Our Chinese Friends

Thank you for praying for us, during the youth service.  God helped me speak as well as my friend who translated.  There was a good turn out.  Here is a picture of a bunch of us afterwards.  -pdd

 

Prayer Desired Right Now

I've been asked to speak in the Chinese church (in Argentina) to the youth group (ages 13-30) on Sunday afternoon -- tomorrow.

I'll preach in Spanish and it will be translated into Mandarin.  Please pray for the speaker, translator, and hearers.

I'm highly honored with this privilege, but deeply sense the need of the Holy Spirit's anointing.  May Christ be glorified.  And may His Word bring forth fruit unto holiness.  
                                                                                                  Thanks, Phillip
For an update on this prayer request click here.

credit: www.forwallpaper.com

With Christ, Brokenness Brings Beauty

God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, broken bread to give strength. It is the broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. It is Peter, weeping bitterly, who returns to greater power than ever.                                                                               - Vance Havner

Men want only the strong, the successful, the victorious, the unbroken, in building their kingdoms; but God is the God of the unsuccessful, of those who have failed. 

Christ is building His kingdom with earth's broken things.

Credit: www.777top.com/diy-creative-planters

Heaven is filling with earth's broken lives, and there is no bruised reed that Christ cannot take and restore to glorious blessedness and beauty.  He can take the life crushed by pain or sorrow and make it into a harp whose music shall be all praise.  He can lift earth's saddest failure up to heaven's glory.

"Follow me, and I will make you" . . .
Make you speak my words with power,
Make you channels of My mercy,
Make you helpful every hour.

"Follow Me, and I will make you" . . .
Make you what you cannot be --
Make you loveing, trustful, godly,
Make you even like to Me.            - Selected from March 15, Streams In The Desert, by Mrs. Charles Cowman.

The Correct Attitude Toward Our LORD

St Kilda, Scotland

“His name should never be mentioned but with awe; and our whole conduct should testify that we are deeply sensible of His presence, and that there is nothing which we are so anxious to obtain as His favor, nothing which we so much dread as His displeasure.” 
                              Lectures On Theology, pg. 274, by John Dick, Scottish minister, 1764–1833.

Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom according to Proverbs 1:7.
                              -pdd

The Power of the Blood of Jesus. Andrew Murray quotes.

Photo credit: www.ajosephproject.com/blog/andrew-murray-biography

   
"The Lord Jesus did not offer up His own life, and shed His blood to spare us from the sacrifice of our lives.  No, indeed ! but to make the sacrifice of our lives possible and desirable."

"It is impossible for us to think too highly, or to expect too much, from the power of Jesus' blood."

"No sense of unworthiness, or of ignorance, or of helplessness must cause us to doubt.  The blood works in the surrendered soul with a ceaseless power of life."
                                      - quotes from The Power Of The Blood Of Jesus by Andrew Murray

Murray also said that in order to experience the glorious blessings of the blood of Jesus Christ, we must place ourselves under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, we must strongly desire and expect deliverance from anything that is not pleasing to God, and we must strongly desire and expect holiness and intimate friendship with our Holy God.        
                      -pdd

Study: Online Interaction Causes Loneliness (With One Exception)

"Online interaction causes loneliness," says TIME.  According to research, “The greater the proportion of face-to-face interactions, the less lonely you are.  The greater the proportion of online interactions, the lonelier you are.”

Social websites will make one lonelier, unless it's used to facilitate face to face interactions; that is the one exception according to this authority.  For example, social sites could be used to schedule a gathering or a meeting.  Technology is a tool, but it can't make you happy.  Relationships make people happy.  When tools are used to facilitate relationships, they make one happier.  When technology replaces relationships it brings problems. The same article also unequivocally states that "more TV only makes you more unhappy."

 

But the greatest problem and misery comes when technology takes time better spent with God or doing something that you know God wants you to do.  The more time spent with God the more joy we experience.  Obeying God also brings joy.  The more technology replaces time with God or obeying Him the more depressed people feel.  Also, God gives Himself to those who want Him and His will over rivals.
 -pdd  

Hudson Taylor on Prayer

"I used to ask God to help me. Then I asked if I might help Him. I ended up asking Him to do His
work through me."  - Hudson Taylor

"Antes pedía que Dios me ayudara. Luego pedí que si yo podría ayudarle a El. Al fin yo pedí que El  haga Su obra a través de mí." - Hudson Taylor

Hudson Taylor has influenced my life and my praying.  God knows what needs to be accomplished in His kingdom better than I know. 

One thing we can be assured of, God WILL hear and answer the prayers of those who are abiding in Christ.  May God's Holy Spirit lead us into prayer.  Halelujah!  Pray On!!!
-pdd