how we battle sin

a must see! and please don't let the music and dancing throw you. it's the message that makes me keep watching it. (and i happen to like the song to but we won't go there).

Godtube

oh and this 2

Who is this man?

Who is this man that kicks us when we are down? Where does he come from, and how does he know we have just fallen. Unless? Is he also the man who tripped us up in the first place? That way he can watch as we stumble and time it out just right. How can he time it out with such perfection? Who is this man that will not seem to ever let up? Day after day kicking and kicking. Does he ever tire of all this toil? Does his foot ever hurt after such long bouts of thrashing and stomping? Who is this man that knows the right way to kick? Where did he learn this talent of such precisely placed pummeling’s? Maybe it’s instinctive. Who is this man who kicks us when we are down? Will he win? Or will the man who picks us back up again win? And who is this man who picks us back up again? Where does the man come from? Is he always there waiting for the dust to settle so he can reach down and scoop us up? Who is this man who knows when you are hurt, who knows when you have taken your final blow? This man who thinks not of himself, but of the well being of battered souls. Does he get tired of reaching down and lifting us up? Or does he tire of hearing the one he lifts complain and curse concerning the beating he just took? What of his feelings? Does he not desire well wishing for good deeds done? Will he ever get them? Who is this man and who is the other, one in the same or one in another?

down for the count!

i have not updated my blog, not out of laziness like normal. i just got home from park ridge hospital. i was admitted there Monday morning. last Friday as i was leaving work my ears where just a bit tender and achy. by the next morning i knew i was getting at least one ear infection and maybe two, off to the dr. i go. he tells me "you have two outer ear infections" oh boy super just in time for the holiday weekend right! by that night i knew i was in for it, both ears where draining and this nasty yellow stuff was running down both sides of my neck. it was sic! but as sic as it was it was better then when i woke up in the middle of the night both ears 100% plugged nothing coming out anymore and pressure you would not believe. by Sunday a.m. i was a mess, the left side of my face was all puffed up, my ear looked like i had been a wrestler my whole life (cauliflower ear i think they call it) well it looked like one any way. the pain was unreal, i have had these in the past and they are always bad but this was not like anything i ever had before. there was no way to stop it for any amount of time. but other then the pain the deafness has been the worst part, i knew something was wrong when i went to take a shower and i could not hear it at all. it's a strange thing you feel very weak, almost helpless with out your hearing. i got scared cuz i thought i was going deaf forever, but i stayed home one more night of utter agony. Monday i was going to the hospital. at this point i had been taking all the meds my doc gave me sense Saturday a.m. and it has gotten worse and worse like i never took a thing. off to the e.r. i stumble, driving around like a drunk im shocked i did not get a dwi on the way. but i made it, they get me in not to long, and get a cat scan to see whats going on. the infection had gone from the outer ear (where it was on Saturday) to the inner and the boney part with the fancy name, and out of the ear to the area around it, down into the jaw and was threating to enter into my bones. the guy came back and goes hey dave don't plan on going anywhere for some time. i thinking oh boy, what does that mean? are they going to start operating on me or what? so anyway, no cutting. just a whole lot of bags of antibiotics and tubes to open the ear canals to get drops in and all that fun stuff, and three days later im home and as deaf as can be. yup still deaf, still wanting to hear anything other then the ocean and my own heart beat. not fun things when your trying to sleep by the way. but, im ok. funny thing how i was so out of it but my dad came up from p.a. to see me and i swear from the second he walked into my room and woke me up i snapped out of it and have been getting better ever sense. strange how Gods timing is.

Desiring God

so, I'm reading the first book from the shipment of books i got from John Pipers ministry www.desiringGod.com they had a $5 all book sale and lets just say i took advantage. well so i thought i should start at the start, reading Desiring God. i am and it's has been such a blessing in just the first 50 pages. Piper starts out with how he became a Christian Hedonist, then goes right into what that means. it's really just a shocking way of saying God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him. what has really stood out to me is not that so much; but that glorifying God is what it's "all" about. Piper says "the chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying him forever" a play on the words of the original, and "the chief end of God is to glorify God and enjoy himself forever". that grabbed me, is God really so stuck on himself? again a piper quote "nothing pleases God more then God", and "he delights in his glory above all things". well i must say the first thought i had was "i object!" but i read on, he said he received much help from Jonathan Edwards in his book, the end for which God created the world. any one with a major objection to this thought is directed there. he goes on, "God's own glory is uppermost in his own affections, in everything he does his purpose is to preserve and display that glory." he poses the question i had thought of, "can he still be loving if this is true?" how can a loving God be so enamored with self? 1 cor 13:5?? in my own words, yes God not only can be loving and have his own glory be the uppermost in his affections, but furthermore that's the most loving thing he can do. all through out the bible God commands we praise him, again is this just some cheap way of getting glory from man? no! because God is the most wonderful, glorious, most good in all of creation and beyond; he has to first, love himself and have his own glory uppermost in his own affections, and second demand the same from us because to love that which is ultimately loving is the most loving thing. to demand we praise that which is ultimately praiseworthy is the most loving thing. for us and for God we must have God and his glory be the uppermost of our affections, anything less is idolatry. God can not love anything less then himself the most, and to command the same from us is the most loving thing he can do for us...or something like that, it's pretty deep and I'm just starting to scratch the surface. if it is true that Gods glory comes first and is why he does all things, it makes a huge difference in the way we view the things God has done through out history.

a time to play!

so, i have not added any posts to my blog in some time and just thought i would update it by telling where i was. i went to fair haven n.y. camping and then to the renaissance festival. the camping trip was great, i have never camped there before and there was so much to do i never had a dull moment. as for the festival, it was neat in many ways yet i do not suggest anyone go with a family. there was some drinking going on as well as lots of references to the occult. it put a damper on the day and made me wish there was a Christian renaissance festival, though i'm not sure what that would look like because from the way it looks the renaissance was all about getting drunk, eating, and witchcraft. i did get a super cool quill and ink well so it was all worth it!!! all and all it was a super trip and i got some very well needed time away from everything. the day i got home i slept for 14 hours and have had so much energy sense it has made this week fly by, if you have never slept a whole day and night away give it a try some time....its good!

thoughts on God at 2 am

i often marvel at God, day by day asking why God do you do things this way or that? take for instance me. why am i a Christian? why me when i know so many others much better then i who are so lost. i have nothing to offer him. i have few skills, a major lack of patience, a temper, and so on. a man who at the very depths of his soul is purely wicked. yet he loves me so, yet he died for me then found me when i was lost and brought me to him. why? why not others? if it is their choice why do they not choose it? how could i have done that? (i really do mean to pose this question im not leading into anything that has to do with theology here). men with twice the mind and schooling are perishing as this fumbling moron hears from God day by day. he tells me his plans and all about his nature and his love for man kind, we have a very close relationship. still at this very moment their are men with doctorate's in divinity who think he is some kind of angel.
when i ponder these things i tend to get down on my self because i really am all those things and i really feel there must have been someone other then me who could have made better use of this salvation. the only answer that comes is that he uses the base things of the world so he gets the glory. and i praise him for that daily! i do not want to sound like thats not a sufficient answer for me because it is the perfect answer!! amen and amen!!! still, it overwhelms me that he can work through such depraved people. he is so great and i am so meager and he wants to be close to me. how, why, it can't be it seems, how can men refuse a God such as this?

witnessing

i have been witnessing to a girl in Texas over the web - here is one of the longer e mails i sent. anyone who maybe seeking answers to big questions, please read all of this!

Hello, so glad you replied. I will take your answers one at a time and do my very best to show you from the words of God himself the answers. This is going to be very long, but please I beg you take the time to look through it. There is nothing that is more important in your life, and there never will be.

You said – “I believe in something bigger than myself and bigger than
humanity, yes. Is it God, I don't know. If so, it is only a glimmer of God. It gives comfort and hope, but not forgiveness, peace, or joy.”

Is there a God –(Heb 11:3) “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” (Act 17:24) “God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth); just by using common logic we can easily see in the world that nothing never makes something. It can not mathematically or physiologically happen. When in life we see things that have been created we know with out ever seeing him who created it, that there is a creator. Therefore when we look at the creation as a whole we know there must be a creator, even though we see him not. If I where to go on a walk through the woods and came upon a painting the last thing I would ever say is, that painting just evolved into a painting. No no! I would say well then a painter was here. If I came upon a building in the woods, though I saw no man it would matter little, I would no doubt say a builder was here. So, we look at creation and say, a creator must exist. The first words of the bible say , (Gen 1:1) “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” We must believe this before we can even read another line and get anything from it. If we read that and say, “well im not sure but ill read on” it will almost always be a waste (not always because the word is quick and powerful able to give life). Hebrews says “for he that cometh to God must believe that he is” and “for with out faith it is impossible to please him”. Ok so before you can really truly worry about anything else you must believe that he is.

The glimmer –

John 1:9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

When God created man he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (I will touch on this again), God gave man a living soul so that we are in his image. God is one being in three persons or parts. We are one person in three parts. body, soul, and spirit (do not let this confuse you or get to stuck on the difference between the soul and spirit right now as it is not something you should focus on yet). The point is he has put something in you to be a kind of witness of himself. We have something in common with him and so we are sort of tuned in to feel God around us and in the world. Sin is the problem, it cuts the line of communication from God. (Rom 5:12) Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”

Moreover; God has written his law upon your heart so that you are with out excuse. Did you ever notice how that no matter where you go in the world all of man kind have almost the same morals (on the grand scale that is), things like don’t murder, don’t steal, don’t rape. Even an island in the middle of the ocean will have people who know and try to live by the 10 commandments almost to the letter. Why is this? (Rom 1:20) For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” (Rom 2:15) “Which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)

Romans 1:20 says that we are made in a way that when we look around us we should know that God is there, “clearly seen” is what it says. And so we who never give him the glory, honor, and credit for it are without excuse. Romans 2:15 says that we all have his law within us and this is why men are different from dogs. We care about morals because God does and has made us to care. If we came from the earth and just evolved over time this would not exist. I’m off topic sorry. So to recap, you feel a glimmer of God because he made you that way. Jesus is the light that is lighting you, God made you able to see the creation and see him in it, and put his law in your heart.

You said – “I believe in the
soul, but I'm not sure I believe that my soul is a single, discrete thing. More like... maybe, hopefully, there's this miasma of Soul-ness (if you will) from which I and all others came, and to which I will maybe hopefully return. But then again, I have felt the presence of a soul I know to be a single being, so what does that mean?”

Man, a living soul – (Gen 2:7) And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” We are a very specific being created in such a way that we mirror God. I hear people talk of the spirit world and how all things are one, that all is connected and so on. This is an eastern religious belief. Reincarnation and so on, It is very far from the teachings of God’s reviled word. We are given one soul and it is an eternal thing that never goes away. we shall go with it to death eternal in hell, or life eternal in heaven. (Psa 86:13) For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell” )Pro 23:14) “ Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell”. (Mat 10:28) “ And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

There is an afterlife, and it will be spent in hell, or in heaven. All who die in trespass and sin shall see destruction in hell. As we said, God has given his law to us, we are without excuse. The judgement looms over us everyday, (Jas 4:14) “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” We are not promised one more day, and (Rom 14:12) “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.”

(Rev 20:11) And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

(Rev 20:12) And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

(Rev 20:13) And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

(Rev 20:14) And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

(Rev 20:15) And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

Please do not be confused when it says he judges according to works, that is only for the lost who are being judged for all their sin.

Will you go to heaven? –

You said -
As for Heaven... No one gets a free pass there. So no, I will never believe that I
am going, because to believe that is to grow complacent, and complacency leads to
sin. Now, whether or not I believe in Heaven at all is a different question. I've
always tried to take a kind of Pascal's Wager view of religion, but it's never
worked for me because you can't truly Believe if you're only doing it to improve
your chances…..and - Heaven is not a goal in my opinion. It
is a reward for a life well lived…..and - you earn it….

Please do not take this the wrong way, im not trying to be mean, but! You could not be more wrong. Wait! Don’t get mad! Ill prove it!

1^st no one gets a free pass? That’s just what it is! A free gift of God

2^nd complacency leads to sin? That’s a catholic view, its called the sin of presumption. It’s false, or the apostles where is sin.

3^rd believing to improve your chances – your right in a sense, but you can improve your chances, and go a step farther by knowing for sure by believing.

4^th you earn it? Oh no my dear, this is your most deadly mistake. Everyone and every religion in one way or the other thinks this way. They only earn their way straight to hell.

1 – men are fallen we can not do anything good in God eyes until we are reborn. Rebirth is a free gift, salvation is free!!! Rom 6:23 “ For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Rom 5:15 But not as the offense, so also is the free gift. For if through the offense of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.”

2- can we know we are going to heaven? 1Jn 5:13 “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” John 20:31 “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.”

3 – this will answer it’s self in the others.

4 – can you earn it? No.

Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by (grace ye are saved;) this is saying you are dead in sin, but he can make you alive forever through Jesus by his grace.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. You see it’s a free gift from God, not of anything I can do for if I could do anything I would boast of my salvation in myself and not in God. I boast, but only in Christ for he saved me for free! It cost me nothing. It cost Jesus everything!!

Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: all are the same without Jesus, under sin! But!

Rom 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”

Amen amen amen!!!!

This is what it all comes down to right here, we are dead in sin. We can feel God only because of his grace and love towards us in that he made us this way. Still, we must respond to him. We are not able to work our way out of the sinful state we have worked our selves into, so. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him shall not parish but have everlasting life!!!!!!!! There is nothing we can do of our selves, Jesus did it all on the cross. His blood paid the price of sin for all the world. All we must do is trust in him, confess, repent (turn from sin to God, fight sin everyday and draw closer to God through his word and prayer and going to worship at a bible based church), tell him we trust in his sacrifice for our salvation. Call out to God today and tell him you’re a sinner who needs salvation, call out for mercy and he will give it!

(Rom 10:13) “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

I do hope this has helped, I know its long but it is the most important thing you will ever do in your life!!!! Please reply with any questions, or comments. And may God bless you as you seek him!

Jer 29:13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.