Cornerstone

Isa 62:1-5 (3) “Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.”

Before Merlin became the advisor to King Arthur, he led a war band throughout Briton in an effort to free them from the marauding bands of barbarians. During this time he met the illegitimate son of a neighboring king. The young man was the shame of his father and wished to be free from the bondage he felt.

When he met Merlin there was a natural affinity that often occurs. He bowed before Merlin and asked that he be permitted to be Merlin’s servant. At his insistence, Merlin asked the king to grant him the young man as a gift.

The king was happy to be rid of the shame in his life. From that day Pelleas was closer to Merlin than a brother.

Later, Merlin married. When his wife was soon to have a child he allowed her to travel to her father’s castle. He and his warband would follow a short time later.

Unknown to Merlin a large army of barbarians was roving the area. When they saw her group arriving they attacked the group, abusing, torturing and killing all of them.

When Merlin came upon the body of his mutilated wife he went crazy. He led his warband in a reckless battle against the barbarians. It was a slaughter. Still crazed in his grief he disappeared. He was not seen for many years.

Pelleas did not cease to search for him. Day after day he searched. He crisscrossed the country looking for his friend. Finally, he was rewarded for his diligence when he found Merlin, just healed by God but still wearing the rags of his hermitage.

This kind of loyalty and devotion illustrates what God desires of His people. We are to be totally given to Him. His our life, our breath, our being.

Dr. Gayle Woods

Matthew 8:28-34

Thomas was an older man who had been saved before. Each time, he went back on his faith because of the power cigarettes had over his body. He told me “A Christian can’t smoke. Until I can overcome cigarettes I can’t be a Christian.”

The church continued to pray for Thomas. Then the tragic news came. I rushed to the hospital. Just before he was to go in for open heart surgery I talked to him about his heart need. “Yes,” he said. “I want to ask God to forgive me of my sins.” We prayed and Thomas testified to victory.

During surgery the doctors nearly lost him. For the next month he hung between life and death. It was a struggle for life and for deliverance. It was pitiful to see him make hand signals as he begged for a cigarette. He pawed at his chest where he had always kept a pack of cigarettes in his shirt pocket. He went through the motions of puffing imaginary cigarettes. But God totally delivered Thomas so that he was able to live for the Lord in victory the next few years before he went to heaven. A miracle? Yes, a miracle of God’s healing power. Although slow and painfully drawn out, it was a conclusive miracle nonetheless.

Dr. Gayle Woods

Rom 6:1-4 (4)

All Christians have their baptismal stories. Let me tell you mine. I had been saved for some time and was endeavoring to live for the Lord. I wished, however, to give a symbolic public testimony to the fact that I had made a commitment to follow Jesus all of my life. Therefore, when pastor Robert Thompson, Sr. of the Mt. Zion Church of God (Holiness) congregation announced a baptismal service I asked to be a candidate.

We had no baptismal tank and so we did it the old fashioned way. In mid-November the congregation boarded the school’s bus and headed toward a beautiful creek in the Ozarks south of Mt. Zion Bible School. It was a cold and windy day. When it came my turn I waded out into the water where Bro. Thompson affirmed my testimony of the saving grace of Jesus and then plunged me neath the freezing flood! The cold water shocked my sensibilities. For a symbolic moment I crossed the line into another world. Then I was raised quickly and triumphantly to the symbolic challenges of the Christ-like life. Shivering but warm in my soul I made my way out of the water of testimony into an unfriendly world to stand for my Lord.

It was through this experience that I came to realize that in Romans 6 Paul was trying to equate burial with our separation from a sinful life. In addition, Paul was trying to equate resurrection with the consistent holy life of the Christian.

Dr. Gayle Woods

John 16:7-12 (8)

⁷But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt^[a] in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; ¹⁰in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; ¹¹and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.

¹²“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.”

After moving to Los Angeles my 92-year-old father wanted to learn how to get to the store, the bank, and other points of his interest.  I printed a map and marked where the locations he desired including the home address.  We took several trips to these places and I had him tell me which way to turn as he consulted the map.

Several weeks later I had to return to Kansas City on business.  During my absence he decided to go to the grocery store.  He made the trip safely and bought his groceries.  While in the store, however, he unknowingly became disoriented.  When he left the store he turned South instead of North.  He traveled through the city for quite a distance before he accepted the fact that he was in unfamiliar territory.  Stopping, he asked a FedEx employee directions.  The man showed him on the map how to return home.

Although we study God’s road map for our lives there may be times when circumstances in life cause us to lose our sense of direction.  When our spirit begins to warn us that we are getting farther away from home it is important that we consult our map and ask the Holy Spirit to once again help us to get on the right path.

Later we purchased a compass to put in our truck.  It constantly informs us what direction we are going.  In like manner, the ever present Spirit is an assurance that the believer need never stray from God’s presence.

Dr. Gayle Woods

Proverbs 22:10-16 (16)

You can expect obstacles in life. On the way to church you may find that the highway is under construction and you have to take a detour. Some obstacles that you will face are more significant. You may be handicapped causing you to forfeit some of the desires in life you might have had.

Jesus F. Contreras, a Mexican sculptor lost his right arm while working on a statue. Besides the pain, expense and inconvenience, this caused him a lot of frustration. But the artist did not give up on his work. Through painstaking effort he learned to carve with his left hand. Finally the day came when he unveiled his beautiful masterpiece. He had named it ’In Spite Of’.

Booker T. Washington was born in slavery. Thomas Edison was deaf in his left ear and 80% deaf in his right ear. Beethoven was deaf. Abraham Lincoln was born of illiterate parents. Lord Byron had a club foot. Robert Louis Stevenson had tuberculosis. Alexander Pope was a hunchback. Admiral Nelson had only one eye. Julius Caesar was an epileptic. Helen Keller was blind and deaf.
All of these individuals faced obstacles but did not let it stop them. They went on to great success.

We take courage from such stories and yet we have an advantage that many in life have not discovered. We have a God whose grace is sufficient for every circumstance. We have a God who will never leave us when we face the obstacles of live. He will never forsake us when others give up and leave us to face the hardships of life alone.

By Dr. Gayle Woods