“I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied.”¹

Dreams. Do they have meaning and purpose? Does God still speak to people through them?

Technically speaking, dreams are the right or creative side of the brain communicating to the left or logical side of the brain. They are often visual symbols of what we are feeling deep inside. Clinical tests have shown that we all dream every night even if we don’t remember what we have dreamed.

Dreaming is one of nature’s ways to relieve tension. In one test, sleepers were monitored with electronic equipment to show when they were dreaming. As soon as they started to dream, they were awakened and the dream stopped. The test had to be discontinued after several nights as the people in the test were becoming too emotionally distressed.

Some dreams can be caused by an emotional upset; others by stress or physical pain. For several days following an operation on my Achilles tendon, which I snapped twice in three months, I kept dreaming over and over that I was falling and snapping my tendon. These were more like nightmares!

At other times dreams can be very insightful. For instance, some dreams have clearly shown me conflicts from childhood that I needed to resolve.

Repeated dreams that follow a theme—such as when we are trying to run from something but can’t move, or when we are being chased but can’t get away, or falling and can’t catch ourselves—may indicate an unresolved fear or conflict from the past. It’s nature’s way of notifying us that we need to resolve some long forgotten memory.

But does God ever speak to us today through dreams as he did in Bible times?

I think so. On one occasion when my organization (ACTS International) was facing a severe financial crisis, I was feeling very afraid and discouraged, and fell asleep during my morning devotional time when I had a fascinating dream. In the dream I heard a voice that said very clearly, “Philippians 4:18 makes sense to me.”

Immediately I woke up, opened my Bible to that passage and read the following: “I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied!” I had never memorized that Scripture verse so it didn’t come from my memory bank! That certainly encouraged me and, by way of interest, we did survive that crisis.

Some dreams may be from God. Most aren’t. However, the ability to dream is. And we have been given them for a purpose—at least to relieve stress and to gain insights for personal and spiritual growth. The difficulty can be in interpreting them correctly. However, through prayer and practice we can learn to do this and use them creatively.

To be continued ….

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you for the ability to dream. Help me to recognize when my dreams are telling me that I have an issue that needs to be resolved, or a responsibility I need to take care of, and then lead me to the help I need to do this. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Philippians 4:18.

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“Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.”¹

I read about a West Virginia State Trooper who stopped a woman driver for going 15 miles over the speed limit. After handing her a ticket, the driver asked him, “Don’t you give out warnings?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he replied. “They’re all up and down the road. They say, “‘Speed Limit 55.’”²

I can imagine that many people—who have rejected God all their life and failed to accept his forgiveness for their sins—when they stand before God at the end of life’s journey and are required to give an account of their life and receive God’s judgment are going to want to say the same as the lady above: “Don’t you give out warnings?”

I can imagine God saying, “Yes, sir/madam, my Word, the Bible, is filled with warnings from cover to cover to prepare for life after death. And every year of your life you were reminded of my offer of forgiveness and eternal life at both Christmas and Easter.”

And this is what they will hear God say to them: “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!”³

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you have warned me over and over to prepare to meet you face to face after I die. Please help me to make my life right with you today, to obtain your forgiveness for all my sins and be prepared for life after death. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

And, Dear friend, if you have never put your life right with God, he is giving you that opportunity today. For God’s Invitation go to: http://tinyurl.com/6k49w or for further help to know God go to: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

1. Hebrews 9:27 (NIV).
2. from Reader’s Digest, “All in a Day’s Work,” by Patricia Greenlee.
3. Matthew 7:23 (NKJV).

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“Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord.”¹

One of the biggest areas of conflict in today’s church is music. Older generation Christians tend to like the “good old hymns” while the younger generation lean more toward what Joy and I like to call “happy clappy” gospel songs. So whose music is the best for worship?

Allow me to answer in a roundabout way. A few years ago I had the opportunity to preach in the Sunday morning services at an Anglican (Episcopal) church in Perth, Western Australia. It was in the middle of winter and I was so cold that a doctor’s wife loaned me her overcoat. So here I am sitting on the front pew dressed in a woman’s overcoat waiting for the service to commence. The moment the congregation began to sing it hit me like a thunderbolt. “Wow,” I said to myself, “surely the presence of the Lord is in this place!”

When I got up to preach, never in my life had I experienced such incredible liberty with such an overwhelming sense of God’s presence.

Very interesting, too, that in that service was a professor from the University of Western Australia. This lady had recently emigrated from China where she grew up under Mao with the teaching that said there is no God. This was only the second time in her life she had ever been in a church. She told friends who were with me that when I was preaching, she saw me encircled by an aura of rainbow colored light. She also said she now knew that there was a God because she felt his presence so strongly in that service.

So what does this have to do with church music? Everything. It’s not the form of music that matters but the attitude of the heart of those who are singing. When preaching, I can pretty much tell on the first line of the first song whether or not it will be easy or hard to preach in that service because one can easily sense whether God is in the music or not. If God is not in the music, you can be certain his Spirit is not in the rest of the service.

So the question is, is the music from the heart as Paul stated in today’s Scripture? If not, it isn’t worship—no matter how talented the singers may be. To put it another way, is our music a sweet smelling savor to God as an act of genuine worship, or is it nothing more than an obnoxious effluvium as were some of the sacrifices in the Old Testament era where the sacrifices were merely ritualistic and not from the heart?

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me at all times to sing and make melody in my heart to you … whether alone at home or in a church worship service. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Ephesians 5:19 (NIV).

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Jesus gave an eternal principle to all people when he said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”¹

While Jesus was primarily sharing a theological principle, the same principle applies to every area of life—not only to propositional truth (factual truth) but also to personal truth.

Personal truth means that we are to be in touch with our inner truth; that is, being aware of and honest about our true feelings and motives. As God’s Word says, “Behold, you [God] desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part you will make me know wisdom.”²

In reality, the more dishonest we are (repressed and in denial) about our inner truth, the more we will distort all truth—including God’s truth—to make it match our distorted perception of reality. The opposite is also true, the more honest we are with our inner truth the clearer we will see all truth.

In other words, we see things not the way they are but the way we are. For example, if I am a negative person, I will see things in a negative light—and be critical about them. If I am a supersensitive person, I will read into what others say or do and overreact—not so much on the basis of what they have said or done, but on the basis of who and what I am. On the other hand, as Thomas Dreier put it, “The world is a great mirror. It reflects back to you what you are. If you are loving, if you are friendly, if you are helpful, the world will prove loving and friendly and helpful to you. The world is what you are.”

It is not without good reason that God’s Word teaches: “Don’t just pretend to be good! Be done with dishonesty and jealousy … put away all evil, deception, envy, and fraud. Long to grow up into the fullness of your salvation.”³

If we want to discover truth it starts with our being truthful and honest with ourselves. As long as there is any area in our life where we haven’t found freedom, we can be sure that there is some truth we are not seeing or are in denial about. As Jesus said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”¹

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to see and get reconnected to any and every area in my life where I might be in denial, so I can bring these issues into the light so they can be dealt with and resolved. Help me always to be truthful with myself, others and with you so that I will find true freedom and not distort the truth in any way. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

To be certain your life is right with God read, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian—without having to be religious at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

1. John 8:31-32 (NIV).
2. Psalm 51:6 (NASB).
3. See 1 Peter 2:1-3 (TLB).

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The search for and avoidance of truth is as old as mankind. At the beginning of mankind’s history Satan (the devil) distorted God’s truth by telling a part-truth—one of the most deceptive form of lies. This resulted in mankind’s fall and introduced evil into the world.¹ And when Jesus was being tried, Pilate asked, “What is truth?”²

Today, however, in our so-called post-modern secular world, with our political correctness insanity, according to Kenneth D. Boa and Robert M. Bowman Jr., in their book, 20 Compelling Evidences That God Exists, “Tolerance—not truth—is absolute.”³ This is an extremely dangerous way to live and a foundation of sinking sand upon which to build a society—especially as we keep moving our roots farther and farther away from God, the author and essence of all truth and life.

At the root of much of the evil (including terrorism) in today’s world is the fact that men have exchanged the truth of God for a lie. In speaking about earlier generations God’s Word says, “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged … the truth of God for a lie.”⁴

The end result: “God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.”⁵

The reality is that without access to the truth there is no reality, no freedom, no sense of direction, and no hope of salvation for mankind. No wonder so much of today’s world is floating on a sea of distrust and world-wide turmoil. May we never forget that “blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD.”⁶

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please send a revival of your Spirit and a revival of truth to our land so that as a nation we will turn back to you and know your blessing and security—and let your work begin in me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

To be certain your life is right with God read, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian—without having to be religious at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

1. See Genesis 3:1-6.
2. John 18:38 (NIV).
3. Kenneth D. Boa and Robert M. Bowman Jr.,
in their book, 20 Compelling Evidences
That God Exists, p.18.
4. Romans 1:21-23 (NIV).
5. Romans 1:28-32 (NASB).
6. Psalm 33:12 (NIV).

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The Apostle Paul wrote, “What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ.”¹

On a recent TV program Joy and I saw George Beverly Shea, now 98, being interviewed by Bill Gaither. Close to the beginning of the Billy Graham Crusades back in 1947 (made “famous” in 1949) Mr. Shea has been the BGC team soloist.

Over the years I’ve attended several Graham Crusades in both Australia and the U.S. When in Chicago, I and a few other college students “cheated” a little. We joined the choir so we could get a great seat and observe the evangelist close up. We were reasonably good singers back then anyhow. In every one of these crusades it was always inspiring to hear Bev Shea with his rich baritone voice sing his signature song which was, “I’d Rather Have Jesus”

I didn’t realize it until I heard Shea on the TV interview that he wrote the music of this well-known gospel song—the words of which are a devotion in and of themselves.

I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold;
I’d rather be His than have riches untold;
I’d rather have Jesus than houses or lands,
I’d rather be led by His nail pierced hand.

Than to be a king of a vast domain
Or be held in sin’s dread sway,
I’d rather have Jesus than anything
This world affords today.

I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause;
I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause;
I’d rather have Jesus than world-wide fame,
I’d rather be true to His holy name.

He’s fairer than lilies of rarest bloom;
He’s sweeter than honey from out of the comb;
He’s all that my hungering spirit needs,
I’d rather have Jesus and let Him lead.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, grant that I, too, will always be able to sing from my heart, and truly mean it, the words of the song, ‘I’d Rather Have Jesus.’ So help me God. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Philippians 3:8 (NIV).

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“Behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation.’”¹

Following the news of ex-Beatle George Harrison’s death on December 1, 2001, anchor Anne Curry of television’s TODAY show interviewed Anthony DeCurtis, a writer for Rolling Stone magazine. DeCurtis talked at length about Harrison’s search for a meaningful spiritual life. Speaking of the Beatles, Curry said, “Apparently Harrison was the most spiritual of the group; in a recent interview, he said, ‘Everything else in life can wait, but the search for God cannot wait.’”²

I don’t know whether Harrison ever found God or not. I surely hope he did. I suspect, however, like too many, he may have made the search for God a complicated thing when the easiest way to find God is a simple belief in God’s Word which says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”3 — and a simple prayer such as, “God, I believe in Jesus. Please be merciful to me a sinner.”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that I don’t have to search to find you because you have found me and have revealed yourself in your Son, Jesus Christ, and that all I have to do is to confess that I am a sinner, believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that he died on the cross to save me from my sins and ask for your forgiveness. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

For help read “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian” by clicking on the Know God link below or going to: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

1. 2. Corinthians 6:2 (NASV).
2. Dave Slagle, Lawrenceville, GA.,
www.PreachingToday.com.
3. John 3:16 (NIV).

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“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”¹

In a sermon Matt Woodley shared how, “On the first day teaching his class of 250 college freshmen, R. C. Sproul carefully explained the assignment of three term papers. Each paper was due on the last day of September, October, and November. Sproul clearly stated there would be no extensions (except for medical reasons). At the end of September 225 students dutifully turned in their papers, while 25 remorseful students quaked in fear. ‘We’re so sorry,’ they said. ‘We didn’t make the proper adjustments from high school to college, but we promise to do better next time.’ He bowed to their pleas for mercy, gave them an extension, but warned them not to be late next month.

“At the end of October rolled around, 200 students turned in their papers, while 50 students showed up empty-handed. ‘Oh, please,’ they begged, ‘it was homecoming weekend, and we ran out of time.’ Sproul relented once more but warned them, ‘This is it. No excuses next time. You will get an F.’

“The end of November came and only 100 students turned in their papers. The rest told Sproul, ‘We’ll get it in soon.’

“‘Sorry,’ Sproul replied. ‘It’s too late now. You get an F.’

“The students howled in protest, ‘That’s not fair!’

“’Okay,’ Sproul replied, ‘you want justice, do you? Here’s what’s just: you’ll get an F for all three papers that were late. That was the rule, right?’

“’The students had quickly taken my mercy for granted,’ Sproul later reflected. ‘They assumed it. When justice suddenly fell, they were unprepared for it. It came as a shock, and they were outraged.’”²

God has clearly put every Christian on notice that every one of us will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account of how we have lived our life here on earth.1 And for those who have never received Jesus as their Savior they will stand before God at the Great White Judgment Throne of God and be judged for their sins and will have to pay the just penalty thereof because they never accepted Jesus as their Savior and asked for and accepted God’s forgiveness.

As God’s Word says, “And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”³

Whatever you do, don’t ignore God’s warning and don’t take God’s mercy for granted. “Behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation.’”⁴ If you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior and asked God for forgiveness for all your sins, I urge you, dear reader, to do that today.

For help click on the Know God button below or go to: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you for your Word that tells me what I need to do to have my sins forgiven; and thank you for giving Jesus, your Son, to pay the penalty for all my sins through his death on the cross. And thank you for giving me a clear warning that ‘As it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.’⁵ letting me know that it is imperative that I make things right with you today as it is too late after I die. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. 2 Corinthians 5:10 (NIV).
2. Matt Woodley, in the sermon “The Grieving Heart of
God,” http://www.preachingtoday.com/48566
3. See Revelation 20:12-15.
4. 2. Corinthians 6:2 (NASV).
5. Hebrews 9:27 (NKJV).

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“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”¹

In younger days, when I was in youth ministry, one of my main ministries was to teach RI (Religious Instruction) in the public high schools in Adelaide, South Australia. In every new class I would write in large letters across the class room board, “I hate religion.”

“Man, in this class, you’ll get shot,” gasped one student in amazement.

“But I’m sold on real Christianity,” I responded.

“Well, what’s the difference?” several chorused.

“Let me explain,” I replied.

True, Christianity is considered a religion but in reality it is profoundly different than man-made religions.

According to Webster’s New World Dictionary religion comes from the Latin religare (re meaning “back” and ligare meaning “to bind”). In other words religion means “to bind back.”

In a real sense religion is “back to bondage” that is applicable to most, if not all, man-made religions—so many of which enslave one in bondage to extreme legalistic rules and regulations with little or no personal freedoms. In another sense religion (man-made religion) is man’s search for God through man-made ways such as good works and/or religiously adhering to certain rules, rituals and regulations.

On the other hand, authentic Christianity is God’s search for lost mankind by giving his Son, Jesus, to come to earth as a babe and then die on the cruel Roman cross to pay the penalty for your sins and mine. Authentic Christianity, more than anything else in the world, has given mankind (and especially womankind) freedom. Just compare I’lam to Christianity and keep in mind that Islam is a man-made religion founded by Mohammed while Christianity was founded by Jesus, Son of the living God.

Our sin has separated us from a holy God and as such it is impossible for mankind to save himself. All his efforts to devise his own way to God are doomed to failure. We can only find and know God by following his way and that is by believing that Jesus is the Son of God and that he died to save us from our sins and sin’s devastating consequences, which is eternal separation from a holy and Just God. As Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”²

To be sure you are a real Christian and not just a religious person be sure to read the article, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian—without having to be religious,” click on the Know God button below or on http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you so loved the world (me) that you gave your Son Jesus to die on the cross to pay the penalty for all my sins so I could be freely forgiven by you and given your gift of eternal life to be with you in Heaven forever after my life on earth is finished. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV).
2. John 14:6 (NIV).

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Hear the Word of God: “For you know very well that the day of the Lord [Christ’s second coming to earth] will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.”¹

The Personnel Journal reported this incredible statistic: since the beginning of recorded history, the entire world has been at peace less than eight percent of the time! In its study, the periodical discovered that of 3530 years of recorded history, only 286 years saw peace. Moreover, in excess of 8000 peace treaties were made—and broken.²

I have read that one of the fastest growing religions today is the I’lamic faith. M’slims would have us believe that theirs is a religion of peace and all the while their radicals are on a slaughter rampage throughout various parts of the world. While it is not politically correct to say so, but the reality is that the world today is not in a clash of cultures between I’lam and the West but in a religious war whose attackers don’t wear a uniform, hide behind innocent civilians including children, and use our freedoms to expand and ultimately either kill or subdue us into their strict control of their legalist religious laws—and in so doing take away our freedom! That is, they are using our freedom to take away our freedom.

I recall an old pastor friend saying that all of the signs that Jesus and the Bible predicted that would precede Christ’s second coming to earth have actually been happening since he was here on earth—but today they are all standing up at once!

Jesus is coming again. That is just as certain as was his first coming some 2000 years ago. What if it were today? Would you be ready? Or would you be left behind? For help to be sure you are ready to meet Jesus face to face click on the “Know God” button or link below or on http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you have promised in your Word, the Bible, that Jesus is coming again to take to Heaven all his true followers. Please help me to be sure that I am ready for his possible soon return. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3 (NIV).
2. Today In The Word, June, 1988, p.33.
Moody Bible Institute.

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