Answered Prayer?

Have you ever prayed a prayer, and then when God answered it you knew that it was an answer, but it wasn't the answer you were looking for. I have had times in my life when I prayed prayers only to have God answer those prayers within minutes or hours, causing me to actually wonder why I prayed as I did. Did I pray foolishly? Of course not. I believe there are times in our lives when God gets us to a point where we have to give it all to Him. Often times we go through these moments numerous times. It seems that we give God everything, but over a period of time seem to take some of it back. We have to constantly keep check, making sure that we know that we should give it all to God. Lord, use me. Many times I pray that nothing in my life would be a roadblock. I want my life to be wholly open to God and His service. I want to give it all to Him. I'll be honest, I would rather give it to Him than have Him take it. Search your life, make sure that there is nothing you are holding back from the Lord. It is much less painful for us to give it to Him than for Him to have to take it.

We thank the Lord for the missions conference we were blessed to be a part of at Southview Baptist Church Statesville, NC last week. Pray for the church as they strive to do great things for the cause of Christ. Praise the Lord, they promised to take us on a church planters and support us for the next year. What a blessing. Many of the folks there promised to pray for us and that means a great deal. Tonight, I have the privilege of teaching at Fundamental Baptist Bible College in Statesville, NC. This is the college I attended and where I earned my Master's Degree. It is a great school. Pray that we have a great class. Tomorrow night, we will be at New Hope Baptist Church in Walnut Cove, NC. We are looking forward to a great time there. Please keep us in your prayers as we travel. I must admit, with each passing day deputation grows a little more weary and I become a little more ready to get busy about the business the Lord has called us to. However, I know that God's time is not my time and we must be faithful to the task He has given us. Thanks again for your prayers and we look foward to hearing from you.

Disappointment and Recommitment

Often times while on deputation, we are only around church people. This is obviously our circle of life at this present time. We are not just around church people, but we visit some of the best churches in the world. When you are surrounded by this circle, it is often times easy to forget just how wicked the world around us truly is. Sure, we know that certain groups of people and certain areas are wicked, but to realize how bad things are close to us. Recently, it seems as if I have been reminded of this. I have watched in several different examples of things that remind me just how badly this world needs a Saviour. I am certainly not talking about religion, for you see, many times religion is involved. I am however, talking about a Saviour. It seems in recent days that I have watched as a group of people were attacked for taking a stand for what is right, and then suffered as false accusations were railed against them publicly. I have watched as people compromised in ways that I would have never imagined they would. I have watched as men of God have fallen out in the last laps of their ministry. I see these things and I have to admit, I am disappointed for our Saviour. It seems as though my heart breaks for the Lord. If these things hurt me, how much more do they hurt Him.
In spite of disappointment, I must also admit that I have been fired up. It seems that there burns within me a greater desire to do right than ever before. I desire to live above reproach, to draw closer to my Lord, and to be an example more than ever before. I am also committed to finishing strong. I don't want to fall out in the final stages of my ministry. I don't want to be a casualty in the Lord's army. Would you help me pray that my family would be strong and secure in the service of the Lord? Dear friend, there is a battle going on today, and it is one that we MUST win. Would you be my strength in the midst of the battle?

I must apologize for the delay in between posts. One thing I was afraid of when I started the blog is that I wouldn't have anything exciting to say to update it enough. We are currently in Statesville, NC at a missions conference that will last through Sunday. Please pray that the Lord would greatly bless while here. We have had great meetings in the past weeks and are excited about what the Lord is doing and is going to do in the days ahead.