Getting Life Done Right

Getting Life Done Right
by David Brenneman

“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.  And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.  He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it." Matthew 10:37-39.

"Many plans are in a man’s heart, But the counsel of the Lord will stand." Proverbs 19:21.

There's a specific, special, personal,  plan for for the life of a child of God after they come to Christ for salvation. 

Until a person realizes their spiritual state and does come to Christ for salvation, whereby Jesus becomes the forgiver of their sins and the leader of their lives...the only path before such a person is the path that leads to destruction or better known as Hell.

Not only here in Matthew do we read what Jesus said of what the love of a follower of Jesus Christ ought to be like, but we can read it in Mark 8:34-38 "And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.  For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.  For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?  For what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”". As well as in the gospel of Luke "And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.  For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.  For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels." Luke 9:23-26.

Think on these passages and then add this "See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him." 1 John 3:1.

To know what path to take towards fulfilling what we're here to be doing, while growing in Christ, has to begin with where our love is to first be...and who is receiving it...the Lord Jesus Christ our risen Lord and Savior. 

What are you doing to discover your God-given path for your life in Christ, if indeed you're claiming the Name above all names, Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior?

What is occupying your thoughts, your intentions, your actions?

Are you SHOWING your commitment to a life given to Christ for His purposes by prayer and time in His Word?

My Dear Reader, as the Scriptures say, first be sure of your salvation, then live like it's true. 

Do you commit to daily time in the Word of God? 

Do you pray from your heart and not just empty repetition?

How deep is your love for Jesus who saved you? 

Of these plans you have for your today, where all does Jesus fit into them?  How will you show your love towards Him in it? 

This post is as much for all who read it as it is for me. 

I made a commitment to be in the Word almost a decade ago, both morning and evening, and unless I was direly ill I never have missed a day.  The amazing thing to me is what began to happen which is how  things of this world became less and less important to me.  We don't have televisions in our house.  Have no need for them.  It's incredibly rare that I look for a movie to watch on a laptop.  They no longer hold my interest.  Science fiction used to be one solid thing in my life.  While I do occasionally look up this or that in science fiction I don't buy books or have any collections anymore.  My biggest book collection these days is books that have been helping me to grow in Christ.  Study Bibles.  Seeking out the teaching from the Spirit of God who set me in the body of Christ as He saw fit.

The same Spirit sets all Believers within the body of Christ as He sees fit, that's what the Word of God says.  We become His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works that we might walk in them.  AKA that we might discover our purpose that within His plan for us and live towards that end.

If you're claiming the Name above all names, the Name of Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior and aren't living a committed life honoring Him for all He did to save you...I implore you to change your ways.  We also read in the same Bible that we get all other Scriptures from that we give an account of our lives before Him. Our lives lived for Him will produce a crown of righteousness that we will offer back to Jesus in appreciation for all He's done. 

Will you even have enough to form a crown?  Will your life's work show that living for Jesus was your ultimate aim in your life?

Use multiple methods to discover the spiritual gifts given to you.  Then get in the Word of God daily, both morning and evening.  Radically improve your prayer time by being fully honest with yourself and listen for whatever it is that the Spirit has in mind for you to be doing then do it, leaving all the consequences to Him.  It's going to mean giving up things in our lives to make room for God's will for us.

I don't miss what I have been lead to remove from my life.  I do feel pained when I neglect being on time with meeting with Jesus.  While I no longer have close friends that I share life with as I used to have, I most certainly have a friend who sticks closer than a brother, my friend Jesus.

Are you developing your relationship with Jesus or have you let it become stagnant and not as important as it used to be?  Will your life's work burn up completely when He tests it with fire?

You have the opportunity to do better starting today.  Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you. Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation.
A corporation not for profit.  
La Habra, CA All rights reserved
www.lockman.org

Here to be Taught, Here to Do

Here to be Taught, Here to Do

by David Brenneman 

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you."

Psalms 32:8

     Today, here are three things you need to know as you wait on the Lord's direction. First, God will show you His will. He desires that you walk according to His plan and assumes responsibility for teaching you how to do so. It is, however, your responsibility to obey what He

leads you to do.

     Second, the Father is committed to your success. From the time you were born, God has been working through the circumstances of your life to train you for His purposes. So commit yourself to following wherever the Lord leads you with confidence that He will equip and empower you to accomplish whatever He's planned for you to do.

     Third, God will redirect you when you make a wrong turn. So do not fear going forward when He calls. No matter how badly you mess up, the Father will take the broken pieces of your life and with the glue of His unconditional love, put it back together. He will take you where you are and help you get back on the right track with His wisdom and strength.

Jesus, thank You for teaching, leading, equipping, and redirecting me because of Your great love. Amen.

-Trusting God with Today. 

There is a divine purpose under Heaven for each and every single Believer in Jesus Christ...yes...even for you...yes you...if you do have Jesus Christ as the forgiver of your sins and the leader of your life. 

You're not still here just to use up your years of physical life that you have left. You were given spiritual gifts from the Spirit as He saw fit. You were given a divine purpose under Heaven to both grow in Christ and to be a light in this present dark world. 

You weren't given an empty toolbox. You were given the abilities necessary to search out the things of God that make for the righteous life that God desires for you.  

You were given His Word to search diligently. You were granted full access to the Throne Room of God.  

You became His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works that you might walk in them.  

So what are you doing with what you've been given? Is it gathering dust? Wrapped up and buried in a hole in the ground? Are you afraid to pursue what the Spirit is leading you to? Are you putting self ahead of what you're to be doing in Christ?

Even Christians break their commitments to others for worldly reasons. Sometimes even selfish or self-centered reasons.  

Even Christians are tempted to put aside the will of God. Essentially that's one of the biggest schemes of the devil. He can't do anything about your being saved but he can make things of this world and selfish desires, selfish choices, more appealing than obeying the voice of God. 

How frequently are you in God's Word? If you're not in it daily, let alone more than once a day, why aren't you? There's no worldly excuse that is acceptable for neglecting being in the Word of God. None. 

How frequently are you talking to your Savior and Lord Jesus Christ? How frequently are you talking to your Father in Heaven?

These things are among those that are the will of God for us in Christ.

Give up whatever you need to in order to obey God. It's rather simple.

You might not be facing heavy spiritual battles for a very good reason: You're already where the enemy of God wants you. You're already lukewarm where he wants you and Jesus does not (read Revelation's letters to the Churches). When there's no reason to attack you, Satan's minions go somewhere else. You could be right where they want you. 

Look to what King David said "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way." Psalms 139:23-24. 

King David prayed that prayer. We can too. 

Do we really want to stand before Jesus ashamed of the truth of our lives we lived?  

You who are in Christ have are to be transformed, trained in righteousness, to be adequate, equipped for every good work of God. That's sort of paraphrasing several passages but it's the truth in their meaning for the will of God for us in Christ...our sanctification. 

Give up whatever you must to be living the righteous life that God desires for you. Be it movies, games, sports, reading, television, streaming videos, traveling, whatever isn't allowing you to grow in Christ as the Spirit is charged with doing in your life.  

It's been a difficult, complicated, road at times to truly understand the depth of what Paul was saying when he said "But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ." Philippians 3:7. And again with "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 so that I may gain Christ, 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, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:8-12.

Repeatedly in the Scriptures we read "Consider your ways".

My Dear Reader it's infinitely more beneficial to do so now when we can do something about it than when we stand before Jesus. 

Seek the Lord while He may be found. Obey in whatever you're being directed to do. Learn all you can about living the righteous life that God desires for you. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

Don't Panic, Pray!

Don't Panic, Pray!

by David Brenneman 

As we place our dependence

upon God, an incredible

freedom and peace will begin

to rest in our hearts. And

reaching that point in our lives

makes every setback worth it.

To You they cried out and

were delivered; in You they

trusted and were not

disappointed.

-PSALM 22:5

God created everything with

a plan, and He has principles

that govern all He does. The

Lord always operates with a

sense of direction and purpose

in mind-not only for us as

individuals, but also to achieve

His universal, eternal goals.

O LORD, You are my God,

I will exalt You, I will give

thanks to Your name;

for You have worked

wonders, plans formed

long ago, with

perfect faithfulness.

-ISAIAH 25:1

"There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven—A time to give birth and a time to die; A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal; A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to weep and a time to laugh; A time to mourn and a time to dance. A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing. A time to search and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear apart and a time to sew together; A time to be silent and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate; A time for war and a time for peace." Ecclesiastes 3:1-8.

"Why is this happening to me!?!?"

"I can't take it anymore!?!"

"I have no idea WHAT to do!"

You're in the right place. 

Rejoice and be glad in it. 

"Huh?!?" you might respond with. "My world is falling apart! You want me to be happy about it!?!".

Not me...God's Word says that in everything give thanks. Even the things that aren't going well as far as our perceptions go.

Go deeper with "Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6.

You, hopefully, did come to Christ for salvation at some point in your life. If you did, all the hope that's available in the power of the resurrection of Christ is within your grasp. If you have not, you're pretty much on your own. 

Someone was there to pray me towards salvation in Christ. My prayer for all who read these posts who haven't come to Christ for salvation yet is that they would. 

For those here who have come to Christ but are struggling with their 'world' falling apart...why are you trying to go it alone?  

In Christ means just that...you're following Him, obeying in what He says, following His direction. Sometimes we get ahead of Him and end up in some unique circumstances. He's still there to pull us through. Jesus said, in His model prayer, "your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven". 

If you're still trying to get your will to be done instead of His, you're creating a problem for you.  

You may think your situation is dire, insurmountable, impossible even.  

Fantastic! Jesus also said "And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”" Matthew 19:26.

And think on this: "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation." 1 Peter 4:12-13.

My Dear Reader...if indeed you are saved in Christ Jesus...you are held safely in His hands. 

Several times Jesus rebuked His Disciples for their lack of faith. They should have known and understood that the Father wouldn't allow anything or anyone to thwart the plans of God for Jesus while Jesus was living for the will of His Father to be completed. 

We, for ten months, could have panicked because of the circumstances of my unemployment. Wondering where was God in all this...truth was He was all over it. He provided every dollar we needed every single month. On top of this He provided food for us and our cats. He kept the lights on and gas in the vehicle's. Kept me busy with odd jobs, learning, restoring my confidence. My mind kept wondering if I was facing age discrimination in the application process. No, it was that I was back in school learning. The new job for me wasn't ready yet. 

You, my Dear Reader, need to re-read Luke 10:38-42 about Mary and Martha.  

As a great hymn says "Are we weak and heavy-laden, Cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge—Take it to the Lord in prayer; Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer; In His arms He’ll take and shield thee, Thou wilt find a solace there.".

Turn your eyes from your circumstances and towards your Savior. Take whatever is on your heart to the Lord in prayer. Quit trying to figure out what He's already figured out. 

"Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:31-34.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

Looking to God for Your Why

Looking to God for Your Why

by David Brenneman 

"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified." Romans 8:28-30.

"Looking at them, Jesus said, “With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.” Mark 10:27.

Every Christian eventually has an experience that seems totally inconsistent in the life of a child of a loving God. It may involve health, finances, relationships, career, property, or family. Whatever the experience, you will come through it with one nagging question: "Why, Lord?"

     That question is acceptable to God; He is not angered by our desire for answers.- Walking with God, Dr. David Jeremiah. 

When you encounter a difficult situation in life that looks impossible, what is the first thing you think? For most people, it is, "Oh Lord, what am I going to do?" But that's the wrong question. Instead, the right thing to ask is, "Lord, what are You going to do?" Because, as we are well aware, He is all-powerful, and nothing is too challenging for Him.

     Of course, all of us know that in our minds. But often, when our back is against the wall and we don't know where to turn, we become gripped by the immensity of our predicaments and the disconcerting details that accompany them. It's natural

for us to immediately envision the worst-case scenarios and how helpless we are with our limited resources We become trapped by what we see and hear rather than recall who comes to our aid.

     This is why We must train ourselves to look to the Lord rather than our circumstances. Because when we invite the supernatural, powerful presence of the living God to take hold of our situation, He deals with our difficulties in ways far beyond our imagination. He can get us to the right solution regardless of what we face.- Trusting God with Today, Dr. Charles Stanley. 

A year ago I had been a month into what would be a 10 month hiatus from gainful employment. It certainly would be a time of learning and a time for questioning things in my life.  

Only in some respects was it rough. What it did was to draw me closer to my Savior.

I was hit with some certainly unexpected financial news in recent weeks. Was already having a difficult time with one place, and another comes along that's much bigger than the first. It's medical bills. Evidently the person owing is to pay up as soon as possible yet those doing the billing have 6 years to bill you.  

It's an easy situation where you want to cry out "Why?!?". It's been these same two devotionals that I continue to read through and it's always amazing that God brings the right things to read at the right time. 

We are going to face why moments. 

We are not always going to understand the why's behind the things that the Lord chooses to allow in our lives...no more than Job.  

Yet we are allowed to ask the question and to seek out His wisdom and guidance to deal with what we face. 

Disappointments are inevitable, but discouragement is a choice is one of Dr. Stanley's Life Principles. 

We can choose to mope and have a pity party, do the old woe is me, or we can pray with all honesty to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and expect God to help.

It's really sad to me when people show their entire lack of hope in their lives. They lay claim to believing in God, even in Jesus, yet there's no fruit to show they ever came to Christ for salvation. 

Trillions of people are in Hell who believed that Jesus was real, and some even believed everything the Bible said about Him.  

Without actually coming to Christ for salvation, without asking Him to be the forgiver of your sins and the leader of your life...you will die in your sins.  

This is at the core of living a life that's dependent upon Christ for dealing with these difficult times and situations. Without a right relationship with Jesus, without knowing Him as your Lord and Savior, you're fooling yourself. 

I know these things are going to be resolved. I know that nothing is a surprise to my Savior. He was already in today before I got here. 

Scripture says He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He is not just my Savior, He's the Creator. He's the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last. He is over everything that is and what will be. 

He got us through many incredibly big and difficult times and these situations are no different. Satan's minion's aim was to draw us away from God to wallow in self pity, but the reality is God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose. He allows things because these things draw us to Him. 

These medical bills are just another unknown on top of others but slowly things are getting worked out. Sometimes God answers through others, some of the times He has us pick up a shovel to start the digging to move the mountain before He steps in. 

We do ourselves much harm by constantly whining, griping and endlessly complaining because we are showing we aren't relying on Christ. 

Daily we pray, daily we await His response. Daily we do whatever it is for us to do and daily we thank Him for all He's done and is still doing. Thankful that we do have a Savior who cares intimately about everything to do with us.

"No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." 1 Corinthians 10:13.

We will be tempted to go it alone and to try in our own strength and understanding. The wise thing to do is take it to the Lord in prayer. 

Look for God in your situation and seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org

In Your Heart

In Your Heart
by David Brenneman

When we walk with the Lord
in the light of his word,
what a glory he sheds on our way!
While we do his good will,
he abides with us still,
and with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there's no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

Not a burden we bear,
not a sorrow we share,
but our toil he doth richly repay;
not a grief or a loss,
not a frown or a cross,
but is blest if we trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there's no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

But we never can prove
the delights of his love
until all on the altar we lay;
for the favor he shows,
for the joy he bestows,
are for them who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there's no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

Then in fellowship sweet
we will sit at his feet,
or we'll walk by his side in the way;
what he says we will do,
where he sends we will go;
never fear, only trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there's no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

"Trust and Obey"
Author: John H. Sammis (1887)

We walk into an unknown-to-us world every morning we are granted a new day to breathe.

For those who are among the saved in Christ Jesus...things are supposed to be different for us.

The world is going to be nipping at our heels to get our hearts to indeed lean on our own understanding.  Satan's going to push...in whatever his minions and he are allowed...to cause us troubles in our lives. 

The Scriptures point us to the truths  about being persecuted.  About the troubles that the world will try to cause those in Christ. 

Then we have that passage where it says that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

Praying and prayer cannot be stressed enough for the Believer.  In no way should prayer ever be a second or third thought when travails come upon us.  Before they do, while they're present, and afterwards prayer should be our first priority.

The world that Satan's running is the opposite of what it means to trust and obey the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am usually more fond of these older hymns than the modern music being created because these songs of what modern man calls the early Church were far more rooted in Scripture.

Songs that made the person singing stop and consider the message within.  The words sticking with them after they've been sung.

There's always good reasons why these older songs of the faith go so deep.  Many were born of personal tragedy or great losses suffered. 

If ever you want a true spiritual musical history lesson go look up the stories behind some famous hymns.

Sometimes when spiritual battles come my way, hymns are what the Spirit brings to sooth me.  It's funny how it's mostly never the new songs that I have heard in Church. 

When pain and sorrow are what's on my heart...leaning on such wonderful hymns is like a balm.

When uncertainty is knocking on the door, a good hymn helps right the ship n gets me in a better place.

When loneliness grips me, which is more often than most everyone knows about, hymns bring my mind back to my relationship with my Savior. 

It's rather appropriate that my mind went to Trust and Obey this morning because of our current financial situation.  Satan's minions would love it if we fell to pieces because of something we weren't expecting hits us.  As another good song goes "count your blessings name them one by one, see what all the Lord has done".

These times in which we live aren't going to get better.  Biblical truths about these last days before Jesus returns point to things proceeding from bad to worse.  Hymns of the faith are among the things we're directed to focus on during times like this.

"speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;" Ephesians 5:19-20.

Which, by what this passage explicitly points to, means we're not to be going it alone in Christ.  You can't speak to one another if you're by yourself.

An apt song this morning as well is "This is the day, this is the day that the Lord has made, that the Lord has made. We will rejoice, we will rejoice and be glad in it, and be glad in it. This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it!".

Today is a day that the Lord created...rejoice and be glad in it...that He's already here before you got here.  He's already working things for your good.  Give up worrying about what's in front of you.  Jesus isn't.  He promised to never leave you or forsake you.  Rejoice in that too.

Pray on, pray over, pray through.
Singing, making melody in your heart towards God.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation.
A corporation not for profit.  
La Habra, CA All rights reserved
www.lockman.org

Plugged into the Power

Plugged into The Power 

By David Brenneman 

"Keep watching and þraying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak," Matthew 26:41

     Do you realize that when you fail to pray, you cut off the power, wisdom, strength, and blessings you could be enjoying. Perhaps you are noticing the effects of prayerlessness in your life today. Maybe you're experiencing the weight of your sin, or you just can't shake sense of confusion. It's also possible you're feeling unusually discouraged, weak, or depressed. That's what happens when you don't spend time with God.

     So why does failing to pray make you feel this way? Understand that the Lord isn't intentionally making you feel bad; rather, this is the natural outcome of being disconnected from Him. This is because prayer is like a powerline that plugs you into the Source. Through it, you're given His wisdom and guidance, His identity and purpose, His strength and peace, His love and acceptance. Prayer is the conduit through which you receive all of it. And that's why when you cut it off, you've got a problem.

     So don't quit praying when things don't go your way or according to your time schedule. Stay connected because you need the presence and power of God in your life.

Jesus, help me to keep praying and seeking You in every season. Amen.

-Trusting God with Today, Dr. Charles Stanley.

Drained is sometimes more than just a physical tiredness.  

Drained can be emotional as well. 

Drained, more importantly than those two, can be spiritual.

We really should put more importance on what time we spend in prayer. I will be the first to admit that I don't spend enough time in prayer.  

What Dr. Stanley said in this devotional rings oh so true. Stay unplugged, stay drained. 

Right now I ought to be even more in prayer with some of these heavily complicated situations going on in my life.

I am reminding myself that my Savior and my Lord Jesus Christ got us through 10 months of unemployment, quite often by miraculous means, so these things hitting us now shouldn't be rattling me.

It really does come down to prayer.

It's these things that are allowed that are meant to draw us closer to Himself. 

It's these things that are meant to grow us in Christ, to show us what needs to change in our lives.

Nothing of a malicious intent is behind such permitted things in our lives.  

Satan's minions, I say it that way because I never believe that with all that's going on in the world that I ever will be important enough for Satan himself to come after me, are not pulling a fast one on God and have somehow managed to get at me while He wasn't looking.

Sometimes that's probably how many people feel. That our God wasn't paying attention and the enemy got through. This is never the case.  

He wants us to stay plugged into the power of God in Christ Jesus. 

He wants us to keep our communication lines open between us and His Throne. 

He wants us to rely on Him and not our own understanding. 

We can, and often do, get lulled into a false sense of security by the peaceful moments that come in life. 

My prayer life directly impacts my physical life. It certainly impacts my mental health. Same goes with everyone.  

We cannot live the righteous life that God desires without being spiritually fed. Unlike physical food, we can never over eat spiritual nourishment.  

I would ask all of you to pray concerning my needs as I pray for yours.  

Just as we can't out-give God, we likewise cannot out-commune with Him. 

He never gets tired of hearing from me or you. We can never wear out our welcome. No matter when or where He's always ready for us.

Confessing sin fully opens that door of communication an unconfessed tends to hinder and start to close it. We must forgive if we want to be forgiven.  

Think about how different your approach to life would be should you really consider the Biblical truth that you're always walking side-by-side with Jesus.   

Pray on, pray over, pray through whatever you're facing. My prayers are for this blog to either draw people to Jesus or show people how to find Him again. My daily morning prayers are for my Wife, my Spiritual Dad and his Wife. For my local Church and its leadership. Safety of workers on site there. For unsaved people I work with now and those whom I used to. For the unsaved in my family. There's always someone you can talk to Jesus about helping either with regards to salvation or health or anything else. I include the guys in the Saturday Morning Group that I attend as well as our Sunday Evening Group. The health of family and friends. Those in authority over me, both at work and the country. These are but examples of what is important to our Savior to hear from us about.

Keep plugged into Him through prayer...you'll always be the better for doing so. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org

Positioning You For His Will

Positioning You For His Will

by David Brenneman 

     "And what happens through your

times in prayer is that He's bringing you into harmony with His will.

After all, you need to be in agreement with God to receive His best.

     Sometimes it`ll seem as if trials or opportunities appear quickly

out of the blue-and those may be the ones you're most motivated

to pray about, But remember that over time, He's been working

to position you for them. He is actively working through the very

things you're praying about to reveal Himself and His will to you.

So keep seeking Him and be confident that what you're doing is

indeed powerful and worthwhile." - Exerpt from the July 12th entry in Trusting God with Today, by Dr. Charles Stanley. 

Much of what we go through in life as a Believer is to position us for success alright...success in Christ. 

Our thoughts and prayers are being developed to mirror the thoughts of our Savior Jesus Christ while we go through what we go through.

The Spirit is never aiming to leave us as we were when we first came to Christ for salvation, but rather His role in our lives is our sanctification. To make us more like Christ and never to leave us as we once were. 

We may not understand but we can obey.  

"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." Hebrews 12:11.

And then think on this:

"Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 1:5-8.

There's a path set before us in Christ that leads towards our becoming more like Jesus. That's what the workmanship is that He's bringing about. 

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." Ephesians 2:10.

We are adopted into the family of God. We are to learn what that means and all that it entails and give it our everything in order to please the One who loved us enough to die for us, and yes rise again from the dead to save us. 

Who cares if we reach goals that the world says are important. The goals that matter in light of eternity all belong to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

If our goals and ambitions, our wants and desires, align with Christ's, all the better. But if we're shown that those aren't necessary or needed for what it is our part of the body of Christ needs...let them go. 

We are being positioned for success in Christ. We can either embrace this or fight it. It's never a good thing to fight it.  

Ours is to obey in all things.

Ours is to put ourselves on our own cross and die to self and live to Christ.

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21.

Set your mind on the things that are above and not on the things that are of this world, especially in setting priorities and living life. 

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and spirit. Love your neighbor as yourself. 

Remember what God's Will for you is: your sanctification. 1 Thessalonians 4:3a. "For this is the will of God for you, your sanctification.".

While you may not understand the why's of life, in Christ, you know what it is for you to be doing: obeying Him.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org

Be Thankful That It's This Way

Be Thankful That It's This Way 

by David Brenneman 

"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21.

Ever consider the thought that when we demand to understand that we're asking too much?  

When you consider all that Job went through, he really didn't know what was truly behind his ills.

When Daniel was praying and praying, he didn't know of the spiritual forces that were trying to hinder his receiving an answer. 

We likewise are not guaranteed an answer to what we face in life. At least on this side of Heaven. 

Ours is to do as that old hymn said "trust and obey, for there's no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey. While we do His good will, He abides with us still. Never fear only trust and obey.".

I was reviewing my Journal entries for this day of the year, over the last 9 years this morning. Reading my comments and emotional responses to things that happened in my life.

Having the right attitude during situations we face is everything if we are looking for some semblance of understanding. Even if it's next to nothing or if it's a full explanation. It's always on us to trust and obey.

I look back over things and honestly am disappointed in me for my lack of looking at life from a more Godly perspective. 

Our attitude during a situation certainly shows our level of growth in Christ, of how far our sanctification is.

We aren't to just take everything that sounds spiritual to heart. Scripture says "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." 1 John 4:1.

I often ask various Godly men about book authors to get their views on trusting the material they write.  

I have had experience in Columbus, Ohio, of coming across a demon possessed man serving in a young church. So I question new people preaching whom I know nothing about.  

We need to obey the Word of God if we're to be able to recognize the schemes of the devil.  

We need to live a life that honors Jesus Christ for all He's done for us if we're going to both grow in Christ and to see Heavenly responses to prayers we pray in Jesus's Name. 

Until we are called home to be with Jesus or the Rapture of the Church takes place...we're in the middle of a spiritual war. There are no bystanders, no conscientious objectors, none who are out of the fray. We are all facing something and need to be men and women of God who are heavily involved with prayer to our Savior Jesus Christ. 

When our hearts and lives are where they are supposed to be in Christ...indeed He does respond and will "do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us".  

In my short time on this Earth I have many stories to recount that tell of the wonderful things that God has done in my life. Probably many many more that I will recognize on the other side of this life when Jesus shows them to me. 

Knowing what you are facing, have faced and will face as a child of God will help you to see that trusting in the Lord with all your heart And not leaning on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight...will become a way of life. 

I am in awe of what God has done for me, through me and even to me in His Name.  

Look into your life from a Godly perspective rather than your own. 

Renovate your life, getting rid of every encumbrance that's slowing you down.  

All who are in Christ are in the race.

All who are in Christ are to live a life that honors Him with our everything. 

We can't know what's in store for us until we do...it really is beyond what we can ask or think.  Be thankful that it's this way...it's through this way we see the greatness of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

Evil Men Will Increase & Your Instructions

Evil Men Will Increase & Your Instructions 

by David Brenneman 

"Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me! Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:10-17.

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name." 1 Peter 4:12-16.

So many shake their head at the evils in this world and aren't aware that the levels of evil are increasing.  

So many Believers have a very strong misconception about the things that they're going through. 

The two are very much connected and are even at times intertwined. 

I am not really surprised at all that what Paul said about Scripture was preceded by talk about the people of this world and as history showed he was speaking of evil within the Church.

Satan's schemes get permission from God to be used, do you not realize that? Satan's got a tremendous intellect and nothing but evil to back it up. When permitted we see levels of evil that are worse than what was seen even a few years ago.

Several times in the Scriptures we read of the evil people within the Church. That hasn't changed in the centuries since these books were first written. Evil people exist within the Church today...it's just that those leading those particular groups of people aren't willing to do whatever Scripture says to do to deal with them. So their evil influence persists. With the result that the people are lead astray and such church leadership will have much to explain before Jesus for why they truly feared man rather than God. 

We're going to face storms in life. We went over that in an earlier post. We have our orders, so to speak, on what is to be our focus on living life in the face of such storms.  

Some use an acronym "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth" for Bible. Basic Instructions Before Living Eternally or something like that makes more immediate sense for more immediate application. We are to be in God's Word daily to learn how to live NOW not just for whatever is to come and for after we are Raptured. 

We aren't studying the Bible for the sake of doing so. We're learning what the character of Christ is so that we can live life in like manner. 

We will sometimes be the ones facing evil head-on. Sometimes we deal with the effects of evil. Sometimes within the Church sometimes outside of it. But we will run into it.  

Some of Satan's schemes we give him credit for that have nothing to do with him. It's stuff that convinced ourselves to do or be like. We choose to either forgiveness or we don't. We choose to overlook the sins of others or we don't. We choose to hold a grudge or we choose to let it go. We choose to do things and bear the ramifications of them. Satan had nothing to do with it...it's our own inexperienced life in Christ because we're not doing more to live a life that honors Christ. We choose bad choices and blame it on anyone or anything but ourselves. 

We do these intentional things because we're either intentionally avoiding what God's Word says or we're too ignorant with regards to what God's Word says. 

We have our Instructions in the Lord. It's all there in black and white for us to read and take to heart. We don't know the kingdom impact we could be having by our obedience rather than our current view that is tainted by our disobedience. 

You, my Dear Reader, are either living in obedience or you're not.

While it's a certainty that evil men and women will proceed from bad to worse...it's just as certain that you will give an account of your life before Jesus.  

Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you. 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. 

Quit with the excuses and get into the Word of God so that you'll be adequate, equipped for every good work. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

Deeper Roots Survive Storms

Deeper Roots Survive Storms 

by David Brenneman 

"I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; But now my eye sees You;" JOB 42:5

     You may have heard it said that a person does not not really know who his friends are until the bottom

drops out. In much the same way, we will never personally know how truly faithful, strong and wise Jesus is apart from adversity. Indeed, if our lives are free from pain, turmoil, and sorrow, our experience of God will remain purely academic. Our trust in Him would never increase, mature, or be strengthened. Our relationship with Him could be compared to that with a great-great-grandfather about whom we've heard stories yet never met personally. We would have great admiration but no intimacy or fellowship. That is not the kind of relationship God wants with His children.

     Through the costly death of Christ, the Lord has opened the

way for us to have direct access to Him, and He wants nothing to

stand between us. So He engineers circumstances through which

He can reveal Himself to us in a personal and profound way and we

can bond with Him emotionally, relationally, and spiritually. When

difficult seasons arise, do not despair. Instead, rejoice that God is about to reveal Himself to you in a powerful way, and get ready to 

experience His faithfulness firsthand.

Jesus, thank You for revealing Yourself to me through all my

circumstances. Amen.

- Trusting God with Today, Dr. Charles Stanley. 

We experience situations throughout our life where we pray and Jesus shows up through the various people He's placed in our lives.  

This is for our extreme benefit as pointed out by Dr. Stanley.  

Likewise true is this notion that we need the things we go through in life in order to grow in Christ.

A tree may grow tall and wide and have a fantastic appearance...but if the roots are truly shallow then comes the right kind of storm and it will topple over. 

King Saul had all the appearance of a great King, however his life in the Lord was extremely shallow. When things really began to happen whereby he should have grown in his relationship with the Lord...he blew it.

King Solomon had been granted great wisdom in order to lead the nation of Israel...yet blew it as well. 

We, more often than not, want out of our situations. Rather the appropriate response should be to ask for prayer to see us through them. To learn what it is that the situation is there for and to rely on Christ our Savior to grow us in Him. 

Indeed if He brings you to something He will see you through that something.  

The children of Israel were lead out of the land of Egypt. Right up to a sea with Pharaoh’s army on their heels. Moses did as instructed and the sea parted and they went through on dry land. 

The lesson was for them to look to the Lord for everything.  

During my 10 or so months of unemployment the Lord brought us to this same place. No retreat was possible and going forward was the only option. Daily my thoughts were to pray about what He had in mind for me to be doing that day. Taking it one day at a time.  

He brought deliverance from many places and people. People who chose to be dispensers of grace in our time of need. 

Oh, my Dear Reader, you can constantly complain about your life's situations or you can seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, find out what it is you're to be learning and grow in your relationship with Jesus through it.

There's absolutely nothing random about your life's adventures. The Lord, through His Spirit, is going to continue His workmanship in us one way or another. We are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works that we might walk in them. Period. 

The things we emotionally react to rather than trust God in will always steam roll us if we let them. 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.  

I will testify those verses from Proverbs 3:5-6 are absolutely the truth. Those verses stayed with me and are staying with me during those perilous times of unemployment and now into employment.  

Those 10 months were a time of growth for me in Christ. You can either get the point of why you're going through some rough patches or you can miss the point entirely.

Stop and go back to Proverbs 3:5-6.

Stop and reconsider Ephesians 2:10.

Stop and be grateful that He is right there in this with you. Grow your roots deeper in the Lord. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

What ARE You Doing?

What ARE You Doing?

by David Brenneman 

"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going." Ecclesiastes 9:10.

"But we urge you, brethren, to excel still more, and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you, so that you will behave properly toward outsiders and not be in any need." 1 Thessalonians 4:10b-12.

"Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread. But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary of doing good." 2 Thessalonians 3:12-13.

"Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality." Colossians 3:23-25.

While we read in Ecclesiastes 9:10 about Sheol, that's not the destination for the saved in Christ Jesus.  

Idleness is the opposite of all we read in the rest of the Scriptures here this morning. Idleness and pursuing things that do not make for the righteous life that God desires for us.  

Do you pursue things that aren't glorifying God? Have you stopped to see if God is truly being lifted up or is it you?  

The workmanship we are in Christ is not to make us a better person but rather to make us fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.  

It isn't for us to pursue this or that that strikes our fancy. Nor is it for us to justify our pursuits by way of slick reasoning. Either God gets the glory for great things He has done or He isn't.

Anything from daily life to jobs to hobbies can either be glorifying God or they won't be. These are the deeds done in the body that we will give an account of before Jesus. These deeds those thoughts and intentions and actions. 

We are supposed to live lives that glorify God, to the best of our ability, because at any moment they may be our last upon this Earth.

Do you think about your day ahead in that light?

Do you or have you invested, time, energy, effort and perhaps money into things that are not worthy of the calling for which you've been called in Christ?  

In more than one place in the Scriptures we're told to consider our ways. This is the message for today: consider your ways!

Consider your motivations.

Consider your reactions to situations and people.

Are you living a life that you would live if Jesus was physically there with you? Would you be how you are in front of Him? 

Would you be as productive if He were physically with you?

Would you be as lazy if He stood there with you?

Would you change your hobbies, your this or that if He were physically there with you?  

The truth, my Dear Reader, is He is right there with you. 

He is.

Your part is to take up your own cross and follow Him. Are you?

Your part is to pursue that which you can and will do that glorifies your Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. 

Doesn't matter how big that is or how small. What's important is to do your best as unto the Lord because it's the Lord whom you serve. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

Why Worry?

Why Worry?

by David Brenneman 

“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:25-34.

There are actually several things you can do in and of yourself to help Satan's agenda in this world and one of the easiest is to worry about things, problems, situations in this life of yours rather than to take those things to God in prayer. 

Satan loves to, and historically he's taught his minions to, get people to focus on the enormity of a situation or problem rather than the enormity of God. 

We sometimes will even convince ourselves that we're not worrying, we're just 'intensely concerned' within ourselves.  

That's still worrying.

"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21.

We either are going to walk by faith and not by sight or we're not. 

Let's start with history. Your history in Christ. Has there ever been an instance where Jesus failed you? Has there ever been a time when He didn't prove He cares for you? Have you ever seen Him ignore you?  

While the answers to your prayers might not be what you were expecting or even looking for they were answered. So why do the foolish thing and keep things to yourself rather than to deliver them, both the small and the great things to Jesus?

Truly there's nothing that the Almighty Creator of the Universe can't do in accordance with His will, His character, His love for us and His obedience to His Father.  

Ours is to bring the things that are on our hearts and minds to Jesus for Him to handle. That's walking by faith. He may yet hand you a shovel to help out in your answer to your prayer but He will answer. Quite often ours is a mindset to just get Jesus to fix things rather than for us to get our hands dirty. 

Peter, James, John, Paul, Jude, and others we read about that many think of as pillars of the Church...got that distinction not from worrying but through prayers and walking by faith, by going through things that the Spirit directed rather than by avoiding those things that were to grow them in Christ. 

You miss the very best point of why you face situations, they are just situations in the eyes of God, in that they come to you to grow you in Christ. 

"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." Hebrews 12:11.

There's a very distinct point to why situations come and go in your life.  

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." Ephesians 2:10.

While you may be caught by surprise...no part of the Trinity that is God ever was.  

These things we experience are going to grow us in Christ. These things are for our sanctification.  

Keep the right attitude in Christ Jesus. Keep your prayers going and your thankfulness to God in Christ Jesus that you aren't alone in what you face. That He has heard you and that He will still do what is best for you. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

Full, Unbridled, Unrestricted Transparency

Full, Unbridled, Unrestricted Transparency 

by David Brenneman 

How much anticipation do you have in your expectation of Jesus Christ returning for you? Are you excited? Does it motivate you in any way to be striving to be better today in living for Jesus than you did yesterday? 

Jesus is the Word of God. 

"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." Hebrews 4:12-13.

Your every thought and intention is and has been recorded and will be until either you are called home to Heaven or the Rapture of the Church.  

Have you ever truly thought of what that means? Ever considered the ramifications of that idea?

"O Lord, You have searched me and known me." Psalms 139:1.

"I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds." Jeremiah 17:10.

He knows every big n small thought and intention you have ever considered. He knows all that you've hidden even from yourself. All that you muttered under your breath that you shouldn't have said or thought concerning others. Knows all that you dreamed about and never pursued. Knows of all the opportunities taken and all you failed to embrace. Knows all whom you were sent to help n all you turned away from helping. Knows all the times you justified your disobedience towards Him when the Spirit presented an opportunity for you and you chose not to do it. 

He knows all the times when your love for others came close to matching His own for them. Knows all the times when your thoughts were right concerning His Word and your understanding of it.  

He knows.  

Everything you have lied to yourself about as well. All the things that you deceived yourself into doing. All the honesty evil things that you did nothing to stop when He wanted you to step in. All these things and more.

Now consider this that all of these things, both the pleasant, joyful, uplifting and the sad, grieving, discouraging things are what we will be giving an account of before Jesus. 

There's a day fixed by the Father’s own authority for when the Church of Jesus Christ will be complete. A day when the last person who's come to salvation in Christ Jesus does so and the Church is ready to go to forever be with Jesus.  

We all who are saved will leave this world at the command of the Lord Jesus on that day and Scripture says that we will give an account of our lives before Him. 

Our deeds, thoughts and intentions will be tested as through the fire of truth. Whatever we thought, said, did or intended to do will come to light. Only that which was done right, with true obedience, with the right heart attitude, will survive. 

It's never enough to just come to Christ for salvation and then do nothing more to grow in Christ, to nothing to honor Him for all He's done for us.

It's never a good thing to neglect the work He's trying to do in us to make us more like Himself. 

It's a very sobering thing to know that He's known all of what we're like and still loves us enough to not want to leave us in that condition. 

It should be a very sobering thing for us to realize how much of the letters to the Churches in the book of Revelation is directed towards those who profess to be Christians. 

We truly cannot afford to be nonchalant about our relationship with Jesus or our thoughts, intentions or actions.  

We cannot afford to not give of our best as unto the Lord in pursuing a right and true life in Christ as He wants for us.  

There's going to come a day when all of that and more will be revealed as either worthy or unworthy before the Lord. 

Think about these things as you go about your day. Are you honoring God or protecting yourself? Are you growing in Christ or have you grown stagnant? Are you putting your own thoughts, desires, dreams ahead of what the Spirit wants and desires for you? 

To be a disciple of Jesus Christ means to think, go and do, as He did.  

As the Scriptures say "consider your ways..."

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org 

Throw It In the Fire!

Throw It In the Fire!

by David Brenneman 

Take, in prayer, whatever has a hold of you that is sin and ask Jesus to remove it n throw it in the fire. 

A possible strange way to put it I admit. However, we're to run from temptation. We're to lay our burdens at the feet of Jesus. If you read of what many of the righteous kings did upon becoming king you will see how they destroyed those things that were an abomination to the Lord. King Josiah burned many things to ensure they wouldn't be usable again. Reading in Proverbs there's much that's written about running from sins.  

In the New Testament we read of fleeing youthful lusts.  

Our sins, once confessed, are cast as far as the east is from the west by our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ.

But we must confess them. Then we must turn from them. 

We must treat sin as something we don't consider nor give the time of day to. Sin, no matter how small or how large, shouldn't be a thing we dwell on. Dwelling upon it leads to entertaining temptation which leads to sinful acts.

Consider as well these words of Paul through the Spirit "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete." 2 Corinthians 10:3-6.

In war many things of the enemy must be destroyed not just buried nor removed. 

Sin in any form is an abomination in the eyes of our Holy God.  

We should think on sin as He does. 

We should find it as repulsive as He does. We should rather see sin destroyed than entertained. 

This is another excellent example of what is meant in the New Testament of "considering your ways". 

In what ways have we renamed sins and sinful behavior so that we don't feel as bad about continuing in it?

How many hobbies do we have that in reality have taken our attention away from our growing in Christ?  

How many 'things of this world' really have us in their grip rather than the false freedom we think we have concerning them?

Oh we may joke about the things we say we 'love' but in reality are we really joking? Does the God of Heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ, joke about such things? To be honest it's that train of thought that caused me to stop and consider before making statements about what it is that I 'love'.

Jesus took sin and its evil effects 100% seriously which is why He would not take a single step away from the direction of the cross.  

What's more...Satan strived throughout the entire life of Jesus on this Earth to put an end to Him because even he knew what the destructive power of the cross would mean for sin.

Sin deserves to be thrown in the fire. Sin deserves to be destroyed, cast far from us.  

We likewise need to stop seeing just how close we can get to that line without crossing over to sinning. Sooner or later that line WILL get blurry.

Sin is nothing to be trifled with. 

Sin is why Jesus stayed on the cross. 

Treat sin as the disgusting, revolting, ugly, utterly sinful thing that it is...and throw it in the fire. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org

What Makes a Country Great?

What Makes a Country Great?

by David Brenneman 

"And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels." Luke 9:23-26.

What makes a country great?  

Is it not the grace and mercy of the Lord God Almighty? Is it not all and only what He has done towards and for that nation? Our contributions are but filthy rags compared to how great the grace and mercy of God are towards us.  

Our nation has many many good things going for it, however, the blights, the sins, of this nation are ever present before the Lord even when much, of not all the population downgrades the severity of them.

It's through the obedience of the peoples towards the Word of God that indeed causes true greatness to envelop a nation. 

When it's peoples remember the Almighty who positioned such a peoples in human history. Read in the history of Judah and Israel and you'll see of what becomes of a nation that puts their relationship with the Lord God Almighty before all else and what became of those whom didn't. 

Habakkuk is another excellent book on the subject because of its content on such matters.  

Our obedience to the Word of God, our relationship with Jesus, should always be more important to us than all else including a 'love' for a country. Does not Scripture explicitly state that we're to love not the world nor the things of the world?  

Did not Jesus, in this passage we read this morning, tell us where our love, our priorities, ought to be?

Nobody, when they stand before Jesus to give an account of their lives, is going to be praised for being a great patriotic person. It's only the deeds done in the body for Christ, done through His Spirit, that are going to count, that are going to matter. 

While I appreciate the freedoms of my country, I don't have feelings of 'love' for it because of what that Scripture passage I referred to said about not loving the world nor the things of the world.  

Truthfully, I am ashamed at what direction this nation has gone in even my lifetime. It's growing colder towards the things that make for a Godly nation. It still is here only by the grace and mercy of God.  

It is by the grace of God that we're able to enjoy the freedoms we do here in the United States. It's by the grace of God that any nation is able to be as they are. It's by the mercy of God that we have not received as a nation what we deserve for turning away from defending the unborn, the widows and orphans. For our celebrations of sexual sins. For our many other Biblical reasons that exist.  

We need to be taking up our own cross and following Jesus more seriously if we want to see this nation to continue to exist. We need more people who claim the Name of Jesus Christ to start living out their lives honoring Him who saved us.  

We certainly need more fervent prayers to the Throne of Grace for the sins of this nation. I refer us all to Daniel's prayers concerning the sins of his people that were heard and honored before the Lord. 

These steps will be what will continue to cause a nation to be great in what matters. Great for the sake of what the world considers great is trash concerning what is considered great in the eyes of my Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. 

Returning to loving the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and spirit. 

Returning to loving your neighbor as yourself. 

Returning to trusting in the Lord with your everything. 

Trusting in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. 

Setting your mind on the things that are above and not on the things that are of this world. 

These will lead a people of a nation towards what God says makes a nation great. 

Truthfully as is the health of the professing Church as is the health of a nation. Patriotism can be a fine thing but it matters not unless obedience and trust in the Lord, living a life that takes up their own cross and follows Jesus comes first.  

Whether it's the USA or any other country...what will cause it to find more of the grace and mercy of God will be only in its people's becoming more and more of the followers of Jesus Christ than they used to be. Fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ must be the first step.  

Read the letters to the Churches in the book of Revelation. Now consider how those churches have all fallen. Consider again that the content of these letters still apply to Believers throughout the world today. 

Yesterday I indeed reflected on the United States still being here 250 years later...just didn't in a way that most did. I was praying for the nation's sins. Was praying for the leaders. Listening to the Spirit rather than joining in the festivities.  

Want a country to be great? Turn it to the Lord Jesus Christ. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make its paths straight. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org

Who Do You Fear Offending More...God or Man?

Who Do You Fear Offending More...God or Man?

by David Brenneman 

“I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies And of the son of man who is made like grass," Isaiah 51:12.

"Now Eli was very old; and he heard all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting. He said to them, “Why do you do such things, the evil things that I hear from all these people? No, my sons; for the report is not good which I hear the Lord’s people circulating. If one man sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the Lord desired to put them to death." 1 Samuel 2:22-25.

"Then a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Did I not indeed reveal Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh’s house? Did I not choose them from all the tribes of Israel to be My priests, to go up to My altar, to burn incense, to carry an ephod before Me; and did I not give to the house of your father all the fire offerings of the sons of Israel? Why do you kick at My sacrifice and at My offering which I have commanded in My dwelling, and honor your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the choicest of every offering of My people Israel?’ Therefore the Lord God of Israel declares, ‘I did indeed say that your house and the house of your father should walk before Me forever’; but now the Lord declares, ‘Far be it from Me—for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be lightly esteemed. Behold, the days are coming when I will break your strength and the strength of your father’s house so that there will not be an old man in your house. You will see the distress of My dwelling, in spite of all the good that I do for Israel; and an old man will not be in your house forever. Yet I will not cut off every man of yours from My altar so that your eyes will fail from weeping and your soul grieve, and all the increase of your house will die in the prime of life. This will be the sign to you which will come concerning your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: on the same day both of them will die. But I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in My heart and in My soul; and I will build him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed always." 1 Samuel 2:27-35.

"If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15.

We have before us 'choice'. We choose either to obey God or we choose someone else. 

We also can fall into the trap of being more afraid of what man may do than what it will and does mean to our Holy God. 

Scripture is there for these reasons: "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

When we know the good we ought to be doing and do not do it, we're sinning wilfully. James 4:17.

When we know what God's Word says unmistakably and choose to not act as His Word clearly says to...we will be having a lot of answering to do before God.  

Matthew 18 isn't there as a mere suggestion. Jesus spoke of what to do and how to proceed in an orderly, God respecting, way.

We can read of how gravely the results of some in the Old Testament were judged before the Lord for being more afraid of their sons than of offending a Holy God. 

My Dear Reader...we have enough to answer for before Jesus when we give an account of our lives before Him...do we want to really add to that by putting fear of how others will take our decisions more than how disrespected, dishonored, we will be before Him with whom we have to do?

There are some in the professing Church who do not remove the evil within their ranks whom ought to be removed. They're more fearful of them than they are of offending God. They won't proceed with what Jesus said in Matthew 18.

Ours is to obey God and leave the consequences to Him. End of story. 

Eli's example has the extremely sad, highly disappointing, words of the Lord directly to him. 

When we're more afraid of offending people than offending God we're in serious trouble. 

I really do adhere to "I would rather stand with God and be judged by the world than to stand with the world and be judged by God".

We quench the Spirit when we choose the fear of man over the fear of God. 

Really consider your ways when these challenges come. Because, again, we will give an account of our lives before Jesus. 

We are to love the Lord our God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. This means He gets our full attention, gets all our everything in its fullest measure as unto the Lord. It says clearly in Colossians 3:23-25 "Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.".

I have seen and still do hear of Pastors of churches whom will not obey nor follow-through with dealing with those supposed brothers and sisters in Christ as the Scriptures state. The results are 100% predictable. Satan gets a foothold in those churches. Every single time. 

We read in Revelation, the letters to the Churches...Jesus yet again trying to get the Churches to turn towards obedience of Christ over what man wanted.  

If ever we're more concerned with what man thinks than what God has said...if we're ok with offending God but not in offending a man or woman...we're falling from a position that ends in judgment. 

Biblical example after Biblical example shows what results when those who place offending people as more important than what Jesus thinks. Take great care that you, my Dear Reader, do not follow in those footsteps.

What Jesus said to do in Matthew 18 has healing in mind of both persons and relationships.  

In at least 10 places in the Scriptures Israel was instructed to obey the voice of the Lord their God. Deuteronomy 11:13,27; 13:4; 27:10; 30:2,8,20; Joshua 22:5, 1 Samuel 12:14; Jeremiah 7:23.

Please do not make the same mistakes as they and put offending people ahead of offending the Lord your God, your Savior who is Christ the Lord and your Heavenly Father. 

Do not grieve the Spirit in this as well. 

To love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and spirit means what we do, think, say and live by with Him means more than anything with anyone else.

Lastly...there's yet again example after example in the Scriptures where when people didn't treat as holy the Word of God concerning dealing with those whom needed dealing with...that the Lord sent people to mete out judgment to deal with these people. As Scripture says God will not be mocked. Whatever a man sows he will reap. Don't stand in the way of God's judgment or you'll share in it.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org

You Do Not Know When But Should Believe It's Coming

You Do Not Know When But Should Believe It's Coming 

by David Brenneman 

"(“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”)" Revelation 16:15.

*Life Principles Bible Study Notes for 16:15-We must be ready for Christ's return, whenever He comes back. We are to remain faithful, completing whatever tasks He gives us, so that "we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming"

(1John 2:28).*

“Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will. Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My master is not coming for a long time,’ and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 24:42-51.

"But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:8-9.

"But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

Would you be ready right here right now to go to be with Jesus?  

Would you be among those screaming at the top of your lungs for Him to come back? Because that indeed is what's going to happen 1 second after the Rapture of the Church takes place. 

People so bent on living life like that day won't happen in their lifetime or think that they'll have enough time before they die to receive the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ...are the foolish of this world.  

Read a bit earlier in 2 Peter from where we just read and you'll find this "Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men." 2 Peter 3:3-7.

What preparations could you possibly make to get ahead of the twinkling of an eye?  

The human eye blinks from between 100 to 400 milliseconds. The time it takes light to hit the eye and reflect back is measured in picoseconds. A trillionth of a second. 

There's no humanly way possible to have that kind of accuracy to know when Jesus will come back. 

The best way is to give up putting off coming to Christ for salvation and receive His free gift.  

My Dear Reader you must choose to receive it. You must ask Jesus to be the forgiver of your sins and the leader of your life. Your Aunt, your Grandmother, your Father, your siblings, your Grandfather even...your best friend or Pastor cannot save a single person. Only through faith and trust in Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross of calvary through His sinless death, and resurrection from the dead, saves.  

Why this delay in His coming? Because there's yet still people who are still coming to their senses and are coming to Christ for salvation. 

"For this reason it says, “Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.” Ephesians 5:14.

You have but to admit He's right, that you are a sinner in need of salvation. To ask Him to forgive you and to be the forgiver of your sins and the leader of your life. 

Why be foolish and keep putting off what you cannot possibly get ahead of? Why keep ahold of a life that isn't going to save you? Why resist the perfect love of Christ who is waiting for you?

My Dear Reader my purpose in writing all of this is to help you understand that Jesus loves you and wants to be saved. He wants to share the love of His Father with you. Wants to show you and give you a life that your wildest dreams could never prepare you for. 

Jesus loves you, but you too must come to Him to be saved in order to receive that to the full as a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. 

As we've been reading...so it is in reality...what's causing His return to be delayed? Possibly you. Until the last person who is to be saved is saved He will delay His coming. After this last person comes to Christ for salvation...the wrath of God will be descending upon the world as written in Revelation, Ezekiel and other places in the Scriptures. This truth is as rock solid as His crucifixion and resurrection.  

Only you can ask for you to be saved. 

Only you can choose life in Christ. 

For you do not know the day or the hour...so...take it from Jesus Himself:

“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. 

Matthew 24:36-39.

“Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will." Matthew 24:42-44.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission. 

New American Standard Bible 

(C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. 

A corporation not for profit.   

La Habra, CA All rights reserved 

www.lockman.org