Phil, I'm wondering, were you writing this for me? I know you were not
writing this just for me, but It really hits home with all the things the
enemy has been trying to do to me lately.

I had a long talk with Mike Canady tonight, and I new he new what was going
on in my life. The Lord just revealed some things to me tonight, and I know
that the feelings I've been having, and the things I've been thinking, are
normal, and that God made me with the feelings I have. I just have to deal
with them in the way He wants me to.

I will call you some time, Phil. Perhaps you have been spoken to by The
Holy Spirit what I've been going through lately. I will give Mike
permission to talk to you about this if I don't get a chance to call you first.

Please continue to pray for us.

Thanks much.

Love and Blessings,
Pat Ferguson
At 08:00 PM 9/19/2005, you wrote:
>This isn't exactly finished so it won't be on my website for a few days.  I
>thought this might be of some encouragement to someone.
>
>Peaches and Sourer Cream
>
>By Phil Scovell
>
>
>
>
>      A close friend of mine recently told me about his peach tree.
>He has only lived in this house for a couple of years.  His wife
>left him several months ago after divorcing him.  No, she claims
>to be a Christian.  He bought the house, although he couldn't
>afford it, to try and save his marriage.  That's like having
>children to save, or otherwise improve your marriage; it doesn't
>work.
>
>      His peach tree, for the first time, had a single peach
>hanging from one of its branches.  For some reason, someone
>planted the tree in the front yard.  He has never seen peaches on
>it before this season.  No, he does nothing about pruning or
>anything else so you can't expect more than one peach each year I
>suppose.
>
>      Every day he came home, he checked the peach and watched it's
>progress of growth and ripening.  His moth watered as his
>sensitive nose picked up the scent of the low hanging fruit.  He
>couldn't wait until it was perfectly ripe so he could enjoy its
>flavor.  He continually watched it daily with great anticipation
>and desire in his heart.
>
>      finally the peach was ready to be picked, at least according
>to how it looked, and as he climbed from his work truck and
>walked to the tree that day, he saw that the peach had fallen from
>the branch and lay on the ground, half squashed and rotting.  I
>had just purchased a box of 18 pounds of tree ripened peaches from
>western Colorado where the peaches are so sweet and juicy, you
>could stick a straw into one and suck the peach dry.  I gave him
>one to replace the one he had lost.  I tried suggesting he take my
>peach home and tape it to the low branch and watch it for a couple
>of days to make up for his loss but he preferred to eat the peach
>without taking a chance.
>
>      Have you ever felt that way spiritually?  You've lived your
>life dedicated to God in hopes of harvesting a blessing, just one
>little meaningful blessing, due to your faithfulness to God and
>then the worst happens, at least it sure feels that way.  To top
>it all of, somebody tosses in some sour cream on top of your
>singular peach of a blessing.  Your child dies, your best friend
>forsakes you, you get cancer, your favorite pet has to be put to
>sleep, you lose your job, your son or daughter runs away, your
>baby dies at birth, your mate of 25 years divorces you, Your wife
>has an affair, your 16 year old daughter becomes pregnant, a
>sister refuses to speak to you any longer, you are permanently
>disabled due to a car crash, prayers fail to be answered, both
>your parents die, money runs short, bills pile up, your church
>turns against you, a letter of audit from the IRS arrives in the
>mail, you lose a credit card, your car gets stolen, or, the worst
>of all, you suddenly realize you are growing old.  Yes, I left out
>dozens of other possibilities.  Now there is no hope of the single
>peach ever being enjoyed and all you wanted is just one good peach
>of a blessing in your life time.
>
>      This is a common trick of the Enemy.  He wants us to thing we
>only get one good thing from God, normally it is our salvation,
>and from then on, God's arm of blessing falls short.  This is
>real, of course, because God really doesn't love you all that much
>in the first place.  Oh, sure, God loved you enough to barely save
>you but He isn't interested in the rest of your life and that's
>why He doesn't provide for you in other ways.  In fact, your lack
>of received and experienced blessings is likely due to the fact
>you really didn't become born again in the first place.  You are
>that lone peach that fell from the branch.  You are separated from
>God now and lay rotting and your life is turning to mush.  Can you
>see the progression of deceitfulness the Enemy employs?
>
>      In Ephesians chapter 6, we are told to put on the whole armor
>of God.  One of the most interesting aspects of this passage is
>related to the command to "Stand."  What a weird way to do battle.
>Stay fixed and rooted to one place?  Nothing like being a target.
>Don't charge, don't take ground, don't move forward, and don't
>engage in battle?  I have never heard of such a battle plan but
>there it is, big as life, stand where you are.
>
>      Furthermore, we are told to wear all the battle garb but the
>armor isn't apparently for doing battle.  If we are commanded to
>stand still, it is obvious to me that the armor is warn for
>defensive purposes and not offensive.  This is especially true
>when it comes to taking the shield of faith.
>
>      The Apostle Paul says, "Above all, taking the shield of
>faith."  Really?  Why would that be?  Faith, your faith, is not an
>offensive, or attack, weapon.  In fact, the shield is no weapon at
>all.  The Sword of the Spirit most certainly is but not the
>shield.  Paul says, if you don't have anything else, you do have
>the shield of faith and with that shield, you can defend yourself
>from "all," not just some, but all the fiery darts that come from
>Satan.  Think of it this way.  In battle, you most certainly don't
>stand still, fixed and rooted, in one place.  If you do, you are a
>dead duck.  Furthermore, you don't throw your shield at the
>enemy.  If you do, you end up with no protection.  Likewise, you
>don't bang the Enemy over the head with your shield of faith.
>Yet, according to Scripture, all we are required to do is stand;
>with the shield of faith and it does all the work of protecting
>us.
>
>      I know I am repeating myself but again, we must view the
>shield as defensive and not offensive.  The shield isn't made for
>attack but for defense.  Yes, I realize this goes against the
>grain of all the faith teaching we have heard.  The reason for
>this aspect of defensive faith is related to the knowledge that
>Jesus has already won the battle.  "then why am I getting so beat
>up?" you may ask.  Could one of the answers be that you are
>always moving?  Could one of the answers possibly be that you
>haven't learned the battle is one so staying fixed in one place is
>all you need to do?  Could it be that you have your faith screwed
>on backwards and you've been throwing your shield of faith rather
>than just standing behind it?
>
>      A shift in circumstances is a great battle tactic the Enemy
>uses to try and get us to spiritually flinch.  Doubts, fear, old
>resurrected guilt, shame, grief, personal condemnation, anger,
>pride, bruised emotions, self judgment, intimidation,
>manipulation, domination, sin, sorrow, sadness, relational
>conflict, deceitfulness, control, unforgiveness, depression, and
>rejection are all but a few of devices the Enemy uses to change
>how we feel and think.  If he can do that, change our feelings or
>shift our thinking off center, he can deceive us royally.
>Imbalance is the name of his game.
>
>      The question is, "Where do we stand?"  If the battle is the
>Lord's as the Scriptures proclaim, where ever we are is where we
>stand.  If you will stand right where you are at any given moment
>of life, you will find that is the same place Jesus is standing,
>too.  As you stand in that place, look and see what Jesus is
>holding in His hand.  I bet it will be a peach.  Do you suppose
>that was the forbidden fruit Adam and Eve ate?  Just thinking out
>loud.
>
>
>Where there is pain, there is belief.  Truth has no pain.
>www.SafePlaceFellowship.com