AN ISSUE OF A GOD KIND--The START Treaty

Oh, yeah.  This is a good one.  The United States is entering into a treaty with a country that is known for it's strong-arm tactics, it's ability to change it's mind to fit it's own ends and for their human rights violations.  That's just like our police departments making a peace treaty with the local Mafia.  Really!?  Like they're going to keep their promises.  You know....cross their hearts and swear to.........whoever or whatever they serve and give each other a pinky shake just to make sure that we know they will keep their word.  Hey, how about this.  One of our own politicians said that even with the reduction of nuclear warheads from 2,200 to 1,550, we would still have enough warheads to blow somebody to kingdom come.  Oh, now that's a comfort isn't it.  But, wait a minute.  If we have 1,550 and they have 1,550......hm-m-m-m ya reckon they could blow us to kingdom come?  Uh-oh, I just had a thought.  (I know, that's an amazing stretch of the imagination.)  Does this country have ties to a couple of other countries who are developing nuclear power?  Ooops.  We don't have a treaty with them yet, do we?  Let's suppose we sign one with these other two somewhere down the road.  After all, we are an equal opportunity.....yada, yada, yada.  So, if we have a 1,550 treaty with three different countries that would like to have our wealth then we would have 1,550 to use against them and there would be 4,650 pointed at us.  Has there been a recall on America's brains, yet?
The recall doesn't need to be on their brains, ladies and gentlemen.  There needs to be a recall on their hearts. America has AN ISSUE OF A GOD KIND.  In God's Word, the book of 1 Kings, there is an instance of the kingdom of Judah making a treaty with a nation that did not serve God.  They did it in order to be safe from the kingdom of Israel.  What happened to living for God and prayer?  Leviticus 26:7-8, And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword.  And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.  And, I've got a better one than that.  Paul, the greatest soul-winner besides Jesus Christ, wrote to the Ephesians in chapter six, verse twelve--For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.  I've got a real shocker for you, saints.  It is not ONLY the sinner that has AN ISSUE OF A GOD KIND, it is those who call themselves by His name, 2 Chron 7:14.  (Hey!  Blow the dust off your Bible and look that one up for yourself.  It'll do you good no matter how long it takes you to find 2 Chronicles.  Hint:  It's in the Old Testament.)  Let me give you a news flash, Mr and Ms Christian, it doesn't matter who is in office.....IT ONLY MATTERS WHO IS ON THEIR KNEES OBEYING THE WORD OF GOD.  Two years ago, I set myself to pray and seek the face of God for our Congress.  It didn't take me but a couple of weeks before I sensed in my spirit that I had finally joined thousands of God-fearing, on fire people who knew the real value of 2 Chron 7:14 as well as James 5:16.  Prayer changed a congress!!!!!  Exodus 23 and 33 promise an angel will fight for God's people who are moved by God's purpose.  The treaty that needs to be made is the one between prayer warriors and the God that answers 2 Chron 7:14.  Congress and treaties have never shown themselves faithful and have never had the power to bring peace and protection.  But, Jehovah Tsaba, the Lord of hosts, stands ready, willing and able to enforce His Word through the power of the shed blood of His Son, Jesus Christ.  I say, let's chase our enemies through the power of prayer and living a Godly life.  God's people should be so vibrant and forceful in their prayer lives, that the moment we wake up and begin calling on His name, the devil goes into spasms and starts throwing up in anticipation of what he knows that the child of God is going to start praying.
Pass this on and send me your comments.

AN ISSUE OF A GOD KIND--Don't Ask, Don't Tell

Now, you may think that this bill was about Christians.  The way most Christians live, they don't want anyone to ask them whether they are a Christian and they sure enough don't want to tell anyone that they serve the Lord.   And, by the way they live their lives, whether on the job, the market place, or the home you still couldn't tell if they were Christians or not.  The real shame about 'closet' Christians is that people who are hurting way down inside are the same way.  They try to hide it because some will tend to think they are weak.  The 'hurting' are the ones that need to be able to see the real Jesus coming out from our hearts.  Everyone of us who claim the name of Jesus need to pray every morning---God, be real in me today and bring me into contact with someone that I can show the real Jesus to.

The Congress voted to repeal the "Don't ask, don't tell" law.  Folks this is not an issue for our Congress to decide or not.  This is an "Issue of a God kind." Psalm 139:13-16 tells us that God knows who and what we are from the very moment of conception.  (Look out abortion folks, the Word of God stands against you, too.)  The book of Genesis talks about God making humans as 'male and female.'  He didn't make them 'male with a few hang-ups,' or 'females with an attitude.'  The issue is not with our government or with any part of society.  It is an issue between an individual and an Almighty God that that individual will have to resolve either on this side or on the other side of eternity.

Does God hate and abhor those with issues with Him?  Absolutely not.  And, Mr. or Ms. Christian if you look down upon others with disdain, you have issues with an Almighty God, too.  God loves that person(s) so much that He sent His Son to die in their place.  You need to display His agape love to them. 

In summary, I say that it is the Christians that should repeal their own personal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' law and come out of their closet.  What do you say?

Mary, Did You Know

This past Sunday, my Pastor used the words of the song, "Mary, Did You Know?" to illustrate some things in his sermon.  She knew that He was the Son of God and that He would come into this world to do great things.  However, the angel never spelled out the things that He would do.  There are no scriptures in the Old Testament that told her that He would:  walk on water, heal the sick, calm storms, cast out demons, raise the dead, or in general, bring the great deliverance that He brought to the entire world.  What she did know, was that He was God's anointed child and God had a special purpose for Him.  That was first and foremost in her mind as she raised and taught her God-given Son.
Psalm 139:13--For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. Vs 16--Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all [my members] were written, [which] in continuance were fashioned, when [as yet there was] none of them. The very moment any child is conceived, and as their DNA is being formed, God writes a complete description of him in His book.  AND THEN, He begins forming a plan for his life.  Just like He did for you, and just like He did for your children.  God has a plan for us, even when we blow it and go some other way.  He is constantly trying to get us to follow a path that He knows is best suited for us.  We all remember the scripture that reminds us that His ways and thoughts are higher than ours--Is 55:9.  The best example is Moses.  After he killed an Egyptian and ran away from his people, God met him on the backside of a desert and told him (in essence), "You're still my man and I still have a plan."
Now, let's get down to business.  If Psalm 139 is true, and I believe it is with all my heart, then every person on the face of this earth has a God-plan for their lives.  That includes your children, your step-children and the people you are angry at.  God's heart is to bring them into His perfect plan of blessing.  God has a job for them to do that He is trying to groom them for.  We, therefore, as parents and guardians, should seek to be vessels of God to help Him form His perfect will for their lives. 
The all-important question is, "Parent, do YOU know?"  How do you know what God's plan is for that child He has placed in your keeping.  Mary had no idea that Jesus would go on to do the mighty works that He was God-ordained to do.  We need to consider our actions.  Have I turned this child in the direction that God wants him to go?  Or, have I yelled, beat and abused His handiwork in such a manner that this child might not ever respond to God's prompting?  The next time your anger or jealousy prompts you to action, remember one more scripture--Mt 25:40--Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done [it] unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done [it] unto me.  Let us be careful to mold and not to mar.  Let me ask it one more time, "Parent, do you know?"
Pass this on, please.

Keep Your Sanity

Matt 22:37-Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

This was the answer Jesus gave to someone who asked Him what was the greatest commandment.  Indeed, if we could get this one down pat, all of the other commandments would be a snap.  Most of us have no problem loving God with our heart or soul (emotions).  But, we all tend to have the problem of loving Him with our mind.  Because of the frantic pace of life, our minds get filled with all sorts of junk.  After all, we have to think about how to start today---how to get the kids ready for school---how are we going to pay the bills---what are we going to say to you know who because they said you know what and did this, that and the other thing.  It's the last one that I really get hung up on.  I realize you probably don't have that problem, but it sure has bothered me a lot.  We all tend to let--he said, she said, he did, she did--monopolize our thoughts until we  virtually reach the point of exasperation.  Can I get an "AMEN?"

Paul said in 2 Cor. 10:5--Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.  If you will think about all that Paul went through, you would wonder, why he didn't lose all of his marbles.  Religious people were trying to mess him up all of the time.  He kept his sanity because he learned how to grab a hold of his thought processes and think only thoughts about his love relationship with Jesus Christ.  Psalm 19:14--Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.  King David, the greatest warrior king and the Apostle Paul, the greatest soul winner both learned how to control their thoughts in a negatively infested world.

Our thought process can either keep us on track or derail us.  Way back when you were dating the one you are married to (way, way, way, way back for some of you), all you could think about was how sweet and wonderful he or she was.  People and life were doing the same thing to you then that they are doing to you now.  The difference is, when people and life did those same things, you changed the channel in your mind.  You found it much, much easier to cope with things when you thought about your lover and the abundance of joy that overflowed in your life when the two of you were together. 

Now, the problem with that is, that after we get married, we no longer take the time to make those "special" moments that used to fill our minds.  Just like our relationship with Jesus.  Right after we got saved, we floated on cloud nine for a while.  Then we came back to earth.  Both with our marriage and with our love relationship with Jesus, we need to stop this busy life and make some "special love times" with our lovers.   Those thoughts will, again, fill our daily routine and help us keep our sanity in an insane world.

Happy loving folks, and pass this on to others whose sanity might be slipping away.

Give the More Earnest Heed

Heb 1:1-God, who at sundry times and in diverse manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets,  2-Hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds.
Heb 2:1-Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

Before God created the heavens and the earth, it was all without form and void (see Genesis 1).  Then, God said something.  Stuff that wasn't there all of a sudden was.  Things that might have been floating around in the great never-never land all of a sudden changed their courses and merged with other things to become whatever it was that God said.  In other words, things that were not  there gave the more earnest heed to whatever God said.  Things that were already there gave the more earnest heed to whatever God said.  At the age of 91, Sarah's womb gave the more earnest heed to what God said and she brought Isaac into the world.  Moses gave the more earnest heed to what God said and held his rod over the Red Sea and it parted just like God said it would.  Water changed into wine, the dead came out of their graves and demons ran in fear because they had no choice but to give the more earnest heed to what God said.

However, it is you and I who have a choice.  We can either listen to what the Word of God says, or pay attention to what we see.  Too often, we choose to pay attention to the worry and problems that surround us on every side.  We pay more attention to the news on TV than we do the Bible.  Abraham and Sarah received strength to bring forth Isaac into the world because they gave the more earnest heed to what God said than to what they saw or felt in their own bodies.  They believed that faithfully for 25 years  before they got it but they got it.  The nation of Israel was saved from extincttion because Moses gave the more earnest heed and did the silliest thing anyone could ever imagine.  He held his rod over the Red Sea.  He did what God said and God did what He said.  The waters parted and they escaped the enemy. 

Here's something you might not have ever realised about that scripture.  God, himself, gives the more earnest heed  to His Word when His children choose to believe it instead of what they feel or see.  He didn't care how old Sarah got.  His Word was going to accomplish what pleased Him (Isa 55:11).  He didn't care how big, bad and mean the Egyptians were.  He didn't care how deep and treacherous the Red Sea was.  He had promised Abraham that He would bring his children out after 400 years of bondage.  I could give many more examples.  But the bottom line is when we give the more earnest heed to what God said, He will give the more earnest heed to what He said.  Circumstances and time don't matter to God.  What's happening right now, who believes it and who won't, doesn't bother Him one bit.  When the child that He loves gives the more earnest heed to what He says,  He does whatever He has to do to bring His Word to pass.

Let this word bring you great peace and joy.  Then, pass it on.

God is Still Working

Today, I cleared out a place in my back yard and planted some rose starts that I had propagated.  About a month and a half ago, I had cut these starts from a white rose bush that I have in the front yard.  I had looked on the internet and found some instructions on how to do it.  So, I followed the instructions and, boy-howdy, it worked.  Now, I am following those same instructions with some cuttings from a red rose bush in my front yard.  In a month or so, I'll be in the back yard again, clearing out a place for two more rose bushes.  All because I followed the instructions.
I know that I am not a rocket scientist.  Some of you have done the very same thing with the same results.  But, what makes those instructions work?  God's design makes it work that way.  Those same instructions work on many different plants.  And, they work over and over and over again.  God designed those particular plants to work that way.  We all know that it is an absolute mystery as to how and why it happens the way it does, but we accept the fact as the truth.
It's just like the Word of God.  Jesus called the Word of God a seed.  He said that if you planted it on good and fertile ground, that it would produce.  Anyone who has grown anything from seeds knows that there is a process that a seed goes through before it matures.  After I got through preparing the soil, digging the holes and planting the starts, I walked away with this thought in mind.  "I am just going to wait and let God's process work."  Can I make the plants hurry up?  Can I make the white roses grow red? 
In a garden spot in my back yard, I planted corn, pole beans, two type of tomatoes and squash.  Did I go out the next morning and harvest two bushels of vegetables?  Nope.  I HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE PROCESS THAT GOD DESIGNED TO DO EXACTLY WHAT GOD DESIGNED IT TO DO.  Guess what?  His Word works the same way, whether it's for salvation for a loved one, healing, financial help or whatever.  His Word is DESIGNED or EMPOWERED to prosper.  Look at Isaiah 55:11--So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it.
Don't give up on God just because you don't see your prayers being answered right away.  God has a time for His Word to produce fruit.  I wish I could hurry it but I can't.  BUT, if I will be patient and cling to His promise......just like the seed..........NOTHING CAN STOP WHAT GOD HAS DESIGNED.
Be blessed in this day, my friends.

The Lord was with Joseph

Let me share something with you that is fresh out of the prayer room.

We all know that Joseph was a slave and then a prisoner in the land of Egypt.  We all know that God raised him up to be second in command.  But let's look at a couple of passages.  According to Genesis the 39th chapter, the Lord was with Joseph and he was a prosperous man (vs 2).  In verse 5, we know that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house because of Joseph.  In verses 21 and 22, we find that when Joseph was thrown in prison, the Lord was with him and gave Joseph favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.  The favor of the Lord was with Joseph in both of these adverse circumstances. 
Joseph's faith in God brought him all of the favor, even when things took a turn for the worst.  When we see things like that, we are tempted to think-----Well, Joseph was just blessed with a faith in God that we just don't have.  Or, God in His divine providence kept His special hand on Joseph.  No, folks, it is an individual's faith in God and His Word that not only brings a person out of adverse circumstances but that faith will also sustain him through those circumstances.  Faith will bring Godly favor into a person's life even when he is walking through the valley of the shadow of death and even when he is surrounded by his enemies.  (See previous blogs.)
Joseph got this sustaining faith in God and His Word by remembering the boneheaded things that his father, Jacob, and his great-grandfather, Abraham, did.  Both of them thought that they were smarter than God in a couple of situations.  They felt that God was either too stupid to work things out for them or too lazy to get the job done RIGHT NOW.  I am sure that none of us have ever felt that way, right? 
God had made a promise to Abraham that he would be the father of many nations.  One day, Sarah had a great idea how they could help God out by Abraham having children by her handmaid, Hagar.  Now, just why didn't God think of that?  You really want to know why?  God had ALREADY formed a plan for Abraham and Sarah that DID NOT include Hagar.  All they needed was faith and patience and the work would have been done.  But, they figured they were smarter than God and did some things that brought more heartache, confusion and hard feelings than the small amount of joy it brought.
His daddy, Jacob, did the same thing.  God had spoken that Jacob would get the blessing.  Esau had even sold the birthright blessing to Jacob.  However, IT LOOKED LIKE God was not going to keep His promise.  So-o-o-o-o-o, Rebekah and Jacob hatched a plan to HELP God out.  And, their imperfect plan created heartache, confusion and hard feelings, also.
Joseph looked at those two examples of impatience and made a Godly decision to wait God out.  He faced every adverse circumstance with a love for God that brought God's blessings in the most unlikely way.  Potiphar and the jailer were FORCED to admit that Joseph's God was greater than all of the gods of Egypt.  The cup bearer to the Pharaoh remembered that Joseph's God was greater when Pharaoh had his dream.  The cup bearer only spent a couple of days around Joseph, but it was enough to make him realize that Joseph's relationship with his God was real.
Here's the point.  Do people see God in our lives as all?  The greatest time for God to show up and be real in a sinner's life is when we as Christians show them a Godly spirit and outlook while going through tough times.  God, please teach us all to be patient and wait upon your Word.  Help us to be the mirror image of Your Son to the trouble filled lives of those that we deal with on a day-to-day basis.  In Jesus Name, Amen.  Be blessed today and show someone the love of God, not with just your mouth but with your actions.
Love, Henry