Decisions Critically Made In A crisis! 


Abigail knew her husband, didn't she?

Who was Abigail: A woman of beauty, intelligence.
Is also “a woman of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance.” In her, winsomeness and wisdom were wed. She had brains as well as beauty. Today, many women try to cultivate beauty and neglect their brains. A lovely face hides an empty mind. But with Abigail, loveliness and intelligence went hand in hand, with her intelligence emphasizing her physical attractiveness. A beautiful woman with a beautiful mind as she had is surely one of God’s masterpieces.

Added to her charm and wisdom was that of piety. She knew God, and although she lived in such an unhappy home, she remained a saint. Her own soul, like that of David, was “bound in the bundle of life with the Lord God.” Writing of Abigail as “A Woman of Tact”

Everyone knew what he was like, so why hide it? Why try to cover up what he had done? She didn't. And yet she took the responsibility upon herself. "When you sent those ten men and they had that interaction with my husband, I wasn't there to give another kind of response. But I'm here now as an advocate. I'd like to stand as a mediator between this man and all of your men who have been unjustly treated."

What faith she had. She says, "David, as I look at you, I'm looking at the next king. Don't ruin your record with a murder. You're bigger than that. You have been wronged, but murder isn't the answer. Wait! Wait, David. Take what I've provided and turn around and go back."

What a speech! What a plea! When you're faced with critical decisions, sometimes you have to do something very creative. Apart from the Bible, there's no handbook that tells you what to do when those times come.

Often when we are faced with a crisis, the standard, garden-variety answer is to sort of tuck your tail between your legs, run into a corner, and let cobwebs form on you. But there is a better way. As long as you have breath in your lungs, you have a purpose for living. You have a reason to exist. No matter how bad that track record might have been, marked by disobedience and compromise through much of your life, you're alive, you're existing. And God says, "There's a reason. And I'm willing to do creative things through you to put you back on your feet. You can lick your wounds if that's your choice. But there's a better way." It will take creativity, it will take determination, it will take constant eyes on the Lord. But when He pulls it off, it's marvelous.

Anchor For The Soul


Our Savior has gone through life, has taken all of life's beatings and buffering's, and He has gone before us. And now? Now He pulls us toward Himself! He invites His followers within the curtain.
He says, "Come in. Find here the rest that you need, the relief from the burdens and the buffering's of doubt."


Hebrews (6:19-20)
We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

Jesus is our anchor of stability, He holds firm when our navigation system fails. It's easy to lose our bearings in the storm. We can't find our way through the circumstances we face at times. Life rolls along fairly smoothly until suddenly the seas grow rough, and the winds blow strong. They were not in the forecast In Luke's words, All hope of our being saved" is abandoned. Those are treacherous moments when we reach the point of abandoning hope. At that difficult, gut-wrenching moment, God says, "Don't be "afraid, I have a plan People facing intense adversity find it difficult to focus on anything other than the towering waves and stinging ,winds. Paul firmly announces Be of good cheer  we've heard from the Lord that none ,will be lost We find stability in storms .through what God has said our tendency will be to turn to another source for strength rather than the Word of God ! The only anchor of stability that will hold us firm, no matter how intense the gale-force winds, is God's written Word.

The  seasoned hand of Isaiah: "But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel, 'Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! When you pass through ;the waters, I will be with you and through the rivers, they will not overflow you", Isaiah (2-43:1). What encouraging words! "Do not fear, I have called you by !name." What a great thought Isaiah was not writing of literal waters or actual rivers. His figure of speech emphasized encroaching circumstances that threatened the stability of one's faith. When the waters rise to dangerous depths, when difficulties reach maximum proportion, when our ship seems to be disintegrating board by board and starting to, sink by life's inevitable storms God is faithful. He promises, "I will be with you." He is our anchor.

Regardless whether or not we have an elevated authoritative position, with high degrees and endless list of achievements, we must remain real! Putting all ideas aside that we deserve some kind of acknowledgment and a pat on the back, for a job well done. For if we do all job's as onto God himself understand He has an infinite number of ways to reward us. It's when we do a job to impress others, that we often unknowingly are striving for self glorification.

The Potter's Plan

In the same way that this potter works his clay, I work on you.' 

Jeremiah (18:6).

In the good times it's easy to see that we're making progress, but in the tough times we are prone to feel like we're not making any progress at all. We react to pain, loss and adversity by consulting our feelings instead of God's faithfulness. Please understand this: at all times you are securely in God's hands! 'as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand. 

You're a work in progress and the crucial thing isn't your circumstances or feelings, but the Potter's commitment to finish what He began. 'He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ', Philippians (1:6). 

Here are two things you must remember while you're spinning on the Potter's wheel: 

1) The Potter has the right to mould you as He sees fit. Nothing can prevent Him from making you into what He wants you to become. He is an expert at turning lumps of clay into objects of value and usefulness. 'Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the 'lump to make one vessel for honour?' Romans (9:21). Your job is to stay on the wheel and let God make you into what He desires you to be. 

2) The Potter has an individual plan for each lump of clay. The Potter, not the clay, determines the end-product in the same way that the Holy Spirit determines your place and role in the Body of Christ, 1 Corinthians (12:18). So discover the Potter's plan and submit to Him!

Love

1 John (4:7-12)

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

If we are going to be like Him, these verses are important to us because they tell us much about Him and our responsibilities. First, love is of God He is its Source. This love the apostles write about comes from God and is not normally a part of man's nature. It is agape love. Human love apart from God is at its best a mere pale and vague reflection of what God is eternally.

Next, John says "God is love." Sublime as this is, some have misunderstood it because it can be misleading. God is not just an abstraction like love. He is a living, dynamic, and powerful Being whose personality has multiple facets. He cannot be boxed, wrapped, and presented as merely being one attribute.

John's statement literally reads, "The God is love." The Greeks used an emphatic form of writing, and here the emphasis is on the word "God." The syntax means the two words "God" and "love" are not interchangeable. "Love" describes God's nature. A good paraphrase would read, "God, as to His nature, is love." God is a loving God!

This does not mean that loving is one of God's activities, but that every activity of God is loving. If He creates, He creates in love. If He rules, He rules in love. If He judges, He judges in love. Everything He does expresses His nature. God and His nature are manifested by what He does. By love God is revealed and known.

The very existence of life in others besides Himself is an act of love. His love is revealed in His providence and care of His creation. Since we are not robots, free-moral agency is an act of His love. God, by a deliberate act of self-limitation, endowed us to respond with mind and emotion. We are not animals. God's love is the explanation for redemption and our hope of eternal life. Out of love, God has given us something to live for. Life is not just a matter of going through the paces. We do not live our lives in vain.

God made humanity in His image and likeness, Genesis (1:26). But the Bible says, "God is Spirit," and "God is love." Man, though, is flesh, and the Bible describes us as carnal, self-centered, and deceitful. In practical fact, this means that man cannot be what he is meant to be until he loves as God loves. Only then will he truly be in the image of God because he will have the same nature as God. So, to achieve his potential, a person must love, but he must love with the love of God.

Grit & Integrity 


The gospel's sure promise of an endless life in glory in the Kingdom of God as the Father's spirit-composed children and Jesus Christ's brothers and companions seems so appealing and captivating that one wonders why we would need more motivation than the anticipation of its fulfillment. History and even our own reflections on our personal experiences prove that we need additional stimulation.

The Israelites' forty-year trek through the wilderness after their release from Egyptian slavery also provides a persuasive record. Of the over two million or so Israelites age twenty and above who left Egypt, only two men, Joshua and Caleb, are named as entering into the Promised Land! The Israelites were burying the bodies of those who failed until the time they crossed the Jordan River. Hebrews (4:1-2) admonishes us not to fall into the same manner of living.

The struggle to achieve some noteworthy goal is a popular theme for many inspirational biographies, novels, articles, and movies. In the late 1800s, Horatio Alger became famous by authoring a string of "rags to riches" stories that featured characters who, through pluck, grit, ingenuity, and seemingly tireless energy, overcame multitudes of problems to achieve success in the end. The characters in his stories never resorted to deceit or thievery, even though they confronted such vices. They always made their way in a righteous manner. Many inspired readers used them as role models for what they hoped to achieve. Not much has changed in the intervening time. People still find hope and inspiration in hearing the success stories of others, especially if they are dealing with true-to-life issues. One can buy "success" manuals in virtually any bookstore. Lecture circuits teem with those who are willing to sell their formulas to those who want to hear their testimonies.

Obviously, motivation is a very common human problem, one that the Bible also addresses. The Bible contains many passages intended to prod us to keep moving in the proper direction. Nevertheless, the condition posed earlier remains unresolved. If what God offers is so awesome, why do we need to be prodded with exhortation, encouragement, and correction?

It is because God has demanded that we live by faith (Hebrews 10:38-39). Thus, the "out of sight, out of mind" principle provides an almost constant resistance, testing whether we have a proper and purposeful direction to our life.

It is also because human nature is so attracted to the cultures it has created that it loves them almost desperately. Sometimes it is only with great difficulty that one can turn from them I John (2:15-16). Even though we know intellectually that these cultures are evil, we are attracted to them and diverted away from the path of godly success, Galatians (1:4).

Moreover, the unseen spirit world lures us through lying persuasions away from the right goal, Ephesians (6:10-12). Sometimes we need motivation because of traits such as apathy and procrastination that dwell to some degree in all of us (Hebrews 2:1-3; 12:12-13). Sometimes our pride self-righteously and presumptuously persuades us into thinking that we already have it made Revelation (3:16-18).

Overall, a great many factors work against us. When we seriously consider the example of the extremely high failure rate of the Israelites in the wilderness, it may seem as though far more of these factors work against us than work to insure our success. The Israelites, however, operated with little faith. In addition, the Scriptures indicate that God gave very few of them His Holy Spirit, and therefore the love of God was not working in them. God gives His Spirit to those who obey Him Acts (5:32), and the record of the Israelites is one of almost constant disobedience.

Since Jesus Christ was not in them, they did not have the faith of Christ, but our God is able to "supply all [our] need according to His riches in glory by Jesus Christ" Philippians (4:19). The reality is that we have far more working in our behalf than they. We have no valid reason to fail.

Meeting With Others

What a calling! What an impact! What a legacy! 'The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him 'God is looking for people who will partner with Him in fulfilling His purposes on earth. But to qualify: You must be willing to stand out from the crowd. Noah believed in his vision when nobody else did. Difference-makers are different. Don't let that bother you. You must not be afraid to do something for the first time. Don't let the words, 'It's never been done before' keep you from obeying God. People probably told Noah, 'It's not raining. Who needs a boat?' But they were wrong and Noah was right. You must endure the rain in order to see the rainbow. So take your stand and believe God, for what He's promised He will perform Jeremiah (1:12).

Now, don't jump to the conclusion that I'm questioning the value of meeting together. Some of the most helpful and meaningful times in my life have taken place in a gathering of believers. But when I review our Lord's style of instruction, I cannot help but see how different it was from ours. He never suggested that the Twelve write anything down or repeat His words verbatim. And when He did exhort them, He used simple words, vivid illustrations, everyday examples, and easily understood applications prompting them to action.

Words. Words. Words. We have become "too wordy" in our faith, which explains our excessive interest in meetings. When did we get the idea that more information leads to deeper consecration?

Jesus' arch enemies, the Pharisees, were great on loud, dogmatic commands, lengthy requirements, and drawn-out demands. Oh how they loved the sound of their own words! But when it came to doing, they struck out.

James exhorts us to be "doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves". James (1:22). In other words, don't talk compassion; lend a hand. Don't pound a pulpit about generosity; give. Just do it.

We won't be met at the portals of heaven by some angel with a clipboard who asks, "And how many meetings did you attend in your lifetime on earth?" But while we're on earth, there is a question we do need to answer: "Why call ye Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not the things which I say?"

What do you think would happen if, instead of going to some meeting or conference, you spent that time alone with the Father?

One reason is that we have a hard time loving others without condition. We might say the words "I love you" to our spouse, children, friends, co-workers, or fellow believers but all too often are calculating in our mind whether or not they've lived up to our standard. We sometimes excuse ourselves from loving certain people because their behavior upsets or annoys us. The fact that we place restrictions on extending favor causes us to wrongly assume that the Lord does likewise.

Another reason is poor self-image. Considering ourselves unworthy, we refuse to accept God's love. You know what? None of us are worthy of the heavenly Father's goodness and mercy'  so you can let go of that excuse once and for all. We're not coming to Him based on our worth. Rather, we're coming to Him based on His grace, and our position is secure in Christ. To put yourself down as "beneath His grace" is to trample on His loving, generous gift. God arranged an awesome divine way for us to be reconciled to Him, and His greatest desire is for relationship with each of us.

Strengthen Your Faith!

Colossians (2:6-10)

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.


In verse 8, the word translated as "basic principles of the world" refers to elementary things. Compared to Christ, in terms of being, every other being is lesser because he or she is created. In terms of teaching, every other instruction is elementary, basic, even demonic. In terms of salvation, no other is able to save human beings.

In verses 9-10, Paul again emphasizes Christ's primacy and superiority, including the facts that He is divine and over demons in authority. He also adds in verses 11-15 that, for Christians, Jesus has already defeated the principalities and powers, along with their purposes, through their conversion.

As Colossians (1:16) states, Christ's rank extends back to the very beginning, as the One used to create all things. Thus, He is the God, John (1:1) referred to in nearly every place in the Old Testament where God is mentioned. This is especially important to grasp.

John (14:10) aids us in understanding His operations as a man: "Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works." Matthew (26:52-53) clarifies this through an example: "But Jesus said to him, 'Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels?'"

While He was human, His power as a God-Being was suspended as part of His emptying Himself to become a man, Philippians (2:5-8). He thus operated on the same level as all other men, except for the innate power He possessed due to His divine nature, enabling Him to live by faith sinlessly. Better than all other men, He understood the purpose God is working out, and He believed it. Notice to whom He said He could turn in time of need. Jesus!"