Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Prayer

To the Church:  
   A praying church is a church with staying power. Nothing eternal can be achieved without spiritual intercession. To say that we live in important days, and that we are facing critical situations, both locally and worldwide, is an understatement. Our world needs us now.

   In the economy of God, the altar of sacrifice was the central and significant item of furniture in the tabernacle and the temple. Without it there could have been no worship of sweet smelling incense. God’s plan has always been the altar, and God’s program has always been prayer. We do not dare think that we have a better plan, or that we have a better program.

   Together, let’s renew our efforts and our zeal for the altar and for times of prayer. Come when you can. Pray as long as you can. Pray sincerely. Pray fervently. Pray for each other. Pray for our missionaries and pastors everywhere. Pray for our country. Let our neighbors, and those that pass by the church, see people coming and going at all times for prayer. Let them see the glow of God and the peace of His presence as we leave.

"Units of prayer combined, like drops of water, make an ocean that defies resistance." E.M. Bounds

pastor hilderbrand

Thursday, May 31, 2012

1Th 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.

Sorrow goes farther backwards than regret.
We all have regrets. I wish I would have. I should have.  If only I had done this or gone there, or said this. . .

Sorrow dwells longer in the past than regret.Sorrow builds a dwelling place in the past and says, "this is your address". Have all your mail delivered here on Regretful Lane in a house called Sorrow.

Sorrow also looks into your every tomorrow and reaches farther and farther into you future and begins to steal not only your past , but your tomorrows and tomorrow’s hopes.

Sorrow steals hope and preaches a continuous message:  "there will never be any change. Things will always be the way they have always been."

The apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Ghost, commands. . . sorrow not. Concerning them which are asleep in Jesus, I would remind you of our hope.  Do not dwell in the ancient history of your lives or the lives of those you love.  Do not build a house of Sorrow on Regretful Lane.

I REMIND YOU OF OUR HOPE
OUR HOPE that is founded and anchored in the unchangeable, unmoveable, forever-settled promise of the Word of God. . .

I remind you of hope:  It is a hope of an assured future without regret, sorrow, or shame.  If you have been living on Regretful Lane, change your address.

 
1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
1Th 4:18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words
We shall FOREVER be with the Lord.

Friday, January 13, 2012

Honor in high places



I recently had a longing to hear the sounds of noble speech.  Too much of the current content of radio takes its toll on the human spirit.  I remembered listening and watching portions of the funeral service of President Ronald Reagan, so I went to "you tube"  and searched for Prime Minister Mulrooney from Canada.  I remembered listening to his tribute to our President.

 I watched and listened again to his uplifting and honoring message that day in that service where he elevated his friend -- our departed President.  Both the eloquent words and the dignity, as well as the marvelous voice of the Prime Minister were captivating.  So noble were the memories.  So honoring were the comments.  So encouraging were the images that were brought back to my mind.

I also remembered the Prime Minister of England, Margaret Thatcher.  What a dynamic and forceful lady and leader she was.  On that day of the funeral she could not speak in person due to personal health issues.  She had taken the time, however, to pre-record a video of her tribute to her friend and compatriot -- our president.  The video tribute which was shared was astounding and outstanding.  I watched again that video which was played at the funeral.  It was a captivating memorial given by one great leader to another. 

I began to search for the evidence of why President Reagan was so honored by his friends, and even those who had been his foes in politics and on the world stage.  I watched his speech given in 1964 and another given at the Republican national convention in 1980.  I wished as I watched and listened. . . "is there anyone in leadership today that could, and would, stand up and communicate these same principles as he did?"

 I feel that his success was a composite of many good things.  He loved his country.  He had high morals.  His self-deprecating humor made you feel that you knew him personally.  He stood his ground on the issues that really mattered.  He called things like they were, and his enemies became his friends.  He was not afraid to talk about God and made frequent references to the Bible.  He was real. 

He fought against many of the precise issues that are again being dragged through the cluttered streets of our public forum today.  Government intrusion, socialism, over-regulation, spending, the economy, and etc.  I noticed however, that where he used the term "billions" we now use "trillions".
This blog really isn't about a man, however. . . it is about honor.  I pray that we haven't totally lost our sense of propriety and honor and Godly morality in the realm of our political leadership. 

It doesn't take much searching in the books of the Kings and Chronicles to see that God very much weighed and counted the actions of kings.  He saw the direction and measured the response of the leaders of nations.  He heard what was whispered in the bedchamber.  He knew what the thoughts of men were.  He still does.

There were times when God sent a prophet to face a king with correction and warning.  It may have been a story of a lamb to a king who had sinned.  It may have been a prophet with another copy of the Word delivered to a king who had burned the first copy.  It may have been the hand of God himself writing the summary of a kings life on a wall for all to see.  God knows the thoughts and intents of the heart.

May God give us leadership that is in tune and in touch with higher things; leadership that has a sense of what is noble and just and pure; leaders that are not afraid to humble themselves in the presence of God and humbly ask for guidance.  We need it so much today.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

She took him to church and left him there

She took him to the house of God and left him there.

It doesn’t sound significant until you realize that it was not a "day care" we are talking about. Nor was it that he was left in church by accident as was one of my 5 brothers. (We arrived home after a Sunday night service and realized that my brother was forgotten on the pew where he had fallen asleep. A hasty trip back to church found him still asleep in the big dark empty church sanctuary. It was a good thing he did not wake up.)

Hannah left Samuel in the house of God at Shiloh on purpose. He had been the miraculous answer to this barren woman’s prayer request. He was the subject of a promise she had made when she prayed. "Lord, if you give me a son, I will give him back to you for as long as he lives." Quite a promise.

She was true to her promise when the Lord granted her request and blessed her with a son whom she named Samuel – "asked of God."

When the young boy was old enough to be separated from his mother, she dressed him in an ephod – a miniature replica of the priestly garment – and she took him to Shiloh and left him there in the house of God. Her covenant and intent was that he would grow up and serve the God who had answered her persistent, heart rending petition.

The marvelous part of the story was that she left him there – even though Eli the priest was old, had poor eyesight, was slow to hear the voice of God, and did not have control over his own boys. The sons of Eli were utterly profane. They were greedy and cared nothing for spiritual things. They were immoral to the max. This was not a warm healthy climate to grow a son. What an atmosphere in which to leave your miracle child.

Hannah left her son in Shiloh nevertheless. Even though the lamp in the temple had been allowed to go out. The oil ran dry and Eli was too old to notice and his sons did not care. Any spark of revelation or inspiration was gone from the house of God. Eli’s sons committed unspeakable, immoral sinful acts.

But Hannah left Samuel there. She did not "pull him out of church". She did not go searching for another place, another occupation, another situation where her son would find "more potential for growth". She had made a covenant with God and fully expected God to take care of her boy.

When she went up from year to year to worship, she did not take her son home with her. She left him there.

She did the right thing. It was in that dark temple in a rough time of history that the God, who had spoken to Samuel’s mother, spoke also to her son. The conclusion of the conversation and the fulfillment of the promise made to Samuel was that he would become a prophet and judge of Israel.

He would anoint kings. Kings were to wait for his counsel. When a king failed, he was the one to remove that king from his position. He would anoint David, ‘the man after God’s own heart’ to be the next king.

He would fight one military battle against the Philistines. He would need to fight only one, for God "thundered" and the enemy left, never to return during Samuel’s time of influence.

Too often we judge a situation by our own limited understanding and we do not give God a chance. Who knows how many young men or young ladies were destined to places of great influence, yet they were pulled from a situation that God himself had ordained for their refinement.

Let God lead.  It is often that God chooses to lead us in darkness when we need it the most.  I do not remember where I first heard or read the following quote --   "Do not doubt in darkness what you have seen in the light."  This quote is not original with me.  I wish I would have said it.  Logic sometimes robs us of a miracle. Our perception sometimes prevents the perfect will of God from being fulfilled in a life. What if Hannah had taken Samuel back home?