You Can Overcome!

Great Service yesterday! Thank you for being obedient to the Holy Spirit's direction for your life. God is building a dream and team to go forward for years to come. Thank you for making Calvary your home....you are loved in Christ!

'...If God is for us, who can be against us?' Romans 8:31 NKJV

Some of the world's greatest people have faced the world's greatest challenges, but have overcome them. Cripple a man with polio, and you have Sir Walter Scott. Lock a man in prison, and you have John Bunyan. Raise a man in abject poverty, and you have Abraham Lincoln. Subject a man to bitter religious prejudice, and you have Benjamin Disraeli. Strike a man down with paralysis, and you have Franklin Roosevelt. Have someone born black in a society filled with racial discrimination, and you have Booker T. Washington, Harriet Tubman, Marian Anderson and George Washington Carver. Make a man the first child to survive in an impoverished Italian family of 18, and you have Enrico Caruso. Have a man born to parents who survived a Nazi concentration camp, paralyze him from the waist down when he's four years old, and you have the incomparable violinist Itzhak Perlman. Call a man a slow learner and mentally challenged, write him off as beyond education, and you have Albert Einstein. Helen Keller was born blind and deaf, yet she graduated from college with highest honors and impacted the world. Margaret Thatcher, England's first and only woman Prime Minister, lived upstairs over her father's grocery store. For a while her childhood home had no running water and no indoor plumbing. Golda Meir, Israel's first and only woman Prime Minister, was a divorced grandmother from Milwaukee. What do these people teach us? That success doesn't depend on our circumstances, but on overcoming our circumstances. And with God on our side we can do it! Paul, one of the world's great overcomers, wrote, 'If God is for us, who can be against us?'

Five things to Change Your Life

'Nothing can ever separate us from His love.' Romans 8:38 NLT

Paul asks five life-changing questions you'd do well to think about:
(1) 'If God is for us, who can ever be against us?' (Romans 8:31 NLT) The presence of God tilts the scales forever in our direction. Really, who can hurt us? (2) 'Since God did not spare even His own Son but gave Him up for us all, won't God... also give us everything else?' (Romans 8:32 NLT) Would God save our souls then leave us to fend for ourselves? Would He address our eternal needs and ignore our earthly ones? Of course not! (3) 'Who dares accuse us...? Will God? No! He is the one who has given us right standing with Himself.' (Romans 8:33 NLT) Every voice that accuses you, including your own, means nothing in the court of Heaven. God's acceptance trumps man's rejection. (4) 'Who then will condemn us?... the One who died for us... is sitting at the place of highest honor next to God, pleading for us.' (Romans 8:34 NLT) Let your accusers rise up and speak against you. Jesus, your defense attorney, silences them. Why? Because His grace covers you. (5) 'Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love?' (Romans 8:35 NLT) Paul answers his own question: 'Death can't, and life can't. The angels can't, and the demons can't. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can't keep God's love away...nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.' (Romans 8:38-39 NLT) Isn't that great?

Stand on His Promises

'He always does exactly what He says.' 2 Corinthians 1:19 TLB

Ever had a friend break a promise? The check doesn't come, the repairman doesn't show up, your date doesn't call? Count on it, people will let you down. But God won't: 'He always does exactly what He says. He...fulfils all...[His] promises.' (2 Corinthians 1:19-20 TLB) Knowing that enables you to keep walking by faith while you wait for them to be fulfilled. James MacDonald says: 'It's this not-knowing that crushes us. We doubt...worry...despair...falter and fail...If we knew how this was going to play out we'd be ok. We...can take a bad day...month...year...or decade...as long as we know how it will end. A health crisis...a question about your marriage...uncertainty over a child...we all have areas...where we need to hold on to what God has said... He knows what He promised, He can't lie, and He can't forget. He'll deliver on time. Who else can make promises like that? Now I wish I could tell you it always figures out perfectly in our lifetimes, but I'd be lying...You cannot make sense of [His] promises...with this life only. You must factor in the reality of eternity... Eternity brings it all together...eternal life...and the assurance of Heaven are what make His promises so precious.' Victor Frankl, who survived the horrors of the Holocaust, said, 'A weak faith is weakened by predicaments and catastrophes, whereas a strong faith is strengthened by them.' A Sunday school class was memorizing Psalm 23 and little Tommy couldn't get beyond the first verse. On the big day he stepped up to the microphone, grinned at the audience and announced, 'The Lord is my Shepherd - and that's all I know!' And it's all you need to know for now.

You're Mission!

'Go! I am sending you.' Luke 10:3 NIV

Jesus sent His disciples out on a mission saying, 'Do not take a purse or bag...and do not greet anyone on the road.' (Luke 10:4 NIV) Observe three things He emphasized: (1) 'Do not take a purse' - no hoarding! God will bless the man or woman who says, 'Every penny You give me above my needs, Lord, I'll use to fulfill Your purposes.' Imagine standing at the judgment seat of Christ with your riches uninvested, your assignment unfulfilled, and your sphere of influence unreached for Christ. What could you possibly say? (2) 'Do not take a...bag' - no excess baggage! God's Word says, '...let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.' (Hebrews 12:1 NLT) Whatever can get your attention can influence you, and whatever can keep your attention can master you. Satan dreads the completion of your assignment, so you must fight to keep your focus. (3) 'Do not greet anyone on the road' - don't waste time! Question any relationship that doesn't contribute to your destiny. Paul was single-minded on this issue: '...if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him...' (2 Thessalonians 3:14 NKJV) The hour is too late and the need too great. In the old days, in certain agricultural states in America they closed the schools for a few weeks and everyone was sent into the fields to gather the harvest. Why? Because to wait is to be too late!

How's Your Prayer Life?

'...it is time to seek the Lord...' Hosea 10:12 NKJV

The place of prayer is where you meet with God to be instructed, corrected, cleansed, loved, built up and prepared to do His will. It can be anywhere, but it must be somewhere! It can be anytime, but it must be a set time. Without prayer, what do you have to draw on? You'll work harder and harder and accomplish less and less because you're operating in your own strength. But after you've prayed you'll struggle less and accomplish more because you're operating in God's strength. If you're spending hours watching television but say you've no time to pray, 'It is time to seek the Lord.' If you're living comfortably with sins that once troubled you, 'It is time to seek the Lord.' If you're speaking words of bitterness towards someone who hurt you, 'It is time to seek the Lord.' If having material things consumes so much of your energy that there's none left for God and your family, 'It is time to seek the Lord.' The New Testament church grew so fast that the apostles found themselves with no time to pray. So they said, '...It is not right...' (Acts 6:2 NCV) That's where you must start! If you've forsaken the place of prayer it will show up in your attitudes and actions. What did the apostles do? They said, '...we will give ourselves continually to prayer...' (Acts 6:4 KJV) And look what happened: '...the Word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied...' (Acts 6:7 KJV) If you've come this far with little prayer, inconsistent prayer, or no prayer, think how far you'll go when you begin to pray.

Your Heavenly Body

'...How are the dead raised? With what kind of body...?' 1 Corinthians 15:35 NIV

Ever wonder what your heavenly body will be like? The Bible gives us three answers to the questions, 'How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?' First, it speaks of anatomy: '...Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another.' (1 Corinthians 15:39 NIV) Just as fish are designed to handle the pressures of the ocean and birds are designed to fly, your heavenly body will be custom-made for eternity. (Imagine travelling not merely at the speed of light, but the speed of thought!) Next, it speaks of astronomy: 'The sun has one kind of splendor, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor. So will it be with the resurrection of the dead...' (1 Corinthians 15:41-42 NIV) There will be degrees of honor and differences of reward when we get to Heaven. Your service now is what determines your status then 'God "will give to each person according to what he has done."' (Romans 2:6 NIV) Finally, it speaks of agriculture: '...it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.' (1 Corinthians 15:43 NIV) It's said the old Saxon word for cemetery means 'God's acre.' How wonderful; Christians don't get buried, they get planted!

There's a bulletin board in the Mayo Clinic which reads: 'Cancer is limited: it cannot cripple love, it cannot shatter hope, it cannot erode faith, it cannot eat away peace, it cannot destroy confidence, it cannot kill friendship, it cannot shut out memories, it cannot silence courage, it cannot invade the soul, it cannot reduce eternal life, it cannot quench the spirit, and it cannot lessen the power of the resurrection.'

The Effect of Praise

'My mouth is filled with Your praise...all day long.' Psalm 71:8 NAS

In 2007, after battling leukemia, pianist/song-writer Roger Bennett died. He thought he was in remission but the disease returned with a vengeance. He wrote on his website: 'Our enemy stalks us exactly the way the Bible describes, as a roaring lion. He hides in the bushes waiting for any sign of weakness. Then he strikes. He didn't strike me physically. He struck a more critical part - my joy...confidence...and hope. Every thought I turned towards Heaven bounced back like it was made of brass. Every time I tried to look on the bright side, I ended up imagining a dark future. Then he threw his most effective dart - doubt. "You call yourself a Christian. What a hypocrite! You're more afraid than ever...more filled with despair. So much for your faith, Mr. Gospel Singer!" I believed everything he said. I tried everything I knew to pull out of it...I thought if I dozed off it would pass...but the clock seemed to move in slow motion. Sleep was nowhere near. I tried to lose myself in the Bible, but the words blurred and I couldn't make sense of them.' Then Bennett had an epiphany, as he thought about Paul and Silas in prison. 'They didn't despair,' he wrote. 'They sang praises and that became their weapon. One after another...old songs came to me and I sang them to my empty room. It wasn't a great performance, but it may be the most powerful blessing I've received.' The Psalmist wrote, 'My mouth is filled with Your praise...all day long.'(Psalm 71:8 NAS) Try it. It's a strategy that works!

How Praise Effects You....

'...I will praise You more and more.' Psalm 71:14 NLT

Don't limit yourself to worshipping God in church. Be like the Psalmist: 'I will bless the Lord at all times...' (Psalm 34:1 NKJV) When you don't feel like praising God but you do it because you want to please Him, that's called '...the sacrifice of praise...' (Hebrews 13:15 NKJV) And when praise becomes a lifestyle it has a domino effect (that's where one change causes another, which in turn causes another). When you tell God how wonderful He is, how much you love Him and want to spend time with Him, you're more likely to find your mate telling you how wonderful you are, how much they love and enjoy being around you. Over time your family and friends start to feel the effect. On the other hand, when you withhold from God the praise He deserves, you deprive yourself of what you need in your own life. David said, '...magnify the Lord with me...let us exalt His name together.' (Psalm 34:3 NKJV) God inhabits [occupies, sets up house in] the praises of His people. (Psalm 22:3) When you tell Him, 'You're wonderful, there's no problem You can't solve and no need You can't meet. I'm casting all my care on You. I know You love me and I'm not going to give in to depression and defeat. I'm trusting You to conquer my enemies, break down the doors that are locked and give me victory,' God sends angels to fight and win the battle on your behalf. (Hebrews 1:14) No wonder David said, '...I will praise you more and more.'(Psalm 71:14 NLT) It works! Isn't it time you started thinking along the same lines?

The Importance of Sound Doctrine

'...teach...sound doctrine.' Titus 2:1 NIV

Today 'sound doctrine' is being replaced by 'feel good theology,' and we should be concerned! Pilots fly by fixed laws. Surgeons operate by fixed protocols. Aren't you glad they think doctrine is important? The story's told of a psychology student in the army who was given kitchen duty. He decided to test the response of different groups of soldiers to apricots. First he took the negative approach: 'You don't want apricots, do you?' Ninety percent said no. Then he tried the positive approach: 'You do want apricots, don't you?' Over half said yes. With a third group he tried the either/or technique: 'Would you like one dish of apricots or two?' In spite of the fact that most of them didn't like apricots, forty percent took two dishes and fifty percent took one dish. Be careful; when you have no fixed belief system of your own, you'll fall for somebody else's. Paul instructed Timothy: 'Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage - with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.' (2 Timothy 4:2-4 NIV) When your feelings won't sustain you, sound doctrine will, for one rests on emotion and the other rests on the eternal Word of God!

Don't give up You can Do It!

'We get knocked down, but we get up again.' 2 Corinthians 4:9 TLB

Failure can feel like a punch in the gut. And when it keeps happening it's tempting just to give up. But you can't; you must 'get up again'. Failing doesn't make you a failure, quitting does. HE Jansen said, 'The man who wins may have been counted out several times, but he didn't hear the referee.' A failure-free life feels safe, but it fosters boredom, apathy and low self-esteem. Ever noticed that the devil never reminds you of what you've learned? No, he wants you to keep reliving the painful details. Learn the lesson, then forget the details! Victory requires building on what you've learned and moving on. Theologian Brooke Foss Westcott said, 'Great occasions do not make heroes or cowards, they simply unveil them...Silently, as we wake or sleep, we grow strong or weak, and at last some crisis shows us what we have become.' This article ran in The Wall Street Journal: 'You've failed many times although you may not remember. You fell the first time you tried to walk. You almost drowned the first time you tried to swim. Did you hit the ball the first time you swung the bat? Heavy hitters, the ones who hit the most home runs, also strike out a lot. RH Macy failed seven times before his store in New York caught on. English novelist John Creasey got 753 rejection slips before publishing 564 books.'

H. Jackson Brown gives us two rules for winning: Rule One: Take one more step. Rule Two: When you don't think you can take one more step, refer to rule number one.

Progress not Perfection

'...It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you...' Philippians 3:1 NIV

Have you any idea how often the people you admire got it wrong, half right, almost right, before they got it right? Making mistakes is the unenjoyable, unavoidable part of making progress. That's why Paul said, '...It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.' (Philippians 3:1 NIV) He understood that you have to keep hearing and doing it in order to get it right.

Stop comparing yourself with others. The Bible says, '...When they measure themselves by themselves...they are not wise.' (2 Corinthians 10:12 NIV) Some of us are given five talents, some two, and some one. Your talents, not your wishes, determine your potential. One-talent people who make the most of what they've been given receive the same 'well done' as five-talent people. The person who gets into trouble is the one who's afraid to take the risk; their biggest mistake is their unwillingness to make a mistake! Dr. John Maxwell says that your performance depends on your commitment to practice. 'Consistently good practice leads to consistently good play. It sharpens your talent. Successful people understand this...and develop the discipline to do it.' If you want to sum up what lifts most successful individuals above the crowd, you could do it in these four words: a little bit more. Successful people do what's expected of them - plus a little bit more. So, the word for you today is - strive for progress, not perfection!

Decide and Take Action

'...everyone who has will be given more...' Matthew 25:29 NIV

Every accomplishment starts with a decision. Choice, not chance, determines your destiny. Jesus gave us the parable of a businessman who gave one employee ten talents to invest, and he doubled them. A second employee received five talents, and he doubled them too. A third employee got one talent, but he buried it. Afraid of losing it, he failed to take even a modest risk. '"You bad and lazy servant!" his master said. "You knew, did you, that I reap harvests where I did not plant, and gather crops where I did not scatter seed?"' (Matthew 25:26 GNT) The Bible says '...we walk by [the eye of] faith, not by [natural] sight.' (2 Corinthians 5:7 NJKV) Unless you're willing to take prayed-over, carefully-considered and well-advised risks, you're not operating in faith. And '...without faith it is impossible to please Him...' (Hebrews 11:6 NKJV) Jesus ended His parable saying, '...everyone who has will be given more...Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.' (Matthew 25:29 NIV) Your goal should be to maximize the investment on everything you do. Ken Blanchard calls this getting the highest return on life. It means putting all your eggs in God's basket (don't worry, He won't drop them!) To get more, you must use what God's already given you. When you step out in faith, God moves, and extraordinary things happen. John Mason says: 'Not what we have but what we use, not what we see but what we choose these are the things that mar or bless human happiness.' When you limit what you will do, you limit what you can do. Think: if you don't act now, what will it ultimately cost you?

Change & Growth

'They go from strength to strength...' Psalm 84:7 NIV

In an old Peanuts cartoon Charlie Brown says to his friend Linus, 'What would you do if you felt that no one liked you?' Linus replies, 'I'd see what I could do to improve.' To which Charlie Brown replies, 'I hate that answer!' There are three reasons we hate that answer and want to freeze life where it's at:

(1) When it took everything we had to get to where we are, 'Let's go' is not what we want to hear.

(2) We're creatures of habit; we form our habits, then our habits form us.

(3) Change makes us feel insecure; deep down, we fear we don't have what it takes.

Near the top of a mountain in the Alps is an epitaph to a Swiss guide which reads, 'He died climbing.' (What a great way to be remembered!) Growth is an uphill climb. If you want to keep growing you must never stop climbing: '...the path of the just is like the shining light, that shines every brighter unto the perfect day.' (Proverbs 4:18 NKJV) How do we grow and change? 'They go from strength to strength.' In his book Teaching to Change Lives, Dr. Howard Hendricks asks teachers these soul-searching questions. 'How have you changed lately? In the last week, let's say? Or the last month? Can you be very specific? Or must your answer always be incredibly vague? You say you're growing, okay - how?' 'Well,' you say, 'In all kinds of ways.' Great; name one! You see, effective teaching only comes through a changed person. When you stop changing, you stop leading. Today ask God to pinpoint the areas in which you need to change and grow.

Examine Your Habits

'...they continue practicing the former [habits]...' 2 Kings 17:34 NKJV

God said, '...they continue practicing the former [habits]; they do not fear the Lord, nor do they follow...the law...which the Lord...commanded...' (2 Kings 17:34 NKJV) Understand this: any habit you feed will strengthen its grip on your life. Ask anyone recovering from addiction; we only become willing to change when we hit the bottom. Prodigals don't come home until they've lost everything! But that doesn't have to be your story. Your heavenly Father is waiting to welcome you back. You are a child of the Most High; captivity is unnatural for you. You'll never be free until you despise your chains. Whether you're bound by a substance, a relationship or a life that's out of order, your circumstances won't change until your mind is released from the grip of old thought patterns and renewed by God's Word (Romans 12:2). So start putting in place new habits for what you do consistently because they change you permanently. Begin the Bible-reading habit. Put it first on your 'to do' list or you won't do it faithfully. '...for [these words] bring life and radiant health to anyone who discovers their meaning...' (Proverbs 4:22 NLT) Set a specific time for prayer, otherwise everything else will crowd it out. In prayer God will tell you how He feels about things. Can you afford to live without His input? Attend church regularly, support it with your finances, exercise your spiritual gifts and begin to invest time and energy into relationships that sharpen and strengthen you spiritually. God will say things to you in His house that He won't say anywhere else. Your daily habits are carving out an irreversible future. If you want to know where you're headed - examine them!

Your Vision "Fullfill It"

'...Write the vision and make it plain...' Habakkuk 2:2 NKJV

There's an interesting picture in Amos: '...A shepherd who tries to rescue a sheep from a lion's mouth will recover only two legs or a piece of an ear. So it will be...' (Amos 3:12 NLT) Picture Satan as that lion, you as that lamb, Jesus as that shepherd coming to pick up what's left of you, and see how God brings victory out of defeat. Has life torn your dream to pieces? With God, you only need two things for a comeback: (1) An ear to hear. Stop listening to voices that discourage you; it's not over until God says it's over! God told Ezekiel to prophesy to a valley full of dead, dry bones (Ezekiel 37:4): 'So I prophesied...and breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceeding great army.' (Ezekiel 37:10 NKJV) Your hopes may be dead and your soul dry, but if you listen to what God is saying your dream will live again. (2) A leg to stand on. The God who gave Job twice as much at the end of his trouble as he started with before it, isn't finished with you yet. Read what He's promised and stand on His Word. Achan was stoned to death in the Valley of Achor for stealing the spoils after the battle of Jericho. End of story? No, later, God in His mercy said, 'I will give...the Valley of Achor as a door of hope...' (Hosea 2:15 NKJV) You may be living with your consequences, but by God's grace you can still live to see your dream fulfilled.

Your vision - you must 'fulfil' it! (1)

'...Write the vision and make it plain...' Habakkuk 2:2 NKJV

When a dream comes from God and you commit yourself to it, it will 'surely' be fulfilled. Yes, you'll stumble, be stretched to new limits and maybe even stagger across the finish line, but you'll make it. You'll get to the Promised Land. Look at Moses: he had a history-changing message to deliver to Pharaoh, yet he was a poor speaker. He had marriage problems. He was a 'sole trader' who had to reach his breaking point before he learned to delegate responsibility to others. He had a problem with his temper, as a result God said, 'This is the land I promised...I have let you see it... but you will not cross over into it.' (Deuteronomy 34:4 NIV) But Moses finally got there! 1400 years later he stood with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration: right in the middle of it! You say, 'I've failed so badly.' David committed adultery, yet his psalms bring strength to multitudes and he's quoted in pulpits around the world. God didn't excuse David, but He forgave him and used him. '...David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God...was buried...' (Acts 13:36 NKJV) The Bible describes God as, '...ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abundant in kindness...' (Nehemiah 9:17 NKJV) Notice the words 'ready to pardon'. God is ready when you are, all you have to do is turn to Him. Before Habakkuk wrote about his vision, he said, 'I will...watch to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer when I am corrected.' (Habakkuk 2:1 NKJV) Corrected but not discarded! Isn't that wonderful? That's how God's grace works.

God's Vision "Follow It"

'...Write the vision and make it plain...' Habakkuk 2:2 NKJV

Five times in Genesis 39 we read that the Lord 'was with' Joseph. Be encouraged: God is at work in what you're going through right now. Where did Joseph get the wisdom to lead a nation? By dealing with his own family problems, by handling Potiphar's household staff, and by running a prison system. Like rungs on a ladder, each one took him closer to the top. Notice how it worked: his brothers sold him to Ishmaelite slave traders, who sold him to Potiphar, who put him in prison where he met the butler, who introduced him to Pharaoh, who made him Prime Minister of Egypt, fulfilling his dream. Was it easy? No, until the time came,'...the word of the Lord tested him.' (Psalm 105:19 NAS) Your vision will be 'tried' by situations that either make or break you. The birth of the vision is often followed by its death and then its resurrection. When you've no funds, no friends, and no fight left in you (the death stage), remember the words of Jesus: '...unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies [to self], it produces much grain.' (John 12:24 NKJV) When your vision dies and God resurrects it, you begin to talk and act differently. With ego subtracted and grace added, you start saying with the Psalmist, 'I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.' (Psalm 27:13 KJV) At that point God smiles and says, 'You're finally getting it right!'

God's vision 'follow' it! (1)

Thanks for the week off. I'm back from a couple days rest so let's start the new year right...

'...Write the vision and make it plain...' Habakkuk 2:2 NKJV

Paul was on a mission. He travelled light, practiced personal discipline, avoided distractions and kept his eye on the ball. '...one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal...' (Philippians 3:13-14 NKJV) Successful companies live by a mission statement every team member can understand; they keep it before them at all times. God told Habakkuk, 'Write the vision and make it plain...that he may run who reads it.' (Habakkuk 2:2 NKJV) You must write your vision down, read it regularly, remember it at all times and run with it. Your greatest enemy isn't the opposition, it's the distractions. Ever heard of 'a white elephant'? When the King of Siam wanted to destroy an enemy, he supposedly gave them a white elephant. In those days white elephants were considered sacred, and nobody dared refuse a king's gift. The trouble was, white elephants couldn't be put to work but they had to be fed - a lot! So the king's 'gift' ended up causing his enemy's downfall. Hello! Guard against 'white elephants' that drain your time, energy and resources. In order to protect your vision, live by these words, '...lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God...consider Him...lest you become weary and discouraged...' (Hebrews 12:1-3 NKJV)