Properly Handling Confrontational Meetings

Deuteronomy 7:10
“And repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face.”

Confrontational meetings are uncomfortable for both those watching it and for the one’s involved. If you have ever watched a panel get in an argument, you cringe inside as you watch the confrontation. When you have to confront someone over a disagreement or wrong, it is one of the most uncomfortable feelings you can have.

As uncomfortable as confrontational meetings are, you cannot avoid them. In the verse above, you find that God believes in being confrontational. Notice that God says, “And repayeth them that hate him to their face,…” Yes, God wasn’t going to deal with the sins of Israel in a cowardly fashion, but He knew if He was going to judge them, then He needed to approach them to their face. God didn’t send someone else to do His dirty work. He did it Himself. He didn’t write a letter to deal with the confrontation. He handled it “to their face.” God knows the importance of dealing with differences in a confrontational way.

There is a right way and wrong way to handle confrontational matters. Unfortunately, I have had to deal with many issues in a confrontational way, and I have learned some good and bad ways of handling these issues. Let me give you some thoughts on how to handle confrontational meetings.

First, don’t be cowardly with disagreements. In this digital age in which we live, I have found many people are very cowardly in how they handle disagreements. They will send emails or texts to handle issues that need to be handled face to face. This is the cowards way out. You need to handle issues about which you disagree face to face.

Second, predetermine how you are going to handle the matter. Don’t go into a confrontational meeting without determining how you will handle every action, reaction and question. You literally need to be sure that you try to know the answer to every question or accusation that will be thrown at you before you go to the meeting.

Third, don’t let their reaction determine your disposition. Confrontational meetings are tense by nature, so you must determine that you are going to stay calm throughout the whole meeting. Just because they lose their cool does not mean you should lose yours. Always go into a confrontational meeting determined to stay calm. If you do react in a wrong manner, then apologize for having the wrong attitude.

Fourth, don’t deal with issues in a confrontational meeting that have nothing to do with the purpose of the meeting. The classic way many get out of these meetings is they deflect the meeting into another area that has nothing to do with the issue at hand. Always stay on topic and settle it before you leave.

Fifth, it would be wise to go into a confrontational meeting with a witness. I do not believe it is wise to go alone. A witness will keep you acting the way you should, and they will keep things from being said that are just not true.

Sixth, always begin a confrontational meeting in prayer. This will take the edge off of the meeting. Getting God involved sets the spirit in a right way for the meeting. This helps you to keep it in the spiritual realm and not in the fleshly realm.

These six things have helped me when I have to deal with confrontational meetings. Certainly, there can be other suggestions that will help, but I believe if you will use these six things, you will find most confrontational meetings won’t be as uncomfortable as they could have been.

How to Make Everybody Happy

How-to-Make-Everybody-Happyby: Rick Walter

In 1 Samuel 6:20-7:1, we find the story of the Philistines returning the Ark of God to the people of Israel. The men of Beth-shemesh were excited at first, but then because of their disobedience of looking inside of it, the Lord killed over fifty-thousand of them. All of a sudden, they no longer wanted the Ark. They sent out the message that if anybody wanted it to come and get it. It wasn’t long before the people of Kirjath-jearim came and got it.

As I read 1 Samuel 6:20 – 7:1, I couldn’t help but think of soul winning. There seems to be many who do not want the truth of the Gospel, but there is always someone else out there who does.

Just look at the path of the Ark. The Philistines didn’t want it, but the men of Beth-shemesh did. Then, the men of Bethshemesh did not want it, but the people of Kirjath-jearim did. David didn’t want it because Uzzah died, but Obed-edom wanted it. It has always been that way.

As you go soul winning, you will definitely meet those who do not want what you have to offer, but don’t allow that to discourage you. Just down the road there is someone who does want it. That means there are several things to keep in mind.

  1. The sooner we find the one who doesn’t want the Gospel, the sooner you find the one who does.
  2. The more people you talk to, the more people you will find who want what you have to offer.
  3. The more people you find who want what you have to offer, the more people who will trust Christ.
  4. The more who trust Christ means the more people in Heaven one day.
  5. The more people in Heaven means the quicker the rapture takes place.
  6. The sooner the rapture takes place, the sooner we get to leave this world.
  7. The sooner we leave this world, the sooner those who did not want it can get rid of us.
  8. The sooner they can get rid of us, the happier they will be.
  9. By going soul winning we can make everyone happy!

Rick Walter
Pastor
Victory Baptist Church
Winthrop, ME

Preparing the Next Leader

Deuteronomy 3:28
“But charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him: for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the land which thou shalt see.”

Admit it, you are not going to be in your place of leadership forever. Some will move on to other positions, and some may lose position because they will go to Heaven. It is a natural thing for leadership to change. It is going to change, and because of that it is important that the present leader prepares the next leader for that position.

Leadership comes in all forms. Seniors in high school and college are leaders. Parents and grandparents are leaders. Pastors, Sunday school teachers and ministry workers are all leaders. In the workplace you have the owner, manager, and supervisor who are all leaders. In every walk of life there are leaders. It is important that each leader understands their role and the importance of preparing the next leader to fill their position when they are gone.

God helped Moses understand this all-important truth. God told Moses that Joshua was going to be the next leader, and that he needed to prepare him for when he would take the children of Israel into the Promised Land. There are five principles God taught Moses so that he could prepare Joshua as the next leader. Those five principles are very important in preparing the next leader.

First, give the next leader some honor. In preparing the people for Joshua’s leadership, God told Moses in Numbers 27:20, “And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient.” It is important that you let others know that the next leader has your blessing. Many followers will look up to you, and you can help the next leader avoid the bickering if you will put your blessing on the next leader.

Second, don’t give blanket honor. Notice God said, “some of thine honour.” In other words, God wanted Joshua to earn the honor of the people. It is very dangerous to give a new leader blanket honor. They should earn that right like every other leader.

Third, be an encouragement to the next leader. God said in the verse above to “encourage him.” Let the next leader know that you believe they can do it. They are nervous enough about whether they can actually fulfill the duties of that position properly, so you can help take off some of the pressure by letting them know you believe in them.

Fourth, strengthen them. Again, God told Moses to “strengthen” Joshua. It is sad when a leader moves on that he weakens the next leader by meddling in a place in which he no longer leads. Be careful about second-guessing the next leader. Don’t alway give your opinion. Learn to let the next leader learn from their mistakes. You made mistakes as a leader, and so will they. Don’t meddle with the next leader by telling your former followers that you wouldn’t do things like the current leader. Instead of weakening them, strengthen them.

Fifth, rejoice in their victories. God told Moses what Joshua was going to do, and that pleased him. When the next leader has victories, don’t let jealousy cause you to minimize their victories. Rejoice that God is using them to continue the work in which you had a part.

I have watched leaders, who had to move on, destroy their works because they didn’t want others to succeed where they succeeded. This is foolish, selfish and downright evil. Don’t be a leader like this. Instead, help prepare the next leader by following these five steps. Nothing will validate your leadership more than to see the next leader succeed in the place you used to lead.

Ashley Heidenreich Update August 29

Ashley enjoying REAL food. Finally getting her appetite back.
Ashley enjoying REAL food. Finally getting her appetite back.

I talked to Bro. Sam Heidenreich and he informed me that they let Ashley come home from the hospital. He asked that you continue to pray for her as she recovers. She still has several doctors appointments so they can check her blood to be sure the Dengue Fever is not returning. Praise the LORD for the answered prayers. Thank you for all the kind texts, emails and prayers concerning Ashley. We ask that you continue to pray for strength to recover.

A Driving Force

Number 25:11
“Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous for my sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in my jealousy.”

The events that led up to Phinehas’ zeal being revealed were tragic. Balaam had disobeyed God and followed Balak to curse Israel. His action eventually was curtailed when God sent an angel to stop him. Because Balaam wouldn’t curse Israel, Balak set out to have his people join up with them and conquer them through compromise. The children of Israel succumbed to this tactic, and the wrath of God fell upon them. It was their sexual worship to Baalpeor that led to God’s wrath. When one man of the children of Israel was very open about his sin, Phinehas’ zeal moved him to slay this man and his wife for the LORD’s sake.

Phinehas will forever be known for one thing, his zeal for the LORD. When the children of Israel committed sin, he was serving the LORD. When the children of Israel had their eyes upon man, he had his eyes upon the LORD. It was this zeal that turned the wrath of God away, and eventually saved his nation from destruction.

Phinehas’ zeal was his driving force. It was that thing that drove him into action. There is no doubt that we need people who have a driving force like Phinehas’. We live in such a day when Christians are so passive about right and wrong that it is refreshing when you read about true zeal in the Scriptures. If you study history, you will always see that those who did great things for the LORD were people who had a zeal for the LORD. In other words, the LORD was their driving force. His name being lifted up drove them through all obstacles. People being introduced to Him through salvation was their driving force. Their hatred for sin drove them because they saw how it separated the people from the LORD.

Let me ask you, what is your driving force? If there was a chapter written about you and your zeal, what would it be? Is your driving force money? What are you going to do when money dries up? Is your driving force popularity? What are you going to do when your actions are no longer popular? Is your driving force position? What are you going to do when others take loftier positions than you? Friend, the things of this world can be your driving force, but they will eventually fade away.

There should only be one driving force in your life, and that should be the cause of Christ. Stop trying to defend man, and make Christ your driving force. Stop making the size of your ministry your driving force, and let Christ be that driving force in your life. You should hate sin because Christ hates sin. You should go after souls because that is the heartbeat of Christ. You should fight liberalism, for liberalism’s attacks will hurt the cause of Christ. The driving force of your life should be Christ.

The reason Christ needs to be your driving force is because He will keep you going in spite of what you face. When Christ is your driving force, you will stand against sin when all others are silent. When Christ is your driving force, you will keep going when you don’t feel like going. When Christ is your driving force, you will keep doing right when others quit doing right. When Christ is your driving force, you will take another step when your strength is gone.

Let me challenge you to lay aside all other things that drive you and let Christ become your driving force. When Christ becomes your driving force, you will find that fighting sin will not be hard. You will find when Christ is your driving force, that the only thing that matters in your life is that Christ is lifted up. It is this type of driving force that will save nations. If you truly love your nation, then you will let Christ become your driving force, for this is the only true hope it has.

Do’s and Don’ts for Discouragement

Dos-and-Don'ts-of-Discouragementby: Bette Owens

Deuteronomy 1:21, “…as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.”

Everyone gets discouraged. Some people show it more than others, but everyone has to deal with it. Even when you are busy serving God, hard times and discouraging times can come your way. Discouragement can come because of all kinds of reasons. It could be illness, a rebellious child, a personal attack on you or your family. It can be an attack on your church or pastor. It can be financial, it can even be harsh slander and untruths that we have no way of stopping. Sometimes a negative circumstance in life causes discouragement, and at other times we don’t even know the cause. I have found out that it is those people you least expect who will attack and hurt us the most. When discouragement comes our way, and it sometimes will, I have found a few do’s and don’ts that have helped me to get through it.

First, keep going forward! Don’t let the discouragement slow you down or stop you from continuing to serve God. You must continue to push when you don’t feel like it and move forward. In Acts 16 when Paul and Silas were in prison and facing a midnight in their lives, they could still pray and sing praises to the Lord. At the very least, even if circumstances leave us lying on our backs, we can still sing praises to God. Singing praises to God will help us get through the rough times. Many times God has been so good to me and has given me a hymn or chorus that I will sing or even hum, that has helped me in through those hard times. Praising God will lift our spirit. Psalm 40:3, “And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in The Lord.”

Pray! Prayer is another thing that helps us through discouraging times. It is so easy to complain to others. Often we ignore the very One Who can give us the strength and help that we need. I remember a little chorus that went something like this, “When you have troubles and when you have cares, when you have burdens too heavy to bear, when you have troubles and doubts everywhere, have a little talk with the Lord.” When we are discouraged and have burdens that seem hard to bear, He is the One to Whom we need to go. As a Pastor’s wife and a mother, I have very few people I can vent to, but I take comfort from the fact that God is always there and He will listen. God will never turn me away or run and tell others when I cry to Him. He is such a good listener, and when I am done venting to Him, He helps me to press on and continue to serve Him. I have learned that if we properly handle discouragement and disappointment, it can strengthen us and make us stronger to serve Him. Romans 12:1, “Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer.”

Fight harder! We need to go against the natural tendency to slow down and fight harder. Sometimes getting busier when the hard times come will help strengthen us. It is during these times when we don’t feel like reading our Bibles that we need to fight even harder than ever to keep pressing on. 1 Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.”

Do not get bitter! When we face discouragement because of an attack, it is very easy to become bitter. This is one area we need to really work on. Bitterness is a root that creeps in, and if not stopped, will destroy you from the inside. When opposition or discouragement comes to you, you need to make sure you keep your heart soft. As things heat up and the trials come, do you become hardened, bitter and have a broken spirit? In Hebrews 12:15 it says, “Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.” Many people get bitter over the past, frustrated about the present and worried about the future. We ask why bad things happen, why me or why us? We need to realize that opposition happens to everyone. God is not picking on anyone, life brings problems and humans get discouraged. We have the tendency to believe we have it worse then everyone else. What makes us so special that we shouldn’t have to go through some opposition? We have our own little pity party and wonder, “Why me?” when things seem to end in failure. No matter how hard you try and nothing seems to go right, do not get bitter. In Psalm 51:17 it says, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” We have to work hard so we don’t get a bitter spirit.

Never give up! We want victory and all the blessings God can give us without fighting the battle. Opposition will strengthen us, it makes us stronger if we don’t give up and allow God to work. We give up because we want life to go the way we think it should or because we don’t see immediate results. Ladies, we need to be careful that we are not looking through our human eyes, but our spiritual eyes. We need to lean on God and let Him work. Joshua 10:25, “And Joshua said unto them, Fear not, nor be dismayed, be strong and of good courage: for thus shall the Lord do to all your enemies against whom ye fight.”

Don’t run away, stand! 1 Thessalonians 3:8, “For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.” When all else seems to fail, stand! This does not mean stand still and do nothing, but “stand fast in the Lord.” God always gives us the strength to get past the discouragement, we just need to stand in His ways. The longer you serve Him, the more you will realize that discouraging times can be times of strengthening. Do we like these times? No! Do we enjoy being attacked or discouraged? No! Don’t run from the very thing that can strengthen us to better serve Him. Every obstacle, hard time, attack, discouragement that comes our way is preparing us for the future. In 1 Peter 4:12-14 it says, “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.”

Remember, we must keep going, fight for right and pray. Never let the root of bitterness even start to grow, don’t give up or run, but praise God and work harder. Stand for Him. Don’t ever forget, God is trying to strengthen us and make us stronger so we can better serve Him. 1 Timothy 6:11-12, “But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.”

Mrs. Bette Owens
Pastor’s wife
Westside Baptist Church
Pacifica, CA

Walking Dead Men

Numbers 14:29
“Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me,”

When God told the children of Israel that all those from twenty years of age and above were going to die in the wilderness, it was as if it was a death sentence. Imagine God telling you that you are going to die because you disobeyed Him. That would take all morale and hope away. This is what the children of Israel faced. They were literally walking dead men in the wilderness.

This sentence of death turned the wilderness from a promise march to a death march. What was supposed to be a few weeks of journeying to the Promised Land became forty years of waiting for everyone twenty years of age and above to die. It is no wonder that they had such bad attitudes in the wilderness, for they were living a sentence of death. They were waiting for everyone from twenty years of age and above to die. All this happened because they chose not to go forward by faith and trust God’s promise and power. When they chose to go backwards, they chose to become walking dead men.

I find many churches and Christians resemble the children of Israel. There is a reason many churches are filled with complaining and bad attitudes. There is a reason many Christians seem to never see the good in their church or life. That reason is they have become walking dead men by refusing to go forward for Christ. When churches become complacent with their status, they become walking dead men. When Christians are satisfied with what they have accomplished for God, they become walking dead men. When churches stop going forward for Christ and attempting to do great things for Him, they become walking dead men. When Christians no longer step out by faith and do something great for God, they become walking dead men. Walking dead men come from one thing, they refuse to go forward.

Do you find yourself in a rut of complaining and challenging authority? Could it be that God told you to do something in the past and you have refused to step out by faith and do it? There is no doubt that many men who refused to follow their call into the ministry are the very one’s who cause church problems. The reason is because they chose not to go forward, instead they have sounded a spiritual retreat. If there has been a time in your life when God called you to do something and you refused to do it, that is why you will always be dissatisfied. It has nothing to do with the pastor, church or other Christians, it has everything to do with your refusal to do God’s will for your life. When you refuse to go forward and trust God’s will, you become a walking dead man.

There are many areas of your life where you can refuse to go forward for Christ. It could be in your financial giving, refusing to serve in a church ministry, refusing to step out on something God told you to do, or simply being complacent with who you are and what you have done. These actions will cause you to become a walking dead man and will create a bad spirit in you.

The best way to overcome this is to continue to go forward for Christ. Turn your death march into a victory march. Yes, it will take faith to complete God’s will for your life, but faith always creates a forward motion, which in return creates life. I challenge you today to find that area of your life where you are a walking dead man, and turn it into a victory march by going forward and doing what God has led you to do.

Profiling Your Way Through Life

Numbers 5:4
“And the children of Israel did so, and put them out without the camp: as the LORD spake unto Moses, so did the children of Israel.”

Profiling seems to be a dirty word in our politically correct society, but if you fly as much as I do, you don’t mind if the security agents profile people. It’s always amazing how granny, who is in a wheelchair and has a hard time standing, is pulled aside to be checked to see if she is carrying a weapon. I certainly understand an older person could be used, but there are other people who are more likely to hurt others than granny.

In the verse above, God used profiling to protect the children of Israel from disease. God commanded Moses to put those who had leprosy outside the camp. This may seem inhumane and cruel, but for the sake of the health of every other Israelite, profiling had to be done. Whenever they saw the signs of leprosy, they were brought to the priest who declared whether they were clean or if they should be put outside the camp. This is nothing short of profiling.

However, we miss a valuable truth that everyone needs to learn if they want to avoid heartache in life. Leprosy is a type of sin. Just as the children of Israel were commanded to profile those who looked like they might have leprosy, we also should profile those who live lives of sin.

Our self preservation is a form of profiling, and God gave us that instinct. For instance, you profile drug addicts to protect your child from drugs. You profile certain places of town to stay away from because of the crime and sin that is rampant in that areas. You even profile dangerous animals. It is part of the self preservation instinct God gives each person so they don’t get hurt. If you are going to keep yourself from heartache, then you must profile your way through life.

Parents, there is nothing wrong with profiling your children’s friends. A good parent will be very involved in choosing their child’s friends. The greatest thing that will lead your child down the wrong pathway of life is wrong friends. As a parent, it is your responsibility to profile those around your children so you can tell them who they should avoid. There is nothing wrong with this, it is simply protecting your children from heartache.

As a Christian, you should profile the preachers to whom you listen. There are some preachers who are taking you a wrong direction, and you should keep yourself and your family away from those who will cause you to compromise. Just because they carry the title of a preacher does not always mean you should follow them. Find out what they believe and with whom they associate, and you will determine whether you should follow that preacher.

Friend, if you are going to avoid sin and heartache in life, then you must learn to profile your way through life. For those who don’t like it when others profile, let me simply say that it wouldn’t bother you if you were doing what you are supposed to do. Profiling is God’s tool given to every person to help us to stay away from that which would hurt us. I encourage you to use it so that you can warn those whom you love, and so that you will know with whom you should and should not spend time.

What a God

What-a-Godby: Dr. Bob Gray Sr.

Matthew 17:20, “And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder-place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”

Matthew 28:18, “All power is given unto me.”

Matthew 19:20, “With God all things are possible.”

Mark 10:27, “With God all things are possible.”

Luke 18:27, “With God nothing shall be impossible.”

Luke 1:31, “With God nothing shall be impossible.”

Mark 9:23, “All things are possible to him that believeth.”

Mark 14:36, “All things are possible unto thee.”

Genesis 18:14, “Is anything too hard for the LORD?”

If we were to put it in our modern day slant, our language would be, “Ain’t nothin’ impossible for our God” for with God all things are possible. When Mary heard that she, a virgin, was going to become the mother of the Christ child said, “I’ve never known a man” and the angel replied, “With God nothing shall be impossible.”

Sarah in Genesis 18:14, when it was announced to Abraham that at age 90 she would have a child with him, laughed in unbelief. God then said, “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” That question was answered in Jeremiah 32:17 plainly, “There is nothing too hard for the LORD.”

THERE IS NO SINNER THAT GOD CANNOT SAVE FROM GOING TO HELL.

“Preacher my husband is unsaved and a hard man!” Yes, but God specializes in saving the souls of hard men. I am thinking of a truck driver named Shorty Eakin who was the last of 18 family members who trusted Christ. He was a rough man and fought conviction for a long time. I am thinking of a local newsman who attacked our church, the Longview Baptist Temple, in a series about the baptizing of children.

Ali Martin was a rough man when it came to the things of God. Yet, one of our soul winners led his wife to Christ and eventually he trusted Christ and now has a national radio ministry. He left the left-wing biased media and gave his talents to Christ.

I am thinking of one our faithful deacons, Dane Matney, who was a bar-hopping, hard, and tough man. He had little to do with God, and yet a soul winner led him to Christ and he and his dear wife have for over 3 decades served faithfully at the Longview Baptist Temple of Longview, Texas. They have a son, J. D., who is a Texas Baptist College graduate.

I am thinking of one of our LBT men named Jack Rickman who gambled, lived like the Devil, and was on the verge of losing everything. Yet, a soul winner gave Jack the Gospel, and in spite of bad health he has been a faithful soul winner for 3 decades since he trusted Christ and his life was turned right side up.

I could list a hundred men and women like these dear people whom Christ did what no one thought was possible. We have an Almighty God! LBT is filled with stories of what God can do! Do not think for a second that there is someone too hard for God to save his or her soul from going to Hell.

THERE IS NO PRAYER THAT GOD CANNOT ANSWER.

We can travel no further than we travel on our knees as God’s people. The prayer life is life! No relationship can sustain itself without communication. Nine out of ten times the main stumbling block to marital bliss is the lack of communication. The same is true of our relationship with our God.

Dr. John R. Rice would often tell of going to Heaven and being taken on a tour by an angel. They would come to one room, and Dr. Rice asked the angel what are all of these gift-wrapped packages, and the angel replied, “These are the things God had for you that you did not ask for!”

Prayer is asking and receiving! Prayer is getting to know the mind of Christ and staying in tune with Christ. God has no hands but our hands, no mind but our mind, no feet but our feet, and no tongue but our tongue. “What know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost?” We could not save our own soul and neither can we save our own lives. Prayer is aligning our life’s purpose with God’s purpose. Prayer is adjusting our mind to Christ’s mind. Prayer is lining up our work to God’s work.

Prayer is tapping in to God’s power and God’s mind while channeling it not to us, but through us, to be able to accomplish that which man considers impossible. God’s people can align their lives with God’s Word, but can only stay aligned through the power of prayer.

When God instructs us in the Scriptures, equips us, empowers us, and then sends us on a mission that the world deems impossible, we must stay in touch with Heaven through prayer so the supply line from Heaven to Earth remains healthy.

THERE IS NO PROBLEM THAT GOD CANNOT SOLVE.

The 38 years of ministry that God has given to this preacher have not gone without problems. There is no mountain peak in anyone’s life without a corresponding valley. We are to pass through the valley and not to stay in the valley. When we stop to focus on that which many times are things out of our control, we paralyze ourselves.

Who has the answers? Only God has the answers, and to fail to pray is ridiculous rationale. He who must face tomorrow must consult Him Who holds tomorrow in His hands. I must stay on course and I need God’s Word, God’s power, and prayer to stay on course. God’s GPS cannot work without prayer!

THERE IS NO PLACE THAT GOD CANNOT SEND REVIVAL.

Jonah was used of God to send revival to Nineveh. There is no sinner too hard and no society too hard for God. The secret is to do it God’s way and not man’s way. We must not sit around waiting for another Day of Pentecost. We must be obedient to the Great Commission and provide the foundation for revival.

The secret of Nineveh’s revival was the conversion factor that preceded the revival factor. If not, man will end up blaming God eventually for the lack of revival while the truth is man is to blame because of a lack of soul consciousness. Personal soul winning will always, and must always, precede revival. God’s people must provide the material which God can utilize to bring about revival.

There is no place that is too hard for God to bring revival if man will do his part in sowing the incorruptible seed! The great campaigns of every generation were based and bathed in the winning of souls to Christ. Jesus commanded His people to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. He never said to us to go into all the world and bring about revival, for God is the author of revival not man!

THERE IS NO THING TOO HARD THAT GOD CANNOT DO.

We serve an all powerful God, for He can heal disease, save a drunkard husband, save an atheist, save agnostics, bring revival anywhere and answer any prayer.

Psalm 46:1, “He is a very present help in time of need.”

Hebrews 4:16, “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Psalm 8:1-4, “Oh, LORD, our LORD how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hath set thy glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babes and suckling’s hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him: and the son of man, that thou visitest him?”

It’s amazing to think that God, Who placed the moon and the stars in the skies, knows each of us and that He can help each of us.

  • There is no sinner that God cannot save.
  • There is no prayer that God cannot answer.
  • There is no problem that God cannot solve.
  • There is no place that God cannot send revival.
  • There is no thing that God cannot do.

How can this be? It is plausible because God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent.

Psalm 139 says God is in Heaven, God is in the sea, and God is everywhere. Habakkuk 2:20 says the Lord is in his holy temple. Isaiah 66:1, “Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool.” God is saying my throne is in Heaven and my feet rest on the Earth. God said in Jeremiah 22:24, “I fill the earth.” Proverbs 15:3, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place.”

366 times God says He is with the individual! Five times in the Scriptures God tells us, “I will never leave thee.” Nine times God says, “I will not leave thee.”

Hebrews 13:5, “…I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” There are five negatives in that verse emphasizing the fact that God will never leave his people. Matthew 28:20 says, “…lo I am with you always.”

Acts 17:27, “…he be not far from every one of us:” He is not far from the educable slow, the deaf, the mission men, the homeless, the blind, the cripple and the brokenhearted.

God is omni-present, meaning God is with us individually. He knows where you are at every moment of the day. God is with the truck driver in the cab of a truck driving across the nation’s highways all night. Those serving on foreign soil fighting the war on terrorism have a God Who is with them.

Our God is in the college dorms with those preparing for life, in the barracks as a lonely service man or woman Who thinks of home, in the woods where the luckless, friendless, and homeless people think of what might have been. Our God is in the rescue mission with the one who laments his mistaken decisions. Our God is in the college apartment where the patient wife awaits her small allotment of time with her husband.

God is not only Omnipotent, but God is also Omni-present for He is with you! God is Omnipotent for he is all-powerful.

God parted the waters of the Red Sea, spoke and the heavens danced through the skies, the stars twinkled at night, the moon came out as the great light of the night, and the sun rose as the king of the day, and that same God is with you! God, who keeps the universe in perfect alignment, also hears the cry of the baby in the nursery.

God is in the rest home where memories are the only future that is known. He is in the prison where both the innocent and the guilty are serving time. He is in the parsonage with the country preacher who tosses and turns throughout the night because his people do not understand. He is in the little dwelling place where a father has left a mother to care and provide for her children alone. He is in the steel mill where the hard-working honest man provides for his family.

He is in the lonely place where an evangelist in a motel room looks at a picture of his wife and wishes they were together. He is in the hospital room where the doctor says, “I’m sorry, it’s malignant.” He is in the funeral home where friends try to say, “I love you” to the bereaved. He is in the bedroom with a child who tries to accept the fact that his or her father is not coming back home. He is in the maternity ward when a baby boy is born with major physical problems or the death of a baby girl like our granddaughter Katie.

Our God is not only in the heavens and not only does his platform span the heavens, but our God is in the delivery room when a repentant unwed mother suffers and travails to give birth alone. He is there when a mother bathes a child who never will be able to bath itself. He is there when a doctor says, “I must operate.” He is there when Mayo Clinic says we have done all we can do. He is there when all of your dreams for your child have fallen on the pavement of providence and your adult child has broken your heart.

God is there when those who were friends walk away on a cloudy day. He is there in the courtroom when the innocent is pronounced guilty. He is there in babyland where you have laid your baby to rest.

He is in the room of silence where the deaf reside. He is there in the room of darkness where the blind live. He is in the room of confusion where the educable slow live. He is in the home of the busy housewife where it seems the day will never end. He is in the schoolroom where the underpaid teacher tries to balance his bills with his income.

God is Omni-present which means He is with you everywhere you are, but He is also Omniscient which means God knows everything.

Job 23 says, “He knoweth the way I take.”

  • Psalm 44:1 – God knows the secrets of our hearts.
  • Psalm 103:14 – God knows our frame.
  • Matthew 6:8 – God knows what we need.
  • Acts 15:8 – God knows what is in our hearts.
  • 2 Timothy 2:19 – God knows that I am his.
  • Psalm 8:4 – God is mindful of us.

God knows your loneliness, heartache, heartbreak, and pain, and every bird that takes off from the runway in your yard is guided by God for He charts his course of flight.

  • God knows all.
  • God can do all.
  • God is with all.

The wonderful thing is that the same God can forgive your sins, answer your prayers, solve your problems, bring revival, and do that tough seemingly impossible thing.

Dr. Bob Gray Sr.
Pastor Emeritus
Longview Baptist Temple
Longview, TX
http://solvechurchproblems.com

The Purpose of Holiness

Leviticus 11:44
“For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

Christianity has become a hodgepodge of every type of lifestyle. We live in times when so-called preachers are lowering Christianity to such depths that you can’t tell a difference between the Christian and the lost. Their purpose for such low expectations is that they don’t want to run off the world. They often say that if you become more like the world that you will attract the world. This may sound good on the surface, but the fact is that this type of Christianity has destroyed holiness.

Holiness is a command from God. Leviticus 20:7 commands, “Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God.” Holiness is not a choice; it is a command. Holiness is not just how we live privately, but it is also how we live publicly. God defines holiness in the verse above when He says, “…ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves,…” To sanctify yourself is to set yourself apart for a purpose or a person. In other words, God wants you to be set apart for Him. So, what is the purpose of holiness? Let me show you four purposes of holiness.

First, the purpose of holiness is to remind you from whence you came. In verse 45, God told Israel He wanted them holy so they would remember that He brought them out of the land of Egypt. Holiness has a way of reminding the Christian from whence they were saved. Too many times we forget that we were saved out of a filthy world. Holiness reminds you that salvation brought you out of the world.

Second, the purpose of holiness is to show the world from whence you came. Everyone knew that Israel came out of Egypt. Their holy lifestyle showed the rest of the world why God brought them out. Friend, when you live like the world, then the world has no idea why they should get saved. They don’t understand everything you do about Heaven and Hell, and when you live like them, then they don’t think you are any different. Holiness has a way of showing the world that you belong to God and that He saved you from a worldly lifestyle.

Third, the purpose of holiness is to make a difference between God’s people and the world. Verse 47 shows us that God wants His people to be different from the world. Christian, God wants you to be different. Sadly, because I’m writing about holiness, there will be people who will never read these devotionals again because they don’t like it when a man of God talks about holiness. They feel it’s too stringent on their lifestyle. What you must understand is that it’s not the preacher who wants you to be holy, it is your God Who wants you to be holy so that you will be different from the world. God wants people to look at you and know that you are different.

Finally, the purpose of holiness is to be God’s alone. Leviticus 20:26 says, “And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine.” If there is any reason you should strive to be holy it is so that God knows you belong to Him. Yes, you are saved, but God wants your whole being. Are you living such a holy life that God does not feel that He is fighting for your attention? When you are holy, God will feel and know that He has your whole attention and that you belong completely to Him. What could be better than that?