DAY 174: IS THE GOSPEL SHINING FROM YOUR LIFE?

“Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice” (Philippians 4:4). These are Paul’s closing word to the Philippians. He wasn’t saying, “I am in prison and these chains are a blessing. I’m so happy for this pain.” I’m convinced Paul prayed daily for his release and at times cried out for strength to endure. Even Jesus, in his hour of trial and pain, cried to the Father, “Why have you forsaken me?” That is our first impulse in our afflictions, to cry out, “Why?” And the Lord is patient with that cry. But God has also made provision so that our “what ifs” and “whys” can be answered by his Word. Paul writes, “Knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel… Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice” (Philippians 1:17-18). He’s telling us, in other words, “I am determined God’s Word will be validated by my reaction to this affliction. I have set my mind that I won’t disgrace the gospel or make it seem powerless.”

Here is the message that I hear through Paul: We don’t have to do something great for the Lord. We only have to trust him. Our role is to place our lives in God’s hands and believe he will care for us. If we simply do that, his gospel is being preached, no matter what our circumstances. And Christ will be revealed in us most especially in our difficult circumstances.

John, a supporter of our ministry once told me, “Brother Kevin, the way you respond to hard times is a testimony to me.” What John didn’t realize is that his life is a sermon to me. He lives with chronic pain that allows him to sleep no more than a few hours each night. Despite his constant, raging pain, his devotion to the Lord is a testimony to all of us. His life preaches Christ as powerfully as any of Paul’s sermons.

So, is Christ being preached in your present trial? Does your family see the gospel at work in you? Or do they see only panic, despair and questioning of God’s faithfulness? How are you responding to your affliction?

Was watching a pastor recently (before power outages) that talked about the Scripture concerning “Do not cast your pearls before swine”. It was Robert Jeffres teaching.

It came to him, that it meant that the gifts and talents that God gives everyone that has ever lived, to use them for His Glory, and not toward or for the things and ways of this world. We can see how such awesome gifts and talents of all types have gone the wide path that leads to destruction in this present fallen world.

We have seen the results, where billions have forsaken God and worship Satan, engage in the occult and witchcraft, and taken human lives, and lost their own lives. Satan uses them, and then, if at some point they do not cry out to Jesus in the throes of their addictions, demonic possession, torment, or as their physical bodies finally give out, their ‘reward’ is death physically, and eternal torment in the black, sulfur and brimstone flames of Hell.

A horrific fate, but they are deceived by “the father of lies” who “was a liar from the beginning” as Jesus taught and warned. It’s not some fairytale or book of stories, it’s The Word of God, the Great Handbook For True Life!

Jesus said, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest for your souls...”

He experienced everything this world had to throw at Him, everything-—and then it was nailed to the cross and sent to where it belonged, and Jesus holds the Keys of Hell and Death.

Beloved, don’t allow the wonderful and amazing gifts and talents The Lord blessed you with to be used to do anything other than what The Word of God says to do. You won’t go wrong, and many will enter into The Kingdom of God by your obedience and worship of Christ Jesus!

Just came across this and wanted to post it. Covicts me:

THEY PRAISE but WILL NOT PRAY

Christ Is Made A Stranger When People Praise Him, But Will Not Pray To Him!

We praise a Christ to whom we will not pray!

We have become a praising people, but not a praying people.

For many of God’s people the prayer closet is a relic of the past.

“Why ask God for what He has already promised? Just get hold of the promises and simply command deliverances!”

We no longer want Christ as much as we want what He can do for us.

We want an escape from pain and suffering. We want our troubles to vanish.

And we are so caught up in our escape from pain, we lose the true meaning of the Cross. We refuse crosses and losses - no Gethsemane for us! No nights of agony! We don’t even know this suffering, bleeding, resurrected Christ!

We want His healing power. We want His promises of prosperity. We want His protection. We want more of this earth’s goods. We want His happiness. But we really don’t want Him alone!

The Church once confessed its sins - now it confesses its rights.

How many of us would serve Him if He offered nothing but Himself? No healing. No success. No prosperity. No worldly blessings. No miracles, signs, or wonders.

What if - once again we had to take joyfully the spoiling of our goods?

What if - instead of clear sailing and problem-free living, we faced shipwreck, fears within and fightings without?

What if -instead of painless living, we suffered cruel mockings, stoning, bloodshed - being sawn asunder?

What if - instead of our beautiful homes and cars, we had to wander about in deserts in sheepskins, hiding in dens and caves?

What if - instead of prosperity, we were destitute, afflicted, and tormented? And the only better thing provided for us was Christ?

Very few of God’s people pray anymore! They are too busy working for Jesus to talk to Him! Ministers especially have become so busy doing kingdom work, they have little or no time left to pray. There is time to visit, to build, to travel, time to vacation, to attend meetings, time for recreation, reading, counseling - but no time to pray!

Preachers who do not pray become promoters. They become frustrated building contractors. When they lose touch with God, they lose touch with their people and their needs. Preachers who don’t pray have egos that spin out of control. They want their own way. They substitute sweat for unction (anointing).

Evangelists who do not pray become stars, storytellers. They lack humility, so they manipulate crowds through emotional
gimmicks.

The cry of many pastors is, “Oh, God, where can I find an evangelist who doesn’t care about money, or who is not promoting something? One who can bring heaven down and make Christ real! Oh, God - give me a praying man to bring my congregation to its knees!” The shame of this generation is that we have too many talented men of God and only a few who have touched God in prayer.

There is even less praying in the congregation! I’m 100% for getting prayer back in our public schools! But that’s not God’s real problem! His problem is getting prayer back in our homes! His problem is to get His own chosen people to pray! And you are a phony if you fight for school prayer and neglect secret-closet praying yourself!

Do we pray? Oh, yes! When we need something. We have the formula down pat - “in the name of Jesus.” All we need Him for is to counter sign our petition checks before the Father.

I am weary of hearing people say, “This is such a busy age - I have no time to pray. I’d like to, but I don’t have time.” No! It’s not lack of time; it is a lack of desire. We make time for what we really want to do. Look at our Christian young people! Wasting hours of time playing Pac-Man, Galaxy War, goofing off, bored, restless, looking for some action! But no time to pray! No time for Jesus! Oh, God! Somehow! Some way! Get this generation on its knees. Not just the Lord’s Prayer, but a daily communion with Christ .

Our Savior, who has the care and concern for multiplied universes, has the time to pray just for you! He takes the time to intercede for you before the throne of God (Heb. 7:25), and you say you do not have time to pray to Him!

We work feverishly for a Christ we ignore. We will go anywhere, do anything, in His name. But we will not pray. We will sing in a choir. We will visit the sick and the prisoners. But we will not pray.

We will counsel the hurt and needy; we will stay up all night to comfort a friend, but we will not pray. We will fight corruption! We will crusade for morality! We will stand up
against nuclear weapons! But we will not pray!

Most of all, we don’t pray because we really don’t believe it works. Prayer is a bloody battleground! It is where victories are won! A place to die to self! A place where a holy God exposes secret sin! No wonder Satan tries to hinder prayer! A praying man sends a shudder through hell. That man or woman is marked because Satan knows prayer is the power that crushes his kingdom. Satan is not afraid of power-hungry saints, but he trembles at the sound of a praying saint!

~Source- www.lastdaysministries.org

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.