The Purpose and Benefit of This Journal

The purpose of this meandering series of daily posts is primarily to vent my own feelings as I go (mentally) through my day. It is therapeutic and – perhaps – it may help someone else who reads these words and experiences similar thoughts as I, to deal in a positive way with them. Whoever knows what soul in need he may help?

So Let’s Get Started!

“And God said, Let there be light…” (Gen. 1.3) As God went through the six days of Creation, willing and commanding  things into existence that were not yet there, so I hope that God will, in this journal, choose to will, first of all, light to spring unimpeded from its cloak of non-being into the realm of glorious visibility.

Dear God, from this point forward in this project, ‘LET THERE BE LIGHT!’

Tuesday 6/14/2011 9:30 AM

The day is still in its infancy and I feel shortchanged already. Usually my wife Pat will wake me at 6 AM and we will join in a telephone conference prayer meeting with our church for an hour. As usual, when 6 o’clock arrived I was sleeping – and she let me sleep! (This is surely not a positive way to start one’s day! Please read paragraph immediately below.)

It upset me a little that my wife let me oversleep… But there are two or three things I have learned by being saved and being married:

1) There’s no point in getting uptight about some spiritual matter in which you both sincerely believe;

2) if you both love God, it seems ridiculous to argue over something that is meant to draw you both — as  one person – closer  to the Savior, not alienate you from Him; and

3) if you love your wife, show her that you love her… and let go of all the petty bickering. There really is such a thing as love and peace in a marriage!

Frankly I am not a corporate prayer devotee, but that certainly does not mean that I don’t believe it is impor­tant… far from it. And I am sorry I missed my prayer session with my brothers and sisters in Christ. Only a few saints at my home assembly of Faith Covenant Church (pastor – Bishop Mark Moore) know me; most have never seen me, but they pray for me as I do for them. That’s what love and fellowship are all about.

Tuesday 6/14/2011 8:00 PM

Waiting for Pat to come home… Got some time to think and meditate. I have this notion that is certainly not unusual for a child of God: We all have our niche carved out for us in this life and the niche is, in a measure, deter­mined by circumstances and our personal temperaments. When a child of God is relatively free to do what he sets his mind to do during the day (as I am), it would be a sin to waste talent and time on the boob tube or talking aimlessly on the phone all day. I don’t want to go off on a foolish tangent and view these things as sinful – not everything that brings pleasure in life is sinful – but there is a work God has for each of us to do and there also happens to be a God into whose presence we should want to come in sweet meditation – these items take priority over any optional worldly pleasures… Think of the many people who need prayer… we have in our midst so many hurts and heavy hearts… there is much for me to do in addition to my writing. God has been so very good to me in that He does not let me lack for something to do and someone to pray for.

NOTE: I have just now received an e-mail informing me of someone else in dire need of the Master’s touch. I know that, of myself, I can’t help them, so as soon as I can, I will take both the urgent need and my spiritual sibling to the Lord in prayer. The need can’t wait, so until I have the time, I will pray as I go about my daily business – what else can I do? I have a brother/sister calling for help…

I have two prayer lists. Each one is long and my memory at this point in life is very fragile, shattering into a hundred useless pieces when encountering the smallest obstacle. Furthermore the “weight” of the two lists is heavy, but God is sufficient for every situation. I print out one of the lists from time to time as specific situations change and as prayers  are answered (and, yes, an occasional death does occur! Faith in Christ does not do away with the curse of sin – physical death). These ebbs and flows of life make it necessary to update my Prayer Burdens list occasionally. I often have this list close at hand as I pray to jog my faulty memory; and God understands and he hears my “effectual, fervent prayer” and answers in His own way and His own time.

Our responsibility is not to answer our own prayers. That is God’s duty; all we are required to do is believe and do whatever we can to facilitate the answer. Then we pray … and pray …and pray. If you are uncertain as to the will of God in the matter, review the situation: 1) Are you a child of God? 2) Is your petition in line with the will of God? 3) Do you have faith that God will answer?

If you can answer Yes to all three questions, then continue to believe and pray… and pray …and pray. Remember Jesus’ parable of the Widow and the Unjust Judge (Luke 18.1-8). The Judge did not fear God or regard men, but he finally granted the widow’s petition because she wearied him with her constantly pressuring him for a definitive answer to her petition. If the Unjust Judge could answer the widow’s petition for such a trivial reason, surely a righteous God can answer out of the abundance of His love for His children.

One of Jesus’ disciples came to Him with a question probably brought on by the strict demands Jesus was making of His followers: “Lord, are there few that be saved?” Luke 13.23.

Read carefully what Jesus said to him:
“Strive [a better rendering: ‘Strain every nerve’ – MLV] to enter in at the strait [narrow] gate: for many…will seek to enter in and shall not be able.”
Jesus illustrated this remark by likening the situation to the master of a household who has shut his door and refuses to open it to anyone coming late. Jesus said, “…he [the master of the household] will say, ‘I don’t know you,’ and you will say, ‘We have eaten and drunk with you and you have taught in our streets.’
“But he will insist, ‘I don’t know you. Depart from me, you workers of iniquity!’ There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Mat 7:22-23 relates the story more forcibly: “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works?23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
These and numerous other scriptures plainly tell us that we do not procure salvation by good, even miraculous works. The wretched “sinners” portrayed here could scarcely have done greater mighty acts – but they were totally rejected by God.
Who then can be saved?
Please read the following carefully: Salvation is secured by faith alone. You do not attain it by good intentions, prayer and fasting or inherit it from your parents. Nevertheless, if you have no good works, you cannot be saved.
Now you are totally confused.
Here is the critical point I am assiduously trying to make: Some of us who subscribe to the Eternal Security point of view (to which I also assent), are carelessly skipping and tra – la – la – ing our way through a field strewn with deadly land mines. Christ came to earth to bring us salvation and, along with it, peace and security. But we have profaned the divine design; we have taken grace and mercy and love and dragged them through the filth of our carnal natures.
There is scarcely anything of great good that we, as sin-cursed humans existing in a sin-cursed world, can obtain without any effort on our part. After the Son Jesus completed His awesome, mind-boggling mission to earth, God did not beam like a cherubic divine Santa Claus and whisper, “That’s all right, children, you don’t have to worry anymore about that nasty ol’ curse you incurred through your father Adam – my Son Jesus paid it all!”
But not so! See what Jesus had to say to these carefree sinners in the following lines excerpted from His heartbroken Lament for Jerusalem late in His career…
“As He [Jesus] spoke of a prophet’s not perishing outside Jerusalem, Jesus was racked with inner pain: ‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,’ He cried out, ‘you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you: How often I would have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you would not!’
‘Behold, your house is left to you desolate: and verily…you shall not see me until the time comes when you shall say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
The cold, impenitent hearts to whom Jesus uttered these words have long since returned to the dust from which they sprang by the grace and mercy of a great Creator God and His uniquely begotten Son. One wonders … Did one or two of them later repent and cry from a broken, contrite heart … “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” and so received salvation while there was yet time…?

Time is notoriously fickle; but there is yet time for YOU today to strenuously cry from your broken, contrite heart… Cry out quickly, while there is yet “time” – and before Eternity Himself stills your suddenly quavering voice… forever.