The best of taber's truths vol 1

The Best Of Taber’s Truths Volume 1

Spiritual Hunger

Have you ever had this happen? You are minding your own business and just doing the

duties that come with your day and all of a sudden you realize that you need to stop

what you are doing and satisfy this strange need that has arisen in your life. You are

feeling a rumbling in your stomach and a craving has come upon you. You have to stop

what you are doing and satisfy this urge. You have to eat. It is called hunger.

Now consider this. Have you been going along in your spiritual life and the duties that go

along with it; church attendance, Bible study, prayer, ect. and all of a sudden you are no

longer satisfied with the status quo? 20 minute worship on Sunday feels canned. 30

minute sermons have no life in them. Your morning devotions are a ritual and not an

encounter. Bible study seems to produce no fruit. You are dissatisfied with your Christian

experience and you want more. You my friend, are spiritually hungry.

Spiritual Hunger Means You Are Alive!

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The dead do not need to eat. When you are spiritually hungry then it means that you still

have life left in you. Bill Johnson writes, “Hunger for God is one of the greatest signs of

life a person can have. It reveals an inner awareness of a greater destiny”. The fact that

you are dissatisfied shows that God has greater things in mind for you than you are

experiencing now.

Jesus put it this way.

Matthew 5:6

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.

The word righteousness means right standing or right relationship. When you are

spiritually hungry, you are hungering after a better or deeper relationship with God. The

promise in this verse is that you will be filled. However most people read it and think that

they will be filled once and for all. But if we go back to the analogy of eating and hunger,

we realize that no matter how much we eat at one sitting, we eventually get hungry

again because the nutrients and power that we received from our last meal eventually is

used up. So we need to come back and eat again.

Spiritual Hunger Motivates UsHave you ever been really hungry? There have been times when I have fasted where I

experienced obsessive hunger. It is all that you can think about. It doesn’t matter what

you are doing at the moment, your body screams at you to feed it. That hunger

motivates you to find food.

The same is true with spiritual hunger. It will motivate you to move forward with God. It

causes you to pursue Him in ways you never expected. When you are physically really

hungry, it doesn’t matter if the steak is cooked to your liking. It doesn’t matter if you do

not care for green beans. You are just hungry and you will eat what is put before you.

The same is true with spiritual hunger. It does not matter if the spiritual food is placed

before you in the manner you would prefer. It doesn’t matter if the preacher preaches

longer than 30 minutes and then doesn’t even shake your hand. It doesn’t matter if

people see you kneeling and weeping before God crying out for more of Him. It doesn’t



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matter if you start expressing desperation for more of God. You lose your inhibitions

when you are desperate enough and hungry enough.

Spiritual Hunger Brings True SatisfactionHave you ever experienced the feeling you get after eating a good meal when you were

hungry? Have you ever felt the satisfaction that the need or craving for food had been

satisfied? John Piper writes, “The Bible teaches us to desire God and to have joy in God,

or delight in God. It illustrates both. Godly people are seen longing, hungering, thirsting

and fainting for God. They are also seen enjoying, delighting in, and being satisfied in

God.”

There is only one place where you can truly get your spiritual hunger satisfied. It is in

God. However it is like physical hunger. It will only satisfy you for a season. You will have

to get another meal in the future. However every meal is unique, vital, and satisfying. As

Jesus put it, it is our daily bread.

Are You Spiritually Hungry?





So I ask you once again. Have you been going along in your spiritual life and the duties

that go along with it; church attendance, Bible study, prayer, ect. And all of a sudden you

are no longer satisfied with the status quo? Maybe it is time for you as it is time for me to

start crying out for another spiritual meal from the Lord.

Blessings!

Pastor Duke

About the Author:

Pastor Duke Taber has been a believer in Jesus for 33 years. He has been a pastor for

over 20 years currently serving at the Vineyard church in Pine Haven Wyoming and was

formerly the secretary treasurer of White Pine County Ministerial Association. He is an

alumnus of LIFE Bible College andMultnomah Biblical Seminary. He is a syndicated

blogger at The Christian Post and Believe.com +Duke Taber

Duke Taber – who has written 747 posts on Taber's Truths Christian Living Magazine.




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The Tearing Down Of Strongholds





Many people when they talk of the tearing down of strongholds try to make this

something more than it is. They try to give the devil credit for something that in this

case, he has nothing to do with. The Apostle Paul when he talks about the tearing down

of strongholds, is not talking about demonic activity but instead is talking about human

activity within our minds. So let’s take a look at the passage in 2 Corinthians 10 where

Paul is talking about the tearing down of strongholds and let’s learn how we can tear

down these things within our lives and live lives that are truly free in Christ.



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The Tearing Down Of Strongholds Bible verse.2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NLT

3 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. 4 1 We use God’s mighty

weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and

to destroy false arguments. 5 We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from

knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NKJV

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the

weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5

casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of

God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

What are Strongholds?



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In this passage we can see that strongholds are not some type of demonic activity.

Instead strongholds are things that happen in our minds. In this case the battle is in the

mind and we need to have our minds renewed. (1 Cor 12:1-2) Strongholds are imbedded

in our human reasoning, our imaginations, and our human pride. They are part of how

we perceive the world. So let’s take a moment to talk about these 3 things.

Human Reasoning

The process of human reasoning is a very basic process that we use all the time. It

basically goes like this. If A causes B and B is bad, then we should not do A. Now let me

put it in more human terms. If my Father never gives me love and I am disappointed,

then I should not ever expect love from a Father so I won’t be disappointed. Thus this

human reasoning influences our expectations.

Imaginations

Imagination can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how we use it. It can cause

us to be creative geniuses or destructive fools. When we allow our imaginations to dwell

on things that are contrary to the word of God, then it can be destructive. Imagination is

the womb that desire uses to give birth to sin. (James 1:15) Imagination is never reality.

Many times we imagine God to be one way but He is in reality the exact opposite.

Human Pride

There is healthy pride and unhealthy pride. Healthy pride is when you care about how

you look, do your job, excel in your career. Unhealthy pride is self reliance and

stubbornness. Unhealthy pride is when you must be right even though you know you are

wrong. Unhealthy pride demands it’s own way. When we are operating with unhealthy

pride we are opposing the truth by choice. It is a stronghold that has to be torn down if

you are ever to come to the full knowledge of God.

What do These Strongholds Do?A stronghold protects something. It protects something that we do not want to be

disturbed. Usually it is some type of wound that we have received that hurts if left

unprotected. We protect it with a stronghold around it. Sometimes it is with false



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arguments that make the wound safe like, “It is better not to love because you always

get hurt if you love.” The lie in that statement is the word “always”. It is false.

Sometimes we protect it by imagination. We have an experience as a kid with rejection.

Because of this we imagine that everyone will reject us. So we do things that will cause

rejection since we would rather be rejected for what we do instead of being rejected for

who we are. We imagine that the rejection will happen and so we act accordingly to our

imagined expectations.

Sometimes we just get wounded and we rebel against the pain. We set ourselves up so

that we never have to rely on anyone else again. We have unhealthy pride. We become

self sufficient and arrogant. We think we know everything, can do everything, and that

no one else can do it better. All of this to protect a wound in our heart and to protect it

from ever being wounded again.





How Do You Tear Down Strongholds?If the wounds are in our heart but the strongholds are in our mind then tearing down

those strongholds is a 2 fold process. Notice what Paul said about what we use. “We use

God’s mighty weapons”. Many times people try to use human weapons against these

things. Usually when this happens, any success that is seen is short lived. To pull down

these strongholds we must use God’s weapons. They are truth for the mind and healing

for the heart.



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Let’s go back to my original example. A person never receives affirmation and love by

their father. Because of this they decide to not seek affirmation and love from any father.

Since God is our father, they never seek nor believe that this father will give them love

and affirmation. However what does God say?

John 1:17 NLT

For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came

through Jesus Christ.

The truth is that God not only loves them, but does so with an unfailing love and is

passionately pursuing them even now. Once a person realizes that they have accepted a

lie, then they change and accept the truth. The stronghold comes down. Then the heart

issue can be dealt with. All the pain of rejection and feeling unworthy of love can be

exposed to the only one that can heal that hurt. It can be filled with the knowledge deep

down in their heart that they were not worthy of rejection and that the problem wasn’t

their lack, but the human failings of another flawed human.

The heart issue is dealt with by the Spirit of God. Mental assent or determination alone

cannot heal a heart. Only God, who created the human heart, has the expertise to heal

it. This is what Paul was talking about when he said the weapons of are warfare are not

carnal but mighty through God. When the strongholds come down, it will probably be

messy. It will be emotional, but in the end they result in being set free from something

that was leading you to destruction.

Blessings!

Pastor Duke

About the Author:






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Christian Revival – What is it?













Christian revival, renewal, outpouring, or times of refreshing, no matter what you call it,

is something that has been happening ever since the first outpouring of the Spirit on the

day of Pentecost. I honestly don’t care what you call it. Quibbling over semantics is silly.

The fact of the matter is that there have been ebbs and flows of spiritual fervor

throughout the history of Christianity. Until the time where there is no longer a war

between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of God; until such a time as the war

between the flesh and the Spirit has been resolved, there will always be a need for

Christian revival in each generation. It is up to each one of you that read this article to

come to your own conclusions concerning whether or not there is a need for revival not

only in our respective nations but in our personal lives as well. We have to discern if

there has been a decline in our spiritual passion and fervor in our churches, communities

and most importantly, families.



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What Is Christian Revival?Habakkuk 3:2

O LORD, I have heard Your speech and was afraid;

O LORD, revive Your work in the midst of the years!

In the midst of the years make it known;

In wrath remember mercy.

With any authentic Christian revival there is an understanding that comes that we are

not where we should be. Whether it be in our lifestyle, our effectiveness or in our love

relationship with Jesus, we recognize that things need to change and that it needs to

begin with us. You will see this in the evidence that people start doing some deep soul

searching. They are no longer satisfied with the status quo of their spiritual life and start

seeking God from a deep felt need within their soul.

Revival normally starts with the marginal Christian. They are the ones that have let the

world’s way of thinking and living creep into their life until a great conflict of conscience

plagues them. They realize that they have fallen away from their first love and are no

longer in a love relationship with Jesus but are only performing out of habit or obligation.

Their obedience is not based on their love but upon their fear. Just like when an

unbeliever comes to Jesus, the marginal Christian starts to sense God calling them back

to a life that is sold out to Him. Their hardened hearts starts to be broken up and plowed

once again..

Hosea 10:12

Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is

time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you.

They are tired of their dry and thirsty souls. They start to cry out to God to once again

send the living water that once made them so alive.

Once this starts happening then God starts to renew the faith of the believer. They start

to see once again the plight of people who do not know Jesus. They are moved with



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compassion at their eternal destiny. No longer are they content to see friends and family

members, coworkers and colleagues in peril of hell.

Instead of just giving mental assent to the truths of the Bible, they start to listen and

obey what it says. They are filled with a love for others that they are compelled to act

upon that love. They are so filled with a passionate love for Jesus that it grieves their

hearts when others are not in love with Him in the same way. They cannot understand

how anyone can be so callous to the sacrificial love Jesus showed to all mankind.

Christian revival causes people to change the ties that they previously had. It causes

those that love the world and the ways of the world to start following the beat of a

different drummer. It causes those that only looked at the opposite sex for what personal

gratification that they could gain from them, to start honoring and respecting them for

the beautiful creation that God has made them. It causes those that are caught in the

enticement of self gratification to forsake that out of love for the One who has saved

their soul.

When churches start to experience Christian revival it changes them. No longer will they

fight over budgets or money, over theological truth and who is right. They will stop

looking inwardly at what is best for them and will start looking outwardly at who else

needs the grace and mercy of God that they have received. Instead of looking at what

will make them look good or respectable, they will be focused on reaching the lost, the

hurting, the downtrodden and oppressed. They will gladly become fools for Christ in

order that Christ may be glorified.

1 Corinthians 1:27

But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God

has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;

They will gladly lay down self interest, self respect, and self indulgence so that others

may taste of the goodness of the Lord as they have.



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How Does Christian Revival Happen?Christian revival happens when 2 things come together. They are the providence of God

and the release of the Holy Spirit. The providence of God is an important aspect of any

true Christian revival. We must understand that revival is not something that we can just

conjure up by certain works or methods. Just because you announce a series of sermons

on revival will not cause a revival. Just because you bring in a special speaker or

evangelist will not spark a revival. Revival comes when the leadership and the members

of a church place their entire dependence upon the grace of God alone. All of God’s

providence flows from His grace.

Hebrews 4:16

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find

grace to help in time of need.

When we are in need of revival we have to come to the throne of grace to receive the

grace for revival. It is grace that helps us once again be renewed, revived, restored once

again. It is not by our works lest we should boast in our own spirituality and fervor. It

comes as an outflowing of God’s undeserved favor.

When we come to the throne of grace to receive restoration and renewal, and then tie it

with a willingness to be yielded and used by the Holy Spirit, then revival breaks forth. If



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you have one without the other you will not see true Christian revival. It will falter and

fail. You will either see Christians becoming closer to God but not being empowered to

take it to their community or you will see a bunch of signs and wonders but no changed

lives.

In order to have Christian revival, you must be willing to let the Holy Spirit work through

you even though it may be strange or uncomfortable for you. You must be willing to risk

looking like a fool and be willing to trust that God’s Holy Spirit is able to do the work that

you cannot do. None of us can change one life. That is a work of the Spirit. You must be

willing to yield to that Spirit in your everyday life. This is not about just having a good

church meeting. This is about taking the power and presence of God to our communities.

Are you Willing To Have Revival Start With You?So here are the questions?

1. Has your spiritual life gotten old or stagnant?

2. Is your family, church, community or nation in spiritual decline?

If so then are you willing to

1. Go to the throne of grace and fall down and admit these things?

2. Are you willing to seek God for the grace to be revived personally?

3. Are you willing to lay down “self” and surrender and yield to the work of the Holy Spirit

in your life as He empowers you to touch the lives of others?

I am!

Blessings!

Pastor Duke





About the Author:







Living A Life Of Faith In An Age Of Reason














We live in an age where it seems that anything that has to do with the Christian faith is

under attack by Atheists and their prophets of reason. I recently saw an article about



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another prophet of reason prognosticating that religion would be dead by 2041. I felt

that it was time for me to address this issue and remind everyone that this is nothing

new. The questions concerning the reasonableness of Christianity have gone back for

centuries. Man has always wanted to view himself as the final authority in all things and

to set himself up as a God. German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche stated in 1882 that

God was dead. In 1900, only 18 years later, Nietzsche was dead and the followers of God

still flourished. Nietzsche’s reason failed him for he was wrong.

Understanding the Age Of ReasonThe term “age of reason” was first coined by Thomas Paine after the American

revolution. Paine advocates reason in the place of revelation, leading him to reject

miracles and to view the Bible as an ordinary piece of literature rather than as a divinely

inspired text. In a nutshell, Paine and his later disciples, replaces the immanent and

supernatural attributes of God with a faith in human intellect. God becomes detached

and removed from the affairs of man and man becomes supreme in all he does. This is

still the same theological and spiritual premise that the modern day prophets of reason

espouse. They claim that God is dead, fictitious, and unreasonable and that man is a god

unto himself and must live by the understanding he has in life by his own ability to

reason.

How Do We Live A Life Of Faith In An Age Of Reason?The first thing we must understand is that there is a difference between something being

unreasonable and something being beyond reason. When something is unreasonable it is

something that is impossible based upon the facts that we know. For instance; a pig

cannot fly. It is an unreasonable expectation to place upon a pig the demand to fly.

However place a pig in a crate, take him to the airport and place him on a plane and all

of a sudden it is reasonable for a pig to fly because of an action by a higher authority

that was initially beyond reason. Understanding the difference between something that

is unreasonable and something that is beyond reason will help you live a life of faith in

an age of reason.





Reason depends upon 2 things. It depends upon the ability of our 5 senses to pick up all

the information that there is to know about our world and it depends upon the ability of

our intellects to process that information correctly. The decision to trust those 2 things

completely is what I would call faith. It is a faith in self vs. a faith in God. I would even

venture to say that it is a blind faith since they continue to do so even though they have

been presented with evidence that plainly shows that the 5 senses are not always

correct in what they perceive and are limited in what they are able to perceive, and they

have been shown that not always does the intellect process the information correctly

and that it is skewed by psychological, emotional, and personal historic bias. Thus the

trust in reason is actually an act of blind faith.

As believers in Jesus we live a life of faith in an age of reason by understanding that

there are some things that are beyond reason. Just as the higher authority enabled the

pig to fly, so we believe that there is a higher authority that is beyond reason that

enables us to see and experience a life that is beyond the 5 senses and human intellect.

It is that higher authority which we call God, that enables us to be born spiritual with a

born-again experience. It is God that enables us to experience His presence. It is God

who heals miraculously. It is God who takes slave traders and makes them into hymn

writers. It is God loves and pursues man enough to be willing to intervene in the lives of

everyday individuals.

Is Living A Life Of Faith Reasonable?Both Atheists and Christians acknowledge that there are things in life that are

unexplainable. They would call them unreasonable and say that there is a reason for it

but we don’t understand it yet. Believers would say that they are beyond reason and

that reason is not the ultimate test for everything in this world. From my perspective it is

more reasonable to trust in God who is beyond reason than to trust in the flawed and

skewed instruments of our 5 physical senses and our own limited intellect.

Blessings!

Pastor Duke





About the Author:







The Priority Of Being With Jesus














Ever since the founder of the Vineyard, John Wimber went to be with Jesus, there has

been a question as to which way the Vineyard was going to go in relation to the gifts and

operations of the Holy Spirit. This season of soul searching is normal for a group of

people who lose a very gifted and charismatic leader. This year at the conference in

Anaheim, this question seemed to be resolved.

In the end, the Vineyard recognized that God had given them the genetic code of always

being people with a passion and practice of walking in the Spirit. So this morning, it is

with great delight that I share with you some of the reasons I personally applaud this

move by the Vineyard.

Being With Jesus



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In Acts 4:13 we see Peter and John in some hot water with the religious leaders of the

day. They could not understand how they had achieved the working of a miracle until

they realized they had been with Jesus. Their assumption was that this type of power

came with education and training. This is not unlike our assumptions today. There is

nothing wrong with education and training but those 2 things alone will not cause a

miracle. It takes being with Jesus.

In John 15:4 Jesus makes a bold statement. He says that we cannot bear fruit unless we

abide in Him. When we see ebb in the spiritual vitality of a church or in our personal life

it can be attributed to one thing. We are not abiding as closely as we once were with

Jesus.

The Vineyard saw this ebb and appointed a Holy Spirit committee to make

recommendations to fix this problem, knowing that if a denomination of people feel the

need to appoint a committee to study this type of problem then the problem is worse

than they think.

Abiding in JesusThe Greek word for “abide” is Meno. It means to remain, abide, in reference to place, to

sojourn, tarry, not to depart.

So to abide in Jesus means to remain, abide, travel to, or stay in his presence. Now from

a theological standpoint, you are always abiding in Jesus because He abides in you,

however from a practical standpoint, to walk in the type of power and boldness that

Peter and John walked in, you must also abide in Him from personal experiential

standpoint. It must be more than head knowledge. It must be something that you are

experiencing.

Jerry Cook in his book “The Holy Spirit, So what’s the big deal? Writes, If we are to be the

active presence of Jesus in our world, we must have His power available in a practical

form. Jesus made provision for this: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit

comes on you…” So the way we abide in Jesus today is to stay in the presence and to

follow the direction of the Holy Spirit. That is why it is so important for the people of the



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Vineyard to continue to be people who practice the presence and power of the Holy

Spirit.

1 Corinthians 2

1 When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, 1 I didn’t use lofty words and

impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan. 2 For I decided that while I was with you

I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. 3 I came to you

in weakness – timid and trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were very

plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of

the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of

God.

The ChallengeRomans 13:14

Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself

think about ways to indulge your evil desires.



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Starting today, think about how you experienced the presence of the Lord in worship or

prayer during church or at some other time. Remember the sense of peace and

spirituality that you felt while in that presence. Take that presence with you. Remember

to think about it through your day and stop if need be and sing a song or pray a prayer

to have that sense of the presence of God return to you. He never left, but your senses

got dulled for a little bit. Do that through the entire day. Take time to read a psalm,

proverb, or parable. Focus on keeping the experience of the presence of God with you all

day. Then tomorrow do it again, and keep on doing it throughout the week, then report

back on what it did for your life to focus on that.

Jude 1



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24 Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with

great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. 25 All glory to him who alone is

God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority

are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.

Blessings!

Pastor Duke

About the Author:







Do You Have A Healthy Spiritual Life?














One of the things I have found during the 33 years I have been a believer is the

importance of having a healthy spiritual life. In our age where we fill all of our free time

with activities, many times our spiritual life is left hanging. If we are to be the type

believer that ministers out of the overflow that God gives us, we must make having a

healthy spiritual life a priority. So in this article I hope to share with you some of the

things that I have learned about having a healthy spiritual life and how it will transform

the way you live, lead, and invest into the lives of others.

The Importance Of A Healthy Spiritual LifeWhen we think of someone who must have had a healthy spiritual life we think of Jesus.

He is our model for living. So let’s take a quick look at how He went about balancing the

demands of life with the need for healthy spirituality.

Luke 4:42



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42 Early the next morning Jesus went out to an isolated place. The crowds searched

everywhere for him, and when they finally found him, they begged him not to leave

them.

Luke 5:15-16

15 But despite Jesus’ instructions, the report of his power spread even faster, and vast

crowds came to hear him preach and to be healed of their diseases. 16 But Jesus often

withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.

Luke 6:12-16

12 One day soon afterward Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God

all night. 13 At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them

to be apostles. Here are their names: 14 Simon (whom he named Peter), Andrew (Peter’s

brother), James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, 15 Matthew, Thomas, James (son of

Alphaeus), Simon (who was called the zealot), 16 Judas (son of James), Judas Iscariot

(who later betrayed him).

In all 3 of these instances we see that Jesus had many demands put upon His time and

His life. In the first one He had done some great miracles and people wanted Him for

themselves. There was the pressure of pleasing the people who were following Him at

that time. In the second one His fame was spreading. People were making demands of

Him more and more and the time required to minister to them was increasing. There was

the pressure of all the needs that were around Him. In the third instance, we see that He

spent the night in prayer before making the decision of who was going to be on His

apostolic team. It was a decision that was going to affect the world throughout time.

In all of these instances we see that Jesus had to make decisions that are common to all

of us. There are people that want us to do things that are pleasing to them without

thinking of the big picture. There are people that think their particular problem is the

only problem in the world and demand our attention to fix it. There are decisions that we

are faced with that will affect our future and the future of others. So the example that

Jesus sets is a prime example of the importance of having a healthy spiritual life.



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What Is A Healthy Spiritual Life?When I talk to people about having a healthy spiritual life most of them think I am talking

about having morning devotions or a quiet time with the Lord. In all honesty, most

people who practice morning devotions do so out of a sense of obligation or duty or just

one more exercise in a long list of activities that go along with being a Christian. What I

am talking about is not an activity but a relationship. Jesus didn’t get away from the

hustle and bustle and the demands upon Him to practice another activity. He withdrew



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to spend time with His Heavenly Father. Some people may truly connect with God during

those morning devotions but myself, I am not mentally or emotionally at my best in the

morning. It is not the time where I truly can have a heart to heart with anyone, let alone

the God of the universe.

I would like to encourage you to take a step back from the activity of “devotions” and

look at when and what it is that actually helps you to connect to God. For some people,

during their morning run they have the best talks with God. For some it is when they

have all their study Bibles, concordances, and commentaries out doing research on

something. For others, such as myself, it is when I am driving. Whatever it is, take time

out to have a relational talk with God and spend time getting quiet and letting Him talk

back. A healthy spiritual life flows from our relationship we are engaged in with our

Heavenly Father.

The Benefits Of Having A Healthy Spiritual Life.Having a Calm Soul

When you keep your spiritual life healthy by staying in a constant relationship with your

Heavenly Father you develop a calm soul. Instead of things causing you fear and

consternation, you instead walk in the peace of God. People start to notice this. You

bring that peace with you wherever you go. One of the things that people tell me after

doing this for 33 years is that they know I walk with God. They could just tell by the calm

that I have in my soul. I know that no matter what the situation is, God is in control.

Having a Clear Understanding

When you spend time developing a healthy spiritual life you have a clear understanding

about where you are going and what you are doing. God is able to speak to us and to

guide us. When we do not have a vibrant and real relationship with God that is

developed on a daily basis then we are walking in what we hope is best or what we think

is best. We are not walking in the assurance that every step we make has been

orchestrated by the great composer of life. You see, when you know it was God that

guided you to do something, you look to Him to make things come to pass and not

yourself. You look to His ability and not your own.





Having a Kingdom Perspective

When you are living a healthy spiritual life your perspective changes. Instead of having a

perspective that is centered on the things of this world, you have a perspective that

places your priorities in line with the priorities of the kingdom of God.

Matthew 6:31-33

31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink?

What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your

heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God 4 above all

else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.



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Your decision making process will be changed. You will make decisions based on what is

best for the kingdom of God and the citizens of that kingdom.

So I ask you the question that hopefully will bring some introspection. Do you have a

healthy spiritual life? How is your soul doing?

Blessings!



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Pastor Duke

About the Author:







The God Of Restoration














When I talk about the God of restoration, I do not come to you from a perspective of just

teaching a biblical principle. I come to you from a lifetime of experience seeing God

restore my own life. So this article comes straight from my heart. You see, more than

once I have lost everything. I lost family, friends, finances, and even my good name.

However I always kept the advice that a dear friend of mine gave to me. “You worry

about your character and let God worry about your reputation, life, and circumstances.”

Now that does not mean that I have always had perfect character. In fact I have blown it

more than my fair share in life. However I have always tried to live my life with biblical

character to the best of my ability. So let’s take a look at how God is the God who

restores.



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God’s Promise of RestorationZechariah 9:12

Return to the stronghold, You prisoners of hope. Even today I declare That I will restore

double to you.

When we have lost something dear to us, it is very hard to see that life can get better.

However I am a living testimony that God will not only restore what you formerly had,

but that He will increase what you had. Now I am not necessarily talking about finances,

although He does restore finances, but I am talking about the type of life that He has

destined for you.

Jeremiah 29:11-13

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and

not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and

pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And l you will seek Me and find Me, when you

search for Me with all your heart.

The first thing you need to realize is that God’s destiny for you is good and not bad.

When you have lost everything, when you are going through divorce, when you have lost

family and friends, it is very easy to focus on what you have lost. This may be normal but

it is not productive. You have a promise from God. His future for you is good! So take a

deep breath, quiet your questioning mind, and place your trust in the Lord for your

future. When you do, you give God permission to start taking control of your destiny and

working it out for good.

God Has Not Forgotten YouIsaiah 49:15

“Can a woman forget her nursing child, And not have compassion on the son of her

womb? Surely they may forget, Yet I will not forget you.

When we have lost everything we feel that we are alone. We feel that nobody else is

going through the struggle we are going through. God is not blind and has not forgotten

you. Could you forget that you gave birth to a child? Neither can God. You are His child



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and as such He is very interested in seeing that you have the life He has destined for

you. If we are honest, usually when we have suffered loss, it is because we placed our

trust and future in something else other than the Lord. So the first thing you need to do

in order to see God start the restoration process is once again go back to the simplicity

of just placing your trust in God, looking to Him who will lead and guide and decide the

rest of your future.

In my own life, I placed my trust in my intelligence. I thought I knew the best way for my

future to develop. I was severely wrong.

Proverbs 28:26

He who trusts in his own heart is a fool, But whoever walks wisely will be delivered.

I was a fool. I trusted in my own intellect and emotions rather than trusting in God. I

made decisions that eventually brought down destruction. That does not mean that it is

100% my fault. Some of what happened was brought about by the actions of others,

however I am not in control of what others do. I am only in control of what I do and as

such, I have to take responsibility for my own actions and my own actions were foolish.

However God was not done with this foolish man. He foreknew that I would make some

bad decisions and so He had a plan of restoration already set into place.

God will Restore The Years You Have LostJoel 2:25

“So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten,

The crawling locust,

The consuming locust,

And the chewing locust,

My great army which I sent among you.

Just as the children of Israel had lost years of life in the promised land, so you may have

lost years in your own personal wilderness, taken away to captivity. All is not lost. God is

in the restoration business. It does not matter what you have lost, God will restore to you

what was taken away. Not it may not be the same. By that I mean that if you lost a wife,



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that you will be given that particular wife back. If you have lost friends, it may not be the

same friends that are restored. If you have lost a job, you may not get the same job

back. What I mean is that God will restore to you the life He has destined for you and

what is replaced will be better than what you had.

Restoration Is A ProcessIn our culture of microwave cooking and instant access to everything, we do not like

things that take time. Well, you are going to have to accept that restoration is a process.

There is no quick prayer or religious activity that you can do in order to see restoration

tomorrow. It is a process. It was in my own life.



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The first thing that God restored was relationship with my children. It was not

instantaneous. It took a couple of years. The next thing that was restored was my calling

to pastoral ministry. That took 8 years. During that time He dealt with a lot of issues in

my heart and life. I was truly a shattered pot that had to be put back together piece by

piece by the Lord. However God did it.

Finally God has restored marriage in my life. No, it is not with the same woman. The

choices she has made are between her and the Lord. However God has given me a good

Spirit filled woman who loves Jesus and His people. This took 13 years.

God’s Heart Of RestorationGod is truly the God of restoration. In Job 42 we see that God restored Job and that He

was actually given more than he had before. It says that Job’s latter days were greater

than his former days. It says that he died old and full of days.

No matter what your circumstance, God wants to restore you. He even gave instructions

on how the church is to be an instrument of His restoration.

Galatians 6:1

[ Bear and Share the Burdens ] Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who

are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you

also be tempted.



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The heart of God is to see you restored. Not only spiritually, although that must come

first, but also emotionally and physically. So I encourage you. If you have come to this

article wondering if you will ever find restoration, place your trust once again in the Lord.

Look to Him only and surrender your life and your future to Him. You too will be able to

say that God truly is the God of restoration like I can and like numerous others in the

scriptures has done.

Blessings!

Pastor Duke

About the Author:



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Stones Of Remembrance














There is a very good Bible teaching that can be found in the story of Joshua and the

stones of remembrance. The story is found in Joshua 4. Let me set the stage just a little

bit before we go into the story. The children of Israel had been delivered from the

bondage of slavery in Egypt. They had spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness

because they had not believed that God would overcome the obstacles in front of them

the first time. Now they finally put faith into the promise of God that He would give them

the land of promise. They were crossing the Jordan. It was during this event that God

spoke to Joshua to place stones of remembrance in the midst of them as a reminder that

God had been faithful to them and had parted the waters of the Jordan. Let’s take a look

at the story.

Listen To Pastor Duke Speak On Stones Of Remembrance

The Stones Of Remembrance Bible Story



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TWELVE MEMORIAL STONES FROM THE JORDAN

1 When all the people had crossed the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, 2 “Now choose

twelve men, one from each tribe. 3 Tell them, ‘Take twelve stones from the very place

where the priests are standing in the middle of the Jordan. Carry them out and pile them

up at the place where you will camp tonight.’” 4 So Joshua called together the twelve

men he had chosen – one from each of the tribes of Israel. 5 He told them, “Go into the

middle of the Jordan, in front of the Ark of the Lord your God. Each of you must pick up

one stone and carry it out on your shoulder – twelve stones in all, one for each of the

twelve tribes of Israel. 6 We will use these stones to build a memorial. In the future your

children will ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 7 Then you can tell them, ‘They

remind us that the Jordan River stopped flowing when the Ark of the Lord ’s Covenant

went across.’ These stones will stand as a memorial among the people of Israel forever.”

8 So the men did as Joshua had commanded them. They took twelve stones from the

middle of the Jordan River, one for each tribe, just as the Lord had told Joshua. They

carried them to the place where they camped for the night and constructed the

memorial there.

9 Joshua also set up another pile of twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, at the

place where the priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant were standing. And they are

there to this day.

10 The priests who were carrying the Ark stood in the middle of the river until all of the

Lord ’s commands that Moses had given to Joshua were carried out. Meanwhile, the

people hurried across the riverbed. 11 And when everyone was safely on the other side,

the priests crossed over with the Ark of the Lord as the people watched. 12 The armed

warriors from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh led the Israelites

across the Jordan, just as Moses had directed. 13 These armed men – about 40,000

strong – were ready for battle, and the Lord was with them as they crossed over to the

plains of Jericho. 14 That day the Lord made Joshua a great leader in the eyes of all the

Israelites, and for the rest of his life they revered him as much as they had revered

Moses.





15 The Lord had said to Joshua, 16 “Command the priests carrying the Ark of the

Covenant to come up out of the riverbed.” 17 So Joshua gave the command. 18 As soon

as the priests carrying the Ark of the Lord ’s Covenant came up out of the riverbed and

their feet were on high ground, the water of the Jordan returned and overflowed its

banks as before.

19 The people crossed the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month. Then they camped

at Gilgal, just east of Jericho. 20 It was there at Gilgal that Joshua piled up the twelve

stones taken from the Jordan River. 21 Then Joshua said to the Israelites, “In the future

your children will ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22 Then you can tell them, ‘This is

where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the Lord your God dried up

the river right before your eyes, and he kept it dry until you were all across, just as he

did at the Red Sea 3 when he dried it up until we had all crossed over. 24 He did this so

all the nations of the earth might know that the Lord ’s hand is powerful, and so you

might fear the Lord your God forever.”

The Literal StonesYou will notice that God had Joshua gather stones from the midst of where the miracle

happened. They gathered the stones from the middle of the Jordan river as the water

was being held back. I believe that God did this to make sure that the people always

remembered the goodness of God to them and that He was more than able to enter into

our physical circumstances and change things. These stones were placed in the midst of

where people lived. They were placed where people and especially the next generation

gathered and lived. This is indicated by God saying that when the children would ask

what the stones meant, they would then be able to share the story of how God

intervened and parted the waters of the Jordan.





Living StonesWhether we realize it or not, God has placed stones of remembrance in the midst of our

world today as well. They are called living stones and you and I are those stones.

1 Peter 2:5

And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you

are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices

that please God.

We are the stones of remembrance that people should see and ask the same question

that the children of Joshua’s day asked. “What is it that makes you so different?” “Why

do you do the things that you do?” Things like “Why do you read your Bible every day?”

Or “Why do you go to church every Sunday?” Or “How come you don’t allow cursing in

your life?”

Now we could get all pious about these things. However I don’t think that honors the

spirit in which God asked the children of Israel to place those stones in the midst of the

people. He did it so they could talk about how great God is, not how holy we are. So I



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want you to take a minute and stop and think. What miraculous things have I seen God

do? How has God miraculously intervened in my life? Where have I made some type of

physical change or outward symbol that causes me to remember His might and power?

Lasting StonesIn Lukes gospel we see another example of someone encountering the power of God in

their life. It is the story of the 10 lepers.

Jesus Cleanses Ten Lepers

11 As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and

Samaria. 12 As he entered a village there, ten lepers stood at a distance, 13 crying out,

“Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves

to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy.

15 One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise

God!” 16 He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This

man was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine?

18 Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And Jesus said to

the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you. ”

Here we see the difference between being a literal stone, a living stone, or a lasting

stone. There were 10 men who saw the power and might of God in their own life. They

were all cleansed from leprosy. However, only 1 of the 10 actually came back to praise

God and thank Jesus. Only 1 made it a lifestyle choice to have an attitude of gratitude. In

order for us to be stones of remembrance in our society, community, family, and church

we must remember to cultivate that gratitude. What we have received from the Lord,

must not become commonplace. It must always be viewed and special and unique.





In my opinion, that is one of the biggest sins the western church has indulged in. No

longer are we amazed and grateful for God intervening in our lives in a personal way. We

have forgotten to remember all the times God has showed up in our lives. We have

forgotten to pass that knowledge and story down to our children and grandchildren. So I

want to both challenge and encourage you. Ask yourself the question. What are the

things God has done for me? How have I placed in my life something that will cause me



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to remember that? How am I passing my story of God’s power and might down to my

children and grandchildren? Where are my stones of remembrance?

Blessings!

Pastor Duke

About the Author:







Help My Unbelief














Have you ever struggled with doubts and unbelief? Have you ever felt bad because had

thoughts that something was impossible? Have you felt condemned because others told

you that if you had doubts, God would not answer your prayer? I think we all have had at

one time a struggle with unbelief and we have prayed the same prayer that the man who

had a demon possessed son prayed in Mark 9:24

The “Help My Unbelief” ScriptureMark 9:24

Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help

my unbelief!”

The Christian faith is not a faith that goes by what we see or what we feel. It is a journey

with Jesus Christ along the entire path of our life. It is a relationship not a formula and as

such, struggling with unbelief is part of that journey and relationship. So let me try to

encourage you today as you are working through that struggle, that your honesty and

transparency will be what actually gets you over your unbelief and onto a path that just

knows that God will do what He says.

The Process Of Overcoming UnbeliefThe Mustard Seed and the Leaven



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MATTHEW 13

31 Here is another illustration Jesus used: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard

seed planted in a field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of

garden plants; it grows into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches.”

33 Jesus also used this illustration: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman

used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour,

it permeated every part of the dough.”

In both of these parables Jesus gives the example that growth in the Kingdom of Heaven

is a process. Jesus on many occasions compared faith to a mustard seed.

Increase Our Faith

LUKE 17

5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Show us how to increase our faith.”

6 The Lord answered, “If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to

this mulberry tree, ‘May you be uprooted and thrown into the sea,’ and it would obey

you!

Now on the surface, you would think that Jesus did not answer their request. He did not

tell them how to increase their faith but how to tell if they had faith. However when you

look at the passage in Matthew, you see that Jesus is reminding them of how faith grows

by using the example once again of the mustard seed.







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Stage One – Unsure Of Everything

When you first become a Christian, you do not have a lot of experience trusting God and

having faith that He will do things for you. You are like a kid being taught how to ride a

bicycle. When I was first learning how to ride a bicycle, the last thing on my mind was

how to do wheelies, or to make jumps. My first thought was just keeping balance and not

falling down. It is the same way when you are working through your unbelief. You believe

God is real, and you believe that Jesus came and entered your heart and forgave your

sins, but you are not sure if you can believe for much more than that. It is only after

spending time getting to know Jesus and how deep that relationship can go that you

grow into believing that He will help you do wheelies and jumps. This is the position that

the man who prayed the “help my unbelief” prayer was in. He had just met Jesus.

Stage Two – Thinking You KNow More Than You Do

Later in life, when I was 15, I thought I knew how to drive a car. I read the drivers manual

from the DMV and had sat in the driver’s seat practicing the pedals and the gears. Yet I

had never really driven yet. I was convinced I knew how without any practical

experience. I remember one of my first driving lessons. We were at our local

neighborhood grocery store and my stepfather said He was going to let me drive. I was

so excited!!!! I got into the drivers seat, looked both ways, pressed the gas pedal,

popped the clutch and we shot out into the middle of the street! I am sure I took 10

years off my stepfathers life. So much for thinking I knew how to drive.

It is the same way in our spiritual life. We get a little bit of knowledge of God and the

scriptures and the first thing we do is that we think we know more than we do. Those

people that condemned you for having doubts and struggling with unbelief are those

that really have not yet driven themselves. They only think they know how to walk in

faith.





Maturity And Experience Will Help You Overcome Unbelief

It has now been almost 34 years since I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord.

During those years there has been many times I have had to go to the Lord and pray

“Lord I believe, help my unbelief”. You see, it is not about believing for answered prayer,

or believing for financial providence, or believing for healing. All those things can and will

come, but it is about believing in the trustworthiness and integrity of Jesus and who He

has been all of the years you have known him.

Many faith preachers who condemn people who struggle with unbelief miss a very

important point when they quote this scripture in Hebrews.



http://taberstruths.com/help-my-unbelief/walkwithjesus/



Hebrews 11:6

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must

believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

They focus on the first part of the verse that says it is impossible to please God without

faith. What they fail to do is go one with the explanation that the writer of the book of

Hebrews gives. It gives a definition of what faith looks like. Faith sincerely seeks Him! It

is not about things. It is not about what we see. It is not about how we feel. It is about

whether or not we are and have been developing a relationship with Him.

Jeremiah 29:11-13

11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord . “They are plans for good and not

for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will

listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.

You see, as much as you might think you know what is best, the reality is that you do not

know what is best for your life. So, real faith places it’s trust in the Lord for the outcome.

Lord I believe in you. I will seek you with my whole heart. Help me with my unbelief. Help

me to trust that you know best.

Blessings!

Pastor Duke

About the Author:


















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What Is God’s Call?

If you are around Christians any length of time at all, you will hear them say that they

feel “called” by God to do something. They may say that they are trying to discern the

call of God on their life, or they may say that they are answering God’s call, or even say

they are called to ministry. Hopefully I will be able to answer for you what is the call of

God and whether or not you are experiencing this very real phenomenon.



http://taberstruths.com/what-is-gods-call/gods-call/



Where Do We Get The Term “Call Of God”?The concept of being called comes from the life of Samuel and his experience with God’s

calling. It can be found in 1 Samuel chapter 3.

The Lord Calls Samuel

1 Meanwhile, the boy Samuel served the Lord by assisting Eli. Now in those days

messages from the Lord were very rare, and visions were quite uncommon.

2 One night Eli, who was almost blind by now, had gone to bed. 3 The lamp of God had

not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God.

4 Suddenly the Lord called out, “Samuel!” “Yes?” Samuel replied. “What is it?” 5 He got

up and ran to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?” “I didn’t call you,” Eli replied. “Go back

to bed.” So he did.

6 Then the Lord called out again, “Samuel!”

Again Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”

“I didn’t call you, my son,” Eli said. “Go back to bed.”

7 Samuel did not yet know the Lord because he had never had a message from the Lord

before.

8 So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I

am. Did you call me?” Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy. 9 So he

said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord ,

your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed.

10 And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”

And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.”

11 Then the Lord said to Samuel, “I am about to do a shocking thing in Israel. 12 I am

going to carry out all my threats against Eli and his family, from beginning to end. 13 I

have warned him that judgment is coming upon his family forever, because his sons are

blaspheming God and he hasn’t disciplined them. 14 So I have vowed that the sins of Eli

and his sons will never be forgiven by sacrifices or offerings.”





15 Samuel stayed in bed until morning, then got up and opened the doors of the

Tabernacle as usual. He was afraid to tell Eli what the Lord had said to him. 16 But Eli

called out to him, “Samuel, my son.” “Here I am,” Samuel replied.

17 “What did the Lord say to you? Tell me everything. And may God strike you and even

kill you if you hide anything from me!” 18 So Samuel told Eli everything; he didn’t hold

anything back. “It is the Lord ’s will,” Eli replied. “Let him do what he thinks best.”

19 As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him, and everything Samuel said proved to be

reliable. 20 And all Israel, from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south, knew that

Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the Lord . 21 The Lord continued to appear at

Shiloh and gave messages to Samuel there at the Tabernacle.

Discerning The Call Of GodThe first thing in discerning the call of God may seem very simple but actually is very

profound and life changing. The call of God comes from God himself. It is not something



http://taberstruths.com/what-is-gods-call/discerning-gods-call/



that man can produce or reproduce and it is unique to every individual that experiences

it. In Samuel’s case it came while he was yet a boy and this passage seems to indicate

that it was in the form of an audible voice. Not all calls come in an audible voice, but all

have the key ingredient that the person being called knows that God is speaking to them

personally.

In my own life, I never heard an audible voice calling me. However I did hear that still

small voice that comes from my innermost being calling me, leading me, urging me to

rise up and teach people how to love God and how to show that love to others. I was

discontent with the status quo of spirituality. I knew I had to walk places that others

don’t even think about.

When you are discerning whether or not you are receiving a call from God you need to

understand the difference between need and spiritual compulsion. A need is something

that is driven by a place of woundedness or carnality within your heart. A spiritual

compulsion is something where you know it is a matter of obedience to God even though

you really don’t feel adequately prepared, worthy, or gifted to do so. Some of the ways

you discern the difference is whether or not you feel you “need” to be the focus of

attention or whether your concern is not to be the focus of attention. Do you want people

to listen to you, or are you concerned that they hear the voice of Jesus rather than the

voice of the messenger? Do you need to be in charge or are you looking for ways to

empower others as they are seeking God’s plan for their lives? Do you have to

micromanage everything, have your own way, always know what is right and make sure

people know you are right?

As you will notice, Samuel was not all that thrilled with the message that God gave for

him to deliver. He didn’t have a need for Eli to listen to him. He didn’t seek to be the one

in charge. The first thing I look for in people who say they think they are being called by

God is whether or not they are being stretched in areas of obedience and submission.

Are they willing to go anywhere, do anything to be used by God or are they dictating the

terms of the call?





When I first started sensing the call of God on my life, I just “knew” I was going on the

mission field. I was going to have to eat bugs or something. I had to wrestle with my

heart until I was willing to say; “Lord wherever you lead, I will follow.” That included

being willing to eat bugs! He never asked me to go to the mission field, but He did ask

me to be willing. I believe that it was because of the wrestling I did with obedience and

submission that I was sent to areas in my own country that most people are not willing to

go. I pastor in what is called “fly-over” country. That is the region that airplanes “fly-

over” when going between major cities. I live 45 minutes from a major retail store and 2

hours from a mall. I have known many a Christian who were not willing to serve in “fly-

over” country because of such earthly considerations. If you are truly sensing the call of

God, be prepared to wrestle with obedience and submission.







http://taberstruths.com/what-is-gods-call/answering-gods-call/



Answering The Call Of GodYou will notice that when Samuel finally understood that it was God who was speaking to

him, that he responded with a very important response. “Speak, your servant is

listening.” In order to answer the call of God, you have to be willing to give up the rights

to your own life and destiny and place them in the hands of God. You have to be willing

to be a servant. I once knew a family in Canada who had 2 teenage daughters. They had

been raised in church all their life and had a believing mother, but they had never heard

that Christians were called to be servants. The concept was foreign to them. I think we

spout our Christian lingo around about being a servant and servanthood, but to actually

apply it is a different thing. When you answer the call of God, you in a very real sense,

place your life into servitude to the one who has called you. You are God’s servant you

are no longer the master of your own destiny.

Philippians 2:5-8

5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.

7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a

slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled

himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

The example laid before us on how to answer the call of God is the example that Jesus

gave when He answered the call of God. He took the humble position of a slave. So the

way you answer the call of God is to start being a servant. If God has called you to

leadership then there will be a foundation laid where all you do is serve without the

recognition of men.



http://ebible.com/query?utf=8%E2%9C%93&query=Philippians%202%3A5-8&translation=ESV&redirect_iframe=http://taberstruths.com/read-the-bible-online/



God’s Calling To MinistryI remember when I first started following the call of God on my life. I enrolled in Bible

college and had started taking classes. I was attending my uncle’s church and he was

willing to teach me the nuts and bolts of ministry. After a couple of months of doing

whatever he asked me to do, I confronted him and asked him when he was going to



http://taberstruths.com/what-is-gods-call/ministry/



allow me to “minister”. He handed me a mop and a toilet brush and smiled and said “you

are!”

It was then that I got the idea that ministry is not a position or an office, but it is an

action. In the NKJV version of Ephesians 4; Paul talks about 5 positions or offices that are

part of the church.

Ephesians 4:11-13

11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and

some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry,

for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of

the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the

fullness of Christ;

The word used for “ministry” in the greek is Diakonia. It means service, ministering, esp.

of those who execute the commands of others. Now here is the catch that most people

do not understand. Most people want the authority and the position that comes with one

of these offices. (I am amazed at how many self proclaimed apostles and prophets there

are in today’s church.) What they don’t want is to show themselves as servants.

However, think about this. How can someone teach or equip someone else to do

something that they have never done themselves? Go back up and look at the story of

Samuel. What happened as he was “growing up”? The people found that what he said

was reliable! The only way people can find that out is if he served faithfully. There was a

long transition period between Samuel the boy who God called and Samuel the Prophet

who was recognized as called by God.

So my recommendation to all of you who are sensing the call of God to ministry, is be

patient. Get rid of all those delusions of grandeur where you see yourself as God’s man

or woman of power for the hour, and clothe yourself with humility, be a servant where

you can serve now, and in God’s timing and in the way and path that only He knows, He

will raise you up to be His type of servant (minister) rather than the world’s type of

leader.

Blessings!



http://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/greek/kjv/diakonia.html

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Pastor Duke

About the Author:






Duke Taber – who has written 747 posts on Taber's Truths Christian Living Magazine.tT













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