New Movie: Come What May

There is a free screening on GodTube October 27-29. I just found out about it so I haven't watched it (only the trailer), but this review praises the movie for "presenting solid legal arguments against the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision while captivating audiences with an engaging storyline that is both entertaining and thought-provoking." There is more information and the link to watch the movie here. Check it out!

Uncertain Times (Part II)

I found last week's sermon at Grace very fitting for this topic. You can listen to it on the church website at the following link:

Do You See Jesus?: Part 7: Voices in Chaos

Mark 9:1-13

Sermon Notes:

1. Jesus is a unique person. (John 7:37-38; 8:12; 10:9-10, 27-30; 11:25-26; 14:6, Matthew 11:28-30, John 3:16)

2. Jesus has the ultimate perspective. (John 8:58, Mark 8:34-36; Luke 12:15, Matthew 6:19-34, Hebrews 7:24-25; 13:8)

3. Jesus has an unstoppable plan. (Revelation 21:1-5; Matthew 25:23; II Corinthians 4:16; II Peter 1:16-19)

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Psalm 33 - 1 Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him. 2 Praise the LORD with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre. 3 Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy. 4 For the word of the LORD is right and true; he is faithful in all he does. 5 The LORD loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love. 6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. 7 He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses. 8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him. 9 For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. 10 The LORD foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. 11 But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. 12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance. 13 From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind; 14 from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth- 15 he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do. 16 No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. 17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. 18 But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, 19 to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. 20 We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. 21 In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. 22 May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you.

Uncertain Times (Part I)

We all know the economy is struggling. Mike & I received our quarterly retirement statements last week and it sure wasn't pretty (and we're not talking huge investments either). The presidential election is only 2 weeks away, and we have, dare I say, the most liberal presidential candidate ever running in this election. So many people supporting him with his ideas to take a "woman's right to abortion" to the extreme in support of leaving a newborn unwanted baby to die, to "spread the wealth around" (a.k.a "socialism"), more and more dependancy on government, and who knows what his religious views are or even if he is proud to be an American citizen. All because people say they want "change." I fear what may lie ahead for our nation. This article describes a historian's concept for the rise and fall of a democracy. I can see how things very much may be headed in this direction. But, I do know that whatever the future holds for our country that...

God IS in control....

And we now, more than ever, need to be on our knees in prayer, pleading to God for our nation. I would encourage you, if you haven't already, to research the candidates & the issues, not only for U.S. President but also state/local politicians, and encourage others to do the same through sources such as Fox News, Ohio Round Table or Focus on the Family's Citizenlink, (including the Newsletter from Dr. Dobson & "Values Voter Guide") so that as many as possible especially other Christians can be educated on the real issues/facts here and not just vote blindly on a surface notion... Ok, enough talk on politics and the economy (I am not one to be interested in those things but I do think we need to take the current events seriously right now)... I want to share an excellent book which I think will be a source of encouragement during these uncertain times, because it is a study on God's sovereignty.... I recently started reading "Trusting God" by Jerry Bridges (Mike has already finished it.) This is a great book to accompany your Bible reading...

Excerpts from Chapter 1:

"Yet it is just as important to trust God as it is to obey Him. When we disobey God we defy His authority and despise His holiness. But when we fail to trust God we doubt His sovereignty and question His goodness."

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"In order to trust God, we must always view our adverse circumstances through the eyes of faith, not of sense."

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"Rather than being offended over the Bible's assertion of God's sovereignty in both good and calamity, believers should be comforted by it. Whatever our particular calamity or adversity may be, we may be sure that our Father has a loving purpose in it"

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"It was for Jesus in His humanity a calamity sufficient to cause Him to pray, 'My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me' (Matthew 26:39) but He did not waver in His assertion of God's sovereign control."

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"Jesus Himself affirmed God's sovereignty in calamity when Pilate said to Him, 'Don't you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?' Jesus replied, 'You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above' (John 19:10-11)"

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I was hoping that the sermon entitled "Voices in the Chaos" from this past Sunday would be posted on our church website but it is not on there yet so I will post Part II when it is available for listening...

Fireproof is in theaters starting today

You may have already heard...today is the opening of the new movie "Fireproof" from the makers of "Facing the Giants" and "Flywheel." As I hear more and more about this movie, I am more and more excited to see it. I found out today that it will be showing in Mansfield - yay! I would encourage you to check out the website (click here), if you haven't heard about the movie yet or to see if it is playing near you. Also, there have been a good number of interviews leading up to this release, but I'd encourage you to listen to this one with Kirk Cameron at Chris Fabry Live ...and while you are on that website you may want to listen to a couple other programs from earlier in the week I found quite interesting:

• Sept 23 A discussion on the economy from a Christian viewpoint including a discussion of the federal government bailout deal
• Sept 24 "The Man Whisperer": Speaking your husband's language to bring out his best

Faith and Politics

Some of you have already heard this, but anyone who hasn't, it is worth taking a look at now. Both presidential candidates were recently interviewed by Pastor Rick Warren at Saddleback church. The interview involved several questions that prompted them to talk about their religious faith.

The easiest way to get to the videos on CNN is through this link.

A Testimony of God's Sovereignty and Grace

We watched Larry King's interview last Thursday with Steven Curtis Chapman and family talking about the tragic death of 5 yr-old adopted daughter Maria Sue. You can see all 6 parts of the program here. (Be sure to watch part 6/6 because there is an amazing story...)

As Steven Curtis Chapman prayed to God for comfort and that God would help him see that Maria Sue was safe shortly after the accident, he came across a drawing on the art table that Maria Sue had drawn the day she died...it had 6 petals and only one was colored in. Steven said the petals represented his 6 children, and the one completely colored in was Maria Sue..she is whole now, as she is in Heaven with Jesus. The word "SEE" was written in Maria's handwriting on the page with the flower and they knew that she had never learned to write that word...

The video and story behind the song "Cinderella" by Steven Curtis Chapman written long before Maria Sue's death.

Beijing China Summer Olympics 2008: The Games Have Begun

We watched a lot of the opening ceremonies last evening and hope to be able to watch a lot of the events (we got our cable hooked up on Thursday). But, look what we discovered this morning!!! Through the internet at this link you can watch any sport you want live (click on the list of events on the left that are marked "live")! Lots of other info at that site, too. Wow...That's pretty cool!