Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of God. Ephesians 2:19.
Jesus says: “Behold, I come quickly.” We should keep these words ever in mind, and act as though we do indeed believe that the coming of the Lord is nigh, and that we are pilgrims and strangers upon the earth.
Every means of grace should be diligently improved that the love of God may abound in the soul more and more, “that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ; being filled with the fruits of righteousness.” Your Christian life must take on vigorous and stalwart forms. You can attain to the high standard set before you in the Scriptures, and you must if you would be children of God. You cannot stand still; you must either advance or retrograde. . . .
Will you have a stinted Christian growth, or will you make healthy progress in the divine life? Where there is spiritual health there is growth. The child of God grows up to the full stature of a man or woman in Christ. There is no limit to his improvement. . . .
Some who ought to be strong and established in Christ are as babes in understanding and experimental knowledge of the workings of the Spirit of God. After years of experience they are able to comprehend only the first principles of that grand system of faith and doctrine that constitutes the Christian religion. They do not comprehend that perfection of character which will receive the commendation: “Well done.” . . .
We have great victories to gain, and a heaven to lose if we do not gain them. The carnal heart must be crucified; for its tendency is to moral corruption, and the end thereof is death. . . . Pray that the mighty energies of the Holy Spirit . . . may fall like an electric shock on the palsy-stricken soul, causing every nerve to thrill with new life, restoring the whole man from his dead, earthly, sensual state to spiritual soundness. You will thus become partakers of the divine nature, . . . and in your souls will be reflected the image of Him by whose stripes you are healed.
Maranatha p. 75
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Prayer Requests
—–Barbara, my mom, has had 2 falls lately. One she passed out at home the other was a head dive off a curb. Both were trips by ambulance to ER. The last one was the bang up but she is coming around. I stayed up there for a week taking care of her and Dad. Her blood pressure is still running low but she’s doing much better. Hopefully she can stay upright now. She has a cardio appt but not till Sept 30th…Gayle
—- Please pray for Carol’s family who are mourning the loss of Carol’s brother-in-law Joe. Also please pray for Kitty who is having serious health issues. Rose
—–Please pray for V and his family as his father had a very bad stroke and is not doing well. B
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Dear Friends,
From the time that my Grandfather, Edwin Harmon, came home from work until bedtime, I was his constant companion. Most evenings he would tell me wonderful stories from his own experiences; but sometimes he would tire of repeating them over and over. Then, he would ask me to sing to him, or we would play a drawing game.
One winter evening, he thought of something that had delighted him when he was a child. Tipping the lampshade so the light shone brightly on the wall, he began making shadow pictures of butterflies, ducks, bunnies, and many other things. I was delighted! Patiently, he showed me how to make these shadow pictures just like he did. From that time, we added this activity to our list of favorite evening pastimes.
Our brief life is like those shadow pictures. The psalmist tells us, “LORD, what is man, that thou takest knowledge of him! or the son of man, that thou makest account of him! Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away.” “My days are like a shadow that declineth; and I am withered like grass. But thou, O LORD, shalt endure for ever; and thy remembrance unto all generations.” Ps 144:3,4; 102:11,12 James asks, “For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” James 4:14 Peter adds, “For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away.” 1 Peter 1:24
How important it is, then, to make our “calling and election sure” while there is still time. 2 Peter 1:10 “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Cor 6:2 “To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts,” but accept Jesus’ great gift of salvation while the door of mercy is still standing open. Very soon it will be too late. Very soon those who have put off this most important of decisions will cry, “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” Jer 8:20
How vital to our future happiness that we live each day in close connection with our Best Friend and Saviour. He pleads, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matt 11:28-30 “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” Isa 55:1 “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Rev 22:16
Peter warns us, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. ” 2 Peter 3:10-13
“Wherefore, beloved, seeing that [we] look for such things, [let us] be diligent that [we] may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” vs 14 Let us “keep [our] heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” Prov 4:23 Let us “study to show [ourselves] approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Tim 2:15
Rose