<TITLE>01. Par 1-3</TITLE>57-0303A, Why Is It That So Many Christians Find It So Hard To Live The Christian Life?, Madison Square Garden, Phoenix, AZ, 99 min
L-1 Let us remain standing just a moment till we meet God in prayer. Shall we bow our heads. Our gracious heavenly Father, we thank Thee today from the depths of our hearts for the privilege that we have of calling Thee our Father. We read in the Bible where the Spirit would cry, "Abba, Father, My God, My God."
And we're so happy today that we have been included in this great number of the redeemed. And we are here this afternoon for no other purpose but to worship Thee, to read Thy Word, and to find out how we could be better servants of Yours, and to live a closer Christian walk for You, and with You. And we pray that You will meet with us around the Word and will give to us that deep desire that we so want in our hearts.
And we'll praise Thee for we ask it in the Name of Thy Son, the Lord Jesus. Amen. Be seated.

L-2 I'm so happy to be here this afternoon in the service of the Lord. And I trust that our little gathering together will be to His praise.
And now, many of the brethren, the brethren that's with me, was assembled out in the other places, today where they were having worship. And the place where I was at this morning, we had a wonderful time, over to the Assemblies of God church. And so we had a wonderful service, and I know you did also.
And we're thankful that you're out this afternoon, and we feel that somehow we just can't get enough of God. And there's something about the Gospel, and the Word of God, that we just simply can't seem to get enough of It. I believe you could... You might eat too much sometimes, and you might drink enough good cold water to make you sick, but I don't believe that a man could ever pray too much, or get too much of the love of God in his heart. That's just one thing that just doesn't seem to ever get enough, fill up.
And I'm taught that when we eat... If we are used to eating small portions, our stomach shrinks to that portion. And if we eat much, our stomach stretches to that. And I think we need some spiritual stretching, and get much of the Word. Can't be satisfied with just reading a little verse once in a while, or something of that manner, but stretching our spiritual gastronomics...

L-3 If I'm not mistaken, isn't this Brother and Sister Peterson setting right here from Minneapolis? I believe I seen Captain Stadsklev here, your son-in-law, last night, a chaplain in the--in the Army. I don't see him today. Yes, here he is over here.
Well, you're going to be here through the meeting, I suppose. And I hope to get to see you before coming out. I want to go to the post with you, if the Lord willing, while I'm in California.
Well, we're going to read just a first part of one verse and part of another verse out of the 36th chapter of Ezekiel. And that is the 26th, and the--I mean the 36th and the 37th verse, the 26th and 27th verse.
A new heart also will I put within you, and a new spirit will I put within you:...
Then the 27th verse.
And I will put my spirit within you,...
Now, as we have before us this text, we trust that God will give us a context from this. And we are trusting solemnly in the Holy Spirit to bring out the context of this text.
In the Bible there are many great gifts. And God sets those gifts into the Church in order for the perfecting of the Church. And now, I wish to take my subject this afternoon on this, and to you who are writing it down and so forth, and for the tape, "Why Is It That So Many Christians Find It So Hard to Live the Christian Life?"


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