Refrain thy voice from weeping

 Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they [your children] shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.

– Jeremiah 31:16-17

Jesus has redeemed us from the curse. Many of us have been well taught about that redemption where sin, sickness and poverty in our own lives are concerned. But we often fail to realize that redemption has power over the destruction the devil tries to bring on our children's lives as well.

Deuteronomy 28 states the curse of the law in verses 16-68. Notice what that curse says about children. "Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long: and there shall be no might in thine hand" (verse 32).

"Thou shall beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity" (verse 41).

Many Christian parents are still suffering needlessly under that curse. Their children are being taken captive by drugs, alcohol and perversions. But it doesn't have to be that way! Since Jesus broke the curse of the law, these parents have the authority in the Name of Jesus to order Satan out of their children's lives.

Don't let the devil run roughshod over your children! When you see the first warning signs of rebellion in them, confess the promises of God over them and refuse to give the devil any room to operate.

Remember, the children don't understand the unseen forces that are coming against them. So it's your responsibility to stand against those forces on their behalf. Exercise that responsibility. Then take every opportunity to minister love to them.

God knows how to deliver your children. Do your part and trust Him to do His. He will bring them back from the land of the enemy !

When the pressure is on

 Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.

– Malachi 3:16

Have you ever noticed that those who have the most exciting, faith-inspiring testimonies are those who've been under pressure at some time in their lives? They're the people who stayed faithful when the pressure was on. They're the people who believed God's promises of prosperity in the midst of desperate financial situations or trusted God for healing in the face of a terminal disease.

My friend, when you get into a hard spot, that's not the time to back out on God and begin to say, "Well, God, why did You let this happen to me?" It's not the time to step back and reevaluate His faithfulness.

What I'm saying to you is this: When tough times keep dragging on and the situations around you seem to refuse to get in line with the promises of God, don't reevaluate God! He's not missing it, and He's not failing.

If you're going to reevaluate anything, reevaluate yourself! Look and see where you may have failed. If you still can't find out what the problem is, just say, "God, I don't know what's wrong here, and I'm asking You to show me. But one thing I know, the problem's not with You, and I continue to be moved by Your Word and not by circumstances." Then, when He reveals something to you, be quick to make changes.

I want to encourage you to stand firm and to keep honoring God with your words. The Lord is listening to you when the pressure is on. What is He going to hear?

Scripture Reading: Psalm 62

Stake your claim

 Praise ye the Lord. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth for ever.

– Psalm 112:1,3

I'll never forget the time Gloria discovered that scripture. We didn't have any money at the time, and the walls in our house were as bare as they could be. But she was ready to decorate. So she took that promise, "Wealth and riches shall be in his house" and laid claim to it by faith.

Suddenly, everywhere we went, somebody was giving us a painting or some other little treasure for our house.

Unfortunately, most believers aren't as quick to believe God for that kind of thing as Gloria was. Some even claim God doesn't promise us New Testament believers physical prosperity, just spiritual. But the truth is, you can't separate the two. That's why Jesus says, "If you'll seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, then all these [material] things will be added to you." He knows the spiritual realm and the material realm are connected.

The physical world cannot operate independently from the spiritual world. What happens in one is simply a reflection of what happens in the other.

Obviously, your spiritual standing profoundly affects your financial standing. That's why, when you get hold of the gospel and begin to prosper spiritually, you can begin to prosper physically and materially as well.

Don't let anyone talk you out of God's promises of prosperity. You don't have to choose between financial and spiritual prosperity. Both belong to you. Lay claim to them by faith. As a born-again child of God, dare to reach out and receive the riches that belong to you!

Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 7:8-13

Powerhouse of protection

 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.

– Isaiah 54:17

No weapon formed against you shall prosper. Isn't that great news! Isn't it good to know that no sickness, no circumstance, no problem that rises against you can successfully bring you down?

Some years ago, one of our friends was facing a lawsuit. He and I prayed together according to this scripture and agreed it was the final word in the situation, not the allegations against him. We stood in faith, believing that lawsuit had to fail.

Sure enough, when my friend went to court, they just couldn't beat him. He didn't win that case because of his keen and witty lawyers. He won because he was innocent and because he had believed that powerful promise of God.

Follow his example. When the devil attacks you in some area of your life, don't sit around crying and begging God to save you. Open up your Bible to Isaiah 54:17 instead. Remind yourself of what God has promised you. Use that promise to strengthen you against sin and every other evil work the devil would like to use to keep you bound.

Then establish yourself on it through prayer. Say, "Lord, I refuse to be afraid of this weapon the devil has brought against me because I know that according to Your Word, it cannot prosper. I trust You to protect me, and I thank You for it now. In Jesus' Name. Amen."

Don't let the powerhouse of God's protection go to waste. Put it to work in your life. It is your rightful heritage as a servant of the Lord.

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 54:10-17

The inner witness

 The Spirit itself [Himself] beareth witness with our spirit.

– Romans 8:16

Do you ever have trouble hearing from God? Do you find yourself caught in confusing circumstances needing guidance, and yet even after praying and reading the Word--you're still not sure what God wants you to do?

I've had that experience. I knew His written Word and acting on it changed my life. But I was uncertain when I had to make decisions about things the Word didn't specifically address. Things like whether to move to one city or another, for example.

What held me back was my ability to know that I was doing the right thing. You see, God's written Word and the inward witness are two different things. They never contradict each other, but they're both a vital part of our walk with God.

God expected Israel, for example, to obey His written Word. But He also said to them, "Obey my voice" (Jer. 7:23) because He wanted them to know His will in specific situations. That's what happened when Israel invaded Jericho. They heard God's voice. Where else do you think they would have gotten that strange battle plan? It wasn't written in the law of Moses. And certainly, no human being would suggest a seven-day march around a city as the most effective form of invasion!

But exactly how, you may wonder, does God speak to us? Does He just shout down at us from heaven?

Not usually! Romans 8 says the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit. That means that God's directions come from inside, not outside, of you.

At times when you hear His guidance, you may even wonder, "Was that me, Lord, or was that You?" That's because God doesn't normally inject thoughts directly into your mind from the outside. Instead, He speaks to your spirit, and your spirit translates it into a thought.

Tune in today to that inward witness, to that quiet knowing, that urging, prompting and leading arising within you.

If when you hear it, it sounds like you, don't be surprised. It is you! It is your spirit being influenced by the Spirit of God! After you're born again, your spirit is a safe guide because you are born of God's Spirit. You have His nature. And the Holy Spirit lives in your spirit to teach you and to give you direction.

Scripture Reading: Joshua 6:1-20

God's message

 One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. For in the day 


of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.

- Psalm 27:4-5

God is with you all the time

 Today, God’s message for you is release fear. Though life provides difficulties to strengthen your spirits you do no face them alone. God is with you, beside you, and surrounding you. He will provide all the help you need, he will hold you up. His source of comfort, security, and infinite love knows no end.

hidden things of God

 Blessed art thou...for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

– Matthew 16:17

Remember when you went to school and learned your ABCs? You learned them by using your five senses and your logical abilities to gather information and sort it out. That kind of knowledge is called natural knowledge and it's the only kind most people know anything about.

But in the kingdom of God, there's another kind of knowing. One that works its way from the inside out instead of from the outside in. It's called revelation knowledge.

Jesus spoke about this kind of knowledge in Matthew 16. He'd just asked the disciples, "Who do you say I am?" Peter had answered Him by declaring, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."

"Blessed are you, Simon," Jesus responded, "because flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father which is in heaven."

In other words, Jesus was saying, "Peter, you didn't learn this information through your physical senses. You received it another way. You received it directly from God."

If you've ever had a revelation like that, you know that when it comes, it changes things. It makes you see old things in an entirely new light. It gives you such unshakable confidence that, as Jesus said to Peter, "The gates of hell can't prevail against you."

But revelations like that don't come easily. You have to meditate the Word and search the Spirit of God for them because they are "hidden" in Him. The Bible says God has hidden His wisdom for the saints (1 Cor. 2:7-9). Notice, He's hidden it for you, not from you. He wants you to have it.

Don't think, however, that God is just going to drop great revelations into your lap while you're watching television. You have to seek Him.

If you're hungry for revelation knowledge, get yourself in a position to receive it by meditating the Word, praying, and fellowshiping with the Lord. Begin to receive those revelations from Him. It's the most exciting kind of learning there is.

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 2

Establish urself on the Word

 Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.

– Psalm 112:1,7

The man who makes a habit of delighting in God's Word will have a heart that's fixed! He can make it through disastrous situations without losing his balance. His mind's made up before he ever gets to the disaster. He's victorious before he ever gets there. A person like that is hard to whip!

The sad thing is that most believers wait until the disaster hits before they start trying to establish themselves on the Word. They wait until their back is against the wall. Then, suddenly, they get real spiritual and start fasting and praying...and all too often they find they've started too late.

That's like a guy who finds out a burglar is in his house and then starts looking for the barbells, so he can build up enough muscle to throw the burglar out. He ain't gonna make it! If he'd been working out instead of watching television every night, he'd have been ready. But as it is, he's headed for a painful defeat.

Be ready before the devil breaks into your house. Get your heart fixed. Turn off the television. Turn off the distractions of the world and turn on the Word. The time to start establishing yourself on it is right now!

Scripture Reading: Job 22:21-30

You are a winner always in Jesus

 I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.

– 1 John 2:14

Man was created to be a winner. The Bible tells us so. We read in Genesis, for example, that man was originally put on this earth as a dominating lord. God gave him dominion over the earth and everything that crept, flew, crawled, and breathed there.

Man didn't even know what losing was until he separated himself from God through disobedience in the Garden of Eden. When that happened, he ran headlong into defeat. He was forced to accept failure as his lot in life, lowering himself to a subordinate position--a position he was never meant to occupy.

It's a sad story. But if you're a born again child of God, your story has a happy ending. Through faith in Christ Jesus, you've been made a winner once again!

In fact, God has guaranteed your success. Let me show you what I mean. Imagine you're about to tackle a really tough job, and before you even get started on it, God speaks to you right out loud and says, "I just want you to know, I'm going to personally see to it that this project you're working on succeeds."

Well, let me tell you something. You do have God's promise that you'll succeed. He said in His Word that you're an overcomer! In Him you can overcome any problem the world throws your way (1 John 5:1-5).

It doesn't matter how much you feel like a loser. It doesn't matter how many times you've failed in the past. If you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, then you've become more than a conqueror in Him (Rom. 8:37).

Does that mean you won't have any more trouble? No. It simply means you can go through that trouble and emerge triumphant.

If you've been feeling like a failure lately, renew your mind to the Word of God that says you're a success. Every time a challenge comes up, respond by saying, "Well, praise God, I can beat this thing because I'm an overcomer in Jesus!" Let that Word from God abide in your heart. It will make a winner out of you.

Scripture Reading: 1 John 5:1-5

Today's message

 Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?

-1 Corinthians 3:16

Give thanks for everythin

 Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray continually, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Fight the right foe

 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.

– 2 Corinthians 10:3

Do you know why so many believers are losing the battles in their lives?

They're fighting the wrong enemy!

They've been deceived into believing that just because a person said or did something to hurt them, that person is the one they need to fight. But they're wrong.

You see, the Bible says we don't wrestle with flesh and blood. And since people are definitely flesh and blood, they're never the source of our problem.

"But, Brother Copeland, you just don't know what So-and-so did to me!"

It doesn't matter. If you waste your time fighting So-and-so, your real enemy will get away scot-free.

Who is that real enemy? Look at Ephesians 6:12, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

Satan and his demons. They are your lifelong enemies! They are behind every personal affront you encounter.

The people who hurt you and persecute you are only Satan's tools. When he wants to strike out at you, he uses them to get the job done.

Remember this: Persecution is not the manifestation of another person's hate for you. It's a manifestation of Satan's fear of you. When you get into the Word and start swinging it around--using it like the sword of the Spirit it is--he gets scared. So he looks for some person he can send in there to stop you.

Next time someone hurts you, don't let yourself get sidetracked into fighting them. Bind the spirit behind them. Put flesh and blood battles behind and war with the weapons of the Spirit. Zero in on Satan with authority and the Word of God and bring your real enemy down!

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 6:10-18

Adam n Eve's sin

 We all know Eve was lured by the serpent/satan in the garden of Eden. He tempted her, she gave in n sinned.

  Satan is still at work till date. Experiencing a temptation is not sin but giving into it, is. What could Eve had done or what can we do today when confronted with temptations ???
 

• Pray for strength to resist
• Run, sometimes literally, and
• Say NO when confronted with something we know is wrong.

  James 1: 12 tells of the blessings and rewards for those who don't sin when tempted.

God loves you

 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life" [John 3:16].

The Bible tells us God commended His love to us and that "while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" [Romans 5:8].

The Bible tells us that because God is love, He created man. Why did God create us in the first place? He put us here and He created us because He is love and He wanted to have an object to love; and so He created the human race. We were perfect, and we had fellowship with God. Adam and Eve walked with God in the cool of the day. They were friends. God and man were friends. They walked together, they talked together, they planned together. But then one day something happened, because when God created you, He gave you the ability to choose between right and wrong. He gave you the ability to choose whether you would follow God and serve God, or whether you would live your own life and build your own life apart from God. When man came to that great decisive moment in his life, he turned away from God and decided that he could build his own life without God. And he broke his covenant with God; he broke his relationship with God; he sinned against God. [See Genesis 2,3.]

And that's the reason we have war today. That's the reason we have racial tension today. That's the reason we have all these problems in the world today. It is because the hearts of men are sinful. We are away from God. And that's the reason you have the problems in your personal life that you can't solve. That's the reason there are things within your own heart that you don't understand.

God, looking down from heaven one day, saw this earth in its turmoil and strife and sinfulness, saw us in our lost condition, saw us in our sins. And the Bible says that God said, "I love you. I love you. I love you. I want to save you."

God's people can change d world

 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

– 2 Chronicles 7:14

You may be thinking, "Can a few people like us actually change the whole nation?"

Let me ask you this: Can one demonic person change a nation for the worse? Definitely. Hitler did it in Germany, didn't he?

If the devil's power resting on a man can change a nation for the worse, you can be sure that a group of men and women with God's power resting on them can change a nation for the better.

No nation is so far gone that God can't change it. Israel proved that. Why, even when it didn't exist, the devil couldn't destroy it. God raised it back up before His very eyes.

I want you to notice something in that scripture. It says, "If MY people, which are called by MY name...." God didn't say it would take everybody in the nation to get things turned around. He said, "If MY people...."

Notice also that He didn't say, "If my people will get out there and sign petitions and drum up a majority vote...." He said, "Pray." In other words, we're going to have to quit trying to work this thing out by ourselves. God Himself will do the healing in this land. Our job is to pray, to believe and to seek His face. Seek Him today.

Scripture Reading: 2 Chronicles 7:1-16

HE opened the way

 In the beginning [before all time] was the Word [Christ], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself.... And the Word [Christ] became flesh (human, incarnate) and tabernacled --fixed His tent of flesh, lived awhile--among us....

– John 1:1,14

The deity of the Lord Jesus Christ is something that can never be brought into question by any born again believer. Our very salvation rests on the fact that Jesus Christ is divine, the second person of the Godhead, God--the Son.

The beloved disciple and apostle, John, forever puts to rest any doubt about that in John 1:1,14. Anyone who doubts what those verses say could not possibly have been born of the kingdom of God. For the deity of Jesus forms the very foundation of our faith in Him.

Yet, if you'll search the Gospels, you'll see that Jesus didn't go around proclaiming Himself as God during His 33 years on earth. He acknowledged that He was the Son of God, the Messiah. He referred to God as His Father (which enraged the Pharisees), but He never made the assertion that He was the most high God. In fact, He told His disciples that the Father God was greater and mightier than He (John 14:28).

The reason is simple. He hadn't come to earth just as God. He'd come also as man. The Word says He set aside His divine power and took the form of a human being--with all its limitations. Since God was His Father, He was not born with the sin nature that had been passed along to the sons of Adam. But by being born of a woman, in all other respects He became a man and called Himself the Son of Man or, literally, the Son of Adam.

How, then, did He do all those mighty works? The same way He expects us to do them today--by the anointing and the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38). He said, "It's the Father within Me who does the work."

What does that mean to you? It means that Jesus meant exactly what He said when He said that you, as a believer, would be able to do the works that He did! (John 14:12).

It means that you, as a reborn child of God, filled with the same Holy Spirit as Jesus was, have the opportunity to live as He lived when He was on earth.

In fact, that is exactly what He intends. He went before you, as a man, and opened the way. Don't just admire Him for it. Follow Him in it today!

Scripture Reading: John 14:1-15

 There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.
–Proverbs 18:24

How many lonely people there are today! God did not create man to live in miserable inner loneliness. In that first Eden, God Himself came down to keep the man He had made from being lonely.

One of the most heartening things Jesus said to His disciples was, “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20). He came to restore fellowship between man and God, and to take away human loneliness. Jesus Christ will take away loneliness from your soul. He will be your companion and friend.

PRAYER FOR THE DAY

You want to fill all the lonely moments, Lord, and turn them into times of incredible delight. May I never fear loneliness again.

Power of God's love

 But faith...worketh by love.

– Galatians 5:6

I used to wonder why we believers didn't see more of the power of God operating among us than we do. With what we know about faith and the Word, it seemed to me signs and wonders and miracles should be happening all the time.

So, one day I asked, "Lord, why isn't the power of God turned up to a higher volume in the Church?"

Do you know what He said? He told me we weren't walking in enough love yet.

God wants us to have power. But first, He has to be sure we'll use that power in love. He wants to know that we won't take it and mix it with judgment and criticism and blast people out of the water.

"Kenneth," He said, "I can't afford to back your words with supernatural power in a church service on Sunday morning and then have you get on the freeway that night and lash out at someone because he pulled over into your lane. You'd blow him off the highway. I can't leave the power of Almighty God at a high volume in the mouth of an unmerciful fool."

Then He reminded me of a time I took my son, John, hunting. He was just a little guy at the time, barely big enough to keep his gun from knocking him on his back every time he'd pull the trigger. I was teaching him how to shoot, and he was coming along pretty well.

That day we were walking along out at Gloria's grandparents' farm and John spotted one of the biggest tarantula spiders I'd ever seen. It was clinging to the wall of the barn. When John saw that spider, he took aim. He was going to blow that bug away.

If I hadn't stopped him, he would have too. And it wouldn't have dawned on him until it was all over that he was going to blow a hole in the barn at the same time. From my grown-up perspective, I could see that would be foolishness. He couldn't. He was looking through the eyes of a child.

Do you want God to put a shotgun of spiritual power in your hand, so you can blow the works of the devil to kingdom come? Then focus on love. Pursue it. Practice it. Study it. Grow up in it. Then you'll see the power of God operating through you.

Scripture Reading: Romans 13:8-14

Genuine love

. . . being knit together in love . . .
–Colossians 2:2

 Thousands of young couples go through with a loveless marriage because no one ever told them what genuine love is. I believe we need to read the 13th chapter of First Corinthians, in which the Apostle Paul gives us a definition of love. He says, “Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” If people today knew that kind of love, the divorce rate would be sharply reduced.


Lord Jesus, we need Your love and forgiveness in our hearts, if we are to love unselfishly.

Enjoy the victory

 But thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory-making us conquerors--through our Lord Jesus Christ.

– 1 Corinthians 15:57

Victors! More than conquerors! That's what the Bible says we are. I know you've heard that many times before, but today I want you to let the reality of it really sink in. I want you to spend some time meditating about what those terms actually mean.

The dictionary says that victory means "final and complete supremacy or superiority in battle or war, success in any contest or struggling involving the defeat of an opponent or the overcoming of obstacles."

To conquer means "to get the better of in competition or struggle, to master, suppress, prevail over, overwhelm, surmount, to gain superiority, to subdue, to vanquish, to crush, to defeat."

Once you get those definitions firmly in mind, you'll realize in Jesus you've gotten much more than a ticket to heaven. You've gotten the best of the world you're living in now. Through Him, you've overcome it, mastered it, suppressed it and prevailed over it.

No wonder 1 Corinthians 15:57 shouts, "Thanks be to God! Because He gives us the victory, making us conquerors through our Lord Jesus Christ!"

Why don't you shout too! Shout thanks to God today for making you an overcomer. Praise Him that you are joined up with the One Who has conquered the world, the flesh and the devil. Shout hallelujah and enjoy the victory!

Scripture Reading: Romans 8:29-39

What God wants

 Remember that we all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. But God is merciful. Live every day to honor him. Strive for perfection though you are only human and will never attain it. But it is those daily actions you take that will impress the Father so He can welcome you into His grace.

God's ministry

 Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs." (John 21:15 NRSV Bible)

---

A man went to see the doctor for his annual physical exam. When he came home later that afternoon, his wife asked him, "What did the doctor say?" He answered in a gruff voice, "He told me that if I want to stay healthy, I have to eat what I don't want, drink what I don't like, and do what I'd rather not do!"Jesus tried to get the disciples to do the same thing. The disciples are sitting around a charcoal fire now. The disciples recognize their risen Lord, but still they are disconcerted by the recent chain of events. While they are lost in their thoughts the resurrected Christ takes some bread and breaks it and gives it to them. Then also the fish. Then he turns to Simon Peter and asks one of the most famous questions in the Scripture, "Simon Peter, do you love me?" Three times Christ asks Simon Peter this question--once for each time Peter denied him. "Lord, you know I love you," Peter replies. And after each reply, Jesus instructs Simon Peter to feed his lambs and then his sheep. This is Christ's way of focusing Simon Peter on his real mission in the world.
Go with me back to those earliest days when Jesus first recruited Andrew and Simon. He said he would make them fishers of men. Now he is challenging them to continue that journey on which they first embarked. Not that their prior lives as fishermen were unimportant, but from here on they would have a different kind of calling. Christ was asking them to forget themselves and to center their lives in ministry to others. That is a challenge that Jesus is still offering his disciples today.

---

Dear God, teach me to center my life on your ministry. In Jesus name, Amen.

Billy Graham n Oprah

 Last year I watched Billy Graham being interviewed by Oprah Winfrey on television. Oprah told him that in her childhood home, she use to watch him preach on a little black and white TV while sitting on a linoleum floor. 


She went on to the tell viewers that in his lifetime Billy has preached to twenty-million people around the world, not to mention the countless numbers who have heard him whenever his crusades are broadcast. When she asked if he got nervous before facing a crowd, Billy replied humbly, "No, I don't get nervous before crowds, but I did today before I was going to meet with you."


Oprah's show is broadcast to twenty-million people every day. She is comfortable with famous stars and celebrities but seemed in awe of Dr. Billy Graham.


When the interview ended, she told the audience, "You don't often see this on my show, but we're going to pray." Then she asked Billy to close in prayer. The camera panned the studio audience as they bowed their heads and closed their eyes just like in one of his crusades.


Oprah sang the first line from the song that is his hallmark "Just as I am, without a plea," misreading the line and singing off key, but her voice was full of emotion and almost cracked.


When Billy stood up after the show, instead of hugging her guest, Oprah's usual custom, she went over and just nestled against him. Billy wrapped his arm around her and pulled her under his shoulder. She stood in his fatherly embrace with a look of sheer contentment.


I once read the book "Nestle, Don't Wrestle" by Corrie Ten Boom. The power of nestling was evident on the TV screen that day. Billy Graham was not the least bit condemning, distant, nor hesitant to embrace a public personality who may not fit the evangelistic mold. His grace and courage are sometimes stunning.


In an interview with Hugh Downs, on the 20/20 program, the subject turned to homosexuality. Hugh looked directly at Billy and said, "If you had a homosexual child, would you love him?" Billy didn't miss a beat. He replied with sincerity and gentleness, "Why, I would love that one even more."


The title of Billy's autobiography, "Just As I Am," says it all. His life goes before him speaking as eloquently as that charming southern drawl for which he is known.


If, when I am eighty years old, my autobiography were to be titled "Just As I Am," I wonder how I would live now? Do I have the courage to be me? I'll never be a Billy Graham, the elegant man who draws people to the Lord through a simple one-point message, but I hope to be a person who is real and compassionate and who might draw people to nestle within God's embrace.


Do you make it a point to speak to a visitor or person who shows up alone at church, buy a hamburger for a homeless man, call your mother on Sunday afternoons, pick daisies with a little girl, or take a fatherless boy to a baseball game?


Did anyone ever tell you how beautiful you look when you're looking for what's beautiful in someone else?


Billy complimented Oprah when asked what he was most thankful for; he said, "Salvation given to us in Jesus Christ" then added, "and the way you have made people all over this country aware of the power of being grateful."


When asked his secret of love, being married fifty-four years to the same person, he said, "Ruth and I are happily incompatible."


How unexpected. We would all live more comfortably with everybody around us if we would find the strength in being grateful and happily incompatible.


Let's take the things that set us apart, that make us different, that cause us to disagree, and make them an occasion to compliment each other and be thankful for each other. Let us be big enough to be smaller than our neighbor, spouse, friends, and strangers.


Every day, may we Nestle, not Wrestle!

Don't depend on guesswork

 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

– Jeremiah 33:3

Who do you turn to when you need help, when you need an important answer to an important question? Do you ask God first?

So many believers fail to do that. They'll stand around wringing their hands and talking to each other all day. They'll inquire of their pastor. They'll inquire of their friends. They'll inquire of their husbands or wives. But do they inquire of God? No.

Don't make that mistake.

Instead, follow the example of King David. In 1 Chronicles 14, the Bible tells us he was about to face a battle with the very powerful Philistines who had ALL come out against him. The Philistine nation had been an enemy of Israel for years. David probably could have guessed that God would tell him to go to battle against them. But he didn't guess! He went to God and inquired, saying, "Shall I go up against the Philistines? And wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the Lord said unto him, Go up; for I will deliver them into thine hand."

Don't depend on guesswork. When you encounter a problem, seek the Lord through the Word and in prayer and ask Him what the solution is. No matter how much scripture you learn, no matter how fully you perceive who you are in Christ Jesus, you'll never outgrow your need to do that.

Go to the Lord and find out exactly what He wants you to do. Don't decide your course of action and then ask God to bless your plans. Go to Him and say, "Lord, what are Your plans?" His plans are already blessed. If you follow them, your victory is guaranteed.

Scripture Reading: 1 Chronicles 14:8-17