Posts Tagged ‘Faith’

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Iranian Pastor

Wednesday, October 5th, 2011

All Christians should be praying for the Iranian pastor, Yousef Nadarkhani. Raised in the Isalmic country, he converted to faith in Christ as a teenager. Today he is a very effective pastor — bringing a number of people from Islam to faith in Christ.

Consequently, in this Islamic state — due simply to his faith in Christ – Iran’s Supreme Court has sentenced him to death. The court is demanding that he renounce his faith in Christ and turn back to Islam. World rights groups are shocked that a person can be sentenced to death simply by criminalizing one’s choice of religion. The court says it will suspend the sentence, if Nadarkhani will renounce his Christian faith. He says he certainly will not renounce his faith in Christ and turn to Isalm.

We need to pray for him. In addition. there are websites where you can send a letter of concern to the Iranian government — as I have done.

Yousef Nadarkhani is a modern Apostle Paul. What a wonderful example of faithfulness to our Lord!

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September 11, 2011

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

This Sunday we will observe the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on America on September 11, 2001. If you are 20 years old or older, you remember where you were when you heard the news. It was a day that lives in infamy, similar to December 7, 1941, the day the Japanese Navy bombed Pearl Harbor.

Such a day also brings back the memories of how God worked. God was at Ground Zero working through people who cared about others — giving care, witnessing to His love and mercy, risking lives for others, etc.

This Sunday morning at our church we will honor our “first responders.” My message from the Bible will be based upon Psalm 23. I hope you can join us!

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Faith for the Future

Friday, January 7th, 2011

There is no limit to what God can do through us and for us in this New Year of 2011. As believers, we need to call upon God and believe Him for great things. God says, “Call unto Me, and I will show you great and mighty things that you know not.” The Apostle Paul tells us that God is able to do exceeding and abundantly above all we can ask or hope or think.

Those are awesome promises. If we believe God enough to call upon Him, He promises to guide, direct and deliver in this New Year. Our responsibility is to call upon Him. His responsibility is to act and provide. And He will.

We need to live by faith, trusting God, believing Him, and calling upon Him. The Bible says the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show Himself strong on behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him. Our hearts won’t be perfect in the sense that we never sin. But our hearts can be perfect in the sense that we are fully devoted and committed to Him.

Let’s trust Him for great things in this New Year!

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Reaching Out During the Christmas Season

Tuesday, December 7th, 2010

Christmas is an important time of the year for believers to reach out to the community around us with the love of Christ. God the Father certainly expressed his love by sending His Son to us at Christmas (John 3:16), and Jesus certainly expressed His love by coming into this world through the miracle of the virgin birth. Christmas is an act of love — I John 4:9-10.

During the Christmas season, the hearts of people seem to be a little more open spiritually and a little more tender. If someone has suffered a loss in their family, that loss seems to be felt more acutely during the holiday season. If someone is lonely, the loneliness seems to be more accentuated during the holiday season. Sometimes it feels like the whole world is happy — except that troubled heart which is suffering loss or loneliness.

This creates an ideal opportunity for the Christian community to reach out with love and compassion. At our church we strive to take a number of steps during the holiday season to reach out with the love of Christ by: giving out holiday food baskets; receiving a special offering for worldwide missions; sending shoeboxes of gifts to Haiti; holding special dinners or parties for the elderly and the homebound; presenting special Christmas programs, such as Walk Through Bethlehem and a Christmas musicale; etc.

Or it may just be a kind word or an act of generosity toward a neighbor.

Surely, as Christians we should strive to reach out with the love of God year-round. But the holiday season presents us with a special opportunity!

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Election

Friday, November 5th, 2010

As Americans we should be thankful that we live in a free democracy and have the privilege of voting. Scripture teaches us to “submit” to the government. Many Christians have had to apply that principle in nations with autocratic rulers, which is a challenge. But here in America, while we are to submit to the law of the land, we have the privilege to speak up when we disagree, and we have the privilege to vote against a leader when we do not support him or her.

As Christians, we should not take that privilege for granted. Even in other democracies in the world, there are sometimes riots and hostile persecution in the political world. We are pretty much free of that here in America. Thank God for America!

We welcome to office our new congressman from the 8th district here in Orlando, Daniel Webster. Congressman-elect Webster is a friend of mine. He is a Baptist — a member of First Baptist Church of Central Florida. I serve with him on the Board of Directors of “The Florida Baptist Witness.” He is an honorable man. He has a proven track record as a state senator and as the majority leader of the Florida State Senate. We should pray for Congressman-elect Webster as he seeks to maintain righteous values in representing us in Washington.

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