Are You Religious??

ARE YOU RELIGIOUS? If you answered, "Yes", I'll send you a sympathy card, and a coupon for Pepto-Bismol. That's the way Martin Zender put it in his book, "How to Quit Church Without Quitting God". If you want to know what it means to be religious, including a good definition of the word, follow this link to the Gospelogic article:

http://www.gospelogic.com/articles/religion2.htm

I think you will be amazed at what you learn. I read Martin's book months ago and it changed my thinking.

PEACE.......

The Blind Horse....

Trailady, over at "My Journey" posted a great story which will make all of us think about who we are and what we do for others.
Here's the link:

http://www.gracewood.blogspot.com/

Hard Times for a Fellow Laborer in Christ

I had written to Martin Zender on several occasions in the past and when nothing new had appeared on his blog and website, I wrote once again inquiring how things were going. The following are some excerpts from his answer:

"I'm in a valley right now as far as ministering to the body of Christ goes. I got discouraged ministering to the body of Christ. I kept working and working and getting poorer and poorer, money-wise. I got by during those days because of a few people like yourself. But relatively speaking, it was too few and my heart soon turned away because I couldn't pay even my basic bills. I wish I was at that place where I can minister freely, but I'm not. I hope not to ignore the body of Christ indefinitely. It is just hard to produce godly work when one is discouraged and even a little bitter. I wish I wasn't bitter. It is not a good spiritual trait. But I'm being honest with you. I would like to make enough money from it to be able to serve the body of Christ without having to worry about sustenance. But I know that I have so much more to offer. I know God isn't finished with me. At least I hope He isn't."

If you know Martin, or have read his books and benefited from them as I have, here's an opportunity to help a brother. Martin did not ask me to do this and would probably be upset if he found out. He is not one to make constant, repeated requests for donations. That's just not Martin. If you can, send a donation to him, in $5.00 increments, on his website under the books section. If you can't send him anything, that's OK. However, if what he has written has made a difference in your life, or your walk with God, PLEASE write him an email of encouragement. It is the least we can do. His email address is under "Return to Zender" on his website. The website address is: http://www.martinzender.com
Pray for Martin........

In Defense of Universalism

Our friend, Steve Jones has a link to a very interesting interview with Gregory MacDonald about his new book, "The Evagelical Universalist". Here's the link:
http://anabaptist.lifewithchrist.org/2006/10/24/ interview-with-gregory-macdonald-part-1.html

Hell Houses

As most of you know, churches all over the country are setting up "Hell Houses" for Halloween to as they say, "scare the Hell out of kids". These "Hell Houses" come in kit form for the church to build for themselves, for only $299!! The object, of course, is to run kids through the "house", simulating Hell with all it's horrors. Frightening them to the point that they will "accept" Christ and be "saved". I was reading in the local paper all the details about the local churches who are participating. The details, complete with pictures, almost brought tears to my eyes. The "fear" factor is the major part of this idea. How very sick this is. What kind of gospel relies on fear to gain followers? The Father and His Son must be very proud of these people. It really hurts my heart to see these tactics used on young people as a way of dispensing the "gospel". What's wrong with this picture????

What the Heck Are We Doing??...OOOOh, I See

Surfing through blogworld, I came upon a neat blog,"Jesus and the End of Religion". I found lots of good reading there. One thing in particular that always catches my eye is a good quote. Guess that's because I have a short attention span (least that's what my wife says). Quotes for the most part are short and to the point. Ponder the following:

"Two thousand years ago God started a revolt against the religion he started. So don't ever put it past God to cause a groundswell movement against churches and Christian institutions that bear his name"

- Erwin McManus


here's the link if you're interested:
http://endreligion.blogspot.com/

NOTE: an earlier version of this post had the wrong link. It has been corrected.

The Point of the Cross of Christ

Our friend Geo made a great statement in a recent post. It came in answer to the old question, "If we're already saved (reconciled, redeemed), what's the point of living a good life"."The whole point of the Cross of Christ was to show us that we can do nothing to reconcile ourselves to God. Upholding the law won’t do it. Being good won’t do it. Being religious won’t do it. Sacrificing won’t do it. There is nothing we can do to make God to include us into His love........". The point of the cross is it's already done. Accept it. Enjoy it. Praise Him for it. God is Love.....When you come to the realization of what Christ did at the cross, the question about living a good life will become moot. God's spirit resides within us. Nuff said....

IMAGINE

Do we really have "free will"? Did we really make that very important decision to "accept Christ" ourselves? Here's a verse to ponder:
"You did not choose me; but it is I who chose you" John 15:16

IMAGINE
Imagine for a moment that eternal torment might be wrong. Imagine it to be the sorry result of one or two key scriptural words mistranslated. Imagine, if you can, that Jesus Christ really did remove sin, just as John the Baptist said He would (John 1:29). Imagine, too, that He will destroy the works of the devil, which scripture says He came to do (I John 3:8). Imagine if you can, that He who wills ALL to be saved (I Timothy 2:4), is able to accomplish what He wills (Ephesians 1:11). Imagine that the same ALL dying in Adam will one day be vivified in Christ (I Cor 15:22). In other words, imagine that the second Adam will do greater good than the first did harm. (Rom 5:18-19); this should not be hard to conceive. Imagine that He is the Savior of ALL mankind (I Timothy 4:10), who will abolish all death, including the second (I Cor 15:26). And can you envision a universe finally freed from sin, all creatures of all time ultimately reconciled to Him (Col 1:16-20)? **


**quoted from "The Really Bad THing About Free Will", by Martin Zender

A Thought for the Weekend.....

I found this wonderful poem/thought at: http://hearhim.net/wordpress It was posted on another blog, "Inspired", by Mary-Anne. Thanks to Mary-Anne.....

Blessed, blessed, blessed beyond measure
This wealth inside of me
Love that has consumed all fear
And set my spirit free

Search, search, searching for approval
I can no longer be
For in His face, I discover
Just how much He thinks of me

Deep, deep, deeper, my gaze into
This law of liberty
Opens my understanding
Of His life abundantly

Joy,joy, joy, uncontainable
Because of what I see
The fruit of what I know it sings
With a voice of faith -”I’m free!”

Peace, peace, peace like an anchor
To my heart
Grounded in the knowledge
That we can never be apart

So blessed, oh world - can’t you see
This gift is not reserved for me
One died for all, so ALL could be
Partakers of this liberty!

God's Grace....................

I keep finding great blogs all the time. Here's a great quote from Trailady's blog, "My Journey". Check it out at:
http://www.gracewood.blogspot.com/


“Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s Grace.
And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s Grace.”
--Jerry Bridges

Chaplain Roy

My good friend, Chaplain Roy has finally launched his own blog. This man has been with more good folks when they passed over to the other side than anyone I know. Check out his blog and welcome him to blogworld. I can assure you that you won't be disappointed in any of his posts. You can find him at:
http://chaplainroy.blogspot.com/

The Fear of Dying

You think that life on Earth is better than life in heaven? I tell you this, at the moment of your death you will realize greatest freedom, the greatest peace, the greatest joy, and the greatest love you have ever known................
NDW

Are We in the Midst of a Revolution?

I have been a believer in universal reconciliation for almost two years now. As the Spirit leads me deeper into truth, it appears to me that there is a revolution going on at present or standing in the wings about to take the stage. My Heart says YES,my soul cries YES. The changes I have seen in myself, in my attitude toward others, and in my attitude toward religion in general say YES. Now I have been around long enough to know that often when we are in the middle of a new thought, concept, philosophy, or idea, it seems like the whole world is beginning to feel the same things you do. I also know that often that is not the reality. So, I would like to ask you, my brothers and sisters, to comment about this subject after careful consideration. It is sometimes very difficult to stand outside of yourself and objectively view the situation. Are we in the midst of a revolution in the way the world views God and Christ and our relationship to Them? Or, is this going to be a slow, person by person change in the general attitude of our relationship to God the Father and His son, Christ Jesus?