We should strive, in our Christian life, to reach a point where we share the happiness of God, regardless of our
circumstances – whether good or even tragic. We can have an inner peace and happiness based on our
knowledge and wisdom of what God has for us both now and in eternity. So, whatever our circumstances are,
we have a full realization that it’s in His plan and He has it well in hand.

God has giving us many promises in the Scriptures starting with John 3:16 – “for God still love the world. They
gave his own only begotten son that whom believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”
Those promises go beyond that which, in our finite minds, can claim such as: “all things were together for
good for those who love God and those who were called according to his purpose” found in Romans
8:28. These are not empty promises, as they are from His character / essence, that is His omniscience (allknowing), omnipresence (all present), omnipotence (all powerful), absolute justice, and righteousness, immutability (unchangingness), veracity (truthfulness and truth), and love. God cannot tell lies, cannot tell halftruths: everything that’s in the His Word (Scripture) is an absolute.

We quite often claim one of the hundreds of promises that’s in the Scripture without fully grasping the wonderful power behind it…. But if we are as a song says, “standing on the promises of Christ, our Lord” daily, we
can achieve that higher level of happiness that we seek.

OK – so I heard a statement this week…. It really got me to thinking, honestly it made me think about how I think. The
statement was made in light of hearing a fellow pastor expound upon his study the following passage of Scripture:

So, Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness
overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.” (John 12:35)

The statement he made was this: “too often Christians curse the dark, rather than shine the light”…. He then quoted
the following saying: “It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness”. This quote has been attributed to
Eleanor Roosevelt, Confucious, John F. Kennedy, and several others.

Roman 13:11-12 says “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now, is our
salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the
works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light.”

And Jesus said, as recorded in Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be
hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In
the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your
Father who is in heaven.”

Well, like I said, I got to thinking about my thinking regarding light and dark, each of their respective powers, and
whether or not Christian are more dark oriented than light illuminating. What do I mean?

 

I am glad you asked!!  By and large, we go around talking all about the darkness of the day, and rightfully so, but do we give as much attention to the light that expels that darkness? More than that, do we really live like the light of the world, like a bright city on a hill, or do we hide ourselves under a basket by living in or with the darkness that needs expelled?

 

What I am getting at is – do we talk too much and not walk enough? Do we curse about the darkness and do nothing
to bring the light into it? Do we shine a dark light or a bright light? It is so easy to point out the darkness in others,
and the darkness around us, that we forget our darkness emanates too. Before I go onto another point, I want to
make a challenging request…. For one week, rather than scourer the news and the happenings for the darkness that
is so readily noticeable – look for what God is doing in the midst of it…. And the second part of that challenge, take
the time to assess your own talk and walk, asking “what AM I showing the world around me…. the light or the dark?”
I am reminded of the dark Pharisee and the light sinner in Luke 18:10-14:

“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by
himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like
this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’

But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God,
be merciful to me, a sinner!’

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be
humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Even in prayer, the dark Pharisee noticed the sinner’s sins more than his own. In today’s language it would be “I know
I have my issues and my sins, BUT that isn’t the only side to this” or “I am the first to admit I got my sins, BUT….” or it
comes out as one has done nothing as bad as the others and I have done so much good compared to others…
However, on the right side of things, the truly repentant light sinner only recognized his own sins before God – no
excuses, no self-justifications, no shifting the blame, but just the shame and ownership of his own sin and a plea for
the mercy of God on his soul…. 

 

This is stepping into the light…. Ownership, despite anyone else’s involvement< no pity party, no self-preservation, or
making less of the sin, no trying to keep it quiet – just simple straight forward, I have sinned… God have mercy please….

Now, the second point, the Bible does tell us “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things
the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time
you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that
is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” (Ephesians 5:6-14)

This means people use empty, false, masked words and build partnerships with the same ilk…. And God considers this
disobedience and it makes Him angry enough to bring down the wrath. If you’re a believer, you used to walk and talk in
darkness, but as a believer it is unbecoming and should no longer be part of your life, nor should we be taking part in
those dark things anymore. Rather we should not cover them up, but tell the truth and share the issue and problem, or
expose the fake and phony that wants it to remain hidden so they can stay indulging in it, while putting on the façade of
faith… In fact, it says people do disgusting things in secret – we should not have hidden secret sins, they are the shameful
proverbial skeletons in the closet that need removed. So, if your serious about following Christ, it is high time to wake
up! Quit sleeping in sinful spiritual slumber and let Christ’s light shine on you to reveal the darkness so it can be eradicated and expelled! Of course this is the amplified Barnett paraphrase commentary, but I think it sheds the light, yes pun intended, on the dark situation and hearts at hand.

What can you do next – if the LORD has been exposing you, be honest, humble yourself, don’t hide or pretend anymore,
mercy is found for the honest sinner not the self-righteous man.

There are extraordinary promises from the LORD for those with enough integrity really tell the truth and deal with the
darkness…. His Word is that “He will humble the prideful and exalt the humble”.

In this day of darkness, for the world, for our nation, for us individually, it is time to let the light expose the reality of our
walk and talk. If the light of the fire of revival is to ever burn bright, we must let the LORD consume us and ignite our
hearts. Let Jesus burn away the chaff and stubble of our lives and refine the gold and silver He has made us to be….

“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If
we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in
the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all
sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and
just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a
liar, and his word is not in us.” (1 John 1:5-10)

Have you ever wondered “man, how can I share Jesus with this person” in your mind, right when you’re in the middle of having a good conversation with someone, and you feel that “nudge” from God to tell them about the gospel?

Well – to get started, let me share with you a simplified version of the Gospel:

God’s Word tells us that “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins”. So, God sent His Son, born of a woman by the Holy Spirit, whose name was called Jesus to shed His own blood for the forgiveness of mankind’s sins. He grew up from a boy, into a young man, and into an adult – and never sinned! He went about doing the things God wanted Him to do – healing people of diseases, delivering them from demons, performing miracles and many signs. The religious leaders of that time hated Jesus and wanted Him dead. Romans ruled during Jesus’ times, and those religious leaders stirred up the people against Jesus, convincing them to crucify Him on the cross. After He died on the cross – Jesus was laid in a tomb (the grave) and three days later He rose from the dead – never seeing decay. This act conquered sin, death, the devil and his demons. It also showed that God, through Jesus, offers us forgiveness, eternal life and we can have a new life, being born again, placing our trust and belief in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice. There were many witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection, and several other people came back to life when He rose from the dead. He hung around for about forty days – eating and talking with the disciples and others. Then He ascended to heaven in the clouds, but not before telling them He would one day return to take the disciples and future believers back with Him to heaven to be with God the Father.

 

So – how do you start a conversation about this? How do you bring Jesus into the talks you have with the people around you?

Sure, we are already pretty good at having discussions about the weather, sports, fishing, hunting, our likes or dislikes, and around here – farming.

Well – take the same relaxed posture and talkative demeanor. While, as Christians we know the Bible contains the truths that are needed for people to hear the Lord, it is not always the first thing to throw out there. You have to get around to the Scriptures of course but remember at this point it is not an in-depth Bible Study you’re having – it is sharing what you know about Jesus, His Word’s impact on your life and your testimony – that is the story of how you came to become a Christian and believe in Jesus.

Here are three questions you can ask that will get the conversation moving towards sharing the Gospel and what God’s Word says that go beyond superficial or just life-on-earth things:

Question #1: Why are you here and what is your purpose here on earth?
Some will have some kind of an answer like: to be happy, to be good, to make a living, to have a family, etc… some won’t be able to give an answer at all….

Question #2: How did you get here? How did we get here?
Again, some answers you may hear are: my mother had me, I was born, we evolved, something had to make all this and us….

Question #3: What is going to happen when you die and leave this planet?
You know – they say “hands-on” learning is the best way to get good or gain knowledge or ability to do something and retain what you learned in the experience. So, practice, ask the questions, start interjecting them into the conversations you have with people. It may take a few times before you are comfortable with it or get it down…. You may even be rejected a few times, but don’t give up!  Eventually you will spark the heart and mind of a person to think about Jesus.

 

If you never noticed before, look at Jesus’ interactions with people as recording in the Bible – He asked a question, and then often replied to their answers with another question, or He told them a parable (a story or true account with a spiritual meaning or lesson).  Follow His example. And don’t forget that people hear and become saved through Gospel by our sharing our testimonies, the truths of God’s Word, and knowing about the blood of Jesus shed.

Romans 10:13-17 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

1 Peter 3:15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.

WHAT DO YOU TREASURE?

At the risk of coming off as a pirate hiding his treasure, making a map so they can find it again, or for their successors to…. I ask this question: what do you treasure?

I can tell you, not only from experience and observation, but also from the Word of God – we as people, individually and congregationally, tell everyone around us exactly what we treasure by what we talk about, what we invest in, what we do, what we prioritize.  Each of us displays our treasure without even saying a word at times and by how we use our time, talents. It shows exactly what we are treasuring.

Look at the following passages:
Luke 6:45 The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.
Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

 

So, let’s dig these verses apart:

 

Good used here means beneficial, and is directly related to being properly beautiful, valuable, virtuous, honest. 

 

Stored used here means placed in deposit of wealth figuratively as treasured.

 

Overflow used here means a surplus, superabundance.

 

Speaks used here means to talk, utter words, preach, tell.

Jesus is teaching us that what our heart contains will ooze out of us in our conversations and what we are prioritizing in our lives.

There is a serious lesson for us to take away, actually – a few of them:
1) What you set your heart upon is your treasure, and it is what you will work for and towards
2) What you treasure you prioritize, so take an inventory of what you spend your time on, what you put first, and what you don’t will help you discern what is most important….
3) When it comes to the LORD, when it comes to Church, when it comes to Family, when it comes to Work, when it comes to Money, When it comes to Possessions, When it comes to People, When it comes to Pleasures…. which occupies most of your time, talent and treasure? This will tell you what is in your heart and what is most important to you, or more over who is most important to you…. of course, this does not mean, when it comes to making a living, as many need to put much time in, but it is wise to take stock of how much of your life is balanced or out of balance.
4) It is easy to make excuses, or put off something or someone – or to even notice what others prioritize, but let’s be honest, how many of us do any one of these three things and never take the time to really assess our own heart’s treasures and priorities?
5) Look at your investments – money, time, people, work, church, family, your relationship with Jesus, etc…. which one usually gets the short end of the stick? Which one gets the most attention? What are you most involved in?
6) How many of us make it hard or hinder, help or make it easier for others to prioritize the right things or more important things? I mean – do we serve one another in a way that makes it possible for those around us to prioritize the right things in the right order? Or do we throw more on others, leaving them with not enough time or energy to prioritize the right things?

OK, so hearts, treasure – all that said…. I would like to touch on a nerve a bit. Everyone knows the family is under attack right now.  Everyone sees the devastation it is bringing to the next generation. We think doing more benefits our family, rather than making them more. I wonder if we have gotten so out of balance with life stuff, that the life we have is run ragged and our loved ones are suffering because we have our own personal treasures placed ahead of them, expectations of what they should treasure but we don’t consider what we treasure may need changed, or we are teaching them by example what to treasure that should not be one’s top priority as a follower of Christ that should treasure Him above all things.

Treasure Jesus Along with You,

Pastor Daren

The following story helps us to understand what it means to call Christ our Savior. It is adapted from a story frequently told by Dr. R.G. Lee, former president of the Southern Baptist Convention and long-time pastor of a large and influential church in Memphis, Tennessee.

A century ago in a backwater village deep in the mountains of Virginia, there was a community school consisting of a single room. Students of all grades attended the school, mostly the children of mining or logging families. The older boys, raised to survive the hardscrabble life of the mountains, were tough and mean-spirited. No teacher at the school had lasted more than two months – some only a few days – because these boys took great pride in their ability to run off every teacher daring or naïve enough to take the job.

Shortly after yet another teacher had left, a young man, fresh out of teachers college, applied for the job. The moment he
walked into the office for an interview, the director took pity on him. He did not want this young, green teacher to face impossible odds and end his first teaching assignment in discouragement.

“I frankly advise you not to take this job,” said the director. “You have no idea what you’ll be up against. We’ve never had a teacher last more than two months – not even the most experienced. You will likely take an awful beating because you are so young.”

“I do appreciate the warning, sir,” replied the teacher, “but I need the job and I’m willing to take the risk.”

The director sighed deeply and hired him.

The next morning, the young teacher sat at his desk watching the students as they came into the classroom. Several of the
boys gathered at the back before they took their seats. It was clear to the teacher that their leader was the biggest and obviously the oldest boy. “Big Tom” they called him – the bully of the class. The boys were talking in low tones among themselves, looking often toward the teacher. Finally, Big Tom said, deliberately loud enough for the teacher to overhear, “I don’t need no help on this one. When I get done with him, he won’t dare set foot in this classroom again.”

When All the students were seated, the teacher rose and said, “Good morning. I’m Mr. Wilson, your new teacher. I can’t teach without rules. So I want you to help me make the rules. Tell me what rules you think we ought to have and I will list them on the blackboard.”

The class had never been asked to participate in establishing order and Big Tom didn’t know what to make of it. He decided to wait and see how it all came out before he put the screws on the new teacher.

 

“No stealin’,” called out a student.

Mr. Wilson wrote the rule on the blackboard.

“No bein’ late,” cried another, “No lyin’,” rang out a third voice.

The students began to get into the swing of things and soon Mr. Wilson had ten rules on the board.

“This looks like a good set of rules,” he said. “They are your own rules, so do all of you agree to them?”

“Sure, we agree to them,” the class replied, snickering and looking slyly at one another.

“Okay,” continued Mr. Wilson. “Rules can’t be enforced without penalties for breaking them. What penalty should we impose if a rule is broken?”

Big Tom spoke up, “Whoever breaks a rule gets ten licks across his bare back.” Making a tough rule bolstered his pugnacious reputation.

Mr. Wilson thought the penalty was too severe. “Does everyone agree to this penalty?”, he asked. No one dared counter Big Tom and since the teacher had put the rule – making process into the students’ hands, he felt he had to let the penalty stand.  “Very will. Ten licks it will be.”

Big Tom’s involvement in the process made him feel big enough that he didn’t bother Mr. Wilson that day. Class resumed the next morning and went smoothly until the noon bell was about to ring. Big Tom’s voice boomed out, “Somebody stole my lunch!”

“Keep your seats class,” said the teacher. “No one eats until we find out who stole Tom’s lunch.” He questioned each member of the class, one by one, and all denied committing the theft. But finally, a little 10 year old boy wearing a worn-out coat wailed, “I done it! It was me. I was so hungry I couldn’t help myself. I am sorry!”

Mr. Wilson’s heart sank. “Jimmy, you know the rule. I have to give you 10 licks across your back. Take off your coat.”

“Oh teacher, please!”, Jimmy begged. “Do whatever you got to do, but don’t make me take off my coat.”

But the teacher was firm and the boy slowly began to unbutton his coat as tears streamed down his cheeks. He was wearing no shirt. There was nothing on his thin upper body but the suspenders holding up his pants.

Mr. Wilson faced a hard dilemma. How can I possibly whip this poor child, he thought. But, if I don’t, I will forever lose control of this class. He stalled and asked, “Jimmy, why didn’t you wear a shirt today?”

 

“It’s ‘cause mom’s been real poor since dad got killed in the mine. I only got one shirt. On wash day mom washes it and I have to wear my brother’s coat. I’ll get my shirt back tomorrow.”

It was all Mr. Wilson could do to make himself pickup the paddle. He turned Jimmy’s scrawny back to him, lifted the paddle and hesitated, trying to work up the courage to administer the punishment.

Suddenly Big Tom jumped up and cried, “Don’t do it Mr. Wilson. I wanna take Jimmy’s lickin’ for him.” He walked quickly to the front of the classroom, stripping off his shirt as he went.

The teacher nodded, handed Jimmy his coat and stood Big Tom in his place. As he administered the strokes, he realized that every child in the room was crying – little Jimmy most of all. Suddenly the boy ran to Big Tom, threw his thin arms around his neck and clung to him.

“Oh Tom,” Jimmy cried, “I’m so sorry I stole your lunch. I hate that I done this to you. But I want you to know that I’ll love you till my dyin’ day for takin’ the lickin’ I should’ve got.”

The hearts of those boys were broken forever. Big Tom had become little Jimmy’s savior.

This story is a picture of what it means to call Jesus our Savior. All of us have broken the rules and we deserve the prescribed punishment, which, in our case, is death. But Jesus looked on us frail, fallen creatures and could not stand to see us destroyed.

He loved us so much that He couldn’t bear the thought of spending eternity without us. So, He took off His coat, stretched His arms over the wooden bar of the cross and suffered the punishment of death that you and I deserve. He IS our Savior! 

Jesus died for You. Every drop of His blood was shed for you! Every step, every humiliation, every strike, every whip, every mocking, every piercing nail…you were always on His mind.

Dear Foundations Family,
While we have taken a short detour away from The Book of
Jeremiah, which we will be getting back to soon, the subject
of Well-Intentioned Dragons has been eye opening and an
excellent review. I know many have read Dr. Shelly’s book
previously or recently. Yet, there is always a need to go over
things related to how others see us and to cover subjects like
these more than once. Every time one reads something, rereads

something, goes over it together, even being taught
and retaught on a subject, we are reminded of principles and
learn more than we knew before. I for one have learned a
great deal more than I have in the past by taking the teaching,
including additional material from my studies and then putting
them into message form. Not only does it create a common
learning experience, it develops an collective awareness necessary

to disciple leadership qualities within the body of
Christ. It may even reveal areas of dragon-esq attitudes or
actions we were blind to in ourselves or behind the scenes we
did not recognize before.

Not that I think we have a lot of this kind of thing, but it sure
helps one to see what it is like ‘on the other side of me’. It
also helps us to not put the dragon label on every little thing,
after all – sometimes we need a mirror and proper reflection
to see things in a different light, so we don’t get to being too
nitpicky. That whole ‘love your neighbor as yourself’ thing –
Jesus meant it, Paul agreed and James reiterated it (Matthew
22:39, Mark 12:31, Romans 13:9, James 2:8). I do not know
anyone that likes to be picked at for to long. Song of Solomon
2:15 is pretty clear that ‘the little foxes ruin the vineyards’….

Maybe your asking – WHY? Why are we covering this?
WHAT? What are you thinking? Well, the Bible tells us the
following:

2Timothy 3:1-5 But understand this, that in the last days
there will come times of difficulty (through the idea of reducing
strength, perilous, dangerous, by implication furious) . For
people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant,
abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
heartless, unappeasable (disagreeable, hostile, unpersuadable),

slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good,

treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure

rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness,

but denying its power. Avoid such people.
In simple terms, self-centeredness and unreasonableness
will rule the day…. Likewise, the Bible also states:

1Timothy 4:1-2 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later
times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves
to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity

of liars whose consciences are seared.

Again in simple terms, lying, deceitfulness and demonic spirits will

increase and cause a great amount of trouble in the
church.

When one couples the two passages together, dragon like
behavior (remember the devil is called the dragon in Scripture)

will be part and parcel even in congregations, both in
leaders and congregants. That means it is essential to be
able to discern the differences, recognize the sources, so as
to not be overcome or disheartened in the days ahead.

One thing I have learned, maybe you know this and maybe
you don’t, but whenever things in the dark are brought into
the light, it is as though the ‘demons’ aka ‘dragons’ come out
of the woodwork for a time. The hiding places are exposed,
and the attitudes are not concealable. It is like Paul what
Paul expressed when he learned about covetousness:

Romans 7:712 What then shall we say? That the law is sin?
By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not
have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet

if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, seizing an

opportunity through the commandment, produced in

me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies
dead. I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment

came, sin came alive, and I died. The very commandment that promised

life proved to be death to me. For
sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me

and through it killed me. So, the law is holy, and
the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

Did you catch that, even Paul, once he heard and learned
about coveting, it rose up in him and it was a war for the ages
inside of the man. I am sure all of us have had this fight internally in

our heads and hearts. Well, it is true when we are
confronted with something in teaching. It sometimes rears up
until it is seen for what it is. Then when it is seen, the work
begins, and the transformation starts…. But it is not always
instantaneous, it does not happen overnight, it does eventually happen.

What is the big take away from all this? Dragons exist. Anyone can exhibit

dragon-like characteristics. When knowledge
and truth are imparted, sometimes it riles things up for a bit.
Eventually, those who belong to the LORD come around and
are changed from the inside out…. However, it is a process
and as individuals we have to be honest with ourselves about
what we are learning, what the LORD is showing us, and let
the Holy Spirit lead us and transform our thinking process, our
attitudes and our actions.

Know You are Loved, Know You are Prayed for, Know that
the LORD will Bring You to Completion!