Dear
Present Truth Magazine Subscriber:
We
are glad to have you as a subscriber to our Present Truth Magazine. Below
you will find articles from individual authors who have written for our
magazine. Our prayer for all who
receive read these articles is that the Lord "...may give to you the
Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may
know what is the hope of His calling, and what are the riches of the glory of
His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:17-18).
America's
Standard Bearers
by A. Wilson Phillips
In America, society sets the
standard for what is morally right or wrong. Our constitution gives
every person the civil right to live according to the dictates of
his/her conscience except, of course, when the person’s actions violate
the law. When conflicts arise over interpretation of the laws, these
matters are debated in our courts. Therefore, the judges become the
standard bearers according to their conscience or moral compass.
Moral standards vary in the
different city, county, state, and federal courts because of the judges’
diverse interpretations and applications of the laws. Ultimately, the
United States Supreme Court is the highest moral authority of our land.
This is the American way of justice.
Every individual’s conscience
is educated as to what is legally, morally, and ethically right. Our
latest presidential election reveals the deep division that exists
concerning political and social issues. So how can we find common ground
to unite us as Americans?
Both the “conservatives” and
“liberals” believe that the country is engaged in a “culture war,” and
neither side wants to lose. Of course, this weakens us as a nation—at a
time when we are endeavoring to preach democracy and lead other nations
into democratic forms of government that will give their people freedom
and civil rights. So, what is our hope, and where does the hope of our
nation lie?
As an American citizen who
votes, pays taxes, prays for our leaders, and lives below the “radar
screen” of political and spiritual leaders of the American landscape, I
believe there is a bright future for God’s covenant people who
understand the sovereign rule of the kingdom of God.
American citizens who have a
spiritual connection with the God of the Bible are a part of “a nation
within a nation” (1 Pet. 2:9). They are a spiritual race of “twice-born”
people by the will of God. They were once a people in spiritual darkness
until they received the very life of the Creator of the universe. This
life came through Jesus Christ.
In Him is life,
and the life is the light of men. This light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness does not comprehend it” (John 1:4-5).
One of the difficulties in
America is that some of the people of light still have some darkness in
their lives. Jesus warned about this in a parable:
No one, when he
has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a
lampstand, that those who come in may see the light. The lamp of the
body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also
is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of
darkness. Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not
darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part
dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright
shining of a lamp gives you light (Luke 11:33-36).
When God imparts His life and
light into an individual’s soul, that person must begin to seek first
the kingdom of God and His cause on planet earth. Father God’s Son, the
firstborn Son of the new creation, is the pattern for all of us to
follow: He “grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and
men” (Luke 2:52). Jesus Christ of Nazareth knew by revelation that
He was the Son of Man. He lived in submission to the will of our Father
God and said, “My Father is greater than I” (John 14:28).
Jesus taught and
demonstrated the moral standard for all of His brothers and sisters to
live by. He said that He did not come to destroy the Law or the
writings of Israel’s prophets but to fulfill them (Matt. 5:17). Jesus’
critics claimed they lived by Moses’ writings; Jesus’ rebuttal: “…if
you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me”
(John 5:46).
Since the dawn of creation,
God has been speaking His moral law into the conscience of men and
women. He revealed His standard to Apostle Paul, and he wrote:
For the wrath
of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,
because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has
shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible
attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are
made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without
excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as
God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their
foolish hearts were darkened (Rom. 1:18-21).
Paul went on to say the
standard was set by
…the law
written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and
between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them in the
day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to
my gospel (Rom. 2:15, 16).
The revelation God gave Paul
was Paul’s gospel. Every Christian has a gospel—his/her interpretation
of the Scriptures. Some are good and some are not so good. However,
the Creator judges all people by the light they comprehend.
Our Creator has always been
speaking, but men have trained themselves not to hear. Therefore, God
declared His moral standard through His literary prophets and apostles.
Their writings are known throughout the world as the Bible.
Even though the Word and the
Spirit can lead us into all truth regarding God’s standards, the battle
over the interpretation of God’s moral law goes on all over the world.
In America, the “red states”
and “blue states” debate over whose gospel has the most light. Men
love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. The
light and life of God is still shining in the hearts and souls of men.
Some comprehend it—some do not.
Jesus said, “Let your
light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify
your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16). If you still have some darkness
in your soul, sincerely ask Father God to increase the light in you by
the revelation of His written Word. He wants to demonstrate His moral
standard through you. The more light you have, the better your
life becomes as a
part of the holy nation within our nation. 
The Scriptures give the
principles to govern God’s covenant people at all times and in every
circumstance of life. The Bible contains promises for God’s covenant
people who keep covenant with Father God. The Spirit who indwells
believers in Christ enables and empowers them to put the principles and
promises into practice.
God’s life and light in me
says, “The best is yet to come.”
A. Wilson Phillips is the co-founding and senior
pastor of Abundant Life Covenant
Church.
Apostles'
Doctrine
By Richard K. Clark
On the Day of Pentecost,
Jesus sent the Promise of His Father (Holy Spirit) to empower all who
had been given to Him. Very quickly the number that believed in Christ
rose from about 120 people to a few thousand people. This wonderful
outpouring of God’s presence and ingathering of His chosen ones
presented the apostles with special challenges. Discipling new believers
into mature believers takes time. Can you imagine what trials a mother
and father would face having newborn triplets, or quadruplets, or even
more? Jesus’ apostles immediately had thousands of infant Christians to
raise.
According to Acts 2:41-42
there were four essential practices that ordered and prospered the early
church.
Then those who
gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three
thousand souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly:
in the apostles’ doctrine
and fellowship,
in the breaking
of bread,
and in prayers.
Jesus had discipled the
twelve so that they also could make disciples. Now that they were
empowered by His Holy Spirit, they also became the “Living Word” to
their disciples, just as Jesus had been the “Living Word” to them. The
apostles’ doctrine was more than a systematic theology; it was more like
a “task theology.” They were enabled to apply the Holy Word to daily
tasks that their flocks corporately and individually faced. As in our
world today, they dealt with economics, education, healthcare, and law
(spiritual truth) enforcement.
As each person’s needs and
experiences varied, so did each local church’s needs and experiences.
God was much less concerned in creating a “rule-sheet” or “formula” for
them to follow than He was in teaching His children to hear His voice
and obey. Absolute truth never changes, but the application of truth
depends on the current situation.
For this reason
I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you
know and are established in the present truth (2 Pet. 1:12).
What was “present truth”
in the 1st century is not necessarily the same for the 21st
century. When Peter wrote his epistles, the church was experiencing the
great tribulation. They were planning to flee to the mountains soon in
order to avoid the outpouring of God’s wrath on the unfaithful covenant
people. They were expecting the arrival (parousia) of Christ at any
moment—so the application of truth for them was obviously different than
it is for us today.
There are some Christians
that believe God does not need apostles any more since we live in the
eternal new covenant and everlasting kingdom. They have forgotten that
God never changes (Mal. 3:6). The wilderness church saw His works but
never learned His ways (Heb. 3:10). Life in Christ today has its own set
of demands. Though we have the authoritative Bible, we still need the
Holy Spirit to interpret truth and empower us to obey. We also need
apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers:
… for the
equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of
the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of
the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the
measure of the stature of the fullness of
Christ; that we should no longer be
children, tossed to and fro and carried
about
with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning
craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may
grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the
whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies,
according to the effective working by which every part does its share,
causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love (Eph.
4:11-16).
Richard K. Clark is an associate pastor of Abundant Life Covenant Church.
Living By Faith--The Best Is Yet To Come!
By Benjamin Davis
Most believers have read or
heard messages about walking by faith. By faith we:
· accept that the Bible is the inspired
written word of God (2 Tim. 3:16).
· receive God’s Holy Spirit as His
empowering presence (Gal. 3:5; John 3:3-8).
· receive Jesus as the promised Messiah and
know that He is the way, the truth, and the life for our relationship
with God (John 20:29, 14:6).
· …understand that the worlds were
framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not
made of things which are visible (Heb. 11:3).
· attend church to be in fellowship with
other members of the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:12-27), sing our praises
to the Lord as an acceptable sacrifice to Him (Heb. 13:15), and serve
according to the gifts God has given us (Rom. 12:4-8).
The apostle Paul talked about
this faith when he said, “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2
Cor. 5:7). He explained to the Corinthians that all of our walk with
Christ is a walk of faith while we remain in our mortal bodies.
Scripture tells us that
“faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). Simply stated, faith is needed for
those things that we cannot yet experience with our natural senses.
In our world it is natural to
operate by our five senses: seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and
touching. However, it is supernatural to walk by faith, and faith itself
is a gift from God (Eph. 2:8).
Faith that comes from God
enables us to experience those things which we cannot yet see, hear,
taste, smell, or touch. If I have a new car that I can get in and drive,
I do not need faith for that new car. However, if I do not have a new
car but need one, I find myself in a position of needing faith. When God
has put faith in my heart for a new car, I can begin to walk with
confidence (faith) that His provision will be manifested in such a way
that I will soon be able to see it, hear it, smell it, and thus drive
it.
It is by faith that we at
Abundant Life Covenant Church continually say, “the best is yet to
come.” I have been personally challenged on this statement many times.
The argument goes something like this: “How can you say the best is yet
to come when we see so many bad things around us. Morality is in
decline, war is everywhere, and things are just getting worse and worse
in America.”
My response is twofold.
Firstly, though we have seen morality decline in the United States since
the time of the Pilgrims and Puritans, and more specifically in the past
100 years, we cannot say that morality is at its lowest point in all of
history. We are much further along in our culture than the Romans were.
I do not know many people who would like to go back to living in the
days where people were openly crucified on the streets; where the poor
were enslaved, and the masters of those slaves had the right to treat
their slaves as property and do with them however they wished; where
there were temples to many different gods, and temple prostitution was a
common and accepted custom of the day; where Roman emperors called
themselves gods and required people to bow down and worship them. The
list could go on, but the point is that we have seen the positive
effects of the gospel of Jesus Christ on much of the world’s culture
over the last two millenniums to bring us to the point where we are
today.
Secondly, and more
powerfully, it is by faith that we say, “the best is yet to come.” Just
as Abraham had to act on faith when he followed God’s leading to leave
his country and dwell in a foreign land—believing that God would give
him children as numerous as the stars in the sky (Heb. 11:8-12)—so I
believe that God is able to work in our lives, our children’s lives, and
the lives of our children’s children to see the kingdom of God
manifested on the earth
in
a practical way. That kind of faith transforms our lives and the culture
from generation to generation so that we will more reflect the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
The kingdom of God is not
something to be experienced only after we have passed away from these
bodies. By faith we can experience the kingdom of God in a very real way
today.
Benjamin Davis is an associate pastor of Abundant Life Covenant Church
Faith At Work Is Moral Reform
by Jonathan Clark
Titus was in a quandary. He
had just received his pastoral assignment to set in order the church on
the island of Crete. His problem—the Cretans had a reputation in the
ancient world for being lazy gluttons. Titus sure had his work cut out
for him. His own mentor and pastor, Paul, therefore wrote to him to be a
pattern of good works and to be zealous for good works. Paul also told
Titus to remind the Cretans to be ready for every good work, to maintain
good works, and to meet urgent needs. It was not hard to decipher one of
Paul’s main messages to the Cretan Christians: “Get moving!”
Fast forward to now. We
Americans (who have also developed a reputation for excessiveness and
gluttony) just turned out in record numbers at our latest presidential
election. The campaign battle was long and bitter. In the exit polls,
voters mentioned morality and values as the most important issues
affecting their decisions, but the country could not agree on what
constitutes morals and values.
Interestingly, Webster’s
Dictionary (whose definitions reflect current word usage) defines morals
as pertaining to right and wrong and good and evil—but does not mention
any connection to God or the Divine.
Christians, themselves, were
often polarized during the election over what defines morals and values.
On one end of the Christian spectrum, such issues as abortion, same-sex
marriage, and keeping God in the schools define Christian morality. On
the other end, concerns such as caring for the needy and protecting the
environment seem to be at the heart of morality. The latter emphasis of
morality often has more of an action, “let’s get mobilized” focus.
James had some very
straightforward words about the concept of works when he said,
…faith by
itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You
have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works,
and I will show you my faith by my works (James 2:17-18).
James did not get caught up
in the faith-versus-works controversy of what constitutes righteous
morality. To James, faith (divine confidence from God) was necessary, as
was works (obedient actions):
Do you see that
faith was working together with…works, and by works faith was made
perfect? (James 2:22)
The obedient actions of
morality (works) come about as a result of hearing from God (faith).
Notice that it is the obedient actions originating from God
that produce morality, not just works for the sake of works. It is even
possible to be “working for God” and actually be in disobedience to His
voice.
Despite the argument over
what constitutes morality, our
nation
has proven that it is hungry for morality and values. As believers hear
God’s voice on a regular basis and obediently act, we will be
participating in the current reformation of morality that our country is
so desperately seeking.
For as the body
without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead… (James
2:26).
Jonathan Clark is an elder of Abundant Life Covenant Church and a physician in
Springfield, Missouri.
Poverty Does Not Equal Piety
By Cassandra Walker
“Poverty does not equal
piety.” In 2004, the Lord gave me a heavy duty lesson concerning this
truth.
Somewhere in my past, I had
picked up the mindset that it was wrong to want too much money. I
thought God only wanted people to have “just enough to get by” and
nothing more. So, when I desired more than what was provided me, I felt
guilty (but still wanted more). I thought the more money people had, the
farther away they would get from God. I tended to think of rich people
as Godless, and I even looked down on people who I thought had more
money than they really needed. I felt uncomfortable in the presence of
those who seemed to be “well-to-do” and usually tried to avoid them. The
uncomfortable feeling stemmed from my desire to have the nice things
their money had afforded them yet feeling guilty for that desire because
I didn’t think God wanted me to have nice things! I had a poverty
mentality about myself as a person, about money, and about possessions.
I remember thinking that I would do what it took to scrape through
college, and then maybe, just maybe, I could be a somebody someday. Yet,
I was terrified that I would end up a failure with a life I hated.
In 1990, the Lord visited me
in a special manifestation of His presence, and that experience changed
me forever. From that time, I began to grow spiritually, and the Lord
began to dismantle my poverty mentality with His Word.
For He made Him
who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness
of God in Him (2 Cor. 5:21).
This was the first scripture
that the Holy Spirit made alive in my heart and my understanding. For
the first time in my life I began to feel like a
somebody—not because I had achieved anything, but because I saw that God
decided before I was even born that I was a somebody, His somebody. I
was a somebody because of Him, and no one could ever take that away from
me.
God has shown me that He owns
everything, I own nothing, and I get to enjoy my Father’s
possessions as I steward them for Him.
The earth is the Lord’s,
and all its fullness,
The world and those who dwell therein (Ps. 24:1)
God used the book Doing
Business God’s Way by Dennis Peacocke to show me that it was wrong
for me to look down on people who were “well-to-do,” because God owns
all money, and if someone has money (regardless of my opinion of them),
God has blessed them with it. Who am I to think badly of them if God
chose to bless them? So, I changed and had a “good-for-you,
I’m-going-there-too” attitude towards those people.
This past year, God has taken
me to the deepest level of understanding yet. My husband and I felt the
calling of God to further His kingdom through business ownership and
purchased a business in October, 2003. Through this, the Lord showed me
how I had tethered my identity to money. He showed me that He had chosen
to tether Himself to me.
…just as He
chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be
holy and without blame before Him in love having predestined us to
adoption as sons (and daughters) by Jesus Christ to Himself,
according to the good pleasure of His will…(Eph. 1:4-5).
The Lord showed me I needed
to untether myself to money and make a choice to attach my tether to
Him. So I did.
I now believe it is okay for
me to make money and lots of it. If I can be faithful to Father God with
a dollar, I can be faithful with a million dollars. Shunning earthly
riches will not make me righteous in God’s eyes. In fact, I believe the
money that my husband and I make in our business is a tool that He
directs us to use to expand His kingdom. With my new understanding, I
will no longer limit what God can do through our business, which allows
God to more greatly bless the Springfield community through us.
Cassandra Walker and her husband Gavin own MedTech Medical Management
Systems in Springfield, Missouri.
The
Rewards of Spiritual Agreement
by Raymond Krueger
In 1995 my family and I
moved to Springfield from Joplin for me to start a new job. My wife had
grown up in the Joplin area and was very reluctant about the move, but
she realized that for me to drive 150 miles roundtrip every day would
get old quick.
For simplicity’s sake, we
decided to find a rental home first, with the intention of purchasing
something later. Little did we know that we would be in the same rental
property for several years. Due to different circumstances, we continued
to rent instead of buy, which is not very wise; yet we had a great
landlord, advantageous location, and the rent fit our budget nicely.
However, as our family
increased, we decided to start looking to purchase a house that would
better accommodate our needs. I didn’t think we would have any
problems—we knew what we needed and even had our own real estate person
in our church body that could assist us. We hunted and hunted, looked
and looked, and just couldn’t find a place that my wife and I could
agree on.
Sunday afternoon family time
consisted of driving around looking at homes, and the kids grew bored of
this very quickly. What I thought would be a fairly simple process
turned into a monotonous routine that drug on for several months.
In the meantime, I started a
new job in Joplin, so I scrapped the house hunting, thinking we may move
back there. However, my wife and I both knew that God had brought us to
Abundant Life Covenant Church and felt that moving back was not an
option. We agreed that Springfield was where we were to
live and renewed the search for a house.
God’s timing is always
perfect, and no one knows our needs better. It didn’t take long before
we found a house that when my wife and I first looked at it, we
agreed it was the one. To strengthen our faith, we asked our
pastor if he would look at it and give us his wisdom. He did and
confirmed that this was the one for us. Before leaving, my wife, our
pastor, our realtor, and I stood in the driveway, held hands, and prayed
in agreement that the doors would open for us to have this home.
…if two of you
agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for
them by My Father in heaven (Matt. 18:19).
Mission accomplished…so we
thought. It turned out the process would be anything but a slam dunk. We
made an offer, it was accepted, and the sellers were even willing to do
a “quick close”—but then the problems began because of some legal issues
on the sellers’ end. After going through three months of on again, off
again, my wife and I brought our thoughts into agreement
and put the situation in God’s hands. He is in control of all things and
is faithful to work out His will. Our real estate agent supported us in
this thinking and worked diligently with the sellers’ mortgage company
until they agreed to “short-sell.”
There is no doubt in my mind
that God orchestrated this accomplishment just as He does all things.
Because of His faith and the power of agreement, we now have our own
house. Praise the Lord, for He is good!
Raymond Krueger is a business manager at Roper Pontiac GMC Kia in
Joplin, Missouri.
Global Positioning System
By Byron Hamilton
My wife and I currently
travel across the country conducting software training for medical
clinics. Each week we schedule reservations for airline tickets, rental
cars, and hotels. It is not uncommon for these bookings to go awry, and
we find ourselves standing at check-in desks discussing a reservation
that cannot be found. We have learned not to get anxious and let our
emotions take control, for we have seen too many times that God is in
the process of getting us free upgrades and other nifty perks.
One such time was the free
upgrade to an executive rental car equipped with a global positioning
system (GPS). We were like kids with a new toy on Christmas day. We
typically drive with my wife trying to locate our position on a large
fold-out map (which stretches across most of the dashboard) and me
getting frustrated because we missed our turn or are completely lost.
However, the GPS not only shows us where we are located but highlights
the easiest route to our destination on the display map. The kind voice
of the digital navigator informs us of the distance to each intersection
and notifies us of our next turn. When we lose our way, without any rise
in emotional tone, the GPS simply recalculates the new direction and
continues to instruct us.
The technology is impressive.
I learned that the United States Department of Defense has deployed 27
tracking satellites which orbit approximately 12,000 miles above the
earth. From any position on the globe three satellites can pin-point
your location. Through a process called Trilateration, radio
waves are transmitted at 186,000 miles per second from these satellites
to a small GPS receiver (in the trunk of the car). The GPSR calculates
the length of time it took to receive these signals and determines your
longitude, latitude, altitude, and speed, then positions you on the
digital map stored in its memory. This all happens in milliseconds.
Our free upgrade gave us the
resources of three satellites each costing between $400 to $600 million
and each weighing 17 tons as well as the astounding intelligence which
kept us on track and charted our destination. Although there were many
millions of simultaneous users, we had no less resources available to us
than if we had been the only user on earth of this technological space
marvel.
As impressed as I was with
man’s achievements, it does not compare to what God has set in place for
those who are united with Him. Although I have millions of brothers and
sisters in Christ, God’s presence to me is not diminished. His resources
are as complete to me as if I was the only person on earth availing
myself of Him. The Bible affirms that “he who is joined to the Lord
is one spirit with Him” (1 Cor. 6:17). Christ has been “appointed
heir of all things” (Heb. 1:2), and I have been made “an heir of
God through Christ” (Gal. 4:7). The Bible also explains that in
Christ “dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” and then
overwhelms our understanding by declaring that “you are complete in
Him, who is the head of all principality and power” (Col. 2:9-10).
He also has become for us:
…wisdom from
God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—that, as it is
written, “He who glories, let him glory in the
Lord” (1 Cor.
1:30-31).
I am uniquely positioned in
the eternal Christ (Eph. 2:6), endowed with every spiritual blessing
(Eph. 1:3), made to share in His divine nature, and given exceedingly
great and precious promises (2 Pet. 1:4). Now that’s what I call true
GPS (God’s Presence Supplied).
Byron and his wife Leesa own Med-Soft National Training Institute in
Springfield, Missouri.
The Hope Of His Calling
By
Mandy Christy
I have always had an affinity
toward nature and the living sciences. I never really had a desire to
work with people, especially in healthcare. As a child, my heart’s
desire was to play in the dirt with my next door neighbor’s G.I. Joe
collection. I didn’t particularly care whether he was there or not; I
just wanted to play with his cool toys. I was perfectly happy playing
outdoors by myself. Humans could be mean and hurtful; animals and toys
were much more fun! But as I grew up, I quickly ascertained that there
probably wasn’t a very lucrative career in playing with toys. My focus
then turned to animals. I enrolled in several courses in high school
that would eventually take me down the road to becoming a veterinarian.
However, I didn’t consider one small detail—and that small detail
changed the course of my life for eternity.
His name is Jesus.
Christ. Lord. Savior. Prince
of Peace. Almightly God. Perfect and Precious Lamb. There are countless
names for Him, but I know Him intimately as Jesus, my Lord and Savior.
Just over two years ago, I
met this Man, Jesus, truly for the first time in my life. I had grown up
in church, knew all the right answers, did all the right things. I
performed the Christian part flawlessly for my pastors and peers to see
but was living a lie, deceiving myself. I was my own pastor. I didn’t
know the Truth. I didn’t know that Truth was, and is, a person, and
Truth wanted to have a relationship with me.
I entered nursing school at
the age of 21 after I had already completed three years of undergraduate
work in a plethora of specialties. I couldn’t find my one true heart’s
desire for a career. I had wanted to be a veterinarian for a long time,
but because I did not have a good understanding of who I was and that my
true identity came from Christ Himself, I was easily influenced by the
opinions of those with stronger personalities. I did what I perceived
that others in more esteemed positions wanted me to do. My identity was
woven so tightly together with the misplaced hope that satisfying
someone else would in turn yield my own heart’s desires.
This identity confusion
caused me to spiral downward to the point of what some may call clinical
depression. I denied that I was depressed and sought desperately to
ingratiate myself to those individuals and groups who were considered
popular and ambitious. Sadly enough, my desire to be accepted and loved
by others led me to apply for nursing school. I thought if I pleased
other people then I would be happy and would find great success.
After only a year and a half
of being a nurse, I was burned out—emotionally, spiritually, physically,
and professionally. I hated nursing. I hated people.
However, God remained with me
even though I continued to run from Him. God, in His infinite wisdom and
knowledge, had a plan for me. He loved me more than my ability to hate.
In His mercy and love, He showed me that I was angry at Him because I
couldn’t do things my way. How silly and selfish! Especially since I
didn’t even know what I wanted!
I gave up. I asked the Lord
to forgive my selfishness and my sin and to truly be Lord of my life.
All I had to do was ask. In one loving gesture, God took my shame,
guilt, sin, and selfishness and gave me His Son. In my heart, Christ
took up residence.
I gained the ability to love
and serve others, and to serve them with joy! I now possessed the proper
identity. My identity was Christ. There was no way I could ever truly
love another person without Christ in my heart. Apostle John expounds
upon this truth in 1 John 3:14—
We know that we
have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He
who does not love his brother abides in death.
Simply stated, I had been
deceiving myself by living a life of death. Once Holy Spirit showed me
that I was performing caring duties with a stained heart, I was able to
truly see my error and ask Him to give me the heart to love others.
I have been tested a lot in
my ability to love others and serve them and have occasionally failed,
but the continual cleansing of God’s love and forgiveness is always
present.
I am learning to retrain my
mind and speak God’s truth to myself. My calling is to love and serve
Him and those around me. He knew before time began that I would be a
nurse. Of all the people in the world—past, present, and future—He chose
me to fill the need He had for a nurse at this exact moment in time.
…He chose us in
Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
without blame before Him in love… (Eph. 1:4).
I know I am a work in
progress, and God is faithful. It is with deep satisfaction that I am
finally able to say, “I am a nurse, and I look forward to serving you in
the manner in which my heavenly Father has called me.”
Mandy Christy is the Skills Lab
Coordinator and an instructor at St. John’s College of Nursing of
Southwest Baptist University.
The Affection Of Jesus Christ
By
Jonathan Clark
The object of my affection
Can change my complexion
From white to rosy red
Anytime he holds my hand
And tells me that he’s mine
My Lord awakened me early one
morning with this song from the past (the Boswell Sisters recorded it in
1934). He showed me that He is the focus of my affection…He awakens me
in the mornings by whispering “sweet somethings” in my ear…as I stir in
response to His words (spirit communication), we begin to have emotional
interchange (in the now)…He emotes to me and I to Him.
Since the love of God has
been shed abroad in my heart by the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5), I will then
have proper emotional affection with my wife (1 Cor. 7:3) and, by
properly guarding my heart with all diligence, proper affection with
others.
…how greatly I
long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:8).
Be kindly
affectionate to one another with brotherly love… (Rom. 12:10).
O Corinthians!
We have spoken openly to you, our heart is wide open…you also be
open…open your hearts to us…you are in our hearts…to live together…
(2 Cor. 6:11-7:3).
The Passion of Christ
is the greatest love story ever told. He is the focus of my affection.
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