Friday, March 25, 2016

Thought 78


God's Word never changes and it will always accomplish His purpose.  Trust it, know it, use it, and live by it.  Our faith is too weak too often.  We look for and try other resources instead of nailing our faith on God's promises.  Question:  "When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8).  No, unless it is part of the believer's daily walk.

Monday, March 21, 2016

Thought 77


Heart trouble:  An unsurrendered heart is a sick heart; an unbelieving heart is a sick heart; sick hearts and unbelieving hearts are sinful heart.  There is an effective remedy for sinfully sick hearts.  "Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee" (Psa. 119:11).

Friday, March 18, 2016

Thought 76


The Truth About Chastening by Pastor John Keeter.  "God knows how to get our attention!  God's chastening is His child training.  Though many today view God as a loving grandfather who simply turns his head without concern for evil or sin, that belief is not rooted in the Bible.  The truth about chastening is seen in Lev. 26:27-28. "And if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me, then I will walk contrary unto you in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sin."

Monday, March 14, 2016

Thought 75


We are awed when we investigate the building of Solomon's temple, one of the wonders of the world.  Each beautiful, precious stone was perfectly dimensioned, cut, and meticulously placed (1 Kings 5:17, 6:7).  All for the glory of God.  Each believer is a costly stone, purchased by the blood of Christ that we may "adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things" (Titus 2:10).  To adorn implies beautification.  We can't "add" to the doctrine of God, but we certainly need to make it attractive to onlookers.

Friday, March 11, 2016

Thought 74


"God does not direct year by year, nor even day by day, but step by step as my path unfolds; my Lord directs the way.  Tomorrow's plans I do not know, I only know this minute.  But He will say, 'This is the way, by faith now walk ye in it.'  And when tomorrow comes, His grace shall far exceed its care. What need to worry then, or fret?  The God who gave His Son holds all my moments in His hand and gives them one by one"       (Source unknown).

Monday, March 7, 2016

Thought 73


Have you ever tried to mop the floor with a cane in your right hand?  I have.  Self-pity and despair were my first response.  What did God expect His child to do?  Wallow in misery or go to my source of release?  God has assured us that His grace is sufficient.  I know!  I have been there!  He is true to His Word!  Go to Him for whatever is casting you down. He promises to pick us up.

Saturday, March 5, 2016

Thought 72


God grows us in His grace when we allow Him to work through the unexpecteds.  "It is God who worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure."  God's will and way first!  Does that surprise you?  Did you think it was for your pleasure?

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

MY CANVAS ~ Part Two


It was during our second home assignment that God chose to splash somber colors on my canvas. The seminary in which we had been teaching in the Philippines requested that both of us take a two-year furlough to complete higher degrees. That was our plan. We settled in Winona Lake, Indiana. Robert, my husband, enrolled in the doctoral program at Grace Theological Seminary, and I worked toward the completion of my Master’s degree.

Six months later Robert went out to jog in the wee hours of the night. My door bell rang. Three people were standing outside. They entered, stood in my kitchen and told me that my husband’s body was found on the street. He had dropped dead of a heart attack. Though the colors seemed very muddled at that moment, confidence in God’s faithfulness gave assurance, confidence, and peace in the midst of sorrow. It was as though God’s comforting assurance flooded over me. “He has done all things well” (Mark 7:37). “His work is perfect” (Deut. 32:4). I had taught these truths for years. Now I had to experience them for myself. Christ lived in the peace of His Father’s will. He would help me do the same.

My responsibility was to example these assurances before my eleven and fourteen year-old boys. Together we learned many lessons which proved that God was with us. Our canvases were not finished.

One afternoon, 16 months after my husband’s death, having finished my MS degree, I was shedding tears of lonesomeness in my Kansas home. God was very precious to me, but I was human and I was lonely. Seventy-two hours later I was in Indiana listening to Dr. John C. Whitcomb, Robert’s former teacher, tell me something that shocked me. He said, “Before Senie (his beloved wife) went to be with the Lord, she told me that there was no one else she would rather have to be the mother of our four children than Norma Whitcomb.” That was my name! Since God had indicated this to be some of His brushstrokes on my canvas, I accepted. And those strokes were bold and of the brightest color. I reveled in them. A widower and a widow became “heirs together of the grace of God” (Rom. 8:17).

I did not return to the Philippines as I had expected to do. My mission field came to me in the form of six teenagers. We married on January 1,1971, and six children, ages 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16, with varied backgrounds, experiences, lifestyles, and rearing, became “ours.” I would be remiss to say that rearing a blended family had no hurdles. Through it all we learned. Today all six are walking with the Lord. In 2014 we had a family reunion. That Sunday morning as 32 of our family members filled two long church pews, my heart rejoiced to see the accomplishments of my years of missionary efforts: each one a canvas on which God was painting. “To God be the glory, great things He has done.” “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts” (Zech. 4:6).

After 39 years of seminary teaching, our ministry changed from teaching to traveling far and wide across the States and around the world to spread the news that the Sovereign Master is calling people to believe in His Son’s saving work.

For 45 years we have been privileged to follow the Lord’s call. He had promises for us, and He continues to fulfill them: “Even to your old age I am He, and to gray hairs I will carry you” (Isa. 46:4). Praise Him!

My CD, BRUSHSTROKES OF THE MASTER ARTIST, supports our evangelistic ministry, especially to hurting women.  Order from Whitcomb Ministries 317-250-5469 or website HERE