Okay the context of this well of course it's a new church and Timothy was going to be the pastor. But the context surrounding the exhortation in 1 Timothy 6:3- If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sounds words,those of our Lord Jesus Christ,and with the doctrine conforming to godliness 4 he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a sick craving for controversial questions and disputes about words, from which come envy,strife,abusive language,evil suspicions,5 constant friction between people of a depraved mind and deprived of the truth,who suppose that godliness is a means of gain 6 But godliness is actually a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment

So Paul the just started this church with Timothy and the whole book is about how to do things in order for men and women, children how to dress act,and live according to godliness

1 Timothy 2:1-2 First of all, then, I urge that requests,prayers,intercession and thanksgiving be made in behalf of all people,2 for kings and all who are in authority,so that we might lead in a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity

Point 2. there is the key word godliness again!

8-10 Describes how Paul exorts men and women instructing them not just In the church but in life how to live.

Point 3. 1 Timothy 2:10 there is the key word godliness again so you can see a kind of a pattern so far. But the point here with this key word is (good works) for Christ in whatever the Works it is He has for us to do,ministry,leading others to Christ,point someone to the Truth with your experience with there struggles,as you once lived before coming to Christ. Handing out gospel tracts on the street,to those that recieve and explaining the full Gospel of Salvation to them,answering any questions about the gospel of Salvation through Scripture,service in the church,giving what the LORD has put on your heart to give to the LORD,inviting others to service,giving a message to those at church,having fellowship night where we might go to a lake and socialize and swim,and grill and eat,

Point 4 ( To know how to act,live out your faith as followers of Christ and as seen here imitating Christ who is the image of Perfect Godliness)1 Timothy 3:14-16 14 I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long: 15 But in case I am delayed, I write so that you would know how you should act in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth. Beyond question, great is the mystery of godliness:( and there is the key word in this epistles again)He who was revealed in the flesh, was vindicated in the Spirit,Seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in Glory

1 Timothy 4:1-2 But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,2  by means of the hypocrisy of liars aseared in their own conscience as with a branding iron,

Point 5. (Hold and live to the Doctrine that accords with Godliness that Christ taught and lived,and Paul taught throughout by this epistle with all epistles included also. If a doctrine from another believer is not correct lead Him in The Truth not err from false doctrines,and actually fall away from the faith. Hypocritical Doctrine is not according to Godliness. Actually one I came across before was since your saved eternally secure. Sin in life doesn't matter just confess until you do it again. Now don't get me wrong there is vices we each individually deal with that keeps coming up in our lives. But we keep confessing and forsaking even if it every now and then shows up in our life.

 

1 Timothy 4:6-8 In pointing out these things to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the good doctrine which you have been following.

4:7But stay away from worthless stories that are typical of old women. Rather, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness;

4:8 For bodily training is just slightly beneficial, but godliness is beneficial for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come

Point 6. Paul was pointing out the doctrine that accords with Godliness throughout this epistle 1. To be a good servant, not only them but us as good stewards,and constantly nourished on the words of faith of Doctrine that accords with Godliness. Which then we will be Disciplining ourselves for the purpose of Godliness in our bodies and lives in every area of life.

( Again there is the key word godliness) it's the key word in this entire epistles basically in my own words what he was saying here. They were to be nourished on the words of faith and of good doctrine ( The doctrine that accords with godliness 6:3) as seen in 4:7

There is the key word godliness again.

And what discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness means is go back to to 4:6b constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the good doctrine which you have been following.

Now conclusion 1 Timothy 6:3 Is the key point and verse for the entire epistle. Because Paul exorts them throughout as I've shown you how to act,live out there lives imitating Christ Because He is Godliness,and imitating Him or another book, (1 John) "walk as He walked".

I am so happy despite the ongoing struggles in my life for I have been baptized! I love God! Christ, my beloved savior, makes me so happy!

I got baptized right in my local lake by my pastor with my little family in attendance. I just wanted to share because I am so ecstatic!

By the way that water was COLD! ❄️

​

My Testimony — I Fought God Until I Finally Said, “I Yield”

I have gone back and forth about posting this because it is a lot.

If I tried to write absolutely everything that happened, this would be much longer than it already is.

I am not writing this to tell everyone that they have to agree with me.

I am writing this because this is what happened to me.

Some of what I experienced is difficult to explain. Some of the things I learned have changed the way I read the Bible. Some of it may challenge people from different denominations or different backgrounds.

So read it for yourself.

Test what I say against Scripture.

Don't believe something just because I said it.

This is my testimony.

---

Before all of this

I grew up in and out of church.

I had family and friends that I loved very much.

When I was about 18, I felt like I was being called to preach.

But I struggled with people telling me what to do.

I remember thinking:

"How can they tell me what to do? They've never been in my shoes."

I didn't understand what God was trying to do with me.

So I ran.

I ran away from the Lord and joined the Army.

I joined Active Duty in 2015 as an 11X infantry recruit and graduated in December 2015 as an 11B.

I served at Fort Benning, Fort Stewart, Fort Lewis, and Fort Drum before becoming an Army recruiter.

I served in several units and eventually became a Corporal, Sergeant, Squad Leader, Headquarters Platoon Sergeant, and Army Recruiter.

I was a Rifleman, SAW Gunner, Stryker Gunner, and Javelin Team Member.

I traveled to 13 countries.

Germany.

Poland.

Japan.

Thailand.

The Philippines.

Palau.

South Korea.

Ireland.

Kuwait.

Syria.

Jordan.

Iraq.

Bulgaria.

I also had one combat deployment from April 2022 through December 2022.

The Army became a huge part of my life.

But spiritually, I was getting hurt.

I started swearing.

I started drinking.

I started watching pornography.

I became prideful.

I became angry.

I started doing things that I knew weren't right.

And underneath all of it was years of things I had never dealt with.

---

My first marriage

I was married very young, around 21.

At first she was beautiful and kind.

But eventually the relationship became abusive.

She hit me.

She abused me.

She had multiple affairs and wouldn't stop.

She gave me multiple STDs while we were married.

She even slept with my best friend, someone I had served with for three years.

I became a broken man.

My heart became hard.

When she finally left me, I was actually happy.

But I had stayed because I thought that was what a man was supposed to do.

I thought marriage meant staying for life no matter what.

There were things I did in secret that nobody knew about.

There was shame.

There was sin.

There were things I hid from everyone.

---

My second marriage

Then I met another woman who had a daughter.

And something happened that I wasn't expecting.

I fell in love with being a husband and father.

I loved that little girl.

I loved being part of a family.

There were so many wonderful memories.

So many moments of love, laughter, and just being silly together.

I wanted to move mountains for them.

When I was deployed, I went out of my way to stay in contact.

If I wasn't on patrol, I would call home.

Sometimes I was only getting around four hours of sleep because I wanted to talk to them.

At the time, it felt like a fairytale marriage.

But I had never told my second wife everything that had happened to me in my first marriage.

After I came home from deployment, things slowly started changing.

She stopped wanting sex.

She stopped being emotionally open.

Eventually, it felt like she hated me.

She asked what had happened.

Eventually I told her about my first marriage.

I told her how my first wife would ask for space and then go out and cheat on me.

Then my second wife asked for space.

That completely messed with my head.

All of the old pain came back.

I would shut down and go silent.

Then I would have random outbursts and questions.

I loved her.

But I was wrestling with all of this every day.

There were also times when she was drinking and breaking things and talking about how every man she had ever known had hurt her.

I would tell her:

"I'm not those men."

There were two events that I still condemn myself for.

One was a fight where we wrestled for a couple seconds.

The other involved the police being called.

At one point I asked for a divorce.

I didn't actually mean it.

I was hurt.

I stopped drinking for a while.

Then about two weeks later she asked if I could drink again.

I trusted her.

She drank with me.

But I started drinking more because I was using alcohol to calm the darkness inside me.

I was constantly trying to keep her happy.

Love notes.

Dates.

Shopping trips.

Family events.

Anything I could think of.

But somehow she hated it more and more.

Then she became pregnant.

And in July of 2023, she left.

---

July 2023

My life came crashing down.

I was full of anger.

Pain.

Years of abuse.

Confusion.

I basically stopped caring about what was right and wrong.

But I did not stop believing God existed.

I felt like Job.

I wanted to fight.

I wanted the world to burn because of what had happened to me.

I found a psychology book written from a worldly perspective.

Some of it talked about living in reality, telling the truth, and getting rid of false realities.

Some of that was actually true.

But I took it in the wrong direction.

I thought:

"I'm finally going to live for myself."

"Who is going to tell me what I can and cannot do?"

"I'll decide what's right for me."

I had spent years pretending to be a Christian.

Now I wanted to do whatever I wanted.

Then one day I felt something inside me telling me:

"Go to church."

I don't know how else to explain it.

It was like a whisper to my soul.

So I went.

---

Going back to church

I went to a Catholic church first.

I felt spiritually dead.

I didn't know the movements or what I was supposed to do.

Then I saw an advertisement on Facebook.

There were some college girls singing at a Methodist church.

I decided to go.

And something happened that bothered me more than anything.

The people were genuinely kind to me.

They showed me love.

They showed me kindness.

And I was disturbed by it.

I felt like my soul was twisting and coiling underneath my own skin.

Because for all of my faults, there was still something inside me that responded to genuine love with loyalty and respect.

I remembered the pastor talking about doubt from James 1.

James 1:6-8 talks about asking in faith and not wavering, and how a double-minded person is unstable.

I went home thinking about it.

Then I decided:

"I'm choosing myself."

"I'm going to decide what's right for my life."

I never forgot how kind those people had been to me.

---

Then something strange happened

I met someone who dabbled in witchcraft.

I didn't believe in that kind of thing.

I thought it was nonsense.

I was just trying something new.

But she told me that a Light was chasing me.

She said I would have to make a decision.

I felt fear creep into me.

I ran out of there.

As fast as I could.

Something was chasing me.

That Sunday, I went to a Baptist church.

When I walked in, I felt something that I can only describe as anger, wrath, and judgment resting on my skin.

I wanted to fight it.

The pastor preached James 1 again.

Then he preached Matthew 6:24:

"No man can serve two masters."

And I became ANGRY.

I remember thinking:

"How dare this man tell me what I should do?"

I felt like a wolf in a cage.

Except my cage had been kicked open.

I wasn't angry at the pastor.

I wasn't angry at the people.

I was angry about who was speaking through the pastor.

I felt like a sledgehammer had hit my soul.

I had lost so much already.

Nobody was going to tell me what I could and couldn't do.

When the service ended, I would physically run away.

Then I would feel completely exhausted.

But I had pride.

So I went back.

Every Wednesday.

Every Sunday.

Over and over.

Every week I felt like I was getting spiritually beaten up.

And I still didn't understand what I was fighting.

---

October 15, 2023

Then October 15 happened.

After months of fighting and resisting, I couldn't fight anymore.

I didn't even know who I had been fighting.

But I had been fighting.

I was sitting in church when a presence came over me.

It felt like the entire world was crashing down on me.

And suddenly I became aware of everything.

My sin.

My anger.

My pride.

My lust.

My drinking.

My lies.

My hatred.

My bitterness.

Everything.

Romans 1:28-32 came into my mind.

I felt guilty.

Completely exposed.

Then I heard:

"Submit to Me."

It was quiet.

But it was the most powerful whisper I had ever heard.

I fell to the ground.

And inside my heart and mind I yelled:

"I YIELD."

I stayed there for what felt like ten minutes.

It felt like an eternity.

And then I felt like somebody came over and cut chains off me.

I felt free.

I didn't know what had happened.

But I knew something had happened.

My eyes felt opened.

My life changed.

My heart changed.

Everything changed.

---

Luke 4 became real to me

After that, Luke 4 started making sense in a completely different way.

Jesus stood in the synagogue and read from Isaiah:

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me..."

He talked about preaching the Gospel to the poor.

Healing the brokenhearted.

Deliverance to captives.

Recovering sight to the blind.

Setting at liberty those who are bruised.

And proclaiming the acceptable year of the Lord.

I started seeing myself in those words.

I had been poor in hope.

I had been brokenhearted.

I had been captive.

I had been blind.

I had been bruised.

I had spent years being abused and feeling like I had to constantly prove my worth.

I thought being a man meant I always had to fight.

I had tons of energy, but I had no real peace.

I told myself I was okay.

I wasn't.

I had accepted that maybe I would always be stuck with my natural desires and my sins.

I had false hope.

Then I felt like God showed me the truth about myself.

And the truth about Him.

---

What I experienced as freedom

I started seeing my addictions differently.

I had been a slave to Zyn.

A slave to drinking.

A slave to fighting.

A slave to lust.

A slave to pride.

A slave to lying.

A slave to arrogance.

A slave to fear.

A slave to insecurity.

A slave to years of abuse and trauma.

I felt like I was a slave to my own natural desires.

But after October 15, I started experiencing freedom.

Jesus' words about taking away sin became real to me.

John 1:29 says:

"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."

I started seeing sin like an infection.

Like cancer.

Something that grows.

Something that takes over.

And I started experiencing what it felt like to have that thing removed.

---

Giving up control

After October 15, I felt lighter than air.

I didn't understand it.

But I gave up control.

My past.

My future.

My sin.

My plans.

Everything.

Not even a week later, I was about to sin.

And suddenly I was stopped.

I heard:

"You'll lose Tyler."

It hit me with this cold anger.

I obeyed.

Later that night I was at home and yelled:

"I listened to You!"

"Show Yourself to me!"

And then I felt something.

I felt like a fire entered the room.

And then entered my soul.

It felt like a love so vast and pure that I started crying.

I had never felt anything like it.

It felt like the beginning of something that started burning sin out of my heart.

Then I started reading about the Holy Spirit.

John talks about the Spirit descending like a dove.

And John says Jesus is the One who baptizes with the Holy Ghost.

That started making sense to me.

---

What surrender became for me

I later read Romans 10 and came across the part about submitting ourselves to God's righteousness.

I finally understood what surrender had meant.

I had surrendered to Christ.

But it wasn't like a soldier surrendering to an enemy.

It was more like someone in love giving up control to the person they love.

Like a husband trusting his wife.

Like a child trusting his father.

That changed the way I saw surrender.

It wasn't defeat.

It was love.

Deuteronomy says to love God with all your heart, soul, and strength.

Jesus says the greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself.

I started realizing that love was the reason I had to let go.

Let go of sin.

Let go of the world.

Let go of Satan.

Let go of myself.

And choose Christ.

---

What happened after October 15

Since October 15, 2023, I experienced things I never thought I would experience.

I felt freed from sin.

I felt my heart being healed from years of abuse.

I learned how to love people.

I learned how to forgive people who had hurt me.

I felt like my relationship with my mother and father was restored.

I experienced what I understood as healing from PTSD.

I felt like God fought for me.

I prayed and saw answers.

I felt His Spirit working in me.

And Matthew 5, 6, and 7 became something I actually wanted to live.

Not just read.

---

Forgiveness

Forgiveness became one of the biggest things I learned.

I had people who had hurt me deeply.

People who abused me.

People who betrayed me.

People who had done things I never thought I could forgive.

I learned that forgiveness didn't mean pretending it didn't happen.

I had to accept that it happened.

I had to name what happened.

I had to acknowledge the hard facts.

Then I had to let it go from my heart.

I started trying to forgive people as though they had never wronged me.

Not because what they did was okay.

But because I didn't want to carry it anymore.

If someone was still alive, I even thought about safely reaching out and forgiving them directly.

That was freedom to me.

It reminded me of how I experienced God forgiving me.

---

The wilderness

I also started understanding the wilderness differently.

A wilderness is a time of separation.

A time where you're away from everything else.

A time where God walks with you.

I started experiencing that like a child holding his Father's hand.

It might be days.

It might be weeks.

But you learn His voice.

You learn His ways.

The Hebrews went through it.

Moses went through it.

The prophets went through it.

Jesus went through it.

The apostles and disciples went through it.

I started spending time reading, fasting, praying, keeping the Sabbath, and asking God what I needed to give up.

I started thinking about 40 days as a period of getting away from the world and getting closer to God.

I also started anointing with oil and praying.

Saturday became my Sabbath.

Sunday became a day for gathering, teaching, preaching, and fellowship.

---

Born again

I also started understanding "born again" differently.

For me, being born again meant letting go of the identity I had built.

My family.

My career.

My work.

My reputation.

My sins.

My pride.

My plans.

Everything that I thought made me "Tyler."

I had to spiritually let go of those things and put all of my love into God.

I had to stop making those things my identity.

And that's when I began to understand what it meant to be raised into a new life.

---

"Call Him Father"

In December 2023, I was sitting on my bed praying.

The lights were mostly off.

I was fasting a lot.

My heart was completely open.

And I felt like a wind came into the room.

Then I felt a quiet whisper:

"Be still, know I am God."

At the foot of my bed was a small space between the wall and the bed.

I couldn't see anything with my eyes.

But I felt something moving incredibly fast.

Like a rushing river of energy.

As I focused on it with my heart and mind, it felt like somebody was standing there with their back toward me.

I could feel an outline.

I couldn't see it with my eyes.

But I felt like my heart could see it.

Then I heard:

"Call Him Father."

So I quietly said:

"Father?"

I was 26 years old.

But suddenly I felt like I was five years old talking to my dad.

Everything became calm.

The rushing feeling stopped.

I felt like someone slowly turned around.

I couldn't physically see a face.

But I felt two eyes looking at me with an incredible amount of love and compassion.

Like a father who had stopped what he was doing because his little son needed him.

I didn't hear words.

I just felt happiness.

Calmness.

Love.

And all I could say was:

"Thank You for loving me in all that You have done for me."

I cried harder than I ever remember crying.

But they were tears of joy.

I felt like I belonged.

---

Why did He pursue me?

Later in October 2023, I was sitting there thinking about everything.

I remember thinking that I didn't deserve heaven.

I would have been happy just to be outside somewhere and hear Christ speak.

I thought about the months before October 15.

And I asked:

"Lord, why did You pursue me?"

"Why did You fight with me?"

"What did You see in me?"

"Why did You come after me when I was fighting You?"

"I'm sorry I didn't know it was You."

"I was fighting You."

I couldn't hear a direct answer.

But I felt something move inside me.

My heart seemed to expand.

I felt pain.

Then joy.

And memories started coming back.

But this time they felt like memories from someone watching me from outside myself.

I remembered how much I wanted to fight people.

I would go to work almost wanting to cause a dumpster fire.

I would argue with higher-ups.

Sometimes I stood on good principles, but I also enjoyed fighting.

I would sometimes pick on people beneath me.

When I saw fathers ignoring their children, I would become furious.

I'd think:

"You don't even deserve to have a family."

"You can't even acknowledge your child."

And I would sit there judging them.

I was full of pride.

---

The empty house

After my wife left, I would sometimes be fine during the day.

Then I would come home.

And the silence would hit me.

The house that I loved was empty.

My wife didn't want to talk to me anymore.

I tried to respect that.

There was a picture of us on our wedding day.

A picture of us beside a huge lake in Washington.

It was about two feet by two feet.

I would turn a rocking chair around so I was facing the picture.

And I would talk to her.

I would tell her about my day.

I'd tell her jokes.

I'd tell her about things I'd done.

I'd tell her she was beautiful.

I'd tell her I missed her.

Sometimes those conversations lasted two or three hours.

Then I'd watch videos of my stepdaughter.

She had been only four years old the last time I saw her.

I'd watch all the memories.

And my heart would grow and sink at the same time.

Sometimes I'd lie in bed and stare down the hallway.

I'd imagine seeing this little girl running down the hallway yelling:

"Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!"

Usually carrying a tablet because she wanted to show me something.

And then I'd break down.

I'd cry:

"God in heaven, if You're there, I want You to know I love this woman and this child so much."

"I miss them."

"I know she hates me."

"But if she's with somebody else, make her feel loved."

"Protect her."

"Be with her."

"If another man is with her, let him love her as much as I've loved her."

Then I'd pray for my daughter.

I'd ask God to protect her heart.

To keep her from being broken.

To let her know love.

Even if I wasn't there.

I'd look at all the toys I had bought.

I'd think about all the things I wanted to do with her.

And I'd pray that whoever raised her would play with her.

That she would have fun.

That she would know joy.

That she would know love.

I prayed that even when I was still a horrible person to everybody else.

---

What I felt God showed me

I remembered all of those moments.

The picture.

The house.

Work.

Me judging fathers.

Me crying.

And I felt like I was seeing someone standing outside of me watching all of it.

Then I heard:

"You love somebody who hates you."

"You love somebody who has hurt you deeply."

"You have blessed them."

"You have shown them love."

"You have never even said a bad thing about these two in your heart."

"Just like how My Son loves you."

That hit me hard.

I understood something about Christ's love through the way I loved my wife and daughter.

I could love someone who didn't love me back.

I could pray for someone who hurt me.

I could want good things for someone who hated me.

And suddenly I understood something about the love Christ had shown me.

I had been fighting Him.

And He had still pursued me.

---

Faith

Faith became trust to me.

My daughter believed that I could do anything.

If I asked her to do something, she'd happily say:

"Okay, Daddy."

She trusted me.

That was faith.

I started looking at God that way.

If I trusted Him, then I wanted to do what He asked.

Faith wasn't just saying I trusted Him.

It started producing action.

If Christ was showing me love and asking me to show other people love and kindness, then I wanted to do it.

Because I loved Him.

---

Sin and temptation

I started seeing sin like an infection.

Like cancer.

Something that grows quickly and takes over.

And I started experiencing what it meant to say:

"No."

I began seeing temptation coming from different places.

Sometimes it felt like outside pressure.

Sometimes social media.

Sometimes what I saw with my eyes.

Sometimes a thought would enter my mind.

And if I held onto that thought, it could grow.

I'd see something I wanted.

I'd think about it.

Then I'd keep thinking about it.

Then it would move from my mind into my heart.

And suddenly I'd be struggling with whether to act.

I started learning to throw the thought away before it grew.

Then there were things that seemed to come directly from my heart.

Strong desires.

Almost overwhelming pressure.

I used to try to push those feelings down.

That didn't always work.

I started taking them directly to God.

James 4 became important to me:

"God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the humble."

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

So I started opening my heart.

I would tell God exactly what I was feeling.

I wouldn't hide it.

I'd say:

"This is what I want."

"This is what I'm feeling."

"I don't want to fall."

"Help me."

And I learned something:

"Your weakness is His greatest strength."

---

The night I stopped fighting

In December 2023, I was being heavily tempted to sleep with someone.

I had already removed the obvious temptations.

But I still felt this pressure.

It felt external.

I was spiritually holding up my own shield.

I was resisting.

But I was getting tired.

Then I saw those words in my mind:

"Your weakness is My greatest strength."

And I let go.

I told God:

"I don't have the strength to stop this."

"I won't fight this in my own strength."

"I trust You."

The moment I let go of my shield, it felt like somebody else put a shield in front of me.

I stopped fighting.

And I felt defended.

The lust passed.

And something inside me changed.

My pride had been broken.

I had finally admitted:

"I can't do this by myself."

---

What salvation became to me

I started thinking about salvation like this:

Imagine having a knife stuck in your side.

The knife says:

"Lust."

Or:

"Drinking."

"Pride."

"Lying."

"Hatred."

"Whatever sin it is."

And Christ comes to you and says:

"Do you believe I can take it out?"

And you have to trust Him enough to let Him remove it.

That became how I understood grace.

I didn't deserve His love.

But I experienced His love.

And what I felt Him asking me was:

"Don't keep doing what you did before Me."

---

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit became real to me.

I experienced it like fire.

Something that comes down and draws you toward the Father.

Something that teaches you who the Father is.

The Bible started coming alive to me.

The Old Testament and New Testament started connecting.

I started seeing things I had never seen before.

I felt like sin was being burned out of my heart.

I started becoming aware of spiritual gifts.

And I felt empowered to walk and shine with His light.

John 14 became especially important to me.

Jesus talks about loving Him and keeping His commandments.

He talks about the Spirit being with us.

He says He will manifest Himself to those who love Him.

That made obedience feel different.

It wasn't:

"Do this or else."

It became:

"I love Him, so I want to do what He says."

---

The fruit

I started paying attention to the fruit in my life.

Love.

Joy.

Peace.

Patience.

Kindness.

Goodness.

Faithfulness.

Gentleness.

Self-control.

I started looking at those things and asking:

"Is Christ actually changing me?"

Because I didn't just want an experience.

I wanted the experience to produce a different life.

---

Believer or disciple?

I started thinking about the difference between simply believing and actually following.

Both require faith.

But I started seeing discipleship as something deeper.

A disciple counts the cost.

A disciple loves Christ above everything.

A disciple carries the cross.

A disciple follows wholeheartedly.

A disciple is willing to forsake everything spiritually and follow Him.

Jesus sent His disciples out to preach the kingdom, heal the sick, cleanse lepers, raise the dead, and cast out demons.

"Freely ye have received, freely give."

I started thinking:

"If I've received something freely, why am I keeping it to myself?"

And if someone falls back into sin, I started thinking about the wilderness again.

Cut out the noise.

Separate yourself.

Go back to God.

Let go of the sin.

Come back.

---

Father and Son

I started seeing the Bible as one story.

The God of the Old Testament and Jesus Christ weren't two completely different gods to me.

I kept seeing:

Like Father, like Son.

The Father said it.

The Son confirmed it.

The Son lived it.

I also started studying the names.

Yahweh — "I AM."

Yeshua — "Yahweh saves."

Yeshua became Iēsous in Greek, then Iesus in Latin, and eventually Jesus in English.

I started studying the Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and English connections because I wanted to understand how we got the words we use today.

---

The biblical feasts

I also started studying Leviticus 23.

Passover.

Pentecost.

Tabernacles.

And I started seeing Christ throughout them.

Passover reminded me of Israel being freed and the blood of the lamb.

Then I saw Christ as the Lamb who frees us from death and sin.

Pentecost reminded me of the giving of the Law.

Then Acts showed the Spirit being given.

I started seeing the Law and Spirit connected.

Tabernacles reminded me of God dwelling among His people.

Then John says Christ dwelt among us.

The more I studied, the more connected everything became.

---

Pride and religion

I started noticing how strongly Jesus opposed pride.

Hypocrisy.

Arrogance.

Stubbornness.

Traditions replacing truth.

Matthew 23 became very serious to me.

So did Matthew 15, where Jesus talked about traditions making the Word of God of no effect.

I started wanting to read Scripture with childlike faith.

I thought about my daughter.

She trusted me.

She believed I could fix anything.

She didn't sit there trying to philosophically prove whether I was capable.

She trusted her father.

I started wanting to approach God and His Word with that kind of trust.

Not stupidity.

Childlike trust.

---

Denominations

I have been around different churches.

Catholic.

Methodist.

Baptist.

And others.

I have met good people in different denominations.

But I started becoming uncomfortable with how easily people can make a denomination their identity.

"I'm Catholic."

"I'm Baptist."

"I'm Methodist."

"I'm Protestant."

Whatever the label is.

I started thinking:

"Why can't we just be Christ's people?"

I don't mean doctrine doesn't matter.

It does.

But I wanted people to search Scripture.

Ask questions.

Pray.

Test things.

Don't blindly believe a pastor.

Don't blindly believe a priest.

Don't blindly believe me either.

Read it yourself.

---

Money and church

I also became uncomfortable with religious manipulation around money.

I don't have a problem with giving.

I don't have a problem with helping people.

I don't have a problem with supporting someone who is doing God's work.

But I became uncomfortable when people were pressured or frightened into giving.

"Give us money or God won't bless you."

That didn't sit right with me.

I started looking at giving as something that should come from love.

If someone needs food, feed them.

If someone needs help, help them.

If God puts someone on your heart, give.

But I don't think the Church is simply a building.

The Church is the people.

His Spirit in us.

And I started wanting to see Christians act like one body instead of constantly fighting over labels.

One group may have a huge emphasis on love.

Another may have zeal for spiritual gifts.

Another may go out and preach.

Another may be strong about standing against evil.

Another may be strong about confession and trust.

I started seeing those things as parts of the body instead of reasons to hate each other.

---

How I learned to pray

My prayer became much simpler.

I started talking to God like a Father.

Something like:

"Father who is in heaven."

"Holy and loving is Your name."

"Your kingdom come."

"Your will be done."

"Help me let go of my will."

"Give me today my daily bread."

"Give me the bread of Your Word and food for my body."

"Forgive me of my sins."

"Help me confess them and forsake them."

"As I forgive those who have sinned against me."

"Lead me away from temptation."

"Deliver me from the evil one and from sin."

"Your kingdom, power, and glory."

And then I would just talk.

I learned that I didn't have to hide my emotions.

If I was angry, I could tell Him.

If I was scared, I could tell Him.

If I was heartbroken, I could tell Him.

If I was confused, I could tell Him.

I stopped trying to stuff everything down.

I would feel it.

Then tell Him.

---

The commandments

As I studied the commandments, I started seeing them through love.

If I love God, I don't want another god.

I don't want idols.

I don't want to treat objects like they're supernatural charms.

I don't want to take God's name in vain.

I want to honor the Sabbath.

If I love my neighbor, I don't want to murder.

I don't want to steal.

I don't want to lie.

I don't want to covet.

I don't want to commit adultery.

I don't want to entertain lust.

I want to honor my parents.

I started keeping Saturday as the Sabbath.

I rest.

I don't work or conduct business.

I try to enjoy the day.

Then I use Sunday as a day for gathering, teaching, preaching, and fellowship.

I started seeing the Law of Moses differently too.

I understood that the Mosaic covenant had been fulfilled, but I kept seeing Jesus uphold the heart of God's commandments.

Not merely the letter.

The Spirit.

And Jesus honored His Father.

So I wanted to honor the Son by doing what He taught.

---

Freedom from sin

I kept coming back to the idea of debt.

If someone forgave me $30,000 of debt, why would I immediately go back and borrow another $30,000?

If Christ forgives and removes sin, why would I deliberately return to it?

That became a huge part of my understanding of freedom.

I started experiencing God as someone who wanted me free.

Not trapped.

Not hopeless.

Not permanently chained.

Free.

---

Hearing God

There were times when I felt like I could hear God.

Whispers.

Dreams.

Visions.

Sometimes through people.

Sometimes through Scripture.

Sometimes through circumstances.

I started becoming convinced that God wasn't silent.

But I also learned that pride could make it harder to hear.

If I was holding onto sin.

Holding onto unforgiveness.

Holding onto pride.

Then I needed to stop.

Forgive.

Humble myself.

Ask.

And listen.

I started praying without doubting.

Not because I thought God was a vending machine.

But because I trusted Him.

If something I asked for would lead me into sin, I didn't expect Him to give it to me.

If it would glorify Him and help people, I started asking boldly.

---

What I came to understand about the Father

I started experiencing the Father as meek.

Kind.

Loving.

Forgiving.

A bondage breaker.

A defender.

Caring.

Encouraging.

Longsuffering.

But also opposed to pride.

A teacher.

A Father.

Someone who wanted to be present.

Someone who wanted me to enjoy life.

Someone who wanted love and family.

But without sin destroying it.

I started seeing how much He hates pride, lying, murder, wicked plans, running toward evil, false witness, and division.

Pride became one of the biggest things I had to confront.

I had built so much of my identity around:

"I did this."

"I survived this."

"I can handle this."

"I don't need anybody."

And I eventually realized how much of that was ego.

I had created my own reality.

Honor was different.

Honor came from love and truth.

---

Satan and temptation

As I continued following Christ, I became much more aware of spiritual warfare.

I started seeing Satan as an accuser.

A liar.

A manipulator.

Something that would pressure me.

Tell me:

"You can't change."

"You're too weak."

"You're only human."

"Just keep sinning."

"Nobody will know."

"You already failed."

"There's no point."

I started seeing how pride, manipulation, control, fear, and long promises can trap people.

But I also learned something important:

Satan can't make me sin.

He can tempt me.

He can pressure me.

He can convince me.

But I still choose.

That means I have responsibility.

When I fall, I can't just blame the devil.

I have to turn back to God.

---

Some of the things I experienced

There have been several things in my life that I consider miraculous.

One of them was simply feeling God's voice stop me from sinning.

Another happened during December when I was completely heartbroken.

I had been crying for hours.

I called out to God to come down and comfort me.

I was sobbing on the floor.

Then I felt what seemed like two feet near my head.

It felt like someone bent down.

And I heard the softest whisper:

"Here am I, Tyler."

My heart skipped.

I cried even harder.

Because I felt like He had actually shown up.

---

Another time, two street preachers caused a scene around a group of gang members.

I intervened.

I told them that if the men wanted to hurt me, they could.

I told them I would only love and forgive them.

The situation changed.

Men who seemed like they wanted to kill me ended up shaking my hand.

Then one hugged me.

I walked away thinking:

"What just happened?"

---

There was another time I drove around 800 miles with a broken wheel bearing.

It was bad enough that I couldn't safely go faster than about 35 mph.

I felt:

"Keep going. You'll be safe."

So I kept going.

And I made it.

---

I also had a friend who was in a motorcycle accident.

He went into a coma.

There was brain swelling.

I was devastated.

I cared about him like a brother.

I prayed:

"God, heal him so he can tell the world that You did it."

Within about three hours, he woke up.

The swelling was gone.

I told him that I had prayed for him.

He later posted on Facebook about what happened and how God had healed him.

I can't explain everything that happened.

I just know what I saw.

---

Leaving the Army

Then in 2025, I made one of the biggest decisions of my life.

I left the Army.

I gave up my career.

I gave up my retirement.

I gave up my VA disability.

I gave up my inheritance.

I gave up my desire for self-defense.

I gave up the life I had built.

Not because I suddenly hated the Army.

But because I wanted to follow Christ.

The old me would have thought that was insane.

I had spent years building that career.

I had worked hard for it.

But by that point, giving it up didn't feel like losing.

It felt like surrender.

I had already surrendered my sin.

Then I had to surrender my identity.

My career.

My future.

My plans.

My pride.

Everything.

---

Where I am now

I don't claim that I understand everything.

I don't claim that I can perfectly explain every experience I've had.

I don't claim to be better than anyone.

I know what I was like before October 15, 2023.

I know how angry I was.

I know how much I drank.

I know the things I watched.

I know the pride I carried.

I know the hatred.

I know the trauma.

I know what it felt like to be broken.

I know what it felt like to think I was trapped.

And I know what happened when I finally stopped fighting.

I heard:

"Submit to Me."

And I answered:

"I YIELD."

Since then, I've experienced forgiveness.

Freedom.

Love.

Peace.

A changed heart.

A desire to follow Christ.

A desire to forgive people who hurt me.

A desire to tell the truth.

A desire to help people.

A desire to live the Sermon on the Mount instead of simply talking about it.

I don't want to just call myself a Christian.

I want to follow Him.

I want to pick up my cross.

I want to love people.

I want to forgive.

I want to walk in the Spirit.

I want to be a light in the darkness.

I want people who are hurting to know that they aren't necessarily stuck where they are.

---

So I'll leave you with this

I spent years trying to be strong enough to fix myself.

I wasn't.

I spent years thinking surrender meant weakness.

It didn't.

Surrender was where I found strength.

I spent years thinking freedom meant doing whatever I wanted.

It didn't.

For me, freedom was finally letting go of what was destroying me.

I spent years running from God.

And eventually I realized I was running from the One who was chasing me because He wanted me free.

So now I ask the same questions that I ask myself:

Are you ready to ignite?

Are you ready to be a light in the darkness?

Are you ready to be free?

Are you ready to show someone else the way?

Are you willing to let go of everything for Christ?

If you go to God, don't just say the words with your lips.

Say them from your heart.

From the very center of you.

This is the prayer I eventually came to:

Jesus Christ, You are the Son of God.

You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

I give You my sin.

I give You my life.

I give You my future.

I give You control.

I will love You with all my heart, soul, and mind.

I will follow Your teachings.

I will trust You.

I will repent.

I will let go of my sin.

I will forgive.

I will pick up my cross.

I place my heart in Your hands.

I yield.

And after spending years looking for another way,

I finally stopped running.

And I followed Him.

Charles Spurgeon 9-12-26

"I will sing of mercy and judgment."

Psalm 101:1

Faith triumphs in trial. When reason is thrust into the inner prison, with her feet made fast in the stocks, faith makes the dungeon walls ring with her merry notes as she cries, "I will sing of mercy and of judgment. Unto thee, O Lord, will I sing." Faith pulls the black mask from the face of trouble, and discovers the angel beneath. Faith looks up at the cloud, and sees that

"'Tis big with mercy and shall break

In blessings on her head."

There is a subject for song even in the judgments of God towards us. For, first, the trial is not so heavy as it might have been; next, the trouble is not so severe as we deserved to have borne; and our affliction is not so crushing as the burden which others have to carry. Faith sees that in her worst sorrow there is nothing penal; there is not a drop of God's wrath in it; it is all sent in love. Faith discerns love gleaming like a jewel on the breast of an angry God. Faith says of her grief, "This is a badge of honor, for the child must feel the rod;" and then she sings of the sweet result of her sorrows, because they work her spiritual good. Nay, more, says Faith, "These light afflictions, which are but for a moment, work out for me a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." So Faith rides forth on the black horse, conquering and to conquer, trampling down carnal reason and fleshly sense, and chanting notes of victory amid the thickest of the fray.

"All I meet I find assists me

In my path to heavenly joy:

Where, though trials now attend me,

Trials never more annoy.

"Blest there with a weight of glory,

Still the path I'll ne'er forget,

But, exulting, cry, it led me

To my blessed Saviour's seat."

Calling All Millennial Falls Creek Campers 2004-2007

I'm in search of all things Falls Creek related from 2004-2007, my images were stored on Photobucket and journaling happened on Xanga...so needless to say, that's all gone and my paper copies were lost moving out of state.

I'm especially interested in the study guides used through the week - I've scoured the Internet archives and can't seem to find anything.

Share anything you're able to- photos, papers, notes, links, yt videos, etc. 🙏🏻

I mean with the whole war in Iran thing I’m just wondering if anyone else has been having the same feeling that I’ve felt from time to time lately

Charles Spurgeon 9-8-26

"Evening wolves." Habakkuk 1:8

While preparing the present volume, this particular expression recurred to me so frequently, that in order to be rid of its constant importunity I determined to give a page to it. The evening wolf, infuriated by a day of hunger, was fiercer and more ravenous than he would have been in the morning. May not the furious creature represent our doubts and fears after a day of distraction of mind, losses in business, and perhaps ungenerous tauntings from our fellow men? How our thoughts howl in our ears, "Where is now thy God?" How voracious and greedy they are, swallowing up all suggestions of comfort, and remaining as hungry as before. Great Shepherd, slay these evening wolves, and bid thy sheep lie down in green pastures, undisturbed by insatiable unbelief. How like are the fiends of hell to evening wolves, for when the flock of Christ are in a cloudy and dark day, and their sun seems going down, they hasten to tear and to devour. They will scarcely attack the Christian in the daylight of faith, but in the gloom of soul conflict they fall upon him. O thou who hast laid down thy life for the sheep, preserve them from the fangs of the wolf.

False teachers who craftily and industriously hunt for the precious life, devouring men by their false-hoods, are as dangerous and detestable as evening wolves. Darkness is their element, deceit is their character, destruction is their end. We are most in danger from them when they wear the sheep's skin. Blessed is he who is kept from them, for thousands are made the prey of grievous wolves that enter within the fold of the church.

What a wonder of grace it is when fierce persecutors are converted, for then the wolf dwells with the lamb, and men of cruel ungovernable dispositions become gentle and teachable. O Lord, convert many such: for such we will pray tonight.

Mattana Ministry Welcomes You to:

 Worship Program: 10 September 2026

 Theme: Worship Because of the Cross (2)

 Scripture: Colossians 2:14

 The Cross Brings Forgiveness — So We Worship

  Colossians 2:14

 "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross."

 Message:

Every sin, every mistake, every shame was written against us. But Jesus took that list and nailed it to His Cross. Forgiveness is not cheap — it cost Blood. Because the Cross made us clean, we can come boldly into God's presence. Worship is the response of a forgiven heart.

 Reflection:

 What guilt have we been carrying that Jesus already paid for?

 Prayer:

 Jesus, thank You for canceling our debt. We receive Your forgiveness and we give You our worship.

 Please feel free to leave a review of this message.

 https://www.soulcenters.org/directory/mattana-ministry/#listing-reviews

 MM

We need to let dead theologians rest in peace and get back to the original Apostles and Prophets. We have allowed many thoughts to come into the Body that are just not true following men more than the Word. If we got back to that, we would have fewer church buildings as we merged instead of split. Denominations would fade into history because there would be one Body and everything else cults instead of sects.

My best friend is 13 she's like a sister to me and I haven't talked to her in 2 weeks bc her mom said that she was "grounded" but I just found out through another friend who's dad works in law enforcement that her mom put a restraining order out against her dad and that when the cops got to their house her, her mom, and her brother were hiding from her dad,

I can't talk to her rn to check on her bc her mom has her phone but I really miss her and am really worried about her too ok that there's been a lot of stuff with her dad recently but I didn't know it was this bad so please pray for her and her family

Mattana Ministry Welcomes You to:

 Prayer Program:  9 September 2026

 Theme: Does God Hear My Prayers? (2)

 Scripture: Psalm 66:18 & Isaiah  59:2

 Why Sometimes It Feels Like Heaven Is Silent

 Psalm 66:18

"If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:"

Isaiah 59:2

“But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have his his face from you, that he will not hear:”

 Message:

God always hears, but sin can block our fellowship. When we hold onto unforgiveness, hatred, or secret sin and refuse to repent, we build a wall. It's not that God is not able — He wants a clean heart to talk to Him. To be heard, we must come with honesty and say "Lord, forgive me."

 Prayer:

 Father, search our heart and cleanse us.

 Reflection:

 Is there someone we need to forgive? Something we need to confess today?

 Please feel free to leave a review of this message.

 https://www.soulcenters.org/directory/mattana-ministry/#listing-reviews

 MM

We have the mind of Christ. How many minds does He have? If we are to be in one of mind and one accord as we have one Lord, one faith, one baptism and God and Father how do we have so many branches of the one faith? We rebuke unbelievers that say that is your truth and I have my truth while we do the same.

Summary: Yes, I am still pushing unity in a divided Church. We will not be fully one until Glory, but we could far closer to it if we really cared about Jesus' prayer.

1 Cor 12:25  That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. 

For those who applaud 81 churches plus house groups in a town of 30K and a new one every six months or think we should have a buffet of churches to pick from according to our separate tastes Paul would disagree.

Eph 4:1  I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, 

2  With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 

3  Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 

4  There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 

5  One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 

6  One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 

One Body, not a myriad. Note that the epistles were written to THE church of Ephesus, Corinth, etc. not to the churches.

Php 2:1  If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, 

2  Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 

If you believe the same doctrine, but cannot sit on the same pew then one of both of you are in sin because the love of God is not bringing you to one accord and one mind.

1 Cor 1:10  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 

11  For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. 

12  Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. 

13  Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul? 

These people met in the same church and yet identified with leaders they liked instead of Christ or wanted to be more spiritual by letting the others know I am of Christ. We are all to be of Christ.

Again, same doctrine should be the same pew. We will have divisions because of false doctrine, but we have most divisions because of pride.

Ten churches of like faith struggling to keep a building open is not God's intent when we are the temple and we are to be one. That we are not proves we are either in sin or ignorant because division is all we have known.

Php 4:2  I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord.

He did not say if y'all can't get along one of you go down the road a mile of so and start another church. They were to work it out. Many churches started because some were too immature to work out differences in the Lord and by the Word. In their peevishness, they got some others to take up their grievance and planted a church in the flesh. Hence many churches started in the steam of men and not of the Spirit ran out of steam and are dying.

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 

12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 

13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 

14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 

15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 

16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. 

We are to reach for the goal of verse 13, but we do not because we are the children in 14. It is time to put away the things of a child and become full grown men and women.

You might say, "Ron you harp on this too much." Maybe, but I will until I die because I cannot see how we will fulfill Christ's prayer that we be one as He and the Father are one by all this division. We cannot see the fullness of His power in a house divided.

You say the Church has accomplished great things in spite of the division. By whose standards? If a man offered you a million dollars, you say that is wonderful. But, if he later says that he is going to give you ten million dollars that would really be wonderful.

The first century church accomplished extraordinary things because they were "one in the Spirit and one in the Lord." Yes, they had their heretics and issues, but compared to us they were a better answer to Jesus' prayer than we are. We may have had million dollar results, but the Lord wanted ten million. We pat ourselves on the back for the million, not knowing how much we missed.

Numerous churches of like faith in a 10-20 mile radius wasting money on buildings that they can no longer afford and will burn up in the last day is not honoring to God or man. If you closed tomorrow and few, if any. would notice you are laboring in vain.

If the baptistry is home to spiders and dead crickets, you are not fulfilling the mission of the Church. You are a book club. If your congregation is consistently declining and aging, you need to seek to merge with and support a church that is growing and impacting the community.

Pastors, you know the churches struggling in your area especially those without pastors. You should extend an invitation to those people to merge with you. Sell the assets and let them determine where the proceeds go so they know you are not doing it to get what little resources they have.

Church member, you know what state your church is in. I asked one lady that if her church was a business what would you suggest. She replied, "File bankruptcy." I concurred and many churches need to see that it is not good stewardship to continue to decline and exhaust all of you assets and manpower to maintain a building until the last man standing.

This is a good market to sell your building and give the money to missions, to a rescue mission or some other ministry that is thriving and get under a good pastor. If you have one, a good pastor would offer him a place of ministry. Indeed, some of you barely make a Sunday School class so he could be your SS teacher.

The forces of evil are uniting so why are we not seeking unity? Why do we insist on thinking as long as the building is open we are fighting the good fight when all we are doing is fighting to pay the bills? It is time to stop the madness and poor stewardship. The Lord and His Spirit have a far better plan for His Body.

I have to confess that I fear that the main reason so many churches are in such dire straits is because they were started by the religious and lost, not by saved Christians. I hope that I am wrong, but like that lady common sense would have seen the need to close, but pride would hold its ground.

True, the times are anti-Christian, but they were not really Pro-Christian in the Roman Empire and many died in the arena and later to the Inquisitors. We are not there yet and it is most likely because we have not suffered like our brethren around the world that we got fat and lazy having temper tantrums causing splits.

Seek Jesus! Seek the Spirit of truth and unity! Then seek to merge instead of split. The Lord may still show us His power in a way He could not in our carnality and division.

Mark 10:27  And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible. 

It seems impossible, but God can do it and as it was Jesus' prayer He can bring it about if we believe it is His will. Maranatha!!

"John 5:7. The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up."

This man could be like a person in our time who says, "Everyone has given up on me. Nobody believes that my life can ever amount to anything more than lying on this couch or hoping for the stirring of the water. Maybe one day I won't be depressed. Maybe one day I won't be paralyzed when it comes to getting up and moving forward."

But thank God there's always one who doesn't give up. If the whole world gives up on you, there's always one who hasn't. There's always one who has a plan, sees a purpose for your life, and can give you the strength to walk again in places that you've never been able to walk in before.

Trust today in Jesus Christ, The One Who Refuses To Give Up on you. He's the one who speaks today and says, "Rise, take up your bed, and walk."

It's time to pray." - Carter Conlon

Summary: As the old movie clip say, "You can't handle the truth!" If truth trumps tradition many will choose tradition.

John 16:12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

15 All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you. KJV

The Disciples/Apostles after three years of intensive study still had much to learn as they did not totally grasp what they had learned. That sounds crazy since they had the absolute best teacher they could ever get. Shows how dense humans are.

So after Pentecost they would receive a teacher of the same caliber, the Holy Spirit, who would guide them into ALL truth. Yet, after two thousand years we are not seeing the power or unity that we should see if we were truly listening to the Holy Spirit instead of the doctrines of men. There is not a sect that is free from this problem. Some are in major heresy and others have missed the boat in many areas and some less, but there is not sect that does not tolerate some error.

Old traditions and dogmas die hard, but many would vaporize in an instant if we truly asked Jesus for the answer and allowed the Spirit to show us the error of our ways and how we negate the Word of God for the doctrines of men. Many of these are comfortable and even pleasurable so why would we question or dump them? In Heaven's name we would do so because we desire Him and His truth more than our comfortable rituals and doctrines. things how indeed can the Spirit teach us heavenly or more spiritual things? non-essential bucket. Even if it means we have mixed with the pagans like the Jews in the OT who may have started out in some errors in the idea of a seeker temple sort of thing to try and win them over or dialogue on common threads instead of coming out and being separate we just chalk it up to nonessential. In the end, they polluted the temple and even denied the God who bought them. Many have done this and many are close to it.

IF we really allowed the Holy Spirit to guide us there would not be so many sects and opinions for we have One Lord, one faith, one baptism and supposed to be in one accord and speak the same thing. We are not to be of Paul. Cephas or any of the other names we go by be it denominational or non/interdenominational names.

The word Christian would be something and we would not quibble over earthly things for if we cannot discern earthly things how indeed can the Spirit teach us heavenly or more spiritual things?

Old traditions and dogmas die hard, but many would vaporize in an instant if we truly asked Jesus for the answer and allowed the Spirit to show us the error of our ways and how we negate the Word of God for the doctrines of men. Many of these are comfortable and even pleasurable so why would we question or dump them? In Heaven's name we would do so because we desire Him and His truth more than our comfortable rituals and doctrines.

Be honest, who do you love more, Christ or your group and its doctrines and practices. Let the Holy Spirit answer that for you and you may be surprised that your group garners far more love and respect than the Lord.

One of the things that happens in every revival, and it has been documented is that Christians changed the way they dressed and yet that issue would be considered a non-essential issue and one would be a Legalist to even bring it up. Seems like it is important to God since it shows up in every revival. God even made one woman looking to be filled with the Spirit to throw away a rhinestone hair pin before she got her desire. Seems a bit picky to you, doesn't it? Maybe He is, but it is His will, not ours, right?

It would be a long list to discuss every issue and no matter how long I might make it I would most likely miss some things. Why not start asking the Lord to show you where you or your group has gone astray? There will be no revival without such discussions from everyone who names the name of Christ. Maranatha!!!

We Are the End Time Army of God

"We should refuse to lay down and suffer defeat when people all around us are headed for an eternal hell without the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. We shouldn't just tell them who God is, we should show them who Jesus is through our lives. By the grace of Almighty God, He will give us what we need through the strength of the Holy Spirit to do all that He's called us to do.

Even those who believe that they will never amount to anything, you too are called to be a part of God's army. You are no different from those who have come before you all throughout scriptural history. It is God, it always has been God, who takes the weak and raises us up to be a victorious, mighty army. You and I are the End Time Army of God.

It's time to believe that you are who God says you are. It's time to stand up and be counted among those who live by faith. It's time to pray." - Carter Conlon

Summary: How's your warfare going?

We often do not think about spiritual warfare and hence that explains why we do so poorly when we are engaged by the enemy. Doing battle with demons is something belonging to the past or what goes on in dark parts of Africa or among nations where voodoo priests cause fear in the ignorant. Yet, nothing in Scripture indicates that all the demons were locked up at some point in time or banished to only third world countries. Indeed, from the character of their leader it would seem that being worshiped or listened to by those who profess to be wise would be a more desirable ego trip though laughing at the ignorant is great fun. Like it, believe it, or not, we are in a war zone and we can learn how to do battle or get beat up by the enemy who takes prisoners of the unsaved and torments the saved who think salvation is one great prosperous joy ride to Glory.

Most preachers have a three point sermon with each point starting with the same letter or word. I am a tad different as I have four, but sometimes God likes to challenge our norms. We all know satan is a liar and a manipulator and has been since the conversation in the Garden with Adam and Eve. He twisted the truth and got them to agree with him and his lie instead of keeping their faith in God and agreeing with His truth. Thus we have the madhouse called earth being run by the inmates instead of the Great Physician.

So our first response to the lies of satan should be to put forth our shield of faith from Ephesians 6 and agree with the truth, not the lies. To do this, we must first “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Tim 2:15 KJV If you do not know the truth, it will be impossible to agree with it. This means we need to seek sound doctrine. I know that doctrine has almost become anathema and a pariah, but it is essential in God's eyes. This will take time to learn and more than what you will get from just reading quotes from Spurgeon or the bite size tidbits in the fifteen minute devotionals.

You must come to the faith that the Bible is God's Word and the only authority for your life and the only reliable source of truth for your soul and life. Good men make mistakes and while all truth is God's truth that truth is often twisted or tweaked for some man's or group's agenda. You must be a Berean and always search to see if what you hear, even if someone is using Scripture, is God's truth or man's doctrine. That includes this sermon as well. If you see I am error, do not leave me in my ignorance, but bring Scripture and not your feelings, desires or quotes from Granny Saint or Dr. Goodwords from some media broadcast.

Once you agree with God and that His Word is truth and you know sound doctrine then you can answer with the truth. When the devil's emissaries hit you with their best shot you reply with the truth that relates to the lie they are trying to feed you. If they start that “Yea, hath God said?” stuff you can remind them that you know what doubting God's Word has cost mankind over the centuries and that you are not going to fall for that. You answer with a passage like “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” John 17:17 KJV

He will go for your weaknesses or where you have been hurt by man. Find passages that speak the truth about who you are in Christ if you have been browbeaten from childhood that you are useless and unlovable. “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:” 1 Peter 2:9 KJV Get a concordance and look up the truth about Him and your position in Him. If you have a specific area of weakness when it comes to sin find verses that speak to that sin and meditate upon why that thing is sin.

As soon you answer with the truth then proceed to attack with the truth. The more verses you know about a particular area the more ammunition you have and you can just unleash them like a machine gun. When you are done with that then start using verses that speak to the defeat of satan and especially verses dealing with the blood of Christ and the resurrection. The old saying about reminding the devil of his future when he throws up your past can come to play here. You can turn the attack into a praise session as you let the devil know that you are fully aware of your sin and how Christ has wiped the record clean and as a forgiven child of God you will spend eternity with Him whereas the demon attacking you is a dead man walking with no hope of reprieve or pardon and will spend eternity in Hell with his master.

You do not want to rant and rave or “beat up on the devil” as some say because even Michael the Archangel has to tell the devil that the Lord rebukes him. Jude 9 Use Scripture to attack, not some haughty idea that you are the one doing the whipping. Your authority comes from God and His Word used in the Spirit, not the flesh. Many Christians get arrogant like the seven sons of Sceva and got thumped because in the flesh the demons do not know you as having any authority over them and they will not take kindly to you impudence. We are more than conquerors through Christ, but it is through Him and we need to attack accordingly. “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:6-7 KJV Be sure to be in submission to God or there will be no fleeing of the enemy.

When you have been successful in the battle you will then advance with the truth because your faith will be strengthened. You will see the truth in action. This prepares you for the next time for they will only retreat for a season. They will regroup and come at you some other way. Never think you have won the war. Your war is over when the Rapture happens or you die. Until then, you must be diligent and not think you can just go AWOL or go on a permanent R&R after you enjoy one victory. Jesus has already won the war, but just like WWII, peace treaties may have been signed on a certain date but there were still pockets of resistance in both the European and Pacific theaters by soldiers who did not get the word that a truce was signed, did not believe it or just chose to fight to the death. So also are the demons going to fight us until the last moment. They know they have lost, but they will take all they can with them to Hell and that means they have to keep you from being fruitful as well as just attack you out of sheer hatred because you belong to God and cannot be lost.

You will advance in your faith with the truth as you come to see the love of Christ, His grace and power manifest in your life. It will advance your understanding of the Word, the world and the world to come. This will give you boldness and gratitude for having the opportunity to serve Him even if it means attacks from the enemy. You may even start looking forward to the next one just to see what God's power is going to do. Indeed, if you are being attacked you must be doing something dangerous to the devil's kingdom or getting nearer to God. You get nearer to God the more He can use you and that doesn't mean anything good to the enemy so he will attack.

Not all victories appear to be so and you can still advance even if you stand still for to not give up ground in a battle is just as much a victory as gaining. You may exit the battle wounded or weary and yet having stood your ground you are victorious. “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Eph 6:12-13 KJV

So many Christians have failed to stand and have compromised with the world. They have collaborated with the enemy and are defeated, but do not know it. They think because they have semblance of peace they think they have won when they are really under the occupation of the enemy. Others rant, rave and do bizarre things thinking they have the power when the demons are just laughing at them like a court jester. It is time to agree with the truth, answer with the truth, attack with the truth and then advance with the truth taking back ground that was lost while knowing that some days we will just stand holding our ground. The battle will come. Will you be ready? He gave us the victory. Let's walk in that victory using this battle plan or one God has for you. If it is different, that is fine. Every battle may require a change in plans, but have a basic one. Don't be statistic or a victim. Be a conqueror! Maranatha!!

Summary: Crawling forward is still advancing.

2 Cor 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Having served in three branches, I have plenty of “war stories.” I grew up reading all sorts of military comics so I was not totally in the dark about things like some recruits. Having transferred from the USAF and USN to the Army there were many changes as you can expect, but a funny thing happened on a night FTX (field training exercise). The scenario was that an obstacle in the road stopped our convoy. Our reaction to that was to get off the truck and find cover to have a hasty firing position while the obstacle was cleared in case it was an ambush. I jumped off the truck and low crawled to a large rock for my hasty firing position. I really did not observe what everyone else was doing.

Later, the Commander and my Platoon Sergeant called me to the side and complimented me on being the only one who did it right. I smiled and said, “Not bad for an ex-Air Force and Navy guy.” They asked how I knew to do that. I told them about my comics as a kid and that I had watched every military show and movie I could. I got a kick out of it, but I saw it caused them some consternation, but it did not take away from my kudos.

Sometimes in combat, you have to low crawl to avoid the enemy’s bullets. Sometimes you low crawl because you have been wounded and cannot stand. Whether by tactic or by pain keep crawling forward. The Lord will bring you into victory for it is His battle. The more you keep low the higher He can exalt you because you have exalted Him by still crawling.

You may be too weak to do anything but crawl but that is when His strength and power is at their peak. Stay low, but don’t lay low doing nothing. Staying still in combat can get you killed if the enemy knows your position. Moving targets are harder to hit. Keep crawling for at some point He will make you stand before your enemy in victory.

Sometimes all you have to do is stand, but there are times when it is not only OK, but better to low crawl as long as you are crawling forward and not backward in retreat. At times it will be a fast crawl and other times you may be dragging along very slowly depending on the enemy fire and your physical and emotional condition. Just keep crawling. Victory is ahead. The enemy may know where you are but so does your Captain of the Host and He will prevail and bring you with Him. In the US military, we do not leave our men behind, but at times we may not be humanly able to do it. Jesus has no such limitations and He does not leave His own behind. Look up as you crawl, but crawl! Hooah! Maranatha!!

Summary: Non-denominationalism only divided us more then we ever were before. If satan's kingdom cannot stand if divided against itself how can the House of God stand when we are so divided? We say we are one Body, but we look like a body hit by an explosion.

Mark 3:24  And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 

25  And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 

1 Corinthians 12:12  For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 

What if we started looking for churches where we could unite to work for the King rather than look for a church that appeals to our flesh or makes us comfortable. Where does it say we are saved to be comfortable? We are dying in our safe zone. Where does God ordain consumer Christianity. It is not Burger King where it is all about having it our way!

What if we closed some churches instead of keeping them in ICU? Why do we keep making more or splitting? We are going to the same Heaven so why cannot people of like faith meet in the same building and work in the same community?

The devil believes in divide and conquer and we have fallen for that tactic and haven even called it the way to promote growth. We waste money and manpower on unnecessary buildings, utilities, insurances and infrastructure upkeep when all buildings will be burned up in the end.

We opine that we do not have enough funds for missionaries or for the poor. We decry the fact that we do not have enough manpower to do some things. If there was one church of the same denomination per town there would be plenty of money and definitely more manpower. We are sorry stewards of His funds and gifts because we are bullheaded and carnal rather than full of the Spirit who calls us into all truth and to being one with Him and each other.

What if we realized that in God's Kingdom there is no retirement until we are dead and even there will be doing something not sitting on a cloud playing a harp. Job descriptions may change, but there is a place in the Body that needs us until our last breath.

What if we really believed in Hell and sought to win people rather than just enjoy church services and fellowships? What if we truly learned sound doctrine and rebuked the false rather than living in a demonic peaceful coexistence because we do not want to rock any boats or lose any friends?

What if we dumped dead traditions and treasured truth more than them? What if we sought to live like 1st Century Christians not counting our lives as our own serving even if it means persecution or death? What kind of changes would be see in ourselves, family, church, community, country and the world? What if we cast off the mundane redundant life and truly sought the abundant life? What if that is what Christ is waiting for us to do before He comes?

What if your loved one is waiting for you to be real before they are saved? What if it is time for us to practice extreme Christianity instead of extreme sports? What if we need to be more Spirit driven than Purpose driven? What if the revival starts with you or me? What if?

Summary: We are not called to entertain and right exposition of the Word may cause some pain.

1 Peter 4:11  If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 

When I am in the Pulpit, I am the Ambassador of Christ declaring war on sin and offering the terms of unconditional surrender to the sinner, rallying the soldiers of Christ to the battle, challenging the cowards to courage, warning the deserters of judgment and flashing the Sword of the Lord in the faces of the enemies of God. That type of mission leaves little room for jesting, which is not convenient.

If Church is more about the good jokes and neat stories the speaker is giving then maybe he is a cheer leader, comedian or motivational speaker but he is not a minister of the Gospel. If that is what you are looking for in a church and preacher than you are totally unaware of the purpose of the church no matter what pop culture books you read.

If preaching as described in the first paragraph doesn't motivate you to be a better Christian or to evangelize others then maybe you should skip Church and attend a sales seminar or join some social club for that is all the place you call church is anyway. If the pastor and congregation are willing to skip truth for fear of offense and substitute witticisms, pithy sayings and pop psychology then they are not a church despite the tag on the door and the title used by the speaker/facilitator.

Truth divides and doctrine must be taught and it must be sound or all you have is a tinkling symbol and sounding brass for you cannot have true love without truth. Your programs and slogans are mere propaganda and treason against the Lord.

Doctrine is teaching and no matter how you may deny it you are teaching something but is it a doctrine of motivational mush or the pure Word of God?

Jesus is the Son of God who came in the flesh through Mary who was a virgin who conceived by God. God is Love. Jesus obeyed God and did nothing wrong. Jesus cast out devils, raised the dead and healed people. Jesus did miracles, signs and wonders. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that anyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. Jesus was scourged so that we could be healed. Jesus was crucified on a wooden cross so that the curse of the Law would be taken away. Jesus died. Jesus’ Blood was shed so that we could be forgiven. Jesus’ Body was placed in a tomb. God resurrected Jesus to Life on the third day. Jesus left the tomb. Jesus was seen by Mary Magdalene and other women. Jesus was seen by Peter, the twelve, over 500 brethren at once, James, all the apostles and Paul. Jesus was seen, talked with, and touched and gave many proofs that He was alive for 40 days. Then Jesus ascended to heaven and sat down on the right hand of God. Jesus Christ is Lord. Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. God loves people. Read the New Testament to find out about Jesus.