*~*Prayer Requests for 10/17/2009:

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"If we cannot believe God when circumstances
seem to be against us, we do not believe Him
at all" (Charles Spurgeon).

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This year, with the help of churches and volunteers across the country, we hope to serve over 400,000 Angel Tree children. But we can't do it without you.

As we get closer to Christmas there are still thousands of children who need to know they haven't been forgotten. If you've already supported this year's campaign, thank you so much for your generosity.

https://www.angeltree.org/at-appeal-donation?dc=APPEAL4-1009

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"Let no one deceive you with empty words,
for because of such things God's wrath comes
on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not
be partners with them" (Ephesians 5:6-7 - NIV).

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Hi friend,

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

1) Vince asks for our prayers. He writes, "I ask for prayer for my brother in-law Jack,who was brought to the hospital today for heart problems. He is older and a good kind man. He is always willing to give a helping hand to anyone that needs help. I pray for the doctors who will be taking care of him. I know he is in God's hands. I pray through Christ, our Lord.";

2) "I AM IN DESPRATE NEED OF AN EMERGENCY MIRACLE. I AM IN DESPRATE NEED OF $5,000.00 RIGHT NOW. I AM SINKING FAST HERE. I OWE 3 LOAN COMPANYS AND I NEED $1,200.00 BY OCT.27TH FOR MY TAXES. I HAVE NO ONE ELSE ALIVE TO HELP ME ALL I HAVE IS JESUS AND YOUR PRAYERS FOR ME. JESUS SAYS ASK AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE KNOCK AND THE DOOR WILL BE OPENENED UNTO YOU. WELL,I'M ASKING DESPERATELY FOR HELP AND I'M KNOCKING AS HARD AS I CAN TO BE HEARD. MY HUSBAND AND I ARE DISABLED AND WE ARE BOTH IN WHEELCHAIRS. WE ARE STRUGGLING HERE SO BAD. OUR HOME NEEDS NUMEROUS REPAIRS AND WE CAN'T FIX THEM. WE CAN'T AFFORD TO TAKE OUT ANYMORE LOANS. SO,I PRAY THE LORD WILL HEAR MY PLEA FOR $5,000.00 IMMEDIATELY. PLEASE KEEP US IN YOUR PRAYERS THANK YOU!" -LUCRETIA;

3) MLD asks to be remembered in our prayers. He writes, "If it is your will God please heal Kand R's marriage. Thank you for your prayers.";

4) "I feel lost spiritually, and in need of praying for me. I miss the feeling of being close to Jesus. PLEASE pray that I meet someone to talk to me about Jesus. I'm lost big time. I feel like I'm dead inside. PLEASE PRAY,PLEASE PRAY." -Nena;

5) Sue asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please I am praying for a miracle to bring my husband back home to my kids and I. I miss him so much and really want our marriage to be restored. Please Please pray hard for this miracle.";

6) "Oh, please, help me. I don't feel like God is listening to me anymore. I don't feel His presence, hear His voice, feel Him in my life. At one time, I felt God had a plan for me, but now I feel so alone, so bereft. How can I pray for others when I feel so disconnected from God? Please, Lord, don't abandon me!" -Becky;

7) Teri asks for us to remember her in our thoughts and prayers. She writes, "Please pray the Lord will lift my family out of this dry, difficult season of crisis and heal us and give us direction. Thank you.";

8) "My son Jessie is very sick. He is 24 years old. He has HIV. I love him so much please pray that God would see him through this. I ask for his healing. I know God is able. God Bless." -Billy;

9) Jim asks to be remembered in our prayers. He writes, "My name is Jim recently my girlfriend's dad has banned me from going to visit her for a reason I am still unsure of. My girlfriend now cries just about every minute of the day knowing that I won't be seeing her as often as i used to. I helped this family in their time of need, my mom and I when shopping for them twice and bought them groceries when they needed them, so i haven't the slightest clue what happened that he wanted to ban me from his home. I feel sort of betrayed by him (her dad). Please pray for me and help me ask God to affect her dad to let me visit her again.";

10) "Please pray for my husband and I to find a home, we are getting evicted and have no where to turn to or the money to get there. please pray for our love to not turn from each other while going through such a bad time. Sincerely, Diana";

11) "...that I reach my full potential and bloom into the young flower that I know I can be!! God is always in my heart regardless of my path I end up taking! :)" -Lizzy;

12) Marisa asks for our prayers. She writes, "My husband and I are trying to get pregnant. Please pray that we are successful are names are Marisa and Joshua.";

13) Please pray for Lynn, my wife. She has had terrible pains in her upper back this week which has kept her awake most nights tossing & turning.;

14) Nikka asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "Dear Lord, please give me the strength and the patience to deal with all the misery in my life. I don't know what i'm going to do. I'm about to go crazy. I don't have any support after You. Please, please hear my cries and help me through my misery Father. i ask it all in your son's Jesus name I pray. Amen.";

15) "Today happens to be my birthday and want to take this oppertunity to thank god for opening the gate to peace for me and my family - Clement, Premela,Crystal and Mark. Thank you lord and please continue to guide us all to your pathway of peace and humility. Bring us closer to each other and to you. Close the door to all evil doers and open the door to yur pathway. Lord, I am so grateful to you for bringing us closer to you and have faith and strength in you." -Clem,Prem,Crystal and Mark;

16) Shoney asks for our prayers. She writes: "My friend is very angry at God about the loss of a dear friend from cancer a while back, and now another friend has been diagnosed with cancer. He is thinking that God is mean and often rages at him. Can you pray for God to touch his heart. And pray for me that I may help to rid him of his anger toward God."

17) "My husband just lost his job, and we need a miracle from God now, he can't find another job please pray for our family I have a 13 year old and a 6 month old we need Gods help." -Stephanie;

18) Anna asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "My husband is currently working in Iraq and has been for three years. He is ready to come home. I need guidance and peace of mind that he is doing the right thing since he will be coming home with no job and that God will lead him to make the right decision. I Know God works in mysterious ways.....pray that if he does come home he will lead him to a good job and the right job. we have worked so hard and now I am scared he is making a mistake cause he is lonely and upset with matters over there. I want him home desperately...but with Gods blessings. Please help me find comfort in knowing that this is where God is leading him at this time! PRAY really hard all over the World. I think we could use it! I very future hangs on this. We could loose our home and everything becasue what I make will barely buy the groceries!";

19) Harley asks us to pray for her 'Nana' and her back problems. She will be visiting the doctor next week to see if she can get relief from the constant pain.;

20) Ken and Joan Hester, missionairies in the Philippines, write: "Prayer Requests: *Pray for all those that cleaning up from the slides it is dangerous. * For me as I travel by bus to Manila and that the rds will be clear and safe. * And as I travel from to Davao in the southern end of Philippines Plane. * As I minister in Churches and Villages both while here and there in Davao.";

21) K.P. Yohannan asks for our prayers. He writes, "In the two states in South India that were recently hit with some of the worst floods in memory, our missionaries and believers have already been able to reach 10,000 families with relief supplies. The death toll has already surpassed 300, and millions have been displaced from their homes. Please keep our missionaries and believers in prayer as they continue to minister in Jesus' name among these men, women and precious children who have suffered so much.";

22) "Please pray for my husband who has struggled with ssa since he can remember and is living with another man. Both of them believe in God and He has been working in their hearts. I need wisdom as my husband and I continue communicating with each other." -Connie;

23) "LORD KEEP MY EYES ON YOU NOT ON Y FEARS." -MICKEY;

24) "Please stand in agreement with me that god grants a miracle restoration of our marriage (John and Sue). Thank you, John";

25) Nikia asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for me, please pray for those loved ones and those I know who are unhealthy in any kind of way. Please pray for my children and there safety and happiness. Please pray that my family can rise from poverty and get out of this neighborhood into a better and brighter neighborhood where they can go outside and play with no worries. Please pray for financial upbringing and happiness for us all. Please pray that we will get closer to the lord. Thank you.";

26) "I request this prayer on behalf of my Boyfriend Ian. Several years ago he fractured his spine, several bone fragments shot into and around the surrounding area causing severe pain. The pain never really went away but was manageable... until now. He is starting is practicum in criminology this January, but his pain has become so severe that he has been in the emergency room everyday because there's nothing else to do. The doctors told him they are unable to do anything, but there has to be something. I pray for Ian to have a little more faith in god, he will provide. Pray for him to be healed, if that means surgery so be it. He needs a doctor willing to fight for him. He is 20 years old. Right now it seems like there is a dark future ahead, but I'm praying and getting everyone I know to pray. Please, we could use you support! God bless." -Krista; and lastly...

27) Saint419 asks for our prayers: "Please pray for my friend Arlyn N. She has been working with us for exactly two years now, however she was recently informed by the District Manager Lou V. that she could be transferred to another store at any time. We feel very sad about this. We don't want Arlyn to go and neither does she want to leave us. Please pray that Lou and his boss Greg C. will change their minds and allow Arlyn to continue working with us at store #163 for at least one more year. Thank you for your prayers!".


**God bless you for caring enough to pray!!!**

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A real friend is always and under all circumstances a friend (Proverbs 17:17a).

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*~*Spotlight Site*~*

http://WayOfTheMasterRadio.com

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"He who conceals his sins does not prosper,
but whoever confesses and renounces them
finds mercy" (Proverbs 28:13 - NIV).

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Falling Off The Horse

The old time pastor was galloping down the road, rushing to get to church on time.

Suddenly his horse stumbled and pitched him to the ground.

In the dirt with a broken leg, the pastor called out,
"All you saints in Heaven, help me get up on my horse!"

Then, with superhuman effort, he leaped onto the horse's back and fell off the other side.

Once again on the ground, he called to Heaven, "All right, just half of you this time!"

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"Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them" (Luke 12:35-37 - NIV).

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Acts 23:1-5 (Part 1 of 2)
By Laurence W. Venoitt
LighthousePrayerLine.org


On Friday the president of Cornell University, Hunter R. Rawlings III condemned teaching intelligent design as science. He denounced intelligent design as, (NY Times, Saturday, Oct. 21, 2005) "religious belief masquerading as a secular idea."

He cited a recent report by the Pew Research Center in Washington which said 42 percent of Americans believe that creationism should be taught instead of evolution. Rawlings said, "This is above all a cultural issue, not a scientific one,"

How do you feel as a Christian when you read something like that? If you're a Christian you have to believe in intelligent design because that's what the first two chapters of Genesis teach. So how do you react when you read something like that? Should we hang our heads and be apologetic about our Christian beliefs? Should we admit grudgingly admit that Christianity is wrong about creation and merely try to convince them that it is right on other points?

Not at all. One of the great things that our text teaches us is the attitude that Christians should have about the gospel. Paul shows us something here that we should not miss. Not only are Christians to go forth with the gospel of Jesus Christ, but we are to go forth with it in a certain way, with a certain attitude, with a certain demeanor. There's an attitude that God wants us to have when we are proclaiming Jesus Christ. It's an attitude of confidence, of boldness, absolute certainty in the truth of the gospel, of being sure that what we are proclaiming is in very truth what the world needs.

There are three things in our passage that show us this.

First, consider how Paul behaved when he was brought before the Sanhedrin.

Paul was the center of attention. All eyes were on him. He had made some very surprising statements. He had told the Jews that God had told him to leave Jerusalem and preach to the Gentiles. As we have seen, this infuriated the Jews. To them it was one of the greatest of heresies.

Now it's important that we see this in its wider context.
As J. A. Alexander writes, "Paul was not a mere chance
visitor to Jerusalem, accidentally involved in a disturbance
there, but the Apostle of the Gentiles, specially commissioned
to make, as it were, a last appeal to Israel, before he
finally transferred his center of operations to the great
metropolis and mistress of the heathen world."

So we are not to look at this narrowly, but remember that the Spirit compelled Paul to go to Jerusalem. He is there on official business for Jesus Christ.

As a result of the disturbance the previous day Paul is brought before the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin was the Jewish high council. It was composed of high priests, elders and scholars, and met under the presidency of the ruling high priest. But it wasn't exclusively a religious court. It was, (BDAG) "the highest indigenous governing body in Judaea… and… was the ultimate authority not only in religious matters, but in legal and governmental affairs as well, in so far as it did not encroach on the authority of the Roman procurator."

This body was the epitome of Judaism that had rejected Jesus. They did not accept Jesus' claims to be the Messiah, the Anointed One, the One who came to fulfill the Old Testament.

So Paul is brought before them, the Sanhedrin, with all their tradition, with all their learning, with all their pomp and circumstance—and what does he do? We read,

"Paul looked straight at the Sanhedrin and said, 'My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day.'"

Paul didn't let them steal the high ground. He was not at all apologetic about the gospel. Nor should he have been. He had a good conscience. He told them that. Paul told them that he was far from being an apostate or renegade, (J. A. Alexander) "he claimed to be still a faithful member of the chosen people…"

Further, Paul knew that, (Alexander):

"Christianity was the genuine development of ancient Judaism, so that he, and not his adversaries, held fast to the true design and spirit of the Mosaic institutions."

Paul knew the gospel of Jesus Christ was the power of God for salvation. He knew he had the truth—the truth of God and he stood up for it. As he wrote in Romans 1:16, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile."

He knew that Christ was, (1 Corinthians 1:24) "the power of God and the wisdom of God."

So as he stood before the Sanhedrin, he was full of confidence and boldness. He was not ashamed to testify about Jesus. He knew that Jesus was the Savior of the world, the only hope of lost sinners. He knew what He was called to. In Acts 1, just before He ascended into heaven, Jesus said to His disciples,

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

He knew that Jesus had come to save sinners. As Jesus proclaimed in the synagogue in His home town of Nazareth,

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

So when Paul went forward with the gospel, it was with full confidence. He was not ashamed of it. He was bold and courageous, full of confidence. He knew he had the truth and he held his head up and proclaimed it boldly.

That's the way we should be with the gospel, with God's Word and what it teaches. For what we have with the president of Cornell is that he is trying to steal the high ground.

He's trying to tell everyone that creationism and intelligent design is not in accord with science. But don't let anyone fool you. God created science. Science does not contradict the Bible. The more you know about science, the more you should be drawn to glorify God. I consider science to be like Psalm 19—it declares the glory of God. Just like the study of astronomy should cause people to know God, and praise Him for His greatness, so the study of all science should cause people to draw closer to Him and praise and adore Him. The great question is—why doesn't it?

There are two great ways you can go wrong with science and the Bible. One applies to Christians and one applies to scientists.

One way is to misinterpret and misunderstand what the Bible says. This sometimes happens to Christians and it causes scientists to look down on Christianity and its teachings and to treat them with contempt. The great scientist Galileo was convicted of heresy and imprisoned because he taught the views of Copernicus. Copernicus taught, quite correctly, that the earth revolves around the sun instead of the sun revolving around the earth. Yet some in the church believed that that could not be so because Psalm 93:1 says,

"The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved."

They misunderstood Psalm 93. They thought it was teaching the scientific truth that the earth was stationary. But that's not what Psalm 93 teaches. Psalm 93:1 teaches others things. John Calvin wrote,

"The Psalmist proves that God will not neglect or abandon the world, from the fact that he created it."

Charles Spurgeon says on Psalm 93:

"Because Jehovah reigns terrestrial things for a while are stable. We could not be sure of anything if we were not sure that he has dominion. When he withdraws his manifest presence from among men all things are out of order; blasphemers rave, persecutors rage, the profane grow bold, and the licentious increase in wantonness; but when the divine power and glory are again manifested order is restored, and the poor distracted world is at peace again. Society would be the football of the basest of mankind if God did not establish it, and even the globe itself would fly through space, like thistle down across the common, if the Lord did not hold it in its appointed orbit. That there is any stability, either in the world or in the church, is the Lord's doings, and he is to be adored for it."

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Dolphins are so intelligent that within a few weeks of
captivity they can train a man to stand on the edge of
their pool and throw them fish three times a day.

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"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior" (Habakkuk 3:17-18 - NIV).

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For many of us, the Sunday pulpit call to “Go share the Gospel and make disciples” feels inspiring in the moment and horribly intimidating once we step out into the real world. When “sharing my faith” becomes another item to check off on my “to do” list, it often feels more like drudgery than delight.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Visit: http://Lote.org

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Sermon

A pastor, known for his lengthy sermons, noticed a man get up and leave during the middle of his message. The man returned just before the conclusion of the service.

Afterwards the pastor asked the man where he had gone.

"I went to get a haircut," was the reply.

"But," said the pastor, "why didn't you do that before the service?"

"Because," the gentleman said, "I didn't need one then."

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100,000 Website Visitors:
https://paydotcom.com/r/13936/lit4u/22998695/

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Acts 23:1-5 (Part 2 of 2)
LighthousePrayerLine.org


So Psalm 93 understood correctly, is not in conflict with the fact that the earth revolves around the sun. But sometimes Christians make themselves look bad by holding to views that are wrong. That's one reason why some scientists look with disfavor on Christian teaching.

The other way to go wrong is what some scientists do. They will tell you that the scientific method consists of only things that are verifiable and repeatable. Since creation as it's presented in Genesis 1 & 2 doesn't meet that criteria—they rule it out. And let's be clear about this—they don't rule it out because the facts are against it—but because it doesn't fit in with the presuppositions. So when the President of Cornell makes statements like I quoted, Christians don't have to hang and head and feel like we're stupid for believing what the Bible teaches—not at all. God created the universe. Genesis 1 and 2 can't be reasonably interpreted any other way. Just because some scientist's presuppositions discount it—doesn't at all mean that they've disproved it. It just means they're not even considering it. Creationism has never been discredited. Rather it has been dismissed. We don't have to hang our heads because of that.

Creation is part of the gospel. It teaches that men and women are responsible before God because He created them. Paul was very up front about that when he preached in Athens. He said, (Acts 17:24)

"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands."

He went on to command them to repent.

So don't be ashamed of the gospel. When you put it forth, do it like Paul. It's the truth of God that people need to hear.

The second thing in our passage that shows us Paul's confidence is the way he rebuked the high priest who ordered him to be struck in the face.

In verse 2 we read that the high priest Ananias, "ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth." This had great symbolic meaning.

J. A. Alexander writes,

"Striking on the mouth implies a previous unlawful use of it, as well as an injunction to cease speaking… Translated into language it was here equivalent to saying, that Paul's claim, not only to integrity and innocence as some suppose, but to the highest theocratical fidelity, was false in itself, and grossly insulting to his judges…"

In other words, the priest was totally rejecting Paul's defense. It was like he was accusing Paul of something akin to blasphemy. Paul is struck on the mouth. It's much more extreme than the harshest verbal rebuke. Paul is struck on the mouth. It was an extremely forceful, painful and cruel rebuke. It was meant to be decisive and silencing. Perhaps after this they thought that Paul would hang his head in shame.

Hang his head in shame? Paul wasn't going to do that. There was no reason for it. This is important for us to note.

Have you ever see people act guiltily? It's painful to watch. I've see Christians doing something wrong and they know they're doing wrong and with some of them, you can see that their conscience bothers them. You can see it sometimes in church situations. They know they're doing wrong and they're ashamed of their behavior—but they carry on in it. One look at them and you know that truth and righteousness is not on their side. They just act guilty.

That's how the enemies of the gospel would like to see Christians act. But Paul refused to hang his head and act like that. He was struck, but he did not even begin to act like he was guilty. Rather, with great boldness, he said,

"God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck!"

Paul draws attention to their hypocrisy and shows that they, the epitome of Judaism that had rejected Jesus—were not obeying the law. Paul rebuked the high priest for doing wrong and warned him of the severe judgment that would fall on him—how God would strike him.

It is quite likely that Paul was here speaking under the power of the Holy Spirit. You'll remember that in Matthew 10:17 Jesus said to His disciples,

"Be on your guard against men; they will hand you over to the local councils and flog you in their synagogues. On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you."

Paul was speaking with the authority of Christ. He is on trial—but he is the one who is fearless. He is the one who is citing the law and pointing out his accusers disobedience to it. He is the one who is warning them about the punishment that will fall on them for what they are doing. He is the one who has authority and power.

Now this is a very important lesson for us. No matter what your situation, whether you are being mocked, ridiculed or attacked for the gospel—

Don't be afraid. The gospel has authority that is above all other authority. Proclaim the gospel truth with authority.

You'll remember just before Jesus ascended into heaven, Jesus said to His disciples, (Matthew 28:18)

"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

We go out with Jesus' authority. Go out with confidence, with boldness. Be absolutely fearless.

The third thing in our passage that shows us Paul's confidence is the irony in his apology.

J. A. Alexander writes,

"The fashionable sentimental view of this verse is,' that Paul acknowledges his having spoken in a fit of passion, and apologies for it."

Alexander goes on to totally dismiss such an understanding. He writes,

"besides the sheer impossibility of making I wist not (i.e. did not know) mean I did not consider (or remember at the moment), the acknowledgment itself would be at variance with all the facts and circumstances of the case."

How could Paul not know the high priest? Paul is familiar with the Sanhedrin. Various suggestions have been put forward. One is that the high priest was not wearing his official robes. It was a hastily called meeting so they think that Paul did not know he was the high priest. Others suggest that Paul didn't know who had given the order to strike him, that his poor eyesight prevented him from seeing who it was who ordered him to be struck—that he thought he was speaking against someone other than the high priest. But all such possibilities are weak.

Paul is not apologizing but is continuing his rebuke. Alexander writes,

"Another objection to both these solutions is that they suppose Paul's words to mean, "I did not know him but I know him now,' whereas the present tense (esti) necessarily implies, that his ignorance, whatever it might be, still continued. The combination of the past and present forms can only be explained by understanding him to mean, 'I did not know (and I do not now know) that he is the High Priest.'"

I believe the best solution, with Augustine, Calvin and Alexander, is to see irony in Paul's apology, that it is an apology with a sting—that Paul apologizes but at the same time in effect says, (Calvin)

"I, brethren, I recognize nothing priestly about this man."

Alexander writes,

"Paul means to deny that Ananias was in any such sense High Priest, as to make him a violator of the law in Exodus."

Although some see this directed at the man, and not the office, Alexander sees it also directed at the office.

"Paul's denunciation was not meant to terminate upon the individual, but through him aimed at the entire system, of which he claimed to be the representative."

Alexander sees Paul as pointing to the lawlessness of their whole system, that now that Jesus has come, the whole Mosaic system has been superseded—and that those who are carrying it on are violators of the law.

As I mentioned earlier, Paul was no chance visitor to Jerusalem. He was there because of the Spirit. Alexander writes,

"All that is recorded of his acts and sufferings, in his farewell visit to the Holy City, must be viewed as having an official character on his part…"

Paul was showing that the high priest, the whole Sanhedrin—were in violation of the law, and that they were going to be judged by God because they had rejected God's Messiah.

Christians, as you go forth with the gospel, don't be ashamed of it. It's the power of God for salvation. It's in accord with the facts of the universe. It's the truth, the truth that is the fulfillment of the Old Testament—Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, the only hope of the world.

Lastly, for those of you who aren't Christians—you should understand that Paul had authority from Christ. So too, the words of Christ that you have heard today have authority. Embrace Jesus. As Psalm 2 says,

"Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him."

Go to Jesus today. Find life in Him.

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"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares
about you" (1 Peter 5:7 – NLT).

Be sure to send in your prayer request for the next
mailing.

You are in my thoughts and prayers! May the Lord
continue to bless you with knowledge of Himself.

Your friend and brother in Christ,


Mark Seay
Lighthouse Prayer Line
105 Quincy Drive
Greer, SC 29650
LighthousePrayerLine.org

"'I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and
will make you to be a covenant for the people
and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that
are blind, to free captives from prison and to
release from the dungeon those who sit in
darkness'" (Isaiah 42:6-7).

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Having A Hunger For God
By Pastor Bryant R. Ali


"Jesus answered, 'It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God' " (Matthew 4:4 NIV).

As I embrace the timetable of my healing I am forced to reflect on how I came to the place of needing to be healed. Was the culture of the church actually killing me? My journey in the church world has always been surrounded by food. As a former cocaine addict with an obsessive compulsive personality. I had never learned the beauty of temperance, moderation or self control. I came from the BT Express generation "do it until you are satisfied whatever it is do it'. One of the biggest myths in Christendom is that every one will be delivered without facing the consequences of your actions. Galatians 6:9 states that God is not mocked what ever a person sows that what they shall also reap.

Oh what a shock it was when it came time for me to pay the piper. When I came out of the streets and returned back to God in 1990 I was 240 pounds and for the last four years I have been hovering around 420 pounds. The concept of clean living was killing me. In reality it was my failure to embrace healthy alternatives. My good friend Pastor Henry Clay would always declare to me that we are preaching about how great God is, yet we are destroying the temples that he has given us.

This is not a post heart attack confession this is a reflection on the grace of God in spite of me. I could place blame a number of things but the reality is I did it to myself. I failed in my hunger for the words of God. Oh yes, I used his words to preach, teach, for personal devotion, and theological reflection. Yet, I have not seen the manifestation of the vision, my dreams or the over abundance of souls running to the throne of grace.My spiritual life was in a recession and my heart attack was my bailout. Have you ever been guilty of working for the master, serving the master, and not letting the master work on you. Public success but a private mess.

Well in 2009 I won't talk about it, I will be about it. I know who I am and to whom I belong and my goal is to seek first his kingdom and the healing , weight loss, abundant life and freedom to serve him in spirit and in truth will follow. I have to not look at other's vineyards but bloom where I have been planted. As my doctor told my wife, don't let the church folks feed the bear. Jesus took it a step further, don't leave by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. Just because it is before me doesn't mean I have to eat it. I hear God saying "Bryant
don't live to eat, but eat to live. My prayer for today is Lord I thirst for you, I long to live in your presence. My heart seeks after you, Draw me nearer to the beauty of your holiness. This is my thought for today. Peace.

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We hope you have found today's newsletter encouraging to your
walk with Jesus Christ. Please send all prayer requests and
praise reports to us by using the "comments" hyperlink, which
can be found at the end of each blog/article. God is Good!!!

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I'm just a nobody
trying to tell everybody
that there is somebody
who can save anybody!!

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"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances
you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord
forgave you" (Colossians 3:13 - NIV).

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Who's on first?

LighthousePrayerLine.org


Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. ~Matthew 19:21–22 (NKJV)
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Jim came to me feeling anxious. He was raised in a wonderful home and had offered his life to Christ. Yet he felt God wouldn’t listen to him. He was baffled.

I remembered feeling as Jim did. Then someone had pointed me to the story of Jesus and the rich young man. “The story tells us that Jesus wasn’t primarily interested in what we do to ‘be good,’ but whether we put God first. Anything other than God that we put first, when we make our decisions, that is our real god.”


Jesus asked the rich man first to give everything to the poor. The young man could not do that and left sorrowfully. He already had a god: his wealth.

I told Jim about the rich young man and how I realized Jesus was saying to me, Keith, you can’t follow me as a disciple, because you already have a god that you obey when the chips are down. To follow me in the way I taught, I must be the one that you obey.

I wrestled quite a while before I could finally say, “Okay, God, I sur- render my whole life to you, including the secret gods I’ve been hiding. I love You more than these.”

Lord, thank You for showing me that even the good things in life will be ruined if I put them before You and make them responsible for my happiness. Amen.

*~*Prayer Requests for 10/10/09:

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It's October and it is Halloween time. It is a GREAT time
to spread the Gospel to kids. Check out our new page at http://emailministry.webs.com/halloween.htm . It has cartoon Gospel tracts all with the salvation message of Jesus Christ. If you have a Facebook page please visit this page and click on the "Share on Facebook". If you can tell others about this page, especially lost friends, kids etc. Thank you for visiting and let me know if you have any questions at davidandjoni123@att.net .

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If you find a Bible that's all tattered &
worn, it belongs to a person who isn't.

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"Therefore, since we have a great priest who has gone
through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold
firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high
priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but we have one who has been tempted in every way,
just as we are - yet was without sin" (Hebrews 4:14-15).

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Hi friend,

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

1) "MAY KRIS BE ABLE TO CONTROL HIS DRINKING TO TWO BEERS. MAY DIANNA'S MOTHER NOT SUFFER IN THESE LAST DAYS OR MONTHS OF HER BONE CANCER. THANK YOU." -MARY;

2) Dee asks for our prayers. She writes, "I am having problems with my finances, I am behind in paying my bills. Please pray for me and my children. I believe in the power and glory that prayers can bring. And special prayers for all those who are struggling just to survive. Thank you.";

3) "I am praying for all of you on this site. Have faith in the LORD, all your needs will be met. . . . In Jesus Mighty name I pray. Amen." -Joan;

4) Jocelyn asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "I need peace and patience and who knows what else. I recently left my boyfriend of 7 years because he was not on Gods path. I pray God brings him back to him and eventually to me. But i am trying to except that, that may not be Gods's will. My boyfriend showed me the lord and has fallen into a lifestyle that brings anything but Glory to God. It hurts to let go, but i know that is what i must do now. Please pray that he comes back to the lord!!! And for peace and exceptance in my life.";

5) "Please pray for me. My brother totaled my car which was not insured. My 3 year old daughter had to temporarily move in with my mother since I cannot have her without transportation and I am her only parent. I am now praying for a downpayment on a new vehicle - my daughter also needs medical insurance. I am in a major financial bind and I am onluy able to see my baby saturdays and sundays since I have no car. I am walking to work - which I don't mind doing - but I need a vehicle. please pray for me because I do not know where this money is going to come from. Thank you." -Heather;

7) AN writes: "Please pray for Josh--that he needs someone to talk to him and give him guidance. Please get him help.";

8) On Monday evening, I normally visit the Greenville Detention Center (Greenville, SC). Much prayer and testimony are given by myself and numerous inmates. Bibles, gospel tracts, Bible studies and Daily Breads are handed out amongst many. Several weeks ago, my badge was stripped with the explanation of revamping the system and tightening security. Please ask Christ to give these men strength and continue to build up the faith of His own. Please also pray for re-entry to be approved for all religious volunteers.

If you would like to make a donation towards this ministry, please send funds to: Mark Seay, 105 Quincy Drive, Greer, SC 29650.;

9) "God I have a good feeling that tonight you are going to bless me. With your blessing I can get my car fixed, buy the home I dreamed about, visit my Mother and Brother, and put my 2 weeks notice and find the stress free job I need to live. Please let this feeling stay with me, and inadvance Thank you." -Jerry;

10) Troy asks for our prayers. He writes, "I'm fulling an assingment my pastor gave to me, to advance God's Kingdom outside our church. On Oct 24th I will set up a prayer booth at the Women's Music Festival and offer to pray for and with anyone who asks. Please pray for me!";

11) "I have been out of work for 18 months and I just received my last unemployment check. No savings. Just enough money to pay my bills this month and a little for food. I will have $100.00 left in my checking account when I pay my bills this month." -Elizabeth;

12) "Dear Beloved Brother Mark Seay,

Warm greetings to you in the most precious name of our lord and savior Jesus Christ. How are you I hope you do well. Here continuously heavy rains are going on because of that floods are happening through out our state. That’s why hundreds of villages were drawn and hundreds of families lost their shelter and loved once. Many people are in need of help. We are praying God supply sources to support them. I also announced in our church and with some local people, if we could raise some money, we would like help them as the Lord enables us. Please pray and share with all our prayer partners about this need for the victims of flood.

By the grace of God and by through your precious prayers our almighty Lord had kept us safely from this terrible floods. I praise God for his amazing grace and mercy. Our orphan children are gladly sending their lots of love and their lovely kisses and their lovely hugs to you and to your blessed families. Convey our lovely and best wishes to your friends and to your blessed church congregation. Close with lots of love and prayers and wait for your gracious and prayerful reply. Thanking you. Your Beloved Brother in Christ, Pastor.K.Syam Sundar / New Beginning Missions (Workers for Christ, India)"

13) "I am going thru anxiety attacks and panic attacks and feel like im an not here I pray evryday and night for God to make me strong I had to take medical leave from work with no pay and I will lose my insurance and job if I do not return in a few days. My name is Debra and If you can see fit to pray with me to get back to narmal so I can work and deal with my life again. Thank you and God Bless all of you." -Debra;

14) Norma asks for our prayers. She writes, "My name is Norma and this is not the first prayer request I have asked from you. But it was for others, now I need it for me. I thank GOD for all the good things but can't get away from negative things.Speaking or thinking. I need prayer and I need God to move in my life. Please help me.";

15) "God, I thank You for Your love and Your eternal blessings in my life. I pray for Cassy and me. She is away on a four-month internship. I pray that we open our hearts to each other and to You. If we are to be a couple in accordance to Your will, may You help us express our feelings to each other in a timely manner. I believe You are God. You can alter things for the better of Your Kingdom. I pray Cassy and I can have a relationship that is pleasing to You. Help us talk and plan our futures together. Help her find a job in the same city I end up going to grad school. Guide her on her jobs, keep her safe and in Your Hands. I ask for Your help in my studies. I lift our hearts to You, Lord. By the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, I lift our relationship and friendship to You. Thank You Lord for blessing us and hearing our prayer. In Jesus' Name. AMEN." -Jay;

16) Lucian asks to be remembered in our prayers. He writes, "I am desperate. I have four properties that are an albatross on my neck. I must sell them. God, hear my plea. Do not give me wealth or fame or power in this life, all I want is peace. I have four children, a spouse, and a home mortgage. Your prayers are APPRECIATED! Help me... ";

17) "Please LORD lower my blood pressure if its to high also thank for the car and may it hold out. Amen." -Franklyn;

18) David asks for us to "pray for Larry, He found his wife having an inappropriate relationship with another man. He does not want divorce but wants to work through it. Pray for his mental well being and their marriage to come together again.";

19) Evan is asking for prayer for his brother Dustin. He is still recooperating from his second surgery but is doing really well.;

20) Pray for Annie. She is 89-years of age. She is having bouts with congenital heart failure due to fluid build-up around her heart and lungs.;

21) "Please pray for my friend, that God would draw her and convict her that He has a better plan for her than lesbianism. Pray that her eyes would be opened to the truth of His Word and His will for her life. Thank you!" -Michele;

22) Tina asks for our prayers. She writes, "PRAY DAUGHTER TINA GETS CUSTIDY OF 3 CHRILDREN 5,10,16.";

23) Please keep Malkymus in your prayers. She is having difficulties with a few health issues.;

24) Please pray for the two states in South India that have been hit with the worst floods in memory. More than 230 people are dead and 10 million are homeless. Many missionaries and believers are already meeting physical needs and sharing God's love with those who are suffering. Please keep these helpers in your prayers too! Thank you for your faithfulness to stand with our brothers and sisters in need.;

25) "I have been overweight all my life. I just started a new job 2 years ago and I have gained almost 70 lbs since then. I am only 36 and I am a single parent. I need to have a better life, health wise. I have been looking into getting gastric bypass and I need prayer that my insurance company will approve me for the surgery." -Dawn;

26) Lucy asks for our prayers. She writes, "Yes, please pray for my study I really needed prayers! That God will show his glory over my study! My name is Lucy on second year in Early Childhood Education (degree). Thanks.";

27) "That my brother Joe will get rid of the pneumonia and urinary tract infection. When he does, he will come off the ventilator and dialysis. That the infection will be gone never to return and all his organs will return to working the way the Lord made them to work." -Judy; and lastly ...

28) Mike & Linda asks for us to remember them in our prayers. Linda writes: "I need pray for my little dog, her name is Sheba sheis 9 yeears old and has stomach problems and is passing Blood,we don't have money for all the test,she is so small she only weighs 5 pounds,she has been such a comfort to me, being I am disabled and in a lot of pain myself. The thought off having to put her down breaks my heart,also My husbad and I are on a fixed income and about to loss our house,my husban has a lot of health problems to,We both love the Lord,we need pray for us to. Thank You. God Bless."


**God bless you for caring enough to pray!!!**

........................................

A real friend is always and under all circumstances a friend (Proverbs 17:17a).

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*~*Spotlight Site*~*

http://Farese.com

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Jews Flout Obama, Lay Cornerstone for E. Jerusalem Homes
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu


Developers of a new Jewish neighborhood on privately-owned land in eastern Jerusalem plan to lay the cornerstone for the project Wednesday afternoon, ignoring U.S. President Barack Obama’s opposition to Jewish “settlers" in the area. Former Chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau and National Union Knesset Member Uri Ariel plan to be on hand for the ceremony which marks the development of 105 luxury units in Nof Tzion. A new Torah scroll also will be dedicated.

The project is located in the Jabel Mukabar neighborhood, home to several terrorists with Israeli identity cards who have carried out murderous attacks on Israelis, including the murder of eight students at the Merkaz HaRav yeshiva last year. Police are deployed to prevent violence that has spread throughout eastern Jerusalem this week.

The new development project is the second stage of the Nof Tzion neighborhood and “is the best answer to incitement and violence from extremist elements,” according to the Im Tirtzu (If You Will It) organization. Ninety-one residential units already have been built, and most of them have been sold.

The new development of Nof Tzion, which literally means View of Zion, will extend to Armon HaNatziv in eastern Talpiot. The master plan calls for nearly 500 apartment units, two synagogues, community and educational facilities and a mall.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has rejected President Obama’s demand for a total freeze on building in eastern Jerusalem, saying the entire city is under the sovereignty of Israel. The United States and most Western nations regard all of Judea and Samaria, including many parts of Jerusalem, as Arab land that Israel “occupied” since the Six-Day War in 1967. Previously, Jordan occupied the same areas following the War of Independence in 1948, when the Arab world rejected the United Nations partition of the country, which at the time was ruled by the British Mandate.

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What Fell from the Bible?
Unknown Author


A little boy opened the big family Bible.
He was fascinated as he fingered through the old pages.
Suddenly something fell out of the Bible.
He picked up the object and looked at it closely.
What he saw was an old leaf that had been pressed in between the pages.

"Momma, look what I found," the boy called out.

"What have you got there, dear?" his mother asked.

With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he answered: "I think it's Adam's underwear!"

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"Prayer is not magic. God is not a celestial bellhop ready at our beck and call to satisfy our every whim. In some cases our prayers must involve travail of the soul and agony of heart such as Jesus himself experienced in the Garden. Sometimes the immature Christian suffers bitter disappointment not because God failed to keep his promises, but because well-meaning Christians made promises "for" God that God himself never authorized." ~ R.C. Sproul

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Unseen and Deadly
By Stuart McAllister
LighthousePrayerLine.org


There is something very unsettling about biological threats. The very idea of unseen, undetectable, but deadly toxins or viruses is a modern nightmare. The sad thing is that we have too many actual examples to fuel our fears. For multitudes in the industrial town of Bhopal, India, a normal working day turned into a catastrophe of biblical proportions as people were poisoned and killed by gas leaking from a local factory. Similarly catastrophic, the events surrounding the reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine combined the worst of leftover Soviet era paranoia and secrecy with a calamity of truly mind-boggling proportions. Hundreds of young men were ushered in to fight a fire, knowing nothing of the deadly radiation saturating the area, and as a result, thousands died (though exact numbers are not clear).

The weight and power of these deadly issues grips us. We feel and understand it acutely. There are things in our universe that are invisible, but real. They are necessary (perhaps), but deadly. And there are few guaranteed fail-safe mechanisms to protect us, in all circumstances, from harm. This feeling of vulnerability, this sense that there are things beyond our control, this notion of risk is something the modern mind finds repulsive. We want security, we demand certainty, and we feel entitled to assurance. But what is it, and where is it to be found?

Ernest Becker, several decades ago, wrote a very challenging book called The Denial of Death. He shows how society works to create hero-systems and elaborate ways of suppressing or avoiding the reality of death. As Woody Allen once said, “It’s not that I’m afraid to die, I just don’t want to be there when it happens.” Here is where Scripture speaks clearly to the human dilemma. In 1 Corinthians 15:22, we read, “As in Adam, all die.” There are no exceptions, no escape routes, and no exits. It is as inclusive as it gets. Death is the great leveler. It respects everyone.

However, the apostle does not stop here; he goes on to say “so in Christ will all be made alive.” There you have it! This is the great distinction. Death occurs on a hundred percent scale. Our link to Adam is inviolable; we are all descendents, and inheritors of all that this implies. Like those infected with a deadly virus, the issue is not morality or effort. We need a solution, an antidote, an answer beyond us. What the Scriptures outline is a way out, an answer that is a transfer.

What do I mean? As long as we are located “in Adam,” which means our natural state and line of descent, we are subject to the outworking of the brokenness, damage, and suffering that is now a part of the human condition. The invitation to change is the move to be “in Christ.” What does this mean? Several things. It means trusting him to provide what we cannot provide for ourselves—namely, healing and help. It means confessing our sins and seeking his forgiveness. It means receiving a new kind of life within, by means of the gift of the Holy Spirit (cf. John 1:4).

These two great antagonists, life and death, are powerful indicators in the human story. Michael Green, the superb British evangelist said,“Jesus did not come to make bad men good, but to make dead men live.” Life! Life! This is the issue C. S. Lewis brings to light in Mere Christianity, where he contrasts physical life (bios) with spiritual life (zoe) and our urgent need for the latter, which we can only obtain on Christ’s terms and not our own.

As I watch ageing, decaying people, I recognize something sad and good at the same time. Death is not (or need not be) the end. We pass through death (by faith in Christ) to the resurrection. Joni Erickson Tada brought this home to me some years ago as she spoke from her wheel chair, testifying of a love for Jesus and her great expectations as a believer, despite her very real suffering and restrictions as a paraplegic. She announced to us all that when she sees Jesus, she will dance in heaven. I believe it. This is resurrection hope and a sure foundation. There are many unseen but real threats, but there are also unseen but real promises, and he who makes them says, “Behold, I am coming soon” (Revelation 22:12).

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"I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first" (Mark 10:29-31 - NIV).

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Submit your Website to Hundreds of Link Directories:

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Daily Devotional
By Bill Keller
LighthousePrayerLine.org


Many of you today are burdened by the cares of this world. You have mountains in your life that are so large, you know it is only a matter of time before they crush you. You woke up this morning with a glimmer of hope, clinging to that last ounce of faith that today, maybe today, you might get that breakthrough you are looking for. You are tired, weary, and without enough energy to go on much longer. At this moment, as much as anything, you are hoping and praying for a bit of comfort in the midst of the trials and a little rest from carrying the burdens that are weighing you down.

My friend, put your burdens down, quit thinking about the circumstances you are facing for a few minutes and let God, the One who loves you, give you His peace and comfort today!

As you know, nobody can think clearly or make wise decisions when they are weary. Many times, we compound the problems in our life by making hasty, non-prayerful decisions in the heat of the moment without thinking. Today, go to God, ask Him to comfort you, give you His peace, and His rest. Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give yourest." I sense in my spirit today that many of you simply need to go to the Lord today and find that rest He has promised to you.

Listen my friend, the problems you have didn't happen overnight, and unless God decides to work a miracle, they won't go away overnight. But know that God will help you to get victory over your problems in His perfect timing.

This is hard for me to write because I am a very motivated, action-oriented person who likes to work until the problems are solved and then rest. But that isn't always practical. Many times God tests us through different problems and He rarely works things out on our time schedule. One of the hardest lessons for me to learn was that there are days and times when I just need to stop, relax, and let God comfort me for a while and carry my burdens.

What this really boils down to, my friend, is an issue of faith. We are so worried and work so hard in our own strength that we drive ourselves crazy due to a lack of faith. Faith is simply believing God can and will do exactly what He says in His Word. The reason it is hard for me to take that time of rest and enjoy the Lord's comfort is because of a lack of faith. I just don't trust God enough to work things out so I stay busy trying to do it myself. I am not saying we shouldn't work hard, be concerned about the issues in our life, or try to work things out, but at some point we have to take a stand of faith and trust God.

I love you and am praying for you. Never lose sight that no matter what, God is still on the throne and still in control. One of the interesting parts of the scripture reference I gave you today is that God comforts you so that you, in turn, can comfort others. Never forget that as you are about His business, God will be about your business. Often, we find that our needs have been met while we are busy caring for the needs of others. It is a powerful spiritual truth to never forget.

My prayer for you today is to take time to find God's peace and comfort despite the problems you are facing. Go to school or work and do the thingsyou do in a normal day but rest from the worry and concerns of your problems and circumstances. Let God give you rest today from your burdens. Let Him comfort you in the midst of your trials. Let Him simply love you today. In addition, exercise that measure of faith He has given each one of us and start to trust Him more. Tomorrow, you will wake up fresh, rested, and witha renewed confidence in God. He promised to never leave you nor forsake you.You need to take Him at His word!.

May you find Christ's peace, Christ's rest, and Christ's comfort today even in the midst of the problems and challenges that you are facing.

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"There's more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we're hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next. In alert expectancy such as this, we're never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary—we can't round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!" (Romans 5:3-4 - The Message).

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Helpful Prayer?

Johnny had been misbehaving and was sent to his room.

After a while he emerged and informed his mother that he had thought it over and then said a prayer.

"Fine", said the pleased mother. "If you ask God to help you not misbehave, He will help you."

"Oh, I didn't ask Him to help me not misbehave," said Johnny. "I asked Him to help you put up with me."

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Turned Inside Out
By Jill Carattini
LighthousePrayerLine.org

Barbara Krensavage insists that clams are not a regular part of her diet. Yet one snowy evening in December she found herself craving an old recipe, and so brought home four dozen quahogs—a clam particularly abundant between Cape Cod and New Jersey. Mr. Krensavage was in the midst of shucking the shellfish for dinner when he discovered one that looked like it was dead. It had a different color to it and he thought it was diseased. As he was about to discard it, Mrs. Krensavage took a closer look.

It wasn't dead. In fact, inside the live clam was a rare and possibly priceless, purple pearl. Experts estimate that roughly one in two million quahog clams contains a gem-quality pearl like the one found by the Krensavages. Due to the great rarity of the find, it has been difficult to even place a value on it, though some have estimated the pearl to be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The message Christ brought to the world was one that spoke openly of a kingdom among us, where, like this discovery of the Krensavages, all is not as it may first appear. In a world that seems more marked by disease than promise, there is hidden in this life a treasure worth selling all we have to possess as our own. Where there seems a world of stagnant hope and deteriorating vision, there is the promise of living water and the signs of its presence. Where there is around us a world marked by the power of death, there is yet somehow a life among us that was stronger than death itself. Now we see as in a glass darkly, but for those who will see, the kingdom Christ came to show us is here and is real, a pearl of great price.

Yet even holding it, we may not always recognize its worth. On the Mount of Transfiguration, Jesus stood with Peter, James, and John—three men who left lives behind to sit and learn at his feet—and there he was transfigured before them. These men knew Jesus better than any other. They were with him constantly, eating, sleeping, and learning; and they were terrified in his presence on the mountain. All three fell facedown on the ground, until Jesus came and touched them. As commentator Frederick Bruner describes what was happening on that mountain, “What Jesus was within was once made visible without.”(1)

It is at times more disturbing to see clearly than it is to see dimly. To see Christ as he really is—the one whom men could not kill and death could not touch because he was too alive—is to see more than we can handle as we currently are. In the Old Testament, the face of God was readily spoken of as too much for a man to see and yet live. Rabbinic reflection taught that Adam and Eve had lost the radiance of their faces in their fall to sin, and that only the Messiah would reestablish this radiance once more. Here as the face of Christ “became like the sun,” it portrayed vividly the glory of God and the beginnings of his restoration of radiance. It was a preview of the heavenly transfiguration awaiting believers in the person of Christ, when the life of the Son within us will be made visible without. For the disciples, the sound of God’s voice and the reality of the Son were too much to behold standing.

Perhaps it is telling that the clam which held the pearl the Krensavages now treasure was the one that had the most outward appearance of death. Notes C.S. Lewis, “[I]t is, I think, a gross exaggeration to picture the saving of a soul as being, normally, at all like the development from seed to flower. The very words, repentance, regeneration, the New Man, suggest something very different.”(2) We cannot lay our hands on the thought that we are made in the image of God and being presently formed in the Person of Christ without laying down our entire lives before him, giving everything we have, being turned inside out, that we might one day stand in his glory. For the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares
about you" (1 Peter 5:7 – NLT).

Be sure to send in your prayer request for the next
mailing.

You are in my thoughts and prayers! May the Lord
continue to bless you with knowledge of Himself.

In His grace,


Mark Seay
Lighthouse Prayer Line
105 Quincy Drive
Greer, SC 29650
LighthousePrayerLine.org

"To them God has chosen to make known
among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this
mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of
glory" (Colossians 1:27 - NIV).

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We hope you have found today's newsletter encouraging to your
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Candle Going!

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*~*Prayer Requests for 10/3/09:

((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))

If you find a Bible that's all tattered &
worn, it belongs to a person who isn't.

((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))

"O Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you.
Be our strength every morning, our salvation
in times of distress" (Isaiah 33:2 - NIV).

((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))

Hi friend,

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

1) "Please pray for me. I am in a new job for 3 months and it is terrible. I need the job desperatly because we are helping with our grandchildren. I know I am in the job for a reason but it is getting very difficult to handle. Please pray that God will bless me with a new job. Thanks." -Brenda;

2) Pat asks for our prayers. She writes, "Urgent prayer needed please. We have $3 to our name and our rent is due in a few days. If we don't pay, we will be evicted (we have already battled homelessness). We need money for rent and to keep our phone on so that the employment agencies can reach us to get us some immediate work. Pray that God will find a way to get us the money we need. Thank you and God bless you.";

3) "A few weeks ago my family found the perfect house and we really want to get it,but we have been having finantial trouble for the last four years. Will you pray with us that we get the house?" -Amanda;

4) Geno asks for ou prayers. He writes, "Father GOD, Please take away this impossible LOVE of mine for KATHY. She has been gone for decades, and I realized today that I never got over her. Give me a good woman to share LOVE and LIFE with. KATHY has been the catalyst of my insanity. Fill me with LOVE that is REALISTIC. CHANGE my LIFE completely. Burn't OUT! in JESUS' name...Amen.";

5) Please pray for Rebekah ---a 19 year old that has follicular carcinoma of the thyroid.;

6) On Monday evening, I normally visit the Greenville Detention Center (Greenville, SC). Much prayer and testimony are given by myself and numerous inmates. Bibles, gospel tracts, Bible studies and Daily Breads are handed out amongst many. Last Monday evening, my badge was stripped with the explanation of revamping the system and tightening security. Please ask Christ to give these men strength and continue to build up the faith of His own. Please also pray for re-entry to be approved for all religious volunteers.

If you would like to make a donation towards this ministry, please send funds to: Mark Seay, 105 Quincy Drive, Greer, SC 29650.;

7) "Im not in as big of need as some requests you might get but I really need this in my life right now...I left my job in may of this year(due to the fact we were required to work 8hr shifts alone with no breaks or lunches provided and no one to releave you) I was told by a state worker and the labor board that i would get unemployment if i quit due to those curcumstances) I took them to labor board and did win the money for the 3yrs i worked with out breaks and lunches and its a good thing i did because the state unemployment denyed me unemployment but that money has run out and between bad health (cronic kiddney stones)and living in one of the lowest job availibity citys in the U.S. I havent been able to find a job yet. Between me and my husband whom has health problems as well and hasent worked in 2years its been very hard to take care of our 2 kids (ages 4 and 2) I appealled the EDD's denial and had my hearing a few days ago, our faith is in high gear praying to the lord that he will see the truth side and prevail....I would just like some extra help to pray that i get approved and eventually find a job...and for healing health for me and my husband...I would greatly appreciate it! thank you for your time and for listening...your website is wonderful! Bless you all! thank you." -Lindsay;

8) Peggy asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for the healing of my back and elimination of pain. Thank you very much.";

9) "My family is having money problems which is causing a lot of fighting between my mom and dad i'm worried and i'm praying but someime it feels like it not wirking so i'm asking for help please." -NN;

10) Silvia asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "Father , so many that are asking for help are so desperate.Please hear and answer our prayers so we may feel normal again and be able to help ourselves also.Increase our hope and faith and give us a joyful and thankful spirit.Have your angels watch over us please.Amen.";

11) "I need a job and to hear from my baby's father. I havent heard from him in months and I am worried. I have applied for jobs with apartments as a leasing agent and haven't gotten any response I have three children to feed on my own my name is Johnah his name is Chris I really need a job.";

12) "Lord cover my wife with Your Love and blood, dont let her retain any of the words or occultism at the buhhidist temple she is going too, let Your sacrifice draw her to you not her and others human or demonic efforts to be clean and holy, amen." -AN;

13) Stephanie asks for our prayers. She writes, "Pray for me to restore good health in the Name of Jesus and for me to get a job. May God's mercies and Blessings be upon me.";

14) "I could really use your payers money is very tight right now. i don't like to ask the Lord for money but i really need it i'm worried about making it please pray. In Jesus Christ name we pray amen." -John;

15) Patty asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes: "I need pray for my brother ed he has cancer its taking over his life.god please touch him n heal him.let him be with us a little longer.thank you god.";

16) "I have health promblems and need a pray." -Frances;

17) JR writes, "I pray that my friend, Jennifer's 5 year old son, recovers from his bronchitis. He has been in ICU for 3 days; his name is Myron. God bless u in jesus name.";

18) Please pray for the children and families devastated by the catastrophic typhoon that swept through Manila and surrounding provinces in the Philippines before hitting Central Vietnam. Thousands of homes in these areas are damaged or destroyed.;

19) "Wanted to thank you for your prayer on behalf of my father in laws surgery. It was very successful. My mother-in-law called it 'amazing'. Thanks again." -Farrell;

20) Vinay asks for our prayers. She writes, "Lord, Please heal my Dad's eyes and vision after his cataract surgery. Thank you in advance.";

21) "Lord, I humble myself in prayer in Jesus name, I love and I thank you and I ask forgiveness, I forgive others. Lord, please help me I give in to whatever it is you want in Jesus name, help me with everything in my life. Especially right now give me the knowledge I need to pass this AgBus Math class. Lord I love and I thank you in Jesus name. Amen." -C; and lastly ...

22) AN asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "I would like to pray for my friend, Brian. He has been married for about 4 or 5 years and his wife walked out on him and he say that he still loves her. Lord I pray that they find it in their heart to forgive each other and bring their family back together. I want to pray for my oldest son that he is not gay and that God change the rage in him. I want to pray for my husband that he comes back home a renewed man. That he put away his cheating ways and that I can forgive him without bring up the past up in anyway. I want to find a good paying job and something that I like to do and enjoy doing. I want to pray that my cousin Calvin will mind his own business for now on."


**God bless you for caring enough to pray!!!**

........................................

A real friend is always and under all circumstances a friend (Proverbs 17:17a).

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*~*Spotlight Site*~*

http://WayOfTheMaster.com

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"I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills
{his purpose} for me" (Psalms 57:2 - NIV).

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8 Warning Signs of Toxic Faith
By J. Lee Grady
LighthousePrayerLine.org


Legalistic religion is dangerous. Here's how you can detect and avoid the poison of a religious spirit.

After Elisha watched Elijah ascend into heaven, the prophet went to the city of Jericho and performed his first miracle. The men of that city faced an environmental crisis: Their water was toxic, most likely because of the sulphur and other chemicals that had rained down upon nearby Sodom and Gomorrah years earlier. This poison had made the land barren (see 2 Kings 2:19-22) and it was probably affecting people and animals as well as plant life.

So Elisha performed a bold, prophetic act. He threw salt in the water and proclaimed: "Thus says the Lord, ‘I have purified these waters; there shall not be from there death or unfruitfulness any longer'" (v. 21, NASB). His proclamation brought immediate cleansing.

" Jesus Himself referred to these toxins as 'the leaven of the Pharisees'” (Luke 12:1, NASB). He told us that the Pharisees’ brand of religion, which looked good on the outside, was deadly—and contagious."

This obscure story in the Old Testament offers us a picture of the gospel's power. The message of Jesus Christ heals us. The Holy Spirit brings life where death has reigned. He neutralizes the poisons that cause spiritual barrenness. He balances the pH level so that spiritual growth and vitality is possible.

All of us would like to enjoy a healthy spiritual life. But the sad truth is that many of us are barren because of hazardous additives. We have believed a different gospel—one laced with legalism, performance-based religion and salvation by works—when Christ alone is our only source of life.

Jesus Himself referred to these toxins as "the leaven of the Pharisees" (Luke 12:1, NASB). He told us that the Pharisees' brand of religion, which looked good on the outside, was deadly—and contagious.

Have you been infected? You can take your own pH test by examining these eight characteristics of a religious spirit.

1. A religious spirit views God as a cold, harsh, distant taskmaster rather than an approachable, loving Father. When we base our relationship with God on our ability to perform spiritual duties, we deny the power of grace. God does not love us because we pray, read our Bibles, attend church or witness, yet millions of Christians think God is mad if they don't perform these and other duties perfectly. As a result they struggle to find true intimacy with Jesus.

2. A religious spirit places emphasis on doing outward things to show others that God accepts him. We deceive ourselves into believing that we can win God's approval through a religious dress code, certain spiritual disciplines, particular music styles or even doctrinal positions.

3. A religious spirit develops traditions and formulas to accomplish spiritual goals. We trust in our liturgies, denominational policies or man-made programs to obtain results that only God alone can give.

4. A religious spirit becomes joyless, cynical and hypercritical. This can turn a home or a church completely sour. Then, whenever genuine joy and love are expressed, this becomes a threat to those who have lost the simplicity of true faith.

5. A religious spirit becomes prideful and isolated, thinking that his righteousness is special and that he cannot associate with other believers who have different standards. Churches that allow these attitudes become elitist and dangerously vulnerable to deception or cult-like practices.

6. A religious spirit develops a harsh, judgmental attitude toward sinners, yet those who ingest this poison typically struggle with sinful habits that they cannot admit to anyone else. Religious people rarely interact with nonbelievers because they don't want their own superior morals to be tainted by them.

7. A religious spirit rejects progressive revelation and refuses to embrace change. This is why many churches become irrelevant to society. They become so focused on what God did 50 years ago that they become stuck in a time warp and cannot move forward when the Holy Spirit begins to open new understanding. When religious groups refuse to shift with God's new directives, they become "old wineskins" and God must find more flexible vessels that are willing to implement change.

8. A religious spirit persecutes those who disagree with his self-righteous views and becomes angry whenever the message of grace threatens to undermine his religiosity. An angry religious person will use gossip and slander to assassinate other peoples' character and may even use violence to prove his point. Jesus, in fact, warned His disciples: "There will even come a time when anyone who kills you will think he's doing God a favor" (John 16:2, The Message).

If the poison of religion has contaminated your walk with God, ask Him to pour a fresh understanding of His grace into your barren spirit—and then expect His new life to flow through you.

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"They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us" (1 John 2:19).

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Now, THAT's a Community Church!
By Ministry News
LighthousePrayerLine.org


If you're frustrated with leading your congregation and need a reminder of why you love the body of Christ, you'll want to hear the inspiring story of what's happening at Rolling Hills Baptist Church in Fayetteville, Ga.

Last year the congregation of no more than 100 people was a mere $150,000 away from paying off their $1.4 million property. Their pastor, Frank Mercer, had come from a megachurch in Charlotte, N.C., and envisioned replicating the numerical growth he'd seen there. Naturally, everyone thought that after fully paying off their buildings and 20-acre plot, they'd pat themselves on the back and move on to "bigger and better" ministry.

They have … only in a way few churches are willing to do. On October 5, 2008, with a reeling economy hitting their community hard, the congregation voted overwhelmingly to sell the church property and invest all proceeds into what they believe really matters: people.

“Our motive should not be to fill these seats, but to empty these seats,” Mercer has often stated to a profoundly unified and supportive congregation. But he admits it has taken a transformational journey to embrace a mindset that would rather see local families with roofs over their heads and food on the table rather than the church having a better sound system.

“We had long been considering how to best maximize ministry and missions resources by reducing operating costs," Mercer says. "But the idea of leveraging the value of our buildings and property so that we could begin to invest more deeply in people rather than property still seemed far-fetched.”

After a season in which God prompted the pastor to research more on the idea of a "church without walls," Mercer visited a small congregation in New York making a difference in their community by serving the homeless, hungry, sick and lost. When asked about future plans to purchase property, the church's pastor, Tom Richter, responded with a statement Mercer couldn't shake: "If we become a church of brick and mortar, we may cease to be a church of flesh and blood.”

Mercer returned to Georgia and gradually shared with others what he believed was God's new vision for the church. Within only a few months, 95 percent of the congregation agreed: It didn't make sense for them to spend more than 50 percent of the church budget on a building that sat unoccupied for 90 percent of the time. Rolling Hills members have since become regulars in serving a local homeless shelter, children's home and various other community projects. Once the building is sold, they are considering either renting or building a warehouse-like structure where they could meet for services while also storing clothes and food for distribution.

“At our church we’ve tried to keep up with the Joneses for too long," Mercer admits now. "Churches buy property and build buildings to expand the club and improve the clubhouse. We suffer from steeple envy. We work to attract guests. And the church that has the most people who give the most money wins. We’re tired of playing that game. We no longer want to be like everybody else. And that is not to say that everybody should be like us either. This model is not for everybody." [ajc.com, 7/28/09; christianindex.org, 12/4/08]

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Alienation and Restoration
By J.M. Njoroge
LighthousePrayerLine.org


Vincenzo Ricardo. If that name does not mean much to you, you are not alone. It does not seem to have meant much to anyone else except, perhaps, him who bore it. In fact it was not even his name. His real name was Vincenzo Riccardi, and nobody seemed to get it right after the sensational discovery of his mummified body in Southampton, New York. He had been dead for 13 months, but his television was still on, and his body was propped up in a chair in front of it.(1) The television was his only companion, and though it had much to tell him, it did not care whether he lived or died.

Riccardi’s story raises many unsettling questions. How can a human being vanish for over a year and not be missed by anyone? Where was his family? What about his relatives? Why was the power still on in his house? Whatever the answers are to these and other questions, one thing is clear: Riccardi was a lonely individual whose life can be summed up in one word, alienation. You see, Riccardi was blind, so he never really watched television; he needed this virtual reality to feed his need for real companionship. Moreover, his frequent “outbursts and paranoid behavior” may have played a role in driving people away from him.(2)

This is indeed a tragic and extreme tale, but it makes a powerful statement about how cold and lonely life can be for millions across the globe. Even those who seem to have all of their ducks in a row are not immune to the pangs of loneliness and alienation. Alienation affects us at three different levels. We are alienated from ourselves, from others, and most significantly, we are alienated from God. That is the reality in which we exist. The restoration process involves all three dimensions, but it begins with a proper relationship with God. We cannot get along with ourselves or with others until we are properly related to God. The good news of the gospel is that full restoration is available to all who want it.

This process is well illustrated in an encounter Jesus had with another deeply wounded man who lived in a cemetery. Relatives, and perhaps friends, had tried unsuccessfully to bind him with iron chains to keep him home. He preferred to live among the tombs (alienation from others), cutting himself with stones, his identity concealed in his new name—“Legion” (alienation from self). His mind and body were hopelessly enslaved by Satan’s agents, and his life was no longer his own (alienation from God). It took an encounter with Jesus for the man to be fully restored, “dressed and in his right mind” (Mark 5:15). Only then could he follow Jesus’s command to go back to his family and tell them what God had done for him.

The restoration process remains the same today. Until we are properly related to God, our true identity and potential will always elude us. No virtual reality or gadget can even begin to address the problem, for they only give back to us what we have put into them. They are like the message in a bottle which a castaway on a remote island excitedly received, only to realize that it was a cry for help that he himself had sent out months before. As Augustine prayed, “You have made us for Yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in You.” We are finite creatures, created for a relationship with an Infinite Being, and no finite substitute can ever meet our deepest needs. Trying to meet our real needs without God is like trying to satisfy our thirst with salty water: the more we drink, the thirstier we become. This is a sure path to various sorts of addictions.

But when we are properly related to the True Shepherd who calls his sheep by name, loneliness is infused with great hope as we, with Abraham, look “forward to the city with foundations whose architect and builder is God” (Hebrews 11:10). We become members of God’s extended family. Day by day, we learn to trust God as we travel with others along a heavily trodden path that never disappoints. Friends and relatives may desert us, but we are never alone. We may grieve, but never like those without hope. We have peace and joy within, and even in our own hour of need, others can still find their way to God through us. The alternative is a crippling sense of isolation and alienation within a worldly system whose offerings, however sophisticated and well-intentioned, can never arouse us from spiritual death.

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Our vision is to inspire in every Christian a God-glorifying
passion to fulfill The Great Commission:

http://LivingWaters.com

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"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares
about you" (1 Peter 5:7 – NLT).

Be sure to send in your prayer request for the next
mailing.

You are in my thoughts and prayers! May the Lord
continue to bless you with knowledge of Himself.

Thanks be to God whom all blessings flow,


Mark Seay
Lighthouse Prayer Line
105 Quincy Drive
Greer, SC 29650
LighthousePrayerLine.org

"Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have
taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting
what is behind and straining toward what is
ahead," (Philippians 3:13 - NIV).

((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))

A preacher's little boy inquired, "Daddy, I notice every Sunday morning when you first come out to preach, you sit up on the platform and bow your head. What are you doing?"

The father explained, "I'm asking the Lord to give me a good sermon."

The little boy said, "Why don't he?"

((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))((¯`»¦«´¯))

We hope you have found today's newsletter encouraging to your
walk with Jesus Christ. Please send all prayer requests and
praise reports to us by using the "comments" hyperlink, which
can be found at the end of each blog/article. God is Good!!!

A Candle Loses Nothing by Lighting Another Candle. Please Keep This
Candle Going!

-------††††-------Please
-------††††-------Forward
-------††††-------This
††††††††††††††Cross
††††††††††††††Along
-------††††-------With Our
-------††††-------Newsletter.
-------††††-------Share Your
-------††††-------Love For GOD
-------††††-------With A Friend!!!!!!

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(¯`*•.(¯`*•.God is Good - ALL of the Time!!!.•*´¯).•*´¯)
~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=
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I'm just a nobody
trying to tell everybody
that there is somebody
who can save anybody!!

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*~*Prayer Requests for 9/28/09:

"So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law" (Galatians 5:16-18).

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Hi friend,

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

1) Deborah asks for our prayers. She writes, "My mom has just learned she has gout all in her back and neck. it is very painful to top it all off the doct called and said she has a 3 in. mass in her lung and has to have a biopsy. we are so worried and in bad need of prayer!!! plz pray for her.";

2) "Pray for my husband and our family. He is in danger of losing his job in two months. Please pray that he will hold onto his job or find one that is more secure. Please also pray that we all grow closer to each other and our Lord Jesus through this situation." -NN;

3) Monica asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "I would like for everyone to join me in prayer to restore my marriage. It's been 3 and half years since I got separated from my common law husband. We have a 7yr old daughter. She doesnt tell me much but I know she is hurting and wants us to get back together. I too want to get back together with him because I am still in love with him. I gave him my whole heart a long time ago and I never really got it back and I am not ready to get it back. I will not give up. Please please please help me. Thank you to everyone.";

4) "Please pray that I find employment soon or that my unemployment is extended a little bit longer. Please. I have a little boy to take care of." -Aaron's mom;

5) "My name is Rachel- I am going through some difficulty at this time in my life. My husband is leaving and the salary i am making just cannot maintain my children and myself. I need prayer in my life right now to heal. I pray the Lord will take care of my problems as i place them in his care. He knows our needs before we ask. also I need this depression to go away. this i ask in Jesus' holy might name. thank you Jesus."

6) Tammy asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for my son Shaun 12, and his father Jeff. Shaun has a nervous tick of jerking his head, dostors say it is stress. Please pray for healing of Shaun and Jeff's heart,if it be God's will. Also,to bless our marriage.";

7) On Monday evening, I was able to visit the Greenville Detention Center (Greenville, SC). Much prayer and testimony was given by myself and several inmates. Bibles, gospel tracts, Bible studies and Daily Breads were handed out amongst many. Please keep the following individuals in your prayers: Vagler, Ted Butler, Frederick Downer, Juan Lupe, Orion Bullow, Artemio Gonzalez, Curtis King, Aaron Adams, Ron Alexander, Tom Lauritzen, Nathan Cooper, Chuck Hannah, Chris Worst, Charles Gardner, Brian Dodgens, Enrique Martinez, Joey Henry, Glendale Pruitt, Jody Allen, Barry Hall, Joey Owens, Thomas Smith, Sean Crawford, Isaac Rogers, Adam Burnett, Mike Cooley, Daniel Gosnell, Rodgers West, and Danny, Karen & Trenton Ellenburg. If you would like to make a donation towards this ministry, please send funds to: Mark Seay, 105 Quincy Drive, Greer, SC 29650.;

8) "Please pray that the work week ahead will go smoothly with NO problems for both my husband and myself, pray that I will be able to keep a positive and friendly attitude toward everyone, especially the customers. Please pray that God will bless my husband and I with the financial blessing we so need, we really need to either move out of this house, with all of it mold or to be financially able to fix it up the way that it should be, it is falling down all around us, please pray that God will help us with this. Pray that we will be able to retire from our jobs and be able to do some of the traveling and other things that we would really like to do. Please pray that God will watch over and protect Shelly, Isaac, Raymond and Bryant and keep them safe and well at all times. Thank You." -Lynn;

9) Dianne asks for our prayers. She writes, "I don't know how I'm going to pay the bills this month. Electric company won't work with me because I've been late with bills twice this year. Owe on rent. Am short $250. No family to borrow from. Had to borrow from church last month. Nowhere to turn. Had to miss a day at second job due to illness. No money to get diabetes medicine. Please pray for a miracle for me. I know God provides. I know prayer works. I'm scared.";

10) "Please pray that the horible pain in my shoulder and neck go away soon." -Laura;

11) Kakellum asks to be remembered in our prayers. She writes, "Yes, please pray for my husband and our family. That they may keep safe and healthy. I too need prayer that I can keep strong and prosper in the everyday life that I am living. That the Lord will guide me to do his will and be the person that he wants me to be.Thank You Very Much!";

12) "I ask that you pray for me, and ask the Lord that I have no illness or disease. May I be completly healthy." -Aaron;

13) Phyllis asks for our prayers. She writes, "Please pray for my surgery for both hip replacements on Wed AM. Pray for me to survive the surgery with no complications & for me to have a remarkable recovery afterwards. Pray for me to be able to walk well without pain right away. Please help this remarkable recovery be a witness for God's healing grace. Thanks.";

14) Carolyn asks for us to remember her cousin, Linda, who is
currently hopitalized and under treatment for leukemia.;

15) "Pray for my son to be delivered from homosexuality. Satan is a liar and cannot have my son. He was saved at age 12 and baptized. Salvation for his friend, Todd, also. May they both serve the Lord Jesus and seek Him with their whole hearts!" -Patti;

16) Please pray for Cindy as she has several domestic problems to which she would like to find relief.;

17) Omar asks for our prayers. He writes, "Pray for my family, friends and for my court case on Sept 17.";

18) "Pray for my family's well-being." -Dave;

19) Please say a prayer for Dawn & Chris as they celebrate the new addition, Roxie, to their family. Ask the Lord to have them raise her in a Christian home.;

20) Please remember Lisa and Tony in your prayers as they struggle in their marriage over bills. Ask the Lord to reveal Himself to the both of them if it be His Will.; and lastly ...

21) "Please pray for me as im struggling real hard with thyroid problems, sugar, digestive problems that either cause dehydration or overhydration and i blacked out a few days ago from causx eio try to rehydrate myself too fast with too much plain water and i cant find a balance and it causes me weakness, feeling faint and disoriented/confused and it is taking a toll on my body. please pray for healing and for all imbalances and for me to find a good balance where i feel good more days. also pray for my marriage as it is falling apart due to my hubby losing his job and cant find work and also for me to find friends as i feel so lost, empty, sick and lonely. even ,my in-laws dont like me right now from a fight i had with my hubby over finances. please i really need your prayers and so does my hubby and family. we have no income, savings or insurance and 4 children to feed and raise. thanks." -Deanna


**God bless you for caring enough to pray!!!**

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A real friend is always and under all circumstances a friend (Proverbs 17:17a).

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*~*Spotlight Site*~*

http://www.reformed.org/

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Daily Devotional
By Bill Keller
LighthousePrayerLine.org


For those of us who are 50 and younger, we have grown up with television being a big part of our life. Even though when I was growing up in the '60s, there were only 3 or 4 stations. What was on television was a big part of mylife and the life of so many throughout our country. As the years have passed, television has increased in its importance in the daily lives of most people. We now live in the age of 100 plus channels that specialize in everything imaginable. Without even thinking about it, it is a bigger part of most people's lives than they even realize. In most homes, the TV is turned on from the moment you wake up, and is on until you go to bed. Most people get home from work or school and immediately turn the TV on. Again, without even realizing it, many ... no, most people have become so enslaved to television they cannot live without it.

Let me say right up front, that the purpose of this devotional today is NOT to bash the television industry. I am not here today to even talk about the programming that is on TV. My purpose today is to make you stop and think about what role the television plays in your life, and the life of your family. I can tell you from years of counseling, that the absolute number one cause of conflict between people is a lack of communication. Relationships are destroyed because of a lack of sitting down and talking about the problems that exist. I am a firm believer that with the power of God working on people's hearts, and honest, open communication, any conflictcan be overcome.

One of the biggest reasons we do not have the type of communication we should have with our loved ones, the people we are closest to in this life is because of the television. How many men come home from a long day at work, sit down in your favorite chair, and stare at the TV until you are ready to sleep. The only break is dinner, and even then, the TV is usually on and dominates your meal time. Women, aren't much better, though household chores tend to occupy your time initially, but when those chores are over, it is time for the television. Young adults and kids are also guilty of letting the TV dominate your time as well.

One of the things I try to bring home as much as possible is the importance of our daily walk with Christ. Spending time in the Word and prayer everyday. For many, it is a struggle to even devote an hour to that incredibly important time with the Lord. Yet, sitting down and watching what you enjoy on television is no problem at all. Again, my point is not to condemn you,or try to imply television is inherently evil, simply to get you to stop and think about how much time you spend each day in front of the television. Irecently shared with you a devotional on fasting. I mentioned that fasting does not always have to be food, but anything that you give up to spend that time with the Lord. Trust me when I tell you, getting a person to fast and give up food for 3 days is much easier than asking them to fast and give up television for 3 days.

Stop right now and ask yourself, how many hours a day do you spend watching television, than multiply that times 7. Now, take those hours each week you spend watching TV and ask yourself, if you took 25% of that time and did something else, what could you do? Pray more, read the bible more, do things with your family, do things with your friends, find ways to use that time at church or volunteering at some organization helping people. It is endless what you could do, that would make a positive impact on your life, by simply giving up 25% of the time that you now sit in front of the television.

I love you, and care about you so much. Part of what God has asked me to do each day is to help you deal with the very real world we live in, in accordance with your faith in Christ. Making your faith real in your very real daily life. Often, we fall into bondages without even recognizing them as such. Television is one of those subtle bondages that we never even think about in that way. I will pray for you today to pray and really seek theLord on taking 25% of the time you now spend in front of the television that time more productively. Ask the Lord how He would have you utilize that precious time. Time is the greatest resource we have in this life, yet we squander it, waste it, misuse it daily.

Just turning off the television and actually talking with your spouse, with your children, with your family members will make an incredibly positive impact in your relationships. We can't take our time in this life for granted. We can't take the time God gives us with our family and friends for granted. It won't last forever. It is a special gift. We miss so much of the joy, the abundance of this life by getting lost in the endless, often mindless things we watch on the television. For those who are single, DON'T USE THE TV AS AN ESCAPE ROUTE FROM LIVING LIFE! It is an entertainment medium, it is fantasy for the most part. God gave you only one life, LIVE IT, don't miss it.

The enemy uses all kinds of ticks and traps to minimize our effectiveness in serving the Lord. The television is a very seductive, common diversion the enemy uses to bind us and at least keep us off the battlefield. Today, you have heard this warning. It is a very real warning that you need to take seriously. God loves you very much. He only wants the best for your life. Allow Him to open your eyes to this trap today so that you may live a fruitful and victorious life!

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No $? No Problem!

Use *YouTube* to get Visitors to your Site:

https://paydotcom.com/r/60971/lit4u/22998414/

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The Healing of Two Blind Men

By Dr. Curtis Hutson
LighthousePrayerLine.org


“And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us.

“And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.

“Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.

“And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it.”—Matt. 9:27–30.

There were many blind people in the Eastern countries. I have read that at one time for every one hundred persons there were at least twenty blind people, ten who had sight in only one eye and twenty others who had some affliction of the eyes.

It was probably worse in the Saviour’s day. The fact that He healed so many blind people is an indication that many were blind. The Bible records several instances where Christ healed the blind. He healed blind Bartimaeus in Mark 10:46–52, the blind man in John 9 and others.

When I read the Bible, I am impressed with the fact that Jesus was attracted to the needy. And it seems the needier the individual, the more Jesus was attracted. For instance, in John 5, when He went to the pool of Bethesda, He was seemingly attracted to the man with the greatest need. The man he healed had been stricken with an infirmity for thirty-eight years. Where human sorrow was most conspicuous, divine power was most compassionate. Mercy met misery on its own ground. What an encouragement for the sinner! Romans 5:20 says, “But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.”

In the story in this text, Jesus healed two blind men. Blindness can be viewed as a picture of the unsaved man. All men without Christ are blind. They have intellectual light but not spiritual light. Everyone comes to Jesus under a cloak of darkness.

John Newton, in that wonderful song “Amazing Grace,” described his own salvation experience by saying, “I once…was blind, but now I see.”

“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:

“In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not.”—II Cor. 4:3,4.

In this story of two blind men seeking Christ, I want us to consider several things:

I. The Seeking Blind Men

“And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us.”—Matt. 9:27.

Notice, first, they were earnest. The word which describes their appeal is “crying.” This implies that the men were earnest, energetic, pathetic, imploring, pleading and beseeching. How eager they were! Far too many unsaved people are indifferent to their need.

I have had the happy opportunity of leading thousands to Christ. I remember once when I explained to a man that Jesus Christ had died to pay his sin debt, he shrugged his shoulders and said, “What do I care? I don’t want anybody to do anything for me. I’ll take care of myself!” I could not believe what my ears were hearing. The man seemed so indifferent. Indifference is the dry rot of the church, but in many cases, indifference is the damnation of the sinner. There was no indifference on the part of these two seekers. They were earnest.

Notice, second, they were persistent. Verse 27 says, “Two blind men followed him.” Think of that a moment—they followed Him. The Bible continues in verse 28, “And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him.” Remember, they were blind.

It is not easy for two blind men to follow anyone. I am sure they had to ask others which way He went. And sometimes He would almost get away from them. It must have been frustrating—two blind men following Jesus. But they were persistent. They would not give up! Being blind—I am sure they kept their ears open for every sound so as not to lose Him. Oh, how I wish that unsaved men were as persistent in seeking Jesus!

Not only were they earnest and persistent, but, third, they had a definite object in prayer. They knew what they wanted. They wanted their sight. There was no beating around the bush with these men. Too many blind souls do not know what they really want.

When I first started leading souls to Christ, I thought it was better for the person to pray his own prayer rather than lead him. But after several experiences, I found that it is wiser to lead the unsaved man in prayer. When he is left on his own, he will pray for everything except the main thing. He will pray “Lord, make me a better father. Lord, I thank You for this preacher. Lord, make me a better husband. Lord, help me to live a better life.” He may never get around to saying, “Dear Lord, I am a sinner. I do believe that You died for me, and here and now I do trust You as my Saviour.”

These blind men had a definite object in their prayer. They knew what they wanted. When the unsaved man comes to Christ for salvation, his prayer need not be long, but it should be to the point.

Then, in the fourth place, they confessed their own unworthiness. They cried out, “Thou son of David, have mercy on us.” They were not asking for justice. If the sinner received justice, he would be in Hell. There was no talking about merit with these two blind men.

When we come to Christ for salvation, we must approach Him as condemned criminals. Nobody ever receives his sonship until he recognizes his sinnership. Jesus Christ came to save sinners, and, if we expect to go to Heaven, we must realize that we are sinners and trust Christ as personal Saviour.

And now that we have seen the seeking blind men, notice:

II. The Saviour’s Question to Them

“Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this?”—Vs. 28.

His question concerned their faith. He did not ask what kind of characters they had been, nor if they would do right after they had received their sight. He was not so much concerned with their reputation or their resolution. His question was: “Believe ye that I am able to do this?”

No one is ever saved because he promises to do better. He is saved because Jesus Christ died for him and he trusts Jesus Christ as his Saviour.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

“Not of works, lest any man should boast.”—Eph. 2:8,9.

Faith has a receptive power. Faith is not the Saviour. It is an attitude of the soul through which Jesus saves.

When I was a young boy, we lived in a little two-room house. Just behind the house near the back porch was a well where we drew water for drinking and bathing. Many hot afternoons I have gone to that well to draw water to quench my thirst. There were a bucket and rope at the well, but that bucket and rope could not quench my thirst. On the other hand, I could let that bucket down into the well and draw it up with fresh water, and the water quenched my thirst.

Faith is the bucket. Faith never quenched the thirst of a poor sinner, but faith can reach out and take hold of a Saviour who gives living water springing up into everlasting life so that he would never thirst again.

I have often had people say to me, “But I don’t think I have enough faith to be saved.” Dear friend, the Bible never says how much faith you must have. It simply says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).

You can take a little faith and get a mighty big Saviour. It is not the degree of faith but the Object of faith that makes faith important. Take whatever faith you have and put it in Christ, and the Bible says you will have everlasting life.

Notice, too, that the question concerned their faith in Jesus. “Believe ye that I am able to do this?” The question was not: “Believe ye that ye are able to save yourselves?” or, “Believe ye that ye are able to live up to a certain set of rules which will produce your salvation?” No. No. The question was not: “Believe ye that ordinances and sacraments are able to save you?” The question was: “Believe ye that I am able to do this?”

I heard the story of a dear lady who was dying. She did not have peace in her heart about salvation, so she sent for the priest. He prayed and read the Scriptures, but she was not satisfied. After trying several things, the priest suggested that she receive communion, and he brought the bread and wine. After she had received communion, the priest asked, “Did it help you?”

Weeping, the lady cried, “I don’t need it. I need Him!”

The Bible never says, “Believe and be saved.” It is always very careful to tell us in Whom we must believe. For instance, John 3:16 says, “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

And John 3:36 says, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” The person who is trusting in Jesus Christ for salvation has everlasting life. But the Bible says that the one who is trusting anything other than Jesus Christ, no matter how good the thing may be, “shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

Now notice another thing concerning our Lord’s question. The question concerned faith for a specific thing. “Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this?” The question was not: “Do you believe that I am able to raise the dead?” or, “Do you believe that I am able to unstop the deaf ears?” The question was not: “Do you believe I healed the woman with the issue of blood?” The question was: “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

I visited a man in the hospital, and before leaving the room I asked, “Have you ever trusted Christ as your Saviour?”

“Oh, yes,” he replied. “I certainly have.” I knew the man’s background and knew that he did not attend church regularly, and I wondered if he had really trusted Christ as Saviour.

I continued, “Would you mind telling me about it?”

He said, “Well, when they took me down for the operation the other day, I prayed before I left the room and told Jesus that if I came out of the operating room, He would have to do it, and I told Him I was trusting Him to bring me through safely.”

I said, “That is wonderful. Is there another time when you have trusted Christ?”

“Why, yes. There have been a number of times.”

“Could you tell me about another experience?”

“During the Depression,” he said, “when people were out of work and jobs were hard to find, I went several weeks without a job. My family was hungry. We had nothing to eat. And one day when I left the house, I prayed as I walked along the street, ‘Lord, I’m not going back home today until You give me a job.’ I meant that. And before the day was over, I had a good job,” he smiled.

“That’s wonderful. You have trusted Christ for your health, and it was given back to you. You have also trusted Christ for a job, and you got it. But now let me ask you this: Has there ever been a time when you prayed and said, ‘Dear Lord Jesus, I am a sinner; I owe a sin debt, but I believe You died on the cross to pay my sin debt; I will trust You as my Saviour, and if I die, I will trust You to get me to Heaven’?” I waited for his response.

There was silence for a moment, and he said, “No, I’ve never trusted Him for that.”

“Well, just like He gave you a job when you trusted Him, and just like He gave you health when you trusted Him, He will give you everlasting life if you will trust Him for that. Now would you pray with me and trust Him for salvation?”

He agreed. And with his hand in mine, he repeated a simple sinner’s prayer telling Christ he would trust Him as Saviour. The man was saved, and I took the Bible and led him to the assurance of salvation.

If any person will come to Christ and say, “I know You can save me; therefore, I trust in You completely,” that person will not be turned away.

Charles Spurgeon told the story of a dog in his garden. “I threw a stick at the dog to run him away,” said Spurgeon. “But the dog picked up the stick in his mouth and brought it to me wagging his tail. Immediately,” said Spurgeon, “he trusted me; he conquered me.”

Now we want to see one other thing about the Saviour’s question. It was a reasonable question. I say it was reasonable because they had followed Him into the house. If they did not believe, then why did they pray, and why did they follow Him into the house?

Many of you reading this are without the Saviour. In a few moments I am going to ask you to trust Jesus Christ—and my question is reasonable. The fact that you are reading this indicates that you are interested. It shows that you have some concern. It is reasonable that I should ask you to trust Christ.

III. The Answer They Gave

“Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.”—Matt. 9:28.

There was no hesitation in their answer. They answered immediately, “Yea, Lord.”

Everything depends upon the right answer to the question: “Do you believe that Jesus Christ is able to save you?”

Can you say, “Yes, Lord”?

There was no making of excuses. There was no putting it off. The answer was “Yea, Lord.”

Suppose someone offered you a million dollars. Would you say, “Well, I believe it’s real money, and I know I need a million dollars, but I want to put it off awhile; I need to think about it”? Why, certainly not. You would accept it immediately. And if there were any reason you should not have the million dollars, you would be careful not to let others know about it.

Suppose a man is on death row awaiting execution and one day someone walks in with a pardon and says, “I’ve got good news. In my hand I hold a pardon from the governor.”

What would you think if the prisoner said, “Well, I know I need a pardon and if I don’t get a pardon I’ll be executed in a few days; to be honest, I would like to have a pardon, but I don’t want to rush into it; let me think about it awhile”? Why, you would think the man was crazy, and he would be.

No. No. If a man were offered a pardon, he would jump at it. When Jesus Christ offers to save all who will trust Him, I wonder that they do not jump at it. But in many cases, rather than jumping at it, they begin to make excuses as to why they should not have a pardon and be justified and given everlasting life. The answer of the blind men was immediate.

Now, finally, notice:

IV. The Lord’s Response to Their Answer

“Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.

“And their eyes were opened.”—Vss. 29,30.

The Lord’s response was immediate: “Then touched he their eyes.…And their eyes were opened.”

The moment a man trusts Jesus Christ, he has everlasting life. The believer is not put in a position to have everlasting life eventually, provided he meets other conditions. Everlasting life is a present possession. John 3:36: “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” Salvation is instantaneous and complete.

The moment the blind men believed, they were healed. It makes no difference how deep you have gone into sin nor how hard your case may seem to be. If you will trust Jesus Christ for salvation, you will have everlasting life the moment you believe.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!

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Tracing the Footprints of God in your Life:

http://www.ElizabethBakerBooks.com

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The Pope, Billy Graham, and Oral Roberts were in a three-way plane crash over the Pacific Ocean. They all died and went to heaven together.

"Oh, this is terrible," exclaims St. Peter, "I know you guys think we summoned you here, but this is just one of those coincidences that happen. Since we weren't expecting you, your quarters just aren't ready... We can't take you in and we can't send you back...."

Then he got an idea. He picked up the phone, "Lucifer, this is Pete. Hey, I got these three guys up here. They're ours, but we weren't expecting them, and we gotta fix the place up for 'em. I was hoping you could put them up for a while. It'll only be a couple of days. What d'ya say?"

Reluctantly, the Devil agreed.

However, two days later, St. Peter got a call.

"Pete, Lu. Hey, you gotta come get these three clowns.

This Pope fellow is forgiving everybody,
the Graham guy is saving everybody,
and that Oral Roberts has raised enough money to buy air conditioning."

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Double Predestination
By Dr. R. C. Sproul
LighthousePrayerLine.org


"A horrible decree ...." "Most ruthless statement. . . ." "A terrible theological theory. . . ." "An illegitimate inference of logic. . ." These and other similar epithets have been used frequently to articulate displeasure and revulsion at the Reformed doctrine of double predestination. Particularly abhorrent to many is the notion that God would predestinate (in any sense) the doom of the reprobate.

The "Double" of Predestination

The goal of this essay is not to provide a comprehensive analysis, exposition, or defense of the doctrine of election or predestination. Rather, the essay is limited to a concern for the "double" aspect of predestination with particular reference to the question of the relationship of God's sovereignty to reprobation or preterition.

The use of the qualifying term "double" has been somewhat confusing in discussions concerning predestination. The term apparently means one thing within the circle of Reformed theology and quite another outside that circle and at a popular level of theological discourse. The term "double" has been set in contrast with a notion of "single" predestination. It has also been used as a synonym for a symmetrical view of predestination which sees election and reprobation being worked out in a parallel mode of divine operation. Both usages involve a serious distortion of the Reformed view of double predestination.

Viewing double predestination as a distinction from single predestination may be seen in the work of Emil Brunner. Brunner argues that it is impossible to deduce the doctrine of double predestination from the Bible. He says:

The Bible does not contain the doctrine of double predestination, although in a few isolated passages it seems to come close to it. The Bible teaches that all salvation is based on the eternal Election of God in Jesus Christ, and that this eternal Election springs wholly and entirely from God's sovereign freedom. But wherever this happens, there is no mention of a decree of rejection. The Bible teaches that alongside of the elect there are those who are not elect, who are "reprobate," and indeed that the former are the minority and the latter the majority; but in these passages the point at issue is not eternal election but "separation" or "selection" in judgment. Thus the Bible teaches that there will be a double outcome of world history, salvation and ruin, Heaven and hell. But while salvation is explicitly taught as derived from the eternal election, the further conclusion is not drawn that destruction is also based upon a corresponding decree of doom.1

Here Brunner argues passionately, though not coherently, for "single" predestination. There is a decree of election, but not of reprobation. Predestination has only one side — election. In this context, double predestination is "avoided" (or evaded) by the dialectical method. The dialectical method which sidesteps logical consistency has had a pervasive influence on contemporary discussions of double predestination. A growing antipathy to logic in theology is manifesting itself widely. Even G. C. Berkouwer seems allergic to the notion that logic should play a role in developing our understanding of election.

It is one thing to construct a theology of election (or any other kind of theology) purely on the basis of rational speculation. It is quite another to utilize logic in seeking a coherent understanding of biblical revelation. Brunner seems to abhor both.

Let us examine the "logic" of Brunner's position. He maintains that (1) there is a divine decree of election that is eternal; (2) that divine decree is particular in scope ("There are those who are not elect"); (3) yet there is no decree of reprobation. Consider the implications. If God has predestined some but not all to election, does it not follow by what Luther called a "resistless logic" that some are not predestined to election? If, as Brunner maintains, all salvation is based upon the eternal election of God and not all men are elect from eternity, does that not mean that from eternity there are non-elect who most certainly will not be saved? Has not God chosen from eternity not to elect some people? If so, then we have an eternal choice of non-election which we call reprobation. The inference is clear and necessary, yet some shrink from drawing it.

I once heard the case for "single" predestination articulated by a prominent Lutheran theologian in the above manner. He admitted to me that the conclusion of reprobation was logically inescapable, but he refused to draw the inference, holding steadfastly to "single" predestination. Such a notion of predestination is manifest nonsense.

Theoretically there are four possible kinds of consistent single predestination. (1) Universal predestination to election (which Brunner does not hold); (2) universal predestination to reprobation (which nobody holds); (3) particular predestination to election with the option of salvation by self-initiative to those not elect (a qualified Arminianism) which Brunner emphatically rejects; and (4) particular predestination to reprobation with the option of salvation by self-initiative to those not reprobate (which nobody holds). The only other kind of single predestination is the dialectical kind, which is absurd. (I once witnessed a closed discussion of theology between H. M. Kuitert of the Netherlands and Cornelius Van Til of Westminster Seminary. Kuitert went into a lengthy discourse on theology, utilizing the method of the dialectic as he went. When he was finished, Dr. Van Til calmly replied: "Now tell me your theology without the dialectic, so I can understand it!" Kuitert was unable to do so. With Brunner's view of predestination the only way to avoid "double" predestination is with the use of "double-talk."

Thus, "single" predestination can be consistently maintained only within the framework of universalism or some sort of qualified Arminianism. If particular election is to be maintained and if the notion that all salvation is ultimately based upon that particular election is to be maintained, then we must speak of double predestination.

The much greater issue of "double" predestination is the issue over the relationship between election and reprobation with respect to the nature of the decrees and the nature of the divine outworking of the decrees. If "double" predestination means a symmetrical view of predestination, then we must reject the notion. But such a view of "double" predestination would be a caricature and a serious distortion of the Reformed doctrine of predestination.

The Double-Predestination Distortion

The distortion of double predestination looks like this: There is a symmetry that exists between election and reprobation. God WORKS in the same way and same manner with respect to the elect and to the reprobate. That is to say, from all eternity God decreed some to election and by divine initiative works faith in their hearts and brings them actively to salvation. By the same token, from all eternity God decrees some to sin and damnation (destinare ad peccatum) and actively intervenes to work sin in their lives, bringing them to damnation by divine initiative. In the case of the elect, regeneration is the monergistic work of God. In the case of the reprobate, sin and degeneration are the monergistic work of God. Stated another way, we can establish a parallelism of foreordination and predestination by means of a positive symmetry. We can call this a positive-positive view of predestination. This is, God positively and actively intervenes in the lives of the elect to bring them to salvation. In the same way God positively and actively intervenes in the life of the reprobate to bring him to sin.

This distortion of positive-positive predestination clearly makes God the author of sin who punishes a person for doing what God monergistically and irresistibly coerces man to do. Such a view is indeed a monstrous assault on the integrity of God. This is not the Reformed view of predestination, but a gross and inexcusable caricature of the doctrine. Such a view may be identified with what is often loosely described as hyper-Calvinism and involves a radical form of supralapsarianism. Such a view of predestination has been virtually universally and monolithically rejected by Reformed thinkers.

The Reformed View of Predestination

In sharp contrast to the caricature of double predestination seen in the positive-positive schema is the classic position of Reformed theology on predestination. In this view predestination is double in that it involves both election and reprobation but is not symmetrical with respect to the mode of divine activity. A strict parallelism of operation is denied. Rather we view predestination in terms of a positive-negative relationship.

In the Reformed view God from all eternity decrees some to election and positively intervenes in their lives to work regeneration and faith by a monergistic work of grace. To the non-elect God withholds this monergistic work of grace, passing them by and leaving them to themselves. He does not monergistically work sin or unbelief in their lives. Even in the case of the "hardening" of the sinners' already recalcitrant hearts, God does not, as Luther stated, "work evil in us (for hardening is working evil) by creating fresh evil in us."2 Luther continued:

When men hear us say that God works both good and evil in us, and that we are subject to God's working by mere passive necessity, they seem to imagine a man who is in himself good, and not evil, having an evil work wrought in him by God; for they do not sufficiently bear in mind how incessantly active God is in all His creatures, allowing none of them to keep holiday. He who would understand these matters, however, should think thus: God works evil in us (that is, by means of us) not through God's own fault, but by reason of our own defect. We being evil by nature, and God being good, when He impels us to act by His own acting upon us according to the nature of His omnipotence, good though He is in Himself, He cannot but do evil by our evil instrumentality; although, according to His wisdom, He makes good use of this evil for His own glory and for our salvation.2

Thus, the mode of operation in the lives of the elect is not parallel with that operation in the lives of the reprobate. God works regeneration monergistically but never sin. Sin falls within the category of providential concurrence.

Another significant difference between the activity of God with respect to the elect and the reprobate concerns God's justice. The decree and fulfillment of election provide mercy for the elect while the efficacy of reprobation provides justice for the reprobate. God shows mercy sovereignly and unconditionally to some, and gives justice to those passed over in election. That is to say, God grants the mercy of election to some and justice to others. No one is the victim of injustice. To fail to receive mercy is not to be treated unjustly. God is under no obligation to grant mercy to all — in fact He is under no obligation to grant mercy to any. He says, "I will have mercy upon whom I will have mercy" (Rom. 9). The divine prerogative to grant mercy voluntarily cannot be faulted. If God is required by some cosmic law apart from Himself to be merciful to all men, then we would have to conclude that justice demands mercy. If that is so, then mercy is no longer voluntary, but required. If mercy is required, it is no longer mercy, but justice. What God does not do is sin by visiting injustice upon the reprobate. Only by considering election and reprobation as being asymmetrical in terms of a positive-negative schema can God be exonerated from injustice.

The Reformed Confessions

By a brief reconnaissance of Reformed confessions and by a brief roll-call of the theologians of the Reformed faith, we can readily see that double predestination has been consistently maintained along the lines of a positive-negative schema.

The Reformed Confession: 1536

Our salvation is from God, but from ourselves there is nothing but sin and damnation. (Art. 9)

French Confession of Faith: 1559

We believe that from this corruption and general condemnation in which all men are plunged, God, according to his eternal and immutable counsel, calleth those whom he hath chosen by his goodness and mercy alone in our Lord Jesus Christ, without consideration of their works, to display in them the riches of his mercy; leaving the rest in this same corruption and condemnation to show in them his justice. (Art. XII)

The Belgic Confession of Faith: 1561

We believe that all the posterity of Adam, being thus fallen into perdition and ruin by the sin of our first parents, God then did manifest himself such as he is; that is to say, MERCIFUL AND JUST: MERCIFUL, since he delivers and preserves from this perdition all whom he, in his eternal and unchangeable council, of mere goodness hath elected in Christ Jesus our Lord, without respect to their works: JUST, in leaving others in the fall and perdition wherein they have involved themselves. (Art. XVI)

The Second Helvetic Confession: 1566

Finally, as often as God in Scripture is said or seems to do something evil, it is not thereby said that man does not do evil, but that God permits it and does not prevent it, according to his just judgment, who could prevent it if he wished, or because he turns man's evil into good. . . . St. Augustine writes in his Enchiridion: "What happens contrary to his will occurs, in a wonderful and ineffable way, not apart from his will. For it would not happen if he did not allow it. And yet he does not allow it unwillingly but willingly." (Art. VIII)

The Westminster Confession of Faith: 1643

As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so hath He, by the eternal and most free purpose of His will, foreordained all the means thereunto. Wherefore, they who are elected . . . are effectually called unto faith in Christ by His Spirit working in due season, are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by His power. through faith, unto salvation. Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, effectually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect only.

The rest of mankind God was pleased, according to the unsearchable counsel of His own will, whereby He extendeth or withholdeth mercy, as He pleaseth, for the glory of His Sovereign power over His creatures, to pass by; and to ordain them to dishonour and wrath for their sin, to the praise of His glorious justice. (Chap. III — Art. VI and VII)

These examples selected from confessional formulas of the Reformation indicate the care with which the doctrine of double predestination has been treated. The asymmetrical expression of the "double" aspect has been clearly maintained. This is in keeping with the care exhibited consistently throughout the history of the Church. The same kind of careful delineation can be seen in Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, Zanchius, Turrettini, Edwards, Hodge, Warfield, Bavinck, Berkouwer, et al.

Foreordination to Reprobation

In spite of the distinction of positive-negative with respect to the mode of God's activity toward the elect and the reprobate, we are left with the thorny question of God predestinating the reprobate. If God in any sense predestines or foreordains reprobation, doesn't this make the rejection of Christ by the reprobate absolutely certain and inevitable? And if the reprobate's reprobation is certain in light of predestination, doesn't this make God responsible for the sin of the reprobate? We must answer the first question in the affirmative, and the second in the negative.

If God foreordains anything, it is absolutely certain that what He foreordains will come to pass. The purpose of God can never be frustrated. Even God's foreknowledge or prescience makes future events certain with respect to time. That is to say, if God knows on Tuesday that I will drive to Pittsburgh on Friday, then there is no doubt that, come Friday, I will drive to Pittsburgh. Otherwise God's knowledge would have been in error. Yet, there is a significant difference between God's knowing that I would drive to Pittsburgh and God's ordaining that I would do so. Theoretically He could know of a future act without ordaining it, but He could not ordain it without knowing what it is that He is ordaining. But in either case, the future event would be certain with respect to time and the knowledge of God.

Luther, in discussing the traitorous act of Judas, says:

Have I not put on record in many books that I am talking about necessity of immutability? I know that the Father begets willingly, and that Judas betrayed Christ willingly. My point is that this act of the will in Judas was certainly and infallibly bound to take place, if God foreknew it. That is to say (if my meaning is not yet grasped), I distinguish two necessities: one I call necessity of force (necessitatem violentam), referring to action; the other I call necessity of infallibility (necessitatem infallibilem), referring to time. Let him who hears me understand that I am speaking of the latter, not the former; that is, I am not discussing whether Judas became a traitor willingly or unwillingly, but whether it was infallibly bound to come to pass that Judas should willingly betray Christ at a time predetermined by God.3

We see then, that what God knows in advance comes to pass by necessity or infallibly or necessity of immutability. But what about His foreordaining or predestinating what comes to pass? If God foreordains reprobation does this not obliterate the distinction between positive-negative and involve a necessity of force? If God foreordains reprobation does this not mean that God forces, compels, or coerces the reprobate to sin? Again the answer must be negative.

If God, when He is decreeing reprobation, does so in consideration of the reprobate's being already fallen, then He does not coerce him to sin. To be reprobate is to be left in sin, not pushed or forced to sin. If the decree of reprobation were made without a view to the fall, then the objection to double predestination would be valid and God would be properly charged with being the author of sin. But Reformed theologians have been careful to avoid such a blasphemous notion. Berkouwer states the boundaries of the discussion clearly:

On the one hand, we want to maintain the freedom of God in election, and on the other hand, we want to avoid any conclusion which would make God the cause of sin and unbelief.4

God's decree of reprobation, given in light of the fall, is a decree to justice, not injustice. In this view the biblical a priori that God is neither the cause nor the author of sin is safeguarded. Turrettini says, "We have proved the object of predestination to be man considered as fallen, sin ought necessarily to be supposed as the condition in him who is reprobated, no less than him who is elected."5 He writes elsewhere:

The negative act includes two, both preterition, by which in the election of some as well to glory as to grace, he neglected and slighted others, which is evident from the event of election, and negative desertion, by which he left them in the corrupt mass and in their misery; which, however, is as to be understood, 1. That they are not excepted from the laws of common providence, but remain subject to them, nor are immediately deprived of all God's favor, but only of the saving and vivifying which is the fruit of election, 2. That preterition and desertion; not indeed from the nature of preterition and desertion itself, and the force of the denied grace itself, but from the nature of the corrupt free will, and the force of corruption in it; as he who does not cure the disease of a sick man, is not the cause per se of the disease, nor of the results flowing from it; so sins are the consequents, rather than the effects of reprobation, necessarily bringing about the futurition of the event, but yet not infusing nor producing the wickedness.6

The importance of viewing the decree of reprobation in light of the fall is seen in the on-going discussions between Reformed theologians concerning infra- and supra-lapsarianism. Both viewpoints include the fall in God's decree. Both view the decree of preterition in terms of divine permission. The real issue between the positions concerns the logical order of the decrees. In the supralapsarian view the decree of election and reprobation is logically prior to the decree to permit the fall. In the infralapsarian view the decree to permit the fall is logically prior to the decree to election and reprobation.

Though this writer favors the infralapsarian view along the lines developed by Turrettini, it is important to note that both views see election and reprobation in light of the fall and avoid the awful conclusion that God is the author of sin. Both views protect the boundaries Berkouwer mentions.

Only in a positive-positive schema of predestination does double-predestination leave us with a capricious deity whose sovereign decrees manifest a divine tyranny. Reformed theology has consistently eschewed such a hyper-supralapsarianism. Opponents of Calvinism, however, persistently caricature the straw man of hyper-supralapsarianism, doing violence to the Reformed faith and assaulting the dignity of God's sovereignty.

We rejoice in the biblical clarity which reveals God's sovereignty in majestic terms. We rejoice in the knowledge of divine mercy and grace that go to such extremes to redeem the elect. We rejoice that God's glory and honor are manifested both in His mercy and in His justice.

Soli Deo Gloria.

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A SHORT HISTORY OF MEDICINE:

"Doctor, I have an ear ache."

2000 BC - "Here, eat this root."
1000 BC - "That root is heathen, say this prayer."
1850 AD - "That prayer is superstition, drink this potion."
1940 AD - "That potion is snake oil, swallow this pill."
1985 AD - "That pill is ineffective, take this antibiotic."
2000 AD - "That antibiotic is artificial. Here, eat this root!"

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"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares
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Mark Seay
Lighthouse Prayer Line
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LighthousePrayerLine.org

"My mouth is filled with your praise,
declaring your splendor all day long"
(Psalm 71:8).

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A Minister was walking down the street when he came upon a group of about a dozen boys, all of them between 10 and 12 years of age.

The group had surrounded a dog. Concerned lest the boys were hurting the dog, he went over and asked "What are you doing with that dog?"

One of the boys replied, "This dog is just an old neighborhood stray. We all want him, but only one of us can take him home. So we've decided that whichever one of us can tell the biggest lie will get to keep the dog."

Of course, the reverend was taken aback. "You boys shouldn't be having a contest telling lies!" he exclaimed. He then launched into a ten minute sermon against lying, beginning, "Don't you boys know it's a sin to lie," and ending with, "Why, when I was your age, I never told a lie."

There was dead silence for about a minute. Just as the reverend was beginning to think he'd gotten through to them, the smallest boy gave a deep sigh and said, "All right, give him the dog."

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"The Computer is Down"

Two priests died at the same time and met Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter said, "I'd like to get you guys in now, but our computer is down. You'll have to go back to Earth for about a week, but you can't go back as priests. So what else would you like to be?"

The first priest says, "I've always wanted to be an eagle, soaring above the Rocky Mountains."

"So be it," says St. Peter, and off flies the first priest.

The second priest mulls this over for a moment and asks, "Will any of this week 'count', St. Peter?"

"No, I told you the computer's down. There's no way we can keep track of what you're doing."

"In that case," says the second priest, "I've always wanted to be a stud."

"So be it," says St. Peter, and the second priest disappears.

A week goes by, the computer is fixed, and the Lord tells St. Peter to recall the two priests. "Will you have any trouble locating them?" He asks.

"The first one should be easy," says St. Peter. "He's somewhere over the Rockies, flying with the eagles. But the second one could prove to be more difficult."

"Why?" asketh the Lord.

"He's on a snow tire, somewhere in North Dakota."

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