The Steeple

Reading from the Book of Revelation 4:11
You are worthy, O LORD, to receive glory and honor and power . . . 

Burning most of the city in four days, the Great Fire of London in 1666 destroyed
St. Paul's Cathedral and many churches. Architect Sir Christopher Wren was
commissioned by King Charles II to rebuild these religious structures. In his design,
Wren included steeples that visually guided men and women to gaze heavenward
above the city's destruction. The steeple image quickly caught on, reminding people
of the Church's purpose: to glorify our Lord and Savior.

Yet tragically, in the busyness of new programs and entertaining fads, churches
can forget their purpose. Do we pamper our congregations with an entertainment
mentality that leads to biblical ignorance? It's not about how smart we are at
directing people toward our particular church. Our purpose isn't to be wealthy,
famous, or praised by a degraded society. Our singular purpose is to pave the
way for His return by sowing the Gospel person-to-person and nation-to-nation.

I'm thankful for the church steeple. It's a fitting symbol for the central purpose of
the Church, apologetically directing people toward the glory of God.
Step outside and gaze heavenward.

Hearts On Fire

Reading from the Book of Romans 12:9-11

⁹ Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. ¹⁰ Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; ¹¹ not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;

Romans 12:11 instructs us to be aglow and burn with the Spirit as we serve the Lord. In order to do this, we have to have our "hearts on fire." How do we keep our "hearts on fire?" I have discovered that the Word of God coming out of my own mouth in the form of prayer, praise or confession is the best way. I can fan the fire. It stirs up the gift within me, keeps the fire aflame, and prevents my spirit from sinking within me. Staying thankful also keeps me enthusiastic.

Also, stay active. There is no point in putting off doing things until later. This is an expression of passivity, and it is one of the greatest tools Satan uses against God's people. The more passive we are, the more our flames diminish. Procrastination and laziness are the cousins of passivity, and they usually all attack in a group. Passive people wait to be moved by an outside force before they take action. But we are to be motivated and led by the Holy Spirit within us, not by outside forces. The best way to be on guard against the spirit of passivity is to do what we need to do now, and do it with all our might.

Remember, everything we do is to be done unto the Lord and for His glory. We should do it through Him, to Him, for Him and with Him. And we should do it willingly, stirred up, and our "hearts on fire".

Call Out To God

Reading from the Book of Psalm 14

¹ The fool* says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.² The LORD looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. ³ All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.⁴ Do all these evildoers know nothing?They devour my people as though eating bread; they never call on the LORD. ⁵ But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous.⁶ You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the LORD is their refuge.⁷ Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the LORD restores his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

*NOTE: The Hebrew words rendered fool in Psalms denote one who is morally deficient.

 I want to encourage all of my fellow believers to stay strong in the faith. The Scriptures are now being fulfilled at a startling pace, and the signs Jesus told us to watch for are growing more apparent each day. If you feel confused or frustrated and unsure of what you believe, I urge you to call out to God. If you earnestly study the Bible and remain steadfast in prayer, you will grow in the grace and knowledge of our Saviour. 

Despite what the skeptics of this world might say, I have seen God work, and I know that He is our helper in the time of trouble, our great physician in the time of sickness, our provider in the time of need, and our Comforter in the time of sorrow. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain by fully surrendering your heart to the Lord. Call out to Him.

9-11 10 years

As we reflect and remember the innocent souls lost, we remember who did this...
^{Revelation 9:11} They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon.

And we ask, "When, Lord, when?"...
^{Revelation 14:10}The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.

We Will Never Forget!

Rooted and Grounded

Reading from the Book of Isaiah 54:1-4, 61:7

 ¹ “Sing, barren woman, you who never bore a child; burst into song, shout for joy, you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband,” says the LORD. ² “Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. ³ For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities. ⁴ “Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated.

Do you have a shame-based nature? Are you rooted or grounded in shame? The curse and power of shame can be broken off from you through the power of God. We know from Isaiah 54:4 that the Lord has promised to remove the shame and dishonor from us that we remember it no more.

⁷ Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.
God has promised that in their place He will pour out upon us a twofold blessing. We will possess double what we have lost, and we will have everlasting joy.

Take your stand on the Word of God. Become rooted and grounded, not in shame and dishonor, but in the love of Christ, being complete in Him.

Resist & Overcome!

Reading from the Book of Matthew 4:1-11

¹ Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ² After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³ The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” ⁴ Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.⁵ Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. ⁶ “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.⁷ Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.⁸ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹ “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” ¹⁰ Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.¹¹ Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

We should not be surprised when temptation comes. Satan deliberately tried to tempt Jesus, and he tries to tempt us. How do you respond to temptation?

Everytime Jesus was tempted, He responded with the Word of God. Be diligent to study God's Word, so that when temptation comes, you too will know what action to take in order to resist and overcome it.

Wait and Listen

Reading from the Book of Isaiah 55:1-13

 ¹ “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. ² Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare. ³ Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David. ⁴ See, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a ruler and commander of the peoples. ⁵ Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations you do not know will come running to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor.” ⁶ Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. ⁷ Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. ⁸ “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. ⁹ “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. ¹⁰ As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, ¹¹ so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. ¹² You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. ¹³ Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper, and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. This will be for the LORD’s renown, for an everlasting sign, that will endure forever.”

The prophets were mouthpieces for God. They were called to speak God's words to people, situations, cities, dry bones, moutains, or whatever God told them to speak to. To full their God ordained mission, they had to be submitted to the Lord, and their mouths had to be consecrated to Him.

Those who desire to be used by God need to allow Him to deal with them concerning their mouths and the things they say. If you want Him to use you, be prepared for Him to deal with you concerning your words so that you are able to represent Him well with your mouth when the time comes for you to speak His Word.

As you wait on Him to show you what His desires are, open your ears to hear. Wait and listen.