A good friend of mine, Mr. Seabury Oliver, often said, "It's trouble that brings us to Jesus." He knew, because he had experienced many troubles and hardships.
John Newton wrote, "Through many dangers, toils, and snares I have already come; 'tis grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home."
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is sufficient for us in every trouble, toil, and snare. Jesus said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
Paul wrote, "We glory in triubulations also" (Romans 5:3). Why would he say such a thing? He gives the answer in the next line: ". . . knowing that tribulation worketh patience" (Romans 5:3).
Yes, trouble brings us to Jesus and tribulation is a part of life in this world. Though these things are true, we must ever remember these words: "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come. Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:37-39).
It's the amazing grace of Jesus Christ that makes us more than conquerors even when we are in the midst of tribulation, troubles, and snares.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
It's All Love
Love is the core of the Christian life. The truth is that it's all love, from beginning to end, because God is love and love is the most excellent way of life.
Without love, we could not have anything in life that's worthwhile. Years ago, I spoke with a friend of mine who was dying. I asked her, "If you knew this was the last day of your life, what would you do?"
She said, "I'd sit on the couch and hug my two sons."
The cross of Jesus Christ represents love in its fullest expression. Its vertical beam points to the love God has for us and the love we have for Him. The horizontal beam speaks to us of the love we must have for one another.
Yes, it's all love, and the relationships in our lives are the most important part of our lives. Loving God, family, friends, neighbors, and even our enemies is what it's all about.
Here are some good quotes about love:
"Where there is love there is no sin."
"Love can hope where reason would despair" (George, Baron Lyttelton)
"How shall I do to love? Believe. How shall I do to believe? Love" (Robert Leighton).
"Love is the fulfilling of the law" (Romans 13:10).
"Love is strong as death" (Song of Solomon 8:6).
"Love sought is good, but given unsought is better" (William Shakespeare).
"There is a land of the living and a land of the dead, and the bridge is love" (Thornton Wilder).
Let us remember that love is the supreme commandment.
Without love, we could not have anything in life that's worthwhile. Years ago, I spoke with a friend of mine who was dying. I asked her, "If you knew this was the last day of your life, what would you do?"
She said, "I'd sit on the couch and hug my two sons."
The cross of Jesus Christ represents love in its fullest expression. Its vertical beam points to the love God has for us and the love we have for Him. The horizontal beam speaks to us of the love we must have for one another.
Yes, it's all love, and the relationships in our lives are the most important part of our lives. Loving God, family, friends, neighbors, and even our enemies is what it's all about.
Here are some good quotes about love:
"Where there is love there is no sin."
"Love can hope where reason would despair" (George, Baron Lyttelton)
"How shall I do to love? Believe. How shall I do to believe? Love" (Robert Leighton).
"Love is the fulfilling of the law" (Romans 13:10).
"Love is strong as death" (Song of Solomon 8:6).
"Love sought is good, but given unsought is better" (William Shakespeare).
"There is a land of the living and a land of the dead, and the bridge is love" (Thornton Wilder).
Let us remember that love is the supreme commandment.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Another New Book
Let me tell you about another new book that was recently published by Bridge-Logos Foundation. It is by my friend, who is the Senior Editor of our company, Harold J. Chadwick. The title is Christ Is God's Everything for You. It's a beautiful trade-size paperback that sells at only $13.99, and I highly recommend it to you.
Harold writes, "But this one thing you can know for a certainty, everything that God has prepared for you from before the foundation of the Earth is eternally yours in Christ Jesus, who is God's everything for you!"
Is Christ the center of your life? If so, you are among the most blessed people on the Earth, for He is "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). Everything consists in Him. Let Him be your Lord and Savior.
Harold writes, "But this one thing you can know for a certainty, everything that God has prepared for you from before the foundation of the Earth is eternally yours in Christ Jesus, who is God's everything for you!"
Is Christ the center of your life? If so, you are among the most blessed people on the Earth, for He is "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). Everything consists in Him. Let Him be your Lord and Savior.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Thinking Like God Does
The Rev. Keith C. Powell has written a liberating new book for Bridge-Logos Foundation. It is entitled, The Power of God Thinking. Though this title is a bit ambiguous in that it could refer to the power that is unleashed when God thinks (creative power) or the power that comes to us when we think as God thinks. This book is about the latter meaning, and it is written in a very user-friendly way.
Keith writes, "God-thinking is as much about deliberately abandoning wrong thinking as it is about adopting or putting the things of God on top.
"In his book The Power of Positive Thinking Norman Vincent Peale wrote, "If your thinking is wrong, it is wrong and not right and can never be right so long as it is wrong. If it is wrong in the essence, it is bound to be wrong in the result.'
"It is this very kind of thinking--wrong thinking--that keeps you from getting what is rightfully yours in Christ. the Word of God is filled with references to the way you think and points to the importance it plays in the outcome of your life. 'The thoughts of the righteous are right' (Proverbs 12:5)."
May you discover the power of God-thinking in your life today, as you let His words become your thoughts.
Keith writes, "God-thinking is as much about deliberately abandoning wrong thinking as it is about adopting or putting the things of God on top.
"In his book The Power of Positive Thinking Norman Vincent Peale wrote, "If your thinking is wrong, it is wrong and not right and can never be right so long as it is wrong. If it is wrong in the essence, it is bound to be wrong in the result.'
"It is this very kind of thinking--wrong thinking--that keeps you from getting what is rightfully yours in Christ. the Word of God is filled with references to the way you think and points to the importance it plays in the outcome of your life. 'The thoughts of the righteous are right' (Proverbs 12:5)."
May you discover the power of God-thinking in your life today, as you let His words become your thoughts.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
City of Refuge
Today on "We're Talking Books" I'll be interviewing Ashley King, the author of a new novel that was recently released by Bridge-Logos Foundation. This is a well-written and compelling book.
It's title, City of Refuge, comes from Numbers 35:11, which says, "When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall select for yourselves cities to be your cities of refuge, that the manslayer who has killed any person unintentionally may flee there" (NASB).
Alex began searchin for a "city of refuge"--a place of forgiveness and acceptance--after he was in a fatal accident that he felt responsible for. So many lives were affected by the crash, and this book reveals the feelings and experiences of each character in ways that literally grab the reader's attention.
City of Refuge is a page-turner that is filled with stirring emotions, gripping intrigue, and amazing insights into the human condition. Ashley King is an excellent novelist whose writing is intense, thrilling, and moving. You will readily identify with each of her fascination characters and their thoughts, experiences, and feelings.
I heartily endorse this book and hope you will add it to your summer reading fare.
It's title, City of Refuge, comes from Numbers 35:11, which says, "When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall select for yourselves cities to be your cities of refuge, that the manslayer who has killed any person unintentionally may flee there" (NASB).
Alex began searchin for a "city of refuge"--a place of forgiveness and acceptance--after he was in a fatal accident that he felt responsible for. So many lives were affected by the crash, and this book reveals the feelings and experiences of each character in ways that literally grab the reader's attention.
City of Refuge is a page-turner that is filled with stirring emotions, gripping intrigue, and amazing insights into the human condition. Ashley King is an excellent novelist whose writing is intense, thrilling, and moving. You will readily identify with each of her fascination characters and their thoughts, experiences, and feelings.
I heartily endorse this book and hope you will add it to your summer reading fare.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Dare to Dream
Last Thursday it was my privilege to interview Trish Porter, author of Rekindle Your Dreams, on our blogtalk radio show, "We're Talking Books." It was a fantastic interview.
Trish is a 1988 U.S. Olympian. After a neck injury she stopped competing for many years. Nonetheless, she continued to dream about being a successful competitor. She became the mother of two children and then decided to rekindle her dream. This resulted in a blaze of success, for Trish became the world record-holder in the high jump for 40-44 year olds. She has won seven U.S. National Masters Championships and three World Masters Championship titles. Trish greatly enjoys competing throughout the world and inspiring other women wherever she goes.
In her very inspiring book, Trish puts forth an acronym that can be applied to our lives in many different ways. It is based on the word DREAMS.
Dare to Dream
Realize the Benefits to Yourself and Others
Eliminate the Excuses
Action Plan
Make It Happen
Say Thanks
This acronym and Trish's story show that it is possible to rekindle your dreams, and her book shows you how to do so through practical steps.
Trish is a 1988 U.S. Olympian. After a neck injury she stopped competing for many years. Nonetheless, she continued to dream about being a successful competitor. She became the mother of two children and then decided to rekindle her dream. This resulted in a blaze of success, for Trish became the world record-holder in the high jump for 40-44 year olds. She has won seven U.S. National Masters Championships and three World Masters Championship titles. Trish greatly enjoys competing throughout the world and inspiring other women wherever she goes.
In her very inspiring book, Trish puts forth an acronym that can be applied to our lives in many different ways. It is based on the word DREAMS.
Dare to Dream
Realize the Benefits to Yourself and Others
Eliminate the Excuses
Action Plan
Make It Happen
Say Thanks
This acronym and Trish's story show that it is possible to rekindle your dreams, and her book shows you how to do so through practical steps.
Monday, April 19, 2010
The God of Jacob Is Our Refuge
A new book that was published by Bridge-Logos Foundation concludes with these words: "Several years ago I was praying at one of my 'secret places' on Mount Carmel, about two hundred meters down a path from the place where the Lord dramatically visited me in the rental car in the 1980s. I was actually standing on the roof of an abandoned British machine-gun bunker from bygone Mandate days. The concrete bunker is built into a promontory on Mount Carmel overlooking the Mediterranean. On this beautiful clear spring morning, I watched Israeli guided missile cruisers slowly patrolling the Haifa coast and port. Three military helicopters flew by, evidently returning from guarding the Lebanese border. I was struck by the contrast of the bunker, helicopters, and the warships against the legendary beauty of Carmel cloaked with multi-colored spring wildflowers and the shimmering emerald sea stretched out before me. I sensed that I was observing the calm before the storm. The still, small voice of the Lord came to me, saying, 'Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge' (Psalm 46:10-11).
This excerpt is taken from The Elijah Legacy by David Davis, the founder and senior pastor of Kehilat HaCarmel (Carmel Assembly) on Mount Carmel in Israel.
We must continually pray for the peace of Jerusalem, realizing that the God of Jacob is our refuge.
This excerpt is taken from The Elijah Legacy by David Davis, the founder and senior pastor of Kehilat HaCarmel (Carmel Assembly) on Mount Carmel in Israel.
We must continually pray for the peace of Jerusalem, realizing that the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Is Anything Too Hard for God?
The title question on this post comes from a question in the Bible that God asked in Jeremiah 32:27: "Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?"
This, of course, is a rhetorical question that really doesn't require an answer, for we all know that nothing is impossible with God.
When we were in Tulsa last week one of our best-selling books was written by Ms Kathryn Kuhlman. It is entitled, Nothing Is Impossible With God. Though Ms Kuhlman is no longer here on Earth, this book continues to sell amazingly well.
I think this has to do both with her anointing as a healing evangelist and the dramatic truth the title of the book conveys. As David Wilkerson points out in his foreword to this dynamic book, "Over and over again she [Kathryn Kuhlman] cried, 'Dear God, unless you anoint me and touch me I am nothing. I am worthless when the flesh gets in the way. You get all the glory or I cannot go out there and minister. I won't move without you.'"
It is the Lord's touch and anointing that bring success to any endeavor and help us to understand that nothing is impossible with God, absolutely nothing is too hard for Him.
David Wilkerson concludes his tribute to Ms Kuhlman this way: "Her living and her dying brought glory to God."
Remember, all things are possible with God. The only thing God can't do is fail.
This, of course, is a rhetorical question that really doesn't require an answer, for we all know that nothing is impossible with God.
When we were in Tulsa last week one of our best-selling books was written by Ms Kathryn Kuhlman. It is entitled, Nothing Is Impossible With God. Though Ms Kuhlman is no longer here on Earth, this book continues to sell amazingly well.
I think this has to do both with her anointing as a healing evangelist and the dramatic truth the title of the book conveys. As David Wilkerson points out in his foreword to this dynamic book, "Over and over again she [Kathryn Kuhlman] cried, 'Dear God, unless you anoint me and touch me I am nothing. I am worthless when the flesh gets in the way. You get all the glory or I cannot go out there and minister. I won't move without you.'"
It is the Lord's touch and anointing that bring success to any endeavor and help us to understand that nothing is impossible with God, absolutely nothing is too hard for Him.
David Wilkerson concludes his tribute to Ms Kuhlman this way: "Her living and her dying brought glory to God."
Remember, all things are possible with God. The only thing God can't do is fail.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Empowered 21
Last week Steve Becker and I were in Tulsa, Oklahoma. We were selling our Bridge-Logos books in the Mabee Center of Oral Roberts University in connection with "Empowered 21"--an international gathering of Pentecostal/charismatic Christians who were celebrating the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the charismatic renewal.
Whether the renewal actually began at that time or not, it was in 1960 that Father Dennis Bennett, rector of an Episcopal church in Van Nuys, California, received the baptism in the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues. This experience was reported in both "Time" and "Newsweek" magazines, so the news traveled all over the world.
It was a pleasure for me to be able to spend time with his widow, Rita Bennett, while we were in Tulsa. She is a very special lady. Bridge-Logos Foundation has several books by Dennis and Rita Bennett. Those powerful titles are:
It was also good to see several other of our authors there, including John Mason, Jack Hayford, and Grant McClung.
Though the focus was on the members of the Renewal passing the torch to the younger generation, Jentezen Franklin reminded us that the "old pillars" need to get moving, too, and that in unity we can work together to build God's kingdom on earth.
Praise God for this opportunity to experience His presence in such dynamic ways.
Whether the renewal actually began at that time or not, it was in 1960 that Father Dennis Bennett, rector of an Episcopal church in Van Nuys, California, received the baptism in the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues. This experience was reported in both "Time" and "Newsweek" magazines, so the news traveled all over the world.
It was a pleasure for me to be able to spend time with his widow, Rita Bennett, while we were in Tulsa. She is a very special lady. Bridge-Logos Foundation has several books by Dennis and Rita Bennett. Those powerful titles are:
- Nine O'Clock in the Morning by Dennis Bennett (first published in 1970)
- The Holy Spirit and You by Dennis and Rita Bennett
- The Holy Spirit and Your Workbook by Dennis and Rita Bennett
- How to Pray for the Release of the Holy Spirit by Dennis Bennett
- You Can Be Emotionally Free by Rita Bennett
- Heaven Tours by Rita Bennett
It was also good to see several other of our authors there, including John Mason, Jack Hayford, and Grant McClung.
Though the focus was on the members of the Renewal passing the torch to the younger generation, Jentezen Franklin reminded us that the "old pillars" need to get moving, too, and that in unity we can work together to build God's kingdom on earth.
Praise God for this opportunity to experience His presence in such dynamic ways.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
The Indwelling Christ--My Best Friend
When I was thirteen I knew Jesus was knocking on the door of my heart. I opened the door and asked Him to come in. He has been living within me ever since. This is what the Lord said in the Revelation: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me" (Revelation 3:20, NASB).
One time when I was in England, I visited St. Paul's Cathedral in London. One of the paintings that hangs on the wall of this sanctuary is a picture of Jesus standing at a cottage door and knocking. The interesting thing is that there is no knob on the outside of the door; it has to be opened from the inside. As a boy, I felt Jesus knocking on the door of my heart. It was like the pounding of a drum.
When I opened the door I experienced the Lord Jesus Christ entering my life in a fullness that I never knew could be possible. Truly, it was the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me.
Jesus said He would never leave us or forsake us. He promised to be with us until the end of the age, and He is with me still in spite of the mistakes I've made and the sins I've committed.
He is now my best friend--a true friend who is closer than a brother--my best friend, indeed. He walks with me and talks with me. The fellowship we enjoy is so wonderful and awesome.
The Bible says, "There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24). That blessed friend is Jesus Christ.
If you have never invited Him into your life, I encourage you to do so now. This is how Solomon described this: "He has brought me to his banquet hall, and his banner over me is love" (Song of Solomon 2:4, NASB).
Jesus wants to know you and have communion with you. He loves you with an everlasting love.
There is no friend so great as Jesus.
One time when I was in England, I visited St. Paul's Cathedral in London. One of the paintings that hangs on the wall of this sanctuary is a picture of Jesus standing at a cottage door and knocking. The interesting thing is that there is no knob on the outside of the door; it has to be opened from the inside. As a boy, I felt Jesus knocking on the door of my heart. It was like the pounding of a drum.
When I opened the door I experienced the Lord Jesus Christ entering my life in a fullness that I never knew could be possible. Truly, it was the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me.
Jesus said He would never leave us or forsake us. He promised to be with us until the end of the age, and He is with me still in spite of the mistakes I've made and the sins I've committed.
He is now my best friend--a true friend who is closer than a brother--my best friend, indeed. He walks with me and talks with me. The fellowship we enjoy is so wonderful and awesome.
The Bible says, "There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24). That blessed friend is Jesus Christ.
If you have never invited Him into your life, I encourage you to do so now. This is how Solomon described this: "He has brought me to his banquet hall, and his banner over me is love" (Song of Solomon 2:4, NASB).
Jesus wants to know you and have communion with you. He loves you with an everlasting love.
There is no friend so great as Jesus.
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