I decided we needed a break from all the heavy stuff. So I’ve turned back the clock and I’m giving you the most popular message I have written. Sit back and enjoy.

I Will Bask in His Presence

I Will Bask in His Presence

I Will Bask in His Presence

His love washes over me

His unconditional love washes over me

to heal and restore me

to strengthen and encourage me

to build and embolden me

so that I can walk through the fire

all glory and honor are His

for leading me through the fire,

I will serve Him, I will praise Him

for taking me through the fire - the fire

In November 1996 when I felt that there was no hope, and I said, Lord, you can die of fear. He gave me this song.

My sister Imogene, Eloise and her husband Jim and I would often get together for dinner and play cards. They all smoked and had to go outside or in another room because I was allergic to it. Jim decided that he would quit because it was killing him. He was on oxygen. He had been a spray painter when they didn’t wear masks and he had to take early retirement. My sisters went out side to smoke and Jim and I stayed inside when the thought came to me that I needed to tell Jim that he needed to give his life to to the Lord. I thought, ‘great and how do I do that.’ It never accrued to me that It was the Lord speaking to me. I just always did what came into my mind. I didn’t know it was the Lord directing me. I surly didn’t know anything about receiving the Lord as our Savior. What ever I said worked for he got saved. I told him he needed to go to church and to read the Bible. He spent hours reading the scriptures. Jim told Eloise that they had to go to church because he just gave his life to the Lord. She told me that she went with him because she didn’t want to keep him out of heaven. They went to church and she got saved.

Eloise had a cancerous lung removed and got a virus in her blood and was sick a lot of the time. I think that was after the Lord told me not to get a job, for he wanted me to work for Him. At first I didn’t believe that He had told me that. I was on my own and needed to work. I finally realized that He was serous. It was at that time that I would move in with them when they called and said they needed help. Jim had a pretty good sized garden and He loved working in it. It was a mess. I thought it would make him feel better if I weeded it. Every morning I would get up early and go out and weed it and then go in and fix breakfast.

Insight comes at strange times as we are doing mundane, everyday chores. While I was weeding it occurred to me that there seemed to be more weeds then vegetables. It appeared that all my work was for naught. I could have sworn that there were at least twice as many weeds this time. Moreover, the roots were deeper, with long runners popping up everywhere, making it harder to get them out. Indeed, some of them just wouldn’t budge and I thought, “That one will produce a whole new crop that I’m not looking forward to dealing with the next time I weed for Jim.

That led to my thinking that sin is like that. It spreads, choking out God’s Word. It seems to have become the accepted way of life as we deal with everyone’s right to do as he sees fit. They tell us, “Don’t force your ideas and attitudes on us.” And we think that makes sense. They’re not bothering anyone, no harm done.

Like weeds, the roots of sin go deep and spread, undermining the good grass (the Word of God in the Christian life). I don’t know why this happens or why God allows it (yes I do, it’s that free will He gives us), but I do know that we are living with the results today. We see our children and grandchildren on a downhill roller coaster ride.

I was weeding Jim’s over-grown garden and as I pulled weeds of every kind, the Lord took me on a fantasy trip of imagining that different weeds represented different life styles. I began to look forward to each day to see what the Lord would come up with. They were too numerous to write about all of them, so here are just a few. The next time you see a weed picture it as a person.

  • Quack grass – standing tall, enduring all kinds of weather. Their roots go down deep with tentacles running under ground popping up all over. They’re the entrepreneurs, sports superstars, and entertainers, etc. who have gained fame and fortune. Some use their prominence to be role models for us, to tell us that God is the most important one in their lives and set up programs to help children gain confidence and self-esteem. Others brag about their sexual exploits and how they are enjoying life in the fast lane. They get into trouble and are bailed out so that they can play the game, for winning is the only thing that matters; for winning is money and ratings. They expect that there will be no or very few consequences, and their actions become progressively more outlandish. They throw temper-tantrums because they expect they can do no wrong. This leads to rage and rage is contagious. The fans in turn riot, either because they don’t like how the game is going or in celebration of their win.

  • Queen Anne’s Lace – standing tall, regal, and proud. They could be our government officials, socialites, radio and TV personalities, news commentators (we no longer have reporters with just the facts, thank you), super models, authors, etc. I used Queen Ann’s Lace as decorations on driftwood. Models are often used as decoration to get your attention to buy products or as sex symbols. Some of them use their status to build up other’s self-esteem. Others will bare all for the almighty dollar and fame. Authors command our attention as authorities on how to raise our children the world’s way or God’s way.

  • A creeping little plant – I don’t know what it is called, but they run all over the place, even keeping out other weeds, delightful to the eye and you think, “I’d like to leave that one alone.” The fun people who perhaps never grew up. They are always the life of the party, drawing people to them like a magnet. They can organize a group to do volunteer work, or put together a party at the drop of a hat. Perhaps they are the ones who collect donations for the gifts or to support worthy causes at their work place. They may be Spirit-filled and full of the joy of the Lord, or they may be the kind that like to tell dirty stories, swearing, and getting people to go to strip places, etc. They could be in the middle where they don’t do really bad things, thinking that there is no harm done if they drink too much or watch a suggestive movie. I wrote before about the impact our leaders have on those under them. People will either rise up to the level of their superiors, but never above them or if they are living a life of greater integrity, they will come down to their superior’s level. Sadly we are living proof of it today. Paul felt so strongly about it that he set forth rules for electing Elders and Deacons in I Timothy 3: 1-13 and continually instructed the church leaders in their role as leaders so that their members would not live under the curses, but under the blessings of God. I wrote that in today’s world we need to look at how our leaders are conducting themselves. Are they adhering to all of God’s Word? Nowhere in the Bible does it tell us that we only have to keep some of the laws. It states it very plainly, either live God’s way or Satan’s way. Blessings if you do and curses if you don’t.

  • Thistles – Ugly things with pickers on every leaf that stick to you, imbedding themselves in your flesh and hard to remove. They are a real pain. Pornography is like that. You want no part of that filth. As you go about your weeding you notice the shape of the leaves and see that they are quite pretty. When you look again you see them sparkling with diamonds of dew on them and you take a closer look, thinking they are not so bad if you are careful. You hate pornography and would never have anything to do with it. There are situation comedies that make you laugh about sexual situations and you think, ‘it’s not too bad, it won’t hurt us.’ You can’t go a movie without sex because in real life they think everybody is having sex and of course they are nude. Then there is free speech. How many times have you heard or said, “They have the right to do and say whatever they want. I just won’t go to their movies or I’ll turn off the TV.” They say that seventy per cent of those who look at adult magazines are young children. They can’t buy them, so where are they getting them? You may think they are well hidden. They also say that children are the largest audience of on-line pornography and 1-900 dial-porn. You’ve got it, kids and young adults are the big money makers. There are ministries that are just to help ministers break the habit. As with any addiction you cannot set the limits of your own choosing of which areas are to be affected by a curse of your own making.

  • Dandelions – they are bright yellow and look wonderful in fields. You find them happy, skipping along, cropping up everywhere. They are the ordinary people living normal lives, concerned with making a living, going to church and raising a good family. All of a sudden some of them walk into a sandbur patch and wonder where it came from. Sandburs are problems that come into your life. You think about it and remember that your parents and grandparents had the same problem and realize that it is part of your heritage. The good news is that God’s Word tells us how to break curses. He tells us that if we repent, confessing the sin and if we turn from that behavior He will remove the curse from us. Then we need to teach our children how to stay away from that curse. He did this for us a long time ago by asking His Son, Jesus to bear our sins on the cross.

  • Good Grass – the kind that we plant in our yards. They show up here or there among the weeds and are almost impossible to pull out. They are just plain stubborn. They are the dedicated missionaries and those who feel that they should go out among the poor and interact with them. It doesn’t matter how they are treated or how dangerous it may be, they keep on loving and serving those they are called to help.

    If you haven’t asked the Lord to be ruler over your life why not do it now. You will never be the same. If you have backslidden He is always willing to restore you. Accept Jesus and the Holy God who created this wonderful place for us to live. Just look out your window and see the wonder of it all.

Say this prayer

Dear Lord I am a sinner

I don’t want to live this way any more

I ask you to forgive my sins (list them out loud)

I want you to be the ruler of my life

To live in my heart forever

To guide me in all righteousness

I thank you for coming into my heart

Please fill me with the Holy Spirit

And give me the gift of tongues, Amen

Read the Bible everyday. Start with the Book of John. Read the Psalms and The Book of Proverbs. Find a church that will not compromise God’s Word. Upon arising in the morning ask God to guard your mouth that you will only speak and do what He leads you to do.

You must ask to speak in tongues in order to receive this gift. It is a way of praying the perfect will of God for the situation. Satan cannot understand what you are saying so he can’t try to stop your prayer from being fulfilled. You can ask the Spirit to reveal the prayer to you. He sometimes gives someone the gift of tongues without them asking for he has a special purpose for them to fulfill.

I believe that we are living in the end times. I may be wrong, but I feel that the upheaval of the earth all over the world is the beginning of the end times before the return of Jesus to the earth. I am once again reading The Left Behind series, written by Tim Lahaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. It is their interpretation of the book of Revelations. Some take issue with it. They do not believe in the rapture. That’s okay, but if there is a rapture and they have said the sinners prayer they will be caught up, but if not, they will be left behind and will go through all that Revelations says will happen. In reading their books you will receive insight as to what will befall you. The most important insight is that people asked those who realized their mistake and repented, asking the Lord to rule their lives and were transformed. Those that saw the difference in them wanted to know what their secret was. They were given the opportunity to explain the salvation message to them. Many received it and were saved. They saw their peace even though they knew the trials they were going through.

Some Things We Need to be Aware Of

Pray for Israel and all those involved in the war in the Middle-East. Make sure your church is upholding them in prayer, not just in passing but holding prayer meetings just to stand in prayer for them.

Intercessory Prayer

Pray for a Godly person to run for President that will not compromis God’s Sovereignty over our country

Pray for all the nations in the news that are involved in strife, especially Israel and the United States.

Rosemary Krebs