WORD From The Woods


Ephesians 6:10-24
    "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak. So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord will tell you everything. I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage your hearts. Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible."


     This might be the most important passage in Paul's letter to the Ephesian church. After Paul has spoken about how believers should conduct ourselves in all the different relationships in life, he tells us how to put on the "whole armor of God" so that we can stand against the trials of this life. There are really only two forces at work in the world, the forces of good which is almighty God the creator of the universe, and the forces of evil which is Satan and his fallen angels. As human beings we are either following one or the other whether we realize it or not, ultimately it all comes down to good or evil. As believers we will encounter resistance from the evil one in the form of many different kinds of trials, I'm sure that no one needs convinced of this! Paul says to put on the whole armor of God to stand against the schemes of the devil, not part of the armor, but the whole armor of God.  First, is the belt of truth, the belt was a key part of a soldier's armor in Paul's day and with out it the whole armor would come apart, without truth our lives will fall apart from lies and deception. Second, is the breastplate of righteousness, the breastplate would cover a soldier's vital organs and protect them from injury and certain death. The righteousness of Christ is just like a breastplate that covers us as believers, we are still sinners but we are covered by the righteousness of Jesus Christ, without it we are exposed to the enemy and will surly fall on the battlefield of this life. Third, are the shoes of readiness of the gospel. A soldier would always be ready to go into battle, in the same way we are always to be ready to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with the lost and hurting world.  Fourth, is the shield of faith. A well equipped soldier would always carry a shield to protect himself from arrows, and many times even flaming arrows. When we encounter the flaming arrows of satan, we must always rely on the shield of faith, we know that as true believers we are protected and covered by God, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and we know the he who is in us is greater that he who is in the world! We must have faith in that fact when we are being attacked by the enemy. Fifth, is the helmet of salvation. A helmet is designed to protect a soldiers head, which houses the brain, and the brain is the central control system for the entire body and if it gets injured the whole body is shut down. In the same way Salvation is the central part of our entire being, without salvation we are already condemned to hell and nothing else matters! Lastly, is the sword of the spirit which is the word of God. Remember when Christ himself faced temptation form satan He quoted scripture! We need to understand the power and importance of God's written word! The bible has everything we need to face the various trials of life and the more of it we study and memorize, the more armed we will be when we face the enemy in battle. Paul says at the end of the passage that we should pray at all times. A good soldier is in constant communication with his commander so that he knows what's going on over the whole battlefield. We must be in constant communication with our commander who is The Lord God almighty! We all need to learn how to be better prepared for battle by learning how to put on the whole armor of God.


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


1 John 5:13-21
     “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death. We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.
We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols.”


     This passage is the close of the letter of 1 John. The letter was written to correct false doctrine and affirm the message of gospel and the foundations of the Christian faith. In this closing statement, John reminds the reader that we have assurance of our salvation based on all the things he was writing to them about. And, confidence in Christ that He hears our prayers. John says that if we ask anything according to His will, it will be done. Remember, when Jesus prayed to the Father, “your Kingdom come, your will be done.”  John isn’t telling us that Jesus is a magic genie that will grant our every wish. He’s teaching us to seek the will of God in everything we ask in prayer. John mentions different kinds of sin, some leading even to death, the point there, is that sin has consequences, some are even immediately deadly! We should pray that God leads us and those around us out of sin and into a closer walk with Christ. He’s not saying that the Christian is completely without sin, but that one who is a Christian, who has been born of God, does not continue in a lifestyle of sin and rebellion against God. The ways of the evil one are lies, sin and rebellion, the ways of God are things like truth, righteousness, love, and justice. The fruit of a persons life will be evidence of which way they are going.  There is no in between, no middle ground, you are going one way or the other! God is the one true God, Christ is King of Kings, in Him is eternal life!


God Bless and have a great week! -Terry-    ​

​WORD From The Woods


1 John 5:6-12 
    “This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”


    In this letter, John has talked a lot about proof that Christ is who he says He is and that the claims He made were in fact true. As John brings this letter to a close, he offers up some testimony concerning Christ, almost like he’s in a court of law. In the Old Testament, if a crime was committed and a suspect was to be convicted based on an eye witness account, there had to be at least two witnesses who’s testimonies agreed. John is using the same kind of proof here for “convicting” Jesus Christ as messiah and savior of the world. He begins by offering the minimum requirement of two witnesses, water and blood. I think that Christ coming by water likely points to His water baptism, which was well know by many in the first century. Many eye witnesses saw John the Baptist baptize Jesus and saw the Holy Spirit descend of Him like a dove.  Christ coming by the blood refers to His sacrificial work of redemption on the Cross, which was also know by pretty much everyone in the known world at the time. Even to this day, the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the most well documented historical events of all time. John didn’t rest his case with just those two witnesses even though it was powerful testimony to the people who first read this letter. John offers up the third and most convincing witness is his case, the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, living in the hearts of true believers, is the most powerful witness about Christ even today. When true believers in Christ, follow Him through faith, the power of the Holy Spirit within them is boldly displayed in their lives. The life of a committed, Spirit filled CHRISTian is contagious! People see a difference and if their hearts are open they’ll want what believers have. The problem is that we fill our lives with all sorts of things instead of the Holy Spirit. In Romans 8, Paul tell us that a a person who seeks the things of the Spirit will live according to the Spirit, but one who seeks the things of the flesh will live according to the flesh. As you go out this week, seek to follow Christ by faith, seek the Holy Spirit and let Him fill your heart so that those around you will see His witness on your life!


God bless, and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


1 John 5:1-5
    “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world— our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God”


    This is a short passage full of deep truth. John tell us plainly and boldly here that if someone claims to love God and follow Jesus, then it is evidenced by their obedience to His commandments. If we Love God then we will keep His commandments. If we say we follow Christ but don’t do what he calls us to do, then we aren’t really following Him. If we say we love God and don’t love others then we don’t have the love of God within us. When we talk about commandments most of us instantly think of it in a negative way, that somehow obedience to someone else’s commandments or demands is somehow degrading or beneath us. Or we think that keeping God’s commandments will be burdensome when in fact, doing what He calls us to do is where we’ll find true freedom! We have a great sense of self-pride and we want to do things our own way, because after all, we know what’s best for us better than anyone else right….. A lot of people really only claim to follow Jesus because of what He offers, eternal life, love, peace, grace, mercy and so on. Those are good things, things that we all want, and we should want those things. But, if we come to God for what we can get from Him then we haven’t come for the right reasons. There are some people that come to the masters table simply because they love the master, and there are others that come to the masters table because they want what’s on His table. It’s really about whether we want to do things God’s way or our own. C.S. Lewis said “There are only two types of people in the end: those who in the end say to God “thy will be done,” and those to whom God says in the end “thy will be done.” When we feel like the weight of the world is on our shoulders and everything around us is crashing down, we should run to Jesus and seek the will of God. As John says, it’s through Christ that we find victory and overcome the world!


God bless and have great week! -Terry-


   

WORD From The Woods


1 John 4:7-21
     “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.”


     I talked about love a few weeks ago. As I’ve said before it’s not something that we talk about a lot as loggers, especially with the guys we work with. But, love is something that John talks about a lot in this book. He says over and over that if we don’t love our brother then we don’t know God. That’s a pretty clear statement! I don’t always see a lot of love displayed between guys in the woods. Even among Christians there seems to be a real lack of brotherly love. I’m guilty of it myself a lot of the time. It’s so easy to fall into things like gossip and tearing people down behind their backs or handling conflict with anger instead of love and kindness. When John says that a man who doesn’t love his brother doesn’t know God, I think we should take it very seriously and examine our heart carefully. If God is love and we have the Spirit of God dwelling within us, then we should treat others with love no matter what. We should be displaying the light of Christ in our everyday life in front of the people we interact with each day. When we have a conflict with someone, it’s really easy to want vindication. We want everyone involved to know that we’re right, because that’s only fair right? Let me tell you what is not fair but it’s the greatest example of love the world has ever known. It wasn’t fair when the Creator of the universe condescended into sinful humanity to live among us only to be beaten and despised, all the time knowing that it was for those very people (and you and I) that He came to save. When John tells us that God is love, he’s talking about the same God that offered His only Son as a sacrifice in our place so that we could be reconciled to Him. When we put things in that perspective it should change not only the way we think about God, but also the way we look at the people around us. As you go out this week, remember what Christ did for us on the cross and remember that as followers of Christ we are called to display His love and character in our own life.


God bless and have great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


1 John 4:1-6
     “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.”


     In this passage, John talks about testing the spirits. This can apply to actual spirits whether good or evil, but I think what he was really getting at was teachers and what the spirit or “heart” of their message was. Just like today, in John’s day false teachers were all over and their message could spread rapidly and lead many astray. I think this is an exponentially bigger problem today because of the technology we have at our fingertips. The very words I’m typing right now have the potential to travel literally around the world in a matter of minutes via the world wide web.  Many of us in the timber industry have satellite radio in our trucks or machines because the FM radio reception can be pretty spotty out in the sticks. Things like satellite radio are awesome things and have great potential for spreading the good news of Jesus Christ, but they can also spread false teaching just as fast. This is all the more reason that we must develop good discernment skills as followers of Christ, so that we can test all things and know the difference between good and evil. Just because someone says they’re teaching a message from God’s word doesn’t mean they’re teaching truth. I’m gonna pick on Joel Osteen because he’s so well known.  If you do hold his teaching up to the light of scripture and you’ll see that it falls apart. John tells us in this passage that if someone confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh and is who He claims to be in the bible, then that person is of God and has the spirit of God. Someone who does not confess Christ is not of God and is in fact “anti-christ.” Joel Osteen almost never even mentions the name of Jesus Christ, and when he does it’s always in a universal, non-condemning way that says everyone can go to heaven. When asked in interviews whether a person has to place their faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone as Savior and Lord, Osteen says, “I don’t like to judge, that’s God’s job.” Based on John’s words in this passage we can safely say that Joel Osteen is a false teacher and is in fact “anti-christ.” I only bring him up because his teaching is so popular, he even has his own channel on Sirius XM radio now. There are many other false teachers that we have access to today and there are many excellent Godly teachers, but as followers of Christ we must hold all teaching up to the light of God’s word and seek discernment through His Spirit living in us. If we truly know God and seek Him though His word and by the Holy Spirit, we will be able to know the difference between the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error, because greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world.


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


1 John 3:11-18   
    “For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous. Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”


    Love….that’s a word that we don’t use a lot in the logging industry, at least not in respect to other people, especially other men we work with. We, love our work, most days… We love our trucks and our machines, of course we love our wife and kids but in this passage John tells us to love our brothers, I think this applies to the guys we work with every day. Now, this is obviously a different kind of love than the way we love our wife, but what is love really? Love, in it’s most basic sense is simply to put another person’s needs and rights ahead of our own. It’s to think of others before ourselves. As Christ-followers we are called to a higher standard in the way we deal with other people. We’re called to love one another because Christ first loved us, because He laid down His life for our own. Even as Christians it’s really easy to fall into selfishness and treat the guys we work with poorly, even hatefully at times. We get up way too early and work long hours and patience gets pushed to the limits, we take it out on those around us and sometimes there’s someone we just don’t like. We can come up with all kinds of reasons in our mind why it’s ok to treat people the way we do, they started it, what about my rights, it’s not fair, so on and so forth….  Let me tell you what isn’t fair, in fact it’s the most unfair thing that’s ever happened! It was not fair that the creator of the universe created mankind just because he wanted to have a loving relationship with humanity for all eternity and we respond in sinful rebellion and hatred of His ways. Then, God responds to us by offering His son Jesus Christ as a sacrifice in our place so that we can have a restored relationship Him. It would be completely just and fair for God to wipe us out from existence right now, but that’s not the kind of loving God He is! So, when your pride wells up and you want to respond in a selfish way to guys you work with, think about Christ’s sacrifice for you on the cross and let His love pour out to the world around you. This is such a fitting passage on this Memorial Day, when we pause to honor the brave military heroes who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, by laying down their lives in battle to give us the freedoms that we enjoy today. I’ve attached a short article that was published by the Christian Broadcasting Network years ago that I think is a great reminder for us today!


God bless and have a great week! -Terry


Memorial Day – to some it’s merely the beginning of summer and to others it’s a solemn day to remember those who have passed from this life. However, to the war veteran and to the families of fallen soldiers, Memorial Day carries significance so deep that words cannot express their hearts.
When we look into the eyes of those who still mourn these once vibrant men and women, we often sense their loneliness and pain. We hear them choke back tears as they simply say the ranks and names of their military brothers and sisters at a Memorial Day service. White gloves, dress uniforms, rigid posture, and perfectly precisioned salutes represent the reverence and respect flowing from within. Those who have been personally affected by war understand and appreciate this day of remembrance.
What should we say to those who sincerely honor this day? "Happy Memorial Day" doesn't seem fitting. "I'm sorry for your loss" may be closer to appropriate. What would the fallen soldier want from their comrades and the rest of the country on this day?
In an often quoted Memorial Day speech given in 1884 by Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., the speaker ended his address with these words, “Our dead brothers still live for us, and bid us think of life, not death -- of life to which in their youth they lent the passion and joy of the spring. As I listen, the great chorus of life and joy begins again, and amid the awful orchestra of seen and unseen powers and destinies of good and evil our trumpets sound once more a note of daring, hope, and will.”
The American soldier who gave his or her life for U.S. citizens to enjoy life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness won’t be telling us how to observe the holiday. But I believe that Holmes’ proposition to “think of life, not death” would honor the fallen soldier. Their sacrifice follows the example of Jesus Christ laying down His life for our freedom. It's selfless love for others – not so they can mourn forever, but live!
"By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers." 1 John 3:16
Notice that in scripture and in military service, the willingness to give up one’s life is not dependent on the worthiness of the people who benefit from the honorable act. In a perfect world, all who receive freedom and grace would be worthy of such a sacrifice and full of gratitude. But that’s not the way it is anywhere on Earth or in Heaven.
“but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
We are blessed to be living in a free society. May we honor our American soldiers for the liberty we have in this country. May we also give thanks to Almighty God for the freedom we have to spend eternity with Him because of His gift of forgiveness through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

WORD From The Woods


1 John 2:28-3:10
     “And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil:whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother”


     In this passage, John calls us little children and talks about us being a part of the family of God. He says that if we’re truly walking with Christ, we are now children of God. John puts it pretty plainly, he says if we walk in righteousness we’re born of God, if we walk in sinfulness we are not of God. Does this mean that if we sin at all that we aren’t truly saved or that we can lose our salvation by slipping up? Of course not! John is talking about a lifestyle, an ongoing pattern of seeking Christ and desiring to walk in his ways versus a lifestyle of sin and rebellion against Christ where someone would rather do things their own way instead of God’s way. Think of it like this, we’ve all seen a rookie in the woods, wether it be on a yarder, a shovel, a processor, a rigging slinger, a cutter, or a truck driver, you can spot a rookie from a mile away. Why is this? Because they don’t know what they’re doing. There is a right way and a wrong way to do things and it shows when when you say you’re one thing but you act like another. Imagine taking a granola munching, burlap wearing yuppy from the streets of downtown Eugene and throwing him in the woods. Now, I’m not in any way meaning to disrespect folks like this, God loves them just as much as you and I, we were all created in the image of God. But, the contrast between our tree hugging “owl saving” friends and a logger is about as big of a contrast as you can get between two people. This is how it is between us and God without Christ. Just as the granola crowd is completely opposed to almost everything we do as loggers, apart from Christ we are totally opposed to God and the way we live shows that. If we truly want  to follow Christ as children of God, we have to seek Him and walk in his ways. As we grow in Christ we become more like Him, this is called the process of sanctification and it’s called a process for a reason. It’s not something we can do on our own but something the Holy Spirit does in us by His power not our own. We will continue to struggle with sin as long as we live this life, but by God’s grace and power Jesus Christ will shine though us in spite of our weaknesses!


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


1 John 2:1-27
     “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.  I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world— the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life —is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us — eternal life.  I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him”


     This passage is one of my favorite in all of scripture, partly because of it’s clear instruction about walking with Christ but mostly because it contains my favorite word in scripture, “propitiation.” My former pastor, and fellow Christian logger used to say all the time how much he loved the word propitiation, and growing up, I never really understood why he always made such a big deal about it. There are a lot of words in the bible, why was this strange word his favorite? I can remember many times that my pastor would give the definition of propitiation from the pulpit, “all of the righteous requirements of God’s wrath were fully satisfied in Christ’s work of redemption on the cross.” The concept behind propitiation is that when a god was angered, a sacrifice would have to be made to appease the wrath of that god. In John’s day, people in the Roman Empire believed in many different gods, so this concept of propitiation would have really resonated with them. As grew up and grew closer to Christ, I realized why my pastor had made such a big deal about this word. It was a big deal, a huge deal! It’s what the entire bible is centered around. The fact that mankind has sinned and deserves to have the wrath of God poured out on us all because of our sin and God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ is what the whole bible is about! This is all summed up in the word “propitiation.” Nothing else in this life really matters if we haven’t accepted Jesus Christ as our savior and Lord, the propitiation for our sins! This passage is about abiding in Christ, which just means to walk in His ways and follow Him. The reason John begins this passage by talking about propitiation is because if we understand what Christ has done, repented and trusted in Him, we will abide in Him. We will have our ups and downs and continue to struggle with sin, but if we truly know Christ, our life will show it by the fact that we abide in Him. John says that if we say we abide in Him but continue to live a lifestyle of sin we are liars. John is pretty clear about this. It may seem like this passage is a bit repetitive, that’s because it is. John says the same thing over and over. He wanted to make sure his readers got the point! We should really take this passage seriously because I know how easy it is to fall into sin, especially with some the guys that we work with in the woods. A lot of times, it seems easier to just do what the other guys are doing, but if we really have been redeemed by Christ, our lives should show it. Our hope for the ministry of FCL is that we can give you some tools and encouragement to stand up and live for Christ right were you’re at and that the people you work around will see the light of Christ in you and desire to have what you have.


God bless, and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


1 John 1
    “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”


     The book of 1 John, is the first of three letters written by the Apostle John. These short letters contain some of the clearest and boldest proclamations of truth in the whole bible, which is perfect for us loggers because we usually like things short and to the point. When John speaks about the word of life which was from the beginning, he’s talking about Jesus Christ himself and the fact that He has existed eternally with the Father since before the creation of mankind. The awesome thing about this, is that God had a plan for the redemption of mankind even before the universe we live in was created. Even before man had sinned in the Garden of Eden, God had a plan of salvation for us because in His great sovereignty, He knew that we would all fall into lives of sin. As John says in this passage, God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. God can’t have any fellowship with darkness and those that walk in it. If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness then we lie and do not practice the truth. If we say we have no sin, we lie and His truth is not in us. We must repent and turn our hearts to trust in Jesus Christ. Nothing else matters in any of our lives if we don’t recognize the fact that without the light of Christ, we are walking in darkness.  Our country is walking further and further into darkness every day and if we as Christ followers don’t stand up now and share the light of Christ with the world around us, our nation is doomed to utter self-destruction.  But, this starts in our own hearts. If we walk in darkness ourselves, how will we be effective in telling others about the light of Christ? In our industry, we are around a lot of darkness all the time on the landing, from the foul language to the constant perverse sexual joking. It’s really easy for us even as Christ followers to just blend in with the other guys and join in the darkness, but we can not, we must not do that any more.  One of the good things about being around a lot of darkness is that when a light is lit, it’s very obvious and seen by all! Just don’t hide your light or you get lost in the Darkness yourself.


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-