Waiting on God – His Characteristics 

January 2020 • Volume XVIII Number 05

”But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. “ (2 Corinthians 3:18)

THOUGHTS FOR CONSIDERATION:

Greetings again my Brethren.  Well Happy New Year.  With each passing year I think this world cannot get crazier, but with each coming year I say to myself, “I cannot believe what happened last year.”  I am glad our life is not found in the world or in those who are in the world, but hidden in Christ Jesus.  Peter tells us, “But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.”  (1 Peter 3:4)  The older I get the more I see there are so many things in God “hidden” a mystery to man.  The things I would die for now well . . . . I am not so sure I understand all of the truth moving in them and it shuts my mouth to what I would think and say.  Indeed spiritual growth (even painful) is a “great price.”

Let us get back to the LORD’s Call.  This month we will continue to look at principles contained in Revelation 3:20-21. Here are these verses, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.²¹ To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.”  (Revelation 3:20-21) What we would like to focus on this month is “my voice”and look at the spiritual principle of recognition.  It is critical we respond to God when He speaks to us even if we are wrong in our approach our response is a recognition of God speaking to us.  We always want to be right, well this too is God’s intention for us, but for the truth to be known seldom are we right even when God speaks.  Being right is not as important as recognizing God speaking.  I know this will ruffle some feathers, but if we are always right then who needs God? It is when we recognize God we then can grow spiritually by receiving revelation and having an opportunity to move in obedience to God and not when we are right. So many times we hear voices and question is that God, but we learn God’s voice when we recognize it. Now at first this may be trial and error as with Samuel when God spoke to him as a child, but as Samuel learned to discern or recognize the voice of the LORD as he matured and once he put the experience of God speaking. By way of reinforcement let us look at this story in 1 Samuel 3:1-8. “And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision. ²  And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see; ³And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep; ⁴ That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I. ⁵ And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down. ⁶ And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again. ⁷  Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him. ⁸ And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child. ⁹ Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. ¹⁰ And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.  (1 Samuel 3:1-10)  In verses 1 and 2 we see some things moving, “no open vision” and “his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see;” Please notice the reference to sight here.  I am not sure if it was a loss of spiritual sight on Eli’s part or his physical sight.  In verse 3 “the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD”  loss of light, loss of vision, loss of sight.  Then in  verse 4 God speaks.  This is typical when there is loss of vision and light God speaks. In verse 5 Samuel hears a voice (recognition), but runs to and responds to Eli. Eli says, “I called not; lie down again.” Twice more this happens.  Now most people who see this as Samuel missing it in God, but not so.  Here God was teaching Samuel to hear His voice.  Funny how we learn things that are repeated again and again. Eli finally caught on and told Samuel, “Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth.”  So God speaks a fourth  time to Samuel and now He has got it for his life time.  He now knows the voice of the LORD, he has recognized it and now can move in obedience. Unless we can hear the LORD’s voice (that still small voice in our spirit) we will never be able to be obedient.     

         Next month we will continue on with more spiritual principles contained in verses found in the Book of Revelation as we look at our response. Do you hear Him calling?  Please know God is calling. Walter Beuttler said if you build God a temple He will inhabit it. Have  you built God a temple?  If you do He will abide and wait for you.

Written by David Stahl 

ARTICLE REVIEW:

                    The Unseen God                                                                                  

The Book of Esther is amazing in a number of respects.  One of them is that the name of “God” is not mentioned once.  At the same time the book is saturated with God.  Just as the word “prayer” does not appear in the Gospel of John nor in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd John, but prayer was the heart and soul of John and his writings.  This also suggests to us that even the events in our own lives may be saturated and controlled by God, even our so called troubles.  When we speak of the power of divine providencewhich is the ability of God to make all events, whatever transpires in our lives, even the troublesome things that come our way to fulfill His purpose.  In case I have made this too complicated, I am speaking of the ability of God to make all events fulfill His purpose. This is the message of the Book of Esther and the entire Bible.  Another thing that is very conspicuous in Esther is namely God, as it were, hiding His face from His people. Yet, while He hides His face, He is still interested in them, and works in the shadows of events, unseen, unrecognized, but ever working on behalf of His people as the unseen God.  This is also true for us.  Many times shadows flip over our lives like a cloud and yet God is in those very shadows still at work on our behalf to fulfill His purpose.  In the Book of Deuteronomy Moses writes of God’s words to man, “I will surely hide My face in that day for all the evils which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned to other gods.”  (Deuteronomy 31:18)God’s people had disobeyed and disregarded His laws until finally God had to hide His face, as it were, and take them into the captivity.  Even in captivity God was still actively preserving His people even though all that time His face was turned away from them.  Have we had times in our lives when we think God has hidden His face from us?  At times even when our loyal friends seemingly have turned their back on us?  Fear not God has not turned His back or hidden His face from us we just cannot see or feel (we must not walk by feelings) Him at times.  Now our friends (especially our Christian friends) will (when things do not go their way, fit their agenda, or get offended) turn their backs on us, but God never. I have seen it time and time again and I have felt the pain and anguish in my soul, you would think I would be use to it, but no I guess I am an eternal optimist and often confuse the word friend (maybe because I am hoping) when in reality I am just an acquaintance. Consider Zechariah.  He was born in the Babylonian captivity.  His name means, “Our God Remembers.”  Apparently Zechariah’s parents kept their faith during the Babylonian captivity while the vast majority of the people were satisfied in Babylon.  They adjusted to its culture.  They did not want and did not return to Jerusalem at the end of the captivity.  Most of them stayed in Babylon, save Zechariah’s parents, who kept their faith.  The parents of Zechariah named their boy, “Our God Remembers.”  This was true because God did remember His people in the captivity.  He raised up prophets like Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and a deliverer in Cyrus.  Though His face, as it were, looked away from them still He was working and at work with His hands on their behalf.  In other words God was standing in the shadows unnoticed, unseen, yet still at work on behalf of His people, so too in our lives. Did you know God employs the most ordinary means to accomplish His purpose.  This is one of the great things of the Book of Esther.  Have you ever noticed how the power of God is at times exercised in the most trifling, insignificant circumstances?

         Let us look at Esther 1:12, “But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him.”  (Esther 1:12) The king had a sense of vanity.  He wanted to show his wife off.  She was pretty, so he asked her to come and display herself so he could say “here is the queen,” but the queen refused. This was the work of God.  What queen (or most women) would not be glad to display her attire and her beauty before thousands of princes.  This would be the logical or normal thing.  The unseen God in His power and providence caused the queen to refuse the invitation.  She refused the command of the king to provoke the wrath of the king so a break would come between the king and the queen.  Here God is using the wrath of the king to bring about the fulfillment of His purpose.  God often uses wrath in the fulfilling of His purpose for our lives, oh no you do not think so then read the Bible. In Psalms we read, “Surely the wrath of man shall praise You.” (Psalms 76:10)  The unseen God can even use the wrath of man to bring glory to Him. But here Ahasuerus is angry with his queen.  She refused and as a consequence was deposed.  This was all in the providence of God.  God in the power of His providence can remove people from the highest position, if need be, to achieve His purpose.  Think not the rulers of today are in power because of what they have done or did not do, but God has put them in power for His purposes as a vessel of either honor or dishonor.  We can think here of King Saul, “The Lord has sought Him a man after His own heart.” (1 Samuel 13:14) And God took the kingdom from him and deposed Saul.  Do you remember Judas where it says, “And his bishopric let another take?”  God removes people from positions at all levels.  In regards to Solomon, “I will rend the kingdom out of his hands,” (1 Kings 11:11) and the kingdom became divided.  We would be amazed if we could see all that the unseen God is doing in the world when we think people are doing it.  The unseen God likes using the poor and broken hearted, He likes to raise up the down trodden, how else will the meek inherit the earth? The unseen God takes those who have nothing, the despised, the rejected, the ignored, and takes them up from the dunghill and sets them among princes and kings. In 1 Samuel we see how the unseen God cares for the poor, “He raised up the poor out of the dust, and lifted up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s and He has set the world upon them.” (1 Samuel 2:8) while at the same time the unseen God also reaches up to the princes and kings and brings them down.  As we read in the Psalms, “None can stay His hand and say, What do You?  For power belongs to the Lord.” (Psalms 62:11) The unseen God is doing all of this while no one is watching.  The unseen God made a way for Esther (and He will make a way for us) to be on the throne and used her as a mighty instrument.  He used the king’s wrath, sleepless night, and the beautiful timing in all sorts of incidents to achieve His purpose in Esther’s life.  God was stepping along on all sorts of steppingstones, small things and great things, working secretly, unknown, unseen.  God placed His stones of providential circumstances, great and small, small and great, in the proper timing, and moved the little orphan girl up to the throne.  This was a mighty display of the unseen God’s power of divine providence.  I would assume that the object of this panorama is to give us a greater faith and confidence in the sovereignty and power of divine providence so that we would not despise small things.  Big doors often swing on small and unnoticed hinges, so too the least recognized and most inconspicuous incidents in our lives contribute to God’s purpose for us and become steppingstones for God in the accomplishment of His purpose. As we consider the events in Esther we are over awed by God’s power and providence in her life, yet God loves not Esther more than us.  We must be able to recognize the unseen God’s hand in the circumstances of our lives, even as it is written that we might be conformed unto the image of his Son. The Book of Esther gives us a great awe of God’s power, wisdom, and a need for our submission even during the most troublesome circumstances knowing that all things that touch our lives are stepping stones for God in the accomplishment of His purpose, however unknown that might be. We must allow the unseen God to teach us to be confident, to keep faith knowing that in all our turbulence we can be still in our heart and spirit knowing that in reality He is a seen God for all the world to see.  Written by David Stahl

THOUGHTS FROM KAREN:                              

Keep Your Heart 

I just love the book of Proverbs. Nugget after nugget of truth and wisdom, ripe for the picking, any time of the day or night, and any time in our lives. One such nugget is, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” (Proverbs 4:23). If you ever want to see what’s really in your heart go to the DMV or any ID card facility where you must endure: “hurry up and wait” and burnt out employees who could give a flying flip about — dare I say it — customer service. GOD who is more than willing to move on our behalf, will have a much harder time working on our behalf if we act like jerks. As frustrating as the DMV, an ID card facility, a doctor’s offices, etc.etc. are, we as Christians are to (as hard as it is) keep a good attitude. How can we minister life to someone when we’re all frustrated and ready to explode? If we go “high and to the right” out of perceived wrongs and frustration how dwells the love of GOD in us? How can we possibly witness to someone after we blast them or really want to blast them!  Do you really think they’re going to care what you say about GOD’S love for them?  Now there are times when being nice and polite won’t work and we have to step it up a notch, be firm and direct asking questions to get truthful answers now this is good, true, and keeping in what God expects of us. After a recent trip to ID card facility on base I was so proud of Dave for keeping and maintaining a Christian attitude in the face of hellish adversity. Now to be honest Dave can get emotional in the face of stupidly and laziness. The first thing out of the clerks mouth was, “why are you here early?” I kid you not. It went steadily downhill from there, quick, real quick. Well as you can imaging we didn’t get an ID card because of A-B-C and X-Y-Z, etc. etc. Sigh……  If they had employees that cared about customer service and efficiency the shock would indeed be overwhelming! So next month we get to try this again. But regardless how it turns out, we must still maintain a Christian attitude. GOD Commands it and GOD expects it. (see 2 Corinthians 12:9) On the flip side after a recent overseas flight (on Turkish Air) I was hankering for a banana (they help me with leg cramps) so I asked the flight attendant about 3/4 of the way through a 10 hour flight for a banana, but she kindly said, “no they didn’t carry them.”  Dave also asked for the same thing. Oh well no bananas. What do you think we received at the end of the flight from the flight attendant? Two bananas! Another flight attendant brought them for their lunch.  Praise the LORD!  Like manna from heaven. Gratefully accepted as we still had a three hour drive to the mission school before we could rest. It pays to keep our attitude/heart. Victor Frankl said it well, “Everything can be taken from us but one thing- the last of the human freedoms – to choose ones attitude in any given circumstance.” Let’s make GOD’S job easy and keep our heart and attitude right. Then maybe The Almighty will move on our behalf despite burnt out employees. GOD Bless and read and study your Bible.

Written by Karen Stahl

NEEDS NO WANTS:

1. In Dobrich, Bulgaria Pastor Niki Marsov and in SilistraPastor(s) Yanko, Marcho, and Emil. Times are troubled in Bulgaria much prayer and support is needed. 
2. Constanta, Romania Pastors Luke and Jacob at Bethel Church and Ian at the Romanian Center for Cross-cultural Studies Bible School.
3. In Suceava, Romania Pastors Nicu at St. Andrews Church. They are still standing by God’s grace.
4. Pastor Joseph Mutua in Nairobi, Kenya needs your prayer and financial support.
5. Pastor Mike Olufemi in Aveile,Nigeria. He needs our prayers and support to be a light in great darkness. 
6. Pastor S. J. Peter, Founder of DAWN Ministries in Hyderabad and Pastor Wilson and his son Pastor Julian in Sankaraguptham, India.
7. Dan, Cathy, and members of Uskudar Son Buyruk Kilisesi in Istanbul, Turkey.
8. Pastor Elieti Msangi in Dar Es Salaam and Pastors Isreal Mutaitina and John Balone   in Bukoba, Tanzania.
9. Monthly financial support for Vivian’s Maternity and Child Care Clinic project in Aviele, Nigeria
10. Pastor Tek Dahl at Gethsemane, Church (his church) and their radio station “Good News 105.1 FM” in Kathmandu, Nepal. 
11.  Bishop John, Samuel Kamanzi (from the Congo), and, Emmanuel Ndolimana in Ruhengeli,Rwanda.NEXT HOME GROUP MEETING:

14 January 2020 & 28 January  2020 at 7:00 pm

At 232 Everett Drive

Sneads Ferry, NC  28460

7:00 pm please RSVP

Home:  (910) 741-0489

NEXT SERVICES FOR THE ROCK FELLOWSHIP AT SNEADS FERRY

5January 20 232 Everett Drive, Sneads Ferry NC  in Chadwick shores 11:00 am

12 January 20 232 Everett Drive, Sneads Ferry NC  in Chadwick shores 11:00 am

19  January 20 232 Everett Drive, Sneads Ferry NC  in Chadwick shores 11:00 am

26 January 20 232 Everett Drive, Sneads Ferry NC  in Chadwick shores 11:00 am

POCs are Freddy Everett (910) 545-7918 or David Stahl (910) 382-9287

FUTURE SCHEDULE:

January: Local Ministry

February: Local Ministry

March: Local Ministry

I  am still available to share what God has given me at churches and/or home groups.  If God moves on your heart to  support BHG or other ministries we  personally know we would be honored to serve as a go between. Remember, if we want a blessing from God the spiritual principle is we must bless others.  Remember, God is to you what you are to God.    

CONTACT INFORMATION: 

Address: 

David and Karen Stahl

232 Everett Drive

Sneads Ferry, NC  28460

Phone:

Home:    (910) 741-0489

Mobile:  (910) 382-9287

FAX:     (910) 741-0489

 

Email:

dstahl@beholdinghisglory.com

Website:

www.www.beholdinghisglory.com/

Blog:

http://bhisglory.blogspot.com/

NEW OFFER

Booklets on Spiritual Authority,  Spiritual Leadership, Prayer, Body of Christ, and Righteous Living the Four Anchors of God are now available by contacting us and requesting one.  You can see them on our home page.  Get one now.

The Author House link below will lead you to our latest book, “Thoughts for Consideration.” Just copy it into your web browser and return. Also you can purchase two of our other books “Adventures with God.” and “God Still Performs Miracles: A Book of Personal Encouragement.” 

 http://www.authorhouse.com/AuthorCenter/Protected/BookHome.aspx?bookID=61464

 Please take a minute and take a look, they all make for a great encouraging gift, giving hope and sharing God’s love through a deeper teaching that someone can enjoy again and again.  All of our books can be purchased at all book stores like Barnes and Nobles, Borders, Book-A-Million, and etc., any Christian Book Store that orders, and all book ordering on-line companies like Amazon.com. Or if you are like me from the old school just contact us, we will let you know the price and then we  will mail it out to your home address. Postage and handling is on a case by case basis.   

If you know someone you think would enjoy receiving this newsletter or if you receive this newsletter and do not wish to please let me know.  Contributions to this ministry is always appreciated and  needed the more time continues. Please feel free to contact us with the above information.