Some food for thought I received a day or two ago:
Quote:
Tuesday is Bob's day to shares his thoughts on marriage restoration 20 years after remarriage to Charlyne following their divorce.
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WHO ARE YOU FOLLOWING?
"Hear now, O Israel, the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land that the LORD , the God of your fathers, is giving you. Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you." Deuteronomy 4:1-2
Even though the big Ford van now has traveled over 130,000 miles, it is the best vehicle I have ever driven. Right now, it is serviced and ready to head out for Rejoice on the Road in just a few days.
I knew the van needed repairs before this trip. The same shop has done maintenance on the vehicle for eight years, so I trust their advice. I was not prepared for the news last week. Repairs were going to be an expensive venture and take several days, so I took the van through the car wash instead. It looked great.
A silly substitution? Maybe, but before you laugh at me, let's compare that illustration to what some men and women standing with God, and praying for restoration of their marriage do when their spiritual journey encounters trouble.
When the Enemy strikes in a major way, they are thrust into a spiritual battle. It can be won only by using spiritual weapons of the Word of God, prayer and fasting. Instead of turning to spiritual weapons, many standers feel the computer is their weapon.
Instead of telling their Heavenly Father their problems, they tell everyone who will listen. Often these are guised as prayer requests, but 99% of their message tells all of the detailed circumstances. These people post details on sites that allow that.
They go to chat rooms and share their mess, seeking advice from strangers. They have online friendships with people whom they have never seen, whose advice they take freely, be it right or wrong.
Meanwhile, their Bible lies unopened, and all the while God is saying, "I have solutions. Why are you not asking me?"
When Charlyne or I talk to one of the mis-guided standers, they justify, "I pray online and I get my Bible study from many devotionals such as Charlyne Cares." When you pray, there must be a time to be quiet and wait for the Holy Spirit to speak to you, not simply to wait for a reply to your instant message to someone else.
"Charlyne Cares" was never intended to replace your daily Bible study and time in God's presence alone.
For 15 years, we have met one night each week with men and women who are seeking God's restoration of their marriage. In two hours, we manage to fit in praise music, prayer requests, praise reports, announcements, special features, and Charlyne's teaching from the Bible for an hour. Anyone who has ever attended a single Monday night can tell you that we do not share circumstances at Rejoice Pompano Beach.
If someone there is facing court, we pray for them, but there is not time, nor is there reason, to hear all their circumstances. Many a stander's Bible study have gone under when people started sharing circumstances.
Another trademark of Rejoice Pompano Beach is that we do not give advice. The only "you should" advice new standers with problems hear from anyone at Bible study is that "you should" ask God, not man, to direct them what they are to do.
God has answers that He will reveal to that stander alone.
This is a tough message; but good men and women in their hurting, are being led astray, instead of being led into the Bible and directly to God for His always-perfect answers.
This message does not even apply to most standers, whose stand is firmly fixed in Christ Jesus. They know the secret of standing is always turning to Him alone. I pray these solid standers will excuse us while we deal with some people who call themselves "standers", but have been misguided in their hurts.
This small group are seeking answers in all the wrong places.
As an aside, my van did not actually go to the car wash. I gave it up for several days to allow the repairs. It did need the car wash when it came back from the shop. It was an expensive venture, but now I know the van will make it to Virginia and back.
Do you know if your stand will carry you to a restored marriage, with every family member loving and serving the Lord?
Standing God's way may be slow going, but just as my car repair, the right way is the only way that will truly last. In marriage restoration, God's way is the only way that will bring results that will not leave you broken down by the road of life.
Have you ever heard the phrase "spiritual cult?" If you are trusting in and listening to some person or some program more that you are listening to your Heavenly Father, perhaps you should search the Internet and learn about this term.
"The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth." I Timothy 4:1-3
Spiritual cults direct their followers to one person's way rather than teaching them to learn to hear from God. That person is, in effect, running your life. Their answers are always right. They do not allow room for the Holy Spirit to move in its followers' lives, but dictate rules that must be followed. Recruitment is done by members, not by God's leading people to the group.
"These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage." Jude 1:16
Spiritual cults are trademarked by using parts of verses from Holy Scripture, out of context, to say what that group wants to say. To be applied correctly, verses before and after a scripture must be read, not just a few words extracted from one verse.
This can all be summed up by the title of a teaching Charlyne did years ago; "Who Are You Following?" We trust it is not the Steinkamps', because we do not have all the answers you need. The answer of every stander must be, "I am following Jesus alone."
We may be able to provide books and CD's to encourage and direct you, but for your day-to-day answers, direction, counsel, and comfort, you must be looking not to us, nor to any other person or group, but to our Lord God alone.
You are not going to develop that relationship from time on the computer, but from time with Christ, in prayer, in meditation, and most of all in His Word, the Bible.
If you are standing for God's miracle restoration of your marriage, but your only real relationship with Him is using His name in your email and posts, you are, in effect, running your broken marriage vehicle through the car wash. It may look good on the outside, but nothing is being rebuilt on the inside. Some day you will find yourself stranded on the highway of life.
My prayer is that today you will seriously ponder the question, "Who are you following?" If your answer is a person, confess it to God, and turn back to Him.
Your Lord is waiting for you with opened arms.
"'If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit." Leviticus 26:3-4
Following Jesus,
Bob Steinkamp Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc.� Post Office Box 10548 Pompano Beach, Florida 33061 USA
Standers in the southeastern United States have eleven opportunities to meet with Bob and Charlyne during the balance of October. Can we count on seeing you? - http://rejoiceministries.org/road.html
