The Holy Spirit And The Bears

The Holy Spirit empowers us against the enemy (1 Jn 4:4): A number of years ago, a movie came out called The Bear, and it went something like this: 

Once upon a time, there was a mummy bear and a baby bear, and they were so happy together. Then one day an accident happened and the mummy bear died, leaving the little baby bear all alone in the world. 

One day the poor defenceless baby bear was out minding his own business when he was spotted by a big, mean, hungry mountain lion. 

The baby bear started to run; he was trapped next to the river and jumped in. 

The mean and nasty mountain lion followed him downstream to where the baby bear came ashore at a crossing. 

The baby bear was trapped again and made a puny, squeaky sound as the mountain lion closed in for the kill. 

Then suddenly, the baby bear stood to his feet, opened his mouth, and there was a massive great roar. 

The mountain lion suddenly remembered that he had something else to do, and ran for his life, terrified. 

How did the little baby bear do that? The cameras panned round, and there standing behind the baby bear was the hugest, most ferocious daddy bear.

Please watch the video here
https://youtu.be/vStcjo92L1s

God's Guardian Angels

"Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?" Hebrews 1:14

As told by Pastor Glenn Gunderson of First Baptist Church of Pomona, California: A missionary who was serving in a remote area of Africa made a monthly journey to a city two days bike ride away to pick up supplies and medicine.

On one of his many journeys he came across two men who were fighting, one of whom was severely injured. The missionary stopped to help the injured man. After treating him, he continued on his way.

Sometime later in the village a man came to him and said, "You probably don't remember me but I was one of the men who was fighting when you stopped to help."

The missionary said he remembered the incident and the man told him. "We were going to rob you on one of your trips. We knew you always carried cash and medicine and were unarmed. When we came to rob you, I had three friends with me. We saw where you camped and put your bike down, but you had 26 armed guard all around you so we weren't able to rob you."

The missionary said, "That's impossible. I always travel alone and have no armed guards of any kind." The man said, "Oh yes, my friends and I each counted 26 men, heavily armed standing around you while you slept."

When the missionary visited his home church back in Michigan, he related this story to the church family. A man in the congregation stood up and asked, "What time and what day did this happen?" The missionary told him the date and that it was a Saturday night.

The man said, "It was night there but it was Saturday morning here. I was loading my golf clubs in my car. I was on my way to the golf course and the Holy Spirit impressed on me so heavily that I needed to pray for you that I took my clubs out of my car and called men from church and we came together and earnestly prayed for you. He then said, "I would like to ask each one of these men who prayed with me that Saturday morning to stand up. As they stood, each one in the church counted 26 men standing!

Dick Innes

You Are Not Alone

A young Christian university student was home for the summer. She had gone to visit some friends one evening and the time passed quickly as each shared their various experiences of the past year. She ended up staying longer than she had planned and had to walk home alone. She wasn't afraid because it was a small town and she lived only a few blocks away. As she walked along under the tall elm trees, she asked God to keep her safe from harm and danger.

When she reached the alley, which was a shortcut to her house, she decided to take it. However, halfway down the alley she noticed a man standing at the end as though he were waiting for her. She became uneasy and began to pray, asking for God's protection. A comforting feeling of quietness and security wrapped around her, and she felt as though someone was walking with her. When she reached the end of the alley, she walked right past the man and arrived home safely.

The following day, she read in the newspaper that a young woman had been raped in the same alley just twenty minutes after she had been there. Feeling overwhelmed by this tragedy and the fact that it could have been her, she began to weep. Thanking the Lord for her safety and to help this young woman, she decided to go to the police station.

She felt she could recognize the man, so she told them her story. The police asked her if she would be willing to look at a lineup to see if she could identify him. She agreed and immediately pointed out the man she had seen in the alley the night before. When the man was told he had been identified, he immediately broke down and confessed.

The officer thanked her for her bravery and asked if there was anything they could do for her. She asked if they would ask the man one question. She was curious as to why he had not attacked her. When the policeman asked him, he answered, "Because she wasn't alone. She had two tall men walking on either side of her."

The Great Shelter

The Maker of the storms does not need to make any shelter for us. 

Whenever the storm hits, GOD, Himself, is our Shelter. (Isaiah 4:6)

Albert Kang

Hugging For Safety

In the fall of the year, Linda, a young woman, was traveling alone up the rutted and rugged highway from Alberta to the Yukon. Linda didn't know you don't travel to Whitehorse alone in a rundown Honda Civic, so she set off where only four-wheel drives normally venture. The first evening she found a room in the mountains near a summit and asked for a 5 A.M. wake-up call so she could get an early start. She couldn't understand why the clerk looked surprised at that request, but as she awoke to early- morning fog shrouding the mountain tops, she understood. Not wanting to look foolish, she got up and went to breakfast. Two truckers invited Linda to join them, and since the place was so small, she felt obliged. "Where are you headed?" one of the truckers asked. 'Whitehorse'

"In that little Civic? No way! This pass is dangerous in weather like this." "Well, I'm determined to try," was Linda's gutsy, if not very informed, response. "Then I guess we're just going to have to hug you," the trucker suggested. Linda drew back. "There's no way I'm going to let you touch me!"

"Not like THAT!" the truckers chuckled. "We'll put one truck in front of you and one in the rear. In that way, we'll get you through the mountains." All that foggy morning Linda followed the two red dots in front of her and had the reassurance of a big escort behind as they made their way safely through the mountains. Caught in the fog in our dangerous passage through life, we need to be "hugged." With fellow Christians who know the way and can lead safely ahead of us, and with others behind, gently encouraging us along, we, too, can pass safely.

Don Graham.

Cushion of the Sea

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging."¹

Several years ago a submarine was being tested and had to remain submerged for many hours. When it returned to the harbor, the captain was asked, "How did the terrible storm last night affect you?" The officer looked at him in surprise and exclaimed, "Storm? We didn't even know there was one!" The sub had been so far beneath the surface that it had reached the area known to sailors as "the cushion of the sea." Although the ocean may be whipped into huge waves by high winds, the waters below are never stirred.²

Being a Christian doesn't deliver us from the trials and troubles of life because we live in a broken world where it rains on the just as well as the unjust.³ However, our faith in Christ gives us an anchor in the storm and a hiding place in the shadow of his wings. As David the Psalmist prayed, "Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to you for protection. I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until this violent storm is past".⁴

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, in the words of the hymn writer, 'When the storms of life are raging, Stand by me; When the world is tossing me Like a ship upon the sea Thou Who rulest wind and water, Stand by me.'⁵ And when the storms of life are raging, help me to put my trust in you so I will find a sense of calm and inner peace regardless of the circumstances that are threatening to drown me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

1. Psalm 46:1-3 (NIV).
2. Rev. Adrian Dieleman, Sermon: "Receive the Holy Spirit."
3. See Matthew 5:45.
4. Psalm 57:1-2 (NLT).
5. "When the Storms of Life Are Raging," Charles A. Tindley.
By Dick Innes

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Killed By Five Lions

A tourist was eaten by a pride of five lions in an outdoor shower at a game reserve. Pete Evershed - a businessman from Harare - was killed at Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe, a location that offers visitors the chance to get closer to nature.

It is the latest in a string of attacks at the park. Johnny Rodrigues, from the Zimbabwean Conservation Task Force, said: "It's promoted as somewhere you can get back to nature. It's a romantic idea, but visitors need to know they are taking their lives into their own hands."

This shocking story points out that some places in the world require special vigilance. And it should also remind us of the importance of being alert in the spiritual realm. The scripture warns us to "be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8

The Mirror News 

Thursday, November 04, 2010