newsletter
Servant Ministries, Inc.
Issue No. 106 Ira & Judy Milligan Mar 1, 2007


Last Chance to Register for 2007 United Ministers’ Fellowship Conference
 
Better hurry! You only have a few days left to register for our 2007 Branson United Ministers’ Fellowship conference! The dates are March 29th – 31st. It will be at the Honeysuckle Inn and Conference Center in Branson, Missouri. The number to call to make your reservation is 1-800-942-3553. There is no charge for the conference. Everyone is welcome so feel free to invite your friends. See you in Branson!
 
Servant Ministries Web Site Update
 
We are in the process of updating and enlarging our web site. We now offer all ten books through the web. You can purchase them using credit cards or by mail. Lord willing, you will soon be able to download some of our teachings on audio. If you haven’t visited our web site lately, now is a good time to do so. Log on at: www.servantministriesinc.com

We’ll use this space to keep you up to date on future offerings. We hope to start an on-line Bible School soon.
 
Readers’ Write
 
I haven’t heard from some of you in quite a while. Why not use the enclosed envelope to drop us a note and let us know what interest you. We’ll discuss the subjects that we find of general interest in future newsletters.
 
The Prophet’s Perspective
 The Eyes of the Lord
 
One of my favorite verses of scripture is 2 Chronicles 16:9: “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him.” But when meditating upon this verse the question naturally arises, what criteria does God use when he measures us to determine if our hearts are perfect toward Him?

One of Job’s friends asked him, “How then can man be righteous before God? Or how can he be pure who is born of a woman? [even] the stars are not pure in His sight, How much less man..., who is a worm?" (Job 25:4-6). We can deduce from this, and other similar verses, that God doesn’t use the same “measuring stick” that we would use when He evaluates us. God measures us by testing our faith. He said, “My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, That they may dwell with me; He who walks in a perfect way, He shall serve me” (Psalm 101:6). In God’s economy, perfect faith equates to a perfect heart.

John said that God measures three important things; the temple, the alter and the worshipers: “And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein” (Rev. 11:1). To be acceptable to God, the temple [body] must be holy, the altar [heart] pure and the worshiper’s spirit must have sincere, unfeigned faith. (See 1 Cor. 3:16-17; Matt. 5:23-24; Rom. 1:9; John 4:23; 1 Tim. 1:5; 1 Thes. 5:23). So, how does God measure us to determine if our hearts are perfect toward Him? The answer is simple. His “eyes are upon the faithful”. God measures our faith by our faithfulness (or lack thereof) and rewards us accordingly.

James taught that if our faith wavers, we receive nothing from the Lord (James 1:6-8). Conversely, even if we don’t “feel” like we have faith, if we do not waver in our walk and remain consistent in our service, we will receive the reward we are seeking for (faith is not a feeling – it is a conviction!). As Jesus illustrated in His parable of the widow woman and the unjust judge, it pays to be persistent!

“Then [Jesus] spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, 'Get justice for me from my adversary.' And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, 'Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.' " Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:1-8).

Helping Hands
 
One of my good friends, Victor Garcia Sr. has successfully translated The Hidden Power of Covenant into the Spanish language. Lord willing, I’ll be sending it to the printers by the end of the month. This book will be distributed without charge on the mission field in Central America.
I need to have some more of the Spanish version of The Master’s Voice printed, also. Your help is greatly needed. This project will cost somewhere between $1,200.00 and $1,600.00, depending upon the number of books we have printed. Indicate your offering is for Spanish translation. Any amount you send will go directly toward this project. As I mentioned above, these books are given away freely throughout Costa Rica and Nicaragua.
 
Prayer Partners’ Update
 
Our income has dropped dramatically since we are no longer traveling. Please help us pray for the necessary finances to come in so that I can continue writing and preparing the school of ministry we are going to teach. Thanks, fellows. It is wonderful to have friends like you! May the Lord richly bless you.

Just Thinking
The First Shall be Last
 
Everybody likes to be first. Watch the evening news. Notice how often the news anchor flashes a big smile and says something like, “And remember, you heard it here, first!” In contrast to this, Jesus said, “But many who are first will be last, and the last first" (Mark 10:31) And so it ever has been for God’s pioneers, the prophets.

Many people want to be known as prophet, since prophets are front line troops. God usually informs them first when He’s up to something new. The trouble is, few wannabee prophets realize that since prophets are up front and center, they are the first to be stoned! They are seldom acknowledged as “right-on” when they first introduce God’s new wine. In fact, they are seldom recognized as anything other than troublemakers until long after they are dead. Then, after everyone has become accustomed to the “new wine” and it is embraced and loved by the multitudes, they are respected and revered.

Consider Isaiah, for example. He appears to be well respected by the Jews in Jesus” day, but in his own day the Jews put him in a hollow log and sawed him in half! How’s that for being a “first”? (See Heb. 11:37). Jeremiah is another typical example. His own people carried him off to Egypt against his will and he died in a foreign land. Yet he is considered one of the greatest of the Old Testament prophets. So much for being number one! Because prophets are attacked and accused so much, sooner or later, most of them develop PMS. No, that’s not what you might think. It stands for Paranoid Mental State.