All posts by 5Q

Long Suffering Vs. Suffering Long

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“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.”1

One man, whom I shall call Jerry, was divorced by his wife twenty years ago. She has long since been remarried to another man. But Jerry is still living under the delusion that she will come back to him.

Instead of growing through longsuffering, Jerry is groaning through suffering long … which is a thief of peace and happiness and has stopped him from getting on with his life (and growing)—and makes this kind of suffering worse than useless.

God’s purpose for longsuffering is to help us grow, to learn patience, and become better, healthier, and more peaceful and fulfilled persons.

Suffering long is when we can change our circumstances (or at least our attitude) but keep doing what we’ve always done and expect different results. But as the old saying goes, “Nothing changes if nothing changes.”

Unfortunately, when we are blind to the reality of what we are contributing to the situation we are in and keep hoping for change, too often we do more of the same of what we’ve been doing all along. And then as we remain in our pain, we play the excuse-game, the rationalization-game, and/or the blame-game … blaming others, God or the devil for our misfortunes and miseries—but fail to take personal responsibility for changing ourselves!

And how do I know? Been there—done that! I wish they would have taught me this lesson in Sunday School—or even in college!

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, in the words of another, ‘Grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, the courage to change the one I can, and the wisdom to know it’s me.’ Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV).

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What Might Have Been

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“Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”1

A few years ago one of my best friends was cut down in the prime of life. He was only forty-something. His doctors gave him only a matter of months to live. His passing was a shock and a sad loss for many of us. One of the last things my friend said to me before he died was how much he regretted not being able to do some important things he planned on doing. “And now it is too late,” he said.

As John Greenleaf Whittier said, “Some of our most painful regrets are for opportunities lost.”

Another person who will know the tragedy of opportunity lost was King Agrippa who said to the Apostle Paul when he shared the gospel with him, “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.”2 But King Agrippa, as far as we know never did accept Jesus as his Savior, and if not, is lost forever. And all the regrets forever will never ever give him that opportunity again.

You and I, too, will be lost forever if we fail to accept God’s pardon for sins forgiven and his gift of eternal life. None of us has any guarantee of tomorrow, and as God’s Word reminds us, “Now is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation.” Remember too that opportunity comes to pass—not to pause.

As William Shakespeare so eloquently expressed it:

There is a tide in the affairs of men,
Which taken at the flood leads on to fortune.
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
is bound in shallows and in miseries.
On such a full sea are we now afloat;
And we must take the current when it serves,
Or lose our ventures.”

“Of all sad words of tongue or pen. The saddest are these: It might have been!”

If you have never accepted God’s free pardon for all your sins by accepting Jesus as your Savior, or are not sure you have done that, please do it today. Don’t wait until tomorrow for tomorrow may be too late. For help go to http://tinyurl.com/8glq9 for the article. “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian.” Don’t be an almost-persuaded-might-have-been person.

And if there is some unfinished business you’ve been putting off doing for some time, don’t put it off any longer. Do it today. And if there is someone you need to call or contact and let them know you love and appreciate them, and haven’t yet told them, do it today.

Suggested prayer, “Dear God, thank you for another reminder of the things I need to take care of today. With your help I make a commitment to do today what I need to do. If I have never accepted Jesus as my Savior, I will do that right now.* Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

*Again, for help to accept Jesus as your Savior be sure to read: “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian—without having to be religious,” at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9

1. 2 Corinthians 6:2 (KJV).

2. Acts 26:28 (NKJV).

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When God Lets You Down

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Jesus said, “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”1

Dr. Leslie Weatherhead, a well-known preacher in the twentieth century, said that once, when he was a high school student, he had a very difficult examination. But he had discovered that verse, “And whatever you ask in my name, that will I do….”

Weatherhead believed that verse meant that all he had to do was ask and he would pass the exam. He told God he was believing his promise, and that he wanted a good grade. The next day young Weatherhead took the examination, but when the grades were in, he had failed. He was disillusioned. He rebelled and almost lost his faith. He came to the conclusion that the promises of the Bible were not good—all because God had not granted his wish for a good grade.

The next year he repeated that course. He worked hard, and passed. This time he decided that he didn’t need God—that he could get along by himself.

After some years had passed, Dr Weatherhead came to understand that his own powers and abilities were in reality the power that God had given to him. He began to realize that God had already given him the power to pass the examination, but he had not used that power the first go around.2

I’m sure many of us could identify with Weatherhead in that we have, at times, wanted and expected God to do all sorts of things for us without any or sufficient effort on our part.

Fortunately, it doesn’t work that way. God is not codependent. He will do for us what we can’t do for ourselves. That’s why he sent Jesus to die for us because it is impossible for us to save ourselves. But God won’t do for us what we need to do for ourselves. If he did, he would be keeping us over-dependent and immature.

True, God feeds the sparrows, but he doesn’t throw the food into their nests.

Suggested prayer, “Dear God, help me to realize that you have already moved the heavens to come to earth to save me from my sins, but also that you won’t do for me what you have already equipped me to do for myself. Help me to remember that personal responsibility is my responsibility. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. John 14:13 (NKJV).

2. Rev. Richard J. Fairchild, “Our Desire and Our Growth.”

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God: A Bayer’s Aspirin?

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“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”1

I recall one lady who complained bitterly to me, saying in a mournful tone, “I can’t understand why God gave me such a terrible husband.”

“Who chose your husband?” I asked.

“God,” she said, totally convinced in her mind that he did.

There was nothing I could do to get this extremely unhappy woman to see that it wasn’t God who chose her husband, but it was she. With people like this it’s, “Don’t confuse me with the facts, my mind’s made up.” Or, as another saying goes, “A man (or woman) convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.”

As said before, unhappy people are attracted to other unhappy people and, if they marry, they have unhappy marriages. The opposite is also true in that happy people are attracted to happy people and when they marry, they have a much greater chance of having a happy marriage. It has little, if anything to do with God. It has to do with our facing our problems, resolving them, and growing up.

Unfortunately, some people, as John Powell describes them, treat God as if he were a giant Bayer’s aspirin pill with the prescription: “Take God three times a day and you won’t feel any pain.”

Not so. God will give us wisdom if we ask for it and guidance if we seek it, but when we want or even expect God to do for us what we need to do for ourselves and are responsible to do, we set ourselves up for disappointment with God, when in reality, we need to be disappointed in ourselves.

For those who say, “’Sorry, but that is the way I am … I was like this in the beginning, am now, and ever shall be …’ is a handy motto and delusion to have around if we don’t want to grow up.”2

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to be made whole so that my lifestyle, actions, attitudes, and relationships are responsible and wholesome. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV).

2. John Powell, Why Am I Afraid to Tell You Who I Am, p. 167.

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The Power of Imaging, Part III

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“Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”1

Faith is seeing what God wants us to do. Visualizing this adds wings to our faith. It is picturing in our mind’s eye what we believe God wants us to do. Besides helping us to achieve what seems an impossible thing for us to do, and to help in the healing process, it can also help in the following ways:

Imaging can help achieve goals.

When I first went to the city where I started the work of ACTS International, I was with another organization and was told by a key church leader (who happened to be a member of our board of directors and who had considerable control) that I’d better realize right from the start that I wouldn’t be able to do anything in this city because there wasn’t enough money here.

Amazing! This was the exact image this leader had in his mind—and undoubtedly that influenced other board members, and was why that organization had very little income even though they had been in operation for twenty years. I ended up moving out of this organization to commence the work of ACTS.

I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but I never believed God called anyone to do anything that couldn’t be done! At the time, I’d never heard of the term “imaging,” but I began to formulate and write down specific goals, then see them as achieved. And then, with God’s help and guidance, I went to work to make it happen.

From a standpoint where there was an image or vision of not being able to do anything, a new image not only reached out across South Australia (where we began), but to all Australia, then to New Zealand, and then to North America. And now, via e-mail and the Internet, it is reaching out around the world.

The way we see and image what we want to see achieved makes all the difference in the world. In many ways what we see is what we get.

Imaging can change your life.

Regardless of your present circumstances, feelings or background, you, too, can change your life. You can do this by changing your self-image and by imaging what you want to become and do with your life.

That is the way most people achieve their goals. It’s the way we’ve built ACTS International. It was how I built my own home. It’s how I improved my education and do the work I do. And I still build things by first seeing and picturing them in my mind. I’m sure this is the way President John Kennedy achieved the goal of putting man on the moon in the 1960s. You can just imagine him looking up at the moon hundreds of times and “seeing” an American there long before it happened. Had he not visualized it in his mind, I doubt that it ever would have happened.

Don’t misunderstand me, there’s no magic in imaging, but it helps keep you working towards and focused on your goals. In realty, achieving worthwhile goals never comes easy. Besides, it’s one thing to dream dreams, but quite another to fulfill them. To do so, it takes God’s help plus, on our part, relentless effort, persistence, dedication, training, discipline, determination, patience, endurance, stick-to-itiveness, time, and faith.

The most important thing of all is to be certain that our goals are not only worthwhile, but also in harmony with the will of God. And then, with the added dimension of imaging, the dynamic of faith, and the power of prayer, we can be assured of achieving them. Remember, too, that another definition of faith is visualizing what God wants you to do. Among other things, God wants all of us to be made whole, to find fulfillment, to reach our potential, and to achieve something worthwhile with our lives.

So ask God today to give you an image of what he wants you to become and do. Begin to create that image in your mind right now. See it clearly. Write it down, and formulate a plan to fulfill it. Bring it to God every day, asking for his help to fulfill that which he wants you to become and do. And as long as you are committed to God’s goal and purpose for your life, you can be assured that he will help you to fulfill it.

Remember: “Faith is visualizing what God wants you to do!”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you have a plan and purpose for my life. Help me to know what that is, to hold it as a picture in my mind, and bring it to you every day for your help, direction, guidance, and provision. Show me how to fulfill this plan, and give me the courage and determination to never give up until your goal and purpose for my life is fulfilled. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Hebrews 11:6 (NIV).

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The Power of Imaging, Part II

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“Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith will it be done to you.”1

Imaging—picturing in your mind’s eye—can help you achieve the seeming impossible.

One day when I was working on our church building, I borrowed my boss’s heavy circular-saw bench. When returning it, it fell off the truck, right in the middle of a major highway. It had taken four of us to load the saw bench onto the truck and here it was, lying in the middle of the road with only two of us to re-load it!

No problem … all we could see was getting it back on the truck. And, with seemingly super-human strength, heaved it back onto the truck in a flash. We fastened it securely, and were on our way in no time at all. We amazed ourselves with a strength we didn’t even know we had. This type of thing is fairly common.

Where did the extra strength come from? I’d say that the picture in our mind of getting the saw bench back onto the truck as quickly as possible, plus the urgency of the situation, triggered an extra supply of adrenaline, making it possible for us to lift it. Had we focused on the problem and our inability to lift it by ourselves, we never would have been able to achieve that task.

Imaging can also help in the healing of sicknesses.

Dr. Norman Vincent Peal in his book, Imaging, tells about Harry DeCamp who was healed of cancer. He was not a religious man, but was challenged to believe in God when a friend sent him a card which said, “With God all things are possible.”

Harry chose to believe that through faith and prayer, God could heal him, and started to visualize in a dramatic way the healing process taking place within his body.

“He began to imagine armies of healing white blood cells in his body cascading down from his shoulders, sweeping through his veins, attacking the malignant cells and destroying them. A hundred times a day, two hundred, three hundred, he went through this imaging process. He worked at it constantly, day and night.”2

Harry also kept on with his chemotherapy and in six months he was healed. What cured him? His faith, the chemotherapy, or his powerful imaging? Probably all three!

For some unknown reason, when the image we create in our mind is vivid and clear, the desire to achieve it, and the faith to believe it is possible are strong enough, the untapped powers of the mind come to our rescue and help us achieve the very thing we image and believe in. Unfortunately, the same principle is effective for those who wish to perform dastardly acts of evil. Actually, all of us are visualizing things in our mind much of the time. Just think how temptation works! We just need to use this ability for good.

To be continued …

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, help me to see what you want me to become and do for your glory, and picture these in my mind until, with your help, one by one, they are all achieved. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Matthew 9:29 (NIV).

2. Imaging, by Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, p. 22.

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The Power of Imaging, Part I

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Seeing Jesus walking on the water, Peter said: “‘Lord, if it’s you … tell me to come to you on the water.’ ‘Come,’ he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’”1

I’d dare say that most of us could walk a twelve-foot-long by one-foot-wide plank that was on the ground. But suspend it thirty feet up in the air between two buildings and suddenly, for most of us (including me), it becomes a terrifying, nigh on impossible task.

Why?

Like Peter, because we are afraid of falling our faith is swallowed up by fear. We suddenly see ourselves plunging, and what we picture happening paralyzes us. In many, if not most, instances, what we imagine, see or visualize in our mind is what we make to happen.

In other words, if you imagine yourself falling off that plank, you’re much more likely to make it happen. But if you see yourself confidently walking across it safely to the other side, you will be able to do it.

Life’s like that. If you see yourself as being loving and lovable, you will love others and be loved by them. If you see yourself as confident and successful, you will act accordingly and be successful. If, on the other hand, you see yourself as unlovable, insecure, and a failure, you will act in an unlovable manner and set yourself up to fail.

Thus, a major key to successful living is to visualize exactly the type of person you want to become and what you want to make of your life—see it in your mind’s eye as already happening, and believe, with God’s help, that it is possible.

This kind of visualizing, or imaging as it is called, is a powerful means of help for overcoming problems, healing of sicknesses, achieving goals, improving relationships, and changing one’s life.

To be continued…

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, when I have to walk across life’s difficult places, please help me to keep my eyes fixed on you, and believe that you will hold my hand lest I fall. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Matthew 14:28-30 (NIV).

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Christianity Vs. Religion

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“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son [Jesus], whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.”1

Karl Barth was lecturing to a group of students at Princeton. One student asked the renowned German theologian, “Sir, don’t you think that God has revealed himself in other religions and not only in Christianity?” Barth’s answer stunned the crowd. With a modest thunder he answered, “No, God has not revealed himself in any religion, including Christianity. He has revealed himself in his Son [Jesus].”2

People by nature are religious in that every person is born with a sense of a divine being, and at some point each person decides whether to accept that belief, enquire into it, or reject it. Many choose the belief, as the saying goes, that “all roads lead to Rome,” and all religions lead to God. Not true.

In one sense religion is man’s search for God primarily through his own efforts, or through a man-made religion. On the other hand, Jesus (or real Christianity) is God’s search for man. And that makes all the difference in the world. Because we are all sinners, it is impossible for us to save ourselves through our own efforts or any man-made religion. This is why God, in his eternal love for us, sent his own Son, Jesus, to die on the cross in our place to pay the penalty for all our sins. Mankind’s salvation is thus found in Jesus Christ alone. There is no other way.

Narrow? Yes. But had there been any other way, why would Jesus have come to earth as a man to die an excruciating death on a Roman cross to pay the penalty for our sins? As Jesus said, “Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it.”3

So the important question is not, are you religious? Or, do you belong to a Christian denomination, or are you a member of a Christian church, but have you accepted Jesus as your Savior? Is your trust in him and him alone for your eternal salvation? As Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father [God] except through me.”4

If in doubt, be sure to read the article, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian—without having to be religious” at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you for your ‘so great salvation’ provided through the death of your Son, Jesus, on the cross for my sins and to give to me the gift of eternal life. And Jesus, because you died for me, help me to live for you always in all ways. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Hebrews 1:1-2 (NIV).

2. Rev. John H. Pavelko, “Avoiding a Troubled Heart.”

3. Matthew 7:14 (NIV).

4. John 14:6 (NIV).

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To Know or Not to Know

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“Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”1

Gen. Douglas MacArthur was a cadet at West Point. A brilliant student, MacArthur was struggling with a class in which he was studying the time-space relationship later formulated by Einstein as his Theory of Relativity. The text was complex and, being unable to comprehend it, MacArthur committed the pages to memory. When he was called upon to answer a question about this time-space relationship, he solemnly reeled off almost word for word what the book said.

When he was finished, the instructor, Colonel Fieberger, looked at him somewhat quizzically and asked, “Do you understand this theory?”

“It was a bad moment for me,” says MacArthur, “but I did not hesitate in replying, ’No, sir.’”

You could have heard a pin drop, MacArthur reports. He braced himself and waited. And then came the slow, measured words of the professor: “Neither do I, Mr. MacArthur. Section dismissed.”2

MacArthur was relieved that he wasn’t expected to know the answer to that complex question.

There are numerous questions about life that you and I can’t answer either. And yet there are still some “know-it-alls” among us. These people have a need to answer every question asked of them and rattle off platitudes in an authoritative tone trying to sound knowledgeable, and you know very well that they haven’t got a clue what they are talking about.

Then there are the evolutionists who claim emphatically that man descended from apes in spite of the fact that a missing link between man and monkeys has never been found. It’s much easier to believe that man, nature, and the universe all happened by chance because if we believe in a Divine Creator, then we are responsible to him for our life and manner of living.

Then for we would-be theologians who like to think we have a corner on the truth, some of us argue that Christ will come before the Great Tribulation. Others believe he will come in the middle of it, still others believe he will come after it. They are the pre-tribs, the mid-tribs, and the post-tribs. Personally, I’m on the side of the humorist who said, “I’m a pan-trib. That is, I’ll wait and see how it all pans out.”

Unfortunately, too often we major on the non-essentials instead of majoring on the essentials that we do know. When it comes to Christ’s return, the major issue is not so much the when of Christ’s return, but that we are ready for it because God alone knows the day and hour of that day.

And then who can understand the Holy Trinity—God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit—all part of the one God. “Someone has said that if you fully try to understand the Trinity, you’ll lose your mind. But if you deny the Trinity, you’ll lose your soul.”

Then there are questions about life that we simply cannot fully answer. We offer up platitudes. We make guesses—sometimes even educated guesses, but we really don’t know. For example, we don’t understand why good people suffer. We don’t understand why bad people prosper. We can’t understand why some people from a certain kind of situation become criminals, while other people growing up under the same kind of circumstances become sterling citizens. And why does God allow missionaries to be kidnapped and killed?

However, there is one thing in life that we can know that we know that we know—and that is the answer to life’s most important issue—our eternal well-being. God’s Word, the Bible, assures us that all who put their trust in Jesus as their personal Savior can know without a shadow of a doubt that we have the gift of eternal life. As God said through the Apostle John: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God [Jesus] so that you may know that you have eternal life.”3

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you have given us all the information that we need to know about the eternal destiny of our souls—especially that all who have accepted Jesus as our Savior have the knowledge and the assurance that our sins are forgiven, and that we have your promise of eternal life in Heaven with you forever and forever. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

NOTE: If you are not sure of your eternal welfare, be sure to read, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian … without having to be religious,” at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9

1. 1 Corinthians 13:12 (NIV).

2. Gen. Douglas MacArthur, “Reminiscences,” in Discover, July 1996, p.16.

3. 1 John 5:13 (NIV).

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People Power Partners Welcome

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“You are to go into all the world and preach [communicate] the Good News to everyone, everywhere.”1 – Jesus

A special word of thanks to all who have joined the People Power for Jesus partners. We’ve recieved a tremendous response to date. Already 871 folk have signed up from around the world. It would be impossible for me to reply to everyone of you individually, so I have set up a special email list to keep you informed, report blessings, send prayer requests, and receive your suggestions for improving this ministry. The list name is people-power at lists.actsweb dot org.

If, at any time, you wish to be taken off this list, you can unsubscribe on the regular Encounter unsubscribe page at: www.actsweb.org/subscribe-un.php. If I added you by mistake, please accept my aplogy, and you can take your email address off the list by unsubscribing from this same unsubscribe page.

How to be a People Power Partner: I have set up a web page to share suggested ways you can be involved in one or more ways as a People Power partner at: www.actsweb.org/people_power02.php.

Also, we want this to be a God-thing and not a Dick or Dick-and-Joy-thing, and will appreciate input and practical ideas from any and all partners sharing other practical ways to be involved as a People Power for Jesus mover. To send ideas click on the “Add Your Comment” button link below. Please keep your comments to a maximum of 10 to 12 lines and when you write your comment, please be sure to click the next “Add Your Comment” button only one time. As the comments grow, I will have tech support set us up with a proper blog site.

Tell-a-Friend: To get as many people as possible involved in the People Power for Jesus movement, please send the following web page to all your concerned Christian friends: www.actsweb.org/people_power.php. This is one vital way to be a part of this People Power for Jesus movement.

As Billy Graham said: “I am convinced the greatest act of love we can ever perform for people is to tell them about God’s love for them in Christ.”

Suggested Prayer: “Dear God, I am only one person but I realize that with you one person is a majority. I renew my commitment to be a part of your plans and what you are doing in the world today. I am available for you to use in any way you desire as a People Power for Jesus partner, and thereby help to bring a spiritual awakening in my world, my country, and around the world. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit to have a part in doing your work … in your way … for your glory. Thank you for hearing and answering prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

Note: If you are not a People Power for Jesus partner, you can join at www.actsweb.org/subscribe-pp.php.

1. Mark 16:15 (TLB).

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