Least Most: "The Least Words Possible" Michael James Stone

-excerpt from "Utmost with the Least Most"

by Michael James Stone

"The Least Words Possible"

Stop.


Whatever you are doing right now, stop it.

Just stop. 
Quit. 
Be still.


Take a moment for yourself right now and pay attention.


Listen very carefully, read closely.


Take a really..... really ....really....deep breath, and hold it a second, then blow out.


Yes of course it sounds ridiculous and yes it may seem absurd where you are right now but so what. God dying on a cross seems pretty ridiculous. Jesus dying for me personally seems pretty absurd.


So, Stop.


Take a deep breath and let it out slowly. 


Relax..... Be still......


Now this time I want you to do it one more time and you can quit looking silly, foolish, upsurd.


Close your eyes and think about the first person you fell in love with. The moment of ecstatic angst that you actually ached to see that person. The one person you will never forget. The one you thought you couldn't live without.


Remember when You imagined what it was like to just touch the person, hold their hand, kiss them? You never wanted to leave them. You loved holding them and being held by them. Remember? Think about it.


Remember how you felt? Couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, just had to call them one more time, just had to text them or see them in person. 


Just one more...., just one more...., it was never enough.  You just had to be with them a little longer.., ARRGGHH......you had to have more.


Remember that?


Good.


Ok, Close your eyes, take a deep breath, think about that first time you fell in love.


As you let that breath go out of our chest say these simple words you meant so well with all you heart and soul and ache and tender feelings you had for one so young. 


The least of words, but the ones that burned in your chest to say when you meant it so much to the one you fell in love with.


Close your eyes.
Take a deep breath.
Hold it a Second,
Let it out and say,


"I Love You"


Now,


Do the same with Jesus.

Leadership: What are you doing to improve your communication skills? (85-4) ~ Barry Werner

What are you doing to improve your communication skills? (85-4)

September 3rd, 2009 in 1 Samuel, Communication Skills, Old Testament, Personal Development, Skills | leave a response

Peter Drucker, who some call the father of American management, believes that 60 percent of all management problems result from faulty communication. Having a message doesn’t matter if leaders don’t communicate clearly and motivate others. Read 1 Samuel 7-12.

Samuel was an excellent communicator. Everyone listened to him. How did he do it? Samuel followed a few simple rules:

• He spoke forthrightly, clearly, and simply.
• He simplified his message.
• He knew his audience and empathized with others.
• He lived what he said and demonstrated credibility and passion.
• He spoke with purpose and urged people to obey God.

A few elements of Samuel’s communication can be found in the following examples:

• His communication contained divine revelation and insights that people lacked (7:3).
• His communication inspired Saul to overcome his fear and step out (10:3-6).
• His communication encouraged the people to act and follow Saul as their new king (10:24).
• His communication affirmed, supported and endorsed Saul publicly (also in 10:24).
• His communication taught others (10:25).
• His communication gave clear directions and a hope for the future 12:20-25).

What are you doing to improve your communication skills? Effective leaders are lifelong learners.

• 

Tags: Learner

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Those who want to live by grace ~ Bob Hoekstra

Isaiah Warning against Worldly Counsel

"Woe to the rebellious children," says the LORD, "Who take counsel, but not of Me, and who devise plans, but not of My Spirit, that they may add sin to sin. Who walk to go down toEgypt, and have not asked My advice." (Isaiah 30:1-2)

Those who want to live by grace (living by God working in and through their lives) characteristically depend upon the counsel of the Lord. Correspondingly, they have a burden to warn against worldly counsel, which undermines, or substitutes itself for God's counsel. "'Woe to the rebellious children,' says the LORD, 'Who take counsel, but not of Me.'"




Everyone needs counsel consistently. We all need to find valid guidance and direction through the opportunities and challenges of life. The Lord is to be our constant resource for such counsel. "This also comes from the LORD of hosts, who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance" (Isaiah 28:29). The counsel of the Lord is wonderful; it is excellent! In fact, when Messiah would come (Jesus, the Christ), one of His descriptive title names would be "Wonderful Counselor" (Isaiah 9:6). This wonderful counsel of God comes to us through the word of God. "Your testimonies also are my delight and my counselors" (Psalm 119:24).


Consequently, those who turn elsewhere for counsel are rebelling (at least, inadvertently) against the Lord. "'Woe to the rebellious children,' says the LORD, 'Who take counsel, but not of Me.'" Our God of grace wants to counsel us down His path. He wants to teach us to live by His wisdom and His provision. When we are formulating our plans, He wants us to allow His Spirit to direct us through His word. The only other option is to lean on the counsel of the world: "who devise plans, but not of My Spirit… who walk to go down to Egypt, and have notasked My advice." God strongly warned His children of the vanity of seeking the worldly wisdom of Egypt.


"You are wearied in themultitude of your counsels; let now the astrologers, the stargazers, and the monthly prognosticators stand up and save you from these things that shall come upon you" (Isaiah 47:13).
The church world today frequently turns to the contemporary speculations of man. The wisdom of man is a vain help. We would do well to consider Isaiah's clear warning. "Woe to those who go down toEgypt for help…who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seekthe LORD!" (Isaiah 31:1).

Lord Jesus, my Wonderful Counselor, forgive me for the many times that I have turned to worldly counsel. I see that such a choice interferes with Your work of grace in my life. Please remind me day by day to seek all of the counsel I need through the Holy Spirit unfolding the wisdom of Your word, Amen.

We are a nation of bored and depressed people ~ Greg Laurie

In his book, "Back to Virtue," author and philosopher Peter Kreeft points out that the word for boredom did not exist in premodern languages. So it seems that boredom is a relatively modern term, a condition that afflicts more people today than it did centuries ago.

Not only are we bored as a modern society, but we are depressed as well. According to IMS Health, antidepressants led the market in prescription drugs in 2007, totaling $12 billion in sales. And in 2008, antidepressants still ranked among the top five pharmaceuticals being dispensed in the U.S.

As a whole, we are a nation of bored and depressed people. Does that describe you? Maybe you have tried a number of things, yet nothing gives you that buzz, that thrill you are looking for. The Bible talks about someone who felt that way. His name was Solomon, and he committed himself to researching the roots of human behavior to discover why people do what they do.

Meanwhile, as a king, he ignored the affairs of state. He neglected his family. He set aside all spiritual principles and truth. And whether it was passion, pleasure, philosophy, sex, or money, he determined to find out everything he possibly could about the topic. He would explore it – examine all sides. Solomon was not content to merely study these things; he wanted to personally experience them.

Among the avenues that Solomon pursued in his quest for meaning was knowledge. Certainly the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom is a good one. There are very few things this life offers that are better than the pursuit of a good education. We celebrate our dramatic advances in science and technology, and they have been breathtaking, to say the least. But if in that pursuit we leave out God, then it, too, will be an empty one. As Gen. Omar Bradley stated in an Armistice Day speech in 1948, "We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount. ... The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants."

If intellectualism alone were the major key to purpose and fulfillment, then our university and college campuses would be bastions of peace and purpose. People would flock to them from all around our nation to find answers. Yet a walk through a typical, secular university will show you the emptiness of academic pursuit without God. That is the conclusion Solomon drew: "Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind. For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief" (Ecclesiastes 1:17-18 niv).

So Solomon shifted gears and decided to abandon himself instead to the pursuit of pleasure. He essentially had unlimited time and resources to do whatever he wanted to do. He was the king, his kingdom was at peace, and there were no domestic problems to speak of. But he soon discovered that pleasure is short-lived. It is like waiting in line at an amusement park. When your turn finally comes, the ride is over in a matter of minutes. In life, we can do a lot of waiting for short-lived pleasures that, at best, leave us empty. Solomon concluded, "Laughter ... is foolish. And what does pleasure accomplish?" (Ecclesiastes 2:2 niv).

Then Solomon thought maybe he would find what he was looking for in alcohol: "I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly ..." (Ecclesiastes 2:3 niv). During my childhood, I saw firsthand the futility and the emptiness of this. I saw how my once-beautiful mother threw it all away chasing after men, money and alcohol. Think of the lives ruined, the homes broken and the pain that has been caused by alcohol. "Happy Hour" doesn't look very happy to me.

Solomon's next pursuit was to build the most amazing places possible: "I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees" (Ecclesiastes 2:4-6 niv). Solomon went on a "building binge," with a portfolio of construction projects that would have made Donald Trump's endeavors look small in comparison. Yet Solomon found that this, too, was empty: "When I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 2:11 niv).

In the end, Solomon discovered that all pursuits without God are empty ones. So his bottom line was this: It's all about knowing the God who made you and living the way He wants you to live (see Ecclesiastes 12:13–14). Solomon knew, as a seasoned pro, that if you leave God out of the picture, life will be empty, meaningless, and futile. He also knew that the answer to having a full life, a life with purpose, is to fear God and obey him. To "fear" God does not mean being afraid of him. Rather, it means giving respect, reverence and honor to him.

Solomon recognized that God knows what he is talking about, and he respected that. And if we want to live a life filled with meaning and purpose, then we should too.

Humble dependency upon God ~ Bob Caldwell

48:27 For was not Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves? For whenever you speak of him, You shake your head in scorn. The nation of Moab saw itself as a people who were invincible. They had complete confidence in their ability to withstand anything that came against them (48:7). It was in light of this that they looked at Israel with disdain (48:27). We see a similar description of the Ammonites. They, too, saw themselves as a people superior to their neighbors. And the people of Edom were no different. They were so impressed with themselves and the fierceness with which they fought that they too believed themselves to be invincible. These three nations had one other thing in common: they were all horribly self-deceived (49:16). These nations were not much different than how many of us approach life. A false sense of pride that feels superior over others and no need for humble dependency upon God will, in the end, be our undoing. In a real sense, the desire to be free from dependency upon God and hold a position of superiority over those around us can be traced by the fall of Adam and Eve. The fall of humanity was the direct result of Satan's temptation laid before Adam and Eve with the offer to become "gods"—free from any dependency upon God, free to determine for themselves their own course and values for life, and free to decide good and evil for themselves. It was in this freedom from God that resulted in Cain's decision to force his dominance over his brother Abel. Cain rejected the God Abel worshiped and the way God chose to be worshiped. It was ultimately this self-exalting passion that led Cain to kill his brother. This poison of pride within our souls has left a world in conflict ever since. From within our families to the nations of the world, this struggle for dominance over others and freedom from God's will has helped to shape the history of the human experience. The only antidote for this terrible poison that has created so much sorrow is Jesus Christ, the prince of peace, and the one who described Himself as meek and lowly, a servant of all. It is only when He takes up residency within us that the corrupting poison of self-exalting pride finds its match. We must, therefore, be born again and become partakers of His divine life if we are ever able to be free from the cycle of pride's destructive influence on us.
Jeremiah 48:1-49:22  Judgment on Moab 1 Against Moab. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: "Woe to Nebo! For it is plundered, Kirjathaim is shamed and taken; The high stronghold is shamed and dismayed— 2 No more praise of Moab. In Heshbon they have devised evil against her: 'Come, and let us cut her off as a nation.' You also shall be cut down, O Madmen! The sword shall pursue you; 3 A voice of crying shall be from Horonaim: 'Plundering and great destruction!' 4 "Moab is destroyed; Her little ones have caused a cry to be heard; 5 For in the Ascent of Luhith they ascend with continual weeping; For in the descent of Horonaim the enemies have heard a cry of destruction. 6 "Flee, save your lives! And be like the juniper in the wilderness. 7 For because you have trusted in your works and your treasures, You also shall be taken. And Chemosh shall go forth into captivity, His priests and his princes together. 8 And the plunderer shall come against every city; No one shall escape. The valley also shall perish, And the plain shall be destroyed, As the LORD has spoken. 9 "Give wings to Moab, That she may flee and get away; For her cities shall be desolate, Without any to dwell in them. 10 Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD deceitfully, And cursed is he who keeps back his sword from blood. 11 "Moab has been at ease from his youth; He has settled on his dregs, And has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, Nor has he gone into captivity. Therefore his taste remained in him, And his scent has not changed. 12 "Therefore behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I shall send him wine-workers Who will tip him over And empty his vessels And break the bottles. 13 Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, As the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence. 14 "How can you say, 'We are mighty And strong men for the war'? 15 Moab is plundered and gone up from her cities; Her chosen young men have gone down to the slaughter," says the King, Whose name is the LORD of hosts. 16 "The calamity of Moab is near at hand, And his affliction comes quickly. 17 Bemoan him, all you who are around him; And all you who know his name, Say, 'How the strong staff is broken, The beautiful rod!' 18 "O daughter inhabiting Dibon, Come down from your glory, And sit in thirst; For the plunderer of Moab has come against you, He has destroyed your strongholds. 19 O inhabitant of Aroer, Stand by the way and watch; Ask him who flees And her who escapes; Say, 'What has happened?' 20 Moab is shamed, for he is broken down. Wail and cry! Tell it in Arnon, that Moab is plundered. 21 "And judgment has come on the plain country: On Holon and Jahzah and Mephaath, 22 On Dibon and Nebo and Beth Diblathaim, 23 On Kirjathaim and Beth Gamul and Beth Meon, 24 On Kerioth and Bozrah, On all the cities of the land of Moab, Far or near. 25 The horn of Moab is cut off, And his arm is broken," says the LORD. 26 "Make him drunk, Because he exalted himself against the LORD. Moab shall wallow in his vomit, And he shall also be in derision. 27 For was not Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves? For whenever you speak of him, You shake your head in scorn. 28 You who dwell in Moab, Leave the cities and dwell in the rock, And be like the dove which makes her nest In the sides of the cave's mouth. 29 "We have heard the pride of Moab (He is exceedingly proud), Of his loftiness and arrogance and pride, And of the haughtiness of his heart." 30 "I know his wrath," says the LORD, "But it is not right; His lies have made nothing right. 31 Therefore I will wail for Moab, And I will cry out for all Moab; I will mourn for the men of Kir Heres. 32 O vine of Sibmah! I will weep for you with the weeping of Jazer. Your plants have gone over the sea, They reach to the sea of Jazer. The plunderer has fallen on your summer fruit and your vintage. 33 Joy and gladness are taken From the plentiful field And from the land of Moab; I have caused wine to fail from the winepresses; No one will tread with joyous shouting— Not joyous shouting! 34 "From the cry of Heshbon to Elealeh and to Jahaz They have uttered their voice, From Zoar to Horonaim, Like a three-year-old heifer; For the waters of Nimrim also shall be desolate. 35 "Moreover," says the LORD, "I will cause to cease in Moab The one who offers sacrifices in the high places And burns incense to his gods. 36 Therefore My heart shall wail like flutes for Moab, And like flutes My heart shall wail For the men of Kir Heres. Therefore the riches they have acquired have perished. 37 "For every head shall be bald, and every beard clipped; On all the hands shall be cuts, and on the loins sackcloth— 38 A general lamentation On all the housetops of Moab, And in its streets; For I have broken Moab like a vessel in which is no pleasure," says the LORD. 39 "They shall wail: 'How she is broken down! How Moab has turned her back with shame!' So Moab shall be a derision And a dismay to all those about her." 40 For thus says the LORD: "Behold, one shall fly like an eagle, And spread his wings over Moab. 41 Kerioth is taken, And the strongholds are surprised; The mighty men's hearts in Moab on that day shall be Like the heart of a woman in birth pangs. 42 And Moab shall be destroyed as a people, Because he exalted himself against the LORD. 43 Fear and the pit and the snare shall be upon you, O inhabitant of Moab," says the LORD. 44 "He who flees from the fear shall fall into the pit, And he who gets out of the pit shall be caught in the snare. For upon Moab, upon it I will bring The year of their punishment," says the LORD. 45 "Those who fled stood under the shadow of Heshbon Because of exhaustion. But a fire shall come out of Heshbon, A flame from the midst of Sihon, And shall devour the brow of Moab, The crown of the head of the sons of tumult. 46 Woe to you, O Moab! The people of Chemosh perish; For your sons have been taken captive, And your daughters captive. 47 "Yet I will bring back the captives of Moab In the latter days," says the LORD. Thus far is the judgment of Moab. Jeremiah 49Judgment on Ammon 1 Against the Ammonites. Thus says the LORD: "Has Israel no sons? Has he no heir? Why then does Milcom inherit Gad, And his people dwell in its cities? 2 Therefore behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I will cause to be heard an alarm of war In Rabbah of the Ammonites; It shall be a desolate mound, And her villages shall be burned with fire. Then Israel shall take possession of his inheritance," says the LORD. 3 "Wail, O Heshbon, for Ai is plundered! Cry, you daughters of Rabbah, Gird yourselves with sackcloth! Lament and run to and fro by the walls; For Milcom shall go into captivity With his priests and his princes together. 4 Why do you boast in the valleys, Your flowing valley, O backsliding daughter? Who trusted in her treasures, saying, 'Who will come against me?' 5 Behold, I will bring fear upon you," Says the Lord GOD of hosts, "From all those who are around you; You shall be driven out, everyone headlong, And no one will gather those who wander off. 6 But afterward I will bring back The captives of the people of Ammon," says the LORD. Judgment on Edom 7 Against Edom. Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Is wisdom no more in Teman? Has counsel perished from the prudent? Has their wisdom vanished? 8 Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths, O inhabitants of Dedan! For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him, The time that I will punish him. 9 If grape-gatherers came to you, Would they not leave some gleaning grapes? If thieves by night, Would they not destroy until they have enough? 10 But I have made Esau bare; I have uncovered his secret places, And he shall not be able to hide himself. His descendants are plundered, His brethren and his neighbors, And he is no more. 11 Leave your fatherless children, I will preserve them alive; And let your widows trust in Me." 12 For thus says the LORD: "Behold, those whose judgment was not to drink of the cup have assuredly drunk. And are you the one who will altogether go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you shall surely drink of it. 13 For I have sworn by Myself," says the LORD, "that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse. And all its cities shall be perpetual wastes." 14 I have heard a message from the LORD, And an ambassador has been sent to the nations: "Gather together, come against her, And rise up to battle! 15 "For indeed, I will make you small among nations, Despised among men. 16 Your fierceness has deceived you, The pride of your heart, O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, Who hold the height of the hill! Though you make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there," says the LORD. 17 "Edom also shall be an astonishment; Everyone who goes by it will be astonished And will hiss at all its plagues. 18 As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah And their neighbors," says the LORD, "No one shall remain there, Nor shall a son of man dwell in it. 19 "Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the floodplain of the Jordan Against the dwelling place of the strong; But I will suddenly make him run away from her. And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her? For who is like Me? Who will arraign Me? And who is that shepherd Who will withstand Me?" 20 Therefore hear the counsel of the LORD that He has taken against Edom, And His purposes that He has proposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out; Surely He shall make their dwelling places desolate with them. 21 The earth shakes at the noise of their fall; At the cry its noise is heard at the Red Sea. 22 Behold, He shall come up and fly like the eagle, And spread His wings over Bozrah; The heart of the mighty men of Edom in that day shall be Like the heart of a woman in birth pangs.
Jeremiah 48:1-49:22 v. 1 Against Moab – Moab was a vassal state to the Assyrians during the 7th century BC. The prophecies against Moab in this chapter were fulfilled in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign (582 BC). The cities listed in this chapter are Moabite cities (Nebo, Kiriathaim, Heshbon, Horonaim, Luhith, Dibon, Aroer, Kir Hareseth, Jazer, Sibmah, Kerioth and Sihon). v. 7 Chemosh shall go forth into captivity – Chemosh was the national god of the Moabites. Chemosh was portrayed as a divine warrior holding a spear and positioned to defend the Moabite people. v. 11 has not been emptied from vessel to vessel – In verses 11-12 the judgment of Moab is being compared to the process of fermenting wine. In order to complete the wine making process, wine must be poured from its original vessel into a new vessel. v. 13 Bethel – This is possibly a reference to the western Semitic deity or the city where one of Jeroboam's golden calves was placed (1 Kings 12:25-33). v. 17 How the strong staff is broken – Staffs and rods were symbols of authority and dominion. v. 25 The horns of Moab is cut off – The crowns of gods and kings often had horns as a sign of their power and authority. The horn was also used in battles and war. v. 37 every head shall be bald and every beard clipped – These acts were signs of mourning, as was the cutting of ones hands and the wearing of sackcloth. v. 40 one shall fly like an eagle – The eagle was Nebuchadnezzar. Jeremiah 49 v. 1 Milcom – Milcom is Hebrew for Molech. Molech was an Ammonite god to whom child sacrifices were offered (32:35; Lev. 20:2-5; 2 Kings 23:10). v. 2 Rabbah – Rabbah was the capital city of the Ammonite kingdom. v. 4 O backsliding daughter – The backsliding or unfaithful daughter is a personification of the Ammonites. According to history (Josephus, Antiquities) Ammon was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar in 582 BC. v. 7 Against Edom – Edom was a vassal state of the Assyrians from the reigns of Tiglath-Pileser III to Ashurbanipal. Edom submitted themselves to Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar's reign in 605 BC. Edom was being judged, in part, because they remained passive while Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians (Ps. 137:7, Obad. 11). Teman – Teman is a geographical name that is synonymous with Edom (Obad. 9). Teman was located in the northern section of the southern Transjordanian kingdom and was where the nation of Edom originated. v. 8 I will bring the calamity of Esau upon them – Edom was another name for Esau, the brother of Jacob. The Edomites were descendants of Esau.
For was not Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves? For whenever you speak of him, You shake your head in scorn. –Jeremiah 48:27 Pride is the place where all sin begins, Lord. We know from Adam and Eve that it was not Your intention that this poison should ever invade this world that You created for us. Convict our hearts, God, where pride has begun to take root.
Chapel Missions India It's a wondrous privilege to be part of Chapel Missions India. Many of these precious people have given their lives to God through the efforts of the pastors in India so when death comes it's comforting to know they are eternally resting, healed and whole, in the arms of our Father. Prayer Points for the Run 4 Heaven's Gate half marathoners; that their efforts will raise thousands of dollars to send to the families in India suffering with AIDS