Follow The Lamb

"...For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.” But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one Spirit with Him." 1 Corinthians 6:16,17

Reading through this thread , can't help but think of Ephesians 5:28-33 "So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband." Glory to God!

“It is the beholding of His face in the radiance of His glory that begins to transform your soul into His image, begins to transfigure you from the inside out. It is beholding His face in His Word and letting His Word become alive and living in you… Any who will can have as deep a walk with Him as you want. How can I make you want it? How can I grab your hearts? How can I shake the dust of the world off your eyes? How can I make you want His glory enough that you will pay any price to abide deep in the crevice of His glory? How? What words can I use to describe to you the beauty, the unfathomable beauty of His glory, the preciousness of His heart, to walk with Him and talk with Him and see Him? To be with Him in heaven, to behold His majesty!… The hunger grows as you plead before His throne to know Him in His Word. You spend time in prayer and you begin to worship Him and adore Him, not because you are being moved to, but because the discipline is required to open the door. And then finally, the desire and the yearning begins to grow as you obey and give yourself to the practice and the discipline of the Word and of prayer and of worship. The hunger begins to grow, the thirst begins to grow. and you cry out to Him more and more. You increase your Word time and prayer time because your hunger is growing. You are not satisfied any more with a just little—you have to have more until the day comes that nothing but His company matters… The Lord wants to reveal His glory, but there is a price. He wants to take you into His heart and reveal His heart. But listen to me, He will not reveal that heart to anyone who is not proven worthy to touch it. He will not do it. You have to prove your worth by your hunger, your passion, your obedience and as you begin to behold His glory. I love the song that used to be so popular in the states. I do not know if you have ever heard it, but the chorus goes like this, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.” The more you behold Him, the more the world loses its pull upon your soul. The more you behold His glory and His grace, the world becomes dim, strangely dim. The hunger for more becomes insatiable… He is not withholding Himself from you, Church. There are veils to keep you blinded to Him. They are your veils. Come into the sanctuary of His love. Seek Him like a jealous lover until you see Him. Be clean from your sin until you behold Him. Live in His Word until His Word begins to live in you and He will own you. Come and knock on the door of His heart, Just like our pastor said, “Make me more worthy of entering. Do not deny me!” Be like Rachel who cried out, “Give me a child lest I die!” Give me your heart God, lest I die! Open the door of your heart lest I die! And if you will not be denied He will not deny you. Do you want to know Him? Then tell Him.” - Sis. Nita

"We shall not be able to please God except by faith. And faith is triumph over all symptoms, and over all things that seem contrary, because God is triumphant, because Jesus Christ has won the fight. And no teaching is more plain, and made more real in the Bible, especially in the New Testament, than this: that “all the promises of God in Him are yea, and in Him Amen”—what the Law could not do because it was weak in the flesh. And that’s where the devil often tempts us. We look at the flesh, and we think, “Well, maybe I made a mistake here, maybe I don’t know how to believe. Maybe this and maybe that.” Why that’s the wavering attitude. You have no business to be like that. My business is to look steadfastly at the Lord Jesus Christ who commands wind and waves, who has “all power in heaven and in earth.” And we rob Him of His power, and we rob Him of His honor and His glory when we begin to waver in our attitude, and when we begin to be anxious. I ought to fear anxiety as much as I fear any other sin—or even more. That’s “the sin that doth so easily beset us.” And we don’t realize how we have been saturated with unbelief. It’s in the warp and woof of our being. …Jesus Christ will never tell us when we get to heaven, “Well, you know, in that particular instance, in that particular trial you went through, I was defeated. I wasn’t able. I wasn’t up to it.” He’ll never say that. He is always up to it. And the Apostle Peter tells us that, “though now, if need be, we are in heaviness through manifold temptations.” He says these temptations must be. For what purpose? Not that we might be defeated, but that the trial of our faith might redound to the glory of God. …I think we would do ourselves a very great favor if we studied about faith in the Bible. We would be surprised that faith is only faith when it is absolute and total faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, not in our ability to believe—not in our holiness, or in our power, or in our attitudes, but faith in a great fact: “God hath raised Him from the dead.” …There is no greater joy than to go through the trial with Jesus Christ in this faith. But it’s a great tribulation when you go through wavering and wondering in your heart. God will take all that wonder out of you. Faith comes by harkening to the word of God. And that word of God is absolute, and absolutely sure—“Forever Thy word is settled in heaven.” And when I meditate upon this word day and night, it is bound to create faith in my soul. In fact, that’s where faith comes from." - Hans R. Waldvogel

Dear sister, I share, by the Holy Spirit, your heart conviction regarding wearing head coverings. I once was lost in the world and when He called me out of darkness, I was living in Los Angeles and working for a very famous famous celebrity. I was saved alone in my apartment and at first had no Christian fellowship...even after finding a local church I was the only one who wore head coverings but the Lord clearly led me to do so even during times of private prayer. For whatever it is worth, during meetings and private prayer I usually wear a simple scarf type head covering with one side across the neck in front and draped over the opposite shoulder. Day in day out I usually wear a simple smaller headcovering. The truth about head coverings has been lost in the past 100 years, and many say the hair is the covering even or that it was merely cultural.... In studying early Church history -- before the Roman Catholic Church, etc-- there is no ambiguity about the interpretion of this passage...the early believers knew it was a physical piece of cloth and they knew it was because of the Angels. May the Lord bless you and lead you by His Spririt in this and all things.

Sister, thank you for putting into words exactly what was on my heart regarding these things. Particularly, how it was the Spirit who led our Lord into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil....God was not the one tempting, but He did lead into/ allow the temptation that the glory of God might be manifest. Glory to God who has purchased the church with His own blood... and may His life, may He Himself be more and more manifest in our bodies as these last days progress. May the will of the Lord be done. may He cause us to triumph in His praise!

John Hames: "There is vouchsafed to those who are filled with the Holy Spirit a peculiar, special self-control and divine equanimity of mind which is wholly foreign to the natural man... The writer has stood by a beloved Christian woman in the grip of sciatic rheumatism of an extreme form, when the sufferer said: “It seems as if a red-hot gimlet was boring into me along the whole line of the nerve. I can not help tears coming to my eyes from the excruciating pain, but I never was so happy in God and never felt such keeping grace in my life.” Another instance was given by a minister of his mother: “I wish you could see my mother. To give you some idea of what a monument of grace she is, I would state that in early life she was spoiled by training. She had one of the worst and most ungovernable tempers I ever knew. For years past she has been wholly confined to her bed from nervous prostration. During the early part of this period it did seem that nobody could take care of her, or endure her continued manifestations of irritability, impatience, fretfulness, and furious anger. Right there she became fully convinced that through grace and the baptism of the Spirit, she could have perfect rest, quietude and self-control. She set her whole heart upon attaining that state. Such was her fervency of spirit, and earnestness in prayer, that her friends thought she would become deranged, and urged her to cease seeking and prayer. ‘I die in the effort,’ was her reply, ‘or I obtain what I know to be in reserve for me.’ At length the baptism came gently upon her. From that hour there has not been the slightest indication of even the remains of that temper. Her quietude and assurance have been absolute, and her sweetness of Spirit ‘as ointment poured forth.’ It is no trouble to any one now, but a privilege to all, to care for her. Many come even from long distances, to listen to her divine discourse. From the hour of her baptism to that of her death, that ineffable sweetness of temper was never for a moment interrupted. I witnessed the closing scene. She died of cholera, and in the greatest conceivable agony. Yet such patience, serenity of hope, and such quiet waiting for the coming of the Lord, I hardly before deemed possible. ‘My son,’ she would say, ‘nature has had a hard struggle; but it will soon be over, and I shall enter into the rest that remains for the people of God.’"

"You know there are far more noisemakers than there are worshipers. There are far more noise makers than worshipers. Of course there’s a reason. In the first place, noise is cheap. Anybody can make noise, but worship is expensive. Did you know that? True worship is costly, just like real perfume. You can buy perfume in the Five and Dime for a dime a bottle, but that is a cheap synthetic concoction. That’s right, a cheap synthetic concoction, but real perfume is something else. Just a few weeks ago, I was in a town in France, Grasse, down by the Riviera where flowers bloom all winter long. In December and January, the roses bloom, and they’re making their real perfume, not a synthetic concoction, but real flowers. Large tracts of land are given altogether to the raising of flowers. They bring flowers in by the truckload every morning, and those flowers get crushed. They get oils and their perfume is extracted... Do you know what? I learned it takes 9,000 rosebuds to make one pound of essence of roses. Think of it, 9,000 rosebuds make only one pound of essence of roses. The rose pickers must go out early in the morning and pick the buds. The dew must still be on the roses. The bud must be picked before sunrise because as soon as the sun rises, the perfume, the scent begins to evaporate. They get the greatest yield of perfume from roses picked before sunrise. Think of it! ...For the finest perfume, you must get up in the morning before sunrise while the dew is still on the roses. While the rest of the people still roll around in their bed, you’re up like Jesus: “And a great while before day, he arose and went out into the mountain to pray.” There is where you gather the perfume for real worship. Hallelujah! Don’t you smell it?...David used to sit before the Lord. You sit in that quietness, you worship God. Praise God That’s the real thing, but that costs something... There’s so much in our lives that He uses to turn into a peculiar fragrance...Do you know what the Word says, “A broken spirit in the sight of God is of a great price.” Do you know why? Because it costs so much to have a broken spirit, and it’s so rare. Then with that spirit of worship, you get into a meeting where they’re only bent on noise making, where you think you’re in a gymnasium, or a circus, or Times Square, New York City on New Year’s night at midnight. How can you flow with a thing like that? You can only shut yourself in with your God and in the temple of your own spirit, worship God in spirit and in truth. Noise is cheap; worship is costly. But, are we willing to pay the price of being a true worshiper? Jesus paid the price. It is portrayed in the Old Testament: its scent went up to God when those animals were burned. If we’ll go on with God in the school of His Word, in the school of the Spirit and in the school of divine providence, you will find God will make of us souls who can worship Him effectively in His sight. There are many noisemakers, but there are few worshipers." - W. Beuttler

Forgot to say, regarding the title/ last verse shared in the OP...just the glory of remembering that all our momentary afflictions are not for nothing but are leading up to that moment of the wedding of the Lamb to His bride...the glory of the ministry of the Spirit to us in making us a new creation and that He has not left us alone down here to prepare for His return but has sent His own Spirit into our hearts to lead us and change us... from glory to glory....until Christ be formed in us "till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" Ephesians 4:13 "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith.... that you may be filled with all the fullness of God" Ephesians 3:17,19

Hi Kwik, I probably should have included an explanation with the post the title was simply chosen from the last verse of the post, but the post itself came about from spending time this morning reading in His Word about the ministry of the Spirit and The Lord's great, unspeakable gift to us in giving Himself to us to be our all in all. I didnt mean to imply that His Spirit is only with us until Christ is fully formed in us...was just in awe and so encouraged by dwelling upon the wonder of Him sending His own Spirit to create us anew and be joined to us as one, to be our teacher, our strength, to intercede for us, to meet our every need by the supply of His own self. The verses were just shared in hope that they might encourage others the way they encouraged my own heart this morning...to remember He is not a God far off and distant, but by His own Spirit dwelling inside of us in Christ. Great is His faithfulness. \o/ God bless!

"He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him...your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you...you are not your own" 1 Cor. 6:17,19 "..God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts.." Gal.4:6 "..greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world" 1 John 4:4 "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God...the Holy Spirit teaches..." 1 Cor. 2:12-13 "the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses..the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us.." Romans 8:26 "the Helper, the Holy Spirit...He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you." John 14:26 "...the Spirit of truth..He will guide you into all truth...and He will tell you things to come." John 16:13 "the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say." Luke 12:12 "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption...for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth...be filled with the Spirit...praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit..for all the saints" Ephesians 4:30; 5:9,18; 6:18 "For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ" Philippians 1:19 "..having begun in the Spirit are you now being made perfect by the flesh?..He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law or by the hearing of faith?" Galatians 3:5 "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" romans 10:17 "...our sufficiency is from God, who also made us ministers of the New Covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones was glorious...how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious?" 2 Cor. 3:5-8 "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences in ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all." 1 Cor. 12:4-7 "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God." Romans 8:14 "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord." 2 Cor. 3:18 "...until Christ is formed in you." Galatians 4:19

"It is ever the Holy Spirit's work to turn our eyes away from self to Jesus; but Satan's work is just the opposite of this, for he is constantly trying to make us regard ourselves instead of Christ. He insinuates, "Your sins are too great for pardon; you have no faith; you do not repent enough; you will never be able to continue to the end; you have not the joy of his children; you have such a wavering hold of Jesus." All these are thoughts about self, and we shall never find comfort or assurance by looking within. But the Holy Spirit turns our eyes entirely away from self: he tells us that we are nothing, but that "Christ is all in all." Remember, therefore, it is not thy hold of Christ that saves thee-it is Christ; it is not thy joy in Christ that saves thee-it is Christ; it is not even faith in Christ, though that be the instrument-it is Christ's blood and merits; therefore, look not so much to thy hand with which thou art grasping Christ, as to Christ; look not to thy hope, but to Jesus, the source of thy hope; look not to thy faith, but to Jesus, the author and finisher of thy faith. We shall never find happiness by looking at our prayers, our doings, or our feelings; it is what Jesus is, not what we are, that gives rest to the soul. If we would at once overcome Satan and have peace with God, it must be by "looking unto Jesus." Keep thine eye simply on him; let his death, his sufferings, his merits, his glories, his intercession, be fresh upon thy mind; when thou wakest in the morning look to him; when thou liest down at night look to him. Oh! let not thy hopes or fears come between thee and Jesus; follow hard after him, and he will never fail thee." - C.H. Spurgeon

Hast thou no scar? No hidden scar on foot, or side, or hand? I hear thee sung as mighty in the land, I hear them hail thy bright ascendant star: Hast thou no scar? Hast thou no wound? Yet, I was wounded by the archers, spent. Leaned me against the tree to die, and rent By ravening beasts that compassed me, I swooned: Hast thou no wound? No wound? No scar? Yet, as the Master shall the servant be, And pierced are the feet that follow Me; But thine are whole: can he have followed far Who has no wound? No scar? - Amy Carmichael ___________________ The above poem reminded me today that if we follow Him til the end, we will have scars and wounds and we wrestle not against flesh and blood....but that when this brief earthly life is over, He will make everything new, even as it is written...and we will know pain and sadness no more forever, but perfect peace and endless bliss and joy of His presence. Thank you Lord Jesus help us lay down our self life especially for you. "If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." John 15:19 "and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him." Romans 8:17 "So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name." Acts 5:41 "that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death" Philippians 3:10 "choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin" Hebrews 11:25 "...when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow in His steps" 1 Peter 2:20,21 "After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you." 1 Peter 5:10 "to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ" 1 Peter 1:4-7 "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Revelation 21:4

May the Holy Spirit of the Living God guide each of us in rightly dividing the Word as we grow in Him. We all have blind spots and areas where the Lord has corrected/ will correct us on. One thing I just wanted to express is we have to be very careful using examples from the Old testament as blueprints for how we handle things in the New Covenant...Jesus said over and over, "you have heard it said...But I say unto you..." There are many things in the Old that were earthy shadows of heavenly realities in the New, and many things that were allowed due to hardness of heart then that would be sin to us now that we are "one Spirit" with the Lord, new creations in a new dispensation. May the Lord Jesus guide each and every one of us in this thread, and all of His elect, and grant us to be brought and kept in the center of His will in these last days before His return. and may He fill our hearts with great tenderness and mercy for eachother as we are each in unique places on a journey with Him and members of eachother as well as Him. May God bless each of you and your families!

"The man who has struggled to purify himself and has had nothing but repeated failures will experience real relief when he stops tinkering with his soul and looks away to the Perfect One. While he looks at Christ the very things he has so long been trying to do will be getting done within him. It will be God working in him to will and to do." --A.W. Tozer "So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live." (Numbers 21:9) "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:14,15) "Dear struggler, you will never overcome sin except by faith in Jesus Christ. Trust him! Trust in the precious Blood: that is the great sin-killer. Trust his pierced hands to pierce the hands of your lusts. Trust his wounded side to smite through the heart of your evil desires. Your hope lies there: where Jesus died, where Jesus rose again, where Jesus has gone into the glory... God strengthening you, you shall out of weakness be made strong to overcome sin, though it be backed by the world, the flesh, and the devil. Entrenched in your nature though your sins may be, you will drive out these Canaanites, and free your heart from their dominion..." - C.H. Spurgeon "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." Hebrews 12:2 "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but was tempted just as we are, yet was without sin. Let us then come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:15,16 "For in that He himself has suffered being tempted, He is able to help those who are tempted." Hebrews 2:18 "Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, seeing that He lives forever to make intercession for them." Hebrew 7:25 "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18)

"Therefore let him who thinks he stands be careful that he doesn't fall" 1 Cor 10:12 "You therefore, beloved, seeing you know these things beforehand, beware lest you also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness." 2 Peter 3:17 "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy" Jude 1:24 "Therefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." Ephesians 6:13

For whatever it is worth, in the faith once delivered to the saints, in the early days this was the belief of Christians: “We, who used to kill one another, do not make war on our enemies. We refuse to tell lies or deceive our inquisitors; we prefer to die acknowledging Christ.” - Justin Martyr “Christians have changed their swords and their lances into instruments of peace, and they know not now how to fight.” - Irenaeus “Under no circumstances should a true Christian draw the sword.” - Tertullian “Christians, instead of arming themselves with swords, extend their hands in prayer.” - Athanasius

Amen.

"Since therefore Christ has suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind..." 1 Peter 4:1 "(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;"( 2 Cor 10:4-5) "Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ" 1 Peter 1:13

Amy Carmichael: Many crowd the Savior's kingdom, Few receive His cross; Many seek His consolation, Few will suffer loss. For the dear sake of the Master, Counting all but dross, For the dear sake of the Master, Counting all but dross. Many sit at Jesus' table, Few will fast with Him, When the sorrow-cup of anguish Trembles to the brim. Few watch with Him in the garden, Who have sung the hymn, Few watch with Him in the garden, Who have sung the hymn. Many will confess His wisdom, Few embrace His shame. Many, should He smile upon them, Will His praise proclaim; Then, if for a while He leave them, They desert His name, Then, if for a while He leave them, They desert His name. But the souls who love Him truly, Let woe come or bliss, These will count their dearest hearts' blood Not their own, but His. Savior, Thou who thus hast loved me, Give me love like this, Savior, Thou who thus hast loved me, Give me love like this.

Heleadethme, You said: "I'm leery of how certain groups are sort of fixated on the Holy Spirit and always seeking "a touch", or for Him to "come down" etc and how in spite of that they are going astray......always seeking "experiences" with God but not really following Him in other ways." Agreed. The same things also give me pause. That is one reason why even on the baptism of the Holy Spirit thread, I felt led to mostly include saints from a non-charismatic type background. Even R.A. Torrey who apparently was against the "tongues movement".... I do believe the gifts of the Spirit are still for today but not that specific gifts are required to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. In reading the testimonies of godly men and women even from hundreds of years ago, it is so encouraging and inspiring that throughout the ages, God has always been found by those who truly seek Him...and manifests Himself in intimate, life changing ways to those who truly desire HIM above His gifts. Hallelu Yah. God bless you this day! :-)

Thank you.

"A saint’s life is in the hands of God like a bow and arrow in the hands of an archer. God is aiming at something the saint cannot see, but our Lord continues to stretch and strain, and every once in a while the saint says, “I can’t take any more.” Yet God pays no attention; He goes on stretching until His purpose is in sight, and then He lets the arrow fly. Entrust yourself to God’s hands. Is there something in your life for which you need perseverance right now? Maintain your intimate relationship with Jesus Christ through the perseverance of faith. Proclaim as Job did, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15). - Oswald Chambers

"God is not willing to have His holiness be treated as some common toy. He is high and lifted up, and He hides His face from those who try to redefine His standards." Amen. As for being judged as as unloving when we take a stand on God's word, I can very much relate to what you are sharing. Without love, nothing profits us anything...yet without the truth of God there can be no real love of God displayed for He is love but He is also the truth and it is the truth that sets people free. "No lie is of the truth" Already there is a falling away in progress, and as greatly disturbing as it is, it is still only a prelude to the great falling away yet to come in years ahead. We must be being prepared and refined by His Spirit to be ready to partake in the reproach of Christ in a way previously unknown and to stand upon His word and promises in a time when the entire world will believe the lie. But oh what glory to be seeking Him more and more and FINDING Him more and more ..may we expect and enter into new realms of faith, obediance and fellowship with Himself even in the midst of all trials and refining fires. Lord, by Your Spirit keep us for You are our hope!

"Who is willing to lift up his eyes and his heart and to exclaim, "I want to live according to God's standard?" Who is willing? Who is willing to cast himself into the arms of Jesus and to live a life of faith victorious over the winds and the waves, over the circumstances and difficulties? Who is willing to say this,-"Lord, bid me come to Thee upon the water?" Are you willing? Listen! Jesus says,"Come." Will you step out at this moment? Yonder is the boat, the old life that Peter had been leading; he had been familiar with the sea from his boyhood,and that boat was a very sacred place; Christ had sat beside him there; Christ had preached from that boat, from that boat of Peter's, Christ had given the wonderful draught of fishes; it was a very sacred boat; but Peter left it to come to a place more sacred still,-walking with Jesus on the water,- a new and a divine experience. Your Christian life may be a very sacred thing; you may say, "Christ saved me by His blood, He has given me many an experience of grace; God has proved His grace in my heart," but you confess "I haven't got the real life of abiding fellowship; the winds and the waves often terrify me, and I sink." Oh, come out of the boat of past experiences at once; come out of the boat of external circumstances; come out of the boat, and step out on the word of Christ, and believe, "With Jesus I can walk upon the water." -- Andrew Murray