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GLEANINGS FROM THE WORD Experiencing an extraordinary God in ordinary life Issue 750 March 7, 2003 - Ignorance is not bliss My parents purchased their farm after I had left high school and moved away. In the years that have passed, I've had many farm related experiences but would never consider myself a farmer because I simply don't know enough about it and that's not where my God given gifts appear. There is though, a certain romantic appeal about a simpler rural life. The reality is that it has as many stresses and problems as a city life, they are just different problems. I have been blessed a number of times to have spent a week at the farm by myself while my parents were away for holidays. I got to play at being a farmer while looking after the livestock and house-sitting. One of my first opportunities was in the "old house", a three room mobile home with a wood stove for heat. They have long since moved into nicer and larger accommodations. I stayed for a week in mid winter. The weather was brutally cold, -40 and windy. I wasn't used to heating with a woodstove and was having difficulty getting the temperature right. Around midnight, I awoke feeling very cold. The wood stove had gone nearly out. I got it burning again and in my zeal to get warm, I stuffed it far too full of wood. Before long, it was like a sauna in the trailer and the temperature was still climbing. The cast iron on the woodstove was beginning to glow red hot. I panicked and looked for a way to cool things off before a fire started outside the stove. Not knowing any better, I threw a bucket of cold water into the firebox. The firebox groaned in protest and the room filled with steam, but the temperature dropped. I still don't know why the firebox didn't explode; only the grace of God watching over a fool can explain it. Red hot cast iron and cold water don't mix together really well. We often do things out of sheer ignorance. No one has told us any better and we simply grope and stumble along. There is an area of life that is too important to be ignorant about. People who don't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ are destined for eternal separation from God. Eternal separation from God out of a knowing choice is tragic enough. To have it happen because someone didn't tell you is a tragedy beyond measure. The world is a dark and dangerous place. For many, as hellish as their life is, it is the closest they will ever get to heaven. Do you remember what it was like to live in the darkness without hope? Do you remember the freedom that came with knowing Jesus? Share those things with others. If you can't or won't go into the harvest field give generously to those who do and pray for them. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" Romans 10:14-15 NIV They say you can't take it with you when you go. That's only partly true; you can send family, friends and strangers on ahead of you or have them follow you, if you share the gospel (by word and deed) with them. Don't leave them behind because they are ignorant of the truth. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16 NIV Until next time, may everything you say and do point others in the direction out of ignorance and into the arms of our loving saviour. Be blessed Hallelu Yah (Praise God)! Kevin YOU ARE Once you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour you are secure "Let the beloved of the LORD rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the LORD loves rests between his shoulders." Deuteronomy 33:12b NIV Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. You have value in the eyes of God so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. The truth is God can set you free and will do so if you only ask. Now you can no longer plead ignorance as an excuse. It's time to get right with God. TODAY. If you want to know how that's possible simply email us and we'll send you some Bible verses that will explain it to you You can simply begin the relationship by honestly and completely opening your heart, admitting you need God's help, and saying a prayer along the lines of: Jesus: I have made many mistakes in my life and done things I am not proud of. I have sinned. I need your love and forgiveness. I believe that you came into this world and gave your life on a cross to pay for my sins and that you defeated death and rose again. Please forgive me, and be the Lord of my life. I give my life to you Lord. Amen If you pray this prayer for the first time let me know so I can rejoice with you. Did you know that at Gleanings, we have a dedicated team of prayer warriors and all prayer concerns are kept strictly confidential? Your comments, your questions and your joys are shared with the prayer team, to keep me accountable as the head of the ministry and to encourage them as they see God at work in your life. As with prayer all these things are kept confidential within the Gleanings team. To share your questions, comments, thoughts, prayer concerns and praise reports email us If you enjoyed this issue of Gleanings From The Word, email it, in its entirety, to a friend. For information on use of Gleanings in your church newsletter or other situations please visit the permissions page . You can write to us at Gleanings From The Word Ministries International 114 Oak St Sherwood Park, AB Canada T8A 0V8 © 2003 K.F. "Kevin" Corbin Gleanings From The Word Minististries International - All Rights Reserved
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