Thankfulness

Thankfulness is a choice. We either choose to be thankful for the great many things we take for granted every day we are upon this earth, or we constantly feel entitled to more, thereby stirring disquiet in our hearts and never having peace.

Although we have much to be thankful for, thankfulness seems to be in short supply, and though we expect thanklessness from those of the world, it is a sad thing to see it among the children of God as well.

It is because many have fallen into the snare of the enemy, and have come to believe that coming to Jesus means never needing anything ever again, that so many believers are beside themselves when trials come their way, or unexpected things shatter the fantasy that Christians don’t suffer.

What being a believer means is that God the Father will be with us through our trials not that He will cause us to circumvent them. When we understand this simple truth, our lives will be forever changed, and the sporadic thankfulness we express will become a daily, ongoing practice.

Today I am thankful for many things. I am thankful for a loving wife, I am thankful for the healthy baby growing in her womb, (yep, I’m going to be a dad, scariest most wonderful news I’ve received in my entire life), I am thankful for my brothers and sisters in Christ, I am thankful for God’s faithfulness, I am thankful for God’s mercy, I am thankful for God’s love, I am thankful for God’s grace, and yes, I’m even thankful for the trials which serve to mold me and fashion me into that which God desires me to become.

Choose to be thankful. Choose to be thankful not only this day, but every day you are given to walk upon this earth, to see a sunrise, to hear a birdsong, to hug the person next to you, to read a bedtime story to your child, to hold the hand of your parent, to show kindness to a stranger, to extend mercy, to show grace, and to be like Jesus.

We have much to be thankful for.

Oh yeah, did I mention I’m going to be a dad?

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.

Radio Silent

As there always seems to be, I have a good reason for why I haven't posted anything in the past few days and the reason is my elbow. It's strange how little things, things that we take for granted and seem insignificant in the great scheme of things can stop us in our tracks,  and make it impossible for us to do anything productive.

A day after returning from Michigan my elbow started bothering me a bit. It was nothing major, pain I am used to, so I ignored it going about my daily routine. The next morning, however, I couldn't ignore it anymore because I couldn't bend it, and when I tried the pain was similar to the gout pain I used to have before cleaning up my diet.

It had also swollen overnight, and now, not only couldn't I bend my elbow, it even hurt trying to move my fingers. I was told icing it was the best thing I could do next to simply resting it and not doing the things I normally do.

It has finally subsided, although not all the way, but I'm hoping to get back to writing sometime this week as I miss it terribly.

And so, this is why I've been radio silent for the past few days.

Yes, we all go through trials. Even preachers, and evangelists, and whatever title men might go by nowadays,  we are all subject to the continual deterioration of our flesh. We're all human, we all hurt, but our Father carries us through. This above all else is the singular reason I am thankful, even though in my body I am in pain.

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.

A Call to Arms Part 6

The life of a soldier is not an easy one. The Word of God forewarns us that if we desire to be soldiers of Jesus Christ, we will have to endure hardships, we will have to be molded, matured, refined, trained, and battle tested, because all these are necessary steps to making a true soldier.

Not only does a pretend soldier pose a danger to their own person, because they are untrained, ill equipped, and likely fearful of the enemy’s advances, the pretend solder is a danger to those around him as well. Much of the time a pretend soldier serves as a distraction for the true soldiers, because what they are doing is so out of step with what ought to be done, that even the most seasoned warrior is surprised by their actions.

Yes, I know, we like to tell each other God is doing something new all the time, so it’s perfectly fine if some knucklehead is kicking cancer patients in the stomach, but in reality, such individuals are a distraction, and often times a source of shame for the household of faith because of their actions.

 It’s one thing to suffer for righteousness’ sake, it’s quite another to suffer due to the actions of some conman which the world automatically associates with you because he calls himself a Christian just as you do.

The Bible tells us our God changes not. He remains the same in perpetuity, and if something worked perfectly well a thousand years, a hundred years, or a day ago, God is wise enough not to mess with it, or try to improve upon it. How can one improve upon perfection? How can one improve upon something God Himself created and put together?  

Yes, men take it upon themselves to try and help God, to improve the ways and means by which we reach out to the lost, or attract the world to the household of faith, but these are gimmicks God neither sanctioned nor approved. We do these things of our own volition, driven by our own vanity, unimpeded in our actions by the reality that God is not in it.

It is important to go through basic training, it is important to be taught war, it is important to know how to wield the weapons in your arsenal, so that when war does come, you are prepared, you are ready, and rather than flee from before the enemy, you will advance against him as a true warrior ought.

God even allowed certain enemies of Israel to remain in the olden days, simply so the children of Israel might be taught war.

Judges 3:1-3, “Now these are the nations which the Lord left, that He might test Israel by them, that is, all who had not known any of the wars in Canaan (this was only so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it), namely, five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites, who dwelt in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Ball Hermon to the entrance of Hamath.”

We cannot shy away from battle, nor can we shy away from the training implicit in every soldier’s life, so that he might be able to not only defend himself, but advance into enemy territory and vanquish him.

God did not want His people to forget what war was like, nor did he want them to forget what being a soldier implied, so He allowed certain nations to remain for this specific reason.

Nowadays we’ve come to believe that just because our fathers knew spiritual warfare, it is enough. Since they knew it, in our mind there is no need for us to know it, not realizing that every generation and every individual must stand on the battle field, and on that day all that will matter is whether or not you’ve learned warfare, or just pretended at it.

History is rife with individuals who counted on their pedigree to see them through, only to find themselves fleeing from before their enemy in fear.

By the same token history is also rife with individuals who overestimated their skills, who thought themselves superior soldiers to the point of disregarding the orders of their commanding officers.

Nowadays we are seeing untold numbers of believers disregarding the direct orders of their General, thinking themselves wiser, and more astute than He. Though they’ve never been in battle, though they’ve never seen a skirmish, though most have never even held a sword, or strapped on a breastplate, they are certain of their intellectual superiority only to become as fools when the consequences of their shortsightedness come to fruition.

Whenever we utter the words ‘I think’ and do so knowing full well that what we are thinking contradicts what the Bible clearly says, we are ourselves become the shortsighted fools I speak of.

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.

Speaking in Michigan

This Sunday we will be in Reed City, Michigan for a morning and evening service. They are long time friends, so it should be a good time in the Lord.
The time and address are as follows:

Sunday Nov 17, 2013 at 10:00 am 6:00 pm 
Bethel Church
515 W Lincoln ST
Reed City, MI 49677 
For more information contact Pastor Ed Wanner: 231-510-4443 

With love in Christ, 
Michael Boldea Jr. 

A Call to Arms Part 5

It is only when we minimize what our enemy’s ultimate intent is, and how single minded he is about attaining his objective that we become indifferent and even flippant about his minions and what they are doing within the household of faith.

The devil isn’t out to bruise you, or skin your knee, or call you nasty names, the devil is out to kill you, and every single individual who does his bidding, every single one roaming about already marked for condemnation, has the selfsame objective in mind.

Men teach heresy for the singular purpose of destroying other men spiritually!

In the end that is the root of every false teaching, false doctrine, and false interpretation. The devil knows the battle he is in, but sadly much of the church does not. The devil knows the stakes of this battle, but sadly the church seems to have forgotten, thinking that somehow if they are trampled underfoot, if they are overcome rather than overcomers, they’ll just end up in a less glitzy part of heaven, but heaven nevertheless.

After outlining a pretty grim picture of the end times, speaking of wars, rumors of wars, and how we would be hated by all nations for His name’s sake, Jesus went on to speak some heavy, heavy words for every believer who thinks they can wing it, or somehow get through what’s coming without being fully equipped, fully trained, and fully sold out for Christ.

Matthew 24:13, “But he who endures to the end shall be saved.”

Jesus didn’t say ‘he who tries, attempts, or thinks they can endure to the end,’ Jesus said, ‘he who endures to the end!’

Valiant efforts won’t cut it, nor will halfhearted attempts at enduring. If we believe the words of Jesus – and we have no reason to doubt Him – then only he who endures to the end shall be saved!

The whole point of this teaching series is to prepare you spiritually so you may endure to the end.

As such, feelings, emotions, or opinions regarding myself are irrelevant to me, because the purpose of this teaching compels me to be less than gentle in my approach, and for those who are not yet ready, my words may seem downright offensive.

If you are offended, so be it! The stakes are too high, and the outcome of this battle too important for me to try and sugarcoat this in any way in an attempt to spare feelings.

Once we understand the truth of the battle we find ourselves in, once we understand we are facing an enemy who takes no prisoners, then we will realize just how irrelevant our feelings or bruised egos are.

God doesn’t coddle soldiers, and we’re too old to be infants!

The lateness of the hour is evident to one and all, perhaps with the exception of the church, which is still under the misconception that when the Word tells believers to put on the whole armor of God, somehow it doesn’t apply to them but to someone else.

As with any battle, there are rules and principles governing the battle we are currently engaged in, and the first of these has to do more with us as individuals, than it does with the battle itself.

It is a principle which governs both physical and spiritual warfare, and that is total commitment to the objective at hand.

If you plan on being a duplicitous soldier with a divided heart, you might as well just stay off the battlefield altogether. If you plan on obeying only those orders which suit you, then you might as well just walk away now.

There can be no half-hearted commitment when it comes to this battle, just as there cannot be half-hearted commitment when it comes to battles in the physical.

You begin a battle with the intent of winning, of overcoming, and vanquishing your enemy. You know that which you are fighting for. The purpose is clear, the mission is clear, and the enemy before you has made himself known.

We cannot possess divided loyalties and still hope to be victorious in battle. We cannot possess divided loyalties and still hope to overcome the enemy. I guarantee you, the enemy’s loyalties are not divided, his purposes are not blurred, and his intent is not swayed.

Nehemiah 4:14, “And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, ‘Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.’”

Know what you’re fighting for! Know why you’re fighting the fight you are fighting! And know that the Lord is with you if you are with Him!

Do not be afraid, stand firm, and be committed to defending the truth and righteousness of God.

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.

A Call to Arms Part 4

1 Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

So what motivates you? What promise? What reward? What prize motivates you to the point of forfeiting this present life and all its baubles, for the reality of battle day in and day out?

This, in the end is what it must come down to. If we are soldiers of the cross, if we are warriors for Christ, if we are the army of God, then the only thing we must know, the only thing we can know is battle.

We’ve been lied to. Repeatedly, consistently, unashamedly, the household of faith has been lied to! We’ve been told by grinning fools that all one need do in order to obtain eternal life is be a good person, consider ourselves spiritual, try not to do bad things, don’t swear so much anymore, and of course, give ten percent of our money to the selfsame grinning men making these assertions.

As such, the notion of fighting the good fight has been lost from the collective hearts and minds of the church, and whenever the great majority hears of such a thing they are taken aback, because the notion of battle would actually mean that they exert themselves, break a sweat, put down the TV clicker, or do something out of their comfort zone.

The church has grown lazy, and we love to have it so. There is nothing required of us except for the few bucks we put in the offering basket, and we love the spiritual leaders who encourage our spiritual slothfulness, because they get us; they understand us, and as long as they don’t rock the boat, they’re alright by us.

The only problem with this scenario is that one need fight the good fight in order to lay hold of eternal life, and in the end that is the motivation, that is the driving force of why we choose to enroll in God’s army and do battle against the enemy.

Eternal life! The promise, the prize, the reward for your faithfulness, exertion, sweat, blood, tears, prayers, self-discipline, and everything else a life in Christ entails, is eternal life.

It is not an earthly reward, it is not some material thing that rusts and loses luster with time; it is eternal life with God, in His kingdom, forever.

Revelation 3:21, “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.”

Not only does inheriting eternal life require we fight the good fight, it stipulates we must win the battle, we must overcome, for to him who overcomes will Christ grant to sit with Him on His throne.

Men can twist it however they want, they can give their spin, and put their personal interpretation on it insisting that Jesus didn’t really say what He in fact said, but the verse is there, plainly written so even the plainest of men can understand it. The honor to sit with Christ on His throne is reserved for those who overcome.

It is not our duty to get along with the devil, It is not our duty to make peace with the enemy, it is not our duty to try and explain away God’s righteousness and holiness, it is our duty to defend the Gospel, if need be with our lives, and stand for truth even if we happen to be the only one standing before a sea of men.

Jude 1:3, “Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.”

When we are told to contend, we are in fact told to struggle, and by doing so surmount any difficulty or danger. When we are told to contend earnestly, we are in fact told to contend with zeal, steadfastness, and unwavering commitment.

Speak of these things to some in the church and they’ll start screaming ‘works’ as though their hair was on fire, but it’s not me they must contend with, it is the Word of God.

It is our duty to fight, to contend, to do battle, every time a heresy arises, every time apostasy arises, every time false teachers emerge, and the truth of God is attacked.

Jude 1:4, “For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.”

So the next time we decide to give one of these men a pass, or give them the benefit of the doubt, or defend what they said because we like their bubbling personality, just so we’re clear, the Word calls them ungodly men, and men who were long ago marked out for this condemnation.

What is their primary characteristic? Well, turning the grace of God into licentiousness is a good indicator, as is denying the singularity of Jesus, the Divinity of Jesus, the Lordship of Jesus, and the Kingship of Jesus.

I’ll let you figure out who they are on your own!

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.

Speaking Schedule for This Week!

Hitting the ground running is something I’ve become accustomed to doing, so this weekend I travel to Indiana for one meeting, then back to Wisconsin for another meeting the following night.

If you can attend please do, if not, please keep us in your prayers as we travel.  

Friday Nov 8, 2013 at 7:00 pm
Church of Prophecy
404 N Pointe Blvd
Elkhart, Indiana 46514
for more information contact Gary Rogel: 574-536-5681 

Saturday Nov 9, 2013 at 6:30 pm
Living Waters Assembly Of God Church
W5696 Schmidt Road
Elkhorn, WI 53121
for more information contact Pastor Kurt Verhoeven: 262-903-4568

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.

A Call to Arms Part 3

It is because the household of faith has been infiltrated, and because we allowed the servants of darkness to teach that the war has been canceled and we are no longer in need of our weapons, that we now find ourselves outnumbered, with the enemy having successfully branched out and overtaken key positions.

We did not love the truth enough to defend it, we did not love the truth enough to fight for it, nor did we love the truth enough to lay our lives down as the Word tells us we ought. We reveled in mediocrity, washed our hands in doubt, and clothes ourselves in indifference thinking ourselves spiritually superior for even contemplating the notion of God.

The half measure gospel has become the doctrine of the land, and the high priests of this gospel are reaping their rewards both in possessions, positions, and accolades from the world.

Just as not every citizen of a country is necessarily a soldier of the selfsame, sadly, not every Christian is a soldier in the army of God, but make no mistake, there are still soldiers about.

Just as nations have traitors, so does the household of faith, but the difference between the nations and the church is that the nations prosecute their traitors while the church gives theirs a pass, siting the benefit of the doubt, because they just don’t want the hassle, or Lord forbid to be thought of as intolerant or legalistic.

We are in the mess we are in because we looked the other way while sin ran amok, justified spiritually withered and dried individuals just because they looked good on camera, and came to believe that we could widen the path all on our own without any consequence or negative aftereffect.

As far as being a soldier in the army of God is concerned, just as going to the army surplus store and buying a uniform and some medals doesn’t make someone a true soldier, neither does attending a two day workshop make one a spiritual warrior.

The sad reality is that many individuals attempt to enlist in the army of God for the benefits, but very few want to put in the time and energy to go through the requisite training and learn what it really means to be a warrior for Christ, one whom the enemy identifies as a real and present threat, rather than some caricatures kicking a dummy around the altar talking about how they have the devil under their feet.

The enemy is more than happy to leave ignorant believers to their ignorance, because as long as he can keep them lethargic and sleeping, as long as he can distract them and keep them focused on other things, they will not be of any threat to him or his plans.

I already know I’m going to get hate mail for this series, I already know I’m going to be called unloving, uncaring, unsympathetic, insensitive, intolerant, and a dozen other different names simply because I’m pointing to the elephant in the room that everyone else is seeing but no one is willing to acknowledge.

We can’t blame it all on the devil. The devil did what the devil does. He saw an opportunity, saw a chink in the armor, and saw a means by which to accelerate and achieve his plans and he took it.

It is the watchman that stopped watching, the preacher that stopped preaching, the evangelist that stopped evangelizing, because, like little children they got distracted by the baubles and the shiny things, or concluded that they loved the world more than the truth so why not pursue it with abandon.

Thankfully, I don’t have a reputation to protect, or a following to impress, or a demographic to win over to my side, so I can still tell you the truth whether it hurts or soothes. That is what soldiers do. They do the work, they run into the battle, they put on their armor, and they stand for what they know they ought to stand for, sometimes knowing full well that it’s only a matter of time before they are either injured or killed.

In order to be willing to lay your life down, in order to consciously make the choice to forfeit your dreams, aspirations, and expectations, you must know and vividly so, the driving force or motivation behind this decision.

We are either involved or committed. We are either aware of the reality that once we’ve enlisted in God’s army we are no longer our own and as such must obey Him without equivocation, or we pretend at soldiering until that fateful day when the enemy stands before us grinning and merciless, and we with no defense to speak of, staring at an end that was a foregone conclusion the instant we decided to treat the things of God lightly.

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.