LEARNING THROUGH AFFLICTIONS! by David Wilkerson

The psalmist writes, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may
learn Your statutes" (Psalm 119:71). You may wonder, as I have, “What kind of
theology is this? Is it actually good to be afflicted?”

The Hebrew word for affliction here means "abased, chastened, defiled, hurt,
humbled, weakened, depressed." When you put this meaning into the verse,
suddenly it reads: "It is good for me to have been chastened, humbled,
weakened, depressed—so that I could learn the Lord’s statutes." The word
statute means "engraved law." The psalmist is saying, "It is good that I went
through these troubles because in the process, God was engraving His laws and
ways in my heart."

The Lord allows trials to come our way to test us, but that is not His primary
purpose. Rather, our afflictions are to teach us to walk rightly before Him.
The Bible says: "Many are the afflictions of the righteous . . ." (Psalm
34:19). According to the psalmist, the point of all our afflictions is for us
to learn from them.

One of our missionary couples wrote about the situation in the African nation
where they are working. One of the poorest on earth, its situation has been
worsened by the long, bloody civil war there. The missionaries recently drove
to this desperate country in a truck with a group of Christians from a
neighboring country. They were delivering a load of supplies and were scheduled
to attend a meeting that night across the border. About five miles from the
border, their truck started slowing down. The driver floored the pedal, but the
truck’s speed kept dropping. The team was dejected as they watched the car in
front of them pull away into the distance.

Finally, the team arrived at the border and instantly the truck’s engine died
and simply would not move. Everyone on the team wondered, "Lord, what is going
on?" Suddenly, the border guards started racing about, shouting excitedly,
"There was an explosion across the border not far from here! One of the warring
factions blew up a car that had just driven in." The missions team realized the
car that had been attacked was the one directly in front of them. If the
missions truck had been running properly, they also would have been attacked.

The next morning, the driver from the missions team turned the key in the
ignition—and the truck started right up. In fact, it ran fine all the rest of
the trip. They recognized that God’s purposes had been accomplished through
this seemingly troublesome circumstance.

Sunday, Feb. 5th at Holland First

Join us Sunday at Holland First at 10a.m. and 6p.m. At 10a.m. Pastor Mike Houser be continuing his series which I began last Sunday entitled, "A Mighty Church Awakening", with a part two message entitled, "The Danger of Becoming a Professional Church." Also, come back at 6p.m. for a great time of food and fellowship as we watch the Giants vs. Patriots on the Big Screen. (www.hollandfirst.com)

Great devotional by Gary Wilkerson

POWER BELONGS
by Gary Wilkerson


“Then he called his twelve disciples together and gave them power” (Luke
9:1).

Jesus gave his disciples power not because they were ambitious but because they
were his. Belonging to Christ is a non-negotiable to receiving his power. Power
is birthed out of belonging. Belonging brings real power.

So many Christians lead powerless lives—having habitual sin practices, a poor
testimony, a weak spiritual life; lacking a fervent, radical prayer life and any
answers to their prayers.

Do you feel powerless? This one short verse is loaded with words of power:

“Called”—meaning, in essence, not our own agenda, direction, self-will or
resource of power.

“Disciples”—those who abandon all to follow the life, teaching and
direction of the teacher.

“Together”—that power is not to be contained in singular vessels but
expressed in community, in work toward kingdom purposes.

“Gave”—showing we can do nothing unless Jesus gives us power to do it.

“Power”—it is not what we desire, work for or strive after, but comes
only and exclusively through His giving it. We never outgrow this part of our
history as Christians. Every follower of Jesus is commanded to wait until we
are endued with (given) power from on high.

Are you lacking power? There is no other way to obtain it than to have it given
to you by the One you belong to. Jesus has power to give to those who are
totally and fully His.

Don’t strive for power. Desire to belong—fully, passionately, humbly,
ambitiously, to the One your heart yearns for. Then power will come to you
beyond what you can imagination.

THE SPIRIT OF GRACE

by David Wilkerson
[May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011]

The Bible says the Holy Ghost will be poured out as “. . . the Spirit of
grace and supplication” (Zechariah 12:10).

The book of Titus tells us that grace is given to us as power over sin, to
enable us to live sober, holy lives: “For the grace of God that brings
salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and
worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present
age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and
Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13).

There has been a marvelous measure of this grace in God’s people since
Pentecost. The Holy Spirit has sent conviction of sin on all nations, teaching
believers of every race and tongue how to forsake ungodliness and worldly
lusts. The result has been a people who live soberly and righteously in this
present world and who long for the coming of Jesus.

I believe Zechariah 12:10 prophecies that in the very last hour, the Holy
Spirit will fall mightily on God’s people with a spirit of grace that turns
them completely from all worldliness. It will produce in them a cry for purity
of heart!

A dear brother in the Lord, the head of a ministry, called to tell me that
leaders in his ministry had been gathering to seek the Lord. The Holy Spirit
began exposing sin in their midst and several of the ministry team had to be
dismissed. The brother told me, “Now that the Holy Spirit has come down,
there is a pressure to do right.”

His phrase struck me and I couldn’t shake it off: a pressure to do right.
When the Holy Spirit comes down and exposes sin, those who have been lukewarm
or in compromise become convicted. Ministers will wake up to true “grace
preaching,” the kind that convicts people of every hidden thing in their
lives.

Beloved, the pressure to forsake sin and to do right is going to get hot and
heavy in God’s last-day church!

PEACE & JOY! (Great devo by David Wilkerson)

If you want the peace of God to reign in your life, you have to quit several
things:

* You must quit trying to figure out how God will work everything out.

* You must quit worrying and fretting: “Be anxious for nothing...”
(Philippians 4:6).

* You must quit telling God what you think is right for you.

* And most of all, you must quit thinking you are a failure; stop
thinking you do not please God!

One of Satan’s most effective traps for robbing Christians of peace is to
convince them they must strive in the flesh to please God. He springs this on
me all the time!

Sometimes when I need a quiet place to pray, I get in my car and drive to a
secluded spot. I can praise the Lord and enjoy His presence while looking out
over green fields and forests. But sometimes the thought hits me that I am not
doing anything for the Lord!

I pray, “Lord, I’m just not accomplishing much for Your kingdom. All I do
is pray, get messages for sermons, and go to church and preach. The whole world
is going to hell, and I’m not doing anything for You!”

Have such thoughts ever hit you? You do everything you can in order to please
the Lord, yet you do not feel holy. I hardly ever feel holy. That is true even
in my best times—even when I am preaching under the Spirit’s anointing!

You say, “You, Brother Dave? You feel at times as if you’re not doing much
for God?” Yes! The devil comes in and makes us all feel unworthy,
unfulfilled. And we lose our peace by giving in to these awful feelings!

Listen to Paul’s prayer for us: “Now may the God of hope fill you with all
joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the
Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).

Trust in His goodness. Believe in His love and mercy. Do not accuse Him of
being angry or upset with you or of not speaking to you. Let His peace rule in
your heart and over your whole life!

Great article on "Time" by John Maxwell

Between the Extremes: Learning to Spend Time Wisely
The phrase “spending time” isn’t a metaphor. Each of us is allotted 24 hours per day, which we have no choice but to expend. We can neither stockpile time, nor buy back hours already spent. In his book, What To Do Between Birth and Death, author Charles Spezzano offers the following observation about time:

You don’t really pay for things with money. You pay for them with time. ‘In five years, I’ll have put enough away to buy that vacation house we want. Then I’ll slow down.’ That means the house will cost you five years — 1/12 of your adult life. Translate the dollar value of the house, car or anything else into time, and then see if it’s still worth it. Sometimes you can’t do what you want and have what you want at once because each requires a different expenditure of time.

We construct our lives on the basis of how we invest time. Thus, the question, “Am I living wisely?” can be answered by looking at how we consume the minutes in our day. With regards to time, wisdom, as in many other arenas, comes by moderating between extremes.

1) Between Unthinking and Overthinking

Important decisions deserve time spent in research and deliberation. However, as Eva Young said, “To think too long about doing a thing often becomes its undoing.” Eventually, we must exercise judgment and take action despite uncertainty and incomplete information. Leaders must avoid the extreme of paralysis-by-analysis.

Yet, leaders must also avoid the opposite extreme of thoughtless action. In the words of Henry David Thoreau, “It’s not enough to be busy, so are the ants. The question is, “What are we busy about?” In spending time unreflectively, our lives veer off course, taking us away from our deepest values.

2) Between Idleness and Hyperactivity

In the writings of America’s founders, particularly those of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, exhortations abound to make the most of time. As Jefferson wrote, “Determine never to be idle. No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much can be done if we are always doing.” Such sayings weren’t empty slogans for these men. By stewarding their time effectively, Franklin and Jefferson were able to make an astonishing number of influential contributions to society—as writers, politicians, and inventors.

The motivational mantra, “carpe diem” or “seize the day,” has merit but can be carried to an unhealthy extreme. For example, American workers chose not to use 67 billion dollars worth of vacation time in 2010! Meanwhile, most people know a spouse, colleague, or friend burdened down by job-related stress. The attempt to maximize every single moment of the day can degenerate into a life-sucking obsession. A relentless quest for optimization and efficiency kills spontaneity and serves as a recipe for burnout. To be suitable and sustainable, a person’s drive to succeed must recognize boundaries and be balanced by periods of rest and relaxation.

3) Between Tasks and Relationships

Balancing time spent on tasks and time spent with people can be tricky. In general, we tend to overemphasize tasks at the expense of relationships. Early in life, we chase after career accomplishments only later to realize that life’s greatest treasures are our loved ones.

Yet great leaders, while prizing people, also get things done. Job-related relationships have the purpose of accomplishing something: leaders don’t connect merely for the sake of connection. One rule of thumb for valuing relationships while achieving results is to spend your greatest amount of time with the smallest number of people. Guard against spreading yourself thin with superficial social acquaintances, and instead choose to cultivate trust and influence in the few relationships that matter most to you

Not Ready to Fight!

Suppose a boxing trainer took his fighter to an isolated training camp and then
spent the whole training session psyching up his man for the big fight. He tells
him, “I will be with you at ringside—I will never leave your side. Here is a
list of great boxers of the past, so study their every move. You do not have to
suffer through hard workouts. I told you that you are a winner and my word is
all you need! I will give you some diagrams on how to defeat Monster Man when
you step into the ring with him!”

What kind of trainer is this? Absolutely foolish! What would a good trainer do?
He would find the best boxer he could, put his man in the ring with him, and let
them have it out!

Beloved, how many Christians call themselves warriors without ever being tested
or trained? We hear so much about the many prayer warriors in this nation. But
the sad truth is, the vast majority of them have never been in battle! They
have not been trained and they are not ready to fight!

Recently I asked the Lord why so many true believers are going through such
heavy, hard times. Why such deep suffering? I asked, “Why are so many being
tested to their limits?”

God knows that Satan is going to be loosed on the earth for his last hour of
warfare. And the Lord is going to need well-trained warriors who will prevail
over all the powers of hell. Right now He is doing a quick work in His
remnant—it is called crisis training!

These suffering, deeply tested saints are becoming the captains of His
last-days army. God is putting Holy Spirit fight in them and He is bringing
forth warriors who are tested and tried, because they have wrestled with God.
The more they suffer and the more intense the trial, the greater the work He
has for them to do!

This kind of training calls for physical discipline as well as spiritual. Jacob
threw his whole body into the battle, all his human ability. A fighting spirit
had risen up in him and Scripture says, “In his strength he struggled with
God” (Hosea 12:3).

This verse has great meaning for all who want to prevail in prayer. It says
Jacob won the battle “in his strength.” Dearly beloved, if you are going to
prevail in these last days, you are going to have to put all your body and
strength into it!