trying to give your children the best possible opportunities, or a more mature person trying to enjoy the fruit of your hard work, you have likely discovered that life can be very challenging. The answers are not always clear and the choices are not always easy. Fortunately, no matter where you are in life, you don't have to try to work it all out yourself. There is a God Who has all the answers and a church that wants to help you tap into them.

Tap into: RealLifeSC.org

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Daily Devotional
By Bill Keller
LighthousePrayerLine.org


I have to admit to you, that through all that I have seen and experienced in my life and during over a decade in ministry, VERY little shocks me any more. It is not that I am apathetic to what happens in this world, but I realize that sinful men and women who rebel against God are capable of doing ANYTHING. But the other afternoon was one of those rare times that I was both shocked and deeply saddened.

I was at the salon the other day getting my hair cut. As I was waiting, I saw the cover of the recent Cosmopolitan magazine and the BOLD PRINT featuring an article on "50 Sex Tricks ." Now my friend, I am 51 years old, I have been married over 25 years, and prior to fully surrendering to Christ 20 years ago lived in rebellion to God for many years. So I am fully aware of what goes on between men and women not committed to the Lord. But here was a well established, national publication, geared primarily to young women in a place ANYONE of ANY AGE could see, espousing the glory of having sex outside of marriage. Yes, I was shocked and saddened by the message that Cosmopolitan was sending out.

When I got home, I told my wife about the Cosmopolitan cover and she told me that she was in the supermarket check-out line a few weeks ago and saw a past issue of Cosmopolitan. She told me that as she looked through it, she was appalled at the graphic detailed nature of what they were promoting to young women as perfectly acceptable sexual behavior. While I couldn't believe what the cover I saw had said, I assumed that it was just for shock value to get people to buy the magazine.

So my wife and I went out, bought the copy that I had seen, and I can only tell you that I became even MORE SHOCKED as I read through the contents of the entire magazine. It was pure pornography. The saddest thing to me was that this a very prominent national publication that has been around for years, and is responsible in shaping the views of the young women who read it. What they were promoting as acceptable behavior was not only 100% AGAINST God's plan, but does not "empower" women as they claim, it cheapens them!!!! IT DESTROYS THEM!!!!

I make this an issue today for 2 reasons. First, moms and dads, DO NOT let your daughters read this garbage. It is as bad as any pornography that is on the market, and worse since instead of being in a plastic cover behind the counter, it is on shelves where YOUR daughter can see it and can purchase it. Second, young women, I often talk about "garbage in, garbage out." What is on the pages of that magazine is GARBAGE. Stay away from it!

Just so that I am clear, I am NOT for censorship. I believe in and support the first amendment of our Constitution. There are MANY out there who would love to censor what I say each day. The publishers of Cosmopolitan have EVERY RIGHT to print that garbage, just as Larry Flynt and Hugh Hefner have every right to print the garbage they do. BUT THAT DOES NOT MEAN WE HAVE TO CONSUME THEIR GARBAGE!!!! Sadly, what I saw in that issue of Cosmopolitan was just that, pure garbage since it was 100% in opposition to God's Word.

Young women, listen to me. I am saying this because I love you and care about you so much. Sex is a WONDERFUL thing. God created it so it HAS to be wonderful. But God created sex to be enjoyed between a man and a woman in the bonds of marriage. Period! The Bible talks over and over about fornication. That is literally, ANY sex outside of the bonds of marriage. It includes ALL sexual acts, NOT just sexual intercourse! The line was clearly set by Jesus when He said that if you "lust in your heart" you have sinned.

God created you in His own image. He loves you. You are special!!! Sex does not make you special, you are special because God made you. If you have made the choice to accept Jesus Christ into your heart, YOU are a daughter of the King! Don't ever let Cosmopolitan, or any other magazine, or any TV program, or other person make you forget that you are special! You have a ROYAL bloodline if you know Jesus!!!

The sad thing about what Cosmopolitan, TV, the movies, and our culture do is glamorize sin. They make sex seem SO WONDERFUL, which it is IF...IF..IF...it is the way God designed it to be enjoyed....IN THE CONTEXT OF MARRIAGE!!!! NOT OUTSIDE OF MARRIAGE!!! Well, I have news for you. I receive thousands of emails daily from young women and young men who fell for satan's (Cosmopolitan's) lie. Their problems range from unwanted pregnancies, to STD's that they will have always have to deal with, deep emotional issues, and a full range of other problems.

These are permanent scars that they will carry with them for the REST OF THEIR LIVES!!! Many have had their world shattered at such a young age. So many are wonderful, good young people who simply fell for the lie of the enemy. LISTEN TO ME. YOU ONLY HAVE ONE LIFE TO LIVE.....DON'T MESS IT UP!!!!

The enemy is here for what? TO KILL, STEAL , AND DESTROY! Jesus promised what? LIFE, AND LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY!!!!

I have broken one of my rules about length today. But I have SO MUCH passion about this issue since I see daily thousands who have bought into the "Cosmopolitan view of life." I will go so far today, without any hesitation and say that Cosmopolitan is just as much a tool of satan to destroy the lives of God's precious young women, as Playboy and Penthouse are in the destruction of men!

I pray this day, that this Devotional gets to the publishers of Cosmopolitan. I pray for their souls because of the damage that they are doing to young women all over the world with their magazine. I say to them that you are simply a tool of satan and you are as guilty as he is in the lives you are destroying. For those who read my Devotionals each day, you know that I don't say these things lightly. But I SEE THE DESTROYED LIVES EVERY DAY. I KNOW WHAT SATAN IS DOING THROUGH INSTRUMENTS LIKE COSMOPOLITAN IN DESTROYING THE LIVES OF YOUNG WOMEN!

I do love you and care about you so much. In closing, let me just say this. God loves you, never forget that! Follow Him daily and your life will be blessed. He gave us His Word so that we didn't have to get lost on our journey. He gave us the roadmap. If we follow it, we will know the joy, the peace, the abundance of this life. If we take a detour, we are on our own and there is a very real enemy out there just waiting for us to get off the path to destroy us! To those young women who are reading this today, forget Cosmopolitan and use that time reading God's Word. IT IS NO ACCIDENT THAT GOD IS LETTING YOU READ THIS TODAY! God, NOT Cosmopolitan will make you a REAL WOMAN, ALL THE WOMAN GOD RAISED YOU UP TO BE!!!

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"At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:3-7 - NIV).

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Neil Pope has been ministering through gospel music since he was 15 years old. Growing up under the wings of artist like Wendy Bagwell, Jan Buckenr, Amy Lambert, and Mike Speck, Neil has been on the gospel music scene since a very young age.

Visit: NeilPope.org

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Jesus, Mediator of Mystery (Part 2 of 2)
LighthousePrayerLine.org


Over the years it seemed that I had to learn over and over again how hard it was to do what Jesus would do, or what he would have wanted me to do. I remember the time that a popular group of boys said I could be in their group. But they told me I could no longer be friends with some of my other friends, because they were Geeks. I really wanted to be popular, so I said okay. But I knew it wasn’t right.

They say that as they grow older, boys don’t really grow up. Their toys just bit bigger. Well, it’s not just their toys. A lot of choices get bigger, too. I mean, when I think back about getting in a fight over a stone, or trying to be accepted in the popular group, I realize that those things were small olives (We didn’t have potatoes near Jerusalem, so we used to say small olives.). Anyway, the stakes became greater and greater. Was I going to turn in my friend to the Romans, or was I going to risk protecting him? Was I going to ruin another person’s career so I could get ahead at work? Was I going to charge a fair price for the furniture I made even though I could get more money? Was I going to be honest with my wife when it was so much easier and less stressful to lie. Was I really going to turn my cheek or walk the extra mile or give up my cloak, when I didn’t have to?

During all this time, I kept going to our church. In a way, it was confusing. It seemed that at almost every turn the message the world gave was opposite to the message that Jesus gave. There were lots of times that I thought I should just give up on what Jesus said. I mean, what good was he if nothing he said fit into the world. But I kept on going. Maybe it was remembering my mother’s instruction to me when I was a boy. Maybe it was habit. But in truth, I think it was more than that. Because no matter how ridiculous what Jesus said was, somewhere deep inside of me there was this voice, well it wasn’t a voice , really, maybe more a realization. That’s it, even though what Jesus said was ridiculous, I more and more realized that it actually made sense. Now, of course, what I just said doesn’t make any sense, does it? How can something be ridiculous and make sense at the same time. Well, I think it must be something like what the apostle Paul meant when he said: “For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.” In any case, I kept going to the church, and this idea, this strange sense of things kept growing within me.

As time went on, something even stranger began to happen. I began to think like the voice, the realization that was within me. How can I explain it? Let’s see. Ah, yes. Do you remember in the other Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, when Jesus was tempted in the desert. He was starving and the devil offered him bread? How the devil took him high up on an overlook and waved his hands and said, “All of this can be yours”? I remember thinking what great moral strength Jesus had when he refused the devil. And that was certainly true to some degree. But what I had missed, and what began to come clear to me, was that Jesus was much more in tune with, much more disposed to do the right thing than the wrong thing.

For me, in the beginning, the ways of the world were the most obvious and present, and in the background, within me, was a small voice, telling me things weren’t as they seemed. But as time went on, the whole thing became reversed. After awhile it suddenly dawned on me, that the voice within me had moved to the front and was much stronger, and the wiles of the world were more and more becoming the background noise. I wouldn’t want to sound too bold, but in some sense I began to feel as though I were in tune with the heart and mind of God.

It was not long after this realization dawned on me that I read the passage from John that we are talking about, and I began to understand more fully what Jesus was praying to God about. Jesus knew that the world on its own inclinations does not know God. And Jesus knew that by its own efforts it is almost impossible for the world to come to know God. Without help, the way of the world has too strong a hold on humankind, and it cannot break free.

This is the sense in which I understand that God’s son came to save the world. And Jesus knew that the project was just beginning with his first disciples. They were beginning to get the picture. But he was worried, and he prayed to God with these words: “20“I am not praying for these alone but also for the future believers who will come to me because of the testimony of these.” Jesus thought of the future generations, and he imagined, I believe, the church. He imagined the continuation, whereby this first generation would continue to grow in their faith, and whereby the testimony of this first generation would go on to the next and the next and the next. For Jesus recognized that without the church, without a vehicle for the testimony and the teaching and the lived celebration of the love of God, the people could not become one with God.

When I reread this passage back then, it suddenly washed over me what had happened. It was just as Jesus had prayed. In the church, with teachings that at first seemed quite at odds with my instincts, day by day, gradually, I came more and more to know the presence of God within me, dare I say it? to more and more feel at one with God. Listen again to the prayer of Jesus, and know that it was meant for you. 20“I am not praying for these alone but also for the future believers who will come to me because of the testimony of these. 21My prayer for all of them is that they will be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are, Father—that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me. 22“I have given them the glory you gave me—the glorious unity of being one, as we are—23I in them and you in me, all being perfected into one—so that the world will know you sent me and will understand that you love them as much as you love me. 24Father, I want them with me—these you’ve given me—so that they can see my glory. You gave me the glory because you loved me before the world began! 25“O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. 26And I have revealed you to them and will keep on revealing you so that the mighty love you have for me may be in them, and I in them.” Amen.

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"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares
about you" (1 Peter 5:7 – NLT).

Be sure to send in your prayer request for the next
mailing.

You are in my thoughts and prayers! May the Lord
continue to bless you with knowledge of Himself.

Prayerfully in Christ Jesus,


Mark Seay
Lighthouse Prayer Line
105 Quincy Drive
Greer, SC 29650
LighthousePrayerLine.org

"This is the day the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalm
118:24 - NIV).
.
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What God Hath Promised!
By Annie Johnson Flint


God hath not promised
Skies always blue,
Flower-strewn pathways
All our lives through;
God hath not promised
Sun without rain
Joy without sorrow,
Peace without pain.

But God hath promised
Strength for the day,
Rest for the labor,
Light for the way,
Grace for the trials,
Help from above,
Unfailing sympathy,
Undying love.

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We hope you have found today's newsletter encouraging to your
walk with Jesus Christ. Please send all prayer requests and
praise reports to us by using the "comments" hyperlink, which
can be found at the end of each blog/article. God is Good!!!

A Candle Loses Nothing by Lighting Another Candle. Please Keep This
Candle Going!

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I'm just a nobody
trying to tell everybody
that there is somebody
who can save anybody!!

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Never get so busy doing the work of the kingdom
- that you forget who the King is.

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Wednesday, November 11, 2009

*~*Prayer Requests for 11/12/09:

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Humility is a paradox. The moment you think you've finally found it, you've lost it. There has yet to be written a book intitled, "Humility and How I Achieved It." And yet, God expects (and rewards) an attitude of servant-like humility in His followers.

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One Year at Thanksgiving . . .


My mom went to my sister's house
for the traditional feast.
Knowing how gullible my sister is,
my mom decided to play a trick.

She told my sister that she
needed something from the store.

When my sister left,
my mom took the turkey out of the oven,
removed the stuffing,
stuffed a Cornish hen,
and inserted it into the turkey,
and re-stuffed the turkey.
She then placed the bird(s) back in the oven.

When it was time for dinner,
my sister pulled the turkey out of the oven
and proceeded to remove the stuffing.
When her serving spoon hit something,
she reached in and pulled out the little bird.

With a look of total shock on her face!
My mother exclaimed,
"Patricia, you've cooked a pregnant bird!"
At the reality of this horrifying news,
my sister started to cry.

It took the family two hours
to convince her that turkeys lay eggs!

Yep.................SHE'S BLONDE!

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ESV Study Bible Notes:

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**Special Prayer Request**

Noah Biorkman is a 5yr old boy who is in his last stages of neuroblastoma cancer after a 2 1/2 year battle. His family is celebrating Christmas next week and all he wants are Christmas cards. Lets try and see how many we can get to him from all over the world please. His address is 1141 Fountain View Circle, South Lyon MI 48178. Please re-post this as your status and let's ask God to heal him while we are at it.

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Hi friend,

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

1) "I'm looking for a place to live and prefer a rural location. I found a small island in Maine that I am interested in. There are no cars on the Island, it's 6 miles from - and I can take a ferry there. There is a house available and the owners are a bit gun shy about renting to own in case I change my mind. I don't forsee that happening. I was wondering if you could pray that God provides a rural place for me to live and that I can get the money to move. Also that my card business and my -Quest business start to do well. Please pray that I make a wise choice and that God finds a house for me. I know there are no perfect houses but there is a house that is perfect for me. I really like the idea of the island and have looked up a neurologist in - I just need a different place and I think maybe it's my time to expand." -Heidi;

2) Ana asks for our prayers. She writes, "I am in a lot of emotional pain right now. I am extremely depressed. I am feeling extreme loneliness, I'm in love with a man who is not in love with me, I am facing the fact that I may never have children (b/c I'm getting older (late 30's) and don't have a partner), and am extremely disatisfied with many aspects of my life... I fear that my mood will not improve and that my life will continue to feel meaningless and lack any sense of fulfillment. I pray that clarity and peace come my way, and that I can begin to feel that my wishes of having a life partner and children with the person I love will come true...";

3) "My 16-year-old daughter, Olivia, has been battling depression and now substance abuse issues. She went from being the model student/citizen to the opposite end of the spectrum. She's confused. She's scared. She's obviously down and out. I had no choice but to use tough love this time and had her placed in foster care with eventual treatment on the horizon. I need a God-given miracle that she is saved from any additional despair and gets on the right track to a happy, healthy lifestyle." -Lori;

4) Paula writes: "My moher literally, it seems worried herself to death, at least to an early grave. my prayer is for peace and to Trust God, for my siblings, realtives and myself who are still grieving---i now believe mother has found love and peace, finally. I pray God in the name of Jesus deliver me from anger and the aweful things that have been done to me on the my job because of access of my private medical records, and subsequent harsh and prejudicial treatment because of the condition-i pray God teach me to Love the unlovable and find peace and forgiveness and peace in lifes storms ...";

5) "Please keep my Sons, Private William -, Private Mark -, Lance Corporal Paul -and all Military troops in your prayers, for strength and courage and that they all come home safe from Afghanistan. Also for those of us at home scared but proud, to have the strengh to support them and get thru the raelly difficult time. Thank You." -Jil;

6) Chispa asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for my son Jowi. He struggles with depression, anxiety, stress. He is going through a difficult financial situation. Please pray that God can heal him spiritually, mentally and emotionally. And also that God blesses him in his new job so that he can support himself and pays for his bills and expenses. I also ask that you pray for me as I go through this trial that God gives me strength, peace and direction. Thank you so much and God bless you.";

7) "Please pray for my 20 year old son. He has problems with alcohol and drugs, but continues to deny it. He won't go to college classes, continually lies, and is currently not living with us any more. I pray that God will touch his heart and give hime the strength and determination to change his life and help him find his integrity again." -Judy;

8) Allison asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes: "Pray that I can rise out of this whole my life has become. My marriage is at the worst place it could be, my husband only sees and does what is absolutely necessary to survive for that day...he is good, kind, etc but we are way off on where we should be. Our finances from him being out of work over a year and getting a job that does not pay, me being out of work close to a year, a child in college, a teenager who is desparately trying to help out by doing yards and me fighting depression. I get by every day and have many things to be thankful for...but need help.";

9) "Please pray Satori passes her Stage 2 aviation verbal exam with Missy. It is quite important that this test is passed on the first attempt, as there are 36 applicants competing with her for the same helicopter pilot job. Also, please pray for Satori's comrades, that all those who are worthy will also find employment situations after graduation. Thank you for your prayers." -AN;

10) Pamela writes, "Please pray for my son Mark who is a POlice Office for God's protection in his life and also for the other Officers that works with him. Thank you.";

11) "Please pray the lord will keep my grandchildren safe and send them back home soon. A judge gave my son temp. custody 5 yrs ago, since then it has expired, but my son continued on like the judge had set things up. Things have been fine unitl the middle of July. She took the children for their visit and will not bring them home. She is a drug addict, has a criminal record (on probation now - felony), has had SS called on her numerous times over her oldest son (not ours) he is in therapy now for situations she has put this child in. She also is in therapy. She breaks the law and gets a slap on the wrist every time. She knows she can do whatever she wants and the law will not do nothing. This has been proved many times with her. She has taken them before and left the state. But the law does nothing. My son has filed for custody he is not working right now so I had to sell something my dead husband gave me to pay for a lawyer, but it is worth it and I know my husband would agree. We have to go to the boys school to see them They ask can we bring them home with us and we have to tell them soon. My son is having panic attacks caused by stress. He has never been sick like this before. Please pray the lord will bring our boys home soon. For their sake and my sons. I know he's here and I know the devil can't defeat him. Thank you all and God bless you all." -Debbie;

12) Tam asks for our prayers. She writes, "Father God, Thank You for this day. Lord, Gwendolyn is having surgery for congestive heart failure today be with her and her doctors. See her through her surgery and her recovery. Also, her granddaughter Elizabeth is very concerned and tired from long travels, bring her peace of mind and heart. In Jesus Name. Amen.";

13) "Thank you for prayer. My daughter got a continuance on her court case. Please pray for God to guide her lawyer so that she can get her ex husband's visitation rights removed. He is constantly lying and putting the child in danger. He is trying to get my daughter in trouble with the law so he can get out of child support." -AN;

14) Dave asks for our prayers. He writes, "My sister in law husband is very sick from Leukemia. His name is Dave M. Please pray for a miracle that he beats this and fully recovers. Thank You.";

15) "Please pray for the Lord's healing of eyes so that my vision would be free from any diseases of cataracts, glaucoma, or macular degeneration and that I would be able to have good vision on a permanent basis. In Jesus name. Much appreciation, Mary Jane.";

16) "I'm diagnosed with depression. I am so worried about finances, things at work, and relationships. Please God. I need you." -LAA;

17) Manuel and Maria asks for your prayers. They write, "due to problems in our marriage my wife was unfaithful and committed adultery and is in adultery now. it has been very painful&confusing for me and my girls. we were married fifteen years. please pray God would remove this judgement from my life. She is the only woman i have ever loved. that God would open her eyes and change her heart and mind, just like need to change my mind & heart also. I desire my marriage restored today. Need your prayers.";

18) "Please pray for kathleen that she can bring unity to library and that the board will listen to her suggestions and see how much she cares. thanks you help molly and mario recover completely , please let maria recover fast and find angels all around her at rehab center, thank you." -Carol;

19) Mick asks to be remembered in our prayers. He writes: "Hi, Thank you for this precious ministry. Please pray for 4 of my sons who have strayed far from the Lord.";

20) "Please pray for my family we our house has been forclosed on and went to sheriffs sale we are still living in the house but tomorrow the judge will decide how long we haved to get out of the house we do not have anywhere to go we have a bid on a house but it is a short sale and it takes longer than the regular sales please pray that we will have the time to find somewhere to live before we get thrown out thank you and God Bless you." -Diane; and lastly...

21) "After three months, incredible warfare and many hours, I feel confident that phase one has been completed. Thank you all who have been praying for me and for your time and consideration in taking time to check out the site. All feedback is welcomed and encouraged. If the Lord leads, please pass on the link to those whom you think would be blessed by it. I cannot thank you all enough for your thoughts and prayers: as always, there is still tremendous opposition and attack, but we are learning to count it all joy for Jesus, still we desperately need your agreement for the victory our Lord has promised. In Christ Jesus, Gigi (aka "Ezriel Josephina Perez", my spiritual name and pen name from the Lord, it means in Hebrew: "God is my help"- "The Lord May Add"- "The Breakthrough")" **Visit: www.propheticwatch.org .


**God bless you for caring enough to pray!!!**

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A real friend is always and under all circumstances a friend (Proverbs 17:17a).

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*~*Spotlight Sites*~*

www.emailministry.webs.com
www.propheticwatch.org

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THE WIDOW'S SON RAISED -
A PICTURE OF MONERGISM (Part 1 of 2)
By Dr. R. L. Hymers, Jr.


"Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he came and touched the bier [the coffin]: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother" (Luke 7:12-15).

The New Testament only records three instances of Jesus raising people from the dead during His earthly ministry. There may have been a few more such cases, but they are not given in the four gospels. We must not have the idea that Jesus raised everyone who died in Israel during His ministry among us. He raised Jairus' daughter; He raised Lazarus; and He raised this woman, the widow of Nain's son. Those are the only three instances of Him raising people from the dead recorded in the four gospels.

Dr. J. Vernon McGee said,

These three instances are examples…from the three age groups: a child [Jairus' daughter], a young man [this widow's son]; and an adult man [Lazarus] (J. Vernon McGee, Th.D., Thru the Bible, Thomas Nelson, 1983, volume IV, p. 276).

Now let us think about this particular miracle - the raising of the widow of Nain's son from the dead. Christ and His disciples went into the city of Nain. As they walked along the road through the village they met a funeral procession. Many people followed the coffin as it was carried by several men down the street. The mother of the young man was weeping profusely. Many of those in the funeral procession would also have been weeping and wailing loudly, as was the regular custom of the Jews (cf. Luke 8:52). Jesus had compassion on this widowed woman. The young man who died was her only son. Jesus knew she would be destitute without him to care and provide for her. There were no "social services" in those days, no Social Security, no Medicare, no free apartments or houses. Without her only son to provide for her she was left alone, with no one to care for her or help her. It was a tragic situation for this poor woman, and our text tells us,

"When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her"
(Luke 7:13).

Jesus came and touched the coffin. Then He said,

"Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother"
(Luke 7:14-15).

She must have felt unspeakable joy to see her dead son rise from the dead at Jesus' command. She had been rescued from a life of drudgery and despair. Her son was alive again, and would now go home to work and take care of his widowed mother. I will draw three simple lessons from this wonderful miracle of resurrection.

I. First, why Christ raised this young man from the dead.

He certainly did so out of compassionate sympathy for the young man's mother. That is clear from the text.

"And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her"
(Luke 7:13).

But, as Dr. McGee said, the three instances given in the gospels of Jesus raising the dead "are examples…from the three age groups: a child [Jairus' daughter], a young man [this widow's son]; and an adult man [Lazarus]." I agree that they are examples. But examples of what? I believe that these three resurrections Christ performed were actually examples of the new birth and conversion. In his great exposition of the correlation between baptism and the new birth, the Apostle Paul said,

"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4).

In this passage of Scripture, in Romans six, the Apostle tells us that water baptism is only the outward sign of the inner resurrection that occurs when a sinner is born again. Like Christ his Saviour, the sinner is "raised up from the dead [to] walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4).

To understand the importance of this young man's resurrection from the dead, we must understand that it is a picture, a type, of the spiritual resurrection that occurs when anyone is resurrected from spiritual death by the new birth and conversion.

I believe that this is the reason Jesus raised these three people, as recorded in the gospels: a child [Jairus' daughter]; a young man [the widow of Nain's son] and Lazarus [an adult]. You see, this shows that Jesus can give you salvation through the new birth whether you are a child, a young person, or an adult. No matter what age you are, Jesus can regenerate you from spiritual death, and give you new life.

Make no mistake here. If you are still unconverted, no matter how good you are, or how religious you are, you are dead in the sight of God and in your own experience as well. The Apostle Paul spoke of his own dead spiritual condition prior to conversion when he said,

"O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" (Romans 7:24).

In the next chapter of Romans, the Apostle tells us,

"For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be" (Romans 8:6-7).

These verses do not refer to the modern notion of "carnal" and "spiritual" Christians. That idea came in as a direct result of the false theories and practices of "decisionism" that filtered down to us from the days of Charles G. Finney, the Pelagianist evangelist, who did so much to undo the Reformation doctrines of grace and replace them with the works and obedience of lost sinners in gaining their own salvation. No, Paul is not speaking of "carnal" and "spiritual" Christians at all. He plainly says, "To be carnally minded is death." And he goes on to say that the carnal mind is so dead to the things of God that "it cannot be subject to the law of God." It is impossible to please God in an unconverted condition. He says so in the very next verse,

"So they that are in the flesh cannot please God" (Romans 8:8).

The unconverted person cannot please God, no matter what he does because he is spiritually dead. "To be carnally minded is death."

So strong are the chains that hold an unconverted person that they are

"by nature the children of wrath" (Ephesians 2:3).

The unconverted person is "dead in sins" (Ephesians 2:5).

Before conversion, the sinner is dead spiritually, unable in any way to please God, chained up in his sin nature, inherited from Adam, and by his very inward nature a child "of wrath" (Ephesians 2:3).

Furthermore, this dead spiritual nature of unsaved man is so horribly strong that he cannot do anything whatever to free himself from its grip. He is "in sin," enslaved to sin, "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1). Theologians call this deadly condition of the natural, carnal, unconverted man "total depravity." Man in this state has no light, and no strength of his own to break out of his enslavement. This is a perfect picture (in fact it typifies) the condition of every lost person on earth.

Christ raised the widow of Nain's son from the dead to dramatically show that man cannot save himself, or even contribute one thing to his own salvation.

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IS GOD'S WILL MY WILL?
By Oswald Chambers


"This is the will of God, even your sanctification." 1 Thessalonians 4:3

It is not a question of whether God is willing to sanctify me; is it my will? Am I willing to let God do in me all that has been made possible by the Atonement? Am I willing to let Jesus be made sanctification to me, and to let the life of Jesus be manifested in my mortal flesh? Beware of saying - Oh, I am longing to be sanctified. You are not, stop longing and make it a matter of transaction - "Nothing in my hands I bring." Receive Jesus Christ to be made sanctification to you in implicit faith, and the great marvel of the Atonement of Jesus will be made real in you. All that Jesus made possible is made mine by the free loving gift of God on the ground of what He performed, my attitude as a saved and sanctified soul is that of profound humble holiness (there is no such thing as proud holiness), a holiness based on agonizing repentance and a sense of unspeakable shame and degradation; and also on the amazing realization that the love of God commended itself to me in that while I cared nothing about Him, He completed everything for my salvation and sanctification (see Rom. 5:8. R.V.). No wonder Paul says nothing is "able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Sanctification makes me one with Jesus Christ, and in Him one with God, and it is done only through the superb Atonement of Christ. Never put the effect as the cause. The effect in me is obedience and service and prayer, and is the out come of speechless thanks and adoration for the marvellous sanctification wrought out in me because of the Atonement.

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Chocolate Brownies
LighthousePrayerLine.org


Many parents are hard pressed to explain to their youth why some music, movies, books, and magazines are not acceptable material for them to bring into the home or to listen to or see.

One parent came up with an original idea that is hard to refute. The father listened to all the reasons his children gave for wanting to see a particular PG-13 movie. It had their favorite actors. Everyone else was seeing it. Even church members said it was great. It was only rated PG-13 because of the suggestion of sex--they never really showed it. The language was pretty good--the Lord's name was only used in vain three times in the whole movie.

The teens did admit there was a scene where a building and a bunch of people were blown up, but the violence was just the normal stuff. It wasn't too bad. And, even if there were a few minor things, the special effects were fabulous and the plot was action packed.

However, even with all the justifications the teens made for the 13' rating, the father still wouldn't give in. He didn't even give his children a satisfactory explanation for saying, "No." He just said, "No!"

A little later on that evening the father asked his teens if they would like some brownies he had baked. He explained that he'd taken the family's favorite recipe and added a little something new. The children asked what it was.

The father calmly replied that he had added dog poop. However, he quickly assured them, it was only a little bit. All other ingredients were gourmet quality and he had taken great care to bake the brownies at the precise temperature for the exact time. He was sure the brownies would be superb.

Even with their father's promise that the brownies were of almost perfect quality, the teens would not take any. The father acted surprised. After all, it was only one small part that was causing them to be so stubborn. He was certain they would hardly notice it. Still the teens held firm and would not try the brownies.

The father then told his children how the movie they wanted to see was just like the brownies. Our minds deceive us into believing that just a little bit of evil won't matter. But, the truth is even a little bit of poop makes the difference between a great treat and something disgusting and totally unacceptable.

The father went on to explain that even though the movie industry would have us believe that most of today's movies are acceptable fare for adults and youth, they are not.

Now, when this father's children want to see something that is of questionable material, the father merely asks them if they would like some of his special dog poop brownies.

~ That closes the subject!!


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Just Do it.
By Bill Keller


Jesus said in Mark 9:23, "Everything is possible for him who believes."

The Nike sporting goods company used a very simple but powerful phrase in one of their recent ad campaigns, "Just do it." This is going to be a little different Devotional today. I want to take a moment right now before you do anything else and simply ask the Lord to open your heart to hear this message today since it has to do with faith. Now, let me ask you a question. What is something that you have always dreamed of but have never done? Maybe it is to see a certain place or do a certain thing. What is something that you have always dreamed of but have never done?

The writer of Hebrews defines faith in Hebrews 11:1 as, "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Note the key words in this definition are SURE and CERTAIN. True Biblical faith is not something we simply hope for, but we are SURE of what we hope for. True Biblical faith is not just a blind leap into the dark, we are CERTAIN of what we do not see. That is why Jesus told us that, "EVERYTHING is possible for him who believes." Not a few things, not certain things, not most things . . . EVERYTHING!

Today, I want to challenge your faith and encourage you to fulfill your dreams. As I share with you often, this journey through life is very short. It is over before we even know it. We know the Bible teaches us that tomorrow is promised to none of us, that each day is literally a gift from God. We must treat each day as the precious gift it is and make the most of it. Too many people live their lives in those "ruts." You get comfortable in making life work for you on a daily basis and get locked into a routine that you rarely if ever deviate from. You complain how boring life is, how unexciting life is, when the problem is not life but the way you choose to live it each day!

Over these past 20 years, I have ministered to and walked with hundreds of people from 10 to 97 in the final days of their life. In almost every case the person shared with me their regrets about things they had always wanted to do but didn't, places they had always wanted to see but never went. Now, in their final hours of this life they felt bad for not having taken the time or made the effort to see and do all of the things they had wanted to do.

Let me ask you again, what is something that you have always dreamed of but
have never done?

Here is my word for you today, my challenge. Sit down with a paper and pen and answer the above question on the paper. Write down what it is you have dreamed of but never done. Maybe you always wanted to see the Great Wall of China. Write it down. Maybe you have always wanted to learn how to ride a horse. Write it down. There is not one person reading these words today that doesn't have something you have always wanted to do or some place you have always wanted to visit. Everyone has a dream they have not seen fulfilled.

After you have written down what it is you have always dreamed of, take that paper and pray over it. Pray in faith that God is going to let you see your dream come true. God is not some magic genie in a lamp that we rub and make wishes to. However, God is the One who promised that, "Everything is possible for him who believes." God is the One who promised to, "Give you the desires of your heart." As a follower of Jesus Christ you have very right to hold God to His promises. There is no dream that is too big for God!!!

This journey through life is exciting, exhilarating, and can be a wonderful experience. What I find in so many lives I deal with each day is that they have allowed the trials and tribulations of this life to overwhelm them to the point they have stopped dreaming. They are simply content with not living in turmoil and have forgot how to dream, let alone believe their dreams can come true.

Your life, just like your relationship with the Lord will be exactly what you choose it to be. We ALL have to face the problems that life throws our way. That is simply part of living in this sin-filled and fallen world. There are always problems, things that don't go the way we expect or like. The key is do you allow the problems of life to choke off your joy? Do you allow the trials you face to steal your peace. Do you allow the challenges of life to rob you of the abundance Christ promised you?

I love you and care about you so much. I want to encourage you to start living each day in faith, the faith that "everything is possible for him who believes." That doesn't just mean being victorious over the day-to-day trials of this life, but seeing your dreams fulfilled as well. I want to encourage you today to take the piece of paper you have written down whatever you have always dreamed about and work to make your dream a reality! God will help you.

Don't listen to the liar satan tell you don't have the money, you don't have the time, it can't be done, or any other lie he will tell you to discourage you. Who are you going to believe, the liar who says your dream won't come true or God who promised you that "everything is possible?"

This message today is MUCH deeper than just challenging you to make your dream come true. Once you do whatever it is you have dreamed about, once you make that dream a reality, you are going to want to make your next dream come true. After you see that dream become a reality, you will want to make the next dream come true. Over time, you are not just living life, you are making the most of each day and instead of simply dreaming, YOU ARE LIVING YOUR DREAMS EACH DAY!

Jesus promised us, "Everything is possible for him who believes."

Don't dream it, DO IT!!!

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THE WIDOW'S SON RAISED -
A PICTURE OF MONERGISM (Part 2 of 2)
By Dr. R. L. Hymers, Jr.


II. Second, what this means theologically.

There are several of you here tonight who are as dead in sin as this young man in the coffin. The world to you is a coffin - carrying you along until you are finally buried, dead in sins, to await the Last Judgment, and the punishment you will receive in the lake of fire for eternity.

There are three theories in theology of how you can escape the lost condition you are in. The first is Pelagianism. This theory says you are not dead at all; and that you can change your own heart and become a Christian. The Pelagian evangelist Finney preached a very famous sermon which proclaims this view. The very title of this landmark Finney sermon reveals his Pelagian error. It is called, "Sinners Bound to Change Their Own Hearts." There is no need for the intervention of God's grace in Finney's Pelagian view. Man simply "changes his choice" and "changes his own heart." There is little if any place in his thought for God to be the one who resurrects the dead sinner. Tell that to the dead man in the coffin! I say he was so dead there was nothing whatever he could do to change himself back to life!

The second idea of how a lost man can escape from his lost condition is called "synergism," or "semi-Pelagianism." It admits that man is in a ruined and fearful state - but it holds that there is still something within the sinner that can respond to God in Christ, and help the lost man to save himself. Most modern evangelists have modified Finney's pure Pelagianism to this position, called "synergism" or "semi-Pelagianism." But this view is just as wrong as Pelagianism. Ask the dead man that Christ raised! "Was there anything in you that helped you to be resurrected? Did you do anything to help yourself be resurrected?" What would he have said? He certainly would have said, "No. I was dead. Christ did it all."

Christ does it all. That is the third position. It is called "monergism." That is what the Bible teaches.

"[We] were by nature the children of wrath…But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us [made us alive] together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;), and hath raised us up together…" (Ephesians 2:3-6).

That is monergism! That is salvation by the power of God in Christ alone! That is salvation by God's grace alone, without any admixture of human effort!

Jesus spoke directly to the dead body of this young man.

"And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak" (Luke 7:14-15).

What happened to this dead man? Why, he was instantly "alive from the dead" (Romans 6:13)!

He was instantly "quickened…together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)" (Ephesians 2:5).

"Even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (I Corinthians 15:22).

"Alive from the dead" - instantly - by the power of God in Christ! That's the new birth! That's what it means!

"Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak" (Luke 7:14-15).

This is for you also. Jesus said, "Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again" (John 3:7).

Dr. John R. Rice correctly said,

That word "again" is Greek anothen, and it should be "born from above"…Jesus is insisting on not just a new dedication, or a new course of action, but one should be born miraculously "from above," born of God (John R. Rice, D.D., The Son of God, A Commentary on the Gospel According to John, Sword of the Lord, 1976, p. 67).

"Ye must be born again," that is, "born from above" - by the power of God in Christ, not by your own efforts.

I am afraid that Dr. John MacArthur introduces elements of synergism (semi-Pelagianism) in his book, Hard to Believe (Thomas Nelson, 2003). For instance, he says, "Becoming a Christian means…affirming your commitment to the Lordship of Christ to the point where you are willing to forsake everything" (pp. 132-133). He says that's what you do when "Becoming a Christian." Did this young man do that? Did he make a "commitment to the Lordship of Christ to the point where [he was] willing to forsake everything"? I don't see it in our text. It simply tells us,

"And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak" (Luke 7:14-15).

This young man didn't learn the "plan of salvation." He didn't say a "sinner's prayer." He didn't "come forward" at an altar call. He didn't raise his hand or sign a "decision" card, saying he wanted to be saved. He didn't get baptized. He didn't get "slain in the Spirit." And he certainly didn't "affirm [his] commitment to the Lordship of Christ to the point where [he was] willing to forsake everything" (MacArthur, ibid.). This young man did nothing to contribute to his own salvation. There was absolutely no synergism involved. The man did nothing to save himself. His salvation was totally monergistic - completely the work of God in Christ - with no human work involved.

"And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak" (Luke 7:14-15).

He certainly was one of the early Christians who followed Christ, His Lord, to the point of discipleship all his days after that. But such a commitment played no part whatever in his resurrection from the dead, his new birth and conversion. Discipleship flowed out of his resurrection - but played no part in the actual resurrection itself. We are

"created in Christ Jesus unto good works" (Ephesians 2:10).

But the "good works" do not have any part in being "created." That is the work of God in Christ alone. The other is synergism, semi-Pelagianism, in effect, no different from Finney, although the theology may appear more orthodox. Even though the theology is orthodox, the practical application is semi-Pelagian. Sinners must be "created in Christ Jesus unto good works," not the other way around!

"And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak" (Luke 7:14-15).

"Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour" (Titus 3:5-6).

"But God…even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ (by grace ye are saved;)" (Ephesians 2:4-5).

"And he said, young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother" (Luke 7:14-15).

III. Third, what this means to you.

If you are still lost, it means that you cannot learn how to be saved. A dead person cannot learn how to be alive, can he? Do you think you could stand over a coffin and teach a dead body how to come to life? Surely you're not that foolish, are you? So, you must not think that way about yourself. You don't want to be "Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth" (II Timothy 3:7),

do you? You don't want to go on and on learning about salvation but remaining dead in sin, do you? Well, then, give up the idea that you need to learn more. You know enough already, if you have come to this church for a week or two. It isn't learning that you need. It's resurrection - born from above. And only Jesus Christ, Himself, can give you that, by His grace alone.

It also means that you cannot depend on your feelings. Do you think that this young man wondered what it felt like to be resurrected? We don't know what he thought. All that we know is that he heard the voice of Jesus, "Young man, I say unto thee, Arise" (Luke 7:14).

He did not look inwardly to see if he felt "right" or not. Oh, no! He simply did what Jesus told him to do. Jesus said, "Arise,"

"And he that was dead sat up" (Luke 7:15).

"But," you say, "I couldn't do that!" Why not? If Jesus calls you tonight, you will do it. It will surprise you how easy it was. After all of your fears of failing, and fears of not "getting it right," you will simply come to Jesus. And, you'll think, "Why, that was so simple - so easy!" Of course, because it was not by your power, but

"According to the power that worketh in us" (Ephesians 3:20).

"For it is God which worketh in you…" (Philippians 2:13).

"And he said, young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak" (Luke 7:14-15).

What did he say? We are not told - but we can give an educated guess. And I think that he was thankful. "Thank you, Jesus, for raising me from the dead. Thank you, Jesus, for giving me back to my mother. She prayed for me so long. She wept and prayed, and feared that she would be left all alone, because I was lost and dead. But now you have given me back to her, to care for her. Thank you, Jesus."

There is a Christian mother here tonight who will not tell you so - but inside she fears that you will leave her too. She weeps and prays for you, but you never see it. In her heart she is afraid. She will never tell you that - but she is afraid that you will leave her, and leave the church, and leave God some day.

You must be saved - if not for your sake, for your mother's sake! There are young people here tonight who have a Christian mother. She has worked long and selflessly for you. She nursed you when you were a helpless baby. She taught you the first words you spoke. She worked so hard to buy you clothes and fix your meals and keep your room clean. And now you are grown, and she weeps and prays for you in secret. She is so afraid. She never tells you so - but she is so afraid that you will leave her all alone some day. When she is alone, she prays, "Oh, God I'm so afraid my boy will not be saved. I'm so afraid he will go wrong, and not be saved, and leave me all alone."

"There was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow…And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he came and touched the [coffin]: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother" (Luke 7:12-15).

You may not care about your own soul tonight. But what about your mother? Do you love your mother? Do you care about what happens in her heart? If you love your mother, "I say unto you, Arise," and come to Jesus for her sake. Wait no longer. Come to Jesus now. "And he delivered him to his mother." Oh, I beg you, let your poor, hardworking little mother know that her life was not wasted, that she has a Christian son who will always be there to care for her.

Whether your mother is a Christian or not, you are her hope in this world. My own mother was not a Christian - but I knew that I was her only hope. I knew that if I didn't become a Christian and get things straightened out for her, she had no hope. My mother finally did get saved, but she never would have if I hadn't led the way.

Young person, boy or girl, come to Jesus tonight. If not for your own sake, come to Him for the sake of your mother. Come to life in Christ so you can care for her. "And he delivered him to his mother."

President William McKinley was very close to his Christian mother. When his mother was dying, the President sent a telegram that said, "Tell Mother I'll be there," as he rushed on a train to be by her side when she died. Charles Fillmore turned those words into a hymn that was used for many years in evangelistic services. Listen to the words as Mr. Griffith comes to sing it again.

When I was but a little child how well I recollect
How I would grieve my mother with my folly and neglect;
And now that she has gone to Heav'n I miss her tender care:
O Saviour, tell my mother, I'll be there!

Though I was often wayward, she was always kind and good;
So patient, gentle, loving when I acted rough and rude;
My childhood griefs and trials she would gladly with me share:
O Saviour, tell my mother, I'll be there!

One day a message came to me, it bade me quickly come
If I would see my mother ere the Saviour took her home;
I promised her, before she died, for Heaven to prepare:
O Saviour, tell my mother, I'll be there!

Refrain:

Tell mother I'll be there, in answer to her prayer;
This message, blessed Saviour, to her bear!
Tell mother I'll be there, Heav'n's joys with her to share;
Yes, tell my darling mother I'll be there.
("Tell Mother I'll Be There" by Charles M. Fillmore, 1860-1952).

Come to Jesus. It will thrill your mother's heart more than anything you could do for her. Give this to your mother. Do it for her. Come to Jesus as He calls to you.

"And he said, young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother" (Luke 7:14-15).

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Jesus, Saviour, Pilot Me
By Edward Hopper


Jesus, Saviour, Pilot Me
Jesus, Saviour, pilot me,
Over life's tempestuous sea;
Unknown waves before me roll,
Hiding rock and treacherous shoal:
Chart and compass come from Thee:
Jesus, Saviour, pilot me.

As a mother stills her child,
Thou canst hush the ocean wild;
Boisterous waves obey Thy will
When thou say'st to them "Be still!"
Wondrous Sovereign of the sea,
Jesus, Saviour, pilot me.

When I last I near the shore,
And the fearful breakers roar
'Twixt me and the peaceful rest,
Then, while leaning on Thy breast,
May I hear Thee say to me,
"Fear not, I will pilot thee!"

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"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares
about you" (1 Peter 5:7 – NLT).

Be sure to send in your prayer request for the next
mailing.

You are in my thoughts and prayers! May the Lord
continue to bless you with knowledge of Himself.

May God richly bless you,


Mark Seay
Lighthouse Prayer Line
105 Quincy Drive
Greer, SC 29650
LighthousePrayerLine.org

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Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone
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speak maliciously against your good behavior in
Christ may be ashamed of their slander" (1 Peter
3:15-16 - NIV).

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