It's Memorial Day weekend and I'm sitting in Mom's hospital room, watching her sleep. Life has become so very precious to our family over the last couple of years as we have seen so many of our loved ones make the transition "home."

Faith is the key that opens the door to our spiritual victory and enables us to walk triumphantly with Jesus. Only true faith can overcome the world, the flesh and the devil. (1 John 5:4) To "overcome" means to be able to conquer our sin, our self, our circumstances and our trials through the power of faith.

What is faith? Over the last several months we have been exploring this very critical and essential subject. And as we have reiterated over and over again, few subjects in the Bible are more important for us to understand and live than that of faith.

We began a series of articles last month on why faith is so important in our lives. We defined faith as being fully persuaded that what God has promised, He will perform.

Few subjects in the Bible are more important for us to understand than that of faith. The dictionary tells us that faith is "confidence or trust in a person or thing." Since human trust has been greatly abused in this world, many people have chosen to put their faith in "something" rather than "someone." This should never be true of the believer.

Last month we continued our series of articles on Faith in the Night Seasons by exploring God's will and how we can know it personally. What is God's will for decisions like, "Should I take that new job offer?"..."Should I marry?" ... "Should I have that operation?"

Exploring God's sovereign will, His revealed will, His will for all mankind and His will for believers hopefully has been helpful. But what about daily knowing God's specific, individual and personal will for our lives? "Should we take that new job offer?" "Would it be better if we move to that new city?"

Continuing on in our series Faith in the Night Seasons, how appropriate it is during this Christmas season that we first spend a few moments remembering how much God loves us. The whole purpose of our book Faith in the Night Seasons is to show the length, the height and the depth of God's Love toward us.

Over the last several months as we have been reviewing our new book Faith in the Night Seasons, we've taken some time to really explore God's basic will for our lives. According to the Bible, there seem to be four different aspects to God's will:

In order to thoroughly explore "night seasons," their origin and purpose, we need to go back to the beginning. What is God's basic will for our lives and how does He achieve it? In other words, why has He called us to be Christians in the first place?

Where is the Love of God in our land? Where are the genuine Christians who really walk in His truth? Isn't there anyone who "knows" God intimately?

God's primary goal and purpose for our lives as Christians is that Christ may be formed in us and lived out through us. "For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed into the image of His Son."

What is God's basic will for our lives as Christians?

As a Christian, have you ever felt abandoned by God or disappointed with Him? Have you ever asked, "Where is He when everything in my life is falling apart?"

I am so excited to finally be able to share Faith in the Night Seasons with you. I've lived the material in this book for the last seven years, and it has taken me a year and a half to write, so you can understand my joy and excitement at its publication.

We have had numerous requests to put "the Inner Court Ritual" from our books, The Way of Agape and Be ye Transformed on the net in the interest of promoting spiritual health and unity in the Body of Christ. With this purpose in mind, here is a condensed version of Chapters 14 and 15 of Be Ye Transformed.

I am so very excited to report that my new book Faith in the Night Seasons is almost completed. After living it for seven years and then writing it for almost a year and a half, you can't believe how thrilled I am to have it nearing completion.

Over the last several months we have been delving into the real meaning of Agape Love-the supernatural Love of Jesus that is poured into our hearts the moment we believe and invite Him into our lives. It is God Himself who comes into our hearts at that moment-He is that Love!

"Why does everyone make such a big issue about God's Love?" "What's so special about it? Why is it so important?" There is only one answer to these questions. 1 John 4:8 says, "God is Agape." This is why Agape Love is so special, so important, and why we are commanded to seek it with all of our heart, mind and soul.

Last month we began a short series on "knowing God loves us." We said that it's critical to know He loves us, not just in our heads, but in our every day life experience. We need to know God loves us "experientially" so that no matter what happens to us circumstantially, emotionally or physically, the security of His Love is always there.

"Herein is Love, not that we [first] loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins." (1 John 4:9-10)

Over the last few months, I've been sharing how God saved our marriage twenty years ago by His supernatural Love. I made the statement that had we not found God's Way of Agape, we would not be together today.

First of all, I want to thank you for your loving and thoughtful cards, letters and e-mail concerning our beloved son, Chip, who went "home" to be with the Lord while jogging on August 1st. We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love, and it truly has helped us weather the shock and hurt of his sudden passing. He was 39.

God has had me preempt the article I had intended to write this month, in order to write about something that is very near and dear to my heart - our marriages.

Well, this will be our last newsletter article on the subject of being transformed by the renewing of our minds. To me, Romans 12:1-2 is one of the most important verses in the Bible. (It's also one of my own life verses.) I do pray this series of articles has proved helpful in your walk with the Lord.

Last month we began to explore the four essential steps that we must take each day to renew our minds, so our lives can be transformed (Romans 12:2).

We are in the middle of a series of articles on the practical application of renewing our minds.  The past two months, we have explored the four attitudes that are necessary in order to continually "be renewed in the Spirit of our minds." 

Last month we began a series of articles on how we are to renew our minds daily. What are the practical day-to-day steps to doing this? As we said, there are eight steps. The first four are simply important attitudes that we must have in order to have our lives transformed

As we come to an end in our series on renewing our minds, it's very important that we spend a few articles on the practical application of this message. How do we renew our minds daily? What are the Biblical steps to doing this?

"Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:32) What does this really mean?