STEPS

“The steps of a good man(or woman) are ordered (ordained) by the LORD and he delighteth in his way.” Ps. 37:23

When I need to go out in this virus ridden world(or it at least it seems it may be) I pray and trust that God is guiding my footsteps to safe places. I can’t know when I go to the store or purchase gas for my car if the virus is lurking but God does. He can place me in the store at the right time to avoid contact with it and of course protect me.

He guides my steps every day, every hour, and it has always been that way. Why? Because He promises me that. I am not necessarily “good” but I am a Christian washed in the blood of His Son and righteous in His sight. So He takes interest in where I go and what I do. If you are a believer He takes great interest in you as well.

I notice this especially when before all this virus craziness I went to the stores whenever I needed to or desired to. So many times God had a meeting place there with someone who needed a word from Him. I was able to share encouragement and a Bible tract or offer to pray for someone. I did not plan to meet that person but God knew just time to send me there. It is harder now but always seek to do that. Be aware of the needs of those around you even if you do not know them.

One day I had to go to the post office. Our post office is small and I don’t particularly look forward to standing in line in such cramped quarters especially because I have an illness that makes it difficult for me to stand for very long. But this particular day I went and a struck up a conversation with the lady behind me. Her name was Connie. As we waited and talked she revealed she was facing surgery the next day. I was able to hand her some encouraging tracts and promise to pray for her. I will never know that outcome but I know God sent me there at that appointed time to witness to her heart. He ordered and guided my steps. And I get the blessing. It is a real blessing to feel like in some small way I have been able to help someone.

Now witnessing is more difficult because of masks and social distancing yet sometimes I find a moment, an opportunity to do just that. God sends it my way unsolicited and unplanned.

He also I believe has guided my steps on timing when to go to the store. The last 2 times he has provided an open lane for me to check out after a weary trek through the store. Believe me an open lane at Walmart here is almost impossible to find. But He gave me aisle 7 and aisle 14, for those of you that are into the significance of numbers.

Am I special? No. I am just like you plodding away my time here on earth. I am just as anxious about this virus at times as you are. I often make mistakes and I am not some spiritual giant. I just have a desire to spread the gospel to all who I meet. So many people in our world today are seeking for answers and do not know where to turn or they have found false answers and hope. Probably even more so now with this pandemic and its unknown effects on ourselves, our jobs, and our families.

Bible tracts and cards are especially useful because they are easy to share in a momentary meeting. I get mine from “Moments with the Book” which provides a great diversity of tracts and really cool cards. I also have some cards from my church should someone be interested. Without the tracts and cards it would be difficult to get the gospel out as well or as often. Yes, I have had a few rejections but most people are glad to receive them. Of course tracts should always be handed out prayerfully. Only the Holy Spirit can use them to touch a life. I am just the person through which He is working.

I found this verse lately in the Bible also.  “Thou art my hope in the day of evil—“Jeremiah 17:17

This is certainly a day of evil in so many ways. The virus being the forefront right now but we live in a fallen and sinful world and Satan is on the prowl. As a believer He wants to discourage you and frighten you and stop you any way he can. Don’t let him. He is a defeated enemy. Jesus had the victory and we can live a victorious life.

God Bless.

THE WORLD’S BATTLEGROUND

We are in a battle with an “unseen enemy.” Covid-19 is referenced as the unseen enemy. But I submit to you that we are in an unseen battle everyday with the unseen forces of Satan’s armies. For mankind the real enemy is Satan. He wants to destroy you and your family in any way he can. He wants to destroy your peace of mind, tempt you to worry, and fear.

We feel like we are struggling right now with this enemy and all its side affects. But the Bible reminds us that this known thing (the virus)  is not what we are really struggling against. We are struggling against the powers of darkness. Against Satan who would do everything he can to destroy our hopes and dreams. Unseen but not uneffective. Powerful, yes, but not victorious. Jesus had the victory over sin and death at the cross.  With His resurrection Satan now can only taunt us and make our lives miserable with doubts, fears, and anxieties and “what ifs?”.

Whether you believe that the devil exists or not, nonetheless, he is real. Jesus made it clear when He walked on earth that our soul has an enemy. Satan is the thief  of our soul and He desires to keep people from belief in God so he can cast them into hell at the moment of their death.

As believers we need to be ever aware of his sneaky tactics. Be vigilant and on guard that he doesn’t deceive us into thinking he is not real or not interested in us.

Yes this illness is terrible that is a fact. It has taken many lives. More people  however have had the virus and recovered. Though it seems like the illness is in control it is not. God is in control. Always. While we have an unseen enemy we have an unseen deliverance. II Kings 6:15-17–“And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him(Elisha the prophet) ‘Alas my master! How shall we do?” The armies of the enemies of Israel had surrounded their city and it appeared that all would be lost.

Many of  us today are looking around at our suddenly changed and fearful world and asking, “What shall we do?” This looks like a certain defeat for our health and our jobs and for any hope of future good and  prosperity.

But now read Elisha the prophet of God’s answer to his dismayed servant who could only see with his natural eyes the certain calamity that was surrounding them. ” And Elisha prayed and said ,LORD, I pray thee, open his the eyes of the young man ; and  he saw, and behold the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.” Read the next few verses to see how God delivered them in a most unusual way. God is good and always surrounding us with His protection.

For more comfort and encouragement read Psalm 91 and apply it to yourself. Where you read the words thou or thee. Replace them with your name. Because God is today talking to you specifically. He knows you. He sees you. He has a plan for you. He is  your protector and helper. We don’t need to fear only praise and thank Him for all the good He does do everyday in our lives. The Bible tells us that He inhabits our praise.

Do Take the precautions recommended by the CDC and don’t be foolish; but wait on God for deliverance. We will come to the end of this tribulation. The question is how will we come to the end of this? Stronger in our faith or ashamed at our lack of belief while we  turned to our own devices to survive. In the end all we can do is wait and hope and trust and keep up our faith.

It is time for us to strengthen our faith and share it with a lost and dying world. Perhaps this is their time to stop and contemplate their eternal destination and it is a perfect time to let them know what their  hope after this life can be. Send a Bible tract to a friend or coworker along with a message of encouragement. Give them a phone call and let them know that you and Jesus cares. Lift them up in prayer. Let them see the difference between those of us who are believers by acting without fear. So that they can see that God is real and He does care.

 

THERE IS A FOUNTAIN PART II

I’M sorry to have not finished the first post on the topic THERE IS A FOUNTAIN FILLED WITH BLOOD–I had some issues –again–with something when I was uploading a picture–so this is the hymn that I want to share with you today–

There is a fountain filled with blood

Drawn from Immanuel’s veins;

And sinners plunged beneath that flood,

Lose all their guilty stains—-

the dying thief rejoiced to see

That fountain in his day;

And there may I, though vile as he,

Wash all my sins away—

Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood

Shall never lose its power,

Till all the ransomed church of God

Be saved, to sin no more—-

E’er since, by faith, I saw the stream

Thy flowing wounds supply,

Redeeming love has been my theme,

And shall be till I die:——-

Then in a nobler, sweeter song,

I’ll sing Thy power to save,

When this poor lisping, stammering tongue

Lies silent in the grave—-

William Cowper 1731-1800

If you have never asked Jesus to forgive your sins and enter your heart I urge you to do it today. He is waiting for you to make that next move and He will embrace you in His love forever.

 

 

WHEN LIFE’S DARK MAZE I TREAD

Often on this journey we call “Life” we find ourselves lost and confused. Life becomes a dark maze that we long to escape. We long to know what is up ahead, and we are frustrated by all the twists, and turns that come our way.

I found myself in such a place a few years ago. I just didn’t know what dreaded thing was going to crop up around the next corner of my life. I was tormented by “what ifs” and unknown calamities my mind was only to quick to manufacture.

I discovered this verse in Isaiah 45:2, and I prayed it daily as I walked through the trial.

 

PSALM 107:16 “FOR HE HATH BROKEN THE GATES OF BRASS, AND CUT THE BARS OF IRON ASUNDER.”

 

 

Two years later he was visiting Boston when he ran into his old friend Lowell Mason.

Mason, a major figure in music in the early 1800’s, was preparing a hymnal.

When he asked Palmer if he would like to contribute anything, Palmer shyly mentioned the poem that he had translated adding a few more verses.

Mason was so impressed with the poem that he told Palmer–“You may live many years and do many good things; but I think you will be best known to posterity as the author of “My Faith Looks Up to Me.”

In our hymnbook that I have today this hymn is attributed to Frances R. Havergal and Caesar Malan. I am not sure why. Unless over the years it was reworked. If anyone knows please feel free to enlighten me:)

My faith looks up to Thee;

Thou Lamb of Calvary, Savior divine!

Now hear me while I pray,

Take all my guilt away,

O let me from this day be wholly Thine!

 

May Thy Rich Grace impart

Strength to my fainting heart,

My zeal inspire; as Thou hast died for me.

O may my love to Thee

Pure, warm, and changeless be,

A living fire!

 

While life’s dark maze I tread,

And griefs around me spread,

Be Thou my Guide;

Bid darkness turn to day,

Wipe sorrow’s tears away,

Nor let me ever stray from Thee aside.

 

When ends life’s transient dream,

When death’s cold, sullen stream shall o’er me roll;

Blessed Savior, then , in love,

Fear and distrust remove;

O bear me safe above, a ransomed soul!

RAY PALMER 1808-1887

 

 

FAITH’S HALL OF FAME

‘Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses,

Let us lay aside——-every weight       

Dominican saints window (Photo credit: Lawrence OP)

and the sin

which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.”

Hebrews 12:1

 

Hebrews 11 is considered the hall of fame of saints. It draws our attention to the great men and women of faith and then goes on to describe many un-named individuals who were faithful to their Lord and Savior.  After descriptions like these–trials and cruel mockings  and scourgings–bonds, imprisonment, torture–stoned, sawed asunder, slain with the sword  –being destitute, afflicted, tormented.  the writer of Hebrews begins chapter 12 with the words above.

Then he adds another “Hero of the Faith,” the greatest hero of all. Jesus.

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who

for the joy set before him

                                    endured the cross, despising the shame         

and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” verse2    

Jesus is considered by scholars such as Weber to be an example of a charismatic religious leader. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

   

The most persecution I have ever faced was a threat to stop serving me at a restaurant if I didn’t stop leaving Bible tracts in the bathroom. I think that pales in comparison to being “sawn asunder.”

So many people in the early church faced trials and tribulations and yet stood firm in their faith. They didn’t waver in front of the enemies of the gospel. They continued on to share the Christian faith every where they went in spite of the personal danger they might face. If it hadn’t been for them I wonder where you and I would be today. The Christian faith not only survived those years of persecution but grew stronger and more vibrant as the centuries passed. Until today we have this wonderful freedom, in America at least, to worship Him freely without fear of retaliation. Though it would seem that history’s stage is again being set against Christianity as we begin to see more and more pressure to prevent the name of Jesus from being spoken in certain venues. Even the symbol of the Cross is coming under condemnation by unbelievers. But we should not be surprised. Jesus told us that His name and HIs cross would be offensive to those whose souls are in spiritual darkness. All the more reason to get out and witness to others of His saving grace:)

I have chosen to share a hymn today that I’ve never heard of before or sung but since this is November 1st, All Saints Day to some, I thought it would be appropriate. Because this hymn was written specifically for this day in 1864.

It was written by Bishop William How. Bishop How was a man of the people. He spent his life reaching out to the poor and needy in his area. Once, when he listed the characteristics that a minister should have, he listed, “wholly without thought of self.”

 

For all the saints, who from their labors rest,

Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,                                   

Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest

 

Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might;

Thou, Lord, their captain in the well fought fight;

Thou, in the darkness drear, this one true light.

ALLEULIA, ALLELUIA!

 

O may thy soldiers faithful, true, and bold,

Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,

And win them the victor’s crown of gold.

ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA!

 

O blest communion, fellowship divine!

we feebly struggle, they in glory shine;

Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine.

ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA!

 

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,

Steals on the ear the distant triumph song.

And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.

ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA!

 

from earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,

Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,

Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA!

William Walsham How 1823-1897

 

 

Christ the Solid Rock

“If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

If we say we have no sin,we decieve ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:7-9

Many people today are decieved into thinking that what ever concept they have of God will be good enough and that all paths lead to the true God of heaven and He will hold out open arms to all who believe in some form of a god. It is appealing to the flesh to think that all people will be accepted by God someday into heaven. I don’t want to believe that anyone is suffering in hell today and I certainly don’t want to imagine that someone I know who has not accepted Christ as their Savior will end up in an eternity in hell. But whether I want to believe it or not the fact still remains. Much like, if I decided to believe I could fly, and I just knew if I believed hard enough and long enough that I could jump off my house and sail into the clear blue sky. I can believe it, prepare for it in everyway I think would make it work. and then go up onto the roof and jump. Now will my belief help me fly? No because the fact is that I can’t fly. My most earnest belief and preparation changed nothing about the fact that I cannot fly on my own at least.

Those of us who have placed our trust and faith in Jesus Christ know that He is indeed the only way to heaven.

He says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man cometh onto the Father but by me.”

Who is Jesus—He is God–He says in John 17 21 “that they shall be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee.”

 I was thinking of a hymn today that sums this up–

 My hope is built on Nothing Less–

                       “My hope is built on Nothing less

                          then Jesus blood and righteousness,

                          I dare not trust the sweetest frame,

                          but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

 

                                  On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;

                                  All other ground is sinking sand,

                                   All other ground is sinking sand.

                     Support me in the whelming flood;

                     When all around my  soul gives way,

                     He then is all my hope and stay.

                    When darkness veils His lovely face,

                      I rest on His unchanging grace;

                     In every high and stormy gale,

                    My anchor holds within the vale.

 

                   When He shall come with trumpet sound,

                     O may I then in Him be found!

                     Dressed in His righteousness alone,

                       Faultless to stand before the throne!”

                                      Edward Mote 1797-1874