To Tell the Truth - Rock Solid

Honesty is something far removed from the society we live in now.  If you have someone that is honest with you it almost startles you, because it is so rare.  I see top government officials say things that are noticeable lies and I wonder, "Don't they know I know the truth?"  It's like we have pulled a blanket of fake reality over our head and we live a plain of untruths and innuendoes.  Jesus addressed this during the three years he ministered before His crucifixion with the notable religious leaders of the day.  He would do something or state a firm truth and they would say, "He can't do that or say that!"  But He did!!  He was a rock in the truest sense.  A ROCK!!!  In a time of history where relationship was replaced with religion He was a breath of fresh air for those looking for truth and a curse for those who wanted to live in preformed worlds of watered down truth.  it freaked them out when He made a statement that said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Me."(John 14:6)  You know why it freaked them out?  Because He gave no other option!  That totally flies in the face of our attitudes in society right now.  Most people don't think there is any absolute truth, but they think that the truth is relative to your situation.  If that's truth, then it is ever-changing with no firm base.  In other words, weak....  If the base of a nation is weak, then the resulting decisions made by all will be weak.  I believe I can prove it with one example.  Have you ever made a statement and said, "That's just the way it is and nothing else!"  If you put something like that on any kind of comment ridden website, you will immediately have people trying to "tear it apart."   One argument will say, "That's what you believe, but I believe thus and so."  That shows the fabric of who we are and where our reasoning is based.  We have started to write our own little bibles, with our impressions of truth and justice. If we like someone or somebody we will write in a little chapter for them because of what they have gone through in their life.  Then that changes for someone else with different circumstances... Sounds like a mess doesn't it?  That's because it is a mess.   

Truth is, there is no life apart from Jesus Christ.  No other faith, religion, or cult is the right way,  There is only ONE WAY!  Are you getting scared yet?  Got your hackles up ready to fight?  Getting your arguments in line?  Forget it!  You don't have to deal with me.....You have to deal with the one who makes that claim. GOD!!   A time is coming when He will not put up with any of this weak truth anymore and He will intervene and only those who have believed will be spared.  Those who aren't believers will look back on all the excuses they made and all the times they honored sin instead of righteousness and see that they were wrong!  Yes, somebody will be wrong.....that's the truth.  Rock Solid!

Wow, to tell the truth, to be honest is a rare thing.  I think it's time we Christians came out of our prayer closets and make the statement. "There is no other name in heaven in which we can be saved, but Jesus."  Totally honesty.  Total truth.  Total hope. Totally!!

Solomon, the wisest man to ever live said it well in Proverbs 14:12, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but it's end is the way of death."  That is the truth...

To tell the truth is an amazing life of hurt and pain, but when it's the truth you are sharing, even that doesn't matter.  Tell the Truth!!

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Bourne Again

In the series of movies about the life of Jason Bourne it features the life of one professional government hit man who wants to get out of the killing business.  In an attempt to do a hit on a government target he freezes and doesn't kill his mark.  As he is leaving the boat the guy shoots him twice in the back and he wakes up on a fishing boat with his life, but without his memory.  In the first movie of the set he goes through one flashback after another trying to put the pieces of his former life back together.  He discovers he has a finely tuned body and mind, and finds himself responding to trouble with precision and accuracy.  Whether it be moving into position for a fight, or scoping a room to see how each person is equipped, his senses are off the chart.  He also finds out he knows many different languages and has many different identities to complement his black ops lifestyle.  Eventually he finds out who he is and what he has been doing the past few years and comes to grips with how to handle all this information. Exciting, intriguing, and possible.

This story really parallels many who are Christians.  A person accepts Christ and is immediately equipped through the power of the Holy Spirit with great abilities they didn't have before.  The ability to understand situations and how to work them out.  The ability to find direction and purpose when others can't.  The ability to forgive.  The ability to take on characteristics of a loving God.  A person who is born again immediately has the capability  to become a game changer, when before they were just wandering around.  But for some reason they lose memory of who they are and whose they are.  They don't sharpen the skills given to them and they are put on a shelf.  They even forget who gave them the ability to do great and mighty things.  Many Christians have forgotten their first love and now they don't even know if they want to live that life anymore.  What needs to happen?

You need to do a self discovery and recapture that which you have forgotten.  You need to remember your Identity and allow Christ to be real to you again.   You need a touch from the Master's Hand.  That touch or tap on the shoulder will refocus you on what is the most important thing, your mission in life.  Hebrews 12:2 says to "fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith."  He is the one giving our mission orders and He will be the only one who can get you back on track.  Let Him shock you back into reality by asking Him to restore the joy of your salvation and restore your memory of who you are in Him.

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Creation

Creation - The act of bringing something into existence.  To create something is an amazing thing.  To bring something into existence in a whole new form is too many times underestimated in the raw power of creation.  We think about the creation of our world, man, etc. and it's just so huge we can't grasp it, so it sometimes loses it's impact in our thinking.   God takes the purity of creation and continues to create new and exciting things in our world and in our lives, and we miss the importance of it.  In Psalm 51:10, David knew what create meant when he said, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me."  He did not have a clean heart and he knew it.  In verse 6 of the same chapter he proclaims that God desires truth in the innermost being, in the hidden part.  Without that hidden part made right, nothing is right.  David knew that only God could create that in him and it was his desire to have it last forever.  Not just for a quick fix.

We can glaze over the deep hidden truths of God many times by not looking deeper into what God does when He moves in a situation.  That's why when we compare the God who made the seas with the God who touches our hearts, it ratchets up the importance quotient pretty quick.  When we stop to consider that the God who made all of this also individually deals with our smallest problems or needs it brings a loving God more into focus.  When the focus is fine tuned we see that God truly is "involved" in all the processes of our lives.  On a side note; it doesn't minimize God to our level, but it lifts our level of understanding of the big picture to God's perspective.  When we come to realize God's perspective everything changes and clarity is realized.  Clarity in areas like forgiveness, grace, love, peace, hope, encouragement, unity, faith........oh well, you get it.  Life itself.  WE GET A GLIMPSE OF CREATION!!  We have become so proud of ourselves and our accomplishments, that we get into the mindset of thinking, We've done it all!"  "There's nothing new under the sun!"  Oh boy, is that statement wrong!  God, the creator, is all about creating new and incredible things and each day is a new day of discovery and purpose.  David wanted to tap into that mentality because he knew how good God was and he had come to know the heart of God.  He wanted to tap into that creation power and see it change his heart.  And guess what?  It did!!

Creation.....an amazing thing.  To realize it's origin and it's power is life changing.  Paul wrote to the Ephesians with this creation power on his mind when he said in Chapter 2 verse 10, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." He also further said in verse 24, "and put on the new self which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth." God has taken something that did not exist in our lives and through the power of the Holy Spirit has created it.  It wasn't there, but now it is. 

I hope you are living in the power of His creation in you.  You know, salvation!!!  He took that which had no sin (Jesus) and had Him bore our sin (substitution) and created a way to live in eternity with Him.  Wow!!!  Wow!!! Creation is probably something we don't think about enough, but that must change.  Every day you get up in the morning turn your thoughts to God and say, "God, what are you going to create in me today?"  I believe His answer would be, "Something awesome!"  When we realize that God is able to "create" a newness in us every day, then we start to see great things happen as He sanctifies us and brings spiritual focus into our lives.

If you haven't tapped into the new creation you are in Christ, then now is the time to open up to the fact that God is up to something new and exciting through your life.

Philippians 1:6 says, "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."  That means we are just seeing the tip of the iceberg in our lives when it comes to serving Christ.  There is more ahead.  It all starts with a surrender to Christ and then He takes the wheel and leads us in to a whole new world.  Paul emphasized this to the church at Corinth in 2 Corinthians 5:17 when he said, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;  the old has gone, the new has come!!"  Open your heart to God and let Him create "a new thang" in your life.  You will never be the same!!

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Sensitivity

This is a story about a man who had been blind from birth.  His daily routine was fairly deliberate because he had come to realize his limitations and his liberties.  In preparing for the day his hands, ears, legs, and nose became keenly more aware that they would have to make up for his blindness.   True to form they would kick in a heightened awareness of things around him so he would always be aware of where he was and what he needed to avoid.  He discovered through these other heightened senses that there was more out there than just "seeing."  His daily functions depended on these other senses and body parts to make it so he could function, and function well.   What might have been thought by some to be an affliction or handicap was a broadening of what life is all about to him.  His hands became his eyes as he touched and reflected on those things he touched with great sensitivity.  His nose became his eyes as he realized the depth of scents that gave him visions of those things that he could never see.  His ears become his eyes as they would cause him to involuntarily turn his head when he heard a sound.  So quick his glance would go to a sound at times, that if you didn't really know it, you wouldn't think he was blind.  His legs became his eyes as they would take him to different places where his other senses could realize changes in temperature, sunlight, dark, and even hills or flatland.  One day he met a man who told him he knew about someone who could change another part of his body called his heart.   He told him about a Savior named Jesus who would forgive his sins and give him a life that would be abundant and ever growing.   His keen senses realized that what this man was saying was very sincere and seemingly very true.  In his enhanced use of his senses he had never felt what he was feeling at that moment.  He was needing to know more about the truth the man had shared with him.  He felt an inner desire in his heart to "hear" more about it and asked the man to share more about God with him.  He heard words that resonated with a deep desire in his life he didn't even realize he had.   A desire for God.  As the man continued on he suddenly smelled a sweet fragrance in the room that he had not noticed before.  It was a fragrance like roses, but not a rose, more like a strange sweet perfume that gave him great peace and satisfaction.  Pretty soon he felt a tingling in his hands that made him realize that all this man was sharing about Jesus' sacrifice was making him notice the palms in his hands.  As he ran his finger across the palms of his hands he could see Christ having nails put in his hands.  He imagined the strain of his body weight on those nails as He gave His life for him.  He suddenly felt a compassion and drawing he had never experienced before and he knew this was REAL.  Very real.  He told the man to stop and asked him, "What does all this mean to you?'  The man answered by saying, "It means everything to me."  He asked again, "But why?"  The man's voice changed and with a very measured response he said, "You see. I am also blind." Astonished the young man said, "How did you know to stop and tell me, a blind man?"  The man answered, "Are you blind?"  The emotions could no longer be held back by the man sharing the gospel and he began to weep.  He turned to the young man and said, "I didn't know."  The young man answered, "I didn't know either."  "I do want to know what you have been reading to me though."  The man answered, "I'm not reading anything to you, but I am telling you what I know from The Bible and how God has restored me."  "It's all I know to tell you.  I hope it's enough."   The young man realized that he was once again smelling the sweet fragrance from before and turned to the man and said, "What do I do now?"  After telling him all that God expected from him, the young man bowed his head and received Christ.  As he lifted his eyes to heaven he felt the sunshine as never before and for the first time he could see.  Not with his eyes, but with his heart.  He could see what real life really was and what he had desired for all these years and he wept from blind eyes.  His ears picked up that the other man was leaving and he called out to him, "Where are you going." The man said, "It's time for me to go but I was wondering if we could meet here tomorrow and talk about what happens next?"  The young man smiled and said, "I would like that."  From that moment on they met at the same place every day for weeks and developed a true friendship in the faith, one blind man to another.

In John 1:45-50  Phillip had found his brother Nathaniel and said to him, We have found Jesus of Nazareth.   Nathaniel answered, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"  Phillip said, "Come and see!"  Jesus saw Nathaniel coming to Him and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit."  Nathaniel asked Jesus how He knew him.  Before Phillip called you I saw you under the fig tree.  Nathaniel said, "Rabbi,  You are the Son of God, the King of Israel."   Jesus said, "Because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe?  You will see greater things these."

We are all blind until we come and see Jesus.  We are all skeptical that the Holy Spirit can cause a sweet fragrance to come off the words of hope from God's Word.  We all like sheep wander around with no hope and no shepherd until we come and see Jesus.  He takes the scales off our eyes so we can truly see hope, peace, and abundant life.  May our hearts and minds have a keen sense of what serving a living God can mean.  It's a radical change to everything about us and the end result is SIGHT.   If you need some encouragement today about whether God is alive and active, HE IS!  If you are really questioning in your faith if all this is worth it. IT IS!!  If you haven't smelled the sweet fragrance of God lately, ask Him to make you spiritually sensitive again to His Presence and awaken your heart.  Without Him we are blind!!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Second Hand Smoke Overload

I was listening to the local news of a nearby city this morning and it stated that over 800 people had died last year as a result of second hand smoke.  You know what it is; you are in mostly an enclosed area with someone who smokes and even though you aren't the smoker their "exhaust" drifts your way and you breathe it in.  My dad smoked for years and I really never noticed the smoke because it was so prevalent everywhere we went.  I know my clothes must have stunk from living in the same house and traveling in the same car with my dad.   A few years later he had a heart attack that was attributed to 40 years of smoking three packs a day.  To say the least, he quit.  It wasn't until I got out from under the smell of the smoke though, I mean totally free from smelling it, that I began to notice how strong the smell was and it made me kind of nauseas.  When I started noticing it more, I realized that I didn't want to smell it and didn't want that smell on my clothes.  As more and more restaurants and businesses ban smoking from their buildings it gets easier and easier to avoid all that goes with "Second Hand Smoke."  In fact, it's almost totally frowned on by seemingly most people and smokers get "the look" from non-smokers when they light up.   I know if we are sitting down wind outside near a smoker we will get up move to a place where it doesn't hit us.  It's because those adjustments have been made and we don't want to deal with the smell anymore.  Nothing against smokers, but I don't want to get "Second Hand Smoke."

Which brings to mind a common thing that is happening in the meltdown of the Christian church and in fact, Christianity in our society.  We have put ourselves so much in line with marginal living and allowing more and more of worldly things to be allowed that now we are starting to smell a little bit like evil, instead of the sweet fragrance that God loves.  It has come upon us in a very quiet subtle way, but it has happened just the same.  Marginal movies, habits, songs, speech, and lifestyles have put us in the room with satan and his purposes, instead of God's.  Bible standards for living have been traded in for thinking that doubts whether God really wants us to have standards at all.  When it first happened we noticed it but in order to be "worldly relevant" we became use to the smell.  In fact, we don't even notice it at all anymore.  What used to be a no no for Christians is kind of a yes yes now and we don't even know why.  Funny thing about trying to "live in da house" with evil.  It rubs off, and we don' t even notice it.

Of course, it is very subtle and unnoticed at first when we start to live in that lukewarm lifestyle, but then we even start defending it.  That's hilarious......or maybe I should say tragic.  It's ironic that we who carry the sweet fragrance of salvation in our lives wouldn't even notice when we allow another "smoky" fragrance to taint it and take it's place.  We don't live for satan, but we sure do smell like him and the world notices and they don't understand.  God longs for us to break away from the grasp evil has on our lives and allow Him to breathe fresh air into the situation.  The only way that can happen is through a radical change in thinking that allows God to do some house cleaning. "I don't mean spray some weak Febreze on it  to make it smell better though.  I get a kick out of the Febreze commercial that shows people sitting in a stinky room with dead fish, old dishes, sweaty socks, and blindfolded.  Spraying Febreze on that stuff is supposed to make it where you can't even smell the mess you are sitting in.  satan is real good about disguising all of the evil odor coming from our lives by spraying on some bad febreze. It may seem to smell better, but it is not better.  The best way to get to the fresh new perspective on life is to get out of the influence of the world on your life and separate yourself from evil's influence.  Only then will you see it for what it is, "secondary smoke!"  Then God's Word will guide you through the steps to keep that smoke out of your life and you will be back on track again, "smelling good!"  In 2 Corinthians 2:14-15 it says, "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing."  It's always important to come out smelling like a rose and that rose is the "rose of sharon."  Quit the nominal, compromised lifestyle because you will die of that secondary smoke.  You aren't the smoker, but you are living close enough for it to kill you.   Live in the freedom of God's fragrance and lead the way for others who want to live and breathe the fresh air of freedom in Christ.  1 Peter 2:16 "Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God."  God has the oxygen mask ready......breath in.  You are gonna make it....

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Joined at Birth - The Concept of Spiritual Twins

I am always amazed at the connection between twins.  Twins have the uncanny ability to sense what each other are thinking and many times they choose the very same thing without being prompted.  The connection they have from conception is amazing and that process doesn't' stop with birth.  This "freaky" way of knowing the other person doesn't even have to be fostered by them living in the same house or being in the same location.  It just happens.  Finishing each others sentences, picking the same food from a menu, and many other things further support....THEY HAVE A CONNECTION!!

Jesus took this one step further for believers in that He gave us many common things that show we are connected as well.   We love to worship Him.  His Word is vital to our growth.  We strive to see the good win.  We like chicken...(oh wait a minute, I think that is reserved for preachers...moving on)  We desire close fellowship with other believers.  Like the Allstate Commercial  "It's like we're connected."  Of course, the world would discount this by saying, "No you're not!"  But, we are!!!  You can take this connection to it's highest caliber by applying this to married couples.  You know, the two shall become one!  What do you think that means?  It's a connection made by God for all believers and then to it's highest level for believing married couples.  That connection causes a great outpouring of empathy for those  who are struggling and a "pick you up" for those who need  a word of encouragement.  It puts self on the back burner and feels the pain and hurt of the one they love.  Of course, you might say, "With a love like that there would never be anymore divorces!"  You're right!!

Of the church, you might say, "If we just loved each other more like that, the connection would be so strong "the gates of hell wouldn't defeat it!"  You're right!!  To quote a great theologian, "So, what's the problem?"

The problem could be we are connected in the wrong way.  In other words, we are all following Jesus in sections.  What I mean by that is, we are individually connected, but our connection has no "group power."  Do you remember the Power Rangers?  It was a great show for kids (and adults like me) and each week it  would show them fighting evil droids and robots from other worlds separately.  They would win a battle or two, but almost lose the war when suddenly.....They would all get together and form one Mega Power Ranger.  Then they would easily defeat the foe for good.  Separately they had great strength, but together they had AWESOME STRENGTH!  They were not as powerful as they could be until they were connected.  Sometimes we see some partial connections and it is encouraging and we suddenly start thinking, "It's like we're connected."  To a certain extent we are, but not enough.   This connection is one that causes us to pray for each other for greatness.  This connection is one that causes us to take time out of our day to listen to each other.  This connection is one that causes us to encourage one another to greatness.  This connection is exactly like the connection we have with God.  Think of it this way.  Our vertical connection with God establishes a horizontal connection with others.  As long as the vertical connection is good, the horizontal one will be good too.  If the vertical connection is messed up, the horizontal will be the same.

That is the concept of Spiritual Twins.  This doesn't just happen though.  It is something generated by God and inherited from Jesus when He takes control of our lives.  In Matthew 9:36 it says, "Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd."  Somewhere along the line you are going to be the weak sheep, and somewhere along the line you are going to be the strong sheep.  Wherever you are in the connection, do what you can to minister and "feel" others pain and hurt and encourage them.  Don't worry.  You'll get your encouragement too.

Once upon a time a farmer owned an old mule who tripped and fell into the farmer's well. The farmer heard the mule 'braying' and was unable to figure out how to bring up the old animal. It grieved him that he could not pull the animal out - he'd been a good worker around the farm - and though the farmer sympathized with the mule, he called his neighbors together and told them what had happened...and had them help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and quietly put him out of his misery. At first, the old mule was puzzled, but as the 

farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back, he had a thought. He ought to shake off the dirt and step up. And he did just that. "Shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up!" Even though he took painful blows of dirt, and fought panic, he just kept right on SHAKING IT OFF AND STEPPING UP! It wasn't long before the old mule, stepped up and over the lip of that well. What could have buried him, actually blessed him...all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity. 

Don't get  buried in your own  pity if you aren't being encouraged.  Shake it off and step up. Keep in mind that even if others don't seem to try to feel your pain, don't despair.  Keep doing the right things to others and you will have your day.  You don't sympathize with someone to get sympathy.  You sympathize with others because that part of Christ is coming out in you.  Use those experiences to help you step out of the barriers others may put in your path to keep you from making those needed connections.  Then you will truly understand The Concept of Spiritual Twins.  Now that is what I call "A Church!"

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

The Big IF!!!

There are certain words that impact our lives through the years and certain events make some words more powerful to us than others.  The word IF is a huge word in my life and it breaks down into two different areas. Looking ahead and looking back.  Jesus had some great words of truth for a group of people about who He was and what God was doing through Him.  In the midst of hearing His words, a great many of those people believed.  In John 8:31-32 Jesus said, "If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."  The moment they heard Him declare that He was the Word of God and the truth for their lives, they were confronted with a big IF.  IF I believe all this then my world will be changed forever.  My whole structure as a  thinking person will be disrupted and my present way of thinking will be drastically changed.  Today we are known as people of faith.  People who believe the Bible is true, that Jesus died, was buried, and then resurrected.  People who hold to that faith to the point of allowing Him to redirect our thinking from a worldly perspective to a Godly perspective.  The IF Jesus spoke about is the same if we have to deal with today.   If we truly believe then He is our source of EVERYTHING when it comes to thinking.  We no longer hold on to a weak worldly way of thinking, IF  we truly know Him.

The other side of the IF word is looking back.  We see things in the past and then notice that IF we had done or said something different than we did, then our present would have been much different.  Good or bad.  Sometimes it is more like "if only!"  One looking back.  One looking ahead.  This story illustrates how we can lose focus when we pray and sometimes lose hope in the midst of one disappointment after another.  IF becomes a huge word in this story as well.

Ruby Hamilton, a businesswoman in her fifties, was stunned at the loss of her husband of 32 years in a car accident. Her anger and disappointment went deeper than a more typical expression of grief though. She had become a follower of Christ in her late twenties, but her husband didn't share her newfound interest in spiritual things. Nonetheless, she had set about praying for him feverishly and unceasingly that he would come to know the Lord. And one day when she was praying, she felt a wave of peace wash over her, and that still small voice assuring her that her husband would be okay. She eagerly awaited the day when her husband surrender his life to Jesus. And now this.

What do you do when faith doesn't make sense? When God doesn't seem to be answering or opening doors or being found? Ruby Hamilton stopped living for God. 

Roger Simmons was hitchhiking his way home. He would never forget the date - May 7th. His heavy suitcase was making him tired and he was anxious to take off that army uniform once and for all. Flashing the thumb to the oncoming car, he lost hope when he saw it was a black, sleek new Cadillac. To his surprise the car stopped. 

The passenger door swung open. He ran toward the car, tossed his suitcase in the back and thanked the handsome, well-dressed man as he slid into the front seat. "Going home for keeps?" 

"Sure am." 

"Well, you're in luck if you're going to Chicago." 

"Not quite that far - do you live in Chicago?" 

"I have a business there, the driver said. My name is Hamilton." 

They chatted for a while, and then Roger, a Christian, felt a compulsion to share his faith with this fiftyish, apparently successful business man. But he kept putting it off, till he realized that he was now just 30 minutes from his home. It was now or never. 

"Mr. Hamilton, I would like to talk to you about something very important." Then he simply told Mr. Hamilton about the plan of salvation and ultimately asked him if he would like to receive Jesus as his savior and Lord. 

The Cadillac pulled over to the side of the road. Roger expected that he was about to get thrown out of the car. Instead, the businessman bowed his head and received Christ, then thanked Roger "This is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me."

Five years went by. Roger married, had a couple of kids and a business of his own. Packing his suitcase for a trip to Chicago he found a small white business card that had been given to him by Hamilton five years previous. In Chicago, he looked up Hamilton enterprises. The receptionist told him that it was impossible to see Mr. Hamilton, but he could see Mrs. Hamilton. A little confused, he was ushered into a beautiful office where he found himself facing a keen-eyed woman in her fifties. 

She extended her hand "You knew my husband?" 

Roger told her about how Hamilton had picked him up while he was hitchhiking home after the war. "Can you tell me what day that was?" 

"Sure it was May 7th, five years ago, the day I was discharged from the army." 

"Anything special about that day," she asked. 

He hesitated, not knowing if he should mention how he shared the message of Jesus with her husband. "Mrs. Hamilton, I explained the gospel to your husband that day. He pulled over to the side of the road and wept against the steering wheel. He gave his life to Christ that day." 

Explosive sobs shook her body. Finally getting a grip on herself, she sobbed, "I had prayed for my husband's salvation for years. I believed God would save him." 

"Where is your husband, Ruby?"

"He's dead. He was in a car crash after he let you out of the car. He never got home. You see, I thought God had not kept his promise. I stopped living for God five years ago because I thought God had not kept his word!"

Perhaps you have lost faith and have stopped following God.  IF that is the case, then here is something that might help.  First of all, God is in control and His Word is pure truth and when all else fails, you can relay on it.  Secondly, His truth will help keep you close to His will for you and keep you in tune to what He is doing.  That truth will help you continue to trust and not give up when things don't look so good.  Lastly, God's plan is a great, perfect plan and IF you decide to connect to it, then you will not look back with IF's that mean nothing.   You will only look ahead and see what God has out there for you.  The only looking back will be when you see how God has been faithful in all things and that will energize your faith.  There are going to be some big IF's in our lives.  Just make sure they are all coming from the right perspective as a person of faith..

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Overflow

I am always amazed at how Jesus ministered to everyone He met in a very meaningful way.  No wasted time.  No beating around the bush.  Never holding back.  But that's who He was when He walked on this earth, even to the point of death.  He not only gave what was needed, but abundantly gave more and more and more......  Of course, for those who know Christ, you know that is who He is and He is abundance!  More than needed.  More than hoped for.  More than expected.  More than our reasoning.  He is God!!!  A story that illustrates this point is found in John 2:1 -11 and it tells of a wedding in Cana that Jesus and His disciples were invited to.  This wedding had all the necessary things they needed to complete the celebration, but they soon exhausted their resource of wine.  Jesus mother brought this to His attention and He asked her what that had to do with Him because He was not manifesting Himself as the Messiah at that time.  Mary told the servants to do what He said even though she didn't apparently understand all this meant.  Jesus proceeded to have them fill up six stone water pots with water and dip in there and take that liquid to the headwaiter.  When the headwaiter tasted the liquid it had become wine.....all of it!!  Water to wine.  Not just some wine, but approximately enough wine to fill over 900 bottles of today's size.  Abundance personified!!  The touch of Jesus took water that was tasteless and made wine, of the best caliber.  Jesus took the bland and gave it taste.  It says His disciples saw the Glory of God and became firm believers and followers of Jesus.  They experienced the overflow and then lived their life out of that overflow.  Later in Jesus' journey he met a Samaritan Woman and gave her a chance to drink of water touched by Jesus.  (John 4:13-15) He told her that if she drinks of this water that she will never thirst again.  Once again, abundance!!  Overflow.  The definition of Abundance is plentiful. If we are to truly grow in Christ, then it will take more than temporal commitments of partial belief.  We will need to totally immerse ourselves in the glory of God and really believe.   In Acts 4:32 - 37, the early church experienced this kind of Overflow and it spread through their lives to others.  They called this community or communion.  The individual way that Christ was impacting each life was drawing them together into a community of believers and the source of their strength was the one who changes water into wine, Jesus.  Their "testimony" to everyone they met was "His grace is plentiful."  Who wouldn't want that.  If we truly lived with that as our hearts cry, we would impact all we came in contact with in an extraordinary way.

Overflow!!  What's keeping you from experiencing it today?  I would think a lack of faith and understanding.  The very thing that is available is the very thing we miss.  We have a weak perception about it so we ignore it.  Paul wrote to the church at Corinth that needed to experience this truth about the mercies that are available and how it is where we find true comfort.  In 2 Corinthians 1:5 Paul wrote, "for just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.  This water touched by the sacrifice of Jesus that satisfies our thirst is not only satisfying but ever growing in flavoring our lives to taste more like Him every moment of every day.  And that is what it means to be Like Christ, or Christian.

Here is what I'm praying lately.  Lord, be real to me and may your Holy Spirit show me your glory in my life and may I be a vessel that can be used by You.  May my flavor be something others want because of who You are in my life.  I promise you, instead of running out of wine when you need it the most, you will have an overflow of it that will be there every time.

Plenteous.....Abundance..........Overflow!!!

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Where Is the Heart? Stepping Out of the Darkness

I was doing some light reading in the book of Leviticus today and it has an answer for about everything pertaining to living life.  When reading it I could quickly see that some of the "questionables" in our everyday living, were not questionable at all in the words God gave Moses.  Just look at Leviticus 19:21-37.  We tend to give argument for things we want and try to make it seem better by watering down what God "meant" in a certain scripture, at a certain time.  The children of Israel had the same problem, but in Leviticus those laws (and lots of them) were put on paper and they included many very conservative ways of living life.  Of course, we know about the children of Israel and how they would become distracted by every new thing coming down the pike and then they wanted to get rid of God "cramping their style."  The end result would be God distancing Himself from them and they would realize their sin and come back and on and on it would go.  The laws that were given were more to priests at that time and were designed to help keep sin in check and set a standard for living that showed the holiness of God when put beside man.  In reality God was showing them exactly what to do to live a pleasing life to Him both spiritually and physically.  And still they strayed.   So, why the rules if no one is going to follow them.  Why keep on putting up with these people that so easily stray.  Why take these nuggets of pure truth and waste them on halfhearted commitment?  Because God loved them!!  He loved them enough to show them the inner workings of what it means to be holy.  He showed them through rules.  And still they forgot!!

Warp ahead to today.  Does God love us?  Yes!  Does God want to show us how to live a holy life? Yes!!  Has He done everything that can be done to make that happen?  Yes!!!  Does He do it through some priest telling us how to live our lives and that is our source of strength?  NO!!!!  He has gone further than that.   Waaaaaaaaay further.  He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die once and for all for our sin.  He offers that salvation through faith in His Son.  He takes every bit of what he wrote through Godly men on paper and puts it in our heart when we receive Jesus.  He makes each of us priests, who have a calling or commission when we come to know Him to live for Him and thus represent the holiness of God.  He confirms all of this through His Holy Word and enabled Godly men to write the truths of God in the New Testament.  He takes away the uncertainty of life, of whether we will go to heaven or hell, by giving the ultimate sacrifice, His Son, on the cross.  He defeats death, hell, and the grave to give us the awesome hope of eternity with Him.  You would think that with those of us who are Christians that would be enough to compel us to follow Him.  But it's not!  We sit on our hands and never raise a finger when it comes to standing for His truth.  Not standing on his truth like a soapbox to hurt someone or beat them up.  But show them God's way, the better way.  We have become so nonexistent in our world that now they not only ridicule Him, but us for following Him.  And we smile and walk away....defeated.  We have everything we need to reach this world for Christ as never before and we are still caught up in making excuses to get what we want.  We trivialize the truth to the point that it looks more like an outdated mode of thinking.....BUT IT'S NOT!!

His truth is still the only pure truth, whether our nation follows it or not.  His truth is still the way to living a life of purpose and conviction.  His truth is continuous promised land, but we won't take one step in it's direction.  We have begun to believe the lie and discount God's Truth.  Where is this battle being lost?  In the heart...

I was talking to a group of Christians the other day about some of the questionables in our world.  Things that we have made ok in our lives resemble the world more than God and thus waters down our witness.  We say, "I want to let the lost know that I am approachable, so I will do questionable things to be hip and cool and thus share the message of Christ."  Wow.  Did you see the fault of that reasoning even before I finished the sentence.  Since we have been enabled to be priests through the gospel of Jesus Christ, we surely know the truth.  Since we have been put in this world to make an impact, we surely live the truth.  Since we are to be lights in the darkness, surely a light must shine.  Step out of the darkness in your heart and step into the light.  It must be done now!! But not with questionable lifestyles.   You know what I mean by questionable don't you?  If you know Christ, here's how it goes.  You see something that is no doubt worldly, but you desire it.  All of a sudden you feel something is wrong with it (conviction), but you want it so bad you start finding ways to get it and still be "good."  Here's a realization Sherlock!!  It's wrong and cannot be made right with your standard of righteousness, because your righteousness is filthy.  God won't make it right, just because you want it.  You have been marked as an easy prey by satan and he will be back for more to make your witness weaker with time.  Your heart is not pure and your motives are selfish because God is not in the mix.  What do you do?  Repent and plead with God to bring you back to the freshness of your salvation and then walk the path with His righteousness and purpose.  Paul said it well in his letter to the Philippians in Chapter 4 verse 8, "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute.  if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on those things."

Are you dwelling on Godly things or are you dwelling on too many worldly (sinful) things?  You cannot truly worship God if you don't have this resolved in your heart with God.  In John 4 Jesus told the Samaritan Woman that God was looking for true worshippers who worship in Spirit and Truth, not sin and dishonesty.  Just keep this in mind....Just because you raise your hands in the air doesn't make you a true worshipper.   I think about that every time I lift my hands to Him in worship.  Total honesty.  It's a bummer, but it works. Let God show you where your heart is by showing God how much your heart is turned to Him.

We don't follow a book of rules....We follow a God who shows us the best way to live.  It's up to you to show if you really believe He knows the best way or not by how you perceive things.  His way is the best way.  Don't live a dumbed-down faith.  Where is the Heart?? It's right here.  Ready to be used by God.

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

No More Dead Bones

Have you ever watched those shows like Dr. Phil when they have guests on who have a grudge against someone for years and they just can't give it up.  Dr. Phil will invariably say something logical to them like, "You've got some issues you haven't let go of and it is controlling your now and your future.  Then they will all talk about those issues of something that happened when they were a child and they thought they were over it, but to the surprise of no one, they aren't.  Then they talk it out and let the wound heal, have a group hug, and walk away changed.  Don't' get me wrong.  I think dealing with those things are vital to moving on in your life so you can get on with bigger and better things.  What if you don't get over it?  What if it is something so powerful and so lasting, you can't move away from it.  It consumes your every thought and no matter what you do, you feel like something is not right.

Believe it or not, that is what happens when you "give your life" to Christ at salvation.  If not nurtured and grown that seed of faith will not grow like it needs to, but you never get over it.  You can't "get things right" with a group talk session or a group hug.  It gnaws at you every day.  And the gnawing is not from what you ate that day or how good or bad your week is going.  The gnawing is the Holy Spirit (that is in you) drawing you toward a deeper walk with the Lord.  That is why an intense discipling of a new believer is so vital to their continued growth in the Lord.  When a person accepts Christ everything is different, but unexplained that difference can be confusing and sometimes frustrating.  The new convert knows there is "more" but they don't know what the "more" is.  So they think attending church and praying from time to time and quitting smoking, drinking, cussing, and hanging around with those who do it will suffice.  But as good as those changes are, they don't represent the whole "package" when it comes to knowing God.  Sometimes the person will even get in a new Bible Study and get charged up, to only fall back into mediocrity again......confusing.  Some people will get so frustrated that they totally drift away from God, church, and other Christians and sadly enough, that is the condition of the church of today in our country.  What's wrong?  Our bones are dry and disjointed.  There is not "meat" in our faith and our lives are listless and dead.  So we say, "ok.  I give up!"  Here's the thing....the gnawing doesn't stop!!!  You can't get away from it.  It's going to stay there until you let the Holy Spirit have full control of your life.

In Ezekiel 37 the prophecy went like this: 

Ezekiel 37

1 God grabbed me. God's Spirit took me up and sat me down in the middle of an open plain strewn with bones. 2 He led me around and among them - a lot of bones! There were bones all over the plain - dry bones, bleached by the sun. 3 He said to me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" I said, "Master God, only you know that." 4 He said to me, "Prophesy over these bones: 'Dry bones, listen to the Message of God!'"5 God, the Master, told the dry bones, "Watch this: I'm bringing the breath of life to you and you'll come to life. 6 I'll attach sinews to you, put meat on your bones, cover you with skin, and breathe life into you. You'll come alive and you'll realize that I am God!" 7 I prophesied just as I'd been commanded. As I prophesied, there was a sound and, oh, rustling! The bones moved and came together, bone to bone. 8 I kept watching. Sinews formed, then muscles on the bones, then skin stretched over them. But they had no breath in them. 9 He said to me, "Prophesy to the breath. Prophesy, son of man. Tell the breath, 'God, the Master, says, Come from the four winds. Come, breath. Breathe on these slain bodies. Breathe life!'" 

I see the problem of our day and it is going to get worse, as long as we turn a deaf ear to God's call for us to BELIEVE again in these dry bones coming to life.  You may say, "What will it take?"  I believe verse 14 speaks to what must take place 14 I'll breathe my life into you and you'll live. Then I'll lead you straight back to your land and you'll realize that I am God. I've said it and I'll do it. 

If you have not grown in your faith, or become lifeless in your walk, you need a fresh touch from God.   When you reesatablish that relationship, it will be like you have been saved all over again, when in reality you are now using the connection that Jesus established for you when you accepted Him.  I know for me personally it is a constant struggle at times to keep myself focused on learning more from the Master, but He is faithful to freshen me up continually as I do.  We have been drifting far too long and now the gnawing is the calling God initially put in our life and the only satisfaction and peace we will get out of life is when we "give in" to the call and follow God as we know we should.

The writer of Hebrews 2 made total sense when he said:  1 For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. 2 For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty, 3 how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation ? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, 4 God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.  Are you looking at the signs?  Are you listening to His Call?  Are your bones ready to be put back together with meat on them?  Are you ready for the breath of God?  The moment you open your life to God in that way is the moment your heart will be complete!  No more gnawing.  No more drifting! Just direction, peace, and completeness.  Pay attention to what is going on around you and let God lead you and you will never drift again.  I think that is what Jesus was trying to tell the Samaritan Woman at their well encounter, don't you?  When you pay attention you will see that God is up to something huge and you are a part of it.  Now is the time to move....You will never be the same again....

The Pilgrimage continues......

David Warren

Wake Up!!!

I remember during my teen years a bad habit of not wanting to wake up in the mornings.  My  mom would call me again and again and I would just lay there like a dead man.  You could have set a bomb under our house and I would have just grunted.  In all honesty, I could hear my mom calling the whole time, but my desire to sleep overcame my desire to get out of the bed.  There were different things that caused me to want to sleep in; like staying out late the night before, not studying for a test I was taking the next day, etc.  I would even fake sickness in order to stay in the bed to satisfy my desire to sleeeeeep.  As I grew up and matured I understood there WAS a world functioning  before 9am and that it was probably the best time of the day.  I was able to get so much more done in the day and when I laid my head on my pillow at night it was a sleep of satisfaction, knowing that I had used my time wisely that day.

The sad thing is many Christians are content to sleep through just about everything God wants them to do.  God's plan goes on and they sleep, not realizing that there is work to be done and the time is short.  I had a minister say to me once, "God doesn't need us to get His work done."  That minister was also one of the laziest guys I had ever seen and he was using the thought of God's awesome power to minimize our part in all of this.  God can do all this without us, but He does it WITH us and THROUGH us.  Sometimes we think we are doing God a favor by serving Him and it is our feeble effort to say, "thanks" to Him for His goodness.  When Christ came into my life I couldn't help but show my love for Him by serving Him.  Every time I would see Him use me, it made me realize that I am part of this plan of His.  He gives me significance that drives a yearning inside of me.  A yearning to spend time with God and experience Him through His power and grace.

Sadly enough, as God calls each of us and His church to awaken out of this slumber we almost feel like He is cramping our style.  We hear Him and we even acknowledge Him, but we never immerse our life in who He is and thus, we continue to sleep.  Of course, sleeping or resting is good, and God even did that Himself.  But the awakening I am talking about is different than resting from labor.  It is a call for us to "wake up" and be active in our faith and belief that God is at work and we want to be at work with Him.

Can you hear the "alarm clock" as it goes off?  Are you trying to stay asleep and are you happy staying asleep?  If you are, then you need an awakening in your spiritual senses so you can hear the voice of God calling again.  Maybe you have been asleep so long that now it's going to take something loud and radical to wake you up.  Why wait for that to happen.  Awake today!!

God is calling and the world is out there needing wide awake believers serving in the power of the Holy Spirit.  The ole, "I go to church on Sunday and that's it" isn't' going to cut it anymore.  If you truly know Jesus, then you will take the Word of God where it says in Ephesians 5:14, "Awake sleeper, And arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."

It's time to wake up and and let the light so shine in our lives so the world will see that Jesus is Alive!!!

The Pilgrimage continues.......

David Warren