A Christ Follower: The Journey

For God So Loved The World That He Gave.           Many of us who have labored in God's "Vineyard" and sought to give love away ... HIS love away ... face the same challenge that Almighty God faces, whether it be with strangers or with friends and family.   If we give love way, will it be received or rejected?  From God's perspective, the beauty of this is that God knew the outcome before He made the offer, and HE still made the offer anyway.  Some would receive the love, and some would not. Nevertheless, He looked at the world lost in darkness and broken by sin, and before creation was ever ... well ... ever created, HE planned to love us even though we did not love Him.          The plan did not involve giving a half way attempt. It involved God giving HIS all to the world.  He gave up His ONLY biological son.  He gave up HIS sinless Son.  He gave up the perfect child to take the punishment on ...

What God Says About Abortion      Hear we go again, as we discuss what 91% of Christ-Followers requested their Pastor open their mouths and proclaim "Thus Saith The Lord."  For me, of all topics that can be discussed, this one is Horrific, Heart Breaking and God's Heavenly commands/word is very clear.  HORRIFIC:     I use this word because over 40 years ago, shortly after Rowe V. Wade was codified by a few people wearing black robes, I saw the results of an abortion up close and personal.  Part of my job as a medic/med lab specialist was to send surgical specimens out to our Pathology folks.  One "specimen" that crossed my counter was in a clear container, but I could not see what was inside (at first) because the label I was reading prevented me from doing so.  The label said "Uterine Cuttings."  When I turned the container around to do my job I nearly dropped the container!  I stared down at a fully fo...

We would like to know what the Bible says about abortion, when life begins, contraception adoption and unwed mothers .                Recently I blogged regarding a survey that was done querying Christ-Followers as to what they would want to hear from their Preachers as they preached on Sunday.  So here is my attempt to blog about these issues, one at a time… and in parts. In doing so, I would like the reader to keep in mind that this cannot be exhaustive nor cover everything; however, I will do my best to be effective and efficient in my writing.      Let me start with unwed mother :  If the two people involved claim to be Christ-Followers and they really want to get their lives truly on track, this would be a time to sincerely make their confession to God for the sin they have committed.  Non-marital sex or pre-marital sex is a violation of one of God’s liberating li...

Below is a survey conducted by George Barna from the Barna Group regarding what parishioners really want to hear from their Pastors as they preach weekly from their pulpits. Three-Thousand were asked, and they were given more than a 100 choices.  What does the Holy Bible actually say regarding these issues, is very important to those who are sitting in the pews?  Here are the results for all to see.  I wonder what kind of reaction we will get from our "pulpits" across the western culture if they actually heard these results and felt the hunger of their people. I can assure you that what God fearing people, or the people of God, wish to learn does not measure up to what the PC or Political Correctness crowd wants us to hear.  If we were to address these with the Bible based discussions that are being sought, the PC police would start their name calling and vilify those who are speaking the truth of God’s Word in love about these highly important topics. I have n...

Guest Blog: It's been nearly three years since Pastor Saeed Abedini, an American citizen, was imprisoned in Iran for his faith in Jesus Christ. His wife Nagmeh, who lives in the U.S. with their two young children, is calling for Christians worldwide to join her in a prayer vigil at noon on September 26—the third anniversary of his imprisonment. Pastor Saeed has been repeatedly beaten and denied medical care, yet he continues to be a beacon for the Gospel among his fellow prisoners. Please pray for his health and that he will be released soon. Please remember Pastor Saeed, his family, and persecuted believers around the globe. We can be assured that our God hears the prayers of His people: “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14) . Click on The Rectangle Above You can learn more about Pastor Saeed’s s...

     Many of us  of us "old geezers" have been around long enough to just about hear it all:  Enter into worship and we hear all the praise a heart could desire.   Be it in what is called "Traditional" worship, "Contemporary" or even "Blended" worship, words of praise are lifted from those who are gathered around in a sacred space.  After all isn't that what worship is all about ... surrendering to God, yielding our lives and being thankful or offering praise?    However, hang around this old world a while in the real world, and it is not long before we mere humans seem to think we know better than does God about how this place "should" operate.  Never mind that it was our sin that threw everything all out of kilter and brought sickness, pain and labor by the sweat of the brow to planet earth.  We come across -- as did our exponential numbers of ancestors before us -- having a better plan:  In the summer we hear it's to...

Where there is no guidance, the people fall, but in the abundance of counselors there is victory Proverbs 11:14       Go it alone wisdom is limited, and it  results in a greater opportunity to fail.  Even when Jesus sent out His disciples, He did so in pairs.  He gave all twelve the boundaries for their ministry to be, but He then made sure that they did not go it alone. Even the one paired with Judas Iscariot, as well as Judas,  went out with Jesus marching orders as their guide. So to them what was to be done was clear, and what Christ wanted was also clear. If something came up that required thinking about the circumstances, both made the decision based on Jesus' wisdom and guidance. And they did not do it alone.  They did so together.      As the Son of God, Jesus knew all too well what human beings can do when left to themselves to plan and act. So He sent them out together. Being alone can really be challenging...