Goens My Way

Life is for Living

2009-06-07T10:21:00.002-04:00

I just got off of the phone with Austin Casselman. Austin is the son of an old and dear friend of mine, Don Casselman Back in the day when we both were young, our senior year in high school, Don was the quarterback and I was the running back of the most feared tandem in the history of high school sports. At least that is how we remembered it.
After graduation I went into the US Air Force, to fight for our country's freedom and Don went to Indiana University to learn how to spell and do arithmetic, and to make a name for himself in big time football.
We went out separate ways for many years and one day I am out knocking on doors inviting people to church and telling them about the love of God. I knocked on the door at a house, on Karyn street, in Plainfield,IN (one that was just like my house in Bedford) and behold the man that answered the door was Don. He did not have time for me, or my religion, he was going to be a big star in Nashville, in the record business. We parted ways again. I promised Don that I would pray for him and he assured me that he appreciated the thought but really did not need my prayers.
Years passed and one day I received a letter in the mail (for those of you that don't know that is when you put a written paper in and envelope and send it through the United States postal system. Otherwise known as snail mail) It was from Don and he told me about getting saved and how that God had worked in his life. We got together a few years ago and he spoke to my congregation. As I listened to Don's testimony I had to laugh to myself. Who would have ever believed that Don Casselman and Steve Goens would have been sitting on a platform, in a church, telling people about Jesus. But that is just the way that God works.
Over the last several years Don and I have shared phone calls, e-mails, and jokes. He has invited me to his house and I have finally decided to go and visit Don. We will not share a meal, or trade jokes, or remember the good ol' days. Don died this morning of a massive heart attack. I will be going to his home in Nashville this week to pray with his family, and cry with them as he is laid to rest.
I just finished talking to his son a moment ago, when his son asked me "Are you the preacher that sent the Life is for Living daily devotional?" He said, "are you the counselor?" and" Are you the one that teaches the lesson on focus, when you have someone look around the room at all the red things and then ask them to look at you and name three yellow things." Yes Austin, that is me." He began to cry and said "That is the last thing that Dad and I talked about, was your daily devotional." I began to cry!! I must go now, I have tears to shed, not for an old friend-He is safe in heaven. But, for his family, that will miss him, and for those in his family yet unsaved, and for those who are reading this note, who do not know about the grace and mercy of God.
Goodbye Don, I loved you, prayed for you each day, and I will help your family and those that you loved, and those that loved you, to the very best of my God given ability.
I will do that because you and I both know that "Life is for Living," just ....
Because He Lives,
Pastor Steve Goens

Blood Clot Goens....

2009-04-25T21:29:00.001-04:00

Well, it has finally happened. After 59 years on this earth I am now spending the longest stay of my life . . . in the hospital. I have, of course, been to the Drs. office. But never have I been overnight in the hospital except with the church members and friends that have been far less fortunate than my self. I developed a blood clot in my leg and now have been hospitalized since Thursday morning.
Never having been hospitalized and never having developed a blood clot I am rather naive with the whole treatment thing. So when the Dr. told me what was going to be done, I agreed with it and was set for the treatment, or so I thought.
Now for those that do not know I have a daughter that is nurse at Duke University, (I only mention the name of the Hospital to irate my Kentucky friends), but she thinks that she is a Doctor, and that the Duke way is the only way. When told of the treatment that I was to receive she began with her dogged determination to make sure that the treatment went beyond what was prescribed and that it would include more. Now I would like to explain all of the procedure to you, but I don't understand it my self, but let us just say that my Doctor had a difficult time to find someone that could do it the "Duke Way"
The surgery, that sounds more important than procedure, will take place on Tuesday in an Indianapolis area hospital. I do not mention the hospital because I do not wish all of my fans to show up and cause a big scene. I feel confident that the surgery will go well and in no time I will be back on schedule. As I was laying in bed thinking of the love that my daughter has for her daddy and how insistent she was that things were to be done the "right way" to lessen any further complications I began to think of the preaching of the Gospel of Christ.
There is a standard procedure, one that everyone is satisfied with " It doesn't matter where you go to church, as long as you go." That is standard procedure. It will make you feel good and you may even live a better life. But there is a better way. The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin. It does make a difference what you believe and where you go to church! Many roads may lead to Rome, but not every road leads to the Heavenly City.
When it seemed doubtful that we would find a surgeon to do the surgery, a Doctor at Duke told Julie, "Tell your dad that we will send the helicopter after him and I will do the surgery." Julie said "That would be very costly", to which the Doctor replied, "Don't worry about it."
Would it not be great if we were as concerned about the lost that we would not count the cost, but just get the job done? Judgmental? I don't think so, I think it is love! There is a way that seems right unto a man, but God's way is the only way.
GoensMyWay,
Because He Lives

4-06 Update from the Philipenes

2009-04-06T22:06:00.002-04:00

Due to computer problems and travel I have not been able to send out Goensmyway as often as I had hoped. I am in Tar lac, Philippines and God is blessing. I have many adventures from Davao to tell you but I will catch you up on the last few days first.
I am here with Brother Joey Cosme, a young missionary we were able to help in the states. Brother Joey has a beautiful wife, one with a great sense of humor and an apparent love for her husband, a couple of very cute little girls as well as the the Lord. I have put the Goens charm on one of the little girls and won her over very easily, however, the youngest one will not even eat at the same table with me. Well, I guess that just proves that you can't win every time!
Brother Joey started a church about four years ago and turned the work over to another pastor when he came to America for his education. I had the privilege of holding the first revival meeting this church has ever had. We made a great connection with the people and their pastor and the revival was very successful with good crowds, great altar results a couple of young people called to preach and 4 saved.
We have preached at three other churches here since April 1, when we arrived, and God blessed at each place. Sunday we preached at two churches and all totaled I believe that God blessed with thirty two souls saved. One church, one of Tar lac's largest, the altar was full and the people, once again very receptive.
I am not sure why, but the Filipino pastors are extremely receptive to our ministry and friendships are formed very quickly. The Filipino congregations also are very gracious and even seem to enjoy my rather off beat sense of humor. A bond is formed quickly and my comfort with the pastors and people amaze me.
At one church that we were at the church has a wall around the building, as do all the churches, with barb wire and broken glass embedded in the concrete blocks around the top. Just a couple of months ago, at 2 AM, his home was broken into, all in the house held at gun point, tied up and all of the worldly goods stolen. A frightening experience for his wife, and daughters and of course for the pastor himself. The robbers were caught a few days later, but the area is full of their "friends." I am here but a day, the pastors live here every day and face great difficulties, but their thirst for God is not quenched nor their fire for souls put out. I thank God I can come here to encourage them to continue on and fight one more round.
We are leaving today to go to yet another part of the Island, to a place where Bro. Joey is going to be starting a new church in about a month. We will be "door" knocking and saturating the area with literature. Door knocking is not really the case, everyone in the Philippines are on the streets it seems, 24 hours every day. Stand in one place and hundreds will just pass your way. We will be preaching in several other churches before we come back home. Please pray that many more souls will be saved and lives changed.
I miss my family, my church and my schedule back in America, but God seems to be using our ministry to encourage the people here. Thank you for helping make this trip be successful, with your money, your prayers and your love.
Because He Lives,
Bro. Steve

Filipino Graduation

2009-03-27T08:51:00.000-04:00

Sunday and Monday I spent my time at graduation ceremonies in four different schools. Here in the Philippines the school system is very low quality and students do not learn a great deal. Bro. Claro and those he has trained believe in a Christian education and I must say, I was truly impressed with the children I met.
The graduation program, like everything the Filipinos do, takes forever. The ceremony at one school lasted longer that the school year itself. At each of the schools the children did an outstanding job with the program. Each child that had a speaking part stood, bowed, recited loudly and clearly. Believe me, it was a tough act to follow.
I am very grateful that these pastors invited me, and rearranged their schedules to fit into mine. I had a great time and was impressed by the dedication of very poor families to invest their money into a quality education for their children.
I was sure that one of the fathers, a father of 3, was going to bust the buttons on his shirt as his children received several rewards. The Filipino are very precious. One of them right now is standing on the back of a bench, telling the other children that LOLO White is busy.

Update from the Phillippines

2009-03-26T13:14:00.001-04:00

Today I conducted my first wedding on Philippine soil. We drove to a place close to Muslim territory to perform these nuptials for this outstanding young couple, a second generation preacher and a daughter of a large family with many in the ministry.
My weddings in America last about as long minutes as the Philippine weddings last in hours I was not prepared for a two hour ceremony but that is just the Philippine way. The wedding started a 9:30 AM and that was quite a surprise for me. The wedding I will be performing next week begins at, are you ready for this my sleepy headed Americans, 5:30 AM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We will be going up the day before and spending the night there, and as I understand it, I will have the privilege of living the Philippine lifestyle. The Bamboo floors, no water, etc. We will also be going through some Muslim Terrorist territory where I will be dressed as a , are you ready for this, a Muslim! Maybe they are kidding me but they tell me I must be covered. But they have also told me not to worry because the best of fighting forces in the Philippines will be there to protect me.
When I get back to the States I will certainly look at the American weddings in a different light. By the way, if you do not receive any e-mails after March 31, well, it has been nice knowing you.
Because He Lives,
Bro. Steve

March 22..Arriving in Davao

2009-03-22T22:32:00.002-04:00

One of the things that amaze me about the Filipinos is the way that they treat their guest and show their love. For an example. The first time I was here I was greeted by about 30 preachers with a banner welcoming me to their country.
As I pulled on the property for the first time, about half way on the mile long entry way there was a big sign that read "WELCOME DR. STEVE GOENS. YOUR HOME AWAY FROM HOME. As we approached the tabernacle there was another sign, WE ARE GLAD YOU ARE HERE. Then another one on the Platform WELCOME DR. STEVE GOENS TO OUR FAMILY CAMP. I was so honored.
The second time about the same thing, except they forgot to pick up the banner for the airport and told me they would get it later. At the end of the week I asked them about the banner and they said, well we had already picked you up.
This time, no banner again, no preachers at the airport, they all were running late and left me all by myself in the land of kidnappers. No sign on the road to the camp and only a chalk board with a welcoming message.
Do you think that they are trying to tell me something?

Flight to the Philippines

2009-03-22T22:28:00.001-04:00

I am a few days behind because of computer problems at the camp that I stay at. I know that some of of couple of readers have been waiting for my reports.
The flight here was as good as could be expected. I had a decent seat, and I thank God for that. I asked all my friends that I would be able to get a first class upgrade. Well, I could see first class from where I was seated which proves what I have always thought. My friends prayers fall just a little bit short.
On the flight I met a lady from India. She ask me what I did for a living and I told her I was a Baptist Preacher. I thought that would end the conversation, but instead it just inspired one. She asked me why people suffer so very much. Her thought was that if you were bad in a previous life that you would have a back life in the next life. As a Hindu she believed in reincarnation, a past life, a life now and a life to come. I told her that Christians believed in the same thing, that we too believe in a past life, a present life and the life to come.
We believe in the reincarnate life of the Lord Jesus Christ. That He was the Lamb slain before the foundation of the World. That before we ever came into the world that God loved us so much that Christ was willing to die for us on the cross. Of course we believe in the life that we live now. And that in this life there are blessing and curses. Our trials only come to make us strong.
And of course the life in the future is a place where we call heaven. Not all are going there, only the ones that are saved. She leaned back on seat closed her eyes. I thought that she had had enough. As we were preparing to land in Hong Kong she leaned over and thanked me for being a kind and considerate seat mate and told me that I had given her a lot to think about, and asked me to pray for her. I told her I would.
Now, that is something you cannot get in first class!
Because He Lives,
GOENS MY WAY - Philippines 2009

Off to a Great Start

2009-03-17T22:46:00.001-04:00

Tuesday, March 17, 2009
It is early Tuesday morning and in just a few short hours I will be getting on the plane and heading to the land of the Philippines.
Monday was a hectic day and my schedule was jammed packed. I received a phone call from a lady that I had told her, "If I can ever help you let me know". She asked me if I meant that and she said yes. Her Grandmother was dying and she did not know if she was Saved or not and the lady wanted to talk to someone.
Not today, I thought I am to busy to win anyone to Christ today. I have to prepare to go on a missions trip to win souls. It took me about 2 seconds to tell her I was on the way. She warned me about her rude, crude, irreverent family in a bad part of Indy. I assured her it would be OK I arrived and was greeted by a lovely young lady who escorted me to the place where Grandma was. I had prayer with her, told her of our great saviour and how he loved her. As I led her in the sinners prayer, she took her thumb and tapped my hand as I asked her to pray the "sinners prayer" I questioned her again and again she tapped my hand when I asked her if she had confessed her sins.
About three hours later this babe in Christ crossed over into the wonder of eternity safely on the wings of the Grace of God. Too late to enjoy the abundant Christian life but just before the death angel came. She never knew about answered prayer, or the victory of living by faith, or the joy of the daily walk with Jesus, but thank God, she did make it home in time for supper!

Because He Lives,
Bro. Steve

ON THE WAY TO THE PHILIPPINES

2009-03-17T22:42:00.002-04:00

Dear Friends,
I want to thank you for all the response we have to our daily devotionals. It is a blessing to me that there are a few who really enjoy the insights that God gives me into the Scriptures. Not all agree with the insights but none the less, that has never stopped me from writing.
As some of you have noticed you have not received them the last couple of weeks and the reason is simple, there are only 24 hours in a day and I must get at least 4 hours of sleep a day or I just can't function.
I have been wrapping up the classes that I teach here in the States and then there is working ahead on all of the work at the church, and then there are the messages to be preached in the Philippines. This is my third trip there in the last 2 years.
I will be going to the southern part of the Philippines to a place called Davao City. After performing two weddings, and preaching(40 times last year) on prophecy, some graduation ceremonies, I will then head to Manila where I will preach from April 1 thru April 12. Then back home again to Indiana.
Please pray for me in the following ways if you would please.
Safety, on the island I will be, there are a lot of Communist and Muslims.
Success. We would love to see at least 100 people saved. Much of the time we will be teaching preachers. But there will be those times in churches and we pray for a great harvest of souls.
Pray for my health. I am not as young as I was last week. Pray for my diabetes, high blood pressure, teeth that needed work on that I just never got around to fixin', my back, ankle swelling, eyes, GOOD NIGHT, WHY AM I EVEN GOING, I AM A SICK TIRED OLD MAN!!!! As you pray for my health, Sharon has decided, in the case of my death, that she will only bring me home if they will strap me in a seat to use my ticket to return home. If there is an additional cost, she will just leave me in the Philippines and send God a change of address form just in case He forgets where I am at his second coming. HA!
Thank you to all that has contributed to my trip. I trust that I will be all that I can be as I represent you in the Philippines. The Filipinos are great people and I love to work with them. I will be posting my daily adventures on here and would enjoy if you would stop by and rejoice with me in the victories that I believe God is going to give.
Because He Lives,
Pastor Steve Goens

Devotionals March 2-4th

2009-03-04T17:19:00.002-05:00

MONDAY MARCH 2, 2009 -
GENESIS 6:1-8
Whenever I read the Word of God I get excited. The next great event on the Christian calendar is what is commonly referred to as the "Rapture" of the church. Now, you cannot find the word "rapture" in the Bible but that is the word that we use to explain this event. One day, the Bible states, God is going to open the graves and call all of his saints home to heaven. The Bible says "in a moment, the twinkling of the eye" we are going to be gone. The Bible gives us many signs of his coming. And one of the signs is "as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the coming of the son of man." There is no doubt that we live in a very sinful, wicked world. I am just 59 years old and have been in the ministry for 35 of those years. If someone had told me then the things I am seeing today I would have told them, "maybe other places, but not in America." I would have been wrong. The focus of today devotional is found in verse 5. All that Noah's generation thought about was sin, how to commit it, how to hide it, and how to get by with it. Now, that sounds a great deal like today.
The Bible tells us that "whatsoever a man thinketh, so is he." Take a moment, and ask yourself this simple question. Do I think as they did in the days of Noah, or are my thoughts on the things of God?

TUESDAY MARCH 3, 2009 -
EXODUS 25:1-9
As a regular reader, you know that I think about death and the legacy that I am going to leave behind. It is, in reality, a daily thought and prayer of mine. When the people that I counsel stand beside my casket, what will they think of me after spending many hours with me as I tried to help them? My congregation, what will they say about me after sitting under my ministry for over thirty years? When I have preached revival meetings and special services, did I effect anybodies life? The students, at Fellowship Baptist College, in Indiana, and Central Baptist Bible College, Philippines, that have sat under my teaching, did I make an impact in their lives? Did my writing ministry change anybody? All of these things are very important to me. However, there is one other thing that is more important that all of the aforementioned, what impact did I have on my family? That is the most important thing to me.
Now, I said all of this to ask a question. What kind of impact did Abraham have on his family? Abraham was a great man of God, much grater that I will ever hope to be. He was a great man of faith. He was courageous! But, and it is a big but, the problems in the world today between the Jews and the Muslims, can be put at the feet of Abraham. For that one moment, Abraham was impatient, he did not want to wait on God, he lacked the faith that he needed and went in with another woman, bore a child with her, and the Muslim world was born.
Abraham is now dead. Both Isaac, his son by Sarah, and Ishmael, his son by Hagar are at Abraham's funeral. One, a promise of God of prosperity, the other a son of destruction (Gen 16:11-12). What a shame such a beautiful life is marred for all eternity because of a lack of faith, just for a moment, but with an eternal impact. What about your life, what impact will you have for eternity?

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2009 -
DUETERONOMY 2:26 - 30
As Moses and the Israelites were passing through there were many obstacles that stood in their way. As today, the same then, when they passed through a strange land, a land inhabited by others, they had to receive permission to continue on the journey. The Edomites and Moabites did not hinder the Israelites from passing through their country, though they were far from friendly and dealt with them in an unbrotherly way. However, when the arrived at Heshbon, the chief city of the Amorite king, Sihon, Moses overtures of peace were rejected.
The Bible says that God had hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate. Many times in the Word of God, you will find the phrase or similar phrase that God hardened their hears. Now the question arises, if God hardened their heart how then did a fair, and righteous God judge them if they could not help their heart being hardened?
First of all, God is God, and He can do as He wills. This is the sovereign act of God, and we must not question.
Secondly, when we question the act of God and think he is unfair, then we put ourselves into a position of being a judge and claiming that we are more knowledgeable, understanding, righteous and merciful that God. What a ridiculous and arrogant thought is that.
Thirdly, God simply puts man in a situation that reveals the hidden content of the heart, so that we can see the intent of heart as it is seen through the eyes of God. When you squeeze an orange, only what is inside comes out - orange juice. You squeeze an apple and what do you get? The only thing that you can get is apple juice. You squeeze a Triple Whopper from Burger King, and what do you get? Fat! When you find yourself in a tight situation, your decision will reveal what is hidden in your heart.

Devotionals Feb. 18th- 21st

2009-02-19T21:01:00.001-05:00

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2009 -
ESTHER 2 19-23
Have you ever wondered where you are and why you are there. I have many times. Mordecai sat in the kings gate and heard a plot by two of the king's men to kill the king. Once again Mordecai and Esther were in the places that God desired them to be. They had made a commitment to God, and God had taken that commitment and used it to position them in the place to save the king and the kingdom.
Mordecai, after hearing the plot told Esther and Esther told the king and the plot was overthrown and the two traitors were hanged and Esther was endeared that much more in the heart of the king. God continues to work and position his people where He desires. If you are in the center of God's will you are where you are suppose to be, doing what He desires you to do. Don't question the shy's of God, simply do what God wants you to do, where He wants you to do it.
In this instance, Mordecai what where he was at the time he was to expose the wrong motives and actions of the traitors. God in his wisdom have his children to cry out against the sins of the people and to warn them of their destination, if they continue on the path of destruction.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009 -
ESTHER 3:7-13
Times have changed but people remain the same. Their lusts, their prejudice, their desires for wealth and power all remain consistent from generation to generation. In today's devotional Haman, an enemy of the Jews, goes to the king to obtain the permission and the funds to destroy, what Haman describes to the King, his greatest enemies. He received the Kings permission and the funds necessary and Haman set out to rid the empire of all of the enemies, the Jews, of the King.
God however had a huge surprise for Haman. Mordecai had advised Esther not to reveal her heritage, and unknown to Haman, and unknown to the King himself, Esther was a Jew. Once again, God had his servants in the exact place at the exact time. What a surprise Haman was about to receive. As the old time radio character, Chester Riley, use to say, "What a revoltin' development this is."

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009 -
ESTHER 4:1-3, 9-17
I am 59 years old. And in all of my life I have never faced the things that we are facing today. We have had the tough times, I grew up very poor, was born during the Korean conflict, was a teenager during the Viet Nam war and served in the military during that time. I remember being spat upon because of the uniform that I proudly wore, and would still wear it proudly if any thing other than the hat fit. But in all honesty I fear more for our country today than I have at any other time. There are many reasons and I will not take the time to expound upon these points at this time.
During this time the Jews were greatly frightened. Why? Because of the order sent by the King and the works of Haman. What they did not know was the plan of God and the positioning of Gods people. Even in the worst of times, God is still on the throne. He is always a step ahead and always in control.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2009 -
ESTHER 7:1-10
Haman, bound and determined to slay all the Jews and Mordecai, built the gallows to hang Mordecai. Now, stop and think about this.
Haman needed permission to slay the Jews. Granted! Haman needed the funds to go throughout the kingdom to spread the word that the Jews were going to die. Granted! I think that he enjoyed watching the Jews weep and cry because of their doom. He has won. He has the power, the authority, the wealth, the permission, the backing of the king, to destroy this hated people. Nothing, but nothing stood in his way. Off to the banquet. The King is there. Haman is there. And of course the Queen is there. What a great time Haman is having. Tomorrow, Mordecai, the Jew, dies on the gallows that have been built just for that purpose.
The King turns to his Queen and asks her a simple question. "What is thy petition?"The Queen, now remember this is the Goens translation, says "King, do you love me?""yes" said the King. "But King, do you reeealllllyyyyy love me?" "YES" replied the King. "Then why are you going to allow someone to destroy me and my people?" "WHAT?" shouted the King. "Tell me who it is and I will destroy them!" Would you not have loved to have been in the room to see the look on Haman's face! It was not the beauty of the Queen that saved her people. It was the God of heaven that put her in the right position at the right time. You are here for a reason, right where you are. Do what God wants you to do and be thankful for the grace, mercy and direction of our Lord.

Devotions Feb. 16th and 17th

2009-02-16T21:49:00.001-05:00

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2009 -
ESTHER 2:1-11
In chapter one, Queen Vashti refused the command of the King. A seven day celebration and strong drink had made the King make a very bad decision to have the Queen parade herself and her beauty in front of a large group of drunken men. When she refused the King became very angry and he, and a group of drunken wise advisors decided to dispose of the Queen and choose another young, fair, virgin to be queen.
In chapter two a beauty contest is arraigned and this is where the workings of God begin to develop in full view. It is always interesting to me to see how God works, and it makes me wonder about nearly every situation that I find myself.
We have a lady by the name of Esther, a Jew, who was an orphan. Her mother and father had died and she was raised, as his own daughter, by her cousin Mordecai. She was a woman of great beauty and charm. Mordecai was one of the Jews who was taken away in the captivity from Jereusalem. Now both Mordecai and Esther find themselves at Shushan the palace. Have you ever wondered why you are where you are at this particular time. I have. I have found myself at a place that many times I ask the Lord what he is doing in my life. And I presume you have as well. One thing that I am sure of, that God has a reason for my life, and he has a reason for your life as well.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2009 -
ESTHER 2:13-18
The other virgins required many ornaments and other things which they thought would appeal to the king, but Esther required nothing extra except what Hegai suggested. Perhaps her very simplicity made her beauty stand out more than all the others.
When she was taken to the king he indicated his love and favor toward her above all others, and set the royal crown upon her head. She was now the Queen, the lady that took the place of Queen Vashti.
How did Esther become Queen? By just being herself, being the woman that God had made, being the best that she could be, but still, just being herself. I know so many people that try to be someone other than who they are. They live in a land of make believe, always desiring to be someone they are not. An original is always more valuable than a copy. If you imitate someone, or try to be someone that you are not, the best that you can ever be is second best.
Esther became Queen, because that was the will of God for her life and being in the center of God's will is the greatest place to be, rather you are a Queen or a dishwasher, be what God wants you to be and be the best at it!

Devotionals Week of Feb 2-7th

2009-02-04T09:55:00.002-05:00

Monday February 2, 2009 - 1 Kings 19:15-21
Have you ever felt all alone in this world? Have you ever felt as though no one understands you? Have you felt as though nobody else is standing for God, and you, and you alone, are the only one doing your best for the kingdom?
That is exactly the way that Elijah felt. Did he have good cause to feel that way? Maybe. But we must never live our lives from the position of being a victim, or with a poor little me attitude. If you are fighting the battle alone, you still have the Lord, and that makes you a majority in and of itself. It makes you a winner, it makes you a warrior, it makes you a conqueror, it makes you victorious! But you are not alone.
There are thousands fighting the battle, and winning the war. There are thousands that are suffering far greater persecution than you are but they are suffering victoriously. There are those that are far less fortunate that are not crying about the lot that has been given them, they are just doing what God wants them to do.
That is what today's scripture is all about. Elijah said God, I am the only one that loves you. God said no you aren't, let me introduce you to several thousand.

February 3, 2009 - 2 Kings 2:9-15
If you could have any thing in life, what would it be? Well, one of the things that we think of is money. If I could have all the money I needed all would be well. But think of all the people that have hundreds of millions of dollars that have miserable lives. Maybe beauty would be something that we would desire. A beautiful face and body would make my life complete. Well, as one that possess a beautiful face and body, I can tell you that will not turn the world around for you either. Friends, no that will not do it. Power and position in life, nope that still will not do it.
Elisha had the answer. He wanted to be a man of God. Elijah was a man of God and Elisha wanted a portion, no wait, a double portion of what Elijah had. More than anything else he wanted to be a man of God, a man that would be a blessing to others long after his days on this earth was finished.
With everything else, a man without the blessings of God has nothing. With nothing, but only the blessings of God, a man has all that he will ever need.

February 4, 2009 - 2 Kings 4:8-17
Notice verse 8. "And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread." A great woman? This was a lady who was financially well off and of significant social standing. She was a great woman in the eyes of the financial world and the social world as well, but is that what made her a great woman in the eyes of the Lord? She was a spiritual woman. She was able to perceive that Elisha was a holy man of God. She persuaded her husband to build a chamber, a place for this man of God to lodge while passing through the area.
Although she was a lady of society and a woman of wealth she needed and wanted something that society could not give her and that money could not buy. She was barren and her husband was old. She needed a touch from the man of God and a blessing that only God could give her. Because her focus was not on her position in life, nor the size of her bank account, but on the man of God and the blessings of the Father, she obtained the one thing that nothing else could give her, something that only could come from the hand of God.

February 5, 2009 - 2 Kings 4:27-37
What would it take to turn you against the Lord? As a representative of my Lord as an assistant pastor and as a pastor for 34 years, I have seen a lot of people quit on God. They all have their reasons, and I am sure that their reasons are real reasons to them. And yet, the same reason that those that quit use for quitting others use for drawing closer to God. This lady from yesterdays devotional has now lost the child that God had given her.
How could this happen? Why would God do this? Why would God allow this? I am sure that she did not understand, but her response was a Godly response. She clung to the man of God. "As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee." The God that blessed her, would not leave her at this moment in time. And the God that has bless you, will not leave you at your darkest hour either. He will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. The God of the mountain is also the God of the valley.
I have known many that have had their world crash and burn. Those that forsake God never seem to get out of the ashes, those that stay close to God, begin to build new mansions.

February 6, 2009 - 2 Kings 13:14-20
All good things must come to an end, and the life of Elisha has done just that. I think about this more than the average man, maybe I think about it more than I should. Of all of the thoughts that linger in my mind, this one seems to no longer linger, but it abides there. When I die, what will I leave behind?
I read the Word of God and I read of the great men, like Elisha, and I thing how they turned around nations, and history was molded by their faith in God. I truly don't pay much attention to those that claim to be great men of God today because I think most of them have been created by Madison Avenue advertising agencies. I am sure there are some great men of God, I know hundreds of them, and I believe you are truly going to be surprised on judgment day when we find out the men that are truly God's men, who God knows.
Am I going to be one of them? Probably not. Sometimes I don't think I have the power to heal chapped lips, let alone turn around a nation. But I do pray, that when I am in glory, that the ones that know me, will know that I loved them, and that I was real.

February 7, 2009 - Luke 4:23-30
What is true Biblical success? A giant super church? Television programs? Radio broadcasts? Hundreds of thousands at crusades? Millions of followers? Millions of dollars in the bank, enough to buy you several homes, and jet airplanes? If that is the case then every single man and woman listed in Hebrews 11 hall of fame for those displaying great faith, are all utter failures because none of them had any of these things. Neither did they display the attitudes and convictions of those that are considered great today.
What is true Biblical success? Those who live by faith, love the Lord with all their hearts, love others as much as they love themselves, and win people to Christ. That is true Biblical success. That is what God is looking for. Will He find it in me? or you?

Devotionals Week of 26th thru 31st

2009-01-27T19:49:00.002-05:00

Monday, January 26, 2009 -
Numbers 6:1-8
Nazarite means "to be set apart" and is explained as a separation unto the Lord. The vow was taken by men or women who desired to consecrate themselves in an outstanding or unusual manner. It was a total consecration to the service of the Lord, usually for a specific period of time. Samson, Samuel and John the Baptist was set apart for life. This setting aside had some very specific and strict rules that were very similar to the vows of the priest and even the high priest. A special walk with God requires a special lifestyle, that is designed to bring unusual blessings.
The Nazarite vow is not for us today. It was for the Jews and that particular nation. However the principle is sound and remains. If we are going to be used of God, our walk with him must be close and personal as we walk in His will, do His will and live for His honor and glory. A special walk with God is not a burden but a privilege and well worth the price. They removed themselves as far away from the attitudes of the world and moved closer to God, and the benefits and blessing were enormous.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009 -
Judges 2:1-5
The nation of Israel had enjoyed many victories and been blessed of God over and over again. Yet they continued to make league with the world. Look at verse 2. "And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?
Boy, does that ever take me back to my teen age years. My Mother and Father always said to me, "You always have to learn the hard way, don't you? I did then and somehow I still do today. But learning the hard way always comes with a great price. It was true then and it is true today.
God broke the hearts of His people here in Judges chapter 2, and the brokenness brought tears. They named the place Bochim, meaning weeping, and sacrificed to the Lord. Do you remember the last time that you were broken of God.
Mark that spot. Name it. And look at it not only as a place of an ending, but a place of a new beginning to a greater life.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009 -
Judges 2:6-10
The work that I do as a pastor is not hard work. It is difficult. It is frustrating. It is heart breaking! Sometimes rewarding, but mostly it is tedious and unrewarding. But it is not hard work.
The Bible states that one generation serves God. They know Him, they have seen Him work, they had witnessed miracles but the next generation falls away. They get away from all that God is about, forgets his grace and mercy, and they have never observed His wonders. Whose fault is it. Is the parents? Did they fail to teach and train their young people. Was it the fault of the priest, the synagogue's failure to have a good youth program? Or, was it the fault of the next generation, who did not pay attention, who did not desire to walk with Him?
I guess we could argue each point of view, but I think the answer is that all have some responsibility. The question I think is why is there a falling away. How can some one be going great guns for God and then all of a sudden be as cold as ice?
I think it is because we forget. We forget where we were when we found Him. I think we forget what He has done for us. I think we forget that there is a future that we will need His help. Let us not forget.

Thursday, January 29, 2009-
Judges 2:11-17
"And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim." As I look at Scripture I always try to put myself in the time that I am studying. I have looked at this passage and to honest with you I am stuck. Why did Israel do evil in the sight of the Lord? Why did they take on the attitude and god's of those nations less fortunate than they? I must then also ask, why do we do the same thing? Why did Lucifer rise up against God? Why?
Yesterday we were admonished not to forget. Today, I think, we must never take the things of God for granted. Some how when we become prosperous we think that it is always going to be that way. That what was once a privilege becomes a right. And once we think that it is a right, we take it for granted.
A lady that I have known from years gone by is fighting a great battle against cancer. When we were young, health was something that we took for granted. It was our right. We are suppose to be healthy. But when we begin to lose that health little things begin to become precious again. One man that I knew who was battling cancer was excited when I visited because he was able to make it less than ten feet to the bathroom, with no help!
Let us not take things for granted. Let us thank God for all we have and never get to the place that God is taken for granted as we search for strange god's.

Friday, January 30, 2009-
Judges 2:18-23
How important is true Biblical leadership? How important is the man that God has chosen to lead. Or the woman? Leaders come in all sorts of genders, colors, sizes, but all need to be Biblical leaders. Look at the first few chapters of the book of Judges. The nation was good and followed God under the leadership of Joshua. The nation fell, visited strange gods and God raised up Judges and delivered the nation. The Judges died and the nation went back to their old ways.
Has God put you in a position of leadership. Before you answer I want to ask you some questions. Are you employed and do the other workers know that you are a Christian? You are a leader! Are you a man that is married? Have children? You are a leader! Are you a mother? You are a leader. Anyone that can influence the life of another is a leader.
Never forget who you are and the position that God has put you in. Always remember that someone is looking at you for leadership and guidance and God expects you to be the leader He would have you to be.

Saturday, January 31, 2009-
Judges 13:1-13, 24
"And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord . . ."One day I am going to count how many times this phrase is repeated in the Word of God. In this area of the Bible that we have been in all week this phrase seems to headline every chapter. However, I wish to point out a couple of things that I hope will help you. '
Even though the rest of the nation went astray there were always those who stood for God and did not forsake Him and His principles. In the midst of all of the trouble there were those that proved to be real champions.
Secondly, somehow when others were being cursed there was those in the midst of the collapse of the nation that were blessed of God. When the rains fall, we, those who stay true to God, will get wet, but God will give us an umbrella.
In today's text, we begin with "The children of Israel did evil again, . . ." but look at verse 24 "And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson, and the child grew, and the Lord blessed him."
Do you see that. Blessing in the midst of trouble.
Isn't God good?

A request for prayer

2009-01-21T21:38:00.001-05:00

Dear Readers,

Please lift this lady up in your prayers. She has been fighting this battle for many years.

Steve,
Your letter of Devotionals was a great inspiration for me. As you know this fight with cancer has gotten the better of me. I am unable to do things that I once was able to accomplish. Lately, I too, had given into my demon. My demon, is cancer. But reading this has given me more inspiration to continue to fight. I was ready and had told my family I was no longer able to fight. You must have know deep down that I needed to go into the right direction, and not give into this demon. Next Monday I go back into surgery, I was ready to tell them no more, and let it run it's course and succumb to it. But upon reading this, now I know I will continue to fight. For the Lord did not put me here not to fight demons, but to win over them. My faith has never falter, but my body had. But now, I will give it all I have to fight off this large demon. Thank you for the wonderful inspiration that I needed at this time. I will continue with the surgery, treatment and medications to fight. Power of prayers have gotten me this far, and the power of the Lord and prayers will get me through this one also. Joy

This Weeks Devotional

2009-01-21T21:34:00.001-05:00

Monday, January 19, 2009 -
Exodus 17:8-16
How do we battle against our enemies? We all have them. Sometimes our enemies are from without, sometimes from within. I know that I have many demons that I fight in my life, and most everyone that I know do as well. And I really do not know anyone that has no enemies without. Here in the book of Exodus the children of God was at war with Amalek, and his warriors. He wished to destroy Moses and Joshua and make no mistake about it our enemies wish to destroy us, whether the enemy comes from within or without. The solution is spelled out here in the Book. We must fight. We must not lay back and surrender. If Moses had done that the victory would never have been won. But fighting is not the only thing that we must do. We must hold the rod of God up high. While the rod was held toward the heavens, the Army of God prevailed. When the rod was let down, the foe began to gain the victory. The rod of God was used many times in many different miracles. Here it was used as a key to victory. What will bring us victory? Fighting the fight and holding the standard of God, the rod of God, the Word of God high. When that is done, victory will be ours. It is war, but the battle is worth it. Tuesday,

January 20, 2009 -
Numbers 14:6-10
God had promised His children victory and a promised land. Unfortunately many of the people feared and their faith was compromised. Fear will always cause you to have a lack of faith. So God granted them their wish and sent spies into the land of Canaan. The report came back and the majority of the people talked about how great the enemy was and how they could not be defeated. Two talked about how great God was and how He could not be defeated. Who was right? Well, they both were. The ones who looked at the enemy and their greatness never did defeat the enemy and they died in the wilderness. The ones that looked at the greatness of God and how he could not be beaten lived and entered into the promise land, the land of victory, a picture of the victorious Christian life. So, in your life, will you look at the enemy and say that he is too big to beat, or will you look at our Saviour and know that He cannot be beaten?

Wednesday, January 21, 2009 -
Numbers 27:12-23
Moses was a great man of God, a great man of faith, a great man of victory. He led the children of God, faced enormous difficulties, fought brilliant battles but he never got to enter the promise land. God said in verse 14, “For ye rebelled against my commandment in the desert of Zin, . . .” To day, let us not name the sin of Moses that cost him presence in the Promise Land. We will not speak of the Grace of God that passes all understanding. I wish to look at one thing. The time that we spend in sin can never be recovered. In a life time the average will make a couple of million dollars. But once a dollar is spent foolishly, that dollar cannot be brought back by saying “do over.” A sin that is committed can be forgiven, without a doubt. A sin that is committed can be forsaken. A sin that is committed, but forsaken and forgiven will never be brought up at the judgment seat of Christ. But the time spent in that sin, and the damage it causes can never be overcome. Think about it!

Thursday, January 22, 2009 -
Deuteronomy 31:1-8
Moses was a wise, spiritual, strong, Godly man. He made his mistakes, which cost him dearly, but that did not take away from the fact that he was God’s man for the hour. The wisdom that he gave to Joshua is priceless and worth taking a look at and imitating to the very best of our God given ability. First of all, understand that there will be times that we fail God and even forsake Him, but He will never fail us nor forsake us.
That is why Moses states in verse 3, “ . . .He will go over before thee. . .” In verse 4, “And the Lord shall do unto them . . .”Again look at verse 5, “And the Lord shall give them up . . .” One more verse, verse 6, “ . . . :for the Lord thy God, He it is that doth go with thee . . .” God is always there for us, that we can be sure. Be strong, God will give strength through the Word of God. The joy of the Lord is my strength. And of good courage. Courage quality of being brave: the ability to face danger, difficulty, uncertainty, or pain without being overcome by fear or being deflected from a chosen course of action . Do not fear, fear cannot live where faith abides. Nor be afraid of them. Who is ‘them”. Our enemies, the ones from within, the ones from without, the ones that would distract us from our walk with God. Joshua, I am not going to go to the land of promise. I am old, I have made mistakes, God has appointed you, to lead the people, God’s people into the land of promise. God will bury His workman, but never His work.

Friday, January 23, 2009 -
Deuteronomy 34:1-9
As I read this verse my eyes tear. My heart rate is up, and my stomach feels sour. I think that this is one of the saddest passages found in the Word of God. In fact, I identify with it so much, that it causes me grief and I think I understand what was on the heart of Moses as he looked at the land of promise and knew that it would never be his. God allowed Moses to see the land of Canaan, the promised land, the land that flowed with milk and honey. So many times I have dreamed what God could really do with my life. I dream and think of my church being much larger. I drew up plans for a new place of worship 29 years ago, and I still have that plan in my desk drawer, but the building has never been built. I have dreams of a radio ministry that reaches all of the Philippine Islands and the regions beyond, some 100 million people, many of them Muslims and Communist. I have dreams of helping train tomorrows preachers to make a large impact for the glory of God. I dream of being used of God to build orphanages in India and other places where children have no hope or dreams beyond eating a good meal or of having a safe place to sleep. I can see these things with my eye of faith, but will God allow me to realize my dreams or will I die in the wilderness and be buried in an unknown grave the way that Moses life was ended? Only God knows, and I will be satisfied with His decision. But my heart still goes out to Moses. His eyes were not dim nor his natural force abated. He died with life still in him and dreams unrealized. I guess that a lesson here is that sin committed will cause dreams to be unfulfilled. However, I would rather die, with dreams not realized, than to never have dreams at all.

Saturday, January 24, 2009 -
Joshua 1:1-9
Moses is dead. We have mentioned a sin that Moses committed that prevented him from the realization of his dreams several times in this weeks devotionals. But notice verse one “Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord . . .” God still loves Moses! He, God, still thinks of him as a “servant of the Lord.” That does not give us the right to sin. We must not sin and say “I can sin, and God will forgive me.” But it is great to know that when we stumble and fall, that God will pick us up, clean us up and still love us and never doubt our love for Him. What a God we have. Wouldn’t it be great if those that we have offended, those that we have sinned against, would be as gracious as God? I for one, will always take this position. This is a position of strength, a position that makes us more like Him.

Thought for the New Year

2009-01-06T22:08:00.000-05:00

As we begin a brand new year I am sitting here at my desk wondering how much of this year will be wasted. One shows up at a construction site and there is always a pile of lumber here and some dry wall there. Nails are laying all over the place and small piles of concrete scattered around. I am sure that the cost of these things that are wasted are just considered, well, just considered the cost of doing business. No building or project is designed to such precision that every nail, every board and every yard of concrete is used. In America we are accustomed to waste and a throw away society.
We do the same thing with time. I will stand in a department store and some one will say to me “May I help you?” I will answer, “No thank you, I am just killing time waiting on my wife.” Some one will call and ask, “What are you doing?” and I will reply, “Oh, nothing?” We all use those phrases and have those thoughts, but are we so successful, so fulfilled, so rich that we can kill time? Or that we can spend long periods of time doing nothing?
We waste minutes, days, months and even years, killing time or doing nothing! And when that time is gone, it is gone forever.
Well, this year I am going to be more productive. I have loaded my schedule to the place that I will have no time to do nothing. I will be writing, reading, speaking, producing every available minute of every available day. No more wasted time for me. I will not kill any more time. Let me add one more thing before I go. Date night with my wife is not doing nothing - it is doing something. Playing with my grand children is not killing time - it is producing memories. Spending time with my children is not non productive, it is the reward for being a father.

Devotional 1/10/09

2009-01-04T14:12:00.002-05:00

Saturday - January 10, 2009 -
Psalm 34:4-14
I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.”
God is greater than all our fears.
He is greater than our fear of death. His is our Life.
He is greater than our fear of troubles.
He is greater than all our troubles.
He is greater than our fear of our enemies, He is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.
He is greater than our fear of the government, the heart of the King is in his hand.
Seeking the Lord is the key. That is more that just church attendance. It is more that just an occasional prayer or Bible study. It is seeking the Lord to the degree that His heartbeat becomes your heartbeat.

Devotional 1/9/09

2009-01-04T14:09:00.001-05:00

Friday - January 9, 2009 -
Psalm 33:8-18
“Let all the earth fear the Lord . . .”
This would be the wise thing to do, but alas, the world never does that which is wise. The world is very unwise.
We fear God because of His power. There is no power like unto His.
We fear God because of His counsel that standeth for ever.
We fear God because of His righteousness.
We fear God because of His judgment.
Someone says, “ I don’t want to fear God, I want to love Him. That is good, perfect love casts out fear. But if you do not have a perfect love, then you need to fear Him.

Devotional 1/8/09

2009-01-04T14:08:00.000-05:00

Thursday - January 8, 2009 -
Psalm 27:1-6
“One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.” One thing, just one thing.
We try to do so much, yet if we would do just one thing - dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life - just one thing. I visit many places but I dwell in only one. What a blessing we would receive if we dwelled in the presence of our God all the days of our lives.
That is where we will dwell if we feel comfortable in His presence. That is where we will dwell if we love Him the way that we should. That is where we will dwell if we know Him as our saviour. And when we do . . . ?
We will behold his beauty, and we communicate through our prayer life with Him. We will be where we should be, and the blessings will be abundant.

Devotional 1/7/09

2009-01-04T14:06:00.001-05:00

Wednesday, January 7, 2009 -
Ps 25:12-21
Have you ever seen an animal in a trap or a fly in the spider’s web? The entrapped begin to struggle and the more they struggle the more bound they become. Before long the prey is exhausted, all energy is spent, and still they are the prisoner. The prey have not a prayer, death comes and the to the victor go the spoils. Have you ever felt like that? I know that I have.
So many fight and struggle until exhaustion and defeat come and our lives loose the joy and satisfaction that we once had. How do we stay out of the snare of the devil? It really is not as difficult as it seems.
Look at verse 15. “Mine eyes are ever toward the Lord.” When my children were learning how to drive I had to keep telling them, keep your eyes on the road. When you don’t you have a tendency to run off the road or run over something in the middle of the road.
When you take your eyes off of the Lord the same things can happen. Keep your eyes on the Lord and He will pluck your feet out of the net.

Devotional 1/6/09

2009-01-04T14:04:00.001-05:00

Tuesday, January 6, 2009 -
Psalm 23:1-6
I have always wondered why some parts of the Word of God are so much more popular, or familiar, to the general population. Every one knows the 23rd Psalm. It is read or referred to at almost every funeral that I have ever attended. I do not know why it is so popular but we must never allow familiarity to rob us of blessings.
“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. "
What a verse. So many people go through their life always having the wants. They want another car, another home, another this and another that. But with our Lord, well, he takes care of the wants.
There was a time that I had a ‘want’ for salvation - There He was, my Saviour.
There was a time that I had a ‘want’ for peace - There He was, my prince of peace.
I have had a ‘want’ for counsel - He is the counselor.
I have had a ‘want for love - He is the love of God.
Bring all your wants to Him and you will find that “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want!”

Devotional 1/5/09

2009-01-04T14:03:00.000-05:00

Monday, January 5, 2009 -
Psalm 15:1-5
How in the world do we develop stability in our lives? Spending many hours a week in counseling sessions I find most of the people that I work with have very little, if any, stability in their lives. God’s Word tells us how we can so live that “we shall never be moved.” It begins with our walk. Uprightly is the word that is used. I would think that would me to live so that everybody knows where you stand and that you not only stand with God but you live daily with Him. Worketh righteousness. You don’t backbite, or do evil to any, nor take a reproach against your neighbor. Neither do you look down on sinners, or use your money to subject others to a miserable life, or take advantage of the innocent. The Bible states that this type of man will have stability, and shall not be moved. Why? Because he has built his life upon the Word and principles of God.

Sat. Dec. 27th, 2008

2008-12-22T14:02:00.000-05:00

Romans 16:25-27
“. . .which was kept secret since the world began.” A verse like this one truly stimulates my mind. A secret? Something that God kept from us until he was ready to reveal it. Here of course He is speaking of the ministry of Jesus Christ and the great salvation that was bought by His precious blood. We read about the pre-incarnate Christ. We read about Christ’s suffering and His crucifixion. Now, we see the reality of those things. We read about heaven, and the end of our salvation, the beauty and the glory that awaits us. But one day, we shall see the reality of it.

Friday Dec. 26th, 2008

2008-12-22T14:00:00.000-05:00

Psalm 148:1-14
God is so very good to us and we have so many things to be thankful. This day, let us take a few moments, with a pen and a piece of paper, and begin to list all the things that we can praise God. Good things that blesses us. Tough things that make us strong. Hard times that produces endurance in us. Tribulations that produce patience. Mistakes that teach us wisdom. Friends that comfort us. Enemies that help us perfect our forgiveness. Memories that helps the beautiful past live on. Memories of wrongs done that we can lay at the cross. In all things give thanks, and Praise ye the Lord.

Thurs. Dec. 25, 2008

2008-12-22T13:59:00.000-05:00

Luke 2:1-7
Merry Christmas, may God richly bless you this day. Some things are certainly worth waiting for. From eternity past until the day of the earthly birth of the Lord Jesus was certainly a long period of time. But I am sure that you will agree that the wait was worth it. There are many times that I wait a very long time for God to do something in my life or in the life of someone else. Many times I feel as thought God has forgotten or that he simply doesn’t care. Maybe He is to busy, maybe He has changed His mind. And then one day I awake to find that God has accomplished exactly what He has promised he would. God certainly is not slack concerning His promise, as some men would count slackness, but He will do that which He said He will do. Just ask Mary and Joseph, and Elisabeth and Zechariah, and the host of angels and the wise men and . . . well, you get the picture. God never forgets, forsakes or folds. He was there on the first Christmas, and He will be there on the last Christmas and He will be there for all eternity, for you and for me!

Wed. Dec. 24, 2009

2008-12-22T13:58:00.000-05:00

Psalm 113:1-9
Who is like unto the Lord? I have spent since 1972 making the study of the Word of God an important matter in my life.
Read verse 5.
Now, read very slowly, one thought at a time verses 6 thru 9. Each thought is a precious thought. Each action is a remarkable action. And as you read this passage you are only looking at a small portion of who He really is. There truly are no others like our Lord.
Take one aspect, any aspect and see if you can find one like unto Him. His Love, there is no greater love. His sacrifice, the sacrifice can never be matched. His wisdom, is greater than any wisdom. There is no other like Him, that is why we love him with all our heart, and live for Him every day.

Tuesday Dec. 23, 2008

2008-12-22T13:56:00.000-05:00

Psalm 24:1-10
“Who shall stand in his holy place?” Good question. Who shall stand there? Many will look at the rest of the statement and say “I can, I can stand in His holy place.” I have clean hands - I have a pure heart - I am not vain - I am not deceitful - But one only needs to realize the righteousness of God compared to the standard of man. And even though we may think of ourselves as being alright, God sees us in an entirely different light. That is why Jesus came to earth. Lift up your heads, and the King of Glory shall come in. Who is the King of Glory? The Lord of hosts, the one and only Jesus Christ.

Mon. Dec. 22, 2008

2008-12-22T13:55:00.000-05:00

Isaiah 46:8-13
Verse 13 states “I bring near my righteousness; it shall not be far off, and my salvation shall not tarry: and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory”.
According to those that are much more smarter than me is, this book was written somewhere around 740 B.C. and tells us about the birth of the Lord Jesus. This is 2008. If some one had predicted that Barak Obama would be the first black president and they predicted that in the year 1268, and they described him in such a way that it could be no other black man, we would truly listen to other things that this prophet had to say. That is exactly what Isaiah did concerning the birth, life, and death of the Lord Jesus. I think that we should listen to what else they had to say. Isaiah said, speaking the words of the Father, I will place salvation in Zion, and indeed He did. The birth of the Lord Jesus certainly was the step we had all been needing to see the salvation that can belong to all of us.

Devotional Dec. 20 th

2008-12-16T08:19:00.000-05:00

Saturday, December 20, 2008
Luke 1:39-45 “. . .for there shall be a performance or those things which were told her from the Lord.” Isn’t that beautiful. There shall be a performance. God is going to do what God says that He is going to do. He is a God of His Word. That is why we can always depend on Him. He has never failed us and He never will. His Word is accurate, He never deceives us or makes promises that He cannot keep. God is not like man. I know that there are many times that I make a promise and then I am not able to keep it. When I made the promise I intended to keep it, but sometimes it is not within my ability. Sometimes I over commit. Sometimes I forget. But not so with our Lord. He will keep that which He has promised. Depend on it!

Devotional Dec 19

2008-12-16T08:18:00.000-05:00

Friday, December 19, 2008
Luke 21-25
“Thou believest not my words” Why would this man of God not believe the Word of God? I don’t know, why do we not believe the Word of God? God’s Word says to pray, yet most of our prayer lives are a joke. God’s Word says to tithe, yet we give only what we have to and many times we figure out a way to give nothing. God tells us to read His Word yet many times we are spiritually ignorant.
Now when Zechariah was found to be faithless he was struck dumb. He could not speak. I am sure that there were many things that he would have commented on, but he was not able to speak. I think that is what happens to many Christians today. We are faithless, we do not believe the Word of God and when the world attacks us we have nothing to say. When our children have problems, our mouths are silent. Would it not be better to believe God and to speak boldly and with power?

Devotional Dec. 18th

2008-12-16T08:17:00.001-05:00

Thursday, December 18, 2008
Luke 1:12-20
Zechariah was troubled and fearful. Why would you be troubled when God was getting ready to bless you in a most remarkable way? Yet that is exactly what many do. I have a great many personality disorders. There is no reason to hide them, any body that knows me knows that I have them. I have become comfortable in my little world and I really don’t like to be moved from that domain. I don’t like change. I know that I could improve my life in many ways if I would modify my life in some regards but fear and anxiety prevent me. Is that what Zechariah was experiencing? Perhaps. But one thing I have learned about the changes that God brings into my life and that is that there is nothing to fear or to be troubled about. God doesn’t bring change into our lives unless it is for the better. He wants us to live life and live it more abundantly. Trust him, and you to will have a life that is constantly changed for the better day after day.

Devotional for Dec. 17th

2008-12-16T08:16:00.001-05:00

Wednesday, December 17, 2008
- Luke 1:5-11
Zechariah and Elisabeth, two people that was simply living their lives, loving each other and doing what God wanted them to do going about their day to day lives without a clue that God was about to bless them tremendously. They were about to become the parents of John the Baptist. I have often wondered how bitter a pill they had swallowed until that blessed event of the birth of their son. How many times had they prayed that Elisabeth would be with child? How many times had they been disappointed? Had they grown to a place of despair, discouragement, depression? And how many of us understand what they had experienced because we have gone through the same emotions. But then one day! That is all domain it takes to turn your life completely around. That is all that it took to change the lives of Elisabeth and Zechariah. One day! Today, you are going about your business, fighting the demons that have plagued you for many days, maybe even years. But then the victory comes. The prayer has been answered. The sun begins to shine. That is why we never quit, that is why we patiently wait for that . . . One day!

A Night Amoung Many

2008-12-16T08:08:00.001-05:00

There are some things that I really have a hard time getting over. You would think that after all these years my heart would have gotten a little harder but thanks to God it has not.
Last Friday night my wife and I drove to the north side of Indy, some 100 miles to see our granddaughter, Avery, sing a few songs. In attendance that night was, of course, her mommy and daddy, Nana, and Pop and Aunt Agnes was there and cousins Diana, Kai and Mason. Avery came walking into the auditorium with a huge smile on her face looking all around and taking notice of all her family there. While up on stage I flashed her the I Love you sign and with her face shining with glee returned the sign. A few minutes later I blew her a kiss that was quickly returned. As she walked out from what was certainly the performance of the year, a big smile on her face, this night would be one of hundreds, maybe thousands, of her life.
After the performance we went to Starbucks, ordered hot chocolate and all toasted Avery, because tonight was her night. The smile on her face and the giggle in her voice could not be purchased for all the money in the world, it is the gift of God.
I sat at home last night, thinking about the 31 year old woman, the one that took an overdose of drugs, that left behind an 18 month old baby and one that is just 5 or 6 years old. I thought about her little girl that came to me and said "Pastor, my mommy died today, you preached my daddy's funeral, will you preach hers?"
Will she ever have one night like Avery will have thousands?
Why do I do what I do? Because there are little girls who have no one else. They must know that their pastor loves them. I could not help her mom, although God knows I tried.
But I will, by the grace of God help her.
Because He Lives,
Pastor Steve Goens

Dec. 14th, 2008

2008-12-15T08:29:00.000-05:00

Today at the church was a wonderful day. Our attendance was up a little and we had a great time as we heard our choir performed a cantata, A Child is Born. They did a great job and I am truly thankful for the effort that is always put forth. A sweet spirit, a good time and of course, the preaching was outstanding.
In the afternoon I received a phone call from one of our faithful ladies and she was in tears. A young woman, probably in her thirties or early forties, had been found dead of an overdose. I had worked with this lady many hours and had never been able to see her overcome her demons for more that just a few months at a time. God had worked many miracles in her life, but somehow we just could never get the commitment from her that we needed. I took a few minutes for prayer for her and her family and did my best to get a hold of the family but I could not reach them. I am not sure where they live and so all I could do is pray.
Church on Sunday night went as planned as we had an auditorium full of parents, and grandparents eager to see some young, future starts of stage and screen perform. It was a blessed time. After another fantastic message we departed for the fellowship hall for some refreshments. As I was standing on the ramp, overlooking the fellowship hall, as I always do during a fellowship time, a little girl, about six or seven years old, came up to me. She tugged on my coat and asked me, "Do you remember my daddy?" ( I had buried him a little over a year ago). Yes, I replied, "I remember him very well. (He had grown up in our church, and he too fought many demons) " Well", she said, "my mommy died today!" I leaned down and put my arms around her, and held her little body in my arms. I assured her of my love and had a word of prayer with her. Through her tears, she looked up at me and asked "Will you preach her funeral?"
Many times people will ask me why I do what I do. I will answer that later, I have a message to prepare to comfort a little girl who doesn't have a father or mother, because they have both died of a hellish lifestyle! Merry Christmas, little one. I must also go to work to keep her clean and give her a longer, more blessed lifestyle. Pray that God will give me wisdom!

Because He Lives,
Pastor Steve Goens

Dec. 6th Devotional

2008-12-03T13:59:00.000-05:00

Psalm 44:17-26
As a counselor and a pastor I am saddened often when I try to help someone that has gone through great problems in their lives.
I am saddened because their lives have been turned upside down. I am saddened because they are depressed, beaten and discouraged. But the thing that saddens me the most is often, they give up on God.
In Psalm 44:17 the Word of God states "All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, . . ." Do not misunderstand me. I do not enjoy suffering any more than others. I do not rejoice over the misfortune of others, even my enemies. But we must not blame God or forsake Him. He will come through, when He is ready, and then His glory will be revealed and enjoyed.

Dec. 5th Devotional

2008-12-03T13:58:00.000-05:00

1 Peter 4:12-19
It has always amused me when people are surprised by the troubles that they find themselves in. The reason that I am amused is because most people live in a negative mode most of their lives, expecting the worse, and then when it happens, they are surprised! Now, doesn't that seem humorous to you?
Now, our Bible says " . . . think it not strange . . ." God says that we should not be surprised when fiery trials come and try us. They are going to come!
When they come we should rejoice! Are you crazy? Rejoice when trouble comes? Yes, rejoice. When the Lord faced his greatest trial, when he faced death on the cross, He rejoice for the joy that was set before Him. He rejoiced because the crown, the cross, the beating, was just for a moment. But the resurrection, the victory is forever. As was His victory, so is ours!

Dec. 4th Devotional

2008-12-03T13:56:00.002-05:00

Acts 14:21-23
Take a look today at verse 22, the first word there is "confirming." It means "to make firm, establish, make secure, stable."
Notice the second part of that same verse - "to continue in the faith." Now, one more time look at the third part of that verse - "through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God"
Let us put it all together and we will find that the tribulations that we go through, if we remain faithful to the things of God, will strengthen us and make us firm in the faith that God has given us.
To often, we do not grow, or become strong because when trouble comes we lay down our swords and run, rather than putting on the whole armour of God, and fighting the fight of faith.

Devotional Dec. 3rd

2008-12-03T13:56:00.001-05:00

Wednesday, Dec 3, 2008 -
Romans 8:18-25
In verse 18 we read something that puts everything in order.We think that what we are going through here on earth is eternity and what we are facing in the future is for but a short time. I think that is a result of our instant gratification society. But look closely at what the Bible says. . . "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."
The word reckon means to compute, calculate, reason. The word worthy means - weighing as much as, like value, worth as much. The sufferings that we are going through right now and in the near future, after careful consideration, is not equal in value to the rewards and glory that God will give us, when we see him face to face!
Isn't that beautiful?

Dec. 2nd Devotional

2008-12-03T13:54:00.000-05:00

Tuesday December 2, 2008 -
1 Thessalonians 2:13-16
Verse 13 is a very revealing verse concerning the strength and success of the early church and why they were able to reach so many is such a short period of time.
In the first place, they received the Word of God as the Word of God and not as the word of men. How we view the Bible, and respect its precepts determines what we will do with it. One who views the Bible as the word of God will obey even the most unpleasant precepts. For example, the Bible says "Give and it shall be given unto you, pressed down, shaken together and overflowing shall me give unto your bosom." If you view that as the Word of God you will give rather you have a little or a lot. If you don't believe it, then you will keep your money and wonder why you are not prosperous.
Secondly, because of the way that the Word of God was received the Bible says that the Word of God worked effectually in them. The word effectually means to put forth power, be operative, to work.
Many tell me that they really don't get much from the Word of God, maybe it is because of the way they are looking at it. How about you? Is the Word of God effectual in your life?

Persecution in the World

2008-12-03T13:52:00.000-05:00

John 16:25-33
Monday, Dec 1, 2008
The Lord Jesus is beginning to prepare His Jewish followers for the days ahead. In verse 32 the Lord tells them that they are going to be scattered, and scattered they were.
When persecution came to the first century Christians it had the reverse effect that many would have thought. Instead of stopping the new church, it actually set it on fire and it began to spread out of control, and very soon consumed the known world.
Understand this very basic fact of being a Christian. Tough times are going to come. And when they come are you going to stop, drop and roll? Or are you going to become and all consuming fire?

Devotionals Nov 17-22

2008-11-16T16:53:00.002-05:00

Monday, Nov 17, 2008 - Psalm 46:1-11 What a powerful passage of Scripture we have today before us, and what a very calming affect it should have on us. "God is our refuge." When storms come there are places that we are to run and hide, precautions that we are to take and things and places we are to avoid. Then, hopefully, we will survive the storms that take the lives of others, often those, who did not seek a place of refuge. But them man or woman of God know the place to seek in the times of the greatest storms in our lives is the shelter that only God can give. He is our refuge! No question about rather we will survive or not, we will, because He lives, we shall live also, and not only live, but live abundantly! Even in times of trouble.

Tuesday Nov 18, 2008 -
Psalm 46:1-11
"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble". Have you ever been in trouble, I mean real trouble? Life changing trouble? I am not talking about forgetting to take out the trash (I get in trouble in this fashion every week). Or turning in an assignment a day late. I am talking about trouble that will change the course of your life forever. I have. It is times like this that you find out who your true friends are. Do you want to know what I discovered? I only had a couple of friends that was willing to go to the mat for me. What made me sad was that I have dozens that could have helped but did not care enough to do so. But God, my God, was a very present help in trouble. Always there, always available, always a visible sign of strength in my time of desperate need. Always there to comfort me and to guide me trough those times. "The joy of the Lord is my strength." And He will be your strength as well.

Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008
Philippians 1:12-18
Does everything work for the good, to them that love God, and the called according to his purpose? Paul seams to think so. Over and over again people have asked me "what is God trying to do to me?" "Why does every thing bad happen to me?" From a rather casual study of the life of Paul one can certainly understand that Paul lived a rather difficult life and much more difficult than the ordinary man today. Yet Paul stated "But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; . . ." I don't know what you may be facing today but if the gospel is spread and people are saved, because of your troubles, is your cost to great? Thursday, Nov 20, 2008 - Philippians 1:19-26 Found in today's reading is probably one of the most powerful passages of Scripture found in the Word of God and I really wish that I had a complete understanding of the text. "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." I know that many would assume that they understand this passage. For me, I understand it intellectually. But do I grasp it as Paul did? I doubt it. For to me to live is Christ.
I can no more live without Christ than I can live without air to breath.
I can no more live without Christ than I can live without food to eat.
I can no more live without Christ than I can live without my organs that make my body function.
I can no more live without Christ than I can live without a world in which to live.
I can live without my eyes because my faith will still be able to see the things of God.
I can live without my legs, because the spreading of the Gospel is in its proclamation.
I can live without my voice, because God can still speak to the hearts of man.
I can live without my arms, because it is His arms that are not shortened.
I can live without my life because my works will follow me and Jesus died to give me eternal life.
But without Him, nothing else matters.

Friday, Nov 21, 2008 -
Philippians 1:27-30
How does the proper conduct of the believer benefit the Gospel of Christ? Here in verse 28, there are some suggestions. Nothing terrified by your adversaries - we should not be intimidated. Regardless of who is our adversary, we should be confident in the strength and power of Jesus. This is a two fold sign.
To the unbelievers - it is a sign of their lost condition.
To the believers - it is a sign that they are saved.
Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.

Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 -
Philippians 3:17- 4:1
In Acts chapter one the Bible speaks of Judas who was a guide to those that crucified the Lord. In numerous places the Bible speaks of those that won people to Christ. In today's Scripture the Bible tells us to be examples to others. As one person stated, "Nobody is worthless. Even the most despicable can serve as a bad example." I would never want to be as Judas was and serve our Lord's enemy and aid in his advancement against our Christ. Neither would I wish to be a do nothing Christian, that promotes the idea to others that you do not have any obligation to do anything for the cause of Christ, because that work is the work of others. I do, however, wish to be the man that leads others to Christ making an eternal difference to them and to their family. How about you?

An invitation for Nov. 23rd

2008-11-13T09:56:00.001-05:00

Dear Friend,
I want to begin this letter by thanking you for thirty great years. Back in December of 1978, a 28 year old preacher and his young beautiful wife and two children came to the Baptist Temple to begin a ministry that has now lasted 30 years. When I came here I told you to be careful how you voted. My wife and I had moved eight times in nine years of marriage and I was not planning on moving again for a long time. One of the questions asked of me was, “Preacher, are you going to stay a little while and then leave like all the others?” My answer “I will stay at least 20 years.” It has been thirty!
So, with Thanksgiving to you and to our Lord, I want you to help me celebrate our 30 years together. On November 23, 2008 we will have our annual Thanksgiving dinner together as a church family immediately following the Sunday Morning service. We will have all the fixin’s and the meal will be outstanding. Our services that morning will begin at 10:00 A.M. The choir will be singing some of my favorite hymns and our soloist will be singing my favorite songs, and one of my favorite young people will be with us as well, 16 year old soloist Brianne Chrenko. Brianne has been here at the Baptist Temple several times, and is an outstanding young lady in every meaning of the word and will minister to us in song.
Of course there will be preaching from the Word of God as I am going to preach from Genesis to Revelation, everything that I have ever preached in one message (We should be finished before you have to go to work Monday morning).
Oh, and we must not forget that there will be a “Roast”! Some of the folks requested a time to say something about me. All in all, we should have a great day, and it is my prayer that you will be with us and we have a day that we “In Everything Give Thanks”.

Because He Lives,
Pastor Steve Goens
Jeremiah 33:3

Devotionals Nov. 10th-15th

2008-11-12T21:32:00.001-05:00

Monday, Nov 10, 2008 -
Acts 1:15-26
In verse 16 of the Scripture today the Bible says "Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus." Wow, what an indictment! The man that let the mob to Jesus. As I read that I thought to myself how often times people will go out of their way to do the wrong thing, when doing the right thing is so much easier, and so much more rewarding. I would hope that one day my Lord would say of me, "he led many to the cross. How about you? Wouldn't you rather be known in that light than to be known a Judas was known?
Tuesday, Nov 11, 2008 -
Matthew 10:1-15
These verses tell us that there were special men, to do a special work, for a special time and a special purpose. The lives and the ministry of the Apostles is a great Bible Study and one that we may one day look at further. Today however, I want to point out to you that I think that God has special people, to do a special work, for a special time and a special purpose and that time is now. We live in very difficult times , I think that is very clear. Prophecy is being fulfilled on a daily basis and reading the newspaper headlines is nearly like reading the Scriptures. Thank God the Apostles did what God wanted them to do. Thank God they got us started off right. Now it is time for us to bring it home. Now, in these last days, God needs us to be more faithful than at any time to stand true to the Word of God and to win the lost, before time is no more.
Wednesday, Nov 12, 2008 -
Matthew 10:16-25
"I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves; . . ." How is that for the last encouraging words before one begins a journey of a lifetime. It sounds as if our Lord is sending his chosen ones into a battle that they cannot possible win. So many times in our life we feel the same way. That God has placed more on us, than we can accomplish and that makes our success doubtful. But just as the Lord gave the Apostles the power to succeed in their duties and to overcome those that wished to destroy them so does our Lord give us His power to do the same today. We must, as they, be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
Thursday, Nov 13, 2008 -
Matthew 10:32-39
"And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me." I really don't know if I have any idea what this verse means. I can explain it intellectually. But do I really understand the very essence of the verse? I know very few people who understand this concept from a experiential position, but I do understand enough that most of what we, as modern day Americans call a cross is probably more of an inconvenience, and followeth after me, means from a far distance. What could we do if we were to stop complaining and begin to truly follow after our Lord? How much stronger would we be, if we carried the Cross instead of trying to shift it to others? How much more would we hear from God, if we would get close enough to actually hear His Word?
Friday, November 14, 2008 -
1 Timothy 4:6-16
"If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things ..."One of my favorite songs states "Roll back the curtain of memory now and then, show me where you brought me from and where I could have been. " There is rarely a day that passes that I do not think of what God has done for me. Now by no measure have I attained, but I have come a very long way. I have a long way to go, but the journey with my Lord is sweeter than any other journey that I have taken. I don't know how others keep their walk with Christ meaningful and magical, but I know how I do. I just remember all that he has done for me. That is enough! "Keep in remembrance of these things."
Saturday, Nov 15, 2008 -
Acts 13:1-12
What is done at the end of the day in your day to day living?What will be done at the end of your life? Will you be wealthy, or maybe a captain of industry? Maybe you will sit on many boards, be looked upon by millions? Maybe you will be President of the United States. Stranger things have happened. But all those things are temporal. There is only one thing that is eternal that we have any control. Notice what the Scripture states, "Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord." That is what matters. Are others astonished at the doctrine of the Lord, when they see what God has done in your life?

IN GODS EYES

2008-11-07T13:07:00.002-05:00

I wanted to share a wonderful expert from a book I have been reading:

By the time I was ten, I was totally ashamed of my father. All my friends called him names: Quasi-Moto, hunchback, monster, little Frankenstein, the crooked little man with the crooked little cane. At first it hurt when they called him those things, but soon I found myself agreeing with them. He was ugly, and I knew it!
My father was born with something called parastremmatic dwarfism. The disease made him stop growing when he was about thirteen and caused his body to twist and turn into a grotesque shape. It wasn't too bad when he was a kid. I saw pictures of him when he was about my age. He was a little short but quite good-looking. Even when he met my mother and married her when he was nineteen, he still looked pretty normal. He was still short and walked with a slight limp, but he was able to do just about anything. Mother said, "He even used to be a great dancer."
Soon after my birth, things started getting worse. Another genetic disorder took over, and his left foot started turning out, almost backward. His head and neck shifted over to the right; his neck became rigid and he had to look over his left shoulder a bit. His right arm curled in and up, and his index finger almost touched his elbow. His spine warped to look something like a big, old roller coaster and it caused his torso to lie sideways instead of straight up and down like a normal person. His walk became low, awkward, and deliberate.. He had to almost drag his left foot as he used his deformed right arm to balance his gait.
I hated to be seen with him. Everyone stared.. They seemed to pity me. I knew he must have done something really bad to have God hate him that much. By the time I was seventeen, I was blaming all my problems on my father. I didn't have the rig ht boyfriends because of him. I didn't drive the right car because of him. I wasn't pretty enough because of him. I didn't have the right jobs because of him. I wasn't happy because of him.
Anything that was wrong with me, or my life, was because of him. If my father had been good-looking like Jane's father, or successful like Paul's father, or worldly like Terry's father, I would be perfect! I knew that for sure.
The night of my senior prom came, and Father had to place one more nail in my coffin; he had volunteered to be one of the chaperons at the dance.
My heart just sank when he told me. I stormed into my room, slammed the door, threw myself on the bed, and cried. "Three more weeks and I'll be out of here!" I screamed into my pillow. "Three more weeks and I will have graduated and be moving away to college." I sat up and took a deep breath.
"God, please make my father go away and leave me alone. He keeps sticking his big nose in everything I do. Just make him disappear, so that I can have a good time at the dance."
I got dressed, my date picked me up, and we went to the prom. Father followed in his car behind us. When we arrived, Father seemed to vanish into the pink chiffon drapes that hung everywhere in the auditorium. I thanked God that He had heard my prayer. At least now I could have some fun.
Midway through the dance, Father came out from behind the drapes and decided to embarrass me again. He started dancing with my girlfriends. One by one, he took their hand and led them to the dance floor. He then clumsily moved them in circles as the band played. Now I tried to vanish into the drapes.
After Jane had danced with him, she headed my way. Oh, no! I thought.. She's going to tell me he stomped on her foot or something.
"Grace," she called, "you have the greatest father."
My face fell. "What?"
She smiled at me and grabbed my shoulders. "Your father's just the best. He's funny, kind, and always finds the time to be where you need him. I wish my father was more like that."
For one of the first times in my life, I couldn't talk. Her words confused me.
"What do you mean?" I asked her.
Jane looked at me really strangely. "What do you mean, what do I mean? Your father's wonderful. I remember when we were kids, and I'd sleep over at your house. He'd always come into your room, sit down in the chair between the twin beds, and read us a book. I'm not sure my father can even read," she sighed, and then smiled. "Thanks for sharing him."
Then, Jane ran off to dance with her boyfriend. I stood there in silence.
A few minutes later, Paul came to stand beside me.
"He's sure having a lot of fun."
"What? Who? Who is having a lot of fun?" I asked.
"Your father. He's having a ball."
"Yeah. I guess." I didn't know what else to say.
"You know, he's always been there," Paul said. "I remember when you and I were on the mixed-doubles soccer team. He tried out as the coach, but he couldn't run up and down the field, remember? So they picked Jackie's father instead. That didn't stop him. He showed up for every game and did whatever needed to be done. He was the team's biggest fan. I think he's the reason we won so many games. Without him, it just would have been Jackie's father running up and down the field yelling at us. Your father made it fun. I wish my father had been able to show up to at least one of our games. He was always too busy."
Paul's girlfriend came out of the restroom, and he went to her side, leaving me once again speechless.
My boyfriend came back with two glasses of punch and handed me one. "Well, what do you think of my father?" I asked out of the blue.
Terry looked surprised. "I like him. I always have.."
"Then why did you call him names when we were kids?"
"I don't know. Because he was different, and I was a dumb kid ."
"When did you stop calling him names?" I asked, trying to search my own memory.
Terry didn't even have to think about the answer. "The day he sat down with me outside by the pool and held me while I cried about my mother and father's divorce. No one else would let me talk about it. I was hurting inside, and he could feel it. He cried with me that day. I thought you knew."
I looked at Terry and a tear rolled down my cheek as long-forgotten memories started cascading into my consciousness.
When I was three, my puppy got killed by another dog, and my father was there to hold me and teach me what happens when the pets we love die.
When I was five, my father took me to my first day of school. I was so scared. So was he. We cried and held each other that first day. The next day he became teacher's helper.. When I was eight, I just couldn't do math. Father sat down with me night after night, and we worked on math problems until math became easy for me. When I was ten, my father bought me a brand-new bike. When it was stolen, because I didn't lock it up like I was taught to do, my father gave me jobs to do around the house so I could make enough money to purchase another one.. When I was thirteen and my first love broke up with me, my father was there to yell at, to blame, and to cry with. When I was fifteen and I got to be in the honor society, my father was there to see me get the accolade. Now, when I was seventeen, he put up with me no matter how nasty I became or how high my hormones raged.
As I looked at my father dancing gaily with my friends, a big toothy grin on his face, I suddenly saw him differently. The handicaps weren't his, they were mine! I had spent a great deal of my life hating the man who loved me. I had hated the exterior that I saw, and I had ignored the interior that contained his God-given heart.. I suddenly felt very ashamed.
I asked Terry to take me home, too overcome with feelings to remain.
On graduation day, at my Christian high school, my name was called, and I stood behind the podium as the valedictorian of my class. As I looked out over the people in the audience, my gaze rested on my father in the front row sitting next to my mother. He sat there, in his one and only, specially made suit, holding my mother's hand and smiling.
Overcome with emotions, my prepared speech was to become a landmark in my life.
"Today I stand here as an honor student, able to graduate with a 4.0 average. Yes, I was in the honor society for three years and was elected class president for the last two years. I led our school to championship in the debate club, and yes, I even won a full scholarship to Kenton State University so that I can continue to study physics and someday become a college professor.
"What I'm here to tell you today, fellow graduates, is that I didn't do it alone. God was there, and I had a whole bunch of friends, teachers, and counselors who helped. Up until three weeks ago, I thought they were the only ones I would be thanking this evening. If I had thanked just them, I would have been leaving out the most important person in my life. My father."
I looked down at my father and at the look of complete shock that covered his face.
I stepped out from behind the podium and motioned for my father to join me onstage. He made his way slowly, awkwardly, and deliberately. He had to drag his left foot up the stairs as he used his deformed right arm to balance his gait. As he stood next to me at the podium, I took his small, crippled hand in mine and held it tight.
"Sometimes we only see the silhouette of the people around us," I said. "For years I was as shallow as the silhouettes I saw. For almost my entire life, I saw my father as someone to make fun of, someone to blame, and someone to be ashamed of. He wasn't perfect, like the fathers my friends had.
"Well, fellow graduates, what I found out three weeks ago is that while I was envying my friends' fathers, my friends were envying mine. That realization hit me hard and made me look at who I was and what I had become. I was brought up to pray to God and hold high principles for others and myself. What I've done most of my life is read between the lines of the Good Book so I could justify my hatred."
Then, I turned to look my father in the face.
"Father, I owe you a big apology. I based my love for you on what I saw and not what I felt. I forgot to look at the one part of you that meant the most, the big, big heart God gave you. As I move out of high school and into life, I want you to know I could not have had a better father. You were always there for me, and no matter how badly I hurt you, you still showed up. Thank you!"
I took off my mortar board and placed it on his head, moving the tassel just so.
"You are the reason I am standing here today. You deserve this honor, not me ."
And as the audience applauded and cried with us, I felt God's light shining down upon me as I embraced my father more warmly than I ever had before, tears unashamedly falling down both our faces.
For the first time, I saw my father through God's eyes, and I felt honored to be seen with him.
Written by: Candace Carteen, Portland, Oregon

From the book: God Allows U Turns: True Stories of Hope and Healing by Allison Bottke

Devotionals

2008-10-29T09:12:00.000-04:00

Wednesday - October 29, 2008 -
Matthew 10:16-25
Although the Lord Jesus is speaking to his apostles and early diciples I think we can easily apply this passage to his latter day saints. (Not Mormons, but rather the saved in the last days or in other words - us.) The persecution against Christians world wide is astounding. We do not hear much about it but it is there and witnessed by millions. And, it is going to get more difficult. This country, and the world, according to Scripture is going to face the greatest personal attacks against Christians that the world has ever known. So, the best way to deal with this is to become a coward, dig a hole and crawl inside and cover ourselves with the dirt! Or we can do what the champions of the Cross did before us. We can become more aggressive, carrying the Word of God all over our known world winning the war by telling others of the glories of the cross. Yes, but that might get us killed! Yea, isn't that great!

Thursday - Oct 30, 2008 -
Matthew 10:32-39
We must be confident in the power and the promises of our God. As we preach the Word of God we must understand that there will be some that will hate us. That is a fact. What did Jesus do to get crucified? He healed the sick, caused the lame to walk, fed thousands. All criminal offenses wouldn't you say? Of course non of these things were the things that crucified the Christ. He proclaimed himself to be equal with God! That will do it. And when He declared himself to be God, they rose up against Him and killed Him. But wait a minute. What if someone came and said that he was God, and that all that we believed was wrong. That things that we believe were wrongly taught to us all our lives. Would we not rise up against that individual and seek to destroy him? Certainly we would, that is why we warn about the coming Anti-Christ. When we preach against sin, divorce, immorality, booze, drugs, abortion, same sex marriage, etc., we are preaching against the God of this world. Of course we will be persecuted. The world is doing just what the known world did in the times of Christ. But we must love them enough, to continue on, just like Jesus did

Friday - October 31, 2008 -
1 Timothy 4:6-16
Finally, a passage of Scripture that I can throw in the face of my wife that will shut her up and her constant harping about me going to the gym "For bodily exercise profiteth little. . ." amen and glory hallelujah!!!! Bodily exercise profiteth little and yet one of the great industries in our country tells us that bodily exercise is every thing. Open up a magazine and there are diet pills to make us skinny. Turn the page and there is some skinny guy telling about the energy drink that made him loose 200 pounds. Nip this, tuck that! Body, Body, Body! Exercise and you will be loved by every one, your children will be proud of you, you will not have marriage problems, you will make more money, your family will be well adjusted and your lawn will not have crab grass. Yada, Yada, Yada!! However, the Bible also says that "Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come." Now, I was trying to be a little bit sarcastic about the exercise of the body. I myself belong to two exercise facilities. I go to both of them on a regular basis. One of them I go to on the 15th of every month and pay my dues. On the other I go to on the 28th to pay the dues. Isn't that the way most Christians do. We go once or twice a month to pay our dues but we never really get into the Word of God. That is why we are weak. Godliness is profitable unto all things, all things that we face today. All of our trials, tribulations, disappointments. It is also profitable for the days ahead. And what will we face then? Only God knows, but if we walk with Him we will be well prepared.

Saturday - November 1, 2008 -
Acts 13:1-12 (V 42-43)
As a worker for God, what should we accomplish? What should we dream? What should we pray? Life is tough and it is getting tougher, and yet the work that God has put before us must be accomplished and we do not have long to do it. We will be persecuted, there is no doubt about that. Millions around the world are already being persecuted and losing their lives but they continue on and should we do any less. We will be unpopular. There will be those that miss-quote us misunderstand us and hate us because of what the Scripture says. But this is not a popularity contest, and we must love our enemies enough to continue on and to be there for them. It will be worth it to them and us. Notice verse 42. There were those that walked away, but there were those who walked with them and desired the things of God. It is for them that we continue on.

Devotionals

2008-10-28T12:26:00.000-04:00

Monday -Oct 27, 2008
Acts 1:15-26
Take a moment with me this morning and look at verse 24. "They prayed and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men. . . " It is true. Our Lord knows the hearts of all men. When I think of a passage I think of the little girl that wants to help her mommy in the kitchen and ends up knocking the batter on the floor. Is that little girl punished? Not if her mother has any brains at all. The little girl didn't do it on purpose, her heart was right even though her actions brought about a catastrophe. Sometimes, we as Christians do wrong things. But God knows our hearts. He understands our failures, but God will always look on our heart. Sometimes, we as Christians do right things, with a bad attitude and for the wrong reasons. God also then looks on the heart and knows our hearts. We can fool people, but we cannot fool our God, He knows our heart.

Tuesday - OCT 28, 2008
Matthew 10:1-15
We are living in tough times, I think that nearly everyone will agree with that. Someone, a rather naive someone, said to me the other day, I cannot imagine things getting any worse. I thought to my self, that this person was clueless. I have been to the Philippines. I have friends who have described to me in detail the life in India, Mexico, Mongolia, Romania, etc. Things can get worse and, even though I am a great optimist, I declare unto you that things will get worse. In Matthew 10, and verse 14 it talks about the ones that would reject the apostles and the message they delivered. The same holds true to those who reject the Words of God today. The times are tough, but there is hope. Hope in the Word of God and his promises for those who love Him. One could say, it is the only hope.

Devotionals

2008-10-14T21:50:00.001-04:00

MONDAY - Acts 4:1-12
Why were the priest, the captain of the temple and the Sadducees grieved that they taught the people and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead? That is the difference between religion and Christianity. Religion will always be grieved at the preaching of the Word of God. Religion does not like the Word of God because it goes against what they believe. Religion is born in the heart of man Christianity is born in the heart of God Religion believes good works will be rewarded Christianity teaches that God rewards faith in His Son and the Sacrifice of Calvary. Religion teaches that you can never know if you are good enough Christianity teaches that you will never be good enough. That is why you need to be saved by the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

TUESDAY - Acts 2:13-22
In the world today, we have Bible Colleges, and seminaries. I have no problem with either one, in fact I teach in 2 Bible Colleges one in the Indianapolis area and the other in Davao City, Philippines. But I fear that many mistake and substitute education for walking with God. I have many good layman that have felt unqualified to witness or to teach a class because they do not have the proper education. One in fact used the very words of verse 13 when he stated that he was "unlearned and ignorant." I believe that it is the responsibility of every Christian to have a working knowledge of the Word of God. One should not only read the Bible and pay attention in church but take the responsibility to study God's Word as well. However, never confuse Bible knowledge with the power of God as you walk with Him.

WEDNESDAY - Acts 4:23-31
Why do we not speak to others about our Lord and Saviour? Why do we not speak to our neighbors, our co-workers and our family members about the salvation that God has entrusted to believers to spread to a lost and uncaring world? Notice verse 29. We, like they (the early followers of Jesus), fear the threatenings of the non believers. Of what are we afraid? In the days of Jesus the loss of jobs, homes, family and life itself were a possibility. In some parts of the world the same is still true, however in this country, the USA, those threats are not as real as they were in the days of the early church. The early disciples prayed that God would give them boldness. They did not ask for the removal of the threats, but that God would allow them to have the boldness. regardless of the threats to be the witnesses that God would have them to be. They knew that trials and tribulations would make them stronger, and make them into the Christians that they should be. Hopefully we will learn the same lessons.

THURSDAY - Acts 5:1-11
We must pray that God will keep us real. Ananias , Sapphira and the early church learned this lesson the hard way. Ananias and Sapphira sold a piece of property and there is no sin in that. They also gave a portion of that money to the church. There is no sin in that. God does not require us to give all of our money to Him. Then why did God kill them? Because they lied about the price they received and for show wanted people to believe that they had given all to the church to make themselves look better than they really were. People are people and the sins of Ananias and Sapphira are still alive and well in the church today. Let us be real and honest with God. You may be able to fool your fellow man, by God knows, and he is the one that needs to say well done thy good and faithful servant.

FRIDAY - Act 5:27-39
V 29 states that we "ought to obey God rather than man." The early church leaders have found themselves in a mess. One of their own making. One they could have avoided. But a mess that they chose by their own spiteful will. They chose to go against the law of the day. They preached Christ in spite of the fact that they were expressly ordered not to do it. Today, most of mans problems are because they choose by their own spiteful will, to do things that are expressly against the will of the established authority. And every time someone does that there are consequences because of that action. Here in Acts 5 the early church faced the council. Soon, the church today will face the Father to explain why we did not do what He wanted us to do. SATURDAY - Acts 6:1-15 The early church was getting the job done. The gospel was spreading throughout the world and multitudes were being saved. But the devil never quits. The Bible says that there arose a murmuring of the Gracians against the Hebrews. For a moment, there were those that stopped lifting their eyes toward the harvest and began to complain the treatment was unfair. When we stop looking at others and the harvest that is set before us and begin to look inward we will always begin to mummer. Thank God there were men in the church that was full of wisdom from the Holy Spirit and was able to help the situation rather than making things worse. May God grant us the same wisdom today.

Memories of a Friend

2008-08-30T09:34:00.000-04:00

Cindy,
I have been thinking of you ever since you called earlier this evening. I wish I could have been there with you tonight. I remember how I felt some 34 years ago when my "pop" passed away.

It is a very strange feeling of relief and grief. It is hard to understand unless you have been there. My mind was flooded with memories of days gone by and so many good times.

When you called me Thursday night I was with my son at the Colts football game. As we walked from the game to the parking garage we talked about him and his little buddy (Kai). I told him that someday, he would be walking down that very street telling Kai about the football games that he and I attended. Just like I have told him stories about my dad. One day, all that he would have of me is memories, and maybe a ring that I wore.

I remember as a young teenager coming over to your house. Your dad always made me feel welcomed, although even then he was a man of few words. I have truly enjoyed your fathers friendship over the past several years as I would stop by to see him, have a word of prayer with him and tell him what a remarkable man he was.

I just wanted to tell you that I loved your daddy and always had a good time with him. I respected him as a man that "took care of business." Well, as much as your mother would allow!

I also wanted to tell you what a wonderful mother, daughter and wife you are. You have extended yourself, without complaint or regret as you have raised your granddaughter, stood by your sons through all the physical and emotional times, be a mentor to your "daughter in law" and a stronger supporter of your husband. Thank you for being my prayer partner and allowing me to have a part of your life, trials and blessings alike. I am privileged to be your surrogate pastor.

Well, thank God for his grace and mercy. I wonder if your pop and my pop are talking about when I was a teen. Maybe your pop is telling my pop about how God answered his prayer, when you dumped me. My mother is probably telling your daddy how she had warned Sharon about me, but Sharon did not listen! I am sure that the sadness in your daddy's eyes are gone, when he saw Jody.

Sorry I was not with you at the end. I was hoping I had one more day. If you need me, I am here for you. We will pray that there will be some that will be saved because of the home going of your daddy. God bless you my sister, and may God comfort and bless you as only he can.

Because He Lives,
Dr. Steve Goens

Proud American

2008-07-02T07:31:00.002-04:00

I was at our local High School, Bedford North Lawrence, tonight enjoying a great program celebrating the 4th of July, and the pride that we have in the America that we love. I am, and am not ashamed of the fact, a flag waving American. I know that our country is not perfect. I know that we face some of the greatest challenges that we have ever faced. I know that we have made some very stupid decisions. But I love America. Right or wrong it is still my country and I still bleed red white and blue. As the choir and band played the theme song of the different military branches of service, I proudly stood as they played the Air Force theme song. I was in the Air Force during the Vietnam war. I was forced into the Air Force by the other branches, because I could read and was therefore over qualified to be an Anchor Clanker, a Leatherneck or a Dough Boy. I have always been proud of those that have fought for this country and prayed for the families of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice. I think that every young man would be a better young man, if he faced the discipline of the military life before he faced the rigors of adulthood, family and raising children.

For a few moments during the presentation, I wished I had dedicated my life to help keep this world free from the bullies. As I thought of the rigors of war I began to think of the war that we are in today. Not the war on terror, but a war on the foundations upon which this country was founded. We think of the stupidity of those who proclaim that Hitler never gassed the Jews. It is history, recorded, proven history. But those are not any more stupid than those who proclaim that this country was not founded on the Word of God. Our constitution, the bill of rights, the foundational laws, the institutes of higher learning, all were founded on the Word of God.

In our early towns and cities, the church was built first and in the center of the city. We are in a war. The terrorist attack the Word of God and by fear expect to rule and reign. It will not happen, they will not win. We have legalized "Gay" marriage, we have outlawed the Bible in our schools and even our churches are more inclined to please people than raise up their voices and cry out against the sins of our people. We are in a war that matters, that is real, and must be fought. We are not fighting for a way of live, or preferences, or a creed. We are fighting for the eternal souls of man. We are fighting for the faith that built this great nation. We are fighting the fight that other great men of God have fought. It is a fight that determines the eternal destiny of millions of people, here, and around the world. And we are soldiers of the cross, warriors of the Word, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. We must not be asleep on our watch, we must not fear what man shall do, we must look unto Jesus, our Saviour, our sacrifice our hope.

I firmly believe, for hundreds of Bible reasons, that we are the last generation. Others have gone before us, fighting and winning battles and wars so that we may have this opportunity to bring the faith of our fathers home. Let us raise the blood stained banner, fight the battles, and win the war. We must not fail, Millions of eternal souls are depending on us.

Because He Lives Pastor Steve Goens

Final Day

2008-05-08T20:40:00.000-04:00

Today is my final day in the Philippines. I am heading home in just a little while and it has been a full two weeks. I am sitting in the office of my Filipino secretary as I say goodbye. We have preached nearly 40 times and had some great success. God certainly has been good.

We spoke to some city workers last night and seven of them came to know Christ. We had dinner at a very nice Chinese restaurant and headed back to the camp grounds.

We have some great plans for the Bible College here and the plans for a radio station. We may be able to be on the air 24 hours a day preaching the gospel to millions. We have started the inquiry into all of the legal aspects of the station. I have suggested that the call letters be DSCG. The stations here begin their call letters in D. I explained to all that was gathered that it would stand for Dr. Stephen Carl Goens- DSCG. The vote was one hundred percent. One thing I found out about the Filipino people is that they vote by laughing. It’s different here but as long as we get the job done that is all that matters.

We are going to start producing books and tapes to send to the mountain preachers for their Bible college training. By the time we return in March of 2009 we will be teaching many more than we are now.

I am looking forward to heading home in just a few hours. I am in hopes of a meeting in Manila here in a few hours that will open more doors to do some things that have been life long dreams of mine. Pray for the success of that meeting.

Pray for the Baptist Beacon Missionary Ministries as we help train pastors around the world. We have been invited to India. We will not be able to make the first date (June 08) but hopefully later on. Pray for our ministries. I am behind in this great race, and I have rounded the fourth corner. I am headed for the finish line and I must finish fast to win the race that God has given me to run.

Goens My Way - Philippines 2008

5-08-08 Update

2008-05-08T08:28:00.000-04:00

Last night we finished the Family camp. After the last two weeks and the next two days, I will have spoken about 40 times. We had a great time and it was sad to leave some very dear friends. We trained 95 in the 1st Bible institute and had about 70 people saved. As I write this I am waiting to speak to the city leaders of Davao. Hopefully many of them will be saved and the total salvation decisions will increase. I am speaking on the Responsibility of Leadership. The government here is very corrupt so pray that I am able to help them.

There have many that I have counseled with while I have been here and although I have a great connection with the Filipino people many of them are afraid to approach me. When I was here last year I received a letter from a lady telling me that she had been praying for me for many years and was so disappointed that she was not able to come to the meeting. Last night a lady approached me after the service and introduced herself as Yvonne Placios, the lady that had been praying for me everyday since 2000. It seems that Bro Claro had told her about me and she took me on as a special prayer partner for these many years. This lady is as beautiful inside as she is on the outside and it was such a joy to have met her and her husband and gotten to know them.

There are many stories that I wish to relate to you, but one is a prayer request. Next year when I return there is a possibility that I will get to go and be with the Labonsa to their church. They are in the Muslim area and it is very dangerous. So, I told them that I would lose weight, blacken my hair, darken my skin, and learn the language so I will be able to go with them without losing my head. That would be one way to lose 30 pounds of ugly fat.

Goens My Way - Philippines 2008

Update 5-7-08

2008-05-07T07:17:00.000-04:00

I have some good news. The power has not gone out for a couple of days now. The water is not working but at least we can see how dirty the American is.
The children here are incredible. It really funny watching them as they try to relate to Lolo White. (Grandfather White) Now some of them are calling me Lolo Pop. Pop, here in the Philippines is the same as in America. I tell them I am called pop because I am sweet and refreshing.

Yesterday I found myself surrounded by children, and the more I played with them the more they laughed. One little girl was laughing so hard that I thought she was going to pass out. Their eyes sparkle and their smiles are so beautiful. The children love to feel my muscles. They will touch my arms or my back and say Muscles!!!! One little boy, one I don't really like, touched my belly and said "No Muscle" and all the children really thought it was funny. Now you understand why I don't like him.

I cannot speak the language of the little children from the mountains, and of course they cannot speak mine, but there is a bond that is incredible. They love me because I am big, strong and gentle. They love to touch my skin. One little girl sat for more than an hour next to me and held my arm. Then she moved to my other side and looked at me for the longest time. When I looked at her and smile and said "Hi sweetheart, she ran off and would not come near me again for a long time. I seem to have that trouble everywhere I go. A pretty girl looks and me and I say "Hi sweetheart” and they all run away. I guess that is the curse of being me.

I told people last night that I was missing my family but thanked them for being so kind and sharing their family with me... I told them that the little children helped me while I was missing my grandchildren. I told all of the young ladies that they helped me while I was missing my daughters. I told the men that they really didn't help me as I was missing my son. I told them he was 6'4' and they just can't believe that anyone human could be that tall. So I told them that it would take two Filipino's to take the place of my son. And then I told them that I was missing my wife but there were three ladies that had made me almost forget my wife. Three ladies, who together are missing a full set of teeth, began to laugh and giggle as every one looked at them and went aaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!

I had breakfast at another hut this morning. There are some questions that I have, but I am really afraid to ask. . . .If you know what I mean.

More later on Goens My Way - Philippines 2008

The Filipino Way part 2

2008-05-05T21:48:00.000-04:00

The Filipino people amaze me over and over again. I just had breakfast at a hut that is built here on the campgrounds for one of the preachers that come and visit. We had eggs, sweet potatoes and of course rice. We also had chicken, one that had been roaming around the camp ground, and some dried fish. All of this was cooked on open flame inside the hut. The beds are just bamboo beds and the roof is made of grass. But it stays cool and dry and that is all that is really important.

The Filipino has very little as far as this world is concerned, yet they are very happy people. The children will laugh and play with whatever their imagination will allow them to. I have seen them have a great time with dirt, bugs. The other day, a group was having a great time with a dead frog! I think they are going to be doctors.

I was sitting in the church the other night when the lights went out. It was pitch black. All of a sudden the church lit up, not because the lights came back on but because everyone opened their cell phones and the lights from all the cell phones chased the darkness away. No, stoves, refrigerators or a shower but ALL THE ADULTS, have their cell phones and the main way of keeping in contact with one another? Text Messaging. Who knew?

Filipino Way

2008-05-05T21:39:00.000-04:00

I had planned on writing a log every day but there are some things that interfere, a very busy schedule for one. I will have spoken about forty times from the time I arrive until the time I leave. Then, there have been several times that I could not get on the computer because of my two secretaries, Hanelyn and Alma, who have been busy typing all of my notes to give to the pastors. I have preached so much and written so much that I have told them all that I know and a lot of things I don't know. But those that know me know that I do not need to have insight, knowledge or wisdom to talk about anything and everything.

The Filipino way of thinking constantly amazes me. As we were approaching the graduation ceremonies disaster struck. The generator that supplies the camp with fresh water went out and we did not have any water. And then the electricity went out during one of the services and was out for several hours. Severe rains came and the road became nothing but mud. But I was the only one in camp that realized we were having problems. No Water? How was I to get clean, brush my teeth, use the comfort room? No electricity how was I to charge my phone, get on my computer, use my electric razor? I thought life was over as I knew it.

The next morning I awoke and remembered to conserve what little water we had for the couple hundred people on the camp grounds. Breakfast, oh my, what was I going to eat? As I was wondering if I had enough body fat to survive until the electricity came back on. One of the girls came to my door and said “Pastor, your breakfast is ready”. Eggs over easy (3), 4 pieces of toast, sausage, bacon, coffee, juice and water. A banana, mango and something I had never seen before. The Filipina woman is not confined to electricity; they cook over an open flame.

I took my towel and did my best to wipe the sweat from my body. I used enough deodorant to cover the most offending smell, put on my clothes and with dirty hair walked out to preach. As I left my room I came face to face with Bro Poqueta, a mountain preacher to the communist, a great man of God. We shook hands and hugged each other and I found that Filipino men smell good when they sweat. Then, much to my surprise, all of the ladies had wet hair. I was really upset that they had not followed the save the water order. Then, on the basketball court was the men, all covered from top to bottom with soap, as they all took a bath. You see, in order for me to get clean I need electric energy and running water. All a Filipino needs is a rain barrel and a river near by. In the whole crowed that morning all they needed to do is sniff, and it was easy to find the dirty American.

Update from Philippines 2

2008-04-29T08:00:00.001-04:00

Everything in the Philippines is going great. We are now on Tuesday afternoon and I am speaking 5 hours a day. It will not take them long to realize that after one day, I have exhausted all of my knowledge on ever topic under the sun.

I am teaching on spiritual maturity and once again I find Gods sense of humor great. Most people wonder if I am even saved let alone spiritually mature. We are beginning each morning at 5 am and we are not finished until about 9 at night. Thank God I only have to speak for 5 of those hours.

Each of my services is being recorded to distribute all over the Island. The tapes will help to help train the pastors that cannot make it to the conference. These men have walked 5 hours through the mountains to get here! It really humbles me to think that anyone of these great men of God would walk across the street, let alone 5 hours to hear me preach.

My secretaries have been working long into the night translating my writing. They are very special young ladies and I truly do appreciate all that they are doing for me.

I have a group of young preacher sons who are watching me out side the window. They sit around me and we have become real buddies. Many of the little girls will come up and sit on my lap and let me hold them. None of them are as special as my grandchildren, but they are very special children.

The food is great. I am probably the only missionary that comes to the Philippines and gains weight. Thank God for expandable pants.

Dr. Loqueous has invited me back next year, and every year to the Pastors training. I agreed to help him train 500 preachers and I guess he is going to take me up on it.

While I am here I have been looking into the Radio Broadcast "Life is for Living Philippines" and it looks like it will become a reality soon with one small glitch. We are checking into starting a radio station to broadcast 24 hours every day 365 days a year. He wants the station called CBCBC (Central Baptist Church and Bible College), I want to call it Goens Radio, and I think the Filipinos agree with me. They voted with a laugh.

Thank God for his goodness and protection. This is Pastor Steve Goens reporting from my luxury office over looking Davao City.

Update from Davao, Phillipines

2008-04-26T08:52:00.003-04:00

I have of course been very busy since I have arrived. Less than 12 hours after I was picked up at the airport I was speaking to a group of people on marriage. Today, I have already spoken two times and I am getting ready to speak again. This morning I spoke to the camp kids and several of them got saved including a woman that was against the church coming into the school to teach the children and have the feeding program. But this morning she was in attendance, and even though I was speaking mostly to the children she came forward to trust Christ. I just finished preaching to the "bridge people" These people have been displaced from the mountain region and have nothing. They have built a shanty town out of the items the poor people threw away. They eat the garbage out of the poormans trash can, and yet I, a rich American was received with open arms and I had a great time with the children. It was everything I could do to walk away without taking those beautiful children home with me. Some of them were saved as well.

Tonight I am getting ready to leave here and preach to some of the government people. I will be speaking to the city government leaders later on this week.

Next week I will be teaching 5 hours a day. Thank God the next week we will take a vacation and I will only be speaking 3 times a day on marriage and the family.

I am somewhat rested, but tomorrow will be another busy day. Pray for the success of the meeting, I am invited back again next year to help train 500 preachers.

Who would have ever believed that a high school flunky and Bible college would be "Professor Dr. Steve Goens" God does have a sense of humor!!!!!!!!