Where you give for Haiti is as important as THAT you give

In the next little while you are going to see sad pictures of sick and dying folks in Haiti. It's going to rip you apart. You will have an impulse to reach for your checkbook. To do SOMETHING. I understand.

BUT, if you give to an organization that just does something, or has good commercials, or has spokesmen like Bill Clinton, you might be expanding the secular system over the Christian Kingdom of GOD.

NOW is the time for all Christians to give carefully and thoughtfully to organizations dedicated not only to feeding, clothing, housing and tending to medical needs but to focus on the infinite healing of the Spirit. It's OK to give to organizations outside of the Kingdom of God like the RED CROSS or some UN organization as long as you understand that they are not changing the world.

Many well meaning people have squandered their substance in money by giving to groups who do good work but not God's work. It's like a man with a large land holding. He has wealth. Much wealth. A crisis takes place in an adjacent town. Fire. Devastation. He could go there and help the people by bringing food and shelter in the burned over ruins or, better, he could bring the wounded people into his house, onto his property. Provide for them. Equip them and at some point when they are healed up, send them out in HIS name to help others and live their lives in connection with the Landsman.

That's a picture of kingdom building.

We have to begin to take this opportunity to do with it what we Didn't do during Katrina, what we didn't do during the Tsunami, what we didn't do during the China earthquakes. We must go to the people, do all in the mighty name of Jesus. Not to build churches or dependency. We must be bold to show them the Love of Christ.

SO, as we give, as we dig deep and we will choose carefully organizations that reflect your spiritual values. Give to organizations that will build the Kingdom of God on this earth. We don't get many chances to be so bold in the face of disaster. God is calling us by this.....WILL WE ANSWER....MORE IMPORTANT. HOW?

Lee Grady on the Passing of Oral Roberts. I agree with his take on this

Fresh Faith for 2010

By J. Lee Grady

When Pentecostal healing evangelist Oral Roberts died a few weeks ago I was shocked that some Christians pounced on his legacy so quickly. They didn't even wait a few days for friends and family members to mourn. While Billy Graham—a true Christian gentleman—was offering kind remarks about Roberts, the heresy hunters were denouncing him as a charlatan.

Besides being incredibly rude, these harsh judgments were unfair. Although I am sure Roberts made plenty of mistakes in his six decades of ministry, I'm grateful that he dared to believe God for the impossible. He pioneered the use of television to reach millions for Christ in the 1960s. He built a successful Christian university. And, in spite of the naysayers, he challenged a doubting church to believe in divine healing.

Roberts was not a sophisticated guy. Men of faith rarely are. He was born in poverty, and his early years in ministry were not glamorous. One Pentecostal Holiness preacher who was alive in the 1930s says he remembers when Oral and Evelyn Roberts moved from Georgia to Oklahoma. They tied everything they owned to the back of a car and modeled the kind of pioneering faith that requires sacrifice and humility. (my note: Pentecostal Holiness is the fellowship I am credentialed with to this day).

I found it intriguing that Roberts died just as we were about to enter a new decade. His death on Dec. 15 seemed to represent the passing of an era. The pioneers of the modern charismatic movement are leaving us. And it causes me to wonder, with some concern, whether we are armed with the kind of faith needed to carry on.

I never identified myself as part of the faith movement, although I listened to my share of messages by Kenneth Hagin Sr. and Norvel Hayes when I was in my 20s. I was turned off when some faith teachers began to focus so much on financial prosperity that they became materialistic and manipulative when taking offerings. I didn't buy the so-called "name it and claim it" philosophy because I don't believe I should reduce my relationship with God to a formula.

I was also grieved when proponents of the faith message started suggesting that we can't admit when we're sick or when we're having a bad day. That is not faith; that's denial.

What I want in my life, and what I am sure you crave as well, is genuine faith. Paul told Timothy: "The goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith" (1 Tim. 1:5, NASB). That word "sincere" is translated "unfeigned" in the King James Version. It means real, pure and undisguised. It's not pretend. And it's not mixed with carnality.

Some of what we called faith in the past was mixed with greed and selfishness. One prosperity preacher encourages his followers to wear a T-shirt that reads: "I WANT MY STUFF." That immature attitude is a poor excuse for biblical faith. Real faith, the genuine variety, is focused on the kingdom of God, not ourselves. It grows steadily inside us as we hear the promises of God's Word and then build our lives on spiritual reality.

I started studying the life of Abraham when 2010 began. I've been reading and rereading passages in Genesis, Romans, Hebrews and Galatians that describe the journey of the man we call "the father" of our faith. Abraham proved to us that if we want to please God we must believe Him—and we must patiently trust His timetable instead of insisting on ours.

As you enter 2010, I encourage you to write down every promise God has given you from Scripture. You may be praying for a better job, an open door for ministry or a spiritual turnaround in your church. Or you may be asking God to restore a broken relationship or bring a prodigal child back to Him. Or maybe you are one of the thousands of Christians who are praying and fasting this month for a spiritual awakening in our nation. That will require faith!

Whatever challenge you face, grab hold of God's specific word to you. Read it, meditate on it and declare it. And when the ravenous birds of doubt come to steal the promise, stand your ground and shoo them away. Remember that with God nothing is impossible.

Oral Roberts used to tell his listeners: "Expect a miracle." I believe that is sound advice for us today. Let a holy expectation arise in your heart. God will supply you with fresh faith to face every challenge in this new year.

J. Lee Grady is editor of Charisma. You can find him on Twitter at leegrady. Click here to see Charisma's scrapbook of Oral Roberts.

It's things like this that will soon seperate the real from the fake christians. Will YOU stand in the time of Persecution and eventual Martyrdom?

A nonprofit organization devoted to advancing religious liberty for Christians has scoured the news, sought the opinion of its e-mail subscribers and selected a list of "the top 10 incidents of anti-Christian defamation, bigotry and discrimination in the U.S. from last year."

"It is arguable that anti-Christian hatred has spilled over into material forms of persecution in 2009," said Gary Cass of the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission. "Christians were killed and bullied for their witness, ministers and churches threatened with violence and vandalized for standing for marriage and Christians were fired for not compromising their faith. If these are not bona fide examples of persecution, than I wonder what more it might take?


Here, then, is the list, as reported by the CADC:

1. "The Federal Hate Crimes Bill that attacks religious liberty and freedom of speech

2. "President Obama's appointment of radical anti-Christians like homosexual activist Kevin Jennings as the 'safe school czar'; pro-abortion advocate Kathleen Seblius made secretary of Human and Health Services; and Chai Feldblum, pro-homosexual and anti-religious liberty judge nominated for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission."

3. "The Federal Department of Homeland Security issued a report entitled 'Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate' that labeled conservative Christians extremists and potential terrorists."

4. "An activist judge ordered a homeschool mom in New Hampshire to stop homeschooling her daughter because the little girl 'reflected too strongly' her mother's Christian faith."

5. "Pro-life activist Jim Pullion was murdered in front of his granddaughter's high school for showing the truth about abortion."

6. "Police called to East Jessamine Middle School in Lexington, Ky., to stop 8th graders from praying during their lunch break for a student whose mother was tragically killed."

7. "The overt homosexual participation in Obama's presidential inaugural events by 'Bishop' Vickie Eugene Robinson, the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C., and a homosexual marching band."

8. "HBO's program 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' aired an episode where the main actor urinates on painting of Jesus. When confronted HBO would not apologize."

9. "Rev. Fred Winters was murdered while preaching in his pulpit in Maryville, Ill."

10. "Pro-life Pastor Reverend Walter Hoye of Oakland, Calif., was jailed for exercising peaceful, pro-life speech."

The Enemy among us

If you are a leader you will have conflict sooner or later. How you manage conflict will determine how good of a leader you will be. Jesus handled conflict in many different ways. Sometimes he confronted the issue head-on, other times He ignored the accusation and went on His way. Sometimes He chose to wash the feet of those who attacked Him.

Dr. Martin Luther King, father of the United States civil rights movement modeled conflict management in the following way:

"On Christmas Day, 1957, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a sermon at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. It was based on this passage and the sermon title was, 'Loving Your Enemy.' Through the course of his sermon, Dr. King suggested three ways by which we can do just that.

First, we must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. Such forgiveness doesn't mean that we ignore the wrong committed against us. Rather it means that we will no longer allow the wrong to be a barrier to the relationship. Forgiveness, according to King, 'is a catalyst creating the atmosphere necessary for a fresh start and a new beginning.'

Second, we must recognize that the wrong we've suffered doesn't entirely represent the other person's identity. We need to acknowledge that our opponent, like each one of us, possesses both bad and good qualities. We must choose to find the good and focus on it.

Third, we must not seek to defeat or humiliate our opponent, but to win his or her friendship and understanding. Such an attitude flows not from ourselves, but from God as his unconditional love works through us.

As followers of Christ who seek to lead as He led, we must remember that the more freely we forgive, the more clearly we reveal the nature of our Heavenly Father."*

Today, be proactive about forgiving those who have been the source of pain in your life.

Too Funny not to repost

Oy to the World

Schlepping through a Winter Wonderland

Bubbe Got Run Over By a Reindeer

Enough with the Jingle Bells!

Come On Baby, Light My Menorah

Deck the Halls, and Clean Up This Schmutz

I Saw Mommy Kissing Some Fat Goy with a Beard

Over the River and Through the Woods… “Harold, the Road’s Over There!”

All I Want For Christmas Is for My Son to Call Me Once in a While

I’ll Be Home for Christmas…. Don’t Worry About Me… I’ll Sit The Dark

Silent Night? I Should Be So Lucky

Hat Tip to Barry Kolb

Being an Overcomer

TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
12-16-2009

"How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?" (Ps 13:1-2).

Have you ever heard someone jokingly say, "It's not easy being me?" This expression is poking fun at their unique personality or challenges they face in life. Well, it wasn't easy being King David.

His life was a life of extreme highs and extreme lows. He was a shepherd, a political leader, a builder, a prophet, a businessman, a warrior, a lover, a giver, a murderer and a worshiper. He must have been criticized by others as being hypocritical in his early career. In each of these roles he achieved things for God but he also failed God on many occasions. He had a creative-type personality, which is often very passionate with many mood swings. We see this side of him when he unabashedly danced before the Lord in front of his subjects almost naked (2 Sam 6:14).

When David wrote his psalms he was honest about what he was feeling. When he feared his enemies he expressed it. When he could not understand why God was silent, he expressed it as in the psalm above.

However, David never stayed in the place of despair. He often ended his psalms like this one. "But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me" (Ps 13:5-6).

David chooses to focus on what God has done for him, not what He has not done. If you are waiting for a breakthrough with God, be honest with Him about your hopes and dreams. However, also affirm your faith and trust in Him to accomplish His purposes through your life. Be an overcomer.

Second Graders in Indiana taught songs calling Allah God and never mention Jesus in a "holiday" program

First reported by American Family radio and Fox News. Thank God for Watchmen on the Walls.

In Indiana a "christmas" program was presented that the children sang no actual songs about Jesus. His name was never mentioned.

BUT

GUESS WHO'S NAME WAS? ALLAH. These are impressionable Second Graders. This is not a mistake or political correctness gone amock, this is EVIL. Let's call it what it really is.

From this report (read the whole thing)

Here’s what the children were assigned to sing:

“Allah is God, we recall at dawn,
Praying ‘til night during Ramadan
At this joyful time we pray happiness for you,
Allah be with you all your life through.”

But when it came time to perform the “Christian” part of Christmas, children were assigned to say:

“I didn’t know there was a little boy at the manger. What child is this?
I’m not sure if there was a little boy or not.
Then why did you paint one on your nativity window?
I just thought if there was a little boy, I’d like to know exactly what he (sic) say.

Micah Clark, executive director of the Indiana AFA, launched an Internet protest once he heard about the allegations. “What surprised me here is that we’ve had a secular scrubbing of Christmas for so long and the school apparently didn’t see the problem with kids singing to Allah,” he told FOX News Radio. “You won’t even mention Jesus and you’re going to force my child to sing about Allah?

We have much work to do. This is a full on pagan society.

Feathered Evangilists

We put up our bird feeders outside. We didn't have any "Customers" the first day. The second a few. Then, today, many.

I have a feeling that birds are good Evangelists. Or they are so happy to have something to eat that they tweet thanksgiving loudly and other birds hear and come.

Of course there's that squirrel who keeps chasing them off....He wants it for himself.

I think there's a message in there somewhere.

Anemic Faith

TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
12-10-2009

"For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith" (Heb 4:2-3).

I run into anemic Christians everyday. They have a form of religion but fail to mix their belief with faith and obedience. The apostle Paul described them when he said "these people have a form of godliness but deny its power."

What are the telltale signs of anemic faith? When you no longer pray about decisions, you have anemic faith. When you fail to speak to others about their relationship with God, you have anemic faith. When you're unwilling to spend time with God everyday, your faith has become anemic. You no longer have a living faith.

God spoke to John, the apostle, through a vision and told him about some Christians who were part of the church in Laodicea:

"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see" (Rev 3:14-18).

These are strong words from our Lord. We are all susceptible to growing cold and anemic in our faith. Today, ask God to revive your heart and to restore the fire of your faith so that you will experience a vibrant and active faith that impacts the kingdom of darkness.

If you choose to get away and hear from God... A HOW TO

Don't eat....drink water. Fast..but try not to eat. It distracts. Yes fasting is hard, but you are trying to hear the voice of God. Fasting disciplines your flesh and opens the connection from heaven.

Don't take books with you. Maybe not even your Bible. I know that's heresy, but you have the word IN you. Let Father bring it to life as you hear from him.

DO take a blank journal.... and something with which to write. If you have questions to inquire of the Lord, write them down. He may or may not answer them. When he does it will be wonderful. Don't push it. It's not about you. You listen. He'll speak. When he says what he will say, write it down.

Some of what you scribble in your notebook will seem to be babble. It will seem to be just so much noise. But as you write, as you transcribe, the Lord WILL speak. You will quickly discern what is from Him and what is NOT. It will be clear.

Don't be impatient. Most of these deals for me take a couple days just to make the connection. After that it's pretty fluid. Most of what you hear will be at the end of your time.

Be merciless at eschewing ALL communications, all connection, all news, all anything with the outside world. You must not be distracted.

This is good discipline in hearing from God. The more you do this, the easier it gets. You will discover the "zone". Then when you need a word you can get there quickly.

This is about you hearing him, so don't feel obligated to talk.... Oh, it's good to voice your prayers and concerns, but absolute silence is essential. His voice is still and small. Yet in the Spirit it trumpets.

Try to just wait. Don't be impatient. And if you get upset by the silence, just rest in him. Even if you sleep. The time when you are just waking up, that twilight of the mind when nothing else is going on many times is when He comes to you. Many dreams and visions were recieved in sleep. Samuel was called in his sleep.

Learn from God's Creation

TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
12-05-2009

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse" (Rom 1:19-20).

Have you ever had someone say, "I don't see any evidence of God. How can a person believe in someone you can't see or see any evidence even exists?"

The Bible tells us that God is revealed in His creation everyday. Look at the human body and consider the likelihood of how thousands of body parts that must work together. Someone created it to work this well. If it were a manufactured product, it would be in the repair shop all the time because of all the moving parts required to make it work.

Consider the wonderful order and balance of nature and how the seas know their boundaries, the beauty of the mountains, and the balance of rain and oxygen needed to balance the ecosystems. Consider God's signature, the rainbow.

The 12th century Scottish Christian mystic, Richard of St. Victor said, "The whole of this sensible world is like a book written by the finger of God." Look at nature and wonder at the creative design of the hundreds of thousands of species of animals like the tiger, the elephant, the great whales, and the millions of species of birds, just to name a few.

Consider the planet we live on. "The Earth is a rough sphere about eight thousand miles in diameter, which means that it's about four thousand miles straight down to the center. We're accustomed to thinking of it as a ball of rock, but that's not so: the great majority of the Earth is liquid - molten rock called magma swirling, incredible slowly, beneath our feet. The solid part of the earth that we live on, and in whose hollows the sea sits, is called the crust, and on average it's only a few miles thick - maybe ten miles. That's like a layer a third of a millimeter thick coating a football. We live on that incredibly fragile, thin layer of plates floating on the subterranean sea of magma."*

Yes, God has revealed Himself in His creation.

Faith is the new order - by Reinhard Bonnke

FAITH is the most basic distinction between one person and another. The entire world stands on one side or the other of the line of faith. There are only two different types of people – not rich and poor, not black and white, not learned and unlearned, not Jew and Greek, not male and female. None of these distinctions really exists in Christ. God sees only believer and unbeliever. “He who believes … will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16).

Faith is the new order. Unbelief is the old and dying order. Faith is the dividing line which runs right through mankind. Having faith, or having no faith, are the only alternatives for our approach to life.

Fear sees just what man sees. Faith sees what God sees, and acts upon it. Faith creates action, and people of action, like Caleb and Joshua. Unbelief keeps us tied down in a spiritual wilderness – as Israel was for so many years. Fear and doubt magnify the difficulties, making us think people cannot be won for Christ and that the world is too strong. Without faith, we fear failure and mockery. With faith, people can be won, and so the joy of expectation grips us instead. By faith, we move into God's fullness.

Three Deceptions Than Can Derail You From Your Destiny

Philippians 3:17 -- "Brethern, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us."

Paul faced a major problem in the first century. False teachers had slipped into the Church. The apostle warned the Philippians, and us by extension, to recognize the differences between a true man of God and a deceptive teacher or prophet. Without any sense of false humility, Paul declared that both his vision and his spiritual attitude were examples for us to follow. He instructs us in our powers of discernment to look for and observe leaders who exemplify, teach, and equip the church laity in the things Jesus demonstrated in His Own life, ministry, and outreach which include:

1. Embracing the love of God as it flows through us into others.

2. Posessing a passion and vision to carry the gospel of the kingdom to non-believers.

3. Posessing a passion to disciple believers in the church so they can be effective in discipling others.

Philippians 3:2 -- "Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision."
The first group Paul identified as "the dogs." In Paul's day one could find dozens of canines eating off the rubbish heaps outside cities, their faces bent downward as they sniffed and rooted out garbage to feed upon.

Today's Church has similar people, fault-finders, who incessantly and self righteously feed upon the garbage and failures of the human condition. Paul is saying "Beware of those who always have something negative to say and are continually judging or slandering others and the ministry of others."

Luke 18:9 -- "trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt."

Beware when your teacher must frequently tear down others to lift himself up.

Paul next warned against the "evil workers."
These individuals proclaim Christ, but they do so from envy...strife....selfish ambition rather than from love. For them, building a church is a competitive endeavor, a business. James also underscores this problem, saying. "For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing." (James 3:16)

The third warning was aimed against the "false circumcision" (Philippians 3:2). The essence of this error was that Christ's atonement was not enough for salvation; you also had to keep the whole system of Mosaic Laws to be saved. Today people continue to import religious obligations into the salvation experience. Paul separates himself from the Mosaic Law, revealing that his quest is to "be found in Christ, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ" (Philippians 3:9). Being "in Christ" our destiny is not just to carry Christ inside of us but to reveal the fullness of His glory to the whole world.

One of Paul's efforts as an apostle was to build a Gospel of the Kingdom consciousness into the new church believers thereby promoting unity.

2 Corinthians 4:6,7 -- "For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpasing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves."

We carry a treasure in these earthen vessels. We are responsible for filling the earth, cities, regions and nations with the kingdom of God. Jesus is waiting for us to co-labor with Him to fill the earth with the knowledge of the glory of God.

How to "Make It" in the Ministry - A prophetic word and Joni Mitchell

Facebook has been an eyeopener for me. Wow. Such ambitions. Such intensity. Such a desire to make it. It's ungodly.

I know a woman from a local church who tries so hard. She is involved in everything ever time the doors are open. She is almost possessive about what she does. To the point of failure.

She is so overwhelming no one else has a chance to do anything if she is involved.

She is a classic case of trying to hard.

It seems like this is an epidemic in ministry today. Trying too hard. Self promotion. Overbearing.

I have deleted some ministries who just became too much. One man in particular who couldn't make a post or an update to status without begging for money. To distraction. I could finally take it no more. Delete.

Then there are the jack of all trades master of none ministries. Only Jesus was gifted in everything all the time. You weren't and neither am I.

Be what you are and let God open the doors. I will speak prophetically for a moment....

Father says, I am not impressed with your efforts, your fasts, your sacrifices, your ministries. I am most impresed when you are focused on ME and respond to what I have placed in your heart.

If you are a biblical scholar you will see that those thoughts come from the Prophet Isaiah

They are also reflected in a song Joni Mitchell sang:

After the rush when you come back down
You're always disappointed
Nothing seems to keep you high
Drive your bargains
Push your papers
Win your medals
mess your strangers
Don't it leave you on the empty side?

All this talk about holiness now
It must be the start of the latest style
Is it all books and words
Or do you really feel it?
Do you really laugh?
Do you really care?
Do you really smile
When you smile?

You criticize and you flatter
You imitate the best
And the rest you memorize
You know the times you impress me most
Are the times when you don't try
When you don't even try

I know offensive word in this song. I know, I know. I edited it a bit. BUT, Joni Mitchell described much of what is going on in many ministries and churches today. I believe in a way if we have ears to hear we will hear it. It's like Father is saying to you:

You know the times you impress me most
Are the times when you don't try
When you don't even try

The best advice I ever received in ministry long long long ago from a Black Pastor were these. They have served me well. I pass them on.

Do less BETTER. Find what God has most anointed you to do. ONE THING. Do that. Local Church. Local area. Connect with ministers and leaders. Be part of what THEY are doing. Stop trying so hard. Let God do his thing. Be steady. Help other people. Don't quit or be discouraged and ONE DAY will find yourself in places and situations you could not have imagined. Embrace whatever God gave you to do and pursue that with diligence. He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek HIM and HIS anointing. Anything pursued in the flesh will fail in the end.

Last, I would say, don't try to find your identity in your church, your ministry or your efforts. It's not about you.

Find out who you are in HIM. Be that. Go where that calls you. He will make room for your gift. It's not about you.

Why Thanksgiving can be hard for a Minister of the Gospel

A Prophet without Honor
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
11-30-2009

"Where did this man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands? Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house" (Mark 6.3, 4).

Have you ever noticed how difficult it can be to spiritually impact your immediate circle of relationships and family? Jesus warned us of this phenomenon. We often relate to family and friends differently because they have a history with us that no one else has. They most likely have not had the privilege to witness the spiritual transformation that you have experienced and is evidenced by others in your life.

The spiritual authority that others may recognize in you is not there with your own family and friends. "After all, you're just my sister or brother, with whom I fought, played, and lived everyday life," is what is thought. Jesus was more qualified to be a carpenter than the Son of God in his own family and community's eyes. It was too difficult to change old perceptions of someone they knew so well. So too, is it for your family members.

The sad result of this mindset is that we often do not experience the same fruit of ministry in our family's lives that we do outside this circle. It is an unfortunate truth. "Jesus still healed a few sick people," meaning there is still a remnant of faith that can receive from you and I. Ultimately, God determines the fruit of our lives. Do not allow spiritual pride to prevent you from freely giving to your family and friends when they do not receive you in the way you think they should. You don't know which "few" God will choose to touch through your life.

Many did not receive Jesus. Therefore, many will not receive you. Nevertheless, allow God to touch the few in your circle He chooses to touch through you.

Ken Klaus on Islam and Faith

One of my routines in life is to wake up at 6AM Sunday Mornings and listen to Ken Klaus. He's a good speaker and based on this video a pretty good news analyst.

I commend it to you.

How did the Prodigal's Father pray for his son while he was away

I have been in a "conversation" with a Pastor online about what we should pray for in Praying for people's salvation.

The Prodigal's salvation is always a part of that conversation. Most of us come to Jesus in the storm.

We seldom come to Jesus when we have plenty of money, good health, a great marriage, good kids, a great job, sound relationships and everything.

We come broken. Sweetly broken, but broken. In a storm. In change. In trouble. People no longer believe in HELL so preaching and praying to keep them out of a hell they don't accept is of little avail.

Not the emotional. Truly repentant. Sorrow for past deeds, attitudes and behaviors.

So, when the father in the parable prayed, as I'm sure he did, what did he pray?

Protect my boy from harm, keep him safe warm well fed, get him a good job, marry a rich woman and give him a great life out there in the world among the friends he has chosen.

OR,

Lord, bring that boy home. Help him to learn all the hard lessons. Help him to come quickly to the end of himself. Put him in a place quickly where he will see the futility of Life without repentance.

I suspect the latter.

Yet we pray the former.

If you have a wayward, a prodigal, a friend, a son, someone. What would be, what should be the right thing to pray?

More important, if you encounter a prodigal along the way, running from God, running from repentance. What should you do. Give him or her three squares, a warm bed, a hot shower and money you might need.

If God brought him or her to this place and you do, perhaps you are by your actions delaying the very process to bring them back to HIM. Not all compassion is compassionate.

Long ago I was rebuked by a Prophet for my unfettered compassion. I had a great deal of money and helped anyone down on their luck. He didn't know me, but he told me in no uncertain terms that God was upset with the roadblocks to repentance I kept putting up by my unwise charity.

I learned from that. I do not often support every homeless and prison ministry. Many of Those are people who have not yet eaten enough pea pods with the swine to turn around.

RE-PENT...As it were..turning around.

----God would not that ANY perish but that ALL people come to repentance..2 peter 3:9

Just get out of the way and stop the enabling.

The Not so Secret Plan to Force you to Take the Mark of the Beast?

VeriChip TV Ad Confirms Critics' Fears: They Want Everyone Implanted

By Jim Edwards | Oct 20, 2009

VeriChip’s TV ad for its Health Link implantable microchip that connects to your online medical records has spawned a backlash on YouTube. Observers regard it as either part of President Obama’s secret Nazi plan to enslave us all or a sign of the coming antichrist.

Sometimes Satan comes as a man of Peace...... Bob Dylan

The REAL enemy

Lets remember who our greatest enemy is.

It was NOT Muslims that fought for abortion, spent our future taxes, weakened our military, took our freedom of health care, polluted our cities, degraded our education, elected those who do not listen, wants to try terrorist as criminals, stopped oil drilling and so much more.

These things happened from people who CLAIM to be Christians.

Not all enemies are created equal.

Advice for when the really hard times come

If and when it comes, people will get by. There will be a lot of blood spilt, and in the end, we go back to a simpler way of life by choice and by necessity. Who cares if you have to do with less? nobody was born with entitlement. Feel for the rich, for in truth, they really are, (most of them) the poorest of the poor. Take care of your family, love your neighbor and share what you have.

There is a God, and he is good. He does not judge, but rather, as we as a people have turned our backs on him, he has lifted his protection, so what comes upon us, is by our own free will.

Way too many people without hope or faith, and if that's how you choose to live, well, great for you. Be miserable, be anxious. I prefer to walk in faith, try to live right, and treat everyone as best I can, regardless of how they will treat me.

The desire for money is the real root of evil, and pride... oh well, I'm off my soapbox. Bless you all.

Life is Hard, Play Short