Martyr Monday

The following has been copied from an insertion that was in my churches bulletin yesterday morning regarding the persecuted church.

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH

What is my response?

I know I must be diligent in praying for and encouraging my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ who are suffering for our common faith. I make the following commitments today:

I will seek to get more informed regarding suffering Christians and write notes of encouragement to them.

I will give a gift toward the purchase of Bibles where they might be most urgently needed to strengthen persecuted believers. If 100 people in this service today were to give just $4 each, we would be able to supply 100 Children’s Bibles to China.

I will pray for my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ who are suffering for their commitment to the Lord. Suggestions for prayer:
• Pray for Christians who are beaten and tortured, that they may be healed and forgive their tormentors (Luke 23:34; Acts 7:60)
• Pray for imprisoned Christians to be comforted by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 6:9-13)
• Pray for the provision of Bibles (Psalm 119:105-112)
• Pray for Christians who have lost homes, farms, water and income, that God will meet their every need and ease their anxiety (Matthew 6:32-34)
• Pray that Christians in persecuted countries will support each other and band together (1 Peter 4:7-11)
• Pray that God would raise up leaders in the persecuted church, that they might be courageous, wise and faithful to their God given responsibilities (! Peter 5:1-4, 1 Timothy 3:1-10)


I will pray for the Lord’s guidance concerning the possibility of going on a short term mission trip to some par of the world where my fellow believers are suffering for their faith.

I will seek to learn more about what is going on globally in the Body of Christ. The following we sites and organizations may be helpful.

• www.opendoorusa.org (Open Doors)
• www.pesecution.com (Voice of the Martyrs)
• wwwbibleleague.org (The Bible League)
• www.worldevangelical.org (World Evangelical Fellowship Religious Liberty Commission)
• www.christian freedom.org (Christian Freedom International)
• www.cswusa.com (Christian Solidarity Worldwide)
• www.christianincrisis.net (Christians in Crisis)
• www.gfa.org/gfa/persecution (Gospel for Asia)
• www.persecution.org (International Christian Concern)
• wwwcompassionradio.com (Compassion Radio)
• www.iranchristians.org (Iranian Christians International)
• www.jubileecampaign. Org (Jubilee Campaign)
• www.missionindia.org (Mission India)
• www.thelast harves.com (The Last Harvest)

“You should always pray and not give up” Luke 8:1

Phun Phridays

A Texan died and went to heaven where St. Peter met him at the Pearly Gates.

“Show me what you got, Pete,” said Tex.

St. Peter swung open the gates and
revealed a beautiful landscape of mountains, rivers, streams, trees, flowers and all the trimmings.

“We’ve got that in Texas. We call it King Ranch,” said Tex.

St. Pete flashed up a scene of men, women and children frolicking on the countryside, riding coaches, swinging, swimming, riding horses, bicycling, etc.
“We’ve got that, too. We call it Six Flags.”

Whereupon St. Peter threw open a trapdoor of the fires of Hell and out shot a huge ball of fire followed by a solid stream of flame sweeping over the entire area. The
blinding light and heat were enormous.

“We don’t have that,” said Tex, “but we’ve got a guy in Houston who can put it
out.”

A Double Hmmm?

Miracle seeker falls off Jesus statue
Metro.co.uk, UK Nov. 7, 2006 www.metro.co.uk

A man who climbed a 45-foot tall statue of Jesus to pray for a miracle cure saw his plan backfire slightly, when he fell off, breaking several bones.



Farmer Alipio Acosta climbed up the statue of Jesus in Ocaca, Columbia in front of a crowd of onlookers – and TV cameras – in an attempt to be cured of his epilepsy. Once at the top of the statue, he prayed for a few moments, then started to climb back down.

Unfortunately, he hadn’t planned his descent route terribly well. To add to the problems, it had been raining, which made Jesus quite slippery.

As he tried to negotiate his way around Jesus’ outstretched arm, Acosta dangled for a moment, before losing his grip, falling, bouncing off the plinth and then falling some more.

On the plus side, he survived. Which is a miracle of sorts.

He was taken to hospital, where he was diagnosed with multiple fractures to his wrist, hip and skull.

This is not the first time Acosta has climbed up the Cristo Ray statue – he did the same thing two years ago. On that occasion, he wasn’t cured of his epilepsy, but he didn’t fall 45 feet either, making the venture a sort of 0 – 0 win.


Woman fatally bitten by snake during church
AP, via CNews, USA

LONDON, Kentucky (AP) - A woman died after being bitten by a snake during a serpent-handling service at church, police said.

Linda Long, 48, of London, Ky, died Sunday at University of Kentucky Medical Center, said Brad Mitchell, a detective with the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday. Long died about four hours after the bite was reported, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported.

Officials said Long attended East London Holiness Church. Neighbours of the church told the newspaper the church practices serpent handling.

Snake handling is based on a passage in the Bible from the Gospel of Mark that says a sign of a true believer is the power to “take up serpents” without being harmed.

Handling reptiles as part of religious services is illegal in Kentucky. Snake handling is a misdemeanour and punishable by a US$50 to $100 fine. Police said they had not received reports about snake handling at the church.

Church officials could not be reached for comment.

My Kids

Thank you God

Wednesdays Word of Encouragement; A post that cuts to the heart.

I dont know why I like Tim Challies so much...yes I do. He has great insight.

His post two days ago was like a dagger to my heart. Not only did he remind me of my depravity, he pointed to the fact that I am continually depraved with out His grace. It is amazing how quick I tend to forget this.

We need to thank God every day, if not every moment, that without Him, we would not even experience the common grace that all men experience much less His saving grace. It is strange how we sometimes think that the common grace that He gives is a result of the work of our own hands. When things are going good for us we tend to become our own gods and not need Him.

I know that I, like Brother Haggard, experienced an incredibly embarassing situation that not only humiliated myself but my wife as well. Though I did not engage in any drug or homosexual activity I was addicted to pornography. I prayed prior to the "exposure" of this sin, asking God to bring a change at any cost. Which He answered. I prayed this prayer as a result of reading a letter written by a member of Wedgewood Baptist Church in Fort Worth which I will post next Wednesday.

Through this letter God has sovereignly orchastrated a beautiful chorus in my life as a result of my depravity being exposed and dealt with. His loving hand was very evident during this time of being disciplined and has been guiding me throughout the last 6 and a half years since this prayer.

Thank you God.

My heart sings in delight knowing that He disciplines those whom He loves. I pray that Brother Haggards discipline will not be easy. I pray that God uses this, and I know that He will, to bring glory and honor to Himself. May our holy God and Creator continue to love His children by directing us away from our depravity through discipline and towards His holiness.

Thank God for His loving hand of discipline. May it guide us to Him when we sink into our depravity.

Mission Mondays

THREE realms where our spiritual growth will be hampered if we choose to be worldly Christians by Peter Wagner.

You can reject missions if you are a Christian. But the consequences are clear:

You will find yourself sitting on the bench while you could be in there playing the game...missions are on the cutting edge of excitement in in the Christian life. Being left out means a dull existence as a child of God. It is less than God's best for you.





You will lose authenticity as a Christian. You say that Jesus is your Lord, but yet you will be failing to obey Him at a crucial point. Another word for that is hypocricy.

You will be poorly prepared for that judgement day when what we have done here on earth will be tested by fire and only the gold, silver, and precious stones will survive (1 Corinthians 3:12-15)

Gods Goal XIII

New Testament

Moving from the Old Testament to the New Testament, we move from an age of promise to an age of fulfillment. The hoped-for Messiah had come, Jesus Christ. But God's supreme goal did not change, only some of the circumstances in how he is achieving it.

Jesus' Life and Ministry

Two texts from the Gospel of John show that Jesus' life and ministry were devoted to glorifying his Father in heaven. In John 17:4 Jesus prayed at the end of his life, "I glorified thee on earth, having accomplished the work which thou gavest me to do." And in John 7: 18, referring to his own ministry, Jesus said, "He who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but he who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood." Therefore, we can say with certainty that Jesus' all-consuming desire and deepest purpose on earth was to glorify his Father in heaven by doing his Father's will (John 4:34).

Phun Phridays

Wednesdays Word of Encouragement

It?s Not About You!


2 Corinthians 12:2-10; Philippians 2:14-15

I need to underscore a foundational fact: God's goal is not to make sure you're happy. No matter how hard it is for you to believe this, it's time to do so. Life is not about your being comfortable and happy and successful and pain free. It's about becoming the man or woman God has called you to be. Unfortunately, we will rarely hear that message proclaimed today. All the more reason for me to say it again: Life is not about you! It's about God.


How can I say that with assurance? Because of Paul's response in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10:



Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.

That's it! He got it, too. And he went with it for the rest of his days.

When you and I boast of our strengths, we get the credit, and we keep going under our own head of steam. But when we boast in what He is doing in the midst of our brokenness, inability, and inadequacy, Christ comes to the front. His strength comes to our rescue. He is honored.

Don't miss the point. The very things we dread and run from in our lives are precisely what brought contentment to Paul. Look at Paul's list: I am content when I lose. I am content when I am weak. I am content with insults. I am content when I am slandered. I am content in distresses. I am content with persecutions. I am content with difficulties and pressures that are so tight I can hardly turn around. Why? ?Because when I am weak, then I am strong? (2 Corinthians 12:10). Knowing that brought the apostle, ablaze with the flaming oracles of heaven, to his knees. What a way to live your life - content in everything - knowing that divine strength comes when human weakness is evident.

Paul recommends an attitude of unselfish humility. Quite remarkably, you never read where Paul said this to his Roman guard, while he was in prison: ?I need you to do me a favor. Next time you happen to be near one of the Emperor's assistants, urge him to get me out of this dump. I shouldn't be here in the first place. I've been here for one year, seven months, four days, five hours, and nine minutes, and that's long enough.? Paul's attitude of unselfish humility prevented him from keeping meticulous records of the wrongs done to him in Rome, or anywhere else for that matter. He was in prison by divine appointment. He willingly submitted to his situation.

Christ modeled the great emptying-out principle that permeated Paul's remarkable life. If we want to learn contentment, developing an attitude of unselfish humility is the perfect place to begin. Start with your family or neighbors. Model it before your employees or clients. You won't believe the impact that sort of selfless mental attitude will have on the people. You won't have to raise flags or pass out tracts. Just demonstrate an attitude of unselfish humility. The results will amaze you.

Paul exhorts believers to have an attitude of joyful acceptance. Paul minced no words about how believers should relate to one another. ?Do all things without grumbling or disputing; that you may prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world? (Philippians 2:14-15). He sought an attitude of joyful acceptance, free of petty disputes and bickering. He pled for authentic joy. Nothing is more contagious!

Excerpted from Charles R. Swindoll, Great Days with the Great Lives: Profiles in Character from Charles R. Swindoll (Nashville: W Publishing Group, 2005), 313, 337.

Mission Mondays

Read the Stepchilds post "Taking Advantage".

Phun Phridays

click->ENJOY!!!

Worship

I just began reading Skip Ryans book "Worship:Beholding the beauty of the Lord," last night and it really struck me, though I already knew and understood it but had never put words to it, that all beauty points to the Lord.

I love to read Tim Challies. Today he reviewed the book "Can we rock the gospel?". I think that his assessment of the book was right on. What really struck me was where Tim quoted John Blanchard and Dan Lucarini when they stated, "worship is characterized by reverence, modesty and humility, and has nothing that even remotely aims at our pleasure and entertainment."??!! I agree that reverence, modesty and humility are important parts of worship. However what about joy, excitement, praise etc...?

I know that when I am worshipping the Lord and am doing so in a "reverent, modest and humble" manner, joy rises up inside of me as a result of knowing that He loves me, that makes me excited to know that I have access to Him, which makes me want to praise Him. I can definitley say that I find worshipping the Lord the most pleasurable experience there is.

I quote John Piper, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." Amen

Wednesdays Word of Encouragement

One evening early in my recovery my friend Steve Estes crossed the room to stir the fire in the fireplace. He reminded me, "Joni, what is happening to you will advance God's cause! Paul had his prison chains; you have your chair. You can rejoice in suffering because He is allowing you to suffer on His behalf. You are given, in this battle, the privilege 'not only to believe on Him , but also to suffer for him'". (Philippians 1:29).

It was exciting to think that what had happened to me could indeed serve to advance the gospel (Philippians 1:12). I began to share my faith with more people in a positive context, and I saw that the Word of God could not be bound and chained, even if I was.

Joni Eareckson Tada

Puritan writers

The way to be eased is not struggling with it, but meekly to bear it.

There is a fable, but it has its moral for this purpose. A certain ass, laded with salt, fell into a river, and after he had risen, found his burden lighter, for the moisture had made it melt away; whereupon he would ever after lie down in the water as he traveled with his burden, and so ease himself. His owner perceiving this craft , after laded him with Wool. The ass purposing to ease himself, as before, laid himself down in the water, and thinking to have ease, rising again to feel his weight, found it heavier.

—Richard Stock

A Really Cool Find

Before I begin I would like to describe the area where I live. I live in Glen Rose, which is the county seat for Somervell county. Glen Rose is famous for the Dinosaur State Park which is a only few miles from town and is located on the Paluxy River.

I was walking with a friend of mine down a dry creek bed here in Somervell county (keep in mind that the creek beds here in Somerville county are usually solid rock) and found...this is not a joke.....a stick that was impressed into the creekbed. The rock apparently was at one time mud which hardened into solid rock. The stick however was not petrified. It looked like one long piece of charcoal.

If you know anyone who is a creation scientist or the like, please ask them to respond to this post and I will be glad to direct them to this stick.

I have already emailed and left a voice mail with several creation scientists but have not heard back from them. So tell your freinds to hurry if they are interested.

Gods Goal XII

God's Goal in redemptive history Part XII

Zechariah, Haggai, and Malachi prophesied after Israel's return from exile, representing the latest writings in the Old Testament period. Each reflects a conviction that God's goal after the exile is still his own glory.

Zechariah prophesied concerning the rebuilding of Jerusalem: "I will be the glory within her" (Zechariah 2:5).

Haggai made the same point: "Build the house that I may appear in my glory" (Haggai 1:8).

Malachi criticized the wicked priests in the new temple: They "do not lay it to heart to give glory to my name" (Malachi 2:2).

Phun Phridays

Hyper Calvinist

Puritan Boy

Tim Presson of Redeemer Church in Fort Worth is in the running for Puritan Boy over on PURGATORIO.

If you know Tim and would like to vote for him click here.

A whole bunch of folks

300,000,000

"As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the Earth and increase upon it."

When I was born in 1968 the population of the United States was somewhere just above 200,000,000 people. As of sometime next week (The U.S. Census Bureau projects the 300 million population landmark will be reached Tuesday at 5:46 a.m.), We will see the population of the U.S. top 300,000,000. I will (God willing) see the population roll over once more by an addtional 100,000,000 in 2040.

Watch the countdown.

Read this "Utah news" article concerning the population change.

"Before The Next Teardrop Falls"

When I read where Pastor Brent was directing his readers in "The Weekly Town Crier" to read a post that I had written earlier this week, it made me ask my self why I did'nt refrence Freddy Fender as one of the great Texas music artists.

Freddy Fender wrote and recorded two of my all time favorite country songs, "Before the next tear drop falls" and "Wasted days and wasted nights". He had several other big hits but none that touched these two as far as Im concerned.

Those two songs always take me back to my childhood when I was living in Hamilton, Texas. I can vividly remember sitting in front of our new cabinet stereo system (which had a state of the art AM/FM radio, a turn table and an 8 track player), listening to my dads 8 track of "Before the next teardrop falls."

Mr Fender was a man of great wit. He once told a Washington Post reporter "Whenever I run into prejudice, "I smile and feel sorry for them, and I say to myself, `There's one more argument for birth control.'"

Im sadden to know and to say that today, Mr Fender passed away at his home in Corpus Christi, Texas. He was truly one of the greatest Texas performers of all time.

Here is his web site and here are several other sites that you may want to visit...here, here and here.