This is not your time

James 4 :13-17 N I V

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.

Since retiring I awake every morning thinking what will I do with my time and my life today?

When I was working I knew that at least eight hours of my day would be spent doing something related to my work and I really didn’t give the rest of it much thought.

I have never been one to plan my time I would get up every morning and plunge right into the day going where it led and doing what I needed or wanted to do with the time that I had.

But after leaving work it seems to be more important to me that I plan my day and what I will do with my time.

When I was a child I used to dream of my future and what I would become when I grew up as I am sure was true with many of you.

And most people today still have plans for their time today and what they will do with their life tomorrow or the next day or a year from now the next several years from now.

You see most humans look at time the seconds the minutes the hours the days the years as being their time life lived belongs to them. It’s my body it’s my time it’s my life I’ll live it the way I want to.

But for me this morning was different I awoke hearing that other voice in me whom I believe is the Holy Spirit saying to me this is not your time this is not your life to live. It is Gods time and you are living His life and your future time is in his hands at His command.

I understand more clearly now what the Apostle Paul meant when he said,

“Philippians 1:21-26 (NIV)

 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.  If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know!  I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far;  but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.  Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith,  so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me.

In the light of the Holy Scriptures it very evident that it is not our time it is not our body it’s not our life we live. But rather its Gods time its Gods body and its Gods life that we are supposed to be living. It is Gods will that we are supposed to be yielding ourselves to fulfill.

 

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV)

¹⁹ Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰ you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

The conclusion then of this is that we are not here to live by a time schedule the way we plan and any ways we please our bodies do not belong to us to treat them as we will. But we are here by Gods divine plan to live according to His will an exact image of Jesus for eternity.

We do not have the power to change our image from the likeness of sin to the likeness of Jesus. We do not have power to control our own destiny.

That is why God sent His Holy Spirit to teach us guide us and mold us into the perfect image and likeness of Jesus. That is why we must hear His voice and follow His guidance because He is life to us and without Him we would have no life.

John 3:16-17

New International Version (NIV)

¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

God loves us He sent Jesus to prove His love for us Jesus is the example that we should follow if we are to have eternal life.

If we cannot believe and follow Jesus into the perfect will of God then there is nothing else God can do or will do to save us.

Thank God for God loving mothers and grandmothers

2 Timothy 1:3  (NIV)

I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. ⁴ Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. ⁵ I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

I remember as a small child my grandmother profit that was full of faith in God and was faithful to read the scriptures and teach them to us. She always had a house full of grandchildren around her.

I remember on a regular basis she would open her Holy Bible and read to us young children from the Holy Scriptures.

I was born during the latter part of the great depression and nine months before the beginning of Americas entering into World War II. I lived the first nine years of my life with my grandparents.

 It was very hard times for them economically because they had very little money and often had several grandchildren sitting at their table to feed house and clothe. My grandmother suffered much in those days she did not have the comforts of life that we are accustomed to in today’s world. But yet she gave herself in sacrificial love without ever a complaint caring for her family as best she could under the hard circumstances that had befallen her life.

My grandfather at times wasn’t much comfort to her he wasn’t an evil man but often he would go to town drink and get drunk and return home a very violent and abusive man. 

My grandmother would have us children to help her watch for his coming down the dirt road that led to the house. And when he was spotted she would call all of us children to her and run us out through the fruit orchard past the barn and down into the corn field where she would drop to her knees tears filling her eyes and begin to pray for the safety of all of us.

Many times we would hide out in that corn field for hours before grandpa would finally pass out from the liquor that he had consumed. And we could return to the house. Like I said grandpa wasn’t a wicked man most of the time he was a good man taking care of his family but liquor could turn him into a very violent and mean person.

When he returned home under the influence of alcohol grandma feared for her life and ours so she would take us away from him and teach us all to pray for him. About three or four years before his death my grandpa repented of his sins and gave his heart to Jesus and was saved. I believe it was due to the goodness of my grandma and her years of prayer and tears shed for him. That kept the grace and mercy of God covering his life until he finally surrendered to the will of God and was saved.

My mother came and took me from the home of my grandparents when I was 10 years old. And for the next few years I lived without grandma’s influence over my life. As I grew into my teenage years I forgot my grandmothers reading the scriptures and teaching me about God. I wandered into a life of sin saying and doing many things that I am ashamed to talk about now. And I only discuss them if the Holy Spirit moves me with the feeling that my testimony concerning these things will help another person to break free from sin and be saved.

To make a long story short I will stop at this point because for me to tell of all of my experiences with grandpa and grandma would cover many pages and perhaps even a book or two.

I credit the life of my godly grandmother’s faith and prayers and tears for bringing me to a life of faith in God and His word. In my early twenties I turned from sin to live by the Holy Bible in the power of the Holy Spirit my life in the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am now 72 years of age and have not yet regretted one day of my life since making that decision.

Thank God for God loving mothers and grandmothers of faith who faithfully read and teach the Holy Scriptures to their children and grandchildren and by their tears and prayers they call down the mercy and grace of God in bringing them to the salvation of God in The Lord Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:21-26 (NIV)

 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.  If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know!  I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far;  but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.  Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith,  so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me.

Where is our help? Where is our hope?

In today’s world we read hear and see bad news proclaimed everywhere.

Terrible things happening creating in our country and our world a constant state of fear.

There are disasters and calamities touching lives all around us. There is bad news of Sickness and disease invading the bodies of all ages.

This is the news published daily over radio Television internet and newspaper pages.

The evil being poured out in our nation and our world we have no power to control.

Where is our help? Where is our hope? Is there no good news to sooth a poor troubled soul?

Yes there is help there is hope there is good news found written on the pages of Gods Holy Word.

The Holy Bible contains the greatest good news ever proclaimed its promises to us the best the world has ever heard.

We don’t have to live in sin our hearts don't have to be troubled we don’t have to live in fear.

Because our God is love Jesus loves us and this is the best news we will ever hear.

Bad news may break at any moment in time troubles may quickly appear.

But let us remember our world is Gods world and He is in control Jesus promised us He would never leave us and would always be near.

Hebrews 13:5

King James Version (KJV)

 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. (Psalms 34:19 KJV)

These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

 (John 16:33 KJV)

One world order

It is evident that we live in a much divided country and an even more divided world.

I observe in my daily contact with people and in my conversations with many of them.

That most want unity and peace I am convinced that most Americans on every side want to see a United States of America again. Most people of the world would love to see a united world.

This is why we have heard so much talk about a one world order in the last few years by world leaders including some of our U.S.  Presidents and others who have mentioned world order in their speeches.

Unity is indeed a good idea but it can never happen by the leadership of men world governments can never bring true unity and peace among its citizens.

Why? Because most of the people want these things to happen by leaving the God of love out of their lives they want to have peace by turning away from the prince of peace the Lord Jesus Christ.

There cannot be unity and peace in a world dominated with evil and sin true and lasting unity and peace only comes with a relationship with the Almighty Father of love and His only begotten Son our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.

The idea of world order has been in the hearts of men since Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden because of their disobedience to the will of God and their sin against one another.

They chose by their act of sin to leave the garden paradise of unity and the peace prepared for them by God and surrender their lives to live in a harsh cruel world dominated by Satan and the fallen angels.

The Bible tells us that Satan is the god of this world he is a liar a thief a murderer a god without love or compassion a god of confusion and division. Satan’s purpose is not to bring unity and peace but rather hate division and destruction. He is the destroyer god.

World order was tried at the tower of Babel when they all spoke the same language their minds and hearts thought to devise all manner of evil their one desire was to build a tower into the sky that reached heaven where God is.

Needless to say their attempts failed to get them into heaven they were trying to reach the most holy place in the universe without the sanction and help of God they wanted no part of God but they wanted to climb into His paradise contrary to His will.

When God saw the evil they as a united people were seeking to do He struck them with different languages so they could no longer communicate their evil thoughts with one another and scattered them throughout the world setting their boundaries and dividing them into individual nations.

Other men and dictator governments throughout the generations have sought to bring one world order and failed in their own destruction.

You see there will never be world order until the world is under Gods order if we are to have world order it must be one world under God. If we are ever to have world peace we will have to have the peace of Gods Son dwelling in and emanating from our own hearts.

If America will have unity and peace it will have to return to one nation under God our citizens will have to be ruled by the peace of God that passes all understanding.

In order to have world order and lasting peace around the world we will have to surrender to government of God and be led by the Lord Jesus Christ the prince of peace.

There is only one way to become one people in America or in the world and that is to be born again of the Holy Spirit of Almighty God into the kingdom of God governed by the Son of God.

Isaiah 9:6 (NIV)

For to us a child is born,to us a son is given,and the government will be on his shoulders.And he will be calledWonderful Counselor, Mighty God,Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Genesis 11  (NIV)

11 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. ² As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there.

³ They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. ⁴ Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

⁵ But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. ⁶ The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. ⁷ Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”

⁸ So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. ⁹ That is why it was called Babel because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth.

Galatians 3:26-28
Vs 26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. Vs 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Vs 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 4:3-6
Vs 3 Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Vs 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; Vs 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; Vs 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

 John 17:20-26
Vs 20 I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through theirword; vs 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. Vs 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: Vs 23 I in them, and You in Me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. Vs 24 Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. Vs 25 O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. Vs 26 And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.

Men have always sought to create world order but have always failed because they want to do it without God. They want world peace without Jesus.

I will run to win

1 Corinthians 9:24

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Today I am one step closer to the prize. I will run with honor dignity and all the strength in my body, mind and soul.  I will run to please God and set an example for those who follow me. I will run to win the most important race in life because there is no joy for those who lose.

C.E. Lee 4162013

Because you have ignored the law of your God

Hosea 4:6 (NIV)

my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. "Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children.

Look what is happening to our country look what is happening to our family’s look what is happening to our youth since America decided to forget God.

Our nation has chosen to forsake the faith of our forefathers and reject God who established and rose up this great nation.

Most of our people have chosen to serve and worship other gods and turn their backs against the God of all creation.

We are reaping the fruits of what we have sown and it is not pretty what we see happening in our families every little town and large city across our nation.

Can we ask the question is what we are receiving in return for throwing God out of our lives and country worth the price we are paying?

Wasn’t it much better in America when most of its citizens believed in God read studied and lived by the Holy Bible preached the whole word of God in our churches taught it in our schools universities and our homes?

Wasn’t it much better in America when our politicians elected by the people and sent to Washington believed in God reverenced His word recorded in the Holy Bible and encouraged our citizens to do the same?

If we would research our American history and study its past we would have to conclude that the answer to these two questions is an overwhelming  yes and yes!

It’s not yet too late for our nation to return to the Heavenly Father and change the picture of the direction we are heading and the destruction that lies ahead at the end for us.

The prodigal son came to himself remembered how good it was in his Father’s house left the pig pen and returned to his Father. In his repentance and return to his Father he received his Fathers blessings back upon his life and changed his chosen direction for good instead of evil.

Luke 15:17-20 (NIV)

¹⁷ “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! ¹⁸ I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinnedagainst heaven and against you. ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ ²⁰ So he got up and went to his father.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)

¹⁴ if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Deuteronomy 30:19 (NIV)

¹⁹ This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live

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God wants our devotion in personal relationship

A few years ago I pastored Central Baptist Church in the city of Irving, Texas.  Our church was noted for its compassion and giving. We helped those who were down and out to pay rent, utilities, gas and buy food on a temporary basis allowing them to get back on their feet.

We were situated near a major highway and often times travelers would exit the highway and stop at the church seeking financial aid because someone had directed them to us.

Some of the largest churches in the city even sent people to us instead of offering them help from their own churches.

I noticed that most of those seeking help from us did not want to worship with us or be involved in any way with our church. They just wanted financial help from us and to continue on their way.

Once in a while some would come back during a worship service or revival meeting as soon as I saw their faces I knew they were present to get something from us they were not there to seek a closeness with God.

Many times at my home I would receive a telephone call from some who never showed for a service or a prayer meeting I knew when I heard the voice on the other end of the phone that I was going to be asked for some kind of help because the only time that I ever heard from them was when they wanted something from me or the church.

This is the attitude with a lot of people when they are put into a situation of needing help and can’t find it anywhere else they will call upon God.

They are not seeking Him because they want a relationship with Him they do not desire to give their lives in worship and service to Him they just want something from Him.

Just as we  members of the Lords church desired those whom we helped to join us in worship of the Lord God rather than showing up for the financial help and after receiving it disappear until the next time they were in trouble.

God wants our devotion in personal relationship we should give our lives in worship and praise to the Heavenly Father for who He is not just for what He can give us or do for us.

Jesus gave Himself into the hands of cruel and wicked men choosing to die on the cross in our place for our sins so that we through His giving of Himself could be saved from the consequences of our sins which are death. And live in relationship with God through Him. Jesus gave Himself to be crucified in the most horrendous way a man could die in order that the barrier of sin that separated us from God could be bridged by His own tortured body and spilled blood bringing us into a relationship of sons and daughters of God.

Romans 6:23

King James Version (KJV)

²³ For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

You see it’s not about asking God for his help when we have nowhere else to go but rather it’s about seeking a loving close relationship with the Heavenly Father who loves us and has compassion towards us when we are in trouble and in need.

 It is in his power to give us what we need when we need it. The loving Father gives us all good things through His only begotten Son and our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ. Almighty God that withholds nothing good from His children.

 Matthew 6:33

King James Version (KJV)

³³ But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Psalm 121

King James Version (KJV)

121 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.

² My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.

James 1:17

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁷ Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

He died in our place to pay the penalty for our sin.
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit.”     (1 Peter 3:18)

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