The portion of the GraceSummit sermon I mentioned below

From March 19 Sermon
...
5. Then the fifth, commit to sharing the good news. Once you know the good news, you share it with other people. I've already shared this with my small group - but about 12 days ago (March 7) I heard that a friend of mine, Brad, was in the hospital and that the doctors had given up hope. That day, I went to visit Brad. I prayed that God would give me the right emotions to meet their needs the most. There was a sign on the door - Immediate family members only. I went to the nurses' station and said that I was really hoping to see Brad. She said that he had requested no visitors and asked if I would like to write him a note. Before actually thinking it through, I said, Sure.. Think about that a second... have you ever written a note to a dying person? It is a tough thing to do. So I stood there for a few minutes and thought. So finally I wrote about the times we had shared together - how helpful he was with my system and how I always enjoyed our talks. At the end of the note, I mentioned that my one regret was that we never had the opportunity to play golf together - because we often talked about golf. But in the middle, I wrote - My Dad was in a similar situation a few years ago, and a couple of scriptures that really helped to refresh his heart and mine -

John 5:24 - He who hears my word and believes on Him who sent me HAS eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

HAS eternal life. That is a present-tense verb - when you put your trust in Christ, you HAVE eternal life - it is not something you can lose. Because otherwise, it would not be eternal life that you have. There are other scriptures that support this more strongly.



The other verse I shared was from 1 John 5:13 - These things I have written to you who believe on the name of the Son of God that you may KNOW - and I underlined the word KNOW - that you have eternal life. And you know, those aren't necessarily preachy verses - and I don't know where Brad is coming from - whether he has been a churchgoer all his life or not - but I do know that those verses are true and give hope to a dying person. And can make him think - that if he has not put his faith in Christ, that he CAN KNOW that he could have eternal life. As it turned out, Brad's wife poked her head out the door and invited me in - as Brad was awake. I was honored to talk to him. He was very aware that his days were numbered = he even said that they were making arrangements. I mentioned something about the verses and he mentioned -something about hope = yes, there is hope for something on the other side.



As I was leaving - I told him that we would pray for him and his family. When the nurse came in, I did have the opportunity to talk to Brad's wife - and I told her a bit about Dennis and Linda - and what an inspiration Linda has been to us. We talked about how hard it is going to be - she will have two of her children with her - and for someone who is not yet 50 to be losing a husband and father like that = that is a tough thing. And again, Linda has been such an inspiration to us that I want to honor her by mentioning that. As I walked out - I said, See you on the other side = and that was my prayer for him.

My point is this - we need to be looking for opportunities to be sharing these truths. And not just in deathbed situations. What a hopeful verse = How many of your friends know for sure they are going to heaven? 1 John 5 - I write these things that you may KNOW you have eternal life. A lot of people I talk to say, Isn't that presumptuous? No, it is not - the Bible says right here - he who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son does not have the life - I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may KNOW that you have eternal life.

Remembering Brad Truett

My friend Brad went home to be with the Lord this morning. He was 49. For those of you at Grace Summit, he is the coworker I spoke about at the end of the sermon on March 19. When I had heard that he was dying, I went to visit him (this was on March 7). You can read about that visit at the bottom of the GraceSummit link.

This morning, I googled his name, and found this - from the March 12 bulletin of the Clarkston Free Methodist Church:

"Brad Truett—friend of the Mujais family, accepted the Lord as his Savior this week. Please continue to pray for Brad as he endures pain and suffering from cancer. Pray that God would relieve Brad’s pain as He sees fit."

I called the Clarkston church and they connected me with Stephanie Mujais, who shared with me her side of the story. When she heard that Brad's cancer had returned in early February, she called him and talked about the Lord. She is a cancer survivor and really felt burdened to share with her former childhood neighbor. This was an answer to prayer of some other believers who had prayed that others would share with Brad. On March 3, she came to see him and Brad wanted to talk to her about God and heaven. He told her he wanted to be forgiven - and she explained how Christ died for our sins so we could be forgiven and prayed with him. Praise God for this sister who felt God's prompting and shared the Good News!

Thanks to all of you who prayed for Brad. Please continue to pray for his family as they go through this challenging time.

Yackin: OK, Swift...

Yackin: OK, Swift...: "questions questions questions lets see hmmmmmm ok maby you know the answer to this one. Is it wrong to pray to marry and if so why?

Hmmm - my first thought was, it is always good to pray before you marry someone. :-D

At 10:30 PM, swift0014 said...
like the marry mother of Jesus in case that wasnt clear
"


Okay - praying to Mary. I guess the first question is, Why would anyone WANT to pray to Mary. The Bible says that we have direct access to the Throne of God through Christ. Hebrews 4:16

Also - 1 Timothy 2:5 "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."

There is only one mediator, Jesus.

Also, Mary, although she was an honored woman to be chosen to be the mother of Jesus, and she is blessed among women (Luke 1:42), she is not Deity, nor omniscient, to be able to hear the millions of prayers that have been offered to her.

Also, when Jesus was asked about how to pray, He said to pray to the Father. Never in Scripture is there an admonition to pray to anyone but God. Some argue that it is like asking a friend to pray for them - but the problem is, it is not like asking a friend to pray for them. Deuteronomy 18:11 forbids "calling upon the dead" - and when it did happen in the Bible (Saul called upon Samuel), it was NOT a good thing, even though Samuel was a great prophet of God.

What are the bigger issues here? Some believe that the Deity of Christ makes Him unapproachable and it is easier to approach His mother. Well, that is a misunderstanding of the nature of Christ and His grace and mercy. We are to pray to Christ/God alone, to find mercy and grace in our time of need. He alone saves us. He alone intercedes for us. Thoughts, anyone?

OK, Swift...

Swift0014 writes:
"i still really want a list of things you feel are important in a relationship (from a male perspective)"

Okay - I started this a few days ago, but have not had much time to work on it.
On the lighter side, it is important to have someone that you really enjoy being around - which sounds simple enough. When I think about MrsY - I REALLY enjoy just being around her. She "gets" my jokes - and I get hers. If I had to explain my jokes to her, our relationship would become tiresome :))).

It is great to have someone you can team up with to work on projects - especially when it comes to spreading Christ's love to others. To be a team it is good to have someone who complements your weaknesses (read my profile :))

As a guy, I feel it is important to take the lead in the spiritual aspects of a relationship: to pray together, to initiate in Bible-reading and devotions, in going to church, and being active in telling others about Christ. Similarly, it is important to take the initiative in staying within proper boundaries before marriage. When you maintain those boundaries, you establish security and trust which are critical in a relationship. Also critical is honesty - being honest about who you are. (I know we always try to put our best self forward in a relationship - but eventually, she has to see the real you, "warts and all" as they say").

Of course, this is not an exhaustive list, but it should make for some good talking points :)

Press ON! - Thanks for your patience!
Jeff

Thanks

I just wanted to thank everyone who commented on the last post - and especially Swift for starting it and continuing it. I think there are some valuable things for all of us to think about and I appreciate the honesty and the willingness to dig a little deeper. Way cool: as I was listening to WCRF this morning (which I don't normally do), a show came on and the text for the day was Psalm 73 - and the hosts commented how it sure is easy to feel like we feel sometimes! They must be reading our blogs! :-D
Press ON!
Jeff