There is a difference between giving a testimony and preaching. A preacher is one who has realized the call of God and is determined to use his every power to proclaim God’s truth. God takes us out of our own ideas for our lives and we are “batter’d to shape and use,” as the disciples were after Pentecost. Pentecost did not teach the disciples any thing; it made them the incarnation of what they preached – “Ye shall be witnesses unto Me.”

Let God have perfect liberty when you speak. Before God’s message can liberate other souls, the liberation must be real in you. Gather your material, and set it alight when you speak.

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March 10, 2011

Journal Entry for Today-JDV

Thank you for the service last evening, Lord. An Ash Wednesday Service that allowed the entire congregation to come together in agreement that we have sinned against You. We came to acknowledge our failure and frailty and the gift of your salvation. It was a time of shared conviction that starts renewal.  Thank you for washing us all white as snow.

And God says…”Your agreement and acknowledgment of your failures allow you to grasp my mercy and grace. These are available to you through Christ Jesus. My mercy and grace are limitless and extend far beyond your bad choices and short sightedness.  Acknowledgment of your failures and frailty provides the beginning for your renewal. “