Meet Paula Van Dyk - Compassionate Prayer Warrior

The Christian Alliance for Indian Child Welfare recently asked Paula Van Dyk, of Alberta, Canada, to be an honorary board member for CAICW and she has accepted.

Paula has been a dear prayer warrior for CAICW from the time if its inception – and from even before that. She has been praying for Roland and Lisa Morris and the work they do from about the time they first met her at Living Faith Bible College in the the fall of 2000.

And when they say prayer warrior – they mean warrior. Her compassion for others, her passion for the Lord, and the steadfast time she spends in prayer is amazing. Many have been truly blessed by her - and her husband, John - over and over and over again.

Paula will be finishing her race soon – possibly within the next few weeks – having decided against further chemo. She is looking forward to being with Jesus. She says she will continue praying for us all from heaven.

Thank you, Paula, for honoring CAICW and others with your prayers, love, and acceptance. You will always held close in hearts.

Chat about "Hope" with Author Beth Ward, Oct 13

The true story of an American Indian who realized just how much tribal and federal government policies were destroying his extended family.  

Roland grew up watching members of his family die of alcoholism, child abuse, suicide, and violence on the reservation. Like many others, he blamed all the problems on “white people.”  

Beth Ward grew up in a middle class home in the suburbs. Raised in a politically left family, she also believed that all problems on the reservation originated with cruel treatment by settlers and the stealing of land. Meeting her husband, her first close experience with a tribal member, she stepped out of the comfort of suburban life into a whole new, frightening world.  

After almost ten years of living with his alcoholism and the terrible dangers that came with it, they both realized that individual behavior and personal decisions were at the root of a man’s troubles, including their own, and no amount of entitlements would change that.  

What cannot be denied is that a large number of Native Americans are dying from alcoholism, drug abuse, suicide, and violence. The reservation, a socialistic experiment at best, pushes people to depend on tribal and federal government rather than God, and to blame all of life’s ills on others. The results have been disastrous. Roland realized that corrupt tribal government, dishonest federal Indian policy, and the controlling reservation system had more to do with the current pain and despair in his family and community than what had happened 150 years ago.  

Here is the plain truth in the eyes of one family, in the hope that at least some of the dying in Indian Country — physical, emotional, and spiritual — may be prevented.  

Dr. William B. Allen, Emeritus Professor, Political Science, MSU and former Chair of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (1989) has called the book, “…truly gripping, with a good pace.”  

Meet the author at an online book signing, Saturday, October 13th, 3 pm eastern time, 12 noon pacific, at https://dyinginindiancountry.campfirenow.com/room/533942

The book sells for $29.99 and is available online. For more information about the author and to purchase the book, please visit http://dyinginindiancountry.com/

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New Book: Dying in Indian Country - An Amazing Family Story

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This is a true story of an American tribal member who, after coming to know Jesus Christ, realized just how much liberal policies within tribal and federal government were hurting his extended family.  

Roland grew up watching members of his family die of alcoholism, child abuse, suicide, and violence on the reservation. Like many others, he blamed all the problems on “white people.”  

Beth Ward grew up in a middle class home in the suburbs. Raised in a politically left family, she also believed that all problems on the reservation originated with cruel treatment by settlers and the stealing of land. Meeting her husband, her first close experience with a tribal member, she stepped out of the comfort of suburban life into a whole new, frightening world.

After almost ten years of living with his alcoholism and the terrible dangers that came with it, they both came to realize that individual behavior and personal decisions were at the root of a man’s troubles, including their own. After coming face-to face with the reality of Jesus Christ, their eyes opened to the truth of why there is so much Dying in Indian Country.  

What cannot be denied is that a large number of Native Americans are dying from alcoholism, drug abuse, suicide, and violence. The reservation, a socialistic experiment at best, pushes people to depend on tribal and federal government rather than God, and to blame all of life's ills on others. The results have been disastrous. Roland realized that corrupt tribal government, dishonest federal Indian policy, and the controlling reservation system had more to do with the current pain and despair in his family and community than what had happened 150 years ago.  

Here is the plain truth in the eyes of one family, in the hope that at least some of the dying in Indian Country — physical, emotional, and spiritual — may be recognized and prevented. Unfortunately, persistent public misconceptions about Indian Country, misconceptions sometimes promoted by tribal government and others enjoying unaudited money and power, have worked to keep the situation just as it is.

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• “Roland truly has encouraged many people…the last trip to D.C. was a testimony to God’s faithfulness.” Rev. Robert Guthrie, B.Th. M.A. –Professor, Vanguard College, AB
• “…he earned my deepest respect, and…made heroic and very honorable attempts to improve the lot of Native Americans in this country.” Jon Metropoulos, Attorney, Helena, MT
• “‘Dying in Indian Country’ is a compassionate and honest portrayal…I highly recommend it to you!” Reed Elley, former Member of Parliament, Canada; Chief Critic for Indian Affairs in 2000; Baptist Pastor, father of four native and metis children
• “I truly admire Roland for the message he was trying to have heard.” Ralph Heinert, Montana State Representative
• “He was a magnificent warrior who put himself on the line for the good of all…. I can think of no-one at this time in this dark period of Indian history who is able to speak as Roland has.” Arlene, tribal member
• “…hope emerging from despair… This is a story about an amazing life journey.” Darrel Smith. Writer, Rancher, South Dakota
• “He’s a Christian now you know… I saw him crying on his knees on my living room floor. I was there.” Sharon, tribal member
• "...truly gripping, with a good pace." Dr. William B. Allen, - Emeritus Professor, Political Science, MSU and former Chair of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (1989)

Read More:

• Website: dyinginindiancountry.com
• Twitter: twitter.com/WriteBethWard
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/DyingInIndianCountry

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Save Veronica Rose!

(Psychologist who witnessed Veronica's transfer comments on the detrimental effects - Click Baby Veronica to hear the audio of the interview.)


We are writing to make you aware of an injustice that has occurred to a two-year-old South Carolina child named Veronica Rose and her adoptive parents. Two years ago Veronica’s Latina birth mother chose Matt and Melanie to love, nurture and raise her child. To this day, Veronica’s birth mother remains committed to her decision and Veronica has been a thriving, happy child residing in a stable, nurturing environment. On or around Jan. 4, 2010, the birth father signed papers agreeing to give up his daughter.

However, because Veronica has some Cherokee heritage from her birth father’s side of the family, the Cherokee Nation intervened in the adoption proceedings and argued that this happy, healthy two-year-old be transferred to her birth father. Because of a federal law known as the Indian Child Welfare Act, a family court judge ruled that she be immediately transferred to her biological father.

The ruling placed the rights of the birth father and tribe above the best interests of this small child. Child-bonding experts agree that removing her from her home and family would be devastating and have long-lasting consequences. Numerous child psychologists stated this would be detrimental to any child. Yet on Dec. 31, Veronica was handed over to her biological father as if a possession without rights.

We believe that children need protection and should not be removed from loving, nurturing environments. We understand the premise of this law is to protect children; however, in Veronica’s case it has been used inappropriately.

Former U.S. senator Jim Abourezk (SD) authored ICWA. According to the Charleston Post and Courier, after reviewing Veronica's story, Abourezk called the interpretation in this case "something totally different than what we intended at the time."

"That's a tragedy," he said. "They obviously were attached to the child and, I would assume, the child was attached to them."

According to the 2000 census, approximately 75% of people claiming to have American Indian or Alaska Native ancestry live outside the reservation. Further, interracial marriages are a fact of life. It is must be recognized that most children of heritage live off the reservation and have extended family that are non-tribal. Though supporters of the Indian Child Welfare Act say it has safeguards to prevent misuse, Veronica and numerous other multi-racial children across the U.S have been hurt by it. Children who have never been near a reservation nor involved in tribal customs are affected. The Cherokee Nation alone is currently tied up in about 1,100 active Indian Child Welfare cases involving some 1,500 children.

Tragically, under the Indian Child Welfare Act:

1) Some children have been removed from safe, loving homes and placed in danger
2) Equal opportunities for adoption, safety and stability are not always available to children of all heritages
3) The Constitutional right of parents to make life choices for their children, for children of Indian heritage to associate freely, and for children of Indian heritage to enjoy Equal Protection has in some cases been infringed upon.

We want more than anything for Veronica to be allowed to come home. As our elected representatives, we urge you to protect Veronica’s rights in all possible ways as well as make legislative changes that will prevent this from happening to any other child again. While we understand you are unable to interfere in court proceedings, we ask you to speak out on this issue and let your constituents know clearly where you stand. We also ask you to sponsor legislation and encourage fellow Congressmen to support the amending of the Indian Child Welfare Act to:

1. Guarantee protection for children of Native American heritage equal to that of any other child in the United States.
2. Guarantee that fit parents, no matter their heritage, have the right to choose healthy guardians or adoptive parents for their children without concern for heritage.
3. Recognize the "Existing Indian Family Doctrine” as a viable analysis for consideration and application in child custody proceedings. (See In re Santos Y, In Bridget R., and In re Alexandria Y.)
4. Guarantee that United States citizens, no matter their heritage, have a right to fair trials.
• When summoned to a tribal court, parents and legal guardians will be informed of their legal rights, including USC 25 Chapter 21 1911 (b)“…In any State court proceeding for the foster care placement of, or termination of parental rights to, an Indian child not domiciled or residing within the reservation of the Indian child's tribe, the court, in the absence of good cause to the contrary, shall transfer such proceeding to the jurisdiction of the tribe, absent objection by either parent…”
• Under the principles of comity: All Tribes and States shall accord full faith and credit to a child custody order issued by the Tribe or State of initial jurisdiction consistent within the UCCJA – which enforces a child custody determination by a court of another State – unless the order has been vacated, stayed, or modified by a court having jurisdiction to do so under Article 2 of the UCCJA.

5. Include well defined protections for Adoptive Parents.
6. Mandate that a "Qualified expert witness" be someone who has professional knowledge of the child and family and is able to advocate for the well being of the child, first and foremost.
7. Mandate that only parents and/or legal custodians have the right to enroll a child into an Indian Tribe. Because it is claimed that tribal membership is a political rather than racial designation, we are asking that parents, as U.S. citizens, be given the sole, constitutional right to choose political affiliation for their families and not have it forced upon them.
• Remove the words “or are eligible for membership in” 1901 (3)
• Remove the words "eligible for membership in" from 1903 (4) (b), the definition of an ‘Indian child’ and replace with the words "an enrolled member of”

Save Veronica Supporters Worldwide
www.saveveronica.org
www.facebook.com/saveveronicarose
www.twitter.com/save_veronica

Hijacked and Murdered Sailor was on Christian Mission

Four Americans on Yacht Murdered by Pirates -

Friend: Hijacked California Sailor Sought to Mix Faith, Adventure

Published February 21, 2011 Associated Press


LOS ANGELES -- A friend and former professor of a California man whose yacht was hijacked by Somali pirates said Sunday that Scott Adam wanted to combine his love of adventure with his faith by spreading bibles around the world.

Professor Robert K. Johnston of Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena told The Associated Press that Adam -- who last year earned a master of theology degree from the school -- had sent friends emails detailing his international sailing trip. But Adam went silent Feb. 12 to avoid revealing the location of his yacht, the Quest, to pirates.

"He was sailing around the world and serving God, two of his passions," Johnston
said.

Organizers of the Blue Water Rally yacht race said passengers of the sailboat owned by Adam and his wife, Jean, carried them and two other Americans, Phyllis Macay and Bob Riggle, both of Seattle. It was hijacked Friday off the coast of Oman. It is now in the waters between Yemen and northern Somalia, two pirates and a Somali government official told The Associated Press.

Johnston said that despite an adventurous spirit, the Adams were meticulous planners who knew the dangers they faced. The couple had sailed with a large flotilla to stay safe from pirates near Thailand earlier in the trip.

"They knew and we knew they still had to go by the Somalia coast," he said.
"We're asking people to pray for them."

Adam, now in his mid-60s, had been an associate producer in Hollywood when he turned in a spiritual direction and enrolled in the seminary a decade ago, Johnston said.

"He decided he could take his pension, and he wanted to serve God and
humankind," he said.

Johnston and Adam worked together to start a film and theology institute. Adam also taught a class on church and media at the school.

Since 2004, the Adams lived on their yacht in Marina Del Rey for about half the year and the rest of the year they sailed around the world, often distributing Bibles in remote parts of the Fiji Islands, Alaska, New Zealand, Central America and French Polynesia, Johnston said.

University Policy Defines Religious Discrimination as Oppression by Christians

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University to Change Policy Defining Religious Discrimination as Oppression by Christians 
By Todd Starnes

Published February 16, 2011
| FoxNews.com

The University of California at Davis has backed away from a policy that defined religious discrimination as Christians oppressing non-Christians after more than two dozen Christian students filed a formal complaint.

The definition was listed in a document called, “The Principles of Community.” It defined “Religious/Spiritual Discrimination” as “The loss of power and privilege to those who do not practice the dominant culture’s religion. In the United States, this is institutionalized oppressions toward those who are not Christian.”

“This is radical political correctness run amok,” said David French, senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund.

The conservative advocacy group wrote a letter on behalf of more than 25 students who objected to the policy and wanted it revised.

He said it’s absurd to single out Christians as oppressors and non-Christians as the only oppressed people on campus.

Raheem Reed, an associate executive vice chancellor at UC-Davis, said he received the letter and removed the definition Wednesday afternoon.

“I certainly can see how a Christian student reading that definition might feel and that’s why it was immediately disabled and taken down,” Reed told Fox News Radio. “This is not how we define religious discrimination.”

However, one student said they complained to administrators last November about the policy and nothing was done. “Christians deserve the same protections against religious discrimination as any other students on a public university campus,” French told Fox News Radio. “The idea that a university would discriminate against Christians is a very old story, unfortunately, and one that we see played out every day.”

One student, who asked not to be identified, said university officials asked her to reaffirm “The Principles of Community” last semester. She refused to do so when she realized that Christians were not protected under the policy.

“To have a non-discrimination policy that excludes the Christian faith is a cause for action,” she said. “In higher academia, one would hope that a diversity of ideas and beliefs would be appreciated. But my experience has been that this has not always been the case. There is a real fear of academic bias against the Christian faith.”

Reed said he regrets that Christian students might feel intimidated. “We want everyone to feel safe, welcomed and supportive,” he said.

“Not only are we taking it down, but now we’re going to look at what kind of affirmative steps we can take to reassure those members of our campus community who may have felt somewhat threatened or intimidated by it.”

French said all of the students who complained are fearful of backlash if their identities became known. “This was amazing to actually enshrine in your non-discrimination statement – discrimination against Christians,” he said.

“This is a symbol of the seeming impunity in which universities violate the law to establish a radical, secular-left agenda.” Alan Brownstein, a law professor at UC-Davis, said the campus has a generally open and tolerant view of religion.

“It’s a university campus,” he said. “There is robust debate and people will disagree on just about everything.” Brownstein, who is a nationally known constitutional scholar, said any legal challenges to the policy would depend on whether or not it’s a binding document.

“Clearly, if you had an enforceable regulatory policy that said, ‘we will discipline Christians who oppress non-Christians, but we will not impose the same kind of disciplinary sanctions on non-Christians who engage in the same kind of harassing behavior against Christians,’ that would be unacceptable and subject to legal challenge.”

Reed said “The Principles of Community” is not a policy. “They are, in fact, aspirational principles we have – to try to make sure we are promoting diversity and trying to build a more inclusive campus community,” he said.

Regardless, Brownstein said it might have been more appropriate to use less-specific language in the policy. “It’s always preferable to be as general as you can when you describe these kinds of unacceptable behaviors,” he said.

Is God in Control?

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On facebook, a friend wrote:

"fear believes the worst is going to happen... faith believes the best is already on its way"

Someone responded:

When your perspective is telling you it's the worst, that's when you need your faith to rise. Faith is always needed if we're going to achieve what we're called to. Faith allows us to do good despite our less than ideal circumstances because we see what is available to us through Christ.

I still don't believe that God is in control. I'll believe otherwise if you can show me in scripture that he is. In the mean time I choose whether or not I get out of bed in the morning. I choose whether to use my words to encourage others or tear them down. I'm pretty sure God has given me a great deal of control over what happens in and around me.

If he were in control there would be no point in us doing anything because God would be taking care of it, there would be no point in relationship with God because we wouldn't be expected to do anything (there's the issue: saying God is in control releases us from any responsibility to bring his kingdom to earth).

If God were in control, would there be all the problems there are in the world? Saying God is in control is saying he is not good and that is a fallacy.

Yes, God is all powerful and could take control, but if he did then what would be the point in existing? You have a greater purpose. Start walking in it!

FYI: I can't take credit for a lot of this. Much of it is just reiterating what Bill Johnson says in Face to Face with God

Then there was this response:

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Very good points - but here's a question. If God ISN'T in control, then does that mean His plan might fail - and what is fore-told in Revelations might not happen? Aren't we assured that in the end, God will defeat the enemy?

Romans 8:28 tells us, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose."
Other ways that is read include, "that all things work together for good to those who love God, who;" or
"that in all things God works together with those who love him to bring about what is good—with those who."

Note: this assurance is predicated to those that Love God, and this last version of the verse makes it clearer that we are working with Him to bring about good. Our relationship with Him comes with the expectation of participating in His work. (and striving to not hurt others)

God, as you said, is capable of controlling everything, but allows man free will. Maybe this is all about the big picture - not the small,( re: daily free will choices - getting up from bed, or deciding to commit a crime, etc.) The big picture is our unbreakable relationship and life with God - if we choose it.

If Hell is separation from God - we are assured we will never be separated, and He is working with us through all things for good in that direction. Rom 8:39 "neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Some of "those that Love Him" and have purposed to work for Him abbreviate that thought - rightly I think - into our assurance that "God is in control."

And you are right - Faith is needed if we're going to achieve what we are called to.


_______________________________________________________________

I need to address the thought that if God is in Control, there is no point for relationship -

Relationship with God, as pointed out in Romans 8:28, involves Him working with us, through us, etc. - to bring about His will and good -
that's what the Holy Spirit is all about.

We choose relationship with Jesus Christ. There is our free will. But God IS the Master when we do that - he is our LORD - and we are His servants. Therefore, He IS in control.

There is No relationship without accepting His Lordship!

Further, we can NOT do good on our own - we need the Holy Spirit. According to Romans 6, we die - our flesh dies with Jesus Christ - and then we are raised up again new with Jesus Christ - (just as He was raised up again) - to live a New Life, with Him.

Rom 6:22 "But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life."

This is the Relationship: we can do nothing without Christ (God/Holy Spirit) in Us:
"Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. [For when we abide in Him -- and He in us -- He shows us His will and that's all we long for!]
"By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love." John 15:3-10

Abiding in Him, and He in us - involves letting go of ourselves, and allowing Him - in control - to work through us.

So I think Mr. Johnson, in his book 'Face to Face with God," was very wrong about there being no point to relationship if God is in Control. It's reversed - there would be no point to relationship if he WASN'T in control -

A reflection on Osama bin Laden’s “Letter to America” - Main Tenets of Islamic Belief

In November of 2002, a letter purported to have been written by Osama bin Laden, famous leader of  the  Islamic terrorist group Al Qaeda, was posted in the UK's Observer. The letter first appeared on the internet in Arabic on websites that support Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda network and then was translated and circulated by Islamists in Britain.

The purpose of this letter, according to the author, was to respond “as an explanation and warning” to a question many in the west have been asking for over a year: that being, “On what basis are we fighting?”

Part 1 of this Series covered the Geographical and Historical Development of Islam.

Part II:  The Main tenets of belief -

The author of the letter described Islam:

“The religion of the Unification of God; of freedom from associating partners with Him, and rejection of this; of complete love of Him, the Exalted; of complete submission to His Laws; and of the discarding of all the opinions, orders, theories and religions which contradict with the religion He sent down to His Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Islam is the religion of all the prophets, and makes no distinction between them - peace be upon them all.

“It is to this religion that we call you; the seal of all the previous religions. It is the religion of Unification of God, sincerity, the best of manners, righteousness, mercy, honor, purity, and piety. It is the religion of showing kindness to others, establishing justice between them, granting them their rights, and defending the oppressed and the persecuted. It is the religion of enjoining the good and forbidding the evil with the hand, tongue and heart. It is the religion of Jihad in the way of Allah so that Allah's Word and religion reign Supreme. And it is the religion of unity and agreement on the obedience to Allah, and total equality between all people, without regarding their color, sex, or language.

“It is the religion whose book - the Quran - will remained preserved and unchanged, after the other Divine books and messages have been changed. The Quran is the miracle until the Day of Judgment. Allah has challenged anyone to bring a book like the Quran or even ten verses like it.”

Islamic tradition says that Abraham’s wife, Sarah, wanted to insure that her own son, Isaac, be Abraham’s sole heir and that Abraham’s son, Ishmael, by the slave, Hagar, be sent away. Hagar and her son wandered off to the area near the Red Sea and Hagar sat on a rock and wept, afraid that she and her son would die of thirst in the desert. As she wept, her son kicked the sand in anger. At the spot where he kicked, a spring of fresh water erupted.

When Abraham heard of this miracle, he came and built a temple near the spring and called it Ka’bah. He set in the east corner a black cornerstone that he had inherited from his forefathers, which tradition says Adam brought from the Garden of Eden. Near the temple, close to the Spring of Ishmael (Zemzem), Ishmael grew up, and eventually his children and grandchildren surrounded the temple with a new city called Mecca.

Another tradition says that the Ka’bah was built in heaven and when Adam was driven out of Eden, he built a Ka’bah just like it as a memorial. It was not far from Adam’s Ka’bah that Ishmael kicked the sand and caused the Zemzem, the Sacred Well, to open up. The children of Ishmael multiplied, and the Sacred City of Mecca then grew there. Ishmael’s children eventually grew into a race called “Arabs” and spread out east north and south. The children of Israel, son of Isaac, multiplied into a race called “Jews”.


Islam can be divided into “iman” (beliefs) and “deen” (obligations).


THE MAJOR BELIEFS INCLUDE:

1. God – monotheism is the central doctrine of Islam. To associate a partner with him is commit the unforgivable sin of ishrak (shirk). Islam incorporates all the monotheists and sees itself as the fulfillment of all religions.

2. Angels – Gabriel is the highest, followed by the other angels. Each person has an angel assigned to him to record his good deeds and another to record the bad. At the bottom are jinn, who, created from fire, are usually evil and can possess people.

3. The Prophets of God – God has sent 124,000 prophets to every nation on earth to preach monotheism. This includes Adam, Noah, Moses, Abraham, David, and Jesus. Muhammad is considered the “seal” of the prophets, and is the prophet for all time.

4. The Holy Books – Four high ranking prophets were given books with divine revelation. Moses was given the Torah (Tawrat), David the Psalms (Zabur), Jesus the Gospel (Injil), and Mohammad the Qur’an. Muslims believe that only the Qur’an as been kept from corruption. This book, containing 114 surahs, or chapters, is to be read only in Arabic. It is believed that if translated, it is no longer the Qur’an, as any translations have the potential of being corrupted. Devout Muslims, therefore, must learn Arabic. An Islamic doctrine called “tahrif” teaches that the Jews and the Christians corrupted the early texts of the Bible. Example verses from the Qur’an include:

“A party of them heard the Word of Allah, and perverted it knowingly after they understood it.”(Surah 2:75, ‘Ali)

“And there are among them (the Jews) illiterates, who know not the Book but (see therein their own) desires, and they do nothing but conjecture. Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands, and then say: “This is from Allah,” to traffic with it for a miserable price! (Surah 2:78-79, ‘Ali).

While these passages speak of misinterpreting the Scripture and passing writing off as Scripture when they are not, it doesn’t speak of altering the actual manuscripts.

5. The Day of Judgment – Only God knows whether one’s good deeds will outweigh one’s bad deeds, so a Muslim has no real assurance he will go to heaven.


THE MAJOR OBLIGATIONS INCLUDE:

1. To Recite the Shahadah –Shahadah means, “To bear witness”. The Shahadah statement is, “I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and that Mohammad is His messenger.” Making this statement with sincerity is all it takes to be a Muslim.

2. To Pray (Salat) – seventeen cycles (rak’a) a day, split into five time periods: Dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, dusk, and two hours after sunset. The call to prayer is a summons to the whole life. The call is an invitation to participate in community, offering nourishment for the soul. Devotees must wash themselves (ablution, “wudu”) in a certain way prior to prayer, and then face toward Mecca. In order to face toward Mecca during prayer, a directional niche (mihrab) marks the Mosque. The only time they are required to pray as a group is during the Friday noon prayer.

3. To Fast (Sawm) – Ramadhan, a commemoration of Muhammad’s receiving the Qur’an, is the ninth lunar month. Muslims can not eat, drink, smoke, or have sex from sunrise to sunset.

4. To Give Alms (Zakat) – one fortieth of one’s income, 2.5%, goes to the poor and needy.

5. To Make a Pilgrimage (Hajj) – Every Muslim must make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime, unless prevented by health or finances. They must wear white garments called ihram in order to eliminate class distinctions. The process of visiting the holy sites: worshipping at Kaaba, kissing the black stone from Adam, and drinking the holy water at the Sacred Well of Ishmael, can take a week. Once finished, the devotee can be called a “Hajj”.

6. Jihad. The author of the letter stated, “It is commanded by our religion and intellect that the oppressed have a right to return the aggression. Do not await anything from us but Jihad, resistance and revenge. Is it in any way rational to expect that after America has attacked us for more than half a century, that we will then leave her to live in security and peace?!!”

The Jihad, or “Holy War”, is sometimes known as the “sixth” pillar of Islam. Jihad is can be described as a fighting against unbelievers, but can also be thought of more gently as a “struggle for the faith”. The last declared Jihad was in 1914, when Sheik-ul-Islam of Turkey, ordered by the Sultan, called upon Muslims everywhere to fight against the enemies of Turkey. However, because the orders originated with Germany, the order fell primarily on deaf ears. The basic requisites for Jihad outlined in the Surah II are:

“On behalf of God fight whoever fights you, but do not be the aggressor: indeed, God does not like aggressors. Kill them when they advance on you and force them out of the places from which they force you…fight them until there is no persecution and religion belongs to God, and if they abandon their ways, there is to be no hostility – except against evildoers.”

However, “Elsewhere two kinds of people are cited as being particular objects of such activity – those who do not believe in God at all and pay no regard to what He has prohibited (IX:29) and Christians, who ascribe partners to God.”


OTHER POINTS:

1. Muslim’s believe that man is good by nature, and that sin is a rejection of good guidance. Repentance will bring forgiveness and no atonement is necessary, but salvation is based on whether good deeds outweigh the bad.

2. Muslim’s recognize the virgin birth and miracles of Jesus, but saying Jesus is God would be blasphemy. Also, according to Islamic tradition, Jesus did not die on the cross. He ascended to heaven and Judas died on the cross in his place. Muslims believe that God would never allow a great prophet like Jesus to die on the cross. They believe the Bible is corrupted, and therefore can not be held in authority.

3. The world is divided into two spheres: Dar es Islam (House of Peace) and Dar al Harb (House of War and chaos). Islam believes that history is moving in the direction of the entire world becoming Islam. Dar es Islam is the more peaceable, daily living Islam that occurs once a country has settled into being an Islamic Nation. Dar al Harb, on the other hand, is a war machine, set to fight any nation until it becomes Islam. Islam has a missionary arm, just as Christianity does; they just go about their evangelism a little differently. Islam’s missionary arm is called “Dar al Harb.”

According to a former missionary to Ramallah, Israel; “because it is a fundamental concept in Islam, the average Muslim understands and agrees with the concept of Dar al Harb.” He further explained that certain Islamic governments, although they are currying favor with the US and claim there is nothing in Islam that desires war, are denying the truth. These leaders, when denying Dar al Harb, are not favored by their own people. It’s a good thing those governments are totalitarian, because true democracy would vote the weak leaders out and put orthodox people in.

The Nov. 2002 ‘Letter to America’seems to confirm this, stating,

“These governments prevent our people from establishing the Islamic Shariah, using violence and lies to do so…These governments give us a taste of humiliation, and places us in a large prison of fear and subdual…These governments steal our Ummah's wealth and sell them to you at a paltry price…These governments have surrendered to the Jews, and handed them most of Palestine, acknowledging the existence of their state over the dismembered limbs of their own people…The removal of these governments is an obligation upon us, and a necessary step to free the Ummah, to make the Shariah the supreme law and to regain Palestine. And our fight against these governments is not separate from our fight against you.”

"Do you fear them? Allah has more right that you should fear Him if you are believers. Fight against them so that Allah will punish them by your hands and disgrace them and give you victory over them and heal the breasts of believing people. And remove the anger of their (believers') hearts. Allah accepts the repentance of whom He wills. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise." [Quran 9:13-1]

"Permission to fight (against disbelievers) is given to those (believers) who are fought against, because they have been wronged and surely, Allah is Able to give them (believers) victory" [Quran 22:39]

"So do not become weak (against your enemy), nor be sad, and you will be* superior ( in victory )if you are indeed (true) believers" [Quran 3:139]

"Those who believe, fight in the Cause of Allah, and those who disbelieve, fight in the cause of Taghut (anything worshipped other than Allah e.g. Satan). So fight you against the friends of Satan; ever feeble is indeed the plot of Satan."[Quran 4:76]  

"It is He Who has sent His Messenger (Muhammad peace be upon him) with guidance and the religion of truth (Islam), to make it victorious over all other religions even though the Polytheists hate it." [Quran 61:9]

CORRUPTION OF THE JEWISH TORAH AND CHRISTIAN BIBLE:

Several Islamic verses claim the Judeo-Christian Scriptures are corrupt.

“A party of them heard the Word of Allah, and perverted it knowingly after they understood it.”(Surah 2:75, ‘Ali)

“And there are among them (the Jews) illiterates, who know not the Book but (see therein their own) desires, and they do nothing but conjecture. Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands, and then say: “This is from Allah,” to traffic with it for a miserable price! (Surah 2:78-79, ‘Ali).

While these passages speak of misinterpreting the Scripture and passing writing off as Scripture when they are not, it doesn’t speak of altering the actual manuscripts. In addition, the Qur’an has conflicting verses related to the purity of Bible Scripture and states that God is powerful enough to protect His Word.
Surah 2:136; 4:163 states that the previous revelations in “the Book” are authentic, and Surah 5:68 encourages Jews and Christians to “stand fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord”.

It also uses the Torah and the Gospel to authenticate Muhammad as the prophet and encourages those who doubt Muhammad’s teachings to “ask those who have been reading the “Book” from before thee” (Surah 10:94), and tells people to believe in the previous scriptures. (Surah 4:136). It also states, “none can change His Word” (Surah 6:115, 6:34, and 10:64).

It is contradictory for the Qur’an to claim that the Torah and Gospel are corrupted on one hand, but authentic and authoritative on the other.

In addition, to accomplish the deed (altering and corrupting both the Old and New Testament of the Bible), the worldwide Jewish and Christian communities would have had to agree together to the textual changes.

If a corruption of the text did happen, the consistency of ancient unearthed Biblical documents is truly miraculous. The Dead Sea Scrolls, c. 100B.C, are amazing parallel to the Masoretic manuscripts, c. 900 A.D., meaning the Old Testament manuscripts that were copied well after the birth of Islam are identical to the ones produced well before.

In addition, Bible scholars have found 3157 Greek documents dating from the 2nd century that contain either portions of or all of the New Testament. Of the textual differences, 95% have to do with trivialities such as a dropped letter during transcribing. There is no Christian doctrine affected by a debatable text.

Next: Historical interaction with the non-believers
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When Junior says, "Quit pushing religion on me!"

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Have you ever heard this from your kids?

"Why do you Keep Trying to Make me a Christian!"
"You're always trying to stuff God down my throat!"
"Quit pushing your religion on me!"

Sometimes, as parents, we want to just throw in the towel. Who needs this? If the kid doesn't appreciate what your trying to teach, forget 'em, right?

Well, that might be what wells up in our throats in the heat of the argument, but deep down...we don't want to give up. Not if we really believe what Christ taught. These are our babies, our kids. We don't want them to struggle without Jesus in their lives. We don't want them to die.

So we have no choice. We might need to take a break, but when all is said and done, there is only one Truth... and God has given us a job as parents.

Deut. 6:4-7
"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. [a] 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

One can gently stand firm in the Lord without being an obnoxious 'Bible Thumper.' Your child needs to know there is no compromise and even if your are choosing not to argue at this point in time, you have not changed your mind or submitted to the child's strong-willed heart.

Simply put;  "I love you. My standards will not waiver from the Truth. How was your Day."

Coming to terms with our job doesn't change the anger and rebellion emitting from a teen. We do the best we can, but because this is a spiritual war, the battle is very real, painful to both sides, and can go on for a long time. The teen might walk away as soon as they are able.   This is the hard part - continuing in the Truth, even while knowing your child is staying away because of it.

While some say that "this too shall pass," and your child will return eventually to the Truth he/she was raised in, that isn't necessarily true.  A child, in reckless rebellion, might die before they ever return to the Lord.  God has given us all Free Will.

That would be extremely terrible.  But the reverse would be worse.  To set aside the Lord for the purpose of pleasing the child - making the child more important than God, allowing your child to believe that he/she is right and God doesn't matter, and living for the pleasures of comfort here on earth - is a death sentence for both you and the child.  A child's free choice should not compromise your own choice to follow Truth.

Don't forget the testimony of Franklin Graham, former rebellious son of Billy Graham.
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What Scripture says. (What is Faith? Part 7)

How does the Bible tell us to respond in Faith to difficult circumstances?

a) Prayer - “Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray.” James 5:13

b) Going to elders - “Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.” James 5:14-15

c) Asking for help - “Confess you faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” James 5:16

You might also fast, or others may choose to fast for you. In the old testament, David fasted for the son he had with Uriah in hope the Lord might have mercy and allow the baby to live. (2 Sam. 12:16.) Psalm 35:13 also mentions fasting for the afflictions of others, even your enemies.

d) Persevere until victory - “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith” 1Cor. 16:13, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; We are perplexed, but not in despair.” 2 Cor. 4,5

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”

KEEP THE FAITH!

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More Las Vegas and Benny Hinn...(Is this Faith? Part 6)

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At one point, Patricia, 20-years-old, got up and made her way down the stairs, clutching her cruthes. I caught a glimpse of her as she got right up next to the stage …but this was just as Benny Hinn stopped taking people up on the stage. Oooohhh.... I was so disappointed for her.

And suspicious of Benny. He hadn't had anyone up there with an obvious defect, as Patricia had. But then he began prayer for young people, and the throng pushed in. Hinn shouted, "FIRE ON YOU!" and hundreds of kids standing closest to the stage FLEW backwards. Just picking themselves up, he did it again. The kids got up again and pressed to the stage. I was hoping Patricia was okay in the crush, but I could see her head bobbing, hands raised, right next to a gray coat and tie. Big usher. BIG. I was sure he'd keep her safe. Benny started grabbing kids and pulling them up on stage, "FIRE ON YOU!" and they flew across the stage. He began stepping over bodies and grabbing the raised hands of three or four more kids a time, pulling them up on stage. "FIRE ON YOU!" and they all fell down at the same time. The throng on the floor pressed closer, screaming to be touched. I'm sure they saw this and just wanted to feel whatever it was the kids on stage had felt. "FIRE ON YOU!" and six more went flying.

Then he began the cool off. "I'm only one man, and I can't touch everyone. But I have the anointing because I've met the anointer. And you can go home and meet the anointed and get the anointing for yourself. You need daily prayer, and read your bible, and get connected with a fellowship in your town. There are several Las Vegas Pastors up here that love you and welcome you to their churches. There are Bothers and sisters in Christ surrounding you right you right now. This is not a one-time event. This is a daily, on-going process." Then he invited a local pastor to further the invitation and close in prayer, and he left the stage.

I wasn't impressed by this guy, so I was glad to hear him give that closing message. It helped a little, I think.

As people cleared out of the auditorium, we went to the floor where Patricia was still sitting next to the stage. She said she wasn't disappointed. She said it as awesome to be in the full line of fire, there by the stage. But she had already put her brace back on - after having removed it in anticipation - and if she wasn't disappointed, I was sure disappointed for her. Yes, I know this is an ongoing process. And she also said that, yes, he did shake her hand just before he left the stage. She added that there were so many desperate people there...she couldn't expect to get his attention. If she was faking contentment, she was doing a pretty good job.

That, dear Readers, is faith. It really has nothing to do with Benny Hinn. This little girl trusts God, and whatever He has for her, it's okay.

When we left at the airport, we picked up the Las Vegas paper and read their spin on the crusade. In it, the reporter had followed a young Las Vegas family that was praying for healing. The couple, 20 years old, had been in an auto accident the last October. The husband was in a vegetative state. They have a one-year-old daughter. This woman paid an ambulance to bring her husband to the crusade. The reporter followed them through it, and in the end, they left the crusade disappointed. I'm not sorry we didn't push to be in front. As Patricia said, there were so many, many needy people there.

I am impressed by Patricia's faith. When it comes to Hinn, I remain cynical. My eyes weren't just on Hinn or the crowds during the event. I was seeing other things as well. When we filed in the first day, the line of people was directed where to sit and told to fill every seat. Unless you were saving a seat for someone, there was to be no empty seats. We were filed in evenly filling seats from the lower section, and then on to the section above it, and on to the top. After the arena had stopped filling, I noticed that black curtains were being hung in front of the empty seats at the top. This way, when the cameras panned the crowd, the arena had the appearance of being full. Benny, why the need to deceive the television viewers?

I was also thinking about how the lower seats must be populated primarily with A - type personalities. People that got there early and had the gusto to get those seats. They had cellular phones (at a time when not everyone did) and kept in touch with the people they were saving seats for. "You're just getting off work now? Okay, we have a seat for you." "You're in the parking lot? Okay, come through the main entrance and were in section 118". Gusto people, filled with energy, like Patricia. The nosebleed seats were different.

Interestingly, I almost had my coat stolen. I had gone for a pop and Roland was "dozing" like he does. A woman sat on the other side of my coat, and, Roland said (he wasn't as asleep as she thought) that she put her coat on the far side. (NOT on the seat with my coat.) But when she got up, she moved her coat over mine and wrapped my coat under hers. Roland quickly called her on it. You can't con a con man. She initially denied it, and then said, "oh, I'm sorry", handed it back and scurried away. Mind you, this is NOT a special coat. This is a rummage sale special, and there was nothing in the pockets. But she wouldn't have known that. Anyway, it gave me another person to pray for that evening. This woman must have had some real problems to be stealing my ol' coat. She was in real need of healing. I hope she got it.

Some might say that Patricia was just naive and hopeful. After all, with a birth defect such as hers, there is no other hope for healing outside of a miracle from God. Well, I imagine that she is naive and hopeful. But she's not stupid. She does also have fatih in God. And it is God who holds her faith, not in Benny Hinn, because if it were Hinn, she'd have given up in disappointment a long time ago.

More to Come...
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More Las Vegas and Benny Hinn (What is Faith? Not this... Part 5)

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We played hookie during Benny Hinn's morning session.

Friday Noon, we went to one of those cheap buffet lunches on the Las Vegas strip. Coming back, I admit we tarried. Roland took me on the “New York, New York” roller coaster. (Therese tells me I should have kept my eyes open.) And we pulled on some of the "free pulls". And it's hard to get out of those places. They're huge and they turn you around and you don't know where the door is. And walking past the desert vegetation, smelling the desert air, we were reminded of and missed Aunt Charlotte.

Anyway, when Roland told me it was almost 4pm, well, we had to hustle. Our motel shuttle picked up at the Tropicana every hour on the hour, and we didn't have much time. The doors at the Center were already open for the Benny Hinn crusade. So we hustled. Only stopped for a moment at another free pull. But when we arrived at the Tropicana, people standing there told us that we had missed the Howard Johnson shuttle by just a couple minutes. Ohhh. We should have been better with our time. Having tried to get a cab the day before, we knew it could take some waiting. And there would be no chance of calling the surly shuttle driver and asking if he could come back sooner than the hour. He'd made that clear when he dropped us off. And I didn't want to walk the couple miles. I was tired from all the walking we'd already done. But before Roland and I even had a chance to look at each other and admit we messed up, around the corner came the Howard Johnson shuttle. Wow! The driver got out and opened the sliding door. As we climbed into the van, I asked, "what ever possessed you to come back?" But as the words left my mouth, I had to smile. I knew what had possessed him.
One of the other riders said, "I don't know why he turned around. He just went and turned around. You mean you didn't call? I thought maybe you had called."

"No, we didn't call. We'd only been standing there a minute or so." Then, after another thought, that rider (a stranger to us) held up a Bible. "Maybe it had something to do with this then."

We laughed. We were sure it had. It was funny how many people we met there were in Las Vegas for the Crusade. It's kind of neat walking through a lobby and hearing a small huddled group discussing the book of Mark, or walk in the Deli and hear another group discussing miracle healings they'd witnessed. At the airport, there were people in wheelchair's, Bibles clutched on their laps. (Must have been a slow time for the casinos though...oh, whoops, if they were anything like us, the pull tabs were used.)

At any rate. it seems that God has consistently "been there" for us, even when we've stopped and pulled on that "free Pull."

I think of all the different things he's done, and I' feel so awe struck and humbled. And yet, I know how disappointed we get with our own children, and I know how disappointed they get with us. Sometimes I want to throw in the towel...but we keep pushing on and keep hoping they’ll learn soon. Well, I thank that the Lord, at times, is very disappointed in us also, but he keeps plugging away with us anyway; hoping we'll maybe catch on tomorrow.

That second evening at Benny Hinn, as things got going in that crowd of 20,000, I remembered how struck I was by this the night before. I know I've said some pretty negative things so far, but there seemed to be some good, too. Both evenings when he made an altar call I couldn't help but cry. It was awesome to see thousands of people swarming down to the floor with their hands raised high, (when they weren't punching each other) hungry for the Lord. It's so awesome to see all these people rush down the stairs, tears in their eyes, crying for help. I just couldn't help but cry with them, but so happy that they were going to get the help - if not from Benny Hinn, I was sure they would get it from the Lord. They were finally going to be able to rest in the arms of Jesus. This was truly the highlight of both evenings for me. We sat even higher in the nosebleed section on the second night. And it was just fine. We were much more rested when we arrived, because we came three hours later than the day before. We could still hear the message and actually, could see the people swarm to the floor much better from up there.

We had gone to check on a friend, Patricia, before we found our seats, just to tell her we were there. Patricia had a birth defect that made her unable to use her legs, and she got around on cruthces. We expected she would be in the same place and we were right. Go-getter that she is, she was in the best seats again. Not on the floor, because that was reserved for Benny's prayer support, wheelchairs, ...and probably hired actors..., but in the first row above, to the right of the stage, next to the stair well to get down on the floor next to the stage. Full good view of the speakers. So from our seat above - actually, where we could watch the stage from straight on - we could see Patricia and her friends. Patricia had been to these five times before. I asked her if she leaves the events disappointed when her legs aren't healed, and she said, "not at all." She's there for the anointing, for the pleasure of feeling the power of the event.

Having told me that... when the healing prayer began, I was surprised to see Patricia struggle to stand on her crutches and go to the stairwell to get to the floor. I tried to keep my eye on her. It was hard once she got to the floor because of the crush of people that were gathering down there as he took people up on stage one by one...

More to Come...
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Las Vegas and Benny Hinn (Is this Faith? Part 4)

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It was February 2001. The arena staff at the Benny Hinn event had asked that people stay at the bottom of the stairs to wait and not climb up to the pavilion doors to wait, as the crowd could injure each other up there. This seemed right, because when you were at the bottom of the stairs looking up, you couldn't see who is on the pavilion. You would mount the stairs, not being able to assess the crowd, and then would have to push to find a place to stand once you got up there. Others behind you would also be pushing. The result could very well cause injury to those closest to the glass doors.

But people were defiant with the staff. Even angry. They mouthed off to the staff, refused to budge. Some said they had God on their side and therefore a right to be there.

(One man joked, “Christians are like tea bags. When the water gets hot, you can see what’s really in them.”)

Then, when the staff decided not to press the issue with the most rebellious people, these people contently sat by the doors singing praise songs. Give me a break.

And...as much as I enjoy singing, I couldn't enter in. Not with that crowd.

I had to really struggle to get rid of ill feelings and judgement. Get myself back out of that hole. I had to remember that growth is an on-going process and I need to be patient with brothers and sisters in the same way that I want people to be patient with me. The way so many have been patient with us already through the years. So many have given Roland and I Grace, put up with our bad behavior. In fact, I'd decided to try to be a submissive person only five months or so earlier, when we moved up to the Bible college. Now, I looked at these things and realized that God is not likely to Bless me if I'm acting in rebellion and disobedience. But it took awhile for me to realize that. The best I could do for these other people would be to simply pray for them. Pray God's mercy for them that wisdom will come.

And then of course came the thoughts...is it really necessary to come the earliest and then struggle with these feelings that accompany line-ups. The nose bleed section should be close enough to hear Benny in, and then I won't have to hear the stuff immediately prior, which is not only distracting but down right ugly.

So we contently sat in the nose bleed section and prayed together for Roland's healing. We were convinced healing had begun sometime in the last month anyway, and this was simply a reinforcement of work God had already begun in addition to teaching us on the how and why.

Then - when they called for people to come down to the arena floor if they felt they were healing, Roland decided to go. (Well, it was like, if we sit here...are we saying the negative?) So we started moving slowly with the crowd toward the stairs. But when we reached the steps to try to get on the floor, the shoving was so intense that Roland and I were getting separated in the crowd. He reached his hand back, grabbed mine and pulled. In doing that, I pushed past other people. Nice people. I kept looking back to see that my rudeness hadn't discouraged them, and I couldn't see them. I felt bad about that. I didn't want to do that again.

In fact, Roland didn't want to either. Seeing how difficult it would be to get much further, he turned us around and we went back to our seats.

Roland ended up being too tired to attend the next morning’s session. He remained sleeping until 10am. That was understandable, because being in line early the day before had wiped him out. He'd had little chance to rest.

More to Come....
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Las Vegas and Benny Hinn (What is Faith? Part 3)

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Back in the spring of 2001, kind friends gave my husband and I a gift of a trip to the Benny Hinn Crusade in Las Vegas. I didn't really want to go. As I said in a previous post, I tend to be cynical and don't trust faith healers. I believe that the Lord can and will answer our prayers just as assuredly, and maybe even more so, if we're praying by ourselves in our bedroom.

But my husband wanted to go. Well, he was the one that was ill, and if he felt that this was something he wanted to try, I wasn't going to stop him.

Christians respond to difficulties in many ways.

When we arrived at the arena where it was being held, there were thousands of people alreayd in line, waiting for the doors to open. It was humbling to see the different people there, all desperate for healing. He wasn't the only one sick. I guess it suprised me how many people with cancer and/or in wheelchairs where there. For some reason, I had it in my head that my husband would be the most sick.

People were so desperate that they pushed their way in line. Staff asked people to stay at the bottom of the stairs and not climb up to the pavilion doors because the crowd could hurt each other up there. But people mouthed off and refused to leave the pavilion doors. Some said they were there on God’s mission, and that they had a right to be wherever they wanted. One woman prayed curses against the "rules of men."

I was embarrased, to be honest.

I understand wanting to be first, but who are they putting their trust in? Benny Hinn or Jesus? Does being first in line ensure healing? Does pushing a sister or brother in the Lord out of the way ensure healing?

At the bottom of the stairs, one man joked, “Christians are like tea bags. When the water gets hot, you can see what’s in them.”

I liked him.

But in watching the desperation of so many, my husband and I also realized something we hadn't realized before. We weren't desperate. The initial diagnosis and a couple other times were rough, but we weren’t desperate. We KNEW the Lord had the situation well in hand, and we were grateful to God for that.

The next day we decided not to rush to be in line and went to lunch. Coming back, we were slow. When I saw it was almost 4 PM, we started to hurry. Our motel shuttle picked up at the Tropicana every hour on the hour. But when we arrived at the Tropicana, people told us we had missed the shuttle by just a couple minutes.

We knew we should have been better with our time. The shuttle driver made it clear when he dropped us off that he would only be back once an hour. But before we had a chance to admit it was our fault for being slow, around the corner came the shuttle.

The driver got out and opened the sliding door. As we climbed in, we wondered why he had come back.

One of the other riders said, "I don't know why he turned around. He just went and turned around. You mean you didn't call? I thought maybe you’d called."

Then, after another thought, that rider (a stranger to us) held up a Bible. "Maybe it had something to do with this then." We laughed. We were sure it had.

What this incident reminded us of was that God always seems to "be there" for us. Nothing flashy. He's just always "there." Even when we aren't perfect. Apparently, he was still there for us even though we well...oh well, swe topped in that casino we had wandered through and pulled on that "free pull." And he still turned the van around for us. That's pretty amazing, considering how little we deserved it.

We think of all the times he's just been there, caring for us, and we are awe struck and humbled.

More to come....

He was Dying... (Faith? Part 2)

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He was diagnosed with incurable, terminal cancer in April of 2000. The doctor had said he had 6 months to two years to live, but more likely 6 months.

Some people tell you to start praying. but most people who go ahead and do that die anyway. Does that mean the prayer didn't work?

How much faith do we need to have answers to prayer?

Mathew 17:20 states, “If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed…nothing shall be impossible unto you.”

A grain of a mustard seed - one of the smallest seeds on earth. We need only a very small amount to bring God's response because He loves us and knows that as humans, faith doesn't come to us easily. But that small amount is necessary. But that still doesn't tell me how much faith - in me - is equal or greater than (or less than) a mustard seed.

Mathew 9:28-30, says; “When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, ‘Do you believe that I am able to do this?’
‘Yes, Lord,’ they replied.’
Then he touched their eyes and said, “according to your faith will it be done to you’, and their sight was restored.”

So....why doesn't that happen for everyone? Ummm...let's look at it....

#1) Faith is needed in the midst of difficult circumstances.

James 1 says, “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given to him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

Wow - is that a good word for me today, as I try to make decisions concerning the purchase of a restaurant. I have felt so much like a wave tossed in the ocean lately. I miss greatly having my husband with me, a partner in big decisions. If we were going to make a big mistake, at least we were doing it together.

My husband was diagnosed with incurable, terminal cancer in April of 2000. The doctor had said he had 6 months to two years to live, but more likely 6 months.

When he first heard that, his heart felt like it broke into a million pieces. What to do; where to go; how to handle it…or could he handle it? First he had to tell his kids, then his relatives, then his personal friends. How do you DO that? Life Stopped.

Then he stopped. There was nothing to do other then ....put it in to the Lord’s hands. If it was God's will for him to be healed, so be it. If not...so be it.

He enrolled in a Bible college. His relatives thought that was crazy. If he only had a short time, why go to school? But he figured, if his days were to be few, this is how he wanted to spend them.

Wow, that was a huge decision we made together. But I wasn't afraid. As long as we were together in it, I wasn't afraid. My husband moved his entire family to the Bible college campus. Didn't he have at least the faith of a mustard seed?

For a time, he grew stronger in body and stronger in the Lord. He lived that year and the next and the next. We were able to do many things during that time and our kids had a chance to get older before he left. Things began to get more difficult for my husband in the fall of 2003, and he finally went to be with the Lord in June of 2004.

During his last four years, while we were associated with the Bible college, he was prayed over by many, many people. One man, lacking the usual tiny vial of oil for anointing, decided to do something he'd always wanted to do and poured a full bottle of Wesson oil over my husband's head. Whatever. Another man who had never actually met my husband personally wrote an email to say that he'd been so moved to prayer that he sat in proxy for my husband as his own elders prayed over him, and that it was tremendously heavy and anointed time.

These were strong people; pastors, preachers, evangelists. Didn't they have the faith of a mustard seed?

Not only did they all have faith, but they had enough faith and, saddened by the thought that this man might be leaving several young children behind, they used their faith in calling on the Lord in these difficult circumstances.

The prayer did work. He lived four years instead of 6 months.

But I guess the bottom line...No one lives for ever; we all have death waiting for us. Even the people Jesus healed while on earth eventually died.

As they say, there are no living apostles, right?

He lived the number of years God purposed for him. His children all had a chance to get 4 years older. I had the blessing of his companionship for a little while longer. Although being a single parent is stressful, I have complete faith that there is a purpose in all of God's timing.

And maybe part of that timing is this: One of the important things that is happening within me is that I am having to switch the dependence and security I felt in my husband over to the Lord. I have faith, but I also have to have trust that the Lord is my partner and He isn't going to let me down. Just as when I was with my husband, I am not alone in the decisions I make. This is a huge area for me to learn and grow in.

More to come....
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So-called "Healer" & the Elderly Woman ... (Part 1 Is This Faith?)

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It was the summer of 1999 when our family attended a mountain Bible camp just west of Glacier Park, Montana. An evangelical "faith healer," wild and full of himself, made an altar call. I went up. I am usually cynical. But I had a pinched nerve and no medical insurance, so decided I'd give it a try. I told myself that it wasn't 'him' I was trying though. I determined to open my mind to the Lord and give HIM a chance.

An elderly woman stood in front of me in the line, someone I had known for years as a kind, prayerful woman. The woman had trouble with her hips and needed a walker. When it was her turn to be prayed for, I was close enough to watch and hear everything that was said.

After the healer prayed for the woman, he had two men take hold of her arms and attempt to run her back and forth in front of the stage. They ran her in the direction away from us and appeared to have much of her weight in their arms. She wasn't able to support herself well at all. On their return, the pain in her face was obvious and her need for their support appeared even more so. After a few minutes of this torture, the men brought her back to the healer and she grasped for her walker. The healer then told her, “something inside you is blocking it. You just didn’t have enough faith.”

She was devastated and left the building in tears.

I was shocked. Wouldn’t the fact that this elderly woman went up to the altar for prayer been an indication she had the faith of at least a mustard seed?

Later, I found her and sat down to talk to her. I tried to encourage her, but she was still crying and said, "No, he was right. It was my fault." I felt terrible for her.

Was the healer right? Was the Lord unwilling or unable to heal her because she didn’t have enough faith? I don't believe it. I think he was just a jerk who wants people to believe in and praise him. If he was really about the Lord's business, that woman wouldn't have been crying by herself in the back of the church.

Some of these so called preachers make believe that it's always God's will to heal when they, the preacher, demand it. People that have obvious physical issues and don't get healed are just an embarrassment to them.

What is faith in the real God?

Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

How do we get faith?

Galatians 5:22 tells us Faith is a fruit of the spirit. According to Hebrews 12:2, Jesus is the author and finisher of our Faith and Romans 10 states, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

Faith begins with a decision to believe the Word, and to begin a walk of obedience. Once making the decision, the Holy Spirit is able to work in our hearts, and make faith grow. We can't "make" ourselves have faith. It's a gift, born and nurtured through the Lord. And boy, that woman sure did have it. Can you imagine making the decision to go up to the altar and allow them to take away your walker? She only did that because she had faith and hope in the Lord. Her only error was in allowing that jerk to place his hands on her and later, when his commands to the Lord for his - not the Lord's - glory weren't met, he abused her by putting doubt in her mind about her own faith.

Is Faith necessary?

Romans 4 says that believing God brings us righteousness and believing on God brings us justification. Galatians 16 also states that by believing in Christ, we are justified by His faith. Belief is necessary for justification.

Mark 16:16 says “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” Faith is necessary for salvation

Eph. 6, The Shield of Faith is part of the armor of God. Faith is necessary for our battle with the enemy.

I never returned to that Bible camp because I honestly don't believe our time together in fellowship, prayer and worship is supposed to end with a preacher shaming members of the congregation and causing them to doubt their faith. (That wasn't the only disconcerting event I witnessed at that camp.) But I have attended other, more mature camps in the last ten years and have been very blessed by the ministries.

Oh, by the way, that nerve in my leg is still pinched to this day. However, it doesn't matter. The number and depth of things the Lord has done for and with me and my family over these last years has been unbelievable. My leg is of little importance compared to the amazing things the Lord has done. I do have complete faith in Him to know us, the purposes He has for us, and the best way to accomplish those purposes. I have no faith in faith healers.

More to come...
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