Posted on 09/14/2001 12:37:08 AM PDT by farmer18th
Farmer, you've got me beat but not by much. It's been five yrs for me. Mainly because most churches today seem to be more about money than trying to help lost souls and the community.
There are churches here in town that, absent a golf course, rival or exceed the finest country clubs. They've got gyms, saunas, running tracks, meeting rooms, restaurants (yes!), pre-school, K-12 school, etc. Money, money, money. The pastors are not pastors, they are CEO's of multi-milion dollar corporations. And of course they're on TV every Sun morning, talking up what a great church they have.
What a shame. I don't think Jesus would be proud.
Query: did they pass the hat at the service you attended?
Hang in there buddy.
Just pray, and God will show you where he wants you to go to church. If you'll be obedient and go to church where God tells you, you will be amazed.
But as for not helping, I beg your pardon!! My church has already held a 2-hour prayer meeting (Tuesday), and we have another one scheduled for Friday. Believe me, we know how to pray and when we pray, things happen in our city (San Diego) or wherever we send our prayers.
God’s Hand of Protection Over America Has Possibly Been Lifted.
Given the reality of yesterday’s events, there is a very good possibility that God Himself has lifted His hand of protection from America and judged us for our sins. He may have given us over to our own devices. We have sown the wind for years and have now reaped the whirlwind.
How Ironic, earlier today I saw Daschel, Dodd and other leaders commiserating in Washington and in the midst of this tragedy people in government, ... the very people who have been opposed to the Lord Jesus Christ, prayer in school or within the halls of government. People who support and promote sexual immorality, sodomy and the wholesale genocide of the unborn stood together, sang "God Bless America" and ARE CALLING FOR PRAYER TO GOD! But what does God have to say about all of this:
24 “Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
25 And you neglected all my counsel And did not want my reproof;
26 I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes,
27 When your dread comes like a storm And your calamity comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently but they will not find me,
29 Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD.
30 “They would not accept my counsel, They spurned all my reproof.
31 “So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way And be satiated with their own devices.
32 “For the waywardness of the naive will kill them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
33 “But he who listens to me shall live securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”
This said, I will be praying for President Bush and those in leadership because it is my duty. But God's word is clear: we reap what we sow. America has supported Mr. Clinton, Mr. Condit et. al, because they are reflective of what many Americans themselves believe and how many of us live and act. Many Americans have been willing to overlook their conduct and ungodly policies because "character does not matter, it is the economy stupid."
Well, God will not be mocked, but He does hold out this promise:
13 “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people,
14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:13 - 14)
Guys, I love America and my prayers have gone out and will continue to go out to the thousands upon thousands of families who have lost their loved ones.
I have had the opportunity to live and work in Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, Moscow, Kiev, Odessa, and other cities. There is not another place on the face of the planet that has been as blessed by God as much as we have. People may not want to admit it but we were founded as a nation upon faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Word of God and Christian principles. It is not my intention to offend anyone, but we as a nation can not use God. Nor can we call upon Him to protect and defend us when it is convenient or politically expedient and spurn Him and His Word, the rest of the time and then expect Him to be at our beck and call.
There is a simple yet profound principle in His Word and it is this: You reap what you sow and what you reap is multiplied. That is true for individuals, it is also true for nations.
We as a nation, founded upon faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and biblical principles have made a concerted effort to reject Him and tear God out of the very fabric of our lives and society. We can not treat the Lord Jesus like a "dixie cup" which we can use and throw away and then expect God not to judge us but to come to our rescue and protect us from our enemies.
I have an honest question that I would ask everyone who reads this, whether you agree with me or my perspective or not to answer. Have we as individuals and as a nation been living righteous and godly lives. Lives that are pleasing to God who is Holy, absolutely righteous and totally just? Or have we chosen to forget Him, spurn His Word and do whatever is right in our own eyes? If the answer is the latter, then no matter how painful it is, the truth is this: We are being judged as a people for our sin.
Another question arises and it boils down to this:
How could God use a nation or individuals even more evil to judge another nation less evil than itself?
He did it numerous times in the Old Testament. Israel (the Northern kingdom) had turned away from following the Lord and He allowed the Assyrians to overcome and conquer them. The Assyrians were brutal beyond comprehension. They ripped open pregnant women and dashed their babies against walls and pavement, they impaled their living victims, skinned them alive and crushed them under huge threshing sledges. This is just a small sample of what they did to Israel. The Southern kingdom of Judah was later conquered by the Babylonians. A wicked nation, totally given over to idols and immorality. Why did God allow this? because His people had persisted in wickedness and in rejecting Him. god is gracious and long suffering, but there does come a time when His patience is at an end. He is not only a God of love, He is also holy and must judge sin.
No nation can spurn God, reject His Word and law and get away with it. Not Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome, Israel, the United States or ANY nation on the face of the planet.
Fortunatly, as I mentioned above, it is NOT TOO LATE. God is giveng us a window of opportunity to repent. He holds out this promise to us as individuals and as a nation:
13 “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people,
14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:13 - 14)
What has happened is a tragedy. We are a nation at war and those who are responsible must be held accountable and punished. But I believe that God can use these events to produce spiritual revival throughout this land IF WE RESPOND AND REPENT. The choice is ours.
Humbly yours,
Dr. S
These men of the cloth are way way out of the loop. They are very divorced from the real world. Have carved out comfortable niches where they have been dwelling in for far too long
Mercy is great but must be balanced by a sense of justice ...a thirst for justice
Can't people go any place today without their damn cell phones turned on to interrupt the thoughts and conversations of innocent bystanders who are constantly barraged with the ring, ring, ring and yak, yak, yak of those who are too self centered to know when to turn it off and shut up. Trains, planes, restaurants, pubs, city side walks, ball games, and most recently, the person next to me on the treadmill at the gym. Although cell phones have their place, learn to show a little respect for others, particularly in church.
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