Play the Hand You Were Dealt!

I hope I won’t offend anyone by going back to my card playing days for an illustration of the Christian life! One of the greatest insights one will ever develop about life is to play the hand you’re dealt!

Maturity in its bottom line definition means accepting the reality of your situation and making the best of it. All of us react against the athlete who gets mad and quits playing his best, because the opposition intimidates him or the officials make a bad call. A mature athlete just keeps on playing as best he can.

Two lessons emerge then by joining the definition of maturity with the illustration of card playing. First, the hand you’re dealt is the place in life God has given you. Second, maturity makes the best of the hand dealt. Only the immature make thing worse by quitting.

A man would be ruled out of the game if every time he was dealt poor cards he would throw them on the floor and demand a new deal! The game would become meaningless if granted such an option. The contest would turn into pick and choose rather than risk and adventure!

The “hand” God gave me was to be born in America as a white boy in the 1930’s. No sense getting upset or refusing to live because I wasn’t born as an oriental in the Hawaiian Islands in the 1890’s. You can’t change places, parents, wealth, skin or dates! Maturity means accepting the “givens’ or our life and making the best of it.

If you are unhappy in marriage, frustrated in your job, suffering in loneliness or defeated by a poor self image, you don’t have to remain a loser. You can decide to commit yourself to maturity and play your “hand” to the best of your ability.

He who keeps playing will learn to play better and will eventually get some new cards! It’s always been that way and always will be! Only shortsighted, selfish and “sorries” quit!

It’s been years since my porker playing days, but I’ll never forget the rules. He who keeps making the best of what he’s dealt will improve his play and learn to make the most of new situations! You can even enjoy the process.

In Philippians 4:11 the Apostle Paul says, “I have learned to be self-sufficient in every situation.” Thanks brother Paul, for giving us an example of “playing life with maturity!”

The Bullet of Growth: “As a Man Thinks”

The Scriptures teach that “as a man thinks so is he” (Proverbs 23:7). We can only think about what we know. The ultimate in living is not knowing facts but knowing the God who made us and created us for His great and joyous purposes!

The reason our time and activates hold no lasting joy and fulfillment, is because they are built around inadequate spiritual knowledge. We think inadequate time is our problem, but it’s not. Even with thirty hours a day we’d work ourselves into the same frantic schedule. Virginia Brasier has captured many lives quite well with the following words:

“This is the age of the half-read page;
And the quick hash, and the mad dash.
The bright night, with the nerves tight.
The plane hop, and the brief stop.
The lamp tan, in a short span.
The Big Shot, in a good spot.
The brain strain, and the heart pain, and the cat naps,
Till the spring snaps – and the fun’s done!”

First Week of Advent

I want to share the Advent service we are doing at my church. This special season allows us the opportunity to reflect on true meaning through the traditions of Christmas. I encourage you to use these Advent postings with your family during this time of waiting to celebrate the most important birth in history. Wishing you joy this season, R.A. Stites

Opening
Lighting of the first candle to the playing of O Come, O Come Emanuel.

Meditation
The Preparation of Advent

During December leading up to Christmas, we will light the Advent candles as part of our Sunday morning worship. We observe the season of the advent of Jesus Christ for many reasons. Here are four which show how advent involves the whole person:

• It allows us to prepare our hearts for Christmas. In the midst of the hurry and excitement of the season, we center our hearts on why we come together in worship.



• It encourages us to think about the meaning of Christmas, thus involving our minds. Making advent a part of our worship reminds us of the reality of the events of Christmas.



• It allows us to use our bodies in praise as we lift our voices in song. The simple act of lighting the advent candles, sharing the message of advent, and singing the songs of Christmas gives physical expression to our praise.



• It joins our spirits with Christians past, present, and future as we celebrate the birth of the King of kings and Lord of lords. We honor the past when we worship together. We look forward with anticipation not only to Christmas but to all our Lord has promised those who believe when we worship together. We join believers all around the world as we look forward to Christmas.

The celebration of Advent prepares us for joy, centers us with truth, joins us together in worship, and reminds us that the power and majesty of Heaven came to earth in the person of Jesus.

The story of the advent begins with a miracle. Listen to the words of the Gospel:

Scripture
Luke 1:26-38 (New King James)
26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. 28 And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!" 29 But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 32 "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 "And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end." 34 Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?" 35 And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 "Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. 37 "For with God nothing will be impossible." 38 Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.

Matthew 1:18 - 2:1 (New King James)
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." 22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us." 24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.

Hymn
Join us in song:
Joy to the World

Prayer
Ask someone to pray to prepare our hearts for the celebration of Jesus’ birth.

Closing
The Candles remain lit until the end of service when the person who lit them blows them out.

The Bullet of Growth: What We Know is Key

If you accept the brief philosophy of growth … knowledge, faith-acting and time … from our last post then the next obvious step is its spiritual application. All of us have the same amount of time … twenty four hours a day … so we are all equal in that sense. All of us faith-act continuously … whether it means committing ourselves to making money, writing a scientific dissertation, or watch the boob tube. We have equal opportunity in category two. We all have opportunity to act on something.

Now the clincher … the category that divides men is the kind of knowledge they put into their minds. It’s not time or action, but the kind of knowledge you put into your time and action. The passing of time is no guarantee of happiness. Neither are activities … no matter how varied or numerous. The key to great living is great knowledge! The key to great Godly living, is great Godly knowledge!

Cheap knowledge, plus faith-action, plus time, equals a cheap life. Baby knowledge, plus faith-action, plus time, equals a baby life. Mediocre, false, self-centered, materialistic knowledge, plus faith-action, plus time, equals a life of mediocrity, falsehood, self-centeredness and gimmicks!

The Bullet of Growth: Three Principles

There are three principles of growth that are inescapable! If you are to make progress in any area of endeavor you must first, gain knowledge; second, faith-act on that knowledge; and third, patiently allow time to work.

For instance, when I learned to fly for the Air Force, I first had to know something about the principles of flight and the airplane. Second, I faith-acted on this knowledge by pushing the throttle, pulling the stick, kicking the rudder, coordinating the instruments … these initial efforts at “acting” on my “knowledge” were very uncoordinated, rather sloppy and amateurish, and brought on the wrath of my cussing instructor whose expletives I will delete. Only the third principle, time, allowed my to practice (act on) my knowledge until I mastered the challenges of flying and received my wings as a pilot. It was a great moment!

All of life’s pursuits demand the same threefold process … knowledge, faith-acting and time. A doctor, student, pianist, salesman, repairman, coach, bookkeeper, typist, etc., and any other job, form the simplest to the most complex … demands knowledge (content), faith-acts (application), and time (experience)!

Thanksgiving In America

It seems the first Thanksgiving celebration in what was to become the United States was a prayer service in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. The most storied of early Thanksgivings was that of Plymouth plantation after its first successful harvest in 1621. A participant, Edward Winslow, left us the following account:

“Our harvest being gotten in, our Governor sent four men on fowling, so that we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labor. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming among us, and among the rest their greatest King Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed fiver deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain, and others.”

There were many days of Thanksgiving declared in the early history of the colonies and the nation they became but it was not until 1863 that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed an annual, nationwide Thanksgiving Day. The date for this remembrance was finally fixed as the 4^th Thursday in November by Congress in 1941.

He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me; And to him who orders his way aright I shall show the salvation of God. Psalm 50:23

From all the Ventures for Christ staff; may you joyful celebrate all the Lord has done for you this past year.

The Price of a Stamp

RA Stites, Ventures staff

The Smithsonian Institution

Election 2006: Stamp found on vote packet may be worth a fortune

The Inverted Jenny is among the most rare -- and valuable -- U.S. postal stamps. And now one may have been found in Broward County -- among piles of absentee ballots from this week's election.

No one knows where the ballot came from. The person who cast the vote was not identified on the envelope containing the ballot, so the vote didn't count.

Now the stamp -- which may be worth at least $200,000 -- is locked up with the rest of the ballots, because by law it must be held for a designated amount of time.

From the Miami Herald, 11-10-06, by Diana Moskovitz and Jennifer Lebovich

Apparently someone made up the needed postage for an absentee ballot out of a stamp collection. For 24 cents of the amount he or she seems to have attached one of America’s rarest stamps. Although the authentication of the stamp must wait on the law, there is a lesson we can learn from this episode – the face value of a thing is not necessarily its true worth!

Suffering is a perfect example of this truth. We usually rate our suffering low in value preferring not to engage in any more pain than absolutely necessary. In reality it is of tremendous value as we enter into oneness with our Lord’s suffering through our own. Furthermore, suffering has a way of drawing us deeper and deeper into fellowship with the Father as we seek His face in the depths of our pain and despair.

The next time trials and tribulations come your way, remember the lesson of the Inverted Jenny!

More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, ⁹ and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, ¹⁰ that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; Philippians 3:8-10

The Drive to Attain Something Higher

I find inspiration from reading about the men who formed our nation. Consider the following quoted from Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington by Richard Brookhiser.

State militiamen, who signed up for short terms during the excitement of 1775, were not enough. “When men are irritated and the Passions inflamed,” he (Washington) write the President of Congress from Harlem, “they fly hastily and cheerfully to Arms; but, after the first emotions are over, to expect, among such People, as compose the bulk of an Army, that they are influenced by any other principles than those of Interest, is to look for what never did, and I fear never will happen.”

Washington’s plea to Congress reminds me that self interest will never drive a man to his highest attainment. Most people are coasting … they have never suffered or struggled to create anything bigger than themselves! Yet those who stood with Washington and put the emerging nation above themselves achieved the impossible – they defeated the British army and set America free from foreign control.

The Bullet of Focus: A Four-fold Formula

How does a Christian deal with conflict and controversy? I offer a four-fold formula of life to combat the pressures of daily living – take your reading, take your stand, share your truth and wait on God.

First, just as a quarterback reads the defense before he calls a play all of us must do the best we can to understand what’s really going on in this beleaguered world of war, conflict, death and error. Awareness increases with experience, but based on what I know (read) today, I make my evaluation.

Second, evaluation leads to daily decisions. I know my plans and responses are not perfect, but I’ll do my best with the light I have. “This is where I stand on this issue today” should be my attitude.

Third, I’ll share the truth I’ve discovered with anyone who cares to listen and as the Lord gives me opportunity.

Fourth, I’ll wait on God to vindicate me or correct me as He teaches me how to “read life” better.

Joseph of Egypt followed this pattern and is the man most like Jesus in the Old Testament. When he could have condemned his brothers, he refused to do so and declared, “Am I in the place of God? You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good! (Genesis 50:19-20)”

Conflict and controversy on this fallen and error-gripped planet are inevitable. The situation will drive us to despair or drive us to God. I’ve made my choice and developed my plan. How about you?

The Bullet of Focus: In the Midst of the Mess

Frankly, I have great difficulty really understanding the motives and needs of other because I am increasingly aware that there is much I don’t understand about my own motives and needs. As I grow older, advance more deeply in the study of Scripture and gain experience in counseling scores of people, it is my conclusion that the balanced, integrated, truth oriented life is not an easy thing to grasp. We not only deceive others, but we deceive ourselves!

So what do we do? We begin with humility. My basic concern in life is to find my own place with God through Jesus Christ and to make my primary goal that of pursuing His Lordship over my life. It’s a long process! Even when we discover purpose and peace in the claims of Christ, it doesn’t stop the confusion in the world all around us.

Hence, I have adopted a four-fold formula of life as I combat the pressures of daily living. One, take your reading. Two, take your stand. Three, share your truth. Four, wait on God.

(Read more on this four-fold formula in our next post!)

The Bullet of Discipline: The Price of Our Words

I can still remember a bit of poetry I was required to memorize in my high school days!

“Words are like leaves, and where,
They most abound,
Much fruit of sense beneath is
Rarely ever found.”

Proverbs 10:19 sums it up … “When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.” In other words, all of us talk too much!

Reducing your number of words won’t necessarily spare you embarrassment. Even “men of few words” can say “too much” if they say the wrong thing. Proverbs 10:11 tells us that, “The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals trouble.”

The Bullet of Discipline: Words, So Many Words

Words, words, words, words! Millions of then are heard and spoken each day. Most of them, routine words of necessity. Some are essential words of education or business transactions. Many are useless words of complaint, error, criticism or hatred.

As I look back over my life … and as I have listened to other sensitive people, I have come to the conclusion that one of our bitterest mistakes in living is “poor tongue control.”

It’s not really the words we speak but what they reveal that accuses us. The Scripture is right when it proclaims, “The mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” (Luke 6:45) James 3:2 tells us that the person who can control his tongue is a perfect man! I’ve never seen one of those “critters!” Have you?

Worth Quoting: Christ in You

From In His Face by Bob Sorge

“Here’s the gospel message: God kills off your “old man,” and then starts all over by birthing you anew with incorruptible seed (1Peter 1:23). Now you have a whole new basis for looking at yourself. Now you’re a child of God!”

What a great truth! Grasp that and you are on the way to living the “Christ Life”!

Miracles Still Happen: One Happened to Me

Guest Blogger, Larry Floyd

All of our Lord’s MIRACLES began with a PROBLEM! We see a man who could not walk, one who could not see, a crowd that needed to be fed, a little girl who was sick, a dead man, and many others. All miracles began with a PROBLEM, something was wrong that only Jesus could change. And Jesus performed a miracle in each of these situations. Only Jesus could!

That all miracles begin with a problem is still true. Are you to the point that you have realized that SELF effort cannot give you a miracle? Your SELF cannot deliver you. You say, “O.K. God, I acknowledge that SELF cannot deliver me – cannot take this problem away – You do it for me.” Guess what the next step is? Not deliverance but PRESSURE!

“You mean I might NOT get delivered immediately like some of the other miracles in the past? That is exactly what may occur and it is for your own good if it does. Once this pressure comes, you begin to say, “Why me?” The answer is because your SELF cannot deliver you – only God can deliver you! (Psalm 37:39-40) He uses pressure to “squeeze you” … and you need to be squeezed if you are going to learn to trust Him!. Are you getting the picture yet?

How do you react to God’s pressure? Do you moan and groan? How about blaming God for your circumstances? How about ignoring God? “Why doesn’t God care about me anymore?” you may ask. These questions are dead ends unless they lead you to the next step that creates the miracle? There is a NEXT STEP? Yes, PRAYER!!

You must get on your knees and call upon the Lord – the only Deliverer you have. The only true Miracle Worker wants to show you His will. He will do so through the words of His Scripture. (John 5:22) “Cast your cares on Him for He cares for you.” (I Peter 5:7; see also Joshua 1:8 and Philippians 4:6-7) You must “eat them”, “meditate on them”, “desire them”, etc. Do you spend more hours in prayer and the Word or at the ball game or in front of the television set? Is it any wonder you don’t see miracles happen very often?

God does answer prayer – Miracles can and do happen and then comes PRAISE! Can praise come in the midst of pressure? The answer is YES, YES, YES! (Isaiah 41:10) When it does you are living the wonderful ABUNDANT LIFE that God wants you to live. (Galatians 2:20)

Crucified with Christ …., Die to self, Alive in Christ, Trust and Obey, Gave His own Son for you … Crown of thorns – Cross!

Why should you escape thorns and the Cross? Don’t be afraid – trust!

One day while sitting in an office, my vision immediately and totally went BLACK! Most people will never experience this shock to their lives, but, may I tell you, it is a very “scary” experience. Your first thought is – “This can’t be happening to me! It must be a mistake! It will pass in a moment and I’ll be fine.” It didn’t pass – my first step in a miracle occurred, the PROBLEM – “I can’t see!”

The fearful diagnosis of my problem was detached retinas. The ophthalmologist scheduled me for “belt and buckle” surgery. I’ll spare you the details but what mainly occurs is the surgeon puts a thread-like silicon belt around your eyeball and “squeezes” (PRESSURE) in order to reattach your retina. Right about now is when YOUR PRAYER LIST gets short and YOU are at the top of the list. Fear tries to set in but, “Do not fear but Trust.” (Isaiah 12:2)

I believe in the Great Physician! He also uses some physicians here on earth to aid Him when needed. This was one of these times.

Did I PRAISE Him during this ordeal? NO! Sad to say I discovered the principle of praise only after the experience. I certainly praise Him now for every day of sight.

Having experienced this miracle, I ask:

• Why does it take us so long to experience the abundant life? (Romans 8:32; Philippians 4:19)
• Could it be that we are too blinded by self and selfish interests?
• Do you want a miracle to happen to you?
• Do you want to be a miracle to others?

If so, remember the four P’s of abundant, miraculous living: PROBLEM, PRESSURE, PRAYER and PRAISE! How thankful I am that I have learned the power of these four Biblical truths, especially the power of PRAISE!

Larry Floyd is a 26 year resident of Fayetteville, AR, and is employed as a State Farm Insurance Agent. He, his wife Tanya and their three children grew up under the teaching of Pastor H.D. McCarty at University Baptist Church. Larry has an undergraduate degree from Ouachita Baptist University and a Masters degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has served as a deacon, elder, Jr. High Sunday school director and interim minister of education while at UBC. He now has 20/20 vision and does not have to wear reading glasses. A miracle indeed!

The Bullet of Mission: Spiritual Warriors

While this Bullet is addressed to men, it applies to all Believers – men, women, young, old, of every race and nation.

Part 2

We have an enemy who will not bargain, negotiate, or compromise his ultimate purpose to deceive and destroy us. Our only recourse is spiritual combat! There can be no secret peace treaties! No special deals! Appeasement will only magnify disaster. Every man, especially the Biblical man, is a target for destruction.

Commander Satan will orchestrate continual, major crises in a man’s life to blind his priorities. His demons will strike with hundreds of emotional “fiery darts” in order to sap the believer’s strength! We must choose to be Christ’s warrior or Satan’s slave! All other doors on this earth are closed!

The combat Christian must also consider it an honor to sacrifice his life for his Master. Our “divine wind” is the Holy Spirit given in power to the obedient disciple.

The biblical man views his entire life as one of combat. There are times of peace; there are furloughs; but he always returns to his post. He must consider death to his own desires (mental, emotional, or physical) to be irrelevant to his commitment to the mission!

Mission: Endure everything for the sake of God’s elect (2 Timothy 2:9-10)

Mission: Love your wife as Christ love the church. (Ephesians 5:25)

Mission: Bring every thought into obedience for Christ. (2Corinthians 10:5)

Mission: Build Christ’s church against the forces of evil. (Matthew 16:18)

Mission: Provoke not your children to wrath. (Ephesians 6:4)

Mission: Endure hardship as a good soldier of Christ. (2 Timothy 2:3)

Mission: Rejoice always. (Philippians 4:4)

Mission: Give absolute obedience to prove you love Him. (John 14:21)

Mission: You fill in the rest ___ there are many other combat mission to give evidence you are a Biblical man.

The “Grand Canyons” or our personal spiritual journeys can only be conquered by the man who is willing to die for his chief! We must have eagle hearts. “Christ died for us, and we are bound to die for our brothers.” (I John 3:16)

The Bullet of Mission: Spiritual Warriors

While this Bullet is addressed to men, it applies to all Believers – men, women, young, old, of every race and nation.

Part 1

It shall forever amaze me that we men are so naïve (if not dense) about the dangers of living on planted earth! No doubt our eyes are blinded by the evil one. (II Corinthians 4:4) Our lives are continually at risk. There is a “force” seeking to diminish and decimate us. I’m not speaking of physical warfare, but of “spiritual combat”.

In my younger days I ignorantly assumed that suffering, sadness, and grief were unfortunate but avoidable! I marveled that the adults I knew were so foolish in managing their lives. As I grew older, I began to believe conflict and stress were inevitable but controllable. At least I was certain I would control mine! Yet in my older years, I see the truth for what it is. Pain and agony are inescapable but bearable.

Though many feel they are “bearing up” under life’s traumas, the majority simply hide behind defense mechanisms of which they themselves are unaware! Illusions and masks are tragically inadequate in a real war! The Biblical man has only one course of action open to him. He must take evil seriously and vow to engage in spiritual combat.

Dr. Larry Crabb, Christian psychologist and author, has observed that “Life is profoundly sad!” I concur. The Creator did not make it that way in the beginning. It was Adam and Eve’s listening and heeding the counsel of the “snake” that caused them and all mankind to embark upon that insane experiment of trying to be a man and a woman without God! The Fall was more hideous and terror-filled than our dull fleshly minds can imagine! Every agony, every hurt, every despair, every fear, every loneliness, every injustice in your life is ultimately a consequence of letting “the snake” tell you what to do!

Foolish men are still listening to his (Satan) lies! The objective of spiritual combat is to defeat “the father of lies.” (John 8:44) The beloved Apostle summarized the mission of the Master in I John 3:8 … “The Son of God appeared for the very purpose of destroying (breaking up, undoing) the works of the devil.” We share that mission?

Look for Part 2 of the Bullet on Thursday.

The Bullet of Vision: Desire

Guest Blogger, R.A. Stites, Ventures staff

Both Dr. McCarty and I enjoy feeding the birds in our back yards. As with many other enthusiasts, we engage in an unending war with squirrels. Dr. McCarty likes to take the battle to the little pests but that is not always possible even though they are persistent in raiding his feeders, when his back is turned and sometimes to his face. One day this last summer I was telling him about a wonderful, new weapon in the war on squirrels, the Yankee Flipper squirrel proof feeder produced by the Drool Yankee Company. The Wild Bird Center in Fayetteville runs a video showing the remarkable flipping power of this innovative product. It is great fun to watch the furry little rodents fly through the air, becoming non-traditional flying squirrels. While I usually co-exist with these wily raiders, I could feel desire building to have one of these powerful weapons in MY back yard!

It is fine to fight the battle of the feeder in your back yard but there are more important battles in life. It is wise to be on the alert for new weapons or new uses of old weapons in the spiritual warfare we engage in daily. Have you desired some new advancement to your spiritual arsenal? I hope so. Desiring new insights, new understandings, new approaches to living the Christ Life will help you draw ever closer to the Savior. Those things we desire define our lives in significant ways. The Apostle Paul talks about being caught between two desires, to live for the people he loves and desires to see saved and to “depart and be with Christ.” (Phi. 1:23, 24) Have we caught the same great vision? Do we feel the demands of our calling and or love of Christ so strongly that we are torn between the two? If we began to understand what the Apostle was speaking of, we have begun to understand the power of the Christ Life – longing so much to be with Christ, like Christ that He alone is sufficient to keep us obedient to the mission He has assigned us!

Take a moment to do a Desire Inventory. Long ago, the Psalmist instructed us on the secret of obtaining our heart’s desires. It was to “Delight yourself in the Lord” (Psalm 37:4). If you focus on delighting in Christ, you will find the desires of your heart are, like the Apostle Paul’s, conformed to seeking Him and His kingdom. The desires of a heart delighted in God will provide powerful weapons for the Christ Life. If you desire purity, you will find it. If you desire wisdom, it will be given you. If you desire boldness, it will be granted. It would seem a long way from wanting a squirrel proof bird feeder to living the Christ Life but it is not so far after all – desire the weapons of the Spirit and you will seek them and be delighted with them just as the back yard birder is delighted with a bird feeder that creates disgruntled squirrels!

How Adequate is Your God?

It would be amusing if it were not so pathetic – the ideas that people get about God.

• Some view God as a celestial Batman eager to swoop down from heaven and clobber “bad guys.”
• Others view Him as a stuffy “Judge of the Universe” waiting to sternly evaluate all who stand before Him. He sits with arms folded, daring anyone to ask Him for anything.
• Still others identify God with religion. As religion is usually a “last resort” enterprise, God is viewed as running an “atmospheric flop house” for the dropouts of life.
• Another view is the Puritan, holier-than-thou, naughty no-no God. He’s having a dull time in heaven, and it “bugs” Him when folks have fun (sin) on earth!
• One must include the “Know it all” view. I know what’s best, and I’ll do it my way, regardless!
• Another false view of God sees Him as the proprietor of hell. He’s invested a lot of money in this piece of real estate and will be terribly disappointed if a lot of folks don’t end up going there!
• A final view, although there are many others, is the frantic view. God is nervously pacing the floors of heaven, wringing His hands in despair over the world condition. This is seeing God as a victim of situations too big to handle.

Like it or not, all of us will act out our view of God, or perfection, or greatness, or our ideal. First, we play God by assuming we can live independently of others … and even of God Himself. Second, we play God in the causal way we judge, berate, condemn and reject our fellow man. Although we deny it verbally, we act toward others as though we possess more perfect knowledge about their situations. Thirdly, we play God when we put ourselves at the center of our universe. We view ourselves as the whole and not simply a part of reality. Lastly, and most serious, we play God when we exalt ourselves in ignoring and/or rejecting the truth and authority of the true God.

Where does one get clued in on what God is really like? How does man find his place in this vast scheme of things and “plug in”? The answer for the Christ Believer is in Jesus, the only perfect Man who ever lived. His life defies imitation. It can be explained only in terms of a Lord from heaven! He blows men’s ideas of God to pieces! He is not vengeful, stuffy, dull, uncompassionate or worried. The God Jesus revealed is forgiving, free, exciting, loving and has everything under control. People experience hell in their lives because they are attempting to follow the god of their own making who is false and inadequate. Man’s insane experiment to try and be man without the God who created him is as foolish as trying to live a day without breathing.

Man’s pride continually projects him into the role of God – a part he can never play. He doesn’t possess the power or the script. Only God can be God. Come, let us be man … but God’s kind of man. This is the only realistic, healthy and positve choice open to all of us!

²⁶ You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, ²⁷ for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. ²⁸ There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:26-28

As Little Children

He (God) does not want me out on my own, trying to earn merit stars for him. He wants us, rather, to lean into him, walking with him as closely as possible. He is not so much interested in our doing as in our receiving from him. Jim Cymbala, Fresh Faith

This quote reminds me of the way I relate to my grandchildren. My first thought with them is not what they will do for me but how I can do for them and enjoy them where they are! How much more does the Father yearn for His children to come to Him in simple faith.

The Bullet of Faith: Knowing God Will

One of my dearest friends in India is Bobby Gupta! I’ve know him and his family for almost forty years. Following is a thrilling reminder of prayer on the offensive!!

Rural India: Yadala Brahmayya was a practitioner of witchcraft and divination. He had his targets firmly in view, those Christians! An Indian village suffered from the witchcraft of Yadala. Death, sickness and loss fell upon it as the believers were attacked by their implacable enemy. Days passed and the church prayed regularly for Yadala. Still he sought to bring harm on the village.

The Lord prompted the Believers to pray all night for this man who hated them. The church met at 9:00 that evening. Time passed. In the small hours of the morning, a wild eyed and repentant Yadala burst into the church and fell face down and weeping. Confessions of his sins pored out of the witch. At first the church was stunned then rejoiced as they saw the resurrection power of the Lord work on their sworn enemy.

Having accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior, Yadala and a few of his new brothers returned to his house and threw away the idols and other trappings of sorcery. He was baptized “and his life is being transformed.” Yadala’s changed life and witness is touching his village with hope where he once brought a message of despair.

This story comes from an e-mail sent by Dr. Bobby Gupta, HBI Global Partners, relating it from a church planter he works with in the Indian countryside. We rational Americans may wonder at the reality of the witchcraft but our faith is strengthened when we realize that the Lord Jesus works in every culture, with every belief system and in the hearts of men half a world away to bring redemption.

Dr. Gupta tells the story to illustrate a statement he quotes, “Faith is not believing that God can, but it is knowing He will.” A church of Believers had faith to pray for an enemy and witnessed the miracle of redemption. What have you believed God about lately? Have you put your faith to work in prayer and service?

“Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.” James 2:18

Biking for Jesus at Bikes, Blues and BBQ

Guest Blogger, R.A. Stites, Ventures staff

The Bikes, Blues and BBQ festival is one of the big events each fall in Fayetteville, Arkansas. In its sixth year, it is expected to bring an astonishing 300,000 people to the city to enjoy the motorcycle rally, great music, and savory food. In an interview on KFSM, TV Channel 5 news cast, Leo Palmer of the Sons of Soteria Motorcycle Ministry said, “There is a new statistic out that there are more Christian biker organizations than other biker organizations. They're springing up everywhere and giving positive impact in the world."

One such is CMA, the Christian Motorcyclists Association. With three booths to serve festival goers, CMA fulfills its mission to ministry in the name of the Son of God. I spent a few minutes talking to James Gore, a member of the local Lifeline Riders Chapter, at his booth on Dickson Street offering free water, coffee and the Gospel. One of the most interesting things he said was that members had to earn their “colors”, the insignia on the back of his jacket, through training in ministry.

The commitment and challenge represented by CMA’s requirements for wearing its colors has to be one of the appeals that attract people to biking. Another is freedom. From Channel 5’s interviews with participants, one of the chief attractions and benefits of a bike is the freedom of the road. Freedom is also one of the hallmarks of the Christian life. Jesus sets Believers free from sin. (John 8:34-36) That is a freedom that lasts long after the “hog’ is in the junk yard and the rider has passed from this life into the next. It is exciting to think that CMA and the other ministries at this year’s festival will be presenting the message of true freedom to these lovers of the open road this weekend.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. …” Galatians 5:1

The Bullet of the Word: A Meditation on Psalm 18:34

He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. Psalm 18:34

I have always loved the phrase “He trains my hands for battle,” because that is what the true Christian life is about … spiritual combat! But for the first time the Lord arrested me with the promise that He will teach us to “bend a bow of bronze!” Most bows were made from wood and could produce tremendous tension that would throw the arrow forward with great force.

A bow of bronze can only mean the ultimate in power … if it can be pulled! The Lord whispered to me through this verse that He has given me a task to do in life that is equal in difficulty (or challenge) to a bow of bronze! I can only pull it off if I allow Him to put the force in me! The thought really lifted my spirits! All my battles and pressures have just been to teach, strengthen and enable me to “bend a bow of bronze!” Thank God that the Savior has chosen us to be warriors of power for the cause of the joyful Gospel!

The Battle: Men on the Front Lines, Continued

But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. We have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we command. 2 Thessalonians 3:3-4

A third essential step to enter significant combat is to radically embrace a battle plan, both personal and corporate, from which you will not shrink. Only then will you share the Master’s combat confidence. Most men seem to have no tactical or strategic spiritual battle plan. Some live in the hope that the war will pass them by. Others simply pretend to have been in combat. A man must become a serious student of the combat living of Jesus Christ for it is fascinating to see His responses to the hostilities of men. (Hebrews 12:3)

The Master’s combat confidence is demonstrated in the statement, “He despised the shame.” (Hebrews 12:2) He had contempt for the injustices of life in a sinful world. He viewed criticism, hardship, persecution, loneliness, rejection and suffering as mere trifles if they stood in the way of His allegiance to the Father. As He was confident in combat, we too can display that confidence and valor in the spiritual battle. Whatever price we have to pay to be obedient to Jesus Christ and bring glory to the Father is worth it!

The bloodiest and most costly battle in the history of the United States Marine Corps was on the island of Iwo Jima in World War II. For days, beginning on February 19, 1945, over 30,000 marines sought to defeat the well dug-in Japanese numbering in excess of 21,000. Only 1,083 Japanese soldiers survived the onslaught. Over 20,000 died in undiminished ferocity.

Lt. General Tadamichi Kuribayshi, the Japanese commander, gave his life in a last fanatical stand. This statement from a letter to his son reveals the reason for his combat confidence: “Will power is the essence of manhood.”

But what of the victors? At battle’s end over 6,800 marines had died in combat and over 19,000 lay wounded. Admiral Chester Ninitz said of the marines who fought at Iwo Jima, “Uncommon valor was a common virtue.” In fact, of the eight marines who received the Medal of Honor in all of World War II, twenty-two of those came from the combat on Iwo Jima.

Men become great when they give themselves heroically to a task … a battle, bigger than they are. Their goal isn’t to be know as heroes, but only to do the heroic thing.

Combat confidence comes only to the man who is willing to sacrifice his all for the battle plan of Christ, his Commander. Our nation, our churches and our families desperately need men who have been captured by their King’s heroic vision!

The Battle: Men on the Front Lines

In war battles have to be fought! There is no option if victory is prized and envisioned. To refuse the “price of battle” is to surrender your destiny to the will of an enemy. The consequences are tragic!

Too many men in the church (including some pastors, sad to say) are like the dim witted boxer who still can’t comprehend at the end of the fourth round why that other guy keeps hitting him. These men aren’t even aware they’re in a battle.

When a man becomes a follower of Jesus Christ, he steps into the ring against demonic opposition. A faithful man’s only real choice is to fight. The other options are repugnant to a champion disciple – to be disqualified, to cover up and stall, or to be knocked out!

11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:11-13

The first step to enter significant combat is to put yourself under a leader who intends to lead his command into battle. John Paul Jones, Revolutionary Navy hero, put it best. “He who sails with me had best sail fast, as I intend to put myself in harm’s way.” God has either called you to be a pastor or to follow a pastor. You have no other choice if you are to be faithful to Christ. You do have the choice of picking a pastor who “means business” about the Gospel.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her… Ephesians 5:25

The second step, if you are married, is to determine that you will be what you ought to be to your wife. It’s never what your wife is to you, but what you are to her that is the mark of Godly manhood.

The greatest battle in marriage is to choose to change into the character of Jesus no matter what your mate does. If the man will pay the price to turn loose the Spirit of Christ through his life on any person or situation, then God’s Word guarantees that eventually positive change will come, one way or another!

The death of a relationship is in the arrogant refusal to change unless the other person changes first. A real man is always the first to change, to make a “Christ adjustment” regardless of what others do. “We love Him because He first loved us!” (1 John 4:19)

(The third and final step for men in The Battle will continue in our next post.)

The Bullet of Direction: A Magnificent Obsession

One of the first things I learned after accepting the Lord Jesus as my Savior was that I should have a personal vision for Christ and for His purposes on the earth. The man who led me to the Lord was associated with a group of Christians called Navigators. Their motto was “to know Christ and to make Him known.” I’ve fought to make these words the ambition and aspiration of my life.

I’ve learned that a Christian can either labor in the energy of the flesh or in the anointing of the Spirit. Only God will reveal to us our true motives when we stand before Him. I have no doubt that I love the Savior more now than ever. I want to be totally His man with His message - in any place, time, and way that will please Him. I see the delusions, shams, and trivialities of this fallen world so very clearly, and I know man’s only hope is in a personal, radical pursuit of knowing God’s Word and giving “sprit obedience” to its truth. I gladly confess my own inadequacies, failures, and weaknesses because they bring me to see my desperate need of Christ in all things.

The doctrine of weakness before God (2 Corinthians 12) has been one of my focuses. It’s only when we discover how weak we really are that we are motivated – even propelled – to seek our only source of strength, release and peace: Jesus. The goal is to know experientially, what it means to be “in Christ.” If our hope as Christians is to have the greatest impact for the Messiah, then each of us must be caught up in this magnificent obsession.

The Bullet of God’s Instruction: His People

Mrs. Charles E. Cowman authored a classic devotional book entitled Streams in the Desert. One entry, “The End of Our Strength”, contains the following thought, “God had to bring Abraham to the end of his own strength…” That phrase led my thinking to the way God picks only a few personalities in His spiritual history rather than many to teach us truth. Even though He could have picked hundreds, He did not do so in order to accommodate His vast list to our own limited capacity. By having only a few we are able to know more of them as we fill in their circumstances and progress. Although a few are easier to remember, the spiritual lessons would be the same with a hundred – or even a different person for every lesson. The Father selected Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, Isaiah, Amos or Micah for certain illustrations of truth. Yet He could use nine others we are familiar with to teach the same truth – Isaac, Ruben, Levi, Caleb, Solomon, Jeremiah, Hosea or Zechariah. He could have chosen another nine we have never even heard of. Still the Lord’s purpose would be to teach us His same points! To have used the hundreds of people He could have would have given us three Old Testaments instead of one!! He always tells us enough so that we can know enough in order that we can be enough to the end that we achieve enough to bring Him significance. So if Abraham, Moses and David keep showing up in Scripture again and again just relax! They are just examples for all of us! Ordinary men who acted extraordinary when they risked believing the Father and acting on His desires!

For Internet devotional reading Ventures for Christ recommends the Devotions.org website from Back to the Bible.

The Mountaintop Huddle

And six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John, and brought them up to a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; Mark 9:2

Football season is again upon us! The first games of the 2006 season begin this week. Football fans are an intrepid lot; they love to cheer for their team from the opening of the season to the last day the team plays. The only ones who love football more than the fans are the players and coaches. Not only are they excited about the season, their minds and hearts are fully on the field!

There are some great spiritual lessons to be gained from playing in the game rather than just watching the game! If you want to “play reality” on the team with our Lord Jesus, there are four essential steps that cannot be neglected:

• Join the team – yield to Christ as your personal Savior and Coach.


• Get in the huddle – get the current word from the Coach on what to do next.


• Accept your assignment – find your place in a local church team and take responsibility.


• Run the play – do something significant that will help win the game!

God’s people must get in the Master’s huddle to know what’s going on. They must know their position in the line up and play it in the power of the Holy Spirit. The Savior wants bold people playing on His team … The wicked flee when no one is pursuing, But the righteous are bold as a lion. (Proverbs 28:1) He desires that each of us – at our own level and wherever we are placed – to be a difference maker, an impact player, to make a “big” play!

From this great experience on the mountain and following (Mark 9:1-29), we see that Coach Jesus wants His players and followers to be bold in a least six ways.

1. BOLD DECIDING, And Elijah appeared to them along with Moses; and they were talking with Jesus. (Mark 9:4) You don’t decide your own play when you’re in the huddle. You trust the one called by the “Authority”.


2. BOLD LISTENING, Then a cloud formed, overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud, "This is My beloved Son, listen to Him!" (Mark 9:7) The huddle is not the most critical thing but it is essential to accomplish the most critical thing.


3. BOLD ACTING, And as they were coming down from the mountain, He gave them orders not to relate to anyone what they had seen, until the Son of Man should rise from the dead. (Mark 9:9) You don’t change your position after the huddle … you play it!


4. BOLD BELIEVING, And He answered them and said, "O unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to Me!" (Mark 9:19) Out of the huddle your greatest asset is the determination to give 100% of your life to the play. The old saint, John Cheyne, once asked life’s most pivotal question… “What have I ever done in my years of service for God that was really bold?”


5. BOLD CONFESSING, Immediately the boy's father cried out and began saying, "I do believe; help my unbelief." (Mark 9:24) Some never really leave the huddle to run the play! They may move their bodies but they fail to move their hearts and minds. The coach never knows if he can count on them being “mentally in the game!”


6. BOLD PRAYING, And He said to them, "This kind (demon) cannot come out by anything but prayer." (Mark 9:29) You’re not in the game if you’re not in the huddle. Otherwise you will never understand your part in the team strategy and you can bust the play! Every morning our Lord asks you to huddle with Him to call the day’s play! What a shame if one doesn’t show up to learn what’s going on from the Head Coach!

The Bullet of Obedience: Revelation

Fear the Lord, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. Psalm 34:9

In essence, the Christ Life is nothing more or less than living continuously in the presence of God and receiving personal revelations of His will about one’s decisions, responses, and goals for life. The promise of the Father is that this is a daily, hourly, and ongoing praise relationship.

God has promised to do some of His part unconditionally. The fullness of the Christ Life, however, is conditioned by each believer doing his or her part by responding to God’s revelation of Himself.

The most practical thing we can do in life is to hear God’s Son and obey Him.

“I Hate Religion”

As a young Christian I can still remember one of my leaders shocking me with the words, “I hate religion.” Since he was a marvelous example of Christ-likeness, I couldn’t understand his statement. In my ignorance I though of Christianity as a religion. In the passing of the years I have learned that there is an enormous gap between them. So broad, in fact, that I find myself saying the same thing, “I hate religion.”

Religion is one of our worst words as commonly used and understood. The dictionary sums up religion as “any system of faith and worship.” Christianity is not a religion by that definition because it is a Person before it is a system. To seek of and be involved in church, the Bible, religious, denominations, theology, etc., before one has discovered God is an experiment in futility.

Religion reduces God to man’s own level. All of us in our spiritual pride seek to “domesticate Deity” for our own convenience and conscience. We develop our own religion apart from God’s truth. Faith, no matter how sincere, without Truth is an illusion.

Christ the Son, Jesus the Man, is the only One to ever tell us of God beyond our labels, creeds, and religions. Happy are those who see Him and follow Him!

Bullet of Forgiveness: Forgetfulness

Those who say they’ll forgive but won’t forget are blowing in the wind! Real love forgives and forgets!

Note God’s promises along these lines from Scripture.

I will wipe out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will remember your sins no more. (Isaiah 43:25)

As far as east is from west, so far hast Thou removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12)

For Thou has cast all my sins behind Thy back. (Isaiah 38:17)

Who is a God like Thee who pardons evil … for Thou will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” (Micah 7:18-19)

Why not admit your own need for forgiveness. Tell God you really want your ways, thoughts, and actions to conform to His! He will listen and forgive if you mean it. Then the power of his forgiveness in your life will enable you to have power to forgive all others, to let go of the past, to remember their sins no more even as God has forgotten your past … just as He promised! What a release!

The Bullet of Forgiveness: Sure Victory

If you were to ask me to name the most unbelievable truth of Christianity my answer would be easy! Simply put it’s this … that God does love me like I am and will forgive me for my failures, attitudes, selfishness, and messes. I need only to be honest with God, admit my need and ask His forgiveness!

Talk about feeling clean and being able to start fresh! There is nothing like it!! In fact, the most joyous and satisfied human beings on earth are those who know God’s forgiveness and who forgive other people.

It’s obvious I have offended God far more than any other human has offended me. Real life is always found in following Christ’s example. He was walked on and treated unjustly, yet He forgave. We should do likewise when we are walked on and treated unjustly.

Those who forgive always win in the end!

The Bullet of Faithfulness: Witness

How do you measure the effective witness for Christ? Do you measure it by the number who hear the message? Do you measure it by those who respond?

The Bible makes it clear that an effective witness may result in a rejection of the message as well as its acceptance (II Corinthians 2:14-17)

Acceptance or rejection, many believing or few coming to faith, a large church or a small one none of these are the issue. Following the commands of Scripture is.

The ultimate test of a person’s life is what God thinks! The only way to please God is faithfulness. Doing what the Father says … from the big things to the little … covers it all! What a responsibility! What a relief!

Of Boxes and Adventures
Guest Blogger: R.A. Stites, Ventures Saff

Sometimes we feel like we have discovered all there is worth knowing. We are comfortable with our status quo. We accept our limitations as normal. Life is familiar and we are comfortable. We like our box.

The trouble with boxes is that they tend to get opened. Sometimes adverse circumstances tear them apart. Sometimes unexpected events poke holes in them. Sometimes the tape just wears out and they pop open of their own accord. Life, the nature of the world, the vagaries of existence all act to move us out of our comfort zones.

When that happens, we have two choices: reseal the box or climb out. The weight of Scripture suggests that God is pleased when we get out and start exploring our limits. Take the Apostle Paul for example. He was quite happy with his Pharisee box as he set of to hunt down Christians. A bolt from heaven punctured his box on the Damascus road and the history of the church changed forever as he began to explore the world outside his box.

Are you comfortable with the box you have fashioned for your life? What things are trying to open your box? Instead of trying to repair it, maybe it is time to step out and see what adventure God has waiting beyond your comfortable box.

The State of the World – Fallen

Our lives are continuously messed up by “the Fall” and every single person is a victim of that mess. To grasp more and more of Christ’s attitude in response to this mess is to make every experience of life a “win” event regardless of the pain or loss! We learn how to be alive to God’s perfections in a dangerously imperfect world. Living the “Christ Life” means to accept the agonies and ecstasies of each day as inevitable experiences of “the Fall.”


This short passage is but a taste of what is waiting for you in the new issue of Mandate for the Christ Life, set for publication this August. Make sure you are on the mailing list – contact the Ventures office by e-mail or call 479-443-9474.

Bullet of Wisdom: Aging
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, "I find no pleasure in them — Ecclesiastes 12:1

We can’t choose to age – God made the choice for us – but we can choose how to respond to the process. Think of it, the Lord put far more expectations into age than He did youth. Robert Browning wrote, “I summon age, to claim youth’s heritage!” The older we get “in Christ” the younger we get “in power.” As Paul said in II Corinthians 4:16, “Our outer man wastes away but the inner man is renewed day by day.” The mature Christian eagerly welcomes growing older for it takes him deeper in Christ and closer to the dawn of his eternal youth. As my dear mentor, J. Sidlow Baxter, said at age 94 … “Except for a few growing physical hindrances old (age) is wonderful … I wouldn’t have missed if for the world!”

Prayer for the Vice President

I was invited to give the opening prayer for a luncheon in Springdale, Arkansas, July 24, 2006, where the Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, was the guest speaker. Here is the text of the prayer I wrote for the occasion.

Father Creator- I offer this prayer for myself in the name of your Son … and for all my friends here in whatever way they recognize there is a God in Heaven.

First, I ask You to forgive all of us of our sad ignorance about the values, sacrifices, and forces that brought our nation into existence. Let us be honest enough to admit that for too many of us the bump of knowledge on our heads concerning the wondrous founding of our nation is a dent! Help us to be true students of the miracle of the United States of America in the long history of mankind.

Secondly, thank You today for the presence of our Vice President. Enable him in his strategic position to be a leader of highest vision and deepest truth. We ask the same for our President, our national and state leaders, and especially for our military leaders as they serve in harms way. From the highest rank to the lowest may they serve with strength and integrity.

Third, we joyfully thank You for Asa and Susan and their willingness and call to pay the hard price of positive and pure public service. We love them, Father, and ask Your full measure of blessing and promotion on their lives as You will.

Lastly, give this audience today a richer vision for our country. Save all of our truly noble citizens from being captured by the liberal left or captured by the conservative right but rather make them captive to being centered on liberating truth that is both self-evident and derived from our Creator.

Teach our people that we cannot build a free nation if it is an immoral nation. With all our national faults, Father, enable us to take our true message to the Middle East and to the rest of the world.

We say with the Psalmist…”Let us run in the way of Your commandments so that we can enlarge our hearts.”

We ask that our hearts be enlarged as we enjoy this gathering. May we hear well – respond well – do well – and love well – the true American Vision!

AMEN

Bullet of Praise: The Bottom Line

“The bottom line” is a bedrock conversation phrase in the financial world but it is just as critical for the “Becoming in Christ Believer”. What is “the bottom line” for your relationship with Christ Jesus? The best way to measure how close you are coming to the Savior is praise!

You know you are sharing Christ’s triumph when you find yourself in high praise regardless of your circumstances! Turning the best and worst events of your life into praise means you’ve won with Him, no matter what you have lost (or gained) on earth! As my dear, departed friend, Mickey Bonner, so beautifully put it … “a man’s maturity in Christ is revealed by his level of praise during his time of hardest testing.”

To see this happening in you life puts the words of the Psalmist in your heart … “May the high praise of God be in my mouth.”(Psalm 149:6) This is the only place in Hebrew Scriptures “high praise” is used. The entire Psalm (only nine verses) is a sweep of creation (1-3), salvation (4-6), celebration (7-9a), and exaltation (9b). This Psalm suggests there are three levels of celebration … joy, praise, and high praise!

Praise is bottom line stuff if one is serious about the Master. In fact, His presence with us is most clearly revealed to others by the magnitude of the praise within us!

The Bullet of Praise: Preparation

You cannot prepare ahead of time for the crises that will come into your life …
But you can prepare your heart in the moment to be a person of praise …
And in doing that you are prepared for whatever the future holds.

The Bullet of Wisdom: I Corinthians 1:30

It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God - that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.

I Corinthians 1:30

The Lord lifted me recently with I Corinthians 1:30. It is only in Christ we have the wisdom that 1) conquers our blindness (righteousness), 2) completes our inadequacies (holiness), and 3) covers our failures (redemption). What a praise that He would do that for the likes of us!

The Bullet of Understanding

Understand you live in a broken world that constantly pressures you and knocks you down.
Only Answer: Keep getting up … Christ will enable you if you start! (II Corinthians 4:1, 16-18)

Understand that death to the secondary things make you alive to the best things.
Only Answer: Seek the Cross … Christ will enable you if you start! (John 12:23-26)

Understand that failure is inevitable to every person, but that doesn’t mean you are a failure.
Only Answer: Accept your sin and weakness … Forgive yourself! Christ will enable you if you start! ((Hebrews 10:14-14)

Understand the wounds and suffering of life, which cannot be escaped, will either defeat us by deceit or direct us to truth.
Only Answer: Endure whatever comes … Don’t quit! Christ will enable you if you start! (Romans 5:1-5)

Understand that all human beings (including you) are flawed and partial people. They will all disappoint you, hurt you, and be inadequate for you. You will do the same to yourself.
Only answer: Fill in their gaps (and yours) with the wisdom and power of God’s forgiveness. Christ will enable you if you start! (Ephesians 4:29-32)

Understand that praise (worship) is your ultimate strength against depression, aimlessness, weariness, and insignificance. His presence will be sovereign over you if you praise Him.
Only Answer: Praise Him continually, especially in the non-praise situations. Christ will enable you if you start! (Psalm 149:6)

Understand that you must practice and become continuously proficient in putting every experience of your life … good or bad, victorious or catastrophic … in Christ. There is no other “balance!”
Only Answer: Discover the hidden promises of God … dig! Christ will enable you if you start! (Colossians 2:1-8)

Understand God’s purpose on this fallen and broken world. Life is hard … very hard. Most try to escape the reality of it, but God must make us face hardness if we are to be trained in Christ’s likeness and become His warriors in spiritual combat!
Only Answer: You must learn to see everything … everything … from God’s point of view. Be eager and ready for problems and learn to process truth quickly! Christ will enable you if you start! (II Corinthians 5:13-21)

Understand that joy … indescribable joy … is possible on earth, but it is a gift of God and not experienced or achieved by anything we do. It is a gift only for those who please God. It is greater than happiness. Life is boring, meaningless, and sad without God’s kind of joy.
Only Answer: Finding God’s joy is the true source of overcoming-strength! Christ will enable you if you start! (John 10:7-10; 15:11; 16:33)

When Your Dream Fails

If your dream is smashed, get a bigger dream.

God and Country

We do the most for our country when we “first” do the most we can for our King.


From Patriotism and the Kingdom

Remember the Cost of Freedom

In 1776, John Adams said, “If it be the pleasure of Heaven that my country shall require the poor offering if my life, the victim shall be ready, at the appointed hour of sacrifice, come when that hour may. But while I do live, let me have a country, and that a free country!”

The Bullet of Encouragement: Wisdom

The Lord lifted me recently with I Corinthians 1:30. It is only in Christ we have the wisdom that 1) conquers our blindness (righteousness), 2) completes our inadequacies (holiness), and 3) covers our failures (redemptions). What a praise that He would do that for the likes of us! What an encouragement that He did!

Who is in Control?

The issue is not learning to control your circumstances but yielding enough to allow the Father to control your consequences.

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Commission for Parents

Our children are our most precious legacy. It takes much time and energy to… “Train a child in the way he should go …” (Proverbs 22:6) To achieve that end, it helps to have solid goals to work toward. The most important of these we can set are spiritual ones. Donna Otto put our greatest spiritual goal thus, “Raise your children so that they can make a choice for Jesus.” Mothers and fathers who shape their family life around this calling will find they meet the other goals they have for their children through a lifestyle geared to teach their children what it means to know Jesus, to live the Christ Life.

Are We Losing Our Young People? Yes!

I came across a telling paragraph recently. It is from Jim Burkett of Foundations Ministries International and is dated September, 2005. With a few facts, the author makes a telling case for Biblical truth directed toward the young of our nation.

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Last Sunday I made the following statement at Destiny Christian Church in Del City, Oklahoma” “WE ARE LOSING OUR YOUNG PEOPLE!” We are losing our young people to destructive philosophies and influences that lead them to spiritual emptiness, sexual exploitation, and sometimes physical harm through disease and death.
Consider this:

• 70% of the university students in the United States have a sexually transmitted disease (STD) and do not know it.


• 88% of Southern Baptist young people leave Christianity within four years after graduating from high school.
  
• Among the Boomer generation (bo
rn betwee4n 1946 to 1964), there are 35% Bible-based believers;

• Among the Busters generation (born between 1965 to 1983), there are 16% Bible-based believers;


• Among the Bridgers (or millenials, born 1984 or later), there are 4% Bible-based believers.

THE MISSION FIELD for teens and young adults (60 million plus) is real and critical!

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Never before in our history has the need for presenting the truth of the Word of God been more urgent and imminent. We need a new Haystack Revival on our campuses, not to reach the world but to reach our nation!

There are many churches, movements, and ministries seeking to win the youth of America. Some are very traditional, some highly innovative. The ultimate success of all these different approaches will lie in their ability to motivate Believers to grasp the percision of the Savior’s life and insights. The new and exciting is always appealing to the young and it is our job to show them that the newest and most exciting thing in life is learning to live in Christ. Only in so far as our young people learn to focus on the Christ Life can the distressing trend seen in the statistics quoted above be reversed. All of our programs and innovations are inadequate until we learn how to be centered on the adventure of Christ in you. Older Christians with a dull view of the wonders of Jesus will never compel their youth to seek the fullness of the Gospel.