Friday, February 26, 2010

A REAL HEAD TURNER => ONE ATHEIST WHO GETS IT

I’ve frequently said that our greatest witness as Christians is when we’re caring for the poor, visiting the prisoners, tending the sick. When we take these things seriously, others can’t help but see the power of the Gospel.

Recently, the faithful witness of some Christians in Malawi turned the head of a British journalist and atheist who traveled to Africa before Christmas. Writing in The Times of London online, Matthew Parris said that these Christians not only proved to him that Africa needs God, but also have challenged his atheistic convictions.

After visiting a charity that provides water pumps to rural communities,Parris noticed that many of the organization’s African leaders were strong Christians who gently demonstrated their faith in quiet conversation and action. They reminded him of the Christians he knew when he was a young boy living in Africa with his family.

These Christians, he recalls, were a “different” kind of people whose faith seemed to give them what he describes as a “liveliness, a curiosity, an engagement with the world, [and] a directness in their dealings with others.”

If this isn’t a winsome demonstration of faith, I don’t know what is!

The Christian missionaries Parris met when he returned to Africa in his twenties had a similar impact on him. Wherever missionaries lived, he wrote, “something changed in the faces of the people we passed and spoke to.” They had broken through what he calls “crushing tribal groupthink.” They see themselves as individuals who stand in direct relationship to God—not as subservient subordinates who must kowtow to tyrants like Robert Mugabe.

Parris is sure that Christian faith has something to do with this. And of course he’s right! He says he has, “become convinced of the enormous contribution that Christian evangelism makes in Africa: sharply distinct from the work of secular NGOs, government projects and international aid efforts. These alone won't do it. Education and training alone will not do.”

“In Africa,” he writes, “Christianity changes people's hearts. It brings a spiritual transformation. And the rebirth is real. The change is good.”

Parris says that what he’s observed among Christians in Africa “confounds [his] ideological beliefs” and has “embarrassed [his] growing belief that there is no God.”

He had this to say about the Christians he met who were providing water pumps: “Their work was secular, but surely affected by what they were. What they were was, in turn, influenced by a conception of man's place in the Universe that Christianity had taught.”

Here is an atheist who gets it: Worldview matters! How you see the world,what you believe about where we come from and where we are going, will affect how you live.

When you understand that every human being is made in God’s image, and that God Himself died on a cross for sinners, people will see you ministering to prisoners. They will see you feeding the hungry and clothing the naked.

Or, like Matthew Parris, they may even witness you bringing water pumps to rural villages in Africa. They will see Christ before their eyes.

By Keith Overturf


If Anointed Child has been a blessing or source of encouragement to you please consider supporting us by making a donation. Your contribution big or small, is deeply appreciated. Be Blessed!


=>> There Is Power in Prayer! Your Prayers Have the Power to Profoundly Impact Your Destiny. <<=

Prayer is the most powerful weapon against trials. The most effective medicine against sickness. And the most valuable gift to give to yourself and your loved ones. Through prayer, you can conquer all things.

Jumpstart your prayer life today with empowering, uplifting and inspiring 30 Days of Prayer. Act Now! Don’t let the enemy cheat you out of your divine destiny! Invest in your prayer life today, and begin to unlock your destiny through powerful prayers!

Don’t underestimate the power of prayer! People are testifying of financial breakthroughs, business breakthroughs, job promotions, marital breakthroughs, academic breakthroughs, healing and so much more, after 30 Days of Prayer!

~ Act Now, Tomorrow Is Promised to Man! Take the Challenge Today & Begin to Unlock Your Destiny Today! Tomorrow May Be Too Late! ~

1 Thessalonians 5:17-18: "Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.



The Key to Answered Prayers:

1. Have faith.
2. Be obedient.
3. Seek God’s will.
4. Repent your sins.
5. Pray without ceasing.
6. Pray with perseverance.
7. Praying with persistence.
8. Pray in the name of Jesus.
9. Give thanks and praise to the Lord.



Friday, February 12, 2010

WHAT DOES IT COST TO HAVE A GODLY FAMILY?

“For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it?” Luke 14:28

Look at that family—they’ve got it together. Do you ever think that? “That couple has great chemistry. If we had their chemistry, we would have the marriage they have.” Or “Look at their environment —or parents —or grandparents —or background. That must be what makes a successful family.”

But all that is just perception—not reality. Those families have problems, too.

At the center of a God-honoring family is commitment—a total, unswerving, unalterable lifetime commitment to do life together under God. Commitment is a powerful tool for family transformation.

Do you want that for your family? Then consider these four aspects to lasting, godly commitment that you need to make:

#1. Commitment is a powerful tool for family transformation when you have total commitment to Christ.

It all begins with your commitment to Christ. Anything less than a 100% radical commitment to Christ is no commitment at all. To Christ first, above everything. Above my wife. Above my children. Above everything.

In their honest moments, most people know the struggle to not love other people— their families, for example—more than they love God. But Jesus said in Matthew
10:37, “He who loves father and mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.”

#2 Commitment is a powerful tool for family transformation when the cost is calculated.

Jesus said in Luke 14:27, “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” The cross is symbolic of all the hardship related to following Christ.

To be Christ’s disciple demands careful analysis. It means you have to count the cost of that commitment ahead of time. “Can I finish the course? Can I follow Christ to the end? Can I be a faithful husband for my whole life? Can I be the wife God has called me to be? Can I be the parent? Because if I can’t be, I have no business making the commitment.” But to be standing beside your spouse ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty years later and to be able to say, “I still do” is powerful! And that power will flow down to your children and to your grandchildren.

#3 Commitment is a powerful tool for family transformation when the course is finished.

Jesus Christ is looking for finishers in a world of quitters.

How many of you have made a commitment to Jesus Christ and your extended family equipped, “Set the clock. It’s just a phase she is going through. He will come to his senses.” And now here you are five years later, ten years later. Did you make a real commitment? 1 John 2:19 says, “They went out from us because they were not of us. If they had of been of us, they would have remained with us.” It is enduring to the end that shows the legitimacy of a profession of faith.

The world is filled with starters. Up like a rocket and down like a rock. The power of commitment is what lets you finish the course.

#4 Commitment is a powerful tool for family transformation when the price is paid.

You need to know now that there is a price that you will have to pay to have a God-honoring, successful family. So here’s the thing, if you’re not willing to pay the price, don’t even commit. Families that only stay together until hardship comes or conflict arises never experience the power of commitment.

It’s somewhat easy to talk about commitment in a vacuum. But I’ll tell you, living the Christian life is hardest at home. Some of you are going to face something this year as a family that will call for a massive price to be paid! Get ready. When you want to pull back—that’s the time to press in and push forward and draw down upon the Lord’s strength to live a life of absolute total commitment to your family.

The families that you respect, have found it! And you can, too. But it takes your commitment.

By Dr. James MacDonald


If Anointed Child has been a blessing or source of encouragement to you please consider supporting us by making a donation. Your contribution big or small, is deeply appreciated. Be Blessed!


=>> There Is Power in Prayer! Your Prayers Have the Power to Profoundly Impact Your Destiny. <<=

Prayer is the most powerful weapon against trials. The most effective medicine against sickness. And the most valuable gift to give to yourself and your loved ones. Through prayer, you can conquer all things.

Jumpstart your prayer life today with empowering, uplifting and inspiring 30 Days of Prayer. Act Now! Don’t let the enemy cheat you out of your divine destiny! Invest in your prayer life today, and begin to unlock your destiny through powerful prayers!

Don’t underestimate the power of prayer! People are testifying of financial breakthroughs, business breakthroughs, job promotions, marital breakthroughs, academic breakthroughs, healing and so much more, after 30 Days of Prayer!

~ Act Now, Tomorrow Is Promised to Man! Take the Challenge Today & Begin to Unlock Your Destiny Today! Tomorrow May Be Too Late! ~

1 Thessalonians 5:17-18: "Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.


=> 30 Day Prayers for Favor
=> 30 Day Prayers for Singles
=> 30 Day Prayers for Fasting
=> 30 Day Prayers for Healing
=> 30 Day Prayers for Success  
=> 3Day Prayers for Prosperity
=> 30 Day Prayers for your Family
=> 3DaPrayers for your Children
=> 30 Day Prayers for your Marriage
=> 30 Day Prayers for your Finances
=> 30 Day Prayers for your Business
=> 30 Day Prayers for Every Situation
=> 30 Day Prayers to Unlock your Destiny  
=> 30 Day Prayers for Stubborn Situations  

The Key to Answered Prayers:

1. Have faith.
2. Be obedient.
3. Seek God’s will.
4. Repent your sins.
5. Pray without ceasing.
6. Pray with perseverance.
7. Praying with persistence.
8. Pray in the name of Jesus.
9. Give thanks and praise to the Lord.


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