Positive Words Newsletter #04

GREAT CHRISTMAS PRESENTS RIGHT HERE! by Peter Wade (available from Amazon.com)

In Christ Treasures -- 19th century great preachers on "in Christ".
God's Principles and Your Potential -- Principles to release the potential of every believer.
Seeds and Secrets -- Cultivating God's seeds of greatness and applying God's secrets of success.
La Dinámica del Vivir Positivo -- La Manera de Dios de vivir una Vida Positiva.
En Cristo: Una Nueva Creación -- ¡Este podría comenzar una revolución en su vida!.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This newsletter is sent only to subscribers. See the end of this message for subscription information if you received it from a friend. YES... please share it with your friends -- use the Redirect feature of your email program. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ #04/ 23-Jan-1999 P O S I T I V E W O R D S Editor: Peter Wade ----- http://www.peterwade.com/ ----- T H I S IS Y O U R Y E A R ! IN THIS ISSUE... 1. At the Positive Words site 2. Songs I Remember 3. Positive Words for Today 4. Searchlights from the Word 5. Humor ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 1. NEW AT THE POSITIVE WORDS SITE ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ We welcome new subscribers arriving daily from all over the world. Current subscribers write... From Oklahoma: "I must tell you how much I enjoyed your newsletter and your website. It was so good to read the different articles. My husband and I found this all refreshing and right in line with what we are learning about the Christ-life and being "in Christ." Thank you again, and God bless!" From New Mexico: "I have had a hard time being happy, after getting fired from my job. My husband was angry because of my pessimistic outlook. I needed the positive words from a church." From South Africa: "Just to wish you a happy new year, filled with joy and to let you know your messages do get to the 'end of Africa'. I especially enjoyed "how to have a sucessful year". Thanks!!" [You can enjoy it too -- http://www.peterwade.com/articles/wade/year.shtml .] From the USA: "I really enjoyed your "Simplicity in Christ" webpage. So refreshing compared to the doom and gloom hellfire and damnation web sites out there. ;o) You sure lifted my spirits today." [Check out the article for yourself at http://www.peterwade.com/articles/wade/simple.shtml . Another good article for the new year is "How to Outdo the Law of Averages" from our featured book this month -- http://www.peterwade.com/articles/wade/averages.shtml .] People from over 60 different countries have visited our web site. God's positive Word is making a difference! And here is WHAT'S NEW on the site today -- 14 new pages! First, A.T. Pierson discusses the Epistle to the Colossians... "The substance of the teaching of Colossians is this: In Christ Jesus we have the pleroma of God. [We meet here and there words into which the root word pleroo enters: "filled," 1:9; "fulness," 1:19, 2:9; "fill up," 1:24; "fulfil the word," 1:25; "full assurance," 2:2; "complete," 2:10, 4:12.]" Head over to http://www.peterwade.com/articles/pierson/icj05.shtml and enjoy! And if you have not read his article on Philippians yet, now is a good time to do it. "E.W. Kenyon: A Tribute" gives an overview of the life of this evangelist, pastor and teacher, and includes 12 articles -- some short and some long -- from the pen of this teacher. Kenyon died in 1948 but his books live on and all 17 are still available new; quite an accomplishment! Get a taste of the writings of this gentle man and catch a glimpse of the greatness of what God has done in the finished work of Christ. Article titles are: Satan Defeated! Have You Failed? Jesus the Healer The Integrity of the Word Do You Believe in Miracles? This Jesus Kind of Love The Price is Paid The Reality of Redemption The Danger of Seeking Experiences God-Inside Minded The Helpless Babe Raised With Him There is enough here to keep you going for a month! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 2. SONGS I REMEMBER ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Why should the devil have all the good tunes?", so said the founder of the denomination into which I was born. William Booth was opposed to the doleful hymns of the day, and for his East End Mission, later called The Salvation Army, he borrowed the popular tunes of the day and put Christian words to them. He also encouraged musical talent, producing great brass bands, and also choirs known as Songsters. Even today, in my country we have popular groups called The Salvation Air Force, and Bill Booth's Big Band! To his credit, William Booth also wrote songs, the most notable of which has come down as The Founder's Song. It used to be Number One in the Salvation Army Song Book, but in more recent editions it was hidden in the middle of the pack -- I've never quite forgiven them for that! So here are four of the seven verses, sung to the tune, "My Jesus I Love Thee". O BOUNDLESS SALVATION O Boundless Salvation! deep ocean of love, O fulness of mercy, Christ brought from above, The whole world redeeming, so rich and so free, Now flowing for all men -- come roll over me! My sins they are many, their stains are so deep, And bitter the tears of remorse that I weep; But useless is weeping; thou great crimson sea, Thy waters can cleanse me, come, roll over me! The tide is now flowing, I'm touching the wave, I hear the loud call of "The Mighty to Save"; My faith's growing bolder -- delivered I'll be! I plunge 'neath the waters -- they roll over me. And now, Hallelujah! the rest of my days Shall gladly be spent in promoting His praise Who opened His bosom to pour out this sea Of Boundless Salvation for you and for me! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 3. A POSITIVE WORD FOR TODAY ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ KEEPING GOD'S PRINCIPLES "My son, do not forget my teaching, let your heart keep my principles" (Proverbs 3:1 Jerusalem Bible). I believe that God is a God of principle. God has laid down successful principles for all who believe in Him. God does not have a string of separate concepts to suit your life and another string to suit my life. One thing I do not believe in is what is called the "capricious will of God." That is, He is going to bless Joe today and the rest of us can get through as best we can. If that's the kind of God we have, then we will never know when it is our day. We will probably start looking at the stars or get our bio- rhythm calculators out and try to figure if today is going to be our good day. That is what is meant by a capricious will and it is not what the Bible teaches. "I the Lord do not change..." (Malachi 3:6). God's will for me is unchanging. I thank God for that, because it means that God has laid down principles, and as I understand those principles then every day can be a beautiful day. God wants me to keep His principles in my mind, then when the need arises I can apply them. (From "Outdo, Outwit, & Outperform", Chapter 6, adapted by Hildy Matthews.) AFFIRMATION: God's will for me is unchanging. Today I keep His principles in my mind. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 4. SEARCHLIGHTS FROM THE WORD ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ G. Campbell Morgan was a well-known preacher and writer from the turn of the century. In this spot each issue we reproduce a comment from one verse in every chapter of the Bible. We continue with the so-called "Prison Epistles" of Paul: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon. "The love of Christ... the fulness of God" -- Ephesians 3:19. Here are two great phrases. They occur in one of the Apostolic prayers for the saints. In that prayer the ultimate desire is that they should "know the love of Christ," in order that they "may be filled unto all the fulness of God." The idea, then, is that the knowledge of "the love of Christ" brings to the soul the experience of "the fulness of God." To be "filled unto all the fulness of God" is to find the ultimate experience of life. Where this is so, there is no true desire of the soul unsatisfied, no power of the soul undeveloped or idle. The true meaning of life is discovered, and that not as an ideal seen but unrealized, but as an actual experience. It is eternal life; it is perfection; it is satisfaction. How then can it be attained? By the knowledge of the love of Christ, for in that there is the very fulness of God; and so wonderful is it, not only as a vision, but in its power, that to know it is to be transformed by it into the likeness of itself. To the finality of this knowledge and experience we have not yet attained -- but if we know anything of the love of Christ, we know something of the filling of this fulness of God. That is the story of the beginning, the process, and the consummation of true Christian experience. The love of Christ captures our hearts, and the life of God produces rest and quietness. The love of Christ is progressively interpreted to us by the Spirit, and the fulness of God brings us more and more into the joy of life. At last we shall come to full apprehension. Then we shall come to a final perfection in the final fulness of God. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 5. HUMOR ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Each issue includes one of the best pieces we have seen since our last issue. So here goes... Then Jesus took his disciples up on the mountain and gathered them around him. And he taught them, saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are the meek. Blessed are the merciful. Blessed are you who thirst for justice. Blessed are you who are persecuted. Blessed are you who suffer. When these things begin to happen, rejoice, for your reward will be great in Heaven." And Simon Peter said, "Do we have to write this down?" And Phillip said, "Will this be on the test?" And John said, "Would you repeat that?" And Andrew said, "John the Baptist's disciples don't have to learn this stuff." And Matthew said, "Huh?" And Judas said, "What's this got to do with real life?" Then one of the Pharisees, an expert in the law, said, "I don't see any of this in your syllabus. Do you have a lesson plan? Is there a summary? Where's the student guide? Will there be a follow-up assignment?" Thomas, who had missed the sermon, came to Jesus privately and said, "Did we do anything important today?" ... And Jesus wept. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ THANKS for reading Positive Words. Please share it with a friend! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ (c) 1999 Peter Wade http://www.peterwade.com/


	"In Christ" quote for today
		Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come -- II Corinthians 5:17.