Today at church our minister gave an inspiring sermon. The Scripture lesson was from Mark 9:2-12. His sermon was entitled, "Listen Up!"
And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of a cloud, "This is my beloved son; listen to him." Mark 9:7.
In other words, God is telling us to LISTEN UP! We often hear the Word but do not really listen. If we are to truely understand and grow in our Christian walk then we must improve upon our listening skills. Don't just hear the words...pay attention and listen to what is being said. Listen between the lines!
It's not very often that I miss a meal. I'm sure most of you are the same way. We always seem to make time to sit down and eat. Can we honestly say the same when it comes to feeding on God's Word? Do we make time each day to sit down and read the Bible so we can nourish our soul? It takes much more discipline to schedule time for Bible reading than it does to schedule a meal. In fact, most of us don't have to schedule meals...it has just become a habit to sit down three times a day to feed our body.
When He was tempted by the devil in Matthew 4:4, "Jesus answered, It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"How often do you read God's Word?
Once a day
Several times a day
Once a week
Once a month
I try to read my Bible daily, but it doesn't always happen. However, I have found that since I am on the computer 8 hours a day at work and several hours a day at home, it is pretty easy to go on line to Bible Gateway and get my daily dose of God's Word.
I actually posted the article below a while back, but it is worthy of a re-post. The BIG NEWS is this awesome movie is going to be released on DVD April,4, 2006! If you didn't get a chance to see it at the movies, make sure you see the DVD...we will be buying it to add to our collection.Click Here to pre-order your DVD NOW!Many other Narnia items available here also such as the complete 7-volume set of books by C.S. Lewis.
Disney was taking a chance with a cast of unknowns, but they pulled it off. Having read all seven books several times, I had visions of what Narnia would look like in my head. Today when I saw the movie I was amazed to find that Narnia looked exactly like what I expected it to.
My vote for the best performances go to Georgie Henley, who did a wonderful job as sweet Lucy; and Tilda Swinton who potrayed the cold-hearted White Witch. The cinematography and visual effects were great as well. Filmed in New Zealand the countryside makes a spectacular backdrop for the movie. Director, Andrew Adamson (of Shrek and Shrek 2) did a fantastic job. Liam Neeson was the voice of Ashlan and may very well be the only name you recognize in the credits.
Speaking of the credits -- don't be in a hurry to get up and rush out of the theater as soon as the credits appear on the screen, because there is still a little more to come. One final scene kept the audience standing in the aisle and stopped the mass exodus from the full house. I can't wait for the sequels, you know it's not going to end there. If you never read the books the movie was complete in itself, but for those of you who are in the know...there is still much more to come!
I highly recommend this movie as a must see. I only hope that the Christian symbolism is not lost in all the excitement. The movie is rated PG but some of the battle scenes may be a little scary for real young children. Narnia is a combination family film and action-adventure thriller. I totally loved the move!
If you've seen the movie, or read the books please leave a comment here. If you haven't done either -- what are you waiting for. C.S. Lewis has always been one of my favorite authors and when you combine that with the magic of Disney you've got a GREAT movie!
I came across this website while surfing the net: www.progressivechurches.org it is a list of area churches that accepts gay members. I'm curious to see what everyone thinks about this whole issue of gays and Christianity?
Every time I read the Bible it says that God does not approve of this kind of relationships between the same sex. I wonder how these churches justify gay membership and in some cases even gay ministers?
I have some good friends who are gay and they are really nice people, but I cannot say that they are good Christians. Please leave your comments.
"I think that part of education is to expose people to different schools of thought," President Bush said. "You're asking me whether or not people ought to be exposed to different ideas. The answer is yes."You go Mr. Bush -- my hat is off to you for defending free speech on evolution and supporting the right of students to hear about different scientific views!
Intelligent Design (for those of you who do not know what it is) challenges Darwin's theory of evolution. In a nutshell, Darwin says that all living things, including humans, are simply a product of meaningless, undirected, natural processes. Intelligent Design says that's not true. We are not here by chance, but rather by the design of a creator.
I put my belief in God and the story of creation that I have read in The Bible. What do you think? Do we come from Adam and Eve or are we decendants of the Apes? Leave a comment.
My wife's mom had a heart attack a week ago. She is still in the hospital and not doing very well. I am asking for your prayers for Alice. She is 81-years-old and may need to have open-heart surgery. However, she is talking about refusing the surgery because of her age and the fact that it could be fatal.
My wife Christine and her sister Helen, have gone down to Florida to be with their mom and dad. This is a difficult time for the family; no one can force Alice to have the surgery, it is really her decision. On the other hand nobody wants her to just give up and wait to die! Making it more complicated is the fact that she lives in Florida and the rest of the family is here in North Carolina.
About five-years ago I lost my mom to Cancer and still have not gotten over that. I still expect her to call me on the phone or pop in for a visit. The loss of any loved one is a hard thing to accept, but I think it is especially hard when it is your mother.
I know that death is really just a new beginning and should not be a sad thing, but it is hard to deal with. Please leave a comment or a prayer and I will pass them on to Alice.
My wife and I have been watching the Academy Awards together for 13 years now, but I'm not sure we will be watching this year. I can't believe that Brokeback Mountain has received 8 nominations for an Oscar! What is this world coming to? I have not seen the movie, nor do I intend to waste my money on a film about two gay cowboys!
The Bible tells us that homosexuality is sinful (Lev. 18:22, 20:13; Rom. 1:26-27; 1 Cor.6:9-11). Have we become so used to the gay lifestyle that it is okay now to support a movie like this that features graphic gay sex scenes? The film promotes adultery and a sinful lifestyle. To see it and support it would be a compromise of my Christian values.
I am very disappointed that this film has received so much recognition and award nominations. I would like to hear what other people think about this. Please leave a comment.
Today at church our minister gave an inspiring sermon. The Scripture lesson was from Mark 9:2-12. His sermon was entitled, "Listen Up!"
