| Author | Message | ||
| Helovesme2 Registered user Username: Helovesme2 Post Number: 300 Registered: 8-2004  |
(Yes, it's another quote from Oswald Chambers! I know I've shared a lot of them recently, but I'm risking wearing on your patience and posting another. How often we're waiting for God to give us a big job, when all he's asking us to do is come!) "Come unto Me." Matthew 11:28 Is it not humiliating to be told that we must come to Jesus! Think of the things we will not come to Jesus Christ about. If you want to know how real you are, test yourself by these words - "Come unto Me." In every degree in which you are not real, you will dispute rather than come, you will quibble rather than come, you will go through sorrow rather than come, you will do anything rather than come the last lap of unutterable foolishness - "Just as I am." As long as you have the tiniest bet of spiritual impertinence, it will always reveal itself in the fact that you are expecting God to tell you to do a big thing, and all He is telling you to do is "come." "Come unto Me." When you hear those words you will know that something must happen in you before you can come. The Holy Spirit will show you what you have to do, anything at all that will put the axe at the root of the thing which is preventing you from getting through. You will never get further until you are willing to do that one thing. The Holy Spirit will locate the one impregnable thing in you, but He cannot budge it unless you are willing to let Him. How often have you come to God with your requests and gone away with the feeling - Oh, well, I have done it this time! And yet you go away with nothing, whilst all the time God has stood with outstretched hands not only to take you, but for you to take Him. Think of the invincible, unconquerable, unwearying patience of Jesus - "Come unto Me." | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 2681 Registered: 12-2003  |
Mary, nice picture! Great to see you! Again, I love the Chambers quote. He has a way of penetrating below our usual superficial view of reality and hitting where we hide. It's true--whatever it is we're rationalizing in our lives is the thing that keeps us from experiencing His power and intimacy. Thanks for sharing! Colleen | ||
| Patrickfoy Registered user Username: Patrickfoy Post Number: 38 Registered: 3-2004  |
Ahh- How many times have I told the Lord, "Not right now, I have somethings I need to work out, I have to finish some business or I need to get rid of this one sin or this other sin and then Lord, then maybe, then Lord, I will come to you and give all." If you only knew how many times I have told this to my Lord and Savior. I was not born into the Adventist church and I have had a life that some would not call very Godly. All the while, I know that through the good and bad, that the Lord was there with me. I have come to Him and fell so many times that I was ready to give it up and say "forget it, I don't care if there is a God anymore, I am too bad for Him to care about me, anyway", But the Holy Spirit would never leave me alone. He was always there in everything I did, even when I said in my mind that I don't need God in my life. Until this day, the Spirit has never left my side and I don't know why but I praise God. He knew that the day would come when I would see Him as he really is and I would give all. I'm not quite there yet, but I am His child and now I feel that I can do anything through Him who keeps me. Praise God Patrick | ||
| Susan_2 Registered user Username: Susan_2 Post Number: 1980 Registered: 11-2002 |
Dear Patrick, What you wrote just above what I'm writing now is just what I needed to read right now. Thank-you so much. Yes, I truly believe the Good Lord does not give up on his people. First, you can go to Tex Watson's website. If you recall, Tex Watson is the person who actually committed the murders ordered by Charles Manson. He has a ministry now that through his influence thousands of California inmates are being led to the arms of Jesus. Under search just put in Tex Watson. Even though he realizes he will most likly spend all his natural days inside the California prisons he has given his heart to Jesus and he is doing a wonderful ministry. And, I have wittnessed so many miracles in my life as well as the lives of those close to me to know that when Jesus said, "come unto me. I will never leave you or forsake you" that He is 100% telling the truth. | ||
| Flyinglady Registered user Username: Flyinglady Post Number: 1907 Registered: 3-2004  |
Patrick, As an SDA who is divorced, I was of the opinion that I would do whatever I wanted, because in the end I would be destroyed completely and nothing would bother me after that. When I started studying the Bible, after I decided not to rejoin the SDA church, I found out different and decided to love Jesus and let Him take care of me. It has been a wonderful journey He has taken me on and I am very thankful. As always, God is so awesome. Diana | ||
| Riverfonz Registered user Username: Riverfonz Post Number: 891 Registered: 3-2005 |
Mary, I will never get tired of Oswald Chambers. That is another writer that I would put on my suggested reading list that I posted on another thread. Stan | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 2686 Registered: 12-2003 |
Patrick, God's timing is inscrutable--and clearly He has called you to integrity before Him in a powerful way recently. Praise Him that you are surrendering to Him! I have to tell everyone of Richard's recent victory. As most of you know, he's lived his whole life with an aversion to eating meat--I don't mean just a distaste for it or a preference against it, but a full-blown, deep, emotionally-based aversion. (Thanks to Ellen's schizy teachings re: meat-eating--and her clear words contrary to Colossians 2:20-23!) I mentioned a few weeks ago that he had accepted Elizabeth Inrig's challenge to make a choice to begin eating it instead of just talking about wishing he could. Well, Friday evening he ordered a chicken salad at Coco's after FAF, and he ate the entire char-broiled chicken breast that came on top of it. He said all afternoon he knew he had to quit just toying with the idea and DO it. He admits it tastes better than the Garden Burger he usually substituted for the chicken breast. He had to pray his way through the meal, but God helped him, and Richard knows that God's will for him is not to be enslaved to a meat-phobia. Aversions--are powerful; they are other side of the addiction coin, and they enslave us and give us identity the same way addictions do. The meat aversion was an issue that God brought into focus for Richard as something he had to surrender to Jesus in order to be free from its controlling power. It's not about eating meat; it's about being free in Jesus to be able to eat whatever is served with faith and thanksgiving instead of experiencing revulsion and disgust for what God has provided. Richard's foray into chicken salad is an example of what Oswald Chambers was talking about in that quote Mary shared. Praise God that he brings us, one issue at a time, into surrender and replaces our tightly-held "idols" with Himself and His rest! Colleen | ||
| Seekr777 Registered user Username: Seekr777 Post Number: 310 Registered: 1-2003  |
Colleen I ment to tell you before but I enjoyed being at the Praise Dance worship service and seeing you and Richard. Ann the lady who I introduced you to is a friend of many years. She just recently returned from driving the Alaska Highway up to the Artic Ocean with a girl friend and so we hadn't seen each other for a number of months. We both loved the second dance that your churches team preformed. It was awesome in it portrayal of the Cross. Ann appreciated meeting both of you. Her daughter is one of the dancers in our dance group. I didn't even know you were going to be there so it was a pleasant surprise to see you in the same row.  I felt God's presence and His name glorified in the different dances. Praise His name! ! Richard rtruitt@mac.com | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 2689 Registered: 12-2003 |
Richard, it was good to see you, too. The concert was wonderful! Thanks for sharing the row with us! Colleen |
