Heart On Fire includes a foreword by Dr. Beatrice M. Sims and I believe it will greatly bless your walk with the Lord.
If you enjoy the book please post a review on Amazon so others might be blessed. I am including the first few chapters here.
Bishop J.
Foreward
Preface
Do You Have The Symptoms?
Justify Whatever You Want; It Still Smells!
Cleaning My Glasses
Only A Blind Man Can Go To The Beach
Abort, Abort, Abort!
Got To Have It!
Enough! Do Your
Miracles Another Way.
It Doesn’t Take All That
I Hate You People!
Why Can’t You Dress For Church!
Forgiveness Is Not A Suggestion
Hard Hearts Get Crushed, Tender Hearts Get Broken. You
Choose
I Know, That I Know, That I Know
Do I Have To Give It All?
Do You Use Sign Language?
The Greatest!
How Thoughtful
Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory Of The Coming Of The
Lord
Can I Get A Witness?
Hmmmmm…
Fine! He’s
Healed. But I Still Don’t Like It!
Be Fruitful and Multiply
Climb A Little Lower To Get Ahead
Because I Said So, That’s Why!
Don’t Expect The Worst! Don’t Expect The Worst! Don’t
Expect The Worst!
Maybe I Need A Doctor
Why So Serious?
I Need A Spiritual Pacemaker
Alive And Well, Living On The Right Hand
You Should See Me; But You Don’t!
The Devil Made Me Do It
Yeshua: Deliverer, Provider, Carpenter, Companion
What Are You Worried About?
I’ll Cry If I Want To … Or Not
Now You Don’t - Now You See Me
And The Winner Is…
Irritated, Inspired, Anointed And Fruitful
That’s Weird. I Feel The Same Way!
Drop Dead.
Hang‘em!
Don’t Mess With Jesus People!
And A Husband Shall Cleave Unto His Wife
Bishop To King 2
Ephathah, Be Opened
Wait! You’re Afraid For Me!?
Wax Your Car, Not Your Heart
Easter Bunny Doctrine
Shut Up! It’s My Treasure!
Circumcision Always Hurts
I Get To Suffer? Yes!!
Potato Chip Sin
Sometimes, You Just Can’t Lose
Are You Willing To
Burn For Me?
Can You Hear It?
The Doctrine of Clean Sheets
You’re A Man? Sorry To Hear That
Before You Judge Me, Keep His Commandments
What’s Love Got To Do With It? Pt. 1
What’s Love Got To Do With It? Pt. 2
What’s Love Got To Do With It? Pt. 3
What’s Love Got To Do With It? Pt. 4
What’s Love Got To Do With It? Pt. 5
What’s Love Got To Do With It? Pt. 6
Thus Saith The Lord!
I Love A Good Book
I’m Not Blind; I Just Don’t See It That Way
The Finest China Is Still Just Pretty Dirt
Who Runs This Company Anyway?
You Have An Attitude Problem, Pt 1
You Have An Attitude Problem, Pt 2
I Really Want The Best … For You
Israel Gave Full Faith-ed-ly, Do You Give At All?
I Love You Daddy
Champion!
Don’t Turn Out The Light
The Right Stuff
Shalom
You Should Tend To God’s Knitting
Yes Sir
Gold Don’t Tarnish ‘Cause The Fire’s Too Hot
My Soul Is Anchored
I Believe, I Believe, I Believe
Turn Left At Faith Street, Right On Love Drive. Park
He’s Working It Out In You
Together Pure, Forever Pure
Tenderizers Are Rarely Gentle
Dirt Can’t Hide
Tender Hearts Are Easy To Write On
Don’t Get Lost In A Heart of Darkness
Bodies Crave Exercise, but Hearts Grow In Grace
You Are What You Say
Trials Make Anointed Hearts Grow
Do You Get It Yet?
A Pearl by Any Other Name
Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled
Weeping May Endure For A Night
You Sure It Was Your Heart?
Payday Is Coming After While
Foreward
Most
“devotional” books and booklets function like a spiritual vitamin – take one a
day and you will feel better. But
neither vitamin pills nor devotional books were ever meant to replace balanced
diets; they are meant to be supplements.
Hence, most devotional material is light on doctrine, designed to give
the reader a spiritual lift more than to instruct the truth. Enter Bishop J.R. Staab’s book, Heart On Fire. Ignoring the normal lighthearted paradigm of
this genre of literature, Bishop Staab offers biblical meat and potatoes. I can think of no other book of this type
that so meticulously enlightens the mind as it encourages the heart. I recommend it highly.
Dr. Beatrice
Sims
Pastor –
Teacher of Riverside Faith Temple Ministries, Int’l.
Author of Spiritual
Warfare Handbook and Journey Through
James
Preface
As someone who has struggled through a spiritual wilderness
of Bible teaching churches I recognized the promised land when I arrived. Like most kids (even spiritual ones), I have
run from the rule of my parent’s home; but I have never been able to run from
their teaching or their dedication to God.
My spiritual parents, like my natural ones have only wanted the best for
me and it has shown in both rewards and punishments. We all come to a knowledge of Christ with some
baggage (or in my case a steamer trunk).
For all my flaws and shortcomings, I have never forgotten the examples
that Apostle Joe and Pastor Bea Sims have displayed in my sight. My apostle and father in the Gospel went home
to be with the Lord on a Sunday Morning and his wife preached that very same
morning.
Heart On Fire is all about that sense of dedication to our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that can compel someone to ignore the pain and
press toward the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. That kind of example cannot be ignored but it
will burn within you until all your excuses are consumed.
Like the Pentecostal hymn:
It’s just
like fire, shut up in my bones.
It’s the
Holy Ghost fire, shut up in my bones.
It’s just
like fire, and it’s shut up in my bones.
It’s the
Holy Ghost fire, and it’s shut up in my bones.
Are You On Fire?
Do You Have The Symptoms?
Luke
24:31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of
their sight. 32 And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn
within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the
scriptures?
Well, did it? I can’t count the number of times when
I have heard someone ‘talking about Jesus’ and I just wanted to get out of
there. My heart didn’t burn, smoke, smolder or spark. Every natural
gift and fleshly pleasure was all I sought. People tried to tell me about
Jesus and I would blow them off and tell them to move on. On a few rare
occasions during my youth, God got my attention. I prayed, cried out and
He met me where I was. It was quite glorious and equally brief.
Fast forward four years or so, and it was His time to begin again.
It wasn’t enough for Him to send a few religious fanatics
to jam me up on the street, He began to weave a web of Christians around my
life to trap me. It had been so long since I heard that voice or felt
that touch that I usually chocked it up to wishful thinking. I didn’t
like the life I was living. I wanted someone or something to come along and
make it better. Those people he set around me got a little pushy; “when
are you coming to church, come pray with us, we’re having a bible study.”
Every so often they would get me when I was down and I’d go with them.
Each time God would make a difference. It was getting harder to ignore
the obvious need in my life and I realized I really was tired of ignoring Him.
I prayed the prayer.
I finally got SAVED!!! Gloriously, passionately,
victoriously!! The experience was wonderful; and it lasted about a
week. You can walk in the stratosphere with God, but it requires great
faith. Great faith comes through trials and tribulation. Faith
comes when you deny self and follow the examples of Christ. Back then, I
was a great believer in self. I fed it, nurtured it and upheld it.
If we have a place called selfless, mine was a semi-deserted shack with no
furniture on a treeless island. It was uncomfortable to live in and even
harder to get to.
You might ask, “Why would anyone want to be selfless?
Don’t I have a right to be happy?”
Are you happy? Let’s be honest, most people who live
for themselves, yet are still concerned for others, suffer some inner
turmoil. If you have actually asked Jesus the Christ, Yeshua, Son of the
Living God into your life there will be a change. This is not just
something I have experienced, though I have; this is the true word.
Romans 5:5 says, “And the hope does not put us to shame, because the love of
God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit given to us…”
Just how long can you remain selfish when God is pouring
His love and His compassion into you faster than you can possibly use it up?
Kenneth Hagin once described it as a scratching in your chest, like the cat
wants to be let out. “No I won’t let you use my car; I don’t care how
safe you drive.” Scratch, scratch, scratch. “I am not getting up at
three o’clock to pray because they won’t pray for themselves.” Scratch,
scratch, scratch.
Now some of us are REALLY stubborn or selfish. We got
saved to miss Hell or because we had a momentary attack of conscience after
weeks or months of work on the part of the Holy Spirit. There is a saying
at our church that I believe has more than a little truth. We say that
first God woos, “Come to me my beloved;” then He warns, “That is enough
child. Do what you are told or suffer the consequences; then he wallops,
“_____.” No words there, it’s all action.
In my own case, I have been particularly thick over the
years. How about going to work on a Sunday morning when the Holy Spirit
made it very clear He wasn’t comfortable with that idea? Still, it was
double time and a half. That’s a lot of money. Have you ever told
yourself that missing just one service wouldn’t hurt? Wanna bet?
Fast forward two weeks, alone in my apartment in a body
cast after an accident that broke my back in two places. My wife took all
the time off work she could, but eventually, I had to be left alone. Just
me and God. As she walked out the door the Holy Spirit said, “Good,
now we can talk.”
A week earlier I had been informed that the insurance
company had good news for me. Since I was making double time and a half
at the time of the accident, they were going to pay me that rate for the three
months I was in the cast. The shepherd had figuratively broken my
legs and then carried me and fed me until I could get around again. Note
to self, “Learn the first time stupid!”
Had I listened and applied myself into my life in Christ, I
would probably have a tremendous ministry by now. The gifts are there; I
know they are. This isn’t arrogance on my part; it is a calm assurance of
who Christ is in my life and what skills and gifts He has poured into me.
All it takes is to draw near with your whole heart. Can you do
that? Will you do that? I’d like to say I did, but truthfully, I
tried here and there and was lukewarm most of the time. Thankfully, I had
one redeeming characteristic. I was too ‘well educated’ to avoid church
very often and He used that to build on.
You might say to yourself that you just don’t feel that
burning in your heart when the preacher speaks or when you pray. That’s
okay, it just means you have to focus a little harder and press in a little
closer. A Rabbi, Ralph Messer, once said that God moves in seven day
cycles in our life. I believe He moves in cycles of seven days, weeks,
months or years.
When you mess up, He doesn’t start again right away.
You’ve placed yourself in a situation where you have to wait on God since you
made Him wait on you. I remember once when I went to the doctor and while
there had to take a call. Of course the call came right when the doctor
walked in. I HAD to take it; literally had to. I was extremely
apologetic but told him it was urgent I take it. He gave me a look and
walked out. The call took five minutes. It was forty before I saw
the doctor again, and he might well have made me reschedule.
He had ten years of medical school and I needed him to fix
something. God might tug on your heart for five minutes, but it will be a
week before He tugs again if you blow Him off; if you’re lucky. He might
take longer. He has an eternity of knowledge and all the power of the
universe. Don’t you think He knows it isn’t always convenient when He
calls you? Isn’t it possible that he’s trying to show you something
important? Yes, you can put God off. It’s stupid and I don’t
recommend it, but it is possible.
I’m learning. The Lord called me last night and I was
really focused on my writing. This time, I arose and hurried upstairs to
pray. My daughter tried to stop me with a question and I had to tell her,
“Not right now.” Obeying God will keep that fire burning in your
heart. Disobedience is like pouring water on the coals. Answering
immediately might just cost you something painful; but putting it off will cost
you far more.
Heed the call!
Lord, help me stay
focused on your Spirit. My heart knows you are my only hope in life. Thank you for your gracious, longsuffering
Spirit. I can’t even imagine life
without your love and grace. Father, I
believe I will achieve everything you have for me; help me to be willing to pay
the price. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Justify Whatever You Want; It Still Smells!
Luke
6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which
is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth
that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. 46
And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Do you have kids?
You know the one that comes in after breaking your heirloom vase and is
suddenly helpful? “Mommy, can I fold
clothes?” In terror you run through the
house until you see the empty place on the mantle where ‘it’ used to be. Your best friend might have been in the room
at that moment and thought, “Oh, what a thoughtful child!” They can only see the child’s actions,
while the mother, through her relationship, saw the heart.
God Your Father absolutely knows your heart. To be honest, most people who have known you
for any length of time know your heart also. I used to think it must be
pleasant, for a while anyway, to be able to lie to yourself. I’ve never had that option. For my entire Christian walk, I have had to
be honest with myself. Oh, I know what
people think of me and how they see me, but I can’t lie to myself and say it’s
their problem and not mine. There may be
those who hate me because my life is better or more disciplined than theirs
(hard to believe), but I would generally agree with someone’s true assessment
of my life if asked.
The Word of God is true.
You will tell on yourself; whether through your actions or attitudes,
your inner state will come through. People who fully embrace the fruit of the
flesh as described in Galatians will become what they abhor in others. Those who follow after the fruit of the
spirit will not only have more peace, but learn that when God is the one making
a difference, they will have prosperity as well. God is a rewarder of those who diligently
seek Him.
Do you suppose all his rewards are spiritual? Not even close.
Look at the story of Ruth.
Elimelech was a greedy, faithless man of wealth who didn’t want to share
his substance with the starving poor in Israel.
He left during the famine and moved to a country that God had cut off
from any dealings with Israel. Because
of his sin, God killed him, and when the sons he had raised chose heathen
brides rather than return to Israel and face the music, God killed them as
well. Their hearts chose a path that
seemed easier yet ultimately caused great sorrow. I don’t know whether Naomi was in favor of
her husband’s decision, but back then she had little choice in the matter but
to follow his lead.
Once Elimelech and his sons died, she was free
to follow her own course. She had lost
everything. Her sons also followed in
their father’s path and by the time she was able to go home, there was nothing
left and they were dead. You can almost imagine how much they paid out to
physicians between the three of them.
The men in her life were greedy, useless souls who represented the worst
of Proverbs 11:24-27, “There is one who scatters yet increases
more; but a withholder of just due comes
only to poverty. 25 The blessed soul will be made fat; he who
waters will also drink fully. 26 One
holding back grain, the people curse him; but a blessing is to the head of one selling grain.
27 He who early is seeking good seeks favor; but one pursuing evil, it shall
come to him.”
God had commanded his people to help the
poor. It was the Lord’s responsibility
to bless Israel when they obeyed His word. By his failure to obey God’s Word,
Elimelech cursed himself and his entire family.
Many times a heart is revealed because those who please God reap the
rewards and benefits of His hand on their life. A well known preacher said he
has always observed that God is totally capable of letting you miss any and all
opportunities that would bless you, if your heart is not right. Those who seek to please God will often fall
into opportunities that less righteous souls would do anything for and never
obtain. Juanita Bynum said recently that
the world is on sale for those who seek to please God.
To please Him, you must obey His Word; and that
takes faith. You may never see the
process God uses to bless you; but if you walk in expectation and assurance of
His promise, you will always get the blessing. You need to understand that most
people aren’t really evil, we just mess up.
Our attitudes and willfulness overcome our common sense and we blow
it. I’m not going to address the evil
man here because it’s unlikely he would be reading this and while there is hope
for that person in Christ, right now I’m talking to my siblings.
You have to push past your comfort zone in
Christ. Without faith it is impossible
to please God, and if He isn’t happy with you, you won’t be happy with the
results. The Lord absolutely has more for you than you have
experienced. I have NEVER met the saint
who couldn’t improve their life by trusting God more. I hesitate to write this because I don’t know
if I’m going to get back to it and expand on it but here goes…
If someone treats you like dirt and YOU feel
bad about it or feel less of yourself because of it, YOU lack faith. The Lord says you are fearfully and
wonderfully made and for a saint of God to have low self-esteem (your SELF is
in HIM), you lack faith. If you are
ALWAYS too broke to pay tithes, you lack faith.
This is especially true if you are only responsible for yourself. I believe I would challenge God to raise my
income level or lower my cost of living if I had to starve myself or live in a
car, and still … pay … my … tithes.
Paying tithes is an act of faith and while I have messed up
occasionally, I have always tried to keep track and pay the Lord back any
tithes I misused. I try to always pay it
back, plus 20 percent. Yes, I know it’s
difficult, but do you want God in charge of your money, or you. Prove me now herewith saith the Lord of
Hosts. Pay your tithes and trust
Him.
Another thing; watch your dirty mind. We’re not talking about sex here, we’re
talking about anything that is not as gracious as you want God to be toward
you. We’re talking about anger, rage, frustration,
gossip, mocking, lying, etc, etc, etc, (and yes, illicit sex too.) One of the
major reasons you are ill all the time or lack so often is due to the mess that
runs through the ‘privacy’ of your own mind.
Nothing is private to God and He judges your worthiness to receive blessings
by every single thought. Follow Philippians 4:4-8: Rejoice in the Lord
always. Again I say, Rejoice! 5 Let your
reasonableness be known to all men. The Lord is near. 6 Be anxious
about nothing, but in everything by prayer and by petition with thanksgivings,
let your requests be made known to God; 7
and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will keep your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 For the rest, brothers, whatever is true,
whatever honorable, whatever is
right, whatever pure, whatever lovely, whatever of good report, if of any virtue, and if of any praise, think on these things.
Whatsoever is NOT true, honorable, right, pure,
and lovely, of good report, of virtue or of praise, don’t keep it to yourself;
give it to God. Yes, His grace is sufficient for you to receive many blessings
just because He knows you are too immature to get it right. Is that all you
want though, to live on His grace? Come on, grace is nice, but wouldn’t it be
great to reap even greater rewards because you refuse to allow your own mind to
rule your future? God is greater than
your thoughts and while it is difficult (trust me, I know), you can overcome
your evil thoughts. Your future depends on it.
It may be your most painful battle, but YOU CAN
WIN!!!
Lord, you
have always loved me and enabled me to serve you; even when my flesh called it
quits. I believe I can do all things
through your Spirit and that you will not let me fail you in this life. Forgive me for my failures God. I surrender to you in faith believing you
will bring my promised future to pass. In
Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Cleaning My Glasses
Matthew
5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall
see God.
The word pure is the Greek word katharos where we get our English word, catharsis. It not only
means clean and pure, but clear. How can
you expect to see God who is invisible, if your heart is full of dirt. It is impossible to see him anyway except
through the spirit of faith so a darkened heart is doubly blind. When someone
tells you they’re going through a catharsis, they mean they’re working out the
pain and confusion in their mind and heart so they can be reborn or start
again. That is what it takes to see
God. You must be born again.
Think about Moses; the most humble man in history according
to God. He asked to see God and was told
that no man could see the Lord and live.
It makes sense. The Pharisees,
who knew the Torah (God’s law) better than anyone else in the world, were some
of the most arrogant people on Earth.
They wore garments that said, “Holy Unto The Lord,” and were an example
of what had to be (true holiness) and what one day would be (in Christ), but
certainly not then. Holiness we know is a matter of the heart and spirit, not
the flesh. Moses was humble, but not
holy. It is impossible for a man to
become holy and pure apart from the atoning work of Christ.
Mind you, I want to be in my glorified body before looking
on God, but if God Himself calls me holy, I can stand in that place. If I want to truly see Him though, my heart
must be clean and pure to the point of being clear. Are your thoughts clear of any stain or
random wild fancy? We’re not talking
about the atoning work of Christ here; at least not alone. We’re talking about someone who has wrestled
through the power and anointing of God until their thoughts are under control,
purged from every evil work. Pure. Crystal
clear. Beyond 1 Corinthians 13.
So … are your glasses clean?
Father, I admit I
am legally blind without you. It is your
guidance and grace that keeps me on that path that is straight and narrow. I love you Lord and pray you will continue to
raise me up into the image and likeness you have ordained for my life. Thank
you Father. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
