Archive for the ‘Christian Living’ Category
The Ministry Of Covering
The Ministry Of Covering
(Why Do Pentecostals Gossip?)
1Pe 4:7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging.
10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
- I am NOT talking about COVERING FOR someone.
- I am AM talking about PROTECTING one another FROM gossip and slander.
- What is our obligation?
- It seems that if our own soul is not important to us and we do NOT love out brother, then there are no off limits.
- We are living in the days of Gossip Sheets and Rumor Rags on display in every Supermarket checkout line. Inquiring minds want to know!
- My Dad had a sign in his office: “You can’t white wash yourself by blackening others”
What is there about this society and this age that just delights in knowing the worst about everyone and then telling it everywhere? Evidently, it’s OK to say whatever you wish about someone as long as you say “POOR THING” at the end of the sentence.
I. The Bible starts out with the worst-case scenario. Some attempt to find deeper meanings in this scripture. I only want to take it a face value for what it says, for today’s thought.
Gen. 9:20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
21 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.
- How horrible!! Your brother tells you, that your father got drunk, and worse yet, anyone who comes into his tent will see him uncovered.
- That never seemed to bother HAM. But he wound up being the father of the Canaanites, a people of sinful and corrupting influences.
Ham saw there was a problem, did nothing to help and then told others. When Shem and Japheth heard the news, they:
- Didn’t condone the drunkenness of their father.
- They disapproved of his condition
- They disapproved even more of their brothers response.
- He would never wash that from his memory
- (The longer you live, the more fault you can find and the more humanity you will see in your hero’s life. You can’t let it throw you, nor give you license to do wrong either.)
- They went into a defense mode.
- They found a covering.
- Put it on their shoulders.Backed in.
- Turned their faces away, so as not see.“I’m not going to look like HAM did.
- We’re closer to him than you are, but willingly blind ourself.
- Not that we approve, but we don’t want folks like you finding out all you can about a situation and then go tell it everywhere.
- We’re going to cover him.
- When he gets back up, we want him to have his self-respect.
- Love covers all
1Pe 4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
Pr 10:12 Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.
Pr 12:16 A fool’s wrath is presently known: but a prudent man covereth shame.
The job of the Rodeo clown.
- To protect the fallen rider from the bull.
- The clown is no doubt one of the best athletes in the arena.
- He puts himself in the line of danger to protect a fallen comrade.
- Some of you clowns aren’t doing your job.
There is something wrong with those that have a keen interest in others sins.
- They more than likely will wind up having problems of their own.
- Knowing and telling, two different things
Shem and Japeth knew.
- They didn’t approve,
- They didn’t gloat,
- They didn’t laugh,
- They were appalled,
- They were mortified.
- They didn’t want their father to be a laughing stalk.
What is your intention when you spread the juicy details?
Prov. 6:16 These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
Prov. 6:17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
Prov. 6:18 An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
Prov. 6:19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
What’s Their Motive?
- This is a gossip generation
- News in Pentecost travels fast
- Cell phones
Paul, I am determined to know nothing among you, save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
The Curse Of Caanan.
- There is a curse from the Lord upon those that gloat over another’s problems.
- Considering thine own self.
- God’s ministry is one of covering so the world and enemy of our souls can’t see.
- Why do you want to expose some one.
Just because you know about someone’s mistake, doesn’t mean you have to tell everyone!
My advice? Never play Private Detective or Prosecuting Attorney in the Kingdom of God.
Let’s be more like Him!
She Laughed Her Way Through Her Trial!
She Laughed Her Way Through Her Trial!
Southern California in 1958 seemed like another world to me. I should have been used to traveling and changing towns. This place had a different “feel” about it. But I knew I would adjust. At 14, I had already gone to 21 schools. My Dad, Carl Ballestero, had been an Evangelist or Pastor all my life. Moving almost seemed normal to us.
Daddy had just resigned the little storefront church he had started in Yakima, WA. He had gotten a letter from a pastor he knew requesting he come and take his church as he was going to the mission field.
Our family of seven was crammed into the two door 1948 Pontiac. A small tarp covered utility trailer holding everything we possessed in the world was hitched to the bumper. We looked like Gypsies, I’m sure.
When we arrived at the Pastor’s home to present ourselves, a shocked look came into his eyes and he said, “Oh Brother Ballestero, I am so sorry, I’ve changed my mind and I decided to stay. I meant to write you and tell you not to come.”
My Father smiled and thanked him as he turned back to the car trying not to let dismay or discouragement show on his face to his family. We drove down the road a ways and turned a corner and stopped the car. Daddy and Mother had to decide what we were going to do next.
We had nowhere to go. Daddy only had $85 cash left. My four little sisters seemed too young to understand the crisis. There was not enough gas to go another 100 miles.
Daddy bought a newspaper and he and Mom read the “houses for rent” section of the classifieds. There was a converted duplex in National City that might work. The price was $80 a month. The last line said “no children.” We went to look anyway.
Daddy said that he knew the Pastor in National City, a Brother Leaman Reynolds. I’d never heard of him. Mom said maybe we could attend his church while Daddy Evangelized for a while.
When we arrived at the rental house, the landlady was waiting. When she saw us 5 kids, she promptly told Daddy that children were not allowed.
“Do you need me to drown them for you?” was his response.
She looked us over carefully and smiled and then agreed to let us rent the house. Now, we had $5.00 left. We drove to town and Dad talked the Utility Company into turning on the water and electricity for $5.00.
The car and trailer got unloaded quickly. There were no beds, so pallets were made on the floor. I went behind the Safeway Grocery Store and found 4 wooden orange crates by the trash bin. We took a closet door off and laid it on the orange crates to make a dinning room table of sorts. We didn’t have any chairs. The good news was, the crates made the table a comfortable height for those sitting on the floor.
The first morning, I was awakened by feminine shrieks. The previous renters had lived in the house with 16 dogs. (We’d found out later.)
My little sister’s arms, legs and torsos had flea bites everywhere. All of us were bitten. The fleas were still visible and so thick that mom got her vacuumkoo.com cleaner and took the hose and vacuumed the fleas off of our bodies.
When that chore was finished, we turned our eyes to Mom. She said to Dad, “Carl, we don’t even have a quarter to buy flea powder. But God said in Malachi, that if we would pay our tithes, He would rebuke the devourer for our sakes. Now honey, we’ve paid our tithes, so let’s get down here on the floor and ask God to rebuke these little devourers for our sake.”
And pray we did. Or, at least pray Mom and Dad did. Most of us kids just scratched with our eyes closed. I think we scratched more than we prayed. Mom has always been one of those Holy Ghost women that can go from “0” to “100” in 3 seconds. It didn’t take Mom long in pray before we heard her shift gears and move on out to the “Glory World” in God.
I don’t remember what she said, but what I do remember is that, when that 15-minute prayer meeting was over, the miracle had already happened. From that moment till we moved out over a year later, there were no more fleas found in that house!
Mother had brought a large bag of Pinto Beans down from Washington. A 50 lb. sack, if I remember correctly. The beans provided or only source of food for about a month. There was no salt, pepper, or ham hock to season with. We all drank tap water and felt happy for that. Beans three times a day. The current generation, with their luxuries from the WaterSoftenerGuide, we had none of that and it made us strong mentally.
When we gathered at the makeshift dinner table for supper. We folded our legs and sat on the floor. Mom announced the menu every evening and came around one by one and asked the same questions of us all.
“Tonight Darlings, we have:
- Fried Chicken?
- Roast Beef?
- Swiss Steak?
Which would you like?”
“Oh, I’d like some chicken,” I said.
“Great choice! Do you want white meat or dark meat?” was her next question.
When I said I wanted white meat, Mom put a spoonful of beans on my plate.
“Do you want:
- Baked potato?
- Fried potatoes?
- Mashed potatoes?
When we answered, Mom would put another dollop of beans on our plate. If we chose mashed potatoes, she would put a few more on that pile saying it was gravy.
Then she asked, do you want:
- Corn on the cob?
- California blend?
- Fresh snapped green beans?
Another pile was added regardless of our choice.
The salad menu often included:
- Garden salad (Dressings required additional beans)
- Caesar salad
- Cottage cheese and pears
Mom smiled and we laughed together as she served our supper. It was funny to us to say we wanted one thing and then be served another.
There always was a saucer beside our plates. The saucer served as a dessert plate.
Every night, we got to choose between things like.
- Chocolate cake
- Banana Pudding
- Strawberry Shortcake
When she finished serving us there were often 4 or 5 piles of beans on our plates, not counting our dessert.
Mama made us smile at mealtime as she used her imagination to lighten the reality of life.
One afternoon after a month or so, a grocery store delivery truck backed up to our door. The driver looked at his delivery receipt and asked if this was the Ballestero residence. When we said it was, he opened the back door of the bobtail truck and there were sacks and sacks and more sacks of groceries.
Mother told him there must be some mistake, because we hadn’t ordered any groceries.
He looked at the delivery order again. And then said, “It says here the groceries have paid for by someone named: Anonymous. Over two hundred dollars worth paid in full. And they are to be delivered to the home of Carl Ballestero.
We cried with joy as the sacks of food covered the table, the counter, and the floor. We didn’t even know what to eat first. But what we did first was thank the Lord.
As a result of my Mom’s attitude during hard times, I was a full-time evangelist for over two years before I knew what a trial was. Mom had made our journey through hard times seem so fun and enjoyable, I didn’t know it was a trial. I thought everybody lived like that! She showed us that, “attitude was not something, attitude was everything.”
Thanks Mom! You’re the Best!
The Progression Of Sin
The Progression Of Sin
We can’t talk about Holiness without talking about sin. Holiness desires to live a life separate from sin.
- Appearance doesn’t matter? Some act like it doesn’t. They’re wrong.
- They say they’re “Enlightened?
- We had an Old fashioned Pentecostal term for them… they’re Backslid!
- Leprosy is a Type of Sin
Watch the progression of sin in these 4 example of Leprosy in Leviticus 13, 14.
- These all brought their concerns to the priest.
- Today we wait for the preacher to say something.
- We figure, if he doesn’t say anything, we must be all right.
- They seemed to know, without being told, that something was wrong.
- The good news is they wanted it fixed.
1. SKIN
Leviticus 13:1-9 (KJV)
2 When a man shall have in the skin of his flesh a rising, a scab, or bright spot, and it be in the skin of his flesh like the plague of leprosy; then he shall be brought unto Aaron the priest, or unto one of his sons the priests:
3 And the priest shall look on the plague in the skin of the flesh: and when the hair in the plague is turned white, and the plague in sight be deeper than the skin of his flesh, it is a plague of leprosy: and the priest shall look on him, and pronounce him unclean.
- Makeup
- Eye shadow
- Eye liner
- Blush
- Cover girl
- Tattoos
What what ever happened to Shamefacedness? It’s far to common to see makeup around Pentecostal Churches.
2. HAIR
Leviticus 13:20-25 (KJV)
20 And if, when the priest seeth it, behold, it be in sight lower than the skin, and the hair thereof be turned white; the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a plague of leprosy broken out of the boil.
Leviticus 13:30-33 (KJV)
30 Then the priest shall see the plague: and, behold, if it be in sight deeper than the skin; and there be in it a yellow thin hair; then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a dry scall, even a leprosy upon the head or beard.
31 And if the priest look on the plague of the scall, and, behold, it be not in sight deeper than the skin, and that there is no black hair in it; then the priest shall shut up him that hath the plague of the scall seven days:
32 And in the seventh day the priest shall look on the plague: and, behold, if the scall spread not, and there be in it no yellow hair, and the scall be not in sight deeper than the skin;
- Hair Styles
- Cut hair on girls
- Long hair boys
3. GARMENT (Clothes)
Leviticus 13:47-59 (KJV)
47 The garment also that the plague of leprosy is in, whether it be a woollen garment, or a linen garment;
48 Whether it be in the warp, or woof; of linen, or of woollen; whether in a skin, or in any thing made of skin;
- Immodest
- Slits that should never be
- When you try the skirt on and ¾ of your leg comes through the slit, aren’t there alarms that go off in your head or your heart?
- (Who are you dressing like that for?
- Sleeves – sleeveless and cap sleeves are too common. (I’m old school.)
- I know I can be saved dressing like I do, why gamble?
- Tight clothes
- Revealing and sheer clothes
- Israel couldn’t Blush.
- God, don’t let us lose our ability to blush!
4. House
Leviticus 14:34-45 (KJV)
34 When ye be come into the land of Canaan, which I give to you for a possession, and I put the plague of leprosy in a house of the land of your possession;
35 And he that owneth the house shall come and tell the priest, saying, It seemeth to me there is as it were a plague in the house:
What’s in your house that God might consider Leprosy?
- TV?
- All kinds of Videos?
- Improper Music?
- Empty the house – Repent
- Scrape the walls – Heart searching
- Replace Stones and Morter – pray through to a renewal is always in order!
There’s no stopping place for sin. It gets everywhere. The Bible illustrated sin starting in the Skin, showing up in the Hair, displaying itself in how we Dress and then getting in our Home.
Acts 2:40 And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.
.
I prefer writing “Bible” to bible, “God” to god, and “Jesus” to jesus!
I prefer writing “Bible” to bible, “God” to god, and “Jesus” to jesus!
In today’s world of fast communication with blogs, forums and social networks, it’s easy to become a little careless when quickly writing about God and church.
The good Lord knows that none of us are perfect nor do we have the right to go around admonishing others.
Forgive me then for treading where normal people would may not. (My friends have never called me normal.)
It does seem from this old man’s point of view, that my generation has gone from carefulness to carelessness in a number of areas.
Remember the stories we all heard about the Scribes copying Scriptures? Remember Bible teachers saying the scribes were fearful to even spell out the name of Jehovah? I am told they wrote the abbreviation Jah instead.
When they came to that word, they would stop, get a new “pen” (Some say they even changed their garments as well) and then write the name, Jah (Jehovah)
Even comments on Wikipedia show the additional carefulness of men in the Old Testament:
“Laws of writing divine names:
- “According to Jewish tradition, the sacredness of the divine names must be recognized by the professional scribe who writes the Scriptures, or the chapters for the tefillin and the mezuzah. Before transcribing any of the divine names he prepares mentally to sanctify them. Once he begins a name he does not stop until it is finished, and he must not be interrupted while writing it, even to greet a king. If an error is made in writing it, it may not be erased, but a line must be drawn round it to show that it is canceled, and the whole page must be put in a genizah (burial place for scripture) and a new page begun.
- “According to Jewish tradition, the number of divine names that require the scribe’s special care is seven: El, Elohim, Adonai, YHWH, Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh, Shaddai, and Tzevaot.”
We all understand that was in Israel, and that was a long time ago. I’m sure I’m “old school,” but I prefer writing “Bible” to bible, “God” to god, and “Jesus” to jesus!
In your opinion, I may have OCD, or I may be sticking my long nose where it don’t belong. I may be a picky old English major who likes proper nouns with caps. Or, I may be making an appeal for carefulness. You decide.
I was raised to take my hat off when I came into the Church Sanctuary because it was God’s House. I am grateful for a Dad and Pastor who taught me respect by example.
I was reminded to be careful concerning the things of God and His church. I had my early articles edited by my Pastor/Father. He changed all my god’s into God’s, and my jesus into Jesus. I also had my he changed to He and my him changed to Him.
Write like you want, because I’m not the Capitalization Sheriff.
But this is how I choose to write concerning things worthy of the highest honor.
Thank you for reading.
God Bless You.
“Well, Let’s Suppose You Starve To Death And Die Down There.”
“Well, let’s suppose you starve to death and die down there.
If you do, I will build you a monument bigger that George Washington’s
The ugly, Salmon colored 1955 Ford pushed it’s way southward into the cool October breeze. The clutch slipped a little and the 6 cylinder engine wasn’t making happy noises. That was normal for it though. This was only my third day as a full-time evangelist.
Now, it really is kind of funny that I would have considered myself full-time, because I did not have any revivals scheduled, or any invitations. I did not have an exact destination either. I was driving not knowing literally where I was going. I was having an “Abraham” type moment.
Several weeks prior, I had sat in our living room talking with my parents. My Father, Carl Ballestero pastored Christ Temple Apostolic Church in South Bend, IN. He had given me permission to go “on the evangelist field” and I was thrilled with the open door.
Mother asked, when I had thought about leaving? I was sure I would be ready to go in two weeks.
“Where are you going?” she had asked.
“Louisiana!” I had responded, not knowing really why.
“Do you have any revivals scheduled?” she pushed.
I shook my head no.
“And I won’t ask for one either.” I said.
“Then how are you going to get a revival?”
“The same God that helped you and Daddy when you evangelized, will help me too.” There, I had said what I felt. It had just felt good to say that. I could only hope He would.
The year was 1963. I had just quit my job making $1.25 an hour. I had only saved $85.00. That took several weeks for me. But I was confident I could last a while on that. Dad had offered me the use of a gas credit card. I turned him down. He got very serious and said, “Here is one we don’t use. It’s a DX card. Whatever you charge, you’ll have one month to pay for it.” I took it because I saw he really thought I should.
I was 19 and had only preached one revival. It had been a one-week Youth Revival in a Buchanan, MI, a neighboring church.
I had been invited to preach Youth Services occasionally at other churches since I was 16.
Dad and Mom had prayed for me as I was preparing to go, we all had hugged necks and kissed and then I left. Momma cried.
Now I sat watching the road while my heart kept sinking lower and lower. I had used Dad’s DX card for gas. The last two nights I had slept in my car and washed up in the truck stops. It had been easy to blow $5.00 on Dr. Peppers, Moon Pies and Frito’s. They had been my main food source for two days.
The muffler and tailpipe had fallen off at Eldorado, AR. By the time I pulled into Leesville, LA, my alternator and generator had quit, the distributor cap was cracked and the carburetor needed a kit installed. I could not go on.
The service station guy said he would install used parts for me if I got them. I went to the junkyard and bought what I needed. The parts and the labor came to $75.00.
I now had a grand total of $5.00 to my name and I was over a 1,000 miles from home.
A nearby Bank caught my eye. I walked inside and laid my last bill down. “I would like $4.00 in quarters and the rest in nickels and dimes.” I told the teller. With my handful of change, I went to the closest phone booth.
Too proud to ask for help or call collect, I was determined to pay for this call. “Please deposit $3.50,” the operator’s voice instructed me. I did, counting carefully under my breath.
When my Father answered, words hurriedly rolled from my lips. “Daddy, I don’t want you to know where I’m at because I don’t want you to send me any money. I just have a question for you.
I told him of my mechanical misfortunes and that as of right now, I only had $1.50, I didn’t know what I was going to do about supper, where I was going to sleep tonight, or how I was going to get a revival.
“All I want to know is what do you do now?” that was my question.
My ears heard laughter. I listened in disbelief. I couldn’t see any humor in the situation.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t see much humor here Daddy,” was about all I could manage to say.
“Well, let’s suppose you starve to death and die down there. If you do, I will build you a monument bigger that George Washington’s,” was his reply.
Then he laughed some more.
Still held in a serious mood, I could not see anything funny in our conversation.
“Why would you build me a monument bigger than George Washington’s if I starve to death and die,” I wanted to know.
“The reason I’ll build you a monument bigger than George Washington’s if you starve to death and die, will be because you will have been the first man God ever let down.” he said.
“Oh Daddy! Thank You!! I love and I’m so sorry to have called and bothered you! Good bye!” And with that, I hurriedly hung up the phone.
I knelt on the floor in that old phone booth. It was located on the south side of town beside highway US-171 that runs southward towards Lake Charles.
“Lord, if you’ll forgive me for doubting you, I’ll not do that any more.” I said the words with tears running down my cheeks.
To this day I can smell the pine from the logging trucks and hear their engines in my ears as one after another they vibrated my phone booth during my prayer.
When I walked out, I was shocked to run into a familiar face. Pastor Cranford from Sulphur, LA. He had attended my Dad’s Open Bible Conference in March.
“What are you doing here?” he wanted to know.
“I’m starting out evangelizing,” was all I could say.
“Have you had supper?” was his next question.
“No sir.”
“Do you like Cajun Seafood?”
I didn’t know if I did or not because I had never had any Cajun Cooking before. But my hunger pushed me to say, “Oh, Yes sir!”
“Mama’s got a big pot of gumbo on, come home with me.” He invited.
While I ate, what just happened to be, one of the best meals of my life, Bro. Cranford asked if I could preach at the Youth Service that night.
There was no need to check my Calendar. I knew it was empty. I preached that night and He gave me an offering of $14.50. (I didn’t know for sure if there was that much money left in the world.)
After church he called Bro. A.L. O’Brien in Starks. Bro. O’Brien invited me to come to his church. I preached to the youth before church every night before their revival service. The church was in a revival with C.R. Free. I lived in the O’Brien’s home for almost 9 weeks of that revival.
Bro. O’Brien told me that there was a little place down the road called Lunita. A Bro. Kirkland was the pastor and he wanted me to come. I preached 9 nights there, and 16 backsliders prayed through.
Bro. C.W. Shew sent a message to Bro. O’Brien inviting me to come to Ft. Worth, TX. for a revival.
In all, I was gone 9 months before I returned home. Then it was just long enough to trade cars and go back to the next revival.
This year marks my 50th year of preaching. In that time I have been blessed to have preached over 900 revivals or series of services, besides conferences, camps and anniversaries.
The first thing God had to teach me, was actually the first thing he had to teach Israel when then came out of Egypt.
To Trust Him!
My Father taught me one of the most important lessons of my life. Thanks Dad!
Thirteen Days From Eternity
Thirteen Days From Eternity
At 3:00pm today, the nurse at the nursing home called Phyllis Crandall’s daughter and told her that her mother had just died. They had last checked her vitals and her oxygen mask at 2:15. She was 65.
Phyllis had been in failing health for a while. She was also a backslider. No one seems to remember for sure how many years she had been away from God, but she hasn’t attended church in over 20 years. That much everyone agreed on.
She had been a member at several Pentecostal churches in the area. For one reason or another, her and her husband had changed churches several times over the years. When he died, Phyllis somehow became unconnected with church and stayed that way.
Then to make matters worse, her health began to deteriorate. After stays in the hospitals, she was sent to a nursing home for her final days.
She lived with an oxygen mask on her face. Her weight problems no doubt worked against her too.
She had called her daughter almost two weeks ago and said, “I feel like I need to pray.”
Her condition was not good. Pastor Kenneth Bow was called to come and pray for her.
When he came into the room Phyllis said, “Bro. Bow, I just don’t know if I could ever speak in Tongues again.”
(Besides her health limitations, she was fearful that God wouldn’t let her because of lack of faithfulness to Him.)
“Yes you can speak in Tongues again, you’re still God’s child!” Pastor Bow said to encourage her.
He laid his hands on her, and then like he’d used Paddles that restart a stopped heart, Phyllis physically jerked and sat up in her hospital bed. Her hands in the air. In 10 seconds she was clearing speaking in Tongues. They pulled the mask aside as she prayed. She continued to speak in Tongues.
That was 13 days ago.
Death walked the corridors of her nursing home today. But 13 days ago, Mercy got there first.
Gold Mining For Dummies!
Uncle Milo And The Gold Mine
In the 1940’s my Uncle Milo and his brother Bill bought a California Gold Mine. I cannot tell you how excited they were to own a real gold mine. They were thrilled even more when gold nuggets were found scattered on the ground in one of the shafts.
Bill Smith, Milo Smith
The temporary rush of finding gold was the thrill that made them work even more feverishly. Most of the gold was found in an area littered with small pools of water. The constant dripping and seepage of water from the roof of the cave made panning and searching for gold an uncomfortable task. Nevertheless, the gold was on the ground and that’s all that mattered.
As a relief from the water dripping overhead, Uncle Milo and his brother wore rain coats. They looked funny and laughed at each other because they didn’t look like gold miners with their yellow rain coats on. It wasn’t the easiest thing to wear either.
After months of searching, panning, and digging, they finally admitted there was no more gold to be found in their mine. They took off their rain coats, and pocketed a modest but nice amount of cash. The next thing they did was put the mine up for sale after owning it for only a few months. An unsuspecting buyer was soon found, and the mine ownership switched hands.
The new mine owner walked through the mine to have a look at what he’d purchased. When he got to the area where the water was dripping steadily from above into the pools below, he shined his flash up on the ceiling to see where the water was coming from.
What he saw changed his life and made him fabulously wealthy. He had found the ‘mother lode’ just by looking up!
Uncle Milo settled for thousands and later died a pauper. The new owner died a millionaire. Milo could have died wealthy if he’d just looked up.
What are you robbing yourself of by not looking up?
Uncle Milo Smith
How Do You Know If That Was God?
How Do You Know If That Was God?
The father of a three year old was hard at work when he said the Lord spoke to him and told him that his little boy was choking to death. The Lord told him that a small toy was stuck in his little boy’s throat.
He said he rushed out of the shop door, jumped into his truck and raced the mile or so to his mobile home. He opened the door and saw his baby boy sitting there playing contentedly with his toys.
“Boy!” the father exclaimed, “I’d rather you be dead than have God lie to me like that!”
That night at church, the pastor, where I was preaching, caught my eye as the father testified. Neither of us allowed our faces to register emotion. The man still thinks God lied. It has never dawned on him that he might be the one at fault.
The question soon arises then:
- Are some people misled? Yes.
- Do sincere people make honest mistakes? Yes.
- Are there kooks in the Kingdom of God? Yes.
Even sincere people often get mixed up. Did their will, their feelings, or their wants get confused with Will of God? If it did, we may never hear them admit that. Are they more spiritual? God will have to judge. I know of a man who is mad at God. He thought he was in God’s Will and things did not turn out well. So he blamed God and has been staying home from church because he is offended at God.
The frightening thing is when we attach the name of the Lord to a thing, and God never actually spoke concerning that.
- Ezek. 22:28 And her prophets have daubed them with untempered morter, seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord GOD, when the LORD hath not spoken.
- Ezek. 13:6 They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.
- Jer. 23:21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.
I do not wish to be in trouble with Him.
I would rather say, ‘It was LIKE the Lord spoke to me and said…”
But that is just me trying to be careful.
Did they mean well? Yes, I want to believe so.
Did they:
- Go by a Feeling?
- Hear a Voice?
- Dream a Dream?
- I don’t know!
Why does the Will of God, to some, always mean; MOVE? Escape? Run? Change Churches?
Some are not careful in Biblical obedience and conduct and yet they can get very spiritual concerning the Will of God. They know assuredly they have heard from God.
In my limited studies in Algebra, it didn’t take long to discover that to find the “unknown”, a student had to use the “known”. It does make everyone marvel how some seek the “unknown” Will of God” while yet ignoring the “known” Will of God as it is written in His Word.
A young preacher in my church approached me after service years ago and said, “Pastor, my wife and I are moving to Wheatland, WY to start a church.” I was surprised. He offered the information that his wife had dreamed that they had moved to a place called Wheatland.
She had shared the dream with him and they both had scoured a big US Atlas until they had found a state with a town by that name. They were sure it was God’s will. They also were very defensive that I had not quickly recognized that dream as God’s will.
The next service, I spoke briefly about Abraham. I said, “And God spake unto Sarah in a dream. Speak unto thy husband Abraham and tell him to get thee up unto a land that I have shown thee, Sarah.”
My message was not readily received by them. THEY were in the Will of God, in their minds, so they refused to listen to me.
I had, prior to that occasion, warned our church of the dangers of coming to me and saying something like, “I feel like it’s the Lord spoke to me and told me to move. What do you think?
It often seems they are trying to pit the pastor against God. In their mind, God has already told them personally, so now it’s the pastor that can’t hear from the Lord.
First of all, when you tell the pastor you are moving, (never asking him ahead of time if you should,) you are taking your soul in your own hands, You are leaving the man of God out of the decision-making process. Even Old Testament Kings included the man of God in their important decisions.
Danger!!
Once the seal is broken between you and God’s man. Once you take life decisions in your own hands, you will never get a Biblical relationship restored between you and a pastor. If you do, you will amaze the law of averages.
This family moved to Wheatland, WY. Nothing ever got established there. In fact, today the whole family belongs to the Church of the Brethren. They’ve backslid. They’ve lost their children too. Yet they’ve never felt better. They are in delusion and don’t know it. They left Wheatland years ago, but I am still the bad guy to them. They seem to hate me and the church.
Headship
The will of God will always include Headship. We can’t be saved without a pastor. I have a pastor!
God’s will never:
- Go around or bypass ministry
- Contradict the Word
- Remove you from your headship/pastor
- Put you in a spiritual position like Hosea talked about. Israel was like a wild ass – snuffing up the wind. Meaning they lived a life without controls or guidance.
- Jude called them “wandering stars.”
I would be afraid to seek after the Will of God and my pastor not be the central ingredient in my search. I would feel safest by saying, “Pastor, I’ve been thinking about changing jobs. (Or whatever the subject.) I would appreciate it if you would pray about that with me. If the Lord tells you what I should do, let me know!
I thank God for every sincere person who desires to please the Lord by being in His Will. I pray that none of us ever confuse our wishes and dreams for His Will.
Attitude is everything. The safest approach with any pastor is to ask, not tell. Let him help you. Then you can comfortably feel and know you are in the Will of the Lord. Like the Apostles said, ‘It felt good to us and to the Holy Ghost.”
You’ve Committed At Least Seven Sins…
You’ve Committed At Least Seven Sins When You Fail To Win Souls
I inherited the library of my father Carl Ballestero and many books from my father-in-law, William R. Starr. I purchased several thousand on my own, bringing the total to well over 7,000.
Books are very special to me. I miss them now that my life is completely mobile and I have given them all away. But I still have in my memory some books that even the very titles nag at me after nearly 50 years.
I had most, if not all of John R. Rice’s books. He was an Independent Baptist that didn’t water his sermons down much. Like him or not, he had guts. As a matter of fact, some of his sermons may make a few Pentecostals uncomfortable today.
It’s hard to recall everything word for word, but he wrote one about the importance of soul winning that impacted me as a teenage preacher. Here is my condensed version from memory with apologies to the author.
Sevenfold Sin of Not Winning Souls
I. Sin of Disobedience to Christ’s Command
- Matt. 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
2. The Sin of Lack of Love for Christ
- John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
3. The Sin of Not Following Jesus
- Matt. 4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
4. The Sin of Not Abiding in Christ
- John 15:4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
- John 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
5. The Sin Of Being A Slothful Servant
- Matt. 25:24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:
- Matt. 25:25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.
- Matt. 25:26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:
- Matt. 25:27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.
- Matt. 25:28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
- Matt. 25:29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
- Matt. 25:30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
6. The Sin of a Being A Fool
- Proverbs 11:30, “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.”
- Daniel 12:3, “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”
7. The Sin of Spiritual Manslaughter
- Ezek. 3:17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
- Ezek. 3:18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
- Ezek. 3:19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
(And then he closed with a statement like this…)
May God convict us of our sin in not winning the souls who are dying all around us!
**(This writer feels that we may not be able to win all those we witness to, but we sure ought to try!)
Intercessory Prayer, We Miss You!
Intercessory Prayer, We Miss You!
This is just a line to let you know how things are since you’ve gone. It’s not the same without you, nor will it ever be. Although our lives seem shallow and empty when you’re not here, we’ve learned to make up for you in other ways. We’ve learned to live without you.
We now run the aisles, leap for joy, jig to the music, sing catchy choruses, and tap our feet in time to the rhythm of the drums. We use sticks, banners, black lights and our sign teams do a tremendous job acting out recorded music. We’ve learned to worship without you.
The prayer rooms are mostly silent now. Those that do go there, for the most part, come away dry-eyed. A lot of praying now is chanting and singsong style. That’s how we know we’re in the groove. We pray memorized phrases that come automatically. We love what we call Prayer Walks. Most of us don’t even close our eyes anymore during prayer. We just walk and pray while we look around. We pray because it is required. No one prays till they break through anymore. We just pray till our ten minutes are up.
Family altars are almost unheard of now. You can’t imagine how busy we are and how hectic our schedules have been. It’s unbelievable. We get up in the morning and never stop till we go to bed at night. We do try to make it to church most services and get some praying in there during the service, but prayer at home is kind of out of the question. That may be another reason you haven’t heard much from us.
Oh sure, we still believe in prayer, as such. But not very many of us are anxious for you to come back. (You were always the polite type, you know, never forcing yourself on anyone. You never came uninvited. You only left because you were ignored.)
The sad truth is you’re not really needed anymore. You see, most of us have hospitalization insurance now. (It sure takes away that old desperate feeling we used to have.) So now, there’s no need to pray more than the few minutes it takes to drive to the Emergency Room. Also, we don’t have to ask for our daily bread like we used to. We now have better jobs with good benefits and government programs to fall back on.
If we lose our jobs, there is always Unemployment or Welfare. If we retire or become disabled, Social Security now supplies our needs. So, you can see, we’re doing OK. Other things have filled the void in your absence. Sure we miss you. But we’re getting over it some how. Actually, we’re too busy to entertain you right now, even if you tried to come back. I hope you understand.
We are having revivals now without you. It’s not hard. The pastor fasts and prays, along with a couple others. The evangelist preaches mostly just to sinners now. Most of us try to get to church in time for the first song or two. We justify the fact that the number of new converts is down. Yes, there seems to be diminished conviction, less lasting victory, fewer miracles and many young people are backsliding. We agree, however, that it’s not us that are at fault here; it’s just the times we’re living in. It’s like this everywhere.
As your friend, I’m writing this to you, knowing how much it must hurt you to have folks say they miss you… and yet in their material and intellectual progress, they’ve weaned themselves away from the haunting memory of you.
What hurts, I know, is that we were children you personally raised. You were always there when we needed you. (But now… we don’t.) You taught us about faith. You taught us about miracles. You taught us about a move of God. You taught us about revival. You taught us about how to touch God. Thank you for that, but you see, this is a new day and we are trying to go to the next level. Our services are structured differently now.
Do you know… can you believe, that now when you are ever mentioned in church, everyone gets real quite? They all feel guilty I’m sure. It’s like they experience a momentary twinge of guilt while they consider their part in your disappearance. Once in awhile some even get misty eyed when we talk about the old times you shared with us. But all that feeling vanishes along with the pizza right after church.
No, Intercessory Prayer, your coming back really wouldn’t work right now. We’re too blessed. We’re doing too well. We’re comfortable. In your day, you served your purpose, but the sentiment of most today is that we can manage OK without you now. We’ve got better clothes, cars, homes and prettier and bigger churches than ever.
By the way, do you remember all the folks of yesteryear coming into the sanctuary with red-rimmed eyes? Remember the baggy looking knees in men’s’ suits? Remember all night prayer meetings? Remember the depth that was in worship? Remember when sinners couldn’t sit in their pews any longer, and would run to the altar? Remember when you could feel unity and brotherly love? When folks helped bear one another’s burdens? When the saints didn’t watch the clock? When they could hardly wait to enjoy the after service atmosphere, praying around the altar until the wee hours of the morning? Boy, those were to good old days. We call that “Old School.”
Well, it’s pretty much all gone now. But you ought to see our new Hammond C-3, our new drum set with a cage and everything. Electric bass guitars are just awesome and the electric guitars too. We use Praise Singers to help cover up the fact that our congregations don’t sing like they should or used to. We let them do most of our worship for us. Our Choirs just do terrific on the new style songs. Old saints don’t like the new songs much, but the younger crowd seems to like them. Many music directors don’t even know some of your old favorite songs, so they don’t get played much anywhere.
You would be proud of our church buildings. Carpet on the floors, there are pews now instead of benches and they are padded too, besides. The arched beams are beautiful, we also have the loveliest of imported chandeliers. Our pastor has polish too. He doesn’t preach long. We are more concerned about sermon length now, than content. Our pastor spices up his sermons with cute sayings… but I guess that’s progress for you. “Win some, lose some.”
Speaking of “lose some”, we’re losing a surprising percentage of our young people. An unbelievable number of marriages have gone on the rocks. Many lives have been in jeopardy. But that’s to be expected I guess. Teenagers seem to be at war with their parents and want to dress more and more like the kids at the public school. Our youth meetings may not have much in the way of prayer, but we have great icebreakers, skits and games.
We have plenty of medicines nowadays to help our aches and pains. What more could we ask for? Sure we miss you, but I guess we really don’t NEED you right now.
I hope you’re not offended. I don’t mean for you to be. You’ll always have a special place in my memory. You were very kind and generous to me. You sure got me out of some hard times. I can’t thank you enough! Still, this is a generation now that doesn’t know you at all. Your coming would probably scare them.
Remember the night when my mother sat at the piano bench and you joined her there? Remember how she wept and groaned in the Spirit and slumped to the floor during the revival service and how some tried to call the ambulance because they thought she was sick? They never knew you and her were talking.
That’s what I mean. A good many never got to know you well. And most never knew you at all. Those that knew you personally have waited so long to talk to you that they are now, to say the least, embarrassed.
So while we are trying to work out our feelings about you, and see where you might fit into our plans in the future, you might try your luck someplace else. Try Brazil, Ethiopia, or how about the Philippines? You might have better luck in Third World Countries, or behind the iron Curtain. You might even luck out and find someone to talk to you in some little storefront on the other side of the tracks. Surely someone somewhere needs you.
We’re terribly sorry, Intercessory Prayer, we miss you, but we really don’t NEED you… right now!
Apostolic Expository Series
Christy Ballestero (My Beautiful DIL)
http://marciaballestero.com/
Pastor Anthony & Kim Ballestero, New Destiny Worship Center, Clearwater, FL (My Son)
Pastor Bryan & Christy Ballestero, Temple Of Pentecost, Raleigh, NC (My Son)
James Groce Blog – "Toward The Mark"
Kenneth Bow Blog
Kingdom Speak Podcast
Philip Harrelson – "The Barnabas Blog"
Verbal Bean Ministries
Holy Ghost Radio
The Ballestero Blog 