Diamonds or Love from a pure heart, which one will we choose.

I met a man who owned a diamond mine. It's funny, he actually didn't come out and say he owned one, in fact, he really never told me that he did. It was in an airport, not even sure where, Chicago, somewhere in Tx. It was somewhere I had never been before. We both had a long layover, and I sat at a table right next to his, both of us watching as the first presidential debate was ending. This man was in his sixties, and seemed to be in good shape. He spent quite a bit of his time in Africa, and it was a dangerous place. The food he had to watch out for, the people, and he could hardly keep employees, most of the people he could not trust.
This man was willing to risk his life to mine for diamonds in a country he really wasn't wanted in. He felt the prize was worth it. He was willing to give up on relationships here in the states, risk his life in a violent, foreign country, live in relative poverty when traveling there, in Africa, all because of the prize, the prize of diamonds.
He also had dealings in Dubai. Another country where it was safe, but you had to have the right relationships to operate in. Being a white American put him in jeopardy in both countries. Once he had the right relationships, he was able to operate safely, at least in Dubai. His business dealings helped him get the right relationships in the one country, but not really in the other.
Are we willing to risk our lives for the cross of Christ? Do we even take up our cross daily, deny ourselves, and follow after Him? We need to. There's something much more precious than jewels at stake in this life of mine. Christ wants to bring in the riches of love, joy, peace, all the things money can't buy. All of this we have here on this planet, no matter how much of it we have, will all fade away, except those things that really matter.
Let us pursue Love with a pure heart. Not mining for gold, silver, rubies or diamonds, but the precious blood of Jesus that cleanses us from sin, that makes us have entrance into heaven. No dirty mines there, just no more tears. This man I met, the one with a diamond mine, he had no relationships, no kids, no immediate family, and the girl he had, they just broke up. Seems this mine is not good for relationships. Which one will we choose, the path that leads to life, where there are few that find it? Or will we be passionate about this world, and the things of this world. Cashing after our diamond mines instead of pursuing Christ, passionately.
I hope we choose life, it's so much better than riches of this life.

God speaks today, as He did before.

Yesterday at 5am I heard God audibly speak my name. We were all as a family sleeping in a hotel room, and when I heard it, everyone stirred, but all stayed asleep! One of my daughters the other day also heard their name called, and turned and saw no one there. I believe God is calling us and like 2,000 years ago as He visited the earth, He is visiting again, and His saints who are His will be receiving an audible voice, calling us by name to follow Him. WIll we say "Speak now, for your servant hears.?" 1 Samuel 3:7-11
New King James Version (NKJV)
7 (Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor was the word of the Lord yet revealed to him.)

8 And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. So he arose and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you did call me.”

Then Eli perceived that the Lord had called the boy. 9 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

10 Now the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”

And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant hears.”

11 Then the Lord said to Samuel: “Behold, I will do something in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle." What will the Lord speak to you?

The USS Cole was bombed October 12, 2000, before Sept 11th, 2001, now known as 911. It killed 17 members of this crew. Before the bombing there were warnings that were ignored, including a group that was allowed on the ship to sell their wares. They were on the boat and noticed a lot of the crew gathering for lunch. The captain of this vessel "Felt strange about them." He now he believes they were spys sent before the bombing. How are we ignoring the warnings of God in our lives?
When God changes us, and we are willing, it's always a good thing. When we harden our hearts and won't listen to his warnings, look out, things get broken. The doctor for the USS Cole was about to have his lunch. After sitting down and praying for his meal, he heard The Lord say "You don't belong here." The good doctor ignored His warning, so He spoke it again. He ignored it again, dismissed it. Then The Lord said "Leave." The doctor did and within 90 seconds a boat loaded with explosives hit right about where the doctor was sitting. God is in control, we just have to listen, and obey. Be like the good doctor and listen, if you're not hearing, then listen better, or get those things out of your life that are causing you not to hear God's voice.

Quiver Full

Psalm 127

New King James Version (NKJV)

Laboring and Prospering with the Lord

A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon.

127 Unless the Lord builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the Lord guards the city,
The watchman stays awake in vain.
² It is vain for you to rise up early,
To sit up late,
To eat the bread of sorrows;
For so He gives His beloved sleep.

³ Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
⁴ Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.
⁵ Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;
They shall not be ashamed,
But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

Wow do I love this chapter. The fruit of the womb is a reward, who turns down that? Reward: Strongs 7939 Hebrew word Sakar: Payment of contract, salary...what is owed you. Who would turn down a pay check? If you work 40 plus hours a week, you wouldn't go in on payday and refuse a paycheck, or turn down a raise. Most of us consider money, or a raise, a blessing, and most of us would never consider turning that down, why would we, it is what is due to us. And yet the Lord does not call money a blessing, but He does call children a blessing. So why do we turn that down, children, a blessing from God? Because we're selfish. 

Like arrows in the hand of a warrior...happy is the man whose quiver is full of them....then it talks about speaking with their enemies at the gate, which is an opening where things come out, and things go in. If we give our inheritance away, to be plundered by the enemy, or to be spent on ourselves, what will we have left? 

Goodbye to Beethoven? 

Many people have talked about Beethoven. How his parents chose to have him even though their previous children were born with serious problems. Many people have speculated that if that same situation were to happen today that no one in the right minds would allow that child to even be considered because there had been so many problems with their previous births. So, goodbye Beethoven? There have been studies that show some of our greatest contributors have been the sixth, seventh or even eighth child in a family. Many have wondered what we have missed out on by choosing ourselves to only have 2.5 children. 

It has been said that the average family size is 2.5 children in industrialized nations like America. If we are choosing to not receive the blessing of an eighth child, what type of reward are we turning down? Could it be the one child that would have cared for us enough to take care of us in our old age? Would he or she have discovered the cure for cancer? What did we miss out on by now allowing The Lord full control of how many children we have? 

It is not mine to fashion the arrow. The Lord Himself "molds us and shapes us in our mothers womb." (psalm 119:73. Jeremiah 1:5) If the arrow does not fly true, is it something I as a father have mistakenly placed on them that has caused their miss flight? An arrow is a simply designed thing, much like a mousetrap. It only has 4 parts and each is crucial to it's purpose. There is the head, shaft, fletching (The feathers in back) and notch. (The part where the arrow connects to the bow string)

I do not need to improve on it's design, nor do I =need to add anything to it for its intended purpose. 

But as a dad, I try and do that with my children. I correct them in ways they were never meant to be corrected I end up changing their very design so they no longer fly straight "As an arrow." Happy is the man whose quiver is full of them. 

When I change things with my fleshly understanding instead of the hand of Almighty God doing the fashioning, there can be no good that will come if it. Children, if everything goes right, come out fully fashioned and formed, ready to be those cute little arrows God has planned for them from the beginning. He even has their purposes all laid out, all we have to do as dads is get out of the way and allow Him full control of how, and when they fly.

Think of a falcon about to be release by its master. The falcon sits on the glove, or the post and waits to be released. When it is, it flys and is free. There are no encumbrances to it's take off, just a glove to protect the hand of the master, or a post that it perches on so it's flight is not impeded. 

We impede the flight f our little arrows by our controlling and manipulating them into things that they were not created to be. Isn't it easier to work with the metal when it's hot and ready to be formed rather than a piece of steel that is already hardened and fashioned. God has our children in His hands. If we just listen to His voice and follow His instructions, our little arrows will turn out just fine. 

But what about the prodigal arrow? 

Is it our arrow, or God's? Who fashioned those little arrows, us or Him? Who can add or take away from what God has done? I am reminded of watching a movie that was based on a book by C.S Lewis. They changed it. I heartily dislike that when they do that. You have one of the most gifted writers of our time, and yet someone can come along and think they can make his story better. Do we really think we are better than the Master? Do we really believe we can improve on His design! If we add or take away from God's design it will never be better, and usually it will be a disaster. An arrow was fashioned with one thing in mind. To hit it's intended target. If we try and change the design of our children, who they were made to be, it will never work for their better. If we think we can control their lives and make it better than GOd could if He were in charge, we will never get it right, because He already has it right. he has all their plans already fashioned,He has their lives already mapped out, we just need to come along side His plan or them and support them in what they are supposed to do, and gently, humbly correct them when they get off His track. 

Why do we hold to the first part of the verse above, and not employ the last part? This is a stand alone chapter, this is it, it's very short, and it's all there. There's no misinterpreting, it's all there. Unless The Lord builds the house, we will labor in vain! Unless God guards the city of our hearts and lives, we will watch in vain. God ties children into this verse. How many of us feel heavy burdens that The Lord never intended us to bear simply because we didn't let Him choose our family, and how He wanted it to turn out? What happens when I overstep my bounds and not let my wife do what she was intended to do. Look out, we're in for danger! My wife is one of the most gifted, lovely, honorable, humble women I have ever met. She fulfills the Proverbs 31 version of what a wife and mother are to be as good as anyone I have ever seen. And because God picked her out for me, she is also better suited than anyone in all of creation to fulfill her roll as wife and mother of our children. You know, those sweet little arrows we've been talking about. Their not mine, and their not my wife's, so whose are they anyway? 

I keep think ing it's all about me, and it never has been, or was meant to be. How many of the things do I do, just for me? Tons. What I eat, what I wear, what I watch, listen to. Most of the things throughout my life are for me, but I've always wanted to live my life to serve others, to bless others, so what stops me? My flesh, my old man that was supposed to be crucified with Christ so it's not longer me living, but Christ in me. (Gal 2:20) 

What more do I need? God's building blocks for our house. 

Am I happy my quiver is full of them, children, or am I burdened to even think of having another, after only two have come? Back to Psalm 127. I don't want to labor in vain, yet why am I not willing to fulfill the last part of that scripture, while praying the first part. Think of it. If I don't want more kids, or kids at all, am I being selfish with my time or resources? Have I chose what my family size is based on my perception of God's provision, or am I worried about His lack of provision? Isn't The God who placed the stars in the sky to shine, without even thinking about it, they just shine. Isn't he able to do the same with us? Does He have the authority in your life to build the house the way He wants? If we are interfering with His plans with our lives, do we actually expect God to provide for us, to meet our needs, or should we expect to be laboring in vain? 

How can adding to my already overburdened load, make my load lighter? 

God promises that; Matt 11:"  ²⁸ Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

This verse is true. No matter what is happening in my life this is true. If we receive His yoke (The work that He has fashioned for us) and receive only His burden for us, it will be easy and light. So this is not baed on a numbering system. So if we allow Him control how many kids we have, it will be an easy yoke and a light burden, it is His promise for us, just like He promises we will labor in vain unless He builds our house. 

What have I done? 

If I am a selfish man, can I really expect my son to be any different? If I am totally given to pride or lust, should I really expect my children to be any different. They will follow my example now matter what I say. Our lives are supposed to examples of "Christ in us the hope of glory." (Col 1:27) If we examine our children, they are like mirrors of ourselves. Look in the mirror, (2 Cor 13:5) examine yourself, are you who God made you to be, that bright shining star whom God has made to shine brightly so that people may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. All of our examples of what we should be is found in Christ, there is not other. So we need to let Him shine through us, let Him work through us, so we can bring glory God, the reason why we're made. 

As I walked out early one morning, the stars looked lovely. As I looked at them The Lord spoke; "They don't have to think about shining, they just do." We were made greater than the stars and were simply just made to shine. "A city set on a hill that cannot be hidden." (Matt 5) We were not created for our selves. We were made to be servants. We were made to be the servant of The King of Kings, The Lord of Lords, The Maker of Heaven & Earth! We were made to serve Him. A servant was not made to serve themselves, they were paid, in our case bought, for another purpose. We were not made to want ice cream, to do things that please ourselves. A child that is always asking for things for themselves is called selfish. We were made to give. If we follow and obey The Lord, just as any good earthly father, He will interpret our needs and wants, and as a loving Father, will bless us.

Which child do you want to lavish on? A child who is always asking for stuff, (James 4) or a child that never asks for anything? The Lord is the same way, He's just more gracious than we are. 

If we built a house, we'd want every color, every texture, to be pleasing to us. We may even say "We are building this for the glory of God" yet if we are building with our pleasures in mind, we may be a little misguided. (We have been called to liberty, but as Paul says let us not "use liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. Gal 5:13)

I was not made to please myself, I was made to please God. My desires are way out of whack as I serve to please myself. 

"Lord, let us be humble servants that do not live to please ourselves, but live to please You You have made us like the stars in heaven to shine. Let us just shine as we were made to be, in Jesus name. Amen!" 

As I walked out early one morning, the stars looked lovely. As I looked at them The Lord spoke; "They don't have to think about shining, they just do." We were made greater than the stars and were simply just made to shine. "A city set on a hill that cannot be hidden." (Matt 5) We were not created for our selves. We were made to be servants. We were made to be the servant of The King of Kings, The Lord of Lords, The Maker of Heaven & Earth! We were made to serve Him. A servant was not made to serve themselves, they were paid, in our case bought, for another purpose. We were not made to want ice cream, to do things that please ourselves. A child that is always asking for things for themselves is called selfish. We were made to give. If we follow and obey The Lord, just as any good earthly father, He will interpret our needs and wants, and as a loving Father, will bless us. 

Which child do you want to lavish on? A child who is always asking for stuff, (James 4) or a child that never asks for anything? The Lord is the same way, He's just more gracious than we are. 

If we built a house, we'd want every color, every texture, to be pleasing to us. We may even say "We are building this for the glory of God" yet if we are building with our pleasures in mind, we may be a little misguided. 

I was not made to please myself, I was made to please God. My desires are way out of whack as I serve to please myself. 

"Lord, let us be humble servants that do not live to please ourselves, but live to please You You have made us like the stars in heaven to shine. Let us just shine as we were made to be, in Jesus name. Amen!" 

What we are missing in the Body.

Eph 4:11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. We all want growth, we all want The Lord to direct and guide us, but we can have neither unless we do it God's way. When was the last time you were ministered to by an Apostle of God? How about a prophet? How about the last time you witnessed a pastor, evangelist, apostle, prophet & teacher all in the same place ministering together? If you read the above promises like the ability to speak the truth in love, growing up in Christ, having a whole body, all of that is tied to God equipping the saints through what some call the 5 fold ministry of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. What are we missing? If this is not in operation in our cities, in the Body of Christ, then how can we be equipped, how can we be fully edified, how can we come to the unity of faith? We need the whole expression of the body of Christ, not a fragmented part. "Lord bring in the missing pieces, and wash away all the pieces that we've instituted that are makeshift examples of your will. We need You, all of You, and not just small part. We love You Lord and commit all of our ways to You, in Jesus name, amen. "