Blood in the Water

In the story that God’s telling, this great epic story that has spanned eons, with it’s heroes and villains, battles won and lost and joys too many to describe along with as many sorrows that have filled countless hearts, one thing has stayed true so far, and that is that for those of us in the story, we have an enemy and he hates us with passion that possibly has never been matched except by the love of our Creator and Father.

The most interesting thing I have found in this story is that while the enemy is vile and does not play by the rules, he really isn’t after me. As a Christian, that is a bearer of Christ, I represent to the enemy the Savior who saved me, Jesus. The devil tried his best to destroy Jesus numerous times, and at each and every turn he was defeated. Culminating in his greatest defeat at the cross and resurrection of the Lord. Scripture states that had he known what was to happen, he would have never crucified the Lord of Glory. (1 Corinthians 2:8)

Since the devil was unable to destroy Jesus, and consequently through his actions actually helped to facilitate the one thing that had to be done in order for God to set things right with the human race. (Oh how that must gall him.) He changed his tactics and set upon those that bear the image of Jesus, his full out assault. Now as I write this, I realize that it may actually try to bring fear to the reader’s heart, but be of good cheer, this is information for us to celebrate. For you see, once you realize that the attacks are not at you personally, you can begin to walk in the ways that Jesus has wanted us to have walked all along.

In Luke chapter 8, Jesus is explaining to His disciples the meaning of the parable of the soils, in verse 11 & 12 we see this, “¹¹ “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. ¹² Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.” We are unable to acquire anything in the Kingdom of God if we first do not believe, then confess. (Romans 10:9-10) So the devil will come immediately according to Jesus’ words here in Luke, and take away our means of believing God and acquiring faith, which without we cannot please God. (Hebrews 11:6)

One of the most diabolical things that I have seen the enemy use against God’s children is their very own mouths. They will read in the Bible and see a promise of God, or hear a friend or minister talk about the goodness of God only to say the opposite of that is true in their life. With their own mouths they are digging up the seed, and without the seed of God’s Word in our heart we cannot believe. And if we cannot believe, then we cannot receive. It’s a legal situation, plain and simple.

God wants the best for us. He’s promised us all we need can be found in His Word, but He will not bring it to pass in our lives if we disregard the principle found in Romans 10:9-10; “⁹ If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” Obviously this passage of Scripture is talking about how you get saved, but did you realize that this is also how you appropriate every promise of God as well? Let me show you what I mean concerning healing, “If you declare with your mouth, “By Jesus’ stripes I am healed, and believe in your heart that God will heal you from your disease, then you will be healed.” “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are healed.”

This is the principle by which we receive everything that God has for us in His Kingdom. Now, don’t get mad at me, I didn’t write it, God did. But see here is the thing, whose words are you believing, God’s or the devil’s? You see the opposite of faith is doubt. If you doubt, you are putting faith in the devil’s words over God’s. You are in effect saying, “God Your Word can’t be true, because of this or that reason.”

When we speak things other than what God’s Word says about us, we are what I like to imagine, putting blood in the water, and drawing the enemy to us. We see in Scripture that the devil is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5:8) Now God used Peter to pen this phrase for a reason, and I believe if we will look to nature we find out what God was getting at. When lions hunt, they never go after the strongest or biggest animals. They look for the weakest and slowest ones. Why is that do you wonder? It’s because they are not stupid, the weakest and slowest ones are the easiest to catch, and the lions are not looking to prove anything, they’re just looking for lunch.

Just as the lions are attracted to weakness, so is the devil. Look at the story of Jesus going into the wilderness; when did the devil come and begin to interact with Jesus? It was after the forty days and Jesus was hungry, when He was at His physically weakest moment. That’s when the devil showed up, and he is certainly not looking forward to going up against a Christian who is speaking and believing God’s Word. This is not to say he won’t do it, but he’s not stupid either, he knows what the easiest prey is and therefore they make the easiest targets. So let’s watch what we are speaking out of our mouths, and do our best to make the words that we speak, faith filled words of belief in what God has for us in His Kingdom, and not help the devil to defeat us by saying what think or feel. After all it’s God’s Word in us, coming out of our mouths that make us a success in life.

Hope Deferred and the Steward of Gondor

I found myself watching The Lord of the Rings, Return of the King tonight, I know, I know I own the movie, but there is just something that makes me stop whenever it is on the television...I don't know why. Anyway, as I was watching it, I had a strong desire to pay attention to the character Denethor, Steward of Gondor. There are so many things that can be learned from a study of Denethor, but for tonight the thing that really jumped out at me was his stewardship of Gondor.Denethor was the 26th Steward of Gondor. The men who were the Stewards sat in the seat just below and to the right of the King's throne. These men had served Gondor ever waiting for the King to return. I don't know if you have ever waited very long for something or not, but as I watched this show tonight and pondered the fate of Denethor, the Holy Spirit quickened a verse to my spirit.

Proverbs 13:12 NIV says: "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." Hope deferred; deferred means postponed or delayed. Denethor's heart had become sick, partly because of the delaying return of the King of Gondor. And this is something that we must be on guard about in our lives as well, especially with our families.

As men, we tend to pour ourselves into every area that makes us look better. It's no secret that men don't like to look stupid. So to minimize our amount of looking stupid time, we focus on the areas of our lives that we understand or know the best. It should be no surprise then that we put off our family time, or time with our spouse; after all we don't really understand what all we should be doing there right?

Saying things like, "We'll do that one day, or maybe next time.", is not doing our families any good at all. We don't have to be the wisest, or the best looking we just have to be there for them. They just want us, they want our attention, and our time and for us to just be involved, and that is not too hard. We just have to make the time to be there.

So let's not waste our lives by waiting for the right time, let's jump in there and get in the middle of our families and not let them have hope deferred. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Just When I Thought I Was Out... They Pull Me Back In.

I've been walking with Jesus now for close to twenty-five years and it still amazes me that with all the He has brought me out of, I still get pulled back in to the old ways every now and then. It's at times like these that I feel like Michael Corleone from the Godfather movies.
Michael: "Just when I thought I was out... they pull me back in."


And it's the little things, subtle things that most people would overlook and dismiss saying, "Hey Dave, you are a good person, this one little mistake doesn't really matter." And all at once, to pull an image from another movie, I feel like George Bailey after he shook hands with Mr. Potter.

I want to scream, to shout and to confront the entity that tempted me to sin in the first place. I'd love to place the blame squarely on it's shoulders, but I do understand that when I sin, it is because I chose to do it, and there is no one to blame for that but me.


While I do believe that there are influences constantly coming in the form of various temptations, we do not have to succumb to them. I think that is why it bothers me the most, because I know better. Yet there is a Scripture that comes to mind; Song of Solomon 2:15a "Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines..."

It's the little things that generally trip us up. It's not the big major things in life where we find ourselves failing. Our enemy, the devil wants to cause us to stumble in our walk with the Lord. To that end, he doesn't usually show up in a big major way though. It's subtlity that he uses, and he is a master at it. Now this is not to give him any more credit than he deserves, he is after all just a fallen angel, and destined to spend eternity separated from God.

If the devil showed up in your face with something, you would use the Name of Jesus and command him to leave, and he knows this. Instead, he will bring something into your life that will cause just a little compromise, something you might think is really nothing too important, yet that one little thing can cause the relationship you have with Jesus to be compromised. And in that place, we will find ourselves in a mess.

So this Christmas, let's find ourselves in the best place we can be with Jesus, and don't let your family, or the hubbub of the season be one of the "little foxes" that the enemy can use to bring your relationship with the Father into a bad place...don't let them pull you back in. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

The Word Euphoria Doesn't Even Begin To Explain It

The definition of the word "Euphoria" is: "A feeling of great happiness or well-being." I experienced this word in spades yesterday when my son called to tell me that the Pastor of my church had been located, and that he was okay.

Just two days earlier, my Pastor had turned up missing. He left to go home and get a book, only to not return. It was strange, and not like him at all to do something like this, so I along with the rest of my friends at church were bewildered to be sure when we heard the news.

Thursday night, we had a prayer vigil at church, and the outpouring of love and support that could tangibly be felt there was amazing. Yet as I awoke on Friday, and began my Bible reading and prayer time I had to fight the negative thoughts of what the day would bring. I was challenged to believe anything good for sure, but forged on ahead with the knowledge that my God is a good God, and that they prayers we had prayed would be answered.

When my son called to tell me the news, my heart was elated! To say that I was euphoric is an understatement! I wanted to laugh, I wanted to cry and I wanted to dance; all at the same time. You just don't know how amazing it was to be hearing that my Pastor was okay.

In the next few minutes, all across facebook, word began to go from person to person, and electronic shouts of praise could be read all day long. Yesterday was one of those days that I will remember for years to come; the day that my God answered the prayers of my church family in a big way, and like my Pastor has been telling us all year long, "God wants to show Himself strong!" And boy did He!

Do You Know The Jesus Of The Bible?

This came in my inbox this morning from Joseph Prince. This was so good, I had to re-post it:

John 14:77“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.”
Someone once told me that just because you ask God for something, it does not mean that He will give it to you. Quoting 1 John 5:14–15, he said that we first have to ask according to His will before He hears and gives us what we ask of Him.

Of course, we do not ask for things that are against God’s will or Word. But what is normally implied in the earlier statement is that we don’t always know what God’s will for us is — “what will be, will be”. But didn’t Jesus say, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father”? (John 14:9) This means that if you want to know what the Father’s will, mind, heart or attitude toward you and your family is, just look at Jesus in the Gospel stories.

So if your child is sick, is it God’s will to heal him? Well, look at Jesus and see how He ministered to children who were sick — the Syro-Phoenician’s daughter who was demon-possessed (Mark 7:24–30), Jairus’ daughter who was dead (Mark 5:22–24, 35–43), and the widow of Nain’s only son who had died and was about to be buried. (Luke 7:12–15) Jesus cast out the demon. He raised the dead. He healed them all!

Beloved, don’t say, “We can never know God’s will. Sometimes He heals, sometimes He doesn’t. He may prosper us, but He may also take away our prosperity.” The Jesus of the Bible never made anyone sick. He never made anyone poor. He made the little become much with 12 baskets full of leftovers. (Matthew 14:20) He gave a net-breaking, boat-sinking load of fish to fishermen. (Luke 5:6–7)

My friend, the Jesus of the Bible loves to heal, deliver, prosper and save people. This Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8) And He says to you today, “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.” So you can know God’s will for you. You can see what He will do for you when you know the Jesus of the Bible and what He did.

It's The Most ???? Time Of The Year

Today is the 16th of December, 2010. Drawing near is the close of another year in my life, and I have to be honest, this one's been the toughest of my forty-seven years on this planet. The Christmas season is in full swing for most people, yet for me it is just another series of days to get through. Don't get me wrong, I'm still so very thankful for the birth of my Lord Jesus, because without Him, me and my family would not be in as good a shape as we are.

For years I've heard how hard the holiday seasons can be for people who have lost someone to death, and truthfully I've not given it much thought. Not because I'm a callous person, but you know how it is. If you're not having to deal with that type of thing, it really is hard to realize what others go through and even harder to empathize.

This year at the Felts household there has been little joy in the holiday season. As a family we decided that we would not do our traditional Christmas decorating. (Having Micah not do the Christmas tree skirt dance will be missed though.) We have however trimmed our windows with garland along with some new L.E.D. Christmas lights. And when I say "we" I mean my bride has. And in lieu of our traditional Christmas tree with all the ornaments we've collected over the past twenty-two years we purchased a Charlie Brown tree, and put it on top of our television. It does make us laugh a little.

I want to celebrate Christmas; I want the big, old fashioned family Christmas as bad as Clark Griswald wanted one in "Christmas Vacation", but my feelings are raw and putting on the "happy face" isn't as easy as it once used to be. This is not to say that Jesus hasn't showed up and rescued me, He has on numerous occassions, often through my band of brothers & sisters in Christ that have continued to lift me and my family up in prayer.

And while this year's festivities may be lighter than in years past, my family will survive this Christmas holiday, and make it through. We are about to reach a hurdle, probably one of the hardest next to the actual anniversary of Noah's death, and I am thankful that my Lord Jesus has continued to walk with us every step of the way. So even though this is a difficult time in my life, I will make the best of it, spending as much time with friends as possible and loving my family a lot. Because truthfully, it's the people that you will take with you into eternity, not the presents. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Don't Let Disapointment Get You

Disapointment is a large hole that will try to suck you into it and lead you to sin. I am reminded of the Sarlac pit in the Star Wars movie "Return of the Jedi". It was a large, gaping hole in the desert in which lived a creature call a Sarlac.

This creature had long tentacles which would reach out and grab any unknowing creature, pulling them down to its waiting, cavernous mouth to be eaten. Well, disapointment can be just like that. With it's tentacles of self pity, sadness and many other forms of selfish emotions, it can entangle your spirit and pull you towards it's cavernous mouth of sin.

Unlike what was portrayed in the movie, (Jabba the Hutt feeding his enemies to the Sarlac), the way a Sarlac obtained it's food was by feeding on any creature unaware that it was there. Any creature that didn't know better and travelled too close to the edge of it's pit would end up as a tasty morsel for the Sarlac.

As Christians, especially Christians who read and meditate in God's Word, we should really realize disapointment for what it is, an emotion, that if left unchecked, will get the best of us every time. Even though I encountered some disapointment today, I will not fall prey to it's wiley ways. Instead I will give it a wide berth as I pass it by and avoid the sin that it would try to bring me to.

Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

War! We're At War!

In case you were unaware of this fact, as a Christian, a follower of Jesus, and one who is a disciple of His. The enemy (the devil) has declared war on you. I'm not sure if you were aware of it or not, but you are in a war, if you are trying to follow the Lord. Look at this Scripture in Revelation:

Revelation 12:17 "And the dragon was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children—all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus."

The devil rose up against God leading one third of the angelic host in a rebellion in Heaven. They were easily defeated, and the devil was hurled down to Earth. Jesus said that He saw Lucifer fall from Heaven like lightning. (Luke 10:18) So now he makes war on the image of Jesus, and that's us. Those called "little Christs", you know, Christians.

What we need in the Christian community is for the true followers of Jesus to rise up and face the enemy head on. Remember, we do not war after the flesh. That is, we don't fight with flesh and blood, but we do have to fight. We have to fight the enemies of God, and those are spiritual. We have to continue to walk in the light of the Word of God, and wage war on all those principalities, powers and rulers of darkness in high places. (Ephesians 6:11-13)

Don't think for one minute that if you leave the enemy alone, that he will leave you alone. He's looking for ways to destroy you, and you have to meet him head on. We will overcome the enemy by the Blood of the Lamb, and the word of our testimony...but we've got to stand up against the enemies of God and use our one offensive weapon, the sword of the spirit. Speak God's Word to the enemy, like Jesus did in the wilderness, and we will be victorious.

Victory comes to those who fight, not to those who sit on the sidelines. I'm reminded of Theodore Roosevelt, our 26th president. He made a statement in one of his speeches that inspires me like almost no other. Take a look:

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by the dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."

So rise up Christian! Rise up and don't let the naysayers sway you to be timid or shy in this end time assault on all that is holy. Don't be that timid, or critical person who rails against what others are doing, but take your place in the halls of heroes of the faith, and make the enemy pay. Make him remember the day you stood against him with faith in our Lord Jesus, pleading the Blood and holding fast to your confession of God's Word. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Jesus Whipped The Devil As A Man, Not As God

I saw a video clip from my friend Joe McGee this morning, and I'm going to borrow from him in my blog today. If you would like to see Joe's video, click here and you can watch it.

You know the story, how that God had prophesied that there would come a day when His Son would arrive and bruise the devil's head. (Genesis 3:15) The devil cannot read thoughts, nor does he know everything. So he spent the next several thousand years trying to figure out when Jesus was going to show up.

He killed off a whole bunch of children in Egypt when Moses showed up, because he thought that might be who God had been talking about. And then the three wise men showed up looking for the King of the Jews, and the devil moved on Herod to kill all the children two years old and under. (Matthew 2:16)

Then John the Baptist shows up and begins to tell everyone that the Messiah is coming. You know that had to cause the devil's ears to perk up, and he was there watching John waiting to find out who the Messiah actually was. The really cool thing about God is that he didn't leave the devil wondering once it was time for Jesus to start His ministry. John baptizes Jesus, and as soon as He comes up out of the water, the Holy Spirit (in the form of a dove) rested upon Him and then God speaks from Heaven, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17)

Did you get it? God just pointed Jesus out to the devil. The devil didn't know who the Messiah was, and then God goes and points Him out and says basically, "Hey devil, here He is." And it is immediately after this that Jesus went out into the wilderness and began his fast. (Matthew 4:1 - 11) The devil followed Him out there, but notice he didn't attack Him at first. He's just watching Jesus, and on the fortieth day (when Jesus is physically at His weakest) the devil shows up and begins to talk to Him.

Matthew 4:3 - 4: ³And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. ⁴But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Boom! Jesus spoke the Word of God and you know it felt like a two by four upside the devil's head. Nobody had ever spoken God's Word to the enemy before. So the next time the devil figures, Jesus uses the Word, I'll use the Word, so he says,

⁵Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, ⁶And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

But Jesus comes back at him with the Word, in the correct context and says, ⁷Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

So the devil thinks, I know I'll offer to give everything to Him, that is what He's after after all, and he tries again, ⁸Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; ⁹And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

At this point, the devil has tipped his hand and Jesus has had enough, so He says, 10Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. And Scripture says that the devil left Him, for a season. He had to leave, he just got whipped. And then the angels came and ministered to Jesus. Now go with me here, I'd like to embellish that part of the story a bit, so bare with me here.

The angels show up, and they bring food and water to the Lord. And the conversation might have gone something like this.
Jesus: "Did you see that?"
Angels: "Yes Master, we were waiting for You to call on us for assistance." (Because there are more angels than we can count.)
Jesus: "No, did you see what I did?"
Angels: "Yes Master, You defeated the evil one."
Jesus: "But did you see how I did it?"
The angels just stood there looking at Him.
Jesus: "I defeated him as a man, not God. Don't you see, I defeated the enemy with God's Word as a man, not as God. And soon there will be millions and millions just like Me that will be able to do that too!"

Man I don't know about you, but I think it's time we rise up and start putting knots on the devil's head with God's Word. This is why it is imperative that we put God's Word down in our hearts. The devil is not afraid of us, he's afraid of God's Word in us, coming out of our mouths. I love that Joe said, "I used to tell kids all the time that those aren't horns on the devil's head, they're knots from the beating he took from Jesus."

I want to get out there and whip the snot out of the devil, who's with me? Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

How Well Do You Wait?

I read this passage of Scripture this morning, and several things jumped out at me that I want to share with you today. Take a look at John 6:15 - 21 NLT 15 When Jesus saw that they (the crowds He had just fed) were ready to force him to be their king, he slipped away into the hills by himself. 16 That evening Jesus’ disciples went down to the shore to wait for him. 17 But as darkness fell and Jesus still hadn’t come back, they got into the boat and headed across the lake toward Capernaum. 18 Soon a gale swept down upon them, and the sea grew very rough. 19 They had rowed three or four miles when suddenly they saw Jesus walking on the water toward the boat. They were terrified, 20 but he called out to them, “Don’t be afraid. I am here!" 21 Then they were eager to let him in the boat, and immediately they arrived at their destination!

I've highlighted the sections that jumped out at me, see if you can relate to them: Jesus slipped away into the hills by Himself. Jesus' disciples went down to the shore to wait for Him. But as Jesus still hadn't come back, they got into the boat and headed across the lake, and the sea grew very rough.

Isn't that just how our lives work? We decide to wait on Jesus for an answer to prayer, or some direction in our daily walk, but when the answer doesn't show up as quick as we think it should, we make plans to go ahead and step out all by ourselves. Usually with disastrous results, at least for me anyway.

One of the things that I've noticed about Jesus in the Bible, is that He was always going off to spend time alone with the Father. I believe that the Holy Spirit was telling Jesus the things that were to come in His life during those times. Remember He said, "I do what I see my Father do, and I say what I hear my Father say." (John 8:26) I believe that He would go off on His own, talk with the Father and get His marching orders for what was to come.

I was watching a "making of" video about the Lord of the Rings movies a couple of years ago, and was fascinated to find out that the actors many times don't receive a full script of the movie. Usually they get the pages of the script that they will be shooting the night before. As I was thinking about this blog, it dawned on me that this might be how the Holy Spirit works. He won't show us everything, but just what we need to know for today.

Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 6:34: "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." I know that this was being spoken in the context of seeking the Kingdom of God first, but I see the principal here of not being concerned with tomorrow.

I know that for myself, I don't wait on God nearly enough. I'm ready to charge the fields, only to find out halfway towards the enemy that there is no army behind me...yet. I'm going to work on waiting on God in the morning time for my part in the Story, then perhaps I'll fulfill the Scripture in John 14:12 by doing those even "greater works". Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Karl Marx Made Me Think

I have been attending a class at my church for the last several weeks called The Truth Project. It's been very interesting to see how God really is intertwined into everything that surrounds man, there is nothing that He is not a part of.

In last night's class the host was laying the foundation of history, and gave us a quote by Karl Marx that made me sit up and take note, literally. It said, "A people without a heritage are easily persuaded." That is where we are at right now in the United States. A people without a heritage. I don't mean that we don't have a heritage in the United States, because we do and it is an amazing one actually filled with all kinds of characters and actions that molded this great country into what it has become.

No, we have a society that has forgotten it's heritage. Take for instance one of the instances that was discussed in last night's class. The Mayflower Compact. Here it is:

In the name of God, Amen. We whose names are under-written, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign Lord, King James, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland King, Defender of the Faith, etc.

Having undertaken, for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith, and honor of our King and Country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents solemnly and mutually, in the presence of God, and one of another, covenant and combine our selves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the Colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience. In witness whereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape Cod, the eleventh of November [New Style, November 21], in the year of the reign of our sovereign lord, King James, of England, France, and Ireland, the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth. Anno Dom. 1620.

Now look at how it is taught in most text books in school:

Having undertaken, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents solemnly and mutually,covenant and combine our selves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the Colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience. In witness whereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape Cod, the eleventh of November [New Style, November 21], in the year of the reign of our sovereign lord, King James, of England, France, and Ireland, the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth. Anno Dom. 1620

Did you notice the difference? They have taken the parts about God out of what is being taught to the children of America. They have taken out part of our heritage. This is something that truly concerns me for the simple reason that the people that came here to the new land came for religious reasons. But you take God out of the equation, and it appears that they just came here for the heck of it, because it sounded like a good idea.

I'm reminded of a story that I read in a biography on George Washington. In it, he wrote a letter to his family while he was serving in the French/Indian war. He stated that he had had several horses shot out from under him, and that when the battle was over and he retired back to his tent, when he removed his powdered wig, several bullets fell out of it. It was years later in the story, when he was President that an Indian chief came to visit him. The Indian chief told Mr. Washington that he had to meet the man that God would not let die in battle. It seems that during the battle that George had written home about, this Indian had told his braves to target the leader, (George Washington), which they had done, shooting several horses out from under him in the process. But they were unable to kill him, and this chief said that he personally had shot him numerous times as well.

Now that is an amazing story of God's protection on a man who would end up leading our country in one of it's most dire times. Yet how many of you have read that story in your history books in school? I know I never did. What I did learn about him however, was that he chopped down his father's cherry tree and could never tell a lie. Which of those two stories gives you a better perspective on the heritage of our country?

I think Karl Marx was correct in his statement, and an even scarier thought is that we may be living that out in our lifetime...remember where you came from, because if you don't, you are destined to repeat history...and sometimes that's not a good thing to do. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Not A South Paw, But Lesson Learned

There is a saying which goes like this, "Whatever doesn't kill you, makes you stronger." and while that is a true statement, it doesn't really paint a very rosy picture for our lives now does it?

Jesus said in John 16:33 that in our lives we will have trials and tribulations, but to be of good cheer because He has overcome the world. We were never promised that our days would be without challenges, but we are promised that when we stay connected to Jesus we can overcome all the obstacles that do show up.

You know, the devil will make a run at us every chance he gets. The one thing I have learned in my own life is that he never challenges me in any area where I'm strong. It is always the areas where I exhibit weakness that he exploits.

I was with a group of friends the other night watching the Bedlam football game. For those of you who don't know, this is the football game between the two state colleges in Oklahoma. It's a crazy game with over the top fans on both sides. Now I'm not a real fan of football, I can watch it, and even enjoy it, but I have no true loyalties to either team.

What I do love to do however is to harrass the guys who do have loyalties to their team. When people I know reveal an area in their life that aggravates them, I love to zero in on that and exploit it for pure enjoyment. Now, this has come to bite me in the butt from time to time, especially when someone I've done this to finds an area to exploit with me. But if you are going to dish anything out, you've got to be able to take it in return too.

One thing I figured out, while writing this blog actually, is that this is exactly what the devil does too. (And yes I realize that by saying this I am putting myself in the same breath as the devil) The devil goes around as it says in Job 1:7 to and fro in all the Earth. The Bible also tells us in 1 Peter 5:8 that he is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. He's just looking for any weakness in us, and when he finds one he will exploit it for all it's worth. And he doesn't care either, anything that will let him get to us is good enough for him.

A few years ago this happened to me. One day, I had a customer in my store that rubbed me the wrong way. I'm not sure why, but she did, and as she left the store I passed a six foot, wooden end cap as I was walking towards the back room when my anger got the best of me, and I swung out with my right fist and punched it as hard as I could.

Now I have taken Karate classes with my kids, and know the proper way to throw a punch, but this day I hit that end cap square with my pinky knuckle and for all my efforts ended up with what is called a boxer's fracture. The knuckle right at the base of my pinky finger fracturing from the impact.

I'm not sure why I let that lady get me so worked up that day, but I am starting to realize how and when the enemy pushes my buttions. Some days I do better than others, as I am still growing and learning. The real interesting thing is that when it gets really cold, or I am doing something strenuous with my hands that pinky knuckle reminds me of that day.

My friend Joe McGee offered me the following wise words when I was talking to him about this incident in my life, "It's a hard lesson to learn Dave, but now that you have learned it you will be able to help someone else when they are struggling with the same thing." And I guess that's kind of what I've hopefully done with this blog today.

Stand strong against the wiles of the enemy, because with Jesus in your heart you can do that, if you choose to listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit when those situations arise. I know that I'm going to from now on. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Are You Sure That You See?

I was reading a chapter in the book of John this morning, when something jumped off the page at me. Take a look at John 2:18-21;

"18 But the Jewish leaders demanded, “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.”
19 “All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
20 “What!” they exclaimed. “It has taken forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can rebuild it in three days?” 21 But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body."

This was right after Jesus had run out the livestock, overturned the money changer's tables and told those who sold doves to get them out of His Father's house and to stop making it a marketplace. The Jewish leaders are hacked off and demand that Jesus explain Himself. What's interesting is that they are looking for Him to perform some type of miraculous sign to prove that He is being led by God.

Now what caught my attention this morning is the sign that Jesus talks about is His resurrection. Which is something that won't happen for almost three years. The timeline for this setting is right after He turned the water into wine, which was the first miracle that Jesus had done. I think sometimes we, like the Jewish leaders ask Jesus for something, and expect that He will be "Johnny on the spot" with it. When most of the time, we have to wait a while for the answer to our prayer.

You see, the Jewish leaders got their answer from Jesus, they just missed what He was saying. They didn't actually see what He was talking about. We find that Jesus used this way of talking to the religous leaders in Matthew 13:13, where He quoted Isaiah 6:9-10. Talking about them seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not. What they didn't realize was that Jesus did give them the sign they were looking for, they were just unable to see the answer for what it was.

Interestingly enough, they were the spiritual leaders of the Jewish race, and they were focused on the here and now (the Temple) more than what Jesus was actually telling them (His body would be raised up in three days). Is it any wonder that they were aggravated at every turn when they dealt with Jesus?

The real question now is, are we sure that we are seeing? Are we focusing on what's around us, or on what Jesus is really trying to get us to see? A good exercise would be the next time you are talking to the Father about something, ask Him to reveal to your spiritual eyes what is going on. I'm reminded of 2 Kings 6:17:

"Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!” The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire."

Elisha's servant was all panicky and thought they were going to die, but Elisha prayed and the Father showed the servant what was really going on. We need that some days, and we can have it if we will only ask the Father to let us see with our spiritual eyes, and not stay focused on what we see with our natural eyes.

Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

God Is Not A Socialist

I heard something that set my mind to wandering around thinking. This Jewish Rabbi named Daniel Lapin was talking about the Hebrew language with his wife on a streaming video I was watching on his website. He made the comment that socialism did not come from God and that indeed He doesn't mind us having things, why else would He have put Exodus 20:7 in the Bible.

Now for those of you who don't know what Exodus 20:7 says, let me tell you:

"You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor."

Rabbi Lapin's comment got me to thinking. Of course, how had I never seen this before? If we are not to covet things, then we must be meant to have things. Because if we have nothing, or if everyone has exactly the same things, then there is nothing TO covet. Now I know what you are going to say, but what about in the New Testament over in Acts where all the believers had everything in common. (Acts 2:44-45)

I see in this Scripture that they did indeed sell their possessions and property, but apparently not all of it because in verse 46 it says that they continued to eat in their homes. So, they didn't all sell their homes. They must of still had some stuff.

I see the tendancy for people to say, "Well everyone should have the same thing, and we should all share what we have." To which I say, "Nope. We should not all have the same thing. We should be able to go and work and buy the things that we want, and if someone looks at us and says that's not fair, then they should get up off their backside and go work so they can get some stuff too."

God is not a socialist, He doesn't say anywhere in Scripture that everyone should have the same amount of stuff. He does tell us to give to the widow, the orphan and the poor. We should give out of our abundance, and help those in need. That is a command, not a suggestion. But to say that the way that is done is by redistributing the wealth of everyone is ridiculous. God never said that.

Those who think the redistribution of wealth is the answer, almost always are talking about the other guy sharing his wealth with others, not their own. You know you can tell a lot about a person by what they do with their money; it's a real good indicator of what kind of person they are. This is one of the reasons employers now look at a person's financial records instead of former employer references.

I say go out and make as much as you can, tithe off of your increase and help the widows, orphans and the poor. Buy what you desire to have and bless the Lord the whole time that you are doing it. But when people try to make you feel guilty for the Lord's blessings, don't let them. Show them what you are doing and encourage them to do the same...that's what will change the world. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Your Tongue, the Strongest Muscle in Your Body

With Thanksgiving behind us, it is time for a little reflection. Two things happened for most people on Thanksgiving; eating and talking. Both of these require a tongue to be able to do that. But what is a tongue exactly? Here is the definition I found online:

"The fleshy, movable, muscular organ, attached in most vertebrates to the floor of the mouth, that is the principal organ of taste, an aid in chewing and swallowing, and, in humans, an important organ of speech."

We used our tongues to taste all of those wonderful comfort foods that we have come to associate with the holidays. A myriad of flavors and textures designed to be tasty and enjoyed. After all, how many bland diet foods did you see advertised for Thanksgiving? What a wonderful gift for God to have given us a muscle that not only aids in the eating ability, but makes it enjoyable at the same time. I love God for that!

Also most of us spent time with family and friends, and when people get together they talk. And boy do they talk! Conversations with family and friends can run the gambit from pleasant, to heated, from funny to sad, and with everything else in between. All of which is made possible by our tongues. (Now I know that those who use sign language use their hands, but for this blog I am specifically talking about those who use their tongues.)

In Proverbs 18:20 - 21 (MSG) the Bible says, "Words satisfy the mind as much as fruit does the stomach; good talk is as gratifying as a good harvest. Words kill, words give life; they're either poison or fruit—you choose." This Scripture is one of the foundational Scriptures for the believer to follow. It tells us that our words (which are formed by our tongues) can either kill, or they can give life, and that it us up to us to decide. Do you remember that little ditty that we said as kids? "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." What a crock! One more lie made up by our enemy to negate what the Word of God says, and if our words mean anything, and they mean everything, then what we say with our tongue IS very important.

Thinking back to your holiday conversations; did they bring life to the hearers, or death? You might say, "But you don't understand my cousin Eddy, Dave, he's a doof!" That may be so, but there is another little Scripture that helps us with this type of relative or friend. It goes like this, "Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you." (Matthew 7:12) We really aren't given the option of saying whatever we want to say, regardless of the person we are talking to, not if we are going to be true Christ followers.

It's interesting to me, (and understand I have not perfected this at all yet, I'm still growing) how people will spend hours and hours in a gym, take great care in how and what they eat to get their bodies into shape, and then just spew all manner of stupidity from their mouths. They take the one muscle in their body that can do the most damage to others and never exercise it. That one muscle is the strongest one in their body, and it doesn't get exercised very often, if even at all.

One other thing, that Scripture in Proverbs said that our words bring life, and our words also kill. That's not just talking about when we use them towards other people, that also works when we are talking to and about ourselves. We have the power in our mouths to make our lives better or make them worse, it is our choice. It is vitally important that we choose to say the right things about ourself each and every day. So what have you been saying about yourself? Have you been exercising the strongest muscle in your body? If not, then start today, put a reign on your lips, and force that tongue of yours to say the things that will bring life and not death.

Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Black Friday & God

I was just perusing through Facebook and saw the following status update: (the store name & dollar amount has been changed to protect the innocent) "...got $135 worth of clothes for my kids at (insert store name here), and only had to pay $23. We are blessed!!"

If you didn't realize this, I own and operate a retail shoe store, and for years I have been bothered by this little thing that is talked so much about in Christianity; how if we get "good" deals, then we are blessed.

I'm excited that the person who saved $112 on clothes got such a good deal, really I am because I also enjoy getting a good deal on stuff, who doesn't. What gets me is that we (talking about Christians here) cheapen God when we focus on the good deals. As a retailer, the fact that the customer got that much merchandise for so little money was not a blessing to the retailer. Sounds like to me the customer got blessed, and the retailer got the shaft.

I've always thought that if God in fact has the cattle on a thousand hill (Psalm 50:10) which He does, and everything is His, which it is, why can't He bless the customers with the full retail price of something? You see, as a merchant if I get the full retail value that's when I'm blessed. So if God was to give the customer the money to purchase what they want at full retail, then wouldn't both the customer and the merchant get blessed?

I know that they say the Friday after Thanksgiving is the best shopping day of the year. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, depends on who you talk to actually. For me, it's another day of helping customers, the funny thing is that I do the same thing the day before Thanksgiving as I do after, and every other day for that matter. I help my customers to the best of my ability each time I'm in the store.

Black Friday has become an event that a lot of people enjoy, and if you are one of them by all means go out and have a great time. Just remember to thank the Creator for your good deals, and not your savvy shopping skills. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

What Are You Thankful For?

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. The day where we all set aside some time to be thankful for all that we have, and for those around us. But what does it mean to be thankful? Well, a basic look at the word would lead us to believe that we are to be full of thanks. Thanks for what? Thanks for whom? These are some important questions for us to ask don't you think? I was reading a passage in the Bible today, take a look at it.

Colossians 3:14 - 16 (The Message)
So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.

There is a lot of great stuff in here, but I want to look at the sentence, "And cultivate thankfulness." What I'm seeing here is that thankfulness is not an automatic thing in our lives. We have to make sure that we are walking in thankfulness each and every day, no body is going to do it for us.

We all have things that we can be thankful for, I'm reminded of an old saying I heard the other day; "I was unthankful for not having a pair of shoes, until I met a man who had no feet." In order for us to be thankful, we actually have to look at the things we do have, not the things we wish we had.

Tomorrow may or may not be a great day for you, for whatever reason. Maybe you don't like to be around your family, maybe you can't be around your family because they are too far away, or you have to work. Whatever the case may be, look around at what you do have, and be thankful for that. Thank God for what He has done for you, after all we wouldn't be breathing if it wasn't for Him.

Thanksgiving is more than just eating turkey, and watching football...remember to be thankful, and work at cultivating that thankfulness into a huge harvest. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

I Hate That Guy!

I stopped in at a QuikTrip (a convenience store in Oklahoma) to gas up my son's car this morning, and as I went to pay for my breakfast sandwich I noticed an attractive woman in front of me. I was a little embarrassed when the clerk from the second register said, "I can help you over here sir." Yes, I was looking at this lady and not paying attention to what was going on around me.

Now let me go on record right here that I was not lusting after her, or having any unhealthy thoughts about her. She is after all a speaking spirit as Jesse DuPlantis says, and my sister in the Lord if she is born again. To say that this lady was unattractive would have been to lie, and the Bible says that we ought not lie.

When the clerk spoke to me, it made me feel just a little like the kid that got caught with his hand in the cookie jar. I was embarrassed, and thought to myself, "I hate that when that happens. I am a Christ follower, and should be better than that. I hate that guy!" Whenever the poser in me shows up, and by poser I mean the guy that tries to be something that he's not, the phrase I like to use is "I hate that guy!" It's a way for me to get back centered on who I am in Christ.

But as I got back into my son's car and started to pull out of the parking lot, the Holy Spirit said, "David, you didn't do anything wrong." As I pondered that thought, it occurred to me that seeing an attractive woman and admiring her beauty is not a sin. Now of course if you cannot stop after the first look, then at that point you do enter into sin, and that should not be.

We find in the Bible the account of the creation of Eve (Genesis 2:20-23). I have heard it said that Adam was made from the dirt of the Earth, but that Eve was hand fashioned and crafted by God like a master artist creating a masterpiece. This work of art was so amazing, that Adam said, "Vavavavooom!" when he first saw her. I know that's not King James, but it must of been what he said don't you think?

Now what I see here, and have been taught over the last few years, is that seeing a beautiful woman, and taking notice of her is not a bad thing. It's like admiring the Mona Lisa, something that is beautiful, breathtaking and to be admired. Seeing that and giving praise to God for His handiwork is not a bad thing at all. Where we men fall into trouble is when we take that second look, and it's in that second look where sin begins to form in us.

So admire a beautiful woman, give thanks to God that He made women and then pray His blessings on her. I tell you the truth, it's hard to think wrong thoughts about a woman if you are praying for her to be blessed by God. Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Regret VS. Godly Sorrow

2 Corinthians 7:10 (The Message) says; "Distress that drives us to God does that. It turns us around. It gets us back in the way of salvation. We never regret that kind of pain. But those who let distress drive them away from God are full of regrets, end up on a deathbed of regrets."

I was driving to church yesterday munching on a sausage roll that I got for free because I had taken in my movie ticket stub to the donut shop, in an offer that I had seen the week earlier while watching the previews before a movie my bride, some friends and I went to see. As I ate that sausage roll, my mind went back to the times when my kids were younger and I had stopped at the donut shop on the way to church.

There was always an excitement in their eyes as they grabbed their bottle of chocolate milk and surveyed all the choices of sugary wonderfulness, trying to pick that one perfect donut. All of a sudden I was filled with regret. Regret that I would never be able to take my youngest son Noah to the donut shop again. Regret that maybe I hadn't spent enough time with him in these little things like a trip to the donut shop. I must say, even now as I type this, there is some regret welling up inside of me.

As I thought about those regrets, the Holy Spirit prompted my spirit to think about the difference between regret and Godly sorrow. It was as if the Father was telling me that there is a difference and that I needed Godly sorrow, not regrets. The word regret means: a feeling of sorrow or remorse for a fault, act, loss, disappointment, etc. "Remorse for a fault." The regret that I was feeling brought condemnation to my heart, not Godly sorrow for the loss of my son, but guilt like I hadn't done enough, or loved him enough.

It was then that I saw it, this regret wasn't doing anything for me but bringing me down, making me feel guilty...and I know where those thoughts come from. I am sorry for the loss of my son, and I do wish I could have him here with me, but feeling regret for the past is not heart healthy for me, or anyone else for that matter. I have to have that Godly sorrow that leads me back to God. For it is when I run to God in my distress that I find the grace I need to continue walking forward, one step at a time.

With the holiday season upon us, and everyone gearing up with the thoughts of spending time with family, it is not by chance that the Lord wanted me to understand the difference between regret and Godly sorrow. He is reminding me that when the regrets come, I need to run to Him with those, and find the peace that He has for me in the midst of any emotional storms.

I will miss Noah's laugh, and presence during this holiday season, but I know this...God is for me, and He has my family's best interests at heart. And even more as the holiday season comes and goes, I'll be thankful that my Heavenly Father is here leading, guiding and directing my family's steps each and every day. And we will let any distress or regret drive us back into the arms of our loving Father God, of that you can rest assured.

Arise, Shine For The Dawn Has Come

I love the early morning hours. My favorite is that time right before dawn, you know the one that seems to be etheral, with the sun just starting to make it's debut on the horizon. It's different than a sunset, there is something hopeful in the new day.

Psalm 118:24 says in the New Living Translation; "This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it." I like that! We will rejoice and be glad in it! There is hope in that Scripture, plus there is a command in it as well. Regardless of what the day holds for us, we will rejoice, and we will be glad in it.

No matter what the day holds, and we never know do we? We might go sailing with some friends, we might be at the hospital with our family or we might just sit on our porch enjoying coffee with our neighbor, we really don't know. But whatever our day is; good, bad or indifferent we are commanded to rejoice and be glad.

One of the many things that I love about God is that He never tells us to do something that we are unable to do. If He tells us to rejoice and be glad, then He expects that that is something that we really can accomplish. John Eldredge wrote in his blog this week, this statement: "And so Doubt, masquerading as humility, has become a virtue." We are too quick to doubt in our lives I think. If God said it, then we "CAN" believe it.

If we are a believer in Christ, then that's what we do...WE BELIEVE...the enemy wants us to lay aside those things that God promises, by dismissing them. We cannot do that, we must hear what God says, and then do that. That's why the rising of the sun brings me such hope, because I get another day to walk out what God has for me.

So remember, this is the day the Lord has made. we get to rejoice and be glad in it! Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

Jesus Said To Go And Compel Them

I was sitting at Whataburger in the drive through line waiting for my lunch to be prepared, and saw a newspaper box for the Tulsa World sitting by an entrance to the building. And on it was a sticker that someone had stuck on the side of it which read Jesus: The Way, The Truth, The Life, John 14:6.

And it made me wonder, is this what Jesus meant when He was telling the story about the man who put together the big supper and invited people from all around to it. (Luke 14:16 - 23)

Most of the people who were invited declined his offer, and so he sent his servants out to compel anyone they could find to come to the dinner. I have always heard this taught that we should go and compel people to come to the Lord.

But when I saw this sticker, it really set me to wondering if this is what Jesus meant when He told this story. Does sticking a sticker on a newspaper box compel someone to come to Jesus? I don't really think so. The word compel means, "to drive or urge forcefully or irresistibly". Seeing this sticker does not compel me to do anything, well maybe it does, it makes me kind of want to find the person and smack them in the head and say, "What were you thinking?"

The thing that bothers me about this, is that the person who stuck this sticker on the newspaper box, probably walked away thinking that they did a service for the Lord. I'm sad to say that most people wouldn't see it that way at all. Let's get people in the Kingdom, but let's do it by getting to know them, forming a relationship and letting them see Jesus in us, the hope of glory. Then they'll ask us about why we're different, and decide they want that too.