Remaining Steadfast
I doubt it’s possible to be very involved in marriage restoration ministry without a great burden and desire to understand what makes the difference between those who experience the fulfillment of their dreams and those who end up quitting and giving up on their marriages…AND God. So I was especially appreciative of Bob Steinkamp’s message in Charlyne Cares yesterday about “spiritual blowouts”, and a thought that kept coming to my mind was “being steadfast”. So today I did a Bible study on being steadfast, and found a very important passage of scripture which seems to offer an answer and explanation for why some remain steadfast and others don’t in 2 Peter 3:14-18 (NKJV), which says Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen. So unless we CONTINUE to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ, we are ALL capable of being led away by the error of the wicked, and right into the destruction caused by twisting and misunderstanding God’s word! So we need to make sure that we are found to be living in peace, without spot and blameless, which we can do by diligently studying the scriptures to insure that we’re living in accordance with what the Bible teaches. And the following verses give us an even greater understanding of the blessings and importance of remaining steadfast as we stand for the restoration of our marriages:
2 Chronicles 27:6
Jotham grew powerful because he walked steadfastly before the LORD his God.
Psalm 112:7
He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
Isaiah 26:3
You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.
1 Peter 5:10
And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.
Psalm 51:10
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Psalm 108:1
My heart is steadfast, O God; I will sing and make music with all my soul.
Psalm 11:7-8
The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy. They are steadfast for ever and ever, done in faithfulness and uprightness.
There’s an awful lot of wise counsel and incredible assurance in the above verses, so we need to meditate on them often, especially when we’re struggling with remaining consistent and steadfast. And here’s Bob’s message from yesterday about spiritual blowouts.
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On Tuesdays Bob shares from the prodigal’s perspective 19 years after
remarriage to Charlyne. His entire message can also be read at this link.
AVOIDING SPIRITUAL BLOWOUTS -
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our
faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning
its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that
you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12:2-3
A few weeks ago, just prior to an out of state trip, I took our van
to be serviced. You might know the feeling when the service manager
seeks you out and shares those dreaded words, “You need tires.” When
he explained that we “might” be able to get a few thousand more miles
out of the old ones without any problem, I envisioned sitting
alongside an Interstate highway, cars whizzing by, while Charlyne and
I waited for someone to change the tire on a one ton van.
While I waited for new tires to be mounted, I thought that sitting by
the roadside was not the worse thing that could happen. A front tire
could have blown out, causing us to leave the road or roll over.
Either or both of us could be killed, because I pushed the old tires
to the limit.
It breaks our hearts that Christian men and women are having
spiritual blowouts every day, simply because they neglected the
things which their journey with Jesus Christ rides upon.
Our Nation is abuzz with the news that another major church leader
has suffered a spiritual blowout, disabling him by the road of life.
Please allow me to remind you that your soul is just as valuable to
God as is that man’s. He does not want either of you to have a
spiritual blowout.
The world we are now living in has values all confused. A religious
leader falls, and the media is interviewing everyone who ever knew
that person. We have yet to hear the first stern face anchorperson
reporting, “Jill Smith, a stander, went out on a date with another
man Saturday night and did not come home until Sunday morning. We
have reporters looking for answers, but we are able to confirm that
Jill did not attend church on Sunday. Stay tuned here for breaking
news on this story of another fallen stander.”
Even though it is not reported, we can assure you that standers have
spiritual blowouts much more often than politicians and preachers.
Anyone who falls into sin breaks the heart of God.
“It’s different, because they are so important,” someone is
thinking. How do you know what God has planned for you and your
spouse five years or fifty years from now? You might become the
parents of someone like Billy Graham or Fanny Crosby, the author of
thousands of the hymns we sing. It might be the will of God to give
you a future pulpit to the world, if you can avoid spiritual
blowouts. In addition, your circle of influence today is certain to
extend far beyond what you can see. People are watching to see how
you handle your marriage crisis. Please do not disappoint them by
having a spiritual blowout.
How can spiritual blowouts be avoided. Just as I did with the van’s
tires, maintenance is needed before a blowout takes place.
Tire experts tell us that to keep our tires in the best possible
condition, we need to keep them inflated to the proper pressure, as
over time tires tend to lose a small amount of air. The same can be
said of the Christian life. A one-time salvation experience, where
you confessed your sin and asked Jesus to forgive them, will not
maintain your spiritual walk.
We need to consider church worship as the time when we allow God to
put His pressure gauge on us, as we hear biblical preaching, and
apply it to our lives, to determine how we are measuring up. If not
done, someone will be going spiritually flat or suffering a spiritual
blowout.
The garage where our auto work is done will check tire pressure any
time a customer stops by. If a tire is low, they will air it up.
Sadly, few customers take advantage of the offer until they have a
flat. It is also sad that not all Christians show up to have God
check their spiritual tires.
Just as a garage uses a hose to get tires inflated correctly, God
uses our prayer time, (time spent in His presence), and time spent in
the Bible to keep our spiritual walk inflated.
I suspect that every parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle, have had the
experience of attempting to blow up a child’s ball or toy by mouth.
It looks so easy, but we can blow until the face turns purple and we
are out of breath, and little progress has been made. A trip to an
air pump blows up the toy in a few seconds. Time spent in God’s
presence is like a trip to His spiritual air pump.
Good tires also require proper balance. If not, the vehicle can
shudder and shake. Likewise, every Christian (and every stander)
also needs to be properly balanced. We have known standers to become
so fixated on one issue that they ignore the rest of their spiritual
journey. Sadly, some men and women allow their stand for marriage
restoration to become their focus. They keep their eyes on their
spouse and not of Jesus. All the talk is about what their spouse has
done, not about what Jesus is doing.
Good alignment is also critical to maintaining good tires. Have you
ever followed a car that was so far out of alignment that it almost
seemed to be going down the road sideways? In living the Christian
life successfully, it is important that we each personally be aligned
with the Word of God, living every moment by God’s direction.
Alignment also helps to avoid spiritual blowouts.
When tires are purchased, the store might offer a road hazard
warranty. In the event you damage a tire because of some obstacle
you struck, the warranty will replace the tire. God also offers us a
warranty against damage to our soul, caused by sin. Regardless of
what you have done, during your marriage or during your stand, when
you confess and repent, He is ready to forgive you.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being
justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in
Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24
If we go on a 2,000 mile trip, and everything is fine until we have a
blowout a mile from home, our tires failed us. Our goal was to
finish well by arriving home safely.
Many a religious leader, and many a stander, have run the spiritual
race with excellence, but they had a blowout before arriving at their
eternal home, Heaven. If Jill had been standing for Jack for ten
years, and then had a blowout, God’s will is not accomplished in that
marriage. We know of some many man and women who ran well, but
allowed the Enemy to come in, by some small way, causing a blowout
before they reached home. A race not finished well has not been run.
There’s one more thing about tires. Unless you are riding a
unicycle, tires function in multiples. I could have bought one tire,
but left the other three in danger of a blowout. That would not have
helped much. Nevertheless, there are people who attempt to walk
through the Christian Life alone. They are not active in a church,
nor do they have a personal prayer partner in whom they can confide;
someone who will agree with them for the Lord to meet their needs.
These Lone Ranger Christians are setting themselves up for a
spiritual blowout.
One week ago, I introduced myself to a new woman at Rejoice Pompano.
I asked what city she was from, thinking she would name some place
here in South Florida. Instead, she replied, “Houston, Texas.” This
serious stander was so hungry for what was happening here on Monday
nights that she had flown in Monday afternoon, reserved a hotel room
at The Forum, where we meet, and was flying home Tuesday morning. On
the other extreme, there are standers living only a few miles from
The Forum who have a different excuse every week why they cannot come
to Bible Study. Which stander do you suspect will finish well and
which is at risk of a blowout?
Please understand there is nothing spectacular about Rejoice
Pompano. It is simply a small group of men and women getting
together to worship God together and to hear Charlyne teach from
God’s Word, to pray together for marriages, and to fellowship
together. Charlyne and I are “airing up the tires” for those who
attend so that they can stand strong with Jesus, and avoid a
spiritual blowout.
Charlyne’s recent audio teaching, “18 Hindrances To Your Prayers,”
could have been named “18 Ways To Avoid A Spiritual Blowout.” The
same things that hinder our prayers, when ignored, can also can cause
a stander’s spiritual blowout.
Religious leaders who are headed for spiritual blowouts are the first
to know of their own approaching problems. The do not suddenly wake
up one day and say, “Good morning, Lord. Think I will sin today.”
Satan has planted a seed of sin in their unprotected head. Given
time, that seed will be fertilized by a lack of attention to the
things of God. It will go from head to heart to hand, where they act
upon it, and have a spiritual blowout.
Standers who are destined for spiritual blowouts also are the first
to recognize what is happening. They become too busy for time alone
with God. Hours at the computer, or on the phone, chatting with
others, becomes their spiritual time. Their values start to slide
ever so slightly. Maybe coffee with the opposite sex isn’t so bad,
or the wedding band comes off. They go from reading the Bible to
reading of worldly magazines with no thought. Secular television
replaces the praise music that once filled their home. They have a
stack of unopened mail from Ministries. Left unchecked, casual dating
with a male friend starts. Eventually, thoughts of their stand are
only a memory. Their former spouse, for whom they once prayed so
fervently, can literally go to Hell.
We praise God that He is the AAA service for spiritual blowouts.
Regardless of how spiritually disabled you may feel today, once you
call on Him and repent, (change your ways), He will soon have you
traveling the Christian highway, the road to restoration, once again.
Our goal is to see you traveling the highway of life, arm in arm with
Jesus, moving every day toward a marriage restored by Him. It must
be healed in His way, and in His time so that it will last. Charlyne
and I are thankful that He has called us to help you to keep your
spiritual tires in good shape, so that you will see victory, not end
up in a ditch with a spiritual blowout.
“For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and
understanding. He holds victory in store for the upright, he is a
shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course
of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones.”
Proverbs 2:6-8
Making the journey with you,
Bob Steinkamp
Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc.®
Post Office Box 10548
Pompano Beach, FL 33061 USA
Ministry
Bookstore
You can find Books and tapes for standers in the Stop Divorce
Christian Bookstore -
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Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quoted by permission and are from
the Holy Bible; New International Version® Copyright© 1973, 1978,
1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan
Publishing House. All rights reserved.
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Copyright© 2006 Rejoice Marriage Ministries Inc®.
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