The Way to our Father’s Heart…

“It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him.” Hebrews 11:6

Written by: Skip Barland

November 24, 2012

God’s original design for humanity was always that we should learn the ways of the Lord first from our earthly parents, within a loving and nurturing home.

 Unfortunately things being what they are today, in this fallen world, most of us have been raised in a less than perfect environment  and whereas, as it was in my case, where my parents did the best they knew how to do, they were limited because of their own upbringing, and so it goes.

 Regardless of what your upbringing has been, and whether or not you had a loving and nurturing home, a godly home home to grow up in; or whether you even had parents at all, maybe you are an orphan, or possibly you were abused as a child; regardless of what your past is, just know this that you have a loving and nurturing Heavenly Father who is watching over your life; and He will teach you His ways and how to please Him.

 The only thing that we need to have is a teachable mind and spirit, and a willingness to humble ourselves and learn, as a child does with his earthly father.

 Children typically don’t have to worry about where their next meal is coming from, or whether they will have a roof over their heads next month. They have faith, and they don’t even question whether their parents will take care of them or not… they know it!

 Likewise we are to develop that same attitude towards our Heavenly Father, regardless of what our earthly experience has been.

 The standard for Fatherhood is found in God, our Heavenly Father, and not in our earthly father; and so we each must begin our journey with that knowledge; that even though you may have been damaged, abused, or hurt in your upbringing, and even though you may be hurting even today, as an adult from that experience, and to one extent or another we all are in that condition, whatever is lacking in your past, just know this, that your Father in heaven will heal those wounds and that He will make you both whole and complete in Him.

That is always God’s goal, to make you complete in Him; and though those scars will always remain, as memory traces of your past experience, the way you will know you have been truly healed and delivered is because those scars will no longer bring pain to your life; but often your past experience will become the bases for your future ministry, so you will be able to have compassion and empathize with those who are coming down that same path and experience, that you came through. In this way God does enter into every experience of our life and works it for our good.

 We need to understand that God’s ways and thoughts are much different from the ways of this world and of man; and as the Bible says, “as far as the heavens are above the earth, so are God’s ways and thoughts above ours.”

 When we are born-again we are enrolled in the University of the Holy Spirit, and it is here that we learn the culture of heaven; how to put on the mind of Christ; and then to see things from God’s perspective; and how to navigate through life with His guidance and wisdom.

 It’s much the same as it would be if you were to move to a new country, where you would have to learn a whole new culture and way of life.. Likewise, if we are to be citizens of Heaven, we have to learn Heaven’s ways; and in fact our mission in the earth, as God’s covenant kids, is to bring heaven to earth, by manifesting God’s will in the earth, as it is in Heaven.

 So if we want to benefit from this relationship with our loving Heavenly Father, and see it grow, as we grow and mature, then we must learn to trust in Him, and by trust I mean we have faith in Him, that He will do what He promises.

“Since we have been made right with God by our faith, we have peace with God.

This happened through our Lord Jesus Christ, who through our faith has brought us into that blessing of God’s grace that we now enjoy. And we are happy because of the hope we have of sharing God’s glory. 

We also have joy with our troubles (our trials and tribulations), because we know that these troubles produce patience. ⁴ And patience produces character, and character produces hope. And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. He gave us his love through the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to us.” (Rom 5:1-5)

All of this is to teach us to live by faith; because without faith we CANNOT please God; and we must understand also that this doesn’t happen as an event in our life, but rather it happens as a process; a process that continues for the rest of our life while we are on this earth.

It is through this process that we learn, from our own experiences, that we can trust God to lead us through our own trials and tribulations in life.

 It is also in this process that we learn to apply those promises that we read in God’s Word; and by doing so we learn to cast our cares and our bodies, and even our lives, completely upon God, and by doing that we then develop perseverance.

God will make a way in your life even when there doesn’t appear in the natural to be any way or hope.

The Bible tells us that faith is the substance of things that we hope for, and that it is evident in things that cannot be seen or felt in the natural; and so consequently if we are to conform to God’s Kingdom and learn His ways, then we must learn to change the paradigm of the way we see things.

We must never looks to our circumstances or to our feelings in order to get hope, rather we must always look only to God’s Word!

Once you can see it and feel it, whatever it is that you are praying for, then you have it already and you no longer need hope.

Hope is what you hang on to before you see the physical manifestation!

And for all of this, we must humbles ourselves and become as children, even as our Lord instructed us to do:

Matthew 18:2-5

² Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, ³ and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.⁴ Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.⁵ Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.”

If we want to learn from God, and be pleasing to Him, then we must learn to humble ourselves before Him and be teachable, as a child. Selah.

I’ll See It When I Believe It 
By Larry Ollison, Ph.D.

 
Hebrews 11:1-3 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”

There are many people confused about the things of God. They worry and fret about creation, death, eternal life, heaven and hell. And it’s not uncommon to get letters asking this one question. “How can I understand God and the Bible? How can I know what to believe?”Well, today I have the answer.

Just believe what God says by faith. In other words, accept the Holy Bible as the Word of God, read it and believe it. Then, base all your decisions and all your trust on what God’s Word says. That’s called “walking by faith.”

Walking by faith is not always easy. Why? Well, it’s because we have become accustomed to walking by sight. Here’s what I mean.

When we pray and ask God to meet a need in our life that is clearly promised in His Word, we must believe that God has met that need. We must believe that God’s Word is true and that He has actually done what He said He would do.

Jesus said in Mark 11:24, “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”

Jesus did not say that we are to believe that we have received when we see results. He said that we are to believe that we have received what we have petitioned, when we pray. That’s praying in faith. We pray, then we believe God so much, we trust His promises so strongly, that we trust that He has already accomplished our request. From that point on, once we have prayed in faith, we thank Him for meeting our need. 

Once a man told me He couldn’t thank God for meeting His needs, because His needs had not been met. I asked Him if he had prayed and asked God to meet his needs. He said “Yes, I know that God will meet my needs, but I won’t really believe it until I see it.”

Waiting to believe when you receive is not faith. Faith is believing God, regardless of the way things look. As Christians, we are to walk by faith and not by sight. If the circumstances say one thing and God’s Word says another, we must believe God. God does not lie. You can always depend on Him. He will never let you down. He will always do what He said He would do. And according to His own Words, we will receive from Him when we believe Him.

In James chapter 1, the Bible tells us that when we pray we must believe that God will answer our petitions. In fact, verse 5 says, “But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.”

When we pray, if we don’t believe, we won’t receive.

The world says, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

The Word says, “I’ll see it when I believe it.”

Remember, Jesus said in Mark 11:24, “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” 

Larry Ollison Ministries 

This is what the world has done to our Christian Holy-days

Written by: Skip Barland

November 23, 2012

 Well here we are, another Thanksgiving Day has passed, and we are now officially entering into the former “holy-day” season. 

 Today is what is called “Black Friday,” a traditional day of shopping for bargains, as the stores gear up for what they hope will be another prosperous Christmas season. 

 How sad it is that what began in our country as a “Holy-day” of thanksgiving unto God, leading up to another “Holy-day” season of what used to be a in honor of the birth of our Saviour, that today all of this has been reduced, by the world, in the absence of any faith in God, into an annual pagan ritual of materialism. 

 It has gotten so bad that in many places today, and I dare say that in most places, when it comes to the public buildings and in public settings, you are not even allowed to have any kind of Christian display at all, that even hints that this was a day that was set aside to honor Jesus Christ.

 How sad is that, because the one thing that the world needs and is looking for is being denied them.

 For so many, it would seem, in this frantic hustle and bustle of today’s fast paced society, and in the face of mounting fears and concerns over the disintegration of a collapsing economy and a world on the brink of war, that this once cherished holy-day season that used to be a time of joy and of giving thanks to God, has today been reduced to people having this desperate need to grasp for some semblance of normalcy and escape, in order to take their minds off their problems and fears, and at least for a season to get caught up and lost in the holiday rush; but it’s all about material things, and not about God anymore!

 Like so many other things in life, once you take God out of the equation, in the vacuum that’s left behind, the world comes in, and Satan with it, in order to turn what started out as a blessing, into a curse. 

 It’s past time, I think, for Christians to stop following the world and stop imitating the world. 

 What started out as a country built on Christian principals, that was founded by men and women of faith, who literally sacrificed their ALL in order to leave to their children and to all future generations a legacy of faith, liberty and opportunity to their children, has today become a nation that is ruled over by unbelieving pagans, who have in fact made being Christian synonymous with second class citizenship.

 Who do we blame for this, but ourselves?

 It seems that Christians in America have been in a continual state of retreat for the last 200 years, as we have acquiesced and have given ground over to the world in almost every single challenge that they have presented to our faith.

Our response as Christians has typically been to just draw another line in the sand and back up.

 Well it seems we have gotten to the point that we have backed ourselves into a wall, and that we have no place further to retreat to.

 What ever happen to that “onward Christian soldier” attitude, that was backed by the knowledge that Christ is building His church and the gates of hell will NOT prevail against Him?

 It sounds to me like this is a church that has the enemy in retreat, and not the other way around. So what happened?

 Obviously somewhere along the way we lost our way and we lost our courage.

 The fact is, there’s already too much tensile and fluff in the world, and people today are just desperate to find something that’s real!

 It’s very clear in the Bible, from all the examples given there, that the power to change a society and turn a nation around does not rest with the unbelievers in that society, but it rests with the believers. 

 Jesus, before He left, clearly told His disciples that “ALL power in both heaven and earth has been made available to Me, and that you (the church) are to go out into the world in His name and preach the Kingdom of God to a lost and dying world.” Whatever happened to that plan?

 So the question is, how do we change this downward spiral that our country is in, and also this worldly paradigm of a nation that has turned away from God, into one that is repenting and turning back to God? 

 I think it starts with our attitude and our relationship with God, as individuals. 

 After all, doesn’t the Bible say that judgment starts at the household of God? 

 With that in mind, in this season of thanksgiving, I think it is a good idea for those of us who are Christians, to begin by remembering what it means to be grateful and to give thanks to God.

 What is it that the Bible says that God expects from us, as Christians?

          1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

¹⁶ Rejoice always,

 ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, 

 ¹⁸ in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Everyday should be a day of giving thanks to God, first for all of His wonderful gifts; not the least of which is the gift of His Son, who gave His all on Calvary’s cross, in order to insure our position in heaven for eternity.

 We are to give thanks also for those whom God has brought into our life, among our family and friends; and our brothers and sisters at church, all of which are also a wonderful blessing.

 No man or woman is an island unto themselves on this Christian pilgrimage; and God himself has designed it that way; so He has sent people to surround us and to help us, primarily in the church, so that we would not be alone; so that we can learn to operate as a team and to complement one another, in order that we might better accomplish our heavenly mandate, which is to bring this Gospel of the Kingdom of God to a lost and dying world. Selah

Have You Said ‘Thank You’ Today?

By Rick Renner

Take a moment today to acknowledge and be grateful for the little things — the small gestures of kindness and favor that God has expressed though familiar and even unknown people who’ve touched your life.

 It’s amazing how meaningful and rich life becomes when we practice an attitude of gratitude for every good gift God has given.

 Happy Thanksgiving!

I cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers. (Eph. 1:15)

 When is the last time you gave thanks from your heart for the loved ones God has placed in your life?

 The phrase “give thanks” in Ephesians 1:15 comes from the Greek word eucharisteo, a compound of the words eu and charis.

 The word eu means good or well. It denotes a general good disposition or an overwhelmingly good feeling about something.

 The word charisteo is from charis, which is the Greek word for grace or freely granted favor.

When these two words are compounded into one, they form the word eucharisteo. This compound word describes an outpouring of grace and of wonderful feelings that freely flow from the heart in response to someone or something.

 This is the word Paul used when he “gave thanks” for the Ephesians church. In fact, in nearly all his epistles, Paul used eucharisteo when he “gave thanks” for people he loved. 

For instance, Paul used this word in Ephesians 1:15 when he said, “I cease not to give thanks for you….” This means that when Paul thought of the Ephesians church, wonderful feelings of thankfulness would well up in his heart for them.

The Greek carries this idea in Ephesians 1:15:

Thanking God for you is so easy— it just flows out of my heart every time I think of you. In fact, I never take a break from letting God know how I feel about you.

In Colossians 1:3, Paul uses the same Greek word when he says, “We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.”

In First Thessalonians 1:2, he again uses the same Greek word when he prays similarly for the Thessalonian believers: “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers.”

In Second Thessalonians 1:3, he uses this word again when he writes, “We are bound to thank God always for you….”

The fact that Paul used the word eucharistia when he prayed for his dearest friends reminds us that we must be thankful for the relationships God has put in our lives.

Whenever we think of our closest circle of friends, a deep sense of gratefulness, thankfulness, and appreciation should well up within us! 

So when you’re praying for others, I encourage you to stop for a moment and reflect on all God has done in your life through those who are closest to you.

When you realize how valuable those relationships have been to you, you’ll be able to freely, joyfully, and unreservedly thank God for such precious friends! 

Rick Renner Ministries 

The Bible has much to say about these

days and times in which we are living!

Written by: Skip Barland

November 22, 2012

“Behold, the former things have come to pass, And new things I declare; Before they spring forth I tell you of them.” (Isaiah 42:9)

“Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure’.”
(Isaiah 46:9-10)

“Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He.”
(John 13:19)

The Bible foretells many signs that would culminate in the last days. Jesus indicated that these signs would arise together as His return drew near (Matthew 24:33-34).

Though many of these prophecies won’t climax until the tribulation period, our generation is the first to see every trend in place.

As the final seconds of this age tick away, these events will come into even clearer focus; and please keep in mind that these prophecies were penned 1900 to 3500 years ago!

How does all of this relate to you?  

Well to begin with, we are definitely living in the last days, that time which has been foretold in the Bible; a time when Jesus warned His disciples to be on their guard, so as not to be caught off guard and unaware!

“Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, “I am the Christ,” and will deceive many.

You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.

Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

All these are the beginning of birth pains.” (Matthew 24:4-8)

I have long been aware that there is no such thing as coincidence, it is NOT a Kosher word; not when it comes to the things of God and the care which He takes to watch over His Word to perform it (see 2 Chron 16:9); and in the fulfillment of prophecy, in the management of this world’s affaris, and the detail and care which He devotes to caring for and watching over the lives of His covenant children.

Often as we are faced with our own travails and tribulations, which certainly today appear to be on the increase, and certainly in these times it is easy even for the Christian, the one who has placed his or her faith in God, to sometimes question whether God has forgotten us; but again, if we would but check with our Operations Manual (the Bible) we would find that this is a common pattern that has been experienced by God’s covenant children all down through history.

God has already told us, in His Word, that we are to live by Faith, and it even says in Hebrews 11:6 that without Faith, we can’t even please God… so it must be very important that we learn a few lessons on what faith is.

As committed Christians, when our vision and senses are impaired, the same as happens when a pilot of an airplane finds himself in a storm or fog bank, when we are in the dark and are having trouble finding our way, we are to fly by Instrument Flight Rules and not by our sight or feelings, or we will crash and burn.

So in these dark times that we find ourselves in today, let us take our guidance from God’s Word (which are in fact the instruments that we fly by) and let us not be swayed by our circumstances and feelings.

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

10 I don’t want you to forget, dear brothers and sisters,
about our ancestors in the wilderness long ago. All of them were guided by a cloud that moved ahead of them, and all of them walked through the sea on dry ground.

² In the cloud and in the sea, all of them were baptized as followers of Moses. ³ All of them ate the same spiritual food, ⁴ and all of them drank the same spiritual water. For they drank from the spiritual rock that traveled with them, and that rock was Christ.

⁵ Yet God was not pleased with most of them, and their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.

⁶ These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did, ⁷ or worship idols as some of them did.

As the Scriptures say, “The people celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry.” ⁸ And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did, causing 23,000 of them to die in one day.

⁹ Nor should we put Christ to the test, as some of them did and then died from snakebites.

¹⁰ And don’t grumble as some of them did, and then were destroyed by the angel of death.

¹¹ These things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age.

¹² If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. ¹³ The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

What follows may surprise some of you, because as we read our news papers today, along side of our Bible, it’s almost as if we are experiencing déjà vu all over again; and it’s enough to make the hair stand up on the back of your neck, as the author of the article below points out.

The following video is something, if you haven’t yet seen it, you need to watch, because it sets the stage for what is to follow, and by that I mean not only in our world and what’s happening in the United States, under this corrupt de facto corporate system we are living under, but I believe it also sets the stage for what is to follow in our individual lives as well.

Jesus forewarned us of these times; and told us that even as we can look at the skies above and predict the weather, likewise we should be able to look to biblical prophecy and tell when the time of His return to earth will be, because it has already been written and foretold.

The following article comes from World Net Daily, and points out an even more amazing detail that God has woven into these amazing prophecies, that He has given to show us that truly we are NOT alone, and that God has not forgotten us.

The same details that we see in Scripture that God takes to watch over His Word, He also takes to watch over His covenant children as well, and that applies to you if you are in covenant relationship with Him.

If you haven’t yet made that decision then I suggest you do soon, before we move any further down this road, that we can read about in the Bible, that we as a nation are presently on, here in the United States and also in the world, as the leadership of this corporate entity that rules our government and also many of the world governments through its banking systems, continue to thumb their noses and resist God, just as we read the pagan leadership in the nations of old did.

If you are searching and are looking for more information on what it means to be a Christian, and if you’re looking for additional resources where you can find some answers to your questions, please click on the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/user/needhim

I have talked much in my blogs of late about the state of our government, under this de facto UNITED STATES OF AMERICA CORPORATION; an entity that is first of all unconstitutional, and that our forefathers even warned us against.

In this past election many conservatives, even Christians, were putting their hope in a man who by his own past record, was not that different in his views from Obama; and certainly when it comes to establishing this ominous “New World Order,” both men by their own admission are on the same page.

You need to understand that none of these things that are happening today is by happenstance, but rather they have been foretold long ago, so that we who are believers, may be prepared in these last days to resist Satan’s efforts; and to lead others in the world to salvation, while there is still time; for as we can see that the days are getting darker, certainly we can see also that the time of our Lord’s return is near, and that He is even standing at the door!

I want to make one thing very clear, and that is as the Bible says, we are NOT fighting against flesh and blood here, but we are fighting against principalities and wickedness in high places, who are under Satan’s controlled.

We need to understand that our neighbors and those in the world, even those that are heading up this corrupt de facto system we are living under, these people are NOT our enemies; and we who are born-again need to understand that except for the grace of God in our own lives, and the fact that we were once impacted by the Savior of the world ourselves, then we would probably be right there with them.

These people don’t know what they don’t know, having never had an encounter with Jesus and not knowing Him they are just lost, and it is part of our mission to pray for them; but as our Lord also says in His Word, “That we are to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.”

Consider for a moment that our nation was started and founded upon biblical principals, by men and women of faith; and it was we, the Christians, who abdicated the positions of authority in government, and gave the reigns of power over to unbelievers… and so what did we expect would happen?

We desperately need a Spiritual Awakening to happen within the churches of America; and we also need Revival in our land, if our nation is to survive as a free people!

Just know that there is always hope, and however bad things may get, God is still on His throne and He won’t ever abandon His kids.

All we need to do is repent, which means to change the way we think.

As you study your Bible allow the Holy Spirit to be your teacher and guide; let Him rewrite the code of your thinking, the programming of this world that has been so ingrained in our thinking; and let us put on the mind of Christ.

The road back home for all of us starts with our first step.

As a Christian myself, as one who at least has some understanding of God’s Word, I have to add also that our destiny as a nation will NOT depend on what these men and women do, who don’t know the Lord, who aren’t Christian; but rather it will depend on what God’s people do, of those who are called by His name; that just as the Bible instructs us in 2 Chronicles 7: 14, that if we (who are believers) would humble ourselves and pray; turn from our wicked ways and seek God’s face; that God would hear from heaven and heal our land.

Our ONLY hope today is in Jesus Christ!!!

WND EXCLUSIVE

ISAIAH 9:10 LINKED TO 9/11 – AGAIN!

Find out where prophetic verse affecting America falls in ‘One-Year Bible’

WASHINGTON – The No. 1 bestselling Christian book and the No. 1 faith movie of 2012 both deal with the striking parallels between events leading the destruction of ancient Israel and events taking place in America since 9/11.

But the author of “The Harbinger” and the narrator of “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment” documentary based on the book has discovered yet another striking link between 9/11 and the key verse upon which his teaching rests.

In 1985, the “One-Year Bible” was published in many translations around the world – from the Living Bible to the Catholic Bible to the New King James version to the New American Standard and the English Standard Bible.

Those Bible translations provide verses to read each day of the year – from both the New and Old Testaments.

Jonathan Cahn, the messianic rabbi who wrote “The Harbinger” and offers his teaching in “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment” movie, recently discovered that every one of those “One-Year Bible” versions place Isaiah 9:10 on Sept. 11.

“This has been the case since 1985,” said Cahn on a recent Jim Bakker TV show. “It’s been there for years. Millions of Americans have been reading this verse on Sept. 11 for 16 years before 2001.”

It’s just the latest example of dozens of links between the attack of 9/11 in America and the attack on ancient Israel described in Isaiah 9:10, revealed in both the book and the movie. Cahn says the harbingers for America – messages he believes are from God – continue to mount.

On the series of TV shows that aired just after the November election, Cahn said the vote itself has significance in the context of his teaching, which has swept through America and the world in the form of “The Harbinger” and “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment.”

“The leader of a nation can make a big difference,” said Cahn. “When you look at Israel, when you had an immoral king, it led the nation into immorality. When you had a righteous king, it led the nation into revival. It’s not dependent just on the leader. But what the president does, what the Congress does – the laws affect everyone. It affects the preaching of the Gospel, the teaching of the young and the next generation – all of this. What just happened is significant. America made a choice. It was a sign of a turn against the ways of God.”

Cahn also mentioned the effects of Hurricane Sandy on the New York area – particularly on Ground Zero.

He cited the words of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, appearing at the site of destruction and telling a television interviewer: “This is the Ground Zero site. This is a monument to human capacity and human endurance. And, this is New Yorkers’ way of saying we’re not going to give up. We’re going to come back and we will. This city will rebuild and the state will rebuild, and I believe will be the better for it.”

For those who have read “The Harbinger” or seen “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment,” those words have special meaning.

It was a message all-too-familiar from U.S., state and city leaders in the wake of the 9/11 attack: “We will rebuild. We will come back stronger.”

The words mimicked – sometimes with precision – those of ancient Israel in Isaiah 9:10: “The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones: the sycamores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars.”

And that’s the pattern that has been revealed in Cahn’s bestseller and the movie that has been the No. 1 faith film in America for the last 35 weeks.

It continued in the words of some officials in the wake of Sandy’s flooding of New York and New Jersey – including by the governor of New York speaking on network television from Ground Zero.

So what?

Cuomo may blame catastrophic man-made climate change. But Cahn doesn’t.

“A number of years ago, as I was standing at the edge of Ground Zero in New York City, I came across the first puzzle piece of an ancient biblical mystery and a prophetic message known as ‘The Harbinger’ that concerns the future of America,” explains Cahn, who helped write and narrate the two-hour documentary “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment.”

Cahn says he has since found nine harbingers that tie the problems America has experienced beginning Sept. 11, 2001, with parallels that led to the destruction of ancient Israel.

“Before God judges a nation, He sends warning,” explains Cahn. “He sent warning to ancient Israel. He even allowed its enemies to breach its borders in a devastating strike that would traumatize the nation. It was a wake-up call, the call to return to God. But the nation responded with defiance. God then gave nine harbingers of judgment, nine prophetic signs, alarms and foreshadows of what was to come. Now America is the nation in rapid departure from God’s will. And God likewise allowed an enemy to breach its borders in a devastating strike – the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. It was, likewise, a wake-up call. But America, like Israel, has not responded with repentance, but with defiance. And now the nine harbingers of judgment have reappeared and have done so on American soil.”

Isaiah 9:10 is a verse in which Israel’s national leaders utter a vow of defiance following an attack by Assyria. It declared that the nation would not repent before God, but would defy Him instead. Cahn reveals in “The Harbinger” – and in even more dramatic fashion in the video – that beginning the day after Sept. 11, 2001, American leaders began repeating that 2,500-year-old vow, word for word.

“Having no idea what he was doing, the majority leader of the U.S. Senate (Tom Daschle) was declaring America as under the judgment of God,” Cahn says. “It was the reenactment of an ancient mystery – and bore the most grave of consequences.”

He continues: “According to the ancient mystery revealed in the Book of Isaiah, if after that first calamity and warning, the nation doesn’t return to God but responds in defiance, it will end up triggering a second calamity. It was because of this ancient key, that, seven years after 9/11, the American economy collapsed. In the days after 9/11, the Federal Reserve slashed the base interest rate in an attempt to defy the consequences of the attacks. That action put us on the path leading to the collapse of the American economy seven years later. In 2008, the government made a second fatal mistake, another ill-fated financial decision, that would trigger the collapse of the American economy. Amazingly, it took place on the seventh anniversary of the uttering of the ancient vow on Capitol Hill.”

Cahn also reveals in “The Harbinger” and “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment” something that readers and viewers universally find astonishing – that New York’s Ground Zero actually represents more than the former financial center of the country. It represents the exact place at which America was first consecrated to God in prayer by the country’s new leaders.

“When judgment came to Israel, the calamity returned the people’s attention to the place where the nation had been consecrated to God – the Temple Mount,” says Cahn. “God was calling the nation back to Himself. What about 9/11? Could there be, in the American calamity, as well, a mystery of return? Could there be a prophetic message hidden in the place where it happened? There is a place where America was consecrated to God in prayer. It is also a place linked to a prophetic warning given on that same day – uttered by the nation’s first president – now coming to pass.”

In 1789, newly inaugurated President George Washington gave a prophetic warning at Federal Hall in New York City. He declared that America’s prosperity and protection were dependent upon its adherence to God. Later, the political leaders of the young nation gathered at St. Paul’s Chapel to commit the nation’s future to God’s purposes. That chapel is located at Ground Zero and miraculously survived 9/11 virtually unscathed.

Cahn, the pastor of the Jerusalem Center-Beth Israel Congregation in Wayne, N.J., says America is uncannily re-enacting ancient Israel’s behavior prior to its judgment and eventual fall. He found a sympathetic ear for his message in WND founder Farah, who produced “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment,” as a follow-up to “The Harbinger.”

The key to decoding the harbingers, Cahn says, is found in understanding the seemingly innocuous words of Isaiah 9:10, what it meant to Israel and how the history seems to be repeating itself in America today.

These words were first uttered by leaders in Israel and in response to a limited strike by Assyria on the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali – an attack the prophet makes clear is actually part of a limited judgment by God against apostasy. It wasn’t meant to destroy the nation, but to awaken it, according to most commentaries.

But, says Cahn, Israel didn’t take the cue. Instead, the response from the people in Isaiah 9:10 is one of defiance. The brick buildings were toppled, but they vowed to build bigger and better. The little sycamore trees may have been uprooted, but they vowed to plant bigger and better cedars in their place.

God, speaking through Isaiah explains what will happen as a result of their pride and arrogance and failure to heed the harbinger: Bigger and more potent attacks will follow. Because neither the northern kingdom of Israel nor the southern kingdom of Judah truly repents, the first is eventually swept away by Assyrian invaders and the latter is carried off into captivity by the Babylonians for 70 years.

But what does this have to do with the United States of America – particularly what the U.S. experienced on 9/11 and since? Cahn has found some eerie parallels.

“In the aftermath of the attack, the nation was stunned,” said Cahn. “Everyone was trying to make sense of what had happened – this unprecedented attack on America. The very next day, Sept. 12, then Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle presented America’s response to the world. And what did he say?”

Daschle said: “America will emerge from this tragedy as we have emerged from all adversity – united and strong. Nothing … nothing can replace the losses of those who have suffered. I know there is only the smallest measure of inspiration that can be taken from this devastation. But there is a passage in the Bible from Isaiah that speaks to all of us at times like this.”

He then went on to read Isaiah 9:10.

“Daschle has no idea what he is doing here,” explains Cahn. “He thinks he’s offering comforting words to a grief-stricken people, but he is actually embracing the spiritually defiant and arrogant words of the children of Israel, proclaiming the ancient and ominous vow of the leaders of that nation. He doesn’t realize it, but he is actually inviting more judgment on the nation.”

It might be of some significance that Daschle, one of the most powerful men in the nation when he spoke those words, later fell into disgrace – to the point where he couldn’t even serve in Barack Obama’s Cabinet.

That might have been the end of the story – if no other top leader in the nation uttered those strange and obscure words after 9/11. But that’s not the case.

On the third anniversary of the attack, Sept. 11, 2004, another powerful U.S. senator running for vice president that year and who would famously run for the presidency four years later, gave a speech to the Congressional Black Caucus.

This time, John Edwards’ entire speech was built on a foundation of Isaiah 9:10:

“Today, on this day of remembrance and mourning, we have the Lord’s Word to get us through,” he said. He then read Isaiah 9:10. He went on to talk about how America was doing just that – rebuilding with hewn stone and planting cedars.

Later, in his first State of the Union Address in 2009, Barack Obama hearkens back to the same theme. And now Cuomo – right back at the site of the original attack.

In “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment,” viewers get to see these remarkable, largely forgotten or overlooked speeches, which directly link the events of 9/11 and the events referred to in Isaiah 9:10.

But aside from such statements, which could be chalked up to political talk and coincidences, is there anything else linking Isaiah 9:10 to 9/11 and the shockwaves that followed, including two economic crashes?

The video documentary, like the book, is full of shocking parallels. There was actually a very famous sycamore tree felled in the attack on the World Trade Center. It was replaced by trees in the same genus as the cedar. There have been many plans made to rebuild the twin towers bigger and better and a large “hewn stone” was actually quarried out of the Adirondack Mountains in New York and brought to Ground Zero as a cornerstone.

“The parallels are truly stunning,” says Farah, founder of WND, who produced the documentary for WND Videos. “In fact, they are overwhelming in their number and their exactitude. I am persuaded God is trying to tell America something and Rabbi Cahn has found the key to unlocking the message.”

David Verses Goliath

Have you ever felt like this…

Like everything that can go wrong has, 

and that you’re facing your own giants?

For many people today I think that is an accurate description of the way they feel regarding our country and the very serious problems we are facing today.

For some, I’m afraid, it’s like our nation just stepped from the frying pan into the fire, with the results of this past election; but is that the case? Yes and no, but then there is God!

For others they are facing other problems and difficulties in their lives, and it is taking everything they have to just keep their nose above water!

For some it may even seem hopeless… but then there is God!

We, who are Believers, can look to our Bibles and see how this patterned has been well established in God’s Word, how that many times God’s people were outnumbered and were facing literal giants, just as happened with this little teenager, this shepherd boy named David!

Part of our training in becoming Christian soldiers is to learn how to face our fears.

Fear is something we ALL experience in life, and sometimes it’s a good thing.

If you’re fooling around with high voltage, fear is a good thing, because it will cause you to exercise caution; and it will most likely keep you alive.

However if the fear you are experiencing is causing you to feel hopelessly outnumbered and out matched, abandoned by God, and defeated; and if you have this temptation to run away, then the Bible says that sort of fear comes from a spirit.

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear,

but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

2 Timothy 1:7

To borrow a line from an old John Wayne war movie, “All wars are filled with brave men, who are scared and would rather be somewhere else;” meaning it’s not the fear that’s the problem, but rather it’s our reaction to fear that will defeat us, if that reaction is causing us to run away and not face our fears.

I am sure that we all have fears that we are facing today, of one kind or another; our giants if you will.

Maybe we’re afraid of losing our home; or our job; maybe you are an employer and you are having to lay off your workers; or maybe you have a loved one who is sick, and possibly dying; it could be any number of things like this that are very real.

What do we do in times like this?

Well the same sorts of problems also existed in biblical times too, among our forefathers.and the saints of old; In fact our problems that we are facing today are no less traumatic to us, than there’s were to them. 

We really need to read our Bibles with that in mind, and put flesh and blood on these characters we are reading about; and not put them on a pedestal; because they were just like us!

I am sure that little David was also afraid, just as we all would be if we had been standing in his shoes!

It would have been so easy for him to ignore it all and look the other way. That’s what everyone, including his brother wanted him to do. That would have been the natural thing to do; but David had already learned not to flee from his fears, after having seen God deliver him from both a lion and from a bear.

David just faced his fears and went ahead anyway, trusting that God would see him through; and so it is with us today… we also have to learn to trust in God!

The way we do that is we have to go through our own minefields in life, our own battle zones, where we are forced to face your own giants, and see the power of God deliver us where we are!

Thank God for people in the Bible like Peter!

Peter gives me lots of hope, because even though it seems like he was always putting his foot in his mouth, and saying or doing the wrong thing at the wrong time; nevertheless, God could still use him, and He did use him.

Peter didn’t have it all together either, no more than you or I have it all together in our life.

He wasn’t perfect, he didn’t have to be. In fact his worst day was probably the day he denied our Lord three times, after having bragged a few days before about always having Jesus’ back!

What was the first thing that Jesus said to Mary, after His Resurrection, on that Sunday morning? He said: “Go tell My disciples and PETER!”

Through it ALL, just like us, Peter also had to LEARN to trust in Jesus; he had to learned to put his faith in God, after having gone through so many trials and tribulations in his life; just like we do.

He had to learn how to commit it ALL to Jesus!

Well, how does that happen?

Well for that answer we have to look to our Operations Manual for Life (the Bible).

To start with, it happens by our being put in the furnace of life, and our being put through the University of the Holy Spirit, which I am quite sure that many of you who are reading this now are enrolled in, as am I.  Isn’t it fun? 🙂

In 1 Corinthians 10:11 we are told that these things, that are written in the Bible, where written for our example; that we might gain knowledge, wisdom, and direction for our own lives, as we see how God has throughout history interacted in the lives of men.

God is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and even though the times may have changed, and even though we are living in this modern age; nevertheless, as members of the human race, our problems are not that different, as we are today faced with the same sorts of problems as were the saints of old… trying to survive and trying to support our families!

The opposition, our mortal enemy, who is Satan (aka the Devil), he is operating the same way as well; and is using the same tactics and strategy that he used against our forefathers, the saints of old.

It may be a different time, but it’s the same Devil… but of course you wouldn’t know that unless you are reading your Bible!

Have you considered how many times God has even led his people into problems and storms?

Take Abraham for instance; God called him to take Sarah and his servants and to go to a new land, the “Promise Land;” the only problem was God didn’t tell him where it was, it was totally a walk of faith; and then when he finally got there he was right in the middle of a famine.

Take Gideon, who when hiding in the winepress area from the Philistines, God’s angle spoke to him and called him to battle, saying “Gideon, thy mighty man of valor!”

To which Gideon said: “Who me?” God does have a sense of humor, doesn’t he?

I certainly relate to Gideon, how about you?

Even though Gideon and his men were sorely outnumbered, God tell Gideon that he has too many men on his side; and so then God starts whittling down Gideon’s fighting force until there were only 300 men, against a force many many times larger… but those are exactly the odds that God likes!

That way He gets the glory!

In fact God specializes in making impossible situations possible; and making ways in the wilderness, for His kids, where there seems to be no way… and they are called Miracles!

What about in the New Testament, where Jesus sent His disciples into the storm, only to come out to them walking on the water, scaring the bejeebers out of them, because they’re thinking that He’s a ghost?

Then it was our old friend Peter who says, “Lord if it truly be you, then have me come to you walking on the water!”

Peter was learning how to trust His Lord, while in the middle of the storm, and so must we!

Here’s the rhyme and reason for all of this, as God told Moses:

Deuteronomy 8:2-5

² Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. ³ He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. ⁴ Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. ⁵ Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you.

Whatever it is you are facing today, however big your giants may be, please just know this, that your God is BIGGER; and just as it happen with David and with all the countless stories of other saints in the Bible, about how Israel constantly faced impossible odd, and their God was always well able to deliver them; and so He will deliver us as well, if we are faithful to follow and obey Him.

At one time Jesus told Peter that Satan had asked to have him to sift him as wheat; and Jesus didn’t say that He would keep Peter from that trial; but rather He said, “Peter, I will pray for you that your faith fails not,” and so Jesus is praying for us today!

.Apparently somethings can only be learned by going through the fire… and Jesus today is certainly baptizing His church in fire!  Selah

Shalom,

Skip 

“In God I trust”

Come Join the Adventure!

There is much talk in Christian circles today on this subject of Faith; but what exactly is Faith?

It must be important because in Hebrews 11:6 we are told that without it, without Faith, it is IMPOSSIBLE for any of us to please God.

Faith is not JUST positive thinking; however I do believe that being positive is a part of what faith is, or rather it is one of benefits of living in faith.

However positive thinking by itself is just believing in yourself; and there are even churches that teach “Positive Thinking,” as though it were the same as faith; and if I’m not mistaken I believe the term “Positive Thinking” even gained its popularity from a book written by a minister, called the Power of Positive Thinking; but I repeat the fact that one is a positive thinker does not necessarily mean that he or she is a person of “Faith.”

I won’t argue with you, because there is lots of evidence to show that people who follow this teaching in life, for at least some of them anyway, it has paid off for them, as they are very successful, as the world counts success; and truly where I live, here in Southern California, there are many such examples

By success I mean they have made a lot of money and have gained many material things as a result of their worldly success; but again that by itself is NOT what faith is.

Certainly being positive in life is a part of what faith is, but there is so much more to having true faith, than what most have acknowledged, even those in the church.

Maybe some of you have seen this bumper sticker before, “He Who Dies with The Most Toys Wins,” and certainly there are many who live their life this way, as though having earned lots of money and owning lots of things is the end all and be all of life, as if having lots of things is all there is.

However the truth be told, and really it is only those few who have actually gotten a hold of that golden carrot of success in life who can tell you this, and while all the rest of the world is still reaching for it, it is only those who have actually attained it who can tell you, if they will be honest (and I know because I have heard this many times) that in the end, just having lots of things and money is not very fulfilling at all. Those few who have made it will tell you that they are still looking for that something out there that will truly satisfy them and fulfill their life.

Some are thinking that maybe it will be that next “Carrot” that they are reaching for, be it another business, another company to own, and another few million dollars in the bank, maybe that will do it?.

Now I have to say this too, because we all have problems in life, the rich and the poor alike, and there are certainly some things that having lots of money can minimize the impact of those problems; and to be honest, I have to say that I’d rather have the money, then not, because being broke is no fun either, and that condition comes with lots of other problems that most of us would rather not have.

On the other hand, money by itself will not buy back your health, once you’ve lost it; and it wouldn’t make up for the lost of a loved one who has died, possibly a spouse or child (which I can only imagine has to be the worst). I think most of the world would even agree with me about that.,

I can also say that when it’s all over and done with, and when you are lying on your deathbed, it’s definitely NOT the material things of life that you are thinking of at that point.

You are not thinking “if only I had made more money or had gain more toys in my life.”

Definitely NO, not at all, and that’s where the rubber meets the road for all of us eventually.

Listen to what God tells us in His Word about that one who has lived his or her life this way, as described on that bumper sticker:

Luke 12:16-21

¹⁶ Then He (Jesus) spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. ¹⁷ And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’

¹⁸ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”‘

²⁰ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

²¹ “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

The fact is, as we are told in the Bible, that it is appointed to every man once to die, and then to face the judgment of God (see Hebrews 9:27), where EVERY person will have to stand one day and give an account of their life, and the Bible says that it is ONLY those who have accepted God’s gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ who will be spared what the Bible calls the “White Throne Judgment” (Revelation 20:11-15).

For these people who have accepted Jesus propitious work on Calvary, and have done so by faith, who have also made Him Lord and Savior of their life, the Bible says that they will stand before the “Throne of Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:10), where the Bible says they will receive rewards for the service they have offered God and to others in their life.

Well, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that it is better to be in this latter group, than to be in the first!

For those who have chosen NOT to live their lives for Christ, those who have either ignored or rejected His message of Salvation and Reconciliation, they will face this White Throne Judgment alone and by themselves, with no one to intercede for them.

This is where “being rich towards God” pays off in spades, because unless you have God’s forgiveness in your life, having accepted His awesome gift of grace (which is unmerited favor) that God has given you through faith in His only begotten Son, who is Jesus the Christ (Messiah), then you will go out into eternity lost forever, having rejected your only Salvation.

God will not force upon you in eternity what you have rejected or have ignored all of your life; and if you have either rejected or have ignored God’s plan for reconciliation back into His family, by having rejected the Gospel’s message, then it will be your decision to face eternity on your own, without benefit of a Saviour.

For many people it is only at the end of their life that they finally realize what the truly important things are, when they are lying on their deathbed, after having spent their entire life chasing after that golden carrot, and the truth is most will never even get it, not even close; but when they find themselves now facing eternity, this is when they finally realize that certain opportunities are lost and are now gone forever; things like having more time to spend with loved ones, and with their children; or being a better husband or wife, father or mother; and having spent their life investing themselves in others; and living it for God… these are the things that in the end are important.

So then, getting back to my original question, what exactly is FAITH and how does it differ from just belief?

Somebody sent me this story today that got me thinking along these lines, and I think I’ll pass it along; because I think it describes what the difference is between Faith and Belief perfectly.

Believing and depending are not the same thing:

Years ago there was a very famous tight rope walker named Blondin. He would often amaze people by walking on a wire over incredible heights.

On one of these occasions, he was performing his act over Niagara Falls. A huge crowd was watching as Blondin moved confidently out over the churning waterfall and back. Turning to his onlookers, Blondin asked, “Who thinks I can push a wheel barrel across this wire?”

They all shouted, “Yes, we believe you can!”. And so he did. On returning, he asked again, “Do you believe I can push a man across in this wheel barrel?”

Again the crowd shouted in great confidence, “Yes!”

Then Blondin said, “Which one of you will get in?”

That is the difference between believing and depending. It was easy for the people to say, “We believe you can do it!” But it’s quite another thing to climb into the wheel barrel and depend on him to do it.

Where are you, in your Faith today; or is what you are calling FAITH only belief?

Are you in the crowd shouting, “God can do it?” Or are you in the wheel barrel praying, “God, I’m depending on You.”

The depending prayer and our absolute reliance on God can and often is very scary, but it’s also the most rewarding way to live.

Let’s all hop in God’s wheel barrow, and live the adventure!

Dependency Checklist:

How can you tell if you are just believing in prayer, or really depending on prayer?

Consider these questions as someone who is in God’s wheel barrow.

• Do I feel vulnerable? Being in a wheel barrow on a tight rope is a scary deal, even if God is the one who’s pushing.
  
• Do I have an alternative? Once you are out on the wire, there is no other way, you don’t have a plan “B”.
  
• Am I willing to accept whatever answer God gives me? – A wheel barrow passenger has no rights, he does whatever the driver says.
  
• Am I carefully listening for His answer, or instructions? – You bet you are! Your life depends on hearing anything He says.
  
• Am I tuning out all other distractions so I can focus on Him? Absolutely, the roaring water, the cheering crowd, all fade away as you train your ear on the Master’s voice.
  
• Do I have hope that God can make a way? Of, course! You would never get into the wheel barrow unless you had faith that He could get you across.
  

The dictionary description for “depend” is, “To rely, to place trust or confidence.”

King David, in the Old Testament, was someone who fits this description. Over and over again he relied on, “the God of heaven” while facing hopeless difficulties.

As a young boy he had to confront a lion and bear to protect his sheep. Each of these struggles prepared him for greater challenges.

He was offered armor by Saul and he refused it and decided rather to believe in God and take Him at His word. His faith and his commitment (his dependency) was only in God, that God cause him to defeat his enemy.  If not certainly David would have been dead!

David took a stand and he depended on God to be true to His word and He was.

David killed Goliath with one stone and he had 5 more in the bag to kill Goliath’s brothers if they showed up. 

Dependency on God’s promises guarantees results in our favor every time.

And in the end this is what really matters: