February 19, 2012

Comments (10)

  •    Wow!! What a "may I marry your daughter" letter?  He was definitely honest.  Also, the love letter..wow!!  I was always impressed with the work they did, the sacrifices they made and the willingness to follow Father no matter what. It is what He requires of us--surrendering to Him and trusting Him to carry us through.

  • Good Evening from Starbucks after dark. I saw you  listed as having posted. Since I was alone, at Starbucks, relaxed and emotionally stable, I read your fine post. lol  I am so weak with reading the deeper subjects about the Christian life.

    I guess many of our old Missionaries were exceptional in their devotion to Christ.  I like Hudson Taylor and some orphan director in England. They really believed in prayer.  If they saw my prayer journal, they would question my salvation.

    It is true--we get hung up on issues with planet earth.  Somewhere in the mix, I try to do what God wants--on the tough issues--taking care of aging parents, being faithful in marriage, not filing out dishonest tax returns, etc.  but, as you know, I have my weaknesses. I went to church today and the pastor used the term, 'Christian Atheist.' He said those are church members who say they 'believe,' but do not follow Jesus Christ. I am being shot at from all sides.

    This was an excellent post Karen. I read it and it made me think. I will now finish sipping my coffee at Starbucks and hope my wife doesn't catch me out after dark.

    frank

  • Not to elevate our ancestors above that which we ought, but I wonder...is there a young woman alive today whose love for Jesus is so fervent as to say yes to this young man proposing such an arduous and dangerous life - with virtually no turning back?

    Or for that matter, a young man daring to propose such a life for himself and the one he loves?

  • @stephensmustang - Indeed! Those were both quite the letters. I'm hoping to post some things from her journals as well.

    "It is what He requires of us--surrendering to Him and trusting Him to carry us through."  - Amen! God works in us to will & to do of His good pleasure! Impossible with us, but possible with Him!

    @ANVRSADDAY - Frank, we all have those daily responsibilities for which we will be held accountable (and Jesus said if we're faithful in the small things, we will be given more to steward) – but we need to be on guard that the cares, riches & pleasures of this life don't end up choking out the word of God bearing fruit in our lives. We need to keep in the Bible and prayer so our eternal perspective might be renewed, which also includes a global perspective – a desire that the Gospel goes out to all the nations. I've also found that reading Christian biography is a great tonic to lukewarmness, or that fleshly tendency toward Christian atheism.

    @quest4god@revelife - If there isn't a young woman and a young man like Ann & Adoniram, then we're in a very, very sad state indeed. I'm praying for God to raise up such laborers to go out into the harvest (that zeal for missions goes hand-in-hand with revival), as well as praying that God would make me willing to be and to do whatever He wants, wherever He wants, and He would continue to supply and refresh me w/ Habakkuk 3 joy in those times when there's no fruit on the vines...

  • @naphtali_deer - I'm sorry.  I didn't mean it so seriously.  Of course there are still people going to the mission field!   I only meant that laying it all on the line is a courageous thing for a young man to do when he so desperately wants a "Yes!"  I think if it had been me, I'd have made sure of her love for God and all that before I asked her to marry me!

    We must not give in to despair that revival isn't forthcoming.   We have to pray for it, believing!

  • @quest4god@revelife - Yes, people are going, but do they really have anything close to this level of passion, zeal and commitment?

    There are times there will be no fruit, that's the reality of it, but my prayer earlier this evening went beyond "as my days, so shall my strength be" to "as my days so shall my JOY be!" God's Spirit blows as He wills. We've seen people work tirelessly for years without revival, but the secret to joyful endurance (Col. 1) and to having those deer feet and treading on our high places is our persistent asking, seeking and knocking for God to rain down His sovereign showers of True Bread and Living Water to satisfy our hunger and thirst!

    Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,
    Pilgrim through this barren land.
    I am weak, but Thou art mighty;
    Hold me with Thy powerful hand.
    Bread of Heaven, Bread of Heaven,
    Feed me till I want no more;
    Feed me till I want no more.

  • @naphtali_deer - This has proved to be the ground for serious soul-searching for both of us - and maybe many more!    I have seen missionaries go forth from my church - even last year a young family left for China.   Unfortunately, they have had to return to the US because it turns out he has cancer and is awaiting surgery in Seattle.   They are a wonderful family, unlike any I've seen yet so it's difficult to understand this interruption in their commitment overseas.

    Many families in my neighborhood and surrounding area are missionaries or have family members on foreign soil.   It's not for me to judge their level of commitment or their zeal, but I certainly hope they have given all because there is no point in suffering all of that if the heart is not ablaze for the Lord and for those whom He will call.

    I am being renewed in my prayers for those serving the Lord in other places - for their safety, their joy, and the leading of the Holy Spirit in carrying the gospel there.   We have only the faintest notion of conditions for the natives and missionaries.   There is more hostility in most countries than there is in the US.

    (Pete's wife has recovered enough to return home, and their daughter has taken a short leave from her work in Kenya to be with her mom.)

  • @quest4god@revelife - Re: the family who had to return to the U.S. - there are NO accidents in God's plan... Psalms 115:3: Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

    I was only going to include a couple verses, but I really need to include them all! :)

    Lord, We Know That Thou Art Near Us
    (Lyrics by Jane Crewdson)

    Lord, we know that Thou art near us,
    Though Thou seem’st to hide Thy face;
    And are sure that Thou dost hear us,
    Though no answer we embrace.

    Not one promise shall miscarry
    Not one blessing come too late
    Though the vision long may tarry
    Give us patience, Lord to wait.

    While withholding—Thou art giving
    In Thine own appointed way
    And while waiting we’re receiving
    Blessings suited to our day.

    O the wondrous loving-kindness
    Planning, working out of sight,
    Bearing with us in our blindness,
    Out of darkness bringing light.

    Weaving blessings out of trials,
    Out of grief evolving bliss;
    Answering prayer by wise denials
    When Thy children ask amiss.

    And when faith shall end in vision,
    And when prayer is lost in praise,
    Then shall love, in full fruition,
    Justify Thy secret ways.

    You're correct that we have only the faintest notion of the conditions in other countries. Though outward hostility is worse in many, many ways, yet lukewarmness and apathy is just as deadly and can be equally stressful to the soul, if not more so. No matter what, we need to continue to go to the God of all comfort for sustaining and satisfying grace to carry us through.

    (Thanks for the update on Pete's wife.)

  • This one seems to say what you were saying. Jesus I am trusting...

             Weaving blessings out of trials,
    Out of grief evolving bliss;
    Answering prayer by wise denials
    When Thy children ask amiss

    All of it reminds us that God is in control and He is love.

  • @quest4god@revelife - Amen. (That's one of my favorite hymns. I don't think it's very well known, but we sang it fairly often at our last church.)

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naphtali_deer

About me...

Christian hedonist in training. Pressing on to know more and more of the joy of the LORD. Pleading with God to rend the heavens and revive and refresh my own soul, as well as His Church, to His praise, honor and glory.

Thank God. He can make men and women in middle life sing again with a joy that has been chastened by a memory of their past failures. ~ Alan Redpath

My other websites

tent of meeting: Prayer for reformation & revival

(See also Zechariah821. Zechariah821 is a mirror site of tent of meeting, found on WordPress)

deerlifetrumpet: Encouragement for those seeking reformation & revival in the Church

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