*Volume 76 *No. 03 *Published by Christian Triumph Co. *Permit # 695 * MAR 2012
Contents: A Clean Heart. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2 Burning the Midnight Oil . . . . . . . . . . 3 When God Calls by Byrum Lee. . . . . 4 The Key to Victory. . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 - 6 Article by Anita……..…. . . . . . . . . . . . 7
“I can never be lost to Your Spirit!... If I ride the morning winds To the farthest oceans, Even there Your hand will guide me, Your strength will support me.” Psa. 139 TLB By Tyndale House Publishers
“A Clean Heart” Dr. Leroy E. Lindsey, Jr. I was teaching the doctrine of sanctification at a new Methodist seminary in Venezuela, when a pastor sitting in the front row of the classroom, interrupted the class by jumping to his feet and exclaiming to me and to the entire class, “That is what I want! That is what I need!” We were discussing the topic of a clean heart, its necessity, its possibility, and its purpose. Immediately I knew that this was no time to insist on following the lesson plan. The Holy Spirit was moving on the hearts of the students that week in theology class. So I suggested the students make an altar of prayer right there where they were seated. We had an altar call that lasted over half an hour as students prayed, wept, called on the Lord, and found that the Holy Spirit not only brings joy but also cleansing! Pastors as well as laymen believed God to give them a clean heart. Lives were transformed, ministries changed directions, churches revived. When sharing the topic, teaching or preaching, questions come up like: What is a clean heart? Who needs one? Why? Is a clean heart really possible? How do we get one? And what will life be like if we really have a clean heart? God told Moses to write the command to love the Lord with all the heart, and then promised that He would do a cleansing work in that heart to make it possible (Deut. 30:6). Pg 2
When David cried to the Lord “create in me a clean heart”, was he speaking of something unattainable? Jesus included “the pure in heart” in the Beatitudes. Was He just speaking in terms of an ideal, or can we assume the possibility (with the transforming power of His grace) that such persons may exist? Does God demand the impossible? Does He promise something He will not, or cannot do? Do we hope for something in this life that is only possible once we leave this earth? One thing we do need to admit— outside the grace of God, in a condition of necessity, “the heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure” (Jeremiah 17:9 NIV). But is that the end of the story? The Bible describes in awful detail our need (sickness, death, rebellion, uncleanness and idols in the heart) so that we will turn to the only source of remedy for that need. The Wesley’s sang in Charles’ hymns: Lord, I despair myself to heal; I see my sin, but cannot feel; Speak, gracious Lord, My sickness cure, Make my infected nature pure.
Saviour of the sin-sick soul Give me faith to make me whole. Finish thy great work of Grace. Cut it short in righteousness. Speak the second time “Be clean!” Take away my inbred sin. Every stumbling block remove; Cast it out by Perfect Love. - Charles Wesley
The Christian Triumph delegation to Peru in August of 2011 had the privilege to work together with Dr. Leroy Lindsey at the Pastor’s Conference in Granja Porcon. Dr. Lindsey is currently an itinerant missionary-professional associated with the One Mission Society and an international speaker for the Francis Asbury Society, which was founded by internationally renown author and evangelist Dr. Dennis Kinlaw. The mission of the Society is to promote the Biblical message of holiness. Faith Messenger Permit #695
Desperate for a remedy, we can only find it in the Great Physician. No one can heal the heart’s condition but the One who made it, and the One who gave His life-blood to cleanse it (1 John 1:7). Did we get this cleansing when we were saved, or do we need to look for another work? Our holiness heritage taught us to look for a “second blessing”, a second work of grace. Not a third or a fourth, but a definite second! The cleansing, purifying work of the Holy Spirit in our heart by faith (Acts 15:9). The generations of stalwart defenders of the faith who have gone before us, who not only preached the necessity and the possibility of a clean heart, but also lived it out in daily life, inspire us, and renew the call to keep the flame alive and burning brightly. God’s Word makes it clear: “Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? ... He who has clean hands and a pure heart”
Published monthly, except July and August. POSTMASTER SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO: Christian Triumph Company 905 Bluntzer P.O. Box 5187 Corpus Christi, Texas 78405 L.Y. Janes, Founder (deceased); Israel Hernandez, President; William Anderson, Vice-President; Fred Pena, 2nd Vice-President; Diana Beletic, Secretary/Treasurer; Una Collins, Asst. Sec./Treas. This periodical is issued without charge in the name of the Lord Jesus to help inspire child-like faith and maintain Christ-like simplicity among the people of God. To send donations or for your FREE SUBSCRIPTION, write to the address above or contact Christian Triumph Co. at christiantriumph@yahoo.com. Or see us on the web at ChristianTriumph.org
(Psalm 24:3)!
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Burning the Midnight Oil by Walking Man Narciso Zamora Missionary and Friend Last night we visited three churches up in the mountains. I went to two in towns and Pastor Jorge from Chota visited one out in the countryside. The congregations were very happy to receive teaching and our help. We took tracts and 30 copies of Mensajero de Esperanza for each congregation. We got home at 12:30 a.m. this morning. This weekend, I’m traveling to Bambamarca and from there into the mountains to visit some other small groups and to receive a new group of brothers who wants to join in our fellowship. New post on Walking Man.ws
Thanks to Donna Schillinger, granddaughter of Evelyn Anderson, for translating Narciso’s information. While helping Narciso in Peru last year, Donna expressed an interest to Narciso in sharing Sunday school materials for a children’s ministry. When he finally saw the materials and watched the teachers use them, he understood their benefit. Then he wanted Donna and helpers to come back to do a complete workshop on them. A MISSOURI PRAYER MEETING
(For logging on to Narciso’s Blogs: At WalkingMan.ws there is on the right a thing that says Keep in Step with the Walking Man; then it has a little bar where you are supposed to enter your email. Click Sign Me Up under it. Then you will get an email and you have to confirm your subscription to Narciso’s blogs.)
It was a privilege to sit in a restful home with a group of faithful prayer warriors. The atmosphere was friendly and even warmed by a lovely fireplace. The women from the Brandsville Church of God were meeting together to pray for the ministry of the church and the needs of others as well as themselves. Just like family, they began sharing their personal experiences of the day, sometimes with laughter, sometimes with concern and then moving on to their burdens and requests for neighbors, family, and friends. The pleasant conversation was intermingled with dreams and visions for their church, expressing ideas and ways of reaching out to individuals in the community. The call to minister to others is one that we all share. Missions are local as well as foreign and often begin at home. Ephesians 4 reminds us that “We are all parts of One body, we have the same Spirit, and we have all been called to the same glorious future….however, Christ has given each of us special abilities- whatever He wants us to have out of His rich storehouse of gifts.” TLB In serving or in praying, we are all working together to spread the Good News: P4
Narciso mentioned in an email that he is sending out the Mensajero (Spanish Gospel newspaper) and tracts and is saving money by sending packages with people as they travel, versus using shipping (which is actually cheap anyway – Christian Triumph only paid $47.00 for the Mensajero to go out to all of Peru last quarter.) Please remember Narciso as he is going to a planning session next week in Chota, where they will have the next annual convention on the 2-4 of August. The theme is A Healthy and Holy Church. At the last convention, there were 11 churches represented but now the region has 20. They have spent a good part of the fall doing church planting and evangelism. Read his blogs to learn more. 3
“God [declares each person] ‘not guilty’ – if we trust Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, by coming to Christ, no matter who we are or what we have been like.” Romans 3:21-22 TLB
And in the end, to God's demands he had to agree. When God calls for workers in his kingdom today. The harvest is white, but the laborers are few. So Christ said, that for workers we should pray, And then be willing, for whatever he asks us to do.
Editor
Byrum C. Lee: 12/2010
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The Key to Victory in 2012 "Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13-14) The Key The key to victory in 2012 is Philippians 3:13-14. Paul was using the illustration of a race to describe his life. He was in the home stretch, but he was still running the race; the race wasn't over. The first thing we need to notice is that Paul was not satisfied with his performance. No runner worth his salt is ever satisfied with his performance. He always wants to go a little faster, a little longer or a little harder. Each runner wants to continually improve himself. and Paul was the same. He said, "I have not apprehended it yet." NOT YET! Right behind this conjunction is one of Paul's secrets to living: THIS ONE THING I DO! It's the only time this particular phrase is used in the New Testament. Single-minded concentration on the things of God is essential to running the race of Christianity. You cannot be dwelling on other things as an athlete and give your best performance. Therefore, Paul says "one thing I do." What is this "One Thing I Do"? "Forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." That's the key for victory in the Christian life. That's the key for victory in 2012.
WHEN GOD CALLS When God calls for you some difficult task to do, He won't place on you unreasonable demands, And he'll equip you for the task he's given to you, Only asking, as of Moses, “What's that in your hand?” God knows both your abilities and your limitations, So you don't need to recite reasons why you can't, Since he probably won't accept your protestations, And the reprieve you request he isn't likely to grant. God only asks that you make yourself available, Obedient, ready and willing, to follow his call. And using what you have, he can make you able To conquer any task, or knock down any wall. Moses' assignment was that to Egypt he return, And tell Pharaoh, God says to let my people go; A task that would cause Moses no little concern. But if God asks it, that's all one needs to know. True enough, Pharaoh proved to be very stubborn, For he was unwilling, all those slaves to set free. But after many plagues, hard lessons he would learn,
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Satan will want to remind you and make you feel guilty for your past mistakes – but God says: "Forget Them. I HAVE"!
Paul had learned that we have to lock the door on yesterday and throw away the key. Paul discovered that looking back almost always ends up in going back. Let me repeat that... Looking back almost always ends up in going back. In the Old Testament we find the wandering Israelites ready to return to their old ways rather than pressing on. In the New Testament Jesus clearly taught us in Luke 9:62 that "no man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for God's Kingdom."
2. YESTERDAY'S HURTS Life is a battlefield. You're a soldier in God's Army. On any battleground, injuries will occur and soldiers are going to get hurt. Sooner or later, someone is going to ... hurt you. ... lie about you ... verbally or physically harm you ... misrepresent you ... chop you up in little pieces ... slander you It's going to happen--what do you do? You have two choices: 1. Allow the resentment and hate to build 2. Forgive and Forget A. Forgive as Christ forgave you - just as He forgave the Roman soldiers who didn't know what they were doing. B. Forget those things that are behind you (Phil. 3:13)
FOUR THINGS WE NEED TO FORGET: 1. YESTERDAY'S MISTAKES In his book "ENCOURAGE ME", Chuck Swindoll has a chapter entitled, "The Fine Art of Blowing It". It begins like this, "It happens to every one of us. Teachers as well as students. cops as well as criminals. Bosses as well as secretaries. Parents as well as kids. The diligent as well as the lazy. Not even presidents are immune. Or corporation heads who earn sixfigure salaries. The same is true of well-meaning architects and hard-working builders and clearthinking engineers... not to mention pro ball players, politicians, and preachers. What? making mistakes, that's what. Doing the wrong thing, usually with the best of motives. And it happens with remarkable regularity." Dale Carnegie has a folder entitled "FTD" It stands for "Fool Things I Have Done." Whenever he did something foolish or stupid, he would dictate a record of it to his secretary. He confesses, however, that he was so embarrassed by his stupidity that he was ashamed to have her know it. So he would write it out in longhand and slip it into the file himself. Everyone makes mistakes. Everybody does stupid, foolish things. God's Word says: "forget it" - leave them behind you. There are 3 things we should do about yesterday's mistakes: 1. Learn from them 2. Determine with God's help not to do them again 3. Forget them.
You might be saying, but David ... You don't Understand. ... You don't understand what's happened to me. ... You don't know how bad I've been hurt. ... I was innocent. ... I didn't do anything wrong, but they hurt me. ... They lied about me. ... They hurt my feelings and they didn't care. ... They criticized me when I didn't do anything wrong. ... They talked about me behind my back. ... They cheated me, they rejected me, and they hurt me really bad. God understands. Jesus was innocent, but they beat him, they tortured him, they mocked him, they crucified him. He didn't deserve it, but they did it anyway. On the cross, He forgave them. On the cross, He provided salvation for even those who beat him, who mocked him, who crucified him. In order to press on in the Christian life, we P6 5
those things. Paul had learned the secret. There are some things in our memory that we will never forget. We have to keep practicing forgetting...
have to lock the door on yesterday's hurts. 3. YESTERDAY'S POSSIBILITIES How often do I see people unable to operate in today because they are still living a "what if" life of yesterday. They keep talking about "what could have been"--"if I had only..."
Guilt will eat us alive. Every time the memory comes back, every time a song or a word or a smell or a picture or a person reminds us, we continue to practice forgetting. How long do we practice forgetting? ... until the memory doesn't hurt any more. ... until we allow God to forgive us ... until we allow God to forgive through us ... until the pain is no longer there ... until we can use our past to help us grow in the present ... until we can use our past to help others in the present
Quite often they blame someone else ... if only my wife hadn't... ... if only my parents (children) hadn't... ... if only my business partner had... ... if only the war hadn't... They even blame God - "if God would have… or if God wouldn't have…" We can't live on yesterday's promises or yesterday's dreams. Too many people are dissatisfied with life because they've had an expectation that just hasn't worked out. Paul is saying - forget your past hurts, forget your past mistakes and forget living with what might have been and finally... 4. YESTERDAY'S SINS Billy Graham once said that 60% of all the patients in mental hospitals could go home if they would accept the fact that they are not guilty or that they have been forgiven.
God says in Jeremiah 31:34 "I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more." Psalm 103:12 "I will remove their sin as far as the east is from the west." I John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Many people are carrying a burden of guilt: ... A past mistake ... A moral failure ... A painful cut to a friend ... A physical hurt to someone ... A stupid, hateful remark ... A poor decision ... A sin so horrible that they believe either God will not forgive them or they will not forgive themselves ***There is no sin, no matter how great or small, once it has been confessed and forgiven, that the memory of it should torment us no more. Let me repeat that: When sin, no matter how great or how grievous, has been confessed and forgiven, the memory of it should not torment us any more!
It's time to: Lock the Door on the Past! Throw Away the Key! Forget Where You Have Thrown It! Adapted from a sermon by David Langerfeld dlangerfeld@harrisburgbaptist.org To receive The Daily Encourager FREE each weekday, click on the following link: http://go.netatlantic.com/read/all_forums/subscribe ?name=thedailyencourager
Notice, Paul didn't say, "I've forgotten those things which are behind.” Paul said, forgetting 6
Obedience to our Lord, in small ways and in the willingness to change, brings positive results. Once when Jesus asked His disciples if they had “any meat…”, they answered him that they did not. But then they listened as He told them to “Cast the net on the right side of the ship…” And in being willing to try again, simply because Jesus asked them to, they pulled forth a net that was filled to the brim with multitudes of fish. John 21: 5-6. What better results could our methods have if we prayed to our Father, “Lord, here am I, use me and Thy will be done.”
:”…When the Father sends the Comforter instead of Me – and by the Comforter I mean the Holy Spirit – He will teach you much, as well as remind you of everything I myself have told you.” - Jesus
Sent with Love - by Anita (Please remember both Anita and Gerald as they face a serious health issue.)
John 14:26
---------------------------------------------------------Prayer Request: Please remember Diana, Sec./Treas. at Christian Triumph. She is still recuperating from a wreck and further medical treatments.
Not long ago I was sweeping leaves and litter that had collected on the porch. When I got to the door step, some had lodged in an area that made it difficult to get loose. Finally after turning the broom the other way, out came the debris - simple little thing but that was what it took!
Please remember Glenice in her illness. Please pray for her sister who so faithfully stays by her side. Our prayers are for the many that need Jesus as their Savior. Time is passing quickly, and life on this earth will soon be over.
Sometimes we just focus on one way and, perhaps, we think that we are right in our approach, thus failing to even try a different way, which just might benefit our attempts.
Please remember Evelyn Anderson and her sister, Edith Compton, as they both complete their days of faithful work for the Master.
If our best efforts do not accomplish our purpose, then just maybe another look might reveal a more adequate method or technique.
“O Lord, You have examined my heart
The little phrase “little things mean so much” describes a humility and willingness to look, listen and learn how best to serve our Loving God.
And know everything about me. …every moment You know where I am. You both precede and follow me,
In ministering to others, a kind tone of voice may completely change a hurtful situation. Even a smile can bring encouragement and hope in sadness and despair.
And place Your hand of blessing on my head.” Psa. 139 TLB THANK YOU for reading the Faith Messenger. God bless and keep you.
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Faith Messenger A publication of Christian Triumph Company 905 Bluntzer PO BOX 5187 Corpus Christi, TX 78465
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Precious Lord, Take my hand, Lead me on, Help me stand ... Lead me Home. Thomas A. Dorsey George N. Allen
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