Deeper Truths for Hungry Hearts
“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. Man is often a fickle creation of God. One day we are “on fire for God.” Now I really do not understand that term too well, unless we are talking about being consumed by God’s consuming fire, “For our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:29) not too many Christians like standing that close to God they may get consumed. And then maybe the next day we are as cold as death eight days postmortem. Yet in spite of ourselves we find God still loves us and wants to have a relationship with us. What a wonderful privilege we have to have a relationship with the creator of the universe and the giver and taker of all life. I do not know about you my friend, but this excites my spirit and soul to know God wants to have a relationship with me. I hope I never get over this point. And I wondered why would God want to have a relationship with me, but then I discovered (we discover things in God not find them out) God wants to live in me, I am to be His eternal place of habitation not heaven, but our heart is to be God’s eternal place of abode. Paul tells us, “And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” (Ephesians 2:20-22)
Through the Spirit and through relationship we are to be God’s place of habitation for all times. It is no wonder God wants our heart to be holy. Who among us enjoys living in a dirty house? Well God does not want to abide in a dirty temple He wants a temple that has been purified by His consuming fire. There are many privileges (as I said) we enjoy with our relationship with God. Let us look at some of the important one. The first privilege is God permits a love and intimacy that touches our heart. In 2 Samuel we find how the LORD loved Solomon, “And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the LORD loved him.” (2 Samuel 12:24) and in 1 Kings we find where Solomon responded to God’s love, “And Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places.” (1 Kings 3:3) This is what God is looking for is us to love Him back as He loves us. Now we often think Solomon was born into an ungodly family with David’s affair with Bathsheba, but that was not the testimony of God. It is funny how we see things one way and God sees (looking at the same thing) things totally opposite. We must take care not to be fast to see things from our perspective. God reveals His ways and shares His secrets with us. In the Psalms we read, “The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed. 7He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.” (Psalms 103:6-7) God makes known His ways to all who care about His ways others are on their own. As He shares His secrets with those who think His secrets are worth the time and value of learning them. “And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do; and 19For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.” (Genesis 18:17,19) What was the value of learning God’s secrets? His life and the lives of millions of people. Lastly God (Himself) reveals Himself to us as he speaks directly to us, “With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” (Numbers 12:8) and I really like this point God appreciates our affection, “Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. 15He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. 16With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.” (Psalms 91:14-16) Did you hear verse 14, “Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.” What a relationship God wants to have with man, what a privilege and honor. What more do we need to say and do? Just submit to Him and He will take it from there.
Next month we will conclude this teaching on the knowledge of God as we look at God’s reaction to our relationship with Him.
ARTICLE REVIEW:
Let Us Pray
I would like to share some thoughts that will help us with our prayers. I think one of the greatest mysteries of God is prayer. I have told this story in the past and share it (in brief) to express my point. God took me all the way to India to teach me this lesson. God will go to great lengths to teach us the lesson we need to learn to be victorious in Him if we have a heart to be obedient and a willingness to learn. I think one of the most troubling heart conditions I see in the church today is most Christians do not have a desire to want to learn. They seems to be a lot of know-it-alls in the church today. Now I will be the first to admit I do not know everything and the things I thought I knew, well God is showing me years later truth is progressive. What I once considered to be true (and would die for) now I confess I know nothing at all. What a safe place in God. But while in India after two weeks of eating chicken, curry, and rice because of a stomach upset and diarrhea and ministering three times a day (for two hours each time) and praying for the sick in between, I was weak, drained, I had no strength within me, another safe place in God. When we are weak, then and only then is God strong. Paul learned this truth time and time again as God worked in His life and as Paul laid down his life for the Brethren. We will never have a desire to lay down our lives for anyone (even our family) unless God can first work in our lives and bring us to place of selflessness, the place of total perfection in God. At about 10:00 pm I was looking down the barrel of another plate of chicken, curry, and rice when Pastor S.J. Peter asked me to pray for a little girl who has not walked in months. To make a wonderful long story short I prayed this long, religious, and powerful prayer something like this, “Oh God please heal this little girl.” I had no words or strength to muster up a religious prayer. I saw no lightening bolts nor did the hair on the back of my neck stand up. My emotions were stilled and my spirit was down in a low place (where Jesus is) expecting nothing when the father put the little girl on the ground. When her little feet hit the ground she was not walking she was running. I have never in my life (even today) seen a girl run so fast. I never got to my chicken, curry, and rice that night a line quickly was formed and we had church. How did God do that? How does prayer work? My friend prayer is mysterious. It is beyond me and my thinking, yet another safe place in God. In Colossians Paul shares these words, “Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving; 3Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: 4That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.” (Colossians 4:2-3) And one of Christ’s greatest mysteries is prayer. There are five points on prayer I think I have learned (to some degree) over my many years that I would like to share with you. Now the word “prayer” is translated six ways in the Bible, but most often the word prayer is translated as, communion with God and does not substitute for the other. We are to let the Spirit of God teach us. If the Spirit does not give it to us then we will never really get it. The word “prayer” is not in the Gospel or Epistles of John, but “prayer” is tied into john’s life more then the other disciples. It seemed there was a greater quality of love in John’s life. One cannot really be involved in prayer if there is no love in our lives. Understanding these previous thoughts are critical for our understanding of knowing God and His ways through “prayer.”
The first of the five points is; we learn to pray by praying. How can we expect God to answer our prayers if we never pray? I am reminded of the story of the man who prayed, “God bless the work of my hands” and God replied, “Do something.” This is the same with prayer. God is waiting for us to do our part so He can do His part. God does not engage in our lives to do what He wants to see happen, in anything. We must start the process when dealing with the things of God. We sing the Vineyard song, “Change My Heart Oh Lord,” well God is waiting for us to do the things required to allow a change of heart. God does not have a magic wand to bonk us over the head or heavenly angel dust to sprinkle over us that magically changes us. Oh no my friend change in God is deliberate and difficult. Those who think change in God happens effortlessly have been deceived by the major denominational religions of the day. Change in God will put to death our fleshly carnal desires and ways. Change in God, becoming the new creature Paul talks about in 2 Corinthians 5:17, will require us to be obedient and submissive to God and some men. Our selfish nature adamantly rejects God and His ways and must be put to death by us. For this to happen we must pray. Please know we do not have to pray, we really do not. But if we do not pray we will not get very far with God. If we have a hunger in us to, “draw nigh (near) to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” (James 4:8) then we must pray. Prayer is how we “draw nigh” to God and how He “draws nigh” to us.
The second point is; we cannot change God’s mind with prayer. Most Christians would rather pray for hours then give one minute of obedience. We think if we do not like God’s answer we can pray and our earnest heartfelt prayer will change His mind, probably not. God is sovereign and He has plans for our lives. Why would we want to twist God’s arm to get what we want? We seek the understanding of all things, but when we find something we do not like or understand we push for a different understanding and most often we come up with a misunderstanding. Understanding got Eve in a lot of trouble. We do not need to know everything in prayer, we need to rest in prayer. Our understanding in prayer comes from God not by figuring things out. In prayer we really do not know much. We often think we know that is why we pray and pray with the gimmies so much, but the Spirit knows and the Spirit who knows will help us who do not know much. In prayer the goal is not to know what God knows, but to know God. If we can know God then He can tell us what we need to know. To do this and flow in the will of God in prayer we must lay down our ways and will to take up His ways and will, we must lay aside our thoughts and take up His thoughts.
The third point is; prayer helps us to adjust our heart and thinking to God’s will. God knows what we want before we even ask, right? Jesus said, “Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” (Matthew 6:6) We many times in prayer insert the word “want” for the words “ye have need of.” There is a big difference between a want and a need. Anyway it is God who gets to say what we are in need of not us. Prayer helps us to see things from God’s perspective. God knows (He made us so) we are beings that need to talk. In prayer it is not God needs to know, but we need to tell Him. Please remember prayer is rarely a time to receive something from God. There is a divine spiritual principle at work here, what we want we must give that away. If we want God to bless us we must ask God to bless others. Remember, God already knows what you need you do not need to ask Him, but He is waiting to see if you are willing to spend the faith He speaks to you on yourself or others. Did you know we are to invest the faith God gives us in others? Will we be selfish or selfless like Jesus? And still a deeper thought, God is trying to teach us now how He thinks so that we will be able to function and operate with Him now, but more in our next life with Him. In prayer God is training us. We ask God for something and He says no. Okay, fine. After we stop crying and bellyaching, we learn the next time we come to this cross road we will not have to ask we already know God’s heart in this matter. Again and again different issue after issue God is teaching us how He operates and thinks, what He wants, what His will is through our prayers.
The fourth point of five; obedience to God is never substituted by prayer. Charles Haun told the sad story of a lady who God would wake at night to pray for people and things. God is good at disturbing us at the most inopportune time. You think not? Well serve Him long enough and He will see what you are really made of. One night God woke up this lady (it was very late) to pray for a missionary in Peru. She got out of her bed, went over to the chair in the corner, knelt down, and began to pray. After maybe one hour she went back to bed. A little later God woke her again. This time she got out of her bed and knelt by the bed. After maybe 30 minutes she slipped back beneath the warm blankets. A third time God woke this lady up to pray for the missionary, but this time she did not get out of bed. She just laid there all warm and cozy in her bed praying a few minutes then drifted off back to sleep. God never tried waking her again. About three months later the word came to her church that a missionary had died. The Holy Spirit pricked her heart letting her know it was this missionary she was to pray for the night she slept. A tough lesson indeed it cost someone else their life. There is always a cost for our disobedience and most times others bear that cost. Prayer is never substituted for obedience. Enough said about that point.
And the fifth and final point, Jesus always prayed because He wanted to maintain contact with His Father, not to do or get things. Prayer is communion with God not taking with God. Our best prayers have no words, just groaning. Never forget Jesus was not given “a name above all names” because He was God’s Son, oh no my friend but because, “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Philippians 2:8) We must never forget Jesus gets everything from the Father. He does not do or say anything of Himself, only those things He sees the Father doing and what His Father would be saying. Prayer is something alone, between us and God. Prayer is not wordiness, nor must it be loud. God is not hard of hearing. He knows our heart’s cry and groans better than our native tongue. Prayer cannot be formed or read, it must be natural, it must be something of the Spirit, it must be spontaneous. Prayer reveals God’s nature and heart to us. There are three patterns of prayer: duty prayer (praying over food, for people, and etc.), a prayer life (spending time alone with God where we stop living our life long enough to pray), and what God is looking for in prayer, a life of prayer (where our life becomes a prayer of God). God’s goal in prayer is not to give us things, but to be able to bring us into righteous living, where all we do is righteous. Our lives become righteous and automatic as breathing, everything we do is righteous, every thought and action is righteous just like Jesus’ life. Is not God’s grand objective in our lives to conform us into the character and image of His precious Son Jesus Christ? Yes of course, well how will He do this? What tool will he use to show us how he operates and functions? What tool will He use to show us our selfish and self-seeking heart condition? Prayer! God must be able to get us over our “give me things” thinking so that He can take us deeper into prayer. I believe we have only scratched the surface of prayer and in our next lives God will open up so much more about prayer to us. But until then let us pray.
Written by David Stahl
THOUGHTS FROM KAREN:
Don’t Be Led Astray
Personally, I think the talents and gifts we have are for our occasional amusement and not to be taken to the extreme by hoarding every waking moment of our time allotted.
Dave and I went to a fellowship meeting at our friends church where the talent of the congregation was on display. It was a fun evening and we greatly enjoyed ourselves. One particular young man who graced us with a few tunes on the piano mentioned that he wished to continue his piano playing at such and such artsy school. I truly hope and pray that the young man is rooted and grounded in the real world and certainly grounded in Jesus Christ, if not he will be led astray by his own musical talent. Paul in Galatians admonishes us, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Galatians 6:7-8). So is it wrong to indulge in these fleshly hobbies: art, music, singing, dancing, sports, etc? Let me put it this way; if you spend more time on your gift, talent, or hobby then you do reading your Bible and praying well . . . guess what?? I guess you’re wrong and over into idolatry. Folks we’ll have an eternity to “do things” our time here on earth is for learning about God and His ways, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of GOD, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto GOD, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable, and perfect will of GOD.” (Romans 12: 1-2). Our carnal flesh cries out to be entertained, coddled, indulged, busy, and even glorified at every turn. Let us endeavor to keep things in God’s perspective. It’s too easy to go over into idolatry and be led astray by our very own talents, gifts, or hobbies. Jesus himself said, “Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s; the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8: 34-36) Either we will serve God or we serve ourselves. So was that young man wrong for playing the piano? If his parents allow that to take him out of God you betcha. This same gift, talent, or hobby will quickly go from being a blessing to others that hear him, to a curse to himself. God is to get glory in our lives. It’s not about us. It’s about Him, “so for men to search their own glory is not glory.” (Proverbs 25:27)
Let us look well to our own lives and examine how much time do we spend with God and how much time doing other things? Let’s be truthful there are some things we do that are just DUMB and there are even some church things we do can take us out of God! Go figure! It’s up to us God won’t stop us. He’s waiting for us in our prayer closet and waiting to enlighten the written word of God to us – got the time???
Written by Karen Stahl
NEEDS NOT WANTS:
1. In Silistra, Bulgaria Pastor(s) Niki Marsov and Emil Nedelchev. Times are troubled in Bulgaria and need much prayer.
2. Constanta, Romania Pastor George Ritisan at Lighthouse Church, and Ciprian Bozdod at the Mission Bible School. They too are expanding making more room for God and ministry to Eastern Europe, Turkey, and Asia.
3. In Suceava, Romania Pastors Nicu and Pastor Marcel at St. Andrews Church.
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. Pastor Metin Mintaz and the 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 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.
FUTURE SCHEDULE:
October: Local ministry
November: Okinawa, Japan
December: 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:
Ministry E-mail: dstahl@beholdinghisglory.com
Personal E-mail: mtnebo@hotmail.com
Online:
Beholding His Glory Website
Beholding His Glory Blog
The AuthorHouse 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.
We are projecting to use the royalties for: our maternity clinic in Aveile, Nigeria, radio station in Katmandu, Nepal, TB clinics in Ethiopia, and Lord willing the Bible Schools in Kenya, Rwanda, and the Congo, and to help publish more books. We have five more books at different stages of production. 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. The cost is great, but the cost for not supporting to others is even greater. And remember, all donations are tax deductible.
