Posted in encouragement, twitter

The Gospel in ten tweets

Posted on by elizabethprata

The Gospel for Twitter
The following is a short gospel presentation broken down into ten sections, each under 140 characters. These can be copied and pasted and shared in succession on Twitter. Source Cross Encounters.

_________________________

Are you ready for Eternity? When you die, you are going to stand before God and give an account for your life. 1 of 10

Because God is good, He is going to judge you according to the perfect, moral standard of His law. 2 of 10

If you’ve ever lied, stolen, taken His name in vain, or sinned in any other way, He will find you guilty of breaking His law. 3 of 10

Because God is good, He must punish your sin; the punishment for all sin against God is an eternity in Hell. 4 of 10

While God is righteous and just, He is also merciful, loving, and kind in that He provided one way to escape that punishment… 5 of 10

…and that was through the gift of His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ: fully-God and fully-Man, without sin. 6 of 10

He died on the cross a death He did not deserve, taking upon Himself the punishment you rightly deserve, for your sins against God. 7 of 10

Three days later Jesus forever defeated sin and death when He rose from the grave, and He is alive today. 8 of 10

What God requires of you is that you repent (turn from your sin and turn toward God)… 9 of 10

…and by faith alone, receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Repent and believe the gospel, while God has given you time. 10 of 10

Posted in encouragement, great apostasy, prophecy

The Great Apostasy is not the general apostasy we’re experiencing now

Posted on by elizabethprata
Wiki CC. Photographer: Irving Rusinow. Alabama

Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, (2 Thessalonians 2:3)

Paul is talking to the Thessalonians about the order of events leading to the revealing of the antichrist, which will happen in the Great Tribulation. He is speaking of a specific event, “the apostasy” which is the antichrist standing in the temple and declaring himself God.

General apostasy has always been in existence and always will be. GotQuestions defines apostasy in two ways,

(1) a falling away from key and true doctrines of the Bible into heretical teachings that proclaim to be “the real” Christian doctrine, and (2) a complete renunciation of the Christian faith, which results in a full abandonment of Christ.

Even while Jesus lived, and while the apostles worked, there were apostates. Judas was apostate. He could be seen as the apostate type #2. His apostasy had been well hidden but he defected in the end and the rebellion hidden in his heart became clear. In another case of mass apostasy, when Jesus began to teach hard things, “From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.” (John 6:66).

After Jesus’ ascension there were apostates, too. Demas was an apostate. He could be seen as the apostate type #1. In Philemon 1:4 Paul called Demas a ‘fellow worker’. By 2 Timothy 4:10 Paul said Demas loved the world and had departed.

So THE apostasy in Thessalonians’ Great Tribulation times is not the same as general apostasy now. However, Jesus said the time of the end (ascension to rapture) will be as birth pangs, and birth pangs get worse as time goes on. Paul taught that evil men and seducers will grow from bad to worse. (2 Timothy 3:13). John MacArthur said last week, “Cultural Christianity is dying at warp speed”. In 2006 he preached of Americans-

We’ve rejected God. He gave us revelation, we rejected it. We rationalize it and call ourselves an elite educated advanced culture and we invent religion as if it’s an indicator of how high we have ascended when the fact of the matter is we’re going down at warp speed. We have abandoned God and God has returned the favor.

So as the birth pangs grow and the world succumbs to evil, even general apostasy is getting worse. Jesus warned that even churches could have apostates in them, (Matthew 13:26), and that whole churches would be apostate, as seen in the following Revelation verse.

Jesus said to the church at Laodicea, Behold! I stand at the door and knock. (Revelation 3:20). The verse was an actual warning, to an actual church at Laodicea which had become a cultural, Jesus-less church. The verse is also a warning for us today. There are congregations (local “churches”) where Jesus isn’t inside it at all. MacArthur on Laodicea

This is an unsaved church. In fact, if there were any believers in this church they aren’t even referred to in the letter at all. It is a church that is characterized by lukewarmness which becomes a metaphor for being non-saved people. Laodicea has the grim distinction of being among all seven letters the only one in which Christ has nothing good to say. It is unmitigated, unspared condemnation. There is in this church apparently absolutely no redeeming feature. This is the unsaved, unregenerate false church.

How could it be that churches exist where there are no believers at all? This is the point of today’s essay. There are. Believe it. More and more churches and whole denominations are showing themselves apostate.

In Charisma News last week, Jennifer LeClaire wrote,

Wiki CC, photographer: ForestWander. West VA.

Apostasy Rising: 4 Denominations In Less Than a Week Defy God’s Word

The UCC, [United Church of Christ] which considers itself a mainline Protestant denomination—claiming over 1 million members and about 5,200 congregations in the U.S.—proudly announced it will serve as a major sponsor of the Gay Games. The UCC will now go down in Christian history as the first major denomination to sponsor the homosexual Olympics when the games roll into Cleveland, Ohio, in August.

The Presbyterian Church (USA) last week voted to allow its ministers to perform gay weddings in states where it’s legal. On Tuesday, Methodist Pastor Frank Schaefer, who was defrocked for officiating his son’s gay wedding, was fully reinstated and the Moravians voted to ordain gay clergy. My research shows there’s a long and growing list of gay-affirming denominations, including the Affirming Pentecostal Church International.

——————————-

There comes a tipping point where the weight of apostasy drowns all those who are in the church. I thought this next article was interesting, reporting on the collapse of the middle class pastor

Higher Calling, Lower Wages: The Vanishing of the Middle-Class Clergy

Barringer’s story is becoming increasingly typical as Protestant churches nationwide cut back on full-time, salaried positions. Consequently, many new pastors either ask friends and family for donations (a time-honored clerical tradition) or take on other jobs. Working two jobs has become so common for clergy members, in fact, that churches and seminaries have a euphemistic term for it: bi-vocational ministry.  Working multiple jobs is nothing new to pastors of small, rural congregations. But many of those pastors never went to seminary and never expected to have a full-time ministerial job in the first place. What’s new is the across-the-board increase in bi-vocational ministry in Protestant denominations both large and small, which has effectively shut down one pathway to a stable—if humble—middle-class career.

[Side note: seminary training does help & is important]

Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place– unless you repent. (Revelation 2:5)

The removing of the church’s lampstand meant Christ’s Spirit would depart and leave them on their own, which in turn would result in them being as Laodicea (Laodicea means “men’s opinions ruling in place of God”). Loyalty to Christ can and often is replaced by loyalty to an organization, a church, and its leaders, substituting new rules and interpretations for Biblical truths. (Let Us Reason)

Let Us Reason continues on the apostasy seen in the Laodicean church:

In modern times this falling away had started in liberal seminaries who sent teachers out to unsuspecting pulpits teaching their liberal ideas– those who promote homosexuality, who ordain people that deny the Trinity, the deity of Christ, the virgin birth and the essentials of the faith.

Then the new age movement began to emerge and infiltrate the Church with kingdom dominion theology and placing subjective experience over the authority of the objective Word of God. Then the homosexual movement came through the Episcopal church along with feminists who disdain God as father. Now this apostasy has become something so widespread it encompasses most things that are considered sacred. Affecting almost all denominations to some degree. Doctrines are distorted and abandoned, controlling shepherds are in charge, teaching coveting, wealth and perfect health as God’s will to all. They approve of divorce and accept homosexuality.

Warp speed…

The apostasy of professing Christianity has increased with a momentum that is stunning to those watching its growth. It has gone off the Richter scale. In the absence of the lampstand (the presence of Christ), devils have stepped in and taken over in many churches. This falling away has certainly begun and is picking up momentum each year, month, and week. Whole movements have arisen that draw huge crowds by catering to the natural mans desires and prey on his propensity of being deceived by the supernatural. They are being offered the very things Christ refused and warned against in his teachings.

THE Apostasy discussed in Thessalonians will be one, stunning and undeniable event. We’re not there. General apostasy IS rising however. Many a church member awake one day to look around the pews, and bemoan that they hardly know any people anymore, their church doesn’t look like it once did, and it teaches unrecognizable doctrines. The choir disappeared and instead there is an ever growing praise band. Hymns drifted away and we now stand around uncomfortably and look at a screen while a few people sing doctrine-less contemporary songs. The preacher teaches gospel-lite, or worse, prosperity gospel. Sometimes he seems to be preaching rightly but the sermons in fact are all plagiarized. Sometimes he is a she.

Apostasy is an interior thing. It is in the heart and we can’t see it right away, most times. Apostasy that looks like this:

Source NASA

Is really this-

How does it happen? Incrementally. Satan takes an inch at a time. (Hebrews 2:1). He is patient, relentless and laser-focused. This means we have to guard each and every move away from the center line of the narrow road. We have to deal with each and every incremental move. And yet we should display the discernment to know which battles to pick and when, and how to raise them. This is not because there are some battles best left alone, no. It’s because the Holy Spirit has some people working on some battles and other people working on others.

The bible also says to treat our leaders with respect and double honor, and not to exalt ourselves nor think of ourselves more highly than we ought. It’s a delicate balancing act, discernment.

Too often, people say, ‘well that’s too small, too petty. I’ll let it go’. But you have given the camel a nose-hold under the tent. The pew member sitting next to you carrying a Jesus Calling book…the woman in your Sunday School class who watches Joel Osteen, the deacon who doesn’t think occasional porn harms anybody, the teenager living with her boyfriend or girlfriend, the brother in the men’s group who wants a divorce…all these need to be addressed.

In the classic novel Watership Down, the rabbit motto was “One cloud feels lonely.”

EPrata photo

Soon, one cloud becomes this:

EPrata photo

Do you think satan will let one apostasy alone when he can have two? Do you think he will let two apostasies alone when he can have four? Before you know it, the sky has been obliterated and there are so many clouds you don’t know where one ends and another begins. It gets dark real fast.

——————————-

So far we have distinguished the prophesied coming event of The Apostasy from the ongoing General Apostasy of the Church Age. We have seen that apostasy in general is rising. We have looked at the general apostasy’s increased speed among the global churches here on earth.

But as with all things about Jesus, there is always hope. His church will never fail! The gates of hell will not prevail against it!  Mathew 16:18). though there may be more churches that are Laodicean than Philadelphian, there are Philadelphian churches in the world. The church at Philadelphia was one of only two churches in Revelation not to receive one word of condemnation! (Rev 2:8-11, and Rev. 3:7-13).

Jesus has a pure Bride and she will never be spotted. A true believer can never go astray permanently. He has us in His hand. His work on the cross atoned for our sin, and we are washed in His blood and have received His righteousness. He has made us His children!

Though it may seem dim and dark in your corner of the world, Jesus did commend the church at Smyrna for persevering in persecution, tribulation and poverty. There are true believers in the world who are not apostasizing, who keep His word and do not deny His name (Rev 3:10). We look forward to the glorious day when He calls us home, either by rapture or resurrection, and we meet Him in the air, a purified Bride He has made worthy.

Meanwhile, pray for fellow believers that they do not apostasize. Encourage! Edify! Study the word so that you will have a good word to share with a fainting brother. There is nothing like the word of God to revive a failing heart. His peace prevails, always.

Posted in ebola, nigeria, pestilence

ABC News: "Patient at New York City Hospital ‘Unlikely’ to Have Ebola, Officials Say". Nigeria reports 4 cases, 1 death; "Are we being told everything?"

Posted on by elizabethprata

An American Doctor from Colorado has some questions regarding the latest outbreak of Ebola virus in West Africa. As the Doctor in the article reiterates, we’re fortunate that the woman de-planing at London’s Gatwick Airport was tested and found negative for having the disease. Perhaps it is as the medical personnel in the article below states, that the person now being tested at Mt. Sinai is unlikely to have the disease. But the Doctor from Colorado asks, “Are We Being Told Everything?”  First, the NYC news.

Patient at NYC ‘unlikely’ to have Ebola, officials say

Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City is treating a possible Ebola patient who recently traveled to West Africa, hospital officials said, although he is “unlikely” to have the deadly virus. The patient arrived at the hospital’s emergency room early Monday morning with “a high fever and gastrointestinal symptoms,” according to a statement from the hospital. The patient has since been isolated and is undergoing diagnostic testing, officials said.

Dr. Joondeph, a retina surgeon at Colorado Retina Associates, and serving on the faculty of Rocky Vista University School of Medicine, asks,

Are We Being Told Everything?”

American physician Dr. Kent Brantly, infected with the Ebola virus, recently returned to the United States for treatment. While he is improving, according to the director of the Centers of Disease control Dr. Tom Frieden, it is too soon to know whether he will survive this devastating infection. Nancy Writebol, a coworker of Dr. Brantly, also infected with Ebola, will be transported to the U.S. later this week. Should we be worried? Is this a real life version of the new TV series “The Strain“?

Perhaps I’m a chicken little for raising these issues. After all, our government assured us that all is well and that we are safe. Our government leaders also told us the attacks in Benghazi were due to a video and there was, “not even a smidgen of corruption” at the IRS.

Here is more latest news. In the article, please note that Nigeria today is reporting 4 cases with 1 death.

EBOLA VIRUS RAPIDLY SPREADING IN WEST AFRICA
WHO reports 163 new Ebola cases and 61 new deaths

Since it was detected in March, the number of suspected and confirmed cases attributed to Ebola in the West African nations of Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Nigeria stands at 1,603, including 887 deaths.

Whether the Ebola virus becomes a more widespread outbreak, or it stops right now, it still brings fear to the heart and mind of many. An uncontrollable outbreak is a horror and scare that lurks in most people’s consciousness about runaway disease. A viral outbreak similar to the one in 1918 from Spanish Influenza is even more likely in this age due to rapidity of travel around the globe. In addition, many people already live with the specter of outbreaks of the more run-of-the-mill kind, such as dysentery and malaria.

Please be vigilant in prayer for missionaries and the lost in places where unexotic diseases carry death every day. Be fervent to witness of the Gospel, so that many may be saved and avoid the pestilences during the Tribulation…and enjoy the peace of reconciliation with Christ. In His love, He casts out all fear. (1 John 4:18)

Posted in doctrine, encouragment, ligonier, rc sproul, reformation

20 Free ebooks from RC Sproul

Posted on by elizabethprata

A reader sent me an alert from Ligonier Ministries of RC Sproul. There are a series of ebooks that the Ministry has made free forever. In addition, the Ministry adds free ebooks constantly. Here is their blurb

To further help Christians know what they believe, why they believe it, how to live it, and how to share it, in May 2013 we made the ebook editions of R.C. Sproul’s Crucial Questions series free forever. We continue to publish new ebooks in this series and this year have added Are These the Last Days?, What Is Repentance?, and What Is the Relationship between Church and State?

Here is the link.

I don’t have a kindle or have set up my iTunes for eBooks, but it only took me ten minutes to find and review (through CNET and Amazon) the app “FB Reader”. I downloaded FB Reader (declining all the junk and games they try to bundle in with it) and I’ve successfully opened the first eBook I downloaded from Ligonier:

“Are We Living In the Last Days?” (of course!). I am also interested in the ebook “What is Repentance?“

It is such a blessing that so many ministries have made their material available for free. Chris Powers’ AKA ActionJones’s animated videos and tracts, Grace to You sermons from John MacArthur, so much from Ligonier, and many others. In like kind, please pass along the generosity when you can, making what you have available too. And don’t forget to support one of these worthy ministries, or a ministry of your choice, so that others can continue to benefit from doctrinally solid products.

Posted in beth moore, david platt, discernment, ebola, encouragement, gatwick, priscilla shirer, prophecy

[UPDATE: Woman tested negative for Ebola] News Briefs: Woman de-planes at London Gatwick & dies of Ebola; Priscilla Shirer & Beth Moore in Kendrick Brothers’ new movie; Platt; "You Twit Face"

Posted on by elizabethprata

[UPDATE]
The BBC is reporting the following this afternoon

The Department for Health said the test on the elderly woman, who landed at Gatwick Airport, came back negative on Sunday afternoon. … “The correct procedures were followed to confirm there was no reason to quarantine the airplane, the passengers or staff. PHE can confirm there was no public health risk around the sad death of this individual.”

 ——————————————–

Some news briefs for you-

Ebola terror at Gatwick as passenger collapses and dies getting off Sierra Leone flight
Staff tell of fears as jet from Africa is quarantined after the death of passenger who was ‘sweating and vomiting’ before she collapsed

Airport staff tonight told of their fears of an Ebola outbreak after a passenger from Sierra Leone collapsed and died as she got off a plane at Gatwick. Workers said they were terrified the virus could spread globally through the busy international hub from the West African country which is in the grip of the deadly epidemic. The woman, said to be 72, became ill on the gangway after she left a Gambia Bird jet with 128 passengers on board. She died in hospital on Saturday. Ebola has killed 256 people in Sierra Leone. A total of 826 have died in West Africa since the outbreak began in February. Tests were carried out to see if the woman had disease. The plane was quarantined as ­officials desperately tried to trace everyone who had been in contact with the woman. Airport workers faced an anxious wait to see if the woman had Ebola. One said: “Everyone’s just ­petrified. “We’ve all seen how many people have died from Ebola, especially in Sierra Leone, and it’s terrifying.”

Yes, its terrifying. Imagine how much more terrifying it will be when billions are dying at once, as Revelation 6:7-8 and Revelation 9:15 and Luke 21:11 tell us. The door to heaven is open to all right now during this Age of Grace. Repent and turn to Jesus as Savior.

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The Kendrick Brothers finish making their fifth movie. The Albany GA brothers are known for Christian movies Flywheel, Facing the Giants, Fireproof, and Courageous. Their fifth movie is reportedly about prayer, and includes Priscilla Shirer in a large role and Beth Moore in a cameo role. I dont’ ant to jump to any conclusions, because the Kendrick Brothers have a solid grounding in doctrine and their previous movies have been good. However, the combination of the subject of prayer and the inclusion of two women noted for un-orthodoxy in this subject, does not bode well. Both Shirer and Moore engage in and promote contemplative prayer. Further, Moore is known for having unbiblical visions and hearing the voice of God audibly, and explains during her “bible lessons” that this is or should be normal activity for all Christians. Perhaps Moore’s smaller role means that any negative impact on the movies direction would be minimal. However it is also true that we should “not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” (1 Corinthians 15:53.) In laymen’s term,s when the glove drops in the mud, the mud doesn’t get glovey.

My hope and prayer is that the movie will still be doctrinally solid. When it is released in a few months, please be discerning about it. Here is an essay with more information about Priscilla Shirer.

Here is the press release of information about the Kendricks’ new as yet untitled movie:

Kendrick Brothers Wrap Filming on Anticipated Fifth Movie

CHARLOTTE, N.C., July 29, 2014 /Christian Newswire/ — Alex and Stephen Kendrick–creators of hit faith films FIREPROOF and COURAGEOUS–have just wrapped principal photography on their anticipated fifth movie–a family drama with humor and heart focused on the power of prayer and its primary role in the Christian life…. The film features New York Times best-selling author and Bible teacher Priscilla Shirer in her film debut. “I’m honored to be working with the Kendricks, and to be part of a story that encourages people to pray,” Shirer said. “Prayer is the most powerful weapon the church has to unlock the activity of heaven on earth.”…  “It’s time for fierceness in prayer, and I cannot think of a more crucial message for a movie to convey,” Moore said. “God waits to see a generation that will take Him at His Word. Let’s be that generation.”

I have a peeve about teachers claiming that ‘we are the generation’ to finally get it right. Has no other generation in 6000 years ever taken God at His word? Apparently not, according to Moore. How narcissistic. As if God hasn’t used every generation to further His will and plan. If I may be allowed to echo the words of the eminent Dr Craig of the long-departed television drama St. Elsewhere,

“Oh for crying out loud.“
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A good word from Pastor David Platt:

Twitter wisdom, and apparently from an 11-year-old no less: ‏@JonathanDLeeman:

A friend’s 11 year old boy: they should combine YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook and call it You Twit Face.

I deactivated my Facebook account. The constant drama, me-orientation, superficiality, time-wasters, temptation to sin, and false doctrine abounding finally got to me. And you know what? I haven’t missed it.

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If you’re struggling financially, living in an urban ghetto, a third world nation, your car, or just barely hanging on, I leave this verse with you-

Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? (James 2:5)

Posted in autism, encouragement, love, patience

The positive aspects of having an Autistic/Asperger’s person in your congregation

Posted on by elizabethprata
The puzzle pieces in the autism awareness ribbon
represent the complexity of the disorder,
as well as the diversity of people
living with autism. (Wikipedia)

As an autistic person, I often wonder about God’s plan for me. I did not come to faith in Jesus until I was 43 years old. I did not learn I was autistic until I was 48 years old. I’m 53 now. As I progress in sanctification by God’s grace, sometimes I’m relieved to know what is “the matter” with me, and other times I’m frustrated because I wish I didn’t know.

All people sin all the time but most people have a particular sin that they need God’s daily help to conquer. For example, I don’t covet. I don’t care about ‘stuff’ that much. Therefore I’m not especially mired in that sin, while others covet constantly. Some people struggle with wanting alcohol, and battle a daily temptation. In these cases, it is to the obvious glory of God that we can resist, thanks to His Holy Spirit. What we cannot accomplish on our own, Jesus helps us with as our High Priest,

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)

With me, it is love. Autistic people are not known for empathy, and feel and express love differently than neuro-typical people. Our brains are literally wired differently.

The Diagnostic Statistical Manual 5 (DSM-V) defines autism in part as a person having

deficits in social-emotional reciprocity, deficits in nonverbal communicative behaviors used for social interaction, and deficits in developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships (source)

Because relationships and emotions are so difficult for us, we’re also loners. This need to be alone isnecessary survival mechanism, because we take in all stimuli and can’t screen any of it out. Neuro-typical people readily and unconsciously dispense with incoming stimuli that they don’t or won’t need. Their brains do that automatically. Ours don’t. So it all comes in.

not a lifestyle preference. It is a

Being among lots of people (and to me that means more than one) who talk at varying volumes, wear different colors, speak at different rates, and all incomprehensibly too, is just overwhelming. It’s easier to stay home and be quiet. Some Sundays, attending church is easier than others. On the tough Sundays I have to make myself go, and I come home exhausted and sleep for hours, and I’m groggy the rest of the day with what I call Aspergers residue.

Yet though I’m wired not to love in the same way as others and dislike being among people, I must love and be among people. Why? Jesus said so. It’s that simple.

And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:39-40, cf Galatians 5:14)

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. (1 Corinthians 13:1).

Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. (1 John 2:10-11)

Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. (1 Peter 3:8)

So you see, it is a necessity to do the things I’m not wired to do but to do what Jesus demands anyway. Sometimes I wonder about the difficulty of being wired not to do the things that He commands us to do but then I realize that in so doing, HE gets the glory.

If I can usually not do these things on my own steam, and yet I do them, it should be obvious that it is the precious Holy Spirit sustaining me and my wonderful Savior enabling me. Romans 12:9a says,

Let love be genuine. …

The NLT says “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them….”

If an autistic person can really love a person deeply then wouldn’t it be to the glory of Jesus that He enabled me to do this?

So I focus on the positive. He made me this way so I can give Him glory by being grown in the Spirit, and I can edify the Body with the particular personality that He knit in me operating in the gifts of the Spirit. I focus on the positive rather than bemoan, “Why am I like this?” That answer is simple too, because God wants it that way.

On the plus side, an autistic person’s penchant for always telling the truth, if combined with the Spirit’s deliverance of the gift of exhortation, is literally a match made in heaven. A further plus is that we are already on the edge of the social milieu, and we don’t mind telling the truth even if it means rejection. (It hurts, but our allegiance to the truth dominates, and this becomes full-flower when Christianity enters the scene).

All autistic people have one life-dominating special interest, and mine is the bible. That means I study it relentlessly. This subject is also a relief to me, because all man-made subjects eventually are exhausted. I’ve gone through King Arthur, (teens), heraldry (20s), mollusks (30s), and journalism (40s). But I will never exhaust the bible (50s—>eternity). We have good memories, so remembering past discussions in class, a sermon from a year ago, or a bible verse comes more easily to us. In this way we can often knit a larger truth or set something in context for ourselves or in discussions.

We generally don’t care if a person is rich, poor, socially high-end, or down and out. We mostly care that a person listens when we have something to say. That’s it. We truly live out James 2:1, showing no partiality.

There are pluses for neuro-typical people to have an autistic person in the congregation and there are pluses for an autistic person to be there. Each person in the faith is gifted by the Spirit, as He wills. We function as a unit. As much as we like to be apart, it is not good for us to be so. I’m sure as much as NT people may desire want us to be apart sometimes, it is not good for them either, lol.

Make an effort to be patient if there is an autistic child in the congregation. Say hello to an autistic person in your group, bible study or congregation, (but don’t hug). A simple hello goes a long way. We do not know how to initiate social contact, and the church greeting time is especially hard. There are a great many things we learn to be patient with in church, and I would hope that the NT people would also learn to be patient with us as well. We are one body, learning to function as a unit. With the help of Jesus, we will be beautiful to Him as we grow together, one flesh, one body, one church- but each of us lovely in our own way.

This snowy landscape is beautiful in harmony of the season, but it is made of billions of individual snowflakes. That’s His church, each unique, each filling in their part in the landscape of Jesus’ heart.

For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. (Romans 12:4-8)

Posted in actionjones, chris powers, encouragement, full of eyes, ministry, patreon

Chris Powers AKA Action Jones, and his ministry Full of Eyes

Posted on by elizabethprata
screen shot from newest video

You may already be well aware of this extraordinarily talented young Christian man, Chris Powers. He is an animator and graphic artist who labors to bring visual theology to the people, for free. His videos, essays, and tracts are wonderful. I’ve been following him (under his working name ActionJones) for a while now. I wrote about him last July, here.

I’ve never seen anyone (except maybe Chris Koelle) bring abstract concepts such as regeneration or justification to visual power as Powers does. He uses contemporary songs for his videos, and being young, connects with the youth. He is a tremendous artist and a strong Christian, who is in seminary also. His ministry is called Full Of Eyes from the Ezekiel 10:12 verse “the wheels were full of eyes all around.”

I wrote about him a year or so ago. I bring him to your attention again now. Mr Powers is stepping out in faith to up his ministry. He has worked part-time on his video animations and since it has been part-time, output has been slow. He has been praying and is going full-time.

Because he still needs to support his family, he has signed up with Patreon, an online pledge-support mechanism to support content-creators in the music and art industry.

As we know from last week’s blast from Weird Al Yankovic’s successful transition from the old model of signing contracts with record labels to freelance flexible online platforms, the music and art industry is changing. But one thing never changes, artists still need to be supported. To that end, several different pledge funding platforms have sprung up. One is Kickstarter, described by Wikipedia here:

Kickstarter is a global crowdfunding platform based in the United States. The company’s stated mission is to help bring creative projects to life. Kickstarter has reportedly received over $1 billion in pledges from 5.7 million donors to fund 135,000 projects, which include films, music, stage shows, comics, journalism, video games, and food-related projects.

I recently read that the unbiblical upcoming movie “The Holy Ghost” raised a third of a million dollars on Kicksarter.

A screen shot from “The Gospel Song”

The other crowdfunding platform is Patreon. Wikipedia again explains,

Patreon, based in San Francisco, is a crowdfunding platform created by musician Jack Conte and developer Sam Yam. It allows artists to obtain funding from patrons on a recurring basis or per artwork. Artists set up a page on the Patreon website, where patrons can pledge to donate a given amount of money to an artist every time she or he creates a piece of art, optionally setting a monthly maximum. Alternatively a fixed monthly amount can be pledged. This is different from other crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter, where artists obtain a single sum after a successful campaign and typically have to start over for every new piece. Similar to other platforms however, artists will often provide rewards for their patrons. Patreon takes a 5% commission on pledges.

Patreon is growing rapidly both in patrons and creators, with 10000 artists expected to use Patreon by the end of February 2014. While the website initially targeted musicians, established webcomic artists such as Jonathan Rosenberg, Zach Weinersmith and Paul Taylor are successfully using it.

Chris Powers has gone with Patreon, and is asking prayerfully for pledges. Here is his Full of Eyes Youtube page, for you to view his work.

As a stellar example of his work, here is a 5-min animated video of an imagined missionary martyr set to the song “All I Have Is Christ.” It is so powerful to me, I always need tissues when I view it, as I do most of his work. I also enjoy “The Gospel Song” an animation which uses the song of the same name by Drew Jones and also includes a short excerpt of the biblical Gospel, in words, by John Piper. Powers’ intent is always evangelism, not entertainment. Many of his videos and tracts have been translated into other languages for use overseas.

Please, if you have five minutes, view the All I Have Is Christ video. I also ask you to prayerfully consider supporting Mr Powers. We have so many Charismatic false teachers drawing our youth away into unorthodoxy. We have people instantly pledging up to $350,000 for an unbiblical Holy Ghost movie. And yet the solidly orthodox and brilliantly talented ones like Powers labor obscurely to present their biblical and edifying work for free. I pledged a monthly gift. If you feel led, I hope you will too.

Posted in desert, gafsa, oasis, tunisia

Lac de Gafsa, Tunisia: a lake that appeared in the desert overnight

Posted on by elizabethprata

Drudge reported this today. You’ve heard of pop-up restaurants? Here is a popup desert lake. Tunisian desert shepherds walking by noticed a lake had emerged from the sands, beckoning with turquoise green refreshingly cool water. Some call it a miracle, others a supernatural event, still others, hallucination, or magic. But there it is. A lake where none had been before.

Here The Guardian’s article, excerpted. The photos are from where else? A pop-up Facebook page dedicated to Lac Du Gafsa, where ‘beach’ goers post their photos.

Source lac de gafsa Facebook page

Mysterious lake in Tunisian desert turns from turquoise to green sludge

The lake appeared in the Tunisian desert like a mirage; one minute there was nothing but scorching sand, the next a large expanse of turquoise water. For locals, roasting in the 40C heat, the temptation to cool off in the inviting water quickly overcame any fears about the mysterious pool. Hundreds flocked to what quickly became known as the Lac de Gafsa or Gafsa beach to splash, paddle, dive, and fling themselves from rocks into the lake, ignoring warnings that the water could be contaminated with carcinogenic chemicals, riddled with disease or possibly radioactive. Even after the water turned a murky green, they arrived in droves, undeterred. “Some say it is a miracle, while others are calling it a curse,” Lakhdar Souid, a Tunisian journalist, told France 24 television.

Shepherds discovered the lake, thought to be up to 18 meters deep and covering one hectare, three weeks ago. Local geologists suspect seismic activity may have ruptured the rock above the water table sending the liquid to the surface. Other theories have suggested the canyon has simply collected rain water. “News of the lake’s appearance has spread like wildfire and now hundreds of people, eager to escape a heatwave, go there to swim,” Souid wrote in the Tunisia Daily newspaper.

It must have been a sight for hot desert dwellers’ eyes to see the turquoise water under the beating sun. But this really isn’t all that unusual. Scientists insist that a bubble under the ground could have ruptured and caused the water to swell upward. If you look on Google earth, there is an oasis called Gafsa, and the brown of the desert sports a hearty green right in the middle. Ancient rivers courses can also be seen. Officials warned that the rocks could move just as quickly and suck the water back down again, taking swimmers with it.

The algae forming quickly told scientists that the water wasn’t being replenished, and soon the mini-oasis would be unswimmable, if it ever was hygienic and potable in the first place.

The story reminded me of a story I covered in 2010, when the River Iska in Slovenia disappeared overnight.

What struck me about this story is the rapidity which people ascribed supernatural or magical terms to a situation that obviously has a normal explanation. I had just written an essay yesterday about “What is a Miracle?” and had advised being careful about ascribing to God things that are not of God and tossing the word ‘miracle’ around. Further, it is such a shame that people will easily believe God or a supremee being formed a lake suddenly but not believe that he sent His son to pay for our sins nor believe His Gospel, the TRUE miracle of the supernatural.

At least they’re not claiming to have found Jesus in a bag of Cheetos. Or a potato chip. Or a burnt fish stick…