My thanks to Dennis for forwarding the above recall notice… this is very important that this message be passed forward.

Please do distribute to all your friends, family, neighbors, fellow workers, and etc; as the time of expiration on this recall is near at hand!

The ONLY time available for recalled units to receive corrective measures and to be reconciled back into God’s family is sometime between when they come into this world at birth; and when they leave upon their death… and there are no exception to this rule.

Listen to what Jesus said happens after death:

Even thought we have a man in the White House who claims to be a “Christian,” he is on record as saying that faith in Allah will lead a person to heaven. So who is this god Allah?

Make no mistake, there is ONLY one Name under heaven whereby any man can be saved, and it is not through any other god, nor religion; it’s not through Islam and their god Baal (aka, Allah); nor is it through Scientology; or Hinduism; Buddhism; or Hare Krishna; but ONLY through Jesus Christ!

Please note also that your grandmother’s faith, or other loved one, regardless of who they are, will not save you!

We are each personally accountable and neither will your membership in a church or any one particular denomination. These things do not make you a “Christian!”

This is no small decision and for those who make the decision to follow Christ it will cost them everything; so as the Bible says, count the cost before you jump!

So who is this Man Christ Jesus, upon which all of history hinges; whose birth separates BC from AD?

C.S. Lewis in his book Mere Christianity writes the following: “I am trying here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him [Jesus Christ]: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with a man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon; or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that option open to us. He did not intend to.”

So, who did Jesus claim to be? Who does the Bible say He is? First, let’s look at Jesus’ words in John 10:30, “I and the Father are one.” At first glance, this might not seem to be a claim to be God. However, look at the Jews’ reaction to His statement, “‘We are not stoning you for any of these,’ replied the Jews, ‘but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God’” (John 10:33). The Jews understood Jesus’ statement as a claim to be God. In the following verses, Jesus never corrects the Jews by saying, “I did not claim to be God.” That indicates Jesus was truly saying He was God by declaring, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). John 8:58 is another example: “‘I tell you the truth,’ Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was born, I am!’” Again, in response, the Jews took up stones in an attempt to stone Jesus (John 8:59). Jesus’ announcing His identity as “I am” is a direct application of the Old Testament name for God (Exodus 3:14). Why would the Jews again want to stone Jesus if He had not said something they believed to be blasphemous, namely, a claim to be God?

John 1:1 says “the Word was God.” John 1:14 says “the Word became flesh.” This clearly indicates that Jesus is God in the flesh. Thomas the disciple declared to Jesus, “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28). Jesus does not correct him. The apostle Paul describes Him as, “…our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). The apostle Peter says the same, “…our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:1). God the Father is witness of Jesus’ full identity as well, “But about the Son he says, ‘Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.’” Old Testament prophecies of Christ announce His deity, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

So, as C.S. Lewis argued, believing Jesus to be only a good teacher is not an option. Jesus clearly and undeniably claimed to be God. If He is not God, then He is a liar, and therefore not a prophet, good teacher, or godly man. In attempts to explain away the words of Jesus, modern “scholars” claim the “true historical Jesus” did not say many of the things the Bible attributes to Him. Who are we to argue with God’s Word concerning what Jesus did or did not say? How can a “scholar” two thousand years removed from Jesus have better insight into what Jesus did or did not say than those who lived with, served with, and were taught by Jesus Himself (John 14:26)?

Why is the question over Jesus’ true identity so important? Why does it matter whether or not Jesus is God? The most important reason that Jesus has to be God is that if He is not God, His death would not have been sufficient to pay the penalty for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2). Only God could pay such an infinite penalty (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus had to be God so that He could pay our debt. Jesus had to be man so He could die. Salvation is available only through faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus’ deity is why He is the only way of salvation. Jesus’ deity is why He proclaimed, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Understand also that it matters not what your past is, or how bad and/or how reckless you may have lived your life. On that score we are all in the same boat and are equally lost without a Saviour; and unless we make our peace with God within the allotted time, which by the way gets narrower and narrower for each of us with each passing day; and mind you tomorrow is promised to no man; and unless we make our peace with God before we pass from this life then we are destined for an eternity without God, and that is the worst kind of hell I can imagine!

What must I do to be save?

So if you haven’t done so yet, please make your reservations now for eternity; and for further instructions and a road map please look to the Holy Bible; and also here is a website that may help: http://needhim.org/.

Shalom,

Skip Barland

Sounding the warning to America to save our liberty!!!

The question is does America care?

Paul Revere and the Son’s of Liberty movement was to a great extent supported by the clergy in the colonies; and the movement was born in the parking lots of many colonial churches… but that is not so today.

In our present political and economic environment, with all the rhetoric and misinformation we are getting through our “managed” media; people today are just too preoccupied with fighting their own problems, just to survive, than to care about anything else; and what American needs to understand is that this is all by design; and is a part of a very well thought out master plan.

So the point is, if you are busy fighting alligators in your own swamp, then chances are you don’t have much time to do anything else; but folks don’t you understand that all of this is to keep your attention preoccupied?

The truth is that diabolical and infamous enemy of mankind, known as the Devil (aka: Lucifer or Satan) that he has planned it to be this way?

There are so many pastors today who are so busy building their own little empires, and in the process they don’t want to jeopardize their 501(c)(3) status; and besides they have bought this idea hook, line and sinker about separation of church and state!

Well folks, I can tell you this, that was definitely NOT the attitude of our founding fathers, not at all; for had it been this country would never have been formed.

So what is the solution; and how do we wake our citizens up, and get them concerned enough to care about what’s going on; and to get their proverbial heads out of the sand?

The answer truly is, I don’t think we can; and truly I believe it will take a sovereign act of God to do that!

Not only that, but very possibly it may take some cataclysmic event or disaster to wake most of America up; as human nature and history both seem to indicate that people generally don’t want to take the initiative and won’t do so, unless their uncomfort level rises to the point, where they are driven to take action.

That is by the way what happened on 9/11, as one example, if only for a hot minute people; where for a time anyway people cared more than just for themselves, as they reached out to seek God, and reached out to help their neighbor.

We live in a society today that is very “Me” oriented and self-centered; even as we are warned in the Bible that it would be in the days just before Jesus Christ returns.

2 Timothy 3

Perilous Times and Perilous Men

¹ But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: ² For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³ unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, ⁴ traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

Added to this self destructive nature of man, there is also this tendency of societies to repeat history, which is owed to the typical myopic and narrow sighted tendency of its people; as was recorded years ago; where it was noted that all democracies in history eventually go through the same stages, or cycles.

“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government.  It can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves largess (gifts) from the public treasury.

“From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising them the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship.

“The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been 200 years.  These nations have progressed through this sequence:

“From bondage to spiritual faith;
from spiritual faith to great courage;
from courage to liberty;
from liberty to abundance;
from abundance to selfishness;
from selfishness to apathy;
from apathy to dependence;
from dependency back again into bondage.”

Dr. Alexander Tytler, a Scot professor, wrote a scholarly tome, from which this concept comes, called “The Athenian Republic” which was published shortly before the thirteen American colonies gained independence from Britain.

And so it seems that people, having been blessed by God, they eventually stop looking to God as their Source, and they start looking instead to man and to big government to take care of them.

Just look around you people, is this not what we see happening today?

Socialism and government taking over private industry, as Obama is doing today, spreading the wealth around as he calls it, has always been a prelude to a totalitarian take over.

It happened in Lenin’s Russia; in Hitler’s Germany; in Mao Tse-tung’s China; and today it is happening here in the United States!

As an example of what I’m talking about, here are 26 similarities that existed in pre-Nazi Germany that are today happening here in the United States:

1. Hitler outlawed school prayer in Germany. In 1962, The U.S. Supreme Court did the same for us.
   
2. Hitler eliminated Christian holidays in the schools first by calling Christmas “Yuletide.” Most American public schools now call Christmas vacation a “winter break.”
   
3. Hitler took Easter out of schools and instead honored that time of year as the beginning of spring. It has likewise become common for schools in America to refer to time off at Easter as “spring break.”
   
4. Hitler controlled the church using intimidation and threats. A half-century ago, U.S. Senator and Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Baines Johnson, promoted a bill that included an amendment to use the Internal Revenue Service to remove the non-profit status of a church that speaks against the election of any specific political candidate.
   
5. Hitler enticed thousands of pastors to promote paganism in their congregations. Neopaganism is one of the fastest growing religions in America, doubling every 18 months according to a June 2008 article in The Denver Post.  Many American church-goers practice paganism such as “Christian” yoga, and walking a labyrinth. As evidence that church doors continue to open further to aberrant beliefs, a 2008 survey found that 57% of evangelicals do not believe Jesus Christ is the only way to God.
   
6. Hitler was an environmentalist and vegetarian. Marriages performed by the Nazi state frequently included blessings of “Mother Earth” and “Father Sky.” Today Americans increasingly accept radical environmentalism, pantheism, and the celebration of Earth Day.
   
7. Hitler was fascinated by eastern mysticism. Today an increasing number of American pastors encourage their followers to become “mystic warriors”.
   
8. Hitler believed in reincarnation. He even convinced SS officers that by murdering millions of Jews and other “undesirables” they were allowing them to get on with the reincarnation process and come back more quickly in an advanced status. Americans increasingly accept the idea of reincarnation as well as good and bad karma.
   
9. Hitler’s holocaust killed between 8 and 11 million Jews and non-Jews. Americans have killed an estimated 50 million babies since abortion was legalized through the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973. According to a July 7, 2008 article on worldnetdaily.com “An abortionist who claims to have destroyed more than 20,000 unborn children and who once was Hillary Clinton’s OB-GYN says he is doing ‘God’s work’ when he terminates a pregnancy…He admits that abortion kills a human soul.”
   
10. Hitler killed 270,000 handicapped people through active euthanasia.[1] America and the courts are rushing toward the same with the murder of individuals such as Terri Schiavo. Oregon voters passed their Death with Dignity Act in 1994 and re-affirmed it in 1997. Washington state voters legalized doctor-assisted suicide on November 4, 2008. In December 2008, a Montana judge ruled terminally ill residents of that state have the right to physician-assisted suicide, and “death with dignity” is gaining acceptance in other states as well.
    
11. Private schools were abolished by Hitler and all education placed under Nazi control. There is constant pressure from federal and many state education authorities to require that Christian schools use state-mandated, humanistic textbooks. The Home School Legal Defense Association is fighting numerous battles at any given time to prevent parents from loosing the right to educate their children as they see fit. In August 2008, a federal district court ruled that the state of California university system may choose not to recognize the diplomas-and thereby deny college entrance to-students who attended a school using textbooks that express a Biblical worldview in the areas of history and science (i.e., Christian schools).
    
12. Hitler prevented dissenters from using radio to challenge his worldview. Many powerful liberals in America have made clear their intent to reintroduce the “Fairness Doctrine” that would require conservative and religious radio stations to offer equal time to anti-Christian, anti-conservative worldviews.
    
13. Pastors who spoke against Hitler’s worldview and his murderous regime found themselves on trial and frequently imprisoned for “Abuse of Pulpit.” In America, hate-crime legislation has the potential to criminalize Christians and pastors who speak out against the homosexual agenda.
    
14. Many Christians in Germany justified their allegiance to Hitler through a belief that “Their duty to God was spiritual; their duty to the state was political.”[2] Many American Christians now have bought the lie that their worldview can be divided between the secular and the sacred-the politician has one area of responsibility, the pastor another, and never shall the two meet. Yet the Bible teaches that all issues are fundamentally spiritual.
    
15. Hitler outlawed the cross and replaced it with the swastika. Today many churches, Christian colleges, and universities have willingly removed the cross from their buildings. Numerous court cases sponsored by the ACLU have required the removal of the cross from public grounds. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2005 that the Ten Commandments cannot be posted on public grounds for religious purposes.
    
16. Hitler was fascinated with Friedrich Nietzsche and distributed his writings to his inner circle. Nietzsche promoted Nihilism, the belief that life has no meaning, and he is best known for his position that “God is dead”. Nietzsche is presently one of the most widely read authors by American college students.
    
17. Hitler exploited the economic collapse of Germany to take over as dictator and usher in his brand of socialism. America’s financial crisis has given liberals in both political parties the opportunity to grow the size of government and implement freedom-robbing socialism at lightning speed.
    
18. Hitler was obsessed with globalism, and many of America’s most powerful political leaders are willing to subjugate American sovereignty to contemporary globalism.
    
19. Many Germans responded to Hitler by retreating into neutrality. Today most Americans prefer to remain neutral on moral issues that they think don’t affect them personally.
    
20. On trial after World War II, Hitler’s henchmen used the defense that they had not broken any laws. True, they had not defied the laws of Germany since those had been re-written to fit the goals and objectives of Hitler. The Nazi leaders were nevertheless found guilty because the courts at the time recognized a “law above the law.” Yet now the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected the law of nature and nature’s God by claiming that as society evolves, morals evolve, and so the law, too, must evolve.
    
21. Calling upon Darwinian evolution, Hitler convinced the German people that purging millions of people was acceptable because of the need to create a pure race; also referred to as eugenics. American students across the board have been educated in Darwinian evolution because the Supreme Court has ruled that creation cannot be taught in our schools-even if both creation and evolution are taught side by side.
    
22. Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood in America became acquainted with the doctors and scientists that had worked with Nazi Germany’s eugenics program and had no quarrel with the euthanasia, sterilization, abortion, and infanticide programs of the early Reich.[3] Sanger even published several articles in Birth Control Review that reflected Hilter’s White Supremacist worldview. Planned Parenthood now grosses one billion per year.
    
23. In Germany, pastors often cited Romans 13:1-2 to encourage Christians to obey the Nazis. Today in America, many pastors have a false view of Romans 13:1-2 and have convinced millions that to disobey governing authorities is to disobey God. This poor training would facilitate Christians here doing just as the German Christians did if faced with similar challenges.
    
24. Germans accepted socialism to avoid pain. Today’s Americans are rejecting capitalism in exchange for government-sponsored “free” healthcare, education, and countless other government handouts.
    
25. Many Americans accept what I call, One World Spirituality. This is actually an amalgamation of the three worldviews of evolutionary humanism, Hindu pantheism, and occultism. I noted earlier that Hitler embraced all of these.
    
26. America is rushing toward government-sponsored, national healthcare. We already have a form of this in Medicare and Medicaid. Hitler, too, expanded and centralized Germany’s healthcare system. As Melchior Palyi explained, “The ill-famed Dr. Ley, boss of the Nazi labor front, did not fail to see that the social insurance system could be used for Nazi politics as a means of popular demagoguery, as a bastion of bureaucratic power, [and] as an instrument of regimentation.”
    

http://www.worldviewweekend.com/worldview-times/article.php?articleid=4881

Another point, if you have ever wondered about how come our news is so one sided and biased, take it from one who used to have a job answering the phones inside the control room of ABC news, where I saw firsthand how the producers are very closely monitoring the other networks; and it is true that the news that we are allowed to see is all strictly censored and managed by the people who hold the purse strings of these networks and who own them; to the point that every bit of news today, that we are allowed to see is filtered through a globalist agenda.

It is a lot like professional wrestling, in that it is all for show and entertainment; to keep the masses preoccupied, and their attention directed away from what is truly going on.

Again this is all by design and it has been that way for a long time, going all the way back to 1917:

Let me call your attention now to a prophecy and vision that was once given to our first President, George Washington:

GEORGE WASHINGTON’S PROPHESY OF AMERICA

The father of our country, George Washington, was a man of prayer. We have all read of how he went to the thicket many times to pray during the winter his army was at Valley Forge. However, little publicity has been given to the vision and prophecy he received at that time. The account of this vision was given in 1859 by an old soldier. He gave it to a writer, Wesley Bradshaw, who published it. In the vision God revealed to George Washington that three great perils would come upon the Republic.

THIRD AND MOST FEARFUL PERIL
“Then my eyes beheld a fearful scene. From each of these continents arose thick black clouds that were soon joined into one. And throughout this mass there gleamed a dark red light by which I saw hordes of armed men. These men, moving with the cloud, marched by land and sailed by sea to America, which country was enveloped in the volume of cloud. And I dimly saw these vast armies devastate the whole country and ~ the villages, towns and cities which I had seen springing up.” “As my ears listened to the thundering of the cannon, clashing of the swords, and the shouts and cries of millions in mortal combat, I again heard the mysterious voice saying, ‘Son of the Republic, look and learn.” Where the voice had ceased, the dark shadowy angel placed his trumpet once more to his mouth, and blew a long and fearful blast.”

HEAVEN INTERVENES
“Instantly a light as of a thousand suns shone down from above me, and pierced and broke into fragments the dark cloud which enveloped America. At the same moment the angel upon whose head still shown the word UNION, and who bore our national flag in one hand, and a sword in the other, descended from the heavens attended by, legions of white spirits. These immediately joined the inhabitants of America, who I perceived were well-nigh overcome, but who immediately taking courage again, closed up their broken ranks and renewed the battle.” “Again, amid the fearful noise of the conflict I heard the mysterious voice saying, ‘Son of the Republic, look and learn.’ As the voice ceased the shadowy angel for the last time dipped water from the ocean and sprinkled it upon America. Instantly the dark cloud rolled back, together with the armies it had brought, leaving the inhabitants of the land victorious.”

“Then once more, I beheld the villages, towns and cities springing up where I had seen them before, while the bright angel, planting the azure standard he had brought in the midst of them, cried with the loud voice: “While the stars remain, and the heaven send down dew upon the earth, so long shall the UNION last.” And taking from his brow the crown on which blazoned the word ‘UNION,’ he placed it upon the Standard while the people, kneeling down, said ‘Amen.”

THE INTERPRETATION
The scene instantly began to fade and dissolve, and I, at last saw nothing but the rising, curling vapor I at first beheld. This also disappeared, and I found myself once more gazing upon the mysterious visitor, who, in the same voice I had heard before, said, ‘Son of the Republic, what you have seen is thus interpreted; three great perils will come upon the Republic.

The most fearful for her is the third. But the whole world united shall not prevail against her. Let every child of the Republic learn to live for his God, his land, and UNION” With these words the vision vanished, and I started from my seat and felt that I had seen a vision wherein had been shown me the birth, the progress, and the destiny of the United States.'”

‘Such, my friends,” the venerable narrator concluded, were the words I heard from Washington’s own lips, and America will do well to profit by them.”

So the question is, is history repeating itself here in America?

Certainly from all the available evidence I’d have to say yes it is; and so is what George Washington predicted going to be in our future?

Will we lose our sovereignty for a time; and will we have enemy combat soldiers on our soil?

God has often in the past used the enemies of Israel to wake them up, and to drive them to repentance; and why would we think it would be any different for us?

As it is now, just as I look around, I have to say that American right now cares only about our sinking economy and inflation, more than anything else; and at the promise that a president can start pouring an unending supply of money into the economy, in order to stimulate it and revive it, as Obama says he is doing; money by the way that we do not have; that is only being produced as “Fiat Money” meaning it has no intrinsic value, and so therefore it does nothing but drives up inflation and the cost of living.

My point is this, as I just pointed out before, this same scenario has been used before in history, and here we are falling for it again!

Truly a spiritual awakening and revival is the ONLY thing that will change our country, and put us back on the right track; and to that end Christians need to both watch and pray!

Shalom,

Skip Barland

Life is about learning to maintain God’s Shalom (peace) in the midst of Chaos…

It’s about learning what our anchor is in the midst of confusion… and the absolute importance of keeping our focus on Jesus!

It also necessitates our learning through our life’s experiences to trust God and to obey His instructions with ALL our heart, and NOT leaning on our own understanding!

Else we sink!

Do you believe?

There is just no easy way for us to learn to die and to let go of our will, our ambitions, and our desires; and relinquish all to God; and therein is the challenge that we all must sooner of later face in life!

This is the only way we can learn of the trustworthiness of God, and His total and complete influence and control over every detail of our life.

We can see ample examples of this in God’s word, as we study the examples of how God worked in the lives of others; but our applying these principals in the middle of our real life situations is quite another thing.

The story comes to mind of the man climbing this mountain, without ropes, but only using his hands and a bag of resin. It is called Rock Climbing and it is a very strenuous and demanding sport.

As it happened this guy slipped and having crabbed at the last minute on to a branch that was protruding from the rock, he found himself literally hanging between life and death; and he yelled out at the top of his voice… “Is there anyone up there?”

God answered:

“Yes, I’m here!”

“Can you help me?”
the man yelled…

God says: “Yes”

“What must I do?”
says the man.

To which God says: “Let go!”

The man then says: “Is there anyone else up there?”

Does this scenario sound anything similar to anything you are facing in life today, or have had to face in the past?

If not, rest assured that you will have your opportunity to see exactly what your foundation in life happens to be, whether in Jesus Christ, and total reliance upon His Word, to obey; or you will revert to other resources, and/or people; and you will look to your flesh.

This is inevitable for all of us, and besides God has promised us in His Word that this would happen.

Hebrews 12:25-29 (The Message)

^25-27So don’t turn a deaf ear to these gracious words. If those who ignored earthly warnings didn’t get away with it, what will happen to us if we turn our backs on heavenly warnings?

His voice that time shook the earth to its foundations; this time—he’s told us this quite plainly—he’ll also rock the heavens: “One last shaking, from top to bottom, stem to stern.” The phrase “one last shaking” means a thorough housecleaning, getting rid of all the historical and religious junk so that the unshakable essentials stand clear and uncluttered.

^28-29Do you see what we’ve got? An unshakable kingdom! And do you see how thankful we must be?

Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God. For God is not an indifferent bystander.

He’s actively cleaning house, torching all that needs to burn, and he won’t quit until it’s all cleansed. God himself is Fire!

We must understand this that our lives are a setup, and even though we think all that is going on is dumb luck and happenstance, the Bible teaches differently.

For every Born-again child of God, who has decided to live in covenant relationship with God, what we are going through right now, and what we will experience tomorrow, and all our yesterday experiences and trials, all of it is for one reason, and that is to test us, to build us up; and to train us for God’s service, and for eternity.

Whether you know it or not, when you were born-again you gave God permission to impact your life; and to put you to the test; and as the saying goes… “No pain, no gain!”

We each have two choices when faced with problems and life situations… we can follow our understanding and revert to our way of doing things; OR we can follow God, and put our complete and absolute faith and trust in the trustworthiness of His Word!

The only problem is we don’t know that He can be trusted, and that He will support us, until we let go; and so we are all in the situation where along with the guy in the above story, God is saying to us: “Let Go,” and we are somewhere in between, and either we are willing to let go; or we are looking for other alternatives… and therein is the test.

Shalom,

Skip Barland

Life is one BIG test…

after having done all we know to do, can we, will we wait on God?

Below is another blow by blow devotional from the pages of the Bible, sparks from the anvil of life, if you will.

This one comes from David Wilkerson, as he describes an incident where King Saul blew it, as he was facing real pressured and had a choice, either to do as God said, or to take action on his own, without God’s leave nor allowance, in direct disobedience to what God had specifically told him to do.

Does this sound familiar? Are you now, or have you in the past been faced with an eleventh hour situation, where time and hope were running thin? If so, what do you do?

Do you take action, any action, thinking something is better than nothing, or do you wait on God, after having done ALL you know to do?

Does this sound familiar?

Folks, this is setup, it’s a TEST… it’s a part of God’s emergency 911 faith in action while under pressure evaluation — where we get to find out if we have the wherewithal and guts to put our actions where our mouth is, and to wait and hang our life, our body, and our circumstances, not on what we see or feel, but totally on the promises of His Word?

There is no easy way to get through this test, except to die to yourself, and relinquish your ALL into God’s keeping and into His hands… and really that is the whole point of the test! You have to die completely to yourself!

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been there, done that, and even having the T-shirt to prove it!

Shalom,

Skip Barland

—–Original Message—–
From: DAVID WILKERSON TODAY
Sent: Thursday, July 29, 2010 12:01 AM
To: devotions-en@lists.worldchallenge.org
Subject: ONE MINUTE BEFORE MIDNIGHT

The Lord is My Shepherd…

The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul And guides my path in righteousness For His name’s sake. Surely goodness and loving kindness Shall follow me al the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever and ever and ever. Though I walk through the valley Of the shadow of death I will not fear, Thou art with me. Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table Before me in the presence of my enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil My cup’s overflowing Surely goodness and loving kindness Shall follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever and ever and ever

Sheep must follow their shepherd of their own free will. They cannot be driven like cattle; and the shepherd also does not push them!

After all, as the Psalm indicates, only the shepherd knows where the green pastures and still waters are; and how to get there.

However as we study this subject, by listening to the experiences of actual men who have made their living as shepherds, we learn that shepherds are often challenged by certain sheep in their flocks, who always seem to believe the grass is greener somewhere else, and are always looking to break away from the fold; and this is what the Scripture speaks of when it says Satan roams about as a roaring lion, seeking those that he may devour.

As a predatory animal, lions never go after the flock, but they wait for the stragglers, the weak and/or lame who are following the flock from a distance, or who have separated themselves completely; but then the Bible says that Jesus (our Good Shepherd) out of His love and devotion to His sheep, will leave the 99, and will go searching for that lost lamb.

For us to be used by God and to have our destinies fulfilled, we all must go through Holy Spirit boot camp; which truly is something we stay in for the duration of our stay on earth.

In fact what most of us are experiencing now, in our trials and challenges in life, is nothing more that God’s way of teaching us to overcome these obstacles, these mountains that the enemy has placed in our path, through faith, and to learn to use the power of our tongue, when undergirded and rooted in the promises of God’s Word, to speak to our mountains and cast them into the midst of the sea.

This lesson in fact was taught by our Master in Mark’s Gospel, Chapter 11.

What God requires of all of us is first our death to self will, and the ingrained desire we all have (which by the way is the root of our sin nature) to be the masters of our own destinies.

The point is, for us to achieve our destiny we must willingly relinquish our rights and our perceived ambitions and desires to the one who gave us our life to begin with; but God being the gentleman that He is does not force this upon us; but patiently and longsuffering awaits the day we notice Him, and will give Him our ear and our heart, and begin first to listen, then to obey.

I will always remember the lesson my dad taught me as a boy. You see, my dad was a former fighter pilot, who flew P-51 Mustangs on bomber escort missions, with the Tuskegee Airmen over in Italy, during WW II.

He said that the hardest part of flight training, for him, was to learn to fly a plane by Instrument Flight Rules; where you have to disengage something you have trusted, and have been trained and condition to trust all of your life, and that is your feelings.

Instead, you have to disengage your feelings, and make yourself trust those little dials in from of you; that what they are telling you is true, in spite of the fact that your feelings are screaming at you the exact opposite.

You see if you are flying a plane in the soup, in inclimate weather, or in a fog, where you can no longer see the horizon, or have any visual reference points, and with all the G’s that are being exerted on your body, it is impossible for you to know what the attitude is of your plane. In fact, under those circumstances you could be flying upside down and not even know it!

He said that your feelings will scream at you to pull up or bank to the right or left; but that if you do any of those things, and ignore your only accurate reference point, which are those dials in from of you, then you will surely die!

When I later became a Christian, the analogy was amazing, and it hit me right between the eyes; because as Christians, we are asked to do the exact same thing, to live by faith in God’s Word, and not by what we see, feel, or sense in the natural!

Also, as with the example with the pilot in inclimate weather, if you have never been trained to disengage your senses, and have had actual flight time doing so, either in a flight simulator, or with a flight instructor; if you haven’t ever had the actual experience of being in that situation, where you no longer have any natural reference points to rely upon, then the chances are, if you are ever caught in a real life situation, and have to choose between your feelings and those dials, you will most likely elect to trust what you have always known, and are familiar with… and again, you will die!

As Christians we have to learn to fly by our instruments, which for us are the Promises of God’s Word; and equally important we must also learn to discern, listen to, and obey the leading of the Holy Spirit moment by moment, and 24/7 in our lives.

Remember this also, that Paul warned Christians in the last days (2 Timothy 3:5) that one thing that would be prevalent was that many would confess belief in God, and would be very religious, but that they would deny the POWER, and folks anytime the Bible is talking about the Power of God, it is talking about the Holy Spirit!

This is especially important in these days and in the times we are living in, and this is especially true in our country, where we have so intellectualized the Gospel message, and have sought to market it with Madison Avenue sales techniques and modern day psychology, in what some have called “Seeker Friendly” methodology; this however is not the method Jesus used, nor did he teach to His disciples; and it is not what the Bible teaches.

Folks here is my point, if we are to retake our nation for Christ, then we as His Church had better return to the original teachings and power source that we read about in the four Gospels, and in the Book of Acts! Selah

Shalom,

Skip Barland

Godly sorrow leads us to repentance!

The Bible very clearly says that for ALL have sinned and have fallen short of God’s standards; and therefore it matters not what you have done in your past, or how bad you think you are, because the redemptive work of Christ (Messiah) on Calvary’s cross satisfied your debt, and mine, and every other person who is alive, and who before they depart this earth into eternity, receives by faith, the forgiveness provided, for their sins, in Jesus Christ!!!

This is a very important point that flies in the face of religious pride and erroneous religious doctrines of men, who would presume to earn something for which the Bible clearly says cannot be earned; and not only that, but there is absolutely nothing that any of us can ever do to either add to or take away from that propitious work already provided for us in Jesus Christ, at the cross of Calvary!

The Bible clearly says that Salvation is a gift that comes free to us, that we neither deserve nor can it be earned through any good works of our own; however though it comes free to us, it cost God His BEST, in the life of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ!

So here is my point, and we ALL need to understand this, that as long as we are not yet pushing up daisies, and are still alive, then we each still have a chance to become reconciled back into God’s family, if we do what God has prescribed, as outlined for us in the Gospel message; and it matters not who you are, nor what you have done… God’s grace is more than enough to qualify you and I as a redeemed member of His heavenly family!

I say this because I want to make sure that this message rings loud and clear that when we are confronted with the choice of humbling ourselves before God, which is an absolute requirement before we can repent (meaning to change the way we think), we have to first be willing to admit our own failure, and the fact that we are fed up with insisting upon following our way, and that of the world system any longer. In other words we have to be willing to die to our own understanding and pride, and trust only in Jesus Christ!

Until we are at that stage in our life, however, and as long as we hang on to this lie that there is some other way to God, other than through the shed Blood of Jesus Christ, then we shall remain outside of God’s grace; for by our maintaining that attitude, we are denying our only access into God’s Kingdom.

For what do you think the scriptures mean that say:

Acts 4:12

¹²
There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

John 14:6

⁶ Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

John 10

Jesus the True Shepherd

¹ “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. ² But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. ⁵ Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” ⁶ Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.”

Jesus the Good Shepherd
⁷ Then Jesus said to them again, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. ⁸ All who ever came before Me^[a] are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. ⁹ I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture”.

Oh yeah, and there is just one more point I want to make, it won’t be the faith of your grandmother, or your mother, or some other person who loved you and prayed for you that will save you, and get you into heaven; and neither will it be because you happen to belong to any particular church or denomination.

The above scriptures make it very clear that only faith in Jesus Christ, and by a person surrendering their life to His Lordship, meaning you let go of your will and your rights; and then by our accepting forgiveness through His sacrifice, only then can any of us be saved!!!

The Bible calls this process being “Born-again!”

For more information on this, please consult the Owner’s Manual (the Holy Bible); and also here is a website you can check out: http://needhim.org/.

So with that said, I hope those of you who are reading this, who have not made your reservations in heaven, that you will do so now; and not put off until tomorrow, which by the way is not guaranteed to any man, something that will be the most important decision of your life; and will determine where you spend eternity, either with God or in a place you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy!

His name is Jesus Christ… and don’t you leave home without Him!!!

Shalom,

Skip Barland

Let us learn God’s Rules of Engagement for War!

Jesus then tells His disciples, as we read in the New Testament, to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves; and then the Apostle Paul instructed us in no uncertain terms to NOT be ignorant of Satan’s devices, his strategies and his modes of operation!

We are at war folks, and we are to maintain the attitude of a soldier, who is on a mission; and not be as so many are today, with their minds on everything else, but the Great Commission and the battle for the souls of men.

As members of God’s army, and as His covenant children, we are to be about our Father’s business first, and not our own!

With that said, let’s move on down to our present day, and the problems that we are facing today, as a nation.

From the first day we are born into this world, without exception, we ALL have been immersed into a certain value system and culture, depending on where we are raised.

This culture has become our status quo, of what we have been conditioned to expect from life; and it has defined for us what the meaning of life is to be; not to mention it has also defined our value system; and the meaning and purpose for why we are even here.

For those of us who have been born into the Westernized culture of this last century, I believe as a society we have suffered and we have lost ground, having first evolved from a mostly agrarian culture, where families once lived off the land, and literally depended upon God day by day for their very livelihood and sustenance; to where families were eventually forced to sell their family farms or lost them to the banks, as society changed and evolved through the industrialization of that culture.

Then as families were forced to close down their farms, and went to live in cities, and therefore became dependent upon each other, rather than God; and to the extent we have lost our connection with the land, we as a society have also lost our daily connection with God as our Source and Provider; and we as a society have lost out and we have suffered severely because of that fact.

Where once so many families grew up around a farm, where families and neighbors worked together and supported one another, living off the fruit of the land; and where children were mentored and raised into adulthood by the good example and hard work of their parents; today all that has changed.

Our once agrarian culture was changed into an industrialized culture, and has today progressed to high tech; and a good deal of the industry that once provided employment to so many people in the inner city, has today moved overseas, where the wages and standards of living are less expensive; as large industrialized manufacturers and corporations have sought to be more competitive; and again, our society has suffered.

We no longer have the family farm, so along with that families have lost the knowledge of how to live off the land; and where once we had even mom and pop businesses in our communities, even that has long ago changed, as the constant devaluation of our currency and the subsequent inflation over the years, has made it impossible for smaller businesses to be able to compete with larger ones; and so they have been swallowed up by larger corporations; who have in turn been swallowed up by even larger ones; to where the competition within our society today has grown less and less over the years; to where today we have more people out of work than probably since the Great Depression.

I believe we started where God wanted us, as our original parents started out in a garden that God gave to them to manage.

You see Adam and Eve also started as farmers, and in that lifestyle they also were very dependent upon God; but when we lost our connection with the land, along with it went our connection to God; to where society has evolved away from God; and for more than a half century now we have raised our children under a public education system that has left the teaching about God and the Bible out completely.

Instead children were first taught to look to industry, and to education (to Knowledge) as their source and provider; but in the greed and disintegration of what is now a very materialistic culture, and with jobs becoming fewer and fewer, it is now to big government that so many are looking to to be their provider and to take care of them… and this is all by design, and is a part of a master plan! Howbeit, it is NOT by God’s design!

Folks my point is, none of this that I have just described is by God’s design, it was never his will; and none of it is what God has ordained for His creation!

Not only that, but believe it or not, He is still God, and we are still His creation! And that is still true despite what some would have you to believe, to the contrary… among those who would imply that we each are the masters of our own destiny, as though we created ourselves!

However in the effort of some to seek for evidence of a missing link, of those who say that we have descended by chance, through natural selection, from apes, I’d have to say that possibly I’d have to agree with them, in that I think we have found that elusive missing link, among some of our leadership in Washington DC; among those who have sold their soul to the Devil, via a Globalist agenda, to make a buck; and in the process have betrayed their oath of office and are currently selling our Constitutional Republic down the river, for what they call a “New World Order!”

What they didn’t tell you, but what is slowly now being admitted, is that their New World Order is a dictatorial One World Government, that will put the people of the earth under two classes, with the Globalists Bankers and Industrialists as our masters, and everyone else as their slaves, where we and our children will then have to live our lives and make our way by their permission, and by their leave.

Folks, this is the system Obama is trying to sell you; and Bush before him; and Clinton before him; and the list goes on.

This diabolical plan was conceived literally in the pit of hell, and is today being implemented by the aforementioned people, and a goodly portion of our present leadership in Congress as well.

What our forefathers warned us about is today happening before our very eyes:

On this very subject, here’s another quote that I’d like to bring to your attention; that shows a very real pattern of history, that we today are repeating:

The forces of evil in our country are well entrenched, folks, and there’s no doubt about it. They have been working their evil web of deception for multiplied years, really going all the way back before even the beginning of our nation; and the people who are pulling the strings of our politicians today, who are these Globalist International Bankers, their strings are being pulled by their god, who is the Prince of Darkness, the Devil; and all of this is in preparation for his Antichrist to take over and rule the world.

Can you not read the handwriting on the wall?

Is this what you really want for your future and for the future of your children?

Read your Bible folks… because it is all there! And we are seeing it all unfold before our eyes.

So what’s the answer? How are we to turn this mess around, or are we (as Christians) even to attempt to turn it around?

I mean are we to have the attitude of some Christians today, who say it is all inevitable and that we have to accept it?

Folk, I don’t read anywhere in the Bible where we are ever told to acquiesce to evil, and give way to Satan’s plans!

In fact, Jesus said just the opposite, when He said that He would build His church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it! That’s what I read in my Bible anyway!

The church is always to be on the offensive, and never on the defensive, as it is today.

But with that said, the answer is, we by ourselves can’t do it… we need to turn back to God!!!

We need to learn the lesson from Gideon in the Bible, that God’s ways are not ours, and His ways and means of doing things are definitely not ours!

We need to once again learn that He alone is God in Heaven, and as such ONLY He is our Source and Provider; and that what the culture, our society, and the world has told us about how Mammon (this world system) is our god, and that we are to serve him, is all a lie!!!

We need to repent and go back to the same Operations Manual (the Holy Bible) that our forefathers built this Constitutional Republic around; and we also need to be reenergized and directed by the POWER of the Holy Spirit in our individual lives… for that is why we are created, and that is why we are here! Selah

Shalom,

Skip Barland

A grandfather’s wish for his grandchildren:

This poem goes out to my buddy Angel, who forwarded the above story to me this morning; and who is now running a 55,000 acre ranch somewhere in eastern Oregon.

Angel is a dear friend and brother in the Lord of whom I still have fond memories of all those early morning Bible Studies held in his office in the wee hours of the morning… which by the way, Angel, I miss; and I also miss you buddy!

Angel has had a few tradgeties in his life, not the least of which was the loss of his youngest son several years ago; and so I know what this song speaks, Angel in fact lives!

As for the “Paul Harvey Story,” apparently though this story has been attributed to Paul Harvey, and though Paul Harvey did use it on a 1997 radio broadcast, he didn’t write it; and also the same is true of the riddle as well; but nevertheless, regardless of who wrote it, I think it contains a very important message for all of us today… young and old alike!!!

Whether we are grandchildren or adults, or somewhere in between, the Bible is very clear on this point, that God is not interested in our “happiness” as much as He is our conformity into the image and likeness of His Son, Yeshua Ha’Mashiach (Jesus, the Christ—Anointed One)… of which the Bible says that He learned obedience through the things that He suffered (Hebrews 5:8)!

Jesus said that in this world we shall suffer tribulation, but for us to be of good cheer, which speaks of our attitude while in the midst of tribulation; and Jesus also said that He came that our “JOY” may be complete!

Understand this, that “JOY” is quite different from “happiness!”

Happiness depends on pleasing circumstances, minus trials; but JOY is quite a different thing all together!

Joy has to do with our foundation in life, in that which undergirds us in our times of trouble, and that which gives us the reason for our hope and our joy in the midst of severe trials and tribulations, which is Jesus Christ, our Lord, and our relationship with Him!!! Selah

Shalom,

Skip Barland

Every day of training in BUD/s is called an “Evolution;” and there is a saying in BUD/s training that the only easy evolution was yesterday!

What follows is a letter that David Wilkerson sent out in 1991; and below also is another devotion by David Wilkerson that I know will be of help to many of us in these days and times that so many are living in.

As we read and understand Scriptures, it would seem that God has predestined each one of our lives to the point that there is truly a time and a season for everything under the sun (as the Scripture says); and also I believe with that time and season, as we are awaiting fulfillment of our individual destiny, there are many crosscurrents and other lives as well, that are being prepared concurrently with our own, and so whatever is going on in our life, at this particular moment, God is also coordinating and managing the training and preparations of others that we are to be teamed with for future service; and so it is never just about us!!!

Dearly Beloved:

I WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT PRAYERS THAT GO UNANSWERED.

Consider the words of a very godly man from history. This man said of the Lord, “I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me, and brought me into darkness, but not into light…. He hath hedged me about, that I cannot get out: he hath made my chain heavy…. When I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer” (Lamentations 3:1-8).

Jeremiah’s words here speak for many believers as we face our own trying crisis. At such times it seems God has shut the heavens and our prayers are lost. Yet if we do not believe in Holy Ghost timing, we will never understand why our prayers seem delayed. The truth is that each of God’s promises will rise up to test us unless we rest in his timing.

Scripture says of Joseph, “Until the time that his word came: the word of the Lord tried him” (Psalm 105:19, my italics). Joseph sat helpless in prison at the time, and his trial of waiting broke his heart. Consider his pathetic plea to the cupbearer who was about to be released from the same cell: “Think on me when it shall be well with thee…and make mention of me unto Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house” (Genesis 40:14).

He was crying, in essence, “Please, sir, when you go free, talk to Pharaoh about me. Help me get out of this awful place!”

Some readers would ask where Joseph’s faith was. This man was so close to God he could interpret dreams and mysteries. Why didn’t he just rest now, praying in trust that God would deliver him? The answer is Joseph was being tried by God’s Word.

God knew all the time he was going to deliver Joseph. Yet his servant had to be tried by the Word for his faith to mature unto life. You see, we can read God’s Word, pray it and preach it, but until it is tested in us it will not produce life.

Right now you may be severely tested by God’s Word. You’ve seen him answer many prayers in your lifetime, but now you face a longstanding unanswered prayer. Your sorrow, tears and travail have seemed to go unheard. After all this time you see no evidence of an answer.

We must stand on every promise, praying fervently in faith. Then we must wait on God, trusting him to do what is right in his time and his way. This patient waiting is the most difficult matter of all. You can be sure the Lord means it when he declares, “I am with you. I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Do not think Jeremiah gave up in despair. In the midst of his trial, he remembered that God was full of compassion and tender mercies: “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord…. For the Lord will not cast off for ever: but though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies” (Lamentations 3:21-26, 31-32).

Your heavenly Father has bottled every tear, received every cry, listened attentively to every request. If you are going through a hot furnace of affliction, you can know he stands there with you. God has a purpose for everything he allows. And for every difficult trial he gives special grace.

In Christ,
DAVID WILKERSON

Wow is that a good word or what?

How apropos it is for me and I wager it is for so many of you today as well!!!

But it doesn’t end there, because there is something more that God is after from each of us, and He is using our circumstances to squeeze it out of us; and that something is absolute obedience and submission to both His Word and also to the leading of the Holy Spirit in our life, moment by moment, 24/7, 365 days a year… for only then can we be truly fit for His service!

However I maintain that it is exactly here that most fail the test, in that they quit too soon. Just as it is with Navy SEAL training, which has a 70 to 80 percent dropout rate, where men will get up and quit before the test is over.

The test is, at least from God’s perspective, is to test the mettle of our faith and to see when under pressure do we advance in faith, or are we looking for a door of escape, with a “oh why me attitude?”

This is not the sort of person who prevails in the heat of battle, who won’t give up, but who will dig in deeper and are always open to other options and strategy while still in the midst of the fire.

So as we are preparing for today’s battles, let these lessons sink in; and let us not lose hope regardless of how bad or bleak things may appear; for faith does not look at circumstances and sight/sense evidence to give substance to Hope; but ONLY to the promises of God’s Word… and unless we learn to operate in this fashion 24/7, then the Bible says we cannot please God (Hebrews 11:6).

Shalom,

Skip Barland

—–Original Message—–
From: DAVID WILKERSON TODAY [mailto:no-reply@lists.worldchallenge.org]
Sent: Friday, July 23, 2010 12:01 AM
To: devotions-en@lists.worldchallenge.org
Subject: GOVERNED BY THE WORD OF GOD