blessed or confined

Just arrived in NY at the LEAH conference...good to see old friends.
Spent time with Andrew Pudewa founder of the Institute for Excellence in
Writing and I only wished we had taped out conversation. If what we talked
about ever takes place, God's people will be greatly blessed and God
glorified. There is too much to share at this point, but I will say it has
something to do with my dissertation and the effects of media on character
development and a possible curriculum that surrounds the character of God
connected to every imaginable theme that would prepare a child for life and
godliness...a life of excellence, skill, and beauty. This is a twenty year
dream, beginning to take form...it is happening.
Now that I am finally through Job, (always glad to get past
Job...the book scares me!), I am now in the Psalms. I love how Psalm 1 and
2 focus on The Word and the Son...with the word "blessed" on both ends of
these chapters...the word "blessed" means happy or confinement. Confinement
in the sense of security...people are most happy when they are secure.
Therefore, when you have the Word and the Son as center of your life, you
are most blessed..most secure, most happy...

Sometimes i do weird things

While in NC at the conference this past weekend I saw a lady sitting by herself waiting for her food.  For some reason I felt compelled to pray for her, so I sat beside her and began talking to her, which led me to pray for her. It is fun when we follow the Lord’s leading.

 

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	Hello Mark. I met you @ a restaurant downtown Winston-Salem 5/23/08. You prayed for me in that restaurant. You also wanted me to read Ps. 34 because you said God would give me the desires of my heart, actually, that scripture is in Ps. 37.  Anyway, I appreciate your prayer for me in a public place. I love the Lord and do have a personal relationship with Him and I just wonder was it the Lord wanting you to meet me or me to meet you. You also said to email you because you wanted to send me a book. I don't know the name of the book and I don't give out my address very lightly. However, I will make an exception this time. Before I give you my address, I just wanted you to know, that I'm not just someone you feel sorry for and have a need to pray for. Notice I said need. I do believe that if the Spirit of the Lord is there, much can be accomplished when we walk in his Spirit and not in ourself.  I'd rather have the name of the church you attend, since you approached me and never gave me that or your last name.  Books are okay.  I always read a book with my bible to make sure it is scriptually sound.  Haven't given up cigs to the Lord yet but he did deliver me many years ago, I willfully let that deliverance go and willfully took it up again. God delivered me for many years, I never had a desire to smoke, didn't gain weight, and constantly heard preaching in my spirit.   It's been quite some time that I have had someone to pray for me, actually I used to do what you do and for many people  as the Lord lead me.  Okay, here's my address:

 

I read your blog last night...

This is worth sharing…from a mom and wife who attended, with her husband several years ago, a similar seminar to the one that was presented in North Carolina this weekend.  What she has to say needs to be shared…God has given each of us cross to bear and a path to follow…most are not easy, but in the end it will yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness:

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mark..I must say...I wept too...but I must confess... my initial  tears werent shared...they were tears of my own heart and soul...that father,...those men who were moved...that should have been mine...!...MY kids father, my husband....we sat in your seminars too only my experience was different...yes, it was a start in my life, major changes in my life, that consequently changed the course of it by measures unfathomable....I cried because of the stark reality that has burdened me this past week...I am heavy hearted this week,...Satan dangles the you are unworthy and unloved card in front of my face, and i confess...i let it work, until I am shaken and come to my senses....Our heavenly gracious Father who knows what is best for us...always will, and always has our best in mind for us...we are so blinded by the fleshly temptations of the devil....He always knows best...for some it works contrary to everything in us and our faith, for others it doesnt....why?.....I still ask...

 

however,....

 

Because God has given you a ministry to touch and reach many....be honored and humbled..rejoice!!...be blessed of the things He has chosen to give you, and has also allowed you to keep......be cherished and know that He understands your heart...pray, I will pray for the ones touched in all of your seminars and weep tears of joy with them....but also...pray for the ones that are hard...for the ones who don't intend to listen to anyone but themselves...man and woman....pray for the children of that family that is unmoved by the Spirit you invite each time you talk...

 

in my morning devotions this morning....these scriptures for  me...to keep a hold of .....I share with you...

 

Matt 6:10..Behold, I sent you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves."....not easy...requires a life of committed faith in the dark...

 

Luke 1:38...'Let it be unto me, according to your word..'.

 

and these two quotes from a book that I hate to adore.....

 

'Man is the only animal that laughs and cries, because he is the only one that can see the difference between the way things are and the way they ought to be'....William Hazlitt

 

'Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced'.....James Baldwin

 

do have a wonderful day....

Comment on North Carolina .

Usually I will publish a blog comment, but this one needs to be entered in the blog itself….we are all on this journey together. These words below from this mom and wife are very beautifully crafted and deserve to be highlighted.  I can always tell when the presence of God is without doubt the major influence in a seminar…this was one of them.

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My husband and I were at your session "Raise them up..." yesterday here in NC. We were there with our 2 month old, which was difficult because he had had it with the stroller, car seat, and us holding him. I asked myself several times "Why am I here, this is more of a struggle than a help." Until we sat through your conference. (We were over on the side, with our son lying oustretched on a blanket on the floor and he was finally at peace!!) We had to be there to hear you and the change of perspective God has been giving you on your role as a parent. My husband teared up as you recounted what your former response to your son's defiant, angry approach would have been and how God has worked His power in your heart and life. After your session, I said to my husband, "There's so much more I need to hear." Hearing you speak of the journey out of anger and towards a life of grace was like watching a beautiful sunrise after a stormy night. Thank you.
 

North Carolina

This has been quite the month...starting from western NY, we came back to
PA, to fly out to CA, then to TX (where I ended up at police headquarters
till 4am because I was in the store during the robbery), then back to PA,
and this week to NC...my mom has been traveling with us helping at the
conferences...i didn't think she could handle this but at 76, she is ready
for the next conference in Rochester, and I am ready for bed!

This weekend at the North Carolina homeschool conference, we saw our
gracious Lord once again do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could
ask or think. He gave an unusual blessing during the Raise them Up, Don't
Crush them Down seminar...Not only were hundred in tears, but I found myself
unable to hold back the tears while I was speaking...It is a most humbling
and blessed experience when the Lord's presence is in the midst. Many lives
where changed but the most memorable was when a pastor came forward to talk
to me...actually he was unable to talk because of the weeping but then his
two young boys came along side their dad and what I saw next was very
moving...it is true what Malachi taught us: when the hearts of father turn
toward their children, the hearts of children will turn as well. Thank you
Lord for the wonderful week...and to my many friends in NC...especially Curt
and Marybeth...blessings to your family.

Good King, Evil King, Good King

Several weeks ago i began an article and said there would be a follow up which would include the rest of the story on the life of Josiah...here are both parts together...just now getting around to finishing it...             

 

  One of the wickedest kings of all of Israel, if not the most wicked, was Manasseh, son of Hezekiah (2nd Chronicles 33).  The stories about his life in 2nd Kings and 2nd Chronicles are filled with biblical lessons for us and our children, for today. What is fascinating about his life and the reason behind why God chooses to record all of his dirty laundry makes this story, one of my all time favorites in the Scriptures. It would appear that God 's favoring David as his sin of murder and adultery are neatly tucked away with David remaining a man after God's own heart.  But Manasseh gets the roughest of treatment of any king.  God's judgment results in him being fish hooked through his nostrils and led to Babylon as a slave. The text in 2nd Chronicles 33:11 says he was captured with "hooks."  I heard Dr. Smith lecture that this referred to a fish-like pronged hook that was yanked up through the nostrils, attached to a line.  Sounds pretty nasty; but he really got what he deserved.  This king was a real low life as you can see from the summary in 33.

            As the drama of 2nd Chronicles unfolds, you will find that this low life king becomes blessed by God and twice the Scriptures records that his prayer was what turned God's heart favorably toward him. I find that impressive...can a simple prayer have that much influence upon the heart of God?  Indeed!

            For the last three weeks I have been coping with what appears to be a migraine headache.  I rarely get headaches.  This morning around 5am, I laid in bed talking to the Lord but not really able to keep focused. I moaned and groaned a few prayers for my friends, staff, family, myself, and the future of Lamplighter, but it was very difficult to remain focused, especially when you have this kind of headache.  I then came downstairs to read and when I came across this text, I was reminded again of the three things that are really important in life. The first is was demonstrated for me by king Manasseh in 33:12:

            "And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.  He prayed to him and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God."

            What an amazing turn around…what an amazing God.  He will hear our prayers and he will act favorably toward us, IF we will humble ourselves GREATLY and just pray. Later in the text, Manasseh’s life is summarized and both his sin and his prayer (two times!) are recorded.  It must not be overlooked, that his sin is recorded as well as his prayer.

            It should be mentioned that one of the reasons for Manasseh’s wicked life was his absent “godly” father, Hezekiah.  Hezekiah was so focused on his career that he had little time to prepare his son for the responsibilities of kingship.  

            It is interesting to note the Scriptures rotation of righteous and wicked kings, namely Hezekiah who was righteous, then Manasseh who was a wicked king, and then righteous Josiah. What is noteworthy is that the righteous kings both end their life poorly but the wicked king is ends well. In fact Josiah is one of the most righteous kings ever to reign in Judah (2nd Kings 23), but his pride cost him his life.  

 

"And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him." 2nd Kings 23:25

 

    The ending of his life was tragic. The King of Egypt was on his way to fight an enemy in the north and sent Josiah a message telling him that he was not interested in fighting with him.  He told him also that the his God (Josiah's God) had told him to go and to not interfere.  Can you imagine listening to one of your enemies who just told you what God wants you to do?  I don't think so; and neither did Josiah.  Sadly, his pride cost him his life and one of the greatest kingships on earth ended abruptly.  Why? I believe that the event is not what is important but "how" it is written in the text. God wanted to display and highlight the contrast between humility and pride, no matter what great things you have accomplished or what great sin you have committed. Hezekiah and Josiah were great and righteous kings but because of their pride, ended their lives poorly. Manasseh was the most wicked king ever to reign, and he ended his life well, because he GREATLY humbled himself. 

 

        

 

           

I shall be safe?

I shall be safe?

In Deuteronomy there is a section that unnerves me. It is found in chapter
29 verses 18-20

"Beware lest there be among you a man or woman or clan or tribe whose heart
is turning away today from the Lord our God to go and serve the gods of
those nations. Beware lest there be among you a root bearing poisonous and
bitter fruit, one who, when he hears the words of this sworn covenant,
blesses himself in his heart, saying, 'I shall be safe, though I walk in the
stubbornness of my heart.' This will lead to the sweeping away of moist and
dry alike. The Lord will not be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger
of the Lord and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and the curses
written in this book will settle upon him, and the Lord will blot out his
name from under heaven."

The part that unnerves me is when he says, "I shall be safe, though I walk
in stubbornness..." This should sober all of us when we find ourselves in
the midst of conflicts that seem to always require humility...if we humble
ourselves, then truly we shall be safe.

snow, hail, and dust storms

As I have been reading the book of Job lately I have noticed how sovereign God is over everything, including the snow storms, the hail storms, and the wind storms.  One of the things I have found intriguing over the years is how Americans have used weather related war victories to prove how God was on our side. But when the weather is used against us, as it was in our failed attempt to rescue the hostages in Iran in 1980, it is considered as an unfortunate circumstance. In Job 38:22,23, we read:

 

            "Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or have you seen the storehouses of the hail, which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war?"

 

 

God is over all, and controls all of the events of nature and our lives. There is nothing that happens beyond His intimate involvement…nothing. As I have been reading more about this failed attempt at our rescue of our America hostages in 1980, I have found numerous articles, both from the military and news agencies that attribute the failed attempt to poor planning but mainly to the dust storm, specifically known as a haboob (and intense sand storm).  Only four of the eight helicopters were operational after going through the haboob, and because of their minimal force, the decision was made to abort. After the decision was made to abort, one of the helicopter pilots lost his bearings in the dust and crashed into the C-130 transport planes, killing eight soldiers, and making the dark desert look like day time, . Not only did the dust storm stop the work of months of meticulous planning but earlier that night a bus load of touring Iranians drove near the landing strip and had to be detained until the rescue or in this case the failed rescue was completed. This failed rescue was one the darkest days for the US Military and for President Carter. It is unfortunate that President Carter did not see this as an opportunity to inform the American people that great nations are not great because of their military might but because of their Great God. I was in my twenties during the hostage crisis and remember watching the news on Nightline every night through the entire ordeal. Not once did I hear anything about turning to God as a nation.  As I ponder the events of 911 and Iraq during this last decade, and the current world scene, I am more convinced than ever that America will not be destroy from our enemies but from our lack of turning to God.  If anything we are being destroyed from within with the deterioration of our morals and values.  We are amusing and entertaining ourselves to death.  There is work to be done…Therefore, “Watch ye, stand firm in the faith, quit ye like men, be strong.”  I Cor 16

 

Here is a link to more info on the failed rescue

http://www.specwarnet.net/miscinfo/eagleclaw.htm  

You just never know

Last night my wife and mom and I landed in San Antonio a few days before I would speak at the homeschool conference.  We arrived around midnight and we all needed water and some throat lozenges.  So after dropping them off at the hotel I proceeded to find a twenty four hour pharmacy.  I walked into the Walgreen Pharmacy and at the time was the only customer to approach the store. I noticed a young person walking toward the store with a ski mask and sun glasses but when seeing me he/she walked away from the store. I proceeded to enter the store and told the clerk that there was a suspicious and unsavory character outside the store. He said he would check it out.  As I proceeded to look for the lozenges, I thought I would take a moment to see if the person behind the ski mask had entered the store.  As I looked down the aisle where the register was located, there he/she was pointing a gun at the clerk; he was holding up the cash draw emptying it.  As I stood in the aisle trying to gain my bearings that a robbery was indeed unfolding, the gunman turned and looked at me.  My initial thought was to try to keep a safe distance in the aisles but there were too long to elude a gunman.  You see these things on movies but when you’re in the midst of a crime you don’t have a lot of time to plan. As I walked to the back of the store I saw the pharmacist and told him that a robbery was unfolding. He phoned the store manager and when the manager didn’t respond, he walked to the edge of the aisle and when seeing what I saw, ran to the phone behind the counter at the pharmacy, calling 911. Following him I asked him where I could hide and he pointed to a storage room. As I entered the storage room with a glass window on the door, the gunman (in this case a gunwoman) walked back to the pharmacy with the gun in the side of the store manager demanding the rest of the money.  With calmness the gunwoman said, “this is what happens to kids when they take drugs. Make sure your kids don’t take drugs because this is what happens to them.”  The whole thing was rather surreal but I am giving you a second by second report.

 

There was really no place to hide in this store room and knew that if the gunman entered the room it would be difficult to defend myself. At that moment I heard shouting which I assumed was the police, demanding for him to drop the gun. I say “him” because I didn’t know or think it was a girl.  After about three demands to put down the gun the policeman took one shot hitting her in the head, thus protecting the manager.  All of this taking place about eight feet away from where I was standing, I could hear the gunwoman say, “why did you shoot me in the head, you knew it wasn’t a real gun.”  Well, there was no way that anyone could tell that this wasn’t a real gun.

 

I have placed a link below and later tonight there will be an interview where I am asked what took place…I was pretty nervous giving the report but I hope the Lord will use my feeble attempt to turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, because obviously this earth, and particularly our land is being smitten with a curse (Malachi 4:6).  The irony is that I am here to speak to parents on the effects of the media and character development.

 

http://www.woai.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=542632@video.woai.com

 

 

This is a youth group from Norway. They are called Hands on Mission.

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This is an amazing video....make sure you have your sound on! Enjoy! This is a group of people who decided to do something incredibly creative at their church, and they have on white gloves and are performing in front of a black light ..... enjoy! http://www.mychurch.org/blog/30635/coolest-video-ever

 

 

Faithfully

About seven years ago I heard a song titled Faithfully by Eric and Leslie
Ludy...it is a beautiful song that reaches the heart...here is the free
download...enjoy! Thank you Eric for your kind words and leading me to your
site.
http://setapartlife.com/who_we_are/our_music.php

I know My Redeemer lives--Mother's Day

            Whenever I am reading through the book of Job, I can't wait to arrive, as quickly as possible, at the end. One of the reasons is that the book just makes me uncomfortable--I might be next! I know whom the Lord loves He chastens, but I would rather if He would work on someone else. Well, that is not entirely true...I desire with all of my heart to be changed into His image in order to be an instrument in His hands, but I do hate the process.  And every time I come through the process, I am better for it and thankful.  I know that many of my friends who are reading this right now, are experiencing pain that is quite overwhelming. They have begged God to deliver them but still the darkness overshadows their lives. They wonder if this will ever be over.

            Job thought the same for many days, possibly months, but something changed in his thinking around chapter 19: 

 

            "Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! For I know my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself..."

 

What powerful words, “ I know my Redeemer lives!”  It is mother’s day and I know that many mother’s will go through this day with a broken or heavy heart…be assured and be encouraged…your Redeemer lives and he will rescue you…you shall see this for yourself!

Our days are numbered

            When my dad died a few months ago, I could not for the life of me convince my mom that God had appointed February 12th, 2008 as the day that dad was to be with the Lord. I have always used the verse in Hebrew 9:27 to prove that we have an appointed time with death. However, after my mom could not be convinced that this verse carried that specific meaning, I began to question my interpretation. Other pastor's were asked if they agreed with my interpretation...some agreed and some did not. Then I found Job 14:1-6 and Psalm 139:16.

            Psalm 139:16 states that "our days were formed for me."

            Job 14:1-6 states, "Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble. He comes out like a flower and withers; he flees like a shadow and continues not....Since his days are determined, and the number of his months is with you, and you have appointed his bounds that he cannot pass,..."

            Job gives us a very powerful statement to the sovereignty of God and the detail by which man is governed. Both the months and the days are determined and bounds set. The word “bound” in Hebrew is defined as                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            his “set time” has been determined.

            When I think of our days being numbered, I also think of Hezekiah in the books of 2^nd King and 2^nd Chronicles where he was told by God to set his house in order because he was going to die. There is no doubt in my mind that man has a predetermined date when he is to die that is set by God.  As in the case of Hezekiah, God can change this appointment and extend a person’s life. Whether the same is true concerning shortening a person’s life, I cannot say. Whatever the outcome, it is determined by a holy God who works all things together for good, to them who love him.

Though He Slay me

Here is an amazing verse from the book of Job 13:15!

"Though he slay me, I will hope in him."

As Job reflects upon his painful and dreadful situation, he maintains his
hope in God, though it appears that God is destroying his life. When I find
verses like this they seem to jump out at me and lodge themselves in my
heart. Then there is a process of mulling it over, and then the search for
the original meaning of words. This process then leads to a whole new
dynamic and discovery of truth that leads to a chain reaction of deeper and
deeper discovery of what and "how" the text means. For example, this verse
in Job, can also be translated,

"Behold, he will slay me, I have no hope."

Complete opposite! So which is it? Well, in a sense it could be both but
more likely the latter. Let me explain. The complete verse reads like this:

"Though he slay me, I will hope in him. Yet I will argue my ways to his
face."

The second part of this verse suggests to me that the first part should
read, "Behold, he will slay me, I have no hope." Then when Job says, "Yet I
will argue my ways to his face.", it makes most sense that even though he is
being slain, and there is no hope, "yet" he will still come before the Lord
and "argue" his case, with the "hope" that God will have mercy and spare
him. This would seem to follow many of the complaint Psalms where David
felt there was no way out, yet he would trust in the Lord. Well, I thought
it would be good to share this process and the richness of Scripture with
you today...even when things appear hopeless, we can remember Job, and trust
God for the rescue...argue your case, but be prepared to listen quietly,
waiting for His redemption.

Laminin

Have you viewed Louis talk on Laminin yet?  When I saw the pictures I thought he borrowed them from my Let God’s Creatures Be the Teachers seminar…the are identical except for the additional Laminin…this is worth watching!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e4zgJXPpI4