I found this an inspiring book. I recommend that you read it in small pieces and then meditate and pray over what you have read.  This is easier said than done!  It is a book that you will want to read from cover to cover! It is worth it to reflect on what you read in order to get the spiritual benefit from this story.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

“Hey, holy man!” It was the man on the top bunk beside me again. I turned my head toward him.

“Come closer.” He was almost whispering. “I have a question for you. What is your name?”

“Mikhail Khorev.”

His next question was a strange one. “Who gave you your name?”

“Why, my father and mother.” I puzzled over such a query.

“What were you doing when you were on your knees?”

“I was praying.”

“Who taught you to pray?”

“Yes.”

“So your parents gave you your name, huh?”

Again, I answered, “Yes.”

There was a space of silence. The noises from the rest of the inmates were dying down somewhat.

“I wish I had parents who named me!” I could hear despair in the man’s voice.

I did not know how old he was. Perhaps in his late twenties, I guessed.

“They told me I was only eight days old when I was abandoned at the police station. They took me inside and filed a report on me. Since there was no name, they called me Nicolai, after the policeman who found me. That was my first name. In order for me to have a middle name, they named me Petrovich, after another policeman who was there. And for my surname, they decided on November, since that was the month they found me.” He gave a maniacal laugh. “Nicolai Petrovich November.”

Was he mad? His voice had turned grim and menacing.

Twenty-five years old, no parents, named after some stupid policemen who didn’t give a hoot about me.” His voice was no longer quiet. I knew the other men in the bunks were listening to our conversation.

“Now, you tell me, holy man! Why does your God favor some people above others? Why did you have parents who taught you to pray, but me, I had no one to even name me? Is a God like that fair? If there is a God, is he not unfair to let some have a good life and others have a rotten life? Tell me!”

As a Christian, you sometimes get asked hard questions like those from this excerpt. Perhaps this book will help you answer them with wisdom. That is just one example of the spiritual lessons contained in this book. I thank God for the life of Mikhail Khorev. He is still teaching and encouraging believers today.

]]> http://closetojesus.org/john316/2010/02/a-small-price-to-pay/feed/ 2 http://closetojesus.org/john316/2010/01/seven-things-to-remember/ http://closetojesus.org/john316/2010/01/seven-things-to-remember/#comments Tue, 19 Jan 2010 13:22:57 +0000 Mike http://closetojesus.org/john316/?p=170 I am reading a book called The Soul Winner by Charles H. Spurgeon. As with all Spurgeon it is a great book. I just finished the chapter called Sermons Likely to Win Souls.  In it he expounds on seven points to remember for your message. if you want to win people for Jesus.  I’m listing them here for handy reference.

1. First, they are those sermons which are distinctly aimed at the conversion of the hearers.
2. If the people are to be saved, it must be by sermons that interest them.
3. The third thing in a sermon that is likely to win souls to Christ is: it must be instructive.
4. Fourthly, the people must be impressed by our sermons, if they are to be converted.
5. Fifthly, I think that we should try to take out of our sermons everything that is likely to divert the hearers’ mind from the object we have in view.
6. Sixthly, I believe that: those sermons which are fullest of Christ are the most likely to be blessed to the conversion of the hearers.
7. Lastly, brethren, I think that: those sermons which have been prayed over are the most likely to convert people.

I close with this encouragement from Spurgeon:

May the Holy Spirit anoint every one of you, and richly bless you in winning souls, for our Lord Jesus Christ’s sake! Amen.

God bless, Mike

In the appendix are excerpts from letters received after Dr. Goforth went to Heaven. One of these excerpts contained Jonathan Goforth’s seven rules for daily living. These were made by Dr. Goforth in 1894 and were written in the fly-leaf of his Bible.

1. Seek to give much – expect nothing.
2. Put the very best construction on the actions of others.
3. Never let a day pass without at least a quarter of an hours spent in the study of the Bible.
4. Never omit daily morning and evening private prayer and devotion.
5. In all things seek to know God’s will and when known obey at any cost.
6. Seek to cultivate a quiet prayerful spirit.
7. Seek each day to do or say something to further Christianity among the heathen.

These seven rules for daily living are certainly worth following for our King.

God bless, Mike

It cannot be said that the subject is a new one. The world is old, and we have the experience of nearly six thousand years to help us. We live in days when there is a mighty zeal for education in every quarter. We hear of new schools rising on all sides. We are told of new systems, and new books for the young, of every sort and description. And still for all this, the vast majority of children are manifestly not trained in the way they should go, for when they grow up to man’s estate, they do not walk with God.

The book is only 34 pages long, but is filled with wisdom that is direct and to the point. It is divided into seventeen short sections. This lends itself for use as a Bible study between husband and wife. Each point stands alone, helping you to meditate on them.

Based on Proverbs 22:6, the reader is taken through a complete list of areas in which to train their children. Each section of the book starts with a topic like this. First, then, if you would train your children rightly, train them in the way they should go, and not in the way they would. Here is another one. Train with this thought continually before your eyes that the soul of your child is the first thing to be considered.

I heartily recommend this book. It is not filled with the latest trends in raising children, but rather it is filled with God’s instruction and wisdom. May God bless your home through the reading and study of this book.

Republished in 2002 by Grace & Truth Books, this book can be ordered through Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service. The cost is $2.25 plus postage.

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. — Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)

The Los Angeles Times review is as follows:

“TENSION BUILDS PAGE BY PAGE IN THIS REMARKABLE TRUE DOCUMENT
…MORE THRILLING THAN A SPY STORY WITH ITS NUMEROUS NEAR ESCAPES AND MOUNTING CLIMAXES OF DANGER.”

This is an account of what God did through the faith of Brother Andrew and others. It’s powerful how God comes through in all kinds of circumstances.

A few things that you can learn from this book are:

• Learn how to trust God without being a beggar,
• How to play “The Game of the Royal Way”,
• Learn how to “Walk in the Light, nothing hidden, nothing concealed, everything open and transparent for all to see.”

Of course, there is more to be learned from this book. Brother Andrew was about the business of smuggling Bibles behind the Iron Curtain of Communism. You will certainly see the impact of God’s Word in lives of those needing Bibles. We often forget how many famous ministries started out with one person. All God needs is someone willing to follow Him by faith.

We read this book during our family reading time. It has been a wonderful inspiration to all of us! More than that, I would call this book required reading for anyone wanting to do missionary work. All who read will discover much about how God controls all things to accomplish His purposes for His glory.