"Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart."
Psalm 119:111

When one desires a closeness with the Lord Jesus they will have a hunger and thirst for more and more of the Word of God.  I know what you might be asking, another blog about the Word of God? Yes!  And again Yes!  We live in a time where the thoughts and philosophies of men as well as the devices of Satan look to lead the redeemed in Christ away from the Word of God and towards the ways of the world. Friends, this is serious business. We are not playing games. We are in a battle!

 We need to be:
 1. Determined- Let’s get in the Word of God!
 2. Diligent-Let’s stay in the Word of God!
 3. Dogmatic- Let’s live in the Word of God!
 
Our present time that we live in is no different than the past days of man’s existence. There has always been truth and yes, there have always been lies and error.  We are blessed to have the entire sixty-six books of the Bible.  The Bible is a reservoir, an ocean, an endless supply of truth.  What an opportunity that we have each and every day to take in God Almighty’s truth. It is not the mere words of man; it is not pop psychology or the advice of a TV talk show host.  We have the pure, powerful and living Word of Truth of the living God.  It is God breathed and not man-made (II Timothy 3:16).  A.W. Tozer wrote, "A new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is...a book which is now speaking." Our thoughts and words should echo those of the psalmist in that God’s Word should be the rejoicing of our hearts.

To the men that reads this,

It is each individual block that makes a foundation and it is each individual strand of fiber that makes up the sum total of the fabric and in relation to our country, I believe the foundation and the fabric starts with the men.  It starts with me and with you and all the born again men in this country.  It starts with godly men; in our homes, in our churches and in our communities; on the job sites, in the offices, in the factories, on the roads, and in the pulpits.  This in turn will have an effect on our country.  We need to be Christ like men, Holy Spirit filled men, men of prayer, men of the word, men who love the Lord Jesus Christ, men who are willing to follow the Lord completely, unashamedly and without stutter or stammer.  This is who we need to be.  We need men who don’t have one eye on the things of God and the other on the things of this world.  We need men who don’t have one foot running with the flesh and the devil and one foot walking with the Lord.

        Because men, as we go so goes many others!
        As we go - so goes our families
        As we go - so goes our homes
        As we go - so goes our churches
        And ultimately our country.

    I am afraid that many men have lost their fire; they have given up; they have checked out and tuned out; they have let go of the anchor, the Lord Jesus Christ.  I'm afraid we have let go of the Lord and we (the men) have put down His Word.  We have put down the sword and we have sinned against our God.  We have forgotten our first love and in doing so, we have dropped the ball when it comes to being the men that God wants us to be.  The foundation is cracked and the fabric is frayed, but my friends, all is not lost.

It is my prayer that stone by stone and piece by piece, the born again men in this country will return to the Lord and be about the things of Almighty God and be the men that God would have us to be.  It's about being an instrument and a tool in the hands of God.  Don't miss this - we need to be a clean instrument and a clean tool to fulfill His purpose for the days we live in.  To bring glory to God and not shame.  Now, these things can never be accomplished with emotion or fancy speeches or one’s own will power.  We need Almighty God to meet with us and we need the Holy Spirit to do what only He can do; to minister to our hearts as God's word speaks to our hearts.

We must allow God to search our hearts because God will not bless what He does not approve.  If we want to be a man after God's own heart, we must be men who will allow God to search our hearts.  We must be as David and say, "Search me, O God, and know my heart:  try me, and know my thoughts:  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."  (Psalm 139: 23-24)  This must be our prayer and this must be our priority; to place our hearts in God's hand and let Him bring to the surface the sins that He wants to deal with so that we can be a man of God and God's man.

Thanks for visiting and thanks for praying,
Bro. Tracy

“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised ;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.   Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another:  and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:23-25
 
A couple of years ago, my wife and I planned a short trip to get away for a couple of days.   As we were driving, we passed through many small towns.   There was one town that stood out from all the others.  Along the road there was a business with an interesting sign.  Actually, there were two signs; one read, “Everyone welcome” the sign below it read, “Beware of dog.”   As Christians, it should not be this way as we gather together.   There should be sweetness to our fellowship.   Not only should there be sweetness, there should be a purpose.   Speaking within the context of our verses, each of us as we continue to be faithful and gather with other believers we should each look to be a blessing to others.  We should not take the me approach. 

How is it we can be a blessing to in our time together?

I. Hold Fast- Our faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross.  Our security is in Christ and we will not waver when our hope is steadfast in Christ Jesus.

2. Consider one another- We need to care for those around us and their spiritual well-being.

3. Provoke- Think of this as stimulation or stirring those around us to love and good works.
Each time we gather together, we have an opportunity to be a blessing in a powerful way to those in the pews, the hallways and the parking lots at our local church.  God will in turn bless us, as we see the day approaching and what sweet fellowship it will be.

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
Acts 4:13
 
If the Lord calls me home before the trump sounds my desire is that people will say of me the same words they used to describe Peter and John from our verse. What will my legacy be? What will your legacy be?
My friend, our time here is short; we live one day at a time as we move forward by faith. Be a spark! Be a fire! Live a Holy Spirit filled life.  Be a man of God, Be a woman of God. Young people and teens start at this very moment to live your life for the glory of God.  Dear believer give your all to the One who gave His all on Calvary’s victorious Hill for you. O the price that Jesus paid for the redemption of our souls.

After filling Jerusalem with the good doctrine Peter and the apostles were asked, “Did we not straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name?” Peters and the apostle’s response, “we ought to obey God rather than men” (see Acts 5).

May our legacy simply be this- they had been with Jesus.

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
Psalm 23:1
 
Matthew Henry wrote in regard to believers and The Great Shepherd, “He takes them into His fold, and then takes care of them, protects them, and provides for them, with more care and constancy than a shepherd can that makes it his business to keep the flock.” What wonderful words from so long ago that ring true at this very moment.  Our fear will slay our faith in a moment when we choose to disregard God’s Holy Word. Our fear is the manifestation of our flesh ruling the roost. Our fear is also a direct response to the devil and his lies that he whispers so cunningly in the time of a great hurt or battle that is raging in our lives. Ephesians 6:16 recently jumped off the page of my bible, “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.”  We are well equipped if we will suit up and apply that which our Lord has provided.

How often are you able to comfort and console another Christian brother or sister; and you are more than able to believe for them so that their faith would increase during a season of testing and trials and yet you yourself struggle to take hold of our verse today when you encounter a similar season. 

Dear Christian friend you will not lack anything.  Your position in Christ Jesus brings many benefits that are made possible by Christ and Christ alone.  We do not name it and claim it.  We read it and receive it!  When we are hungry, our physical bodies need protein and carbohydrates to function.  Most of us have a refrigerator and cabinets where we store our food. We enter these by opening the doors and choosing what it is we are hungry for. Spiritually speaking, we have a double door cabinet that is filled with all that one needs to satisfy their spiritual hunger, THE BIBLE. 

The Bible says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).  The main reason we lack faith is that we don’t trust God’s Word.  Think how victoriously we would live day to day if with a simple childlike faith our words would echo David’s, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

“Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: and let such as love thy salvation say continually, Let God be magnified.”
 
Psalm 70:4
 
Dear Christian, are you a bitter believer?  Do you live in a state of anger and misery?  When you come into a room, do others feel the life and light being taken out of the room? Before I was saved, I was well acquainted with such behavior because it was who I was and the way I lived.   From time to time, I have to examine myself to make sure I am not heading down those old roads that I have no business being on as a Christian.  Christ paid too big of a price and won far too big of a victory for the redeemed to live in a state of bitterness while walking through life in misery.

Spend some time meditating on our verse-I believe your heart will soon be as our wood-stove when I was growing up after we would fill it with good ole hickory wood- Burning red hot!! You won't be bitter you will be magnifying God!

Thanks for visiting and thanks for praying,
Bro. Tracy

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.  Proverbs 3:5-6
 
Countless messages have been preached from our text.  Many have read and re-read these powerful verses and for a season took heed to what they said, only to, eventually slide away from them and trust in themselves while propping themselves upon their own understanding.  I believe a freedom will sprout up out of the soil of God’s Word and the by-product will be a power that only the GOD of the universe can provide when we trust in Him.  Our days will be filled with a closeness to the Lord that will shine like the mid-day sun upon those who we cross paths with. And why will that be?  Because we will be trusting not in ourselves, but in our GOD!
 
Who do you Trust In?
 
How many times do you suppose that you have quoted verse five?  I believe many of us are guilty of quoting a verse and not really believing what we are saying nor taking the time to get ahold of it and, in turn, allowing the Holy Spirit to teach us what He wants us to get out of a particular verse.  Habit is a dulling practice to fall into.  When there is purpose in our study and reading of God’s Word, there will be growth in our faith.
Let’s define the word trust: assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone.  With that in place, let’s consider how God’s word describes Him using the definition we’ve been given for our word trust.

Character- “The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works” – Psalm 145:17

Ability- “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” –Hebrews 11:3 The ability of God to create something out of nothing is a remarkable truth.

Strength- Exodus 14:13-21 teaches us that God parted the Red sea.

Truth- “He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.”-Deuteronomy 32:4

Take time to go over these truths about God from these few scriptures from above and let them sink in deep.  We must run deeper than the surface if we want to swim in the depths of who God really is according to His Word.  Ask yourself, “How can I not trust in the Lord with all of my heart, knowing who He is according to His Word?” And why would I lean upon my own understanding knowing what God’s Word says about Him.  We live in a fast paced world that has the ability to run us over “IF” we allow it.  Take time alone to ask yourself, “Who am I trusting in for the totality of my life?”  I Pray that God does a mighty work in your heart as you come to Him in a season of self-examination!

Thanks for visiting and thanks for praying,
Bro. Tracy