Old Paths Journal – Page 15 – A Christian Magazine with a Relevant Message

Losing Your Direction

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Judges 15:3
“And Samson said concerning them, Now shall I be more blameless than the Philistines, though I do them a displeasure.”

An astonishing statement is made by Samson in the verse above that shows why his life ended up the way it did. He said, “Now shall I be more blameless than the Philistines…” Hold on! Wasn’t he supposed to deliver Israel from the Philistines? If he was, why was he so worried about being “more blameless” than they?

The reason Samson was so concerned about what the Philistines thought was because he lost his direction. He forgot that God’s purpose for his life was to deliver Israel from the Philistines. Before he was born, God set him aside to be a Nazarite and a deliverer for Israel. What was it that caused him to lose his direction in life?

First, he lost his direction because he chose the wrong direction. Judges 14:1 says, “And Samson went down…” He had no business going to the Philistines, but when he made the choice to walk through their land it caused him to lose his directional purpose in life. Many Christians have lost their direction because they chose a wrong direction. When you choose to read people or follow people who are not doctrinally correct, you will eventually lose the directional purpose for which God made you. You can never stay directionally right when you choose to be directionally wrong.

Second, he lost his direction because he chose the wrong friends. Samson made friends with the enemy instead of being friends with God’s people. The wrong friends will cause you to lose your direction in life every time. You are only as strong as your weakest friend. If you want to stay directionally right, you better be sure your friends are the type of friends who have your same purpose and direction in life. When your friends choose friends who are directionally wrong, you are going to have to distance yourself from them so that they don’t pull you away from what God wants you to do.

Third, he lost his direction because he desired the wrong approval. It is interesting that he was concerned with what the Philistines thought about him. Why was he concerned with what they thought about him when he was to deliver Israel from them? You will always lose your direction in life when you are concerned with man’s approval and not God’s. If you are going to continue doing what the LORD wants you to do, you are going to have to stop worrying about what mankind thinks of you. Your purpose in living is to please Almighty God. Don’t every lose focus of that purpose and you will never lose the approval of God.

Fourth, he lost his direction because he had the wrong goals. His goals became selfish goals. His goals became goals that pleased himself and not God. When your goals in life are what you want and not what God wants, you will lose the direction for which you were placed on earth to do.

It is very easy to lose your direction in life. Many people have stopped being productive for God because they’ve lost their direction. Let me encourage you to stay focused on what God has called you to do. Don’t let anything or anyone pull you away from God’s purpose for your life. It won’t be easy to stay directionally right, but if you do, you will find the fulfillment in life that comes from truly fulfilling God’s purpose for your life.

Risking It All

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Judges 12:3
“And when I saw that ye delivered me not, I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand: wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me?”

The children of Israel were facing extinction. The Ammonites had come against Judah, Benjamin and Ephraim, and there seemed to be no deliverer. The children of Israel cried to the LORD in their distress, knowing that if God didn’t come through, they would be destroyed. It was desperate times for these people. They responded to the LORD’s word and set aside the idols and heathen worship, but there seemed to be no man who could deliver.

As is always the case, God always has a man to use in the time of need. In Isreal’s case, that man was Jephthah. What is interesting about Jephthah is that when he asked others to help him, nobody came to his side. Seeing the desperate need of his country and nobody willing to assist him, he said, “I put my life in my hands.” He realized that somebody needed to risk it all for the sake of his country. Somebody had to be willing to lay aside their dreams, career, personal goals and life for the sake of saving their country. No doubt, Jephthah was a patriot and a great man of faith.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Just like Israel faced extinction because of the enemy’s invasion, America is also facing desperate times that call for Christians everywhere to risk it all to save their nation. Our nation will never be saved while we wait for someone else to step in to save her. She will only be saved when the people of God are willing to set aside their ambitions, goals and dreams, and are willing to risk everything for the sake of bringing her back to God. Friend, America is not going to be saved through the political arena, she is going to be saved through God’s people stepping up and risking everything to bring her back.

Let me ask you, how much do you really love your country? Do you love her enough to risk your financial future to bring her back to God? Too many Christians are in love with the idea of riches and possessions that they will never make an impact to bring America back to God. America is in need of patriots who will risk their financial future to give their life to God.

Let me ask you, are you willing to risk your name for the sake of bringing America back to God? Jephthah wasn’t popular with his brethren, but he was willing to put his life on the line to save his nation. Let me warn you, you will not be popular in the Christian world if you choose to put your life on the line to save your nation. Too many people are concerned with fitting in with the “in-crowd” of Christianity when oftentimes God uses the misfits to save a nation. Your name will become mud to many, but for the sake of your country, it is worth you standing for the old paths and getting serious about saving your nation.

Let me ask you, are you willing to put your time on the line to pray for America? Oh friend, this nation will never be saved without the prayers of God’s people. When is the last time you prayed for America? When is the last time you fasted for God to change your nation? You are going to have to sacrifice your time for prayer if you want God to save your nation. Your nation will never be saved until someone like you is willing to risk it all and do whatever it takes to save her.

How to Be a Conqueror

Joshua 23:4
“Behold, I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the great sea westward.”

At the end of Joshua’s life, Israel still had much land to conquer. God addressed the nation through Joshua by telling them that He had already divided their land, which was simply telling them that in His eyes the land was already conquered. Joshua then reminded them that God had already helped them conquer the land they possessed, which was a reminder that He would not leave them as they continued conquering. The only thing left for Israel to do to possess the remainder of the land was to continue conquering, even in Joshua’s absence. God then shows six things needed to be a conqueror.

First, you must never be satisfied with past successes. Israel was reminded in verse 4 that there was still much land that remained to be conquered. You must never be satisfied with living in past successes if you want God to continue to work through you. You must always remember that God has more for you to do if you will move on from past victories. Be careful not to allow past victories to become the epitaph of your future. Rejoice in what the LORD has done through you in the past, but keep a conquering vision for what He still wants to do through you.

Second, you must know from Whom your success will come. Joshua reminded Israel in verse 5 that their success would come from the LORD. Don’t become so overconfident because of past victories that you don’t continue to go to the LORD for help. You must continue begging God for His help if you want to continue to conquer.

Third, don’t expect anything to be given to you. Verse 5 says, “…ye shall possess their land…” Yes, God was going to help them, but they had to work to make it happen. God will help you, but He will only help you as you step out to possess those victories. Don’t sit waiting for God to give you victories, but bring Him with you through prayer as you attempt to conquer.

Fourth, don’t limit yourself and God. Verse 6 says, “Be ye therefore very courageous…” The worst thing you can do is put a limit on what God can do through you. You must be courageous enough to step out on the impossible and trust that God will help you. God loves to help the person who believes that He will help them do what seems impossible.

Fifth, separate from anything that will keep you from God’s help. Verse 7 shows that Israel was to stay completely separated from the nations around them. Conquerors understand that there are activities and people who will hinder them from conquering. If you are going to be a conqueror, you are going to have to learn to live a separated life; separated from that which hinders, and from those who would cause you to leave the Christian life.

Sixth, stay close to God. Verse 8 warns, “But cleave unto the LORD your God…” The only way you will be a conqueror is to keep a close walk with God. Don’t let anything or anyone come between you and God. Don’t get so busy that you forsake your walk with God. Staying close to God is the key to continuing to conquer.

Confidence Turned Into Arrogance

Joshua 17:14
“And the children of Joseph spake unto Joshua, saying, Why hast thou given me but one lot and one portion to inherit, seeing I am a great people, forasmuch as the LORD hath blessed me hitherto?”

One of the greatest enemies of success is success. Success will give a person confidence, and confidence is a very necessary ingredient to building upon success. However, if confidence is not carefully guarded, it can turn into arrogance. When arrogance takes over confidence, the seed of pride is planted, and that seed will lead to destruction.

The children of Israel experienced many victories up to the verse above. Each victory gave them more confidence to continue conquering the land of Canaan. Sadly, their confidence turned into arrogance. Verse 13 says, “Yet it came to pass, when the children of Israel were waxen strong, that they put the Canaanites to tribute; but did not utterly drive them out.” They became so arrogant that instead of driving out the Canaanites, they made them slaves thinking that they could control the heathen influences of these people.

Israel’s arrogance is seen in the verse above when they said, “I am a great people.” Hold on! What happened to the people who were so afraid that they wanted to go back to Egypt? What happened to the people who said that they would not go forward unless God would go with them? What happened to the people who went to God before each battle to ask for wisdom on how to fight and His presence to go before them? What happened was their confidence turned into arrogance; success caused them to take their eyes and trust off God and place it in their own abilities and past successes.

One of the greatest battles you will fight in your Christian life will be to not allow your confidence to be turned into arrogance. When you are little in your own sight, you will run to God for help, and He will help; however, you must never get to the point where you set your trust in God aside and say, “I am a great people.” When you get to the point where you think you are great, your confidence has turned into arrogance. Whenever I hear people talk about how great they are, or their church is, I know their destruction is near. There are a couple of things you can do to keep your confidence from turning into arrogance.

First, always remember that greatness belongs to God. It will never be that you are a “great” preacher, Christian or church, it is only that you have a great God. Any success you have had is not because you did it; it is because God gave you the strength to do it. Don’t ever forget that!

Second, always remember that past successes don’t guarantee future dominance. Just because God used you in the past doesn’t mean He will continue to do things through you in the future. You must continue to pray and work hard if you want God to continue to conquer through you.

Third, never allow self-dependence, but always keep your dependency on God. Friend, don’t mistake God’s presence as your greatness. Keep your eyes on God and you will never get to the point where you think of yourself as great. You must never allow self-dependence if you want God to continue to work through you. Keep that youthful apprehension that forces you to rely on God. If you keep that reliance on God, you will keep confidence from turning into arrogance.

Destroying Negative Influences

Joshua 1:18
“Whosoever he be that doth rebel against thy commandment, and will not hearken unto thy words in all that thou commandest him, he shall be put to death: only be strong and of a good courage.”

Everyone deals with influences every day. You have outside, personal and inside influences that you are around every day. Outside influences are those who come from associations, friends or daily acquaintances. Personal influence are those which come from your personal life; they are the things that you read, see, hear and research. Inside influences are those who associate with you through the church, work or daily activities. One of the keys to keeping yourself from doing wrong is to avoid the negative influences in each of these areas.

God knew that negative influences from the inside would be one of the most detrimental to His people. God directed Joshua to “put to death” those influences from the inside that would destroy the morale and holy lifestyle which He commanded His children to live. In the verse above, there are three negative influences identified that you are to destroy.

First, you need to destroy the rebellious influences. God says, “Whosoever he be that doth rebel against thy commandment…shall be put to death…” God says in 1 Samuel 15:23, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft…” You should have nothing to do with the someone who rebels against God’s Word. I’ve heard people say, “I have a little rebel in me.” A person who says this is giving credence and approval to satanic worship because rebellion is that wicked. If you want God’s blessings on your life, you must be careful that you have no rebellious influences in your life. You may not be rebelling right now, but you will if you continue to associate with the rebellious influence.

Second, you need to destroy those influences that won’t listen and follow authority. The verse above continues, “… and will not hearken unto thy words…” Notice that God says, “thy words.” He was talking about Joshua’s words. In others words, God wants you to be sure not to allow influences in your life that won’t listen and follow authorities. Avoid those people who constantly challenge and question the authorities. If a person constantly goes around the established authorities and guidelines because they don’t like how they handle a situation, that person must be avoided and put out of an organization. These types of people are negative influences that cause friction and incite a destructive spirit in your life or the atmosphere of a church or institution.

Third, you need to destroy those influences that won’t go forward in the LORD’s work. The verse above was dealing directly with God’s people going forward in conquering the land of Canaan. You must separate yourself from those influences that enjoy living in the status quo. Apathetic and negative influences destroy dreams, desires and goals to promote the average. God’s direction is always forward, and you must eliminate from your life any influence that discourages a forward direction.

Friend, influences are all around you every day, and you are going to have to determine if these influences are positive or negative. If you are going to please the LORD, you must eliminate the negative influences and embrace the positive ones; this is the only way you will keep serving the LORD with a positive attitude and a forward direction throughout your whole life.

God Save America?

by: David Owens

Why Should He?

Matthew 25:26, “His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:”

I have an opinion concerning American Christianity during my lifetime. The phrase “…Thou wicked and slothful servant…”, I believe, describes the condition of God’s people in 2014.

This is an article that you may begin reading but lose interest and stop unless you finish it on purpose. If you do read the entire article, you will find it hard to keep your mind on it. The reason? Satan does not want God’s people to understand this truth; for if we do, we will truly stop hiding the Gospel.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 says, “But if our Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”

We have all heard sermons concerning the subject “God Save America” and we have attended conferences with either the theme of reaching America, or saving America, as a part of the conference. Please do not misunderstand me, I love America! However, God never commanded me to just love America. To be godly is to love the world! John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world.” While we are trying (too often in our own power, sad to say) to save America, God has commanded us to save the world. I fear this selfish attitude of ours has only hastened to bring destruction to our nation; for if our goal is different than God’s goal or if our goal is less than God’s goal, it will not have God’s help.

This is not just an American problem, it has always been a problem among God’s people, no matter where they live or at what time in history. The attitude of, “As long as I’m saved and my family is saved and my nation is ‘Christian’ and that is all that matters” is selfish. The attitude that God needs America to be strong in order to reach the world is not found in the Scriptures. If we would concentrate on the world as God commanded us to, we would also reach America, but we will never save America for America’s sake.

I firmly believe that God will bless America only if God’s people follow His command and example by sending the Gospel to the whole world, just as God loves and gave His Son to the world. Is it not wicked to concentrate on one people or one area or country when God concentrates on the whole world? (2 Chronicles 7:14) Why should God save America when American Christians are not producing for God as we ought?

American independent, fundamental, KJB Baptist’s; let me ask you a question: Why should God bless America? Because America is a moral nation? Because America loves God and respects godliness? Because America’s Christians do not compromise with the world? Because we are reaching America as we should? Because we love the world like we should? Because we are reaching the world like we should? Because we tend to believe that even future events in Scripture depend on America? Should God preserve our nation because God’s people in America are successfully preaching the Gospel to “every creature” in “all the world”? We are not even reaching America!

Going to church is not serving God. Reading your King James Bible is not serving God. Having standards is not serving God. Winning souls everywhere is serving God! “The field is the world.” Matthew 13:38

Acts 1:8 is familiar to us, but I fear we have not really studied it along with the context. I challenge you, look at it, open your Bible, check out Acts chapter one. We understand that the Jews were looking for the Messiah to deliver their nation from the Romans. They were looking for an earthly kingdom and king. In other words, “God, save Israel!” Even Christ’s disciples had a hard time seeing the world past their own nation.

After three and a half years of teaching, preaching, training and sending the disciples, just like us, they still struggled in understanding God’s heart. Christ had risen and His last instructions before ascending to His Father are recorded in Acts 1:8. Christ lists four places joined by the word “and”, meaning all the places at the same time. He used the word “both”, but went on to list four places. “Both” means to be a witness where you are and where you are not. I can reach those whom I can personally preach to and I can reach others by actively supporting those who are soul winning and planting churches somewhere else. The “somewhere else” is three of the four areas Christ commanded us to reach. We are not obeying the “Great Commission” until we are starting churches everywhere. Start them, plant them, establish them or birth them, call it what you want; but unless God’s people in America obey Christ’s last command to us, we should not even sing, “God Bless America.”

Now, don’t miss this: Acts 1:8 is actually Jesus’ response to this idea of “God save Israel” or “God save America.” Consider verse 6, “When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” Jesus, you saved us, you trained us for 3½ years and you died and rose again, it must have been to save Israel. Note verse 7, “And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.” Jesus responded, the restoration of a nation is none of your business, that is not your concern, that is not what this is about, you are being short-sighted, you are limiting God, you are being selfish! Now Christ goes on in verse 8 and repeats the command, the Great Commission, which also applies to us today. “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” Jesus is saying, let me repeat this for you, here is the reason I came to Earth, trained you, died for you, rose again and am giving you the Holy Spirit. Witness to the whole world, not just Israel! I came to save the world, not just Israel. I love the world, not just Israel. Every where, to the uttermost, to every creature, into all the world, unto the ends of the earth. Disciples, stop worrying just about your community, your state and your nation and worry about the world. Stop trying to save just your community, your nation and save the world! Disciples, while you have been trying to save just Israel, Israel has rejected me. John 1:11 says, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.” Christian, while you are trying to just save America, America is rejecting God double time. And while we have spent years worrying about America, America is not only going to Hell, but so is the world! While we sing, “God Bless America,” America has outlawed Jehovah God and we ignore much of the world’s people who are receptive to the Gospel, but have never heard.

1. If you are not personally preaching the Gospel AND equally sending and supporting those preaching the Gospel to every creature and planting churches, you are not fully serving God.

2. Do not expect God to provide for you, protect you or save your nation if you do not fully serve God.

3. It is wicked to not fully obey God and allow any for whom Christ died to go to Hell without ever hearing the Gospel.

4. God never told the church to reach just Israel, just their own town, just their own nation or concentrate on just one portion of the world. God never told the Christian to just reach their own nationality or special-interest group. For God so loved the world, go ye into all the world, to every creature, the uttermost parts of the earth. Even David, giving to Goliath the reason he would smite him said, “that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.” (1 Samuel 17:46)

5. So, child of God, stop limiting God, stop being selfish, broaden your vision to include God’s vision. Look out of God’s eyes.

Independent, fundamental Baptist churches, let’s compare: are you spending your time equally between reaching the world and your own community? Are you spending equal resources reaching the world as you do your own community? Are you equally concerned with starting churches outside of your community as you are with building your own church? By the way, are you doing at home what you expect the missionary or church planter to do elsewhere? Why, when you have financial struggles in your church, do you cut the missions budget first? Why is the revival conference or God Save America Conference better advertised and attended than the Missions Conference? Why do God’s people expect to have some special call to go preach, start churches or be a missionary when Christ already commanded us to do that? Where is the call to stay home and disobey Christ’s command? Pastors travel miles to attend a Bible or pastors conference in order to build their own church, but would not do the same for a missions conference in order to reach the world and plant churches. God never even commanded pastors to build their own church. (Matthew 16:18) God sent His son from Heaven to this world to die for sinners, why is it such a struggle for churches to send their trained staff and for parents to send their children to another part of the world? Just like the disciples, we are too often overly concerned with our own nation, our own church, our own community, our own family; but Christ is concerned for “…the uttermost part of the earth.”

2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “…turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

Proverbs 24:11-12 says, “If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death, and those that are ready to be slain; If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not; doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to his works?”

God save America? Why should He? God will not restore our nation until God’s people in our nation are worth restoring.

David Owens
Pastor
Westside Baptist Church
Pacifica, CA

God’s Money Principles

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Deuteronomy 28:12
“The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.”

The best book on money principles is God’s Word. Throughout its pages, you will find principles placed in verses like the verse above. It should catch your eyes when God says, “The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure…” No one has more treasure than the LORD. If He is willing to open “his good treasure,” you would be wise to learn what you must do for that treasure to be opened. God shows four principles you must follow to open “his good treasure.”

First, you must do right if you want to open “his good treasure.” God’s blessings come to those who live right. Verse 1 says, “…if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:” God then goes on to talk about how He will bless them for doing right. Doing right has a way of making money. If you have ever looked at how expensive it is to live in the world, you would realize that living right is the best way to live. You will never be able to dip into God’s treasures until you start obeying “all” that the LORD commands you to do.

Second, you must work hard if you want to open “his good treasure.” In verse 11, God talks about blessing their “fruit.” Their fruit was a result of working hard. Money comes to those who work. You can’t expect God to open His treasures if you are not willing to work. The opening of God’s treasures come through hard work. God doesn’t bless those who expect a handout; He blesses those who work hard. You will never see the treasures of the LORD until you get past this step of working hard.

Third, you must pay yourself if you want to open “his good treasure.” In the verse above, God talks about lending “unto many nations.” You will never have money to lend if you don’t learn the value of saving money. In other words, you need to learn to pay yourself from everything you make. When I talk about paying yourself, you need to take a percentage of money from every source of income and set it aside. If you could learn to set aside ten percent of your income to save, you would find, in years to come, a great source of wealth laid aside from your income. Too many people don’t have the character to pay themselves, and that is why they have nothing when they get older. God has opened His treasures to those who work hard, but they must not squander it by not saving a portion of it.

Fourth, you must work your money if you want to open “his good treasure.” When God said they would have the money to lend “unto the nations,” He was teaching them the principle of investing what they saved. Learn to work your money by investing it in safe investments. A man of wealth once told me about investing, “Know what you work, and work what you know.” In other words, don’t invest in something if you haven’t done your homework. Be knowledgeable about where you invest your money and careful to be sure it is working for you.

God desires to open “his good treasure” to you. If you follow these four steps, you will find that God’s treasures are available to you.

Keeping Your Credibility

Deuteronomy 19:21
“And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.”

At the end of the day, your credibility is the balance on your character’s bank account. Your handling of difficult situations determines the credibility of your leadership. As a Christian, people should observe how you handle controversies and sin and say that you are just in your dealings with wrong. When people feel that you are just, your credibility will allow you to continue to lead and influence more people for Christ.

In the chapter above, God showed Moses how He wanted to establish the cities of refuge, landmarks and witnesses. God knew that the credibility of His people would be determined by how justly they handled sin. Though you may not sit as a judge who determines someone’s innocence, you do lead people, and you must judge the actions of those you lead. Your credibility will be determined by how you handle grievances, offenses and the wrongs of those you lead. God shows us several things we must follow as leaders in judging complex situations so that we can keep our credibility intact.

First, don’t allow personality to influence your judgment. Verses 10-12 show that God didn’t want anyone’s personality to influence judgment; rather, He wanted right and wrong to be the influence. You must be careful about allowing personal ties to an individual to influence your decisions concerning them or their children. Your credibility is at stake, and you must never allow a personal tie to influence your decision concerning punishment.

Second, verse 10 shows that we should never allow injustice to go unpunished. Your credibility will be destroyed when you allow rules to be broken without punishment. An institution’s credibility is determined by how they follow the established rules. A leader’s credibility will be decided by whether they enforce the rules. If you sweep sin under the carpet, your credibility will be destroyed.

Third, never allow emotions to cloud your judgment. Verse 13 says, “Thine eye shall not pity him…” The reason someone did something should never determine the punishment. Someone’s inconvenience shouldn’t determine the punishment; they should have considered the ramifications before they chose to do wrong. Taking emotion out of judgment allows you to keep your credibility.

Fourth, verse 9 shows that we should judge according to the established rules. You will destroy your credibility if you start making up rules at the time you perceive a fault was committed. At the end of the day, the established rules are your protection. Always go to the established rules or laws to determine the punishment. Established rules are the safety net of your credibility.

Fifth, verse 15 teaches that we should never condemn without two witnesses. A person’s character is on the line, and to judge without a witness is unjust. Furthermore, just because someone says something doesn’t make it true. Your job is to ensure the witnesses are telling the truth.

Remember, how you handle sin determines your credibility. It doesn’t matter how much good you do for Christ, if you don’t deal with sin properly, your credibility will forever overshadow your good works. Following these principles will preserve your credibility and the trust of those you influence.

It’s a Communication Problem

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Deuteronomy 5:24
“And ye said, Behold, the LORD our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.”

The children of Israel were afraid to talk to God. When God told Moses to go to the top of the mountain to receive His commandments, the people of Israel were afraid that he would not live. However, when Moses came off the mount, the people saw “that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.” For the first time, these people realized that man could talk with God.

The Christian life will never be enjoyed until you establish communication with God. The only reason any person doesn’t enjoy serving the LORD is because they have no communication with God. Three things are revealed in the verse above that should stir you to daily make time to talk to God.

First, your original purpose for being made was to converse with God. When God made Adam in the Garden of Eden, one of the purposes was so that He would have someone with whom He could communicate. Christian, you must realize that God wants to talk to you, and He wants to hear from you. It is sad that God gave life for the purpose of having communication with man, but man gets too busy with worldly activities that he doesn’t take time to talk to God. You will never feel fulfilled in life unless you fulfill the purpose for which you were made, which is talking with God. Don’t get so busy with life and the day’s activities that you don’t take time to talk to God.

Second, God’s communication with you is dependent upon your communication with Him. James 4:8 reminds us that God responds according to our actions. The closer you draw nigh to God, the more He will draw nigh to you. The only reason you don’t hear God is because you are not attempting to talk to Him. Friend, you don’t have to go through the preacher to talk to God; instead, you can go directly to Him. How much effort you give in talking to God will directly impact how much He talks to you.

Third, the reason you have no life is because God is not talking to you. The verse above says, “…God doth talk with man, and he liveth.” Do you understand that the enjoyment of your Christian life is totally impacted by how much you communicate with your God? In the verse above, when God talked, man lived. In other words, the enjoyment came when God talked with man. The only reason someone doesn’t enjoy preaching is because they have a communication problem. The reason someone doesn’t enjoy serving in the church is because they have a communication problem. The reason someone doesn’t enjoy Christian music is because they have a communication problem. The reason someone doesn’t enjoy the Christian life is because they have a communication problem. You will find enjoyment in life once you fix your communication with God.

Friend, how much do you talk with God? The joy of serving God only comes when you communicate with Him. If your heart is growing cold, you better check your communication with God. Always remember that when God speaks, man begins to live. You will never find enjoyment in life through worldly activities; it only comes when you fulfill the purpose for which you were made, and that purpose is to communicate with your God.

Sheltered Into Indifference

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Numbers 32:16-17
“And they came near unto him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our little ones: But we ourselves will go ready armed before the children of Israel, until we have brought them unto their place: and our little ones shall dwell in the fenced cities because of the inhabitants of the land.”

A great mistake was made by the two and a half tribes in that they wanted their families to stay on this side of Jordan instead of crossing over and experiencing the victories themselves. What these men didn’t understand was that even though they were sheltering their families, they were lulling them to become indifferent towards the things of God. Their wives and children needed the struggle and battles as much as they did. Without experiencing the hand of the LORD firsthand, they would become indifferent towards God and more fervent towards the world.

Many Christian parents make this same mistake today. I have watched many parents stay in the battle for the LORD, but keep their children at home only to shelter them into indifference. I thank God for my father who involved me in the ministry as a teenager. It was during those years of seeing the battles and victories firsthand that created an appetite in my young heart to want God to do greater things in my life. There are a few reasons you need to involve your children in the frontline of the battle.

First, your children need to experience the victories firsthand. Hearing what the LORD is doing and seeing what He is doing are two different things. Many good young people have become indifferent towards the LORD because they never experienced the victories, they only heard about them. Your children will never have a fire for God unless they see these victories firsthand.

Second, children need to see faith work firsthand. It is not good enough to hear how faith works; your children need to see that faith in God pays big. I watched my parents step out on faith many times, and I saw how God honored their faith. Seeing their faith firsthand placed an appetite in my heart to want God to do something with my faith. Your children will never know how to live by faith if you shelter them from it by giving them everything they want. Children need to see that God will honor their faith if they will get involved in His work. It will create an appetite in their hearts to do greater things for the LORD when they become an adult.

Third, children need to see God working firsthand. The greatest reason you need to bring your children over your spiritual Jordan is that they need to see God defeat the giants and knock down the great walls for themselves. Sheltering children from the work of the LORD creates an indifferent heart towards God because they believe that the great works are only for previous generations and not for them. When your children come over your spiritual Jordan and are involved firsthand, they will be able to say they saw the LORD work.

Friend, don’t let your children sit on the sidelines while you are serving the LORD. Get them involved so they can see firsthand what God can do. If you don’t, you will cause their heart to become indifferent towards God’s work. The only way to keep this indifference from happening is to involve them in God’s work so they can experience His power firsthand.