Oh happy day!

This morning I woke up singing a song:  "Oh Happy Day" by Kim Walker.  The chorus goes, "Oh happy day, happy day!  You wash my sin away!  Oh happy day, happy day!  I'll never be the same, forever I am changed!  There is no truth more reassuring the fact that Jesus Christ is alive.  He is not the God of the dead but of the living, and we find our life in Him.  When we are stuck in our sins, it is like rottenness in our bones.  Guilt, despair, and shame poison our thoughts, and we are at the mercy of Satan.  The mercies of the wicked are cruel, and we lie helpless under the torture of condemnation and oppression.

How our future changed when Jesus took away our sins!  We need not lie powerless under the bondage of sin, and our history need not dictate our future.  We may have fallen 100 times to a single temptation, but God enables us to overcome through the victory of Christ over the tomb and sin.  If Jesus can destroy the power of the tomb, then Christ can also overcome all sins that lead us to death.  Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

I was reading last night concerning the mercy of God.  Thomas Watson made some terrific points concerning God's mercy:  "The mercy of the Lord is upon them that fear Him" (Ps. 103:17).  Mercy is not for them that sin and fear not, but for them that fear and sin not.  God's mercy is a holy mercy; where it pardons it heals." (A Body of Divinity, pg. 97)  Consider also this passage in Psalm 103:8-12:  "The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. [9] He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. [10] He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. [11] For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; [12] As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us."  Oh happy day, when my sins were washed away!

Isn't it true that God has not dealt with us according to our sin?  Let us say that there were two men convicted of a serious crime against a king.  The king saw fit to deliver one from the torturers and prison, which the other was required to endure.  Does this make the king wicked?  No, he is only punishing the offense according the law, and showing mercy to one as seemed good to Him.  God is merciful to all men, offering them all a pardon through the suffering of His own Son, Jesus.  But He will not force His mercy upon any man.  If a man desires to pierce himself through with the sorrow of the love of riches (1 Tim. 6:10) God will not force him under the precious blood flow of Christ who was pierced for our iniquities.  Psalm 32:10 teaches us, "Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him."

Father, I receive of your tender mercies and forgiveness through Jesus Christ.  I praise the name of my Savior, Redeemer, and Deliverer from the power of sin and death.  Thank you for not dealing with me according to my sins, but according to your love, grace, and mercy.  I am deserving of death, and you have given me eternal life.  May you empower me LORD to fear and sin not that I may walk in your mercy.  Oh happy day!  My sins are washed away and forever I am changed!

Vision of Discipleship

Before my trip to AUS in April, God had impressed something upon my heart concerning true discipleship. In the modern-day church, there are few terms as vague, subjective, and confusing as discipleship. It is a word that sums up the constant process of following Jesus and submitting every aspect of our lives to His authority. The trouble with current "discipleship" programs is that we often rely on a pamphlet, book, or some outside means to teach people of God. From my study of the Word, Jesus did not have a lesson plan or handbook drawn up from a rabbi He made His disciples read and fill in the blanks. Discipleship is pure "on the job training" while following Jesus with immersion in the Word. Xerox not required! It is not about facts as much as obedience to a Master. And if we have been commissioned by Christ's all-encompassing authority to make disciples of all nations, we ought to know what discipleship is.

I am convinced that there are two separate camps that Christians fall into concerning discipleship and the role of the church: hospice and rehab. This may not make any sense at all to you, but stay with me. During my previous trip to OZ (without a blog at the time!) this is something I wrote that may speak to your heart about your view of discipleship.

Hospice is defined as “a type of care and a philosophy of care which focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's symptoms.” A definition of “palliation” emphasizes the key point of hospice: “(from Latin palliare, to cloak) is any form of medical care or treatment that concentrates on reducing the severity of disease symptoms, rather than striving to halt, delay, or reverse progression of the disease itself or provide a cure. The goal is to prevent and relieve suffering and to improve quality of life” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palliative_care).  It is focused on minimizing pain and does not address the root cause of the illness.  There is a growing group that is clamoring for people to “die with dignity,” and have the right to choose suicide to end suffering (http://www.deathwithdignity.org/).  Pain is seen as the greatest evil and suffering to be avoided at all costs, even by the shortening of one’s life. When you ask someone, “How is your Grandma doing?” and they reply, “She’s in hospice” you know that all hope and seek of a cure has been abandoned.

Sometimes terminally ill people are still functional in mind and body, not in a comatose state. Nothing is required from them as food is brought three times a day or they are fed intravenously and receive continuous care. People in hospice are simply waiting around to die. They waste away, longing for a day when they will be free of pain. They receive visits and cards of well-wishers, sharing memories and avoiding talk of the inevitable end. I do not say this to minimize the need for kind people who provide loving care to terminally ill people. This is not to mock or shame people who have received hospice care, as some in my family have. It is simply to point out a prevalent philosophy concerning terminally ill patients. If hospice has a "vision," it is a peaceful, painless existence and death without suffering. The feelings and emotions of the patient receives the full focus of the caregivers. The patient is the purpose for the care.

Contrast this with the concept of rehabilitation or physical therapy. People undergoing this painful and arduous process have often had a brush with death or a catastrophic injury. The prognosis for a full recovery is often doubtful at best. Physical therapy is defined as “a health care profession which provides services to individuals and populations to develop, maintain and restore maximum movement and functional ability throughout life” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physical_therapy).  Drug rehabilitation is aimed at addressing and eliminating physical and psychological dependency and assisting the addict in becoming a functional part of family and society. While physical therapy and rehab are focused on the individual, there is not the resignation found in hospice care. The purpose of these practices is to empower a person to overcome injury and addiction and live life at the highest possible level.

Instead of seeking to avoid pain and difficulty at all costs, pain and suffering are part of the process to laying hold of the hope of a better life. Physical therapy is draining, taxing, and painful for the participants. Patients are forced to exercise their atrophied limbs to utter exhaustion. But the pain and struggle are for a purpose, a goal believed obtainable through determination, grit, and endurance. For some the goal is one again walking unaided. Some wish to participate in their favorite hobby or sport. Others have a commitment to a program to remain clean of all drugs and alcohol so they can be reunited with their family. Therapy looks to the future with a confident hope. Rehab participants are looking to a new life, refusing to revert back to the old ways that robbed them of real life.

Now as you look at the contrast between hospice care and physical rehabilitation, consider which camp you belong to in your Christian experience. God does not simply offer us medications and "palliative" care when we are born again by the Spirit: He gives us a new beginning and purpose in glorifying God with our lives! Our eyes are not longingly set on heaven, but fixed upon the person of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 12:1-3 says, "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, [2] looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. [3] For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls." I believe many professing believers become disillusioned because they think Christianity is spiritual hospice care. When the trials and temptations come and the painful labor involved in sanctification hits hard, people are ready to quit. It is hard work to follow Jesus. In the words of G.K. Chesterton: "Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried." Do you have a vision of what God wants to do in your life? Are you willing to press toward that goal with all of your God-given strength and purpose? Do not resign yourself to the hospice bed, eyes misty with tears of regret. Your whole life lays before you with unknown potential for God's glory. Give God your past, for He holds your future as well. May you not only be covered in the dust of your rabbi Jesus Christ, but filled with the Holy Spirit as you labor for His glorious name!

The Danger of Isolation

There is a verse that has God has impressed upon my mind a couple of times today:  Proverbs 18:1.  It says, "A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; he rages against all wise judgment."  The KJV says it in a different manner:  "Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom."  The word "intermeddleth" means to "be obstinate," or someone who is stubbornly opposed to wisdom.  God is the source of all wisdom, and Jesus has become for us the source of wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1 Cor. 1:30).  To be isolated from God by our desires is to invite our destruction.

When a person is born, he is born into a life of sin.  Selfishness is natural.  Taking thought for your own life and how a situation impacts you is normal.  Our sin separates us from God, as it is written in Isaiah 59:1-2:  "Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. [2] But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear."  Jesus is our Peace, who has broken down the middle wall of separation caused by sin, and allows us to draw near to God (Eph. 2:14).  We can be washed clean through the blood of Christ, having been born again by grace through faith in the power of the Holy Spirit.  1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

When a man is married to a woman, the minister will say something similar to what Christ says in Matthew 19:6:  "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  The church (made up of born-again followers of Christ) has a relationship to Christ that a bride has to her husband.  We have been joined with Him, and should not seek to isolate ourselves from Him.  But the common tragedy is married people still retain their own desires and often break the marriage covenant with divorce.  This disaster is often seen in the church as well, when the desires of people override the unity and wisdom that God has provided us through His Word and Holy Spirit.

I'm learning firsthand the tough lesson that comes from separation from the ones you love and the ones that love you.  But being away from a wife and children for two months is nothing to the absolute hell that comes from being separated from God.  Heaven is the most beautiful place conceived of because God is there, and hell is the ultimate in ugliness because it is devoid of God's presence.  There is no shortage to the unspeakable wickedness that lies in the heart of mankind, and I cannot imagine the putrid foulness of the filthy uncleanness of the demonic spirits and depraved people who lie festering in that fiery, dark, scream-filled pit that is called hell.  It is an ugly picture to be sure.

Eve looked upon the forbidden fruit with desire, ate of it, and gave some to Adam who desired to please his wife rather than God.  Their actions literally severed them from the presence of God with all of their progeny.  But because of the glorious truth of the Gospel, we can be united once again with God through spiritual regeneration by faith in Jesus Christ.  Once God has united us with other believers in the Body of Christ, we are no longer to seek our own desire.  We are to be led by the Holy Spirit, for we find our unity through the power of God.  Ephes. 4:1-3 exhorts us:  "I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, [2] with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, [3] endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."

There is no division or isolation in unity.  If we are opposed to God's wisdom, then we err by following after our own desires.  Christ is for us wisdom, and is the Head of His Body, the church.  To rage against wisdom is to seek destruction of your own soul.  I thank God for the unity of His Spirit, and the power of Christ to free us from sin, death, and our own destructive desires.  How many have been shipwrecked upon their own lusts, never again to rise?  Glory be to God who has delivered us from the power of our own flesh, for in us dwells no good thing.

Kind of like a puzzle...

Today Louis and I borrowed Phil's trailer and headed over to Ike and Cecile's house about 25km away.  They are moving and offered me their dining room table, chairs, and stools.  It is a gesture most appreciated and everything packed very neatly into the corner of Louis' garage.  Louis said, "Isn't it amazing how God puts the pieces of the puzzle together?"  To which I remarked, "He certainly puts them together in an interesting order."  One would think the provision of a visa would be forthcoming, seeming to be much more critical than a table and chairs.  But the clear provision of God through the saints is no small thing, and I praise God for His faithfulness.

When you put a puzzle together, you take it out of a box that has a picture on top.  You see the end result before you begin.  When I think about God's calling upon my life to preach and minister in AUS, I can't see the complete picture.  Many of the puzzles I have worked over the years have beautiful landscapes with clearly defined portions:  blue sky, white clouds, green grass, trees, animals.  An exception is a puzzle I bought for Laura before she was my wife by M.C. Esher, the classic waterfall that seems to travel uphill.  The major difficulty of this puzzle is the lack of colour.  So much of the picture has the same dull hues and tones and everything seems to blend together.  When I look at the wilderness experience where I find myself, it's hard to tell exactly where I am or where I fit in.

It seems a little on the wild side that Laura would have sold our kitchen table and chairs back home, and now in a garage in AUS sits a table and chairs set aside for our future use.  When Abraham was told to sacrifice Isaac his only son, the astute young man said, "Here is the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?"  Genesis 22:8 says, "And Abraham said, "My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering." So the two of them went together."  Abraham built the altar, put the wood in order, and bound his son and laid him upon the wood.  After he took the knife in his hand to slay Isaac, the Angel of the Lord told him to stop, saying that He now knew that Abraham feared God because he had not withheld his only son.  Genesis 22:13-14 states, "Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. [14] And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, "In the Mount of The Lord it shall be provided."

God has provided abundantly for me, my Jehovah-Jireh.  Shall I be as Isaac and say, "Here is a table and chairs, but where is the home I will use them in?  Where is the visa?  Where is the place I will dwell?"  It think it better to be as Abraham and say, "The Lord Will Provide."  There is no doubt in Abraham's words.  "Will" does not mean "might."  Abraham speaks with the certainty of faith.  I say as the father of the demon-possessed child:  "Lord I believe:  help my unbelief!"

When picking up the trailer, little Andrew (Phil and Linda's son) asked me a question.  He asked, "Do you wish you could go home to your family?"  "No," I honestly answered, almost surprised by my immediate response.  "But I wish they were here with me."  I have a table and chairs, but I don't have my sons and wife by my side.  God puts the puzzle together in His order and in His time.  As Corrie ten Boom used to say, we only see the back side of the embroidery.  God sees from the vantage point of eternity and knows what He is doing.  We see a random mix of color and say, "What beauty could possibly come from that?"  Eccles. 3:11 says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end."

Most people start with the border when putting a puzzle together.  It feels like the puzzle of my life has been flipped upside down, and all I can see is the grainy cardboard.  In the middle of the table lies two pieces fitted together, and no border in sight.  God will provide all that I need in His time.  I long for the day when Jesus will say to me, "Now  I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your life, your only life, from Me."  Because of Christ's sacrificial payment I have a life to live.  As the song says, "I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.  Though none go with me, still I will follow.  No turning back, no turning back."

To Do the Impossible...

Last night I did something that I don't always do.  I chose not to pray for any specific requests until God told me what to pray.  Sometimes I feel like I can fall into a rut of going down a "list" of sorts, praising God, asking blessings upon my wife and children, thanking Him for the Landman family and all those who are supporting me...these things are all fine and good to pray for.  But last night I said, "God, I'm not going to pray for anything until you tell me what to pray or how to pray.  My prayers are lame."  Then His words came to me like an invigorating rain upon my parched soul:  "Pray for the impossible."

Consider the implications of the statement.  How often do we limit our prayers to what is possible?  How common is the prayer that asks God to do what we could do ourselves?  What a difference it makes in our prayers when we pray for God to do what is impossible for us to do.  This works upon us in several ways:  1) it causes us to look to God's all-sufficient strength, wisdom, and power; 2) it causes us to admit our helplessness, weakness, and blindness; 3) it causes us to grow in faithful expectancy that what God has promised He is able to perform; 4) it allows God to be God.  Jesus said that it would be easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into heaven.  When the disciples heard that, they were shocked and asked, "Who then can be saved?"    "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26).  A rich man will trust his riches and not look to God to supply his physical or spiritual needs.  He is sufficient in his own eyes.  When we limit our prayers to the possible, we limit God by our senses.  Spiritually speaking, this is nothing short of a catastrophic disaster.

Psalm 78:40-41 discusses the conduct of the children of Israel in the desert after God brought them out of the land of Egypt.  "How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, and grieved Him in the desert! [41] Yes, again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel."  Did you catch the second part?  Because of their unbelief, the Israelites provoked, grieved, tempted, and limited God!  When we pray according to sight and not according to the power of the Spirit, we limit God by our superficial prayers!  Isn't it ironic that prayer is the very means God has devised that we would use to release His power upon all the earth, yet that is the same means that can limit God?  We can be like king Joash, who struck three arrows into the ground when he should have struck five or six times.  Elisha was furious with the king, who was content with three victories instead of total victory.  It would not be enough to destroy Syria, the enemy of Israel (see the story in 2 Kings 13:15-19).  What a shame to not pray for victory because we cannot see how God will do it!

Receive this encouragement from the LORD to pray the impossible.  Are you afraid that God will not do it?  Are you concerned that God cannot do it?  Then you are not praying to the real God in heaven, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, the great I AM.  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, and without Him I can do nothing.  For our God the miraculous is common operation.  Give God the freedom with an open invitation to do miraculous things in your life.  If this makes any sense to you at all, it is likely He already has!

Culture Shock!

A major misconception of Americans is that Australia, being English speaking, is very similar to America.  There is an idea that we are perfectly compatible culturally.  I am still only beginning to see the nuances and subtleties which make the cultural expanse so wide, perhaps as wide as the Pacific Ocean.  This is a distance that cannot be spanned except through the power of the Holy Spirit and God's grace.

The Landman family and I have been visiting Sonja in the hospital for about a week now nearly every day.  The hospital is very clean, modern, and the staff is highly professional.  But I saw something yesterday in the medical offices that would never fly in a San Diego hospital!  In the ward where Sonja is staying, there sits a wheelbarrow filled with alcohol:  beer, rum, wine coolers and other miscellaneous alcoholic beverages.  You don't believe me?  But there it is, covered with a net so recovering patients don't help themselves in passing.  I joked with Louis that the state-run hospital is making sure they have future visitors, or at least returning ones!

It turns out that this "Wheelbarrow of Goodies" can be obtained through purchasing raffle tickets.  To me, the entire concept is unthinkable and counter-intuitive.  The negative side-effects of binge drinking is common knowledge, yet here is a hospital supplying a wheelbarrow full of alcohol!  Since it is for a good cause, perhaps the end justifies the means.  I'm seeing the same confusing message among churches here as well.  In talking to a Aussie brother the hyper-Pentecostal movement did much damage in the church and the residual effects are still seen everywhere.

The Aussies do not have the Christian heritage and background that Americans do.  Louis told me about an article he read that reported on the discounts senior citizens can obtain in Australian brothels!  I do not relate these things to say that Australia is wrong and America is right.  To the contrary:  there is no country in the world that has had so much light of the Gospel shone into it as America.  But we have largely failed to allow our light to shine in our Jerusalem and to the ends of the earth.  A lost person is lost.  There are no degrees of salvation.  Had the light from Jesus Christ revealed in America shined with the same luster and brightness in Australia, Australia would no doubt be a different world!

The people of America, Australia, and all the nations of the earth need the salvation wrought only through faith in Jesus Christ.  My prayer is that Australia would be freed from the power of the "Rainbow Serpent" whom the Aboriginal people worship to this day, and be drawn to Jesus Christ through sound doctrine.  May God loose the chains of legalism, crush the head of humanism, and deliver people from the emotionalism that has left people embittered, embattled, and confused.  May Matthew 11:5-6 be fulfilled in this place even now:  "The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. [6] And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."  Instead of being offended by those who do not know Christ, let us reach out to them.  The cultures of the world are all different, but we all have the same need:  we all need forgiveness, salvation, and righteousness, which are only found in the shed blood of Jesus Christ received through faith.

Biblical Prayers

I'm the kind of person who does not mark in the Bible.  I do not condemn any who feel free to do so, but I don't desire to place any of my commentary or thoughts on the same page as God's Word.  Every time I crack open the pure Word I seek to gather the fresh manna that can only come from above.  I refuse to be chained to only one point in a passage.  The people did not eat manna in only one fashion:  the scriptures say they "ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it..." (Num. 11:8).  The tragedy was that the children of Israel did so because they grew tired of it.  May that never be said of us, that we would desire the cucumbers, melons, and leeks of Egypt when God has provided of His personal stores manna for us to be spiritually sustained.  Manna after a day would stink and breed worms, and yesterday's portion is inadequate for today's lessons.

I have made an exception, however.  In the back of my Bible there are many blank pages on which I have begun a couple of lists.  On one page I list all verses that confirm the divinity of the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Thought the word "Trinity" is not found in scripture, the concept is clearly taught throughout.  Words are inadequate to describe God (since the summation of God is not possible being infinite in nature), but sometimes a single word can be used to sum up a paragraph of thought.  John said that if the deeds of Christ were recorded in books the world itself could not contain them (John 21:25).  Another list that I have recently begun is prayers in the Bible.  How wonderful it is to pray the truth of God's Word back to Him!

This is a prayer that I found during my daily reading today in Col. 4:12 that I am praying for myself:  "Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God."  How often do we labor to pray, not labor in prayer!  There is a difference!  Epaphras was a slave of Christ and his devotion was observed in his fervent laborious intercession on behalf of the Colossian church.  The summation of his prayer was that the followers of Christ "may stand perfect and complete in the will of God."  They were followers of Christ not through their efforts, but by the will of God.  They were to find their completion in Jesus Christ, not through the keeping of man's tradition.  The zeal of Epaphras for the Body of Christ was revealed through his fervent prayers.

I want to stand perfect and complete in the will of God.  There are those "realists" in the church who will decry this as wishful thinking, but I believe this is God's will for all who follow Christ.  We are to put on the whole armor of God and having done all stand girded and ready for battle (Eph. 6:11-13).  This can be done in us through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us without measure - without measure!  Elisha had a double-portion of Elijah's spirit, which was a hard thing, and we have been granted through rebirth in Christ the same Spirit without measure!  We are complete in Christ, needing nothing in addition to Him.  This is not to say that we can do our own thing by ourselves, for we are part of the Body of Christ.  Col. 2:8-10 says, "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. [9] For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; [10] and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power."

Refuse to be cheated from your God-ordained birthright in Christ.  May we stand perfect and complete in Him, and gather the fresh manna as Ruth gleaned after the reapers in the field.  Boaz saw her, loved her and told the reapers to leave some extra behind.  Have we not benefited in the same fashion since our Savior openly dotes upon us?  It may be that God will have mercy on us and open our blind eyes and deaf ears to the end we might glorify Him more!  He has raised us from spiritual death:  shall we not through Jesus enter into abundant fullness of life?  John 10:10 says, "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."  The deeper life in Christ is available to all who seek it in faith.  When Jesus is lifted up, He draws all men unto Himself.

I'm Thanking God

I have been praising God for His provision as I wait upon Him in OZ.  Staying at the Landman home has been a real pleasure, and has afforded me many great opportunities.  With a private area and internet access, I have been able to keep posting on the blog, sending correspondence, connecting to my family at home with Skype, and even prepared a sermon yesterday!  For the time being whoever reads this blog is my "congregation," because the opportunity to preach has not yet afforded itself.  In God's perfect time and manner, His will shall be accomplished.  Louis, Sonja, Louise, and Johan have been so hospitable and kind.

I have also been able to do some little projects around the house.  Today I installed a recessed light outside, vacuumed the carpets, hung out the washing ("laundry" is called "washing" here, and pretty much everyone that I've seen hangs their clothes to dry outside), and cooked up some syrup for tomorrow's breakfast.  I'm going to make pancakes tomorrow and hopefully they will be a big hit.  Johan tells me he likes to put cheese on his.  I'm going to stick with syrup and hold the cheese.

Another blessing is all the experience I'm having behind the wheel.  Louis has me drive almost every time we go out, and it has become so familiar that I have even dreamt of driving on the other side of the road.  Ever so often I'll still indicate with my windshield wipers (very ineffective I'll add) because the indicator is on the right side of the steering wheel.  The rear view mirror is still a misplaced object and it takes me a while to focus on the reflection and not the mirror itself.  Wednesdays we buy petrol (gasoline, and "gas" is propane) because on Thursdays the price shoots up a minimum of 10 cents per liter as if on schedule, and Thursday we typically buy all the food for the week.  Coles, Woolies (Woolworth's), and Aldi are our prime targets as Louis and Sonja hit all the specials (sales).  There's a great deal of words that are defined differently, like "boot" is the term for the trunk of the car, "trolley" is the grocery cart you push at a store.  Many of the trolleys here require a token purchased for one or two dollars, and when finished the trolley literally locks into the one it slides into.  This keeps the trolleys all in the correct bin.

I praise God for the Landman family and all those who have been so supportive on both sides of the Pacific.  There are a lot of changes going on in the Harvest Christian Fellowship Brisbane South, and when more information becomes available I will pass it along.  I am blessed whether or not anyone reads these words, but is a double blessing if God uses them to minister to you in any way.  Keep me in your prayers as you are in mine, and remember to thank the LORD today because He is good.

The Upward Call

A couple months before I left home for Australia, I purchased a new pair of running shoes.  I started running for exercise since preaching for me does not provide much aerobic benefit!  It has been good to begin a routine of  regular exercise, not because I like exercise in itself, but because of the obvious health benefits.  I have found running benefits my mental focus, digestion, endurance, lowered my cholesterol, and added 15 yards to my golf game!

I have to admit, I'm not a health freak.  I admit I'm not even that "health conscious."  I am not seeking rock-hard abs or interested in how much I can bench press.  But one day I looked at myself in the mirror and exclaimed, "Self, you're getting sloppy!"  My pants were starting to fit a little tight and I'm too tight to buy new pants!  Some people are not content to see an ounce of fat on their bodies.  They starve themselves, eat the equivalent of cardboard and sticks, and still work out for hours a day!  They cut out all soda and red meats, buy raw foods and follow a carefully monitored diet.  That's not for me, but I'm glad there are health-conscious people out there.  If only we were as spiritually conscious as some are health conscious!  We must guard our eyes, ears, hearts, and thoughts with the vigilance of a person who avoids saturated fats, sugar substitutes, or high fructose corn syrup.

Nearly every day since my arrival, I have headed out for a morning or evening run.  The main difference between this neighborhood and mine is that it is hard to find anywhere flat to run!  The home where I am staying is situated in such a way that I always have to run uphill to go home.  I like to mix in some hills from time to time, but here I have had a steady diet of them here.  As I was laboring towards the finish yesterday, I thought about the verse in  Philippians 3:14:  "I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."  Our call is an upward call.  It is an upward battle.  We will never on this earth be able to spiritually say that we're "over the hill" because our goal is in the heavens.  It is a race that will tax us, make us want to quit, leave us dizzy, wheezing, and even puking.  But home for us always is uphill.  It's not a home that we've paid for or picked out for ourselves, but one in heaven that God has prepared for us.  It is not our sweat or tears that earn us a heavenly home, but only the blood of the Lamb of God applied to our hearts in faith.

Paul pressed forward with the urgency of a world-class marathon runner.  We have to lose the idea that speed is important in a spiritual race.  Time presses on whether you jog or sit on the couch.  Your spiritual race is being run whether you are active or negligent in spiritual pursuits.  Men have died working out in the gym and others while eating a burger and drinking a milkshake.  We Christians are followers of Jesus Christ, so close that we can draft like a NASCAR driver.  This upward call is offered to all who will follow.  The word "call" here is "an invitation."  Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."  We find rest in Christ, but there is labor to be done with Him as we remain on earth.  There is a difference between "rest" and "ease."  Ease is akin to sloth, and we ought not to ease up to the finish line spiritually.  God supplies the strength and power, and we are to take Christ's yoke upon us as willing slaves.

Don't allow the hills and valleys to bring discouragement as you press on to the upward call of Jesus Christ.  Every time that I have gone out for a run, by God's grace I've always made it home.  Jesus knows every one of His sheep and will bring every last one home to heaven.  Jesus says in John 10:27-28:  "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. [28] And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand."  Run your race with joyful endurance in the strength God provides.  He will grant spiritual benefits that will enable you to serve God better.  Run Christian, run!

The Importance of Emphasis

One criterion of good Bible study and teaching is that we emphasize what the text emphasizes. Many preachers use the "springboard" method of preaching that starts with a premise outside of scripture. Verses are used to confirm this extra-biblical premise to validate it. This is the same as a builder constructing a building without a foundation. The building can be no stronger than the foundation: if the foundation is faulty, the building will not stand.

A preacher has a responsibility similar to the media in that he must hold forth the unbiased truth. The media does not always provide honest, hard facts. I was working at San Diego State University on the campus and watched a news team with cameras interview a group of people holding signs. One of the ten people of the group held a megaphone speaking out against "injustice," while five other people milled around with signs. It occurred to me that out of the thousands of people that walked by, the handful with signs would be on the Evening News. Though they clearly did not speak for the majority, their voice would be heard the loudest. It was not their position as much as their persuasion that grabbed attention.

I am saddened to think that this "springboard" preaching could be the norm rather than the exception. I have always attended a church that preached and taught through the Bible. I looked out a website today from an pastor and perused his video library. Messages included a series on the rapture, one series on numerical codes in the Bible, and the emergent church. I do not see how any of these topics even deserve a sermon title, much less a series! This is an over-emphasis of doctrine that twists the scripture out of joint.

Take the rapture, for instance. It would be fair to say the Bible does not emphasize the rapture. Reference to what we commonly call the "rapture," the "catching up" of the church to meet the Lord in the air is only found in two small portions of scripture: 1 Cor. 15:51-53 and 1 Thess. 4:13-18. Words intended to comfort no doubt confuse when blown out of proportion! The teaching of the rapture is held forth by scripture. There are also fewer things more divisive when people argue over when this will occur! The emphasis of scripture is to hold forth the truth of the rapture so all might be ready for it, not argue about when it will happen. When Jesus was asked by His disciples when He would return to set up His kingdom He said in Acts 1:7-8: "...It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. [8] But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Here we have Christ's emphasis: the time and date is not important, but their Holy Spirit-empowered witness in the meantime was very important.

In teaching, we must remember that we are messengers of God's truth. We are to deliver the message once delivered through the Holy Spirit. Jude 1:3 says, "Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints." Because the prevailing wind of false doctrine will threaten to move us from the foundation of Christ, we must contend earnestly to remain rooted on the truth of scripture. Should we pry into the misty subjective "doctrines" concerning numbers when Jesus did no such thing? Why go stumbling around in the dark when Christ has brought us such brilliant, vibrant light? The scriptures are intended to point a man to God and His glory. The devil would like nothing more than to take our focus from the Source of Life Jesus Christ.

I am on dangerous ground when I emphasize what the Bible does not! What a gross sin it would be to lead people to the rock at Meribah when we God has given us living water through the Holy Spirit without measure! God has made us fountains of living water through rebirth by the blood of Jesus, and man tries to squeeze water from stones! 2 Peter 3:10-12 says, "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. [11] Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, [12] looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?"

The Day of the Lord is not the emphasis here. The emphasis of the passage is to cause all to consider what manner of people we ought to be in holy godliness, looking for the coming day of the Lord. Since all will be dissolved, how ought we to live for God while we still have time? There are plenty of well-meaning people who would love to spend a month of Sundays explaining all the hidden truth which explains when that day will come. I am reminded of the words of Christ in Matthew 15:14: "Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch." It grieves me to see the wrestling that occurs in that ditch. I spent a good portion of my life in that ditch. But God in His mercy, pulled me from that pit! I am determined to stand clear of that ditch on the clear promises of God. It is He that has opened my eyes, and I choose to place the emphasis of my life upon Him.

The point of this post was not to "take shots" at anyone or decry a particular style of preaching. The point must be emphasized: we are to preach Christ, and Him crucified from all parts of scripture as the LORD leads. Beware of those who camp on issues not emphasized in scripture. Like a body needs healthy food to be strengthened, mature, and grow, we need the pure milk and meat of the Word to grow spiritually. If a doctrine takes your eyes from Christ, then it is not pure doctrine. All good doctrine elevates and magnifies Christ. Taste and see that the LORD, HE is good!

The Great Omission

Churches throughout the world place emphasis on teaching of the Word of God.  Modern-day sermons are vehicles to express themes that range from "God's best for you" to "Jesus loves you and has a plan for your life."  Though often sermons are the centerpiece of a Sunday morning worship service, I am amazed how infrequent God and His attributes are the centerpiece of those sermons.  If there is a cause for the disillusionment, ignorance and faithlessness of the modern church it is largely due to the shift from God to what a man can get from God.

When was the last time you heard a message that focused on God, like His perfection, justice, mercy, immutability (the fact He does not change)?  I feel the need to define immutable because it is likely you have never heard the theological term used by Holy Spirit-fired preachers of centuries past to try to describe God:  Malachi 3:6 says, "For I am the Lord, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob."  Take in the wonder how God does not change.  What He has said He will do, and emotions will never lead Him from His prescribed course.  He does not have opinions that waver according to His approval rating.  God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, and this will never change no matter how many people blaspheme His holy name.

I love reading the words of preachers who long ago have been ushered into eternity because of the wealth of content and description found in their writings.  Over time we have seen the English language that once soared over the mountains plunge into the gutter!  Read the Declaration of Independence, if you can follow it.  Such highly wrought sentence structure today leaves us glazed-eyed and slack-jawed!  The church is the not only place we have seen this phenomena, but we see this reduction of complexity everywhere in the world.  We have grown accustomed to it.  Classic music composed for an entire symphony has been replaced by three men in a garage with electric amplification; grand paintings and portraits that took years to complete have been replaced with Photo Shop; acting in grand halls has been replaced by youtube clips; powerful speeches like the Gettysburg address have been replaced with "Married With Children" one liner cut-downs and tweets about eating lunch.  The Meaningful has been fully eclipsed by the meaningless, which is like a mirror that brings only ourselves into focus.  We become the breadth and depth of our existence, and that is a thimble half-full compared to the ocean that cannot even begin to quantify our Maker.  As you cannot quantify eternity in years, so you cannot sum up the Divine Infinitude that is GOD with a few meager words.

Could it be possible that the church has lost sight of God?  Is it conceivable we have grown apart from Him due to fads and passing winds of doctrine?  How long have we been drifting on the current of current events?  It seems the only things that fire up the church these days is an external fire when God intends we cultivate the inner fire of the Holy Spirit.  Moral issues like abortion and gay marriage, books like The Prayer of Jabez, The DaVinci Code, conspiracies like Y2K, fads like WWJD? and the constant upheaval in economics and politics stir the hearts of most churchgoers more than God Himself!  How about we turn our eyes upon Jesus?  How about we shift our view from the temporal to the face of the Eternal?  So much of our focus is the equivalent of sparking up strange fire like Nadab and Abihu.  The hearts of many would rather pay money to seek familiar spirits with King Saul than pay the price of devotion and obedience to wait for the still small voice of the Holy Spirit.

If our church experience becomes more about people than God, it's not church.  Jesus is the Head of the body, and we live to glorify and praise Him.  God must be the center of all that we do, for it is He who works in us both to will and to do His good pleasure.  I've decided that in my preaching I need to do a better job of making God the focus.  I need to emphasize who God is by magnifying His divine infinite attributes.  There is a benefit to observation, interpretation, and application, but God must be lifted up as the centerpiece of the discourse.  A sermon must be a scaffold to elevate the low mind of man to consider the holy infinite God, and  must never be seen as the building itself.  When you know what a man is like, you know how he will act.  You cannot trust in a God you do not know.  The longer we remain ignorant of our God, the weaker our faith and witness will be.  Thousands of years ago God was worthy of all glory, honor and praise.  Because He does not change He will remain worthy for thousands of years to come, from eternity to eternity.  Let us determine to know Him better!

Think on these things!

I brought a single book besides the Bible to Australia, A Body of Divinity by Thomas Watson.  It was originally printed in 1692, and the truth it contains remains to this day.  I would like to quote a paragraph from the book concerning the wisdom of God.  It's rather long, but as a gourmet meal is not prepared in 10 seconds, deep thoughts or a spiritual nature are rarely conveyed in a sentence.

The wisdom of God wonderfully appears in the works of His providence.  Every providence has a mercy or a wonder wrapt up in it.  The wisdom of God, in His works of providence, appears.  (I.) By effecting great things by small contemptible means.  He cured the stung Israelites by a brazen serpent.  If some sovereign antidote had been used, if the balm of Gilead had been brought, there had been some likelihood of a cure; but what was there in a brazen serpent?  It was a mere image, and not applied to him that was wounded, he was to look upon it only; yet this wrought a cure.  The less probability in the instrument, the more is God's wisdom seen. (2.) The wisdom of God is seen in doing His work by that which to the eye of flesh seem quite contrary.  God intended to advance Joseph, and to make all his brethrens' sheaves bow to his sheaf.  Now, what way does He take?  First Joseph is thrown into the pit; then sold into Egypt; then after that put in prison (Gen. 39:20).  By his imprisonment God made way for his advancement.  For God to save in an ordinary way would not so much display His wisdom.  But when He goes strangely to work, and saves in that very way in which we think He will destroy, his wisdom shines forth in a most conspicuous manner.  God would make Israel victorious, and what way does He take?  He lessens Gideon's army.  'The people that are with thee are too many' (Judg. 7:2).  He reduces the army of two and thirty thousand to three hundred; and by taking away the means of victory makes Israel victorious.  God had a design to bring His people out of Egypt, and a strange course He takes to effect it.  He stirred up the hearts of the Egyptians to hate them.  'He turned their heart to hate His people' (Ps. 105:25).  The more they hated and oppressed Israel, the more God plagued the Egyptians, and the more glad they were to let Israel go (Ex. 12:33).  The Egyptians were urgent upon Israel, that they might end them out of the land in haste.  God had a mind to save Jonah when he was cast into the sea, and He let the fish swallow him up, and so brought him to the shore.  God would save Paul, and all that were in the ship with him, but the ship must break, and they all came safe to land upon the broken pieces of the ship (Acts 27:44).  In reference to the church, God often goes by contrary means, and makes the enemy do His work.  He can make a straight stroke with a crooked stick.  He has often made His church grow and flourish by persecution.  'The showers of blood have made her more fruitful,' say Julian.  Ex. 1:10: 'Come, let us deal wisely with them, lest they multiply.  Verse 12:  'The more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied;' like ground, the more it is harrowed the better crop it bears.  The apostles were scattered by reason of persecution, and their scattering was like that scattering of seed; they went up and down, and preached the gospel, and brought daily converts.  Paul was put in prison, and his bonds were the means of spreading the gospel (Phil. 1:12).

Consider the wisdom of God at work in your own life:  can you not see His great handiwork?  He is great and above all and uses the weak instrumentality of our flesh and the circumstances of this life to fulfill His purposes.  Rejoice in the LORD always, again I say rejoice!  The One who allows you to abound and lack will sustain you through the dry and rainy seasons alike.  The One who knows your frame also knows your feelings.  He knows your circumstances well, for it is He that ordained them.  He wants to use all things to refine and mold us into the image of Christ that He may be glorified.  Should we not glorify our God for these things?

What I did today...

Perhaps you're wondering how I'm spending my time over in OZ.  If I was staying in El Cajon with my family, it may not be quite as interesting.  People here put their pants on one leg at a time just like at home, but because it is 7,300 miles from home it garners interest!

I left San Diego at 8:50pm bound for Los Angeles and departed for Brisbane at 11:20pm.  The flight was about 13 hours and went very smoothly.  I arrived at 6:30am to find that the exchange rate had swung against the dollar severely.  In May when I handed the money changer $300 American I received $400 in Australian dollars:  this time I forked over $400 and received $412.  Unfortunately nothing is cheaper than before, but God has provided abundantly for me!

Since my arrival, I still have not been waked by the sound of my alarm.  I go to bed around 10pm or later feeling very tired and wake up at around 5am feeling very tired!  The beauty of life in AUS is coffee provided nearly all day, so there's no excuse to continue feeling tired.  The Landman family makes terrific coffee, and the teens in the house Louise and Johan informed me they have been drinking coffee since the age of two.

I started my morning with prayer and Bible reading, and at about 7am shared some "brekky" and coffee with Louis.  Brekky this morning was cereal with "full cream milk," which included prunes, strawberries, kiwi, and a mix of corn and bran flakes.  The "kiwi fruit" as they call it here looks no different but certainly has a mellow, sweet flavor unlike any kiwi I've ever eaten.

After eating we began the preparations for Joe to come over, a fellow immigrant and friend of Louis from South Africa.  Joe is a skilled electrician and Louis planned to install some canned lighting.  After laying out the lights over the kitchen area, Joe amazed me by accessing the work literally through the roof!  He removed some tiles from the roof to drill with the hole saw down through the sheetrock lid.  Louis snapped the 15 watt cans in place and the room received much needed illumination!

I spent the next hour trimming the hedges in front of the house.  Hedges are hedges wherever you are, but I had Louis take a picture just to prove that I actually did something productive here, not that you wouldn't believe me or anything.  Isn't it great that we can trim the hedge unto the LORD as well as preach?  After a minor "set-back" which involved a cord repair, things went in quick order.


After yard work and lunch Louis and I rode his scooter over to the hospital, where Louis' wife Sonja is recovering from a procedure.  While we were visiting her, we were able to meet with Phil and Linda White who brought her flowers.  It was a great to talk together, and riding onthe back of the scooter was quite memorable.  There we were, riding a scooter to "Woolies" (Woolworths) and the hospital at 80km an hour, wearing matching helmets and blue shirts.  When we stopped at an intersection, some little kids actually said hi to us, laughing in amusement.  We were quite a spectacle to be sure!

After arrival at home in the afternoon, I returned a call to Heath from Calvary Chapel in Canberra.  During our conversation I was blessed by his genuine love and support as he encouraged me to seek the LORD's will in everything I do here.  He was blessed to hear that God has put AUS on my heart, and he offered me a place to stay if God should lead me to visit.  I have no doubt that our paths with cross during this trip, and I trust that God will make the way clear.

Well, I'm off to the store to buy some fish with Louis, and I'll try my hand at some night driving on the other side of the road.  I have to hurry to be home by 7:30pm to catch the semi-final rugby match between the Brisbane Broncos and the  Melbourne Storm.  The winner will play in the final next week against the Eels.  Gotta love footy!  Be blessed in Jesus name, and continue to pray that God's will be done in earth as it is in heaven, in Australia, USA, and across the globe!

Took a little walk in the forest...

This morning I took a little walk in the woods.  Less than a stone's throw south there is an expansive forest near the home where I am staying.  The sky was a clear blue, the temperature cool, and the sun bright.  I decided it was a perfect time to do a little exploring.  I stuck to the trail and walked for half an hour, taking in the sights and sounds of the thickly wooded area.

As I walked, the song of a bird prompted me to sing a worship song, perfectly hitting the first four notes of "I want to live...to live for your pleasure.  I want to run...to run for your fame.  I want to dwell...in your house forever:  to seek your face, as you call my name, to hear you say, "Well done!"  Creation itself worships God, glorifying Him in song and activity.

Much can be learned through the call of a bird and the hurried scramble of ants over rocks and leaves.  In the words of Solomon:  Proverbs 6:6-8 says, "Go to the ant, you sluggard!  Consider her ways and be wise, [7] which, having no captain, overseer or ruler, [8] provides her supplies in the summer, and gathers her food in the harvest."  An ant is content to be accountable to God, needing no "foreman" ant to cajole, motivate, or convince of purpose and function as part of the colony.  How wonderful it would be for us to be like ants in this manner, fulfilling our function in the Body of Christ with joy, thanksgiving, and diligence.  We should be willing to receive wisdom from God's creation as we are still before Him.


As I continued my hike through the forest, I came across a termite mound standing about three feet tall.  I stood on a stump to take a better shot of the mound constructed of mud.  I love it when I see the weak instruments like insects God uses to make things that I cannot!  Without training or classes termites made this wonderful mound of mud that has weathered rain and fire, by the look of nearby trees.  A man cannot build a lasting structure without refined materials and adequate training.  Yet termites and ants can make vast homes because of the wisdom God has placed within them.

When I think about the labor that stands before the Church of Jesus Christ in Australia, it is a daunting task and I know not where to begin.  What can a man do in his own strength for God?  The work stands before me is an impossible task which I am completely incapable to begin or complete.  But praise be to God, that the Church is Christ's Body, and He is the Head!  All those who are born again have been placed in different roles in His Body that He might be glorified.  Like the Holy Spirit instructed the persecuted disciples brought before magistrates what they should say in that exact moment, I have no doubt I will know what to do when the time comes.

Jesus says in Matthew 6:27-33:  "Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? [28] So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; [29] and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. [30] Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? [31] Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' [32] For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. [33] But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."

Ants and termites do not worry, but work.  Birds do not fret about food, for God provides even for them of His abundance.  Visas, transportation, money, food, clothing, and rent do not stand in the way of God from fulfilling His will.  Let us decide not to allow anything to stand in the way of our obedience, and take heart in the promises of our Savior.  Instead of looking to the uncertainty of the world, rest in the One who does not change, whose Word is true, and whose mercy reaches from everlasting to everlasting.

Do you need a breakthrough?

"Would it not be an encouragement to a subject, to hear his prince say to him, You will honour and please me very much, if you will go to yonder mine of gold, and dig as much gold for yourself as you can carry away?  So, for God to say, Go to the ordinances, get as much grace as you can, dig out as much salvation as you can; and the more happiness you have, the more I shall count myself glorified."

Thomas Watson, A Body of  Divinity, page 14

As I flew over the Pacific towards the coast of Brisbane, this statement was so good I had to linger for a while.  Ever had one of those moments when a text arrested your interest and chained you to the spot?  A smile spreads across the face and the heart swells up joyfully as if to shout, "This is true!  Amazing and true!"  We serve the King of kings, whose royal stores are graciously offered to all who will approach in humble faith.

In the fantasy film "The Adventures of Baron Munchausen," the Baron makes a wager with the Sultan.  The Baron proposes that he fetch a bottle of sparkling wine from over 1,000 miles away within an hour or the Sultan can cut off his head.  The Sultan accepts the wager, saying that if the Baron was able to perform this feat he would allow him to carry from his treasury as much riches as the "strongest man can carry."  The Baron was able to fulfill his end of the wager and the strongest of his companions was able to carry off all the Sultans treasure, enraging him and starting a war.

The fantastic tale ranges from ridiculous to absurd, but the point is this:  every earthy king has a limit to his riches.  There is only so much gold to be mined from the hills, and only so many precious stones lying hidden in the earth.  No man can place an "infinity" sign next to his checkbook balance.  But Christian, do you realize what God has offered you according to His infinite greatness and wealth?  Jesus says in Luke 12:32:  "Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom."  For those who overcome through Christ we will sit with Christ in His throne, as He has overcome and sits in His Father's throne (Rev. 3:21).  Oh, the inestimable riches of the grace of God!

What riches of grace and mercy lie undisturbed by God's people!  Because of this, we rob God of glory.  We are content to only receive from God what we can easily carry between finger and thumb, rather than loading ourselves to the full of His bounty!  We do not want to be burdened on earth by the gravity of sin, forgetting that the riches of heaven draw us toward Him.  Heavenly riches make a man's footsteps light upon this earth.  It is only a man has tasted and seen that he can adequately describe of the heavenly to the trudging hell-bound masses.  It is not that God wants us to be self-centered and full, but that we would be filled with His glory so we might be emptied!

Exodus 19:21 says, "And the Lord said to Moses, "Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to gaze at the Lord, and many of them perish."  We live in a day when we must warn the people to gaze upon the LORD because many are perishing!  In too many churches today the message is only about what God wants to do for you and how He has a plan for your life.  We worship the plan rather than the Planner!  God has already done!  Jesus said, "IT IS FINISHED!"  But too many of us have neglected to begin to enter in.  The stores of His grace, mercy, truth, love, wisdom, and knowledge lay untouched as we bumble around looking at ourselves in vanity.  Should we not turn our gaze to our God and worship Him for who He is?  God has given the Holy Spirit without measure yet we are happy to be happy.

"Go to the ordinances, get as much grace as you can, dig out as much salvation as you can; and the more happiness you have, the more I shall count myself glorified."  As a man matures from a boy to a man, His strength, vitality, and endurance increases.  Let us not be content with the spiritual riches we are able to glean today but press on to unexplored territory of the Kingdom of God.  Let us avail ourselves of the stores of our Savior's grace and abundant salvation.  May our hearts be elevated in worship, our minds focused in devotion, and our eyes fixed upon our Savior.

Everyone knows how Bill Gates, Elvis Presley, and Michael Jordan acquired their vast fortunes.  Newspaper and television reports how they have become wealthy through computers, music, and basketball.  We can take virtual tours of their homes and read of their exploits on the internet.  If only the Source of our vast spiritual fortune was known to the world:  not to the end that people would be envious or desire such fortune for themselves, but to the end they may adore and reverence the God who gives such gifts to men.  Worship the King who is glorified through the riches received by His children.  Let us break through and gaze upon our Savior, who is worthy of all glory, honor, and praise!

What needs to be "broken through" in your life that holds you back from freely gathering up the riches of the Kingdom?  Jesus has done the work:  let us enter in through Him!

God is real!

As I flew out of San Diego yesterday, I watched the city lights twinkle through the window of the small plane.  It occurred to me that it would be foolish to deny the existance of human life.  Lights in a contiunous grid pattern filled the darkened landscape below.  I could make out a small baseball diamond, an illuminated rectangular pool, and cars crept through the highway like blood cells flowing in a vein.  In the Pirate's of the Carribean ride at Disneyland I always loved the skeleton who drank the wine that could be seen flowing through the rib cage.  The L.A. traffic looked like that, shimmering far below in a continual stream.

Every window is fitted with a plastic cover that can be pulled down to block out the sight below.  In talking to a friend today, I learned the position of the Australian government is athiestic.  Let's say I told my fellow passenger, "Look at all the electric lights down there."  He promptly closes the window and says, "How can you know those are lights?"  Well, I've seen lights before, I've turned them on, I've changed bulbs, tubes, and mercury vapor and halides...I know an electric light when I see one.  In my opinion, it takes no faith whatsover to believe that I saw lights out the window the opposite direction of stars.  It takes the deductive power of a two year old child to make that simple conclusion.

I do not believe it takes any faith whatsover to believe that God exists.  I think it is even more remedial than the concept posed by Ray Comfort is all is required is to "have eyes that see and a brain that works."  A man would never come upon cave drawings or paintings and think that the clear representation of hunter and prey were the cause of millions of years of erosion and lime.  What diver would believe that a wrecked ship near a reef was the evidence of driftwood joining itself together?  No one could ever step foot into a plane believing that there was no engineering involved in the design and it is the product of random chance.  When I start thinking about how the human body forms in the womb with all bones, skin, glands, hair, organs, taste buds, bone marrow, brain, vascular, reproductive, and respiratory systems I know it is far beyond man to comprehend.

Man has learned to "harness" the power of wind, but man cannot create wind from nothing.  We can create mechanical means to fan ourselves or condition the air of a house, but we must use copper, steel, wires, coils, refrigerant, and electricity to do it.  Benjamin Franklin "discovers" electricity with his kite and key and is hailed as a hero, and Thomas Edison invents the incandesent light bulb harnessing electricity and every child at school is taught of him.  The grand irony and tragedy of all this is God, the Creator of electricity and all things, is ignored and seen as irrelevant.  Schools and governments alike try in vain to cover up every evidence of God and focus on the exploits of man who uses what God has given Him.  We worship the creature over the Creator.  All we have to do is open our eyes and God's glory is seen!

Even if every window in the airplane was shut, it wouldn't change the reality of the lights far below.  The world can make athiestic claims right until the Day of Judgment.  No system ever formed itself.  No building ever built itself.  No pastry ever baked itself.  No book ever wrote itself.  No painting ever painted itself, and no man ever made himself!  Yet there are those who say the world made itself by accident, along with the life and ecosystems in it.  I would be a fool for believing that!  The earth was made with the ability to support life God created.  Life has never come from non-life.  Anyone who thinks otherwise is no different than the alchemists of the middle ages who tried to make gold from non-gold through chemical means.  What they learned by failure we know scientifically as fact, that gold and silver are basic elements and are not reducible.

Life is the most basic element of God's handiwork.  Jesus came that we might have abundant life through Him.  Man has the ability to make beautiful things, like lights spread out like a glimmering carpet underneath the plane.  But the heavenly lights and stars that God spoke into existence have been around since the beginning of creation, and will remain long after my body turns to dust.  He is the eternal God, the mighty Creator of the heavens and earth.  He is my God, and I will shine eternally for His glory by His grace.

Safe in Brisbane!

I have arrived safely in Brisbane!  It was a great flight, smooth through customs, and the Landman family was there bright and early to pick me up.

Apparently there is a big windstorm coming up from Sydney and we are seeing the effects in Brisbane.  More to come!

Preparing a Place

As the time of my departure draws near, it has been a blessing to hear of the preparations taking place.  Today I received an e-mail from Louis that the preparations of "my room" have been completed.  I sent over a copy of my itinerary and Louis will pick me up from the Brisbane airport.  Over the last couple weeks there have been discussions concerning renting a car or scooter to aid me in transportation.  He and his wife Sonja have prepared a room with a bed, a laptop with internet access, a printer, and even a mobile phone.  I am blown away by their generosity, thoughtfulness, and care.  But this moved me to appreciate my Savior even more.

I started thinking about Elisha.  Elisha was an Old Testament prophet who was greatly used by God.  As he passed through the city of Shunem, there was a God-fearing woman who often constrained him to eat at her house.  2 Kings 4:10 records a conversation with her husband:  "Please, let us make a small upper room on the wall; and let us put a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; so it will be, whenever he comes to us, he can turn in there."  Knowing that Elisha was traveling and could not provide for all his necessities, God put it in the heart of the Shunamite woman to build a furnished room for Elisha.  She wanted to provide a bed so he could sleep, a table and chair for eating, a lampstand for reading or writing.  She was blessed to bless the man of God.  Her outpouring of care was not lost on Elisha and he later asked her, "What is to be done for you?"

My brothers and sisters in AUS have been thoughtful in their care for me.  As the Shunamite considered and provided for Elisha's necessities with thought for his comfort, so a place is being provided for me in AUS.  But while I will be spending a short while in the Landman house, there is a place being prepared for me in heaven by my Savior, Jesus Christ the LORD, with whom I will dwell eternally.  If a fellow pilgrim walking this earth can abundantly supply my needs in a country foreign to me, how much more my Maker!

Abraham was called out of his city to the land which God would show him.  Abraham was a pilgrim on this earth, dwelling in tents because he was looking unto a heavenly city made by God.  Hebrews 11:16 says, "But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them."  Let this verse sink into your hearts:  because Abraham desired to be where God is, God is not ashamed to be called "the God of Abraham."  Does not this bring tears of joy to your eyes and intense longing to your heart?  If you seek God, He will not be ashamed to be called your God!

The Father has prepared a city for His people, and Jesus has gone to prepare a place in that city for all who follow Him in faith.  Jesus says in John 14:2-3: "In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. [3] And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."  Who do we need more than Christ, and who knows our needs better than Christ!  Where we are going internet and mobile phones are unnecessary, beds and lamps will be useless.  The Light of the world will be our light, and the one who does not slumber nor sleep needs no bed.  How good it is to long for heaven!  We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

When Elisha was provided a room he asked, "What is to be done for you?"  We should ask the same of God, for He has prepared a place for us!  A man can do nothing for God unless God does it through him.  We have already entered into the dwelling place of the Most High God through the blood of the Lamb as we enter boldly into His throne room of grace.  We are now the temple of the Holy Spirit.  Our inheritance in Christ is to be entered into now to the degree a mortal can. 1 Cor. 15:54-57 says, "So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."  [55] "O Death, where is your sting?  O Hades, where is your victory?"  [56] The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. [57] But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Let us enter into the abundant life found in Jesus Christ, laboring for Him.  There is no life to be found in cars, houses, mobile phones, or internet service.  Life is only found in Jesus Christ.  Have you tasted and seen that the LORD, He is good?  Oh, the wonder of His grace, that I am His and He is mine!  Let us serve Christ and others for the glory of God, for He has prepared a place for us.

Where I'll be staying God willing...

I am excited to report that I know where I will be staying when I travel to Brisbane.  The Landman family has graciously extended their hospitality to me during my visit.  Louis and Sonja invited me over to their home for a wonderful dinner with them during my previous stay.  They have two terrific kids, Louise and Johan, and I look forward to spending time together.  If you want to check out the street I'll be staying on, feel free to check out the link.  The area is indicative of much of the suburbia that is Brisbane, very picturesque and beautiful.  Please pray for the Landman family and I thank God for their sacrificial hospitality.

I had a conversation with a brother at church that reminded me that I need to explain my visa situation so you might pray towards that end.  I will be traveling on a "tourist visa," which is a one year visa that allows multiple entry but only for a three month maximum stay.  I am not allowed to do any work or make any money in AUS.  A tourist visa only makes sense in the interim because it is easily obtained and is cheap.  The trouble is I cannot afford to bring the whole family over on tourist visas and leave every three months for a couple weeks.

Another visa option is the "religious workers visa."  This is a two year visa that would cover me and my family, but I would not be able to draw any income from AUS.  There are prerequesites for obtaining this visa as well:  I would have to be brought into an established church in Queensland as a pastor.  The church would apply with Queensland to be eligible to bring in a foreign minister, and then I would have to apply with Queensland as well.  The church would have to prove that I have a skill set not available in Queensland, and that I am not taking a job away from Australians.

Then there is the independent worker.  This visa is very spendy (about $4,000 American) to pay for the application process and is no guarantee whatsoever that I will be accepted.  There are only certain trades that qualify, and I've been out of my trade (mechanical insulator) for longer than three years so I don't believe I qualify.  Once this visa is obtained, you can only work in the field that the visa specifies.  This still would not guarantee a job, provide permanent residency, and you can forget trying to become a dual-citizen without that.

You know why this pumps me up?  Because the only way I will be able to serve long-term in Australia is with the divine intervention of God!  The doors He shuts none can open, and the doors He opens none can shut!  Beaurocracy is not greater than my Savior, and all nations tremble at His voice.  No government can stand before the KING of Kings and LORD of Lords.  I rejoice in my Savior, Jesus Christ.  It's miraculous that two continents are united with people praying and supporting me and my family in this venture of faith for the glory of God.  The earth is the LORD's, and the fullness thereof.  The whole earth is filled with His glory!

Is anything too hard for our God?  He does not change, grow weary, or become faint.  If anything is too hard for your god, then your god is a pathetic farce.  My God is LORD of ALL, and nothing is too hard for Him.  He is worthy of all honor, glory, and praise.

Comfort from God

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."  - Matthew 5:4

 

As I read the prayer of Paul for the church in Ephesus in Ephesians 1:15-23, I sit astonished at how far I am from experiencing the fulfillment of Paul's prayer.  I mourn over the fact that the church has not only fallen short of God's glory, but how far we are from the will of God in this area.  Paul laments in Romans, "Oh wretched man that I am!  Who will deliver me from this body of death?" (Rom. 7:24)  The church is the Body of Christ, and Jesus is the Head.  This Body which is intended to be marked by life is little more than a comatose man with spasms.  How far we are from fulfilling God's will in His Body with the life He has graciously provided!

We must be brought to mourning for our condition before comfort will be provided.  We must repent before we are forgiven.  We must confess our blindness before our eyes will be opened.  Jesus had just given sight to to a blind man by spitting on the ground, putting the clay upon his eyes, and commanding Him to wash in the Pool of Siloam.  The man went, washed, and came back seeing.  The man worshiped Jesus, believing in Him.  The Pharisees, however, did not believe in Jesus.  They looked to their own righteousness for their salvation.  They searched the scriptures daily, believing that in them they could find eternal life.  Yet the Eternal Word stood before them, God who became flesh, and they denied His deity despite the signs and wonders He performed.  They asked Jesus, "Are we blind also?"  Jesus replied in John 9:41:  "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains."  The one who was once blind came away seeing physically and spiritually, but the Pharisees remained blind.

How my heart aches for the condition of the Body!  We are like the church of Laodicea, of whom Christ said, "Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing'--and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked-- [18] I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see" (Rev. 3:17-18).  We are like Judah of whom the prophet lamented in Isaiah 1:4-6: "Alas, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who are corrupters!  They have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked to anger the Holy One of Israel, they have turned away backward. [5] Why should you be stricken again?  You will revolt more and more.  The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faints. [6] From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but wounds and bruises and putrefying sores; they have not been closed or bound up, or soothed with ointment."  Are not the words of Christ relevant which He spoke in Matthew 15:7-8:  "Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: [8] 'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me."

When we consider the power of Christ displayed upon earth and the lack of power evident in the church today, should we not mourn?  Who is there who will weep over the sins of God's people as Daniel, who stood in the gap interceding?  Should we not cry out to Jesus as Peter, "Depart from us, for we are sinful men, O Lord!"  As Jesus was led to Calvary He said to those who wept that they should not weep for Him, but for themselves and their children.  Luke 23:31 says, "For if they do these things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry?"  Jesus had just been betrayed, forsaken, and denied by those who gave their allegiance to Him.  The wood is certainly dry, and we are no better than our fathers!  God help us!  It is no wonder that Jesus is a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief.  What brings more grief to a father than a child who only brings dishonor and shame?

Those who have ears to hear, let them hear!  The stately, majestic, wonderful Head who is Christ rests upon a body stricken with untreated wounds.  We are dehydrated, our muscles are atrophied, we lie senseless in our own waste and vomit!  Is this not our condition compared to that of Christ?  How long, o Lord?  How long will you allow your holy and righteous name to be blasphemed through the disobedience of your faithless people?  God has truly done all things well, but there are none who do good, no not one.  We are a people of unclean lips that dwell among a people of unclean lips!  We are no different from Samson, a man filled with the Holy Spirit and consecrated for His service who chose to be lulled to sleep upon the knees of Delilah!

We are too quick to offer comfort in this present hour.  God does offer comfort, but to those who will mourn.  The valley of the shadow of death precedes dwelling in the house of the LORD forever.  The cross goes before eternal glory.  We must confess our blindness before God will open our eyes.  God will give to those who first ask.  We must mourn before God will comfort.  He has provided the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, who will help, guide, and teach us all things.  Cleansing from sin precedes this holy baptism.  It would be better that we refuse to be comforted than to accept a cheap emotional substitute for the work of the Spirit.  Jeremiah 31:15 says, "Thus says the Lord:  "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children, because they are no more."  Jesus wept over the lost sheep of Israel:  should we not weep for our sins?

I woke up this morning moved once again by Jeremiah 9:1:  "Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!"  How this verse perfectly explains the longings of my heart, only to be betrayed by my dry eyes!  I thank God for His exceedingly great and precious promises.  Those who come to Him in humble faith He will not cast out (John 6:37).  How blessed are those who mourn, for it is they who will receive true comfort.  Praise God for Philip. 4:6-7 which states, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; [7] and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

One week countdown!

Today marks one week to my departure date, and time seems to be against me!  There is much to do and time is short.  I've heard it said that "Time flies when you're having fun" but time also flies when you're working feverishly.  I'm of the opinion that "Time flies."  Like money, it certainly sprouts wings and flies away.

I bought webcams for both my laptop and Laura's desktop, which should be a blessing to aid us in communication.  There are so many little things to do that I've actually made a running list, something that I don't often have to do.  I thank God for your prayers and all the support offered by friends and family.  We appreciate it and we are happy to confess that we a regular people who know the feeling of stress and the unknown.  But God is using this time to draw us closer to Him in faith.  Without God, none of this would be possible.

I have been in communication with the fellowship in Brisbane and it is always a blessing to hear from them.  Please pray for the work there!  Lift up Phil, Linda, Louis, Sonja, and their two families for wisdom, guidance, and provision.  I would love for everyone to meet them!  What a blessing they have been to me and an encouragement as we seek to pursue God's call together.

Once I arrive in AUS, I plan to be more active on the blog and open a Facebook account to better connect.  Right now my time is stretched and I want to finish strong at Calvary Chapel El Cajon.  God has been so faithful to me:  no doubt He will continue, for His mercy endures to all generations.  When I am weak, He is strong. 

Our Heavenly Father

"Now they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was going before them; and they were amazed. And as they followed they were afraid. Then He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them the things that would happen to Him: [33] "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles; [34] and they will mock Him, and scourge Him, and spit on Him, and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again." [35] Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Him, saying, "Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask." [36] And He said to them, "What do you want Me to do for you?" [37] They said to Him, "Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory."   Mark 10:32-37

I praise God that we have a heavenly Father who knows our frame, that we are dust.  Our minds are fixed upon the temporal and we remain blind to our true needs.  Jesus told His disciples all that would befall Him in Jerusalem:  He would be betrayed, condemned, delivered to die, mocked, scourged, spit upon, and killed.  Jesus also predicted His resurrection from the dead on the third day.  Then James and John walk up to Him and say, "Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask."  Though Jesus would be crucified for the sins of the world, these men's request reveals all they were thinking about was their place in the world.

If we would be honest, we have to say that we are no different then James and John.  We want Jesus to do for us whatever we ask.  If we make a series of bad choices and are facing the consequences, we want God to make them disappear.  How much of our prayers are filled with requests for God's stamp of approval!  These prayers have nothing to do with the glory of God, but pleasure, ease, or comfort for ourselves.  Granted, God desires that we petition Him with our needs.  But often our wants become our focus.  Many people come to Jesus Christ because they have been told that He will give us peace, joy, happiness, and fulfillment.  The part about taking up the cross and willingly becoming a slave of Christ was conveniently ignored.

How many times have we asked for things that would have ruined us if God had done what we asked?  The path to Calvary passed through Gethsemane.  Jesus Himself laid down His will in the garden before He picked up the cross.  He asked that if His Father was willing to please remove this cup of suffering from Him.  But Christ concludes:  "Yet not my will, but yours be done."  That is what distinguishes Jesus from every man on earth.  He humbled Himself according to the Father's will, though being equal with God, took the form of a servant, and walked the path of the cross.  He was not praying for elevation of position or His own salvation.  He died so we might live.  Had the Father granted His request, all mankind would have perished.

One thing I love about the men of the Bible is that they are men.  Their flaws and weaknesses are not hidden from our sight.  The great men of faith like Abraham, Moses, Jacob, and David all made mistakes along the way.  During our family post-dinner Bible reading tonight, a passage caught my attention in 1 Kings 1:5-6:  "Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, "I will be king"; and he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. [6] (And his father had not rebuked him at any time by saying, "Why have you done so?" He was also very good-looking. His mother had borne him after Absalom.)"  David was a great warrior, a tremendous leader, but not the greatest dad.  He was not the stern disciplinarian one would expect.  Instead, he allowed his son Adonijah to do whatever he wanted.  Not one time did he ever question what his son did.  The fruit of this negligence of discipline in Adonijah's life was a premature death.

Now that David was old, Adonijah continued to to as he pleased.  He "exalted himself" and claimed the throne.  He had not been anointed or appointed king, but he tried to take the throne by force.  Most of us are Adonijahs at heart, wanting the throne for ourselves.  We are worthy in our own eyes and say, "I will be king."  We are like James and John approaching Jesus to say, "We want you to do for us whatever we ask."  I praise God that His Word and wisdom stops us and asks, "Why have you done so?"  God has placed the Holy Spirit in our hearts to convict of us of sin, righteousness, and judgment.  There's a country song that says, "I sometimes thank God for unanswered prayers."  What the artist means is he is thankful God did not always give him what he asked for.  God loves us too much to keep us from discipline and correction.  That's something we need but often don't ask for or appreciate. 

Proverbs 3:11-12 says, "My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor detest His correction; [12] for whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights."  Do you know who wrote this passage?  Solomon, son of David!  That means there is hope for us hopeless parents after all!  One of the rules of Susannah Wesley was, "Give the child nothing he cries for and only what is good for him if he ask for it politely."  (To see the full list, follow this link and scroll down to the bottom.)  The only thing worse than a spoiled child is a spoiled Christian!  We often think that we know what is good for us.  God know was is best for us because He alone is good.  Praise God that He is good, and His mercy endures to all generations!