GLAD TO BE ONE OF THE RAG-TAGS

GLAD TO BE ONE OF THE RAG-TAGS

By Pastor Dwight

Paul wrote to the Corinthians that not many wise, noble, rich or powerful were chosen by God but rather He chose the weak and foolish to prove His great victory and grace and love.

One evening while we were praying I saw us as privileged to be chosen by God though we would not impress the world. This poem was my response.

“Here come the rag-tags, the weak, the poor, the hungry for more; 

The frail,  the alone, who’ve suffered but grown;

Here come the rag-tags, but in glad rags.

Here come the trodden-down, left alone, and undone,

having died now reborn; 

Broken souls, now made whole. who’ve surrendered

control; 

Here come the trodden-down overcoming the world.

Here come the emptied ones, poured out, and worn,

forsaken and scorned;

Helpless and hapless, their false hopes long gone; 

Here come the emptied ones in His beauty adorned.

Here come the present ones, content to be last they’ve

repurposed their past;

Living by grace in this moment and place,  

Here come the present ones whose constant vision is His face.”

Pastor Dwight

Glad to be one of Christ's "Rag-Tags"

The Power of Disagreement: Union with God is Disunion with Evil

The Power of Disagreement: 

        Union with God is Disunion with Evil

By Dwight Cunkle

Olympic runner Eric Liddle refused to run in a qualifying heat on Sunday but turned around and won a different race and medal the next day. He put God first.  Jesus said that we cannot serve God and stuff, not even "good stuff."

"He who honors Me, the Father also will honor."  How am I honoring God, so that his name is hallowed, made holy, as He taught us to pray, "Hallowed be (or make holy and bring honor to) your name.

Last week Pastor Richard preached his third message in a row on Union with God. He said that during this our "engagement and betrothal period as the future bride of Christ, we prove our fidelity, our faithfulness and love to him. Our flesh, the world and the devil compete with Jesus and his kingdom. Why are our hearts prone to wander in selfishness and disobedience to his commands? Union with God is disunion with sin. What choices from moment to moment hinder our union with God?

"Love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves."

Practical ways to grow toward perfect union with God in his divine love:
1. Give thanks to God all day. Try thinking of God and acknowledging Him over and over.
2. Talk with him and ask for him to show you his love and holy angels at work in you and in those around you.
3. Ask his grace to open His word to you in the Scripture and give you his thoughts in your mind and heart.
4. Serve Him by serving others.
5. Ask for help from His Holy Spirit and the good angelic spirits to strengthen you and others through the day.
6. Sit quietly to contemplate God. "Be still and know that I AM GOD."
7. Ask his help to detach from the things (especially good things) that hinder his thoughts and peace and love and joy in you, so that you can embrace suffering, hardship, misunderstanding, deprivation, hunger and thirst, etc… in order to share in the sufferings of Christ for his Beloved and for the salvation of the world.

Growing in these daily practices until they become habits and part of our character will bring us into more union with God and more victory over the world.
 Remember that all is a gift from God. All is by His grace, rather than by our effort and ability. Embrace suffering as a gift of His love because He suffered for us.

And approach each momentary duty with self-abandonment to God. Grace in each moment and each thing. God grant us faith, hope and love to detach from our demands and expectations and seek to simply walk with Jesus, through each moment of the day. This is the path of holiness and union in the divine love of God. Beloved, let us love God and love one another.

The Sands of Forgiveness

The Sands of Forgiveness

http://jabelah.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/the-sand-of-forgiveness/

A story tells that two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey

they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face.

The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, wrote in the sand:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE.

They kept on walking until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one who 

had been slapped got stuck in the mire and started drowning, but the friend saved him.

After he recovered from the near drowning, he wrote on a stone:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE.

The friend who had slapped and saved his best friend asked him, "After I hurt you, you wrote in 

the sand. And now you write on a stone.  Why?"

The other friend replied "When someone hurts us we should write it down in sand where winds 

of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must 

engrave it in stone where no wind can ever erase it."

Moral: Learn to write your hurts in the sand and to carve your benefits in stone.

Forgiveness: “The act of forgiving for an offense; pardoning.”

Billy Graham's Prayer at 95 yrs old

Billy Graham's Prayer at 95 yrs old

From a man the media has never been able to throw dirt on.....amazing! He has certainly hit the "world" on the head!

Billy Graham's Prayer For Our Nation

THIS MAN SURE HAS A GOOD VIEW OF WHAT'S HAPPENING TO OUR COUNTRY!

'Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done. 

We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. 

We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. 

We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. 

We have killed our unborn and called it choice. 

We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. 

We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem. 

We have abused power and called it politics. 

We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition. 

We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. 

We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. 

Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts  today; cleanse us from sin and set us free. Amen!'
 

With the Lord's help, may this prayer sweep over our nation and wholeheartedly become our desire so that we once again can be called 'One nation under God!'

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. (1 Timothy 2:1-4 ESV)

Why Pray?

Why Pray?

The more we "will for God to pray in us" the more He becomes prayer in us, the more we will pray.

A highpoint of the week is our Wednesday 7PM prayer time together: quietly waiting on God, worshipping, listening, then prayer begins to rise in us and we become aware that God lives in us and is praying through us - effortlessly words or quiet singing meditations flow from our spirits—God breathes in our souls and we rise together in his presence. We become His house of prayer and feel the good effect of His will both within us and his will being effected in the earth through us as we make our petitions known with the help of His Spirit. We love this time.

Body ministry prayer for one another often flows without strain. Words of knowledge and prophetic prayers simply come, birthed in God's love and comfort to encourage weary hearts. We love prayer meeting because God loves meeting with us—heart to heart—face to face—breath to breath—the powerful and beautiful kiss of worship in spirit and truth.

Prayer comes at a price—detachment-abandonment to God. What do we believe, why, how live it and what difference does it make must at some point deal with God's life in us, or at least our souls trying to live in God.

When God abides in our souls prayer is like breathing. How can we separate ourselves from the very fountain of life within? But that is the result of growth in godliness as well as prayer. This kind of union life in God's love comes at a price—detachment from the "clinginess" of my attachments in this world (including the good things and relationships. 

The more I seek things "for themselves" instead "in self-abandonment to God" in each present moment, the less room there is in my soul for desire for God. The less room for desire for God the less of God's life I will experience. The less awareness I have of God dwelling in me the less love and satisfaction in Him, His word and prayer. Desire begets desire. I will seek what I want. And will increase that want until I want "something else."  The question becomes, "When will my something else's become "God is enough" ?

CHANGE TO CHANGE

CHANGE TO CHANGE

by Dwight Cunkle

Our only hope of change is to change. Change our direction in repentance from seeking our own way to seeking God. Seeking spiritual changes within us will cost us detachment from worldly things but lead to true satisfaction and fruitfulness.

Psalm 63

1 O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;

    my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

    as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,

    beholding your power and glory.

3 Because your steadfast love is better than life,

    my lips will praise you.

4 So I will bless you as long as I live;

    in your name I will lift up my hands.

5 My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,

    and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,

6 when I remember you upon my bed,

    and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

7 for you have been my help,

    and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

8 My soul clings to you;

    your right hand upholds me.

Read the Psalm slowly noticing the contrast between thirst and satisfaction in God.

It seems that they are linked together. On the other hand, the more I fill myself with earthly things the less room in my soul for God and I am still hungry.

Hunger is the opposite of having no desire - being complacent or self-dependent.

We used to sing a song, “Only You can satisfy.” An even older song was “Fill my cup, Lord. I lift it up, Lord. Come and quench this thirsting in my soul.”

What does it mean to be hungry and thirsty for God? I am well acquainted with trying to find fulfillment and satisfaction in the things or even relationships in this world. The prophet Jeremiah called it trying to drink from broken cisterns. On the other hand when I seek God with my whole heart “the things of this world become strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.”

How hungry am I? Look at our present life, friends, family, church, culture to see how hungry we actually are for God. This is us asking, seeking and knocking.

But if from there you will seek (inquire for and require as necessity) the Lord your God, you will find Him if you [truly] seek Him with all your heart [and mind] and soul and life. When you are in tribulation and all these things come upon you, in the latter days you will turn to the Lord your God and be obedient to His voice. (Deuteronomy 4:29, 30 AMP)

As you have therefore received Christ, [even] Jesus the Lord, [so] walk (regulate your lives and conduct yourselves) in union with and conformity to Him. Have the roots [of your being] firmly and deeply planted [in Him, fixed and founded in Him], being continually built up in Him, becoming increasingly more confirmed and established in the faith, just as you were taught, and abounding and overflowing in it with thanksgiving. (Colossians 2:6, 7 AMP)

At that time [when that day comes] you will know [for yourselves] that I am in My Father, and you [are] in Me, and I [am] in you. (John 14:20 AMP)

LET THE CHILDREN COME TO ME

LET THE CHILDREN COME TO ME

By Dwight Cunkle

This last Friday I ended four weeks (20 days) of teaching a sixth grade class at Kaiser Public School. They didn't have a teacher hired so asked me to come in for the first day, then tried to get me emergency certification to be able to teach  the rest of the year, but were unsuccessful. While I was there I was shocked at the needs of families, teachers and the challenges to our inner city school systems. It almost seems as if an enemy has stacked the deck against broad success for our children. Any wonder parents and teachers who are able to make the sacrifice and adjust their lifestyles resort to homeschooling and private schools. As parents our mandate is to teach and train our children. Unfortunately, many are stuck in the public (or "government run") school system. How do you feel about that? Many Christian teachers are doing all they can to help these children and families. It is a Godly calling and they need our prayers and support. It is much easier to criticize than get involved and help. We must act on the words of Jesus, "Whoever receives one of these little ones receives me." What do we believe and why and how do we live it and share it and what difference does it make?

Karen Gale has lead our Whiz Kid program for 18 years and our congregation has often helped Kaiser school. Karen believes the schools provide the key to reformation and revival in our community. Could the Holy Spirit move within that struggling institution? If God can move hearts in the church He can certainly be at work in the world. The reality is God works where there is hunger and need. That's why Jesus said that the Good Shepherd leaves the ninety-nine in the wilderness and goes after the one sheep that went astray.

Our family has had the privilege of being involved in education for generations: teaching in and sending our children to both public and Christian schools, homeschooling our children, involved in co-2ops, even using a Catholic High School. I don't know what is next for us as a family or church but like Karen I am deeply involved in our Whiz Kid program and praying for God's kingdom to come in all our schools and families. Karen believes everyone can be involved in some way to help bring the love and wisdom of God through education. How does that make you feel?  

Let us pray and obey and see what God will do. But let us not be content to remain alone in the wilderness of religious life.