Empowering Your Life

What if I told you that YOU can do the same things Elijah the prophet did? Would you believe that? What if I told you that YOU can engineer the very weather? What if I told you that this awesome power is within every Christian? Do you say that was only for special biblical times, and was reserved for only a few chosen men? No? Then why did James use Elijah as our example for prayer? Why did he even go so far as to say he was nothing special - he was just like us?

"...The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit."
(Jam 5:16-18 KJV)

Bah! Quackery! Poppycock!

Read this excellent article. Try to connect the dots. Notice that everything the author points out is also true of the religious establishment.

"A scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it." - Maxwell Planck

Curses, Curses and More Curses

I am continually amazed and annoyed at the curses people pronounce over my marriage. Of course no one ever says, “be cursed,” or “may your marriage fail.” What they do is say something like,

· “The first year is always good, but then after that….”
· “The first year is the most stressful.”
· “ Expect conflicts over living arrangements, finances, etc.”
· “Have you gained any weight yet?”
· “Have you had any good fights yet?”
· “Don’t expect the bedroom to be great at first. It will probably take years.”
· “Ah, you’re newlyweds. Just wait. The honeymoon always comes to an end.”
· “No two people are ever compatible.”
· “She cooks? Bet you’re going to start gaining weight.”
· “Just wait ‘til the honeymoon’s over.”

These are curses. They are not just idle chitchat. People speak their own marriage troubles over others, and those hearers in turn receive those negative sayings into their spirits. Like weed seeds, these comments are received deep into the spirit where they eventually germinate and grow. Make no mistake; these are curses.

Sadly, many of these curses are pronounced by Christians. In fact, entire articles and whole books have been written by Christian authors that endeavor to help fledgling marriages, but are filled with curses. Amazing! Simply amazing!

What if we talked to our children about school the same way we talk to newlyweds about marriage?

Just wait, son. Your first day at school is always easy. The first week will probably be easy. But just you wait. It gets hard. Don’t expect to pass your 2nd or 3rd reading exams. You will probably have lots of trouble with spelling. Don't even think about passing your math exams. And wait until the school bully corners you in the playground. He’s gunna bust your lip wide open and take your lunch money. Yeah, you’re gunna love first grade, son.

I may be a newlywed. I’m not immune to troubles, and I don’t have all the answers, but I believe with all my heart that it doesn’t have to be this way. Marriages can be blessed. Through Jesus Christ MY marriage can be blessed. So, in the name of Jesus Christ, I reject and break every curse that has been pronounced over my marriage or my weight. According to Romans 8, I am a co-heir with Christ, and I claim my rightful blessing of a great and fantastic marriage filled with peace, joy and love.

Can Hardly Wait

My wife and I will soon be taking our honeymoon in Colorado Springs. We'll be staying here. This honeymoon will be a welcome and much needed break for the both of us. We have not had a single free weekend since about April, and usually it's involved being on the road. Before we got married, she lived almost 70 miles from my home. So, we've been going back and forth seeing each other before we married, and then, after we married, moving, moving, going to my class reunion, moving, have I mentioned moving? and running various errands - EVERY SINGLE weekend for the last several months.

And if we were not moving, then friends or relatives were interrupting our weekends with last minute plans. Again, this usually involved being on the road a good deal of the weekend. We love our friends and relatives, and we enjoy getting together, but four weeks after we married, we were still living out of suit cases and our house was piled up with boxes - we desperately need to get our own house in order. And rest - we desperately needed time to just rest.

My wife was going-going-going so much that she eventually got sick, and I was almost to that point myself, and I won't mention how behind I got at the office. As a life-saving/sanity saving move, I decided for us to turn off all phones on the weekends to avoid any further last-minute interruptions. So, we are both very much looking forward to three weeks off with no responsibilities, no pressures, no errands, and no interrupting friends or relatives(God love 'em). Mmmmmm...we can hardly wait!

Who is Really in Control?

"The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will."
(Pro 21:1 KJV)

The Promises of God

News flash: Little dogs hate baths

For more than twenty years as a Christian, I prayed and seldom received any answers to prayer. I just didn't know how to pray. Prayer to me meant begging, pleading and sometimes crying to God to do something He was reluctant to do. I prayed the ever-popular "if it be thy will" prayer because I had taken hold of the sovereignty of God. God is indeed sovereign, but He is also a faith God. He demands faith from His children, and without faith it is impossible to please Him. So when I got a hold of the below passage, it radically transformed my life. I believed He meant exactly what He said. I ignored what my churches, preachers and even my own experiences taught me, and I took Jesus at His word. Faith comes from hearing the Word of God.

I now never approach God without reminding Him of His word. I recall that almost two years ago, when I approached God with the below passage and stood on it, I received an amazing, life-changing answer to prayer. It wasn't a miracle or anything that might impress others, but it made me realize on a personal level that God is real, and His promise means exactly what it says. I had a dear Christian friend whom I had not heard from in many months. So, I asked God for my friend to call that very Sunday night on behalf of Mark 11:22-26. The hours came and went with no phone call. The doubts, of course, flooded my mind. When the doubts came in, I calmly read Mark 11:22-26 out loud to my doubts. Finally, the phone rang, and it was --- my nephew(God love his soul!). Was I taking this promise too literally? Was it really that simple? Shouldn't I have hedged the prayer with "if it be thy will" so God doesn't look mean, and I don't look like a fool when the answer never comes? A couple of more hours slipped by. I continued to stand on the Word, and would read it out loud to my doubts.

At 9:00 PM, it seemed very doubtful that my friend would call, and I had to get up early for work the next day. I still stood on the Word. Suddenly, the phone did ring. I answered the phone, saying without hesitation or any confirmation, "Hello brother Ken. I've been expecting your call." To my great delight, my friend Ken answered back. God is awesome! God answers prayer, but He is a faith God, and He honors His Word.

And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.
(Mar 11:22-26 KJV)

All Wet Today

This is my first ever blog and my very first entry. I just got a call from the new wife (we eloped a little over a month ago), and, get this, she just dropped the cell in the toilet and was calling me to test it out. I figure any damage to that Nokia 6810 would probably improve it!

My wife is exteemly jealous that I have stolen her dog.

Hey, my dog loves me!

Here's a verse that's filled with great advice, and it's amazing how many Christians do not follow this verse, but instead rely on 2nd and 3rd hand testimony - all because it comes from a loved one or some other "trusted" source. Check this verse out:

"One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two (count 'em) witnesses (i.e., eye witnesses, not 2nd or 3rd hand testimony), or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established." (Deu 19:15 KJV)