Advent Alphabet - "B" - "But"

December 1, 2015 But God proves His own love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). “But” is a strange word to use for Advent. But if it weren’t for the intervention of God into this world to provide a way of healing and salvation in the hearts of men and women, we would all be lost and doomed for a life of meaninglessness and even misery here on this earth and an eternity in torment without Him. So, I am forever thankful that but for God’s intervention into our lives on a dark night over two thousand years ago, all by means of a small baby in Bethlehem, Jesus, we would still be people without hope. Webster’s definition of but is, “except that.” Jesus is the “exception” in our lives that but for the fact that if Jesus had not left the glories of heaven and come as a baby, and for love for us He lived and died; except for that fact we would be lost eternally. “But God shows and clearly proves His own love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ, the Messiah, died for us” (Romans 5:8). By our rebellion and life style we earn all that sin pays – “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”(Romans 6:23). This gift is available just for believing and asking. But God – so rich is He in his mercy! Because of His great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us, even when we were dead by our own shortcomings, He made us alive together in union with Christ and gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same life with which He made Christ alive, for it is by God’s unmerited favor, which we did not deserve, that we are saved and made partakers of Christ’s salvation. And He gave us joint seating with Him in the heavenly sphere (by virtue of us being in Christ Jesus). He did this that He might clearly demonstrate through the ages to come the immeasurable riches of His free grace in his kindness and goodness of heart toward us in Christ Jesus. For it is by His unmerited favor that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through your faith. And this salvation is not of yourselves of your own doing, it came not through your own striving, but it is the gift of God; not because of works, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:4-9). I am sooooo glad for the “but God(s)” in His Word. I am glad for God’s plan which was to intervene in our “lostness” with a small baby in a manger so long ago! (Scripture texts are from the Amplified Bible).

Advent Alphabet - "E" - "Everlasting"

Before the mountains were brought forth or ever You had formed and given birth to the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting You are God (Ps.90:2 Amp.). Everlasting is a long time!! We cannot imagine that there is not ever an end to something, but God is unfathomably everlasting! It is even part of His name – “Everlasting Father.” (Isaiah 9:6). Webster defines this attribute simply as, “lasting forever.” When Jesus came to earth and took on the guise of a human baby who was finite, but His Spirit remained everlasting. If we trust him as Savior He has promised us this same everlasting life, because His Everlasting Spirit lives within us. All of Jesus’ attributes are everlasting, He cannot change (Mal.3:6). As He was, so He is, and so He will be forever! He has everlasting arms (Duet.33:27). His loving kindness, mercy, faithfulness and truth are everlasting (Ps.100:5). His righteousness (rightness) is an everlasting righteousness (Ps.119:142). He is forever almighty and all sufficient (Gen.28:3). He is forever just (Isa.45:21; Acts 3:14). He is forever the God of forgiveness (Ps.99:8; 86:5). He is forever our shepherd, guide, provider, protector, friend, deliverer (Ps.23); and He is forever the God who is there (Jer.42:11). His covenants and promises are everlasting: The rainbow (Gen.9:8-17); Abraham & descendants, (Gen.16:7-8); His Word, the Truth, and testimonies are everlasting (Ps.100:5;119:144); His kingdom is everlasting (Daniel 7:27); His strength is everlasting (Isaiah 26:4); He has promised everlasting life to all who believe and trust in Him (John.3:16); everlasting consolation (II Thess.2:16); and His gospel is everlasting (Rev.14:6). Jesus came over two thousand years ago to give us everlasting life. So who wouldn’t want that?

"A" - "Amnesty "

Our entire nation is aware of the illegal-alien travesty. There are many varying opinions causing many questions, and some think they have the perfect answer – amnesty. These illegal aliens have broken the law and deserve punishment (whatever the law decides is right and fair). The word amnesty means, “pardon.” Should these criminals be pardoned? When Jesus came into the world it was as a tiny innocent baby. His purpose in coming to earth was to ultimately “pardon” all who would come believing and trusting in His shed blood, which He would gladly give – “whosoever will” (John 3:16). This act of unfathomable love was a free gift to humanity, no strings attached, simply by receiving it. Not having to work to be good enough; not having to keep score of all the good works we might do; but simply to just receive this so great pardon – for which it has already been paid. Amnesty is a wonderful word to that one who is destined to die without a pardon. Could Jesus as this tiny baby could have known His destiny as “The Savior of the world?” Could He have known that He was “the gift” of amnesty to all mankind (if only they would believe)? I am sure in that baby’s mind was only the need for food from His mother, clothing and shelter, which His earthy father provided, a crude stable with a manger, which probably still had straw in it where the cattle had been eating. Without hesitation this Mighty God chose to come from the grandeur of heaven to enter into a defenseless baby to give Himself as an “Amnesty gift.” He saw that we were rebellious sinners that needed the pardon that only He could give. When we accept this gracious gift we become children of God and bona fide citizens of heaven. We can go boldly right to the throne of God presenting our petitions for pardon, guidance, protection or any need we may have, all because we have accepted this amnesty so freely offered, and Jesus Christ Himself will be our Advocate to plead for our pardon. Thank You, Jesus, for coming to offer us “AMNESTY,” and we can be genuine citizens eternally, because we have been born-again into the family of God!

Old Truths From An Old Sage

For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise. (Hebrews 10:36) No matter how old we are or how long we have been in “the race,” we are still in the race until we take our last breath, rejoicing on the way and being thankful for every bump, hole and brier that would slow us down and trip us. But, remember, that only as we keep our eyes on Jesus, Who is the “author and finisher” of our faith, can we stay on course and steadfastly run focused on Jesus (Who is the prize, the One toward Whom we are running and reaching out to lay hold). He is the “wind beneath our wings.” He is our Reason for existing, our Reason for running this race. The longer we know Him, the sweeter He grows! If we don’t have this love for Jesus; this longing to become more like Him; this desire to reach out to lay hold on Him, the One Who laid hold of us, and laid up for us this eternal life for which we were summoned, for which we confessed the good confession of faith (I Timothy 6:12), we have slowed our pace and turned from the race to other things. If education, job, career, relationships, or anything other than Jesus that is in first place, that is an idolatrous god. We must choose to endure. Endurance is stamina. It’s the ability and determination to keep going the distance. David Jeremiah says, “Christianity isn’t a spectator faith. It’s a marathon on the straight and narrow road, through ups and downs, over hills and valleys, until we reach Home.” Therefore….since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. (Hebrews 12:1) If our longings are to be like the world around us, however “cool,” or immoral, or “hip,” we have deserted our “first love,” Jesus (read Rev.2:2-5). We are to “be in the world but not of the world.” We are to dedicate all our member and faculties as a living sacrifice (devoted & consecrated) to God, which is pleasing to Him. We are not to be conformed (from outside in) to this world (fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs), but be transformed (from inside out) and changed by the entire renewing of our mind (by its new ideals and its new attitude), so that we may prove for ourselves what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:1-2 Amp.). If we want to get back “on track, we must ask ourselves some hard questions: (1) Does the way I dress glorify Jesus? Is it modest, or does it look like the way the “world” dresses – like a “street walker?” Would you be pleased to go out with a young man/woman who dresses like you do? (2) Do the places I go please Jesus? Would we be pleased to ask Him to go with us? Do the people and the atmosphere at this place draw us closer in your devotion to God? I John 2:15 tells us to “not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him.” (3) Are we daily submitting our bodies to God (Romans 12:1), & our mind, will and emotions – our all. This means do we go where He wants us to go; do we say what He wants us to say; do we do those things He wants us to do, when He wants us to do them, and how He wants them done. (4) Are we daily inviting the Holy Spirit to cleanse us from all sin, and fill us with Himself (Eph.5:1). His Holy Spirit can empower us to live above the world. Run the straight race through God’s good grace, Lift up your eyes and seek His face. Life with its ways before us lies, Christ is the path, and Christ the prize. (John S. B. Monsell)

Waiting On The Lord - The Reactive Factor

They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. They shall rise up on wings as eagles. (Isaiah 40:31) In chemistry class when you take one chemical and add a reactive chemical you get a compound that usually has a very strong reaction, sometimes an explosive reaction. The new mixture can perform in ways that just one chemical alone could never perform. The same principle used in this analogy can be used, and is certainly true spiritually. In the Isaiah 40:31 scripture the “reactive” element is “waiting on the Lord.” I don’t know anyone who likes to wait, whether it is in a grocery line, in a doctor’s office or to get tickets for a bus or train. Waiting is the antithesis for instant gratification of anything. We live in an instant society. Waiting should lend credence to gaining patience and many desirable Christian character qualities spoken of in II Peter, 1:5-8, begin with “waiting on the Lord.” Waiting is the “reactive” element to faith. Waiting causes our faith to grow, as we exercise it in our “waiting.” Waiting causes our faith to grow, as we exercise it in our “waiting.” We come to see and know Who our God is and how He blesses our faith. God possesses great patience. As our knowledge of Him grows we develop patience, and then as our patience develops we develop godliness, and become more like Him Who has all patience. One reason the Lord has great patience toward His children is because He knows we have a fallen nature. We are led to repent when we experience the Father’s patience toward us. He gives us ample time to repent. He wants to help us when we go wrong, and He takes great pleasure in watching us do what is right. As we become more like the Father we develop brotherly kindness and love. God is love, and we as His children grow into being like Him as we wait on Him in love and obedience. The Hebrew word for “wait” in Isaiah 40:31 is “qavah,” which means “to bind together by twisting; to expect; to look patiently.” In the context of this verse (vs.28-30), it is lauding the power, understanding and watchfulness of our everlasting God over our lives. He gives abundant power and strength to the faint and the weak. Even the young shall stumble and fall exhausted but….. the Amplified Bible reads, “But those who wait for the Lord (who expect, look for, and hope in Him) shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up (close to God) as eagles mount up to the sun; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.” As I have meditated on the part of the definition of “wait,” which is “to bind together by twisting,” I see a rope maker who has a thin, weak strand of grass or hemp, but also a large, strong strand which he carefully twists the two together, and by incorporating the weak with the strong he creates one super-strong rope which is able to perform the unthinkable if it were just the weak strand by itself. I see this is analogous with the spiritual life of faith. As weak and frail Christians who can do nothing by ourselves, but when we submit our will to the creator God, and we look patiently, and wait expectantly on Him (His will and His way), He will twist our weak spirit together with His all-powerful Spirit, and then we are able to soar and do incomprehensibly above all we could even imagine. We can run and not be weary, and walk and not faint; and mount up above our circumstances, where we can see the way that the Father would have us go, and the strength in which to go – all because we waited on Him. As I wait on Him I must recognize and acknowledge that the One Who twisted my weak strand into His almighty strand is the One Who is the “wisdom” in my successful plans. He is the “love” in my relationships. He is the “perfect” in my choices. He is the “wind” beneath my wings. He is the “spark” that keeps me going. He is the “fuel” that energizes and propels me to win. He is the “Water of Life” to my dehydrated spirit. He is my ALL IN ALL and “I can do all things through Him Who strengthens me” (Phil.4:13) They that “wait” on the Lord become the head and not the tail; they are above and not beneath; and they can run through a troop and jump over a wall (Duet.28:13; II Samuel 22:30)!! How’s that for a “reactive” combination – twisting my nothingness with His everything = EVERLASTING WEIGHT OF GLORY (II Cor.4:17)!

Prayer Is The Door To Everything

“Let us then fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the throne of grace (the throne of God’s unmerited favor to us sinners), that we may receive mercy for our failures and find grace to help in good time for every need, the appropriate help and well-timed help, coming just when we need it.” (Hebrews 4:16 Amp.) A door is a most interesting invention. It is a swinging or sliding means of access, through a barrier (a wall, a fence, etc.), and can be closed or opened to obtain access to all that is on the other side. It is not only an access to all that is on the other side of the wall, but it a means of security. A door that is locked or barricaded cannot be opened without a key, or removal of the barricade. Prayer is the door to everything! To enter that door we must have the key and/or remove the barricade. The key is having a forgiven and cleansed heart (I Jn.1:9; Prov.15:29; Ps.66:18). The barricade may be doubt that God will hear us, that He can answer or that He cares. I assure you that if our hearts are pure before Him and desire His will, He will hear us. He does care more than we can imagine. And “He certainly is able to carry out His purpose and do super-abundantly , far above all that we dare ask or think (infinitely above our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams” (Eph.3:20 Amp.). Another barricade may be asking selfishly, wanting our own will. His will is perfect and always wants the best, and knows what is best. So, when we come to Him in prayer we must remove the barrier of self-will and yield our will to His will, knowing it will be the best for us. If we do all the above that Door to Everything good (the door to God’s heart) will open to us, we can run through and right into His arms of love! It helps me to know that when I come to the Heavenly Father in prayer that He invites me (us) to come “boldly to His throne of grace (unmerited favor) (Heb.4:16),” for help of any kind. God sees us as His little children and He wants us to come confidently to Him, and crawl up onto His lap, as a little child would his earthly father, and let Him wrap His arms of love around us as we pour out our confessions (I Jn.1:9), our praise & thanksgiving (Ps.100), our heartaches (I Peter 5:7), and our problems and questions (Prov.3:5-6). Then let Him just hold us as He comforts us with His Word. He will forgive all our sins and failures, answer our questions, and direct us in the way we should go – all through prayer and believing His Word (promises). What a mighty, magnanimous God and Father we serve – and He loves us with an everlasting love!

If God is There......(How Big Is Your God?)

If you haven’t discovered it yet, all of life is made up of choices. A lot of things may come into our lives that if we had the choice we would not have chosen to experience them. But, when good or bad things happen we can choose how to accept them. If we remember that all things ultimately come from the hand of God; that He loves us with an everlasting love; that He will cause all things to work out to be good for us who love Him and fit into His purposes (Rom.8:28 & Jer.29:11). So if we know that God is there, we can be thankful for the good and what we think is bad, as it says in II Thess.5:18 and Eph.5:20 – be thankful for and in “all things”. Or we can choose to grumble, feel sorry for ourselves, turn against God, etc. By grumbling we are choosing to be unhappy, resentful and live with a victim mentality. Why should we be unhappy if we know God is there? How big is your god? Is He big enough to keep you in peace when the enemy comes in overwhelming waves of temptations and testings? Are you afraid to die? Or maybe you are afraid to live. Is your god big enough to keep you in life or in death? If you have made Jesus your Savior and your God, and committed your all (yourself, your life, family, friends - everything) to the only One Who can keep you through it all, you don’t have to be afraid. Focus on the One Who loves you and can keep you from falling, and present you blameless to the only God, our Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord (Jude 24-25). Happiness is a choice! Satan starts his deceit in our minds. There is an old saying, “We can’t stop the birds from flying over our heads, but we don’t have to let them build a nest in our hair.” We can choose the things on which we think – “what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely and lovable, kind, winsome, gracious, and worthy of praise – fix your minds on these things (Phil.4:8 Amp.). It is Satan who puts the negative, doubtful, fearful and deceitful thoughts in our mind. After all, he is the one who has come to steal from us, kill us, and destroy us (Jn.10:10). As in the garden (Genesis 3) Satan wants us to think negatively about God – “Did God really say, ‘You shall not eat from every tree of the garden?’” Satan cast doubt on God’s veracity, love, integrity, omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence. He wanted to steal any trust Adam and Eve had in God (El Emunah) – “The One Who is faithful and true.” In Genesis four, in verses four and five, Satan lied and called God a liar, “You shall not surely die, for God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing the difference between good and evil and blessing and calamity” – (partial truth). There is no “Truth” but the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Partial truth is not truth. Satan is still a murderer and a liar and there is no truth in him, “You are of your father, the devil, and it is your will to practice the lusts and gratify the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a falsehood, he speaks what is natural to him, for he is a liar and the father of lies and of all that is false” (Jn.8:44). Refuse to listen to Satan. When he comes to whisper his lies in your ears just speak God’s Word back to him, just as Jesus did in Matthew 4:1-11. So Satan’s modus operandi is to deceive and lie about everything. He destroys our hopes, dreams, trust and faith with his deceit and lies, if we listen to the thoughts he puts in our minds. If we are a child of God we must know that we are in spiritual warfare with our enemy, the devil, who wants to kill us, if not physically, then mentally, by tempting us to think negatively, skeptically and lying thoughts about God, His children and His Word (Gen.3:4-5). God’s Word tells us in II Cor.10:5 to take every thought captive, inasmuch as we refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up again the true knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ.” But if God is there we do not need to vacillate in fighting temptations, but stand for what is right. Remember, “Sow a thought, reap an action; sow an action, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character.” Sowing is a choice, reaping is the results of what we sow, so be careful what you sow – sow righteous thoughts, acts & words. Know that whatever we sow, God is there, and when we reap what we have sown, God is there also. If we sow righteously God is smiling; but if we sow unrighteous words and deeds God is weeping. The world speaks skeptically about God and His Word. They have been deceived to believe in relativism – (A view that knowledge, truth and morality exists in relation to what culture says source and historical context are, and are not absolutes. Ethical truths depend upon the individuals holding them – all points of truth are equally valid.) Actually there is no other “truth” but the Word of God. No religion, cult or belief system is valid but Christianity, which forever proclaims that only belief and trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior is the only way to eternal security with Him. Satan tempts us to believe in subjectivism which is a doctrine that knowledge is merely subjective and there is no external or objective truth, that reality is not a firm absolute but can be altered by consciousness. Individual feeling or apprehension is the ultimate criterion of the good and the right - “If it feels good, do it.” Of course the Word teaches us that God and His Word are absolute. It will not pass away whether you like what it says or not. Your feelings have nothing to do with the validity of God and His Word. Others get deceived into existentialism, which is a philosophy that cannot describe human existence and that stresses the freedoms and responsibilities of individuals to determine their own development through acts of the will. It is the view that humans define their own meaning in life, and try to make rational decisions despite existing in an irrational universe. Actually, God created us to love Him, commune with Him, and walk in His will. Another deception of Satan’s is pantheism. This is the deception that believes that everything in the universe is a manifestation of God. A belief that everything and everyone is God and God is everyone and everything. Satan does not want us to worship God, but God wants us to worship Him only – every other worship is idolatry. Then there is rationalism, which is a belief that opinions and actions should be based on reason and knowledge rather than on religious belief or emotional response. Many believe that God is too good to punish sin, but the truth is God is too good not to punish sin. He is completely holy, righteous, and just. Sin is rebellion against His holiness, righteousness and justice, and is an affront to Who He really is. Because He is absolute in all of His attributes, He must punish any and all that is contrary to His personhood, or He wouldn’t be Jehovah God. There is also another deception of Satan that many have fallen into. It is pragmatism, a philosophy which stresses the truth of the meaning of theories or beliefs in terms of the success of their practical application. It is a philosophical movement that includes those who claim that an ideology or proposition is true if it works satisfactorily, and that unpractical ideas are to be rejected. We try to be practical regarding things in this world, but God is not always practical, but miraculous and supernatural. His thoughts are not our thoughts, neither are His ways our ways (Isaiah 55:8). There is a temptation to embrace another belief system which thinks lightly about God, it is re-incarnation. It teaches “the rebirth of a new soul in a new body.” The Bible opposes this teaching. God created us uniquely and once we die it is for eternity to spend with God or with Satan, depending on our acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Savior Who died for our sins and now rules in our lives as Lord (Master, Sovereign). We can believe in our head that Jesus is the Son of God (even the devil believes (Jas.2:10), but we must submit ourselves to Him and trust Him as Lord, and let Him change our lives. Many have a God-view of a mixture of the above, but whatever deceitful thoughts Satan puts in our minds, and temptations to believe in the wrongful teachings or philosophies that are in the world, Jehovah God is still true and He is there among the trash and confusion. He is wooing us and wants to reveal to us the Truth of Who He is, and His love for us. So, if He is there, (and He is) how do we handle the temptations to “believe a lie” about Him? Did you notice that all the above philosophies are all about self – your opinion, your comfort, your existence, your truth, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life? (I Jn.2:16) God’s Truth is all about Him – His love, joy, peace, sovereignty. To be victorious over the deceit and temptations of Satan, the Devil, we must first have faith in Jesus and become a child of God - to be “born again” (I Jn.5:1-5). Read, believe, meditate on and obey His Word. Next, when temptations come we must submit ourselves to God and resist and stand firm against the Devil (Jas.4:6-7). Live filled with God’s Holy Spirit (Eph.3:16-19), and remember I John 4:4, “Greater is He that lives in you than he that is in the world.” Also, it is very important to read, learn and apply the scriptures so when Satan attacks you with various temptations of the mind or body, you can quote the scriptures back to him, like Jesus did in His temptations (Luke 4:4,8,& 12). In verse four Jesus was tempted with His natural appetites (Duet.8:3). In verse eight, He was tempted with idolatry (anything that you love more, fear more, serve more or spend more time with than God) (Duet.6:13; 10:20). In verse twelve Jesus was tempted to prove His divine power – that He was God (Duet 6:16). Jesus knew Who He was and didn’t have to prove it to Himself or anyone. We can be “satisfied” with who we are in Christ – (a child of God). We do not have to prove anything to ourselves or others, just submit ourselves to God and remind Satan when he puts questions in our minds about our salvation, when we first believed and quote the above scriptures to him. Then he must go, but he will later return with new temptations. He is very persistent – remember, once you become a child of God you enter a battlefield fighting against Satan. But remember the Holy spirit within you that is greater than Satan who is in the world; and remember the scripture, it is our only offensive weapon (Eph.6:12:18). Adrian Roger taught that this world is going to pass away, so we are admonished in I Jn.2:15-17 not to love this world which consists of (1) “lust of the flesh” – doing - putting our will above the will of God; (2) “lust of the flesh” - having – greedy longings of the mind; (3) “Pride of life” - being – trusting in self and the things in this world (independence from God). These three things are sin – “the misuse and abuse of something that is good.” Remember, “The world passes away with all of its passions, but those who do God’s will remain forever” (I Jn.2:17). If God is there (and He is), you do not have to fear, or give into any temptation Satan may bring to your mind. Satan uses doubtful thoughts about God and His love and care for us; and he tempts us to doubt God’s keeping power with a spirit of fear (unnatural fearful thoughts) of what might happen (II Tim.1:7). The Spirit of God brings joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control (Gal.5:22-23). Choose to walk in the Holy Spirit and He will help you overcome the temptations of Satan. The Holy Spirit is our “Comforter” – (Helper, Counselor, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby) (Jn.14:26). Just ask and keep on asking (Luke 11:13). 1. How big is your god? Jehovah God can keep you in peace when you are tempted. If you submit yourself to Him and resist the devil, God will cause Satan to flee from you (James 4:7). If you keep your eyes on Jehovah God He will keep you in perfect peace (Isa.26:3), and when the enemy comes in like a flood (physically, mentally or spiritually) God will give you victory over him (Isa.41:10; 59:19). You must claim God’s promises and make them your own (Ps.27:1; 56:3; Prov.3:5-6; 29:25; Eph.6:12-18). Remember, in the story of David and Goliath David proclaimed, “The battle is the Lord’s” (I Sam.17:45-47). Read the story in II Kings 6, where Elisha and the Israelites were facing insurmountable odds, but Elisha encouraged them with, “Fear not, for those with us are more than those with them.” After Elisha prayed God opened the eyes of his servant to see that the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire surrounding Elisha. Then God miraculously saved them – read it! John E. Brod said it this way, “I shall not fear the battle, if You are by my side, nor wander from the pathway, if You will be my guide.” How big is your god? Is your god big enough to keep you in peace when the enemy (physical or spiritual) comes in like a flood. Like it says in Isaiah 59:19, put your trust in Jehovah Nissi, Who is our Banner of Victory. If God is there who will you choose to love, and serve and who will you resist and turn against – God or Satan? There is no middle ground! How Great Thou Art Stuart K. Hine O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds Thy hands have made, I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy pow’r thru-out the universe displayed! When thru the woods and forest glades I wander, and hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees, When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur, and hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze. And when I think that God, His Son not sparing, sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in. That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take a way my sin! When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation, and take me home, what joy shall fill my heart! Then I shall bow in humble adoration, and there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art! Chorus Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee: How great Thou art, How great Thou art! Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee: How great Thou art, How great Thou art! (My Blog webpage is: http://lightfrommywindow,blogspot.com)