“and He lifted up his eyes on his disciples…”

There’s an old saying: “Good conversation is as stimulating as strong coffee, and it’s just as hard to sleep after.”

Friday night Chapel service was again engaging and enlightening tonight (December 2, 2011), and although the founder and the Leader of the Home was in the Hospital, spiritually speaking, we all got a feast on the Word of God, the Word being God!

Yes, for all who didn’t know it, Pastor Tom was admitted to the Hospital on Wednesday for having a blood sugar above 500. They have been regulating this for three days now, and Brother Thomas will most likely be in there for the weekend. As a result, I was sad that he could not attend the Chapel service, which Brother Pastor Byron preached. He was accompanied by his wife, Kitty, and children, as well as a visitor that they brought along.

Please pray for Pastor Tom, who has been navigating in illness and carrying a very heavy burden for the Lord here in the Home. Almost single-handedly, he carries out everything that needs to happen in order for the Home to be a smashing success, and this is because HE CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST, WHO GIVES HIM STRENGTH! Amen? I am not ashamed to say that I missed him tonight, and he was sorely missed by all who attended.

Our man in the Home, Nick, opened the Service, and gave a short testimony as to the restoration that God is doing in his marriage and with his wife and children. They came to spend the night tonight with their Daddy, whom it is obvious that they love very, very much. He handled the task with ease, and Minister Ricky Rogers, also in attendance, said the opening prayer.

I tried to take as many notes as possible, as the conversation was lively and the Bible study was very satisfying to the soul. Many took part in the Service…I sang “Be Not Afraid” and “Hem of His Garment” after the prayer, and introduced Pastor Byron Artis. Here at the notes I took and I hope it blesses you as much as it did the people in attendance, man, woman, boy and girl.

We began to read in Luke 6: Verse 20.

Pastor Byron asked the room just what they believed Jesus meant when he said, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.”

I spoke up and offered that, to me, it meant that the poor were rich in faith.

I was corrected by Ricky Rogers, who said that it was referring to the poor in spirit, which I could also see as true. J

Hunger…what did that mean? Bro Byron said that this hunger and thirst was for righteousness. (Verse 21)

Then it was phrased in the 22^nd verse that “Men shall hate you for the Son of Man’s sake.”

Righteousness can cause people to turn against us, someone said.

Dalton then spoke up and said that we are all obligated to be disciples as children of God, not just the Pastors, preachers, and teachers. This was discussed for some moments, and then we returned to the fact that righteousness will sometimes make others reject, insult, and exclude you. (Verse 22)

“People discuss what others do”, Byron said.

But! Byron reminded us to “Love your enemy, do good to them that hate you.”

Against goodness and kindness and love, there is no law, Ricky Rogers, I seem to remember saying, interjected.

Then Brother Byron and Brother Ricky had an interchange about when someone in your life takes advantage of you. Then, they agreed, they could be called your enemy.

“But still you give to them and God repays you. Jesus is the biggest giver, was he not?” Bro Byron reminded us.

But, a person, let us continue, who does spitefully use you, I said…

Byron picked up the thread and said “those people who hate you, have extreme dislike…animosity, those who are presumptuous”; these are the ones who are using you.”

Thomas then said, “Contempt prior to investigation” to reiterate.

This meant that people who run you down have contempt for you; and in such cases, they know better, because, Byron said, “The Holy Spirit will ‘check’ you”.

People do things, he went on, for different reasons. Rarely does anyone do something in kindness. Most do it for fame, notoriety, recognition; not to help people.

Going on to Verse 29, we were taught that sometimes it’s not really being stricken on the cheek that this verse is referring to, but in context, it meant that when someone uses you, you should LET THEM!

“When God dips His Love in my heart”, the song goes, He “sets my sinful soul on fire”, was what went through my mind as the Pastors discussed the benefits of letting people “spitefully use you.”

Ricky then told a story about a man in his life who he showered with much blessing, who one day gave him  something: a tomato with a worm in it! Everybody laughed. He went on to say that he put the tomato on the dining room table and looked at it every time he passed by it, until he began to have bitterness in his heart! Then he finally said that he wouldn’t let that happen, and he was going to let the worm eat its way out the other side and would then eat the rest that he left! ‘Laughs all around about that.

There was then a discussion about being conditional about our giving, and dictating what to do with what you give to others. That’s not right, either, we decided! “God has his hand out to me, and I have my hand out to you”, Brother Byron reminded us.

But people will give and go brag about it, or complain. Giving should bring us joy! Amen? When you brag or complain, you just “ate your seed”.

On to verse 30:  “Don’t expect a payback. Give ALL your goods, to all who ask you, don’t pick and choose. If you respond to God’s Word, YOU WON’T END UP IN THE HOLE! It simply means, when you give to someone who can’t pay you back, that you and God are talking, and that person has just benefitted from that.

For instance, have you ever heard of someone who says, “Ok, I’ll help you, but you have to fill out an application”, and that person is conditional about whatever they will get.

When we deal with people in the Natural, in a “realistic” kind of way, we get Natural results. We keep trying to know each other after the flesh: “You have all of this; all of this is your problem!” –When as Christians we should be saying, speaking, professing LIFE, not negativity! When Jesus walked up to people, He asked them, “What is it that you want?”

Don’t assume that that or this is what they need; ask them.

Doing well to others, such things and deeds change, transform others’ lives.

Verse 34: don’t loan, Byron said but GIVE. The world is totally upside down when it comes to money, possessions, treasuring things.

35: But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest; for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

36:  Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

37: Judgment: “TAKE HEED TO YOURSELVES.” Byron said, in response to my comment about not judging, but not going around people who will cause you to fall, too.

Ricky then spoke up and said that we are to “discern between the spirits”, and know the person by the fruit that they bear.

Then Byron broke us all up by calling such a thing “being the Christian Police”, swinging his imaginary billy-club and looking much like Charlie Chaplain. “You can change their fruit in whatever soil it is, by helping them, not by being legalistic (my word).

He then made a comment that we all know is true: that when we run people down and distinguish them as not as good as we are, it is because of an inferiority complex, and we are trying to feel superior.  Many things spoken prior to that statement have been due to that very problem in many a life.

(Verse 38) And then it was commented that this is the truth about tithing. Brother Ricky then said that we shouldn’t give to God expecting that tithe to benefit us, but to give in right standing, with the right intentions. Which is? A honoring of God and what He means to us. Oh, how I wanted to say that there are even people who have made a competition of Salvation, believing just to reap the reward of Heaven!

As you give, it will be given you, which is true, however. Not necessarily will it be money, but mercy, compassion, and Grace will be your reward, Byron said.

Then Rick said, “I want to tell you a story, about “Righteous Rick”, how he couldn’t find a man who was honest as he was. He said something to God about it one day, and I’ll be if God didn’t send a man who wanted to arrange to pick turnip greens from his garden and pay him later. He was at first cynical, but someone told him, he said, that this man was honest. And so he took a chance and trusted the man to pay later for them, and wouldn’t you know that this man did that very thing? He was so glad that he had found someone else in the world as righteous as he! J

Then Brother Byron went to a book and gave us scriptures to read:

John 13:34-35: a new command to love one another was issued here.

Romans 12:9-10:  to think of one another more highly than we think of ourselves, this was what was discussed.

1 Thessalonians 4:9.

1 John 2:10: He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.

1 Peter 1:22:  May your heart be PURE, and love FERVENTLY;

“Thomas, this means, “ Byron puts his hands on his shoulders, “I will honor and prefer you because of who you are.”

Byron then called a man up to the front and declared a covenant with him that Byron would not discuss and involve himself in conversation anything putting this man down, because he loved him. The man replied that he loved Byron, too.

“Love covers a multitude of sins…DO THE WORD!”

Not wanting to add or take away from what transpired, I will bid my readers goodnight, and I hope you all have a good day tomorrow.

Love you all,

Teresa