Am I an Absalom?

Great night at church.  Great message on the Grace Hour radio program today.  So many thoughts and meditations I don’t know if I can write them down.

I loved on Grace Hour how the message brought out that our love, our attitude has to be censored through the Word of God.  It’s hard to put it into words and the right context without hearing the message.  We don’t go forward in our mental attitude based on anything but checking it with what God thinks of it.  And how could we ever without continuously studying the Word of God?  I feel like I’m on a train headed down hill, gaining more and more momentum in the necessity of truly studying the Word of God.  How could we ever have discernment about relationships, issues and the daily grind if we don’t know God’s thoughts?  Lord, teach me. 

And that brings me to tonight’s message.  I want to say that I am so thankful for the many ministries out there.  Great ministries and typing this is convicting me to pray more for them.  Billy Graham, Ravi, Beth Moore (women’s ministry), Life Way, Kay Arthur (women’s ministry), David Jeremiah, the many who have gone before, the many amazing Christian authors and the multitude that are unknown to the general public.  Lord, please bless them.  Put a hedge of fire around them.  I praise You that I can see and know You more through them.  So that brings me to something I must say second after that little thought about other ministries.  There was a man who sang tonight and spoke a little testimony after the message that packed a powerful punch.  He goes to a seven footsteps program for new people at our church.  He is/was so thankful for the grace message after being brought up and continuing in legalism his entire Christian life (I am summarizing).  He was/is so thankful to be a part of a teaching church and to have a pastor like ours.  Now, we have been back in Maryland for just over a year and I continue to be grateful for our church.  I continue to be amazed (not in human idol worship way) at our pastor and his laid down life, his study of the Word, his humility and his deep love of the flock.  Thank You, God for my pastor.  May you give me a double portion of his blessing (ha-ha but not really – I’m not joking).   Tonight our pastor preached on Acts 4:23 – the company we keep, the people of which we are a part.  God must be really speaking (of course He is!)because I think the Grace Hour message had the same heart beat for lack of a better term.  And God has been speaking these same things to me.  Am I with people that lift me up and encourage my faith?  Or am I with an Absalom or am I an Absalom?  Absalom was the son of King David.  Real family issues festered in Absalom until his chasm of bitterness swallowed others by his manipulating ways and drove him and his unhappy camper company to pursue David – and were hoping to kill.  Am I or are you allowing unforgiveness to reign in your heart until finally it’s king of our life?  By the grace of God and through the power of God I was delivered from being that person.  I was an Absalom.  I don’t ever want to be him again.