The fear of death explained

A sick man turned to his doctor, as he was preparing to leave the examination room and said, “Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me, what lies on the other side?”

Very quietly the Doctor said, “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? You, a Christian man, do not know what is on the other side?”

The doctor was holding the handle of the door; on the other side of which came a sound of scratching and whining. As he opened the door a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.

Turning to the patient, the doctor said, “Did you notice my dog? He’s never been in this room before. He didn’t know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened he sprang in without fear.

I know little of what is on the other side of death, but I know one thing: I know my Master is there, and that is enough. When that door opens, I will pass through it with gladness, and with no fear.

“Now Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” – Hebrews 11:1

Coming to God just as you are…He wants you just as you are.

Isaiah 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

An artist was searching the streets of New York City for a model to pose for a portrait he wanted to call — ‘The Prodigal’. One day was passing Central Park and saw an poor homeless person lying on a bench and thought: ‘He’s perfect! That man would represent the prodigal son beautifully in my painting.’ He asked the homeless guy if he would be willing to sit for his painting and he would gladly pay him for his time. Naturally, the the poor man agreed.

On the day and time appointed, a man knocked on the door of the artist’s small Brooklyn studio. Excitedly, he answered his door only to find a clean-shaven young man dressed in a suit and tie standing before him. Disappointed, he said, “You must have the wrong door sir, the law office is down the hall”. “But you made an appointment with me,” the man replied, “No,” said the artist, “I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you before. I made an appointment to meet with a homeless guy here at this hour.” “Well,” said the man, “I am the homeless guy.” “You?” said the artist, “You’re the same guy?” “Yes, he replied. After you left me last week, I found some money and thought I would get a new suit of clothes before you painted me.” “Oh,” replied the artist, “Well, you’re just not right for the job.”

The beggar wanted to show himself a masterpiece before the artist — but the artist wasn’t looking for that. He wanted to create the masterpiece himself! Likewise, when we come to God, we must not come in our own garments of self-righteousness. We must come before him transparent, with no inhibitions, or worries, or pride. God has already seen our weaknesses and faults. We’re not hiding anything from Him anyway.

The Master Artist has an appointment with us today. Let’s not come disguised as someone else. Let’s come as we are so that He can make a priceless masterpiece.

George W. Bush Seeks for Jews to Accept Jesus

Former president George W. Bush has made headlines for his speech at a fundraiser for the Messianic Jewish Bible Institute, a group that aims to bring Jewish people into a personal relationship of faith with Jesus.

The group promotes the idea that salvation through Jesus is consistent with Jewish teachings and those who have accepted him are raptured straight into heaven.

The former president’s appearance at the event in Irving, Texas, last week, caused controversy among the mainstream Jewish community.

Rabbi David Wolpe reacted to this in a column called “Why Jews Should Not Accept Jesus – Whatever George W. Bush Thinks.”

“The sudden rise of ‘Messianic Jews’ owes more to a clever way of misleading untutored Jews than to making theological sense. It should not receive the imprimatur of a former President of the United States,” he wrote.

According to the organization’s website, the president was expected to share his passion for setting people free, which was fitting for this year’s theme ‘Rekindle.’

The references to George W. Bush’s schedule appearance were removed from the institute’s site after a reporter for Mother Jones wrote about the fundraiser. Bush made his speech behind closed doors.

The former president is an outspoken Christian who has made his “faith” a priority throughout his eight years in the White House. He was responsible for founding the White House Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives during his presidential term.

Here’s a story about Christian leaders taking a stand on the fatherless family. What do you think?

KIRKLAND, Wash. – In an effort to raise awareness about the fatherlessness epidemic in the United States, both ministry leaders and those who are experiencing the wounds of such a weakened family dynamic, attended the Father-Shift conference in the Seattle area this past weekend.

This is the second Father-Shift conference, which organizers hope will become a movement about addressing the problem of families without fathers and offering solutions. The first event was held in Portland last year, kicked off by Pastor Mark Strong of Life Change Christian Center, who wrote, Church for the Fatherless: A Ministry Model for Society’s Most Pressing Problem. Strong was a speaker at the conference held over the weekend at City Church in Kirkland, Wash.

“I think that the conference is needed greatly at this point in time and juncture for where we are as a country,” conference organizer Ezechiel Bambolo, Jr., author of The Firstborn Son: A curse, a gift, or a Calling, and an elder at Antioch Bible Church in Kirkland, Wash., told The Christian Post.

“We have a message in this culture that sometimes goes out that men are insignificant, not smart enough, not bright enough and you have men asking ‘what is the incentive for me even being a part of my child’s life if our system is setup to give more credibility to the female without asking the real questions about the role of men?'”

As proof of the epidemic nature of the problem, Father-Shift leaders point to data that includes the fact that, in America, 24.7 million children (33 percent) lived in a biological-father-absent home in 2010. More than 20 million lived with no father (biological, adoptive, or step) in the home.

“This means that one out of every three children is growing up without a father present in the home,” Father-Shift states. “The impact of father absenteeism is enormous. The ills range from poverty, crime, esteem issues, education, teen pregnancy to the ability to develop healthy relationships with God and others just to name a few.”

Children are not the only ones impacted by fatherlessness, adults are affected as well. “There are thousands of men and women in our churches and cities that live life daily with the throbbing pain of a father wound,” conference leaders write. “Fatherlessness is an issue that knows no color of boundaries. It is the cause of many of the social problems affecting our society as a whole today.”

The organization believes that the Church has the opportunity “in this hour to minister God’s grace and healing to the hearts of all generations suffering from fatherlessness.”

“The Father-Shift conference seeks to be a tool and a catalyst to spur the church on, unto good works in combating this needy area and problem epidemic in our cities,” say conference leaders.

Bambolo, whose ministry is called The Firstborn Son, told CP that a unique aspect of the conference is that both leaders and those affected by the problem attend the event filled with seminars and resources.

“It gives an opportunity for leaders that have some solutions in this area to literally connect firsthand,” he said. “In the midst of the whole event there were victims. The theme was looking at a variety of ways for people who did not have or never had that father figure and provide them with an opportunity to find relationships with not just people, but with God, how God fills that void.”

“People will need to jump on board [the Father-Shift movement] because the cost of not doing so is far too much to bare. We’ve already seen it in our communities, with gangs and the like,” Bambolo said.

He added, “We are taking our eyes away from marriage as the prominent source for keeping health in our society. We want to get fathers back on board to fight for their family. We can flip this script so easily by getting fathers more engaged and back to point as to how important they are to the home. Not to dominate, but to make sure they are treating their wives and their children the right way.”

A perfect article on how to truly observe Veterans day, by Chuck Colson

Patty and I were having dinner last weekend with some dear friends of ours. We were at a nice restaurant, enjoying a good meal, having a great conversation about all that was going on in the country.

Of course, we talked about the mid-term elections. The American people spoke clearly at the polls: The government has to tighten its belt. Government spending must be cut.

That’s all well and good, I told my friend. But, as I discuss in today’s Two-Minute Warning commentary, which you can find at ColsonCenter.org, I’m not so sure the American people understand the implications of what that really means. What’s going to happen when the American people realize that THEY are the ones who are going to have to make some sacrifices?

That’s exactly the question the staffer of a senator I know asked me recently: Did I think, for example, the country is ready and willing to face cutbacks in Social Security and Medicare?

The answer, as I told my friend at dinner, is that I don’t know if Americans have the intestinal fortitude to make painful sacrifices. What happens when the government cuts school funding, and a program your child participates in gets the axe? What happens when the government recommends that a facility in your community gets eliminated — along with the jobs that go with it?

Do we complain or defend our place at the trough? Do we take to the streets in protest, like the rioters in Athens and Paris? Or do we look around us and see what we can do to make our common life in this country better?

When I finished explaining my thoughts, my friend looked at me across the table and said: “Those are good points, Chuck. But don’t forget: There are men and women today who are fighting for us, and they’re almost off our radar screens. Nobody in this restaurant has even thought about them during dinner.”

He paused. He was right.

“Look, Chuck,” he said, “While we go about our daily lives, while we pursue our self-indulgent lifestyles, our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines are sacrificing their time, safety and sometimes their lives to keep us safe. And nobody ever thinks of them.”

He’s absolutely, 100-percent right.

But … on Veterans Day, we would do well, actually, we would do very well, to remember those men and women and their sacrifices.

But I have another suggestion. Maybe it’s time we sacrificed a little for our veterans and their families. For instance, if your neighbor is a young mother with a husband serving overseas, I hope you’re offering to babysit for her so she can run errands and go to doctor appointments.

Maybe you can hold a fundraiser, as many communities are doing, to buy equipment a wounded warrior needs to make his or her life a bit easier.

Visit or volunteer at a veterans’ home or hospital, and bring holiday gifts.

Do some research. Find veterans organizations that do good work for vets and their families and make a donation.

But most of all, spend a little time getting to know these folks, and you will have a richer appreciation of the sacrifices they have made — sacrifices we all have got to be willing to emulate.

Chuck Colson

A message on how to see people when they don’t meet your expectations.

Many years ago a senior executive of the then Standard Oil Company made a wrong decision that cost the company more than $2 million. John D. Rockefeller was then running the firm. On the day the news leaked out most of the executives of the company were finding various ingenious ways of avoiding Mr. Rockefeller, lest his wrath descend on their heads.

There was one exception, however; he was Edward T. Bedford, a partner in the company. Bedford was scheduled to see Rockefeller that day and he kept the appointment, even though he was prepared to listen to a long harangue against the man who made the error in judgment.

When he entered the office the powerful head of the gigantic Standard Oil empire was bent over his desk busily writing with a pencil on a pad of paper. Bedford stood silently, not wishing to interrupt. After a few minutes Rockefeller looked up.

“Oh, it’s you, Bedford,” he said calmly. “I suppose you’ve heard about our loss?”

Bedford said that he had.

“I’ve been thinking it over,” Rockefeller said, “and before I ask the man in to discuss the matter, I’ve been making some notes.”

Bedford later told the story this way:

“Across the top of the page was written, ‘Points in favor of Mr. _______.’ There followed a long list of the man’s virtues, including a brief description of how he had helped the company make the right decision on three separate occasions that had earned many times the cost of his recent error.

“I will never forgot that lesson. In later years, whenever I was tempted to rip into anyone, I forced myself first to sit down and thoughtfully compile as long a list of good points as I possibly could. Invariably, by the time I finished my inventory, I would see the matter in its true perspective and keep my temper under control. There is no telling how many times this habit has prevented me from committing one of the costliest mistakes any executive can make — losing his temper or misjudging someone.

“I commend it to anyone who must deal with people.”

Biblical verses to support today’s illustration

Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Galatians 6:2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Matthew 7:12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

Colossians 3:12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

A marriage “How-to” article that everyone should read. It’s good for singles as well.

Having been married only a year and a half, I’ve recently come to the conclusion that marriage isn’t for me.

Now before you start making assumptions, keep reading.

I met my wife in high school when we were 15 years old. We were friends for ten years until…until we decided no longer wanted to be just friends. 🙂 I strongly recommend that best friends fall in love. Good times will be had by all.

Nevertheless, falling in love with my best friend did not prevent me from having certain fears and anxieties about getting married. The nearer Kim and I approached the decision to marry, the more I was filled with a paralyzing fear. Was I ready? Was I making the right choice? Was Kim the right person to marry? Would she make me happy?

Then, one fateful night, I shared these thoughts and concerns with my dad.

Perhaps each of us have moments in our lives when it feels like time slows down or the air becomes still and everything around us seems to draw in, marking that moment as one we will never forget.

My dad giving his response to my concerns was such a moment for me. With a knowing smile he said, “Seth, you’re being totally selfish. So I’m going to make this really simple: marriage isn’t for you. You don’t marry to make yourself happy, you marry to make someone else happy. More than that, your marriage isn’t for yourself, you’re marrying for a family. Not just for the in-laws and all of that nonsense, but for your future children. Who do you want to help you raise them? Who do you want to influence them? Marriage isn’t for you. It’s not about you. Marriage is about the person you married.”

It was in that very moment that I knew that Kim was the right person person to marry. I realized that I wanted to make her happy; to see her smile every day, to make her laugh every day. I wanted to be a part of her family, and my family wanted her to be a part of ours. And thinking back on all the times I had seen her play with my nieces, I knew that she was the one with whom I wanted to build our own family.

My father’s advice was both shocking and revelatory. It went against the grain of today’s “Walmart philosophy”, which is if it doesn’t make you happy, you can take it back and get a new one.

No, a true marriage (and true love) is never about you. It’s about the person you love—their wants, their needs, their hopes, and their dreams. Selfishness demands, “What’s in it for me?”, while Love asks, “What can I give?”

Some time ago, my wife showed me what it means to love selflessly. For many months, my heart had been hardening with a mixture of fear and resentment. Then, after the pressure had built up to where neither of us could stand it, emotions erupted. I was callous. I was selfish.

But instead of matching my selfishness, Kim did something beyond wonderful—she showed an outpouring of love. Laying aside all of the pain and aguish I had caused her, she lovingly took me in her arms and soothed my soul.

Marriage is about family.

I realized that I had forgotten my dad’s advice. While Kim’s side of the marriage had been to love me, my side of the marriage had become all about me. This awful realization brought me to tears, and I promised my wife that I would try to be better.

To all who are reading this article—married, almost married, single, or even the sworn bachelor or bachelorette—I want you to know that marriage isn’t for you. No true relationship of love is for you. Love is about the person you love.

And, paradoxically, the more you truly love that person, the more love you receive. And not just from your significant other, but from their friends and their family and thousands of others you never would have met had your love remained self-centered.

Truly, love and marriage isn’t for you. It’s for others.

I cannot find the author of this article. but they should be given an award…..

What we can learn from a scorpion….this is a tale we can all relate to

An old man saw a scorpion drowning and decided to pull it out from the water. He calmly extended his hand to reach the creature.

When he did, the scorpion stung him. With the effect of the pain, the old man let go the creature and it fell back into the water. The man realizing that the scorpion was drowning again, got back and tried to rescue it but then again it stung him. He let go of it again.

A young boy standing by, approached the old man and said, “Excuse me Sir, you are going to hurt yourself trying to save the evil-vicious creature, why do you insist? Don’t you realize that each time you try to help the scorpion, it stings you?”

The man replied, “The nature of the scorpion is to sting and mine is to help. My nature will not change in helping the scorpion.”

So the man thought for a while and used a leaf from a nearby tree and pulled the scorpion out from the water and saved its life.

MORAL LESSON:

Do not change your nature. If someone hurts you, just take precautions. Some pursue happiness while others create it. Let your conscience be your guide in whatever you do.

Verses on forgiveness and helping those who hurt you

Ephesians 4:32 ESV / 489 helpful votes

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Matthew 6:14-15 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Luke 6:37 “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;

Colossians 3:13 Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.

Mark 11:25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”

Wow, fighting crime with Christianity…sounds good? Some think not. Must read.

A prominent atheist organization states that it plans to sue an Alabama city that was recently in headlines surrounding the launch of a new program that unites area pastors and police in reaching the hurting in the community.

As previously reported, this past summer, the Montgomery Police Department launched Operation Good Shepherd in response to the city’s high homicide rate, as Montgomery fears being on the path to becoming one of the most violent cities per capita in America. According to WSFA, the outreach program was modeled after the Police and Clergy Working Together (PACT) program in Dayton, Ohio.

“[F]aith leaders attend weekly classes in which police teach them ways they can discourage crime and show them exactly what’s happening in their communities,” the outlet explained.

Pastors are to accompany police at crime scenes, as well counsel and pray with those present, and attend monthly meetings to discuss areas of concern in regard to criminal activity in the city. Police training includes gang awareness and how to spot illegal drug activity.

Nearly 40 area clergy have completed the training, which were all recognized during a recent ceremony at Montgomery City Hall. Police chief Kevin Murphy issued diplomas to the pastors as their names were called.

“They’re going to make a difference, and they’re going to help everyone in their time of need see that change can be made,” Corporal David Hicks told those gathered.

However, once the group American Atheists of Cranford, New Jersey learned of the matter, it sent a letter to city officials demanding that they dissolve the new program.

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“[A]ny plan by public officials to engage in a scheme to promote Christianity using public funds and public officials is blatantly and facially unconstitutional under the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which states, ‘Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,’” the correspondence asserted.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) also sent a letter to city leaders, advising that residents in the state had complained about the effort. The Alabama chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has requested records surrounding the program before it formulates an opinion.

“If we sue, which we will, it will end up costing the state of Alabama thousands of dollars or hundreds of thousands of dollars,” American Atheists attorney Edwin Kagan told AL.com.

He asserts that the law enforcement program is actually against the law itself.

But Public Safety Director Chis Murphy told the publication that some misunderstand the intent of the program.

“The purpose is crime prevention, not religious recruitment,” he stated.

“We took careful strides when we first organized this to make sure it was broad-based and not just Christian,” Murphy added to the Montgomery Advisor.

He noted that the city also spoke with Jewish and Muslim communities while developing the crime-fighting initiative.

Murphy also says that he discussed the matter with the Montgomery mayor and police chief—along with the city attorney—and that Operation Good Shepherd will move forward. The city plans to draft a response to all concerned parties, but American Atheists has said it would sue if the program is not disbanded.

“This is the sector (the clergy) that raised their hands and said they wanted to help,” Montgomery public safety spokesperson Martha Earnhardt told reporters. “Lots of people have responded and that’s the key to crime prevention.”

 

Story from Christian news.

Where is the world going? Read below.

I have always been proud of my militart service and what I did but as I read more and more stories like the one below from CBN, I am becoming very concerned.

 

CBN News Story

Soldiers at a pre-deployment briefing at Fort Hood say they were told evangelical Christians and Tea Party members were a threat to the nation, according to FOX News.

According to FOX journalist Todd Starnes, another soldier attending the briefing says they were told groups like the American Family Association were “tearing the country apart.”

The soldiers were also reportedly told donating to such groups could lead to punishment under military code because some of them had been classified as hate groups.

The Liberty Institute attorney Michael Berry, who is advising one of the soldiers, called the statements naming Christians as domestic enemies a “serious charge.”

“The American public should be outraged that the U.S. Army is teaching our troops that evangelical Christians and Tea Party members are enemies of America, and that they can be punished for supporting or participating in those groups,” he said.

Berry, a former Marine Corps JAG officer, has launched an investigation into the allegations.