March-April 2008

A CRITICAL TIME FOR AMERICA by Ken Sumrall

There is a cultural and moral war going on in our nation. We as Christians need to be on the front lines of this fierce battle. However, let us remember that “though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.” (2 Cor 10:3,4) Anger and harsh rhetoric do not belong in our arsenal. Paul told Timothy: “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.” (2 Timothy 2:24-25) In other words, we are to treat them, not as enemies, but like we would treat those who are ensnared by the devil.

Though we stand against the world’s crooked ways and should vote our convictions in this election, let us be aware that anger toward wicked politicians will not change this nation. God gave us the answer in  2 Chron 7:14: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Many of you remember the rebellion and political hate of the 1960s. Some of us thought it was the end of our way of life.  Riots broke out all across the country and many were killed in the inner cities. But through those times God put a spiritual hunger in the hearts of millions of His people and we prayed with fervor. God heard and over 50 million all over the world were swept into the Kingdom of God. The following excerpt of my recent book is applicable: 

Is Anger a Sin  (From “Forgive and Move On”)
Anger is not a sin in itself. God tells us, Be angry and do not sin. (Eph. 4:26) A person who cannot get angry is not normal.

We could talk about the anger displayed by God the Father and also by Jesus our Lord. Their anger, however, was not hostility but a righteous indignation. God’s anger did not cause His blood pressure to rise. Moses’ anger was displayed when he broke the Ten Commandments by throwing them down the mountain; he was righteously indignant at the worship of idols by the Israelites. God did not consider his actions sin.  On the other hand, his anger became sin in another incident when he disobeyed God in anger toward the Israelites and struck the rock rather than speaking to it as the Lord had commanded. Moses lost his temper and it cost him dearly. His penalty was severe; he was unable to cross over Jordan with the people of Israel. When he tried to reason with God about the penalty, God quickly told him to speak to Him no more about the matter.
Let’s face it; most of our anger toward people (politicians) is not righteous indignation. Our concern has caused some of us to use carnal weapons which will not win the battle. If we repent and fervently pray, GOD WILL HEAL OUR LAND.

EXCERPTS FROM “FORGIVE AND MOVE ON” by Ken Sumrall
(This book is now ready for ordering--see instructions on reverse)

Letting Go of the Hurts of the Past
Rebecca Durr, Pensacola, Florida
It’s sad to say, but even though I knew God’s Word concerning unforgiveness, anger, vengeance, bitterness, and resentment, I would at times say the Scripture and pray between clenched teeth. God would wake me up in the middle of the night to pray for ___, and I would say, “God, You’ve got to be kidding. Did You forget what he did? Let me remind You.” Then I would remind Him, as though He had had a memory relapse, and tell Him how tired I was as a single mom, how early I had to get up and how I needed my sleep. Well, that didn’t work either. I’m thankful He’s patient with me. He kept waking me up over a period of time until I could say, “Yes, Lord, thank You, Lord, for calling me to intercede. How do you need me to pray?” Or just pray in the spirit.       
It wasn’t until I learned to let go of the past and make a commitment to walk out forgiveness daily that I felt a release. When the enemy hit the replay button, I hit the eject button, bringing my thoughts captive under the Word, covering in the blood, and praising Him. I began an incredible journey with the Lord—a journey that I cherish—seeking Him, praising Him, and worshiping Him with everything I had.

Unqualified to Judge
Excerpt from a story by Tom Roberts, Senior Pastor, Liberty Christian Church, Havelock, North Carolina
I had a deep fear and hatred for my dad that settled into apathy. I went years without hearing from him and that was fine
with me. Flash forward to several years later, when I was twenty-four. I was married and a brand new Christian. During my devotionals one morning, I found myself praying Psalm 139:23–24: Search me, O God! As I was asking the Lord to reveal any offensive way in me, He did! He said, “You need to forgive your father.” I argued, “I don’t have anything against my father. I don’t even care where he is. I haven’t heard from him, and I don’t even know if he is alive or dead.” The Lord then said to me as clear as a bell, “That’s right; in your heart you have already killed him….”

Since the time of my release from the bitterness of my dad’s drinking, I have found out that he was a decorated World War II veteran. He traveled with the 2nd Armored Division (“Hell on Wheels”) out of Fort Benning, Georgia. He was with General Patton in Northern Africa, Salerno, and was pulled back to England only to go in on Normandy Beach in the third wave and into the heart of Germany. My dad started drinking heavily after the war. The Lord showed me that because I had no idea of the horrors of war and the pressures of the front lines, I was not qualified to judge why my father drank. I agreed. He also showed me that my mom was what kept my dad alive during those war years, and when she died of leukemia, he just couldn’t face the weight of the responsibility of raising two kids without her. I cannot imagine his pain.

I Hated My Father: I Forgave Him on a Mop Bucket
(Excerpt from a story by  Rev. Rick Curry, Sr. Pastor of King’s Way Church in Pensacola, Fl.)
I used to think in order to forgive, truly forgive, I had to justify the actions of others and pretend as though those actions
never happened. In order to forgive my father, I had to act as if it never happened by putting on my mask and pushing through my pain. The only problem was the pain was pushing deeper and deeper in me until I reached the mop bucket. Now I realize forgiveness is not an attempt to skirt around the issue, but rather to face the issue head on, resolving it in the love of Christ. There is no need to play games. Become aware—address the issue in love and move on.

TO ORDER BOOK FORGIVE AND MOVE ON JUST FILL OUT THE ORDER BLANK ENCLOSED. 409 PAGE BOOK--
30 % DISCOUNT--Or order on-line at kensumrallministries.com with credit card.
All proceeds go back into KSM non-profit ministries.
(We were able to sell a whole case of books (40) at my book signing at Kingsway this past Sunday!)

LAPAROSCOPY SURGERY
Most of you are aware that the plicator procedure for my esophagus repair at the beginning of March was not successful. After
much prayer, we opted for a more invasive procedure which was done 3/31 at Crawford Long (Emory) Hospital in Atlanta.  Marlene drove me home yesterday.  The operation went well.  Dr. Lin performed a laparoscopy, entering my stomach in 5 places.  He repaired the hiatus hernia and wrapped a portion of my stomach around the esophagus to stop reflux.  I am not allowed any solid foods for two weeks, then can eat “soft” solids for two weeks.  After six weeks of recuperation, I will be back to normal.  Thanks for your fervent prayers for me!

CHILDREN’S QUOTES

Johnny’s mother looked out the window and noticed him  ”playing church” with their three kittens.  He had the kittens sitting in a row, and he was preaching to them. She smiled and went about her work.

A while later she heard loud meowing and hissing and ran back to the open window to see Johnny baptizing the kittens in a tub of water. She called out, “Johnny, stop that! Those kittens are afraid of water.

Johnny looked up at her and said,  ”They should have thought about that before they joined my church.”