May it HURRY up and come!!!

A sobbing little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it "was too crowded"."I can't go to Sunday School," she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by. Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, the pastor guessed the reason and taking her by the hand, took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday School class. The child was so touched that she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus.

Some two years later, this child lay dead in one of the poor tenement buildings and the parents called for the kind-hearted pastor who had befriended their daughter to handle the final arrangements. As her poor little was being moved, a worn and rumpled purse was found which seemed to have been rummaged from some trash dump. In it was found 57 cents and a note scribble in childish handwriting which read:"This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School."

For two years she had saved for this offering of love. When the pastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do. Carrying this note and the cracked, red poketbook to the pulpit, he told the story of her unselfish love and devotion. He challenged his deacons to get busy and raise enough money for the larger building. But the story does not end there!

A newspaper learned of the story and published it. It was read by a Realtor who offered them a parcel of land worth many thousands.When told that the church could not pay so much, he offered it for a 57 cent payment.

Church members made large subscriptions. Checks came from far and wide. Within five years the little girl's gift had increased to $250,000.00-a hugh sum for that time (near the turn of the century). Her unselfish love paid large dividends.

When and if you are in the city of Philadelphia,Pa., look up Temple Baptist Church, with seating capacity of 3,300, and Temple University, where hundreds of students are trained. Have a look, too, at the Good Samaritan Hospital and at the Sunday School building which houses hundreds of Sunday scholars, so that no child in the area will ever need to be left outside at Sunday School time.

In one of the rooms of this building may be seen the picture of the sweet face of the little girl whose 57 cents, so sacrifically saved, made such remarkable history. Alongside of it is a portrait of her kind pastor, Dr. Russel H. Conwell, author of the book,"Acres of Diamomds."


                              A true story.

And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness than light, because their deeds were evil.

  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest hid deeds should be exposed. (John 3:19 NKJV).

We often think that if we could perform a miracle for somebody they would certainly believe in Jesus Christ. We have friends or family or coworkers who seem skeptical. And we think, If I could only perform one miracle, I know they would believe. But to be honest with you, I'm not so sure they would. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus Christ, witnessed many miracles. He saw Jesus heal the blind, deaf, and lame. Before his very eyes, Christ dramatically healed lepers and even raised a man named Lazarus from the dead. Judas stood in the presence of Jesus as He calmed angry storms  and defied natural law walking on water. But still he did not believe. In the end, this supposed friend and follower of Christ, who witnessed miracle after miracle, turned out to be a fraud and betrayed the Lord.

People do not necessarily need to see a miracle in order to believe in Christ. Jesus provided us the real reason why people do not believe when he proclaimed,

And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved drakness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. (John 3:19)

A person can say, "I don't believe, because I"m not convinced." But in reality, the core reason why most people reject the Lord is that they love darkness rather than the Light of God.

I believe there should be some reworded federal guide lines , so the states can not wander like "lost sheep". Don't let there be 50 different state laws.

Thank you very much!!!

If I were to be gone let's say for a week or two and I came back and there was a stack unpaid bills in my mailbox and I were to let them go unpaid(which I don't), the debt would just accumulate until, sooner or later, I would be forced to pay what I owe.

On an entirely different front, America is not meeting its obligations. It is drowning in an ocean of ignored, unpaid bills. Congress has no power to pay this bebt; these bills are spiritual. Call in the American church's "national debt";the mushrooming unchurched U.S. population that the Spirit-filled church has mostly ignored.

Our church leaders have repeatedly made us aware that we have rapidly become a nation of unchurched people.Even in many Bible Belt communities the influence of Christanity is in marked decline. The "bills" are stacking up.

Sooner or later we must pay this growing debt. Why? Because reaching the unchurched and lost people in America is the responsibility of every single follower of Jesus Christ in this country. Period.

Before discusiing how we can address this burgeoning spiritual debt-load, let's look at two factors that are adding to it.
1.We have turned away from the harvest. People in our country have become devalued not only by society but by the church as well. When we talk of receiving a harvest, our thoughts often race to material blessings (yes, hallelujah, God does bless us this way). But Jesus also speaks of harvest in terms of people exiting darkness and entering the kingdom of God.
2. Our focus isn't on the main thing. We often substitute prayer for action. Prayer is incredibly vital, but to pray only and not act is pure laziness (see Ex.14:15;Matt.9:38).

Ever heard of the church's "MapQuest trap"? That's what I call it when we must map out and identify spiritual strongholds as a prerequisite to evangelism. Try telling Philip that was necessary after his preaching experience in Samaria (see Acts8:5-7).

What about our tendency to "tarry" until all the fivefold ministry gifts are lined up? While preachers try to figure who they are and what they are supposed to do, who is obeying the Great Commission? Are we supposed to procrastinate about that? Why is it that gatherings of apostles, prophets, pastors and teachers rarely include evangelists?

As believers, we Spiritfilled, Christians are the most exuberant at expressing our faith. We are also the most easily distracted and gullible-how often we fall prey to subtle spins on ginuine Christian practice!

When it comes to taking the gospel to the unsaved, we're like people who run everywhere or vacation all the time-doing anything to avoid taking care of their obligations. We must understand that America's unchurched are the unpaid spiritual bills we must pay.

Now let's discuss a few ways to address this spiritual debt.

1. Take responsibility. Become accountable to the Great Commission. Have you ever been with a group pf people at a restaurant when the check arrives at the table and everyone ignores it? Let's you and I reach out and pick up the tab.

2.Cry out to God. Get down on your face and pray. Repent if you need to, but pray in faith. Believe that God wants you to pray this way and know He is listening. By faith, see both the action and the answer,but also be ready to be an answer to your own prayers to reach the unsaved. Jesus said:"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, belieeve that you have received it, and it will be yours" (Mark 11:24, NIV).

3.See the harvest.Wake up to the fact that the possibilities of reaching people abound even more during times of adversity. The time is not coming, it is here.

4.Just do it! Gird up your mind and get the information you need to become one who reaches the lost. Change whatever you have to so you can expedite paying the "bills"! God has provided every heavenly rescource we need to pay these unpaid bills. Let's go and do it!

Look at all the MORAL issues and where he stands on them.



 

You see, I really enjoyed that because I am a cajun.


 

Does it make any difference what we believe? Yes, because what we hold to be true affects every area of our life. Unless we clearly understand what our convictions are and why we embrace them, we will waver in our faith and poorly represent Christ to others. The problem is, most people have only a vague idea about their beliefs. It's wise to consider foundational truths that govern our Christian thinking and lifestyles.

A good place to start is with the Bible, God's unfolding revelation of Himself. Second Timothy 3:16 tells us every part of the holy book is inspired, or "God-breathed." This means that God chose certain individuals according to their beckground, their spirituality, and the messafe He wanted to convey at a particular time in history. Then He gave them every idea and recollection He wanted included; the human authors in turn wrote down what they had received.

In light of the fact that men were involved in the writing process, it is understandable that people question the Bible's reliability. Yet it is perfectly trustworthy and accurate because God was doing the speaking and the overseeing. He also made sure there would be substantiating evidence. You have undoubtedly heard about the discovery of numerous ancient scrolls-despite their age, nothing in them has contradicted a single doctrinal point in the Bibles we use today.

When you pick up a Bible, realize what you hold in your hand. It isn't merely ink on paper-it is the living Word of God, which He lovingly gave mankind so that we would grow in our relationship to Him.

I have been close to where you are at right now. The poems are great , but here is what you must do. Read the following:
A Full & Meaningful Life-
God Loves You
1 John 4:9
1 John 5:11
Life is Abundant
John 10:10
Life is Everlasting
John 3:16
This Life is Made Possible By Christ's Death and Resurrection.
Romans 5:8
Romans 4:25
This full & meaningful life includes....Forgiveness of sin
Ephesians 1:7
Fellowship in the family of God
Romans 8:17
Strength for daily living.
Philippians 4:19
You Enter This Life Through A Spiritual Birth
John 3:1-8

The spiritual birth is.......
James 2:19
Ephesians 2:8-9

Spiritual brith takes place when you turn your life over to Jesus Christ.

Failure To Turn Yourself Over To Jesus Christ Is Sin.....
John 3:18
Romans 5:12

Sin is called many things-missing the mark, rebelling, living independently of God. Sin is being or doing wrong against God, others, or yourself. You can sin in your thoughts as well as your actions.

The greatest sin is failure to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. Apart from Jesus Christ you are seperated from God, and cannot have eternal life.
Romans 6:23

This Life Becomes Yours When You Turn From Sin And Accept Christ As Your Lord And Saviour.
John 1:12

Admit that you need Christ-that you are a sinner and that you cannot save yourself.

Be willing to turn from your sins>
Acts 3:19

Ask Jesus Christ to forgive your sins and take control of your life.
Romans 10:9-10

You become a Christian and possess this full and meaningful life at the moment when by faith you turn to God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

You see, the choice is yours.

God offers you this full and meaningful life now.
II Corinthians 6:2

Is there any reason why you cannot accept his offer now?

Say this pray and mean it and ; find you a church to go to that you think is spiritual; contineously study the Bible for answer to your questions and problems. I promise that if you look hard enough that you will find answers for everythinf under the sun.

Pray-
Dear Lord, I know I have done wrong and need forgiveness. Thank you for dying on that cross for my sins and for offering me eternal life. Please forgive my sins and help me to turn from them. I now confess you as my Lord and receive you as my Savior. Take control of my life and make it full and meaningful. In Jesus name. Amen

Do this with full meaning and things will start to become different in your life. If you need help finding someone to talk to in your area, let me know and I will help you on that.

I am born again for 40 some odd years, but have done some backsliding. Rededicated my life about a year ago. Want to get in evangelist field and work with convicts and ex-convicts. I am one myself. Hope that I can contribute and also gain from this forum.