[Faith-talk] Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 12
Poppa Bear
heavens4real at gmail.com
Tue Aug 12 14:53:31 UTC 2014
Thanks, I will look into it.
-----Original Message-----
From: Faith-talk [mailto:faith-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Ericka
Short via Faith-talk
Sent: Tuesday, August 12, 2014 6:41 AM
To: faith-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 12
Intrigue, drama, suspense and mystery lovers, I have a book for you. I just
read Dee Henderson's "Danger in the Shadows". I don't normally like
mystery, but this one is good, and Christian based. I am sure it's on BARD
since I received it on digital cartridge. There;s even a tad bit of romance
too.
Ericka
-----Original Message-----
From: faith-talk-request at nfbnet.org
Sent: Tuesday, August 12, 2014 7:00 AM
To: faith-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 12
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Today's Topics:
1. Daily Thought for Monday, August 11, 2014 (Paul)
2. bill keller devotional august 11 (Andrew)
3. Who's reading what? (Poppa Bear)
4. Re: Who's reading what? (trising at sbcglobal.net)
5. Re: Chapter 9 of my novel (Gloria G)
6. Re: Who's reading what? (Kendra. Schaber)
7. Re: Who's reading what? (Linda Mentink)
8. Re: Who's reading what? (Christine Olivares)
9. Re: Who's reading what? (Donna Elliott)
10. Re: Who's reading what? (Poppa Bear)
11. Re: Who's reading what? (Kendra. Schaber)
12. Re: Who's reading what? (Greg Aikens)
13. Re: Who's reading what? (Poppa Bear)
14. Re: Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8 (Ericka Short)
15. Re: Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8 (Poppa Bear)
16. Chapter 10 of my novel (Poppa Bear)
17. Fw: My Niece Amanda's husband Jamie (Paul)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 14:56:00 -0400
From: "Paul" <oilofgladness47 at gmail.com>
To: "Spiritual discussion list"
<room-for-your-beliefs at list.tafn.org.uk>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Monday, August 11, 2014
Message-ID: <96C92F8193C040B7BDA5D49843208EA2 at paul>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hello and greetings to my fellow saints of the Most High God, no matter
where in this world you reside. I hope that you are all doing well, no
matter what the situation, by God's matchless grace and His providential
care.
Here's a somewhat creatively humorous article by Jeanne Zornes, writing from
Washington State. Her article is entitled "Arthritically Correct Hymns" and
is rendered as follows:
Some of the old standby (pun intended) hymns just aren't what they used to
be for me. I blame a once-broken ankle that healed into a weather
prediction station, and unsought visits from a bent-over friend,
Arthur-ritis. When the order of worship has more "ups" than "downs," it's
not long before I want to position my posterior in the pew.
I do so with great guilt, no thanks to the tradition of hymns built off
stalwart verses like "Stand firm" (2 Thess. 2:15). For those of us with
lesser endurance who "sit firm," I propose some arthritically correct hymns:
1. "On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Sit and Cast a Wishful Eye." Outdoor
worship? Just give me a lawn chair and warm blanket.
2. "Sit Down, Sit Down for Jesus." There might be another sit-downer who
needs a friend.
3. "I Sit Amazed In the Presence." That sure fits the morning devotional
time--good, quiet, seat-in-chair-with-Bible moments.
4. "On Christ the Solid Rock I Sit." It worked for the house built on a
rock. The one on sand should have had flood insurance.
5. "Sitting On the Promises." That's better than pacing around and wringing
your hands in worry.
6. "Lord, Lift Me Up and Let Me Sit." Though I may not see the words on the
overhead through the six-foot-four, 280-pound guy in front, I can still feel
spiritually lifted.
7. "Sit Down and Bless the Lord." We do this anyway before passing the meat
and veggies.
To be honest, the "arthritically correct" hymns just don't sound right. But
I'll be happy to belt out the originals, as long as I have permission to
eventually obey gravity's pull on my aging body.
And there you have Sister Jeanne's article which I trust brought you a
chuckle or two. Let me state, before anyone here thinks that I'm
insensitive to those of you who have or are still suffering from arthritis,
that, although I have yet to experience it, I totally realize the discomfort
you go through every day of the year since you first had this condition, and
I pray that, in some way or another, that God will relieve you of this
malady, even if only for a brief period of time.
And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe,
individually and collectively, in these last days in which we live. Lord
willing, tomorrow there will be another Daily Thought article for you. Your
Christian friend and brother, Paul
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 17:02:10 -0400
From: Andrew <andrewjedg at gmail.com>
To: myfriendlyfamily <myfriendlyfamily at emissives.com>
Cc: Faith-talk <Faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [Faith-talk] bill keller devotional august 11
Message-ID:
<CAM342zafQtqdT8nQdHr1XZq03CE2hOEhQCtj4C5Z+3nUR19=rw at mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
"Games" your child may be playing that can kill them! Jesus told us
that satan's goal is to "kill, steal, and destroy." His latest tools
to literally KILL your child are "games" on Facebook and other social
media sites like the "fire challenge" and "chokeout!"
The "fire challenge" is where your child finds lighter fluid,
gasoline, or any other type of flammable agent, pours it on parts of
their body and lights themselves on fire. The key of course is to film
the entire process and post it on their Facebook or other social media
sites. "Chokeout" is where your child gets a belt or other item and
literally chokes themselves with the goal to stop just short of
passing out to illicit a euphoric feeling. Again, all of this is
filmed and posted on social media for their friends and others to see
and comment on.
To date, there have not been any reports of anyone dying, but that is
only a matter of time. These two popular "games" at best will lead to
serious injuries, and ultimately, there will be young adults who will
die from engaging in these actions. Just out of curiosity, how many
parents with children 10-18 are even aware of these new social media
"games," and even more critical, how many parents know if YOUR child
is participating in these potentially lethal stunts???
A hammer is a tool designed to perform a certain job. There is nothing
evil about a hammer. However, some may choose to use a hammer in a
perverted way. This does not mean that hammers are bad, or you should
never own a hammer, it simply means that you should be aware of how
this tool can be misused. The same is true about the Internet. It is a
tool designed to perform a specific job. There is nothing evil about
the Internet, though some have chosen to use it in an evil way. This
does not mean you should not have the Internet, only that you need to
be aware of its dangers, especially when it comes to your children.
The Internet is NOT a cyber babysitter and any parent who treats it as
such might as well drop their children off at the local adult
bookstore, the hangout of a local street gang, in the middle of a busy
freeway at rush hour, a casino in Vegas, or the child sex offender
unit at some prison. I am always amused at parents who will spend
thousands to have the best locks and security systems in their homes
to protect their children from the dangers of the world, yet through
high-speed modems give their child access to the world with a few
keystrokes, and worst of all, give ANYONE IN THE WORLD ON A COMPUTER
access to their children!
For you moms and dads out there, it is IMPERATIVE that you not only
monitor, but KNOW what your child is doing online. Forget filters, a
7-year-old can get around most filters. You need to invest $50-$60 in
the monitoring software that currently exists which literally tracks
every website, every email, every instant message, and every keystroke
your child makes while online. You need to sit down with them and let
them know that you have this software installed and why. This is about
their protection and insuring they don't fall into the many traps and
pitfalls of the Internet.
As a side, I wonder how many adults would be willing to have this
software on their computer for their spouse to monitor? Not trying to
start trouble, just asking a question. I have dealt in the past about
the dangers of the Internet for adults and will continue to sound that
trumpet of warning in the future.
Every single day, I get several thousand emails from parents about
their children and the Internet. Teenage boys and girls and even
children as young as 12 who are in bondage to Intent porn. Kids who
steal their parents credit cards to gamble online. Children from 14
and up who meet adults in chatrooms or message boards and end up
meeting them for real. Kids who are lured to websites that explore the
darkest and most evil things you can imagine. Social networking sites
like Facebook and Twitter where kids can create their own websites and
content.
THE DAMAGED AND DESTROYED LIVES OF CHILDREN BY THE INTERNET IS NOT
JUST A FEW ISOLATED CASES BUT AN EPIDEMIC THAT SOCIETY HAS REFUSED TO
ACKNOWLEDGE OR ADDRESS! IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOUR CHILD!!!
Listen, at some point you do have to trust your child. When they leave
home, at that point you need to trust that spiritual foundation you
have laid in their life, pray for them, and commit them into the
Lord's hands. However, as long as they live under your roof you have
every right and responsibility to watch over them and protect them,
and that includes monitoring their Internet use. By the way, if you
have a 22-year-old son who doesn't like his mom and dad knowing
everything he does on the Internet, maybe he should start thinking
about growing up and getting out on his own.
*As a parent, you MUST not only protect your children as long as they
are under your care, but insure your home is not being defiled with
the filth and garbage that is available 24/7 on the Internet.
So what do you do? First, pray. Pray for God to protect your child
from the dangers that exist on the Internet. Second, do some homework
and purchase and install monitoring software that will allow you to
monitor all of your child's activity on the computer. Third, sit down
with your child and not only explain to them about the monitoring
software you have installed, but why. This is the time to have a real,
open and honest discussion with your child about the Internet and all
of the dangers that exist.
THIS IS NOT PARANOIA! The dangers that exist are very real. Porn,
gambling, and other destructive websites DO NOT CARE that it is your
child they are trying to lure to their site. Internet predators are
very sophisticated in how to gain your child's trust and confidence so
they can exploit them for their own personal satisfaction. There are
literally hundreds of thousands of websites that can be accessed with
simple search commands which deal with every perversion the human mind
has imagined. Chatrooms, message boards, and personals' sites like
Facebook and Twitter give your children access to other children and
adults who can introduce your child to every evil and darkness that
exists in this world.
THIS IS NOT PARANOIA! THE DANGERS THAT EXIST ON THE INTERNET ARE VERY
REAL AND YOU HAVE EVERY RIGHT AND THE GOD-GIVEN RESPONSIBILITY TO
PROTECT YOUR CHILD!!!
I love you and care about you so much. The Internet is part of our
world and is here to stay. It is a tool for children and adults to use
to get information and used correctly can be a great resource. Every
day for 15 years now, Liveprayer has used the Internet to reach
millions of people all over the world with the Truth and God's Word
and the hope and love of Jesus Christ. Because of the Internet, we
have seen over 800,000 souls we know of come to faith in the Lord. So
it has many great and wonderful applications.
Like everything, it can also be used in a negative and destructive
way. Parents simply need to be aware of the incredible dangers that
exist on the Internet so they can take the steps necessary to insure
their children are safe. The Internet is another opportunity for
parents to talk to their children openly and honestly about many of
the issues they will face in life. It is these opportunities a parent
needs to take advantage of to teach their children what God says about
these issues and why God's way works. This is all part of that
building process so that when your child eventually does leave home
and is making choices without you, they can make wise and Godly
choices, not based on the momentary desires of their flesh, but on
what God's Word says.
I will be praying for you today as God speaks to you about this issue.
This is not something to put off for a few months, but an issue that
needs to be addressed TODAY! Even as you read these words, you have no
idea who your child is speaking to over the Internet, what types of
personals' sites your child may have, or what websites your child
frequents. I believe in my heart that this message is going to
literally save the lives of many children. I tell you often that your
children are the greatest ministry you will ever have.
I am praying for every mother and father as they take control over
this potential danger in their home and child's life. May God give you
wisdom and guide you in protecting your children from the dangers of
the Internet. I also pray for those children who have already been
damaged by the Internet. May the Lord bring healing to their lives.
The Internet is a wonderful tool that can be a blessing or a curse. I
pray today that for you and your family it is a blessing!
In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 13:32:18 -0800
From: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>
To: "'Faith-talk, for the discussion of faith and religion'"
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <006801cfb5ab$baf99e70$30ecdb50$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured I would
tap the list and see what are some good novels that people have enjoyed. I
have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings and am looking for some
stuff more contemporary, novels written in the last five to ten years. I
don't want to give a lot of guide lines, I don't want to disqualify
anything. I have knocked off a few Grisham books in the last two weeks, I am
in the middle of a thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens by
Neil Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from right
now.
Thanks for any suggestions
------------------------------
Message: 4
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 18:05:10 -0400
From: <trising at sbcglobal.net>
To: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <E04DE2EB4B694931B1D7BB211A19AB56 at nickPC>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Some of my favorite authors are
Robert Jordan's Wheel of time Series
Stephen R. Law head
Narnia C. S. Lewis
J. R. R. Tolkien Hobbitt and Lord of the Rings
Brock and Bodie Thoenne
Sigmund Brouwer
Gilbert Morris
Terri Blackstock
Lorie Wick
J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter
Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson Series
Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider Series
Some of these are Christian authors. Some are for kids. All are excellent
stories that transcend age and, in my opinion, appeal to
kids and adults alike.
Sincerely,
Terri Wilcox
------------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 17:08:06 -0500
From: "Gloria G" <gloria.graves at gmail.com>
To: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Chapter 9 of my novel
Message-ID: <C622A5D98BF14C3896E11060D1F56EB7 at Gloria>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
reply-type=original
I loved this chapter. It has a lot of life lessons, and I love how it drives
home, how our focus should not be on materialistic things of the world, but
on our heavenly father.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Poppa Bear via Faith-talk" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
To: "'Faith-talk,for the discussion of faith and religion'"
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 07, 2014 12:18 PM
Subject: [Faith-talk] Chapter 9 of my novel
> Here goes another chapter. I didn't realize that I had written so much in
> this particular book so far. I am noticing that I am imparting more
> narrative dialog and am considering redrafting a large portion. Well,
> enjoy
>
> Chapter 9
>
> The next day while Luke was seated in a chair facing the window righting
> down some thoughts he heard the door open and looking up he saw Alli
> approaching with a nurses cart and a smile. The smile was returned by Luke
> and the blood rushed to Alli's cheeks and she stammered out her mission.
> "Uh, I am just going to change your bandages, check your vitals and make
> sure that you are doing all right." "All right, I was wondering if I was
> doing all right myself. I think I have been sitting here for the last two
> hours just looking at the mountains and I was gazing at them for so long I
> was starting to wonder if they wanted to speak to me." At this point Alli
> became a little weary. Being a nurse she had often seen people who had
> suffered from head injuries become delusional, but when she saw a twinkle
> in
> Luke's eyes and a little grin she relaxed and felt more at ease.
>
> On Alli's entrance into the room Luke had noticed that she was a little
> nervous and he wanted to help her forget any embarrassment from the
> previous
> day so he focused their attention on his mental health with the joking
> remark. It seemed to work as Alli relaxed and became more natural in her
> nursing duties and deftly started to prepare his bandages and unwrap his
> old
> one and clean the bullet wound. As she was finishing she said, "I talked
> to
> the elders of our church and they would like to meet with you tomorrow if
> at
> all possible." Alli unconsciously held her breath a little as she waited
> for
> Luke's response. "That is fine, I may be checking out of here in two days
> they say, and I would like to meet with the elders too, so we can talk
> about
> your needs and see if it would be helpful for me to serve with your
> church."
>
> Alli looking to add an incentive blurted out, "The church is a very
> popular church and I am sure the pay is good!" At this remark Luke
> slightly
> winced, but Alli was behind him cutting off the bandage tape so she did
> not
> see his expression. "Well, in my experience popularity and money have not
> always made the best impact in furthering the work of the kingdom. I
> imagine
> that Jesus could have had both during His ministry, but saw that both may
> do
> more to disillusion and harm the work of the kingdom when used by men with
> more good intentions than faith in the Fathers provisions. Money and
> popularity have their place, but I have found that they are better left in
> the Fathers grip when doing the Lords will." At this point Alli's
> religious
> training and personal opinion came to the forefront of the conversation.
> "What, do you think that money is evil?" Though it was said innocently
> enough Luke detected a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
>
> Luke tried to choose his next words carefully for the fact that in his
> experience most people did not really examine the situation in a way that
> really related to the biblical story of Jesus and his disciples. "Well,
> in
> the life of Jesus how much did you see the role of popularity and money
> come
> into play? Were they positive ways or negative ways?" Alli's eye brows
> rose
> in a thoughtful gesture and she said, well it didn't seem like Jesus had a
> lot of money, but with all of His powers I would think that He didn't need
> the money." "Well, that is one way to look at it, but if he was fully god
> and yet fully man with all of our human feelings, thoughts and limitations
> do you think that he might have entertained the idea of having things that
> may have made His life a little easier and thought about what it was like
> to
> possess some of the comforts that were around in his day and age? I mean,
> do
> you think that as he walked for miles and miles each day over dusty and
> muddy roads throughout his ministry hot and tired, seeing the Romans and
> wealthy Jews riding past in nice comfortable chariots, donkey's and nicely
> furnished camels that he may have known that by having more money that He
> could have purchased a bit of this convenience to be able to travel in
> ease to proclaim His important message? I think I would have considered
> something like that once or twice in 33 years perhaps." Alli replied," I
> guess that when I think of Jesus I think of his miraculous powers and
> sayings more than anything."
>
> Now the ball was back in Luke's court and he didn't necessarily want to
> pore
> out more thoughts than Alli was able to deal with in a brief conversation
> where she was at work and had other duties to perform, so he tried to
> taper
> off the conversation with a last thought that he hoped might find fertile
> ground in her mind and take shape eventually. "I think that if Jesus only
> wanted us to focus on his miraculous powers and sayings he would not have
> become man and shared our weaknesses, sorrows and temptations when it
> would
> have been so much more pleasant for Him to just shout down from the
> heavens
> at us and perform as many miraculous signs as He wanted and not have to
> stoop to such humiliation that He had to endure in a human life of
> betrayal
> and crucifixion."
>
> Luke did not drive any points home regarding money with this last thought
> because he felt that as important as understanding how money and
> popularity
> can play into the role of our lives was, he knew that a better
> understanding
> of who Jesus was as He lived, labored and loved was even more important as
> a
> foundational building block for deepening our faith and our understanding
> of
> the Son of man. When that hunger which is so important of becoming
> consumed
> with how Jesus walked in this world as a man who was the noblest,
> humblest,
> kindest, and wisest and most obedient person who ever walked the face of
> the
> earth becomes real to us, we can start to connect with Him in a more
> intimate level than if we were just to live off the snap shots that we
> receive of Him in the bible and weekend messages. The Spirit is constantly
> revealing to us who Jesus was and is as our desire to know grows we are
> brought closer to that reality of the life that changed eternity.
>
> The next afternoon Ben Miller and Ed Long were escorted into Luke's room
> by Alli. Luke had regained much of his color back from the ordeal and his
> cheeks were starting to lose the gauntness that had ravished some of the
> fuller features of his face. Luke was not striking in the popular since,
> but
> with fine even features and a strong jaw that was somewhat hidden by a
> soft
> boyish mouth and a pair of keen gray eyes he was not un pleasing to look
> at
> by any means. Even sitting in a hospital bed with a bandage covering the
> thick dark curls he still had a vibrant presents of health and vigor that
> seemed to radiate a glow around him.
>
> The last 3 days had been very long ones for the 2 elders. Neither men had
> had much sleep over the course of the last few nights. Within recent
> months
> their levels of stress had been so straining that it looked like they both
> had aged an extra 10 years in a matter of months. They both entered the
> room
> with weary expressions on their faces. They were both attempting to mask
> their real feelings with the typical Sunday morning smiles and nods, but
> Luke was much too observant to not feel for the two men in their apparent
> dilemma and discomfort.
>
> Even Ed in his dark navy blue suit looked a little subdued. His habitual
> scowl had been reduced to a mild look of irritation. His eagle eyes were
> never the less alert and suspicious. Being one who always grasped for the
> advantage of a situation he was constantly on the lookout for anybody who
> might try and pry the power he held from his desperate grip.
>
> Ben looked as tired as an old wrinkled pug. His was the look of a young
> boy
> who had aged over night. His hair was not yet fully gray, his eyes were
> clear and had a look that said, I would rather be laughing, but I am
> forced
> by circumstance to be stressed and miserable like the animal at the zoo
> that
> can only attempt to enjoy himself and make the best of its situation,
> knowing by instinct that captivity is not its natural habitat and its home
> does not consist of a fence, a few trees and laughing tourists taking
> pictures and throwing peanuts. His was a bondage that was exacting all of
> the life out of his boyish heart and usurping rule over his aging spirit
> making his life one long uphill walk without any particular destination
> except to make the church budget stretch as far as possible and be able to
> pay bills on time.
>
> It was no surprise that Luke instantly had a desire to help these two
> men.
> He could recognize a hardness in Ed, but his compassion saw beyond the
> weasel, the pride filled demeanor and he saw a neighbor in need. The
> underlining suffering of Ben was clearly and painstakingly obvious to
> Luke's
> discerning spirit. His heart went out to that fellow brother and though
> Ben
> was many years Luke's senior, the love of Luke was continually growing as
> deep and old as the story of Jesus and the woman at the well. The eyes
> that
> are clear see spiritually, and spiritually Luke was automatically resigned
> to help these two as much as he could within the confines of the fathers
> will. Perhaps that since Luke had been an orphan he was much more
> sensitive
> to the distress of his fellow human being, but whatever the case he was
> all
> compassion for the situation at this point.
>
> Luke's frank and yet inviting gaze put the two off their guard a little.
> Both men seemed to expect to find someone who looked a little more common
> place. In their minds anyone who would choose to live in a village
> voluntarily was either fairly desperate or fanatical in their evangelistic
> pursuits. Luke's intelligent countenance seemed to take in more than the
> two
> elders expected.
>
> There are times when we encounter, or have existing relationships where
> words aren't always necessary to communicate the understanding of a
> situation. There are observations that two people of the same turn of mind
> and habits may make, coming to similar conclusions with the ability to
> communicate those conclusions through a quick glance or a subtle turn of
> the
> head. There is also a point when just the feeling of an understanding may
> be
> presented as an unspoken presentiment and the explanation of the why and
> how
> is left a mystery to us.
>
> When these three met all of these things were taking place on different
> levels. Luke felt in his heart of hearts that he would love to bring these
> men out of their predicament with the main reason being that he simply
> wanted to minister to any needs that could help them to become closer to
> the
> Son of man's heeling power. In their work worn expressions he saw the main
> thing, which was that their eyes were strictly on the situation and its
> staggering overwhelming pressure and not on the ability of the Master. It
> was this fact or impression that caused Luke to have a spiritual
> prompting.
> These are unfortunately not always followed, but the children of God who
> are
> led by the Spirit are those who have exercised their faith and obedience
> by
> following the quiet and often nameless promptings and in doing this become
> a
> tool in the hands of the Master craftsmen continually working out the nuts
> and bolts of the Kingdom. In this case the prompting caused Luke's heart
> to
> leap towards the two and cast off some of his normal reserve.
>
> On the same turn both of the elders had immediately acknowledged in their
> own minds and conceded to one another through one of those small glances
> that this young man was different from their elementary views of what a
> man
> of the cloth can look like in this day and age who chooses to make a
> sacrifice for Christ in a small village in northern Alaska away from
> earthly
> success and hopes of monetary gain. Though the two parties were on
> different
> levels with different goals, it was apparent that a hand had moved in such
> a
> way to bring the work and the tool together to start a difficult job of
> trying to restore a broken body of believers who had been fed an
> unwholesome
> diet of popular religion and false impressions of Christ that were leading
> to more and more self disillusion for the members of the Good Sheppard
> Community Church of Anchorage.
>
> Both men took a seat on the small and stiff hospital couch across from
> Luke
> without greeting him. Then as if they both became conscious of their
> impropriety they both rose simultaneously. Ed extended his thin wiry hand
> and gave Luke's hand a quick business like shake. He introduced himself,
> "Hello, I am Ed Long, I am an elder at our church and this is Ben Miller,
> he
> is also an elder at the church." As Ben grabbed Luke's hand Ben
> unconsciously gave a little squeeze. Luke returned the squeeze with a warm
> familiar grasp that made the older man flash a thankful look of gratitude
> towards Luke.
>
> "It is nice to meet both of you. Allison my nurse hasn't been able to talk
> to me much about your church because she is very busy around here, but I
> have been waiting to meet you two and learn more about your work." Ed put
> on
> his best Sunday face in spite of Luke's open and inviting countenance and
> started rolling off what sounded like a pre written commercial for the
> church and in the circumstances it looked like a silly pantomime of a
> puppet
> trying to make an adult laugh without much hope. "Well, we are a very
> popular church with many outstanding members who are very well known in
> the
> city! We have a really talented worship leader who has an extensive
> background in music. We also just invested in a top of the line sound
> system
> that really has been a great addition to the church!"
>
> Ben seemed to sink lower and lower into his seat as Ed continued in the
> same
> vein, proclaiming all of the churches fine accomplishments. He could feel
> that as fine as the facts looked, the reality was that they were sinking
> and
> sinking very quickly. Ed's description made the church sound like a
> chariot
> of fire making a whirlwind of improvements that were revolutionizing the
> city and drawing out the aristocracy of the town in droves. As Ed
> continued
> to make his spill he quickly glanced over at Ben and seeing the look on
> Ben's face, he was somewhat brought back to the reality of their situation
> and though he may or may have not felt the superciliousness of many of his
> statements, he soon fell quiet. Glancing over at Ben he recognized an
> expression of exhaustion mingled with another one of irritation. Only
> slightly abashed he murmured out another sentence or two and then sat
> there
> a little bewildered as if his whole game plan was taken from him.
>
> Luke then spoke, "Well, it sounds like your church is doing allot, but I
> guess I would like to know a little more about your mission as a church?
> How
> is it that you are in need of a pastor at this time?" Ed now turned to Ben
> as if he wanted him to speak now, and Ben sitting up tried to shake off
> the
> cloud of despair and spoke, "Well, to be honest, we haven't made the best
> decisions over the last few years with managing our budget and we have
> fallen into a, well, quite frankly a financial crises." Luke's face wore a
> sympathetic look that encouraged Ben to continue explaining the details
> and
> then Ben quickly relayed the incident with Richard and how he had abruptly
> left, and not on the friendliest terms.
>
> Then Luke asked, "Have you and your church prayed about this decision?"
> The
> two men's faces went red with embarrassment and the answer was obvious to
> Luke, but not wanting to carry the men's evident discomfiture any further
> he
> graciously said, "Gentlemen, this is an extremely important decision to
> make
> and the accountability of your positions as well as mine is a thing that
> is
> not to be taken lightly. I have prayed over the situation myself, and
> threw
> the need you have and the answers I feel pressing on my heart I feel that
> I
> can be a pastor for your church while needed. I do not want to be
> presumptuous in my thoughts though and think that I am what you are
> necessarily looking for, so at this point all I can say is that I am
> willing, but whether or not you would like to have me as a minister at
> your
> church is up to the two of you."
>
> Ben had already came to a conclusion in his mind and it was to except this
> young man that somehow or another seemed to revive his spirits in a way
> that
> he had not felt in many years. Ed on the other hand still had his
> reservations as his heart was overflowing, full of worldly cares and while
> Ben was being revived in his soul, Ed was busy thinking more about wages,
> popularity, attendance and a myriad of other things that seemed to be more
> related to running a Broadway show than a congregation of believers, but
> perhaps these so called believers were more like a Broadway crowd of
> spectators attending the show for amusement, public recognition, social
> stimulation and a break from the monotonous rat race that plagued many if
> not all throughout their weary week.
>
> Ed was the first to speak for in his mind the decision would greatly
> depend
> on that topic which has been the topic that has festered in men's breast
> as
> far back as when men mounted camels in the desert, the tent dwellers of
> Assyria who traded the shiny pieces of silver and gold for the spices and
> fine spun linen of the sons and daughters of the Nile who were master
> craftsmen in all forms of things that delighted the eyes and stimulated
> the
> senses. This topic was of course, money, how much would it cost to obtain
> this safety net? For in Ed's mind this was more or less what this was, a
> last minute improvisation of a back woods village preacher. Ed's eyes were
> too dimmed by spiritual fog to recognize that he was attempting to walk
> and
> be guided while holding a lantern that had no oil and could not light his
> way. This being the case his steps were abrupt, shaky and often right on
> top
> of the toes of many who were unfortunate to be in his way and often trying
> to assist in filling his lamp up with the oil of the spirit.
>
> "Well, Luke, um, we don't have a large budget right now, so I don't want
> to
> mislead you just because we are a popular church. Some might think that we
> could give a large salary to you, but unfortunately we could only offer
> you
> a small amount for your services at this time. I think that we could
> probably pay you $200 a week. Your work would only include giving the
> Sunday
> morning message." Ben couldn't speak at this point do to the anger and
> shame
> that had got a hold of him.
>
> Luke discerned that there was a cloud over Bens spirit, but did not
> seek
> to probe into the matter, rather he simply just said, "That would be
> fine."
> With that, Ben regained his speech and he spiritedly said, "Well, I think
> we
> can do a little better than that." As he spoke he looked straight at Ed
> with
> a warning glint in his weary eye.
>
> Luke, who was always seeking to follow the Spirit, didn't impulsively
> just blurt out some words to diffuse the situation. Luke looked for ways
> to
> make deep and lasting investments in people's lives through his words,
> thoughts and actions. It is easy to want to make everybody happy, but
> another thing to seek to infuse a glimmer of the Master into their lives
> so
> that His presence becomes a living reality to them.
>
> Many thoughts went through Luke's mind, but in a matter of seconds he
> had
> thought of a proposal that might be able to help him to achieve a goal
> that
> was more valuable than dollars and cents. "Perhaps I could stay at the
> church if there is room. I only need a cot and a place to wash up. This
> way
> you do not have to put out money that may be better spent in another area
> and I can use some space in the church that is not in use."
>
> The simplistic novelty of the proposal seemed so child like to Ben and Ed
> that their mouths seemed to open and close as if they were gasping for
> air.
> To the two men dressed in costly winter coats and stylish insulated boots
> the idea seemed foreign. How could a person with any amount of learning or
> culture request such primitive accommodations?
>
> Ed shot a side glance at Ben and his eyes seemed to roll as a small
> smear fleeted across his face, but Ben bitterly remembering the fact that
> they were well beyond the point of picking and choosing and that it was
> largely because of Ed, said, "We will try it out and see how it works."
>
> Before any more words could pass between the 3 men, the door opened and
> Alli stepped in looking a little nervous, as well as curious. Her
> nervousness abated as Luke smiled up at her from the hospital bed and the
> boyish expression on his face seemed to melt her heart as she forgot about
> the problems of the building that she called a church and the human need
> to
> serve the sick and hurt kicked in and before wanting to know anything
> about
> the meeting, she wanted to check on the comfort of her patient.
>
> One of Alli's gifts was the ability to feel others pain and discomfort
> and take action to try and ease their burdens.
>
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> Faith-talk:
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l.com
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 15:09:07 -0700
From: "Kendra. Schaber" <redwing731 at gmail.com>
To: Poppa Bear <heavens4real at gmail.com>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <930FA2CA-A6B0-4DD4-9AB9-B7833904AC3B at gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Hi Papa Bare!
Have you read anything from George R. R. Marten, J. K. Rowling or J. R. R.
Tolkien? They are all good fantisy authors. Another good one is C.S. Lewis.
Check them out. If you like a bit of adventure, you'll be sure to enjoy.
BARD has all of the authors that I pointed out.
Kendra
Sent from my iPhone
> On Aug 11, 2014, at 2:32 PM, Poppa Bear via Faith-talk
> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured I
> would
> tap the list and see what are some good novels that people have enjoyed. I
> have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings and am looking for
> some
> stuff more contemporary, novels written in the last five to ten years. I
> don't want to give a lot of guide lines, I don't want to disqualify
> anything. I have knocked off a few Grisham books in the last two weeks, I
> am
> in the middle of a thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens
> by
> Neil Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
> Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from
> right
> now.
>
> Thanks for any suggestions
>
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> Faith-talk:
>
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/redwing731%40gmail.c
om
------------------------------
Message: 7
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 18:58:03 -0500
From: Linda Mentink <mentink at frontiernet.net>
To: Poppa Bear <heavens4real at gmail.com>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID:
<mailman.92.1407844802.7545.faith-talk_nfbnet.org at nfbnet.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed
I haven't had time to read much lately, but here are a few of my
favorite authors, all found on BARD:
Beverly Lewis
Wanda Brunstetter
June Masters Bacher
Bea Carlton
Cathy Marie Hake
Lynn Austin
Tracie Peterson
Julie Miller
Joanne Fluke
Grace Livingston Hill
Eugenia Price
Karen Kingsbury
Gilbert Morris
Jan Karon
Ralph Moody
Laurrain Snelling
Richard Paul Evans
I don't like fantasy, and Harry Potter is full of witchcraft, which I
don't think Christians should read.
Happy reading.
Blessings,
Linda
At 04:32 PM 8/11/2014, you wrote:
>Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured I
>would
>tap the list and see what are some good novels that people have enjoyed. I
>have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings and am looking for some
>stuff more contemporary, novels written in the last five to ten years. I
>don't want to give a lot of guide lines, I don't want to disqualify
>anything. I have knocked off a few Grisham books in the last two weeks, I
>am
>in the middle of a thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens
>by
>Neil Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
>Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from right
>now.
>
>Thanks for any suggestions
>
>_______________________________________________
>Faith-talk mailing list
>Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info
>for Faith-talk:
>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/mentink%40frontiern
et.net
>
>
>-----
>No virus found in this message.
>Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
>Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 4007/8019 - Release Date: 08/11/14
------------------------------
Message: 8
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 20:18:15 -0400
From: Christine Olivares <rafael4490 at gmail.com>
To: Linda Mentink <mentink at frontiernet.net>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <A604CBBD-AA12-4BE8-935A-22C40F2D69B6 at gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252
Hi Papa Bear,
If you are in the mood for fantasy, here are some of my favorite authors:
Urban fantasy:
1. Jim Butcher?s Dresden Files series
2. C. E. Murfey?s walker Papers series
3. Kevin Hearn?s Iron Druid series
4. Larry Correia?s Monster hunter series
I also love karen Kingsbury, Janette Oke, Jan karen, and other such authors.
I do not believe Harry Potter is full of witchcraft. It?s all in fun I
believe.
Hope this helps. God bless,
Christine
On Aug 11, 2014, at 7:58 PM, Linda Mentink via Faith-talk
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> I haven't had time to read much lately, but here are a few of my favorite
> authors, all found on BARD:
>
> Beverly Lewis
> Wanda Brunstetter
> June Masters Bacher
> Bea Carlton
> Cathy Marie Hake
> Lynn Austin
> Tracie Peterson
> Julie Miller
> Joanne Fluke
> Grace Livingston Hill
> Eugenia Price
> Karen Kingsbury
> Gilbert Morris
> Jan Karon
> Ralph Moody
> Laurrain Snelling
> Richard Paul Evans
>
> I don't like fantasy, and Harry Potter is full of witchcraft, which I
> don't think Christians should read.
>
> Happy reading.
>
> Blessings,
>
> Linda
>
> At 04:32 PM 8/11/2014, you wrote:
>> Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured I
>> would
>> tap the list and see what are some good novels that people have enjoyed.
>> I
>> have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings and am looking for
>> some
>> stuff more contemporary, novels written in the last five to ten years. I
>> don't want to give a lot of guide lines, I don't want to disqualify
>> anything. I have knocked off a few Grisham books in the last two weeks, I
>> am
>> in the middle of a thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens
>> by
>> Neil Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
>> Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from
>> right
>> now.
>>
>> Thanks for any suggestions
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Faith-talk mailing list
>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> Faith-talk:
>>
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/mentink%40frontierne
t.net
>>
>>
>> -----
>> No virus found in this message.
>> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
>> Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 4007/8019 - Release Date: 08/11/14
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> Faith-talk:
>
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/rafael4490%40gmail.c
om
------------------------------
Message: 9
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 20:26:47 -0400
From: Donna Elliott <donnatelliott at gmail.com>
To: Christine Olivares <rafael4490 at gmail.com>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <53D89200-72F5-42A9-9F53-0733CD3A3B6E at gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Poppa Bear, I recently read and really liked John Grisham's THE TESTAMENT,
which I'm sure you will like it. I'll give some more thought to it as I
belong to a book club that doesn't always choose the books I'd recommend.
Prayers, Donna
For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7.
Sent from my iPad
> On Aug 11, 2014, at 8:18 PM, Christine Olivares via Faith-talk
> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> Hi Papa Bear,
> If you are in the mood for fantasy, here are some of my favorite authors:
>
> Urban fantasy:
> 1. Jim Butcher?s Dresden Files series
> 2. C. E. Murfey?s walker Papers series
> 3. Kevin Hearn?s Iron Druid series
> 4. Larry Correia?s Monster hunter series
>
> I also love karen Kingsbury, Janette Oke, Jan karen, and other such
> authors. I do not believe Harry Potter is full of witchcraft. It?s all in
> fun I believe.
>
> Hope this helps. God bless,
> Christine
>> On Aug 11, 2014, at 7:58 PM, Linda Mentink via Faith-talk
>> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>
>> I haven't had time to read much lately, but here are a few of my favorite
>> authors, all found on BARD:
>>
>> Beverly Lewis
>> Wanda Brunstetter
>> June Masters Bacher
>> Bea Carlton
>> Cathy Marie Hake
>> Lynn Austin
>> Tracie Peterson
>> Julie Miller
>> Joanne Fluke
>> Grace Livingston Hill
>> Eugenia Price
>> Karen Kingsbury
>> Gilbert Morris
>> Jan Karon
>> Ralph Moody
>> Laurrain Snelling
>> Richard Paul Evans
>>
>> I don't like fantasy, and Harry Potter is full of witchcraft, which I
>> don't think Christians should read.
>>
>> Happy reading.
>>
>> Blessings,
>>
>> Linda
>>
>> At 04:32 PM 8/11/2014, you wrote:
>>> Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured I
>>> would
>>> tap the list and see what are some good novels that people have enjoyed.
>>> I
>>> have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings and am looking for
>>> some
>>> stuff more contemporary, novels written in the last five to ten years. I
>>> don't want to give a lot of guide lines, I don't want to disqualify
>>> anything. I have knocked off a few Grisham books in the last two weeks,
>>> I am
>>> in the middle of a thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good
>>> Omens by
>>> Neil Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
>>> Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from
>>> right
>>> now.
>>>
>>> Thanks for any suggestions
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Faith-talk mailing list
>>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> Faith-talk:
>>>
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/mentink%40frontierne
t.net
>>>
>>>
>>> -----
>>> No virus found in this message.
>>> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
>>> Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 4007/8019 - Release Date:
>>> 08/11/14
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Faith-talk mailing list
>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> Faith-talk:
>>
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/rafael4490%40gmail.c
om
>
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> Faith-talk:
>
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l.com
------------------------------
Message: 10
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 16:51:36 -0800
From: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>
To: "'Donna Elliott'" <donnatelliott at gmail.com>, "'Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion'" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <008101cfb5c7$926a67c0$b73f3740$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
I appreciate that Donna, it is a good book but I have already read it twice.
Thanks though.
-----Original Message-----
From: Faith-talk [mailto:faith-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Donna
Elliott via Faith-talk
Sent: Monday, August 11, 2014 4:27 PM
To: Christine Olivares; Faith-talk, for the discussion of faith and religion
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Poppa Bear, I recently read and really liked John Grisham's THE TESTAMENT,
which I'm sure you will like it. I'll give some more thought to it as I
belong to a book club that doesn't always choose the books I'd recommend.
Prayers, Donna
For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7.
Sent from my iPad
> On Aug 11, 2014, at 8:18 PM, Christine Olivares via Faith-talk
> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> Hi Papa Bear,
> If you are in the mood for fantasy, here are some of my favorite authors:
>
> Urban fantasy:
> 1. Jim Butcher?s Dresden Files series
> 2. C. E. Murfey?s walker Papers series 3. Kevin Hearn?s Iron Druid
> series 4. Larry Correia?s Monster hunter series
>
> I also love karen Kingsbury, Janette Oke, Jan karen, and other such
> authors. I do not believe Harry Potter is full of witchcraft. It?s all in
> fun I believe.
>
> Hope this helps. God bless,
> Christine
>> On Aug 11, 2014, at 7:58 PM, Linda Mentink via Faith-talk
>> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>
>> I haven't had time to read much lately, but here are a few of my favorite
>> authors, all found on BARD:
>>
>> Beverly Lewis
>> Wanda Brunstetter
>> June Masters Bacher
>> Bea Carlton
>> Cathy Marie Hake
>> Lynn Austin
>> Tracie Peterson
>> Julie Miller
>> Joanne Fluke
>> Grace Livingston Hill
>> Eugenia Price
>> Karen Kingsbury
>> Gilbert Morris
>> Jan Karon
>> Ralph Moody
>> Laurrain Snelling
>> Richard Paul Evans
>>
>> I don't like fantasy, and Harry Potter is full of witchcraft, which I
>> don't think Christians should read.
>>
>> Happy reading.
>>
>> Blessings,
>>
>> Linda
>>
>> At 04:32 PM 8/11/2014, you wrote:
>>> Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured
>>> I would tap the list and see what are some good novels that people
>>> have enjoyed. I have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings
>>> and am looking for some stuff more contemporary, novels written in
>>> the last five to ten years. I don't want to give a lot of guide
>>> lines, I don't want to disqualify anything. I have knocked off a few
>>> Grisham books in the last two weeks, I am in the middle of a
>>> thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens by Neil
>>> Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
>>> Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from
>>> right now.
>>>
>>> Thanks for any suggestions
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Faith-talk mailing list
>>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> Faith-talk:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/mentink%40fr
>>> ontiernet.net
>>>
>>>
>>> -----
>>> No virus found in this message.
>>> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
>>> Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 4007/8019 - Release Date:
>>> 08/11/14
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Faith-talk mailing list
>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> Faith-talk:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/rafael4490%40
>> gmail.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> Faith-talk:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/donnatelliott%
> 40gmail.com
_______________________________________________
Faith-talk mailing list
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To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
Faith-talk:
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.com
------------------------------
Message: 11
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 18:06:28 -0700
From: "Kendra. Schaber" <redwing731 at gmail.com>
To: Linda Mentink <mentink at frontiernet.net>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <75A08A9F-57EE-4D40-BEA5-0B5CB4542196 at gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Hi all!
Some Christians will read Harry Potter and other Christians won't touch it
with a 30 foot cane. I believe that it's your choice to read Harry Potter or
not. Most don't realize that J. K. Rowling is a Christian and she uses a lot
of Christian symbelism. I have a couple Christian friends who want nothing
to do with Harry Potter. I also have Christian friends who will read it and
enjoy it as a good story. Yes it has stage magic in it but they are wizards
from fantisy. From a Pagan's point of view, magic by itself is not good or
bad. The way that it's used deter mains that. The same is for the cheritures
in Harry Potter. Harry and his friends are good and Tom Riddle and Lord
Voldimort are bad. With that in mind, give it a try anyway and judge Harry
Potter afterwords. It's all up to you to choose after all.
Kendra
Sent from my iPhone
> On Aug 11, 2014, at 4:58 PM, Linda Mentink via Faith-talk
> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> I haven't had time to read much lately, but here are a few of my favorite
> authors, all found on BARD:
>
> Beverly Lewis
> Wanda Brunstetter
> June Masters Bacher
> Bea Carlton
> Cathy Marie Hake
> Lynn Austin
> Tracie Peterson
> Julie Miller
> Joanne Fluke
> Grace Livingston Hill
> Eugenia Price
> Karen Kingsbury
> Gilbert Morris
> Jan Karon
> Ralph Moody
> Laurrain Snelling
> Richard Paul Evans
>
> I don't like fantasy, and Harry Potter is full of witchcraft, which I
> don't think Christians should read.
>
> Happy reading.
>
> Blessings,
>
> Linda
>
> At 04:32 PM 8/11/2014, you wrote:
>> Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured I
>> would
>> tap the list and see what are some good novels that people have enjoyed.
>> I
>> have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings and am looking for
>> some
>> stuff more contemporary, novels written in the last five to ten years. I
>> don't want to give a lot of guide lines, I don't want to disqualify
>> anything. I have knocked off a few Grisham books in the last two weeks, I
>> am
>> in the middle of a thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens
>> by
>> Neil Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
>> Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from
>> right
>> now.
>>
>> Thanks for any suggestions
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Faith-talk mailing list
>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> Faith-talk:
>>
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/mentink%40frontierne
t.net
>>
>>
>> -----
>> No virus found in this message.
>> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
>> Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 4007/8019 - Release Date: 08/11/14
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
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> Faith-talk:
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om
------------------------------
Message: 12
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 21:22:48 -0400
From: Greg Aikens <gpaikens at gmail.com>
To: Poppa Bear <heavens4real at gmail.com>, "Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <FE422652-7560-4C82-93B0-F67454B85FE6 at gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252
If you haven?t read G. K. Chesterton?s fiction, I highly recommend it. The
Man who was Thursday and the Father Brown Mysteries are both quite good.
On Aug 11, 2014, at 8:51 PM, Poppa Bear via Faith-talk
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> I appreciate that Donna, it is a good book but I have already read it
> twice. Thanks though.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Faith-talk [mailto:faith-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Donna
> Elliott via Faith-talk
> Sent: Monday, August 11, 2014 4:27 PM
> To: Christine Olivares; Faith-talk, for the discussion of faith and
> religion
> Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
>
> Poppa Bear, I recently read and really liked John Grisham's THE TESTAMENT,
> which I'm sure you will like it. I'll give some more thought to it as I
> belong to a book club that doesn't always choose the books I'd recommend.
> Prayers, Donna
>
> For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7.
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
>> On Aug 11, 2014, at 8:18 PM, Christine Olivares via Faith-talk
>> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>
>> Hi Papa Bear,
>> If you are in the mood for fantasy, here are some of my favorite authors:
>>
>> Urban fantasy:
>> 1. Jim Butcher?s Dresden Files series
>> 2. C. E. Murfey?s walker Papers series 3. Kevin Hearn?s Iron Druid
>> series 4. Larry Correia?s Monster hunter series
>>
>> I also love karen Kingsbury, Janette Oke, Jan karen, and other such
>> authors. I do not believe Harry Potter is full of witchcraft. It?s all in
>> fun I believe.
>>
>> Hope this helps. God bless,
>> Christine
>>> On Aug 11, 2014, at 7:58 PM, Linda Mentink via Faith-talk
>>> <faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>>
>>> I haven't had time to read much lately, but here are a few of my
>>> favorite authors, all found on BARD:
>>>
>>> Beverly Lewis
>>> Wanda Brunstetter
>>> June Masters Bacher
>>> Bea Carlton
>>> Cathy Marie Hake
>>> Lynn Austin
>>> Tracie Peterson
>>> Julie Miller
>>> Joanne Fluke
>>> Grace Livingston Hill
>>> Eugenia Price
>>> Karen Kingsbury
>>> Gilbert Morris
>>> Jan Karon
>>> Ralph Moody
>>> Laurrain Snelling
>>> Richard Paul Evans
>>>
>>> I don't like fantasy, and Harry Potter is full of witchcraft, which I
>>> don't think Christians should read.
>>>
>>> Happy reading.
>>>
>>> Blessings,
>>>
>>> Linda
>>>
>>> At 04:32 PM 8/11/2014, you wrote:
>>>> Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured
>>>> I would tap the list and see what are some good novels that people
>>>> have enjoyed. I have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings
>>>> and am looking for some stuff more contemporary, novels written in
>>>> the last five to ten years. I don't want to give a lot of guide
>>>> lines, I don't want to disqualify anything. I have knocked off a few
>>>> Grisham books in the last two weeks, I am in the middle of a
>>>> thousand splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens by Neil
>>>> Guymon, The Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by
>>>> Gilbert Morris. That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from
>>>> right now.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks for any suggestions
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> Faith-talk mailing list
>>>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>>> Faith-talk:
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/mentink%40fr
>>>> ontiernet.net
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -----
>>>> No virus found in this message.
>>>> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
>>>> Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 4007/8019 - Release Date:
>>>> 08/11/14
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Faith-talk mailing list
>>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> Faith-talk:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/rafael4490%40
>>> gmail.com
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Faith-talk mailing list
>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
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>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> Faith-talk:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/donnatelliott%
>> 40gmail.com
>
> _______________________________________________
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>
>
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------------------------------
Message: 13
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 17:33:22 -0800
From: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>
To: "'Kendra. Schaber'" <redwing731 at gmail.com>, "'Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion'" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Message-ID: <008301cfb5cd$686f1ff0$394d5fd0$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
I have a friend who took his Christian neighbors children to see the Hobbit
movie back twenty years ago and when they all got home the neighbor couldn't
believe that my friend would compromise his children by taking them to that
movie. Fast forward twenty something years and people use the Hobbit and
Lord of the rings as a type of Christian parable, go figure. I haven't had a
taste for Harry Potter and have came across a lot of pros and cons about
satanic influences and what not especially when the first book came out. I
myself never came up with a fast and hard rule about the, books because my
children have never gravitated towards either the books or movies. But in
general I think that people do need to listen to their conscience and be
sensitive to what they believe is write and wrong.
-----Original Message-----
From: Faith-talk [mailto:faith-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Kendra.
Schaber via Faith-talk
Sent: Monday, August 11, 2014 5:06 PM
To: Linda Mentink; Faith-talk, for the discussion of faith and religion
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Who's reading what?
Hi all!
Some Christians will read Harry Potter and other Christians won't touch it
with a 30 foot cane. I believe that it's your choice to read Harry Potter or
not. Most don't realize that J. K. Rowling is a Christian and she uses a lot
of Christian symbelism. I have a couple Christian friends who want nothing
to do with Harry Potter. I also have Christian friends who will read it and
enjoy it as a good story. Yes it has stage magic in it but they are wizards
from fantisy. From a Pagan's point of view, magic by itself is not good or
bad. The way that it's used deter mains that. The same is for the cheritures
in Harry Potter. Harry and his friends are good and Tom Riddle and Lord
Voldimort are bad. With that in mind, give it a try anyway and judge Harry
Potter afterwords. It's all up to you to choose after all.
Kendra
Sent from my iPhone
> On Aug 11, 2014, at 4:58 PM, Linda Mentink via Faith-talk
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> I haven't had time to read much lately, but here are a few of my favorite
authors, all found on BARD:
>
> Beverly Lewis
> Wanda Brunstetter
> June Masters Bacher
> Bea Carlton
> Cathy Marie Hake
> Lynn Austin
> Tracie Peterson
> Julie Miller
> Joanne Fluke
> Grace Livingston Hill
> Eugenia Price
> Karen Kingsbury
> Gilbert Morris
> Jan Karon
> Ralph Moody
> Laurrain Snelling
> Richard Paul Evans
>
> I don't like fantasy, and Harry Potter is full of witchcraft, which I
don't think Christians should read.
>
> Happy reading.
>
> Blessings,
>
> Linda
>
> At 04:32 PM 8/11/2014, you wrote:
>> Hello ladies and gentleman I am craving some new authors and figured
>> I would tap the list and see what are some good novels that people
>> have enjoyed. I have spent a lot of time in pre 20 century writings
>> and am looking for some stuff more contemporary, novels written in
>> the last five to ten years. I don't want to give a lot of guide
>> lines, I don't want to disqualify anything. I have knocked off a few
>> Grisham books in the last two weeks, I am in the middle of a thousand
>> splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini, Good Omens by Neil Guymon, The
>> Associate by Grisham, and a House of Winslow book by Gilbert Morris.
>> That may give people a range of what I'm sipping from right now.
>>
>> Thanks for any suggestions
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Faith-talk mailing list
>> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
Faith-talk:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/mentink%40fro
>> ntiernet.net
>>
>>
>> -----
>> No virus found in this message.
>> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
>> Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 4007/8019 - Release Date:
>> 08/11/14
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Faith-talk mailing list
> Faith-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/faith-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
Faith-talk:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/faith-talk_nfbnet.org/redwing731%40g
> mail.com
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Faith-talk:
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.com
------------------------------
Message: 14
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 21:04:57 -0500
From: "Ericka Short" <ericka.short at wi.rr.com>
To: <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8
Message-ID: <BDD324D503FF4A31891B5F4AC624724D at ERICKAPC>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
reply-type=original
Check your spelling and punctuation, but it looks interesting Poppa Bear. I
like reading these kind of books. I suggest rewriting the entire draft with
narration because it would bring the book to life as this chapter does. It
brings such depth to characters when narration is used and it draws in the
reader to care about the characters in the story. It also keeps
readers going and they remember the message you are intending to share
such as "evangelism is simpler than you think" or "the importance of caring
for others in changing lives".
Ericka
-----Original Message-----
From: faith-talk-request at nfbnet.org
Sent: Friday, August 08, 2014 7:00 AM
To: faith-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8
Send Faith-talk mailing list submissions to
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Today's Topics:
1. Chapter 9 of my novel (Poppa Bear)
2. Daily Thought for Thursday, August 7, 2014 (Paul)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Thu, 7 Aug 2014 09:18:06 -0800
From: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>
To: "'Faith-talk, for the discussion of faith and religion'"
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Chapter 9 of my novel
Message-ID: <001a01cfb263$8f4d0690$ade713b0$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Here goes another chapter. I didn't realize that I had written so much in
this particular book so far. I am noticing that I am imparting more
narrative dialog and am considering redrafting a large portion. Well, enjoy
Chapter 9
The next day while Luke was seated in a chair facing the window righting
down some thoughts he heard the door open and looking up he saw Alli
approaching with a nurses cart and a smile. The smile was returned by Luke
and the blood rushed to Alli's cheeks and she stammered out her mission.
"Uh, I am just going to change your bandages, check your vitals and make
sure that you are doing all right." "All right, I was wondering if I was
doing all right myself. I think I have been sitting here for the last two
hours just looking at the mountains and I was gazing at them for so long I
was starting to wonder if they wanted to speak to me." At this point Alli
became a little weary. Being a nurse she had often seen people who had
suffered from head injuries become delusional, but when she saw a twinkle in
Luke's eyes and a little grin she relaxed and felt more at ease.
On Alli's entrance into the room Luke had noticed that she was a little
nervous and he wanted to help her forget any embarrassment from the previous
day so he focused their attention on his mental health with the joking
remark. It seemed to work as Alli relaxed and became more natural in her
nursing duties and deftly started to prepare his bandages and unwrap his old
one and clean the bullet wound. As she was finishing she said, "I talked to
the elders of our church and they would like to meet with you tomorrow if at
all possible." Alli unconsciously held her breath a little as she waited for
Luke's response. "That is fine, I may be checking out of here in two days
they say, and I would like to meet with the elders too, so we can talk about
your needs and see if it would be helpful for me to serve with your church."
Alli looking to add an incentive blurted out, "The church is a very
popular church and I am sure the pay is good!" At this remark Luke slightly
winced, but Alli was behind him cutting off the bandage tape so she did not
see his expression. "Well, in my experience popularity and money have not
always made the best impact in furthering the work of the kingdom. I imagine
that Jesus could have had both during His ministry, but saw that both may do
more to disillusion and harm the work of the kingdom when used by men with
more good intentions than faith in the Fathers provisions. Money and
popularity have their place, but I have found that they are better left in
the Fathers grip when doing the Lords will." At this point Alli's religious
training and personal opinion came to the forefront of the conversation.
"What, do you think that money is evil?" Though it was said innocently
enough Luke detected a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
Luke tried to choose his next words carefully for the fact that in his
experience most people did not really examine the situation in a way that
really related to the biblical story of Jesus and his disciples. "Well, in
the life of Jesus how much did you see the role of popularity and money come
into play? Were they positive ways or negative ways?" Alli's eye brows rose
in a thoughtful gesture and she said, well it didn't seem like Jesus had a
lot of money, but with all of His powers I would think that He didn't need
the money." "Well, that is one way to look at it, but if he was fully god
and yet fully man with all of our human feelings, thoughts and limitations
do you think that he might have entertained the idea of having things that
may have made His life a little easier and thought about what it was like to
possess some of the comforts that were around in his day and age? I mean, do
you think that as he walked for miles and miles each day over dusty and
muddy roads throughout his ministry hot and tired, seeing the Romans and
wealthy Jews riding past in nice comfortable chariots, donkey's and nicely
furnished camels that he may have known that by having more money that He
could have purchased a bit of this convenience to be able to travel in
ease to proclaim His important message? I think I would have considered
something like that once or twice in 33 years perhaps." Alli replied," I
guess that when I think of Jesus I think of his miraculous powers and
sayings more than anything."
Now the ball was back in Luke's court and he didn't necessarily want to pore
out more thoughts than Alli was able to deal with in a brief conversation
where she was at work and had other duties to perform, so he tried to taper
off the conversation with a last thought that he hoped might find fertile
ground in her mind and take shape eventually. "I think that if Jesus only
wanted us to focus on his miraculous powers and sayings he would not have
become man and shared our weaknesses, sorrows and temptations when it would
have been so much more pleasant for Him to just shout down from the heavens
at us and perform as many miraculous signs as He wanted and not have to
stoop to such humiliation that He had to endure in a human life of betrayal
and crucifixion."
Luke did not drive any points home regarding money with this last thought
because he felt that as important as understanding how money and popularity
can play into the role of our lives was, he knew that a better understanding
of who Jesus was as He lived, labored and loved was even more important as a
foundational building block for deepening our faith and our understanding of
the Son of man. When that hunger which is so important of becoming consumed
with how Jesus walked in this world as a man who was the noblest, humblest,
kindest, and wisest and most obedient person who ever walked the face of the
earth becomes real to us, we can start to connect with Him in a more
intimate level than if we were just to live off the snap shots that we
receive of Him in the bible and weekend messages. The Spirit is constantly
revealing to us who Jesus was and is as our desire to know grows we are
brought closer to that reality of the life that changed eternity.
The next afternoon Ben Miller and Ed Long were escorted into Luke's room
by Alli. Luke had regained much of his color back from the ordeal and his
cheeks were starting to lose the gauntness that had ravished some of the
fuller features of his face. Luke was not striking in the popular since, but
with fine even features and a strong jaw that was somewhat hidden by a soft
boyish mouth and a pair of keen gray eyes he was not un pleasing to look at
by any means. Even sitting in a hospital bed with a bandage covering the
thick dark curls he still had a vibrant presents of health and vigor that
seemed to radiate a glow around him.
The last 3 days had been very long ones for the 2 elders. Neither men had
had much sleep over the course of the last few nights. Within recent months
their levels of stress had been so straining that it looked like they both
had aged an extra 10 years in a matter of months. They both entered the room
with weary expressions on their faces. They were both attempting to mask
their real feelings with the typical Sunday morning smiles and nods, but
Luke was much too observant to not feel for the two men in their apparent
dilemma and discomfort.
Even Ed in his dark navy blue suit looked a little subdued. His habitual
scowl had been reduced to a mild look of irritation. His eagle eyes were
never the less alert and suspicious. Being one who always grasped for the
advantage of a situation he was constantly on the lookout for anybody who
might try and pry the power he held from his desperate grip.
Ben looked as tired as an old wrinkled pug. His was the look of a young boy
who had aged over night. His hair was not yet fully gray, his eyes were
clear and had a look that said, I would rather be laughing, but I am forced
by circumstance to be stressed and miserable like the animal at the zoo that
can only attempt to enjoy himself and make the best of its situation,
knowing by instinct that captivity is not its natural habitat and its home
does not consist of a fence, a few trees and laughing tourists taking
pictures and throwing peanuts. His was a bondage that was exacting all of
the life out of his boyish heart and usurping rule over his aging spirit
making his life one long uphill walk without any particular destination
except to make the church budget stretch as far as possible and be able to
pay bills on time.
It was no surprise that Luke instantly had a desire to help these two men.
He could recognize a hardness in Ed, but his compassion saw beyond the
weasel, the pride filled demeanor and he saw a neighbor in need. The
underlining suffering of Ben was clearly and painstakingly obvious to Luke's
discerning spirit. His heart went out to that fellow brother and though Ben
was many years Luke's senior, the love of Luke was continually growing as
deep and old as the story of Jesus and the woman at the well. The eyes that
are clear see spiritually, and spiritually Luke was automatically resigned
to help these two as much as he could within the confines of the fathers
will. Perhaps that since Luke had been an orphan he was much more sensitive
to the distress of his fellow human being, but whatever the case he was all
compassion for the situation at this point.
Luke's frank and yet inviting gaze put the two off their guard a little.
Both men seemed to expect to find someone who looked a little more common
place. In their minds anyone who would choose to live in a village
voluntarily was either fairly desperate or fanatical in their evangelistic
pursuits. Luke's intelligent countenance seemed to take in more than the two
elders expected.
There are times when we encounter, or have existing relationships where
words aren't always necessary to communicate the understanding of a
situation. There are observations that two people of the same turn of mind
and habits may make, coming to similar conclusions with the ability to
communicate those conclusions through a quick glance or a subtle turn of the
head. There is also a point when just the feeling of an understanding may be
presented as an unspoken presentiment and the explanation of the why and how
is left a mystery to us.
When these three met all of these things were taking place on different
levels. Luke felt in his heart of hearts that he would love to bring these
men out of their predicament with the main reason being that he simply
wanted to minister to any needs that could help them to become closer to the
Son of man's heeling power. In their work worn expressions he saw the main
thing, which was that their eyes were strictly on the situation and its
staggering overwhelming pressure and not on the ability of the Master. It
was this fact or impression that caused Luke to have a spiritual prompting.
These are unfortunately not always followed, but the children of God who are
led by the Spirit are those who have exercised their faith and obedience by
following the quiet and often nameless promptings and in doing this become a
tool in the hands of the Master craftsmen continually working out the nuts
and bolts of the Kingdom. In this case the prompting caused Luke's heart to
leap towards the two and cast off some of his normal reserve.
On the same turn both of the elders had immediately acknowledged in their
own minds and conceded to one another through one of those small glances
that this young man was different from their elementary views of what a man
of the cloth can look like in this day and age who chooses to make a
sacrifice for Christ in a small village in northern Alaska away from earthly
success and hopes of monetary gain. Though the two parties were on different
levels with different goals, it was apparent that a hand had moved in such a
way to bring the work and the tool together to start a difficult job of
trying to restore a broken body of believers who had been fed an unwholesome
diet of popular religion and false impressions of Christ that were leading
to more and more self disillusion for the members of the Good Sheppard
Community Church of Anchorage.
Both men took a seat on the small and stiff hospital couch across from Luke
without greeting him. Then as if they both became conscious of their
impropriety they both rose simultaneously. Ed extended his thin wiry hand
and gave Luke's hand a quick business like shake. He introduced himself,
"Hello, I am Ed Long, I am an elder at our church and this is Ben Miller, he
is also an elder at the church." As Ben grabbed Luke's hand Ben
unconsciously gave a little squeeze. Luke returned the squeeze with a warm
familiar grasp that made the older man flash a thankful look of gratitude
towards Luke.
"It is nice to meet both of you. Allison my nurse hasn't been able to talk
to me much about your church because she is very busy around here, but I
have been waiting to meet you two and learn more about your work." Ed put on
his best Sunday face in spite of Luke's open and inviting countenance and
started rolling off what sounded like a pre written commercial for the
church and in the circumstances it looked like a silly pantomime of a puppet
trying to make an adult laugh without much hope. "Well, we are a very
popular church with many outstanding members who are very well known in the
city! We have a really talented worship leader who has an extensive
background in music. We also just invested in a top of the line sound system
that really has been a great addition to the church!"
Ben seemed to sink lower and lower into his seat as Ed continued in the same
vein, proclaiming all of the churches fine accomplishments. He could feel
that as fine as the facts looked, the reality was that they were sinking and
sinking very quickly. Ed's description made the church sound like a chariot
of fire making a whirlwind of improvements that were revolutionizing the
city and drawing out the aristocracy of the town in droves. As Ed continued
to make his spill he quickly glanced over at Ben and seeing the look on
Ben's face, he was somewhat brought back to the reality of their situation
and though he may or may have not felt the superciliousness of many of his
statements, he soon fell quiet. Glancing over at Ben he recognized an
expression of exhaustion mingled with another one of irritation. Only
slightly abashed he murmured out another sentence or two and then sat there
a little bewildered as if his whole game plan was taken from him.
Luke then spoke, "Well, it sounds like your church is doing allot, but I
guess I would like to know a little more about your mission as a church? How
is it that you are in need of a pastor at this time?" Ed now turned to Ben
as if he wanted him to speak now, and Ben sitting up tried to shake off the
cloud of despair and spoke, "Well, to be honest, we haven't made the best
decisions over the last few years with managing our budget and we have
fallen into a, well, quite frankly a financial crises." Luke's face wore a
sympathetic look that encouraged Ben to continue explaining the details and
then Ben quickly relayed the incident with Richard and how he had abruptly
left, and not on the friendliest terms.
Then Luke asked, "Have you and your church prayed about this decision?" The
two men's faces went red with embarrassment and the answer was obvious to
Luke, but not wanting to carry the men's evident discomfiture any further he
graciously said, "Gentlemen, this is an extremely important decision to make
and the accountability of your positions as well as mine is a thing that is
not to be taken lightly. I have prayed over the situation myself, and threw
the need you have and the answers I feel pressing on my heart I feel that I
can be a pastor for your church while needed. I do not want to be
presumptuous in my thoughts though and think that I am what you are
necessarily looking for, so at this point all I can say is that I am
willing, but whether or not you would like to have me as a minister at your
church is up to the two of you."
Ben had already came to a conclusion in his mind and it was to except this
young man that somehow or another seemed to revive his spirits in a way that
he had not felt in many years. Ed on the other hand still had his
reservations as his heart was overflowing, full of worldly cares and while
Ben was being revived in his soul, Ed was busy thinking more about wages,
popularity, attendance and a myriad of other things that seemed to be more
related to running a Broadway show than a congregation of believers, but
perhaps these so called believers were more like a Broadway crowd of
spectators attending the show for amusement, public recognition, social
stimulation and a break from the monotonous rat race that plagued many if
not all throughout their weary week.
Ed was the first to speak for in his mind the decision would greatly depend
on that topic which has been the topic that has festered in men's breast as
far back as when men mounted camels in the desert, the tent dwellers of
Assyria who traded the shiny pieces of silver and gold for the spices and
fine spun linen of the sons and daughters of the Nile who were master
craftsmen in all forms of things that delighted the eyes and stimulated the
senses. This topic was of course, money, how much would it cost to obtain
this safety net? For in Ed's mind this was more or less what this was, a
last minute improvisation of a back woods village preacher. Ed's eyes were
too dimmed by spiritual fog to recognize that he was attempting to walk and
be guided while holding a lantern that had no oil and could not light his
way. This being the case his steps were abrupt, shaky and often right on top
of the toes of many who were unfortunate to be in his way and often trying
to assist in filling his lamp up with the oil of the spirit.
"Well, Luke, um, we don't have a large budget right now, so I don't want to
mislead you just because we are a popular church. Some might think that we
could give a large salary to you, but unfortunately we could only offer you
a small amount for your services at this time. I think that we could
probably pay you $200 a week. Your work would only include giving the Sunday
morning message." Ben couldn't speak at this point do to the anger and shame
that had got a hold of him.
Luke discerned that there was a cloud over Bens spirit, but did not seek
to probe into the matter, rather he simply just said, "That would be fine."
With that, Ben regained his speech and he spiritedly said, "Well, I think we
can do a little better than that." As he spoke he looked straight at Ed with
a warning glint in his weary eye.
Luke, who was always seeking to follow the Spirit, didn't impulsively
just blurt out some words to diffuse the situation. Luke looked for ways to
make deep and lasting investments in people's lives through his words,
thoughts and actions. It is easy to want to make everybody happy, but
another thing to seek to infuse a glimmer of the Master into their lives so
that His presence becomes a living reality to them.
Many thoughts went through Luke's mind, but in a matter of seconds he had
thought of a proposal that might be able to help him to achieve a goal that
was more valuable than dollars and cents. "Perhaps I could stay at the
church if there is room. I only need a cot and a place to wash up. This way
you do not have to put out money that may be better spent in another area
and I can use some space in the church that is not in use."
The simplistic novelty of the proposal seemed so child like to Ben and Ed
that their mouths seemed to open and close as if they were gasping for air.
To the two men dressed in costly winter coats and stylish insulated boots
the idea seemed foreign. How could a person with any amount of learning or
culture request such primitive accommodations?
Ed shot a side glance at Ben and his eyes seemed to roll as a small
smear fleeted across his face, but Ben bitterly remembering the fact that
they were well beyond the point of picking and choosing and that it was
largely because of Ed, said, "We will try it out and see how it works."
Before any more words could pass between the 3 men, the door opened and
Alli stepped in looking a little nervous, as well as curious. Her
nervousness abated as Luke smiled up at her from the hospital bed and the
boyish expression on his face seemed to melt her heart as she forgot about
the problems of the building that she called a church and the human need to
serve the sick and hurt kicked in and before wanting to know anything about
the meeting, she wanted to check on the comfort of her patient.
One of Alli's gifts was the ability to feel others pain and discomfort
and take action to try and ease their burdens.
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Thu, 7 Aug 2014 14:36:09 -0400
From: "Paul" <oilofgladness47 at gmail.com>
To: "Spiritual discussion list"
<room-for-your-beliefs at list.tafn.org.uk>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Thursday, August 7, 2014
Message-ID: <DA65FCC17F9C4626862408E15AD5E0BE at paul>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hello and good day to you all on this Thursday or, for you in Australia and
New Zealand, an early Friday morning as this is being written. I hope that
your day is going well, by God's matchless grace and His providential care.
This article will be of special interest to you ladies who like to make
things out of fabric, and especially blankets. However for the rest of us,
there's something in it for you as well, if you'll take time to "read
between the lines." The story in question was written by Esther M. Bailey
from Arizona, and is entitled "A Blessing I Almost Missed," rendered as
follows:
I wonder how many times I miss a blessing because I don't reach out to
strangers. How many times do I miss an opportunity to bring a blessing to
someone else? An idea for conversation may even come to mind, but I usually
remain silent.
My friend Jenny helped me overcome my reticence while we were shopping at a
fabric store. I had purchased a king size quilt for a queen bed because I
didn't want to use a bed skirt. The length, however, gave me only a
twelve-inch drop. I needed nine more inches across the bottom to complete
the design of the quilt.
With one of the pillow shams in hand, Jenny and I began to look for fabric
that would blend with the bright colored quilt. "This isn't bad," Jenny
said as she fingered a red fabric with a scattering of tiny white leaves.
It would blend with the panels running down the sides except it was
brighter. I found a similar fabric that was more subdued than the side
panels.
Since neither of us could decide between the two, Jenny said to a lady who
stood nearby, "Which do you think blends better?"
Pointing to the brighter color, she said, "That one." Her idea was good
enough for us.
When I learned that the lady was also shopping for fabric for a quilt, I
said, "I should send you what's left of my material." I needed a three-yard
long piece of cloth but only half a yard wide.
"Yes, I can always use extra fabric," she replied with a smile.
After paying for my purchase, I again approached the lady. "I'll be glad to
have it cut in two and give half of it to you."
"You would just throw it away?" she asked. In response to my affirmative
reply, she said, "Yes, I'll be glad to get it."
While the clerk cut the fabric for us, my new friend explained her ongoing
project. In the church she attended, hers was one of six homes that took in
foster children. Each time a family took in a new foster child, the church
presented the child with a quilt. The woman also participated in making the
quilts.
"Wow! What a cool project," I said. I like to hear about unique ways of
making a difference in the lives of others, and this was one of the best.
Even though I had only a small part in a major enterprise, I left the store
that day with my heart full of joy. When I take advantage of an opportunity
to bless someone else, I always receive the greater blessing. If I want to
keep the blessings coming, sometimes I need to reach out to strangers.
And there you have it for today, and I hope this and previous articles and
subsequent ones have been and will continue to be blessings for you.
You know, before the advent of the Internet most of us didn't know one
another, but what blessings we have received in communicating via e-mail!
And the blessings? Well, if we were to list them all from the contacts we
have made, whether via a list or individually, the lists would contain
nothing but appreciation for what this person or that person has done or
said. That may not be a bad thing in and of itself. However, don't get the
idea that because you have been a blessing to someone don't get a swelled
head, otherwise Dr. God may just come and do a spiritual lance on that
swelling!
And that will do it for today. Until tomorrow when, Lord willing another
Daily Thought message will be presented, may the God of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, in these last days
in which we live. Your Christian friend and brother, Paul
------------------------------
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End of Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8
*****************************************
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Ericka J. Short
262-697-0510
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". Philippians 4:13
"No hand is too small or too big to do good in this world." EJ. Short
------------------------------
Message: 15
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 20:57:27 -0800
From: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>
To: "'Ericka Short'" <ericka.short at wi.rr.com>, "'Faith-talk, for the
discussion of faith and religion'" <faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8
Message-ID: <009201cfb5e9$eab96620$c02c3260$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Hello Erica, your advice to check my spelling and punctuation made me laugh.
That is one of my Achilles heels. I also wrote most of this in note pad on
the fly and never really properly formatted it, but I am slowly trying to
return to it. I just have a few other irons in the fire and this is the
coldest one of them. Thanks for your feedback, will be posting another
chapter soon.
-----Original Message-----
From: Faith-talk [mailto:faith-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Ericka
Short via Faith-talk
Sent: Monday, August 11, 2014 6:05 PM
To: faith-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [Faith-talk] Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8
Check your spelling and punctuation, but it looks interesting Poppa Bear. I
like reading these kind of books. I suggest rewriting the entire draft with
narration because it would bring the book to life as this chapter does. It
brings such depth to characters when narration is used and it draws in the
reader to care about the characters in the story. It also keeps
readers going and they remember the message you are intending to share
such as "evangelism is simpler than you think" or "the importance of caring
for others in changing lives".
Ericka
-----Original Message-----
From: faith-talk-request at nfbnet.org
Sent: Friday, August 08, 2014 7:00 AM
To: faith-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 8
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than "Re: Contents of Faith-talk digest..."
Today's Topics:
1. Chapter 9 of my novel (Poppa Bear)
2. Daily Thought for Thursday, August 7, 2014 (Paul)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Thu, 7 Aug 2014 09:18:06 -0800
From: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>
To: "'Faith-talk, for the discussion of faith and religion'"
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Chapter 9 of my novel
Message-ID: <001a01cfb263$8f4d0690$ade713b0$@com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Here goes another chapter. I didn't realize that I had written so much in
this particular book so far. I am noticing that I am imparting more
narrative dialog and am considering redrafting a large portion. Well, enjoy
Chapter 9
The next day while Luke was seated in a chair facing the window righting
down some thoughts he heard the door open and looking up he saw Alli
approaching with a nurses cart and a smile. The smile was returned by Luke
and the blood rushed to Alli's cheeks and she stammered out her mission.
"Uh, I am just going to change your bandages, check your vitals and make
sure that you are doing all right." "All right, I was wondering if I was
doing all right myself. I think I have been sitting here for the last two
hours just looking at the mountains and I was gazing at them for so long I
was starting to wonder if they wanted to speak to me." At this point Alli
became a little weary. Being a nurse she had often seen people who had
suffered from head injuries become delusional, but when she saw a twinkle in
Luke's eyes and a little grin she relaxed and felt more at ease.
On Alli's entrance into the room Luke had noticed that she was a little
nervous and he wanted to help her forget any embarrassment from the previous
day so he focused their attention on his mental health with the joking
remark. It seemed to work as Alli relaxed and became more natural in her
nursing duties and deftly started to prepare his bandages and unwrap his old
one and clean the bullet wound. As she was finishing she said, "I talked to
the elders of our church and they would like to meet with you tomorrow if at
all possible." Alli unconsciously held her breath a little as she waited for
Luke's response. "That is fine, I may be checking out of here in two days
they say, and I would like to meet with the elders too, so we can talk about
your needs and see if it would be helpful for me to serve with your church."
Alli looking to add an incentive blurted out, "The church is a very
popular church and I am sure the pay is good!" At this remark Luke slightly
winced, but Alli was behind him cutting off the bandage tape so she did not
see his expression. "Well, in my experience popularity and money have not
always made the best impact in furthering the work of the kingdom. I imagine
that Jesus could have had both during His ministry, but saw that both may do
more to disillusion and harm the work of the kingdom when used by men with
more good intentions than faith in the Fathers provisions. Money and
popularity have their place, but I have found that they are better left in
the Fathers grip when doing the Lords will." At this point Alli's religious
training and personal opinion came to the forefront of the conversation.
"What, do you think that money is evil?" Though it was said innocently
enough Luke detected a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
Luke tried to choose his next words carefully for the fact that in his
experience most people did not really examine the situation in a way that
really related to the biblical story of Jesus and his disciples. "Well, in
the life of Jesus how much did you see the role of popularity and money come
into play? Were they positive ways or negative ways?" Alli's eye brows rose
in a thoughtful gesture and she said, well it didn't seem like Jesus had a
lot of money, but with all of His powers I would think that He didn't need
the money." "Well, that is one way to look at it, but if he was fully god
and yet fully man with all of our human feelings, thoughts and limitations
do you think that he might have entertained the idea of having things that
may have made His life a little easier and thought about what it was like to
possess some of the comforts that were around in his day and age? I mean, do
you think that as he walked for miles and miles each day over dusty and
muddy roads throughout his ministry hot and tired, seeing the Romans and
wealthy Jews riding past in nice comfortable chariots, donkey's and nicely
furnished camels that he may have known that by having more money that He
could have purchased a bit of this convenience to be able to travel in
ease to proclaim His important message? I think I would have considered
something like that once or twice in 33 years perhaps." Alli replied," I
guess that when I think of Jesus I think of his miraculous powers and
sayings more than anything."
Now the ball was back in Luke's court and he didn't necessarily want to pore
out more thoughts than Alli was able to deal with in a brief conversation
where she was at work and had other duties to perform, so he tried to taper
off the conversation with a last thought that he hoped might find fertile
ground in her mind and take shape eventually. "I think that if Jesus only
wanted us to focus on his miraculous powers and sayings he would not have
become man and shared our weaknesses, sorrows and temptations when it would
have been so much more pleasant for Him to just shout down from the heavens
at us and perform as many miraculous signs as He wanted and not have to
stoop to such humiliation that He had to endure in a human life of betrayal
and crucifixion."
Luke did not drive any points home regarding money with this last thought
because he felt that as important as understanding how money and popularity
can play into the role of our lives was, he knew that a better understanding
of who Jesus was as He lived, labored and loved was even more important as a
foundational building block for deepening our faith and our understanding of
the Son of man. When that hunger which is so important of becoming consumed
with how Jesus walked in this world as a man who was the noblest, humblest,
kindest, and wisest and most obedient person who ever walked the face of the
earth becomes real to us, we can start to connect with Him in a more
intimate level than if we were just to live off the snap shots that we
receive of Him in the bible and weekend messages. The Spirit is constantly
revealing to us who Jesus was and is as our desire to know grows we are
brought closer to that reality of the life that changed eternity.
The next afternoon Ben Miller and Ed Long were escorted into Luke's room
by Alli. Luke had regained much of his color back from the ordeal and his
cheeks were starting to lose the gauntness that had ravished some of the
fuller features of his face. Luke was not striking in the popular since, but
with fine even features and a strong jaw that was somewhat hidden by a soft
boyish mouth and a pair of keen gray eyes he was not un pleasing to look at
by any means. Even sitting in a hospital bed with a bandage covering the
thick dark curls he still had a vibrant presents of health and vigor that
seemed to radiate a glow around him.
The last 3 days had been very long ones for the 2 elders. Neither men had
had much sleep over the course of the last few nights. Within recent months
their levels of stress had been so straining that it looked like they both
had aged an extra 10 years in a matter of months. They both entered the room
with weary expressions on their faces. They were both attempting to mask
their real feelings with the typical Sunday morning smiles and nods, but
Luke was much too observant to not feel for the two men in their apparent
dilemma and discomfort.
Even Ed in his dark navy blue suit looked a little subdued. His habitual
scowl had been reduced to a mild look of irritation. His eagle eyes were
never the less alert and suspicious. Being one who always grasped for the
advantage of a situation he was constantly on the lookout for anybody who
might try and pry the power he held from his desperate grip.
Ben looked as tired as an old wrinkled pug. His was the look of a young boy
who had aged over night. His hair was not yet fully gray, his eyes were
clear and had a look that said, I would rather be laughing, but I am forced
by circumstance to be stressed and miserable like the animal at the zoo that
can only attempt to enjoy himself and make the best of its situation,
knowing by instinct that captivity is not its natural habitat and its home
does not consist of a fence, a few trees and laughing tourists taking
pictures and throwing peanuts. His was a bondage that was exacting all of
the life out of his boyish heart and usurping rule over his aging spirit
making his life one long uphill walk without any particular destination
except to make the church budget stretch as far as possible and be able to
pay bills on time.
It was no surprise that Luke instantly had a desire to help these two men.
He could recognize a hardness in Ed, but his compassion saw beyond the
weasel, the pride filled demeanor and he saw a neighbor in need. The
underlining suffering of Ben was clearly and painstakingly obvious to Luke's
discerning spirit. His heart went out to that fellow brother and though Ben
was many years Luke's senior, the love of Luke was continually growing as
deep and old as the story of Jesus and the woman at the well. The eyes that
are clear see spiritually, and spiritually Luke was automatically resigned
to help these two as much as he could within the confines of the fathers
will. Perhaps that since Luke had been an orphan he was much more sensitive
to the distress of his fellow human being, but whatever the case he was all
compassion for the situation at this point.
Luke's frank and yet inviting gaze put the two off their guard a little.
Both men seemed to expect to find someone who looked a little more common
place. In their minds anyone who would choose to live in a village
voluntarily was either fairly desperate or fanatical in their evangelistic
pursuits. Luke's intelligent countenance seemed to take in more than the two
elders expected.
There are times when we encounter, or have existing relationships where
words aren't always necessary to communicate the understanding of a
situation. There are observations that two people of the same turn of mind
and habits may make, coming to similar conclusions with the ability to
communicate those conclusions through a quick glance or a subtle turn of the
head. There is also a point when just the feeling of an understanding may be
presented as an unspoken presentiment and the explanation of the why and how
is left a mystery to us.
When these three met all of these things were taking place on different
levels. Luke felt in his heart of hearts that he would love to bring these
men out of their predicament with the main reason being that he simply
wanted to minister to any needs that could help them to become closer to the
Son of man's heeling power. In their work worn expressions he saw the main
thing, which was that their eyes were strictly on the situation and its
staggering overwhelming pressure and not on the ability of the Master. It
was this fact or impression that caused Luke to have a spiritual prompting.
These are unfortunately not always followed, but the children of God who are
led by the Spirit are those who have exercised their faith and obedience by
following the quiet and often nameless promptings and in doing this become a
tool in the hands of the Master craftsmen continually working out the nuts
and bolts of the Kingdom. In this case the prompting caused Luke's heart to
leap towards the two and cast off some of his normal reserve.
On the same turn both of the elders had immediately acknowledged in their
own minds and conceded to one another through one of those small glances
that this young man was different from their elementary views of what a man
of the cloth can look like in this day and age who chooses to make a
sacrifice for Christ in a small village in northern Alaska away from earthly
success and hopes of monetary gain. Though the two parties were on different
levels with different goals, it was apparent that a hand had moved in such a
way to bring the work and the tool together to start a difficult job of
trying to restore a broken body of believers who had been fed an unwholesome
diet of popular religion and false impressions of Christ that were leading
to more and more self disillusion for the members of the Good Sheppard
Community Church of Anchorage.
Both men took a seat on the small and stiff hospital couch across from Luke
without greeting him. Then as if they both became conscious of their
impropriety they both rose simultaneously. Ed extended his thin wiry hand
and gave Luke's hand a quick business like shake. He introduced himself,
"Hello, I am Ed Long, I am an elder at our church and this is Ben Miller, he
is also an elder at the church." As Ben grabbed Luke's hand Ben
unconsciously gave a little squeeze. Luke returned the squeeze with a warm
familiar grasp that made the older man flash a thankful look of gratitude
towards Luke.
"It is nice to meet both of you. Allison my nurse hasn't been able to talk
to me much about your church because she is very busy around here, but I
have been waiting to meet you two and learn more about your work." Ed put on
his best Sunday face in spite of Luke's open and inviting countenance and
started rolling off what sounded like a pre written commercial for the
church and in the circumstances it looked like a silly pantomime of a puppet
trying to make an adult laugh without much hope. "Well, we are a very
popular church with many outstanding members who are very well known in the
city! We have a really talented worship leader who has an extensive
background in music. We also just invested in a top of the line sound system
that really has been a great addition to the church!"
Ben seemed to sink lower and lower into his seat as Ed continued in the same
vein, proclaiming all of the churches fine accomplishments. He could feel
that as fine as the facts looked, the reality was that they were sinking and
sinking very quickly. Ed's description made the church sound like a chariot
of fire making a whirlwind of improvements that were revolutionizing the
city and drawing out the aristocracy of the town in droves. As Ed continued
to make his spill he quickly glanced over at Ben and seeing the look on
Ben's face, he was somewhat brought back to the reality of their situation
and though he may or may have not felt the superciliousness of many of his
statements, he soon fell quiet. Glancing over at Ben he recognized an
expression of exhaustion mingled with another one of irritation. Only
slightly abashed he murmured out another sentence or two and then sat there
a little bewildered as if his whole game plan was taken from him.
Luke then spoke, "Well, it sounds like your church is doing allot, but I
guess I would like to know a little more about your mission as a church? How
is it that you are in need of a pastor at this time?" Ed now turned to Ben
as if he wanted him to speak now, and Ben sitting up tried to shake off the
cloud of despair and spoke, "Well, to be honest, we haven't made the best
decisions over the last few years with managing our budget and we have
fallen into a, well, quite frankly a financial crises." Luke's face wore a
sympathetic look that encouraged Ben to continue explaining the details and
then Ben quickly relayed the incident with Richard and how he had abruptly
left, and not on the friendliest terms.
Then Luke asked, "Have you and your church prayed about this decision?" The
two men's faces went red with embarrassment and the answer was obvious to
Luke, but not wanting to carry the men's evident discomfiture any further he
graciously said, "Gentlemen, this is an extremely important decision to make
and the accountability of your positions as well as mine is a thing that is
not to be taken lightly. I have prayed over the situation myself, and threw
the need you have and the answers I feel pressing on my heart I feel that I
can be a pastor for your church while needed. I do not want to be
presumptuous in my thoughts though and think that I am what you are
necessarily looking for, so at this point all I can say is that I am
willing, but whether or not you would like to have me as a minister at your
church is up to the two of you."
Ben had already came to a conclusion in his mind and it was to except this
young man that somehow or another seemed to revive his spirits in a way that
he had not felt in many years. Ed on the other hand still had his
reservations as his heart was overflowing, full of worldly cares and while
Ben was being revived in his soul, Ed was busy thinking more about wages,
popularity, attendance and a myriad of other things that seemed to be more
related to running a Broadway show than a congregation of believers, but
perhaps these so called believers were more like a Broadway crowd of
spectators attending the show for amusement, public recognition, social
stimulation and a break from the monotonous rat race that plagued many if
not all throughout their weary week.
Ed was the first to speak for in his mind the decision would greatly depend
on that topic which has been the topic that has festered in men's breast as
far back as when men mounted camels in the desert, the tent dwellers of
Assyria who traded the shiny pieces of silver and gold for the spices and
fine spun linen of the sons and daughters of the Nile who were master
craftsmen in all forms of things that delighted the eyes and stimulated the
senses. This topic was of course, money, how much would it cost to obtain
this safety net? For in Ed's mind this was more or less what this was, a
last minute improvisation of a back woods village preacher. Ed's eyes were
too dimmed by spiritual fog to recognize that he was attempting to walk and
be guided while holding a lantern that had no oil and could not light his
way. This being the case his steps were abrupt, shaky and often right on top
of the toes of many who were unfortunate to be in his way and often trying
to assist in filling his lamp up with the oil of the spirit.
"Well, Luke, um, we don't have a large budget right now, so I don't want to
mislead you just because we are a popular church. Some might think that we
could give a large salary to you, but unfortunately we could only offer you
a small amount for your services at this time. I think that we could
probably pay you $200 a week. Your work would only include giving the Sunday
morning message." Ben couldn't speak at this point do to the anger and shame
that had got a hold of him.
Luke discerned that there was a cloud over Bens spirit, but did not seek
to probe into the matter, rather he simply just said, "That would be fine."
With that, Ben regained his speech and he spiritedly said, "Well, I think we
can do a little better than that." As he spoke he looked straight at Ed with
a warning glint in his weary eye.
Luke, who was always seeking to follow the Spirit, didn't impulsively
just blurt out some words to diffuse the situation. Luke looked for ways to
make deep and lasting investments in people's lives through his words,
thoughts and actions. It is easy to want to make everybody happy, but
another thing to seek to infuse a glimmer of the Master into their lives so
that His presence becomes a living reality to them.
Many thoughts went through Luke's mind, but in a matter of seconds he had
thought of a proposal that might be able to help him to achieve a goal that
was more valuable than dollars and cents. "Perhaps I could stay at the
church if there is room. I only need a cot and a place to wash up. This way
you do not have to put out money that may be better spent in another area
and I can use some space in the church that is not in use."
The simplistic novelty of the proposal seemed so child like to Ben and Ed
that their mouths seemed to open and close as if they were gasping for air.
To the two men dressed in costly winter coats and stylish insulated boots
the idea seemed foreign. How could a person with any amount of learning or
culture request such primitive accommodations?
Ed shot a side glance at Ben and his eyes seemed to roll as a small
smear fleeted across his face, but Ben bitterly remembering the fact that
they were well beyond the point of picking and choosing and that it was
largely because of Ed, said, "We will try it out and see how it works."
Before any more words could pass between the 3 men, the door opened and
Alli stepped in looking a little nervous, as well as curious. Her
nervousness abated as Luke smiled up at her from the hospital bed and the
boyish expression on his face seemed to melt her heart as she forgot about
the problems of the building that she called a church and the human need to
serve the sick and hurt kicked in and before wanting to know anything about
the meeting, she wanted to check on the comfort of her patient.
One of Alli's gifts was the ability to feel others pain and discomfort
and take action to try and ease their burdens.
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Thu, 7 Aug 2014 14:36:09 -0400
From: "Paul" <oilofgladness47 at gmail.com>
To: "Spiritual discussion list"
<room-for-your-beliefs at list.tafn.org.uk>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Thursday, August 7, 2014
Message-ID: <DA65FCC17F9C4626862408E15AD5E0BE at paul>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hello and good day to you all on this Thursday or, for you in Australia and
New Zealand, an early Friday morning as this is being written. I hope that
your day is going well, by God's matchless grace and His providential care.
This article will be of special interest to you ladies who like to make
things out of fabric, and especially blankets. However for the rest of us,
there's something in it for you as well, if you'll take time to "read
between the lines." The story in question was written by Esther M. Bailey
from Arizona, and is entitled "A Blessing I Almost Missed," rendered as
follows:
I wonder how many times I miss a blessing because I don't reach out to
strangers. How many times do I miss an opportunity to bring a blessing to
someone else? An idea for conversation may even come to mind, but I usually
remain silent.
My friend Jenny helped me overcome my reticence while we were shopping at a
fabric store. I had purchased a king size quilt for a queen bed because I
didn't want to use a bed skirt. The length, however, gave me only a
twelve-inch drop. I needed nine more inches across the bottom to complete
the design of the quilt.
With one of the pillow shams in hand, Jenny and I began to look for fabric
that would blend with the bright colored quilt. "This isn't bad," Jenny
said as she fingered a red fabric with a scattering of tiny white leaves.
It would blend with the panels running down the sides except it was
brighter. I found a similar fabric that was more subdued than the side
panels.
Since neither of us could decide between the two, Jenny said to a lady who
stood nearby, "Which do you think blends better?"
Pointing to the brighter color, she said, "That one." Her idea was good
enough for us.
When I learned that the lady was also shopping for fabric for a quilt, I
said, "I should send you what's left of my material." I needed a three-yard
long piece of cloth but only half a yard wide.
"Yes, I can always use extra fabric," she replied with a smile.
After paying for my purchase, I again approached the lady. "I'll be glad to
have it cut in two and give half of it to you."
"You would just throw it away?" she asked. In response to my affirmative
reply, she said, "Yes, I'll be glad to get it."
While the clerk cut the fabric for us, my new friend explained her ongoing
project. In the church she attended, hers was one of six homes that took in
foster children. Each time a family took in a new foster child, the church
presented the child with a quilt. The woman also participated in making the
quilts.
"Wow! What a cool project," I said. I like to hear about unique ways of
making a difference in the lives of others, and this was one of the best.
Even though I had only a small part in a major enterprise, I left the store
that day with my heart full of joy. When I take advantage of an opportunity
to bless someone else, I always receive the greater blessing. If I want to
keep the blessings coming, sometimes I need to reach out to strangers.
And there you have it for today, and I hope this and previous articles and
subsequent ones have been and will continue to be blessings for you.
You know, before the advent of the Internet most of us didn't know one
another, but what blessings we have received in communicating via e-mail!
And the blessings? Well, if we were to list them all from the contacts we
have made, whether via a list or individually, the lists would contain
nothing but appreciation for what this person or that person has done or
said. That may not be a bad thing in and of itself. However, don't get the
idea that because you have been a blessing to someone don't get a swelled
head, otherwise Dr. God may just come and do a spiritual lance on that
swelling!
And that will do it for today. Until tomorrow when, Lord willing another
Daily Thought message will be presented, may the God of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, in these last days
in which we live. Your Christian friend and brother, Paul
------------------------------
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"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". Philippians 4:13
"No hand is too small or too big to do good in this world." EJ. Short
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Message: 16
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 21:21:41 -0800
From: "Poppa Bear" <heavens4real at gmail.com>
To: "'Faith-talk, for the discussion of faith and religion'"
<faith-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Chapter 10 of my novel
Message-ID: <009301cfb5ed$4d595350$e80bf9f0$@com>
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To those who have been enjoying my unfinished book so far I thank you for
taking the time to continue on this little journey.
Chapter 10
Ed and Ben had met with Luke earlier in the week and now Sunday was
quickly approaching. The two elders had been walking on pins since the
meeting and tensions were mounting. Ed had got out of his car on Saturday
morning, saw a homeless native man bundled up in a sleeping bag in some
shrubbery, walked over to him, quickly looked to the left and right and
gave him a quick kick as he roused him awake and ran him off.
Ben had been extremely irritable at home and his wife was taking the
blunt of his stress He became sharp with her on many occasions, only to feel
angry with himself after he had let some hurtful words fly at her. When the
grand kids came over on Thursday night he stayed in his office the whole
time. Typically he would have dropped anything to spend a few minutes with
them. Instead of feeding on the word in his office, he crunched number after
number trying to figure out how to cut church costs and the more he
crunched, the angrier he became with what he saw as waist on needless
comforts and accommodations.
Alli was dealing with problems of her own as the week progressed. It was
true that she received a great since of fulfillment at her job, but the
tides of life were steadily chipping away at her fragile wall of security on
a daily basses. One minute she would think that she had the ideal life and
then the next she would feel depressed, unattractive and lonely. To top it
off, she was starting to have second thoughts about her relationship with
Mike, the handsome and seemingly flawless worship leader.
Since the meeting Luke had been doing what he normally did, spending a
lot of time in the word, going before the thrown of the Father to commune,
giving thanks and seeking for guidance to help minister to his fellow
brothers and sisters. This week he had constantly been drawn to read a few
older writings of some compelling Scottish Divines that used rich and
powerful words that made him feel as if God was right before him placing his
hand in his very own.
He had no master plan to miraculously snatch the church out of all of
its problems, or to convert the entire town. His plan was to seek enough
light to carry out what was before him at that particular moment. Right now,
the task consisted in thinking about a message for the coming Sunday.
On Saturday night he had been encamped in an old room above the
sanctuary which over looked the Anchorage park strip and part of the Down
town area. The room was very modest by many standards, but after spending
several years in the villages with not much more personal space than a
closet, the small room was more than adequate for his needs.
He had been provided with a twin mattress that sat upon a nondescript
old battered wood frame. There appeared to be a nicely worn handmade quilt
on top with a thick wooly blanket beneath that along with a faded pair of
flannel sheets as the foundation separating tired body from the ruff
scratchy wool and the old warn mattress.
Next to his bed sat a small rickety wooden stool that he accommodated
for a bed side table. On the small table he placed his bible, old coffee cup
and a very dated silver wined up clock. More than that could not fit.
There was also an old teacher's desk that was mammoth in proportion,
made of oak and looked like it had seen its fare share of years in a class
room starting at the turn of the century. The chare that was slid under the
desk was Spartan in appearance, for it looked like it could blister the
bottom and provide a memorable back ache all in one short sitting.
Where the large desk was once dusty and covered in boxes, it now held a
dozen books or so. There was the Matthew Henry's concise commentary on the
whole bible, also called the poor man's commentary, the Treasury of David by
Spurgeon, the Valley of Vision, Unspoken Sermons by McDonald and a large
parallel bible containing 4 English translations as well as Greek and
Hebrew. Along with this were other books, but these were the most likely to
be grabbed on those occasional long sleepless nights or rambling walks.
The scarred desktop also held about 5 worn notepads which were filled
with both finished and unfinished sermons and even a smatter of poetry
mingled with wondering thoughts. Centered in the middle of the desk,
somebody had placed a gaudy shiny new calendar with the words "The Good
Sheppard" written in old English across the top. The last occupant of the
aged desk was a small forsaken casino green table lamp with a flexible arm
and a faded brownish colored pull string that was the soul means of
artificial lighting in the room.
The floor of the rectangle shaped room was a smooth and faded solid hard
wood. The walls which had been bare bone now held 6 or so nice size heavily
creased maps. The maps included the Holy land, the Province of Asia Minor,
an old looking map of the Roman Empire and two newer maps of Russia and
Alaska.
As he pored over his bible gathering thoughts for the coming day he
could hear the music from the sanctuary below. Saturday evenings were always
reserved for song rehearsal. He was a person who enjoyed music, but never
the less; his spirit was not soothed by the songs which were being sung
below. The music seemed to have an eerie resemblance to the modern day pop
ditties that seemed to only scrape the shallow surfaces of what, too him,
was created to be a rich ocean of treasures and worshipful expressions.
Never the less he was soon lost in the scriptures and the outer sounds did
not penetrate the inner meditations
When Sunday morning arrived Luke felt calm and focused. His focus was
not on one particular plan, but rather it was on being open to the Spirits
guiding influence. He felt like it was Christmas morning and as he looked at
every new face he felt as if they were gifts waiting to be unwrapped.
He walked around the foyer simply observing the people as they came in.
Some were dressed in suits which could have been Taylor fit; the cuts were
so precise and business like. Others wore the typical department store suit
and tie while the dress of the women varied from modest dresses, to tight
pants and form fitting low cut blouses and sweaters which seemed to have the
potential to attract one too many glances from the opposite sex.
Jewelry was worn liberally by many of the women, and designer purses
hung from many a wrist
Mike Carder the worship leader approached the podium, grabbed a
microphone, greeted everyone, centered himself on the stage and then
launched into a song. People filed into their chares at this point and
started to focus on the performance. About 20 percent of the crowd joined in
as the words of the songs skipped across two large screens and thundered
over a myriad of large speakers placed on the walls of the sanctuary. Others
looked on as if they were semi board, while others seemed to scout around
the room looking to see who was there.
Earlier that morning Ed had quickly briefed Luke on the normal routine
of requesting any distinguishing politicians in the crowd to stand up to be
recognized. Ed explained to Luke that this helped enhanced their standing as
a church in the city and it was a very important part of their service at
the "Good Sheppard."
Ed now approached the podium, smiled profusely, made some announcements,
prayed for the offering and announced that they would have a guest speaker
today. All and all it had the feel of an intro to an infomercial. Most of
the crowd stared on as if they were at a seminar, a subtle excitement was
there, but it was the anticipation that belongs to customers waiting to get
their monies worth.
After the offering plates were gathered Luke approached the podium. His
attire was modest, no jewelry, fancy shoes or shiny new bible. His suit
could have been any ware from 10 days old to 20 years old. His bible was
bound in black leather and very, very worn.
His movements as he made his way toward the front were leisurely and
without ceremony or affectation. He looked into the rows of people and made
eye contact with many, never just glancing at a person, but actually
acknowledging them through his eyes. His eyes were probably his most
distinguishing feature because they were not just simply two round orbs that
provided vision, they were stirring portraits which could both send and
receive powerful emotions. They could carry a look of softness at times that
could give comforting warmth like a ray of sunshine on a chilly day and at
other times they could flash with a look of compassion that was so deep, it
would make you think that he was literally experiencing the suffering of the
suffering that he was only witnessing.
He smiled warmly to the people nearest him and the smile was so infectious
that some women in the first row even turned away with a look of shy
childlike embarrassment on their blushing faces as they encountered the
frank and open smile of Luke. His stature was not imposing, but yet there
was a kind of rugged and vibrant looking strength that underlined his 5-10,
175 pound frame. A small patch of white could be seen peeking out from under
his dark black locks of hair where the bandage lay over his wound, but this
seemed to only add to his presence rather than mar it in any way.
After offering up a short, but precise prayer he thanked the people,
then immediately launched into his message. The fact that he completely
skipped Ed's most prized part of the entire service, the introduction of the
local big wigs in the audience, made Ed almost choke on his coffee as he
sipped it. This was highly frustrating for him because he took particular
pride in the "who's Who" of the church.
For Ed and many people their personal wishes are not simply wishes, but
exacting laws that carry the same weight of the 12 tables in ancient Rome
where Cicero once stated, "Though all the world exclaim against me, I will
say what I think: that single little book of the 12 tables, if anyone look
to the fountain and sources of laws, seems to me, assuredly, to surpass the
libraries of all the philosophers, both in weight of authority, and
plenitude of utility."
Now that Ed's grand laws had been broken, it was like the law of the 12
tables were fractured where in the violator could be compelled to undergo
excruciating consequences until the violated was appeased, who was Ed in
this case. From this point, Ed's mind instantly started prospecting
candidates who could temporary take the place of this insolent preacher.
Though Ed could occasionally be cowed when he felt he was in the wrong, it
was only by people who he considered to be equals or superiors. In this case
Luke was far from either to him.
"Our text this morning will be found in the tenth chapter of the book of
John. The book of John is in the New Testament and it is after the book of
Luke and before the book of Acts. Then we will read the 23 Psalm. As I read
the word may we please stand to show our respect to God's word, if you are
unable to stand do to health or personal reasons then pleas remain seated."
Ed was indeed tempted to stay seated, but thought about his image and arose
as most of the people did.
John 10: 10-15 "I am the good Sheppard. The good Sheppard lays down his
life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the Sheppard who owns the sheep.
So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then
the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is
a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
I am the good Sheppard: and I know my sheep and my sheep know me- just as
the father knows me and I know the father-I lay down my life for the sheep."
He then went on to read the 23rd Psalm.
"I have read two portions of scripture this morning that for me are
vital parts of my relationship with Jesus. It gives way to the reality of
God's love for not only me, but all of us, illustrating a care that is so
consuming and tedious that it could only come from the heart of God.
The title that Jesus gives his self in the chapter of John is the name
that this church chooses to use as the representing thought of this body of
believers and I hope that each of us can come to appreciate and have a fawn
affection for the title, "Good Sheppard."
As many of us sit here in a beautiful warm building, in nice padded
seats with homes and soft beds to go home to, it may be somewhat difficult
to connect with the title "Sheppard," We have seen the somber looking
portraits of a lone Sheppard on the picturesque mountain side tending sheep
with a club, Sheppard's crook and a flowing robe looking over a kindly flock
of snow white sheep. But with this idea, the contented looking sheep
serenely munching on luscious green grass, do we really understand how the
words of Jesus could tie into this picture? I imagine that in order to
really grasp the substance of His words we would have to go beyond the
canvas and into the life of these nomadic people known as Sheppard's."
Luke deftly laid out the outer workings of a Sheppard's life. He
addressed the typical upbringing of a Sheppard child, hardships, education,
and expectations, how they were looked down upon by the cultures where they
dwelt and the connection between these people and the nation of Israel. His
History was so informative and accurate you might have thought he had been
brought up on the Judean hills from his childhood.
He then dove into a portion of his message that seemed to immediately
get the attention of more than a few hungry onlookers. His words seemed to
cut through the air with a living force that was consumed with passion and a
genuine plea. The plea was not one of a pitiful supplication for people to
be satisfied with his words, but a powerful plea for people to see that
Jesus was alive, alive even in the midst of this lowly illustration, and
alive in a way that no one in our lives could ever be.
"Every sheep was of the most priority to the Sheppard. He was familiar
with every movement of his flock. He had to know what kind of grass they
were eating, every bite, for the hills were plagued with poisonous shrubbery
that could harm a sheep.
The Sheppard had to constantly examine the fleece of every sheep for
parasites, disease and infections. If a sheep moved too fast he found out
why, if too slow he had to check on it as well.
No sheep could be out of his sight for a minute because of ravenous
predators. There were deadly flash floods, treacherous cliffs, and a myriad
of other things that the Sheppard had to be concerned about.
The Sheppard's concern was for every bleat, every look, breath and
movement of his flock. This is a picture of Jesus and the sheep are the
picture of us." He will not lose one sheep the scripture says and he will
lay down His own life for His sheep."
The illustration that Luke portrayed is difficult to put into words, how
can you capture such pathos, love, tenderness, constancy and zeal that were
both poured out by the speaker and brought forth in the words that he spoke.
He almost seemed to have a look of Holy amazement on his face as he spoke,
as if he was in ah, receiving the truths for the first time himself.
These were not first time truths to the man though, it was the fact that
when the words of God that he meditated on day and night broke forth from
his mouth, a kind of Holy unction took hold of him and a fire filled his
bones. At times in his life after giving a message he would quickly go to
his room and drop to his knees with tears running down his face as he became
cot up in the eternal words and stories that seemed to bring the face of God
right before him.
Before he ended his message he gave an invitation to come forward and
receive Christ. Ed and Ben immediately looked at each other in alarm. This
was not a practice at this church, somewhere along the line of creating the
most comfortable and attractive environment possible, giving invitations to
actually become a follower of Christ had became nonexistent.
Making an alter call seemed old fashion and too denominational for many
people. On top of that, it was uncomfortable. It brought people to the real
fork in the road, and the fork wasn't stuck in the middle of a nice sirloin
steak, it was right in the middle of their soul, and it was not comforting
to have to deal with that fork and choose which side of it you were going to
travel on.
As Luke gave the final words of his invitation he asked everybody to
close their eyes and bow their heads. When he almost seemed done, as if in
harmony 2 people arose on opposite sides of the room and started coming
forward.
One of the on comers was a young girl about 14 and the other was a
middle age rougher looking man who was dressed in blue jeans, work boots and
a worn flannel. They both looked like deer who had stumbled out into the
path of a fleet of 18 wheelers, but as if an invisible string pulled them
forward, neither swerved to the left or the right.
Luke reached out his hands to both, as they both seemed to arrive
simultaneously. Without hesitation they both took a hand. The tender soft
hand of the one and the ruff callus covered work hand of the other were both
grasped by the firm hands of the preacher, the man with the fiery words that
seemed to burn the soul clean with the story of this Good Sheppard. The tiny
hand of the young girl and the big strong hand of the man both seemed to
tremble as if they were holding up a million pounds and the strain of it
were too much to bear.
Luke simply asked, "Do you two want to follow this Sheppard who laid
down His life for you?" They both meekly nodded yes. "Do you believe that he
can forgive you your sins and save your souls?" Again they both knotted.
Luke started to kneel down, and they both seemed to instinctively follow
and squeezing both of their hands he told them to repeat a short prayer. He
then placed his hands on their heads and as the patriarchs of old, he asked
God's blessings on these new children of the kingdom. As he prayed tears and
sobs racked the body of the young girl who was in the bloom of life, and hot
tears also flowed freely from the clinched eyes of the older work worn man.
As Ed and Ben looked on, both were feeling strong emotions. Ed's
feelings sat in the realm of shock and embarrassment while Ben's were
feelings of a deep longing and an exhausting tiredness. As the two new
believers sat before him, heads bowed, tears running down their faces, one
large burning tear escaped Bens left eye and rolled down his cheek. He
quickly wiped it away, why, he did not know.
Alli sat a little aw struck because she had never felt the reality of
Jesus as a real life person to be so vivid and palpable. She was almost in a
daze as she just seemed to sit there. Even when most of the congregation
started to get up to say by to one another she still just sat there looking
down at her feet.
She had a rush of feelings and new thoughts pulsating through her body,
almost sparkling and bubbling up like a stream of living water. In the midst
of the flood of these emotions she had one particular revelation, something
like an epiphany. She knew at that second that she had never really known
Jesus and this was her first glimpse into His face and it was so beautiful,
so powerful that she was lost in a deep since of joy, mingled with an
inexplicable since of sorrow. A few large tears rolled down her smooth
cheeks breaking in on her momentary reverie.
The joy she felt was due to the fact that she had now really tasted the
living water and new it was the only thing that could really ever quenched
the thirst and longing that lay within her confused heart. The sorrow was
twofold. First she had lived so long without seeing a living portrait of the
Savior, and second was she felt that the moment would pass and she didn't
know what to do to retain the since of His presence shining so brightly in
her mind's eye.
------------------------------
Message: 17
Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 06:53:08 -0400
From: "Paul" <oilofgladness47 at gmail.com>
To: <iccpray at yahoogroups.com>
Subject: [Faith-talk] Fw: My Niece Amanda's husband Jamie
Message-ID: <7941959E9003465AB95D526A58A529FF at paul>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
This is a message from one of our church members for prayer. Thanks for
your prayers on his behalf. Paul
----- Original Message -----
From: michelle.mon at comcast.net
To: Lemmon, Nicole ; Tassone, Gina ; Reed, Shelly ; Neary, Jen and Tom ;
Meyerson D.C., Jason ; Meyerson, Kim ; Lazaro, Pat ; Boyes, Gail ; Rathert,
Lisa ; oilofgladness47 at gmail.com ; Frazier, Kassie ; Myronuk, Heathyr
Sent: Monday, August 11, 2014 11:42 PM
Subject: My Niece Amanda's husband Jamie
Hello Everyone,
I wanted to let you know that Jamie's surgery did not happen last week
because they were conducting more tests, but tomorrow, Tuesday August 12th
is the day that they will do the surgery. Please pray for him as the Spirit
leads. Please pass this pray request on to others who can be praying too.
Thank you!
Michelle
------------------------------
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End of Faith-talk Digest, Vol 85, Issue 12
******************************************
-----
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Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
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Ericka J. Short
262-697-0510
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". Philippians 4:13
"No hand is too small or too big to do good in this world." EJ. Short
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