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 Out of the Ashes

“. . . Sometimes all a poor man has left is his story . . .”

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 Foreword

O ut of the Ashes takes readers on an exciting yet thought provoking journey.

for His service.

Although we often do not relish these journeys, in them God is reshaping our life

In page after page, you will find the author’s personal thoughts and experiences entwined in
the stories.
He does this to encourage those feel trapped by the “storms” of life.
Although your battles may seem they are beyond human help, you are never alone: someone,
somewhere has stood where you are standing; and if they can make it, so can you.
Allow me to relate one of his stories.
James had recently received transfer orders to the Naval Training Center in San Diego,
California.
Little did he know that at the end of this twelve-month assignment, he would be standing in
front of the American Hotel in Agnano, Italy—the same place he had stood one year earlier.
As with many of life’s journeys, little, if anything made sense at the outset. Yet, without fail,
the Hand of the Lord would
faithfully guide him and his family through every valley of uncertainty.
I hope that each testimony you read gives you a greater assurance of the promised blessings in
your own life. Your light afflictions are tools whereby our Heavenly Father shapes your life for
greater use and service in His Vineyard.
I was encouraged by the authors’ twofold message to the Church. Firstly, it carries a rebuke to
those shirking their ministerial duties. Secondly, it is a word of encouragement to the faithful ones
fighting the good fight of faith.
True Biblical Christianity does not, nor was it intended to function as a democracy (of, for,
and by the people), it always, and without fail is a theocracy (from God to us).

“And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors
and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the
body of Christ . . .” [Ephesians 4:11, 12]
 Introduction

S ince the Fall of Man in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:17-19), every descendant of Adam
and Eve has endured their seasons of troubles, heartaches and pains.
Though these trials were often nerve racking and unsettling, eons ago the Lord set limits on
what the Devil could or could not do in your life [Genesis 22:1, 1 Peter 1:7].
Moreover, while our obedience or disobedience can lengthen or shorten the test(s), make no
mistake, the Lord is in complete control!
The message in Out of the Ashes is simple; adversity is the greatest teacher we have in life!
Losing, in so many ways, is winning. We have to absorb the shock, make sense of it, derive value
from it, and then turn our attention to what’s happening now.
It’s one thing to learn from our experiences. It’s a totally different story when we let what’s
negative dominate our conscious and subconscious minds — haunting us, controlling us and
limiting our future.
Dwelling in the past has a way of making us anxious. Anxiety leads to a sort of mental
paralysis where we find ourselves stuck. We start to fear and doubt outcomes.
We’re vulnerable in the worst way possible — not wanting to face the day ahead. I’ve been
there, done that; maybe you know the feeling maybe you have too.
Anxiety is a battle for so many people. Within anxiety, we find these themes of change,
emotional attachment and how we choose to focus our attention.
While not the panacea, moving forward and refusing to be held down by the past is a great
way to fight your way out of anxiety.
Chad Grills recently wrote a piece about the life story of Charlie Munger, the partner of
Warren Buffett at Berkshire Hathaway. It was an incredibly inspiring story of a man who refused
to let devastating setbacks weigh him down.
He kept moving forward in his personal and professional life despite tremendous adversity.
What’s next for you? What’s waiting for you? Chances are something well worth your time.
Life is one big series of “Next’s”.
In every way, it seems illogical and foolish. However, think about it — how often do you do
this? I know I get wrapped up in emotions that can take me away — if I let them.
 One
Twelve Months

I n Bible numerology, the number twelve, which is considered a perfect number, symbolizes
God’s power and authority, as well as serving as a perfect governmental foundation.
Spiritually, it symbolizes completeness of the nation of Israel as a whole.
Twelve also is the number of the Church, both the Old Covenant Church of Israel founded by
twelve physical fathers (the twelve sons of Jacob-Israel) and the New Covenant Church founded
by twelve spiritual fathers (the twelve Apostles).
In January of 1996, my family and I transferred to San Diego, California for my next
assignment as Assistant Officer in Charge (AOIC) of the Radioman (RM), Apprentice (A)
Schools.
The challenge to this assignment, or so it seemed initially, would be the closure of the Naval
Training Center (NTC) naval base in Point Loma, California where the school was located.
Even though this meant that I would negotiate a new set of “orders” in about four or five
months, I remained “pumped” at this assignment.
The reason? Well, a little over nineteen years earlier I graduated from this same school.
Therefore, being its final AOIC was a fitting tribute to my naval career.
I will never forget the morning we left Naples, Italy for San Diego though. To say that we
had a few surprises and challenges was an understatement.
For starters, we missed the Naples to Rome airport bus. However, and thankfully so, our
friends Wendell and Hilda Davis, who picked us up that morning, faithfully stayed with us
throughout this ordeal.
No, they were not to blame for our tardiness. In fact, they tried to “hurry” us up, but to no
avail.
In our defense, I can only say that it’s not easy for a family of eight to “hurry up” at four
o’clock in the morning!
However, little did we know that while we were busily strategizing and stressing over “What
to do”? all of heaven was busily unfolding its plan to get us out of Naples that very day!
When we arrived at the terminal, the plane was about twenty-five minutes from departure.
 Three
Will you Pastor—My Way?

T he moment I accepted responsibility for pastorship of the Gaeta Gospel Fellowship

(now Pilgrim Outreach Ministries), it would prove to be one of the most eventful
decisions of my life.
Yet, with this decision came a deeper respect and admiration for all those who had said yes to
the call to preach the gospel.
Make no mistake, whatever path the Father sets before us is never easy. However, obedience
means that we are committed to this highway of the Lord’s choosing—during the good and the not
so good times.
In 1 Samuel 15, Saul chose to keep the Amalekite king Agag alive and took the plunder from
the battle rather than destroy everything as God had commanded.
When Samuel confronted him, Saul said, “I did obey the Lord. . . . I went on the mission the
Lord assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king.
The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in
order to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal” [1 Samuel 15:20-21].
Samuel answered in 1 Samuel 15:22, “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
/ as much as in obeying the Lord? / To obey is better than sacrifice”.
Why is obedience better than sacrifice?
Two answers are given.
The first answer is offered in Samuel’s response: “For rebellion is like the sin of divination, /
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. / Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, / He has
rejected you as king” [1 Samuel 15:23].
Saul’s disobedience was an act of rebellion, iniquity (sin), and idolatry.
The second answer is offered in Saul’s confession.
He said, “I have sinned. I violated the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of
the men and so I gave in to them” [1 Samuel 15:24].
One thing about crises, they bring out the best or worst in Saints.
 Five
Lord, Thank You!

I feel so overjoyed right now!

Not only did we experience a great move of God’s Spirit in our service, but afterward
I overhead my oldest son when he was talking to his sisters, “We were really in synch today”.
I thought, “Lord, thank You that our children can sense when You are in the house”!
I preached a simple message, “Where is the Love”, from 1 Corinthians 13, Verses 11-13.
The moment I gave the altar call, grown men and women came from all over the church with
tears streaming down their faces and falling prostrate at the altar.
My only regret is that the service was not aired globally.
With so many people in dire need of hearing the gospel, we have no choice; we must
accelerate our efforts to reach every person with this message of the Cross.
I believe we are close to seeing doors open that will propel this gospel to the masses, but until
then, we must pray.
As Balaam told Balak so long ago, I too believe the Lord is able.

“God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: hath He
said, and shall He not do it? or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good” [Numbers 23:19]

All He asks is that we believe Him.

For a Christian, giving thanks is a response to the goodness and mercy of God.
Additionally, it is a mark of obedience because we are commanded to give thanks.
This is because God knows giving thanks is good for our relationship with Him and good for
our wellbeing.
First Thessalonians 5:16–18 says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all
circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” [1 Thessalonians 5:16–18].
Verses imploring us to give thanks to the Lord are throughout the Bible. Some examples are
Psalm 106:1, Psalm 107:1, Psalm 118:29, and 1 Chronicles 16:24.
Our response to this great pursuit of love should be thankfulness. God knows this.
Moreover, He knows it is good for us to give thanks.
 Seven
The Sacrifice

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by
the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” [Romans
12:1, 2]

T hroughout the Bible, there are several common themes.

You will encounter these over and over again as you read and study The Word.
One of those themes is “sacrifice”.
However, before we dive headlong into this chapter, let’s take a moment and look at how the
Greek defines a “Sacrifice”.
The word “Sacrifice” [Thusia {thoo-see’-ah}] speaks of the Sacrifice of Christ, and means
that we cannot do this which the Holy Spirit demands unless our Faith is placed strictly in Christ
and the Cross.
This then gives the Holy Spirit latitude to carry out this great work within our lives.
Thusia is often used in the context of an official sacrifice prescribed by God; hence, it is
accepted because it is/was offered on His terms.
For example, our bodies, (Romans 12:1), our faith, (Philippians 2:17) our service,
(Philippians 4:18) and our praise (Hebrews 13:15) are all thusia’s we render unto the Lord.
When a Christian says, “I sacrificed a prestigious career”, “A once in a lifetime opportunity”,
“Fame” or “Riches” to follow the Lord, sadly, they are relegating “their” offering in terms of how
it affected them.
Although following the Lord is never easy, unless we’re willing to submit [yield] our whole
self (mind, body, soul and spirit) to the Ways of the Lord, we will ever find ourselves struggling to
live this new life in Christ.
By the way, the day you gave your heart and life to the Lord, the only thing you gave up was
a load of sin, nothing else!
It’s amazing to think of how God could use us in so many more ways if He was the first
priority in our lives!
 Nine
The Vessel is Ready

A s I begin this final chapter, I do so with a sense of relief and trepidation.

While I rejoice over the many victories that have come my way, I will forever be
mindful of the lessons that I learned from my struggles and failures.
These lingering apparitions’ continue their wait at the doorsteps of my mind, always hoping
that my faith will shift from the Cross of Calvary (Jesus is the Source—the Cross is the Means) to
something else.
My only defense to these attacks (and yours) is the words penned by the Apostle Paul, “. . . I
know Whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have
committed unto Him against that day”. [2 Timothy 1:12]
Not only do I rejoice at the faith and renewed hope that was birth from these battles, but the
closer we draw to Christ (and I’m referring to a place of brokenness) the more we realize that
when I am weak, then I am strong.
Although we could never hope to eradicate any of these imperfections on our own, through
our Faith and trust in the Finished Work of Christ on the Cross we have been cleansed and
perfected!
As someone said (and rightly so), “We are a work in progress”.
Therefore, as you read the final pages of this book, you are reading an offering of praise unto
the Lord.
Although I am a man of like passions, His Grace (the Goodness of God extended to
undeserving man) molds and shaped me into the preacher that He wants and desires.
The messages that I preach are simple, “Jesus Saves”, “Jesus Delivers”, “Jesus Heals”, “Jesus
Baptizes in the Holy Spirit”, and “Jesus is Coming Soon”.
Therefore, despite the prognosticators, the naysayers, our journey of the past three years was
necessary to prepare and equip us for the task ahead.
I pray that I will never forget the invaluable lessons that I have learned; lessons that have kept
me pointed to the Cross in these most exacting of times.
 J ames Langston faithfully served his country in the navy from 1976-2003 before retiring in
April of 2003.
He is a husband, a father, a grandfather and senior pastor of the Pilgrim Outreach Ministries.
James is ordained and licensed through World Evangelism Fellowship of Baton Rouge,
Louisiana. He is a 1976 graduate of El Campo high school in El Campo, Texas.
James oversees all day-to-day operations of the ministries Really Simple Syndication (RSS)
Internet feeds in the United States, Canada, and a myriad of international countries.
He teaches in ministerial workshops, and gives primary leadership to the evangelistic,
administrative, global outreach and audio and visual departments of the ministry.

Duty Stations:

USS Dubuque (LPD-8)

Naval Telecommunications Center (NTCC) Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines
USS Fletcher (DD-992)
Recruit Training Command, San Diego, California
Naval Telecommunications Area Master Station (NCTAMS), European Central, Naples, Italy
Service School Command, Radioman “A” Communications School, San Diego, California

Awards: NATO Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Overseas Ribbon, Navy Sea Service
Deployment Ribbon, Humanitarian Service Medal, Armed Forces Service Medal, Navy Good
Conduct Medal, Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement
Medal, Navy & Marine Corps Commendation Medal
With the publication of “Out of the Ashes”, James has now authored 16 books.