Daily Devotional for Thursday November 4, 2004

The Past 14 Years

(Exodus 32:9-14)

?I have clearly stated in the past that the penalty for a false prophet is to be stoned to death. I support that standard and am willing . . . The fact is, God is never wrong. I will make no excuses.? ? Words of Bill Keller from the Daily Devotional on March 10, 2004 in reference to Presidential Prophecy given on March 8, 2004.

For the past 14 years that I have been in full-time ministry, I have come to appreciate that the only thing I have to offer is my credibility, and I can insure that by sharing with you the absolute truth of God?s Word each day. Every morning since August 31, 1999, I have written this Daily Devotional. At first it only went to a few people. Today, there are over 2 million worldwide who subscribe and well over a million more who read it through forwards and on various websites we allow to post it. It is an awesome responsibility that God has given me to share the hope and love of Christ with such a vast audience each day, and nobody but my wife and God will ever know how serious I take that responsibility as I give all that I have every single day to His work. THE ETERNAL SOULS OF PEOPLE ARE AT STAKE.

One of the commitments I made from day one was to never lose the pulse, the heartbeat of those I minister to. That is why every day, faithfully, I personally respond to appROXImaTely. 150 emails of the 40,000+ we receive, and at least 150 more from those I have corresponded with in the past. God has not given me this wonderful opportunity so that I could sit back and be served, but has allowed me to do the greatest thing any person can do with their life, serve others.

To do what I do each day, requires me to spend many hours every day in prayer, in God?s Word, and in doing my very best to hear His voice so that I can be the most effective servant possible. God speaks to me EVERY DAY, and if He is not speaking to you that is simply because you are not taking the time to speak to Him. Have I ever heard God wrong? Absolutely, often. I don?t ever take lightly the responsibility of sharing the things I hear God asking me to share with you. It is a fearful task to allow God to speak through me to you and millions worldwide each day. But it is a task I do to the best of my ability and have for the last 1900 days, trying to reach, inspire, and encourage the hearts of men and women of all ages for the Lord.

Back in March, I clearly was hearing God?s voice as He spoke to me about this recent Presidential election and that President Bush would not be re-elected and why. I come to you this morning to ask your forgiveness. God is never wrong, I clearly was. Being wrong does not upset me since I am wrong about things every day. However, I take what I do for the Lord each day very seriously and spent these past 62 months building a level of trust and credibility with you. I have already spent time with the Lord asking His forgiveness and now come to ask you to forgive me.

I realize that some people will simply write me off as a false prophet, dismissing 62+ months of sharing Christ with millions worldwide daily. I can?t do anything about that, just like I can?t do anything about people who get upset most days about something I have written. My biggest concern is that people will not lose faith in the power of God just because I missed hearing from Him about the outcome of the election. The greatest fear I have each day is doing anything to harm the cause of Christ. I have refused the temptation to sell out the Gospel, have done my best to be a credible representative of our Lord, and can only ask that you forgive me for being wrong about the election.

It has been a bit amusing reading the emails I have received about the election so far. They are running about 50/50. Half of the people were those enraged last March and have been patiently waiting since that time to participate in stoning me. I gave those people my office address and let them know I am more than willing to receive that just punishment.The other half want to know how much the Republican Party paid me to stir up those who read Liveprayer and get them out to vote for President Bush which is laughable because I have never, nor ever will endorse a political candidate. The nastiest emails were the ones that poured in early in the evening saying that if Kerry wins it didn?t mean I was right, just made a lucky guess and I was going to be held responsible for President Bush losing. I realized at that point people were going to blame me no matter what the outcome. But that is OK. I surely don?t write what God tells me to each day to please man, only Him.

What was glaring to me in all of the emails however, was the fact that for every one email about the election, there were 99 from people just like you who were dealing with financial problems, divorce, health issues, a bondage to some sin, needing a job, and the entire spectrum of real life needs that we deal with every single day here at Liveprayer. Tuesday evening as I was watching the election returns, I was on the phone several times during the evening with people who were facing some sort of crisis in their life. While I know the election was a big issue in many peoples lives, for most people their reality is not what is happening in Washington but the crisis they are facing in their life. I have been grateful to God all day that He has raised up this ministry to be there for them in their hour of need.

As only God could orchestrate, the t.v. program on Tuesday night was one of the most powerful ever. Again, the calls were not about the elation, but the needs people were facing in their life. Halfway through the program, a man who had been separated from his wife for 4 years broke down and gave his heart and life to Christ right on live television. In the Daily Devotional for Wednesday, I shared an invitation to know Christ as I do several times each month. Over 300 people we know of responded to that invitation. No matter what the real life issues of the day may be, seeing people won to Christ has always been and will always be my number one focus. As anxious as I am to see Jesus, I pray that God will give me many more days to share His hope and love with the lost and hurting in this world.

I love you and care about you so much. I pray today that whoever you voted for for President and other offices, you are be proud of yourself for being a good citizen and exercising your right to vote whether the person you voted for won or not. Remember the Bible teaches us that it is God who allows men to rise to power. It is no accident or coincidence those who won did. God has put them into office. Our responsibility is to pray for them, pray that they will look to God and His Word in leading our great nation.

My greatest fear is that many Christians will now sit back and think that they don?t have to do anything for the next 4 years. *Make no mistake, it was the votes of Bible-believing Christians that was the difference in this election!!! Listen my friend, as I clearly shared with you Monday, if you are looking to political leaders for spiritual leadership you are in huge trouble. We have to press our politicians on those spiritual issues that are also political issues, but it is up to the spiritual leaders of this nation to lead the people in righteousness and Biblical values. I pray that the people of God will realize that we have a much friendlier environment to work in for the next 4 years and take full advantage of it.

The reality is the Federal Government is still in the business of slaughtering millions of babies every year. We still have a strong movement to destroy God?s Holy Institution of Marriage and the family. We are moving ever closer to having the Bible itself deemed as hate speech. These issues are still as real today as they were yesterday and since they are also political issues, must continue to be dealt with. I pray that President Bush will realize God has given him 4 more years in office, not to mention a Republican Senate and House, and that he will be bold in moving on these key spiritual issues.

May God bless President Bush and all of our leaders. May He continue to be merciful to the United States that has turned its back on Him. May those who call themselves followers of Christ realize that the time is short and we must be found faithful in serving our Lord until that moment when the trump sounds and our Lord returns! Thank you for your love, your support, and your prayers as we stand together to take Christ to the hurting and lost in the world.