President’s Message

If there is anything that I battle with in my walk with the Lord, it is not praying as I go, but habitually taking time to pray alone with God. This practice was part of Jewish culture. Daniel was dedicated to prayer no matter the opposition, and Paul as well (1 Thessalonians 5:17). The woman with the unjust judge was persistent (Luke 18:1-8), and her persistence provided a great result. This act of dependence on God is a powerful demonstration of our trust in His grace and love towards us. Prayer is such a great privilege. To go before the throne of God’s grace with Christ at the right hand of the Father is a blessing we must never take for granted. When we approach God, we must always bear in mind that He is “Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”  (Matthew 6:9-10). Our prayer must fit within the will of our Father because He and He alone knows what is best for us. Even though we may not feel He understands, we must remember to be “…..of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.” (1 Peter 4:7; NASU) “A rather lazy student noticed that a fellow student always recited her lessons well, so he asked her, “How is it that you always say your lesson so perfectly?” She replied, “I always pray that I may say my lessons well.” “You do?” said the boy, somewhat surprised. “Well, then, I will pray, too.” However, he could not even repeat a word of his assigned lesson the next morning. Perplexed, he ran to his friend and accused her of being deceitful. “I prayed,” he said, “but I could not say a single word of my lesson.” “Perhaps,” rejoined the other, “you didn’t study hard enough!” “I didn’t study at all,” answered the boy. “I thought I didn’t have to study after praying about it.” (from Illustrations of Bible Truths Copyright © 1995, 1998 by AMG International, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission). For example, when a child asks for something, the parent answers based on what is best for the child and the family. The more the child understands the parent, the easier the process becomes. The Lord’s Prayer ends this way; “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen’ (Matthew 6:13b). Take advantage of our access to God’s throne, but remember God knows everything and has our best interest at heart (Hebrews 4:16). There is nothing we will say that He does not know from thousands of years before we prayed, so trust Him and make prayer what you do habitually (Luke 11:9-13; 1 Thessalonians 3:10).

There is a splendid moment in Jurassic Park when world-class paleontologist Allen Grant, who has devoted his life to studying dinosaurs, suddenly comes face-to-face with real, live prehistoric creatures. He falls to the ground, dumbstruck. The reason is apparent. It is one thing to piece together an informed but imperfect image of dinosaurs by picking through fossils and bones. But to encounter an actual dinosaur—well, there can be no comparison. Citation: William D. Hendricks, Exit Interviews (Chicago: Moody, 1993) Illustrations for Every Topic and Occasion – Perfect Illustrations: For Every Topic and Occasion. In our Christian walk, we rightfully seek to learn the scriptures, learn to pray, learn to use our spiritual gifts, etc. We are sometimes careful to attend Bible study, small group classes, Sunday worship, and ministry meetings. We seek to consistently function this way because we sincerely desire a closer walk with the Lord. When Moses experienced the glory of the Lord on Mount Zion or his fellowship with the Lord in the tent of meeting, Moses would actually tell God he would rather not go anywhere unless the Lord goes with him, no matter the troubles in the journey ahead. He did not want an angel to lead him, only God (Exodus 33:12:23). When the disciples were with Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration, all that mattered was how to have the best worship service ever. Every time a person experiences God’s presence, whether it is Isaiah, Paul going to the third heavens, or the elders in Revelation, all that matters is how they can worship and serve. Paul’s experience caused him to count all things lost so that his entire focus would be to gain Christ (Philippians 3:1-8), and that is the only mark he was interested in pressing to (Philippians 3:12-16). Because of these experiences, Paul says, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed for us.” (Romans 8:18). This is because Paul wanted to learn how to live in the power of the resurrection (Philippians 3:9-11) so that in his weakness he can experience Christ strength (2 Corinthians 12:7-11). Paul’s experience of Christ in His glory gave him the confidence to do all things through Christ (Philippians 4:13). When a person tries to assemble a puzzle, they keep the picture before them while the pieces are put together. In our walk with God, we focus on the pieces: Bible study, worship, devotions, etc. We need to first focus on God in His majesty, as David would express in Psalm 8. This would cause us to pray differently, trust with more adoration, worship with more reverence and awe, obey God with more humility, and love others with more grace.

Life has a way of rocking our world in a variety of ways. There are times we find strength, and there are times we become despondent, perplexed, or even mad at God. These feelings can become so overwhelming that they affect our relationship with God and those around us, whether the children we parent, our marriages, extended family, church family, or even ourselves. We can feel helpless and defeated, which can lead to isolation. We are not the only people who have experienced this. There are great men of God like Elijah (1 Kings 17-19), David (Psalm 28, 42, etc), and even Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46). Paul says to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:13, “When you come bring the cloak …….. . Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.  Be on guard against him yourself, for he vigorously opposed our teaching. At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them. But the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me, in order that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was delivered out of the lion’s mouth. The Lord will deliver me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” (NASB) How can we, like Paul, learn to grow through these times rather than feel defeated and distant from God and others? The pain that Joseph experienced was expressed every time Joseph spoke to his brothers; several times, we read how Joseph wept. It did not say Joseph cried; it said he wept (Genesis 42:24; 43:30; 45:2; 50:17). When Joseph finally saw his father after twelve years, a father that loved him and he loved Joseph “fell on his neck and wept on his neck a long time.” (Genesis 46:29). Despite Joseph’s pain Joseph maintained his faith in the Lord (Genesis 39:11-18; 45:4-15) and this allowed the Lord to powerfully use him so that he went from ‘Pain to Promise.’ In other words, Joseph’s pain, because of his faith, shaped him to mature in his walk with God, which led God to bless him and promote him to be a redeemer. He became so powerful he managed a nation and became a type of Christ. Our lives may never be free of pain, but it should not prevent us from trusting God’s 7000 promises. When our circumstances don’t change, remember God is unchangeable (Hebrews 6:18), and all-powerful. Nothing is impossible for God to accomplish (Luke 1:37). The only thing God chooses not to make us do but require from us is to trust Him like David before Goliath or Daniel in a Lion’s Den. Life is rocking. Remember God and His cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 11-12:3)

From a human standpoint, I have always wondered what it like was to wait 25 years for one child while being promised, Abraham, you would have a nation with inhabitants like sands of the seashore, something he never saw. How does he not waver in faith (Romans 4:18-21)? He was told to leave a stable life in Haran only to have a nomadic life (moving from place to place, no restroom facilities, no kitchen, etc.), living in a tent throughout Caanan to become then separated from his cousin Lot. He had to fight a war against the two kings of Sodom and Gomorrah to defend and save his cousin Lot. He had to deal with ‘baby mama drama’ because of issues between Sarah and Hagar. He had to kick Ishmael out of his house, whom he loved. He had to endure a drought only to be forced to go to Egypt with a pretty wife when God knew that Pharaoh loved pretty women. How could this be living in the will of God?  God teaches us that Satan is given much freedom because of mankind’s decision (Adam and Eve) to choose to disobey God. This is because the whole world lies in his power (1 John 5:19). Peter calls him “a roaring lion seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8; anxiety, doubt, trials), and he also goes to heaven day and night seeking, like in the case of Job, to make accusations against us (Revelation 12:10). Abraham experiences are not unique. Living in the will of God does expose us to adverse situations. Please note that no matter what individuals in the scriptures experienced, obeying God, God’s purposes were accomplished, and each individual became stronger. The circumstances that encompass them were threatening but never defeating (2 Corinthians 4:7-12) because the Word of God does not return void (Isaiah 55:11).  He promises to protect us (Hebrews 1:14). Christ told the disciples they would have trouble (John 16:33), but He promised never to forsake them (Matthew 28:20). David, with all that he experienced said; “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them……; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! O fear the Lord you His saints; for those who fear Him there is no want.” (Psalm 34:7-9).  Satan is going to be Satan.  However, God’s love is greater! The more we are tested, the more we grow in our faith, and the more we are exposed to how “Greater love has no one….” (John 15:7-10, 13). In our pain, God faithfully delivers His promises, which include His protection and power while being refined to become like Him (Galatians 2:20; 1 Peter 1:3-9); no loss, just gain (Philippians 1:21).

A little boy, frightened by a thunderous lightning storm, called out one night, “Daddy, come. I’m scared.” “Son,” the father said, “God loves you, and He’ll take care of you.” “I know God loves me,” the boy replied, “but right now, I want somebody who has skin on.” The father’s role is to be and demonstrate God with skin on. Once, a little girl followed her father as he carefully stepped through their newly planted garden. She stepped precisely where he stepped while saying, “Daddy, if you don’t get mud on your feet, I won’t get any mud on mine!” No matter where we go in Biblical history, the role of a godly father has proven to be essential. All the way back to Adam, his lack of leadership leads to sin and death, even in the case of his sons. David’s sin leads to incest, murder, and the death of Absalom (2 Samual 13, 18). The list continues with God writing, “He will restore the hearts of fathers to their children and hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.” (Malachi 4:6; Numbers 32:14) Fathers are essential to the development of children. They provide discipline (Hebrew 12:10), training (Ephesians 6:4), and direction (Genesis 18:18), and are also the primary providers for their families (Genesis 2:15; 3:14; Luke 11:11-13), to list a few. When they fear God, their homes are blessed (Psalm 112; 128), and when they lead their homes in wisdom, they establish it forever (Proverbs 24:3-5). Their reverence for God also leads to legacy; “Indeed, may you see your children’s children,” and it determines whether a city is peaceful or not (Psalm 128:6; Proverbs 3:2). They can keep the mud off the shoes and give God skin. So let this Father’s Day serve to remind us men of our need to be the men God has called us to be. If ever there was a time in history that our children needed godly fathers, THE TIME IS NOW!!  HAPPY HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!!