Matthew 9, verse 10

Hebrews 2, verse 14

1 John 3, verses 8 through 12

Mark 11, verse 25

Ephesians 4, verse 32

Thomas Brooks - Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DHV2H581/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title

It’s a simple truth: when we give ourselves to God and accept the free gift of Grace and Salvation granted us through the blood of Jesus on the Cross, Satan will increase the intensity of his ongoing efforts to drag us back into the life of the Old Man.

I’ve been dealing with this since my last video, however many weeks it’s been. Feeling that old identification with wretchedness and unworthiness, when Jesus is sitting right here with me, breaking bread and sharing wine, the perfect shepherd never wavering in his dedication to his sheep. I cannot overcome my difficulties, but He can, and He always does.

Other creators who help build my faith and assurance:

Satan’s Little Season eschatology:

Jason Jack: https://www.youtube.com/@UCH2STZjzRvBEOcPLug_CruQ

Brother Phil: https://www.youtube.com/@UC7Dgni5SjUvFBZyQeQgLrMg

The Master’s Harvest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_EZA6BCEO1KpQOFsXXD_g

King James Version:

Chick Tracts (David W. Daniels): https://www.youtube.com/@UCJq7K6IzrYkFCLhpeLiOy7A

Truth in Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjdVbBpTK2z3OC9DsUo6NNQ

Universal Salvation:

The Total Victory of Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjlJI2QlzpEpE_fnoCk0rKQ

1 Peter 2, verse 5

Romans 8, verse 29

1 Peter 4, verse 1

James 4, verse 6

The bottom line is, we’ve been given new Life through the blood of Christ. Realizing this way down in the depths of our souls, we are inspired to present both our bodies and spirits as a living sacrifice to God, to renew our minds each and every day through a determination to conform our lives to the Son and not to the world.

At a certain point we recognize that our arrogant, puffed-up, ego-centered ideas of ourselves must be set aside, that the Old Man of flesh must die so that the New Man may be reborn. The New Man does not get caught up in taking himself (or herself) too seriously. God resists the proud, but gives His Grace to the humble.

Other creators who help build my faith and assurance:

Satan’s Little Season eschatology:

Jason Jack: https://www.youtube.com/@UCH2STZjzRvBEOcPLug_CruQ

Brother Phil: https://www.youtube.com/@UC7Dgni5SjUvFBZyQeQgLrMg

The Master’s Harvest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_EZA6BCEO1KpQOFsXXD_g

King James Version:

Chick Tracts (David W. Daniels): https://www.youtube.com/@UCJq7K6IzrYkFCLhpeLiOy7A

Truth in Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjdVbBpTK2z3OC9DsUo6NNQ

Universal Salvation:

The Total Victory of Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjlJI2QlzpEpE_fnoCk0rKQ

John 8, verse 12

John 9, verse 5

John 12, verses 35, 36 and 46

Micah 3, verses 1 through 4

Ephesians 5, verse 11

The inspired Word of the Bible equates light with God and goodness, and darkness with evil and the absence of God. We are taught to refrain from fellowship with the “unfruitful works” of darkness, and to reprove those works.

We are also taught that the Light of Jesus Christ came into this world of darkness, and that He is still here, guiding us through all of Satan’s temptations, seductions and afflictions, ensuring that we will emerge intact and edified. For us, darkness does not lead to death, but is just another feature along the Spirit-lit trail of our lives.

Other creators who help build my faith and assurance:

Satan’s Little Season eschatology:

Jason Jack: https://www.youtube.com/@UCH2STZjzRvBEOcPLug_CruQ

Brother Phil: https://www.youtube.com/@UC7Dgni5SjUvFBZyQeQgLrMg

The Master’s Harvest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_EZA6BCEO1KpQOFsXXD_g

King James Version:

Chick Tracts (David W. Daniels): https://www.youtube.com/@UCJq7K6IzrYkFCLhpeLiOy7A

Truth in Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjdVbBpTK2z3OC9DsUo6NNQ

Universal Salvation:

The Total Victory of Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjlJI2QlzpEpE_fnoCk0rKQ

Acts 12, verse 5

Romans 1, verse 9

While we may not be able to pray 24/7, 365 days a year, night and day - we are able to develop a habit of turning our inner gaze toward the Lord as much as possible. In doing so, we avail ourselves of His infinite power, love, healing and understanding, all while getting our own egos out of the way.

Every human has a deep desire to come Home to God, and to experience God as the very life within us. Unceasing prayer, while steeping in His Word, is the way.

Other creators who help build my faith and assurance:

Satan’s Little Season eschatology:

Jason Jack: https://www.youtube.com/@UCH2STZjzRvBEOcPLug_CruQ

Brother Phil: https://www.youtube.com/@UC7Dgni5SjUvFBZyQeQgLrMg

The Master’s Harvest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_EZA6BCEO1KpQOFsXXD_g

King James Version:

Chick Tracts (David W. Daniels): https://www.youtube.com/@UCJq7K6IzrYkFCLhpeLiOy7A

Truth in Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjdVbBpTK2z3OC9DsUo6NNQ

Universal Salvation:

The Total Victory of Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjlJI2QlzpEpE_fnoCk0rKQ

Isaiah 49, verse 1

Romans 8, verse 29

Psalm 139, verses 13 through 16

Jeremiah, Isaiah, Paul and David provided us vivid, poetic, deeply mystical expressions reminding us that the same majestic God who created the impossibly vast universe, is also the impossibly intimate God who knew us before he fashioned every aspect of our being before we were born. The God who knows everything about everything is also the God who is with us in our hearts, 24/7, closer than any friend or family member could ever be.

Returning to this awareness from time to time keeps us humble, and also helps us to escape the delusion that says we can make it without Him. We are utterly dependent on God from our first breath to our last, and the sooner we live in this realization, the better.

Other creators who help build my faith and assurance:

Satan’s Little Season eschatology:

Jason Jack: https://www.youtube.com/@UCH2STZjzRvBEOcPLug_CruQ

Brother Phil: https://www.youtube.com/@UC7Dgni5SjUvFBZyQeQgLrMg

The Master’s Harvest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_EZA6BCEO1KpQOFsXXD_g

King James Version:

Chick Tracts (David W. Daniels): https://www.youtube.com/@UCJq7K6IzrYkFCLhpeLiOy7A

Truth in Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjdVbBpTK2z3OC9DsUo6NNQ

Universal Salvation:

The Total Victory of Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjlJI2QlzpEpE_fnoCk0rKQ

Luke 21, verses 1 through 4

Matthew 5, verse 42

2 Corinthians 9, verse 7

The poor, destitute widow gave her everything, even though it amounted to just two mites. The rich men poured coins into the treasury, making a show of their largess. Jesus knew their hearts, and determined that the widow gave more than all the rich men taken together.

The widow’s generosity was a genuine gift to the Lord, for the glory of God. Unlike Lot, who too full advantage of Abram’s generosity in order to align with the wickedness in Sodom, the widow put God first and herself last. She, like Jesus, gave us a beautiful example of true value and true sacrifice, where the first are last and the last end up first, where the meek shall inherit the Earth.

Other creators who help build my faith and assurance:

Satan’s Little Season eschatology:

Jason Jack: https://www.youtube.com/@UCH2STZjzRvBEOcPLug_CruQ

Brother Phil: https://www.youtube.com/@UC7Dgni5SjUvFBZyQeQgLrMg

The Master’s Harvest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_EZA6BCEO1KpQOFsXXD_g

King James Version:

Chick Tracts (David W. Daniels): https://www.youtube.com/@UCJq7K6IzrYkFCLhpeLiOy7A

Truth in Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjdVbBpTK2z3OC9DsUo6NNQ

Universal Salvation:

The Total Victory of Christ: https://www.youtube.com/@UCjlJI2QlzpEpE_fnoCk0rKQ

Romans 8, verses 26 and 27

Jeremiah 23, verse 24

Psalm 90, verse 8

Like petulant children, we look right at God and do the very thing He says not to do. We do it so often, in full knowledge that God sees all, that we eventually lose track, and it becomes a way of life.

No matter how “holy” or “righteous” we may be, we tend to reserve a part of ourselves that chases after unhealthy and unholy desires, convincing ourselves that God is either too busy to pay attention to us, or that He will forgive us and we can straighten things out some other time.

There is a need to define our relationship with God, to take a stand so that we are all in with Him. No more straddling the line. No more blurry boundaries. We need full commitment. God wants self-honesty from us, and a willingness to let the Holy Spirit be our guide in all things - including the process of getting clear on what we will retain in our life, and what we will renounce.

God knows us better than we know ourselves, and He knows our most fervent prayers without us having to speak them. The important thing is to open up to Him fully, allowing ourselves to be exposed in our deepest secret places, so that the light of His love, grace and mercy will transform us.

Luke 15, verses 11 through 172 Peter 2, verses 20 through 22John 5, verse 22The freely-given Grace and Mercy shown by God when He gave us the one and only path to Salavation - comes with a responsibility. I’m not saying we can lose our Salvation. If it was genuine, then the Father loves us and operates in us no matter what - I believe that, anyway. If, however, we fall into a pattern of living life on our own terms, rather than God’s, there will be a heavy price to pay.In this talk, we read a little of what the Bible says about this. I chose to live most of my life shirking my duty toward God, and my experiences in the pig sty of life has shown me just how imperative it is to at least try to put God back in charge of everything I think and do. Tired of wallowing in the muck, anxious to serve Him in everything I do, as best I can.

Ezekiel 18, verse 28

1 Samuel 7, verses 3 and 4

Many of us have known God most of our lives, having accepted Christ at an early age - only to make choices that lead us away from God, into a spiritual wasteland where we flounder from one potential solution to another.We may follow the path of drugs and alcohol, sex and the party life. We may get sick of these things and start meditating or following some New Age path. We may be attracted to this teacher or that teacher, bouncing from one shiny object to another, year after year after year.

Truth is, even though we’ve turned our back on God, and are now working against God (whether we know it or not) - God continues to work within us through the Holy Spirit. We have chosen the hard way, so we go through much more heartbreak and trauma than if we’d just been able to humbly surrender in the first place. But it is through the trauma and heartbreak that God has prepared us for a homecoming.

No matter what choices we’ve made, no matter how deep into the mud we have descended, the Father is ready and happy to welcome us Home.

2 Corinthians 1, verse 6

2 Corinthians 4, verses 17 and 18

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been in an emotional dip the past week or two, a sort of burnout. Pretty sure I’m not the only one.

Paul, who knew more about affliction than most of us ever will (both as the dispenser and receiver), provided a teaching on the nature and purpose of affliction that, for me, is very helpful.

Hopefully we can come back to his guidance when we are in the middle of our difficulties.

Romans 13, verses 8 through 10

In the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus, the issue of making restitution for past wrongs against others comes up.

Paul, who had wronged Christians to the point of torture and death, understood that making actual restitution - repaying with money or some other means of exchange - may not always be possible. Instead, he taught a true form of restitution, which we share here.

1 John 2, verse 2

1 John 4, verse 10

John 3, verses 14 through 17

We as servants of God repent daily in order to restore our relationship with Him, to receive forgiveness for our sins, big and small.

We do this, knowing that Jesus Christ has already spilled his blood once and for all, so that we are forever welcomed Home by the Father.

We may not be worthy, but we are loved, and it turns out that God’s love is all we need.

Hebrews 12, verses 5 through 11

While the Biblical idea of punishment is usually directed toward judgment and the restoring of balance after crime and guilt have been established, there is another aspect of punishment that takes on the form of fatherly discipline or chastising.

The “Father of spirits,” as the writer of Hebrews put it, uses chastisement as a corrective along our journey of sanctification. Rather than dreading this form of discipline, which often comes with negative emotions, it’s important to see how the Father’s chastisement is evidence of His profound love for us.

This is what sanctification is all about - purifying our bad habits of behavior so that we are better prepared for the work that God has long planned for our lives.

1 Corinthians 10, verse 13

2 Peter 2, verse 9

Hebrews 2, verse 18

Hebrews 4, verse 15

Revelation 3, verse 10

The word “temptation” has been on my mind all day long, after listening to a sermon yesterday on sanctification and what we must overcome in order to walk closer and closer with the Lord.

Here, we share some thoughts that arise from some of the Bible’s wisdom around the temptation that leads us through trials and tests, entices us to do evil, and keeps us in separation from the God whose presence is everything.

Jesus, who was tempted by the devil himself for 40 days, not only endured the suffering of that experience, but passed the trials and tests with flying colors, never once falling into sin. In the first 11 verses of Matthew 4, we are given the perfect model for how to resist the devil’s temptations, and to rely on God through the everlasting Word that will never let us down.

I’d never stopped to investigate how God’s repentance works.

If we, as Christians, are to repent of our sins - to feel genuine remorse and to seek the Spirit’s help in changing our actions, thoughts and beliefs, and to seek forgiveness - what does it mean when God says that He repents of the “evil” he’d intended to bring upon a person or people?

God sees us all - Jew and Gentile - as His wayward children. He interacts with us like a father does, bringing punishment as a corrective, not as a manifestation of some twisted desire to do violence.

Suffering is most often a result of our separation from God. Through faith and perseverance, however, we learn how to remain connected with God and rely on Him for all things, so that when suffering visits us we view it as a strength, not as an affliction. We now experience God as our strength, our source for everything, including our own wellbeing, according to His will.

God is free to change his mind as He interacts with us. When we repent, He is free to repent in kind.

Musing on the question of how Jesus would respond to Islam’s migration into Christian countries in the West, the ongoing Revival in Christianity, and the examples of the Samaritans and Romans as “outsiders” contended with by the early church.

Isaiah 53, verses 7 and 8

Philip the Evangelist - not the Apostle Philip - was one of the 12 deacons chosen to administer support to widows in the early church, along with the martyr Stephen. Much of Philip’s story is told in Acts 8.

We focus on a scene where Philip is told by an angel to drop everything he’s doing, and to hit the road south out of Jerusalem, into the desert toward Gaza. Without so much as a question, he mounts up and does as he’s guided to do. The famous encounter with an Ethiopian eunuch follows, which would have major consequences not only for the eunuch - who would end up baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit as a new Christian - but for Ethiopa, where he would spread the Gospel in the land of the future Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

So, by responding to the Holy Spirit’s prompting, without knowing why he should leave the spiritually enriching gig he was involved with, Philip played a major role in presenting Jesus to the African continent, which has been fertile (and dangerous) ground for the Lord ever since.

I hear a message here for myself and for every other servant of Jesus, those of us who have come to a place where, if God isn’t at the center of it, nothing in this world satisfies. Philip the Evangelist exemplifies what it means to be reborn into a life of true meaning.

Philippians 4, verses 6 and 7

James 5, verse 16

1 Peter 3, verse 7

Is my walk with God just another escape and entertainment that allows me to avoid what’s important in life? Or is it the important thing that I always craved, all while choosing everything else besides it?

In relationship, if left to my own patterns and coping mechanisms, I will defend, rationalize, blame, criticize and condemn from the depths of my pain and hurt. If I keep God at the center of my life, and I approach Him through supplication and humbleness, I receive His Grace and Mercy, which allows me to return to a place of compassionate love for the other.

If keeping God at the center of my own life brings healing and transformation, the same must be true of keeping God at the center of relationship. Not just two of us, but three. The bond can only deepen as we confess our sins to one another and seek forgiveness, and as we give ourselves daily to the God whose intimacy is the perfect example for our togetherness.

Saul, the most feared and fearsome persecutor of the followers of The Way, was on the road to Damascus in order to arrest more Christians to take them back to Jerusalem to face the authorities. Jesus came to him, and converted Saul on the spot. For three days he was blind, tended to by Ananias, who’d received a vision from Jesus to heal Paul’s vision and bring him into the fold. Saul preached the Gospel in Damascus, then went to Jerusalem, where Barnabas vouched for him, as the other disciples did not believe the conversion to be real.

I’ve always been deeply effected by Paul’s conversion, partly because I once believed that he was an impostor who’d hijacked the Gospel and turned it into something other than what Jesus intended. As I approach the Bible with reborn eyes, I see that this couldn’t be further from the truth. Paul was an integral part of God’s vast plan of Salvation for all of humanity, spelled out from Genesis 1 through Revelation 22. His teaching is not an easy one, which is probably why he is often denigrated and/or avoided, both within and out of the modern church. There’s no sugar coating, no vacillating, no bargaining. He says we will suffer - and he also says that our suffering is our strength. No one wants to hear this, but it’s one of the keys to our walk with Christ Jesus.

2 Timothy 2, verses 8 through 15

Correction: At the start of the video I incorrectly placed the Great Commission in Matthew instead of Mark. I meant Mark.

We discuss how Jesus and Paul both supported the work of spreading the Gospel throughout the land, calling on “the elect” to set aside our fear and shame as we affirm our belief. Paul grounds us in the Word, encouraging us to “rightly divide” what we read in our living document (infused throughout by the Holy Spirit), so that we are fully equipped to deal with whatever comes our way.

We end up talking about the textual basis of the King James Bible versus all the subsequent English versions, so I apologize if this veers too far off the rails. I fly by the seat of my pants in these videos, just like I do in life.

2 Timothy 2, verses 8 through 15

Correction: At the start of the video I incorrectly placed the Great Commission in Matthew instead of Mark. I meant Mark.

We discuss how Jesus and Paul both supported the work of spreading the Gospel throughout the land, calling on “the elect” to set aside our fear and shame as we affirm our belief. Paul grounds us in the Word, encouraging us to “rightly divide” what we read in our living document (infused throughout by the Holy Spirit), so that we are fully equipped to deal with whatever comes our way.

We end up talking about the textual basis of the King James Bible versus all the subsequent English versions, so I apologize if this veers too far off the rails. I fly by the seat of my pants in these videos, just like I do in life.

Luke 5, verses 12 through 16

With leprosy as a symbol of our infirmities, which result (ultimately) from our propensity to live life separate from God, we are given three examples of an attitude that aligns with God’s purpose for our lives.

It’s an attitude of meekness and service, a willingness to empty ourselves so that God can do whatever he wills to do through us. We are told (in Numbers 12:3) that Moses was the meekest man on the face of the Earth. The man in Luke 5:12-16 showed extreme meekness in putting his face on the ground before Jesus, affirming that He could heal him if He so willed it - “not my will, dear Lord, but thine.” And Jesus, after healing the multitudes of their various infirmities, rather than revel in the glory being projected onto him, withdrew into the wilderness to pray, illustrating that all his miraculous and saving works were a result of infinite and total faith in his Father.

God is faithful to address our infirmities, but that’s not our focus. It all starts with “going into the wilderness to pray,” as Jesus showed us over and over and over again. Pray, pray and pray, leaving everything else to God.

Luke 5, verses 12 through 16

With leprosy as a symbol of our infirmities, which result (ultimately) from our propensity to live life separate from God, we are given three examples of an attitude that aligns with God’s purpose for our lives.

It’s an attitude of meekness and service, a willingness to empty ourselves so that God can do whatever he wills to do through us. We are told (in Numbers 12:3) that Moses was the meekest man on the face of the Earth. The man in Luke 5:12-16 showed extreme meekness in putting his face on the ground before Jesus, affirming that He could heal him if He so willed it - “not my will, dear Lord, but thine.” And Jesus, after healing the multitudes of their various infirmities, rather than revel in the glory being projected onto him, withdrew into the wilderness to pray, illustrating that all his miraculous and saving works were a result of infinite and total faith in his Father.

God is faithful to address our infirmities, but that’s not our focus. It all starts with “going into the wilderness to pray,” as Jesus showed us over and over and over again. Pray, pray and pray, leaving everything else to God.

Reflecting on the story of Nicodemus, the powerful and well-respected Pharisee and Sadducee in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus, who visited the Lord in the dead of night with pressing questions. Jesus’ answers to Nicodemus form a core teaching in the entire Gospel, describing what it means to be saved. The example of Nicodemus’ life, especially after this midnight meeting, is a picture of what happens when the Spirit truly lives in us - how our priorities change, and continue to change through time.

2 Timothy 3, verses 1 through 4

1 Peter 2, verses 9 and 10

Galations 3, verses 26 through 29

The Enemy has infused corruption into the world’s governments - just as he has infused corruption into the word’s people - since Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden. The answer to the never-ending assault on God’s people is not to fight the Powers and Principalities of the world, but rather, to recognize that we are citizens of the Holy Nation of God. As such, we are warriors in the spiritual war against evil. Our main weapons are the Holy Spirit, repentance, prayer and loyalty to our Lord Jesus Christ, who positions us to fulfill our role in a war that has already been won.

The trauma and deep wounds of PTSD sometimes (or often) produce high anxiety and a range of debilitating effects, leaving us simultaneously keyed up and exhausted. The Bible suggests that the presence of worry and anxiety is a sign of separation from God, or lack of faith. And it offers a remedy consisting of putting God at the center of our life through persistence in prayer. Having people in our lives who are willing to pray for us is also very important. We can’t do it alone.

Not a day goes by when we, as believers under the care and protection of our Lord, Jesus Christ, don’t witness yet another example of the Adversary’s warfare against all of humanity. Attacks of churches and synagogues. Muslim takovers of Western cities, encroaching more and more with its Sharia Law and its often violent intolerance of anyone who does not bow to its beliefs. Meanwhile, popular culture is still in the grips of Satanic ritual indoctrination, which effects believer and non-believers both.

The Good News is, the Bible has addressed this over and over again. God has already won the war. The Holy Spirit is encouraging our vigilance and sobriety, so that we as Watchmen on the Wall are able to keep an eye on the enemy’s maneuvers, ready to act according to God’s will for our lives. We are eternally safe, strong, stable and secure.

Apologies once again for the audio quality in this video. A laptop outside was maybe not the best idea, lol.

Philippians 4 verses 6 and 7

After several days of anxiety, self-doubt, insecurity and lost sleep, I finally realized it was time to lay my burden down. Figured I may as well share it with anyone out there who may need a message of inner peace from He who sent the Comforter.

No matter how hardened against the supernatural we may have become, miracles in the Bible serve as a constant reminder that the Christian life is impossible without a regular connection with God through prayer. When we are focused on our habitual ways of getting through our days, storms overwhelm us and we begin to sink. Only then do we remember Jesus on the water, reaching his hand toward us. “Oh ye of little faith” is his persistent reminder to rely on Him, so that all things are possible.

Correction: I mentioned toward the beginning of the video about living in southern Colorado. Meant to say Southern California.

The other passage I almost used here is: 2 Corinthians 1:3-7, also worth checking out if you’re in the midst of affliction.

Not sure about you, but I have several friends and loved ones who are going through agonizing loss and affliction right. Makes me reflect on the presence of suffering in my own life, and the difference it’s made to have the one true Spirit in me. Just musing about this here.

Just speaking from my own experiences, hoping I’m not the only one who has backslid and come Home again, like the Prodigal Son.