Follow up on Demon Possession

Some notes can be found on demon possession here: http://www.rapidresponsereport.com/briefingpapers/DemonPossession30.pdf

Spiritual Warfare the Biblical Way

Spiritual Warfare the Biblical Way

 

The Biblical understanding compared to charismatic understandings of spiritual warfare. (Notes taken from counseling course)

The devil must be biblically understood and biblically withstood.  The Bible provides the only guide to spiritual warfare and since the Bible has everything  that pertains to life and Godliness (2 Peter 1:3) all we need to know to fight the spiritual war is in there.

Talking about unbiblical views of spiritual warfare – The Bible only talks about casting out of demons in Acts there are no instructions on commanding or engaging in exorsitic ministry in all the letters that Paul wrote to the different Churches from Romans – Revelations. This shows that it was only a messianic (Jesus) and apostolic sign gift (to prove that God was with them).

If we come across demon possessed people, it will be obvious – they will have

1.       Some symptom of physical problem

2.       The distinct presence of another personality speaking in a coherent and intelligible way

3.       Supernatural knowledge particularly in spiritual matters.

When encountering a demon possessed person,

1.     We should not talk directly to or attempt to command the demon in any way.

2.     We are to engage in spiritual warfare through repentance, sanctification, submission to God and prayer asking Jesus to cast the demon out and to challenge the demon possessed person to put on Christ. Apart from putting on Christ, they will never be able to overcome future demonic attacks.

3.     Have faith in God knowing that greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.

Every believer has the privilege of praying for healing and praying for demon possessed people.

Spiritual warfare – the inner struggle for personal holiness not personal confrontation with demon

Demons and disobedient believers

People who are just disobedient believers, they continue in their state because they refuse to put on Jesus Christ in his life and walk.

Demons and obedient believers

If you believe that you may be under the influence of spiritual forces, you need to intensify the basics in Christian living.

·         In 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 – prayer, submission to God, renewing inner man.

·         In Job 1-3, 38-42 revelation of who God is, repentance

·         In Luke 22:31-32 Jesus prayed for Peter

·         In Matthew 24 Word of God, increased fellowship, increased time with God, prayer, submission to God.

References

Jim Berg “Biblical Counselling” Course
“ Demons: A Biblically Based Perspective “ - Alex Konya

           

Another version of the revival hymn

How to take 30min to examine your heart

People talk about examining your heart and we as Christians are encouraged to confess our sins to God so that our fellowhsip with him is not affected by unconfessed sins. Here are a few points to help you get right with God.. take some time to reflect on these and remember God is very willing to cleanse us of our sins. He has already sent Jesus Christ to pay for your sins.. all you need to do is believe Him.


2min
Ask God to reveal to you the sins that are keeping you from being closer to him.
1min
Am I taking care of my body? Are my eating/activities according to God's will?
1 Corithians 6:19-20
1min
How important is money? Am I giving enough? Have I held back or not used money well?
1 Timothy 6:10
1min
Am I Self-disciplined? Have I given in too easily to sleepiness? Hunger? Temptations?
2 Peter 1:5-7
1min
What is the overriding influence in my life? my circumstances or my faith?
2 Peter 1:5-7
1min
Any room for improvement in my bahavior?
2 Peter 1:5-7
1min
How do I rate in the categories of kindness and love? When have I neglected to love?
2 Peter 1:5-7
1min
Is my tongue getting the best of me? When have I failed to discipline my tongue?
2 Timothy 2:23-24
1min
Is my God big enough? Where have I doubted his ability to provide or look after me?
Ephesians 3:20-21
1min
Are my words building up or tearing down? Are people directed to God as a result of my speech?
Ephesians 4:29
1min
Time management. Have I wasted or "killed" time?
Ephesians 5:15-16
1min
Do I possess my possessions? or do they possess me?
Luke 12:15
1min
Attitude check. How do I view myself and others?
Luke 14:11
1min
Who is my Lord? Who do I listen to most? Myself or God?
Luke 6:46
1min
Am I standing for God? Have I been ashamed of God?
Luke 9:26
1min
Heart check. Is my heart, mind and strength all towards God?
Matthew 22:37-38
1min
Do I care if others go to hell? When did I neglect an opportunity given by God?
Matthew 28:19-20
1min
Who is my real master?
Matthew 6:24
1min
Pursuits. Am I chasing things other than God?
Matthew 6:33
1min
Have I been worrying about things that I should leave to God?
Philippians 4:6
1min
Thought life - what occupies my mindmost? What do I think about when I am not doing anything? What do I worry about?
Philippians 4:6
1min
Hey, I'm pretty good!
Romans 12:3
1min
Is one foot on earth and the other in heaven? How?
James 4:4
1min
Where's my dependence? When things go wrong, did I seek God? Or who? Or what?
Matthew 5:3
1min
Where's my focus? What is driving me every day?
Matthew 6:33
1min
Am I thanking God in all things? How have I been ungrateful towards God?
2 Timothy 3:1-5
1min
Am I being obedient to God? Do I listen to the Holy Spirit's advice?
Luke 12:47
1min
How am I seeking after God?
2 Chronicles 12:13
1min
How's my temper?
Ephesians 4:26-27

LIFEHACK - One thing you should know about life... after death

Lifehouse video called "EVERYTHING"

IF you ever wanted a 5min video version of what Christians are trying to tell you, here it is in interpretive dance. Jesus Christ died for your sins. The best hack for your life is to accept the payment GOD paid on your behalf for your wrongs. Your sins are not worth losing your soul.



If you got questions, comments, abuse.. please comment.

What's wrong with Christianity today

This is pretty much why:

Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein. - Jeremiah 6:16

Enough said..

Why Revival Tarries?

"No man is greater than his prayer life. The pastor who is not praying is playing; the people who are not praying are straying. The pulpit can be a shopwindow to display one's talents; the prayer closet allows no showing off.

Poverty-stricken as the Church is today in many things, she is most stricken here, in the place of praver. We have many organizers, but few agonizers; many players and payers, few pray-ers; many singers, few clingers; lots of pastors, few wrestlers; many fears, few tears; much fashion, little passion; many interferers, few intercessors; many writers, but few fighters. Failing here, we fail everywhere.

The two prerequisites to successful Christian living are vision and passion, both of which are born in and maintained by prayer. The ministry of preaching is open to few; the ministry of prayer-the highest ministry of all human offices-is open to all. Spiritual adolescents say, "I'll not go tonight, it's only the prayer meeting." It may be that Satan has little cause to fear most preaching. Yet past experiences sting him to rally all his infernal army to fight against God's people praying. Modern Christians know little of "binding and loosing," though the onus is on us-"Whatsoever ye shall bind...” Have you done any of this lately? God is not prodigal with His power; but to be much for God, we must be much with God.

This world hits the trail for hell with a speed that makes our fastest plane look like a tortoise; yet alas, few of us can remember the last time we missed our bed for a night of waiting upon God for a world-shaking revival. Our compassions are not moved. We mistake the scaffolding for the building. Present-day preaching, with its pale interpretation of divine truths, causes us to mistake action for unction, commotion for creation, and rattles for revivals.

The secret of praying is praying in secret. A sinning man will stop praying, and a praying man will stop sinning. We are beggared and bankrupt, but not broken, nor even bent.

Prayer is profoundly simple and simply profound. "Prayer is the simplest form of speech that infant lips can try," and yet so sublime that it outranges all speech and exhausts man's vocabulary. A Niagara of burning words does not mean that God is either impressed or moved. One of the most profound of Old Testament intercessors had no language "Her lips moved, but her voice was not heard." No linguist here! There are groanings which cannot be uttered."

Are we so substandard to New Testament Christianity that we know not the historical faith of our fathers (with its implications and operations), but only the hysterical faith of our fellows? Prayer is to the believer what capital is to the business man.

Can any deny that in the modern church setup the main cause of anxiety is money? Yet that which tries the modern churches the most, troubled the New Testament Church the least. Our accent is on paying, theirs was on praying. When we have paid, the place is taken; when they had prayed, the place was shaken!

In the matter of New Testament, Spirit-inspired, hell-shaking, world-breaking prayer, never has so much been left by so many to so few. For this kind of prayer there is no substitute. We do it--or die!

Taken from Why Revival Tarries, by Leonard Ravenhill. Copyright 1959, Leonard Ravenhill. Published by Bethany House Publishers.

Why and How of Courtship (and why it isn't dating)

Below is a great article on courtship that I found at a blog called Role Calling.

Courtship Questions?
By Joe Lechner

From my experience, the number one topic among college-age people is the topic of relationships – and everything that comes with it – dating, courtship, boyfriends, girlfriends, marriage, sex. And among Christian college-age young people I don’t think there is a topic that generates more confusion and questions than the topic of courtship. So here are some questions – some, perhaps, you’ve asked and some you should be asking – and hopefully a few answers as well.
This is only a guide. It is not meant to be exhaustive. It’s only meant to point in the right direction. At the end is a list of resources that will help you continue the journey.
“What is courtship?”
First of all, what is courtship not? Courtship is not casual dating with a Christianized name. Most of us are aware of this, but we need to be careful of not going to the other extreme either. Courtship is not a kind of pre-engagement. It’s not the rubber stamp of the certainty of a future marriage. So what is courtship? Josh Harris in his book Boy Meets Girl defines courtship as a special season during which a man and woman seriously weigh the possibility of marriage; it’s purpose is to discern God’s will for marriage; it’s a season of deliberate, open and careful consideration of the possibility of marriage.
Because it’s deliberate, open, honest, intentional, and has a clear goal – it’s much more than casual dating. But because it’s the consideration of the possibility of marriage – it’s not pre-engagement, and those in the courtship and those outside the courtship, must resist the temptation to assume marriage. God’s will is what’s being sought – that may mean marriage, it may not.
In courtship, no promise about marriage has been made – only the promise to pursue it as a possibility.

“What is a successful courtship?”
Two things top the charts in answering this question. The first is God’s glory. The goal of any relationship and what determines whether or not any relationship is successful is whether or not God is glorified in the relationship. God’s glory is the greatest goal in every arena of life and this must be the highest priority and starting place as two people pursue courtship. The couple involved in a courtship is seeking to glorify God inwardly through their motives, thoughts, and intentions; and glorify God outwardly through their obedience to God in the way they relate to each other.
The second key element in a successful courtship is that it is wisdom-guided. Given our immaturity, sinful hearts, and selfish tendencies, young men and women interested in pursuing one another in courtship are in desperate need of wisdom! Wisdom is crucial so that you will experience courtship at the right time and at the right pace with a clear purpose and with a clear head able to make an intelligent, informed decision about marriage. Therefore a wisdom-guided relationship will be submitted to the rule of God’s Word, it will be submitted, guided and approved by those in authority over the couple (namely parents and pastors) and it will be pursued in a time in life when both individuals are mature enough to consider marriage (physically, emotionally, spiritually, and even financially).
In a God-glorifying, wisdom-guided relationship there are two central priorities that emerge in the courtship: To treat each other with holiness and sincerity and to make an informed and wise decision about marriage. The goal in courtship is not to get engaged. The couple in the courtship is seeking to grow and guard. They are seeking to grow closer so that they can truly know and be known, and at the same time trying to guard each others hearts because the outcome of the relationship is still unknown. The couple in the courtship need to observe and relate to one another, but treat each other with the kind of integrity that will allow them to look back on their courtship without regrets regardless of the outcome. The ‘growing and guarding’ of courtship is a balancing act – it takes a lot more effort and work, a lot more faith and trust in God than a casual, purposeless relationship. It’s a balancing act between considering marriage while fighting that urge to assume marriage.
The finish line of courtship is not a big ribbon that says, “Engagement”, but a big ribbon that says – “Glorified God – Walked in wisdom and humility - Treated each other in a godly manner – and made the right decision about marriage with a clear conscience!” That’s why it’s possible to have a courtship not end in engagement and be more successful than one that does. A courtship that is successful is not necessarily one that ends in engagement, but one that ends with God being glorified, both individuals growing in wisdom and grace, and walked out in purity physically, mentally and emotionally as to have no regrets.

“How do I do courtship?”
In one sense this is the wrong question to ask – at least initially. If we start here, then we bypass the heart and our motives. The right kind of questions to ask are: What’s my motive for being in a relationship? What are my intentions? What matters most to me when I think about this relationship? Is God’s glory the highest priority in this relationship? How can I tell? These kinds of questions are crucial because the answers have implications for every facet and detail for how the relationship will be walked out.
Moving beyond motive and intentions, it’s important to ask yourself questions concerning character: In the ways that I relate to this person now (in word and action), am I guarding this person’s heart or am I selfishly and prematurely seeking to draw their affections to myself? Are the choices and decisions I make in this relationship genuinely serving the other person or serving my own desires and wants? A relationship where two people are committed to God’s glory is a relationship where two people are fully committed to biblically serve one another above themselves. Michael Lawrence in his article Stop Test-Driving Your Girlfriend says, “Instead of asking if she’s the one, you should ask yourself ‘Am I the sort of man a godly woman would want to marry?’ If you’re not, then you’d be better off spending less time evaluating the women around you, and more time developing the character of a disciple.”
Furthermore, because our sinful hearts are deceitful and we are experts in charitable self-evaluation, we’d do well to not just answer these kinds of questions for ourselves, but pose the questions to godly, wise counselors who we trust and know us best (pastors, parents, etc) and allow them the opportunity to weigh in with their evaluation and perspective.
With these things in mind and regularly re-evaluated, the “how” of courtship becomes much easier to determine and is guided and regulated by a commitment to seeing God glorified in the relationship. And so, although not every courtship will look identical in the manner it is walked out, if God’s glory is the primary focus of the relationship and a commitment to pursue wisdom is present, than there will be “essential ingredients” that should be characteristic of every God-glorifying relationship. The following are adapted from Josh Harris’s book Boy Meets Girl.
Joyful obedience to God’s Word –o Does your relationship reflect joyful obedience to God’s Word – even in the details?o When our relationships are characterized by obedience to God’s Word, we are saying that God’s commands are good and that he deserves to be obeyed – and thus God is glorified.
The selfless desire to do what’s best for the other person –o In this relationship, am I fully committed to sincerely serving the other person and not my own selfish or emotional desires?o Am I fully committed to trusting God and allowing him to draw us together, if it be his will, rather than trying to manipulate the emotions and desires of the other person by excessively flirting or saying and promising more than I am ready to commit to?o A selfless desire to do what’s best for the other person is the natural overflow of a genuine love for God. To love God means you’ll love others, and you can’t truly love others unless you genuinely love God. This is why understanding the goal of courtship and what makes a courtship “successful” is so important.
The humble embrace of community –o If God’s glory is our passion in a relationship, we won’t be too proud to admit that we need help.o Are you willing to submit yourself to the voice of wisdom and embrace community?o Are you openly and humbly submitting your relationship to the inspection, evaluation, and scrutiny of others whom you trust?o Do you have parents, pastors, a circle of wise, godly friends who are covering your relationship – who you are being open and honest with, who are asking you probing questions, and who you are asking questions of?o Are you willing to open your relationship up to the observation, wisdom, counsel, input, correction, and adjustment of others and submit yourself to their counsel and guidance?
The commitment to guard the sacredness of sex –o Are you abstaining from all temptations to and manifestations of lust and impurity?o Are you tempering your passion with your desire to glorify God, or is your passion tempering your desire to glorify God?o Are you willing to submit yourself to God’s Word, the wisdom of others, and the best interests of the other person’s moral purity in regards to giving expression to your romantic feelings?o It is very important, without the fear of legalism, to have clearly defined boundaries and guidelines regarding the physical realm of your relationship that both of you clearly understand and are being held accountable to.
A deep satisfaction in God –o Is your ultimate hope in God or each other?o Are you trusting God? How can you tell? What would be signs that you weren’t?o Only God can satisfy the deepest longings of your soul. If you’re looking for another person to do that you will be sorely disappointed and potentially harmful to the other person.
About these five “essential ingredients”, Josh Harris writes, “These five characteristics are important parts of living to bring glory to God in our relationships. These are the issues that really matter. When we each stand before God, he won’t ask you, ‘Did you date or court?’ What will matter in eternity is whether or not our lives and our pursuit of romance brought glory to our Father.” Instead of the relationship being your reason for living, it becomes an expression of the fact that you’re living for something greater: God.

“What do I do with my feelings?”
There is nothing that is quite so variable about us as our feelings. Though emotions are a gift from God, I would emphasize the danger of putting them first, making them central, and ultimately being led by them. When we put feelings first there is the tremendous tendency to begin to interpret reality by them. What’s real is determined by how we feel. When that happens not only will we have a distorted view of reality, but we then begin to make decisions based on how we feel. That can be extremely risky business especially when it comes to relationships. What we need is for our romantic feelings to be tempered and checked by wisdom and truth.
Josh Harris describes this dynamic by using the analogy of a kite and a string. He writes, “The relationship between wisdom and romance is like the one between a string and a kite. Romantic love is the kite that catches the wind and tenaciously heads to the sky; wisdom is the string that holds it back. The tension is real, but healthy. Without the string, the kite would quickly come crashing to the ground. In the same way, romance without wisdom will soon take a nosedive… Like a string on a kite, wisdom enables romance to really soar. It anchors it, disciplines it, and brings it to its highest potential.”
Here are three areas in which the string of wisdom needs to pull against the kite of romantic feelings:
· Romance says, “I want it now!” Wisdom urges patience.o Relationships begun prematurely are a recipe for disaster. Many relationships are ruined by impatience. It leaves many broken-hearted and with many regrets.o Wisdom calls us to slow down and to be patient because we know that God is good, faithful and sovereign.o Patience in pursuing a relationship is not only an exercise in wisdom, but an active expression of trust toward God in both his character and his promises.o The rewards of trusting God are immeasurable: grace, peace, contentment, joy, etc.
· Romance says, “Let feelings decide what happens.” Wisdom leads us to pursue a purposeful relationship.o Are you living by your feelings? Is your decision to pursue this relationship based on how you feel, or is it guided by wisdom, counsel, and the clear intention to discern God’s will for marriage?o Men, are you allowing your feelings to plot the course and direction of the relationship rather than wisdom and the goal of God’s glory?o Wisdom calls us to pursue romance only when it’s part of the clearly defined purpose to pursue God’s will for marriage.o Foolishness calls us to enjoy ourselves without concern for the good of others; to seek intimacy without responsibility.
· Romance says, “Enjoy the fantasy.” Wisdom calls us to base our perceptions in reality.o Passion based in ignorance or haste can invite disaster (Prov. 19:2). The emotions involved in pursuing courtship can set you up for just that.o Feelings need to be based on accurate information not just raw emotions.o For those currently in a courtship: In what ways are you purposefully seeking to discover the “real person” – their values, motivations, goals, dreams, passions, likes and dislikes, their past history, present state and future aspirations, their strengths, joys and victories, their weaknesses, temptations and sins – with whom you are pursuing a relationship with? Are you being open, honest and vulnerable and allowing the other person to truly discover and know the real you, or are you “putting on your best behavior” so that the “fantasy” can continue? Are you acting and speaking in a manner that would be completely different than if you were hanging out with your best friend? If so, why?
I particularly appreciate Josh Harris’ discernment here. Every person who is currently interested in a relationship, hear this: So many dating couples are driven by impatience (which is often rooted in a much deeper failure to trust God for the future); are driven by feelings (and so couples begin relating to one another in ways that only tie emotional knots with no clear direction); and are living in fantasy worlds (which ultimately end in hurt and regret).
Josh goes on to say, “Courtship is a time to ask probing questions, to talk and discover who the person really is – his or her values, motivations and goals. We need to move beyond the superficial dating activities and observe each other in real-life settings. Courtship is a time to see the good, the bad and the ugly…Then our emotions and decisions about the relationship can be based on fact.”
Because of the tendency to be driven by our feelings, we need those feelings to be tempered and checked by wisdom and truth. But let’s be honest, left to ourselves wisdom will often take a backseat to feelings. Therefore, you can’t do this by yourself. So whether you are considering pursuing a relationship or are currently in one, here are a couple more questions for you: Are you actively and purposefully pursuing wisdom in the midst of pursuing this relationship or are you, either ignorantly or arrogantly, pursuing this relationship in your own strength, wisdom and discernment? Are you pursuing this relationship against the counsel of wise, godly and trusted people? Can you identify at least three wise, godly, trustworthy individuals with whom you are regularly going to who are evaluating, asking questions, giving input and holding you accountable in your relationship? Do you have a circle of individuals (parents, pastors, godly friends) to whom you are openly and honestly taking all your questions and concerns and cares to as it relates to your relationship?
And perhaps one final question here. Whose voice is loudest: Your feelings’ or wisdom’s? Are you willing to submit yourself to the voice of wisdom?
Here’s another important fact to remember: God is interested in the journey, not just the destination. You might just want to get married; God might want to reveal idols in your heart. You might just want to be in a relationship; God might want you to submit your emotions to him. If you’re frustrated by this whole discussion, you need to realize that it’s a huge mistake to view this process as something to ‘just get through’ so you can move on to courtship. God’s not in a rush. His interest in all this is not limited to you getting married. As Josh Harris writes, “He wants to use this process, and all the questions and uncertainties it involves, to refine us, sanctify us, and increase our faith.” Don’t despise the process!

“Can I ask one more question?’
Let’s say that there’s somebody out there that I’ve really got my eye on – somebody I really like. Let’s say that my greatest desire really is to see God glorified in the way I pursue relationships. Let’s say that I really am committed to pursuing wisdom with all my heart. Let’s say that I am in a season of my life where I legitimately could consider marriage. Let’s say that I’ve invited the input of my pastor and parents and a couple really close, godly friends and they are all in faith that I have the kind of character and am in a season of my life that I really could pursue this person that I like. And let’s say that this same circle of wise, trusted and godly counselors are also in faith that this person I like is the kind of person that I should pursue. So, everything kind of checks out and we’ve started a relationship. So, my question is: What now?
Earlier I mentioned that a couple involved in a courtship is walking the tightrope of “growing and guarding” – seeking to discern God’s will for marriage while resisting the urge to assume marriage. So what does that growing and guarding look like?
Well, again, I’m relying on the good counsel of my friend Josh Harris. Here are three categories (along with some more questions) in which courting couples should be growing and guarding in as they seek to discern God’s will for the future.
· Friendship –
o The first and most important thing to do in a courtship is to deepen friendship.
o Look for different ways to share the different parts of your life – the fun, the mundane, and the in between. Work together, play together and serve together.
o As you seek to deepen your friendship, how are you allowing the other person to see the real you – what you love, what captures your imagination? Are you inviting the other person into your world and are you asking them to invite you into his or her world?
o In what different contexts are you relating?
o In your conversations and questions, are you seeking to simply learn about each other?
o What are you purposefully doing to deepen friendship and to learn about each other?
· Fellowship –
o The spiritual foundation of the relationship is the most critical element of the relationship.
o For your foundation to be strong, love for God must be the common passion of your hearts.
o Courtship is the time to grow in your ability to share this passion for God and encourage one another in your faith.
o Growing in and guarding biblical fellowship means increasing your love for God not your emotional dependence on each other.
o Your goal is to remind each other to find your soul’s satisfaction in God alone.
o What are you specifically doing to foster an atmosphere of biblical fellowship in your relationship?
o Are you sharing with each other what God is teaching you and revealing to you in your personal walks with him?
o Are you regularly pointing each other back to God in your conversations?
· Romance –
o This should be happening ONLY when friendship and fellowship is deepening.
o The essence of romance is pursuit: A man showing through appropriate words and actions his care and affections and a woman responding in kind.
o The most romantic things are the little things.
o In courtship, these are to be pure, non-physical expressions. Never express more than you are committing.
o Our affections should not be squashed or squandered, but submitted to God and submitted to the authority of those covering the courtship.
o Are you paying attention to the “little things” that might bless the other person?
o Are you seeking the wisdom and counsel of others as to what expressions of romance might be appropriate as your relationship progresses?
o Are you submitted to God and to those in authority covering your relationship in regards to “romantic expressions”?

One Final Word
Lastly, let me have one final word with every person who ever reads this. I am writing this just after having celebrated my fourth wedding anniversary. I thank God every day that I am married to the girl of my dreams. I simply could not be a more blessed man! My wife definitely got the raw end of the deal!
So as a married person with a tad bit more experience then the kind of person I imagine will read this, let me say to you: Only God can satisfy the deepest longings of your soul. If you’re looking for another human being to do that, you will be sorely disappointed and ultimately your relationships will turn selfish and sour. Marriage is a gift. But you were not created for marriage, you were created for God. Get that backwards and you are doomed to be unhappy and disillusioned. I pray to God that you hear that– for your own sake! Instead of the relationship being your reason for living, let it become an expression of the fact that you’re living for something greater: God himself. Get that right and you will have the happiness that you are looking for and more.
Recommended Resources:
Boy Meets Girl by Joshua Harris (In particular chapters 1, 2, 3, and 5; these were referenced in the above article; Multnomah Publishers; 2000)
With One Voice by Alex Chediak (Christian Focus Publications; 2006)
"What Does a Biblical Relationship Look Like?" by Scott Croft (excerpt from Sex and the Supremacy of Christ; 2005)
"Stop Test-Driving Your Girlfriend" by Michael Lawrence

When Do I Know I am Ready for Courtship?

The following is from http://www.new-life.net/cortshp4.htm and is reproduced to spark discussion. If you come across this, please give your thoughts by anonymous feedback via the COMMENTS below.

While it is important that all singles prayerfully investigate this issue as preparation for the future, the following questions should only be asked in a serious way when there is sincere interest in and desire to pursue a particular person.

1. Do I have a sense that this individual is God's choice for my life partner? (Courtship is a season in which this "sense from the Lord" will be confirmed and tested. Yet, it's important that you do not view this time as "Christian dating" or "going steady.")
   
2. Am I willing to solicit counsel concerning my readiness to enter into courtship before any discussion of it with the person in mind? (Counsel should entail character, emotional, financial and spiritual readiness.)
   
3. Am I willing to spend the majority of my time with the person I am courting in group settings where we can best get to know one another and protect ourselves from tempting situations?
   
4. Am I willing to treat this person with respect, courtesy and self - control; being careful to be led by the Spirit in the way in which we relate (especially in the area of physical contact)?
   
5. Do I understand the value and importance of soliciting the advice, input and insights of others during this season to best maximize what I can learn about myself and my potential spouse in preparation for engagement?
   
6. Do I view courtship as a time of deepening the spiritual and emotional aspects of our relationship while resisting the pre-mature tendency to become physically involved?
   
7. Am I willing to invest of myself into this relationship - seeking to overcome weaknesses that could prevent our friendship from deepening (i.e. seeking to grow in encouragement, communication skills, honoring, spiritual initiative, kindness, servanthood)?
   
8. Have this individual and I enjoyed a season of friendship? Do I understand this as the critical foundation to our future and am I willing to do my part to see it grow during this next season?
   
9. When this individual and I encounter difficulties or conflicts, am I willing to humble myself to discuss this with a more experienced couple/individual to learn how I can grow from my mistakes in communication or conflict resolution? Am I willing to handle such challenges biblically vs. "running" from them?
   
10. Knowing how natural it will be to want to focus exclusively on this relationship, am I willing to continue to pursue other God-given friendships during this time to protect others from feeling slighted or displaced?
    
11. Do I understand the importance of deepening my relationship with the Lord during this season to insure that my time with and heart for this individual does not subtly rob me of passion for Him and the church? Am I willing to invest significant times of prayer (and possibly fasting) into the future of this relationship (engagement, marriage) - trusting in God's sovereignty and resisting human striving and manipulation?
    
12. Do I understand that courtship is a season in which areas of relational lack will be exposed in myself and in this person? Am I willing to both humble myself to him/her for input and lovingly address things in his/her life as the Holy Spirit leads?
    
13. Am I willing to make/have contact(s) with this individual's family to allow them to get to know me better?
    
14. Am I willing to sensitively expose any past sin or pertinent issues with this person that would be important for him/her to know before our relationship develops into engagement?
    
15. Should it become clear that God is not leading this relationship into engagement/marriage, I am willing to accept this and take personal responsibility for any lack or mistakes on my part?

At the point at which you feel you are able to answer the above questions affirmatively, you are ready to prayerfully consider discussing your intentions with a trusted advisor for input. At that time, you may want to share the above questions with him/ her for their assessment. The keys to a successful and meaningful discussion will be clarity and humility on your part. Clearly communicate your interest in the individual and humbly ask for counsel and advice concerning your readiness to embark on this "journey." Remember that your advisor (home group leader, pastor, or etc.) has your best interest - and that of the individual you desire to pursue - at heart.

After this conversation - which should be an undistracted time vs. "catching" him/her at a meeting or on the telephone - you will then know how to proceed. As the confirmation you need and desire occurs, only then should you discuss this issue with the person with whom you desire to enter courtship. As a man it is, of course, your privilege to be the initiator in this venture. (See below.) Your discussion about potential courtship with the lady in your life should end with giving her the opportunity to prayerfully consider this decision as you have. She, too, will want to assess herself in the above ways.

SPECIAL SUGGESTIONS FOR MEN

As a man, you have the God-given privilege and responsibility to be the primary initiator and to provide a spiritually healthy environment in the special relationship that will eventually lead to marriage. In a society where men are tempted - and even encouraged - to renege in these areas, God is raising up a company of single men who are willing to eagerly embrace this responsibility.

In addition to the basic questions above, you will want to prayerfully consider the following issues:

1. Am I willing and ready to pursue God and others for help in areas I lack readiness to be a Godly husband?
   
2. Am I able and eager to be a provider for a wife and children? (Although you may not plan for your future spouse to not work outside the home or may want to delay starting a family, these decisions are sometimes "taken out of your hands." The issue of ability to provide - even from the beginning - is important to consider.) Am I willing to pursue financial help and counseling if needed (i.e. revising/getting on a budget, decreasing/getting out of debt, making necessary adjustments to my lifestyle/standard of living to better prepare for marriage)?
   
3. Am I willing to treat and relate to this woman in the way I would desire my daughter to be treated by a man (gentlemanly politeness, physical contact, thoughtfulness, etc.)?
   
4. Am I willing to grow in areas of communication - especially in learning to share my heart with her; draw out her emotions and feelings; honor her need to know me and be known by me? Is this important enough to me to solicit help from others in areas of weakness?
   
5. Am I willing to grow in leadership - especially in areas of spiritual zeal; growing in personal pursuit of God; taking an interest in her relationship with the Lord; initiating praying about issues/decisions we face; overcoming self-consciousness or insecurity about spiritual leadership? Do I value the role of the husband and father over career advancement and financial gain?
   
6. Do I respect this woman? Am I eager to value her thoughts, ideas and opinions without being irresponsible as a leader? Am I willing to highly esteem her opinions when considering decisions about our relationship?
   

SPECIAL SUGGESTIONS FOR LADIES

As a woman, you have been given the unique challenge and privilege of being the responder and provider of spiritual inspiration in the relationship with the man you will eventually marry. Many Christian single women find it challenging to trust in God' s sovereignty concerning their life partner by giving in to manipulation, striving and trying to "force" a relationship through human effort.

In addition to the basic questions above, you will want to prayerfully consider the following issues:

1. Am I willing and ready to pursue God and others for help in areas I lack readiness to be a Godly wife - trusting him to do the same in his life vs. seeking to "become his conscience"? Do I value the role of wife and mother over career advancement?
   
2. Am I willing to resist the temptation to be the pacesetter in this relationship (trust him to hear from the Lord concerning the timing/pace of the relationship; allowing him to fulfill his role as the primary initiator; resisting the temptation to "make plans" until the appropriate time)?
   
3. Am I willing to be careful of my expectations of him? Do I understand the importance of contentment and gratitude, especially for his ability to provide for a family? Am I eager to overcome and then resist temptation to worldliness in external areas including the kind of house, car, etc. he may provide? Will I be patient with him in areas of weaknesses or inexperience, especially concerning the emotional and spiritual aspects of our friendship? Am I willing to passionately pursue my relationship with the Lord in order to grow in Him and spiritually inspire this special man in my life?
   
4. Am I willing to respond to and cooperate with the process of his preparation for spiritual leadership in our relationship? Am I willing to respond to his initiatives in this area without negatively comparing his ideas or plans to mine? Am I willing to continue to pursue those God-given individuals who are currently providing spiritual leadership in my life; not prematurely expecting him to "act like a husband."
   
5. Am I willing to grow in areas of communication - learning to express my encouragement and respect; valuing his need to be heard over my need to be heard; learning to draw out his feelings, concerns, dreams, etc.?
   
6. Am I willing to lovingly set aside my personal thoughts, aspirations and ambitions for the future to support his God-given goals and spiritual interests - knowing that those which have been given to me by God will happen in conjunction with, rather th an in competition with, my future spouse?

EDIT: See also this article for Christian ladies if someone is interested in you or you are interested in someone.

For the guys, go to this article if you want to know how to be a Godly Christian man.

THis is the whole text of the "REVIVAL HYMN" - a must hear for all Christians!

To download it, right-click (save-as) here (original version)
or right-click (save-as) here (improved)

Or just view it here:


(Ian Paisley)
The church of Jesus Christ is largely sleeping, like a great bedroom and you have all the Christians in bed and they’re all sleeping … and they’re saying “Please, don’t wake me up! I want to sleep on!” And of course when God starts to operate a revival people cannot sleep, you can’t sleep in church when the Spirit of God awakes the people. Look at the 1st verse of this 52nd chapter…”Awake! Awake! Put on strength!” Wake it up! You’re sleepy Christians! Awake thou that sleepeth, Arise from the dead! Christ will give you life!
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
Keep this in mind from an old man, there is no finality to the Christian life this side of eternity.
We pray that some of us may go to our own funeral tonight and die to self and end all the failure and all the weakness.
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(Paris Reidhead)
Why should a person come to the cross?Why should a person embrace death? With Christ?Why should a person be willing to go in identification down to the cross and into the tomb and up again? I’ll tell you why!Because it’s the only way that God can get glory out of a human being!
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
If I was to ask you tonight you were saved? Do you say ‘Yes, I am saved’. When? ‘Oh so and so preached, I got baptized and…’ Are you saved? What are you saved from, hell?Are you saved from bitterness?Are you saved from lust?Are you saved from cheating?Are you saved from lying?Are you saved from bad manners?Are you saved from rebellion against your parents?Come on, what are you saved from?
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(Duncan Campbell)
Who shall ascend the hill of God?Who shall stand in His holy place? He that has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to vanity nor sworn deceitfully, he shall receive the blessing of the Lord.
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
And there’s no room for Him in the inn.He got a bit older, there was no room in His family, His family turned on Him.He went to the temple, no room in the temple, the temple turned on Him.And when He died there was no room to bury Him, He died outside of the city.Well why in God’s Name do you expect to be accepted everywhere?How is it that the world couldn’t get on with the holiest Man that ever lived and can get on with you and me?
Are we compromised? Are we compromised?
Have we no spiritual stature?Have we no righteousness that reflects on their corruption?
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(A.W.Tozer)
He that is from above is above all.I want to say dear Christians don’t go around apologizing for Him.Don’t go around worried because you can’t make His doctrines fit in with what you learned in school.All you learned in school was one fallen head instructing another fallen head.And you don’t have to apologize for Him.
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
As dear Dr. Tozer used to say “Len, you knew one thing about a man that was carrying a cross out of the city, you knew he wasn’t coming back.”We just come from an altar and we go back the next week and we’re as fascinated, we haven’t spent a half hour with Jesus but will stay two stinking hours in a movie house.
And Paul says that’s what the world is to me it’s a system of corruption and rottenness and vileness.
It’s anti-Christ from the word go.
Is the world crucified to you tonight?Or does it fascinate you?
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(T. Austin Sparks)
Do we not need a very much greater conception of how tremendously valuable a true expression of the Church is to the Lord?
It’s priceless.
That the Lord give us more of this anguish for His Church as a whole…. and then …it will be precious to Him.
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(Duncan Campbell)
When God stepped down, suddenly, men and women all over the parish were gripped by the fear of God.
God are my hands clean?Is my heart pure?
The moment that that happened in the barn, a power was let loose in Barvas that shook the whole of Lewis.God stepped down.The Holy Spirit began to move among the people and the minister writing about what happened on the following morning said this:‘You met God on meadow and moorland, you met Him in the homes of the people. God seemed to be everywhere.’
What was that?Revival?Revival!Not of evangelist’s, not of special effort, not anything at all organized on the basis of human endeavor. But an awareness of God that gripped the whole community so much so that work stopped.
I can remember once within 24 hours addressing 8 meetings. Crowded churches.
There was a dance in progress that night and while this young man was praying in the isle the power of God moved into that dance and the young people over a hundred of them fled from the dance as though fleeing from a plague and they made for the church.
When I endeavored to get up into the pulpit I found the way blocked with young people who had been at the dance. When I went into the pulpit I found a young woman, a graduate of our Aberdeen University, who was at the dance and she is lying on the floor of the pulpit crying: “Is there mercy for me? Is there mercy for me? Is there mercy for me?”
God was at work.
Well that meeting continued until 4 o’clock in the morning.
“Mr.Campbell, there must be anything between 2 and 300 people at the police station. They’re gathered there and some are on their knees, now I can’t understand this…”Now he wasn’t in the church, you see. But here a crowd of men and women, from a neighboring village, 5 and 6 miles away were so moved by God that they found themselves moving to the police station because the constable there was a God-fearing and well-saved man. They were there.
And this young man begged of me to go along to the police station, and I went along. And I shall never, never forget what my ears heard and my eyes saw that morning. Young men were kneeling by the roadside, I think just now of a group of half a dozen.One of them under the influence of drink and his old mother kneeling beside him and saying “O Willie, Willie are you coming at last?!”
“Mr. Campbell something wonderful has happened. Revival has broken out.”
And Willie today is a parish minister and from the group of young men, who sought the Lord that night, there are nine in the ministry.
“Will you come to the door and see the crowd that’s here?” 11 O’clock mind you, 11 O’clock, and I went to the door and there must have been a congregation of between 6 and 700 people gathered round the church. And within a matter of minutes the church was crowded, at a quarter to 12. Now where did the people come from? How did they know that a meeting was in progress in the church? Well I cannot tell you.
But I know this that from village and hamlet the people came. Were you to ask some of them today ‘what was it that moved you?’ They couldn’t tell you. Only that they were moved by a power that they could not explain and the power was such as to give them to understand and see that they were hell-deserving sinners! And of course the only place they could think of where they might find help was at the church.
Now that is a fact that cannot be disputed. God was everywhere and because of this awareness of God the churches were crowded. Crowded. Through the day right on through the night ’till 5 and 6 o’clock in the morning. In revival, time does not exist.
Some of the mighty movement in the midst of this gracious visitation, you know that the drinking house was closed that night, never been opened since. The men who used to drink there and spend the evening there are now praying in our prayer meeting. It is because they enter into the fullness! It was because the people of Lewis grasped that truth that we can say today we know practically nothing of backsliding from that gracious movement of years ago.
My dear people do you good folk understand what revival means? Have you a conception of what it means to see God working?The God of miracles.Sovereign, supernatural.Moving in the midst of men and hundreds swept into the Kingdom.Oh that we might see it, that we might see it.
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(Song by Delirious entitled “Obsession”)
“And my heart burns for you..”
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
What is your life it is even a vapor that appeareth for a little time and then it vanisheth away… That world outside there is not waiting for a new definition of Christianity, it’s waiting for a new demonstration of Christianity.
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(Paris Reidhead)
Would I be out of line in order if I were to talk to you for a little while about utilitarian religion?An expedient Christianity?And the question that you are going to ask yourself is: “Is God an end or is He a means?”You have to decide very early in your Christian life whether you are viewing God as an end or a means.
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
A more challenging question than this text, “What is your life?”
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(Paris Reidhead)
The philosophy of the day became humanism and you can define humanism this way: Humanism, is a philosophical statement that declares the end of all being is the happiness of man. The reason for existence is man’s happiness. Now according to humanism salvation is simply a matter of getting all the happiness you can out of life.
This group of my people the fundamentalists that say:“We believe in the inspiration of the Bible”“We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ”“We believe in hell, we believe in Heaven”“We believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ”
And remember the atmosphere is that of humanism.Humanism says the chief end of being is the happiness of man. And so it wasn’t long until we had this, the fundamentalists knew each other because they said ‘We believe these things.’ They were men for the most part that had met God. But you see it wasn’t long until having said ‘these are the things that establish us as fundamentalists’, the second generation said, “This is how we become a fundamentalist;”
“Believe in the inspiration of the Bible.”“Believe in the deity of Christ.”“Believe in His death, burial, and resurrection.”
And thereby become a fundamentalist.And so it wasn’t long until it got to our generation where the whole plan of salvation was to give intellectual assent to a few statements of doctrine.And a person was considered a Christian because he could say ‘Uh huh’ at 4 or 5 places that he was asked to and if he knew where to say ‘Uh huh’ someone would pat him on the back, shake his hand, smile broadly and say: “Brother, you’re saved.”
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“At what cost” (T. Austin Sparks)
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(Paris Reidhead)
And so it had gotten down to the place where salvation was nothing more than an assent to a scheme or a formula. And the end of this salvation was the happiness of man because humanism has penetrated. And so if you were to analyze the fundamentalism in contrast to liberalism of a hundred years ago, as it developed, it’d be like this:
The liberal says the end of religion is to make man happy while he’s alive.
And the fundamentalist says the end of religion is to make man happy when he dies.
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
We are still paddling on the edge of the ocean of the possibilities of grace. Put a holy dissatisfaction in us tonight.
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(Paris Reidhead)
Until we find it something like this;“Accept Jesus so you can go to Heaven, you don’t want to go to that old, filthy, nasty, burning hell when there’s a beautiful Heaven up there. Now come to Jesus so that you can go to Heaven.”And the appeal could be as much to selfishness as a couple of men sitting in a coffee shop deciding they are going to rob a bank to get something for nothing.
Becomes so subtle … it goes everywhere. What is it?In essence it is this: that this philosophical postulate at the end of all being is the happiness of man has been a sort of, covered over with evangelical terms and Biblical doctrine until God reigns in Heaven for the happiness of man, Jesus Christ was incarnate for the happiness of man, all the Angels exist in the… Everything is for the happiness of man!
And I submit to you that this is un-Christian!
Christianity says… “The end of all being is the glory of God.”
Humanism says, “The end of all being is the happiness of man.”
This is the betrayal of the ages!!
And it’s the betrayal in which we live and I don’t see how God can revive it!Until we come back to Christianity.
Isn’t man happy?And God intend to make you happy? But as a byproduct and not a prime product.
Now I ask you, what is the philosophy of mission? What is the philosophy of evangelism? What is the philosophy of a Christian? If you’ll ask me why I went to Africa, I’ll tell you I went primarily, to improve on the justice of God. I didn’t think it was right for anybody to go to hell without a chance to be saved. And so I went to give poor sinners a chance to go to Heaven.
No, I hadn’t put it in so many words. But if you’ll analyze what I just told you, do you know what it is? It’s humanism. But I was simply using the provisions of Jesus Christ as a means to improve upon human conditions of suffering and misery.
And when I got to Africa, I discovered that they weren’t poor, ignorant, little heathen running around in the woods, waiting for, looking for someone to tell them how to go to Heaven. That they were a monsters of iniquity. They were living in utter and total defiance, of far more knowledge of God than I ever dreamed they had. They deserved hell because they utterly refused to walk in the light of their conscience and the light of the law written upon their heart and the testimony of nature and the truth they knew.
And when I found that out, I assure you, I was so angry with God that one occasion in prayer, I told him that it was a mighty, little thing He’d done, sending me out there to reach these people that were waiting to be told how to go to Heaven. When I got there I found out they knew about Heaven, didn’t wanna go there. And they (were) loved their sin and wanted to stay in it.I went out there motivated by humanism. I’d seen pictures of lepers. I’d seen pictures of ulcers. I’d see pictures of native funerals. And I didn’t want my fellow human beings to suffer in hell eternally, after such a miserable existence on earth. But it was there in Africa that God began to tear through the overlay of this humanism.
And it was that day in my bedroom, with the door locked, that I wrestled with God. For here was…was I coming to grips with the fact that the people I thought were ignorant and wanted to know how to go to Heaven, and were saying “someone come and teach us” actually didn’t wanna take time to talk with me or anybody else. They had no interest in the bible and no interest in Christ. And they loved their sin and wanted to continue in it. And I was to the place at that time where I felt the whole thing was a sham and a mockery and I’d been sold a bill of goods. And I wanted to come home.
And there alone in my bedroom as I faced God honestly with what my heart felt, it seemed to me I heard Him say, “Yes, will not the Judge of all the earth do right? The heathen are lost and they’re going to go to hell not because they haven’t heard the gospel. They’re going to go to hell because they are sinners who loved… their ..sin.. and because they deserved hell. But, I didn’t send you out there for them, I didn’t send you out there for their sakes.”
And I heard as clearly as I’ve ever heard though it wasn’t with physical voice but it was the echo of truth of the ages finding its way into an open heart. I heard God say to my heart that day something like this:
“I didn’t send you to Africa for the sake of the heathen. I sent you to Africa for My sake. They deserved hell but I love them and I endured the agonies of hell for them. I didn’t send you out there for them. I sent you out there for Me. Do I not deserve the reward of My suffering? Don’t I deserve those for whom I died?”
And it reversed it all. It changed it all and righted it all. And I wasn’t any longer working for my cup and ten shekels and a shirt but I was serving the living God.
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
The more and longer I live, the more I find I don’t know.
Two years ago, God gave me a word, for the New Year. I don’t go scattering through The Book to find one. The Lord gave me a word: ‘Rejection’.Great!
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(Paris Reidhead)
Why did you repent? I’d like to see some people repent on biblical terms again. You see the difference? You see the difference? The difference is here’s somebody trembling because he’s gonna be hurt in hell. And he has no sense of the enormity of his guilt and no sense of the enormity of his crimes and no sense of his insult against Deity. He’s only trembling because his skin is about to be singed. And this is the difference between 20th century preaching and the preaching of John Wesley.
Wesley was a preacher of righteousness that exalted the holiness of God. And when he would stand there with the two to three-hour sermons that he was accustomed to deliver in the open air and he would exalt the holiness of God and the law of God and the righteousness of God and the justice of God and the wisdom of His requirements and the justice of His wrath and His anger and then he would turn to sinners and tell them of the enormity of their crimes and their open rebellion and the treason and their anarchy. The power of God would so descend upon the company that on one occasion it is reliably reported that when the people dispersed, there were 1,800 people lying on the ground utterly unconscious because they’d had a revelation of the holiness of God and in the light of that, they’d seen the enormity of their sin. And God had so penetrated their minds and hearts that they had fallen to the ground.
It wasn’t trying to convince good man that he was in trouble with a bad God. But that it was to convince bad men that they deserved the wrath and anger of a good God.
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(Leonard Ravenhill)
Anything that you love more than you love Jesus Christ is an idol. Don’t care what it is. I’m embarrassed to be part of the Church of Jesus Christ tonight, which is totally radically different from the New Testament, so impoverished, so blind, so powerless.
I’ve come to this conclusion: there is a move of God in America today but not amongst the unsaved. It’s amongst the redeemed who are determined by the grace of God to be part of the bride and to be part of the bride you’ve to be divorced from everything in the world. (“Right” – background response)
We are witness to somebody who is going to an eternal hell according to our theology but we talked about some trivia to them.
Whisper in my ear that Satan has moved you up. He says you’re getting to be dangerous to his kingdom. He says you’re spoiling his plans, you’re thwarting his purposes, you’re pulling down his strongholds. We’re not pulling things out, we’re building pretty little churches and little rooms for people to sit around. If Jesus came back, He wouldn’t cleanse the temple. He would cleanse the pulpit.
We’re in grave danger when we let our accomplishments become the ground of our confidence. Oh boy, how we want to be esteemed. How we want to be respected, how people should realize what precious gifts of the Spirit I’ve given. You know why they don’t? Because you stink with pride, that’s right.
John died in 1791, converted at 35. Turn that round it makes 53. Add them together it makes 88. Because he was saved at 35, preached for 53 years. And you know what he left when he died? He left a handful of books, a faded Geneva gown that he preached in all over England, six silver spoons somebody gave him, six pound notes, “give one to each of the poor men that carry me to my grave.” And that’s all he left: six pound notes, six silver spoons, a handful of books, a Geneva gown and ah… there’s something else… what was it, the other thing? Oh, I know, something else he left, the Methodist Church.
He could have died as rich as your famous TV preacher Sunday. Sure he made money, and he built orphanages. Sure he made money, he printed bibles. Sure he made money. He compiled, with Charles, the Methodist hymnbook and look at his orphanages.And he died worth about thirty dollars.
He printed bibles. He printed hymnbooks. He financed missionaries to go across the earth. That’s the way to use your money. You think of the reward. Why, in God’s name, do you think it says don’t lay up treasure on earth? Lay up treasure in heaven.
I’m tired of writing about revival. I’m tired of reading about revival. There are more lost people in the world tonight than ever in the history of the world. And God wants some men who are really drunk, intoxicated with the Spirit of God, who have a love life with the Lord Jesus that He can ask anything of you and you’ll do it.
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(Paris Reidhead)
I have talked with people that have no assurance of sins forgiven. They wanna feel saved before they’re willing to commit themselves to Christ. But I believe that the only ones whom God actually witnesses by His Spirit are born of Him, are the people whether they say it or not, that come to Jesus Christ and say something like this: “Lord Jesus, I’m gonna obey You and love You and serve You and do what You want me to do as long as I live even if I go to hell at the end of the road simply because You are worthy to be loved, obeyed and served. And I’m not trying to make a deal with You.”
But oh I know so many people that are trying to know the fullness of God, so that they can use God. A young preacher came to me down in West Virginia, Huntington, West Virginia. And he said “Brother Reidhead, I’ve got a great church. We’ve got a wonderful Sunday school program..got a radio ministry..growing. But I feel a personal need and a personal lack, I need to be baptized of the Holy Ghost, I need to be filled with the Spirit, and someone told me God done something for you. And I wanted you to help me.”
I looked at the fellow and you know what he looked like? Me. Just looked like me. I just saw in him everything that was in me, you thought You thought I was going to say “me” before. No, listen to your heart. If you’ve ever seen yourself you’ll know that you’re never gonna be anything else than you were. For in me in my flesh, there is no good thing. But like me.
He’s like a fellow driving up in a big Cadillac you know, to someone standing at a filling station saying “Fill her up, Bud, with the highest octane you got.” Well, that’s the way it looked, he wanted power for his program. And God is not going to be a means to anyone’s end.
I said, “I’m awfully sorry, I don’t think I can help you.” He said “Why?” “I don’t think you’re ready. Well suppose, you consider yourself coming up with a Cadillac, you’ve talked about your program, you’ve talked about your radio, you’ve talked about your Sunday school and church. Very good. You’ve done wonderfully well without the power of the Holy Spirit.” That’s what the Chinese Christian said you know when he got back to China. “What impressed you most about America?” He said, “The great things Americans can accomplish without God.” And he’d accomplished a great deal, admittedly, without God. And now he’s wanted something, power, to accomplish his end even further.
I said “No. No. You’re gonna, you’re sitting behind the wheel and you’re saying to God, ‘Give me power so I can go.’ You won’t work, you gotta slide over.” But I knew that rascal, ’cause I knew me. I said, “No it’ll never do. You gotta get in the back seat.” And I could see him leaning over and grabbing the wheel. “No,” I said.“It’ll never do in the back seat.”
I said “Before God’ll do anything for you, you know what you gotta do?” And he said, “What?” I said, “You gotta get out of the car, take the keys around, open up the trunk lid, hand the keys to the Lord Jesus, get inside the trunk, slam the lid down, whisper through the keyhole, ‘Lord, look, fill her up with anything You want and You drive, it’s up to You from now on.’”
That’s why so many people, you know, do not enter into the fullness of Christ because they want to become a Levite with ten shekels and a shirt. They’ve been serving Micah but they think if they had the power of the Holy Ghost they could serve the tribe of Dan. It will never work, never work. There’s only one reason for God meeting you, and that’s to bring you to the place where, in repentance, you’ve been pardoned for His glory, and in victory, you’ve been brought to the place of death that He might reign and in His fullness Jesus Christ is able to live and walk in you. And your attitude is the attitude of the Lord Himself, who said, “I could do nothing of Myself.”I can’t speak of myself. I don’t make plans for myself. My only reason for being is the glory of God in Jesus Christ.
If I were to say to you: “Come, to be saved so you can go to Heaven; Come to the cross so that you can have joy and victory. Come for the fullness of the Spirit so that you can be satisfied.” I’d be falling into the trap of humanism.
I’m going to say to you, dear friend, if you are out here without Christ, you come to Jesus Christ and serve Him as long as you live whether you go to hell at the end of the way because He’s worthy. I say to you, Christian friend, you come to the cross and join Him in union and death and enter into all the meaning of death to self, in order that He can have glory. I say to you, dear Christian, if you do not know the fullness of the Holy Ghost, come and present your body a living sacrifice and let Him fill you so that He can have the purpose for His coming fulfilled in you and get glory through your life.
It’s not what you’re going to get out of God. It’s what He is going to get out of you. Let’s be done once and for all with utilitarian Christianity that makes God a means, instead of the glorious end that He is. Let’s resign. Let’s tell Micah we’re through. We’re no longer gonna be as priests serving for ten shekels and a shirt. Let’s tell the tribe of Dan we’re through. And let’s come and cast ourselves at the feet of the nail-pierced Son of God and tell Him that we’re gonna obey Him, and love Him and serve Him as long as we live because He is worthy.
Two young Moravians heard of an island in the West Indies, where an atheist British owner had 2,000 to 3,000 slaves. And the owner had said, “No preacher, no clergyman will ever stay on this island. If he’s shipwrecked, we’ll keep him in a separate house until he has to leave but he’s never gonna talk to any of us about God. I’m through with all that nonsense.”
Three thousand slaves from the jungles of Africa brought to an island in the Atlantic and there to live and die without hearing of Christ. Two young Moravians heard about it. They sold themselves to the British planter then used the money they received from the sale, for he paid no more than he would for any slave, to pay their passage out to his island for he wouldn’t even transport them.
And as the ship left the …river at Hamburg …left it’s pier at the river at Hamburg and was going out to the North Sea, carried with the tide. The Moravians had come from Herrnhut to see these two lads off, in their early twenties, never to return again. For this wasn’t a four-year term, they’d sold themselves into lifetime of slavery. Simply that as slaves they could be as Christians for these others were.
The families were there weeping for they knew they’d never see them again. And they wondered why they’re going and questioned the wisdom of it. And as the gap widened and the hawsers had been cast off and were being curled up there on the pier. And the young boys saw the widening gap, one lad, with his arm linked through the arm of his fellow, raised his hand and shouted across the gap the last words that were heard from them. They were these: “May the Lamb that was slain receive the reward of His suffering” And this became the call of Moravian missions. And this is the only reason for being, that the Lamb that was slain may receive the reward of His suffering.
______________________________________________________________________
(Leonard Ravenhill)
The question isn’t were you challenged. The question is were you changed?

Looking for Christian Revival?

Here's an interview with Leonard Ravenhill speaking about Revival. He speaks about past revivals.

If you are wondering who Leonard Ravenhill is, this is what A. W. Tozer said about Ravenhill's character:

"To such men as this the church owes a debt too heavy to pay. The curious thing is that she seldom tries to pay him while he lives. Rather, the next generation builds his sepulcher and writes his biography – as if instinctively and awkwardly to discharge an obligation the previous generation to a large extent ignored. Those who know Leonard Ravenhill will recognize in him the religious specialist, the man sent from God not to carry on the conventional work of the church, but to beard [oppose boldly] the priests of Baal on their own mountain-top, to shame the careless priest at the altar, to face the false prophet and to warn the people who are being led astray by him. Such a man as this is not an easy companion. He is not the professional evangelist who leaves the wrought-up meeting as soon as it is over to hurry to the most expensive restaurant to feast and crack jokes with his retainers. Such evangelists will find this man something of an embarrassment, for he cannot turn off the burden of the Holy Ghost as one would turn off a faucet. He insists upon being a Christian all the time, everywhere. And again, that marks him out as different. [1]"

Now, his interivew (2 hrs long):
http://64.34.176.235/sermons/SID4510.asf

You should also have a listen to Ian Paisley's FIVE STEPS TO GENUINE REVIVAL (this is much shorter)

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=6723

Understanding WHY the worship service is so formal

Why so formal? The service is formal because we are worshipping the real God who is not just our Friend and our Saviour, but He is also the Ruler of Heaven and Earth. We should never forget who God is and our worship should be done with the respect and orderliness that is due to the King of Kings. Same question as to why receptions for dignitaries such as the Queen, presidents and prime ministers are so formal, except so much more because this is God! Each element of the worship service is now explained for your benefit:

1. Prepatory Hymn and Prelude

As people assemble in the sanctuary (Church hall) for the worship service, they should prepare their hearts for the service. We must remember that God is maker and ruler of Heaven and Earth and is present in the service. The prepatory hymn is a “warm up” hymn that usually someone else other than the worship leader leads. The prelude is when the pianist plays the hymn “The Lord in His Holy Temple”, as a means of reminding the congregation of God’s presence and it also serves as an introduction for the worship leader’s “Call to Worship”.

2. Call to Worship

The worship leader calls the whole congregation to worship the Lord, usually by proclaiming a verse from the book of Psalms and then introduces the opening hymn.

3. Opening Hymn and the Invocation

The opening hymn is usually a hymn of praise. Why Hymns? Unlike many of the contemporary counterparts that instill great emotion without much instruction, hymns have deeper meanings, enabling God to instruct, encourage or admonish Christians through the singing of hymns. This contributes to a more constructive worship than just being overwhelmed by the love of God. Set aside their dates of origin and you will come to appreciate why hymns are still being sung despite being sometimes hundreds of years old.

The invocation is a prayer which usually has the contents of praise to God and thanksgiving for the privilege of worshipping God and for His help and blessings in the past week. The prayer will also ask God to lead the congregation in worship. Usually, this will be followed by the congregation reciting the Lord’s prayer.

4. The Lord’s Prayer and Gloria Patri (also known as “Glory be to the Father”)

The Lords Prayer is a prayer that Jesus taught His disciples and only serves as an example of how we should pray.

“Our father who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us of our trespasses. As we forgive those who have trespassed against us. Lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from Evil. For thine is the Kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever, Amen.”

The Gloria Patri is sung straight after the Lord’s Prayer. It is a short hymn that is sung to give praises to the triune God (God the Father, God the Son [Jesus Christ] and God the Holy Spirit).

5. Collection of Offerings

In the Old Testament, the term “offering” usually refers to animal sacrifices brought to the tabernacle. This was to represent the promise that God made to the people before Jesus Christ, that a coming Saviour will shed blood and die in their place for their sins. In the New Testament, which is relevant today, we do not bring offerings of that sort to God, since Jesus has given His life as the sacrifice for our sins. We do, however, give gifts to God for His Church, as a token of our appreciation of God’s love and provision for us as His children. The tithing (giving 10% of one’s earnings) and offering (giving extra, based on additional blessings that God has provided in the past week) is a tangible way of worshipping God with our possessions. If you are a believer, you inevitably have experienced God’s blessings and therefore it is a privilege for you to give back something to the Lord. If you are not a Christian, you should not feel obliged to give as you have not yet accepted Jesus Christ and therefore have not experienced God’s gift of eternal life or God’s blessings. However, you are free to give if you want.

6. Doxology (“Praise God from whom all blessings flow”)

The Doxology is essentially a hymn of thanksgiving, adoration and worship to God for supplying our needs. That is why it is sung straight after the offering is collected. It is a humble recognition, from a thankful heart, for the providence and protection of God in our lives in the past week.

7. Scripture Reading and Pastoral Prayer

A member of the Church will come up to read a passage from the Bible, usually the passage from which the following message will be based on. The pastoral prayer is a representative prayer by the minister on behalf of the congregation. It is a united prayer for the Church. The congregation is to follow the prayer carefully. It is a time when the entire Church comes before the God’s “throne of grace”, pleading to the Lord as one, for the mercies, gracious assistance and sustenance for the Church.
The Lord’s Supper

On the first Sunday of the month, the Church observes the “Lord’s Supper”. It is a time when the Church remembers the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for our sins. All believers who are baptized in a Bible believing Church are invited to take the cup and bread. It is important to remember that if you are participating, you should take time to reflect on and confess your sins before God before you take the Lord’s Supper. If you are not a Christian, please do not take the cup or the bread. It is instructed in the Bible that a person who drinks of the cup or eats of the bread unworthily will be judged by God (1 Corinthian 11:27).

8. Message/Sermon

One of the chief elements of the early church worship service was the teaching of the Apostles’ doctrine. This is why the pulpit is right in front of the congregation, to underscore the centrality of the preaching of God’s Word. There is much to learn about God and His will for each of us in our lives, so we are to listen attentively to the message, to seek to understand it so that we can apply it in our daily life. God often speaks to the heart of a believer during the sermon, making it clear to the individual that the message applies particularly to that person. Therefore, it is very important to listen carefully and take down notes if possible.

9. Why Benediction and Threefold Amen?

It is a pronouncement of God’s blessings by the minister, normally taken from the Bible. This is followed by the “Threefold Amen”. The word amen, “so may it stand,” or “so be it,” is a frequent response in Scripture. It is the way people express their agreement with what is said.
Conclusion

Although the order of worship is not given directly in the Bible, the principles and elements of worship are given, such as orderliness, holiness, reverence, and the elements of praise, prayer, preaching the Word, offering and so on. While there is no prescribed form of worshipping God in the Bible, we believe that this method of worshipping God stays true to the respect, attitude and reverence that God deserves.

Peoples Choice Award Winner - Swordsearcher

Another great help for Christians is to use good effective software. Just a few days ago, Swordsearcher won the Shareware Industry Awards Foundation (SIAF) Peoples Choice Award in the category of Hobby and Personal Interest. While the software is good for FREE users, the registered version is even more effective, with a search that can go through sermons by Spurgeon and other great preachers. There are over 60 resources on the CD-ROM. I haven't found a better bible software program yet.

Bible Commentaries and Books on your Mobile / PDA

As you sit there waiting for your friend to turn up at the cafe, you get a call... he's going to be half an hour late. You are about to lose your cool when an idea suddenly washes away your anger - catch up on some reading! "Read what?" you say. Your mobile duh!

If you have a mobile phone that has snazzy applications on it, you are probably able to get yourself some Christian books, Bible commentaries and various Bible versions imported onto your phone for times when you have 10min or so to spare. OliveTree.com provides a reader program as well as a HUGE list of free "books" that you can download and install to your phone. However, bear in mind that when you install your book, make sure you create a DIRECTORY in your memory card called "Bible" which the program will look into, to try read your books. Go to THIS LINK to see the free books you can download and download the reader here after you choose your phone/device type.

The free resources include:

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• George Mueller's Strategy for Showing God: Simplicity of Faith, Sacred Scripture and Satisfaction in God by John Piper
• Grace Abounding and Holy War by John Bunyan
• Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary
• Absolute Surrender by Andrew Murray
• Of Prayer by John Calvin

Take a Nap - and wake up on time

I don’t know if this will work but I just came across a page with mp3 which you download and play if you want to take a nap. They have 5 min versions and 12 min versions and even a 32 min version for those that call a 32min shut eye a nap. Check it out? Does it work?

http://www.placebo.serv.co.za/?page_id=7  

How to break a habit

Everyone has habits that they are wanting to change. It could be eating too much, sleeping late, getting angry, gossipping or For many of us, this desire to change often results... in no results. Here are a few pointers regarding how to break a habit. Of course, with all lasting change, you need to go to the handbook of life written by the Maker so no apology is made for using scriptural references.

1. The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat - Proverbs 13:4 It's so true. Many of us don't realise it but we are full of desires. We want to change this and that about ourselves, we want to make the world a better place, we want a better life - but if we just sit there and want, we will never get anything. If you want to change a habit (or form a good one), you need to be diligent and sincere about wanting change.

2. Recognise that any form of good change will be deliberate and uncomfortable. This is expected because a habit is what comes naturally for you. That's why it's called a habit. An example is writing with your other hand - every letter and word needs to be deliberately and uncomfortably worked out. Change will be uncomfortable so dont let the discomfort stop you from seeking change.

3. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. - Psalms 119:9 The power to change comes from God. Memorise and apply verses from the Bible which promise you that God will give you grace to overcome.

4. Look at the precipitating or preceding factors that lead you into the habit. What thoughts do you have just before? Dissatisfaction? A perceived "need"? If you see a trend of thoughts or events that always lead you to give in, you may want to consider changing your circumstances to avoid that precipitating event.

A story goes like this: A man walked out of his house and fell into a hole. A man walked down the street, saw a hole and fell into the hole. A man walked down the street, saw the hole, thought about the hole and fell into the hole. A man walked down the street, saw the hole, walked around the hole and fell into the hole. A man walked down another street.

5. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you (God), than he that is in the world. - 1 John 4:4. Recognise that no habit or addiction is permanent. All habits were learned and can be overcome.

6. And most importantly... you need to be a Christian to be able to overcome anything in a Biblical way. You may struggle with the habit that you have but realise this, that the most important thing in the world for you is that you can't overcome anything on your own. God sent Jesus Christ to die on the cross as payment for your sins. That way, if you call on God to forgive you, since your sins have been paid for, he can forgive you without violating his justice and holiness.

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. - Romans 10:13