Keith Olsen – Sunday Morning Meeting in the Hospital – September 25, 2011

Non Verbatim

 

#285 “Wait on the Lord” … Prayer … #24 “From Every Stain Made Clean” ( Uncle Keith’s choice)

 

Uncle Keith: I know it’s not going to be easy this morning to share. That’s okay. When I woke up early this morning, I found in my heart a Spirit of Worship. So thankful for that. Everyone has something they’ve struggled with in their lifetime. Sometimes in weakness or in vulnerabilities. When we stand where I’m standing and meeting God face to face, these weaknesses and vulnerabilities can be used by the enemy to disturb our peace. Thinking about having the wonderful experience of seeing God whom we love. Thinking of Hymn 24, “From every stain made clean, from every sin set free – O blessed Lord this is the gift that Thou hast promised me.” God put in our heart that from EVERY stain we are made clean… What greater thing could there be? Verse 3, “While in Thy light I stand, My heart I seem to see, Has failed to take from Thine own hand The gift it offers me.” If there’s anything that would trouble me, it would be because I haven’t fully taken the gift that God has given me to be made clean from every stain and free from every sin… and then to stand in God’s presence. Verse 4, “The fire doth surely burn my every selfish claim.” Fire of God’s love burning in our hearts consumes every selfish claim that I would have on my life. God prompted my heart to spend my life how I have … I am thankful for that. It is a selfish claim to have longer on this earth … God’s love can consume the selfish claims that I have on my life. “And while from them to Thee I turn, I trust in Thy great name.” Them refers to the selfish claims. Trust that God does all things well.

 

Verse that fed my heart so much in this experience: 1 John 3:19, “And hereby we know when we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.” Refers to 18, “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.” … Because we love, brethren, it assures our hearts before God. It brings assurance that we love the Truth and love Him. I love God’s People, I’ve loved the stranger, the children of our people, and our fellow workers…. It gives me assurance this morning that there could be a place by God for me.

 

Verse 20, “For if our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” … If our hearts still condemn us and we don’t feel worthy to have a place … to remember God is greater than all things. God makes the decision whether we spend Eternity with Him. When we made our choice as a child, He knew the sincerity of our heart…. When we started in the work, He knew the commitment of our hearts …. He is going to make the decision according to the mercy and the Blood of Jesus. As we try to share this morning, it is worship when we bow before the will of God. I’m absolutely convinced that blessing will come when we accept God’s will and bow before it and regret will come when we reject it.

 

My purpose is to finish with peace and thankfulness and Spirit of Worship for all He has given me.

 

Keith’s Mother: Deuteronomy 6:6, 24; 5:33, “Ye shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in your heart. And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.” Thankful these words are in my heart today. It is for our good always that He might preserve us this day. Things are well with us because we love Him and trust Him. It is for our good always to trust Him. In every experience God asks of us … it is good …. Hard to realize that it IS for our good. Deepens our purpose to be true and love Him more…

 

God’s will … To know God’s will is the greatest knowledge. To find the will of God is the greatest discovery. To do the will of God is the greatest work. A privilege from youth to know and experience the will of God. Romans 1:10, “Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.” Journey can come to an end. When we know and accept the will of God, the journey can become so much greater. There are things that take our eyes off the goal… There is so much ahead and I don’t want to miss it. I don’t want to take God’s way lightly. To give my life and heart and sacrifice more … that my journey might be prosperous and attain the goal.

 

Thinking about the week’s study… Take Heed to Thyself. 1 Corinthians 10:12, we think we are strong and we are so good… But to take heed that it wouldn’t destroy us.

 

 

The Weaver  

 

My life is but a weaving between my Lord and me.

 

I cannot choose the colors He worketh steadily.

 

Oftimes He weaveth sorrow,

 

And I in foolish pride forget He sees the upper and I, the underside.

 

Not until the loom is silent and the shuttles cease to fly

 

Shall God unroll the canvas and explain the reason why.

 

The dark Threads are as needful in the Weavers skillful hand

 

As the threads of gold and silver in the pattern He has planned.  

 

 

Hymn 283, “Strong in the strength of gentleness, of meekness, faith and love, I take Thy hand in weakness and press on t’ward things above; The Morning Star will be my guide: its lustrous rays I see shining along the highway, marking the path for me.”

 

Enjoyed the strength from others. Hymn 2 and 3, “More of Jesus” and “Tell me again” … Desire to learn more of Thee and to be told again and again. Living water doesn’t get stale. To have a heart like a sponge … we can hold and hold, but no use unless we pour out to others.

 

Dustin Collins, Hebrews 6:10, with Keith in mind, “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shown toward His name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” 6:11 for me, “And we desire that everyone of you do show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end.” I want to show the same diligence and hope to the end as I’ve seen.

 

Exodus 6:2, “I am the Lord.” Moses was going to Pharaoh to try and let children of Israel to go. God said, “I am the Lord.” Moses was honest enough and had a deep enough relationship with God to ask, “Why?” Maybe not our place to ask why… but with a deeper relationship we can ask God and He can give us comfort. Thankful that God will guide us and He will be with us.

 

Ephesians 3: 18-19, speaking of love, “May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.” These days we are experiencing a little more about the breadth and length and depth of God’s love. The love that is beyond our knowledge. Thankful for the love of God. We have tears these days, but only because of the work God wants to do in our lives. He has great love and a great plan. I want to know more of God’s love.

 

Hebrews 11, glad for this week to read this and meditate on this chapter. Faith is the substance – the sub strata … the unseen rock .. the solid foundation on which we build. God formed the world by His word. Verse 3, “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made by things that do appear.” We gained a greater appreciation for creation on our trip. The beauty of nature. Those things were just formed by the Word of God. Fruit and likeness of Christ in others can’t be made.. but formed by God. We are witnessing things happening in others lives and ourselves that we have no control over…

 

Hebrews 11, faith as substance and evidence…. witnessed that in the last few days. Faith helps us to understand why things are happening. Substance that helps us through these experiences. Verse15, “And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.” Want to be mindful of a better country. Heart has been smitten because it seems like instead of being mindful of a better country, I’ve been trying to make this country better. Want to change my focus to the better country ahead.

 

Mike Hassett, privilege of standing by. Hymn we sang “Be true to Him, to you He will be true. …. Then at the end with Him you will rejoice.” Remembering when told of David Dodd being sick …. The peace that was felt even over the phone as I talked to David and Karen. It’s easy to sit around the table and talk about faith and trust and to get up in meeting and talk about faith and trust …. but when the doctor looks you in the eye and tells you that you have 3 months to live … that’s when you find out if you have faith and trust. I see the evidence of that in Keith and even in his mother through this experience. We might all want to have the choice to live forever …. but when the time comes for me, I would like to have the same peace as I see in others.

 

Thankful that we have the Bible and it can be made alive because we have a revelation. Everywhere I read last night there was comfort and hope. Hebrews, “For we are made partakers of Christ” .. to be partakers of Christ and the hope we have. Thinking of what Uncle Keith shared in meeting last time I was here with him. Titus 2:12-13, “Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worthy lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world. Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus;” Verse 12, lifestyle. Verse13, hope. Our lifestyle and hope are connected, to walk in a way that would show to God and others that hope and confidence are in God.

 

Exodus 6:2, “I am the Lord.” Response God shared with Moses that He was God. Greatest reassurance that we could ever hear. I want to be quiet within and hear the small voice from God in these hard experiences.

 

Clifford Fedirchuk, 2 Sam 23:15-17, “And David longed, and said, ‘Oh, that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!’ And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord. And he said, ‘Be it far from me, O Lord, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives?’ Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men.”

 

We all have some longings and things we’d like to do… Some are possible and some impossible. David expressed it and others made it possible. Praise and honour pour out to the Lord. There are things that we’d like to change. There are things we haven’t attained to. There are things we’d like to have seen done. To leave them in the hand of God. Confidence in that lasting and permanent …. pouring out before the Lord. We don’t have to convince Him to help us, but he just wants to hear from us. We can offer Praise and Thankfulness for things, but really thanks be to Him … Surely goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives. After this experience, may goodness and mercy follow us.

 

Hymn #7, “O Tell Me More”