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Separated unto the Gospel. Romans 1:1.

Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the Gospel of God. The one thing that is all important is that the Gospel of God should be realized as the abiding Reality. Reality is not human goodness, nor holiness, nor heaven, nor hell, but Redemption; and the need to perceive this is the most vital need of the Christian worker to-day. As workers we have to get used to the revelation that Redemption is the only Reality. Personal holiness is an effect, not a cause, and if we place our faith in human goodness, in the effect of Redemption, we shall go under when the test comes.
Paul did not say he separated himself, but-"when it pleased God who separated me ..."Paul had not a hypersensitive interest in his own character. As long as our eyes are upon our own personal whiteness we shall never get near the reality of Redemption. Workers break down because their desire is for their own whiteness, and not for God. 'Don't ask me to come into contact with the rugged reality of Redemption on behalf of the filth of human life as it is; what I want is anything God can do for me to make me more desirable in my own eyes."To talk in that way is a sign that the reality of the Gospel of God has not begun to touch me; there is no reckless abandon to God. God cannot deliver me while my interest is merely in my own character. Paul is unconscious of himself, he is recklessly abandoned, separated by God for one purpose-o proclaim the Gospel of God (cf. Rom. 9:3).

Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest : Selections for the year (January 31). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.

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I ought to pray before seeing any one. Often when I sleep long, or meet with others early, it is eleven or twelve o’clock before I begin secret prayer. This is a wretched system. It is unscriptural. Christ arose before day and went into a solitary place. David says: “Early will I seek thee”; “Thou shalt early hear my voice.” Family prayer loses much of its power and sweetness, and I can do no good to those who come to seek from me. The conscience feels guilty, the soul unfed, the lamp not trimmed. Then when in secret prayer the soul is often out of tune, I feel it is far better to begin with God — to see his face first, to get my soul near him before it is near another.

~ Robert Murray McCheyne

Bounds, E. M. (1999). Power through prayer. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

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God shows up in unexpected and unorthodox ways in my life. Just this past Sunday I ran into someone at the mall. We were not very far into a conversation when he stopped and said, " You know what, ...do you need an ice-maker?" That was a random thought if you were someone listening in. However, I have been praying for an ice-maker for our camp since last April. I had been waiting on the funds to come in to go buy one. Silly me. It was waiting on me at the mall! The type ice-maker my friend was offering was exactly what we needed! Leave room for God to work! You might just be surprised to find out that He is more than able to accomplish what concerns you. It rarely happens when or how I want. But it always works out better. Oswald Chamber's devotion today was a good reminder of that for me. So was the ice-maker.

But when it pleased God . . . . Gal. 1:15.

As workers for God we have to learn to make room for God-to give God 'elbow room.' We calculate and estimate, and say that this and that will happen, and we forget to make room for God to come in as He chooses. Would we be surprised if God came into our meeting or into our preaching in a way we had never looked for Him to come? Do not look for God to come in any particular way, but look for Him. That is the way to make room for Him. Expect Him to come, but do not expect Him only in a certain way. However much we may know God, the great lesson to learn is that at any minute He may break in. We are apt to overlook this element of surprise, yet God never works in any other way. All of a sudden God meets the life-“When it was the good pleasure of God . . . ."
Keep your life so constant in its contact with God that His surprising power may break out on the right hand and on the left. Always be in a state of expectancy, and see that you leave room for God to come in as He likes.

Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest : Selections for the year (January 25). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.

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The principal cause of my leanness and unfruitfulness is owing to an unaccountable backwardness to pray. I can write or read or converse or hear with a ready heart; but prayer is more spiritual and inward than any of these, and the more spiritual any duty is the more my carnal heart is apt to start from it. Prayer and patience and faith are never disappointed. I have long since learned that if ever I was to be a minister faith and prayer must make me one. When I can find my heart in frame and liberty for prayer, everything else is comparatively easy.

~Richard Newton

Vision and Darkness

An horror of great darkness fell upon him. Genesis 15:12.

Whenever God gives a vision to a saint, He puts him, as it were, in the shadow of His hand, and the saint's duty is to be still and listen. There is a darkness which comes from excess of light, and then is the time to listen. Genesis 16 is an illustration of listening to good advice when it is dark instead of waiting for God to send the light. When God gives a vision and darkness follows, wait. God will make you in accordance with the vision He has given if you will wait His time. Never try and help God fulfil His word. Abraham went through thirteen years of silence, but in those years all selfsufficiency was destroyed; there was no possibility left of relying on commonsense ways. Those years of silence were a time of discipline, not of displeasure. Never pump up joy and confidence, but stay upon God (cf. Isaiah 50:10, 11).
Have I any confidence in the flesh? Or have I got beyond all confidence in myself and in men and women of God, in books and prayers and ecstasies; and is my confidence placed now in God Himself, not in His blessings? "I am the Almighty God" --El-Shaddai, the Father-Mother God. The one thing for which we are all being disciplined is to know that God is real. As soon as God becomes real, other people become shadows. Nothing that other saints do or say can ever perturb the one who is built on God.

Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest : Selections for the year (January 19). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.

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"Naturally, we are inclined to be so mathematical and calculating that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing...Certainty is the mark of the common-sense life; gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life. To be certain with God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, we do not know what a day may bring forth. This is generally said with a sigh of sadness; it should rather be an expression of breathless expectation."

~Oswald Chambers (My Utmost for His Highest)

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PROVERBS 16

Mortals make elaborate plans,
but God has the last word.
Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good;
God probes for what is good.
Put God in charge of your work,
then what you’ve planned will take place.
God made everything with a place and purpose;
even the wicked are included—but for judgment.
God can’t stomach arrogance or pretense;
believe me, he’ll put those upstarts in their place.
Guilt is banished through love and truth;
Fear-of-God deflects evil.
When God approves of your life,
even your enemies will end up shaking your hand.
Far better to be right and poor
than to be wrong and rich.
We plan the way we want to live,
but only God makes us able to live it.
It Pays to Take Life Seriously
A good leader motivates,
doesn’t mislead, doesn’t exploit.
God cares about honesty in the workplace;
your business is his business.
Good leaders abhor wrongdoing of all kinds;
sound leadership has a moral foundation.
Good leaders cultivate honest speech;
they love advisors who tell them the truth.
An intemperate leader wreaks havoc in lives;
you’re smart to stay clear of someone like that.
Good-tempered leaders invigorate lives;
they’re like spring rain and sunshine.
Get wisdom—it’s worth more than money;
choose insight over income every time.
The road of right living bypasses evil;
watch your step and save your life.
First pride, then the crash—
the bigger the ego, the harder the fall.
It’s better to live humbly among the poor
than to live it up among the rich and famous.
It pays to take life seriously;
things work out when you trust in God.
A wise person gets known for insight;
gracious words add to one’s reputation.
True intelligence is a spring of fresh water,
while fools sweat it out the hard way.
They make a lot of sense, these wise folks;
whenever they speak, their reputation increases.
Gracious speech is like clover honey—
good taste to the soul, quick energy for the body.
There’s a way that looks harmless enough;
look again—it leads straight to hell.
Appetite is an incentive to work;
hunger makes you work all the harder.
Mean people spread mean gossip;
their words smart and burn.
Troublemakers start fights;
gossips break up friendships.
Calloused climbers betray their very own friends;
they’d stab their own grandmothers in the back.
A shifty eye betrays an evil intention;
a clenched jaw signals trouble ahead.
Gray hair is a mark of distinction,
the award for a God-loyal life.
Moderation is better than muscle,
self-control better than political power.
Make your motions and cast your votes,
but God has the final say.

Peterson, E. H. (2003). The Message : The Bible in contemporary language (Pr 16:). Colorado Springs, Colo.: NavPress.

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You know the value of prayer: it is precious beyond all price. Never, never neglect it .

~Sir Thomas Buxton

Prayer is the first thing, the second thing, the third thing necessary to a minister. Pray, then, my dear brother: pray, pray, pray.

~ Edward Payson

Bounds, E. M. (1999). Power through prayer. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

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But above all he excelled in prayer. The inwardness and weight of his spirit, the reverence and solemnity of his address and behavior, and the fewness and fullness of his words have often struck even strangers with admiration as they used to reach others with consolation. The most awful, living, reverend frame I ever felt or beheld, I must say, was his prayer. And truly it was a testimony. He knew and lived nearer to the Lord than other men, for they that know him most will see most reason to approach him with reverence and fear.

~William Penn of George Fox

Bounds, E. M. (1999). Power through prayer. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

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I love how we name storms in Oklahoma. Our family "battled" the second wave of ICESTORM 2007 as we headed out to the movies to see Night at the Museum. As I left the theater, a young couple stopped me and asked if I had any jumper cables. He had left his car lights on and his battery was dead. I had just bought a set a few weeks ago that had not yet been opened. As I walked to the back of my truck, a jingle was still going through my head from a commercial during the previews.

An animated Coca Cola commercial caught my attention. It wasn't your grandfather's Coca-Cola's commercial. No people on the hill singing, "I'd like to teach the world to sing....". However, there was a familiar message: "You reap what you sow." You develop a reputation by what you sow. You reap it later and you reap more than what you originally sowed. I think about that fact everytime I drive by the acres of newly planted trees at the Deep Fork Tree Farm.

Philip Lovejoy tells the story of a grandfather, " I shall never forget a ride I had in the early days of 1955. A lumber merchant friend of mine drove me in a jeep up Mt. Cushman in Vermont. Near the tip of the mountain I noted some six-inch deciduous seedlings. I asked him when they would be good as lumber and he replied, “In the year 2015 A.D.” Since that was far beyond his span of years, I asked him why he had planted these trees and he replied, “Because my grandfather planted some on the other side of the mountain for me.”

It has been said that the best day to plant a tree is twenty years ago or today. What trees are you planting today?

"You give alitle love and it all comes back to you. You gonna be remembered for the things you say and do."

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The weathermen on all the local stations have just reported that the first of three waves of ice has passed through the state. The ground and roof-tops are as white as snow. With everything shut down, I figured it was a great time for me to wind down and do some reading. I just finished " The Bumps are What You Climb On" by Warren W. Wiersbe. I am always drawn to the topic of prayer. Living on the ranch, we get to see first hand the power of prayer. I was particularly drawn to one of the final chapters, Essentials of Prayer. Here is an excerpt:

Perhaps the most difficult problem in praying is the problem of delay. We tell God our needs, we trust Him to work, and yet nothing seems to be happening. God knows how and when to answer prayer. God's clock never needs winding or resetting-He always know what time it is. It has well been said, "God's delays are not God's denials." God's ways are not our ways, and He knows what is best.

As you determine to pray, start with the abiding and allow the Word of God to get into your heart and purify you. Then do the asking-tell God what is on your heart. Leave the matter with Him and He will take care of the answering in His good time.

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Look at my Tivo and you can tell that I live in a house full of females. Jack Baur, you are no longer held hostage by Rachael Rae and Paula Dean on the dvr. Bear Grylls has arrived! I have a new favorite TV Show: MAN vs. WILD. This is a guy that I wouldn't mind tagging along on my next hiking trip.

MAN vs. WILD is a guy's show if I ever saw one. Grylls puts himself in situations common to many sports or outdoorsman. He gets dropped off in a remote area with usually only the clothes that he is wearing and a knife. Great show! It is not the typical reality show. There is some great information on survival and rescue. Grylls speaks internationally. His motivational talks include leadership, teamwork, motivation, communication, inspiration.

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The Bumps are What You Climb On by Warren W. Wiersbe is a book that gives encouragement during difficult days. It's a great book that I found on Amazon. It is worth ordering. I got a used on for less than five bucks. They even highlighted the good parts for me at no extra charge.

Here is an excerpt from Chaper One:

"A little boy was leading his sister up a mountain path and the way was not too easy. 'Why, this isn't a path at all,' the girl complained. 'It's rocky and bumpy.' And her brother replied, 'Sure, the bumps are what you climb on.' That's a remarkable piece of philisophy. What do you do with the bumps on the path of life?

...On the road of life there are level places that delight us and there are difficult places that challange us. ...The bumps are what we climb on.

"He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him."

~Psalms 91:15

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