Treasure hunters

If we are searching for natural treasures of this earth, we go looking in places where they are to be found. Precious gems are deep underground buried in rock and shale or tucked away in a little clam like creature deep underwater.  Precious metals are intertwined in a matrix of rock buried in the hearts of mountains.

We don’t expect to find those treasures sitting in our arm chair before a cozy fire.  If we want them we must go looking in the right places, deep in mines, drilling digging searching.  We bestir ourself and go after them.  Talking about searching does no good.  Speculating with others doesn’t help. Reading stories of men who found treasures is encouraging, but they put no diamonds in our hand. We must put the effort and sweat and time into finding them ourselves.

It is the same way with the treasures of Christ Jesus. If we want the pearls of great price and the gold tried in the fire they only come through our effort and sweat and time spent in the Word and in prayer before Him.  Talking about the riches of faith is of no use in establishing our own.  Speculating about the blessings He has doesn’t bring them showering over us. Reading and hearing accounts of the faith in other men and women doesn’t give us the faith to see the same miracles in our own. 

We only grow in Christ and achieve a strong faith in Him by spending time in the Word—not in other’s men’s explanations of it or in a short ‘devotion’ from a handy little booklet.  We must spend time reading and reading and reading the Bible while the Holy Spirit points out the gems of understanding he has particularly for us.  Then we gather those into our heart treasure to be held and pondered.  After years of reading and study with that great Comforter we find we have accumulated a treasure of gold tried in the fire and our faith will shine as a beacon to those weighted down with doubt and worry.

We live in a day of immediate gratification.  We want our goodies NOW.  Kids don’t think the should deliver papers or mow lawns to save for their expensive toys; the expect their parents to hand them over.   Teens don’t want to practice abstinence until marriage, they want their sexual gratification NOW. Young marrieds don’t want to start our in a three room apartment with an old stove and refrigerator and a table that tips at one corner.  They demand a house as nice as the ones they see on television, decorated with expensive furniture.  And they want it all NOW.

We have applied the same demanding greediness to our spiritual life.  We want to come to the Lord and immediately have a complete grasp of His Word.  We want to be able to pray and have our prayers answered immediately if not sooner.  We want to expound the scriptures to our friends and be regarded as a Man or Woman of Faith.  We want our treasures before digging them from the depths of the scripture.  We want the pearl of great price with out diving into the Word.  We want the gold without the refining fire.

It doesn’t happen that way.  We have to spend the time searching the Word.  We have to spend time in the fire.    “. . .unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ;  ³ In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”  Colossians 2:2-3    ^“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” I Peter 1:7

Continuing Saga of a New Child of God.

Talked to Dawn this morning. They spent their first night in the new house. She was excited that even with furniture and boxes piled everywhere and a mere path through the downstairs, she slept better than she had in weeks! She said there is such a sense of peace she couldn't describe it.  She said she has never known such peace.

The other blessing for me is that the Lord is cleaning up her life. She told me yesterday of how He had already helped her deal with her overpowering anger with her kids and cleaning up her potty mouth. Now He has dealt with her about her smoking!

PRAISE THE LORD! I didn't say a single thing about it! "But God..." (as another friend commented yesterday).  GOD dealt with her. First she was convicted of it and began trying to stop. This morning she said she lit a cigarette first thing when she got up (smokers can relate to that) She said she took three puffs of it and was repulsed buy the look and taste and smell.

Isn't that just like our God! I've known a lot of "wanna-be Christians" who have complained that they 'can't' quit and God understands that kind of addiction and others that said, "God doesn't care if they smoke (and do a lot of other things)."  But here is a wonderful example of what God does and doesn't want in our lives if we live for him!

If we REALLY mean to serve Him, He gives us the Power to do it.

Rejoicing over Blessings.

Regarding yesterday's post here, Dawn said: "I am not ashamed to say who I am. Dawn Marie Harlan Green and I'm now a Christian. God is so good. Praise be everyone here.  This is my testimony.  Thank You, Vondi"

I’ve been rejoicing over the blessings the Lord has showered on my friend the last couple days. They just seem to keep piling up. She called last evening and said, “You are going to have to add more to my testimony.” ( Right now she is operating off a cell phone—kinda hard to write much)

Yesterday after she talked to me she had to run to her mother in law's for something and her son called to tell her they had just received a three day eviction notice. They have three days to be moved.

Now here is the part that blesses me—God had ALREADY planned that all out! The house, the electricity, the gas, the large appliances (Oh, I didn’t mention that, the land lord had promised to move some of the large appliances in. Those went in yesterday.)

Remember the scripture: “Before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.”   Well, it happened just that way. That three day notice would have knocked her off her feet, but the Lord already had her support system in place! Isn’t that great!

And before she left her mother in law’s house the case worker, who had been working with them since the violence incident and her husband’s arrest, called to say they had a RENT check ready to send as soon as she got them the name and address of her new landlord. All I can say is: I’ve never seen JFS work that fast. She only notified her caseworker late on Friday of the new housing situation!

They spent the day moving furniture. As of last evening, the old house is nearly empty!

But here is the icing on the cake. Last night…nine or nearly ten o’clock…she called, so excited. She had filed their income taxes a while back and was hoping that the return would come by the end of March when she had arranged with a couple of her bill collectors to make a catch up payment. So when she got home tonight—to her mattress on the floor—she laid down and was scrolling through her email and found a note about her taxes. Thinking it was just a message confirming her filing she passed over it, then she found a second message about the same thing.

THEN she read them both and paid attention. There were phone numbers and passwords.  When she called them she discovered that her tax return had already been deposited in her account. THREE WEEKS BEFORE IT WAS DUE!

To say she could hardly contain herself is an under statement.

I have laughed and cried until my face hurts. The blessings have certainly been showered over her. But then she really needed them. 

 

God Is Taking a Hand

I just spoke with the friend who was saved a couple weeks ago. If you read my page, you’ll remember her.

She is rejoicing up and down and over and over. She was about to lose her house; the Lord provided another for her. She needs to be out of her current rental home soon and she was worried about getting the gas transferred and also the electric. In a ten minute conversation she has the gas arranged and it will be turned on TOMORROW between 8 and noon! The electricity will go on I don’t remember when she said!

Another old friend has told her just a few minutes ago that he and his mother are sitting in the gas station…(somewhere, don’t remember where, I was so excited) with a tank full of gas just waiting for her to call that she is at the house. They are ready to help haul furniture all day!

She drove her mother-in-law to visit her husband on…Friday, I believe she said. She spoke to him for a while. He THANKED HER for calling the authorities and having him jailed! WOW! She spoke with him on the phone later and said the conversation blessed her.

She is not planning to have him move home anytime soon, but she is trusting in the scripture: “But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace. 16 For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband?”
I am thrilled at the things she has overcome since she gave her heart and life to the Lord. She told me this morning, “I am so so ashamed of the woman I was!”

She testified of the way the Lord is showing her things to change in her life. Her little girl was in trouble this morning and she said, “I felt it, I felt that [mean anger] bubbling up inside me and I stopped and said a little prayer not to do that!” And she didn’t get so horribly and hatefully angry. She said she told her daughter very plainly what the standard was and told her very plainly what the consequence was…

She said the dirty mouth that she was so prone to has also gone the way of the hateful anger. She has stopped swearing and using foul language and even when a word seems about to slip she has stopped herself. AND ALREADY it has made an impression on her oldest son—he has cleaned his language up without any reprimand or sermon from her.

She was rejoicing over and over this morning. She doesn't have a 'sin more or less every day religion!" It made me laugh and cry and rejoice. Tell me our God isn’t Great! I can tell you other wise!

Keep her in your prayers. You KNOW Satan will come in like a flood.

 

(Here's the message she left on Facebook yesterday.)

Good morning Momma#2 , lets just see how life goes today, new day, new things to live for... looks like I have been searching for the light at the end of the tunnel in all the wrong places. for the first time in months and months I woke up and didn't have a cloudy head... I did thank God, even if you gave us rain today... love you much talk to you later (Jan 30)