Wake up, O sleeper!

Lately God keeps speaking about Light shining into the darkness. It is an image I cannot get out of my thoughts and every time I turn around something else is happening to emphasize it. The depth of that darkness, the very face of evil, the removing of the mask and the bone chilling reality of how real and active our Enemy is. We are not warring against people... it is a spiritual creature that stalks us and reaches thru our weak places to wound and attack and devour one another.

... but then the Light shines into that darkness, revealing Truth and restoring Hope and bringing Healing on the wings of the morning. What beauty in the Word of God revealed... Jesus, Light of the World, our Hope, our Salvation.

Malachi 4

1For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

2But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

3And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.

4Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.

5Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:

6And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

There is just too much to explain or express in that passage. A word for the future, a word for the past, a word for the here and now. God is unchanging and his word and character remain faithful to every generation.

Two weeks ago our Sunday School class was discussing how long Noah and his family were on the ark before he finally sent out the dove and the raven. I woke up the next morning and turned on the TV to watch the news with my coffee, and it was unbelievable what appeared on the screen the second that that TV clicked on. It was a show depicting the old testament, the scene where Noah first opens the window to send out the birds.

The light flooded thru the window and the eight passengers on board crowded around that little window in awe of something as simple as sunlight. The show went on to focus on the sending of the birds and exiting the ark, but that image seemed burned in my thoughts. I thought about it as I went thru my morning routine, talking to the Lord and pondering it all. And it occurred to me how long they had spent in the darkness... living by torches and firelight for a year or so or however long it was. Their hope lay in the promise that God would bring them thru that dark time. They knew the Light, they had seen it, and they waited in that place of darkness trusting God...

Then when that window opened for the first time after so very long... what must it have felt like. That Hope fulfilled, the simplicity of it all, the warmth on their skin, the chemicals that began to stir to minister to them physically.... the Light, how they missed it... how beautiful it was in stark comparison to the dull substitutes they lived with for so long... I can only imagine how real that moment will be for us when we see him with our own eyes and feel the warmth of his presence on our own skin. There will be a day and it will be overwhelming and truly awesome.

So much more happened in the weeks that followed, but I want to get to the other moment of that Light piercing the darkness that just shook me so deeply...

My teens have been listening to Showbread's new cd series Anorexia and Nervosa. Their music is already pretty edgey, but this new material seemed over the edge at first listen. But we love this band and really trust that they are sold out to Christ, so we made a great effort trying to understand what and why they were presenting such a dark piece of art. They are ministry minded artists, so what is it they were trying to say....

Musically the albums are incredible.

My teens went to a summer camp/festival for a week called Cornerstone. Showbread was performing this new material... and my daughter came back absolutely undone by the experience. She said they came out all in white with black gunk smeared all over themselves. The place was darkened and two large screens were flashing videos and pics thru the performance. It was pretty intense and caused her to feel somewhat uncertain... but suddenly, near the end, there was a video of a girl in a field. The lead singer began to sing a beautiful hymn, the girl looked up and a light shined down upon her. And that scene took the performance out.

She bought both cds, deeply moved, but still holding them at arms length because they seemed so dark in a sense... she was trying to understand what God was stirring in her heart concerning it all. It turns out that the albums are a story line. They are like an opera of sorts... you are instructed to sit in a darkened room and to read the story thru as you listen to the albums. The story is a tale of two sisters that live a very dark and evil life... along the feel of LORD OF THE FLIES or something worse. One sister embraces the evil and has relations with a pig and the story is intensely evil as she marries herself to the darkness. The other sister lives a similar life but in the end is changed and freed from the darkness.

This is a very very intense piece of artistic expression (parents need to be available if your teens have questions as they try to wrap their mind around the message presented)... but the impact is staggering.

Our family thought on it for some time. And just this Sunday, I felt I understood a new aspect of the effect of this story project. It came back to the Light shining in the darkness... I love what Showbread has done, whether this was their intent or not. This album is a must-experience experience for church kids. What is does is so affective. It shocks them but not in a way to entertain them or to feed some eccentric fetish... it shocks them and opens their eyes to the depth of the evil of a very real enemy. It effectively rips the mask off of the darkness that reaches out to them and taunts them.

It takes the listener on a journey thru the life of the unsaved as viewed spiritually... darkness, the evil, the absolute vileness... so that they almost smell the stench of the enemy's breath in their face... it exposes the lie... it allows them to see the loss, the utter emptiness and bondage and filth of sin... and yet it allows them to see the beauty of the Light of the world. Not just in words, not so that they must play in the filth of the world to taste it. But rather it reveals the Truth of the darkness and the power of the Light... of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the World, Prince of Peace, Giver of Hope.

what it is to be clean.

Just as the Light flooded thru that window and affected Noah and his family in the darkness of that ark... Light and understanding floods the mind and heart of the listener who is truly listening for the voice of God. The difference lies in the fact that Christians, the people of God, know that the Light is there as they persevere and wait for the revealing of it... as they live in this cursed and putrid world... telling everyone about the Light that is coming again, as they reflect him and testify of his beauty and his goodness.

On the other hand, the lost have no idea what they are missing. They are content in the misery of that darkness. They have never heard or seen or experienced that Light. The darkness is their reality, the filth, forever stained and married to the darkness. They live in such pain and suffering because they know no other way. They are seduced and deceived. Until someone tells them the Truth... until they encounter Jesus Christ... until they feel the warmth on their skin and the stirring in their heart...

and they are overwhelmed.

Acts 26

15"Then I asked, 'Who are you, Lord?'
" 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' the Lord replied. 16'Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you. 17I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'

Matthew 4

16the people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned."
17From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."

Ephesians 5

1Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 2and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

3But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. 4Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7Therefore do not be partners with them.

8For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9(for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10and find out what pleases the Lord. 11Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. 12For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. 13But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, 14for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said:
"Wake up, O sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you."

15Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is.

And even now as I write this and refer to that Light... it brings me unexpectedly back to the passage that God spoke to me during my prayer time recently in Ephesians 5. The word that jumps out at me is idolatry... that word also came up this past Sunday... perhaps that is something the Lord is wanting to address among the church in the current hour.

Perhaps that greed of so many who are currently corrupting the church and the people of God is about to be revealed for what it is... perhaps God is about to deal with those who walk in such idolatry. It is a time to pray for repentance and for the mercy of God. Once again God is dealing with the spots and wrinkles because he is preparing a bride... and the wedding day is approaching so quickly while so many continue to sleep.

Wake up, O sleeper!

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I just came thru a difficult three years, and how I wish this new cd by CeCe Winans had been out then. I'm listening to the samples on her myspace and I'm looking back over all that I have walked thru... and I can bear witness with the testimony in her worship. WAGING WAR... IT AINT OVER... these are things declared in the heat of the battle, in the midst of attack, at the start of the turning of the tide...

This is pay week and I will definitely be buying this cd for my personal prayer/worship time.

If you are going thru difficult times. If you are tired of so much, if you've lost hope in good people, or you're in a situation that has drained every last ounce of energy and joy from you... I encourage you to get this cd and let it restore that fire in your bones to let God bring a change. It's the midnight hour for so many, and we've prayed and wept bitterly and cried out. God has heard and the anointing has been and is being poured out. We enter the battlefield led by worship of our God. No matter our enemy, no matter how afraid, no matter how small and beaten we feel... we go in faith, trusting him to intervene as we step out.

Are your feet there? Does the blood run from fresh wounds that you've suffered? Are you looking down right now at the stream of blood and tears as they fill your shoes and soak the very ground that you're standing on? Are you carrying a friend or a loved one who is that tattered soul, who bleeds beyond your control?

Look up... our redemption is here.

 

There are several voices of worship that get it. They carry an anointing from the throne of God. Two of those voices are CeCe Winans and Charlie Hall. They have been key during my worship lately. The samples on their myspace pages have spoken to me... and I plan to buy their cds this week so I can really sit in that soaking place of prayer and worship. God is using them to lead me into his presence, and I truly believe that he is calling many others to that place as well. Perhaps the same worship will lead you there. If it's a different worship minister, great... but go there. Go to that place. The people of God must begin to declare and claim the will of God in all the earth. He is pouring out an anointing upon such declarations right now.

Worship is such a key thing right now. But it is worship with the right heart. There is a counterfeit that masks itself in false humility... so be careful. You will know it by the fruit... does it lead you to Christ... are you changed... does it cause you to  reflect Him and no other... do your eyes (the windows of your soul) shine with a light that loves Christ above all else?

Also, you simply cannot pray without worshiping and you cannot worship without praying. They are two sides of the same coin, and to spend one requires the spending of the other. Both are the act of talking to God... so talk.

 

 

 

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I have been overwhelmed by the presence of God among his people. There is a song by CeCe Winans that has just consumed my thoughts and my heart lately... WAGING WAR from her new album THY KINGDOM COME. There is such a cry among the people of God for Christ to come and fulfill all things. Evil runs so rampant in the earth... the war rages these days and the people of God are really fed up with the devil robbing them of so much... This song is offered as a free mp3 download online:

http://music.download.com/cecewinansthykingdomcome/3600-8437_32-101127335.html

It is truly a BATTLE CRY if I have ever heard one... but it is different from any other...
It is a PERSONAL battle cry, from and to the heart of the believer. And as each of us is under brutal attack, as those we love are walking thru such suffering, like never before... we are fed up and the cry is to ourselves and to hell... ENOUGH!

The church is finally standing up one by one. Kinda reminds me of that Mel Gibson movie the PATRIOT. It was so convincing to adopt a pacifist view, to speak gently and sit idly, avoiding confrontation, as the enemy attacks and torments everything precious to you and to those around you... but there comes a point when people of conscience must reach that point of LIVE or DIE -- screaming/shouting/declaring to death, hell, and the grave, "I will cast my lot for what is right and good and Godly!"

Look across the church, and there are scars and bloodstains and lack... but something is changing in the wind. And that wind is the wind of His Spirit that blows thru the core of who we are... one by one he is empowering us. As we make up our minds, as we become resolute that we will not fear pain and death and suffering, we become that tree planted by the water that generations of the church have sung about for so long... we have finally faced fires and floods of our own that have brought us to a place of understanding. We finally get the heart of what they were singing about... we're done with hugging trees with limp-wristed affection, now we want to be that solid oak -- unmovable, unshakable, towering and massive in our faith and in our doing.

There is a division in the church.

There is a line being drawn, cut, burned, thru the center of the sanctuary. The people of God must choose... the peace of the world or the peace of God... only one is a real peace. The peace of the world tells you that life is about comfort and lack of conflict and compromising the statutes of God for the unity of the body... hmmm....

The peace of God tells you that life on this earth will be difficult:

" 4Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains.
9"Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24)"

"13"I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. (John 17)"

" 32And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, 33who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. 37They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
39These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect. (Hebrews 11)"

" 7But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. 12So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.........
16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4)"

YOU ARE NOT A FAILURE!

Just because you are disappointed in someone that chose selfishness and sin, rather than what is right...

Just because the injustice of this world and the self-centeredness of people we love flares up in our face and we are angry that they are harming themselves and everyone that loves them...

Just because you chose for your spouse to stay home so that someone would be available to minister to the daily needs of your family, and you can't provide all the trappings that the world says you need...

Just because you're without health insurance tho you are working yourself in the ground to cover the basic necessities of your family...

Just because life is not easy and tensions flare and you are not popular or well-liked by everyone in your circle...

Just because your sickness or hardship or thorn in the flesh remains after much prayer and petition for healing...

Just because it is your heart to do what is right, to love God, to love people, to serve, to learn from your sin/mistakes and to be a better person -- and yet, somehow it's never enough, somehow the appearance of things and the voices around you try to convince you to abandon your hope and your joy...

YOU ARE NOT A FAILURE!

Hold on to your faith. Fight for your hope and your joy. Slap the hand and the face of the enemy every time he tries to reach into your life to redefine what God has said. This life is supposed to be messy. We're not supposed to be comfortable with living in a cesspool of decay, living in a world that is cursed and that is rotting away beneath us. It is stressful, it is difficult, it is painful, it is demanding, there is lack and want and sickness and loss and poverty...

this is not paradise, it is a battlefield.

For too long now the church has somehow entered the mindset that everything is supposed to run smoothly if you're doing the Christian thing right.. but that's not the reality, that's not Truth, and that's not what the word of God says. We live our lives daily seeking Christ to lead us thru the big and the small. Fires blaze on every level and we must manage them all at once the best we can, trusting God to make us able and thanking him for fighting the flames beside us. There are souls to rescue in the fire, and there are loved ones we must guard who war beside us. Sometimes the battle is in the trench. Sometimes the fault is theirs, sometimes it's ours, but God is present to lead each of us to repentance and to realign us... keeping all things in order and effective and winning the war.

We fight and obey, He fights and oversees. We submit and trust, He rules and reigns.

Almost always, our walk is not a pretty site... it's the hand of God upon us, his grace and mercy, that turns our bumbling attempts into something beautiful and leads us on to the victory he has promised. It's always about him, it's always our weakness and smallness and his greatness and omniscience. He is God, we are merely reflections... what a privilege. Made in his image... why would he bestow such an honor upon us, why would he choose mud and muck to breath himself into? We reflect him because he chose us for that honor... But we must choose to receive that commission, we must decide whether to covenant with him, to enter into adoption as his child, as his heir. We must choose to love him back.

Will you stand up and cast a vote?

In the movie, The Patriot, in that little church, the people had to choose where they stood. It cost them much. In that same little church, they were burned alive, leaving nothing but ashes and loss. But they left a legacy, a challenge to those that would come after them, something that was so much more than the precious handful that they were trying to protect. They fought for their families and their neighbors, they fought for a measure of lands and homes... but they won a nation and generations of people that knew freedom because of them. We too must stand and fight for the parcel of ground on which we stand in this moment, and the pocket of life that has been handed to us, the souls left to our charge to teach and to lead into battle. Yes, into battle. We are not preparing our children for paradise and ease, we are to prepare them to war. Paradise and peace are the promise, the prize when the battle has been fought well.

" 21"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' (Matthew 25)"

"45But suppose the servant says to himself, 'My master is taking a long time in coming,' and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk. 46The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
47"That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. 48But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
49"I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! 50But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is completed! 51Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. (Luke 12)"

NO COMPROMISE. The word of God is sure and true. It is time to wage war just as CeCe talks about in her song...

" 10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. (Ephesians 6)"

... fearlessly, as I should.

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This drama will change your life. Family Force 5 sent out a link to this Godtube video. My husband interrupted a movie with my son, told me to push play on the computer screen, and then as I began to weep (not just cry)... but WEEP, he handed me tissues he had ready and waiting >3

Talk about cutting edge, about being relevant, about the Gospel story and the link between real life and what is seen written on the pages of Scripture... there are just not words to describe this glimpse into the love of God for every soul on the face of this earth....

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5

If you feel far from God, if life and sin and circumstance makes you feel lost and hopeless...
know that he is fighting for you... will you fight to get back to him?

He will never leave you, there's nothing you have done that he won't forgive, no mess you've made that he can't help you to clean up. This world may be a violent place, but Christ is violent in fighting for you. Don't give up. Cry out to him. Fight to get back to him. I love you <3

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There is no one I know of that is speaking more under the anointing to this generation thru worship than David Crowder at the moment. It is not about the man or the band, it's about what God is speaking to all of us personally who make up the church and what voices around us are confirming that message. David Crowder's song NEVER LET GO is impacting a generation at the moment, as well as several other songs from his current cd. He is more than a musician. He is a minister, a teacher, a voice for this hour of the church... that is challenging people to walk closer to Christ, to be like him, to view the world and the chaos in it thru God's eyes and not their own, to keep their chin up, to look toward heaven for their redemption, watching, waiting and never giving up.

The moshing, the extreme expression, everything that seems outrageous on the outside is a release of the tensions swirling around this generation. Sometimes we just need to scream, like a pressure cooker, to let it all out. God has given us permission to express ourselves, he made us emotional creatures, with a keen ability to feel... not just love and flowers, but anger and frustration at the injustice around us. We all see the consequences of sin increasing exponentially from our parents generation to ours to this one. They face a much darker world than we did at their age, and there is connection of the internal and the outward expression.

What we need to do as God-ordained mentors is to be that gentle voice reminding them to keep Christ at the center of their being and their perspective. We live it, we make it available, but it is God that convicts and convinces them to embrace it and own it.

The biggest message/challenge I see for this generation is SELF-CONTROL. Not just teens but in every generation of the church merging in this hour. We have come from an era of prosperity and are entering an era of difficulty. The challenge is to maintain Godly character in the face of disappointment and loss. Satan may temporarily rob us in the physical, but the question is whether we allow him to rob us of our joy in the spiritual/in our hearts. Perspective.... how we view it... how this generation views it... if all of it is measured to the promises of God and the prophecies of his word, a peace and power emerges. But it still remains a choice, a need for self-discipline, restraint, a rejection of haste... to be constantly conversing with God in all that we do, big and small.

I see this generation hungry for that kind of relationship with Him.
And I see key voices in worship/music that are moving them in that direction. Not just music that sounds holy, but music that can seem abrasive. It is the violent that take the Kingdom by force, passivity and harp-playing churchiness stamped on something doesn't make it God's will. Jesus was a controversial speaker, a kind shepherd, emotional at times, angry at times, expressive at times... but always acting with self-control and never losing site of the will of God in everything he said and did.

That's the model for every generation.
And each person in every generation must make daily choices in the matter.
I love the teens of this generation. They are gutsier than any before.
As bad as some choose to be without Christ,
there are Godly teens that are outrageous in their commitment to Christ!
Talk about rawkin the world... this is the generation of the church that is doing it. The music is just a reflection of their worship and the challenge placed before them. God is talking thru many voices, and they are listening and ready to act on all that he is saying.

peace
^_^

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Here are some Indie bands I ran across that I like, and a couple of my favy songs by each.
Share some of ur new finds...

20 TON ANGEL, song: POINT YOUR FINGER, hard
http://www.myspace.com/20tonangel

Devine Dayle, song: ORDINARY WORLD, beaut soulful worship
http://www.myspace.com/devinedayle

MANIC DRIVE, song: OBVIOUS, rawk
http://www.myspace.com/manicdrive

all these bands are playing at the
ICHTHUS CHRISTIAN MUSIC FESTIVAL
June 2008, ichthus.org

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The movie EXPELLED was wonderfully directed. It provides excellent insight into the theory of Intelligent Design, as well as the tensions that exist with the self-proclaimed atheistic supporters of Darwins Theories of Evolution and Natural Selection.

It is a serious documentary that effectively reveals the rejection of ID in current scientific and academic circles. But more than that, it takes the viewer through a thought process of where life on earth may have actually begun. It opens the door to several theories, and emphasizes that because all are rooted in theory... world view is the determining factor of what each person embraces as truth.

Those that reject the existence of any God at all... reject the possibility that there may be a God that is actually Creator, though they admit that life may have been seeded on the earth by aliens (a more intelligent life form from somewhere in space).

Those that embrace the possible existence of a God... present evolution and natural selection on a smaller scale as possibilities within the process of the creation of life on earth as we know it. But that there is one master designer and planner that created all things.

There are other theories and various colors of the two main theories, but there is a strong force at work (a very iron-fisted force) that touts Darwinism as absolute fact. Even though the truth of the matter is that it remains as much or more so theory as the rest. There is no clear and valid evidence of the origin of life in the field of scientific study -- not Evolution or Darwin or ID or the Atheistic Camp offers a defined and sure explanation. It is solely dependent upon what a person puts their faith in, what they choose to believe is truth.

The humor of this movie is BRILLIANT. While the facts and dialog remain serious and straight-forward, clips from historic events and old broadcasts are inserted for emphasis... offering a crazy, random humor that appeals to a contemporary audience. Very funny.

The most moving thing for me was the journey and progression of where the rejection of truth and freedom in the areas of science and academia lead... every society, every time, if left unchecked. When men can control and manipulate and intimidate what is truth, there is no freedom of thought, there is no freedom of expression, there is no freedom of religion, there is NO FREEDOM. This is the spirit that we see at work in our nation in this day. This is the world view -- the sterilization of science that has attempted to sterilize all belief in God and to sterilize all people that seek to protect and advance a free society. The sterilization of truth itself.

In the world today, evolution is the poster child that claims there is no God, no one is created in the image of God, every soul on earth was a blob and is destined to return to the nothingness of that blobbie state. Natural Selection is the excuse for a chosen few to determine who is defined as the healthiest blob, most desirable, favored to survive, deserving of life. Therefore, people are of little value unless the powers that be say they are. Only those that the elite rulers declare are worthy have a right or need to live at all.

yes, it becomes a slippery slope to genocide, euthanasia, abortion, sterilization/murder of the crippled and mentally challenged, young, old, black, white, asian, Jew...

sounds so far fetched until you look back a generation to the Nazi death camps, the cleansing of imperfect blobs from society to create beautiful people in a beautiful society. Servants of a tyrant, servants of a utopian society.

World view is the key. We will all serve someone. Creator, Intelligent Designer, Tyrant, An Elitist Society. Everyone is looking for a heaven. One designed by God or one designed by men or by a society. But the truth of the matter is that only one is Right, only one is actually Truth.

However....

Everyone should have the freedom to choose which one they will serve,
No one has the right to force others to serve the one they choose...
No one has the right to silence/remove the other choices.
All have a right to be heard and to have a voice.

Darwinism is theory. ID is just as much a valid scientific possibility as evolution.
Both have a right to be heard.
Neither should be EXPELLED from scientific thought.

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(4-18-2008)

EXPELLED opens tonight in theaters!!!

I encourage every parent to buy the ticket for their teen and any of their teen's friends that they can afford to sponsor and send them to this movie. Not just teens but college students. Call your teen today and tell them to grab a friend and go... your treat. This movie is that important. We as parents cannot miss this open door to speak Truth into the lives of the next generation. The arts, the media are a key instrument in speaking into their lives. Here is a chance to remind them that while Darwin was brilliant, evolution remains pure theory. We must put Truth out on the table that there is another possibility.

We cannot miss this opportunity.

Not just teens but college students. Treat them to this movie, buy the tickets and hand them off to them. When they hear it's Ben Stein, they'll go. And attending on opening weekend will encourage future media to be a voice of Truth concerning such issues.

If you don't have a teen or college student of your own, then send someone elses. Buy the tickets and give them to some teens or twenty somethings that you know from church or work or something. Someone working at the coffee shop or waiting on your table.

I encourage every person concerned about the future generation to go to this movie and treat as many young adults to it as possible.

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(4-14-2008)

Definitely going to see EXPELLED in theatres!!! The teens and college peeps I know love Ben Stein, so I'll likely have lots of company.

I saw an interview with him on FOX NEWS today about the movie.
It was followed by an interview about the pope's visit to the US and some statistics of the interest of this generation concerning a commitment/passion about God. I agree. I have seen a spiritual void as the govt has allowed special interest groups to strip our society of its Christian heritage and freedoms, and I have seen a generation come of age that is more focused about protecting that Godly heritage than mine was.

I think this movie was ordained by God and will open alot of eyes concerning many things.
Ironically my husband just gave me a new worship cd that we subscribe to and the title is WAKE UP! I am so proud of this generation for answering the call, and I'm so glad that my generation is partnering with people like Ben Stein who have determined to at least put the Truth out there. I have no doubt that if we put it out there, teens and college peeps will search it out with tremendous integrity and character because I see them asking God about stuff for themselves. There's a sifting and a sorting going on.

My generation was taken by surprise by the assault on Truth, and the God of Truth.
But this generation is savvy and sharp and can do intellectual/spiritual battle like nothing I have ever seen. They are returning to the word of God with a passion and a zeal that has only been talked about in times past. Not taking the word of pastors and people, but weighing it all and asking God for themselves. They seem sick of being spoon fed spiritual junk food, and they are craving the meat of all that matters. They are truly anointed and raised up for such a time as this. I love this generation!

sorry, got a little carried away there....

but wow, I'm very excited about this movie and the Godly voices I am hearing at every turn and in every venue of the world. God is saying something. He always is... but this generation is actually listening and hearing and doing stuff on a level that's never been done!!! There may be difficult days ahead for the Church, but there are guaranteed glorious ones that will overshadow all in the name of Christ. I'm not worried about the next generation of the Church so much anymore, cuz I'm seeing them put their hand in the hand of God and asking him to lead them in the big and the small.

Miracles are coming thru this generation.
The mustard seed has grown and bloomed and is full of branches.
Their faith in Christ is strong and getting stronger every day!

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Go to http://www.myspace.com/ayieshawoods
and listen to the song called DAYS

DAYS by Ayiesha Woods

Ever had a day
When you're on such a spiritual high
When you're feeling strong cause you've got all of heaven on your side
Ever had a day
When your confidence is high
And you feel like nothing can make you fall or even compromise

But what about those days
When you're not feeling so strong
And you cry ‘cause you don't know what to do feeling like you're all alone

What about those times when
When so much is on your mind
And everything you've tried to forget
You just can't seem to leave behind

Don't you wish that every day was an easy day
And there was nothing that you couldn't do
But if every day was an easy day
You'd never be able to say that Jesus brought you through

Ever had a day
When tomorrow didn't count
And you were caught in the moment
On cloud nine without a doubt
Ever had a day
When you knew yesterday was gone
And there was nothing that even mattered 'cause you already knew you won

But what about those days
When you just don't understand
And just when you're getting up it seems you're falling down again
What about those times
When it's not so easy to believe
When doubt causes you to only go by what you see

Don't you wish that every day was an easy day
And there was nothing that you couldn't do
But if every day was an easy day
You'd never be able to say that Jesus brought you through

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