One Rule ~ Well Observed ....

“One rule, well observed, will make all other rules superfluous: let prayer be uttered as in the very presence of God – poured into his ear as from a miserable sinner who deserves his wrath, but to whom for Christ’s sake he extends his infinite mercy.” (William G. Blaikie’s For the Work of the Ministry, pg. 177)

How often do we forget God's very Presence in our lives? Prayer becomes rote, we do it with the intent of our hearts but do we pray in the mind set of being in His Presence? We set at the foot of the Cross, pour out our hearts in praise, thanksgiving and requests, but are we humbled in being in His presence?

I work as a CNA in a retirement home and recently lost a resident on my shift. I work the 10:30pm to 7am shift and the person passed on around 3am. It is a thing for workers in a nursing home to open a window and allow the spirit of the deceased to depart. As a Christian I find this disturbing. I did not do it and the daylight shift about had a fit. Oh well!!! ....

The person had no family only a POA and her daughter there with the resident during the last hours on this earth. I have peace that I gave the resident the best possible care I could. During the night hours as I took care of the resident I talked to this person and prayed aloud for them. I knew the person was a Christian. This, too, brought about a peace I had for this resident. After the person passed on the POA talked some about the life of this person. I got a glimpse into more of the personal aspect since the resident could not speak well theirself. The POA was becoming distraught and I asked her if she was a Christian, she stated she was and I said to her then you do realize that at the very moment the resident took their last breath that they was in the presence of Jesus? Through tear filled eyes she looked at me and said she did not think of the passing in that way, she was too distracted by her loss. We all have been there and react differently to death. One minute here on earth and the next in the presence of the Almighty!!! When an unsaved person passes on I am heartsick for the soul of the person. Hell and torment is their lot. I am at a loss of words to the family and friends. I am sorry for the loss and have deep sympathy and share that but I can not share the joy of Christ with them, I can not share with them the glory in death.

We often hear people stating they don't want to die alone. As a Christian we are never alone, there is always the Three with us. I appreciate my prayer time in His Presence. Let you not forget He is there with you during your time in prayer ... and always ...

"When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 1 Cor.15:54,55 ESV"

~~~~~~

13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

15 “Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.
16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
the sun shall not strike them,
nor any scorching heat.
17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd,
and he will guide them to springs of living water,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Rev. 7:13-17 ESV

~~~~~

Blessings,
Pam <><

New Perspective ...dog verses human ...

In the United States, the life of a dog is worth more than the life of a human being! The nation has been riveted and closely following the story of NFL superstar quarterback Michael Vick. It has come to light over the past 6 years that Vick financed and was an active participant in running a dog fighting enterprise. Fighting dogs is illegal in all 50 states.

Additionally, hundreds of thousands of dollars were illegally gambled on these dog fights, and what has enraged most people, was the inhumane treatment of these animals including killing them in numerous brutal ways.

Vick has not only been linked to financing this dog fighting operation, but gambling on the fights and personally killing several of the dogs who didn't perform well.

Today, I want to bring a whole new perspective to the Michael Vick story that you won't hear on the news or read about in the papers. In the United States in the year 2007, it is illegal to kill a dog but legal to kill a baby! Let me say that one more time since I want this FACT to really sink in. In the United States in the year 2007, it is illegal to kill a dog, but legal to kill a baby! WOW! Does that put the whole Vick story in a different light and show just how spiritually bankrupt we are as a nation?

Want more? Michael Vick is going to be going to prison for anywhere from 1-5 years for killing dogs, yet every single day all over this nation, "doctors" are slaughtering 4,000 babies and going home to their families at the end of the day.

Michael Vick has been kicked out of the NFL and will be going to Federal prison for killing dogs, but the "doctors" who are paid very well to kill over 4,000 babies EVERY SINGLE DAY in this nation are free!

Another aspect of the Vick case that I have watched closely is the across-the-board outrage by people regarding what he did to these dogs. You will be hard pressed to find anyone who even tries to support, let alone, condone what Vick did. It has virtually been a universal response of condemnation for what he did to these dogs. What baffles me is where is that same universal condemnation over the fact we kill 4,000 babies in this nation every day? How can the masses get so riled up over the inhumane treatment and killing of a handful of dogs, yet sit back in silence as every

24 hours another 4,000 babies are slaughtered?

Here is an interesting side note that can't go unnoticed. PETA, the ultra liberal People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, have been front and center in calling for Vick's hide and have exploited the Vick story to raise millions of dollars for their cause. The hypocrisy is that the vast percentage of people who follow and support PETA also support a woman's right to kill her baby. So you have this animal rights advocacy group who takes every opportunity to bully and intimidate people who have anything to do with animals, all the way from how cows and chickens are slaughtered to the way animals are killed by fast food restaurants to the killing of animals to make fur coats, leading the charge against Vick for fighting and killing dogs, yet this same group supports the killing of babies!

The real story of the sad and sickening Michael Vick dog fighting/killing tragedy is that in this nation we clearly put more value on the life of an animal than we do a human. It is clear that the life of a dog is more important to society than the life of a baby. This is the only conclusion you can draw since it is illegal to kill dogs but not babies, and someone like Vick who is found guilty of killing dogs is going to prison while the "doctors" who kill babies live in freedom. Society has determined that the life of a dog is more important than the life of a baby.

This is so critical since now it is easy to understand why we are in the spiritual abyss we find ourselves in. The Absolute Truth of the Bible has been replaced by "every man doing what is right in their own eyes." You see, it is no longer God our Creator who determines Truth, each person is deciding that for themselves. That is why people now accept homosexual relationships that God clearly calls a sin, redefining what God said marriage and the family were to be, all of the false gods of the world, and every other form of rebellion to God and His Word that you can name. When men determine what truth is, that is how you end up with the mass outrage over the death of a few dogs, yet no response at all to the daily slaughter of 4,000 babies!

The nation has turned to the false gods of the world, the man-made idols, and has chosen to live in complete rebellion to God and the Truth of His Word. Most of Christendom has retreated behind the four walls of the church into the "Christian trough" where they have virtually no impact on the world at large. We have relegated ourselves to what amounts to a modern day leper colony. Christians have become the 21st century lepers. We are treated like outcasts. Despite having the power of Almighty God, we have chosen to hide in our Christian subculture while the world we live in is sinning its way into obliteration with souls dying and going to hell on conveyor belts!

Nothing more exemplifies this than the Vick case. Let me clearly state that I believe those who treat animals in an inhumane way should be punished.

Dog fighting is a barbaric sport that should be against the law. Those who kill dogs for sport should be prosecuted. I don't feel sorry for Michael Vick at all and whatever he gets he deserves. However, the point I want you to understand today is that as heinous and horrible as Vick's actions were, the disconnect comes when heinous and horrible acts on a human being are not only legal, but supported by millions of people. Many of the same people who have gone ballistic about what Vick did to a few dogs, go equally ballistic if you talk about outlawing the killing of babies.

If you ever needed a reminder regarding the depth of spiritual decay in this country, the Michael Vick case is that reminder. The reality is that in this country, the life of a dog is more precious than the life of a baby! God have mercy on us all.

I received this in an email an felt it important to share. Written by: Mr. Bill Keller

aroma of christ or the smell of death ...

A question we need to be continually asking ourselves ...

We as Christians are the “aroma of Christ” and His righteousness to God. But, to those who are perishing we are the smell of death. Paul makes this all clear to us in 2 Corinthians Chapter 2 verses 14 thru 17 --

"14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. 15 For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16 to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? 17 For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God's word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ."

I have recently read Thomas Chalmers‘ exposition on the imputation of Christ’s righteousness where in Chalmers' talks of, “the merit of His well-beloved Son is to Him a sweet-smelling savor.”

“Had we fulfilled the law of God, heaven would have been ours, and it would have been given to us because of our righteousness. We have broken that law, and yet heaven may be ours, not because of our righteousness, but still because of a righteousness; and the honor of God is deeply involved in the question, What and whose righteousness this is? It is not the righteousness of man, but the righteousness of Christ reckoned unto man. The whole distinction between a covenant that is now exploded, and the covenant that is now in force, hinges upon this alternative. If we make a confidence of the former plea, we shall perish; and if of the latter, we shall have everlasting life.

”The merit of His well-beloved Son is to Him the incense of a sweet-smelling savor, so that the guiltiest creature who takes shelter there, has posted himself on the very avenue, along which there ever rolls the tide of divine complacency. We should invest ourselves then with this merit, and wrap ourselves firmly in it, as in a covering. We should put on Christ, who is offered to us without money and without price. We should present ourselves before God, with His invitation as our alone warrant, and the truth of His promises, which are yea and amen in Christ Jesus, as our alone confidence. His place in the new covenant is to declare our forgiveness, through the blood of a satisfying atonement. Our place in the covenant, is to give credit to that declaration.“ This is from Thomas Chalmers, in his introduction to Abraham Booth’s The Reign of Grace from its Rise to its Consummation (1768)