Good morning,
Praise the Lord or the way He brings change in our lives, that we may grow in Him and become brave believers and fervent servants in His Kingdom. May we be drawn and driven, and best of all propelled, by the Holy Spirit seek His Kingdom and His righteousness. It is a great blessing to grow in the Lord and become steadfast in our confession and profession and possession.
Tim Hansel tells the story in his book, “Holy Sweat” of a close friend of his who was asked back to his forty-year high school reunion. “For months he saved to take his wife back to the place and the people he’d left four decades before. The closer the time came for the reunion, the more excited he became, thinking of all the wonderful stories he would hear about the changes and the accomplishments these old friends would tell him... He wondered if any others had encountered this Christ who had changed him so profoundly. He even tried to guess what some of his friends would look like, and what kind of jobs and families some of these special friends had.
"The day came to leave and I drove them to the airport. Their energy was almost contagious. 'I’ll pick you up on Sunday evening, and you can tell me all about it,' I said. “Have a great time.”
"Sunday evening arrived. As I watched them get off the plane, my friend seemed almost despondent. I almost didn’t want to ask, but finally I said, 'Well, how was the reunion?' 'Tim,' the man said, 'it was one of the saddest experiences of my life.' 'Good grief,' I said, more than a little surprised. 'What happened?' 'It wasn’t what happened but what didn’t happen. It has been forty years, forty years—and they haven’t changed. They had simply gained weight, changed clothes, gotten jobs…but they hadn’t really changed. And what I experienced was maybe one of the most tragic things I could ever imagine about life. For reasons I can’t fully understand, it seems as though some people choose not to change.'
"There was a long silence as we walked back to the car. On the drive home, he turned to me and said, 'I never, never want that to be said of me, Tim. Life is too precious, too sacred, too important. If you ever see me go stagnant like that, I hope you give me a quick, swift kick where I need it—… I hope you’ll love me enough to challenge me to keep growing.'" [Tim Hansel, Holy Sweat. (Chicago: Word Books, 1987) pp. 54-55]
The author Hebrews, having begun a discussion of Christ as our “great” High Priest in the fourteenth verse of Chapter four, suddenly broke off the topic to confront his listeners with the problem of their spiritual immaturity. Growth is so important to us that arrested development is universally regarded as a tragedy, whether it is physical or mental or emotional. Dallas Willard in his book, “The Divine Conspiracy” commented on the greatest danger facing Christians who have the attitude of consumer Christianity. He wrote that today’s “Christians are treated as consumer/customers when they come to church. They thought they could pick and choose. They thought they were always right. They thought once they make the cut, they will be saved and are safe. They thought if they don’t like what they see, it is OK to take a break and come back later. They thought it is OK to take the word of God lightly and to treat the grace of God cheaply.” [Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God (New York: HarperCollins, 1998)]
May the Lord grant us hunger for Him and for His righteousness. May He provoke us to run the race that is set before us, onward, forward, and upward. May He deliver us from lukewarm-ness, sluggishness and slothfulness. May we grow day by day to become more like Jesus, in our hearts and in our attitudes.
We spent this past weekend in Boston, with Micah, Simeon , Janice, and Jeremy. We attended the worship service at Historic Park Street Church in Boston yesterday morning. It was great blessing to worship Jesus with those who love Him. Micah will be 4 years old on the 3rd of November 2009. Simoen is two years old. They are growing like weeds (beautiful weeds). Micah talks fluently now. She loves to read stories with us, and to have Grandmom tell stories, like the 3 little pigs (with names of her choice). Simeon is 100% boy, always up, down, on the go, and discovering. Praise the Lord for our grandchildren. They are full of life. Micah loves to go to church, especially to her church on the North Shore, in Ipswich. She loves Jesus.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82_bhD0_Trw
Monday, October 19, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Brown's Daily Word 10-15-09
Praise the Lord. He is good and faithful. His mercy endures for ever. His love never fails. Praise the Lord for the great hymns and songs of the church. Our grand daughter has memorized some hymns, and one of the hymns she sings with her parents at bed time is, "Come Thou Fount of every blessing, Tune my heart to sing Thy Praise". There is one stanza that begins with these words “Here I raise mine Ebenezer; hither by thy help I’m come,”.
The word " Ebenezer" taken is from a story in the Old Testament. The Philistines, Israel’s enemies, had gathered against the Israelites to engage them in battle. Samuel, the priest, was offering a sacrifice as the Philistines approached, and the Lord thundered from heaven, throwing the Philistines into confusion and panic. They fled from the battlefield, and Samuel took a large rock and set it up as a reminder. He called the stone Ebenezer, which means “stone of help,” and said, “Thus far has the Lord helped us” (1 Samuel 7:12). Every time an Israelite saw that stone they were reminded of what God had done for them in the past and gained hope for the future.
May be we need to set up an Ebenezer, a “stone of help” — a writing, a plaque, a picture, a marking, an object, a trip, a celebration. Let us Think of some creative way that we can mark a significant event in our lives, where we can say, “Thus far has the Lord helped us", and we know he will take us the rest of the way. Let it be a permanent testimony to those who come after us.
Hudson Taylor was a missionary and founder of China Inland Mission. In his home he kept a plaque with these Hebrew Words on it: EBENEZER, meaning “Stone of help,” and JEHOVAH JIREH: “The Lord is my Provider.” One looked back at what God had done and how he had helped in the past, and the other looked forward to how he believed God would provide in the future. One reminded him of God’s help and faithfulness, and the other helped him to focus on God’s provision and assurance of help in the days to come.
Let’s raise an Ebenezer to God’s faithfulness in the past, and let’s believe that God is Jehovah Jireh, our Provider.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V84STSWVp3g
The word " Ebenezer" taken is from a story in the Old Testament. The Philistines, Israel’s enemies, had gathered against the Israelites to engage them in battle. Samuel, the priest, was offering a sacrifice as the Philistines approached, and the Lord thundered from heaven, throwing the Philistines into confusion and panic. They fled from the battlefield, and Samuel took a large rock and set it up as a reminder. He called the stone Ebenezer, which means “stone of help,” and said, “Thus far has the Lord helped us” (1 Samuel 7:12). Every time an Israelite saw that stone they were reminded of what God had done for them in the past and gained hope for the future.
May be we need to set up an Ebenezer, a “stone of help” — a writing, a plaque, a picture, a marking, an object, a trip, a celebration. Let us Think of some creative way that we can mark a significant event in our lives, where we can say, “Thus far has the Lord helped us", and we know he will take us the rest of the way. Let it be a permanent testimony to those who come after us.
Hudson Taylor was a missionary and founder of China Inland Mission. In his home he kept a plaque with these Hebrew Words on it: EBENEZER, meaning “Stone of help,” and JEHOVAH JIREH: “The Lord is my Provider.” One looked back at what God had done and how he had helped in the past, and the other looked forward to how he believed God would provide in the future. One reminded him of God’s help and faithfulness, and the other helped him to focus on God’s provision and assurance of help in the days to come.
Let’s raise an Ebenezer to God’s faithfulness in the past, and let’s believe that God is Jehovah Jireh, our Provider.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V84STSWVp3g
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Brown's Daily Word 10-14-09
Good morning,
It is Wednesday - WOW! If you can join us at the church for a meal at 6:00 this evening, followed by Bible study. (It's a double feast.)
During the Korean War, a group of US soldiers got cut off from the rest of its regiment by an enemy advance. Headquarters repeatedly tried to communicate with this missing unit. They kept saying “Baker Company, do you read me? Baker Company, do you read me?”
Finally after 2 hours, a voice replied “This is Baker Company.”
Headquarters said “What is your situation?”
They said “The enemy is to the east of us, the enemy is to the west of us, the enemy is to the north of us, the enemy is to the south of us. And we’re not going to let them escape this time!”
Those men were bold! They were not worried about the opposition! They were confident about their mission even though they were surrounded by the enemy. Can the same thing be said about us? Are we confident enough to talk to our friends about how Jesus has changed our lives? Acts 28:31 says that the apostle Paul "boldly and without hindrance preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ" and God expects the same thing to be true of us.
Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy in 66 AD, near the end of his life. He was in prison and he was lonely. He wanted to send Timothy one more letter before he died. In verses three through five, Paul wrote, “I remember you in my prayers. I remember the tears you shed the last time we saw each other. I look forward to the day when we can be together again!
“But most of all, I am reminded of your sincere faith. I remember when you first joined my ministry team. I was so proud of you. I even told the Philippians (in Philippians 2:22) that I have no one else like you! I told them that they should be happy to have a minister like you! I told them that having you around was just as good as having around one of the apostles!”
Then, in verse six, Paul continued, “For this reason, I want you to keep on serving the Lord! Fan into flame the gift of God which was given you through the laying on of my hands.” The expression “fan into flame” literally means “to rekindle a fire that’s in danger of going out.” Paul was saying, “You have a gift for ministry. But you need to get the fire going again! You have to start using it! You have to fan into flame the gift for ministry that God has given you!”
Some of you have the gift of encouraging people. People need to be encouraged! It brings glory to the Lord and it promotes the gospel of Christ. 1 Peter 4:10 says “Use WHATEVER gift you have been given to serve others.”
Timothy’s gift for ministry was preaching and teaching, and in verse 7, Paul said, “Don’t be afraid to use it! God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” The Bible seems to suggest that even though Timothy was a faithful Christian, he may also have been a timid Christian. In 1 Corinthians 16:10, Paul told the Corinthians, “If Timothy comes, see to it that he has nothing to fear while he is with you, for he is carrying on the work of the Lord, just as I am.”
In 1 Timothy 4:12, Paul wrote to Timothy, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, life, love, faith and purity.”
Paul's words remind us that God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but a Spirit of power, love, and self-control! The Holy Spirit gives us the boldness, the strength, and the compassion to do whatever we are called to do to help propagate the gospel of Jesus Christ! God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but a Spirit of power, love, and self-control!
Proverbs 28:1 says that “the wicked man flees, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” May we bold, brave, courageous and confident to day because the Lord leads us in triumph.
Praise be to Him,
Brown
The following is one of the worship songs the" Continentals" sang during their recent concert.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-08YZF87OBQ
It is Wednesday - WOW! If you can join us at the church for a meal at 6:00 this evening, followed by Bible study. (It's a double feast.)
During the Korean War, a group of US soldiers got cut off from the rest of its regiment by an enemy advance. Headquarters repeatedly tried to communicate with this missing unit. They kept saying “Baker Company, do you read me? Baker Company, do you read me?”
Finally after 2 hours, a voice replied “This is Baker Company.”
Headquarters said “What is your situation?”
They said “The enemy is to the east of us, the enemy is to the west of us, the enemy is to the north of us, the enemy is to the south of us. And we’re not going to let them escape this time!”
Those men were bold! They were not worried about the opposition! They were confident about their mission even though they were surrounded by the enemy. Can the same thing be said about us? Are we confident enough to talk to our friends about how Jesus has changed our lives? Acts 28:31 says that the apostle Paul "boldly and without hindrance preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ" and God expects the same thing to be true of us.
Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy in 66 AD, near the end of his life. He was in prison and he was lonely. He wanted to send Timothy one more letter before he died. In verses three through five, Paul wrote, “I remember you in my prayers. I remember the tears you shed the last time we saw each other. I look forward to the day when we can be together again!
“But most of all, I am reminded of your sincere faith. I remember when you first joined my ministry team. I was so proud of you. I even told the Philippians (in Philippians 2:22) that I have no one else like you! I told them that they should be happy to have a minister like you! I told them that having you around was just as good as having around one of the apostles!”
Then, in verse six, Paul continued, “For this reason, I want you to keep on serving the Lord! Fan into flame the gift of God which was given you through the laying on of my hands.” The expression “fan into flame” literally means “to rekindle a fire that’s in danger of going out.” Paul was saying, “You have a gift for ministry. But you need to get the fire going again! You have to start using it! You have to fan into flame the gift for ministry that God has given you!”
Some of you have the gift of encouraging people. People need to be encouraged! It brings glory to the Lord and it promotes the gospel of Christ. 1 Peter 4:10 says “Use WHATEVER gift you have been given to serve others.”
Timothy’s gift for ministry was preaching and teaching, and in verse 7, Paul said, “Don’t be afraid to use it! God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” The Bible seems to suggest that even though Timothy was a faithful Christian, he may also have been a timid Christian. In 1 Corinthians 16:10, Paul told the Corinthians, “If Timothy comes, see to it that he has nothing to fear while he is with you, for he is carrying on the work of the Lord, just as I am.”
In 1 Timothy 4:12, Paul wrote to Timothy, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, life, love, faith and purity.”
Paul's words remind us that God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but a Spirit of power, love, and self-control! The Holy Spirit gives us the boldness, the strength, and the compassion to do whatever we are called to do to help propagate the gospel of Jesus Christ! God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but a Spirit of power, love, and self-control!
Proverbs 28:1 says that “the wicked man flees, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” May we bold, brave, courageous and confident to day because the Lord leads us in triumph.
Praise be to Him,
Brown
The following is one of the worship songs the" Continentals" sang during their recent concert.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-08YZF87OBQ
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