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| Promises & Praise Newsletter May We will review some of God's promises and offer up our praises to Him every month in this free newsletter. Note: If you would like to receive the "complete" or "full" version of "Promises and Praise" (which includes pictures, graphics, links, etc.)in your Inbox every month, please Click [html]here to enroll. Thanks again for your interest. May 2006 Promises and Praise Newsletter Volume Three In This Issue If I Knew Then What I Know Now Thank you, Lord! br> The Second Coming of Christ Here we are again, time for more praises to the Lord. While it is disappointing that more people aren't sharing their own personal praises, I did receive one really super comment from a dear lady which I am happy to include in this edition. [Thank you, Elaine!] We are now well into warm weather, and yet another year is quickly proceeding into oblivion. Each day that passes brings us ever closer to The Second Coming. While the public at large - and even theologians - debate The DaVinci Code and The Gospel of Judas, the rest of us can take comfort in our firm belief in The Holy Bible and our confidence in the truths it teaches. No one need question the past nor fear the future when Christ is at the center of belief. He is in control and still in charge. Praise the Lord! But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 In His service, Kathy If I Knew Then What I Know Now by Kathy S. McBride How many times have you said that? Many of us have said it far more times than we probably care to admit. I know I have. Perhaps the reason it makes us cringe is because it outwardly acknowledges that we have made a mistake, or, even worse, that we don't know what we're doing. To say, "If I knew then what I know now" is the ultimate admission of "what I thought I knew then has caused me a colossal headache now." Been there. Done that. Who hasn't? The ultimate embarrassment is to admit that things somehow have gone horribly wrong despite our best laid plans. And for those who supposedly are being led by The Holy Spirit, it's even more of a head scratcher when things go awry. And while this does sort of tie in with the Father Knows Best article from last month's newsletter, there is still much to learn about this topic. That complete thought is, "If I had known then what I know now things would be different" Right. The supposition is that if we could have known the disastrous outcome of poor plans or a mistake-laden life ahead of time, mistakes would have been avoided, never made in the first place, and the outcome would be just as we dreamed. Right again. Duh. However, here's something that we seldom think about when we make that infamous 20/20 hindsight statement: certainly, had we known the outcome we would not have made those mistakes. However, we would have made different, equally stupid mistakes. Did you ever think of that? If we had God's omnipotent power to know everything - including the end from the beginning - then virtually everything we do would be resplendent success. But since we don't have that power and are limited to time and space, we fumble around in the darkness of this world trying to figure out what to do, often mistakenly thinking we know. But too frequently we are terribly wrong in our decisions and chaos is the result. Because we are limited by sinful human flesh and don't have access to the knowledge that certain decisions will spell disaster, we are doomed to at least some failures. Commit your work to the Lord, and then your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:3, NLT Well, now I must tell you that sometimes - oftentimes - I take exception to that choice piece of King Solomon's wisdom. I can truthfully say that many plans that I committed to the Lord not only didn't succeed but rather failed miserably. How about you? Bummer isn't it? What went wrong? Honestly, I don't know. All I can say is that somewhere along the way that my plans and God's plans for me got off the same track. More specifically, my plans probably never were on God's track to begin with, no matter how much I committed them to the Lord. But why do plans fail even when Proverbs 16:3 promises they will succeed if they are first committed to the Lord? I have no idea. The scholars will have to answer that one for us (and if anyone would like to share your thoughts on this topic in a future newsletter, I invite you to e-mail me at kathysmcbride@ksmcbride.com for consideration). In no way do I invalidate the promises of The Holy Scriptures nor doubt the very goodness of God. It's just that sometimes I don't understand it all. But as long as eyes are fixed on Christ then salvation is sure, despite human error. One glorious day, Jesus is coming again to take His chosen ones Home, and all that will have really mattered in this life is what was done in His service. And I truly believe that He is coming soon. But in the meantime, I intend to keep plugging along, asking God's blessings on my life and on everything I undertake. And I hope to learn to trust Him more every day, despite my blunders and outright failures. Whether or not I have "correctly" committed my plans to the Lord - or even if my plans are completely wrong - I take heart in His graciousness and mercy and the thought that no matter the outcome of all of this, His plans for all of us have already succeeded. The battle was won at Calvary. God, unlike us, does indeed know the end from the beginning. To the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints. 1 Thessalonians 3:13, KJV Thank you, Lord! Our Praise If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 "Praise the Lord for His wisdom and goodness. Thanks be to His Holy Name for all His kindness and mercy. Thanks to Jesus Christ the Lord for salvation. Thanks to the Holy Spirit for His leading, guiding, and protection. Thank you, Lord!" Kathy S. McBride Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created. Revelation 4:11 . . .Fear God and give glory to Him: for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and the earth, and the sea, and the fountains of the waters. Revelation 14:7 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments. Psalm 119:62 The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew. Proverbs 3:19, 20 Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon the earth: therefore let thy words be few. Ecclesiastes 5:2 Oh that Thou wouldest rend the heavens, that Thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at Thy Presence, As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make Thy name known to Thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at Thy presence! Isaiah 64:1,2 I thought it good to shew the signs and wonders that the high God hath wrought toward me. Daniel 4:2 "Just got home from church and I know the Lord sent me to your site! Very lovely site-very sought after-I give God all the Praise with you for your time and the talent He has given you to produce it!!!! I just had to take this opportunity to bless the name of the Lord for what took place this weekend at Revival Temple, Newark NJ . The members were on a 21 day fast and the anointing moved so marvelously through the entire place that people where overjoyed at what was happening to them. I just can't put it into words what happened for me--internally in my spirit I had gotten so broken, so out of touch, so unfocused at WHO GOD really IS and WAS and WILL be that I just had no joy and was losing my hope! I realize that this might sound strange to some for being in the Lord for so many years - served in many churches, preached and taught His Word yet MY WOOD GOT WET and I couldn't ( IN MYSELF) get on fire again no matter what I tried so I stopped trying! Months went by and I got up to the gates of hell and I found myself realizing that this was what people would be like when they died and eventually went to hell and never could get out! I cried out, waited, got broken, but I did not lose my faith in God. Went through many dry places and I live to tell you that doom and gloom was all broken off me and I go free today to praise and thank God for His greatness and His goodness with mercy that He bestowed upon me! Now I KNOW because of the battles mentally, emotionally, and physically as well as spiritually that the worst scenario that anyone could ever go through that God through Jesus Christ will deliver!! All things are possible to those who JUST BELIEVE!! Learn more about what God is sharing with me to others: Thank You, Pastor Brown." Elaine/Millburn, NJ Note: Elaine invites our readers to visit this website: http://ourchurch.com/member/b/blessedforever8 Praise the Lord! Excerpt Kathy S. McBride's new book (still untitled) For those of you who may be interested to know, my second book is coming along and a portion of it will be in the publisher's hands for consideration soon. I ask your prayers that it will be accepted for publication. The book is about Jesus' parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) - but with a twist or two. In the first issue of Promises and Praise I included an excerpt from Chapter One. Following is a portion from Chapter Two. "Meanwhile, things on the farm remained pretty much the same since the young man's departure. The father and older brother always worked hard and there were hired hands enough to take up the slack from one missing freeloader. Or that was the older brother's take on the situation anyway. Who could fault him for thinking that way after that kid conned their dad out of his portion of the inheritance, then split to live a riotous, amoral life? His blood boiled just thinking about it. Humph. Well, he did notice that his father was a lot quieter, more subdued, these days. He seemed suddenly older somehow. And his mother always seemed tense and distraught. He knew there were plenty of times when she had been crying but she didn?t want anyone to know. However, her eyes betrayed her broken heart. "How could that little jerk do this to Mom and Dad? I?d like to wring his neck!?" Then one day when the older brother was working far out in the fields while his father was closer to home something happened that would put a lot of things into perspective. As always, the father's eyes scanned the horizon. Since the day his young son left, he never took his eyes off the rock hewn path that led to his property. He never lost faith or gave up hope. This day his prayers and faithfulness would be rewarded. As he worked in the morning sun, eyes ever alert, he caught a glimpse of something. He jerked upright as his gaze pierced the distance. There it was again - something was moving afar off: Could it be? Dare he hope? He had had so many disappointments in the past. "Lord, please. . . please, this time let it be my boy!" Seconds hung like hours as he peered into the remote sunlight, trying to determine the source of the movement. "Praise the Lord! It's him! It's my boy! He's alive and he's come home!" The father dropped everything and tore down the path at lightening speed. No doubt this must have been a peculiar sight in that day. People had dignity and commanded respect in biblical times. It was unheard of for a man of his age and community stature - a landowner with servants - to break into a furious run. Given the fact that the father was attired in the customary "robe" and sandals, it was even more of a spectacle. In fact, not only was it quite undignified for a man [or woman] to bare his legs it was also quite unheard of. Men and women in those days were much more modest than we are now. They didn't walk around the mall and marketplace in shorts and tank tops back then. But regardless of the customs - or whatever people might think - Dad tore up the path like so many race horses. And the boy, too, when he saw his dad racing towards him a long ways off, poured every ounce of remaining strength into his own legs to rush to meet him. Then it happened: the mother of all collisions. Father and son reunited. "But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him." There we have, in a nutshell, the parallel of the greatest story ever told. That was Jesus' way of showing us what great mercy God the Father has on all of us, His wayward children. No matter where we have been, no matter what we have lost or squandered, no matter what we have done, we are still welcome to come home. And we can come home to forgiveness. The prodigal boys - yes, there was two of them, more on that later - represent the whole of mankind while the ever watchful and forgiving father equates our Heavenly Father. I hope you like the "fleshing out" of Jesus' characters that I have revealed to you so far. Again, I ask your prayers for the acceptance and ultimate success of this forthcoming book, and I also invite you to read my first book, Remember Lot's Wife: What Jesus Taught About the End of the World if you haven't already. You may click the link below to order. Thanks again. Kathy The Second Coming of Christ Is Jesus Really Coming Back to Earth? By Kathy S. McBride And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give to every man according as his work shall be. Revelation 22:12 Jesus spoke those words as recorded by the Apostle John in his writing of the book of Revelation. Oddly enough I heard on the news recently that a survey revealed that some 68% of Christians either aren't sure or flat out don't believe that Jesus will return to this planet. It's inconceivable to me that the majority of Christ's own professed followers don't believe His own promises any more. That is a sad commentary on the Church itself. Virtually the entire New Testament is chock full of the promises of Jesus' Second Coming, a large portion of them from Jesus Himself. So how has this ignorance happened? Sin, of course, is the culprit. Satan has so completely worked his evil into Christ's Church that it's quite questionable as to who is serving whom. Of course, each "Christian" - and each denomination - is absolutely certain of "complete truth." Balderdash. No one, church or individual, has "complete truth." God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit have that lone distinction. And the appalling biblical ignorance revealed in that survey clearly shows most people are not in "complete truth" but rather in "complete darkness." How sad. Perhaps God's people have lost their way in the endless pursuit of money, pleasure, and entertainment. Perhaps it came about when the Church began to forget that "the great commission" of making disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19) does NOT mean to "legislate" morality and coerce or force others to see things the way they do. Nor does it mean that "works" and "self - righteousness" are the means to capture the hearts of nonbelievers. Sadly, those very things seem to have come into prominence as the very meaning of "Christianity." No wonder there is such a bitter divide in our nation between the "red" and "blue" states, the left and right "wings." With some of the hostility - and stupidity - coming from far too many pulpits nowadays it's a wonder that Christ's church advances at all! It is, in fact, by God's own grace that His church grows. . . . And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. Acts 2:47 We are merely instruments in the hands of the Great Physician. We are but tools used by the great Creator to advance His Kingdom. For those who are working so hard to bring "self glory" or, even worse, alienating every one and every thing not in agreement with their way of thinking, perhaps God is saying, "Get over it. You are wasting your time and Mine." More specifically, God is calling His people to a closer relationship with Him, and to a new study of His Word, The Holy Bible. Not one of us is able to do anything to advance the cause of Christ's free gift of merciful salvation. He laid down His life as full payment for our sins and He Alone offers full pardon. Not a single person past, present, or future partook of that crucifixion agony and Resurrection so no mortal flesh has any say in the matter. . . . God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. Luke 3:8 Don't kid yourself for a minute that your self - righteous, holier-than-thou good works will count for anything when Jesus rips open the skies and wakes the dead with the blast of the archangel's trumpet. Nothing matters except a bona fide relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Period. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. 2 Timothy 2:15,16 Obviously the answer to the blatant ignorance of God's people is to become firmly grounded in The Holy Scriptures, but that does NOT mean taking someone else's word for what the Bible teaches. What it does mean is to know for yourself what's in it. It doesn't matter what you've always believed or been taught, or what Brother So and So says, or what your denomination teaches. What matters is biblical truth and your obedience to it. Jesus warned, "Watch." (Mark 13:35-37) And He said for us to watch so that His Second Coming would not find us "sleeping." But asleep we are! It has come to the point that over two thirds of Christians polled said they're not sure He is coming again. Astounding. I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of Man [Jesus] cometh, shall He find faith on the earth? Luke 18:8 That's pretty scary. Jesus Himself wondered if He would even find "real followers" when He comes again. Of course, He knew the answer to that question, and He knew exactly how many and exactly who will be redeemed, yet He made that statement as a wake up call to His "so-called" followers. It's way past time to awaken so we can watch for His coming! If you would like to learn more about the Second Coming of Christ, how you can discern the "signs" that signal His approach, as well as study other vitally important topics for our time, I invite you to order a copy of my book, Remember Lot's Wife: What Jesus Taught About the End of the World. It "tells it like it is" straight from the Bible; no outside sources were used in its compilation. Just click the link below for easy ordering information. You'll be glad you did. More importantly, you will be breaking the chains of ignorance that blind the vast majority of the Christian world today. Thanks to all of you again for your support of our Promises and Praise newsletter. Once again I want to URGE each of you to send in YOUR praises to the Lord God: each of you know He is worthy to be praised! If you have already had a praise published, that's okay: you may submit as many praises as you would like - I will print them all! Remember also that only your first name and city and state will be published with your praises in order to protect your privacy. Thank you for your continued support of my books and websites. Click the "Find out more " links in this newsletter to visit my websites, etc. Praise the Lord! Until next time, Kathy S. McBride Promises and Praise email: kathysmcbride@ksmcbride.com phone: 270-890-8938 web: http://www.jesuswillreturnsoon.com Promises and Praise | P. O. Box 847 | Hopkinsville | KY | 42241-0847 |
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