Quote of the Week #10

"Yes, God can use cracked vessels!" ---Joyce Meyer

Although many times I don't watch the big time T.V. evangelists such as Joel Osteen or Joyce Meyer, sometimes they have some good little tidbits of knowledge to say. Ms. Meyer relates the following story:

A water bearer in India had two large pots hanging at the ends of a pole that he carried across his neck. One of the pots was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house. The other pot had a crack in it, and by the time it reached its destination, it was only half full. Every day for two years the water bearer delivered only one and one-half pots of water to the master's house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments—perfect to the end for which it was made. The poor little cracked pot was ashamed of its imperfections and miserable that it could accomplish only half of what it had been designed to do. After two years of what the imperfect pot perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer and said, "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you."

"Why?" asked the bearer, "What are you ashamed of?"

"Well, for these past two years, I have been able to deliver only half a load of water each day because this crack in my side allows water to leak out all the way back to the master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all this work without getting the full value of your efforts," the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path." Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot noticed the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because half of its load had leaked out once again.

Then the bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of the path and not on the other pot's side? That's because I've always known about your flaw and took advantage of it by planting flower seeds on your side of the path. Every day as we walked back from the stream, you watered those seeds, and for two years I have picked these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just what you are, he would not have had this beauty to grace his house." So you see, even with warts and all, we need to stay positive and keep praying for opportunities for God to use us!

Some Funny Church signs...

"Take what you need as the offering is passed."

A church in Argyle, Texas came up with a very unique way to increase their tithes and help people out in the process. They adopted a rule that anyone who was struggling financially could take what they need from the offering plate. The church has since seen their titheing triple, and they have been able to give according to some estimates over a half-million dollars to charities and help people with basic expenses and the like. Kudos to Pastor Toby Slough of Cross Timbers Community Church for his out-of-box (and biblical!) idea of giving!

"Mr. Vandal, Jesus loves you too."

***Jesus and the woman at the well***


A Church in Keene, New Hampshire was recently very badly vandalized with several anarchist and atheist statements spray painted all over the building. Needless to say, the building was very badly defaced. The intial reaction of the pastor of the church and the parishioners was one of anger, however, they have now displayed Christ-like character in that they responded to this terrible act of vandalism by posted a message on their billboard to the passing motorists. The message simply reads: "Mr. Vandal, Jesus loves you too."

Quote of the week #9

"Don't dwell on what you can't do, dwell on what you can do!" ---Author Unknown.

A very wise individual once told me that in any situation, we can always dwell on one of two things: we can dwell on what we cannot do, or we can dwell on what we can do. The ball is in my court; it is my choice. Personally, I now choose to dwell on what can be done instead of what cannot be done. Now, on to the question that many of you reading most likely have: what does the picture I have chosen above have to do with the quote I have? Well, instead of dwelling on the bad things of the world, you can love people, you can accept people, you can treat people as God treats them, as one of His creation that He loves and sent His Son for. Can't go on a missions trip? Pray for those that do go. Can't be the next Martin Luther King or Gandhi? Be the next Martin Luther King or Gandhi in your neighborhood. Can't be a deacon in your church? Be something smaller, such as volunteering to handle the janitorial work, and then move up. Focus on what you can do, instead of what can't.

"My Bible Tells Me So!"

*Mount of Olives in Jerusalem*


NOTE: I originally read a version of this story in the book Share Jesus Without Fear by William Fay.

If you had met Nate, you would swear that he was one of the most cynical, bitter, and atheistic individuals to ever walk the face of the earth. He had absolutely no interest in the subject of religion. Nate even bashed people of faith for fun. He regularly mocked Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, and even Christians. Yes, Nate was indeed a hard case. He was also highly intelligent. He had scored in the upper percentile of all of the intelligence tests, could read 1,250 a minute with total recall, and even scored one of the highest scores on the Mensa test, a test for geniuses.

Now, Nate was in the armed services and was riding a bus with another man named John, who was a Blackfoot Indian with only a 12th grade education. The other soldiers kept on throwing John's Bible out of the bus to tease him. Each time, John would patiently get out of the bus and retrieve it without saying a word. Finally, Nate could stand it no longer and he said to John, "Why do you let those clowns do that stuff to you?"

John replied, "Sir, I am a Christian."

Nate decided to challenge this simple man of faith and so he asked him almost laughingly, "Do you mean to tell me that you actually believe that a man was vomited out of a whale?"

John replied, "Yes, sir, I do."

"Why?" Nate asked.

"My Bible tells me so," John replied. The conversation went on for a long time, and every challenge that Nate gave John was answered in the same way: "My Bible tells me so." As hard as Nate's higly intelligent mind tried, he could not shake John's faith, and this bothered very deeply.

That night he decided to borrow a Bible from a neighbor. The verse Job 5:9: "He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, and miracles that cannot be owned" was stuck in his mind. "Nate could not ignore this truth," William Fay writes, "and it tranformed his life. Now he is one of the strongest defenders of the Christian faith that I know. And it was all because John, a simple man of faith with only a 12th grade education, believed the verse 'Not by might, not by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord (Zechariah 4:6)'''

Imagine how great our God is when He can use a Blackfoot Native American with only a 12th grade education to help convert a man who scored so high on the Mensa test that he even found an error on the test itself!

Chaplain Testimony

Perhaps one of the biggest unsung heroes in the midst of our American troops on this 4th of July is the Army Chaplain. Many of these men and women not only provide spiritual support, but are also on the front lines as often as others. On this 4th of July, I will share the testimony of one such Army Chaplain.

Christian quotes from early politicians, including Founding Fathers

There's been a lot of debate over the last several years about whether the Founding Fathers and other early politicians were really Christians or not. There are many who say that they were atheists, many that say they were deists, and many who say that indeed, yes, they were Christians. Well, the answer to this question is that we don't really know. Only God knows the heart of these great men and (yes) the women that also helped them behind the scenes. What we do know from their writings is that most of these men did have a strong belief in God or some higher power of that nature. As promised, here are some quotes from them on this 233rd 4th of July:

George Washington
1st U.S. President

"While we are zealously performing the duties of good citizens and soldiers, we certainly ought not to be inattentive to the higher duties of religion. To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian."

John Adams
2nd U.S. President and Signer of the Declaration of Independence

"Suppose a nation in some distant Region should take the Bible for their only law Book, and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited! Every member would be obliged in conscience, to temperance, frugality, and industry; to justice, kindness, and charity towards his fellow men; and to piety, love, and reverence toward Almighty God ... What a Eutopia, what a Paradise would this region be."

"The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God."
--Adams wrote this on June 28, 1813, in a letter to Thomas Jefferson

"The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever."
--Adams wrote this in a letter to his wife, Abigail, on July 3, 1776.

Thomas Jefferson
3rd U.S. President, Drafter and Signer of the Declaration of Independence

"I am a real Christian – that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus Christ."

Benjamin Franklin
Signer of the Declaration of Independence and Unites States Constitution
"Here is my Creed. I believe in one God, the Creator of the Universe. That He governs it by His Providence. That He ought to be worshipped.

That the most acceptable service we render to him is in doing good to his other children. That the soul of man is immortal, and will be treated with justice in another life respecting its conduct in this. These I take to be the fundamental points in all sound religion, and I regard them as you do in whatever sect I meet with them.

As to Jesus of Nazareth, my opinion of whom you particularly desire, I think the system of morals and his religion, as he left them to us, is the best the world ever saw, or is likely to see;

But I apprehend it has received various corrupting changes, and I have, with most of the present dissenters in England, some doubts as to his divinity; though it is a question I do not dogmatize upon, having never studied it, and think it needless to busy myself with it now, when I expect soon an opportunity of knowing the truth with less trouble. I see no harm, however, in its being believed, if that belief has the good consequence, as probably it has, of making his doctrines more respected and more observed; especially as I do not perceive, that the Supreme takes it amiss, by distinguishing the unbelievers in his government of the world with any peculiar marks of his displeasure."
--Benjamin Franklin wrote this in a letter to Ezra Stiles, President of Yale University on March 9, 1790.

James Madison
4th U.S. President

"Cursed be all that learning that is contrary to the cross of Christ."

There are a lot more quotes and they can be found at http://christianity.about.com/od/independenceday/a/foundingfathers.htm

Happy 4th of July weekend everybody!

Here's a goofy picture of my wife I took this afternoon that has absolutely nothing to do with the 4th of July ;-) but seriously, folks, have a safe 4th of July weekend. I'll probably post some founding fathers quotes in a couple of days so stay posted!

We Could Learn a Lot From....

Albert Pujols
---------------



Perhaps you have heard of the man in this picture. His name is Albert Pujols, and he plays first base for the St. Louis Cardinals Major League baseball team. He is a very prolific hitter, having become the fifth youngest player to reach the 300 home run milestone at the ripe old age of 28 years, 170 days. He has achieved a lot already in his brief career. However, the most important thing is not how large (and it is!) his trophy case is; the most important thing is that Mr. Pujols is also a committed Christian believer. Pujols shares how his then-girlfriend, Diedre, helped him to become a believer: "Growing up in the Dominican Republic, I lived to play baseball. My wife Diedre, who was my girlfriend at the time, shared with me how much I needed Jesus. I realized I needed more than just religion. I needed a Savior. I needed Jesus to save me." On November 13, 1998 Albert Pujols became a believer in Jesus Christ. Now, Pujols' life goal is not just to hit 700 home runs, although he just might (God willing, of course). His goal is to glorify Jesus! You can read more about his testimony and the good works that he is doing in the name of Christ at http://www.pujolsfamilyfoundation.org/faith.htm!

God Story #7

Sometimes people, including myself in the past, fall away from God. They do so for a variety of reasons. Perhaps they feel they don't need God, perhaps they are bitter from a bad church experience, or perhaps they are caught up in their career or another area in their life. This next God story is more of the divine intervention variety once again and, if you pay close attention to the ending of the story, will illustrate the lengths that God can and will go to at times to bring you back into a relationship with Him.

Mrs. Kathy Shields
Innkeeper

“I have always believed in God but had reached a point in my life where I didn’t feel I needed to go to church anymore, didn’t need God’s guidance to be a good wife and mother.”


“One day, my son asked, “Mom, can Mark come over to play after school today?” Without hesitation, I responded: “You know Alex, having someone come over to play really is a big responsibility.” I could not believe my own ears. Why would I say such a thing? I loved to have my son’s friends over to play. Again, my son asked, “Mom, can Mark come over to play? This time I said: “Yes my darling of course you can have Mark come over to play this afternoon.” And then he asked: “Mom, can you bring Mark home today after we play? I, without hesitation, responded. “You know Alex, bringing children home after school is a tremendous responsibility.” I was temporarily aghast at my response. Frustrated by my own words, I came to my senses and said, “Yes my darling of course I will.”

Mark and Alex had a wonderful afternoon playing together but when it was time for Mark to go home, I hesitated and questioned whether I might leave my children alone while I took Mark home. It was an absurd thought and one I had never entertained before, leaving my children alone. And so I packed them all into the car.

As I turned on to the main road, a voice – the same voice that had been talking to me all day, yelled at me, “Slow down now!” I immediately took my foot off the accelerator and looked up. Two cars were drag racing and were headed straight for us. If I turned left, the four of us would die instantly. So instead I swerved right and, I don’t know how, but we landed between a telephone pole and a road sign and narrowly escaped a collision with the racing cars.

For many months after the near-accident I was baffled. Over and over again, I went to the scene and re-enacted what happened from the point I saw the cars coming. How did I know I was in danger? How did my car get to the side of the road without a collision? And then there was the most baffling question: How did I see the cars coming in enough time to save us? It actually wasn’t possible because the cars had been coming around a double curve. If I hadn’t had an advance warning, we would have collided, head-on, with both of them.

I feel God saved me that day. It was his way of saying I need you back and I want you to have faith that I will be with you always.”

Freezing birds outside of the Barn

This very interesting story, origins unknown, appears in The Art of Personal Evangelism by Will McRaney Jr.

This is about a modern man, one of us. He was not a Scrooge. He was a kind, decent, mostly good man. He was generous to his family, upright in his dealings; but unfortunately he did not believe in all of that Jesus incarnation stuff that churches proclaim at Christmas time. It just didn't make sense, and he was too honest to pretend otherwise.He just could not swallow the Jesus story and God coming to Earth as a man. "I am truly sorry to distress you," he told his wife, "but I am not going with you to church with you this Christmas eve." He said he would feel like a hypocrite, so he stayed, and they went. Shortly after the family drove away, snow began to fall. He went to the window to watch the flurries getting heavier and heavier as time went on. After going back to his fireside chair to read the newspaper he heard a thudding sound, then another, then another still. When he went to the front door to investigate, he found a flock of birds miserably in the snow. They had been caught in the snow and in a desperate search for shelter had tried to fly through his large living room window. He had compassion for them and he couldn't just let the birds lie there and freeze to death.

He remembered the barn where his children always stabled their pony that could provide a warm shelter if he could just direct the birds into it. He quickly put on his coat and galoshes and tramped through the snow to where the birds were. He opened the doors to his barn wide and turned on a light, but the birds did not come in. Heading back to the house, he decided to fetch some bread crumbs figuring that the yellow trail would entice them in. Unfortunately, that still didn't work either. He tried catching them. He tried shooing them into the barn by waving his arms. He tried everything he could think of, but instead of going into the barn they just scattered in every direction. Then, he realized something: They were scared of him. "To them," he reasoned, "I am a strange and terrifying creature. If only I could think of some way to let them know they can trust me, that I'm not trying to hurt them, I'm trying to help them." How? Any move he made tended to frighten them, confuse them. They just would not follow. They would not be led or shooed because they feaed him. If I could mingle with them, he thought, and speak their language and tell them not to be afraid and show them the way to the safe, warm barn. But I'd have to be one of them so they could see and hear and understand. If only I could be a bird myself. Just then, the church bells began to ring. The sound reached his ears above the sounds of the wind. He stood there listening to the bells playing "Adeste Fidelis," pealing the glad tidings of Christmas. And he sank to his knees in the snow. At last, he understood God's heart towards mankind, and he fell on his knees in the snow. He had come to know the One who became one of us just to save us.

That is what Christ did for us, my friends. Just like if this man would have been allowed to become a bird, Jesus bore the sorrows, suffering, and griefs of the human condition as he walked on this earth. But God understood our need and took action. He did it for you and for me. He became one of us on this earth!

Rules for Home, but also Rules for Life

This interesting sign has hung on my mother's refrigerator for almost a year now and most of the time we just open it up without even looking at it. However, most of these little sayings on here are not just rules for home but rules for life as well. These are the qualities that I want to embody not just as a future pastor but also as a person period. Unfortunately, like everyone else I blow it every day. But we have many good role models in the Bible, including Christ Jesus himself.

The Atheist and the Chief from Fiji

K.P. Yohannan, in his book Revolution in World Missions, relates an interesting story about the Island of Fiji when it was just opened up for trade with the local tribespeople some time ago. A merchant who was a hardened atheist and skeptic came through one day and was talking to one of the local tribal chiefs and was in his hut. Noticing that the chief had a bible and some other religious materials around his house he commented that "it's a shame that these missionaries are over here preaching all of this nonsense. I feel bad for you." The chief looked at him and pointed to a large rock outside. "Do you see that rock?" he said. "We used to use that rock to smash people's heads in to get at their brains." Gesturing to the stove, he said, "We used to use that stove to bake the bodies of people and then feast on them...so, if it weren't for the 'nonsense' of these missionaries as you call it, I can assure you that right about now your head would be smashed in and you would be baking in that stove for our feast." Such is the wonder of God that even a hardened Fijan tribal chief can go from being a murderer and cannibal to a man of peace!

Quote of the Week #9

If you could summarize your life goal in one sentence, what would it be? -K.P Yohannan

During the last couple of months that I have been maintaining this blog, I have literally looked at thousands of other blogs. There literally are blog started by people for everything under the sun, from blogs about sports teams to blogs about popular culture to countless blogs about people's families. Each blog that I come across appears to have a specific purpose in mind: some are to entertain, some, to show off the art work that people do, and still some are simply showing off what people are proud of---their families. Just like blogs have a specific purpose, your life should have a specific purpose. The originator of the above quote, K.P. Yohannan, has had a very interesting life. Beginning with very humble beginnings in a remote village in India, he has literally went all over the world preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ to people. He has been very successful at it in part because he summed up in one sentence what he wanted his life mission to be: to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Now, your life mission may not be that noble, and that's okay. But I have some followers who are doing very interesting things that could be summed up in their life missions. Ivan, who is one of my followers, likes to help people through giving them advice on the stock market. It doesn't matter what it is, as long as it helps people, provides a community service, or is useful in some fashion!

God Story #6

Although I don't normally post about the Catholic believers in our Christian religion, St. Isaac Jogues was truly an individual who was dedicated to serving and helping others for the cause of Christianity. Trained as a Jesuit Priest in the early 1600's, St. Isaac was sent to New France in 1636 in what is now Michigan and Minnesota in the United States to minister to the Native Americans there. Unfortunately, Jogues faced many setbacks, trials, and tribulations in his brief ministry to these Indians. In 1642, while on his way by canoe to the country of the Hurons, Jogues was captured by a war party of Mohawk Iroquois, in the company of Guillaume Couture, René Goupil, and several Huron Christians. They were taken back to the Mohawk village where they were gruesomely tortured. It was during this torture that several of Jogues' fingers were cut off by this captors. Jogues survived this torment and went on to live as a slave among the Mohawks for some time, and what is even more admirable about him is that he even attempted to teach his captors the basics of Christianity. Eventually, with the help of some Dutch merchants passing through, he was able to make it to Manhattan and then back to France in 1644. As a "living martyr," Jogues was given a special permission by Pope Urban VIII to say Holy Mass with his mutilated hands, as the Eucharist could not be touched with any fingers but the thumb and forefinger. Yet the missionary of this great man was not dimmed by the unfortunate treatment he received from the Mohawks. Within a few months, he was on his way back to Canada in 1645 to resume ministering to them. After arriving there, a tentative peace was reached, and his ministry continued even he was finally martyred a year later in late 1646. Would to God that there would be more dedicated men and women that even after having their fingers cut off would still have a heart for helping foreign people in a foreign land! There is a statue in Auriesville, NY showing this man teaching two young children, shown here:

Rare Book (joke)

I came across this joke and I thought it was priceless! So I'll share with you all on here!



A collector of rare books ran into an acquaintance who told him he had just thrown away an old Bible that he found in a dusty, old box. He happened to mention that Guten-somebody-or-other had printed it.

"Not Gutenberg?" Gasped the collector.

"Yes, that was it!""You idiot! You've thrown away one of the first books ever printed. A copy recently sold at an auction for half a million dollars!"

"Oh, I don't think this book would have been worth anything close to that much," replied the man. "It was scribbled all over in the margins by some guy named Martin Luther."

A selective mute child at the Orlando Magic game...

Sometimes miracles can happen in the most unusual places. An NBA basketball game in April is not the first place a person would think of for something really important and significant to happen, but in this case it did. By all accounts Ryan Rodriguez is now your average 4 year-old child, chattering away and playing, but that wasn't always the case. You see, young Ryan was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder called Selective Mutism, and for the great majority of his first four years of life he would only say maybe one or two words at a time, even while all of the other preschoolers would chat away. Thankfully, that all changed one day while he and his father Izzy were watching an Orlando Magic game. "He sat there and kept going, 'Me, me, play, play," Izzy Rodriguez told "Good Morning America. "So I turn around and I do crazy things." Those crazy things were spending the 641.00 for two tickets to the next Orlando Magic game. Although it was either that or pay the mortgage, he knew that his son was more important and they usually "don't yell at you until after 30 days anyway." So this man, who with his meager auto mechanic salary has supported expensive speech therapy for his son, decided to go the next Orlando Magic game. When they got there and began getting settled in, something remarkable happened. "When we get there, he says, 'Me, play basketball, here?'" Rodriguez said. "So I look down and dropped to my knees and said 'What did you say?' He said, 'Me play basketball here?' I said, Yeah." After that little exchange between father and son that many take for so granted, the floodgates were opened and the little boy who before would only say one word at a time and NEVER say anything to his peers was talking almost non-stop through the whole game. "I'm thinking, OK, I'm dreaming. Or something happened, or maybe this is what he needed. [He] talked to me all the way home," Rodriguez said. "I talked to Karen on the cell phone crying all the way home." After the game, Izzy sent an email to the Orlando Magic staff telling them about his son. They were so impressed that they decided to buy him and his family tickets for the rest of the season and the one after that. Thanks be to God, The Orlando Magic, and this wonderful parent for helping this young boy come out of his shell and start communicating!

Interview with an Ex-Satanist

This is a pretty interesting youtube video...this man was a former satanist who is now discussing what it was like for him to live in that worldview. He is now a born-again Christian.

I'm 29 today...

Happy birthday to me!