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Fw: SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #174 ---- 5/7/01

#1 · May 14, 2001, 11:44 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on May 14, 2001, 11:44 pm
Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>

May 14, 2001

Oh, My! I couldn't believe it!

I just discovered today that neither last Monday's letter or today's were sent to you.

PLEASE FORGIVE ME! This is the first time in "Shoulders" history that letters have failed to be delivered at least sometime during the week.

The Problem: In making our e-mail change, I ran into problems with my outgoing mail and had to make an adjustment to a local server ---- one address for incoming and another for outgoing. When I made the change, I failed to "notify" my automated mail man, E Z, so when he saw that foreign address, he said, "no way am I gonna send that on. I don't know who this Inter-linc guy is."

Now he knows, thanks to my friend, Glen.

So ---- more than a week late, here is S2S #174. And #175 has also been sent to you.

Again, my deepest apologies. My record is no longer intact. 🙁 (so-o-o-o-b-b-b, so-o-o-b-b-b!)

Enjoy the letters anyhow. I hope they encourage you.

Bob

Bob Tolliver
Life Unlimited Ministries
E-mail: [email protected]
Do You Get "Shoulder To Shoulder"?
----- Original Message -----
From: Bob Tolliver
To: [email protected]
Cc: Robert Tolliver
Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2001 11:11 PM
Subject: SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #174 ---- 5/7/01

Standing Shoulder To Shoulder With You In The Trenches
As We fight The Good Fight In This New Millennium

SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #174 ---- 5/7/01

Title: "Fightings And Fears . . . Within"
(Part 3 ---- "Watering From A Dry Well")

TO SUBSCRIBE to "Shoulder to Shoulder", send a blank message to <[email protected]>.
To Subscribe for someone else, write <[email protected]>.
TO UNSUBSCRIBE, send a blank message to <[email protected]>.

Dear Friend and Partner in Ministry:

Greetings in the incredible name of the Lord Jesus Christ. My goodness, how God blesses us day by day! It seems He just continues to pour His blessing and mercy on us each day. I'm talking about you and me, friend, not just my family. Have you taken time to consider all the ways He has blessed you this past week?

I've been reminded many times, at the hand of our grand children.

For example, we were blessed by being reminded of the great heritage our grand kids have when we went to "World Fest" at Silver Dollar City outside Branson, Missouri, and saw performers from all around the world. The groups from eastern Europe were wonderful. Seeing their incredible artistic skills and beautiful music and dances handed down from generation to generation reminded me of what these kids have as their history. I was also reminded of how they bless us today out of that history.

Then again, as recently as Saturday night, I was reminded of how blessed we are to have them in our family. We sat together and watched some of the video from our most recent trip to the Ukraine. Even most of the songs were sung in Ukrainian rather than Russian, they were able to appreciate and even explain some of what we saw and heard.

When we got to the section where we saw the 105 homeless children in a temporary "orphanage", we learned some new things about how our five had endured homelessness, being cared for by the police, and so forth.

Yes, God has blessed us in amazing ways.

Then yesterday in church we were blessed again as all but three of our Kiev team came to the church where I am interim pastor to sing, play, and share their testimonies. Our fellowship spilled over to lunch together at our favorite restaurant. But it continues even further than that. One of our "gals" leaves Tuesday for orientation with a major denominational missions agency, preparing to return to Ukraine as a missionary. As many as six of that team will return with us next January; that's the most we've ever had.

Our blessings of the week, however, go back even further ---- all the way back to last Sunday when, for the first time in nearly three years, Jo Ann and I had an opportunity to visit another church without the responsibility of ministry. We had been wanting to go there for over four years, because it is pastored by a young man whose roots go back to the same spot in Clay County, Illinois that mine do ---- Hoosier Prairie Church.

Jeremy's grandfather and my father were boyhood friends, his father and I knew each other well and played together after church each Sunday of the Summer. For some reason, we just wanted to go hear Jeremy preach and to enjoy being in the church that had such a reputation as a growing and vibrant congregation.

So ---- we did it.

And . . . . were we ever blessed!

But, blessed in an unexpected way. Jeremy preached a message that related directly to the little series I'm doing right now in these letters. He clearly identified and preached concerning one of the "Fightings and Fears . . . . Within" about which I had intended to write.

So . . . . there's no better day than today.

WATERING FROM A DRY WELL:

Have you ever found yourself facing the responsibility to minister when you knew there was no ministry motivation in you? Have you ever faced an hour to preach when there was no message? Have you ever had to pray for a hurting saint when there was no compassion in your soul? Have you ever had to sing a song when there was none in your heart? Have you ever had to minister hope when your heart will filled with nothing but fear and despair?

Then, you know what I mean when I say that one of the most dreaded prospects we face is having to "preach from a dry well". One of the most dreaded thing for me personal as a young minister was the fear of not having a fresh word from God. Now true, I had many sermons I could preach and solos I could sing. The same is true today.

However, just having a sermon . . . . even a good one . . . . is not adequate for the people of today. They need a fresh word every time we stand before them in God's behalf. Just singing a song is not sufficient, no matter how brilliantly performed. People need an anointed message of joy, celebration, hope, or comfort cradled in the harmonics of God breathed music.

There have been times when God has withheld His plan for reasons known only to Him, and I have gone to bed Saturday nights without a fresh message. When such a thing happened, I would frequently wake up in the middle of the night with a start, broken out in a cold sweat, facing the nightmarish fear of having to stand before a congregation with no message that God had planted in my heart.

Frankly, I'm having difficulty articulating what I want to say in this realm. We have so many great books, tapes, and subscription services available that the average minister doesn't have to look far or work hard, frankly, in order to find something to preach or sing. The days of meeting with God on your face before Him are long gone to many. They have opted for a canned, long prepared and presented rendition from someone else . . . . someone other than God.

It has become so commonplace that few feel any sense of conviction over preaching or singing something that God didn't personally birth in their hearts. Maybe my struggle comes from realizing that some who read my letter today will be those who don't see what the big deal is; they've never tasted the thrill of knowing God has offered them fresh manna to dispense to His people. Their appetite has been acclimated from birth with soured manna from somebody else's bowl of leftovers.

Well, ---- God is so good! ---- Jeremy preaching on "The Wells of Salvation" last Sunday, based on Isaiah 12:2-4. And, God used it to refresh me and remind me.

He refreshed me by assuring me there's always water in the well. He reminded me that if the well seems dry, it's because of debris and not because of the lack of water.

While I don't remember a great deal of detail in his message, I do know that God brought me great encouragement and, hopefully, some insight that I'd like to share with you, my friend. Now, I can't discern at this point which thoughts are Jeremy's and which or mine, but I am certain of this ---- they both came from the same Holy Spirit.

So . . . . I hope you are blessed.

First, listen to this:

"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.

"Therefore, you will joyously draw water from the springs (wells) of salvation.

"And in that day you will say, 'Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name. Make known His deeds among the peoples; Make them remember that His name is exalted'."

Isn't that powerful?!!

I was reminded, as I listened to Jeremy's expositional outline of that passage, how important it is to allow God's Word to speak for itself. When you do, it is clear.

DRAWING FROM THE WELLS OF SALVATION:

Several thoughts come to mind as I consider this idea. First and foremost is the ease with which we forget the source of our salvation. Next is often our failure to realize that our salvation is described as a well or a spring. Jesus said in John 7:38 that "he who believes into me, out of his innermost being will flow rivers of living water." He told the woman at the well that her well would never satisfy, but that whoever drank of the water He had to offer would never thirst again.

So it becomes evident that the Origin of the Wells is with God Himself. That makes, therefore, an inexhaustible resource for those of us who are commissioned to minister the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is best illustrated in the life of Israel as they were preparing to enter the long promised land which God had reserved for them. As they were preparing to enter the land, God gave some special instructions and seemed to set the record straight as to their true source of redemption ---- God Himself.

Among the long series of teachings, commands, promises, and warnings, God says in Deuteronomy 6:10 and following that when the time comes for them to possess the land, they are going to receive houses they did not built, bulging storehouses they did not fill, wells they did not dig, etc.

In other words, the Origin of the wells was not them; it was God.

So it is with us. When we entered into eternal relationship with God through Jesus Christ we received salvation that was not ours to achieve, and life that was not ours to create. Because our salvation originates in God, so also the "wells" of salvation about which Isaiah wrote come from God alone.

Therefore, when you and I are drawing from those wells, we must remember that the wells are not ours. We didn't create them, we didn't dig them, we didn't fill them.

It was all God.

Yet how easily we forget that and think that our preaching, singing, or any other form of ministry originates in ourselves. Oh, sure . . . . we readily acknowledge that God is the One who called us into vocational or volunteer ministry, but when it comes to the practical outworking of it, we want to take the credit . . . . unless, of course, we're failing miserably ---- then we look for someone to blame for that.

Therefore, if we are to be true to Him in our ministering, we must recognize that even the ministering itself is something we did not create, and we cannot keep it either fresh or full by our own initiative. . . . . which leads me to the second thought ---- the Blessings of the wells.

I like what Jeremy said about this ---- the blessings found in the wells of salvation are multitudinous, but they can all be summed up in one world ---- Salvation. "Be hold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. For the Lord God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. Jeremy pointed out three elements of that salvation found in this simple verse.

First was that, through our salvation, God has given us deliverance ---- "God is my salvation". The word here clearly means deliverance. Delivered from, as I wrote a few weeks ago, sin, self, the law, the world, and Satan himself.

Second, He is also our defense. Therefore, "I will trust and not be afraid". God is our defender. One of the things I find troubled me regarding drawing from a bone dry well was the criticism of others. However, God is our defender. A year or two ago I wrote a series of letters on "Rhea's" that God had given me over the years that came to be a part of my spiritual fiber. I mentioned Isaiah 54:17 ---- "No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from Me, declares the Lord."

God is my defense, whether with or without a fresh message. That's another one of the blessings.

Finally, He is also our Delight. According to Isaiah's record, "The Lord God is my strength and song". What a delight! Jeremy referred to Numbers 21:16 and following. God's people had traveled from place to place through the wilderness, and after days and months of exhausting journey, God commanded Moses to assemble the people at Beer " . . . . that I may give them water".

When God gave that promise of relief, verse 17 dramatically records their response: "Then Israel sang this song: 'Spring up, Oh well! Sing to it!'"

Now what's the point to you and me . . . . people to whom God has entrusted ministry to His people and to the unbelieving world?

Whenever we feel we're drawing from a dry well, we need to remember that our source is our salvation in Jesus Christ. He is our deliverance, our defense, and our delight.

Our job?

Simply command, "Spring up, oh well!"

Spring up, oh well! Spring up, oh well! Spring up! Spring up! Spring up!

What God spoke to my heart last Sunday was that there should never one single occasion when we have to go to the public arena of ministry drawing from a dry well.

If the well seems dry, speak the word of faith ---- "Spring up, oh well!" Since God is our source, and He is the one Who called us to ministry, then He is the One who will respond when we cry out in despair, "Spring up, oh well! . . . . or I'm sunk, and your message will not be delivered!"

Finally, we consider the final thought that Jeremy shared ---- the Battle Of the wells.

Deuteronomy 6:12 contains an ominous warning that should remind us that there is an ongoing battle for the wells of our salvation. Satan knows that, once you're saved, he can't keep you from heaven. However, he does know that he can keep you from effectiveness.

And the way he does it is subtle but simple. If he can't keep you away from the well, then he'll try to plug the well up.

You see, my dear friend and ministry companion, if you're drawing from a dry well, you're not really drawing from a dry well. The Bible is clear that the well never runs dry.

The problem is that we didn't "watch yourself, that you do not forget the Lord who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." And, because we didn't watch ourselves, our wells got contaminated. We began, probably unknowingly, to allow "stuff" to get dumped into our wells.

Do you see it? The problem is not your ministry, it is not the message, and it is certainly not our salvation. It is very simple ----

There's "stuff" in the wells!

Unfortunately we often think that, because the flow has ceased, God is moving us on to another well . . . . another field of service . . . . another gimmick . . . . another series to preach . . . . another concert to perform.

When all God is trying to tell us is, "clean out your wells!"

That's the battle, my friend . . . . to simply keep the wells of our salvation clean from debris and junk.

FINALLY:

In all honest, dear friend, I can truthfully say that in times when I felt there was nothing left to draw out of the wells of my salvation that would quench thirsty souls, I was mistaken. There was plenty.

I just couldn't get to it ---- too much junk in the well.

When I was a small boy I lived in a small Illinois town of Sailor Springs. I've written about that town before. About 125 people and a bunch of dogs. It had a grand and glorious heritage back in the late 1800's ---- hotels, banks, traveling minstrel shows, bands, people from the great cities of Chicago, St. Louis, Memphis going their to vacation.

It's featured attractions were scores of fresh, gurgling mineral springs providing refreshment, healing, and pleasure to all who drank from them. I have old post cards and photographs from my grandparents' and great grandparents' collections depicting life then.

However, when I lived there some 50 or more years later, it was another story. There were only about five such springs left in town. The rest had all been filled in. The gazebo's had been torn down, the trees had died, and the water ran no more.

That's the way it sometimes is in our lives. We feel we've dried up and have nothing left to give, when in fact the problem is simply that we've allowed the wells to be filled in.

Listen to me, friend.

If God were through with you, you'd be gone. Since you're still here, He still has a plan for you.

But . . . . . . . . . . it's going to take your willingness to check out the wells.

If you see some "junk", even good looking junk that you may think has some good purpose, you'd better get rid of it.

Otherwise, you're going to continue drawing from what you think is a dry well.

How do you get out the junk?

Well, as a young boy on the farm, I had occasion to clean out some wells that had gone bad. We used two basic instruments to clean out a well ---- a bucket and a grappling hook.

So it is with your well of salvation, if you see it has been plugged up.

It will require some hard work on your part. Make no bones about it, you will have a price to pay. It's true that nothing of real value comes free. If you believe that your ministry has value and is worth saving, then you'll grab the bucket and the grappling hook, and you'll get to work.

If you don't think it's worth saving, then you'll sit on your blessed assurance wallowing in self pity while God's people begin to wander and the lost continue their downward spiral to hell. And, you probably won't care.

If, on the other hand, you're serious about replenishing the wells of salvation again and seeing them flow afresh with life giving abundance, then you'll grab the bucket and the grappling hook, and you'll begin the process.

So . . . . grab them, my friend! Get on with it.

The grappling hook of God's Word and the bucket of prayer attached to the rope of repentance and praise will soon have the waters flowing again in your wells of salvation.

Well, don't just stand there staring at them. Pick them up and get to the task!

Lives are at stake!

In His Bond of Great Mercy and Grace,

Bob Tolliver ---- (Rom 1:11-12)
Copyright May, 2001. All rights reserved.

--------------

^
/ |
(_/____)
/ ^ ^
{ (O) (O) }
------oOOOo--------U-------oOOOo------

Hang in there! I'm with you!

--------ooooO----------------Ooooo--------
( ) /
| | /
(_) (_)

Our heart is to "Lift up hands that hang down". We'd love to hear from you. Drop us a note with reports, observations, prayer requests, etc.

If this letter has blessed you and you know of someone else who needs to be encouraged, feel free to forward it in its entirety to all such people you know.

If you would like a list of past issues which you could receive upon request, just let us know.

Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>

May 14, 2001

Oh, My! I couldn't believe it!

I just discovered today that neither last Monday's letter or today's were sent to you.

PLEASE FORGIVE ME! This is the first time in "Shoulders" history that letters have failed to be delivered at least sometime during the week.

The Problem: In making our e-mail change, I ran into problems with my outgoing mail and had to make an adjustment to a local server ---- one address for incoming and another for outgoing. When I made the change, I failed to "notify" my automated mail man, E Z, so when he saw that foreign address, he said, "no way am I gonna send that on. I don't know who this Inter-linc guy is."

Now he knows, thanks to my friend, Glen.

So ---- more than a week late, here is S2S #174. And #175 has also been sent to you.

Again, my deepest apologies. My record is no longer intact. 🙁 (so-o-o-o-b-b-b, so-o-o-b-b-b!)

Enjoy the letters anyhow. I hope they encourage you.

Bob

Bob Tolliver
Life Unlimited Ministries
E-mail: [email protected]
Do You Get "Shoulder To Shoulder"?
----- Original Message -----
From: Bob Tolliver
To: [email protected]
Cc: Robert Tolliver
Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2001 11:11 PM
Subject: SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #174 ---- 5/7/01

Standing Shoulder To Shoulder With You In The Trenches
As We fight The Good Fight In This New Millennium

SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #174 ---- 5/7/01

Title: "Fightings And Fears . . . Within"
(Part 3 ---- "Watering From A Dry Well")

TO SUBSCRIBE to "Shoulder to Shoulder", send a blank message to <[email protected]>.
To Subscribe for someone else, write <[email protected]>.
TO UNSUBSCRIBE, send a blank message to <[email protected]>.

Dear Friend and Partner in Ministry:

Greetings in the incredible name of the Lord Jesus Christ. My goodness, how God blesses us day by day! It seems He just continues to pour His blessing and mercy on us each day. I'm talking about you and me, friend, not just my family. Have you taken time to consider all the ways He has blessed you this past week?

I've been reminded many times, at the hand of our grand children.

For example, we were blessed by being reminded of the great heritage our grand kids have when we went to "World Fest" at Silver Dollar City outside Branson, Missouri, and saw performers from all around the world. The groups from eastern Europe were wonderful. Seeing their incredible artistic skills and beautiful music and dances handed down from generation to generation reminded me of what these kids have as their history. I was also reminded of how they bless us today out of that history.

Then again, as recently as Saturday night, I was reminded of how blessed we are to have them in our family. We sat together and watched some of the video from our most recent trip to the Ukraine. Even most of the songs were sung in Ukrainian rather than Russian, they were able to appreciate and even explain some of what we saw and heard.

When we got to the section where we saw the 105 homeless children in a temporary "orphanage", we learned some new things about how our five had endured homelessness, being cared for by the police, and so forth.

Yes, God has blessed us in amazing ways.

Then yesterday in church we were blessed again as all but three of our Kiev team came to the church where I am interim pastor to sing, play, and share their testimonies. Our fellowship spilled over to lunch together at our favorite restaurant. But it continues even further than that. One of our "gals" leaves Tuesday for orientation with a major denominational missions agency, preparing to return to Ukraine as a missionary. As many as six of that team will return with us next January; that's the most we've ever had.

Our blessings of the week, however, go back even further ---- all the way back to last Sunday when, for the first time in nearly three years, Jo Ann and I had an opportunity to visit another church without the responsibility of ministry. We had been wanting to go there for over four years, because it is pastored by a young man whose roots go back to the same spot in Clay County, Illinois that mine do ---- Hoosier Prairie Church.

Jeremy's grandfather and my father were boyhood friends, his father and I knew each other well and played together after church each Sunday of the Summer. For some reason, we just wanted to go hear Jeremy preach and to enjoy being in the church that had such a reputation as a growing and vibrant congregation.

So ---- we did it.

And . . . . were we ever blessed!

But, blessed in an unexpected way. Jeremy preached a message that related directly to the little series I'm doing right now in these letters. He clearly identified and preached concerning one of the "Fightings and Fears . . . . Within" about which I had intended to write.

So . . . . there's no better day than today.

WATERING FROM A DRY WELL:

Have you ever found yourself facing the responsibility to minister when you knew there was no ministry motivation in you? Have you ever faced an hour to preach when there was no message? Have you ever had to pray for a hurting saint when there was no compassion in your soul? Have you ever had to sing a song when there was none in your heart? Have you ever had to minister hope when your heart will filled with nothing but fear and despair?

Then, you know what I mean when I say that one of the most dreaded prospects we face is having to "preach from a dry well". One of the most dreaded thing for me personal as a young minister was the fear of not having a fresh word from God. Now true, I had many sermons I could preach and solos I could sing. The same is true today.

However, just having a sermon . . . . even a good one . . . . is not adequate for the people of today. They need a fresh word every time we stand before them in God's behalf. Just singing a song is not sufficient, no matter how brilliantly performed. People need an anointed message of joy, celebration, hope, or comfort cradled in the harmonics of God breathed music.

There have been times when God has withheld His plan for reasons known only to Him, and I have gone to bed Saturday nights without a fresh message. When such a thing happened, I would frequently wake up in the middle of the night with a start, broken out in a cold sweat, facing the nightmarish fear of having to stand before a congregation with no message that God had planted in my heart.

Frankly, I'm having difficulty articulating what I want to say in this realm. We have so many great books, tapes, and subscription services available that the average minister doesn't have to look far or work hard, frankly, in order to find something to preach or sing. The days of meeting with God on your face before Him are long gone to many. They have opted for a canned, long prepared and presented rendition from someone else . . . . someone other than God.

It has become so commonplace that few feel any sense of conviction over preaching or singing something that God didn't personally birth in their hearts. Maybe my struggle comes from realizing that some who read my letter today will be those who don't see what the big deal is; they've never tasted the thrill of knowing God has offered them fresh manna to dispense to His people. Their appetite has been acclimated from birth with soured manna from somebody else's bowl of leftovers.

Well, ---- God is so good! ---- Jeremy preaching on "The Wells of Salvation" last Sunday, based on Isaiah 12:2-4. And, God used it to refresh me and remind me.

He refreshed me by assuring me there's always water in the well. He reminded me that if the well seems dry, it's because of debris and not because of the lack of water.

While I don't remember a great deal of detail in his message, I do know that God brought me great encouragement and, hopefully, some insight that I'd like to share with you, my friend. Now, I can't discern at this point which thoughts are Jeremy's and which or mine, but I am certain of this ---- they both came from the same Holy Spirit.

So . . . . I hope you are blessed.

First, listen to this:

"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.

"Therefore, you will joyously draw water from the springs (wells) of salvation.

"And in that day you will say, 'Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name. Make known His deeds among the peoples; Make them remember that His name is exalted'."

Isn't that powerful?!!

I was reminded, as I listened to Jeremy's expositional outline of that passage, how important it is to allow God's Word to speak for itself. When you do, it is clear.

DRAWING FROM THE WELLS OF SALVATION:

Several thoughts come to mind as I consider this idea. First and foremost is the ease with which we forget the source of our salvation. Next is often our failure to realize that our salvation is described as a well or a spring. Jesus said in John 7:38 that "he who believes into me, out of his innermost being will flow rivers of living water." He told the woman at the well that her well would never satisfy, but that whoever drank of the water He had to offer would never thirst again.

So it becomes evident that the Origin of the Wells is with God Himself. That makes, therefore, an inexhaustible resource for those of us who are commissioned to minister the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is best illustrated in the life of Israel as they were preparing to enter the long promised land which God had reserved for them. As they were preparing to enter the land, God gave some special instructions and seemed to set the record straight as to their true source of redemption ---- God Himself.

Among the long series of teachings, commands, promises, and warnings, God says in Deuteronomy 6:10 and following that when the time comes for them to possess the land, they are going to receive houses they did not built, bulging storehouses they did not fill, wells they did not dig, etc.

In other words, the Origin of the wells was not them; it was God.

So it is with us. When we entered into eternal relationship with God through Jesus Christ we received salvation that was not ours to achieve, and life that was not ours to create. Because our salvation originates in God, so also the "wells" of salvation about which Isaiah wrote come from God alone.

Therefore, when you and I are drawing from those wells, we must remember that the wells are not ours. We didn't create them, we didn't dig them, we didn't fill them.

It was all God.

Yet how easily we forget that and think that our preaching, singing, or any other form of ministry originates in ourselves. Oh, sure . . . . we readily acknowledge that God is the One who called us into vocational or volunteer ministry, but when it comes to the practical outworking of it, we want to take the credit . . . . unless, of course, we're failing miserably ---- then we look for someone to blame for that.

Therefore, if we are to be true to Him in our ministering, we must recognize that even the ministering itself is something we did not create, and we cannot keep it either fresh or full by our own initiative. . . . . which leads me to the second thought ---- the Blessings of the wells.

I like what Jeremy said about this ---- the blessings found in the wells of salvation are multitudinous, but they can all be summed up in one world ---- Salvation. "Be hold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. For the Lord God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. Jeremy pointed out three elements of that salvation found in this simple verse.

First was that, through our salvation, God has given us deliverance ---- "God is my salvation". The word here clearly means deliverance. Delivered from, as I wrote a few weeks ago, sin, self, the law, the world, and Satan himself.

Second, He is also our defense. Therefore, "I will trust and not be afraid". God is our defender. One of the things I find troubled me regarding drawing from a bone dry well was the criticism of others. However, God is our defender. A year or two ago I wrote a series of letters on "Rhea's" that God had given me over the years that came to be a part of my spiritual fiber. I mentioned Isaiah 54:17 ---- "No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from Me, declares the Lord."

God is my defense, whether with or without a fresh message. That's another one of the blessings.

Finally, He is also our Delight. According to Isaiah's record, "The Lord God is my strength and song". What a delight! Jeremy referred to Numbers 21:16 and following. God's people had traveled from place to place through the wilderness, and after days and months of exhausting journey, God commanded Moses to assemble the people at Beer " . . . . that I may give them water".

When God gave that promise of relief, verse 17 dramatically records their response: "Then Israel sang this song: 'Spring up, Oh well! Sing to it!'"

Now what's the point to you and me . . . . people to whom God has entrusted ministry to His people and to the unbelieving world?

Whenever we feel we're drawing from a dry well, we need to remember that our source is our salvation in Jesus Christ. He is our deliverance, our defense, and our delight.

Our job?

Simply command, "Spring up, oh well!"

Spring up, oh well! Spring up, oh well! Spring up! Spring up! Spring up!

What God spoke to my heart last Sunday was that there should never one single occasion when we have to go to the public arena of ministry drawing from a dry well.

If the well seems dry, speak the word of faith ---- "Spring up, oh well!" Since God is our source, and He is the one Who called us to ministry, then He is the One who will respond when we cry out in despair, "Spring up, oh well! . . . . or I'm sunk, and your message will not be delivered!"

Finally, we consider the final thought that Jeremy shared ---- the Battle Of the wells.

Deuteronomy 6:12 contains an ominous warning that should remind us that there is an ongoing battle for the wells of our salvation. Satan knows that, once you're saved, he can't keep you from heaven. However, he does know that he can keep you from effectiveness.

And the way he does it is subtle but simple. If he can't keep you away from the well, then he'll try to plug the well up.

You see, my dear friend and ministry companion, if you're drawing from a dry well, you're not really drawing from a dry well. The Bible is clear that the well never runs dry.

The problem is that we didn't "watch yourself, that you do not forget the Lord who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." And, because we didn't watch ourselves, our wells got contaminated. We began, probably unknowingly, to allow "stuff" to get dumped into our wells.

Do you see it? The problem is not your ministry, it is not the message, and it is certainly not our salvation. It is very simple ----

There's "stuff" in the wells!

Unfortunately we often think that, because the flow has ceased, God is moving us on to another well . . . . another field of service . . . . another gimmick . . . . another series to preach . . . . another concert to perform.

When all God is trying to tell us is, "clean out your wells!"

That's the battle, my friend . . . . to simply keep the wells of our salvation clean from debris and junk.

FINALLY:

In all honest, dear friend, I can truthfully say that in times when I felt there was nothing left to draw out of the wells of my salvation that would quench thirsty souls, I was mistaken. There was plenty.

I just couldn't get to it ---- too much junk in the well.

When I was a small boy I lived in a small Illinois town of Sailor Springs. I've written about that town before. About 125 people and a bunch of dogs. It had a grand and glorious heritage back in the late 1800's ---- hotels, banks, traveling minstrel shows, bands, people from the great cities of Chicago, St. Louis, Memphis going their to vacation.

It's featured attractions were scores of fresh, gurgling mineral springs providing refreshment, healing, and pleasure to all who drank from them. I have old post cards and photographs from my grandparents' and great grandparents' collections depicting life then.

However, when I lived there some 50 or more years later, it was another story. There were only about five such springs left in town. The rest had all been filled in. The gazebo's had been torn down, the trees had died, and the water ran no more.

That's the way it sometimes is in our lives. We feel we've dried up and have nothing left to give, when in fact the problem is simply that we've allowed the wells to be filled in.

Listen to me, friend.

If God were through with you, you'd be gone. Since you're still here, He still has a plan for you.

But . . . . . . . . . . it's going to take your willingness to check out the wells.

If you see some "junk", even good looking junk that you may think has some good purpose, you'd better get rid of it.

Otherwise, you're going to continue drawing from what you think is a dry well.

How do you get out the junk?

Well, as a young boy on the farm, I had occasion to clean out some wells that had gone bad. We used two basic instruments to clean out a well ---- a bucket and a grappling hook.

So it is with your well of salvation, if you see it has been plugged up.

It will require some hard work on your part. Make no bones about it, you will have a price to pay. It's true that nothing of real value comes free. If you believe that your ministry has value and is worth saving, then you'll grab the bucket and the grappling hook, and you'll get to work.

If you don't think it's worth saving, then you'll sit on your blessed assurance wallowing in self pity while God's people begin to wander and the lost continue their downward spiral to hell. And, you probably won't care.

If, on the other hand, you're serious about replenishing the wells of salvation again and seeing them flow afresh with life giving abundance, then you'll grab the bucket and the grappling hook, and you'll begin the process.

So . . . . grab them, my friend! Get on with it.

The grappling hook of God's Word and the bucket of prayer attached to the rope of repentance and praise will soon have the waters flowing again in your wells of salvation.

Well, don't just stand there staring at them. Pick them up and get to the task!

Lives are at stake!

In His Bond of Great Mercy and Grace,

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Hang in there! I'm with you!

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