A Story of Ivan (11/13-16)

13-16 November 2014 - A Story of Ivan – Manna by Dorothy Callies

Ivan was a soldier in the Red Army and a Christian who put his faith in God. The Communists had called him so many times to the headquarters tried to talk him out of his faith in God. The Communists were not successful. Then he was called in to meet the Major Gidenko's office, who was the head of the Political Directive Committee. Gidenko was sure that he could solve the problem by threatening him to back away from his faith. After a long talk and questionings with Ivan, Major Gidenko finally gave an order for him to stand in the street near the barracks, with the temperature of 13 degrees below zero. Ivan went out after 10 p.m. until 3 a.m., wearing only summer uniform and it was snowy, icy blast of wind.

Ivan prayed a long time, but soon prayer did not come easily. Ivan was worried how long he could stand all night, wondering if he could freeze to death. Soon after, he remembered the angel who had visited him that early morning, and said, "Do not be afraid, I am with you!" Ivan knew the angel was with him even though he did not see the angel. So he began to pray fervently.

At 12:30 a.m., three officers were bundled by their overcoats, hats and boots, came to Ivan, and asked him if he had changed his mind to come in and get warm. Ivan replied, "No, comrade officers. As much as I want to come in and go to bed, I cannot. I will never agree to remain silent about God." Ivan noticed three officers were already shaking from the cold. They were stamping their feet, and slapping their hands, impatient to return to their heated barracks. Ivan checked his hands--they were cold, but not too cold. He still could move his toes easily. It was a miracle!

One senior officer mumbled to Ivan, "You'll feel differently in another hour," and he quickly left. Ivan continued to pray until he was dozing while standing on his feet. It was 3:00 in the morning, the senior officer woke him up to return to barracks. For the next 12 nights, Ivan continued to stand in the street outside his barracks. Miraculously, he did not freeze; he did not beg for mercy.

Ivan continued to speak about his faith to his comrades and officers. He sang about the glory of God, Jesus Christ in barracks, though it was strictly prohibited. Soldiers around him were converted, and impressed by his strong faith in God. The Communists continued to torture Ivan and tried to get him to deny Jesus, but they were not successful.

Finally, Ivan's body was returned to his family. His body showed that he had been stabbed six times around the heart. There were signs of beatings on the whole body. Then he had been drowned. Colonel Malsin, his commander said, "Ivan Moiseyev died with difficulty. He fought with death, but he died as a Christian." Ivan's father was proud of his son, the Christian hero, who should be an example for all faithful youth that they should love Christ as Ivan, his son had loved Him. Note: Ivan wrote his last letter to his family before he died, gave them comforts that he was ready to go and be with the Lord Jesus Christ (He was only 20 years old).

Dorothy: Ivan gave the "Good News" to the soldiers. They were converted and turned their faith in God. Ivan had "harvested" more souls to Jesus through his suffering. Ivan died as a "Soldier of the Cross" and the song seems to fit him well. 
 

Song: Am I a Soldier of the Cross

Am I a soldier of the cross,
A follower of the Lamb,
And shall I fear to own His cause,
Or blush to speak His name?

Must I be carried to the skies
On flowery beds of ease,
While others fought to win the prize,
And sailed through bloody seas?

Are there no foes for me to face?
Must I not stem the flood?
Is this vile world a friend to grace,
To help me on to God?

Sure I must fight if I would reign;
Increase my courage, Lord.
I'll bear the toil, endure the pain,
Supported by Thy Word.

Thy saints in all this glorious war
Shall conquer, though they die;
They see the triumph from afar,
By faith's discerning eye.

When that illustrious day shall rise,
And all Thy armies shine
In robes of victory through skies,
The glory shall be Thine.         
 
[Isaac Watts wrote the hymn in 1721 to accompany his text message on 
1 Cor. 16:13, "Watch ye, stand fast, quit you like men, be strong."
 
On January 8th, 2008 I woke up at 3 a.m. The Lord urged me to read the book, "Jesus Freaks,” dc Talk and The Voice of the Martyrs, Stories of Those Who Stood for Jesus. I read one article about Ivan, the soldier of the Red Army and I was so impressed with Ivan's stand for Christ. 

May God bless you!

Dorothy

[Jan. 8, 2008 revised for Nov. 13-16, 2015 Manna]

Come unto Me (11/10-12)

10-12 November 2015 - Come unto Me – Manna by Dorothy Callies 

Song: Come unto Me

1. Hear the blessed Savior calling the oppressed,
“O ye heavy laden, come to Me and rest;
Come, no longer tarry, I your load will bear;
Bring Me every burden, bring Me every care.”
Chorus:
Come unto Me; I will give you rest;
Take my yoke upon you, Hear Me and be blest;
I am meek and lowly, Come and trust My might;
Come, My yoke is easy, And My burden’s light.

2. Are you disappointed, wandering here and there,
dragging chains of doubt and loaded down with care?
Do unholy feelings struggle in your breast?
Bring your case to Jesus, He will give you rest.
Chorus:

Come unto Me; I will give you rest;
Take my yoke upon you, Hear Me and be blest;
I am meek and lowly, Come and trust My might;
Come, My yoke is easy, And My burden’s light.

[Charles P. Jones, Sing His Praise]

Matthew 11:28, 29, 30 Jesus said,
KJV: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your soul. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

NCV: “Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Accept my teachings and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit, and you will find rest for your lives. The teaching that I ask you to accept is easy; the load I give you to carry is light.”

Today's prayer:
Dear Lord, I pray for strength and peace into our hearts in time of trouble. I pray for the joy of the Lord into our hearts and that You are our Life. You are our strength. You are our peace since Jesus said, "My peace I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in Me. Trust God." Thank You Holy Spirit for the inspiration this morning. In Jesus' name amen.

May God bless you today.

[Manna from Dec. 2008 revision for Nov. 10-12, 2015]

Hearts Warm? (11/7-9)

07-09 Nov. 2015 – Hearts Warm? – Manna by Dorothy Callies

Theme: Was not our hearts warm?

Luke 24:32 KJV: And they said to one another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?

NCV: They said to each other, "It felt like a fire burning in us when Jesus talked to us on  the road and explained the Scriptures to us." AMP: And they said to one another, Was not our heart greatly moved and burning within us while He was talking with us on the  road [and] as He opened and explained to us [the sense of] the Scriptures?

Jesus on the Road to Emmaus is found in Luke 24:13-35.
 The song, "Let's talked about Jesus," reminds me of the story of two followers who were on the way to a town called, Emmaus. They were talking about Jesus because they didn't know that Jesus had arose. When Jesus joined and walked with them to Emmaus, they were discussing the Scriptures. Later when their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, and He vanished. They realized that when Jesus talked about the Scriptures, their heart were inspired.

What does this means to me? It made me realized that reading the Scriptures will inspired me, touched me, healed me, blessed me, lifted me, changed my life and get to know Jesus more and more. The Scriptures were all about Jesus. The whole Bible is an inspiration from God.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to realize You have revealed to us through Your Word, the Bible. Open our eyes to see You, the same way You have opened two followers' eyes to recognize You and Your Word. Help us to find someone to talk about You and let our hearts burn within us. In Jesus' name. Amen! God bless you!

Song: Let’s Talk About Jesus!
Let's talk about Jesus!
The King of kings is He.
The Lord of lords supreme!
Throughout eternity.
The great I am the Way,
the truth, the Life, the door.
Let's talk about Jesus more and more.

(Inspiring Choruses)

[This Manna is from March 2008 for Nov. 7-9, 2015]

Many Deceivers (11/4-6)

04-06 Nov. 2015 - Many Deceivers – Manna by Dorothy Callies 

2 John 1:7-8 KJV: For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. v8. Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.

NCV: Many false teachers are in the world now who do not confess that Jesus Christ came to earth as a human. Anyone who does not confess this is a false teacher and an enemy of Christ. v8. Be careful yourselves that you do not lose everything you worked for, but that you receive your full reward.

Summary Note: John warns that many deceivers and false teachers are perverting [turn from the truth of] God’s Word and trying to persuade Christians to accept their views. Their false teaching concerns the person of Jesus Christ. They deny that Jesus Christ was the eternal Son of God, born of the virgin [Matt. 1:18; Luke 1:27], the blood of Jesus provides forgiveness for the sins of all who believe [1 John 2:2; 1 John 4:9-10] and who is “the true God, and eternal life” [1 John 5:20].

John loves the truth [2 John 1:1]. John loves and cares for others which show in the book of John how he reveals about Christ. The note explains that it is possible that some people will show love toward others, but not live by God’s truth about Jesus Christ. And also some people will promote God’s truth and doctrine of Christ and not show love and concern for others. What God wants is that we show both love for His truth and love for others. We must speak the truth in love [Eph. 4:15; 1 Cor. 13:6].

What does this means to me? It is about Christ and who He is. And what John is trying to tell us about the deceivers. Have you ever had someone who tried to change your belief and join their “other organization” that does not follow God’s truth and the teachings of Christ and apostles? What should you do? Study God’s Word very carefully and always remember that Jesus is our strong foundation of salvation.

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, I pray that we stay true to You. Help us to be strong and reminds us Your Word that we “look to ourselves, that we lose not those things” what Jesus has taught us. I pray that we abide in the “doctrine of Jesus Christ” (2 John 1:9). In Jesus’ name I pray, amen! May you be blessed with this song.

Song: KEEP ME TRUE, LORD JESUS
Keep me true, Lord Jesus, keep me true;
Keep me true, Lord Jesus, keep me true;
There's a race that I must run,
There are victories to be won.

Give me power, every hour, to be true.
(Inspiring Choruses)  

[Dec. 2008 Manna for Nov. 4-6, 2015 with little revision. Now you have the Scriptures about those who claimed that “Jesus Christ was not born in the flesh,” John, the Beloved Disciples said, “They are antichrist” 2 John 1:7] 

Bee Sting (11/1-3)

01-03 November 2015 - Bee Sting – Shared by a friend 

From Worthy News Brief shared to us by Maria R.                                             

Matthew 5:11-12 “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”

An ancient story is told of the Queen of Sheba. She sent two wreaths of roses to Solomon, one real and one artificial, to test his reputed wisdom. She defied him to detect the genuine from the artificial. Solomon at once directed that some bees be brought into the room and of course, they immediately flew to the real flowers and thought nothing of the counterfeit.

So it is with us as believers. When we find ourselves overwhelmed, surrounded, being attacked from every side with the bees of revile and persecution, it simply means they recognize that we are the real deal! Our beautiful aroma attracts those scary bees but the Lord, in the end, "Where,[oh bees], is your sting?"

Rejoice when the bees come around! Don't lose heart! God has the victory!   

Dangerous like Wolves (10/31)

31 October 2015 Dangerous like Wolves – Manna by Dorothy Callies

Matthew 7:20 NCV, “…you will know these false prophets by what they do.”
Matthew 7:15 NCV, “…They come to you looking gentle like sheep, but they are really dangerous like wolves.”

Note: This is a warning from Jesus Christ who prophecy what the false prophets will do. In the New Testament times, they are called, ‘Professed Christians’ who declare openly what they believe. The word ‘profess’ means to declare or tell one’s belief and to pretend to be something when they are not.

They will act like a true Christian, but they do not follow the true teaching of Christ or apostles’ teaching like John, Peter and Jude. For example: They tell you that Jesus was not born in the flesh, yet they acted like a Christian. Jesus said, “They are really dangerous like wolves.”

What exactly do the wolves do? In some movies, have you ever seen the pack of wolves? They find something to eat and they attack animals or even a human being. They tear them to pieces to eat. It is not a pleasant thing to watch, but that is what wolves do.

Have you ever met someone who really talks smoothly to begin with and then suddenly they change and try to convince you that their ‘false’ teachings are right? Inside of you, you felt crushed, confused, and lost. It could leads to emotional confusion if you don’t know the warnings from the Word of God.

This is why Jesus warned about the ‘Professed Christians’ whose works are like the “wolves” and they tried to find those who they can change them from what they believe in the Doctrine of Christ [2 John 1:9].

This is why John said, “…try (test) the spirits whether they are of God…” It means find the Word of God, the Sword and make sure you protect yourself from these “wolves” who are out to destroy you. Study the Doctrine of Christ, the basic teachings from Apostles’ epistles (letters) from the Bible. This is your only protection: Know the Word of God. Stand firm and study Jesus’ warnings from the Gospel!

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the words of warning that came from Your Son, Jesus Christ. He is truly a prophet who cares for His own sheep. I remember “Ivan” who stood for You and the Communist was like “wolves” trying to talk him out of his faith in You. When they didn’t succeed, they acted like ‘wolves,’ stabbed him six times and beating his body until finally he died as a true Christian martyr [Jan 9, 2008 Fresh Manna]. My heart goes out to those new baby Christians who are learning to trust You and I pray they will stand for You in Jesus’ name, amen.

[Dec. 2008 Manna for Oct 31^st, 2015 with some revision. This is a perfect time to be alert, watch and pray that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.]

God bless you today!

Conflict (10/30)

30 October 2015 - Conflict - Manna by Dorothy Callies 

Theme: "Don't shy away from conflict"
Isaiah 41:21 "Present your case," the Lord says. "Bring forward your strong arguments."

My Son,
Having conflict in your life is normal. Only dead people have no conflict in their lives. Some people tend to shy away from conflict because it makes them nervous. They believe if they ignore it, it will go away. But that just doesn't happen.

If you ignored a wound, it would become infected and lead to other problems. Ignoring it wouldn't make it go away. The same is true about difficult situations in your life.

I don't want you to shy away from conflict. It isn't bad if you handle it well. If you approach the situation with confidence in Me and love toward the other person or people, then you have the power to heal or to prevent the wounds of conflict. Turn to me, and let's face conflict together.

Your Mediator,
God
e-mail from God for Men by Andy Cloninger

Dorothy:
The phrase: shy away means don't push it away or wish for something better. The word conflict means struggle; fight; disagreement; clash; direct opposition. What this mean to me? Things don't always go the way I want. This is called 'conflict'. I am sure you may have face something that God put you there and you do not like it. This is called 'conflict'. The e-mail from God for Men touched my heart because I often struggle with several things.

I had wondered if a struggle was okay or not. Then I open the book and God spoke to me about the conflict. I see that God was at work through my struggle or conflict. It made me realize that God do cares for me. I believe God is speaking to you today. Maybe you are going through the same thing. Just know that God loves you and so do I.

 [This is from Dec. 2008 Manna. Awesome! We all need this in time of Halloween.]