Captain Coward or Captain Courageous?

Now thanks are unto God, which always caused us to triumph in Christ 

                                          2 Cor.2:14

This week, January 16^th two thousand and twelve, we saw and read about the captain who abandoned the Carnival Cruise Ship, near Italy. He left thousands stranded and dying. Some say he lacked courage in the face of difficult situation.

Have you ever faced these situations? Where you feel that you are up a wall and fear grips you! What am I going to do?

 Many times I have felt this way, but what pulls me through the tough decisions?

Whether it be losing a job, health family, friends, loss of mate though death, divorce or some form of disability. May even be a stand for Christ and you face intense persecution.

I remember a time in the ministry at my second church, in central Florida. It was a small country church, in a rural part of the State; the church always had a difficult time in keeping preachers. While I was ministering there, God was richly blessing and many people were getting saved. Then the unthinkable happened! One dark, cold night I had a visitor. His father in law was one of the deacons of the church.

He knocked on the door. He was thin, short, and a good looking young man and he was about in his twenties.

He came in and I noticed he was carrying a pistol.

My wife and my two year old son huddle next to me.

“Why are you carrying the pistol?” I said.

He responded in an excited voice,” To protect you and your family, because tonight you are going to have a visitation!”

 I said, “What and why a visitation? And why are they coming for us?” 

                                                                     

“Pastor, you preached about loving and embracing all people from every race and you are willing to allow them to come into our church, especially black folks, and they are dead set against it.”

“Well, I do not want any guns in my home and you go back and tell whoever, that they can come, but if God wants us dead so  be it but if not, God will protect us and they are the ones who will be harmed!”

“My family and I are returning to bed, so you can stay here, but God will protect us!”

The next morning we woke up and the young man was gone and we never heard a word again from him, or them. God provided for our safety!

I found out later when leaving the grocery country store that some of the deacons were the dreaded former Ku Klux Klan and they had strung up some black people years ago, they also were involved in tarring and feathering a preacher at the church and ran them out of town.

A few months later another church from Florida calls us and we left this demonic church!

God is so, he will never forsake us! Never abandon the ship! Be courageous!

Joshua 1:1-8

 Verse 5-6 “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you. Nor forsake you.”

 ”Be strong and of good courage…..”

Moses never abandoned God calling, or God’s people. Dr. Vance Havner said, “He saw the invisible and did the impossible.”

Dear friends, when the road we travel seems long, rough and tough, and the days and weeks go on and on with no answers. Remember, He will come through in His time!  Don’t abandon the ship, be faithful. He will always be there. He will see you through these difficult days. God will provide a way! He will see you through!

God came through for me in time and He will come through for you!

Oh! It never ends. One victory leads to another long road. It’s God way of reminding us to always trust Him!

In Christ never ending love,

Eddie