When I was little, we were quite poor. 

     My father was in seminary and my parents were preparing for the mission field.  I knew we did not have a car, but I thought only millionaires had cars.   My bed was first in a closet and then next to the table where we ate.  It didn’t seem to me to be a problem.

     When I was four, I remember being taught to give to the Lord first.  I had a big allowance - six cents.  I had a little globe bank and each week, one penny had to go into that globe bank.  My father taught me that I must give to our church first and then to missionaries.

     I thought I was giving a fortune when I put fist full of pennies in the offering plate.  It was expected and it was good training.

     Then, there came a time when we did not always have enough food for dinner.  During those weeks, my deep and creative father would take the little we did have, make it look fancy on a plate.  Then, he and I would go to the home of someone who was “poor”, set the plate down, ring the doorbell and scoot as fast as we could. I

     I thought we were rich.  After all, we still had something to give.  How grateful I am for my father’s example.

     Paul pointed out how rich the Macedonians were because they gave out of their lack.

     The deepest things are simple things.

     The adventure of faith is not some complex gauntlet that can only be successfully run by the strong and the smart.  We were designed to walk by faith.  We were designed to take Him at His Word and put our weight down on it, simply because He said so.

     I have seen Christians try to get the unsaved to believe they can exercise faith.  That is a mistake.  Faith is not the result of being convinced something is right.  Faith is the result of having met a Person.  The Indwelling Holy Spirit gives witness that He is who He says He is, and He empowers that Believer to move into what cannot be otherwise seen.

     Why does it often seem so hard?  Because we must be transformed.  The storm swirls around and the wind brings things that crash into us.   Things hurt, are frightening, and most often, we fear the unknown.

     The motto for living by faith?
     God’s Word is more real
     Than the way that you feel.

     His Love for you is so vast that it far exceeds your ability to draft a solution for the situation.

     Yet, He has told us to come before Him, ask for rescue and look and wait for Him.

     So much of life seems to be tension and release.  The flesh craves distance from all discomfort because it wants to survive on its own.  But we who are His know that He has asked us to launch into the unknown, put our weight down on the unseen and love the unlovely.  All by faith.

     You do not have the capacity to design a plan for any part of the journey.  He alones it the architect. His skill is infinite and His Love for you is beyond comprehension.

    These things are either reality or fable:  He knew you before you were born; He counts the hairs on your head; He named you; His heart is ravished when you think of Him; He will not withhold any good thing from you; He is preparing a Place for you.

     He who gave Himself for you does not have to be won by you.  You were won by Him.  He had His hand extended all along and wants to lead you with His eyes. 

     We were created to bring it all to Him.    Without asking, there is much we will not receive, including direction and relief.  The issue is His will in the scope of eternity.

     That is why we can come boldly before the Throne of Grace.  We are assured that the One who died and rose again is eager to listen and quick to respond. 

     His response is often unseen in our own time slot, but some golden day, we will get to see it all.

     In the meantime, Soldier of The Cross, look at Jesus. 

     Let’s tackle this head on:

     Many teach that the gifts are not for today.

     I know the arguments, but I can’t find that anywhere in my bible. Nor do I find any verse that instructs every Christian to exercise the same gift.  The gifts are given as the Lord wills.

     The problem lies with both polarized positions.  Those who so desperately want the experience can often fall into deception.  With some it is hard to fellowship at all, because there is a constant hunt for the feeling and there is no calm spirit.  With those folks it is often hard to pray because they have little experience praying in their own language and less experience listening.

     The opposite extreme draws a line and refuses anything that is not familiar and safe.  Only the proper and predictable will do, and so the Lord is often not free to move.

     What is the balance?  The pursuit of God.  Agreeing with Him and letting him know He can do absolutely anything.   The gifts must not be a project or a goal.  To know the Lord must be the goal.  To serve Him.  To reach the lost.  To build up the Brethren.

     Soldier of The Cross, look to reveal Jesus in His way.  Then the Holy Spirit is never quenched.

     If you are a Soldier of The Cross, it means that you have relinquished some of the rights that are assumed to be automatically yours.

     If The cross is the place of the death of the flesh, and if the goal is to have less of me and more of Him, something has to go!

     Like the right to be right.
     The right to be highly thought of.
     The right to be treated well.
     The right to earthly success.
     The right to be understood.
     The right to have comfort.
     The right to quit when you feel like it.
     The right to complain.
     The right to have a smooth life.
     The right to be offended.

     It is not out how I am treated or about my sense of satisfaction from what I have set about to do.  Otherwise, Hebrews 11 would have to be taken out of the bible.

     I am always struck by Mary, who even though it could be assumed all including Joseph would regard her as having fallen, said to the Angel, “I am the handmaiden of the Lord. . .”

Soldier, if we are willing to be prepared for heaven, these are things that we must learn.  And, we learn them by going though the deep waters and making choices that reflect our agreement with Him.

     There is nothing else.
     There is no one else.

     Children must be trained in the Lord.

     In the home there should be singing, prayer, lots of the Word of God and discipline living, balanced by grace. And, if your mate is not on board, the Lord will nevertheless honor your example. There are many fine Servants who tell of one godly parent.

     Children should be taught to memorize verses as soon as they begin to speak.   As soon as they are able, they should know the books of the Bible. They should participate in family devotions and they must be introduced to and taught about missions.

     Children are quick to pick up on whether or not you are knit into your church. And, they will reflect you.

     All children must be taught to obey the first time. If the child is given a second chance when he is reprimanded, he will develop an attitude of independence that makes it harder to learn to obey the Lord.

     Never at any time should a child be the one deciding whether he will stay home from a meeting, or when it is time to leave an event.

     All children learn by example. You will never be perfect, but your children will strain to look at the One you are constantly following.

     Thank you Lord for the opportunity to meet with those who love you.   I want so much to learn to lay down my life for the Brethren.

     Please do whatever is needed in me to produce your love.   I do so tend to be preoccupied with duties and making sure things go well.  I long for a mouth that is filled with your Life and hands that reach eagerly to anyone who will receive your touch.  

     Prepare my heart, Lord.  Any way.  Any thing.  Whatever it takes.

      What must the bottom line be?

     It has to be that His way is the only way. 

     That includes everything.   It also means a commitment to pursue Him, to be available for the impossible,  and to lay down our lives for the Brethren.

     In a culture of watery standards and political correctness, His touch is still penetrating.   He still leads us beside the still waters and He still restores the soul. 

     Soldier of The Cross, when you and I agree with God, there is room for the Holy Spirit to reveal Him.  The gifts are in lubricated operation.   We are easily led by Him.   There a richness of ministry and the needs of others loom far larger than our own.

     This declaration should be made daily.
     May He do anything He wants to with your life? Or are you afraid?
     Tell Him today.  Aloud.            
    

    How do we know when the Lord is leading us?

     As I look back on the thirty some years I have known Him, I can see that most of the time, I prayed, made a decision and only after time was able to see the Lord in the result. 

     The exceptions have been few.  I had a period of a few years during which without relief, I was pressed to go to Argentina.  I knew it was the Lord, finally went without a successful contact ahead of time and found  critical need and wonderful fellowship.

     There have been some experiences prefaced by the tender silver strand of the Holy Spirit with a gentle pressing that led me to believe it must be the Lord.  In those cases, there must be a prayerful looking into the matter.  If it is the Lord, there is a witness of His leading as the path becomes defined.

     I have only had one "burning bush" experience, and even at that, we are told that Moses stepped closer to the bush to investigate.  It involved sending Moses somewhere he would not have otherwise known to go.

     Soldier of The Cross, there must be a following of Him.  Where is He?  Where is His Life?  Where is the need?  He has never hidden from nor teased His Own.

     The problem comes when we want predictable security and the guarantee of a hassle-free result.  If we are asking for such a guarantee, we are already closed off to the frontier of faith.

     Will you follow Him anywhere?
     Will you take on anything He asks?
     Will you give up anything He asks?
     Will you serve in anyway He asks?

     He will never fail to lead the one who in obedience takes up The Cross daily and follows Him.

    We are told to resist the enemy, and it is he who will take flight.

     It seems to me that it is the Believer who so often takes flight.  We have been given the armor, the Sword, and instruction to stand.   There is no reason for passivity or ungodly compromise. 

     While it is not by our strength, we are expected to actively appropriate what we have been given and we are to affirmatively run the race.

     The flesh operates in greasy seduction.  As Amy Carmichael put it, ". . . Silken self. . ."  Without God's Word afresh and private prayer (which I believe should be aloud) there is no energy or endurance for the battle.  This is the greatest lack in the church today and the reason so many Christians are seeking to feel good and are ending in shipwreck.

     Soldier of The Cross, look straight ahead.  The busier you are, the more you must protect your private time with the Lord.   Then there is sight.  Then, there is a drawing on His strength.  Then, the insignificant exposes itself.

     Then, He can be seen.