Hello again to all, as me, just trying to do the best we can. I always enjoy hearing from those on the fence and/or non-believers as long as they are open minded and polite in their discussions. I am never here to try and convert you, that is not the purpose God gave me. This blog is, as always, a platform to share what God has done in my life and what He gives me to share. When something is shared here by me it is valid or accepted fact; or I will state that it is of my opinion.

Two questions are often posed by people. One, why does God let bad things happen to people, especially children; and two, how could a loving God send anyone to Hell? Along with these, when an explanation is attempted the response is usually, how can you judge people like that and say you love them?

Let's take the last one first and all of these explanations will be much shorter than a face to face discussion would be.

First do you truly comprehend that most devout followers of Christ honestly and fervently believe in the Hell described in the Bible? Maybe or maybe not in it's exactitude but in the literal sense of the torturous separation from God for eternity? That being said then how could I not try to guide people away from this? The Word of God describes this type of omission to act as sin. One example is John 15:2 and John 15:6. So because I do love people I will take the chance of being insulted. I judge no one and only share the truth that is written in the Holy Word of God. I challenge you to show me any of the accepted Bibles, regardless of translation, and show me a passage that contradicts the same passage from another. When I warn people of the penalty of hell it is out of the loving desire that they should not send themselves there by the ignorance of Jesus Christ as their Savior. So I warn people of sin and hell out of love, not judgment or self-righteousness.

Now for as for God sending people to hell. Well in the first place being the Creator of all; us, the universe, all that we know, I believe God has the right to do as He will. Second, if you truly read and study the WHOLE word of God, and read the WHOLE message and all it entails, you will see that you commit yourself to hell by not accepting God's invitation to everlasting life by accepting His Son Jesus Christ as your Savior. When you truly read the message of the Bible you see the He says, "Come to me all who are tired and weary and I will give you rest". para. Matt. 11:27-29. So if I tell you something you decide to do will harm you, don't blame me when it does.



The last one about why God allows terrible things in your life, this is tough and comes to things we may never see. First and foremost, the majority of life's tragedies are from our choice not to obey the path God has for us. If we truly honest with ourselves, when we look back we can see where our disobedience has led to trouble. The guidance of the Bible gives us the measure of how we can have the best life possible. Now this life, according to the world, appears to be restrictive and somewhat dull. Well we could talk for hours and still not finish this one. The point is that God gives us a life style in which many of these tragedies would not happen, but we do not want to listen or be told how to live our lives.

So let us recap. We don't like it when God allows the consequences of actions, yet we do not want to be told what to do either. First, even those who walk with God have tragedy in their lives at times. Their solace is that THIS IS NOT OUR HOME OR THE END OF THINGS. I put that in caps because it is the biggest point about this world. If little children die, they go to God. Yes we suffer, even believers, but we know they are in a better place. It is funny that the people who rail against God act as if their loved ones who suffered here will suffer for eternity. Not if they have Christ as their Savior. When is the last time you cut yourself. If it has been very long do you still feel the pain? How would you feel if your loved ones suffering brought about a cure or ease of suffering for thousands, tens of thousands, millions? Would that make it easier?

I by no means have the answer and if you want a pat answer like 2+2=4 then I fear you are out of luck. All I know is that God loved the world so much He gave His only Son so the none would perish. Look it up yourself. John 3:16. God does not do things willy-nilly. There is a purpose for everything, and that purpose is always for the better good. I assure you that I have had major suffering in my life, at the point of suicide once, and yet looking back I would change nothing because of the lesson and strength God built in me. God loves us enough to not be our puppet master, but that swings both ways.

So is what you want a god who rights every wrong, forgives every disrespectful disobedience, never tells us what to do, and never lets anything bad happen to us? Wow, that would be a hard god for me to understand. We don't have to listen to him, we don't have to respect him, but when the times comes we want him to just give us the prize. So what should be a crime, and what should be punished, and should everyone go to heaven? Now those are some questions I have NO answer to. Thankfully I have a God who does know the answer; even if I don't understand it now. Some day I will.

Yours in Christ, Mike

If the shoe fits!

Ever feel as if a sermon or comment was aimed at you? I believe it is that "Still small voice" not condemning you, but just trying to get your attention. I share many views and suggestion of things that we deal with in our day to day walk with God on this earth. Trust me, most are things that I need to look in the mirror of my own life about. Everything that I share is for the uplifting and enrichment of anyone it speaks to. I cannot walk timidly worrying that something I share may insult or offend someone somewhere. What I do promise is to never publicly point out or directly be offensive to anyone on this page or my personal one.

The thoughts I share are for you to take in, if you desire, and hopefully discern their application in your life, by comparing them to what God shares with us in His Word. Because I have given my life, my thoughts, my opinions, and attitude over to Jesus Christ, I believe He has given me a certain amount of discernment of His message. Sounds like a bold statement but if I had Rev. in front of my name few would question it. If your boss at work felt that you were fully dedicated to his plan, and had studied it deeply, and were committed to implementing it for the good of the company; don't you believe he would be comfortable letting you make firm statements about it?

I have absolutely NO desire to lessen or detract from the awesome men and women of God, who have dedicated themselves through education and study, to accurately and purely share the loving message of God with the masses. I just know that even though you and I have not been to seminary, it does not mean that we cannot also know the truth that is the Word of God. If higher education was the only way God wanted to mold people to be the vessels of His message, I don't think He would have chosen fishermen, young men, and every day people to be the leaders of the New Covenant. In sports, especially professional sports, you have a coach who job it is to design the game plan and pass it on to all the players. Now the players must know quite bit about the game and the plan for it to be implemented to the best degree. The players don't run back and forth to the coach saying, " What do I do now coach?". The coaches use the players they trust and know have studied the plan and the game the best. Now some players later move on to become coaches, not alot, but most of the players just work at being the best players they can be.

God has not made me a coach, yet, and maybe never will. I do know that if I never strive to be the best player I can for the team, He will never make me a coach. Being a player is ok though. I don't care how many good chiefs you got; if they don't have some really good indians, they ain't gonna win the battle.

So I will share what He puts on my heart, always securing it by His Holy Word; and prayerfully hoping that it may bring light to your darkness, ease to your pain, and mostly drawing you closer to accepting Jesus Christ as your Savior, if you have not already. Yours in Christ, Mike

Know what you believe.

Why do you call yourself a Christian? What is it that you base this statement on? What revelation tells you that you can take whatever parts of the Bible you want and ignore the rest? Where did you study, to obtain the great wisdom, to say some of the Bible is true and some is false? Where did that discernment come from? If there are truths and untruths in the Bible; then how can we accept any part of it? Why is it that you will accept an earthly scientific preponderance, that you have little or no understanding of, yet you discard a heavenly truth, that maybe be as equally hard to comprehend because it is uncomfortable? If your faith is based on only what you can understand and what is comfortable; is it truly faith? I ask you again, why do you call yourself a Christian and where did you get this Christian belief?

I ask these because we who proclaim our belief in Christ have received this knowledge either from the Word or from someone who has taught us the Word. The biggest reason many fall into cults is that they have taken the word of someone else and never sought to explore themselves. God does not tell us to have blind faith. That is why He has given us His Testimony and implores us to read and study it continually. That is why He has pulled no punches in It's content. There are several choices we are called to make that do not sit well with our human sensibilities. If I were going to write a book to draw people to gladly worship me I would tailor it to be easily accepted by all. I would sculpt it to please their creature comforts and desires. I have heard many people say that if they can trust someone, regardless of whether they agree or like them, that they can respect them. Why then do we not trust the Author of Truth, when He calls us to follow Him? It speaks to our sinful, prideful nature that when God says be one way or another, do not be lukewarm or I will spit you out; that we bow up our chest and try to tell Him, " You can't tell me how to worship You, take it or leave." We then call Him unfair and uncompassionate when He chooses to leave it.

So don't fool yourselves by deciding what you can accept and reject of what you think you know of God and His divine Word. MAKE the time to go and study for yourselves and see how much God loves you and desires the TRUE good things for you. In this day and age of political correctness and fence sitting when it comes to Christianity, you are called to make a choice. If that choice is truly God, then you will strive to follow His guidance in every aspect of life. It will encompass your personal walk, your marriage, the words you speak, the jokes you tell or listen to, the movies/TV you watch, and how you feel about your opponents or enemies. I always marvel at the depth and immensity of God's admonition to "Love your enemies". Because in that is where we truly show our obedience and our best chance to have the heart and light of Jesus Christ shine through us.

Do not take my word for any of this. Go and study the Bible and make your choice. If you are only making God the god you want Him to be; you are fooling yourself. If you truly believe in a heavenly afterlife, this is the most important decision you will ever make for you and for children.

Team Members Needed

Job Opening

Start Date: Immediate

End Date: Until Eternity Comes

Applicants to apply: Men, women, children. No age discrimination. Black, White, Tan, or any combination.

Qualifications: Must be able to love all as unconditionally as possible, management will understand the occasional slip in this area due to your human fallibility. Desirable to be able to interact with others of different ethnicities, social and economic backgrounds, cultural histories, educational levels (just because you run and multi-billion dollar corporation doesn’t mean you are smart enough to change the oil in your car), and moral tendencies as we are all doing the best we can with the information we have at the time. Must be able to stand firmly on the truth of God’s Holy Bible without being self-righteous, condescending, judgmental, holier-than-thou (only one perfect being ever lived and you ain’t Him), or exclusionary on who may receive the Grace of the Most High God.

Duties: To love the Lord God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, all your strength; and to love your neighbor as your yourself. Note from management: (constantly work on the love thy self part as it will allow you to give greatly to others without the feeling of being used or unappreciated.) Management believes that if you will dutifully and consistently read the Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth; hereafter referred to as The Bible, that the rest of the required duties will naturally come as they are all built upon the formerly mentioned 1^st duty. It is highly suggested that you regularly call on Management to give you discernment on these instructions, as you study them and press them deeply into your heart, so that rather than blindly accepting the opinions of others, no matter how well intended, you may counsel with them on the fullness and accuracy of their statements about the Bible.

Warning: While Management is not desirous of division, derision, contention, or conflict not only within the team, but without; it is clearly stated in the B.I.B.L.E. that you will be persecuted in the name of Management. It is sad and unfortunate that this persecution may come from family, friends, co-workers, definitely the World at large, and maybe even those who claim to be your fellows in this task.

Purpose: To share the message of UNCONDITIONAL LOVE stated in the B.I.B.L.E., for all who will receive it. This will be shown in majority by your mirroring the actions of the focus of the B.I.B.L.E., the Son of God,(aka Jesus Christ). It will also be extremely advantageous for you to be ready to share the various lessons and miracles done by Management as proof of being. Though Management is not required to do this, in His understanding of our limitations and His all-encompassing desire that none should perish, He willing gave this testimonial.

Benefits: No guarantee of salary or compensation to the majority of the team. While this is a full-time position you will most likely be required to keep gainful employment to care for your day to day needs. (Note: Management has been regularly known to intercede on your behalf in the hearts of your worldly managers to increase your provision.) Long-time team members have stated that one of the greatest benefits has been, “A peace that surpasses all understanding”.

As for the retirement plan, it is Heavenly.

Where to apply: Applicants are asked to get down on their knees and call out to Management; confessing that though they are not worthy, they desire admission on grounds of the shed blood of Jesus Christ, which was spilt for the remission of our sins. Management would like to state that this gift is given freely, by Grace, and cannot be bought, sold, bartered, or bargained for in anyway. No amount of money, work, or “good deeds”, are acceptable and may be gained only through acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord, Savior, and Redeemer.

Good luck to you all. We desire to see everyone at the company picnic. Many are called, few are chosen. He knows your heart, just answer the knock on your door.

Hello friends. Life is an amazing circle and we at times live it like a dog chasing it's tail. This last Sunday I asked a couple of brothers at church to pray for me and give me counsel. I have been somewhat chasing my tail trying to find out just what ministry God has for me.

Shortly after I gave my life to Christ I was attending Sunday morning bible class and one of the gentlemen their reminded us of a very important point. He said that when your boss wants you to do something he is not vague about it. He states what he wants done and gives you the particulars you need to get it done. If your earthly employer will do this, then why would we think that God would be vague or unresponsive with the task He has for us?

With all good intentions I have been searching for God's task for me when He may not have it ready or I may not be ready. The most important task, actually blessing, we have is to constantly be in contact and communion with God. If you know the bible you are familiar with the story of the sisters Mary and Martha. Martha was all busy getting things prepared for Jesus, while Mary was content to just sit at His feet and communion with Him. When Martha complained about Mary not helping, Jesus told her that Mary was doing what was good.

Granted that things need to be done, but they will be done in God's timing. Our greatest purpose is to daily draw closer to Him in prayer, meditation, and communion. When God is ready for us He will leave no doubt. So their counsel was to quit trying to out think God and just prepare for the day He calls by drawing closer everyday. When I shared with another dear brother in the Lord that I was so frustrated about apparently not hearing from God that I would at times yell up to Him; he said that maybe those were the times when God was trying to talk to me. His Word says," Be still and know that I am God."

Yours in Christ, Mike

Why not God!

Not knowing just who stumbles on to this dialogue, I hope any with doubts or in the scientific realm will read this short conversation with the open mind that you use when investigating any new thought or theory.
I believe the title pretty much says it all. I consider myself fairly well read on several topics, kind of a student of many, master of none. I am intelligent enough to comprehend the basics of scientific logic so I pose these thoughts to ponder.
Let us first look at evolution. Ladies and gentlemen can we please agree that is still a theory and not a fact. Though it may be the best wagon to hitch your logic to, since you do not seem to want to accept a divine creator, the long and short of it is there is no concrete connections. I am not as staunch a proponent of what many consider the Biblical timeline, so an older earth age does not bother me. I do firmly believe in the inerrancy of the Bible though. I believe God has given us all the information that we need to know in it; but that by no means has He told us all there is. If you are honest with yourselves you will admit that like we Christians must accept certain things by faith; you also accept certain premises that have never been fully proven.
So why is it impossible that there is a divine entity with all the characteristics of the God of the Bible? To be perfectly honest I am not sure that I could worship a god that I, or even the most intelligent person on this earth could fully comprehend. It has long seemed strange to me that science has had to re-adjust itself about every 75 to 100 years, but God has been the same forever. Do not mistake the errors of the organized church who have too often misrepresented Him, for the God who is constant.
I next would ask you if you have ever truly looked at the fine line that allows life on this planet exist? How different would our lives be if we were just say 1000 miles closer or farther away from the sun, or even the moon? That is barely a hair's breadth to 250,000 or 93,000,000 miles. Life would most likely be possible but much more extreme. What would we deal with if the asteroid belt were not in place as a fence to most of the space material constantly flying around out there? I could go on but I believe you see my point even if you are not in agreement. Just random coincidence huh, all of these various things coming together just right to make our little paradise.
I will wind down with the question of why so many different species if we all developed out of the same cosmic ooze? Now I agree that the symbiotic relationship we are all involved with are what keep things going. What affect would there be if all the mosquitos were suddenly gone. No one I know likes them but what an affect on the ecological balance. I just find it harder to believe in non-intelligent creation because of all the different species. Why would "nature" need to be so intricate?
I am not the first person to put these questions out there. If you have read this with an open mind I thank you. It is as hard for me to not believe in a omnipotent,caring,loving creator as it may be for you to believe in one. But just unintelligent, random chance; come on, you're smarter than that.
Yours in Christ, Mike

Greetings to all,
" I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." John 14:6 NKJV. For many that is a very exclusionary and bold statement. The truth is very often a bitter pill to swallow. While Christ loved all with heart we can barely comprehend, He was not object to laying out a harsh truth. You see in this world of political correctness and fear of hurting someone's feelings we tell "little white lies" constantly. I agree that many of them are harmless, accept that when does LWL become bigger. I mean if I want to build up my muscles I may start with 5lbs. weights for awhile and everntually move to 10,20,50, or 100lbs. At each of the increments the former weight will feel very insignificant. Lying can be like that. It can also snowball into something we never desired it to be. Funny thing is that while we say we are telling the LWL to save someone's feelings we are actually just saving ourselves from possible conflict.
I am not here to tell you when your lies have gotten out of hand. What I would challenge you to do is build relationships and trust so that when you do tell that loved one "that dress does make you look fat", they will know it comes out of love and concern.
You see that is where Christ is coming from. He loves and knows us so well that He chances bruising our sense of fairness and tolerance of differing opinions to tell us the most important truth. It's funny that people will accept a concept of heaven, yet reject the concept of hell. We will readily accept the scientific statement that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Yet when we speak or feel about our spiritual condition we only want to accept the good option. Let me assure you, Satan is real. Most of us so abhor the thought of being ruled over we reject any hint of a higher or lower controlling power. We may accept the idea of a loving God; but for the most part we won't give credence to a controlling evil.
When God saved me and forgave my sins He also opened my mind to an enlightening truth. This truth is not particular to me, all who give their lives to Christ can have it; but I don't believe those who haven't can truly grasp the depth of it. Sorry if I just tweaked your sensibilities and I may be wrong; but I don't think I am.
Can you imagine our parents letting us do whatever we wanted when we were say 2,3, or even 4. Let's see, take those keys and stick them in the electrical outlet, pull that table cloth with the hot soup or gravy down on us, I think you get my point. Doesn't that sound controlling to you? Of course not, that is protection of someone who knows no better. You see our inflated idea of maturity and intelligence blinds us to the fact that in God's eyes we are but children; His children. This leads our God to do things for our own good that we at the time, and much of our lives, do not understand.
You see that truth I was speaking of earlier is that all God leads me to is" for MY own good", not His directly. His true pleasure comes from seeing His children have the best life possible, but He loves us enough to give us freedom to choose.
So when you read something in God's Word that appears to go against the grain, ask yourself this: Would I tell my children a lie to save their feelings but might cost them their life; or do I share the truth that will eventually prosper them, though for a time we might be alienated?
Yours in Christ, Mike.