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In this section will be other writings that may interest the reader.  Most of my writings are of a biblical nature.  These articles are absolutely free of charge.  Any questions can be addressed in the questions/contact section.  Enjoy!

 

Name of Articles:  {1} Losing Your Joy  {2} Can a person lose his/her salvation?  {3} Prosperity  {4} Politically Incorrect {5} Can you relate?

Losing Your Joy! This is a subject in which I am definitely an expert. Telling my story in this area may help others understand what they are going through. Anyone that belongs to the Lord must go through many trials. If you are chosen by the Lord to do a special work, your trials are more extreme. This is to prepare you for the task that the Lord has set before you. As you go through these trials, there will be many times that you will tell the Lord to “forget it”. These trials get pretty hard. You will want to quit over and over again but nobody can tell you how. You will be forced into situations that you do not like and you will feel totally helpless. You will be isolated from the one’s that love you the most. You will have to deal with emotions that are buried deep and you have to do this all “ALONE”. Once you start down this path, there is no turning back. You can’t quit as much as you would like too. Once the Lord starts a work in you, He always finishes it. The Lord knows you better than you do. He knows your likes and dislikes. He knows what buttons to push that makes you angry. He knows all of your fears and He will purposely expose all of these fears, dislikes, and angers. You will wonder what in the world is going on. But! There is a reason behind making you face everything that you despise. You are being purged! You are in the middle of the fiery furnace! You are being purified for His specific purpose. Depending on His purpose, some will go through short periods of this purging and others will think “Will this ever end?” I am one of those that ask “Will this ever end?” During these fiery trials you will be forced, against your will, to face the real you! Nobody wants to be forced to do something against their will!!! This is the Lord’s way of making you humble, which is required to do His work. You will not like what you see as the trial progresses. You will get in self denial. I’m not like that! That’s not the real me! Believe me, the sooner you face the facts, the sooner it will be over with. You are not who you perceive yourself to be. We all hide things deep within ourselves so that others cannot see them. Going through the Lord’s purging will bring all of these hidden things to the surface and He will make you face them one by one. There can be nothing in your life left that can hinder the work the Lord has called you to do. All will be exposed! It is going to hurt! Your loved ones will think something is wrong with you and will think that you will need some kind of mental help. There is nothing any man or woman can do because it is the Lord doing His purpose. During the worst of this purging, you will lose your Joy. It is impossible to have fun or be happy about anything. The Lord will allow the spirit of sorrow to torment you day and night. You will feel like you are losing your mind. This is all a part of the purging process. Paul had a demonic spirit follow him wherever he went and the Lord allowed it. Why? To keep him humble. If you have a strong will, the Lord will break it! That’s not the worst of it. During most of this time, The Lord remains silent! You will pray and pray and pray. You will get no answers. It will seem the Lord has forsaken you and you will continually ask what you have done, with no answer! You will feel that you are totally alone in this world even when you are surrounded by other people and even your family. During this time of trial, you are open for attack by many demonic spirits. Thoughts will fill your mind that are not your thoughts. You will want to forget the trial you are going through by focusing on other things but the spirits will not let you forget about your sorrow you are presently going through. They will keep planting thoughts into your mind that are not your thoughts. You will be bombarded with thoughts designed to confuse and deceive you. They are very good at what they do. Those that are close to you and love you will see a change but will not be able to put their finger on what is wrong. You will perceive that nothing is wrong with you at all. It is every one else! That is the way deception works. During this period of time, things you used to enjoy doing will totally escape you. You will try to enjoy things but the joy is just not there. Each one of us has a cup , for lack of a better word, within us. In that cup we store the things that we enjoy. Let’s say you have a cup of marbles. Each marble represents something you enjoy. You have a love of music marble, a fishing marble, a child marble, and even a romantic marble. During this purging process, the Lord allows the spirit of sorrow to steal your marbles one by one until your cup is empty. You will still have the memories of your joy and at times fight back hard enough to retrieve some of your marbles back. But, it is only for a short period of time and then sorrow will sneak back in and steal your marbles back. How he steals your marbles is through other people! You will be forced into unwanted circumstances that allows other people to steal your joy. No matter how hard you fight it, the past circumstances always comes back to haunt you. They keep returning because sorrow knows that he can steal your joy by causing you to relive these trials over and over again. You soon get into bitterness because there is no joy in your life. You will become depressed, angry, and negative about everything because you have no joy! Those that love you will recognize the change but are at a loss of what to do about it. No matter how hard they try to cheer you up, they will find no way of pulling you out of your depression. Why would the Lord let this happen to one of His own? To be chosen by the Lord is an extreme honor. But! With it comes a lot of sacrifice. As a chosen of the Lord, you must partake of the sufferings that He went through. No man is greater than his master. If Christ suffered, so must those that He has chosen. Paul was one of the Lord’s chosen and he suffered tremendously. Paul was given deep revelations from the Lord and went through many severe trials because of these revelations. He was broken to the point that He walked totally in the Lord’s will and not his own will. He trusted and gave his entire will over to the Lord. He was made humble. And to make sure he stayed humble, a spirit followed him everywhere he went. The Lord causes His chosen to lose all of their joy to bring the things out that they have buried deep. He causes them to take a good look who they really are. Some do not realize that the Lord is doing a work in them and turn from Him totally. At least try too! This makes matters even worse. What we all have to realize is that we are supposed to progressively be more like Christ. To be more like Christ we have to endure sufferings just as He did. Let’s now go to the scriptures and they will explain further. Jer. 33:11 “The voice of Joy and the voice of gladness…” Joy and Gladness have a voice! To have a voice means that they must have a mouth and are able to speak. Joy and Gladness are spirits of the Lord. This Joy is not the same joy that is within us that can be stolen. This is the Joy of the Lord. Joy and Gladness is given to those that are chosen. Ecc. 2: 26 “For God giveth to a man that is good in His sight Wisdom, Knowledge, and Joy.” Joy is given to the Lord’s chosen just like He gives the spirit of Wisdom and Knowledge. Ps. 51:8 “Make me hear Joy and Gladness.” David was aware that these two spirits of the Lord existed and wanted very much to hear from them. His life as king was not an easy life to live and it was very easy to lose his joy because of his daily activity of ruling a rebellious people. He requested the Joy and Gladness of the Lord to prevent his joy from being stolen. Heb. 12:2 “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the Joy that was set before Him, endured the cross.” He endured the cross for what? For the Joy set before Him! The reason Jesus endured the cross was that He saw the Joy He would receive. It would have been harder to endure the cross if He had not seen the Joy that He would receive because of His sacrifice. Now comes the reason of the severe fiery trial the chosen go through. John 16:21 “A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man child is born into the world.” We go through these trials to give birth! As soon as we receive deliverance from these trials, the memory of the trials will disappear and we will receive the Joy of the Lord! We will be a new creature that has just been born! Now to the next verse. John 16:22 “And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again and your heart shall rejoice and your joy no man taketh away from you.” The Lord knows that through these trials you have the spirit of sorrow. But! He will once again return to you after you have went through the purging process and give you the Joy of the Lord. When you receive His Joy, Nobody will ever be able to take it from you again. You will never lose your joy again because the Lord’s spirit of Joy will fill your cup full. John 15:11 “These things I have spoken unto you that My Joy might remain in you that your joy might be full.” When you are given the Joy of the Lord, It will fill your cup of joy to the brim. Without any joy in your life, life becomes unbearable. John 16:20 “I say unto you, that ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into Joy.” As you are going through these trials you will be sorrowful while the rest of the world is laughing and having a good old time. You will not know what in the world is going on. You will think, “Here I am trying my best to serve the Lord. All hell has come against me. All I can do is weep and I have no fun anymore. I enjoy nothing. And those that do not serve the Lord are having the time of their life! What is wrong with this picture?” You are about to give birth! You are about to receive deliverance! You are about to become a new man born into this world! You are about to receive the Joy of the Lord in which nobody nor any demonic spirit can ever steal from you! You will no longer be weak, sorrowful, grievous, nor depressed. Why? Because the Joy of the Lord will remain in you and cannot be removed and that the Joy of the Lord will give you strength. Ne. 8:10 “…the Joy of the Lord is your strength.” Our strength IS the Joy of the Lord. Without the Joy of the Lord, we are weak and we stumble over and over again. We have to do something to receive the Joy of the Lord. We have to be purged and to be faithful to the Lord even while going through these tough times. Matt. 25:21 “His lord said unto him, well done thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things. I will make thou ruler over many things: enter thou into the Joy of the Lord.” You must be faithful even through the purging to receive the Joy of the Lord. You must earn His Joy. You must seek His Joy. All of the tears, anguish, and pain will be gone forever when you receive the Joy of the Lord. It is sometimes painful to go through these trials but your tears will reap a great harvest. Ps. 126:5 “They that sow in tears shall reap in Joy.” Your tears are soon to be gone and your harvest will be the Joy of the Lord. Is sorrow in your life? Are you grief stricken? Sorrow is about to flee! Isa. 35:10 “And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting Joy upon their heads: they shall obtain Joy and Gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” Everlasting Joy!!! No more sorrow!!! It is going to be great! Living with sorrow is pure misery. You feel defeated. You lose all hope of anything changing for the better. Depression keeps you totally down with nothing to look forward too. All hope is lost. Once you receive the Joy of the Lord, you will abound in hope and once again look unto the future. Ro. 15:13 “Now the God of hope fill you with all Joy and Peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the Power of the Holy Ghost.” Feeling down? Is the devil throwing everything at you including the kitchen sink? Be patient! You are part of the privileged few that are chosen to do a special work for our Lord Jesus Christ. You are being purged! There can be nothing within you left that can hinder the work set before you. You must totally surrender your will to the Lord’s Will. That is the main purpose of the purging…to remove any pride and arrogancy that may be buried deep within you. He will only use those that have surrendered their entire being to Him. He will only use those who have surrendered their will and have become humble. The Lord’s purging is definitely a humbling experience. But the result is Joy that is beyond measure.

Before I reveal the scriptures that substantiate the fact that you cannot lose your salvation, I want to show the one passage that some use to supposedly prove that you can! Hebrews 6:4-6 “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come. If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame." If they shall fall away is a hypothetical situation. The usage here is circumstantial as a condition. This is not an actual falling away. Notice the big if in the statement. “They crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh” is in reference to the crucifixion of Christ and makes one, who could accept all that God has to offer and then throw it away and go back to the former condition, equal to the ones who crucified Him, unjustly, in the first place. Some things cannot be repeated, an old man cannot return to his mother's womb and be born again in the natural sense. Also, one who has been killed and is definitely dead cannot be killed again, for instance Jesus cannot die again. The word afresh comes from the Greek word meaning to re-crucify. Since, it is impossible to re-kill Jesus; this passage is clearly identified as being hypothetical (what if). When you are saved, God does a blood transfusion and you become a new person, a new creature; you cannot keep becoming a new person, a new creature every so often. It is a once-in-a-lifetime happening and God plays for keeps. So, the falling away is hypothetical, since it can't happen. Jesus died once for the remission of our sins, and once is enough! This passage is being told to immature Christians, that aren't growing properly. They still require milk when they should be teachers of God's word. These people were unsure of their salvation and felt the need to be saved over and over again. Assurance of salvation is subjective, depending upon the believer's acceptance of God's promise. Although a believer's spiritual life is secure, he may not think or feel that it is so; thus the need to continually re-examine the spiritual condition for assurance. This lack of faith, leads to our growth being stunted by our insecurities. The first passage you need to see concerning your salvation is: John 17:12 “While I was with them in the world, I kept them in my name: Those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scriptures might be fulfilled.” John 18:9 “That the saying might be fulfilled, which he spake, of them which thou gavest me have I lost none.” These two passages state that Jesus never lost one that was His except for Judas, who was the one that would betray Jesus to fulfill prophesy. In other words, Jesus has never lost anyone that belongs to Him! Out of every person that has received Jesus as their Savior, none have turned from Him and was lost! Jesus’ blood cleanses each believer from his or her sins. When one accepts Christ as their personal Savior, he or she receives a drop of His blood. This drop of blood cleanses the new believers entire being and they become a new creature. 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things become new.” Once a person becomes a new creature, the Lord is not going to return that person to his or her former state. The Lord is the author and finisher of each believer’s faith. Once He begins a work in someone, He will always finish it! Galatians 6:17 “From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.” renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: “ This is not the reformation or renovation of the old man. This is the product of the new birth and results in a new creation, for if one is in Christ and Christ is in him, he is a new creature. Notice that the marks that the Lord took upon Himself are now resident in the believer’s body. The believer becomes His and nothing and nobody can change that fact. He paid the price with His own blood! Ephesians 1:7 “In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;” Believers have redemption through his blood. If a person has been redeemed {delivered} from his or her former state, The Lord is not going to return that person to his or her former state. Through the blood of Jesus, we are known to God, not just spiritually, but fleshly, as well. We even bear God’s seal! I Corinthians 1:22 “Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.” The Godhead is made up of three parts, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The third part of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit has a three-fold purpose to those who are sealed to God: (1) to indicate ownership, (2) to indicate genuineness, and (3) to preserve and keep us safe. When a believer becomes “sealed”, they cannot become unsealed! Once a person belongs to the Lord, it is forever. You are now wondering what will happen if you mess up after you become saved! I Corinthians 3:13 “Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.” There is a time coming when a man's work will be openly displayed for what it is. This time is given in the words “the day.” This is the day of the Judgment Seat of Christ. I Corinthians 3:15 “If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” Even though a person’s work was not what the Lord required of him or her, the person will still be saved. The Lord does not remove His cleansing blood from anyone that has received Him. There is not one person on earth that has reached the mark and never makes a mistake. Many believe that a person can still sin after they become saved. I John 5:1 “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.” I John 3:9 “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin: for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.” When you confess that Jesus is the Messiah, you receive His blood (seed) and can no longer sin. Think about it! Jesus’ blood cleanses each believer from sin. If His blood remains in the believer like it states in these passages, how could it be possible for that person to commit a sin? They Can’t! When a saved person commits a transgression against God’s laws after they receive Christ as their Savior, that person commits iniquity! Iniquity and sin have the same meaning, but are different in the way they are used. Sin is transgressing God’s laws before one knows or receives Jesus as their personal Savior. These people are doomed to eternal torment. Iniquity is transgressing God’s laws after one has become saved! A believer can no longer sin after becoming saved, but can still commit iniquity. They are still saved, but their works are in vain and will be burned. Their rewards in the afterlife will suffer because of iniquity. Sinners, at Judgment Day, will be judged by the law. The saved, who commit iniquity, will be judged by their works by what kind they were. About now, another question arises! How can a person eliminate iniquity? Romans 4:7 “Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered”. The blood of Jesus covers sins. How can iniquities be forgiven? There has to be a way because of what this passage states. Those whose sins are covered and iniquities are forgiven are blessed! James 2:12 “So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.” What is this law of liberty? Who are those that will be judged by this law? John 3:3 “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, Verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God”. John 3:5 “ Jesus answered, Verily, Verily, I say unto thee Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God”. Most believe this means to be baptized in water! That is not what our Lord meant. Now read the next verse, John 3:6 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit.” When a baby is in the mother’s womb, it is in water, What Jesus is saying here is that to enter the kingdom of heaven you first have to be born with a fleshly body and be reborn in the spirit by receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Jesus did not baptize with water! He came to baptize with the Holy Spirit. Not only do you have to be saved, but you also have to be born of the Spirit. When you become saved, you are born of God and are a servant. When you are born-again your iniquities are covered and you become the begotten of God [a son]. The following verse will explain further. 1 John 5:18 “We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not”. Jesus is the only begotten Son of God. When you receive the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead [Holy Spirit], you also become a son of God and are begotten, Where the Holy Spirit is, there is liberty. Only a son or daughter can have liberty. Your sons and daughters have liberties that they may take that a stranger can’t. Why? Because they are family! James 1:25 “But, whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty. And continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” “The forgetful hearer” is the saved that are still in their iniquities. The “doers” are the born-again believers that are blessed because their iniquities are covered as well as their sins. Sinners are judged by the Law, the saved are judged by their works, and the born-again are judged by the law of Liberty. What is it called when a born-again believer transgresses God’s law? James 5:16 “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another that ye may be healed……………” Notice, that nowhere does it say to confess your sins! James assumes here that the audience he is addressing are all born-again believers. He knows they cannot sin or commit iniquity. The law of liberty shields the born-again believer from sin and iniquity but not from faults. Many churches substitute the word “fault” with the word “sin”. Sin means to transgress God’s laws while fault means to miss the mark! They do not mean the same thing! A born-again believer has become a son of God and is a member of God’s family. This son of God has been forgiven of all iniquity and his or her sins are covered by the blood of Jesus. He or she is blessed at this point because they are guaranteed a place in heaven. They have been sealed by the Holy Spirit of God. They cannot lose their place in the family of God just as the saved cannot lose their salvation. Are you saying that as a born-again believer, I can do anything I want? As a son or daughter of God, you will not want to transgress God because you are being led by the Spirit of God! What exactly does “Liberty” mean? In Greek, the word liberty is “eleutheros” which means unrestrained [to do or go at pleasure] as a citizen and not as a slave, exempt from liability. Another Greek word for liberty is “exousia” which means authority, power, right, lawful, freedom, and privilege. So, Liberty means that you have the authority and lawful right to do anything you feel the need to do without fear of being chastised because you are exempt from any liability. It is kind of like diplomatic immunity. When you become born of God by receiving Christ as your personal Savior and receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, ALL things become legal for you to do; but, not all things are in your best interest. 1Corinthians 6:12 “All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.” Paul understood that he was under the law of liberty. He understood his position as a member of God’s family and the authority he had. 1Peter 2:15-16 “For it is the will of God, that with well-doing, ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men {16} As free, and not using your liberty as a cloak of maliciousness, but as servants of God”. This passage states that it is permissible to use a believer’s liberty and knowledge of God’s Word to shut the mouths of ignorant people as long as they are not using their liberty to deliberately hurt someone else. Always use liberty for Gods’ Kingdom. Galatians 5:13 “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another”. Having liberty does not mean that a son of God may deliberately get in the flesh whenever he or she feels like it. When a person makes a mistake, he or she is covered by the law of Liberty. How does one know if you have this liberty in Christ? 2 Corinthians 3:17 “… and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” If a person is saved and born-again, then, he or she has the liberty in Christ. Those who have received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit have this liberty in Christ. Even though liberty allows one to do all things, the believer must be careful how he or she uses it. In conclusion: the saved person cannot lose his or her salvation just as a born-again believer cannot lose his or her place in the family of God! Written by H. Michael Carr

There is a false assumption in the traditional church today that God wants all of His people to be rich! Many of the churches believe that being wealthy is a sign of God’s favor. This may be so in some cases, but I have not found any scripture that states that God wants all of His people to be wealthy! I have found scriptures that states that God wants all of His people to be rich in the things of Him! Too often, the wealthy in the churches put their fellow brothers in Christ under condemnation that are not wealthy. They accuse them of doing something wrong. I have personally heard these words and I quote, “If you were tithing properly you would be more prosperous.” or, “You have to be doing something wrong or you would be more prosperous.” God does not measure wealth be the size of your bank account! It is true that God has at times blessed some with an abundance of wealth such as Abraham, Isaac, Solomon, and Job. This does not mean, however, that poverty is a sign of God’s disfavor! There are many Godly men today that have been blessed with wealth. But, just as the aforementioned men, they are blessed because they have been chosen to do a special work of God that will reach around the entire world! The Lord does not have anything against His people prospering financially, but He did not promise financial wealth. Php 4:19 “But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in Glory.” His promise is to supply your need: not your wants! And according to what? His riches in Glory! Not His riches of the world. The riches He wants us to have are not of this world. It is God, through His spirit of Wisdom, who decides who should prosper and how much! He supplies everyone’s needs and at times their wants. The prosperity that the Lord is talking about is not filthy lucre or unrighteous mammon, which in our terms is money. He is talking about prospering in the things from above! 3 John 1:2 “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” The key here is as your soul prospers. Your soul prospers at the gaining of more wisdom, understanding, and knowledge of the Lord. Money has nothing to do with it! As your soul prospers, you will gain good health and prosper financially. The most important thing is that your soul prospers. The rich do not realize that their wealth is a burden around their neck. If they are not careful, their wealth will choke them to death! Luke 8:14 “And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life and bring no fruit to perfection.” Christians are the focus here. They have heard the Word of God and received Christ, but never bear any spiritual fruit because of riches and pleasures of this life. I am not saying that rich Christians never bear any fruit! I am saying that it is extremely difficult for a rich Christian to bear fruit because of the cares of this world. They tend to trust in their wealth and put their pleasures ahead of the things of God. Their riches become a trap! 1 Ti. 6:9 “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare…” The reason why the rich easily fall into a snare and are easily tempted is that they are trying to serve two masters. This is an impossible task to perform. Matt. 6:24 “no man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” It is very difficult for a rich Christian to effectively serve God because of their riches. They do not realize this and will deny that they are in the snare. If they are not in the snare, then why don’t they help their brothers in Christ that are poor and struggling tremendously? Why do they accuse the poor instead of helping? If they truly are serving God, they would not hesitate in giving of their wealth to their poor brothers and sisters in Christ! Is this happening? No! I am sure that there are some that help the poor, but the majority hoard their wealth and look down at the poor. The Church is guilty of this also! The purpose of tithing is to bring money into the house of God so that there will be money to help the less fortunate and the needy and also to provide for the pastors. The Pastors are well provided for, but what about the needy in the church? Too often, the tithe money is used to get better sound systems, improve the parking lot, add on to the existing building, etc. Riches are a huge temptation and no matter how hard you try to do what is right, you will fall into a snare because of the riches. Mark 10:23 “And Jesus looked around about, and saith unto His disciples, how hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God.” It is very difficult for a rich man or woman to enter into heaven because they trust in their wealth more than they trust in God. They serve mammon more than they serve God! 1 Ti. 6:17 “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches…” The wealth of the rich is an uncertainty. They could lose all that they have in an instant! What will happen to their wealth if the world economy totally collapsed? They could become poor overnight! Where is their trust then? A poor Christian rich in faith can never lose his/her riches because Jesus said that he would never leave nor forsake them. On the other hand, the rich that trust in their wealth can lose everything! Too many rich Christians are highminded and look down on the poor in Christ. They believe that God has shown them favor and the poor disfavor. They have deceived themselves into believing that they are doing everything right and the poor are doing something wrong! Let’s see what the Lord says to these rich Christians that believe this! Rev. 3:17 “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and Knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked…” How can the rich be poor? Because they trust in their wealth and are poor in faith! They do not realize that their life does not consist of only the abundance of material things! There is more to life than just things! Luke 12:15 “…take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” Possessions are not what life is all about. Receiving the riches that are stored in heaven is what life is all about. The possessions of this world will deteriorate and pass away. The things of heaven will remain intact throughout eternity. Luke 6:24 “But woe unto you that are rich! For ye have received your consolation.” James 5:1 “Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you [2] your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.” James 2:6 “But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seat?” The poor are continuously oppressed by the rich, including rich Christians. They are easy prey because they do not have the funds to protect themselves from the rich. The poor are always being taken to court because they are poor and the rich take from them even more. This is oppression folks! A very good example is the medical field in America today. If you are wealthy and need treatment at a hospital, you are given special treatment. If you are wealthy, the hospital will knock up to 50 percent off of the bill if you can pay cash, even though you have insurance that would cover the costs. But! If you are poor and cannot afford insurance, you are forced to pay the inflated full amount of the bill, plus you will be taken to court continuously for being even one day late on a payment that you can’t afford anyway! Then you have to pay court costs, lawyers fees, and interest payments on top of what you already owe. This is oppression folks! The rich oppressing the poor! Yes, this is in the secular section of the country. But! Isn’t it the churches responsibility to provide for the poor, fatherless, and the widows? Isn’t this a Christian nation? Was not this nation founded on the principles, precepts, and doctrines of our Lord Jesus Christ? Are we not supposed to attain to be more like Christ? Then why are rich Christians and the Church itself so selfish as to let these things go unattended? Jer. 5:28 “ They are waxen fat, they shine, yea they overpass the deeds of the wicked. They judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper, and the right of the needy do they not judge.” This is talking about the people of God! They are just as bad as the wicked, if not worse. They continue to get richer and could care less about the needy or the fatherless. Sound familiar? This is the Church today! Mad at me yet? These are not my words! Pastors better take heed also! Jer. 10:21 “ For the pastors are become brutish, and have not sought the Lord: therefore they shall not prosper, and all their flocks shall be scattered.” Just as the pastors of that time failed to seek the Lord, so has the pastors failed to seek the Lord today. Self-righteous pastors that have not sought the Lord will soon have their wealth taken from them by the Lord Himself! Their congregations will be scattered with no shepherd to lead them. Some Pastors have not done what the Lord requires of them. When the Lord allows pastors to prosper financially, He expects them to use the finances to help others. Luke 12:48 “…for unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required…” The Lord requires a lot from those He gives much! If Pastors are given wealth, the Lord expects them to use that wealth to further His kingdom and to help the fatherless, widows and the poor. If the Lord prospers a person in the things of Him, He expects that person to share with others what He has given that person. I have heard many a wealthy person say that they wanted God to use them, but were disappointed when He did not. They could not understand why the Lord was using us and not them! After all…we were just poor folk that was doing something wrong! James 2:5 “hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which He hath promised to them that love Him?” Where does it say in the Word of God that He chooses the rich? He doesn’t choose the rich because their priorities are split between their wealth and the pleasures of this life with that of their faith in Him. It is easier for the poor to look to the Lord because of their lack of substance. The rich tend to become complacent and to comfortable where they are. The poor are in a struggle continuously. What does the Lord think about the poor rich in faith? Rev. 2:9 “I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, [but thou art rich]…? In God’s eyes, the poor, rich in faith, are rich and the wealthy, rich in the things of this world are actually poor! The reason the rich are considered poor is because they have not been faithful by using their wealth to do good. Luke 16:11 “If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?” The reason the Lord will not answer the wealthy peoples prayer to use them is because they have not been faithful in using their wealth to help the poor, fatherless, and the widows! They have not been faithful with what the Lord has allowed them to have! For this cause the Lord has… Luke 1:23 “He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He hath sent away empty.” The Lord does speak to those that are rich, but they tend to ignore the Lord’s voice. Jer. 22:21 “I spake unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou saidest, I will not hear. This has been thy manner from thy youth, that thou obeyest not My voice.” So! Is riches of this world a good thing? Not from the scriptures that the Lord has shown me! To those that are poor and struggling I leave you with this one passage of comfort… Ps.37:7 “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way…”

There is something I do not understand about the new hate crime bill going before congress. I wish someone could explain to me why it is considered “hate” to try and save someone’s life? If you shared information that you had to a group of people that saved their lives, does that mean you hate those people? Withholding information that caused the deaths of many people, I would consider a “Hate” crime. Mankind’s ignorance of spiritual matters has caused the words “hate” and “love” to become completely twisted in meaning. To save someone from death is HATE! To let someone perish is LOVE! This makes no sense to me whatsoever. The ACLU and other groups are trying to silence the Christian community by forbidding the Christians to teach what the Word of God says about homosexuality and lesbianism. Do they want the Gay community to enter eternal torment? The Christian community does not hate the Gay community! On the contrary, the Christian community loves the Gay community and is trying to help save them by teaching them the truth! If the Christian community hated the Gay community, they would just keep silent and let the Gay community perish! Not wanting people to enter into eternal torment is a hate crime? God wants “ALL” to come to the knowledge of Him and become saved from eternal death. He wants none to perish! Forbidding Christians from teaching the truth is condemning millions of people to eternal death. Is that what the ACLU and other such groups’ want? Most people do not understand that there are many spirits at work in everyone’s life. There is a spirit behind the scene that causes people to sin. The Christian community is supposed to separate the person and the sin. We are to hate the sin that is being caused by an evil spirit and at the same time, Love the person! Showing a person that they are transgressing the laws of God is showing love to the person; not hate. The ACLU and the other groups would have the whole world believe that the Christian community is nothing but a bunch of hate mongers, which is far from the truth. If the ACLU and the other groups truly cared about the Gay community, they would offer both sides of the coin! They would want the Gay community to have a CHOICE! We all have the freedom to choose our course in life. How is it fair to a group of people to deny them the knowledge of another path in life to choose from? This is what the ACLU and the other groups are trying to do by silencing the Christian community. This tells me that there is more at work here than meets the eye. If God were behind the ACLU and friends, the Gay community would be offered an alternate path. Since this is not the case, the opposite must be true. The Gay community is being grossly deceived by the Christian’s archenemy, Satan! There is another way! There is a way to leave eternal death and enter into eternal life. The way is through Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God! By H. Michael Carr

This article was actually an e-mail sent to me by a dear friend. The author of this article is unknown. One day awhile back, a man, his heart heavy with grief, was walking in the woods. As he thought about his life this day, he knew many things were not right. He thought about those who had lied about him back when he had a job. His thoughts turned to those who had stolen his things and cheated him. He remembered loved ones that had passed on. His mind turned to the illness he had that no one could cure. His very soul was filled with anger, resentment and frustration. Standing there this day, searching for answers he could not find, knowing all else had failed him, he knelt at the base of an old oak tree to seek the one he knew would always be there. And with tears in his eyes, he prayed: “ Lord- You have done wonderful things for me in this life. You have told me to do many things for you, and I happily obeyed. Today you have told me to forgive. I am sad, Lord, because I cannot. I don’t know how. It’s not fair Lord. I didn’t deserve these wrongs that were done against me and I shouldn’t have to forgive. As perfect as your way is Lord, this one thing I cannot do, for I don’t know how to forgive. My anger is deep Lord, I fear I may not hear you, but I pray that you teach me to do this one thing I cannot do - Teach Me To Forgive.” As he knelt there in the quiet shade of that old oak tree, he felt something fall onto his shoulder. He opened his eyes. Out of the corner of one eye, he saw something red on his shirt. He could not turn to see what it was because where the oak tree had been was a large piece of wood in the ground. He raised his head and saw two feet held to the wood with a large spike through them. He raised his head more, and tears came to his eyes as he saw Jesus hanging on the cross. He saw spikes in His hands, a gash in His side, a torn and battered body, and deep thorns sunk into His head. Finally he saw the suffering and pain on His precious face. As their eyes met, the man’s tears turned to sobbing, and Jesus began to speak. “ Have you ever told a lie?” He asked? The man answered- “ yes, Lord.” “ Have you ever been given to much change and you kept it?” Jesus asked? And the man answered- “ yes, Lord.” And the man sobbed more and more. “ Have you ever taken something from work that wasn’t yours?” Jesus asked? And the man answered- “ yes, Lord.” “ Have you ever sworn, using My Fathers name in vain?” The man, crying now, answered- “ yes, Lord.” As Jesus asked many more times, “Have you ever?” The man’s crying became uncontrollable, for he could only answer- “yes, Lord.” Then Jesus turned His head from one side to the other, and the man felt something fall on his other shoulder. He looked and saw that it was the blood of Jesus. When he looked back up, his eyes met those of Jesus, and there was a look of love the man had never seen or known before. Jesus said, “I didn’t deserve this either, but I forgive you.” It may be hard to see how you are going to get through something, but when you look back on life, you realize how true this statement is. Read the following statement slowly and let it sink in. If God brings you to it - He will bring you through it. When Jesus died on the cross, He was thinking of you!