Between Night and Day- Purity 1332
Purity 1332 04/22/2024 Purity 1332 Podcast
Purity 1332 on YouTube:
Good morning,
Today’s admittedly blurry panoramic photo showing
the stretch of land I spend a lot of time traversing on the weekends, as the
last light of day fades into the horizon on the left as the nighttime wonder of
a waxing gibbous moon flies high on the right, with mammoth tree silhouettes in
between, comes to us from yours truly as I took an early evening stroll down
Waite Rd and tried to capture it and take it all in on Saturday night. Although
the light show of a fading sunset and a nearly full moon were on display, the things
that caught my attention and sent my gaze heavenward were the clouds and the
clear blue skies and how they seemed “perfect”. It was as if the whole sky was
a Hollywood backdrop of what an ideal sky would look like. The whole scene
filled me with awe, wonder, and joy over God and His magnificent creation and I
know that today’s photo fails to convey what I saw and felt.
Well, it’s Monday and just like how I know that the
photos I share that are intended to give God glory fail to do justice to convey
the original beauty that the photographers experienced, I also do my best and
probably fail to relate just how wonderful it is to be free in Christ and to
walk in the Spirit. I mean how do you adequately describe experiencing a whole
new life? I can tell you I have stopped
certain activities of the past and trust you to believe me that I really have stopped
and I really did struggle with those things in a significant way that consumed
25 or so years of my life but does quitting smoking cigarettes, stopping
drinking, using other substances to get high, and ceasing all sexual activities
outside of my relations with my wife really tell you that I have been changed? And more importantly, do these things really
convey the fact that, as I testify honestly, they were accomplished because of
a relationship with and through the power of God, the creator of all
things? Does my changing from “night
to day” in certain areas of my life convince you that I have had some real
encounters with the manifest presence of the One True Living God? Do my accounts of the things I have encountered,
that have been written about on the blog
before, convince you that God is real or could you come up with alternative explanations
– like He’s freaking crazy – to explain what could be common or coincedental
experiences that I have misinterpreted as the power of God in my life?
Well, I don’t know if they convince you or not and
quite honestly I am not asking you to “check out my story”, my purpose in
writing this blog and podcasting its message has always been to encourage you
to “seek the Lord”, not me. I believe,
as the scriptures indicate, that your curiosity into the spiritual aspects of life
can result in you discovering the truth of ultimate reality – that there is a
God who loves you who created everything, and who sent Jesus to earth to save
us from ourselves, sin, and death.
Speaking for the Lord, the prohet Jerimiah said in:
Jeremiah
29:13 (NKJV)
13 And you will seek Me and
find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
Now
I know this message was written to the nation of Israel in a particular
situation and context, but the principle here applies, I believe, to all of us. But if you read it carefully, you will see
that finding the Lord has conditions to it.
1. We must seek the Lord
2. We must search for the Lord
3. We must do so with ALL of our hearts
And the fourth condition, that is not stated but I
feel is implied – we must do all of the above until we find Him, and we must be willing to accept the truth that
our searching results in.
There are countless stories of skeptics who set out
to disprove the gospel of Jesus Christ only to be converted to Christianity –
proving that as long as you search Him diligently, even possibly with the wrong
intentions!, you could find Him.
For me, the Lord was gracious. I sought truth – but rejected the idea of
Christianity and accepted an alternative – godless – philosophy of life – of the
eastern mysticism variety – that allowed me to manage life on my own terms and
to believe I was on some epic quest to attain god-like wisdom and power. I was
wrong. I was deceived – hook , line, and sinker, and was perfectly content to
stay that way (locked in a selfish hedonistic and self-righteous life of debauchery)
for the rest of my life. But I opened a door of a gospel radio message, that I
began listening to intending to mock, and the Lord came storming into my life.
I didn’t really seek Him with all my heart – but the Lord used my willingness
to listen, even with wrong intentions, and showed me His truth and His love for
me and while I have been a real work in progress since that faithful day in 2010,
I have been changed from night to day, from darkness to light, progressively,
increasingly ever since because God’s call on my life has kept me “asking,
seeking, and knocking” to know Him more.
And after so many years of walking with the Lord, I
have to tell you that the search continues and the transformations keep coming!
In the last year I have testified about how the Lord
used the recovery ministry I am leading at Starpoint Church to give me unprecedented
levels of freedom and victory over my lifelong battle of food addiction and
although that battle will continue, the things I have accomplished with the
Lord’s help should be seen as the significant breakthrough for which it
is. In fact, I am hopeful that the
recent convictions I have had over “plateauing” over the past few months will
result in the motivation to go the last miles to accomplishing my health goal
of tipping the scales to “normal” instead of overweight. We will see – stay tuned.
But as much as I am delighted and frustrated over
the victory and ongoing saga with my lifelong eating habits and physical health,
I was also made aware that I have been growing spiritually – gradually and
seemingly all at once – after my prayer ministry training with Julaine Kammrath
since January.
Yesterday, I lead a student of Julaine’s through an Immanuel
“Peace” Prayer Session, and despite my anxious anticipation of the session, was surprised at my level of comfort in guiding
the session into a peaceful encounter with the Lord. Julianne has lead me in several sessions of
Immanuel prayer and has taught me the skills and practice of an Immanuel Prayer
minister but there is a big difference between being led and learning and doing
it yourself. The difference between receiving and learning about Immanuel
Prayer and practicing Immanuel Prayer is similarly like the difference between night
and day – but I did it. I have led
similar prayer ministry in the past but didn’t really have any confidence in
it. But yesterday, I realized that
Julaine wasn’t just “being nice” with her previous positive feedback. I have
learned about the practices of Immanuel Prayer. I have developed the skills of
an Immanuel Prayer Minister. And
yesterday, I demonstrated my knowledge and skill to the point that I, myself,
was able to realize that I could practice Immanuel Prayer Ministry. I’m still growing and learning and could
benefit from a lot more experience but yesterday the Lord revealed to me that I
could “do this” – I could practice Immanuel Prayer to help others find peace
and healing through an encounter with the Lord!
Just like the Karate Kid thought that he was just
going through the motions of manual labor only to discover that he was being
instructed in the movements of martial arts, I realized that those sessions of
prayer ministry and training that I thoroughly enjoyed, but had taken somewhat
casually, actually taught me how to practice the very thing I was learning about! The difference between theory and practice
can be a significant one but yesterday I realized that Julaine’s guidance had
simultaneously given me both!
But prayer ministry is not martial arts – even though
we may do battle with the spiritual forces of evil – it’s a spiritual practice
that relies completely on God and it is only through His mercy, grace, and power
that anything is accomplished. And so I am realizing this morning that while I
have been plateauing with my battle with the flesh over the last few months,
the Lord has been doing some work in my spirit and making me increase in my
abilities to relate to and interact with Him!
While I have been contemplating a possible future as
a Christian Life Coach, I realize now that last years training with Deeper Walk’s
School of Prayer Ministry and this years training with Julaine have prepared to
operate as more as a prayer minster than a “life coach” and I shouldn’t shy
away from becoming the thing that the Lord has guided me into : someone who
uses prayer to help others get to know Him and experience His love and power in
their lives.
It is a very exciting time right now. As always, I’m
not exactly sure where this is all leading to but I have faith that the Lord
will use it all for good, as I truly love Him and am doing my best to answer
the call to His purposes that He has for my life.
So keep plodding along, and keep walking and talking
with God, because as you “seek Him” and Abide with Him, He is doing work that
you may not see but will cause you to one day give Him thanks and praise and
that will cause you to rejoice over how He continues to change you from night
to day.
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For
those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple encouragements provide,
I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/ .
Today’s
Bible verses come to us from “The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling” By
John G. Kruis.
(
While Bible verses on various topics of Counseling can be found with a quick
Google search, we encourage you to purchase this resource to support the late
author’s work. (https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Scripture-Reference-Counseling-Kruis-ebook/dp/B00CIUJZT2?ref_=ast_author_dp )
This
morning’s meditation verses come from the section on Death and Eternal Life
2 Samuel 12:18-23 (NIV2011)
18 On the seventh day the
child died. David’s attendants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead,
for they thought, “While the child was still living, he wouldn’t listen to us
when we spoke to him. How can we now tell him the child is dead? He may do
something desperate.”
19 David noticed that his
attendants were whispering among themselves, and he realized the child was
dead. “Is the child dead?” he asked. “Yes,” they replied, “he is dead.”
20 Then David got up from the
ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went
into the house of the LORD and
worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him
food, and he ate.
21 His attendants asked him,
“Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept,
but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!”
22 He answered, “While the
child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, ‘Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to me and let the
child live.’
23 But now that he is dead,
why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but
he will not return to me.”
Today’s
verses fall under the fourteenth point of our counseling reference guide
resource’s section on Death and Eternal Life.
14. When David’s infant son died, he was comforted by the
knowledge that one day he would go to him.
Today’s
verses are perhaps some of the most heartbreaking verses in the Bible. The death
of an infant child is not a light subject but the man who has a heart from God,
David, shows us that he knows that even in the midst of the darkest misery,
there is hope because of the One who rules over life and death. David testifies
that nothing is lost on God’s watch and because He knows His heavenly Father,
He can have peace knowing that he will one day see his son in eternity
again.
I
lost my infant son, Holden, to pneumonia in 2002, and that tragedy led this
fleshly and selfish man to seek truth and find the Lord, and like David, I have
faith that God is sovereign and that His plans are good and that beyond the
pains and sufferings of this world broken by sin, there is an eternal kingdom
that is ruled by His majesty and grace, where nothing good is lost and where
His children will live with Him for ever and ever. I can’t speak for my other
children’s eternal destiny because it requires their faith in Jesus, but like
David knew, I know I have a son in heaven and although he can’t return to me, I
will one day go to Him and to God the Father to live in peace for ever.
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As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I
always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to
assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from “According to Your
Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament” By Stephen F. Olford – A
Collection of Devotional Journals: 1940-1941.
As always, I share this information for educational
purposes and encourage you all to purchase Olford’s books for your own
private study and to support his work. This resource is available online
for less than $10 at many sites.
EVENING READING: ACTS 3
“Power or godliness.” – Acts 3:12
It is not without significance that Peter chooses these
two words to describe the means through which the lame man was made whole.
Notice that while Peter and John take no honor for the miracle, there is an
obvious implication that the two essentials were power and godliness (or
holiness, KJV). It is true that it was not their power and holiness, but it is
also clear that power and holiness were necessary if God were to work. The
apostle Paul in his introduction to the epistle of the Romans speaks of Christ
thus, “Jesus Christ … declared to be the Son of God with power according to the
Spirit of holiness” (Rom. 1:4-5). Christ is therefore the embodiment of these
two great forces, and Christ was in and working through Peter and John.
Make clear to others, Lord, that it
is Your power
and holiness that work through me.[1]
---------------------------more
tomorrow------------------------
Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage
Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the
mt4christ247 podcast!
at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts
(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available
on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and
Audible.com.
These teachings are also available on the
MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247
Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and
to be encouraged.
My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian
encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ), her
Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on
Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)
“The views, opinions, and commentary of this
publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to
reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries,
or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication,
and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the
author may represent.”
Encouragement
for the Path of Christian Discipleship
[1]
Stephen Olford and Heather Olford, According to Your
Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament, A Collection of Devotional
Journals 1940-1941 (Nashville, TN: B&H Books, 2008).
