I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed...

I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I'm finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problems recognizing me - my banner will be clear! ...Anonymous African Pastor - Nailed to his wall. image by danisabella

Christ is building His kingdom with earth’s broken things...

Christ is building His kingdom with earth’s broken things. Men want only the strong, the successful, the victorious, the unbroken—in building their kingdoms. But God is the God of the the unsuccessful, of those who have failed. Heaven is filling with earth’s broken lives, and there is no ‘bruised reed’ which Christ cannot take and restore to glorious blessedness and beauty. He can take the life crushed by pain or sorrow—and make it into a harp whose music shall be all praise. He can lift earth’s saddest failure up to heaven’s glory! ...JR Miller image by lrargerich

One of the most delightful qualities of divine love...

For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee. Isaiah 54:10

One of the most delightful qualities of divine love is its abiding character. The pillars of the earth may be moved out of their places, but the kindness and the covenant of our merciful Jehovah never depart from His people. How happy my soul feels in a firm belief of this inspired declaration! The year is almost over, and the years of my life are growing few, but time does not change my Lord. New lamps are taking the place of the old; perpetual change is on all things, but our Lord is the same. Force over turns the hills, but no conceivable power can affect the eternal God. Nothing in the past, the present, or the future can cause Jehovah to be unkind to me.

My soul, rest in the eternal kindness of the Lord, who treats thee as one near of kin. Remember also the everlasting covenant. God is ever mindful of it—see that thou art mindful of it too. In Christ Jesus the glorious God has pledged Himself to thee to be thy God and to hold thee as one of His people. Kindness and covenant-dwell on these words as sure and lasting things which eternity itself shall not take from thee. ...CH Spurgeon image

Fire is the chosen symbol of Heaven...

Fire is the chosen symbol of Heaven for moral passion. It is emotion aflame. God is love; God is fire. The two are one. The Holy Spirit baptises in fire. Spirit-filled souls are ablaze for God. They love with a love that glows. They believe with a faith that kindles. They serve with a devotion that consumes. They hate sin with a fierceness that burns. They rejoice with a joy that radiates. Love is perfected in the Fire of God. ...Samuel Chadwick image

Love came down at Christmas...

 Love came down at Christmas,

Love all lovely, Love Divine;

Love was born at Christmas,

Star and Angels gave the sign.

Worship we the Godhead,

Love Incarnate, Love Divine;

Worship we our Jesus:

But wherewith for sacred sign?

Love shall be our token,

Love be yours and love be mine,

Love to God and all men,

Love for plea and gift and sign.

...Christina Rossetti image

Merry Christmas to all the readers of this blog!
Raymond and Pat Dague and Herschel dog

The King shall come when morning dawns...

The King shall come when morning dawns,

And light triumphant breaks;

When beauty gilds the eastern hills,

And life to joy awakes.

Not as of old a little child

To bear, and fight, and die,

But crowned with glory like the sun

That lights the morning sky.

O brighter than that glorious morn

Shall this fair morning be,

When Christ, our King, in beauty comes,

And we His face shall see.

The King shall come when morning dawns,

And earth’s dark night is past;

O haste the rising of that morn,

The day that aye shall last.

And let the endless bliss begin,

By weary saints foretold,

When right shall triumph over wrong,

And truth shall be extolled.

The King shall come when morning dawns,

And light and beauty brings:

Hail, Christ the Lord! Thy people pray,

Come quickly, King of kings.

...Unknown au­thor image

Character is the product of daily, hourly actions...

Character is the product of daily, hourly actions, and words and thoughts; daily forgivenesses, unselfishness, kindnesses, sympathies, charities, sacrifices for the good of others, struggles against temptation, submissiveness under trial. Oh, it is these, like the blending colors in a picture or the blending notes of music which constitute the man.
...JR Macduff image

Rejoice, all ye believers...

 Rejoice, all ye believers,

And let your lights appear!

The evening is advancing,

And darker night is near.

The Bride-groom is arising,

And soon He draweth nigh.

Up, watch, and pray, and wrestle,

At midnight comes the cry!
 

The watchers on the mountain

Proclaim the Bride-groom near;

Go meet Him as He cometh,

With hallelujahs clear.

The marriage feast is waiting,

The gates wide open stand!

Up, up, ye heirs of glory,

The Bride-groom is at hand!
 

Ye saints, who here in patience

Your cross and suff’rings bore,

Shall live and reign forever,

Where sorrow is no more.

Around the throne of glory

The Lamb ye shall behold,

In triumph cast before Him

Your diadems of gold!
 

Our Hope and Expectation,

O Jesus now appear;

Arise, Thou Sun so longed for,

O'er this benighted sphere!

With hearts and hands uplifted,

We plead, O Lord, to see

The day of earth’s redemption,

That brings us unto Thee!

...Lau­ren­ti­us Lau­ren­ti  image

With rev'rence let the saints appear...

With rev'rence let the saints appear,

And bow before the Lord;

His high commands with rev'rence hear,

And tremble at his word.
 

How terrible thy glories be!

How bright thine armies shine!

Where is the power that vies with thee,

Or truth compared to thine?
 

Thy words the raging winds control,

And rule the boist'rous deep;

Thou mak'st the sleeping billows roll,

The rolling billows sleep.
 

Justice and judgment are thy throne,

Yet wondrous is thy grace;

While truth and mercy, joined in one,

Invite us near thy face.

...Isaac Watts image

The event of Christ...

The event of Christ is the only event in human history that promises relocation and centering, meaning and purpose. This promise and its fulfillment evoke passionate and heartfelt praise and thanks, especially for those aware of their own brokenness and the healing which Christ brings into their lives...Robert Webber.  image

One of the essential paradoxes of Advent...

“One of the essential paradoxes of Advent: that while we wait for God, we are with God all along ,that while we need to be reassured of God's arrival, or the arrival of our homecoming, we are already at home. While we wait, we have to trust, to have faith, but it is God's grace that gives us that faith. As with all spiritual knowledge, two things are true, and equally true, at once. The mind can't grasp paradox; it is the knowledge of the soul.” ...Michelle Blake image

The people of God are not merely to mark time...

The people of God are not merely to mark time, waiting for God to step in and set right all that is wrong. Rather, they are to model the new heaven and new earth, and by so doing awaken longings for what God will someday bring to pass.
...Philip Yancey image

God is pursuing with omnipotent passion...

God is pursuing with omnipotent passion a worldwide purpose of gathering joyful worshipers for Himself from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. He has an inexhaustible enthusiasm for the supremacy of His name among the nations. Therefore, let us bring our affections into line with His, and, for the sake of His name, let us renounce the quest for worldly comforts and join His global purpose. If we do this, God’s omnipotent committment to His name will be over us like a banner, and we will not lose, in spite of many tribulations. ...John S. Piper image

Hail to the Lord’s anointed...

Hail to the Lord’s anointed, great David’s greater Son!

Hail in the time appointed, His reign on earth begun!

He comes to break oppression, to set the captive free;

To take away transgression and rule in equity.

He comes in succor speedy to those who suffer wrong;

To help the poor and needy, and bid the weak be strong;

To give them songs for sighing, their darkness turn to light,

Whose souls, condemned and dying, were precious in His sight.

He shall come down like showers upon the fruitful earth;

Love, joy, and hope, like flowers, spring in His path to birth.

Before Him, on the mountains, shall peace, the herald, go,

And righteousness, in fountains, from hill to valley flow.

Kings shall fall down before Him, and gold and incense bring;

All nations shall adore Him, His praise all people sing;

For He shall have dominion o’er river, sea and shore,

Far as the eagle’s pinion or dove’s light wing can soar.

For Him shall prayer unceasing and daily vows ascend;

His kingdom still increasing, a kingdom without end:

The mountain dews shall nourish a seed in weakness sown,

Whose fruit shall spread and flourish and shake like Lebanon.

O’er every foe victorious, He on His throne shall rest;

From age to age more glorious, all blessing and all blest.

The tide of time shall never His covenant remove;

His Name shall stand forever, His Name to us is Love.

...James Montgomery image

Every growth of spiritual life...

Every growth of spiritual life, from the first tender shoot until now, has been the work of the Holy Spirit....The only way to more life is the Holy Spirit. You will not even know that you want more unless He works in you to desire it....The Spirit of God must come and make the letter alive, transfer it to your heart, set it on fire, and make it burn within you, or else its divine force and majesty will be hid from your eyes....Prayer is the creation of the Holy Spirit. We cannot do without prayer, and we cannot pray without the Holy Spirit. ...CH Spurgeon image

Thou hast given so much to me...

Thou hast given so much to me

Give one thing more-a grateful heart;

Not thankful when it pleaseth me,

But such a heart whose pulse may be

Thy praise.

...George Herbert image

This way of seeing our Father in everything...

This way of seeing our Father in everything makes life one long thanksgiving and gives a rest of heart, and, more than that, a gayety of spirit, that is unspeakable. Some one says, "God's will on earth is always joy, always tranquility." And since He must have His own way concerning His children, into what wonderful green pastures of inward rest, and beside what blessedly still waters of inward refreshment is the soul led that learns this secret. If the will of God is our will, and if He always has His way, then we always have our way also, and we reign in a perpetual kingdom. He who sides with God cannot fail to win in every encounter; and, whether the result shall be joy or sorrow, failure or success, death or life, we may, under all circumstances, join in the Apostle's shout of victory, "Thanks be unto God which always causeth us to triumph in Christ!" ...Hannah Whitall Smith

Let your desire for God's glory be a growing desire...

Let your desire for God's glory be a growing desire. You blessed Him in your youth, do not be content with such praises as you gave Him then. Has God prospered you in business? Give Him more as He has given you more. Has God given you experience? Praise Him by stronger faith than you exercised at first. Does your knowledge grow? Then sing more sweetly. Do you enjoy happier times than you once had? Have you been restored from sickness, and has your sorrow been turned into peace and joy? Then give Him more music; put more coals and more sweet frankincense into the censer of your praise. Practically in your life give Him honour, putting the "Amen" to this doxology to your great and gracious Lord, by your own individual service and increasing holiness. ...CH Spurgeon image

Truth without emotion produces dead orthodoxy...

Truth without emotion produces dead orthodoxy and a church full (or half-full) of artificial admirers (like people who write generic anniversary cards for a living). On the other hand, emotion without truth produces empty frenzy and cultivates shallow people who refuse the discipline of rigorous thought. But true worship comes from people who are deeply emotional and who love deep and sound doctrine. Strong affections for God rooted in truth are the bone and marrow of biblical worship. ...John Piper image

Many of us have had to stand alone for years...

Many of us have had to stand alone for years witnessing to the power of Christ to save His people to the uttermost. Like Joshua and Caleb, we have had to follow God alone as we followed Him wholly. But this is the real victory of faith and the proof of our uncompromising fidelity. Let us not, therefore, complain when we suffer reproach for our testimony or stand alone for God. Let us, rather, thank Him that He so honours us and stand the test so that He can afterwards use us when the multitudes are glad to follow. ...AB Simpson image