Praise the Lord for this new day. Praise the Lord for the garb of Spring, truly a wonderful gift from the Lord. The Lilacs are blooming, the Honeysuckles are in full bloom. The trees are green. Our Lord makes His creation beautiful. He is more than Wonderful.
Those who live in the area join this evening for our Television outreach at 7 PM on Time Warner Channel 4. We will gather tomorrow for the banquet and concert tomorrow, beginning at 6 PM. Sunday is Mother's Day. Praise the Lord for the gift of moms, and for the gift of home.
I am reading from the book of Judges this morning. In chapters 6 and 7 we find the familiar story of Gideon, whom God called “a mighty man of valor”. His story is almost unbelievable simply because Gideon was not a warrior or a great military commander. He was simply a farmer who was hiding his wheat crop from the Midianites who had conquered Israel. He was hiding behind a winepress while threshing his wheat when the angel of the Lord came to him.
When the Lord called Gideon, he was not prepared to take the reigns of authority, commanding an army. He was leading a simple life, existing from day to day as God provided him the means to do so. He just went about his daily routine, plowing, planting, and harvesting. He never once thought of becoming a deliverer of his people.
In his own eyes Gideon was less than nothing. He had no power within himself, no knowledge of warfare and tactics, no education in the use of weaponry, and no ability to lead men into battle. In other words, he was just a common citizen trying to make it the best way he knew how. But God saw something in this man Gideon that no one else could see!
God saw that Gideon was nothing in his own eyes, as well as in the eyes of other men. Gideon was the least likely of all his brethren. Even he said that he was the least among his tribe, the Tribe of Manasseh, and that his family was poor even among that small, poor tribe.
I am reminded of the words of Paul to the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29, "For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence."
God’s view of who is useful to his Kingdom is so very different from our own! We may look for those who have talent or those who are influential. We may look for those who are great orators or those of high education. We look for those whom everyone would call, “beautiful people”, because we think that somehow the fleshly appearance and ability will draw crowds or bring down the Spirit of God in some special way. God doesn’t look for what we look for in those that he will use. God looks for a willing vessel but, more than that, God looks for that willing vessel that is broken and powerless without him.
I like what Tommy Tenney says in his book God’s Eye View, “Less is Better and Nothing is Best.” What he is saying is that God will only use those vessels that are powerless to take any credit for what God wants to do through their lives. God will wait and allow us to drain all of our resources, use up all of our abilities, exhaust our strength, and come to the end of our rope. Then, when we have done all we can do to no avail, and we bow our heads in complete surrender to Him, God will take over to move on our behalf to accomplish his will.
Our Risen Lord chooses to use these earthen vessels which we know as bodies of flesh. It is an imperfect, weak, corrupted body that is destined to return to the earth, and yet God will use this flesh to do his will. He has placed His spirit within our hearts, and we are held captive inside an imperfect clay vessel: a perfect Lord living inside an imperfect clay vessel.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 says, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds): Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;" The weapons of our warfare are God’s weapons, spiritual in nature, and against them Hell has no defense.
Isaiah 54:17, "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD."
2 Corinthians 4:7, "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."
Jeremiah 20:11, "But the LORD is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten."
God delights in delivering his children. He is our strong and mighty tower. He is our fortress and our refuge. The battle is His, not ours! WE ARE ON THE WINNING SIDE!
In His Victory,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZWhGmQL-Ec
Friday, May 7, 2010
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Brown's Daily Word 5-6-10
Praise the Lord for America, the best place on earth to live. Praise the Lord for the Church of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Sunita and Andy and their church in Washington are involved in a prayer conference, which began yesterday and will conclude Friday Evening. Sunita called me yesterday and told me that they have taken time off from work to attend the conference on prayer with Judith McNutt. Sunita told me that many of her friends and colleagues are attending this prayer event.
The Lord blessed us with a wonderful Wednesday gathering last evening. Our friend Dave Hettinger led the Bible Study. We studied from Mathew 7:1 ff. It is always a great thrill to study the word of the Lord with fellow sojourners .
In 1904 a young ministerial student named Evan Roberts, began to feel that God was sending an urgent message that He was going to pour out a mighty spirit of revival on Wales, which is now a part of Great Britain. Roberts began attending various revival meetings and during one he was deeply moved by the Spirit. As he prayed at the altar he cried out to God, “Bend me oh Lord!” This was a complete and total surrender of his will to God’s will.
Roberts soon returned to his home church to preach the message of revival but his pastor was reluctant to allow him to speak. In a compromise, the pastor announced that Roberts would be speaking following the regular prayer meeting and any who wished to stay were welcome. Only 17 people stayed to hear Evan speak and most of them were teenagers and young adults. Evan Roberts spoke in that church for nearly two hours with a simple 4 point message that he was convinced could help God bring revival.
1. Confess all known sin to God
2. Deal with and get rid of any “doubtful” area of your life
3. Be ready to obey the Holy Spirit instantly
4. Confess Christ publicly
When Roberts was finished speaking all 17 young people were at the altar on their knees crying out to God. They prayed until 2 AM that night and it was the beginning of one of the greatest movements of God in all history. By the end of the week, over 60 people were won to Christ and over the course of the next year and a half revival swept through the nation of Wales. Over 1,000,000 people were led to saving faith in Jesus Christ.
The revival was so great that the national culture changed dramatically.
• A rage of bankruptcies took place - All of the taverns and liquor stores went out of business
• Work at the coal mines was brought to a near standstill - The mules who pulled the wagons were so accustomed to hearing foul language from the workers that after the men were saved the mules no longer recognized their voices or commands
• The entire police force was dismissed for almost 18 months due to a complete lack of crime
• One of the few court cases that was actually brought before a judge was unusual. The defendant came into the court and admitted his guilt, the judge led the man to Christ and the jury closed the case by singing a hymn.
The revival eventually made its way across the Atlantic and swept through parts of New York and New Jersey. There was even a daily column in the New York Times called “Today’s Converts” that listed those who were being saved.
Times seem to have totally changed and we have to admit that our world is nothing like that of 1904. I would have to agree our world is a darker and more sinister place where revival seems almost impossible. The Promises of our Lord are still true today:
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14
In Jesus the Saviour and the King.
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE1X4QL5hs0
The Lord blessed us with a wonderful Wednesday gathering last evening. Our friend Dave Hettinger led the Bible Study. We studied from Mathew 7:1 ff. It is always a great thrill to study the word of the Lord with fellow sojourners .
In 1904 a young ministerial student named Evan Roberts, began to feel that God was sending an urgent message that He was going to pour out a mighty spirit of revival on Wales, which is now a part of Great Britain. Roberts began attending various revival meetings and during one he was deeply moved by the Spirit. As he prayed at the altar he cried out to God, “Bend me oh Lord!” This was a complete and total surrender of his will to God’s will.
Roberts soon returned to his home church to preach the message of revival but his pastor was reluctant to allow him to speak. In a compromise, the pastor announced that Roberts would be speaking following the regular prayer meeting and any who wished to stay were welcome. Only 17 people stayed to hear Evan speak and most of them were teenagers and young adults. Evan Roberts spoke in that church for nearly two hours with a simple 4 point message that he was convinced could help God bring revival.
1. Confess all known sin to God
2. Deal with and get rid of any “doubtful” area of your life
3. Be ready to obey the Holy Spirit instantly
4. Confess Christ publicly
When Roberts was finished speaking all 17 young people were at the altar on their knees crying out to God. They prayed until 2 AM that night and it was the beginning of one of the greatest movements of God in all history. By the end of the week, over 60 people were won to Christ and over the course of the next year and a half revival swept through the nation of Wales. Over 1,000,000 people were led to saving faith in Jesus Christ.
The revival was so great that the national culture changed dramatically.
• A rage of bankruptcies took place - All of the taverns and liquor stores went out of business
• Work at the coal mines was brought to a near standstill - The mules who pulled the wagons were so accustomed to hearing foul language from the workers that after the men were saved the mules no longer recognized their voices or commands
• The entire police force was dismissed for almost 18 months due to a complete lack of crime
• One of the few court cases that was actually brought before a judge was unusual. The defendant came into the court and admitted his guilt, the judge led the man to Christ and the jury closed the case by singing a hymn.
The revival eventually made its way across the Atlantic and swept through parts of New York and New Jersey. There was even a daily column in the New York Times called “Today’s Converts” that listed those who were being saved.
Times seem to have totally changed and we have to admit that our world is nothing like that of 1904. I would have to agree our world is a darker and more sinister place where revival seems almost impossible. The Promises of our Lord are still true today:
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14
In Jesus the Saviour and the King.
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE1X4QL5hs0
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Brown's Daily Word 5-4-10
Praise the Lord. He is worthy of all our praise and adoration. Psalm 148 was the Psalm for last Sunday.This psalm was paraphrased many years ago by Archbishop Cranmer as a great hymn of praise, used for generations in the Church of England. Its Latin name is "Benedicite Omnia Opera" (Bless the Lord, all ye works of the Lord). This hymn is a long recitation of many of God’s creations, every one of which is addressed and urged to praise and magnify God. It includes some strange and wonderful things in its list of the works of the Lord.
You may expect such lines as, "All ye children of men, bless ye the Lord", and it causes no great stir to sing, "All ye servants of the Lord, bless ye the Lord", but we can certainly identify with the line, "All ye holy and humble men of heart, bless ye the Lord". All these references to persons praising the Lord make sense to us, yet some of the other lines may sound peculiar to us. The song also calls out, "Oh ye sun and moon, bless ye the Lord"? and "Oh ye fire and heat, bless ye the Lord." "0 ye winds of God, bless ye the Lord; 0 ye winter and summer, bless ye the Lord; 0 ye dews and frosts, ye frost and cold, ye ice and snow, bless ye the Lord." It goes on to exhort all things to bless and praise the Lord. "All the mountains and hills, bless the Lord; all ye seas and floods, praise ye the Lord; all the whales and all that move in the waters, praise and bless ye the Lord."
It calls out not only to you and to me, or just to the Church and Christians, but all things are summoned to give blessing and praise to our God. All things, it would appear, might include some very peculiar items. It even sings out, "All ye sea monsters and all deeps, praise the Lord. . . All ye wild animals and all cattle, bless the Lord. . . All mountains and hills, all fire and hail, snow and frost, all stormy winds fulfilling his command, praise and bless ye the Lord." That’s quite a catalog, isn’t it? It makes us wonder what else should be included in the list of those of God’s works which are to bless and praise Him.
I have spent a few hot summers in Birmingham, Alabama attending Pastor's conferences. During the conference the organizers have sometimes included an evening of southern culture including Blue Grass Music. We have some very good friends in Tennessee. I love Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky. Virginia Carey Winston, wrote a little book a number of years ago, describing her childhood in old Kentucky, in the central bluegrass region. Her intent was to give you the flavor of what it was like to grow up in a land of beauty and genteel ways at the turn of the 20th Century. Bear in mind that the land of which she speaks is a land of unsurpassed beauty, and that this is a land where the grass is greener, (or bluer, as the case may be), than anywhere else in creation. When spring comes in Kentucky and the horses foal and the lambs are born, there is, according to Winston, a sweetness unlike any other on earth. Thus Virginia Carey Winston reports that when she was a little girl growing up in the bluegrass country, attending a prim and proper school for girls, chapel services every day included the recitation of this very hymn, "All ye works of the Lord, bless the Lord". "Bless the Lord, all ye works of the Lord; praise God, sun and moon and earth, wild animals and all cattle." You see, when Christ came, He came to redeem all of God’s creation. Because He is the word made flesh, it is a sign to us that all things are ultimately intended to contribute to the great Creator’s praise.
Many of us have forgotten to laugh. If so, we also may have forgotten how to praise God. How is our sense of humor? Has our sense of humor dried up, and have we forgotten how to see the ridiculous everywhere? Yes, hear and echo the song of the Psalmist, "Praise the Lord, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars; praise the Lord, mountains and all hills, fruit trees and cedars, wild animals and all cattle, creeping things and flying birds; praise the Lord, Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth, young men and women alike, old and young together."
May The Holy Spirit infuse us with a deep sense of joy and holy humor today
In Christ
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wlvb14tiQow
You may expect such lines as, "All ye children of men, bless ye the Lord", and it causes no great stir to sing, "All ye servants of the Lord, bless ye the Lord", but we can certainly identify with the line, "All ye holy and humble men of heart, bless ye the Lord". All these references to persons praising the Lord make sense to us, yet some of the other lines may sound peculiar to us. The song also calls out, "Oh ye sun and moon, bless ye the Lord"? and "Oh ye fire and heat, bless ye the Lord." "0 ye winds of God, bless ye the Lord; 0 ye winter and summer, bless ye the Lord; 0 ye dews and frosts, ye frost and cold, ye ice and snow, bless ye the Lord." It goes on to exhort all things to bless and praise the Lord. "All the mountains and hills, bless the Lord; all ye seas and floods, praise ye the Lord; all the whales and all that move in the waters, praise and bless ye the Lord."
It calls out not only to you and to me, or just to the Church and Christians, but all things are summoned to give blessing and praise to our God. All things, it would appear, might include some very peculiar items. It even sings out, "All ye sea monsters and all deeps, praise the Lord. . . All ye wild animals and all cattle, bless the Lord. . . All mountains and hills, all fire and hail, snow and frost, all stormy winds fulfilling his command, praise and bless ye the Lord." That’s quite a catalog, isn’t it? It makes us wonder what else should be included in the list of those of God’s works which are to bless and praise Him.
I have spent a few hot summers in Birmingham, Alabama attending Pastor's conferences. During the conference the organizers have sometimes included an evening of southern culture including Blue Grass Music. We have some very good friends in Tennessee. I love Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky. Virginia Carey Winston, wrote a little book a number of years ago, describing her childhood in old Kentucky, in the central bluegrass region. Her intent was to give you the flavor of what it was like to grow up in a land of beauty and genteel ways at the turn of the 20th Century. Bear in mind that the land of which she speaks is a land of unsurpassed beauty, and that this is a land where the grass is greener, (or bluer, as the case may be), than anywhere else in creation. When spring comes in Kentucky and the horses foal and the lambs are born, there is, according to Winston, a sweetness unlike any other on earth. Thus Virginia Carey Winston reports that when she was a little girl growing up in the bluegrass country, attending a prim and proper school for girls, chapel services every day included the recitation of this very hymn, "All ye works of the Lord, bless the Lord". "Bless the Lord, all ye works of the Lord; praise God, sun and moon and earth, wild animals and all cattle." You see, when Christ came, He came to redeem all of God’s creation. Because He is the word made flesh, it is a sign to us that all things are ultimately intended to contribute to the great Creator’s praise.
Many of us have forgotten to laugh. If so, we also may have forgotten how to praise God. How is our sense of humor? Has our sense of humor dried up, and have we forgotten how to see the ridiculous everywhere? Yes, hear and echo the song of the Psalmist, "Praise the Lord, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars; praise the Lord, mountains and all hills, fruit trees and cedars, wild animals and all cattle, creeping things and flying birds; praise the Lord, Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth, young men and women alike, old and young together."
May The Holy Spirit infuse us with a deep sense of joy and holy humor today
In Christ
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wlvb14tiQow
Monday, May 3, 2010
Brown's Daily Word 5-3-10
Good morning,
The Lord blessed us with a glorious weekend. Saturday, May 1, was our daughter Sunita's birthday. The day she was born in 1979 was quite hot and on Saturday the temperature read @94 F in surrounding towns. We praise Jesus for Sunita. She has been a great blessing to us and to her numerous friends and colleagues. Our youth spent part of the day at El Ranch Depaz a local Christian Center. They came home very blessed.
Krista Martin and one of her classmates from a culinary School in Rhode Island will be preparing a special meal in honor Mothers this coming Saturday. The menu includes the following and more:
* The first course is French Onion Soup and Strawberry Bleu Salad.
* Second course (served with your choice of a starch AND vegetable side)will be Baked Dijon Flounder or Chicken Marsala.
* Choice of sides include Garlic Rosemary Roasted Potatoes, Rice Pilaf, Roasted Zucchini & Squash, and Sauteed Spinach with Cranberries.
* Third course will be assorted cheesecakes.
Our Youth will be waiting on the tables. It is a great and sweet blessing to share the meal and the fellowship. The Valley Four will be presenting a concert following the meal.
The Gospel Reading for yesterday was taken from Revelation 21. To our earth-bound minds, Heaven is an abstract concept, a realm foreign to us. We accept by faith the reality of this glorious realm, but it is difficult to imagine what Heaven must be like. The Bible only gives us hints at what Heaven is like, and the descriptions we have appear in the form of poetry and metaphor.
Galileo once remarked, “The intention of the Holy Spirit is not to teach us how Heaven goes, but how one goes to Heaven.” The glories of Heaven far surpass our perception. Heaven is a real place, and the reality will exceed all images and symbols. The Apostle Paul was given a vision of heaven, but words failed him. Human language has limitations. All Paul could say was that he experienced things so astounding that they could not be told (the half has never yet been told) (II Corinthians 12). Heaven is a reality, but it is currently unreachable to any of our senses. Trying to fully understand Heaven is a little like explaining the world to an unborn baby.
Heaven is a place of joy because of our joyous God who is there. The Scripture clearly states that heaven will be a place where God will wipe away every tear and there will be no more crying. So often when we see scenes of heaven in the Bible there are great exclamations of joy and glorious singing. I think we often pass over the ecstasy of heaven. We see the holiness of heaven and the glory of God, but we miss the ecstatic joy. I believe there will be indescribable joy. When Jesus was on earth he said that his purpose in coming was, “so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:11). If that was Christ's desire and purpose on earth, how much more it is his purpose in heaven. He said that there was great joy in heaven when one sinner repents (Luke 15:7). There is great joy over the repentant sinner, because there is one more person who will share in the glories of heaven. The Psalmist spoke of the joy and pleasures in heaven when he wrote, “You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand” (Psalm 16:11).
The Scripture talked of new heavens and a new earth, for the old heavens and earth have passed away. Moreover, we are told of a new city coming down from heaven. I began to think about this passage, that I have read so many times before, and was struck by a new thought. A city is a city only because it is filled with people — otherwise it is only a ghost town. This city is described as a “bride beautifully dressed for her husband.” Who are these people, but the redeemed, those who have been filling the city for thousands of years and waiting for their return to the new earth, to dwell there in their new bodies?
Heaven takes seriously the difficulties we face on earth. The Lord said, “To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son” (Revelation 21:6-7). The Lord understands that in this present world there is a thirst for something new, a world where our longings are met and fulfilled. He understands that sometimes there are things we face and must overcome.
If it was not for the hope of heaven, life would be very difficult at times. However, we do not use the hope of heaven as a means to escape the difficulties of life. No, this hope is the means of facing the realities of life. Heaven is a part of the reality of life, and even though it is largely in the future, it is beginning right here and now. It is the hope of what God has for me tomorrow that enables me to face today.
Lee Elcov has stated, “We focus on heaven not as a respite from real life, but to gain strength for real life.” Like Spring sunshine at the end of a long, hard winter, heaven will break like the dawn of a new day — a day of joy and celebration that we cannot at the present time begin to grasp.
In John Bunyan’s, The Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian and the Interpreter, in the course of their journey, come across a man with a muck rake in his hand. "Steadily raking filth from the floor, the man ‘could look no way but downwards’ and so, could not see the celestial crown being offered him from above.” Like that man, we can look down at the muck, or we can look up. This is the gift that the Risen Lord is offering, but we have to look up to see what is being offered. We have to open our eyes to the Lord who seeks to embrace us and take us to his eternal reward.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xwzItqYmII
The Lord blessed us with a glorious weekend. Saturday, May 1, was our daughter Sunita's birthday. The day she was born in 1979 was quite hot and on Saturday the temperature read @94 F in surrounding towns. We praise Jesus for Sunita. She has been a great blessing to us and to her numerous friends and colleagues. Our youth spent part of the day at El Ranch Depaz a local Christian Center. They came home very blessed.
Krista Martin and one of her classmates from a culinary School in Rhode Island will be preparing a special meal in honor Mothers this coming Saturday. The menu includes the following and more:
* The first course is French Onion Soup and Strawberry Bleu Salad.
* Second course (served with your choice of a starch AND vegetable side)will be Baked Dijon Flounder or Chicken Marsala.
* Choice of sides include Garlic Rosemary Roasted Potatoes, Rice Pilaf, Roasted Zucchini & Squash, and Sauteed Spinach with Cranberries.
* Third course will be assorted cheesecakes.
Our Youth will be waiting on the tables. It is a great and sweet blessing to share the meal and the fellowship. The Valley Four will be presenting a concert following the meal.
The Gospel Reading for yesterday was taken from Revelation 21. To our earth-bound minds, Heaven is an abstract concept, a realm foreign to us. We accept by faith the reality of this glorious realm, but it is difficult to imagine what Heaven must be like. The Bible only gives us hints at what Heaven is like, and the descriptions we have appear in the form of poetry and metaphor.
Galileo once remarked, “The intention of the Holy Spirit is not to teach us how Heaven goes, but how one goes to Heaven.” The glories of Heaven far surpass our perception. Heaven is a real place, and the reality will exceed all images and symbols. The Apostle Paul was given a vision of heaven, but words failed him. Human language has limitations. All Paul could say was that he experienced things so astounding that they could not be told (the half has never yet been told) (II Corinthians 12). Heaven is a reality, but it is currently unreachable to any of our senses. Trying to fully understand Heaven is a little like explaining the world to an unborn baby.
Heaven is a place of joy because of our joyous God who is there. The Scripture clearly states that heaven will be a place where God will wipe away every tear and there will be no more crying. So often when we see scenes of heaven in the Bible there are great exclamations of joy and glorious singing. I think we often pass over the ecstasy of heaven. We see the holiness of heaven and the glory of God, but we miss the ecstatic joy. I believe there will be indescribable joy. When Jesus was on earth he said that his purpose in coming was, “so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:11). If that was Christ's desire and purpose on earth, how much more it is his purpose in heaven. He said that there was great joy in heaven when one sinner repents (Luke 15:7). There is great joy over the repentant sinner, because there is one more person who will share in the glories of heaven. The Psalmist spoke of the joy and pleasures in heaven when he wrote, “You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand” (Psalm 16:11).
The Scripture talked of new heavens and a new earth, for the old heavens and earth have passed away. Moreover, we are told of a new city coming down from heaven. I began to think about this passage, that I have read so many times before, and was struck by a new thought. A city is a city only because it is filled with people — otherwise it is only a ghost town. This city is described as a “bride beautifully dressed for her husband.” Who are these people, but the redeemed, those who have been filling the city for thousands of years and waiting for their return to the new earth, to dwell there in their new bodies?
Heaven takes seriously the difficulties we face on earth. The Lord said, “To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son” (Revelation 21:6-7). The Lord understands that in this present world there is a thirst for something new, a world where our longings are met and fulfilled. He understands that sometimes there are things we face and must overcome.
If it was not for the hope of heaven, life would be very difficult at times. However, we do not use the hope of heaven as a means to escape the difficulties of life. No, this hope is the means of facing the realities of life. Heaven is a part of the reality of life, and even though it is largely in the future, it is beginning right here and now. It is the hope of what God has for me tomorrow that enables me to face today.
Lee Elcov has stated, “We focus on heaven not as a respite from real life, but to gain strength for real life.” Like Spring sunshine at the end of a long, hard winter, heaven will break like the dawn of a new day — a day of joy and celebration that we cannot at the present time begin to grasp.
In John Bunyan’s, The Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian and the Interpreter, in the course of their journey, come across a man with a muck rake in his hand. "Steadily raking filth from the floor, the man ‘could look no way but downwards’ and so, could not see the celestial crown being offered him from above.” Like that man, we can look down at the muck, or we can look up. This is the gift that the Risen Lord is offering, but we have to look up to see what is being offered. We have to open our eyes to the Lord who seeks to embrace us and take us to his eternal reward.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xwzItqYmII
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