The Damocles Sword: What Dangers Do You Live Under?

The Damocles Sword: What Dangers Do You Live Under?  By Major Kelly Durant   10-2-22

 (2 Corinthians 11:24-26), 2 Corinthians 1:3-11

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. 6 Now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective for enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. 7 And our hope for you is steadfast, because we know that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation.

2.The Sword of Damocles is an anecdote (but probably a real story) of Dionysius II of Syracuse,  a 4th century BC tyrant of Syracuse, Sicily. Damocles exclaimed to his king, Dionysius, that, as a great man of power and authority surrounded by magnificence, how blessed and fortunate he truly was. Dionysius offered to switch places with Damocles, so that Damocles could taste that position with privilege firsthand. Damocles quickly and eagerly accepted the king's proposal. Damocles sat down in the king's throne surrounded by every luxury, but Dionysius arranged that a huge sword should hang above the throne, held at the handle only by a single hair of a horse's tail. Damocles finally begged the tyrant Dionysius to let him get up from the throne, because he no longer wanted to be so fortunate!

Dionysius had successfully illustrated the sense of the constant fear in which the great ruler lived, as he was always in danger of death by treason. Dionysius made it clear that there can be nothing pleasant for the person over whom some fear always looms! Over each one of us is a danger that could harm or kill at any moment!

3. In life, most every one of us while on the earth is threatened by a continuous danger. These dangers could be present as a medical problem, risks involved in work, even traffic! Some of these dangers could be from violent family members or by thugs in the neighborhood. Some dangers come from geographical phenomena like tornadoes, floods, and hurricanes, and yet other dangers are from spiritual attacks playing on our fears; voices from our spiritual warfare of good vs. evil, of the devil and his demons attacking you & I with a Christ-like mind. 

I was there for hurricane Andrew in 1992! That upset our lives for almost a year! Some people, as seen in the Bible, believe destructions are permitted by God to purge people from their sins, so in their weakness they repent and look to God. God may reveal to you, or may not as it is different for each person, His purpose in these things. Either way, our mission is to serve suffering humanity!

 I was thinking about my past, places where I have lived and the different dangers that my wife and I faced and the ones each of us face from day to day. I grew up in Oklahoma with tornadoes and the danger of losing everything, even my life; it was a real danger during certain times of the year. 

Some people crack too easily under pressure (usually the faithless) while others just keep on going. How strong are you? Want to be stronger in the face of danger? It’s simple, just be right with God, you could be called at any time! And now we have hurricane season! 

4. People respond to life threatening dangers in different ways:  One by irrational actions due to their fear, or by living in denial that the threats are real. Another way is by becoming obsessed by their fears and to their own harm inappropriately get sick and worried. But then there is God’s way of conquering danger and fear: by having faith and trust in Him!

We all have seen some people have a faith crisis over intimidating outside forces not in their control. Some people not knowledgeable of God’s Word might conclude that God must be cruel to allow suffering. They get angry. (This is Satan’s means of getting people to misjudge and blame God so they do not worship and honor Him), But if any one of us does not honor God as the creator, then they are by default honoring ourselves as a god (we are not gods, and we control almost nothing!) Therefore, our adversary Satan, steals worship by this influence. 

Some falsely deduct that God must not be there to stop nature’s fury, or man’s wars, or resolve their personal problems, since He must made the universe like a wind-up toy and abandoned it (The Deist view). And there are others that conclude God is not in total control and therefore He is imperfect. He is a lesser god from a higher God. (The Gnostic view.) Don’t doubt, or blame, or go crazy, be different and pray and have faith that all things work together for good!

5. It is true, God does allow suffering and death at times but there is a greater purpose for it beyond our understanding!  One day in heaven God will reveal to us all things and we will know and understand why, but for the moment, too many factors are present that we are unaware of to understand his final purpose. It is like trying to solve a complicated math problem when you only know values for X,Y, & Z, but do not know the values for A,B, & C in the same equation.

I met many people after having lost all still had their faith. Would you keep it if you lost all? Let’s look at a man that went through a lot and did not let his faith be shaken, the apostle Paul.

2 Corinthians 11:24-26  Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25   Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26  In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;

 

Paul had experienced it all and he lived through all the pain caused by evil men and by nature. 

I can’t even imagine the horrendous pain of a lashing (and 5 times?!)! Or of floating in cold dark waters shipwrecked! Possibly many of you have lived through many dangers. You might even still live in fear of the next danger that might assault you. Here we so have the Damocles sword over our heads from the threat of hurricanes or of many random dangers. Each place has a distinct threat, each person’s life has different dangers nearby.

 

6. The question today is: What fears do you have? What threat do you have over your head? 

I contemplated sharing some of the dangers I have been in and how I have had to grow my faith in God consoling myself even speaking out-loud to myself the scriptures while walking down the street! Most of you like myself have lived with the dangers I will discuss here, and again I ask you, how are you dealing with your fears right now?

In Brazil I was always worried about getting attacked by thieves in the street and 3 times I was chased and forced to be running full speed away from men, escaping by catching moving buses. I was also fearful of being deported, and when our resident visas were denied, we had 8 only days with 2 babies to leave back to Bolivia, a 5-day journey of trains and buses.  It is hard but we must accept God’s will over our will for our desires. He controls all for our best purposes.

In Bolivia I arrived in 1977 right after a Military Coups and some snipers had shot about 200 people from the tops of the downtown buildings. During my stay I lived mostly under Marshall Law and saw democracies and dictatorships come and go by the half dozen. I often breathed tear gas as protesters were dispersed. The threat of imprisonment was always present. What I loved though was I could preach the gospel with freedom almost anywhere!

In Chile, in 1981, jail time and disappearances were common under Pinochet’s dictatorship. I made the mistake of having home Bible studies which was a gathering of people prohibited by law, and some of the youth from the universities I had over I later discovered were Communist sympathizers. At 5:00am on morning 6 police with machine guns raided our home only to discover that we only had Bibles as our propaganda, Ha! Our phone later was tapped and we were watched so feeling too uncomfortable we decided to return to Bolivia.  The fact that I had nightmares of being killed by the police did not help either!

In Venezuela I had friends that told me stories of their experiences of gangs of thieves showing up at their homes to rob them and rape their wives. God stopped us from getting residence there as well as the visas were approved and sent to Bogota but the Consulate wanted money under the table we did not have, so we ended up getting resident visas in Colombia instead!

7. When you think about it: Dangers are always present and we could become a victim of anything at anytime! But God’s protection is ever present as well, so we have peace in the midst of the storm! 

Here in the U.S. many dangers prevail but the risk depends on the area you live in. In the Metro cities, theft and crime is a way of life:  in Chicago dozens get shot weekly. Forest fires, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, droughts and floods are just a few of the threats we all live with in this nation, not to mention extortionists, mafia, the sex trade, drugs, and even the abusers in our families that cause great harm! It is a miracle that day to day we are protected!

So what can stop our worries and calm our fears? Only the word of God! I use to repeat several verses to myself to overcome these fears and take note of them so you too can to gain strength when you need it!

Philippians 4:6,  "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.  Psalm 119:50 This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me. (made me alive). Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

8. And when we see others suffering as I did the past months in our shelter in Oklahoma, here is a verse that come to mind of what our mission is: 2 Corinthians 1:4 Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

Our task as a true Holy Ghost filled Christians is to console our own spirits from the worries, threats, and fears we face daily! And after that, you are to console others who are going through trials that have left them disoriented and weak.

I don’t think God is unfair to allow us to live in a fallen, imperfect world where nature or people can ruin us at any instant. We are in a school to prepare us for eternity where everything will be perfect, and we must learn to appreciate that. Maybe one lesson is you need to be ready to trust God and also be ready to leave it all behind (even your life) at any time! 

I think God knows that without danger all of humanity, you and I, would forget about Him and go the way of the Satanic self-centered, prideful, perverted, and narcissistic people. The reminder of danger remains: you and I have a sword over our head! We need the ‘fear of the Lord’ and we love Him because he protects us from our fears which do not afflict us too heavily.

What is the sword over your head? What do you most fear? Bad health? A hurricane?  A violent relative? An armed thief? Have you learned to live with it but placing it in God’s hands? Let’s pray for peace of mind! Let’s pray that we learn to trust God no matter what happens!

Be like Jesus!

Jesus: Like Him I’ll Be!                              9-25-22     Kelly Durant

 

1 Corinthians 2:16  For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

 

2. Back in the hippie times, if a man had long hair and a beard and was somewhat handsome, friends would usually gaze a moment and then comment, “Look, he looks like Jesus!” Some people with a beard and long hair may remind us of the paintings we have seen of Jesus, but exactly how this olive skinned Jewish man actually looked physically, we will never know, artists can only speculate. 

 

But we can know Him spiritually! Jesus left us with so many teachings that it takes a lifetime to discover all the depths implicated by Him. 1 Corinthians 2:16 

For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

 

You or I can ‘know’ Jesus, but how? Only by His teaching! Are there not in the world too many doctrines and churches, too many books and personal opinions, and too many immoral bad examples to the point that most of us just want to give up? Never give up! Each of us is special and loved by Him and He will show you what your mission is, what your calling in life is, and where you need to go.

 

3. Also, learn this: You learn best when you teach a subject! Jesus’ teachings should be spread and never be limited! Never did Jesus say only have my teachings confined to people going to church! It was the contrary, he sent His disciples out to preach the gospel to every creature! Mark 16:15 

 

Many people form the idea that Jesus is someone only the preacher should mention, and that is occasionally, that He was a good and holy man that we should ‘try’ to be like Him. Jesus told you and me to… Luke 14:23

Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

 

After Jesus did healings, He would say, go and show yourself in the temple so others could see the miracle; after Jesus would forgive people of their sins like the Samaritan woman at the well, He would inspire to the point that all that person could do was talk about Him to everyone! If Jesus has touched you, you will not be able to shut up about it! Acts 4:13 It will overflow, and people will know you experienced something very real and life changing! We must tell it! It is your story and mine that is authentic, and people see the love of God in us and want it.

 

4. And speaking of telling your story, there are so many people today that have experienced miracles! How many times have you heard, “The doctor gave me 3 months to live but Jesus healed me!”? The miracles have not stopped!

 

I have seen a person get healed from weak knees and get x-rays to prove they no longer needed an operation to stop the swelling after a prayer! I have seen the miracle of Jesus stopping a car from crashing into us! I have seen people stop using addictive drugs after a prayer and stay on the right path healed afterwards. Miracles do happen and we need to recognize it is Jesus doing them.

 

And they happen for all to glorify God! Luke 18:42 Then Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.” 43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. When God does something for you, share the good news, please!

 

5. We can know Jesus’ love by observing the contrast of those who despise Him. Matthew 11:6 “And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” It is a given, there is a vast majority of people out there that are evil and get offended by Jesus because they do not want to be reminded of their unrepentant ugly, destructive, sins! 

 

The fact that Jesus exposed(s) hypocrites, the fact that His presence brings awareness, the fact that He and His teachings are absolute truth is too much for some people!  Liars, lazy ones, and deceivers hate Him for exposing their schemes and this is what makes Jesus so repulsive to them along with the average carnal corrupt individual that conforms to the perverted ways of the world. 

 

I have been attacked many times over telling others about Jesus and do you know why ‘those people’ never won me over to their side? Because I could feel, see, and hear the hate they had for me just because I talked about Jesus! My logical reasoning mind kicks in these situations and asks, why would I leave the teachings of Jesus who inspires me to do good for others, to love God and others, in exchange for the cognitive dissident no-reasoning and uninspiring rhetoric they defend? I prefer the beautiful spirit world over the ugly flesh world any day!

 

6. How do we know the name of Jesus is powerful? Because in society He is rarely mentioned except when used as a curse word in some Hollywood movies! The most loving amazing Son of God is still rejected by the evil ones in power. Before they accused that Jesus had a demon when it was themselves having the demons!

 

The subject of Jesus has been quarantined by our evil societies to not be discussed in the public arena. Jesus cannot be brought up in the classrooms, in the community city halls, and not in the bar-b-ques of our local civic clubs as it is a topic deemed ‘uncomfortable’ or ‘offensive’ by some. Matthew 18:7

Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!

 

Who, and I ask unrhetorically who, is defining our freedom of speech?! We have freedom of religion and speech, at least we should have! I am offended by the politically correct demons trying to silence you and me when the spirit moves on us to talk about Jesus. If a few elites controlling our society, the education, the tech world and the media, who sooner or later are revealed to be extortioners, pedophiles, and filthy corrupters wanting to shut you up, why would you let them have the final say? Are we not offended by them!?

 

7. To know Jesus we must be born again and become as a child! John 3:3-8, 3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”When you or I were a child going to Sunday School classes we ‘got it’, we saw with a fresh mind that Jesus is real, you could hear his loving words and feel in your spirit that He was (is) the powerful Son of God. 

 

Jesus told us to have the faith of a little child! Matthew 18:3 And said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. To know Him means to become simple, simple in just believing because logic and science cannot explain everything!

 

We can reason and understand a lot but always at some point we will hit a wall of doubt. It is then when we must just simply trust that God knows best that He, like a good Father will protect and guide us through obstacles that are bigger than what we are able to handle. Patience, faith, & trust, will we ever learn them? 

 

8. Your average Christian without the Holy Spirit is unprepared to battle with demonic people who hate Jesus. Jesus must be in you, in your mind, in your deepest convictions, to be real to you in order to give you power. You only can be strong in Him if you are daily reading His word, praying, and seeking to put into practice the example He left us.  1 Corinthians 2:16  For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

 

The people of the world have no excuse, God can be seen in all the details of His creation. (see Romans 1) Around 300 Old Testament prophecies describe the events in the life of Jesus! There is no doubt that factual evidence abounds to prove Jesus lived, died, and started a revolution to the point that the underground church became above ground 300 years after his resurrection.

 

Despite having 1,700 years of the Catholic Church, and 500 years of the Protestant Church, atheism, materialism, and Satanic religions thrive because the average Christian is not shining their light and fighting for good as they were commanded to by Jesus! Darkness cannot stand the light! Just bring Jesus into the conversation and see what happens! There will be praise and inspiration, or there will be attacks! 

 

 9. All of us can know Jesus in a profound way and there is no excuse. Let’s review:

We can know how to be like Jesus by knowing His teachings.

We can know Jesus by how he has touched and changed our own life.

We know that Jesus’ name is powerful, or He would not be prohibited publicly.

We can know Jesus’ love by contrasting how others that hate Him treat us.

We can know Jesus having the mind and faith of a child.

 

And finally I will end with the verse we started with, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” The ultimate followers of Jesus have done what He says here. It requires giving your all to Him, materially and spiritually for all your life! I did that to be a missionary, I did that to serve Jesus as a Salvation Army Officer, and millions have done it to serve Jesus throughout history! Millions have even been martyrs! What have you really given to Jesus? To gain the full joy He offers, He must be in control of your life! Those that give Him all never regret it!

 

God supplies our needs and gives us the desires of our hearts! But too few are willing to just give it all up for Him! I cannot imagine living life without Jesus being everything! The question is how much of Him do you want? All the way, or just a little bit? Jesus wanted all of you, mind, body & soul, service, worship & love!

Jesus Will Return: How ready Are You to Battle Until the End?

Jesus Will Return: How ready Are You to Battle Until the End?    By Kelly Durant

Matthew 24:41-43 New King James Version (NKJV)

 

41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. 42 Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.

 

2. What if someone told you, “Hey, you need to train your body to be strong for a serious event that will happen to you!” Would you prepare? Let’s assume you keep have a recurring dream that you feel is from the Lord that you crash with a group of cars on the highway and then suddenly you need to be the hero lifting a 220 pound body out of a car turned upside down. 

 

What should you do about it? If you were smart and you believe in communications from God, from the spirit, you would start lifting weights to get strong because there exists a real probability it will happen and only if you are strong enough would you be ready! There is no doubt, an evil storm is coming to attack all Christians, the demons are getting empowered, and are you prepared to battle them?

 

Every Christian, no matter the time period, has had to go through horrible persecutions, and it really does appear like we are in the end times as Christians are being disenfranchised, mocked, silenced, and killed so how can you get ready spiritually? You can be ready only by preparing yourself to be spiritually strong! 

 

3. When things get tough, the tough get going! Never forget, all Christians are to be Soldiers fighting a war, defending yourself from evil. 2 Timothy 2:3 You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. 5 And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

 

The rules are to obey Jesus commands! On a scale of one to 10, where are you with Jesus? Are you weak and a 1 or 2? You only tolerate the church, the Corps, and the Majors, so you can enjoy the fellowship or some benefit? Are you a 5? Half the time you complain about how things are not like you like them and half the time you are content? Or are you a 8 or a 10? You really look forward to learning about the Bible and finding a way to serve others and you know having faith is the most important thig in your life? 

 

I always pray for each of you, that your spiritual eyes will be open. Life is so much more than pleasing your own spoiled self like many lukewarm Christians do and as people of the world do today.  1 John 2: 15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

 

4. I think all of us want to be more prepared for Jesus to come, to be more spiritual, but spirituality it itself is not the end goal of a Christian. The ultimate goal of a Christian must be to have a relationship with Jesus to the point you live a holy life! The goal is to be connected with Jesus so deep that He makes your mind spark with joy when you hear His Word. His Word and Holy Spirit will awaken indescribable emotions which will spark a passion that makes you just want to go out and love and do good to everyone! And also warn them of the coming judgement! And do something for those who are suffering! 

 

Remember you and I have suffered ourselves in times past and it was to prepare us making us ‘better’ not ‘bitter’! How many of you have ever had a supernatural experience from a dream, a flash of a vision, or some strange circumstance in which you could perceive you were being guided by a supernatural force to get out of danger? Most everyone has! Through the good and bad Jesus prepares us!

 

You like me have probably had a near death experience in traffic and afterwards you felt like God somehow made the car brake faster than normal, or in a milli-second you turned away and only God could have saved the moment! God does have a purpose in your life, and in mine, but we must be tuned into Him to not be a deserter, or a Christian that is AWOL (Away without official leave).

 

5. If we were to travel around the world and look at every culture throughout time you and I could discover that people have always been seeking a unique spiritual experience; as humans we often want affirmation that God really is there, and He really is! The protection, the unexpected, good things, all point to a God who loves us, and He wants us to love Him back!

It is a part of our spiritual nature to want to experience the unexplainable. We are emotional beings and we want to feel something to affirm that we are taken into account by God Himself. You have to be careful today as imitations, and the new age false religions or the false Christian churches, are selling fake hopes and promises filling the ears of the weak Christians with lies so they can possess them. 

 

2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. 

 

6. Satan will deceive your soul if you are not preparing to battle all the lies he will put in your head. He will tempt you to go to a different wealthy church where the people ‘have more fun’ without asking you to volunteer and help the poor. 

 

I have seen it over and over, the ones that leave our compassionate active churches are not humble loving souls but usually ones that are inflated with pride. These are ones who want to be recognized as extra special and get extra special privileges and be the pastor’s pet, but that is a pride evil that deceives souls so you and I must pray for each other and for our own selves! A person can get lost and compromised not preparing by obeying for the return of Jesus. 

 

If a person is not here, or in any church, for Jesus then they are going to get lost over time, and sadly they will move into a fellowship where the people will praise them according to their own ideas of selfish egotistical ‘I’m more spiritual than you’ standards. We need to warn the weak Christians here and everywhere that if they get deceived by the devil and lose their way, it will not end well for them. Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.

 

7. If you are a blood and fire Christian, then you are saved and also baptized with the Holy Spirit fire that Jesus left for His followers, and this fills your hunger for the spiritual like nothing else can! I have met hundreds of people who have gotten ‘God bumps” (like goose bumps) just from hearing the Word, or hearing a testimony of a miracle, and being more than a feeling, the Holy Spirit literally changes (our) people’s lives! Has your life been transformed like this so that you are focused solely on Jesus and not yourself?

 

When I was a teenager, I made huge mistakes in my life getting into the sins of the world. If you love music and Hollywood, Satan will tempt you to imitate those lost souls! I have seen myself and other weak Christians consume drugs and join in with people that inflate your pride. Some get back to Jesus, but others don’t! 

 

A principal danger for Christians today is the new fake Christianity, which promises to fill your inordinate egotistical dreams. It is a temptation to be pridefully recognized for being more spiritual, or more inclusive of the unrepentant sinful folks who are there to cause dissentions. But it is all Satan’s illusion to inflate one’s pride! Satan is getting vast numbers to compromise, to leave church or to submit to some hypocritical church leader instead of the gospel Jesus taught. A little leaven of the prideful self-righteous Pharisees inflates the whole bread! Beware of political leaders! Beware of Global Ideologies!

 

8. You are going to have to prepare your spirit to have enough spiritual strength for that future moment when trials come. This comes from daily prayer, the study of God’s Word, by having a rewired brain controlled by the Holy Spirit, and with a Soldier’s mindset that you resist temptation and evil in your life. 

 

If Satan tempted Jesus, how much more is he going to tempt you to move on and fail God?! You must get ready as evil will attack you personally! You might even get tempted this month to leave the faith, but those who sincerely love Jesus will remain faithful this month, and day by day, for the rest of their lives until Jesus returns.

 

Will you confess today that you have been weak and that you desperately need more of Jesus to help you to endure until the end? Not everyone will make it, only the faithful ones who hear Jesus words and obeys them. James 1:12 

Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Revelation 2:10 (b) Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.

 

Get ready! God could take you home when you least expect it as stated in Matthew 24! Never be as the foolish person going through the chores of life who was not vigilant and ready! Prepare now for tomorrow, He’s coming soon!

Make Jesus Proud of You: Be Daring! Be Bold!

Make Jesus Proud of You: Be Daring!     Kelly Durant

 

Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.

 

2. Some people love excitement more than others. There are some people that love adventure, being in somewhat dangerous situations, while others are happy to just stay at home and be inside of their safe space wishing the world would just go away.

 

For example, I know of people, who love to drive their Jeeps on top of the Colorado mountains, almost flipping them over, having their hearts pump wildly for the thrill, and this is rewarding for them. This involves risk, but it is fun for them and I hope they have insurance!

 

And then I know some people like how my mother use to be that would only go to the grocery store and to church on Sunday and never wanted any excitement at all. The world has all kinds of people. But all of us take decisions ‘to do or not to do’ many things, but when it comes to our faith and Jesus, we must choose ‘to do’ as it says, “nothing ventured, nothing gained’ as God expects it of us.

 

3. People will do bolder things when they are with others in a group than when they are alone. I recall when I was young there were people who would not want to do anything, but if a group was going somewhere, they would go too, even if it meant danger.

 

Think about Jesus and the disciples, he only had a group of 12, not of 12,000 or more like some mega churches, and they later on their own, going out two by two, accomplished great things spreading the gospel. Mark 6:7 And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.  Here we frequently only have a dozen of faithful ones!

 

We must never lose our vision of what we are to accomplish in life as Christians, and that is of the saving of the souls of the lost, of bringing love and comfort to the hurting, of obeying Jesus to love God and others as ourselves. 

 

4. Have you thought about it, The Salvation Army was founded on being risky and exciting! Every day the Officers and Soldiers would go out and preach on the smelly muddy street corners and sometimes a few hundred at a time would come forward around a bass drum to cry, repent, and pray to receive Jesus! How glorious that must have been to have witnessed that!

 

But at the same time, many of them got hit with tomatoes and other objects as they brought the good news to others. But did that stop them? No! Even after they knew about Samuel Logan Brengle almost dying from blow from a brick, they continued on, even going around the world to start up new outposts, missions, and Corps.

 

Samuel Brengle spent about a year and a half in a hospital bed recovering from a skull fracture that some violent demon inspired person did to him. But his heart was for God, and he wrote several books on holiness, he used his time to learn about God and today we honor him by studying his theological contributions. You cannot stop a man or woman of God, wounded or impaired, they will continue on in the fight for good!

 

5. Lately we have studied the book of Acts. What did we learn of Peter, John, and of the other disciples? Many of them went to jail for preaching Jesus! The idol worshipping pagans, and the hypocrite Jews, did not want to hear it. But did even being jailed stop them from talking about Jesus? No!   

 

Have you ever made Jesus proud of you by going to jail for Him? I got that opportunity a couple of times. Once it was in a small southern town in Rio Grande do Sur, Brazil. The police stopped me with machine guns for passing out salvation flyers at some apartments. One policeman got really mad and was yelling in my face that I was preaching blasphemy and if it were for him, I should be locked up and tortured as the way the Catholic Church historically use to do it!

 

He took offense because in the gospel pamphlet as it mentioned that God had to turn His back on Jesus a few hours to allow Him to die for our sins. God allowed Jesus to die on the cross to be the ultimate sacrifice for us, but obviously this man did not know theology very well. I am thankful I was set free after being about 5 or 6 hours in that tiny facility. I have seen angry red hateful faces many times while out preaching a loving peaceful Jesus. God sees what everyone does. The world is a dangerous place and people are lost, ignorant, and really need Jesus! 

 

6. So when something bad happens, it sometimes scares you, or others nearby, to not want to be risky or carry out the mission of preaching Jesus. My friends, if you can ever learn something in life, learn this, never let anyone intimidate or belittle you for standing up for your faith! Remember, Peter and John had boldness, and God expects us to have boldness and the Holy Spirit power as well!

 

Let’s read on the reaction of the people to Peter and John’s boldness. Acts 4:18 So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. 20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

 

Can you do that? Can you not do anything in life but proclaim the good that Jesus has done in your life? 21 “So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way of punishing them, because of the people, since they all glorified God for what had been done”. It happened to them and will to us!

 

7. Later in this chapter we see they prayed for boldness, and they stood on God’s Word to give them strength. They quoted Psalm 2, one of my favorites, as it affirms the final destiny of the evil people of the world who hate Jesus.

 

 Acts 4:23 And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. 24 So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, 25 who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: ‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things? 26 The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ.’ Now look up Psalm 2 to hear the rest of it. Vs.3“Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.” 4 He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision. 5 Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure: (skip down to the final verses) 10 Now therefore, be wise, O kings; Be instructed, you judges of the earth. 11 Serve the Lord with fear, And rejoice with trembling.

12 Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.

 

8. So it is clear, we must be wise and stand with Jesus no matter the cost, no matter how the red-faced demons who hate us for proclaiming Jesus’ message yell at us and insult us, hit us or even jail us, we have God’s boldness power!  

 

To serve in this Salvation Army Church, when you serve Jesus for real, you need to be thick skinned, you need to be bold! No one respects a wimp. I was at the International Market the other day and the young Hispanic cashier I knew went to a Hispanic church (because I had seen him with other Christians before) and I asked him about his faith. I said, “You are a Christian and you go to church, don’t you?” I was hoping to start a conversation.

 

He said, “Hum” and nodded his head about one inch to indicate yes. I thought within myself, how sad! He has no boldness; he is almost ashamed to admit he is a Christian! Then I had another terrible thought, ‘Could it be some of the people in our Corps Church are the same way?’ Are they also afraid to admit they love Jesus and come to worship here’? Please, let’s be bold and make Jesus proud of us!

 

 9. The decision is yours day by day, hour by hour, will you be bold for Jesus? All day long we will meet people who were like the pagans mentioned in Psalm 2 who want to undo us, or like the hypocrite Pharisees who hate us for standing for Jesus who is righteousness, holiness, and God’s love.

 

In the Christian faith, you had better get use to adventure, excitement, danger, risk, resistance, and the battle. You are not in a Salvation Army just to look pretty in uniform, you are here ‘to fight for the good’ and to be so full of the Holy Spirit that your glow attracts others to want to get to know the Jesus you talk about!

 

Is Jesus proud of you? Am I and your leaders proud of you? How long has it been since you have come with a testimony to talk about who you shared your faith with? Jesus expects it of you and if you get persecuted, it will motivate you even more as the Holy Spirit will be filling you up. Be sure you live to reach the poor lost souls out there who need the hope of salvation, or you will regret it after death in heaven when you arrive empty handed! Let’s pray…

Got Happiness? You can learn how!

Got Happiness?  You Can Learn how!          Captain Kelly Durant   8-5-12 Re 8-14-22           

Phil 4:11 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.12 I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

2. Weddings are happy occasions, right? At my daughter’s wedding the cake got too hot in the delivery car on the way over and it sort of tilted to the side. My daughter, who is for the most part a perfectionist, was upset that her once-for-a-lifetime cake was looking sad and leaning to the side. I laughed and said, “Look, it looks like the leaning tower of Pizza!” She laughed but just a little. We sort of shifted it back into place, and actually few people really even noticed! 

Her happy and almost perfect wedding could have been ruined, right? Well, her happiness could have been if the focus would have stayed only on the negative! Everything else was perfect so why fret? Later we laughed about the awkwardness!

3. For happiness, you and I must add more laughter and fun creativity in our lives to save the day, because critical disheartening situations will always happen! 

You and I can find happiness when we accept the fact that it doesn’t really matter that everything in this life will never ever exactly be the way you or I want it to be! Just let yourself be amused by the imperfections, mistakes, and the humor that God is allowing! Perfection or expectations can take away from happiness since it allows no space for humor. Laughter is a form of happiness, do you not agree? 

In all life’s activities you and I will at times have a lot of good things going on and we are happy, yet at other times we may not have much good going on at all! In life there are exhilarating moments, yet many frustrating moments as well, not to mention a whole gamut of emotions. These multiple emotions confuse the psyche making us believe we are not really happy most of the time. But let’s see the big picture.

4. We can generally be happy because we have God’s love and we are enjoying Him forever, but those without God and his funny sense of humor can never ever be happy because He is the source of the energetic, life-giving spirit of happiness! Our Father God loves, saves, and provides for us and He is taking care of us for what? He does it for our happiness! God is empathetic, He enjoys our happiness!

Abraham Lincoln said that “People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be”. Freewill allows us to choose to be happy, believe in God or not, and people take the choice to be happy or not! Does this sound too simplistic to be true? Let’s take a look at the people of faith.

5. Paul the Apostle suffered a lot in his life but even in prison he wrote that, ‘in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content (happy).’ He was probably at that moment while writing, feeling cold, eating horrible food, and sleeping on a smelly prison floor! Roman prisons were a lot worse than ours today!

His contentment or happiness seems so contradictory yet Paul produced some of his greatest letters, the Epistles, while living in terrible conditions locked up in jail! And he was happy but how did he mange that? He says it very clear in verse 11; He says, “for I have learned”...he learned contentment, or happiness!

Ask yourself, “How can I learn to be content and happy?” (repeat)

6. To be happy you and I must accept that happiness comes from God by our practice of the acceptance of it. But what is happiness anyway?  Happiness is so elusive because we know it is something different to each person. 

Happiness for the people with the mindset of the world comes with more money, more fame, and the ability to indulge in all the pleasures one desires, right? The reality is most of them with these things live very depressed full of guilt for their abusiveness and they go down the road of consuming  a lot of drugs and alcohol to alleviate their pain because they are never reaching a satisfaction or happiness with what they have gotten already! It is like they are the donkey chasing the carrot on the stick the rider holds out in front of them!

Happiness, as defined by the dictionary, is a mental or emotional state of well-being characterized by positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. 

In Acts 13:52 Happiness is shown in the Bible by, “The disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Ghost.”  So, asking God for the Holy Ghost to be with you will make you happy! They were so happy they thought they were drunk!  But for fun let’s do the standardized self-test of happiness so you can rate yourself. 1-5

7.   1 = strongly disagree 2 = disagree 3  = neither agree nor disagree 4 = agree 5 = strongly agree     

__ 1. In most ways my life is close to my ideal. 

__ 2. The conditions of my life are excellent. 

__ 3. I am satisfied with my life. 

__ 4. So far I have gotten the important things I want in life. 

__ 5. If I could live my life over, I would change almost nothing.

If you determined you are not so happy, don’t worry. God can use your dissatisfaction to motivate you to want you to do a lot more for Him! Sin will also make you sad, anxious, and unhappy, is there any of that in your life? Repent then.

8. I do hope you will take a whole different attitude about your situation to just be resolved to be happy in life despite whatever conditions you are in! Each person must take the decision to stop the obsessive preoccupied-ness of their own selfish concerns. Happiness is focused on others!

We live in a sad fallen world full of suffering and sin. I personally will never be fully happy, and I think no true altruistic Christian ever will be totally happy in this life either, as long as we observe all of creation living under oppressions caused by cruel people provoking exploitations, injustices, and abuse. Satan must be eliminated!

So, in my opinion, in order to be happy with ourselves, we will need to do all things positive to alleviate the terrible situations of those in pain by actively sharing God’s love through Jesus, bringing peace, and salvation! It sounds contradictory but many people have told me that while doing disaster relief that those days had been some of the happiest days of their lives! And for me too! I am most happy when I am in the position of helping someone who has a need and gets to experience happiness in the darkness. It works! God’s good produces happiness!  

9. Do you consider yourself to be happy despite your situation as Paul the apostle? I am sure many of you would say yes because you think it is the Christian thing to say, but the reality is most people are actually not very happy in life most of the time! People are self-focused, sad, and frustrated while 1/3 of the world did not even eat today! Hundreds of millions lived depressed. With the people in the world so sad, how is it possible to improve in our attitude and positive outlook? We can do something and that is to count on strength from Jesus Christ.

We must claim the promise verse of Phil. 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Did you ever notice that this verse is within the context of being able to do all things implying to remain happy despite all the bad conditions? 

Let’s discover some more principles about what the Bible has to say about happiness.

10. Psalm 144:15 Happy is that people, that is in such a case: yea, happy is that people, whose God is the LORD.         We are happy just because we have our God as our God! The closer we get to God, the more happier we are!

Psalm 146:5 Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God:                   We are happy because God helps us & gives hope!

Proverbs 3:13 Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.                We are happy because we gain wisdom in God.

Proverbs 14:21 He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.           So we are happy if we serve the poor!

Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.               So to obey God’s commands make us happy!

11. And Jesus confirms the same thing about obeying His commands in John 13:17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.

It has been said that one of the keys to happiness is a bad memory (and I know most of us really would like to forget a lot of bad things about some people) but I would like to add that we must keep a good memory as well of all the good that God has done for you and me in the past!

Prov. 13:13 A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken. 15 All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.

12. We can have a feast with God every day! We can feel good most of the time and have happiness despite the evil in the world but you and I must choose it! It will come as a consequence of you and me learning to apply the following from what we have studied in scripture today:

By just being happy no matter what the conditions are!

By getting closer to God and getting more of the Holy Ghost!

By trusting in God to help you and me with all the things of life!

By gaining more wisdom and observing God’s humor!

By helping others with a need which is sewing good to reap it back!

By obeying God’s commands and those that Jesus taught!

 

13. Will you pray to change your attitude? So many times we compare ourselves with each other; who has life the best and we get mad about those who appear to be happier than us. What a mistake! Decide to be happy or you will be unhappy!

To live unhappy just do all the opposite of what the Bible teaches: be a person who is always discontent with everyone and everything, always jealous or critical of others, not trusting in God, always worrying, never learning to be conformed and be thankful to God for life’s lessons. And never helping anyone since you are so important and the universe revolves around you.

Many unhappy people usually talk loud and show their selves aggressively on the outside but on the inside they are actually weak, stressed, and sad. Do you want strength? Nehemiah 8:10b for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

14. Happiness is strength!  Nehemiah 8:10b  (a.Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry;) b. for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

Don’t envy anyone thinking they are happier than you as this was prohibited by one of the 10 commandments! (Covet-ness) Get busy making your life closer to God taking the advice of the scriptures so you will reap happiness! Having God’s love is more than enough for each one of us to be happy!   But if you are not so happy, pray for the change you need!

You will feel better, and everyone else around you will to! They will see your serious face change into a happy one, and start hearing your questionable comments become praises to God! Don’t accept your self as you are!  Don’t be dry and serious. Learn to be happy! And you can become even happier than what you are right now! Ask God to help you be able “to do all things”, especially to be happy!

I Did Not Sign Up For This (Life)! The Dilemma of Our Lot In Life

 

I Did Not Sign Up For This (Life)! The Dilemma of Our Lot In Life             Kelly Durant

Ecclesiastes 2:17 Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind.

2. How many of you have ever ordered a cheeseburger at a fast food place but instead they gave you a hamburger by mistake? And the lines behind you are very long, so what do you do? 

There are usually 3 ways that I have seen people react to this situation. One, they may butt into line and start yelling at the clerk, “Hey, are you stupid? I ordered a cheeseburger, not a hamburger!” And everyone stares at the staff and you fascinated by the drama show waiting to see how everyone’s going to react.

Two, many people like myself will just eat it anyway giving thanks to God that at least I can eat something, even though it was not my preference. And three, other people I have seen will just throw it away preferring to be hungry in protest rather than to accept what they got! How have you reacted in the past to this situation? 

3. This example we can apply to how people react to what they get in in life, they can either angrily blame God and others, accept their lot in life and make the best of it, or get bitter, hateful, and resentful. There are mega-multitudes of people that do not worship God, nor go to church to learn about God’s love and the deeper things of life but still common sense is out there for everyone to learn from. Sadly, few ask God about His will for their lives! Even a Christian may think that God is unfair to them compared to others, but prayer will reveal purpose.

From the movie ‘Forest Gump’, there is a quote that says, ‘Life is like a box of chocolates and you never know what you are going to get’. That is a pretty true analogy of life, don’t you think? You did not get to choose the country you were born in, the parents and family you have, the amount of wealth you grow up with, your race and the color of your hair, eyes or skin, the good or bad characteristics of your character, body, or mind, nor did you get to choose the year in which you were born in. We are all victims of circumstance!

Summing up these factors for our temporary existence on this planet, it might make one deduct that all of our life is unfair and intimidating! Like it or not we have to reason with ourselves and with God to understand our place and purpose in this world and accept this fact; that we are not as in control of things as we would like to be! All is vanity and vexation of spirit! Some people choose to blame everyone else for their lot in life and hate it all. When life is not as they want it then they think it’s their parents fault, it’s their ex mates fault, or worse, they think everything is messed up so it must be God’s fault! But it’s all in how you choose to play your cards that makes all the difference in the world!

4. Even as children we analyze our situation in life and we notice that we are not as pretty or as handsome as some others, that we are not as rich as some others, that we are more or less healthy than others, and that we are often labeled within some minority category. We are born into a world hijacked by Satan who has generationally damaged our cultures and harmed our ability to connect with God so being distorted in our human conclusions, we complain and hate the fact that we are having to tolerate living within the stratus of some demon-controlled system. Every system of man around the world is a double standard unfair social order ran by liars, bullies, and cheaters! Life is unfair for almost everyone and many innocent ones die young! Some innocent ones don’t even get to be born!

How old were you when the reality of your qualities hit you? 10 years old? Some people even become aware at 7 years old, others at 13 years old, and yet there are some people that never seem to quite fully become aware of where they stand with anything in life analyzing and understanding what their purpose in life is all about and how to make the best of it. There are many intelligent people out there, even with Phds that never gain any understanding or wisdom concerning the deep meaningful things of God, life, or purpose. They may only take notice after certain painful things happen to them and they seek God authentically. 

Some people are like a cork in the ocean bobbing around as if with no starting place and with no destiny, distracted and entertained, self-absorbed and confused. Observe how many trains, buses and cars are full of the faithless that live frustrated and futile lives! And to make it worse these kinds of unspiritual ignorant-of-God people believe and follow any current trend, and they will suddenly flip flop in beliefs and accept any crazy idea promoted by the premeditating destructive social engineers as if no common sense existed at all! Too many people have intelligence and no wisdom and it is because they have never developed any connection with God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit! And they with their wandering hate and foolishness are leading our world to destruction!

James 1: 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

5. Ecclesiastes 2:17 Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind. Why in the book of Ecclesiastes does it mention the work we do under the sun 27 times and do it within the context of being in vain? What is the problem that Solomon has here that he says that he hates life, that all we do is for nothing and is vanity, as if we are trying to catch the wind, which is impossible?

It is not to reveal that in this life, even if you become a king with great wealth as Solomon did, you will never gain satisfaction, heaven, or anything as you want it! Even after you or I work hard to get something it will eventually become meaningless and seem futile because that is God’s design: this world is never enough to satisfy! You can gain the whole world and lose your soul in the process of the pursuit of happiness. All you and I work for is just going to be left behind!

But after a person realizes that despite their box of chocolates they have some freedom to make good choices to accomplish something of value to them, God, and others, this life may offer some temporary relief. But still all we gain will never totally fulfill our hungry souls and hearts that have a God-shaped hole only He can fill. Only by uniting with Jesus in heaven will we find a complete rest and happiness. We must take into account that God blesses us with unique talents and the Holy Spirit to make it through this weary world where nothing is ever going to be as we want it. 

6. So what are you and I going to do in the meantime while on this prison called earth? Would it be of any use to curse God for allowing you and other people to be born into this world where life is unbearable and you grow to hate everything because you can never really own or control anything exactly to your liking? I can tell you I would have preferred that all my kids be great Bible teachers, but they chose different paths of their interests. No one ever gets to have their family, their finances, their church, or their life in perfect condition. Perfect does not exist in a broken world! So are you going to complain or pray and make the best of it? 

I have concluded that a majority of the people of the world hate their life and they will never be made happy with anything! Look how many embittered argumentative discontent worldly faithless indifferent people there are out there! Christians with Jesus, however, do have a peace and love that is supernatural beyond the normal default of the human condition of dis-satisfaction with life.

Notice how many violent criminals, rapists, murderers, and murderous radicals come into existence all because they are mad at the world! Isn’t it in part because they want to make somebody else pay because they cannot have the wealth and power their greedy little soul desires? If they can’t own it all, then they want to destroy it! There are real demons of envy and hate controlling people!

7, And how alarming it is today to learn about how many embittered followers there are of false religions and oppressive governments that foment relieving your harbored hateful frustrations on others over the unfairness of life. What a disastrous solution that they impose their illogical traumatizing set of rules on others in the name of god or for the good of society (values of Satan from hell!). 

How sad that so few people submit to Jesus who gives anyone who chooses Him a good life and a purpose. Due to Satan’s attacks on Christians not everyone gets to have a good life as a Christian because in the world we have tribulation, and it comes from Satanic persecutors. But believers do overcome the world! 

John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. The best possible life anyone could hope for is that life which is dedicated to Jesus because you know there will be a reward in the next life for you work under the sun.   

8. What we all must remember is that we have been cursed ever since Adam and Eve brought sin and rebellion into the world because they disobeyed God. It is sad but true, we all have inherited this broken world and for some people it is more broken than for others. But despite that God will judge everyone according to what they had and what they did with it. 

Luke 12:48 “(But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few). For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more”. Those of us who are blessed (and we are!) should bless others!

We can never be happy in a world where cruel people commit horrific acts of evil against others, where sickness and death sadden and shake us, where worries and fears weight us down until insanity comes, where starvation and government or religious oppression suppresses us from obtaining our basic daily needs of food and shelter. This life is a cruel school for us to learn by, to see just how evil and vain people will be without submission to the true Jehovah God of heaven, who sent His Son to save the souls of men. Thank God the goats and sheep will be divided on judgment day we will no longer be subject to this pain!  

9. The good news is Jesus frees us from it all! He took away sickness, death, and fears! He took away the curse of submitting to a religion of difficult laws. Galatians 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”)

If you think your lot in life is bad, consider how Jesus had it. To the carnal thick mind of the unspiritual man, Jesus may appear to have been cursed being called by God to die on the tree, or cross, for unjust humanity, but His seemingly unfair task in life became the life giving eternal blessing and liberation of all mankind!

We have to work together with Jesus and each other! If you dislike your brothers and your church, it could possibly stem from suppressed guilt because you are actually disliking yourself for not accepting who you are and what your responsibilities in life are that God expects you to do while you live under the sun. Each one of us has a unique task and we must learn to deny ourselves, and not desire the hypocritical world with its power and wealth hungry Godless aggressors. Our joy and peace comes by serving God and others expecting nothing in this life in return! 

10. Are you discontent with life and with yourself? I wrote a poem about that.       SELF

Self-righteous, self-satisfied

Self-isolated, self-glorified

Selfish, self-loving, me, myself 

Self-pity, self-willed, prove thyself

 

I hate myself, for self causes pain 

And speak for yourself, 

Self creates the insane!

 

Self, be condemned!

Futile game!

Let another man praise you, 

Not your own name.    by Kelly Durant

 

Here on earth life will always offer you and me moments of frustration and pain but also of joy and we have our hope of a blissful life in heaven. Rev. 21: 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” 

 

Is all vanity and frustration on earth? Well, if you live without Jesus giving you eternal life and a mission to live for then yes! Life for so many is an empty, painful, experience, and then you die! But with Jesus we can get through it all, as you and I learn to trust in Him. Don’t labor for the meat that perishes but for that which brings eternal life!