MegaChurch Listings

List of mega churches by state.

Elvis impersonations? Forget that, I've seen Jesus impersonations

That's right. This guy, probably older than I am (I'm nearly 22) showed up admist a group of young witches, goblins, and werewolves (oh the irony, I wonder if he planned it) wearing all white and a crown of thorns, carrying a chalice, and had a cross strapped to his back. Apparently Jesus hangs out with Zorro (he had a friend with him who was Zorro).

He probably thought he was being cute, or clever, or something. I had mixed feelings on this one. First off, I was offended b/c that's just terribly disrespectful. But then I felt sad for him because I seriously doubt he has a relationship with Christ. Sadly, the heartbreak for this young man didn't set in until well after he had left. And besides, I don't think it'd be a terribly good idea to engage in conversations on my front porch alone, in the dark, with men I don't know while my kids are inside watching Veggie Tales.

So, all I can do is pray the Lord would meet him and reach him.

Death, Be Not Proud

Dr. W.A. Criswell (1909-2002), long-time pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas, was once traveling by airplane on a trip across the country to attend a speaking engagement and was thrilled to recognize the man in the seat beside him as a well-known Christian theologian. Criswell admired this man and wanted to strike up a conversation with him. After the plane left the ground and settled into cruising altitude he introduced himself and the two began to speak.

The theologian told the pastor how he had recently lost his four-year old son to a terrible illness. The child was sent home from school one day with a fever. At first the parents thought it was a typical childhood illness, but as the child’s condition continued to worsen they took him to the hospital. After the doctors ran a battery of tests they told the parents that their son had a virulent form of meningitis and that there was nothing they could do for him. The child was going to die.

The loving father did the only thing he could do, which was sit with his son in a death vigil. It was the middle of the day and the illness was causing the little boy’s vision began to fade. He looked up at his daddy and said softly, “Daddy, it’s getting dark, isn’t it?”

The professor replied, “Yes, son, it is dark. It is very dark.” And for the father it was very dark.

The little boy said, “I guess it’s time for me to get to sleep, isn’t it?”

“Yes son, it’s time for you to sleep,” said the father.

The theologian explained to Dr. Criswell how his son liked his pillow and his blankets arranged just so and how he put his head on his hands while he slept. He told how he helped the child fix his pillow and how his little boy rested his head on his hands and said. “Good night daddy. I’ll see you in the morning.” With that the little boy closed his eyes and breathed his last.

The professor stopped talking and looked out the window of the airplane for a good long time. Finally he turned to Dr Criswell and with his voice breaking and tears spilling onto his cheeks said, “I can hardly wait for morning to come!”

Though it may sound like merely the cry of a grief-stricken parent, the father’s words speak of far more. They speak of a profoundly beautiful truth. His words echo those of King David who, after his son died said, “I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.” (2 Samuel 13:23) The father believed that life does not end with death – death is just the beginning! His words are an awesome statement of faith. He had faith to believe that Jesus’ words were true when he said, “I am the way, the truth and the life!” Only through Jesus can we have the hope of eternal life that sustains the grief-stricken father. Only through Jesus can we have assurance that he “will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying.” (Revelation 21:4) God offers us this assurance if only we will believe in Him.

Do you believe in Him? Give God the opportunity to be real to you and to give you the faith to believe that there really is life beyond death.

Source.

Prayer, sin, and man

Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from prayer.

John Bunyan

It is prayer that sustains us. It is in prayer that we become refreshed. It is prayer that gives us the strength not to give into the difficult moments.

Matthew 26:41: Watch and Pray!

Challies.com

Has a new design, I think it is fantastic. It's very sharp, organized, sleek looking. There are added functions that are going to be fun to watch (King for a Week for example)I give it an enthusiastic two thumbs way up! Click here to see it. If you don't like it you're either crazy, or not a fan of maroon. But I think it's great.

Refine Me by Jennifer Knapp

I come into this place
Burning to receive your peace
I come with my own chains
From wars I've fought for my own selfish gain
You're my God and my Father
I've accepted your Son
But my soul feels so empty now
What have I become?

Lord, come with your fire,
Burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Refine me

My heart can't see
When I only look at me
My soul can't hear
When I only think of my own fears
They are gone in a moment
You're forever the same
Why did I look away from You
How can I speak Your name?

Lord, come with Your fire,
burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child
For I long to be reconciled to You

It's all I can do
To give my heart and soul to You
And pray, and pray, oh I will pray

Lord, come with Your fire,
burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child
For I long to be reconciled to You

Refine me, refine me
Refine me, refine me

Body hanging from tree mistaken for Halloween decoration

This is quite possibly the saddest thing I've read in a long time. Source.

Cool beyond belief!

I really should save this for Wednesday, but it is far too cool! Click it

A Good Farmer Yields a Strong Crop

I found this over at The Christian Cynic, and thought you might find it interesting.

Hypothetical scenario?

MacIntyre's first point is to suggest an imaginary situation: Suppose that a great tragedy occurs due to the workings of the scientific community, one that devastates modern society. Suppose then that a great uprising forms against science as a field; laboratories are burned, scientific works destroyed, scientists themselves threatened. This movement then grows into a state in which the general public fights to annihilate any trace of science, and largely succeeds in the task. Imagine that some time after an 'enlightened' group of individuals then attempts to rebuild science from the remnants of this destruction, putting together bits and pieces from the remaining treatises and studies leftover from the scientific age. This group ends up with ideas that are largely the same as ours: specific gravity, general relativity, and so forth. But the result of this patchwork science is the loss of the original context which science existed in prior to its fall; the concepts, however similar, are incomplete, and scientists theorize based on these incomplete elements.

MacIntyre then steps back from the scenario, only to propose that this has happened, not with science but rather with morality.

And he proceeds to make a very strong assertion about modern ethical thought, that we have forsaken the original context of morality, including - and this is quite significant - the language of morality. We now speak of morality in ways that are entirely foreign to a modern conception of ethics but that were perfectly at home, for example, in Aristotle's Greece. MacIntyre acknowledges the skeptic's initial response to this idea, but he incorporates such a skepticism into his argument, saying that, unlike what happened in the imaginary world described in the former analogy, there was no single event or turning point that caused morality to be changed in such a way and that as a result, the general public has been completely oblivious to such a change. It is quite a compelling argument, and this is what MacIntyre succeeds at asserting in only the first chapter.

...

Out of context, out of content

MacIntyre's judgment on morality, especially the ethical content of modernity, relies on a historical treatment of morality going back to fifth century (BC) Greece, the time of Homer and heroic culture. (He also treats pre-Christian Ireland and Iceland in the same regard, but Greece is his primary focus.) He relates quite a bit of information about the moral codes of the time, focusing on the idea that this pre-modern system of morality was teleological. The telos involved related to the idea of the hero and the virtues that enabled him to efficiently fulfill that telos. He points out rather poignantly that the definition of a "good" watch is that which enables a watch to fulfill its purpose: generally speaking, to tell time accurately. One would not say a watch was "good" if it did not tell time but served some other purpose unrelated to time-telling; the "goodness" of a watch depends on its ability to fulfill the purpose for which it was meant. In the same way, a "good" farmer is one who yields a strong crop, who tends the field well, etc., because such things fulfill the purpose of a farmer.

Source

Shopping for a new Bible

So, I have one Bible I use on a regular basis. I love my blue KJV hard back Bible. It is very well loved. So well loved, in fact, that half of Acts-Revelation has fallen out. Like I said, I love my Bible. Anyway, it's the only KJV I own and I'm really not a fan of the NIV or the NLT, both of which I have for research purposes, so I'm stuck with my falling apart Bible.

I was getting ready to go to Bible study last night and my mom said I should really get a new Bible. She even offered to let me use hers. But hers is a NIV, and like I said, I'm not a fan. So, I thanked her for her generosity and headed out the door.

I had a few minutes to kill so I went to Barnes and Noble because they have Bibles on sale a lot of the time and you can get a deal depending on what you want. I was just browsing through and noticed a couple funny looking Bibles. One was a NLT and was called "The Metal Bible," and just as the name indicates it was made of metal. Another Bible I saw didn't look like a book. It looked like a woman's wallet with a clasp and everything. I can't seem to find a photo of it right now, so you'll just have to imagine it.

Anyway, I thought to myself that the Bible companies are getting rather creative. You can have a Bible that doesn't look anything like a Bible! Seriously, it is a shame I can't find a photo of the wallet looking one because quite honestly I didn't realize it was a Bible. I thought some poor lady had accidentally put her wallet down and forgotten it. That's when I spotted a box with one in it. I suppose I can see the appeal. Want to read your Bible at work but don't want people to know what it is? Just say it is your wallet and that you were balancing your check book if you get caught.

I could see the use of Bibles that don't look like Bibles if you were trying to smuggle them into a country where Christianity is against the law, but then again from the things I've heard about Christians in other countries I'm not sure they would like them. They're not ashamed to carry their well loved Bibles around though they often risk ridicule and persecution for their beliefs.

Yet, we in America (the land of the free) walk around petrified of sharing our faith and try to hide something that we should never be ashamed of, God's word. We have more freedom than many other people would ever dream of, and yet we are the ones who walk around like we could get shot for mentioning Christ. We are the ones who are scared. And of what?

Jesus Himself told us not to fear those who could destroy the body, but to fear the One who could destroy both the body and soul. Why do we hide? We have it so easy, and yet we are the ones who need Bibles that don't look like Bibles.

Cheap Grace

(AgapePress) - A recent report from The Barna Group revealed most Americans believe themselves to be Christians, but few base their moral decisions on the Bible. In fact only a few believe absolute truth exists. Interestingly, even the faith community largely addresses morality in divergent ways. The report said just "six out of ten evangelicals (60%)" rely on the Bible as their main source of moral counsel and "only two out of every ten non-evangelical born again adults (20%) do the same."

For several years, Barna has been emphasizing the need for churches to help their members develop a "biblical worldview." The organization defines such a life perspective on the basis of several questions about religious beliefs. The definition requires someone to believe "that absolute moral truth exists; that the source of moral truth is the Bible; that the Bible is accurate in all of the principles it teaches; that eternal spiritual salvation cannot be earned; that Jesus lived a sinless life on earth; that every person has a responsibility to share their religious beliefs with others; that Satan is a living force, not just a symbol of evil; and that God is the all-knowing, all-powerful maker of the universe who still rules creation today."

In previous studies, Barna research demonstrated how a biblical worldview radically alters a person's lifestyle choices, causing them to reject matters like cohabitation, drunkenness, gay sex, profanity, pornography, adultery, gambling and abortion.

Nevertheless, Barna says despite all the debate in recent years about various moral issues and the effort of thousands of churches to strengthen people's moral convictions, "only 5% of adults have a biblical worldview. The percentage varies among faith groups. About half of all evangelicals have such a perspective. Overall, 8% of Protestants possess that view, compared to less than one half of one percent of Catholics." Furthermore, the vast majority of people without a biblical worldview, 88% to be exact, feel they are "accepted by God."

These amazing statistics remind me of a phrase Dietrich Bonhoeffer coined to address the self-delusion of Lutheran Church members in Germany in his day. In The Cost of Discipleship, Bonohoeffer spoke of those who had only experienced "cheap grace." He defined cheap grace as "the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate."

Well-known biblical commentator Arthur W. Pink once mused: "Never were there so many millions of nominal Christians on earth as there are today, and never was there such a small percentage of real ones .... We seriously doubt whether there has ever been a time in the history of this Christian era when there were such multitudes of deceived souls within the churches, who verily believe that all is well with their souls when in fact the wrath of God abideth on them."

In his book, Now for Something Totally Different, Dr. Stuart Briscoe shared his observations about why many professing Christians today seem to have difficulty translating their profession of faith into practice:

"Our modern day is seeing a startling reaction against authority, an intense distaste for obedience. This movement seems to be a natural outgrowth of our democratic philosophy when it gets out of control. Government is to be of the people, for the people, and by the people, according to the democratic principle, and this can be beautiful as long as it is operating ideally. Today, however, we are beginning to see signs of a breakdown in the process .... this kind of thinking can result in what the writer of Judges described: 'In those days there was no King in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes' (Judges 17:6). The democratic system, out of control, can degenerate into anarchy. The erosion of authority can accompany the democratic process when confidence in government declines, as it has in our day .... Obedience is lacking on the family level, in the political realm, on the educational scene, even in the sports arena. And in the church we have a similar situation. People in our churches who profess that God is God and Jesus Christ, the risen Lord, is his Son are also reacting against his authority."

Jesus warned, however, "Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven" (Matthew 7:21).

Obedience is an expression of a right relationship with God in Christ. It's a relationship of love. Jesus said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15). If one really knows and loves Christ, it's bound to show in their actions. Where there is essentially no obedience there is every reason to question whether Christ actually resides in the heart. The apostle Paul taught: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:9-10). Without question, we are saved by grace through faith alone in Christ and His finished work of redemption on our behalf, but a genuine conversion experience results in good works -- a characteristic obedience to the Lord's commands -- a dynamic and increasingly growing biblical worldview approach to life.

Anything else is just cheap grace. And cheap grace is no grace at all.

Agape Press (emphasis mine)

#6#6

Now, I don't think I will never be able to top this post. Here's the Baby Cage, and a few accesories.

Here is a testimonial from the website.

I must take the time to tell you how much I love your products. My 6 year old has been on the cage ever since it came out and I am proud to say that he is the most obedient kid on my block. That cage is a life saver. I can't even imagine life before the baby cage. Now I can go to work without having to worry about where my kid is going to get in trouble because I can just lock him in his cage. Signed, a happy customer

This is just sick. Boy, I think I just peaked at post number six!

#5#5

Tim Challies' blog makes me laugh some times.

#4#4

The Gospel According to Anne Rice

That's right folks, I said it. The Gospel according to the queen of the occult! According to Newsweek she has taken some time off from writing her Vampire novels due to some illnesses that included a diabetic coma, surgery for an intestinal blockage, and the death of her husband due to a brain tumor. Apparently, during her time off she has returned to the Catholic Church, which she had left at the age of 18.

So, what is next for Anne?

"You may not want what I'm doing next."

Anne Rice, the chronicler of vampires, witches and—under the pseudonym A. N. Roquelaure—of soft-core S&M encounters, will publish "Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt," a novel about the 7-year-old Jesus, narrated by Christ himself. "I promised," she says, "that from now on I would write only for the Lord."

To write the books, there are three already lined up, she dug into the New Testament as well as other historical documents.

She can cite scholarly authority for giving her Christ a birth date of 11 B.C., and for making James, his disciple, the son of Joseph by a previous marriage. But she's also taken liberties where they don't explicitly conflict with Scripture. No one reports that the young Jesus studied with the historian Philo of Alexandria, as the novel has it—or that Jesus' family was in Alexandria at all. And she's used legends of the boy Messiah's miracles from the noncanonical Apocrypha: bringing clay birds to life, striking a bully dead and resurrecting him.

Rice's most daring move, though, is to try to get inside the head of a 7-year-old kid who's intermittently aware that he's also God Almighty. "There were times when I thought I couldn't do it," she admits. The advance notices say she's pulled it off: Kirkus Reviews' starred rave pronounces her Jesus "fully believable."
...
Yet in the novel's best scene, a dream in which Jesus meets a bewitchingly handsome Satan—smiling, then weeping, then raging—Rice shows she still has her great gift: to imbue Gothic chills with moral complexity and heartfelt sorrow.

#3#3

Want to hear a joke? To bad, you'll have to read it. Kind of silly, but I liked it.

"Did God create liberals?" ... "No. Liberals clearly evolved, by accident, from apes. Dumb apes. The average American liberal shows no hint of intelligent design. No wonder liberals are pro-Darwin."

Source

#2#2

"If you can dodge a wrench, You can dodge the wrath of God"

This woman is in for a rude awakening. This really wasn't funny wacky so much as sad wacky. Indeed, this can be filed under crazy wacky.

The Definition of Wacky

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines wacky as an adjective that means

ECCENTRIC, CRAZY

#1#1

Welcome to the very first Wacky Wednesday! I hope this to be the begining of something that will prove to entertain the masses. Be sure to stop by each Wednesday to read some of the most wacky stuff I can find!

Anyway, onto our first topic.

I was doing some random blog reading on Monday and stumbled upon this. On the page there is a photo of a stop sign with a little sign directly underneath it. Now, that isn't the strange part, I see those all the time. The strange part was, rather than saying "4 way stop" or "2 way stop" like most signs, this one says "REQUIRED BY LAW"! I never realized that people needed to be told that.

I mean stop signs are big and red and just about scream "STOP," so why would people think they are optional? Needless to say, I found the photo rather amusing. Although, seeing the way some people drive, I understand the extra enforcement of the stop sign, but I wonder something. If people just can't read the word STOP, which is the only reason I would think anyone would run the sign, one can safely assume they would be unable to comprehend what the phrase "REQUIRED BY LAW" means as this is much longer than the first sign. So, how effective can the extra sign be since the people who run stop signs probably can't read (which is why they don't stop when they see the sign saying STOP)?

Posting Rules

You can post comments, heck you can even disagree with me, but if you swear I will delete your comment as soon as I see it. So please, no swearing. Thanks. Also, try to stay on topic and please don't just post "I disagree" tell me why otherwise the conversation has no where to go.

Immodesty Makes The Front Page (Again)

I'm not going to post the image directly, but if you want to see what I'm talking about go here. I got my morning paper off the front stoop while my daughter was down for her nap. I opened it up and of course there was lots about the White Sox, and there was the local section with photos from around the community, and then I found on the front page of the "In Focus" section a nearly half page photo from a local high school football game.

What's the problem, why am I focusing on this one photo? I'm focusing on this image because right there in the middle of the shot was a girl. Her face is blocked by a shamrock green wig of a guy in front of the camera, but the photographer did manage to capture her cleavage on film. This girl appears to be pulling her shirt down to reveal, aside from her cleavage, P.H.S. written in green on her chest.

This is front page news. I can't help but wonder why she wrote the letters there, though I'm sure it was to draw attention to that area of her body. And boy, her body is sure getting attention now. Every person who reads their Monday paper today in the Joliet area will get to see what she was showing to a couple of guys at a football game. I can't tell you had sad this makes me. I'm sad that she feels the need to show herself off like that, and I'm more sorry that the newspaper feels this is front page material.

Some wackiness will be revealed on Wednesday!

Come back on Wednesday to see the premier edition of Wacky Wednesday!

Mona Lisa Reads The Daily!

"The Purpose-Driven Life" to Become a Bible?

What part of the world is left for Warren to conquer?

He pitched his "Forty Days of Peace" to religion writers at their annual convention, a grand plan to recruit churches to forge peace in the world and end poverty and HIV/AIDS. His first destination is Rwanda, as a story in the October issue of Christianity Today shared.

The magazine cover featured a striking photograph of Warren and his wife, Kay, surrounded by appreciative-looking Rwandans, above the title: "Purpose Driven in Rwanda." He's hopeful - even cocky - that "The Purpose-Driven Life" will become to Christians what Dr. Spock's child-reading book became to parents. A bible.

Source (emphasis mine)

There are so very many things I could say, especially about that last part, but I'll let it slide because it isn't a direct quote. But it does make me wonder about a few things...

Katie Holmes reads The Daily!

That's right, the future Mrs. Cruise is a fan of The Daily! I must say, she has great taste in reading materials. I never would have expected the blog to be fridge material, but here is the proof!

Starbucks newest cup...

According to the New York Times, Starbucks (also known as The Church of St. Arbucks to Steve Camp's readers) latest cup will feature a quote from Rick Warren's The Purpose Driven Life: "You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life will never make sense."

"The way in which religion allows itself to be reshaped by the larger culture, including markets, allows it to prosper and do well, but it also clearly changes its core values," said Charles Ess, a professor of religion at Drury University in Springfield, Mo. "The oldest Christians sold all their goods and shared them in common. They didn't shop and launch marketing campaigns."

Then again, Christianity seems to have done quite well by mixing worship and commerce. "Religion is like yeast in dough," said Michael Novak, a theologian at the American Enterprise Institute. "It's in every part of life, so for it to show up everywhere is only natural - in commerce, politics, sports, labor unions and so on and so forth."

Not that the intermingling of faith and commerce is anything new. Christians have always used all available means and venues to spread the gospel.

"Jesus taught in the temple and the marketplace," Mr. Warren, the author of the blockbuster "The Purpose Driven Life," said in an interview.

(emphasis mine)

Jesus taught in the marketplace, but did He change His message to be accepted? Did He only speak on the blessings of God? I think not.

18For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil.

19The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.

20Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not:

21Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

22But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.

23And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

24But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

25At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.

26Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight.

27All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.

28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Matthew 11:18-30 (emphasis mine)

"That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee." Yea, that sure sounds fun. Doesn't that sound just like what we hear out of the pulpits today? Nope. I can't remember the last time I heard a pastor say that, but I can't begin to count the times I've heard "For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" get quoted.

The quote by Mr. Warren is true enough, but that's all you'll hear from him and the pastors that follow him. You'll only hear the "good news," and none of that "bad news" like Jesus dying for our SINS.

Erik Satie: Gymnopedie No. 1 and more

So beautiful, I'm in love. It's the perfect background noise music. Other songs to listen to: Robert Schumann's "Traumerei" (I fell in love with this song a couple years ago when I first saw Beyond Borders) and Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata First Movement."

If you only listen to those three songs you will begin to have an appreciation for some of my favorite music. All these songs, as well as many others, are available here, although the mp3 of Traumerei is played slightly faster than I would like it is still very pretty.

The Daily Updated. Verse of the day: Hebrews3:13

Angels Wake Contest Continues

The contest for Angels Wake is continuing until December, I just found out so please go visit. For more details see my old post here.

Vote for "Going Home" by Angels Wake, right now they are around #8 or #9, help keep them in the top 15!

Wacky Wednesdays

I have been thinking (DUN DUN DUUUNN!!) and have decided that the middle of the week seems to be getting neglected. PyroManiac, Phil Johnson, has Mondays covered and Tim Challies of Challies.com has "Friday Frivolity." But I can't seem to find anyone who likes the middle of the week, which is a shame because I am quite fond of Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

So, Wednesdays here at The Daily shall be "Wacky Wednesdays." (Unless I come up with a better name)

At some point in the near future I'll start posting wacky things only on Wednesdays, or mostly on Wednesdays. What, you may ask, would I consider wacky? Well, I'm not sure at this point but let's face it. The world is a wacky place to live in so I think this should be fun. I'm not sure when it will start, but expect it some time in the near future.

The blog needed a new look

I'm still working on it, but I think it will be neat once I'm done. You'll just have to deal with the goofiness for a bit. Thanks!

Church Growth: The Movie!

I found an interesting, short, little movie concerning church growth and the idea that many modern churches are taking things of the world and bringing them into service to entertain the masses rather than edify the elect. You can find it here.

Teens need counseling after exposure to God

School officials said these students' discomfort should be treated with respect. But the damage may already be done; psychological counselors are being rushed in for all students who suffered emotionally from standing quietly while Borden uttered expletives like "Thank you, God" and "In Jesus' name."
...
This is simply another sign of America's growing hostility toward Christianity, or more precisely, toward Christ. His words made the Pharisees wriggle 2,000 years ago, and they still make folks wriggle today. I've probably said this before, but it's so true: Humans have trouble believing in God because doing so means (a) someone else is in control; (b) they must be held accountable for their every action; and (c) they must learn to think of someone besides themselves.

I assume most parents and administrators want coaches who will help steer kids in the right direction. That implies that these same people want coaches who possess some sort of moral compass and believe that right and wrong aren't just feelings, but facts. Thus, these coaches must have a moral source (for morality without a source beyond the self is dangerous). So why aren't coaches whose source is God allowed to acknowledge Him?

And why are people so intent on shielding this young generation from the truth of God? This culture has no problem exposing kids to gore, casual sex and all sorts of self-destructive philosophies. But try to tell them about God, and you just might ruin them. Might actually make them use their brains to figure out why they're here.

Agape press

This is insane

As if the Jesus is my homeboy t-shirts weren't bad enough...I saw a t-shirt recently that read, "Love is the new S.T.D. Spread it." WHAT?! Also featured on the website are t-shirts perfect for Christian soccer mom's. It reads "Jesus loves soccer moms!" and even features a minivan on it!

And just remember, Jesus loves sales and wears jeans with His halo.

CoffeeSwirls: Santa Slip Up

From a blog I frequent. I thought it was interesting, so here you go:

Santa has visited our home seven times now, but has moved on to deliver toys to other children. It was one of those, “It’s not you, it’s me” breakups. Ben’s belief in the jolly fat man had been wavering, with increasing questions about him coming forth. Some of his friends had been having the same questions and the time had come to reveal the truth to Ben, so we sat him down and explained that it was Mommy and Daddy all along.
...
If you do the Santa thing, you will likely also have the tooth fairy and the Easter Bunny and we had all three. As the years progressed, Ben began to ask certain questions that showed that his belief was fading...Ben would ask if these things were real even after years of belief. We’d ask him if he believed in them and he would give a fairly weak response. He said he believed, but it was apparent that he truly didn’t. He had been believing for a couple years through the sheer force of will and that was growing thin.

Adding to this unbelief, Ben started to notice our mistakes. One year, he asked for an item from Santa. Due to a labeling error, he got that item from us and another from Santa. He mentioned that this was funny, but with more than a hint of unbelief. Another example would be when he looked into my top drawer and found the stash of lost teeth. Realistically, I don’t know what we were planning to do with these teeth, but Ben was told that the Tooth Fairy had lots of uses for them. It’s really a bit creepy when you think about it. Ben pushed each of these events, and several others, as far from his mind as he could.

I think to the first chapter of Romans, where Paul makes it clear that people will suppress the truth, no matter how much evidence is placed before them. We can propose any logical argument, make any case, but if a person truly doesn’t want to believe the truth there is no way to force them to do so. That person will look to that which they perceive gives them the greatest reward for the present with no regard for the future. No matter how ridiculous their position is, they will remain with it because they want to remain with it.
...
This Christmas, we will celebrate with a reading from the book of Luke and will then open our presents, thanking each other for caring enough to find that perfect gift. When Ben’s eyes light up, he will know for certain that it was his parents who were delighted to give him the best we could offer. And it will be a day made more special because he will be able to hug the givers of the gifts and thank them in person. He is relieved to no longer have Santa in the picture. So am I.

Perhaps this year, after we have read the story of the first advent from the book of Luke we will skip ahead a few chapters and discuss the gifts of our Father in Heaven. Ben has been treated to some of the best gifts we could buy for these years. Perhaps it is time to tie that in with the greatest gift that our Father in Heaven could offer, the righteousness of His son.

Luke 11:13
“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Source (emphasis mine)

Microsoft Feels Your Pain

Did you know that Microsoft feels your pain when your computer screws up? See the proof here!

Video

Hurricanes: What's after Wilma?

Wilma, the latest, in a string of hurricanes is expected to reach Florida sometime on Friday. Currently it is moving at a rate of 7 mph and is expected to become a "major hurricane" by time it reaches the states. With hurricane season to continue for another six weeks we have reached the end of names for the storms.

The formation of Wilma on Monday meant the hurricane center has reached the end of its seasonal list of male and female names. If more tropical storms form this season, forecasters will begin using the Greek alphabet, starting with Alpha.

Source

Does Victoria Have a Secret?

Does the secular society have any idea of what modesty is? Sex is not something we should see on the streets, on the tv, in the classroom, or in the mall. Do they not realize that sex, as God created it, is a beautiful thing to be shared between a husband and wife. Do they understand that sex is meant to take place in private, behind closed doors? Sometimes you have to wonder.

Tongues were wagging. E-mails were flying around PTA message groups and church listservs. People who heard about it came by to take a look for themselves. The issue was tiny underwear -- women's fine lingerie, to be exact-- and how it should be displayed on lifelike mannequins in the newest wing of one of America's biggest malls.
...
Inside the store was a display of one scantily clad female mannequin crawling toward another who reclined on a left hip and leaned back on both hands.
...
"I've shopped here for 10 years, and I won't come back until they change the window," said Joe Cowden of Vienna.

"I walk the mall. I've been walking the mall for nine years," said Jana Spencer, 53, of Vienna, who said she has three grown children. "This is shocking. This is semi-pornographic. This is insulting."

Some shoppers said they have an issue not with what the store was selling but with the proximity of the displays to the mall's public areas.
...
"I love it," Rosario said, "I like the dark side of Vicky's. Every woman has a little bit of the dark side in her. They can do this. The mannequins aren't real. I have a husband, and I know he would love this. This is what keeps you happily married."

Source. (emphasis mine)

Lady, if that is the only thing keeping you happily married, then we have a serious problem on our hands, but I digress. If you want to wear these things, that's fine. That should be between you and your husband. Does that mean it should be publiclly displayed next to Aunt Annie's Pretzles? No. The store could have set up the display within the store, out of the genral public's view.

Do I realize they are trying to advertise? Yes, but I don't think it was nessicary to advertise within eye site of young children. They make millions of dollars a year, the women that shop there are generally repeat customers, so the store could have easily set up the display within the store and it would have still been effective for advertising. Though some would argue by setting it up within the store they wouldn't be drawing in any new customers that this display would appeal to. But I don't think that is necissarily true either, since I'm sure word of mouth would have gotten the line of products out to the future Victoria's shopper.

Heck, they could have put an ad out with a black background and red text spelling out the name of the new line or something. That could have gotten attention. Especially since V.S. advertisements are always filled with beautiful women in their underware. If they had put something out with no photos, that would have just screamed "There's something even we can't show you in the mail! Come to the store!"

The changes seemed more subtle than significant yesterday afternoon. Marie Patterson, 25, of Springfield said the store was "cool, really cool." She said she had been there Wednesday and noted only a few differences in the displays.
...
In one window display, the change involved standing up and turning a mannequin that had been bent over, its thong-clad posterior pointed toward the window. The mannequin now faces the window. Inside the store, one mannequin was removed from a display in which a scantily clad female mannequin crawled toward another, which was leaning back on both hands.

Source.

A mannequin that had been tied up was unfettered, though it still leaned against a pole with arms raised above the head, and a rope and pulleys still loomed ominously in the background. Two female figures lying spooning in a bed were replaced with a single mannequin sitting with legs crossed. A mannequin on hands and knees, crawling toward another female figure, was also removed.
...
"I had no problem with it, and I had no problem taking my daughter there," Lesley Daisley said.

Source.

The more I hear about the changes they've made the more gets revealed as to the nature of the first display. Can you imagine walking out of KB Toys to head to the food court with your toddler and have them seeing this stuff? And what about our teens? As if resisting sex wasn't difficult enough, now they cannot walk through the mall without virtually walking into a porn shop.

But what is the problem, some would ask. This empowers women, we have control, we have power, we demand respect, it's a feminist's dream realized. Or is it? Do these women not realize how weak men can be? I think they do. They feel insecure with themselves, so to compensate for that they break out the chains and whips and go to town. They flaunt themselves, thinking if they can bare it all in public it will empower them and make them feel less insignificant. Yet, the more that is shown, the more empty we feel inside. It's like we lose a piece of ourselves every time we go out.

We look for something to strengthen us, to complete us, and all we succeed in doing is objectifying ourselves. We become nothing but a body, because in our quest for respect we can lose our souls. And then what is there left for the men around us to respect? I dare say nothing. If all we put forth is a body, is it any wonder that many men see nothing but a body? And then we complain that they don't respect our minds and souls. Well, perhaps it is time to really show off the goods?

I wonder, if we weren't so busy showing off our bodies, if men would have an easier time really hearing what we say. This is not to say that we should dress in potato sacks, nor am I trying to imply that it is all our fault for the fact that we are often seen as objects. I'm simply saying, if we want a change we have to start with ourselves. We can't sit around whining, waiting for the men of this country (of this world) to start treating us like more than bodies. We have to stop behaving as if that is all we are, then perhaps we will begin to see change. Then we will truly begin to have respect.


"Finally, Victoria, here's a tip: There's more power in a secret than in an exhibition."

I know I said I was taking the week off, but

I recently discovered a band that is just to neat not to mention. Angels Wake is the band. "Going Home" is the song. It's good. Anyway, you should go check it out. The link I have here takes you to a chart page, scroll down until you find the song listed, as of 10:08pm it is at #19, and take a listen. And while you are at it, VOTE. If they make it into the top 15 they will be featured on a cd that is being released world wide.

Click here.

Now, I shall resume my break. See you soon.

Taking a break

I'm going to be taking some time off from the blog this week. You'll have to find something else to read. Try Challies.com, Google News, Slice, Agape Press, or this article concerning a lawsuit against the Air Force because their chaplain's tried to convert people to Christianity (What a surprise! A Christian evangelizing!).

Here's some food for thought:

Isaiah 6

1 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.

2 Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.

3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

4 And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.

5 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.

6 Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:

7 And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.

8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.

9 And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.

10 Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.

I'll be back on Sunday or Monday with some fun things for you to read. Take care and God bless.

Madonna, a Rabbi, and Past Lives?

Madonna, the queen of controversy, is at it again. This time it isn't a book entitled Sex, nor is it a kiss with Britney Spears that is getting her name in the headlines. Rabbi Rafael Cohen and others are outraged at the former "material girl's" song that talks about a 16th century Jewish mystic and Kabbalah scholar named Yitzhak Luria. They indicate that Jewish law that says the use of a holy rabbi's name for profit is forbidden.

Now, her antics usually do stir up quite a bit of attention, but I wonder if this same rabbi would be as outraged if it was anyone but Madonna using the 16th century mystic's name? Also, if what they say is true concerning the use of a rabbi's name for profit does that mean it is illegal to write a biography and sell it? Would it be considered contrary to the law to even mention a former rabbi in your writings that will later be sold? What about the appearance of articles concerning Madonna's song in news papers, couldn't that be argued as going against the law? After all, the name is being mentioned and news papers get sold.

Interestingly enough this rabbi that she makes reference to apparently had Elijah visit him in a vision and told him to move and teach a rabbi named Chaim Vitael, whom had been his teacher in a past life. I don't recall the Bible's Old Testament making any reference to man being able to have past lives, perhaps someone could point it out to me? The only past life I have ever heard of someone having is when they turn from their life of sin and begin to live for God through Jesus Christ. Then, I suppose, it could be argued that we have had a past life.

Run for Your Life

And it was because of their refusal to separate themselves from the gods of the society around them.

You may recall Moses telling Israel, “The gods that you refuse to drive out of the land are going to be a snare to you. They’ll be thorns in your sides. They’re going to rob you of the true heritage God desires to give you, because you refuse to separate yourselves from them. And those same idols you refuse to give up will eventually swallow you.”

That’s exactly where we find the people of God years down the road, in 1 Kings 18. The Israelites were captivated by the false god Baal. Now, Baal was the god of personal increase and prosperity. And the people were captivated by their desire for personal increase. Baal worship allowed them to build for themselves, to prop themselves up, to make themselves prosper.

Baal worship also included practices of immoral sensuality. It allowed people to indulge their flesh and yet still have a sense of being in the presence of God.

...

“How long will you halt?” Elijah asked them. The word in Hebrew for halt here means to hop, to skip over, to spare, or to dance as a lame man. Elijah is saying to the church of his time, “How long will you continue to skip over the truth? How long will you continue to spare yourself any deep dealings and callings of God? How long will you continue to worship as a lame man, when you could behold the Lord? Why do you halt between two opinions? Why do you stop at this place halfway between heaven and hell? Why can’t you make up your mind where you’re going to live, which side you’re going to commit yourself to?”

Elijah was issuing a strong challenge. Yet, Scripture says, “the people answered him not a word.”

...

God’s question is always the same: “Will you come back to me? Will you come to that place of remembrance?” In Elijah’s case, the people answered not a word. There was no response at all. Perhaps they were hoping that the conviction would just go away. After all, they knew in their hearts that Baal was not God. That’s why they could neither yield fully to the idol nor answer Elijah’s question.

...

“But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone” (Jeremiah 5:23).

The word for gone in Hebrew means they’ve already left in their heart. Now, the people are standing there listening to Jeremiah. But the Lord is whispering to the prophet, “They’re already gone from me, Jeremiah. They may be looking straight at you as you preach to them, but they’re gone.”

That is a tragedy, because this same scene has repeated itself throughout history. There are many people today who call themselves by the name of Christ but who are gone. They left Jesus long ago in their hearts, and now they know little or nothing about him. They know that what they’re pursuing isn’t God. Yet, in their hearts, they’ve left the one they know is real.

...

A divided heart will take from you your desire for God. It’s like a barrel full of oil with a hole drilled in the bottom. It takes a while for the oil to drain, but eventually it will all go. If your heart is divided, then all your desire for the Lord, as well as all your discernment, will go.

...

God’s Word is a two-edged sword, a very sharp one, and it cuts very deep. Those who truly love God know that his Word comes to us as a surgeon’s knife. It removes the cancerous nature from us and replaces it with God’s own nature. This type of change doesn’t happen merely because we come to an altar. It happens because we agree with what God’s Word says, and we trust Him for the power to change.

...

The apostle Paul tells us we are to present our lives as a living sacrifice. Once we get back to the cross ­ that is, we yield our lives to the purposes of God ­ we can say with Paul, “I am crucified with Christ.” That means our will, our plans, our ambitions, all are crucified. “Nevertheless I live, and yet not I but Christ lives in me.”

Paul goes on to say, “I live this life by faith in what Christ did for me.” In other words, “This is the source of my life: I have come to Christ.” God has taken Paul and put his life on the cross, and now Paul is dead. Yet Paul lives because he has faith in what was purchased for him on Calvary. And he trusts God to give him the life that he promised him.

There comes a time when we all have to lay down our lives for the purposes of God. Being a Christian isn’t just a Sunday School picnic. It’s not an invitation to have continuous good times. It’s a war for the souls of men.

Source. (Emphasis mine)

Katrina: a gambler's blessing!

(AgapePress) - The Mississippi State Senate has joined House lawmakers in approving a measure that will allow casinos to be built on land just off the Gulf Coast. The two votes came in response to pressure from gambling interests in the state.

"They now basically control our state politics," American Family Association chairman Don Wildmon says of the casino owners. "That will not be visible for a year or two or three, but before long, if you're not totally pro-gambling in Mississippi, you better stay out of politics because you don't stand a dog's chance." Wildmon's group, which is based in the Magnolia State, had urged its supporters to contact state lawmakers and the governor to voice their opposition to the proposal.

Prior to the vote, Mississippi law prohibited casinos from being built on land. Casinos were only allowed to operate on water, as barges tethered to piers along the Gulf Coast. However, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, gambling interests quickly moved to take advantage of the heavy casino damage generated by the storm by asking the legislature to change the law. Governor Haley Barbour urged Senate and House members to make the change, and a majority did.

...

"Immediately after the legislature gave the gamblers the right to expand their casinos to on-land buildings, even before the ink had dried on the bill, another bill was introduced that would lower the tidelands rent they paid the state," he said.

According to the way the bill reads, Wildmon said, apparently if the casinos choose to stay in the water on government tidewater land, their rent will decrease. "And the casinos which choose to move onto land won't pay the state any rent at all," he added.

Source. (emphasis mine)

So, as if lowering the rent for casinos wasn't good enough, the state has not only allowed them to be built on land but has also basically said "Hey, we know you're greedy and we admire that, so to help you out we'll consider dropping your rent due to us entirely if you'll build on land!"

Religious Equality

There have been a few people who have approached me in the past concerning the Bible's seeming sexist view of women. These people, sadly were not familiar with the Bible and just assumed (among other things) that since Eve was created after Adam that, in God's eyes, Adam was more important. I've gone to great lenghts to help them see the Bible in a much more accurate light with some success. So, because I'm always on the look out for things of this nature to help people understand the roles of men and women better, I offer you this from Challies.com:

A few days ago a person sent a question to the Reformed Baptist mailing list. He recounted that he is teaching eighth graders and one young lady asked about Adam and Eve. This girl noted that after Adam named all of the animals and saw how they were paired, he realized that there was no counterpart to him. And so God created Eve as a helper to Adam. It seems, suggested the girl, that God created Eve only to serve as a partner to Adam in allowing him to procreate. It is almost as if women were an afterthought in God's mind. So why didn't God create man and woman together as He had done with the animals? Why did He introduce Eve in such a way that she seems primarily to serve her man?

...

In Genesis 2:20 we read that "The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him." Previously, in verse 18, God has already said, "It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make a helper fit for him." While it makes a nice story to believe that Adam named all of the animals and then, noting that there was no helper suitable for him, felt loneliness, the Bible does not state this. Scripture tells us that it was God, not Adam, who noted "that it was not good that the man should be alone." We have no basis to assume that Adam was in any way lonely or that he felt any insufficiency. Adam lived in a perfect world and had perfect communion with God. Surely he did not feel any sense of loneliness. The person concluded, as do I, that Adam did not need Eve to fill some deep-rooted emptiness in his life, but that he needed a wife to fulfill his God-given mandate. Thus woman was not created to fill a social or sexual need in Adam, but to complete the Lord's purpose for humans. Eve was not needed to complete Adam, but to complete God's command to Adam.
So let's return to my claim that the Bible regards women in a way that is higher than other religions. The reason for this is obvious: the God who created us male and female, also prescribes created our roles. Only the Bible outlines the Creator's instruction to His creatures. We must understand that while God affirms equal worth, He speaks of differing roles. For example, women have the unique role and privilege of bearing children. Because they are physically weaker than men they have a need for support and protection, and this is a need God has commanded husbands to fill. God also establishes proper order in the family by assigning to men the job of headship in home and church.
One of the best (and most succinct) summaries of Scripture's position on women comes from the introduction to John MacArthur's upcoming book, Twelve Extraordinary Women (which, according to Amazon, is available for preorder and will ship on November 1). MacArthur makes several important points about women, some of which I am borrowing here.

Special Honor - While recognizing role disctinctions, the Bible sets women apart for special honor. A husband is commanded to live sacrificially and to value his wife's life higher than his own. Women are highly valued by God and are to receive this same value from men.

Due Distinction - The biblical accounts of the great men of the Old Testament consistently give distinction to their wives. Sarah, Rebekah and Rachel are only a few examples of women who play prominent roles in Scripture. Other women who are integral to the Bible are Eve, Miriam, Deborah and Ruth. We even find Wisdom personified as woman and the church being called the bride of Christ. God does not shy away from giving credit to women of faith and to using metaphors that require female imagery.

Religious Equality - Women were never excluded from the social and religious life in either the Old or New Testaments. Women participated in feasts and times of public worship. They were not required to be silent or to be hidden from sight behind veils. Jesus' group of disciples included several women, a practice almost unknown at the time. Over the past few days I have been reading Acts and I have seen time and again that women are given constant mention among the first converts and among those who played integral roles in the early church. One could almost argue that God goes out of His way to point to the importance of women in these situations.

Source. (emphasis mine)

Study: Hollywood doesn't show consequences

Well, gee. I never saw this coming. Who knew?!

The Australian researchers studied a September 2003 list of the 200 biggest box-offices successes of all time as ranked by the Internet Movie Database. They excluded animated features, films with G and PG ratings, and movies released or set before the start of the AIDS pandemic in 1983.

Of the 87 remaining movies in the study published Monday in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 28 contained sex scenes - a total of 53 scenes in all.

Only one film - 1990's "Pretty Woman," in which Julia Roberts plays a prostitute - contained a "suggestion of condom use, which was the only reference to any form of birth control."

"There were no depictions of important consequences of unprotected sex such as unwanted pregnancies, HIV or other STDs," they added.

The sexiest film - in quantity, if not quality - was 2001's "American Pie 2," which contained seven episodes of unprotected sex in which the "only consequences were social embarrassment."

...

Eight percent of the films contained depictions of marijuana use, and 7 percent other non-injected drugs, the researchers said.

Just over half the marijuana scenes - 52 percent - showed use of the drug in a positive way. In the other 48 percent of cases it was depicted as neutral.

Characters smoked tobacco in 68 percent of the films and got drunk in 32 percent.

Only a quarter of the movies were entirely free of behavior such as unprotected sex, drug use, smoking and drinking, the researchers said.

Source

Challies on Repentance

Because our society so hates the idea of repentance, many churches, out of a so-called "seeker-sensitivity," have stopped speaking about it, choosing instead to teach about sorrow and brokenness. Instead of portraying Jesus as the one who died to remove the stench of our sin from before God, Jesus is portrayed as one who died to meet our needs and to help us live a better life. Jesus died to give us purpose and to give us the power to change our minds. There need not be true, biblical repentance in this watered-down gospel. The true gospel, the gospel which has the power to transform lives, cannot be preached without repentance...

It is important to note that repentance is much more than simply feelings of sorrow or self-hatred. Though these may be part of our reactions to repenting, they are not enough. True repentance expresses itself in action and in a changed life. In Psalm 51 David pours out his heart to God in a beautiful prayer of repentance – one we would all do well to make our own. We see him acknowledging his sinfulness before God ("my sin is always before me. Again You, You only have I sinned"), asking God for forgiveness ("wash me and I shall be whiter than snow") and expressing a changed life ("deliver me from the guilt...and my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness...my mouth shall show forth Your praise."). More than simply feeling guilt or sorrow, David showed that he was willing to change. Just as faith without works is dead, so repentance without change is dead.

Source. (emphasis mine)

Sinners prayer?

There are a lot of churches and pastors today that like to tell everyone listening that God loves them and wants to be their friend and all they have to do is say they want to be friends with God in order to be a Christian. And, while that is true in part, God does love us, it does not convey the fact that in order to be a Christian you have to realize, and repent of your personal sins and accept Christ's sacrifice on the cross. I do not believe one can be a Christian without repentance, you have to admit you have sinned and accept that Christ bore that sin on the cross so that you can have a relationship with God.

Sadly, this fact is not emphasized in churches today. They tell you that God loves you, He wants to be your friend, He wants to "open the windows of heaven and pour blessing out," but, to these people, the mention of sin is not something they will do. They don't want to offend anyone by calling them sinners and telling them that without repenting and turning to Jesus they will go to hell. The modern church has incorporated the world's view of heaven and hell. "Nice" people go to heaven and "evil" people go to hell. Your next door neighbor who waters the lawn for you while you are on vacation will go to heaven and Hitler is obviously a case for hell.

But this isn't scriptural. Anyone who rejects Christ is hell bound. You can be a "good" person all you want, but without a true acceptance of Christ as your LORD and Savior, you're going to hell.

What is my point? Simply this: The modern church is not teaching repentance. Sin isn't mentioned, nor is hell. Everyone who walks through the doors of many churches will walk away feeling loved and accepted thinking they are best buddies with Christ simply because the pastor told them so. If you don't talk about sin, hell, repentance, and Christ's sacrifice how can you in good concience tell someone that God is their friend?

Why aren't prayers like this offered up at the end of the services on Sundays?

Psalm 51:1-19

1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.

4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.

5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

8 Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.

9 Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.

12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.

13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.

14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.

15 O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.

16 For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

18 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem.

19 Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.

Psalm 37: A Comparative Study - Part Two

Welcome to part two of our comparative study of Psalm 37, you can find the first part here.

Psalm 37:6-10

KJV
6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.

7 Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.

9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.

10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.

NIV
6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

7 Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when men succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.

8 Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
do not fret—it leads only to evil.

9 For evil men will be cut off,
but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

10 A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
though you look for them, they will not be found.


NLT
6
He will make your innocence as clear as the dawn,
and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.

7
Be still in the presence of the LORD,
and wait patiently for him to act.
Don't worry about evil people who prosper
or fret about their wicked schemes.

8
Stop your anger!
Turn from your rage!
Do not envy others--
it only leads to harm.

9
For the wicked will be destroyed,
but those who trust in the LORD will possess the land.

10
In a little while, the wicked will disappear.
Though you look for them, they will be gone.

The Message
6 He'll validate your life in the clear light of day

and stamp you with approval at high noon.



7 Quiet down before GOD,

be prayerful before him.

Don't bother with those who climb the ladder,

who elbow their way to the top.



8 Bridle your anger, trash your wrath,

cool your pipes--it only makes things worse.

9 Before long the crooks will be bankrupt;

GOD-investors will soon own the store.



10 Before you know it, the wicked will have had it;

you'll stare at his once famous place and--nothing!



In verse 7 we see that the KJV tells us to find rest in the Lord, where as the NLT and NIV tell us to be still. The Message tells us to “quiet down.” So, here is the question: what is the difference? The KJV clearly tells us to find rest in the Lord, this is reiterated through out the Bible many times. To find rest one finds peace, one finds comfort in rest. This is a beautiful concept. We can rest assured that when we are in the Lord’s will we don’t have to worry about how the evil prospers in the world. The NIV and NLT tell us to be still and to not worry, but they don’t tell us to find rest. There is no clear promise of peace here. What exactly is meant by the phrase “be still”? The Message, again, is very vague and does not convey that we are to find peace in the Lord.

Verses eight through ten in the NIV and NLT very closely mirror the KJV. Again, The Message takes a more passive stance on God’s directive for us. “[C]ool your pipes-it only makes things worse” is a far cry from the KJV’s “fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.”

Here we see that the Lord will bring all things to light and we can rest easy in the Lord’s will. He will judge us, will clear the righteous and the evil will be condemned. We are to find rest in the Lord, to be patient. When we do this our souls are at peace. We are not to worry about those who prosper according to the world’s standards (we are in the world but not of it John 15:19) or succeed because of wickedness. We are to “cease from anger” and not to do any evil. “For evil doers shall be cut off” and those of us who put our trust in the Lord and wait for His timing will inherit the earth (the meek shall inherit the earth Matthew 5:5). Spurgeon said, “[w]hen bad men reached greatness, the judgments of God frequently sweep them away; their riches melt, their powers decay, their happiness turns to wretchedness...he shall be utterly blotted out, perhaps cut off by his own debauchery, or brought to a deathbed of penury by his own extravagance.”

Matthew 26:41: Watch and Pray!

Matthew 26:41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

When I read this passage of Scripture there is part of me that imagines Christ, coming upon his slumbering followers, smiling sadly to Himself. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. I imagine all those moments where He showed them His power, where He healed countless people, where He calmed the seas and walked on water, flashing before His eyes. They had hearts to serve, but had not realized that without prayer the flesh will eventually overcome the spirit. Prayer gives us the strength to endure.

I look at my own life and see that this is true. I could list a ridicules number of times that I succumb to my flesh simply because I had chosen not to fall to my knees in prayer that day. And the more I neglected my prayer life the easier it was to give into the temptations set before me. And it kept on like that for the longest time, until finally I reached a point where my world was falling apart.

And seeing the hopelessness of the situation outside of Christ's will I dropped to my knees weeping. I begged for forgiveness, I repented of everything I could think of and renewed my commitment to follow His will.

I wish I could tell you I lived happily ever after faithfully following Him in prayer. I tried, I do try, but every now and again I stumble. And it is that stumbling that is a direct result from my lack of prayer and my shallowness in the Bible. Today, looking back I remember a moment where I truly wanted God's will, but I put confidence in my flesh thinking I could resist my temptations without prayer. I smile, quite sadly, to myself as the moment flashes through my mind as I read the passage again. Indeed, my spirit is willing, but without prayer I have no strength to resist the flesh. Without a base in God's word I have no rock to stand on as the waves of temptation come crashing in.

Jesus told the disciples to do two things to avoid temptation. He told them to watch, watch what? I think to watch Him. It is in the garden that we see Christ in such a human way. He is deeply burdened, it would be so easy to follow His flesh, to give into His temptations and not bear the cross for our sins. He told them to watch as He dropped to His knees in prayer and willfully chose to submit His walk to God's will. And He told them to pray. It is prayer that sustains us. It is in prayer that we become refreshed. It is prayer that gives us the strength not to give into the difficult moments.

Boy hits pregnant girlfriend with a baseball bat gets community service

MOUNT CLEMENS -- A teenage boy convicted of striking his girlfriend with a baseball bat to end her pregnancy has been sentenced to 200 hours of community service at a pro-life pregnancy center, drawing objections from his lawyer and his family.

Macomb Circuit Judge Matthew Switalski on Thursday sentenced the 17-year-old Richmond teen to two years probation and community service at Compassion Pregnancy Centers, which has two locations in Macomb County.

The youth -- who pleaded no contest in August to hitting his 16-year-old girlfriend in the stomach with her consent to cause a miscarriage -- hugged the girl in the hallway outside the courtroom after the sentencing.

Source. (emphasis mine)

Society is going down the tubes at an astonishing rate. I know these things are going to happen, but it grieves me. There are millions of lives being lost because of the selfishness of these would be parents. They can have all the sex they want, but Lord forbid they have to bring the result of that action into the world and give it a chance to live.

Unborn babies found 'for satanic rituals'

The bodies of three unborn children concealed in statues of Christian saints reportedly were found yesterday, with authorities believing they were intended for use in satanic rituals in the U.S.

The BBC and other wire services say the gruesome discovery was made at the international airport in Bogota, Colombia, as police were conducting routine searches for contraband.

Source.

You know the whole thing just sickens me. The fact that anyone would want to worship Satan, the fact that people are willing to make human sacrifices to anyone/anything, and most of all, the fact that in order for these three babies to be put in the statues at least one woman (and up to three women) chose to kill their children. If they hadn't these babies would never have ended up in the statues.

As a mother this horrifies me. As a Christian, I can't say I am surprised, people who are willing to devote their lives to Satan (or in their minds to a different god other than the one of the Bible) are capable of anything.

Who is your daddy, Mr. Warren?

Find out here.