Thanksgiving in shock

His Whisperings Posted on by

The late night election returns of November 6, 2012 sent thousands of conservative Christians reeling. I was one of them. How could this have happened? Masses of Christians prayed 40 days… God does not approve of abortion or homosexuality but they appear to have won out… How could God have let this happen?

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. God commands us to give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of the Father. (See Philippians 4:4-7)

Is this just a bitter pill we have to swallow? Do we paste on an artificial smile and glibly say everything will be all right? If so, we may have missed the point.

Christians are being called on to go through the waters and the fire with Christ at their sides. It has been demonstrated over and over again that Christianity grows under persecution. The first time it happened was when the early New Testament Christians were scattered as they sought to escape persecution. They took their faith with them. Those who didn’t scatter faced the lions in the Roman arenas, and because it was common knowledge that these were martyrs who refused to renounce their faith, their demonstration of faith is among the greatest witnesses of all time,

But we Christians have been so lukewarm that we have avoided persecution by keeping quiet when we should have stood up for our faith. We were so afraid of hurting someone’s feeling that we didn’t bother to help them see where they were going against God’s will. Now, like a boomerang, all of our neglect is coming back to knock us off our feet if it can. If we couldn’t stand up to simple persecution, what will happen if it gets worse? I hope we don’t have to find out, but my better judgement fears differently.

Our government is broken – seriously broken. We can’t put our faith in politicians. Those who rose to the top had to get there by pleasing those who already got there. It takes more money than even the wealthiest individuals can provide, plus lots of back-scratching to get there. Our government was founded on Christian principles. But if Christian principles are not embraced by those in power, then deception, greed, and political control will bring it down.

America’s problem is a spiritual one. We must not allow government to take the place of God in our lives. The Bible does not tell us to look to government to take care of us. When we do that we are making an idol out of our government. I’m preaching to myself… I’m retired and my only real income is my retirement check and my Social Security. Now am I supposed to trust Government to take care of me and honor those checks, or do I really believe God can and will take care of me if the checks stop coming?

I feel the need for a growing body of believers who is ready to trust God more than the government to supply our needs. …a body of believers who is willing to read their Bibles without the pre-established blinders of religion, and who is willing to apply it to their personal faith and growth. I say this, not to point fingers at any “wrong” religions, but to say “stop letting our differences separate and divide us.” We may think we have all the right answers figured out, but we all stand to be corrected when we meet our Maker face to face one day.

We need to meet people where they are and seek to give them spiritual eyes and a hunger to know Jesus. We must learn to share God’s Word in love without compromising it. When people come together in love to worship and pray, then God will heal our land. (See 2 Chronicles 7:14) But if we as Christians continue to attack and maim each other we will never achieve the unity that is so desperately needed in the USA. God’s people pulling together can survive whatever comes their way. For Christians, just like for the United States – united we stand, divided we fall.

This Thanksgiving we must look to God with sincere thanks in our hearts that HE is still God, and that his purposes will prevail in his time. And we must pray that we will be willing vessels in his hands, willing to be who he would have us to be.

Lifted up by an amazing all powerful God

His Whisperings Posted on by

What do you do when you get discouraged? Throw a pity party? I’ve been in one of those moods recently and during my morning Bible reading it occurred to me I was not spending time in personal praise and worship of God. So starting with “praise and worship” as my search terms I called on YouTube to supply some sing-along praise songs to help me out. Here are a few of my finds for your listening pleasure, or better yet, sing along:

Jesus, Name Above all Names 
Jesus, Emmanuel, God is with us – we are never alone when we have Jesus in our hearts.

As the Deer Panteth for the Water 
Lord, may I seek after you as faithfully as the deer seeks streams of water.

I Love You Lord and I Lift My Voice 
This is one of my favorite love songs to Jesus.

He Knows My Name 
Wow! What a powerful expression of God’s love for me.

You Raise Me Up to More than I Can Be
This song is presented in many different ways by different musicians on YouTube, but it isn’t hard to figure out which ones were done by Christians. If we look to people to lift us up, we may set ourselves up for a let-down. Jesus lifts us up to more than we can be on our own – without the let-down.

Indescribable (You Are Amazing God) 
God is the only one who can stretch from one end of eternity to the other and make all creation possible. He is outside of the realm of probabilities because he can make it happen without accidents. If there is anyone capable of helping you through your personal troubles, it is God, the One who makes things happen.

When times seem hard…

His Whisperings Posted on by

It is so easy for we who have everything to complain because we don’t have something we want. I wish my house were bigger. I  wish I had more money to market my books… I wish… I’ll spare you the rest of my wish list.

Today I read a blog post by a missionary in Africa that was so awesome and eye-opening that I had to let you, my readers, in on it. Please read Hope for the Hopeless by Lisa Lewis Koster. Then re-consider your personal wish list and your need to complain about what is on it.

If you also read Lisa’s Story you will be blessed again.

Read Jeremiah 29:11-14 and trust the One who can supply your needs. (You can select the translation you prefer from this link.)

Father God, forgive us when we become impatient. Help us to rest fully in the assurance that you are supplying our needs, even when our circumstances seem to tell us otherwise. Help us to see life through the BIG picture, the vision you have for us.

Godliness – a result of walking with Christ

His Whisperings Posted on by

Godliness

2 Peter 1:5-8 (Click on any Bible link in this article and you may choose to read the verses from other translations)

5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. –New International Version 1984

The  Miriam-Webster online dictionary (www.webster-dictionary.net/definition/Godliness) defines godliness as:

God´li`ness
n. 1. Careful observance of, or conformity to, the laws of God; the state or quality of being godly; piety. 

Godliness is profitable unto all things. 

– 1 Tim. iv. 8.
God´ly
a. 1. Pious; reverencing God, and his character and laws; obedient to the commands of God from love for, and reverence of,his character; conformed to God‘s law; devout; righteous; as, a godly life. 

For godly sorrow worketh repentance. 

– 2 Cor. vii. 10.
adv. 1. Piously; devoutly; righteously. 

All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 

– 2. Tim. iii. 12.

If we apply a little reasoning to this definition we will conclude that to become godly one must know God and his commands. We know that the first place to look is in the Bible. It would be very difficult to act like or follow the teachings of someone we knew very little about.

To become godly, we must overcome our sinful nature and strive to know God fully. This can only happen if we are diligent in seeking him in his Bible and seeking his presence in prayer. Just as God promised the Israelites in Jeremiah 29:13, he also says to us:  “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” In another passage God promises that if we draw near to him he will draw near to us.

James 4:7-10 gives some direction to those who would seek God. In verse 8 he says “Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

Is anything hindering your ability to walk closely with Christ? Paul relates our life walk with Christ to a race as he tells us in Hebrews 1:1-3 to throw off everything that hinders us so that we may fix our eyes on Jesus and freely run to win the eternal prize. What might be hindering us? Anything that takes our eyes off of Jesus and onto ourselves. What makes us too busy to spend time in the Bible or in prayer? What keeps us from participating in worship and Bible study in our church and/or community? What keeps us from giving the full tithe to God? Are there idols in disguise that are taking your eyes off Jesus?

In 1 Timothy 6 Paul writes to Timothy encouraging him to resist the love of money saying “godliness with contentment is great gain.” (v.6)

Pray with me the prayer from Psalm 139:23-24

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

Perseverance – We hang in there when the going gets tough

His Whisperings Posted on by

Perseverance

2 Peter 1:5-8 (Click on any Bible link in this article and you may choose to read the verses from other translations)

5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. –New International Version 1984

In my last posts in this Bible study series I discussed how adding knowledge to our efforts to be good may cause us to recognize areas where we may need to develop a sense of self-control. Today we will discuss the need for perseverance as we face struggles in a way that honors Christ.

In our walk with Christ we may come across obstacles that are very difficult to overcome. Perhaps it is a struggle with an addictive habit. You may have been thrown into a working or personal relationship with a person who continually rubs you the wrong way. Perhaps you are struggling with health or financial issues that seem so overwhelming that you feel like giving up. And you may be struggling with persecution because of your faith. But God calls us to persevere in each of these circumstances.

Our struggles may or may not be the result of sin in our lives. Our struggles give us the opportunity to share our faith with others who are going through the same struggles yet don’t have the hope we have. And other times we may struggle because God has placed us in training for service at some point later in our lives.

We can take encouragement from Hebrews 12:1-11 for God disciplines those he loves as sons. God’s discipline may be painful, but it is given for our good so that we may share in his holiness.

The Apostle Paul said many times that we should consider it joy to participate in hardship and suffering for the sake of Christ Jesus. James, the brother of Jesus, also echoed the same message, that to suffer in Christ Jesus was pure joy and a blessing. This theme is seen in the above scripture and in the next five scripture references below.

Hebrews 10:32-39 Hold on to your confidence in the gospel of Christ. You will be rewarded richly in heaven for struggles and persecution endured on earth.

James 1:2-18 Trials are pure joy. Testing of your faith develops perseverance

James 5:7-11 Have patience in suffering as did the prophets in the past. Stand firm as Christ will return and will bless those who have persevered.

Romans 5:1-5 tells to rejoice in our suffering because suffering produces perseverance.

Rejoicing in suffering doesn’t come easily. Where do we get the patience to persevere and endure? Even more, to rejoice in suffering?

Proverbs 19:11 tells us that wisdom gives us patience.

Colossians 1:11 reminds us that it is God’s power that enables us to have patience and endurance.

Romans 12:12 tells us to “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

Let us pray with King David in Psalm 51:10 “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”