I saw a vision in my mind of horrifying consequence,
God called America too account stripping all pretense,
His judgments were delivered in rapid fire succession,
For a prideful nation morally adrift with no concession,
One came in a big earth rattling west coast earthquake,
Devastating in power - a wake God don not forsake,
The ancient paths ignored God declared and dictated,
To a world gone mad in idolatry and who fornicated,
Another judgement came in the form of fire on prairies,
Killing livestock, scorching pastures, wiping out dairies,
Many acres burned firegobbled up the grassy ranches,
Where the flames spread widely in reckless dances,
I saw another judgment saddening and brokenhearted,
Where gunmen shot where worship had just started,
Many fled the stream of deadly bullets in congregations,
Followed by the grief of parishioners deep in lamentation,
I saw an attack on Wall Street - New York Stock Exchange,
Attacked by radicals mentally and spiritually deranged,
One more scene played out before my eyes and unfolded,
Where large sport stadiums were bombed and exploded,
What does it all mean - surely America will be protected,
Any foul plot to harm to be thwarted once it is detected,
Surely God would not let America suffer like before,
When trade towers fell and and proudly stood no more,
Wake up America, it's not too early for all to be repenting,
Maybe God will give mercy and from judgment be relenting.
Friday, December 22, 2017
Updated Preaching Schedule
My Upcoming Preaching Schedule
Dec 24th - Heritage Baptist Church - Weatherford, TX
Dec 27th - Heritage Baptist Church - Weatherford, TX
Dec 31st - Crossbridge Fellowship - Corpus Christi, TX
Jan 10-15 Fairfield Baptist Church Winter Camp - Carolina Creek Encampment
Feb 14 - Howard Payne University Chapel - Brownwood, TX
Feb 16-18 First Baptist Church - Disciple Now Weekend, Pleasanton, TX
June 18-22 Northside Middle School Beach Camp - Panama City, FL
Wednesday, December 20, 2017
The Jester
He got way too chummy with the world and the friends of the world. He lived far too close to the edge of sin. He compromised and blurred the lines between righteous living and doing what felt right to the flesh. He strayed. He turned a blind eye to sin. Only God knows how much of it he engaged in when no-one was looking.
He had good pedigree. A relative of his was a well known spiritual giant. He had been taught rightly. He often made decisions on what appealed to his senses more than what honored God. He chose to live in an immoral community. He put himself, his family, and his faith in danger.
One day he met a couple of eccentric men who came to down bearing a doom and gloom message. The kind of message nobody wants and to hear and even fewer are willing to receive and heed. The messengers warned of judgment coming. The compromiser was advised to get his family and move out of town immediately.
Lot went to the two young men pledged to marry his daughters to warn them. Their response is pitiful. Genesis 19:14 (ESV)
14 So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, “Up! Get out of this place, for the LORD is about to destroy the city.” But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting.
He had good pedigree. A relative of his was a well known spiritual giant. He had been taught rightly. He often made decisions on what appealed to his senses more than what honored God. He chose to live in an immoral community. He put himself, his family, and his faith in danger.
One day he met a couple of eccentric men who came to down bearing a doom and gloom message. The kind of message nobody wants and to hear and even fewer are willing to receive and heed. The messengers warned of judgment coming. The compromiser was advised to get his family and move out of town immediately.
Lot went to the two young men pledged to marry his daughters to warn them. Their response is pitiful. Genesis 19:14 (ESV)
14 So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, “Up! Get out of this place, for the LORD is about to destroy the city.” But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting.
The word jesting means to play, mock, make sport. They did not take Lot seriously. Why would they. I am sure they saw nothing different than any other person in their wicked town of Sodom in Lot. Lot had turned a blind eye to sin for a long time. That is why when the messengers came to town he urged them not to sleep in the public square. He persuaded them to come to his house for the night. When word got out, every single man in town came to Lot's door to have homosexual relations wth the two messengers. If every male came that would include the two young men who were going to marry his daughter.
Lot tried to reason with the townsmen. None listened. Lot even offered to throw his virgin daughters to this disgusting pack of lustful sodomites to appease their wicked lusts. Lot probably could not see how far he had fallen. Compromise can do that. A little fudging here with crude language and jokes. Cutting a corner there in what you watch and view. A little sip here, a full can there, a glass to not the edge off. Desensitizing self to sin. Getting comfortable around sin. The lines blur. Holiness verses hypocrisy wages war in the soul.
Then one day in earnest such people try to speak for God. The listeners who see and watch compromising convictions do not listen. They laugh it off and make fun of you for being a religious fanatic.
Tragically, Lot's compromising ways cost two young men pledged to be his son in laws their lives when God poured out His wrath.
The hypocrites take a great many souls to hell. It all appears jesting and another soul falls into eternal damnation.
Some might say I am too zealous. Too hard. Too serious minded. Why don't I loosen up and have a good time. How can I loosen up when the souls of millions hang by a mere breath between heaven and hell. How can I write fluff when God keeps stirring me that very troubling times are just ahead. How can I pretend all is well when at any moment another terror attack could take thousands of unsuspecting lives straight to hell because they are not in relationship with Jesus. They have never repented, been saved, and made righteous by His blood sacrifice. I cannot just play it off to tickle the ears and get a larger following. NO! I don't want anybody thinking I am jesting. As George Whitfield, that fiery 17th century evangelist once said, "I do not want to be a velvet mouthed preacher."
I am not jesting, mocking, playing or making sport. I am warning a whole nation. Very disturbing times and grievous events are ahead. I hope people will repent and get blood earnest about their relationship with Christ. I wish thousands would read this. Sadly I know barely a dozen will ever read this without God's miraculous intervention. May God raise sober minded believers and deliver His church from jesters.
Tuesday, December 19, 2017
Too Hard
I looked at my problems and they look way too hard,
My faith tossed out through the window into the yard,
Each mammoth problem looming large clouding my view,
Impossible, impassable, even inconceivable even for You,
Conviction pierced deep within like an arrow in my soul,
Reminding me Sovereign Father You are still in control,
Your power is undeterred by my burdens and many cares,
If I stand on Your word and faithful promises declared,
Your strength is mighty, your wisdom beyond contemplation,
If I just stop to read Your word through methodical meditation,
Nothing is too hard, too large, too impossible for You to do,
Though in a tight spot I trust once again You'll pull me through.
My faith tossed out through the window into the yard,
Each mammoth problem looming large clouding my view,
Impossible, impassable, even inconceivable even for You,
Conviction pierced deep within like an arrow in my soul,
Reminding me Sovereign Father You are still in control,
Your power is undeterred by my burdens and many cares,
If I stand on Your word and faithful promises declared,
Your strength is mighty, your wisdom beyond contemplation,
If I just stop to read Your word through methodical meditation,
Nothing is too hard, too large, too impossible for You to do,
Though in a tight spot I trust once again You'll pull me through.
Hard
Genesis 18:14 (ESV)
14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
If you live long enough you will come across situations that are downright impossible. It probably appears too hard for God to handle too. God spoke these words in response to Sarah's doubt.
Is anything too hard for the LORD? The word hard means difficult. Let me give you just a few reminders.
1. God spoke the universe into existence. Genesis 1-2.
2. God destroyed the world by flood. Genesis 6.
3. God parted the Red Sea. Exodus 13-14.
4. God fed Israel mana and quail in the desert for decades. Numbers 1-14.
5. God parted the flooded Jordan River for Joshua and Israel. Joshua 2-5.
6. God made an iron axe head float. II Kings 6.
7. God healed the sick. Matthew 8. Mark 5. John 9. Acts 3.
8. God raised the dead. I Kings 17. Mark 5. John 11. John 20-21.
If God can do all of that then nothing is too hard for Him. That includes whatever concerns you. He can do whatever hard thing you need Him to do. Only it is not hard for Him. It just looks hard from your perspective. There is nothing hard for Him. He is not taxed. He does not get weary. His mind is never bent trying to solve complicated problems. Nothing is hard for Him. Even your situation. Be encouraged. God will come through at the appointed time.
14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
If you live long enough you will come across situations that are downright impossible. It probably appears too hard for God to handle too. God spoke these words in response to Sarah's doubt.
Is anything too hard for the LORD? The word hard means difficult. Let me give you just a few reminders.
1. God spoke the universe into existence. Genesis 1-2.
2. God destroyed the world by flood. Genesis 6.
3. God parted the Red Sea. Exodus 13-14.
4. God fed Israel mana and quail in the desert for decades. Numbers 1-14.
5. God parted the flooded Jordan River for Joshua and Israel. Joshua 2-5.
6. God made an iron axe head float. II Kings 6.
7. God healed the sick. Matthew 8. Mark 5. John 9. Acts 3.
8. God raised the dead. I Kings 17. Mark 5. John 11. John 20-21.
If God can do all of that then nothing is too hard for Him. That includes whatever concerns you. He can do whatever hard thing you need Him to do. Only it is not hard for Him. It just looks hard from your perspective. There is nothing hard for Him. He is not taxed. He does not get weary. His mind is never bent trying to solve complicated problems. Nothing is hard for Him. Even your situation. Be encouraged. God will come through at the appointed time.
No!
It doesn't take children long to learn the word no. I guess they hear it so often. Parents say no. Siblings say no. Grandparents say no. Uncles and aunts too. Teachers say no. Coaches say no. Principals say no. Police officers say no. Bank lenders and car lenders say no.
No. What does it mean? No means to express a negative response or to be in disagreement. What about when God says no emphatically. You pray about something and God responds negatively. He disagrees with your request.
Abraham was getting old. God promised he would be the father of a great nation. Sarah still had not given birth to any children. Sarah hatched up a plan for Abraham to marry a servant girl named Hagar. Hagar got pregnant and gave birth to a son named Ishmael. This created high drama between Sarah and Hagar. Abraham was caught in the middle.
On top of that God kept telling Abraham he would be the father of a great nation. Abraham wanted that to happen through Ismael. Here is how God responded. Genesis 17:18-19 (ESV)
18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!”
19 God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
No. What does it mean? No means to express a negative response or to be in disagreement. What about when God says no emphatically. You pray about something and God responds negatively. He disagrees with your request.
Abraham was getting old. God promised he would be the father of a great nation. Sarah still had not given birth to any children. Sarah hatched up a plan for Abraham to marry a servant girl named Hagar. Hagar got pregnant and gave birth to a son named Ishmael. This created high drama between Sarah and Hagar. Abraham was caught in the middle.
On top of that God kept telling Abraham he would be the father of a great nation. Abraham wanted that to happen through Ismael. Here is how God responded. Genesis 17:18-19 (ESV)
18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!”
19 God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
Abraham had what he thought was a good idea. It was not a God idea. God said no. It looked impossible for Sarah to ever get pregnant. Abraham was 86 when Ishmael was born and that would put Sarah at about 77. We learn that from [Genesis 17:16]. 13 more years were to pass before Sarah got pregnant at the appointed time. Despite both their old ages God worked and a miracle came through as He said He would.
Maybe you are trying to figure some things out on your own. Maybe you have a plan and God told you no. You can pout. You can ignore the no and rebel. You can make things worse for yourself. Or you can trust that God's no only means He has a better yes planned. I choose the latter.
Prophetic Vision
Genesis 15:1-21 (ESV)
1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”
2 But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”
3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.”
4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.”
5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
7 And he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
8 But he said, “O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?”
9 He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half.
11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
13 Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.
16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates,
19 the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites,
20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,
21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
When I read this today I again noticed something in scripture I had never really noticed before. God prophesied to Abram in a vision. A prophetic vision. A very clear, detailed vision followed by a covenant.
In that vision God showed Abram that the nation that would come from him, even though it did not exist yet except in the mind of God, would be servants in a foreign land for 400 years. God also revealed that He would judge that nation and Abram's descendants would return to the land God identified. We know from Bible history that happened when Israel was in bondage to Egypt for 400 years. God judged Pharaoh and Egypt with 10 horrible plagues and wiped out Pharaoh and his army at the Red Sea.
That blows me away that God revealed the future to Abram centuries before it even happened. That whetted my appetite to sit before God and listen to Him more intently as I read scripture and wait on Him. I still believe He speaks through dreams and visions to this day. I am most interested in what God has on His mind and heart these days. I asked God to speak to me like He did to Abram.
I have something Abram never had. I have my Bible. That is the primary place I look. I don't stop there. I make being still and listening to God a regular part of my prayers. Many times I sit still and receive nothing. Sometimes I receive burdens for people and specific ways to pray for them. Sometimes I am impressed to turn to a scripture like this morning to pray through. On rare occasions God gives me dreams. Vivid dreams. I usually record them. I don't always share them. I pray over them to make sure they are from Him.
It is foolish for me to go out and to make my plans when God knows the future and His future may not be the same as my plans. It seems much more wise to wait on the Lord and let Him point the right direction for life and ministry. However God chooses to speak and reveal His will is okay to me. Like I already said, the primary place I look is in the word of God.
I am thankful for my jaunt through Genesis 15. I hope and pray God shows me things like He did with Abram. The sad part of this story is Abram compromised along the way. He did not wait for the promised heir through Sarah. He took matters into His own hands. We have paid for it ever since. When God spoke Abram believed. He grew impatient along the way.
Abram should have waited. He should have trusted God to do exactly what He revealed. In the end God did exactly what He said. He gave birth to the nation of Israel through Abram and Sarah. Israel served Egypt in bondage for four centuries. God did indeed deliver them and give them the promised land. When God gives prophetic revelation, if it is really from Him, we can trust all He reveals.
1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”
2 But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”
3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.”
4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.”
5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
7 And he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
8 But he said, “O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?”
9 He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half.
11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
13 Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.
16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates,
19 the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites,
20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,
21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
When I read this today I again noticed something in scripture I had never really noticed before. God prophesied to Abram in a vision. A prophetic vision. A very clear, detailed vision followed by a covenant.
In that vision God showed Abram that the nation that would come from him, even though it did not exist yet except in the mind of God, would be servants in a foreign land for 400 years. God also revealed that He would judge that nation and Abram's descendants would return to the land God identified. We know from Bible history that happened when Israel was in bondage to Egypt for 400 years. God judged Pharaoh and Egypt with 10 horrible plagues and wiped out Pharaoh and his army at the Red Sea.
That blows me away that God revealed the future to Abram centuries before it even happened. That whetted my appetite to sit before God and listen to Him more intently as I read scripture and wait on Him. I still believe He speaks through dreams and visions to this day. I am most interested in what God has on His mind and heart these days. I asked God to speak to me like He did to Abram.
I have something Abram never had. I have my Bible. That is the primary place I look. I don't stop there. I make being still and listening to God a regular part of my prayers. Many times I sit still and receive nothing. Sometimes I receive burdens for people and specific ways to pray for them. Sometimes I am impressed to turn to a scripture like this morning to pray through. On rare occasions God gives me dreams. Vivid dreams. I usually record them. I don't always share them. I pray over them to make sure they are from Him.
It is foolish for me to go out and to make my plans when God knows the future and His future may not be the same as my plans. It seems much more wise to wait on the Lord and let Him point the right direction for life and ministry. However God chooses to speak and reveal His will is okay to me. Like I already said, the primary place I look is in the word of God.
I am thankful for my jaunt through Genesis 15. I hope and pray God shows me things like He did with Abram. The sad part of this story is Abram compromised along the way. He did not wait for the promised heir through Sarah. He took matters into His own hands. We have paid for it ever since. When God spoke Abram believed. He grew impatient along the way.
Abram should have waited. He should have trusted God to do exactly what He revealed. In the end God did exactly what He said. He gave birth to the nation of Israel through Abram and Sarah. Israel served Egypt in bondage for four centuries. God did indeed deliver them and give them the promised land. When God gives prophetic revelation, if it is really from Him, we can trust all He reveals.
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