New Link...

I have added a new link to my favorites. It is Way of the Master, a website by Kirk Cameron. Kirk shows an effective way to share Jesus with people. Check it out, you will be as amazed as I was.

Continual Doubt versus Childlike Faith

There is an alarming amount of doubt coming from the churches in America today. Leading the charge is this emergent philosophy. Some of the folks live in a state of continual doubt.

I recently read a quote by Clement of Alexandria. Clement was a Christian teacher of around 190 AD. He eventually settled in Alexandria Egypt, hence the title Clement of Alexandria.

One of the Characteristics of the early Christian was to have a childlike faith. They never felt as if they had to understand everything in the bible to believe. They simply trusted God with childlike faith. Clement asked, "Who then is so irreverent as to disbelieve God, and to demand explanations from God as from men?"

I have searched for words but Clement said it best.

9/11

So many memories flood my mind of that day. The drive to work, the meetings with staff and management, the uncertainty of everyone around me. It's impact was felt all the way to Arizona. The threat was real and it is still real today.

My heart still aches for the families of those innocent ones who lost their lives that day. I pray that God would comfort them.

I pray that God would stop the madness that rages inside the minds of those terrorists. But I know this struggle between Arabs and others is talked about in the bible and it will not go away until Jesus returns.

So for now, my prayers are for God to protect all the innocent people around the world. I pray they will be protected from the madness of these terrorists.

And shall we never forget 9-11-01!

Spiritual Castaways

As I look at the church today, I see more and more churches moving away from messages based simply on the bible. It seems rare to hear a message based on a section or chapter of scripture. Instead, messages are about how to be a better person, or finding your purpose (even if that purpose isn't pleasing to God), or in some cases messages are nothing but attacks on fundamental Christianity.

If you look around the Christian landscape, you will notice many Christians are, what I would call, Spiritual Castaways. Just get a mental image of a person on a deserted island. They have been walking around for years, starving. The only thing they have to feat on is milk. They are craving a roast dinner, a chicken dinner, a t-bone steak, just give them meat.

Many Christians today know all about the recurring themes from the seeker sensitive pulpit. They are masters in fluff, gimmicks, purpose, and all the other hundred mile wide and an inch deep messages.

They are craving the Word of God. They want to know about the Holy Spirit, and what gifts He has given them. They want to know about the end times and see how the current events appear to be fulfilling prophesy. They want to understand who God is and how He expects them to live.

God has given me a passion for these spiritual castaways. I have a cruise ship with freezers packed with meat and I am on the way to that deserted island.

Right from Wrong

What has happened to the days of right and wrong? It seems most parents today are deciding to raise their kids to determine their own rights and wrongs. Sadly, this is prevalent in the church today. Are moral absolutes a thing of the past? Are they uncool? Is it the newest fad to be a Christian who embraces your sins?

Didn’t Jesus teach us to change our behavior? "…Go now, and leave your life of sin", Jesus said in John 8:11. So isn’t Jesus saying there is a right and a wrong way to live?

Please don’t misunderstand. I am not in favor of legalism. You know, no jeans at church, no dancing and the like. But if God say’s "no" in His Word, the answer my friend is "no". And let me say, following the rights and wrongs in the bible makes life much easier. You won’t be free from difficult times, but the difficult times you do have will be drastically reduced.

So dust off your bible and read of the many examples of rights and wrongs. It is my prayer that you can learn from the mistakes of those in the bible so you can avoid making the same mistakes in your life. If you have kids, don’t be afraid to teach them right from wrong and use examples from your life. It may seem as thought your kids are not listening, but they are.

Do you carry a "Jefferson Bible"?

I was recently reading some information about the "Jefferson Bible", Thomas Jefferson that is. As you may know, the "Jefferson Bible" is a book where Thomas Jefferson took the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) and arranged them in chronological order. However, he also omitted sections that his mind couldn’t comprehend. For example, the virgin birth.

As I read this, I couldn’t help but think of a parallel to a movement today. A group of younger "believers" who have identified themselves as "postmodern" believers to some degree hold this viewpoint. They too, have personalized Jefferson Bibles, don’t they? I was talking to someone the other day about these postmoderns and I described them this way. They have decided it is okay to make their "Jesus" into what they what him to be. You know, "my "Jesus" is okay with my getting drunk every weekend, and I know your "Jesus" is okay with your homosexuality, so lets not judge eachothers "Jesus".

Whenever I hear this, I can’t help but think of Hebrews 13:8, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday today and forever". Praise God for that.

Please Pray for Cooper

I, as most people, have a soft spot in my heart for children. Within the last couple days, a co-worker of mine received the bad news that his nine year old son has Leukemia. His sons name is Cooper. He is currently in the hospital for tests and treatments.

Please take a minute to pray that God will heal Cooper of his leukemia.