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- Written by: Don Goulding
Then the seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name!” So he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Look, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions and on the full force of the enemy, and nothing will hurt you. (Luke 10:17-19)
My soul slipped through space, a clean, sleek rocket ship. Evil was not in sight, and I reveled in my God’s universe of light.
Blam! Children at school left me until last when choosing teams, and a meteorite of rejection slammed into my nosecone. The shock reverberated through space, attracting a demon of insecurity. It dug into the wound on my soul, and staked a claim of torment.
In my teenage years, my ship staggered forward.
Crash! Another meteorite tore a gouge down the side. This was a rock of ferrous sexual temptation. A demon of lust clawed his way into the scar.
Next, a chunk of anger bashed the hull, then jealousy, and fear. The blows drew evil spirits like flies to wounds. Their strongholds in my soul were built around the lies that marred my heart. But help was on the way.
A roar from the Lion of Judah shook the heavenly realms. His anger raged at the imps clinging to a child for whom he died. He breathed into my heart. “I knight you to battle against the evil powers that plunder souls.”
I was ordained into spiritual warfare. With weapons of truth and the authority of Jesus, I push out dents from the inside. Crumpled souls are restored to newborn innocence. The truth that Jesus was my friend on the playground pushes out the lie of abandonment. Demons lose their holding place and fall into the blackness of space.
We are not defenseless in this adventure. In Christ, we have the weapons necessary to undo the dents in our rocket ship, and those of our fellow travelers.
Prayer: Lion of Judah, make me a warrior of truth.
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- Written by: Don Goulding
Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. (Psalms 85:10) (NIV)
Two gray haired fathers lowered into chairs in the study.
“Faithfulness,” Father Love began, “you and I have been friends these many years, yes?”
The other nodded.
“Then I’ll not dally. It’s time to unite our families.”
“I agree, Father Love. A marriage would seal the alliance between you and me.” He leaned forward. “Are we not already of the same heart? Where love goes, faithfulness is always there.”
“And likewise, your house has been good for ours, because love increases when faithfulness is near,” Father Love said.
“Then we are agreed, your son, Righteousness, shall marry my daughter, Peace?”
The two fathers rose and united with a hearty shake of hands.
Meanwhile, beyond the study doors, Righteousness and Peace strolled in the garden.
“I think we’re natural for each other.” The handsome man smiled. “Because when the righteousness of God is received, the heart is at peace.”
Peace looked into her beloved’s eyes. “And we will have beautiful children. We’ll call them Joy, and Patience.”
Peace must have noticed how Righteousness watched her lips as she spoke. She blushed, but rose up on her toes. It was all the encouragement he needed. At the moment their fathers shook hands in the nearby room, Righteousness leaned down, and kissed Peace.
Prayer: Father, unite love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace in my heart.
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- Written by: Don Goulding
And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by how you use worldly wealth, so that when it runs out you will be welcomed into the eternal homes. (Luke 16:9)
I stepped over a Cuban palm that fell on the porch in Zimbabwe. Yesterday, it flaunted a bowtie of waxy seed tendrils festooned below the fronds. Today, it lies dead on the path. White ants (African termites) chewed through it at the soil line, and the remains will be dismantled by all manner of bugs and bacteria. Everything is eaten by something in Africa.
In Western cultures people want to devour my time. In the developing nations it’s my belongings that are tugged apart. This one wants a pair of shoes, another wants money for an operation. If I always say yes, I’ll soon be dismantled and returned to the earth. How would Christ have me give so it results in permanent life, rather than reabsorption by consuming organisms?
For some years, the Zimbabwean mission ran a clinic that treated thousands free of charge. Then we began including counseling and prayer as the last steps of treatment.
The sickly poor came many kilometers on foot, bicycles, and even in wheelbarrows. It was like they only asked for the physical consonants of L and F. We added the spiritual vowels of I and E, and for the first time they received the whole of LIFE. Our goal was to bring them to Christ for eternity, and medical treatment attracted them to the permanent gift.
My charity must be as much eternal as it is temporal. Every hug, word, and dollar must point to heaven. To do less only makes souls comfortable while they wait for an eternity of hell.
Prayer: Father, make me a giver of things eternal.