Excerpt by Robert E. Coleman

We dare not obscure the altar of sacrifice, where consecration to God is complete. If we try to circumvent the cross, we assure our own ultimate defeat, for we cut the nerve of obedience and kill the lifestyle of the Great Commission. (Go, and make disciples of the nations. Jesus) No one will take seriously the command to make disciples who has not taken up the cross.
Strangely, today we hear little about self-denial and suffering in all the talk about church growth. Is this because most of what has been said to date has come out of the Western world, where affluence abounds and church affiliation is a mark of social acceptance, if not good politics? Unwittingly, I am afraid, Christian discipleship has often been squeezed into this world's mold, radical obedience. But it will not stand the test of time. When the standards of church membership are set by popular demand, eventually the church becomes so much like the world that there is no reason for the world to change. The very effort of the church to appease fleshly expectations makes her unattractive.
... To see significant growth, more likely than not we will need to go beyond the easygoing, self-indulgent religious life of the West. It is the church living under oppression and poverty, usually in underdeveloped countries of the world, where the most thrilling growth is happening today. I am not suggesting that all of these non-Western lands have vibrant churches, any more than that all congregations in the West lack vitality, but a general pattern can be observed. It is interesting, too, that for the most part, the people in these growing segments of the Third World Christian community have had little, if any, opportunity to receive extensive formal training or even attend a church-growth seminar. Obviously, sophisticated theological education, with all its assumed expertise in churchmanship, does not produce the lifestyle of Jesus.
Have the opulence and freedoms of the Western world, though wrought with great potential for good, lulled a complacent church into mediocrity? If that is the case, any circumstance that removes these artificial supports from us should be seen as an act of mercy. Our Lord is more interested in developing our character than in preserving our comfort. Whatever it takes, we must get back to basic Christianity, align our will with the way God has set for us, and move out to disciple the nations. In many instances, church membership standards must be raised, reflecting higher expectations of commitment and disciplined living. The congregation may be slow to understand, but those in positions of authority can lead the way for others to follow and show by their example what it means to be true witnesses of Christ.
Yet obedience alone can become brittle and weary in well-doing. There must be an inner dynamic motivating and empowering life with love, an actual partaking of the divine nature. To bring this truth into focus, one final principle must be stressed, apart from which everything else written thus far would be sounding brass and tinkling cymbal. (Without love I am only a resounding gong. Corinthians)

A lesson from the early apostolic church in christian history. Excerpt from The master plan of discipleship. I am sorry if this doesn't make much sense to some of you reading, but it is mainly a challenge to those that claim Christ as Lord of their lives.

Iceaxemen magazine

This month's articles are from thr Red Rocks trip. I am in two of the pictures at the end!http://iceaxemen.com/docs/IceaxemenMagazine.pdf

Oswald Chambers Devotion for the 20th

"Jesus' parable of the talents recorded in Matthew 25:14-30 was a warning that it is possible for us to misjudge our capacities. This parable has nothing to do with natural gifts and abilities, but relates to the gift of the Holy Spirit as He was first given at Pentecost. We must never measure our spiritual capacity on the basis of our education or our intellect; our capacity in spiritual things is measured on the basis of the promises of God. If we get less than God wants us to have, we will falsely accuse Him as the servant falsely accused his master when he said, "You expect more of me than you gave me the power to do. You demand too much of me, and I cannot stand true to you here where you have placed me."When it is a question of God's Almighty Spirit, never say, "I can't." Never allow the limitation of your own natural ability to enter into the matter. If we have received the Holy Spirit, God expects the work of the Holy Spirit to be exhibited in us.
"The servant justified himself, while condemning his lord on every point, as if to say, "Your demand on me is way out of proportion to what you gave to me." Have we been falsely accusing God by daring to worry after He has said, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you"? (Matt 6:33). Worrying means exactly what this servant implied- "I know your intent is to leave me unprotected and vulnerable." A person who is lazy in the natural realm is always critical, saying, "I haven't had a decent chance," and someone who is lazy in the spiritual realm is critical of God. Lazy people always strike out at others in an independent way.
"Never forget that our capacity and capability in spiritual matters is measured by, and based on, the promises of God. Is God able to fulfill His promises? Our answer depends on Whether or not we have received the Holy Spirit."

What am I doing with my Spiritual giftings?

Will Not The Judge Of All Do Right? Gen 18:16-33

Abraham has no problem with God judging peoples sin. His concern in these verses is that God judge the righteous and unrighteous the same.
In revelation we are told that God with judge. He will judge the unbelievers by their every deed, careless word, secret thing without partiality. He will also judge the believers, but for their life stewardship. -Basically what one did with his/her spiritual gifts.
Gods wrath is certain and his judgement is absolutely final. 2 Peter 3:8-13
Thankfully God does not want anyone to go to hell. Thankfully he is fair and has amazing grace.
John 3:16

Hope Has a Reason- Becky Pippert
"Think how we feel when we see someone we love ravagged by unwise actions or relationships. Do we respond with beingn tolerance as we might toward a stranger? Far from it... Anger isn't the opposite of love, hate is, and the final form of hate is indifference.If I, a flawed narcissistic sinful woman, can feel this much pain and anger over someone's condition, how much more a morally perfect God who made them? God's wrath is not a cranky explosion, but his settled opposition to the cancer of sin which is eating out the insides of the human race he loves with his whole being."

Adventures of Recent History

A Goal To Achieve

What is the point of growing up, having experiences, making connections? It all seems an exhausting show that never ends or keeps one from becoming inevitably bored. Our desires and visions change, but is there ever a core issue or item that will satisfy?
If I have a goal, how am I to know that all the effort I put toward that ideal will not disappoint me once achieved? Why do people change careers on average at least 3 times? Why do so many marriages end in divorce? Why is there such a separation between the poor and wealthy? Why do we settle for things?
I want love, joy and happiness. I am told that I should desire much more than these though. I am told that without money or status, I am nothing but boring or faining disinterest toward them, and therefore foolish. People say I need to graduate for others to take me seriously. But then what will they think of me if I do not use the degree for which I graduated?
I enjoy travel, meeting people, trying new things, and seeing people enjoy themselves. Should I have been a travel guide? I enjoy art in every form. Should I have studied art in school instead of science? I enjoy a breath taking view and warm cup of tea on a brisk morning, but where does that leave me?
To be genuine and live each day fully are aspirations of mine. Now, if I only had a direction and someone to share the experience.

Wisdom from Ben Cross

Remember with the promises of God:
Emotions are unreliable indicators of what is real or true.
If there are conditions, then fulfillment is neither automatic nor guaranteed.
Your perspective of how God works is severely limited.
Delays are designed by a loving father committed to developing your faith and character.
Is anything "hard" for the Lord?
Nothing is too hard/wonderful for the LORD, but perhaps the hard/wonderful thing He will do is to transform us through pain, and not deliver us from it. Ultimately, God's promises to us concern eternal blessing and for us to be conformed to Christ's image. God is willing to sacrifice anything temporal to ensure His eternal purposes for us are realized.
God is getting my soul ready.
As we accept by faith that nothing is too hard for God, we must remember that we do not dictate to Him which "hard" thing He must do- change our circumstances or transform our hearts.
It is all for His glory.

My parents visited!

The way to permanent faith- Oswald Chambers

"Their faith was real, but it was disordered and unfocused, and was not at work in the important realities of life. The disciples were scatterd to their own concerns and they had interests apart from Jesus Christ. After we have the perfect relationship with God, through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, our faith must be exercised in the realities of everyday life. We will be scattered, not into service but into the emptiness of our lives where we will see ruin and barrenness, to know what internal death to God's blessings means. Are we prepared for this? It is certainly not of our own choosing, but God engineers our circumstances to take us there. Until we have been through that experience, our faith is sustained only by feelings and by blessings. But once we get there, no matter where God may place us or what inner emptiness we experience, we can praise God that all is well. That is what is meant by faith being exercised in the realities of life.
"Have we been scattered and have we left Jesus alone by not seeing His providential care for us? Do we not see God at work in our circumstances? Dark times are allowed and come to us through the sovereignty of God. Are we prepared to let God do what He wants with us? Are we prepared to be separated from the outward, evident blessings of God? Until Jesus Christ is truly our Lord, we each have goals of our own which we serve. Our faith is real, but it is not yet permanent. And God is never in a hurry. If we are willing to wait, we will see God pointing out that we have been interested only in His blessings, instead of in God himself. The sense of God's blessings is fundamental. ... Unyeilding spiritual fortitude is what we need."