I Could Have Had a V8

Do you remember the old V8 commercial? A person drinks, or eats, something not quite as healthy as it should be and then bops himself on the head and exclaims, “I could have had a V8!” The original V8 was made mainly from tomatoes and the juices from seven vegetables, specifically: beets, celery, carrots, lettuce, parsley, watercress and spinach. In case you are tempted, they are still available on your grocery counter.

I am not trying to sell you V8 juice, but am using this as an illustration of making poor spiritual choices. I am also sure that each of us have given in to a temptation and later when confronted declared, “Well, I didn’t hurt anyone but myself.”

Recently, I had an opportunity to preach in a local church and found myself preaching something entirely different than I intended, and the sermon I preached was on this topic of the consequences of sin.

Have you ever made a poor choice and heard a little voice saying, “It’s OK. It was only a small mistake and so no one was hurt by it.” Well, that is not entirely true.

The Bible teaches us that we are tempted when we are drawn away and enticed by our own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. (James 1:14-15)

The Apostle Paul gives us the progression of sin in Romans 1. He shows us that when we do not honor God (obey and choose sin) we become fools and exchange the truth of God for a lie. This can lead to being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; becoming gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving and unmerciful. What caused this tumble into depravity? A simple setting of our mind toward the flesh, or carnal state of mind.

In Galatians 5, the author tells us that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough, referring to the effect that a small sin can have on our entire lives, and that the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh for they are in opposition to one another.

Back in Romans 8, Paul declares that the one who is according to the flesh and is giving in to the flesh sets his mind according to the things of the flesh, and the mind set on the flesh is death and is hostile toward God.

A thought comes, a little thought, a simple temptation, and it gets our attention. It is a fleeting thought and we think, “well, it won’t do any harm, no one will know. Surely, this small temptation will not lead to debauchery, wickedness or murder.”

Let me ask you this question. Will the first cigarette lead to another? Does the first Oreo lead to a whole sack? Does one porno picture lead to a video? Does listening to whispered gossip in the ladies room at church lead to a phone call later in the day? Leaven is leaven!

We must come to the realization that sin, no matter how small and seemingly insignificant, is very capable of opening a door to a path best not traveled. It will hurt you, and it will hurt others.

How does your sin hurt others when it is a private sin that no one knows about but you and God? In 1 John 1:9, we read, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” This cannot but cause us to consider that when we sin we become spiritually dirty. Is it no wonder that the Bible uses words like impure, unclean and filthy with regards to sin and sinners?

Ephesians 4 tells us that we are not to give the devil an opportunity. Every time that we yield to temptation, set our minds according to the flesh, we give Satan ground to attack us. Romans 6:16 informs us: Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? When we sin, we are presenting ourselves to the devil, and he will continue to try and deceive us and draw us away from God and to himself. The end results of this are a hardening of the heart and further bondage. And it all began with one yielding to a temptation followed by further yielding. Soon, the leaven has ruined the entire lump of dough.

1 Corinthians 2 tells us that a natural man cannot know the thoughts of God and we can know the thoughts of God through the Spirit of God which dwells inside of us. It goes on to say that a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God for they are foolishness to him. It is through having the mind of God and hearing His voice that we are able to minister to others around us.

Returning to the flesh, to the carnal mind and worldly ways of thinking will hinder us greatly from hearing the voice of God and following His directions. Our prayers are hindered as well because He will not regard him whose heart is full of iniquity. We are surrounded by hurting, needful, lost and dying people who desperately need to hear God. God has chosen to declare His grace, mercy, forgiveness, healing, and wisdom through His servants. It is through us that others will hear and receive faith.

If we have set our minds according to the flesh, we have begun to become hardened to His voice and are no longer growing in the things of God. We are continuing to be exposed to needs but we have no answers. In this way, our “little, private sin that won’t hurt anyone else” has become a stumbling block to not only ourselves but to those around us. So, what do we do?

Praise God, we have been given the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit has been given to us so that we might know the conviction of sin. When we are convicted of sin, we should first confess and agree with God that we have sinned. Once we have done this, we should then repent of our sin, making a firm decision to turn from our sin with no intention of every returning there. We then ask God for forgiveness knowing that in doing so we have the promise that this is God’s will and that He will not only forgive us our sin but also will cleanse us of all unrighteousness. Finally, we receive his forgiveness having the confidence that this is His will and that not only does He hear us but He grants us our request.

Little sin or big sin, sin is sin and it has the power to separate us from God and from others. Even though the separation is our decision toward God, praise God He has declared that nothing can separate us from His love.

True Salvation

Having been a Christian for over 53 years and being a minister and missionary for over 28 years, I have talked to a lot of people about salvation. In traveling to foreign countries and asking a person if they are a Christian, I almost always get the answer, “Yes, I am a Christian.” Their answer actually means they are not Muslim, Buddhist or Hindu, therefore, they are a Christian. In the United States, people are often approached with the question, “If you died right now, would you go to Heaven,” and if they say yes, “How do you know?” you get several answers.

*because I am a good person

*I am a member of the church

*I have been baptized

*I try to do what is good

*I am not sure

All of these answers sound good but none of them assure salvation.

What is salvation?

Salvation consists of several things. One is to confess that we are sinners and in need of a Savior. Another is to repent of being a sinner. Repent means to turn back from with the intention of never returning. Another is to ask forgiveness from Jesus and to accept Him and His work on the cross for your sins. After doing this, we must accept His forgiveness by faith and confess with our mouth that we are now saved.

After the death of Jesus on the cross, the Apostle Peter preached to the crowd that had gathered on Pentecost. The people were convicted (convinced) of their sinfulness and asked Peter what they needed to do. His answer is recorded in Acts 2:37, 38:

³⁷Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” ³⁸Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

You will notice here that repentance comes before baptism. Baptism does not save you, repentance does.

The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 10:9,19:

if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; ¹⁰for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.

He writes also in Ephesians 2:8,9:

⁸For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

This is the answer to those who feel that being good, giving money, etc. is the way into heaven. Salvation can only be obtained by faith in Jesus Christ.

However, even though works cannot save us, there are signs that follow a person who is saved. I have many friends who tell me they are saved because somewhere in their lives they said a “sinners prayer,” and they know that Jesus saved them at that time and now they can do anything they want and they have a guaranteed ticket into heaven.

I would like to direct our attention to the book of 1 John in the Bible where the Apostle John speaks to the life that has been changed and saved. I believe that anyone who is truly saved will exhibit to a growing degree the characteristics that John lists in this book.

1 John

John begins his book with this declaration, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

I love this verse because it succinctly tells us what we need to do and what Jesus does in response to our confession. He follows with several verses that help us to see what our life will look like once we have been saved.

2:3 ³By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.

2:6 ⁶the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

2:9 ⁹The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now.

2:15 ¹⁵Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

2:24 ²⁴As for you, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.

2:29 ²⁹If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him.

3:4 ⁴Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.

3:6 ⁶No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him.

3:8 ⁸the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning.

3:10 ¹⁰By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.

3:14 ¹⁴We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death.

3:24 ²⁴The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

4:7 ⁷Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

It is amazing to me that people who call themselves Christians do not seem to fit the mold when John uses the words over and over again, “you know.” They still hate one another, they never open their Bible to learn more about Jesus and how to please and obey Him, their life looks nothing like His, and they seem to love the world more that Him.

Therefore, I write this blog not in judgment, but in the hope that these words will help all of us to know better how to please and obey and love Him. In so doing, we can truly be His child and be saved.

It is Finished!

THE DUEL

Two parties gather in the darkness of early morning. Both are there to support their champion and have the utmost animosity toward each other. They have gathered in the predawn hours to take vengeance, one on the other. There are principles at stake here. Before the sun rises, one will be the champion, the other the defeated. It is a duel. A duel to the death.

Weapons are chosen by each duelist with care. Their life will depend on the weapon they choose. There will no longer be an antagonist and protagonist- only a champion. The future of the realm depends on which of these duelists will walk away.

The time has come. Each walks to his station, weapon at the ready. The command is given and each turns to fire. The hand of one is unsteady. Even though he has boasted of his power, he knows deep inside that his cause is lost, but he must keep up appearances. The hand of the other is steadfast, his aim is sure, his confidence strong as a rock.

Both fire at the same time, their bullets crossing midway as they spiral and speed toward their destination, but only one will find its mark.

When the smoke clears, one lays on the ground, the other walks away. He smiles because He knew the outcome before the triggers were ever pulled. Now to celebrate.

It is Finished

Most sermons today in churches around the world will revolve around the declaration of the angel at the tomb, “He is risen.”

In Poland where we once lived, the greeting of the day will be, “He is risen,” and the response will be, “He is risen indeed.”

This weekend, millions of emails and texts will be sent between Christians declaring victory and celebration.

And it should be for Indeed He is Risen.

But I would like to break tradition today and concentrate on three other words, “It is finished.”

Read John 19:17-30

¹⁷They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha. ¹⁸There they crucified Him, and with Him two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between. ¹⁹Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” ²⁰Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. ²¹So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’” ²²Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

²³Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece. ²⁴So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”; this was to fulfill the Scripture:, “They divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.” ²⁵Therefore the soldiers did these things.

But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” ²⁷Then He said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.

²⁸After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, said, “I am thirsty.” ²⁹A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. ³⁰Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

Luke 24:1-6

¹But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. ²And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, ³but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. ⁴While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling clothing; ⁵and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? ⁶“He is not here, but He has risen.

What was finished?

1. His suffering?

He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

He was despised and we did not esteem him.

Surely our griefs he himself bore and our sorrows he carried.

We ourselves esteemed him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted.

He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities

The chastening for our wellbeing fell upon him, and by his scouraging we are healed.

The Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him.

Isaiah 53

2. The sacrifice?

¹For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near. ²Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins? ³But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year. ⁴For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

⁸After saying above, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You have not desired, nor have You taken pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the Law), ⁹then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will.” He takes away the first in order to establish the second. ¹⁰By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

¹¹And every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; ¹²but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, ¹³waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet. ¹⁴For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.

Hebrews 10:1-4; 8-14

3. His time on earth?

It is important to know and believe that Christ’s life did not end at the crucifixion, nor did it end at the end of his 40day sojourn on earth. He forever lives to make intercession for us while we are on earth. He has never been and will never be defeated in death or in any other thing.

4. Prophetic fulfillment?

We can understand the power of Messianic Prophecy when we consider statistical odds that one person fulfilled all of them. If we study just seven of the specific prophecies, that were later fulfilled in the Person of Jesus Christ, we are amazed by the impossibility! 

To illustrate, here are some conservative "odds" next to seven established prophecies.

Messianic Prophecy Odds Without God

1.	Jesus would be a descendant of David.	104 (1 in 10,000)
2.	Jesus would be born in Bethlehem.	105 (1 in 100,000)
3.	Jesus would be a miracle worker.	105 (1 in 100,000)
4.	Jesus would present Himself as King riding on a donkey.	106 (1 in 1,000,000)
5.	Jesus would be betrayed by a friend for 30 pieces of silver.	106 (1 in 1,000,000)
6.	Jesus would be crucified.	106 (1 in 1,000,000)
7.	Jesus would first present Himself as King 173,880 days from the decree of Artaxerxes to rebuild Jerusalem.	106 (1 in 1,000,000)
	Total Probability (without God)	1038 (1 in a 100 billion, billion, billion, billion)

5. His purpose (What was his purpose?)

¹⁴And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. ¹⁵And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all.

¹⁶And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. ¹⁷And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written,

¹⁸ “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,

Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.

He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,

And recovery of sight to the blind,

To set free those who are oppressed,

¹⁹ To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

²⁰And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. ²¹And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Luke 4:18

The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.

1 Jn 3:8

³⁷Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctlythat I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

Jn 18:37

¹⁰“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Luke 19:10

6. Man’s separation from God

Sin had separated mankind from God ever since Adam’s fall. Jesus’ dying on the cross and providing the perfect sacrifice now made a way for man’s reconciliation to God.

7. Satan’s dominion over mankind and creation

¹³For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, ¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

(Col 1:13)

I believe this was what Jesus meant when he declared, “It is finished.”

Satan’s dominion over man. The power to enslave man and hold him under bondage. The power of sickness and illness and disease.

The power to kill, steal and destroy.

Jesus came to give us life, more abundant life.

⁴For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; ¹⁵and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.

2 Cor 5:14-15

I need you to recognize something very important here. These words, “it is finished,” were declared by Jesus not only before the resurrection but even before his death.

Jesus knew even before his death that He had won, that he had defeated Satan.

³⁹One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” ⁴⁰But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? ⁴¹“And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” ⁴²And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” ⁴³And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”

⁴⁴It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, ⁴⁵because the sun was obscured; and the veil of the temple was torn in two.

Luke 23:39-45

1. Today you shall be with Me in Paradise. To be with the thief in Paradise, Jesus would have to have been victorious.

2. The darkness obscured the sun. Why? It has been suggested that there were so many demons present at the crucifixion to mock and celebrate their victory and the defeat of God that the spiritual darkness actually obscured the sun.

3. But notice that the darkness ended before Jesus committed His spirit to the Father (died). It reads, “until the ninth hour.” Light came back (in other words darkness fled in defeat) before Jesus died. He had already won before death.

Or it could have been that the Light was released on the darkness when the veil was torn because the darkness could not overcome it.

Did Satan defeat Jesus? Did he kill Jesus? Did the Romans or the Jews kill Jesus?

Matt 27:50

⁵⁰And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

Mark 15:37

³⁷And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed His last.

Luke 23:46

⁴⁶And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” Having said this, He breathed His last.

John 19:30

And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

In each instance, Satan took nothing. Jesus was in control of His destiny.

When Jesus cried out:

“Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” It was like He was saying to His Father,

“Here Father, hold this for me, I’ll be back.”

He then went to collect what was rightfully His—the keys to death and hell.

Did Jesus die? Yes. Why?

“Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, ¹⁸and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.

Rev 1:17-18

I believe we find the answer in Romans 6:1-11

¹What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? ²May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? ³Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? ⁴Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. ⁵For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, ⁶knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; ⁷for he who has died is freed from sin.

⁸Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, ⁹knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. ¹⁰For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. ¹¹Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Through His death, we die. We, who were once held captive by Satan.

But through His resurrection, we, who were once held captive by Satan, are resurrected into new life, no longer slave to sin.

¹³When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, ¹⁴having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. ¹⁵When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.

Col 2:13-15

The resurrection occurred so that we might live!

Every time that a person gives his life to Jesus, he first dies but then he lives, never to die again.

As Jesus was victorious over death, so also shall we be victorious, in Him.

I am back!

It has been a long time since my last entry and for the million of people out there who have missed me, I am truly sorry. A lot has happened since the last time I wrote anything.

After moving back to the US from Poland, we stayed on the road until right before Thanksgiving and then we immediately went into the remodeling phase of our home in Georgia. We needed to replace old carpet in the entire house, paint it including removing popcorn from the ceilings, and do some general carpentry work. Now that it is finished, I am able to get back to what I was supposed to be doing the entire time and that is being a missionary. Don't get me wrong, I continued to do the mission work all along, but now I can concentrate on it more.

I was very excited when I was asked to be the Director of Missions for Faith Christian Fellowship International. This will entail building new relationships with a lot of churches here in the US but mostly building relationships with missionaries on several continents. For a person who loves missions, travel and the Lord, this is a dream come true.

However, it also is a very heavy burden to know that I have such a tremendous responsibility. My decisions will impact not only lives of the missionaries I meet but also the lives of literally thousands of people in the countries where they serve. It drives me to my knees on a daily basis.

I am today visiting my best friends. I don't like that word best because by definition there is only one best. But it is hard to say "better" friend. I have several "best" friends so I guess it is time to change the definition. Anyway, friends are wonderful. We laugh together, get serious together and have some of the best conversations possible. However, I noticed that all of my friends are getting older. What is up with that?

Well, for someone who hasn't written any words in his blog for such a long time, this has made me tired so I guess I will quit for now. I guess my friends aren't the only ones who have gotten older. The picture is of my office where hopefully I will be able to hear God's voice for all the decisions that I will have to make in the future. If you are a person of prayer, perhaps you could remember to pray for me when you get a chance. Bless you.

The Mountain

You are standing close to the crest of a mountain. You have just emerged from the tree line and are standing about halfway between it and the summit. If you turn, with your back to the crest, you can see clear back to the horizon to where your journey began. Your whole life lies before you like a panorama. You can see the place where you gave your heart to the Lord. That place has great emotion associated with it and is probably your favorite. You can barely make out the trail as it originates there and winds around the flatlands before beginning the slight rise which becomes a steady uphill climb toward the summit where you are now standing. You recall, even after all these years, all the times you stood and gazed at the faraway peak. You wondered what it would be like to stand there above the tree line, so close to the summit, imagining how it would feel to walk those last few hundred yards to the top and be able to see what was on the other side. Now, after all these years, you are finally standing there. The summit is so near. As you continue to survey the scene below, you also see the trail as it disappears down into the many valleys along the way. Some of those valleys were very deep as you recall; some so deep that it seemed the sun failed to shine in their deepest recesses. Others were obscured by dark clouds, however, while others seemed to be deep at the time, you can now see that they were but mere depressions in the landscape.

You can also see the clearings that you walked through on your journey. There the going seemed to be very easy where you rested from your strenuous climb out of the valleys and took time to lay down in the meadows and by the brooks and enjoy a brief respite. It was in those times that the Lord came to speak to you and comfort you. There He revealed to you the necessity for your last valley and assured you that you were never alone. It was in those peaceful meadows that you rested, drew strength, and then arose to continue your journey.

As you continue to take in the panorama of your life below you, you can see the trail as it traverses several smaller mountaintops. You recollect that each time you climbed to the top of a smaller mountain you thought, just for an instant, that it was the mountain on which you now stand. You remember that for a time you enjoyed the exhilaration of being on those mountaintops only to suddenly look upward to see that the mountaintop which was really your destination was still high above you, holding captive the faraway horizon. You recall that each time the exhilaration was replaced by the realization that your journey wasn’t yet over, and you would continue toward the horizon.

Now you stand between the tree line and the crest of that mountain, the one that captured your imagination, the one that held captive your aspirations and dreams. You slowly turn your back to the past and turn toward the peak before you. Between you and the top of the mountain is only a grassy, rock strewn landscape. No trees grow here, no more valleys to descend. Here the trail is very faint. Very few have climbed this far. Few have gone before you. Another thirty minute climb and you will stand on the summit; you will have arrived at your life’s destination. You remind yourself that this is why you began that climb those many years ago.

You begin the final leg of your climb when suddenly the wind begins to blow. At first you are refreshed by the breeze after your strenuous climb, but then ominous storm clouds begin to seemingly move in from nowhere. What happened? Just a minute ago, the sky was clear and sunny. Before, you could make out every detail of the craggy horizon, but now you can hardly see it. It begins to rain. The air is electrified by intense lightning, and the ground vibrates as a result of the incredible thunderclaps. The footing becomes treacherous as the rain saturates the ground and becomes torrents rushing down the steep grade. What before seemed like a short climb to the top now seems impossible, but you haven’t come this close to your goal to be turned back now. You redouble your efforts and attack the incline. The storm that before was intense now becomes intolerable. You have in your entire journey never encountered anything like this. Even the deepest, darkest valleys were never this terrifying. Your strength gradually ebbs. For the past several minutes you have been reduced to crawling forward on all fours. You must stop to rest for a minute and catch your breath, sitting with your back to the slanting rain, massaging your muddy hands and scraped knees. You consider that the trees below would provide a safe haven from the storm. The tempest doesn’t seem so intense there, and you feel the trees would provide some shelter from the storm. Your muscles ache with the strain of the climb, and you turn to look again toward the top of the mountain, now closer than ever before. You have made a little progress, but the incline appears even steeper than before. Turning back to the tree line, your whole being wants to rise and take the easier, downhill path to the refuge of the trees.

Just as you place your hand on the ground behind you to lift yourself up and head toward the trees, you feel the ground begin to vibrate. Simultaneously, the entire universe seems to be illuminated by the brightest lightning bolts you have ever seen. Immediately behind these comes a thunderbolt so powerful and loud that you feel your body lifted off the ground. You turn involuntarily toward the source which seems to be somewhere on the other side of the summit. Your mind rushes back to the time when God visited Sinai. What before seemed like an extreme storm now dims in comparison to what is taking place before you. The previous lightning flashes and rolls of thunder originated within the storm itself, but these newer, more intense ones seem to be coming from beyond the horizon, from the other side of the mountaintop. They are so severe that they drown out the others. God seems to be angry that you would consider turning back.

You are terrified! Between you and the summit appears certain destruction, but each time you turn to look back at the inviting tree line, you are filled with an overcoming feeling of foreboding and failure. Why does the decision have to be so heartrending? You want more than ever before to finish your climb, but why does it have to be today? Why can’t you rest for awhile among the safety of the trees and try again tomorrow or next week when you will have more strength? But there is something inside you that tells you that if you retreat to the safety of the trees, there will never be another chance. If you are going to the top of the mountain, you must go now.

You hesitate again, pausing to look once again toward the horizon above you. The thunder rolls and the entire sky is set aflame by the lightning bolts. It appears like all heaven and hell are at war between you and the top of the mountain. After one last glance backward, you make up your mind. You only have one life, and that life won’t be worth living if you give up this opportunity to reach for your ultimate goal. You think you might very well die in the next few minutes, but at least you will die knowing that you died climbing upward and not running away.

© Copyright 2005 by Paul Whitley. All rights reserved.

Compromise

Compromise

To compromise is to lower your standards and settle for less than you know is ethically acceptable. Whether it is a blonde bombshell in her “boots,” or a Christian artist who decided to “cross over” with her music, it is a sure bet that somewhere along the line they have had to compromise to get to where they are today. Washington, Nashville (and of late, Branson), Motown and Hollywood are notorious for stealing the integrity of their protégés. You can’t expect to play with fire without getting burned.

Hardly anyone goes into a situation expecting to have to surrender their values. Not many people expect to sell their souls to the devil, but it is a daily occurrence that creeps up on us like a mountain lion on its prey. It is a process that occurs to those blinded by greed and desire for fame and power.

The process begins with a person having talent that elevates them above their contemporaries. It could be a beautiful voice, musical ability, a great personality coupled with a way with words that is able to sway the multitudes - a talent that others would die for. In years past, personalities like Ed Sullivan, Ed McMahon and Dick Clark exploited the youth of our nation. Today, it is Simon and Paula who tease thousands of our youths into becoming “idols.” What an appropriate word! We have all heard the stories of young girls who get their start on the couch of some Hollywood producer. We are just repeating history, but we are not learning from our mistakes.

We would like to think that this only happens to non Christians, but no one is exempt from that same voice that deceived Eve 6000 years ago. We are still being tempted by the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life, and it is ruining our present and future generations.

If you are a young, talented Christian reading this, let me describe the process which Satan will use to bring you to the brink of Hell. If you were to be “discovered” by either Hollywood, Nashville or Washington, I am sure that you would think, “Here is an opportunity to make a difference in the world. I can use my fame and fortune as a platform to tell others about Jesus.” You need to know that while this may be on your mind, the one whom the deceiver has sent to tempt you and your talent away from God isn’t thinking this at all, but he will use this motivation to persuade you to make the first step.

You will find yourself having more money, recognition and fame than you ever thought possible. The praise of man is a narcotic. It will cause you to be dissatisfied with what you have and you will come to the place that you will do anything to remain on the crest of popularity. Remember this, there will always be somebody else who has already sold his soul to the devil and he will stop at nothing to stay on top. If he is on top, then you are not. This desire to be the best will cause you to say yes to those things that before you would have rejected. The thought will come to you, “Just this one time.” Upon compromising that one little point, you have placed your foot on the top step of an ever downward spiraling staircase to Hell. Each step you take will take away a little piece of your life until finally you find yourself no longer knowing, or caring about, what is right and wrong. Finally, one morning you will wake up to the realization that you are no longer praying, reading your Bible, thinking about God or his will. You only care about what you need to do to stay on top.

You began this process with the desire to bring the world to Jesus. You end with bringing the world to you and Jesus is nowhere in the picture. I am sure that people like Jessica Simpson and Whitney Houston have all come to a place where they wonder what happened to that little girl who used to sing in the choir in church, but I am afraid they no longer care.

Walking Wisely

May I quote a verse from Proverbs for you. In Prov. 13:20 we are told, “He who walks with wise men will be wise.” If you want to be wise, find someone who already is wise and associate with him.

I have received many cards, emails and letters in my lifetime and one that comes to mind right now was given to me by a young man whom I mentor. It is a picture of a little boy walking with an older man, probably his father. Inside the card is reference to this verse. He considers me to be wise. What a great compliment.

Shamefully, I remember my youth, and how stubborn and foolish I was. Rebellion and prideful are two words that come to mind when I consider how I reacted to older men whom God put in my path. Young men especially have always been filled with the need and determination to be their own man. We had to do it our own way. Remember the words of Frank Sinatra, “I did it my way.” Foolish, foolish, foolish.

I am now an older man, and I hope a much wiser man than I once was. I look for wiser men than I with whom to associate. Considering my situation, for the most part I have to rely on authors and the books they write. Some of the men that I consider worth walking with are Dr. James Dobson, Dr. Mark Rutland, Dr. Les Parrott, Dr. Paul E. Paino, and Stu Weber. There are others, of course, but these are very prominent in my life. Wait a minute, there are some women, also. At the top of the list is my wife, Karen. I also receive from Joyce Meyer and a few individuals whose names you would not recognize.

However, there are some men who have written things that minister greatly to me who spoke to us a long time ago, but their words are timeless: The Apostle Paul, Solomon and most of all, Jesus.

What about you, reader? Who do you allow to speak into your life? Are you teachable, are you open for counsel; do you even want to be wiser? A wise man once said that the beginning of wisdom is to acquire wisdom. How true, how true.

Admitting that you need help and asking for it, and listening to others who know more than you do are not bad things. It is wisdom. I want to close this with a quote from Proverbs 9:8a-9:

Reprove a wise man, and he will love you.
Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser,
Teach a righteous man, and he will increase his learning.