What Does God want from Me?

Have you ever asked yourself that question? Maybe you should. The Bible makes it very clear that we will all stand before God in judgment one day; wouldn’t it be good to know what He will be judging us on?

Actually, it is not God the Father that we stand before on that day, but God the Son – Jesus Christ.  “For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son.” John 5:22.  Not only does the Bible say that, be the Koran also says it and the Talmud too. The Talmud doesn’t recognize Jesus as the Christ, or Messiah, but that’s Who He is and that is Who we will stand before on that day. Matt 16:15-17: And He (Jesus) said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" And Peter answered and said, "The Christ of God." And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven." 

What are the consequences of judgment?

Judgment is the whole point of life. The entire purpose of our existence on this planet is to prepare ourselves and others for Eternity. God put us here to decide whether we will accept His Son as Lord or not. It’s really that simple!

If we accept Jesus as Lord, we will be tested on the reality of our decision. If we pass the test, we will be accepted into the Kingdom of God for Eternity. 1 Cor 3:13 -  2 Cor 13:5 - Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you--unless indeed you fail the test? If we refuse to acknowledge Jesus as Lord, or fail the test of truth, there is no place for us in His presence. We will be separated from Him for all Eternity.

What does that mean? That’s a murky subject. It could mean an eternity in Hell, something like Dante’s Inferno, or it could mean an existence apart from God. Literalists are emphatic that the former is true; CS Lewis, on the other hand, pours contempt on such people suggesting they shouldn’t bother trying to read grown-up’s books. Lewis proposes a futile existence apart from God in his book The Great Divorce. In it he describes an existence not unlike the Soviet Gulag, an existence with no God and very little hope or purpose.

The First Thing

So, in the process of becoming ready for judgment, Jesus, essentially, wants two things from us – the first, a relationship. Without a relationship with Jesus, we will stand in judgment on our own merits. But the Bible makes it clear that not one of us is deserving of salvation. Not one of us will be welcomed into the eternal Kingdom of God based on our goodness. The first qualification for eternal life is a relationship with Jesus Christ.

How do you know if you have a relationship with Jesus Christ?

Have you realized that you are a sinner and in no way deserving of spending Eternity with God? Have you recognized the suffering and death of Christ as payment-in full for your sins? Have you turned away from sin? Has the Holy Spirit changed you? Do you see some things differently – evil as evil and good as godly? Do you have a desire to read your Bible and pray – to know Christ better? Do you love Him? Do you love your neighbor? If you answer yes to all of these you are certainly in a relationship with Jesus. If you are missing some, you may have a relationship, but it needs work before you are ready to stand before Him.

The Second Thing

The second thing God wants from us is perfection. Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matt 5:48. …that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God. Col 4:12b. Not perfection in the sense of never having a sinful thought or ever doing something bad, but perfection in terms of maturity or completeness. Jesus, Himself, was made perfect through His suffering, but He was never imperfect in the sense of having sinned, He was incomplete in the sense of never having experienced the temptations and trials of fallen man. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. Heb 2:10. His incarnation and crucifixion took care of that; now He can identify with our sufferings on a deeply personal level.

CS Lewis, in “Mere Christianity”, I think, paraphrased Jesus in saying: “If you let Me, I will make you perfect – no matter what it costs you, no matter what it costs Me.” Personally, I believe, with Lewis, that it is extremely important to the Lord to bring His people to full maturity, otherwise, why the great suffering of Christians that is so obvious over the past 2000 years?

Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. Heb 12:14.

There is a sanctification that comes from Christ when we establish a relationship with Him, but this verse is talking about a process of sanctification that we begin when we become Christians. That process is one of separation from worldly lusts and ambition. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Rom 12:2.

To sanctify means to set apart for holy use. Christ sets us apart from the rest of the world for His purpose. We then need to separate ourselves by the power of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, from the power of the cares, the riches and the pleasures of life. That doesn't mean that we cannot enjoy riches and pleasures; it means that the pursuit of such should not be our motivation.

What should our motivation be?

Glorifying God! For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body. 1 Cor 6:20.

And how do I do that?

Many Christians think glorifying God is standing in the congregation singing ‘glory to God’, and to a point that does glorify Him. But what He really wants is for those of us who have His nature to display it. That is to reveal the character of God to others. We do that by forgiving our enemies, feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, housing the homeless, visiting and caring for widows, the sick and elderly, and prisoners, and by interceding in prayer for our neighbors. Remember, in the 21^st century, everyone is your neighbor.

Again, motivation is important here. I can imitate Jesus by doing the things above but this will simply glorify me. If Jesus is in you, you will want to do such things because it is your new nature – then you will glorify Christ. It may not be easy; displaying God’s character will usually cost us something – time, money, pride. If it costs us nothing, then it is not likely glorifying God, for love is a profound part of God’s nature. God’s love is predominantly agape love – sacrificial love – love that gives expecting nothing in return.

Are we there yet?

What God Did

The message on our shirts is to pray for a cure for PH - Pulmonary hypertension. My wife, Patricia, was diagnosed with PH last fall. Read what God did when we prayed: God Answers Prayer (below), then come back and read this update from her Facebook page:

Patricia McFarland-Myers

There are no words to express how grateful I am to God for being tired. Just plain tired from doing so much. We say Pray Phor a Cure, I was blessed enough to get one. With PH ( Pulmonary Hypertension) I was exhausted to the core. Could do very little. Asked my hubby for help with laundry, shopping, dinner, tea, to drive me places, to go with me because I was afraid I would pass out if left alone. Today I am tired, because I did dishes, spent 2 hrs at McDonalds play place again yesterday with the grandkids. Shopped for a sprinkler in 90 degree heat, watched the kiddlets play in it and grilled dinner for the family. (1st time in years) I stop all day long and thank my Lord and ask Why Me? The only answer I get is that He is no respecter of persons and what he did for me he can do for others. We need a cure people, We need you to Join us and Pray for a Cure Please!

God Answers Prayer

This is a copy of a post on my other blog "Save A Child from Sexual Abuse." Thought everyone should read it.

Almost exactly one year ago, my wife, Patricia, had knee replacement surgery. After the surgery she developed pulmonary embolisms (blood clots in the lungs). Over the summer this turned into pulmonary hypertension – a significant increase in the blood pressure as it flows from the lungs to the heart. This causes damage to the left ventricle of the heart, and, if left untreated, will usually kill you in 2 to 3 years.

Pat was diagnosed in October, last year, and as fall turned into winter and winter ever-so-reluctantly into spring, the symptoms worsened. In late winter, I had to take her to emergency because of atrial fibrillation.

In early spring we were in Edmonton. We were invited to a senior’s function at the church we had attended a few years ago. Several days before the function, I felt God impress on me that we should attend and ask some of the seniors to pray for Pat.

On the day of the event Pat was having a very difficult time breathing. As we got ready to go, it was a question of whether we go to the event or to emergency. We decided to go to emergency. As we headed to the truck I was questioning God, "Didn't You want me to take her to the event so to have people pray for her? If you do, then You will have to make it happen, otherwise, we are going to emergency." Immediately, Pat announced that the fresh air seemed to help a lot. So, we went to the seniors function instead, promising to go to emerg if she has trouble breathing again.

Pat was fine through the event but as it was ending the breathing difficulty returned. I asked the remaining seniors to pray for my wife. A half dozen of us, all very good friends and very committed Christians laid hands on her and prayed fervent, heart-felt prayers. During the prayer, Pat felt something in her chest, as though she was doing an interior sit-up. Immediately, she could breathe much better.

What had God done? She suffered very little in the way of breathing problems since but still had considerable fatigue and some other symptoms. So, she went through another battery of tests with a new Respirologist here in Abbotsford. Yesterday, we got the results: Pulmonary Hypertension is completely gone! The symptoms she is still feeling are probably from the medication she is on. Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.

God answers prayers, sometimes in spectacular ways. Prayer should be our first resort. Your prayers can make the world a better place. Please pray.

It's Not Fair

How many times have you heard a child yell those words. Fairness is deeply ingrained into us even as a small child, but where did it come from? It's not something that we have to teach our children, they seem to be born with it. But how could we be born with an innate sense of fairness into a world that is patently unfair?

An unfair world should produce children without any expectation or even any sense of fairness, but that is not what we find. So where did the sense of fairness come from? It came from God, of course. Though, at times, it may not seem like it, God is completely fair. We may not see it on earth or even in our lifetime, but come eternity all will be seen as ultimately fair.

Our innate sense of fairness could come from no other source than a righteous God!  

Judgmentalism

Judge not, lest you be judged. For by the judgement with which you judge, you shall be judged.

Matt 7:1,2

I've been a Christian for 30 years and have read these words of Jesus countless times, and agreed with them, intellectually. You see, I'm an intellectual person, it takes a long time for things to get from my head to my heart – but 30 years?!!!!

Apparently, I never considered myself to be judgemental. Others would quickly disagree, I'm sure. In fact, I'm so judgemental that I don't even have to say anything and people feel the condemnation. That comes from being a head person, not a heart person, a thinker rather than a feeler. We need both, of course, to be balanced, but balance was never my strength, thinking was.

Of course, judgmentalism requires a certain amount of pride and arrogance. You can't judge someone who is equal or higher than you, you can only judge your inferiors. Hence, I put myself above those whom I judge, looking down on them. I've known that for a long time, God showed me that in the early 1990's. But it still didn't stop me from judging people, not everyone, but some people.

Romans 2 tells us that the one who criticizes another is guilty of the same thing. You would think that would be a clue, but apparently not. Oswald Chambers in the June 22nd devotional in My Utmost for His Highest asks us if we believe that statement from the Bible. If we do, it must mean that the hypocrisy, fraud and unreality we see in others exists in us, if not outright, then, at least in possibility.

Ozzie also asks the question, “Who among us would dare to stand before God and say, 'My God, judge me as I have judged others'?” Not me, certainly. However, I am determined to change that. I'm repenting of my judgmentalism and asking the Lord's forgiveness for any damage I have done to His Name and His kingdom.

I'm also asking for the forgiveness of anyone out there whom I may have offended. I won't promise it will never happen again, but by the grace of God and the conviction of the Holy Spirit, in time, I expect to remove it completely from my life, whereby I can be judged by the atonement rather than the arbitrary standards that I set for others.

What are We Doing?

These days, my wife, Patricia, does a lot of ministry over the internet to people suffering from Pulmonary Hypertension. She is involved in a closed Facebook group with men and women from around the world who have PH.

PH is an elevated blood pressure between the lungs and the heart. This damages he left ventricle of the heart. If untreated it usually is fatal within 2 or 3 years. If treated, you might get 10 or 20. It affects people of all ages, both sexes, and even little babies. It manifests in difficulty getting enough air to be able to function without great fatigue and dizziness. There are numerous other symptoms involved in PH.

A lot of doctors and even hospitals will not treat PH patients because they know so little about it. The only known cure is a lung transplant. Very often, by the time a PH'r is sick enough to qualify for a lung transplant, they often need a heart transplant too.

Some of the stories of these people, especially the young mothers, are both heart-breaking and, at times, uplifting because of their determination, courage and faith. Patricia offers them a listening ear, a sympathetic heart, and, very often, good, practical advice.

BTW, Pat was diagnosed with PH last fall, and today she is PH free. Read about her miraculous healing at: http://northwoodssaveachild.blogspot.ca/2013/05/god-answers-prayer.html. As I write this, Pat is giving the testimony of her healing to the women's group in the church in which she was healed.


As for me, I have been slogging away at learning to play the guitar. After a year and a half, I am still slogging - at times sounding not too terrible, at other times sounding just dreadful. Nevertheless, I improve slowly and continuously.

I also have to re-write part of the book I finished more than a year and a half ago. I decided it needed a better ending and asked God to give me one. He is doing just that, not only with Patricia's healing, but with the other project that I have been working on.

That project is called, Save A Child (from sexual abuse). After deciding to research the number of children being sexually abused (as I was), the answer was shocking and horrifying. For instance, at least 200 million girls will be sexually molested before they turn 18 years old, most of them repeatedly.

That is one in five girls globally, while some statistics show that in America, it may be one in four. To my mind, this is one of the worst atrocities man has afflicted himself with since the dawn of creation.

Searching the internet to see church involvement in doing something about this horror leads only to the church (Catholic mostly) being a part of the problem rather than a cure.

I'm calling on Christians to pray about this which is the least we can do. Please see: http://northwoodssaveachild.blogspot.ca/2013/06/save-child-from-sexual-abuse.html
for further information.

The blog has been viewed in ten countries nearly 400 times after less than 5 weeks of operation. We need it to go viral for the sake of the children.

God bless

Gary

Uprising in Turkey

As mentioned in a previous post, see: "Turkey, key to a Russian/Islamic invasion of Israel", Turkey is vitally important to the prophesied Russian and Islamic invasion of Israel (Eze 38,39). Russia will have to go through Turkey to get to Israel. Some interpreters of these scriptures suggest that it is Turkey itself, not Russia, that will lead the Islamic invasion of Israel.

For either to happen, Turkey would almost certainly have to become an Islamic country. It is mostly Islamic, but politically secular. As pointed out in the above blog, that appears to be changing and many people don't like it. That's part of the reason there is so much rioting going on there now.

However, President Erdogan has very little patience for these rioters and if he can't restore order soon, he is liable to declare something akin to martial law. He has his own people in place in the military so the threat of a military coup, which has happened several times in the past, is very limited.

With martial law, Erdogan can instil more Islamic values on the people in the name of peace and good government, thus taking them one more step closer to a full-out Islamic state which would, most certainly, be an enemy of Israel.