This morning I read the following from C. H. Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening. It challenged, encouraged, and blessed my soul . . .
“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
— 1 Peter 5:7
It is a happy way of soothing sorrow when we can feel—“HE careth for me.” Christian! do not dishonour religion by always wearing a brow of care; come, cast your burden upon your Lord. You are staggering beneath a weight which your Father would not feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to him but as the small dust of the balance. Nothing is so sweet as to
“Lie passive in God’s hands,
And know no will but his.”
O child of suffering, be thou patient; God has not passed thee over in his providence. He who is the feeder of sparrows, will also furnish you with what you need. Sit not down in despair; hope on, hope ever. Take up the arms of faith against a sea of trouble, and your opposition shall yet end your distresses. There is One who careth for you. His eye is fixed on you, his heart beats with pity for your woe, and his hand omnipotent shall yet bring you the needed help. The darkest cloud shall scatter itself in showers of mercy. The blackest gloom shall give place to the morning. He, if thou art one of his family, will bind up thy wounds, and heal thy broken heart. Doubt not his grace because of thy tribulation, but believe that he loveth thee as much in seasons of trouble as in times of happiness. What a serene and quiet life might you lead if you would leave providing to the God of providence! With a little oil in the cruse, and a handful of meal in the barrel, Elijah outlived the famine, and you will do the same. If God cares for you, why need you care too? Can you trust him for your soul, and not for your body? He has never refused to bear your burdens, he has never fainted under their weight. Come, then, soul! have done with fretful care, and leave all thy concerns in the hand of a gracious God.
This morning, Kristi spent some time during Bible class to challenge our girls with the need to share the glorious truth about Jesus our Christ during this “most wonderful time of the year.” They rehearsed some of the ways that they might tell others about our Savior. Little did they know how soon the Lord would open a door of opportunity . . .
This evening, we stopped by a local diner for supper. As I was paying the bill the lady behind the register said to our girls, “Next week Santa is coming to bring you presents!” Elissa, our 3 year old, just shook her head and said, “No.” The waitress replied, “Sure he is!” Again ‘Lissa shook her head and repeated, “No!” Then she said, “Mommy and Daddy bring us our presents, and Christmas is Jesus’ birthday!” At that, the lady hung her head sheepishly and said with a smile, “Boy, she told me!” Another waitress looking on smiled and said, “She’s right! Good for her!”
As Scripture says, “Out of the mouth of babes” (Psalm 8:2). How encouraging it is to watch my little ones growing in grace and to hear them boldly proclaiming the truths of Christ even at their young ages! May God help us all to stand firm and speak up for Him this Christmas season.
You will find some helpful and challenging resources which address the ongoing battle for Christmas between Christ and Santa: here and here.
As I sat in McDonald’s this morning, eating my chicken biscuit breakfast, typing emails on my laptop, listening to Christmas music over the Internet on my headset, waiting for a text message on my PDA cell phone, making notes in my book with a Sharpie highlighter, and preparing for the usual indulgences of the Christmas holiday, I read the following quotes:
“Most of us in the U.S. have grown up in prosperity and have never known anything different. Although there have always been self-centered people, it has probably never been seen on the scale we have today in America. However, because we have grown up this way it seems normal to us. But there is a reason jesus spoke of ‘the deceitfulness of riches.’ (Mark 4:19) Indeed, we have been corporately decieved and now obliviously pursue our self-centered lives. . . .
Christians indulge the lust of the flesh like never before through countless forms of pleasure (indulgent eating, viewing pornography, abusing drugs, etc.) and entertainment (following sports, playing video games, viewing television, etc.). American churchgoers have the financial means to give themselves nearly any possession for which their eyes lust. Prideful ambition is driving people to ever greater heights of outward success and prominence. Yes, evangelicals are fully engulfed in a love for ‘the things of the world’ and are seemingly oblivious to the fact that their ‘love for the Father’ has grown ice cold. They can claim to love God, but their daily lives are a denial of it. . . .
Most of us who have been raised since the 1960’s have never known what it really means to do without. We have grown up in a level of prosperity the world has never before known.
A couple of statistics I recently read say much about the U.S. lifestyle. The living standard of the average welfare recipient in America ranks within the middle class of the other top 10 countries of the world; our poorest people live better than the middle-class folks of over 240 other nations. The second stat states that the average American cat eats better than at least one billion people on our planet – people just like you and me!
In the U.S., we enjoy a more opulent lifestyle – full of luxury, pleasure, and comfort – than many kings down through world history. No monarch from past centuries ever enjoyed indoor plumbing, electricity, television, newspapers, toasters, automobiles, ambulance service, telephones and all of the other things that we now consider to be the absolute necessities. Yesterday’s luxuries have become today’s necessities. Recent examples include cell phones and personal computers. It wasn’t that long ago that only the rich could afford such devices. Now, nearly every American has both.
This tremendous prosperity tends to keep people in a constant state of wanting more. Moreover, advertisers do a remarkable job of training us to never be satisfied. Everywhere we look we are being told about some new item that we just cannot live without. Clothes, computers, cars, vacations, house, and furniture are paraded before us to keep us in a fixed state of covetousness: always lusting for more, we are never satisfied.
There is no question that our culture has become increasingly self-centered. We have been taught to see ourselves as the center of everything: what I want, where I want to go, what makes me feel good, what fulfills me. ‘The very air you breathe is a poisonous fume’ of selfishness. We have corporately achieved the great American dream and it has left us miserable and unfulfilled. Surely the spirit of the age in which we live is self-centeredness. Self-love rules the day.”
~ Steve Gallagher (in Standing Firm through the great Apostasy)
“‘He spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all; how shall he not with him freely give us all things’ (Romans 8:32). How is it imaginable that God should withhold, after this, spirituals or temporals, from his people? How shall he not call them effectually, justify them freely, sanctify them thoroughly, and glorify them eternally? How shall he not clothe them, feed them, protect and deliver them? Surely if he would not spare this own Son one stroke, on tear, on groan, one sigh, on circumstance of misery, it can never be imagined that ever he should, after this, deny or withhold from his people, for whose sakes all this was suffered, any mercies, any comforts, any privilege, spritual or temporal, which is good for them.“
- John Flavel (quoted in The Purifying Power of Living by Faith in Future Grace by John Piper)
“ . . . God alone knows what is good for human beings and God alone knows what is not good for them. To enjoy the ‘good’ we must trust God and obey Him. If we disobey, we will have to decide for ourselves what is good and what is not good. While to modern men and women such a prospect may seem desirable, to the author of Genesis it is the worst fate that could have befallen humanity.”
- John Sailhamer (quoted in The Purifying Power of Living by Faith in Future Grace by John Piper)
It’s been far too long since I’ve posted anything here. Today, I’d like to direct your attention to a insightful and challenging quote I came across in my reading this morning. Consider the following:
“Christian meditation is the contemplative and earnest fixing of the mind on the great spiritual realities which the Bible has revealed to us . . . Meditation is the soul’s conference with itself; the discourse which it holds with truth obtained, and impressions received, in the secret sanctuary of its own consciousness. It is the . . . solemn endeavor of the soul to bring home to itself divine things; and so to resolve, ponder, and digest them, as to work their transforming power into every element and faculty of its being . . . It is the digestive process, by which spiritual food nourishes the soul and promotes its growth in holiness.
Lack of meditation is the primary reason that so many professing Christians, in spite of exposure to the most excellent teaching, still remain ignorant, unstable, and unfruitful; ‘ever learning, but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.’ Instruction flows in upon them from all sides; but their hearts and minds are like sieves, out of which everything runs as fast as it is poured in. The impressions which truth makes on their minds are as temporary as characters traced on the sands of the seashore, which the next wave erases forever. But meditation imprints truth deeply on the conscience, and engraves it on the tablets of ‘the inner man,’ as with the point of a diamond . . . It thus becomes incorporated into the soul; and forms, as it were, a part of it; and it is ever present, to regulate the heart’s affections and to control and guide all of its movements.”
~ Oliver Heywood, 1666 (quoted in Pleasing People by Lou Priolo)
On the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend, May 24, we had the wonderful privilege of hosting Music Pastor, Songwriter, Musician, and long-time friend Dave Mincy and his family for a special hour of sacred music during our Sunday Morning Worship Service. Dave, his wife Sarah, and their three children live and minister in the Raleigh/Durham area of North Carolina, but they traveled North for this special day of ministry with us. We praise the Lord for their wonderful service to the Lord and us and for their gracious spirits and servant hearts. They were truly a great blessing to us and our people. Below are some pictures from their visit along with .mp3 tracks of the music presented during the concert:
Here’s a video clip from a sermon by Evangelist Paul Washer. Trust me, friend, it is well worth the 11 minutes it takes to watch. If you already know Christ as your Savior it will bless, convict, challenge, encourage, and educate you. If you have never come to Christ, you need this message more than any other! Be blessed.
This past Sunday we collected one more offering from our congregation specifically for the remaining need in our roof fund. The Lord provided nearly $5,000 ($4,983 to be exact)! Now, we are praising Him for His continued provision. At this point, should the Lord choose to supply another $7-10 thousand over the next couple of weeks, we might not even need to take out a loan at all! Whether this is what He will choose to do or not remains to be seen, but in the meantime, we are simply trusting and resting in His perfect will. Thank you for your continued prayers for our ministry and this particular need. Currently the fund/need is as follows:
Just this week, we passed the 800 download mark on www.fbcanglesea.com/sermons.php! It is hard to believe that in such a short time the Lord has allowed this aspect of our ministry to flourish so. We have only had the sermon page of our website up since this past February, and in that time the numbers have not just climbed, they have spiked dramatically. Thanks to all of you who faithfully keep up with the ministry here. The Lord is using you to be a blessing to us!
isti spent some time during Bible class to challenge our girls with the need to share the glorious truth about Jesus our Christ during this “most wonderful time of the year.” They rehearsed some of the ways that they might tell others about our Savior. Little did they know how soon the Lord would open a door of opportunity . . .
