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February 2014
♦ Letters: people touched by LDM
♦ CD and Book Sale
♦ And starting the year off well...
Rushing Wind
Holy Spirit Wisdom and Direction
by Melody Green
Each year I take an inventory of my life. I invite the Holy Spirit to speak to me and give me fresh insight.
We all know God is always with us whether we feel Him or not. But there's something words can’t describe when we do feel His holy presence.
I count on the Holy Spirit constantly for so many things — comfort, help, wisdom, and direction — to name a few. I'll briefly focus on the last two... wisdom and direction.
The Holy Spirit — Our Friend
The Holy Spirit needs to be known intimately as our best friend. Then we can more easily catch the nuances of what the Spirit wants to tell us.
 We don't ignore a friend. We care enough to listen to their joys and as well as their concerns and sorrows. Our friend the Holy Spirit is constantly speaking to us to help direct us and correct us.
I knew early on as a believer that if I wanted to live the Spirit-Led Life I'd heard about, I needed to stop being afraid of what I might be asked to do, or asked not to do.
I fail often. But I am getting better at it. For me, grieving God is painful... either in the moment or for years, after choosing something too lightly.
A Few Ways of The Spirit
Sometimes the Holy Spirit comes to me quietly, like a gentle breeze or a slight nudge.
Or maybe like getting "that look" from a friend or spouse — a signal only we notice. Yes. No. Let's go now. Run! Things we understand without a word.
 In my life when the Lord wants to redirect a small moment or even a big one, a big decision, I've often felt a literal shift in the atmosphere. Like all the air suddenly being sucked out of the room, leaving behind only discomfort or a grief in my heart.
But usually it's more subtle. I trust God to let me know when I hurt Him or hurt someone else, which is basically the same thing. Said something I shouldn't have. Missed a cue from Him. Hit a boundary line I didn't see or ignored.
But it's not a legal thing. It's more like realizing I hurt someone I love and feeling wounded because I was so capable of doing it. I thank God for His mercy and forgiveness!
Paul Knew the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit can also give us visions or dreams. These can be tricky — over- or under-spiritualized. Ignored or idolized.
But God can speak profoundly in these ways. For one, He spoke to Paul.
Paul had a plan to take some guys and head to Bithynia to preach, but God changed it. Luke tells us "the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them." Once they obeyed, this happened:
"During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them." Acts 16:9,10
 If Paul had not known the Holy Spirit so intimately he might have dismissed it as a bad-pizza-bagel-vision. If prideful, Paul may not have wanted to tell the guys. After all, his other plans were a flop. But God showed up and totally redirected.
Today many await their "Macedonian Call" to firmly guide them — to the right place, people, or thing. But the way God did it with Paul might not be the way God does it with us. The Holy Spirit customizes.
So we need to be familiar with God's Word and His Spirit — to hear and discern. Again, intimacy is the key.
The Holy Spirt is not only for us, but leads us to others who need a touch from God — like those in Macedonia or those around us today — which also becomes a blessing to us. So it's win-win in any case.
The Guy at My Dumpster
In my daily things I'm always asking the Holy Spirit to guide me. Earth is my mission field. My city, my street, my neighbors, wherever I am, I hope God will use me in some way.
A few weeks ago I took a bag of trash to my dumpster and as usual a guy was digging in the mess. As I walked up he motioned to me to hand him my trash bag, and not toss it in.
 I saw he was gathering bottles for deposit money, so I said, "I doubt anything in my bag is usable."
He said, "But it's a clean bag..."
I handed my trash to him and close-up I saw the dumpster bags he was trying to use were torn and fithy.
I said, "...have a good day," and about 15 feet away the Lord gave me a gentle nudge, "Go back and give him some money." In these situations, I used to wonder if it was my own compassion or God speaking. But not so much anymore.
This man was scavaging trash for pennies — and delighted to have a clean trash bag, why wouldn't Jesus want to help a little? And if my own mercy, that's good too.
 So I dug in my pocket and found ten dollars, walked back and handed it to him, simply saying, "I know you didn't ask, but Jesus just told me to give this to you. He wants to bless you today."
He was surprised and awkward. He had decent clothes and looked like a guy hoping to make a little extra to feed his family. He seemed both grateful and humbled as I went on my way with a happy blessing on my lips for him.
Who knows? Maybe his heart had been crying out to God for help and Jesus wanted him to know He was there for him, using my small gesture.
It was a victory for me — that I heard and obeyed.
Many are the times I heard but didn't turn back, or realized later (sometimes many years later) that an opportunity was missed, a horrible decision made. I didn't hear, or sadly, just didn't want to hear.
Ask For Wisdom
God's ways are higher than ours. He is smarter and wiser. It's only a fool who wants to lean on — depend on — his own understanding. (Is 55:9, Prov. 3:5)
We need to ask for His wisdom on how to please Him. Like asking a friend the best way to help. He will lead us in amazing ways that serve His priorities and purposes — instead of our own.
Wisdom from on high gives us the ability to see things from a perspective other than our own. It also gives us the desire to choose the highest goal — according to God's purposes.
The Holy Spirit gives us divine insights. He sharpens our discernment and instincts. He lines up our will with His, so pleasing God is more automatic... with lots of practice.
James wrote, "Wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere." James 3:17
2014 Fine-Tuning
 This year is just beginning. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you fine-tune your discernment and put you on high alert about where He wants you to go and how He wants you to live.
We all want to be led by the Spirit. Even in our brokenness God still holds the strings of our spirit. This year re-commit to understand, hear, and obey.
I am. Do it with me.
PHOTO CREDITS
*Dove: Gian Lorenzo Bernini [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons *Crossroads photo: By Carsten Tolkmit from Kiel, Germany (crossroads) [CC-BY-SA-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
*Flame photo: By MarcusObal (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
*Sun Abstract: by Vee Alexander, vintage painting
*Dock Painting: Last Days Ministries
*Broken Guitar photo: By Melody Green |
Energized by
Book — "No Compromise"
There is so much I've taken from this book. I'm so grateful to find the story of Keith Green.
I was encouraged to keep using my gift of music. I pray God helps me to be even more "souled" out for Him and for souls that don't know His Son.
Thank you for obeying what God asked you to do. Keith's words... your life... this ministry... it all remains even in my generation. God bless & love you all. - Josh
Facebook Find!
Wow, Ms Green. I was just flipping around FB and saw the name Melody Green... and wondered... and it was true. It's YOU!
Can't tell you how much ... ummm 'stuff' Keith's music saw me through so many years ago. I still listen.
Can't wait to learn more about what you are doing on this page. It's like an early Christmas gift. God Bless. - Jim
Online Ministry Impact
I have been a Christian over 10 years and over the last 2 years I have been highly impacted by your LDM website and the Keith Green story.
It has given me a new fire for Christ and encouragment to seek Him more and and to serve Him more with my life. Thank you for all you do for the body of Christ. -George
Love For the Abandoned
I'm someone whose life has been deeply changed by the ministry of Keith Green.
As a child I'd sit with my feet on our record player listening to Keith's message about serving God with my whole heart and life.
In 2004, the words of his song, "Asleep in the Light" came back to me as my husband and I were deciding whether to adopt an abandoned baby with Cerebral Palsy and deafness from an orphanage in Uganda.
All I heard was the chorus of God's beckoning, "Come away with me my love..." as God called me on a life-changing journey.
We adopted our little girl Ruth, who taught us so much about God's love for the broken and abandoned.
Melody once said, "People can't look to Keith now because he's gone. So if they ask who's going to do the work, they'll see that they will."
- Meadow
Join Melody on
FACEBOOK!
It's super easy! Click on each FB Page photo above (or on Logo below) then click the “like” button on each Page. Be part of the daily dialogue.
Ministry Years
4 CD COMBO
Silver Set with 2 CDs
Gold Set with 2 CDs
Retail Price $37.98
LDM Usual $29.98
LDM SALE $24.98
All of Keith's Music
is in this Set:
USE VOUCHER CODE:
MINISTRY
* 70 songs on enhanced CDs
* Also contains a PDF of the 1st version book: No Compromise: The Life Story of Keith Green.
NO COMPROMISE
The Life Story of Keith Green
BY MELODY GREEN
BESTSELLER UPDATED
Retail: $15.99
LDM Usual: $11.99
LDM Sale: $9.99
Curl up this cold winter with the galvanizing story of Keith and Melody's story of finding Jesus, and the whirlwind life of growing and ministering God gave to them.
A great read.
A powerful example!
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