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They’ll Know We Are Christians By……
A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. (John 13:34-35)
We usually close our weekly department head meeting by singing the song, “They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love.” Someone in the group recently commented that it’s kind of funny that as we stand in a circle singing that song, we don’t really look at each other. Did you ever sing a song in a small group standing in a circle? It’s kind of weird – you look down, up, at the pictures on the wall… just about anywhere but in someone’s eyes. But I wonder if the truth is that, if we’re really paying attention to what we’re singing, it’s even more convicting to sing those words if you look someone right in the eye. You know the song, right?
“We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord…. And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love. Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
And sometimes, we don’t even like our brothers and sisters in the Lord, so how in the world are we supposed to love them?
I’ve heard many, many people, over the years that I have worked at Keswick, say that it must be wonderful to work here, surrounded by believers. And don’t get me wrong, it is. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy, or that it’s always wonderful. Because we’re still broken humans, capable of all the ugliness that our human natures can produce. And some days, well, some of us – me included, maybe even especially me – aren’t very lovable. But yet we are still commanded to treat one another with love. And that takes the power and grace of Jesus in our lives. We aren’t capable of it on our own.
And in this specific verse, Jesus was talking to His disciples. Not about loving the world, but about loving each other. Most of us could go to a soup kitchen for a day and show Christ’s love. Or go on a short-term missions trip and show Christ’s love. After all, we probably won’t ever see those people again anyway. But to show His love to the people we rub shoulders with every day – our family, our church families, and for me, my co-workers – that takes supernatural power than can only come from Him.
It’s an area that I know I need work on. But I pray that, as I’ve often heard, if I were on trial for being a Christian that there would be enough evidence to convict me.
“All praise to the Father from Whom all things come, and all praise to Christ Jesus His only Son, and all praise to the Spirit Who makes us one… And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love. Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
Ruth Schmidt
Ruth Schmidt is on full-time staff at America’s Keswick, and grateful to be a daughter of the King.
Taste Test
Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! (Psalm 34:8)
I don’t know about you, but I love to taste food. Food can look really good, but the litmus test is how does it taste? After you taste it then you will really know if it is truly good. In the very same way God wants us to “taste” Him.
What does that mean? Well, I think of it this way… many people say they know God and are Christians, but they have not “tasted” Him. What I mean is… they have not taken what He has to offer and applied it in their lives. We can hear all about Him, read all about Him, but we need to take Him in – put what He has to offer us to use – then we will know how good He really is – not how good we hear He is.
We are told in Proverbs that honey is sweet to the taste (24:13); in Psalm 119:103 we are told that His word is sweeter than honey to the mouth. God gave us our sense of taste so that we can fully appreciate food and enjoy the bounty of food offered to us. When we are struggling and down or even rejoicing – we often use food to comfort and celebrate. God wants us to taste Him, to use Him when we are struggling or when we are celebrating the blessings of life – just like we taste food for satisfaction.
As I write, this the staff has just made some kettle corn. I can tell you it smells good – but until I get up and go get some and taste it, I will not know for myself what it is truly like. We cannot experience God’s fullness just by hearing it or smelling it or listening to others’ opinions – we need to try Him for ourselves and it is when we do that, that we will know that He is good.
Maybe right now instead of making some sweet treat or some comfort food you need to get alone with God and “taste” what He has to offer you at this time. What He has is far greater than the temporary experience of food. In Song of Solomon 2:3b we read, I sat down in his shade with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. Have you sat down under His tree and savored His flavor?
Once you have tasted Him and put your trust in Him it will become evident in your life that His fruit is sweeter than anything you have tasted from a human perspective. I don’t know about you, but I have tasted some pretty fine foods, and they don’t compare to the pleasure we can find in Him.
Next time you are enjoying a fine meal or treat and you are thinking… my, how good this tastes… remember that God tells us that He is even better. Savor HIM!! Join me at His banquet table.
Lynne JahnsWriter for “Real Victory for Real Life” 365 Devotional Thoughts in the Spirit of America’s Keswick
VOLUME 2
To order a copy of “REAL VICTORY For REAL LIFE” 365 Devotional Thoughts in the Spirit of America’s Keswick, forwarded by Dr. Joseph Stowell visit www.americaskeswick.org and click on store.
Cast your burden on the Lord…..
Psalm 55:22 Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.
Believe that God cares, and cares all about our burdens. What are burdens? According to Merriam – Webster: Something that is carried: LOAD; Something oppressive or worrisome.
To make (someone) hold or carry something heavy or accept or deal with; something difficult: to put a heavy burden on someone.
I don’t know about you but when I try to carry my burdens I get very tired and weary. And, I am of no use to myself or anyone else.
The cares of life that weigh on us so heavily need to be placed on the shoulders of God. In the best sense, He is more concerned than we are about our health, our work, our friends, our family and our nation.
But how in the world do we do this “Cast our burden on the Lord”? How do we just let them go? The answer is not in what we are doing, but in what we are believing at any given moment. What or who are we trusting in? Remember, God is in charge of the universe and nothing happens in this world that is beyond the knowledge and control of our God.
Hold onto some truths about God:
1) He is everywhere – Jerimiah 23:23-24; Psalm 139:7
2) He knows everything – Job 7:20; Psalm 33:13-14
3) He is all powerful – Gen 17:1; 18:14; Matthew 19:26
You may be saying, “but you don’t know my life” and you are right, I don’t, but God does and God cares. And no one knows my life either, but God does and God cares. God tells us to bear one another’s burdens and we can do this by just being there for a family member or friend who is hurting, but the bottom line is only God can reach down into the hearts of men/women. Philippians 4: And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Believe God! Trust God! And cast all your burdens on Him who is everywhere; knows everything and is all powerful.
Blessing,
Pat Spies
America’s Keswick Volunteer
Church Liaison
Stay Awake
Mark 13: 32- 37 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. Therefore stay awake-for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning- lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”
In the hecticness of life, it is natural and easy to lose sight of our destination. We forget most days, weeks, months that Jesus is coming back.
THIS IS NOT ALL THERE IS TO LIFE.
The aroma of life, of busy mornings, quick lunches, soccer games, laundry, shopping, class projects, Sunday sermons, vacations, bills, lawns, shoveling snow, tragedy, weddings, stubbed toes, etc., lull us all into a trance – a cocoon of sorts – that this is our home – We are snuggled up inside our cocoon we call life. We are warm and comfortable and rarely look beyond our shell AS IF THIS WERE OUR HOME.
LADIES AND GENTLEMAN ~ THIS IS NOT OUR HOME.
Jesus is coming back.
Don’t’allow the aroma of life to lull you to sleep. Stay awake. Flee the tentacles of life that can drag you into complacency or apathy. Heed Christ’s warning. STAY AWAKE.
Diane
Diane Hunt is part of the Development and Addiction Recovery teams at America’s Keswick. In addition to being a Biblical Counselor, she is a Women’s speaker for retreats, conferences and events. She is a regular writer for Victory Call and one of the authors of Crossing the Jordan Bible Study. She has been married to her husband John over 28 years. She has 2 adult children and 3 grandchildren and 3 adult step-children with 7 grandchildren making 10 in all. She delights reading and teaching, but mostly laughing at the funny things her grandchildren say and do.
A Source of Joy
1 John 5:11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
Last month I went to visit my daughter in San Francisco. My first evening there I was invited to go to her job to hear the Symphony. The orchestra was brilliant; as I watched many different instruments being played all together and then at different times, the music was magnificent. As we were getting ready to leave, my daughter tells me her name is in the Play Bill. I was surprised and it gave me a sense of joy to see her name in the book.
In the morning, I was giving thanks to my Father for the love for my daughters, for the evening before, and for getting us there safely. I was reading in the book of Luke and I came to this verse and I said to My Father, you understand the joy that I felt last night; your love is the same for me. God your words are given at the appropriate time, your love is majestic.
Luke 10:20 “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”
The Love of my Father is abounding, He sent his Son to die for all. God’s love is so infinite that He wants to write our names in the Book of Life.
1 Peter 1: 3-4 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.
Our names are written in God’s Book. That is something to really rejoice every day of our lives. God, how amazing You are that You want my name in your Book.
Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
Dear Heavenly Father, I want to give you praise and thanksgiving for having my name in your Book of Life.
Glory to God!
Sandra Valdes
Staff Member – WOC Graduate
Make Yourself at Home
My husband, Dave, joined the staff here at America’s Keswick in August. His office is next to mine. A few days ago I was startled by a loud noise coming from next door. Dave was drilling an anchor and nail into the ajoining wall to hang a picture. He is settling in and making his office his own.
I was reminded of a small book called “My Heart, Christ’s Home” by Robert Boyd Munger. In this book the author leads you through each room of your heart and shows where Christ wants to make His home. I was also reminded that Christ is not just doing light housekeeping. He often will need to drill in areas that, at first, may startle us. He may need to bring in big equipment and do demolition and complete renovations in our hearts.
You have to know my husband to know that a drill in his hands can be a little scary. The handyman he is not! However, Christ is a master craftsman working in our hearts for our good, and to assure that He is welcome and at home there.
Today you may be in the first stages of demolition. You may be living in the discomfort and confusion that a remodel causes. Everything is upside down, you can’t find things easily and nothing is familiar. You may be in the stage of cleaning up all the dust so the new furnishings can be installed. You may be just grasping a picture of the finished product. Whatever stage you find yourself in, be confident of this very thing, “that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” Philipians 1:6
Just like a house that is in constant need of renovation, remodeling, upgrading or maintenance, we also are not completely finished until we see Him face to face. In the meantime, we all need to remain in the hands of the Master and allow Him to make Himself welcome in our hearts.
Blessings,
Kathy Withers
Kathy’s on staff at America’s KESWICK in the Development Department. Kathy has been married to her husband Dave for 27 years. They have two adult children. Kathy is active in her local Church and has taught Sunday School and Bible Studies for women. Her passion is to encourage women to deepen their walk with Jesus Christ by finding and living out the truths of God’s Word.
Significant Family Living
You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
(Deuteronomy 6:7)
Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
(Proverbs 22:16)
Today our society is watching the disintegration of the family unit as it has been known. Christian families find themselves at great risk in the present cultural environment.
It is basic to the Christian family to establish spiritual priorities. What are priorities? Webster defines a priority as an “order of preference based on urgency, importance, or merit.” It is that which is foremost in our judgment; indeed, it is where we place our values.
God holds the parents responsible for the development of the right priorities in the household. Children imitate their parents…and copy their concepts, attitudes and actions. That is why Moses put such great emphasis on this in Deuteronomy 6:7.
Here are some practical helps for us as parents to encourage our children in receiving loving training and life experiences.
1. Seek the Lord daily in prayer for His strength and wisdom.
2. Study your children well – their likes and dislikes, their personalities, their spiritual gifts and their passions.
3. Set the standards and draw the line biblically and sensibly, not culturally or conveniently.
4. Spend time together in family devotions.
5. Start by example and leading the way.
6. Stand together and support each other as mom and dad – “united we stand, divided we fall.”
7. Standards that are set should be followed firmly and freely.
Martin Luther realized that training was the right mixture of discipline and love when he said, “Punish if you must but let the sugar plum go with the correction.”
The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice, and he who begets a wise child will delight in him (Proverbs 23:24) …But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother (Proverbs 29:15b).
Give your children lots of hugs…hugs don’t have to be dusted!
Joy Hubbard
Writer for “Real Victory for Real Life”
365 Devotional Thoughts in the Spirit of America’s Keswick
VOLUME 2
To order a copy of “REAL VICTORY For REAL LIFE” 365 Devotional Thoughts in the Spirit of America’s Keswick, forwarded by Dr. Joseph Stowell visit www.americaskeswick.org and click on store.
Independence Vs. Dependence
What happened in the Garden of Eden when Adam & Eve were deceived by the serpent has been causing havoc since that very moment of “doing their own thing”. They became independent: didn’t listen to God’s voice but yielded to the serpent’s lies.
Let’s look back a bit – Genesis 2:18 ….God said “it is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a helper fit for him.” Verse 21….God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs…..Verse 22 and the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man – Can you just imagine this? The man must have been overwhelmed with joy, or maybe a better word would be “ecstatic”. A perfect couple. Did you notice that God brought the woman to the man. Wow, created by God and hand delivered by him. God does everything perfect, so all is good until the fall. Genesis 3 “The Fall of man”. Romans 5:12 ….sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.
Throughout the OT we see how man couldn’t keep the law; man fell short but God in Hhis mercy sent His only son, Jesus, to pay the penalty for our sins – John 3:16.
I believe one of our biggest struggles (I said one of our biggest; not the only one) in life is being independent rather than being dependent. The big question is who or what are you (I) dependent on or in? We make bad choices when we rely upon our own understanding. Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding (ESV).
God’s Word is full of true stories of people who made decisions contrary to His ways; and stories of people who followed the ways of the Lord. Since this is a “Victory Call devotional for women” I suggest studying the women of the Bible.
Bad choices will lead us down a path we never intended to follow – In order to make wise choices become totally dependent on God’s ways. Adam & Eve followed the scheme of the serpent and we see the results of their bad choices. “They became independent” and it caused them to be separated from God: Sin separates!
Think soberly and decide each morning to trust God and Him alone.
A good rule to follow – pray & read a portion of Scripture before you start your day – Even if it’s a verse to ponder in your heart thoughout the day.
We all can be independent and I can be “chief of independence”. But, I know the benefits of trusting God and relying upon His Word that is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. We are one or the other, “independent or dependent” or “walk in darkness or walk in the light”, there is no middle of the road. It is our choice!
Upon the banner of God, victory is always assured; but apart from it, defeat is a certainty. Apart from God you can do nothing – John 15:5
Blessings,
Pat Spies
America’s Keswick Church Liaison Volunteer
Praise the Lord Our God
Dear one,
Today let us reflect upon just some of names of our Lord and the scripture. Allow Holy Spirit to fill your heart and mind with praise to His holy name.
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The Rock of our Salvation
The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let God be exalted,The Rock of my salvation! (2 Sam. 22:47 NKJ)
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The Captain of the Host of the Lord
So He said, “No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?” (Joshua 5:14 NKJ)
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Strong and Mighty Jehovah
Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty,The Lord mighty in battle. (Ps. 24:8 NKJ)
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King of Glory
Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. (Ps. 24:10 NKJ)
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Excellent
Let them praise the name of the Lord, For His name alone is exalted; His glory is above the earth and heaven. (Ps. 148:13 NKJ)
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Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace
For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6 NKJ)
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My Shepherd
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. (Ps. 23:1 NKJ)
Victory Call 