I found a verse the other day that intrigued me--for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, Rom 14:17.  While the meaning is obvious—in the context of eating meats sacrificed to idols, Paul is telling them that being in the kingdom is a matter of the inner man not the outer man—I still wondered why those three things were chosen among the many traits describing Christians.
            Before much longer I found Romans 5:1-3.  Those three things are not three separate items, as if they can be chosen one without the other, they are a chain reaction.  I am justified (made righteous), and as a result have peace with God, and that creates joy in my life. 
            Keep reading down to verse 5 in Romans 5, then add 12:12 and 15:13 to the mix and you see that joy is inextricably bound with hope.  The Greeks did not use “hope” the way we use it, a wish for something that could go either way, but as a confident assurance or, as Keith likes to say, “a vision of a certain future.”  Along with the apostle John in 1 John 5:13, I should be able to say, “I know I am saved; I know I have been forgiven; I know I have a relationship with God; I know I am going to Heaven.”  Is there anything that should inspire any greater joy?
            Being joyful does not mean we may not face sad times; it does not mean we must not ever grieve in a trial.  What it does mean is that we will bounce back from those times because joy is the foundation for our lives.  If, instead, I come through a trial with an attitude only toward myself, what I have endured, and what I believe others should be doing for me because of it, my joy has turned into bitterness.  In fact, I have not successfully endured that trial at all. Whenever I allow something to smother my joy, in at least that much I have allowed that thing to be more important to me than my relationship with God. 
            This is easier said than done.  I used to wonder how to have this joy that everyone kept telling me I was supposed to have.  God does not leave us without direction.  Col 1:9-14 gives us several techniques for having joy.  Be filled with the knowledge of Him; walk worthily of the Lord; bear fruit in every good work; give thanks for our salvation.  Do you know what that boils down to?  Focus on the good things and stay busy serving others. 
            Joy is like a glow-in-the-dark toy.  The more I focus on what God has done for me and what he expects me to do for others, the longer I sit in the light and the stronger my glow will be.  But if I sit too long in the shadow of sadness and grief, focusing too long on myself, my joy will begin to fade until eventually it is gone altogether.    
            If you find yourself alone in the dark today, it’s time to come back into the light before your joy disappears, along with the hope that reinforces it.  This is a choice you make, one that has nothing to do with what happens today or what anyone does to you, but with the path you choose to take regardless.              
 
That the proof of your faith, more precious than gold that perishes though it is proved by fire, may be found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ:  whom not having seen you love; on whom, though now you see him not, yet believing, you rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory:  receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:7-9.
 
Dene Ward
 

Today's post is by guest writer Keith Ward.
 
I have a brown cap that I wear only around the house.  Though the thermostat says the house is warm, my head gets cold because I have no hair.  I mislaid the cap.  I looked everywhere I had been and everywhere it could be.  I found another, less well fitting cap to keep my head warm and looked everywhere it could not be.  I looked in all those places again.  Still no cap.  In fact, the time I spent looking far exceeded the value of the cap which has no sentimental value either.  But, I had to know where it had gotten to.  
 
After 3 or 4 days, I put on a pair of old knock-around jeans that I'd tossed in the floor of the closet during a warm spell here in Florida when I wore shorts.  The cap fell out.  Did I mention the jeans were brown?  Or, that I had moved them at least twice (and everything else in the floor of the closet) looking for the cap?
 
Now, the cap did not know it was lost.  Neither did the coin.  The sheep probably knew when it looked around and there were no other sheep nearby, but he did not know the way home.  The son never knew he was lost until things got so bad that he had nowhere else to go—but at least he knew the way home.
 
Sometimes attitudes and facts are so ingrained in us that we do not realize that everyone does not know what we know.  When we preach the gospel "to a lost and dying world," they do not hear because they not only do not know they are lost, they do not know what "lost" is any more than my cap did.
 
Jesus did not tell his parables for the lost but for those who were sure they were not lost, who saw no need for salvation for themselves.  We need to learn the lessons of the parables to understand how to show the lost their need.
 
Sometimes we appeal with love and companionship to a lost sheep who realizes a need for others of a spiritual bent, but unless we teach them, they are not really "found."  When their feelings are hurt, they have no truth to fence them in the fold.  This is happening in many churches and their numbers swell with those who are still lost but who are warmed by association with sheep.
 
We do not have to wait until the sinner hits "rock bottom" like the prodigal.  Paul converted many by the appeal of a God who loves and who knows each of us individually.  He also taught them that they were lost and destined to a fiery judgment without Jesus, "when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus." (2Thess 1:7-8).  These sounded forth the word because they knew the reality of having been lost and being saved (1Thess 1:8).
 
In vain do we teach those who, like my cap, have no sense of being lost.  They may learn facts, they may respond to some things that have some appeal to them, but they cannot be saved.  Many of our religious friends fall into this category.  We must sweep them from their hiding places to find them, expose them to the light and bring about repentance unto life.
 
Let us give thought to how we can show people that they are lost in order to motivate them to seek the salvation we wish to teach them.
 
When you follow the desires of your flesh, the results are very clear:
sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures,
idolatry, sorcery,
hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger,
selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy,
drunkenness, wild parties,
and other sins like these.
Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. (Gal 5:19-21).
 
Keith Ward

"I'll never forget what he did to me."
            As you might guess, this was not said in a kindly or grateful way.  What this person remembered was something he perceived as an evil against him.  One done by a brother.  And it was said again and again, in fact, every time that person's name came up in conversation.
            Everyone out there understands the problem here, at least in their minds.  When it happens to them, it may not be so clear how they should feel.  After all…and here come the rationalizations.  But let's just focus on a few passages that make it as plain as possible that our own salvation depends upon whether we forgive others.
            Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and railing, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, even as God also in Christ forgave you (Eph 4:31-32).
            Put on therefore, as God's elect, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, longsuffering; forbearing one another, and forgiving each other, if any man have a complaint against any; even as the Lord forgave you, so also do you (Col 3:12-13).
            Just like God forgave us, it says.  Are we so arrogant as to think that while God must forgive us, we don't have to forgive anyone else?  The next verse in Ephesians goes on to say that we should be imitators of God, and forgiving is the nearest antecedent.
            For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matt 6:14-15).  I think that one is pretty plain, don't you?  Then we have the following:
            Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. ​And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ​And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ ​And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. ​So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart. (Matt 18:23-35).
            Please notice:  the servant was forgiven and in good standing with the king until he sinned again by failing to forgive his debtor.  The king had forgiven an unpayable debt, while the servant would not forgive one a small fraction of his own.  That is where we stand, with that unforgiving servant when we follow his example.  The debt God forgave us is one we can never repay.  No matter how wrongly we have been treated, and some have been abused to the point of martyrdom, we cannot hold on to a festering grudge that eats away at our hearts.  It will send us to Hell.
            No, you may not ever truly forget how someone mistreated you.  No one can just open up his brain and cut it out.  But you can keep from bringing it up day after day, wallowing in the memories and sharing them with any who will listen.  Those words at the top of this article should never come out of the mouth of a person who has experienced the saving grace of God brought about by his Son's sacrifice.  It may be the most ungrateful thing we can do to God.
 
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD (Lev 19:18).
Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done” (Prov 24:29).
See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone (1Thess 5:15).
Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord (Rom 12:17-19).
 
Dene Ward

After decades of scrimping, doing without, patching and re-using when most would have tossed the old one and bought a new one, things have gotten a little easier for us.  I guess it finally hit me the day I was sweeping our bedroom, picked up the old plastic trash can next to my dresser to sweep under it, then flipped it over to empty into a trash bag I was carrying room to room.  There on the bottom was a piece of duct tape over a long crack that somehow, despite weekly cleaning, I had forgotten about.  I suppose I had just gotten so used to it that it disappeared from view.  We couldn't afford anything unnecessary for so long, and that handy swath of duct tape made buying a new one "unnecessary."
            But things are different now and that fact suddenly broke through old attitudes and habits.  "What does one of these cost?" I asked myself.  "Five dollars?  Six?  I think we can afford that now." And the next week on our once a week trip to town (we still don't make extra trips at two gallons of gas per trip), I bought myself a new trash can for the bedroom.
            And now Keith has decided that we can afford to have our house cleaned every other week.  I can't deny that my old age ailments make doing it myself a lot more difficult and painful than ever before.  However, it does cost extra money.  [Actually, I did not want this godly woman wasting her energy and time cleaning and then being too tired to prepare these posts and her classes, kw inserted.]
            So he found a young Mennonite woman who is an excellent cleaner and hard worker, and who charges half the going rate to boot.  We give her a substantial Christmas bonus so she won't go out of business any time soon.
            Do you know the hardest part of having someone clean my house?  Actually letting her clean it.  I want to go around the day before she comes cleaning bathrooms, dusting shelves, and scrubbing floors.  It's too embarrassing to let someone else see my dirt.  Why am I like this?  I could blame my mother, a perfect housekeeper who kept our home spotless with everything in its place.  But it probably has a whole lot more to do with pride and plain old embarrassment. 
            That may be the problem people have when it comes to conversion.  Do you know how many times we have heard, "I have some things I need to work on first?"  As if things so monumental, in our minds, that they will keep the Lord from accepting us, are things we can easily handle on our own.  Even after years of NOT being able to handle it on our own.  Do you really think the Lord hasn't already seen your dirt?
            While the Lord certainly expects us to clean up our lives when we commit them to him, he never expected us to do it beforehand and without his help, and he was willing to spend an awful lot to make that help available.  Stifle your pride and embarrassment.  Come "just as you are" and let him help you change that.
 
​Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light (Matt 11:28-30).
 
Dene Ward

I am reading a new magazine these days, at least new to me.  It's all about baking, as opposed to cooking in general, and when I received the first issue I devoured it immediately, figuratively speaking of course.  Since then, we have been devouring several of the recipes in it.  But I have had to "learn" this new periodical in the sense of what I can and cannot trust.  I have another magazine I have learned to trust implicitly.  90% of the recipes that I have tried not only worked, but became a part of my regular rotation.  This one maybe not.
            One article was all about Red Velvet.  The writer had taken several ordinary recipes and turned them into a "red velvet" recipe:  Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls, Red Velvet Cheesecake Swirl Brownies, Red Velvet Eggnog Cake, and Cream Cheese Stuffed Red Velvet Cookies.  That cake is a sight to behold with top and bottom layers of beautiful red velvet cake and a middle layer of eggnog cheesecake, plus an Eggnog Buttercream Frosting.  Just writing that down makes my stomach swoon—way too rich and far too much trouble.  However, I have tried a couple of the other recipes.  Both of them gave me trouble, either because of scanty directions or simply wrong ones.
            The Cream Cheese Stuffed Red Velvet Cookies (which are also drizzled with melted white chocolate) were probably our favorites, but the recipe was definitely the most inaccurate.  First I made the dough which had to then be refrigerated for a half hour.  Then I made the filling which had to be frozen for 15 minutes.  Then I carefully portioned the dough into 60 balls, flattened them into disks, put a heaping teaspoon of filling on every other disk, then put an empty disk of dough over the one with the filling, pinched the edges together and flattened them on the cookie sheet, thirty times.  Then into the oven, 8-10 minutes the recipe said.  The first batch made me wonder, "Is this done?" as I put the second one in.  Usually a soft cookie will firm up as it cools on the cookie sheet.  These did not, so when the ten minutes was up on the second batch, I added two more, then two more, then another.  For the third batch I just put them in for 15 minutes—they were perfect.  I crossed my fingers and put that first batch back in the oven for another 8 minutes, reasoning that it would take at least three minutes for them to heat up, then they needed another 5 minutes of cooking.  Finally, they all turned out right.
            So I am not sure about this new magazine and whether I can trust it or not.  Especially when you consider that I made thirty cookies, measuring the dough exactly as told, when the recipe said it would only make 24, they should have taken less time to cook, not more.  I guess we will see.  I still have a couple more recipes I want to try out of this issue so it's a good thing it only comes every other month. 
            And that's just trusting your recipe sources.  We need to be able to trust our sources on things that are far more important than that.  Usually I can salvage a bad recipe and make it edible, but what about other things?  What about your salvation, for instance?
            I know some folks who completely trust their minister, or rabbi, or priest, or whoever.  They never open their Bibles and check out what it says for themselves.  Really?  You are going to trust someone else for your soul's destiny?  God has made it very easy for us to take care of those things ourselves.  You have a Book that has stood the test of Time for thousands of years.  The people who think they can find fault with it are again and again proven wrong.  There is no other book of such antiquity that has been shown to be so reliable, not even the works of Homer, Aristotle, Pliny, Herodotus, or any of several others.  You can know that what you read in your Bible is true and accurate.
            So what does your preacher tell you that you need to do?  "Pray the sinner's prayer," I often hear.  Guess what?  There is no such thing anywhere in the pages of the Bible.  I have read it through several times and it is just not there.  If that is what you are hearing, how can you believe any of the rest you have been told?  You will also not hear about baptism most of the time, but get out your Bible and read the book of Acts and guess what every conversion included?  Baptism!  So who is telling you it isn't important and why would they do such a thing?  Maybe you need to find yourself a new source—like the Book itself.  God will not lead you astray.  He does not "wish that any should perish" (2 Pet 3:9). 
            And after baptism, you still need to check things out.  Everyone can make a mistake including the most sincere and knowledgeable preacher out there.  Double-check what he tells you.  You know what Jesus said about blind leaders and followers.
            It's no big deal for me to give this baking magazine a few more chances, but your eternal destiny is a big deal.  Don't trust anyone else with it.
 
This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; who would have all men to be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth (1Tim 2:3-4).
 
Dene Ward

I saw a new tech at the eye clinic the last time I was there.  Most of the others know me by sight and name, but this one couldn’t pronounce my name, so I knew she had not been there long, and certainly I had never been prepped by her before. 
            She nearly dropped my chart and said, “Wow!  This is a huge one.  Have you been coming here all your life?”  No, just eighteen years now.  If I had been going there my whole life, the chart would have been in volumes instead of just four inches thick.
            You see, everything to do with my eyes is in that chart—every test, every procedure, every surgery, every referral, every appointment of which there have been as many as three dozen in one year.  The doctor regularly writes two or three pages of notes at every visit. 
            That always makes me think of that other book being written that does cover my lifetime.  I know there are pages in it I would love to remove.  If I want them removed, imagine how a holy and righteous God feels about them.  Doesn’t that make it even more amazing when we realize that He has taken out so many?    I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, your transgressions, and, as a cloud, your sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed you, Isa 44:22.   I hope when He finished blotting out the bad, it wasn’t totally empty, that there was at least a page or two of good left.
            We sometimes seem to have that mistaken belief, that God has all the good stuff written on one side and all the bad written on the other, and that as long as there is more good than bad, we’re safe.  Wrong.  If He has any bad pages left, that means we haven’t repented of those evil things.  Sin is so bad that it only takes one unforgiven sin to cost us our souls.  When I say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his righteousness, and commit iniquity, none of his righteous deeds shall be remembered; but in his iniquity that he has committed, therein shall he die, Ezek 33:13.  We simply don’t understand the enormity of sin when we treat any of them as small and inconsequential. 
            The next time you visit the doctor, take a look at that chart.  How large is it?  Imagine one a hundred times bigger, and then remember that probably a million or so pages have been removed due to the grace of God, and rejoice.
 
And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat upon it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne; and books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works…And if any was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire, Rev 20:11,12,15.
 
Dene Ward

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.

While he is doing this, half a dozen folks start milling around, unsure of where they belong.

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, ​I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

The uncertain ones, who do not know exactly where they should line up, hear the commendation of the sheep and step into line behind them.  “Surely this is where we belong,” they assure one another quietly.  But the Lord leaves them standing.

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’

“Wait,” one of them finally speaks up.  “We certainly don’t belong in that group.  Where is the other line?”

Finally the Lord seems to notice them.  “I don’t see another line.”

“But there must be!” they all insist with one voice.

“So,” said the Lord, “tell me what line you think is missing.”

Finally feeling a bit more confident, one man stepped up and said, “The one for people who get mad.”  Suddenly he realized how that sounded when he said it out loud, and quickly explained. 

“I was a Christian for years but things got rough in my life.  I couldn’t quite get myself turned around and I—uh—well, I’m afraid I left the church.”

“Yes,” the Lord said quietly, “I know.”

That didn’t even seem to faze the man and he went right on.  “Well, brother ________ came to talk to me.  I did not like the way he did it.  He told me I was wrong and I needed to straighten up my life, that I knew better than that.  He made me so mad I just couldn’t go back, ever again!”

“I see,” said the Lord.  “You know, he spoke to me about that before he went to see you.  He asked for help to say the right things.  I’m sorry you didn’t like the way I helped him.  And you sister?” he asked, turning to the next person leaving the first man sputtering.

“Sister _____________ came to me and she really hurt my feelings when she told me I should think about the clothes I was wearing.  What I wear is none of her business!”

“Actually it is,” replied the Lord.  “You see I told the older women to teach young women like you.  She risked losing your good will to try to help you, and you have a remarkable lack of gratitude.”

He turned to the next young woman.  “And you?”

“The same as her, sir, except it wasn’t about my clothes.  I dress modestly all the time and,” she added, pointedly looking to the first man, “I never miss a service of the church.  But she had the nerve to tell me I should be careful in my speech.  I do NOT use bad language, just maybe I talk a little too much, especially about other people, but I mean no harm!  I’m just trying to help.”

“Ah,” said the Lord.  “So what did you do then?”

“I told everyone exactly how mean she was to me and how much she hurt my feelings!  And you know what?  All my friends agreed with me!” she crowed triumphantly.

“So let’s see.  You went around slandering her to everyone, is that what you are confessing to?”

The woman’s smug look suddenly disintegrated into one of uncertainty.  “Well, so many agreed with me.”

The Lord looked over his shoulder to the line on the left.  “The people who did not try to save your soul, who, in fact, urged you on in your sin by refusing to correct you, are right over there with the other goats.  You just thought they were your friends.” 

Then he looked over the whole group, which had begun increasing in size when the conversations had first begun as many left the left line suddenly seeing a way out.  “And the rest of you?  Same problem?  Someone ‘made you mad” or ‘hurt your feelings?’ And so you are looking for another line to stand in?  What should we call it?”

They all stood there looking at one another and finally the first man spoke again.  “Well, we could be the ones who get in because someone was mean to us.”

The Lord shook his head sadly.  “So how someone else talks to you—even someone who meant well and did their best, and even asked for my guidance in speaking to you—and because you did not like how they did it but got your revenge in slander and then remained in your sin, you still get to spend Eternity with me?”

They looked at one another, hunching their shoulders as if trying to hide, no longer as sure of themselves as they had been.   

“Let me tell you something,” he said.  “I saw every one of these ‘mean’ people in action.  I know their hearts.  Only a tiny fraction of them had a bad attitude, and they are over there in the left line where they belong.  You might recall Paul talking about some of them in Phil 1:14-18.  He didn’t care how those men spoke, just that the truth was being taught.  That’s the attitude you should have had.  There are a whole lot fewer of them than there are of you.  Nearly every person who tried to help you is in this line on the right.

“So--if I can say, ‘well done,’ to you, then get in the line on my right with them.  But if I can’t say ‘well done,’ because you used someone else’s actions as your excuse and refused to change, get in the other one, right next to all my people down through the centuries who stoned preachers and killed the prophets who told them to repent. 

“You see,” he finished, “there is no third line.”
 
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. Matt 25:46.
 
Dene Ward

Cursed be the day on which I was born! The day when my mother bore me, let it not be blessed! Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, “A son is born to you,” making him very glad. Let that man be like the cities that the LORD overthrew without pity; let him hear a cry in the morning and an alarm at noon, ​because he did not kill me in the womb; so my mother would have been my grave, and her womb forever great. ​Why did I come out from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame? Jer 20:14-18.
              
I can remember times when Keith knew he had to confront someone, either about their lives or their teaching.  I remember how quiet he became before he left the house, how pensive he looked, his inability to eat or laugh or even smile, and the amount of time he kept to himself in a back room with the door shut, praying. 

A preacher’s job is not an easy one.  Look at Jeremiah in the passage above.  This man was vilified, threatened, imprisoned and virtually kidnapped all because he preached the message God sent him to preach.  And he knew what was coming—because it always has come since the days of Noah’s ridicule to now.  Especially now, when the world, and often the brethren, have deemed that the worst crime of all is to "offend" someone by telling him he is wrong. But a man who has dedicated himself to the Word of God cannot turn from his God-given mission.

The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the hand of the LORD being strong upon me. Ezek 3:14.  God told Ezekiel from the beginning that his was a hopeless task.  The people would not listen.  They would be “hard-headed,” and to help Ezekiel, He would make him just as stubborn as they.  But still he did not want to go.  He went “in bitterness of spirit.”  Yet this man, of all the prophets to God’s people, was probably the most successful.  Pay attention:  success does not make it any easier.  It was years before Ezekiel was respected by his countrymen, and then only after he was proven correct by the fulfillment of his prophecy.  In all the years before he was a nutcase, a lunatic, at best a fanatic who was woefully misled. 

Amos was flat out told to leave.  “Go home, you country bumpkin and preach there.”  And Amos replies, “Hey!  This wasn’t my idea…”

Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, “I was no prophet, nor a prophet's son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ Amos 7:14-16a

Of all places for God to send this unsophisticated southerner, the urban capital of the northern kingdom, where people lived in luxury and only listened to prophets who praised them really stretches the understanding.  But God knows what we need better than we do, and those folks needed a plain-spoken man of justice whose objectivity might possibly reach a few.

So let me leave you with a couple of thoughts.

When the preacher comes to see you, or when he simply preaches a tough sermon that steps on your toes, be kind.  He is not “out to get you.”  He does not want to hurt your feelings.  What he wants to do is obey His God and save both your soul and his.  It was not easy for him to say, or preach, what he did.  Give him the benefit of a doubt.  Appreciate what he went through before he even got there, and the fact that he cares enough about you to say anything at all.

And remember—this isn’t just the preacher’s responsibility.  It’s yours too.  Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Gal 6:1.  If you are a child of God, you will be putting yourself on the line too.  Just remember what it cost you as you fulfilled the mission when the preacher stands in the pulpit.  He does it every Sunday, and every other day of the week when you are not even aware.
 
My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. Jas 5:19-20
 
Dene Ward

The biggest clearance sales of the year start this week.  I clip coupons all the time, but clearance sales are good, too, and a clearance sale that I can use a coupon on makes my day.
            Where we live, I often resort to catalogues.  The shipping works out about the same as the gas it would cost to go to the store, and when you add in the time, there is no contest.  As you might guess, I am not one of those “Born to shop” women.  I only shop when I need something.  But when a clearance catalogue hits my mailbox, I usually try to think ahead to what I might need in the near future. 
            Of course you know the problem with clearance catalogues.  They only have some of the colors left, in only some of the sizes—usually the weird colors and odd sizes, say, chartreuse size 0 or fluorescent orange plaid size XXXL.  If you want the good stuff you have to call in early, preferably the same day you get the catalogue, and have several options on your list.  That way you might get one or two things you need in the correct size and a reasonably non-hideous color.
            If something is totally free, I am not quite as picky.  I had a coupon once for a free 12 pack of one of those odd new Dr Pepper flavors, if I also bought a regular 12 pack.  Keith is the Dr Pepper drinker in this house, but he doesn’t like his favorite things fooled around with—not his coffee, not his iced tea, not his Coke, and certainly not his Dr Pepper.  I almost did not use the coupon.  Then I thought, hey, it’s free!  If he doesn’t like it, I can give it to someone else.  We were nearly out of drinks and the regular Dr Pepper was on sale, so it was no loss to us if that is what happened.
            Isn’t it amazing how people line up for good sales, and go nuts for things that are free, but no one is lining up for the most important free thing there is—eternal life!  You can’t even tell anyone about this great deal without them looking at you askance and walking away in the middle of a sentence--or making a pronouncement like, “I don’t discuss religion and politics.”
            Unfortunately the majority of the world hasn’t a spiritual bone in its body.  People are all too consumed with the here and now, with immediate results, with instant gratification of any and every desire.  It’s interesting that Paul calls such people “babies” in his letter to the Corinthians.  It takes spiritual maturity, an ability to see beyond the present and to weigh the true importance of things, to understand that this world is not what counts.
            A baby will cover his face with a blanket and think no one can see him.  He has not yet learned that there is any other perspective than his own.  He thinks if he cannot see you, then you cannot see him.  That seems to be how many adults live their lives as well.  The only things that matter to them are what they are going through, and how it affects them.   The self-centeredness of an infant has grown into the selfishness of an adult. 
            So it is difficult for people to realize that they are sinners in need of salvation.  That is the first hurdle to cross.  You cannot convert a person who thinks he is spiritually safe.  That is why Jesus had more luck with harlots and publicans than with the religious leaders of his day.  And the sad thing is that if they could ever realize their need, the solution is free!  No coupons needed.  Yet they miss the greatest clearance sale ever.  Salvation has been on sale for thousands of years.  100% off, totally free.
            Don’t let pride and immaturity make you miss the bargain of your life.
 
So then as through one trespass the judgment came unto all men to condemnation, even so through one act of righteousness the free gift came unto all men to justification of life, Rom 5:18.
 
Dene Ward

This time of year I usually try to make a batch of chocolate fudge.  I say “try” because I usually fail.  Peanut butter fudge I have down.  19 out of 20 times it will turn out right, but not the chocolate variety. I am talking about real fudge, not the newer recipes that add things like marshmallow crème, and wind up changing the texture just so it won’t flop on you.  If it shines, it isn’t fudge; if it’s soft, it isn’t fudge; if it’s grainy, it isn’t fudge; if it must be kept refrigerated, it isn’t fudge.  Real fudge is matte to the eye, firm to the touch, creamy in your mouth, and sits just fine on the countertop without changing consistency. 
            So a couple of years ago I found a recipe for foolproof fudge in a cooking magazine that I ordinarily trust implicitly.  I made their recipe, and indeed it did just fine, but it was shiny, it was soft, it had to be stored in the fridge.  It wasn’t fudge, and I was disappointed beyond measure.  However, in the article accompanying the recipe, the author stated that fudge is a tricky thing.  If the temperature and humidity are not just right, if your ingredients have sucked up too much moisture from the kitchen atmosphere any time recently, if your candy thermometer is just a degree or two off, your fudge will not “fudge.”  He went on to say that even seasoned professionals feel frustrated when trying to make this unreasonably difficult recipe.  While I am sorry those folks feel that way, it certainly made me feel a lot better.  It helped explain my 1 in 10 record of success over the years.
            Aren’t we glad salvation is not so difficult?  Just follow a few simple directions and suddenly you have a relationship that will help you in the trials of this life, and lead you to the joys of the next, the sweetest of treats anyone could possibly enjoy.  Why is it that some people feel so obligated to make it more difficult?
            My brother-in-law was nearly run out of a church on a rail once because, using the Philippian jailor of Acts 16 as an example, he dared to say that there really is not all that much we have to know before we submit to baptism.  Oh no, he was told, we must know all about the plan of God through the ages, about the true nature of the first century church, about the false teachings on salvation and how to combat them, about the “correct” definitions of faith, baptism, and grace, among other things.
            Just what was it Philip asked that Ethiopian proselyte when he wanted to be baptized?  If you believe with all your heart, you may, and he said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, Acts 8:37.  Funny that Philip never gave him a list of things to memorize and recite before he was allowed in the water.  Isn’t it wonderful—and amazing!—that our Lord will accept our obedient faith the moment we realize our need for Him?
            Yes, there are many things we must all learn.  All these years after my baptism there are still many more.  That’s what the rest of your life is for; that’s why Peter said to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, 2 Pet 3:18.   We never finish that part.  Maybe the problem is, we make this arbitrary list and think once we know it, we are finished.  Just who made the list in the first place, if God didn’t?
            One of Satan’s most powerful tools is frustration and hopelessness.  Let’s not help him do his work by making salvation so difficult that people give up before they even get the chance to start.
 
And [the jailor] called for lights and sprang in, and trembling for fear, fell down before Paul and Silas and brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?  And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus and you shall be saved, you and your house; and they spoke the word of the Lord unto him with all that were in his house, and he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes and was baptized, he and all his immediately, Acts 16:29-33.
 
Dene Ward