"Why Can't I Fix This?"

Useless Drawers

Your probably wondering how in the world this title could connect with our lives and we will get back to this a little later. I'd first like to share something I observed one day. If you have children you certainly will be able to relate!

It was in the afternoon of a nice peaceful fall day and the wind was blowing as a middle aged man sat on a wooden swing with his child and two of his grandchildren, while singing kids songs and just having a good time. About that time his older daughter, the mother of the two children came walking up and he invited her to sit on the bench with them and she said that her leg was hurting and she couldn't sit down on the bench right now. The younger daughter then said something, as sisters sometimes do, that sparked a harsh comment back in return and the mother of the two kids walked away. When things had calmed a bit, the father still sitting on the swing talked to the younger daughter and encouraged her to go apologize for hurting her sisters feelings. At first she wouldn't agree to do it, but she eventually thought it through and realized that it was the best way to bring peace to her relationship and it would give her inner peace as well. I watched as she walked over to her sister and said she was sorry, but it wasn't immediately received with gratitude. She walked back to her father and said, "See, it didn't matter." Her father just told her to give it time. Sure enough, about five minutes later the older daughter came over and after a few exchanges of looks she warmed right back up to her sister! God worked in that little sisters heart.

Isn't it amazing how much difference it makes when someone is willing to humbly apologize for something they have said or done? How many of us have thought, "If they had just came back and apologized or said they were sorry for what they had done, I could have some peace about what happened."

I was working on some things for a woman one day and one of the things that she had on her list was to see if I could get the drawers to open and close in a cabinet she had in her utility room. So I took a look at them and sure enough they were not very easy to use. I admit that they were probably about forty years old and most people would discard a cabinet this old and just buy another, but she preferred to keep this one. It was fine and built better than cabinets today, but it had some problems that needed working out. It had a dull coat of paint of which I had already sanded and painted with two coats of nice shiny paint. Still these drawers really caused the upper part of this cabinet to be useless as they were.

In my younger years I was fortunate to work a while with some of those old time carpenters that taught me a few tricks of the trade and one of those things that I had learned was how to get things to glide when they were stuck. There was something that all of those older carpenters kept stashed away in their work pouches. They always kept a small piece of paraffin wax. They used it for pretty much everything that didn't work like it should. I was amazed when I first saw it and how easy it was to use. I thought for sure that this must be a very expensive product but I soon found out that it was cheap enough for most anyone to afford.

As I remembered this, I realized that I must find some of this wax and use it on the wooden glides that the drawers were resting on. I thought to myself, I better make sure those drawers will open before I go looking for wax. It was extremely difficult but I finally worked them all loose and guess what I found inside of one of the drawers? You probably guessed it; a box of the very wax we used many years ago to solve the sticking issues! It sat there in that drawer and I could tell that it may have been as old as the cabinet itself was. I was very surprised and I immediately thought about how close the solution was to the problem but the drawers just couldn't do it, nor could the wax do anything about it. It took the hand of the master carpenter to take the wax out of the box and to apply it to the proper areas for the drawers to glide and work like a charm.

Isn't that how it is sometimes on our lives? If we look inside, we might find that we have a kind heart, a good attitude, a giving spirit but sometimes things happen in our lives that cause us to become less functional or that hold us from doing all that we were meant to do in life. We even know it, but the fact that there was never a resolution or peace made following the difficult times in our life is enough to make it difficult to function as we normally would.

It is amazing how the example of these sticky drawers apply to our lives! We get stuck and we know we have inside what we need to fix the problem but we can't seem to do it on our own sometimes! It takes the hand of the Master to take what we know and apply it to our lives so that we can function to our full capacity and it is there that we not only bring others enjoyment and blessings, but we also find joy and contentment in fulfilling our God given purpose in life! Call on God for the working of the Holy Spirit in your life today. He is waiting to take His will and apply it to our life, so that we can become fully functional throughout our remaining years on earth! Don't waste a day my friend!

Let's read a few verses of truth written by James, a servant of God! Let the words soak into your heart and let the Master's hand put it to work in your life! May God bless you in your purpose today!

Words of Wisdom

James 4:6-12 But he gives more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the humble.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
11 Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaks evil of his brother, and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law, and judges the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.
12 There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judges another?

"Improve Life In Just Two Minutes A Day"

Guaranteed Results!

As I was writing about the experience of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and how He threw His body down on the ground while pleading with His Father in Heaven; I thought about how Jesus asked that the cup be passed from Him. Jesus did not wish to drink of the suffering He was about to receive. To drink of this cup that He spoke of was to take into His very body the poison of humanity's hatred, bitterness and all that comes with our sinful nature under the control of satan.

How do you think that Jesus had avoided satan's attacks on His body while He had been on earth? Does it seem possible to be a man and not feel the temptations of our flesh? Did Jesus feel pain when he was hungry, thirsty or scraped His flesh on a sharp surface? I feel sure that He did feel these things because we read about how He related to others needs and how he ate with His disciples and was even called a wine bibber at one point those who sought to accuse Him. I believe Jesus was allowed to become total man and at the same time He was allowed to experience a total God through the power to perform miracles!

If Jesus could feel all of these things, how did He withstand the attempts of satan to appeal to His flesh and cause Him to sin? Some people just state that He couldn't sin because He was God's Son. Don't you think that satan would have known this when he tempted Jesus to turn the rocks into bread after Jesus had fasted and was without food and nourishment for days. The main point that I want to make is not that Jesus could feel everything we feel but I want to point out that whatever we feel, satan is fully aware of it! It is a power beyond our comprehension that allows satan to use our fleshly pride; the lust of our flesh and the eyes to make us weak though we might even feel stronger as men when we allow this to become our focus.

I remember in my teens how we would dare each other to do really dumb stuff sometimes and the driving force was, "Are you man enough to do it?". Well, that falls right in line with today's message. Who's man are you and how do you know the answer to this question?

How did Jesus avoid sin and how do we avoid becoming a man that belongs to satan and his ways?

Jesus spent allot of time praying and He told His disciples many times to pray and this is the key to maintaining a life without sin. Right now there are probably allot of you who are thinking, "What a minute! I am living in this flesh and I cannot help what I do as long as I am human!"

I've been hearing this allot lately in radio broadcasts and the newer church settings that it's ok if you sin, God understands and you just need to tell Him your sorry and keep going. I agree with the repenting and keeping on but the part about not being able to help it is really not what the Bible teaches us! The Bible tells us in Jesus's own words tells us to avoid sin and to abhor the lust of the flesh. He tells us that partaking of the fleshly temptations leads to destruction and death. We are told that not only will we suffer from our sins but our children and grandchildren will suffer from the things we have chosen to do wrong! I have seen some things in my children because of things I did foolishly when I was younger and following this belief that I couldn't help myself because I am human.

Today I want to share with you a way to avoid sin and it was used by followers of Christ throughout history but our perfect example was Jesus! Jesus example to us involved an exercise which we saw a clear example of in the Garden of Gethsemane! Jesus threw down His body on the ground and cried out to His father for mercy but the next thing that came out of His mouth was, "yet not my will, but your will be done" and I want us to understand today that this was about the pain, suffering and even death of His physical human body!

Jesus had to turn over every single member of His physical body in order to save from condemnation every single member of the body of Christ; His believers! We were saved by the suffering and death of Jesus so that we too could become adopted into the family of God and a member of His body here on earth.

Can we say with a clear conscience today that we are giving our physical bodies to our Lord daily?

I believe that it is a supernatural exercise to turn every member of our body over to the Lord Jesus Christ because Jesus wants to take up residence in our bodies when we do this. Try this exercise, but you must be earnest in your heart and mind as you do this and you will be surprised at the results that you will get from following through with it. It doesn't take more than two minutes to do each day. It isn't painful or stressful, though you might find yourself feeling overwhelmed with a peace and comfort in knowing that this is literally going to change your life as you feel the oneness of your flesh and the spirit of God join forces against satan. Are you ready and willing to try this exercise that Jesus performed when He prayed to His father?

It helps if you get in front of the mirror where you can see yourself. Maybe even in the morning or night when you are getting ready to take your shower. Remember that God gave you this body so don't think like Adam and Eve did, that He can't see what we cover up! God made us and we are His creations, so no matter how you may see yourself, He sees you all together lovely! Facing the mirror simply raise place your hand on your head and say,"My head belongs to God", next place your fingers on your ears and say,"My ears belong to God". Continue to your eyes, nose, mouth, shoulders, arms, hands, chest, abdomen, hips, thighs, calves, feet and I saved the private areas for last because it seems to be the thing that satan is trying to cause us to focus our attention to the most and it is important to make sure all of my other body parts are turned over to my God before I submit this part of my body to God. The importance of doing this is that the drive of our flesh cannot take us anywhere if our arms and legs are committed to Christ. The lust of the flesh is allowance by satan to take control of our bodies one member at a time! If you will try this exercise and repeat each day, you will see guaranteed supernatural results in your life!

I know this exercise may seem a bit strange at first but I truly believe that Jesus found the body and it's members of utmost importance from the time that man and woman were first created. The body must work together, otherwise we become double minded and unstable in all of our ways. I gave my heart to Christ and my life; why not give our body too?

Note: The results that you will experience from this exercise are healthy, supernatural and life changing! The things that you desire will change! It will change the way that you pray when you go to God in prayer! This exercise is recommended for adults and children of all ages.

Wisdom from the Word

James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

James 4:13 Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away.
15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
16 But now you rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.
17 Therefore to him that knows to do good, and does it not, to him it is sin.

"When We Fail, Get Back Up!"

Don't Ever, Ever, Ever Give Up!

"Have I Prayed "Yet"?"

Have You Prayed "Yet"?

Written by Robert E. Bailes

The Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John have recorded the events leading up to our Lord Jesus Christ's death and we find a combined testimony of Jesus prophesying the events to come. I believe Jesus was trying to prepare the disciples as gently as He could because it seems that they didn't see it coming, even in the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus went to pray.

When Jesus went to pray alone He asked several of His disciples to go with Him and He asked them to wait for Him but each time that He came to check on them, they were asleep! It must have been a long, exhausting day and as I said before, the disciples certainly had no idea that the solders of the high priest were coming!

I believe that the disciples would have been on alert for sure had they known about the arrest of Jesus to come. I have an idea that Peter may have been more attentive to the attitude and mood of Jesus and what He was experiencing during the hours leading up to this time. In the eighteenth chapter of John it is recorded that Peter took his sword and cut off the ear of the high priest's slave, who must have been reaching out to take hold of Jesus.

It's very likely that Peter was aiming to take off the man's arm at the shoulder and Jesus stopped his sword or perhaps Jesus raised His hand to stop Peter causing Peter to move one way or another. Either way, Peter missed the man's arm and he also missed his head! That would have been quite a mess and a story for the headlines in the Hard Rock Daily news in that day! Once again, Jesus portrays the power of God when He heals the ear of the man and saves Peter from imprisonment. Peter was a man of action and he was equipped to protect his Lord and Savior from possible danger on this day.

All of that is exciting to most of us guys but I want us to go back to the garden where Jesus took Peter, James and John, asking them to wait there and stay awake. I believe that the three disciples that Jesus chose to go with Him were fulfilling the purpose of watchmen while Jesus spent time talking with His father in prayer at this critical moment, before the judgement began. But the disciples had no idea! Jesus even told them that He was deeply grieved, even to death; remain here and keep awake. How could all three of them have fallen asleep? Jesus realized that there was no one; not even His own disciples, that he could depend on. It was time for His sacrifice and His Father in Heaven knew it must be done.

After Jesus told His disciples that He was deeply grieved, even unto death; He went a little further into the garden. The gospels tell us that He threw Himself down on the ground and prayed, "Abba, Father, for you all things are possible, remove this cup from me, yet not what I want but what you want."

The keyword in this prayer is the word "yet". At this point in Jesus prayer when He said "yet"; all that Jesus had done before and all that He was going to do in the hours ahead were kept in perfect balance in the hand of God! Really, if you think about it, it is also when Jesus gave Himself up to His Father in Heaven to become our living sacrifice so that you and I could receive His matchless mercy and grace that brings us NEW Life in Christ!

Once again we find that Jesus has demonstrated the example to us in His most difficult hour! He didn't want to go through the physical pain and the separation from those He loved but he also knew that even more than all of that, He did not want to be separated from the love of His Heavenly Father and out of communion with Him! Jesus asked His Father to save Him from the crisis; the torture; the mocking; the abuse and alienation from those He loved; "yet" not my will, BUT thy will be done", Jesus said to His Father in Heaven.

Are we willing to pray for our wishes and desires but leave the final decision to God our Father?

Matthew 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. (KJV)

Let's look at Strong's Dictionary's definition of the word "nevertheless"used in this verse in the King James Version.

The Greek word for "nevertheless" is plēn

It is pronounced plane

The definiton is from G4119; moreover (besides), that is, albeit, save that, rather, yet: - but (rather), except, nevertheless, notwithstanding, save, than.
not what I want, but what you want"

The word "yet" is another way of saying this and meaning the same thing in a way that we can understand it beter, so I have one last thing to say.

Have we prayed, "yet"? . . . . ."yet not what I want ,but what you want Father"

"Fulfilling My Desires"

Written by Robert E. Bailes

What Do You Ask For?

Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him.
Psalm 37:4,5,7.


My daughter had a fundraiser this year and she was selling magazine subscriptions to get the money needed for bleachers, which we really needed at our new location.

There was one magazine that I really liked and it was reasonably priced. I thought I had done my part when I told her that I wanted this magazine the first night she came home with the catalog. I was satisfied, my daughter was happy because she had gotten her first three orders and all was good!

She received a reward for selling three before a certain date and I thought the selling was over for us. About two weeks later, to my surprise, she began to ask me to get another subscription because she needed three more sales to get another reward and she didn't want to be one of the few in her class that didn't get it.

She was going to get a fun day at school where she would be able to get out of some classes and watch a movie and play some. I knew it would be great but I really had no interest in buying more magazines. Every day when I was worn out and it was getting late, she would once again ask me to reconsider my decision. Each night I assured her that I wasn't planning on buying any more right now. What she didn't know was that each day I came a little closer to giving in and helping her, but I would always ask her if she was still checking with everyone she had on her list. She always emphatically said, "Yes"! She really was quite convincing and I trusted her to tell me the truth so I believed she was doing her best.

My hope was that she could find the right people and they would help her fill those last three orders. This went on for over a week and eventually the pleas came with moaning and begging as she expected me to pull her out of this fix she was in and give her what she wanted. Finally the last night had come and she still needed three sales to get the reward. I have to tell you that I have never heard a child in so much misery as this child was that night. I was aware of her need and I was fully aware that she was not going to let up until I helped her with it. She believed that I had the resources to some how make this happen for her and she was persistent in her pleading. Guess what, she was able to convince me of the importance her desire to the point that I stopped everything and helped her fill those orders, which even meant my own commitment to another purchase. See, she got what she wanted, but did she really need it that bad? Probably not, if you look at it from the viewpoint of an adult. But she is living and thinking from the level of a twelve year old and I can't expect her to understand my view. She got her wish and that's all that mattered!

Isn't this how we are sometimes with our Lord in prayer? Don't we moan and groan over something we want so we can enjoy the reward that we think will bring us true happiness? Then the day after we move on to the next thing that brings us fulfillment. I'm sure it is annoying to God sometimes when we beg Him for the things of this world that have so little value in His eyes!

My daughters reward for her sales wasn't of much value in my eyes but her happiness certainly meant the world to me!

Many times the things that we beg and plea for hold little value in the eyes of our Lord and He waits patiently to see if we are going to let it go, but eventually He let's us have it knowing how temporary the fulfillment will be and hoping that we will desire something that holds more everlasting value next time. There is a story told by Jesus that illustrates this in the beginning of chapter eighteen of Luke. Most of the time we just hear the first verse when people are teaching about prayer.

Luke 18:1 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

The story that follows talks about a widow who kept asking the judge to make justice of her adversary. She asked so many times that the judge, who didn't even fear God or care about her, finally gave in and did what she asked so that she would stop bothering him.

The judge didn't really have interest in doing what she wanted but went along with her wishes to be relieved of the nagging and pleading by the widow. I believe that Jesus chose to use a widow for this part for a specific reason. I believe that she represents the people in the world who once had a relationship by believing in Christ, represented as His bride, but later chose to chase after the pleasures and desires of this world rather than building a relationship with their Lord.

The church is referred to as the bride in the scriptures. The judge, who really doesn't care about her desire to be avenged, represents the people we look to in the world for our wants and desires. We may even pray for these things to happen, but actually we are expecting someone else to help make our desires become a physical reality. Yes, it is true that dependence on people to fulfill our wishes will alienate us from our Lord and that is exactly what satan wishes to do and actually is doing right now in the lives of most people you are in contact with each day. Satan causes us to desire the things that bring temporary fulfillment and pleasure.

Why do you think people are riding down the road in their brand new cars with frowns on their faces? Why do people have money to go on vacations, yet they seldom laugh or sing? What causes people to be so sad when they have all of their desires and more to come? What do you really think causes people to feel this way? Why do even children loose their excitement the day after Christmas when we have lavished them with gifts that we could only dream of having as a child?

Jesus was making a very important point here in this simple, yet profound story about the widow and the judge.

I want to learn and remember four things through the reading of this story.

First I want to remember to seek wisdom and discernment from God when I find myself wishing for something.

Secondly, I need to be sure that the desires of my heart are in check with God's will for my life and not something satan has sold me on, to boost my ego or create a higher image of myself.

The third thing to learn is when I find myself relying on someone else to fulfill all of my desires, whether material, physical or emotionally, I will find myself living as the widow searching for people to help me fulfill my wishes rather than God. This may lead me to my desires but I most certainly will join the many who appear to be blessed but find in their hearts emptiness and desire for something they do not have!

Our emptiness and desires can only be filled and satisfied by the eternal blessings that Jesus spoke of throughout the scriptures. That is the Living water that brings us a NEW Life in Christ!

The fourth thing I need to learn from this is that I am to maintain the attitude of a servant in Christ and then the desires of my heart will not become a struggle to fulfill each day. A servant gives and I cannot want more when I am busy giving! It is God who gives to us and I ought to be busy doing the same thing in this world. There are so many who need! Yes, they need the joy that comes with knowing Christ in a real relationship that fulfills every desire that the heart of man could ever want! That is the desire for true joy and peace within!

To finish, I wanted to ponder on these words written in the book of James and let us ask ourselves these questions today,

James 4:1-8 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? (without discernment from God)
2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
3 Ye ask, and receive not (not in God's will) , because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses (people who long for the desires of the world), know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwells in us lusted to envy?
6 But he gives more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the humble. (those who serve and give of themselves for the Lord on earth)
7 Submit yourselves (become servants) therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

"His Hand"

Written by Robert E. Bailes

The Power At Our Fingertips!

Mark 9:26, 27 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.

A father had brought his son to Jesus. I want us to stop and think about how this father must have felt. Try to imagine your child and maybe your only child being possessed by evil spirits to the point that your child has brought damage to their body. Perhaps they have pierced themselves full of holes that have stretched their ears and tongues. Maybe they have marked themselves with designs and pictures created by those who worship something other than God. Maybe your child has taken on habits that harm their body internally through drugs, tobacco or alcohol. Maybe they are consumed with the desires of satan through parties full of games and music that toy with the abuse of one's body and flirt with danger. Try to imagine that your child has given themselves totally to another man or woman in premarital sex or possibly more than one choosing to give up the sanctity and holiness of marriage.

I know, by now you are thinking that I must have been reading an edition of the Bible that hasn't been published yet because this passage doesn't say anything about this type of STUFF at all! I am very familiar with this passage and as a matter of fact, it is one of my favorite passages!

That's right! I said," one of my favorite"! You might be wondering why it would be any one's favorite passage when it talks about evil spirits and a young man being tortured to the point that everyone thought he was dead!

I will tell you why but first I would like to explain why I asked you to imagine this young man being your child and why I listed the things I did above.

Some of you might be aggravated with me right now because I may have listed some things that you actually see your child doing! If so, I wish you would hang with me because I want you to see the whole picture today! I need you to put aside the thoughts that you may have had in the past to justify your child's decisions to do these things and try to think as this father did in this critical time in his life.

This man had realized that something had to be done or his son was going to perish in this delirious state of confusion that had been brought on by the decisions at some point in his life to accept the dwelling of the evil spirits. The demons didn't destroy this young man over night! They did it very slowly so that the father may not have even noticed his changes as they little by little made their way into his life, changing his thinking and giving him a heart of stone and destroying his body.

Destruction of the body is not of God and the odd piercing and stretching of the skin is not something that God meant for us to do as it deforms the body. It may seem small and insignificant, but it is the beginning of symbolism to the crowd and peers that will place your child. They will find themselves in the clique searching for the next step in independence of their body, mind and souls.

The next thing you hear them say is that it is their body and you can't tell them what to do with it, so they get markings and designs embedded into their skin permanently using ink and needles. Just another sign to their peers that they own their body, not the Lord, and they will do as they please with it! The next thing is that the opposite sex says, let's try this or that, after all, it's your body and nobody can tell you what to do with it! Then they find their self respect and purity within themselves tainted and leaving another hole but this time it is pierced in the middle of their heart where only God can bring healing.

Have we ever really taken the time to see just how the young man got to the point where he was consumed with these spirits? I'm sure there may be some of us who have actually done some of these things ourselves and I'm not judging you by any means but I want you to take a good look at how our children get to this point when suddenly we say, "What happened to my nice, loving child?".

I have heard so many parents say, "Oh, it's just a phase and they'll grow out of it" but it is more than that my friend! It is a battle between spiritual forces over the soul of your child! When we think it is time to loosen the reins, it's really time to tighten them! Reins are used for guiding a horse, for those of you who were raised in the city, and tightening the reins caused the horse to slow down but loosening gave them the freedom to take off.

This father had finally reached the point that he was desperate and pushed aside all of the embarrassment of his son's miserable condition and took him to see if Jesus could help him. The father had no idea that it would come to this when his son first began to change his attitude, his clothes and the friends he hung out with.

I am speaking to you as a father who has been through the complexity of having the influence of satan attacking his child and seeing her hurt and dragged down by the wanna be gang, peers in her life. It is the hardest thing a father could ever experience, although we may not show our hurt outwardly. You can believe that it has driven it's spike deep into the heart, but praise God, the Lord Jesus Christ teaches us how to forgive and heal from the wounds that only a parent can experience.

How did this father know that Jesus could help his son? It actually says that the father said to Jesus, "if you can do anything, have compassion on us, and help us." Let's look at the passage in Mark nine,

Mark 9:20-22 And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
21 And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
22 And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.

Since his son was a child he had been going through this torture of satan! It had started with something small in the life of the father or the son and had grown into a self destructive experience for the son. The son had lost control of his life to the demons! The evil spirits are not something to toy around with and that is why I want you to take notice of the life and peers of your child. I want us all to take notice of the kinds of things our kids are asking us for. We need to realize that the things of this world are distractions of the truth and purity of God. They cause the picture to cloud up with grey so that we cannot see the picture clearly.

The father asked Jesus if he could help him! He wasn't really even sure if Jesus would, which meant that the father's faith was weak too after spending so much time dealing with the evil spirits possessing his son. The main thing I want us to see here is that HE TOOK HIS SON TO JESUS! Although his faith was weak and he was exhausted and tired, he took him to the Healer.

Look at what Jesus said following the fathers statement,

Mar 9:23, 24 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believes.
24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

"If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes!"

What did the father do? Did he get an attitude with Jesus? Did he get too proud and take his son away? No, he was ready to learn the way, the truth and the life! As we see, he told Jesus in tears that he believed and told Jesus to help him with his unbelief.

Let's see what Jesus did next!

Mark 9:25, 26 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.

Jesus addressed it right then! Jesus rebuked the spirit just as the evil spirit had rebuked the father for years. When Jesus stood up against this spirit, it pitched a fit and tore his body up as it came out of him. The last thing I saw in this passage was that many were saying that the son was dead. He had been through the fire and burned, through the water and almost drowned, thrashed on the ground and foamed at the mouth like an animal with rabies. Now he lay here on the ground lifeless as it may have seemed. Jesus let us all see this son's life when it had no purpose and when he had been under the control of satan and his followers. There were many there that thought and said that the young man was dead!

What I realized when I read this is that there will be times when we have to bring our children before the Lord for healing and reunion with Him and our faith will need strengthened as we find it hard to fully believe that Jesus can help our situation at the time, but just as with this father, Jesus will tell you and I that ALL things are possible if we will believe. No matter how hopeless or how dead even we or our children may seem, the next verse says it all for me,

Mark 9:27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.

Jesus is always ready to reach out and take our hand to lift us up to live a NEW Life in Christ! That's right! Jesus came not to condemn the world but that the world through Him might be saved!

If people look and assume that your child or even yourself have no life left but rather that you are dead already in your suffering, keep your eyes on Jesus who will save you from death and give you life that lasts forever!

I encourage you to pray today and ask God to help you and your children with your belief and let Jesus take you by the hand and lift you up! Arise moms, dads and children!

"HOLD ON!"

Written by Robert E. Bailes

Who Are You Listening To?

Sometimes people will tell you how well you are doing or what a great job you have done and it's easy to begin to feel stronger in our own self confidence and self reliance.

As most of you know, there are already allot of people making lots of money selling books written about these very topics of interest. They have been popular for many years; as a matter of fact, since the beginning of time! Even Adam and Eve were fascinated with the idea of having the ability to be as wise as God when they ate of the fruit. Little did they know, that their disobedience would change the course of history for all humanity. Their main concern was their own personal gain that day that they took the fruit in their hand and ate of it.

Genesis 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

The hand is a part of the body that usually indicates our choices and direction in life. We communicate with our hands; take or give with our hands and what we take hold of in this life is of utmost importance to God.

The Lord directs us to grasp hold His hand in the time of trouble. Sometimes we will be directed by God to take a grip onto something in our lives that may save our lives. Sometimes God might just put something in the way that we find useful at a critical moment in our lives when we grab hold of it. Lastly, sometimes it is God that reaches and takes our load when we have reached the place in life that we have become weakened and distracted by the voices shouting at us, so that we no longer hear His calm voice.

Many times we have direction to hold onto something in our lives and satan comes along and tells us it's ok to let go; you have too much to carry already or you can always come back to this. Satan might even tell you to trust someone else with that thing that God put into your hand, so we let go thinking life will be a little easier if we relieve ourselves of this weight or stress. Many of you know what I am saying because you have stretched in your faith and taken on more than you thought you could bear knowing that God would take you through this step by step.

When I was a young man of seventeen, I went on an adventure down south to get rich working on the oil rigs off the coast of Houston, Texas. I was suppose to meet a friend from college in Louisiana and he had the contacts to get a job on the rig. When I arrived at his house his mother told me he had already left a few days earlier and I would have to wait until he returned in a few weeks. She said that all of the jobs were taken and I would have a hard time finding a job. Boy was I disappointed and broke. It had taken every dollar I had just to make the trip down there. I began to search from business to business in this hot, humid town of Sulpher, LA. Finally after a couple of weeks, I was pointed to the docks down the road about eight miles. In desperation, being very hungry and tired, I went to the docks where I met a group of shrimpers sitting on their buckets drinking and waiting for the tide to head out so they could start their work.

Needless to say, they spotted me a mile away and had a good time teasing and laughing at a young Tennessee country boy. Finally though, one of the shrimpers said he would use me for the night and that was how my summer started out as as a shrimper working the summer on this man's boat. We went out at night and stayed until the morning, sweeping the bayous for shrimp with our butterfly nets as they're called.

One night there was a rather large storm rolling into shore and I knew most of the shrimpers were contemplating going back home, but my captain said it was the best time to catch shrimp! He said the rough waters pulled the shrimp out of the bayous into the open water and I soon enough found out how right he was! The only thing was, that we were in the middle of a real Louisiana storm and that also brought huge swarms of mosquitoes. We covered ourselves by putting on slicker suits and rain coats to protect our bodies front he elements. It was a pretty scary experience but it also was really exciting for a modern day Tom Sawyer, as I felt the rain beating against my face and heard the captain shouting out orders. Just as the shrimping was really reaping the full benefits of the storm, our boat drifted into a small island in the bayous and was stuck. No matter how high the captain throttled the engine, the boat would not move.

At this point the captain told me to get out and push the boat off of the island so being the young trusting man that I was, I jump over the front of the boat into the water and found myself standing in water about waist deep, but as I began to push I found myself sinking deeper and deeper into the mud that made up most of the ground in the bayous. When the boat finally started moving I had sunk down to my chest in the water and my legs were lodged into the mud up to my knees or higher. I felt the water beginning to pour over into my slicker suit which was like a pair of rubber overalls. I knew it wasn't long before I would be sucked under if I didn't hold onto the rail of the boat! Suddenly the captain began to shout at me,"Let go!", "Let go! I'll come back around and get you!". I knew my condition wasn't good and that there was a pretty good chance that there were alligators lurking close by just waiting for the boat to move so they could take their trapped prey in one sweeping bite. I had seen their eyes many times while shining the spotlight into the weeds at night.

The captain kept yelling but a small voice kept telling me to hold on! The rail on the front of the boat began to creak as though it was going to break loose as the captain continued to pull the throttle back even further! I could hear the engines roaring and I could hear the fiberglass creaking and then I began to feel my fingers slipping as it was still pouring down rain in sheets and every part of my body was saturated! I knew the end was near but that small voice kept saying, "Hold on! Hold on!" , even drowning out all of the other voices and sounds. When my fingers had slipped to the last joint of my fingertips and my hope was almost gone I began to feel something happening. The rail didn't break, but instead, I was beginning to slip out of my rubber boots and the straps on my slicker suit broke loose and all of a sudden I was free of all the weight and bondage of the mud and the boat was moving!

I had been holding the boat back but when I was freed, the boat took off with such speed that I just hung onto the front of the boat and finally climbed back up over the front of the boat. I just laid there for a while staring up into the pouring rain and thanked my God for the strength He had given me to hold on just a little longer and then to climb over the hull of this boat.

I told this story today to encourage you all to listen to the small voice. Trust God when things get too heavy and people are telling you to let go. Maybe someone is yelling at you to let go of your responsibility as a parent or a spouse or maybe in your profession or as a church leader. Maybe you are unemployed right now and people are telling you that it's ok to let go of your responsibilities to your family and give up.

Listen closely to that small voice today, my friend, and all of the other voices will fade into the background. God WILL take you through the storm! God WILL secure your grip! God WILL keep you from your predators! God WILL bring you safely on board when you have exhausted your resource of strength and your fingers have reached their last knuckle!

I have not forgotten that day after thirty years and I'm sure you will always remember your experience if you just HOLD ON to the rails in your life and LISTEN to His voice alone!

If you have already let go of things that God had placed in your life and you feel as though it might be too late, I want you to know that it is never too late!

Let me share a passage in the Word that tells us about a young man that was brought to Jesus by the young man's father and even his own father was not sure if Jesus could help him. Even the people who came running to see him thought that this young man had died because he had been possessed for so long and the evil spirits had done so much destruction, but you will see that the grip of Jesus is GREATER than any grip that satan might have had in your life! If you will BELIEVE, Jesus can do anything in your life, starting right now!

Let's read about this young man and the power of Jesus to lift us up;

Mark 9:17-27 And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;
18 And wheresoever he takes him, he tears him: and he foams, and gnashes with his teeth, and pines away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
19 He answered him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.
20 And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
21 And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
22 And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believes.
24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.

Jesus will LIFT YOU UP! Just Listen to His voice today and Believe!

"Feeling Abused?"

Dealing With Abuse

The first thing that I would like to address is whether or not there is any situation when abuse would be acceptable and excused to continue. I know that it can be confusing sometimes when you really and truly care about someone but the abuse of another person is not acceptable by anyone, anytime, anywhere. There have been people all through history that have convinced their victims that they don't deserve to be treated with the love and affection that is normal and pure. Many times people who are abused feel that they are doing what is right by catering to this abusive behavior. I want you to know today that there is no way that God would ever plan to put you into a relationship where you would suffer repeated abuse whether it be mental, physical or emotional abuse. The attacks by any human being that are meant to hurt or oppress another are under the direction and control of satan. The best thing that I can tell anybody that has been through this treatment is, "Would someone that loves somebody really treat them this way? Is this the way you would treat someone that you love?".

We have all experienced some kind of abuse in our life or we wouldn't have grown up around people. It is the human nature to control and mistreat people. It is the grace of God that keeps us from this behavior. If you have been abused in your life when you were young or maybe even as an adult, I am very sorry that you had to go through an experience like this, but I want you to know that Jesus understands how you feel. He went through this also.

Jesus was physically abused by the crowds when they smacked him with their palms. He was abused by the high priests when he was whipped with the cat of nine tails and when the crown of thorns were pushed down into his brow and the salt of His sweat ran down into those wounds made by the thorns. You know how it feels when you prick your finger or scratch yourself and then a little salt gets into the wound. This was just added pain to all of the other stress that Jesus experienced this last day of His life. You see, He experienced it all that day! He was tortured, spit on, called names and mocked, stripped of His clothes to hang naked as a raped victim of humanity nailed to the cross where He remained until His last breath. As he hung there his robe was of more importance than His condition to the centurions who stayed there that evening. When He asked for water, He was given vinegar to drink. We don't even do this to our enemies today in prison!

Jesus gave Himself so that we all may be forgiven and it was through His suffering that He knows our feelings and hurts. It is because of this that He can speak on our behalf to the Father in Heaven and see that we are healed when we come to Him ready to forgive others as He did that day before He took His last breath on the cross and gave up His life for all who have sinned. He understands your hurts from the past, present and the future.

Let's read Mark's record of this,

Mark 15:15-20 And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.
16 And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band.
17 And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,
18 And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!
19 And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.
20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him.

You can see in that passage the physical abuse and now I want to read a few verses showing the mental abuse that He sustained. He does understand your hurts.

Luk 23:35-39 And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God.
36 And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar,
37 And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself.
38 And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.

You know that Jesus could have freed Himself but it wasn't why He had suffered and given Himself up to those who wished His death. Those people that were there that day were the representation of the people Jesus had come to save. Those people were lost in their sins and in need of His forgiveness, just as those who have abused you and I in this life also need our forgiveness. Jesus miraculously gave His life for those who were lost and in His last words forgave the very people who were taking His life. Can we say as He did that day, "Father forgive them"? We must, in order for our healing to take place and to experience a NEW Life in Christ! It may seem hard but you only need to tell God and He will do the rest as you begin to see the blessings in your life. Let's see what Jesus said about the people who were mocking and abusing him physically,

Luk 23:33-34 And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.
34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.

Will you follow His perfect example today and allow Him to heal those holes pierced through your heart by the abusers in your life?

"DOA - Without A Warning"

written by Robert E. Bailes

Don't End up Dead On Arrival

Have you ever started your day feeling full of love , joy and peace and found yourself later in the day with feelings of hate,anger and turmoil?

Recently I had been looking up something on a website when a audio recording began to play that had nothing to do with what I was looking at. I believe it was a pop up window that was hid in the background. Isn't that something that a voice can just suddenly interrupt you while you are online and begin telling you something you hadn't even chosen to listen to in the first place? Well, I immediately hit the mute button on my computer keyboard and it took care of that voice right away. After I had been on the computer for about an hour while I was right in the middle of getting something set up on my website, my computer just shut off! I thought, what in the world happened? It didn't even warn me first! Usually the computer will beep letting me know that it is getting low on battery power. The problem was that it was muted so I couldn't even hear the beeps and I was so busy that I wasn't paying enough attention to my power source. The next thing I knew, my computer was dead!

Isn't that how we do sometimes in our lives? We start out our day feeling full of energy and all prayed up, then something happens to disrupt our day and we get upset about it. Then we start hearing that voice telling us what we should have done different but we just mute it so we can keep going. Then another thing happens and we get upset about it too but this time the voice doesn't come to calm us down so we stay upset and this usually affects the way our whole day goes. Since our source of power is cut off with God we just keep going on our own power without having any idea when it is going to run out. Sometimes it is in the middle of the afternoon; sometimes right after picking up the kids from school; sometimes when we are getting ready for church and sometimes right when your spouse needs your attention but the power flow runs dry and we are found Dead On Arrival (DOA)! There reason doesn't seem obvious for anyone to see, including ourselves, but it was the simple choice earlier in the day to mute the voice that sends us the warnings that we need to plug into the infinite Power of God. Just as my computer did without the warning; you will shut down if you try to do it all running on your store of energy.

1Peter 5:6-11 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
7 Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you.
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour:
9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.
10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you.
11 To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

"Resist stedfast in faith each day; all day through God's infinte Power!"

"Persecuted By Mockery"

Written by Robert E. Bailes

How Does Mockery Make You Feel?

Have you ever found yourself suddenly under attack because of what you believed? This is something that you could just as easily experience in the church as you could outside of the church. I remember hanging out with friends when I was a teenager and hearing some of them really criticizing the teen pastor or maybe one of the other teens who was really trying to live right and taking a stand for what they believed. It seemed as though they had felt threatened by the stand of those they were criticizing. This also happens in the political arena when someone stands up for what they believe. We certainly see allot of mockery going on when protesters carry the posters of their opponents that are disfigured and marked up to make them appear as someone or something degrading. Yes, we often are so quick to criticize or mock someone without thinking about the long term effect we might have on their life.

We are dealing with the hurt and the holes left by the tongue through mockery.

We see in the eighteenth chapter of 1 kings that Elijah mocked the prophets of Baal when he cried out: for he is god; either he is talking, or pursuing or on a journey or maybe he is asleep and needs to be awakened. Then in verse twenty-eight it says that they cried out and cut themselves with knives till their blood gushed out on themselves. Elijah's mocking had caused them to become enraged because their god had not lit the sacrifice that they had prepared on their alter. This was pretty embarrassing already because there were four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and four hundred prophets of the groves standing there calling out to Baal in front of the children of Israel on mount Carmel and here stood Elijah the prophet of the Lord all by himself. Ahab had sent every possible force he had to search for Elijah and kill him because Elijah had been warning the cities when Ahab's armies were going to attack and preparing them for it ahead of time. When Ahab got word of this prophet, he wanted him dead. Then Elijah had the nerve began to mock these prophets and king who had wanted to see him dead. The difference was that Elijah was getting ready to display the work of the Lord to win the hearts of all of those who were on that mount that day. God was going to send down fire and consume a sacrifice that was totally soaked with water!

1Kings 18:27,28 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked. 28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.


My point here is that these prophets became so angry when Elijah mocked them that they began to cut themselves with knives until their blood gushed out. Wow! Have you ever been mocked or teased to the point of wanting to do harm to yourself? Maybe not, but we hear of people leaving notes behind after going on shooting sprees and ultimately taking their own lives. Mockery is a powerful and destroying force that all starts with the tongue. It is with the mouth that man reveals what is in his heart. Are there holes in your heart pierced by the tongue of someones mocking and criticism.

I know there are many parents who have been through this with a child who wanted their independence long before they were ready to be independent. The child that you nurtured and loved said things that pierced you to the core because you have loved them all their life. There are those who have been living in criticism ever since they were married. Some of you have been mocked and criticised for the way that you want to raise your children because it's not the popular trend or you want to keep your children from the influence of the modern day worshippers of Baal.

I'm sure that those prophets had mocked and ran the children of Israel down before Baal had failed the prophets and the Lord through Elijah had shown His power. I'm sure the children of Israel had been waiting for the Lord to reveal the truth to these followers of idols and probably even grew impatient in waiting for the mockery to end.

1Kings 18:19,20 Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table. 20 So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.


I know we all have experienced this in some way in our life whether it came from a sibling, classmate, parent, teacher, coach, church member, religious leader, spouse, friend or stranger, there has been mockery since the beginning of timeSatan knows that we as humans struggle with our pride and mockery challenges and can cause our pride to bow up and do ludicrous things as a result. Jesus as the perfect man was even attacked by satan in His last hours using mockery and criticism. He experienced the people in the crowd hitting him and then yelling out, "If you are the son of God, tell us who hit you".

You see, they knew that the Son of God was suppose to know everything but they didn't believe because of their sinful spirit. Do you know how Jesus dealt with this without loosing His control and destroying them all? Did you know that He could have done this from the very beginning? That's right! He let them do this to Him because He had to suffer with us even unto death to redeem us from our sins forever. The reason I know He could have stopped it is found in verse fifty-three of chapter twenty-six in Matthew when Jesus told his disciple to put his sword away. The people had come to the garden to take Jesus to the high priest and one of the disciples had pulled out his sword to fight when Jesus set him straight on who was really in control here.

Matthew 26:52,53 Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword. 53 Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?

Jesus knew what He was going to experience and yet He allowed it! He understands our hurts and He understands the way that we feel when we are mocked and criticised! Jesus cares about each of us and it is His will that the holes left in our hearts be healed so that we can experience the NEW Life in Christ. Follow His example as He was led to the cross and join Him in His final words today so that you, like Jesus, can be healed. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do".

Take a few minutes in silence and think about the people who caused you hurt and pain by mockery and criticism. Maybe they still do and you need help to get through each day. If you remember people that have done this to you and put the holes in your heart, chances are you still need to settle this with God so that those holes will heal.

Take time right now to forgive them of the hurt they have caused you and let God heal your heart.


Matthew 5:1-12 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

"Abandoned"

Written by Robert E. Bailes

Dealing With Abandonment

Can you think of a time when you were abandoned in life? Maybe it was by a parent or friend or maybe it was even by a spouse. You may have felt like it but you were not alone in this very unpleasant situation in your life. You may be going through this right now! Take heart my friend. It has happened millions of times down through history and we have most likely all experienced it in some fashion in our lives. It is an experience that I can testify to as one that people never forget. It isn't easy to get past those feelings of anger, hate and revenge.

If you have felt these feelings before, I know how you felt and I understand your feelings. When you are in the storms of life and the waves call out to you, reminding you of the times that you tried before and failed, you can remember that we all are human and that we all have feelings in the middle of our disappointments that tend to linger as headlines in the memory banks of our minds. It is when the waves call out to remind you that you should listen to the voice of Truth that tells us we are forgiven and gives us hope to leave behind those feelings for a NEW Life!

It was my junior year and I was at a camp retreat that our high school had held just before the school year started. We had loaded up in buses and went up into the mountains or at least I remember there being allot of hills. It was a neat place and I was enjoying just being away from the city. Something you must know is that I grew up in the south and we were now living in the north so I didn't exactly fit in. I had a deep west Tennessee accent and when I said things, everyone just laughed. That was pretty tough being in eleventh grade and not fitting in with my peers. On top of that, some of the guys were just plain mean to each other. They thought it was cool to make cutting remarks and try to be the least caring person in the crowd. That just wasn't the way that I grew up in the country and it wasn't easy to be nice to these guys sometimes!

I guess you would call them the bad boys in the schools today. Well, these guys were always getting everyone to join in on a prank on someone that would totally embarrass them. I had learned that if I didn't say anything and remained unnoticed that no one would laugh at me or play pranks on me. I thought it was simple enough but little did I know that my time was coming.

It was late one night in the middle of the week and our cabins were secluded at one end of the campground. Everyone was getting into bed and those who had to use the bathroom would just step out behind the cabin and go wilderness style since the bathrooms were all the way over on the other side of the camp. Well, I decided to make a trip real quick out back just like everyone else did. It was pretty dark and we were very secluded like I said, so we had been running out there in whatever we were going to sleep in, which wasn't much I'll admit.

I remember our counselor, Williams I believe, who obviously was in on it too, saying as I went out the door that the lights were going off in three minutes and everyone better be in their beds. I began to count as I ran out back about to burst and I had made it back to the door of the cabin right as I reached one hundred and eighty seconds, but strangely enough the door was locked and the lights were out! I was locked out of the cabin and no one would open the door! I could hear some of them chuckling but not a single one would answer the door. I'm pretty sure that the ones who were my friends in the cabin had felt threatened so they knew better than to let me in. They didn't dare to become the next in line for these ruthless pranksters. I tried every way possible to get into the cabin but couldn't and finally I sat down outside and waited but no one ever came to open the door. I had knocked and knocked and knocked and knocked but no one would answer. Have you ever felt like this?

I had been abandoned by everyone who I had tried so hard to become friends with and fit in with. While I sat out there I tried to reason in my thought why they would do such a thing. What had I ever done to any of them to deserve this? I really was a nice, easy to get along with kind of guy (until that night of course!). Just kidding! I have to tell you that if I had had any respect for those guys before that happened, they lost it that night. It was so humiliating and degrading that I still remembered many years later like it was yesterday and I doubt that any of those guys ever thought about it again!

They might remember what I did to get revenge, but we won't talk about that right now! Like I said...I was angry and I wanted revenge as any human would by the time that night was over. After everyone fell asleep, the camp evangelist's son, Tommy, who I had become good friends with that week, opened the door to let me into the cabin, otherwise I would have sat out there all night. He had told me how he was even afraid to let me in because he didn't want to stand out in the crowd and be associated with coming to my rescue. It was through this experience that I knew as a young man of sixteen what abandonment felt like and I vowed in my heart that I would never treat anyone else like that as long as I lived. It was my first real experience with emotional pain and it left a large hole in my heart that would not heal for the next twenty-six years.

That's the first time I had really felt abandonment by friends. There were other times when I would feel this way with friends and even people I had grown to love. I know how it feels, but I came to realize that without forgiveness the burden was going to be on my back. It was through the example of Jesus in His final hours that I learned this life changing truth! Yes, it was at the age of forty-two that I came to the place where I realized that through forgiving the people who had left the holes in my heart, I could lay that burden down and embrace the NEW Life that Jesus came to give as He too forgave all of us!

He understands our hurt because He has been there too!

First Jesus was abandoned by His disciples in the garden when Jesus turned Himself over to the multitudes and then by Peter at the high priest's house. Let's read in the Gospel of Matthew,

Matthew 26:55,57 In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye come out as against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me. 56 But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.

The disciples saw that the multitude was going to take Jesus and they decided to get out of there while they still could.

Matthew 26:57,58 And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. 58 But Peter followed him afar off unto the high priest's palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end.

Peter even kept his distance! The disciple with the reckless faith that gave him the ability to walk on water with Jesus was now trying to blend in with the crowd. this made me think of my friend Tommy who had been afraid to let me in until after he was sure they were all asleep. I'm sure he wanted to help me but he also was more concerned about what would happen to himself if he did help. Let's read on,

Matthew 26:66-74 What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death. 67 Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands, 68 Saying, Prophesy unto us, thou Christ, Who is he that smote thee? 69 Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee. 70 But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou say. 71 And when he was gone out into the porch, another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth. 72 And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man. 73 And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrays thee. 74 Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew.

Peter must have had an accent for them to recognize him by his speech. Maybe he was from the south! Maybe the disciples were recognized by their southern accent before and that is why they weren't so easily accepted just as I hadn't been accepted by my northern classmates! Hmm?

Those are all possibilities but one thing we know for a fact is that Jesus was alone when he was called a blasphemer! Jesus was alone when He the crowd spit in His face! Jesus was all alone when they buffeted and hit Him with the palms of their hands, mocking Him by asking Him to tell them who had hit Him if he was the Christ! Jesus was totally abandoned and no one came to help Him, as my friend finally did for me. Not only was He abandoned by all, but He was treated as a criminal without any respect by mankind!

How did Jesus handle this hurt? Did He scream and yell? Did He wish curses on his friends who had abandoned Him? Was there feelings of animosity and rage towards those who were spitting and striking Him?

Have you ever looked around when things were down in your life and everyone was gone or had something else to do when you really needed their help? Did you feel sorry for yourself or disappointment in your friends when this happened? I remember feeling all of these things and those feelings were all very natural for me to feel! I didn't have to sit there for a couple of hours and conjure up an idea of how I should feel. Those feelings came rushing into my mind and body as soon as I realized what they had done to me that night! It's easy for our human nature to take over but it is up to our spirits to forgive to experience that NEW Life in Christ.

Jesus taught us to forgive in His final moments on this earth. His forgiveness was the only way He too could heal from the suffering and disappointments. I encourage you to take a few minutes and think back in your life to the times when you were abandoned.

Next, I would like for you to talk to God about it and tell Him that you wish to heal and leave the past behind you. Forgive those who abandoned you and let God heal those holes, large or small that were put there by the times of abandonment.

Remember Jesus promise in Hebrews!

Hebrews 13:5,6 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

"How Could You?"

Written by Robert E. Bailes

Dealing With Betrayal

The freshmen were showing up for college and the girl that I had claimed as my girlfriend was going to be coming down to attend that year also. I had called her my girlfriend since my senior year in high school and I was absolutely crazy over her. The only thing was, I was as bashful as any young man could be and hardly spoke ten words whenever we were together. It's kind of hard to explain, but whenever I looked into her eyes, my heart flipped and my tongue just stuck to the top of my mouth. It didn't help much that she was very shy too. We finally started talking more as my senior year in high school came to a close. The highlight of that year for me was when she asked me to escort her as a homecoming candidate. I was head over heels in "puppy love" as they called it back then. I was so honored and yet as nervous as I could be on the homecoming award night.

When I went to college we stayed in touch by letters but it grew to be less and less. I was so nuts over this girl, it didn't mean anything to me that the letters were coming further apart. I just knew I wanted to see her again and she was the one for me. Don't ask me how an eighteen year old could have had such wisdom, but I did! Don't laugh! You probably did something very similar at that age, didn't you?

Finally she had come down to go to college and I thought I would finally get to really date her and we would get to know each other better. I had thought of all kinds of things that we could do together and had not even thought of dating anyone else because she was the one for me! When she came to college something didn't seem right. She was hard to find and she had other girls answer the door to her dorm when I came to ask her out. Boy, was I surprised! I had set my heart on this gal but she had changed. I'll never forget when she finally told me that she just thought of us as friends. It wasn't her fault or mine that we had come to this place in time when everything changed.

It was my being blindly in love and not enough communication that had brought me to this place when I felt that my whole world was crashing in on me.

It is easy to look back and laugh about it now and see how I had become so serious about a relationship that wouldn't have worked out. I didn't realize then that I wasn't even remotely ready to enter into a marriage relationship but I know one thing, I was in love with her and I did feel the pain and hurt of losing the girl of my dreams. I suddenly felt betrayed and all alone.

Jesus went through the feeling of betrayal when He was approached in the garden by Judas and was handed over to the high priest.

Judas, who for the past three years had been one of the closest friends and followers of Jesus had suddenly betrayed his fellowship with Jesus. They had spent almost every day together eating, teaching and performing miracles with the other disciples! Their relationship was much closer than mine and this girlfriend had ever been. Judas had betrayed Christ for just thirty coins and later came to say that Jesus had done no wrong, but it was too late.

Again Jesus was betrayed by Peter, one of the disciples who had said that he would never betray His Lord. As Jesus stood in the courts, Peter watched from a distance. Let's look at this record in the book of Luke when the guards had taken Jesus to the high priest's house,

Luke 22:54-62 Then took they him, and led him, and brought him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off. 55 And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them. 56 But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with him. 57 And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not. 58 And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not. 59 And about the space of one hour after another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a Galilaean. 60 And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou say. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew. 61 And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. 62 And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.

As Jesus looked at Peter that night, you know the pain Jesus must have felt, not only for the betrayal of His dear friend but also for Peter who He knew had realized his weakness as he went away and wept bitterly. Oh my, how much pain there must have been when Jesus, faced with the task before Him, experienced the injustice and betrayal of His very own disciples. Let's look back at what happened in the garden when the disciples were faced with Jesus arrest,

Mar 14:50-53 And they all forsook him, and fled. 51 And there followed him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him: 52 And he left the linen cloth, and fled from them naked. 53 And they led Jesus away to the high priest: and with him were assembled all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes.

None of these men wanted to go through this with their Messiah. They had left Him to suffer alone. The men who Jesus had cared for, fed and discipled, ran away in fear for their own lives! Does this sound familiar to any of you when things got tough in your lives? Did you ever look around for help and everyone had something else on their agenda that kept them from helping you when you needed it most? Have you experienced a divorce and suddenly found yourself alone when you needed a friend most? When the person that you loved ran one way, did some of your friends run the other way? Jesus went through this too!

He understands our hurts and our pain. He has been there and experienced it. That is why He wants to care for you today!It is when we lay those experiences of betrayal at the cross and for our own good forgive them that healing begins.

Did you ever have a friend or coworker betray you? Maybe they took credit for something that was your idea when you had trusted them enough to share it with them. Maybe your friend had betrayed you and told someone else something you that you had told them in confidence.


When we choose to do as Jesus did for us on the cross and forgive those people who put those little holes in our heart over the years, we will begin to experience the healing that provides a NEW LIFE in Christ as His love fills the voids left by the pain and hurt.

2Corinthians 1:3-4 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; 4 Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

I hope you will take a few minutes right now and think about the times in your life when you felt betrayed! Forgive those who betrayed you and accept God's comfort today! Let the holes heal and live a New LIFE in Christ!

Psalms 118:8 It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.

Trust in God and people will not disappoint you. We are all human and make mistakes but God is always faithful!