Friday, September 14, 2018
Friday Funny: Jeanne Robertson | Crowning Miss North Carolina
Jeanne is on Sirius & XM Radio this clip is from Jeanne's DVD Southern Style! Jeanne's official website http://www.jeannerobertson.com
Thursday, September 13, 2018
THE PROCESS OF PERSECUTION -3: INJUSTICE
In his humiliation he [Jesus] was deprived of
justice. Acts 8:33a
Christians experiencing persecution are following in the
footsteps of their master, Jesus. In Acts chapter eight, Philip revealed to the
Ethiopian eunuch that the passage from Isaiah 53 he
was reading referred to Jesus who indeed was deprived of justice. Today in the
Western world, we would describe His trial before crucifixion as occurring in a
“kangaroo court!”
If disinformation about any group, including Christians, is
disseminated long enough, no one will help when that group or person is
discriminated against. Discrimination relegates Christians to second-class
citizenship with inferior legal, social, political and economic status. Once
discrimination takes place, no one will intervene when the mistreatment comes.
Examples of such injustice against Christians abound around
the world: ID cards in a country where Christianity is an unacceptable entry in
the religion column; daughters abducted because they are Christians; expulsion
from the community just because they are evangelicals.
Christians in Pakistan are a small minority among a large
Muslim majority and often face such discrimination. The problem is compounded
by the fact that many Christians are illiterate and poor. One Christian teacher
at a center training Christian women recently said, “We do face discrimination
because we live in the midst of people who don’t want us to move forward;
people who keep trying to push us down so that we will always be in slavery.”
But there is one repeated scene of injustice against
Christians that occurs in Pakistan which brings me to tears which involves
young Christian girls. As a father of two daughters and having six
granddaughters, I shudder every time I read news reports that describe
Christian family injustice in this land. The stories usually work out this way:
Muslim women must marry Muslim men but Muslim men are
allowed to marry any woman they wish with the proviso that any children must be
raised as Muslim. Consequently in Pakistan there are Muslim men who often
desire some of the very beautiful young Christian girls in the community but
realize there is no way their Christian families will agree to marriage. So
these men resort to abduction.
The Christian father’s only option is to go to court where
the judge—usually a Muslim—hears the case and pronounces to the Christian
father, “Your daughter voluntarily converted to Islam and voluntarily married
this Muslim man so you are to have no more contact with her. One of the most
recent cases involved two young Christian sisters aged thirteen and ten. In
this case, the judge allowed the ten-year-old to return home to her family but
not the thirteen-year-old.
Safwan, a secret believer in Algeria, found a Christian
pamphlet between the paperwork given him at work and started reading it. Upon
discovering him reading the pamphlet, his boss reported him to the police.
Later that night the police visited him and searched his entire home. They
found Christian CD’s, several Christian movies and a New Testament. “It was
clear to them that I had become a Christian. My boss fired me.”
RESPONSE: Today I will work toward justice for
everyone in my own country and around the world.
PRAYER: Lord, be with those experiencing
discrimination today because they love and serve You.
Standing Strong Through The Storm (SSTS), a
daily devotional message by SSTS author Paul Estabrooks. © 2011 Open Doors
International. Used by permission.
Originally Posted HERE
Wednesday, September 12, 2018
THE PROCESS OF PERSECUTION–2: DISINFORMATION
Blessed are you when people…falsely say all
kinds of evil against you because of me. Matthew 5:11
This stage of persecution is characterized by unchecked
ridicule and disinformation against a targeted group (Christian or others) most
often spread through media. In this stage Christians are robbed of their good
reputation and the right to answer the accusations made against them. Media,
politics, entertainment, publications and schools are most often the avenues
used to spread such insinuations or lies.
If disinformation about any group is disseminated long
enough, no one will help in later stages because of this negative brain-washing
about them. It essentially dehumanizes the person and is a pattern of thinking
that may make it easier for milder wrongs to ignite a chain reaction of events.
It creates an “us-versus-them” mentality.
A classic historic example is the gross disinformation the
German Nazis spread about the Jews which then developed into a literal negative
symbol when Jewish homes and businesses were marked with Stars of David and
then targeted.
This also can result in verbal stereotyping. In the Rwanda
genocide, the term “cockroach” became a negative classification of all Tutsi as
conspirators against the government.
There are many significant global examples of
disinformation used against our Christian brothers and sisters. The influence
and impact of negative television programs against Protestant Christians in an
autonomous region in Central Asia is very strong. A local pastor was shown on
TV and, without reference to any evidence, labelled “an enemy of the state.”
His family members’ pictures were also shown at the same time causing them to
be despised by their community.
Recently a Christian woman who was shown on TV was not able
to continue her work in a kiosk in the market. Other vendors forced her to
leave the bazaar.
One local pastor says, “Since the program is shown
regularly on TV, persecution has become worse. Some people have left the church
out of fear. When you start to preach (to the public), people close up and say,
we have heard about you, we don’t want to listen.”
In North Korea, the entire society is controlled by
propaganda and disinformation. Persecution is so severe that in many Christian
families, children are not even told about the family’s faith in Jesus until
they are young adults because they are encouraged and expected to inform on
their parents while in their school years. Christians are considered enemies of
the state and the disinformation about this is wide spread.
Similarly, in countries like Laos, the government
disinformation is that Christianity is an American religion being used to
infiltrate their country rather than the former military methods. All
Christians are thus portrayed as being traitors and working for America.
RESPONSE: Today I will work for truth and quash
all attempts at disinformation against followers of Jesus everywhere.
PRAYER: Lord, grant Your blessing today on Your
followers suffering from lies and untruths.
Standing Strong Through The Storm (SSTS), a
daily devotional message by SSTS author Paul Estabrooks. © 2011 Open Doors
International. Used by permission.
Originally Posted HERE
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
THE PROCESS OF PERSECUTION-1: OPPOSITION
Consider [Jesus] who endured such opposition
from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews
12:3
Whenever
we ask audiences in free societies to word-associate “persecution,” most
responses are what we refer to as the “big three”: torture, imprisonment and
martyrdom. Many would agree that persecution is much more than the “big three”
which are often only experienced in the final stage of the process of
persecution.
Jesus
repeatedly warned his followers that if the world hated Him, it would hate them
also (John 15:18).
In Luke 6:22,
Jesus reminds his disciples that this opposition is a blessing. Not a blessing
I ever hear many Christians praying for.
So the
very basic and first step in this process is awareness that as a follower of
Jesus, you can expect opposition, just as Jesus Himself experienced (Hebrews
12:3). He
indicated that it will come from the world and possibly even from your own
family and friends.
So do we walk around with a persecution complex, chip on
our shoulder attitude, because of this? Absolutely not. The good news is that
Jesus says we can live a life of joy in the midst of these troubles because He
has overcome the world and so can we (John
16:33).
And this opposition is in every country and culture, not
just those where severe persecution is being experienced. A few years ago Jim
Cunningham and I wrote a little booklet about experiencing mild persecution
right here in North America entitled Red Skies @ Dawn available
at Open Doors offices. It is a dialogue between two young couples. Here’s a
relevant excerpt:
Sam responded. “Ultimately Satan, our real enemy, wants to
destroy the Church of Jesus Christ, wherever it’s located. And Jesus Himself is
the stumbling block to those who don’t believe. When we say He is the only way,
we are labeled as exclusivists and on this basis we are then considered
intolerant.”
Yvonne added, “I heard a program host on the radio the
other day and he was obviously upset by this. When someone told him that Jesus
is the only way to God, he shouted that we evangelicals are the scum of the
earth!”
“Whoa,” Sanjit reacted. “That’s a little heavy, isn’t it?”
Yvonne continued, “Well, he went on to say that it wasn’t
the belief to which he objected so much but he objected to the arrogance of any
person claiming ‘my way or the highway’ and writing off the rest of the human
race to eternal damnation.”
All of this discussion clearly points out, “Sam concluded,
“we are facing—and will face even more—attacks because of Jesus in us.
Persecution may not be just for those brothers and sisters across the seas in
places like East Africa and China, but perhaps even for us.”
RESPONSE: Today I will rejoice that in the face
of general opposition to Jesus in me, I can be an overcomer like Jesus.
PRAYER: Help me, Lord, to be aware of any
opposition without it negatively affecting my witness.
Standing Strong Through The Storm (SSTS), a daily devotional message by SSTS author Paul Estabrooks. © 2011 Open Doors International. Used by permission.
Originally posted HERE
Monday, September 10, 2018
FOUR-STAGE PROCESS OF PERSECUTION
Speak up for those who cannot speak for
themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Proverbs 31:8
Jesus’ basic communication theory in Matthew 12 is
that people speak and act from the overflow of what is in their heart. Jeremiah
and others remind us that the heart can be exceedingly wicked. One of Aleksandr
Solzhenitsyn’s famous statements is “The line of good and evil cuts through the
heart of every human being.”
Christian persecution within a country or state rarely
happens suddenly or in isolation. It is most often a process. Some years ago
Rev. Dr. Johan Candelin, who headed the World Evangelical Alliance’s (WEA)
Religious Liberties Commission recognized this and devised a three-stage
process of what happens leading up to persecution becoming entrenched in any
society.
He labeled the three stages of downward spiral as disinformation,
discrimination and persecution. Dr. Candelin later
expanded it to a six-stage process with each of the three having a passive,
then active, aspect.
Dr. Jim Cunningham and I included this process in the first
edition of Standing Strong Through the Storm (SSTS) and in our
seminars.
Some academicians and wordsmiths found it problematic to
label the third stage with the same word as that of the process. So we began to
wrestle with this issue from a sociological, historical and biblical
perspective. We found interesting academic parallels. For example, in 1996,
Professor Gregory Stanton, President of Genocide Watch, proposed an excellent
model of an eight stage process of genocide. There are interesting similarities
between this downward spiral and what psychologist John Gottman has labeled as
the four most likely predictors of divorce.
When we accepted Jesus’ four verb definition of persecution
in Luke
6:22, we then found four clear biblical steps in understanding the downward
spiral in the process of persecution: opposition, disinformation,
injustice and mistreatment. We will look at these four steps forming the
acronym ODIM individually over the next four days.
Why is this important to you and me? Just today I read again
the poignant words of German theologian Martin Niemoller written after he had
been imprisoned for eight years in concentration camps as the personal prisoner
of Adolf Hitler:
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out
because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak
out because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.
And then they came for me—and there was no one left to
speak for me.
RESPONSE: Today I will speak out for the rights
of those who have no voice to speak for themselves.
PRAYER: Help me, Lord, to be aware of the
forces of evil that conspire against Your Kingdom.
Standing Strong Through The Storm (SSTS), a
daily devotional message by SSTS author Paul Estabrooks. © 2011 Open Doors
International. Used by permission.
Originally Posted HERE
Sunday, September 9, 2018
Saddleback Church Celebrates 50K Baptisms
Saddleback Church reached a milestone last month that
demonstrates its dedication to the gospel and evangelism.
The church, started by Pastor Rick
Warren 38 years ago, recorded its 50,000th baptism.
On his Facebook page, Warren thanked church members for
their role in reaching the milestone.
“I’m often asked: Why has this church, by God’s grace, been
able to bring so many unbelievers to Jesus?
“Because of your LOVE!
“YOU genuinely love people and you want them to go to
heaven with you! Every day, you bring your friends, co-workers and family to
Jesus. Honestly, I’ve never seen a group like you anywhere else in the world.
I’m humbled to be your pastor, and I could not be more proud of you.”
50,000 baptisms in 38 years is quite a feat. Warren did the
math and found that since Easter 1980, the first service at Saddleback, “we’ve
baptized almost four changed lives every single day. (Precisely 3.7 people
every day.) YOU’RE PART OF A MIRACLE!”
Saddleback’s Milestone Comes as SBC Baptisms
Fall
The milestone comes as the Southern Baptist Convention, of
which Saddleback is a member, reports a decade of declines in baptisms.
At its annual meeting in June, SBC congregations reported
baptizing 254,122 people—26.5 percent fewer than in 2007. The ratio was one
baptism for every 59 church members.
“It’s heartbreaking to be baptizing fewer people for
Christ, even though Southern Baptists have nearly 2,900 more churches than we
had a decade ago,” said LifeWay President and CEO Thom
S. Rainer.
“Yet a quarter million baptisms is not an insignificant
number. We praise God for every individual who has come to Christ and followed
Him in baptism. It is my prayer that God would embolden Southern Baptists to
share the gospel with their friends and neighbors.
“We know conversion is only by the Holy Spirit, but we also
know God begins most of these conversions with gospel conversations.”
Warren wrote that according to Acts 2:47, the first
Christian church (in Jerusalem) baptized someone every day. “Think about that.
Daily!” Warren wrote on Facebook, “That means, at the very least, the first
church baptized at least 365 new members annually! Not many churches have ever
matched that kind of growth. But YOUR CHURCH has!”
This weekend’s services also included an acknowledgment of
all of those in attendance who had themselves been baptized at Saddleback. A
photo montage was displayed with images gathered from throughout the decades at
Saddleback.
“Why is baptism such
a big deal?” Rick Warren asked while standing in the baptism pool. “There are
two reasons. First, Jesus commanded it. Second, he modeled it…this is the way I
say to the world ‘I’m in! I’m a part of the family of God…there is no reason to
wait!’”
Source: Bob Ditmer
Bob Ditmer has worked in Christian media for more than 20 years including positions with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries and Focus on the Family.
Saturday, September 8, 2018
Dallas Willard: The Secret to Ministry Satisfaction
In my early days of ministry, I spent huge amounts of time
absorbed in Scripture and great spiritual writers. The Lord made it possible
for me to spend whole days—without any issue of preparing for something or
taking an examination—soaking up the Scripture. I literally wore out the books
of great spiritual writers.
This focus was foundational to my spiritual
journey, to finding satisfaction in Christ.
Experiencing
God in that way leads me to satisfaction in Christ
and to speaking to others out of that satisfaction. There is no substitute for
simple satisfaction in the Word of God, in the presence of God. That affects
all your actions.
Characteristics of Dissatisfaction
Men and women in ministry who are not finding satisfaction
in Christ are likely to demonstrate that with overexertion and overpreparation
for speaking and with no peace about what they do after they do it. If we have
not come to the place of resting
in God, we will go back and think, Oh, if I’d done this, or Oh,
I didn’t do that. When you come to the place where you are drinking
deeply from God and trusting him to act with you, there is peace about what you
have communicated.
One of my great joys came when I got up from a chair to
walk to the podium and the Lord said to me, “Now remember, it’s what I do with
the Word between your lips and their hearts that matters.” That is a tremendous
lesson. If you do not trust God to do that, then he will let you do what you’re
going to do, and it’s not going to come to much. But once you turn it loose and
recognize we are always inadequate but our inadequacy is not the issue, you are
able to lay that burden down. Then the satisfaction you have in Christ spills
over into everything you do.
The preacher who does not minister in that satisfaction is
on dangerous ground. Those who experience
moral failure are those who have failed to live a deeply satisfied
life in Christ, almost without exception. I know my temptations come out of
situations where I am dissatisfied, not content. I am worried about something
or not feeling the sufficiency I know is there. If I have a strong temptation,
it will be out
of my dissatisfaction.
The moral
failures of ministers usually are over one of three things: sex,
money or power. That always comes out of dissatisfaction. Ministers are
reaching for something, and they begin to feel, I deserve something
better. I sacrifice so much and get so little. And so I’ll do this. The
surest guarantee against failure is to be so at peace and satisfied with God
that when wrongdoing presents itself, it isn’t even interesting. That is how we
stay out of temptation.
Characteristics of a Satisfied Soul
We are long on devices and programs. We have too many of
them, and they get in the way. What we really need are preachers who can stand
in simplicity and manifest and declare the richness of Christ in life. There
isn’t anything on Earth that begins to compete with that for human benefit and
human interest.
When people hear preachers who are satisfied in this way,
they sense that much more is coming from them than what they are saying. When I
hear preachers like this, I sense something flowing from them. Preachers like
that are at peace. They are not struggling to make something happen.
That is one of the biggest issues for ministers today
because of the model of success that comes to us. We get the idea we are
supposed to make something happen, and so we need our services to go just
right. The concluding benediction has hardly ceased before those in charge are
saying to one another, “How did it go?” or “It went really well.” The truth is,
we don’t know how it went. From God’s point of view, it will be eternity before
we know how it went. These folks are not at peace if they are trying to manage
outcomes in that way.
One mark of preachers who have attained deep satisfaction
is they are at peace, and they love what they are doing. Peace comes from them.
From such preachers, I sense something coming to me that is deeper than the
words. Hearers sense the message opening up possibilities for them to live. In
the presence of this kind of preacher, people find ways of doing the good that
is before their hearts.
That is the living water. Jesus brought people that opening
up of possibilities. In John 8, when he said to the woman caught in adultery,
“Go now and leave your life of sin,” I don’t think she felt, I’ve got
to do that. She experienced Jesus’ words as: That’s really
possible. I can do that. That is one characteristic of preaching that
comes from a satisfied life.
Another mark of satisfied preachers is they can listen.
They can be silent in the presence of others because they are not always trying
to make something happen. Such a person has the capacity to listen to people
and come to an awareness of the needs that underlie the felt needs. We should
be attentive to the felt needs of people, but we should know that the game is
at a much deeper level of the soul.
A large part of what the pastor does in preaching and life
is to listen and help people feel their real needs, not just superficial needs.
The satisfied preacher speaks from a listening heart. Since people often do not
know what they really need, such preaching can help them find out. This
requires a spaciousness that only comes if your cup is running over because you
are well cared for by God.
Steps Toward Finding Satisfaction in Christ
We can take steps to find this deep satisfaction and to
preach from the well within us.
I encourage pastors to have substantial times every week
when they do nothing but enjoy God. That may mean walking by a stream, looking
at a flower, listening to music, or watching your children or grandchildren
play without your constantly trying to control them. Experience the fullness of
God, think about the good things God has done for you, and realize he has done
well by you. If there is a problem doing that, then work through the problem,
because we cannot really serve him if we do not genuinely love him.
Henri Nouwen said the main obstacle to love for God is
service for God. Service must come out of his strength and life flowing through
us into receptive lives. Take an hour, sit in a comfortable place in silence,
and do
nothing but rest. If you go to sleep, that’s OK. We have to stop trying
too hard. There may be a few pastors for whom that is not the problem, but for
most, it is. We need to do that not only for ourselves but to set an example
for those to whom we speak.
There is a place for effort, but it never earns anything
and must never take the place of God with us. Our efforts are to make room for
him in our lives.
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