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"So encourage each other and
build each other up, just as you are already doing." 1 Thess. 5:11 (NLT)
CONSIDER
"Worship does not satisfy our
hunger for God-it whets our appetite. Our need for God is not taken care
of by engaging in worship -- it deepens.
It overflows the hour and permeates the week." Eugene Peterson
WHAT 147 ELK TAUGHT ME ABOUT PRAYER
by Philip Yancey
The author Brennan Manning, who
leads spiritual retreats several times each year, once told me that not a
single person who has followed his regimen for a silent retreat has
failed to hear from God. Intrigued
and a bit skeptical, I signed up for one of his retreats, this one
extending over five days. Every
attendee met for an hour each day with Brennan, who would give us
assignments in meditation and spiritual work. We also met together for daily worship,
during which time only Brennan talked.
Beyond this, we were free to spend our time as we wished, with
only one requirement: two hours of prayer per day.
I doubt I had devoted more than 30
minutes to prayer at any one session in my life. The first day I wandered to the edge of
a meadow and sat down with my back against a tree. I had brought along Brennan's
assignment for the day and a notebook in which to record my thoughts. How
long will I stay awake? I wondered.
To my great fortune, a herd of 147
elk (I had plenty of time to count them) wandered into the very field
where I was sitting. To see one
elk is exciting; to watch 147 elk in their natural habitat is
enthralling. But I soon learned
that to watch 147 elk for two hours is, to put it mildly, boring. They lowered their heads and chewed
grass. They raised their heads in
unison and looked at a raspy crow.
They lowered their heads again and chewed grass. For two hours, nothing else
happened. No mountain lions
attacked; no bulls charged each other.
All the elk bent over and chewed grass....
Read this in full at
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/003/21.112.html
THE IMPORTANCE OF A PURE HEART
by Greg Laurie
There is some truth to the old
bumper-sticker adage that says, "Lead me not into temptation. I can find it myself." We all do a pretty good job of putting
ourselves in the way of temptation.
While we love to blame it on the devil or on other people, the
fact is that we often place ourselves unnecessarily in temptation's way.
Maybe you've felt that if you could
somehow remove yourself from all outward enticements, you'd never sin
again. But that simply isn't
true. The problem is within. The Bible tells us, "The heart is deceitful
above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?"
(Jeremiah 17:9 NKJV). We need our
hearts changed. As James says,
"Temptation comes from the lure of our own evil desires. These evil desires lead to evil
actions, and evil actions lead to death" (1:14-15 NLT).
That is what Jesus spoke of in the
Sermon on the Mount. He addressed areas of sin that are widespread in our
culture today, including lust.
Rather than focusing on externals, Jesus dealt with the heart,
saying that if our minds are filled with lustful thoughts, it is as
though we have actually committed the deeds themselves. It is still sin before God, and God
wants to change our hearts....
Read this in full at
http://www.crosswalk.com/faith/ministry_articles/1287844.html
SACRED PATHWAYS
Gary Thomas noticed that many
Christians were stuck in a worship rut.
He raised the question, "Since God has intentionally made us
all different, why should everyone be expected to love (worship) God the
same way?" Gary
has discovered that for 2,000 years Christians have used many different
paths to enjoy intimacy with God.
In his book Sacred Pathways, Gary
identifies 9 ways that people draw near to God:
·
Naturalists love
God best when they are outdoors.
·
Sensates
love God best when all their senses are engaged.
·
Traditionalists
love God best when they are able to stick close to ritual, symbols, and
familiarity.
·
Ascetics love God
best in solitude and simplicity.
·
Activists love God
best when they are battling injustice and evil.
·
Caregivers love
God best through caring for those who hurt.
·
Enthusiasts love
God best by experiencing celebration.
·
Contemplatives
love God best through adoration and meditation.
·
Intellectuals love
God best when their mind is fully engaged.
Did you find your favorite approach
to loving God? Have you figured it
out yet? It's not about
style. So what is it about? It's about, how much of you does God
have when you worship?
http://www.zondervan.com/Books/Detail.asp?ISBN=0310242843
WATCH FOR THE NEW $10 BILL
Federal Reserve banks have begun
distributing redesigned $10 notes to the public through commercial banks.
Like the $20 and $50 bills, the
$10 note issue is part of an effort to thwart counterfeiters. Read all about it at
http://tinyurl.com/jqneu
MY SOUL'S DARK NIGHT
by Charles Colson with Anne Morse
"I am a product of the best in
evangelicalism: converted 32 years ago in a flood of tears after hearing
the gospel, discipled by a strong prayer group, taught by great
theologians. I know the strength of evangelicalism in bringing people to
an intimate relationship with Jesus.
But what happens when you have relied on this intimacy and the day
comes when God seems distant? What happens in the dark night of the
soul? I found out this past year.
Weeks after finishing The Good Life, my son Wendell was diagnosed with
bone cancer. The operation to remove a malignant tumor took 10 hours-the
longest day of my life. Wendell survived, but he's still in
chemo".... Read this in full
at
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/012/15.80.html
LEADERSHIP TIPS (BUSINESS, FAMILY, LIFE)
"The kind of leader God will
use"
by E. Glenn Wagner
In my 30 years of ministry, I have
discovered that good leaders are typically men and women who see the
bigger picture. They represent the
few who remain sensitive to the Spirit's leading, sensitive to the winds
of change and sensitive to what is best for the people....
Read this in full at
http://www.pastors.com/article.asp?ArtID=8503
VATICAN
RADIO CELEBRATES 75TH ANNIVERSARY
Vatican Radio's self-stated mission
is to broadcast the message of the Catholic Church around the world, but
the broadcaster insists it's not governed by the Vatican. Shortly after the signing of the
Lateran Accords in 1929 -- a decisive point in church history -- Pope
Pius XI asked Gulielmo Marconi to set up a radio station inside the Vatican
grounds. The Accords -- a treaty,
a concordat, and a financial settlement -- were signed by the Italian
government and the Vatican. They recognized the sovereignty of the
Holy See and the Vatican City-State, protected Catholic structures in Italy,
and provided the Vatican
roughly US $85 million as reparation for the loss of the Papal
States, regions of Italy
under the temporal rule of the Pope from 754 to 1870. The first broadcast facility was opened
in 1931, and grew rapidly to become the "voice of the Pope,"
broadcasting around the world.
Today Vatican Radio offers 78 hours of programming every day, over
5 stations, with service in 40 languages covering 5 continents. The station has about 400 employees,
including 200 journalists of 58 nationalities.
http://www.radiovaticana.org
FIRST
STEPS TOWARD DIALOG WITH GOD
by Anne Graham Lotz
"I never cease to be amazed
that Jesus invites you and me, as His children and in His name...to come
into His Father's presence, to crawl up into His lap by faith, to put our
head on His shoulder of strength, to feel His loving arms of protection
around us, and to pour out our hearts.
"As God's only Son, Jesus took
advantage of this same privilege of prayer. His heart also must have
ached to talk to His heavenly Father.
He too needed a loving listener, Someone He could trust with His
innermost thoughts and feelings.
Someone who would never betray or deny Him -- which is one reason
He prayed when there was no special reason to pray, except that He simply
wanted to talk. So He...
prayed privately,
prayed publicly,
prayed alone,
prayed with friends,
prayed
in crowds...
Read this article (PDF) in full at
http://image.exacttarget.com/members/2902/FirstSteps.pdf
THE PARTY HAS JUST BEGUN
by Stephen James
"Maybe it's just a coincidence
that Jesus chose to kick off his public ministry by attending a wedding,
but I doubt it. The more I learn
about him, the fewer coincidences I see.
Here's the context: Jesus is 30.
He has spent the last decade or so working as a carpenter and has
just recently shifted careers to become a rabbi. He was baptized, went on a retreat,
prayed, fasted, withstood temptations from the devil, and recruited a
handful of followers. You'd expect
that kind of stuff from a religious leader. No surprise there. But then... Does he found a church? Nope.
Apply for non-profit status?
Nope. Go door-to-door
peddling his worldview? Nope. Instead he takes a bunch of his buddies
to a weeklong wedding celebration, and when it looks like things are
winding down, he turns 150 gallons of water into the best wine money can
buy, just to keep the party going.
That's my kind of rabbi.
I'm thankful Jesus didn't come to start another religion. We have too many of those
already...."
http://www.experiencestory.com/
VERSE TO PONDER
"This is how God showed his
love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might
live through him." 1 John 4:9
(NIV)
CONSIDER
"We can stand affliction better
than we can prosperity, for in prosperity we forget God." Dwight Moody
ANAGRAMS
An anagram is a word or phrase made
by transposing or rearranging the letters of another word or phrase. The following examples are quite
astounding:
Dormitory = Dirty Room
Desperation = A Rope Ends It
The Morse Code = Here Come Dots
Slot Machines = Cash Lost in 'em
Animosity = Is No Amity
Mother-in-law = Woman Hitler
Snooze Alarms = Alas! No More Z's
Alec Guinness = Genuine Class
Semolina = Is No Meal
The Public
Art
Galleries
= Large Picture Halls, I Bet
A Decimal Point = I'm a Dot in Place
The Earthquakes = That Queer Shake
Eleven plus two = Twelve plus one
Contradiction = Accord not in it
This one's amazing: [From Hamlet by
Shakespeare]
"To be or not to be: that is
the question, whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and
arrows of outrageous fortune."
Becomes:
"In one of the Bard's
best-thought-of tragedies, our insistent hero, Hamlet, queries on two
fronts about how life turns rotten."
And the grand finale: [From the
moon, Neil A. Armstrong]
"That's one small step for a
man, one giant leap for mankind."
Becomes:
"A thin man ran; makes a large
stride; pins flag on moon, left planet.
On to Mars!"
ARTICLES ON MORALITY
"Conservative Moral
Ideology," "Christian Liberal Moral Ideology" and
"Jesus' Moral Ideology" comprise a series of articles by Steve
Kimes on the Christian versions of the two main moral ideologies of the U.S.:
Conservative and Liberal. Read the
articles here.
http://radicaltheologians.blogspot.com/
CONSIDER
"The New Testament is an
intensely personal document. It is
not the effort of a group of men who are out to prove something to us by
the force of their rational arguments.
But it is the testimony, or testament, of a group of witnesses...
who are bent on simply reporting to us the experience of a love that
overtook them and overwhelmed them, a peace that passed all their
understanding, and a peace that they in turn would pass on to
us." Robert L. Short (b.1932)
VERSE TO PONDER
"Whom
have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides
you. My flesh and my heart may
fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion
forever." Psalm 73:25 and 26
(NIV)
THIS WEEK'S HYMN: AWHILE IN SPIRIT, LORD, TO THEE
Words: Joseph F. Thrupp, Psalms and
Hymns for Public Worship, 1853.
Music: "Erhalt Uns, Herr,"
Geistliche Lieder (Wittenberg,
Germany:
1543) (MIDI,
score). Alternate tune:
* "Arizona,"
Robert H. Earnshaw (1856-1929)
Awhile in spirit, Lord, to Thee
Into the desert we would flee;
Awhile upon the barren steep
Our fast with Thee
in spirit keep.
Awhile from Thy temptation learn
The daily snares of sin to spurn,
And in our hearts to feel and own
Man liveth
not by bread alone.
O Thou once tempted like as we,
Thou knowest our infirmity;
Be Thou our Helper in the strife,
Be Thou our true, our inward Life.
And while, at Thy command we pray,
"Give us our bread from day to
day,"
May we with Thee, O Christ, be fed,
Thou Word of God, Thou living Bread.
>from CyberHymnal at
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/a/w/awhilein.htm
GOD FAQ
Question 62: What is the visible
church?
Answer: The visible church is a
society made up of all such as in all ages and places of the world do
profess the true religion, and of their children.
http://www.shortercatechism.com/
ON PRAYER
"Not only does sin hinder
prayer; prayer hinders sin. The
two are always opposed. The more
careless we are about sin, the less we will pray. The more we pray, the less careless we
will be about sin. Both sin and
prayer are powerful forces. Which
one is moving you?" Dr. Alvin
Vander Griend, National Facilitator of Lighthouse Ministries for The Mission
America
Coalition
PRAY FOR PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS TODAY
http://christiansincrisis.net/
PRAY FOR A COUNTRY TODAY
http://www.gmi.org/ow/index.html
DAILY
BLESSING PACT
Use the following list as your daily prayer guide. Think of
a brother or situation that applies and lift them up in prayer.
I am agreeing in prayer with you for God’s blessings to
overtake you!
PERSONAL
Marital harmony
Family unity
Children saved
Faithful pastor
Spirit-filled church
Real friendships
Relatives redeemed
Educational benefits
Recreational time
Fulfilling career
Favor with God and man
Be in God’s will
FINANCIAL
Better Jobs
Raises or bonuses
Benefits
Sales & commissions
Settlements
Estates & inheritances
Investment increase
Rebates & returns
Checks in the mail
Gifts & surprises
Money to be found
Bills decrease while blessings increase
"And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake
thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God"
(Deut. 28:2).
[As you travel on business or
vacation, let me know if you'd like the church guys to pray for your
safety and spiritual effectiveness.
I'll add your name to the list for the time you'll be away.]
CLASSIFIEDS
Are you looking for something or do
you have something to sell? Let me
know and I'll put it in this newsletter.
Bookstore
Entrepreneur Wanted
Top income potential,
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Christian oriented,
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1-866-439-1617
Looking for a good
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need. Visit our online
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you’ll find a huge inventory, totally convenient shopping and great
prices on the products you’re looking for. Are you using the power of
books to grow in your relationship with God and lead people to Christ?
Books really do change lives. Take this opportunity to bless your
congregation so they can go and bless others. Visit our bookstore today!
http://christianconnectionbooks.spreadtheword.com
BEAUTIFUL, NEWLY
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1 BEDROOM 1 BATH, $ 85,000
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CALL
773-732-8843 FOR MORE INFO.
SHARE YOUR FAVORITE WEBSITES
Tell us what sites you find
enjoyable and why.
Glossary of church architecture
terms
www.kencollins.com/glossary/architecture.htm
Britain's
medieval cathedrals
www.britainexpress.com/History/medieval/church-glossary.htm
All links to websites are provided
as a service, and do not imply endorsement by our church.
(BTW: whenever the URLs in this
newsletter are too long to turn into links on your e-mail program, just
copy the entire URL (two lines or more) and paste it into a temporary
email message. Then delete the
return in the middle of it and copy it again. Then paste it into your web browser and
hit enter.)
You're not too 'bad' to come in (to
church) and you're not to 'good' to stay out!
Min. Frank Coleman, Editor
[email protected]
===== /\
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MSM CONNECTIONS is a periodic newsletter of announcements, news,
recommendations, articles, and other information helpful to men in our
spiritual growth. Thanks for welcoming MSM CONNECTIONS into your in-box!
Who to contact:
Minister Frank Coleman, Men Servants Ministry Chairman,
773-410-1483,
Minister Arnold Whitehead, Men Servants Ministry
Vice-Chairman, 773-846-6090
===== /\
=====
The mission of New Joy Divine Full Gospel Church is to be a
Christ-centered, Bible based, Spirit guided church meeting the spiritual,
physical, and emotional needs of its members and the community it serves.
The Men Servants Ministry (MSM) Team offers a variety of
activities for men to interact with other men on our journey of faith in
Christ together. Large group, small group, and one-to-one events encourage
relationship building and spiritual strengthening that result in
maximizing the potential we all have in Christ. Contact Min. Frank
Coleman, 773-410-1483, [email protected] if
you'd like to participate in a men's discipleship program.
New Joy Divine Full Gospel Church is located at 7625 S. Halsted St. Chicago, IL 60620.
Tel:
773-224-5683. Founded & Pastored by Apostle Aaron L. Royster &
Prophetess Mable L. Royster.
Visit our website at: http://www.newjoydivine.org/
===== /\
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