Tag: #bible

Did Jesus Really Die on Good Friday and Other Fascinating Questions

We rob ourselves when we skim the surface of scripture rather than exert the effort to dig deeper for the treasures of truth embedded in God’s Word. Bible study leader and award-winning author Stephanie Pavlantos mined God’s Word to bring us a greater understanding of the intersection of Old Testament prophecies about Jesus, (God incarnate, the Messiah) and His New Testament fulfillment. Stephanie brings to light the fascinating Hebrew religious law and culture, the many intricate events leading up to, and the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

Did Jesus really die on Good Friday? What is the significance of the Passover feast and the Passover lamb? See God in the details, how He overlooks and wastes nothing and much more in this faith building thought provoking presentation. And there’s more!

Continue reading “Did Jesus Really Die on Good Friday and Other Fascinating Questions”

Angelina Lives! ~ A Hope Filled Pro-life Story

We live in a time where many demand their rights, but few rise to their responsibilities. In some ancient cultures, they sacrificed their children to pagan gods. Today, many sacrifice their children on the altar of convenience, self-preservation, and pleasure. Man’s short-term solutions based on his desires and emotions often cause more significant problems in the long term. 

But Fourteen years ago, I witnessed a young mom withstand a tirade of angry faces, phone calls, angry words hurled in public places. 

“Get a *?#*!#! abortion!” they said. 

“No!” the mama said. She would not take the life of her child. — Angelina lives! I took her newborn pictures, and today I have the joy and honor of introducing you to her via this inspiring 12 minute video conversation below, followed by some engaging resources offering help, hope, and healing to those in similar situations.

Continue reading “Angelina Lives! ~ A Hope Filled Pro-life Story”

Part 1 ~ Law Enforcement Series: A Master Police Officer, Veteran, Former Atheist, and His Extraordinary Wife

Master Police Officer Lewis has served in Virginia for 15 years. He was an active duty U.S. Naval officer for eight years and then in the reserves. He is also a former atheist. Officer Lewis and his wife Mickey adopted their two children from South Korea. Their son is on the autism spectrum. Mickey is a complex trauma survivor and a licensed professional counselor in practice for 15 years. She specializes in trauma treatment: working with abuse victims, sex trafficking survivors, and first responders—those struggling with PTSD.

Continue reading “Part 1 ~ Law Enforcement Series: A Master Police Officer, Veteran, Former Atheist, and His Extraordinary Wife”

Michael Duncan ~ Author, Pastor, Master of the One-line Sermon

He calls himself “a sinner saved by grace. A pastor who has fought against dragons and won. A sojourner going from here to there with a story to tell.” I call him the master of the one-line sermon. Once again, I’m honored to host Pastor Duncan, husband, father, preacher, speaker, poet, musician, US Air Force Veteran, and author of the newly released book, For King and Crown: Conversations on the Christian Life. Don’t miss this video interview—it’s gold.

A disciplined life is born of effort, not excuses. — Pastor and author Michael Duncan

Think not yourself a Christian if you hate the righteousness God loves and love the sin He hates. — Pastor and author Michael Duncan

Continue reading “Michael Duncan ~ Author, Pastor, Master of the One-line Sermon”

#IfMyPeople ~ Battle for the Soul of a Nation

Four hundred years after pilgrim and American forefather Edward Winslow settled in Plymouth, Massachusetts, his descendant returns to lead the charge to battle for the soul of our nation. 

Pastor Greg and Suzanne Winslow, former missionaries to Mexico, church planters, and founders of If My People New England and Hidden Manna Ministries from NH share about their upcoming adventure and the part you can play. They also cover the state of the Church and America, how to navigate these turbulent times, the power of prayer, and more in this video interview. (Welcome back, Pastor Greg and Suzanne.) 🙂

Continue reading “#IfMyPeople ~ Battle for the Soul of a Nation”

Awake!

“I am weary. I’m tired of the fight! Must I engage in this one?” I inquired. “How did I even get here?”

“You don’t have to fight every battle,” a familiar voice said as they sidled up to me. 

Continue reading “Awake!”

Peace in Pandemic & Pandemonium

My word of the year for 2021 came early again—last August. So you’d think I’d have posted this sooner, but that’s another story. 

“Okay, but God,” I said, “I don’t think I like the implications of that word.”

“Adapt.” He said

“Can You take that one back? May I have a different one? — Or perhaps You can add to it please, Lord?”

“Trust. Follow.” Jesus said.

Adapt doesn’t mean compromise truth, change the goal, or deviate from the message and call God gave us. But sometimes the route may require prayer and re-reckoning. We may need to adapt our sails to the change in wind. The only thing certain is uncertainty—that and God’s faithfulness.

Continue reading “Peace in Pandemic & Pandemonium”

Messages from Missionaries

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Missionaries upend and sometimes risk their lives to serve the Gospel in restricted nations. They are often bold in the face of opposition, while many people in America display passivity in the face of peace, and take for granted our freedoms rather than being grateful for them. American Christianity is uncomfortable with inconvenience. I pray these messages from missionaries who left the comforts and security of their homeland to proclaim the message of Jesus’ love, deliverance, and salvation, will stir your heart.

Rachael_M_Colby_Tattoo_it_On_Your_Heart_Christ_has _not_called _us_to_comfort_or_convenience-but_to_the_crossAnonymous Former Missionary to China: Sharing the Gospel wherever you are is all about leaving the comfortable whether it’s leaving our home or going beyond ourselves. Compassion and caring for people can awaken anyone to go beyond intimidation and our own limitations. We were missionaries in China for four years—that was our commitment. We had a house church, although a lot of our missionary friends had their church in a building. Continue reading “Messages from Missionaries”

Why Are We Shouting? (Remembering MLK’s Message)

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I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. ―Martin Luther King Jr.

The King of all creation, Jesus, shouldered our sin and calls us to bear one another’s burdens.

 

alexandra-marcu-1273561-unsplash.jpgRejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Romans 12:15 (NKJV)

Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:2 (NKJV)

bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. Colossians 3:13 (NKJV)

 

So, why are we shouting?

But avoid irreverent, empty speech, for this will produce an even greater measure of godlessness. 2 Timothy 2:16 (HCSB)

So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; James 1:19 (NKJV)

I’m truly sorry for those who suffered and suffer at the hands of others. We must speak out and stand up against injustice for if we say nothing and do nothing when we are called to stand and speak we become part of the problem. We must take responsibility for our wrong actions and when we are treated unjustly we must remember that reasons aren’t excuses for wrong reactions. We must learn from the past, but live in the present and take steps toward a better future.

..in the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. —Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I Have a Dream, speech

“the time is always right to do the right thing”―Martin Luther King Jr.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” ―Martin Luther King Jr., A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches

 

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. John 13:34 (NKJV)

We are not our skin; it’s just the stuff we live in. Strawberry, lemon, chocolate, vanilla—let us savor the flavor in each other’s cultures.

Some believe themselves superior while exhibiting inferior behavior toward others. With large mouths, shriveled hearts and tiny mindsets they eke out finite lives in their effort to undermine noble ones. Others say they want equal rights but demand special privileges.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” ―Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

What if instead of looking out for ourselves we looked out for each other?

marcelo-matarazzo-287570-unsplashLet nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Philippians 2:3 (NKJV)

The Bible says:

And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, Acts 17:26 (NKJV)

The Great Seal of the United States of America says we are. “E Pluribus unum, out of many, one.” Our pledge of allegiance states, “one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all,” and our national motto says, “In God We Trust.” But when we seek our own and trust in man, as some do, we end up divided. See, the Gospel has the answers—it is the answer for all that ails us.

But I think we need to focus less on racism specifically because it is a symptom, just like every other sin, of a sinful heart—and the only thing that will change that is a heart changed by Christ. —Pastor Kevin Obermeyer in Threats to the Church and  Keys to Revival

We are meant to marvel at the majesty of the Creator in His creation.

There is a root that sustains

There is one Vine—

Jesus

How marvelously He colors our lives with vibrant brushstrokes of many hues—

Facets of Himself reflected in our differences

Let us recognize our common ground

And celebrate

The ongoing work of the The Master Artist.  

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Portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. by Jean Colby

Link here to read: One Blood, A Civil Rights Story, as told to me by Jean Colby, my mother-in-law and Sara Clay, my sister-in-law about their experiences as Civil Rights activists, about the March Against Fear, MLK, and James Meredith. (Scroll down in my post, See, Stand, Speak.) 

Click here to watch the rest of: Taking Down the Ropes of Segregation

Click here to read, Threats to the Church and Keys to Revival, featuring interviews with pastors and pastor’s wives to see what these great leaders have to say about these questions on racial tensions:

What are your thoughts on the current racial tensions in America? What do you feel has fueled them and what do you think we as a nation and the Church can do to quell this and bridge the racial divide?

…The tensions are high and so political. The whole thing upsets me. People’s lives should never ever be political playing cards, and yet they are. They always are. I believe that what we did during the time of slavery was horrifying and we should not be dismissive of those whom it is still impacting today. I believe…

…My wife is Chicana from west Texas, and I, (though Texan as well), am actually a fifth generation Cherokee that left the… Click here to Continue.

Click here for excerpts from and links to: A Series of Interviews Featuring Pastors and Pastor’s Wives. The final article in the series, which features missionaries, will post in a few days.

Photo credit: Holding Hands,  by Renee Williams, featuring Simone & Mac

Photo Hands with Wedding Bands, by Marcelo Matarazzo on Unsplash

Photo Hands with Thread, by alexandra marcu on Unsplash

© 2019  Rachael M Colby                          Tattoo It On Your Heart

Threats to the Church & Keys to Revival

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The onset of the year is a good time to acknowledge the challenges we face, the changes needed, and to look to Jesus through whom we are more than conquerors. The last two articles in my 2018 series of interviews with pastors and pastor’s wives—have bled over into 2019. So, please, grab your favorite hot cup of comfort, pull up a chair, and let us listen to the words of wisdom offered by these mighty ministers.  

How do you feel about the spiritual and cultural climate where you are pastoring?

Pastor Kevin Obermeyer:  I think there is a huge spiritual battle going on, and Christians are losing ground rapidly.

Pastor’s Wife, Janet Foley:  I feel like the Gospel is often misunderstood and disrespected. I feel a bit intimidated here to share the gospel, more than other places. There is a lot of witchcraft, new age religion and political correctness here. A lot of ex-Christians, a lot of drugs too. Pot has been legal here for a few years so many people are hooked on it as well as methamphetamine. There’s also a lot of spouse-swapping, (married people who exchange for fun), which really freaks me out. Ugh.

Pastor Pablo Catala:  I think it has been diluted and stained with perversion and sin unimaginable.

Pastor’s wife, Sophie Foley:  It’s a breath of fresh air where we are pioneering. This is such a culturally diverse area, that most people have either not been exposed to Christ and so have no formed opinions and are open. Others have been raised with a respect for church so they are receptive and respectful of both the church and the role of the pastor.

What do you see as the biggest threat to the church today?

Anonymous Pastor, Kathmandu, Nepal:  Complacency.

Pastor Tim Schmoyer:  Consumerism is the biggest threat. Seeing church involvement as one of the many choices in the buffet of life.

Janet Foley:  Political correctness, compromise, complacency. Too much activity without true relationship with Jesus.

Pastor Kevin Obermeyer:  Secular worldviews, worldly attitudes, Biblical illiteracy, and ignorance.

Sophie Foley:  Emotional indulgence. People are so very fragile now, and when it comes time to speak a bit of caution or direction, the confrontation of it is no longer acceptable and they leave for churches that never confront.

Also, media. We are a generation so connected to our devices, and yet we are steeped with loneliness and depression, which causes us to withdraw and avoid dealing with the social interaction of church services. We have several people who want to come but are easily distracted, or too emotionally distraught, so they stay home and binge movies, and then feel terrible and it becomes a vicious cycle.

Pastor Pablo Catala:  The biggest threats to the church today are dead religion and homosexuality. Why do I say this? Continue reading “Threats to the Church & Keys to Revival”

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