Spiritual Renewal
If Jesus needed to spend time in renewal,
how much more do we!
Let’s face it:
deadlines,
family responsibilities,
job stress,
relationship woes,
and simply the everyday routine of life
can wear us down.
That’s why I’ve put together the perfect spiritual renewal
adventure. If Alaska is on your bucket list, you can cross it off by
joining me on the Susie Shellenberger Ministries “Friends & Family
Alaskan Adventure” June 1-8, 2019.
Even though it’s several months away, RIGHT NOW is the time
to decide to put down your deposit and make plans to participate.
We’ll have our own special services together where I’ll be
speaking—along with a friend of mine Kathy Slamp—who has spoken
on several Alaskan cruises as a naturalist. She has an exciting
ministry and is gifted at intertwining the Alaskan beauty with spiritual
insights.
We’ll be cruising on the Holland America line—a fantastic fleet
of ships that has your comfort at the top of the list.
If whale-watching, dog-sledding, touring quaint little cities in the
Alaskan ports we stop in, fishing, and a lot of other activities interest
you, this is what you’ve been waiting for.
Or . . . you can simply stay on board the ship the entire time
and enjoy free room service, the fun shows, and of course our own
special services together. This will truly be the spiritual renewal
you’ve been yearning for.
If you want more information, email our cruise liaison, Carla
Pryor: carlaray@aol.com
OR email me with your complete mailing address if you’d like to
receive a full-color brochure through regular mail.
Oh! Holland America is allowing me to give a $50 credit to
each room! You can use it for anything you want—an excursion, the
gift shop, tips, whatever!
I’d LOVE to spend a week with you enjoying spiritual growth
through our services and seeing God through His natural and
amazing beauty in Alaska!
Please pray for me this weekend.
I’m excited to be performing my nephew Scott Shellenberger’s
wedding.
Spiritual Drama
Once in a while I hear someone say, “Whoa!”
But I never hear anyone say “Woe!”
It’s a word we don’t use much anymore.
But Isaiah used it—and when we did—it had a powerful
meaning. Let’s take a look:
“Woe to me!” I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean
lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have
seen the King, the Lord Almighty’ ” (Isaiah 6:5 NIV).
Isaiah got close enough to God, he was able to see Him as He
truly is—exalted and in fathomless glory. Isaiah’s response?
“Woe to me!”
And he cried this exclamation.
The apostle John, when banished on the criminally infested,
rocky, volcanic island of Patmos, also saw God in the exalted Christ.
“When I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. . . .”
(John 1:17 LB).
John’s response? He fainted.
He was out cold. Down for the count.
When God passed by Moses, He told Moses to cover his face.
Moses obeyed, but after God had passed by and Moses joined his
people, they noticed his face was shining in brilliance because he had
been so close to the Lord. (See Exodus 33:19-23)
Ezekiel saw a vision of God:
“And when I saw it, I fell face downward on the ground. . . .”
(Ezekiel 1:28 LB).
He fainted.
Why all the drama? Fainting, crying “Woe,” and out cold?
It’s because when we get close enough to God and see Him
exalted—as He truly is—we are suddenly and keenly aware of our
own sinfulness.
As long as we don’t get that close to God, we can live
comfortably with our own personal holiness. But when He truly
reveals Himself to us in His perfect glory, we become radically
changed.
Instead of being satisfied with where we are spiritually right now
. . . lets become consistently agitated until we are close enough to
God that we become radically changed.
Thoughts?
Please pray for me as I speak in Nacogdoches, Texas this
weekend.
Right Concept, Wrong Idea #7
We’re taking a look at some well-known thoughts that we tend to
misinterpret biblically.
“God heals everyone who has enough faith.”
God’s healing isn’t dependent on your faith.
God can do whatever, whenever and wherever He wants regardless
of you.
Yes, He loves it when you express your faith in Him.
And He loves to increase your faith.
But He also accepts your shallow faith:
(Remember the father whose son was demon-possessed and mute?)
“I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24 ESV)
Paul didn’t tell Timothy to have more faith so his stomach would be
healed. Instead, Paul advised him not only to drink water—
but to take a little wine for his stomach problems.
This isn’t telling all of us who have stomach problems to drink wine,
but it does show us that God doesn’t heal all Christians while they’re
on earth. Eventually, all will be healed—in heaven.
Paul spoke about the “thorn in his flesh.”
Many Bible scholars think this had something to do with his eyesight.
Notice in 2 Thessalonians 3:17, he tells us he’s ending the letter with
his own handwriting. This lets us know that he dictated the letter to
someone else, but Paul signed it himself.
Many scholars believe it was because of his poor eyesight that he
needed to use a scribe to write his letters.
And in Galatians 6:11, Paul tells us he’s writing in large letters. Again,
many believe that’s because of his declining eyesight at that time.
Paul prayed many times that God would heal him of the “thorn in his
flesh.” He certainly had faith that God could do this. But whatever the
thorn was, Paul wasn’t healed of it.
He accepted God’s answer: “My grace is sufficient for you, my
power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV).
I can’t help but think of Joni Eareckson Tada whose diving accident
during her teen years caused her to become a quadriplegic.
She—long with many others—have prayed for her healing. It’s
certainly not because she doesn’t have faith that God hasn’t healed
her.
For reasons we won’t understand until we’re in heaven, God simply
chooses to heal some people on earth and others not until they’re
with Him.
It’s His will that we continue to pray healing for those who need it, but
we shouldn’t lose faith when we don’t see our prayers answered
during our timetable.
Thoughts?
Please pray for me as I speak in Swartz Creek, MI this weekend.