Day: September 2, 2017

​Marc Roy

Marc Roy

((( COST OF DISCIPLESHIP )))

BECOMING A TRUE DISCIPLE OF JESUS

CHRIST WILL COST YOU EVERYTHING.

– YOU WILL LOSE MOST OF YOUR FRIENDS.

– YOU WILL LOSE SOME FAMILY MEMBERS.

– YOU MAY LOSE SOME JOBS.

– YOU MIGHT GO TO PRISON.

– YOU MIGHT GET BEAT UP.

– YOU MIGHT GET SPAT UPON.

– YOU WILL DEFINITELY BE HATED.

– YOU WILL BE VERY UNPOPULAR.

– YOU’LL BE SEEN AS EVIL.

– EXCOMMUNICATED FROM CHURCHES.

– YOUR KIDS WILL TURN AGAINST YOU.

– YOUR PARENTS WILL TURN AGAINST YOU.

– YOU’LL BE PERSECUTED.

JESUS SAID,

IF YOU’RE NOT WILLING TO FORSAKE “” ALL

“” THAT YOU HAVE, YOU CANNOT BE MY

DISCIPLE. LUKE 14,33.

JESUS IS NOT CALLING ANYONE TO REPEAT

A SINNERS PRAYER. WHAT HE WANTS IS

YOUR WHOLE LIFE. TO DENY YOURSELF,

AND COMPLETELY SURRENDER.

MATTHEW 19:29.

And every one that hath forsaken houses, or

brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or

wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s

sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall

inherit everlasting life.

JESUS SAID “COUNT THE COST” LUKE

14:28.

Charles Spurgeon

Steve Hammer

“I remember an old friend of mine once

saying, ‘Ah! you preach the three Rs, and God

will always bless you.’ I said, ‘What are the

three Rs?’ And he answered, ‘Ruin,

redemption, and regeneration.’ They contain

the sum and substance of divinity all for ruin.

We were all # ruined in the fall; we were all

lost when Adam sinned, and we are all ruined

by our own transgressions, we are all ruined

by our own evil hearts, and our own wicked

wills; and we all shall be ruined unless grace

saves us.

Then there is a second R for # redemption.

We are ransomed by the blood of Christ, a

lamb without blemish and without spot; we

are rescued by his power; we are ransomed

by his merits; we are redeemed by his

strength.

Then there is R for # regeneration. If we

would’ve pardoned, we must also be

regenerated [born again]; for no man can

partake of redemption unless he is

regenerate. Let him be as good as he

pleases; let him serve God, as he imagines,

as much as he likes, unless he is regenerate,

and has a new heart, a new birth, he will still

be in the first R, that is ruin.

These things contain an epitome of the

gospel.

—Charles Spurgeon

JoAnn N Alan

Oswald Chambers 

A Life of Pure and Holy Sacrifice
September 2, 2017
He who believes in Me…out of his heart will flow… —John 7:38
   
Jesus did not say, “He who believes in Me will realize all the blessings of the fullness of God,” but, in essence, “He who believes in Me will have everything he receives escape out of him.” Our Lord’s teaching was always anti-self-realization. His purpose is not the development of a person— His purpose is to make a person exactly like Himself, and the Son of God is characterized by self-expenditure. If we believe in Jesus, it is not what we gain but what He pours through us that really counts. God’s purpose is not simply to make us beautiful, plump grapes, but to make us grapes so that He may squeeze the sweetness out of us. Our spiritual life cannot be measured by success as the world measures it, but only by what God pours through us— and we cannot measure that at all.
When Mary of Bethany “broke the flask…of very costly oil…and poured it on [Jesus’] head,” it was an act for which no one else saw any special occasion; in fact, “…there were some who…said, ‘Why was this fragrant oil wasted?’ ” (Mark 14:3-4). But Jesus commended Mary for her extravagant act of devotion, and said, “…wherever this gospel is preached…what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her” (Mark 14:9). Our Lord is filled with overflowing joy whenever He sees any of us doing what Mary did— not being bound by a particular set of rules, but being totally surrendered to Him. God poured out the life of His Son “that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:17). Are we prepared to pour out our lives for Him?
“He who believes in Me…out of his heart will flow rivers of living water”— and hundreds of other lives will be continually refreshed. Now is the time for us to break “the flask” of our lives, to stop seeking our own satisfaction, and to pour out our lives before Him. Our Lord is asking who of us will do it for Him?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The place for the comforter is not that of one who preaches, but of the comrade who says nothing, but prays to God about the matter. The biggest thing you can do for those who are suffering is not to talk platitudes, not to ask questions, but to get into contact with God, and the “greater works” will be done by prayer (see John 14:12–13). Baffled to Fight Better, 56 R

Streams in the Desert – September 2

<< Streams in the Desert, with Mrs. Charles Cowman
Streams in the Desert – September 2
2017Sep 02
Unto you it is given… to suffer (Philippians 1:29).
God keeps a costly school. Many of its lessons are spelled out through tears. Richard Baxter said, “O God, I thank Thee for a bodily discipline of eight and fifty years”; and he is not the only man who has turned a trouble into triumph.
This school of our Heavenly Father will soon close for us; the term time is shortening every day. Let us not shrink from a hard lesson or wince under any rod of chastisement. The richer will be the crown, and the sweeter will be Heaven, if we endure cheerfully to the end and graduate in glory.

–Theodore L. Cuyler
The finest china in the world is burned at least three times, some of it more than three times. Dresden china is always burned three times. Why does it go through that intense fire? Once ought to be enough; twice ought to be enough. No, three times are necessary to burn that china so that the gold and the crimson are brought out more beautiful and then fastened there to stay.
We are fashioned after the same principle in human life. Our trials are burned into us once, twice, thrice; and by God’s grace these beautiful colors are there and they are there to stay forever.

–Cortland Myers
Earth’s fairest flowers grow not on sunny plain,

But where some vast upheaval rent in twain

The smiling land.

After the whirlwinds devastating blast,

After the molten fire and ashen pall,

God’s still small voice breathes healing over all. 

From riven rocks and fern-clad chasms deep,

Flow living waters as from hearts that weep,

There in the afterglow soft dews distill

And angels tend God’s plants when night falls still,

And the Beloved passing by that way

Will gather lilies at the break of day.

–J.H.D.

Hurricane Irma

If Hurricane Irma Becomes The Strongest Hurricane In History, It Could Wipe Entire Cities Off The Map
Sep 2, 2017 | 0  |     
(By Michael Snyder) Meteorologists have been shocked at how rapidly Hurricane Irma has been strengthening, and they are already warning that if it hits the United States as a high-level category 5 storm the devastation would be absolutely unprecedented.  Of course, we are already dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, and many experts are already telling us that the economic damage done by that storm will easily surpass any other disaster in all of U.S. history.  But there is a very real
possibility that Hurricane Irma could be even worse.  According to the National Hurricane Center, at 5 PM on Friday Irma already had sustained winds of 130 miles per hour.  But it is still very early, and as you will see below, next week it is expected to potentially develop into a category 5 storm with winds of 180 miles per hour or more. I suppose that it is appropriate that such a powerful storm has a very powerful name.  In old German, the name “Irma” actually means “war goddess”… The name Irma is a German baby name. In German the meaning of the name Irma is: Universal, from the Old German ‘irmin’. War goddess.

Paula MailletSeptember 1

Paula Maillet

September 1

A Changed Heart – It’s The Only Way

“The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom,

and his tongue talks of justice.

The law of his God is in his heart;

none of his steps shall slide.”

Psalm 37:30-31

There is a huge difference between walking in righteousness because of fear, versus walking in righteousness because God has put his laws into our hearts and we actually WANT to do right.

ASK for it. ASK him to put his laws into your heart and teach you his ways. There is tremendous joy in it, and peace that surpasses the understanding. No one who has ever tasted of this would ever, EVER want to return to the way it was before.

But we cannot do it on our own, it will never succeed as the product of our striving. The person who has been born again has had his heart changed, and the change is totally life-changing. The thing he fears the most is falling from grace, being out of favor with God, displeasing the Lord in any way, losing the precious sense of his presence.

But God doesn’t leave him to himself, he is there to help him through the challenges of life if only he will ASK, casting his cares upon the Lord. as the Lord leads him to victory.

“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling,

and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory

WITH EXCEEDING JOY,

to God our Savior, who alone is wise,

be glory and majesty, dominion and power,

both now and forever.”

Jude 1:24-25

AMEN! Oh halleluyah!

MORE DEVOTIONALS:

http://along-emaus-road-blog.blogspot.com/

5 hrs · Frie

Berean CallApples of Gold – September 1

Berean Call

Apples of Gold – September 1

When we’re obedient to all that we already know God clearly asks of us, He opens up our understanding further. We’re to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33). He’s in charge of our spiritual growth, its pacing, its sequence, its individual shaping and preparation for the purpose He has for each of us. We can trust Him fully. Someone has said, “He won’t do our part, and we can’t do His part.” Instead of looking about at others, allow Him to grow you into the very special and individual person you were meant to be.

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

—Matthew 6:33

http://ow.ly/d0tI30ew8mv

Apples of Gold – September 1

​Steve Hammer

Steve Hammer

Holiness is celebrated in heaven as one of

those aspects of the divine character that

give ineffable delight. Isaiah saw the

seraphim standing around the throne of God,

and crying one to another, “Holy! Holy! Holy!”

John also had a vision of the worship of

heaven, and says “They rest not day nor

night, saying, Holy! Holy! Holy! Lord God

Almighty” When Isaiah beheld the holiness of

God, he cried out “Woe is me! I am undone. I

am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the

midst of a people of unclean lips; for mine

eyes have seen the King, the Lord of

hosts!” (Isaiah 6:5).

God’s holiness is infinite, and it is no wonder

that a perception of it should thus affect the

prophet.

Finite holiness must forever feel itself awed in

the presence of infinite holiness. Job says, “I

have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear,

but now mine eye seeth Thee: wherefore I

abhor myself, and repent in dust and

ashes” (Job 42:5). There is no comparing

finite with infinite. The time will never come

when creatures can with open face

contemplate the infinite holiness of God,

without being like persons overcome with a

harmony too intensely delightful to be calmly

borne. Heaven seems not able to endure it

without breaking forth into strains of

inexpressible rapture!

Audra Maack

St​eve Hammer

Listen closely to what the Lord declared over

David,,,

“I have found David the son of Jesse, a MAN

after MINE own HEART, which shall FULFILL

ALL my WILL” Acts 13:22

How many times do we pray, “Lord, I want to

know your HEART! Lord, I want to FULFILL

ALL your WILL in my life!” But, yet we seem

to come up short, day after day, week after

week. And, we keep asking year after year,

WHY? Why can’t I ‘breakthrough’?!

My friends, I believe one of the main reason

is that we have not ‘counted the cost’ of what

it takes to ‘FULFILL ALL of God’s WILL in our

lives!

In Ps. 101, David shows us what the

‘enduring willingness’ of a man after God’s

own heart TRULY sounds like! He sings of

seven things that he ‘WILL DO’ or ‘WILL NOT

DO’.

1.”I WILL sing of mercy and judgment” (v. 1)

KJV

2. “I WILL behave myself wisely” (V. 2) KJV

3. “I WILL set nothing wicked before my

eyes” (V.3) NKJV

4. “I WILL have nothing to do with evil” (V.

4) NIV

5. “I WILL NOT tolerate people who slander

their neighbors” (v. 5a) NLT

6. “I WILL NOT endure arrogance and

pride” (v. 5b) NASB

7. “I WILL NOT allow deceivers and liars to

stay in my house” (v. 7) ESV

These are resolute principles of a person

after God’s own HEART! These are the price

we must pay to ‘FULFILL ALL of His WILL in

our lives. The Holy Spirit is encouraging us

today, to ‘COUNT THE COST’.

Stephen Trussell