What to do if they come a knocken

This is mostly in Beth's response to my last Blog. What she said was, I ask questions and they left and didn't come back. Obviously, that certainly solved the problem of them coming, "knocken on your door" but it didn't solve their problem.
Now keep in mind, that I was convicted about not knowing enough to even ask the questions. Beth is right in her response that rather than saying "I'm right, your wrong," "Jesus is God, no matter what you say", "I'm saved, your going to Hell"
It is much better to ask questions rather than having a scriptural "shoot out". When then happens, the wounded and bleeding JW runs back to his or her elder for protection and comfort. They patch him or her up by explaining away damaging verses and warn them not to listen to "argumentative" householders again in their door to door preaching. So they don't come back. You see the JW is taught that the human mind can only absorb a little information at a time and therefore, JW plan at least a six month study with people they are trying to convert. They don't try to bombard us with an "Adam to Amageddon" sermon on the first visit. Perhaps we could learn from this process and learn to ask questions that causes the JW to have to contemplate his or her answer. Remember, you are trying to teach a JW to "unlearn false Watchtower doctrines and relearn Biblical Truths." and they can just digest so much at a time. Jesus said in John 16:12 "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now." All of us are in this same position, we can just gather in so much information and be able to understand it. How many times as you read scripture, do you find Jesus asking questions to his disciples, to the people that were hearing him? We can tell them that they have been deceived, the Watchtower organization is a false prophet, you need to get saved, but until the Spirit of God convicts and convinces, they will just be offended by our words and they will conclude what they have been told, We are the deceived and we are the ones going to hell. Empathy is so very important when reaching out to these misled individuals. How would you want others to speak to you, if you were the one who was misled.

I will give you questions to ask in my next blog. I have to go to a meeting right now, but hopefully I will do this today.

Jehovah's Witnesses Is a Cult that's accursed

Well, I'm sure that each person who reads this blog will be able to relate to having two people come to your front door trying to peddle their false doctrine and give you information that is nothing more than idiotic propaganda. They always come at the worst possible times. They can flip through their bibles with amazing speed, quoting chapter and verse to "prove" that Jesus Christ is just an angel, that he died on an upright stake instead of on an old cruel cross, that accepting blood transfusion is as sinful as adultery, and the the Watchtower Society in Brooklyn, New York, is God's modern-day "prophet", his "channel of communication."
I would like to know how you respond to these intrusive knocks at your door?
Do you drive them from your doorstep with a harsh rebuke? Do you run them off as you shout, "Deceivers and Liars"? As they leave, do you condem them to hell?
Do you have apathy rather than anger by saying, "I'm sorry, I'm not interested" or I'm sorry, I'm busy? Perhaps, you respond by saying, "no thanks, I'm a Methodist, or Baptist. If you use the term, "I'm sorry, but" soso soso soso soso soso, they will politely respond by saying "I'm sorry too"! Then they will tell you to have a nice day and move on to your neighbors house.
How do you really handle this. You know they are persistant and will continue to come back and back and back. Do you know the reason they keep coming back? For one thing, they believe that you will be destroyed in the imminent Battle of Armageddon unless you come to Jehovah's organization for salvation. They think they are trying to save your life. But even more than that, they beleive that they will not survive Armageddon unless they engage in this door-to-door preaching work under the direction of God's organization.
Most Jehovah's Witnesses are, in all sincerity, doing their best to serve God. They are like the unbelieving Jews of whom Paul wrote, "...they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and goiing about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God." Rom. 10:2-3 They really are victims of victims---blind followers or blind leaders. They need to escape from the salvation-through works treadmill that makes them obedient servants of a multibillion-dollar religious empire. They need liberation from the oppressive yoke that wieghs them down on their shoulders; yet they have been led to believe that it is the very carrying of that yoke that will save them--and that anyone who seeks to dissuade them is a deceiver sent by Satan.
How will you handle this knock that will come to your door at some time or other?
I suggest you find out what they believe, then I recommend that you get more familiar with what you believe and be prepared. I thought I was, but I was not.
I have since decided I wanted to know more about what this "cult" believes and how I can bring glory and honor to Christ by sharing the "true gospel" with them.
How will you hanlde your next knock at your door?

Don't you just love your Bible

Today in my quiet time, I just come to the conclusion that I just love my Bible. The only Book that God ever wrote and It speaks to me as if God is right there speaking the Truths that His book contains. 1 Thessalonians 2:13 says; "For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the Word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe. This is the way I feel. I hear it, I read it and I know that it is God who is speaking and God cannot lie, therefore it is Truth and that Truth effects the way I act, speak and relate to others. Thank God for the Bible, God's Holy Word. It is a light unto my path, lamp unto my feet, I hide His Words in my heart so that I will not want to sin against Him. Do you love God's Word? Does His Word speak to your heart?Does His Word change your life? Let me know what you think about the Word of God.

Knowing God's Will?

Have you ever been guilty of saying, "I just don't know what God wants me to do in this case," or I really wish I knew for sure what God wanted me to do". I think we all occassionally say these words without really understanding the real meaning of what we want to know. Does it really make sense to you, that the God of this universe, the creator of heaven and earth, your creator has a plan for you and that He would hide it from you? We say that we know He has a plan but very few of us search out that plan and even fewer of us actually fit into His plan for our lives. So for just a minute or two, lets see what is God's will for your life. You see, I do believe that God has a plan and I believe that your plan is most likely somewhat like my plan but perhaps in some ways different. There are absolutes in God's planning for each of us and let's look at them and make sure that we are fitting into His plan for our lives. I don't want you to automatically or arbatriarily think that just because something happens, it is or is not God's will such as; "I've been offered this job so it must be God's will, I've been approved for this loan so it must be God's will. Circumstances occur and we must understand that just because they happen is not the plus or minus of God's will in our lives. Here we go;

#1. God's primary will for people is that they turn to Christ and be saved.
2 Peter 3:9 1 Timothy 2:3-4
Once we are saved, then God has certain things He wants us to do and things
He doesn't want us to do.
#2 He has actually laid out for us certain good works to do to His glory. God's
will is something for us to do, not just to believe or affirm. Ephesians 2:9-10
Mark 3:31-35 1 John 2:17
#3 What is to God's glory is also to our good. Matthew 16:26, Matthew 25:21
Luke 2:10, John 16:7, 1 Cor. 7:35, Ephesians 6:8 Your only going to be
satisfied being where God wants you to be.
#4 God gave us His Word so we could know His will. Then it must be His will
that we read His word to find out those deep, seemingly hidden things of God
1 Cor. 2:9-10; Psalms 119:105
#5 God wants us to be sexually pure, 1 Thess. 4:3-7, He wants us to flee from
Temptation, 1 Cor. 6:18; He wants us to keep our minds pure. Matt. 15:19-20
Matt. 5:28; Proverbs 4:23; Psalms 119:37 Phil. 4:8
#6 God says those who don't know His will are unwise, and it is God's will that
we be filled and controlled by His Holy Spirit. Eph. 5:17-18
#7 God says we don't have wisdom because we don't ask for it---so prayer is
critical in seeking and living the will of God. James 1:5 When we are
controlled by the Holy Spirit, we will not commit the acts of the sinful
nature. Gal. 5:19-21 We will produce the fruit of the Spirit, Gal.5:22-23
and we will worship the Lord, teach each other and give thanks to God
while serving others. Eph. 5:17-33
#8 God wants us to live in submission to God-given authority, so that others
may see our willingness to humble ourselves as servants. 1 Peter 2:13-15
This also means we recognize God as our highest authority and put
obedience to Him above obedience to men. Acts 4:18-20
#9 Contrary to false claims of the health and wealth gospel, sometimes God's
will is taht we go through difficult times, even suffering, to accomplish His
purpose in us and through us. 1 Peter 3:17. Never be surprised by suffering
1 Peter 4:19
#10 The Bible is the revealed will of God. If you want to live in His will, then
"Let the Word of Christ dwell in your richly." Col. 3:16 Fill your heart
and mind with the Word of God, trust in His empowerment to obey Him,
and confess and repent when you disobey and fail. IF you do all this,
you will be living in the will of God.

Finally, Romans 12:1-2 tells us that we should be living out Holy, sacrificial
lives, which is a very reasonable expectation from God and that we should not
listen to what the world has to say, but allow God to "Transform" us and we do all this to prove out God's will for our lives.
Hope this helps you find the will of God in your life and remember, you can't find the will of God until you first find God.

Is your spending out of control?

For many people, spending money is an addictive behavior. It's much like an alcoholic or a gambler. The issue with people like this is not the seductive power of "things" but it is the enemy that lives inside that person. Short term gradification needs to be replaced with self control. Galatians 5:22-23 says that self control is a part of the fruit of the Spirit. No where do I find that self gradification is a part of the Spirit, therefore, a person who has this problem is not walking in the Spirit and may not even be living in the Spirit of Christ. Proverbs 25:28 says, "Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man (or woman) who lacks self-control". When we allow the walls of our life to be broken down, then we are acceptable to any and all the wilds of the devil to enter our lives. How do we exercise self-control in the area of spending? Following, are 10 ways that we can exercise that thing called self-control in spending;
1. Realize that nothing is a good deal if you can't afford it. It's always a bad choice to spend money on a "good deal" we can't afford.
2. Recognize that God isn't behind every good deal. Even if you can afford it, doesn't mean that is God's plan for you.
3. Understand the difference between spending money and saving money. If you buy an $80. sweater on sale for $30 and we think we've just saved $50., we simply don't understand the concept of saving, Where is the $50. we think we saved? It doesn't exist. All we've done is spend $30. If you keep saving like this, you'll soon be broke!
4. Look at the long-term cost, not just the short-term expense. Everything we buy usually cost us more in the long run. Get a "free puppy" and see after two years how much you have spent on that free Puppy. Buy a new car thinking that it's better to buy new rather than used and see how much that new car actually cost.
(insurance, worry about the possibility of wrecks, etc'
5. Pray before you spend. Do you believe when you have a very legitimate need, God will provide it for you some how? Many times we take these matters into our own hands and never allow God to do only what God can do by impulsively buying before giving God the opportunity to provide through other means. Have you ever bought something to learn that 30 days later, God would have provided it free or at minimal cost if only we had ask Him.
6. Examine every purchase in light of its ministry potential. Everytime we spend money, we gain something and we lose something. What we lose isn't merely money but what could have been done with the money if used in another way. Treasures in heaven vs. Treasures on earth.
7. Understand and resist the nanipulative nature of advertising. Advertising is seductive and manipulative. It programs us. We must seriously reject their claims and counter them with God's Word.
8. Learn to walk away from things you want but don't need. What more can I say.
9. Realize that little things add up. I use to stop at Quick Trip and get a cup of coffer every morning spending a dollar every morning. Not much money you say, but think of it. $1 per day, $5 per week, $20 per month $240 per year. on and on.
10. Set up a budget and live by it. Imagine you entrust a large sum to a money manager, telling him to take out only what he needs to live on and then wisely invest the bulk of it on your behalf. A few month later, you call him to see how the investments are doing. Embarrassed by your call, he admits, "There are no investments. None of your money is left. " Shocked you ask, "Where did it all go?"
Sheepishly, your money manager responds, "Well, I can think of some expenses here and there, but for the most part I really can't say. There was this and that, and next thing I knew, it was all gone."
How would you feel, What would you think? How does God feel and what does God think? It all belongs to Him and He allowed you to take care of yourself and invest into His kingdom. This is serious and must be addressed by all God's children.

Hope this helps.

Well, I've always said that I wanted to use this blog to share my ministry with people who care to read about it. I guess in a way, what I'm about to share is also part of my ministry. As a real young boy, even before I accepted Christ as Savior, I just knew that God was calling me into ministry. However, all I knew about ministry was Pastors and I knew they were poor and didn't make much money. I didn't want to be poor so I just continued to say "no" to God and continued to be as bad as I could, believing He would eventually leave me alone. When I say bad, I mean bad, but I will leave that to your imagination. Some 40 years later, God never left me alone, He continued to call me. I answered that call as Director of Stewardship at my church. It's been a great ride and I wish I had never said no back there when I was young. That's another story and maybe tell it sometime. The first year was more than I could have imagined and I needed help within that first year. I was finally given the OK to hire a secretary. Now knowing me better than most, I decided I wanted to find someone at least in their mid to late 50's, way past the child bearing age, I wanted someone who was homely and unattractive but someone who knew computers because I was as dumb as a coal bucket when it came to computers. I had applications and was almost ready to hire that person and believe me she fit all the above and move especially when I speak of unattractive. A friend of mine, suggested that I talk to someone that he knows prior to hiring this unattractive lady that I was sure was the right person. I only agreed to interview this person in respect to my friend. The appointment was set up and she came into my office for the interview. Good grief! Here before my eyes was a young 25 year old girl, good looking, married but separated, two young children, struggling to make ends meet, shy enough to not speak unless you beat it out of her, but she knew computers. Almost everything, I didn't want. I had already made my mind up, but I had to interview her because I agreed to. We had our interview and I was glad it was over. Now I could move on to bigger and better things, besides, I had a ministry to run. Well, when I started to call the older, unattractive lady to offer her the job, it was if God said, "NO" I called, and I got the wrong number, I called again and I got a recording, I called again and I got a recording that said the phone had been disconnected. I had just talked to this lady the day before. What was going on, why was I having problems getting back in touch with this lady, I wanted to offer her the job. It was if God were saying to me, "NO' this is not what I want. I want you to hire this young lady, you know the one with all the issues. I didn't need issues in a new ministry. I created enough issues without hiring one. God would not allow me to hire anyone but this young lady. It was clear, it was not what I wanted, yet it was what God wanted. I argued with God, OK God, when I hire her and she has a divorce and she gone all the time and she needs to take her children to the doctor and she calls in and says she has to stay home with a sick child, then you just remember, I didn't want to hire her , you did. So I called this young lady back and offered her the job reluctantly. I was hoping she had found something that she liked better but she agreed and there I was. HOOKED. By the way, this young ladies name is Shelley. Shelley was shy, so I thought, but I quickly found out that Shelley could outtalk the best of us. Surprisingly, she knew scripture, she knew more than I did. It was obvious, that this young lady was more inside than what the outside showed. She spoke of faith, she was willing to take back her sorry old husband who had cheated on her. She really would. I quickly found out that the outside package of Shelley was very different than the apparent inside package. 1 Samuel 16:7 is very correct. I could only see the outside, but God was looking on the inside and was doing a great work. I would have never immagined Shelley being the beautiful young lady she is today. You see, God was protecting Shelley by bringing her to the Stewardship Ministry. I beleive that she was vulnerable during those days and God was protecting her by keeping her close to His people, His work, and His Word. Fast forward, Shelley found a drug addict at church whom God had radically changed and they soon were married. He loved Shelley's girls like they were his. They have since had a son of their own and he is a "hoot". He's not to fond of me right now, but hopefully that will change someday. Shelley has begun her own ministry and you can read about it at www.shelleyhendrix.com God is using Shelley today speaking into the lives of women. She is real in everyway and she is a great influence on those she comes in contact with. I really love Shelley in a special way because I believe God has His hand on her and I blelieve that our time together was God appointed. Today she calls me "Pops" and I am privledged to call her daughter. Oh yes, I know that her real parents are proud of her but I am too. God bless you Mrs. Shelley.

Which Kingdom do you belong to?

In my quiet time today, I was reading in Luke chapter 22 and 23 and I came across a word that confused me. Thank God for tools to help us understand. The Disciples were arguing among themselves as to which of them should be considered the greatest. Must have been Baptist! Can you imagine, grown men, trying to think of themselves as the greatest in the Kingdom. In fact, I'm certain that if the real truth be known, some of them were thinking that perhaps they were greater than Christ Himself. Yes I can imagine right now that your thinking, How could they? Yet, if the truth be known, most of us at some time think we are greater than Christ. You ask, How do we do that? Easy when we think we know more than Christ, when we are disobedient to Christ, When Christ says yes or no and we say the opposite. Hear what Jesus has to say about this argument that the disciples were having. In vs 25 And He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called "Benefactors." That's the word that confused me until I read what it meant. Thought I knew, but apparently I didn't. A benefactor is an honorary title bestowed on kings or other prominent people for some meritorious acheivement or public service. The title in Greek is Euergetes and was held by some of the Hellenistic kings of Egypt. Wow! It's obvious that the disciples didn't understand this term either. They wanted to be the greatest, the over acheiver, the one in authority and over all others. In fact, one would not earn the title of "benefactor" from service rendered in the kingdom of God. In contrast to the conspicuous work needed to earn the title "benefactor", the members of the kingdom are to devote themselves to humble, obscure, and perhaps menial service. Guess that busted some bubbles that day. You mean that we got to serve rather than being served? You mean we are servants rather than kings? Jesus said, "But not so among you" If you want to be greatest, then be the least, don't aspire to be a king, but be a servant. why? Because Jesus saw Himself as one who serves. He came to seek and to save all that was lost. We cannot continue to think the way the world thinks and come close to where Jesus is. Ask yourself? Do I want to be a benefactor or a servant?