T.J.I.F.A.
THANK JESUS IT'S FRIDAY AGAIN!
PASS IT ON...& ON...& ON...& ON...& ON.
OCTOBER 17, 2003
SUBJECT: PERSECUTION FOR MY NAME'S SAKE.
THE PERSECUTED CHURCH IS A GROWING CHURCH. AS IRON SHARPENS IRON, SO PERSECUTION SHARPENS THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST. THE AMERICAN CHURCH CAN NO LONGER PULL BACK FROM PERSECUTION. NOW, WE STAND FOR CHRIST; LIKE THE REST OF THE WORLD SINCE WE PREACHED THAT GLORIOUS GOSPEL TO THEM.
NOTEWORTHY: RUNNING FROM CRITICISM- A WORTHY POEM
FRIDAY'S WORD: A SURPRISE GUEST THAT AFFECTS HUMANITY!
IN THE MIRROR: LIFE SAVINGS—LET IT INFLUENCE HOW YOU SAVE.
O TASTE AND SEE!: WHAT ABOUT SOME MACCARONI AND CHEESE? (YOU CAN FREEZE IT PRIOR TO THANKSGIVING) ENJOY!
LOOKING FORWARD
SEE YA NEXT TIME!
TER PERSECUTED FOR MY NAME'S SAKE.
Matthew 5:11,12 Blessed are you when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven; for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Listening to the radio broadcast of ‘Prime Time America' on WAFS Thursday, a man reported that the Church in China and other nations of the world is persecuted in ways unimaginable to us, here in America. His organization goes into countries that least welcomes him; but, he visits the ‘Underground Church.'.
The ‘Underground Church' has grown to magnificent proportions, even though it's severely persecuted. The persecution isn't just words that can annoy you, as in America, but real hurt, harm and hostility is experienced by these Christians. If, they are seen with certain Americans, their lives aren't spared from torture and even death. BUT...they continue, even with the possibility of death. He reported that people in these persecuted nations, when they are released to freedom, go right back to preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They consider it a great privilege to be ‘persecuted for His name's sake;' Because ‘It is written.'
On the other hand, America, the land that sends out Missionaries to these foreign lands, sits back and squirms away from persecution. The materialistic mind set has squandered us into a lethargic pretense of Christian Reality. This ‘Christian Reality' has robbed us of even the scars of persecution. We show, ‘NO SIGNS' of being persecuted for His Name's sake.
Thomas, the "doubter," had to place his hands into the scars of persecution and execution before he would believe that Jesus was alive. When Jesus spoke with Thomas he told him to do what would cause him to believe..."Reach hither thy finger and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side...."
What scars have you to show?
There are people with scars in the body of Christ, but instead of us modeling the scars for others to be drawn into Christ by, we hide these people; And we hope that they will NOT testify with that same old testimony, because we have visitors today; and hope against hope that one of the old mothers won't break out into one of those ‘cotton field songs,' that last all day.
The testimonies of persecution aren't wanted in today's modern Church. The telling of how you came into being isn't popular, since history is being changed at a fretful pace.
Some believe that the Holocaust never happened; but then you'd have to deny the existence of Hitler, who has a birth certificate. Some say that Jesus never arose on the third day from the dead; but then you'd have to deny the ‘New Birth,' which occurred , and occurs every time a man excepts Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Some say that there is no GOD; but then you'd have to find the creator of all things; you'd have to ask this ‘new creator,' how he managed to do all of the things that we
ascribe to GOD; you'd have to take a chance on not breathing GOD's breath, in order to prove that GOD didn't give man life. (But, how many are willing to take that chance?)
Those of us, who consider themselves to be the Church of Jesus Christ, must understand that this time of "prosperity", where we had it made, is OVER! During this time, we should have been building the Kingdom of GOD; Not, " Bigger Barns." [ref]
(Luke12:16-21)
Where we've dropped the ball, is in our thinking, that this persecution we've shunned in the rest of the world, would never come to our doorstep. We have been comfortably tucked away in this Western hemisphere, not hearing the cries of persecution from the other side of the globe. We have neatly reminded ourselves that we are BLESSED! And, NO WEAPON FORMED AGAINST US SHALL PROSPER! We've screamed the promises of GOD until our throats were sore, while turning our backs on persecuted Christians in the rest of the Globe.
Yes! America is responsible for sending relief organizations all over the world, and missionaries...But...How do we live? While we clean up the yard and proclaim, "Cleanliness is next to godliness," Our barns are running over with filth. The filth of killing the innocent, abortion of our babies, and the euthanasia of our elderly. The filth of holding on to wild life reserves, while releasing our youth to the dregs of the city sewers. The filth of mismanaging Ordination of Christian ministers, and propagating pedophile in the Priesthood.
The only persecution that we have truly experienced is the refusal notice to our clamoring "More. More. More." We are now experiencing a new phenomena. The recklessness of our grappling have closed in on our society. Steel Mills in the Northern cities have closed, because it is cheaper to get the finished product from across the water. Many car plants have closed because it cheaper to get workers from out of the country. Clothing mills have closed for many of the same reasons...overseas workers require less pay, and the CEO's have decided to get rid of their overhead with the over paid American worker and sell out to the foreign market. This would be a good thing, but, while we buy from overseas, we don't pass the savings on to the American Consumer. More and more Americans are losing jobs, and the price of goods is still rising. Why:
My answer is that we have failed to contain ourselves. We have depended on the Prosperity of the nation, and joined the gouging of the American pocketbook. Just as we turned our backs on, "Persecution for His Name's Sake," we have also turned our backs to the cries of the jobless, impoverished American. It's a trickle down effect. "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper, and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." [3John :2.] Some of us have done it all backwards, we have tried to prosper in the material realm, and overlook the Soul; and the Spirit.
Jesus is speaking in Matthew 5; when He tells us that we are Blessed when persecuted and great is our reward in heaven. The lust of our eyes has deceived us; just as the drunkard who is succumbed by the serene calls of, "Just one more." He will, after a time, do anything for "Just one more." We have fallen. But, we can get back up!
We get back up when we decide that we are "Blessed" to be, " poor in spirit;" Blessed when we "mourn;" Blessed because we are, "meek;"Blessed when we do, " hunger and thirst after righteousness;" Blessed when we are, "merciful;" Blessed when we are the, "pure in heart;" Blessed when we are, "the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God."
Is the American Christian Church ready for Persecution? Will we walk five to ten miles to reach the sanctuary? We used to. Are we ready to be yanked out of our homes in the middle of the night for His Name's Sake? Have you ever thought of being stoned or beaten because of your love for Jesus? What about going to jail? Are you fearful of losing your job because you're a Christian? How would you pay the house note? The car note? Your credit cards? If your life was threatened because of Jesus, would you stand or surrender?
We all need to ask ourselves, and also answer these questions ... Honestly! The time is coming, and is not far hence when you will be faced with situations of this nature. Because; Jesus is coming soon. Will you stand before Jesus in heaven without one scar due to "Persecution for His Name's Sake?"
Looking Forward
See Ya Next Time!
TER
NOTEWORTHY:
RUNNING FROM CRITICISM
If you do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING,
If you say ABSOLUTELY NOTHING,
If you write ABSOLUTELY NOTHING,
You will not be criticized for your point of view on ANYTHING, however, you will be ostracized for your lack of integrity and inability to successfully form an opinion about EVERYTHING.
Once ostracized,
You will realize.....
That you have been the point of commonality for others' resentment, and discontentment.
While you sing song along
Trying not to:
Do.
Say or
Write wrong.....
Others have assigned you a
Pseudo-action,
Counterfeit-opinion, and a
Bogus-script.
And they HATE YOU FOR IT.
They criticize you for who they think you are,
Who they have assigned you to be,
You have not escaped criticism, in fact you are hiding under false criticism.
Like an undercover cop,
The identity is not yours,
Neither are the rewards.
It is better to be criticized for your own ability, than those works assigned to you by unkind onlookers.
Remember, you have something to say? Say It!
"It is better to be a live dog, than a dead lion."
From: "Living Prayers, Poems and Poetry" by, True E. Readywriter
FRIDAY'S WORD: Salvation. Not its denotation particularly, but a happy healthy edifying view of its connotations throughout scripture: Savior; shalom; peace; wholeness; cure; rescue; recovery; remedy; redemption; deliverance; preservation from hurt, harm, danger, disease, or death. In the New Testament it also implies safety, health, and even victory; In Christian usage the verb came to mean saving from eternal death, and endowing with Eternal Life. (Ain't GOD Good!!!)
Information taken from, Wycliffe's Bible Encyclopedia.
IN THE MIRROR:
LIFE SAVINGS
There once lived a man who was obsessed with money. He sold most of his possessions and hid his earnings in a bucket at the bottom of an abandoned well near his home. Every day he visited the well and removed the bucket that contained his wealth. He counted and recounted the money, separated it into stacks, and sometimes deposited more money into the bucket before lowering it back into the well.
Fearing that he would deplete his savings, the man refused to spend even a little of his stash. As time passed, he spent less money on food and did without electricity, gas, and telephone service so that he could save more.
One afternoon at the well, the man discovered that someone had stolen his money. He wailed and shouted in a fit of anger. A neighbor heard him and came running. "What's the matter?" cried the neighbor.
"I've been robbed," the man moaned. "It took me years to save those thousands of dollars."
"That's not so bad," remarked the neighbor.
"Didn't you hear me?" The man snapped. "I lost everything."
"You had thousands of dollars burred in that well, yet your home is in a shambles and your health is poor. For all the good the money did you, you might as well have buried stones in your well." The neighbor sighed. "The day you gave money the highest value in your life was the day you lost your true wealth."
Taken from this month's, Bits&Pieces Adapted from: Aesop's Fables
"He is rich or poor according to what he is, not according to what he has."
Henry Ward Beecher
Jesus is speaking: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Matthew 6:19-21.
Aesop did it again, where we can truly laugh, and be invoked at the same time.
The more you read the scriptures, you'll learn that when Jesus talks about monies, and treasures, and our value systems, its because He's essentially talking about our trust. God throughout the Bible puts no premium on being neither rich, nor poor, but a basic contentment that can only be found in Christ Jesus.
If I were allowed to encourage you today, (and I know, and love many of our readers,) it would be in the area of 1 Timothy 6th chp., where a father,[Paul] is writing to a son he beloved in the ministry. He didn't want him led down the wrong path, and that's how it is between us and our Savior. It is when we give up our "best" that we invariably receive His Sovereign Supreme Best. Isn't it Great!?! S.L.C.
O TASTE AND SEE!
MACARONI AND CHEESE
INGREDIENTS:
3 CUPS UNCOOKED ELBOW MACARONI.
1 LBS. AMERICAN CHEESE
1 STICK BUTTER OR MARGARINE.
3 TBLSP FLOUR.
3-TO 4 CUPS MILK OR CANNED MILK (YOUR PREFERENCE.)
1 TBLSP. SUGAR.
SALT AND PEPPER TO TASTE.
DIRECTIONS:
HEAT OVEN 350F.
BRING LARGE POT OF WATER TO BOIL; ADD 1 TSP. SALT, AND MACARONI STIR FREQUENTLY TO PREVENT BURNING. WHEN ELBOWS ARE TENDER, REMOVE FROM HEAT; DRAIN AND SIT ASIDE.
IN SAUCE PAN SLOWLY MELT BUTTER OR MARGARINE.
STIR IN FLOUR TO MAKE GRUEL
SLOWLY ADD MILK KEEPING HEAT LOW ENOUGH NOT TO BURN BUT HIGH ENOUGH TO WARM AND MELT BUTTER AND CHEESE.
ADD CHEESE UNTIL THE LIQUID IS TO DESIRED CONSISTENCY.
ADD SUGAR AND STIR.
POUR MACARONI INTO CASSEROLE PAN THEN POUR LIQUID OVER IT AND STIR.
PLACE INTO OVEN AND BAKE AT LEAST 40 MINUTES YOU MAY SEE A SLIGHT BIT OF BROWNING.
THIS IS AN OLD FAVORITE. ADAPT THE CHEESE TO THE TASTE OF YOUR FAMILY. AFTER THIS DISH COOLS, YOU CAN COVER IT AND PLACE IT INTO THE FREEZER UNTIL THE DAY BEFORE THE EVENT IN WHICH IT WILL BE USED.
HOLIDAY HAPPINESS FROM READYWRITER
TER.