False Prophet

 I received a letter in the mail. A letter from a so-called prophet to the United States. It piqued my curiosity. I started reading. Here is the first line, "If this gets thru the filters all the way to the senior pastor, I just want you know what crud you are." 

You probably noticed the word thru was misspelled. That was not the only misspelled word THROUGH the four pages worth of supposed prophetic words. The author is not fond of pastors. More than once he used profanity such as a-- and da--. He calls pastors out for not preaching about the coming judgment of God. I guess he has is not aware of our prophecy class where all these things are touched on week after week. 

Suffice it to say I do not believe this man is a prophet. God does not misspell words or needs to use profanity to get His point across. It saddens me if anyone follows this man. He appears to me to be a self-appointed prophet. 

Do I believe God can still reveal His word to prophets? Maybe I am in the minority, but I do. Now having said that, I cannot tell you that I have ever been around a prophet or received a credible word from the Lord from a prophet. 

There is a biblical litmus test for prophetic ministry. Did the prophecy come true? If not, such prophets were stoned in the Old Testament. Anybody can claim to be a prophet these days. People flock to hear them, read them, and follow them. It does not matter if the prophecies come true. 

True prophets hear from God. True prophecies come true. It does not take a prophet to know that God's judgment is impending. It is plainly written. We just might be the terminal generation. The last generation before the rapture and the Great Tribulation. God operates in grace now. The age of grace will come to an end. Judgment is coming. America needs to repent. To get ready before it is too late. 

You do not hear a lot of preaching about repentance these days. Preachers carefully craft messages that tickle the ears. The prophet's words in the Old Testament did not tickle the ears. Read Jeremiah, Joel, Amos, Habakkuk, and Haggai.  They heard and proclaimed hard words filled with warnings to repent or face the consequences of God's wrath. That pattern has not changed today. We need to heed prophetic words. Only not from FALSE PROPHETS!

A Silent Grief

 It felt like a punch in the gut. News both sad and shocking. It felt like a blind side hit from an NFL linebacker. I did not see it coming. Once the shock wore off the silent grief took root. I drove for a bit. I considered going to talk to a friend but talked myself out of it. I just wanted to talk to somebody, but felt I had nobody but Brenda with whom I could bear my soul. I returned to the office and tried to study. I could not concentrate. 

The grief slowly built throughout the day. The pain welling up in my stomach. Part of me wishes I could weep it out, but after decades in ministry I have learned to toughen up under bad news and press forward. It hurts. Press down the tears. Keep a stiff upper lip. 

Before you start letting your imagination run wild, nobody has done anything to my family. The source of grief was some bad news that hit hard concerning people I love very much. There is nothing I can do to change the situation. I am left alone in this office to process this information through the filter of God and His word. They alone sustain me. 

A heartfelt prayer. A promise read and received make all the difference. I will have to hold the grief down inside as I trudge through the duties of the day. It is interesting how one piece of bad news can cut like a knife. Before receiving that news I had a great start to the day. Now I sit like a wounded animal cornered in this office licking the wounds of a pained heart. 

Maybe this is too honest. Too raw for some to handle. Many personify me as tough, bold, confident and other things. Maybe I am those things. I am also a pastor. To put that another way, I am a shepherd at heart. I love and care about people. When people I love hurt, I feel a measure of their pain. Most people do not see this side of me. It is mainly reserved for private visits, private counseling appointments and out of the spot light ministry like interceding for others. 

Pastors carry many hidden scars from the griefs they bear on behalf of their flocks. Pastors labor in fields of death, disease, prodigals, backsliders, miscarriages, divorce and other unpleasant things parishioners go through. Many pastors live with a heavy heart. It is a calling from God. I love being a pastor. Next to Jesus and my family, the flock God has entrusted to me is my third great love. That means I will hurt when they hurt. I will grieve silently from time to time. God is faithful to pull me through as I know He is able and willing to do for each of you. Psalm 34:18-19. 

My Prayer for Spring Creek

 Ephesians 1:17-18 (NASB)

¹⁷  that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.
¹⁸  I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 

I pray Father that you would reveal yourself to the Spring Creek flock. That you would show more and more of yourself to those wonderful people. They need more than sermons and studies. They need encounters and fresh revelation of you. I pray you would increase their hunger for those things. 

I pray you also open the eyes of their hearts enlightening them to your greatness. May they also be enlightened to what is the hope they have in being called by you to salvation. A glorious eternal inheritance that surpasses any and all riches this world can offer. May they remember that inheritance on the hard days. May it inspire them to finish the race you have set before them and not to lose heart and quit. 

I pray those revelations and enlightenments will fuel a growing passion and fervor to know you and to serve you. In your name, Jesus, amen. 

The Riches of Grace

 Ephesians 1:7-8 (NASB)

⁷  In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace
⁸  which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 

We sinners needed help out of our wayward pitiful condition. We were held hostage by sin and the Devil. That is when God sent Jesus to pay the ransom and rescue us. Those who have experienced such a wonderful salvation may have a hard time getting over it. May God never let us get over it. 

Our ransom payment for redemption, while free to us, did not come cheaply. It required a blood sacrifice. The very sinless Son of God made a propitiation for our sin. His death and blood atoned for our guilt. We did not deserve it. We could never earn it. We were on a collision course with the wrath of God. Through the shed blood of Jesus, we not only have redemption, but we are also forgiven. Pardoned. 

All of this a result of the riches of His grace. The words riches can also be translated as abundance. The abundance of His kindness, favor, benefit, and free gift. We sum all that up in the word grace. What a wonderful word for those of us who have experienced it. 

God did not cheaply dribble grace on sinners. He lavished it out. To put that another way, He let it overflow, run over, and abound. From start to finish it is through God's grace that we are saved, sustained and will persevere to the end. Paul also promotes grace in Eph 2:8-9. 

Grace has fallen on the people of God like a waterfall. His grace is like being drenched in a rain shower. It is like being overwhelmed by a wave in the ocean. It runs over our lives like coffee spilling out of the cup because it is full. His grace flows through us like a river. 

That is why there are so many hymns written about grace. So much of Paul's writings are laced with grace. And grace will lead us all the way home. Praise God for the riches of His grace. 

Chosen

 The memory is etched in my mind like words in granite. My family had just moved. It was the first day of school. More importantly to me, it was the first day on the playground. We were playing my favorite sport football. Two team captains started choosing their teams. I was eager to show what I had. I waited impatiently to see which team would benefit from my skills. One after another was chosen. Looking around I noticed the remaining players to be chosen was dwindling. It happened. I was the very last person chosen. Somebody had to pick me as the last player, but I could tell the captain chose me begrudgingly. I resolved to prove my worth. 

Totally embarrassed I resolved I would show my skills on the field. When you are the new kid, nobody throws you a pass. I did get one. My plan was to catch it and go score. I can still see the ball coming my direction. I put out my hands to receive the pass and turned up field to run to the end zone. I dropped it. Muffled. Bobbled. The ball bounced off my stone hands. I totally failed. Being the last kid chosen left a deep imprint on my psyche. 

Ephesians 1:3-4 (NASB)
³  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
⁴  just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love

The word chose means to "pick or select." I am so thankful that when God picks His team, He does not select us based on our talents, skills, abilities, or performance. He chooses us because of His love. Pure and undefiled love. 

Even in our sinful nature He saw the potential for what we could be through His transforming power. He made us holy and righteous. We did not earn it. We did not attain it. We could never do enough to achieve it. It was all based on His grace and redeeming love. 

I remember what it felt like as a child not to be chosen.  I felt insecure, unsure, and suffered a lack of confidence. I also know what it means to be chosen by God to be a part of His family. Like He picked me for adoption. The dirty sullen boy in the corner of the orphanage. I had nothing to offer God, but He had everything to offer me through adoption through His son Jesus. I am humbled by it. I am also secure that I have a seat at His table. 

I had nothing to offer. A young, sullen, angry, and unholy young man. I could curse with the best of them. Was all too willing to fight anyone. My life was far from holy. When God surveyed the masses, there were certainly better people. He targeted me in 1983 in that football stadium. There were hundreds of others there that night. He picked me. He added me to His family and a couple years later as one of His chosen preachers. I am still humbled and grateful for all of it. That one night in October of 1983 when Jesus saved me changed the whole trajectory of my life. 

There is an old song we used to sing in our youth group. Part of the lyrics are; I owed a debt I could not pay, He paid a debt He did not owe, I needed someone to wash my sins away. Now I sing a brand new song amazing grace every day, Jesus paid the debt that I could never pay. 

I'm so thankful that He picked me not based on my performance. I have failed Him numerous times. I have also surrendered my life to Him. After all these years I am still blessed and thrilled to be chosen. It makes me love Him more and want to bring others to Him. Thank the Lord He still chooses to pick people to add to His family and team. May His family never quit expanding. 

He is Able

 For regular readers of this blog, it has been noticed I have not written and posted for a while. Life has been busy. In constant motion. It has been challenging to study for all the weekly messages. I just did not have time nor inspiration to write anything here. Some of my time was taken trying to finish this new book project. 

Now that is behind me, and I can breathe a little easier. I desire to reconnect with readers. God has done so much over the past weeks I have not put into print. Some of them are astounding. He has shown Himself faithful to the Edwards family over and over again. 

There have been tests of faith, namely in the form of car repairs. That is part of life. Engines break down. Ours all seemed to do so about the same time. Each time, God made provision for those repairs. It has been something to behold. 

We also faced another financial challenge. We needed $6,000 for Turner's tuition this semester by today. Last year he received several local scholarships from his high school to pay for his first year. He does not have those anymore. It has been a matter of prayer. Not a matter of stress. We turned it over to God. 

God did what He has done for my family so many other times. A couple from another town contacted Brenda informing her that they had come into some unexpected money and wanted to know if we had any needs. This is very uncomfortable question. It seems we always have needs. When people ask me that question, I give the same answer. I tell people to pray about it and let God direct them. He is able to do that. This couple was moved by God to send us $6,300 to pay Turner's tuition this semester. Only God could have put us on their mind. Only God could have blessed them with extra money they were willing to share. That couple lives several hours from us. I have not seen either of them in a couple of years. Brenda recently saw them on a trip. Why would God bring us to their minds when we rarely see them? God did it to glorify His name and to meet another need in our lives. Glory to God. 

A faithful God does not fail His children. I love getting to brag on Him. He has done so much for the Edwards. How can we doubt Him. Something I confess I've done so repeatedly over the years. That is until the past year or so. I refuse to worry and stress over financial trials. God has all the provision any of us will ever need. I let go and let God come through in His time when and how He sees fit. I trust Him. He has not failed us yet. 

No matter the size of the mountain He is able to move it. No matter the amount of the bill He is able to provide it. No matter the cause of ill health He is able to heal it. He can save the most notorious of sinners. He can make the things become reality that are not. He is able. More than able to handle whatever you are facing today. 

Ephesians 3:20-21 (NASB)
²⁰  Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us,²¹  to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. 

Take heart reader. What God has done for my family and many others He can also do for you. He is able. Able to do far more abundantly than any of us can ask or think. May your faith be strengthened in your current trials. He will not fail you. 

A Dream Come True

 I have always been a dreamer since a child. I have seen many of them come true. Like marrying Brenda. Like having sons, even though I never dreamed we would have four. The dream of owning our own home which has happened three times. The dream of coming back to Spring Creek as pastor. I dreamed of writing books. I wrote my first one titled Swimming in the Bathtub. Several volunteers spent an entire night copying the pages of that book on a copy machine and spiral binding them. That was way back in 1998. I gave most of them away. 

My next book titled Only Believe was put into book form. I could only afford to print 500 of them and they have long been out of print. The book focused on faith. The following year I wrote another book titled, Life on the Altar. We were able to print 1,000 of those copies. It is also out of print. 

I did not write another one for several years. In 2008 I published Behold the Faithfulness of God. I still recall when the book arrived. It was a Wednesday night in Paradise, TX. I had just finished teaching when I saw the truck arrive. Several men helped me unload those boxes of books. 5,000 in total. In 2022 I still have several boxes of those books left and I give them away in our visitor bags. 

The next book, Sitting with the Savior, can still be purchased at Amazon and through Xulon Publishing. The book is compiled of different blogs I wrote over the years. I call them meditations for life. It did not sell very well. 

My next book Weeping for a Night lived a short shelf life. The publishing company went out of business, and I no longer have any physical copies of the book. The book is about suffering. It had favorable reviews until the publishing company folded. 

After that last book I really had no desire to write another one. I contented myself to write these blogs. I It was so much easier. Less decisions like trim size, font, front and back cover designs and marketing. No money to raise. The blogs can reach around the world. 

In 2020 I felt stirred to write the next book. Maybe a better way to put it is I felt compelled to write it. It was to be a book on prayer. I made great initial progress, but a crisis of faith brought the project to a halt for the second half of 2020 and most of 2021. I picked it up again on a writing retreat at the end of 2021. Since then, I have been working with Xulon Publishing to get the book into print. 

That has been a challenging process. There have been numerous hoops to jump through. Editing. Brian Snow helped me immensely through the editing process in addition to his teaching and coaching duties. Then the Xulon team edited the manuscript some more.  Choosing the trim size, font, chapter lay outs, cover designs, and typeset edits. When I first went over the Xulon initial edits to approve, I lost the work. Eight hours of intensive meticulous reading, correcting, and rewording. I HATE THIS PART OF THE BOOK WRITING PROCESS. I did everything I could not to have to do it. I still had to begrudgingly to approve the edits Xulon made. When I forgot to save that work, my heart sunk. I could not bring myself to do all that work again. One month turned into two, three, and four. I finally buckled down and yesterday morning finished the typeset corrections. It took the better part of a week and several early mornings at this computer. Now we are one step closer to the dream coming true. 

The title of the book is Prayer: Ministry from the Secret Place. Much of what God has taught me about prayer over the past several decades is packed in the pages. While I do not have a definitive time as to the release of the book, I know that we have crossed the last hurdle with the typeset edits finished and approved. It won't be long. 

I have dedicated all the money from book sales to go toward funding the Spring Creek Community Park our church is in the process of planning for the Spring Creek Community. It is an ambitious project which will end up costing several hundred thousand dollars when it is completed. It is our gift to the Spring Creek Community. That is another dream we long to see come true. God still makes dreams come true. Soon I will hold my dream of this book in my hands. For that I praise God and rejoice that He still makes dreams come true even for this aging preacher.