"Knocking was not enough, for my heart was too full of sleep, too cold and
ungrateful to rise and open the door; but the touch of His effectual grace has
caused my soul to stir. How patient of my Beloved to wait when He found Himself shut out, and me asleep upon the bed of indolence! How great His patience to knock and knock again, and to add His voice to His knockings, beseeching me to open to Him! How could I have refused Him! My heart is base; I blush and without excuse!"

Thank you, Alistair Begg! 
Finish Persistent Knocking at truthforlife.com...

Did you know that David and Annie are accepting submissions of your material to post at One Saint?  We encourage all who come here to participate.  We are building a community in support of Jesus Christ.  All of you are our brothers and sisters.  We hope to hear your ideas for blog topics, receive submissions of your own material to post at the site blog, learn of a good bible study, hear an opinion on Christian news of the day, or anything you have in mind to build and strengthen this little Church of Christ.  Thank you so much, from both of us, for your visits to One Saint!  Help us build this site, pay honor and glory to Him, and learn more and more of the Word of God.  When we put our heads, no, our faith together, we build a great strength.  He is at the helm, and we have our hands on the oars!


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Thank you so much! 

Psalm 9:13
O LORD, see how my enemies persecute me! Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,

Psalm 119:86
All your commands are trustworthy; help me, for men persecute me without cause.

Psalm 119:157
Many are the foes who persecute me, but I have not turned from your statutes.

Psalm 119:161
Rulers persecute me without cause, but my heart trembles at your word.

Matthew 5:10
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 5:12
Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Matthew 10:23
When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

Matthew 13:21-22
But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.

John 15:20
Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.

Acts 8:1
And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all
except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.

Acts 11:19
Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews.

Acts 13:50
But the Jews incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region.

Romans 8:35
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

1 Corinthians 4:12
We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it;

1 Corinthians 15:9
For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

2 Corinthians 4:7-10
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.

2 Corinthians 12:10
That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

1 Thessalonians 3:4
In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know.

1 Thessalonians 3:7
Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith.

2 Thessalonians 1:4
Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

2 Timothy 3:10-12
You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings-what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,

Hebrews 10:33
Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated.

Hebrews 11:36-38
Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they
were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated- the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.

1 Peter 4:12-16
Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But
rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. If you suffer, it should not be as a
murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.

Revelation 2:10
Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.

(published with permission of yahoo.com)

"In North Korea, the regime of Kim Jong-il requires God-like loyalty from all citizens.  Worshiping [Jesus Christ] in public, or in private, brings systematic torture and imprisonment.  Carrying a bible or speaking to others about Jesus Christ can bring a cruel death, and it can mean torture for three generations of one's family members...  ...400,000 Christians [in North Korea] are in constant danger, because they choose to follow Jesus Christ... ...Sometimes Christians are executed immediately with no trial." 

Please pray, pray for Christians in North Korea, the most difficult place in the world to love the Lord, Jesus Christ.  An estimated 40,000 Christians are imprisoned there now for their worship and faith in the Mighty Lamb.  If you were able to ask them what they need from you, they would answer that they need your prayers.  Your prayers.  Give them now.

The Infant Samuel At Prayer, Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792)







First Things First!  John Piper has some excellent advice on How to Pray.  I am
reminded of Adrian Rogers when he tells us to “pray like David!” I will capture the main points and the scripture, then turn you over to John at the end…

Pray from the soul.  “The first thing the soul needs is an inclination to God and his word.  Without that, nothing else will happen of any value…” Psalm 119:36 verifies that we need to do this…

"Incline my heart to Your testimonies
And not to dishonest gain.”

Next, our eyes need to open.  Mr. Piper sites Psalm 119:18, for we need always to know where it is stated in His word:

“Open my eyes, that I may behold
Wonderful things from Your law.”

Then, we need to open our hearts to the wonder of God.  John brings us to Ephesians 1:18 for scriptural affirmation:

"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened,
so that you will know what is the hope of His calling,
what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints…” 

Our hearts are always in ten places at once.  Dr. Piper suggests Psalm 86:11 to rein in our scattered state:

“Teach me Your way, O Lord;
I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.”

“What I really want from all this engagement with the Word of God and the work of his Spirit in answer to my prayers is that my heart will be satisfied with God and not with the world.”  He brings us to Psalm 90:14 for this most important lesson on how to pray…

“O satisfy us in the morning with Your lovingkindness,
That we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.”

Ephesians 3:16 teaches us to be full of joy and as happy as possible, in order that we may be strengthened in the Holy Spirit.  To be "strong in joy" is to be "durable in the face of threats or adversity."  Where do we get our backbone?  "It comes from God."

"...that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory,
to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man,"

How do we expand ourselves to produce help for others so that “the glory of God will be seen in [our] lives?  Who produces these good deeds?  God does.” Piper sites Colossians 1:10:

“…so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects,
bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God…”

And finally, we pray in the name of Jesus “because God gives these things to my soul only because Jesus died for me and removed the wrath of God so that the Father might "freely give me all things."“ (Romans 8:32)

John's encouragement reminds me of the way David prayed, always giving glory to God.  We can see it in his psalms.  Excellent advice from John Piper!  I shall follow it each and every day.  Visit Desiring God for many more good lessons on prayer. 

"How to Pray for the Soul" at Desiring God , the Ministry of John Piper

Dennis Swanberg has the right idea about God and life.  He is so humorous!  When you listen to Dennis, you will laugh so hard tears will roll down your cheeks.  Personally, I feel this approach to living a Jesus-centered life cannot be topped.  God has a tremendous sense of humor after all!  Humor can often be the very best medicine, and Dennis Swanberg hasn't forgotten it!  "What shall we do with sin?"  Listen, he's got the answer!  Enjoy!

"...Shakeela realized that she would not make it inside of the church before the mob reached her, and froze.  For a brief second, the world around her also seemed to freeze.  To her left Shakeela saw looks of pure hatred on the faces of the approaching men, their weapons raised in malice.  The faces of the Christians behind her were painted with shock and fear...

...But no mercy was extended. Over and over the man beat her head and face.  With each blow the world became darker.  Each time the bamboo hit her, the pain became greater.  The taste of blood filled her mouth, stars exploded before her eyes, and screams echoed in her ears.

Then in a moment it all stopped.

An hour later, a man knelt on the ground next to a body.  With gentle hands, he wrapped the lifeless form of his wife in a clean
cloth, and quietly carried her away, tears streaming down his face.

Please remember Shakeela Bibi, a brave Chistian martyr, and her family in your prayers."

Read More about Shakeela Bibi Here