A Note To Think About

A Note to Think About

9/8/16

A question that is a common thorn in our minds is that of the things that God allows to happen in our lives.  Even though there is a logical explanation in the Bible of why God allows things to occur that is not going to be the topic of this article but that subject will be very soon.  It is easy for us to admit the blessings of God but on the other hand, it is difficult for us to accept the judgments of God.  This is a hard area for us to comprehend sometimes especially when the innocent are involved.  But could God not perform these acts in such a manner as to include the innocent as well?  That is an answer that each one of us must make but in order to make a fair assessment of this topic, one must remember that God cannot change His ways, which means only mankind has the capability of accomplishing this feat.

The words “count your blessings name them one by one” should ring a bell for many of those who have attended church from the mid 20^th century onwards.  This line is part of a popular hymn that most denominations sing or has used in various types of church services during this time period.  It is a great song that reminds us that God will pour out His blessings upon His people when times go wrong or when people are reaping overall good days of life.  This type of living is easily passed down to each other as things are looking up and there are not many cares that we are encountering that deem too much of our worry.  There is nothing wrong with this state of mind when it comes to God’s blessings, for it is this time that God expects us to rejoice and to give thanksgiving for the things that He has given to us.  But what if God bestows upon us tears and rain?  Are these really blessings and do they come from a just God?  The answer to those questions is a resounding yes!

One cannot look around this country and in other western societal countries and not see the blessings that God has poured out on His people.  Even in times of distress and heartache western society has been blessed beyond belief and for the majority of the time we have failed miserably to adequately thank God for sparing our way of life.  While we bask in our wealth and hob knobbing practices we continue our defiance of thanksgiving to the one who has given these things to us, and we have forgotten why God has blessed us with all of these things in our lives.  This is also evident in our church buildings as well in that many people are just sitting in the pews and not sharing the gospel of Christ to the dying world, which sends a neon beacon into the air stating that we are an ungrateful Church.  This setting portrays an attitude of self-indulgence acquired through the blessings of God instead of a Church who is directly fulfilling the mission of Christ through these blessings.

 At some point when God sees fit to stop the outflow of blessings and begins to change our living statuses will we continue to be content to sit in our pews at that time and begin and then continue to ask why God is allowing these horrific things to occur?  For if we were truly doing the work of God out into the dying world, we would realize that God allows both sides of the street to exist so why wouldn’t He allow other types of blessings to occur to everyone as well?  God cannot just be a sugar daddy to only a certain portion of His people and ignore the rest, He has to be fair in all points of life in order to be just, even when it is hard for us to understand why bad things come our way.  It is our responsibility not only to seek out the needy but also bless the Church around the world with the blessings that God has given.  When this nation brings in more missionaries into its borders that it is sending out, this is the example of which God wants us to see, the Church’s priorities have been perverted and no longer serve God but mankind alone.

There are times in our lives that are tougher than others.  There are millions of people in this country alone and each one of us can have a specific problem that we have to deal with but this time is considered to be minor in comparison.  I have had aches and pains in my joints for years.  I remember when I was younger and the doctors would look at my x-rays most of them told me that I would experience some problems with arthritis when I got older because of my body type and how I continually pushed myself when I was young.  Now, their words are floating through my head as my ankles and hands are stiff and achy when storms pass through the area.  Yet I can cope with this short-lived pain for now and I continue on my journey without any major problems.

My example is a minor one that inconveniences me for a while yet I do not consider it to be a debilitating or life-threatening condition, and I believe that it would be safe to say that most of us have something similar affecting our lives each day as well.  While these situations are small, for the most part, we can accept these conditions with relative normalcy and without any huge complaints being directed towards God.  I guess it is a normal condition to have minor issues since almost every day we hear of such cases coming from many people’s mouths.  But as we feed these people and pay some of their bills, are we witnessing to them and sharing the gospel of Christ to them while we are completing these acts of kindness?  God does not care for His Church to feed a person a meal yet have them walk out and die in their sins and spend eternity apart from Him.  This seems like a trivial part in our hearts but it is an eternity for God; yes, it is that important.  There are countless secular soup kitchens around this country, what about a Christian soup kitchen stands out and portrays itself different from a secular one? 

Death is a part of life and while none of us like this fact all of us understand this process.  Every single person in the world has experienced some kind of death in their family whether it is from natural causes or due to tragic circumstances.  Death is never easy to deal with but one does get through the process and eventually will return to their normal ways of living after the normal grieving time has passed.  The deaths of loved ones always hurt and it forces us to put our lives into perspective when the present factors have been unfolded.  Many people do have struggle with God in this process other than sometimes asking God “why” this event occurred now and not in a future setting. 

Death becomes harder to accept when a child is involved.  The pains that the parents and local community deal with after such an event happens usually leave many with hard questions of what happened and why did this have to happen to a child.  Accidents do happen in life but even though this is a true fact, it does not help in any case when a young child or young person leaves this world before the parents do.  We do not hear many stories dealing with such tragedies but I hate to say that these types of stories are becoming more frequent in our society.  Many other societies already deal with such high numbers of this type of death but it does not matter where a parent is that when and if one of their children dies it sets an entirely new course for their lives, one that will be changed forever.  In every case of death the question of “why, God?” can be asked about the person who is no longer with us but it is our realization about our lives that should trigger the truth about what has occurred and that all are truly subject to such a physical finality.

In every example given plus numerous others, it easy through these experiences that we begin to question God and why He allows these gross errors to occur.  It is difficult for our minds to comprehend this type of activity as being normal or something that is acceptable in God’s eyes.  Hurricanes, large earthquakes, wars and other man-made disasters which destroy hundreds or thousands of lives at one time can fit into this category as well.  It is in these times that some run to God for protection and guidance yet at the same time others curse Him for bringing forth this type of destruction and devastation.  This part of God’s existence that we struggle to comprehend and to accept in our lives, but we must keep this part of God in perspective because it is He who allows these conditions to present themselves in our world.  To top conditions off and what gets many people is that after the act is completed, it seems like God is silent for a while before He begins the healing process which further deepens the anger in some.  It is through these processes that we must dig deep to understand the viability of God and why He allows things to occur, and if we are totally honest with ourselves the issues we face are most certainly the result of our actions.

We can all agree that disasters of this magnitude can bring many hardships to the world and when these scenes occur we humans find it difficult to recover anytime soon.  Not only do we struggle with our day-to-day needs but our faith begins to get knocked around so much that we begin to doubt that God is with us.  It is easy for Christians to say that God is beginning to deal with the attitudes of man when these disasters occur and it is just as easily rebutted by those who do not believe in God that these situations were just a part of Mother Nature.  For us to ignore the measure of God’s presence limits us in our capability to restore our physical means plus it also limits us in our personal spiritual healing and future growth as well.  When we understand that God loves us and that He allows things to occur for a reason and that is the time that we humans should begin the quest for finding out what is going on so that we may correct matters as soon as possible, or the answers should present themselves in this manner.

Everything that occurs in this world God has ordained and allowed to occur and complete its value.  It does not matter if those things are blessings or if they appear as complete disasters to mankind.  It is obvious that each of us will respond to these conditions individually with some responses being similar.  But do we actually accept all of these issues as coming from a just God?  And do we really believe in the answer that we are quick to hand out?  In order for us to say yes to that question, we must first acknowledge that God is the ultimate and supreme creator of everything that we know and that we do not know.  Then we must accept the fact that He can do anything or allow anything to occur to His creation, even if we do not understand completely His motives for doing so.  We also must believe that there is a specific reason for the good things and the bad things that we experience and the lessons that we need to take into consideration after each situation has been completed.

It is the condition of our heart and the wisdom through God’s Word that should direct us for these questions and answers before we begin to ask God why He allows things to happen to us.  Why does God bless us when our country hates His name?  Why does God allow wars and natural disasters to proceed to protract their devastation upon millions of people?  Both of these questions are legitimate when you put yourself in the correct position as God sees you and we should be ready to understand both sides of the answer column when the questions are presented.  It is at this point when we are watching the scenery after the storm that we must be willing to accept God’s true answers and not what we want to hear, for God does not create any selfish desire for a destructive process it is always to wake His children up and to grab their attention before a larger disaster comes their way.  Study the Old Testament and it will not take a person long to figure this truth out.  Then include the responses of the people to whom those disasters occurred and then the further truth will be given to the studier.

One last example for you to think about and it goes like this.  Many of you have heard that Israel has begun attacking Syria over their weapons program with Iran.  Israel sees this position that Syria has taken as a potential threat to their security and rightly so.  So, Israel has chosen to defend itself against this aggression with strategic strikes into Syria.  This action by Israel has sparked outrage within the Arab world and the Arab nations are calling for Jewish heads to roll.  Some type of escalation in the Middle East will be seen in the near future, you can guarantee this but here is what God wants to show us. 

I saw a picture of Jerusalem that was taken a few days ago as this new situation was transpiring.  The picture had a few storm clouds hanging over parts of the city but a large rainbow stretched out over part of the city at the same time.  I was struck by this picture since it says so much about God’s love for His people.  Even though tough times may lie ahead or going through at the moment, God has promised to be with us no matter what the outcome is.  It does not matter if the disaster is personal or on a large scale, a natural disaster or a world war started by humans God will be there.  And when the results of these travesties surface, which include the innocent with the guilty, God will still be in control and with us even if it looks like the entire world is crumbling before our eyes. He is in control and that there is a rainbow that we can look up to in the sky will remind us of this promise.  With this rainbow, we must keep something in mind and take to heart from the example God gives here and it plays into the conditions for our societies today.  In Genesis 9:11 God promise not to destroy the earth again with water, with the word “earth” being the key.  God never states anything about destroying parts of a nation or nations themselves through water a result that falls in our category of thinking for this article.

In this manner, God is a just and honest God and He shall never waiver from this fact.  Good things and bad things will always occur in our lives and we must accept these truths as fact.  The early Christians suffered tremendously for several decades so why wouldn’t we – today - be included in some of the same kind of suffering as well?  Humanity suffered through many plagues due to natural causes, why wouldn’t we have some of the same conditions in our world today?  When you take a look at the meteorological history of some portions of the world, one will notice that those areas have never experienced droughts or famines yet other parts close by are burning up, why wouldn’t some of our world today be in the same category?  Every situation that our minds can dream about has the possibility of occurring, so I guess all aspects of those thoughts could be our rewards as well.  God is a just God and He is an honest God in all ways, He is a complete God and through this truth, all issues are possible for mankind’s eyes to witness.

I cannot reiterate this fact enough for it is the words that He is saying to us each second of our lives: God is a just God in all of His ways and He cannot change His ways, only we have the ability to conform back into line with His Covenant standards or not.  I may not understand the majority of His ways but even so, I will trust in Him that He knows what He is doing.  I may even question His motives and reasoning for allowing certain things to occur, and that is ok for He will do His best for me to understand these things at some point in time.  I do count my blessings each day as I also go through the trials and heartaches each day as well.  But I count it all joy since I have the opportunity to just be alive and to experience the life that God has allowed me to have.  I know I have a purpose for each breath I take and every day that I wake up is another testimony and testament to the love that God has for me and the mission I must fulfill for His Kingdom.

DLB

On Parade

On Parade

9/6/16

Everyone likes a parade!  Or it would seem like this would be the case, but in truth, a parade is the ultimate test of a person’s quality and definition and thus can be instrumental in their overall development and growth.  Being on parade is a showcase and an event that allows someone or a group to decide if a passing quality is quickly noticed or not.  The rules are defined for each parade and it is up to the participants to ensure that the rules are maintained in order to receive passing marks.  Our individual lives are in constant motion in this way as well and whether we like it or not, God is the ultimate “pass and review” judge that we must answer to.  He has made His rules and guidelines clear and it is through these holy guidelines that our lives shall be reviewed.

It has been almost thirty years since I have been in the military, and while the majority of my tenure there is now blurred some of the days and nights still stand out in my heart as defining moments in my life.  Each daily step we took as a group formed us into a fighting instrument that could be called upon to engage the enemy at a moment's notice.  Even though when I walked into the MEPS station and hearing a loud voice call each one of us by name and then bark out the words “sign here to go to war” as we approached his table, it really did not hit me what I was getting myself into until the bus doors opened late one night at Lackland, Air Force Base, Texas in November 1988.

Basic training was a snap and a blast NOT!!  It was an entirely new process in my life and one that I had no idea how to cope with at first.  I was not alone in this arena for approximately thirty other men in my flight were having the same thoughts but were too scared to mention them to anyone for fear of some sort of retaliation by the other flight members and / or our instructors.  But all of us mumbled and bumbled our way through basic and we came out as one lean fighting machine after our time at Lackland was fulfilled.

About the fifth day of basic training, we were escorted into a small room and told to sit and wait for a briefing of scheduled events, which ended up to be a lecture about our “stay” at Lackland and what we could expect to go through until our final day at this particular base.  After basic was completed each event that the presenter told about was completed and successfully accomplished before we left the training base.  It seemed like an overwhelming task ahead of us but at that moment we had no idea that each one of the events mentioned would be a building block to the parade that marked the completion of our training. It also came as a surprise as to how the parade was going to be participated in as well, which ended up to be a specific amount of time and a short appearance before the commanding officer and his guests and then that was it, graduation done.

Right next to our dorm was a large black, asphalt covered square that all of us would come to know quite intimately because we spent many hours on that tarmac either running around it, doing sit-ups, pushups, jumping jacks, holding buckets of sand on each arm, or anything else that our instructors could think of on it while the Texas sun baked our skin.  It did not matter what the weather would call for each day we spent time on that hot square.  About two weeks into our training our instructors added another little feature to our schedule called marching.  So, along with our running and calisthenics “program” we now began to spend time marching around this square over and over and over.  At the time I found it quite humorous and frustrating at the same time for I had no concept of why our instructors marched us around in a circular motion inside this square blacktop.

As basic advanced, it became clear that the measures that our instructors had been drilling into our heads were all coming around the marching technique and every aspect of our training was being directed towards this marching complex.  Some of my flight members understood this but others did not and a few did not get it until we laid eyes on the parade grounds for the first time. However, there was a number that refused to get it and it was they who did not get to participate in the final parade review and thus had to repeat such a stance in another flight.  It was mentioned to us that we would eventually be on parade before the commanding general and his guests at the end of our training time and how important it was that we incorporated each lesson during our training in order to get things right for our final inspection.

Hour after hour we would spend marching around this hot square trying to keep in step and not bounce as the number of times around the tarmac increased.  With each passing turn, something or someone would not perform adequately and the entire process would have to begin again.  I remember saying to myself and wondering if our instructors ever got tired of saying “let's do it again!” because I know I got tired of hearing it being said to us.  I could go on and on about this tedious and meticulous process but what is important here is that our instructors were preparing us to stand before the commanding general and represent our squadron as a testimony of what we had learned over our training period.  It was important for our instructors and to us as well, for everyone on that parade grounds that day was under the eye of the commanding general of the base and if he did not approve of what he was watching consequences were in order.

Coming together and functioning as one unit is the goal of every team captain, manager, CEO, sergeant, commanding officer and nation.  In every aspect of life working together in order to successfully complete a task is the main goal and where awards are then received for those who stayed the course.  It was through the marching studies that we learned to function as a team and as one unit instead of the individuals that made up that unit.  Each one of us had to take into consideration that the unit was not about individuals alone but individuals functioning as one unit for it was one functioning unit that would accomplish the tasks set about them, not the individuals acting individually.  And yes, we can truly place God into this scenario because there is nothing more desirous from His heart for Him to see His Church functioning as one unit according to His Word.  Up until a few years ago, if someone would have told me that my experiences in basic training for the USAF would be a subject of how God wants His Church to operate I would have laughed at them and told them they were crazy.  Each I wake up I find it amazing of how God brings our past into light for someone’s future, which tells us once again that YOU DO HAVE A PURPOSE FOR BEING HERE!

How does this pertain to the Church and her life today?  Well, in truth it explains a lot about the Church not just today’s Church but the Medieval Church and the Early Church as well for as God just shared with us over the past weekend we have totally missed it and from what God is seeing through His eyes and heart we have no intentions of changing this sinful path either.  But there is good news!  As of this moment, we have the opportunity to change this pattern and make things new in God’s eyes once again.

Can anyone guess what would have occurred if the majority of the men in my flight in basic training goofed off or had simply failed to perform adequately when it came time to pass and review in front of the commanding general?  The entire flight would have had to repeat basic training over again and probably the ones who deliberately failed to conform would have been kicked out of the military altogether.  Each person in our flight made up a special key ingredient for the success of our task and if we did not perfect our unit so that we looked and acted as one our mission would have failed.  How can one unit rely upon thirty, sixty, a thousand others if we do not have the cohesiveness to be able to follow one commander’s rules and guidelines?  How can we effectively complete a task of war if we randomly act on our own instead of acting as one unit?  It is impossible and it is at this point where God wishes to speak about His Church and the status of His children who make up the Church.

God’s plan for our existence began in the Garden of Eden and His plan for humanity has not changed one single iota since that time.  God is a consistent God and a complete God which means that everything that He says is immediately completed as a whole.  Adam and Eve understood this concept as no others have been able to do so, for they were created in the perfect and holy state of life.  This truth was further defined when God formed the woman from the rib of Adam and thus created and established the first cohesive unit, a unit that was designed to function together as one even though two individuals made up the unit.  It was never God’s desire to watch this perfect union go down the drain and to allow sin to enter into its unity.  So, what do we do afterward?  We choose to follow in the footsteps of Adam and Eve and go participating with God as they did and as we do this God is reminding us that the same consequences will occur to us as they did to Adam and Eve if we do not turn our lives back to God.

The connection lies within Jesus and the mission that He had while He walked the earth.  He established His Church based upon the authority and laws of God, not mankind.  Jesus did not establish the Catholic Church, the Baptist Church, the Assembly of God Church or ANY other denominational status.  He created and established ONE church strictly based on the truth of God, not mankind’s finite truth.  I will step on toes here but God does not care because He wants His children to understand a truth that needs to be reiterated.  If Jesus would have placed His Church in the foundational hands of mankind (Peter) then the acts of mankind would prevail with the authority of God and not the choice of the people themselves. 

If people act according to the physical first, they automatically act as individuals instead of a unit.  Peter is famous for a couple of things (actions) of his and one of these actions involved him cutting off an ear of a priest’s servant – which I find highly ironic – and it is through this action that the Catholic Church has been defined over the millennia.  Like I said, this individual act by a single person and the spiritual meaning behind it will not set well with some, but remember God gave us life for a reason and for a purpose.  Think long and biblically hard on this for a while and while doing so keep in mind that God is a complete God.

It is through the examples of portions of biblical texts that define individual acts that represent a flight not performing well enough to graduate while it is on parade.  For whatever reason, the individuals in the flight that is under review have decided not to obey the codes and conducts of their instructors.  The exact same process is being represented in the Church that Jesus established when His ministry was in full bloom while He was on the earth.  Jesus was fully under the laws of Covenant and He placed on Him the full armor of God and He operated as such at all times just as we are to operate.  If we do not come together as one body, under God’s laws the Church shall continue to be cut to pieces due to her lack of understanding of what the world is trying to accomplish.  A well-drilled Church in the Word of God cannot be defeated.  A Church who is not prepared for the battles that it is up against shall be cut to pieces and allowed to bleed to death as our enemy steps on our torso.  Satan does not care what condition we are in, he shall step on us and drive his weapons through our spiritual bodies without even thinking twice.

The rules and codes that we are to thrive under spiritually come strictly from the Word of God.  In the military there were no options concerning the usage of their rules, or in this case the misusage.  We had to know the guidelines well enough that we could improvise to get the job completed if necessary but NEVER were we allowed to change the rules in order to satisfy our whims.  The Bible is our spiritual guideline for our lives for it provides us with every tool necessary to live an effective life on all sides of every issue.  Just as in the physical, if we understand God’s Word thoroughly we shall have the wisdom to overcome all of the enemy’s attacks.  Yes, bruises and bumps will occur but when the battle is over our spiritual being shall be intact and we can begin to prepare for the next battle by extending our study time in Word of God.

It is God that is our commanding general, not mankind or the physical world that our enemy demands we obey.  It is God who shall have the final say about our training while we walk this earth.  Our choices of training shall be easily noticed when we pass through the eyes of God and when this process occurs, there will be no turning back and trying to do things over again.  We have one life and we have one eternity and it is through the training processes that we choose that will determine if we are covered or not.  God urges His Church to repent and to allow Him to search her heart again.  Our existence is not based upon works of the flesh but battles against the spiritual forces that rule over this world.  God loves us so much and He has provided us with the holy and true training manual that we need to survive and to fight the forces that are enabled against us.  Study God’s Word and take heed to each letter and word that it has for without it we shall never be able to pass the eternal review when we walk uprightly and cleanly past our Commanding General.

DLB

Missing It

Missing It

9/5/16

How many times have we read something and have no fully understood what the author designed or intended for us to recognize?  And another question that comes to mind is just how long it takes for us to understand that we have missed the deeper meaning to what we have read previously.  It is amazing how much more we can learn if we turn our hearts towards these details and when it comes to God and His Word this subject can pose no greater issue for mankind.  It is easy to believe that we understand a majority of what God’s Word tells us but in truth, we have yet to begin to scratch the surface of such a magnificent and holy book.  In truth, we have missed it and through our misgivings, we are now suffering and reaping the rewards of our mistakes and arrogances.  God is calling for us to change our course and allow Him to restore our lives according to His standards of creation because if we do not, our lives will be eternally sunk beneath the judgmental tidal wave of destruction.

I have mentioned previously that many of the past articles that God has shared with us have come from the book of Genesis.  I must admit that up until God began revealing His true and in-depth Word to my life I believed that I understood a great deal of what Genesis was saying.  Boy, how wrong I was bout that thought!  God continues to show me things almost on a daily basis about the book of Genesis and more specifically, the first three chapters of Genesis.  This is mind boggling to me because the information that He is showing me did not occur until I decided to make my life completely right with Him and then asked Him to show me the details and truth about His Word.  It was not until that November night a few years back that God showed me the restoration process that He wanted His people to understand.  I then began to comprehend some of the fascinating material and wisdom that He has buried in His Word.  It is NOT hidden, but it is there if we choose to search His Word and the only way that we can accomplish this is for us to allow Him to search our hearts.

When I was a teenager one of the more memorable places that I lived was in a small town called Cleveland, Texas.  Dad was pasturing the church in the town and I attended the church’s school for a few years as well.  I loved every aspect of my life then and even though I made some idiotic decisions during that time I was a kid growing and learning as time progressed.  Along during this time I developed a friendship with one of my classmates and it was through this friendship that I began to sink into a deep hole when it came to selfishness.  What made this time in my life so destructive was that I had no idea that it was even in my life, I had blinded myself so much that when the truth was told it took me a while for figure things out so much so that I eventually had to ask the one person who this selfishness was directed towards what I had did so hideous in the first place.  After the long friendship had come to an end I had felt so bad for myself and could not understand why the one person who I felt like was my best friend would not even look at me when we passed each other in the hallway at school or even acknowledge me in public areas in town.  I was hurt and while refusing to talk with this person, continued my selfish pity party and graduated to the idea that whatever came between us was his fault and not mine.  Not knowing that I was actually sinking further into the selfish mode of preservation that God warns us about in His Word.

This process ignorance, both on the dumb side and ignoring of each other, continued for almost an entire year before I finally swallowed my idiot pride and talked with my friend about what had come between us.  It did not take long for him to spill the beans and let me know what exactly occurred and why our friendship had ended, and his explanation hit me like a ton of bricks.  After the initial shock of his words I began to stop and think about what he was saying and I had no choice but to believe him because his words were true.  All I cared about is what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go, even to go so far in whose house we would have sleepovers at.  I was pathetic and could not envision anything else other than what I wanted to do for I was the leader and everything about this friendship and all that I believed to be true existed for my liking.  Everything that I had been taught about being a friend immediately came back to me and when I quickly compared those teachings against my actions I had nothing to argue.

I was stunned yet at the same time hurt for the truth came out and even though it was hard for me to accept, all of the evidence pointed in my direction.  I could not deny this fact and I had a choice to either react against this new information that struck deep into my heart or to superficially react to his words and throw him off for good.  As a young teenager, one would think that I blew the entire conversation off and did not take anything as truth but I did the opposite.  I apologized for my actions, asked for his forgiveness and for the remaining time in Cleveland we got along well together.  No, it was not the same closeness as before but the process of healing, real healing was evident between us.

As I look back on this friendship and as I have grown older, I realize just how important it is in keeping selfishness out of any relationship.  Relationships are about recognition of the other and understanding just what the other party or parties involved is trying to communicate.  How many times have we looked back at failed relationships and have totally ignored the truth about their demise?  The same question can be asserted here when these relationships have been restored as well, the real conclusion can only be recognized if one looks at it with their whole heart yet at the same time financing the results from the other party’s heart.  What an excellent introduction into what God has for us through His article.  It is through the selfishness of man’s eyes and heart that we miss what God is telling us through His Word and until we understand this blindness we cannot fully know what our lives mean and what we were created to be.

What is so appalling about this example and what gripes me the most is that I was not taught to have friendships or relationships in this manner.  To make matters worse, I had gone downhill so much with the selfish attitude that I did not even recognize what my actions were portraying to my friend, nor did I realize that he was becoming more distant due to my actions.  I was not taught to act this way but taught to respect people no matter what level of communication I had with them.  It was not my friend’s fault either because as I look back on the conversation he and I had that evening, re remarked about how he would suggest alternative issues and it was through these alternative issues that he continually threw out hints and suggestions concerning my behavior and I ignored every single one of them.  My friend did not come to the conclusion that he made overnight, it was a long process that took time.  Time in which for me to “get it” to which I never did until it was too late.  It was my ears who were shut to what he was saying and it was my choice to ignore the pleas that he was doing his best to convey to me.

It is common for humans to try and manipulate their ideas into society and as this process progresses it can become clear that some of these people care nothing but their own agenda.  As God has shared with us previously, a simple and single idea from an individual have the potential of becoming a national law and when this pattern takes hold it shall run rough-shot over as many people that it takes.  This process may take weeks to years to complete but it is the step by step process in which we mainly ignore because we are usually too busy to hear from those who oppose such ideas.  As with my friend and I, I completely ignored his beckoning to help me understand that our friendship was on a downhill slide and it is through this condition that we become so blinded that we cannot function as we ought.  Through my personal blinded state, I had lost the vision about friendship and relationship and had become focused on my selfish whims instead of the unity that friendship brings through togetherness according to God’s ways.  It is through this type of true belief and understanding about God that gives our enemy the opportunity to sweep us off the foundation that we d not understand.

God gives us a tremendous amount of examples in His Word concerning this matter but for simplicity’s sake 1 Samuel 8 is going to be the Scripture used for this article.  As this chapter opens we see that Samuel is old and has now appointed his sons as judges over Israel.  The rule of authority for Israel is still under God yet the judges that have been appointed have not followed God’s ways and are definitely sending a false authoritative message to the nation.  Their conduct represents a split from God’s ways and an acceptance of the ways of the world which has been noticed by the people of Israel.  The important thing to note here is that these people are not upset at the notion that the sons of Samuel are not following God but the people have not obeyed God according to His ways and thus wish to have an earthly king to rule over them instead.  God mentions this condition in verse 8 when He was explaining to Samuel that the people had not recognized God as their true authority ever since He had delivered them from captivity in Egypt; this is a long period of time, not overnight.

It is through God’s statement in verse 8 that holds the key to what occurs in our lives, both from God’s perspective and Satan’s. God says that the people of Israel had not wished to obey His commands ever since He had delivered them from Egypt, which means they delighted in their delivery rather than understanding what God was showing them while they were in the desert.  The Israelites did not have to wander in the desert for 40 years if they had only understood that God was physically delivering them from Egypt AND spiritually delivering them from Egypt as well.  With this statement by God in verse 8, it is clear that the people of Israel had no clue, still, about what God did for them way back when.  Therefore, if the children of Israel did not “get it” then, that means Satan still had the foothold he needed to ensure that they would eventually abandon God’s ways completely. Satan understands humanness and how humans operate through their humanness and he also understands that as long as we do not comprehend God and all of His holy ways, he has the perfect setting to promote his kingdom and himself instead of God’s Kingdom and God.  God specifically addresses this fact in verse 8.

The earthly concessions had progressed enough that the children of Israel selected a person to go up to God’s representative and demand that he speak with God and tell God that they – the people – wanted an earthly king instead of God Almighty as their true authority.  From the time God spoke with Abraham and established the nation of Israel, they had been taught that God would be their only hope and true justice and way to separate them from the world, yet the children of Israel chose to go it alone and be like other nations around them.  They had been lulled asleep enough spiritually by the time they left Egypt that they did not understand what would occur to them some generations down the road, but Satan did.  He knew exactly what he could accomplish in their existence as long as they refused to understand God as much as their human hearts could.

As most of you know by now I have been writing for God about four years now.  My writing ability has improved over the years and even though I am still improving, God has given me the heart to continue to write what He is saying to His Church.  Many times I have looked back at some of the articles that He has given me and when I read the errors of my words, I become saddened and I feel like an idiot.  Because I hated to write in high school and in college and when I had to write I kept it very simple and plain, in other words, I did not care.  But when God chose me to write I was embarrassed but obeyed His Word for my life and began the journey that I am on today.  When I did wish to change some of those messages from God, He convicted me quickly and heavily because from where I was back almost four years ago and where I am today is not the same place and it is that point alone that He wants people to see about their lives if they allow Him to take control of their lives.  Our enemy works through steps in our lives because God first accomplished this fact.

Anyway, God gave us an article a few years back entitled “Approaching the T” and it was the first article that dealt with this specific biblical example of 1 Samuel Chapter 8.  God gave this message concerning the steps that this nation was taking.  While I first believed that it was only the nation that God was referring to with that message I was quickly reminded that He was speaking to His Church as well.  While this article may have been written a few years ago and earlier in my writing days, up until this moment not a single person has read the article and this speaks volumes to God and it lets me know at the same time just how far His Church and this nation that He established has fallen away from His Word.

It also gives us a clear view of what is about to occur for this nation as well, for once God establishes a plan, that plan has a holy purpose that is alive for a reason.  At the same time, our enemy is on hand to thwart God’s plan from being implemented or carried out.  All of us have been manipulated by our enemy at some point in our lives, but it is what we do after we find out the truth about this manipulation that is important.  God is in the restoration business and it is His desire to have every single child of His to return to Him so that He may bless us beyond belief.  But, He shall never force us to make that choice, it is strictly up to us.  We have approached that “T” and have made our choice.  We still have the opportunity to avoid the official consequences of our sinful actions but time is running out.

Church, it is time we wake up and begin to accomplish the mission that we were given by God through the blood of Christ.  Our nation’s establishment depends on it and our existence as an organized Church depends on it as well.  Satan does not care one bit about your life or mine and if he can continue to manipulate our choices through worldly standards he knows that at some point down the road our lives will fall apart due to the worldly choices we made.  Satan could care less about the path you take as long as it is one of sin and lies.  He shall not tell you that you are on the wrong path but he sure will stand over you and bust a gut laughing at you as you whimper when you take your last breath.  God is the only eternal being that can offer the truth about your existence including your past and your future.  Your future is eternal and it is our choice that places us eternally with God or away from God.  Church, let’s start doing our job and bring the lost to God and changing our lives through His restoration process once again, for it is our only true hope.

DLB

Young Christians

Young Christians

8/28/16

A person who has just accepted Christ as their savior is placed into unfamiliar territory, both physically and spiritually.  Many times this changed state has caused hurt, heartache and pain along with some settings of pure and holy joy all wrapped up into the body.  The major role of a young Christian is to gain as much knowledge about Christ and the mission He wishes for us while we are “young” for it is this knowledge that serves as the foundation of our Christianity for the future.  Many responsibilities lie ahead and training and prayer is a must but the leadership of the Church must be present to do her job as well.  Woe to those who know the truth but hide it from the young and influential for it these hearts that represent the future of the Church and the voice of Christ to the nations.  And if the Church does not stand up and do her part, we then allow the enemy to kill these developing cells and they will fade into the night down some drain that the world provides.

This topic was given to me about a week ago and God has been continually adding to its content ever since.  It is a topic that is going to be a representative one in which one certain issue about being young is going to represent two conditions that have similar voices.  It is not going to be an easy topic to write and I do not know how long it will take me to complete but I know that it is a message that God wants to deliver to His people and to His Church.  The title seems a simple one but in truth, it is not because it puts on display the responsibility of the Church in two areas concerning life, not only our physical life but our eternal life as well.  Ask God to clear your heart’s thoughts and have an open spiritual ear as you study this article from God.  It is this topic that requires the mature church to be ready at all times to teach the true and holy Word of God and to have the knowledge of such True Word in order to correctly apply this Word to the young Christian’s life; for it is these young cells that represent the true growth of an individual into a mature and spirit filled Christian or one that shall be tainted enough with the world that the cell dies by the hands of a wicked mankind.

It is stated that all of Heaven rejoices when a person chooses to accept Christ as their Savior, this claim is absolutely 100% correct and accurate because heaven understands that a life has been eternally snatched from hell and of its separation orders from God.  God rejoices for He knows that He has successfully penetrated a life that was searching for the truth about their creation and now has the potential to fulfill the purpose in which God intended, to have eternal life with Him.  It is also understood that when a person chooses God it is at this point in their life when the enemy does much damage to the new convert and it is also at this point that the Church must step up to bat and give adequate support and protection for the new convert.  It is at this new birth that the new Christian is vulnerable for they really do not understand the fullness of what has transpired nor do they know that our eternal enemy is a “tad” upset that his kingdom just got pushed backward.  A third point here is that the new Christian is a new birth which means their life is new as well and it is natural for their new life to grow.  If one wishes to place it into a conception status, they have been conceived through Christ and will grow through the power of God under the blood.  God does not expect His people to ever stay stagnant in any area of their lives including the eternally spiritual aspects.

I wish I could state that every person who decides to accept Christ as their Savior stays the course and continually matures spiritually.  We all know that this is not the case and the reasons for such devastations are many but no matter what the issue might be the Church should NOT play a part in ANY circumstance in which the new Christian’s growth is slowed or even aborted.  Yes, I used this word intentionally because the situations are identical and since God is a complete God in ALL areas of life, this diabolical word encompasses the church level as well.  One might have issues placing this word in the confines of the Church but in order to understand why the Church is in the situation that she is in today, we have no choice but to accept the fact that the word abortion of young Christians is ironically alive and well.

When people who consider themselves to be Christians have the philosophy that a group of young dividing cells do not have any rights to life, it states that the person or groups who have these institutions as their fan base do not understand God and what His life represents to our individual creation; thus their status as Christians as well.  The comparisons are identical and are easily viewed but most refuse to acknowledge the connection, or simply have not reconciled the truth about the two sides, to begin with.  When a baby is conceived in the womb of the woman it is defenseless and needs all of the mother’s abilities for it to survive.  As soon as the point of conception occurs, the cells begin to take shape and begin the process of forming a human being.  It is true that when the conception period is completed and the dividing cells are then present the baby does not look like what it is going to nine months from that moment, but even at that moment of their lives they are alive and the cells are dividing according how they are supposed to; a step on their way to the finalized life.

We cannot expect the newly born again Christian to know everything about the Bible and what God has for their life, it would be absurd for anyone to expect a full knowledge of God right after they accept Christ.  Then if this is the case then they must fall into the category of being a young Christian which means that they have been newly conceived in Christ and are now dividing through His growth process of eternal life.  These people are scared and nervous because they know that they no longer fit into the world but have not been totally accepted by their new church as well; they have no direction per say and need total guidance from the Church, hence they are just like the young group of cells inside the mom’s uterus.  It is the same concept and the identical truth for both of our physical life and for spiritual life.

This is why it is so important that the Church understands what is going on here and how vulnerable new Christians are to the world around them.  Today, the Church is more concerned about her cosmetic appearance instead of the spiritual surgery that is needed in order for our foundations to be biblically restored.  What the Church does not get is the fact that if they do not 100% and accurately teach the new converts the entire Word of God and what it says about their existence they are automatically placing the young group of dividing cells’ existence in jeopardy by crippling them with ½ truths.  It is this ignorance of the truth and the forbearance of worldly lusts that have infiltrated the hearts of God’s people to a subject that should never have been considered in the first place.  The Church does not get the fact that when she commits this type of act of false teaching she is providing doors that will allow the enemy to eventually take enough control over the new convert to make them doubt their decision to choose Christ.

It is the ultimate goal of our enemy to end our life with Christ and God.  He wants nothing more than to terminate any vital signs that a new Christian and mature Christian portrays because as long as there is life beating and growing God has the potential of covering more people for His Kingdom.  So, we can now understand just how the individual cells growth patterns inside the mother directly correspond with the growing and dividing cells of the new Christian.  My Christian friends who have the concept that dividing cells could never have any choice concerning life are directly influencing our enemy to provide his commitment to perform the exact same acts of abortion to the growing and dividing cells of the new Christian as the world allows for the physical choice of abortion.

The next point of truth that needs to be addressed is the extent of the aftermath of such a procedure.  It is here that the physical aspect of abortion is brutal for the choice to terminate the pregnancy has been made and has been completed.  The child is now dead and can no longer live, for its life has been snuffed out by the one person who that new baby depended on for its survival.  The world has no problem with this concept and will do everything it can to empower more people to continue to promote that choice; what else would you expect from a kingdom that can only produce the result of death.  If one studies the New Testament they will begin to understand what the authors of the Epistles were writing about when it comes to this young Christian concept of spiritual termination through the conditions they were addressing.  It does not matter what the situations might be, if someone or some group wishes to take control of young Christians and mold them in THEIR own way, they are committing spiritual abortion and effectively killing that person or group spiritually along with their own selves as well.

If the physical baby is dead and can no longer be a “problem” to the mother, so goes the aborted spiritual growth of the terminated new Christian.  When the spiritual growth is destroyed the enemy has effectively killed the new convert and has returned them to their worldly enslaved conditions.  If the Church acts in ANY way to abort the spiritual growth and development of a young Christian then the Church is an abortionist as well.  Therefore, in truth, those who believe that abortion is ok automatically promotes it and participates in that process when it comes to the Church, and in truth has ended their own lives on the spiritual level as well.  THINK ABOUT THIS FOR A MOMENT!!  God is a complete God in ALL areas and His Word represents truth on all levels of our existence.  Remember, it is not the church building that is most influential to the new Christian, it is the Church herself; sadly, however sometimes the church building itself has more life than the Church herself.

In no way possible can God have any double standard present around Him, in Him, through Him, under Him, above Him, etc.  God represents life itself and nothing less.  His Word addresses nothing but life and therefore His Church cannot promote and live anything else.  It is the Church’s responsibility to protect and to nurture new Christians in their development in Christ.  In NO way should any young Christian be told that their lives would become easier after they accept Christ!  When a person makes the choice to accept Christ it places them into a whole other category, one that our enemy takes heed towards for now these people have been exposed to the truth about their lives and they must eternally pay for their “rebellion” against the home team.  How many times can we say that we have let new Christians down by not encouraging them to study God’s Word and by teaching them what His Word says about their lives?

The previous article that God shared with us talked about an insignificant growth Church and this is the prime example of what occurs when an insignificant growth church is allowed to flourish, IT DOESN’T!!  Young Christians are the most dangerous people to Satan’s kingdom for they will grow to their fullest purpose if the Church extends God’s Word into their lives on a continual basis.  Where is this Church?  When do they meet and how do they teach?  Sadly, that answer has drawn its own conclusion by its non-existent language.  As the focus about the choices of abortion by the mother have come into practice, so has the spiritual abortionists that call themselves Christians have come into church leadership.  When a church leader perverts God’s Word enough to allow sin to proudly and boldly sit in the pews thumbing its eternality in the face of God that is the answer.  Ever wonder why the Bible says that many people on the day of judgment will have to depart God’s presence for eternity because God never knew them?  Well, this is one huge factor Church!!

We can no longer contend that God has a double standard when it comes to life, in God’s eyes and heart He must remain consistent to life both spiritually and physically with no exceptions.  If you believe that the Church is justified in the fact that she can produce such death doctrines then you must be told that you do not believe in Christianity at all and have already aborted yourself from spiritual life.  There are no “grades or levels” of sin, sin is sin plain and simple and if the Church believes that the young group of dividing cells has no options or choices, then why are you considering yourself to be in a position of life when you know the truth?  Church, wake up and get back into the Word of God and study its contents without human bias. 

The Word of God is our eternal protection as we grow in Christ.  It serves as the one true Foundation that we can find every answer to the questions concerning life, including the pains and struggles when we are young Christians.  God shall never abandon you in times of need and heartache, nor shall He abort you at ANY point in your life.  On the other hand, God shall allow you to make the choices you wish but always remember that there is an eternal side to every breath we take which makes our young group of dividing cells more attractive to nurture and to protect into a beautiful mature Christian.  God’s protective force around our lives is fierce and it is this way for a reason and it is called eternity.

It pains God to know that His Church is reluctantly nurturing young Christians through His complete Word and at the same time encouraging these precious spirits to look at the Church through worldly eyes.  The Church needs to refocus her heart on what is truly important and that is the exact Word of God and I can guarantee that when this occurs the Church’s vision for the mission of Christ shall no longer be taken into question.  Seeking out and telling people that Jesus died for their sins, is the key element in understanding the mission of the Church.  We have become ashamed of the Gospel, a Gospel we do not even understand, to begin with. 

So how can we honestly be providing a pure and holy protection and nurturing environment to the young Christians?  Oh, Woe to us Church!!  It is our duty and mission to know the Word of God so well that we can teach anyone who wishes to know what is really going on around them, from God’s eyes and heart and not the human’s.  It is this point that God wants us to understand in this article and that is when people come to Christ they are new creations and are young in the faith and it is the Church’s responsibility to teach them and to give them the knowledge of God’s Word in all areas.  We first must repent for not studying God’s Word well enough and deep enough without any worldly beliefs involved.  We must then live through God’s Word according to each letter of what God has given us and it is through these Words from Him under His Son’s blood that we may nurture and grow the young Christian instead of being stripped away from their new lives in Christ.

DLB

Insignificant Growth

Insignificant Growth

8/20/16

This is a phrase that many of us can easily figure out its meaning but can we understand what it really means for our lives and what impact it has on others?  While it represents inexperience in general, it also refers to the development and the processes in which things or objects grow.  This growth process is the key to finding out what is causing pain in our bodies and it also can provide a list of questions without answers.  Our spiritual lives can be represented with the exact same amount of non-information when it comes to sharing the Gospel, a condition that is threatening to both the Christian and to the unbeliever.  It is God’s instructions to us that represent a complete and total life, separate from the world and if we are not properly equipped to give such information to the dying, how can God treat the person accordingly?

Many of you know that I have been in the medical field for approximately three decades now, and during my tenure, I have witnessed some pretty “hairy” ordeals concerning the human body.  Working in the lab can be quite stressful sometimes but I can never say that my experiences have been dull and boring.  It is amazing what the human body can do to heal itself when called upon, but on the other hand, when the body’s defenses run into walls and needs help, the situations can become pretty gross and stinky.  Nothing more gruesome can be realized when in the early days of medicine the knowledge of the immune system and its mechanisms were primitive at best and when the body responded with a growth or infection many times certain death was right around the corner.

With modern techniques and medications, it is much easier to ascertain the answers that physicians need in order to treat their patient’s complaints.  However, in some circumstances infections require a little more in-depth information in order to provide the correct treatment so the physician will order a culture of the concerned area in order to find out exactly what is occurring.  If the body is producing invasive organisms the culture will result in tiny colonies of bacteria that can be differentiated with reagents and antibiotics.  However, as easy as this may seem the process of identification and bacterial growth can run into conditions that do not line up with the simplicities of science.

What is interesting about this insignificant growth pattern is that when the specimen is provided the laboratory personnel put the specimen on culture plates that are inoculated with the exact nutrients that those bacteria need to grow and reproduce.  While we initially do not know what the specific organism might be we can place them on a variety of plates that can narrow the gap in their identification.  Then the culture plates are placed inside an incubator with the correct humidity and temperature conditions.  All of these conditions provide the bacteria excellent conditions to grow and in most cases, these settings are far better than what the bacteria originally came from.  So, why would these perfect conditions yield such poor results?

It is this type of small or insignificant growth that leads to delays in treatment or ineffective treatment at best.  Most of the time the infectious bacteria that these issues produce result in a large amount of colonies which will allow the microbiologist to determine the final result that is needed for treatment.  However, this is not always the case and for a number of reasons the sample given to culture renders little or no growth even though it is evident that an infectious process is raging.  It is at this point that the physician cannot complete their task for the patient and further investigational contact must be initiated for therapy to work.  This is a frustrating process for both the clinician and the patient for it requires additional time needed to fix the needs of the patient. 

Of course, the patient will always ask what happened to the sample or why isn’t the medication not working with countless more other relative questions that have various explanations but all fall on deaf ears because the pain is still present.  It is difficult to diagnose the problem when the information given, requested, provided and spoken does not match up with what the patient is presenting.  The true patient that is in need of healing will seek out the best possible care in order to obtain their healthy status once again.  This poses a real concern for those individuals who fervently seek to provide the truth about what ails people.

While the physical healthcare system has its own advantages and disadvantages, one cannot receive the proper treatment unless the provisions for that patient are up-to-date and accurate.  Yes, sometimes the information given or specimen presented is not up to the perfect standards, but with the technology of today it should be easy to produce some type of result to guide the physician in their duties; however, there are sometimes that the information provided is not good enough and after the frustration levels reach a certain level, the patient goes elsewhere.  Do you realize that this type of frustration and lack of answers is also present in our spiritual lives as well?  So when people ask questions concerning their spiritual and eternal lives, the Church MUST have the most possible and CORRECT biblical information to give to these people.

A good example of this is when atheists approach Christians and “demand” answers from those who are supposed to be the doers of the Word.  Many times over I have watched bantering back and forth with no results towards the truth at all.  Once again frustration wins and the person who does not believe in God is strengthened in their stance because the church person cannot defend God’s Kingdom correctly.  It is this type of insignificant growth that is on display and until we change the settings, no major movement from God shall occur until He has to move His hand against His people.  In all truth, Christians have had centuries to pull it together, but it is obvious that we have not witnessed the light.

A bit of clarification here before we proceed and that is the difference between young growth and insignificant growth.  Young growth is a state where some type of bacteria has just begun to produce its reproductive colonies whereas insignificant growth means that the colonies that are present cannot be adequately defined due to its lack of full growth.  Young growth has potential and if provided with the correct nutrients can develop into the perfect state for identification.  Insignificant growth cannot be tested due to the lack of quality bacteria produced.  God understands the difference here and He is not talking about the young growth Christians, He is referring to the insignificant growth Christians who have been present in His house for decades and have refused to take to heart His Word.  We will be dealing with young growth in the next article, but a word of warning it will not be as it looks for God has a special word that He wishes to give to those who accept abortion at no cost.

The Church who represents insignificant growth has become a commonplace within our societies and one does not have to take a hard look in order to see this potential destructive condition.  The insignificant growth church reduces herself to the mercies of the world because she rejects the truth of her foundation, the Word of God.  An insignificant growth bacteria does not feed on the provided nutrients that make it grow, even though those nutrients are the best possible food source for bacteria.  The same occurs in the Church as well for it is the Word of God which serves as the perfect source of life and provisions that she needs to survive and thrive.  God cannot change His ways in any shape or form and through this truth, His Word cannot change either.  It is perfect, holy and pure from cover to cover and does not waiver one bit.  It is the Word of God that serves as the “culture plate” for the Church and for anyone who wishes to accept and know God.  The church itself can have a congregation of 10,000 strong but be spiritually dead; this is a perfect picture of an insignificant growth church.

If anyone accepts God as their Savior and seeks to live through His Covenant they shall receive all of the necessary ingredients from His Word in order to live a successful and gospel-filled life.  When the Church is at her peak she is able to be the true light to the world and represent God to His utmost through our spreading and teaching of His Word.  In order for the Church to complete this mission, she must first understand that she cannot have anything to do with the world and its deadly standards. God’s Word brings nothing but life if followed as much as our hearts can understand but it is the will to accept this godly wisdom and live it that makes the difference from an insignificant growth church and a full and living Church.

As long as the Church accepts the world and its standards there is absolutely NO WAY POSSIBLE that she can be anything other than an insignificant growth church.  God cannot accept any part of the world and as long as His children do the same He will eventually back off and allow their choice to be expanded through the kingdom that she chooses.  As stated above, it does not take too much looking to figure out that the Church of today is living in the insignificant growth lifestyle and it looks like she is not going to accept the pure nutrients of her “plated” foundation.  This is a very sad claim but God wants us to know that He sees our hearts and He understands the condition of our hearts and while He does not like our position He will continue to beckon her back to His fold for as long as possible.

An insignificant growth colony type will not look “healthy” per say.  The colonies will be small and weak in appearance.  While some bacteria will be present on the specific plates, there is a specific look that these bacteria will not have and their appearance will be totally different from a healthy group of bacterial colonies.  It is this appearance that a trained eye will immediately notice and while the microscope will still be used to look at the details of the bacteria, it is easily ascertained that the colony is not producing great quality.  Man, does this sound like the modern church or what?

An insignificant growth church is the perfect picture of a lukewarm church they are identical in their presentations.  They are useless to God and have no bearing or serve no meaning for His Kingdom.  When church denominations begin to accept the worldly devices don’t you have any suspicions concerning this activity?  It should raise a red flag immediately since Jesus, and God in the Old Testament, called us to be separate from the world.  How can one be separate if they are joined with another? The only way that the Church has allowed herself to be caught up in this lie is to not believe that the Word of God is not the absolute and true Word of God which automatically places us in the category of insignificant.  They have lost their way to the world and would rather understand its acceptance for publicity rather for their eternity.

If this is not bad enough, when we are insignificant in God’s eyes, that means all we can teach to others is the same type of quality, insignificant.  It also means that when combined with a pure foundation and then mix it with our own ideologies the output and product that we share is insignificant and useless to God.  Why?  Because we do not understand the true basics of His Word and we are making things up as we go; kind of reminds me of Eve when Satan asked her about the tree of good and evil. She had become comfortable enough with a lie that she was able to recite her own beliefs instead of God’s truth when questioned and thus our eternal and pure status became insignificant to our creation.

The ultimate grotesqueness of being classified as insignificant growth has two issues.  The first issue is that while given the specific details of how we are to respond to the world including every aspect that we need to incorporate the information into our lives so that we may complete this mission, we ignore the pure and holy source on the deepest human level while being dumbfounded as to why the Church is in controversy.  It is through this portion of the incomplete equation that the second issue comes into light.  While the first portion of this status is bad enough in the eyes of God but it is the second part that totally breaks the heart of God because if we would understand the first issue the second issue would not have to occur because the second part is reflective of the first part, just as God has His perfect order He must follow it.

The second issue contends that we should know that God’s Word is exact in its content and it is pure and holy in ALL areas.  While it is difficult to understand and then comprehend some of the actions and events that take place in His Word, God has given us the ability to trust Him for wisdom when it comes to these issues.  However, if we choose not to seek His Word and God for our knowledge concerning these difficult issues then there is no way possible for us to accurately hear and understand what God’s Word is saying. Therefore, if we do not continually study and seek God we cannot, by default, understand what will occur to our lives when things go wrong and we surely cannot understand why things go right in our lives either.

Over the past three decades or so there have been some events that have occurred in the world that our minds had a hard time understanding.  Some of these events were human derived and others were “natural” events such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, and tsunamis.  We are quick to pass off these incidents as circumstantial with no meaning behind their deeds but in reality what we are doing is trying to justify our opinions instead of understanding what really has occurred through our creation status.  If one believes that God is in control of everything – and He is – this means that He has allowed these events to occur. Instead of sitting around and trying to figure out why the person or group has committed a mass shooting how come we are not on our knees praying and seeking God and asking Him to show us what areas of our lives that we are not following Him?  It is through our inactions our insignificant growth that we are succumbing to the world’s antics and until we stop and listen to God’s voice again, we are going to see nothing but escalation of these events.

These events shall include natural disasters and if you do not believe that God will strike this nation down with a supernatural act through His creation the earth, you better study the Old Testament again because He has already performed such acts before; due to the choices of mankind.  It was through the insignificant growth acts of Adam and Eve that began this process and up until the moment that you read this article those insignificant growth acts are still in place.  This can only mean one thing, we continue to believe our enemy and his lies rather than following God’s Word as it was written for us.  Remember, God is a complete God on all sides of existence and for no reason can He change this status.

If and this is a BIG if, we would willingly lose our selfish ways and turn our hearts back to God we would not have to be under the rule of our enemy.  However, our problem is that due to our lack of understanding we are turning our hearts against God and actually labeling Him as the enemy.  Not knowing that what we are doing is not only proving God’s Word correct but also lining us up for a great catastrophe that is unimaginable.  Plus, when this great event occurs, whoever is left standing in a paralyzed state with their jaws gaped open and then have the audacity to ask God “why?”  “God would never allow something like this to occur to this nation”, oh yes He would because if He allowed it to occur to Israel you bet He would this place.

As an insignificant growth church progresses it can no longer call itself a separated church from the world for God’s Word is the source of all life and through this pure life there would be no reason for real growth to occur.  It is scary to believe that the church does not even recognize this aspect of her existence but if one has experience in the microbiology field this question could be raised as soon as the microbiology tech lays eyes on the stunted growth.  The Church does not even recognize the fact that it is through her complacency and lack of desire for God that has diminished her ability to push forward the Kingdom of God, and I would venture to say that her growth has been stunted so much that she no longer can even know what the Kingdom of God actually represents.

The Church has become so comfortable with the purity of spiritual growth conditions that God has supplied that she has become lazy in her entire presence.  She does not believe in the Word of God because if she did she would not be accepting of her condition.  God’s wish for His Church is for her to get her act together and get out of the nail salons and to dirty up her hands and feet again, just as the Bride is supposed to be.  God has shared with us a while back that His perfect Bride does not have fancy nails and “poofed” up hair with makeup on, it is a dirty and messy Bride who has been working in the fields of the world telling them about His love for them and that He is the only way to salvation.  No insignificant growth church would look dirty and messy she would be incomplete and too weak to complete this task. 

Do not misunderstand God here, for He still loves His Church and He wants nothing more than to see her live up to her potential once again.  But in order for her to return to the “C” again she must renounce her ties to the world and to completely shut the doors that she has opened with the world.  God’s heart aches for the lost and right at this moment it is evident that many in His Church are simply lost.  Turn back to God church and allow Him to restore us to the complete Church that He desires for us to be.  It is only through this pure and holy restoration process that we can be effective as we were originally created to live.  It may seem that God is being a little tough, but He knows that time is very short before He must change things and He desperately does not wish to act upon His completeness in that capacity.  Think about what God is sharing with us today.  God represents total life and He only can give total life and if we are not giving what we have received from Him then the problem lies within our hearts and not with God.  Wake up church for it is time for you to return to your Church status again.

DLB

The First Fence

The First Fence

8/14/16

In a time where a single word or simple phrase can ignite a firestorm of discussion and anger one might shy away from such a topic, but God is not in a habit of shying away from losing His children.  Having a protective boundary in place serves many purposes and through these purposes, security and safety usually follow as long as those borders are intact and kept up to date.  It is when we allow those protective boundaries to crumble or disintegrate that we become subject to anyone who wishes us harm. These types of protective surroundings are even mentioned in God’s Word and how important they are to our existence. However, as we see in the Bible what occurs when we do not maintain these boundaries our lives shall soon follow if we do not begin the process of mending those fences before the enemy comes washing through.

Oh boy, isn’t this topic becoming a heated discussion item?  It has sparked much debate, anger, hostilities and violence on a personal level as well as a public level.  As each day passes, we have the opportunity to watch some type of heated process unfold with some type of incident that concerns a fence, boundary, or some other border issue being discussed.  What I find so hilarious about this issue is that all of these people are taking sides of this issue, or they are on one side or the other which really describes a border or fence.  This means that they are actually lining up and separating themselves on one side of the fence which is what a fence does, but aren’t they arguing to have fences removed??

Anyway, whether these people realize it or not this issue is not a new one and when one looks down history’s way it is easy to find some type of border issue.  Many European countries have long histories that have had their borders written, changed, re-written and then changed again due to various causes and reasons.  In every case, these borders have served as a boundary or marker that symbolizes that one is leaving or entering a specific property or land.  Some of these boundaries have been placed into effect by the use of fences and with modern technology today those fences do not have to be physical but can be nothing more than lasers.  Whatever the case may be, the fence remains intact to outsiders and serves as a notice of impending confrontation without permission.  In every case, when a boundary or fence is unwillingly penetrated wars have began but it is another issue when those protective borders are voluntarily taken down or allowed to become obsolete, for all defensive mechanisms are then compromised and it is up to the enemy at this point to dictate who is protected and who is not.

One of the more famous fences of the modern era comes from the remnants of World War II in the city of Berlin.  The Berlin Wall was notoriously famous fo?r keeping hundreds of thousands of people isolated from the “free” outside world.  And while some of this famous wall was laden with steel and concrete a good portion of the wall was actually just a fence.  There is no doubt that fences are erected for a purpose and as a marker but do we really understand and grasp the concept that both sides are defined by these fences?  How can there be any true definition if no boundary is set up to mark property or land?  What constitutes a fence in the first place?  Does it have to be physically noticed in order to be effective and enforced?  All of these questions and much more like them do have answers and in some cases answers that are hard to handle but necessary.  Fences are not just a current political nightmare for this country for this type of concept of separation has been present since the dawn of civilization.  Another human funny before I proceed: I find it funny that people are screaming at some of the politicians concerning the fencing issue and how there should be no fences present, but on another side of things these same people scream and cry about separation of church and state.  The same arguments can be understood in this situation as a fence propaganda but has a heightened stance.

If this separation of church and state concept is to be totally accurate according to their screams then ALL who are involved in the state who have any type of religious stance must exclude themselves from the government activities.  Therefore, in this state those who are crying for separation of church and state are defeating their “no fence” proposals by their own double standards, a future topic to be written about.  Which brings me to what God says about having fences about us in His Word, and yes He does address the situation very clearly. 

A quick note before proceeding with this passage of Scripture and how important God believes this topic is to our lives.  Have you ever wondered why certain topics appear in our world and hang around for such a long time?  We must keep in mind and in our heart at all times when a passage from the Bible is specifically mentioned, and then that topic or subject is presented to us and then that verse being fulfilled almost verbatim during our lifetime.  In other words, everything that God’s Word should be taken as the dire and 100% truth because there is a reason God gives us information to protect ourselves against our enemy. This means that this topic is a Kingdom issue and when it comes to Kingdom principles we are dealing with our eternal future.  This also means that unless we look to His Word for the correct answer it shall not come.

Ok, Genesis Chapter 2: 7-9 addresses this issue with complete clarity and we will begin there.  This is an incredible set of verses that explain many things about our lives and Kingdom and is just plain exciting too.  Verse 7 sets the stage for the main verse 8 with verse 9 ending the charge of the Kingdom principle here.  It is this verse (8) that sets the stage of the first fence being built as a protective separation from the outside.  The question that is asked here is this: why would God have to create a separate space and then put mankind into it in the first place?  The answer to that question is that God understood that there was an enemy who would wish harm on His prized creation and if God did not establish a safe haven with His protective covering first, man would automatically be subject to the enemy without any sort of protection through God.  See, God is a supplier, not an opportunist like our enemy which means that God must begin the process with full details before the objects are allowed to take shape.  There is a reason verse 8 states that the Garden was established and then the man was placed into it, we must remember that God is a complete God on ALL levels of existence.

The message here is that God had every intention of making the life of mankind easy, simple, pure and holy and that our lives would remain in that status forever.  But God also understood that through His love for us He could not control or dominate our lives and that in the manner to which He created us we would have a choice in following His ways or not.  Therefore, all protective devices had to be established first before God could place the man into His perfect conditions.  God states that He planted a Garden eastward in Eden.  This means that the Garden that God planted had definitive borders – a holy fence – because it would have not been feasible for Adam to be responsible for the entire planet.  This also means that God would not leave Adam and Eve unknowing of their responsibilities either; now it becomes a choice matter.

The next portion that is so very important occurs in the same chapter of Genesis and includes the verses 15 – 17, for it addresses the duties that Adam and Eve were to have over their dominion.  It is through these verses that God tells Adam how he is supposed to work and to keep the dominion that God has given him and to make sure that all is secure at all times.  Where does it say that in these verses?  Logically, one can conform to the fact that God showed Adam and Eve the entire Garden of Eden for they walked and talked with each other each day.  Remember, God is a complete God at ALL times on ALL levels, so it is also logical that Adam understood this all-encompassing command from God; and so should we. 

It is through these verses, especially verse 15 that gives us the boundary issues that God had set into place.  The dominion of Adam encompassed the entire Garden of Eden which means that while there may not have been a physical fence in place around the Garden of Eden Adam understood that it was his responsibility to protect everything that was inside this garden or area. This alone sets into motion a placement of a fence or boundary in which someone is responsible for and through this responsibility comes the overseeing of what or who enters and leaves it.  We also must understand that God did not seal off this Garden access it was a “free flowing” system if you wish to look at it that way, for it was Satan who was in the Garden of Eden establishing a relationship with Adam and Eve before the fall occurred; another witness to freedom of choice.  This example puts into place our part in maintaining the protective fences around us and it should bring into light the purpose of such a fence, it also defines our responsibility of keeping this fence up to date and current as time passes.  It is easy for us to think about performing general gardening duties when we talk about "keeping up" the Garden of Eden but maintaining the integrity of the fence around such a "ranch" or "farm" is essential for the stability of such area.

Can you now see why it is important that we have fences around our lives?  If one follows the story that unfolds in Genesis Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 it is easy to figure out that Adam and Eve did not keep the fence around the Garden of Eden maintained very well.  In fact, it is easily recognized that they ignored it long enough that our eternal enemy passed through this fence of God many times over a long period of time.  God understood this dilemma yet He kept His loving heart true to His command and allowed Adam and Eve to choose to disobey His first command or to abide by it and even though God knew one day that mankind would choose their own selfish ways instead of keeping His law, He did not waiver from this stance He took.  It was mankind who fell down on the job and not God.

What I find amazing here is that even though humans were created holy and pure their ability to choose how to handle situations still rival today’s activities.  It must have been a snap for Adam and Eve to think that since everything was in perfect order that when God spoke His law and command to them that it would be a breeze of a task.  So, why would God really need a tended and mended fence in the first place?  This is logical because Adam and Eve were human and we are human today as well, so the same thought processes were in place especially when our eternal enemy was allowed to pass in and out of the fence freely. Think about this for a moment and one can see this identical pattern being executed in our world today.  Over time, Adam and Eve came to the conclusion that they did not need God as much as He had said they did, yet used the gift of choice that He gave them to choose their own way instead.

It is not clear of just how much time passed from Genesis Chapter 2 until the completion of Chapter 3.  It is also not clear of the details of how Satan and the humans established their relationship – even though it is ascertainable of how it came to be - but it is known that a relationship did occur and it was strong enough that Eve succumbed to the temptation when the time arose, which means that the security of the fence around the Garden of Eden had enough “holes” in it that it was a comfortable fit for the enemy to take a hold without any difficulty.  It was through these holes that our enemy gained his access to Adam and Eve and eventually turned the tide of our existence for eternity.  One really has to consider what must have gone through Adam and Eve’s heads when the truth of their choices came about.  With all of the evidence that is laid out for us in this Garden of Eden setting, you know they must have had the thought that God was not THAT serious when He said we would surely die, I mean, nothing had ever died before, right?  Nope and it is this point that we will be extending upon shortly but we must recognize that Satan had already experienced death and he knew exactly what he was doing at that point in time with Eve.

This brings us to Genesis Chapter 3:22 – 24 and the end results of what had occurred between the participants in the Garden of Eden and we are going to focus on verse 24.  This verse states: “So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.”  It is this verse that confirms that there was a boundary to the Garden of Eden and this verse also tells us that while there was no real physical fence present a boundary was in place and with the judgment of the participants in the garden, that boundary had been voluntarily taken down by the residents and the enemy had stolen from God.  And the world that Adam and Eve had known physically, spiritually and violently changed.

It is easy to read this passage and to dismiss the notion that any other piece of land, property, state, nation or continent could ever represent what the Garden of Eden did so long ago.  But the Bible gives us another account of a blessed land with a boundary and that land was recorded as the Land of Israel.  Yet, Israel decided to follow the ways of Adam and Eve and allow their selfish wants and whims dictate their existence.  So, God had to once again demonstrate to His people that He built a fence for a purpose and when humanity allows His fence to become dormant or unnecessary in the minds of those who live within that confine He must remind those involved who He really is.  It is evident that Israel not just once but countless times ignored God and His ways and chose their own path and their ultimate time came when God allowed an enemy to totally wipe their physical boundary off the map and enslaved them for centuries.  Not until 1948 did Israel be recognized as a nation again and considering it was in the BC era that Israel lost her true physical identity, there was a long time that had passed.

Why is this important to us today?  As it has been pointed out a few times over the course of the articles that God has shared with us, our nation was created for the exact same reason as Israel.  I am NOT saying that we have replaced Israel; in NO WAY EVER AM I SAYING THAT.  However, God saw the need and heard the cry coming from His people – Jews and those people who wished to truly worship Him – and He established this nation accordingly.  God chose the right people to complete this task long before the “Founding Fathers” came into being, but it was the work of our enemy that stole that calling and mission, and we fell back into the columns of adversity and have remained there ever since.  Just as God allowed Adam and Eve time to make things right and as He did the same for Israel in the Old Testament He has done the exact same thing for our nation’s existence.  But as the previous two examples played out so will ours and it looks like the same destructive reasoning on our part will follow history.

Any reasonable non-God fearing person would have to marvel at how this nation has been blessed.  Even with the mistakes we have made over the centuries, our lives have been blessed through God’s mighty fortitude.  Our nation has lived out just as the Garden of Eden and the nation of Israel did and it looks like through these blessings from God that we are also going to suffer the consequences of our selfish and wicked choices.  We have forgotten that when one small hole is left unplugged that our enemy will see this hole as an invitation and when that invitation has been fulfilled he is then allowed to bring his friends in as well.  Our eternal enemy is an opportunistic beast and he will take his opportunity every time we give it to him, and look at all the opportunities we are giving him.

God has not asked to live for Him without giving us a chance to defend ourselves.  It is not His choice that we should suffer and die because of our physical enemies or because of our eternal enemy.  It was clear that Adam and Eve did not speak with God with an earnest and faithful heart.  It is also understood that Israel did not have a fervent prayer life with God and it remains absolutely clear and evident that this blessed and holy fenced nation wants nothing to do with praying to its Creator either.  So, there is nothing left to do but pray that we turn things around before God says “enough”.  Our future looks bleak since the Church has herself created so many gaping holes in our protective hedge over us.  Just as Adam and Eve had warnings, along with Israel as well, so too have we had our warnings; so the question remains, how long oh Lord will you hold us in contempt without showing us your eternal existence?

DLB