“You can lead an atheist to evidence, but you can’t make him think.”

- Ray Comfort

Today is the first day of my last semester of Junior College… so, the amount of postage could eitheir decrease, due to my classes; or increase, since I will probably be spending more time in front of a computer (and a nice one too, the college just built a new library, and it is really really nice!).

Two young men are inspired by a preacher.

Amanda Carprenter at Townhall.com:

I received an email this morning to tell me we missed Obama’s biggest Saddleback gaffe.

Remember when Obama was talking about abortion and said, “Although we’ve had a president who is opposed to abortions over the last eight years, abortions have not gone down”?

My emailer passes on this 2008 article from U.S. News and World Report showing abortions have decreased dramatically under George Bush’s tenure. The title of it is “U.S. Abortion Rate Falls to Lowest Level in Decades.”

“So yes, Obama is either stunningly uninformed on one of American politics’ most volatile issues, or he outright lied to a pastor on national television (not to mention the American people) as he gave lip service to a known left wing myth,” my friend writes.

HT: JT

“Be killing sin or it will be killing you.”

- John Owen

Today I was involved in saving the precious lives of two baby bunnies… both of them had gotten stuck in the fence that surrounds our garden… they were both awful cute (yeah, I know I just used the word “cute,” o well). I would try to expound on this by drawing out some profound spiritual truth, but as I am fairly busy today, I’ll leave that up to you.

John Piper:

Lee Grady, the editor of Charisma, one of the main charismatic magazines, has written a lament and critique of the Lakeland “revival” which is now in a tailspin over the leaders announced separation from his wife. Grady’s summons to pray for the church and and our nation is right, and among his commendable questions and observations are these:

• “Many of us would rather watch a noisy demonstration of miracles, signs and wonders than have a quiet Bible study. Yet we are faced today with the sad reality that our untempered zeal is a sign of immaturity. Our adolescent craving for the wild and crazy makes us do stupid things. It’s way past time for us to grow up.”
• “True revival will be accompanied by brokenness, humility, reverence and repentance—not the arrogance, showmanship and empty hype that often was on display in Lakeland.”
• “A prominent Pentecostal evangelist called me this week after Bentley’s news hit the fan. He said to me: “I’m now convinced that a large segment of the charismatic church will follow the anti-Christ when he shows up because they have no discernment.” Ouch. Hopefully we’ll learn our lesson this time and apply the necessary caution when an imposter shows up.”

Charismatics will not be the only ones who follow the Antichrist when he rises. So will the mass of those who today in thousands of evangelical churches belittle the truth of biblical doctrine as God’s agent to set us free (John 8:32).

Discernment is not created in God’s people by brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance. It is created by biblical truth and the application of truth by the power of the Holy Spirit to our hearts and minds. When that happens, then the brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance will have the strong fiber of the full counsel of God in them. They will be profoundly Christian and not merely religious and emotional and psychological.

The common denominator of those who follow the Antichrist will not be “charismatic” it will be, as Paul says, “they refused to love the truth.”

The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)

Our test for every Lakeland that comes along should first be doctrinal and expositional. Is this awakening carried along by a “love for the truth” and a passion to hear the whole counsel of God proclaimed?

This was to good to keep to myself…

Abraham Piper:

The power of me?

Can I offer myself high speed internet?

Assuming they can provide it, I need the power of them.

The past three or four weeks have seen only one artist in my cd player, the one and only, Keith Green… here is a little taste of what I’ve been listening to… this song is called “Asleep in the Light” and I find it particularly convicting, so I have included the lyrics as well:

Do you see, do you see
All the people sinking down
Don’t you care, don’t you care
Are you gonna let them drown

How can you be so numb
Not to care if they come
You close your eyes
And pretend the job’s done

“Oh bless me Lord, bless me Lord”
You know it’s all I ever hear
No one aches, no one hurts
No one even sheds one tear

But He cries, He weeps, He bleeds
And He cares for your needs
And you just lay back
And keep soaking it in,
Oh, can’t you see it’s such a sin?

Cause He brings people to you door,
And you turn them away
As you smile and say,
“God bless you, be at peace”
And all heaven just weeps
Cause Jesus came to your door
You’ve left him out on the streets

Open up open up
And give yourself away
You see the need, you hear the cries
So how can you delay

God’s calling and you’re the one
But like Jonah you run
He’s told you to speak
But you keep holding it in,
Oh can’t you see it’s such a sin?

The world is sleeping in the dark
That the church just can’t fight
Cause it’s asleep in the light
How can you be so dead
When you’ve been so well fed
Jesus rose from the grave
And you, you can’t even get out of bed

Oh, Jesus rose from the dead
Come on, get out of your bed

How can you be so numb
Not to care if they come
You close your eyes
And pretend the job’s done
You close your eyes
And pretend the job’s done

Don’t close your eyes
Don’t pretend the jobs done
Come away, come away, come away with Me my love,
Come away, from this mess, come away with Me, my love.

Ray Comfort:

If you are a beginner atheist, there’s a belief system you should embrace and a language you should learn, or you will find yourself in trouble. Here are ten suggestions for the novice:

1. Whenever you are presented with credible evidence for God’s existence, call it a “straw man argument,” or “circular reasoning.” If something is quoted from somewhere, label it “quote mining.”

2. When a Christian says that creation proves that there is a Creator, dismiss such common sense by saying “That’s just the old watchmaker argument.”

3. When you hear that you have everything to gain and nothing to lose (the pleasures of Heaven, and the endurance of Hell) by obeying the Gospel, say “That’s just the old ‘Pascal wager.’”

Click here to read the whole thing.

This absolutely made my day… I am looking at a list of the “Top 50 Books That Have Shaped Evangelicals” on christianitytoday.com. And in the shopping sidebar, one of the featured items is a book called… yep, you guessed it… “The Faith of Barack Obama.” I’m thinking, “Is this a joke? The Faith of Barack Obama on Christianity Today.com…” But that is not all, wanting to find out more about this literary treasure, I click on the link. And low and behold, the Christian Book Distributors are selling the book (and it is published by Thomas Nelson!), I’m thinking, “This is crazy; The Faith of Barack Obama is being advertised on Christianity Today and is being sold by the Christian Book Distributors! This must be a different Barack Obama than the one I’m familiar with… this can’t be the guy who is cool with the murdering thousands of babies or the guy who thinks that being a mother or father is punishment….”

Forget reading this book, here is a telling article about Barack Obamas faith… a faith that does not include 1) belief in the deity or uniqueness of Christ as the only mediator between God and man, 2) belief in a literal hell, or 3) belief that salvation is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8). Looks like three strikes… Mr. Obama, “Your Outa’ Here!”

I was able to make my good purchase yesterday. It was quite exciting, I have been able to listen to the whole cd so far, and it is very good. Not only that, but I was also able to get two new pairs of shoes (thanks to my kindly parental authorities). So, indeed the Long Day Of Shopping was actually very good.

That is… it appears as though I am in for a Long Day Of Shopping with my mother and two younger sisters, which may or may not be exciting. It pretty much all hinges on whether or not we get to go to the Christian bookstore… if we do, the day will be a good day; if we don’t, then it will probably be like any other shopping trip. Hopefully I will return with a triumphant tail of how I was able to make a good purchase at the bookstore…

Here are a few directions for you to follow. I found this quite funny!

(HT: Irish Calvinist)

Mine is… generally Sunday afternoons are pretty lax around my house. So here are some passages that I have found very helpful in reflecting on Gods greatness. I would really encourage you to grab your Bible (or if you don’t have a Bible check out the passages here) and read over these passages, I do realize that sitting down and reading and thinking takes time. But that’s okay, this is definitely worth while.

• Psalm 104 - Gods Great Works
• Proverbs 30:4 - Who Has..
• Isaiah 40 - God is Great
• Revelation 19:11-16 - The Rider

“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all”
- Psalm 34:19

When was the last time (if ever) you heard someone claiming this promise for their life? It seems to me as though many Christians would like to live a life that is free of afflictions, hoping that fewer afflictions will equal more joy. But in wanting and pursuing a life as such, they will actually be missing out on a great cause for joy… namely, afflictions.

“Count it all joy…when you meet trials of various kinds.”
- James 1:2

James Grant/Between Two Worlds:

Dick Morris has a recent article examining the current presidential race and why Obama has lost some ground. While some of the gain is due to McCain, Morris says that part of the slippage is Obama’s fault. In the words of Dick Morris:

Obama has carried flip-flopping to new heights. In the space of a month and a half, this candidate — who we don’t really yet know very well — reversed or sharply modified his positions on at least eight key issues:

• After vowing to eschew private fundraising and take public financing, he has now refused public money.
• Once he threatened to filibuster a bill to protect telephone companies from liability for their cooperation with national security wiretaps; now he has voted for the legislation.
• Turning his back on a lifetime of support for gun control, he now recognizes a Second Amendment right to bear arms in the wake of the Supreme Court decision.
• Formerly, he told the Israeli lobby that he favored an undivided Jerusalem. Now he says he didn’t mean it.
• From a 100 percent pro-choice position, he now has migrated to expressing doubts about allowing partial-birth abortions.
• For the first time, he now speaks highly of using church-based institutions to deliver public services to the poor.
• Having based his entire campaign on withdrawal from Iraq, he now pledges to consult with the military first.
• During the primary, he backed merit pay for teachers — but before the union a few weeks ago, he opposed it.
• After specifically saying in the primaries that he disagreed with Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s (D-N.Y.) proposal to impose Social Security taxes on income over $200,000 and wanted to tax all income, he has now adopted the Clinton position.

Read the whole article here.

Up till now the majority of my posts have been quotes. I have been posting quotes because writing down something someone else has already said is much easier and quicker than saying something yourself. Unfortunately, by simply posting things other people have written (or said) my own writing skill has not really benefited… So, I think am going to be posting less frequently, but with more original content. While there may still be many quotes posted I will probably post somewhat of a small exposition along with them. That way, I will be able to learn to write more clearly and concisely.

And, if you are looking for quotes, check out Reformed Voices for solid stuff.