The above title is penned from an old construction joke whereby a gentleman who was painting his house did not want to spend any more money than he had to. So, he decided to use paint thinner to help stretch things and make the couple gallons of paint that he happened to have on hand go as far as he possibly could.
When he started the job early in the morning the weather seemed to be rather nice and he got a fair amount of the outside walls painted. He was pleased with the way the front of the house was looking and the two sides. So, he moved to the back of the house and set up his scaffolding there. But, the weather seemed to change very rapidly. Before he knew it there was a torrential downpour! The man ran inside of the house and sought refuge from the storm.
After the storm cleared, the man went outside to smell the spring flowers. He often thought to himself that nothing smelled more lovely or quite as fresh as springtime after a good rain. As he turned his attention back to his house he was horrified at the sight! All of his labor was in vain. The paint had been completely washed away by the rain. The man in great sorrow fell to his knees, cried out to the Lord aloud, and said, “What did I do to deserve this? And, what am I going to do now?”
Not by any coincidence the Lord had led a traveling street evangelist to come along, who just happened to have a sever lisp who lovingly said, “Repent, ye thinner and thin no more!”
While the story above may not be true, several morals can be found hidden within. One of the things the story seems to illustrate so well is that side of our human nature that often wants to cut corners, hurry up and get things done as quickly as possible without much cost to us personally because we all have a problem at some time or another with the dread of having to use patience and the personal sacrifice that it demands from us.
Another thing that the story clearly illustrates is that anytime we resist putting forth a great effort, be willing to pay the cost of selflessness, and exercise the prudence of patience things will never turn out in a way that we be beneficial to our lives. The only way our lives can be blessed is when the Lord moves within our lives in a very personal way. And, the only way He can consistently do that is when we meet with Him on regular basis according to His terms: be willing to sacrifice personal time to study His Word, pray His Word into our lives, renew our mind to His Word, and be doers of His Word on a daily basis. All of that is going to require a lot of effort and a lot of patience on our part. But, if we do our part we will be blessed indeed because God is faithful to His promises.
Hear these words from a new perspective this day and be encouraged:
“They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40: 31
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am Thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” Isaiah 41: 10
With Love and Prayers,
Matthew and Sarah Fish
Thursday, March 12, 2009
To tell the Truth!
Romans 2:21-23 "You, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?"
This verse cuts quick to the heart as an all important reminder of how seriously the Lord holds those accountable to a higher standard who teach and preach His Word. He is Holy, and His Word is also Holy. We cannot separate God from His Word. For someone to say they honor God and yet make light of His Word by not keeping His Commandments is like a foolish person treading on thin ice trying to see how far they can get.
We live in a time where more and more preachers and teachers of God’s Word want to downplay the infallibility of God’s Holy Word in hopes of easing their consciences so they can continue in their self indulgences without being reminded of the consequences of their sins. But, God will not be mocked. And, the wages of sin is death.
Man would like to try and control his own life and his own destiny. But, our life is not our own. We have been bought by the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. Our lives belong to Him.
We cannot take the words of the Creator and make them out to be like our own. Our words mean very little, yet His Words gave forth Life that still hold the Power of the entire Universe that they created long ago unto this very day.
For anyone to come along the path and preach or teach one thing and yet live another way is worse than a hypocrite: Jesus called them vipers, wicked and perverse, who were children of the devil.
That is why we must constantly remind ourselves to pick up our cross daily, and reckon the selfish desires of our hearts and greedy, covetous, and lustful thoughts dead that Christ might live in and through us giving Glory, Honor, and Power unto the Lord God Almighty.
May he reign within our hearts and minds through the Power of His Word, Amen!
With Love and Prayers,
Anvil Forge / mkfish
Author of: "Living Each Day Led by the Spirit"
c/o Sarah Fish
PO BOX 110 Tripp SD 57376
Email: discipleship@anvilforge.org
http://www.anvilforge.org
missionaries on the Prairie
MISSION: POSSIBLE
“With God all things are possible!”
This verse cuts quick to the heart as an all important reminder of how seriously the Lord holds those accountable to a higher standard who teach and preach His Word. He is Holy, and His Word is also Holy. We cannot separate God from His Word. For someone to say they honor God and yet make light of His Word by not keeping His Commandments is like a foolish person treading on thin ice trying to see how far they can get.
We live in a time where more and more preachers and teachers of God’s Word want to downplay the infallibility of God’s Holy Word in hopes of easing their consciences so they can continue in their self indulgences without being reminded of the consequences of their sins. But, God will not be mocked. And, the wages of sin is death.
Man would like to try and control his own life and his own destiny. But, our life is not our own. We have been bought by the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. Our lives belong to Him.
We cannot take the words of the Creator and make them out to be like our own. Our words mean very little, yet His Words gave forth Life that still hold the Power of the entire Universe that they created long ago unto this very day.
For anyone to come along the path and preach or teach one thing and yet live another way is worse than a hypocrite: Jesus called them vipers, wicked and perverse, who were children of the devil.
That is why we must constantly remind ourselves to pick up our cross daily, and reckon the selfish desires of our hearts and greedy, covetous, and lustful thoughts dead that Christ might live in and through us giving Glory, Honor, and Power unto the Lord God Almighty.
May he reign within our hearts and minds through the Power of His Word, Amen!
With Love and Prayers,
Anvil Forge / mkfish
Author of: "Living Each Day Led by the Spirit"
c/o Sarah Fish
PO BOX 110 Tripp SD 57376
Email: discipleship@anvilforge.org
http://www.anvilforge.org
missionaries on the Prairie
MISSION: POSSIBLE
“With God all things are possible!”
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Never Quit = Always call on Jesus!
Earlier today, I was deeply saddened of how a young teenage girl decided to end her life because she was cruelly harassed by her friends and classmates. It is really concerning to know that the world around us can at times seem so mean. But, as young persons and even adults = we must remind ourselves that the storms that come against us in life (no matter how severe they may seem) will come to an end.
No tornado or hurricane lasts forever. And, even though some storms in our life seem to cause us great emotional devastation and we seem to suffer the loss of many friends, and perhaps even the loss of self-esteem, honor, and integrity = there is still Hope!
It may take some time, and it may take some hard work. And, maybe it may seem that we are too weak to carry on and to move beyond, finding it difficult to put things behind us.
That is when we truly need to get down on our knees and cry out to the Lord! We need to turn our ears to His Word: through prayerful study and daily reading of the Bible. It is then that His Strength will come to the troubled areas of our heart.
We must take courage knowing that the same God who took mere clay, formed it, and then breathed into it life = He is the same God who can take the broken pieces of our life and our heart and mend them back together by the Power of His Word!
Jesus wants to be a very real and personal Friend to you = who will never accuse you, or ever expose you, but will love on you, nurture you, protect you, strengthen you, and will help you to have success if you will simply give your heart to Him to change and make new.
Remember these words “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8: 1 ~ And, “If any man be in Christ old things are passed away, behold all things are made new.” II Corinthians 5: 17
Be encouraged = because in God’s eyes you are always special. He has specific plans that He will reveal to you a little at a time, so have patience = never give up and never quit. IF you hold on long enough = you are sure to win, because He is ever faithful who promised.
Encourage yourself and those around you through the Power of His Word. Turn a deaf ear to those things that are hurtful and not of the Lord. Press into His Presence and count it all joy as you live an exciting adventure following after Christ. When adversity comes your way, REJOICE because the Lord will be with you to see you through, and you will have an exciting tale to tell of what God has done in your life!
Please feel free to contact us for prayer at any time. We love you all very much!
With Love and Prayers,
Anvil Forge
Author of:
"Living Each Day Led by the Spirit" Visit: http://www.anvilforge.org
aka
Matthew and Sarah Fish
Phone: (605) 935 - 6323
Email: YstrdayNsameIsHe@aol.com
No tornado or hurricane lasts forever. And, even though some storms in our life seem to cause us great emotional devastation and we seem to suffer the loss of many friends, and perhaps even the loss of self-esteem, honor, and integrity = there is still Hope!
It may take some time, and it may take some hard work. And, maybe it may seem that we are too weak to carry on and to move beyond, finding it difficult to put things behind us.
That is when we truly need to get down on our knees and cry out to the Lord! We need to turn our ears to His Word: through prayerful study and daily reading of the Bible. It is then that His Strength will come to the troubled areas of our heart.
We must take courage knowing that the same God who took mere clay, formed it, and then breathed into it life = He is the same God who can take the broken pieces of our life and our heart and mend them back together by the Power of His Word!
Jesus wants to be a very real and personal Friend to you = who will never accuse you, or ever expose you, but will love on you, nurture you, protect you, strengthen you, and will help you to have success if you will simply give your heart to Him to change and make new.
Remember these words “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8: 1 ~ And, “If any man be in Christ old things are passed away, behold all things are made new.” II Corinthians 5: 17
Be encouraged = because in God’s eyes you are always special. He has specific plans that He will reveal to you a little at a time, so have patience = never give up and never quit. IF you hold on long enough = you are sure to win, because He is ever faithful who promised.
Encourage yourself and those around you through the Power of His Word. Turn a deaf ear to those things that are hurtful and not of the Lord. Press into His Presence and count it all joy as you live an exciting adventure following after Christ. When adversity comes your way, REJOICE because the Lord will be with you to see you through, and you will have an exciting tale to tell of what God has done in your life!
Please feel free to contact us for prayer at any time. We love you all very much!
With Love and Prayers,
Anvil Forge
Author of:
"Living Each Day Led by the Spirit" Visit: http://www.anvilforge.org
aka
Matthew and Sarah Fish
Phone: (605) 935 - 6323
Email: YstrdayNsameIsHe@aol.com
Monday, March 9, 2009
How great is our God?
A couple of weeks ago, we had watched a DVD of Louie Giglio’s concert of “How great is our God.” To help put things in perspective, Louie used a golf ball to give a point of reference to the views of the size of the earth if the sun were a sphere with a radius of 15 feet. He went on to say that that would be enough golf ball sized earths that would fit inside the sun to fill an entire school bus full.
The numbers continued to get quite astronomical from there as he continued to show the expanse of the universe and immense stars in neighboring galaxies that was mind blowing. It truly helped to get a greater understanding of exactly how awesome God’s greatness really is: far beyond than we could ever hope to view or imagine even with the assistance of modern technology, God is much more expansive!
But, there was something else that kept gnawing at the core of my heart through the unfolding of this enormous Universe within which we live: though compared to all the fullness of the universe our planet could easily get lost amongst the clutter, God not only created our planet to be a most singular privileged place, but He also knows each and every one of us personally of all the billions of people living on the planet. Yea, He even knows the number of the hairs on our head!
“How great is our GOD” helped me to understand a little clearer of how valuable and precious we all are in His eyes. This planet called earth upon which we live would be noted as being minute and insignificant to many had we the opportunity to view it from a third person point of view travelling at light speed through the vast Universe. And, yet here – to this planet – the Lord created life, and the fullness thereof, and placed mankind here to enjoy fellowship with Him and take care of all His creation. And, when mankind fell from His glory by willfully sinning against His Commandments, the Lord made provision for man. Later He would honor His Word and send His only Son to come in the flesh and live among His people and live a perfect life, humble himself to die for our sins, and rise again in the flesh on the third day.
My friends, this Great and Mighty God that we serve, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, sits at the right hand of the Father in Heaven ever living to make intercession for us: hoping that we would hear the gentle tug of the Holy Spirit upon our lives, repent of our sins, embrace the cross that lies before us with love and willingly humble ourselves to die to our fleshly desires, and be followers of Christ by walking according to His Word of Truth.
“How Great is our God” who is the only one just and true enough to come to this world and save those who are righteous and judge those who continue to live in stubborn rebellion against Him.
My friends, He is coming soon, and we need to be ready for His return. Let us therefore fall upon our faces, humble ourselves before Him, pray for His forgiveness and wait upon Him to strengthen us so that we may do the work whereunto which we are all called – to preach the Gospel while it is yet day. For the night is coming when no man will be able to work – and that time is nigh fast upon us!
By Anvil Forge
aka M&S Fish
The numbers continued to get quite astronomical from there as he continued to show the expanse of the universe and immense stars in neighboring galaxies that was mind blowing. It truly helped to get a greater understanding of exactly how awesome God’s greatness really is: far beyond than we could ever hope to view or imagine even with the assistance of modern technology, God is much more expansive!
But, there was something else that kept gnawing at the core of my heart through the unfolding of this enormous Universe within which we live: though compared to all the fullness of the universe our planet could easily get lost amongst the clutter, God not only created our planet to be a most singular privileged place, but He also knows each and every one of us personally of all the billions of people living on the planet. Yea, He even knows the number of the hairs on our head!
“How great is our GOD” helped me to understand a little clearer of how valuable and precious we all are in His eyes. This planet called earth upon which we live would be noted as being minute and insignificant to many had we the opportunity to view it from a third person point of view travelling at light speed through the vast Universe. And, yet here – to this planet – the Lord created life, and the fullness thereof, and placed mankind here to enjoy fellowship with Him and take care of all His creation. And, when mankind fell from His glory by willfully sinning against His Commandments, the Lord made provision for man. Later He would honor His Word and send His only Son to come in the flesh and live among His people and live a perfect life, humble himself to die for our sins, and rise again in the flesh on the third day.
My friends, this Great and Mighty God that we serve, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, sits at the right hand of the Father in Heaven ever living to make intercession for us: hoping that we would hear the gentle tug of the Holy Spirit upon our lives, repent of our sins, embrace the cross that lies before us with love and willingly humble ourselves to die to our fleshly desires, and be followers of Christ by walking according to His Word of Truth.
“How Great is our God” who is the only one just and true enough to come to this world and save those who are righteous and judge those who continue to live in stubborn rebellion against Him.
My friends, He is coming soon, and we need to be ready for His return. Let us therefore fall upon our faces, humble ourselves before Him, pray for His forgiveness and wait upon Him to strengthen us so that we may do the work whereunto which we are all called – to preach the Gospel while it is yet day. For the night is coming when no man will be able to work – and that time is nigh fast upon us!
By Anvil Forge
aka M&S Fish
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