DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT TUESDAY - CLASSICAL TESTIMONIES… Alexander Whyte -

They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. – Revelation 12:11.

By way of encouragement, I would like to devote Tuesdays to classical testimonies which have brought great blessing and glory to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. These are of men and women, who have faithfully served for the Kingdom of God. My prayer is that you will be blessed, encouraged, and inspired by these testimonies as I was. Enjoy…

On January 6, 1921, Alexander Whyte died quietly in his sleep. The eighty-five-year-old Scotsman had risen from poverty and illegitimacy to become one of the most prominent pastors in Scotland. His faith began when he was young. Sunday mornings, his hardworking mother, Janet Thomson, took him to the Free Church. In the afternoon, he attended the Relief Church with his grandmother. He capped off Sunday by attending the Auld Licht (Old Light) Church by himself in the evening. He dreamed of becoming a minister.

Although his mother could not afford to pay for his education (those were the days before governments educated everyone), Alexander was determined to learn. He subscribed to a magazine on self-education and paid a younger boy to hold up borrowed books for him so that he could read while be made shoes as an apprentice.

With this learning under his belt, he became a teacher. To keep ahead of the more advanced pupils, he studied late at night after class was done. The following year, a sympathetic minister taught him Latin and Greek so that he could go to university--if the funds could miraculously be found.

Alexander swallowed his pride and wrote to the man who had fathered him and then abandoned his mother. John Whyte had become a successful businessman in New York. He sent Alexander the money. Teaching factory workers to cover his living expenses, Alexander threw himself into his studies. He graduated second in his class. Because of his own experiences, he never forgot the poor.

Eventually, Alexander headed the largest Scottish church and was a college president. A powerful speaker, in his very first sermon he emphasized the need to focus one's attention on Christ. Throughout his life, he always stressed the importance of a personal religious experience. Christianity was not just a matter of keeping commandments. Many of his sermons, with vivid illustrations, found their way into print.

A sermon he preached on prayer is a good sample of his style: "We hate God, indeed, much more than we love ourselves. For we knowingly endanger our immortal souls; every day and every night we risk death and hell itself rather than come close to God and abide in secret prayer. This is the spiritual suicide that we could not have believed possible had we not discovered it in our own atheistical hearts.

The thing is far too fearful to put into words. But put into words for once, this is what our everyday actions say concerning us in this supreme matter of prayer. 'No; not tonight,' we say, 'I do not need to pray tonight. I am really very well tonight. And besides I have business on my hands that will take up all my time tonight. I have quite a pile of unanswered letters on my table tonight. And before I sleep I have the novel of the season to finish, for I must send it back tomorrow morning..."

Alexander was buried in Edinburgh. On his coffin were inscribed David's words, "I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness" (Psalm 17:15).

Are you willing to do whatever it takes and give your all to win the lost to Christ? Then like, Alexander Whyte, put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water, and dare to follow Jesus wherever He leads you?

Loving Father, I thank you for the life of Alexander Whyte, and I pray that anyone reading this may be inspired by his testimony to give their life to you, and that you would use them in the same way, as you used Alexander. By the power of the Holy Spirit, help me to be a person of like faith, that I may bring glory to your name. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged.
GBYAY

WHEN I SAW MY DAD JAILED I FOUND BOXING AND JESUS!

I found this article in the Scottish Sunday Mail Newspaper, and foun it very refreshing, in other words, a 'Knock Out"...

SCOTS boxer "Amazing" Alex Arthur has revealed he would never have won his world title without his secret weapons... his loving wife Debbie and his religion. The super featherweight says it was Debbie's inner strength which helped him win the interim WBO belt when he defeated Koba Gogoladze in Cardiff last weekend.

As family man Alex relaxed at his Edinburgh home - with sons Alex Jr, five, Liston, two, and five-month-old Machlan - he dedicated the biggest win of his career to beautiful Debbie. And the devout Christian revealed he found religion aged 10 when his father, Alex Sr, was jailed for attempted murder.

He said: "I could never have won my world title without Debbie's love and strength...I'm absolutely useless without her. "Most boxers like to be cut off from their wife and kids before a big fight but I'm the opposite. If I go to training camp I take them with me. Every boxing trainer would probably tell you that's NOT the way to do it...but it works for me. "Debbie and the boys are part of my strength - they're my rock. When the going gets tough during training I think about them. That's what keeps me going."

Stitched and bruised from his brutal 10-round battle with Gogoladze, the 29-year-old champ spoke with disarming frankness about his tough upbringing. He said: "My dad didn't want me to be a boxer. He barred me from fighting. But he'd wake me up in the middle of the night to watch early Mike Tyson fights live on TV.
"In the late 1980s, he was sentenced to a prison term for attempted murder. "It was heartbreaking to see him being taken away - a very difficult time for me. My dad was a hero. I looked up to him. It was hard to cope with what happened.
"When he went to jail I went to a boxing gym. He couldn't stop me.

"I found boxing and Christianity at exactly the same time. I met a young lad, Thomas McCallum, who came from a similar background to myself. "He took me along to his church to play for their football team. The great thing was that after every game they laid on a huge spread of soft drinks, cakes and biscuits. "With my dad in jail, chocolate biscuits were in short supply in our house so I went along.

"One day a church elder said: 'Do you know anything about Jesus?' "I said, 'No, I just come here for the sweeties'.
"But when I stayed back I really got into the Bible stories and scriptures and became fascinated by Christianity. I decided there and then to dedicate my heart to Jesus."

Alex's faith is not unique in the fight game. Muhammad Ali refused the US draft in the 60s because of his devout Muslim beliefs. His famous heavyweight rival George Foreman became a preacher when he found God in the wake of his now legendary defeat by Ali in Zaire in 1974.
Other British ex-boxers such as Nigel Benn and Prince Naseem Hammed are also deeply religious.

Alex said: "I believe I've been given a gift from God to let people know there's more to life than money, sex, drinking and drugs. "I feel I can encourage people to live a better life. My faith helps me to live the life I need to be a successful boxer. "And it's helped me be morally a much better man. I live by the Ten Commandments. They've made me the man I am.

"Some people think I'm strange. They see me as a Holy Joe but it's more of a problem for them than it is for me." And tongue firmly in his cheek, he added: "I know I'm also extremely handsome and sought after by thousands of women but I'd never mess around with another girl. It's something I'd never dream of doing."

But Alex revealed his romance with Debbie almost never got by Round 1. The couple, who wed on February 5, 2005, had to cancel their wedding four times because he was training. Alex admits Debbie must have been attracted by his rugged good looks and not his social skills.
He said: "At 14, I preferred to stay in my bedroom, where I had punchbags hung up, doing my training. My dad forced me to go to a junior disco in Edinburgh. That's where I met Debbie. "When we started going out I must have bored the living daylights out of her. I never took her for pizza or to a movie and if boxing came on TV I'd sit glued to it and wouldn't speak to her."If I'd have been her dad I'd have said, 'Get rid of him'. I don't know how she stuck by me during those years."

Luckily, she did and the couple fell in love. Alex said: "I did everything I could for a kiss but she was having none of it. We went out for 18 months before she let me kiss her. When we had to cancel our wedding four times Debbie never complained. She's a rare breed."

Debbie was by his side when Alex suffered his only professional defeat in 2003 against Michael Gomez. He said: "She actually became a pain in the butt. She refused to leave my side and slept on a chair at the hospital all night when I was being treated for cuts and concussion."If I sneezed she was there with a hanky. It did become annoying in thedidthatI'ddie end because I just wanted to be left alone. But I realised Debbie was only trying to look after me."

Alex's fighting future is being steered by the UK's top boxing promoter, Frank Warren, who is confident he can get him multi-million dollar fights in Las Vegas. But the Scot's ambitions lie closer to home. He would like to defend his title on the esplanade at Edinburgh Castle - a short walk from his childhood home.

He said: "I don't care who I fight next. As long as they've got gloves and shorts on, I'll fight anybody. "Defending my title at the castle would put a stamp on my career. If I did that I'd die happy and go to Heaven. "I live a very Scottish life so I'd love to be regarded as the People's Champion."

Be encouraged!

GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT MONDAY – A HEART STARTER #41.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. - John 14:6.

Well folks, the weekends over, and it’s back to work for those who live in the Southern Hemisphere, for those who don’t, please continue to enjoy your weekend, but remember, Mondays coming! And as we know by experience, Mondays can be very sluggish, especially after a lovely weekend, where we managed to spend some quality time with our families and friends, and suddenly it’s back to the grind.

I thought by way of encouragement, that we could have a ‘Heart Starter’ from the word of God, rather than the six cups of coffee, or whatever it takes, to get started for the rest of the week!

As you will have realised earlier, our ‘Heart Starter’ today is… I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life! - A.W. Pink.

"I am the way." Christ spans the distance between God and the sinner. Man would fain manufacture a ladder of his own, and . . . climb up to God. But that is impossible. That is the way which seems right unto man, but the end thereof are the ways of death (Prov. 14:12). It is Satan who would keep the exercised sinner on his self-imposed journey to God.

What faith needs to lay hold of is the glorious truth that Christ has come all the way down to sinners. The sinner could not come to God, but God in the person of His Son has come out to sinners. He is the Way, the Way to Heaven, the Way to eternal blessedness.

"I am the truth." Christ is the full and final revelation of God. Adam believed the Devil's lie, and ever since then man has been groping amid ignorance and error. "The way of the wicked is as darkness; they know not at what they stumble" (Prov. 4:19). "Having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart" (Eph. 4:18).

A thousand systems has the mind devised. . . "There is none that understandeth" (Rom. 3:11). . . Truth is not to be found in a system of philosophy, but in a Person--Christ is "the truth;" He reveals God and exposes man. In Him are hid "All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Col. 2:3). What tremendous folly to ignore Him! . . . . with all your learning have you bowed before Him who is the Truth?

"I am the life." Christ is the Emancipator from death. The whole Bible bears solemn witness to the fact that the natural man is spiritually lifeless. He walks according to the course of this world; he has no love for the things of God. The fear of God is not upon him, nor has he any concern for His glory. Self is the center and circumference of his existence.

He is alive to the things of the world, but he is dead to heavenly things. The one who is out of Christ exists, but he has not spiritual life. . . . The one who believes in Christ has passed out of death unto life (John 5:24). "He that believes on the Son has everlasting life" (John 3:36). Then turn to Him who is the Life. "I am the way." Without Christ men are Cains--wanderers. "They are all gone out of the way" (Rom. 3:12). Christ is not merely a Guide who came to show men the path in which they ought to walk: He is Himself the Way to the Father.

"I am the truth." Without Christ men are under the power of the Devil, the father of lies.Christ is not merely a Teacher who came to reveal to men a doctrine regarding God: He is Himself the Truth about God. "He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father."

"I am the life." Without Christ men are dead in trespasses and sins. Christ is not merely a Physician. . . "I am come," said He, "that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). "No man comes unto the Father but by Me" (John 14:6).

Christ is the only way to God. It is utterly impossible to win God's favor by any efforts of our own.

Wow! Now that our hearts are beating regularly, let’s consider what we have just read over a cup of Java, and ask the Lord to help us by the power of the Holy Spirit, to realise that Christ is the only way to God.

Loving Father, I thank you for the beautiful weekend that I have just had. Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit to start off this week, by taking on board, some of the advice and inspirations that I have just read. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged!
GBYAY

SUNDAY SERMON ON THE BLOG – LOVE THAT SURPASSES KNOWLEDGE!

So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. - Ephesians 3:17-19.

Love that surpasses knowledge.

That's very difficult to explain, but when you have loved your spouse for decades you experience what this means. When you love a child, and do what you never dreamed you could do for another human being, you understand this phrase.

And when you stand before God, adopted as a full heir of all His great riches, a full sibling to Jesus Christ the Lord, and know you are seen as holy without reproach, and blameless, you begin to understand this phrase.

Loving Heavenly Father, by the power of the Holy Spirit, help me to know in my soul the lovethat is greater than words and knowledge, so that I may not only be like you, but that I may know you in experience, just as I know you in faith. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged.
GBYAY

AMAZING GRACE THE MOVIE.

Chillin out today! Jean and I are off to see Amazing Grace, the story of William Wilberforce and John Newton! I will give you a review when we see it!

And for those of you who need their Friday fix of humour, this is just for you!


Be encouraged!
GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT – THURSDAY THOUGHTS #24… Are We Playing by the Book?

When a group of small boys, out to play ball, arrived at the play ground, they discovered that no one had brought a ball. "Forget the ball," said one impatiently. "Let's get on with the game."

We are trying to play without the ball when the Church tries to evangelize before she has repented. The Church can do many things after she has repented but nothing until first she repents...

The Pharisees had many good points. Our Lord said, in effect, "Do as they say." They read the Scriptures, prayed, went to God's house, tithed, and lived separated lives. They were anxious to preserve religion in Israel. Winning converts to the religion of Moses had been a good and right thing to do. But their religion had become institutionalized, and now they were propagating a dead faith, and every, new convert was a twofold child of hell, a lost heathen, and a lost proselyte.

Generally, we are propagating today a degenerate brand of Christianity. Unless the church repents, and has a complete overhauling instead of a tune-up job, our evangelistic and missionary drives may add for the most part only a multitude of proselytes who are both unsaved pagans and unregenerated church members.

Like produces like. Worldly churches produce more worldly church members. Churches weak or unsound in doctrine produce more of the same variety. Churches that operate in the energy of the flesh instead of by the Holy Spirit produce more of the same kind. We must improve the present quality of our churches, for converts tend to take on the qualities of the people who convert them...

If God ever visits us again in real revival, there will be many red faces as churchmen and religious leaders blush and hang their heads in shame for the silly and stupid ways in which we have tried to promote the work of God in the energy of the flesh by the help of the world.

Drama will be unnecessary. We may not even need great preachers! Gospel jazz will slink away, and we shall be chagrined that we ever sank so low as to tolerate it. All this will vanish in the blinding light of the holiness of God, and no flesh will glory in His presence.

There is no greater hindrance to revival than a comfortable pastor settled and satisfied, coasting along until he reaches retirement, who does not want his flock disturbed or the status quo upset. He has long since lost his burden and concern for a mighty upheaval of God among the resters at ease in Zion.

He resents any intrusion into the complacency of a sleeping church, and interprets the prophet's call to repentance as an indictment of his own preaching. He is determined not to get excited, assumes a philosophical tolerance of things as they are, and he may speak facetiously of the prophet's seriousness. Sometimes his own people may get under conviction, and put him to shame by a concern he does not seem to feel.

This makes it exceedingly difficult for any revivalist calling Christians to repentance, but what a delight when pastor and prophet stand together! Most pastors understand that the traveling prophet can say things the pastor cannot say-that he fills a different role and follows an utterly different pattern. They complement each other. One plants, another waters, but God gives the increase. The teacher plants the seed, the pastor cultivates the crop, the evangelist gathers it, but the prophet must first break up the fallow ground.

Breaking up the ground is never a pleasant, comfortable business, and churches sometimes resent the plow of plain preaching. Blessed is the pastor who knows this, and stands behind the lonely prophet who calls the church to repentance.

Loving Heavenly Father, I thank you for my life in Jesus Christ; Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit, to repent of everything that is not of you in my life. For your glory and for the extension of your Kingdom, in Jesus wonderful and mighty name I pray, amen!

Be encouraged!

GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT – WEDNESDAY WARRIOR! #24… THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST!

Lead me, Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies— make your way straight before me. Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart is filled with malice. Their throat is an open grave; with their tongues they tell lies. - Ps 5:8-9.

A couple of things happened last week that made me sit up and take notice…

1. Rajan Zed, the first Hindu chaplain to open the Senate with prayer, did so to a nearly empty Senate chamber last week. The only officials present were Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who sponsored Zed's request to lead the invocation, and Sen. James Inhofe of Oklahoma. Three Christian protestors were removed from the U.S. Senate chamber's observation gallery during the prayer.

Though it was the first time a Hindu was invited to conduct a Senate invocation, the tradition of having a Christian lead the prayer was actually broken during the previous administration, when a Muslim delivered the prayer in 1993. According to a recent report, Former Navy Chaplain Gordon James Klingenschmitt who is known for praying "in Jesus Name," was recently denied permission to pray in the Senate by the Senate. - Source: CNS News.

This was the prayer he offered...

"We meditate on the transcendental glory of the Deity Supreme, who is inside the heart of the Earth, inside the life of the sky and inside the soul of the heaven. May He stimulate and illuminate our minds."

What a contrast to this prayer ...

Peter Marshall, Chaplain to the U. S. Senate, began the session of April 3, 1947, with this prayer: "Gracious, Father, we, Thy children, so often confused, live at cross-purposes in our central aim, and hence we are at cross-purposes with each other. Take us by the hand and help us see things from Thy viewpoint...."

2. As one who has tried to build bridges between Protestants and Roman Catholics, I cringed last week when Pope Benedict XVI released his shocking statement on “Catholic Identity.” In clear, non-negotiable and jaw-dropping terms, the pontiff stated that (1) only Catholics are true Christians; (2) other Christian denominations are “not true churches”; and (3) all non-Catholics lack the “means of salvation.”

Boom! Just like that, Benedict blew up every ecumenical bridge that has been built since the reforms of the Second Vatican Council of the 1960s.

With all respect to the most revered religious leader in the world, I think someone needs to wake up the pope and remind him—and the rest of the guys hibernating inside the Vatican—that we are living in the year 2007. His Excellency’s announcement sounded more like a press release from the 11th century.

The communiqué, released on July 10, was written in Italian. Given its medieval tone, you might have expected it to be handwritten on parchment in Latin. (Which, by the way, is the dead language Pope Benedict thinks all Catholics should still use during worship.)

It has been almost 500 years since Martin Luther first nailed his 95 theses on the Wittenburg door and ignited the Protestant Reformation. From that point the Holy Spirit’s river began to flow in so many new directions—gushing over the restrictive walls of the Catholic system and spilling into the nations of the world.

Today hundreds of millions of people have found salvation through the preaching of the gospel through non-Catholic churches: Lutheran, Anglican, Baptist, Brethren, Methodist, Pentecostal—you name it. All churches that proclaim faith in the resurrected Christ are part of the universal church that the Son of God purchased with His blood.

It is incredibly sad that Vatican leaders are so blind to what God has been doing outside their isolated little world for so many years. It is even sadder that Pope Benedict thinks that by issuing an edict from his office in Italy he can transport us into the past.

I know most Protestants probably just rolled their eyes when they heard about the pope’s announcement. Catholics who have been worshiping with Protestant Christians for years were probably also confused by it. Catholic charismatic’s, who have enjoyed fellowship with Protestants in recent years and experienced renewed faith and the power of the Holy Spirit, have now been told to break ties to those people since they are not true Christians.

I certainly don’t have an audience the size of the pope’s, but I can’t stay silent when he is promoting such a serious heresy. There are three simple truths from the Word of God that we must proclaim in order to set the record straight:

1. The church is composed of all born-again believers in Jesus Christ. The church is not a human institution. Though we may organize ourselves into denominations, we enjoy a mystical unity with all true Christians—regardless of our labels, ethnic backgrounds, pet doctrines or ecclesiastical traditions. The bond of the Holy Spirit makes true worshipers of Jesus into one big family.

2. No denomination can claim exclusive control of God’s truth. One definition of a cult is a sectarian group that claims it is the only way to heaven or salvation. But Catholics are not the only denominational group that has fallen into the heresy of spiritual elitism. The Church of Christ, an American denomination formed in the 1800s, has often taught its members that they are the only true believers. And there are many so-called Oneness Pentecostals who believe that only those who are baptized according to their “Jesus only” formula are true Christians. These people are actually spreading error that is rooted in the worst form of Pharisaical pride.

3. Jesus is still praying for the unity of the universal church. He asked in John 17 that the Father would make His followers one. He was not praying that we would all join the same denomination, submit to the same pope or agree on every minor point of doctrine. His goal is that one day we will drop our selfish pride, competition and religious agendas so that we can cooperate across denominational lines to build His kingdom.

Unfortunately Pope Benedict has made it clear that he does not share these biblical values. He has sinned against Christ by dishonoring a majority of Christians. And by claiming to be the only true church he has placed Catholicism in the cult category.

Catholics who love Jesus more than they love the pope and their religious tradition should swiftly denounce his error. - J. Lee Grady is editor of Charisma.

I couldn’t agree more with Grady, come out from among them, and as for the Senate, wake up, and let the voice of Born Again Christians speak up, stop this rot, and bring back Godly men like Peter Marshall, for His glory!

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. - Romans 10:9-10.

Loving Heavenly Father, I thank you for the gospel of Jesus Christ, and I thank you that I am born again when I accepted you as my Lord and Saviour. Jesus you are the Lord of lord’s and the King of king’s. By the power of the Holy Spirit help me so that I can serve you and my brothers and sisters in Christ, which will bring glory to your name, and advance your kingdom here on earth. I ask this in the wonderful name of Jesus, my Lord and Saviour, Amen!

Be encouraged!
GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT TUESDAY - CLASSICAL TESTIMONIES … LILLIAN TRASHER - TRUSTING THE LORD!

They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. – Revelation 12:11.

By way of encouragement, I would like to devote Tuesdays to classical testimonies which have brought great blessing and glory to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. These are of men and women, who have faithfully served for the Kingdom of God. My prayer is that you will be blessed, encouraged, and inspired by these testimonies as I was. Enjoy…

Lillian Trasher was born September 27, 1887 and grew up in Brunswick, Georgia. As a young girl, she knelt by a log in the woods one day, and prayed, "Lord, if ever I can do anything for You, just let me know and I'll do it."

Years later she met Miss Perry who ran an orphanage nearby. She invited Lillian to come to work at the orphanage. Little did Lillian know that this is where she would get her training for her entire life's missionary work.

Later, she arrived at the Elhanah Training Institute, where she was involved in sewing, cooking, taking care of newborn babies, and taking care of large numbers of orphan children. There she learned how to trust God for the needs of everyday life. She had no money at all and no one sent her any. She never wrote to others about her needs.

Lillian's shoes wore out and there was no money to buy a new pair. Someone had sent in a box of old clothes and there was a pair of men's shoes in the box. It didn't matter to Lillian, she wore them anyway.

Lillian attended God's Bible School in Cincinnati, Ohio. She pastored a church in Dahlonega, Georgia, did evangelistic work in Kentucky and in 1909, returned to the orphanage in Marion, North Carolina.

She had been praying for a call to the mission field, but in the meantime, she became engaged to be married. Ten days before her wedding day, she accompanied Miss Perry to hear a missionary from India. She was so deeply touched by the message, that she cried through the service, all the way back to the orphanage, and into the night.

Miss Perry wanted to know what was wrong. Lillian explained to her that nothing was wrong except that she was engaged to marry the most wonderful young man in the world and that she could not marry him. God had called her to Africa and she must obey. She had to put God first.

Knowing little about where she was to go, she gathered her few possessions and a few dollars and went to a missionary convention in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She was sure God would provide as he always did before. And He did. In a short time she arrived in Brooklyn, New York, on her way to Egypt. Her sister Jenny joined her. Someone urged Lillian to ask for a promise. Lillian opened her Bible and read Acts 7:34: "I have seen, I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt." The two sisters docked in Alexandria, traveled by train to Cairo, and then by boat down the Nile River to Assiout. She thought it was the most beautiful place in the world.

Shortly thereafter, she was confronted by Egypt's needs: those of the poor, homeless, ragged, rejected children. One night, at midnight, a man knocked on her door. He was looking for someone to come pray with a dying woman. Lillian, accompanied by an interpreter, went, having no idea what she would find. She was horrified to discover a three month old girl trying to suck green, stringy milk out of a tin can. Her clothes had been sewn tightly on her, and it seemed as though she had not been changed, perhaps since birth. The stench was beyond belief. Lillian prayed and as the mother died she gave the baby to Lillian, who took the child back with her to the compound. The two sisters took turns rocking the child and trying to get her to take some milk.

For twelve days and nights they tried and the baby howled. It was unbelievable that a malnourished child could cry so loudly and persistently. Soon the other missionaries' patience wore out and the senior missionary ordered Lillian to take the baby back. But where was Lillian to take her back to? She had come to work within the traditional mission structure, which insisted that single women be submissive to male leaders. The veteran missionary knew best. Lillian decided to take the baby back... but she was going to go back with the baby to stay. Her superior wondered how she was going to do this alone! An American woman, unmarried, in an Arab world! He felt she would be killed or starve to death.

Lillian knew she would not be alone because God would be with her. With the sixty dollars she had left from her traveling, she rented a small house, bought a kerosene stove for cooking and some furniture. Now she had no money left, and her mission board support was terminated. But she had confidence in God. Lillian was alone now because her sister returned to Long Beach, California and did not return to Egypt for many years later. Since Lillian had no means of support, she begged. Her first donation was thirty-five cents. It was enough for that day's food.

She traveled on a donkey pleading for money and many times received children instead. The government officials were amazed that no one did anything to alarm or hurt Lillian. The governor taunted her since she was riding a donkey which was very degrading for a very attractive young lady. Lillian reminded him that a donkey was good enough for the mother of her Lord and that it certainly was good enough for her. She was known as the "Lady on a Donkey."

As the orphanage grew, Lillian spent more time wondering about their next meal. But either food or money always arrived. Many times in her travels she could not return to the orphanage at night. If no one offered her a safe place to sleep, she would go to the nearest police station and spend the night with her donkey in a jail cell. The Egyptians could not believe how persistent she was and that an American could survive the heat.

By 1914, she became affiliated with a new denomination, the Assemblies of God. They sent barrels of clothing and an occasional check but Lillian still relied on the generosity of her Egyptian neighbors. She was grateful for every dollar and everything that was given her. She answered each letter she received on the same day.

By 1915, she had fifty children in her orphanage. She had to build on, and the children helped with the construction... even making bricks. She began teaching trades because these children had to be prepared for life.

By 1923, she housed three hundred orphans and widows but did not have a great spiritual harvest.

In 1927, she witnessed the revival she had long prayed for. In the meantime, she continued sewing, washing, feeding, and building. She continuously relied on God for all things.

One night when the Egyptians rose up against the British rulers, she had to move her children from the orphanage to a brick kiln. When she counted heads, she realized that two children were missing.

Against protests from her fellow workers, she crawled back to the orphanage and found the two terrified toddlers. Tucking a child under each arm, she slowly made her way back to the kiln. Suddenly the rebels blocked her path. She had to drop into a ditch, where she came upon a dead soldier. She muffled her horror, because any scream would have brought death to her and the babies.

The soldiers marched closer and closer until one of them stepped on Lillian. He probably assumed she was dead, and kept moving on. While Lillian waited, she softly sang "Jesus Loves Me" in the ears of the babies. When the danger was over, she crawled to safety with the other staffers and children.

God had protected them and the orphanage. Even though nearby houses were looted and burned, the orphanage was untouched. Lillian told all her Egyptian neighbors of God's power. Slowly she gained the confidence of the Egyptians and the American churches. But when the Great Depression came, the American support money dropped to practically nothing. She had so many children by now that she could not leave them and go beg for money or supplies. She knelt down and sobbed to the Lord, telling him that she could not do all this anymore... she would care for the children, but that He was to bring in the money.

That same week, forty more children arrived. She never turned anyone away. She always made room for them. She eventually had the responsibility of seeing that two thousand meals were provided daily as well as books, clothing, and other needs of hundreds of children. On her twenty-fifth anniversary in Egypt, Lillian wrote that God had never failed her in all those years; that they were fed like sparrows which have no barns or storerooms.

Many times tourists visited the orphanage. When Lord Maclay of Scotland visited the orphanage, he gave Lillian one hundred dollars and went home to think about what he had seen. In February 1935, Lillian received a telegram to come to Cairo at once. There Lord Maclay gave her five thousand dollars. Later, his gifts increased to over twenty thousand dollars and he opened a home for infants in Scotland as well.

In February 1937, Lord Maclay and his daughter spent the night at the orphanage. He gave Lillian two checks: one for Two thousand five hundred dollars for the orphanage and another Two thousand five hundred dollars for her personal needs. The next morning Lord Maclay told Lillian that the Lord had spoken to him to give her a check for twenty thousand dollars. God knows how to take care of His children and rewards faithfulness!

Although some of the financial problems were taken care of, there were other problems in the 1940s. Cholera broke out in 1947. Lillian prayed over every child that came into the orphanage. Thank the Lord that even though there was an outbreak in the orphanage, no one died.

In January 1960, she began a new year. It was her fiftieth in Egypt. She remembered that as a young, happy girl in 1910, she dreamed of twelve children of her own. She did not realize what her life was going to be like when she ended her engagement. Even though she loved him, she said good-bye to Tom, the young preacher who was to be her husband. She wanted to put God first.

Now, fifty years later, as a gray-headed woman, she looked out her window to her 1,200 children. This lovely Missionary lady went on to be with the Lord on December 17, 1961... having trusted in the Lord with all her heart and soul.

Are you willing to do whatever it takes and give your all to win the lost to Christ? Then like, Lillian Trasher, put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water, and dare to follow Jesus wherever He leads you?

Loving Father, I thank you for the life of Lillian Trasher, and I pray that anyone reading this may be inspired by her testimony to give their life to you, and that you would use them in the same way, as you used Lillian. By the power of the Holy Spirit, help me to be a person of like faith, that I may bring glory to your name. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged.
GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT MONDAY – A HEART STARTER #40.

In Germany, they first came for the Communists and I did not speak up because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me and by that time, there was no one left to speak up. - Martin Niemoller.

Well folks, the weekends over, and it’s back to work for those who live in the Southern Hemisphere, for those who don’t, please continue to enjoy your weekend, but remember, Mondays coming! And as we know by experience, Mondays can be very sluggish, especially after a lovely weekend, where we managed to spend some quality time with our families and friends, and suddenly it’s back to the grind.

I thought by way of encouragement, that we could have a ‘Heart Starter’ from the word of God, rather than the six cups of coffee, or whatever it takes, to get started for the rest of the week!

As you will have realised earlier, our ‘Heart Starter’ today is ABORTION…

When you're raised in the country, hunting is just a natural part of growing up. For years I enjoyed packing up my guns and some food to head off into the woods. Even more than the hunting itself, I enjoyed the way these trips always seemed to deepen my relationship with friends as we hunted during the day and talked late into the night around the campfire.

When an old friend recently invited me to relive some of those days, I couldn't pass up the chance. For several weeks before the trip, I had taken the time to upgrade some of my equipment and sight in my rifle. When the day came, I was ready for the hunt. What I wasn't ready for was what my close friend, Tom, shared with me the first night out on the trail.

I always enjoyed the time I spent with Tom. He had become a leader in his church and his warm and friendly manner had also taken him many steps along the path of business success. He had a lovely wife, and while I knew they had driven over some rocky roads in their marriage, things now seemed to be stable and growing. Tom's kids, two daughters and a son, were struggling in junior high and high school with the normal problems of peer pressure and acceptance.

As we rode back into the mountains, I could tell that something big was eating away at Tom's heart. His normal effervescent style was shrouded by an overwhelming inner hurt. Normally, Tom would attack problems with the same determination that had made him a success in business. Now, I saw him wrestling with something that seemed to have knocked him to the mat for the count.

Silence has a way of speaking for itself. All day and on into the evening, Tom let his lack of words shout out his inner restlessness. Finally, around the first night's campfire, he opened up.

The scenario Tom painted was annoyingly familiar. I'd heard it many times before in many other people's lives. But the details seemed such a contract to the life that Tom and his wife lived and the beliefs they embraced. His oldest daughter had become attached to a boy at school. Shortly after they started going together, they became sexually involved. Within two months, she was pregnant. Tom's wife discovered the truth when a packet from Planned Parenthood came in the mail addressed to her daughter. When confronted with it, the girl admitted she had requested it when she went to the clinic to find out if she was pregnant.

If we totaled up the number of girls who have gotten pregnant out of wedlock during the past two hundred years of our nation's history, the total would be in the millions. Countless parents through the years have faced the devastating news. Being a member of such a large fraternity of history, however, does not soften the severity of the blow to your heart when you discover it's your daughter.

Tom shared the humiliation he experienced when he realized that all of his teaching and example had been ignored. Years of spiritual training had been thrust aside. His stomach churned as he relived the emotional agony of knowing that the little girl he and his wife loved so much had made a choice that had permanently scarred her heart.

I'm frequently confronted with these problems in my ministry and have found that dwelling on the promiscuous act only makes matters worse. I worship a God of forgiveness and solutions, and at that moment in our conversation I was anxious to turn toward hope and healing.

I asked Tom what they had decided to do. Would they keep the baby, or put it up for adoption? That's when he delivered the blow. With the fire burning low, Tom paused for a long time before answering. And even when he spoke he wouldn't look me in the eye. "We considered the alternatives, Tim. Weighed all the options." He took a deep breath. "We finally made an appointment with the abortion clinic. I took her down there myself."

I dropped the stick I'd been poking the coals with and stared at Tom. Except for the wind in the trees and the snapping of our fire it was quiet for a long time. I couldn't believe this was the same man who for years had been so outspoken against abortion. He and his wife had even volunteered at a crisis pregnancy center in his city.

Heartsick, I pressed him about the decision. Tom then made a statement that captured the essence of his problem...and the problem many others have in entering into genuine rest. In a mechanical voice, he said "I know what I believe, Tim, but that's different than what I had to do. I had to make a decision that had the least amount of consequences for the people involved."

Just by the way he said it, I could tell my friend had rehearsed these lines over and over in his mind. And by the look in his eyes and the emptiness in his voice, I could tell his words sounded as hollow to him as they did to me. - Tim Kimmel.

Medical authorities determine a person to be "alive" if there is either a detectable heartbeat or brain-wave activity. With that in mind, it is eye-opening for some to realize that unborn children have detectable heartbeats at eighteen days (two and one-half weeks) after conception and detectable brain-wave activity forty days (a little over five and one-half weeks) after conception. What is so shocking is that essentially 100 percent of all abortions occur after the seventh week of pregnancy. - Sanctity of Life, C. Swindoll.

Wow! Now that our hearts are beating regularly, let’s consider what we have just read over a cup of Java, and ask the Lord to help us by the power of the Holy Spirit, to speak up and fight for the right to live for babies, as He has spoken up and fought for us, for the right to live.

Loving Father, I thank you for the beautiful weekend that I have just had. Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit to start off this week, by taking on board, some of the advice and inspirations that I have just read. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged!
GBYAY

SUNDAY SERMON ON THE BLOG – THE REAL DEMONSTRATION OF LOVE

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. - 1 John 4:10.

Love is demonstrated, not just said.

Love goes ahead sharing itself instead of waiting until things are easy or safe. Love redeems when all hope seems lost.

Love is not only what God is, but it is also what he does and what he gives.

Loving Heavenly Father, thank you for loving me so extravagantly. By the power of the Holy Spirit, help me to see the opportunities to love others, whom you place in my path everyday. Use me to demonstrate your love to someone today, and each day that follows. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged.
GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT FRIDAY – A CHEERFUL HEART #63.

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. - Pro 17:22.

Friday has come and brings to an end another working week. What better way to get into a good frame of mind than to end it with a good laugh…

Top 10 Sayings of Mothers in the Bible...

10. Samson! Get your hand out of that lion. You don't know where it's been!

9. David! I told you not to play in the house with that sling! Go practice your harp. We pay good money for those lessons!

8. Abraham! Stop wandering around the countryside and get home for supper!

7. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego! I told you never to play with fire!

6. Cain! Get off your brother! You're going to kill him some day!

5. Noah! No, you can't keep them! I told you, don't bring home any more strays!

4. Gideon! Have you been hiding in that wine press again? Look at your clothes!

3. James and John! No more burping contests at the dinner table, please. People are going to call you the sons of thunder!

2. Judas! Have you been in my purse again?!

1. Jesus! Stop working on that old wood and come in and eat! You'd spend your life on that wood, if your father asked ya to!*

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A dietitian was once addressing a large audience in Chicago. "The material we put into our stomachs is enough to have killed most of us sitting here, years ago."Red meat is awful. Soft drinks erode your stomach lining. Chinese food is loaded with MSG. Vegetables can be disastrous, and none of us realizes the long-term harm caused by the germs in our drinking water."But there is one thing that is the most dangerous of all and we all have, or will, eat it. Can anyone here tell me what food it is that causes the most grief and suffering for years after eating it?"

A 75-year-old man in the front row stood up and said, "Wedding cake"

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An older couple had a son, who was still living with them. The parents were a little worried, as the son was still unable to decide about his future career. So they decided to do a small test.

They put a note on the front hall table that they had left. Around the note they put a ten-dollar bill, a Bible, and a bottle of whiskey. Then they hid, pretending they were not at home.

The father told his wife, "If our son takes the money, he will be a businessman, if he takes the Bible, he will be a pastor, but if he takes the bottle of whiskey, I'm afraid our son will be a no-good drunkard."

So the parents hid in the nearby closet and waited nervously. Peeping through the keyhole they saw their son arrive. The son read the note that they had left.Then he took the ten-dollar bill, looked at it against the light, and slid it in his pocket.After that, he took the Bible, flipped through it, and put it under his arm.Finally, he grabbed the bottle, opened it, and took an appreciative whiff to be assured of the quality. Then he left for his room, carrying all three items.

The father slapped his forehead and said: "This is worse than I could ever have imagined!""What? asked the wife."Our son is going to be a politician!"
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Three pastors sat discussing the best positions for prayer while a telephone repairman worked nearby. "Kneeling is definitely best," claimed one."No," another contended. "I get the best results standing with my hands outstretched to Heaven.""You're both wrong," the third insisted. "The most effective prayer position is lying prostrate, face down on the floor."

The repairman could contain himself no longer. "Hey, fellas," he interrupted, "the best prayin' I ever did was hangin' upside down from a telephone pole."
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Lordship of Christ…
Jesus, who died for thy sins, is worthy to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. We can never ascribe too much to Jesus. But He is worthy also to be believed, in preference to Satan, unbelief, the world, or appearances; to be trusted with all, for all, before all; to be loved more than any other, in opposition to any that would rival Him;...to be followed, wherever He may lead us, through evil report or good report; to be preferred to ease, pleasure, wealth, health, to anything and everything.

Jesus is worthy to be our example, our confidant, our king, and our all. He is worthy of all He requires, all we can give, all His people have done for Him or suffered in His cause. - James Smith.
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So far today, God, I've done all right. I haven't gossiped, haven't lost my temper, haven't been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or over-indulgent. I'm really glad about that.But in a few minutes, God, I'm going to get out of bed and from then on I'm probably going to need a lot more help.Thank you.In Jesus name. Amen.

WE ARE REMINDED THAT BEING CHEERFUL KEEPS US HEALTHY… IT IS SLOW DEATH TO BE GLOOMY ALL THE TIME!

Loving Father, help me by the power of the Holy Spirit, to remind myself that Jesus died to set me free, help me Lord to live that life, and be determined in Him to have a cheerful heart, in Jesus wonderful Name I pray, amen!

HAVE A GREAT AND GODLY WEEKEND!

Be encouraged!

GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT – THURSDAY THOUGHTS #23… DISCOURAGEMENT.

Former heavy-weight boxer James (Quick) Tillis is a cowboy from Oklahoma who fought out of Chicago in the early 1980s. He still remembers his first day in the Windy City after his arrival from Tulsa.

"I got off the bus with two cardboard suitcases under by arms in downtown Chicago and stopped in front of the Sears Tower. I put my suitcases down, and I looked up at the Tower and I said to myself, 'I'm going to conquer Chicago.' "When I looked down, the suitcases were gone." - Today in the Word.

The American painter, John Sargent, once painted a panel of roses that was highly praised by critics. It was a small picture, but it approached perfection. Although offered a high price for it on many occasions, Sargent refused to sell it. He considered it his best work and was very proud of it. Whenever he was deeply discouraged and doubtful of his abilities as an artist, he would look at it and remind himself, "I painted that." Then his confidence and ability would come back to him. - Bits & Pieces.

In the American War of Independence a critical battle took place near Saratoga, New York. Just before the battle took place one of the American soldiers, frightened by the sight of the British redcoats, tried to talk his comrades into surrendering or escaping with him. Luckily an office happened to come by and hear him. The man was arrested, immediately courtmartialed, and executed on the spot because he spoke disheartening words to the soldiers in the critical hour. He easily could have lost the entire war for the Americans. – Source unknown.

Steve Brown related the story of a British soldier in the First World War who lost heart for the battle and deserted. Trying to reach the coast for a boat to England that night, he ended up wandering in the pitch black night, hopelessly lost. In the darkness he came across what he thought was a signpost. It was so dark that he began to climb the post so that he could read it.

As he reached the top of the pole, he struck a match to see and found himself looking squarely into the face of Jesus Christ. He realized that, rather than running into a signpost, he had climbed a roadside crucifix. Brown explained, "Then he remembered the One who had died for him -- who had endured -- who had never turned back. The next morning the soldier was back in the trenches. "

As a runner, when you are tired, afraid and discouraged, the best way I know to get your second wind is to strike a match in the darkness and to look on the face of Jesus Christ. – Source unknown.

Discouragement is dissatisfaction with the past, distaste for the present, and distrust of the future. It is ingratitude for the blessings of yesterday, indifference to the opportunities of today, and insecurity regarding strength for tomorrow. It is unawareness of the presence of beauty, unconcern for the needs of our fellowman, and unbelief in the promises of old. It is impatience with time, immaturity of thought, and impoliteness to God. William Ward. - Today in the Word.

Loving Heavenly Father, I thank you for my life in Jesus Christ; Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit, not to take discouragement on board, but to determine myself to be an encourager. For your glory and for the extension of your Kingdom, in Jesus wonderful and mighty name I pray, amen!

Be encouraged!
GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT – WEDNESDAY WARRIOR! #23… The Cross is a Radical Thing - A.W. Tozer.

The cross of Christ is the most revolutionary thing ever to appear among men. The cross of the Roman times knew no compromise; it never made concessions. It won all its arguments by killing its opponent and silencing him for good. It spared not Christ, by slew Him the same as the rest. He was alive when they hung Him on that cross and completely dead when they took him down six hours later. That was the cross the first time it appeared in Christian history.

After Christ was risen from the dead the apostles went out to preach His message, and what they preached was the cross. And wherever they went into the wide world they carried the cross, and the same revolutionary power went with them. The radical message of the cross transformed Saul of Tarsus and changed him from a persecutor of Christians to a tender believer and an apostle of the faith. Its power changed bad men into good ones. It shook off the long bondage of paganism and altered completely the whole moral and mental outlook of the Western world.

All this it did and continued to do as long as it was permitted to remain what it had been originally, a cross. Its power departed when it was changed from a thing of death to a thing of beauty. When men made of it a symbol, hung it around their necks as an ornament or made its outline before their faces as a magic sign to ward off evil, then it became at best a weak emblem, at worst a positive fetish. As such it is revered today by millions who know absolutely nothing about its power.

The cross effects its ends by destroying one established pattern, the victim's, and creating another pattern, its own. Thus it always has its way. It wins by defeating its opponent and imposing its will upon him. It always dominates. It never compromises, never dickers nor confers, never surrenders a point for the sake of peace. It cares not for peace; it cares only to end its opposition as fast as possible.

With perfect knowledge of all this Christ said: Luke 9:23 "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." (NIV)

So the cross not only brings Christ's life to an end, it ends also the first life, the old life, of every one of His true followers. It destroys the old pattern, the Adam pattern, in the believer's life, and brings it to an end. Then the God who raised Christ from the dead raises the believer and a new life begins.

This, and nothing less, is true Christianity, though we cannot but recognize the sharp divergence of this conception from that held by the rank and file of evangelicals today. But we dare not qualify our position. The cross stands high above the opinions of men and to that cross all opinions must come at last for judgment. A shallow and worldly leadership would modify the cross to please the entertainment-mad saintlings who will have their fun even within the very sanctuary; but to do so is to court spiritual disaster and risk the anger of the Lamb turned Lion.

We must do something about the cross, and one of two things only we can do--flee it or die upon it. And if we should be so foolhardy as to flee we shall by that act put away the faith of our fathers and make of Christianity something other than it is. Then we shall have left only the empty language of salvation; the power will depart with our departure from the true cross.

If we are wise we will do what Jesus did: endure the cross and despise its shame for the joy that is set before us. To do this is to submit the whole pattern of our lives to be destroyed and built again in the power of an endless life. And we shall find that it is more than poetry, more than sweet hymnody and elevated feeling. The cross will cut into where it hurts worst, sparing neither us nor our carefully cultivated reputations. It will defeat us and bring our selfish lives to an end. Only then can we rise in fullness of life to establish a pattern of living wholly new and free and full of good works.

The changed attitude toward the cross that we see in modern orthodoxy proves not that God has changed, nor that Christ has eased up on His demand that we carry the cross; it means rather that current Christianity has moved away from the standards of the New Testament. So far have we moved indeed that it may take nothing short of a new reformation to restore the cross to its right place in the theology and life of the Church.

Loving Heavenly Father , I thank you for the cross of Christ, use me by the power of the Holy Spirit, to be a vessel of revival, help me to weep for the unsaved, help me so that I can serve you and my brothers and sisters in Christ, that it will bring glory to your name, and advance your kingdom here on earth. I ask this in the wonderful name of Jesus, my Lord and Saviour, Amen!

Be encouraged!
GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT TUESDAY - CLASSICAL TESTIMONIES - John Wanamaker.

They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. – Revelation 12:11.

By way of encouragement, I would like to devote Tuesdays to classical testimonies which have brought great blessing and glory to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. These are of men and women, who have faithfully served for the Kingdom of God. My prayer is that you will be blessed, encouraged, and inspired by these testimonies as I was. Enjoy…

On March 12, 1888, fifty year old John Wanamaker laboriously hand-copied letters to each member of his large Sunday School class--a Sunday school which he had founded. The central thought of the letter was, "If you are not saved my dear friend--flee to the merciful Savior, as you would fly, into this warm room tonight out of the cold streets & the drifting snow. -- If you are saved -- humbly trusting in what Jesus did when his loved failed not on the Cross -- think of others not saved -- NOT SAVED -- going to the eternal darkness -- your near friend, your relative -- and do something!"

All of his life, John Wanamaker did something--not only toward converting people but in making American business what it became. A Presbyterian, he was a strong advocate of the YMCA in the years when its chief concern was to convert men to Christ. He was so successful in promoting the organization that its backers named him national secretary. But John married and had to find work that would support his family. A go-getter (he took his first job as an errand boy at age thirteen for the salary of $1.25 a week) John and a partner bought a men's clothing business.

With a flair for big projects, John bought an abandoned rail depot and tried to coax other merchants to open shops in the building. When he couldn't persuade others to take the risk, he set up his own shops, creating one of the first successful department stores in the nation. His building even had a wireless telegraph--and consequently was the first station in the United States to learn of the sinking of the Titanic. John was a leader in advertising, in money-back guarantees and in offering his employees benefits such as pensions, life insurance, and vacations. His New York store was the first to display electric Christmas lights.

Through it all, John's concern for souls continued. During the Civil War, he was a strong supporter of the United States Civil Commission, an agency which brought medical and spiritual comfort to soldiers. He gave enormous sums to charities, such as the Children's Wing of Philadelphia's Presbyterian hospital. He devoted Sundays to religious work. "If you once have the joy and sweet pleasure of bringing one soul to Christ, you will be hungry to get another," he said.

Asked in an interview how he managed to carry the load of his many tasks (which, in addition to everything else, included a strong commitment to Masonry), John replied, "When I weary of one detail, I turn to another, and there is rest of mind in that." He advised, "Do the very best you can and leave the rest to Providence."

As a soul-winner, he believed he did not have to work alone. "When you have faith enough & love enough to start out in the effort to bring a soul to the Savior -- God the Holy Ghost joins in your effort, for God wants every one saved & He works with even the poorest instrument that engages in His work."

When John died in 1922, it was a huge public event. Philadelphia lowered its flags, the newspapers called him the city's most eminent citizen, and the public schools closed the day of his funeral. His pallbearers included the Governor of Pennsylvania, the Mayors of Philadelphia and New York, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and the inventor Thomas Edison.

Are you willing to do whatever it takes and give your all to win the lost to Christ? Then like, John Wanamaker, put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water, and dare to follow Jesus wherever He leads you?

Loving Father, I thank you for the life of John Wanamaker, and I pray that anyone reading this may be inspired by his testimony to give their life to you, and that you would use them in the same way, as you used John. By the power of the Holy Spirit, help me to be a person of like faith, that I may bring glory to your name. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged.

GBYAY

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT MONDAY – A HEART STARTER #39.

Karl Menninger, the famed psychiatrist, once said that if he could convince the patients in psychiatric hospitals that their sins were forgiven, 75 percent of them could walk out the next day! - Today in the Word.

Well folks, the weekends over, and it’s back to work for those who live in the Southern Hemisphere, for those who don’t, please continue to enjoy your weekend, but remember, Mondays coming! And as we know by experience, Mondays can be very sluggish, especially after a lovely weekend, where we managed to spend some quality time with our families and friends, and suddenly it’s back to the grind.

I thought by way of encouragement, that we could have a ‘Heart Starter’ from the word of God, rather than the six cups of coffee, or whatever it takes, to get started for the rest of the week!

As you will have realised earlier, our ‘Heart Starter’ today is FORGIVENESS…

Chuck Swindoll reports that a seminary student in Chicago faced a forgiveness test. Although he preferred to work in some kind of ministry, the only job he could find was driving a bus on Chicago's south side. One day a gang of tough teens got on board and refused to pay the fare. After a few days of this, the seminarian spotted a policeman on the corner, stopped the bus, and reported them. The officer made them pay, but then he got off. When the bus rounded a corner, the gang robbed the seminarian and beat him severely. He pressed charges and the gang was rounded up. They were found guilty.

But as soon as the jail sentence was given, the young Christian saw their spiritual need and felt pity for them. So he asked the judge if he could serve their sentences for them. The gang members and the judge were dumbfounded. "It's because I forgive you," he explained. His request was denied, but he visited the young men in jail and led several of them to faith in Christ. - Chuck Swindoll.

In the 14th century, Robert Bruce of Scotland was leading his men in a battle to gain independence from England. Near the end of the conflict, the English wanted to capture Bruce to keep him from the Scottish crown. So they put his own bloodhounds on his trail. When the bloodhounds got close, Bruce could hear their baying. His attendant said, "We are done for. They are on your trail, and they will reveal your hiding place." Bruce replied, "It's all right."

Then he headed for a stream that flowed through the forest. He plunged in and waded upstream a short distance. When he came out on the other bank, he was in the depths of the forest. Within minutes, the hounds, tracing their master's steps, came to the bank. They went no farther. The English soldiers urged them on, but the trail was broken. The stream had carried the scent away.

A short time later, the crown of Scotland rested on the head of Robert Bruce. The memory of our sins, prodded on by Satan, can be like those baying dogs--but a stream flows, red with the blood of God's own Son. By grace through faith we are safe. No sin-hound can touch us. The trail is broken by the precious blood of Christ. "The purpose of the cross," someone observed, "is to repair the irreparable." - E. Lutzer.

We trample the blood of the Son of God if we think we are forgiven because we are sorry for our sins. The only explanation for the forgiveness of God and for the unfathomable depth of His forgetting is the death of Jesus Christ. Our repentance is merely the outcome of our personal realization of the atonement which He has worked out for us. It does not matter who or what we are; there is absolute reinstatement into God by the death of Jesus Christ and by no other way, not because Jesus Christ pleads, but because He died.

It is not earned, but accepted. All the pleading which deliberately refuses to recognize the Cross is of no avail; it is battering at a door other than the one that Jesus has opened. Our Lord does not pretend we are all right when we are all wrong. The atonement is a propitiation whereby God, through the death of Jesus, makes an unholy man holy. - Oswald Chambers.

Wow! Now that our hearts are beating regularly, let’s consider what we have just read over a cup of Java, and ask the Lord to help us by the power of the Holy Spirit, to forgive others, as He has forgiven us.

Loving Father, I thank you for the beautiful weekend that I have just had. Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit to start off this week, by taking on board, some of the advice and inspirations that I have just read. In the wonderful and mighty name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged!
GBYAY