Tag: Boston

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America Healing Living It Out In Real Time Spiritual Warfare The Life of Faith The Mysteries of God The Secret Place Through The Looking Glass

When Truth Remains…

Las Vegas

Over three years ago, following the Boston Marathon attack that killed and injured our fellow citizens, I shared the following blog with you, my friends here in cyber-space. As I thought about the events of this week in Las Vegas, and the horrific pain, terror, and heartache inflicted by one man, these words came back to mind. Fear is a formidable foe, which takes on many forms — as many as there are evil designs in the minds of twisted men. But we are a resilient people, and at times such as these, we experience our nation’s Foundation of Faith holding us up, comforting us, and keeping us from being consumed and buried in the ashes of such tragedy.

However, truth is truth. Whether 9-11, Boston, Chattanooga, San Bernardino, or Las Vegas, the truth about how we respond in such times, and where we need to go from here, remains the same…

“God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.” ~ Psalm 46:1

Our prayers continue for the families of the victims, for those injured, for the people of Las Vegas, and for a nation in mourning.

No Fear

After following the news in the wake of this week’s terror attack, it is obvious and understandable that emotions in our nation are running the gamut.

We are saddened by the physical and emotional pain that our friends and fellow Americans are facing as a result of those killed and injured. Our prayers for healing and comfort go out to the victims and their families during this time…

We are angry that someone had the audacity to commit this heinous crime…

We are confused as to why and how this could have happened. Who committed this act? Why did they do it? As our fine law enforcement officials investigate, we believe that answers will be forthcoming.

We are afraid. Many people in our nation are now living in fear on a variety of levels:

People are in fear that it could happen again.

Witnesses may face fear from the memories of that horrific day.

Victims are fearful of moving forward into a future of uncertainty.

Terror, by it’s very definition, is about eliciting a fear response. Terror means “extreme fear”. Terrorism is not simply about killing and wounding innocent men, women, and children; it is about inciting fear in those who remain, and causing people to live in fear.

The problem we face is that fear (terror) is a vicious cycle. Fear is a magnet to demons. The more we discuss and voice our fear with our lips, the more demons are attracted to the atmosphere of fear. Fear is more than emotion… fear is a spirit. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that…

“God has not not given us a spirit of fear,
but of power and of love and of a sound mind“.

In the Bible, Job was considered a righteous man. However, Job had a fatal flaw. In Job 3:25, Job confesses:

“For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me,
and what I dreaded has happened to me.”

Job feared the loss of his children and his treasures, and Satan was drawn to that fear. And while we may think that fear is an unavoidable part of life, living in fear is an existence that we do not have to settle for. 1 John 4:18 tells us that “perfect love casts out fear“, and in Proverbs 29:25, we have this promise:

The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD shall be safe.

Abraham Lincoln is arguably the greatest president our country has ever seen. However, history bears out that he lost every single election he ran until he ran for president. What if he had allowed fear from past experiences to convince him to quit? How different would our country look today.

Former South African President Nelson Mandela once said, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” For the believer in Jesus Christ, the opposite of fear is more than courage… it is faith and hope.

For those of you that watch my television program, Ron Phillips from Abba’s House, you are familiar with my co-host, Angie McGregor. What many of you may not realize is that Angie is a gifted songwriter and singer. Several years ago, in the immediate shadow of 9/11, Angie released a song that resonates today. Having faced down some fear in her own life, she penned the song simply titled, I Will Not Fear. After the events of 9/11, this song took on a whole new meaning for all of us that heard it.

— from the CD Could We Dance? ©Copyright 2002 FacePlace Music

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. ~ II Corinthians 1:3-5

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When the World Goes Mad…

At one time or another, we all want to run and hide. We want to resist the urge to get out of bed in the morning, simply pull the covers up over our head, and pretend the rest of the world has dissolved into time and space. For many, the recent events in our world make these feelings not just a passing fascination, but a genuine wish…

The recent terrorist attack in Boston, and information being reported in its wake make us question the safety of our nation.

The revelations coming out in the trial of abortionist Kermit Gosnell makes us question the sanity of a civilization that allows the horror of abortion to be perpetrated upon the most innocent and helpless among us… the unborn.

The contrast of the media reaction in treating a professional athlete who “comes out of the closet” (with regard to his sexuality) as a hero, while ridiculing and denigrating another for simply being unashamed of his Christian faith, makes us skeptical of an “unbiased” media clearly bent on force-feeding the public with a left-wing, liberal, Godless agenda.

I could go on for days, but you get the picture. Honestly, sometimes we just want to hide.

So how should we deal with it? How do we keep our sanity when the world is losing it’s collective “mind”? How do we maintain a heart-cry of holiness when we feel as though we are being drowned-out by the noise of profane and abhorrent voices actively pursuing our silence?

How do we find “the secret place”?

Must I wrestle as Jacob? Must I run as Elijah? Must I weep as Isaiah? Must I be martyred as Paul?

No. These are only the outward circumstances that lead us to the simple secret of his Presence. The answer lies in having a depth of spiritual hunger and thirst. God is looking for some people with a desire as strong as a parched and thirsty man lost in a desert. Such a man would give all he owned in a desperate moment for a lifesaving drink of water.

Our desperate cry for Him should be wholehearted and passionate! In Scripture, we find out how to seek Him, and discover promises from the Father for those who are thirsty. Are you…

Like a deer running from a hunter? (Psalm 42:1-2)

Like a weary worshipper, tired of the ordinary? (Psalm 63:1-4)

Like a tired traveler on a journey? (Psalm 107: 5-6)

If any of the above describe you, then ACT!

Stretch your hands toward Him. (Psalm 143:6)

Claim His promise of outpoured blessing. (Isaiah 44:3)

Respond and come before His grace. (Isaiah 55:1)

Realize that you are invited – not to religion – but to Jesus. (John 7:37)

Your responsibility is to come. (Revelation 21:6)

When you arrive, you may drink of Him. (Revelation 22:17)

In Matthew 5:6, Jesus says…

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.”

My only requirement is a holy dissatisfaction with all that is around me. My heart must be thirsty for Jesus, and Him alone. I can hear Him calling me up the stairs into the High Place where there flows an artesian well of life. It is mine to enjoy. I may drink, or I may splash in it like a child on a hot summer day.

I come, O Lord. Indeed, I come with all my heart and soul.

~ from my book, Secret of the Stairs

Categories
Healing Living It Out In Real Time The Life of Faith The Mysteries of God The Secret Place

No Fear

After following the news in the wake of this week’s terror attack at the Boston Marathon, it is obvious and understandable that emotions in our nation are running the gamut.

We are saddened by the physical and emotional pain that our friends and fellow Americans are facing as a result of those killed and injured. Our prayers for healing and comfort go out to the victims and their families during this time.

We are angry that someone had the audacity to commit this heinous crime on a day (Patriot’s Day) that was about everything that is right with our nation (courage, honor, freedom), on our own soil – our home.

We are confused as to why and how this could have happened. Who committed this act? Why did they do it? As our fine law enforcement officials investigate, we believe that answers will be forthcoming.

We are afraid. Many people in our nation are now living in fear on a variety of levels:

People are in fear that it could happen again.

Witnesses may face fear from the memories of that horrific day.

Victims are fearful of moving forward into a future of uncertainty.

Terror, by it’s very definition, is about eliciting a fear response. Terror means “extreme fear”. Terrorism is not simply about killing and wounding innocent men, women, and children; it is about inciting fear in those who remain, and causing people to live in fear.

The problem we face is that fear (terror) is a vicious cycle. Fear is a magnet to demons. The more we discuss and voice our fear with our lips, the more demons are attracted to the atmosphere of fear. Fear is more than emotion… fear is a spirit. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that…

“God has not not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind“.

In the Bible, Job was considered a righteous man. However, Job had a fatal flaw. In Job 3:25, Job confesses:

“For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me.”

Job feared the loss of his children and his treasures, and Satan was drawn to that fear. And while we may think that fear is an unavoidable part of life, living in fear is an existence that we do not have to settle for. 1 John 4:18 tells us that “perfect love casts out fear“, and in Proverbs 29:25, we have this promise:

The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD shall be safe.

Abraham Lincoln is arguably the greatest president our country has ever seen. However, history bears out that he lost every single election he ran until he ran for president. What if he had allowed fear from past experiences to convince him to quit? How different would our country look today.

Former South African President Nelson Mandela once said, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” For the believer in Jesus Christ, the opposite of fear is more than courage… it is faith and hope.

For those of you that watch my television program, Ron Phillips from Abba’s House, you are familiar with my co-host, Angie McGregor. What many of you may not realize is that Angie is a gifted songwriter and singer. Several years ago, in the immediate shadow of 9/11, Angie released a song that resonates today. Having faced down some fear in her own life, she penned the song simply titled, I Will Not Fear. After the events of 9/11, this song took on a whole new meaning for all of us that heard it.

— from the CD Could We Dance? ©Copyright 2002 FacePlace Music

Categories
Healing Living It Out In Real Time The Life of Faith

Enough

FlagAmerica is at war… a war without national boundaries. I wrote several years ago (and was severely criticized) that America has a bloody enemy.

Does anyone honestly doubt that now?

While I could go on and on about attacks on our nation and it’s citizens, at home and around the world, here are a few of note…

In October, 1983, the attack on the Marine barracks in Beruit, Lebanon claimed 299 lives.

In October, 2000, the USS Cole was attacked while sitting at anchor at the Port of Aden in Yemen. Seventeen American sailors were killed.

On September 11, 2001, we watched helplessly as our fellow citizens were murdered in the Twin Towers and at the Pentagon, attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives (almost all civilian). For most of us, the images of our fellow citizens jumping from the upper floors of the World Trade Center are indelibly etched into our minds.

Four Americans (including Ambassador Chris Stevens) were murdered in Benghazi in 2012 when the U.S. Consulate was attacked.

Since 2001, thousands of our brave servicemen and women have died on battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan.

And now… Boston.

While we do not yet know who is responsible for yesterday’s attack, we do know who the father of terror is. It is high-time for the terrorists of the world to be held accountable. It is time to end political correctness. It is time to serve notice on these brokers of violence and fear, as well as countries that send or harbor them, and let them know that we have had enough.

No more monetary aid for countries that foster ill-will and hatred toward America.

No more weapons for countries and administrations that are known purveyors of intolerance, injustice, and violence toward the United States, Israel, or any of our allies.

No more rewarding countries with aid who persecute their own people simply because they follow Jesus.

And no more oil dependence. Let’s end our dependence on Middle Eastern oil and open the unlimited resources of America. We need to build the pipelines and refineries right here at home, and cut off the finances of tyrannical and jihadist regimes.

It is time to know who our friends are and who our enemies are. It is time to silence these tyrants hiding behind their abused populace, empty rhetoric, and misguided religion.

For now, let us pray for our fellow Americans in Boston.

And let us join together with one voice and declare…Enough is Enough