LifeLink Devotions

Friday, June 16, 2023

I try to avoid it. I intentionally stay away from it. I have found other things to meet my need for information without turning to it. I’m talking about the national media. I made the mistake of watching a little of it this morning and now I regret it. It made me angry because there is no honor anymore, and there certainly is no moral compass.

Day after day we are bombarded with news that is intentionally slanted to promote man’s agenda over God’s authority. I am reminded to be thankful that God is in control no matter how much man thinks he is and attempts to prove he’s worthy to be. “Praise be to Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you with great joy and without fault before His glorious presence – to the only God our Savior be glory and majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! AMEN!” (Jude 24-25)

As I read through the book of Isaiah, I can almost begin to feel about it the way I do about the media. Here we are in the twenty-second chapter already and the news is still gloom and doom: chapter after chapter of man’s rebellion against God and His coming judgment of their sin. But with careful reading there are great truths to be discovered that can help us in our daily lives. Let me share one with you from today’s passage.

Isaiah 22:13  “But see, there is joy and revelry, slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep, eating of meat and drinking of wine! “Let us eat and drink,” you say, “for tomorrow we die!”

This chapter is a prophecy about the fall of Jerusalem at the hands of the Babylonians. It would take place in 586 B.C., some 125 years after Isaiah wrote it. I want you to notice these points about what is written:

• Isaiah is heartbroken over the sin of the people and the knowledge that God has every right and intention to discipline them. In verse four he writes, “Therefore I said, “Turn away from me; let me weep bitterly. Do not try to console me over the destruction of my people.” My first response to the tragedy of sin in people’s lives must be one of grief rather than anger. Anger in this case is prideful, plain and simple. When we respond with anger at another person’s sin, we are essentially judging them to our own prideful advantage. Think about that carefully. There is a place for anger against sin, but not until we have sufficiently wept over their Christ-less condition that has caused it.
• The people who are sinning are doing everything they can to defend their situation so they can continue in it. Here’s how the siege of Jerusalem is described:
• The Babylonians have surrounded them.
  • Their choicest valleys are filled with chariots of the enemy.
  • The cavalry is at the gates of the city.
  • The defenses of the city have been destroyed.
  • There are breaches in the walls.
• The response of the people is interesting. They are destroying everything they had built in the city to reinforce the walls. They are doing everything they can to protect the lifestyle they love. But that is not the response God wanted from them. He did not ask them to defend the city – it was futile for them to attempt it because He had brought it upon them as a consequence of their sin. There was only one way they could avoid the punishment – repentance.

God’s message to them was clear. “The Lord, the LORD Almighty, called you on that day to weep and to wail, to tear out your hair and put on sackcloth.” But they only wanted to protect the little world they had built for their own enjoyment. I see that played out every day in the media, in the lives of people all around me, and in me. We do everything we can to defend our positions so we can enjoy our preferred lifestyles. Then we turn to attacking anyone who speaks out against what we are doing. We truly are living in the last days when the messengers of truth from Jesus Christ will be persecuted as people defend their ungodly positions.

But the people do not repent. Instead, they planned one final party to satisfy the desires of their flesh. They had a chance to turn from their wicked ways and surrender to God in brokenness and humility. Instead, they chose to pursue their passions one last time. When they did, they sealed their fate. God said, “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned for.” How sad. There is a point in man’s rejection of God when God declares them to be eternally rejected by Him. They have refused to surrender to the call of the Holy Spirit for forgiveness, and for this they cannot be forgiven.

God’s call of repentance goes out to you today. Turn from all pursuits of fleshly pleasure and prosperity and turn to Jesus Christ as the source of all life. Do not reject the One who gave His life to atone for your sin.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, June 15, 2023

I had just finished playing an eighth-grade basketball game. The rest of the members of the team and I were sitting in the bleachers watching the ninth-grade game. The cheerleaders for our grade came up the bleachers and sat with us. I was so nervous. I had my eye on one of them, and I was terrified when she came and sat down beside me. I had never been that close to someone that cute.

As we sat in the bleachers, doing the typical early teen flirting, the conversation turned to knee pads. Back in those days, it was cool to wear one knee pad when you played basketball. It was a symbol of your aggressiveness and your ability to play through pain. Well, I had injured both knees. I had a bone chip right below the kneecap on one, and the other one was bruised from a collision. I needed both of them protected, but I was the only one who wore two.

Before I go on, I want you to get a visual image of what I looked like back then. I’d send a picture if I had one. I’m sure my wife will think it’s funny to find one and post it to her Facebook page. In eighth grade I was the same height I am now – 5’ 11”. But I only weighed 125 pounds. I was so very skinny. I ate more than I do now, as hard to believe as that is, and I never gained weight.  My most prominent feature was my proboscis. I was nicknamed “Trumpet” in college. I was strong, but didn’t look it, and to an eighth-grade boy, appearance equaled value. As a result, I was very insecure.

So here we are, all of my basketball buddies and the cheerleaders, sitting in the stands, when during the conversation about kneepads the girl I liked turned to me and said, “So John, why do you wear two kneepads? Is it because your legs are so weak?”

Total humiliation.

I got up and left the gym, and I don’t think I ever talked to that girl again.

I’m sure you have a story or two of humiliation in your past as well. It’s not fun. We would never choose it intentionally…or would we? The prophet Isaiah did.

Isaiah 20:2  “At that time the LORD spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz. He said to him, “Take off the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet.” And he did so, going around stripped and barefoot.”

Isaiah so completely trusted the Word of the Lord and the heart of his God that he publicly humiliated himself for three years so that the message of God could be delivered. That’s amazing.

So much of our time and energy is spent on creating good public image. Nowhere in public policy is the option of exaltation by process of humiliation. But that is God’s policy. We want others to see us when God wants others to see Him in us. If anyone wants to be exalted, they must first be completely humbled. It’s how God works.

The problem is we think so highly of ourselves that we would never consider hurting ourselves. But we have been deceived into thinking that humility hurts us, when in fact we are only hurting other people’s opinions of us. And of what value are they? Isn’t God’s opinion of us sufficient? Don’t we realize that while we work so hard to enhance our exterior to maintain our earthly relationships, we are hurting the one relationship that really matters – the one with God? He is offended by our pride. Ultimate humiliation will come to those who are not humble when they stand in the presence of God and He says, “Depart from me into eternal damnation, for I never knew you.”

I don’t know how I would respond if God asked me to do something as humiliating as He asked of Isaiah. The fact that I don’t know means it will probably happen, because it’s obvious that God still must humble me. How about you? Are you humble enough to trust God completely and not worry about what man says? Is your heart so in love with Jesus that He is the only one you truly desire to please? Is your life defined by the purpose of God to let others see Jesus in you?

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, June 14, 2023

Someday. We use that term in a variety of ways. “Someday I’m gonna get around to that. Someday it will turn around for me. Someday they will get what they have coming to them. Someday I’ll be able to retire.” Well, at least someday came for that last one. I’m sure there are literally hundreds of other applications of the word someday. But there is a someday coming that will be like no other day. It will be some day!

Attention is drawn to that someday over 100 times in the Old Testament. Generally, it is referred to as “that day.” And what a day it will be!

The first third of the book of Isaiah closes with several chapters of oracles against certain countries and peoples of the world who have rejected God and followed the ways of the flesh. Chapter nineteen deals with the nation of Egypt. There are prophetic warnings about their sin and there is also prophetic attention drawn to the someday that is coming.

There are six specific things God will do in that day:

• “They will shudder with fear at the uplifted hand that the LORD Almighty raises against them.”(Isaiah 19:16) There is a day coming when all the sins of the nations will be judged and punished, and it will be a terrifying day.
• “In that day five cities in Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the LORD Almighty.” (19:18) In that day the culture will be influenced by the people of God, rather than the culture attempting to eliminate the influence of God’s people.
• “In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the heart of Egypt, and a monument to the LORD at its border.”(19:19) Just think – when Jesus comes in that day, the nations of the world will be politically and socially centered on Jesus Christ. Anyone who enters at the border will have their attention drawn to the Lord, and anyone who lives there will be under the authority of the Lord.
• “So the LORD will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge the LORD. They will worship with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the LORD and keep them.”(19:21) In that day there will be far more than just political allegiance to the Lord. There will be worship. The people will not be captives in their own land, forced to follow an unwelcome conqueror. They will be in love with the Lord who set them free from the tyranny of sin. They will worship Him.
• “In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together.” (19:23) Someday the Lord will bring reconciliation between enemies. Nations and people will be brought together in the love of God and will worship the One True Living God, Jesus Christ. They will cooperate politically and socially, and there will be an end to all war.
• “In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth.   The LORD Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.” (19:24-25) There will no longer be any aggression towards God’s chosen people Israel. All of Israel’s enemies will surrender to the power and authority of Jesus Christ and He will unite them as one. He will call those who are not Jews His people. He will reveal how He has been working in and through His enemies to fulfill His handiwork. He will affirm Israel as the people of promise and bring all the nations into His inheritance.

Someday! Not by human wisdom or government, but by the return and reign of Jesus Christ. Let that day come soon!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, June 13, 2023

Several years ago, I worked very hard to put in a garden. My location choices were very limited because of the trees in my back yard that provide shade to most areas, but I found a spot that delivered the best afternoon sun. I built a framework so the bed of fresh dirt could be leveled on the grassy slope. I put up a fence to protect the vegetables from the local bunnies. I brought in composted black dirt for soil fertility. I was ready to plant my crops.

As things started to grow, I was impressed. Small sprouts quickly turned into lush plants that had every indication of bearing lots of fruit.  But as the season progressed and the plants kept growing larger, the fruit the plants bore was minimal. It was a huge disappointment. I had the biggest tomato plant ever, but only a few tomatoes. The beans were a bust. The peas were pathetic. And the zucchini were literally squashed. I had the biggest zucchini plants ever and they bloomed profusely, but only one out of every twenty blooms produced a green gourd.

As I reflected on what went wrong, I was stumped. I prepared the soil. It is very fertile, made from compost. Maybe it was too fertile and is just produced top growth – I don’t know. I planted in the right places. There was plenty of rain that summer. What went wrong? How come we can do everything right and still not get blessed with a bountiful harvest?

That last question really hit me because it applies to more than just gardens. It teaches us an eternal principle that God wants us to know. Here it is – Our plans and preparations are meaningless and unproductive unless God produces the fruit. And God won’t produce fruit if He is not our priority.

Isaiah 17:10-11  “You have forgotten God your Savior; you have not remembered the Rock, your fortress. Therefore, though you set out the finest plants and plant imported vines,though on the day you set them out, you make them grow, and on the morning when you plant them, you bring them to bud, yet the harvest will be as nothing in the day of disease and incurable pain.”

Here’s the truth of the matter: unless we are saved by the blood of Jesus Christ and building our lives on the Solid Rock, everything we do will ultimately fail and be destroyed. It doesn’t matter how technologically advanced we become. It doesn’t help that we do all the scientific research to increase productivity. It makes absolutely no difference that we have all the administrative and organizational skills to plan for every possible contingency. If our life isn’t centered on Jesus Christ, and if our hope and strength aren’t in Him alone, all we are doing is feeding futility not fertility.

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is in the little book of Hosea. It says, “Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the LORD, until he comes and showers righteousness on you.”

So get out your spiritual roto-tiller (some of us might need roto-rooters), dig up the hard ground of your heart, and plant the seeds of his productive priorities. When you do, the harvest is guaranteed.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Monday, June 12, 2023

I have a hard time imagining life back in the days of the early church. There’s no way we can really relate to what it must have been like 2,000 years ago. At least from a lifestyle argument this is true. But it is not true from a faith or philosophical view. The same beliefs that exist today in people’s hearts and minds were prominent back then as well. People’s thinking has not changed. Culture may have changed, and technology has certainly changed, but the heart of man has not.

Around the year 90 A.D., when the apostle John was exiled to the Island of Patmos, Greek philosophers abounded throughout the Roman Empire. They attempted to do what philosophers and scientists today attempt to do – explain life without recognizing the existence of God. One such philosopher was named Epictetus.

To Epictetus, all external events are determined by fate, and are thus beyond our control, so we should accept whatever happens calmly and dispassionately. As individuals, however, we are responsible for our own actions, which we must examine and control through rigorous self-discipline. Suffering arises from trying to control what is uncontrollable, or from neglecting what is within our power.

This philosophy is not much different than the humanistic philosophy of today. Man has not changed his thinking. Under the power of sin, man still thinks he can control his actions so that they produce good. People still believe that through self-discipline and self-affirmation they can produce their own happiness. How wrong they are!

Epictetus was convinced that attitude and perspective were the keys to managing the problems of life. He wrote, “It isn’t your problems that are bothering you. It is the way you are looking at them.” He was partially right. His problem was that he taught that we needed to look at our problems through the eyes of fate and human ability, rather than through the eyes of God and His Sovereign control of all things.

That’s what God was trying to tell the people of the world through the mouth of Isaiah the prophet. Chapter after chapter come warnings to nations and people about the consequences of not looking at life through from God’s perspective. In chapter 17, the people of Damascus are told about what will happen to all their hard work that has been done only by looking to man’s ability – it will be obliterated. When it is, then they will finally turn their eyes back to the Lord.

Isaiah 17:7-8  “In that day men will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. They will not look to the altars, the work of their hands, and they will have no regard for the Asherah polesand the incense altars their fingers have made.”

Look carefully at today’s Scripture verse. In the past the people of Damascus had their eyes wrongly focused on three things – religion (the altars), work, and pleasure (Asherah poles, representing the sexual focus of their culture under the false worship of the goddess Asherah). Everything they did in life was motivated by the pursuit of one of these things. They sought to find some kind of peace through a religious experience; they sought to find some kind of worth through the work they accomplished; and they sought to find an escape from the troubles of life through pleasure.

Man has not changed. We still look to these three things to fulfill the deepest longings of our hearts. It is only after we suffer the consequences of looking to these things that we finally turn and look to our Maker who knows how to satisfy our every need from the inside out.

So what are you looking at? Is it the things of the earth, or the things of God? But even looking at the things of God is not sufficient. Look to God Himself. “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, and look full in His wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Friday, June 9, 2023

Today begins a weekend I look forward to every year. I will spend it with my brother Paul as we finish our preparations for a five-day fishing trip. We will get the boat and camper ready, purchase our supplies, and probably laugh a lot, although most of the hilarity happens when my South Dakota friend arrives to join us on the trip.

However, I wonder why, when there is so much to be done, I am so satisfied to sit and do nothing at times. There are days when life seems so mundane. Have you ever wondered why? Do the things that used to bring joy seem simply average and at times even meaningless?

At first I chalk it up to old age, retirement, and tiredness. But then I read this verse this morning. In context, Isaiah is writing about the nation of Moab, but in application he writes about me…and you.

Isaiah 16:9  “The shouts of joy over your ripened fruit and over your harvests have been stilled. Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards; no one sings or shouts in the vineyards; no one treads out wine at the presses, for I have put an end to the shouting.”

The more the Moabites became comfortable and proud of their position, the less they depended upon God. They had not yet learned that joy comes only from the Lord. It is a fruit of the Spirit of God abiding within us. It can only be experienced if the Holy Spirit is filling us. He cannot fill us if we are filled with ourselves. So the loss of joy is the direct result of the choice we make to focus on self.

OUCH!

But I needed that ouch. You may have also needed it. Take some time today, as I will, and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the parts of your life and heart where He is not involved, or where His involvement is being restricted by your self-involvement. Then repent of those things and invite Him to fill you. The Joy of the Lord will return and you will be strong again.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, June 8, 2023

What are your plans for the day? It’s amazing how proficient we have become with planning out our days. We have days planned weeks in advance. We have calendars on the fridge, in our purses, and on our cell phones. We lock in dates for activities and trips and kid’s events and even church events. We get downright discouraged and sometimes frustrated when our plans don’t work out. Many plans are self-centered and self-fulfilling. We make them because of the benefit we will receive. Planning has the potential to become an idol.

Agnes Goddard of Oceanside, California tells this story about motives.

“My granddaughter, Hannah, begged me long-distance to come help her celebrate her sixth birthday. Unable to resist, I made my plans to join the family. When we sat down for the birthday dinner, my son asked Hannah if she would like to bless the food on her birthday. “Oh, yes, Daddy,” she said. She closed her eyes and began, “Dear Lord, thank you for Mommy and this good food she fixed. Thank you for letting Grandma come here today.” Pausing momentarily, Hannah opened her eyes to peek at me before she continued. “And please Lord, let us have a good time at ‘Toys R Us’ this afternoon.”

It is very easy for us to run our own lives for our own benefit, isn’t it? What appears on the surface to be a kind gesture or an act of service may actually be an attempt to satisfy some fleshly desire. I suspect that much of what we have on our calendars are plans that are so significant to the building of our own little kingdoms that we would be upset if God interrupted them with His plan.

Isaiah 14:24  “The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.”

Here’s a test for you. For tomorrow, clear your calendar of ALL items that aren’t absolutely necessary for work. Take every personal item off. As soon as you’ve done that, close your eyes and pray this prayer – “God, thank you for tomorrow because I know the plans you have for me will be good.” Can you do it? Can you really be thankful for tomorrow when you have no idea what is going to happen?

Maybe this will help. He was just a little fellow. His mother died when he was just a child. His father, in trying to be both mommy and daddy, had planned a picnic. The little boy had never been on a picnic, so they made their plans, fixed the lunch, and packed the car. Then it was time to go to bed, for the picnic was the next day. He just couldn’t sleep. He tossed and he turned, but the excitement got to him. Finally, he got out of bed, ran into the room where his father had already fallen asleep, and shook him. His father woke up and saw his son. He said to him, “What are you doing up? What’s the matter?”

The boy said, “I can’t sleep.”

The father asked, “Why can’t you sleep?”

“Daddy, I’m excited about tomorrow.”

His father replied, “Well, Son, I’m sure you are, and it’s going to be a great day, but it won’t be great if we don’t get some sleep. So why don’t you just run down the hall, get back in bed, and get a good night’s rest.”

So the boy trudged off down the hall to his room and got in bed. Before long, sleep came—to the father, that is. It wasn’t long thereafter that the little boy was back. He was pushing and shoving his father, and his father opened his eyes. Harsh words almost blurted out until he saw the expression on the boy’s face. The father asked, “What’s the matter now?”

The boy said, “Daddy, I just want to thank you for tomorrow.”

When I think of my past and the fact that a loving Father would not let me go, reached down in his divine providence, and lifted me out of a life of sin, and when I think of what he has done for me and then think that he is planning a new thing for me that will surpass the past, let the record show this day in this place that John D. van Gorkom testified, “Father, I want to thank you for tomorrow!”

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, June 8, 2023

What are your plans for the day? It’s amazing how proficient we have become with planning out our days. We have days planned weeks in advance. We have calendars on the fridge, in our purses, and on our cell phones. We lock in dates for activities and trips and kid’s events and even church events. We get downright discouraged and sometimes frustrated when our plans don’t work out. Many plans are self-centered and self-fulfilling. We make them because of the benefit we will receive. Planning has the potential to become an idol.

Agnes Goddard of Oceanside, California tells this story about motives.

“My granddaughter, Hannah, begged me long-distance to come help her celebrate her sixth birthday. Unable to resist, I made my plans to join the family. When we sat down for the birthday dinner, my son asked Hannah if she would like to bless the food on her birthday. “Oh, yes, Daddy,” she said. She closed her eyes and began, “Dear Lord, thank you for Mommy and this good food she fixed. Thank you for letting Grandma come here today.” Pausing momentarily, Hannah opened her eyes to peek at me before she continued. “And please Lord, let us have a good time at ‘Toys R Us’ this afternoon.”

It is very easy for us to run our own lives for our own benefit, isn’t it? What appears on the surface to be a kind gesture or an act of service may actually be an attempt to satisfy some fleshly desire. I suspect that much of what we have on our calendars are plans that are so significant to the building of our own little kingdoms that we would be upset if God interrupted them with His plan.

Isaiah 14:24  “The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.”

Here’s a test for you. For tomorrow, clear your calendar of ALL items that aren’t absolutely necessary for work. Take every personal item off. As soon as you’ve done that, close your eyes and pray this prayer – “God, thank you for tomorrow because I know the plans you have for me will be good.” Can you do it? Can you really be thankful for tomorrow when you have no idea what is going to happen?

Maybe this will help. He was just a little fellow. His mother died when he was just a child. His father, in trying to be both mommy and daddy, had planned a picnic. The little boy had never been on a picnic, so they made their plans, fixed the lunch, and packed the car. Then it was time to go to bed, for the picnic was the next day. He just couldn’t sleep. He tossed and he turned, but the excitement got to him. Finally, he got out of bed, ran into the room where his father had already fallen asleep, and shook him. His father woke up and saw his son. He said to him, “What are you doing up? What’s the matter?”

The boy said, “I can’t sleep.”

The father asked, “Why can’t you sleep?”

“Daddy, I’m excited about tomorrow.”

His father replied, “Well, Son, I’m sure you are, and it’s going to be a great day, but it won’t be great if we don’t get some sleep. So why don’t you just run down the hall, get back in bed, and get a good night’s rest.”

So the boy trudged off down the hall to his room and got in bed. Before long, sleep came—to the father, that is. It wasn’t long thereafter that the little boy was back. He was pushing and shoving his father, and his father opened his eyes. Harsh words almost blurted out until he saw the expression on the boy’s face. The father asked, “What’s the matter now?”

The boy said, “Daddy, I just want to thank you for tomorrow.”

When I think of my past and the fact that a loving Father would not let me go, reached down in his divine providence, and lifted me out of a life of sin, and when I think of what he has done for me and then think that he is planning a new thing for me that will surpass the past, let the record show this day in this place that John D. van Gorkom testified, “Father, I want to thank you for tomorrow!”

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, June 7, 2023

One hundred thirty years after the resurrection of Jesus, a stoic philosopher named Marcus Aurelius came to power in Rome as emperor. He brought a degree of civility to the people and allowed the citizens to speak freely without fear of retribution. It was a time of peace for the nation, and people began to thrive.

In less than three hundred years the nation would collapse. Much has been written about the fall of the Roman Empire, and many reasons are given, including one that blames Christianity. But in all humility, recognizing that I am not an historian, there is one thing that guarantees the collapse of all man’s efforts – pride.

When we attempt to create empires of any kind – from family to financial, from political to personal – and then maintain them according to our own standards, we have set ourselves up against the very nature and heart of Almighty God. When we attempt to deny the existence of God our pride will end in destruction.

Just look at the prophecy that is spoken by God through Isaiah to the nation of Babylon.

Isaiah 13:11 and 14:10-11  “I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.They will all respond, they will say to you, “You also have become weak, as we are; you have become like us. All your pomp has been brought down to the grave, along with the noise of your harps; maggots are spread out beneath you and worms cover you.”

 Its ruler will join all the previous rulers of pompous political powers in the hopelessness of the grave. They will have to face the fact and admit the truth that their pride ended in destruction.

The same is true in our personal lives. The things that we do for self will cause us to ultimately suffer. The things we do for the Savior bring us security. The treasures we build on earth will all be lost. The treasures we build in heaven are safe – eternally safe.

The key is to be humble and submit to the will of God, not the will of man. It all starts in our minds. The Apostle Paul said, “And so, dear brothers and sisters,I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will accept. When you think of what he has done for you, is this too much to ask? Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.” (Romans 12:1-2 New Living Translation)

If only the people of the Roman Empire had held on to this truth. They had it, you know. And not only from Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome, although that should have been sufficient. They were also challenged by the words of their emperor, Marcus Aurelius, to be humble and guard their minds and thought life from pride. He wrote, ‎”You are what you think – not what you think you are…….Think as a man who acts, and act as a man who thinks. The most important things in life are the thoughts you choose to frame.”

So, how’s your thought life? Maybe you think it’s irrelevant to your life. Maybe you have just accepted all the thoughts that speed across the back of your eyes as a part of the human experience. Do you not understand that according to God we are responsible for every thought? The Apostle Paul made it clear that we are when he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5)

It is our pride that makes us pretentious and sets us up in opposition to God. We must take responsibility for our thoughts and bring them under the control of the Holy Spirit. When we do, we will be able to experience the perfect peace of God because we are living in the perfect will of God.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, June 6, 2023

“I hear the sound of a mighty rushing wind
and it’s closer now than it’s ever been

“I can almost hear the trumpet as Gabriel sounds the chord
at the midnight cry we’ll be going home.

“I look around me, I see prophecies fulfilled
the signs of the times they’re appearing everywhere

“I can almost see the father as he says “Son go get my children”
at the midnight cry, the bride of Christ will rise.

“When Jesus steps out on a cloud to call his children
the dead in Christ shall rise to meet him in the air

“Then those that remain shall be quickly changed
at the midnight cry we’ll be going home.”

These are the lyrics from a song I first heard sung by David Robertson. It captivated my heart. The thought that at any time of any day now we who are children of God will hear the sound of the trumpet of Jesus as He returns to the earth to take His children home to glory. Hallelujah! Let it be today!

Soon – very soon – we will hear the sound of a mighty army of angels led by Jesus Christ himself as He calls us up to meet Him in the air. Then we will become a part of a mighty army that will return to earth – people from every land, nation, tribe, and tongue – and we will watch as Jesus conquers the world with His spoken Word. The Day of the LORD is coming, and those who know Jesus as Savior will be on the winning side of the war.

Isaiah 13:4-6, 9  “Listen, a noise on the mountains, like that of a great multitude! Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms, like nations massing together! The LORD Almighty is mustering an army for war.They come from faraway lands, from the ends of the heavens—the LORD and the weapons of his wrath—to destroy the whole country.Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty…See, the day of the LORD is coming—a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger—to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it.”

But wait. If you listen carefully in your heart, you can already hear the trumpet of Jesus. You are already under the influence of a new song. You already march to a new drummer with a new beat. As followers of Jesus, we are already listening to the trumpet of Jesus, just like an old song the Imperials sang years ago…

“I listen to the Trumpet of Jesus, while the world hears a different sound
I march to the drumbeat of God Almighty while the others just wander around
I’m a member of the Holy Ghost traveling band, we’re moving on up to a better land
I hear the voice of a Supernatural Singer like only those who know Him can.”

So march today to the drumbeat of God Almighty. You are a member of the Holy Ghost traveling band. And as you march…keep listening for the Trumpet.

Pastor John