The Mystery of the Seed
February 20, 2024
The Mystery of the Seed
John 12:24
Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
Behold a mystery is in the seed,
If it remains alone it cannot feed.
Only buried in the earth can it grow,
Only in dying can its true-life flow.
Unplanted, a life for self is barren,
Planting in others is a life of sharing.
Only in giving are we made complete,
Only in dying can life bring forth seed.
Death brings a release of what is held in you.
The death of a seed gives life anew.
Life springs forth out of a forsaken shell,
For us it was released through a cross and nails.
As our Savior became a seed planted in the ground,
He released eternal life to those all around.
He was multiplied through the death that He died,
The resulting harvest is from death now glorified.
We, His believers, are now His seed.
We, likewise, must give our lives for those in need.
Through losing ourselves is our life truly found.
It is His life in us that springs from our ground.
Because we willingly became a planted seed,
The Life in us can now meet other’s needs.
The death of the seed has a harvest brought,
It is the price that it is paid for all He has sought.
It is now for us to be the seed planted in the ground,
To loose the captive and those that are bound,
We pour out our lives that through His Life we give,
The mystery is: “that through one death, many may live.”
Blessings,
#kent
Salvation’s Loop
February 6, 2024
Salvation’s Loop
John 15:9
As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
The Love of God is the compelling force that creates a loop or cycle that brings us back to Him. The Love of God is the drawing force that brings us to Him. It is the steadfast love of God that leads us to repentance. It is that love, expressed fully through the life and death of Jesus on the cross, that stands as the monumental testimony of how much God loves us. This is why it is called “Good News”, because God is reconciling His creation back to Himself through Christ Jesus. It is the Love of God that brings us to a revelation of how bankrupt and desolate our lives are outside of Him. 2 Corinthians 7:10 tells us, “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” God’s salvation is a continual cycle of God’s love expressed through the Son of God, who became the son of man so that the sons of men could become the sons of God. Though, in the fullness of times, Christ came to die once for all for the sins of all of man, that love and the offer of salvation through that cross is offered to all that will hear and respond. It is passed from generation to generation and it is a perpetual cycle to bring men back to the heart and fellowship of God. Jesus didn’t come and die for the righteous and those that thought they were good enough to get to heaven. Luke 5:32 tells us, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Luke 15:7 declares, “I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.” God loves the sinner and it is not in His heart that any should perish, “but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).” God loves and covets many of those that we, as His so-called children of God, reject and despise. It is not God who breaks that loop that continually draws men to repentance; it is the lack of the Love of God in us. It is our complacency, self-contentment and self-righteousness that gives us the attitude that as long as we’ve got it, that’s all that matters. That is not God’s heart. God’s heart is to perpetuate His Love and salvation to all men, continually. We are His living storybook. His love, salvation and special workings are written across the pages of our lives. We need always to be sharing our story of His Love in us so that it may work through us to draw others unto Him. We are the links in the chain and the cycle that continues to bring God and His salvation to a lost and dying world. May God’s Love in us compel us to continue to share His story with our sphere of influence and contacts. While we are growing and maturing in Him we never want to forget the basics of what brought us into Christ. If someone hadn’t touched our lives and communicated the gospel to us at some point, where would most of us be now? It is serendipity; we must pass it on. May that Love of God be continually read in our lives and heard in our testimonies. God loves His world and is passionate for its salvation. We don’t want to be the weak link in the chain that fails in communicating God’s love and salvation for others.
His commission for us is, “And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem (Luke 24:47).”
Blessings,
#kent
Word of Christ
September 9, 2020
Word of Christ
Colossians 3:16
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
How wonderful to know and daily experience the living Word of Christ. It is no longer the dead letter of liturgy written on the pages of the book, but it is the living dynamic of Christ in us, the Holy Spirit having expression through us as He lives in us tooling and fashioning us in the image of His likeness. The Word of God is like the wood or the coal we place within the furnace of our spirit. The Holy Spirit is the catalyst that transforms that written word into the living Word, which is alive, relevant and personal to us. The wonderful thing is that as He is working that in each one of us, we are in turn using that revelation truth and experience to encourage one another. The Word says we are to take the wisdom that the Holy Spirit is teaching us and share it with our brothers and sisters to help them to grow and encourage their faith. This scripture encourages us that even our expression of worship and song is a form of building up the body even while we magnify the Christ that provides all for us. The songs, the hymns and spiritual songs are means of communication and expression that invite the Lord’s presence into our midst. As we are recounting to the Lord His great and wondrous acts it is magnifying Him, while it is building greater faith and confidence in our hearts toward Him.
This is the richness and value of the body of Christ. None of us are complete in ourselves. If we were there would be no need for fellowship and relationship with one another. We could just simply go off by ourselves with God and be complete, but individuality does not a body of make. We are all pieces of the puzzle that make the whole. We are a living dynamic organism, not organization, that makes up a living functioning body wherein each member is built up and edified in serving the other. Our increase is in our giving. Without our giving out of that which God has placed in us we become stagnant pools of water. That is the place where disease can culture and grow. We need exchange; we need to give out even the little things that God is working in us to others. God is giving each one of us a part. As we give our part and receive the other’s parts we are made complete and built up in the most holy faith.
My tendency is to try and be self-sufficient, but in doing so I can rob myself of the blessing God has for me through the lives of others. The Lord is encouraging us to embrace the body today, to love and share with one another our gifts and strengths in Christ. Even the least of us has something of importance that the rest of us need. No, God didn’t leave any of us out. If you don’t know what it is that Christ has placed in you, ask Him to show you. It is in blessing one another that we are blessed and built up in the unity of the faith in Christ Jesus.
Blessings,
#kent
Christ in You
May 3, 2016
Matthew 25: 35-40
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,
36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37″Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?
38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40″The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Christ in You
You are a ray of sunshine.
You are the extension of God’s divine.
You bring healing in the midst of pain.
You are heaven on an earthly plane.
When you walk into a room it brightens up.
When you spend time with me you fill my cup.
You are my companion when I feel alone.
The voice of love is in your tone.
You are the servant that gives your all.
You pick those up who stumble and fall.
You encourage those who have lost their worth.
You share the life that brings new birth.
I see His face when you smile.
I see His walk when you go the second mile.
I see His love in your unselfish ways.
Yes, you are His expression day by day.
Kent Stuck
Blessings!
Wells of Salvation
September 1, 2015
Wells of Salvation
Isaiah 12
AND IN that day you will say, I will give thanks to You, O Lord; for though You were angry with me, Your anger has turned away, and You comfort me.
2Behold, God, my salvation! I will trust and not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and song; yes, He has become my salvation.
3Therefore with joy will you draw water from the wells of salvation.
4And in that day you will say, Give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name and by means of His name [in solemn entreaty]; declare and make known His deeds among the peoples of the earth, proclaim that His name is exalted!
5Sing praises to the Lord, for He has done excellent things [gloriously]; let this be made known to all the earth.
6Cry aloud and shout joyfully, you women and inhabitants of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Isn’t it wonderful to have a well of salvation to draw the water of life from? Every day we must go to this well, for from it we draw the life, the direction, the strength and refreshment we need. As we drink deep of the Spirit of Life we are refreshed, filled with joy and thanksgiving. It is at this well we find the anger of the Lord turned away from us and instead we find forgiveness, redemption, healing and hope. As we drink from this well we realize that all things are possible, because the life we drink from is not our own and it knows no limitations, short of our faith to believe and God’s wisdom in how He responds. Faith becomes our bucket by which we draw out this water of life and we find its increase in our sharing it with others. It is with great joy that we draw this water, because we drink from the fountain of eternal life.
The Spanish explorer, Ponce de Leon spent his life in pursuit of the fountain of youth. It was in front of him all of the time and he wouldn’t even have had to leave home to find it. He pursued the vanity of the flesh and no matter what we do with the flesh or how we operate on it, it is a corruptible commodity and will pass away. What we can discover and drink from is a well that is so much richer, deeper and more lasting than any fountain of youth or means we may seek to preserve this natural life. As we drink from the well of God’s eternal Word and abide in the Spirit of His life, we have great reason for rejoicing and praise. Our greatest joy can be in sharing this life with others that they also may know the great joy associated with this well.
Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4:10-15 about this living water and this well of salvation. “10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” 11″Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?”
13Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”” He is that well of salvation, that eternal source of life, hope and joy. He is our strength, our portion, our deliverer and our very present help in time of need.
Every day that I come to write I take a drink and ask to able to share some aspect of this water with others so that they also might be strengthened, encouraged, refreshed and partakers in this life. The Lord spoke to the woman at the well that in drinking from this you will never thirst for another. As we drink of Him we become His well spring. Out of God’s people is the issues of life as we share with others what we ourselves have found and rejoice in.
Take your bucket of faith and continue to draw and drink deep from this well, but then share the joy of the well of salvation with others that they also may know this great joy and likewise become partakers of so great a salvation. You will be amazed at what God can bring up out of your life as you drink of Him and depend upon Him to be your source and well spring of life.
Blessings,
#kent
The Road back to Love and Intimacy
August 28, 2015
Colossians 3:18-19
Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord. Husbands, love [your] wives, and be not bitter against them.
The Road back to Love and Intimacy
Remember when your romance was as sweet as honey and the love of your life could do no wrong. You adored them, idolized them and wanted to spend every moment together. Many of us, looking back at those younger years, ask ourselves, “what happened to that first love?” We still may love each other, but many couples struggle with the “feelings of love” that are missing. The romance has died way down and now you may find that instead of really loving and cherishing that wonderful man or woman you are struggling to get along with them. The man may feel like the wife is always nagging him, he can never do enough or anything right, she doesn’t respect and honor him. The woman may feel like the husband has become an insensitive jerk that never communicates or works through the problems, he doesn’t meet her needs. Over the years and the cycles of good and bad times, we can accumulate a lot of baggage. If I ask you if you love your husband or your wife, you would quite likely reply, “will of course I do,” but neither one of you may be experiencing the love from one another that you feel and know should be there. We may say we hold no unforgiveness toward one another, but in reality both parties bear scars, wounds, unresolved conflicts and issues that linger in the subconscious ready to rear their ugly heads at the right moment, opportunity or provocation. We find that we fail to often treat each other with the love, dignity and respect that both parties are due in a marriage.
Fifty percent of our marriages fail due to these kind of issues, but how many more are struggling and hurting? We need to return to that place of intimacy and closeness that we once shared, but we can’t until we are able let down the walls we’ve built up and are willing to let go of all the offenses, hurts and bitterness that we carry.
When the Word says, “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord,” that submission might be just creating a safe place where your husband can share with you. It needs to be a place where you aren’t venting your anger, frustration, criticism and unhappiness, no matter how justified you may feel with those feelings. If you want your husband to communicate and be sensitive to your needs, you have to create an atmosphere of submission where you really want to see, feel and understand his heart. That can be a hard place for a man. He may not be in touch with his feelings the way you are, so be gentle and be patient and above all, be kind.
“Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.” Husbands can be very confrontational, critical and harsh, but many repress their feelings and emotions. They retreat into that shell of seeming insensitivity and non-communication. Many times it is a response of self-preservation. Often the harder the wife tries to break through that seeming insensitivity with harsh or critical words the more the husband withdrawals. If you want the turtle to stick his head out of the shell you have to stop beating on the shell and make him feel that when he sticks his head out it won’t get bit off. Husbands can hold a lot of things in their hearts that they may not even be fully aware of. Their means of retaliation may be more passive or subtle, but it may be coming from a bitterness that has built up in their hearts against their wives. They, on the other hand, need to really listen to the heart of their wives and make those needs their goals to fulfill. They need to make them feel secure in your love for them and remember them often in the little gifts, the things you do and say. Marriage is a teaching ground for unconditional love and service. It is where we should both be learning to lay down our lives for the other. Love is not always about feeling, but about commitment, covenant and a decision to love your spouse unconditionally even when they don’t derserve it.
Maybe we need to come together as a couple where we can agree that the love of Christ is going to rule and dictate our behavior and response to one another. We need to hold one another, not sexually, but intimately, while we confess our sins, our hurts and failures to one another. We need to truly commit to a willingness to really forgive and hear the other person’s heart. We need an uninterrupted time of reconciliation where we can write down and commit to one another some realistic goals where we will begin to address some of our deepest issues. Keep it simple and not more than we can realistically deal with at one time. Start with just three things each. Then let’s make a date for our next intimate time we can meet with the same right heart and attitude, in the love of Christ to see how we are doing. Again, we need to keep it safe and non-confrontational. This is a team project and we can’t succeed if we only have our own agenda and interest at heart. We can’t expect to mend and restore a broken down barn in a day or even a week, it will take time to restore, just as it took time to deteriorate. We can change the cycle and the direction of our marriages if we will both commit to it and stay with it. We will begin to see our true intimacy and love begin to come alive in our feelings and the way we treat one another. God wants to see our marriages strong and alive with His love. There is a lot of truth to the addage that ‘the family that prays together, stays together’. It is hard to be right with each other when we are not right with God. If we are committed to Christ, then we must also be committed to one another, for we are one flesh. Together let’s build the road back to true love and intimacy like we had in our first love.
Blessings,
#kent
Activate
May 4, 2015
Acts 2:42-47
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Activate
As we commit and devote our hearts to the Lord we are going to see activation. The Holy Spirit is wanting to activate his body even as the early church was activated after Pentecost and even greater. This is the day to take our Sunday Christianity and make it an active part of our every day life and encounters with the world around us. We need so much of Jesus spilling out of us that there is no way we can contain or hide the life that is living inside of us. This is the day to let Christ shine through our lives in word and deed.
For years we have set under the Word of God. Today is the day to become the Word of God in the flesh as we live by the Spirit in the love of God toward all men. We are carriers of His divine life and we want to infect every part of our world with His love and great salvation. It is not just about getting someone to pray a prayer and make a confession of faith, it is about being so much the reality of what we profess that others want what we have and they will seek us out to receive it.
The world’s general perception of Christianity looks very little like Christ. As the world has looked upon the Church as a whole, they have seen hypocrisy, materialism, ungodliness, judgementalism and self-righteousness. No wonder so many disdain Christianity. This is the time when they need to begin to see the reality of the true Church, the bride of Christ and His power and love manifested through her. For this love and power to flow through us, He must possess us body, soul and spirit. Our lives must be so focused and set upon the Father’s business. It can no longer be about life as usual; eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. This is the year to see and step into a radical transformation in the body of Christ, at least the first fruits of it. I believe God has prepared a people to champion His cause and bring a transformation in the paradigm of what the church of God is and what it should look like.
It is a day for us to graduate out of the school of learning and knowing and step into the world of being and doing. What is our faith if it is not activated to bring us forth in who we have been called to be as sons and daughter’s of the MOST HIGH GOD!
“Holy Spirit, arise in the hearts of your people and activate us to extreme godliness, holy living and love impacting lives. Emancipate us from all sin and every love and affection we have had for it. Help your people to rock the former image of your church and be the example of what the people of God are to truly look like. Help us to loose ourselves as we take up our cross and follow you whithersoever you would lead and direct us. Give us ears to hear your precious voice and hearts tender to quickly obey whatever you instruct us to do. Help us to walk the walk of faith and step boldly into who you have created us and called us to be. You are our God and in You we will be strong and do exploits. The world will come to know us by our love and unity and no longer by our division and condemnation. We will exemplify the love and nature of Christ in the earth, because we dare to allow that Christ to come forth in us. We dare to step into our Sonship and the high calling that we have in Christ Jesus. Our eyes, our hearts, our minds and desires are set upon You Holy Father. Activate Your people in righteousness, power and divine authority to have dominion over every darkness and every perverted thing that we may bring the hearts of a lost world into alignment with the restoration of the identity you want to give back to them. Help us to come into the image of what the true Church and body of Christ is suppose to look like in this hour that you might be glorified and magnified among men. Amen!”
Today is our day to be transformed from the introverts of self-centered lives to become the extroverts of Christ expressed lives. Let us be that standard of Christ activated for all to see and aspire too. Let our lives be the light that transcends the darkness and the love that brings healing, hope and salvation to every lost and wounded soul.
blessings,
#kent
tricklesoftruth 