Character of the Age

Someone recently approached and made what is an increasingly common remark; "Man, things are really getting weird in the world." With the statement came a shake of the head and an inaudible sigh that spoke volumes about the bewilderment that many people are experiencing. The events of the past few weeks and months seem to be verifying the sentiment of "Things going sour" around the cosmos. For example; cyclone in Myanmar (Burma) kills upwards of 150,000 and displaces five times that number, China experiences an earthquake that kills 55,000 and displaces three times as many, tornadoes rip across the mid-west with more frequency than ever recorded, including a mile-wide F-4 that destroyed Windsor, Colorado. Add to climactic events an increase in crime rates across the board and internationally, more wars and ethnic skirmishing is taking place now than in all of history, gays and lesbians are given the go-ahead in California to pursue legal marriage, politics have become racial and ugly, Israel is under a siege of pressure to give up more land, and the list goes on and on.

The question on the lips of many is, why? Why are these things happening with greater frequency and intensity? Is it global warming, bad oil, or too many rich people hording the wealth? The answer is really quite simple: these things are happening because it was prophesied.

In Matthew 24:4-8 we read; And Jesus answered them, "See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pangs."

He indicates that the common character of an evil age will only become more prominently witnessed as time goes on. The rest of the passage gives us the basic gestation period of the birth of the Kingdom of God and the labor pains begin in earnest with the re-birth of Israel (The blossoming of the Fig Tree). From that moment on, the cosmos (order of the world) will spiral further downward in disorder and chaos. Man's response will be the same; a sickening spiral into decadence and behavior without restraint. New laws will be made that will limit freedom because freedom will be taken to extreme. Truth will be hard to find, and those that find it will be persecuted as intolerant and narrow-minded.

Is there cause for despair and bewilderment? Naturally! No one wants to see our culture and civilization deteriorate into complete narcissism and anarchy. However, Jesus ended the passage with hope, not despair. "For as lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." Here is the great news; we will not be invaded by aliens, nor will the earth die away because of global climate change. No, the truth is, the one who poured out his own life and blood for all of humanity is about to come back and claim his title as the Sovereign of the cosmos. So, don't give up...just look up.

WARNING: This message will be repeated in various forms and different ways until the event happens. Consistent reading may be harmful to you fallen nature. However, studies have revealed that large or small doses of the truth will strengthen your spirit.

READ ON!
Pastor Jim

America In Trouble...Yet There's Hope

America is in trouble because the Church as become silent. Here are some troubling statistics taken from the Dept. of Health and Human Services, Pollster Tom Klegg, and other sources.

6,000 teenagers commit suicide each year
13 million children live in poverty
150,000 people die of substance abuse each year
6 million people are incarcerated or on probation
The USA is the third largest unreached nation.
Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world.
28 million people left the church over the past decade.
72 churches permanently close their doors every week.

Many in the United States have not heard the gospel once, yet stastics show that many people would be open to accepting Christ if they simply had someone to share the gospel with them.

Facts:
17 million people would probably accept Christ if they were presented with the gospel.
43 million people are moving that direction and are ready to have someone share the truth.
82 percent of the unchurched are somewhat likely to go to church if someone will invite them.
Less than 22 percent of the unchurhced have ever been invited to church.

It's time for American Christians from ATTRACTIONAL Theology and begin seening that the purpose for the Church, in a major part, is to reach out to those who have never heard the gospel. Most Americans choose a church for its programs, then they get comfortable with what attracted them in the first place. The Church has become "ME" oriented and self-centered while millions are continuing down a path of death without a clue to the Truth.

We can change that. It is really simple. Start talking! Talk about Jesus! Talk about what he'd done for you. Talk about what he said. Talk about his coming. Talk about his answer to man's sin problem. Talk, talk, talk. Then, invite someone to church. Invite a friend, a neighbor, a co-worker, a relative, invite anyone and everyone. If we'll stop worrying about the need for high-quality coffee and begin praying for high-rates of conversions, it will happen. So, there's hope after all!
Pastor Jim

What A Difference 60 Years Makes

What a difference 60 years makes!!! I know everyone has a different opinion on the war and our current President. But, this article makes a lot of sense, and I hope you will take 2 minutes and read it and give it some thought. I have never seen the "situation" expressed any better in words! Recently I was talking to a friend about the upcoming election and the candidates. As we ended our discussion he said "the only decision you have to make is who you want sitting in that seat in the White House when not if - we get hit again and millions of American lives are put at risk!" This is from : "You ain't gonna like losing." Author unknown. President Bush did make a bad mistake in the war on terrorism. But the mistake was not his decision to go to war in Iraq Bush's mistake came in his belief that this country is the same one his father fought for in WWII. It is not. Back then, they had just come out of a vicious depression. The country was steeled by the hardship of that depression, but they still believed fervently in this country. They knew that the people had elected their leaders, so it was the people's duty to back those leaders. Therefore, when the war broke out the people came together, rallied behind, and stuck with their leaders, whether they had voted for them or not or whether the war was going badly or not. And war was just as distasteful and the anguish just as great then as it is today. Oft en there were more casualties in one day in WWII than we have had in the entire Iraq war. But that did not matter. The people stuck with the President because it was their patriotic duty. Americans put aside their differences in WWII and worked together to win that war. Everyone from every strata of society, from young to old pitched in. Small children pulled little wagons around to gather scrap metal for the war effort. Grade school students saved their pennies to buy stamps for war bonds to help the effort. Men who were too old or medically 4F lied about their age or condition trying their best to join the military. Women doubled their work to keep things going at home. Harsh rationing of everything from gasoline to soap, to butter was imposed, yet there was very little complaining. You never heard prominent people on the radio belittling the President. Interestingly enough in those days there were no fat cat actors and entertainers who ran off to visit and fawn over dictators of hostile countries and complain to them about our President. Instead, they made upbeat films and entertained our troops to help the troops' morale. And a bunch even enlisted. And imagine this: Teachers in schools actually started the day off with a Pledge of Allegiance, and with prayers for our country and our troops! Back then, no newspaper would have dared point out certain weak spots in our cities where bombs could be set off to cause the maximum damage. No newspaper would have dared complain about what we were doing to catch spies. A newspaper would have been laughed out of existence if it had complained that German or Japanese soldiers were being 'tortured' by being forced to wear women's underwear, or subjected to interrogation by a woman, or being scared by a dog or did not have air conditioning. There were a lot of things different back then. We were not subjected to a constant bombardment of pornography, perversion and promiscuity in movies or on radio. We did not have legions of crack heads, dope pushers and armed gangs roaming our streets. No, President Bush did not make a mistake in his handling of terrorism. He made the mistake of believing that we still had the courage and fortitude of our fathers. He believed that this was still the country that our fathers fought so dearly to preserve. It is not the same coun try. It is now a cross between Sodom and Gomorra and the land of Oz. We did unite for a short while after 9/11, but our attitude changed when we found out that defending our country would require some sacrifices. We are in great danger. The terrorists are fanatic Muslims. They believe that it is okay, even their duty, to kill anyone who will not convert to Islam. It has been estimated that about one third or over three hundred million Muslims are sympathetic to the terrorists cause... Hitler and Tojo combined did not have nearly that many potential recruits. So... We either win it - or lose it - and you ain't gonna like losing. America is not at war. The military is at war. America is at the mall.
Author Unknown

Neckties Are Demonic

I hereby renounce neckties. They are of the devil. I heard, and believe, the story that describes the origination of the basic necktie. It started when a very fat king ruled England. He was so large that his belly served as the prototype of the modern T.V. Tray. Problem was, there was not plastic or aluminum yet and all he had was his shirt and robes to catch the drips, drops, and spills. It was really embarrassing for all of the King's servants to see smudges and leftovers on his royal clothing when foreign dignitaries came to pay homage, or the Queen stepped in to start removing breakfast from his shirt.

The King, however, was not without support. He had a very wise man in his court,who saw an answer, ungodly though it was. He used a Satan pentagramic design to fashion a special cloth that, when hung around a neck, would repel all drips and spillage. It was long with one end being narrow and the other being fat (to cover a wide girth) and it was demonically angular at the bottom. I know it was of the devil because it was made to point DOWN.

The wise counselor presented the demonic instrument to the fat King with great confidence that it would provide a modicum of self-worth, let alone protection from spaghetti and grease. The King loved it and loved it so much he ordered a new one for each day, some with pretty designs and devilish sayings that would disguise the food stains deposited on it during each meal. The counselor was so proud, an evil thought came into his mind. "If I can invest in a Tie factory, and if I can convince the King to decree a Necktie for every true man, I will be rich. He did and there you have it. Demonically invented cloths have been hung around the necks of witless men ever since.

Knowing that the scripture says; "you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free," I choose freedom. No More Neckties! Amen!
All in good fun..
Pastor Jim

Peace at the Precipice

Our daughter Natalie was a daredevil from the day she was born. She might still be. We first noticed it when she learned to walk. She always found something to climb and had no fear doing it. For instance: When she was two years old, we lived in Cali, Colombia. The houses there are all connected around the block. Everyone shares a wall with the neighbors as if it were all just a row of condos. That made garages an interesting prospect because there just wasn't much room. So, they put the garages under the houses. You would drive up to your home, then turn into your drive way and go below ground level to your garage doors. Thus, every home had to have at least one retaining wall. On the neighbors side, the wall was grass level. On your side, it started at the sidewalk and climbed at about a 15% incline. Where the retaining wall met the facade of the home, there would be a ten foot drop from grass to concrete. Guess where Natalie loved to go? We couldn't go outside without a designated 'Natalie Keeper' to prevent her from running up the wall. It was only about 6 inches wide, and little kid's heads don't do so well when they hit concrete form ten feet up. It was a dangerous precipice that we had to continually be watchful of.

The present state of the world can be described as being at the edge of a precipice. Economic uncertainty, soaring gas prices, rampant crime, disregard for one another, unbridled immorality in the form of adultery, pornography, and homosexuality; hunger, food shortages, ethnic turmoil; all of it says PRECIPICE....GOING OVER CAN BE FATAL!

Where does the peace come from in all this mess? Listen to this: "You will keep in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you." Wow, there is peace. We can have it..we can live it....we can be at the precipice and not be rattled; all because of peace. No, not a cessation of hostilities, but an inner, wholesome sensation that comes from knowing the One who still has everything under control. What are you trusting in? Government? Drugs? Booze? Sex? MONEY? None of these will provide peace. Rather, when you trust in them you find they are actually pushing you closer to the edge.
No, you've got to be stayed on Him. Stayed means firmly connected, attached. Are you attached to God?

My advice in these precipice dangling days....find Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life. Peace will follow immediately.
Pastor Jim