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The Lighthouse Life
Living "by" faith - not "with" faith. |
 Every moment of the day is precious. My life has been full of miracles (the greatest one is my salvation). Living for my Savior is everything but boring. I hope I am able to challenge you to come to know Him in an even better way. I encourage you to read below - and pray you will follow through. Quihadi  While there is no special formula to follow in order to be born from above, there are certain things we must know and do. What we must know: That we are sinners who are hopelessly lost and under condemnation of death. Spiritual death is everlasting separation from God in Hell. We cannot save ourselves by any effort of our own. That Jesus Christ, God's Son, died on the cross and rose from the dead to pay the penalty of our sin. What we must do: Admit to God that we have sinned, and deserve the penalty of death. Receive Jesus as our personal Savior. Acknowledge Christ as our Savior and Lord by confessing Him with our mouth. What God will do: Make us safe. Forgive all our sins. Give us eternal life. Do you want to be sure? If so, pray something like this (or use your own words). Lord Jesus, I have sinned against you, and I deserve hell. I believe You died in my place to pay the penalty for all my sins. Right now, be merciful to me and save me. I trust you as my Lord and Savior, and commit my life to you. Amen. |
| Thanks Mother |
| I was sitting in the hospital with a special lady. There was no way I could try to repay my Mother for what she has done for me. However, I could be there for her in the hospital. The silence while she slept caused me to remember when I was a patient. She was watching me. Her protection was too often taken for granted. My mind drifted to a lad one hundred miles from his home. He was lying in a hospital suffering from injuries received in a car and bicycle accident. The boy was in a room with eight other terminal patients. The nine year old felt alone and abandoned. There were no family or friends close enough to visit. His knowing and experiencing a Mother's comfort is what caused him not to lose hope. I was that boy. There would be countless seizures in the years to follow, but always comforted by my Mother's love. Her correction and courage became a well-known fact. If I got in trouble at school, one of us was in trouble. I was in trouble, or the school was in trouble. Although I did not like it, I felt secure. She demanded respect, which seems to be lost today. The Gifts she displayed attracted my humblest gratitude. Her many sacrifices for our family with wisdom in using her knowledge. She is always working to provide for her family. Prayer and patience have become a way of life with her. Raising four sons may have something to do with it. I know she received much tribulation from me in my teenage years. My mind quickly came back to the present when a nurse asked me a question. They wanted to remove her from the life support. I was glad I had a conversation with her the day before. She was not afraid to die, but did not want to leave her family. I was able to tell her about loved ones that were waiting and prayed with her. Honoring the living will, they removed her from life support. It was a helpless feeling watching her throughout the night. The only thing that could be done was making her comfortable as possible. It was a long night. My mind drifted in and out. I must have pictured a lifetime of memories in twelve hours. I'm amazed there were not any bad ones. It was morning when she died. The time recorded was when she normally would leave for church. I was so happy knowing she knew the Lord. Then it hit me. It was Mother's Day. I simply prayed “Thank You God, for a Mother who gave what I lacked.” Each Mother’s Day I reflect back to my childhood. There is a lifetime of good memories. She was a Mother both in my childhood and adult life. I learned through example so many things from her. It is a great comfort knowing where she is now. I know the worse thing there is better than the best here. Quihadi |
| The US Prison System |
| It is my conviction that only violent criminals should be locked up. It should be done to protect other people. Today's prison system is too quick to "simply" punish the inmate. It is making victims of everyone. Prisons are becoming the number one growth industry. The following is a real life situation to help illustrate the problem. A young lady wrote a "hot" check for $3,000 dollars. The same week a man killed his wife while forcing his three children to watch. I'll spare the details. The lady went to trial and was sentenced to five years with no parole. It was her first offense. This made her children victims because she was a single mom. The taxpayers were forced to pay the bill for the trial and prison expenses. Her children went on welfare when she lost her job. Taxpayers became victims. The original victim would never get her $3,000 dollars back. Everyone loses this way. Prisons should be the last resort. If the Lady were working, her children may not be on welfare. The taxpayers would not be paying $48,000 per year to keep her in prison. The only one that loses financially is the person who did the crime. The man who butchered his wife and made their children watch did less than five years. He spent two of them in a state hospital for the insane. After his release, the man took his own life. Everyone loses again. The prison system seems to have lost its purpose. The protection of citizens and rehabilitation of inmates should be the main goals. The solution is not perfect, but it is a way to keep a corrupt situation from getting worse. First, hit them financially. Many people are able and willing to pay so they can keep their jobs, and stay out of prison. We need to look deeper into options on a case by case basis, making incarceration the last option. It will take much of the load off taxpayers, and the prisons would not be overcrowded. Although this is not a “cure all,” it would put some sanity back in the justice system. |
| Which Voice Is Yours? |
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Around the cross were seven voices, a summary of all mankind's choices. They were not words Jesus was saying, but phrases others were saying. While crucifying Him, soldiers gambled for His coat. People sat staring - beginning to gloat. Hurling out the first voice was an immoral toss. “If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!” They were unholy skeptics at best. Separated from God as east is from west. Truer words have never been uttered, than these the unholy preachers muttered. “He saved others, Himself He cannot save!” This second voice told of His mission to the grave. The third voice came from the thieves dying, repeating what the preachers were crying. Today religion grows like wildfire, but without Jesus you belong to the liar. “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?” The fourth voice around the deadly tree. “This man calls for Elias!” Thinking He was asking for help - being pious. It was an announcement that the Father turned His head, while the Holy Son became sin in our stead. Voice five from some, “Let us see if Elias will come.” We have curiosity seekers today, but to unholy men they fall prey. Then came voice six, “Remember me.” He was dying on another tree. He began to understand the price. Jesus said, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.” The seventh voice was one of expression, I call it a heartfelt confession. It was a voice believers do not find odd. “Truly, this man was the Son of God.” Quihadi
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| Pro-Life Rally in DC |
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| I'm always amazed at the lack of coverage given the pro-life rallies by the media. I have a feeling if any other group marched with five hundred thousand to one million people to the Capital Building, it would be all over the media. This happens regardless of the President's views on abortion. The toll now is over 55,000,000 abortions since Roe vs Wade. For years I have been listening to politicians, clergy, and well meaning pro-lifers try to answer one question. Defending their position of pro-choice, the question continues to be asked by abortionists. Can you determine when the soul joins the body of a new baby? Or, in short, when does life begin? I find it not only amazing, but sad, that the leading clergymen remain silent on the real answer. We are told in Genesis, and throughout the Bible, that the life is in the blood. We are also told not to shed innocent blood. Did you know the fetus has his/her own blood? Before three weeks old, he/she has a beating heart. At no time is the blood the blood of the mother. Except for the blood of Jesus, is there any "more innocent" than that of the bodies being newly formed in the womb? They are being formed by the hand of God. How can anyone hold that the tiny body cannot be alive, but safe to slay because he/she "may not" have received a soul? The burden of guilt has fallen on anyone responsible for terminating the life of the unborn. I pray you do not risk the wrath of God on such an unprovable matter. For those of us who still tremble at the Word of God, the thought that He said to Cain, "the voice of your brother's blood cries to me from the ground" (Gen. 4:10) brings with it an awesome burden. Join the fight for those voiceless millions in the USA, whose innocent blood is being shed every year. My question to you is, "What are you going to do about it?" Must God visit His judgement upon us as a nation before we will realize how grievous legalized murder is in His sight? Or will we believe what He says? The blood of countless millions cries to God, and it is on our hands. If someone asks you to prove when life begins, tell them they are asking the wrong question. We are told not to shed innocent blood.
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| What Happens #11 & #12 |
| #11 We are set apart for God-like living to do His work. We are made right with God through the Lord Jesus Christ by the Spirit of our God. #12 We receive gifts from the Holy Spirit. There are different kinds of gifts, but it is the same Holy Spirit who gives them. There are different kinds of work to be done for Him. But the work is from the same Lord. There are different ways of doing His work. But it is the same God who uses all these ways in all people. The Holy Spirit works in each person in one way or another for the good of all. When (if) you gave your life to the Lord, and your sins were washed away, He has given you at least one "supernatural" gift to use for Him. It's our job to find out what it is, develop it, and to use it for Him. In fact, we could already be using the gift(s) without knowing it. But if we develop it, the gift could be used in a much better way. I pray you take His plan A, and not just settle for plan B. That's where you will be the happiest. Quihadi |
| UNPLOWED GROUND |
| "Break up your unplowed ground, and do not sow among thorns" (Jer. 4:3) As we end 2012 and begin 2013 it is a good time for reassessment. Every year after Christmas, I ask myself if I have grown spiritually. I try to add things to my life that will help me grow throughout the next year. Is my life producing something of value to God? How much "unplowed ground" do I have that ought to be broken up in this coming year and made useful? The week after Christmas is a good time for reassessment. New Year's Day is an excellent time for corrections. If we fail to plan (as the old saying goes) then we plan to fail. Spiritual resolutions fail just as often as the non-spiritual resolutions, because there is no magical power in a New Year’s resolution. Resolving to start or stop doing a certain activity has no value unless you have the proper motivation. Years ago, I replaced resolutions with adopting a Bible passage. One I needed to add to my life. I started with the first four words of the Bible. "In the beginning God." Whenever something entered my life, or if there was a decision to make, I remembered those words and took it to God first. Whether leaving my job or taking on a responsibility, I needed to realize my life no longer belonged to myself. It had been bought back out of sin (redeemed) by the precious blood of Christ. The following year, I was ready for another passage. It took two years to add Philippians 4:6-7 to my life. The first year was only partially successful, so it was continued until it became a way of life. This year I encourage you to evaluate your Christian life, and strive to make it even better in the coming year. If you do not know Jesus on a "personal" basis, there's no better time to surrender your life to Him. |
| Seeing Clearly |
| We are like people traveling by night. We see what the light before us reveals. But we see very little around us, as through a glass darkly. We see many things here that we simply do not understand, particularly in matters of providence. There are many things in the Word of God as well, which we simply do not understand. We are at best able to perceive spiritual things, like the blind man in Mark (chapter eight). He said he saw men as trees walking. It will be like this as long as we live in this world. The time will soon come when we will see all things clearly. |
| It's Time |
| We live in a time when many people are sinking in despair—marriages falling apart, financial hardships, addiction, etc. People feel alone in their struggle, and even those closest to them seem of no help. It's time for God's people to get their eyes off themselves, follow God's calling and help those that are crying out for help. |
| Comments On The Bible |
| In the Old Testament there are 2000 predictive prophecies - not a few lucky guesses. They are not vague, but in great detail. If a prophet said something that didn't come to pass, he was executed. If that happened today I doubt there would be as many people making predictions. If people could have written God's Word they wouldn't - if they would they couldn't. The Author is the Holy Spirit. You need Him to teach it, and make it real to you. No one belongs to Christ unless He has the Holy Spirit dwelling in him/her (Romans 8:9). God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He is perfect so He cannot get any better. He is Holy so He cannot get any worse. His Word is eternal. The problem comes when we try to make Him like us, instead of conforming to Him. If a person thinks the Bible is fiction, he/she needs to be born into God's family. |
| For me to live is Christ. Eph. 1:21 |
Can you say this? Is Christ everything you do? Do you live for Him?. Is your one aim and purpose to glorify Him? Listen to the cries of the people of this world. What are they? To the successful business man it is, "To me to live is wealth." To the scholar it is, "To me to live is knowledge." To the soldier it is, " To me to live is victory." To the young man, "To me to live is pleasure." So we could go on and listen to all the voices of the world, but one is heard above all. For me to live is Christ, all and always. The Apostle Paul says: When I travel it is on Christ's errands. When I suffer it is in Christ's service. When I speak, the theme is Christ. When I write, Christ fills my letters. What do you think is the passion of your life? Fill the blank in carefully and prayerfully. It will tell you much about why you are living and for whom. For me to live is _________________________ |
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