Biblical Christian writings and scripture

"So You Don't Want To Go To Church Anymore"
By Wayne Jacobsen and Dave Coleman
Fiction

This book probes deeper into what exactly is "The Church" is it a social club you visit on Sunday or is it a community of people set on following Jesus and caring for one another. The authors of this book also where also collaborators and editors credited to William P Young's soul searching and heart awakening best selling novel "The Shack". So their ability to render thought provoking Christ inspired writings is obviously their God given talent and profession.

The story starts with Jake a middle aged family man with everything going for him great real estate business he's also a bigwig Associate Pastor at his local church. Then Jake meets John a man who seems to have no problem with sharing "The Jesus he knows" with any person in need or even to settle a heated rally between conflicting churches in a shopping mall. Jake starts to wonder if this John fellow is possibly an original disciple of Christ still walking the Earth since he speaks of Jesus as if he actually knew him and even talked and learned personally from Christ.
Jake thinks of the Bible Verse from John 21:22-23 (22 Jesus replied, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You follow me." 23 So the rumor spread among the community of believers that that disciple wouldn't die. But that isn't what Jesus said at all. He only said, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?")
John intrigues Jake to truly test his faith that Christ is all he has over months of conversations and odd encounters.
Then Jakes world slowly crumbles through out the book as he looses his career and his social and professional standing at the local church. Eventually Jake starts to loath John, but John comes and goes in the story as he travels about as a "handy man or carpenter". Jake slowly comes to rely on his faith more than his own doings as he encounters Christ with a passion he thought was lost long ago.

I recommend this book to anyone who has felt disillusioned or even hurt with church in the past and has questions to a true relationship with God.

I truly think the publisher Windblown Media has been blessed to put out some amazing "Fiction ional" books over the past few years that are truly reaching out and healing believers lost relationships with Jesus.

This book is a must read.

A Child is Born
A spirit filled moment for the Christmas Holidays! For over 2000 years people have been trying to stop the birth of Christ from being celebrated.
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Paved with Good Intentions by C. S. Lewis Book Review
If you think C. S. Lewis only wrote books geared toward children you are mistaken!
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Prayer Online in the Social Networking Society
I feel by taking prayer requests online has helped me personally to use these sites for what they where designed for to meet new people, make friends, and share information and ideas, in other words social networking.
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Strap it on (The Armor of God) - Song Lyrics
Written by Tim Schnieders, recorded in 2007 by Tim Schnieders and Sli-Linc. A song of strength for all God's warriors!
Click Here To View Lyrics

Find easy way to print these lyrics here:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/407240/strap_it_on_the_armor_of_god_song_lyrics.html

Listen to audio recording of "Strap It on" recorded in 2007 here:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/audio/1344/strap_it_on_by_slilinc.html

I've hit a point of my life where I've been doing a lot of reflection. I've actually started seeing the actions of others and how I've done the same or similar actions in my life, my past mistakes, self-defeating, self-destructive behaviors; my sins, if you will.

See, for a first time I see, that I've really only had control of my life maybe twenty five to thirty percent of my life. God has laid a set of choices in front of me. By My own free will I chose whichever seemed to best suit my needs at the time, Most of the time ending up with negative results. These choices impacted my life for better or worse, and each choice had the same effect on several others around me. Friends, Family, employers, co-workers, my neighbor

I've always seem to keep walking in Gods good graces though. For the longest time I publicly denied God, but when the going got tough who would I run to as a last resort. That's right Him, and God would grant my prayers, sometimes directly but most of the time indirectly and I was blind to see just how He worked His Mo Jo in My Life.

Until one day God literally called me into His office. It reminded me of Don Corlione from The Godfather, Marlon Brando's raspy voice laying down an offer I couldn't refuse.

"How many favors have you asked from me, and how many did I grant. You begged me to save you from Jail, from Prison, How many times I remove the handcuffs for you when you were arrested." He spoke with authority. "Every time" I replied.
"And when you felt alone from heartache caused by your own sins, divorce, adultery, deceit, did I not grant you a wife, a child? A child that you begged me to save from death after she was born premature, Did I Not grant you these gifts?" He questioned with a gaze of pure fire.

"Yes My Lord, You granted My Hearts Desires" I replied, slowly figuring out what He was getting through to Me.

He spoke again, this time in a tone that I knew meant business, and a tone like the hammer of a gun cocked back, a guillotine being raised. "Then what have you done for me, how have you tried to repay of these favors?"

"None My Lord, None" I replied, with a feeling of shame washing over Me.

He leaned in closer to me, whispering to Me "Then consider options to repay Your debts to Me, before I remove these gifts that I have granted You, Your family, Your friends, Your talents, Your freedoms each slowly disappearing from Your life until life is the last gift You have left." He paused, "and if you recall, every time you tried in the past to take your own life, you failed. Why do you think that is?"

"Because you would not let me die Lord?" I replied.

"No because I wasn't finished teaching You Yet, You always were sort of a slow learner" He replied, with a healthy chuckle. "Now go still in my graces, and consider what I have said to you" With a wave of his had I was bum rushed out of His office.

His Lessons have taken Me days, Months, Years to learn, I've Chosen to keep in His grace, He has already proven to be My best friend, and all he wants is for Me to proudly speak His name, and reflect His graces in My life. He is person I talk to the most; you'll find me praising His name over even the silliest of things. "Thank You Lord for this amazing bowel movement, thank You Lord for this cigarette. Thank You Lord!"

I've started reading His word every chance I get, Meditating on it, actually understanding it, and then seeing it play out in My daily life. He speaks to me directly, and indirectly constantly, and I've finally learned to appreciate and utilize His wisdom. See the choices He lays in front of me, and choosing the right one, or at least close. Picture it as a card game God lays out two a thousand cards, you can choose a high card like an ace, or a low card or even the dreaded joker card. Here's the real kicker the card dealer God already knows what you're going to pick, He Just likes to see you choose. He understands we need to get a handful of low cards before we figure it out that the deck is marked. Gods the high roller here, He's the pit boss. He knows your counting cards trying to get an upper hand in the game.

It's just mind blowing the little signs He throws out there daily to each of Us that just goes unnoticed, past up.

I Myself always liked schemes that were well orchestrated, whether it be a robbery, a practical joke, what ever if it took several people and a little bit of planning I dug it, and My hat goes of to God, He was a thousand steps ahead of Me in every scheme I ever took part in, or even thought up.

Friends often ask me what has gotten me so spiritual, and Jesus Freak like, And I reply with "God gave me a pimp slap and told Me to get back on the street and spread his word"
Most just stare at Me, and it only confirms them that I've lost My mind, a few get My point with little or no further explanation. Most say they've never met a Christian quite like me.

Praise the Lord for His Glory, and Thank You Lord for Your Gifts, Thank You for those Who have read this story this far. Thank You daddy, thank you!

Devotional John 20:27
Imagine seeing Christ's wounds first hand, would you still doubt him.
Click here To View the full Devotional on John 20:27-29

Movie Review of Prince Caspian
This film has a PG rating due to the violence in the battles and fight scenes, there is very little blood shown, but some of the creatures may frighten younger children.
Click Here To View The Complete Movie Review »

So I wake up from a cloudy haze, reality is I'm sobering up. I look around me the only face in the room I recognize is my lawyer David. He turns to me and says "great your awake, you might want to stay up for the rest of this trial" He lectures me some more as he pours me another rum and Coke under the table. "See the trick is" David says clearing his throat." I'm going to try to get you out of this murder charge by claiming self defense."

I'm really not sure how long this trial has been going on and I barely remember the night that got me here. I remember walking into a gas station one night.

Excerpt from the short story

Murder Charges
Semi fictional short biography.
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Click the View more Link to read the full story.

TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE

Its Christmas time, and Thanksgiving just past us a couple weeks ago, but how many of us truly gave thanks to God for what we have.

I want everyone who reads this to take some time to meditate and really look at their lives. Write down a short list of what you have to be thankful for, feel free to share the list here on Myspace with your friends.

Too many of us are caught up in thinking of what we don't have, what we want, and wanting something more.

Truly look at your life from a different set of eyes. Do you have a car, a family, a house or an apartment, how about a job?

Turn on your TV to CNN coverage of Iraq, or ask anyone who's recently been to Iraq "What does the average household in Iraq consist of?"

You'll probably get something like "a dirt floor, no consistent electricity, no hot or cold running water, and no indoor bathroom."

I'm truly thankful to God for the gifts He has allowed me here in this country, I have an amazing family, a handful of true friends, I play music with a great bunch of guys, I go to a great church with some amazing pastors, and true Christ based community outreach programs, I've started My own Ministry, and its growing with the Lords Power, I've got a great townhouse, and Our family has some beautiful property to call our own to build a house on soon, a growing record label, and promotions firm, a job that pays the bills for the majority of the time.

This list gets longer each time I read it, and I'm positive your list will get just as long.

We need to focus on being more thankful to the Lord for the gifts he has given us, every little thing we take for granted because we have it everyday.

Now take your list, and either think back to a time when you didn't have most of those things on your list, or imagine life without those things.

How much more of a value can we place on our lives?

How quickly could God remove these gifts from our lives?

Does having 60 inch plasma screen TV really going to enrich my life if I have no house to put it in, no family or friends to watch it with, no job to go to and talk about the game I watched on the TV the night before.

Makes sense right, so grab your pen and paper and start writing your list.

This is your homework for the Holidays, Give thanks to the Lord.

Truly thank those in your life who are there for You, Your family, and your friends. Praise the Lord for having all of you together for the Holidays.

If You Think Christians Are Close Minded Read On!
Another old rant from My blog found fitting to republish here.Enjoy God Bless!
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