sin of the desert

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Romans 10:17

I have a good friend who was visiting Israel some time ago, and he came upon a Bedouin shepherd out in the desert. He struck up a conversation with him, which led to talking with him about Jesus Christ. So he shared the Gospel.

At some point during the conversation, the Bedouin said, “I see… you’re keeping yourself from committing the sin of the desert.”

“What’s the sin of the desert?” my friend replied.

“The sin of the desert is the sin of silence. It’s knowing where there is water and not telling anyone else where it is!”

When it comes to salvation in Jesus Christ, this is where so many Christians fall into the trap of lying… by knowing where life can be found yet choosing to remain silent. They don’t tell others that they can be saved through Jesus Christ!

Be most careful of this cowardly lie. Don’t allow your friends and loved ones to enter eternity without hearing of the saving power of faith in Jesus Christ!
 

DON’T COMMIT THE SIN OF SILENCE. TELL OTHERS HOW THEY CAN FIND LIFE BY PLACING THEIR FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST.

(Copied from PowerPoint Ministries with Jack Graham) http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=3bfc665463e03efdcffe6e6c5&id=7eeaaf7b6b

ministering is . . .

(Found on Pinterest)

fishers of men

As I grow older, I feel a sense of urgency. No, it is not my own life or my own salvation that causes me concern. It is those around me who call me to prayer.

Now approaching forty, I have seen a lot of death. Too much, I believe. And with each departing soul, I wonder who has embraced the gospel before leaving this domain for the next. Some I had shared the gospel with, some I had not. And it causes me great anguish to have this sense of wonder. Did I say all I could have? Did I present the good news? And was I firm in my presentation about the great divide and the Savior who offers us a bridge across it?

How many will be waiting in the restored Eden when I arrive? I can’t wait to hug them and walk with them in the new kingdom, longing to be in the presence of our Redeemer and the Giver of all that is good. I hope I reached hundreds, but even if it is but a few, the few will be great company in a world without sin. A few will be plenty. For one saved soul is worth all the work. But Jesus has called us to be fishers of men, and I believe it is best to keep casting our net, even when we believe that net comes back empty time after time. Whether it be with words or deeds, it is almost impossible to know for sure how the Holy Spirit will use our faith in motion to reach the lost. I have presented the gospel to some more than enough, and others…well, I barely mentioned what I believe to them. Yet, I have discovered that a few kind words to a seeking soul can leave a lasting impression.

Case in point, a former coworker of mine, one who simply put, was not a nice fellow, constantly criticized my faith. Yet every time he did, I countered with a positive comment or I asked him if he would like to learn more about the Word of God.

This went on for many months, and I really never thought that much about it. But recently, this man died of liver failure. I was aware that he had a few children, and I decided to attend his wake so I could leave a card with some money enclosed and had no intention of staying for the memorial. I simply wanted to help his children with any financial burdens their father’s death may have caused. But after leaving the card, talking to friends and coworkers at the funeral, I felt the need to stay for the service. Once again, I had not intended to stay, but something told me I needed to hear the message.

The pastor who spoke was a young man, a member of the Promise Keepers group, who was actually a pastor in training. His message was a-no-holds barred, right down to the nitty-gritty, tell-it-like-it-is sermon about salvation. Right off the bat, he basically stated that the deceased had not been a model citizen, that the man we were there pay tribute to, was not exactly an overachiever. But, there was something about the man we were there to discuss that people needed to know. The man who ridiculed my faith, the man who mocked the silly Christians, and the man who showed little interest in things eternal, happened to be across the hall from the preacher in training while he was hospitalized with his failing liver. My former coworker asked the nurse to have the Bible reading guy across the hall stop in to talk to him. And as the preacher in training explained why the ailing man wanted to know more about the Bible, my eyes began to water, eventually turning to a downpour of tears.

The man I never knew I was reaching told the rookie preacher, “I see you readin’ that book a lot. I know everyone turns to God on their death bed, but it’s not just that I’m worried about death. Where I work, there are a few people who read the Bible and Christian books…and, well, they just seem so happy in their faith, and they’ve never been anything but kind to me, even when I wasn’t very kind to them. I guess what I’m tryin’ to say is. I’ve spent my whole life running away from God. I’m ready to run to Him.”

For the next month after their initial conversation, the pastor in training and my former coworker read and studied the Bible together. The new Christian carried his Bible everywhere, and he faced death with a certainty that his Savior was waiting on the other side with open arms. As I drove away from the funeral home, I had to pull my car over to the side of the road. My vision was so blurred with tears that I couldn’t see to drive.

We should have a sense of urgency as we cast out our nets. We really are fishers of men!

(Borrowed from a post on Facebook from IBibleVerses)
http://ibibleverses.christianpost.com/testimony/fishers-men

thank you for everything

Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, make you to increase and abound in love one toward another and towards all men, to the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before him. Amen.

retirement party for a member of our family

affirmations from God

via Anne Voskamps A Holy Experience

I had to share this list.

With love!

A Persian gentleman by the name of Gilbert spoke at our church on Sunday about his walk with Christ. His story was very moving and I wanted to share with you all.

He was born into a Christian family as the 3rd son of a minister. Now the problem is this; Christianity was not accepted because Muslims dominated the region. He said that his father was often beaten because of his faith. the government often took his father bound and blind folded to a place where the tortured him for hours. But he never stopped ministering that Jesus is the Christ. As a child he learned that it was normal to be beaten for his faith as Jesus and the believers in the bible were also beat in the streets.

He shared that the church was often bombarded with stones and trash even while they were inside. Despite this danger he became "Minister of music" in his fathers church. Which caused him to get slapped around even more than before. One day when he was 17 his father did not return home. They thought that he was once again taken and beaten, but he did not return home in the middle of the night as he normally would. Additionally they realized that this time no one left a letter saying that he was taken to be flogged. 12 days had gone by before he was found. But this time it was worse that before. He was found stabbed to death. Someone had stabbed him 28 times and left him in a ditch.

After this account he found it hard to love his enemies anymore. His father had taught him to love his enemies no matter what they did to him. but after his fathers death he said that he became bitter with a deep hatred for all Muslims and government officials. But he never stopped loving God or ministering that Jesus is Lord. One day while he was getting ready to setup for service a little girl about 7 years old came to him and asked "did he have a father?" Instantly he got saddened, but because she was so cute he just told her, with gritted teeth "no, no I don't." The little girl turned around and walked away. but shortly after she came back and asked the same question again. This time out of anger he explained to her why he did not have a father. Afterwards she just smiled and walked away. After a short while she came back and asked again. He began to cry and she said to him "You do have a father, God is your father." Afterwards she walked away.

After service he tried to find that little girl but she was nowhere to be found. He asked everyone in the church but no one saw or knew her. He went out to other churches to try and find her but again no one had ever seen that girl before. He realized that God had sent an angle to help console him. He stopped hating Muslims and government officials and wrote a song, about God being his Father.

~In fact he sang it on Sunday after sharing his story. It is a pretty song knowing what he went through.

Now he lives in the US or as he calls it the promised land. This came about because of missionaries that went over to witness. One day after a service he was pushed into a narrow road by a guy with a knife. The guy demanded that he deny Christ otherwise he was going to stab him. He thought that this guy was just off his rocker and decided that no I'm not going to deny Christ, he said Jesus is Lord. The guy pulled the knife from his shirt and waved it around in anger. He was afraid that he was going to cut his fingers off so he balled his hands up under his shirt. (He said that since he played the piano for a living he needed his fingers). The guy stopped waving the knife around and looked him in the face and said if you don't want to end up like your dad deny your Jesus. He thought to himself that this guy is serious maybe I should just deny Jesus but not mean it, but before he could open his mouth one of missionary men came down the street. The missionary just happened to be a member of our church, he was an ex-gang member and was able to fight the guy off.

Like stated before he lives in the US and does live preaching back to Iran. The latest of his live sermons was taped at our church this past Saturday. There were over 120 people in attendance. He has an album that he is selling to help cover the cost of his ministry. They are the songs that he wrote based on his life experiences with God and his faith.