"No Retreat"

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

"No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."  Luke  9:62

     Unstable Christians are poor witnesses.  You cannot be an effective soul winner or a true disciple unless you are willing to go straight on for God regardless of what it costs you personally.  No wavering or looking back to the ways of the world and the "unfruitful works of darkness" can be permitted.  The life of victory demands unreserved consecration, unremitting diligence, and enduring perseverance.

     During the Revolutionary War, Washington came with his army to Brandywine Creek.  After they had crossed the bridge spanning the stream, one of the soldiers asked him,  "General, shall we burn the bridge, or leave it?  After all, the enemy might drive us back, and then we would need it to make good our retreat!" Washington gave a memorable reply:  "Burn the bridge!  It is victory or death!"

     When Napoleon was engaged in the great and momentous battle of Waterloo, among those taken prisoner was a Highland piper.  Napoleon, impressed by the mans' strange mountain garb and determined air, struck up a conversation with the captured but unvanquished foe.  Seeing that he had his instrument with him, Napoleon asked him to play a tune.  The highlander obliged.  "Now play a march,"  said Napoleon. Once again, the Scotchman did as he was told.  Finally the Emperor said,  "Play a retreat."  "Nay, nay,"  said the highlander,  "that I cannot do.  I never learned to play one."

     The saints of God too should never learn to "play a retreat."  Bridges of compromise must ever be burned behind us so that we leave no way back into the world.  We must make a complete break with our old sinful life.

     The furrows of our testimony will only be straight as we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.  Follow Him no matter what the cost, Christian.  Never look back!  Never retreat!

"Bread For Each Day"

KEEP YOUR EYES ON ME!

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

KEEP YOUR EYES ON ME!  Waves of adversity are washing over you, and you feel tempted to give up. As your circumstances consume more and more of your attention, you are losing sight of Me.  Yet I am with you always, holding you by your right hand.  I am fully aware of your situation, and I will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able to bear.

Your gravest danger is worrying about tomorrow.  If you try to carry tomorrow's burdens today, you will stagger under the load and eventually fall flat.  You must discipline yourself to live within the boundaries of today.  It is in the present moment that I walk close to you, helping you carry your burdens.  Keep your focus on My Presence in the present.

"Jesus Calling - Enjoying Peace In His Presence"

Which Was First?

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."   Ephesians  4:31

"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?  declare, if thou hast understanding."    Job  38:4

     There are 40 question marks in the 38th chapter of Job.  There are 19 question marks in chapter 39 and 20 in chapter 41.  They are questions propounded by Jehovah to Job to show him how little he knew and how ignorant he was.  With all man's wisdom he still knows nothing as compared with God's omniscience. How foolish of men to refuse to believe what they cannot understand.  If this be true, then we cannot believe anything.  A little boy asked me,  "What is it we eat before it is born and after it is dead?"  After admitting I did not know, he said wisely,  "A chicken."  Even that I cannot understand:  how from an egg with white and yolk can come, in 21 days, a fully developed chick with all the genetic characteristics of its ancestors!

     At the dinner table of a Christian lady, a skeptic began railing on the Bible story of creation.  She interrupted him by saying,  "The Bible explains one thing you cannot answer."  She picked up an egg and asked,  "Where did this egg come from?"  "Why from a hen, of course."  The lady asked,  "And where did the hen come from?"  He was forced to reply,  "From an egg."  "And where did that egg come?"  "From the hen."  And so on - the egg - the hen; the hen - the egg;  etc., etc., etc.  "Which then was first - the hen or the egg?"  The reply was,   "The hen, of course."   "Then a hen existed before an egg?  Where did the hen come from?"  Frustrated, the infidel admitted his folly.

     Push back egg to hen, hen to egg, to its beginning and you come to God who made the hen that laid the egg from which all other hens and eggs have come.  Understand it?  If you do, you are wiser than I am.  The Bible says the hen was created by God - and the hen laid the egg.  The argument is settled in Genesis 1:20.

"Bread For Each Day"

I AM LEADING YOU, STEP BY STEP....

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

I AM LEADING YOU, STEP BY STEP, through your life.  Hold My hand in trusting dependence, letting Me guide you through this day.  Your future looks uncertain and feels flimsy - even precarious.  That is how it should be.  Secret things belong to the Lord, and future things are secret things.  When you try to figure out the future, you are grasping at things that are Mine.  This, like all forms of worry, is an act of rebellion: doubting My promises to care for you.

Whenever you find yourself worrying about the future, repent and return to Me.  I will show you the next step forward, and the one after that, and the one after that.  Relax and enjoy the journey in My Presence, trusting Me to open the way before you as you go.

"Jesus Calling - Enjoying Peace In His Presence"

The Hard-Boiled Missionary

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking e put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

             ". . . all things work together for good to them that love God."  Romans  8:28

     A lady who had been suffering for a long time was visited by many friends seeking to comfort her with verses of Scripture.  One verse which was used most frequently was Romans 8:28.  Instead of being encouraged, she began to resent the verse repeated so monotonously by those who were well and healthy. They little realized that it is easy to quote these verses glibly and loosely, when not in the same situation.  It is not always easy to understand that our sufferings and trials and pain are for a purpose.  It takes great faith to appropriate it.  Let us be careful not to thoughtlessly quote Scriptures, for sometimes we cannot see God's purpose until later when the testing is past.

     Yet it is true, whether we realize it or not, that everything God permits to come into our lives must have a reason.  Whatever God sends up on us is necessary and for some good purpose which we shall understand afterward.

     A missionary was captured by cannibals.  "I suppose you intend to eat me?"  said the missionary, and the chief grunted his affirmation.  "Try a sample first, and see if you like it,"  said the missionary as he took his knife and cut a slab from the calf of his leg and handed it to him.  "Try this and see."  The chief took one bite and choked.  The missionary had a cork let.  The chief wanted no more of it and the missionary was spared. Years before, he had thought it a great misfortune to lose his leg and to wear an artificial one, but afterward it saved his life.  It worked out "for good."

"Bread For Life"

Purified By Fire

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

"And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver."   Malachi 3:3

     A Christian is not to think it strange if he is called upon to suffer great trials and difficulties in this life.  For the "refiner's fire" is sent to make faith stronger and purer by its heat.  For every sanctified tear shed here in the furnace of affliction, there will be a jewel over there in the glory world (see Romans 8:18).  The rewards of Heaven will more than compensate for the "fiery trials."

     The refiner of old sat at his work, for it was of such a delicate and skilled nature that it was necessary for him to be close to his crucible so that he might intently watch the process.  Neither too little or nor too much heat must be applied.  The dross had to be removed at the precise moment when it could best be done without hurting or losing any of the precious metal.  So, too, every Christian must endure some suffering according to the will of God if the dross of sin and self is to be purged away.  These experiences are not pleasant to the flesh, but we may be assured that God loves us too much to give us a bit more pain than is actually needed.  He sits close by so that He may direct every minute detail of our spiritual cleansing.

     The alchemist of old knew when his gold was pure by the fact that he could see his image mirrored in it.  In the same manner, only when Christ is formed in us by grace, and we reflect His glory, may the furnace of affliction be left behind.

     May our prayer be,  "O refining fire, go through my life and purge it of all that would hinder a perfect reflection of my Savior!"

"Bread For Each Day"

YOU NEED ME EVERY MOMENT.....

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

YOU NEED ME EVERY MOMENT. Your awareness of your constant need for Me is your greatest strength.  Your neediness, properly handled, is a link to My Presence.  However, there are pitfalls that you must be on guard against:  self-pity, self-preoccupation, giving.up.  Your inadequacy presents you with a continual choice - deep dependence on Me, or despair.  The emptiness you feel within will be filled either with problems or with My Presence.  Make Me central in your consciousness by praying continually: simple, short prayers flowing out of the present moment.  Use My Name liberally, to remind you of My Presence. Keep on asking and you will receive, so that your gladness may be full and complete.

"Jesus Calling - Enjoying Peace In His Presence"