It is so easy to evaluate things by sight.

     After all, there it is.  Undeniable.  You can see it as plain as day.  Are you praying about it according to what you see?  Or are you praying about what you see according to the Word of God?

     Why did He ask us to walk by faith?  Does that mean we ignore what we see?  What we know?

     Soldier of The Cross,  there is no thrill like that of following the Lord.  As the song says, He leads us through the fire and through the flood.  He knows the beginning from the end.  After all, wasn't He in the furnace with the three Hebrew children?

     The horizon of the faith adventure is an always expanding one. 

     If He says He can only be known by faith, we must be available to pray according to His infinite Love and creativity, rather than limit Him to our concept of a resolution.

     Ask Him to lead in this area.    He is breathtakingly responsive.
    Ask Him today.
   Aloud.

      He did not rescue you to make you feel in need of constant rescue.

     Yes, the Cross is costly to the flesh, but Life in Christ is intended to be free of things that plague many.

     I need to tell the Lord what He means to me.  I need to tell Him what I love about Him and how much I need Him.  It puts things in perspective.

     It is His intent that we should know Him and walk with Him.  After all, He has expressed His longing for our attention, and it is personal.

     There is tremendous joy in knowing and serving Him.  The problem comes when the Christian wants Him to be  co-pilot instead of pilot. 

     He is a God of great blessing.

     Take up The Cross and  follow.

     It is possible to come under the influence of the Holy Spirit without being converted.

     I have often seen this with the children of missionaries or preachers.  The children are raised in an environment that is more than just the Christian culture.  Particularly when parents are really sold out, there has to be a presence of the Lord in the home that is real, and genuinely impacts the children.  Often, they are touched and respond to altar calls or other invitations.  Yet when the years pass, it seems that they have shed the Christian skin and have rejected the truths of their childhood. 

     Only the Lord knows what is going on.   There certainly are cases where the person is a prodigal.  When that is the case,  he or she will readily say that the experience with the Lord was real, but there was a stepping away from Him.  Other times, there are people who seem to be moved, seem to want the Lord, but just never taste Lordship because they have never really met Him.

        I am one who believes that if there is no Lordship, there is no Lord.   On the other hand, it is not up to us to read the heart.  The Lord does not do everything in the same order with all of His children.

     What are we to do?  Pray and love.  Ask for wisdom.  Then pray and love more.

     We must be glad when we come to the House of The Lord.

     Of course, the House of The Lord is not a building, but is rather, the Body of Christ.  Nevertheless, it is critical to prepare when we come together for the Sunday meeting.

     We come together on Sunday because it is the first day of the week.  Each time there is a meeting of the assembly, there must be a preparation of heart.  Children must be trained that something special happening, and it is critical that there be no playing or running in the meeting place.   When the Lord's Supper is served, children should not participate unless they have made a definitive and credible profession of faith.  It is not ok to give them the bread and drink just because they are little and want it. 

     Before the meeting, pray as a family.  It can be done in the parking lot, and it gives the children a sense of what this is about.

     Then, determine to love.    Greet those who are unfamiliar and make sure you do not linger with best friends because of comfort.  Those whom you do not know need your attention.

     Soldier of The Cross, The assembly of The Body of Christ means that He is present, according to the Word of God.

     Prepare in prayer. 

     Advance in obedience.

     Can it really be true?

     Is it possible that we are called to take up His agenda before fixing the personal things that seem so urgent?  What is the real meaning of the well-known verse?

     God has never wasted words.  He has never made a feeble calling, nor has He asked of us something that is unnecessary.  In fact He leads us to the richest pastures, leads us to the most still waters as He leads us directly through the middle of this life's most intense issues.

     God's priorities are the only protected path through this life.  He is interested in teaching His Own to invest in eternity.  To love unconditionally.  To trust Him.  To live free from anxiety.  To be sighted.  To consider others first.

     Soldier of The Cross, if He says you should first seek The Kingdom,  it must be the best thing for you.  Take the matter to Him in prayer.  Allow the Indwelling Holy Spirit to reveal what it means.  Memorize the verse along with surrounding verses.

        Lord, please teach me to live for you and you alone.  I lift up my life to you
        and ask that you would use me in any way that honors you.  I want the spend
        my thought,  time and energy building what is eternal.  Please renew my vision
        for the Body of Christ.  I ask that all that I am and have would be used to reveal 
        you.  I know that my understanding is limited,  but I am asking you to change my
        heart and mind to line up with yours.

  A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.    
                                Proverbs 17:17

     There are many who leave relationships because things just get unpleasant.  Or because they can't tolerate anything that does not benefit them or feel good.  Among believers, friendship is more than having things in common and enjoying each other.

     We love because of who we are in Him, not because of anything we get back from the other person.  That is how He has loved us and that is what He is doing in the deepest parts of our hearts.  

     The same supernatural work is that work which prevents bitterness or resentment when friendship is rejected or used against you.  Soldier of The Cross,  so many are tumbling through the days, carrying the burden of self-protection.

     We can sing” Great is Thy Faithfulness".
     Hallelujah!

     Have you made yourself available today?

     This can only happen in prayer.

     There is a line that must be crossed in order to know the Lord.   Although the Bible teaches that some are saved as by fire, I believe that means that at the last minute, one can be saved.  I also believe God's Word teaches there when there is no Lordship, there is no Lord.

     Lordship means that there has been a decision to submit to the Lover of Your Soul.  You have made yourself available to learn Him, to know Him to follow Him and to reflect Him.  Soldier of The Cross, there is nothing that will last unless it is in His eternal economy and Plan. 

     Lordship means that there is a bottom line assumption and acceptance that He and He alone knows best.

     Lordship means giving your life for others.

     Lordship means stretching beyond comfort.

     Soldier of the Cross, are you alive unto Christ, or is there anything else?  If you have been touched by Him, you know nothing compares.

     The sweetness of agreeing with God is experienced when telling Him so in prayer.
     Aloud.  There is nothing else.  There is no one else.

     If asked, do you know the purpose of your life?

     Is it to know the Lord?

     You are far more transparent than you realize.  You can have all the right reasons, and you can have all the right teaching.  but you do not have the right heart position before the Lord, those observing you will not be able to see Him.

     Soldier of The Cross,  you must talk to Him about this matter, and it must be aloud.

     Every day, every hour and every minute are all about the  Bottom Line.

     
    

     Soldier, do not miss the moment.

     It is striking that Paul's prison epistles do not reflect Paul's preoccupation with his own situation.  His heart is clearly for the things that are happening according to God's Word.

     Soldier of The Cross, the one before you needs to have you look into his or her eyes, and listen or understand.  Love should not undulate because of circumstances.

     You have not been beaten.  You have been left for dead, nor are you in coupling chains.    The issue is, pay complete attention to what is happening.

   
     Many miss the opportunity to recognize the Lord, minister to others, see answers to prayer and receive love, just because they are preoccupied with some emotional issue that swirls around circumstances.


     Stand on God's Word.

     I have never met anyone who regretted leaning on the Lord.

     Soldier of The Cross, have you come to the place of accepting what He wants over your own ambitions?

     You must agree with  God.  Then, He is able to lead you.


     The tug is hard.  The temptation is great.  But, look at The Lover of Your Soul and agree with Him.  Does it seem strange?  Unlike similar situations?    That is how He works.

     Soldier, you see only a tiny sliver.  He not only sees all, but He sees the beginning from the end.

     Boldly approach the Throne of Grace and declare your availability.  He will make Himself implicitly clear.  He who holds the universe in place is more than able to communicate with you. He will not ignore you and He has never been sneaky with regard to response.

      Tell Him.  Aloud.  Today.