What do we know about Joshua - the Old Testament hero?   

One thing we know for sure is that Joshua knew Moses from the time of his youth.  It is believed that Joshua was about 40 years old at the time of the Exodus.  The Bible describes him as a  “Servant of the Lord”.  When Moses sent Joshua and Caleb into Canaan to check out the territory with the others, Joshua returned and made a statement that Canaan was “an exceeding good land.”  Even though the others saw problems Joshua believed that real victory in any battle is not built on the soldiers courage, but on the fearlessness based on faith in God. 

In the book Joshua, chapter 24, Joshua asks each of us a critical question: Whom Shall You Serve?

Have you ever realized that the Christians of the olden days were able to serve the Lord despite the lack of the technological innovations that we enjoy today?  These people of God were still able to communicate the gospel and share information about the love of God. Sometimes we find it so hard to travel to a church or to a place God wants us to serve Him despite easy transportation systems that will make our journey easier. In the Bible Romans 12:11 encourages us not to be lazy but to be fully devoted in serving the Lord.

Sometimes serving the Lord can just be as simple as sharing the word of God over the phone, or on WhatsApp messages, Facebook, Instagram or even Tweet, or even an e-mail or a text encouraging someone. It can be as simple as sharing the word of God with your colleagues, friends and family that haven’t met Christ before or those that need to come back to God.

In Joshua 24:15, Joshua said “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”.  This shows an act of commitment and a heart fully devoted to serve the Lord, not just himself but his entire family. Joshua has demonstrated his love for God and he had also acted according to what the Bible says in Deuteronomy 6:5-7: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

We can apply the above scripture to our lives as Christians by asking what we can do for God and not what He can do for us. Our God can do all things, but we also need to serve Him. It does not mean if we don’t serve God, He will not do what we ask, but serving God is an act of commitment and ways of showing our love for him because of who He is.

I would like to encourage each of us to ask God what we can do for Him. It is possible that some are not sure of what area we can best serve God. We can serve God in the church, at work, as street evangelists, in our family or as a missionary. You don’t have to be an expert in that area, but whichever area God is leading you to serve please commit to it and God will equip you to do His work (Hebrews 13:21).

In the New Testament the word Disciple is used to describe the people who are committed to following Jesus Christ. To be a true disciple of Jesus requires real commitment.  We have to let His life  infuse our own so that we become more like Him.   Following Christ is meant to be the central focus of our lives.  Discipleship is about Christ being formed in you and you being formed in Christ.  Jesus is our Redeemer and He is also our Example, God’s image of perfect human holiness.  To become like Him we must be willing to follow His teachings.  To follow Him we must be willing to submit ourselves to the truth of God’s Word, from beginning to end.  Discipleship is an ongoing process that will last the whole of our lifetime and should touch every part of our lives.
 
Maybe you have been a Christian for many years, maybe you have already accepted Jesus as your Savior, but have you made Jesus Lord of your life?  Being a disciple of Jesus requires more from us than just turning up for a church service, God is meant to have the central place in our daily lives. Being a disciple of Jesus is more than just reading your Bible once in a while or praying when you need something, it requires a real relationship with the God who loves you.  Discipleship is the way we show that we take Jesus - His Incarnation, His works, His words, His person, His exemplary life,  His commands and His commissions – seriously.  A Christian who takes discipleship seriously is a Christian who takes Jesus and the Gospel seriously.  Our ongoing walk with Jesus must be a priority in our lives.
 
Joshua had a pretty busy life, he had a life with God which was the main focus of everything that he did.

When Joshua was about 110 years old; he gave one of the most important speeches of his life.  Joshua gathered the people around him and he spoke to them and gave them a challenge before he died.  He told the people God had been good to them.  He reminded them how God had delivered them from slavery and wandering.  Then Joshua tells them that they need to worship the right God in the right way, not some kind of substitute God or idol.  Joshua told the people it was time to make a choice - Joshua 24:15:
 
15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
 
In this life we will face many choices.  But of all the choices we face in life, the choice to know God or ignore God, has eternal consequences.  Proverbs 28:26 says: Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in God’s wisdom are kept safe.

You have a purpose, you have a destiny, to discover God’s purpose for your life.  You need to be willing to allow God to lead you and guide you.  You have the ability to choose to obey God or ignore God.  Will you choose this day to serve and worship God?

I believe that there are a lot of reasons to serve God, not just because of what HE has done for us, but because of who HE IS!   There are also a lot of distractions in this world, but the choice to serve is up to us.  Our God deserves outstanding service from each of us because HE is the one who was and is and is to come!   The ONE who gave HIS best for us, so why shouldn't we do the same?

Who will you choose to serve today?

Acts 26:19 
For that reason, King Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision
 
These are the words that the Apostle Paul addressed to King Agrippa.  Paul's words shed an immense ray of light on the character and activity of the great apostle.  In this portion of scripture, Paul gives his testimony to King Agrippa and Governor Festus.  In this, Paul gives a very accurate picture of what he was like before he met Jesus on the road to Damascus.  By his own admission, he was truly a prosecutor. 

Can you imagine the splendor, the ceremony, the showy display as Governor Festus, King Agrippa, Bernice and their ranking officials all entered the palace room?  You can almost hear trumpets blaring.   You can see them in their finery.  Here they come parading in: proud, wealthy, and powerful.  Each one wearing their fine, colorful garments as they take their seats.  Of course their seats are raised, as they looked down on the poor folks who would come into their court to be heard and helped.  Then here comes Paul, a small man, weighted down with chains.  He shuffles into the room, stood for a moment, and when the investigation was formally handed over to King Agrippa by Festus, Paul begins his defense.
 
Paul speaks of his own vanity and pride.  He wanted to make a name for himself by cleaning up the earth of “those” saints.  Paul tells them of all the people he had killed.  How he had accused Christians.  How even when the Christians were dying he insulted them.  He became more and more intoxicated with power because he had letters of authority.  But then he gets to the critical turning point!    It was mid-day and everyone was taking a rest, but Paul was not taking a rest, he was on a mission, rushing to kill people.  However, he was stopped by a bright light from heaven.  They had all fallen on the ground and Paul heard the words: I am Jesus of Nazareth whom you are persecuting.  Rise up.  He then continues to tell his audience that since that day he has not been disobedient to that heavenly vision - the heavenly call that he had received from the LORD.  Paul informs his hearers that he witnessed to all men-everywhere.  He preached repentance and the need to turn to God and to do the works of repentance.  He preached only the Scripture.  He preached Christ’s death and resurrection.  He told Agrippa and Festus that he was obedient to the heavenly vision, to the call of Jesus.
 
He lets them know that his call was from Jesus and he lets them know that he was the most unlikely person in the world to receive a call from God, but it came any way.  The Lord Jesus appeared to him and called him and the call was a command, a demand, a charge, a mandate, a decree, an ultimatum, a stipulation, a claim and a dictate.  Are you getting the message?   The Lord’s call was not up for discussion or debate.  There was no need to confer with family or friends, no need to seek out other people’s opinions concerning the call.  The Lord called Paul and the Lord expected Paul to fulfill his call.  Paul states emphatically that he had not disobeyed the heavenly call.  The charges brought against Paul, who was now before King Agrippa, were unjust.  He wanted them to know that he was not disobedient to God.  He had been faithful to the Lord, doing exactly what the Lord wanted done.  Yes, he was a sinner: but the Lord in His mercy saved and called him, and he was now obeying the Lord. 
 
He tells them that the Lord commissioned him to preach to the Gentiles and the Lord promised to deliver him from them.  Wow what courage!!   Here is Paul speaking before two powerful Gentiles - a King and  Governor, neither of whom can touch him because he has appealed to speak to Caesar, the Emperor, and yet he is able to preach the gospel to both of them.  The Lord means business when HE calls a person.  The call is from heaven; therefore it supersedes all other calls and interests.  It is not up for discussion nor is it to be subjected to any other desire.  God knows the need of the world for the gospel, and he knows whom HE wants to fill that need.  So, the best thing to do when we hear the call from the Lord is to surrender to it...immediately!
 
Paul gave his resume in a few words.  We get the impression that Paul said these words emphatically, and not as a weak, old man.  He said them because he was filled with sorrow and full of affliction for his past but that the Lord saved a wretched like him and like us.  Oh, that each of us Christians could say the same thing that we have not been disobedient to the call that  we have received from the Lord.
 
I want to point something out, in this scenario.   Who had the real power?  Was it those who were dressed in their finery, or was it the crowd that was listening, or was it the one man who was in chains?  The answer is the man in chains.  Yes, Paul had the power.  He spoke of a suffering Christ, of His resurrection from the dead - this is reality.  This is the truth of the gospel.  The swords and spears of the guards, the chain mail worn by the officers standing beside the governor and king, these are as delicate as fabric and just like fine cobwebs and temporary as butterfly wings.  You see in this one instance that the power of this world is a fraud.  The man in chains was the one who was really free.  And those who proclaimed their freedom by their splendor and pageantry were really bound.  That means that they were bound for all eternity in hell.
 
Paul was not only obedient in the good times when he was surrounded by victories and successes, but always even when others would feel their hearts freeze up and their throats get dry. Paul was obedient in spite of the ingratitude of those he loved most and by whom he was loved the least in every condition of his agitated existence: in poverty as also in abundance.  Paul never wavered not even a single time.  For Paul even death was considered gain.  It would bring him to an encounter with Jesus, the object of his vision and the hope of his heart.  He never allowed his heavenly vision to vanish. We all get tired, we all get hurt, we forget that heavenly vision that was given to us by our Lord.  We have to be reminded that we need to draw from the fountain of life: Jesus Christ.  We need to live in community with Christ.
 
In the history of King Xerses you can read that in order to maintain and keep his hatred against the Greeks alive, he gave orders to a slave to whisper in his ear every day at dinner time the words that said: “Remember the Greeks,” “Remember the Greeks.”    As Christians we must always keep the infinite love of our Lord in our minds,  “Remember the love of Jesus.”   “Remember the love of Jesus.”

What is it that GOD has called you to in this New Year?  Let's follow this lesson from the Apostle Paul and live out our calling!   Do not be disobedient to your heavenly vision.

​The author of the Book of Hebrews is unknown.  Hebrews has been attributed to Paul even though many question his authorship.   However, there is an abundance of evidence in his favor.  This Book describes Christ’s ministry in heaven at God’s right hand.  The word “better” appears many times in the Book of Hebrews.  That should be our goal as Christians to know Him better for it appears 13 times in the King James Version of Hebrews.
 
When we get to chapter 13 it is an exhortation. That word exhortation means to incite, and it often implies the  urging or admonishing of an orator or preacher.  Well, some would say that we should use a better word such as to encourage but there is a difference between those two verbs.  To exhort is to urge or to advise earnestly while encourage is to mentally support, to motivate, to give courage, hope or spirit.
 
The main object of the letter to the Hebrews is to put the excellence of Jesus in prominence.  He is telling them that Jesus is superior to everything and everyone.  The author focuses in on this precious, scriptural diamond that many have memorized over the years.  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.   Does that mean that we have no choices?  No!  We always have choices and decisions that must be made in this life.  However, Jesus as our foundation is our refuge and strength in a world that is changing rapidly.  He is our anchor when we face many changes that can affect us deeply.  Things in this life do not remain the same.  Changes occur in our homes, in our jobs, in relationships, in nature, in our finances, in our health, in our culture, in our laws, in our government, etc. and changes can happen suddenly and traumatically.  We need to remember that at those times when everything seems to go upside down we must rely on the unchanging GOD, who is our sure foundation.  HE is as the Scriptures say, our Faithful Friend and HE will be there for us when things change and even when things are uncertain.  He has promised to never leave us or forsake us.  We may ask "why did this happen or that happen if HE has promised to never leave us?".  When Jesus was on the cross everyone ,except for a few, forsook Him.  He knew that would happen but He had the blessed assurance that His Heavenly Father would be with Him even in that time of loneliness.  Remember even when everyone else has forsaken us we can trust the Lord to be with us.
 
The question we have to ask ourselves is what are the supreme marks of the Christian’s conduct?  As you read through chapter 13 take a look at each of the verses.  The author speaks of brotherly love, hospitality, helping the prisoners and the mistreated, purity in marriage, contentment, remembering your leaders and remembering your Source of life and our power - which is Jesus Christ.  Since we are just looking at verse 8 it looks as if the author wants to give a greater emphasis to all that he has said so far.  It appears to be a focus as a lasting remembrance for his entire life.  The author reminds us that many leaders come and go and eventually they all die.  However, the Source of our lives and power of this life will never leave and never passes away.  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.  He is forever present with us; and He never changes.  For example, notice that His definition of sin is the same as it has been since Genesis 3 - it remains the same.  We see the result of sin ever since Genesis 3 is that there would be sorrow and sadness and death and thousands of years later, we see that every day in this life.
 
The author is also showing us that Jesus Christ is superior to time.  You see the strength and depth of His doctrine do not go out of style.  We have people who base their careers on trends but Jesus Christ is not a trend or a fad.  The important people of one age are forgotten by the next generation.  Talk to some of the younger generation and when you mention someone you thought was a great person they look at you like who are they and what are you talking about????
 
Yes, Jesus Christ is consistent over the ages.  If you had lived in Bible times, in the Middle ages or if you live in this modern era of the 21st century Jesus is the same.  He is not a puppet master that forces you to be and do what He wants.  Every generation finds interest in Him.  He is the same today and points out to us ways not yet discovered.  We sometimes forget that Jesus is always a friend and the longer we know Him time renders Him more intimate and admired.
 
Jesus Christ is the same with every generation. To Christ sin is sin and that is what the Bible speaks of when it speaks of the “sin nature”. 

In contrast, this verse reminds us that man is not always the same.  People do not treat everyone from the same point of view and with the same equality and love; but Jesus Christ does. We are moved by sympathy because we do not see the wickedness of some and then we exaggerate a small defect in another.  It is different with Jesus; we all enjoy equal rights before Him.
 
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday-in times past- Jesus Christ sacrificed everything for us, even to the point of dying for us.  He even suffered and took our sins upon Him.  All the heinous things that we see and classify as sins: murder, adultery, pornography, bestiality, sexual sins, drug addictions, alcoholism, you name the most despicable things that you can think of rape, molestation, sex trafficking terror, etc.  He took it all upon Him.  That is why the Father could not look at Him on the Cross.
 
Jesus Christ is the same forever, eternally. He lives eternally throughout all the ages of eternity.  He lives eternally to meet our need forever and ever.  He met all the needs yesterday,   He meets all the needs today and He shall meet all the needs eternally.  Yes, He met the needs of all believers who lived yesterday, in whatever culture they were in.   He meets the needs of all believers today.  He shall meet the needs of all believers forever, and ever and ever
 
What a blessed assurance we have.  As Believers we often lose courage.  We are often tempted to turn back from our Christian walk.  But we have the reassuring and sure voice of the Master reminding us that Jesus Christ passed through similar pains and tiredness and discouragement.  This verse should encourage us to continue our pilgrim walk with Jesus; walking hand in hand with the Master who walked this life . 

Lord, help us to have courage and be strengthened by this verse today!  It does not matter where you live, what is the color your skin, the generation which you are in.  It does not even matter where or what part of the world you live in -  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever and He will take care of you.   HE has ALWAYS been and ALWAYS will be!

As a Pastor for many years I would often receive "repeat" questions.  One of those questions is: Why is there so much wickedness, immorality, lawlessness and violence in the world?  IF there is a God and you say that He is sovereign and IF He rules over and controls all the events in the universe the why does HE allow evil on earth? 
 
Have you ever noticed: It is always God’s fault?
 
We say well, God could compensate for people’s evil actions through supernatural intervention 100 percent of the time.  People say: “Can’t God stop a drunk driver from causing an automobile accident?".  Others have said and believe that God could stop a lazy construction worker from doing a substandard job on a home that he is building that could later on cause grief to the homeowners.  Still other state, "can’t God stop a father or mother who are addicted to drugs or alcohol from doing any harm to their mates and children or extended family?".  If God is in control can’t He stop a gunman from robbing convenience stores, or killing people in a church or synagogue or in school, in a mall?  Isn’t God able to stop high school bullies?  Can’t God stop terrorists from flying airplanes into buildings?
 
Now if God did that everyone would probably say “Yea God, Way to Go!!!” Now the solution sounds attractive but let’s see if it works.  Let me tell you that you do know that God’s intervention would lose its attractiveness as soon as God’s intervention infringed on something we wanted to do.  We want God to prevent horribly evil actions, but we are willing to let “lesser-evil” actions slide.  We need to realize that those “lesser-evil” actions are what usually lead to the “greater-evil” actions.
 
Should God only stop actual sexual affairs or should He also block our access to pornography and end any inappropriate, but not yet sexual relationships?  How about all the sex chats on the internet? 

Should God stop “true“ thieves or should He also stop us from cheating on our taxes? 

Should God only stop murderers, or should He also stop the “lesser-evil” actions done to people that lead them to commit murder? 

Should God only stop acts of terrorism, or should He also stop the indoctrination that transformed a person into a terrorist. 

Then there are those who say why doesn’t God just remove all those people who choose to commit evil acts.  The problem with this possibility is that there would be no one left, for God would have to remove all of us.  You see we forget that we all sin and we all commit evil acts.  Romans 3:23 reminds us "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God".   Yes, I will grant you that some people seem to be more evil than others, yet ALL have sinned…so where would you want God to draw the line?
 
In John 11:32, Mary, the sister of Lazarus (the friend of Jesus who had just died) confronts Jesus with, “Lord if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Isn’t this the same way we react whenever a tragedy or disaster happens to us or our loved ones? We complain to Him and say that if ‘he had been present then’ this thing would not have happened.   Even when the Lord waits to be glorified in an event, we give the devil a priority since we become the first in pointing our fingers at the Lord. Accusation is a devil’s weapon for he is the accuser of brethren (Revelation 12:10). He accused Job before God and many other men of God. You are therefore not an exception. He will continue pointing his crooked finger at you as long as you are doing the will of God.
 
Next time you face a calamity, as a Believer, do not start accusing your neighbor, pastor, someone in church or even God. He may be wholly involved in the molding of your life than any of those you have in mind. Remember that even Jesus’ disciples fell into such a weakness when they saw Jesus walking on water (Mark 6:47-51) they thought that Jesus was a ghost in the midst of the troubled sea. Stormy seas may not be welcome in our lives, but sometimes they are needed so that our carnal lives are worked out to the fullest. Remember, when the stormy seas arise in your life, it just might be an indicator that Jesus Christ is about to appear, walking on the sea to come to your rescue!   

When the seas get rough, don't blame GOD, don't think it's all GOD's fault...get excited, because GOD may just be using the storm to do something incredible in your life!

Have you ever noticed that some of the saddest words in the English language begin with the letter "D"?  Words like disappointment, doubt, disillusionment, defeat, despair and death.  Human hope is a fragile thing and when it withers away it is difficult to revive.  Hopelessness is a disease of the human spirit and it is very difficult to cure. We find signs of it everywhere.
 
Even many Christians today have lost their hope.  We see what is going in the world.  We see what is happening to our families. We see what is happening in our churches and even in our country.  We become hopeless and we give in to that feeling of hopelessness.  

The last thing that someone needs who is feeling hopeless is a brisk cheering- up talk and they do not need to be told to “snap out of it”.  Let us love them by listening to them and we can pray with them and we can pray for them and perhaps even cry with them.
 
The events unfolding around the world today are another significant step closer to the conclusion of history as described in the scriptures. I am not seeking to sensationalize the political and military actions being taken but to share with you my conviction that we must not overlook their significance to the spiritual climate of the world.  Many non-Christian people are sensing for the first time a genuine hopelessness. An anxiety as to how this escalating conflict will radically change life on this planet. A fear of increasing terrorist attacks, political fanaticism, global pandemic and social unrest.  What hope can there possibly be for a better world for our children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren?  Where can we find hope for the present, let alone our future?  Where can our friends, family, neighbors. co-workers and people turn to for hope?
 
The Bible fully understands that hope is vital to all living people.  In Proverbs 13:12 scripture tells us that Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.
 
There are so many ways that HOPE is shattered in this day and age.  Through broken bodies: sickness, disease, and disasters.  Broken homes through divorces, violence, debt, and death.  Through broken lives:  drugs, alcohol, crime, desertion.  Broken dreams: ambition, failure, defeats, disappointments.  These all seem to be symptoms of our modern society and today they are affecting millions of people, depriving them of peace, happiness and ultimately hope.
 
Science tells us that “we can live forty days without food, eight days without water, four minutes without air, but only a few seconds without hope”    But what do we really mean by HOPE?

In the Bible the word used in the Greek is Elpis and means ‘a favorable and confident expectation’. It has to do with a positive vision of the unseen and the future.  Hope is not wishful thinking, or a vague ambition. Hope is not wanting things to turn out well, while remaining uncertain that they actually will.  Hope is the absolute certainty we have that God is good and that His promises are true and amen. Hope is actually personalized in Jesus himself, He is our hope!
 
Colossians 1:27 27 tell us To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:…….Christ in you, the hope of glory.
 
If you read the New Testament,  you will be challenged by those historical figures who are prominent in the New Testament.  You see that their hope, even in the midst of gloom and doom, is unbelievable!   They had more reasons to be hopeless than we do in this generation.  When the Church first began the social, political and economic conditions were unbearable.  Half of the people were slaves.  Most of the people were hungry.  They were paying more than half of whatever income they made to Imperial Rome.  There were continuous rebellions, uprisings, protests of all kinds.  History tells us that during the reign of Emperor Nero, Christians were executed by the thousands.  Nero is reported to have smeared the bodies of Christians with pitch and set them on fire as torches for his garden parties.  This is documented in history but the Christians did not let that stop them from maintaining.  They radiated HOPE even in the midst of adversity!  They talked about their hope in Jesus and they sang of their hope in Jesus.  They experienced the love of God through His Son Jesus Christ.  They had experienced His resurrection Power which was always transforming despair into hope, and death into life.  They counted themselves fortunate to have suffered for the cause of Christ.
 
This world needs people with a confident hope. Not a misplaced, weak and fragile hope but a secure hope. The words of Jesus himself teach us that things are going to get worse before they get better, especially for the Christian.
 
Matthew 24:6 - 8 says And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.   All these are the beginning of sorrows.
 
Our Lord is trying to warn us so that we may be prepared.  HE is saying -- see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must and will happen.  (All the prophecies in the Old Testament were fulfilled).  You see the reasons the world around us has for hopelessness are our very reasons for HOPE!  We see these happenings as distressing as everybody else, yet we see a reason to them and what they are pointing towards.  To convince others that there is hope we need ourselves to be convinced. God’s people are not expected to live dictated by world circumstances but by the principles and promises of God’s kingdom.  We have the greatest hope of all … and HIS NAME IS JESUS!!!!
 
Remember, "We wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ." (Titus 2:13)
 
Keep looking up!

I remember the first time I saw that quote I said to myself what a great concept!  We usually gripe and complain when things happen to us that we did not expect but sometimes it is good to look at things differently.  I believe that quote is attributed to Dale Carnegie who used it in his 1948 book entitled: How To Stop Worrying and Start Living.  Lemons suggest sourness/tartness or difficulties in life; making lemonade is turning them into something sweeter, positive or desirable.

When things do not turn out as we expected, especially for Christians or Believers we feel as though God has abandoned us; but sometimes we need a different perspective. There is a hymn we used to sing in our churches many years ago it was titled: No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus.  The writer of that song spent most of his life as an itinerant evangelist and gospel songwriter.  The composer says that after returning home from an evangelistic crusade he found a note left by his wife of many years.  The note said she had enough of the evangelistic life and she left him.  The composer said that he became very despondent during the next several years. There were even times when he contemplated suicide.  Yes, there was the terrible despair he experienced because he believed that no one really cared for him any more.  But he said that gradually his spiritual faith was restored and he once again became active in Christian ministry.  Soon he felt compelled to write a song that became a summary of his past tragic experience.  From his broken heart came the words to the hymn:
                               No on ever cared for me like Jesus.
                               There’s no other friend so kind and true. 
                               No one else could take the sin and darkness from me. 
                               O  how much He Cared for me
 
Even in our darkest moments, much like the times we are seeing around us today, God has promised to care for us!
 
In Psalm 22 we see the words spoken by Jesus when HE was on the cross, those same words which many of us have said over the years:
                        "My God, my God…why have You forsaken Me?"
It was the most gut-wrenching cry of loneliness in history, and it came not from a prisoner or a widow or a patient. It came from a hill, from a cross, from the Messiah: "My God, my God," he cried out , "why did you abandon me!"
 
Never have words carried such hurt and anguish. Never has one BEING been so lonely. The despair is darker than the sky. The two who had been one are now two.  Jesus knows your pain and your isolations and He is there with you which means you are not as alone as you might think or feel you are! Keep your focus on Jesus and pray to feel His embrace in your life.
 
Perhaps this story will help you.  After an accident in which she lost her arm, a girl named Jamie refused to go to school or church for an entire year. Finally the young teen thought she could face her peers. In preparation, her mother called her Sunday school teacher and asked that he not call attention to Jamie. The teacher promised, but when he got sick on Sunday morning and had to call a substitute, he forgot to tell the second teacher.  At the conclusion of the lesson that day, which was about inviting friends to church, the substitute led the class in doing the hand motions to the familiar children’s poem:
 
Here’s the church,  Here are the people, Open the door, See all the people.
Jamie’s eyes filled with tears she only had one arm. However, a young boy realized how she might be feeling. He knelt beside her. With one hand apiece, they supported each other, making the church, steeple, and people. Together they illustrated what the real church is all about.

The devil wants you isolated and in despair, But Jesus wants you connected to Him and to His people. You may not see Him, you may not feel Him, but standing right beside you at every moment is your loving Heavenly Father.  He is there He will always be there, Jesus said I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU OR FORSAKE YOU! I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU!

Jesus is given many titles in the Bible. Perhaps none is as endearing as Emmanuel (God with us). It speaks of his constant, continual presence in our lives. May you be encouraged as you think upon that title.  You may be worn out. You may be beat down. You may be discouraged. You may feel like nothing is going right in your life. You may feel like a failure. But I am here to tell you today: Whether you are on the mountain top or in the valley…you can trust God…He is faithful.

When we look back at the Crucifixion of Jesus. I believe that the betrayal of Judas was worse than the beatings for Jesus.  Yes, there was the desertion of the disciples, the humiliation of the crucifixion, being spit upon, the crown of thorns, the nails in His hands, the mocking, the emotional torment, and even the mental torment. None of these compared to what He was facing at that moment on the Cross.  This was the worst moment of the Crucifixion. Jesus is all alone at this moment in His life. Not even the Father is with Him.  He cries out to God.  That is what we need to do when life is handing us lemons, we need to take it to the Lord in prayer because He knows what that is like.  He loves and cares for us.  Do you believe it?  Trust HIM.  JESUS can turn things around!

We all have favorite verses in the Bible and one of mine is Proverbs 3:5 - 6.
          [5] Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not unto your own understanding.
          [6] In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.  (KJV)
 
In the King James Version of the Bible trust is mentioned 134 times!  Did you know that the verses above were written by King Solomon.  However, Solomon wrote more wisely than he lived.  Even though he was blessed with great wisdom, he did not follow God’s plans for marriage.  He had 700 wives and 300 concubines.  You see on the subject of women, Solomon followed what I like to call the Frank Sinatra School of Theology - “I did it my way.”  Unfortunately, we are no different.  We read the Bible.  We pray.  We hear messages preached when we attend church; but we still want to do things our own way.
 
Solomon was a great king.  He wrote 3,000 proverbs.  He wrote 1,005 songs (1 Kings 4:31-32).  Yes, Solomon had been given great wisdom and very great insight and he had a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand of the seashore.  Solomon was a philosopher, a scientist,  he was the one who built the temple under God’s direction.  In fact, that temple was one of the wonders of the world.  He far surpassed the Egyptians who were considered at that time to be the greatest scholars.   Remember, not only was Israel blessed, but so did every nation that took advantage of Solomon’s wisdom.
 
What does it mean to TRUST?  It is basically to have confidence, to believe in the steadfastness of our Lord.  If we really trust the Lord we should not find it difficult to surrender to Him.  I get the picture in my mind of something my children did when they were young.  Have you ever seen a young child jump into their father or grandfather’s arms?  Yes, my children would do that.  They would go up a few steps and yell, “Dad or Pop catch me!”  There would be such joy on their faces.  They trusted.
 
But over the years I have heard people say: I can’t trust God, I can’t trust Jesus.   I don’t see them.  I need something tangible.  That is when I would tell them; you trust that the alarm clock is going to wake you up for work.  You trust that the mechanic properly fixed your brakes on the car when you take it out of the shop. You trust that the workers at your favorite fast food chain washed their hands after their last bathroom break.  What about those of you who have been sick recently; you trusted the Doctor whose name you could not pronounce.  Yes, you saw degrees on the wall but you never actually checked them out.  That Doctor wrote you a prescription you couldn’t read.  Then you took it to a pharmacist you have never met and she/or he gives you a chemical compound and you go home and take those pills according to the instructions on the bottle.  All of this encompasses TRUST.
 
In a world of distrust whom can we trust? 
Solomon tells us about the one and only person we can always trust - He is the Lord, Jesus Christ.  We do not put trust in ourselves, or our abilities, not in our education, not in our money, the only one worth trusting is the Lord.   

Have we given the Lord our entire heart? 
You see, living the Christian life is fairly easy if everything is going our way; but if we add a little stress, a little hardship, a little despair we quickly find ourselves at a fork in the road.  Are we going to rest and trust the Lord or are we going to go our own way?  We must accept that God’s promises are true even when He seems to be so far away.
 
The Apostle John wrote the Book of Revelation while on the barren island of Patmos; it was not Paradise Island.  John Bunyan completed the classic book, Pilgrims Progress while in jail.  Beethoven composed his immortal 9th symphony while totally deaf and Fanny Crosby once remarked that if she had not lost her sight she would never have written all the hymns God gave her; the thousands of hymns in most of our hymn books.
 
We need to recognize, to concede, to confess, to acknowledge who Jesus really is to us.    We need to acknowledge His presence, His power, His purpose and His promises at all times.  Most of the time we don’t want to give up control concerning our spiritual lives.    Let me give you an example.  I lived in New Jersey for most of my life.  Land is so tight that valet parking is provided for hospitals, restaurants, theaters, museums, etc. in the New York and New Jersey areas. To park your car you must hand over your keys to the parking valet and he brings your car to a large parking area or a parking garage which has many levels.  Then he puts the keys to your car on a pegboard and if you look at that pegboard there are hundreds of others keys there also and they all look the same.   And if you watch them drive your car –NASCAR has nothing on them!  You see, we have no trouble handing over our car keys to a valet but we hesitate to hand over our lives to the Lord, the One who died for us, the One who loves us unconditionally. Yes, we fight the Lord but we are the fools for He has the best in mind for us.  But we need to simply place our Faith exclusively in Christ Jesus and what He has done for us at the Cross, which then gives the Holy Spirit room to work in our lives. (Romans 8:1-2 and 11).
 
There’s a song that we sing in church and it is titled: I’m Trusting You, Lord.
                        I’m trusting You, Lord , I’m trusting You
                       You’ve been so faithful, You’ve been so true
                       You never failed me like I failed you
                        I’m trusting You, Lord. I’m trusting You
 
 
Well. are you going to Trust Him or are you going to go it alone?      Choose wisely!

In Genesis 11 there is a passage in the Old Testament and it is titled the Tower of Babel.  In these verses we are introduced to a man named Nimrod.  He is the leader of the Kingdom of Babel.  After the Great Flood Nimrod decided that he would build a tower too high for the waters to ever reach the world again.  So Nimrod’s reasoning for building the Tower was to protect humanity against another flood.  But the real reason for the Flood was man’s wickedness and rebellion which we read about in Genesis 6:5-6, from which man refused to repent. Nimrod looked like a great guy to the outside world.  He looked as if he really cared about the people.
 
Babel means ‘confusion'. It’s where we get the word ‘babble’.   Man without God is confused, and only God can help man ’rise up’ and make sense of things.  After the Flood, God commanded man to spread abroad, replenish and fill the earth.  God told Noah and his sons to scatter themselves abroad across the earth, but instead their descendants came together at Babel.  It was man’s first attempt at a one-world movement.  Some things never change!
 
However, we see that Nimrod was rebellious against God.  He ”persuaded” his subjects not to credit their strength to God but that they were courageous through Nimrod’s leadership.  So as they were building this Tower that was to reach to heaven the construction of the Tower of Babel ended with a show of God’s power.  We forget that our arms are too short to box with God.  Nimrod’s plan backfired for the Lord confused the language of the people making it impossible for them to communicate effectively enough to finish the construction of the tower. 
 
Nimrod was proven wrong.  All of man’s strength and ability even the strength of the mightiest of men is a gift from God that He can choose to revoke at any time.  Nimrod wanted to be a king.  He wanted to build a tower to heaven.  But God never asked him to do that.  That was the evil within him.  The work stopped because there was a break down in communication.  The people were encouraged to be greater than God and God took care of the situation.  Since the people were unable to communicate with one another production on the Tower came to a screeching halt.   God doesn’t tolerate rebellion! He judges rebellion.

So in Genesis we see the rise of the first tyrant or world dictator, Nimrod.  He set out to build the first empire upon the earth.  His name means to rebel or to revolt and he lived up to the meaning of his name.   Yes, he was considered a mighty hunter, it can mean to hunt animals but it can also mean to hunt people in order to enslave them.  He wanted to gain dominion over other people.  Nimrod was in rebellion against God, but remember; he’s also very influential, and he’s very wealthy and powerful. So the first lesson we can learn from that is that wealth and power aren’t always a good indicator of how good a relationship a person has with God. Power, wealth, and influence can all be found in abundance in the world, or within the Church. God causes it to rain on the just and the unjust alike.

From this passage in Genesis we see that Nimrod sought to rule over people to control as many people and lands as he could.  He wanted to enslave people attacking them as though they were mere animals for the hunt.  He hunted people by force, violence and tyranny that oppressed people and enslaved them to his will and purposes.  Nimrod rebelled against God.  Nimrod led the people away from God by encouraging them to put their security and happiness in the state or government.  He led the people to build the empire of Babylon, and the Tower of Babel, all in defiance of God (Genesis 11:1-9)  Nimrod was the first world dictator, the first world tyrant, who set out to build a worldwide empire.  Nimrod ignored the God of Moses and the result was catastrophic.

His grandfather, and great-grandfather along with the others who survived the great flood left a great legacy to their family. Out of all mankind they were the only ones who believed God. They had found grace in the sight of God. After the floods receded from the earth, the first thing that his great- grandfather Noah did when he came from the ark was to build an altar, and offer a sacrifice to the Lord. This was something that pleased the Lord.  But Nimrod would have nothing to do with the faith of his ancestors. Instead of learning from their experiences, he rebelled against their teachings and practices.
He disobeyed the principles and promises of God.
 
Nimrod had been given quite a legacy to carry forward, but he rebelled against it, and he would have no part of it. His family had found grace in the eyes of the Lord, but he preferred trying to make it on his own. His ambition......."to make a name for himself"  and what happened?  He basically set up his own religion.   Grace glorifies the Lord while religion glorifies the man!
 
            Noah, Nimrod’s great- grandfather built an ark so that his family might be saved!

                        Nimrod built a tower so that he could make a name for himself! 

We see these two attitudes still at work in our society today.  Some are concerned about the family structure, the salvation of their family and children; while others are only concerned about the making of a name for themselves.  Noah followed the blueprint of God! Nimrod had plans of his own.  His religion was secular.  Nimrod’s religion is the harlot mentioned in Revelation 17:5-6.  The true church is one that is a bride without spot, and without blemish.  The World’s church is one that is a harlot. It is filled with blasphemy, abominations and filthiness!  If your Church is not glorifying Jesus Christ and Him Crucified then it is labeled by the Lord as harlots and abominations.  Regrettably that includes much of modern Christianity as well.
 
So….How do you want to be remembered?  Do you want your name to just be a blot in history or do you want to leave a legacy?   What is your legacy?  Many want to leave monetary legacies and empires.     However, I believe that the most important legacy we can leave this world is our commitment to our faith in Jesus Christ.  Have we passed on our faith on to our mates, our children, our friends, our family members, our loved ones, those that we met over the years?  Have we passed our faith on to all who would hear about the faith, hope and love of Jesus Christ.
 
I want my legacy to be that I served the Lord.  I want as many generations as possible to be able to look at what I did with my life and realize that the most important thing in my life was my love for God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit and sharing and teaching others about Him. I challenge you today to resolve to leave your faith as a legacy for those that come behind you.
 
Remember pride is a deadly virus that will eat away at you and me emotionally and spiritually. It is a great deceiver.  Pride has destroyed more marriages and churches than any other thing.  Nimrod was attempting to build a world empire without the blessing or direction of God.   It is a good practice for each us, from time to time, to check our lives and see what direction our lives are taking.    If you find that your life is not following God's direction......it is time to change direction!

My dad was the Pastor of our church before I became the pastor.  I was the third pastor of our home church.  Our first Pastor ministered and took care of two churches for 50 years.  My dad was born and raised in the faith and helped the Pastor at one of the churches.  I remember him saying many times that when people get converted, they sometimes develop an attitude that says: “I am better than other people.”  Today, we would call them elitists. I am speaking of Believers who sometimes get snobby.  Yes, even Christians, even Believers begin to believe that they are Super Christians.  That God owes them something for getting saved.  Then, if things don’t go their way they start whining and saying” “Where is God in all of this?”  My father used to say that just because you get saved God does not roll out the red carpet for you.  He would say that on the red carpet the only thing that is of any importance is the red blood of Jesus Christ.
 
I am quite sure we have all seen the Red Carpet rolled out when Hollywood gives out Academy Awards.  You see what has happened to us; we begin to take on the world’s ways and the world’s thinking.  We think that is what God should be doing for us.  We see the women wearing dresses valued at $10,000 and they are wearing jewelry worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.  We begin to think that God owes us.  BUT that is not what the Christian life is to be like.  You know what happens….even Believers get tainted by the world.  We think that we are entitled to certain things and rewards because we are children of the King of Kings.
 
I remember a phone call that I received from a young woman.  She and her husband were Pastoring a church.  She said that she started thinking of all the good she and her husband had been doing for the Kingdom of God.  But then her voice went low, she said that she was beginning to develop a prideful attitude.  One night she asked the Lord to show her, her rewards.  Oh, she said he showed her.  She told me that she dreamed that she died and went to heaven and she saw this bright light.  She could not see the face of the Lord because the light was so bright.  And around the throne were all sorts of crowns: large, medium and small.  Oh, they were beautiful and sparkling.  She said that she said to herself, “Oh these must be MY crowns.”  Then in the dream she saw the hand of the Lord touch the crowns and they all burned up like dross, like trash, like garbage, like they were worthless-just the way the Bible describes it.  All that was left was a teeny, tiny crown, the smallest crown you could hardly see.  In fact, it was so small it could not even fit on the end of her pinkie finger.  She said all that she could do was to cry out to the Lord: “Forgive me for my rotten, stinking prideful attitude.”
 
Some of you may be saying well, it is not right to speak to God like that.  “We should not ask Him a question such as did this woman.”  All the years of my life in the church I have heard people say it is not respectful to ask God why?  Yes, we must be respectful of our Lord.  But He is not offended by our honesty and sincerity.  We all forget that the Bible tells us that He already knows what we are thinking.  He knows our questions. He even knows our motives and most of the time we don’t know our motives.  I truly believe that we do not want to ask Our Lord about certain things because then we would have to do what He asks of us and we may not like the answer.
 
In the Old Testament there is a small book that only has 3 chapters - Habakkuk. It is the name of the prophet.  Here, we have a great example of a man of God who was not afraid to ask God the tough questions that really bothered him.  Most prophets spoke to the people for God.  Habakkuk spoke to God for the people.  He lived in times that were hard on the faith.  He saw the righteous suffering and the wicked prospering.  He asked God two questions that we often ask: ”Why?”  and “How long?”  He wanted to know why are these things happening and how long before they are corrected.  We need to go head and ask God but ask sincerely, correctly and humbly.  Habakkuk is one of the good guys.  He fears God and does what is right but it is getting him nowhere.   When you get to the end of his book his name which means “to embrace or wrestle” becomes appropriate.  He chooses to cling firmly to God regardless of what happens to his nation. (Habakkuk 3:16-19)    That is the final conclusion we need to come to in our lives.  Regardless of what happens in our lives, or in the lives of our family or what happens in our country; our final conclusion must be to cling firmly to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  He is our refuge and our strength.  He is our strong rock, our fortress, our deliverer. 
 
We learn from Habakkuk the progression he went through.  He goes from questioning God to trusting God.  Habakkuk would be right at home in our society today.   We witness murderers getting away with punishment because of a technicality.  We see terrorists allowed to go free.  We witness the persecution of Christians world-wide and no newspaper or television news outlets report it.  If it weren’t for the religious organizations we would know nothing about the world-wide persecution. But that was when Habakkuk cried out to the Lord and maybe that is what we Christians need to do: Cry out to Our Lord and start praying. 

Remember God never turns away the honest and sincere seeker.  Go to God with your questions.  You may not find all the answers but in finding God you then know the One who does.