MEN, FAITH AND FEAR

Praise the Lord! Let everything that has breath praise His holy name!!!! I pray everyone is enjoying Gods blessing. I am still going through this seemingly unending stretch of trials and tribulations that for the last month has turned into a series of plagues that started with bed bugs followed by "water bugs". mice and now flies. I have been battling flies all week and when it finally looked like I had the problem under control something happened that caught me completely off guard. My computer shut down! My world went black just as my screen went black, I tried to reboot it and it worked for about two minutes and then nothing, "this is it!" I said to myself, "It finally happened."

I felt like Job must have felt when he said in Job 3:25+26
²⁵ For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.
²⁶ I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet; yet trouble came.

As I realized that my gateway to the world was probably broken I could feel my breath being sucked out of my body and my chest tightening up. To me at that moment this was the worst thing that could happen. I paid my bills on line, I wrote this blog on line, because of my disability this was my main source of communication. Add to that the fact that my wife was stuck in another state for the last few months and probably would not be back for another few months just made matters worst.

When Job said those lines he was referring to losing his family and his wealth to sudden calamities and disasters after years of praying for them and making offerings for his family just in case they did not do it for themselves. The room had to be spinning when the reports started coming in and so it was with me as I realized my computer was dead.

Fear is the lack of faith and at that moment I did not react from faith but from fear. The reason why it hit me so hard was because I knew that I had no money, no way of fixing it on my own. If I had 
$10,000 in the bank would I have been so upset? No because I could have easily resolved the problem by fixing it or buying a new one, but I did not have that option so I sought out other options in my mind, maybe call my brother or some other family member for some help or maybe my Pastor could help me with something. The thought of life without my  computer seemed unbearable.

Right in the middle of my anxiety attack God spoke up, He said "Darrell! why are you so upset? wasn't I in all the trials and tribulations? Wasn't there a reason for the pestilence?" I answered Him saying "yes" "So trust me I'm in this also" It's funny how we trust God after we've run out of other things to trust in. I began to pray with my wife who was on the phone with me when all these things happened. We prayed and I asked For forgiveness for my lack of faith and I began accept the fact that God had a reason for allowing this to happen.

As began to relax and accept the possibility that I was going to be offline for awhile I began to look at my fear and thought about 2nd Timothy 1:7+8
^7
8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;

No God has not given us the spirit of fear, We give it to our selves. When our deep inner fears are exposed, our first thoughts are "How can I fix it?" we want to cover them back up as soon as we can, prayer and seeking God takes too long so that's not our first option.

After my wife and I had prayer there was no noticeable movement in the natural, the computer remained "dead". Later I prayed and had my normal nightly devotion. I anointed myself with oil as usual and I heard "anoint the computer" so I did. I continued to pray and when I opened my eyes there was a red light blinking on the computer! I said "thank you Jesus! this must mean something." I booted up the computer and I shouted "Hallelujah!!" as it began to run as good as new. After that, every time that computer responded to my commands I would break out in tongues and praises to God. God is great and greatly to be praised! He cares about us! There is no concern to small or to big! I'm learning that absolute Faith overcomes the sum of all fears. 
                                     God Bless you all, Brother Darrell, A Watchman

EVERYBODY WANTS TO GO TO HEAVEN; BUT NOBODY WANTS TO DIE,

Praise the Lord! For He has done great things! I pray everyone is enjoying God's many blessings. As for me and my wife we are yet holding on to Gods unchanging hand. As the weeks go by and the road seems at times to be getting rougher as He stretches out our faith. We hold on to the fact that God is in it with us. I thank God that He  has given me this blog to write and given my wife and I the "SPEND SOME TIME SESSIONS" NATIONAL PRAYER LINE FOUNDED BY APOSTLE VIVIAN THOMAS( 916-233-2999, ACCESS CODE 541324) This ministry has been a real blessing to us and to our ministry together as has been our home church, FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST HOLINESS USA, by the way, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR PASTOR Elder JOHNNY GREEN! MAY GOD BLESS YOU REAL GOOD!

"Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it" is a saying I've heard many times in the world but I never thought it would apply to my faith. We all want to be used by the Lord, We all want to hear "well done good and faithful servant" We all want ministries that reach out and touch many people. We want to heal, deliver and set the captive free and that is all well and good but most don't realize there is a price to pay to obtain that type of anointing. Paul wrote about it in 2nd Corinthians 12:6-9 
⁶ For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me.
⁷ And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
⁸ For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
⁹ And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Everybody wants to be a pastor, standing up front, sought out by everyone and exalted, but why do we want it? and do we count the cost? Jesus states in Luke 14: 27-29
²⁷ And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
²⁸ For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? 
²⁹ Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,

If you are in ministry just to have your ego stroked then chances are you won't last. The trials, the tribulations and the attacks of the enemy will test your metal. From the time I made my wedding  proposal till now my wife and I have suffered from constant attacks from the enemy along with numerous trials as God prepares us for that ministry.
I have come to realize that His grace Is sufficient for me and His power Is made perfect in my weakness. Paul said it best when said in 2nd Corinthians 12:10
¹⁰ Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

              God bless you all, Brother Darrell, A Watchman


  

PENTECOST! OUR 4th OF JULY

Praise the Lord! Let everything that has breath praise His holy name! I pray everyone is enjoying this fourth of July along with their family and friends. I find myself home alone this year as God is doing a new thing in my wife and I's life. As I sit here meditating on God, not wanting to question Him but seeking the grace needed to make it through. Truly it is not good for man to be alone, I miss my wife and because of my disability I am constantly In pain and I don't get out much as I used to. Don't worry though I'm not sitting around feeling sorry for myself. I sit here watching the world celebrate Americas Independence from England. Back in 1776 a group of people stood up and with boldness proclaimed themselves free from a country "greater" than themselves, of coarse they had to then go to war and take hold of it.

While meditating on that, I began to think of the early church. The Shepperd struck and the sheep scattered. In hiding they met in cemetery's and upper rooms. The bible says in Acts 2:1-4

1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

² And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
³ And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.


On that day they came together with one accord and they received power from on high, power to boldly stand up and declare themselves as believers in Christ, freed from the power or of sin and from the tyranny of the law of the Pharisee's and Sadducee's. Later That day Peter would go on to preach with boldness and power what today could be called "THE HOLY GHOST DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE!" Acts 2:14-40
¹⁴ But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:

¹⁵ For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.

¹⁶ But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;

¹⁷ And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:

¹⁸ And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:


^{19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:}
20⁰ The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord come:

²¹ And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

²² Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:

²³ Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:

²⁴ Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.

²⁵ For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved:

²⁶ Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope:

²⁷ Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

²⁸ Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance.

²⁹ Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.

³⁰ Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;

³¹ He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.

³² This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.

³³ Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.

³⁴ For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,

³⁵ Until I make thy foes thy footstool.

³⁶ Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

³⁷ Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

³⁸ Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

³⁹ For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

⁴⁰ And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save youselves from this untoward generation.

Paul would later write in Galatians 5:1

5 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

LORD HELP ME TO STAND FAST IN YOUR LIBERTY AND LET YOUR FREEDOM REIGN THROUGH OUT THE NATIONS!
                                 GOD BLESS YOU ALL, Brother Darrell, A watchman

LIVE FROM THE BATTLEFIELD 2: DOES THE DEVIL KNOW YOUR NAME?

P:raise the Lord! Everybody praise His holy name, for He has done great things. I pray everyone is enjoying God's blessing. I'm still soldiering on and staying on the battlefield as I said in my last post "Reporting live from the battlefield." Last time we discussed things you need to know in order just to survive on the field of battle. Now we are going to discuss our offensive weapons, in other words how do we take it to the enemy?

Satan our enemy was given dominion over the Earth by God after he was cast down from Heaven after falling from grace. We are technicaly in "his house" during our stay on earth. The Word says in Mark 3:27
²⁷ No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house.

When you are opperating behind enemy lines you have to be well trained, ready for anything and we must have power if we are going to bind the "strong man" in his own house. Like all soldiers we must wear our body armor at all times. Ephesians 6:10-12
¹⁰ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
¹¹ Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
¹² For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places

The enemy is constantly firing at us and with his fiery darts and his search and destroy missions. The devil will also use friends and family against you if he can so we must be ready. Our armor consist of these things listed in verses 14-18 
¹⁴ Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
¹⁵ And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
¹⁶ Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
¹⁸ Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Today we will be covering our main offensive weapons the "sword of the spirit" the word of God and prayer. Used apart they both can do substantial damage but used together they are devestating to the devils kingdom. A strong prayer life leads to a strong relationship with God. PRAYER CHANGES THINGS! The word says in James 5:16+17  
¹⁶ Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
¹⁷ Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. Then you add to that by praying Gods word back to him. The bible says in Numbers 23:19                      
¹⁹ God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

For example praying "lord in your word David said "I once was young now I am old and I have never seen the righteous forsaken nor his
 seed begging bread"(Psalm 37:25) it's in your word Lord and I believe it, so I know you will provide for my needs a-men." God has to honor his word and that adds more power to your prayers. When you pray Gods word things have to happen. It also shows God that you care enough about His word to study it and that you believe it enough to pray it back to Him.

We need every edge we can get when battling the enemy on his own ground. One thing we want is for the enemy to know  who we are. I want the enemy to see the power of God all over me and step back knowing he has just run into a Holy Ghost Navy Seal! The Devil knows Gods chosen.
Acts 19:13-16 shows why this is important  
¹³ Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth.
¹⁴ And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so.
¹⁵ And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?
¹⁶ And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

You can not go up against the enemy trying to plug into a second hand power source. You have to  have your own personal connection with God or else you'll wind up like the seven son's of Sceva, beaten naked. Brother Darrell we know! I want the Devil and his demons to say, not because of me but because of who is in me and I'm willing to humble myself in prayer, fasting, through trial and tribulation to be that man, that soldier that is on the Devils most wanted list. DOES THE DEVIL KNOW YOUR NAME? If he doesn't then it's about time he found out.
                                            GOD BLESS YOU ALL, BROTHER DARRELL, A WATCHMAN

REPORTING LIVE FROM THE BATTLEFIELD!

Praise the living God for He has done great things!
 I pray everyone is enjoying the blessings of God. Since my last post I have been carrying on like a good "soldier" in Gods army. I am focused on the fact that "I was Chosen" to be a soldier and I'm trying my best to follow Jesus as He leads me through yet another skirmish with the enemy. 2nd Corinthians 2: 14 states
¹⁴ Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.

No matter where this battle leads us we know God is there with us causing us to triumph in what ever task He has given us. Knowing this is comforting before going into battle and when it seems like you are surrounded on all sides and you have no way out. When this happens to me I remember my "basic training," all the trials He brought me through in the past and all the testimonies He has given me. I am an old grizzled veteran now and not un-aware of the tricks of the enemy. The fiery darts of the enemy whizz by me on both sides but they do not touch me because I know that in Joshua 23:6 it states;  
⁶ Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left;
So I stay focused on God's word and stay in line with it knowing that in the end it will lead me out of trouble. All around me I see the casualties of disobedience and the lack of knowledge. Proverbs 16:25 states
²⁵ There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
and Hosea 4:6 states
⁶ My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.

My job as a seasoned veteran is to show the "new recruits" how to survive in this hostile environment, give them the benefit of my experience. One of the first things I tell them is remember 2nd Corinthians 10:3-5 
³ For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
⁴ (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
⁵ Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;


This is spiritual warfare I tell them and the battlefield is the mind. The enemy is an expert at playing mind games and can even appear to be a fellow soldier who 1st Peter 5:8 says this about  
⁸ Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
In battle sacrifices have to be made. There will be times when food and shelter will be scarce and you have to go without for long stretches at a time and I can see the fear and doubt start to spread in their eyes. This is when I share my testimony and Romans 12:1+2   

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

² And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

We must forget about our former lives and our former way of thinking we must allow ourselves to be transformed in our thought patterns by being "renewed" in our minds, and how do we do that? they might ask and that's when I give them 2nd TIMOTHY 2:15
¹⁵ Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.


These are the basic things a man of God, a soldier, must know in order to to survive out here in the battlefield called life. The next thing is your armour and weapons training. I pray this will help you stay in the battle. Reporting live from the front lines this is,
                                                                Brother Darrell, A watchman, God bless 

I WAS CHOSEN

Praise the Lord everybody! I pray everyone is enjoying God's blessing. As I wrote in my last post I am going through a trial that at times appears insurmountable but as I said then I'm holding on to God like a pit bull on his favorite bone, If I can't hold on to Jesus who can I hold on to? Jesus once asked Peter after a particularly hard teaching after which many stopped following him in John 6: 67, 68, 69
⁶⁷ Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
⁶⁸ Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
⁶⁹ And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.

I've had to look back and remember these Last few weeks that I once served on the other side in the armies of the flesh and the devil, a cruel master who used and abused his soldiers. But God who had chosen me from the foundation of the earth saved me and brought me out of that darkness so that I might serve Him against the armies of Satan. I reminded myself of something I seemed to have lost sight of even though I had written about it a few years ago. I AM A SOLDIER AND I WAS CHOSEN.
A poet once wrote about soldiers in battle "Ours is not to reason, why? ours is but to do and die." I am a soldier, and I must trust my leader and obey His commands. An army can't function if it's soldiers are constantly questioning Why? to every order. My job is to keep on fighting, come rain, snow, flood or hurricane. Paul wrote in 2nd Timothy 2: 3+4  
³ Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
⁴ No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

The cares of this world are just speed bumps on the highway to Heaven. I can't be always concerned with "creature comforts" An army can not run on "prosperity" messages. They have to be focused on achieving it's objectives as laid out by their commander, and willing to count the cost. Matthew 11: 12 states
¹² And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. (KJV)

Their is a war going on and I have been chosen to fight for the light. Anxiety attacks and fear are tricks of the enemy to take our eyes off of God and His grace and provision. I know where God has brought me from and If I let Him, He will take me through to the other side. Through every trial, every battle and even times of refreshing, and there will be times of refreshing, God will be right there with us leading us through. I've trusted Him so far and I don't plan on stopping now. How about you?
                                God bless you all, Brother Darrell, A Watchman
The word of God says that "many are called but few are chosen." I was chosen.    
                                                                                                           

GRABBING GOD BY THE HEEL!

Praise the Lord everybody! I pray everyone is enjoying Gods blessing. Since my last post my wife and I have received some relief from the "plaques" that have befallen us. We are still believing God for so many things our situation appears at times to be insurmountable. Thanks be to God! the "author and the finisher" of our faith. I'm holding on to God like a Pit bull on it's favorite bone and I'm not letting got till He blesses me. Genesis 32:24-26  shows how Jacob had that same mentality.  
²⁴ And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
²⁵ And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
²⁶ And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
                
 I can't let go, I need God to bless me.  Job said "though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him..."(Job 13)
I love the Lord and I'm holding on to Him with all my might. While Jacob was wrestling with the Angel he was afflicted and his hip was put out of joint yet he was able to hold on through what had to be a very pain full experience. Just as Jacob did I am holding on through my affliction because I know there is a blessing waiting for me on the other side of this trial and I want it. I want everything God has for me. After years of running away from and flat out blowing my blessings I'm like Jacob now, I want whatever God has for me and If I have to walk with a cane the rest of my life to get. so be it!


Genesis 32 : 27-29 states
²⁷ And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.
²⁸ And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
²⁹ And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.


Just like Jacob I have the power of a prince with God and man. How? Through faith, my faith in Christ makes me a son of God and being the son of the King of Kings makes me the Prince of Princes and like Jacob once I have prevailed I will have a new name.
I'm going to hold on number one becacause I need God to bless my situation and two because like Jacob I now thirst after the things of God, I WANT IT ALL! not for my glory but because God wants to give it to me. God wants to take me to higher heights, to another level in him. Jacob knew this before he was even born. Genesis 25: 25 +26 
²⁵ And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
²⁶ And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

In those days it was traditional for the first born son to to receive a special blessing from his father, that was his birthright. I can see Jacob, being who he was trying his best to beat his brother Esau out of the womb and even as he was beaten out he still reached out and grabbed Esau's heel still hoping to get the blessing. For those who don't know how it ends read about it in Genesis starting in chapter 25.
I want to be blessed by God and I'm holding on to His heel and whatever else I can grab. I'm looking forward to having my name changed and getting in my position in the body of Christ. I look around and I see others throwing away their birthright to satisfy their flesh all around and I was one of them. I was Esau, but now I treasure the things of God more than my very life. Come fire or come flood, through affliction and plaque I'm holding on to God by the heel and I'll let Him pull me through.
                       GOD BLESS YOU ALL, BROTHER DARRELL, A WATCHMAN