There is a strong phrase one brother uses which lends itself well to the biblical phrase

‘Examine yourselves’

This brother’s phrase is

“Tell me where I’ve gone wrong.”

In our daily examining ourselves to see, we can also see one additional helpful principal to be true in regard to all matters of Faith & Reason, Life & Evangel, Heart & Head

That is this

There are only two general areas in which we could ever go wrong aside from action itself, that is aside from in errors of living itself.

In regard to Heart & Head, Life & Evangel, Faith & Reason, the only two ways we can ever go wrong are:

1. Logic, reason or doctrinal errors

Or

2. Errors in regard to love, that is in regard to charity or love, more specifically in regard to phileo or agape.

And in this second category remain the more subtle pitfalls.

All can be right in Logic, that is in Reason, perhaps even in Faith & Doctrine, while yet in that area of life, that is in regard to brotherly love, kindness, indeed charity, love, in agape, we could yet find ourselves far adrift.

LORD JESUS,

Teach us to love even as You love.

Charity suffers long and is kind. She is not proud. She is not rude. She is not self- seeking. She vaunteth not herself. Neither does she behave herself unseemly.

And so we ask You, LORD

Show me my sinful ways

“Tell me where I’ve gone wrong.”

Amen.

When the answer does not involve Reason or Logic, it is always this

“You have erred in love.”

In brotherly kindness, charity & agape love

Selah.

Seek God while He may be found

Would to God that He causes each of us to pause long enough every day here, to set aside quiet time with Him and to share together, to pray, to seek out wisdom, to read His WORD, and to listen to His Voice, to hear Wisdom calling, and to discern Wisdom and to shun Folly, to know Him and not even be bothered by folly, not to be dismayed or weakened in any way, not to be watered down, not to be troubled or unsettled by any rumors or reports in this silly world but simply to walk upright, strong and steadfast in Him. He is the only one who endures and His WORD is for everlasting. What do we care about the passing interests of this world, let alone this confused generation.

Rise up, O Man of God!

Rise up!

Proverbs 25

One word from us intended as a blessing can be taken either as a blessing or a curse.

And

Proverbs 26

One word to us from others can be met with either blessing or silence as the Spirit leads.

The aroma of Christ will be the fragrance of life or the stench of death.

The Day of YHVH will be life for some and death for others.

This is the divine law of blessing & cursing.

Chapter 4 – Overcoming Chaos and Persecution in the Muslim World (David Gates)

A WTW Audio Recording (22 minutes)

The adversary
The underdog
The nonchalant
The neighbor

In any given situation, we can take on multiple roles. We must be alert and led by the Holy Spirit in order to walk and live in meekness and Godly power & boldness. We must be fervent in prayer in order to avoid ever being in party with the adversary (Satan) and to keep us from being the nonchalant.

LORD JESUS, help us always be the good neighbor as You taught, even beyond our brothers and sisters. Let us especially do good to those of the household of faith. Then, let us also do good to ALL mankind, even to those who curse us and mistreat us. Help us to love our enemies and to pray for those who spitefully use us and take what is ours. For all things are Yours, Heavenly Father.

“A proverb a day keeps the devil away”

This was an expression in the men’s ministry where my dad served and that I became engaged with as a band of brothers in Christ at age 14 in Las Vegas in 1991.

Daily proverbs with up to 25 men around the breakfast table was the lifelong morning staple for an hour of godly fellowship in the WORD and prayer BEFORE breakfast.

Every year, every month, every day we would meet with the chapter of Proverbs for that day open. So today is chapter 10, and each brother reads a verse and shares a thought or two or passes to the next brother to read the next verse and do the same.

Powerful lifelong impact

“I, YHVH, do not change.”

“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says YHVH Tseva’oth. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver.

Then YHVH will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to YHVH, as in days gone by, as in former years. “So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,” says the YHVH Tseva’oth. “I YHVH do not change.

“So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says YHVH Tseva’oth. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’ Malachi 3:1‭-‬7

2000 years of history
Ever shifting tides
Rising and falling
Outward controls
Thin veneers and deep undercurrents, both
Judaizers & Gnostics
Pelagians & Catholics
Picts & Celts
Mohammedans & Crusaders
Protestants & Universalists
The spread of Islam
The work of an evangelist
Boarded up sanctuaries
Towering mosques
Empty philosophies of man
The truth prevails
Salvation by grace through faith in JESUS our LORD
The LORD knows those who are His
And all who live Godly
Will suffer persecution

The youth were a significant part of our Lapeer Park summer evangelism kickoff.  Our youngest team evangelist, age 14, is already turning heads with his genuine love for Christ and deep love for his fellow youth, his muslim peers. My own son, age 16, was drawn to go see this other young man sharing his faith with a fairly large group of about 10 boys and youth about his age and younger. As soon as my son heard his younger fellow Christ follower sharing his faith so boldly, he also immediately joined near the basketball court. He also began sharing the good news that Jesus is the Word of God made flesh to bring salvation to sinful man.

The world says to watch yourself in sharing such a good message in such a public way.

Jesus says let the children come to me and do not hinder them.

God says do good to all and preach the good news to every creature.

God’s people ask, should we obey God or man?

So, what about you? Who will you obey? Will you obey God, or will you obey man?

Can you find all 10?!

Don’t cheat!

Wait, there are only 9! I thought there were 10 of us there. Where’s…? Wait, what?! Look out there by the basketball courts…!

An obvious yet long forgotten analogy jumped out at me right in the midst of a gospel conversation yesterday during campus book table evangelism. I was talking with a student named Daisha who professed Christ sincerely but was not able to identify her testimony, then specifically her salvation testimony and then indeed she was not sure what the primary thing is from which she (and all people) need salvation. She did highlight some significant things from which many people often need to be saved including addictions, self-esteem issues, depression and suicidal thoughts, to name a few she mentioned.

After initiating the gospel conversation with some simple open-ended questions, I listened closely and actively for a few minutes. Once she had expressed her spontaneous thoughts generalized above, I proceeded to agree with Daisha that these serious and significant matters she mentioned all call for help. At the same time, I explained how the biggest eternal issue of salvation involves the problem of sin. As we talked, I pointed at a large tree right behind the table where we stood and explained how God loves the sinner, but hates all sin. I explained how simple this truth is yet how difficult it is in reality for people like us to distinguish consistently and carefully between the sin and the sinner. That is because the whole world is caught in sin so that all of us mortals exist in a fallen world where sin exists much like in a tree riddled with life-choking parasitic growths, vines and foreign plant species.

Pray for Daisha and all the students and staff at the campus who heard the clear message of the Good News of salvation by grace through faith in our LORD and Savior, JESUS Messiah, the Son of God.

Read below for further reflection on the spiritual appication of these natural obvervations.

Sin is Not Romantic