Some possible side effects may occur

Have you ever been prescribed a new medication and then went and read the list of some possible side effects that may occur? If you're like me, you may hesitate to take the newly prescribed medication. Why would I want to take the chance that I may feel worse?

Have you ever read the 11th Chapter of Hebrews, verses 36-39?

"Some [Christians] faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated-- the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised."

Um...those are some possible side effects that would really make me hesitate to be a Christ-follower! But here's the thing. Others passed through the sea on dry ground, saw the walls of Jericho fall and saw their dead raised backed to life. I don't want to miss great things like that. I also don't want to miss out on getting well. What it comes down to is, do I have faith in my doctor?  Do I have faith in my God?  Without it, it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6).

True or False?

In his book, Absolute Surrender, Andrew Murray stated that there are many Christians who hardly know that when they believed, they received the Holy Spirit. Is this a true or false statement?

He goes on to say that if you asked someone who called themselves a Christian, they might say that they received forgiveness for their sins and the security of knowing they were going to heaven, but as to the question of receiving the Holy Spirit, they would be unsure. Is this a true or false statement?

He also says that the reason the Church has so little effect on the world around them is because after having begun in the Spirit, we have tried to perfect the work of the Spirit in the flesh, by our own self effort. In other words, we have been serving God in our own strength. Is this a true or false statement? (How do you know if you are living by the Spirit or the flesh? Read Galatians 5:16-26 to see which list you fits you)

I hate to admit it, but I think the above statements are true. I don't know many (including myself) who are walking in the power of the Holy Spirit. (I am not referring to the hyper emotional expressions you see in some churches) I don't know many Christians with hearts full of joy and strength, and living lives that have been radically transformed by divine power, to do the will of God. Do you?

Praise God for His faithfulness in revealing Himself to us. May our prayer be that we will live by the Spirit!

Seasons

Fall has always been my favorite time of the year for two main reasons. One, I love color and the red, orange and yellow leaves against the bright green grass and bright blue sky are breathtaking. Second, I'm not one for extremes. I don't like the sweltering hot summer or the bitter cold winter. Fall is perfect.

But would I think fall is perfect if I didn't just experience the heat of summer? I doubt it. I need all the seasons. Therefore, I don't want to dread this coming winter - even if everyone keeps talking about how bad it will be. I want to embrace it. I want to find the beauty in it. After God destroyed the earth with a flood, He said: 

"As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease." Genesis 8:22

Why would God intentionally keep the seasons after the flood? He could have said "This time I'm not going to do the season thing. It didn't work out well the last time." But He didn't! So I'm guessing there is a purpose for each one.

In the same way, I need all the seasons in my life. The extremes and the "in-betweens". The question is, am I willing to embrace each one? 

How do I know if it is sin? Part Two

A new home is being built across the street from our house. This week they started digging the basement, but ran into a big problem. They hit rock! And I don't mean a little bit of rock...I mean a HUGE amount of rock. One can't help wonder how long that rock has been there. One night I saw the owner of the construction company, along with two other men, on the job site. I've never seen the owner here before so this must be serious stuff. Until that rock was removed, they could not go further. The owner must have approved the use of heavy equipment, because for two days they broke up the rock with a powerful piece of equipment and now the hole is dug and construction can begin.

My blog posts come from what I observe around me in conjunction with what God is doing in me. As I continue slowly reading Andrew Murray's book, Absolute Surrender, I sense God working in me. This week, He hit rock! I  was working on a design project and wanted to see if I could copy something off the internet to use. Ah ha! I was able to do it...but then a nagging feeling came over me: "Is this wrong?" "Is it stealing?" "How do I know?" I've quoted a friend in a previous blog: "If you have to ask, you already know." He is right again. I did know. However, not only did the Holy Spirit convict me (and keep me from acting on the temptation), He also brought up some design projects I did as a teenager (way before I was a Christian) for my boss, in which I drew some famous characters for bumper stickers (and for which he made a nice profit). Oh! So this "rock" has been there a long time (the Holy Spirit seemed to say to me). If I want the construction on my house to continue, I needed this rock to be removed.

I cannot do this on my own. I need Owner to approve the use of heavy equipment. Luke 18:27 says:

"And He said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God." 

 Amen! Blast away LORD!

Fullness

In Ephesians 3:19b Paul prayed that we would be filled with all the fullness of God. In Ephesians 4:13, he spoke of us coming to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ and in 5:18 of the same book, he spoke of being filled with the Spirit.

Wow! That's full! I think most of us have experienced a feeling of fullness from overeating. When you are that full, you can't imagine putting one more bite in your mouth, because there just isn't any room. In the same way, when you are full of the power, majesty, wisdom, love, mercy, patience, kindness, and everything else that overflows from the Trinity, you have no room for the self-life.

To bring me to separation, to death of the self-life, to make room for full fellowship with the Trinity, Andrew Murray, in his book Absolute Surrender, says:

"Come and cast this self-life and flesh-life at the feet of Jesus. Then trust Him. Do not worry yourselves with trying to understand all about it, but come in the living faith that Christ will come into you with the power of His death and the power of His life. Then the Holy Spirit will bring the whole Christ-Christ crucified and risen and living in glory-into your heart."

There is deliverance!