Posted on September 2, 2019 by Eliece Rybak
“Seems impossible that I am so near my senior year at this place, and truthfully, it hasn’t the glow about it that I rather expected. There is no such thing as attainment in this life; as soon as one arrives at a long-coveted position he only jacks up his desire another notch or so and looks for higher achievement – a process which is ultimately suspended by the intervention of death. Life is truly likened to a rising vapor, coiling, evanescent, shifting. May the Lord teach us what it means to live in terms of the end.”
“He makes His ministers a flame of fire. Am I ignitable? God deliver me from the dread asbestos of ‘other things.’ Saturate me with the oil of the Spirit that I may be a flame. But flame is transient, often short-lived. Canst thou bear this, my soul – short life? In me there dwells the Spirit of the Great Short-Lived, whose zeal for God’s house consumed Him. ‘Make me Thy Fuel, Flame of God.’”
“God, I pray thee, light these idle sticks of my life and may I burn for Thee. Consume my life, my God, for it is Thine. I seek not a long life, but a full one, like you, Lord Jesus.”
Reflection:
From an early age, Jim Elliot understood that followers of Christ must view their time on earth with an eternal perspective. Even as a young college student, he realized that life without God was a cycle of meaningless effort – “as soon as one arrives at a long-coveted position he only jacks up his desire another notch or so and looks for higher achievement.” Rather than chase after the world’s fleeting pleasures, Jim Elliot resolved to commit himself to God’s purposes. He followed his convictions into the mission field, and ultimately to his death. In the eyes of the world, Jim Elliot’s life was unremarkable, even tragic – he never achieved any great fame or wealth, he died very young, and he didn’t live to see the fruit of his own missionary work. But from the viewpoint of God’s kingdom, he led a life of extraordinary power and significance. Today, thousands of Christians look to Jim Elliot as a shining example of genuine faith.
Not everyone is called to be a missionary martyr in Ecuador. However, we can all aspire to receive the kind of faith that Jim Elliot had. True faith in Christ is not exclusive to special people at certain times – any person at any age can receive the gift of faith from God. Likewise, a life of faith can take many forms. John 12:26 says: “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.” Serving God means following our faith into the places where he calls us to be, including our classrooms and campuses. When we make our relationship with God the first priority, we can receive direction for our lives no matter where we are. God wants us to experience joyful faith in him that is far greater than our old desires for the temporary things of this world.
Response:
“We may often spend a large amount of time praying for our immediate wants and needs. There’s nothing wrong with this – after all, God wants to bless us in every way. But today, focus on praying for a greater sense of God’s direction in your life, including your studies and professional endeavors. Ask for increased faith in God that will inspire you to follow him in the long term. As Scripture says, our Father will honor those who serve him, in this life and into eternity.”
(copied/unknown author)
Jim Elliot, Martyred for Jesus Christ in 1956
Posted on July 19, 2015 by Eliece Rybak
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The following are excerpts from the Journal of Jim Elliot:
Introduction:
Psalm 42
11 Chron. 15:8…repair the altar of the Lord; verse 12: “seek the Lord…with all your heart…”; verse 15; “sought Him with their whole desire”, and “He was found by them. And the Lord gave them rest…”.
Psalm 57:7 “My heart is fixed”; verse 11: “Be Thou exhaulted…”
Psalm 63 (Verse 7 …“rejoicing in the shadow of His wings.)
Psalm 37
Jim Elliot:
Committed myself to God….a sacrifice as Isaac…Accept me…
Anything else….if He should consume it…not laying a hand on it to retrieve it for myself. If Thou should call me to resign what most I prize, it never was mine. I only yield what was Thine. Thy will be done. (Joshua 5 & 6)
Devoted things to God as a burnt offering….
Fix my heart wholly Lord to follow Thee….in no detail to touch what is not mine.
The cross is final.
His withholding has served to intensify my desire for Him. The hungrier one is, the greater the appreciation for food. He has given me a hunger for Him. He Only…. promises water to the thirsty….satiation to the “unsatisfied” (not dissatisfied), filling those famished for righteousness. He has, by concealing Himself, longings that can only be satisfied when Psalm 17:15 is realized.
He holds us from each other, that He might draw us to Himself. Draw me, Lord.
Isa.8:17
11 Chron.20:12b … “Our eyes are upon Thee.” I will run after Thee. I seek His will only…alone.
“Lord, saturate me with the oil of the Spirit that I may be a flame for Thee.”
( “Make me Thy fuel, Flame of God.” …Amy Carmichael)
The “rest” of faith…is fact, especially the resurrection of Christ.
If our faith rests on things we hope God is going to do for us temporarily in this world only, that kind of faith is bound to be shaken.
Even flowers need to be in the dark…apart from light for a time.
Jim’s Covenant with God:
….glorify Himself to the uttermost in me …or
….slay me
By His grace I shall not have His second best.
He heard me…a life of sacrificial Sonship.
He cannot fail me.
Trust Him…He will not lead His child into situations he cannot bear…he becomes our “way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”
I must bear “spirit-fruit” where I am. Do I expect Him to change this…….? This is my opportunity designed by a sovereign God for me to bear fruit for Him.
Conclusion:
What is it in my life ….for which I cannot trust Him? ….for which I am not trusting Him?
(Excerpt from the hymn…. “All for Jesus”)
“Oh, what wonder! How amazing!
Jesus, glorious King of Kings,
Deigns to call me His beloved,
Lets me rest beneath His wings.” (Excerpt from “All for Jesus”)
Posted in Daily Treasures for the Soul and Spirit, Encouragement for the Heart, Statements from Men and Women of Renown, Uncategorized
Posted in Statements from Men and Women of Renown
John Hyde (“Praying Hyde”)
Posted on December 14, 2017 by Eliece Rybak
John Hyde was a missionary to India from 1892 to 1911.
Thousands of souls were won to Christ in that time.
His friends that knew him well
knew that his one great characteristic was holiness.
Prayer was his life work, and he was a great soul winner, but his soul-winning was due to his Christ-like character. Scripture says, “Without holiness not man shall see the Lord.” We may scripturally say without holiness no man shall be a great soul winner. Mr. Hyde himself said in substance, “Self must not only be dead but buried out of sight, for the stench of the unburied self-life will frighten souls away from Jesus”. He lived the sanctified life.
His life’s desires were:
- a closer walk with the Lord through prayer
- live a life of holiness
- reach the lost at any cost
Hyde discovered the power of intercessory prayer, and the results were staggering. He proved that prayer was an evangelical force in India: by faith he claimed one soul a day, then two, then four. Through his intercessory prayer, God was able to work in remarkable ways in conventions, churches, and personal lives. It is no surprise that he was often called “The Apostle of Prayer”.
Posted in Daily Treasures for the Soul and Spirit, Statements from Men and Women of Renown
