Remember !!!

Revelation Study ~ Pastor John Hagee

The Coming FOURTH REICH

Study Chart ~ Entire Book Of Revelation

Ed's Note: The following links are a sermon series well-worth hearing by Pastor John Hagee (August 28/2016). At the moment you will have to view this through your Facebook Account; I'm still looking for this sermon in a more public format (like Youtube?), but for the moment you can open it in your Facebook (or quickly sign up to FB to see it).  If you are interested in Bible Prophecy as described in this amazing book of the bible that promises you a blessing for studying !!!

The above link is the actual chart that goes with this sermon.  It will illuminate your Revelation study significantly.


____________________

The Final Emperor ~ John Hagee (Aug. 14/2016)

The Final Farewell ~ John Hagee (Aug. 21/2016)

From Here to Eternity ~ John Hagee (Aug.28/2016)

He gives Strength to the Weak

12 of Jesus' Leadership Principles ~ Edmonson

There are many leaders I admire who have influenced my own leadership. There are leaders from my personal life such as a former pastor, a former boss, a high school principal and leaders in my own community who have influenced me as I have watched their leadership.  The principles, however, which I admire most are found in the leadership style of Jesus. Jesus’ leadership is still impacting culture today.

Here are 12 leadership principles of Jesus that inspire me:

1). Jesus was willing to invest in people others would have dismissed.
Consider the disciples. They were not the “religious” elite, yet Jesus used them to start His church.

2). Jesus released responsibility and ownership in a ministry.
Consider how Jesus sent the disciples out on their own. No micro-management, it appears.

3). Jesus had a leadership succession plan.
Jesus consistently reminded the disciples He wouldn’t always be with them. Of course, He was still the “leader”, but He left others to take the ministry forward.

4). Jesus practiced servant leadership better than anyone.
The King of kings was willing to wash the feet of His followers.

5). Jesus was laser focused on His vision.
Regardless of the persecutions or distractions, Jesus kept on the mission God had called Him to complete.

6). Jesus handled distractions with grace.
When the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years touched His garment, Jesus stopped to heal her, even though headed to a definite purpose.

7). Jesus was into self-development.
Jesus constantly slipped away to spend time with God.

8). Jesus was into leadership development and replacement.
He very purposefully prepared the disciples to take over the ministry. He pushed people beyond what they felt they were capable of doing.

9). Jesus held followers to high expectations.
Jesus was not afraid to make huge requests of people. “Follow Me” meant the disciples had to drop their agenda to do so. He told the disciples they must be willing to lose everything to follow Him.

10). Jesus cared more about people than about rules and regulations.
He was willing to jeopardize Himself personally by breaking the “rules” to help someone in need.

11). Jesus celebrated success in ministry.
He rewarded people generously who were faithful to Him and His cause.

12). Jesus finished well.
Any questions whether His ministry was effective? Still working today.

Ron Edmondson

Ron Edmondson is a pastor and church leader passionate about planting churches, helping established churches thrive, and assisting pastors and those in ministry think through leadership, strategy and life.

Stop & Think ~ Francis Chan

The whole message of the Bible is not about this God who wants to take from you.
It’s about this God who wants to give to you. Francis Chan delivers an unforgetable
message that could change your life. 

Watch this 15 minute Francis Chan video, Just “Stop and Think” the Movie,
and see why over a million people have watched this video.

Fall 2016 ~ A Season Of Reflection

Related: I Dare You!
John Piper on JW's

UNMUZZLE!

Hear the heart of the Father!

26I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.

28Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. 29I will save you from all your uncleanness.  ~ Ezekiel 36

Wow!  This passage was intended prophetically for Israel, yet the parallel between God's plan for faithless Israel is so similar to God's plan for me....and my neighbour.  Here in this passage written 2500 years ago, God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel explaining his plan for reckless, wanton, exiled Israel to be "brought back" to their land and be restored in fellowship to the Lord who loves them dearly.  God very much wanted to straighten out their beliefs and practices!  This prophesy has yet to be entirely fulfilled, but there are signs that it could soon.  But suffice it to say that the God of the bible is in the restoration business!  Like Israel corporately, God longs to take each of us to a new place. God longs for increasing our dependence on Him.  He wants a relationship with this world who has rejected Him.  Key to this plan He has, is for each of us to be witnesses of His Gospel!  

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. ~ 1 Peter 3

This season finds me yet again burdened for lost proximate people. People all around me. People I work with.  People I meet when I'm cycling or going about my daily activities.  I often wonder ...do they know about Jesus?  Could I share with them a few words that will change their destiny?   I am determined to be a witnessing Christian, someone who will not sit back and allow His Name to be trampled, but instead be lifted high.  

Because of my determination this way, the Holy Spirit allows me to have interesting conversations with people who need the gospel.  I recently prayed with a despondent colleague in a difficult work situation.  He seemed surprised, yet responded as I led in prayer.  (After we'd prayed, he reported to me that the thing he very much feared didn't come upon him after all.)  Another person is caught up in a cult and I was able to share the Gospel with him.  Yet another explained he is a professing atheist. His story is one of family separation and relational conflict.  After being brought up in Islam, he went to a Catholic school, leaving him more confused than ever.  While he was difficult to speak to, he appreciated my listening ear and my open and declared faith in Jesus.

  My long-time neighbour 'Rob', describes himself as a Jehovah Witness "pastor" and has at times gone out of his way to explain to me how much alike we are in regards to his belief system as a Jehovah Witness and mine as an Evangelical.  I tried not to take his bait for some time, deciding just to listen to him.  You see, I don't really think we are very much alike at all.  However the Holy Spirit has put a burden in my heart for him.  My reality sees little in common with his cult, but I sense the love in me that God has for him.  I think he sees me as a "potential convert", and well to be honest, that's how I see him. 

When I mentioned Rob to my dad a few years ago, Dad began immediately to pray for him. We have prayed for him often as a family during our evening supper devotions.  I have had a burden for his salvation for a long time and had also begun again seeking out the Holy Spirit's leading in prayer for an opportunity to share Jesus with Rob.  I was not disappointed.  Amazingly, a few weeks ago, after I'd been praying for him, he came right over to my front lawn.  Isn't it funny how that happens? Something inside said to me, "...you prayed about witnessing to him?  Well...here he is!"  I quickly jumped at the opportunity to witness to him of God's saving power.  

His immediate difficulty is that the belief system that his headquarters in Brooklyn want him to have. JW's closely follow their authority figures in the Brooklyn-based Watchtower 'Governing Body'.  Their Governing Body requires him to follow their very-distorted 'company-thinking-speaking policy' on all their talking points.  Strangely enough, they teach that Jesus isn't the Son of God, but rather a version of Michael the archangel!  Where this and their other strange information came from is a mystery, but they didn't get it from reading the bible.  It is obviously confused, man-made 'theology'.

As an aside here, it really is amazing how JW’s have ‘developed’ in denying the deity of Jesus as God and not allowing their constituency or teachings to reflect what the bible teaches plainly.  The Bible teaches that Jesus is God in many passages like Hebrews, Colossians, Revelation and elsewhere; the apostle Paul declares the deity of Christ, as does Thomas and John and others.  Jesus, the Holy Spirit and God the Father all testify to his deity. Christ’s very name ‘Yeshuva” means, ‘God is Salvation’ or ‘God Saves’ or ‘Jesus Saves’ in its translation to English.  Yet, the JW’s continue to deny something so obvious.  (Their own misguided and mis-translated ‘New World Translation’ actually even declares Christ’s deity; but they fail to see it.)

 I was however faithful to speak the words that I felt the Holy Spirit led me to speak to Rob.  He probably wasn't expecting the response he got from me, as I challenged him with the claims of the Gospel, unpacked for him the Trinity and confronted Rob with the message of Christ and salvation.  I tried to be winsome with him, yet at the same time challenging.  But, I really doubt that I can convince Rob to make spiritual changes in his life because of a good argument; he has to see God's love at work in my life.  I'm aware that without the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, Rob has nothing but the head knowledge he has learned.  I have significant heavenly resources to bring to the table, including the convicting power of the Holy Spirit.  While we are both relishing this encounter, I'm immediately aware of their strategy.  The terminology JW's use, sounds similar to words evangelicals use, but with different meanings.  He soon wanted to have me attend their 'bible study' and go through with him 'a really good study book' (which wasn't the bible).  

I am not able to report that Rob or the others has accepted Christ yet.  I continue to pray that the Holy Spirit will convict them, and that something I've said will lead them to investigate the claims of Christ and that they surrender to his Lordship.

          Witnessing reminds me of a job I once had.  I remember transporting vital human organs on one of my aviation jobs flying light jet aircraft.  I'd fly in haste to an airport near a recent auto or industrial accident.  Often it was at 2am, when I was barely able to stay awake in the middle of the night.  Together, with a team of doctors, our team would carefully retrieve the vital organ from the body of a recently deceased person.  The medical team's objective was not only to remove the lung, liver, heart or priceless organ, but to then confirm that it was in good condition and a suitable match for the intended recipient.  On more than one occasion, the team would return to the airport with failure showing on their faces when they were not successful in their mission and the organ couldn't be utilized.  Our spirits would lower as we flew home empty-handed. But other times they returned carefully clutching the Coleman cooler containing the precious organ being kept cool on ice, knowing they soon would be saving someone's life when they returned to their hospital.

 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. ~ 2 Corinthians 4:7

Christian, you have that treasure inside you are like that "Coleman cooler" of priceless, precious life-giving organ. You have the understanding, the message of the good news of Salvation down deep in your heart. In fact God has strategically placed you where He needs you for the mission!  I am confident, if you'll ask Him for a witnessing opportunity, he will gently prompt you through his Holy Spirit. The question is are you going to respond in obedience to share that message with your world? Are you up for it? Are you praying passionately asking the Holy Spirit for an opportunity? Do you have a burden for the lost?

Not long after my encounter with Rob, I found myself reading Unmuzzle Your Inner Sheep, by Royal Hamel a Guelph, Ontario pastor.  Perhaps you need to read this excellent book on personal witnessing.  Checkout this link to his website.   This is an excellent book for practical witnessing ideas!  God bless you as you begin a great adventure sharing ...er 'unmuzzling' your faith.  I promise you it is rewarding!

~ St. Mark

Who Wants to be a Millionaire? ~ Dave Ramsay, Christian Financial Planner

Jeff and Dee of Atlanta have a net worth of $2.8 million. But they didn’t win the lottery. They became wealthy after decades of smart saving and sensible spending.

"I think the majority of millionaires are just like us—people who’ve worked and saved all their lives," Jeff says.

When he began working as a computer technician decades ago, Jeff’s salary was just $13,000. So when the opportunity came to work extra hours, he jumped at it. His workweek went from 40 hours to 80 hours—and his income doubled in the process.

"I started spending on the 80-hour level, not the 40," he says. "Then the hours went back. But the habits I’d gotten were pretty bad."

Translation: He ran up his credit cards. It was his first real taste of debt, and he hated every minute of it. Once he paid everything off, he told himself never again.

A few years later, Jeff and Dee met and married. This time, it was Dee who caught the credit card bug. She opened secret accounts and started charging without Jeff’s knowledge. Once her financial infidelity came to light, the couple went through what Dee recalls as "a very tense, emotional couple of years."

But they worked through it and came out the other side stronger and smarter.

"If you don’t agree on something, you really need to speak up on it," Dee says. "If it leads to an argument, so be it. If you don’t sit down and talk about it, you’re never going to be on the same page."

That was a major turning point in their marriage: learning how to communicate openly and honestly about money.

Jeff and Dee are millionaires from Atlanta, GA. In this Millionaire video, they share how 

they became Millionaires and give us an inside look into their current life style. 

"Once we got on the same page, we were able to do more," Jeff says. "And every raise that came in, a good portion of that went into retirement. So that’s where we started building [our retirement savings] percentage from a small number to a big number."

These days, the couple saves upwards of 25-30% of their household income for retirement. How? They don’t hoard money, but they also don’t waste it. They still shop at Walmart and buy $20 shoes. They’re just normal folks.

"It’s probably been five or six years since we’ve been millionaires" Jeff says. "But again, it didn’t change our lifestyle or what we did or how we did it."

To them, being a millionaire isn’t about hoarding your money. It’s about securing your future. It’s about leaving a legacy for your kids and giving generously. And it’s about enjoying the rest of your life without worry.

Being a millionaire isn’t about hoarding your money. It’s about securing your future.

"Being a millionaire means knowing I’ll be comfortable when he quits working," Dee says. "Knowing that I don’t have to worry about where my next meal is coming from or where I’m going to live—that’s basically what being a millionaire means to me."

Israeli Leaders Urge Jews To Read Through Entire Bible ~ Joel Rosenburg

Israeli leaders are urging Jews to read through the entire Bible, verse by verse, chapter by chapter? Amazing, but true. Here’s the latest.  by joelcrosenberg (Central Israel) -- You probably haven't heard this in the mainstream media, but Israel's most senior leaders are urging the Jewish people to read through the Bible, the whole Bible, verse by verse, chapter by chapter. Can you imagine President Obama or any other U.S. leader calling on American people to read through the Bible? Neither can I. Given the general trend here in Israel towards secularization, this is quite a surprising yet thoroughly encouraging development. I'm sure many of you are skeptical, but it really is true. Here's the latest. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu kicked off the new school year here by encouraging children to rediscover the Word of God and Biblical roots of their Jewish heritage. "First of all, the study of the Bible,” he said in August. "Knowledge is a critical word. We want to give it [knowledge of the Scriptures] to every child in Israel, Jews and non-Jews as one, religious and secular. This is the basis of the new world, and the basis of Israel as a strong nation in the world.” Last week, the prime minister and his wife, Sara, hosted another in a series of occasional Bible study groups at their official residence. They discussed -- among other things -- the Biblical connection Jews have to the Temple Mount, despite a recent U.N. vote denying Jews have any such connection. The Netanyahus organized their first home Bible study group in December 2011, as I reported at the time. In so doing, they carried on a tradition first begun by David Ben Gurion and later by Menachem Begin but rarely repeated by other Israeli premiers. Their stated goal was to set an example for the nation and to "perpetuate a love of the Bible." [See here and here for coverage of other Bible studies they have held.] Meanwhile, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin and several government official have launched something they call the "929 Initiative." This is a wonderful and worthy effort to encourage all Israelis -- even the most secular and non-religious among us -- to read one chapter of the Jewish Scriptures a day, every day, until they have read all 929 chapters. Rivlin and his colleagues kicked off the $12 million initiative in December 2014. Since then, they have been encouraging Israelis to continue reading verse by verse, chapter by chapter through the full Hebrew Bible or "Tanakh" until everyone finishes together in the summer of 2018 for the 70th anniversary of the prophetic rebirth of the Jewish State. There is a pretty impressive and sophisticated website dedicated to the project, with Israelis of all kinds, from a wide variety of backgrounds, writing articles on what they think about the Bible verses they are reading. There is also an app that helps Israelis remember what chapter they're supposed to read each day and help them mark their progress. Here are several article about the initiative. I commend them to your attention. ·         National Bible project launched -- "New program aims to make Book of Books accessible to wide parts of Israeli society through daily reading of biblical versus in country's different communities and sectors." (Ynet News, December 28, 2014) ·         Crack open your Bible: 929 day study project begins in Jerusalem (Jerusalem Post, December 18, 2014) ·         Left and Right, Secular and Religious, Brought Together by Bible Study -- "Israelis from across the political and religious spectrum join a national conversation about the Tanakh, on the website 929" (Tablet Magazine, January 9, 2015) I especially wanted to bring this all to your attention as we celebrate Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles (aka, "Feast of Booths"). Why? Because in the Torah, Moses commanded the people to read through all the Scriptures in their entirety every seven years. Sadly, this is a commandment many if not most of my fellow Jews have forgotten, or never were aware of in the first place. 10 Then Moses commanded them, saying, “At the end of every seven years, at the time of the year of remission of debts, at the Feast of Booths, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place which He will choose, you shall read this law in front of all Israel in their hearing. 12 Assemble the people, the men and the women and children and [a]the alien who is in your [b]town, so that they may hear and learn and fear the Lord your God, and be careful to observe all the words of this law. (Deuteronomy 31:10-12) Some of my favorite stories in the Bible are when King Josiah called the nation of Judah together to hear the Word of the Lord read to them in its entirety, and when Ezra and the priests read the entire Bible to the nation of Israel after their return to the Land from Babylonian and Persian captivity. Several years ago, we organized an Epicenter conference with the theme, "The Power of The Word." Several of the speakers taught on this largely forgotten history of Jewish leaders calling the nation back to the Scriptures -- if you're interested in watching the videos of those and other messages, please click here. I'm grateful to Netanyahu and Rivlin and to the other Israeli leaders who are calling our people back to reading the Bible cover to cover. Will you join me in praying that more Jews (and Gentiles) heed their call? Thanks so much, and Chag Same'ach -- happy holidays from Israel!

The Consequences of Your Belief System ~ Patrick Morley

Secular Humanist, JW, Mormon, Agnostic, Atheiest???

Acts 17:16-34; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31, 2:14, 9:19-23

Are you frustrated with the beliefs and actions of those around you? When Paul arrived in Athens, he found a city full of disparate belief systems and worldviews. Some mocked him as a "babbler," while others listened intensely. Paul displayed a knowledge of their belief systems so that he could talk to them in ways they would understand. We are called today to the same approach. Knowing what someone believes helps us understand the motivations for their actions -- and even predict them. When we understand another's worldview, we can use the kernels of truth that exist to lead them towards the gospel. ~ from Patrick Morley

Congrats to Tony!

Congratulations to my friend Tony on recently graduating with Honors from his Paralegal program at Sheridan College.  All that studying & long hours of homework pays off!  God bless you Tony!