Bad Memory is Godliness
October 29, 2009 by admin
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
“I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgression for My own sake, and I will not remember your sins,” Isaiah 43:25.
There are two things in the passage that strike me. We are made in the image of God, Who says, “I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake.” When those to whom you minister, those who minister to you, those you minister with, and those to whom you will never minister do something to hurt you, the thought of the transgression can haunt you for years. It only takes a name being brought up, an event of the past, or a painful experience to renew the transgression. If the hurtful person completely disappears from the scene, never to be heard of again, he can still take up residency in your head and heart. As I often note, the purpose of forgiveness in the Bible is restoration. However, there are those who do not want restoration; hence, they would see no need for forgiveness. There are relationships I have tried to restore in the past by asking for forgiveness, only to be told of more offenses and to stay away. For my own good, I need to forget. Oh, to able to forget, to wipe out a transgression, to remember the sins no longer, just for our own sakes. When I got married, Betty quickly realized what was ahead of her, for each day I would ask, “Have you seen my keys? Have you seen my wallet?” Everything would shut down while we looked. Then a few years ago I got glasses, and we have added them to the list of things that are lost daily, along with a cell phone and the key to the mailbox. You get the picture. “Betty, have you seen my keys, wallet, glasses, phone, and key to the mailbox?” One day, justifiably, she said, “Can’t you remember anything?” I jokingly said, “Forgetfulness is a sign of godliness. Only God could wipe out transgressions and remember no more, and we are in His image. I am glad that in His image, I can forget. I just do not want to remember everything from my past, and if not being able to remember where my keys are is part of not remembering, then it is a fair tradeoff.” You can see why I can be difficult to live with! However, to forget is a great blessing. Research (if it can ever be trusted) says that the average person only loses about 10% of the ability to remember. The difference is that past age 60 it takes more physical effort to correct the forgetfulness. In the younger years, we forgot the mail and thought nothing of running back to get it. In the older years the extra effort is a frustration. My grandfather used to complain about his memory loss, and I would remind him that I had worked with him most of my life and never remembered his having a razor-sharp memory, only now it was annoying him. Start this day knowing that the Lord wipes out your transgressions for His own good. He does not want to think about your failures all day long, so why should you? Second, He does not remember your sin; it is the enemy coming from your past. Guilt is the undertaker’s best friend.
Satan Never Shuts Up!
October 29, 2009 by admin
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
“Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.” (Zechariah 3:1)
I remember as a university student taking a cross-country trip with a fellow I barely knew; he was catching a ride with me to a city some distance away. I did not know the fellow had no capacity to shut up, but rather, there appeared to be a random firing in the brain that connected to the tongue. What made it even more frustrating is that he presumed to know everything about nothing in particular. Like the doll that has a string in its chest for a child to pull and hear talking, he prattled, but by pulling his own string. When he did stay on a topic, the longer he talked, the more it sounded like he might know what he was talking about, but I was probably just getting brainwashed. I began to look for a blowhole in the top of his head that enabled him to keep talking without seemingly ever taking a breath. The monologue just went on and on and on. I have only had that experience with one other being, the devil. He never shuts up, never. If he followed Jesus into the wilderness in order to get on a topic and not let up, how much will he do to us? A brother told me one day of the appearance of a demon who spoke to him, and he asked what I thought about that. All I said was: “Do not talk back, because the longer they talk, the more sense they make.” One day a friend sent a letter that really frustrated me. He was judging everything I was doing. I put it aside and refused to answer immediately. For the next two weeks all my thoughts were harsh, critical, driving and condemning toward the brother. Oh, it made me mad. Finally, I got the letter back out and prepared to respond (or, actually, react). I reread his letter only to find that it said nothing of what I had thought it said! It was completely supportive and positive! Satan had twisted the whole meaning of the letter. Satan gets on to our flaws, the things that make us safe for God to work through us, the things that brought us to Christ, and the things of the flesh that do not change apart from abiding; and he harps, and harps, and harps until we are left wondering why God does not just kill us, or we ask God to take our life. He also talks through others; we all have had a share of that. How he loves to play off of our self-life through the offense of another, a failure, a disapproving glance from someone, a criticism, and more. He knows everything about nothing; he is a liar that never shuts up! According to him we are all hypocrites, hopeless, in terrible relationships, and being constantly abused; we are the unhappiest people in the world, surrounded by a world that is conquering us at the whim of wicked men, and more. He never shuts up. He is a liar, the father of lies, and just as a judge grants visitation rights to his children, if we receive a lie, Satan will have the legal right to visit it in us. Once he has gained access to us in that way, he torments us. We must for the sake of our own sanity bring every thought captive to Christ. Christ knew us at our worst and yet chose us. We have been stupid, and yet look at how, because of Jesus, we continue to be blessed. God is nothing like what Satan is attempting to tell us. God has not judged us, wiped us, punished us, or killed people that we love just to see us weep! God is love, and Satan is the liar that never shuts up; he is a noisy being, and those that follow him on the earth are noisy. When all the noise gets to be too much, first of all, do not give the enemy your attention by starting to do battle. Jesus showed us how to handle him by saying, “Lord rebuke you!” That is enough; any more and things will get worse. Second, go to 1 Corinthians 13 and read what Love/God is and let His peace and Truth flood over you. “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you” (Romans 16:20).
Loss, Loss, and more Loss
October 29, 2009 by admin
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”—Matthew 7:13, 14
Once when preparing to retire for the evening at an old man’s house, I asked a parting question, “What do you think is the purpose of life?” He never hesitated, just kept walking and mumbled, “Death, death, and more death. Loss, loss, and more loss.” With that, the door to his bedroom closed. I laid in bed for several hours just meditating on what he said. Then I heard Jesus speak through the Scriptures, “Enter through the narrow gate, the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction.” I was then reminded of being in Viet Nam crawling through the tunnels that sprawled underneath the ground. The guide said that there was only one way in, and we had to leave behind all valuables, backpacks, cameras, and hats, because the way was just too small. Oh, how I wished I had not started that journey. At first I entered standing, and then the tunnel narrowed until it was pitch-black darkness. I was scooting along on my stomach, my shoulders and head were hitting the wall above me, and there was barely any air to breathe. Nor was there any turning back. After several minutes, we dropped into a rather large room (10x10x6), a storage area for everything needed to survive: rations, water, medical supplies, and safety. What a trip to get there, though. Then I discovered that this was the first of many such tunnels, with each one opening into a larger room that contained something the soldiers during the war would have needed. Some rooms had been very dangerous, because bombs had been cut into pieces and drug through the tunnels in order for the explosives to be removed, the steel smelted, and hand grenades made.
We have a few years on this planet, where our goal is not gain but loss. Today there are many “Christian Clubs” that promote the idea that we are to accumulate as much as possible, until in the end, it would take a wide path and train of elephants to carry all that was sought after and found. It would never be possible to carry pride, wealth, success, intelligence, superiority, victories over enemies, or titles on the narrow path; that path is not made to accommodate such things. One day, we will all reach the narrow path, and some will get on their hands and knees (a place they have often been) and pass through easily with the knowledge and revelation of Christ. Others will stand their dumbfounded, wondering what they are to do with their great line of amassed possessions. Again, the wrong thing can be said so many times that the right thing sounds wrong. Remember the Jews when they were so mad at Jesus for the pigs that ran over the cliff? My question would have been, “Why are you upset at losing the very thing you were never supposed to have had?” Many believers get depressed because they lose the very thing they should not have had. Some are so undone that the enemy whispers, “Suicide”; that shows a lot of pride. It is no fun to lose, and lose, and lose, but it is the path you have chosen, and though He is the only comfort on the narrow path, is He not more than sufficient? It is no fun to lose family, friends, kids, security, or a marriage. Keep on that narrow path, for it will open into a place that has all you need.
Prophets
October 29, 2009 by admin
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10).
I have constantly run into prophets in the course of traveling these many years. In these times, prophets are increasing, and I wanted to pass on to you some observations.
1. The real deal. I love those guys; they are purely Christ-centered and point to Jesus in a Spirit-empowered way. They would not let someone spend one second talking about them, for they are pointing to another, Jesus. Many times I cannot remember the names of these brothers who have impacted my life in so many ways, because they were consumed with Christ. Just as with Jesus, there is nothing psychopathic about them! They are not into dreams or visions, their teaching is in the realm of real life, and they are very natural. Also like Jesus, they are defined by their refusals. They refuse to proclaim themselves, to crush anyone, or to further discourage the already downhearted. There are relatively very few of these, but they have been a great source of encouragement to me.
2. False Prophets. I have met only a couple. They were shocking in that they were actually “speaking on behalf of God” and leading people away from Jesus into blatant sin. They can be found in many mainline and orthodox type churches. They are authoritarians who present to believers spiritual and intellectual contentions that right is wrong and wrong is right. These fellows will consistently be trouble.
3. Those that enjoy the title of Prophet. Africa and India are full of these brothers wanting a title, like an American might want to flash around a Ph.D. They generally do some ministry but want to be set apart as having a higher calling and a perceived authority. Many times I do not think they have any idea of what a prophet is; it just sounds better than being a servant. I do not mind these fellows. Generally, after they introduce themselves they do get on with the work of sharing Christ.
4. The neurotic. They are quite common in the West and the “prophets” with which I have had the misfortune of having the most dealing. They are people that have had heaps of childhood rejection, everything from a vicious father to no father. Generally their temperament is Thinker, and at some point they committed suicide of the personality. They do not like who they are in real life, they have had very few successes, and they are not the kind of persons others would naturally gravitate toward. In short, no one would put them in charge of a company. These rejection cases have found a form of Christian religion enabling them to impose, for the first time in their lives, some power and influence over weak believers. They have a deep self-hatred and attempt to manipulate through their special “prophetic” gifting to attract followers. They need followers to validate their existence, and to keep followers on the hook, they dispense “secrets” slowly; they create a dependency on themselves and away from dependence on Christ. They claim to be hearing God personally for their followers or having visions of heaven that really are of no help to the struggling believer other than to be a short diversion from the realities of life. If questioned or starting to feel deserted, there will be veiled or overt threats concerning God’s judgment and what will happen to the followers if they abandon the “teaching.” Usually there is an obsession with repentance and revelation; often they say they have been given a date for the Lord’s return. The book of Revelation is open to nearly any interpretation, and therefore these “prophets” like to camp there. Remember, a neurotic person builds castles in the sky and a psychotic person moves in. The whole thing can easily become psychotic when the new identity is put in the hub of the wheel and every spoke made to feed it. If people call these deluded people prophets, that proves they are; if people do not agree that they are prophets, then that, too, proves they are. I do not discuss with psychotics their “prophetic call”; I direct them, and therefore I refuse to ask them obvious questions like, “Why is God telling you things about me and He is not telling me Himself?” or “How does the revelation move out of heaven into my home?” These they would immediately use in some distorted way to prove their prophetic gift. It does not help to discuss in any way the prophetic gifting, for in so doing, the beast is being fed. It is best to stick to Jesus and the real need a rejected person has: the revelation of Christ. The psychotic prophet only sees two options: remain a prophet or move back to being a rejected nobody. Our goal is for him to embrace a third option: Become a child of God and glory in the Christ that dwells within. I have seen the Lord break through and get people out of varieties of psychoses.
In the end, let Christ be the Prophet. He will speak truth, lead, guide, intercede, and be the mediator. I believe Jesus will send real prophets our way, and when He does, we will walk away with our heart singing and our eyes on all that Jesus is doing for us.
How is ALMI supported?
October 9, 2009 by admin
Filed under About ALMI
I was visiting an old saint when he was asked a question by a visitor, “What are your financial needs?” The old man paused, stared, and responded, “Why? Did God tell you to give me something? If God told you to give me something, and I were a millionaire, you should give it. If God didn’t tell you to give me something, and I am naked and starving, you shouldn’t give me anything. The most important thing is that you listen to God and do what He tells you.” I learned a lot from that man that day, and that is the policy we follow at Abiding Life Ministries International. It’s been our conviction over the years that God gives us supporters as opposed to our recruiting them, and He gives us, in turn, to the supporters. It has been a miracle how He has multiplied the ministry over the years through those on our support team’s hearing Him and giving a gift at the perfect time. I also follow John Wesley’s advice that the people deserve to know what the need is and at the same time be left alone to hear God. To that end, once each year we send out a short letter that tells of the needs of the coming year with a trip report detailing the activities in another country. This is the only reference to funds that is made in the course of a year. If you would like to receive that package, please e-mail your name and physical address.
Abiding Life Ministries International operates as a 501 (c) (3) organization. All donations are tax-deductible and will be receipted in such a way as to indicate that “no benefits were received by the donor in exchange for the gifts referenced above other than intangible religious benefits
Both Hands Occupied
October 9, 2009 by Alex Mathew
Filed under Articles by Alex Matthew
BOTH HANDS OCCUPIED
Life should be a joy for all. That is one of the most intricate ‘shoulds’ of life! For life to be joyful there has to be freedom from wants and the means to live with meaning to ‘BE’. If life has to have some meaning it has to be livable with enjoyable content. Content is the sum total of what is received and what is made of the available inputs. Intelligently put to use, these factors are expected to be sufficient to make life worth a try.
But often life turns out to be hardened and complicated deprived of any joy. No one wants to have a hard life. No one wants to be dealing with conflict all the time. More often than not we are engaged in sorting out hardships and conflicts, large and small.
All of us seek comfort and try to gain it at any cost. In our efforts to gather comfort we make life harder by our chosen lifestyles. And then life often turns out to be burdened, weighing us down with heaviness of heart. But it does not have to be so if we learn the art of handling our burdens intelligently and shedding the weights that weigh us down.
We all go through life with two different baggages holding one in each hand. In one hand we hold the baggage of our ‘Past’ and in the other our ‘Unique Self.’ The size of the baggage that holds our past would depend on all that we have passed through, our interpretations of it and our reactions. The more we go through it, revise it, rejoice in it or reject, repent or react, the baggage keep increasing in bulk.
The unique self is the sum total of our identity formed from our inheritance, attitudes and reactions. In other words, it would depend very much on what we are born with and how we allow our experiences to influence our reactions to life. Our pattern of behavior that contributes to the formation of our unique self is controlled by many and variable factors.
We carry our past ‘History’ and our present ‘Unique Self’, unwittingly allowing the past to exert a large influence on the progress or regression we make in life.
We carry our past ‘History’ and our present ‘Unique Self’, unwittingly allowing the past to exert a large influence on the progress or regression we make in life. Imagine walking with two big baggages, one in each hand, and trying to enter any normal sized door. It is not easy. The problem is even more after gaining entry into any particular space we are not inclined or free to put down our baggage. We tenaciously hold on to our past and our personal dispositions which make us unique. Voluntarily giving up these things amount to losing control and that is a terrible threat. Giving up control is not easy. But accepting the fact that the Lord God is in control is the releasing truth that give us freedom to BE.
Past is deadweight around our necks till we allow the Lord to receive it from us.
Wherever we go, whatever we do, these baggage are our constant companions coming in our way and blocking our progress. Past is deadweight around our necks till we allow the Lord to receive it from us. The Lord Jesus specifically says “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” Mat.11: 28.
Our present dispositions and entrenched attitudes of our unique self caution us and allow us to take actions in selected and confined manners allowable within our limited perceptions. Our progress is impeded if the baggages are of unmanageable size and shape.
The sum total of what is said is that we limit ourselves in the strangle hold of our past and unique self. The limiting may mean lack of positive progress or movement in a wrong tangent leading to negativity.
The past of every person is distinctly different from others. We would have to deal with an infinite variety of experiences to make some meaningful generalization out of them. Greater and longer persevering study is called for making sense out of the infinite variety of individual experiences. It will be good for you to learn a new spelling for past. What is PAST is DEAD. No one should go around cuddling the past and spending precious time analyzing the past. Learn from the past and then burry it for good, for our Lord God has already cancelled our past sins and wrong doings. Why carry it and create impediment to our progress in life?
Your ‘Unique Self’ too can become a huge baggage if you do not see it as what it is and keep it in manageable size and shape. Every person is unique and generalizations are not easily possible here too. That would largely limit our understanding of the baggage problem. But we have to make a beginning somewhere if we are to get freedom from the limiting heaviness of these baggages that limit our progression in life.
I chose to talk about this subject because an understanding of the ‘unique self’ will help us to effectively deal with some typical problems faced by our children in school. Learn the art of burying the past and administering your ‘Unique Self’.
Everyone is unique, because everyone is created unique. A precise classification is impractical. For the sake of an easier understanding we will consider three major categories as THINKER, FEELER and DOER. The basic characteristics of the three groups are listed separately below.
Try to identify in which group you may fit in, based on these characteristics. Remember none is a pure ‘type’. You do not have to feel lost in case you seem to feel not distinctly belonging in any particular type. All of us are variable and interesting combinations with infinite possibilities.
THE THINKER
• High mental energy.
• The thinker is honest and truthful.
• The thinker is analytical and can get lost in details.
• Loves order and over concerned about security.
• Loves quiet time and be alone for some time. (Danger of exceeding limits at times.)
• Tends to cultivate only one to three close friends.
• Tends to be melancholic and at risk of feeling inferior.
• Refuse to recognize own talents and ability, even when proven.
• Knows all that is bad about oneself.
• That quality makes the thinker to be a ‘blame-collector’.
• Perfectionist tendencies causing them to demand perfection from others too.
• Mood is determined by what is going on in the thoughts.
• Must want to think about something at all times, prefers reading before going to bed.
• Preoccupation with thinking makes the person prone to brooding and anxiety attacks.
• Not quick with advice or disapproval.
• But hoards all hurts and prefers to withdraw.
• Reluctant to share the sad thoughts occupying the mind and prefers to suffer alone.
• Extreme fear of the unknown.
• Reluctant to take risks and therefore tends to be a late bloomer.
• Likes to follow an inner list to do and a higher standard.
• Internalizes anger and does not indulge in explosive outbursts.
THE FEELER
• Relationships are more important than anything.
• Highly subjective and the ‘I’ is a major preoccupation.
• On the look out for ‘rejecting’ attitudes in others.
• Easily gets hurt and pouts when hurt.
• Ready to follow the morals of the crowd, easily gets into trouble.
• Is liable to be used by others.
• Life is an on going party whenever possible.
• Makes others feel important and cared.
• Very keen on pleasing people.
• Will go to the extend of allowing others to fail oneself.
• Good at manipulating others to have own way.
• Good empathizers and sensitive to the needs of others.
• Hardly any control over explosive bouts.
• Easily motivated.
• Very enthusiastic but unlikely to persevere.
• Desires popularity and tends to invite attention.
• Will readily reject anyone who indicates distance.
• Lavish in expressions.
• Prefer to talk ad infinitum and the subject is often ‘I’.
• Self-indulgent and easily gathers self-pity.
• Powerful ‘blame-giver’ whenever irritated.
THE DOER
• The doer is strong-willed and pushy.
• Gets things done through others.
• Never rests without accomplishing what is set forth.
• Easily projects confidence and wants to be ‘in-command’.
• Prefers independence.
• Does not suffer fools and lazy bums.
• Adept at twisting realities to suit the task at hand.
• In all stories ‘I’ am the hero.
• Obstacles are usually invisible.
• Many iron in the fire and makes anyone near to tend his fire.
• Inconsistent yet hates to be bothered by facts.
• Welcomes and enjoys challenges.
• Relatively out of touch with the hurts of others.
• Quick to explode and it is OK if others react exploding.
• Aggressive and energetic.
• Would tend to be creative but speed is the watchword.
• Others are ‘tools’ to accomplish objectives.
• Accepts aggression.
• Enjoys a good fight and tends to forget.
• Does not waste time in brooding.
• No qualms about blaming others.
• Powerful ‘task-giver’.
It does not matter in which group you may find your identity. Make it a point to choose what you think desirable and honorable according to you and in agreement with the Scripture, and then live it fully to your potential. “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable -if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things…put it into practice” Phil. 4: 8, 9.
Keep both your hands free and clean to act effectively to get ahead in life.
Alex Mathew (Adapted from Mike Wells’ teachings)
Living to Man!
October 8, 2009 by Mike Wells
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
Proverbs 29:25-26, The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted. Many seek the ruler’s favor, But justice for man comes from the LORD.
Living to and for men is one of the worst kinds of bondage, for anyone living to man cannot live to God, the Giver of freedom. We have a saying, “I love you, but I do not live to you. I live to God.” I will again preach of my own weakness: I determined some time ago that I would no longer meet with politicians. Why? I always compromise! I have met wicked men in places of authority and found myself compromising. The men should have been rebuked. If Jesus did not go to the “leaders” in His day, then what business do I have going? There is just something about being in the presence of image that shakes me. It is my weakness; I am sure some can withstand it, but I cannot. I end up living for man.
There are several ways to live for man: giving glory, taking glory, giving judgment, receiving judgment, showing partiality because of worldly resources, groveling at the image or position of “greatness,” discussing man’s “secret” failings, refusing to ask a question, avoiding a confrontation, or reacting to criticism. I have done it all, and I tell you it is a miserable way to live. What makes it so miserable is the awareness that there is another way to live, free from man-pleasing; however, this freedom comes through faith. We must believe completely and unreservedly that we have a God who provides for us in every way, financially, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We must believe that He opens doors, provides the way, and gives us wisdom. We must believe that He gives us everything needed, and that in Him we will find everything that we have looked for elsewhere in vain.
For it is only in seeing that God meets all our needs that we are free from the root of living for men, that root being the belief that man can provide something that we need. If assurance, significance, value, and worth come from God, what does man have to offer? If man has nothing to provide that we need–no praise, position, nor possession–then we are free not to live to man. Again, living for the approval of man has at its root the belief that man can give us something that God will not. Therefore, we compromise our own eternal goal to get something perishable, even though what man offers always seems to come at a high price. When we live to men, we must ask ourselves what their favor will give us: our name on a piece of paper, a conversational piece of name-dropping that will elevate us when in a social setting, a job interview, or their approval over our work? Once we move in faith toward the Provider of all, we will be free, free indeed. It is great to trust God and not trust man, it is beautiful to acknowledge that God provides, and it is wonderful to let the heart become a graveyard for criticism because of the understanding that people’s praise would not fill the void that only Christ can fill. Now, some will say, “Then we can be hermits; we do not need men!” Not at all! We need them to love.
Making a Career Move
October 8, 2009 by Mike Wells
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
Hebrews 11:8, “By faith, Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.”
What are we to expect when we make a career change or when we move from one place to another? What is the way of things when we accept a different call? There are things that we must know. First, before we can determine to leave a place, we must understand that most of us will slowly become unsettled with the place in which we presently work or reside. God often makes us dissatisfied with a place before He shows us the way, for if He showed the way before we were dissatisfied, why would we not hesitate to take it? Dissatisfaction with surroundings will make the move of faith much easier. Second, like homing pigeons released, we must circle, feeling lost, until something clicks in our innermost being and we know the direction in which we are to go. Third, we are being grafted into a new place on the vine, and the dung must be packed around the insertion to keep us in place and free from disease and bugs. Fourth, there must be reversals before a fulfillment of that to which we believe we have been called. Fifth, we are like the caterpillar in that by our own choosing we have built ourselves a tomb wherein we cannot move and are in the dark. Yet, in this dark place faith is being wrought, and we will emerge from the cocoon looking much different than when we entered into it. In all of this, we must see that the goal of shifting locations had faith as its goal. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not yet seen (Heb. 12:1). Just as ships leaving the harbor must keep fixed on two points ahead to exit into the open sea, so we must stay fixed on this goal of faith in Jesus. When we have little needs, we will have the perception of a little God; big needs develop a little better sense of how big a God we serve. Shifting location will force us to recognize a big God. Beautiful.
The Source of a Decision: Fear or the Loss of Peace
October 8, 2009 by Mike Wells
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
Daniel 4:1-3, “Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, nations, and men of every language that live in all the earth: ‘May your peace abound! It has seemed good to me to declare the signs and wonders which the Most High God has done for me. How great are His signs and how mighty are His wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and His dominion is from generation to generation.’”
There is something called buyer’s remorse after purchasing something, like an automobile, and then wondering the next day if the right thing were done. If the doubt lingers long enough, it will turn into fear. Sometimes this is a valid experience. Many find that they have been pressured into making a purchase they later regret; they actually did make a bad decision. However, the problem is that an emotion like buyer’s remorse can have at its source fear or a lack of peace, and both will feel the same way. When I purchased my house (the best investment I ever made), I was filled with fear. “How will I make the payments? What if I lose the house?” I had the peace of God when I bought the house, but the enemy and my humanity (wanting to be a success at playing God) attempted to prompt me to surrender my peace to the situation. Fear began directing me rather than the peace of God. I can have fear and the peace of God at the same time; I just need to recognize the difference. I must ask myself, “Was God leading you? Did you not lift the situation up to Him? Is it not impossible to lead sheep that are not moving? Isn’t it His job to take me to the right place?” Then I can see that my decision was made in peace, and I cannot let fear drive me, even if the situation does not work out as I thought that it should. For example, what if I lose my job and cannot make the house payments? That does not mean that I was not listening on the day that He led me to buy it. Some will say that this is a cop-out. Well, amen. We Christians are the only ones allowed a cop-out, because our God causes all things to work together for the good.
Christians have made mistakes and at times been bad witnesses of the Truth, but they are the only positive in a negative world. Again, the world takes someone that is a .5% success, puts him under a magnifying glass, and tries to make it look as if he were a 100% success without Christ. I have been accused of tearing down the accomplishments of non-Christians. Well, amen. I do not do it by way of judgment, but to prove the point that these people were not the successes without Christ that we were led to believe they were. Also, those who accuse me of this do the very same thing with anyone and everything Christian. I do not buy it. Without Christ’s life in man, we would be in the dark ages. It is also interesting that Christians are the only ones whose belief system allows for them to take criticism. Try to criticize a Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, or a communist, and see how far it goes. It will not be heard or accepted. Since Christians are the ones who listen, they get the majority of complaints directed toward them. Watch a group like Amnesty International make more noise about a single instance of discrimination within a Christian country than it does a wholesale slaughter in a non-Christian country. Why? The Christian has a higher standard, that being the behavior of Christ. The Christian is sensitive toward others because he is cognizant of having received mercy, and he will show it in return. The problem is that the world is constantly making an appeal to the wrong people. Christ and His family simply are not messing up the world.
The Fullness of Time
October 8, 2009 by Mike Wells
Filed under Articles by Mike Wells
Galatians 4:4, “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law.”
Interesting that Jesus came at the perfect time in history. This perfect time included His people’s being surrounded and suffocated by an occupying force. It was the perfect time because men would be less tempted to look around than up! He basically said little about the government, such as, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s.” Why? In Pakistan I was scheduled to speak to a group of Muslims. I was asked before the sermon, “What will you be saying against Islam?” I responded, “I don’t teach Islam.” Again a question came, “No, but what will you be saying against Islam.” I said, “I don’t preach Islam. Brothers, to teach against Islam is the same as teaching for it. Islam would still occupy my mind and the minds of the listeners. I don’t have time. I will be teaching only Jesus.” I spoke for two hours on the way to live and then Who was the Way. Over 40 Muslims believed in Jesus. I don’t believe I would have seen those results had my sermon been against Islam. Jesus just didn’t have time for politics, which are of the world and will die when the world is destroyed. Why not talk about something that is permanent? Because of the expanded awareness of Christ in me, I am becoming more and more disinterested in the world of politics. To focus on it stirs my pride, angers me, makes me accuse men, fills me with fear, and has me debating facts—or, often, misinformation–and issues that in reality I don’t know about. I have watched the evening news reporting on a place to which I have been going for enough years to know there is very little truth in what is being said. The Koreans once said to me, “Do you know when the man representing the media and the news is lying?” I said, “No, tell me!” Their response was, “When his lips are moving.” This is not the age of information but the age of misinformation, and perhaps there has never been a time in history when there was less truth being broadcast throughout the world. Yet, we possess the TRUTH. We can speak about Jesus and don’t have to worry if we are lying or not. We can hear and read of Jesus and know that it is the TRUTH. Jesus came at the perfect time and the focus was on Him, the Father, and the Kingdom. We are finding ourselves in the perfect time for the focus to be on the same things.
