Journal,

We had an awe-inspiring service this morning. Nathan ministered on the subject, ‘Communion at the Cross.’ His teaching was anchored in something that Paul wrote:

“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He  comes.” (1Co11:26 nasb)

The heart of Nathan’s message was that the penalty for our sins, that is, past, present, and future, was paid in full at the cross. For this reason the accuser cannot bring a charge against any who have truly trusted in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. 

Forgiveness, reconciliation, adoption, acceptance, righteousness, sanctification, sealing, are all terms that belong to God’s message from the cross. Each term is like a glittering diamond that reflects what Jesus meant when He said, “It is finished!”

The work of redemption was finished. Listen:

“But He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God.” (Heb10:12)

“When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” (Col2:13,14)

What made the service even more unique is that Nathan had everyone pass by a large wooden cross. There they could nail to the cross anything that the enemy was trying to hold over their head. From there they came forward for communion. Of course he made it very plain that this nailing was only a symbol. It reflected on what had taken place at the crucifixion of Jesus Christ over 2000 years ago.

And the cross was filled to overflowing…

What an awesome picture. Papers were folded and nailed to the cross. Seems there wasn’t much room left, but then I remember the old song which said, ‘There is Room at the Cross for You.’

Here it is with organ music and the lyrics.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=G1VjJF3kn7g

ROOM AT THE CROSS FOR YOU
(Ira F. Stanphill) (1946)

The cross upon which Jesus died,
Is a shelter in which we can hide;
And its grace so free is sufficient for me,
And deep is its fountain as wide as the sea

There’s room at the cross for you,
There’s room at the cross for you,
Tho millions have come, There’s still room for one
Yes, there’s room at the cross for you.

Tho millions have found Him a friend,
And have turned from the sins they have sinned,
The Savior still waits to open the gates
And welcomes a sinner before it’s too late.

There’s room at the cross for you,
There’s room at the cross for you,
Tho millions have come, There’s still room for one
Yes, there’s room at the cross for you.

The hand of my Savior is strong,
And the love of my Savior is long;
Through sunshine or rain, through loss or in gain,
The blood flows from Calvary to cleanse every stain.

There’s room at the cross for you,
There’s room at the cross for you,
Tho millions have come, There’s still room for one
Yes, there’s room at the cross for you.

This scene will be remembered for a long time.

Now about those School for Christian Workers students….

Just had to add a couple pictures of our Disciple’s Heart and our Shepherd’s Heart classes. The first picture to the right is our Shepherd’s Heart group. Fine looking chappies if I have to say so myself. Only one missing.

This next group is our Disciple’s Heart class. Looks like a few folks missed out on the picture taking. Course they are a handsome group also. Actually we only train good looking folk who have beautiful feet. (Work on that one Vern.)

Ok, where do we go from here? Oh yeah…

And now for Lois (gotta hear this, ‘Elizabeth’)  Gibson, also known as Sarge…

I ask Lois if we could start calling her Lizzie. Huumph! was the best answer I could get.  In fact she threatened to smack me real proper like.

Anyway, all I can say is that when the Lord gets ready, you gotta move. I think Lois’ head is still spinning. Already got her a house.

Yep, this New Jersey girl, by way of Texas, is moving to Pineville. Who’d a thunk it. Must be something about these southern folk that Lois simply loves. Personally I think it is the music. This country blue grass gospel fiddling and guitar playing will simply put tears in your eyes.

Let’s see — Well I’d better quit. Kinda late and I’m running out of words.

Remember now, don’t let the accuser try to hang anything around your neck. If he wants to remind you of anything in your past, you simply remind him of his future. You’ve been made free in Christ. Yes indeed, it was all taken care of at the cross.

There’s a whole lot of blessings coming your way,

Buddy

Posted: March 30th, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: 5

Journal,

Ok, let’s get started. Seems some folk miss the stories on my personal life adventures. I’ll just begin with some off-the-wall jabbering.

So, who is this guy??? Rather handsome I’d say.

After all this is possibly one of my fore-bearers. Just can’t figure out which one. We have a number of Billy Martins in my lineage. And I have over 6500 Martin-kin in my data files. Plenty nu-ff good looking Martins to go around. 

We call that the curse of the Martins.  We have been struck with exceptionally good looks.  

Anyway, this picture was posted on our family genealogy forum, ‘The Martins of Sabine Territory,’ with the caption, ‘William Martin - Soldier.’

I’ve been unable to get a response from anyone on the picture.

Well, since you are showing such interest in this gentleman, let me simply add that the first William (Billy) Martin to come to Louisiana, was a Revolutionary Soldier. He was born circa 1766, and died in 1840. Billy arrived with his Indian wife to settle in the Anacoco, Louisiana, area, around 1804. Most of we Martin clan have remained in this area ever since.  

But is this gentleman our first William Martin? I don’t know.

To bring this forward, our first Billy Martin also had a son named ‘William Martin’. And  William’s son was possibly a soldier during the Civil War. A William Martin is listed on the roll of POWs, paroled in Natchitoches, June 16, 1865. (This is near Anacoco.) If this is the William Martin in the picture, then he is my g-g-grandfather.

The problem is that I have twenty William Martins listed in my genealogy, with ten of them having lived during the 1800s. Oh well, mystery unsolved.

And now that I’ve thrilled you with this wonderful information concerning the Martins, let’s move on to other things. Just one more point — My kids have been known so say that I say this — “If you aren’t a Martin, you ought to be one.”

Well, that comes across fair to middling. What I actually tell my kids is to be careful who they talk about, because they are kin to most everyone from here to the Sabine River.

OK, enough already. Good place to stop….

This morning I purged my prayer journal…

What’s that mean you say?

Well, I’ve kept a prayer journal of sorts for a number of years. In the journal I number each prayer. As a prayer is answered, I place a check mark over the prayer. As time progresses I’ll remove pages of my journal that have been checked. Don’t care to have folk know about my ’secret’ prayer life. After all Jesus told us to make our personal prayers to be secret prayers between us and the heavenly Father.

Now I don’t record everything that I pray, just those kinds of prayers that I am intensely concerned with on a personal level.

Did you know that Jesus had His own secret prayer life?

You see, a secret prayer life is very, very personal. It is about intimate interchanges between the believer and their heavenly Father. In fact a secret prayer life should always be ordered under the auspices of the Holy Spirit.

Listen:

“But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”(Mt6:6 nasb)

Anyway, for me my secret prayers are heavenly interchanges.

To continue, in my present prayer journal (which was a gift to me from Warren and Lori Spurgeon) my latest prayer is numbered #404. And of the over four hundred secret recorded prayers, I have eight prayers that have not been checked off. They are yet before the throne of God. The rest of my prayers have been checked off in one way or another.

If you feel that I am placing too great an emphasis on my prayers being answered, or that I simply wish to draw attention to myself, I will have to leave that with you. That is not my intent in the least. My point in sharing this is two-fold. First I want to encourage my readers that the Lord meant exactly what He said in this statement:

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Mt7:7,8)

The second reason I wanted to share this is that I’ve not been as faithful to my prayer journal of late as I ought to have been. Just this morning the Lord began placing in my heart that it was time again to conduct some important secret family business. Don’t you love it when the Lord puts on your heart to come to the throne of grace! 

OK, so confession is good for the soul. There, I confessed it. And I’ve brought my journal up-to-date by removing the checked pages.

Have you ever heard of the stairway to heaven…

When Jacob had his dream, he saw a stairway that was set on the earth and ascended right into heaven.  

It is interesting that in Jacob’s dream, the angels of God were ascending and descending on the stairway.

(Cf. Gen28:12 - The Hebrew translated as ladder is equally translated as a stairway.)

When Jacob awoke, he was filled with awe. It says…

“Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.’ He was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.’” (Gen28:16,17)

Jacob’s stairway had to do with God’s Messiah. The Lord was at the top of the stairway. Jesus explained to Nathanael, that He Himself was God’s stairway from heaven to earth, and from earth to heaven.

It is not as though we have to climb a stairway to enjoy heavenly things. The truth of the stairway is that Jesus Himself is our heavenly life. We ascend and descend through Him or with Him. We meet the Father in and through Him.

It is like Jesus is saying to all believers, ‘Welcome to My world. Won’t you come on in. Come right to the throne room. My Father and I would like to fellowship with you.’

Did you know that when Elvis, Jim Reeves, and others sang the song ‘Welcome to My World,’ they were singing the very heart of Jesus. Listen to this song and hear the gospel: 

http://youtube.com/watch?v=r_sU0pAE-fE&feature=related 

Time to sign out.

Love and blessings are coming your way,

Buddy

Posted: March 24th, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: 4

Journal,

Have you ever had this thought go through your mind, ‘Why did they have to grow up?’ Well, I certainly have. Then I wonder, ‘Could it be that God has had this same kind of thought?’ 

Well, of course not. We know that God doesn’t think those kinds of thoughts. After all, He IS God! (Hmmmmm. Does make you wonder about God’s thinking.)

What’s this we hear Jesus say? 

“Unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt18:3)

What is this? Why did Jesus say this? Sounds like growing down, rather than growing up.

Actually the disciples had been in a debate over who would be considered the greatest in God’s kingdom. Isn’t that just like us humans! We so badly want to be seen as great ones.

Jesus swiftly addressed this attitude in his disciples by calling a child to Himself, and saying, “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (v4)

The riskiness of self-seeking… 

The Lord knew that His disciples were moving in a bad direction. In fact their attitude was so disturbing to Him, that He gives them a severe rebuke. The rebuke in the Greek carries a double negative, which means that it is quite severe. Listen again:

“Unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

The Lord was saying that with their present thinking they would not even be able to enter into the kingdom of heaven, much less hold a prominent place in it. This means that humility of heart is the real key to life in the kingdom of God, something that the disciples must learn.

But this childlikeness goes even further. A child knows his dependency is on his parents. He doesn’t worry about it. His world is very small and uncomplicated. A little child simply believes that his parents will take care of him. Nothing complicated about that. And that is the kind of life the Lord wants us to learn to live.

Communicating the Spirit of Christ…

There is a two-fold picture that we need to see with what Jesus is saying about childlikeness. First of all, to enter into the kingdom of Christ, we have to strip ourselves of self-importance, self-dependence, and self-achievers. This means becoming small in our own eyes. 

The point is that no one earns their right to God’s kingdom by their own achievements. This is why Jesus spoke of the struggle that self-made, self-reliant, or, self-important people have in attempting to enter the kingdom of God. 

“Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mt19:24)

Can rich people be saved? Certainly they can. But only when they come to the end of themselves and to their importance in their own eyes.

The second issue of the two-fold picture has to do with the communication of life. The ‘I’ in my life must take a back seat to His life. This communication of life relates to learning to live in constant fellowship with the Lord, that is, in a sense of looking to Jesus for all things. Once again we are allaying ourselves of independence.

Listen to what two New Testament men have to say about our life in comparision to the life of Jesus:

John the Baptist said,

“He must increase, but I must decrease. He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.” (John 3:20,21)

The apostle Paul said,

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Gal 2:20)

Of course this reverts back to childlikeness. Sometimes our minds go back to how easy life seemed to be when we were children. We didn’t have to worry about anything. Our parents had it all under control.

Well, that is exactly what the Lord wants for our lives as grownups.  You see, the kingdom of God works unlike anything that we are familiar with. To grow up in the kingdom of God, means we actually have to grown into childlikeness in our faith. Wow, does that ever seem strange. To grow up, we must grow down.

And this is why the Lord taught us to pray simple childlike prayers.

Childlike you say?

Yes indeed. What we call the Lord’s prayer is a very simple prayer. Actually it is based on a simple Davidic prayer. And this is the kind of praying that the Lord wishes us to become use to. Not all this long, laborious, fancy-speaking, religious praying. Listen to what Jesus said,

“When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

“But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

“And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.
 
“So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

“Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name…’” (Mt6:5-9)

The Lord wasn’t giving a formula of prayer that we are to repeat over and over. He is simply sharing what attitude to take in our prayers.

The one prayer in my entire life …

… that has been most meaningful to me, was a prayer that I’ve often written about. I was a wee lad. My mom would kneel beside me as I prayed this simple prayer,

“Now I lay be down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake. I pray the Lord my soul to take.”

At the end of that prayer I would ask the Lord to bless everyone that I could possibly think of.

And this brings us back to my thought of…

Keep it simple, sweetheart…

Sometimes we encumber and complicate our walk with the Lord with all kinds of religious thinking, with all kinds of ‘do nots’, or with all kinds of religious experience seekings. The apostle said that these kinds of things can become obstacles to a true spiritual walk with Christ. Listen:

“But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.” (2Co11:3)

Did you catch it? Everything in our walk with the Lord is to flow from our simple devotion to Him. This is what ‘keep it simple, sweetheart’ means. Just like a little child, we need to know that our heavenly Father will take care of us.

Ok, let’s move on. What else can I pass to my friends.

Oh yeah. Talking about sweethearts. Did you know that…

The General has a new girlie friend…

No, not a girlfriend in the conventional sense, but a girl who has become a special girlie friend. Here’s a picture of CJ and his new girlie friend.

This is Lois Gibson, our friend from Houston, who came over for the weekend. Lois spent so much time petting on CJ, that I’m beginning to wonder who his best friend is.

Naw - General Claudius Josephus will always be my good buddie.

Now where did that dog go? Not again. Lois, would you mind!? 

Hmmmm. I see right now that I’ll have to keep an eye on Lois Gibson. Not only did she make a move on my good buddie, but she plopped right down in my easy chair.

Oh well, that is life. 

Guess its time to find a stopping place. 

So, once again, never forget,

Much love is coming your way,

Buddy, best friend of CJ

Posted: March 23rd, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: 4

Journal,

Last evening I provided at study at Christian Challenge, entitled ‘What Are You Afraid Of?’ The study was not a new message. It just seems to have become lost in much preaching and teaching today. I would encourage my readers to take time to listen to the message. It may well provide some answers to things you are struggling with by way of fear, of guilt, of insecurity, of condemnation, and whatever else may be causing a spiritual or emotional conflict in your life.   

Go to: http://christianchallenge.org/live/index.html

Scroll down to the two black screens that say Sunday: or Wednesday: For this particular study, click on ‘Wednesday’. 

The motivation for trust is to know that God loves you…

And if you know that He loves you, then you’ll know that God will take care of you.

The only thing you need is to look to Jesus Himself.

Listen:

“I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul will make its boast in the LORD; the humble will hear it and rejoice. O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together. I sought the LORD, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.

“They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces will never be ashamed. This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them. O taste and see that the LORD is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! O fear the LORD, you His saints; for to those who fear Him there is no want.” Psalm 34:1-9 nasb

Are you listening? The Lord would like to speak into your heart…

You don’t have to bang on the gates of heaven to get God’s attention. You don’t have to wait until you feel worthy to hear from the Lord. You can have an audience with Him this very moment.

This is what the God said through the prophet Isaiah:

“For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said, ‘In repentance and rest you will be saved, In quietness and trust is your strength.’ …” Isaiah 30:15

It is in quietness that we learn to hear Christ speaking in our hearts.  Click on this next song. Relax. Let the Lord fill you with His presence.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Hecaz4NkQVY&feature=related

The Workman’s Diary - Would you like to have a devotional guide…

Many years ago I designed a devotional guide for our students in the Disciple’s Heart Class. Thought it would be good to pass it along. You may wish to print out a copy for yourself. Here it is –

GEMS FOR JESUS WORKMAN’S DIARY
“The Morning Devotion”

THE MOST IMPORTANT time of the day is the time you spend with the Lord preparing for the day ahead. All believers should have a morning devotion. By presenting yourself to the Lord each morning, you begin your day refreshed. Equally important you will find your day ordered in the Lord.

There are no set rules for a devotion. Here are some guidelines that can be applied to cause your devotion to be truly meaningful: 

(1) Begin your devotion with a moment of quietness. Place your Bible in your lap. Close your eyes and just reflect on the Lord’s goodness. David said,

“Surely I have composed and quieted my soul; like a weaned child rests against his mother, My soul is like a weaned child within me.” Psalm 131:2

(2) Give place to praise and worship. Thankfulness is the heart of worship. Your quietness will give place to worship. Worship the Lord freely. It doesn’t have to be aloud. Worship is a thing of the heart. It is as the Psalmist said,

“Then they were glad because they were quiet, so He guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness, and for His wonders to the sons of men!” Psalm 107:30,31

(3) Now comes the hearing. You will sense the Lord’s timing for turning to your Bible. Remember that God can speak to you from anywhere in the Scriptures. You will find this to be true whether you are following a regular reading program or not. As it is written,

“I will hear what God the Lord will say; for He will speak peace to His people, to His godly ones.” Psalm 85:8

(4) Receive your Word for the day. Generally the Lord will minister one special truth to you. As He shares, don’t read any further. Stop and meditate on the truth being revealed. Take this truth as your GEM for the day. Chances are this truth will become a ministry tool sometime during your day. Again the Psalmist says,

“I will sing of the lovingkindness of the Lord forever: to all generations I will make known Your faithfulness with my mouth.”  Psalm 89:1

(5) Now is the time to pray. Oftentimes it is here that the Holy Spirit will begin moving in your heart towards certain prayer needs. Pray over the truth He has given you. Pray concerning your day. Pray for each person the Holy Spirit brings before you. You will have a knowing in your spirit when prayer time is over. Jesus said,

“When He puts forth all His own, He goes before them, and the sheep follow Him because they know His voice.” John 10:4

(6) End your devotion with praise and thanksgiving. Thank the Lord for meeting with you in the special way. Remember that He loves to share with you. It is written,

“They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces will never be ashamed.” Psalm 34:5

(7) Carry the testimony of the Lord with you. One key to witnessing is to simply take to heart what the Lord shared with you during your devotion. Treasure these things. As you go about your day, the testimony will be there. The Bible says,

“For the testimony of Jesus Christ is the spirit of prophecy.” Rev19:10

OK, so much for the devotional guide. Just one more thing…

Here is a book that I would encourage every believer to read…

This has to be one of the greatest healing books that I’ve ever read. All I can say is that ‘The Shack’ will reach into the deep of your heart. It is an astonishing read.

If you would like to order it, I suggest using the Christian Challenge site link to Amazon.

Go to:

http://christianchallenge.org/bookstore/index.html

Well, enough for now.

And always remember this;

There is much love coming your way.

Buddy

Posted: March 20th, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: 4

Journal,

It was February, 1975. We had left Lafayette, Louisiana, to pastor a small country church in Central Louisiana. Betty and me and our three children literally walked through a gate of faith that I’ve come to call, ‘our gate to miracle land.’

Yep, we ventured into a territory of faith that was totally new for us. It wasn’t as though we knew nothing about the faith walk. Only this time, it was very different. So many wonderful things happened to us. For one thing the small congregation was made up of the most delightful and loving people you would ever want to meet. It was exactly the kind of church we needed to prepare us for what lay ahead, the founding of Christian Challenge.

But over the past few days a memory keeps floating up in my mind about that little church. It is the memory of a tiny bird that would appear at our bathroom window each morning to sing a song to me. At least that is how I felt about it.

It has been my custom over the years that before I have my morning devotion, I first head to the shower to prepare myself for the day. I never did like to have an audience with the King without looking my best. And each morning when I would look out our bathroom window, there on a limb was this beautiful little bird, just singing her little heart out. Guess you can say that I fell in love with her.

Now here’s the tricky part. When it came time for us to resign from our pastorate there,  when I entered the shower, I did not see the tiny bird, but I heard a sound that was somewhat similar. That’s when I noticed that our pipes would make a sound almost like the song of the bird. So I wondered, was it the bird singing all that time?

Of course I had to dismiss that discouraging thought. And I came to a firm conclusion that the bird was sent to sing a love song to me from God Himself. The Lord wanted my life to be filled with music.

When everything is alive…

The one thing that stands out most to me about learning to live a life of faith is that everything seems so alive. It is as though God placed music in His creation. And if you learn to listen closely you can hear it. In fact it seems that music and singing and rejoicing are all the natural language in the world of faith. I find it a most exciting world to live in.

In fact, it is even possible that angels have their own music. Listen –   

“And I heard a voice out of heaven, the sound like a cataract, like the crash of thunder. And then I heard music, harp music.” (Rev14:2 Message)

Whether this speaks of angelic music or the music of the redeemed is not the issue at hand. There is no question that heaven is filled with music.  

Yes indeed. The walk of faith is a walk filled with life. It is a walk filled with love. And it is filled with laughter. Laughter you say? Oh yes indeed. Throughout the Bible you will find that a life of faith includes laughter.

Remember what Sarah said concerning the baby that God had promised her? Listen:

“Sarah said, ‘God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.” (Gen21:6)

In all this wonderment of the faith walk, I think I’ve discovered why some believers have such a struggle in learning to trust the Lord for all things in their life. Their real struggle is over the love of God. They are not fully convinced just how much God really loves them.

It is hard to trust someone if you aren’t sure that they love you…

This may seem strange but it is true nonetheless. The apostle Paul said,

“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love.” (Galatians 5:6 nasb)

We can take this ‘faith working through love’ in a number of directions. But the bottom line is that we learn to trust in God to the level that we believe in His love for us. We know that if God truly loves us, then He will truly take care of us. And this is why it is so crucial to our walk with the Lord, to come to know God as our very own Father. The Fatherhood of God is the single greatest revelation that a believer can acquire in this life.

And this reminds me of an incident that took place many, many years ago, between me and my youngest son, Andre. It was pitch dark when I arrived home. There were no outside lights. Andre was on the porch waiting for daddy. When I got near the porch, I knew that Andre could not see me. When I got near, I simply said, “Jump, Andre, daddy will catch you.”

Andre sailed off the porch right into my arms. Why did he do that? He did it for three  reasons. He knew that daddy loved him. He did it because he knew that he could trust me. And he did it because he knew my voice. It was daddy’s voice and not the voice of a stranger.

Do you remember ‘The Garden Song’? If there was ever a song that speaks to the heart of our walk with the Lord, this is it. I’ve always loved to listen to being sung by Elvis Presley.

Would you like to hear it? Go to:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=-NH_is7VuCI&feature=related 

Ask God to speak to your heart…

I believe that the Lord longs to speak into each believer’s life. Listen to what the prophet wrote:

“Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him.” (Isa30:18)

Now, as for that song of love from the tiny bird – I will always believe the Lord sent that little bird with a melody from heaven. She is one of the hundreds of blessed memories that I’ve accumulated through the years. And every once in awhile I love to sit back and think on all the good things the Lord has brought into my life and into the life of my family.

So, let me leave this with you. Take courage. The Lord wants to talk with you.

Much love coming your way,

Buddy

Posted: March 17th, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: 2

Journal,

It is said when a Jewish person reads the New Testament that they begin to hear a Jewish voice.  There is a reason for this. It is because the New Testament is written in Hebrew thought form.

Not all Christians are aware that the Bible we love so much, from Genesis to Revelation, is actually a Hebraic document. And to gain a deeper understanding of the Scriptures it helps to be able to read the Bible in the thought form in which it was written. I’m not speaking of learning to read Hebrew. Rather it has to do with understanding Hebrew idioms, metaphors, symbols, parables, and such like.

And this is why I instituted a unique email study group in June, 2000, called Hebraic Foundations.

Hebraic-Foundations is a Christian forum. Its purpose is to provide Bible studies from a Hebraic perspective that encourages open discussion on what the early Christians actually taught and believed. The studies have a special view to the Old Testament foundation of our Christian faith.

One problem we have today is that many Christians have lost out on their Hebrew heritage. A Jewish writer said that Christianity is the most Jewish of the non-Jewish religions.  Rabbi Steward Rosenberg, who after having observed Christians for years, made this statement; “The stronger a person’s Christian faith, the more Jewish will he regard himself.”

The Christian theologian Carl Barth also said, “The Bible is a Jewish book. It cannot be read, understood and expounded unless we are prepared to become Jews with the Jews.”

It is not that what these men say is entirely correct. But why would two learned men of different religious traditions reach such a similar conclusion? The answer is because Christianity finds its roots in ancient Judaism. As another writer said, “Christians are spiritual Semites.”

The Lord Himself said that salvation is from the Jews. The apostle adds, “And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.” [Cf. Gal. 3:29]

So once again, this is why I instituted a unique email study group in June, 2000, called Hebraic Foundations. Hebraic-Foundations is solely a Christian forum. Its purpose is to provide Bible studies from a Hebraic perspective that encourages open discussion on what the early Christians taught and believed. The studies have a special view to the Old Testament foundation of our Christian faith.

With this in mind I want to invite my readers to subscribe to this unique Bible study group that I serve as the host on. To subscribe to the study group, go to this site:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Hebraic-Foundations/

Since this is a restricted forum, be sure to complete the questionnaire.

Things you will gain insight into on Hebraic Foundations… 

Here are some instances where understanding things Hebraically can cause the Scriptures to take on added meaning.

(1) What did Paul mean when he said, “Therefore a woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.” (1Co11:10.)

(2) What did Jesus mean when he stopped the procession, and completed His remarks, by saying, “From [your] innermost being will flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:39)

(3) Where did Paul get his teaching that we have already been seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus? (Eph2:6)

(4) What did Paul mean by the statement that he was a “Hebrew of Hebrews?”  (Phil3:5)

(5) Why is there such a stress on the name of Jesus in the apostolic writings? (Acts 4:12)

(6) What is the one doctrine taught in the new covenant that has many branches of study, yet it is simply called ‘the rule!’ (Gal6:14-16)

(7) How did the ancient Church view the Messiah? (John 20:28)

(8) What did Paul mean when he said that in Christ there is neither male nor female? (Gal3:26-29)

(9) What does the terms Abba! Father! really refer to? (Rom8:15)

(10) What was Jesus speaking of when He quoted the Scripture, “You are Gods,” to the Jewish leadership? (John 10:34)

(11) Why did Paul tell us we must learn to “never exceed what is written?” (1Co4:6)

(12) What did the writer mean when he said, “Christ was faithful as a Son over His house.”? (Heb3:6)

(13) What does the term, “kingdom of His beloved Son mean.”? (Col1:13)

(14) What did Jesus mean, when He prayed, “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them.”? (John17:22)

(15) What did Paul mean when he said the Christ “existed in the form of God.”? (Phil2:6)

(16) What did Paul mean when he said that God had “bestowed on [Christ] the name which is above every name.”? (Phil2:9)

All the afore mention areas are samples of things that can be covered in our studies. However, they are also things that can only be understood properly from a Hebraic perspective.

Early church theology was simple. Everything they taught and believed was based on the prophets. For the earliest Jewish Christians, what we call the Old Testament was actually the New Testament to them. There were as yet no apostolic writings.

Well, that’s it for now. Just something to think about.

Much love coming your way.

Buddy

Posted: March 16th, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: 2

Journal,

Yep, we finally found out the truth behind the big foot legend. It was right in my home from the get go. Isn’t that amazing that you can be looking at the answer and never realize it. And all it took was one picture.

Well now, here it is. The legend can be put to rest.

Yep, that is CJ’s big paw in Jamie’s hand. Have you ever seen such a big foot? The only thing I can’t figure out is how the General made all those appearances up in Washington State, in Nepal, and in other places whereas he has been seen.  :)

Anyways, here is the rest of CJ, with his new found soon to be married, buddies, John Smith and Jamie Brunk. CJ is seriously considering being best man at their wedding. What do you think? Can I get an amen on that?

I hope my readers know by now that I do have an adventuresome sense of humor. So with that in mind let me take this to a more earnest setting.

Did you know that our homes should be places of healings…

The entire world exists in an ambiance of disfunction. So when Jesus spoke of his disciples as being the salt of the earth or as a city sitting on a hill, His intent was to direct believers to the heavenly influence that their lives should bring to those who are hurting. That influence includes a flow of God’s love, and a flow of God’s healing presence. And, believe it or not, sometimes even Christians themselves stand in the greatest need of healing.

A number of years ago we had one of the YWAM (Youth With a Mission) Directors bring a school over to take part in our CCI School for Christian Worker’s outreach. An interesting thing happened. The morning the director was to leave, he told Betty and me that he had received a miracle healing while sleeping in our home. He had struggled with a physical malady for years. When he woke up it was gone.

I don’t share this to draw attention to the Martin home. I simply believe that the spiritual atmosphere in our home was conducive to him being healed. Surely the Lord would have all our homes and all our church settings to become places for healings from the emotional and spiritual and to include the physical.

With that in mind let me share a bit of a devotional and talk about…

The secret life of the kingdom…

There is an aspect of the secret life of the kingdom that has to do with how the Lordship of Jesus works in our experiences as believers.

Some time ago a lady in our church shared with me concerning her struggle over a wayward son. She was kept in sadness. Her prayers were in place but nothing seemed to be happening. Her hurt was the hurt of a mother over her child. Then this dear sister shared something that enabled me to speak with her about how Christ rules in our lives, even when we aren’t so aware of it.

She told me of a recent experience she had in that she woke up during the night singing a song. Later she was unable to remember the song itself, but she did recall how refreshed she became because of her experience.

From this I was able to share with her about the song of Christ. What happened to her was a song of deliverance. It was a song of Christ overruling her despondency. This is partly what Paul means when he said that Christ is our life. He lives His life in us.

The following morning the Lord gave a Scripture to this dear sister. Her eyes were drawn to Psalm 42:8, which says,

“The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime; and His song will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life.”

Someone outside the kingdom of God’s beloved son would say that this was merely a  psychological working of the mind, but not so with the child of God. David spoke of God’s secret rule when he wrote,

“You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance.” (Psalm 32:7)

Then we have this in Hebrews 2:12, where the Lord Jesus says,

“I will proclaim Your name to My brethren, in the midst of the congregation I will sing Your praise.”

Now pay attention to what the Bible further has to say about our secret life.

“The secret of the LORD is for those who fear Him, and He will make them know His covenant.” (Psa25:14)

And again,

“For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; in the secret place of His tent He will hide me; He will lift me up on a rock. And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me, and I will offer in His tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.” (Psa27:5,6)

And again,

“You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of man; You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.” (Psalm 31:20)

And again,

“I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden wealth of secret places, so that you may know that it is I, the LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.” (Isa45:3 - Spoken to Cyrus but the principle applies to all who belong to the Lord.)

And again,

“Surely the Lord GOD does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7 - This applies to all new covenant believers since the prophetic anointing has passed to all who are born from above.)

 Then we have this from Jesus:

“But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.“ (Matt6:6)

“For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light.” (Mark 4:22)

And from Paul: 

“Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past…” (Rom16:26)

“I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Phil4:12,13)

Yes indeed, there is much more to be said about the secret life of God’s kingdom. Think about these Scriptures. One thing I can assure you is that the Lord is not going to allow any of His children to become overwhelmed with the matters of life. The writer said that God always leads us in His triumph in Christ Jesus.

Much love coming your way,

Buddy

Posted: March 13th, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: 2

Journal,

Wow, what a weekend! Wonderful beyond words. And Betty and I are both tired plum to the bone, but a good tired nonetheless. Think next time we’ll run our guests off no later than 10 p.m. each evening.    :)

Our 32nd Homecoming Jubilee really was a day wonderful. The worship was so uplifting. Pastor Joel Dyke from Life Church in West Monroe brought a heart-stirring message.

Of course he was divinely inspired to tell a few mission stories about he and Nathan’s ventures in Mexico. Don’t think anyone will forget the Alchaselzer story. There was more than enough laughter to go around.  :)

Seems our Homecoming Jubilee did well in capturing the memories of lots of folk. It was great to see so many of our friends from years gone by.   

And talk about a songstress. We had a lovely young lady who can sing and play the guitar with such grace that it will bring tears to your eyes. Yep, we heard a different rendition of Amazing Grace, by our dear friend from Florida, Jenni Baier. Here she is on the left. Now if I can jest get her to turn on a bit of her blue grass gospel picking and grinning.  

Of course I did my bit. Nathan and Shana helped me with one of my songs, ‘The Holy City.’ (Also known as ‘By Faith Abraham.’) But to add some culture to the mix, I led the congregation in our Hallelujah Cajun Chorus. Now that song is a bit tricky —It only has one word. You repeat hallelujah  to the tune of Jambalaya. So sad that I had to chide the congregation to offer a few Cajun yells. 

And when it came time for the eatings, it was ’Kattie bar the door.’ Our good friend City Marshall Larry Jeane, provided the meat.

Had plenty of help in the kitchen. Wow, there are no words to describe such a table as was spread at Christian Challenge.

Oh yes, there was something even extra special for the weekend. We had several of our out-of-state friends from a forum that I host, able to be with us. We had Jenni from Michigan, Jenni from Florida, John and Jamie from Arkansas, and Lois from Texas. Here’s a picture that includes our long-distance friends.  — Further down I’ll tell you who is who —

In fact we are so proud of this out-of-state group coming to visit us that we decided to give them conditional membership to the Cajun Suck-a-Tosh Indian Tribe, of which I am one of the chiefs. Lane Fletcher is the other chief. His mom, Bernett Fletcher is chief of chiefs. (To whom we always humbly bow and pay our respects.)

Now there are two things to keep in mind about the Suck-a-Tosh Indians. For one thing don’t get us confused with the Suck-a-Squash Indian tribe. The obvious difference is that members of the Suck-a-Squash Indian tribe are noted for always sucking on a squash. We don’t do that. Seems to me that they look too much like a possum smacking on a sweet tater.

Anyway, the second thing is that we try to do is interpret conditional members’ name into our Suck-a-Tosh local dialect. Its a bit tricky but here is the best as I an interpret them.

Jenni Baier’s name means ‘She who deeply loves cajun blue grass music but can’t talk about it cause it brings tears to her eyes, but breaks into big grin when you ask her to play some.’

Jenni Yeater’s name means, ‘She who torments men by throwing things at them and when bored, swiftly burns down barns.’

John Smith’s name means, ‘He who is very much quiet til time to testify, then words flow from lips like mighty river.’

Jamie Brunk’s name means, ‘Beautiful lady who lights up room with a single smile, and captures the heart of man named John.’

Lois Gibson’s name means, ‘Mighty awesome lady who can leap big buildings with a single bound, and who loves to stay at Martin house till wee hours in morning.’

Now for who is who. In the above group picture look closely. Working from the left in the back row are, Lois Gibson, Nathan Martin, Lane Fletcher, John Smith, Joel Dyke, Angel Dyke, and Jenni Baier. In the front from the left are Lori Martin, Buddy Martin, Jenni Yeater, Jamie Brunk, and Betty Martin.

And of course we cannot leave out the hero of the party, General Claudius Josephus. (CJ for short.) Here he is on our front porch and laying down.

All I can say about CJ, is that if you ever pet him, you’ve made a friend for life. He will do his best to crawl up in your lap. His way of kissing is simply to shake a little slobber around.

Well, that about wraps it up for now. That is, unless you would like to see a picture of the Founding Pastor and his wife, and the Senior Pastor and his wife. You would. O boy.

OK, here goes:

Founding Pastor, Buddy Martin and Betty —

Senior Pastor, Nathan Martin and Lori…

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.

.

.

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Thats it folks. It all began for Christian Challenge, on March 9, 1976. Thirty-two years later and still going.

May the Lord give us much increase in souls for the kingdom in the days that are ahead.

More than enough love coming your way.

Buddy

Posted: March 11th, 2008 under CCI, General.
Comments: none

Well now Journal,

Can you believe that it is snowing just north of us? Wow - Snow in Louisiana. Course that won’t do narry a thing to hinder our 32th Homecoming Jubilee. Yep, we have us some guests coming in from Arkansas, Michigan, Texas, and Florida, and possibly other places. Plan to serve them a bit of crawfish and gumbo. After all, it would be a shame for anyone to come to Louisiana and not get a taste of our wonderful cajun cooking. 

And hows about our dearly beloved Louisiana anthem…

Thought about some Louisiana cajun music but most of my readers probably don’t understand Louisiana cajun French. So here is the next best thing…

http://youtube.com/watch?v=pfU6BAeOGXk&feature=related

For you folk who speak cajun, here it is especially for you…

http://youtube.com/watch?v=iRw_M6nkqEY&feature=related

By the way we’ve been known to sing the Jambalaya song with just the word hallelujah. Lots of fun. Still get to kick up a cloud and do the cajun yell. Hmmmmm. I may have to kick it in gear at our Jubilee.

OK, this is our final invitation to the Christian Challenge 32nd Homecoming Jubilee.

Now for a devotional study. Ready? Let’s call it…

A Message from the King…

We were crossing a mountain range to get to a village on the border of Honduras and Guatemala. I began asking the Lord what He wanted me to say to the village people. No sooner had I made the heart prayer, that I had this impression; “Tell them that you are an ambassador from the kingdom of God, and that you have a message from the King.”

Something did happen in the village that evening that I’ll share about later in the study. It has to do with an old Indian. 

The point is that the gospel is not simply a story about God’s power to save through the cross. The gospel is actually the saving power of God itself. This is why people get saved under the influence of preaching. And this is why Paul said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Rom1:16)

While we know that the term gospel means good news, or glad tidings, what we may not always realize is that the preaching of the gospel involves the heralding the kingship of Jesus Christ. The God-called preacher is a ‘herald.’ He is a public crier. His job is to announce to his listeners that God’s King has been installed. This official announcement calls for an allegiance to the King.

Because the preacher holds an official work in the kingdom of God, we have this admonition, “How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!’” (Rom10:15)

When Paul said, “How will they preach unless they are sent?” he is drawing attention to an official herald or a spokesman for the King.

This is a factor that isn’t always understood. While all God’s people have the right to testify to their salvation in Christ, and can minister in many ways, not everyone is given the task of being a herald of the gospel, that is, not in the true sense of the word.

The herald has to be approved. It is required that he have the message right. Once he is approved, he then can be given an appointment as a herald for the King. And when the herald speaks, the voice of the King is heard. This is not to glorify preachers. It has to do with understanding the role of a preacher.

Paul said, “For our exhortation does not come from error or impurity or by way of deceit; but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts.” (1Th2:4)

Notice that the gospel in this sense is a sacred trust. But it is only given to the herald after a heart examination is completed.

In another place the apostle says, “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. For this [testimony] I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying) as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.” (1Tim2:5-7)

Notice that Paul divides his calling into three areas, preacher, apostle, and teacher.

With regard to the preacher, I realize the term ‘herald’ may seem a bit confusing, but it really does describe the job of a God-called, God-equipped, and God-sent preacher.

The first herald of the gospel in the New Testament was John the Baptist. It says, “Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (Mat3:1)

The term ‘preaching’ is kerusso (kay-roos’-so). Kerusso means to be a public crier, a herald, to proclaim an official message. It carries the idea of formality. In the case of Jesus Christ, the preacher is the herald of a message that carries in it the very power of heaven to change in the hearts and lives of believers.

The message is God’s message. The change can only take place where an allegiance is made to the King. Jesus spoke of the final end time sign, “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end shall come.” (Matt24:14)

Thus we hear Jesus tell his apostles, “You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear [kingdom] fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give it you.” (John 15:16)

What Jesus said to the original apostles, He said also to Paul. Ananias said to him, “The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear an utterance from His mouth.” (Act 22:14)

The apostles were chosen and then appointed to be heralds for Christ. They were to be official representatives of the King. (Ambassadors.) Because of their unique calling, they could ask the Father for whatever they may need to accomplish their work. They were only to ask in the name of their King, Jesus, and for the sake of His kingdom. Every God ordained preacher afterwards is also a herald. They, too, can ask the Father for whatever they may need to accomplish His work.

It is the preaching of the gospel that Satan fears the most. Martin Luther said, “The Devil does not mind the written word but he is put to flight whenever it is preached aloud.”

When C. H. Spurgeon was asked to write a defense on the gospel, he said, “The gospel does not need to be defended. It is like a caged lion. Just turn it loose and it will take care of itself.”

So the herald of the gospel is a man with a message. He must understand it. He must not corrupt it. He is responsible for its proper delivery. This is why one of the most urgent warnings in the Bible has to do with those who distort the gospel of Jesus Christ. To add anything to the Kingdom message, or to take anything away from its simplicity, is to place one’s self under condemnation.

The apostle said, “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!” (Gal1:8) James added that God’s people are not to take to themselves of being many teachers, because the teacher will receive the greater condemnation. (James 3:1)

The herald of the gospel is not a kingdom builder for himself. He has one responsibility and that is to announce the King. Paul said, “For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel. For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me.” (1Co9:16,17)

Stewardship speaks of the management of another’s property. All true ministers of the gospel have been given a stewardship in which they hold responsibility for. But they also have the authority that comes with the stewardship. This means that God Himself will supply the herald (minister) with whatever he may need, or with whatever he may ask the Father for, for the sake of Jesus Christ.

It it has been well over forty years since I first stood before a people and preached the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a difference these many years can make. In all this I still stand amazed at what happens in the preaching of the gospel. I stand in awe at how the Lord works through the heralding of the message. What a joy to see hearts and lives changed simply through the proclaiming of King Jesus.

Now for the old Indian —

The peoples gathered until the building overflowed. Men sat in the windows. There was no room left to sit down. The door was crowded with people. Little children were everywhere. When I opened my mouth, I said, “I come to you not as an ambassador of the United States, but as an ambassador of the kingdom of God. And I have a message for you from the King.”

That’s when it happened. At that moment awesomeness settled on everyone. All eyes were fixed on me. Then I began sharing the message of God’s Son. The gospel was working deeply. The voice of the King was being heard. (Yes, Christ Himself speaks to the people in the preaching of the gospel.)

As I brought my message to a close, the old Indian man stood up and began walking towards the front. He was coming to pay allegiance to the King. He wasn’t the only one, but he was the one that had my total attention.

It was as though the Lord was allowing me to see how the gospel works. Paul explained it this way; “For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.” (1Th2:13)

Then we have this from the Lord, “I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd.” (John 10:16) How will the sheep hear His voice? They will hear His voice primarily in the proclamation of the message of His kingdom.

Let me add one more dimension to the proclamation of the King. In the preaching of the gospel the voice of the King is heard. Paul calls this the power of the gospel. This is why Satan fights so hard to keep the message from being preached. He knows that the moment the voice of the King is heard, and the moment a person believes and confesses allegiance to King Jesus, he, that is, Satan, is put out of business.

Paul says that when a person hears the proclamation of the gospel, and believes, that is, gives a heart allegiance to the King, there is a transfer that takes place. And Satan knows that all a person has to do to be saved is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and confess Him as Lord and Christ. Paul said, “For He [the Father] rescued us from the domain [authority] of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Cf. Col1:13,14)

And so for well over forty years, I’ve seen countless numbers of people come into the kingdom of our King and Savior. I’ve baptized untold numbers. And, yes, I’ve seen miracles and healings without number. But the greatest miracle of all still remains the same. It is the miracle of the transfer that takes place through the proclamation of God’s holy King.

What say ye. Have you responded to the message of the King?

Much love coming your way,

Buddy

Posted: March 7th, 2008 under Devotions & Studies, General.
Comments: none

Journal,

Yup, its that time again. Sunday, March 9, 2008, is our 32nd Homecoming Jubilee. What a venture it has been. It all began in an old storefront building in Boyce. Our very first service was on March 9th, our daughter Shana’s second birthday. As for the building, we held it together with bailing wire and bubble gum. 

Today the Christian Challenge setting is in a rustic background of 7 1/2 acres in Pineville, Louisiana. A major plus is that CCI is presently busting at the seams with new members. We are actually running out of space for our School for Christian Workers.

– Bear in mind that Christian Challenge began with a small sign to the right of the front door which read, ‘School for Christian Workers.’  The School is forever the heart of the ministry. —  

OK, back to the Jubilee. Its all about wonderful worship, special singing, dramas, anointed preaching, dinner-on-the-grounds, and anything else we can stir in the mix.

All I can say is, you’d better come early to get a good sitting down place! The only table reserved will be for our special out-of-state guests.  

Reaching back to our 25th Jubilee…

At the beginning of my stewardship to raise up a training ministry in Central Louisiana, the Lord began to give me songs that were based on the gospel. I early on purposed in my heart to make these songs available to anyone who would like to have them.

At our 25th Jubilee we provided a couple hundred CDs as gifts. The songs are now available on our web site. You can listen to the songs or download them at this site:

http://christianchallenge.org/JubileeCD.html

Note: The motto and the theme song of Christian Challenge is ‘How Beautiful Upon the Mountains.’ The motto of the School for Christian Workers is ‘Preparing Servants for the Nations.’

Christian Challenge has had several hundred believers experience our unique training programs. And it all goes back to our original stewardship of being a mentoring society. What makes our training programs so unique is that they are disciple based, total Scriptural focused, and placed in a format that takes the student right into the spiritual dynamics of the new covenant.

We’ve had more than one of our graduates tell us that they acquired more of a spiritual value in our Disciple’s Heart Class, than they did in two years of Bible college. What makes this even more strange is that our Disciple’s Heart Class only meets once a week for a total of fourteen weeks. Figure that one out.

But there is a point to be made. I personally designed both our Disciple’s Heart Course, and our Shepherd’s Heart Course, to place in the hearts of our students with what I consider to be the spiritual fabrics of life. Spiritual fabrics speaks of the Lord weaving into our own hearts that which pertains to Himself and to His kingdom.   

Note: Our School is not designed to take the place of Bible college or seminary training. Those choices belong to each believer.

The Christian Challenge logo…

Our motto comes from Isaiah 52:7 kjv;

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!”

In the Bible, the term ‘mountains’ is often a Hebraism used for kingdoms. With this in mind the logo pretty much tells the story. The three peaks represents the kingdoms of the world. Thus the dove and the Bible speak of the gospel going to all the kingdoms.

In the background you have the ‘rising’ and the ’setting’ sun, which accords with what the Lord said, “That men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun that there is no one besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other.” (Isaa45:6 nasb)

OK, how about a short devotional. Let’s call it

Do you know the Master of the wind….

How is your boat of life doing?

Here is where our denomination has to take a back seat. The very heart of the new covenant is the Abba! Father! experience. In this case it doesn’t matter if you are Southern Baptist, United Pentecostal, Assembly of God, Church of God, Church of Christ, Presbyterian, Methodist, Charismatic, and so on. You cannot tell a person who knows the Lord that they don’t know the Lord. The promise of the new covenant is, “They will all know Me, from the least to the greatest of them.” (Heb8:11)

To know the Lord is the great wonder of a believer’s life. This is why we can call ‘knowing the Lord’ the crown of a believer’s life. It is in this knowing that the believer is protected from the false prophet. It is this knowing that causes a believer to distinguish false teaching. It is this knowing that gives the believer the deepest of assurance that he or she is in the will of the Lord. It is this ‘knowing’ that is the sign of a person who is truly born again.

Jesus said, “But you do not believe because you are not My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish.” (John 10:26-28)

Jesus says there is a knowing relation between both Him and His sheep. In verse 5, He says of the sheep, “A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.”

In the new covenant Jesus did not leave it up to religion nor to the efforts of man to establish people in His kingdom. He calls us one by one by one. And He still speaks into our lives in that manner.

Our walk with the Lord is very personal. But for a believer it is a ‘knowing’ walk. Paul said that one of the greatest guiding principles for our walk with the Lord is this kingdom peace that is given believers. This is why he said, “So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

He afterwards says, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.” (Col3:12,15)

So once again, it matters not what your religious background may be, the Lord will faithfully guide you on to safer pastures. He has promised to save you.

Why not let Candy Christmas minister this truth to your heart.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=hsxv6I0dTEE&feature=related

Hope to see you at Jubilee.

Much love coming your way.

Buddy

Posted: March 3rd, 2008 under CCI, General.
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