Oct

30

I Won’t Compromise

By Jan Ross | 2 Comments


We are on the eve of the most evil days on our calendar. Sadly, most who read this will think I’m going a bit overboard. I’m not … I promise you!

This past Sunday, I had the privilege of presenting a sermon I entitled, Deliver Us From Evil, based on the phrase from the Lord’s Prayer. It has occurred to me that most of us pray amiss when we pray those words, especially if we willingly participate in the evils of things such as Halloween. Yes … I said evil.

It is understandable that the “world” celebrates this day since they have no relationship with the Holy One of Israel. But, it is NOT understandable that Christians celebrate Halloween … not in any shape, form, or fashion. I found a quote that sums up what I’m trying to say and really puts the controversy into perspective: “For a Christian to celebrate Halloween is as bizarre as a Holocaust survivor celebrating Hitler’s birthday.” Stop a moment and re-read that. There’s no difference.

Jesus shed His most precious, pure, spotless, and holy blood so we can be FREE from evil, FREE from the penalty of sin and death, FREE from the chains that bind us to the grave. Yet, so many in the Body of Christ willingly celebrate the “lord of death” every October.

Halloween isn’t a cute, innocent excuse to have a party. It’s not even a fun time to do something strange by dressing up and parading around the neighborhood with a bag expecting strangers to fill it up with candy. And, anyone who thinks so is blinded by the father of lies himself.

If you’re a parent or grandparent, please … don’t allow your children or grandchildren to participate in the “high holy day” of the occult world. Don’t allow them to partner together with the archenemy of God and call it cute or innocent. Any celebration on this day is falling into the trap of the enemy—he lures us by making it fun and all about the kids.

I have put together what I’ve called an ‘INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING‘ about the origin and the dangers of Halloween. Please feel free to download the .pdf file, share it with others, pass it around to friends and family. Then, please … pray protection over your children and your grandchildren. Pray for their minds and hearts and souls to be protected from seeds of evil and lies and deception from taking root and growing in them. Take some time and do some research … become informed and stop allowing the enemy’s tactics prevail.

Paul gives us the answer to the bombardments of evil being shot at us as firey darts by the enemy of our souls. Ephesians 6 gives us clear explanation about how to fight against the spiritual forces of darkness ruling this world. But the Armor of God is absolutely no good to us unless we put it on and use it. The ‘INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING‘ covers this as well.

I pray this year, the eyes of many will be opened and the malicious deception of the enemy will be exposed. I pray that you, a blood-bought Christian, won’t become another one of the multitudes of people who contribute over $2.4 Billion to the Halloween profiteers. The only two more popular reasons for partying on our calendar are New Years Eve and the Super Bowl.

Take a stand … make a determination in your heart and say with me, “I Won’t Compromise!”

© Jan Ross
All Rights Reserved

Oct

23

Stepping up to the Plate

By Gwenn McKone | 6 Comments


I know when I first became a blogger on this site, I said that I would talk about the challenges of a marriage that had hit the wall. My purpose was to encourage other women who may be going through the same challenges, and to give them hope.
What I have found, however, is that some of the things we are experiencing are so deeply personal, that it’s hard to share them without opening up a door into our relationship that really is not for anyone to see beyond except us.
But I will try to share something that happened a few nights ago, without filling in all the blanks, because God really did some amazing stuff.
Two months ago, due to certain events, I decided that I was done with the marriage. Finished. After spending a week with my younger daughter at our cabin in the woods (my older daughter was at a Christian camp), and being sick to my stomach the entire time as I prayed about what to do, I came back to inform my husband that I was moving out.
That conversation went on for four hours. My husband and I had never talked like that at any time during our 22 years of marriage. It wasn’t pretty–it was actually very painful. Still, when we were through, I wasn’t so sure I was moving out. This is not to say that he asked me to stay. Both of us were sitting on the fence, wildly uncomfortable in our present position–even feeling trapped–yet afraid of following through with divorce. We knew the carnage that would follow.
Over the next month or so, I prayed and prayed and prayed. Eventually God’s voice came through to me. He told me that I had been “talking the talk” all my life. Now I needed to “walk the walk.” It’s easy to say that with God, all things are possible. But did I really believe it? Did I believe that He is who He says He is? That He can do what He says He can do? Even with MY marriage?
With some reluctance, I climbed down off the fence. I had this sense that God expected me to be the one to do it–to believe Him and take a stand for the marriage, because I am the “Jesus freak” of the house. My husband calls me a zealot. (It could be worse, you know?) My oldest daughter says that I turn everything (conversations, yada yada) into a “God thing.” (Don’t be fooled–my oldest daughter is showing signs of Jesus freakness, too, but she doesn’t realize it. When viewing the big ghost hanging from our neighbors’ tree, she said something like, “Goodness, why invite Satan in?”) God led me to step up to the plate and take a stand.
I decided that I was not leaving. Not ever. I was going to believe God; believe that He could resurrect a dead marriage. Period. When I did that, two things happened. First, I knew that the devil was furious. I mean furious. I won’t tell you about some of the weird stuff that happened around our house. Secondly, I learned that when God calls you to the plate, He doesn’t leave you standing there without the right equipment. He began to teach me how to love my husband in a way that I never have.
He has given me a servant heart for my husband that was never there before. He has taken every ounce of fight out of me. He has given me a new humility that my husband doesn’t quite know what to do with. For the first time in my life, I am now learning what REAL love is–unconditional, expecting nothing in return.
But let me also make it clear that this new behavior of mine is not “mine.” It is the Holy Spirit working through me. I am really not all that wonderful. I know that it is the Holy Spirit, because it has been two months since I climbed off the fence, and if I was still trying to do this in my own power, I would have had 18 knee-jerk reactions by now, several tirades before God, and three or four in-your-face confrontations with my husband. And incidentally, that was life before I stepped up to the plate–before God honored my faith, and equipped me.
Now, about the other night. My husband told me he wanted to talk to me. We sat behind closed doors and he told me about how he was feeling. Without divulging what he said, suffice it to say that he is still on the fence and very uncomfortable.
But you know what? A miracle actually occurred, because the words he said to me should have knocked me flat. They weren’t mean-spirited, but they were honest. Maybe some of the most honest things he has ever said to me. And that is a very good thing–that he can feel safe enough to say such things. But they were the last thing I wanted to hear. Strangely though, as I listened to him, I felt no pain. God held my heart in His warm hands, and I was really OK. I was actually astounded that I was OK.
I told him that I was going to stay in the marriage, and I was going to love him, no matter what. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with that information, or me.
Afterward, I went out for a walk like I often do. It was 9:30 p.m., but I have my faithful Jessie dog (who sleeps beside me as I write), and my God, and both enable me to walk comfortably in the dark in our neighborhood. As soon as I got past our driveway, this amazing, unearthly joy took hold of me. I can’t describe it. All I could do was smile. But I knew first of all, that God had been there in the midst of that conversation, and that He had used me, and that He had held me and kept my heart safe. And something told me that the joy was a precursor to what will come with time. All I could do throughout that 45-minute walk was praise God.

The next day, the Lord brought my dearest friends to “fill my cup” (unbeknownst to them). I called one friend, and two others just happened to call–which almost never happens. I was on the phone for a total of almost three hours that day (an all-time record because I am not a phone talker).
The day after that, I was at Bible study and chatting with a friend of mine who has been praying for our marriage, and who has been an encouragement. As she listened to the latest events, she told me, “Three years ago, my husband was you, and I was your husband. The same thing happened almost exactly. I gave my husband every reason to leave me. In fact, I tried to make him mad enough to leave me. But he refused to leave, and insisted on loving me. Then, one day, I woke up, and I wasn’t angry anymore. I couldn’t even summon up anger toward him. I went and apologized to him. And now, look at us.”
Wow. When God calls us to the plate, He gives us the right equipment. And a wonderful team that supports us, and prays alongside of us.
We just have to be brave enough to get off the fence, and step up to the plate. Even if it looks like the odds are against us. Because God is for us. And that is all we need.

Blessings,

Gwenn

Oct

18

Face Time with God

By Carrie | 2 Comments


I was reading 1 Corinthians last night and was struck by the following verses:

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.” 1 Cor 15:3-5

Remember Peter? As one of Jesus’ disciples, he had listened to Jesus’ teachings and saw him perform many miracles. Peter had walked on water, witnessed the Transfiguration, and claimed he would follow Jesus to death. Yet when Jesus was captured and put on trial, Peter vehemently denied his relationship with him three times just as the Lord had predicted.

“Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.” Luke 20:60-62

From there the Lord was crucified and Peter was left to his own thoughts. I can’t even imagine what Peter must have felt for those days following the crucifixion. At this point he looks like a complete failure. When the “going got tough”, Peter folded.

But look at what happened according to 1 Corinthians. The Lord appeared to Peter alone before appearing to the rest. We know that all of the disciples had scattered like sheep during Jesus’ capture, but it was Peter who openly denied the Lord and was confronted with his own failure by the rooster’s crow (and Jesus’ gaze). If anyone needed face-time with the Risen Lord, it surely was Peter. And that is what he got.

We don’t know what the Jesus said to Peter when he appeared to him, but we know that Peter went from cowardly denier to bold proclaimer. In the second chapter of Acts it is Peter that addresses the crowd with the truth of Jesus’ crucifixion and converts 3000 to “the way”. Peter’s failure was no obstacle to God.

And so it is for us. We have a Savior who is willing to meet with us personally, even when we have failed him. He can lift us back up and continue to use us despite our failures. How lucky we are to serve such a loving and merciful Lord!

Oct

16

Credit Where Credit is Due

By Gwenn McKone | 4 Comments


This is going to be a quick entry, but I just had to tell you how God is working in my life.

Recently, my husband has put us on a tighter financial rein, both because we felt we weren’t saving as much as we’d like, and because we were not being as responsible with our money as we should. Although this was his decision and not mine, I have been trying to abide by it. Since I’m the one who has paid the bills for many, many years, I was pretty stressed when I saw how much he chose to carve out of our budget.

I went to God and asked Him, as I have in the past, to be Lord of our finances. Interestingly, last month, I opened two bills (on the same day, no less), and found that I had significantly large credits on each. I had a $152.92 credit on one bill, and a $385.36 credit on our electric/gas bill! I have no idea where those credits came from. I don’t know if I overpaid, and I haven’t gone back to check.

Fast-forward to September 26 when I began my freefall into free lance writing–my ministry for the Lord. I knew I was putting even more stress on the budget, but I went again to the Lord and asked Him to provide. Only yesterday, while I was in prayer, I told the Lord that I was feeling frustrated, because even though I’ve been sending out lots of articles and queries to various Christian mags, I’ve heard nothing back. In this case, no news is good news, but still, no news means no pay. I told the Lord that I knew I shouldn’t be worrying about money, but sometimes it’s hard not to.

Then today, I opened up this month’s electric/gas bill, and I still have some of the credit left over…I’d forgotten about last month’s large credit. I still had $221.95 of credit sitting there, so this month we have another “free” electric/gas bill–and still with some money left over to apply to next month.

The point is, God always provides, and he ALWAYS provides in ways that we would not expect. No, I haven’t gotten another check for my writing in the mail–yet–but I received something even more wonderful. I was given clear-cut evidence that my amazing Heavenly Father is taking care of us. That He hears my prayers. And that I should keep on falling…into this ministry…and having ruthless trust.

I just love being His child, because God is just a kick…don’t you think?

Blessings,

Gwenn

Oct

10

Blow the Trumpet in Zion

By Jan Ross | 1 Comment


There are days when I close my eyes and try to imagine what it was like when God first commanded Israel to commemorate and keep the feasts and holy days. I imagine the people who are suddenly reminded of the season by the blast of a trumpet, the ten days of awe, and the call to solemn assembly.

There was a time when I thought all those scriptures were meaningless to us as believers in Christ. These scriptures were never brought up in our church as I was growing up. Neither were they referenced by our Sunday school teachers , and there were very few (if any) references to the holy days or festivals of the Lord in Bible studies I attended. It was assumed, though not specifically articulated, that these were historical events with no meaning for us.

Leviticus 23:31 tells us, “This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.” How wrong were my assumptions! I repented …

Today, the trumpet still blows calling us to solemn assembly. Although the High Priest has no temple in which to do service, there is no blood sacrifice to be offered on the altar, there is no atoning blood to sprinkle on the Mercy Seat, and there is no fire of God to consume the sacrifice, we can find profound revelation in the Atoning Sacrifice, Jesus Christ, Yeshua the Messiah.

There are set seasons in God’s timeline; we see this referenced throughout the Word of God. God’s times and seasons are perpetual … they never ceased. God’s call to a season of repentance was not for a dispensation, but for all generations-”the generations to come”. They were not for His people Israel only living in Israel, but for all generations wherever they live-”wherever you live” (ref Leviticus 23:31).

There is more than enough reason for us, as Christians, to heed the call to repentance and fasting, to enter into a season of solemn assembly, to honor God’s times and seasons. We are truly living in the time of the harvest. The fields are ripe and ready, but the hearts of so many of God’s people are far from ready simply because we, the Body of Christ, lack the attention to repentance.

True repentance includes Godly sorrow (ref 2 Corinthians 7:10). How often does the Church gather together to grieve over her own sins, to mourn the fact that we all miss God and fall so short of His glory (ref Romans 3:23)? Some way, down through history, we have forsaken God’s call to seasonal and perpetual repentance (throughout all generations), somehow thinking we are blood-bought through Yeshua’s incredible sacrifice and no longer need to set ourselves apart unto God for a season of mourning our sin.

The ancient Jews who feared God listened for the blast of the trumpet signaling a time of true repentance and fasting and seeking to right the wrongs in their lives. They feared God’s judgment if they had unrepented sin in their lives. They used the Law-the Torah-as their plumb line and repented for the many ways they had failed God and their fellow man. It was a season of atoning for sins and wiping the slate clean for all sins committed against God in the past year, praying God would accept the sacrifice of the High Priest and the sprinkling of blood on the Mercy Seat and grant His people mercy rather than judgment.

We need the mercy of God now more than ever before. This nation has been reeling in natural disasters with increasing intensity for the past few years. Each time a disaster strikes we see a precursor to God’s judgment being levied against all of mankind because humanity as a whole has strayed so far from Him. We need God’s mercy!

So, let the trumpet be blown in Zion. Listen to the Spirit’s call to solemn assembly, to join together with all the saints to repent on behalf of ourselves, our families, our communities, our churches, our States, our nation, and our world.

These are the days of Elijah,
Declaring the Word of the Lord
And these are the days of Your servant Moses,
Righteousness being restored.
And though these are days of great trial,
Of famine and darkness and sword,
Still, we are the voice in the desert crying
‘Prepare ye the way of the Lord!’

Behold He comes riding on the clouds,
Shining like the sun at the trumpet call;
Lift your voice, it’s the year of jubilee,
And out of Zion’s hill salvation comes.

These are the days of Ezekiel,
The dry bones becoming as flesh;
And these are the days of Your servant David,
Rebuilding a temple of praise.
These are the days of the harvest,
The fields are as white in Your world,
And we are the laborers in Your vineyard,
Declaring the word of the Lord!

There’s no God like Jehovah.
There’s no God like Jehovah!*

____________
Copyright © 2008 Jan Ross
*Copyright © 1997 Daybreak Music Ltd.

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