Cross the Line!

   The Crossing of The Line sets the Soldier of The Cross apart from other Christians.     There are those who have decided to leave this world behind.  They don't look strange, nor do they abandon practical daily activities.  These Believers have simply decided that God's Word is true.  They have made the decision that their lives no longer belong to themselves, but to the Lord.    These Christians have goals that are eternal.  They pray in agreement with the request that the body be daily yielded up as a living sacrifice.  They agree with God about the mouth.  They agree with God about time.     These Servants are faithful and devoted to the Body of Christ.  They are quick to visit prisons, the ill and the elderly.    Their eyes pour out love, because they are full of God's Word and are walking in the Light.    Their money belongs to the Lord.  The things they buy with that money belongs to the Lord. Their families belong to the Lord.  Their reputations belong to the Lord.    When the Lord allows devastating things, they thank Him, even though they feel weak and shaky.  They have decided to trust Him, no matter what.    They are not perfect.    But, they have crossed The Line.  

Do Not Lose the Moment.

There are many reasons we are told to live as though He were coming for us immediately. Taking hold of the reality means making the conscious decision to move without baggage. It means a heightened awareness of the lost. It means a different use of time. One of the most important things in awaiting His coming is, living in the moment. It is easy to live in constant distraction. We are pulled this way and that, and we live in a fallen world that screams for our attention. The flesh is spoiled and reactionary, demanding attention and promoting its cravings. The enemy is constantly lurking, conniving and hurling flaming arrows. Soldier of The Cross, the time must be redeemed as we pass through it. What redeems the time? Obedience. When we tell the Lord He can have our lives completely, the heart is open and available to His Presence, His Word and His Will. Heaven becomes more visible that the things we touch with our hands. He is free to Love through us because we are not frayed from trying to solve everything. We are able to refuse the urgent in order to yield to the important. He said He would lead us with His eyes. And, so He will.

No Lordship, No Lord.

Soldier of The Cross, there is no time for wound-licking, whining or attention-getting. The battle is in the mind. You must allow Him to use all your faculties, all your time. If you are passive or careless, your mind will automatically revert to pruning the flesh in one way or another. We have no time for that. There are poor. There are dying. There are the ill. There are the lost. How are your hours spent? Those watching you must be able to see that you are living as though the Lord were going to come in a few hours or a few minutes. It is hard for the flesh, but not for the Spirit. Lower your head and plunge into freedom. He who is Lord is able to make the way. Rest in and on His Lordship. No Lordship, no Lord.

His Delight is in His Own.

     Serving the Lord means thinking of Him first, His agenda first and His Body first.      Soldier of The Cross, He delights in you.  He has said that His heart is ravished when you think of Him.  He gave His life for your salvation and freedom, and He is accutely aware of your thoughts, discomforts and circumstances.      God has designed you to love Him and to serve Him.  He has designed you so that the best for you is in  subitting to Him.       He has not left you wihout instruction and He has not left you without provision.  He who is preparing a Place for you is One who takes pleasure in every act of obedience.  Every thought of obedience.      Soldier of The Cross, make sure you take time to gaze upon Him.  If you race to Him each day and hastily unload a bundle of needs, you will not be satisfied with Him.       You are so precious to Him - is He enough for you?

He is the God of the impossible.

The Lord never asks you to do the possible.

He is the God of the impossible.

Soldier of The Cross, make sure you do not fall into the trap of evaluating the job God has given you. You do not have that capacity.

He has called us to follow Him no matter what- He has not called us to follow according to our limited concepts or experiences.

Those who are His are always on the cusp of an infinite frontier. There is no limit to what He can do.

Soldier, tell Him He can do anything with your life. With your time. With your faculties.

Invest in eternity.

There is nothing else.

How many hours do you have left?

Live them to the fullest. That is, according to God's Word.

Soldier of The Cross, putting aside pettiness is the result of a decision. The decision leads to the discipline of the mind.

One godly decision leads to another. When the obedient pattern begins to be established, there is release from the tentacles that would so desperately choke out the exuberant Life that is yours in Christ.

Stand before Him and tell Him He may have your hours. Your minutes.

Tell Him aloud.

There is a beautiful reward in ministering to the poor.

There is a beautiful reward in ministering to the poor.

Remember, there are many kinds of poverty. There are those who have no home. There are those who are hungry. There are those who are ill and are poor in spirit. There are those who are in prison and are so impoverished, they are barely living.

Then, there are those who are old. In need. Lonely.

One of my most beautiful childhood memories is that of my father visiting a man who lived in a chicken coop. I remember the tiny shack, barely standing. The man must have had a degenerative disease, probably cancer. I remember how frail he was, I could see his bones - all of them. He coughed and had to hold on to the splintered, gray boards as he spoke to my father.

In my memory, the most striking thing was my father's love for the man.

I was seven years old, and we were in New Jersey, preparing to be missionaries. I think that was the first time I realized what it meant to reach out to those who were alone and without anyone else.

I have no idea if the man accepted the Lord, or if there was any other contact. I only know that we rode for a long time on dry, dusty roads to see someone we did not know. I knew the man was dying, and I knew that if we had not come, he would have died alone and without Jesus.

Oh, Soldier! Please. Look away from your own comfort needs, and be available. What is it to you if you live or die? What does it matter if you have much or little? You know where you are going and you have the assurance of eternal security.

He took up the Cross. Will you?

When the Lord blows a wind of change, move with it.

When the Lord blows a wind of change, move with it.

There are times when you know the flag has been planted. You must stand and give your life to hold the land.

There are other times when the door has closed behind you, and you know you are being directed another way.

It is tough. When years of work have gone into the work, when money has been prayed in, when prayer has resulted in evidence of God's blessing, it is not easy to move.

We know so little. All we know is what we know. Yet, the Alongside One indwells, and He is able to lead, to restrain and to bring a new vision.

Soldier of The Cross, be sure you are only looking for the next move. Those who have to know the whole Plan always miss the next step.

Just look up, and move on.

Minister of Life in the Home

The Soldier of The Cross must be a minister of Life in the home.

So often, it is the little daily things of life that penetrate the soul and rub callouses or leave infected prints.

It is easy to be come so familiar with the habits and personalities of others, that you have immediate reactions, or even have reactions to things that have not yet happened. Often the most harmless or well-intended things can become annoying, just because the flesh is demanding, and because we have an enemy.

Most often, people in the home are treated by others according to concept. There is rarely a fresh opportunity for any family member to be treated differently, once a pattern of reaction is established.

Would your family say that you don't complain? Would they say you reveal patience? Would they say you are more aware of the needs of others than your own needs? Do they know you listen to them? Would they say you reveal Jesus?

Don't Miss a Beat

Christian Soldier, when the immature and self-centered try to interfere with the work of the Lord, don't miss a beat.

It is His work. Not yours. Leave it with Him in prayer and attend to the thing He has given you.

In this life, there will always be those who are not surrendered enough to stay the course. There will always be those who are jealous. There will always be those who are to easily swayed. There will always be those who feed on conflict. There will always be those who can never be wrong.

Learn to look at Him and keep moving.

You must be discerning. Self-defense, irate accusation, wound-licking, and gossip are all attempts to hook the attention of the soul and bleed out its ability to concentrate on heavenly things.

You must walk in Christian momentum. Walk where the Light is. Refuse to be seduced into the fruitless and sinful quicksand of distraction.

He could come tonight!