Why I read mysteries

Ran across this great blog post. The lady who wrote it captured my thoughts and feelings why I read Christian suspense/mysteries in a better way than I could put into words: Why I Read Mysteries.

Profanity In Christian Fiction

No, I'm not on one of my favorite soapboxes, just passing on the link to someone who is talking about it:
http://hartlineliteraryagency.blogspot.com/2010/07/profanity-in-print-by-terry-burns.html

Rediscovering a Hurting Church

A guy whose blog I follow did a great post that goes along great with some I have done in the last few months - Rediscovering a Hurting Church. Check it out.

Ann Coulter on Christianity

Ann Coulter writes a weekly column on her website, and I just love what she has to say. This week's was different - it was about Christianity, and I thought it was an excellent column, so I am passing it on:

Someone mentioned Christianity on television recently and liberals reacted with their usual howls of rage and blinking incomprehension.

On a Fox News panel discussing Tiger Woods, Brit Hume said, perfectly accurately:

"The extent to which he can recover, it seems to me, depends on his faith. He is said to be a Buddhist. I don't think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. So, my message to Tiger would be, 'Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world."

Hume's words, being 100 percent factually correct, sent liberals into a tizzy of sputtering rage, once again illustrating liberals' copious ignorance of Christianity. (Also illustrating the words of the Bible: "How is it you do not understand me when I speak? It is because you cannot bear to listen to my words." John 8:43.)

In The Washington Post, Tom Shales demanded that Hume apologize, saying he had "dissed about half a billion Buddhists on the planet."

Is Buddhism about forgiveness? Because, if so, Buddhists had better start demanding corrections from every book, magazine article and blog posting ever written on the subject, which claims Buddhists don't believe in God, but try to become their own gods.

I can't imagine that anyone thinks Tiger's problem was that he didn't sufficiently think of himself as a god, especially after that final putt in the Arnold Palmer Invitational last year.

In light of Shales' warning Hume about "what people are saying" about him, I hope Hume's a Christian, but that's not apparent from his inarguable description of Christianity. Of course, given the reaction to his remarks, apparently one has to be a regular New Testament scholar to have so much as a passing familiarity with the basic concept of Christianity.

On MSNBC, David Shuster invoked the "separation of church and television" (a phrase that also doesn't appear in the Constitution), bitterly complaining that Hume had brought up Christianity "out-of-the-blue" on "a political talk show."

Why on earth would Hume mention religion while discussing a public figure who had fallen from grace and was in need of redemption and forgiveness? Boy, talk about coming out of left field!

What religion -- what topic -- induces this sort of babbling idiocy? (If liberals really want to keep people from hearing about God, they should give Him his own show on MSNBC.)

Most perplexing was columnist Dan Savage's indignant accusation that Hume was claiming that Christianity "offers the best deal -- it gives you the get-out-of-adultery-free card that other religions just can't."

In fact, that's exactly what Christianity does. It's the best deal in the universe. (I know it seems strange that a self-described atheist and "radical sex advice columnist faggot" like Savage would miss the central point of Christianity, but there it is.)

God sent his only son to get the crap beaten out of him, die for our sins and rise from the dead. If you believe that, you're in. Your sins are washed away from you -- sins even worse than adultery! -- because of the cross.

"He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross." Colossians 2:14.

Surely you remember the cross, liberals -- the symbol banned by ACLU lawsuits from public property throughout the land?

Christianity is simultaneously the easiest religion in the world and the hardest religion in the world.

In the no-frills, economy-class version, you don't need a church, a teacher, candles, incense, special food or clothing; you don't need to pass a test or prove yourself in any way. All you'll need is a Bible (in order to grasp the amazing deal you're getting) and probably a water baptism, though even that's disputed.

You can be washing the dishes or walking your dog or just sitting there minding your business hating Susan Sarandon and accept that God sent his only son to die for your sins and rise from the dead ... and you're in!

"Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9.

If you do that, every rotten, sinful thing you've ever done is gone from you. You're every bit as much a Christian as the pope or Billy Graham.

No fine print, no "your mileage may vary," no blackout dates. God ought to do a TV spot: "I'm God Almighty, and if you can find a better deal than the one I'm offering, take it."

The Gospel makes this point approximately 1,000 times. Here are a few examples at random:

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God." Ephesians 2:8.

"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23.

In a boiling rage, liberals constantly accuse Christians of being "judgmental." No, we're relieved.

Christianity is also the hardest religion in the world because, if you believe Christ died for your sins and rose from the dead, you have no choice but to give your life entirely over to Him. No more sexual promiscuity, no lying, no cheating, no stealing, no killing inconvenient old people or unborn babies -- no doing what all the other kids do.

And no more caring what the world thinks of you -- because, as Jesus warned in a prophecy constantly fulfilled by liberals: The world will hate you.

With Christianity, your sins are forgiven, the slate is wiped clean and your eternal life is guaranteed through nothing you did yourself, even though you don't deserve it. It's the best deal in the universe.

COPYRIGHT 2009 ANN COULTER
DISTRIBUTED BY UNIVERSAL UCLICK
1130 Walnut, Kansas City, MO 64106

Christmas All Year Long

I ran across this in a Christmas book I am reading, and looked for it on line to see if I could find it to share here. I did:

Christmas All Year Long
by Charles R. Swindoll

Read Matthew 1-2

Have you ever thought about giving something away every day of the year leading up to Christmas? These daily gifts could be called our "Christmas projects," one per day, every day till Christmas. Just think of the fun of being able to say "Merry Christmas" in July!

Here are a few suggestions:


Mend a quarrel.
Seek out a forgotten friend.
Write a long overdue love note.
Hug someone tightly and whisper, "I love you so."
Forgive an enemy.
Be gentle and patient with an angry person.
Gladden the heart of a child.
Find the time to keep a promise.
Make or bake something for someone else. Anonymously.
Release a grudge.
Listen.
Speak kindly to a stranger.
Enter into another's sorrow.
Smile.
Laugh a little.
Laugh a little more.
Take a walk with a friend.
Lessen your demands on others.
Play some beautiful music during the evening meal.
Apologize if you were wrong.
Turn off the television and talk.
Treat someone to an ice-cream cone (yogurt would be fine).
Do the dishes for the family.
Pray for someone who helped you when you hurt.
Fix breakfast on Saturday morning.
Give a soft answer even though you feel strongly.
Encourage an older person.
Point out one thing you appreciate most about someone you work with or live near.
Offer to baby-sit for a weary mother.

Let's make Christmas one long, extended gift of ourselves to others. Unselfishly. Without announcement. Or obligation. Or reservation. Or hypocrisy.

This is Christianity, isn't it?


When you give yourself, the gift never has to be returned.

Taken from Charles R. Swindoll, Day by Day with Charles Swindoll (Nashville: W Publishing Group, 2000)

An Open Letter to a "Holiday Celebrator" - a "guest" post

Note: I did not write this post, author Mike Dellosso did on his blog "Wide-eyed fiction." He put what I feel into words, so I am putting his post here also. If you like it, you can comment here if you like, but it would be nice to click the link to his blog above and comment there. Enjoy:

Dear Holiday Celebrator,

You've made me sick of the "holidays."

No, I'm not sick of Christmas. Goodness, no. I love Christmas, the season, the day, and everything it stands for and reminds me of. What I'm sick of is "Happy Holidays," holiday trees, holiday cards, holiday cookies, holiday greetings, holiday presents, blah, blah, blah.

What's a holiday tree anyway? Can you explain that to me? "Well, it's . . . um, a Christmas tree." Oh, really? Then why not just say CHRISTMAS TREE!

Holiday cards? Don't they mostly have images of decorated trees, beautifully wrapped presents, snowy landscapes, Santa Claus, stockings, lighted homes, and such? All, traditional images of, hmmm, let's see, what's that holiday called? Oh yeah, CHRISTMAS!

Oh, and how about those holiday cookies? When's the last time anyone made pine tree-shaped cookies or reindeer-shaped cookies for Hanukkah? No, they're shapes associated with that holiday, um, you know, the one that falls on December 25th every year, you know . . . I think my calendar calls it . . . CHRISTMAS!

And what's with none of the stores mentioning Christmas? Holiday sales? "Happy Holidays" banners? When it's President's Day they're not ashamed to say it, or Independence Day or Memorial Day or Labor Day. And what do they all have in common with Christmas? They're all federal holidays.

Yes, Maybe it's slipped your mind, but we have a federal holiday called Christmas, whether you're a Christian or not, whether you're an American citizen or not, whether you recognize it or not. Look on your calendar, it's there, December 25th, the same day every year. Year after year. Kids are off school, government employees are off work, your mail won't be delivered. It's called Christmas. It's not a bad word. It's no more offensive than Labor Day or Memorial Day. It's a holiday. For some it holds special meaning, yes, because without the birth of Christ there would be no Christmas (not to mention no hope for mankind in which case not having Christmas to celebrate would be the least of our worries).

But the reality of it is, whether you see it as a holy day reminding of us that moment in time when God wrapped himself in flesh and humbled himself, becoming a helpless infant in our cursed world or whether you see it as just another holiday that you get off work and spend the day with family, it's called Christmas. Say it with me, "Christmas." You said it a million times when you were a kid and nobody got offended, our government didn't collapse, there was no widespread revolt. So what's changed? The day, the reason for the day, or you?

Sincerely . . . and merry Christmas,

A Christmas Celebrator

Fiction as evangelism

One of my newest favorite authors posted an excellent blog post about using fiction to evangelize. I think he made some great points, so here from Mike Delloso's blog is his post from http://www.mikedellosso.blogspot.com/

Earlier this week I mentioned a blog post by Mike Duran over at Novel Journey about using fiction to evangelize. Thank you for the responses. I've been thinking about this issue lately and it's brought up some questions in my mind.

Now, first, I realize that evangelism is a continuum that runs from living a godly lifestyle to sharing the gospel to leading someone to Christ to discipling that someone. There's more or less steps involved there, of course. Each situation and how someone ultimately comes to Christ is unique and unto itself. For the purposes of this post and my thoughts I'm zeroing in on the aspect of sharing the good news of God's salvation part of evangelism.

A few questions running through my mind:

Can fiction itself evangelize? Obviously, if it's going to, somewhere in the story there must be the gospel message. That can be presented in a myriad of ways, from covert to overt, but let's face it, telling a wholesome story with no swearing or sex and maybe a moral message isn't going to clue anyone in on the glory of what Jesus did on the cross and our need for Him as a Savior. Yes, God can use anything to lead someone to Himself but how shall they know unless someone tells them? God's intent is that people introduce the message.

Can fiction be used as a tool to evangelize? This is where I say a hearty YES! Jesus did it all the time in the form of parables. From the time we're old enough to understand the English language people are in love with stories. The way I see it, this can be done a couple ways. One, a story can be another seed planted in the soil of an unbeliever's heart. Maybe something in the story plucks that right heart string or opens the blinds just the right way to let the Light in. Maybe it clues in on just the right topic that brings that dawning of understanding. Whatever. The point is, when we write a story, we never know how God is going to use that story or the characters in it or the message in it. The second way is that the story can be used by someone else as a platform to share the gospel. A believer can give the book to an unbeliever then get a conversation started about the book and guide that conversation toward spiritual things.

Here's another question I have and it's spawned by Christian authors writing for the secular market with an intent to evangelize. They say they want to reach the unbelievers and I commend them for that and am not in any way questioning their heart or motives. My question is asked out of simple ignorance: How can they evangelize a lost world who knows nothing of God's salvation with a story that speaks nothing of God's salvation? Obviously, their target audience is the lost. And I would imagine a secular publisher isn't going to go for overt Christian messages in the book (except in rare circumstances), so how does this happen? I equate it to working side by side with your co-worker and living a clean, moral life in front of him/her but never going beyond that, never talking about spiritual things, never mentioning your faith, never talking about Jesus.

Now, I can see where a Christian author (or "an author who is a Christian," which seems to be the popular way of saying it nowadays) may want to write for the general market with an eye to believers who are struggling with one thing or another and has strayed from the faith. They would have a much better chance of reaching that person in the general market with a story of hope and redemption.

Just some thoughts. They are my thoughts. Feel free to agree or disagree. This is after all, America, and still a free country . . . for now.

I'm sure I'll have more thoughts as time goes by but for now, I'd like to hear yours.

Warning Signs of An Affair

I'm not married, nor ever will be, but this was part of an email I got from Focus on the Family, and thought it was worth passing on for people who are married:


Elena discovered that her husband wasn't just shopping on eBay® all those late nights on the computer. Steve just happened to see his wife kissing the kickboxing instructor in the gym's parking lot.

Most extramarital affairs do not start out with the candid revelations: "my husband is out of town" or "my wife won't suspect a thing." Generally something has gone awry in a marriage before a dissatisfied spouse utters these seductive lines.

Factors That Can Lead to Unfaithfulness


The following are factors that can lead to marital unfaithfulness:

•Looking for ego boosts outside your marriage. Men tend to turn to extramarital liaisons to build up their self-image or sexual self-esteem. Women are suspect to affairs to satisfy their longing for love, appreciation and tenderness. Beware of leaning on others beyond your marriage as primary sources for love, value and respect.

•Neglecting to talk openly with each other. If you only talk to your spouse about the bills and household chores, you may be sliding into trouble. Holding in your thoughts and feelings does not enhance transparency in your relationship. Practice the art of small talk that can open the door to deeper sharing.

•Resisting conflict resolution. Every couple runs into communication rough spots. It's important not to build walls between you and your spouse. Some people mask their hurt while others spew their emotions. Neither method is constructive. Both ways create relational roadblocks. Unresolved conflict leads to isolation and leaves you vulnerable to fleeing your marriage.

•Discounting fun and relaxation together. Think of the last time you and your spouse enjoyed a date or a weekend getaway together. As the old adage says, "Couples that play together, stay together." If career, family and homes responsibilities are crowding out laughter and friendship with your spouse, you need to book in some recreational retreats with each other.
•Increasing the time you spend apart. The demands of work travel, ill children or differing interests and hobbies are common issues that can keep couples apart. The more time you spend away from your spouse, the greater temptation to drift in your relationship.

•Allowing daily stresses and fatigue to sabotage your intimacy. Packed schedules and raising children are two common reasons husbands and wives feel ho-hum in their relational intimacy. Romance, in an instant, can remind you of the reasons you love each other. All marriages require times of refreshing and an in-depth look at intimacy saboteurs.

•Letting your love life fizzle instead of sizzle. Familiarity and boredom can creep into any marriage. Beware of shaking things up in your sex life by dumping your spouse for another more promising lover. If you or your partner suddenly is disinterested in sex with each other, be sure to explore the true reasons.

•Giving in to predictability. A little mystery can go a long way in adding spice to your marriage. Many couples succumb to affairs out of fading interest in their spouses. One way to continue your wedded bliss is to surprise your mate with love notes or an occasional unexpected outing or gift.

•Living in denial. Pretending that problems do not exist in your marriage will only widen the gap between you and your spouse. Many extramarital affairs start when a frustrated spouse searches for a reality check in marriage by turning to an officemate or friend of the opposite sex for support. Dare to face the truth of your marital struggles.

•Forgetting your commitment to each other. Over time couples are prone to forget why they fell in love. In our easy-come-easy-go culture, it takes courage and determination to honor commitment instead of convenience.

•Failing to resist come-ons and temptations. In our over-sexed world, even the most innocent husband or wife can fall prey to sexual temptations. Before you or your mate find yourself in compromising situations, talk about safeguards for your marriage. You may need to avoid after-work soirees, certain hotels on business trips and sexually compromising magazines, movies or television shows. Thinking "Just this once," can lead to a lifetime of regret.

Quick Infidelity Quiz
If your marriage partner exhibits several of these following behaviors, your marriage may be in danger of an affair:

•Avoids eye contact with you.
•Talks continually about the unknowns of the future.
•Shows an increased disinterest in the topic of sex.
•Makes excuses for not spending time alone with you.
•Acts unusually guilty when you do something nice for him/her.
•Quits complimenting you on your physical attractiveness.
•Stops saying, "I love you" and even acts rudely to you.
•Starts buying you gifts to ease his or her guilt.
Many factors can drive a marriage to the rocks. Help ensure an enriching relationship for a lifetime by taking steps today to guard the fidelity of your marriage.

One of the best recommendations for troubled marriages is enlisting the help of a licensed, Christian counselor. Often, involving a third party — especially one who's trained to counsel — can force root issues out into the open and guide you and your spouse on the road to healing.

Copyright © 2005 Beth J. Lueders, bethlueders.com. All rights reserved. International copyright secured. Used by permission

Holes On the Beach

My buddy Steven related this story to me the other day that Anne Graham Lotz related. It encouraged me, so I googled it and found it on her website. Instead of just putting a link, I have copied and pasted it below:


Only God, through Christ, has the power to forgive sin.¹ It doesn’t matter how big the sin is or how small, it doesn’t matter how long ago it was committed or how recently. It doesn’t matter whether it was spontaneous or malicious. God will forgive you if you come to Him at the cross of Jesus Christ.

God forgave the men who nailed His Son to the cross—when they asked Him to.² So why do you think He won’t forgive you when you ask? What do you think is beyond the forgiveness of God? Abortion?—Adultery?—Abuse?—Hate?—Hypocrisy?—Doubt? —Divorce?—Drunkenness?—Or Immorality?—Or Murder?—Or _____? You fill in the blank.

There is nothing you have ever done that He cannot or will not forgive when He is humbly asked.

A few years ago I found myself groping for a way to explain this to a woman who had been on death row for multiple murders and would be executed within ten hours of my visit. Tears glistened in her eyes as she looked at me beseechingly, needing assurance of the salvation she had claimed by faith six years earlier. That very night she would be stepping into eternity, and she was desperate for reassurance of her forgiveness by God. I asked her if she had ever been to the ocean, and she nodded "yes." I asked her if, as she had walked along the shore, she had seen small holes in the sand where ghost crabs had darted in and out. Again she nodded. I then asked if she had seen any larger holes, like those made by children digging. Beginning to look puzzled, she said "yes," she had seen holes like that. I persisted gently to see if she had ever seen huge holes created by machines dredging a channel or burying pipe lines on the beach. Her brow furrowed as she again acknowledged a quiet "yes." I then leaned toward her and pressed my point, "Velma, when the tide comes in, what happens to all those holes?"

A soft light began to gleam in her eyes, and a smile played at the corner of her lips as I answered my own question. "All the holes are covered equally by the water, aren’t they?

God’s forgiveness is like the tide that washes over all the ‘holes’ of your sins and covers all your sins equally." And Velma stepped into her heavenly home fully assured of her acceptance by God.

Praise God for the sacrifice of Jesus that is sufficient to cover all of your sins. All of them! Even "small" sins like gossip or worry, "medium-size" sins like losing your temper, "large" sins like murder—all are covered equally by the blood of Jesus. You will never be held accountable for the guilt of your sin because Jesus has taken the punishment for you. The price for your redemption has been paid! The sacrifice for your sin has been made! You are forgiven! Eternal life is yours! Heaven is open!

•You don’t have to do more good works than bad works.
•You don’t have to go to church every time the door opens.
•You don’t have to be religious.
•You don’t even have to be good.

But you and I must confess our sin to Him personally, specifically and honestly if we want to receive forgiveness. God promises, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."³

Saving Others

A while back, I picked up a cover of Henry Blackaby's Experiencing God Day by Day. Got it for 25 cents. :-) I was impressed with last night's devotional, and felt it was written for me. Whether or not it was, it has some good food for thought, and is something we all need to think about. The title of the devotional is "Saving Others."


Whoever turns a sinner from his error will save him from death and cover a multitude of sins (James 5:20)

We live in a world that teaches us to mind our own business. We try not to get involved in other people's problems. We tell ourselves it's not our place. This attitude is completely opposite to what the Bible teaches. As Christians, we are called to become involved in the lives of others, especially when we see someone headed for trouble.


It is actually our responsibility, when we see a fellow believer drifting toward sin, to warn that person of the dangers ahead. Sometimes we are reluctant to say anything to others because we don't want to offend them. We don't want to act "holier than thou." Besides, if we point out the sins of others, they might point back at us and start naming our sins! So, often we say nothing, and think that's the most Christian thing to do. James argues, however, that when we help someone avoid the danger of sin, we are saving that person from death!


We need to check to see what is happening in the lives of people around us. If our friends keep falling into sin and we keep minding our own business, we have failed as a Christian friend. Is there someone you need to lovingly warn of the danger ahead? Take courage. Regardless of the response you receive, speak up before it is too late. Do out of genuine concern for the well-being of your friend.

In God We Still Trust

really good blog post on "In God We Still Trust": http://prairiebren.blogspot.com/2009/08/in-god-we-still-trust.html

Funny

ran into an amusing story on a blog about a guy who tried to hold the door for a woman - worth reading: http://billycoffey.blogspot.com/2009/08/at-mall.html

Fishing and Ambition

Ran across this story and liked it, so thought I'd pass it on.


One day a fisherman was lying on a beautiful beach with his fishing pole propped up in the sand and his solitary line cast out into the sparkling blue surf.

He was enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun and the prospect of catching a fish.

About that time, a businessman came walking down the beach trying to relieve some of the stress of his workday. He noticed the fisherman sitting on the beach and decided to find out why this fisherman was fishing instead of working harder to make a living for himself and his family.

“You aren’t going to catch many fish that way,” said the businessman to the fisherman, “you should be working rather than lying on the beach!”

The fisherman looked up at the businessman, smiled and replied, “And what will my reward be?”

“Well, you can get bigger nets and catch more fish!” was the businessman’s answer.

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman, still smiling.

The businessman replied, “You will make money and you’ll be able to buy a boat which will then result in larger catches of fish!”

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman again.

The businessman was beginning to get a little irritated with the fisherman’s questions.

“You can buy a bigger boat and hire some people to work for you!” he said.

“And then what will my reward be?” repeated the fisherman.

The businessman was getting angry. “Don’t you understand? You can build up a fleet of fishing boats, sail all over the world, and let all your employees catch fish for you!”

Once again the fisherman asked, “And then what will my reward be?”

The businessman was red with rage and shouted at the fisherman, “Don’t you understand that you can become so rich that you will never have to work for your living again! You can spend all the rest of your days sitting on this beach looking at the sunset. You won’t have a care in the world!”

The fisherman, still smiling, simply looked up, nodded and said: “And what do you think I am doing now?” He then looked at the sunset, with his pole in the water, without a care in the world.

Poetry

My best friend has written some really good - in my opinion - poems. He said I could publish them on here if I want. I know of someone who would benefit from reading them, so here they are:


Friendship

If I could take your battles
And make each one my own
I would gladly do so
And face each one alone
If I could take your burdens
And make them mine instead
I would gladly take and carry them
Though they weigh as lead

When storms of life would hurt you
And cause you pain inside
My very soul would sacrifice
To give a place to hide

If sorrows you've know could be erased
Erase them I would do
Though my own should double
I'd do it just for you

When tears of grief would blind your sight
And blur the path ahead
My very life would offer
To feel your grief instead

If temptations that you face
I could face instead
Gladly would I face them
Though the battle find me dead

I have no strength to offer you
No wisdom of my own
But as your friend I offer you
To God and God alone

By Steven Matlock


When Light Breaks Upon the Heart

Black chains of night gripped my heart
Evil, cruel links choking out all light
I stumbled through the darkness
Searching helplessly for life

My spirit so despondent
I tried with all my might
Just to keep on walking
Through the bitter lonely night

Each time I fell
So hard it was
To get back up again
Until at last I stumbled
And could rise no more
Lying there so helpless
Surrounded by my sin

Then somewhere in the blackness
A still small voice I heard
Saying, "Just look up"
"Your need I'll meet"
"If only you believe"

At first I wondered
Could this truly be
But one feeble simple cry
Brought grace that lifted me

When Light breaks upon the heart
All sin must quickly flee
For with the presence of the Light
The darkness cannot be

Are you struggling with a heavy load of sin
Just look up from where you are
And let Jesus Christ come in
The light He will give to you
Will lift you far above
The lonely road you travel
So empty without love

Just claim the blood of Jesus
Trust wholly in his name
And rest in grace and mercy
Believing on His name

When Light breaks upon the heart
You'll never be the same
For new life is yours for taking
When you simply call His name

By Steven Matlock


Overcoming

You say with each temptation
You always provide escape
But once again I've given in
There's weakness in my feet
You say if I will follow
You'll lead in paths of peace
But once again I'm falling, Lord
Will I ever find Your peace?

It seems I always fall
Just outside the door
And many times I wonder, Lord
What's the struggle for?
It seems I rarely see
The way You're guiding me
And once again I've given in
Surrendered up my strength

I try to run to find escape
But never quite arrive
The path seems so confusing,
Light so blinding to weak eyes
Dear Lord, hear my plea
And give me strength to stand
When Satan comes and lies to me
To stand in You and not on sand

For only in You Lord
Can strength to stand be found
And the relief I seek from the battle's heat
The peace I'm longing for
Is found only when
I repentant, broken fall
At Your feet and find my place
In the shadow of Your cross

Lord help me to know Your ways
Surrendering every day
To stay when You want me to stay
And run when You want me to run
To stop fighting in my own strength
Every battle as it comes
But know my only weapon's found
In the blood of Your dear Son.

By Steven Matlock


Tearing Down the Walls

It seems I'm always struggling
Just trying to keep up
No matter how fast I'm running
It's never quite enough
So easily I'm distracted
Then I trip and fall
Once again despairing
I've run into a wall

The walls I find, I've built myself
I offer no excuse
But built so high, within my heart,
They seem impossible to remove
And strength so quickly ebbs away
As I struggle through each day
I'm never quite remembering
That my strength is found in You

So once again I'm asking
Please forgive these sins
And give me faith and open eyes
To focus once again
Let me see Your face
The compassion in Your eyes
And someday know this long, hard race
Will lead me to the prize

Lord, I'm so unworthy
That You should call my name
But when from You I turn my face
You keep calling just the same
For in Your love and by Your Son
Redemption has been bought
My part is simply, always
Keep my eyes upon Your cross

The years and years of seeking
No longer are they vain
For in Your hands I place my life
No longer will I run
But by Your grace
Because of love
I give my heart to You
Your sacrifice now claim
And gladly become your son

Only Your paths will lead me to the truth
And only Your grace can strengthen my resolve
Only Your hand can lead me home to You
And only Your love can tear down every wall

By Steven Matlock


The Mountain

I walked up the mountain
So sad and all alone
My burden so very heavy
My strength was almost gone
So great my doubt and fears
I could not carry on
I longed for something better
I prayed to God for dawn
But still the darkness lingered
Refusing to let go
Fear closed in around me
All hope was fading fast
But God in tender mercy
So softly He did call
And once I finally answered
My sins, He took them all

The cross raised high on Calvary
It's shadow falling down
The sight so great, the wonder
No words can ever tell
But somehow on that mountain
Christ broke the chains of hell

I can but imagine Him
Walking up that hill
The cross weighed down upon Him
To rescue me from hell
Though I wasn't there that day
I know that He saw me
For I have found the sweetest peace
His blood was shed for me

The cross raised high on Calvary
It's shadow falling down
The sight so great, the wonder
No words can ever tell
But on that cruel mountain
Christ rescued me from hell

By Steven Matlock

Satan's Plan

A friend of mine sent this to me. I have heard the story before, but it is worth passing on:


"George Thomas, a pastor in a small New England town, came to church one Easter Sunday morning carrying a rusty, bent, old bird cage, and set it by the pulpit. Eyebrows were raised and, as if in response, Pastor Thomas began to speak.

"I was walking through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me swinging this bird cage. On the bottom of the cage were three little wild birds, shivering with cold and fright. I stopped the boy and asked, "What do you have there, son?"

"Just some old birds," came the reply.

"What are you going to do with them?" I asked.

"Take 'em home and have fun with 'em," he answered. "I'm gonna tease 'em and pull out their feathers to make 'em fight. I'm gonna have a real good time."

"But you'll get tired of those birds sooner or later. What will you do then?"

"Oh, I got some cats," said the little boy. "They like birds. I'll let the cats have them."

The pastor was silent for a moment. "How much do you want for those birds, son?"

"Huh? Why, you don't want those birds, mister. They're just plain old field birds. They don't sing and they ain't even pretty!"

"How much?" the pastor asked again.

The boy sized up the pastor as if he were crazy and said, "I'll take ten dollars!"

The pastor reached in his pocket and took out a ten dollar bill and placed it in the boy's hand. In a flash, the boy was gone. The pastor picked up the cage and gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree and a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the door, and by softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free.

Well, that explained the empty bird cage on the pulpit, and then the pastor began to tell this story. One day, Satan and Jesus were having a conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden of Eden, and he was gloating and boasting. "Yes, sir, I just caught the world full of people down there. Set me a trap by using bait I knew they couldn't resist. Got them all!"

"What are you going to do with them?" Jesus asked.

Satan replied, "Oh, I'm going to have fun! I'll teach them how to marry and divorce each other, how to hate and abuse each other, how to drink and smoke and curse. I'll teach them how to invent guns and bombs and kill each other. I'm really going to have fun!"

"And what will you do when you get done with them?" Jesus asked.

"Oh, I'll kill 'em," Satan glared proudly.

"How much do you want for them?" Jesus asked.

"Oh, you don't want those people. They are no good. Why, you'll take them and they'll just hate you. They'll spit on you, curse you and kill you. You don't want those people!"

"How much?" Jesus asked again. Satan looked at Jesus and sneered, "All your blood, tears and your life." Jesus said, "DONE!" Then He paid the price.

The pastor then picked up the cage, opened the door and walked from the pulpit."

What's Wrong With Christians?

A friend of mine sent me a link to this blog post (Generation Cedar). Will copy and paste here, short, but worth reading, and I think she is right on:

"We are creatures of control. Beings given to making lists, planning ahead, and anticipating the future. I think we were made that way, and those things have their place. But we make a mistake when we too carefully plan our “life list”…

The title asks, “What’s wrong with Christians?”

If you ask most Christians to make a list of priorities, they would start with “God” as number 1. “You gotta put God first“…sounds right. But it’s not. God can’t be compartmentalized…who do we think we are?

God must consume–encompass, our list. In fact, the list must really be His…only scribbled in pencil with our hand, ready with eraser.

When we were redeemed, we were given a new nature, and were commanded to continually crucify the old one. That old one that wants to remain in control….to clutch our list tightly to our breast, and raise a fist if the order gets rearranged or disregarded all together. But we still struggle so, don’t we, with “Your ways are not my ways, nor are your thoughts My thoughts…”?

We don’t live “God-consumed lives”, where every bullet-point is surrendered to His will and purpose. We still fidget to fit God around our agenda, neatly tucked in the right places and smoothed out of the way of others.

But once we do–if ever we get there, surely it is the sweetest place of peace and joy one ever lived. Just to know that “all is well” even if it’s not. That I no longer have to wring my hands over this decision or that, because every ounce of myself is wholly given to only one thing…“In Him, I live and move and have my being…” Acts 17:28" by Kelly, Generation Cedar blog

The Medium Makes The Church

I just read an interesting article I got in an email from Focus On the Family. Written by Meredith Whitmore, it examines the changes in our church services and worship methods as compared to years ago. I found it insighful, so I am passing it on:

"When I was teaching British literature, on the first day of each freshman class I'd write a line of the poem Beowulf in Old English:

Grendles guðcræft gumum undyrne.

Then I'd smile sweetly at my 40 or so students and say, "If you can't read this, then you'll probably fail the final. You might want to rearrange your class schedule."

Their expressions were really funny. Of course, I'd soon feel sympathy, confess my game and then flesh out an illustration of how the English language and its literature have changed over the centuries. After they stopped hating me, we had a great semester.

It's not just language and writing that have changed. Most social and spiritual constructs have, too, including churches and the way we worship.

You and I would probably be just as stunned as those students were if we suddenly found ourselves in Jonathan Edwards' congregation, listening to "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." This 1741 sermon has been touted as one of the world's greatest. But to many 21st century minds it can sound perplexing and even abusive.

Reflection vs. Formula
It's more than a little interesting to compare contemporary Christian books such as The Purpose Driven Life with the works of Edwards and his predecessors. I'm not criticizing Rick Warren or authors like him. But I do want to establish the typically massive difference in style, tone, vocabulary, intricacy of thought and even theology—between them and the older pieces.

Styles change, certainly. But such differences are deeper than mere preference. They seem to indicate that our very thought processes and concentration levels have changed over the centuries—and drastically over the past 50 years.

With today's American sermons usually clocking in at 30 minutes or less, how would modern churchgoers fare in Edwards' day of three-hour-or-longer services? (Or Nehemiah's and Ezra's day-long readings of biblical law?) And what accounts for our shift from theologically dense hymns and liturgies to more emotionally based praise choruses? How about worship services that include dance and even painting? Though Jesus captivated listeners for hours on hillsides sans microphone, backup singers and video screens, the prevailing fear among pastors now is that their churches—buoyed by hilarious skits, rock bands and audiovisual effects—will still be thought of as dull.

So what's caused these intellectual and spiritual shifts? Any number of sociological and technological factors, to be certain. But the biggest culprit is likely media; churches are competing with television, movies, cell phones, video games, concerts and the Internet for people's attention.

This isn't a positive thing.

The Internet vs. Everyone
For years, numerous scholars, including communications theorists Marshall McLuhan and Daniel Boorstin, Oxford University synaptic pharmacologist Susan Greenfield, and pastor and media commentator Shane Hipps, have warned that media alter the way we think, not just what we think.

McLuhan, who died in 1980, went so far as to say, "The medium is the message." Based on his social research and observations, he believed that, when compared to the manner in which content is presented, content itself "has about as much importance as the stenciling on the casing of an atomic bomb." That is, the way a message is delivered affects us more than the message does.

For example, if the Internet had an advisory label, it might read, "Warning: attention deficit and shallow thinking ahead." That's because the sheer volume of information that's always at the ready causes most Web users to skim, and not truly read. They bounce from thought to thought, site to site, preferring JPEGs, MPEGs and bullet points over in-depth analysis. The crisis in this is, as Tufts University psychologist Maryanne Wolf says, "We are not only what we read. We are how we read." She warns that when we use the Internet we become "mere decoders of information," and not deep interpreters of facts, achieving knowledge through mental connections and understanding.

"[The Internet] creates a permanent puberty of the mind," Hipps, a Mennonite pastor and author of Flickering Pixels: How Technology Shapes Your Faith, told Christianity Today. "We get locked in so much information, and the inability to sort that information meaningfully limits our capacity to understand. The last stage of knowledge is wisdom. But we are miles from wisdom because the Internet encourages the opposite of what creates wisdom—stillness, time and inefficient things like suffering. On the Internet, there is no such thing as waiting; there is no such thing as stillness."

Superficial reading nearly always leads to superficial thinking. And we have increasingly become a society that does not read so much as browse. Though the Internet moves vast amounts of facts to our fingertips, it doesn't teach us to analyze them and create a comprehensive thought—so we often confuse facts with wisdom and understanding. It's as Boorstin prophesied in the 20th century, well before Wikipedia wiped out encyclopaedias, "Technology is so much fun, but we can drown in our technology. The fog of information can drive out knowledge."

Logic vs. Images
Because of the printing press's mass production of reading materials, the modern world was word-based—and therefore analytical since language processing occurs in the logic-oriented left hemisphere of the brain. The postmodern world is increasingly image-based because of television, movies, advertising and the Internet. With reading and the written word's impact and appeal slowly declining—and don't think for a second that Facebook and Twitter are keeping them alive—thought processes are shifting from the reason-oriented left hemisphere to the much more emotive right.

While we need both to fully experience and interact with God and the world around us, it looks as if future generations—fed by unrelenting onscreen images—will be primarily right-brained, gathering meaning chiefly from intuition, feelings and dialogue. These qualities are critical, yes, but with a weakened ability to think critically, we're left with a society that's poorly equipped to understand itself or its Creator. One that reacts rather than responds to life.



Media vs. the Church
Now apply all of this to Christianity and the church.

The Bible is the most intricate and vital book we have—and if our ability to ponder and process its complexities is deteriorating because of media, then so is our ability to learn from God. Because His Word is so multifaceted, we need the ability to dive comprehensively into its beginning, middle and end and stay there for a while, not merely skimming the surface, as we do on the Web or a BlackBerry. It's frightening but probable that as our attention spans are continuously shortened and the distractions of various media compete for our concentration, that our reading styles are changing enough to cause us to, as Hipps says, "lose touch with Scripture"—whether we realize it or not.

Destroy the computer, then, I say. Turn off everything and resume reading St. Augustine by candlelight, right? Well, no. We can't escape technology, nor would we want to entirely because we do benefit from it as well. But isn't it our responsibility to become discerning, well-informed, disciplined users of media who evaluate their effects on us, the body of Christ and our nation?

Most definitely.

In his book Understanding Media, McLuhan prophetically wrote of those who unthinkingly interact with media: "Everybody experiences far more than he understands. Yet it is experience, rather than understanding, that influences behavior." So in our experience-driven culture, where feelings and simple impressions seem to reign over logical, well-reasoned and researched thought, it wouldn't hurt any of us to monitor and dissect our media interaction. When we prayerfully and continuously reconsider the Internet and a host of other technologies, therein lies our path to better thinking, reading and worship—online and off.

Then maybe epic poetry and 18th century sermons wouldn't be quite as intimidating."

Taking Off Our Spiritual Sweatshirts

Guest columnist today - man, that sounds offical! :-) I get emails from New Release Tuesday telling what new releases are out each week. This week, they included something a guy connected with NRT wrote, a Josh Peterson. I read it, and thought it was really good, so I am pasting it here. Check it out - it is called "Taking off our spiritual sweatshirts" (the title made me check it out)


I don’t remember the last time I could say
I was where I wanted to be
Still You see through this mask
Hiding all my flaws
You see something down deep in me...

Bring me back so that I can feel You again
Take me to that place I was before
All I want is to hold my head up high
So take this life and set aflame again
--Decyfer Down "Life Again"

Life is sometimes like a hooded sweatshirt.

A good one!

You know, the kind of sweatshirt that has a hood that is so deep it covers three fourths of your face if you want it to. It hides the poser behind the fabric.

It is imaging. And life is all about how we position ourselves isn’t it? I mean come on...it really is, isn’t it?

We put our hip sunglasses on from Urban Outfitters so we can give people a false impression of who we really are. Big, ugly, dorks?

We don’t want people to see who we really are inside...the messed up parts of our lives, the sin, the shame, and disappointment. So we cover ourselves up to disguise the truth. We don’t want anyone to discover who we really are, or they may not accept us or let us into their lives.

And this is not just true inside the church, which is popular to bash these days. I am talking about something more relevant. I mean we all hide the junk in our past or present, or at least try our very best to.

We always answer the question, "how are you doing," with "fine." Are you really fine today?

We smile at church when we are really hurting inside. We laugh and hang with our friends and family but never break down our walls, until we are finally forced to because we are out of answers and options.

I am ready to start living a life that is more transparent. I want to come to God, and my friends and family sooner then later. I want to get their advice, council, and wisdom BEFORE pain occurs so that I am better equipped when the garbage hits the fan in my life.

Its time to wake up spiritually! Today is the day to get committed to Christ.

Romans 13:11-12 says, "The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here."

It’s time to get serious.

Life is surely way too short to gamble with our souls. Isn’t it?

If we are not growing in our daily walk with Jesus as followers of the Gospel then we are fading.

The great theologian and preacher John Wesley once said about the growth of his relationship with God: "Once in seven years I burn all my sermons; for it is a shame, if I cannot write better sermons now than I did seven years ago."

He understood that he could not rely on his past, but he needed to be developing and nurturing his relationship with Jesus.

Today is a day to renew our relationship with Jesus and ask for revival in our hearts. Not the cheesy "Christian" word revival, but a total explosion of emotion and zeal for Jesus. The way you feel when you meet a new girl, start a new job, or the way you felt the day you fell in love with Jesus. A fresh start, clean slate, and fire in my chest.

Romans 12:11-13 says this about having Passion and Zeal for our relationship with Jesus: "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality."

Do you remember the way you felt when you gave your life to Christ? Why did you fall in love with Him in the first place? Why do you want to choose to continue to fall in love with Him even today?

Keith Green the musician and author wrote this about our spiritual priorities: "If your heart takes more pleasure in reading novels, or watching TV, or going to the movies, or talking to friends, rather than just sitting alone with God and embracing Him, sharing His cares and His burdens, weeping and rejoicing with Him, then how are you going to handle forever and ever in His presence…? You’d be bored to tears in heaven, if you’re not ecstatic about God now!"

Unmasking our sin in front of people, the ones who REALLY care about us, is so important. If we come to people and get real with our problems and pains then they can take us consistently and constantly to the Cross, where we can finally learn to allow Jesus to wash us clean.

You are much too valuable to God, to not spiritually be maintaining and paying attention to your soul. He has given us Godly relationships, wise pastors, loving family members, and His Son Jesus to restore and prepare our souls for eternity in the presence of God.

Opening up and becoming more "see through" is a very scary place. It reveals flaws and broken places that we hide, but to allow God to rip the bandages we have placed on ourselves and heal us is totally worth whatever uncomfortable ness there may be in publicly disclosing the junk in our past.

There is healing and restoration in coming back to the feet of Jesus and allowing Him to take our hood off our face.

I am sinner saved by grace, and a poser in an oversized spiritual sweatshirt. With the compassion of Jesus available to each one of us, today is the day that we can become more real, open and transparent.

A final thought today to ponder.

"Go forth today, by the help of God’s Spirit, vowing and declaring that in life—-come poverty, come wealth, in death—come pain or come what may, you are and ever must be the Lord’s. For this is written on your heart, ‘We love Him because He first loved us.’" --Charles Spurgeon
Posted April 27, 2009 Josh Petersen serves as the Manager of Marketing and Retail Promotions for Centricity Music. Before holding this position he worked for S/R/E Records as Marketing Manager, working with Flyleaf, Disciple, The Rocket Summer, Todd Agnew, and more. He lives in Franklin, TN, and has previously served as a part time band pastor. He enjoys golf, collecting Frank Sinatra records, finding new ways to promote Christian Music, and watching Ohio State Buckeyes football.


http://www.newreleasetuesday.com/article.php?article_id=208

10 Reasons to Celebrate On Easter

Found this on Fox News website: http://foxforum.blogs.foxnews.com/2009/04/10/shuler_easter/ - thought it was really good, so passing it on:


By Bill Shuler
Pastor, Capital Life Church

1. The faith of multiplied millions throughout history rises and falls on an empty tomb.

2. Many have tried, but no one has ever been able to disprove the Resurrection.

3. According to Sports Illustrated, the greatest comeback of all time was Jesus of Nazareth in 33 A.D.

4. Jesus’ disciples were willing to be beaten, imprisoned, and executed for what they witnessed.

5. Jesus fulfilled every Old Testament prophecy foretelling the Resurrection.

6. After His crucifixion and death, the risen Christ made numerous appearances, over 40 days, to over 500 people.

7. The amount of evidence, and the number of witnesses, for the Resurrection would be a slam dunk in a court of law.

8. The Resurrection proves that truth will never be subservient to death.

9. The Resurrection told believers that God brings forth live, not mere rules and regulations.

10. Jesus said, because I live, you will live also.

The true meaning of Easter must never be lost amidst painted eggs and rabbits. Mankind was forever changed, when the angel proclaimed, “He is not here, because He is risen.” It has been said that if the Resurrection is false, the earth has no hope. But if the Resurrection is true, it represents the earth’s only hope.

History Repeats Itself

Ran across something interesting, and a little scary, on Brock & Bodie Thoene's blog. Since the say to pass it on, I decided to paste it here:

HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF
by
Bodie and Brock Thoene

Dear Thoene Friend,
Scripture tells us, “Woe to those who call good ‘evil,’ and who call evil, ‘good.’”

Those of you who have read The Zion Covenant have already seen and recognized in our own time that the history of tyranny is indeed repeating itself.

Over the course of 25 years we have researched and written about the destruction of the German Republic and its constitution….THROUGH LEGISLATION!

You asked us for specifics. Is there any historical precedent for the present Democrat-controlled U.S. Congress giving massive bailout loans to banks and to industry?

Back to that question in a moment.

This week the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Geitner, demanded from Congress that he be given the PERSONAL power to regulate and nationalize U.S. banks and all financial institutions. The U.S. Secretary of the Treasury also wants to have the power to decide what is a “good” business and which businesses should be taken over by the government!

President Obama agrees with this! Obama believes Geitner, the tax evader, should have this power over U.S. business!
At Obama’s demand Geitner’s power would include the authority to shut down U.S. companies at a whim! Do you own a small business? Mr. Geitner would be able to shut you down!

The magnitude of the Obama Administration’s tyrannical power-grab has never before been witnessed in American history.

Review this example:
Obama forces Wagoner out as GM CEO; 31-year career is over
by JUSTIN HYDE and TIM HIGGINS • FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITERS • March 29, 2009

President Barack Obama's rescue plan for Detroit automakers will be unveiled Monday, but one condition became clear today: the resignation of General Motors Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner.

As a condition for additional government aid to GM, the Obama administration asked Wagoner to step aside, which Wagoner agreed to do today, people familiar with the plan said. Wagoner’s move, effective immediately, ends a 31-year career with GM.

Not since President Franklin Roosevelt considered taking control of Ford Motor Co. in 1943 from a failing Henry Ford has the federal government pushed for such sway in the management of Detroit’s automakers. (emphasis added)

The tack suggests a hard-nosed approach from the Obama administration toward the automakers, bondholders and the UAW, all of whom have yet to reach agreements on key concessions, despite months of talks.

Obama will unveil the new rescue plan for GM and Chrysler in a White House ceremony this morning.


And there you have it. The President of the United States is now DICTATING who will run General Motors. Obama is saying there will be NO Government FINANCIAL HELP FOR General Motors UNLESS they dump the CEO! Obama has the power to destroy the 31-year-career of a man who ran a great American company while the corrupt U.S. Congress ran the business of America into the ground.

We will say this plainly: Barak Hussein Obama has, in nine weeks, proven to us that he is a tyrant. He is now assuming dictatorial powers over our lives and businesses which NO PRESIDENT has EVER assumed in the history of our nation. BY new LAWS enacted by a Democrat Congress, Obama, son of a Kenyan Muslim, is now ignoring WE THE PEOPLE and taking over every corner of our lives. Our Constitutional rights are in shambles.

Has anything like this ever happened in another country? If so, what was the result?

We searched our historical news files and found this headline from Germany in 1935….


Wireless to THE NEW YORK TIMES.
February 22, 1935, Friday
Page 11, 598 words

HITLER AUTHORIZES HUGE FORCED LOAN; Gives Finance Minister Wide Power to Raise Up to Billion Marks to Provide Jobs.

BERLIN, Feb. 21. -- Reichsfuehrer Adolf Hitler empowered the Finance Minister, in a decree passed by the Cabinet today, to float a new loan of between 750,000,000 and 1,000,000,000 marks. [The mark was quoted here yesterday at 40.28 cents.]


It isn’t really necessary to spell out the conclusion of the comparison is it?

To sum up:
Do not be silent. You must not remain silent. Tyranny threatens your American Constitution. Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin would not believe what these Democrat-agogues are doing to Freedom today!

Stand and be heard, Americans! Your nation and the world are in peril!

Blessings in The Mighty Name of Jesus!

Bodie and Brock