You're Not an Egyptian!

By Marjorie Kinnee

My child, you are not an Egyptian,

You were raised as a child of the Light.

Though you run far and wide,

You can't escape, cannot hide,

You will never be out of God's sight.

My child, you are not an Egyptian,

And your heart of hearts knows this right well.

You can bury yourself,

Put your heart on a shelf,

But the knowledge continues to swell.

My child, you are not an Egyptian,

Sin's stains look ill on your face.

Its' chains drag you down,

Soil your white wedding gown,

And frustrate the dove of God's grace.

My child, you are not an Egyptian,

Too much time's been invested in you.

By those who have cared,

And have willingly shared,

Teaching you to be loyal and true.

My child, you are not an Egyptian,

Though in Egypt's dominion you roam.

His voice you once heard,

In song and in the Word,

And His voice is still calling you home.

My child, you are not an Egyptian,

Though bewitched by Egypt's facade.

So the war rages on,

'Twixt God and Dagon,

But my trust's in the promise of God!.

Trust and Obey

Editorial by Marjorie Kinnee

"When we walk with the Lord, in the light of His Word,

What a glory He sheds on our way;

While we do His good will, He abides with us still,

And with all who will Trust and Obey.

Trust and Obey - for there's no other way,

To be happy in Jesus - but to Trust and Obey."

The words of this old song took on new meaning (for me) this week. Pondering on the issues of trust and obedience and an illustration oft repeated about the child who takes a blind leap on the say so of his father. Because he trusts his dad to catch him, a child obeys his father's command and jumps off some high place.
We use this analogy to explain faith as well as trust.

Jesus said, "If ye love Me, keep My commandments." (John 14:15) Years later,  John added greater emphasis... "And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." (I John 2:3-4) He used strong words and serious implications that portend severe consequences (See Revelation 21:8.) in conjunction with obedience (keeping His commandments).

Consider these verses...
"Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the Word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation." (Hebrews 13:7) This verse describes trust in at least four premises...

1. Their "rule" is by the calling and appointment of God, (See I Corinthians 12:28.)
2. They teach "truth" from the Word of God,
3. Their "faith" is worth following, and,
4. The "results" of their teaching are eternal.

Drawing on these four premises leads to this conclusion: "remembering" (bearing in mind, accepting, giving heed to,) equates with trust.

"Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you." (Hebrews 13:17) The word, "obey" leads off; it's a clear command. Six important areas are emphasized...

1. Again, their "rule" is ordained of God, (See Ephesians 4:11-13.)
2. We are commanded to "submit" ourselves (to their rule),
3. They are charged with the responsibility of watching for our souls,
4. They must give an account of their ministry,
5. They also give account (witness) of our response - with joy or with grief,
6. If their report is given with "grief" - it will not profit us individually.

While a wealth of meaning can be attributed to the command to obey, and obedience is required in many situations and applications; one key point remains. Obedience is perfected when it is rooted in trust. What's more, the level of your trust is indicated by the scope of your obedience! (And vice-versa!) Thus, trusting obedience is the only way to demonstrate both obedience and trust - to yourself, and, to an unbelieving world. (See Acts 5:29; James 2:18.)

Trust and Obey - There's no other way!

On Waiting...

Compiled by Charlotte Wholters

Isaiah 30:18 - "...blessed are all they that wait for Him."


Job 14:14 - "...all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come."


Psalm 25:21 - "Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on Thee."


Psalm 25:3 - "Yea, let none that wait on Thee be ashamed..."


Psalm 37:7 - "Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him..."


Psalm 37:9 - "...those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth."


Psalm 37:34 -" Wait on the LORD, and keep His way..."


Psalm 40:1-4 - "I waited patiently for the LORD; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry."


Psalm 52:9 - "...I will wait on Thy Name; for it is good before Thy saints."


Psalm 69:6 - "Let not them that wait on Thee, O LORD God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake..."


Psalm 130:5-7 - I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in His Word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the LORD more than they that watch for the morning..."


Psalm 145:15-19 - "The eyes of all wait upon Thee; and Thou givest them their meat in due season..."


Proverbs 20:22 - "...wait on the LORD, and He shall save thee."


Proverbs 27:18 - "...he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured."


Isaiah 8:17 - "And I will wait upon the LORD..."


Isaiah 25:9 - "...Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation."


Isaiah 30:18 - "And therefore will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you, ...blessed are all they that wait for Him."


Isaiah 33:2 - "O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for Thee..."


Isaiah 40:31 - "But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength..."


Isaiah 49:23 - "...they shall not be ashamed that wait for Me."


Isaiah 64:4 - "For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside Thee, what He hath prepared for him that waiteth for Him."


Jeremiah 14:22 - "...therefore we will wait upon Thee: for Thou hast made all these things."


Lamentations 3:25-36 - "The LORD is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord..."

Daniel 12:12 - "Blessed is he that waiteth..."


Hosea 12:6 - "Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually."


Micah 7:7-8 - "...I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me..."


Habakkuk 2:3-4 - ...though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come..."


Luke 12:36-40 - "And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately..."


Acts 1:4 - "...wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith He, ye have heard of Me."


Romans 8:19-25 - For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God... even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption... if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it."

James 5:7 - "Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain, be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh."

Editor's Note: Charlotte and James Wholters are living in Reston, Virginia, after his retirement from the U.S. Air Force. The Wholters Family currently attends The Original Pentecostals Church (Pastor Raymond E. Woodward,) in Leesburg, Virginia.

Waiting...

By Marjorie Kinnee

 

To renew my strength

To mount up with wings as eagles

To run and not be weary

To walk and not faint



 

To keep on keeping on

To stick and stay

To endure to the end

To smile and say, "Hallelujah anyhow!"

 

To go the second mile

To give my cloak also

To turn the other cheek

To love the unlovable

 

To decrease

To rejoice in others' increase

To by love serve

To keep hope alive

 

To abide in Christ

To let Christ abide in me

To be conformed

And transformed into His image.

 

To let patience bring experience

To let patience have her perfect work

To receive the desires of my heart

To walk worthy...

 

Till my change comes

Till Christ be formed in me

Till He comes

And I see Him face to face

 

O Lord, Teach me to wait!

 

 

That Ship has Sailed

By Rachel Cotharp

Today my heart took a trip, back to another trip; not one I took, but one I wanted to take. I'd planned it carefully, made all my preparations, told all my friends. It was going to be glorious, the future seemed like a long, lovely trip on a luxury ship. But to my dismay, my heart's bitter disappointment, that ship sailed... without me.

I stood on the pier ever so long watching through burning tears as it pulled away from the dock, so close I could reach out and touch it. I could hear the music playing on the deck and smell the delicious dinner being set on the tables. If I closed my eyes I WAS there, but when I opened them, I was alone.

There went my dream, streamers floating in the breeze. Here I stood with my luggage, in my traveling dress, with my ticket in my hand... hurting... humiliated.

I wish I could tell you that I turned and wiped my eyes and made the best of it. But I didn't. I stood there on the pier and grew bitter. As the people passed by I yelled to them of my loss. I railed against the ship, the captain, and the crew. I wailed and wept and waved my ticket. I lamented my loneliness and sat on my luggage.

I'm not sure how long I would have stayed there, pouting on the pier; but thankfully, a wise one came along and listened to me. He heard out the sad, sad story of the Ship that Sailed. He listened while I (again) poured out my tale of woe. After listening to my lament over how wrong I had been done, he asked to see my ticket. Silently, he took out a pen, wrote on it, and handed it back to me.

I took it in hand, looked at what he had seen, that I had not seen before... and everything changed. There, circled in red, was the name of my ship - the Titanic.

What had felt like a crushing blow was now seen as a beautiful blessing. What I had mourned with self-pity, was in actuality a preservation. What I thought would sink me, saved me.

I'm not the only one. I've seen folks who jump off the pier, swim out to the boat, and insist on having their trip at any cost - folks who leave their spouse and their children to go chase a dream, a goal... folks who leave their integrity behind, jump in another boat and chase after their ship, only to go down in the whirlpool the sinking ship leaves in its downward plunge. They would have been better off to weep, wave, and then walk away.

What ship has sailed for you? What dream have you watched grow distant, On what pier are you wasting time? Let me circle something on your ticket. Look there, below your plans; see Psalm 37:23 written just below it. The steps of the righteous are ordered by God.

Go ahead, unpack your bags, tape your ticket inside your Bible. Let God bring you through the disappointment. Let God wash your bitter tears. Since the steps of the righteous are ordered by the Lord, you can pick up your bags and march off that pier, head held high. You did not miss the boat. Your ship WILL come in - when it is the right ship for you. God's plans for us are so much bigger than our plans. You can trust Him. When He steps in it's because He sees a shipwreck while we only see a luxury liner.

Editor's Note: Rachel Coltharp is the wife of Brent Coltharp, pastor of First Apostolic Church of Aurora, Illinois and Superintendent of the Illinois District (UPCI). Rachel is a homeschooling mother of four and speaks throughout the country in varioius venues. Her wrtings are always worthy of thoughtful consideration.