I've been walking with Jesus for nearly 30 years. From the first day of my salvation, I wondered where all the aged believers were hiding. Weren't they supposed to pass on good advice to green folks like me? One time my husband and I had the pleasure of playing a game called Reunion with retired missionaries. They were in their 70s or 80s. I never forgot their wisdom.

But this was a rare occasion. I have discipled many new Christians over the years. These lessons seemed to help them the most. Sometimes it is necessary to explain basic things. Take what you need.

For you, new believer, I will try to remember all the good lessons I have run across so that you may know in your own life, times when you can learn to recognize God's promptings to pray, fellowship or just when you need to wait on Him.

Take one thought at a time.

Emotions

Why do we think we have to "feel" God's love? Why do we sometimes feel abandoned to struggle to make it alone?

Well, my friend, when we first get saved, we feel God close, don't we? Then time passes and our feelings subside and we are left with what we know. The truth is that it is by faith we believe that God loves us perfectly. We know this. At those times when God feels so far away, He is closest. This is the opportunity He has given you to exercise that faith. Share with someone of the mighty works of God. Let them know that you know He is near by faith. If you can do this, you just matured a little! Sound foolish? Guess what? "God has chosen the foolish to confound the wise." You know in your heart that God is truer than steel. Use this time to dive into His Word and let Him use your brokenness to grow you up some more. Need tools to get you started? Listen to some good worship music from Vineyard Music. Become familiar with your local Christian Book Store. Pin down what is bugging you and 9 times out of 10, somebody has written about it from his/her own experience. Determine that you won't let your feelings rule your lifewalk toward Jesus. Keep moving forward. Remember that there is no such thing as a neutral place in a Christian's walk. Either you are going forward or you're slipping backwards. You must make a choice to continue moving forward. Which path will you choose?

How God Shapes Us

Malachi 3:3 says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver." She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined.

The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answered,

"Oh, that's easy - when I see my image in it."

When you feel lonely and isolated, no one is answering the phone and you just feel like dumping on someone, it is time to pray. God has isolated you because He wants your attention. After you have spent time praying, notice how blessed you feel now. And you have spared your friend of your pain!

When God reveals to you a situation that seems impossible, you are being asked to pray.

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has His eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

Right now, this very moment, someone needs to know that God is watching over them. And, whatever they're going through, they'll be a better person in the end.

Overcoming My Sin

Father God is nothing like my earthly father. Separate them right away or else your view of God becomes like your earthly father in many ways and you will suffer accordingly. I recommend a book for taking care of this problem. "The Attributes of God" by A.W. Tozer.

Listen To God's Lessons For You

Read your bible every day. Begin with the New Testament. Read the book of John first. Hold up your bible and ask God to reveal His lesson for you today. Take in every word as if it was written just for you. Don't read too much or you'll miss the lesson. Read until the story changes scenes, as in a play. Now put your bible down and just listen. If you don't hear the lesson right away, don't worry. God speaks to us in our dreams as we sleep and in every possible occasion. Sometimes the lesson is attached to a forthcoming scenerio in your life.

When trials and tribulations beset you, look up. The most natural and human thing to do is to stop talking to God, get out of fellowship and be lost. But you are not lost. Christian, you have to make the choice to keep looking up. People waste much of their lives feeling sorry for themselves for the trials and tribulations that beset them. Did you know that God is closest during these times? You need these times to draw near to Him and mature in your faith. Without turmoil, you will not grow!

Guidance

GUIDANCE = "God, "u" and "i" dance." Dance together with God, trusting Him to lead and to guide you through each season of your life.

"W.W.J.D?" What Would Jesus Do? is a terrific behavior checker. Look carefully at Jesus in the New Testament. See how he acted? See how men acted? Imitate Jesus. In everything, ask yourself, "What would Jesus do?" in this case? Always take your time making decisions.

You are wise to resolve a problem in kindness.

Don't give up on God because He seems to have forsaken you for an agonizingly long time. He is near and your faith is being tested! Read the book of Job. Keep your eyes and attentions up.

Get yourself a mentor, someone to look up to, who is older and lives a righteous life.

When people bombard me with "good advice," for my problems, it's time to pray.

When God desires my fellowship, I feel pulled towards Him and away from the cares of this world. If I go to Him, I have even more incredible fellowship. If I resist Him, I regret it for a long time.

Daily Reminders

It's all about Him.

Don't ever forget that we are all sheep. Our Shepherd is Jesus. To get a good grasp on what that means, read "A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23" by Phillip Keller. It'll keep you humble!

Worship

When I sing in church, I try to visualize Jesus being there receiving worship from His beloved. Then I can remember that I sing to an Audience of One.

Vineyard Christian Fellowship has a special anointing for music and lyrics that focus our attention on God in song. Introduce yourself to their ministry quickly!

Sometimes worship can last for hours, while seeming only a few minutes long.

Fake Christians

The path to heaven is a lot narrower than we think.

An apostate is someone who claims to believe everything Christian, but has no evidence of a changed life, no peace, and zero focus on Jesus. "You shall know them by their fruit." "But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, He will produce this kind of fruit in us; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."

Some people are so overwhelmed with evil religious spirits that they live out their entire lives erroneously thinking that religious tradition is the key to Christianity, while secretly, desperately hungry for something more. The simple gospel of truth is willfully ignored and they follow the lives of and readings about others snared in the same trap throughout their lives. Confused people like these have existed throughout the ages. Pride gets them there. Jesus came for people, not for religion we offer up in ornate, mysterious and complex ritual. Keep in mind that if it looks complicated, it didn't come from God. "My yoke is easy; my burden light."

God's Word is Fresh Every Day and Forever

A worn out bible in a Christian's hands can be a sign of maturity-- or boredom. Feel free to get a new bible now and then, mark it up and read it in your common tongue. I love the New Living Translation. Get yourself a "Praise and Worship" bible in this translation. As you grow, you will find that you need a new bible to mark up with new lessons you will learn.

Prayer

"Pray without ceasing." What does this mean? Never give up on those God lays on your heart to pray for. The inside of my new bible has 7 lists of people that God has asked me to pray for. I don't try to systematically pray on different days for these folks. I have tried! God would have me remember each of them every day; a discipline I have yet to master!

"P.U.S.H." Pray Until Something Happens. Then keep praying.

Prayer is the most powerful activity in your life now.

When it seems that I cannot focus on anything at all, it's time to pray.

Make the Decision to Grow!

Sign up for a Cleansing Stream seminar in your area. Contact Church On The Way in Van Nuys, California at (818) 779-8000 for locations and dates. You will get a bath in the Word of God in this 4-month program that takes up about 3 hours a month of your evenings and ends with a 2 day retreat. The initial cost is about $70 per person plus $40 for the retreat and meals. After your first time through, you become alumni and only pay for the retreat. Cleansing Stream began in 1974 and has been refined by many pastors and you will truly be blessed by the freedom and refreshment you will experience. It is a Christian tune-up we all need to subject ourselves to. Go once a year to the retreats. They'll cost $40. Make the decision to grow now!

Good Morning, Jesus!

When you wake up in the morning, smile say, "Jesus loves me today." Then when you are wide awake, put on the full armor of God, from the top on down. Visualize the pieces of armor as you declare each piece... the helmet of salvation... the shield of faith... the breastplate of righteousness... the sword of His Word... the belt of truth... the shoes of the gospel of peace.

Keep It Simple

You desire pure religion? Take care of the orphans and widows. Feed the poor.

God is always in control. He never loses sight or becomes distracted. It may look like chaos to you. It is His perfect plan.

Could you be Living a Lie?

Have you been a Christian for a long time? Are you struggling in your faith? Have you ever thought that maybe you are not saved after all? Do all these lessons seem strange and foreign to you? Jesus said that sometimes the seed sown falls on fallow ground. You may have heard the truth, but not yet received it. You cannot receive it without recognizing your innate sin nature. Many people grew up in religions that claimed we all are born perfect, yet the bible teaches that "in sin did my mother conceive me." We are hopeless without God, our Creator. Do you, reader, really understand the depth of that meaning? That you are helpless to do a thing to save yourself? That the bible is chalked full of individuals who wanted to make ladders to heaven and go to God on their own terms? Our petty minds are manipulated by hell into thinking that we can be so clever as to impress the God who made the universe and beyond with our "towers of babel." To do so is the most subtle of human arrogance.

Humility

The opposite of arrogance is humility. So what is humility? It is knowing that I am but dust; that the world will go on without me; that my brother is more important than me; that everything I have belongs to God, who gave it to me; that my petty errors do not disturb God's plans; that those nails were for me; that I blow it all day long, so I repent all day long; that God loves me in spite of myself; that it is by God's grace that I am alive today, rich or poor, successful or unsuccessful.

Your Ministry

Think of what God has for you as a new believer or an old one. Pray and focus on the answer. It might come pretty quick. For me, life has been filled with pain and tragedy. Looking back at the worst of life's knocks, I see what ministry I fell into most naturally. I gave my time, talents and home to those in need. I never thought of this as a ministry nor as part of God's plan for me as I was so overwhelmed with personal grief in the midst of my ministry. I had a Job [the prophet] experience that lasted a couple of decades. I sang to God, cried out; I even marched to God in protest against hell's attacks. And I don't regret a moment of it because I know now that you also can endure such trials and grow up strong and unashamed of our mighty God. The angels in heaven bear witness to your eventual victory.

Time Wasters

Psychology, psychiatry, philosophy... all man's ideas, none claim to begin in the bible, then take a sharp left. Their atheist authors help just a teensy little bit in human behavior studies. These humanity studies are in themselves the ultimate evidence that we humans have the capacity to be completely and utterly full of ourselves. How complicated we make our purpose to be! On the contrary, we are made answerable to our Creator and the outcome of our lives depend on God's will and the choices we make. The worst mental illness is rooted in unforgiveness. Our healing is rooted in our choice to love, no matter what the cost. God has given us example after example of wrong choices made throughout the bible, through the actions or inactions and consequences in the lives of His people and unbelievers as well. God has never let us off the hook for our sins, just because we love Him. We need to confess, repent and allow the Holy Spirit to guide us each new day. I challenge you to find all your answers to life's struggles in the word of God, to listen to what the Holy Spirit's lesson is for you in everything, and to stay away from these unclever 'isms.' They only complicate God's perfect answers, leading many into confusion and into the snares of the devil. You only have 24 hours in a day. It takes a lifetime to wade through the mountains of human thought that make up psychology, psychiatry and philosophy (or towers of babble, as I like to call them), until suddenly, you realize the isms have stolen your time with God, whom you barely got to know on this earth. The choice was yours and you chose humanism above a relationship with God. The thing became your god and you are held accountable as you stand face to face with God, the stranger, the one who you ignored, stood right beside you every moment. God doesn't want perfection in us on earth. God wants US. Listen to the words of Saint Paul: "No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead; I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven." (Philippians 3:13-14).

Forgiveness

The baggage that you carry into your Christian life needs to be dealt with. If you refuse, pretend it's not there and try to build your new house (or life) with it's ugly presence, it'll affect everything you do for Jesus. So make a list of everyone who has ever offended you and have a ceremonial burn and declare out loud, "I forgive you!" and let the ashes float away. Now make another list. This time write down every person you have offended. If it is possible to go to them and ask forgiveness, do it. If not, then ask God's forgiveness for your sinful behavior. It's over. Now wasn't that cool? Is this psychology? NO. It is Deuteronomy. It is God.

Respect

How do you see old folks? Before you were saved, did you disrespect them? And your parents? When was the last time you checked in? I put this poem here so that you can gain new perspective on these elderly, everyday people, whose shoes we too will wear awkwardly one day. We are not under the Old Testament law. Jesus' new covenant with us frees us from that. But we can learn a lot from the Old Testament. In those days, cursing your father or mother brought death. See Leviticus 20:9. Today, God wants us to willingly love and respect our parents. Don't spend a moment trying to justify your wrong attitudes to them. The choice to love and respect them is yours. The Holy Spirit of God will help you. But YOU obey Him and do it!

An Old Lady's Poem

What do you see, nurses, what do you see?
What are you thinking when you're looking at me?
A crabby old woman, not very wise,
Uncertain of habit, with faraway eyes?

Who dribbles her food and makes no reply
When you say in a loud voice, "I do wish you'd try!"
Who seems not to notice the things that you do,
And forever is losing a stocking or shoe...

Who, resisting or not, lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding, the long day to fill...
Is that what you're thinking? Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse; you're not looking at me.

I'll tell you who I am as I sit here so still,
As I do at your bidding, as I eat at your will.
I'm a small child of ten ...with a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters, who love one another.

A young girl of sixteen, with wings on her feet,
Dreaming that soon now a lover she'll meet.
A bride soon at twenty--my heart gives a leap,
Remembering the vows that I promised to keep.

At twenty-five now, I have young of my own,
Who need me to guide and a secure happy home.
A woman of thirty, my young now grown fast,
Bound to each other with ties that should last.

At forty, my young sons have grown and are gone,
But my man's beside me to see I don't mourn.
At fifty once more, babies play round my knee,
Again we know children, my loved one and me.

Dark days are upon me, my husband is dead;
I look at the future, I shudder with dread.
For my young are all rearing young of their own,
And I think of the years and the love that I've known.

I'm now an old woman...and nature is cruel;
'Tis jest to make old age look like a fool.
The body, it crumbles, grace and vigor depart,
There is now a stone where I once had a heart.

But inside this old carcass a young girl still dwells.

And now and again my battered heart swells.
I remember the joys, I remember the pain,
And I'm loving and living life over again.

I think of the years...all too few, gone too fast,
And accept the stark fact that nothing can last.
So open your eyes, nurses, open and see,
Not a crabby old woman; look closer...see ME!!

Remember this poem when you next meet an old person who you might brush aside without looking at the young soul within...... We will one day be there, too!

SHARE THIS POEM......IT'S SOMETHING WE ALL NEED TO REMEMBER

Hypocrisy

Guard your heart, so that you don't turn into a hypocrite. God will guide you in all you do, if you let Him. Bow out of your own way so that the Holy Spirit can transform you into a true and godly, Holy Spirit-led son or daughter.

You are a Part of the Body of Christ, the Church

Get involved in a church that spends their Sunday mornings or evenings in true worship. Churches vary in their ways, depending on the type of people in charge. Feel free to look around. Ask yourself some questions: Is there a Sunday school for me to study a book of the bible or do the ushers pass the basket around too much? Does this church resemble a country club with many internal self-serving ministries or do they feed the poor? Are they really a New Testament church or are they under the yoke of the Old Testament Covenant? Is it evident that these people love their God? What kind of outreaches do they have? Do they visit the prisoner, the shut-in, do street evangelism? When you think you have a winner, interview the pastor and find out where they are headed, what their long and short term goals are. When you are satisfied, then submit to this church's leaders and see what doors God will open for you. God has provided a congregation that is just right for you. Persist until you find it!

Life is a puzzle sometimes, but not to God. He knows what it takes to mature His children. Are you up to the task?

God Working In Us

I asked God to take away my habit.
God said, No.
It is not for me to take away, but for you to give it up.

I asked God to make my handicapped child whole.
God said, No.
His spirit is whole, his body is only temporary.

I asked God to grant me patience.
God said, No.
Patience is a byproduct of tribulations;
it isn't granted, it is learned.

I asked God to give me happiness.
God said, No.
I give you blessings; Happiness is up to you.

I asked God to spare me pain.
God said, No.
Suffering draws you apart from worldly cares
and brings you closer to me.

I asked God to make my spirit grow.
God said, No.
You must grow on your own,
but I will prune you to make you fruitful.

I asked God for all things that I might enjoy life.
God said, No.
I will give you life, so that you may enjoy all things.

I ask God to help me LOVE others, as much as He loves me.
God said...Ahhhh, finally you have the idea.

THIS DAY IS YOURS DON'T THROW IT AWAY

May God Bless You,
"To the world you might be one person,
But to one person,
You just might be the world."