An Oasis Is Nearby

Have you had those moments where you feel spiritually dry? You wonder if there is an oasis nearby to quench your spiritual thirst. The threatening storm clouds of discouragement and fear are hovering nearby.

Dear ones, an oasis is nearby and it is found in JESUS. He is the living water and only He can satisfy your thirsting soul.

In "Streams in the Desert - 2," today's selection, we read the following; Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. (Is. 12:3)

Oh blessed day when I first I found,
The stream that for my healing flowed;
I stooped and drank, and then, unbound,
My soul on Jesus praise bestowed.

No shore, no bottom then I found;
I swam, I drank, until a well
Where life's pure waters did abound
Within my soul with joy did swell.

Without, within, the waters rolled.
And every wave with life was fraught;
And blessings more than can be told
To me this matchless river brought.
[source: Abbie Mills, from Quiet Hallelujahs]

The wells of the Lord are to be found where most I need them. The Lord of the way knows the pilgrim life, and the wells have been unsealed just where the soul is prone to become dry and faint. At the foot of the hill difficulty was found a spring! Yes, these health-springs are lifting their crystal flood in the cheerless waters of evil antagonisms and exhausting grief.

Sometimes I am foolish, and in my need I assume that the well is far away. I knew of a farmer who for a generation had carried every pail of water from a distant well to meet the needs of his homestead. And one day he sank a shaft by his own house door, and to his great joy he found that the water was waiting at his own gate! My soul, they well is near, even here! Go not in search of Him! Thy pilgrimage is ended, the waters are at thy feet!

But I must "draw the water out of the wells of salvation." The hand of faith must lift the gracious gift to the parched lips, and so refresh the panting soul. "I will take the cup of salvation." Stretch out thy "lame hand of faith," and take the holy, hallowing energy offered by the Lord." [J.H. Jowett, from My Daily Meditation]

May the reality of Jesus being our oasis encourage you this day. I too have been encouraged and those storms clouds are not as threatening. Several chapters over, we read in Isaiah,

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned or scorched, nor will the flame kindle upon you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt [to the Babylonians] for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba [a province of Ethiopia] in exchange [for your release]. Because you are precious in My sight and honored, and because I love you, I will give men in return for you and peoples in exchange for your life. Fear not, for I am with you. . . (Is. 43:2-5b - Amplified Bible)

Oh what a comfort these words, "Fear not, for I am with you," to my heart, soul and mind. When those storm clouds threaten, and they will, let's remember these words.

And ultimately let's remember these words from Jesus found in John 7:37, "If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink!"

"My Best Life Now! I Don't Think So

One only has to read the latest best sellers, watch and listen to the daily talk shows, read articles in popular magazines or search the web to understand that our culture and society is very much "self-centered" and "self-absorbed."

Even as Christians we are not immune from these temptations. The Bible tells us to "deny ourselves," while the world cries out, "become a better you," or "live your best life." We are daily inundated with these messages whether it be from a popular pastor, popular authors, or a favorite TV icon. Regardless, these messages do not line up with what the Bible teaches.

The problem is with what we want to believe versus what the Bible actually teaches. It's coming to the Bible with our presuppositions and trying to make it say what we want it to say or making it say less that it's original message.

In 1 John 2:15-17, we read these words ~
* 15) Do not love or cherish the world or the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him.

* 16) For all that is in the world---the lust of the flesh [craving for sensual gratifications] and the lust of the eyes [greedy longings of the mine] and the pride of life [assurance in one's own resources or in the stability of earthly things]---these do not come from the Father but are from the world [itself].

* 17) And the world passes away and disappears, and with it the forbidden cravings (the passionate desires, the lust) of it; but he who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life abides (remains) forever.

In Matthew 4, we read of the Temptation of Jesus by the devil. The temptations could be summarized in three specific catagories:

1) The lust of the flesh
2) The lust of the eyes
3) The pride of life

It's not surprising that John addresses these areas for they have been with us since the Fall. Is it any different for us as Christians in the 21st century? Not all. We just think of more clever ways perhaps to disquise it, rationalize it, or package it.

Why the acceptance of the lie? I believe there are many reasons why. The one that alarms me the most is the reality that we are biblically illerate in our personal lives as well as in our churches. I remember right before I left for seminary a well-meaning friend saying to me, "why do you need to go to seminary when you can just stay home and read the Bible?" His comment did not deter me from God's calling in my life. Quite the opposite, it made me even more determined to follow Christ and gain a better understanding of God's Word.

Way before my departure to seminary, the ground work was laid by my dear precious parents as well as some incredible Sunday School teachers and Girls Missionary Auxiliary leaders. Prior to age 9, we did not own a television and time was spent in family devotions. In the afternoons after homework assignments were completed, we would listen to Christian children programs on the radio. Then each night at 8:00, we would listen "Unshackled," from the Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago, Illinois. Sometimes when I'm driving around in the evening, I am able to listen to Unshackled on one of the Christian radio stations. I still enjoy hearing incredible stories how God is changing the lives and hearts of men and women. I must confess, that each time I hear the organ music that opens up the program, my ears perk up, my heart overflows and sweet memories flood my mind. Indeed I am eternally grateful for my parents who laid the foundation in my life.

My Mom was particularly influential in mentoring me in God's Word. I remember as a junior high student that she was alarmed that on Sunday evening during "BTU - Baptist Training Union," that we were just reading our parts from the quarterlies instead of understanding the actual lessons and what the Bible taught.

So my sweet Mom developed "Bible Baseball," where the high school students were the team coaches and the junior high students made up the teams. We had weekly take home sheets that we had to complete using our Bibles. If we followed through and completed the questions, then our teams would be successful. Each Sunday night, my Mom had questions devised from these take home sheets. She drew a beautiful large baseball diamond on a large piece of plywood, that served as a visual each week as we played the game. [A side note: The was way before the modern Bible baseball products now in Christian bookstores.]

For example,
~ Bunts, Singles & Doubles - we had to answer without any team assistance.
~ Triples, Home Runs - we were allowed to consult with our team members.

If we answered incorrectly or if we did not even know the answers, it was an out for our team justs like in baseball. Would you believe Sunday night Youth Bible Study was recharged and we gained tremendous Bible knowledge as well as biblical application.

At my Mom's wake 22 years ago, these young people now adults; shared with our family how much an impact my Mom had made on their lives. Today many of them serve as Pastors, Music Ministers, Youth Ministers and Missionaries. What a godly impact my Mom made in my life as well as my brothers. She had a passion for the Word of God and wanted us to know her Savior and His inerrant Word.

As a child, I learned complete stories from both the Old and New Testaments. Guess what? My head did not explode nor did it short circuit my brain. I am afraid, that another reason why we are believing the lie, "Live Your Best Life," is that we do not know what the Bible actually says or teaches. Too many times, we get "Bible ditties," or "Bible thoughts". There are no short cuts in studying God's Word. No Cliff Notes available. One actually must put forth the effort and study the Bible themselves.

Children can learn complete stories from the Bible and parents can give more of the stories as their children grow in age and understanding.

So whenever you read items from the internet, at a Christian bookstore, or order on line, my admonition is that you make sure that it's content, worldview lines up with God's Word. The question is not, "does it sound like it is Christian? No, the question should be, "Is it BIBLICAL?"
As for me, I am not looking to find "my authentic self, "trying to transform my life," "celebrating me," and so forth. My heart's desire is to deny myself and take up my cross and follow Christ daily. In Luke 9:23-25 , Jesus spoke this, "And He said to all, If any person wills to come after Me, let him deny himself [disown himself, forget, lose sight of himself and his own interests, refuse and give up himself] and take up his cross daily and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and , if need be, in dying also. For whoever would preserve his life and save it will lose and destroy it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he will preserve and avid it [from the penalty of eternal death]. For what does it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and ruins or forfeits (loses) himself?" (Amplified Bible)

In John 3:30 we read, "He must increase, but I must decrease. [He must grow more prominent: I must grow less so.] [Isaiah 9:7].

One can conclude that the Christian life is one of "selflessness" rather than selfishness. Beware of those who fly under the radar and tell you otherwise. These are our modern day deceivers.

One of God's Great Don'ts

Here is the devotional reading for July 4 from My Utmost for His Highest. It is entitled, One of God's Great Don'ts. The key verse is "Do not fret--it only causes harm." (Psalm 37:8)

Fretting means getting ourselves "out of joint" mentally or spiritually. It is one thing to say, "Do not fret," but something very different to have such a nature that you find yourself unable to fret. It's easy to say, "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him" (37:7) until our own little world is turned upside down and we are forced to live in confusion and agony like so many other people. Is it possible to "rest in the Lord" then? If this "Do not" doesn't work there, then it will not work anywhere. This "Do not" must work during our days of difficulty and uncertainty, as well as our peaceful days, or it will never work. And if it will not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else. Resting in the Lord is not dependent on your external circumstances at all, but on your relationship with God Himself.

Worrying always results in sin. We tend to think that a little anxiety and worry are simply an indication of how wise we really are, yet it is actually a much better indication of just how wicked we are. Fretting rises from our determination to have our own way. Our Lord never worried and was never anxious, because His purpose was never to accomplish His own plans but to fulfill God's plans. Fretting is wickedness for a child of God.

Have you been propping up that foolish soul of yours with the idea that your circumstances are too much for God to handle? Set all your opinions and speculations aside and "abide under the shadow of the Almighty" (Psalm 91:1). Deliberately tell God that you will not fret about whatever concerns you. All our fretting and worrying is caused by planning without God.

Oh dear ones, how true this devotional is and I know firsthand about fretting. We do become overwhelmed and just at times spiritually forget Whose we are . . . a spiritual amnesia; (2 Peter 1:2-15). No doubt each of us have had those moments or perhaps we're right in the midst of a moment. In the Amplified, Psalm 91:1 reads this way, "He WHO dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no foe can withstand]. Isn't that powerful? Wow!!!

On the other hand, there are times when we as believers are doing exactly what God has called us to do. It may not make any sense to us or those around us. However, because of our sinful nature to want to be "in control," we either interfere or unintentionally discourage other believers in Christ because we assume God works this way in our own lives, thus He must work the same way in others; we kind of put the "Lord in a box." It's so easy to jump to conclusions, isn't it? Then misunderstandings occur and perhaps friendships strained and so forth.

Nehemiah was called by the Lord to rebuild and repair the wall. We're all familiar with the story in that he did encounter opposition from many fronts. Let's not be tempted to be "Sanballats and Tobiahs" with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We're to build each other up and to encourage one another. Perhaps it would be helpful to take TIME and to LISTEN; 2 precious gifts and commodities we have to offer. We may see how the Lord is working in other believer's lives and even appreciate one another's role within the body of Christ even more. Otherwise, the enemy gets the victory and joy is robbed all the way around.

During VBS, I had signed up to do Registration which I helped out to some degree. However, the Lord redirected my path day 2 of VBS and had me in the Preschool Resource Room. It wasn't something that I had planned. The Lord had need of me in a room filled with paints, teaching supplies, books, puzzles, glue and so forth. Not a glamorous job but one uniquely suited for me and allowed some wonderful and unique ministry opportunities to encourage Preschool teachers all week during VBS. My late Dad hammered this verse into the fabric of my life. We read in 2 Corinthians 3:17 (Amp), "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (emancipation from bondage, freedom). What becomes the problem when we quench the Holy Spirit's workings and tell Him what to do or what we will do. Or what we think others should be doing this or not doing this.

There will be times in each of our lives where the Lord calls us away from the distractions for a season. Do not be afraid of that reality. It's during those sweet times of fellowship, the Holy Spirit draws us closer to the Father. Rest in the Lord dear ones, He knows what is best for each of us. That I'm totally certain of.

My heart's desire and heart beat is to love the Lord will all my being and to be about encouraging and strengthening the body of Christ. When our eyes are on Christ . . . we see Him!

The Christian Walk Is A Journey

There is a temptation in the modern Christian church to think, "oh I have read this particular author and have taken this particular Bible study . . . thus I am more spiritual or deeper in the Lord." This indeed can become a false sense of spirituality. As I read Paul's writings as well as the Gospels, I do not see where this type of rationale is supported in Scripture. Quite the opposite, Jesus speaks a great deal about being "servants."

What is a servant, slave or bond servant?

Paul spoke of himself as a "servant," a word sometimes rendered as "bond servant" but frequently also as "slave" (Romans 1:1; Tit 1:1). Christians, especially ministers, are not hired servants but slaves committed to service to Jesus. A slave does not manage his own life. The person who calls himself a slave of Christ acknowledges that the Savior has power over him.(from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright © 1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)

I like the last part of the above definition, "A slave does not manage his own life. The person who calls himself a slave of Christ acknowledges that the Savior has power over him."

Paul writes, that we have the "mind of Christ.: in 1 Corinthians 1:16, Amplified Bible.

~ For who has known or understood the mind (the counsels and purposes) of the Lord so as to guide and instruct Him and give Him knowledge? But we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart. [Isa 40:13.]

He writes again in Romans 12:1-2, Amplified Bible.

~ I APPEAL to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship.

~ Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

It's one thing to know where to find a Scripture passage but it's the opposite when the Holy Spirit gives us daily pop quizzes or major exams in living out these passages in daily practical ways. For example, when there are situations and/or crisis within our own personal families or extended families. Or it may be working through relationships that need mending and healing.
In our flesh, we cannot do what Scripture tells us to do, but in the power of the Lord Jesus Christ and in His strength we can and we must (Philippians 4:13).

My heart's desire for us is to continue to have spiritual ears to hear, spiritual eyes to see, and teachable hearts to obey whatever the Holy Spirit reveals to us as we grow in Christ.

A side note, we often miss blessings because we just want to "hang with our friends and not venture out." Always remember there are folks who hurt and kind words go a long, long way. It's more than just smiling at the person or persons. It going out of our comfort zone and touching others in tangible ways. Ministry will take TIME and there will be a level of sacrifice. People are important not things. That which cost me nothing is not truly a sacrifice.

I've shared this a lot and will continue to share it throughout my life, "my late Mom taught me to never to forget the 'PT - Personal Touch.' Have I always been faithful to do so? No, I fall short so many times. However, it's very much a part of the fabric of my life, heart and mind. It's not a matter of being gifted this way, it's a deliberate choice to live what Paul writes about in Philippians 2 and Romans 12:10.

One of my own favorite expression that I say to folks who are hurting or needing encouragement, "I have 2 ears to hear, 2 arms to hugs, 2 hands to hold, 2 shoulders to cry on, 2 eyes to see, 2 legs to carry if need be but only one mouth to speak." So that means I will have to listen more than I speak. Oh dear ones, let this be said of us.