• We have taller buildings but shorter tempers.
• We have wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints.
• We have bigger houses and smaller families.
• We have more conveniences, but less time.
• We have more degrees but less sense.
• We have more knowledge, but less judgement.
• We have more experts, yet more problems.
• We have more medicine, but less wellness.
• We spend more, but have less.
• We buy more, but enjoy less.
• We write more, but learn less.
• We plan more, but accomplish less.

• We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
• We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
• We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life.
• We’ve  added years to life but not life to years.
• We conquered outer space but not inner space.
• We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.

• We’ve done larger things, but not better things.
• We’ve cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
• We’ve conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
• We’ve learned to rush, but not to wait.
• We build more computers to hold more information, but we communicate less and less.
• We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and laugh too little and pray too seldom.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses but more broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.

Give time to love and care, warmth and affection.

Give time to life!

Someone bought me a book recently called “The youth worker’s guide to helping teenagers in crisis.” FANTASTIC book by the way. There was a quote in the book that really caught my eye and caused me to read it over a few times: “Madeleine L’Engle put it nicely: In a very real sense, not one of us is qualified but it seems that God continually chooses the most unqualified to do His work, to bear His glory. If we are qualified, we tend to think we have done the job ourselves. If we are focused to accept our evident lack of qualification, then there’s no danger that we will confuse God’s work with our own or God’s glory with our own.”

In conclusion, let me say this. I’m so grateful that I get to be used by God!

See, If the enemy cannot get you to turn your back on God, he will do everything in his power to ether keep you in sin or keep you oppressed or depressed. He just want to discourage you enough that you become inaffective as a christian. There is only 1 think worst then a non-believer and that’s a depressed Christian.

I want to encourage you and let you know that if you are currently feeling any of the feelings mentioned above, then you might just be on the enemy’s hit-list which is a good thing. It means that you are a threat to him. That means that someone down the line you might be doing something good. Never give up, never let go. God sees and knows what your going through. Keep on being faithful and everything else is bound to fall back into place!

-Phil-

Unfortunately the world’s standard of things is all face and no heart. It’s all about what we look like on the outside rather then to be right on the inside. I love James 4:10

Ecclesiastes 9

Death Comes to All

¹ This, too, I carefully explored: Even though the actions of godly and wise people are in God’s hands, no one knows whether God will show them favor. ² The same destiny ultimately awaits everyone, whether righteous or wicked, good or bad,^[a] ceremonially clean or unclean, religious or irreligious. Good people receive the same treatment as sinners, and people who make promises to God are treated like people who don’t.

³ It seems so tragic that everyone under the sun suffers the same fate. That is why people are not more careful to be good. Instead, they choose their own mad course, for they have no hope. There is nothing ahead but death anyway. ⁴There is hope only for the living. As they say, “It’s better to be a live dog than a dead lion!”

⁵ The living at least know they will die, but the dead know nothing. They have no further reward, nor are they remembered. ⁶ Whatever they did in their lifetime—loving, hating, envying—is all long gone. They no longer play a part in anything here on earth. ⁷ So go ahead. Eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a happy heart, for God approves of this! ⁸ Wear fine clothes, with a splash of cologne!

⁹ Live happily with the woman you love through all the meaningless days of life that God has given you under the sun. The wife God gives you is your reward for all your earthly toil. ¹⁰ Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave,^[b] there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.

¹¹ I have observed something else under the sun. The fastest runner doesn’t always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn’t always win the battle. The wise sometimes go hungry, and the skillful are not necessarily wealthy. And those who are educated don’t always lead successful lives. It is all decided by chance, by being in the right place at the right time.

¹² People can never predict when hard times might come. Like fish in a net or birds in a trap, people are caught by sudden tragedy.

Just remember this, There is ALWAYS someone that has it worst then you do!  Jesus loves you!

-Phil-

2 Corinthians 13:5 “Examine yourself to see if your faith is really genuine. Test Yourselves. If you cannot tell that Jesus Christ is among you, it means you have failed the test.”

Wow, that is a loaded verse. Do you walk around and go about your life without and Doubt that Christ is in you or do you constantly think to yourself, “I wonder if God is here with me”? Do the people you hang around with undeniably know that you are a follower of Jesus Christ or do you just pass as a nice person? The answer is simple: “Test yourself. If you cannot tell that Jesus Christ is among you, it means you have failed the test.” I also like what the Message Version says: “If you fail the test, do something about it.”

-Phil-

This is now the reality of the society in which we live in.  As teachers of the Word of God, we can either fight this or ride the wave. Personally I chose to ride the wave and to utilize this to reach to as many kids as possible. We need to realize that the world is changing and unless the church takes the time to realize these changes, we are going to lose our effectiveness. Mark Miller puts it this way: “Today’s Church leaders must see themselves as missionaries who are setting sail from the land of modernity to the uncharted waters of post-modernity, and the first rule of any missionary is to understand the language and culture of his or her community.”

Let’s be a people that effectively communicate the Greatest story ever recorded!

It showed me how we are able to use such things as twitter, facebook, and myspace or msn, blackberry, Iphone, etc to be our “friend” that makes communication easier which it does, but it all comes down to the fact that are you utilizing it or is it utilizing you. Are you using these things to further you walk or is it using you dragging you back from the call God has on your life. Is the amount of time you spend with it more time you spend with God? Are you allowing it to become a god of your life and making into an idol that hinders your walk? Are you gonna let these materialistic things control you? Or God? I for one wanna choose God as the person who controls my life. Ask God to show you if there are certain things in your life if there are things in your life that are disguised as friends but are actually your foes.

Copy this questionnaire into the comment box and answer each one as if someone was asking you that question and truly wanted to know the answer to it. Answer as though this person knows very little about God or Christianity. I am interested in finding out how some of you would answer some of these. Have fun

#1 Who is God and what is He like?

#2 What is the Trinity?

#3 Who is Jesus?

#4 Why did He die on the Cross?

#5 How do I know He really rose from the dead?

#6 Who is the Holy Spirit and what does He do?

#7 How do I get plugged in to the power of the Holy Spirit?

#8 Is the Bible really God’s Word and does it relate to my life?

#9 What is truth and can I know it with certainty?

#10 What is sin and how does it impact me life and my relationship with others?

#11 Why does God allow evil in the world?

#12 What is a Christian and how does a person become one?

#13 If Jesus is the only way to Heaven, are all other religions wrong?

#14 What about the people who have never heard about the Gospel?

#15 what is The Great Commission and how does it relate to me?

#16 Is there a real Heaven and hell and what about they like?

#17 Is there a judgement day and what difference should it make in my life?

#18 Can I really be forgiven for all my sins, even the really bad ones?

#19 Will God ever leave me or forsake me?

#20 Who are satan and his demons?

#21 How do I engage in spiritual warfare?

#22 What is the Church and why should I be involved?

#23 What are Spiritual Gifts and how do I discover mine?

#24 How should the return of Christ impact my life?

#25 What is prayer and how do I do it?

#26 Why should I study my Bible and how do I do it?

#27 How do I defend my faith?

#28 Who am I, where did I come from, and what is my purpose?

#29 Which is true, creation or evolution, and why does it matter?

#30 How can I worship God in everything I do?

I just want to hear what you all have to say i’ll be waiting for answers!