Christ's Free Servant

Dan, What about all the people in the world who do not know Jesus because they are being fed lies every day that either he does not exist or they do not have to repent of their sin to go to heaven or that we, as humans, are quite capable of making it on our own? What about all those who have turned their backs on God and/or have just fallen asleep spiritually? What about those who have gotten caught up in the things of this world and so have forsaken their first love? What about all the people of the world who are still in bondage to sin? God wants them back! He wants them to follow him! Time is short, and they are not getting the message, because there are too many other voices out there telling them differently. God is a jealous God. He longs to have his children come under his wings of protection, and I do believe he will protect those who are hiding in the shelter of the Almighty. But, he must shake this world of ours to get our attention so that we will realize HE alone is God and is worthy of our praise! He must shake this world so that we will turn from our sin and turn to God in repentance and faith. God is a loving God, slow to anger, abounding in love, mercy and compassion, and he longs to have compassion on his children if they will just turn to him. But, he is also a God of justice, and he is like a loving parent, too. What loving parent would allow his child to continue to do bad things, knowing the end result? The Bible says that the Lord disciplines and punishes those who are HIS so that we might learn obedience and so that we might be more like him. We, in America especially, need a massive dose of God's discipline in order to turn our hearts back towards him.

Leonard, There seems to be a lot of sentiment going around that Bush is going to cave in and yield to this report, because he has backed himself into a corner with no way out. What other alternatives do you think he has that he has yet to pull out of his hat? I hope the report is ignored, too, but I've not heard anyone expressing any other good ideas. Have you? I mean that sincerely, not sarcastically. If you have read any articles stating other good options, I would love to read them.

WSB, I agree with you. The Lord has been showing me the same thing for the past two years and I've read many others' writings who also say the same thing and who confirm what God has been saying to me. The only thing I might differ about is that I don't think we can do anything at this point to keep the judgment of God from coming. I believe it has been firmly decided by God, that it will happen, and the only thing repentance will do at this point is keep people from going to hell and/or perhaps spare their lives. I do believe the judgment, nonetheless, will produce repentance, but oh, what a high cost we will pay because we, as a nation, did not heed the warnings of God.

America's death warrant signed by Barbara Simpson -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Posted: December 11, 2006 1:00 a.m. Eastern Like it or not, the United States got its Christmas present from Washington's political elites. What was it? Betrayal, packaged in the report by the Iraq Study Group. They should have wrapped it black paper and tied it with a noose. Instead it was presented to the president, Congress, the media, the public and indeed, the world, in written form that tried to put a good face on a betrayal of our military and the other nations who fought with us in Iraq. But it's also a betrayal of our country and what it stands for, to say nothing of being a blatant slap in the face

Jerusalem Newswire Olmert: Baker report internal US matter

That's cool! The pastor I have now goes through entire books of the Bible, too, and I think that is great, because we learn what the scriptures say in the context of how they were written. I also think it is great when pastors are not afraid to teach from books like Haggai. Habakkuk is one of my favorite books, but I only really discovered it a couple of years ago (to my shame) because my grandmother kept quoting from it in her journals, which I had just acquired. I also made a commitment two years ago to read through the entire Bible. I had read through the NT hundreds of times and many of the OT books, but there were some OT books that I had barely scratched the surface on, so this was good discipline for me to learn much of what I had previously overlooked.

Just a thought here, but Jesus IS the Word made flesh among us. His words ARE scripture. So, anytime he preached, he was speaking the Word of the Lord. Right? The pastor I grew up under was an expository preacher, but he also used stories and he often preached topics rather than book by book, chapter by chapter. But, he had us in scripture after scripture after scripture. We had to know where the books of the Bible were located just to keep up with him. And, he picked those scriptures apart, word by word, phrase by phrase until we understood what they meant. It bothers me when a preacher barely opens the Word of God, for it is the Word that speaks to men's hearts. But scripture only, with no practical application is what? It is just knowledge. I think the Lord gives stories to help illustrate Biblical truths to help the readers to identify with what is being said so that they can apply it to their lives. Too much story telling without much of the Word is dangerous as is too much study (knowledge) without application of the Word in our lives.

Hi Suzanne! How are you? Wow, it was really nice to see your name come up on a reply here. I do miss you! Yes, I'm still here. And, thanks so much for your additional words here, too! You always have such words of wisdom to share. God bless you! And, have a blessed celebration of our Savior's birth.

I think that probably says it about as well as anything, though I would not put it in exactly those terms. I agree with you wholeheartedly on what you stated. My only consolation is that I know God is in control and all these things were talked about long ago, that God has a divine purpose in them, and that through all of this Israel will once again call on God (and the USA, too). God is allowing us to bury ourselves because we, as a nation, and Israel, as a nation, are not relying on him for direction anymore. The Bible shows us that God eventually lets us go and lets us get burned, and the purpose of that is so we will repent and will call on him for help. That is where we are right now. We need God!

The problem is, they are still putting their trust in man, not in God. They will not gain victory until they learn to call on God for the answers to their problems: II Chron. 7:13-16:

Here is a more direct link to the article: http://www.jewishworldreview.com/1206/glick120806.php3

I'm going to post the whole article, because when I clicked on the link, the article did not display, because it was from yesterday. So, here it is: Iran: The 'Jezebel' solution - John Agresto - www.washtimes.com In the nearly one year I spent in Iraq after liberation, there was one enemy that consistently undercut our operations and stymied virtually all our finest plans: hope. Seductive, vain, treacherous hope. We placed our hope in democracy, believing that elections would bring unity to a fractured country and liberty to individuals. We hoped that, in joining the democratic process, different factions would begin to shed their sectarian or ideological aims and join together for the national good. We hoped that the militias would become civic-minded if only they would don the garb of the national police. We hoped that the worst of the Ba'athists would relent after the capture of Saddam Hussein and the death of his sons. This administration, my neocon friends

billie, I don't think you are wrong. God has a plan and a purpose for all of this. I believe the purpose is stated in Isaiah 23, vs. 9: I also believe that another purpose was stated in my commentary on vs. 14-18: You see, this is all happening according to God's plan and purposes for this world of ours and for Israel, his chosen people. What we are seeing is fulfillment of the prophecies of scripture. All the players on the chess board of life are moving into position and then God is going to say "Checkmate!" He, ultimately, has the final word.

Iran: The 'Jezebel' solution - John Agresto - www.washtimes.com In the nearly one year I spent in Iraq after liberation, there was one enemy that consistently undercut our operations and stymied virtually all our finest plans: hope. Seductive, vain, treacherous hope. We placed our hope in democracy, believing that elections would bring unity to a fractured country and liberty to individuals. We hoped that, in joining the democratic process, different factions would begin to shed their sectarian or ideological aims and join together for the national good. We hoped that the militias would become civic-minded if only they would don the garb of the national police. We hoped that the worst of the Ba'athists would relent after the capture of Saddam Hussein and the death of his sons. See http://www.washtimes.com for the rest of the article.

Jews, Wake Up! - By Caroline B. Glick http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | When the history of our times is written, this week will be remembered as the week that Washington decided to let the Islamic Republic of Iran go nuclear. Hopefully it will also be remembered as the moment the Jews arose and refused to allow Iran to go nuclear. With the publication of the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group chaired by former US secretary of state James Baker III and former congressman Lee Hamilton, the debate about the war in Iraq changed. From a war for victory against Islamofascism and for democracy and freedom, the war was reduced to a conflict to be managed by appeasing the US's sworn enemies in the interests of stability and at the expense of America's allies. Baker and his associates claim that the US cannot win the war in Iraq and so the US must negotiate with its primary enemies in Iraq and throughout the world - Iran and Syria -- in the hopes that they will be persuaded to hold their fire for long enough to facilitate an "honorable" American retreat from the country. See http://www.JewishWorldReview.com for the rest of the article.

P.S. My youngest son is in the army. He just got back from a year long tour of duty in Iraq this past April and he is scheduled to go to Afghanistan in February for another year of duty. He's been married for two years now and his wife is expecting their first child in April of 2007. He has shared with us some of his views of the situation in Iraq. So, I also have talked with a soldier personally about Iraq.

Any Soldier? Not so. Not all soldiers feel this way. I know several soldiers and am related to some of them. Some may feel the way you describe, But I know for a fact that many do not. I agree! I don't think any one of us can speak for all the soldiers. I am sure they are divided on the issue just as our government is divided on the issue.

This is a really good article: Baker Plan Emboldens America's Enemies - By Jan Markell Jim Wallis, now officially crowned as the speaker for the "Religious Left," has an ad running on one of his mass e-mails from his "Sojourners" ministry stating that it is time to talk to Iran. The U.S., that is, is to sit down and have a cozy dialogue with Iran. It's a major picture on his e-mail so no one can miss it. Our European allies say President Bush needs to talk to Iran. The Baker-Hamilton "Iraq Study Group" (IRS) concluded we must talk to Iran and Syria. Wallis says, "It's time for diplomacy, not another war. To stabilize Iraq, to promote peace in the Middle East, and to address their nuclear program, it's time to talk with Iran!" Wallis then provides a petition which more than 40,000 have signed which will be delivered to Congress and the President in January. James Baker, head of the "Iraq Study Group" and responsible for the disastrous Madrid Treaty of 1991, suggested that the Bush administration's refusal to talk with Iran and Syria is the reason for our inability to stabilize Iraq. So we are to bargain in good faith with two of our most deadly enemies, Iran and Syria. This week Ahmadinejad said that the destruction of America would happen very soon. That sounds like an invitation to sit down and dialogue, right? He is having "messianic visions" of the soon-returning Mahdi or Islamic messiah. He is clearly psychotic. But we are to talk to him to stabilize the Middle East and particularly Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict... http://www.olivetreeviews.org for the remainder of the article.

If weather permits, be ready for a sky show tonight By Joey Holleman · The (Columbia) State http://dwb.heraldonline.com/local/story/62...p-5471030c.html (Published December 7

I read this passage of scripture today: Isaiah 13:6-13: "Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty. 7 Because of this, all hands will go limp, every man

Thank you, Oliveoil, for sharing that vision with us. I do believe it was from the Lord and that it is prophetic. I do believe we are living in those last days before the return of Christ and that we are nearing the seven years of tribulation, if we are not already in them. Time is short. God has given you a vision, I believe, of a fulfillment of prophecy soon to be realized.

Just a thought, but WHITE is also symbolic for purity, so perhaps this was a message from God that dipping your finger in His righteousness is Sooooooo good and that you will want to keep dipping!! What a new perspective Sue!! Love it!! This is one of those replies that will stick with me forever!! You're awesome I love you, too!

I also believe that the Lord sends us messeges. I know He has been giving them to me in many ways in such rapid fire that I want to share with everyone but they come so fast it is hard to keep up. Dreams can be one way to communicate with us as answer to prayer or something that we need guidance about certain issues that may weigh heavy on our mind. It is often difficult to interpret and on the other hand our emotions and events at a particular time in our life can emphasize what dreams we remember and which ones we don't. As a Christian, I attribute everything to the Lord and believe there is a message there somewhere. In all my dreams though, there is water, sometimes large bodies of water, sometimes small streams, and water has to do with emotions but always it is calming even though I may be going through a difficult time. I read somewhere that if you are uncomfortable in your dreams and there is water, you may feel out of control in your life. But it is always soothing for me and these are the mysteries of God's messages that we may not understand at the time but may hit us later as it may relate to something and we already have the answer as God prepared us. As far as visions or prophetic dreams, I believe some are gifted but I do think there is a message in every dream you seem to remember vividly. Now, this one does not make any sense but I had a vivid dream about cake, the frosting, the taste, how pleasant it was. We dream all the time but only remember some and some we can barely remember details, but cake? Why can't I get this dream out of my head? It seems silly now, but maybe later it will have meaning. Cjrose, Why do you assume the water has to do with emotions? Scripturally speaking, water is associated with baptism, which symbolizes the washing of rebirth in Christ, and it is also associated with the Holy Spirit, who is the one who cleanses us and gives us New Birth. I think we should see the water as the comfort of the Holy Spirit if comfort is to be implied by the dream, rather than the comfort of our own emotions. Water can also symbolize judgment, such as in the flood of Noah's time. The Psalms often talk about water in reference to some kind of judgment, such as when God drowned the Egyptians. I would think that the rest of the dream would help you to determine the meaning of the water, whether it is for comfort, judgment, leading of the Holy Spirit, filling of the Spirit, walking in the Spirit, etc. Even though the water is soothing and never disturbing you are correct and I agree that it does symbolize out re-birth in baptism and it was a glorius time. But even before that as a child, water was significant. I also just read the judgement of the flood but it's usually not a dream that implies judgement but almost as if I need to be comforted by it, because God knows more about me than I do myself and allows these avenues to comfort me during times of emotional turmoil. But as I grow in my walk with the Lord, emotions are something I am learning to control and live in the peace and joy which are gifts. But as we are human, we will be emotional at times. It's these times I believe He is with me not away from me. Building me, strengthening me, teaching me perserverance. He knows what I need even if I do not understand it at the time. My Faith never falters. I love you view on things and thank you for that:) You are welcome! And, thanks for sharing your thoughts, too. They were interesting and from a different perspective than what I was thinking. You know how God speaks to you, so you should know best what he is saying and what the water means to you. God bless!

FoxNews Story http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,232794,00.html While U.S. officials were vague about the sequence of events that led to cancellation of Wednesday's meeting, they insisted that it was agreed upon by all three leaders, though the call about the change of plans was made to Air Force One while Bush was still traveling from Riga, Latvia. "Since the King of Jordan and the prime minister had a bilateral themselves earlier today, everyone believed that it negated the purpose of the three of them to meet tonight together in a trilateral setting," White House adviser Dan Bartlett told reporters traveling with Bush. So, on Monday, Iraq's PM meets with a leader in Iran to discuss how Iran (and Syria) can help bring peace to Iraq. Then, the Iraq PM meets indepently with the King of Jordan, right? And, now the meeting with Iraq's PM and the King of Jordan with President Bush has been cancelled. Hmmmmmmm! Does anyone but me smell a rat? And, add on to that the Carpathia sounding letter from the President of Iran to the American people. Hmmmmmmmm again!

FoxNews Story http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,232794,00.html While U.S. officials were vague about the sequence of events that led to cancellation of Wednesday's meeting, they insisted that it was agreed upon by all three leaders, though the call about the change of plans was made to Air Force One while Bush was still traveling from Riga, Latvia. "Since the King of Jordan and the prime minister had a bilateral themselves earlier today, everyone believed that it negated the purpose of the three of them to meet tonight together in a trilateral setting," White House adviser Dan Bartlett told reporters traveling with Bush.