Honorable in Motive and Action

Principle, right, honesty, should ever be cherished. Honesty will not tarry where policy is harbored. They will never agree; one is of Baal, the other of God. The Master requires His servants to be honorable in motive and action. . . . Those who choose honesty as their companion will embody it in all their acts. To a large class, these men are not pleasing, but to God they are beautiful.
Satan is working to crowd himself in everywhere. He would put asunder very friends. There are men who are ever talking and gossiping and bearing false witness, who sow the seeds of discord and engender strife. Heaven looks upon this class as Satan’s most efficient servants. But the man who is injured is in a far less dangerous position than when fawned upon and extolled for a few of his efforts which appear successful. The commendation of apparent friends is more dangerous than reproach.
Every man who praises himself brushes the luster from his best efforts. A truly noble character will not stoop to resent the false accusations of enemies; every word spoken falls harmless, for it strengthens that which it cannot overthrow. The Lord would have His people closely united with Himself, the God of patience and love. All should manifest in their lives the love of Christ. Let none venture to belittle the reputation or the position of another; this is egotism. . . .
Never speak disparagingly of any man, for he may be great in the sight of the Lord, while those who feel great may be lightly esteemed of God because of the perversity of their hearts. Our only safety is to lie low at the foot of the cross, be little in our own eyes, and trust in God; for He alone has power to make us great. . . .
The judgment and ability of all are needed now. Every man’s work is of sufficient importance to demand that it be performed with care and fidelity. One man cannot do the work of all. Each has his respective place and his special work, and each should realize that the manner in which his work is done must stand the test of the judgment.

Maranatha p. 228
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Prayer Requests

—–update—Marie is not doing well. She is being admitted to hospice. Her doctor says the chemo is not working and she has more tumors on her liver and brain. They are keeping her heavily medicated to control the pain, so she doesn’t know anyone. He said it’s a matter of days or a couple of weeks at most. Pray God will perform a miracle and heal my cousin Marie. Pray that He will help all of us accept His will whatever it is. Especially pray for Annette and her family who are exceptionally close to Marie. Fran

—-Please pray for a situation that could break D’s heart and spirit. L

—–update—Received a call from my mom’s hospice nurse while at work yesterday. She said that my mom has not been eating much or drinking or responding well. She feels that this will be the end. Our family needs prayers. Connie

—–My two little girls and I are flying to _____ today to visit my mom and dad. Please pray for safe travels for the three of us. Meredith

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Dear Friends,

Some years ago, Ron and I were at Lake Afton, a park about twelve miles from our house. As we were sitting there beside the water reading and talking, we watched two fisherman trolling by. Farther out in the lake, there was a boat pulling a person on an inner tube.

For some reason, it made me think of a little girl that Ron and I watched try to water-ski a few years ago on this very lake. That water-skier was small, only about 8 or 9, and this obviously was her first time trying to ski. She had all the right equipment and the will to learn, but things just were not going too well for her. The little girl was doing everything right and was getting up fine, but she could not stay up.

As we watched her futile attempts, we soon realized that the fault lay with the person driving the boat. Each time this tiny girl got up, he would put the boat into full power. This caused her to become off balance. She did not have the strength to stay in the proper position against that powerful motor. She looked like a flag flapping in the wind behind the boat until she would finally lose her grip. Over and over again she tried, but eventually she gave up without success. What was said to her when she got into the boat, we could not tell; but we hoped that she was encouraged to try another day. We could only hope that she was not faulted for her inability.

Just as the man behind the wheel in that boat needed to find the right balance between too much and too little power, so do we. In our zeal for witnessing, we often try to share with others the truth that they need, but we show them too much too fast and all we accomplish is turning them away. Our motives are right, but our approach is all wrong. We do not naturally possess the wisdom to be “wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” Matt 10:16 We must have the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We must possess the wisdom that comes only from Above. James tells us, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” James 1:5

Our Great Creator is the source of all power, all wisdom. He has promised to give us the amount we need if we will ask and believe that we receive. James continues, “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.” vs 6,7

God’s Holy Word teaches that in witnessing as well in study, “precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little. Isa 28:10 As we search and share God’s message, we continuously build upon the foundation. We do not build all at once, but a little at a time. As we are building, we must make sure that Jesus is the Cornerstone in all that we share.

How vital that we don’t just give information alone. A head knowledge without a heart knowledge is useless. In fact, it is worse than useless: it can cause as much imbalance as that tiny water-skier was experiencing. How can we find that balance? Only by God’s Holy Spirit flowing through us. Jesus has assured us, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” Luke 11:9-13

Our Dear Saviour longs to impart His Spirit to us that we may bring the message He has for these last days to all around us. All we have to do is ask and believe that we receive, then act upon that belief by going forth in the strength of ” the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance.” Eph 6:10-18

Rose