" O give thatnks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth forever." Ps 136.1

Has God ever been good to you? That is a question that would be impossible to say no to; for if we are still alive, and our souls and bodies are not being burned in utter torments of the most terrible caverns of hell, God has been good to us! As we are well aware, we have no power within ourselves to retain our souls. There is no power that we have to keep our souls from the lake of fire at any given moment in time. We are terribly corrupt, and utterly powerless to help ourselves. When we recognize this fact, we can certainly cry out as the Psalmist did; O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Let us be thankful though that God does not only take care of the eternal matters, but he also takes care of the temporal, or earthly matters as well. If God was not good at all times, if his mercy slumbered for just a moment, this life would be a literal hell on earth. God has been good to each and every one of us. His mercy is measureless, and his love is limitless. He does not have mercy for a span, but as this Psalm says, it endures for ever. Has there ever been a time in your life when you have recognized the mercy of God in your life? If so, his mercy, whether you realize it or not is just as real today as it ever was. When you endured some hardship, and God was there through it all, his mercy is the same today. When you lived in days of prosperity and peace, it was Gods mercy that took you there, and no matter what position you are in today the mercy of God has not changed. Oh let us give thanks!!

"...Surely I come quickly..." Rev. 22:20

We often times ponder the coming of our Lord, and we think of it as something in the future. We never read in scripture of his coming as being at some distant time, it is always spoken of as being imminent. We realize this but we rarely practise it. The days have been fulfilled, of which the Bible speaks of as being perilous times, we have seen evil men and seducers wax worse and worse. We can certainly see that these days cannot be much different than the days of Noah, where they were eating and drinking, and marrying, and giving in marriage until the flood came and swept them all away. Men today have left the God of heaven out of every conceivable aspect of their lives. God was kicked out of home long ago, and replaced with the television, computer, radio, and other vanities such as these. God was kicked out of the schools long ago, and his fear was replaced with the fear of everything else. God was kicked out of our personal lives when we got those careers that require more time than we have, so that we cannot meditate on God alone. God was kicked out of Churches, and replaced with programs to suit each one of the unregenerate congregations personal fancies. Certainly he is coming quickly. This is our hope, that the Lord will return and fix all this mess that man has monkeyed with, and got all monkeyed up. I used to go into an abandoned house when we first got married, and on the wall there hung a picture with the clouds parting, and it simply said "Perhaps Today". What a great reminder that is; "Perhaps".

" For the LORD'S portion is his people..." Deut. 32.9

The portion that we have in this life varies from person to person, some people have a large lot, they have all the money they can stand, they have the finest of clothes the nicest of vehicles, fanciest of houses; all that one may seem to desire. On the other hand there are others, whose portion it is to be in a meager house, with clothes sufficient to cover their back, they don't eat the finest of meals, their vehicles need constant work to keep them running. These things have been true throughout history, as we read in Ecclesiastes. It seems there is little we can do to effect our portion on this life; for, " there is that spendeth, and yet increaseth, and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, yet it tendeth to penury". Whatever our lot is we should be content therewith, yet always seek more, and better ways to please God with our lives, and our means. This passage does not say anything about our portion though, WE (the children of God) are HIS portion. As we should properly be content with our lot, God Almighty certainly is with his. He delights in us as his children. When we do things to dishonor him, he still delights in us. This blessedness does not come on us from any goodness of our own, but through the imputed righteousness of our Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ. What a grand thought, that we are Gods portion; what a grand responsibility, we are Gods portion. Our lives should be ever spent to the glory of God as we are his portion. When people look at us in this world, they see that we are all that God has on this earth. The whole creation has been corrupted by sin, and we, as his children are the only part of creation to this point that has been redeemed. Let us live up to our Lords pleasing, and make his, a glorious portion on this earth.

"... he himself knew what he would do." Jn 6:6

Have you ever come to a place in your life where you did not know what to do, which way to turn, or where to go? Certainly we all have. We will, from time to time come to these dilemmas in life. At such times as these faith must take over, and know that even though we don't know, he does. The disciples had come to this such place in our text, and were faced with problems too big for them to handle. The crowd was too great fro the resources they had, and they did not know if the town even had enough for them to go and buy, so they might all eat a little. It is at these times, when our Lord knows already what he is going to do; so we must flee to him, and ask him for his will, for his provision, for his guidance. These times, as frightening as they may be, are some of the most blessed times in our Christian pilgrimage. Had the disciples not been placed in this situation they never would have seen this mighty display of Gods power through his anointed, the Lord Jesus. Had they not been in this situation they would have never had their faith confirmed in such a grand manner as this. Here they stood, in the place of either showing through as true servants of the Living God, or as being counterfeits. They did not depend upon themselves in this situation, but on the Lord. The disciples were not aware of his plan, that he already had, but he was. When we find ourselves in a place as this, we can rise up on wings of faith, and believe that the God who formed the universe not only knows about tomorrow, but also knows what he will do. The Lord does not make hasty decisions, he has everything planned; so let us trust his leading knowing that "he himself (knows) what he (will) do.

"... whoso trusteth in the LORD, happy is he." Pro. 16:20

The source of all spirituality is based upon the single contingency of faith. We as the children of God should be well acquainted with faith, as it is the reason we enjoy the standing that we have with our creator. We through faith, are able not only to view God Almighty as our creator, as the rest of his creation does, but we are able to rise up and call him Father. Oh what a divine privilege is enjoyed by us, all because of faith. Were it not for our faith in the atoning blood of Christ, the wonderful grace of God that is explained with no better word than amazing would be of no effect to us. We who have experienced the grace of God in salvation have not done so upon a special merit of our own; but rather, it is predicated on faith in what he has done for us already. Where else but with our God do you find such profound simplicity? When we trust him we are saved, for when we trust him we are pleasing him. We find that it is an utter impossibility to please our God outside of the confines of faith. "Without faith it is impossible to please him..." Heb 11:6. The pleasure of God should be every child of his' delight as we live here below. How amazing though, that we find when we please him, he will give us more than salvation, but joy as well! Too often we think that we can find joy in the things of this world, with all of it's delights, and attractions that try to allure our souls. We must shrug off the world with all of it's passing fancies, and seek to please him who is above this world, and owns all that is contained within. We will find the word of God to be a sure foundation, and when we begin to trust him, we will find the joy we desire, to flow out of his bosom and fill us with all gladness.

"They that trust in the LORD shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever." Ps. 125

What a standing we are given when we put our trust in the proper place. There is no other nation, religion, tribe, ethnicity, or any other entity that can boast of such a claim. We are not promised that we will endure for a time; but rather that we will abide for ever. Often times we think of the Christian life as pure endurance, (which for some it certainly is) when, if our faith does not waiver from our heavenly Father, our life is a constant abiding with profound peace. We are able to abide with HIM!!! No power is able to shake us from his side. (Wow I am getting excited) The devil will unleash all of his furies against us, just as nature has against mount Zion for some 6,000 +/- years; and just as nature has never shaken mount Zion from it's foundations, Satan can never shake us from ours. This place where we abide is not in the vicinity of our God, but in his awesome presence. When we abide with him we can boldly say " If GOD be for us, who can be against us", and again, "the LORD is my helper I will not fear what man may do unto me". We who have trusted Jesus as our personal Saviour have promise of eternal life, we also have promise of eternal protection. We can know for sure that whatever may come, our Heavenly Father will always be there, and will never suffer the foot of the righteous to be removed. Where we put our trust is of utmost importance; if we trust government, it will fail. If we trust man, they will die. If we trust ourselves, we will be dismayed by our own weaknesses; but if we trust the LORD, he will never fail; if we trust the LORD, we will never fail.

"...the time is at hand." Rev 22:10

When we see all that is taking place in the world today, with Israel becoming a burdensome stone to all of the nations of the world. With evil men and seducers waxing worse and worse. With idolatry rising in all shapes and forms, and being accepted as what is respectable. Blasphemy spewing from the media of all types. Government placing wickedness before righteousness. Murder being exalted, and promoted as a personal choice, while the murderers receive special treatment from the state. Churches giving in, and accepting wickedness, even allowing it a platform upon which to stand. The Bible, which is our privilege to have and hold, being pushed out of all public arenas. (While our society would not even exist without it.) Pastors are giving in to the contemporary crowd, and bringing in rock bands to appease an unregenerate congregation. We (who still believe the truth) sometimes sit back and wonder how much longer it will be before the Lord returns, and takes vengeance on such a wicked place as we live in. Let us not despair, for the time surely is at hand. We must remember that wickedness and violence is nothing new to this world. Before our days were the times when you would be subject to be burned at the stake for holding to the truth of the word of God. Certainly these are wicked and dark days that we live in, but remember that Christians have always lived lives of adversity, and yet peace. There should be no doubt in our minds that the Lord will soon return, so let us be faithful, and diligent that we be found at all times serving him.

"...Lord, if thou wilt..." Mt 8:2

Is the Lord hindered by any power? Can anything stop him from performing that which he desires to see accomplished? Is there anything that he created that can withstand him, when his will is to be done? All the answers to these questions would certainly be an emphatic no. We are not engaged in some kind of tug of war between the forces of God, and the forces of the world and Satan. Let us remember at all times that he who created, also retains the power to control. When all things seem to be going awry, and it seems all hope is lost, we must remember that though the situation is out of our hands it is never out of his. This leper realized that the Lord was the only one who was able to give any kind of comfort to his dying body, and soul; so he made the right move. He did not go to try and get better on his own. Nor did he seek help from anybody else who was in his same case; but rather he sought at first opportunity to the Lord for his help. There is little we can do for our own selves, and not much more that anybody else can do for us, but we can always seek at once the Saviour and find him to be a help no matter what we face. This leper sought the Lord in the prescribed fashion, as he is pleased with and requires; that is in faith. There was no question as to whether or not the Lord could cleanse him, but rather would he be so kind as to be willing to cleanse him? Any honest person, when viewing the debauchery of their life, when seeking the Lord would be wise to make their request in the same fashion; " If thou wilt". What an amazing question the grace of God places within the mind; not a question of power, but of will, and as Fanny Crosby put it:
The vilest offender who truly believes
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives
Praise the Lord
Praise the Lord
Today he is willing.

"The name of the Lord is a stong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe." Pro 18:10

There is no safer place for us than under the protection, full faith and credit of the King of Heaven himself. Oh the thought that just his name is sufficient to make demons flee. His name is enough to summon the support of all the angels that do his bidding. His name alone holds the power to shake the foundations of heaven and earth. His name is enough to turn the impossible into done. What a wonderful name it is... Jesus. There is no other name that speaks comfort to the heart of the grieving, as does this name. There is no other name so universally recognized as a name of peace. His name is sufficient to calm fears, settle disputes, cure anxieties, and a myriad of other woes we face on this earth. It is so sad that while the name of Jesus does and can do all these things, it is also the most universally hated names as well. Every day it seems as if the devil finds another new way to blaspheme the wonderful name by which we are called. His munitions would attempt to destroy all credibility associated with the name of Christ, but we may be sure that his attempts will fail at length. Let us, who are chosen of God in salvation, find all comfort in the lovely name of Jesus. Let us run into the strong tower as soon as the sleep is gone from our eyes, and be found in the fight against all spiritual wickedness within the safety of this strong tower. We need this strong tower, for we never want to meet the devil on his own turf. Let us rise above the fray and fight. With how great the name of Jesus is, let us pause to reflect upon Ps 138:2 "... thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name."

"... great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend." Job 37:5

What is God doing? We often find ourselves asking this question because we simply do not know. We are all too often reminded that "his ways are not our ways" and that he is higher, holier, and far wiser than the best specimen we can provide him. God is not answerable to any of us, no matter what we may think, he does not have to explain himself to us under any circumstances. Gods sovereignty is a difficult thing for our proud flesh to cope with much of the time, but we must tame ourselves, and realize that when we do not know what he is doing, he still does. How many times has it been that God was up to something, and we were questioning and complaining; while the whole time it was working out to our benefit? The great thing about God is that he does great things! He is unlimited in his resources, unmatched in his power, and unrelenting in his will; so when he does something it will always be great. When we view the finished product of the Lord we can always stand in awe, and cry out "what hath God wrought", for it will be beyond comprehension, and explanation. Let us not grow weary when we do not understand the way God is moving, and think that he is plotting against us; for he loves us. We must be keenly aware of the fact that there is no power that we hold to stay his hand, and if he were to desire our destruction he could do it in a moment, without any constraint. How great it is though, that he is not doing that; but rather is working "all things together for good to them that love God".

"...Deal courageously, and the Lord shall be with the good." 2Chron. 19:11

This is a statement we need to remember on a daily basis. We are going to face trials, heartaches, storms, problems,fears, doubts, whatever may come our way; and there are always two ways to handle any situation we will ever face; a right way, and a wrong way. Many times we will have something come up that it will be much easier; and cost us much less heartache, pain, or time to simply turn and run from our situation, but we may be here as Esther "for such a time as this". Often the circumstances we face are brought on by our own decisions, so at these times it would be cowardly, and possibly even immoral (certainly showing a lack of character) to try and evade these situations. There are other times though that due to no fault of our own, a trial will appear on hand for us, that we may sit in awe of it as did Job of his trial. No matter what the reason is behind what we face, whether it be of our own fault, or if it be just the providence of the Almighty bringing things to fruition, we must always remember deal courageously, and let the Lord sort things out. It will take courage to handle life in the way that God would have you to handle it, for at these times we are no longer walking by sight, but rather by faith. Not into the unknown, but rather into the unseen. This is a place the flesh does not like to go, our flesh likes to keep a clear line of sight wherever it chances to trod, but the Spirit is at rest when we are walking by faith. We need not cower and run from the storms of life, but " deal courageously", for " the Lord shall be with with the good."

" I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly." Pro. 5:14

We must beware where we feel the safest; for often this is the devils most fertile soil. We tend to think that there is safety in numbers, but as we review scripture we find the opposite often to be true. Elijah we find protected while all alone in the midst of enemy territory, we see most all of the prophets had a lonely road to walk. Typically we will have to obtain the Kingdom all by ourselves, and have few or no familiar friends to enjoy the pilgrimage with us. Solomon realised, that when he felt the safest in the flesh; in the midst of the assembly, he was really in the most danger he could ever face. It is true that there looms many perils within congregations, and there is no protection guaranteed by God just because we are in a congregation, for " though hand join in hand, they shall not be unpunished." There are many places, and groups where we as people flee for protection, and feel as if we are somehow more safe. We must not think ourselves to be safe just because of any group we are a part of, for this is where all evil is found. We see today how many are joining hands on some sort of common ground, but their common ground is shifting sand, and soon they will fall. We must beware that we unite only so far as the word of God allows, and unite upon the similar beliefs of the word. We must never unite simply to be united; for we shall soon find that there is all evil lurking in the shadows of the assembly. There certainly is a time to unite, but just as certainly as this, there is also a time to "come out from among them". Let us be wary, that we be not ensnared in all evil, simply to be a part of an assembly.

" I am this day weak, though anointed..." 2 Sam 3:39

This stands as an open reminder to all who serve the Lord in places of authority that there come times when, though we may be anointed we will sometimes grow weak. The great King David at this moment had done nothing amiss, he had committed no open and egregious sin against the Holy One of Israel, but he was still weak. There are times we grow weak for various reasons, sometimes; as was the case here, there will be others under your authority who will commit some act contrary to your guidance, and this will weaken your hands and spirit. There are other times when you will misstep, and move in a direction that God did not direct you to move in, and this will weaken your hands adn spirit. Many are the ways that our hands and spirit will grow weak; and for these we must carefully watch. We can be sure that even when our hands or spirit grow weak, that God is still God, he is in control and will perfect that which concerneth us. Just because we are weak is no need for despair, for we are still anointed. God still has a job for us to do, and we still must do it. What an opportunity for some dear saint, who thinks their life to be useless, to find their job to pray for the anointed of the Lord. Whenever we see the anointed of God growing weak or weary in their service for their Great Master, it is our responsibility, yea privilege to pray without ceasing for the precious worker of God. There will be no benefit to us, for the anointed to be too weak to carry on their service for God, so I implore you to pray for strength for the servant of God. These times come; there is likely nothing we can do to prevent them; but we can certainly shorten their life span, and deaden their effects by praying for the anointed of the Lord. How long has it been since you prayed for your Pastor?

"There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken... all came to pass." Josh. 21:45

Isn't it so wonderful that the Lord keeps his promises? He has never yet failed; not even one single time in even the smallest of matters. We need not worry that he ever will fail us at any time to come. God is faithful; and his faithfulness, thank God, is not based on any contingency. There are times in our lives where we will mess everything up, and go the wrong direction, but God will not under any circumstances ever leave us or forsake us. If God were ever to get in the forsaking business, even the most holiest of saints would be in a great deal of trouble, because not any one of us deserves his goodness toward us. Israel had certainly been through some high mountains, and some low valleys, they had heard the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, and they had danced naked around a golden calf; but God still did what he said he would do. We too may experience times in our lives where the devil will take us, and hang us out to dry, and leave us half dead for hells buzzards to pick out our eyes, but we need not worry, for God still no matter what you have done, or where you have been will keep his word. We may feel lonely and forsaken during our brief sojourn here, it may even seem as if there will never come a brighter day where the sunshine of Gods love will shine through, but fret not, we must; for God will not; yea cannot fail! One day when we get to heaven, and can see all things clearly, and remove this darkened glass that we must needs look through at this time, we will certainly be able to say at time that there has failed not ought of any good thing he has promised.
"That soul though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I'll never , no never, no never forsake."

"And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the Lord..." Ex 16:7

What a wonderful time the morning is. This is the time when it seems as if all the creation is waking from it's season of rest, and giving it's thanks to the great Creator. This is when the birds are beginning to find their highest perches, and singing their loudest praises. This is the time when the flowers of the field are putting all of their energy into being the most colorful, and beautiful that they can be. This is the time when the sun comes racing forth in all of it's glory, and the rest of the sky joins in the act, and brings out all of it's brilliant hues that it can muster; all as if saying "thank you Lord for this another day". What a grand time for mankind to bask in the time of the morning, there can be no pride when we view the creation shooting forth it's great magnificence. This is a time when all we, as man can do is enjoy, for there is no power in us to change the face of the sky, there is no power in us to make the birds keep their silence, or the flowers hide their beauty. I truly pity the man who remains in bed so long as to miss this great display every morning. It is our grand privilege to see this great display daily. How great this promise in our text was, "in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the Lord" if we had this promise we could face the darkest of nights, and be sure that all would soon be over, and we would be at peace and rest. We could endure the deepest of trials, the stormiest of weather, the most painful of affliction, for it is only for a short season. Friend,take heart; every word of God is profitable for us today, this verse stands as sure today as it ever did. We can always rest assured that whenever a night comes upon us; no matter what we may face through night the morning comes swift and sure; and truly in the morning we shall the glory of the Lord!

"... then began men to call upon the name of the Lord." Gen 4:26

What a wonderful day this was, when of men, it was able be said that they called upon the name of the Lord. Often times we think that men long ago were the most pious, and religious there ever were; but we find this not to be so. Mankind had only been on the earth for a very short period of time when men had fallen away from their Creator. It would seem that while Adam was walking the earth himself, that, for the most part men would have acknowledged their Creator. But alas we find Cain to have quickly fallen out of presence, and fellowship with God. Whenever a person, no matter what their upbringing, is taken away from the presence of God it will certainly follow that they will very soon leave the his fellowship, and fall into whatever sinful vices, the naturally sinful state leads them. How soon we see that not only the sinful line of Cain had fallen from God, but also the Godly line of Adam had also been drawn away from his God. We look, and say "why would Adam have fallen away from God?" but we must remember that "the natural man receiveth not the things of God"(1 Cor 2:14). Our sinful nature cannot be tamed by the wisest of mens devices. We have been able to tame lions, tigers, whales, and all other sorts of wild beasts, but nobody has ever been able to tame the natural state within themselves that tends toward sin. How great the grace of God is though; even though we are not able to do better on our own, we can have; not the natural state tamed, but actually defeated by the blood of Christ. What a glorious thought that no matter how sinful, and rebellious we are, all we must do is call upon the name of the Lord. This was a day to be much celebrated, and remembered, for this was the day when men called on the name of the Lord; will it be so for you today?

How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! Ps 84:1

What a wondrous place: to be in the presence of Almighty God! This place so near to our blessed Lord is not a place of contention and strife. It is not a place of bitter envying, and evil surmisings; but rather a place of pleasantness, and peacefulness. Oh, to dwell in the place where Gods presence is real. Often times we have a supposed presence, but not the real thing. When there are strifes, and carnality at work we can be sure that this is not where the true presence of Almighty God is to be found. When brethren dwell together in unity there is a peace that is there, and then we can expect for our Lord to show up. Often times we read "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. Mt 18:20" but we fail to understand that we must be gathered together in His name. It truly is sad when we see those who will come to Church, not to worship the Lord; but to cause problems. There have been good services despite these peoples presence, but we must remember that the tabernacle (dwelling place) of the Lord of hosts is amiable! The Psalmist (likely Obed- Edom) had learned to love and bask in the tabernacle of God. He loved it because it was a place of peace and rest. It was a place where he could go, and escape all the problems of this life. He could go there and not have to hear an unkind word being harshly spoken. He could go there and see all of the wonderful types of Christ being portrayed before his eyes. Should we not today be able to experience the same ecstasy when we enter into the Church of the Living God? We may not see all of the types, as did the Psalmist, but we can go and hear about the work that was finished on the Cross for us, thus removing the types, and replacing them with the real image! What a wonderful place to be, what an awesome privilege to be there, let us not forsake it as we see the day approaching.

"...remember the Lord..." Neh 4:14

When the remnant of Israel began to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem they were met with opposition from the heathen who sought their destruction. Here, Nehemiah is trying to encourage them not to give in; the fight has begun, and it is time to dig in your heals and fight until total victory is proclaimed. The best source of encouragement we have in this world is at the remembrance of our Lord, dear Christian. We too have a fight on our hands, and it is not a fleshly one. We must be victorious, and never accept defeat from the enemy. The Lord is able to overcome any obstacle, or opposition that we will ever face, we must take heart and remember him. This has been the plea through the ages when the enemy has begun advancing his wicked forces, "remember the Lord". When we remember him it seems as though all the other problems around us begin to vanish into the the clouds, and there is nothing we cannot face if he is by our side. Alas though; we live so much of our time here in constant forgetfulness of all he has done for us. It seems that when the enemy attacks, all the days spent in the sunshine leave us and our memory is destroyed. It is at these times, even if we must force ourselves, we must "remember the Lord". There is no defeat on the Lords side of the battle, remember all the times he has taken you through the dark valleys, the dangerous woods, the lonely wildernesses; at these times while he walked with you, were these not the best times of your life? The Lord is able to handle all that you will face; so remember him today, and take courage and face whatever may come!

" Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee." Cant. 4:7

What a wonderful exchange is taking place here between the bride and bridegroom. This is one of the most beautiful and intimate love stories ever written, truly it should be so. How we could lay all of the most beautiful, loving, kind and caring words we could smother our blessed redeemer with! He certainly deserves the fairest of the fair words our language, and vocabulary could afford to be placed on him, for he is worthy! How wonderful the grace of God is, he loves us while we are yet unlovely, and cares for us while we are yet dead in trespasses and sins. He deserves all the flowery titles we could place on him, and there is no good title undeserved to be placed on him. We could cry out at all times "Thou art all fair, my love!" and would never be in error. But wait; this passage is the Bridegroom speaking to the Bride!!! Oh how amazing that he would say such things about us: unworthy, unholy, profane, vile, dirty, wicked, sinful vagabonds and beasts! What a wondrous thought it is that when our Lord whose name is Holy and Reverend, views us he sees us as "all fair". When he views us he does not see how vile and pathetic our lives are, he sees us in total, and utter perfection, and righteousness. He does not overlook our faults, he actually places (imputes) his perfect righteousness on us. This righteousness is far greater than our filthy rags, and it is freely given us, through the price he paid for our souls. Oh how wonderful he sees us as spotless, holy, pure, white, clean, righteous. Whatever title we can place on him, he actually places on us!!!
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound!!!!

"...and limited the Holy One of Israel." Ps78:41

What a sad statement for the Children of God; to limit their Heavenly Father! We see how Israel had all their needs met while in Egypt; then God pulls them from the furnace of affliction with a mighty hand, through the death of the firstborn and the sprinkling of blood. Then the people begin to murmur against God and Moses, and he tells them they will stay in the wilderness for 40 years until the whole generation is dead. While they are in the wilderness though, God takes wonderful care of them, so that nobody in 40 years starves to death in the wilderness! (That in itself is an unmatched feat of accomplishment.) But during all this time of God taking wonderful care of his people they still try to limit him. Why would the people of God try to limit him? We still see the same thing taking place in the world today, so many of the children of God have been miraculously provided for, yet they still say they cannot do what the Lord would have them to do. We must never be caught in this trap that the devil has laid for us. The Lord Jesus himself said that "with God nothing shall be impossible" and with that promise we can stretch out over the hottest flames of hell and be sure that God will not ever, under any circumstances fail us. What is it that the Lord would have you to do? don't limit him, whatever you do! If God wants it done he already has the resources needed to get it done. We can trust him, for his storehouse is full, and unlimited; and his grace is always sufficient. The cause of failure has never been his fault, but always because we limited him! Think about this, and see if you are limiting Him; if so, stop.

"What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?" Lk 24:16

What manner of communications have you today? These disciples walking on this fateful journey were discouraged, and sad; how is it with you? As they walked along this road they discussed the recent events that had taken place in Jerusalem, they were not conversing about how the shedding of blood had just taken place, and now they have an eternal salvation and remission of sins, instead they were sad! The most important events of all history had just taken place, God himself became a man and bore the sins of mankind on the cross, and now he was come back from the dead justifying the faith of all those who trust in him; but the disciples are sad. Friend, understand without a shadow of a doubt, that when our faith grows weak concerning the resurrection of our Blessed Redeemer, we will be in despair. " If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable" 1 Cor. 15:19. The resurrection is the very bedrock of our faith, and salvation. These disciples had not quite gotten the full concept of this principle yet, and therefore they were sad. They had been told that Mary had been to the tomb and saw the Angels and even got to see Christ briefly, and how Peter and John had a footrace down there and saw the stone rolled away and the body gone, but they were not sure what to make of these reports. What a wonderful opportunity we have at this season, as our hearts and minds tend to linger around the resurrection, to study it out, study it well, and gain all the insight and faith we need to carry us on in this life. We can be sure that our peace and joy both revolve around this wonderful subject, and we would be well advised to learn and love this subject, for wihtin it is the very key to salvation!

"I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth." Ps 34:1

The setting of this Psalm takes place at a rather difficult time in Davids life: when he changed his behaviour before Abimelech; who drove him away, and he departed. David was in a great problem, Saul was seeking to kill him, and everywhere he turned Saul and his army were there. So David in his haste flees to a very strange place; Gath!!! That may not stick out to you until you remember where Goliath was from. So This is a pretty dumb move on Davids part to flee to the enemies territory. We often find though that God will suffer his chosen to be afflicted, but he would not allow them to be harmed. David upon realizing how desperate of a situation he was in works wisely to get out of the problem, and once removed penned this Psalm. We too will learn the praises of the Most High not through times of comfort and ease, but almost exclusively through troubles. We must understand that our God is not working only when we can see his leading, and feel the touch of his hand; but also through the dark times, when the demons of the night are surrounding our souls and hells hounds seem to be barking at our heels. We need at these times to lift up a song of praise, for these are the times when our soul needs most to praise our Great Redeemer. These are also the times when those around you will be most influenced by your praise as well. God wants to hear your praise; will you dedicate yourself that no matter what the situation is you face ( ease, adversity, indifference) that you will be found praising him?

"... give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully."

Oh how we must at all times be so wary! If we do not watch and mark well all of our steps, we will so quickly bring reproach to that Holy name by which we have been saved. The adversary is waiting, and lurking at all places, hoping, yea trying to get us to slip. We must give him no occasion to speak reproachfully. Satan and his forces in this world are going to say many grievous and hurtful things about us and our Saviour, let us never let there be any truth to what he assaults us with. We probably all know how terrible it feels when one lies about us; but what is many times worse is when there is truth to what they say! How can we dodge those arrows that are hurled at us, no matter how mean spirited they may be, when they are are burning with the flames of truth. The devil is marking your steps; when you slip secretly, he will make an open show publicly about it. We have quite a job ahead of us to never give him an opportunity to speak the truth of our faults, but the good news is that he that is in you is still greater than he that is in the world.(1Jn.4:4) If God would ask us to do a task, no matter how big or how small, he will always give us the strength to perform it. We must carefully, and prayerfully seek Gods face and strength daily, to guide us, so that we never would give the adversary any occasion. If we are counted worthy to suffer reproach for the cause of Christ we can count ourselves happy and blessed, but if it be for our own faults how damnable a curse this is!

"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and my song;he also is become my salvation."Isa12:2

Mark dear christian friend where your salvation comes from. We know that it is not the works of our own hands that have redeemed us to our Great Heavenly Father, nor is it the merits of any from our lineage. Our salvation is wholly by grace as we are all well aware of. But where did grace come from? In this world we find no grace, and a very limited mercy coming from the hands of the inhabitants hereof. Grace is wholly found in God; it is impossible for us to view God and not be consumed with grace. Faith is the vehicle by which we receive this grace, but were it not for God being so true we would never have reason for faith, therefore faith is also of God alone! Once we receive this salvation by grace through faith how are we to conduct ourselves? Again it is through God; for Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word. (Rom 10:17) And again for the just (justified) shall live by faith.(Heb 10:38) Remember well, that faith, hope and charity are all the spiritual gifts we have today, and all of us have them all! What was Isaiah going to do? He would "not be afraid" for "perfect love casteth out fear"(1 Jn 4:18). Friend what have we to fear with God as the whole substance and sum of our salvation? We never need spend another night fretting whether hell would be our retribution were we to depart this life. We need never fear that God would cast us out, for we can point only to him for our redemption. We can have the boldness of leviathan, and mock at fear; for "if God be for us who can be against us?" (Rom 8:31) and we can praise from the highest places, for God himself is our salvation, and not we ourselves!

"What fruit had ye then in those things...?" Rom 6:21

Often times we need to be reminded of what this simple question points out to us. The fruit that we had while yet in sin was it ever sweet? We may say yes in a moment of carnality; but when we will take a step back and analyze the harvest we will realize how bitter the fruits of sin truly are. The drunkard while in a drunken stupor will say that he is having the best time of his life; but when he wakes in the morning he will say " They have stricken me...and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again." Pro. 23:35. Oh the deceptiveness of sin, how it will tell us that it is enjoyable; yet we see not that it is but for a season. It is so sad to see the drug addict who thinks that everything is just fine, and they disdain any help that is offered. We can see so clearly that the poison they are putting into their body is going to be their destruction, but they seem oblivious to it! Let us also beware lest we fall into the same trap, and the same bitter end as they. You say, I would never think of touching any type of illegal substance. Aye tis' true my brethren, but would you ever be willing to harbor the poison of bitterness within? The little foxes were the ones that destroyed the vines! How shall we escape this damnable beast of sin? Take a good long hard look at the fruits. If there is something in your life causing contention, bitterness, anger, strife, unrest, carnality, or anything else contrary to the will of God, be sure that at the root of the matter is sin. We can look back on our lives and see the debauchery of sin prior to our salvation; why not look at our lives today, and be sure that we no longer harbor any of those same fruits today?

"...so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks." Acts 19:10

Paul had an earnest desire to preach the gospel, and this is just another example of that truth. It took him 2 years but after much work was done, the Spirit of God was able to say that all the people in Asia had no right to burn in hell. What an amazing statement this is! I don't know how many people were living in Asia at that time, but I am sure that this was not an easy task. Often times we see our job that God has given us to do and we shrink back, and think, there is no way that I will ever be able to do this. We must remember that we have the same empowerment that Paul had when all of Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus. Today we have a much better ability to reach many more people, in a much shorter amount of time with the technology of the day. With radio broadcasts, the Internet, printed materials; we are so blessed. Today a missionary can get on an airplane and be halfway around the world within 24 hours, where it used to be a great feat to go to some foreign land. Today we can get in our air conditioned automobiles and travel all around town, rather than walking, or riding a horse, or some other primitive mode of transportation. Sad to say though, I cannot say that the whole town where I live has heard the word of the Lord Jesus. Living in America we tend to think all people have heard; but they have not. I am always amazed at how many people have never heard the plain and simple gospel when I share it with them, sometimes they will say "I never knew that it was so easy". It is going to be a sad day at the Judgement seat of Christ when he reminds us "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required..."Lk 12:48. Let us settle it therefore in our hearts that we will not fail at this great job we have ahead of us. Let us use all the resources God gives us, and accomplish our task.

"Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter." Jn 13:7

Friend what is your situation today, does it seem hopeless? Remember the words of the text. There is much about the operation of God in our lives that we simply do not know. Today we do not see face to face clearly, but one day we will. Many times we will go through some sort of a trial, while the whole time we are looking every direction we can, we look up, down, forward, back, side to side; and never can perceive what is the purpose, at these times can't we just hear the Lord say "thou knowest not now". We all know that his ways are not our ways and his thoughts are not our thoughts(Isa 55:8), but we still tend to question this when in trouble. What a great wonder it is that the Lord in his wisdom and mercy will not let us know all that is taking place at any given time; for were we to know, we would no doubt still try to question why. When Christian was going through the Valley of Humiliation and Death it was a great mercy that he passed through at night when the visions of the terrible beasts were blocked from view, else he would have no doubt turned back. That is certainly the case with us sometimes, periodically we need to go through a season in the night where the way is dark and lonely, and we do not know what is going on, for if we knew we would be scared out of our wits. Oh the great thought though, one day we will know the purpose of our trials, one day we will see that his way was always the best. One day we will see the dangers that lay on either side of the path of our pilgrimage. What a day that will be when we are able to know these things "hereafter", we will certainly fall down at this feet with a shout of thanks and a great hymn of praise. Friend, mark his words and rejoice that even when we do not know what he is doing now, he does!

"...they see Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship: and they were afraid." Jn 6:19

It was a sad day when the disciples saw their blessed Lord coming to their aid, and fears were raised in their hearts and minds. They had been sent out by the Lord to cross to the other side, and in the middle of the sea; in the middle of the night, when they had gotten to where there was no sight of land where they came from or where they were going, he came to them. These twenty five or thirty furlongs would have been around 3 1/2 miles into the sea in a storm, on a clear day you can only see about 4 miles from land. The disciples were not rebuked for their lack of faith on this occasion however, but they did learn an important lesson; and became a wonderful type for us. How true it is that we so often get sent out on a mission from the Lord that seems rather reasonable, but once we get to the point of no return the sea begins to swell and hope begins to fade. We will typically find that when we get this far out on the limb as it were, that is when the Lord himself will step in to come to our aid and rescue. Lord help us that we will not do as is so common; just as the disciples grew fearful, often times we do as well, when the Lord shows up on the scene after a season of trouble. When he shows up we can be sure that what we have been striving for for so long is just at hand. Many times I fear that when we see him though, we tend to pull back, rather than rejoice that our help has arrived. Have you prayed for something? When it happens don't fear, keep your eyes on the goal. The devil is the one who tries to get us to fear the coming of our Lord. Remember he is coming as our help, not our adversary, so allow him to work.

"... He hath done all things well..." Mk 8:37

Oh how we all could say an emphatic amen to that statement. How many times has it been that we were in the midst of some trial that it seemed would never end, and it seemed to have no purpose; but at last we came through and saw that the Lord was working all the way through the storm. That may be your case today; in the heat of a battle, or in the midst of a great storm; don't forget all the other times where the Lord even Jesus has taken you through and turned the devils trials into the Christians blessing. There have been cases in my life personally that things just did not make sense at the time, but in the end I could certainly say "He hath done all things well." Remember young Esther when she was taken (with or without her consent we do not know) and brought to the beauty pageant for the King; all things probably seemed wrong, but at last the good hand of God showed through and she knew that she was there for "such a time as this". Maybe as is the case with our son, you have an ailment that is going to seem to hinder you; NO do not allow it, despise the notion, for when we are weak then are we strong! Remember that the Lord has a reason for all things, and he does not make any mistakes! These people praised God when they saw his miracle of making the deaf to hear and the blind to see; but before they could be healed they first had to be infirmed. That could be where you are today, so just count the infirmity as the beginning stages of a miracle. Whatever your position is use it as an opportunity to give praise to God. Are you in health? Praise God. Are you distressed? Praise God. Are you at the point of exasperation? Praise God, for he has put you there.Praising God is our duty as humans, never mind as Christians. H.G. Spafford realized this in the midst of the deepest despair and penned the words:
"When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll,
Whatever my lot thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul".
Today can you mount up on wings of faith and cry out "He hath done ALL things well."?

"...for his word was with power." Lk. 4:32

What awesome power is found in the words of Christ! The words that fell from the lips of the lowly Galilean were never words of eloquence so great that only a mastermind could understand what was being said. Contrariwise he used plain, everyday words to convey his message of salvation, so that the simpletons and even little children could perceive what he meant. How amazing, and sad it is; that the wise and prudent tried to look into what he was saying rather than simply accepting it, they seemed oblivious to his teaching. Today the same is so true, many people cannot get a grasp on the Gospel message; not due to a lack of education on their part, nor due to a lack of clarity on the Preachers part, but simply for the fact they won't accept the power of the message. The Pharisees were a very religious and highly educated people, but would not receive the power that came in the message of God, therefore they "erred". No matter the level of intelligence, the Gospel is ample to save, simple to understand, while yet being powerful enough to confound. What gave Jesus power in his words more than any other person in his day? Certainly humanly speaking the religious crowd had far more and better education, and would be more qualified to teach the people. What Jesus had though was a correct interpretation of what was already implanted in the hearts of the people, and found in the scpirtures. Today we need not have a high degree, or be trained by the finest of educators; what we need is some good old fashioned Bible without all the other frills attached. Common people have always responded well to plain Bible teaching and preaching, religious folks have always bucked at the authority of God and therefore have never liked Bible teaching. Make it you goal to never buck at the word of God, because he who speaks it is speaking as Jesus with "power".

"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!" Ps. 133:1

Will there be any quarrels in heaven? I can hardly imagine that there would be any who would be obstinate enough to say yes! Living here as strangers and pilgrims we sometimes tend to lose our patience with those whom we are sojourning with, but we must beware for our adversary knows this is a weakness, and will try to use it against us. Many times while in the heat of our anger it is well justified, but after the flames of rage have cooled some we see that there really was no need to be so vehement. In times like these we need always to slow down, the Devil likes to get us to drive furiously as Jehu. When I speak to men in jail, many of them will say that things just happened so fast they seemed like they had no control. It was not customary for them to do some of the acts of violence they did, but alas the Devil was able to transcend reason and get them to work out of rage. Even the holiest of saints is subject to the adversaries attacks, so beware Christian the "wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God." What a blessed time we may enjoy in sweet fellowship with those we call brethren; we should strive to never let that fellowship be destroyed under any circumstances. How good it is when a Church is operating properly, and those within are in unity, not with family only; but as the body of Christ. Let the time on this earth prepare us for the time we will spend at our Blessed Redeemers feet, and learn how to dwell together here; today. We all understand that there are many things that will be far different when we reach glory, but let this not be one of them. Someone has once said
"To live above with saints we love,
Oh that will be glory;
But to live below with saints we know,
Well that's another story."
Do we not seek rest; seek unity. The rest we seek that is found in Christ, is very intricately tied to the peace we have with one another. Do you have a quarrel today? Why not resolve it before the sun sets tonight?

"It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes" Ps. 119:71

Often times while we are in the midst of affliction it is our cry to our Heavenly Father that He would remove the affliction from us. That is what makes this such a profound statement; "It is good for me that I have been afflicted". History tells us the author of Psalm 119 was Ezra, no doubt living in Babylonian captivity was a very trying experience for any child of God, that had set himself to seek and know the God of his fathers. After 70 years of Babylonian captivity there were probably many who had forgotten the God of their fathers, and that would be lonely for Ezra. It is a sad day when the children of God forget their own Father. Alas; it is so though,and many times we will have no companion like Faithful along the road to the celestial city, but although we walk alone we still must walk. At these times of trial don't give up, if the Lord has put you there, he will always know where you are. The most beautiful diamond the world has ever seen started out as a lump of coal that was put under tremendous pressure for an extended period of time. The troubles that you face as a believer are by a certain design of your Father, so don't lose heart when everything is going awry, remember "it is good". Ezra learned a great deal of respect for the word of God in the midst of affliction, so much to even call it his lamp and light in the weariness of this world. Many times this trying is just what we need to wake us up , and renew that desire within us for the word of God. Often times it is in the midst of trials that we will learn the statutes, or ways of God far better than in times of ease, for in the midst of trials we can see clearly the faithfulness of our Father, and know that every move he makes is all because he loves us. Whatever trial you may face, weary pilgrim, take courage for; "we know that all things work together for good..." (Rom 8:28)

Mic. 6:7 "Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?"

What due can we render to the Lord Almighty for our sins? All that has ever proceeded from our bodies has been defiled by the inherent sin of humankind. The sin that we view as most treacherous, in all reality came directly from our wicked sinful heart. The transgression of Gods holy law, has been the separating force that has withdrawn us from his blessed presence. The righteousness that we claim as our own will be to no avail as it is tainted by the leprosy of our sin. When we view that righteousness, as God sees it, we can realize, that, it is the force that is actually keeping us from him. Naaman the leper found that his awful disease was ruining his life, and ran to the man of God for his cure. There is where we will find healing as well; for "faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word"(Rom. 10:17) and "how shall they hear without a preacher"(Rom. 10:14). Would God be satisfied with the sacrifice of our body... an emphatic no should be heard. Can we render ourselves as servants to God in such a sinful state... once again no! The lepers in Israel were placed without the camp where the presence of God was, so as not to defile his elect. True today, spiritually, there is a line of demarcation between the saved and lost, they cannot enter into the congregation of the Lord without first having been cleansed. What a grand privilege to be cleansed from such a terrible disease! Where did it come from, not from any fruit of our body, but in the work of our great high priest Jesus. Thank God today Christian that the fruit of our body is not required of us, but the blood of his was sufficient to wash, cleanse, and purify us when he "bare our sins in his body on the tree"(1Pet 2:24). There is no greater thought to me than that all my sins were laid on him and I shall not owe any price for the sins of my soul.
"My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought,
My sin not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to his cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord oh my soul."

"Neither will I hide my face any more from them..." Eze. 39:29

What a most glorious thought this is to think about, dear Christian friend; that God will no longer hide his face from us. A grand sentence from the lips of our divine King, to remind us of just how far his grace is carried forth. Today we live in the world as strangers and pilgrims, weary and worn we often attempt to look for the face of our King but alas it is hidden from us. It is not due to a lack of compassion or grace on our Lords part, but due to the presence of sin on ours that his face is at times hidden from us. He has said that his hand is not shortened nor his ear heavy but due to our sins he has separated from us(Isa 59:1). We can be certain that the lack of Gods presence in our lives is solely due to our infirmities, and not his lack of mercies, which are new every morning. Dear friend this is why a constant state of wariness of sin is so vital. We must watch for sin, as the deer in the woods watches for the predator, as it will destroy our bodies and damn our souls. Our God has never yet blessed sin, so we must remove it. Also if we are to see the face of God we must have a righteousness far more superior than our filthy rags, and be found in him. Just as Moses when he made his ambitious request must have been placed in the cleft of the Rock, so must we. For it is only from thence that we shall see his glory. Truly Christ is the Chief and Cornerstone that we must stand on throughout our entire pilgrimage here. How is it today, would Christ truly be pleased with you, if not, why not now claim 1 John 1:9 and then draw nigh to him(Jas 4:8). God desires for you to have the grand privilege of his face shining on you will you then fulfil his joy?