A Time to Plant

April has arrived.  

With it comes the rains and the reminder that the return of vibrant life and colour is on the way. Though our gardens have been empty of their potential beauty, and though they have been scattered with the dead remnants of a previous growing season, life has remained beneath the soil.

Now our responsibilities include removing anything that might hinder new growth and then planting seeds in areas where we want to see new things.

Just as these simple principles are true in the natural realm, they are true in the spiritual realm!

With the help of the Holy Spirit, take some time and examine the garden of your soul. He is the absolute expert in soul growth!

God is about to restore perennial blessings. So He is expecting us to remove anything that may hinder those blessings.

There are also new things He wants us to manifest. He will provide the direction and the seed. We must then provide the involvement and the environment for those new seeds to flourish.

Begin now to visualize the exciting and beautiful things God has planned to reveal in your life in the coming season!

It is Finished!

To what does Jesus refer when He declares, "It is Finished!"?
His experience of the destructive power of sin was complete.
His ordeal of horrific abuse and suffering was complete.
His submission to the physical limitations of the incarnation was complete.
His yielding to the will and actions of wicked men was complete.
His bearing of the crushing load of our sin was complete.
His surrender to the requirements for our redemption was complete.
His providing of the cup’s content for the new covenant was complete.

Contemporary Thought

A few words from my reading this morning ...
"I am getting tired of the perpetual burning of incense to the modern mind, this eager fitful anxiety to accommodate faith's declarations, and the whole Biblical revelation to the modern thinking." - G Campbell Morgan.
And a few of my own words ...
Contemporary thought cannot be characterized as having reached a higher than previous level of understanding or wisdom. Modern thinking is simply the prevailing present mindset.
The newest opinion that screams the loudest is identified as modern thinking and accepted as the new high water mark of truth.
Contemporary thought may warrant my awareness but never capture my focus. I will hold to the unchanging eternal truth of the principles and promises of the Word of God. His Word has been, still is, and always will be, absolute truth for which there can be no apology, and with which there can be no compromise, and about which there can be no doubt!

Ethics and Grace

The situational ethics you maintain will destroy you but the situational grace God manifests will keep you!

Ethics that adapt to the uniqueness of situations are the result of either an ignorance or a disdain of the timeless and borderless principles of the Word of God.

Grace that is designed and provided to face the endless variety of the situations we face is the gift of the unfailing love and mercy of God.

Basket Cases & Rope Holders

He is sitting helpless in a basket suspended precariously high above the ground.
With no options ... but to depend on the good graces and promises of the persons holding the ropes!
The name of this man hanging in a basket is Saul and Saul hated Christians! ... well, at least he used to.
But Saul’s heart and his worldview were radically changed when he had a personal encounter with Jesus! Jesus had showed up on the road to Damascus. Saul’s natural eyes were blinded but his spiritual eyes were opened. Jesus had changed Saul’s life instantly and completely!
This was the same Jesus who, by the way, was supposed to be dead!
The miracle that Jesus was still alive was only slightly more amazing than the miracle that Saul has become a preacher of the Gospel
Saul is now aggressively pursuing a ministry in fulfillment of a prophecy spoken over him by a brave believer - “Saul,” said Ananias, “You are a chosen vessel of Jesus to bear His name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.”
Saul immediately begins to boldly declare that Jesus is the Son of God and the Saviour of all men. He boldly preaches that true living can happen only when the author and giver of life, Jesus Christ, takes up residence in the spirit of man, when sin is forgiven, and eternal life is found through faith in Christ.
The powerful impact of Saul’s preaching & teaching stirs up the resident haters in the city and results in a plan to destroy this new preacher.
Saul rightly realizes that he needs to escape the city immediately and clandestinely.
Saul’s new friends, but old enemies, convince him that his only option is to allow them to push him through a window in the city wall and into a basket with the promise to safely lower him to the ground and freedom.
Picture this budding apostle Saul ...
Hanging in a basket. Suspended in the darkness.
Holding the ropes that keep him from plunging to death are the men Saul had once tried to kill. Ringing in his mind is the prophecy that he would preach the gospel to kings but now he is stuck in this basket!
Why couldn’t God just strike all his enemies with blindness?
Saul certainly had first-hand knowledge of God’s ability to do just that!
But, the new follower of Christ, who had been the up-and-coming intellectual and influential young member of Israel’s elite, has become nothing more than a “basket case!”
Years later this man Saul, who had become known as the Apostle Paul, would write a letter to a Church in Corinth, that would include a note explaining why he could not visit them immediately saying, “A great and effective door has opened to me, ...”
Sometimes God does provide a great and effective door for us to enter and experience great things with Him and accomplish great things for Him, but ...
Sometimes God expects us to squeeze through a window and into a place that tests our patience and demands our trust. God demands that we be willing to be a basket case!
BUT GOD SHOWS UP IN BASKETS!

1. In the basket learns Saul that the fulfillment of his office begins with trust in God
Remember that whatever office we we hold in ministry or in our community is an expression of the favour of God.
The Scriptures clearly declare the it is God who lifts us to offices of leadership.
None of us serve only at the favour of our congregations or constituents.
No one is born a leader ... but only with the potential to lead. It is God to lifts up or brings down as part of His grand and perfect plan of the ages.
Allowing yourself to be a basket case demonstrates your trust in His plan.

2. In the basket learns Saul that we all need one another!
Every Basket-Case needs Rope-Holders.
None of us is wise enough, strong enough, educated enough, skilled enough to single-handedly fulfill God's plan for our life.
The basket reminds us that we can’t make it all on our own.

Someone has described 6 kinds of people we need to help us do great things in life -
1. The Instigator
This is the person who pushes you, who makes you think, who motivates you to get going. This is the voice of INSPIRATION.
2. The Cheerleader
This is the person who is a huge fan, a strong and faithful supporter. This is the voice of
MOTIVATION.
3. The Doubter
You also need the doubter yes the doubter; the one who asks the hard questions and sees problems before they arise. This is the voice of REASON.
4. The Taskmaster
This is the person who demands you get things done; the one that keeps you focused. This is the voice of PROGRESS.
5. The Connector
This is the person that helps you find new avenues and new allies; the person who reaches out to others on your behalf. This is the voice of COOPERATION.
6. The Example
This person is your mentor; this is someone whose presence is a constant reminder of what it looks like to do to get done what you're wanting to do. This is the voice of HOPE.
I have taken the liberty of adding another person to your team. Perhaps the most important of all.
7. The Rope Holder
This person is the one who knows the God and prays for you; who knows the true source of strength and blessing. This is the voice of FAITH!

God has called all of us to be both Basket Cases and Rope Holders
Basket Cases are those who maintain a perspective of trust in God’s plan and provision and a humble recognition of the need for the help of others.
Rope Holders are those who keep others from falling and safe from those who would want to stop us from fulfilling God’s purposes in our lives.

- G. H. Beesley