This is from the book The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel
“We have better historical documentation for Jesus than for the founder of any other ancient religion, “said Edwin Yamauchi. Sources from outside the Bible corroborate that many people believed Jesus performed healings and was the Messiah, that he was crucified, and that despite this shameful death, his followers, who believed he was still alive, worshiped him as God. One expert documented thirty-nine ancient sources that corroborate more than one hundred facts concerning Jesus’ life, teachings, crucifixion, and resurrection. Seven secular sources and several early creeds concern the deity of Jesus, a doctrine “definitely present in the earliest church,” according to scholar Gary Habermans.
And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.
Prodial: I really want about five different cookies.
Me: Should you eat that many cookies.
I walk in through the two doors. I have been here plenty of times in the past. It is a regular stand alone building with the red sign.
So have many of you have walked where I have walked. I am going into Chick-fil-A. I need a quick lunch, and some nourishment. I walk up to the counter, and I already know what I want. I want the chicken tortilla soup. I love that it is not too spicy, but has enough spice to give it some extra flavor. I will also have their lemonade to go with it.
I briefly see their chocolate chip cookie on display. My sweet tooth is crying out briefly to indulge in the treat.
What will I do?
Life is about balance, we fail miserable at balance. I look around, with eyes of compassion. Some orders are on the verge of a binge meal. Some orders barely seem to have any food on the plate. Some people are happy, and others have a face of despair.
Balance means several components must be involved. Our lives are not just about out wants. We have a body, mind, and spirit. We were made to respect our body, mind, and spirit. We also were made to encourage growth physically, mentally and spiritually.
An out of balance life means that we may try to make up with excess in one area that may be lacking. We can focus on our body so much that our mental growth has diminished. We can focus on the mental aspect of our lives that our physically body is lacking during the check up.
But many of us ignore the empty hole that calls out to us to figure out our spiritual side. We try to ignore there is a God.
If our bodies look perfect, if we are perfectly happy, why do people still feel empty?
You have neglected your spiritual side. It if not enough to know if there is a God. You have to have a relationship with God.
Balance will begin. With relationship, with our bodies our minds, and with God.
We begin to not hate ourselves if two pounds were gained. We have balance.
We begin to not hate ourselves if someone in the office is so much smarter than us. We have balance.
We begin to not hate ourselves when people think we hate others because we believe in God. We have balance in a relationship with God.
That cookie is still calling out to me. Yes, but balance.
I have plans to eat dessert at home tomorrow. I need balance. I need to say no to indulgences. Indulgences will not make me happy, but balance in all areas of my life will.
I have no problems saying no, because I will be saying yes at other times.
I have no problems saying no because I don’t have something in my life that is completely empty.
At the end of the day with all my choices good and bad. I know I am loved by God who created me. I also know that with all your choices today good and bad, you are loved by God too.
Even if tomorrow I choose the cookie, I am still loved, and so are you.
This is from the book Sunrays of Help by Dr. Albert Garner
A prisoner, condemned to solitary confinement, obtained a copy of the Bible, and by three years of careful study obtained the following facts:
The Bible contains 3,586,489 letters, 773,692 words, 31,173 verses, 1,189 chapters, and 66 books. The word “and” occurs 46,277 times. The word “Lord” occurs 1.855 times. The word “Reverend” occurs but one and is in the 9th verse of the 111th Psalm. The middle verse is the 8th verse of the 118th Psalm. The 21st verse of the 7th chapter of Ezra contains all the letters in the alphabet except the letter J. The finest chapter to read is the 26th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. The 19th chapter of II Kings and the 37th chapter of Isaiah are alike. The longest verse is the 9th verse of the 8th chapter of Esther. The shortest verse is the 35th verse of the 11th chapter of John. The 8th, 15th, 21st, and 31 st verses of the 107th Psalm are alike. Each verse of the 136th Psalm is alike. There are no words or names of more than six syllables in the Bible.
Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I , will sing unto the Lord; I will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.
Me: We have to push through, and love. The Lord can help us.
This is from the book Voices of the Faithful by Beth Moore
As usual, the disciples did not get it. Earlier, Jesus had promised that He would be with them on their journey. Although they had taken no money, clothes or weapons, all their needs had been provided. While He was with them, no harm could touch them. But now Jesus was saying that He was about to be taken away from them, and they did not understand it.
Just as promised, Jesus was killed within a few hours of speaking those words. He lay in the grave three days, but He rose from death. Shortly thereafter, He sent His Holy Spirit to live in us. We now have the assurance that God will protect us, providing for us regardless of where we are or how things look.
The most incredible experience of my life was going on a nine-day trip to find a group of fanatical Muslims I took nothing but a Bible and another book. I went intending to rely totally upon the kindness of strangers and promises of God. The Lord really came through for me. I was the first foreigner who spoke their language ever to visit them. They have heard the gospel now and want to learn more. If God’s promises did this for me, He will most certainly be there for you!
May the Lord be with you today. May you love those who are difficult to love. May you forgive others. May your light blast the darkness around you. God is with you!
Daniel, Central Asia
“And he said to them, “But now, whoever has a money belt is to take it along, like wise also a bag, and whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one’…They said, ‘Lord, look, here are two swords.’ And He said to them, ‘It is enough.’
I was sitting, listening, and praying all at the same time. I was at work. This was a difficult hour. The room was a comfortable temperature. The office was the same. My desk was to the left of me, and then two chairs in front of me. I was looking at the person sitting in front of me. I had been seeing this person in counseling for several months.
I had been praying a lot for this person. See I could tell she wanted her way, and not God’s way. Her trials could only be solved by God’s way.
I had listened, empathized, and attempted to explain how God work’s best in our lives when we give up control. When we trust that He will lead us to the mountain top. We can then have a life where we stop fighting God.
She continued to resist God’s way. Her focus was about trying to keep her way. There had to be a way, that this would work. She just had not thought of it yet. The problem is that her solutions had not been working for over 25 years.
The issues that I was having is that after several sessions I began to understand something. The real problem was that she was attempting to get me to agree with her path. After weeks of this, we were going to meet a crossroads. See God’s way, and our way often reaches that point. We find ourselves in a place where we can’t hang on to both. We can’t continue. We come to that fork in the road. We have to choose.
I had reached that fork myself, so I understood how scary it could feel. I also understood why a lot of Christians have taken their road, and not that of God’s. Often God does not show us what His path will reveal. We cannot see all the twists and turns. We cannot see how safe, easy or difficult it will be. He really expects us to trust Him.
So we tell ourselves that at least on our path. I can control what it looks like. What we forget is the sovereignty of God. God can change you path at anytime. You can think the path from your point of view looks straight and easy with shade. After traveling for 500 yards He can make sure that it reaches a desert, a cliff or mud.
When we choose the path of God, it may be difficult, but we grow in trust,and we mature in Christ. We also receive unexpected blessing along the way.
After wrong turns, and trials in my life, I had begun to understand a little about this journey of trust. So here I was with a fork in the road as she was. She was so focused on her path, but she was trying to lead the counseling sessions on the path that was made by her. That meant she wanted me to go that way also.
If I agreed to her way. I would be ignoring God’s way.
No path, no matter how attractive it looks, is worth ignoring God’s way.
I knew the truth. How do you show someone else the truth? That is why I was praying while I was listening. The Holy Spirit had to show me, and I had limited time.
She suddenly started to quote scripture. She said one of her favorite verses was Proverbs 3:5.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
The scripture must have meant something to her. She had memorized it. I listened, and was glad that scripture was brought up.
She then began to explain to me what that scripture meant. She said that Trust in the Lord meant she was suppose to do all she can. What she can’t do she just gives to the Lord.
Now let’s look at that chapter together.
Proverbs 3:5,6,7
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.
We are not to look to our wisdom, and our way. We are not to think our way is wise. We with our whole heart, and not part of it turn to the Lord. It is not about our will but the Lord’s plans.
At that moment I thought how sad. She cannot understand scripture. She cannot see the truth of scripture. The Holy Spirit reminded me of more scripture.
Luke 24:45
Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
With the truth of that scripture, I understood.
The Lord had not opened her mind.
We forget that people can go to church, serve on ministries, memorize scriptures, and yet are lost.
In order to know God. You can’t just know scripture, you have to be able to apply it in your life.
Can you apply those scripture that you are reading on Sunday. Can that person who is teaching it have the fruits of the scriptures in their life?
To me this day. It was another chance to praise God for the wisdom He has given me. It was also another reminder that sometimes what people say they are, and try to look like really is not the truth. Once you to start getting to know them, and ask questions, you find that their is no understanding of scripture. They are unable to apply it to their lives.
With this understand we begin to see that we have two paths to follow. One is God’s, and one is man’s. We need to be reminded when we have these forks in the roads that others who cannot understand God’s truth will tempt us with the wrong path. They may even quote scripture, but it is still the wrong path. The Holy Spirit with scripture will tell us the truth.
We can love another, but still discern where people are spiritually. The church is in the world, but lets not forget the world is in the church. We need to have eyes, and ears open to perceive the truth, and not fall for lies.
Ezekiel 12:2
Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house, who have eyes to see, but see not, who have ears to hear, but hear not, for they are a rebellious house.
The only thing the spirit of the Pharisees cannot cope with is a man or woman who fears God only. Such a man or woman is beyond their legalistic control and it greatly unsettles them.
Every single revival of God has had to run the gauntlet of the Pharisees.
John Wesley had to preach in the fields because the churches said he was not of God. Here is a paraphrase excerpt from his journal.
May 5th AM preached in St. Anne’s; was asked not to come back
May 5th PM preached at St. Johns’ deacons said ‘ get out and stay out”
May 12th AM preached at St. Jude’s; can’t go back there.
May 12th PM preached at St. George’s; kicked out again.
May 19th AM preached at St. Andrew’s; elders called special meeting and said not to return.
May 26th AM preached in a field; got chased by a bull that was let loose.
June 2nd AM preached at the edge of town; police moved me on.
June 2nd PM preached in a pasture and 10,000 came to listen to me preach.
Do not give up!
Isaiah 6:3
And one called to another and said: Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!
Prodigal: So I figured we could share while we are walking.
Me: I already have something picked out!
This is from the book My Heart’s Cry by Anne Graham Lotz
Dr. Alan Redpath was an outstanding Bible teacher and preacher from Great Britain. For years he pastored the great Moody Bible Church in downtown Chicago. At the height of his ministry, the church was exploding while many national opportunities were opening for him to speak and write. One day Dr. Redpath was in his study when he suddenly fell to the floor, unable to speak or move. When his daughter discovered him, he was rushed to the hospital, where it was determined that he had had a massive stroke. For three months he was totally incapacitated with no mobility at all. He could not lift his head nor open his mouth nor move his feet nor raise his hand.
Yet, interestingly, his mind was clear and active. Without ceasing, he bombarded the gates of heaven with his prayers for victory over the stroke, believing it had been sent by the devil to halt his ministry. Day after day he asked God why he was allowed to remain in what was almost an outward vegetative state. He became more and more defeated and depressed.
One day, lying propped up in bed, he looked over and saw his Bible lying on the table beside him. It was open, and his eye fell on Psalm 39:10 “Remove thy stroke away from me: I am consumed by the blow of thine hand.” With shocking realization, he knew his stroke had been sent to him by God! At the same moment, he knew the reason for it–that he had allowed busyness of his work for God to take precedence over his worship of God. He had concentrated all of his time and attention and effort on bearing what he thought was fruit, and he had ignored his personal relationship with Christ! As a result, while his life was extremely busy and active, it wasn’t fruitful from God’s perspective and therefore not acceptable to Him. Immediately, Dr. Redpath repented of his sin. Almost in the same instant, he found he could move and speak! His health was restored!
The doctor declared it was a miracle, and it was! The doctor also told Dr. Redpath he would have to greatly reduce his schedule and that he would never preach again. Dr. Redpath just smiled. When I heard him tell this story thirteen years after his stroke, he was preaching as he told it! But he never again allowed his personal relationship with Christ to take a secondary position in his life.
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.
