"The ultimate reason why we may forgive instead of condemn is because God himself does not condemn but forgives. Because he has freely chosen to put tenderness before law, we are authorized to do the same. In the imagery of the parables, God is constantly presented as the father rushing out to meet his son, the absurdly generous farmer who gives the latecomers the same wage as the day-long laborer, the judge hearing the payer of the importunate widow. In the man Jesus the invisible God becomes visible and audible . . . Jesus Christ taught prophetically, in the power of the Spirit, that Christian giving and forgiving should copy God's giving and forgiving. Acceptance is absolute, without inquiry into the past, without special conditions, so that the liberated sinner can live again, accept himself, forgive himself, love himself." Brennan Manning

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Having been brought up in a Christian atmosphere that - however well-intentioned - was based to a large degree on the 'you can'ts' of life: Christians can't do this, can't do that, can't go here, can't go there, can't be this, can't be that, etc. - it has been extremely liberating in the last 25 years or so of my life to realize that I can involve myself in and enjoy anything in life that is a God-created activity as long as my participation is based on, first, my desire to glorify God while enjoying what He has given to me - for example, a good meal and, secondly, my desire to glorify God in enjoying what He has given me in a measured, self-controlled manner - say, one piece of cake and not ten. Sin, indeed, is the high-jacking of the good things of God and totally spoiling them through selfish misuse - pornography, for example. Dietrich Bonhoeffer speaks effectively to this point:

"I believe that we ought so to love and trust God in our lives, and in all the good things that God sends us, that when the time comes (but not before!) we may go to God with love, trust, and joy. But, to put it plainly, for a man in his wife's arms to be hankering after the other world is, in mild terms, a piece of bad taste, and not God's will. We ought to find and love God in what we are actually given; if it pleases God to allow us to enjoy some over-whelming earthly happiness, we must not try to be more pious than God and allow our happiness to be corrupted by presumption and arrogance, and by unbridled religious fantasy which is never satisfied with what God gives. God will see to it that those who find the Divine in earthly happiness and thank God for it do not (forget) that earthly things are transient, that it is good for them to attune their hearts to what is eternal and that sooner or later there will be times when they can say in all sincerity, 'I wish I were home.' But everything has its time, and the main thing is that we keep step with God, and do not keep pressing on a few steps ahead - nor keep dawdling a step behind.

To be trully Christian is to be practically Christian. Jesus said, 'I am come that you may have life and and have it to the full. John 10:10 NIV

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"The phrase we so often hear, Decide for Christ, is an emphasis on something our Lord never trusted. He never asks us to decide for Him, but to yield to Him - a very different thing." Oswald Chambers

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Two weeks ago you entered the hospital for tests. Five days ago you are diagnosed with inoperable cancer. Three days ago you are given 2 weeks to 2 months to live. One hour ago the Lord took you home to be with Him forever. Brother, you found the Lord late in life - around about age 75 - very unusual. But when you found God you truly fell in love with Him. You were voracious in you appetite and desire to make up for lost time and know your Lord and serve Him. You and your good wife, Ellen, joined our little church and blessed us with your sweet spirit, and gentle smile, and hard work on our lawn and building. And you were a friend to me - a true brother in Christ and friend when I had precious few. Those weekly New - Believer Bible studies which you, Ellen, and I enjoyed together - the fellowship, the Presence of the Spirit of Jesus as '2 or 3' were gathered together around that circle table in the Fellowship Hall in Christ's name - I will never forget them. And now you are home - Praise the Name of Jesus! Paul told the church at Philippi that 'to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.' I believe it!!! You are not in 'soul-sleep'; you are not in purgatory; you are not in some intermediate 'holding room' of some kind or another. You are gazing upon the face of your Savior - He who died for you. Congratulations, Hoppy! Welcome home! See you soon. Steve

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"We read some things in the Bible (promises and truths) three hundred and sixty-five times and they mean nothing to us, then all of a sudden we see what God means, because in some particular we have obeyed God, and instantly His nature is opened up. . . when by the obedience of our lives we say 'Amen' to a promise, then that promise is ours." Oswald Chambers

Back in the day when we sang hymns in church, we used to sing this song:

'When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word, What a glory He sheds on our way! While we do His good will, he abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey. Trust and obey, for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.' John Sammis

The basic spiritual truth remains: We will know God only as we go with God - and that means seeking first and formost, through His grace, to know and do His will.

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Oswald Chambers shares:

"When we are in fear we can do nothing less than pray to God, but our Lord has a right to expect that those who name His Name should have an understanding confidence in Him. God expects His children to be so confident in him that in any crisis they are the reliable ones. (To often) Our trust is in God up to a certain point, then we go back to the elementary panic prayers of those who do not know God. We get to our wits' end, showing that we have not the slightest confidence in Him and His government of the world; He seems to be asleep, and we see nothing but breakers ahead. . . There are stages in life when there is no storm, no crisis, when we do our human best; it is when a crisis arises that we instantly reveal upon whom we rely. If we have been learning to worship God and to trust Him, the crisis will reveal that we will go to the breaking point and not break in our confidence in Him. We have been talking a great deal about sanctification - what is it all going to amount to? It should work out into rest in God which means oneness with God, a oneness which will make us not only blameless in His sight, but a deep joy to Him (as we show our confidence in Him).

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"We cannot always or even often control events, but we can control how we respond to them. When things happen which dismay or appall, we ought to look to God for His meaning, remembering that He is not taken by surprise nor can His purposes be thwarted in the end. What God looks for is those who will worship Him. Our look of inquiring trust glorifies Him. . . This is our first responsibility: to glorify God. In the face of life's worst reversals and tragedies, the response of a faithful Christian is praise - not for the wrong itself certainly, but for who God is and for the ultimate assurance that there is a pattern being worked out for those who love Him. Elisabeth Elliot

Ps. 50:23 reads:

"He who sacrifices thank offerings (worships, praises) honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God.

Do you want to see God working and 'saving you' in every aspect of your life? You have to begin to become a person who, through God's grace, reacts to all issues in life with this attitude: 'Thank you, God, that You are with me in this situation and that You are working it out to Your glory and my good. Thank you for Your Presence, Your strength, and for Your grace! I trust You.' Praising people are delivered people.

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"O God, early in the morning I cry to thee.
Help me to pray
And to concentrate my thoughts on thee;
I cannot do this alone.


In me there is darkness,
But with thee there is light;
I am lonely, but thou leavest me not;
I am feeble in heart, but with thee there is help;
I am restless, but with thee there is peace.
In me there is bitterness, but with thee there is patience;
I do not understand thy ways;
But thou knowest the way for me.


O heavenly Father,
I praise and thank thee
For the peace of the night;
I praise and thank thee for this new day;
I praise and thank thee for all thy goodness
and faithfulness throughout my life. Dietrich Bonhoeffer

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"The whole foundation of prayer must be laid in humility, and the more a soul humbles itself in prayer, the more God lifts it up. The nearer we draw to God, the more this virtue should grow; if it does not, everything is lost. The most elegant prayer is unacceptable to God unless it is accompanied by humility." Teresa of Avila

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